The End of the Universe Ch. 3 -Iteration

I
>Almost ready.
>Almost.  Almost.
>You kinda lied a while back.
>It was longer than a few billion years since you last jerked one out.
>In fact it was lot longer.  You don't remember anymore.
>The operational status of your member was in serious question.  Your bodily functions are still coming around with ferocious vengeance, but your libido was still a long ways coming.
>Ha ha.
>But really.  Everything was working its way downward.  Your loins felt -well, it felt something.
>You wouldn't call it heat.  That didn't even exist as an abstract concept anymore.
>You had a pressure, an urge! It felt like a longing.
>A longing for what?
>The stuttering, flashing phantom that was your mind began to question what it needed.
>There was still so much to do.  For the both of you, actually.  You still weren't alive yet.
>Not completely.
>Muscles tensed and tested.
>Small traces of moisture began to wash over your eyes.  You looked at Celestia.
>Her mane circled the pair of you like a great ribbon.  It had began to light up again.  Traces of pure, undistilled color would pulse through her veil.  You could almost feel it.
>Occasionally it would lap against your back and your nerves would fire off like muskets.
>She apparently found it amusing.
>Her laughter began to regain its height.  You remember that from across the abyss -how much she treasured laughter.  She would rejoice in it.
>Even at the height and turmoil of matters of state, she never passed up the opportunity to let even the smallest snicker loose.
>The void now carries joy, however small.  It carries the echoes of laughter.
>The shadows of rainbows danced across her face and lights her up.  It diffuses softly across her well defined features.  Her mouth is gentle and shadows play oh-so delicatly on the edges of lips turned up into a smile.
>Her lashes are still long and dark, contrasting strongly with her eyes.
>They look like violet stars.  The great shimmering monoliths she ruled over so long ago.  The kind that burned bright and gave life and cause for celebration.
>Except these two never went out.
>Like all the rest.
>They may have closed for eons, and have held you in disdain...
>But they were always there.
>So the universe still had stars.
>And they stare at you.
>And you've never been so grateful.
I
>Your hands began to play at her ears.  They felt like velvet.  You just teased the edges at first.  A finger would trail along their rims, and you'd rub her fur between your fingers.
>Her breathing picked up just a little bit.
>You took the tips more firmly between your fingers.  They twitched and her head swayed as you began to massage deeply along her ears
>Using more pressure....rub along their base....they were apparently very sensitive.
>She began to fret against you.  Her body started to lose a touch of composure.
>Her head pressed strongly against your neck.  Her lips parted and she mouthed against you.
"Anon."
>The sound of her saying your name vibrates across your ears and filters down into the depths of your brain.
>Just hearing her words roll around in your mind is enough to release endorphins.
>At least you think they're endorphins.
NEED
 >Her voice is simply beyond exquisite.
"Anon..."
>You could hear her whisper forever.
>She kneaded at your back.
>Small gasps slipped out from the both of you.  You have no idea why it took you so long to come up with this.
>Oh wait.
>You remember why.
YOU
>From eons ago, you remember why.
"To stay out of my way.  Stay far, far away from me.  I will have nothing more to do with you."
>Fuck....
>"FINE!"
"I'm leaving.  If you are content to sit here and waste away, by all means, do so.  I will not demean myself through apathy."
>Her hair began to flash.
"There are still ways.  I cannot give up.  I don't expect you to understand, I will not ask you too."
>"I'm not even too inclined in the first place.  This is just getting sad.  What the fuck are you hoping for?"
"I hope to see my family again.  Once I thought that this would make sense to you.  Surely if you had the chance to see Luna again, you would do anything possible to make it so.  I hoped that you of all people would understand.."
>You glowered.  That hurt.  That hurt alot.
>Jesus.  Luna.
>That was horrible.
>"I just...can't we just leave them in peace?  For god's sake, dredging this up isn't helping them.  They're gone.  Everything is gone, Celestia."
"This is your choice.  I will not waste what strength I have left upon you.  I'm sorry.   Goodbye, Anon."
>She took off.
>Oh no.
"Where are you going?"
>No answer.
>"WHERE ARE YOU GOING!?"
>no, don't....you don't want to remember this part.  not this part. please....
>You hold Celestia closer.
>
>
>
>There were still black holes in existance.
>Great wells of nothing from which there is no escape, not even for light.
>They were patches of uninterupted black in a place where all the lights went out.
>And Celestia seeked them out.
>She told you to stay away.  She wanted you gone, to just dissappear in the darkness and never make another sound, but fuck that noise.
>You were afraid of the dark.
>The absolute oppression of distance was still something you weren't designed to process, so that didn't bother you most of the time.
>But the dark.
>That was something you could understand.  This was when the small animal part of your mind began to claw at the walls, the only moment when you could grasp at the merest fragment of the vast finality of everything.
>This small speck of comprehension was something you feared above all else.
>In the dark was the fear of understanding.
>And here, understanding was madness.
>You weren't like Celestia.  She was born to be an immortal.  True, she hardly fared better than you, but she had a few psychological safeguards in her mind that allowed her to deal with all the empty space you found yourselves occupying.
>She could handle the grander scale of things while you simply tried to ignore it.
>This is why she chased after the black holes.
>And this is why you still chased after her.  You hated her.  You wished you were dead, you wished SHE was dead.
>You just wanted it to be over for the pair of you, instead of just everyone else.
>But still, you followed.  You kept your distance, however, always keeping her as speck of light in the distance.  Like a candle on a mountain top, or star on the earth's sky.
>This was when you began to fear sleep.  The temptation to hibernate would creep upon you but you would fight it.  What if there was no star, no candle, no moving ember to be found when you awoke?
>So you stayed awake and always followed.
>She eventually found a black hole and hovered just over the event horizon.
>From your distance you could see the dust funnel into a hole of nothingness.
>Pure black.  No variation, no light, no sound.
>It was massive and miniscule at once.  It played all kinds of hell with your perception.  You didn't know how to describe it.
>It was simply the ultimate expression of finality in a universe already in its final stage.
>And Celestia dove into it.
>It was like watching a firefly fall into the ocean.
>You chased after her, but stopped just short of falling in yourself.
>"                           "
>You shouted, but gravity stole your voice along with your strength.  You weren't fast enough.
>The flash of her being echoed and vibrated across the gravitational waves, moving everywhere but somehow still in a straight line.
>It went out.
>And you were left alone in the dark.
>No sound.
>No light.
>No Celestia.
>Just you
>And endless space.
>You began to panic.  You flailed.  You were alone.  You took great gulps of air that wasn't there.  What were you going to do?  Where would you go?
>Where would you go?  There was no "where," there was just you.
>And you were now very afraid.  For the only thing more frightening than the dark was being alone with yourself.
>Forever.
>In the darkness a man was howling, but it was impossible to hear.
>Then the black hole erupted.
~!@#~!@#THE-----**%$$&#$&THEE#*#$%#SUN$$--@%@%RISES~~!!!!
>Reality just shat itself.
>Everywhere you could see points, pricks and shards of color arranged like a glass tree around the black hole, extending for light years upon lightyears in all directions.
>You were dumbfounded.  If your bladder hadn't shut down you would've pissed yourself.
>Voices echoed in the void.
>You focused on the glass realities.  There were planets in the shards.
>Nebulae, comets...
>Stars.
>Your voice tried to find purchase on your lips, you needed to stammer.
>A shard drifted past you.  The punch in reality was beyond big.  It was monolithic, more grand than any mountain.  It was like looking through a window.  True cosmic sky drifted in opposition to the motion of its massive carrier.
>You could hear it as it sliced through the abyss's darkness.
>It was close enough to touch.
>You reach your hand out
>Then the glass turned to sand and blew away.  A billion billion specks of white light crumbled and vanished.
>They all did.
>All was darkness again, but you did not feel the pull of gravity.
>The black hole was gone.  All that remained was the light of Celestia.
>You made your way towards her, to ask her what the hell just happened.
>Her light pulsed several times, turning a slight shade of red, then she took off.
>Fuck this lady, seriously.
>You follow.
>She approached another black hole.  This was bigger than the last one, as far as you could tell.
>Her light arced towards the singularity and she dove into its crushing depths once more.  She whirpooled around and around its center countless times, moving so fast as to adorn the black hole with a ring before she vanished.
>Darkness once more.
>You braced yourself.
~~~!___~_@__-------THE~!_!_!)___SUN~!@(J)~((@RISES.~)(@#~!(~)~))(#~))()))))))____!
>You did not see, so much as you witnessed.
>Reality everywhere coalasced upon you.  Tons of glass made of pure existance fell over you.
>All of the universe was laid before you like a model in a planetarium.  The floor was pure onyx.  The sky was dark, yet an enormous red sun burned over head.  It was the morning of creation.  Sparks of fire exploded in mid-air as worlds were called into being.
>You recognized one.
>Existence pulsed again and you found yourself lying on the ground.
"What is it?"
>...Rainbow?
"Oh, it's waking up!"
>Fluttershy?
"Stand back, I'll handle this."
>It can't be.  This is...this is your first day.
>You open your eyes.
>They are flooded with sunlight.
>You see a sky-blue pegasus standing away from you, wings flared out and ready to pounce.
>You sit up.  Grass grazes against your fingers and the back of your shirt is till wet from the morning dew.
>This is real.
>"Rainbow?  It's actually, you isn't it?"
>This takes her back for a moment.
"Hey, how do you know my name, weirdo?"
>You stand up.  You try to remember how to walk.
>"I'm just as confused as you are trust me."
"If you're trying to play games with me, lemme tell you tha!!@#~#)~()_________----  8  #~ #~@# @#  $$  _____
>You're in the throne room.
>You look around.  Twilight is standing besides you, looking the youngest you've ever seen her.  You look towards the two great seats before you.
>You see Luna.
>"L-Luna?"
>She's staring off disinterested.  However, she looks at you with mild amusement.
"Ah, so he can speak.  Most curious."
>Celestia sits beside her.  She looks confused and desperate.
>"What are you doing."  You take great strides towards her throne.  The guards around her ready their weapons.
"It's not stabilizing.  I'm trying to hold down the stream, but there's not enough energy for me to kee it steady."
>"Sister, what are you talking about?"
>She looks at Luna.  Celestia is trying her best to stay composed, but the sight of her sister is far too much for her.
"Luna, I just want to say I love you.  I'm sorry and I love you.  Always remember that.
>The blue princess is taken back.
"Are you feeling well, sister?  You have been far too occupied this week to handle this.  Perhaps you should rest."
>"Celesia, you have to stop this."
"NO!"
>You could hear a grain of sand fall in the throne room.
"I can make this work.  It just isn't large enough.  I will not fai|||-~!$*#\\*&#*#>>>>>>.....|||\
>Time rushes over you like water.  Glowing streams of color and sound roar around you.
>You are holding a child.
"What shall we name her?"
>"She's just as beautiful as her mother."
>She blushes. You loved making her do that.
>"Let's keep the theme, huh?  Let's call he~~~_-_--_---|||\\\\#$^^^<?^>:::::""":;;;;;`````
>~~!!|===!~!||||+! ~~on't think that will++=work"
"Who knew that something so ugly could also be soooo stupid!  Really, you just pulled the short straw on everything, huh?"
>Discord laughed madly.
"Well, we can't all be perfect."
>He flew up in the air and stretched out his arms.  His fingers sna``~!!~!!!_____-----#@$%$%^$&^&&&&||||------
>More time flew by like in broken pieces.  You're lungs and heart were working at a million miles per hour but there was nothing you could do to slow it down.
>In between the thunders of repeating dawns and the flashes of sunsets you could make out  Celestia in the far off distance, her expression one of pure determination as she tried to hold everything toget--_))____((((@!~@$%%$$$.......\\\|||\>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>You were holding her.
>You were in a stone tower floating in space.  The moon has just been destroyed.
>Her breathing was heavy.
"I'm sorry."
>"No, don't be, you've been wonderful.  You've just been so wonderul."
>She tried to smile, but she just couldn't do it.
"I never forgot, Celestia."
>You realize she was there.
"Neither did I..."
"Stay strong, you two.  We love you both."
>She goes quiet.
>You cried just as hard now as you did the first time.
>"Please.  You have to stop this."
"I...I..."
>"Cannot keep this up.  Celestia, please, put an end to this."
>"This iteration is too unstable.  I know what's going wrong.  It's going to collapse, but I can't say how long before everything runs cold."
>"Then we'll ride this out then."
"I can fix it next time.  I can fix this."
>"Celestia, you can't seriousss- belieeeiiiiiiiii-----______--___-__--- - --     ---
>Color beganto wash away.  Everything started torunonfastforward.
>Itwaslikeatraincrashthatkeptgoingfasterandfasterandnevestoppedrolling.
>Lights.blinded.you.and.sounds.left.you.deaf.
>Soon.the.sound.died.
>You saw suns explode and fade away.  Chunks of existance started to fall off.
>Reality began to wash away like waves of water over sand.
>Existance became a tired machine that ground to a hault and splintered into trillions of specks of light that died quickly enough.
>And then there was nothing.
>Black.
>Dust.
>You held your head and curled into yourself.  You floated and cried.
>That was the worst thing ever.
>It was all there.  Everything.
>And it was horrible.
TO
>You heard Celestia screaming in agony far away at the site of the faded black hole.  Her light flickered and she zoomed off again, her trail wavering and erratic.
>You had to save her.  You had to save yourself.
>But there was no way to catch her.  She was hopelessly faster than you.
>You paused in the darkness, and listened.  You heard it, or rather you didn't hear it.
>And for the first time, you moved away from the light.
>You made your way to the second-closest black hole.  She would have her way with whichever one she was headed towards now, but after that, you would catch her.
>You would stop her.
>You move, heading towards the one place where sound vanished completely.
>A part of you wondered how soon it would take her to reach the other hole.  You hoped you could at least make it more than halfway before she coul~!~~!@~!@#~@#$@_~_____
__+=-=--==-=THE\===00-\\-\SUN``~~~~=====RISES===```=\=\=!!!!
>And you plunged through all of time once more.
>This was was even worse.  You would jump forward and jump back.  You saw things that never even happened.  Creatures that never existed.
>Things began to make even less sense as this broken iteration barreled through to the end.
>Everything that could happen did happen, and did so a million times.
>You saw Celestia, and she was afraid.
>But you still saw Luna, and she still died in your arms.
>Again and again.
>But everything still fell apart.
>Your mind was still intanct, somehow.  You didn't know how long it lasted.  A septillion years, or just five minutes.
>Your mind was too wracked to care.
>You had to stop her.
>You waited, but not for long.
>Her light charged towards you.  It was violent and effervescent.  Flickering on and off, and swaying chaotically.
>This was liable to kill her.
>Maybe that's what she was hoping for.
>She ran right into you.  You held on as she never stopped moving.
>"Anon, I understand.  I don't think it's about the mass or energy, I just have to-
>"Stop this.  You're going to kill yourself.  It's over.  Please, please stop this.  You can't bring them back.  I can't handle this."
"I can't give up!  There has to be a way to save them, there must be! Anon, I'm so close!"
>"They don't need to be saved, Celestia."
"What?"
>"They lived and they died, and they were happy for the most part.  If we bring them back, it'll all happen the same way again.  I don't think you can do things any better.  Everyone had their turn.  Stop....stop trying to play with them.
"Play?  You think this is some kind of game?"
>"They all lived once.  We have to be grateful that we got to spend any time with them at all.  Let them have their peace.  Luna wouldn't want to see you like this."
>She rocketed towards the event horizon.
"But...if there's even the smallest..."
>"No one would say you quit. I won't.  You've done what you could, Celestia, but now there's nothing left to try.  Just -just end this."
"These black holes are too far gone.  They'll evaporate soon.  They just don't have the pull that I need.....I know it won't work...."
>She flapped her wings harder, more out of frustration than desire for greater speed.
"But...I miss them all so much."
>There were tears in her eyes.
>Same for yours.
>"Me too."
"I'm scared.  Anon, I'm so scared.  There's nothing, absolutely nothing ahead and I have no idea how to face that."
>You hugged onto her.
>"We'll figure something out."
>She was quiet.
>She had that billion-year stare going on again.
>
"I have one more idea, Anon."
>"You still won't stop?"  Your voice was incredulous.
"Oh, I will.  My body can only do this once more.  It just might finish me.  Perhaps you as well."
>You considered her words.  Your body already felt like it was going to rip itself apart at the atomic level.
>"Do you really think so?"
"It's worth a try."
LOVE
>"Only one way to find out, I suppose."
>And the two of you dove into the infinite.
>
>
>
>                         a  l l

>  i     s



>    n                   o                       t                      h                  i                               n                    g


>>

>

THE                                 SUN                                  RISES!

>And everything exploded.
>She did not try to reconstitue reality.  She pulled all the energy form the first burst of creation to the final super nova of the universe.
>And it was all centered on you two.
>Heat, cold, wind, water, rock, and celestial fire washed over you.
>You kept your eyes closed, but the purest light still filled your vision.
>There was no pain, just sensation.
>Hope.
>Maybe now you could die.
>The sound soon fades away.
>And everything was darkness.
>You open your eyes.
>You are still there, along with Celestia.
>You are still alive.
>You don't cry, or yell, or resort to beating the crap out of each other.
>There was nothing left to do, and that's all there was to it.
>So you floated there, for eons.  The black holes died on their own, giving off small pricks of light in the distance.
>And soon enough even they were gone.
>The Universe has signed off.
>And then it was truly just the two of you.
>Celestia wrapped into herself.  Her hate and desperation were burned out.  Her very soul was exhausted and she needed to rest.
>And you stayed with her and watched over her.
>Her mane waved slowly, its light was dim, but still there.
>You kept the dust from building up too greatly on her, blowing away the more errant clumps, but doing little more than that to disturb her.
>You tried to keep yourself busy.  Making small shapes out of dust and talking to yourself.
>You made a propane bottle once.
>"I sell propane and propane accessories!"
>It fell apart.
>"Dangit Discord!"
>So much time passed.
>Your joints began to stiffen.  The outer layers of your nerves shut down.
>Your mind began to turn itself off, but you never slept.
>So you spent a long time talking and thinking about things that made absolutely no fucking sense.
>But still, you stayed with her.
ME
----
"It's okay."
>You came back.
>She held you.
>"Yeah, we did what we could."
>You were quiet.
>"We've been shut off for too long."
"We have.  There is much that we have forgotten."
>"Forgetting hurts less."
"It does, but there are some things that must always be kept alive, no matter how painful."
>"What do you think we should remember?"
 "Anon, all I wish is to love once more."
>"I don't...I don't know if I can..."
>She pressed a hoof against your lips.
"We have both lived for a long time.  As I ruled I saw you live amongst my subjects, and you brought more happiness to my kingdom and made it a better place."
>Did you?
"You touched the lives of many.  You lived amongst us and married and gave love, made love, and were given love in return.  Those you chose to fulfil their hearts desires for companionship and appreciation were amongst some of the happiest I've ever seen or felt."
>No words come.
"And yes, many have left us.  They all have gone for a paradise we cannot witness, but we still have one another.  I need to love again, Anon.  You have stayed with me through everything.  Everything.  Let me love you for it."
>Don't say anything.  Say nothing.  Do not ruin this.  You begin to feel a familiar senstation between your legs.
>oh hello there.
"I need to love you.  I need you to love me.  No matter how much it hurts, or how much you're afraid of being left again."
>She kissed your cheek.
"Because I will never leave you."
>You press your lips against hers.
>It almost felt warm.
"Please."
>There was a single light in all the universe.
>And two beings began to make love within it.