The Ending of the End - 4 Parter

Headmare Starlight Glimmer paced around her office in the School of Friendship, levitating a long scroll and a quill. “Interview the new teachers, check. Organize everypony’s lesson plans, check. Make sure nothing goes wrong on Twilight’s friends’ last day… gotta wait a few more hours to check that one off…”

A knock at the door made Starlight jump. She quickly composed herself and used her telekinesis to open the doors for the incoming visitor.

“Hi, Starlight! You wanted to see me?” Sunburst walked inside the office, glancing for a few seconds at the large potted plant on Starlight’s desk. A placard attached to the pot read: ‘Phyllis 2.0’.

Starlight smiled at him. “Yes! Is everything set up in the teacher’s lounge, Sunburst?”

“Oh yes, it’s quite the going-away party,” Sunburst promised. He paused and continued, “I’m honored that you wanted me to be your second here at the school and all, but it’s going to be a big transition not having Twilight’s friends here… I just hope that we’re up to it.”

Starlight gave Phyllis 2.0 a quick pat before catching herself. She blushed and moved the plant away. “I know it’s going to be hard to adjust, but Twilight’s already in Canterlot prepping for her coronation tomorrow.” She gestured to a picture on her desk of Twilight and her friends, taken the day the school was founded. “As a new ruler, she’s going to need all the help she can get… and Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Fluttershy are the best ponies she can call on. With all their other duties, they just won’t have time to teach at the school anymore.”

Sunburst still looked uneasy.

Starlight placed a reassuring hoof on Sunburst’s withers. “Don’t worry! Between you, me, and Trixie, we can handle this. The school’s already survived Discord, Cozy Glow, and King Sombra. What else could happen?”

Sunburst smiled, and some of the tension abated. Suddenly, the ponies heard a loud crash from somewhere outside. They looked at each other, and Starlight silently cursed herself for tempting fate.

“I’d better go check on that,” Sunburst said, his nervous look returning. He bolted out of the office.

Starlight sighed, rolling up her scroll as she prepared to follow him.

Behind her, Phyllis 2.0 crackled with sickly green energy, its familiar form twisting and warping. In a moment, the plant was gone, replaced by Chrysalis, former queen of the changelings, hovering above the desk with a sinister grin.

“Surprise, Starlight Glimmer!” The changeling let loose a torrent of laughter and advanced on the unicorn, swiftly blocking the doors and locking the windows with her magic. Starlight suddenly heard screams and yells coming from outside the office.

She reflexively backed up and lit her horn… only to find the light faded away instantly.

“Ah ah ah, no spells!” Chrysalis mockingly chided. She levitated a shard of rock up for Starlight to see. “When I paid a visit to your little celebration in Canterlot, I brought home a souvenir. Using pieces of my throne to protect yourselves from magic? How trite!”

“The Summer Sun Celebration… you’re the one who messed everything up!” Starlight realized with a gasp.

Chrysalis chuckled. “Oh, I had help! Lord Tirek and Cozy Glow are taking care of your friends outside as we speak. But don’t worry, you won’t miss out on the FUN!”

Chrysalis lunged. Starlight dove out of the way, and Chrysalis crashed into the wall. The changeling hissed in frustration and fired a blast of green magic that narrowly missed Starlight, scorching the wall behind her.

Starlight grabbed the intercom on her desk and pressed the button. “Everycreature, this is not a drill! Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy Glow are attacking the school! Get to safe—”

Chrysalis seized Starlight with her magic and threw her across the room. “Enough games!”

“Unf!” Starlight felt the breath knocked out of her when she landed. Green ooze slid out of Chrysalis’ mouth and covered Starlight from top to bottom in a wet cocoon.

Giving the cocoon a smug pat, Chrysalis left the shard on Starlight’s desk and turned to exit the office. “Now, be a good little pony and stay there. I’ll be back for you soon, Starlight!”

Cozy Glow entered the deserted library of the School of Friendship, hovering just above the floor. She peeked around bookcases and inside shelves and drawers. In no time at all, she found what she was looking for: a large trunk with the school’s six magical artifacts sitting open on a back table, with notes and papers strewn around it.

“Jackpot!” Cozy beamed, reaching for the chest.

“Give it up, Cozy Glow!” The library doors swung open, and six students ran or flew into the room. Gallus, Yona, Smolder, Ocellus, Silverstream, and the one who spoke, Sandbar, stared daggers at Cozy. Sandbar pointed at the pegasus accusingly. “Those artifacts don’t belong to you!”

Cozy Glow perked up and flashed an innocent smile. She placed her hooves on her cheeks and giggled. “Oh golly, all my old pals! Gee, isn’t it just awful that you’re TOO LATE!”

She grabbed several of the artifacts and flew into the air. A blinding flash knocked the students back, and suddenly there were dozens of Cozy Glows all over the library, smiling and waving at them. A couple of them were making cutesy faces or rude signs.

“Maybe following her was a bad idea?” Silverstream said, looking around worriedly.

Yona turned to Sandbar. “We try pony way, now try yak way!” She charged at the nearest Cozy Glow and attempted to tackle her, only for the pegasus to disappear. A snarling bugbear appeared in her place and roared at Yona. The yak cried out and started running.

“It’s just an illusion, Yona!” Ocellus called out. “She’s using the Talisman of Mirage!”

“So how do we find the real one?!” Smolder stewed. She breathed fire at the bugbear, causing it to vanish. Just as quickly as they appeared, the illusions faded away, and there was no sign of Cozy. A low rumbling shook the library.

Silverstream put a talon to her ear. “Uh, guys, is it just me, or is the plumbing getting louder?”

Gallus rolled his eyes. “You really need to stop obsessing over that plumbing book.”

“I hear something too!” Sandbar affirmed.

There was a gurgling sound, followed by a loud WOOSH as gallons of water burst out of the plumbing in the walls and through the window from the lake outside. Furniture toppled over, and books were thrown about in the torrential flood.

“Gaah! Yaks not like water!” Yona cried. She started to flail around helplessly as the deluge threatened to pull her under.

Silverstream quickly changed into a seapony and helped keep her friend afloat.

“The Amulet of Aurora! She used it to flood the library!” Ocellus said, taking on seapony form as well to aid Silverstream. Water started rushing in from all directions.

“Thanks for the commentary, Ocellus!” Gallus yelled as he took to the air, dodging a falling bookcase. Behind him, Sandbar managed to grab onto some floating debris.

“Cozy Glow!” Sandbar pointed at the doors to the library, which quickly opened and shut. “It’s up to the professors to stop her now!”

Lord Tirek cackled as he grabbed a quivering group of trapped Friendship School students. After he absorbed the life force of the last unicorn, he used the pony to wipe his mouth and tossed him aside.

“Ahh, who knew the magic of friendship would taste so good!” the centaur chuckled. His eyes scanned the drained ponies littering the hallways of the school, each weakly kicking or struggling to move. Nearly three times the size he’d obtained in Grogar’s lair, Tirek leisurely made his way to the school courtyard, blasting any doors or walls in his way. Ponies continued to flee and panic at his approach, but he let them be, waiting for his true quarry to show up.

Rainbow Dash swooped down from a nearby window in a blur and hovered at Tirek’s eye level. “You get one chance, Tirek! Give that magic back or else!”

“Oh, poor little ponies,” Tirek said, his voice dripping with false sympathy. “This is a battle you’ve already lost!”

“We’ll just see about that!” Applejack called, running into the courtyard with Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy by her side.

Tirek cracked his knuckles and mustered a ball of orange magic.

Rainbow Dash whizzed around Tirek’s head, spinning him in circles. The dizzy centaur batted the pegasus away with his hands. He gave chase, but his legs were quickly caught up in Applejack’s lasso.

“Come on, everypony, this way!” Fluttershy called. She ushered the remaining students away from the battle, denying Tirek further energy to absorb.

“GRAAAAHH!” Tirek bellowed, his frustration reaching a boiling point. He slammed his hands into the ground and created rocky spires that ripped through the earth.

Pinkie Pie gracefully bounced between them. “Whee! This is just like hopscotch!” She nodded at Rarity, who floated her up to Tirek’s face. “Surprise attack!”

Tirek whirled around to get a face full of party cannon. He stumbled around, trying to clear his eyes and blindly shooting magic. A flock of birds pecked at his hands. Blue beams of magic stung his horns as they tried to charge up. Rainbow blurs threw off his aim.

The five friends worked in total harmony, each compensating the weaknesses of the others with their own strengths.

Tirek slowly backed into a corner, blinded and disoriented.

“Look!” Rainbow Dash pointed at the sky.

The ponies cheered as they saw Twilight, Celestia, and Luna flying down to join them, horns at the ready.

“Oh, you don’t know how happy we are to see you all!” Rarity exclaimed.

Twilight approached her friend, smiling. A green flash erupted from the alicorn, revealing her true form.

“Chrysalis?!” Rarity backed away in horror. Chrysalis grinned and fired a beam of magic at her. Rarity managed to deflect the blast with a small shield spell and turned to run. Before she could get far, however, Chrysalis seized her with telekinesis.

The illusions of Celestia and Luna waved as they faded away. A blast of greyish magic knocked Applejack and Pinkie Pie away from Tirek and suspended them in large bubbles. Cozy Glow appeared, hovering over them, surrounded by a grey magical aura emanating from Clover the Clever’s Cloak. The tiny pegasus mock-saluted her two captives.

His legs freed, Tirek stood up and grabbed Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy with his magic. The villains tossed the five ponies into a pile between them.

Chrysalis leered at her enemies. “Ha! Did you foals really think you could stop us?”

Rainbow Dash got in Chrysalis’ face defiantly. “When Twilight gets here, you’re all gonna be sorry!”

“Oh, golly, you’re right! Too bad we aren’t waiting around to find out,” Cozy jeered.

Rainbow Dash dissolved into black smoke and vanished. Her friends gasped and quickly disappeared in the same manner.

The three villains shared grins before evaporating as well.

Twilight, Celestia, Luna, and Spike appeared in a loud burst of purple magic.

With an expression of dread, Twilight looked around at the destroyed school. Rubble was strewn about the courtyard from damaged buildings and classrooms. Water poured out of the library window, dumping out ruined books and furniture. Drained ponies groaned as they tried to get up.

“No…” Twilight whispered hoarsely. She looked back at her companions with tears brimming in her eyes. “We’re too late.”