“Where… Where am I? What’s going on? I can’t…”
A young pony lie in an empty building after having just woken up. She opened her eyes and tried to focus her blurred vision in order to take in her surroundings. But she still felt groggy and her tired body reacted slowly to her commands. She wanted more than anything to just lie there and sleep, but the sound of something crashing onto the ground snapped the young pony to attention.
The young mare jumped up to her hooves and quickly scanned the room for the source of the loud noise. As she did her vision focused and she became aware of her surroundings. The room that she was in wasn’t as empty as she had first thought. But instead of a room that looked like it should have been nicely decorated with comfortable furniture and nice bits and baubles that a happy family would collect, she was instead surrounded by splintered wood and rubble.
The pony surveyed the broken building for a while before deciding that the noise must have been a wooden beam that finally snapped and fell to the floor. The building was severely damaged and was beginning to collapse around her. She jumped around some more rubble and wood and just made it outside before the sound of snapping wood filled the air. After the pony reached a safe distance, she turned around just in time to see the remnants of her former shelter fall heavily to the ground sending out a cloud of dust in its ruin.
The pony sighed in relief that she had awoken and escaped just in time. But her relief soon faded and was quickly replaced with confusion. The place that she found herself in was not at all pleasant. Her immediate surroundings consisted of more buildings, each in various states of disrepair. Some had large hole in roofs and missing sections of walls. Others were collapsed and only still had a single standing wall or two that indicated the piles of rubble were indeed buildings once upon a time. Nearly all of them had fires either still burning or just smoldering out.
The pony also notice the air was dark and filthy. It was clouded by smoke and ash and dust that it made it somewhat difficult for her to breathe. The scents that assaulted her nose nearly choked her. She could make out the smell of smoke and dust, as well as another smell that she was unfamiliar with. The strange smell made her gag and she wanted to cover her nose to protect it from the awful stench.
As the pony continued to take in everything around her, she suddenly became aware of something. She couldn’t remember anything! All of her memories where gone from before she had woken up in the collapsing house. Nothing remained from any time before, and she was suddenly overcome with panic.
She began to run around and desperately search the ruined town. While she was running, she passed a large window that had several smashed mirrors inside. The pony stopped her wild flailing and turned around to walk back to the window with the mirrors.
When she approached, she glanced around at each mirror, noticing that they were broken. All but one had been completely destroyed. The one that did somehow survive was only cracked in one corner. The rest of the mirror was still able to reflect everything that stood before it.
As the curious pony approached the tall standing mirror, she began to take in the reflected image that was presented before her. Standing in the reflection was a purple alicorn with a somewhat messy dark purple main and tail with a magenta highlight. Her purple eyes moved around over her reflection as she took in the image of herself. As she studied herself in the mirror, a name suddenly popped into her head.
Twilight Sparkle.
The pony calmed down and even became a little excited by the fact that she knew that the name was in fact a memory and not just a random thought. She figured that the name in her memory must belong the image of the pony in the mirror since it had come to her after she saw herself in the reflection. As she thought about it more and more, she became certain that the name was associated with the image of the purple alicorn.
Twilight Sparkle rejoiced in her newly remembered name, but she was once again aware of the burning town and her joy was quickly dashed. She decided to explore the ruined town to try and find out what had happened and possible regain her memories. If the reflection in the mirror brought back a memory, then perhaps something else in the town would help her.
Twilight wandered the former town examining the destruction and trying to come up with an idea of what could have happened to the place. She watched some of the fires burn and she searched some buildings that she had decided were safe enough to approach, though she didn’t dare go inside any of them. She also studied the air and the ground for possible clues, but all she could make out was some craters and trenches in the ground.
Twilight continued to wander around when she noticed something in the distance. A breeze caught some of the smog that obscured her vision and cleared it up enough for Twilight to see a large shape in the distance. Her vision was still too obstructed by the smog for her to make out what the shape was, but Twilight decided that her next destination would be the large shape in the distance.
In the time that Twilight had been wandering the remnants of the town, she was becoming more aware of just how lonely she was feeling. She had no memories of friends or family and she had yet to find another pony around. While she walked her mind began to entertain thoughts of who she might have been. She focused and tried to remember anything about herself from before, but her memory was as cloudy as the air around her.
After walking towards the large thing for a short while, Twilight noticed that the strange stench that she had smelled mixed in with the smoke was growing stronger. With it back to the front of her mind, she wondered what could have been the source, but she still couldn’t think of what it might have been. The smell continued to grow stronger and more unbearable as she continued her walk and soon all Twilight could think about was getting away from the smell. She quickened her pace towards her destination but suddenly the wall of a nearby burning building collapsed.
Twilight gagged and nearly vomited as her nose was suddenly attacked by the most disgusting smell she could have ever imaged. Though her body was screaming with the desire to get as far away from the stench as possible, her curiosity got the better of her and she decided to investigate what the smell could have been.
Twilight covered her nose with her wings as she carefully approached the fire that was burning inside the building. After she had decided that the fire was indeed the source of the smell, Twilight began to scan it for any clues to satiate her curiosity. She took a few more steps toward the fire and the burning pile of wood and scanned it for a few more moments.
After a few glances over the pile of burning wood and rubble, Twilight noticed something. She looked at the two shapes that stood out for just a few seconds more before shock and terror washed over her. Her blood became ice and the fur in her body stood on end. Twilight’s eyes grew in shock as she recognized what the two shapes in the fire were.
Burning in the fire and trapped under the wood were the bodies of two ponies charred beyond recognition. They were both facing the wall that had once stood with the door that would have been their escape. They both lie under the wood that had fallen on them clutching each other’s hooves. And perhaps the most unsettling detail of the sight that lay before Twilight was the fact that both ponies’ mouths were open wide as if screaming in eternal pain.
Twilight could no longer bear the sight in front of her and she lost control of herself. Her mind went blank while her legs carried her away as fast as they could go. Running and screaming, Twilight’s eyes were blurred by the tears that streamed down her face. She didn’t notice or even care where she was running. All she could think about was escaping the terrifying image that was burned into her memory.
After running as far as her body could handle, Twilight finally slowed down until she came to a stop. Her eyes were pouring tears and through the heavy gasps for air, her sobs escaped her burning lungs as soon as they had enough air to push out again. Twilight cried while she stood on shaking legs and eventually her stomach heaved.
She was a terrified mess as she stood alone in the ruined town, sobbing and fighting the urge to collapse. Even though she fought it, all she wanted at that moment was to fall to the ground and never get back up again. Eventually she forced her legs to move forward, but after just a few steps she gave up and fell to the ground.
The sound of Twilight’s crying filled the air and drowned out the noises that surrounded her. She lie alone in the dirt just sobbing and wishing. Wishing that she could be anywhere but there. Wishing that she could regain her memories and forget all the horrible things that she had seen. But more than anything, she wished that she wasn’t so alone.
Her loneliness stung her heart more than it had ever done since she had woken up a while before. She opened her eyes and searched for someone to comfort her. She pleaded for someone to come along and help her. Anyone at all to banish her loneliness and fear. Anyone…
When no one came, Twilight’s despair flared in her heart and she continued crying. She shut her eyes tight and wailed like the pain in her heart was causing her body to ache. She just wanted to give up and lie there, but when she opened her eyes again, she saw something moving.
Twilight watch the area that she thought she had seen the movement but she didn’t make any move herself for she swore that she was only seeing things. But while she was watching, something did indeed move. Under a fallen wall there were a few planks that blocked the way to the space underneath it. It was those planks that began to move.
Twilight quickly lifted her head after seeing the wood move a few times and watched closely for anything to explain why they kept moving. After a few moments the planks began to glow with a pale yellow light. They shifted in position as they moved outward from their original positions. Finally, they broke free of the grip that the wall had on them. The wood moved away from the wall and then fell to the ground after the yellow glow disappeared.
Twilight got up to her hooves without taking her eyes away from the fallen wall. She watched with baited breath and renewed hope as something else began moving around under the wall. Finally, a pony emerged from under his former prison. With blood running down over his eye, he did not notice Twilight watching him.
As soon as the other unicorn was free, Twilight began galloping to him at full speed. She ran as fast as her fatigued legs could carry her. When she got close enough to the unicorn, Twilight jumped toward him and threw her forelegs around his neck. Her tears of loneliness where now tears of joy and she was so overcome with excitement that she didn’t even think about how tightly she was hugging the poor pony.
After the initial shock of almost being tackled to the ground, the stallion quickly began to try and calm Twilight down, as well as to try and pry himself loose from her tight grip. Amongst the joyful laughter and the sobbing, she was babbling incoherently and rubbing her face in his neck. After a few more moments of this scene, Twilight finally loosened her hold and pulled back to get a good look at the other pony. As soon as she did, the stallion did the same, but his reaction was not what Twilight was expecting.
As soon as the unicorn got his first look at Twilight, he froze. The look on his face was enough to startle Twilight back into a worried state. He looked like he had just seen his death approach and after a few moments of cold silence, he reacted accordingly.
Confused by his reaction, Twilight reached out her hoof and began to speak. But before she could reach him or utter a single word, the unicorn began screaming in terror. The sudden outburst startled Twilight and she nearly jumped out of her skin. She stumbled backward and tripped over a board that was just behind her.
Then, the unicorn’s horn lit up and a smoldering wooden beam flew up from the nearby fire and landed just inches in front of Twilight. The force of the beam hitting the ground sent sparks flying into the air. Twilight reacted by shielding her face from the hot shower of embers with her wings and stumbling away from the danger. She shrieked when the heat stung her wings and unprotected body and when she had managed to get to her hooves, she ran away from the fire.
Once she was safe, Twilight stopped and lowered her wings to examine herself for injuries. There wasn’t anything serious but her skin stung where the embers had burned her. Seconds later she remembered the other pony and began scanning the area for his location. But he was nowhere to be found.
After her fruitless search, Twilight found herself all alone again. But despite her sadness, Twilight began to think about what had just transpired. The pony seemed terrified of her. The look in his eyes made her skin crawl. But the worst of it all for her was the fact that she didn’t know why. Why would he be afraid of her?
As Twilight thought about it, she began to remember something else. She remembered seeing ponies running and screaming. They looked just as afraid as the pony from earlier did. There was fire and smoke and destruction all around. Finally, there was something that brushed her hoof. When she looked down, there was a pony lying on the ground near her, but she wasn’t moving and she…
The last part of the memory made Twilight gasp and her eyes shot wide open. The startling image in her memory had forced her out of the deep thought that she had just been in. Though she didn’t want to see any more of the horrible things that were happening inside her head, Twilight felt a little disappointed that more of her own memories hadn’t returned.
She sighed and tilted her head back to look at the sky. Though the air was still clouded and filthy, she did notice that she was now very close to the large shape that she had been trying to get to. Twilight could now make out details of the large structure that she couldn’t before. It seemed to be some kind of large tree with a building nestled into its large branches. It almost looked like a castle.
Twilight decided to resume her journey to the tree castle and she hoped that the key to her memories would be there. She was now more determined than ever to discover who she was and what had happened to the town she was in. But with every step towards her destination, a strong sense of dread grew in the back of her mind.
After a short walk, Twilight began to see the shape more clearly. As the distance between herself and the shape grew smaller, Twilight could see more details in the structure. The color and the texture made it look like it was made of crystal. The castle that sat in the crystal tree’s branches made Twilight wonder about who had built it or where it had come from.
Twilight kept walking until she was standing at the steps of the castle's entrance. She examined the large doors that stood tall in front of her. They were closed and most likely locked. Twilight stepped up the stairs and tested the doors only to discover that they were indeed locked.
Twilight took a step back and looked up at the large castle that stood before her. All the while, the feeling in the back of her mind only grew stronger and stronger. She couldn’t ignore it but she pushed the feeling away while she tried to focus on her task. Twilight tried to recall something about her past. She thought hard about anything that would help her until finally something began to spark.
The hint of a memory nagged Twilight’s mind. Short bursts of scenes entered her mind but each one was too small for her to gather much information from. But there was something that stuck. Twilight focused in on the memory of someone shouting.
They said, “Twilight, Stop! Don’t do this! It’s us! Snap out of it!”
Twilight tried to interpret what the memory meant. Just then however, something behind her spoke with a voice that would have terrified a dragon.
“Hello there!”
The voice made Twilight jump and caused her blood to freeze in her veins. Her heart began to pound in her chest and the feeling of dread from before was now screaming at her, ordering her to run away. But all Twilight could do was turn to face whoever stood behind her.
Twilight moved her body around to face the owner of the voice, but she went stiff when she saw who was standing there. Just a few hoof steps away was the last thing that Twilight ever expected to see. The pony that stood there with an unsettling grin was Twilight Sparkle. The real Twilight Sparkle.
With the other pony in view Twilight’s mind was suddenly flooded with memories.
~
She remembered coming into Ponyville. Not long after her arrival, ponies began screaming and running. There were explosions and fires and smoke. She decided to discover what was happening and went to investigate the commotion.
When she arrived at the source of the noises, she found five ponies facing down a purple alicorn with a crazed look on her face. The other ponies looked concerned and one said, “Twilight, Stop! Don’t do this! It’s us! Snap out of it!”
Then the alicorn laughed maniacally and with tears in her eyes, she unleashed a blast of energy from her horn at the five ponies that stood against her. She stood in the wake of her actions and laughed with a voice that sounded like it belonged to a heartbroken pony. Twilight then turned her attention to the witness of her deeds and bolted towards her.
The pony stumbled away and in a desperate attempt to save herself, she activated her own power. Her body evaporated away to reveal that she was, in fact, a changeling. Next, she transformed her image to whatever came to mind, but all she could think about was Twilight and escaping her wrath.
Just as the changeling transformed, Twilight unleashed a beam of energy at her. The beam hit the ground just behind the changeling and exploded. The force from the blast launched the changeling Twilight into a nearby building which was already half destroyed. The changeling Twilight slammed into a wall and fell to the ground, unconscious.
~
The changeling’s memories where now back. Everything that she had been searching for now filled her head and her task was now complete. But there was no time to celebrate. Now was the time to run.
The changeling did not scream because she could not force herself to make a sound. All coherent thought was lost. Nothing went through her mind except fear. The changeling’s disguise evaporated and her true form was revealed.
Just then, Twilight sparkle said in a voice like she was possessed, “Oh, now I get it. You’re an imposter. Have you come to see my power? Have you come to play?”
The changeling’s heart was racing and her mind was blank except for the thought ‘RUN!’ She turned away from Twilight and moved her legs as fast as they could go. She flapped her wings in a desperate attempt to fly, but she couldn’t move them in the way she wanted them to.
There was no place to hide. There was no one to help her and there was no escaping what was coming. Behind her a noise came like something was charging up followed by a deep rumbling noise as a beam of pure destructive energy cut through the air. The powerful beam that erupted from Twilight’s horn chased after the changeling for a second before catching and consuming her.
Nothing was left in the wake of the blast. Twilight looked on for a moment before turning her head to observe what had happened to Ponyville. A wicked grin grew across her face and with tear filled eyes, it laughed.