Chapter Text
It had been a full day since Rarity and Spike sent the scroll to Celestia, in that time, Twilight’s condition had gotten much worse.
Her breathing was shallow, her eyes were barely open, and her horn was leaking some kind of toxic viscus from the tip that ran down her horn and over her muzzle, staining her fur. The veins on her forehead had now spread entirely across her upper head, stopping just below her eyes.
She was laying on her side, because the pain in her torso was too great to lay on.
The spots on her stomach had gone completely black, just like Rarity had predicted, and were now becoming more blotchy.
Her horn had turned completely black, just like the inside of her mouth, and she didn't have the energy to do much except for move her head and her front hooves.
While sitting in Twilight’s bedroom in silent worry, Spike suddenly let out a belch that resulted in him receiving a scroll from Celestia. Rarity looked at Spike with wide eyes and trotted across the room.
“Was that from Celestia?”
Rarity frantically asked, and Spike nodded, quickly opening the scroll.
Spike then showed Rarity the scroll, and the 2 of them began reading it together.
It read.
‘Dear Rarity.
Thankyou for reaching out. I can assure you that I do know of this illness…
Though it is with my deepest regret that it might be too late for Twilight. Unless you act quickly.
The illness is called “the unseen blight”. It is a virus that attacks alicorns only, turning their magic into a toxic substance that will run through the bloodstream, and eventually attack their organs directly.
I will be sending Princess Luna to Ponyille to explain the cure and how to get it to work. She will be with you shortly. I wish you luck…
Regards, Celestia.’
Rarity and Spike stared at each other with wide eyes, and both began tearing up. Twilight was dying, and all they could do was sit and wait until Princess Luna arrived.
“T-twilight…?” Rarity says softly, prompting the alicorn to look at Rarity slowly, her half lidded eyes eventually finding the white unicorn.
“The infection you have is called the Unseen Blight.. And judging by what Celestia just told us, there’s a chance that you have at least a week left to be cured, before it's too late. But we can't be sure…”
Rarity explains, tears running down her cheeks, prompting Twilight to weakly reach out and wipe Rarity’s cheek.
“I think… I think I'll be ok… I have faith in you..”
Twilight responses, her voice hoarse and strained.
About an hour passes, before they hear something almost crash land on the balcony at the end of the hallway outside of the bedroom. It was Princess Luna!
Rarity frantically opened the door, her ears folding back and tears running down her face as she greeted the moon Princess.
Before Rarity could ask questions, the other elements of harmony came bounding in through the front door, and ran upstairs where Rarity was.
“Rarity? What’s goin’ on?! We saw Princess Luna fly over to the castle!”
Applejack asked, with the others looking rather concerned.
“Well, I'm glad you could all be here, as I don't know how long Twilight has left.”
Luna says, hanging her head slightly, causing the Elements of harmony to look between themselves with great concern.
“So Celestia sent rarity here a scroll.”
Princess Luna Started.
“This scroll explains what is going on. Twilight is infected with an infection called “The Unseen Blight”. It is a virus that attacks only alicorns, turning their magic into a toxic mucus-like substance that slowly enters the bloodstream and starts attacking the alicorn's internal organs directly. There is a way to cure it, but it's a very difficult procedure.”
Luna pauses, allowing everyone to process what’s just been said, before looking back at Luna, awaiting for her to explain further.
“To cure ‘The Unseen Blight’, a horn transplant must be performed. And that is why I'm here. The procedure can only be performed with alicorn magic, and a willing unicorn’s horn… Only once the horns are switched, and the alicorn’s magic is restored, will they return to a healthy state and make a full recovery. The main downside is that this procedure has a 100% mortality rate for the unicorn… The unicorn will not survive…”
As Princess Luna explained all of this, her head hung and her tone turned into a rather guilty one. The elements of harmony grew worried, as they listened intently to what Luna had to say.
“We learned this, because Princess Cadance was infected with the unseen Blight many moons ago. Long before Twilight had even moved to Ponyville. The procedure requires the use of the entire horn, and the unicorn that volunteered to save Cadance, didn't make it, because the unicorn suddenly becomes too weak to keep functioning, and passes away almost immediately after their horn is removed…”
Luna’s ears fold back as she finishes explaining what the procedure is, and she struggles to look any of the ponies in the eye.
The elements of harmony look between each other. The silence couldnt have been more loud. Until Rainbow Dash finally spoke up.
“Well then, all we need to do is find a unicorn who would be willing to give the ultimate sacrifice.”
Rainbow said slowly, her ears folding back.
“But who in Equestria would want to–?”
Applejack Started, before Rarity cut her off.
“I'll do it.”
Rarity stated, standing tall and confident. Causing everyone else to look at her in shock.
“Are you sure? you know what will happen.”
Princess Luna asks, and rarity nods, looking Luna in the eye.
“These last 2 days, I have been doing everything I can to help Twilight figure out what’s been going on, while trying my best to keep Ponyville’s citizens at ease about what’s happening. All our research and questions asked led to dead ends. The only answer we had was a vague scroll from Celestia that arrived an hour before you did Luna… I feel like it's the least i can do”
Rarity explained, adamant that she wanted to give the ultimate sacrifice to save her friend's life.
It was clear there was no changing Rarity’s mind, and the others couldn't help but tear up, as it dawned on them that they were about to lose one of their friends, to save another.
Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy and Spike all hugged Rarity tightly, a few of them holding back their sobs as they knew this would be the last time they saw Rarity alive.
“We’ll give you some time to prepare.”
Princess Luna said, before leading the others into Twilight’s bedroom, to see her and tell her what was about to happen, while Rarity made her way downstairs, asking Spike to follow her.
The white unicorn made her way into Twilight’s study, grabbing a scroll and quill, beginning to write. She was writing a letter to Sweetie Belle.
It read.
‘My dearest Sweetie Belle.
By the time you’ve received this letter, I won't be around anymore. I will have passed on from this world and moved on into the next, Im writing this letter to say….
I love you. You have been an amazing little sister to me and I cannot thank you enough for the amount of support you have given me throughout my fashion career.
You have always been there for me, during my best times, and during my not so great times.
We’ve had so many laughs, you and I, haven't we?
It's been wonderful, being your big sister, and it pains me to say goodbye in such an unruly way… But it must be done…
Take good care of Opal, the boutique is now yours to do as you please with.
You can turn it into the brand new, cutie mark crusaders clubhouse if you want!
I love you so much Sweetie Belle, and I wish you the best of luck for the future.
Lots of love
.Rarity’
Rarity set the quill down, tears running down her face and her breathing was shaky, she slowly turned to spike, putting the scroll in an envelope and passing it to him.
“G-go and deliver that to Sweetie Belle please Spike.. Won't you?”
Rarity asks, her ears folding back as she sees how teary the baby dragon was.
Spike burst into tears for a moment, wrapping his arms around rarity and burying his face into her shoulder.
“It's alright Spike… I'll be ok, I promise… But it must be this way…”
Rarity explains before sending Spike on his way to the boutique to deliver the letter to Sweetie Belle.
After a few deep breaths and drying her face, she makes her way back upstairs to meet the others in Twilight’s bedroom.
Everyone stood around her bed in silence, say for the odd snivel as they saw the condition Twilight was in.
A soft tune was playing throughout the room, it was coming from a music box that sat on the bedside table beside Twilight’s head. The alicorn was watching the little figure inside spin in small circles as the music chimed.
It was a white and gold music box that was gifted to her as a filly. She had brought it with her to Ponyville, as she used it as a method of keeping herself calm when things got too stressful.
The music chimed and looped from the little box, and once Rarity entered, Twilight went to speak.
“Girls… Just in case this procedure does not work… Please let me take this moment to say a few things…. Girls.. I am so proud of all of you… We have all come so far, saved so many lives together, and our friendship has grown so strong, that I feel like not a single thing could break the bonds between us… “
Twilight then turned over in bed a little bit, looking at Pinkie Pie directly.
“Pinkie Pie… I don't know why I didn't tell you sooner… But… I love you… And I have for a very long time… I've had feelings for you for such a long time, longer than I can remember… I know it's harsh, saying all of this now, but I want to get everything I wanted to say out into the air…”
Rainbow Dash scowled at this, her ears folding back, and she moved away from the group a little bit.
Twilight then moves her head to look at Princess Luna, who was struggling to hold herself together.
“Princess Luna… Can you please tell Celestia, that I am so sorry, that I wasn't more careful… None of this would have happened, if I had simply thought of what could happen from my actions.
And Luna.. Thankyou, for coming all this way to help me… And if it doesn't work, just know that you did everything you could.. And that’s more than enough… And Rarity…?”
Twilight paused for a moment, giving Rarity a chance to look at her.
“Thank You… For this… You have no idea how much of an impact you’re going to make if this works. Thankyou for being such a kind soul to me for these last few days…”
Rarity walked forward slowly, and hugged twilight gently, before stepping back, so Luna could get started.
“Alright… Everypony i’ll need you to stand back, Rarity, stand beside me please…”
Luna instructed, and everyone did as they were told.
Rarity stood beside Luna, and nodded slowly, signalling that she was ready and braced herself.
Luna’s horn lights up slowly, as she begins casting a spell to extract as much as the toxic viscus that was leaking from Twilight’s horn.
As Luna extracted the viscus, the blotches on Twilight’s torso began to slowly fade. And as that spell did its job, Luna turned to Rarity.
Rarity took a deep breath and nodded, and Luna’s horn lit up again.
A spell began to form a ring around Rarity’s horn that slowly began to dig into the skin, and dig out the bone from the skull to detach it.
Rarity cried out in pain, her ears folding back and her eyes shut tightly.
The other ponies in the room looked on in shock, some of them beginning to shout out in protest, as blood began to run down Rarity’s head and neck.
As the spell continued, more blood began to spray and run down rarity’s head. Her screams echoing throughout the room, and she was struggling to stay upright.
Pinkie Pie ran forward, helping Rarity stay upright, as the procedure continued.
After a few minutes that felt like an eternity, Rarity’s horn came loose from her head, and Rarity began to slowly go limp over Pinkie Pie’s back.
Pinkie hugged Rarity tightly, sobbing openly as Rarity passed away in her arms, all life fading from her body in an instant.
But there was no time to pause, as The procedure was only half done.
Luna then used Rarity’s horn and cast a 3rd spell on it, before holding it up to Twilight’s horn. The 2 horns merged together in a bright flash of light, and any and all viscus left in Twilight’s system evaporated, as Twilight's magic returned to its state of energy and magic, instead of a toxic substance.
Soon all sound fades from the room, aside from Pinkie Pie crying, and the music box…
Playing on loop again and again and again….
