Through the Hourglass

by ObeySaturnGod

Chp 1: A Strange Old Land

Twilight awoke with a start. For a brief second, she was unsure what had happened to her, but as she came to, she remembered the flash from the hourglass that had struck her. She would have to pay Celestia a visit once this was all over and have a nice little chat concerning the importance of warning ponies about a time machine that shot lighting at the travelers. She got to her hooves and gained her bearings. She was in a small clearing at the edge of a forest, and a thin stream bubbled a few yards in front of her. She seemed to be on the top of a small mound of land, and the entire scene struck her as strangely familiar. She also noticed with a pang of worry the lack of a certain orange coated cowpony.

She had no idea where she was or what Discord could have done to the past. The only thing she knew for certain was that Applejack wasn’t here, and without her, Twilight had lost the only familiar thing in this new world. A multitude of explanations for Applejack’s disappearance ran through her mind, each one grimmer than the last. She was so caught up by it that she didn’t notice the stomping of hooves or the shouting until an extremely dark blue stallion with a lighter blue mane crashed through the forest and into the clearing, pursued by three other stallions in strange armor that vaguely resembled the royal guards of Canterlot. Twilight stood back, watching the odd spectacle. The guards were quickly gaining on the lone stallion, and with an amazing jump, the lead guard tackled the offender to the hard ground. Twilight was content to watch the scene play out without her interaction, but the feeling was not mutual for the guards. The two not busy with the prisoner started to march towards her. She was put off slightly by this, but she had always trusted the law, so she saw no reason to regard this as anything but a simple explanation about the prisoner.

This was not a simple explanation; rather, it was an attack. Twilight had the quick reflexes to jump out of the way of the guard who tried to tackle her. “Hey, what did I do?” The guard didn’t respond, preferring instead to rush her, trying to get her down on the ground. Twilight held him back with her magic as she desperately questioned him. “Why are you attacking me!? I haven’t done anything wrong!”

“Every unicorn is to be captured upon sight on the orders of Judge Fairweather.” The talkative guard behind her took a swing at her head, but he had given up the element of surprise and Twilight was ready for him. She ducked and juked out of the way, putting distance between herself and the two.

“I don’t want to hurt you, but if you don’t stop, I’ll be forced to defend myself!” The guards looked at each other and laughed, obviously not impressed with her defiance. “You asked for it…” The two split up, trying to surround her as best as two ponies could. They slowly made their way into position until they were on each side of her, and both charged. “This again?” Twilight stood her ground, looking back and forth between the two rapidly approaching guards. She waited until the last possible moment, and teleported out of the way. There was a sickening crack as she reappeared a few feet in front of where she had just been, and in her place were the guards. They had smashed together in a head on collision and knocked each other out. She stifled a small laugh at the sight and was promptly bashed upside the head by a large stick. She was unconscious before she hit the ground. The third guard spat the stick out of his mouth and stood over the pony he had snuck up on, a conceit grin on his face. He walked over to his two underlings and smacked them around until they woke up, still in a daze. They sheepishly got to their hooves and picked up both Twilight and the other pony, following their leader to the small village in the nearby valley.

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Applejack felt a poke. “Just a few more minutes, granny.” She mumbled and scooted away from the offending hoof. Another poke. “Alright, alright, hold yer horses, Ah’m getting’ up.” She raised her eyelids to find two huge, lime green eyes staring back at her. She gave a surprised yelp and jumped to her hooves as the filly imitated her. Applejack took a quick look around and found herself inside a shoddily constructed straw cottage. She appeared to be in a bedroom, though the only thing that could’ve passed for a bed was the pile of hay off in one corner of the room. A small hole that passed as a window was set in the middle of the wall, and by the glare of the sun, it looked to be around dusk. There didn’t seem to be a floor to the house, only ground where the floor should have been. There wasn’t much in the way of personal items besides a primitive dresser and a few toys scattered around. On top of the dresser was Applejack’s hat. “Hey, y’all shoulda left mah hat alone,” She reprimanded the unicorn filly as she trotted over and put it back on its rightful place.

“I was just taking care of it for you is all. I wasn’t gonna steal it.” The dark green filly with the golden mane and tail was putting on her best pouting face, a face that reminded Applejack all too well of Applebloom.

“Oh, Ah can’t stay mad at you. What’s yer name, little filly?”

“Clover!”

“Nice to meet ya, Clover. Ah’m Applejack.”

“Applejack, huh? That’s a nice name. What’s with your accent? Are you not from around here?”

Applejack adjusted her hat. “Ah guess you could say that. Ah’m here to stop a mean fellow named Discord.”

Clover looked at her curiously. “I’ve never heard of a Discord before. Is that some kind of animal?”

“Uh, yeah. It’s a bunch a different animals, actually. And it’s caused all sorts a chaos that me an’ my friend are tryin’ to stop. Ah don’ really understand all of it, but mah friend Twilight could tell you all about it.” She smiled at the filly before realizing that Clover couldn’t ask Twilight about it because, as far as Applejack knew, Twilight wasn’t there. “Hey, speakin’ of Twilight, have ya seen her? She’s a purple unicorn, quiet, bookish type. Sound familiar?” Applejack was hoping for at least a hint, but the look of fear Clover had was the last thing she wanted to see.

“She’s a unicorn? That’s bad. I hope she didn’t go into the village.”

“What do ya mean it’s bad that she’s a unicorn? You’re a unicorn, and you don’t seem all that troubled.” As the words left her mouth, she took a look around the bare room, and wondered if that was really the case.

“If the guards catch her, she’ll be put on trial, and no pony has ever been spared Judge Fairweather’s guilty verdict.” She mentioned the judge’s name like it was taboo, afraid to even utter its name.

Applejack was now fretting considerably as she continued questioning Clover. “Are ya sure you’re not confused? There’s no way that could be possible, judges are supposed to be fair to everypony. How could there never be an innocent verdict?”

Clover pawed at the ground, avoiding Applejack’s eyes. “It’s always been like this. Ponies who don’t obey the rules get a trial, are convicted, and are never seen again. It’s especially bad for unicorns, though. The judge has never let us live inside the village, and yesterday he decreed that all unicorns should be rounded up and thrown in the dungeon.”

“But you’re a unicorn! How come you haven’ been rounded up?”

“My dad and I aren’t living in the village, we’re living in this house.” Clover motioned her hoof around the room. “No pony knows we’re living here, and we grow our own food, so we get by.”

“Your dad’s here? Can Ah meet him?”

“Sure. He’s outside, working the crops.”

“Thanks, sugarcube.” Applejack saw that there wasn’t a door in the room, only an empty space where a door should have gone. She made her way through it, finding herself in the only other room of the house. It was nearly as bare as Clover’s room had been, the only striking feature being a small table with two chairs. There was more hay scattered about, and three windows on differing walls let what remained of the afternoon sun into the empty house. She saw a rudimentary thatched door next to one of the windows and pushed her way past it, emerging to find a forest surrounding the house on three sides, the fourth side showing a narrow path. Applejack made her way over to the path and realized that the house was situated on a large hill. There was a similar hill that rose up in the distance, though it wasn’t quite as big as the one she was on. She gazed down on a small, clear cut area of land that was surrounded by trees, rows of vegetables springing up in the area that was available. She was struck by déjà vu as she observed the landscape, certain that she had seen it before. There was a pony near the end of the field tending to the produce. Applejack made her way down the dirt towards the pony, and as she got closer, she could see that he was a large, dark brown earth pony, his dirty blonde mane hidden by the straw hat he was wearing. A picture of a cabbage was set on his flank. He saw Applejack approaching and stopped what he was doing, waving her over. Applejack quickened her pace, and the pony called out to her.

“Hoy, there! I see you’re finally awake.” He spoke with a firm yet gentle tone, one that put Applejack at ease. “I found you sleeping in the fields and brought you up to the house. If you were looking for a bed, all you had to do was ask.”

“Hehe, Ah wasn’ lookin’ for a place to lie down, but thank ya kindly for the offer.” She tipped her hat as a sign of respect, and he returned the gesture. “Mind if Ah ask your name?”

“Harvester at your service, ma’am. And you?”

“Applejack.”

“Pleasure to formally meet you, Applejack.” They shook hooves and he went back to his chores, picking up a sickle between his teeth. “What brings you out to this neck of the woods?”

“Long story short, there’s some bad apples round here, an’ Ah’m here to put a stop to ‘em.”

Harvester suddenly dropped the sickle and rushed up to Applejack, speaking in a much harsher tone than he had before. “Don’t you even joke about that! There’s already been too many ponies with those kinds of dreams, and they all end up the same, sitting trial with that damn judge playing with their lives like some kind of sick god!” His brown face had turned nearly beet red, and Applejack was backing up, terrified by the sudden change of character. “If you try anything against that judge, you’re only gonna get yourself caught, or worse.” He picked up the sickle and went back to work.

Applejack was stunned by how drastic Harvester had changed, and she barely got out her next sentence, frightened that he might go off again. “All… all right, Ah won’t try anything…” He grunted, but whether it was approving or not she couldn’t tell. “Why, uh, why are you and your daughter living out here by yourselves?”

Harvester answered without looking at her. “This whole thing is the judge’s fault. I couldn’t let him get his hooves on Clover.” He viciously struck at the weeds between the vegetables, probably harder than necessary. “Ever since he gained power, unicorns have suffered. They’re treated like second class citizens. ‘Course, they wouldn’t just sit down and take it. The ones who couldn’t be pressed under his hoof were caught, tried, and then who knows what happened to them. I made the decision to move out here with Clover to protect her, to let her have the chance at a semi normal life.” He heaved a heavy sigh. “With the decree yesterday, all unicorns are being rounded up to be sent to the dungeons. Honestly, I’m surprised it took this long for Fairweather to make his move.” He seemed to have calmed down, and he looked Applejack in the eyes. “Now do you see why it’s a bad idea to go after him? He’s untouchable. He has the power to make anyone disappear, to make it as though you never existed.”

Applejack couldn’t muster a coherent response as she tried to comprehend what he had just told her. “Ah… Ah didn’ know it was like that…”

Another sigh. “No, I’m sorry. There’s no way you could’ve known about him. Please, just promise me that you’ll stay away from him.”

“Ah Pinkie promise.”

“Pinkie what?”

“Oh, don’ worry about it. Just somethin’ mah friend made up.”

“Right.” He looked up at the setting sun. “It’s about time I get back to the house. You know, if you don’t have anywhere to sleep tonight, I’m sure I could get out some hay for you.”

Applejack smiled at him. “Ah’d like that.”

“Then let’s get going.” She nodded and followed him back up the path to the small cottage, where Clover was playing with a doll near the door. She caught sight of her father and bounded towards him, throwing herself into an encompassing hug which Harvester returned.

“Dad, did you meet Applejack?”

“Yep. She’s gonna be joining us for dinner tonight.”

“Really?” She let her father go and looked up at Applejack, who had been standing back, letting the two share the moment together.

“Yep.”

“Awesome!” Clover started to jump around the two in unabashed excitement, once again reminded Applejack of her younger sister.

Harvester tried his best to calm her down. “All right, don’t suffocate the poor girl. Go on and get ready for dinner.” Clover obeyed her father, heading to the house. “Don’t mind her, she just gets a little excited when there’s company. It usually builds up too, since we rarely get anyone up here.” He and Applejack had walked to the back of the house to find three bales of hay set against the wall. Harvester pulled the first out of the way and Applejack helped him with the other two. The bales had been hiding a cellar door. He opened it and stepped down into the cellar, Applejack following him. They started to collect dinner as Harvester “It’s a lonely life out here, but it’s a heck of a lot better than living down in the village. I just… wish I could give her a better life. I want to see her play with her friends without having to worry about her horn.” They had gathered up dinner and made their way out of the cellar, closing the door and covering it back up with the hay. “It shouldn’t be like this. What kind of life is this when she can’t even be educated?” The sadness in his eyes matched the tone of his voice, and he fell silent. Applejack didn’t know how to respond to this tirade, so she didn’t say anything. Applejack was thankful for Clover’s hyperactivity as they entered the cottage.

“Oooh, those looks good!” She was eyeing the stalks of celery that Applejack had laid out on the table.

Harvester put the celery he was carrying on top of the stack. “They should, I tended to them for five months.” Clover giggled as Applejack watched the scene, certain that she had seen it before. The large buck working the fields, the small filly joking and playing around reminded her of her family, and she felt a pang of homesickness. Clover noticed her somber expression.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“Huh, me? Ah’m fine, just hungry, is all. What say we stop all this chatterin’ and get to eatin’?”

“Okay!”

The three began to chow down on the food, Harvester using the ground as a third chair.

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Applejack and Harvester found themselves gazing out into the deep void of space, the stars shining like brilliant spheres of magic. They held mugs full of cider, a barrel of Harvester’s private stock between them. Clover had fallen asleep after dinner, and Harvester had invited Applejack to a drink outside. Their hats were stacked on top of each other in front of the barrel.

“Applejack, where are you really from?” He certainly wasn’t one for small talk, Applejack noticed.

“It’s… complicated. If Ah told you the whole truth, ya probably wouln’ believe me.”

“Oh, come on. I’m sure I can handle your story. I’m no stranger to those kind of tales.”

Applejack to a moment to think about his words before answering. “All right, but Ah’m tellin’ ya, you won’ believe me.” She sighed, and told her story. “Ah’m from the future. Ah came back with mah friend Twilight Sparkle to stop this fellow named Discord. He’s been messin’ with time, an’ Twilight an’ Ah are here to fix whatever he’s done.”

Harvester stared at her with a vacant expression. His brow went from a slight v shape to one raised above the other. He looked into his mug and took a sip, Applejack watching in a confused silence. “I didn’t think I grabbed the hard cider. I guess you just can’t handle it. At all.”

She merely shook her head and chuckled. “Ah told ya you wouldn’t believe me.”

“It’s okay; I wouldn’t want anyone to know where I was really from either.” They both took a sip of the cider. “Do you have any family Applejack, back home wherever?”

“Eyep. There’s Granny Smith, sweetest granny you could ever hope for. Then there’s Big Mac, strong and silent, emphasis on the strong. Mah little sister Applebloom, who can be a pain in the rear, believe me, but life would be a lot more borin’ without her. An’ then there’s the Apple family scattered all over the place, buckin’ apple trees an’ providin’ the good ponies of Equestria with fresh an’ delicious apples.” She was reminded of a particular time she and Big Mac had sat on the porch of their house, stargazing just as she and Harvester were doing. “What about you, Harvester? What family do y’all have? Besides Clover, Ah mean.”

He was going for another drink, but lowered the mug when Applejack asked the question and stared out into space. “Only child, moved away from my parents when I was barely old enough to get my cutie mark. As for Clover’s mother…” He choked on his breath. “She was the most stunning and intelligent mare I’d ever met. She had this special connection with nature, one I would have never thought possible if I hadn’t seen it in her. I swear, she could talk with the animals and get them to do anything she wanted. We met when I ran away from home. Turns out, she had done the same. She never did tell me why, just that she couldn’t get away from wherever she came from fast enough. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have survived in the wilderness.” He gave a small, dejected chuckle as he reminisced. “It’s amazing how much Clover takes after her mother. ‘Clover the Clever’ was the nickname she gave her. Heh. Couldn’t have found a better one. She’s just as smart as her mother, perhaps more so.”

Tears had started to run down his cheek. “She was the first one to stand up to Fairweather. He hadn’t even taken control when she spoke out against him, trying to warn everyone that he was no good. If only we had listened…” He stopped to clear his throat. “After she was gone, I knew Fairweather wouldn’t just leave us alone. He wanted to finish the job, wanted to make an example out of Clover and I. That’s why I moved out here to this cottage. Her mother and I had built it together when we were living out here, and we never told anyone about it. I figured we’d be safe out here.” He wiped his bloodshot eyes with his hoof, looking embarrassed that he had shown so much emotion in front of Applejack.

There was nothing Applejack could say to him, but there was something she could do. She reached over their hats and embraced him, and she could feel his legs tighten around her as he returned the gesture. They stayed like that for what seemed like hours, until Harvester gently let go of her. “Thank you, Applejack. Even though this is for the best, it gets lonely up here with just me and Clover. And I haven’t talked about Rosebud in… well, forever.” He seemed much more relaxed and peaceful now. “You know, you kinda remind me of her. From what I’ve seen of you, you’re very honest, and you seem to want to do good…” He trailed off, eying her in a very peculiar manner.

“Uh, Harvester? Ah hope Ah don’t remind you of her like that.”

He snapped out of the trance, his cheeks reddening madly. “Oh, n-not like that, not at all! You’re m-much too young for me, a-and I have a daughter to worry about! I hope you didn’t take that the wrong way, it-it’s just, your personality is so alike hers, that’s all.”

Applejack laughed as the fumbling family pony tripped over his words. “Ah think Ah understand. Don’ worry, Ah’m sure it was just the cider talkin’.” She raised her glass towards him.

“Yeah, cider, heh heh.” They toasted and finished off their glasses, watching as the stars shone like diamonds against the dark night sky.

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For the second time that day, Twilight woke in an unfamiliar location. Her eyelids were heavy as she raised them, her head still pounding from the vicious hit the guard had given it. She scanned her surroundings and found herself stuck in a small, dark cell. The only light came from a torch set on a wall somewhere far off, leaving nearly none for her cell. It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the darkness, and when they did, she realized that she wasn’t the cell’s only occupant. Inside with her was the stallion that had been chased by the guards. He was unconscious, and Twilight walked over to see if he was severely injured. There was a small gash on his head that had coagulated, but besides that, he seemed to be in stable condition. She was surprised by just how dark his coat was. If it wasn’t for the torch, she doubted she would even be able to see him. He was a unicorn, and he looked to be about Twilight’s age. However, the most curious thing about him was that it seemed he didn’t have a cutie mark, unless it was the same dark color as his coat, which Twilight doubted.

She softly prodded him with a hoof, trying to evoke a reaction from him. He groaned and shifted away from her. She didn’t want to be a nuisance, but she needed answers, and the longer the timeline was kept in chaos, the more power Discord gained. After another series of pokes and prods, the stallion waved her hoof away and got up on rickety hooves. The effort was too much for him, and he tucked his front legs into his body, resting on all four legs. Twilight broke the silence with a tentative introduction. “Uh, hello. I’m Twilight Sparkle. What’s your name?”

The stranger checked the cut on his head, answering her in a quiet tone. “My name is Star Swirl.”

Twilight rubbed her ears, certain that she didn’t hear that correctly. “Sorry, what’s your name?”

“Star Swirl.”

Had this pony claimed to be Star Swirl in present times, Twilight would have recommended he be sent to a padded room in the Ponyville hospital. But as she looked upon one of the greatest unicorns in Equestrian history, she realized that anything was possible when Discord was in control of time. She also realized that if this pony was telling the truth, then Discord had changed him for the worse. Star Swirl was, put bluntly, sickly looking. He seemed to be malnourished, as his body was much thinner than one would expect of a great sorcerer. His mane stuck out at random angles and his coat was dirty and disheveled. He was even missing the namesake of his moniker, not a single stubble of facial hair on his chin.

Twilight was processing this information in silence, and Star Swirl took the opportunity to question her. “Why are you here?”

She snapped out of her thoughts and went to answer him, but held off on it. She still wasn’t sure if Star Swirl was Discord’s only victim, and even if he was the only thing that had changed, she wasn’t sure how she could explain to him that she was from the future. “I’m a traveler. There’s something here that I need to find and stop.”

Star Swirl let out a condescending grunt. “So you’re a hero come to save us? Get in line.”

“What do you mean get in line?”

He shook his head. “You really aren’t from around here, are you?”

“No, but I told you, I’m here to help.”

Star Swirl was about to respond, but his ears perked up, and he put a hoof to his mouth. Twilight heard the hoofsteps on the cold stone of the dungeon, and saw the dim light of the cell become even dimmer, leaving them in near pitch blackness. A huge shadowy figure stood in front of the bars of the cell, and Twilight could feel a cold shiver run through her body. This pony was tremendously daunting, all of his features were hidden by the darkness. He looked to be taller and larger than even Big Macintosh. He addressed her with an extremely deep and gravelly voice.

“So you are the little unicorn that disposed with two of my guards. Quite a feat for only one pony.” Twilight was overcome with a sense of dread, not at the words, but at the way this frankly terrifying pony had said it. There was disgust in his voice, like he had much better things to be doing than concerning himself with the two prisoners in front of him. Twilight guessed that he wasn’t a pony with much patience, and that made her situation all the more uncertain. A rash pony didn’t make the best decisions, if Rainbow Dash was any example, and Twilight figured this pony also had a touch of malice to his repertoire. All of this put her and Star Swirl in a very bad dilemma. “I see Star Swirl has also been captured. Excellent. A grand day it is when two filthy magic users are apprehended side by side.” He broke out in a raspy laugh, one punctuated by fits of ragged breath. “Your trials are tomorrow. You will be charged together as you have been accused of the same crime. Consider yourselves lucky I have the common decency to grant scum like you a chance to present your cases in the first place.” With that, he left, a dark cloak flowing behind him that Twilight could barely make out in the darkness.

She had to fall back on her haunch before her legs gave out, they were shaking so badly. If the pony’s plan was to intimidate her, he had done a good job of it. Star Swirl cleared his throat, catching Twilight by surprise and sending her a good distance up into the air. “Sorry,” He said, as Twilight came crashing back down to the hard stone floor. “We’re in a bad spot. All the ponies who meet Judge Fairweather in the prison have a bad habit of disappearing off the face of the planet.”

Twilight stared vacantly at Star Swirl, still shaking from the encounter. “Oh, really? Well that’s great news. A huge, horrifying pony that sends other ponies to their doom. Just great!” She was losing her grip on her sanity, the day’s events becoming too much to bear.

“Hey.” Twilight ignored him. “HEY.” Still no response. “HEEEY!!” Star Swirl finally got to Twilight, and she whipped around to face him. “Get a hold of yourself. Going insane might help you, but I’m still stuck in here.”

Twilight shook her head, bringing much needed clarity to her mind. “Uh, thanks. Hehe. Sorry, when things don’t go my way, I... overreact a little.”

He merely shook his head. “So you said you were here to stop some all of our troubles, did you? Well, you just met it. Judge Fairweather has decreed that all unicorns be locked up. Doesn’t even matter why, I’m sure he’ll find some twisted reason that suits his needs.” He was now able to stand on his hooves without falling over. “So, do you still feel like saving us?”

When Twilight had first arrived in the past, she was certain that there was nothing that could stop her and Applejack. Needless to say, her resolve had been properly dashed since then. “I… I don’t know. I need to find my friend Applejack above all else.”

“Good luck getting out of the cell, then.”

Star Swirl was starting to get on Twilight’s nerves, as impossible as she thought that was, and she felt that it was time to show him what she could do. With a moment of concentration, she teleported herself out of the cell, appearing just on the other side. Star Swirl seemed to lighten up at the display, albeit by only a marginal amount. “Well, at least you’re better at magic than I am.”

“Wait, what?”

“Yeah, pretty much every unicorn is better at it than me. I can barely levitate an object from one side of the room to the other.”

There was now no doubt in Twilight’s mind that Discord changed time. The most powerful sorcerer in pre-classical times, unable to levitate an object? This was worse than she imagined. “Ugh, what are we gonna dooo? If you can’t teleport out, then I can’t just leave you!” A few moments passed before she was struck with inspiration. “Wait a minute, I can just teleport you out with me!” A quick flash of purple light, and she was back in the cell, holding Star Swirl’s leg. He seized his hoof back, backing up from her.

“Twilight, if we escape, Fairweather won’t just admit defeat. No one’s ever even tried to escape because the consequences for it are assumed to be much worse than anything you could possibly imagine.”

“So we just give up and wait for the trial!?”

“Look at this rationally! It’s obvious you have no idea what’s happening here, so I can assume you also don’t know about the surrounding lands. If you escape, where will you go? Your friend, this Applejack, you have no idea where she is. You just don’t know anything, Twilight. If you stay here with me, I can at least fill you in on what’s been happening.”

Twlight was stuck between a rock and a hard place. On one hand, she couldn’t wait around while the timeline was in peril, but if she rushed out to face whatever Discord had done without a plan, she would only be doing more harm than good. She slumped to the floor, defeated, and gave Star Swirl her decision. “No matter what, I’m in a bad situation. You’re right, though. I don’t know anything about what’s happening here.” She groaned loudly. “I’ll stay. But I need you to tell me everything you know about this judge.”

Star Swirl nodded and began his story. “It wasn’t always like this, living under Fairweather’s hoof. When I was a foal, everyone got along just fine with each other. Unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies lived together in peace, at least until Fairweather showed up. No one knew where he came from, only that he was one of the worst ponies anyone had ever seen. It only took him a few months to hold complete power over everyone, and the ones who tried to challenge him were never seen again. Unicorns were hit especially hard. I remember being taunted in school, when I was still allowed to attend. Didn’t take long for that to go. Didn’t take long for all of our rights to go. Then the order went out yesterday for the capture of all unicorns in the village and outlying areas. I’ve been on the run since, well, I was, until those guards handed us our flanks.” He looked at Twilight and realized that he hadn’t answered her original question. “Like I said, no one knows where he came from. In fact, the only thing anyone knows about him is that no one speaks out against him and lives to tell the tale.”

“Wait, he… kills them?”

“He would never say it outright. No, he prefers the term ‘banishment.’ Don’t be fooled, he wouldn’t let them just walk away. Only he knows what happens to them, but a pony in the ground makes much less noise than one on it.”

Twilight thought back to her encounter with Fairweather, and knowing that he quite possibly killed the ponies that went against him made his speech all the more foreboding. Her thoughts turned to the upcoming trial, and her legs became shaky. Star Swirl noticed that she was about to pass out and walked over to her, setting her lightly on the stone. “Twilight, you should get some sleep. You’re gonna need all the rest you can get for tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Star Swirl.”

He trudged back to the other side of the cell and lied down. “Don’t mention it. And Twilight,” She looked at him, and saw for the first time a determined expression, his dark blue eyes lit up. “We’ll get through this. I promise.”

He shifted to face the wall, leaving Twilight to ponder his final words as she drifted off into a fitful sleep, her future, and by extension the future of Equestria, uncertain in the face of the trial and Judge Fairweather awaiting her.