//------------------------------//
// Chapter 10-Welcome To My World 
// Story: Emerald Fires 
// by FolkloreBrony 
//------------------------------//

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Chapter 10-Welcome To My World
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“Alright, try to walk towards me,” Novis called from the other side of the garden, motioning with his hoof for the kirin to step forwards.

Spike, who had been standing somewhat awkwardly, acknowledged Novis's order and slowly began to attempt this task. However, it wasn't as easy as it sounded. For the past week, Novis had spent every hour teaching Spike how to take control of his new body, but there were still some areas that needed to be worked out. His horn had grown almost to its full length, though it was crocked in appearance, growing outwards towards his mussel and then curving upwards. Now for the past three days, Novis had been instructing him on the basics of magic-wielding. He had made some progress, though if you didn't consider the ability to lift a stone block five inches off the ground a triumph, then it really wasn't much. But Novis didn't seem too concerned about this, realizing that learning the simple function of moving from one place to another was of more importance to Spike than levitation.

However, it wasn't going so well. Spike wasn't foreign to walking on all fours, he had done plenty of that as a dragon. But this was different. His limbs were formed differently now, to the point that he didn't know how he was supposed to move his legs in unison with the others. Spike took one step forwards, mindful where he was placing his hoof, then took another step with the same watchful care. But on the third step, his hoof pressed on a patch of uneven ground, making him wobble and unbalanced, until he fell forwards, slamming flat faced into the dirt.

“Agh, that didn't work.” Spike groaned, moving his jaw around to rid himself of the soreness in his mouth.

Novis shook his head in disappointment, “You would find yourself spending less time in the dirt if you would focus on ME instead of where you place your steps. If you would allow your body to do what feels natural to it, then you'd find yourself in success.”

“Yeah, easier said than done.” Spike grumbled.

“More than you know. Your mind already knows what needs to be done, you're just overthinking it. Walking is a basic instinct, Spike. As is breathing, eating, sex. Their all the same. What YOU need to do is focus on a goal, not the task. Only then will you succeed.”

Spike looked at him, “And how do I do that?” he asked.

“Focus on me,” Novis stood upright, “look not on the wayside, onto the left nor unto the right. Focus on me and me alone, and simply do.”

Spike let out a sigh and stood up, careful not to fall over again. Then he locked his eyes on the stallion. It was hard for him to do, he wasn't even sure weather or not he was going to make it, but he kept his focus on Novis, just as he had instructed. One step became two, two became four, four became ten, and slowly, he crossed the distance, falling to his knees right in front of his teacher.

“Good. Good! You see? What matters is that you keep your focus.” Novis smiled, lowering his head down to Spike's level of vision.

“Well, I'm just glad I won't be COMPLETELY helpless, otherwise I don't think I'd want to get out of bed.” Spike then turned his head aside, “Does this...end our lesson for today?”

“Not quite. There's still one thing I want to test.” Novis said, silently casting a spell, creating a small orb of light the size of a marble to appear behind Spike, “Just a little something involving your biology.”

“Oh? What's that?” Spike asked innocently, completely oblivious to the light behind him.

“This,” Novis answered. Just then, the orb cracked into a bolt of lightning that lashed out and struck Spike in the flank, jolting him upwards as he cried aloud. Just as Novis expected, the skin around Spike's neck began to ripple with a molten glow, appearing as little rivers of light. Novis ducked as quickly as possible, just as the kirin belched up a stream of green flames that rocketed above Novis's head, heating the stone wall behind him.

“W-What the HEY, man!?” Spike yelled, coughing and hacking to recover from the unexpected discharge, feeling quite angry, until his eyes widened upon realization of what he had just done, “Hey cool! I can still do that!”

“I suspected that you would have retained that ability. Most kirins do, but I needed to be sure.” A mischievous grin grew upon his face, “I know I could have asked for you to try, but I've been in the need of some good humor.”

“Well please, try to restrain yourself next time,” Spike said seriously, though he could feel himself giggling and laughing in the moment.

“Novis?”

Both Stallions looked up. From the castle echoed his name calling down to them, filling the garden with the voice of Twilight Sparkle.

“Oh no.” Novis shrunk back, looking around for a direction that he could retreat into. Spike took notice of the tension that was unsettling him, though confused by the reasons, “Hey, what's wrong with you?” he asked.

“Twilight has been following me around for the past few days. She won't leave me alone!” he darted behind the fountain to hide from the castle's view, “She's tried to hide her thoughts from me, but she hasn't trained herself for that, so I can see past the disguise she's made. I know what she would have me to say for her questioning, but I will have no part of it!”

“About what? Do you mean what happened in your past? Why don't you just tell her to get her off you back?” Spike asked, walking over to face him.

“I DON'T want to talk about it, not with her! Can't we just leave it at that?!” Novis spat, listening for Twilight's approach, “ Besides, your training will be over in a few days, and just as she promised, I may leave after that. All I have to do is avoid her until then.”

“Do you really think that she's going to let you leave without answering her question? Don't get me wrong, I don't doubt her honesty. But it pails in comparison with her curiosity.” Spike pointed out, helping to raise Novis's blood pressure.

“She wouldn't dare.”

“I think she would,” Spike reaffirmed his opinion, “And the sad part is that she's not going to do it because she doesn't like you. She just has a bad habit of letting his curiosity to get the better of her.”

“Novis? Spike? Where are you?” her voice came calling again, now much closer than it had been before. Novis wasn't looking happy, this Spike could see, like a caged animal gnawing at the bars. Novis turned his head to the side with a deep frown on his face, apparently in deep thought. Seeming to have come to a conclusion, Novis began to walk away, heading into the garden's exit to Sweet Apple Aches.

“Wait, Novis! Where are you going?” Spike yelled, trying to follow after him.

“Leaving.” was all he said, as he made his way out onto the path.

“WHAT?! You can't! Twilight's going to be furious when she finds out!” Spike began to panic, but his words fell on deaf ears. Spike grimmest. Twilight wasn't going to like this. She was going to have a fit as soon as she found out, and he'd be caught on the front lines. He could hear hoofsteps approaching, which meant that she had just entered the botanical hall leading to the garden, triggering him to figit. He began to look for his own means of escape, but there was none. He was trapped, and knowing it, he started to practice his teleportation skill with vain hope.

“Spike!”

Spike jumped at the sound of her voice behind him, falling over and slamming his jaw into the ground again.

“Spike, what are you doing?” Twilight asked, her suspicions beginning at his sudden quirkiness.

“Oh, ah...just, practicing with magic and stuff,” he said through the sweat and the pain in his jaw.

“Shouldn't you be doing that with Novis?” she asked him, looking around the garden for the stallion, “Where is he, anyway?”

“Oh' he...ah, I don't know where he is.” he lied, rather obvious.

Twilight narrowed her eyes, “Why are you lying to me, Spike? Where is he?”

Spike bit his lip, “Oh, why do you wanna know where he is? I mean, It's a beautiful day! You've been really tense lately, I think you should really get out and sock up some sun. What do yo-”

“Oh, for Celestia's sake, Spike! Now you're avoiding the question!” Twilight snorted, “If you don't tell me where he is, so help me-!”

“Okay, okay! He left, alright?!” Spike shouted, preparing himself for what would come next.

Twilight stood unusually silent. Spike was ready for her to begin yelling up a storm, but she remained quiet and at rest. This made him even more nervous. She was just staring blankly at him, not saying a single word as the air slowly entered, and exited her nostrils. He looked at her anxiously, gulping before he mustered enough courage to speak up again.

“Ah, Twilight? Are you going to be okay?”

“Where. Is. He?” she said slowly, leaving a space between every word, each filled with the hidden anger that was boiling deep inside her.

“He...he's headed towards Applejack's place. I think he's gonna take the road from there and head for Hoofington. I mean, I've heard him talking about it before, so it's just a guess.”

Twilight immediately directed herself to the pave-way and left, going after the unsuspecting stallion to give him what Spike could only guess would be nothing short of hell. One thing crossed his mind, as he wondered how this day, already running with a bad start, could possibly get any worse.

He couldn't have known that it would get worse, a LOT worse.
////
Novis hurried along his way to the orchards. He couldn't believe that he had wasted his time here in the first place! He had no obligations to them, and he certainly didn't owe them any favors. They DARE to lie to him? Cheat him? Well, to hell with them, he didn't care. He was leaving, and he was never coming back.

But now he was going to have to decide where he was going to go. He had gone over many maps provided by Twilight, and to be honest, Equestria was a big place to live. Manehatten, Cloudsdale, Fillydelphia, and Boltamare were all possibilities, but he decided that perhaps the cities weren't the best of choices, due to that they were notorious for drawing too much attention to one's self. But there were other places to go; small towns, the countryside, and the nations surrounding provided destination points for him to choose from. Equestria was neighbored by cultures both exotic and beautiful; Zafrica, Saddle Arabia, the Crystal Empire, and many others were examples of what awaited him. The Griffin Empire was also among them, but he would not go there. The wounds, both physical and emotional, ran deep, all too fresh in his mind for him to face them and not feel disgusted. But he felt that he wanted to stay within the boarders of Equestria for the time being. He thought of the small towns spread across the country, from Apploosa to Nayshville, and Hoofington...

He paused.

He didn't know why, but ever since he had heard that name, Hoofington had stuck in his mind like chewing gum to the bottom of a shoe. It was almost as if something was drawing him to dwell on that place, as if it held some importance. He didn't know what to think about it, but still, it persisted to distract his mind. Perhaps, Hoofington might provide some comfort to his troubles, he didn't know. It would be a long journey. Hoofington laid on the opposite side of the Everfree forest, which was a two-hundred-mile distance. Yet he felt compelled that this was the place to go. The place he should go. The place he would go.

That was what he would do. A path through the forest would be the best, though not as convinent as the long road through the mountains. But that didn't matter, because this was what he felt was what he needed-

“SURPRISE!”

Novis was jolted out of his skin by the sudden outburst from behind, falling over himself and onto his back. He immediately turned, only to have his vision absorbed by the blazon blue of Pinkie's eyes.

“HI!” she obnoxiously shouted, her mussel a mere inch from his, making him jump back with a scare.

“Oh, sorry! Didn't mean to scare you!” she giggled, offering him her hoof.

“Pinkie Pie! I thought I told you not to do that!” Novis screamed, angry that she had jumped him, again.

“Sorry! I just heard that you were leaving town, so I wanted to surprise you with a cupcake!” she smiled, holding up a vanilla cupcake with a double blue-icing swirl that matched up perfectly with Novis's mane and coat.

“What?! How did you...?” Novis was stunned, “Did Spike tell you about this?”

“No, I just have my ways. I haven't even seen Spike for weeks!” Pinkie's eyes then lit up as something popped into her head, “OH! I was wondering! I was going to throw Spike a party, but I don't know what cake to make for him. I was GOING to make it a sapphire, but he's a pony now, so I'm worried that it would break his teeth. But he was a DRAGON! Wouldn't he still be able to eat them? I don't know, what do you think?”

Novis just stared at her even more confused than he had been before. Out of all the friends of Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie was the most...odd. Of course, he supposed it made since. After all, she WAS the element of laughter. He figured that a pony would have to have at least one screw loose in order to handle that element, if only to live up to it's founder. “Yeeees, I suppose that's a problem needing to be answered. I would say that sapphire is fine. His body will allow him to consume semi-hard minerals. But diamonds and turquoise stones are out of the question. That is of course unless you find a pony with a bloody mouth and broken teeth humorous.”

“Hahaha of course not silly. So, are you going to come to the party?” she bounced happily.

“No. I've had enough of this town.” he grumbled, making his way on the road, “Besides, I'd prefer a cold cranberry Cheri to a slice of 'Birthday Cake'.”

“Awww. Come on! You've just never have had a party Pinkie style! You don't know what you're missing!”

Pinkie began to follow after him, but was suddenly picked up by a wave of magic that lifted her off the ground and flipped her upside down in the air. Pinkie became a little afraid as Novis turned back, staring directly at her with cold, impatient eyes.

“Now I'm going to say this once, and one time only. And I want to get it across, so I will say it slowly. LEAVE. ME. ALONE.” he spat, before throwing her up in the air and tossing her like a football several yards behind him in the direction of the road that he had come from.

“Novis!” came an all too familiar voice. Novis shot around, just as Pinkie was caught in the air by a magenta aurora right before she could hit the ground, which undoubtedly would have hurt her. Pinkie was laid on the grass to the side, and walking up behind her, came an infuriated Twilight Sparkle.

“What the HELL do you think you're doing?!” she shouted, stepping beside the pink pony to help her up, “You could have hurt her, for Luna's sake!”

“Well, maybe now she'll learn to leave certain ponies to themselves,” he said with a sneer, backing away from the both of them.

“Excuse me, where do you think YOU'RE going?” she said with a bite in her tone equal to that being used by the large pony in front of her.

“Leaving this place. If you really think that I'm going to stay here to be badgered by your constant inquisitive behavior, then you really are a deluded fool,” he said, putting a little extra grit into his words.

“Have you lost your mind? I just wanted you to help Spike adapt to his new form. Why are you always so defensive when I'm around?” she asked.

“I'm defensive because you won't leave me alone!” he hissed, narrowing his eyes on the mare as he mocked her voice, talking effeminately, “Oh Novis! What happened to make you turn to stone? Why are you so cranky? Why are you so mean? Why, why, why, why, WHY! Don't think I don't know what you're doing.”

“But I don't...what are you saying?”

Novis growled, “You have been playing the pupil, hoping to win my opinion of you, all so that you might get the chance to have me reveal what happened to my home, nine-thousand years ago.”

“Well, I would like to know that, but I didn't mean to bother.” Twilight admitted rather timidly.

“Then why don't you just go away?” he questioned.

“Because I need to know! What happened to your world could happen to ours, and knowing exactly what happened could help us to prevent that from happening again,” she stated, showing the fear that dominated her very being, the curiosity that he had previously thought had motivated her actions cast away.

“You won't let this go, will you?” he asked. Seeing her shake her head, Novis only growled. Ignorant fool, he thought to himself. She would not want him speaking of it if she only knew. His temper had been bowling up to this point, but her persistence, her need, her unwillingness to back down, it pushed him over the edge. Novis suddenly turned and opened his wings, puffing them out wildly as he stared at her angrily, earning a squeak from the mare as she fell back. Twilight stumbled back towards Pinkie, holding onto her as the alicorn stared madly at them, taking a step forward, his horn blazing.

"You want to know what happened?!" he gritted his teeth as arches of lightning crackled across his body, his focus locked on powering the spell, "Then I'll show you!"

The blinded them as his spell exploded, sending shockwaves through their bodies as they were thrown back, feeling the world around them being torn away. Hot, heavy wind blew across both their faces as their surrounded were replaced, whipping passed them before they lost all strength, falling forward unto hard earth. Pinkie and Twilight coughed, inhaling an abnormally large amount of dust, regaining their senses as they rose to their hooves.

The two looked at each other to reassure themselves that they were alright, only to look forward as their breath was taken from them. Ponyville was gone, the world covered in an eerie red and orange hew. The sky above was overcast and harsh, clouds circling a sun that cast an unnatural dull light upon a blackened landscape. Mountains smoked and bellowed, releasing a choking gas that had killed off so much green off of the earth's surface, mangled husks of dying trees and broken homes rising from the ground like dark monoliths.

"What is this?" Twilight breathed the words, unable to process this strange and horrible world that she was witnessing.

"Home."

Both mares turned with a snap, staring at Novis he looked around sadly, the stallion for the first time since meeting them looking overwhelmed. They were about to ask if he was alright before a group of ponies suddenly rushed through him like he wasn't even there, phantoms of a small young family that rushed forward in uncontrollable fear. Twilight and Pinkie stepped backward as the ran towards them, only to gasp as they passed right through their bodies just as they had Novis.

Twilight and Pinkie watched as the family made their escape when suddenly a rumble came from the distant mountains, fire and brimstone rising from one of its summits before a wild angry ball of fire was launched from the inferno, rocketing upward to the sky as it arched and began to fall, whistling madly as it barreled right towards them. Instinctively the girls ran back behind a rock watching as the family of ponies froze in fear, screaming as the fireball crashed in front of them, the licks of flame dancing wildly. Twilight, however, noticed something off about the fire as it spun, her eyes widening as they formed into a dark silhouette of a pony, staring down unto the group who coward under its gaze. Pinkie rose up beside her, worry etched unto her face for the ponies as the fiery stallion stared coldly, their hearts stopping as the fire around him lurched forward, watching the terror etched upon the faces of the ponies as the mare, assumedly the mother, clutched her children as it consumed the group in a single moment.

Both mares visibly shook as the realization of what had happened came over them, both quickly falling back behind the rock as they stared at Novis. The stallion was in a daze, caught in deep thought as he mumbled, not even paying attention. Then a smell began to creep forward into their nostrils, feeling them with a dark smokey scent. Both looked at each other, confused by the change in the air, but after a moment, it became all to clear to them what it was, a sense of revulsion overwhelming them.

"No more," Twilight's voice shook, begging as he just stared off into space, captivated by all that surrounded him. Twilight worked up the courage to speak louder, screaming at him with the all the might in her voice, "I said no more, Novis! Please stop!"

Novis snapped out of his trance as he looked at them, staring forward as his horn glowed again. The world around them shifted once more, though this time the change wasn't as violent as they stood in silence, the road leaving Ponyville returning to view bring back all the color with it. This did little to comfort the two as they looked at him in terror, unable to comprehend what they had seen.

"What...what was that?" Twilight spoke, her words shaking in her throat.

Novis remained silent for a few moments, forcing the emotions he was feeling to the back of his mind so that he could say what needed to be known, “I was made for one purpose, and that was to protect the peoples of this world.”

“I was not alone in this,” he continued, “my brothers and I used our powers to bring peace and harmony to the world, and it was beautiful!” Novis paused, looking at Twilight, "But we failed."

“Our powers are too great for one being to wield them. When given, the pureness of magic tore our souls into two separate beings, one good, whereas the other is evil. Therefore, to ensure that this evil wouldn't corrupt the good, a balance was needed. A guardian angel, a companion to share in trail and peace. It was thus that the Malor were given to us to love and cherish beyond all other treasure. But we were at war.”

Novis scowled, thinking back to an unpleasant memory, “The griffins, who were once our allies, betrayed us. They made slaves out of the ponies living in their realm, and we would not sit ideally as our own kin were made to suffer. We fought against each other for thousands of years, until peace was once again made. But not all were satisfied.”

The expression on Novis' face saddened, showing Twilight for the first time the sorrow waning on his heart, “Volmar, my brother, found his wife dead in his own house. They killed her, they butchered her, because they thought that the Malor were the source of our power, and if killed, we would become weak.”

Twilight tensed, beginning to understand, “But, that's not what happened, was it?”

“No. Instead, it created that thing you saw.” Novis' face darkened even further, tears beginning to well up in his eyes, “It's ironic. The one whose duty was to preserve life, was the one who destroyed it. And yet somehow what bothers me most, was that I should have been able to stop it, but I couldn't.”

“I couldn't save them.”

Pinkie was quick to come to his side, hoping to bring a smile to his face, “You know, you shouldn't be so hard on yourself! When Princess Luna became Nightmare Moon, Princess Celestia felt really bad because she hadn't done anything to stop it, and that made her really sad. But everything turned out okay in the end, even if it did take a thousand years fort it to happen. I mean we're here, so-”

“So what do YOU know about it?!” Novis shouted suddenly in a rage, making Pinkie wonder what she had said wrong.

“Well, I...I don't-”

“No, you DON'T KNOW!” the stallion growled angrily, “You think you can compare your Princesses to me and Volmar? To HIM?! I've seen the records. I've heard the tales! She was NOTHING like him! Did your Nightmare commit genocide!? Did she turn all that you loved to ash and rot?!”

"Did she burn children alive?"

His countenance began to weaken as tears began to run freely from his eyes, "That was what was left of Fontijzena. Eight billion died, in less than three months.” Novis choked out, “I can't sleep without being haunted by their souls crying out, “Save me!” And what can I do? What can I do?”

The waling of the multitude could be heard on the wind, piercing their ears with the ghostly sound of their voices. They shivered, feeling haunted still by what they had seen.

“The only ponies that survived, were the ones who were the slaves to the Griffins. And that's what you are. I see you before me, and all I can see is a descendant of a cursed people.” Novis shook his head, rubbing a hoof against his eyes, “Are you happy, Twilight? Have the answers satisfied your lust for the truth?”

Twilight stood in silence, unable to formulate a word. The stallion narrowed his eyes, snorting coldly “I certainly hope so.”

The wings on Novis's back suddenly flared opened, showing for the first time how magnificent they were. He gave one mighty flap, propelling him high up in the air, before dead-pinning into the direction of the Everfree forest, leaving the two mares to stand and gaze at his departure, thinking of all that they had heard and seen.

“That...wasn't so happy.” Pinkie said, feeling sadness for the colt as a tear rolled down her cheek.

Twilight remained silent. She had just driven Novis to reveal a horrible part of his life to her, and she had been completely insensitive of how he might have felt about discussing it, and this made her feel terrible.

Could this day get any worse?
////
“Oh, please come down, Angel,” Fluttershy asked timidly looking up at the bunny, who simply shook his head around in rebellion. Angel had gone on a tantrum and had climb up into a nook in one of the overhangs of the house, and was now camping out in there. It was still a mystery to Fluttershy as to how he had been able to get up in there in the first place.

“Oh come on Angel.” she pleaded, giving him the saddest eyes she could muster. She had flown up a few minutes before to try and get him out on her own, but the overhang had been designed to be a nesting place for birds and squirrels, so where as Angel could get himself into the small living hole, Fluttershy couldn't get her hoof into the space.

The bunny looked down at her with a frown, his arms crossed while he tapped his foot on the wood. However, his ears perked up, as if listening to something. He instantly jumped down from the overhang and landed onto Fluttershy's head, looking around before hopping onto the floor.

“Angel, where are you going?” she asked. Angel didn't answer. Instead, he stood up and wiggled his nose in the air, looking around before turning to look at the pegasus with a frightened expression.

Fluttershy looked at the rabbit in confusion, until her attention was drawn to the other animals in her cottage. The many birds that lived in her house were all going crazy, flying about in a frenzy. Squirrels and chipmunks were running around, and the mice were scurrying to exit their homes. Something was upsetting her animals into a chaotic mess, and she was starting to get worried herself.

Thud.

The ground tremored violently underneath Fluttershy's hooves, almost causing her to fall over onto the floor. “What on earth...?” she whispered. Something was moving outside. A shadow was cast about, darkening the windows that had just a few moments before been illuminated by the rays of the sun. She could feel fear beginning to wash over her, but she wanted to see what had entered onto her property.

Slowly, Fluttershy staggered to the front of the house, unsure if weather she would have the courage to turn the knob on the door. But, what if one of the ducks was hurt by the shaking? Or the chickens? Or the rabbits? She couldn't live with herself if one of her poor animals was in pain, and she didn't do anything to help.

This run of the imagination did more than motivate her to turn that knob, opening the door to the world outside, the air hotter than it had ever been before.

What she saw made her scream.

A plum of fire rocketed towards the front of the house at full speed, raging with full intent on destroying the wooden cottage. Fluttershy quickly retreated into her home, slamming the door behind her and running further into the house, just as the flames reached the entrance, impacting with enough force that it was like the paneling had been hit with a large cannonball, exploding inwards as burning boards and shattered glass whistled pasted Fluttershy's ears, knocking her forwards with the force that the shockwave created.

Fluttershy slowly raised herself back up, turning around to view the damage, wincing as pain rushed up into her right leg. The entire front of the cottage had been blown inwards by the blast, and was now burning out of control. But even after almost being blown away herself, all she could think about was the safety of her animals.

“Everyone get out now! You're not safe here anymore! GO!” she shouted with more power in her voice than she had ever had before. She limped her way to the living room, where Angel came running out to her side, trying to help her out.

“Please Angel, no. Get yourself out! I'll be fine on my own.” She tried to reassure the bunny, but he wasn't budging.

“Angel, don't make me-”

Fluttershy was cut off by a loud thrash in the air outside, before the tail of a massive creature smashed down into the roof, slamming at an angle and thrusting through the ceiling into the kitchen just a few yards away. No longer standing with the support it once had, the ceiling above the creaked and cracked, until the weight finally collapsed downwards, falling on top of the pegasus with the sound of wood being torn in two.

The world around her was ringing. Fluttershy tried to move, only to gasp out in pain. A beam had fallen across her body, trapping her underneath its immense weight. But there was something else, something she could feel on her chest, and around it, something wet. Was it water?

She soon began to care less as a kind of lassitude suddenly washed over her. Her world was becoming slow, almost like a dream. She suddenly didn't care that her house was burning, because everything was becoming peaceful and focused. It was beautiful. So, so beautiful.

And then her world was darkness.

Nothing.
////