//------------------------------//
// Chapter 4 
// Story: Stallion X 
// by Lost Brony 
//------------------------------//

	It was a very beautiful day. The sun shined brightly across the clear, blue sky (thanks to Rainbow). The birds were twittering within each leafy, green tree. A cool breeze was lightly blowing through her mane. Living in Ponyville for the past year, Twilight had grown accustomed to the small town. The weather was almost never harsh. She knew almost everypony around. And a lot of her favorite places were usually nearby.
It wasn't as fancy as Canterlot, but there was one thing Ponyville had that her first home didn’t… actually, there were five things. 
When Twilight first became interested in her magical studies, she thought the only best friend she ever needed was Shining Armor. It was only a year before when she realized that her truest friends had been waiting in Ponyville. She was not ashamed to admit that she missed Canterlot. After all, it was where she was born and raised, where her parents lived. But it was in Ponyville where she learned the values of friendship.
As she trotted down through the town, Twilight politely greeted all the passersby. “Good morning” she waved to Lyra and Bon Bon, “Hello” to Caramel, “How are you doing?” to Oat Meal who was telling another one of her crazy tales to a friend of hers. Although, they gleamed back, these weren’t the ponies she was wanting to see. 
She knew her five mare friends were doing as they did last year, making preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration. Just the thought of them seemed to lighten her spirits, even after those past couple of nights. The six of them could be seen simply as best pony friends, whom in reality, were more than just that. 
Everypony learned and knew of their combined powers, as they have saved Equestria at least twice. Twilight represented the most powerful of the Elements of Harmony, Magic. Each one of her best friends also represented other elements. Rainbow Dash was of Loyalty. Pinkie Pie was of Laughter. Fluttershy was Kindness. Applejack, Honesty. And Rarity, Generosity. It was those powerful artifacts that have provided great protection for the kingdom.
Twilight looked across from her and saw Sugar Cube Corner down the street to her left. She knew Applejack and Pinkie Pie were meeting there. The orange country pony was catering the event while the happy party pony was helping out.  They both agreed to cater to the celebration together. She was just about to enter the bakery when she heard a Southern drawl from the right of the building. “Well, mornin’ Twilight!” It was Applejack. On top of her flank, she carried a large basket full of ripe, shiny apples. “I was just bringin’ these here apples to Pinkie so we can get them ready for tomorrow.”
“Well, here,” Twilight magically held the door open, “Let me help you out.”
“Thanks, Twi.” Applejack walked in and placed the apples behind the counter while Twilight followed. As the door shut behind her, Twilight stood in the middle of the shop, instantly smelling the hot, steamy goodness of all the treats it held. Pinkie and Applejack never held back when it came to baking. Warm and fresh apple pies, fritters, dumplings, and cupcakes were just the beginning of the stack of food on the shelves. It was only the sight of it all that made Twilight starving. Good thing I skipped breakfast today!
She wanted at least one taste. “Is it alright if I could just… you know?” She was hungry, but not enough to be rude.
“Of course!” Pinkie suddenly jumped up from behind the batches of  caramel apples. “I even pre-made a special cupcake just for each one of my bestest friends,” she said as she tossed a cupcake to Twilight. When she caught it in her hooves, she noticed that her own smiling face was formed into the purple frosting. It was a bit creepy, but she took a bite anyway.
“Mmm! This is delicious! I mean your food is always delicious, but this one has grape jelly inside.” She didn’t even care her mouth was full. “You know I love grape jelly.”
“Mine had apple jam,” Applejack spoke up. “Wanna grab a taste of my food? I’m using a new recipe this year.” She waved a hoof over the food as if sending the smell over to Twilight.
“Don’t mind if I do.” 
Two sweet apple fritters and a couple of jokes later, a light blue, rainbow-haired Pegasus flew in though the window. “Hey, guys. What’s up?”
They all greeted back, except for Pinkie who responded “You are, silly.”
Rainbow touched down onto the floor, “I‘m starving. Me and my team finished clearing the skies from Manehatten to Canterlot. So, what’s for breakfast?”
“Pinkie and I made an extra batch of fritters for the six of us,” Applejack yawned, “We got up early to make up for lost time.”
“Yeah!” the hyperactive pony squealed, “And it’s all going to be totally worth it! I even have an extra cupcake just for you, Dashie.” Rainbow, upon seeing her face molded by the colorful frosting, was bit reluctant to eat pink pony’s treat. Twilight and Applejack tried their best not to laugh. “It’s filled with zap apple jam. I know it’s your favorite.” she sang.
Rainbow decided to give it a try and, with satisfaction, ate Pinkie’s cupcake in one bite. “By the way,” she said, crumbs coming out of her mouth, “Fluttershy and Rarity will be coming over soon. They’re  just outside of the Everfree Forest.”
“What are they doing all the way out there?” Twilight curiously asked.
Dash swallowed the remainder of her snack, “Fluttershy’s working on music with her songbirds. And Rarity’s trying to get some ideas for decorating town hall.”
Here’s your chance, Twilight realized.
“Well, I’m glad that they’re coming,” she stated. She felt her voice drop into a melancholy tone as she continued, “I’ve been meaning to talk to you all about something that’s really been a lot of stress for me.”
Applejack must have sensed the change of mood, as she placed a relieving hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “What is it, sugar cube?”
“I shouldn’t say, at least, not yet. I want to wait until Rarity and Fluttershy to come by. And besides, it may not be a big deal anyway.”
Pinkie quickly butted in, “Oh, come on. You should tell us now. What else are friends for?”
“You know, Pinkie, that’s exactly what I thought,” she tried to explain, “but the thing is-”
Rainbow cut her off, “Come on, if it’s really been stressing you out, then maybe you should tell us now. Then we can let those two know what’s going on when they get here.”
Twilight knew she needed to talk about her secret with somepony, but she didn’t expect her friends to be so interested. They each looked at her with such wide-eyed eagerness. She sighed heavily, “This is really a one-sided battle that I’m losing, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” all three answered.
There was no use in arguing about, so Twilight gave in, “All right, I’ll tell you.” Might as well get this over with now. “But remember, I might just be overreacting to this whole thing,” she added.
“It’s fine, Twi,” Rainbow said, “Any problem you have, we’re there for you.”
“Yeah,” Applejack agreed, “Just take all the time you need to tell us what’s been happenin’.”
“Well, here it goes. But no questions until the end.” The three  friends nodded in understanding. Twilight reluctantly began. “For about a week, I’ve been having these weird dreams. They’re always about Discord and I’m sure you remember him. Well, he was in a cave with Trixie, who apparently became his apprentice. There was somepony else. He called himself… Stallion X, I think. I guess Princess Celestia had made him into stone after he fought against Luna, because I’m pretty sure Discord had just revived him. Anyway, Discord was planning to take control of Equestria and he said if he failed, Stallion X would take his place. 
“Now, I did some research with Zecora. She told me dreams can sometimes represent moments from the past, which makes me think that the dream took place just before Discord returned. But I’m still not sure whether the dream is real or not.“ She stopped. Keep going, don’t stop. She continued. “I really feel like… like I‘m just being paranoid again. Which is why I felt I needed to tell you about this.” 
Twilight stopped again and remained silent, waiting for a reaction. Pinkie, Rainbow, and Applejack just stared. The stares seemed blank and hollow, but they still made her feel uneasy. Maybe I was wrong, maybe they’ll just laugh at me. Finally, Applejack spoke up, “Is there anything else we should know about this?”
She was quite relieved they were actually listening to her. “Well…” Should I tell them about that nightmare I’ve had about me, Luna, and Celestia? Or that Stallion X and I had the same point of view? “No, there’s nothing else.” She thought it was best if she didn't say. A silent pause quickly filled the room, with no sound except for the muted creaks of wood.
“You see?!” The happy Pinkie voice shot through the somber feeling in the air. “Told you we’d still be here for you!” She trotted over and gave Twilight a tight hug. 
“Did you think we wouldn’t understand?” Rainbow Dash said as Pinkie let go. “Remember how you guys were there for me after that whole ‘killer Pinkie’ thing? Even though I still get chills looking at knives.” She blushed with her last comment. 
“Hee-hee!” Pinkie giggled, “Besides, why would Trixie be with Discord? Isn’t he, like, evil?”
“Yep,” Applejack chuckled. It took her own laughter to help Twilight realize she was smiling along, “Y’all have nothin’ to worry about. The Great and Powerful Show-Off was just too scared to face an Ursa Minor. Why would that be enough to make her go bad?”
“You were right.” laughed Rainbow, “You were overeacting.” Everypony was laughing. Not at Twilight, but with her.
Twilight could hardly stop her own fits of laughter. Her breathing was becoming so short and fast, that it almost made her chest hurt. Her sight was unfocused. She felt the room spin beneath her hooves. All of the voices around her began to echo and fade away. All but one. “Twilight Sparkle” She could feel herself falling with something following… “I’m coming for you” …the floor hitting her head… “The Elements of Harmony” …pain was horrible… “Will be mine” …the warm wetness from her nose coming down her face… “Your powers” NOOO!! “Your magic” …screaming… “Will be in my hooves” Dear Celestia! Please make it stop! “I will find you Twilight” She was crying… begging… “Join me Twilight” …so cold…  “Or perish.”
“Twilight!”
“Twilight, get up!”
“Does somepony know CPR?! Please!”
A voice had cut through her ears and into her mind. Every hair on her body stood on end while chills crawled down her spine. It sounded so strange and haunting, yet she knew it was there. It knew she was there. It was taunting and laughing at her suffering.
Something was holding her, shaking her awake. Her eyes sprang open, blurred and blinded by tears and surrounding lights. She was taking deep but fast breaths. Her friends, all five of them, surrounded her with fear and worry locked to their faces. Fluttershy was the first to speak, “Are you okay, Twilight?” She spoke very softly, as if not trying to frighten anypony. 
Rainbow was next to talk, “Rarity, go get a napkin for her blood.” Rarity went to get them. Blood? Was I bleeding? Almost by instinct, Twilight felt her face and looked down at her hoof. Sure enough, there was a warm, red, almost sticky substance. Blood.
“What just happened?” Twilight asked as she sat up. Her head hurt so much, she was  actually feeling dizzier. Rarity quickly returned with a wet napkin and carefully wiped away on Twilight’s stained muzzle. “Rarity, I’m fine,” Twilight lied as she moved her head away. “Can somepony just tell me what happened?” All stood silent, seemingly scared to answer. “Did I just faint?” she asked again.
“We're not sure,” explained the white-coated unicorn, “When me and Fluttershy came in, you were on the floor screaming and crying for help.” She had red around her eyes. She’d been crying.
Then Rainbow talked, “It looked like you were having a seizure or a heart attack or something.” She reached out a hoof toward her, “Can you get up?”
She ignored her friend’s question and helping hoof and looked around. It’s just us in here. Who else did I hear talking? The voice seemed eerily familiar to her. Too familiar. “Girls, I think heard him. He was talking to me. He’s trying to find the Elements.”
“Who?” They all wondered.
“Stallion X.” It the most ridiculous answer she had ever given, but it was the only one she could find that would make any sense.