How My Daughter Saved Equestria

I was broken as I watched my beloved’s beautiful flowing tail disappear into the distance. She was flying so fast that I hardly had time to call out after her. Tears once again toyed with my retinas as she faded further and further off. Be safe, darling, I silently said to her, and return to us…return…to me.

Suddenly, I felt a small tug on my leg. I looked down to see Diamond and Silver standing there. The new siblings looked a little bit guilty for disobeying the directive to stay in their room, but they also looked genuinely concerned. At a time like this, I knew I needed all of the love and support I could get, so I smiled down at them and allowed both foals to scramble onto my back. They tucked themselves in beside my wings and Diamond bent forward to whisper in my ear.

“Daddy?”

“Yes, sweetheart?”

“Where did Mommy go?”

I didn’t know how to answer. Obviously, allowing the young ponies to know just where their mother had gone and with whom she was preparing to do battle was out of the question. It would frighten them to the core, and plant the seeds of nightmares in their heads. But on the other hoof, I couldn’t lie to them. I couldn’t tell them that “Mommy’s gone to the store” or “Mommy’s gone to get her mane done,” or anything like that. They could see the vicious skies burning just as much as I could, and they knew Equestria was in trouble.

I sighed and gently set them on Celestia and Luna’s couch. I took up residence in between them and they cuddled into my coat. I looked down at them and thought of how precious and important they were to me. Their wide eyes that once spoke of wonder and laughter now spoke of a great fear, and I could feel the vibrations of their trembling. Everything rippled up and down my coat, which exacerbated my own nerves, and I wondered just how I was going to answer my beloved filly’s question.

“Well, sweetheart, Mommy’s gone to…try and help everypony.”

That answer was honest and it also masked the blatant brutality their mother was flying into. I smiled to myself as I thought I had successfully dodged the question by not dodging it. But then Silver opened his mouth. “Did she go to fight my old aunt?”

Of course. The colt just had to ask. Now I was cornered, and the two foals looked at me with silent requests for knowledge. Their wordless pleas could be heard from there to Manehattan and back…or at least, that’s what I thought. I sighed as I realized that full disclosure was what the foals deserved, but what I didn’t want to do was bludgeon them with it. So I got up and knelt before them, taking each of their faces with one hoof.

“Listen, you two. First of all, I want to say that there’s no reason to fear. Everything’s gonna be fine.”

“Fine?!” Diamond asked in a sudden panic, “Daddy, how can you say that?! The skies are burning, and Equestria’s on fire! How can you sit there and think that everything’s gonna be fine?! What’s worse, Mommy’s gone to try and beat Dystopia all on her own! You don’t have to say it, I know it! It’s easy to ascertain that kind of knowledge when it’s written all over your face! Why didn’t you go with her? She’ll never be able to beat Dystopia! She’ll die, Daddy! She’s gonna die!”

I suddenly grabbed my filly and looked straight in her small purple eyes. “No!” I said firmly, but calmly, “your mother is NOT going to die, do you hear me?! Your mother is NOT going to die!”

“Yes, she will!” Silver suddenly cried, “I just gained a mother and now I’m gonna lose her!”

The two foals began crying on each other and I was at a loss. I understood their fright and worry, but I also didn’t want them to lose hope. So all I could do was shelter them with my wings and try my best to calm them. “Sh…” I told them, “…I promise you everything will be alright. I know that this entire situation is scary, but I need for the two of you to be strong and brave in the face of it.”

I turned to my new son and wiped the tears off his cheek. “Silver, buddy, I need you to trust me on this. I’m your new Daddy, and I would never tell you something if I didn’t believe in it with my whole heart. I understand your worry, and I know that you have first hoof experience in dealing with the violence your old ‘aunt’ perpetrates. But I also know the heart that beats in the chest of Twilight Sparkle, and we must be there to support it, even from afar. We’re the stallions of the family, which means we have to uphold standards of bravery and courage. But that doesn’t always mean we get our hooves dirty. Sometimes supporting close friends and family when the hurricanes of evil arise takes just as much bravery as fighting.”

I saw Silver’s look brighten just a little bit, though he still looked worried. I then turned to my filly. “My precious little Diamond,” I told her, “I need you to believe the same thing. You are just as beautiful and confident as your mother is, and I need you to tap into every ounce of that energy you have for her. She may not be able to see or hear us right now, but she can feel us. You’ve studied friendship and harmony all your life, and you know this better than anypony, and we need to believe that right now. Your mother may be in the fight of her life down there, but she’s not alone. We’re all in this together.”

“You’re right, Daddy,” Diamond said as she suddenly matured very rapidly. She was still the same filly, but her eyes now glowed and her body seemed to float above the couch. “I must believe…for you, my precious mother. My entire life you’ve nurtured me and cared for me, and now I must repay the favor. You’ve taught me friendship, and because of that, I have gained my beloved brother. I have to repay it…my life will not be complete until I do.”

I watched in shock as Diamond floated out of the nearest open window and shot off towards Canterlot. I had no idea whether or not she was controlling herself, or if something had gotten ahold of her. I grabbed Silver Blaze and put him on my back before taking off for Canterlot myself. Please, let her be alright, I silently begged, let my darling be alright. Don’t let me find her bloodstained carcass on the ground…just let her be alright.

I heard flapping behind me, and I turned and noticed that Celestia, Luna, and Shining Armor and his family were all hot on our metaphorical heels. I nodded with gratitude at the ex-raiser of the sun, and she smiled back at me. She flipped a bit of her pink mane out of her eye and flew up beside me. “What are you gonna do?” She asked me.

“If we get there and Diamond has been harmed in any way, she’s gonna be our number one priority. If Twilight is hurt badly, then I’ll do my best to intervene and hold Dystopia off until you all can help her. But at this point, I have the two most important mares in my life locked in a deadly battle, so I might shout some stuff that doesn’t make a lot of sense. If that happens, I want you to take over, Celestia.”

The wise pony nodded and we all descended towards the burning city. Oh, no! I said to myself, Twilight didn’t make it in time! I saw the beautifully constructed buildings of the grand city topple over on each other as the flames licked up the walls. I saw the remains of Rarity’s beloved boutique, charred beyond recognition. Restaurant Row was decimated, and Diamond’s favorite place to eat, The Tasty Treat, was gone. Only a damaged sign and a few burned tables remained. I hope to Celestia that everypony got out. We saw the magic blasts from afar, and we saw Diamond’s small body hurtling through the air towards them. “COME ON!” I screamed as we raced to the battle.

When we arrived, the sight horrified us. Blood was splattered against the stones of the once magnificent city. Twilight and Dystopia were both reeling, but it still terrified me to see the evil sorceress in the flesh for the first time. She had removed her cloak and cape and now fought hoof to hoof with my bride. I could also see her cutie mark, and the memory of Celestia and Luna’s story broke my heart. It was the same beautiful motherly figure watching out for everypony, only it looked as if the evil one had used all her faculties to try and rid herself of it. But cutie marks, just like the fingerprints of a human, are special and unique. She could never truly be rid of it.

Now, the slashes between the powerful mares grew even more intense. Dystopia charged forward with teeth bared and bit down on Twilight’s shoulder. My bride howled in pain and I felt some jet through my veins as well. But I put on a brave face and fought back my tears. After all, if I broke down sobbing now, my new son would think I was a coward and a hypocrite. My speech needed to be substantiated, and I was determined to create the same determined atmosphere I demanded of him.

“This is what it all comes down to,” Celestia said, “two forces duking it out for the fate of a nation. Only this time, blood is involved. Oh, how I always wished ponies would never spill each other’s blood on Equestrian soil…or anywhere, for that matter!”

“Aunt Celestia,” Silver said, “my new Daddy says we need to be brave in the face of this evil.”

I smiled. My speech had gotten through after all, and I was very proud of him. It took a lot of guts to address Celestia this way, but I could tell she respected him for it. She bent down and nuzzled at his cheek. “You’re right, young Silver,” she said, “and I am very proud to have you in my family now.”

As I looked back to the fight, I saw Twilight get magically hurled through three buildings in a row. She got up with a look that would scare the devil himself and bolted after Dystopia. Now the two mares, one floating magically and one beating her ferocious wings, fought a devastating midair battle. I knew that, whoever fell out of the sky first, would be the loser. Fight, Twilight, I silently urged, fight!

Twilight unleashed a giant magic attack that sliced one foreleg away from Dystopia. Blood poured from the wound, but the tyrant didn’t stop. She flew at Twilight and chopped off a wing. Twilight howled in unimaginable pain as her former appendage fell uselessly to the ground below. My bride soon followed. She fought and fought to keep herself in the air, but to no avail. Her tattered, torn, and bleeding body fell and smacked the ground with such force, it left a small crater.

Dystopia lighted rather gracefully and slowly stepped toward my bride. “So…” she said, “…this is how it’s going to end for you, little pony. Trapped underneath the very one whom you fought so desperately to defeat. Watching your body go limp and lifeless will be a sheer delight. Allow me to end your petulant, miserable existence.”

She stood over Twilight, and I saw my bride give her a defiant look. For a moment, I thought she was going to fight back, but she was too tired. I saw her relax and accept her defeat. My mouth fell open and fear fixed my hooves to the spot. I wanted so badly to intervene on her behalf, but it just never happened. Fright gripped every aspect of my being, and my body wouldn’t obey my mind. Life moved in slow motion as Dystopia raised her horn, aiming for Twilight’s jugular vein.

But then, a purple blur shot out from somewhere and Diamond suddenly stood before Dystopia in a rage. Her mane flowed, and magic lightning seemed to shoot out of every single pore she had. “Dystopia,” she growled in a voice that sounded like thunder, “I will protect my mother with every fiber of my being. You can burn down our buildings, and kill our friends. But the power of family shall always endure. If that means I die and she lives, so be it!”

“As you wish…” Dystopia said and then, before either of us could do anything, she ran her horn straight through our daughter. “NO!” I cried, “DIAMOND!” But, I could only watch as our little filly convulsed on Dystopia’s horn and then was still. The breath had left her, along with the longevity magic. Our Diamond Sparkle was dead.