The mattress squeaked beneath her equine form as she sat up in bed. With a yawn, Trixie stretched, blinking furiously at the morning light peeking in between the venetian blinds. Grumbling beneath her breath, she trotted over to the window and yanked furiously at the pull-chord, sending the blinds flying upwards and exposing her eyes to the morning sun's white-hot fury. After regaining her sight, the little pony headed to her boudoir, levitating a brush to comb her perfect little mane.

"Another day, another dollar for Equestria's most amazing pony," she sighed as her pointed hat and star-crested cape hovered into place on her body. She wondered what would be on the agenda for today. She could go into town and impress a few of the local yokels with another pre-planned stage act. Perhaps routine 23? Or maybe 47, she hadn't done that one in a while, and it might be good to switch things up a bit. Then again, she had enough food and firewood to last her through the winter, why bother searching for more? Especially now that every pony in the little village below had already come to fear her amazing power. So much so in fact, that none ever dared venture near the massive tower on the city's limits where she spent her winter months. None whatsoever. Not even a looter or travelling bandit arrived to mess things up in the big, cold, stone structure while she was away, which was really something. The local folklore about the horrors guarding her fortress were just so widespread, it kept everyone at bay. And as cool as it was to think that she was the one at the center of all that fear, you'd think just one would at least stop by, maybe a curious child looking to see the heart of all that lore once and for all and who might set off a chain of events culminating in…

She shook her head. She really needed to get some control over her imagination. Maybe she should've been a playwright? Hey, maybe that's what she'd do today! That thing with the kid sounded like it could be something.

A light knock on the door far below interrupted her thoughts just as she'd pieced together something of a beginning for her story. Sighing with irritation, but somewhat pleased that today might not be quite as routine as the day before, Trixie gave herself a final once-over in the mirror before rocketing down the spiral staircase. Clearing her voice, she reared up on her hind hooves as she opened the door, bellowing: "Who dares interrupt the Great and Powerful Trixie's…oh, it's you."

The little yellow pony from Ponyville cringed at the sight of the other pony's obviously awe-inspiring form. Now, what was this one's name? Cutterby? Tusher-ie? Something like that. Either way, she was one of the Daughters of Harmony, Trixie knew that much. Which meant she was one of "Twatlight Spankle's" close friends, which gave Trixie a most excellent idea for getting back at that uppity little unicorn.

"Umm…excuse me," the little yellow pony whispered, "I'm sorry to ever be of any sort of trouble…b-but…"

Oh sweet Celestia, she was shy too? This was going to be too easy. This day was shaping up to be pretty good after all! "Speak louder, little pony, the Great and Powerful Trixie does not wish to waste her time deciphering whatever nonsense you wish to say!"
"Well…um…I'm terribly sorry, but, if you could so kind…"

"Out with it! I am very busy, as anypony will attest, so speak your mind or begone!"

"I was just wondering if you'd seen my friend!" The yellow pony screamed suddenly, then immediately backed off.

Trixie cocked an eyebrow suspiciously, "Which one?"

"Um…well, her name is Twilight Sparkle, and she's been missing for a…"

"Twilight Sparkle!" She reared up again, nudging the secret button that triggered the old phonograph hidden in the corner behind her. The hall shook with the sound of thunder, which combined with some light effects courtesy of her magic to turn her into quite the terrifying spectacle, "YOU DARE SPEAK THAT NAME IN THE PRESENCE OF THE GREAT AND POWERFUL TRIXIE!"
"I…I…" the little yellow pony squeaked, tears welling up in her eyes. Aw Luna, was she about to cry? Seriously? Okay, maybe she'd taken this a bit too far.

Trixie landed on all four hooves, "Look, I don't…"

'Invite her in.' A voice hissed at the back of her skull. Trixie wheeled around, eyes darting into each and every little corner, every dark spot behind her foyer.

"Um…Miss Trixie?" The little yellow pony sniffled, "What's…"

"Nothing! Nothing is the matter!" Could it be true? Could she be losing it after such a long time in self-imposed isolation? She'd heard of someponies knocking a screw loose after a long time alone, but she was at least above that! Right? "Actually, Miss…"

"Fluttershy. My name is Fluttershy."

"Yes, Ms. Fluttershy. Won't you come in? I…the Great and Powful Trixie does have a small slot of time during which she could listen to your problem."

"Okay." The little yellow pony trotted over the foyer, making her way towards the dining hall.

"But wipe off your hooves before you come in!" Trixie screamed fruitlessly after her, shaking her head and plodding off to join her new guest while puzzling over what to serve. This was a totally new situation for her, what was she supposed to do? Start a conversation? About what? Serve food to distract from the lack of conversation? What did ponies eat nowadays in lieu of decent conversation? Cheese? Brussel sprouts? Should she make some sort of spread?

"Excuse me?" The yellow one asked from just ahead, snapping Trixie out of her thoughts.

"Yes?"

"I don't mean to impose, but if I could just get a glass of water? I've been flying awhile."

"Yes. Water. Okay." Well, that was easy enough, and it solved one little mystery. As Trixie poured a bit of water from the boiling pot over her stove, she began to think that maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. Maybe she should do this more…

"NNNGGGHHHH," a groan echoed up to her from somewhere deep within the bowels of the castle, emanating from her wine cellar. She paused, mid-pour, her magic clenching against the pot handle. What in Equestria was that? Another attack from the weird bit of madness that had reared its ugly head before? Luna, please don't let it be that. She had to see for herself.

"Miss Butterfly? I need to check on something." She called, rummaging through a drawer before a steak knife hovered out. Whatever the thing was, it must have been pretty big to make that noise. She could probably handle it with her magic, sure, but it never hurt to be extra-prepared.

Creeping across the kitchen, Trixie eased the cellar door open and slinked through, closing it quietly behind her. Using the light off her horn to illuminate her path, she trotted slowly downstairs, heading for the aisles between the shelves of ancient, dust-covered wine barrels.

"Who dares enter the home of the Great and Powerful Trixie without her permission!" She demanded, but nothing responded. 'Figures,' she thought, 'it was probably just the castle settling or my nerves or something. Oh sweet Celestia, what would Flutterby think if she saw the Great and Powerful Trixie chasing shadows in a wine cellar!'

Chiding herself for being so paranoid, Trixie set a hoof forward to start climbing the stairs back to the main level when a loud creak sounded just off to her side. Pulling off a quick about-face, she poured a bit more juice into her horn, illuminating the entire room. "WHO'S THERE!" She screeched, the knife hovering just a few feet from her head, ready to fly forward and turn whatever waited for her into a nice shish-kabob.

A tall wooden door greeted her, just across from the stairs yet set deep into shadow. She would have missed it entirely if not for that last creak. In fact, she'd apparently always missed it. She certainly couldn't remember that door any of the other times she'd journeyed down here! Not even when the tower had belonged to her uncle, and she'd poked around down here as a curious little filly.

Carefully, she slinked across the room, creeping like a snake in the grass (she hoped). How could she have missed this door? She'd only lived here, alone, for going on eight years now! It's not like she hadn't had enough time to scour the tower's every nook and cranny.

She grabbed the massive, iron handle on the door and twisted. It rumbled with a deep, foreboding clank before creaking ominously open. A smell she remembered from the one time she found a dead raccoon while playing in the forest hit her: decaying flesh, aging fur, and organs slowly giving way to the Earth beneath. Every instinct screamed for her to turn around and head upstairs, maybe boarding up the wine cellar for good measure (it's not like she used it, anyway), but still some little part of her urged her forward, whispering that the Great and Powerful Trixie could not be warded off by a scary little room, especially in her own house! But under that instinct which usually urged her onward was something else. If she'd paused to really listen, she might have heard it, a little voice whispering: 'Forward, forward, forward, don't stop. You must see.'

With a confident toss of her Great and Powerful hairdo, Trixie stepped forward onto a staircase that led ever downward, her hoof-clops echoing in the chamber. Wherever the stairs led, it had to be big. Every sound she made echoed, and as she listened, she heard something else. 'Something else is down here!' She realized, waving the knife randomly around.

She paused at the stairs' bottom, a sense of dread flooding her soul. And still the voice insisted: 'you must see.' Clenching her teeth in fear, she raised the knife and added the little bit of extra power needed to fully illuminate the chamber. What she saw was beyond horror, beyond even her well-developed imagination. If she knew of such a place, she would have described it as a scene from hell.

A table stood at the other end of the chamber, a trough built into the floor at its base. Red smears marked its heavy oaken surface. On it, somepony had been strapped down with heavy leather wrapped in chains, her body marred with scratches, lash marks, cuts and burn marks from what must have been countless nights of endless torment.

The knife clattered to the ground. Trixie backed away from the table, only stopping when her hindquarters met the cold stone of the wall behind her. Her hooves went to her gaping mouth, stifling a scream.

"Mommy? Is that you?" A voice echoed up from the table. ' Dearest Celestia, she can talk!' Trixie realized in horror. A face peered out of the darkness as the pony craned her neck towards her. Bathed in darkness, the only features visible were a massive, maniacal grin set next to a pair of bloodshot eyes, pupils retracted in that unmistakable look of insanity.

"Why, it is you!" The voice said as those horrid eyes fell upon her, the teeth separating to form each horrible word. Nearly wetting herself in fear, Trixie realized she recognized the voice. A voice that still returned in her dreams every now and again to mock her.

"Tw-Twilight Sparkle?" She whimpered, and instantly the pony started thrashing on the table.

"No, that is a bad name, a badbadbadbad name," the pony screeched, slamming the back of her head against the table. Against her better judgment, Trixie rushed to her side, trying to quiet some of the seizing and thrashing about.

"My name is Toy!" Twilight continued, "You made sure of that! My name is TOY!"

"Wha-what happened to you! Calm down, please, just tell me what happened!"

The pony stopped suddenly, turning that grin back on her, keeping her face in shadow somehow. "Why, you happened, Mommy! Is this another game for us to play?"

"Wha-what do you mean…" Trixie swallowed in fear, blinking back a few tears, "What do you mean, I happened?"

"Don't you remember, Mommy? You took me from my home that night. You said you had some games for us to play. Remember? All the wonderful games?"

"I…I…" she remembered. She was starting to remember everything. The whippings, the lashings, the nights dedicated to nothing but causing pain to the little purple unicorn on the table, to listening to her screams and pleas for mercy echo through the tower's foundation. Tears sprouted from her eyes. It couldn't be true, it was just too monstrous! She wasn't…she couldn't…

"Mommy, what's wrong?"

"Wh-why are you smiling like that?" Trixie whispered, voice wavering, chills running up and down her spine.

"Don't you remember, Mommy? You got very cross with me one night," the unicorn picked her head off the table, shoving her face into the light and revealing the bloody masses of cauterized flesh where a pair of lips used to be, "I had to be punished."

"Nuh-nooooo…" Trixie started, a groan beginning up in her throat. She wanted to puke. She wanted to scream. She wanted to anything. As it was, she leaned back against the wall and kept moaning, trying to make some sort of sense out of the horror while the scream in her throat continued to build until it boomed off the walls, filling the chamber, only being interrupted by another scream from the top of the stairs.

"TWILIGHT!" The little yellow pony screeched, a lantern in hoof. Dashing down the stairs, the daughter of kindness rushed to her friend's side, cradling her head in her hooves. "What did you do to her!" She gasped, hardly able to believe the horrific sight her friend had been transformed into.

"I…I don't…" 'Sleep,' the voice whispered, and before she could even finish her sentence, everything went dark.

She sat up in bed, body covered in sweat. "Oh, thank the sisters!" She screamed, collapsing onto her pillow with relief. It was all just a dream! A horrific nightmare, twisted beyond anything she'd ever dreamt before, but still just a dream!

"No more cream puffs before bed for you, missy." She mumbled to herself. Dearest Equestria, maybe she really was cracking from the self-imposed isolation. Maybe she would head into town today, do a little magic, impress the yokels…

"NNnnnnnggghhhh," the groan echoed up through the tower, freezing her blood in her veins. "Please, Celestia and Luna, no." She mumbled, trembling in fear. She didn't need to be downstairs to know the groans were coming from the cellar. She stumbled down the stairs, all four knees quaking in fear. She also didn't need a light to find the door this time, or a knife for a false sense of security. She slammed head-first through the door, stumbling down the steps while praying to every goddess she knew of that something different would lie in front of her. Something else, anything!

"Mommy?" A voice drifted up from the darkness.

Trixie stopped at the bottom of the stairs. There was the table. There was the trough. There was the horror she'd created. And there were the memories of long nights of terror and torture, depravity on a level never before fathomed by any ponies' mind.

A sob escaped her throat as she backed away from the table, inching towards the exact spot on the stone wall she had hit yesterday. Except this time, a squeak sounded through the cavern the moment her rump made contact. "What?" She turned around, confused, and nearly vomited at the sight of yet another horror. There, chained to the wall, kneeled the daughter of kindness, barbed wire wrapped around her neck, a gaping red hole where one of those gorgeous blue eyes had once been, her body blanketed with dozens of incisions. The knife she had left down there lay by one of the little yellow pony's hooves, covered in blood so fresh it glistened in the dim light.

"Fu-Bluttershy?" She asked, horrified. The yellow one stirred.

"P-please Miss Trixie," she moaned weakly, "I-I won't tell anybody, just please, don't hurt-"

"We had so much fun with her last night. Didn't we, Mommy?" Twilight cackled.

"Please no…" Trixie cried when a boom echoed from upstairs. "Oh, what now!" Almost in response, a streak of rainbow rocketed through the door and down onto Trixie's head. A powerful roundhouse kick cracked her in the jaw, sending her sprawling to the concrete floor.

"I got 'er! I got-"somebody's voice shrieked as two pairs of hooves slammed down onto Trixie's chest. She opened her eyes to see the daughter of loyalty perched on her stomach, a shock of rainbow-colored hair in the fading light. The teal-blue pony had turned away from Trixie, looking in horror at the little splotch in the corner.

"Flu-Fluttershy?" She asked timidly.

"No, please, please, please…"

"Alraght, sugarcubes!" A voice called down to them as the daughter of honesty trotted into view, framed by the light coming through the doorway at the top of the steps, "Ah ain't found nothin' up here, but that don't mean…" she spotted the table from her high perch even while the daughter of loyalty stayed focused on the yellow splotch that had once been her friend. "Twilight!" She gasped, shooting down the stairs at a full gallop, "Twilight! What happened to ya! Twi!"

"Mommy dearest happened." The thing that had once been a purple unicorn cackled.

"Heavens! What's all the commotion about…" the daughter of generosity trotted into view at the top of the steps, took one look at the dungeon, and froze in horror, repeating the word over and over again as if it were a charm for returning her friends to normal: "…bout…out…out…out…"

"What didja do to Fluttershy, you sadistic FREAK!" Rainbow Dash grabbed Trixie by the shoulders and started shaking her violently, slamming her head against the ground over and over again.

"I don't know!" Trixie sobbed as each blow sent another wave of pain through her head, "I don't know!"

"Twilight, sugarcube, c'mon!"

"Mommy happened! She made me into Toy, isn't that right, Mommy?"

"…out…out…out…out…"

"Please, I'll do anything, just don't…please…"

"SHUT UP!" Trixie screamed into the dungeon, the voices echoing on against the walls. Suddenly, everybody fell silent, the little yellow pony's sniffles becoming the only sound. The teal pegasus on top of her stomped her hooves in the ground by Trixie's head and leaned in close, nostrils flaring with anger. "And what are you gonna do about it, huh?"

"I…" something smooth and wooden slid next to her hoof. Trixie didn't need to look to know that it was the knife's handle. Fresh tears sprouted into her eyes, "I…"

"Huh!" Suddenly, one of the pegasus' hooves slammed against Trixie's cheek, "Huh? WHAT'RE YOU GONNA DO!"

"Rainbow, wait! I think she's got somethin' by her hoof!" The daughter of honesty shrieked, but her cries fell on deaf ears. The pegasus was just too intent on hurting the one who had hurt her friends.

"WHAT'RE YOU GONNA DO! WHAT'RE YOU GONNA DO!"

'Kill her.' The voice whispered, speaking up for the first time that day. You know the spell.

"No." Trixie sniffled.

"NO WHAT, HUH?" Another hoof cracked against Trixie's skull, "NO WHAT!"

"Rainbow! Will y'just listen fer a danged…"

'Pick up the knife and kill her!'

"NO!"

"NO WHAT!" *crack.*

'Do it or she will kill you! Use your magic, pick up the knife, and cut her open before she kills you!' No more whispering, the voice was roaring into her mind now.

"I DON'T CARE!" Trixie screamed, "I DON'T CARE IF SHE KILLS ME, I AM NOT A MURDERER!"

Once again, everything fell silent. Everypony in the room suddenly turned their eyes on her, but it wasn't their eyes. These were the eyes of something cold, something that evaluated and analyzed her every move. Something that regarded her as right around the same level as the soggy, lumpy oatmeal she had planned to eat for breakfast that day. Something impossibly and horrifically intelligent. Even Twilight's once insane eyes took the look on as they all said in perfect harmony, using the voice that until then had been content with only speaking inside her skull: "Weakling."
Then everything went dark again.

"Good morning, my little pony."

Trixie opened her eyes to, by far, the most curious thing she had ever seen. And considering the things she'd seen in just the past couple days, that was really saying something. A strange being with almost completely hairless, pale skin and dressed in what might have been a leather jacket and blue pants sat upon the foot of her bed. At least, she thought it was sitting. Really, that was the only description she had for what it was doing. Sure, it had buttocks like a normal pony, and it was sitting on them, but its hind legs were totally off. They bent the wrong way, for one thing, and for another, its front legs were completely indescribable. They bent properly, sure, but they ended in these soft growths that looked totally unsuited for proper walking, each sprouting several long, skinny growths that looked like tendrils. Perhaps most strange of all was the face: the hair was alright, but the face was the same pale color of the rest of the skin, and the nose was mashed in on top of the mouth. Why, it would be fair to say that it didn't have a snout at all! So what was this thing?

"Sorry if my appearance frightens you." The creature spoke.

"I-I've been through a lot lately. I'm not sure very much could frighten me right now."

"Yes, I know." The creature grinned, reaching into its jacket to pull a pack of what, only Celestia knew. He pulled a long white stick from the pack using the tendrils on his forelegs to grip, offering it to her. "Smoke?"

"N-no thank you."

"Good. Stuff'll kill ya." He promptly stuck one end of the stick in his mouth and lit it with a flick of one of the skinny foreleg growths. Which was odd, she didn't see a horn anywhere, how had it managed that without any magic? Unless, of course, it had a horn hidden somewhere…

The creature inhaled on the stick and exhaled some foul-smelling smoke. It seemed to take notice as she wrinkled her nose at the stench, "Sorry 'bout that, but I'm channeling the minds of a few million chain smokers right now, so I can't really help myself."

"Okay…ummm…"

"Swarm. You can call me Swarm."

"Okay Swarm, just…what are you?"

"Nothing you've ever seen before, or probably ever will again." He replied, "Look, to put it plainly, do you believe in other worlds?"

"Like…planets?"

"Well, yes and no, I mean other universes. Universes where things didn't play out the way they did here. Places like this, but where other species took over as the prime sentient beings, or where certain points of history turned the other way. Things like that."

"I…" she curled up in bed, feeling very suddenly like a little filly all over again, "…I don't suppose I ever gave it much thought."

"Eh, don't worry yourself. That's pretty common in universes where the sci-fi genre never took off."

"Mr. Swarm-"

"Just Swarm, please."

"Are-are you saying you're from one of these worlds?"

The creature just smiled. It was a surprisingly warm smile, for such an odd-looking face. "That's not the question you really want answered though, do you?"

"What do you…" the past couple days came back to her in a flood, a tidal wave of violence and horror. She nearly fell out of bed, slamming herself down against the mattress and crying out in pain. "Oh Celestia-Oh Luna…"

"I'm sorry," Swarm laid an oddly warm hand on her shoulder as she cried into the pillow. "I was repressing the memory until now. I didn't want the shock to hit you all at once."

"How could I? How could I have done something so…so…" she stumbled for the word: there simply wasn't one to describe something as horrible as what laid in her memory.

"Shh, it's alright." His voice took on an oddly soothing tone (she had decided he had to be a "he" by now). "It was all just a dream, dear, all in your head."

"What?" She looked up at him hopefully, "Really?"

"Well, in a way…"he paused, rubbing the back of his head and taking another drag off the foul-smelling stick between his lips. "You know those 'other' worlds I was just talking about? Like the one I come from?"

She nodded slowly.

"Well sometimes, if something's strong enough: a memory or an emotion or an event that affects enough people, that something can cross the boundaries between worlds. Now, this thing has to be pretty strong, mind you."

"You can do it, though, right?"

"Yep." He beamed proudly, "But these things do happen, and more often than you'd think. Usually, a thought or a memory is all that manages the jump, and even that is so weakened by the time it makes it over that only very attuned, very talented people can pick up on it. You follow?"

She nodded again, curious.

"That's actually where a lot of very good fiction comes from." He shrugged, "And it's just as simple as that. Now, the writer winds up putting their own spin on it, of course, so what they come up with could be very different from the original event itself, since the writer has their own perceptions and viewpoints acting as a filter."

"Are you saying things that happen here in Equestria could wind up as stories in other worlds? In your world?"

"I knew you were a sharp one," he grinned again, "But like I said the story that comes out depends entirely on the author's perceptions. Something that happens here can wind up inspiring a totally different story someplace else."

"Okay," Trixie's head spun, "What does that have to do with what I just saw, though?"

Swarm's smile faded slowly as he considered his next words, "Sometimes, stories can make the jump too, if the emotion behind them is strong enough. And if that happens, they usually jump back to the universe that first spawned them."

"You're saying…" Trixie swallowed, "You're saying somebody saw something wonderful here in Equestria, and they were inspired to create that!"

"The barrier between worlds was weakened earlier tonight," Swarm explained, "Some things got through. It's why tonight, the daughter of laughter is going to rush to the side of the daughter of loyalty and ask to spend the night. And why the daughter of loyalty will be so accepting to her, what with the dreams they've both had. In fact, after channeling 'Rainbow Factory,' Miss Dash will probably be spending a lot more time with her friends over the next few days, especially that little orange one who seems so obsessed with her…"

"THAT'S HORRIBLE!" Trixie screamed suddenly, interrupting his rant, "How could somebody create something so horrible from something so pure!"

"You have to remember that in the end, a story can be a window into the author's very essence. It depends entirely upon them."

"Well, if ponies or whatever you call yourselves are going to pervert everything you touch, then maybe you shouldn't get those memories at all! Maybe we should just put a magical seal over everything so that nothing gets out, ever!"

"Trixie," he laid a hand on her shoulder again, "You have to understand that not everybody is like that. Sure, some might warp and twist things around for a few laughs, and some might take that a bit far…"

"A bit…" she started to shriek. He raised his hand to interrupt her.

"What you have to understand is that many others use those same memories and images to create beautiful works of art! Things that will stand forever, be gazed upon for generations, or just bring happiness to a group of people for a short period of time! And believe me when I say that makes it worth it. So in the end, you just have to take the bad with the good, and hope for the best whenever something goes shooting over the borders. Alright?"

She nodded tentatively.

"Good," he stood up off the bed.

"Where are you going?"

"I have many things to tend to, little one. Things like me are always busy." Swarm replied, flicking the white stick out the window, "But before I go, a word to the wise: you might wanna open this place up a little bit. And try being a bit more friendly with the locals. You never know how far a warm smile or a random act of kindness could take you."

"Wait!" She raised a hoof, "Before you go, tell me…"

"Yes?"

"…what do I do with this…memory? I can't get rid of it or anything, right?" She shivered beneath the covers, "Is it always going to be there? Haunting my dreams? Tainting my thoughts?"

He paused in the doorway. "Miss Trixie-"

"Just Trixie is fine."

"Right," he smiled privately, "The long and short of it is: yes, you will have to carry this memory with you. Sometimes, terrible things just happen to people, and those memories become their burden to bear."

She sighed, eyes downcast.

"But," he continued, and she raised her head, "How you deal with that memory is totally up to you. You can let it consume you, obsess over it, allow yourself to become everything you hate about it. Or you can move on, pressing forward, living the life you want, and one day you might just find that it doesn't hurt quite as much as it once did. The pain will probably never go away entirely because time doesn'theal all wounds (contrary to popular belief), but with a little help from some other ponies or from something you find for yourself, you might find that it'll scar over. And you know what?"

She looked into his ancient eyes as he uttered something she would carry with her until the day she died: "I always thought scars were beautiful. They tell the world that something so unbelievably powerful happened to you that it left its mark, and you survived."

Then he closed the door and walked down the staircase, leaving the little unicorn to take the first steps on the long road to healing.

One year later

"All hail the Great and Powerful Trixie!" The pony with the megaphone screamed, his voice booming off the vaulted walls, "Your hostess with the mostest!"

Trixie winced slightly before stepping out from behind the curtain. She'd begged the event coordinator to change the intro, seeing that she hadn't gone by the title of "Great and Powerful" in months and, honestly, "Hostess with the mostest" was just plain cheesy. "But it's a charity event, Trix!" She'd insisted, flashing her biggest, saddest puppy-dog eyes, "People expect a certain amount of cheese!" In the end, Trixie relented, but that still didn't make her feel any less corny as she stepped out into the spotlight. Even donning her classic, re-sewn star cape and hat hadn't helped much with that.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlecolts!" She sang. The crowd cheered, raising their wineglasses in admiration. It was hard to believe such a wonderful gala could be held in the big, dusty banquet hall that had sat empty at the base of her tower for decades. It was such a marvel what a bit of sweeping and a change of curtains could do.

"First of all, I just wanted to thank a few people for making this evening possible, starting with my event coordinator: the daughter of magic herself, Twilight Sparkle!" The little purple unicorn seated at the guests of honor table across from Trixie's stage blushed as she stood to another round of applause.

"Then we have Ms. Rarity, the daughter of generosity, for her incredible artistic vision that transformed this old, dusty hall into the splendorous thing you see around you!" The white unicorn stood up next to Twilight with a toss of her perfect, purple mane.

"And of course, all the wonderful volunteers whose hard work made that vision possible," she motioned to the table closest to her, smiling as the ponies seated there raised their glasses and cheered. "Especially you, Sethy! The pony who's unrelenting dedication kept it all together!" A brown-coated mare stood up from the table as the rest of the room applauded, smoothly tipping his wine glass to Trixie before sitting back down.

"Now, before we get caught up in the glitz of the evening, ponies, let's not forget why we're here. Ponyville's town hall needs a new roof, and we gotta get it for them!" She spread her hooves out in a display of true showmanship, "So get those pocketbooks ready, all!"

There was a final round of applause before everyone descended upon the buffet table set up in the center of the hall. Trixie sighed tiredly before heading to the back of the room, leaning against the guests of honor table.

"Miss Trixie?" A pony, hat in hoof, walked away from the buffet table to join her. "M-muh name's Cassius Clem. Ah just wanted t'thank ya fer givin' us that bit a' money last month. If it weren't for you, muh son'd probably…"

"No need to thank me, Clem, just doing what I can." She sighed, visibly exhausted. He nodded and bowed his head slightly before replacing his hat and joining the other ponies at the buffet table.

"Wow, Miss Trixie! That was awfully awesome of you!" Pinkie said in her usual, bright-and-shiny manner.

"Yeah, what gives? A year ago, you're Equestria's biggest conpony since the Flim-Flam twins, now you're helping farmers pay their bills?" Rainbow Dash added.

"First of all," Trixie cocked an eyebrow in her direction, "I was way better than those Flim-Flam amateurs could have ever dreamed of being."

Rainbow shrugged. She had to agree with that.

"And to answer your question," Trixie smiled whimsically, her eyes drifting off to someplace far from the little tower in the middle of the Equestrian woods. "About a year ago, I was shown a vision of what could have been. And after a while of trying to figure it out in my head, I learned that all the dreams, and visions, and memories, and even rumors from ponies, in the world don't have a thing to do with reality. I think you and your pink friend could agree with me there."

Rainbow Dash swallowed unconsciously, leaning forward in her chair as Pinkie's smile waivered ever so slightly.

"So the way I see it, there's just the here and now, and what you want to be. So I decided to shove that vision aside and finally start working towards that." She gazed over at the table, where a group of young fillies had broken off from the rest of the group to play in a corner she could remember being crowded with cobwebs hardly a month before. "I think I'm getting there." She finished with a little smile.

The daughters of harmony gazed at her, dumbfounded. "Trixie," Twilight breathed, "That's absolutely beautiful."

"Well, I don't know…"

"Miss Trixie!" A pony in a three-piece suit trotted up to them.

"Why, Mr. Filthyrich! Glad to see you could make it!" Trixie grinned.
"For a good cause, always. I just wanted to meet with you and give you a heads-up on the wine situation. It seems we're running a bit low over here."

"Ah, I can fix that." She turned to the daughters one last time, "If you'll excuse me girls, it seems somebody needs the Great and Powerful Trixie to journey to her wine cellar."

"Of course." Twilight said, suppressing a sudden attack of the creeps. Now, where did that come from? She wondered, watching Trixie trot off to the kitchen. But soon her mind wandered off to more important things, like how to reach the fork now lodged in Pinkie's throat.

"Pinkiiiiieeeeeee!" She screamed, "How many times do we have to tell you to chew your cake before you eat it!"
"GACK! Agh-ack-cack!"

Trixie wandered the little aisles, scanning for that perfectly-aged barrel she'd seen down here earlier. She stayed absolutely focused on the shelves, her eyes locked on the barrels as she trotted along, subconsciously cursing herself for not bringing that barrel up when she saw it and sparing herself another trip down to this godforsaken place.

'No, I can't think like that,' she thought. 'It's over. It didn't really happen. I'm over that dream, I'm not even…oh, here we go.'

Seizing the barrel in a hue of her rapidly-strengthening magic, she turned to head back up to the warm light of the kitchen, trotting back to the laughing ponies and shining lights of the party upstairs. Unfortunately, with her eyes locked stubbornly forward, she never even noticed the barrel catch on the edge of the shelf, its cork popping out and spilling a large splash of wine on her back. With a shriek, she turned to face her attacker, and there was the door. Eyes widening in horror, she stared at its arcane structure, it's musty, rotting wood and ancient hinges as it threatened to open again, allowing that smell to permeate the room followed by that horrid voice: 'mommy…mommy…mommy…'

She blinked and it was gone. Her quaking knees finally buckling and giving way, she collapsed to the ground. "Thank Celestia!" She gasped.

"Trixie!" Somepony screamed from above and behind her. A familiar, brown pony rocketed down the steps and popped into view, concern clouding his face.

"Sethy!" She gasped in honest relief, "How nice of you to join me!"
"What happened! Are you hurt! Why do you smell like you just came from a really wild party?"

"It's…" she looked over to where the door had been. Only there was nothing there but a blank patch of moss-covered stone wall. "It's nothing, nothing at all." She smiled, which seemed to reassure him. "Thanks for coming after me."

"Of course, Trix. Shall we rejoin the party?"

She grabbed a random barrel off one of the shelves and nodded, wrapping her foreleg around his. "Lead the way, my good sir."

Epilogue

The man spied on the tower through his high-powered binoculars, a grin crossing his Latino features. "Well done, li'l lady." He mumbled in a distinctly Australian accent, shoving the binoculars away in one of the dozens of pockets on his khaki jungle uniform. Tucking his wild black hair into his fedora, he stood, dusting his knees off just below his khaki shorts.

"Your majesty," he said suddenly, turning and bowing. The bushes rustled as a majestic white ali-corn trotted into view, her rainbow-colored mane billowing in an unseen wind, as it always did.

"You probably shoulda known better than to try and sneak up on me, dearie." He said with a smile.

"Ah, but one has to try. Otherwise, the impossible might become possible and one would never even know it." She replied, returning the smile. "What brings you to Equestria, Swarm?"

"Just checkin' up on one a' me brotheh's projects. I'm thinkin' he can go ahead and call this one a success."

"Good, good. You know, I really appreciate him stepping in for me. I do care for the welfare of all my little ponies, but…"

"Butcha can't be theah for 'em all the time, I know." He nodded, "Trust me, Celestia, it was his pleasure."

"I know." She sighed, "Now, why are you really here, Swarm?"

His smile faded. "I probably shoula known bettah than to try and hide somethin' from you, eh?"

"Almost certainly."

"I needed to talk to ya," he looked over his shoulder at the well-lit tower below, "Theah's somethin' Miss Trixie down theah doesn't know about her vision."

"Didn't your brother tell her what he told me? About the boundaries and the stories that sometimes come through?"

"Yeah, only 'cause he didn't want to worry ya oveh nothin', in case that's what it turned out t'be." He rubbed the back of his neck, "Thing is, random stories shootin' oveh the bordeh can't do the things that dream did. It can't talk to ya, it can't manipulate an ongoin' dream to make the charactehs do what my brotheh said they did."

"Are you saying something was pushing that dream? Forcing it to go the way it did? For what purpose?"

"Dunno," he shrugged. "T'mess with us, maybe. Don't even have a clue what could be powehful enough t'do that, besides yours truly, a' course. It ain't the first time, though. Somethin's shootin' things oveh the bordehs, turnin' the walls that hold reality togetheh inta swiss cheese, an' I don't have a clue who."

"Do you need my help?" She asked, concerned.

"Yes. Celestia, we might need t'go to war with this presence or whateveh it is soon. A war that big could spill oveh into a dozen worlds befoah it's oveh. I need t'know places like this: places of light, I mean, will be safe."

"You'll have me rally my defenders?" She scratched her chin with the edge of a glass slipper, "I guess I could have the homeguard hold some extra drills. Maybe step up recruitment and have the pegasi and unicorn leagues on standby."

"Yes, good, but also," he bit his lip, "I'd like you t'accept my help."

"Oh? What are you offering?"

"I can have three battalions a' Marines from various human nations on standby heah in th' morrow. They can be based in the woods, in outta-the-way places and such, strategically placed to act should the time come. Now, befoah you…"

"No." She interrupted him.

"…befoah you do that," he sighed exasperatedly, "These are professional, battle-hardened soldiers we're talkin' about. Now, if nothin' happens, they'll just hang out heah and be on theah merreh way afteh the war. But if things get as bad as they could, they'll be theah to step in and reinforce your ponies."

"And what will the presence of such men do to the very magic that keeps Equestria a 'place of light,' as you called it? Their thoughts could pollute the dreams of writers in dozens of universes! Would you have little girls in your home watching 'My Little Full Metal Jacket'?"

He looked at her, those ancient, tired eyes gazing into her with all the pity and apology of a thousand worlds. "And what would happen to those dreams if evereh pony was lined up against a wall and cut to ribbons with God-only-knows what poweh?"

Celestia clenched her teeth. "One battalion, and not a soul more."

"Thank ya."

"Is there anything else?"

"Yeah," he turned back to the tower, "Yer best line a' defense is down theah somewheah too, roight?"

"Yes, the Daughters of Harmony are the guests of honor at that party."

"Do y'know how well they can work togetheh? 'Specially against extreme adversity and in dire situations?"

"Well," she hunched her eyebrows in thought, "They do show a very decent amount of potential."

"I think it's time we put that to the test. We may need to call on them, especially if things escalate heah."

"Well, I guess I could organize something, maybe broker a deal with the God of Chaos...I'm pretty sure Miss Cheerilee's got some sort of trip planned for her class that I could work with…"

"You do that, Celestia," he rasped, "We may need evereh edge we can get in this war."

"I'm sure my little ponies will pass with flying colors."

"And if they don't?"

"They will, Swarm. Have faith."

A short distance away, a certain time-pony pulled his head out of a picnic basket. Straightening his bowtie and smoothing his chronically wild mane, he asked the pegasus sitting next to him: "Derpy dearest, did you ever get the feeling that you're missing out on a wonderful opportunity to learn something completely new about the true nature of reality?"

The grey pegasus looked at him, one eye focused on his face, the other on a tree just over his head. "Muffin?" She asked, offering one up.

"Umm…what flavor is it?"

"Blueberry."

"Eh, alroight."