Diablo III: Fall of Equestria

Sunset wandered aimlessly through the castle, her thoughts a jumbled mess. What should she do? She was in way over her head. She had no friends and no Hildr for help. What she DID have, was Starlight Glimmer and Nyx. Sunset stopped and narrowed her eyes. “Enough of this pity party,” she said. “The one kind of party Pinkie doesn’t like.” Thinking of Pinkie brought a slight smile to Sunset’s face.

Up ahead, Sunset noticed a door slightly ajar with steam billowing out. Curious, Sunset poked her head inside. She couldn’t see anything, but did hear something that sounded a lot like sobbing. “Starlight? Is that you?” Sunset cautiously called out.

“Who else would it be?” Starlight replied, rather annoyed.

Sunset rolled her eyes and carefully walked in. The heavy steam obscured everything except what was directly in front of her. As a result, she tripped over a small stool and ended up falling into the bath with a big SPLASH. Sunset broke the surface, coughing and sputtering.

“You just can’t leave me alone, can you?” Starlight asked, wiping water out of her face.

Sunset brushed her mane out of her eyes and said, “I’m sorry.”

Starlight sighed and looked down into the water. Sunset wondered if her eyes were red from crying or the heat. Probably a bit of both. “I…I’m sorry for the way I acted earlier,” Starlight said.

Sunset said nothing and let her continue. “I know you’re just trying to help, but I can’t help it. When I close my eyes, I can see their lifeless faces. I can hear the screaming. I can feel the sliminess inside me, the bulging and pushing.”

Sunset moved closer and could see the patches in Starlight’s coat. The skin was reddened and raw from being scrubbed so hard. Sunset found the brush and soap floating nearby. “Starlight, may I wash your back?” she asked.

Starlight didn’t say anything, but turned and offered her back to Sunset. Sunset worked up a lather on the brush and started scrubbing gently. The two unicorns sat in the heat and silence, the only sound coming from the brush on Starlight’s coat. Finally Sunset asked, “Starlight, why did Celestia send Twilight to Tartarus?”

Starlight let out a groan of appreciation. “She said the prisoners were causing trouble and needed to be taken care of.”

Sunset stopped scrubbing. “How did she know what was going on in Tartarus?”

Starlight gave an imperceptible shrug. “Why did you stop?”

“Sorry,” Sunset apologized and resumed her brushing. “What do you think we should do?”

“What do you mean?” Starlight asked.

“I mean, should we try and rescue Twilight and the others?” Sunset asked.

Starlight thought to herself. “You know, this happened one other time.”

“Which part? Equestria falling apart or Twilight getting trapped in Tartarus?” Sunset asked.

“Well when you put it THAT way, nothing ever changes,” Starlight admitted. “It was a little over a year ago. Magic was disappearing in Equestria. Celestia thought Tirek was behind it and sent Twilight to investigate. Turns out he was and they were trapped.”

“How did they get out?” Sunset asked.

Starlight rolled her eyes. “Twilight convinced the monsters in Tartarus, including Tirek, to give up their magic so Twilight could teleport out.” She waved her hoof in the air and added, “Once again, Friendship saves the day.” Her hoof fell back into the water with a splash.

Sunset stopped for a moment, then continued, asking, “Does that bother you?”

“The friendship thing?” Starlight asked and Sunset nodded. “A little bit. I mean, I’m not sure I understand it.”

“How so?” Sunset asked, moving from Starlight’s back to her mane.

Starlight closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the brush through her mane. “I’m not completely stupid. I know that ponies deserve a second chance, but what happens when somepony is so far gone, has done such terrible things, that they shouldn’t get another chance?” Starlight let out a tired sigh and held up her hooves. “Where do you draw the line between forgiveness, and imprisonment?”

Sunset stopped to think about this. “Basically, you are wondering why Twilight showed you mercy and not a cell in Tartarus?” Starlight nodded. “Sometimes I wonder the same thing,” Sunset continued. “I think the reason is that sometimes, ponies just do bad things. Does that make them a bad pony? Not necessarily. For all her faults, Twilight has the uncanny ability to see into the hearts of others, to see the good buried deep inside. I think that’s why she is the Princess of Friendship. Yes, you did some terrible things, fought with Twilight, nearly upset the space-time continuum out of spite, but in the end, Twilight saw the good in you. She decided you could be saved, that you were worthy of friendship. But you are right that there are those who are unredeemable, no matter what.”

“But who gets to make that distinction?” Starlight asked softly.

“You do,” Sunset replied. “After everything was said and done, you accepted Twilight’s offer, didn’t you?” Starlight nodded glumly. “In this case, Twilight helped you save yourself.”

Starlight’s shoulders sagged and she sank up to her chin in the water. “I just did something pretty bad.”

“I don’t know if possession really counts,” Sunset offered.

“How can it not?” Starlight argued. “If I weren’t so weak, if I believed in myself more, maybe it wouldn’t have happened.”

Sunset thought back to a conversation she had with Hildr. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s you have to own up to your mistakes, take you licks, brush yourself off, and keep moving forward. Someone I admire greatly told me the reason we have eyes in the front of our heads is so we can see where we are going, not where we’ve been.”

Starlight nodded. “I get that, but it’s so hard to do. I can’t help but think that I’m not worth of a second chance.”

Sunset smiled. “Princess Luna told me the same thing once. Even if you don’t believe it, that doesn’t make it any less true. We all slip, stumble and fall, but you can be sure that Twilight, or me, will be there to pick you up again.”

A faint smile appeared on Starlight’s face. “Are you sure you’re not Twilight in disguise?”

“Yep,” Sunset grinned. “I just had some great teachers.”

Starlight’s smile faded and she became melancholic again. “I’m sorry for what I tried to do to you.” She frowned and added, “That spell you used was Starfire, right?” Sunset nodded. “I saw what happened. How am I not burned to a crisp right now?”

Sunset never thought of that. “I honestly don’t know,” she admitted. “I guess that’s something to look into later.”

Starlight rose to her feet and shook herself off, sending water flying everywhere. “I think I’ve spent enough time in the bath,” she said.

Sunset sputtered and glared at Starlight, wiping the water out of her face. “Thanks for that.”

Starlight gave an insincere smile in return and stepped out of the bath. “You up for a late breakfast?” she asked.

“I could eat again,” Sunset replied, climbing out of the bath. Starlight gave her a quick hug. “I don’t deserve somepony like you.”

After a quick stop at the kitchen, Sunset and Starlight went back to the main library. When they entered, Starlight stopped. Her mouth fell open and her eyes went wide. “What’s wrong?” Sunset asked. With a shaking hoof, Starlight pointed to the Cutie Map.

Three giant symbols were displayed over the map. Sunset recognized the first two as hers and Starlight’s cutie marks. The third she didn’t recognize, two crossed knives over a lightning bolt inside a circle. The whole emblem was bright electric blue. “What’s that?” she asked.

“I think that one is mine,” Nyx said, appearing from around a corner. Both unicorns shrieked in surprise. Starlight quickly regained her composure and took a defensive stance, with her horn glowing brightly. “Who are you? What do you want?”

Sunset put her hoof out to stop Starlight. “She’s a friend. I think.”

Nyx looked down at the Cutie Map. “Interesting. It seems the map wants us to solve a problem somewhere.”

Still wary, Starlight moved closer to the map. “That’s strange. I’ve never seen the map do this before.”

“How so?” Sunset asked, moving next to Starlight.

“Usually the displayed Cutie Marks are much smaller,” Starlight said.

“Maybe this means there is a huge problem,” Sunset offered. Starlight stared at her, looking very annoyed.

Nyx pointed and asked, “What’s this location?”

Starlight looked to where Nyx was pointing. “That’s the Crystal Empire.”

Nyx pulled out a letter and held it out for the two unicorns to see. “This letter just came.”

Starlight took it from Nyx with her telekinesis. She frowned and said, “It’s addressed to Princess Twilight, from Princess Cadence.” She opened the letter and read the contents. Starlight frowned and said, “This doesn’t make any sense.”

“How so?” Sunset asked.

“For starters, it’s written in Old Equish,” Starlight said. “I need to find a book to translate.”

“This one?” Nyx offered and held out a book. Both unicorns stared at her in shock. “How did you know we would need this?” Sunset asked.

“A hunch,” Nyx replied with a shrug.

Sunset took the book and quickly got to work. A few minutes later, the letter was translated and Starlight looked it over. “Um, I don’t think we did this right,” she said.

“What do you mean?” Sunset asked with a frown.

“It’s just a bunch of gibberish,” Starlight replied, holding the letter out. “Did we use the wrong book?”

“That was the first thing we checked,” Sunset said. “Maybe it’s some kind of code?”

“But then we would need-“ Starlight started when Nyx handed them another book.

Sunset glared up at her while Starlight merely took the book in a state of mild shock. “How did you know where to even find this book?” she sputtered.

“I made a catalogue of the library when I first arrived here,” Nyx replied.

Sunset could see the wheels turning in Starlight’s mind. “You’re the ghost in the library!” she shouted.

“Guilty I guess,” Nyx replied.

Starlight teleported directly into Nyx’s face. “At least have the decency to put the books back where you found them!”

“But I did,” Nyx replied evenly.

Starlight’s eyes went wide and Sunset cautiously looked around. The library suddenly felt very cold and empty.

“W-well in any case, let’s see what the letter says,” Sunset stammered. While the Unicorns worked, Nyx disappeared into the stacks. Starlight quickly glanced up to where Nyx had been standing. “Were did you find her?” she asked in a hushed whisper.

“I didn’t. She found me,” Sunset replied and recounted her first conversation with Nyx. Starlight could only stare at Sunset. “So you’re telling me that everything that’s happened is Nyx’s fault?”

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Sunset said.

Starlight began to tremble and Sunset could see the rage building in her eyes. “Starlight, listen to me. It’s not Nyx’s fault for what happened to you.”

“You don’t know that!” Starlight shouted. “All of this started because Tirek died and SHE killed him!” Before Sunset could stop her, Starlight ran off into the library.

Starlight tore through the stacks, looking for Nyx. If she had been thinking properly, she would have stopped and taken the time to think logically. Screw logic! Her mind was clouded by anger, and it started to consume her. The tiny part of her brain still thinking tried to tell her that correlation does not equal causation, but Starlight didn’t care. To her, Nyx killed Tirek and that was the reason she had been violated by a demon. Nyx was a physical thing she could use to vent her rage and pain.

Tears began to blur her eyes, and a dull ache formed in her chest. Starlight stopped running and bent over gasping for breath. She wanted to cry and scream at the same time, and the pressure building in her chest made it hard to breathe. Starlight started to feel lightheaded and before she passed out, Nyx appeared in front of her.

Nyx said nothing and stared down at her.

Starlight snapped. She screamed and lunged at Nyx, her horn glowing brightly. Nyx stood there and let Starlight crash into her. Starlight bounced off Nyx and landed awkwardly on her hooves, and fired a blast of magic, knocking Nyx back. Starlight continued to scream like a mare possessed and kept throwing magic at Nyx while stomping on her as hard as she could. Nyx deftly rolled away and came up to her feet some distance away. She continued to say nothing and let Starlight throw magic at her.

Starlight grew more and more angry, especially when she finally noticed her magic had little to no effect on Nyx. Her spells were either nullified or bounced off harmlessly. Twilight’s library was starting to get trashed from the increasingly destructive magic she was throwing around.

Starlight finally trapped Nyx in her aura, lifted her off the ground, and started throwing her around like a rag doll. The chandelier shattered into pieces, and bookshelves fell apart. Cracks started to form in the ground and walls from the impacts. With one last shout, Starlight threw Nyx through the stained glass window and outside.