Author's Note

Hey, everyone! I hope you've enjoyed the story so far! I got a couple of comments that were upset with me for killing off Starlight. Trust me, it wasn't an easy decision, and I did not do it out of spite for the character. I just needed her to represent something in this chapter, and I felt like having her character die the way she did would help with that. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

The Force of Friendship

Twilight looked at the broken body in front of her, trying to piece together everything that had occurred in the past fifteen minutes of her life. In that time, she had been confronted by Equestria’s biggest enemy (its own leader), betrayed and attacked by her brother, and she had seen one of her dearest friends sacrifice herself in order to ensure her survival. Her mouth shook with grief and anger as she gazed upon Starlight’s motionless body. She looks so peaceful, she said to herself, so…at ease with everything that happened.

She turned back to her brother. “You…took her away from me!”

“She jumped in front of my horn! I mean, seriously, how idiotic can you get?!”

Twilight gritted her teeth, but instead of leaping at Shining Armor, she began stepping towards him. Her eyes glinted and she felt the power of her friendship with Starlight stirring deep within her. Their spirits seemed intertwined and, even though she was gone, she still felt her calming presence beside her. It urged her forward, and step by step, she obeyed it. The little voice inside her, the one that had brought her to the Town of Friendship in the first place, seemed to emulate Starlight. I am with you, it said, remember everything I taught you about friendship in the past year. You know more than you think, and you’re more powerful than you think. Trust in your heart, and trust in the ponies surrounding you.

“Shining Armor,” she said as tears stung her eyes, “I don’t know why you decided to turn, nor why you’ve become so obsessed with having as much power as possible. I don’t know how you could ever love the monster that’s standing behind you, after all she’s put Equestria through. Me, a prostitute. My friend, Rose Hoof, forced to watch her dreams of becoming an author die in favor of low life secretary work in a dirty brothel. My friend Applejack, driven from her home and forced to wander the forests as her grandmare slowly died. My friend Fluttershy, deemed unworthy of prostitution and forced to work in the dirt away from her beloved home of Cloudsdale. My friend Rainbow Dash, a prostitute herself, forced to give up on her dreams of racing and being a Wonderbolt. My friend Rarity, beaten and torn and forced into harlotry in the dirty streets of Manehattan. My friend Pinkie Pie, driven from her Neighagra Falls home by the regime because of ‘annoyance!’”

What Twilight didn’t notice while she was making her thunderous speech was that, at the mention of each of her friends, they began glowing. Magic filled the cave and swept all of them off their hooves. They floated in the air above Twilight, each feeding her with their friendship and care and she felt their power. She shut her eyes tight and mentally received everything they sent her. Our friendships cannot be broken, no matter what! Starlight’s sacrifice cemented the power of the Elements of Harmony over evil, and I will not allow her death to be in vain! For you, Starlight! For our friendships! FOR EQUESTRIA!

With that internal scream, she opened her eyes to find that they were coated in flame. Her coat burned against her skin, and she found that it felt amazing. She was not scared of the fire that encompassed her. Rather, she embraced it and made it a part of her. She saw in the fire that the very future of friendship hinged on everything she did in that moment, and she allowed the heat to consume her. She felt as though she were being refined by each of her friends at once, and she welcomed it.

When she opened her mouth, fire flew forth and her horn glowed with the most powerful magic she had ever felt. But within the fire, she spoke to her brother, and it was in a tone she never thought she could attain. “Shining Armor,” she said gravely, “you have dishonored our siblingship, and disgraced our family. You have committed murder, rape, and yes, the very acts of treason against the entirety of Equestria. But there are forces at work here which you cannot defeat: the forces of Harmony.”

As she went on, she named the separate Elements, and when she did, each of her five friends shot a special beam into her that only increased her power. “Loyalty, which is represented by my friend Rainbow Dash, who would not leave anypony behind!”

Dash shot a beam, and Twilight felt like she was in the heat of a very bloody battle, fighting hard to defend a fallen soldier. She felt the enemy’s stabs and slashes, but she also felt the knowledge that she had fought to help a friend. She rejoiced in knowing this, before continuing in her call.

“Honesty, which is represented by my friend Applejack, who is always straightforward and helpful with everypony!”

Applejack shot a beam, and Twilight felt the tension of truth and lies. She saw the choice Applejack had to make on a daily basis to be honest, and in so doing, she had lost some of her friends. But being honest with your true friends is more important than lying to keep a false friendship alive, she told herself, those ponies never truly cared for Applejack. They were only in it for themselves.

“Generosity, represented by my friend Rarity, who never once turned away a pony in need! I’ve seen her make so many clothes and blankets for the less fortunate among us, ponies whom were driven from their homes by you, Shining Armor!”

Rarity shot her own beam, and Twilight was whisked away into her fashion obsessed friend’s place. She saw a crowd of beaten and broken ponies coming to her for clothes and shelter, and she never once turned one away. Even if she was out of room in her store, or out of materials, she still found ways to help. She saw the tireless effort put into each new stitch and the great care and love with which Rarity worked. When she came out of her vision, she turned back to Shining.

“Laughter, represented by my friend Pinkie Pie, who works overtime to ensure every pony in our town has a smile covering the canvas of their face!”

Pinkie fired and Twilight was taken back into vision and saw that the pink one’s job was not easy at all. Sometimes, she was confronted by her past and she became extremely depressed. A pony would call her annoying or irritating, and she would turn away with a frown, her puffy mane slowly deflating. But then she would meet a foal or a friendly pony and her personality would perk right back up. You fight through so much, she said to herself, and you deserve so much. I truly treasure our friendship.

“Kindness, represented by my friend Fluttershy, who stops daily to ensure that somepony who looks down or sad is spoken to with kindness and reassurance. She overcomes her fears and timidity with her own brand of soft spoken boldness, and I could not be prouder to call her my friend!”

With that, Twilight was taken into vision for a final time and she saw the world from Fluttershy’s point of view. It seemed as if everypony was out to get her, and she was darting from dark corner to dark corner, trying to escape. But then her friends arrived, and everything became so much brighter. She felt Fluttershy’s kind, gentle spirit washing over her and it soothed her soul. She couldn’t help but smile at the yellow Pegasi’s sweet innocence.

“Then,” Twilight finished, “there’s my Element: The Element of Magic! The Element that brings all the other five together. But what many ponies don’t know is that there is a seventh Element of Harmony, represented by my friend Starlight Glimmer. That Element is Sacrifice. She would have given her life for anypony here, and in my opinion, that is the ultimate test of one’s friendship. I am proud to say she passed with flying colors. I can still feel her spirit with me, guiding me on. You cannot destroy friendship!”

When she said that, she felt her body begin changing. Magic flew over her coat and turned it white for a few seconds. A searing pain shot through her, and she didn’t think she would be able to stand it. But then it died down, and she looked and saw that she no longer floated in the air…but hovered by her own power. “I…I have wings!” She proclaimed.

“How the hay do you have wings?!” Shining demanded, “that’s preposterous! You’ve already got your horn!”

“It’s not preposterous!” Rose Hoof shouted from the side, “Celestia and Luna had wings, too! Twilight is a member of the royal family!”

With that, Twilight closed her eyes elegantly, and with all the powers of those who had come before, and those who surrounded her now, shined the brightest light anypony had ever seen. It washed over the Town, cleansing it of all the evil that had befallen it, and then it burst forth throughout Equestria. It brought hope and peace into the towns and cities, and everypony was greatly inspired by it. It spoke new life into the nation, but most of all, it utterly destroyed Shining Armor, Queen Lilly, and their forces.

“Equestria is safe once again,” Twilight said solemnly after the display, “and we will never return to the debauchery of the regime.”