(Story extract)

I gasped for breath, looking at the current surroundings. Ornate, detailed arches lined with vines and pink flowers covered the white pylons, apples hanging freely from other branches as the white marble room came into focus. A set of large doors rested on the opposite side, myself sitting on a cushioned bench quietly, pleasant sounds filling the air – the idle hum of Bruce’s reactor systems, Vera’s soft, longing voice, Featherweight cooking dinner up for us, Gamma Ray calling for me. Her distinct voice drew closer, myself giving a small, startled jump as a hoof poked me gently between my wings. Turning about, Lime-green strands of mane filled my vision before I met the eyes of the young, beautiful light-blue unicorn I’d known for all of my life. She smiled widely, leaning forth and wrapping me in her hooves, myself sputtering. “G-Gamma Ray…”

“Yes, Twinnie. It’s me…” Her gentle hooves rubbed softly over my wings, that special way she always did it. It, it really was… acting more than thinking, my forelegs instantly wrapped about her body, squeezing it in a tight embrace. She let off a slow chuckle, leaning back and holding a hoof to my cheek. “Oh, you grew up so fast, Twintails. I told you that we’d meet again…”

“…some sunny day. Gamma, this is… I’m just so happy to see you again. How did you get here, I mean, I was with Minty in NEAMO’s reactor room, and then… then…” I fell quiet, thinkng about it more. Gamma Ray, she was dead, I saw her go with my own eyes, held her in my hooves, buried her. A small frown fell to her face, her foreleg wrapping about me tighter. “G-Gamma, am I… I…” She nodded quietly, rubbing her foreleg slowly down my back and over my wings, moving her other one to grab my hoof.

“I’m sorry, Twinnie. I was watching you as you and your friend tried to delay it long enough, the reactor output peaked, and…” She fell quiet, leaving myself with my head hung low, looking as she grabbed my hoof tightly. She let out a small chuckle, her free foreleg releasing my hoof and lifting my chin up to look at her. “If it’s any consolation, you did everything right. Well, you, and your friend…”

The doors on the other side of the white, ornate room opened up, a white unicorn trotting through them and over to myself and Gamma Ray, his left foreleg matching his right and horn a solid white color, the only thing not ‘him’ being the pair of glasses on his eyes. He smiled warmly, his trot breaking into a slight gallop as I stood myself up with Gamma Ray, us all meeting halfway to the door. Holding Minty in a tight hug, the sound of flapping wings and hoofsteps caught my ears, looking to the doorway to see a yellow pegasus with a long, flowing pink mane and tail hovering alongside the orange earth pony with a stetson covering her hay-colored mane. They both wore soft smiles as well all looked to them, the earth pony mare removing her stetson and holding it to her chest. “Miss Gamma Ray? Are ya ready?”

“Of course, miss Applejack. Just… one more moment, if I may.” The orange earth pony smiled, giving a faint nod and placing her stetson back atop her head, myself looking towards Gamma Ray. She trotted up to me, holding a hoof to my cheek for a moment then pulling me into a tight hug, brushing her cheek and mane against mine. She took a step back, placing a tender kiss to my forehead, gently holding her hoof against my cheek once more. “I’m sorry, Twinnie, but I have to go. I promise you, I’ll always be with you, and you know what Vera always sang… We’ll meet again…”