Author's Note

Hi there; it's me, Fireflower here once more with an electric feel ready with a new chapter of M3 on the way: suffice to say, the past chapters from before were by far a strong note for y'all, serving as a taste of what's to come later on as I write them all right at my fingertips.

As usual, My Little Pony, or rather Friendship Is Magic, including its settings and characters belong to --- you know what? Fk it; you've made it this far so there's no use in me repeating what I'd said before in the disclaimers, especially after what y'all just gone and went through.

That being said, I want to say thanks again for putting up with my story this month so far, especially if you been reading the prequels as well since years ago: I honestly wished that I could have done this sooner, let alone finish it; what's funny is that had I done so in half the allotted time, I would've surprised y'all with another story on the same month, albeit on New Years' Eve but I digress.

Underworld

All throughout the way, there was an abysmal unknown of complete blackness where only such factors of sight, substance, and scent lay buried in those obscurities best referred to as a void. The exceptions that had given clues to the very location’s identity were surface, sensitivity, and sound: such were the gentle breezes being close to comfort anyone that would cross their paths. Most importantly, the current occupancy was above from simple desolate, let alone abandoned; after all, there were a few colors in many caliginous shades and hues giving off their silent cries.

Then, without any kind of warning whatsoever, some buzzing birthed the baseless boundaries, resonating about amongst the atmosphere before subsiding almost instantaneously. As if on cue, a trail of lights started to appear from nowhere, each with their own colors starting to illuminate the background they’d now been suspended upon all the live long day. Everywhere they’d went, the most predominate color found were but fifty shades of gray resting about with their own jagged edges and the like, stalactites and stalagmites no less. While there were plenty of rocks to and fro, an abundance of crystals were also discovered so to speak of, each with their variances in shapes, sizes, and shades as they’d all shined.

Stuck in the middle of it all was a lonely woman lying on the ground amongst the illuminated caverns to no end in sight whatsoever so to speak. She’d possessed some skin that was shining about like ivory, riddled with a few cuts and bruises having already made their way throughout and in. The lonely woman’s hot pink hair curling grandly past her neckline was already adorned by a single pearl diadem bearing a trio of jaded flowers. Adorning most of her entire body was a fuchsia dress with a cobalt accent matching her slippers; additionally, she’d also worn a light yellow flower.

“Huh, guys…?” a small dainty voice escaped from the lonely woman, too quiet to be picked up by any lifeform within the premises if at all.

Irregardless, the sounds of silence which were ruling the stony lonesome yet elegantly bejeweled environment had felt their unchallenged reign come to an end when another voice spoke to her, “good day, Cankerworms, here with today’s weather: mostly cloudy with a one hundred percent chance of you kowtowing to the Queen; this is Change Kowtow reminding you all to kowtow!”

“What the…” the lonely woman gasped, her eyelids flying open in an instant to unleash a static electricity of blue within, only to survey the grounded terrain afore her, “where on Equestria is this place: what is it; where are my friends?!”

“Greetings, Twinkleshine…!” a different voice abaft of herself spoke, prompting the corporeal target to turn around and find a bloodcurdling sight.

Found to be plastered on an enormous crystalline screen was a lonely individual peering out at where Twinkleshine was currently residing overall. In all fairness, not much was said about the ivory inhabitant’s onlooker; after all, compared to her attire, the latter was obscured by a black cloak. Nevertheless, she could see a patch of pale white nearby the edges of the viewer’s bloody scarlet edges radiating about with all the obscurity therein.

Twinkleshine was at a loss of words initially before summoning whatever strength within her to exclaim straightaway, “who the fuck are you?!”

“As you can see, my name is not important nor is my identity so to speak…” the ivory inhabitant’s onlooker calmly answered, much to her chagrin as far as it could’ve been seen, “what is important, however, is the sad drag of a story that happens to be your life, past and present so to speak. In under the past two and a half decades of your life, you’d eaten the same food, dressed the same, sit in front of the same kind of films: you were just that kind of girl but then one day you go and get lost in the chaos; you couldn’t even be original about the route you’d taken. Nobody’s complained about it at the time and nobody’s complaining now or ever, if at all: I, like a small few every single day, was dying of boredom anyway; but guess what…? Some will be coming back and they’ll be bringing their new toys with them, which brings us to you: Twinkleshine of Canterlot, what you are standing is the caves beneath your fair city, once home to the avaricious and ambitious wishing to claim the jewels found deep within now a forgotten underworld stripped bare like the cadaver of a once fair and joyful bride from afar. At least, that’s how the story went or was supposed to go: whereas you and many of your neighbors of this once proud city and beyond had went on with their lives, liberties, pursuits of happiness, equalities, and the like alongside those lacking in at least any of them thereof, the invaders and infiltrators alike surveyed every nook and cranny within your humble abode. Out of many of these places within and beyond Equestria’s capital, the caverns were one of them; in this case, it’d been safe to suggest, if at all, they would serve as a prison for those whom would dare to interfere with their plans: of course, all which could be said is that there was only one so far. Sadly, it would seem that, aside from both friends and neighbors, you were amongst the deceived: the fair bride and princess you’d seen slain before your eyes was neither fair nor of noble blood, at least in the eyes of your rulers; it was Queen Chrysalis, ruler of the Changelings, a race of shapeshifters known as the innate masters of disguise, copying their subjects perfectly. Even though she’d been able to mimic Mi Amore Cadenza in her entirety, she couldn’t adopt her true personality if at all: the kind and fair soul whom bore witness to the beauty in everything, including her chosen true love of her life and his dear sister; although Chrysalis had deceived the both of them as well as their friends and families with her facade, she couldn’t deceive them all. While many such as yourself excused her mistakes on account of the stress of fighting the war and losing many of your compeers before and after, only one saw through them and took matters into his own hands: a man by the name of Mercury Promenade, a guest such as yourself, sought to end her charade by any means necessary, even risking the lives of many, including Celestia.”

“Mercury Promenade, but why would he go to so much trouble: why didn’t he consult Princess Celestia or her sister Luna with the information, let alone Shining Armor or his sister Twilight; as a matter of fact, if Chrysalis impersonated Cadance, then why risk our lives to take her out?!” she’d said strongly in a stern structure so to speak.

The viewer was unnerved by Twinkleshine’s interrogation yet showed her the decency to answer nevertheless, “apparently, because the threat of having to be subjugated by the likes of those belonging to the beasts of no nation but of that which is of the Black Queen’s domain proved to be too much for the likes of him; of course, bombing the false princess’ wedding wasn’t his first option. In the months leading up to it, he’d been known as one of the many rank–and–file subjects observant to the news thereof; unlike Twilight whom was deceived due to her injuries sustained, Mercury was quick on the take, serving as her assigned bodyguard even when the dust had settled for a while. Of course, for only a vast majority of the time he’d spent, it was with the real Cadance alone: every second spent with her was more than just a job but rather a learning experience regarding her life and connections with the family she was going to marry into; speaking of which, the only commonality they’d shared was growing up without parents in their youths. Aside from that, they were both different as the night and day in which the princesses had once ruled over separately as well as equally unlike the societies underneath them now and then: she was a local highborn loved by many for her talents and personality whereas he was just only a commoner from another land, hated despite his similarities. Of course, all the respect Mercury had for Cadance went out the window the day she was replaced, or rather kidnapped by Chrysalis’ troops while stepping in as a replacement; even though no one else knew about it, strangers or loved ones alike, he’d paid attention long enough to see the differences between the true princess and the false queen. It also didn’t help that Luna had to be away on this day just to repair ties with the other nations, leaving her sister all alone with the psychopath masquerading as their niece whom they’d sworn to know and love; not even Twilight, whom looked up to her as a sister rather than a sister, could use her intelligence to comprehend the reality of the real Cadance. Of course, the scholar’s pursuit were what had ironically led to her near death in Ponyville, left to burn in a fire destroying the library she’d once called home, all to save a friend from a heinously grim fate; if anything, had things gone much smoother by comparison, it would be safe to say she would’ve came to the same conclusion as Mercury did. Anyways, his requests to delay the wedding, though sound enough on the account of the preceding war, were denied by Shining Armor’s family as well, not too surprising since everyone was too busy to see beyond their gates of horn and ivory or even exhausted to be burden with the probability of being attacked in their own home; even his protection was woefully inadequate. Speaking of which, Mercury’s attack did little, if at all, to deter the Black Queen’s horde from mounting an offensive on Canterlot: originally, they were supposed to attack on her signal alone, revealing her true form before all the spectators, however, with Chrysalis dead, the changelings succumbing to both confusion and delay, despite laying waste to the community and its people.”

“So all this time we’ve been lied to by an invader whom somehow snuck in, despite our efforts?!” the ivory onlooker screamed, her face currently becoming as red–hot as a bloody habanero.

The shrouded individual nodded and spoke to her, “even worse, some of the soldiers under her beck and call took the time to take their anger out on the populace: raping women, killing men, torturing the young and old alike in a fit of waywardness following her very death; you were among the many whom escaped these cruel fates, which is why you’re here today. For you see here, you’re meant to serve as the surrogate of one whom has seen through the disguise worn by Chrysalis from another world similar to yours; unlike Mercury however, your friend had been casted aside by her own peers and mentor for daring to question the behaviors of the false queen playing as Cadance. Despite being able to bask in the melancholy of Twilight Sparkle, Chrysalis allowed her amorous ambitions to rule herself, even as she gave herself away to her would–be victims underneath that persona; as a result of her machinations, the Black Queen had been dealt with a tremendous blow, one of many in which she’ll suffer for her crimes against both Crown and Country. In any case, the world beneath your home was once your friend’s prison, only to be freed with the help of the true princess Cadance herself thanks to their mutual bond, something Chrysalis lacked; considering your similarities between you and Twilight, it would be safe to suggest that even you can escape this forsaken oubliette to the home you’d both whence came from. Of course, this will not be an easy challenge for should you fail, you will suffer the same fate like the real Princess Mi Amore Cadenza had done, alone and abandoned by all, including her usurper Chrysalis; with that said, considering how you’ve been amongst the many whom had forgotten the caverns, even the clues provided will be enough to guide you back to home. Even without the modernizations of daily life taking hold over the very caves, the lights will serve as the key to your battle for survival; of course, much like how every key can’t fit into every lock, not every light will proved to show the way so to speak: while they may not take sides, the environs will brim with all sorts of dangers, hidden and otherwise. After you set foot out of this area, you will find yourself with choices to guide you to places known and unknown but choose wisely: even though you are free to go back anywhere at any time whatsoever, take note that there exist some decisions more irreversible as they’re important; in addition, the time you have overall is proportionate to your willpower and manpower alone.”

“If that’s the case, why me…?” Twinkleshine asked, her indignation subsiding yet still standing strongly afore her singular viewer, “I may have grown up alongside Twilight Sparkle since we were young but we’re not one of the same; if anything, she’s more fitting to succeed compared to the likes of me: after all, she’s the Bearer of Magic herself, chosen to lead and follow…! I am but a humble highborn with nothing but hopes and dreams of her own, much like many of our friends so to speak: all that I ever wanted was to be a movie star, nothing more; even the glitz and glamour of the capital that is my hometown was beginning to fade away. With that in mind, I didn’t tire of the friendships we had shared nor took her to task for abandoning any of us up in Canterlot for the new ones in Ponyville, much less the other way around: I’d lamented the pain and sorrow many of them had to go through since the war had came to our doorstep and the fact we’d came close to losing it all made us count our blessings. This mutual tragedy we’d endured over the years was more than enough for any of us to cherish the bonds and they weren’t the only ones who’ve learned this lesson: all sorts of people, young and old, here and abroad, male and female, have appreciated the gift of life as we know it and have started sharing it with the rest of the world, like before. Throughout over the past millennia, Equestria has become a sheltering arms for refugees from the old world and the ways of thinking: even in its inception, we had to come to terms with the reality of having to cast aside the hatred and exploitation for one another for the sake of survival; we’d came too far to let this longstanding legacy become reduced to rubble. Princess Celestia is a great ruler but even she knew that she couldn’t hold onto the Elements of Harmony forever; after all, the last time she’d used them, it was on her own sister Luna, the first time in which she couldn’t return for another thousand years: following that, Twilight was chosen to be the successor and even she couldn’t do it alone like themselves, much less her. The fact my friend had to return home to Canterlot defeated and injured made me realize how we took those relationships with one another for granted: even though she’d insisted on shouldering the blame, I knew that I should’ve done more than just follow her to and from Ponyville if it means seeing Twilight again. Besides, I couldn’t for the life of me bear the thought of spending the rest of my existence without being able to see her again, if at all: Twilight Sparkle is the closest thing to a sister in my eyes as well as that of my other friends and even they know this to be true; after all, we‘d came together when she’d returned home a broken and burnt woman. The least that anyone should do in my shoes is not to make the same mistakes which had led up to such horrible things ever again: as far as Twilight sees it, our relationships are about keeping in touch with one another no matter what, something many can relate; after all, she wasn’t just chosen by Princess Celestia to spread this gift to everyone, but also by the whims of fate itself.”

“And here you are, chosen by fate to serve as a proxy of your friend in this very exercise to test your skillsets; the choice is yours, Twinkleshine: either rise up and conquer the uncertainty within yourself or wither and die alone and abandoned like the one true Mi Amore Cadenza…” the ambiguous individual sighed before the image fizzled out into the crystalline nothingness.

Now, it was clear to the lonely woman that she was alone again naturally, a rather grim reality presented to her with the bits and pieces entailed. The very environment she’d awoken from was already stripped down of the basic amenities and companies so to speak, a bothersome realization. Even the recent message Twinkleshine listened to, courtesy of the announcer Kowtow, did her little favors, if at all, when it came to information. One thing which had gotten to the lonely woman was her singular viewer: aside from the latter’s attire, the summarization wasn’t enough for her.

She’d taken a deep breath and faced the trail of lights hung up on their side, silently cerebrating about, “okay Twinkleshine, you were there on the day when our teacher taught us all geology; although, it would’ve been nice if we’d known about it sooner: if this happens to be a part of Canterlot, then the least we could’ve been able to do is have a map of the underground. Oh, how I hate these kind of days, trapped alone and beneath the city you and your friends called home, much less the capital no less: where’s Twilight and her friends when you need them now?!”

Twinkleshine had no other choice but to follow that path; after all, irregardless of the vague clues provided, she understood better not to stay here any longer. Taking a first trot forward, the lonely woman felt the photons radiating from their territory now bathing her body while pointed out the damaged sustained. Thereon, she could feel comforted by the fact that the trail in question was devoid of any dangers so to speak; besides, the ambiguous individual said so well.

It wasn’t long until the lights behind became a distant memory; in Twinkleshine’s frontal point of view were at least five in different colors than before: green, yellow, blue, crème, and purple. These happened to serve as the divergent paths provided for the lonely woman, each just as ambiguous like her previous viewer but more colorful as far as she can see them all straightaway. Of course, she was firmly aware of the fact they were serving as the choices in question for her to pick alone: like what been told to her, they’d possessed outcomes should she ever reach one.

“I gave you my heart and yet I’d turned around…” a maidenly voice lilted from the far right pathway; the purple lights on that end synchronizing with the tones therein, “I always had my own brother: he was already here before; I didn’t question where he came from, he wasn’t lonely anymore. Soon, we did everything together: he taught me how to fly a kite; I watched him grow into a gentleman, he’d helped me go to sleep at night. It’s so weepy.”

“That’s Twilight’s voice; maybe she’s here…” Twinkleshine commented, edging towards the sound of music itself.

As the lonely woman made her selection, she could hear it again while walking along the vivid trail, “but then I’d been sent to Ponyville, a cute sextet of maiden sounds and now that everybody loves us, he’s just a face out on the mound. Thrown out of my own studies, to see the world as it’d unrolled, only to be nearly burned alive; everyone comforted me. What’s this evil…?”

“What evil…?” Twinkleshine ruminated about in nervousness supersaturated, “what’s she talking about?”

“I gave you my heart and yet I turned around…” Twilight’s voice sang even though her origins remained unknown to the lonely listener thereof, “a requiem for the dreams that never came to be… I gave you my heart and yet I turned around…”

“Twilight, please make this song end; she’s coming around the bend…!” a quintet of girlish sounds joined in, bearing the same quality as Twinkleshine herself.

Sure enough, the lonely listener could see the path ahead almost at an end as she heard the singular voice lilted:

Just take it from me,
I knew you’d came around.
Though our fates are cruel
Our bonds are jewels
We are siblings, and family together.
If you like, then our love lasts forever.
Since we are related, it’ll be ok.
So different now from what it’d seemed,
now life has killed the dream I'd dreamed.

Just as the aria concluded, Twinkleshine came across five more paths like before: this time, the colors provided were now consisting of cyan, pink, white, orange, and yellow; likewise, she’d needed to make a decision for the sake of progression.

“Alright then, it seems that you’d gotten right the first time, like before; it’s just like the entrance exam: the beginning’s always the easiest…” the corporeal woman heaved as her heartbeat started to stabilize soon enough, catching her breath while studying them all, “you just need to stay alive and find the exit; every cave has a way out…”

“A righteous tongue exercises discernment and it will also pronounce supreme judgment…” another aria began to sing, this time coming from the fruity lights between the metallic pathways for Twinkleshine to hear.

Needless to say, the corporeal woman felt a bead of sweat fall onto the earth like if it were a steely pen, saying softly, “huh, what kind of song is it…?”

“Blessed heroes who endure temptations proven they are crowned throughout generations…” the new matronly voice lilted as Twinkleshine moved towards it straightaway, albeit reluctantly than before, “Providence, fountain of integrity… Providence, sacred fire, please have mercy…”

“That’s weird: it’s an elegy; did somebody the singer knew died…?” the corporeal woman whispered softly as the lights alternated between dimming and brightening about slowly around her.

Nevertheless, the aria of sorrow continued on:

Oh how sacred, how serene
how benign, how lovely
O’ lily of purity

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Providence, sacred fire, please have mercy
Oh how sacred, how serene
how benign, how lovely
O’ lily of purity

“Come to think of it, that voice, it sounds familiar: could be one of Twilight’s friends from Ponyville; was she a farmer or something…?” Twinkleshine had cerebrated as the warm photons cloaked her about despite the lack of solidarity therein, “who is she: what is she; where is she now…?”

“Now, then Twinkleshine: what will you choose next; an unrequited and forsaken love or a needful and appreciative charity…?” another feminine voice hissed into the corporeal woman’s ears as the latter was now presented with a fork in the pathway: one was radiating with ruby red lights and the other was glistening with a mellow yellow schemes so to speak.

Taking a deep breath, Twinkleshine trotted towards the latter and entered the trail, only to be greeted with a startling discovery: the moment she’d sat foot onto it, the ground underneath her had started to give way, the terrain swallowing her entire body whole; as soon as gravity kicked in, she was quick to let out a bloodcurdling scream, “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!”

The corporeal woman’s loud voice fell on deaf ears as she’d fallen through the void, the solid yellow lights above her fading as she’d began to sink further into the darkness all throughout her; soon, her body had suddenly made contact with the ground again, this time with the assorted stalagmites piercing her body and the clothes worn as they’d ravaged them altogether at once.

Twinkleshine used her free hand to grasp the distant illumination above but to no avail, left to cough up blood before succumbing to the pain.