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// Run like the Wind 
// Story: Nothing Ever Truly Fades... 
// by Archmage Ansrit 
//------------------------------//

On the surface, it was a beautiful day like most others in Equestria...

The sun shone brightly upon the town of Ponyville, making Twilight Sparkle feel its kind warmth as she took her small lunch break.

The lavender unicorn scholar watched Rainbow Dash practice her acrobatic stunts. The rainbow-maned pegasus blasted her way through the clouds with ease; each beat of her wings made her cut through the air and taste the sheer freedom of flight.

Out of the corner of her eyes, Rainbow saw Pinkie Pie tinkering around with her Welcome Wagon. The bouncing pink pony clapped her hooves together with glee as the pipes coming out of the contraption blasted confetti high into the air.

Rainbow Dash saw Applejack at the marketplace, tending to her stall. The orange farmpony presented a shining red apple to the next costumer in line.

Rarity waved at Dash from the ground. The regal unicorn made her way to a small cafe nearby for a break of her own.

On the town's border with the dark and foreboding Evefree Forest, a small cottage belonging to an animal-loving yellow pegasus filled with birdsong and the calls of different creatures, as Fluttershy made her daily feeding rounds.

Inside the throne room of Canterlot's royal palace, the sun princess perked her ears. She felt something was... off. An odd sound, but not in her ears; a curious smell, but in her heart... whatever it was, it was coming from everywhere.

Absolutely. Everywhere.

A small, glowing blue circle appeared at the edge of the garden of the cottage.

Deep inside the forest, inside the throne room of the old palace, another three circles appeared, but they disappeared as soon as something - rather, someone- was deposited on top of each one.

All across Equestria, for that was where Discord's chaos had been restricted to, these circles appeared. Only one or two actually remained open within miles of each other, and never within the towns or cities proper... it would be days before any others besides the one in the cottage would be discovered by the residents of the country, but once they were...