Cold sweat covered his face once more, his sheets were strewn everywhere and he could still remember clearly his dream the night before, when usually the details had faded from his mind. Probably because of what had transpired. He'd also fallen out of bed, which would explain why his head hurt a little more than normal.
Silencing the flare of anger he felt from that, he climbed back into bed and buried his head in his hooves, rubbing his eyes slowly to rid himself of drowsiness.
Dusk never had the best of night's sleep since the aftermath of his darker side. Constantly plagued with nightmares and visions of the things he had done, the things he would do if he ever returned, he was surprised that he managed to get as much rest as he could. Luna's efforts were of great help when it came to that. She at least made it so that, for the most part, he could wake up every morning feeling a little safer from the growling he could hear in his mind.
Last night though had been different. Blackhole had manifested in his nightmare, like he always did. He'd chased him, tormented him, yet he could only ever feel a sliver of Luna's power throughout the whole dream. She didn't appear to him physically like she always did, but he could feel enough of her presence so that he knew that she was holding him back. But only just. Enough he wouldn't affect him with his power.
This had distressed Dusk greatly. Why hadn't she come, like she always did? Was it because what he had feared to transpire had now happened? That she thought that her presence wasn't going to help any longer and this was her way of saying that it was time for him to tell the truth? The very idea of such a thing chilled his blood more than the evil presence lurking in his mind.
He rubbed his temples with his hooves and took a few deep breaths, trying to calm down and stop panicking. She had still held him back, like had done before. He could still handle Blackhole during the day like he always did. As long as nothing stressed or angered him, he could keep a level head and keep his darker side at bay.
There would be no need to tell the others. Of course there wasn't.
He rose from his bed, wiping his forehead and started to prepare for the day ahead. He was just trying to figure out why he felt that today was important for some reason, a feeling he only just noticed now, when he felt a surge of panic when he looked up at the clock and saw what time it was.
"By Celestia! I'm late!" He must have overslept, something that very rarely happened, probably brought on by his more traumatic night.
It didn't matter why now, but he knew he had to hurry. Not really thinking in the panic, he dashed with his hooves outstretched for his glasses, tripping on one of his strewn blankets and hurtling forward. He crashed into his bedside table hard. He was only just recovering from the pounding he now felt in his skull when he heard a shattering sound.
He whipped his head around, felt with his hooves and found his glasses. He could feel the shards of broken glass too, confirming what he had heard. They must have been dislodged when he hit the table and fallen to the floor.
Suppressing the frustration he felt, both from the pain and the state of his glasses, he put them on. They were cracked mostly, he could still see partially well, but he'd need to get them fixed. No time for that now, he was already late enough. He slammed his hat on, whipped his necklace around his neck, grabbed an apple from the bowl for breakfast and hurried out of the door.
He started to think of how quickly he could get to the library. There was no need to panic. He had never been late before, perhaps Twilight wouldn't mind so much. Even if she disapproved of tardiness as much as he did. He would have to cut through some alleyways to get there quicker, but he was sure he could make up for lost time.
He was about to start sprinting for it when a strong gust of wind hit him. He felt the familiar weight leave his head and looked to see his hat blowing away on the breeze like a leaf.
"No!" He tried to grab it, but it was already out of his reach and blowing away. He only had a moment to think: run for the library or retrieve his headwear.
In the end, he galloped after his hat, keeping his eyes locked on it while he blew through Ponyville. As long as it didn't take too long, he would be fine, but he just couldn't leave his trilby. It might seem materialistic and silly, but that was just how he felt about it. He hoped against hope Twilight would understand that too and gave chase.
It landed in the middle of a street and he tried to snatch it, but the wind carried it away just as he reached it. He ran after it again, frustration mounting once more and saw it land near Applejack's apple stand in the market, who looked at it curiously.
"What in the hay…?" She looked up and saw Dusk running, getting the message. "Don't worry, ah got it!"
Both she and him went for it when the wind caught it yet again, almost like a child taunting him by keeping it out of reach.
"Aw, shoot!" She smiled sympathetically. "Sorry, Dusk. Ah know how ya feel mind, almost lost mine this mornin' ta that darn wind."
"It is quite strong, isn't it?" he replied, dashing past her to go after it again. "Thanks anyway!"
"No problem! Hey, but look out fer that-!" Her warning didn't reach him in time, for he had already fallen into the ditch. "Ditch. Y'all okay, sugarcube?"
"Relatively," he growled at first, but calmed himself down and climbed back out with her help. "I'm fine, yes. Thanks again, but I have a hat to find."
"Look, there it goes!" He nodded his thanks to her and galloped off again. "Need some help chasin' it down?"
"I'll be fine, thank you!" he called back, picking up speed and sprinting after it.
He could feel his lungs start to burn as he followed it through town again, getting something of a break when it landed on one of the rooftops. Spying some stacked boxes he could use to get up, he clambered up them and went for his hat cautiously. He reached for it, almost had it…
Then it blew away again. Cursing his bad luck, he scrambled back down and gave chase again, stumbling over some tables when he chased it through an outdoor café, disrupting a few commuters as he went.
"Sorry, sorry, excuse me, sorry," he chanted like a mantra, trying to ignore their yells and glares in pursuit of his favoured hat.
The route the hat led him on took him out of town almost completely, tumbling through bushes, tripping and falling in the grass, sliding in some mud, but he wasn't going to lose it. It dipped in the wind, possibly enough for him to jump up and grab it. He put shock absorbers on his hooves to give him extra lift and leaped for it.
"I got it, I got it!" He heard the voice too late and yelled just before he smacked into Pinkie Pie, who was jumping for it at the same time he did.
"Son of a…" He suppressed his mounting rage again and helped his friend to her hooves. "Are you okay, Pinkie?"
"Yep, all fine here." She giggled a bit and nodded knowingly. "Looks like we both had the same idea eh, Mr Psychic Pony?"
"Perhaps," he chuckled, feeling a little better laughing about it. "Or your Pinkie sense told you."
"There you go again, because it did." Her head vibrated a little. "That means flyaway hat caught in the wind."
"How useful." He caught sight of it behind her head and galloped off again. "Sorry, have to go!"
"Okey-dokey-lokey. Need any help?"
"I'll be fine!" he repeated, leaving her behind in seconds.
This chase really was getting on his nerves. Not only did the forces of nature seem unwilling to give his hat back (or maybe it was a weather pony playing a joke), but his cracked glasses meant he couldn't see as clearly as he normally would. This resulted in him tripping or stumbling through things that he would have normally seen.
Great. Now not only was he late, but he looked a complete mess. Twilight was going to kill him…
Keeping up the pace of the wind, he yelled in disbelief when the wind took it higher up into the sky and into the clouds. This was followed soon afterwards by a 'what the' from up above. Moments later, it drifted off the cloud it had blown by, the head of Rainbow Dash poking out. She looked at the hat, then down at him and, like Applejack, caught the meaning.
"Hat trouble, huh? No problem!" She flexed her wings and sped after it, catching it in her hooves in a flash. "Not even challenging!"
"Oh, thank you so much!" he called with utter relief, running over to meet her.
"Like I said, no problem," she assured, flying backwards with it rested on her belly. "I don't miss a trick, wings like an eagle and eyes like a-"
SMACK!
Her animal-like eyes didn't warn her about the large rock face that she had been flying towards and that Dusk only just noticed. He groaned when the trilby flew off again and ran over to Rainbow to check on her.
"I'm fine," she said, shaking her head and slumping to the ground. "Just… gimme a few seconds. You… go get a head start."
Knowing that she was tough and most likely be okay, he galloped after the hat, getting extremely frustrated at this whole ridiculous venture. How far could a gust of wind carry one hat, before he could get it back? Finally, the wind dropped it off on a branch of a tree, where it dangled at the very end above a pond of crystal clear water.
Determined to finally reach the end of this venture, he figured out the best possible route up the tree, climbed on the necessary branches and onto the one where his hat waited for him at the end. He felt a little dizzy when he looked down, even though it was only a modest sized tree and kept his eyes focused on his hat.
He shuffled along the branch, gripping as tightly as he could with all four legs, each inch bringing him closer and closer to his goal. He was almost there, he could just about reach it with his hoof. Between being late and losing his hat, among many other things that had happened this morning, his thoughts weren't really as clear as they normally were, trying to remain focused on this single goal and achieving it.
Almost got it… just a little further…
CRACK!
He heard the sound, looked back and knew what was coming. His weight was breaking the branch. There wasn't enough time for him to get back before it broke and he might lose it again. He still tried to go for it, tried to grab it…
And he fell. The branch gave way and he plummeted towards the water, his scream cut off short when he smacked into the water's surface. He broke it again for air, spat out some of the water and seethed silently, trying to suppress his anger again.
"Dusk! I'm here to…" Rainbow's sentence was cut off. She tried to keep it in, but ended up laughing at his state. "Lemme guess, did you…?"
"Yes, I did," he replied in a monotone voice.
"And then did you…?"
"Indeed."
"And after that…?"
"Into the pond, yes."
"Oh… right…" She guffawed again for a few more minutes, not really helping his temper. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry… it's kind of funny though."
"Yes, my sides are splitting." He felt the hat float down back onto his head and sighed, falling back into the water again exasperatedly.
Once he finally pulled himself out, with help from a sniggering Pegasus and shook himself dry, he knew right away that he wasn't going to make up for the time he had lost and he had somewhat lost his drive. He ended up trudging to the library, still rather wet and bedraggled from his chase, enough that quite a few ponies stared at him as he went by.
He couldn't begin to imagine telling her that he had been chasing around a hat all morning before falling into a pond. She'd think of it as ridiculous, Spike more hilarious and he didn't really know which was the worst scenario. As if this couldn't get any worse, he thought bitterly, opening the door to the establishment and trudging in dejectedly.
"Ah, there you are. I was wondering where… oh my goodness! Dusk, what happened to you?" came the concerned voice of Twilight, hurrying up and looking him over.
"I… had a rough morning," he sighed.
"Yeah, no kidding," Spike said, waddling up. "Looks like you woke up on the wrong side of the bed, in every way."
"What happened?" asked Twilight.
With more than a degree of humiliation in his tone, he told them briefly of what had happened to make him late and explain his state. As he expected, Spike burst out laughing when he told them about the pond, but was soon silenced by a glare from Twilight who, far from frowning, looked at him with sympathy.
"That does sound a little rough. Don't worry, I know that hat means a lot to you, so I understand why you went after it."
"So… you're not angry at me for wasting time?" he dared to ask.
"Not at all. After what you've just been through, I'm sure that's the last thing you want right now. Come on, let's get you dried up and get your glasses fixed."
Touched by her understanding and care, not to mention relieved, he let her cast a few spells on him, one that cleared up the various bits of leaf, twigs and mud that coated his fur, dried off the water that lingered in places and fixed his glasses. She also allowed him a few minutes to get his bearings and calm down from the whole thing.
This was something he was very thankful for, as he now heard how loud the growling and laughing was in his head, suppressing it as quickly as he could.
"Honestly, I thought you were just taking it easy," Twilight said, "considering what day it is."
He was caught a little off-guard from that. "Why? What day is it?"
"Really? You don't know?" she asked, surprise evident in her tone.
A thought occurred to him. "Is it some kind of anniversary for our relationship? Twilight, I'm so sorry, I had no idea. If I'd know, I would have done something special. We could do something together, if you're not…"
"Dusk, no, it's nothing like that. Although, now you mention it…" She shook her head. "Actually, no, that can wait. But really, you don't know what day it is today?"
"No… should I?" he asked unsurely.
She gazed at him for a moment before smiling. "No, never mind. It'll just be more of a surprise for you later. You could probably use one."
"If you say so." He decided not to question this and stood up. "Shall we get on with my magic practice today then?"
Twilight did say that there was no need if he wanted to rest more, but he felt that it would help if he made some kind of progress in something. He was still working on summoning solid objects from his colour shapes. Just last week, he had managed to finally summon a hollow rubber ball, much to their delight and was now moving on to small basic organisms. Specifically, flora.
They spent an hour on practicing this magic, Dusk creating the image of a lilac and then trying to summon it physically. For the first few minutes, he failed to bring it forth. Just when his head started to twinge a little, it flickered partially into existence, but still remain mostly formless. Then, just as they reached the hour, it came through fully.
"Well done, Dusk!" she praised. "You did it!"
"I did…" Feeling relief that something was going right today, he plucked the flower and turned to give it to her. "For you, my dear."
"Aw, Dusk, you are so… oh." Her face fell because as soon as he reached out with it, it vanished again.
"What? I still didn't do it? After all that time!" He smacked the ground with his hoof out of frustration. "I was so close, I-"
"Dusk, calm down." Twilight touched his shoulder and rubbed it gently. "Just breathe deep and let it out. Don't lose your temper over it."
He was angry for a few more moments, but hearing her voice and remembering the consequences of what would happen if he didn't control his anger, soothed him to a degree.
"Right… I'm calm…" he breathed. "Sorry, Twilight."
"It's fine, I can see why you might get a little frustrated about that," she said, keeping her voice level and gentle. "Don't try and push yourself too far and don't get angry about it, that won't help. I know that too well."
"I should have too…" he sighed and rubbed his head. "I just need a few minutes to rest."
She nodded in understanding and let him rest his head on the desk, going off to do some studying of her own while he gathered his strength. He felt peaceful and at rest for a few minutes and was rather tempted to go to sleep there. He could feel his eyelids growing heavy and he yawned loudly, realising how little sleep he'd actually got.
Just for a little bit, his mind thought lazily. I'm sure she won't mind…
"Hey, that's my thing!" He jerked his head up when Spike spoke into his ear. "Don't tell me you're going soft on me."
"So what if I am," he muttered under his breath. "Is there something I can help you with, Spike?"
"Actually, I wanted to know if you'd do me a solid," he whispered conspiratorially. "See, I promised Rarity that I'd help her out with something, but there are some dishes in the kitchen I need to wash up first. I kinda wanna get going now, just so I'm not late so…"
"And you'd like me to do it for you?" finished Dusk, with a slight edge.
"Me and Twilight already discussed this," he said quickly. "I needed to get away today anyway and she was gonna ask you if you wouldn't mind doing my share of stuff in the library. It's only a few dishes, it won't take long and I swear, I'll make it up to you later."
Dusk was very tempted to say no and that he could take the time to do the dishes before he left, let him rest a little. But these selfish thoughts didn't last long when he remembered his loyalties to his friends, especially to one whom he had worked closely with. Spike went out his way to do things for Dusk, it wouldn't be right if he didn't do the same in kind.
He had no reason to distrust the dragon either. If Twilight had talked about this with him, then he was sure that it would be acceptable. It wouldn't turn out well for Spike if he had been lying to get out of work, that much he could say for certain.
"Okay then," he agreed, standing up again.
"Really? Oh, yes! You won't regret this, bro, dragon's honour!" he swore, beaming brightly.
"It's no trouble at all. Now, go on, you wouldn't want to keep the lady waiting," he said with a wink.
Spike nodded and was out of the door in a flash. Dusk smiled a little after him before making his way to the kitchen. Washing dishes wasn't exactly rocket science and it probably wouldn't take too long. Those were the thoughts he kept to remain optimistic… which were completely gone when he saw the mountain that waited for him at the sink.
By the time he was halfway finished, having already spent a good deal of time etching off grease from pans, almost cutting himself on a knife and scraping off black burnt parts of food from plates or trays, Dusk was really beginning to get annoyed with Spike and perhaps should have told him to take these plates and shove them up his-
"Dusk?" Twilight stood in the door of the kitchen. "What are you doing washing all these dishes?"
He told her what Spike had told him. "Apparently, you and Spike agreed on this." His anger started to flare up again. "He wasn't lying to me, was he?"
"No, he wasn't, we did discuss that, but he wasn't meant to go yet." She looked a little angry now too. "Ugh, that lazy reptile! I told him to wash these last night, otherwise they'd pile up and now look what's happened!"
"I see…" He felt a little better with this knowledge in mind and managed to smile. "I suppose I'd better finish what I started."
"No, this isn't your job, this is Spike. You can stop right there and he can do it when he gets back," she said sternly, though not towards him. She realised this and softened her tone. "Sorry about that, Dusk. Once again, it's good to know I can rely on you at least."
"I try my best." Their lips shared a brief moment of contact and his mood improved slightly. "In the meantime, is there anything you'd like me to do while Spike isn't here?"
"Actually, there is. Could you go into the west wing and get me the Magical Compendium there?"
"Fetching a book, sounds simple enough." He departed to the appropriate wing.
It only took him a few minutes of browsing to find the table-sized, ultra thick volume of magical study, though he had to remove almost the entire shelf to find it, which he would have to reshelve later. In addition, carrying it was a great strain on his magic because it was so heavy, but he managed to get it to Twilight anyway.
"Here… we… go!" he said, practically slamming the book down and panting from the effort.
"Thanks so… oh." She looked at the cover and smiled nervously. "Sorry, this is the volume for A-M. I wanted the volume for N-Z for what I was studying."
"There's another?!" He stared at the book. "How can there not be enough space in that monster?"
"Magic is a very broad subject," she said, detecting the irritation in his voice. "I'm sorry, I should have specified."
"That's fine…" He breathed deeply, quelling the anger. "I'll be right back."
So it was that he had to remove all the books from another shelf, levitate it to Twilight with some effort right after trying to fit it through the door, carry the other equally heavy volume back and spend half an hour reshelving the books he had taken down, all the while suppressing his constantly mounting irritation and anger.
He told himself it was for Twilight, that it was his job and he shouldn't complain. It didn't do a whole lot to make him feel better and only added to the feeling that this bad day was only getting worse all the time.
After this frustrating task, he let himself have a moment of quiet reading. Twilight, not really objecting, did her best to manage without him in her studies and left him to it. At some point though, he knew she was going to have to come and find him for something that Spike would usually do. As it turned out, he was right.
"Dusk?" He looked up from the desk. "Since Spike isn't here and I usually practice magic with him, could you help me with something?"
Despite all of the dishes he'd had to clean, he'd made a promise to Spike and he wasn't going to let Twilight down.
"Of course," he nodded, getting up. "What do you need?"
"Don't feel that you have to, if you'd still prefer to rest," she put forward.
"I'm your second assistant and your coltfriend. I would think that helping you would come with the description," he answered in an attempt at humour. "What do you need?"
She hesitated before continuing. "Well, I came across a transformations spell I wanted to try out. It supposed to have mild effects, but it works better if used on a living thing. I'd understand if you feel uncomfortable doing that…"
"I trust you with your magic, Twilight," he said comfortingly. "If you need to try out a spell on me, I'm sure it won't be so bad."
Her doubt vanished and she smiled. "Thanks Dusk, you're the best."
"My pleasure. Now, shall we?"
"Right. Just hold still and don't move." Twilight's horn glowed and Dusk felt the tingle as the spell hit him. "There, now we… oh dear! Do you feel all right, Dusk? You look a little… green."
Dusk blinked and realised he was seeing the whole world through a green hue. He couldn't tell if he was green or if it was just his vision, but didn't seem so bad. Apart from a mild tingling in his hooves and other parts of his body, he didn't really feel anything.
Twilight was less calm. "I am so sorry about this! I had no idea what the effect of this spell would be!"
"Don't worry, I'll be fine," he assured. "Just so long as it's not permanent, right?"
"Of course it's not!" she said quickly. "I'm sure it's just a little side effect. Just give it a few minutes and you'll be fine. Then, if you want, we can try again."
"As you wish," he complied.
In the end, he waited half an hour for the spell to wear off. Seeing the world in green wasn't too bad and he could ignore the tingling, but not so much the irritation he felt towards Twilight for not knowing the effects of it. It was mild, but it was there… though he wished it weren't.
He found her when it had worn off and reported that he was fine.
"Good, just like I said it would." There was that tone of unease she used before, but he ignored it. "Now, ready to try again? I'm confident it'll work properly this time, I just need to apply a little more energy."
"Ready and waiting," he nodded.
"Great… here goes." Her horn glowed again. When it stopped, he realised that he was bigger, his body more furry and his legs smaller. She'd turned him into a buffalo. "Oh dear, that isn't right. Don't move, I can fix this!" Another glow and he was turned into a dog. "This isn't turning out like I planned. I'm sorry, wait a moment."
Another glow and this one was the one that made him shout out, after already having his nature changed twice before. He didn't even know what he was. What was this?! Why was he pink and squidgy? Where had his fur gone? Wait, where were his hooves and what were these long pink things on the end of them?
"Oh dear, oh no! Just one more try, I've got it this time!" He was about to cry out against it but she had already cast the spell. To his utter relief, he felt the warmth of his fur again and the comfort of four legs. "There we go. It all worked out in the end, didn't it?"
He glared at Twilight who was forcing a smile. Suppressing the anger he felt at what had just happened, he managed to growl out, "Let us never speak of this again."
"Agreed," she said quickly. "I really am sorry about all of that, I was just curious about what that spell would do."
"You couldn't have researched more into what it would do or how to perform it before you did it?" he asked irritably. "I'd have thought you'd have some common sense, Twilight."
"I don't know what you're getting irritable about," she retorted. "You were perfectly willing to help me before."
"I was, yes, until you started turning me into every different animal in the world!"
"I already apologised for that! Do you think I enjoyed doing that to you?"
"No!"
"Then what is it?"
"You know what…!" Noticing how much he was raising his voice, he took a moment to collect himself again. "I'm sorry, Twi. I'm just… I haven't had the best day today."
In the brief moment when his eyes met hers, in his anger, he thought he had seen a flash of fear in her violet irises. But it came and went so quickly that he thought he must have imagined it.
"I think I can see that." Her tone was sympathetic again. "Come on. Let's go take a walk around town. I think we could both do with a break."
"That sounds like a wonderful idea."
Once they left the library, Dusk could feel himself starting to relax a little and feel better. When they'd been in there, she had been more in charge, in a sense at least and there'd been a little bit of distance. Now though, out here, they were just coltfriend and marefriend enjoying each other's company without having to worry about the little things.
Or maybe he just thought that because of how bad things had been going today and that Twilight sort of fell into that same category.
He only started to think about now how close he had been, all throughout today. It was like somepony was actually trying to push him to his limit, to get him to lose it completely and give way for his darker side once more. He had heard him louder than ever in his head, only barely managing to suppress him and it just seemed to be getting worse. How could he possibly handle every day, if it might be like this.
Waning protection during the day, little now at night it seemed… what if… what if he did come back? If he couldn't hold him any longer? He'd been trying his best, with his and Luna's efforts combined, but he could feel him, in the darkest recesses of his mind, under all the anger and disappointment that he kept bottled up inside. All his effort, it would be for nothing and his friends would be the ones to suffer the consequences of his failure.
Fortunately, Twilight was a source of comfort for him.
"So," asked Twilight, after a few minutes of silence to mellow him, "you've had a bit of a rough day?"
"That's an understatement. I don't think I've ever had a day as bad as today has been," he said, with a slight bitter laugh.
She smiled sympathetically. "That bad, huh?"
"Indeed. I mean, I fell out of bed, banged my head, broke my glasses, ran over Equestria and back chasing after my hat, got soaking wet, had to clean a bunch of dirty dishes, was almost crushed by two different magical compendiums and had my marefriend tried to change my very nature several times! So yes, pretty bad." He wouldn't normally complain, but he felt a little lighter having got that out.
"I don't know, I've heard worse," she giggled. "In all seriousness though, I understand. We all have our rough days."
"Yes, but today I feel like something is personally out to get me," he confessed. "I know that must sound rather stupid…"
"No, that's exactly how I felt on one of my worst days," she said. "Remember when I thought I was going to be late getting my letter to Celestia?"
He laughed a little. "I mean no offense, Twi, but I don't think that was as bad as that."
"Perhaps not. At least you haven't gone completely nuts and tried to knock me out yet," she joked.
"Don't tempt me."
"Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that everypony has a bad day, once in a while. But surely the good has to weigh out the bad so that, in the end, you'll look back on today and laugh about it." She placed a hoof on his cheek. "That's what friends do. Forgive, forget and move on."
"I don't see how I could ever laugh off what's happened today…" He'd lost control several times, only just being able to regain it.
"Well, I thought the same about my whole report fiasco. But look at us now."
Dusk felt amazed at the effect that Twilight had him with those words of comfort. Just that simple statement made him believe for a moment that this might be true.
"You're… you're right, Twilight." He smiled gratefully at her. "Thanks, I… I really needed to hear that."
"I know, that's why I said it. Besides, if you are driven to insanity, I can just knock you out again," she giggled.
He laughed too, surprised into it. "You might have to, if today gets any worse than it already has…"
"Hey, it'll get better." She kissed his cheek briefly. "You'll see."
"How do you know that?" he asked, almost desperately.
"I know."
Again, she said that with such surety and confidence that he believed her. Just then, he felt like this was one of those perfect moments with her. A moment when he would be able to tell her what Rarity had mentioned to do and what he longed to do, but had never been completely sure of. Now, he knew there was nothing he was more certain of.
"Twilight… you're best friend and marefriend that I've ever had and could ever hope for," he said, with complete honesty.
She was a little surprised by his words, but kept her smile. "Thank you, Dusk. That's… sweet of you. I feel the same. Except supplement marefriend with coltfriend, of course."
"Of course." The nerves rose in his stomach, but he ignored them. "I've… never really told you this. I've always meant to but… never really had the chance, but I… I…"
"Dusk, what is it?" He had good reason to be nervous, for every other time he'd tried to tell her this, something had interrupted.
"It's just that… Twilight… I… I lo-"
SPLASH!
Cut off yet again, this time by a cloud that had been emptied over his head. It only added to his frustration from the loud guffawing he could hear from above.
"Rainbow Dash! That's not funny!" yelled Twilight.
"Oh come on, it was a little funny," she sniggered. "Dusk knows I don't mean anything by it, right Dusk?"
"Yes, no hard feelings," said Dusk through gritted teeth.
They'd returned to the library not long after that, Dusk's anger again starting to surface from yet another failed attempt to confess his feelings to Twilight. She had dried him off again and when she asked him about it, he said that it wasn't important, having again lost his nerve and his hope from the previous assurance that the day would get better. Since it was now nearing its end, he had even less aspirations for that hope.
When it was time for him to leave, Twilight offered to accompany him to his house. She suggested that it had been a while since they had a quiet session in his home, reading a book on the couch, just the two of them. Her way of making up for a bad day, she said. Knowing that it would be better than silently fuming about his awful day alone, he took her up on her offer and she accompanied him on his route home, with no more sudden gusts of wind this time.
As they walked, Dusk considered a number of things. If he would be able to hold back Doom after such a day like this, if he could ask Luna to cancel the lesson that was scheduled for tomorrow if he didn't feel like doing it and at Twilight's behaviour. She looked to be trying very hard to keep quiet about something, pursing her lips and darting her eyes around the place, only ever settling on Dusk for a brief moment or two before darting off again.
He'd only ever seen her act in a similar way once and that was when she'd been trying to keep Rarity's and Fluttershy's secrets from the other. Did she have another secret now that she was trying her best to keep hidden… or was it something else?
"Twilight, is there something wrong?" he asked her, as they neared his house and she was looking further agitated.
"No, nothing. Nothing at all." She shut up quickly after that, not making eye contact still.
"If you insist." He reached for his key and unlocked his door. "You just seem a little nervous about something, that's all."
"Nervous? Don't be silly. Why would I be nervous or apprehensive in any way whatsoever? I'm fine, nothing wrong at all," she said quickly, forcing a smile and letting him go first.
"Twilight, you can be as bad of a liar as I can sometimes," he chuckled stepping into the darkened house. "What is it, is there something wrong?"
"Not wrong, no." Now, it changed and a smile grew on her features. "You'll see, soon enough."
"What do you-?"
"SURPRISE!" The lights suddenly blared on and several ponies jumped out of hiding places behind furniture. "Happy birthday, Dusk!"
Dusk blinked several times, first to get his eyes used to the light and second from sheer bewilderment and comprehension of what they had just shouted. This was what he had forgotten, a date he'd never paid much mind before because nopony ever really had.
It was his birthday… and his friends had thrown him this party. All of the girls emerging from hiding places, wearing party hats and warm smiles. He turned to Twilight, who was wearing the latter, though not the former.
"Was this what you were trying to keep secret?"
She laughed sheepishly. "That obvious, huh? I knew you weren't having the best of days and I knew this would be a nice surprise for you to make up for all of that."
"See? I told you I'd make it up to you and throw you a party just as good as mine," Spike proclaimed, hopping up on Rarity's back.
"We all helped with preparing this party, Spikey-wikey," reminded the mare.
"Yeah, but I was the one who managed to round up a few extra guests, just so he wouldn't get bored."
Looking around, Dusk could see what Spike meant. Apart from the girls, there were a few other ponies that he'd seen around Ponyville he liked to think he was friendly with. There was Derpy, beaming and holding a muffin with his name on it (literally), Gentle Dream and a stallion he assumed was her coltfriend, Nightfall and his marefriend, Frequency Stream and two other mares, one a white furred DJ he'd seen before and a grey-furred earth pony he'd met at the Hearth's Warming Pageant, though she looked like she'd been dragged here and, of course, Ray Strike, also smiling happily, but rubbing the back of his head a little awkwardly.
Even so, Dusk could feel the beginnings of a smile, feeling that this awful day had finally gotten better, just like Twilight had said. They'd actually done a party for him. On his birthday. A day that he'd never thought much of celebrating and had actually managed to forget almost completely. All of the bad experiences today, the near-misses, suddenly they didn't matter so much anymore. Not now he was with his friends.
Although, a very small thought of anger did flare up briefly with a question: if they knew he wasn't having the best day, why didn't somepony tell him that and try to cheer him up?
He ignored it though and let the smile grow, gazing around at them all.
"I… I really don't believe this. You can all still surprise me, even the newer faces," he added to the others. "Thank you… all of you…"
"You're welcome!" Pinkie said brightly. "Now, as I always say…"
"Let's party!" finished Ray, blowing a party horn.
"Hey, that's my line!"
With a little ushering from Twilight, Dusk moved into the centre of the room to start mingling with the guests. Most of the girls all socialised with each other, but he made it his job to speak to and welcome the other less familiar faces. He talked with Gentle, who introduced her coltfriend Star Chaser and engaged him in conversation about some art projects that she was working on, perhaps he'd like to help her out a little. Nightfall introduced his marefriend as Shimmer, the two of whom seemed rather close and told him about some strange energy spikes he'd seen shooting off into the sky over the past few weeks.
Derpy came up and presented him with his present, in the form of a muffin she'd baked for him specially. It had his fur colour as the base and his mane colour as chocolate icing, as well as little coloured sprinkles to symbolise his magic. His most interesting conversation, however, was one with Frequency, who offered him to shake the hoof of DJ PON-3, or Vinyl Scratch to her friends. From years of living in Canterlot, Dusk knew enough to know the significance of meeting her and apparently, she did too.
"Yes, believe your eyes, for it is I, the Turntable Temptress, the Mistress of Music and the Devastatingly Delightful Disk Jockey of all of Equestria, known better to all lucky enough to know me as Vinyl Scratch," she greeted eloquently, shaking his hoof and grinning.
"She's quite the modest one, isn't she?" quipped Frequency.
"What fun is being cool if you're not gonna brag about it a little?" she shrugged. "And a happy birthday to you, Dusk, 'cause this'll be the best one you ever had. Right Quency?"
"You know it, Scratchy," he returned.
"Well… thank you both for coming," he said politely. "It's an honour to have you here, Miss Scratch."
"Miss? How'd you guess? Now, I am flattered but I hear you already have a marefriend. Although, not too bad…" She laughed from his blush. "I'm just kidding with you. If you wanna call anypony 'miss', talk to Tavi here."
The earth pony she referred to merely rolled her eyes at being addressed like this.
"Come on, Tavi, quit being such a killjoy," urged Vinyl. "It's a party. Loosen up, or the kid'll think you came for his funeral or something."
"I will enjoy myself how and when I please, not because you tell me to, Vinyl," she responded curtly.
"Eh, you're no fun. Hey, Quency, let's go get some punch, see if she's any better by the time we get back." Looping her leg through Frequency's, the two of them set off.
Though he was irritated by Tavi's apparent attitude, he decided to maintain his Canterlot standards and be polite.
"Can I get you anything, miss?" he asked. "Some punch or a little food?"
"No, but thank you for offering." A small smile grew on her face. "You seem polite at any rate, it wouldn't serve me any worse not to be the same. I am Octavia, or Tavi to a certain disk jockey."
"Pleasure to meet you properly, Octavia," he returned, shaking her hoof. "I take it you were dragged here against your will, somewhat?"
"In a sense, yes. Vinyl told me I need to 'get out more', so she pulled me along after Frequency was invited," she said, with a mild tone of disdain. "We were here in Ponyville visiting him and she dragged me along to that as well."
"She drags you around a lot of places, does she?" he chuckled.
"More times that I'd care to mention," she replied, a slight laugh of her own. "She bought me here hoping some of Frequency would rub off on me."
He glanced over at the stallion, who had just smeared some cupcake icing on Vinyl's nose, the latter laughing away. "You don't approve of him then?"
"Let's just say that it takes an eccentric musician to know one and I know two," she answered. "Not all of us have bloated egos. Some of us prefer to be humble and reserved, proud only of what they do."
"I feel much the same," he said. "Although, I could hear you playing in the pageant. You're very talented at your work."
"Thank you, that's kind of you to say so. May I say as well that you are equally as talented with your magic," she returned. "I saw your performance at the Magic Contest last year."
"I didn't know you went to that."
"Just because I do not possess magic does not mean I cannot appreciate it," she quipped. "One could say the same for yourself and music."
"Touché. Well, I apologise for your lack of enjoyment here. I know it can get a little hectic." He ducked casually as Pinkie soared over him, having been fired from her own cannon by Ray.
"I noticed. I must say though, this is making up for it somewhat," she said brightly. "At least you can also hold a decent, civilised conversation."
"I advise you speak to my friend Rarity as well." He pointed her out in the crowd. "She's quite sophisticated, you two would get along fine."
"I'll bear that in mind. Oh and I forgot to say: happy birthday, Mr Noir," she wished.
"Thank you and just Dusk will do, Miss Octavia."
"Only so long as you call me Octavia, though I thank you for being so proper."
"It's what I do."
"Oh, what's this I see?" Vinyl had returned, a triumphant grin on her face. "Making some friends, Tavi? Just like I said you would."
"Well, I suppose you can be right on some occasions," she countered, with a pleasant smile at Dusk.
The wake of all these conversations told him that things were finally getting better today. The only source of irritation was when Ray had come up to him and told him that he hadn't got him anything for his birthday.
"Yeah, I'm sorry about that," he said, after he'd had his turn in the cannon. "I was scouring the whole day for something, but… you know, I've never really had friends before, so I didn't know what to get you. Believe me, it would be the same for anypony."
Poor excuse, he thought bitterly, but quashed that thought and smiled. "It's fine, Ray. I'm not all that fussed about presents anyway, don't worry about it."
"Hey, you okay?" He must not have missed that brief flash of anger.
"Yes, I'm fine. I just… haven't had a good day, that's all," he shrugged.
"Right…" He looked at him in that way again, like he knew something. But the look was gone just as quickly. "Well, have fun now anyways. I'm gonna try that again!"
"I think your singed tail fur would disagree!" he called.
"It'll grow back!" he returned.
He was right though. With all of his friends gathered here, old and new, playing party games, talking, eating, drinking, Dusk couldn't imagine how he'd thought today wouldn't get any better. This was the true joy and magic of friendship, right here in his home. The small growling in his head he could easily ignore and keep under control. Nothing could possibly spoil this, he thought.
How wrong could one pony be?
"So, do you believe me now?" Twilight asked, sidling up to him and smiling.
"I believed you before, it's just now I have proof." The way she smiled, the way she always made him feel better, no matter what. He found his courage again and decided to say it now. "Twilight, could I talk to you? In private?"
Concern only appeared briefly on her face. "Of course. Come on, let's go outside where it's quieter."
Their departure from the party didn't go entirely unnoticed. A wolf whistle came from Ray, a whoop from Pinkie and a 'rock on, man!' from Vinyl, making Dusk blush and be slightly angry that they didn't have a little more respect for them.
The silence of the night contrasted greatly with the noise and merriment inside his home. The only sound was the gentle playing of crickets hidden in the dark, the only light from Luna's moon and her stars, though he could also make out some darker clouds gathering overhead. He remembered that there was a storm scheduled for tonight and hoped to be back inside before it rained.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" whispered Twilight, her head leaning on his shoulder.
"Yes, you are."
"Dusk…" She giggled slightly, then turned to face him. "So, what is it? Is there something wrong?"
"Not wrong, no. Just something that… I've been meaning to tell you, for a while now."
"Is this what you were meaning to tell me before?" she asked, sharp as ever.
"I think you might be psychic too," he joked. "Hopefully, nothing will interrupt this time."
"Here's hoping. Go on then, what is it?" she prompted.
He was silent for a few minutes, trying to think of the best way to say this. Twilight waited patiently until he spoke again.
"Okay… well… like I said before, I wasn't sure if I… felt this way about you, if the length of time we'd been dating was… right. But now, I know that it couldn't be anything else. I've never, ever felt this way about anypony the way I do for you, right now."
"Dusk… what are you saying?"
"I'm saying… I'm… saying…" He took a deep breath and held both her hooves in his. "I… I… I love you, Twilight Sparkle."
There, he had said it now. Even in the dark, he could see how much her eyes had widened. "You… you… love me?"
"I wasn't sure if I did at first, but I know it has to be it," he went on. "You're all I think about sometimes, the one who always makes me feel better, no matter how sad I might be. I think I may have felt like this from the moment I first saw you. I only know now that… it must be true."
He now waited with baited breath for her response, one that he was sure that she would give, though a small part of him still doubted it. He waited for her to return his words, to say that of course she felt the same way he did. How could she not?
But she didn't.
"Oh… right," was all she said.
That small part of him was growing bigger now. "You… you don't feel the same?"
"No! I mean, yes, I mean I… I… I don't know…" she whispered. "I mean, I'm very, very fond of you, Dusk and I cherish all the time we have together but… I don't know if… if I love you. I just… I need more time to think about this…"
"What's there to think about?" he asked, desperation creeping into his voice. "I love you, isn't that enough?"
"I know, I heard you," she insisted. "I just… I don't know if I feel that way too."
"W-what? How can you not?"
"Like you said, I've never felt this way before either. I don't know… I don't know if it is love, okay? I need more time to think about it, to figure it out…"
"You don't need to think about it." This wasn't happening, how could this be happening? "Just say that you love me. Please."
He could tell that she was distressed now. "Dusk… I don't… I can't…"
"Why can't you?" All the anger, all the frustration he'd kept down inside was coming up now and he couldn't stop it. Didn't stop it.
"I… I just can't-"
"THEN WHAT IS THE PONT?!" he exploded. "All of this time, all the moments we shared, what has been the point of any of it?!"
"Dusk, calm do-"
"NO! No, I will not calm down! Because you have lied to me, Twilight Sparkle, again!" He couldn't stop the words that were pouring from his mouth now. "I thought we had something special, something wonderful, but apparently you didn't!"
"Dusk, that's not true!"
"This has all just been a project for you, something you thought you could learn, study and control, just like our friendship! But not to me! This had been the best thing that ever happened to me and now you've ruined it! YOU!"
"Stop it! Stop it, right now!"
"Why? Scared you can't control it, can't figure it out? Well, newsflash, Miss Sparkle, you can't control me, no matter how much you might try! You never even wanted this, did you? You never wanted to be with me! It was all just some game to you!"
"DUSK!" Her eyes were shining with tears now, but he didn't care. So were his. "How can you even say that?!"
"Quite easily and you know what, here's something else: if you don't feel about me the way I do about you, maybe we should just… STOP!"
"FINE THEN!" Her face was set in anger, her cheeks stained with tears. "If that's the way you want it, then fine! Don't bother coming in tomorrow! I don't want to see you for a while, if ever!"
With that, she turned tail and galloped off home, her sobs echoing clearly back to him.
"Fine by me! See if I care!" Not stopping there, he stormed back inside, his anger driving him.
"Dusk?" Ray hurried up. "What happened out-"
"GET OUT! All of you, get out of my house!" Calling on his magic, he shot spell after spell at them, chasing them all out. "Leave me alone, just get out!"
He stood there, in his living room, fuming and seething with rage… until the silence pressed in on him and comprehension dawned on what he had just done.
He was alone. All alone. They were all gone. His friends. He'd sent them all away, attacked them to get them to leave. After they'd done all of this… for him. He wanted to go after them, to call them back, but what would be the point? They wouldn't come back to him, not now. He'd lost them… his friends… the love of his life, all of them. Gone.
Still feeling that anger bubbling away inside him, mingling with the guilt and regret he felt also, Dusk crawled upstairs, into his bed and fell into sleep, crying all the while…
There was no forest this time. It was only a barren, lifeless desert, boiling in the rays of the burning sun. Nothing was growing here, nothing lived and everything had died. It was just him, alone, calling out in vain for somepony, anypony to find him.
But nopony came.
Sometimes, he thought he saw them, on the horizon. They shimmered faintly and he would try and run for them, but they were gone by the time he arrived. Just a mirage, an illusion. One that he had shattered with his very presence. It was just him, alone.
Except that he wasn't. Something else was here. Somepony.
"What's the matter, brother?" He could hear him, close. He spun around, but saw nothing. "You're looking quite lonely today."
"Where are you?!" he cried. "Show yourself!"
"Why, I'm right where I always am. In your shadow." Dreading what he would see, he looked down at it.
At first, it was normal, black in the sun. All of a sudden, it lengthened and grew, though the sun hadn't moved. It rose as a cloud of black vapour, coalescing and combining to give it shape and form. And what a terrible, leering form it was.
"Learned a new trick then?" Dusk asked, determined not to be scared by him.
"As lights are your forte, so shadows are mine," he countered. "As does chasing away your friends. I'm partially inclined to be proud of you. Only partially."
"Shut up!"
"Oh, touched a nerve, have I?" He started to walk closer, striding with purpose.
"Keep back!" He backed away from him. "Luna will stop you, she always does!"
"Oh really? Then, where is she? Has she left you too, like your friends have?" he taunted.
"You were the one who did that!"
"I only gave you the knife. You were the one who stabbed them with it."
"No! No, I didn't… didn't…"
Doom sneered at his speechless state. "Nothing to say, Dusk? No final words?"
Dusk panicked when he thought Doom was getting taller. He stood rigid still, waiting for Luna to banish him again, as she always had done. But he felt nothing, her presence non-existent. Even here, he was alone. Nopony was coming to save him now.
"Looks like not. Oh well, let's get on with it then." He resumed his march towards him.
Dusk tried to bring his hooves up to fight, only to find he couldn't lift them. He looked down to see they were sinking into the sand, the grains falling around him and pulling him down. Doom hadn't been getting taller. He'd been getting smaller.
"No! No, please no!" He tried to struggle out, but the pull was too great. "Stop! No!"
"Don't worry, brother," growled Doom, that horrible leer on his face. "I'll take good care of your friends for you. I'm sure they'll appreciate it."
The sand closed in around his head. He tried to grab something with his hoof, but there was nothing. He tried to use his magic, but it had gone. He was helpless, there was nothing he could do to stop him.
"I'm so sorry, Equestria…" The last thing he saw was Doom's hate-filled eyes before the sand consumed him completely.
It was in the early hours of the morning that Rarity made her way to Dusk's home. He had demanded to be left alone the previous night but now, she was determined to speak with him about what had happened. If there ever was a time the stallion needed her, it was now.
She could have a good guess about what happened though. She'd heard the raised voices from outside, had noted that Dusk had come back alone and the look of utter despair mingled in with his anger. Something had happened between him and Twilight and it was up to her to try and fix it. Hopefully, it would be something that was salvageable and not too much of a worry.
But that look on his face… it had broken her heart to see him in such a state. Celestia knows how he must be now…
She reached the humble little abode, already going over in her head how best to comfort him. She raised her hoof to knock, but when it the door, it slid open slightly. He hadn't closed it, hadn't locked it since last night it seemed. He must have been in so much distress it had slipped his mind. The poor dear…
She pushed it open to allow her inside. Part decorations were still up from the night before, although it looked like some had been torn down. A few broken punch glasses littered the floor, the carpet was soaked with their contents and it was all just a huge mess. The neat freak in Rarity urged her to get cleaning, but she ignored it, looking at the bigger picture. He must have been driven to do this in his anger last night.
Yet… something didn't sit right with her. It was too quiet…
"Dusk? Dusk darling, are you here?" Silence was all that responded to her voice. "I let myself in, the door was open. I just came to check up on you…"
She trailed off, again feeling that sense of unease. Why hadn't he replied to her? Surely he must have heard her. Perhaps he was upstairs in his room, ignoring her or still asleep. Yes, she reasoned, that was probably it. This was Dusk, after all, what need did she have to be frightened.
"Dusk?" she called again, proceeding cautiously up. She didn't even really know why she was being cautious. "It's me, Rarity. Are you well?"
She reached the door to his room, which was open slightly. Only darkness was in that room. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up as she pushed it open, peering inside. She could make out a bed in the dark, a tiny bit of sun through the closed curtains… and the silhouetted form of a pony, sitting on the bed.
"Oh, there you are. Hiding from me, were you?" Dusk didn't respond. His mane looked a complete mess and he was hunched over. She let her voice soften and took a step closer. "I heard about what happened between you and Twilight." No reply. "I know it seems hopeless, darling, but I know there's still a chance for you two. We just need to talk about it and figure out where you went wrong."
Still no reply. Either he couldn't hear her or he was deliberately ignoring her. Rarity pushed down her disapproval, knowing it wouldn't help either of them if she got snippy with him. What she couldn't push aside was that growing sense of dread that had accompanied her since she'd entered the house.
She raised her voice a little. "Dusk? Can you hear me? Are you okay?"
At first, he did nothing. Then, slowly, his head rose so that a little more was in the light. She saw a white flash, like bone in his mane… no, was his mane. That was when she noticed a few other things. His size was much larger, a smidge of orange where his cutie mark was she could make out… like a fire. And his fur… his deep, black fur.
He turned his head slightly, revealing a jade green eye staring at her like a predatory beast. A single slit instead of a round pupil. A voice, laden anger and dripping with hate, reverberated in her memory.
That dread now morphed into fear, then panic. This wasn't Dusk… it was… it was…
"Why, Rarity…" growled Blackhole Doom, with a horrible smile. "I've never felt better."
"You okay?" Spike asked Twilight.
"Yes," she snapped.
"You… you sure?"
"Yes, I'm fine."
"You wanna… talk about last night?"
"No! Now, go clear away the plates or something," she ordered. "You know, like you were supposed to do yesterday? Go!"
The dragon scurried away, which she was thankful for. She wasn't in the mood to talk and didn't think she ever would be. Not for a while at least.
Last night… talk about last night. The very thought of last night still brought up a well emotions in her. Anger, frustration, regret… sadness. No, why should she feel sad? Why should she regret what happened? Dusk had been the one to start the whole thing. The thought of him brought up those same emotions too. It was all his fault anyway…
So… why did she feel like crying about it? Why did she feel so empty? Why did her heart ache so much whenever she thought of him? She didn't know. She was too confused, her emotions too spontaneous and mixed up to let her think clearly. She was actually tempted to just go back to bed, to wait out the day there.
Until Rarity burst through the door, looking frantic and panicked. That didn't bother her so much though, she was probably just overreacting about something again.
"Twilight! Twilight!" She hurried up, looking frantically over her shoulder. "It's awful, simply horrifying!"
She sighed angrily and rounded on her. "What is it, Rarity? This had better be actually important. I'm not in the mood to deal with drama right now."
"Oh, this is important! In fact, it's ground-breaking!" she shrieked. "Of all the worst things that could happen, this is the-"
"Worst possible thing, I get it!" she snapped impatiently. "Save it for some other time Rarity, I'm really not interested."
"No, no, you don't understand! He's back!"
She stopped in her tracks. The sheer terror she'd uttered those last words with was enough to make her turn around and face her. She could see it now, reflected in her eyes. Fear.
"Who's back? Rarity, what is it?"
"I… I saw him. He let me go, let me run, but he did… something to poor Bon-Bon while she was walking by." She shuddered and squealed. "I wanted to help her, but I knew… I must warn you all, before he comes."
"Rarity!" She gripped her shoulders firmly. "Who's back? Tell me."
The mare stammered a little more, gulped and whispered out two words. "Blackhole Doom."
Twilight didn't even have time to widen her eyes in terror before she was screaming and backing away from the window. A hoof had just smashed through it, feeling around blindly. But the fur on it wasn't black, nor were the ponies who kicked in the door, snarling like beasts.
But there was something wrong with them. Not just in the way they acted, growling in anger, but around their heads… some kind of weird black vapour hung around their heads, seeping in and out of their ears. Their eyes… jade green, with slits… like his.
"What do you want?" she demanded of them.
They didn't respond. At least, not in any normal way. They shrieked and galloped right at her, leaping with their hooves forward, aiming to crash into her. Acting on instinct, she blasted them both with a paralysis spell, stopping them before they reached her and Rarity.
"Twilight!" Spike hurried out of the kitchen, running up to her. "I heard the noise outside, then in here. What's going on? What's happened to them?"
"I don't know, Spike." She looked them over quickly. "Doom must have done something to them."
"Wait, Doom? The guy who took out Dusk when Discord was around? He's back?" Spike asked fearfully.
Twilight found the words dying in her throat as the full meaning of those words descended on her. He was back. Blackhole Doom had returned. Which meant that… she felt a lump rise in her throat just thinking about it.
Fortunately, Rarity answered for her. "I'm afraid so, Spike. I came to warn you, as soon as I saw him."
Recovering her senses, Twilight nodded. "You did the right thing, but we need to find the others too. Come on!"
She opened the door with her magic… and froze at what she saw.
Ponyville was a myriad of panic and chaos. Some ponies were running, hurrying to get away from other ponies, who were in the same condition as the two who attacked them. She saw a stallion trying to get away, but was pinned down by his pursuer. He tried to struggle away, but she turned him over, locking her eyes on his and allowing the black vapour to flow into his head.
He screamed, shuddered and froze. When his eyes opened again, they matched hers and that same vapour floated around his head. He leaped to his hooves and ran after another, the two of them disappearing down an alleyway. The other saw them and charged, screaming like a banshee, going for Spike who was closest.
"Hiyah!" She was cut off with a kick from Rarity. "Hooves off the dragon!"
"Nice work," she praised, Spike staring in amazement while she placed him on her back. "Now come on, let's go!"
They galloped off into town, hoping to find the others before those ponies did… or Doom did.
A few pegasi plummeted from the sky and they looked up to see Rainbow Dash, holding her own against more of the savages they'd met. She punched one, kicked another and bucked one off who was on her back. She nodded, saw them and sped down.
"Guys, what in the hay is going on here?" she demanded. "What's happened to everypony?"
"No time to explain, we need to find the others before the same happens to them," said Twilight quickly.
Staying true to her Element, Rainbow agreed straight away. "Right on. Let's get going then."
Hurrying to the outskirts, Rainbow spotted Applejack by her cart. She was bravely holding her own, kicking apples at attacking ponies and knocking them down, or else just kicking them.
"Whoa nelly!" she yelled when they reached her. "Now, ah know ponies like our apples, but ah have ta draw the line with this one."
"Join the club, we got jackets." Rainbow's eyes suddenly widened. "Fluttershy! She's gonna get torn apart by these guys!"
Nopony argued with that assessment and it made them gallop to Fluttershy's cottage all the more faster.
They saw broken windows at the cottage and feared the worst. Twilight had to duck when they reached Fluttershy's door and a pony burst through, having been knocked back by a punch. However, it wasn't from the timid Pegasus.
"Knock first, then come in!" shouted Ray, dusting his hoof off. "Oh, hey girls. How are you all?"
Applejack asked what they were all thinking. "What in the hay are you doin' here?"
"I came over to check on Fluttershy, after Dusk's little… episode last night. As a friend, of course," he added, with a slight blush. "We were doing fine, then these guys started acting like ponies out of a zombie movie and I had to improvise."
"Oh my goodness, girls!" Fluttershy hurried out from behind Ray, utter relief on her face. "I'm so happy to see you all. I was… so scared…"
"Good thing I was here, eh?" asked Ray, with a grin.
"Yes… you were really brave, Ray," she muttered. His grin faltered slightly and he coughed.
"Yeah, yeah, all praise to Ray, but come on!" Rainbow urged. "Pinkie might be in trouble!"
"Good point!" Ray sprang quickly. "Let's go save the party pony!"
Pinkie was in Sugarcube Corner, throwing confectionaries at a converted Mr and Mrs Cake, standing between them and the crying foals behind her. The two of them were knocked down by blows from Rainbow and Ray, the rest of them hurrying up.
"Boy, am I glad to see you guys! The Cakes were acting real cranky this morning, so were the customers who came in before."
"We noticed." Ray attempted to push her along. "Come on, we need to bail."
"Hold on! I can't leave Pound and Pumpkin without their mom and dad!" she gestured to the two babies.
"Bring them too then, but let's go before more of them show up!" ordered Rainbow.
Pinkie left quickly, came back with two baby carriers on her side and placed the foals into them, trying to soothe them while they ran, looking for an escape.
They tried to run, to get away from these former ponies. But every time they tried to run a route, a whole horde of them cut off their escape, forcing them to go another way. It seemed like the whole town had been turned into them, every single one out to get Twilight and her friends. How had Doom caused all this? Corrupting them, changing them…
Like Discord, only less… controlled.
It was only when they were surrounded in the centre of town that Twilight realised something. They'd been herded here, cut off from any escape and trapped in one spot. There dozens, if not hundreds of them on all sides. She summoned her magic, prepared to go down fighting.
Until she heard a horrible, familiar laughter that chilled her blood.
Shadows billowing around him, his horn glowing, Blackhole Doom walked towards them out of the crowd, his minions parting to let him pass. It was a terrifying mix of triumph, mingled with hatred and anger.
It was made only worse when she remembered who he was, who he used to be.
"Hello again, girls," he growled. "Did you miss me?"
"Like a bad smell," retorted Rarity. "What did you do to Dusk, you monster?!"
"He's tucked away, somewhere," he rumbled. "Don't worry, you'll all be joining him soon."
He laughed again, chorused almost by the screeches and roars of the ponies of Ponyville he'd turned into creatures just like him. Filled with nothing but anger, hatred and rage.
And there was an army of them.