Star Overhead

by KorenCZ11

Funny Bunny (Part 1)

When she first appeared, I was left in awe. She was massive, bigger than any stallion I’ve ever seen. Her mane was like flowing gas filled with sparkling light and flowing in the wind, four colors of the dawn sun, pink, lavender, green, and teal blue. She was wearing a crimson leather jacket with black stripes on it, the words ‘Top★Corn’ emblazoned in gold, and a big yellow scarf that waved in the wind alongside her sparkly mane. Splitting the fog and flying through the air on a motorcycle, fully encompassed in the sun behind her. She, the Sun. Through my tear-filled eyes while I thought my savior was dying on the ground before me, she came when I needed her most. The answer to my prayers, my Sun.

With the help of Twilight and some plastic pony, they defeated the giant monster that came out of Twilight’s head with a heavy swing of that wonderful sound, the guitar that vanquishes monsters. She turned to me, and then I saw her eyes. Violet, the color of amethyst with little specks of gold all around that shone and flashed with the movement of light. With their powers combined, my savior was enveloped in magic and brought back to life.

What kind pony could have that much power other than a goddess? It was believed long ago that there were two alicorns in the world, the Queen and her elder sister, but it was said that she disappeared almost a thousand years ago. She doesn’t have wings, but who else could this powerful, beautiful, massive mare be but the lost Queen of the Sun?

Out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw something small and black move into my backpack, but when I checked it, Angel was fine, and the bunny was the only thing that could move around inside. With as much effort as it would take to pick up a foal, the large white mare took both Dash and I in her hooves and helped us get settled on her motorcycle. Twilight smelled awful, but that didn’t matter to me. She was here. I could touch her. I could feel her. I could smell her. Ah, my goddess.

“I-it’s over Twilight. I have the high ground. Now, draw your last pathetic card,” I said. It’d been a week since I met the Motor Mare, and it was Friday again. I searched and searched for mentions of the old Sun Queen online and found nothing. What little there is about the Queen’s older sister is basically that, she’s the Queen’s older sister and is one of the last two alicorns, a pony made of the best traits of all three races.

“My brother’s deck has no pathetic cards, Fluttershy! You underestimate my powers!” I was honestly surprised to learn how much I have in common with these other mares. I’ve lived in Underhoof for most of my life after my parents decided that the sky city was getting too violent to raise a family in. As old as they were, things were different now, and they wanted to go somewhere like it used to be. And so, the small town of Underhoof was selected, and my little brother was born here a few years later.

“Ah ha! It’s here!” Twilight drew her card like some kind of anime protagonist, moving her hoof all the way across her body to its full extent and flipping the card around to face her. She might be too into this because, not only did I see that it was Dark Magic Circle, I already had a plan in mind to win the duel anyways. All she has to do is summon something and then it’s all over. Ponies like to think that Blue-Eyes is a bad deck but, in contrast with the mess that is Dark Magician and his support, it’s leagues above. XYZ ruined the game, but Links just made degeneracy more profitable. If only I had the will to stay away.

“I activate the effect of Dark Magical Circle! This card-” I rolled my eyes and sighed.

“Twilight, I know what the card does, this is our third game.” The violet unicorn blushed and set the card next to her trap.

“Er… right.”

I’m sure she’s learned better than to have Eternal Soul active when I’ve broken it twice with Twin Twister and beat her for it, so when she activates the already set Magician Navigation to summon the Dark Magician she’s about to draw and the one she put back in her deck to get Ebon Illusion Magician out…

“So, I reveal Dark Magician and add him to my hoof, then place the other two cards on top of my deck in any order. Then, I activate my trap card, Magician Navigation!”

Uh-huh. I switched from my Blue-eyes Chaos MAX Dragon deck because I knew she had no way to get around the already hard to deal with ritual monster, but as it happens, my Burn deck is significantly better, even if Dark Magic Attack is the bane of my existence. Of course, if Twilight knew that, this wouldn’t be so easy. In trying to make the game fairer, I’ve made it even more one sided. I suppose having somepony other than my little brother to bully in this game is better, but her deck isn’t good, so this isn’t even fun… well, except for when I win like this…

“This card allows me to special summon the Dark Magician in my hand, and then one level seven or lower dark, spellcaster-type monster from my deck! Come forth, Dark Magician!” The purple unicorn clumsily cycled through her cards until she found the old first edition ultimate rare original set Dark Magician in perfect condition that I want off her so bad but she won’t give up because it’s her brother’s or whatever, and then played it to the field. My parents said I was too young when I first saw this thing, and it was just in an old bargain box of unsealed cards. Nowadays, that card is worth something like fifty bits, alone and in poor condition. It is, to say the least, frustrating to see this filly, who barely knows how to play, with it in her deck. Oh well, time to end it.

“Then, this triggers the effect of Dark Magical Circle, and I target to banish your Azure-Eyes Silver Dragon!” I couldn’t help but smile when I activate this card. I can never take it out of any deck I make because it always gets me out of a bad situation, and every time I do, it’s always the card that would’ve saved me when I lose.

“And on to that, I chain the effect of Ring of Destruction, targeting the first edition Dark Magician. And then I chain Just Desserts. Just for fun, I’ll throw in Accumulated Fortune because why not? And then I activate Ojama trio. And finally, Chain Burn, because overkill is never enough. Going back down the chain, Chain Burn hits you for twenty-four hundred at chain link 6, Fortune draws me two cards, Ojamas summon themselves to your field, giving you five monsters, Just Desserts deals five hundred per monster, so that’s twenty-five hundred, and then destroying your Dark Magician hits you for twenty-five as well, so seventy-four hundred in total. That would be-”

“GAME!” came from the game the other two fillies remaining in the classroom were playing. It was Friday again, one week from when I first saw, but not met, the Motor Mare. In truth she hit me in the face with her guitar when I turned to find the source of the music, but I didn’t even know what happened back then until I started hearing the rumors about how Rarity and Applejack both had a similar experience. Of course, Applejack saw her before she got hit, so she could actually testify.

“Oh, damn it. Why do I always get hit by that? Is there a good way to deal with opponents who jump all the time like you do?” Pinkie asked. Of all the ponies in school, I think she’s the most mysterious. I typically keep to myself, and aside from Applejack, Trixie was the only pony I ever spoke to during the week. Stupid bitch. I hope that tooth never gets fixed. Too bad she survived.

“That’s just the way the competitive game is played. If you’re not in the air all the time, you’re either playing a grounded character, or you’re playing wrong. The bane of my existence is zoners, but you have to be kinda good at spacing to pull that off. Oh! Armored attacks are also very hard for me to deal with because I don’t have them. If you want to keep using your character, I suggest learning to mix in grabs when you approach. Since this is… well, kind of a fighting game, you can’t tech out of them unless your opponent tries to hold for too long, so more often than not, it’s a guaranteed opening.”

I know some of those words. Rainbow Dash, the new girl whom is even shorter than everypony else, and significantly shorter than I, has been staying after school to play that game of theirs with Pinkie and Twilight. She seems very interested in me since she saw me drawing before Trixie got to me last week, her knocking my sketch book off my desk the whole reason for that incident in the first place. Stupid cunt. I wish that monster did what it came for. I guess she likes anime because she and her dad play the fighting games based around it. ‘That looks like Blueblaze’ or something. As it turns out, Twilight’s big brother also really liked anime, and Twilight is almost as much a weeb as I am, though she’s less internet inclined and not as… well…

“Gah! Damn it. Oh well, at least it’s not Magic Cylinder this time. I don’t know which is more frustrating, that or Dimension Wall… Your deck is scary. Shining never put anything together like either of those before. Though, that might be because he always liked the unicorns better than the dragons. And monsters. I didn’t even know you could make a deck that barely uses them. Is there a way I can make this better?”

No, you’re playing Dark Magicians as well as you can. They’re just not up to par anymore. Just wait till I pull out my competitive deck. You think burn damage is bad, wait till you learn about hoof traps.

“W-well… maybe. You could try going online and looking at staples for spellcaster decks, like maybe Secret Village of the Spellcasters, or Skill Drain since most of your monsters don’t have effects anyways…” What am I saying? She should get a better deck! Twilight stacked up her cards and put them back in her deck box. It was white with somepony else’s cutiemark drawn on crudely, most likely her brother’s doing when he got this deck however many years ago that was.

“Hmm… I guess, though I’m not sure where I’ll get the money for that. Is it expensive? I get a few silvers to play with every month from dad.” I unconsciously cycled through my cards to look at the Ash Blossom that cost me about a black bit to get my hooves on. Oh goddess, she has no idea. I can never tell her the truth.

“Well… um, you know… t-typically, card games are… well, they can be… more expensive than one would think, so…” I’m not sure I can break it to her. I don’t want her to stop playing, then I’d have nopony to play with. But… nopony should ever spend the kind of bits I’ve spent on this game. My obsession. Ooh, there’s an idea!

“Actually… w-why don’t you come over to my house sometime? I have a lot of cards… that I don’t use, maybe we can do something with that?” This way, I can make her a deck and teach her how to use it without making her spend hundreds of bits on Ash Blossom and Ghost Ogre playsets like I did. Twilight nodded.

“Okay, that works I guess. I still want to get my own cards eventually, but if you’ve got a lot, it should help me get more familiar with them at least.”

I tried very hard and failed to contain the big smile on my face. Who knew that getting hit in the face with a bass was what would finally make me friends? I thought everypony was like Trixie all this time, Applejack being the exception and not the rule. I always knew there were other weirdos like me out there, but I never believed they were so close to home…

“Great!” I think I yelled in her face. The look she gave me made me want to run and hide. I think my wings flared out unintentionally too and that just made this all worse. Even the other fillies looked at me funny and I just wanted to escape. Oh goddess, what’s wrong with me? Why can’t you be normal you stupid, stupid filly? This is why nopony likes you! This is why Trixie picks on you!

“Yeah… sure. Why don’t we do that on Saturday or something? I usually don’t have things going on over the weekend… provided something weird doesn’t happen again.” The other girls put their Clicks away and the classroom went very silent.

Why is nopony saying anything? Did I miss something?

“Didn’t you say the last one happened on Monday?” Rainbow asked eventually. Last one? What are they talking about? Twilight nodded.

“Yeah. It was just as weird as when you got hit, but maybe even more so. Rarity got swallowed by the shadow beast, and when she pulled her out of the thing’s head, which I won’t even begin to question, she also brought a new guitar out too. The thing is shaped like a diamond and has these really sharp edges to it, so I can only wonder what that’s all about. Ugh, I shudder to think how things would’ve gone if she hit any of us with that one instead.”

Oh, this must be about the Motor Mare. Another one? Does she mean that thing that almost ate Trixie? Are there more of those?

“Huh. You guys keep telling me about this stuff and I wish I could’ve seen it to be honest. It sounds so metal.” Dash looked on like she was imagining the scene in her head.

If only she knew how scary all of that was. Before Twilight got… eaten or whatever, it didn’t look like the Motor Mare could do it. Now that I think about it, why did Twilight get eaten? Could that happen to anypony, or is there something that makes her special? She had wings when she merged with that white pony, it was almost like she became an alicorn or something. And what was that white pony? It was almost like it was made of plastic, something like a mannequin, but… it moved. Why is it that the moment somepony takes interest in me for the first time in my life that all this weird shit starts happening? Twilight shook her head.

“No, you don’t. That thing was fucking terrifying. Ugh, just remembering all those teeth makes my skin crawl. And the one that ate Rarity was just as bad. You know that doll in the lab room that’s like, half a pony on one side, but shows the innards and blood vessels and stuff on the other side?” Dash nodded.

“Oh, yeah. I think Mrs. Rich called him ‘Muscle Mass’, didn’t she?” I raised my eyebrows. Geez, I’ve been going here all my life and seen that doll a thousand times and never knew it had a name. I guess she actually pays attention. Sigh. One more thing to add to the list of things other ponies are better at. The ever growing, ever expanding list.

“Yeah, that’s the one. Well, imagine him, but all black and moving around and missing pieces inconsistently. That’s what these things tend to look like. And also kinda shadow-y. It’s weird to describe. I’m not sure I know the words for that.” Rainbow shrugged.

“Eh. There seems to be a pattern here, so maybe I’ll get to see the next one. Let’s get outta here. Dad’s supposed to be making carrot dogs tonight, and I don’t want to miss that.” After everypony agreed and I put my cards away in my bag, careful not to crush Angel while I did, we left the girl’s school. Twilight and Dash kept talking along the way, and before we got to the road where I needed to turn to go get my brother, I heard the sound of a motorcycle pull up beside us.

“Wow, look at you. I daresay somepony has made some friends.” I gasped. I felt my heart start racing. The golden light of the afternoon sun draping over her in the shining orange hues of a mare not of this world. Her mane was wet and glistening, her back hooves propped up on the handlebars, somehow driving the motorcycle like that, while her front hooves were behind her head as she relaxed casually on the bike like this was nothing to her. Her beautiful amethyst eyes like deep pools of crystal, their golden spots reflecting like petals on the surface on a lake.

“Imagine that! Maybe I’m not as socially inept as you think I am, and I might even be likeable to some ponies!” Twilight shot back. Pinkie made a mocking snort before she could contain it and Dash turned away from her too, desperately trying to hide a smirk. Twilight scowled at them both. “Oh, fuck you both.” Dash failed to hold a chuckle and said,

“I thought we went over this, I’m not into mares Twilight.” She groaned and stomped on ahead.

“Wow, coulda fooled me! See? This is why I don’t go out of my way to talk to ponies. Ponies are assholes.” The Motor Mare, Pinkie and Dash all laughed, then the big white mare sped up… somehow, I still wasn’t sure how the bike was being ridden at all with her magic inactive, and scooped the filly up. She laid her on her stomach and ran her hooves down the filly’s body and whispered in her ear,

“Oh come now Twilight, ponies aren’t all bad…” I felt myself salivate and my face heat up. Oh goddess what is she doing? What is she about to do? C-could she do that to me? No! No! No! Stop it! Oh goddess, she could do that to me! But would she?

“Aah! S-stop it♥ W-what are you doing to me? D-don’t… don’t touch me there!”

Holy shit! Don’t say that! This is just like my trashy romance anime, but it’s happening right in front of me! Aaaah! I felt my lower body reacting to the scene and suddenly my knees buckled. My wings flared open and everypony was looking at me. Then, those eyes caught mine. The amethyst gems sprinkled with gold, laughing pools boring deep within me, looking at me like they knew exactly what my dirty mind was thinking and telling me, ‘This could all be yours. All you have to do is ask♥’

“Eep!” I squeaked and took to the air as fast as I could. “I-I just remembered that I-I have to go pick up my l-little brother, b-bye!” Oh goddess, what’s wrong with me?

It was clear today, but it was rainy the day before, and it was supposed to be rainy all weekend. I passed a little pool of water on my way to the elementary school, and my face was just as red as I thought it was. I kept shifting my hips and trying to press my thighs together harder to stop the itch, but the burning just wouldn’t go away. It demanded my hoof to remedy itself, but I couldn’t just abandon Zephyr and go home to indulge my awful habit.

She’s a mare you stupid filly! She shouldn’t make you feel like this! Those comics you draw are bad enough with all the colts, but now… now there’s somepony you can touch that makes you feel this way… she’s real… she’s right there. If you had asked, would she have even said no? Gah! Stop it, stop it, stop it! She’s way older than you are, she could be older than Mrs. Rich! That’s illegal! But… if we’re both mares… No!

The argument went on and on until I reached the elementary school on the other side of town. I usually fly straight here from school… in the event Trixie doesn’t make me do something… Ugh, I hope he doesn’t think I did just abandon him and go home. It’s not like crime is something that happens often here, but the hit and runs are still scaring ponies… even if I know who did them now. What if mom and dad think we got ran over and left for dead? Oh goddess, what have I done? I should’ve left immediately! Why did I play that stupid game? I hope he’s still here…

The need to scratch the itch drowned in worry, I flew as fast as I could to the entrance, only to be relieved when he was there talking with one of his friends. Zephyr was always more social than I was, so it was more of a surprise that I was with ponies today than anything.

“Oh, there she is. Hey! What took ya so long?” I sighed and sank to the ground.

“I met some ponies today. One of them had cards so we played a game and I lost track of time. I’m sorry.” The other colts and fillies around him dispersed after a bit and we started to head toward the house. In truth, it only takes me fifteen minutes to fly to school myself, but because Zephyr is still too young for a long distance or quick flight, we typically walk home together. Not that it takes but ten minutes to get home from the elementary on hoof anyways.

“Ya know, mom called me asking where we were.” Oh goddess, I knew it! I never should’ve played the game, I should’ve gotten Zephyr first!

“I told her one of my friends wanted to learn our card game, so we’d be home when we finished.” That struck me.

“Oh… did you now?” Why would he lie to mom? Has he done this before? Why didn’t she call me?

“Yeah. Mom said she tried to call you but didn’t get an answer. I figured you might’ve finally met somepony or got caught up by that one girl you hate.”

That’s why. She did call me. I let my head droop and sighed, dragging my mane along the sidewalk as I did. I really do need to cut this soon. I turned to open my backpack, and after Angel climbed on my back, I found my phone and saw the notification. Yep, she did call me, and I didn’t notice because I was playing with Twilight. Good job. You are the worst pony. Angel grabbed at my mane, and then I watched him point at his open mouth.

“Oh, I’m sorry sweetie. I’ve been such a mess today, I just don’t know what to do with myself.” I reached in my bag and opened my lunchbox to get his baby carrots. Once he had a few and was satisfied, I put the box away and continued on. Underhoof was probably a little more wet than I was right now, and today was the one day we’d get of the sun for the week. Rain here is pretty common, what with the lakes all around and the mountains to the west trapping most of the weather on this side.

“Has… he always been black? And wasn’t he smaller before?” Zephyr asked. I turned to look back at the bunny and I wasn’t sure. I woke up Saturday morning and noticed his color changed, but he’d been shedding a lot lately, and I figured it was just him growing. But the actual growth I’ve noticed has also been more than usual. A week ago, he could sit relatively comfortably on my hoof. These days, he’s almost the size of a small cat. I had to take one of dad’s duffle bags to school today just so he could come. He hates being left at home, so I always bring him and take care of him through the day.

“Maybe. He was white before, but he has been shedding a lot lately. It could just be a growth spurt. They expect you to get a whole lot bigger before you’re my age, even bigger than I am. It could be like that.” The little green colt shrugged and puffed at the blonde mane over his eyes. He needs his mane cut too.

“Weird. But then again, lots of weird stuff has been happening. We were talking about astrology today, which I learned is what they call studying stars, and the teacher said that the Queen wants to… ee-vack-you-ate the planet in the next couple years.” Huh? I eyed the little pink eyed colt. He doesn’t normally lie when talking about class, so what’s all this about a planetary evacuation?

“What do you mean? Are you saying she wants everypony to leave the planet? Like, in spaceships or something?” Zephyr nodded.

“Yeah! Miss Raven says that the… the… gov-vern-ment has been planning this for a while. She said that Discord’s comet is supposed to be off course for some reason, and next time it passes it’s gonna clip the earth and cause a cat… kata… kat-ta-kliz-mick event. The moon is supposed to be safe though, and the colony projects are already working, so that’s what she’ll do once the big arks are ready.”

Since when is cataclysmic a third-grade vocabulary word? More importantly, why does his teacher know about this? What in the world would some random middle-aged mare in Underhoof have of value to somepony like the Queen? Is she just some kind of crackpot conspiracy theorist ranting off to foals because she can? Maybe I should tell dad about this…

“Um… that’s… interesting? Maybe keep that one to yourself, hmm? Sometimes, adults don’t always tell you the truth, and sometimes they do it for no reason. I’m not sure why she would tell you that, but I… don’t exactly think that’s true.” Zephyr’s face contorted into the confused face a nine-year-old would make when being told contradictory information and went silent.

“Oh…” While Zephyr contemplated that to the best of his abilities, I contemplated the ominous words myself.

I suppose it’s not impossible for her to know something, she is married to a major on the air base, but why would she tell foals that? And why wouldn’t the queen be pushing this harder if she knew about it? Isn’t a world destruction level event kind of a good time to put the powers of government to use? I know we haven’t gone over the powers and the documents made to limit what she can do in class yet, but… if it’s cataclysmic, why does everything feel so… normal?

“Oh, there you are. Goodness, I was about ready to go out and search the entire town for you. It’s not like you to be this late,” mom said as we walked in the door. Zephyr galloped into her and almost bowled her over, while I took my sketchbook and lunch box out of my bag and hung it up on the rack.

“I-I’m sorry, that was my fault. I got caught up playing a game…” before I could say anything else, mom ran up and almost bowled me over.

“You were playing a game with somepony!? And this was like, a real, in the flesh pony, right? Not one of those online ponies?” I nodded and she squeezed me tighter. “Ooh, I’m so proud of you! My little girl made a friend!”

Fact: I am bigger than most ponies. I’m absurdly tall for a thirteen-year-old, and this is inverse to my disposition as I hate being the center of attention. I spend most of my time online, I draw… admittedly lewd comics, and any and all social interaction I do is with ponies across the world I’ve never seen and know nothing about.

Fact: I get my height from my mother, who is also a giant. She’s at least a couple hands taller than every other mom I’ve seen at school, and the only pony I know of that’s bigger than her is Applejack’s older brother, who is bigger than everypony. In… lots of ways… And now that the Motor Mare has shown up, she’s even bigger than him! I always thought it would be… amazing to have Mac push me against a wall and… but she’s… bigger… Oh goddess, that’s what it is, isn’t it?

“Oh goodness, I’m not hurting you am I? Your face is all flushed and you’re breathing hard. Are you okay sweetie?” My hind knees slammed together and I wormed my way out of mom’s grasp.

“NO! I-I mean, n-no ma’am. I uh… I’m gonna go to my room now. Come, Angel.” The black bunny finished his carrot and then hopped up my wing to my back. I trotted to my room slowly as the shame started to creep up my back. What’s wrong with me? Why am I like this? I never did find the answer to that. My fear is that I never will. Stuck like this forever, my dirty fantasies getting in the way of real life and keeping me as some recluse drawing porn as wild as I can imagine and praying to the goddess that my parents never get suspicious and find my passwords.

I sat in my chair while I petted Angel’s back and we watched an anime together, in hopes of getting my mind away from the big, overwhelming mare who could overpower me with one hoof and do things to me without my consent and… and… oh goddess, why am I like this? I had to have a computer because everypony else did. I had to have a phone because everypony else did. I had to go exploring online and follow a rabbit hole full of links until I found that site. I had to have that tablet because it would help me get better at art. I had to start practicing anatomy because that was what I didn’t like about my drawings. I had to draw everything because it would help me. No, I didn’t have to do anything. I didn’t have to have anything, I wanted it because I’m sick, and I have a problem.

When I was finally tired of the protagonist trying to explain away the bullshit of why he could dual wield swords in a game without a dual wielding system, or why he had all these mares around him and they all wanted in his pants even though he had a ‘marefriend,’ I opened up my drawing program and sighed.

Today will be different. I’ll start a new comic, and this one will be romance free, and it’ll just be cool. Ponies will like it because it looks good and not because they’re getting off to it, and I won’t have to go to that site again.

Or so I thought.

When I’d finally decided that I’d drawn Mac again and he was about to take the princess away to her bed chambers after saving her from the evil wizard, I realized that this ‘princess’ was just another excuse to draw a self-insert, and ‘insertion’ was exactly what was going to happen next. I hate myself. I hate the way I am, and I don’t know how to change. It always devolves into porn. A stallion always rescues the mare. The mare is always pretty, small, sociable and suffering until he shows up to save her, and her life is everything I wish I had and never will. I hate it all.

I saved the new pages and hid them away in my secret folder which was soon approaching ten gigs, another dart of shame in my board, and then shutdown the computer. I can’t afford new cards to feed my addiction if I don’t get bits, and as it turns out, ponies will pay through the snout for art like this. I just happen to be lucky and get good at it. I hate it. I love it. I want to stop. I can’t stop. I need help. I can’t tell anypony. I hate myself.

The castle was rumbling down below. When I looked on from my tower, I saw him. In shining red armor, the massive white mare charged through the Necromancer’s undead army. With a single swing of his giant emerald ax in his golden magic, the black skeletal army was cleaved in pieces. Bones flew in all directions, foot ponies and undead pegasai flew and attacked him, but none could pierce the massive stallion’s armor, and all were obliterated before his magical prowess and his gleaming ax. He worked his way through the room of the Necromancer’s court until finally, he came across the cult of the six and their leader, Ixetri, the necromancer queen.

“Who dare defies my rule!?” She bellowed out to the knight. Silent, the night slammed the tips of his double bit ax into the ground and held fast at the looming unicorn threat. The hooded ponies surrounded the knight as the necromancer queen cackled.

“I am Ixetri, the greatest and most powerful Necromancer to grace this land! Only a fool would dare challenge me! Kill him!”

The unicorns all prepared to fire their lasers at him, but then the knight did something strange. He stood on his hind legs and took the ax by the hilt. Enveloped in his gold magic, the ax changed shape from the emerald wood cutting tool to a glowing guitar. He ripped off his helmet and stared down the necromancer queen with a cocky smile on her face.

“Powerful? Great? No. You, are nothing.” She brought down her crimson armored hoof and strummed the guitar. The sound formed into golden sunlight, repelling the multicolored lasers of the necromancers and turning them back on the unicorns, blasting holes of burning light that ripped straight through their bodies. Realizing that this mare was far more powerful than Ixetri could ever be, she attempts to run.

“Now where do you think you’re going?” The red armored mare took the fleeing necromancer in her golden magic and shackled her to the floor. She looked up to me, those amethyst eyes piercing me to my very core and melting my heart.

“Princess, please, come down here! You are free of your bonds, Ixetri can’t hurt you now,” She said, her voice so commanding yet sweet. Compelled to do as she asked, I could feel my wings again and glided down to meet her in the courtroom below.

“You hate her, don’t you? Don’t you wish you could kill her? End her miserable life for making your life so miserable? Here, it’s all yours. You can do it. Right now.”

She gave me the guitar, which was much lighter than I expected it to be. As a matter of fact, it was easy to wield. Her golden magic enveloped it, and it turned back into that giant, double bit emerald ax. Ixetri pissed herself as she looked up at me in fear casually holding the giant weapon. I could feel the smile on my face start to grow

“Helpless, aren’t you? Fear got you paralyzed? It’s too bad. You could’ve been nicer to me. You didn’t have to be so mean. I never wanted to clean the classroom, but you made me do it! Over and over again, you blackmailed me, saying you’d tell my parents about my sketchbook! No more! Die!”

Before I could swing the ax, my knight grabbed both of my hooves and forced me against the wall. She was so big and strong, I had no hope of resisting. She looked deep into my eyes, and I looked into hers. They were almost laughing at me, I couldn’t understand… but then she pressed her lips against mine.

I was lost in the moment. Her warmth, her strength, her smell, her taste, I wanted to take it all in. I wanted more. So, so much more. In a flash of her gold we were back up in the tower. Her magic flashed again, and the dank old room turned into a fine decorated bedroom filled with violet velvet and gold silk, walls of white marble, bricks of onyx and everything done in ornate gold. Her armor disappeared in a flash, and then I could see her muscles. All of them bulging and rippling just beneath her fine silky white-pink coat. She picked me up by the neck and threw me on the bed. Before I even realized what happened, she was above me again, holding me down with one hoof.

“This is what you wanted, isn’t it? All you have to do is say the word♥”

“Oh goddess, yes, take me!” I screamed. She wrapped herself around me, and suddenly, my back was on her stomach and her hooves were traveling up and down my body. Her rough touch, her hard grip, the sheer strength of her legs holding me tight and making me completely helpless. I couldn’t squirm, I couldn’t move. She blew on my ear and sent a tingle down my spine. One of her hooves dug its way into my mouth, and then another found my chest. Slowly, slowly, ever so slowly it crept down my belly, and then… and then!

Angel was pulling on my mane. Somepony was knocking on my door.

“Fluttershy, dinner is ready!” Dad called.

I blinked a few times to try and regain my sight. What happened? I looked around my room, Angel was concerned, but I couldn’t figure out why. I tried to wipe at my eyes, but when my hoof caught me by surprise, I gasped and shivered. I pulled the sticky thing up from under my covers and stared at it in disgust. That is what happened. I felt my eyes start to water and I just wanted life to end.

“I hate myself.”

“I cannot believe you did that to me in front of my friends!” I yelled at her. I threw my bag on the floor and fished out Shining’s cards. Celestia shrugged.

“Oh, come on, I was only using your body to tease somepony else. Besides, I’m not the only one who does that to you, am I right?” The white mare was smiling at me with that stupid cocky smile of hers. I glared at her and I turned back to my desk and dumped the cards out.

“It’s not as if I let her do that.” Before I even noticed, she’d sat down beside me and brought my head to hers.

“Yes, but it’s not as if you do anything to stop her either. Have you ever considered it might be a kindness to enforce your will in these situations? I know you care for her, but being codependent is unhealthy and erodes your soul. One day, you must learn to set boundaries, otherwise you’ll lose the illusion of control completely.”

Rather than fight it, I sat there with my ear next to hers and thought. On the rare occasion she does offer something insightful, Celestia is often right, to the surprise of many.

My relationship with Pinkie has always been complicated and strange, but it only became physical after Shining left. She does these things to me, but when I tell her no, she becomes so moody and unstable, it’s a question of which side of the coin she’ll land on. Hurt, crying, and depressed, or angry, violent, and also depressed. She hasn’t hit me, yet, but I’ve seen her bend metal poles on things when she gets like that, and I don’t know how to help her.

I want to help her. She is my oldest friend, and if I didn’t have her, I wouldn’t have had anypony after Shining left. I only started talking to Rarity by chance a few months ago, and now… it’s really like I do have a little circle of friends.

But at the same time… I haven’t spent any time with Pinkie lately. It seems like every day, she gets a little more distant from me and buries herself deeper in her games. I can still talk to her there, and Rainbow has managed to break through and get her to talk to her too, but… it doesn’t feel right anymore. She never talks about her problems any more, she just talks about her games or has nothing to say. I sighed and let myself lean on Celestia.

“I’m so tired. I always feel tired these days. If you looked at me in August and looked at me now, you might think my life had gotten better, but the only thing that I think has really changed is that I feel more exhausted every time I come home.” I turned my head slightly and narrowed my eyes at the big white mare. “And I can’t seem to escape to my lonesome at home either because somepony moved into my room!”

She tilted her head till her horn touched mine and smiled at me. That massive violet eye right up against mine, the weird familiarity I always felt when I saw it going off like a fire alarm in my head.

“Well, maybe I’ll just leave you alone sometime. Although, I seem to find that a little odd.” She backed away and started picking up cards until she found that one copy of Dark Magician Fluttershy is obsessed with and examined it. “I believe that our little contract ended a few days ago, yet I found somepony in my bed the last few nights. I can only wonder if somepony isn’t quite sure what she wants♥” I grabbed the card out of her magic and held it close.

“Hey! Piss off! That was your fault! You can’t just leave me after I’ve gotten used to sleeping so warm! I just… need… a heated blanket or something… I don’t know.”

In truth, I think I was beginning to fear her leaving. She’s a jackass. A slob. A drunk. Reckless. Constantly puts me and my friends in danger. Encourages bad behavior. But even through all that… sometimes, she acts like… like something I’ve never had in my life. Something I needed, something I always wanted, something I always dreamed about. And even with everything I hate about her… I don’t want to let that go.

I would never tell her, but when she disappeared the other day without telling anypony, I felt my heart ache. I thought she’d left. Dad has always said to just expect her to disappear one day, but I wasn’t ready for that. I still haven’t figured out what or who she is, or what she means to me, and when she was gone… I felt so afraid and lonely and small. I hated it so much that I wanted to cry. And when she finally came back, saying she got a part time job, I was so relieved. She’s still here, I still have her for a little longer. I hate it. I hate her. I don’t want her. But at the same time… I don’t know what I would do without her.

I stared at the card. It was Shining’s favorite. He forgot them when he left, and he still hasn’t come back. It’s been almost a year now, and I don’t know if I’ll ever see him again. It’s the same fear, but in reverse. It’s not that I’m afraid that I will lose him, I’m afraid I’ve already lost him. There’s only so much of his I have left, I can’t give it up. I put the card back on the desk and sighed. I opened up my laptop and went to that site Fluttershy told me about, the one where she buys all her cards. After a while and looking at the cards she said to look for that were relatively inexpensive, I finally broke the silence.

“Will you ever tell me how you met my dad?” Celestia made a sound of irritation out of the side of her mouth and got up. She opened the guitar case and picked out her bass. She started to strum that same lullaby again.

“This again… why do you want to know?” I shrugged and let out a breath.

“I don’t know, maybe I just want to know more about you? You literally dropped out of the sky and hit me in the face while calling me by somepony else’s name. You look like you’re two decades out of time, you’re literally bigger than anypony I’ve ever seen, you hit me with that thing, and now these monsters are coming out of my head, and Bramos came out too, and then he ate me, and I had all that power…

Rainbow was dead! She was dead, and together, we brought her back! How is that even possible!? I’ve never heard of magic like that, save for in legends of the lost queen! How did I do that? How did we do that? Who are you?”

The white unicorn stared at me with deadened eyes, an emotionless frown, and pure apathy. She tilted her head and blinked with that same dead expression. Slowly, she started to pick notes on her bass, never taking her deadened eyes off me, a dark rhythm of one minor note clashing against another in an anti-chromatic, almost chaotic chord.

“Have you ever thought that maybe knowing won’t do you any good? That maybe you aren’t told things for a reason? Things are withheld from you because you don’t have the mental facilities to hold this knowledge, nor do you have the wisdom to know what to do with it. When ponies like to get high and mighty, they quote the Goddess Tome, and in their arrogance, if only to the delight of the goddess, they say something profound without realizing it. There are things in this life that you cannot and will never understand. Science and magic will only take you so far, but in the end, truth requires faith, and faith cannot be understood.

Once you can wrap your little head around that concept, then I will tell you everything you want to know. About me, about your father, I can even tell you something that you’ve always wanted to know for your entire life. I know things that many in this world spend their entire lives pondering, and things that philosophers have spent generations trying to puzzle out of their little heads. I hold so much of this cursed information that I have even gone so far as to obtain the wisdom to use it. And you know what? That can drive a mare mad. It can cause her to see things that weren’t visible before, to feel things nopony else can feel, to understand on a plane that no pony else is capable of reaching.

The crippling loneliness, the maddening frustration, the overwhelming despair. In concert they organize to play the melody of madness, a terrifying tune that tortures tattered souls into suffering, sadness, and silence. Do not seek that which you do not need.” Celestia broke her gaze and struck an awful chord on the bass that nearly made me want to vomit just from hearing it. I felt sick. I could hear her words echoing in the inside of my head, all her sentences bouncing like mallets on timpani and sending out ripples of themselves all over my skull like water dripping into a pond.

Do not seek that which you do not need. There are things in this life that you cannot and will never understand. Do not seek that which you do not need. There are things in this life that you cannot and will never understand. Do not seek that which you do not need. There are things in this life that you cannot and will never understand. And then, like a beam of light cutting through fog, it all stopped at once.

“Twilight?” she called. My eyes focused and things were back to the way they were. Her hoof was on my chin, her face had returned to normal, and she was looking at me in a way I’d never seen before. It was almost… afraid.

“Yes?” I asked. I wasn’t sure what to do. It almost felt like the sound was making me sick.

“Oh, thank the goddess.” Relief washed over her, and then I felt a sudden… strange sensation and turned my head toward the window. It was gone as fast as it came, but when I turned back to her, she… looked scary. Her face was… contorted in this awful, hateful snarl. Almost like some kind of beast running into another of its kind deep in its territory, or a mother bear staring down a hunter.

“C-celestia?” Instantaneously, she went back to a chipper, happy, aloof mood, as if a switch had been flipped and shook her head.

“Oh, I’m sorry dear. I just… thought I smelled a rat. Why don’t… we go over some chords? You still wanted to learn, didn’t you?” Celestia took the crystal guitar from the black case and levitated it to me. I hesitated at first, but then took the guitar.

If questions get me… whatever the hell that was, then letting her teach me something is much, much better.

“I can’t believe you got me out here on such an awful day,” I complained. Applejack shrugged in the driver’s seat of the mini truck, shaking her pigtails off her shoulders.

“Come on, it’s Underhoof, Twi. The weather is nice on a rare occasion, and fog this thick is par fer the course. Y’all should know that, ya’ve lived here longer than Ah have.” I rolled my eyes and sighed.

“Yes, yes I have… so like, what do the two of you even do in gardening club?” The ATV rolled over a rock that threatened to launch me out of my seat, but Applejack was quick to catch my shoulder and keep me in the cart.

“Goddess damn, you and Applebloom both, Ah swear. Put yer fuckin’ seat belt on already!”

That was scary enough for me to actually take the itchy thing across my chest and clip it to the buckle. I hate these things. They always wrinkle my clothes. Or in this case, my t-shirt since it was Saturday. I don’t wear ‘normal clothes’ very often since I usually just slum around in my uniform, but I’ve adopted most of my brother’s hoof-me-downs and going out called for clothes, especially with as cold as it’s been. Today was a white shirt with his cutiemark on it, the dark blue shield with a pink six-pointed star inside, and baggy jeans. Applejack was wearing something similar, but her shirt was red and had a green apple split in half on it, along with an old stetson she puts on after school.

“He he… sorry.” Applejack rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, well, y’all will be when ya fall out and break yer damn neck! Fer ponies so smart, y’all sure are fuckin’ dumb,” she grumbled. I put my head down and clicked my hooves together. Being able to hold the knowledge is one thing, but having the wisdom to use it is another…

“Typically, we just take care of the plants and then Fluttershy tells me whatever’s on her mind. Some new cartoon that came out this season, another animal she helped, her pet rabbit she has with her all the time, rantin’ about whatever Trixie made her do this week because she’s too much of a pussy ta stand up fer herself, stuff like that. Ah’ll use the time ta complain about my siblin’s or Pappy every now and again since she’ll listen and won’t preach at me like Rarity does. Rarity’s a better conversational partner, but she gets on my damn nerves sometimes.

Fluttershy’ll just let ya talk. ‘Course, sometimes she’ll draw some of that weird art she does of ya if she likes ya. It’s not bad, but Ah’m almost certain she does explicit artwork based on some of the shit I’ve seen on Rarity’s phone. Ah absolutely hate ya fer makin’ me aware of that by the way. Now she shares it with me. That gal appears normal, but don’t go lookin’ through her browser history, Ah tell ya what. Some fucked up shit in there. And let me tell ya, Shy hates Trixie somethin’ fierce. Ah ain’t never heard somepony so shy use language as creatively as she does ta describe all the ways she’d kill a pony. If she had like, any semblance of a spine, I’d be afraid she might even do it someday.” I contemplated that.

“Huh. So you just… spend five minutes doing work, then spend the other fifty five talking?” I asked. Applejack nodded.

“In at least a similar way that you and Pinkie have that weird gay shit goin’ on, Ah’ve kinda got somethin’ like that with Fluttershy, ‘cept Ah’m not anywhere close ta interested in mares. And she really, really, wants ta screw my brother. Ah’ve seen a few of her comics and he’s always the stallion in it. Course, she don’t know that Ah know, so don’t tell her. Ah don’t legitimately think she has the spine ta make a move, but man, she is gonna make some stallion happy someday. She’s a freak. Anyways, Ah was the only pony she ever talked ta is all Ah was really meanin’.” I blushed and turned away.

Okay so maybe that’s not as much of a secret as I’d like it to be.

“Um… ‘weird gay shit?’” I asked. Applejack gave me a look.

“Oh, come on, my big brother is a stud, Ah know what a hickey looks like. Ah screw with him about ‘em all the time. Pretty sure he’s gotten his dick wet at least once by now, bitches just fall on him. Ah also know what it looks like when a pony’s got a mare they don’t want around stuck ta ‘em. So, what’s the deal? Are y’all a thin’?”

This is not at all a conversation I wanted to have today. I scratched at my head.

“Oh, goddess, I have no idea. It’s… complicated, alright? I’ve been friends with Pinkie for a long time. She’s always kinda been like this, but… well, before, it was all directed toward my brother. She was… happier then, a lot bubblier. You know, her mane used to be curly. Her family is… weird, and she’s just not at all like them. I don’t even know what all is going on there.

But… well, years ago, there was a fire at the elementary school we went to. I hadn’t met Pinkie yet, but during the evacuation, she was trapped in the building when it was caught up in the blaze. The little fire department hadn’t arrived yet, and since nopony else could do it, my brother used his magic to walk through the flames and carry her out. Shining was now her idol, and from that day on, she followed him around everywhere he went.

He was… my brother is amazing. A magical prodigy, so gifted that he was scouted by Canterlot University last year and has a free ride there in their magic program. But… that’s also when the trouble started. Pinkie was… weird for a few days after we found out that he was leaving. And then she was happy again, and stuck to him even more. Then he left, and Pinkie… lost her color. She became a different pony entirely and she was… stuck like that for a long time.

I don’t remember when it first happened, but I was with her one day, and she said she couldn’t do it anymore. She was going to ‘give herself to Inferna’ or something because she couldn’t take it anymore. It was all too much, and the light in her life was gone. Naturally, I thought she meant she was going to immolate herself, so I tried my damnedest to get her to not do that. Eventually, she asked me to be her light, and when I said I would, she said she wouldn’t go through with it. It started happening thereafter, and I just… I still haven’t figured out if me telling her no will push her over the edge. I really don’t know what else to do, so… that’s just how it is.” Applejack frowned and unbuckled her seat belt.

“Well. Hell, good luck with that. Ha! Geez, complicated is a simple way ta put it, goddess damn. Ah take it back, y’all… y’all are goin’ through a lot fer her, and that’s noble. Admirable, even. Well, let’s get on up there, Ah bet Fluttershy is wonderin’ where we are.” We took not but two steps away from the ATV before I felt somepony standing next to me. I turned and looked up to see my house guest suddenly at my side.

“Excuse me, what the fuck?” Celestia patted my head and looked left and right, scanning the fog carefully. It was exceptionally thick today, and I’m certain Applejack wouldn’t have hit that rock earlier if she could see it.

“Yeah, just… don’t worry about it. Pretend I’m not here. Or do, I don’t care. I won’t be here long.” I let a breath out and stared at her thinking of some way to berate her for her… strange silent approaches, but I couldn’t think of anything.

“Whatever. Let’s go.”

“So he tells me, ‘Y’all should be nicer ta yer sister. Ya’d think after yer Pa died ya’d get that life is short, but yer dumb ass is just like yer mother’s dumb ass, and that ain’t come across just yet, now has it!?’ Ah mean, yeah, maybe Ah should know better, but that’s no reason ta beat me over the head with Pa’s death like that. It’s not like Ah was actually tryin’ ta hurt her or anythin’, we were just screwin’ around, ya know?”

I scratched at my face. I don’t have a younger sibling, so this was a little strange to hear. Dad has never reprimanded me like that, but I’ve never been in a situation like that either.

“Well, life is short. For you, anyways. Longest I’ve ever seen is about one hundred ten years, but ponies are such miserable piles of skin and bones by the time they hit ninety-five, I couldn’t imagine having to go on another fifteen years like that. And that was long before medicine is what it is today. If your corrupted culture wasn’t shit, ponies might actually live even longer, not that it would do anypony any good. I haven’t been here in a while, but for suicide to be this much more pervasive in our country in just two decades is absurd…” Celestia said, absentmindedly of course. I don’t know what her deal is, but she’s been weird all day.

She’ll respond to things we say, more often than not with knowledge that I’m not sure how she has, and sometimes with things I’m not sure she means to say. The whole medicine and age thing just now being a prime example. How does she know that? She’s massive, yes, but I couldn’t imagine she’s much older than thirty at best based on her appearance, and she almost looks a decade younger than dad. It’s true, I’ve never seen a pony as big as she is, and unicorns are supposed to be middle of the way as far as height and weight go for the three tribes, but that could just mean she’s an anomaly.

That said, how she could be thirty and have no cutiemarks also doesn’t make sense, but based on that feather from last week, I can only imagine there’s magic at play when it comes to her appearance, but that just makes the list of questions I have even longer. Her capacity for magic is unreal. She’s more powerful than any unicorn I’ve ever read about, especially if she’s passively modifying her appearance in her sleep, but even if she is some time-lost, age-old unicorn from some legend… why is she here? Though… after what she said yesterday… I’m not sure I should ask at all. In two different ways, I found myself afraid of her, but… I can’t place why.

“O-oh, I see,” Fluttershy stuttered. Applejack said she was usually fairly talkative here in her ‘safe space,’ but as far as I can tell, she’s been even more quiet than usual, which is saying something. I’ll catch her give Celestia the odd side glance every now and again, but the expression she makes… in a strange way, reminds me of Pinkie when she…

I shook my head. No, there’s no way. Instead of following that rabbit hole, I figured I’d ask Fluttershy what she was doing. She keeps checking the plants, turning them and inspecting them, spraying them with a sweet smelling spray bottle every now and again, and sometimes ninja-grabbing bugs out of midair and tossing them outside. I was thoroughly confused.

“So… what are you doing there, Fluttershy? I’m less familiar with plants than I am physical activity and I think we all know how awful I am at sports…”

That broke Celestia’s misplaced focus and she finally looked at me. She grabbed hold of my closest foreleg, straightened it out, pressed on my muscles, moved it back and forth, and then tilted her head at me.

“What? Why would you say that? Your body should be perfectly capable of out classing everypony, that doesn’t…” Celestia put a hoof under her horn, then brought it to her chest and clapped. “Ah that’s right. Never mind, carry on,” she dismissed. And then back out of the green house she stared. I looked to Applejack and to Fluttershy, and together we looked at her. When she never looked back, we just kinda… shook our heads and did as we were told.

“I’m checking for signs of rot, infestation, wilting, stuff like that. You need to be careful with some of these flowers, they don’t particularly like the climate Underhoof has, and anything that can upset them has the potential to kill them.” Applejack nodded and leaned back to take hold of some bush behind her.

“Yeah. This here is a little raspberry plant. So, it’s pretty ta look at, the berries always taste good and they smell fantastic, someponies even use the leaves ta make tea since they’re so similar ta black tea. This particular variety is called Fall Gold, and they bear fruit in the fall, obviously, which are bright yellow, sometimes kinda orangey. But this plant right here? She’s a right bitch, Ah tell ya what. We’ve killed at least four of these thin’s just tryin’ ta find the right raspberry plant just fer this climate, and even then we have ta prune, check fer bugs, pick the berries, goddess forbid she’s got berries on her fer more than five minutes, and make sure nothin’ else is in her pot because she don’t like ta share her space. Damn thin’s also got thorns, so she’ll cut ya if yer movin’ too quick.” Applejack explained.

Suddenly, Celestia looked up, turned toward the plant, narrowed her eyes, and then, turned on her magic. Buried deep in the plant, a golden berry flew out from beneath the leaves, covered in golden aura. She dropped it in my lap and then went back to surveying the fog.

“Son of a bitch, we did miss one!” Applejack exclaimed. Celestia shook her head.

“No, that’s a relatively new bud. It’s been there for maybe a week based on the age.”

I hold so much of this cursed information that I have even gone so far as to obtain the wisdom to use it. Rather than bother with that, I instead picked up the berry and examined it myself. In the light of the UV lamps, it was very pretty. Not quite opaque, giving the little gold bubbles a sort of ‘balloon’ look to them, and the moisture from when Fluttershy misted these earlier gave a sort of shine to the skin that just made it look absolutely delicious.

“We used to call those Sun Berries. Bright and golden, dependent on the sun for life and treasuring her warmth, the berries would sprout in the spring and the fall right around the equinoxes. But every now and again, you would sometimes find a crop of the sweetest of the little golden bunches right on the longest day of the year. He always loved to see them then.” Celestia’s voice was… melancholic. There was something in there like she was not only reminiscing, but… longing for the past. A wish for days gone by. Suddenly, Fluttershy’s wings shot out from her side and she stood up quickly with her hind knees pressed together.

“I-I need to go to the bathroom! I’ll be right back!” And out the greenhouse and down the staircase from the roof she went. I looked to Applejack, and she just shrugged and shook her head.

“Yeah, ya got me, Ah just don’t know what goes on in that filly’s head sometimes.” Applejack took up the spray bottle and started moving around the greenhouse with the plants, when suddenly, I felt something strange in the back of my head. It was the same sensation from yesterday, but it lasted a little longer this time. Like a pulse from a sonar, it felt like a wave searching for something to bounce the signal back. I turned toward the raspberry plant since the signal felt like it was from behind, but as I noticed it, so did Celestia. She got up from her seat and scowled in that same direction.

“I need to go take care of something. I’ll see you at home.” And just like that, Celestia left.

“So uh… any idea what that was?” Applejack asked. I frowned.

“Didn’t you feel it?”

“Feel what?”

“The pulse!”

“What pulse?”

“There was definitely a pulse, I think she knew what it was.”

“Okay, is that a unicorn thing or…?”

“No, but it was definitely magic. Well, maybe? I guess anything that’s ‘magic’ would be a unicorn thing, wouldn’t it?”

“Ah mean, Ah guess? Ah don’t know that Ah would know it even if Ah felt it.” I rolled my eyes and sighed. What was that?

“It was weird for sure. But then again, everything has been weird since she showed up, so I guess this is just another thing.” Applejack scratched at her face and reclined against the glass wall.

“Ah guess. Speakin’ of, Ah never did get it outta ya what in the hell that thin’ with Rarity was. Care ta explain?” Just then, I noticed Fluttershy exit the roof staircase. Her mane was a little wet, like she’d put it back in place and she looked… relieved.

“Oh… did the Motor Mare leave?” she asked. We nodded.

“Something came up and she had to go. Not that I know what it was, but that’s just how she is,” I explained. Fluttershy nodded and then unzipped her backpack. From within, she took out a large, live, black bunny and a plastic bag full of baby carrots. Applejack frowned and tilted her head.

“Is that Angel?” Fluttershy nodded.

“Yep. I woke up one morning and he was just… like this. Though, he was smaller earlier this week I think. Maybe it’s a growth spurt. I started giving him organic carrots instead of the other ones because somepony mentioned they were better for you, but I wasn’t expecting such drastic results.”

I squinted at the bunny. It was black. Very black. Almost like darkness itself, but with clear outlines of where its limbs were. And red eyes. And not in the, ‘oh, it just has big pupils and you’re seeing the back of the eye’ way, but in the, ‘this is a demon’ kinda way. It squeaked and… purred? At Fluttershy’s touch, so I guess nothing was wrong, but goddess damn, does it look evil.

“That little bastard looks evil. Though, Ah guess it’s still Angel.” Applejack parroted my thoughts while she was petting the bunny. At her touch too, it reacted affectionately.

“Do you want to pet him? He’s very friendly,” Fluttershy offered. Tentatively, I did pet the bunny, and just like the other girls, it brushed against my hoof and rubbed back at me with its back, seeming to enjoy my touch. It was very soft and warm, like a little fuzzy bag of reheated veggies, or microwave mashed potatoes with a little recoil to them.

“Huh. So he is. With all the weird shit that’s been going on lately, I’m still trying to remember what normal is.”

I put my hoof back in my lap and I thought about it all. Three weeks ago, I just thought this is what life was going to be like. Pinkie was always on me, I talk to Rarity on occasion, I get mad at Dad, Shiny never comes home, and I accidentally find that my cutiemark is something to do with books and end up as a librarian somewhere. With every passing day, the future I thought I would have looks more and more impossible than it did from the beginning.

“It does concern me that he has been growing so rapidly, but I’m not sure what to do about it. I already bought the two-pound bag of carrots, and I don’t want to throw them away, but I’m already taller than I wish I was, so I don’t want to risk eating them myself and growing like he is.”

I mean, okay, but I have doubts that the carrots are causing this.

“Shy, Ah know ya ain’t dumb, but Ah really don’t think the carrots are causin’ this. If ya ask me, Ah think this is some kinda sketchy magic at work. Ya know, Ah didn’t wanna say nothin’ around her, but ever since she showed up, Ah’ve been seein’ thin’s Ah don’t remember bein’ there before. Like, when Ah hit Applebloom with the pear the other day, Ah thought she had some kinda bug or somethin’ on her face and Ah thought it was gonna hurt her. Ah’ve seen a few of ‘em now, but everypony Ah ask about it says they aren’t there. Ah was startin’ ta wonder if Ah’m crazy or not, but then Ah saw a few of ‘em take a pear away and Applebloom said she saw the pear float away. So unless she’s crazy too, they’re really there and nopony else can see ‘em.”

…To see things that weren’t visible before, to feel things nopony else can feel…

I shuddered.

“I… think I believe you.” Applejack frowned.

“Really? Ah wouldn’t believe me, that sounds like some looney talkin’ if we’re bein’ honest here.” I shook my head.

“No, I don’t think you’re crazy either. Something is definitely going on, and she’s at the center of it all, but I don’t know if she’s the cause or an effect of what’s happening.” We all considered that for a while until Fluttershy broke the silence.

“Well, why don’t we lay out what we know? When I go to um… well, I don’t know if anypony has told you, but I draw comics sometimes and um… well… anyways, I always lay out what I want to do and then put all the pieces together where I want them to go. Sometimes I’ll start with the… a, um… specific scene, and then put a beginning and end to it, or vice-versa.”

She sounded comfortable at first, but then slowly drew into her little white dress as she got into more detail about what she did, withholding information and eventually she was hidden beneath her wings. Regardless of the truth of what she draws, she has a point and I thought it was a good idea.

“Yeah… So, what’s today?” I asked. Applejack took out her ancient flip phone from her jeans and said,

“October 19^th.” I nodded.

“So, Celestia first appeared two Fridays ago, which would be… the 4^th. She hit several ponies that day with her bike and bass, and then later that night, the first Shadow Beast came out of my horn.” Applejack tilted her head.

“So, wait. Did y’all get hit on Friday too?” I nodded, but Fluttershy also nodded. I didn’t know about her attack.

“You were hit too?” Fluttershy confirmed and then let her eyes fall to Angel.

“It was that Friday morning. I don’t have much to recall, but I was walking along after dropping my little brother off at school when I heard a strange sound. It wasn’t like a car, but it was an engine of some kind, and there was music blaring with it. I remember the lyrics so clearly…

It was almost like the song was for me, but when I turned to see who was playing it, I got hit in the face really hard by something green. I woke up at the school a few minutes later, and it was like nothing happened.”

Today I learned, Fluttershy has an amazing singing voice. Wasn’t there music playing when she came after us too? I feel like I would remember what was being said, but I just can’t recall…

“Huh. Ya know, now that Ah think about it, there was music playin’ when she hit me, too. She was drivin’ along the road after Mac had dropped me off by the gates, and fer a minute there, Ah thought she sounded…” Applejack shook her head. “Anyways, she was singin’ along with whatever was playin’, and before Ah even knew what happened, she turned on a dime and drifted the bike in range of me and slammed that guitar in the side of my head. Somethin’ about hooves… the song was about. Ah think.”

For a moment there, I think I saw… sadness on her face. It hit for a second, but it was gone just as quick. From what little conversation we’ve had together, I always thought she was more mature than anypony else my age, but… maybe she really is just as young as we are.

“So… the three of us were hit by the guitar, and since Rarity and I saw Rainbow get hit, and Pinkie and I saw each other get hit, it’s safe to assume we were all hit by the guitar, and while a song was playing. Oh! You know what was weird about the fight with the last one that came out of Rarity’s head? Her mom shot it with a gun, but the bullet didn’t do anything to it.” Applejack tilted her head.

“Oh yeah… why didn’t that work?” I thought back, and I remember Celestia saying something about it. Don’t you know what that thing is? Get a clue. On second thought, that doesn’t actually help me at all.

“That is… a good question. Obviously the guitars affect them, they all fell to one of the two she has. Magic also seems to work, I remember shooting a light beam at the second one. Don’t ask me how I did that, it was much more advanced and specific than anything I can conjure on my own, but Bramos gives me power I’ve never thought possible, so there’s that. And wings. It is a very strange feeling.”

They both stared at me and I straightened my lips.

“So, something I was wondering after that day last week, is it just you that can do that? Or is it anypony that um… Bramos is the white pony, right?” I nodded and Fluttershy continued, “Well, can anypony merge with him? Or are you special?”

It certainly does feel… interesting when it happens. It’s almost like I’m controlling something and not actually part of my own body. And every now and again, I can hear somepony give me instructions on how to use my power, but it’s almost like the voice doesn’t have a voice to it. Unspecific words spoken by the wind with no sound to them. It always calls me by name too…

“I… wouldn’t be able to tell you, but I don’t know that we could test that. I’m not sure how to describe how that all works. It’s… very, very strange.”

We sat in silence for a long time, I’m not sure how long it was really, and with no sun to gauge the sky by, it was like no time had passed at all. Applejack’s phone rang, and it was like the spell was broken.

“Huh? Oh, really? Damn, Ah’m sorry Mac. Yeah, Ah’ll head home now. Lost track of time Ah guess. See ya.” Applejack put the cheap little thing away and sighed. “Yeah, we’ve been here fer like, two and a half hours. Ah gotta git. Sorry, y’all are gonna have ta walk home. See ya.” After a wave goodbye, Applejack bolted back into the school building, and less than a minute later, she was in the mini-truck and driving down the road.

“Oh my. We have been here for a while. My parents are probably worried. I’m sorry Twilight, I brought my cards and completely forgot about them. Maybe we could do something tomorrow?” Fluttershy asked. In truth, I forgot about that too.

“Don’t worry about it, I didn’t remember either. With Celestia acting so weird these last couple days, I’ve had a lot on my mind. But yeah, just give me a call and I’ll head that way when you have time. My dad and I have never been very religious, so I shouldn’t have anything going on then.”

“I-I see. Well, service usually ends around noon, so I should be free by two at the latest. My family usually makes a habit of going and then having lunch together afterward. I’ll… I’ll let you know.” I don’t know if I just made her more nervous or what, but she drew into herself again and avoided eye contact.

After we gathered our things and Angel was securely between her shoulders, Fluttershy locked up the greenhouse and we exited the building. We made it as far as downtown, and then went our separate ways.

In all honesty, I never really expected to learn anything today. Everything is a question and the mare at the center of it all is a wall that doesn’t see it fit to answer anything. Too young to understand, lacking the wisdom to use knowledge, that’s where we sit. Even if I did know the truth behind it all, would I be able to do anything about it? What would I do if I really knew? Well, there is another question, and I won’t know the answer until I know the truth, which means… I may never know at all. Truth requires faith, and faith cannot be understood. I scratched at my head in frustration.

“Yes, but why though!? How do I accept that I can’t learn and I won’t learn until I accept that I can’t!? Gah!” I shook my head and checked around just in case somepony heard my outburst, but with the fog this thick, there was little chance of that. Or at least anypony recognizing me anyways.

The fog felt like it’d gotten even thicker since this afternoon when I left home with Applejack, and I could hardly see but a few hooves ahead of me. If I couldn’t navigate this town in the dark with a blindfold on, I might be in trouble. But since I’ve done exactly that before, I knew exactly where I was and where I was going. Misty Drive leads to Sapphire Street which takes me to I90, which branches off around town at River Road, which then goes all the way out of town and passes my house and the air base. Just past the bridge is Crystal Drive, where Pinkie lives.

I like to walk this particular route because it always takes me by the bakery. No matter the weather, one of the Wheat family is always baking something, and it always smells delicious. I had a few coppers on me, and since I didn’t eat lunch, I figured I might stop by.

When I did finally reach the bakery on Sapphire, to my surprise, I saw somepony on the sidewalk looking at their tablet. They were… really tall. A unicorn for sure, but the horn protruding out of that hat was definitely blue, and too small to be hers.

The not-so-gratuitous hips also told me this wasn’t Celestia, that being the easiest identifier of her, but who else was that large, female, and a unicorn to boot? She was wearing a gray hoodie, a red ball cap with the bill facing backward, blue jeans, and had a pair of over ear headphones around the base of her neck. She was holding a tablet in her magic and chewing on one hoof, looking left and right like she was searching for something. Her ears shot up straight and she turned to see me, at first like she was shocked, but then like she was relaxed.

“Oh, hello there. You don’t happen to be a local of this area, do you?” Well that isn’t an accent you find around here. The way she spoke almost reminded me of Rarity, like she was from the east coast or something. She doesn’t look it, but maybe she’s from like a ritzy part of Equestria in one of those big cities.

“I uh… yes, I’m from here.”

She closed the distance and then held a large hoof out to shake. She was big. Now that she was up close to me, I would dare say she is almost as big as Celestia, but with a different kind of feminine figure. Where Celestia is large in the places that would make stallions blush and mares jealous, this mare had the thin waist and long figure of somepony that models for a living. Another envious body, but not one that doesn’t take a lot of work to get. I shook the big hoof and was unsurprised at the crazy strength it had. Oh great, another one.

“Ah, perfect! I’m visiting town to see the air base, but all this fog rolled in this morning and I’m absolutely lost. My phone seems to be having trouble connecting to service and I was beginning to wonder if I would ever find the road I’m looking for. Would you mind helping me to…” she turned back to look at her very large ‘phone’ if you could call it that, and then said, “River Road?” I scrunched up my face.

On the one hoof, this mare clearly has no idea where she is. Underhoof isn’t large, but it’s very easy to get lost on days like today if you’re not familiar with town. Nopony is out today for that very reason, and likely why she couldn’t get anypony else to help her. On the other hoof, that would probably lead this mare straight to my house since it’s exactly on the way to where she wants to go. Despite ignoring his own words with the last stranger I met, Dad always said to be cautious of strangers. But apparently they knew each other from before, so whatever. At least this lady didn’t start off by trying to hit me or fight me. I might as well be nice.

“Oh sure. I’m headed that way anyways, so you can just follow me.” The blue mare said,

“Great, thank you very much!” and leaned down and hugged me.

Oh my goddess, why do I attract weirdos?

She let go and as we walked along, she asked about the various stores and buildings we passed. I told her what I could to the best of my ability, and it really did seem like she was some kind of tourist or something from the east coast. She mentioned Canterlot more than once, so I can only assume that’s where she’s from. When we finally reached River Road off the highway, she stopped to thank me.

“Once again, thank you for this, I don’t know what I would’ve done without you. Might I… repay you somehow? Have you eaten recently? We passed that diner a few blocks ago, and I feel like I need to show my gratitude.”

Well… she seems like a nice lady, why not? At least this one is offering to feed me. The last one moved in and ate all my food.

“Uh… okay. There’s a better one than that a little down the road though. The Cavallian stuff is great, but I just want a carrot dog or something. One of my friends was talking about that yesterday and I’ve been thinking about it since then.” The blue mare nodded.

“Ah, a true patriot for Equestrian food are we? I like that. To your restaurant then!” She patted my head and then on to the other place we went.

Like many of the stores in Underhoof, this place was ancient and had been running at least as long as dad and Shining had been here, probably even before. They sold groceries on one side and we’d often buy from this place when the little store on the other side of town didn’t have what we need. The real draw of this place though, is their large assortment of ice cream flavors, so instead of actually getting food like I initially wanted, she said I could get anything, so I got the giant ice cream sundae that dad would never buy.

“Ah what it is to be a filly again. Alas, I am far too old to be having wishful thoughts like that. So, how long have you lived here?” I’m not sure I caught all of that, I was lost within the cold, creamy custard and not much could’ve brought me back from the salivating sweetness. I swallowed the glob of gooey goodness and said,

“As long as I can remember. My dad moved here before I was born.” The big, blue mare nodded and took a bite of the carrot dog she ordered.

“I see. I did arrive here on business with the air base, but I’ve heard many a strange tale about this place as of late. Tell me, do you know anything about this… ‘Motor Mare’ I’ve been hearing about?” I scoffed and rolled my eyes.

“Do I know about her, pfft. She lives in my house! She just dropped out of the sky one day and beat me over the head with a guitar, and then I found her doing weird stuff with my dad when I came home that same day! Can you believe her!? Goddess, she makes me angry.” The blue mare lowered her brows, blinked and leaned closer.

“I’m sorry, she hit you with a guitar?” she asked. I swallowed another spoonful of ice cream and nodded.

“Me, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rarity, Rainbow, who knows how many others. She ran dad over with her giant motorcycle and there are a couple reports of her hitting other ponies.” The blue mare put her elbows on the table and rested her face on her hooves.

“Oh goddess, she’s already started…” The blue mare took her carrot dog in her magic and chomped away another quarter of it. She leaned back in the booth and crossed her forelegs.

“So, I was also warned of monsters being sighted here in the past couple weeks. Ponies were talking about these black beasts that have shown up seemingly at random. Is that true?” I shrugged.

“If you’ll believe it, they all came out of my head. Well, except for the last one, but according to Celestia, that wasn’t supposed to happen.” The blue mare was mid drink when I said that, and she nearly spit it out. After choking it down and coughing she exclaimed,

“Celestia!?” She drank some more soda and after she was settled, she continued, “Is that her name? Who told you that?” I lowered my brows.

“Well, she did. The Motor Mare, I mean.” The blue mare nodded.

“Sweet goddess, she’s already ahead of me and I didn’t even realize she was home… Um, you said… they were coming out of you, right? How many have there been so far? I know that this is likely all strange to you, but there haven’t been… musical instruments involved have there?” I tilted my head.

“Well, three in total I think. Bramos came with the first one, and nothing happened with the second one, but she did pull a guitar out of the last one before she killed it. And like, an actual guitar with six strings, not like the bass she’s been using to fight.” The blue mare groaned.

“Good goddess! She has the amp! Where did she find the notes? How long has she been at this? Everything is happening so fast, I thought I still had more time…” The blue mare looked like she was under some severe stress and continued to ramble for a while. She took her hat off and ran her hoof through her pale blue mane. Then, something occurred to her.

“You… if you’re the gate…” She shook her head. “I’m sorry I keep interrogating you like this, but you said you and your father had been living here, right? What were your names?”

“Uh, he’s Nightlight Sparkle, and he runs the paper for town and manages the city’s website. I’m Twilight Sparkle.” The blue mare stared at me for a good long while, then fell back in her seat and covered her face in her hooves.

“Oh, sweet goddess, you poor thing. Who is this Nightlight character? Why did she… no, she had to have known him for some reason. Do I know him? Why was he here? How did she find him? It had to have happened before the infection, but if she was… and if I never knew… when? Or wait… No, this doesn’t make any sense. She has completely different concerns, she’s putting the chord together for a reason, and it’s not why I need it… However, if she already has the notes… I can use this…” The blue mare smiled and then grabbed the rest of her carrot dog and swallowed it in one bite. She downed the rest of her soda and then got up from the table.

“I appreciate how honest you’ve been with me. You gave me very valuable information, and I thank you for that. Here, this should cover the food. The rest is yours.” She took a single bit out of her hoodie’s pocket and then traded it with her hat on the table and trotted happily out of the restaurant door. There was something I’d only read about and never actually seen in person. A black bit. Coppers are worth one, silvers are worth ten, but blacks are worth one hundred bits. Even further up is gold at one thousand, but I’m not sure I’ll ever see one of those.

A whole black bit! And she just gave it to me! A carrot dog meal and my super sundae are only gonna cost me like thirteen bits in total, I just made eighty-seven bits! Holy crap, I don’t even know what to do with this! It’s all mine to do whatever, and all I did was tell some random mare about town! How lucky can I be?