“Wale ambao kulala milele hawezi kufa. Na wakati hata kifo akifa!” Zecora chanted from within her hut. Twilight had paused to look through the window. She hadn’t expected the zebra to be up at this hour. Zecora was stirring some strange brew in her cauldron again. It glowed with an unearthly blue phosphorescence, occasionally emitting flashes of yellow, and other strange colors, seemingly not of this earth.

“Na wakati hata kifo akifa!”

Twilight knocked on the door. Zecora let her in, noticing the tears in Twilight’s eyes.

“My little pony, your face so long, won’t you tell me what’s so wrong?”

Twilight told her. She told her about poor old Martingale, and the problems he had been having with the attacks. She told her about the crisis of faith she was having. About how she was doubting her world view about the existence of evil magic in this very Everfree Forest. She told her about how Princess Celestia, her nearly god-like mentor, was upset and how that had shaken Twilight to her core.

Zecora comforted her. Zecora soothed her. Zecora served up a bowl of warm stew for Twilight to eat, and that was fine too.

“My dear Twilight, I know you think it just, to put give your Princess all your trust. Your head will ache, your heart will break, if you think she cannot make mistakes. Princesses are ponies, don’t you sneer, even princesses can feel fear.”

“Really?” Twilight asked. She had already guessed from the letter from Celestia. But she liked to hear it from an older mare that she respected.

“Heaven forfend, but there’s no dispute, a princess’s power is not absolute.”

“I suppose I always knew that, Zecora. But, are you really saying Zecora... that Princess’s Celestia’s reign is in danger? Could Equestria really fall?”

“How shall I say this? I’ll be frank. You see the mark upon my flank.”

Twilight looked at Zecora’s cutie mark. She had never paid the zebra that much attention before. “I suppose it sort of looks like a sun. And abstraction of a sun. Actually, i kind of reminds me of Celestia’s...” She let the sentence hang in the air.

“I think I can tell from your reaction, that my mark is no mere abstraction. The sun can symbolize many things, I’m sure you’ve learned that in your school, but mine means more, it’s a symbol of courtly rule.”

“Zecora,” Twilight was shocked. “You’ve never told me about your past. I guessed you were some kind of refugee... but I didn’t even know what country you came from. I had no idea...I... I’m sorry.”

“Nevermind, say no more. It all happened long ago. It was a different problem, and my oration, wouldn’t help your situation.”

“I guess I couldn’t really expect it to have been,” Twilight said.

They both sat quietly to think. Twilight ate more of the stew.

“Well, I’d like to help, and take a look, can you tell me more about that book.”

“Sure,” Twilight said, setting down her bowl. “Celestia said it was in her private collection. She called it the Neckernomicon. She said...”

“Hakuna tena!” the zebra shouted. “Get out! Get out of my home now! Don’t you understand what you are doing?”

“Zecora? What do you mean? You’ve dropped your rhy...

“I know what I’m doing, do you think I’m stupid? Are you a foal? Now get out! Get out of my house now before you bring me ruin! Get out!”

Zecora physically shoved Twilight out of the decrepit hut, and began to chant again. She was very angry this time, and scared. She shook her fetishes around the whole house.

Twilight ran. She ran all the way back to Ponyville, now feeling worse than ever. She almost made it back to town when a shadow jumped out before her. Twilight screamed.

“Whoa nelly, it’s just me,” it was Applejack. “I saw you creeping off into the woods. This is about that Hoofington business, isn’t it? Now you just tell me everything.”

“Alright, I will. I’ll tell you everything,” the worried Twilight said. “Please, let’s just get back to my library. I wasn’t supposed to, but all tell you it all.”

It was near the town park, not that far from the library, when they heard the scream. It was a horrible, high pitched non-pony like scream that curdled the blood. It was coming from within the library. That was when they noticed the library was on fire. Orange flames glowed from within. They rushed forward when a massive black object crashed through one of the windows. It was the thing that had screamed. It was covered with green flame, Spike’s flame. It tried to run off, but tripped, smothered the flames, and ran off again. It disappeared in the blackness. There was something wholly unnatural about the way it ran away, its gait was all wrong.

Applejack would have ran after it, whatever it was. But she saw her friend Twilight running into the library, which was still on fire. She ran after her. With Twilight’s magic, she and Applejack soon put out the flames. It hadn’t been too bad, none of the books had been burned.

That’s when they found Spike; he came running towards them with tears streaming from his eyes.

“Oh Twilight,” he cried. His voice was still cracked from the earlier injury. “I’m so sorry.”

“What happened here, Spike?”

“That thing came in. That monster. It was looking for the book. Oh Twilight, it was horrible.”

“Did you get a good look at it?”

“I couldn’t get a good look at it, Twilight. It was in those big black robes. But it stood on it’s hind legs, Twilight. It was standing like ponies don’t stand. It was pulling books off the top shelves. I think I saw hands, Twilight. Hands like mine. It was awful. I tried to burn it and send it away. But it hit me and then ran. Oh I’m so sorry.”

“Did it get the book?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Then you did OK, kiddo. Let’s get you to bed.”

Twilight eventually calmed her baby dragon down. She got him upstairs and back in his basket.

By the time she got back down stairs, the four other ponies had arrived. They knew something was wrong.

“Spike said there was another letter,” Twilight said. “It came while I was gone.”

Dear Twilight,

I fear this is the last letter you will be receiving from me. I expect to send no more in the near future, so if you hear from me soon it may be another deception. I do not think they will ever allow me to leave for San Whoase. Please, try to contact my son there and tell him what has happened.

I tried to send you the idol. I believe they have intercepted it. They are again increasing their attacks. The last night was the worst. Most of my dogs have been killed. I think I managed to kill one of them with my rifle. In the morning they had fled again, and I stepped out my porch to see what I had hit. It looked as if it had almost completely decomposed overnight. I would have taken a picture, but there was little left to see. It was like it had dissolved. There were no bones. Only... fat, I suppose. Sinew, tendons, cartilage. Something that looked like, I suppose, gelatin. I’ve come to realize that, save for bone and hair, these are all of the things of a pony’s body that are the last to decay naturally. I do not know what happened to the bones and hair. It stank of death. In general, it had the basic outline of a pony, although it is hard to tell.

They will come again tonight. They have the idol now, and I had hoped that they would leave me alone. But I think they seek to destroy me. They are reaching out, consuming everything. I heard noises from the general direction of Hoofington last night. I think they have attacked the town itself. I think they mean to destroy the last of the evidence I’ve collected.

I deeply apologize for putting you in jeopardy. I hope that once I am gone, you will be left alone. Do not attempt a rescue. I am an old pony, and am prepared for my fate.

With deepest affection, your friend,

Horace W. Martingale

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