Anonymous in Nu-Questria 2

Sunny pushes through the quickly scattering clouds and weaves between spires of stone. You fly faster than you’ve ever flown before, and can hardly keep your eyes open at all.

With a sudden rush of wind, Sunny tilts backwards hard and beats her wings to slow down.

Sunny gently floats down to the shore. She places you on the pebbly beach and slips her hooves off your torso.

You immediately turn and collapse to your knees.

The far tower at the center of the lake begins to sink. The spire, the star, the stairs and even the boat are all pulled below the water as the structure underneath collapses. The water boils with bubbles of trapped air rising to the surface. Turbulent waves disrupt the surface and lap against the beach.

The weight of it all comes crashing down upon you. Your head swirls from the events that just transpired, and you clutch your knees tightly with your fingernails.

Sunny lands next to you. Almost immediately, her magic gives way. The crystal pieces fall out of the air as they stop glowing and clink against the ground.

The bubbles and frothing water at the center of the lake begins to calm down. All that’s left now are rolling waves.

“Anon...” Sunny says as she moves closer to you.

“Sunny... it’s gone. She’s...” You say. You sit upright and look at her, but your arms go limp.

Your body is sore. Your mind is fucked. You just watched Twilight Sparkle kill herself and sink a thousand creatures below the sea.

Sunny is frowning. The look in her eyes tells you she understands. She understands, but can barely comprehend it herself.

“All of that was just-” You say.

Sunny interrupts you by putting a hoof on your cheek. She turns your face gently to hers.

“Shh.” She says. “It’s over.”

As you look into her eyes, the fear and dread begins to ebb away.

“What’s done... is done.” She says.

You open your mouth to speak, but you are gripped by a force much stronger than you can control. You shakily inhale. Sunny rubs your cheek tenderly.

“Sunny, I should be down there.” You say. “Twilight... was right. I’m a danger to this world too... and we didn’t have the right to just-”

Sunny can no longer hold back. She leans forward and her hooves circle around your back. She embraces you tightly.

“Don’t you say that!” She says.

You slowly wrap your arms around her. You hold her close to your chest as she rests her head against you. You lean your head on hers.

You hold her like that for a long while. The pain and heartbreak between you scatters to the wind, and all that remains is the singular moment of your embrace.

Without words, without admission, you both accept the love between you. Born by chance and tempered through the sin of slaying a goddess turned mad.

You then remember the drive in your pocket. Soon, you will come to know all of Twilight’s deeds. Everything will be made clear. Then you will know if the judgment was right or wrong.

Sunny leans her head back slowly. You do the same.

“You owe me, Anon.” She says.

“I do?” You say.

“I just saved your life. So yeah, I you owe me.” She says, smiling slightly.

“What do you I owe you, Sunny?”

Sunny leans back as she sits on her haunches.

“Well, you can start by... giving me a kiss?” She says.

A smile creeps up your face. You exhale in a laugh through your nose.

“Okay, well...” You say. You lean forward and put a hand on her cheek. Your thumb rests on her chin, just below her delicate pink lips. You draw close until you are inches apart.

“Then what?” You say.

“We’ll just have to see.” Sunny says breathlessly.

Your lips meet. You kiss her slowly. The emotion of it all starts to spill out. You kiss her again and again. She tilts her head and keeps kissing as you pull closer into your embrace.

After what seems like hours, you both reluctantly part from the kiss. As you do, the silence is interrupted by the roar of diesel engines in the distance. You look over to see the trucks of Zelina’s army headed your way.

As they draw close, you and Sunny both slowly stand up to face them. You notice that the pony crystals are laying dormant on the ground. You motion to them, and Sunny gathers them together with her hooves.

Three of the trucks pull up in front of you. As they stop, a squad of creatures spill out the back of the vehicles and walk out in front of them.

They hold rifles in their claws, but they don’t aim at you. The other trucks in the line come to a stop and shut off their engines. More creatures make their way forward. You scan them for signs of brightly colored ponies, but see none.

Zelina steps out to the front of the group. Her hands are on her waist.

“Well, well.” She says. “You actually managed to clear the storm. You really are impressive! Hah!”

She grins and tilts her head to the side. There’s a hint of annoyance as she looks over at you.

“Zelina, we did what you asked. Now just leave us alone.” Sunny says.

Zelina quirks an eyebrow, and then throws up her hands in a shrug.

“Well, I guess you showed me. I suppose pony magic can be used for good things after all!" She says.

She chuckles to herself and puts a hand over her forehead.

“But I’m sorry, Sunny. I sent you on a suicide mission. You weren’t supposed to come back.” She says.

Sunny narrows her eyes. You cross your arms.

“But I’ll tell you what... you do another job for me, and then I’ll let you see your friends. Alright? Sound good?” Zelina says.

“No.” Sunny says.

“No way.” You say.

“Hm? Really?” Zelina says.

“Yeah really. We did your fucking job, now release our friends.” You say.

Zelina taps a claw on her chin.

“Hm. You know, I don’t think I can do that. It’s kind of... against my orders, you know?” She says.

She raises her hands in the air. “I can’t let you leave. Sorry. But you know what I can do? I can just kill you both right here. How about that?”

Zelina grins and looks at the soldiers surrounding her. With a wave of her hands she gestures them forward.

But they don’t move.

Zelina waves her hands forward again. Then she does it again.

“Well? What are you waiting for? Shoot them!” She says impatiently.

But the creatures do not move.

You see one of them step forward. The creature throws his rifle to the side, then reaches up and takes off his helmet. He’s a bipedal hawk creature with cold, gray eyes.

He walks forward until he’s halfway between you and the rest of the creatures.

He then collapses down to his knees.

“The tales were true.” He says in an awestruck voice. “You are the new pony queen. Please. Will you magic back to us?”

You and Sunny exchange a confused look. You then both look back at the creature.

His claws are trembling as he brings them up and clasps them together. He leans forward in a bow.

“Please, have mercy.” He says desperately.

Several other creatures step forward. Each one puts down their rifle as they move up to the hawk creature. The creatures kneel and bow with him, forming a small line.

“Forgive us, your majesty.” They say. “Have mercy!”

More and more creatures step up to offer their submission. Soon Zelina is standing by the trucks alone, wearing a completely bewildered expression on her face.

“She’s not a queen you dumbasses! She just has alicorn powers!” You yell.

“Anon. It’s okay.” Sunny says. “I’ll handle this.”

Sunny holds the crystals in one hoof and ambles forward to the creatures.

“Enough! Creatures of Abyssinia! Listen to me!” She says in a raised voice.

“I am not a queen, or a princess, or any sort of ruler! You do not need to fear me or my friends. We come to you simply to learn the truth, and now that we have learned it, we will leave you in peace!” She says.

“I cannot grant mercy, for there are none of you I wish to harm! Instead, look to yourselves! Look to each other! Cast down your weapons of war! Let go of your fear and embrace friendship instead!”

Zelina rushes up to the line of creatures and skids to a halt on the gravelly road.

“What are you all doing? She’s the enemy! Don’t listen to her!” She shouts.

Sunny looks at Zelina and cocks her head.

“Hey. That goes for you too, Zelina. I am not going to hurt you or try to force you to do my bidding. You don’t need to kill me. I’m not a threat.” Sunny says.

“Are you crazy, you dumb little horse?!” Zelina says. “Do you think we’re just going to let you walk away with all that magic you wield? You are a threat to all forms of life. To the entire world.”

“You know what? Fine.” Sunny says.

She steps forward to the line of creatures. You follow with her uneasily, but you stand tall by her side.

“Would a threat do this?” She says.

Sunny tosses the crystals to the ground in front of the creatures. All of them stare in enraptured awe as they glitter in the evening sun.

“Go ahead and take the crystals. They’re the key to activating my magic. Destroy them. Lock them away. Do whatever you want.” Sunny says.

Zelina opens her mouth and her eyes flare with surprise, but she doesn’t retort. She seems completely stunned.

“Now. We’d like to go see my friends. We’ll walk if we have to.” She says.

She starts to move around the line of creatures. Almost instantly, the creatures reach out and pick up the crystals in their paws. They examine them and hold them up to the sky, whispering with reverence as if they are handling sacred relics.

Zelina suddenly whips her frame towards Sunny. Her fists are clenched and she’s fuming with resentment.

“You can’t be serious! This is a trick, isn’t it? Why would you give up your powers?!” She yells.

“No tricks here.” Sunny says. “I’m done with pretending to be someone I’m not.”

A soothing tingle runs down your back as you hear those words.

“Well then who are you?! Who the fuck are you?!” Zelina yells frantically.

You turn and point a finger at Zelina. “Her name is Sunny Starscout, and she’s the best damn earth pony you’ll ever meet. Don’t you forget it!”

Zelina’s mouth twists into a furious grimace. She lets out a frustrated cry and stomps her hooves.

You ignore her and keep walking with Sunny to one of the parked vehicles. Zelina begins to yell in a state of manic fury.

“Are you crazy?!” Zelina says. “Do you know what you’ve done?! You’ve ruined my entire operation! My family is never going to let me live this down!”

You open the passenger side of one of the trucks and let Sunny jump in. You close the door and move around to the driver’s side. You hop in, and turn the keys that are still in the ignition.

You cannot hear Zelina’s voice over the rumble of the engine. She rants and raves at you both as she steps up towards the truck.

You simply put it in reverse and back away. Then you and Sunny drive back to the encampment on your own.