Author's Notes:

Wow, it's been five months since the last episode. But here it is, episode 24 has finally arrived! Just a quick note before you read. There is content within this chapter that is based off of two different fan animations. You should hopefully know what they are when you read those parts. I just want to let you know that this chapter was partially inspired by said animations with some creative liberties taken by yours truly. That being said, enjoy the episode.

"AAAAAAAAAH!"

The mortifying scream pierces the cold nighttime air, splitting the very fibers of the wind in twain, without so much as a warning. Having been gently resting in her soft bed, a young mare bolts upright underneath her flower print sheets. Eyes widening and now fully wakened from her wondrous slumber, Star Rider anxiously swivels her head back and forth, her eyes darting in their sockets as they scan the room to every side of her. Suddenly, the terrible cry of fear is followed by more of it's kind. A blinding light explodes in through the window to her right, the shock of which causes the mare to fall from her bed and to the rug below with a great thud.

Slowly regaining her composure, Star climbs back up and with great caution approaches the window. The flash of light has begun to fade, but to her surprise, is soon replaced by a new one; flickering and dancing in what should be a calm, dark, starry night. A lump forms in the deepest pit of her throat as she peers out over the town before her. A fog rolls into her mind, and the only remaining emotion within it is an unbridled fear the likes of which she has not felt since the first appearance of the dark stars.

She watches, body violently shaking not from the cold air but from the absolute terror she feels, as the deadly flames lick at the buildings, landscape, and corpses below with a lack of selectivity. Those of the town's residents who still remain in the realm of the living dash around the crumbling streets in a mass panic. Their reactions are instinct alone; driven by nothing else. Ponies that Star herself has known, ones that are normally so composed and full of life, have now been reduced to simplistic animals fleeing from an unknown source of misery.

It's incomprehensible.

Only hours ago, she had lain herself down for bed. The town was fine. Everypony was doing well. Even those who had lost thanks to this horrible war knocking on Equestria's door, such as town mailmare Derpy Hooves, were looking better these days. The streets were barren those couple hours back. Maybe a couple of stray ponies on their way home. Yet now, as she gallops across the room, through the doorway, and down the staircase to the lower floor, she finds the entirety of Ponyville in chaos.

As she reaches the bottom step, the entire front of the house suddenly explodes inward. A flaming ball of wreckage is blown into the house as Star falls back and shrieks. Tears stream down her cheeks as she lay paralyzed upon the steps, too afraid to move another inch. More screams echo around her, and a sudden bravery overcomes her. She remembers what her sister had always told her in the past. "Bravery is not the absence of fear. Rather, it is doing what is right despite the fear one feels."

Determined now, she wipes the tears from her eyes and stands to her hooves. She glances over at the wreckage that had invaded her living room and within it sees the town flag. Her thoughts travel to her friends and family, and of course the inborn desire to protect them in this time of danger. Her mission clear, she runs out from the gaping hole and looks around. It's then that she comes face to face with the pain of reality. A truth she had been subconsciously telling herself wasn't possible.

Deep down she knew they were behind it. Now her fears have been realized as she looks above her. Flying there in mid-air, encapsulated with magical fields, are the Agents of Oblivion. Those of which she and her friends already know, as well as many more they have yet to learn about. They fire blasts of dark magic at the panicking ponies below them, leaving the fallen, broken, and bloodied bodies of their victims littering the streets. A scene straight out of a horror novella.

The normal night sky has been replaced as well. The dark stars line the blackness, reminding Star of the one event that had started all of this madness so long ago. Then, stepping out from behind the Agents, he comes. Eyes glowing a deep red, fangs bared, and a horrible laugh escaping his throat; a fully recovered Oblivion trots along the air itself. Grinning maliciously, he orders his Agents around as they attack Ponyville with an unsettling power. He then sees Star frozen in place beneath him and smirks wickedly before motioning at one of the unknown Agents.

Not even waiting for the horror that's to come, she runs. She runs far away in the opposite direction. Her courage has left her. Her determination has faded. She no longer even remembers the objective she had been so pressed to fulfill moments before. After a time of panicked galloping, she arrives at the town's central square. Seeing something close by, she comes to a screeching halt and turns to find out what it is that has caught her eye.

Laid out as a message from the villains are the mutilated bodies of her friends, her family, and many other innocent mares, stallions, and foals. The very sight of the carnage, of the completely destroyed ponies, makes Star sick to her stomach. She can't help it, and begins to violently throw up. The sickening odor emanating from her loved ones is the most horrible thing she's ever experienced. Her crying intensifies as the laughter of the Agents around her brings her back to reality. Once more she bolts off, leaving the borders of the town entirely. She doesn't know where she's going to go, but she can't stay here. Not with all the depressing memories of her friends now clouding her mind.

After what seems like hours of running, she reaches a small village nearby. It too has felt the destruction and pain of the Agent's attack. She can't run anymore. Out of breath, Star slows herself down and tries to find somewhere she can hide for now. Anywhere will work. Almost as if the universe were on her side, she soon finds a house that has barely been touched by the attack, and as she runs up, she finds it luckily unlocked. Running in, she bolts the door behind her and passes out on the soft carpet, falling into a tearful sleep.

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"Star!? Oh my Celestia, Star Rider wake up! Please wake up!"

Still groggy and tired from her long run out of Ponyville, the young mare slowly begins to open her eyes as she hears the worried voice echoing directly above her. It takes a moment for her sight to focus itself, but as it does, she releases a powerful gasp as tears of joy begin to well up in her eyes. She wastes not a second longer before reaching her hooves out and pulling the other mare down to her in a thankful embrace. It seems like at least one pony she loved made it out.

Managing to escape Star's unholy strength, the mare smiles and gets back to a full stand, helping Star do so as well. Her normally gravity-defying, poofy pink mane is now tied back straight into a ponytail. She has a deep, bleeding gash across her left eye, which itself is shut in pain. A dark cloak with an equally inconspicuous black saddlebag underneath contrast her bright coat. This isn't the Pinkie Pie that Star has grown to know and care for in the recent weeks.

"I'm glad you're safe," she tells Star quietly, as if worried they might be overheard by Oblivion's followers, "now listen close. Equestria's gone to Tartarus in a tablecloth and almost everyone we know and love are dead. Fortunately there are still a few of us resisting against Oblivion's reign."

"A...resistance? But this just happened, didn't it?" Star questions, her head cocking to the side in confusion at the very thought.

"N...no. Star, are you alright? How long were you sleeping here? The attack happened two days ago now."

Two days!? She's been out for two days straight? She knew that she had exhausted herself escaping town, but she didn't think she had run that far away. Maybe that combined with the dread she had felt from everything she was suddenly thrust into, however. It is possible that the shock of all that overloaded the young mare and caused her to need to recharge. Looking up at Pinkie, she just stares in silence as if to ask for explanation. Seeing this, the pink pony understands and with a mournful sigh, begins to tell her what had happened.

"Two days ago at midnight, Oblivion and his Agents suddenly attacked Ponyville. They came out of nowhere and began raining a hail storm of flames and fear. The head Agents came first and abducted all of our friends and family and publicly executed them. That's when the panicking truly began. I can't say for sure why neither of us were taken with them though. I awoke to the screams and began to search around. I joined up with Apple Bloom and Derpy Hooves and we began trying to evacuate as many of the citizens as we could. But the Agents kept up their attack. We saw so many die. It was terrible."

We fled town ourselves, but found that Oblivion's forces were attacking everywhere. So we eventually ran to my family's rock farm and holed up in the mines with them. Over the course of the next couple of days, we would go out periodically to save as many survivors as we could. During this time...Apple Bloom was killed by Strangehooves. Derpy and I watched in terror as he injected her with serums that enhanced her pain as he tortured her. She died in the most painful way possible...she...she was..."

Star reaches out to comfort the mare as tears come to her bright blue eyes. Sobbing, Pinkie swallows hard and continue, "Apple Bloom was flayed alive. Derpy and I escaped with those who we were able to save. That was about 12 hours ago now. A few hours ago we began our most recent venture out. Ponyville was barren, aside from the...the bodies. So we began to branch out. Each of our teams were sure to have a unicorn with them for the purpose and ease of teleporting our groups back to the mines."

"There are others then!? With you right now!?"

"Yes. They're just outside. I noticed this house was untouched and came in to investigate and search. It was lucky that I found you because of this. I thought you must have died as well. Now come on. We can't stay here much longer. We can't risk being caught."

Nodding, Star accepts Pinkie's help to her hooves and follows her out into the streets of the small village. A small group of ponies have begun to gather not too far away. Amongst them are Captain Scootaloo, Vinyl Scratch, and even the scientist Doctor Whooves. As Pinkie and Star rush up to them, Vinyl sees Star and trots up to give her a delighted hug. The two don't know each other too well, but their past exploits have allowed them to form a bond, even if only a small one.

"Okay, is that everypony we could find?" She then asks Pinkie and the others. Everyone nods solemnly and with a nod back, the d.j. begins to summon up her magic, teleporting all of them away. As the flash of the spell fades, Star sees herself surrounded by the bustle of a large group of survivors. And even more extraordinary is the beauteous crystal covered cavern surrounding them all. So this is on the Pie family's land? It's amazing to imagine Pinkie growing up around all of this.

"Ok, get everypony to the medics," the pink mare tells the others as she takes Star personally in the other direction. They come upon a large tent set up in a corner of the cavern and enter. Inside Star is surprised to find a group of ponies she would've never imagined to be working together. Derpy Hooves is there of course, but along with her are magic professor Moondancer, sweet maker Bon Bon, Babe Chenko, Wonderbolt Brightwing Blitz and her brother Script Scroll, as well as a few ponies she doesn't know, who she is soon introduced to as being Adagio Dazzle, Bulk Biceps, Tree Hugger, Sugar Belle, and even a griffon couple named Gilda and Greta.

Despite it being the most eclectic group she's probably ever seen, she feels safe and at home amongst them. They're survivors of this terrible violence. They've probably faced the loss of many friends and family as well. In fact, it's practically guaranteed. The group happily welcomes Star in and begins to explain more of the situation to her. She learns that all the major cities of Equestria were hit simultaneously, and that Oblivion's forces moved out from there. Of course, only one question comes to the young Star's mind in lieu of all the events.

"But...with all my friends dead...what happened to the Elements of Harmony we've gathered? Do we still have them?"

Looking around nervously, the ponies struggle to find the words. Stepping forward, Babe rests a hoof on Star's shoulder and tells her, "The Agents got to the Elements when they took our friends. They...destroyed them."

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It's now been two weeks since that fateful day when Star joined the Equestrian Resistance Forces. To her surprise, they've somehow been able to remain hidden deep within those gorgeous caverns below the Pie Family Rock Farm, living off of minimal supplies rationed out daily. Despite all the odds being against them, they've survived. But they know that they can't do this for too much longer. The supplies will soon run short, and eventually be gone completely. Even with Star now in their group, they've practically run out of options. It seems that almost no one is left living in all of Equestria by this point. But what to do next?

It seems like an impossible question to answer. What can they do? Oblivion's forces have won. They've taken over the entirety of Equestria and leveled it. Nopony even knows where they've set up base, or what they plan to do now that the majority of the country's population has been utterly wiped out. Without the necessary knowledge and planning, they can't make rash decisions and go out there to attack. They'd die in droves. They have to proceed carefully and safely. Even if it means waiting.

However, it seems fate had other plans. Just yesterday they sent out their final expedition group, hoping to find even just one last survivor if they could. The group led by Moondancer managed to find the chieftain of the southern buffalo tribe, Strong Heart. She claimed to be the last of the buffalo left alive, and that she had been following those who murdered her friends and family ever since. She told them that she had learned exactly where Oblivion's base was, and just needed a large group to help take them out.

Naturally, this seemed too good to be true. So the group brought her back to the base with the intention of imprisoning or even executing her if they found her to be lying. Fortunately for her, Pinkie Pie vouched for her innocence. It seemed that the two were long time friends, which really wasn't that surprising to anyone. She's friends with practically anypony and everypony. Some weren't too sure about trusting her, but agreed to go along with the choice of the leaders for the time being.

Babe, who had taken full charge of the entire group, decided that they shouldn't be wasting any more time. If they do so, more innocent ponies could die. Not only the survivors out there they weren't able to find, but also any prisoners that Oblivion and his forces might have taken. And so the leaders have been planning around the clock, and despite their small numbers, they're ready to head out later today. They're ready to take back Equestria.

Sitting against one of the crystals, which gave off a very unusual and bright glow, Star worries about this plan. They don't have enough ponies to make this work. They don't have the Elements. This is a suicide mission. She's tried to get Babe to cancel it, but he seems blinded by the little bit of hope they've been given. She almost wants to outright refuse this mission, to stay behind. But she knows that it'd just mean she'd be cowering in these caves while her friends went out to die. That wouldn't help anyone. But neither will her going with them. It's a lose-lose situation. No matter what way she looks at it, Oblivion's won and there's nothing they can do about it.

Looking up at the sound of oncoming hoofsteps, Star sees Adagio approaching with a gentle smile. Since arriving she had learned that the mare was the fiancée of Script Scroll, and that prior to all these horrible events she was a fairly popular lounge singer in Manehattan. As she comes up, however, Star tries her hardest to ignore the mare, just knowing that she was probably sent here to try and persuade her into seeing things from the others' point of view. However, Adagio's comforting words surprise the young mare.

"You're not the only one who sees how stupid this plan is you know."

"Then why is everyone going along with it?" Star angrily mutters under her breath.

"Because they know that there's no other options. What are we supposed to do? Just sit here and eventually starve because of our lack of food? Or do we go out fighting?"

"But it wouldn't mean anything to do that!" Star suddenly screams, rising to her hooves and staring Adagio directly in the face, "we can't win! And there's nopony out there to inspire or anything, so what's the point!? All this will do is kill us quicker and more painfully! My friends died, all of the Elements were destroyed, and everything's gone to shit! So excuse me if I'm not thrilled to run out there just to commit suicide!"

"You mean...you don't know?"

"Know what?"

Looking shocked, Adagio stares for a moment before shaking her head and explaining, "They didn't destroy all the Elements of Harmony. One was never found, remember? If you can find the Element pertaining to you, then there is still a chance. It may be slim, but it's still there."

"How is one Element going to stop the combined power of Oblivion's forces? He's one of, if not THE most powerful magic user in history," Star complains.

"You're wrong. There was always one stronger; Princess Twilight Sparkle. She had an inborn magical prowess the likes of which had never been seen before, and combined with the power of the Element of Magic, she was unstoppable."

"BUT SHE WAS STOPPED! PRINCESS TWILIGHT VANISHED AND HASN'T BEEN SEEN FOR NEARLY SIXTEEN YEARS! EITHER SHE ABANDONED EQUESTRIA, OR OBLIVION TOOK HER OUT!"

"Do you really believe that, Star? You've heard the tales right? Princess Twilight accomplished amazing things in her time. She even created some of the most powerful new magic known to ponykind. Do you truly believe that Oblivion could stop her so easily?"

"Then she abandoned us..."

"...no. I don't believe that either," Adagio interrupts, smiling at the now crying Star, "I met her once. She helped my sisters and I, even if we didn't realize it right away. At the time it may have seemed unfair, but with time, we saw the light it brought."

"AND WHERE ARE THESE SISTERS OF YOURS THEN!? WHY AREN'T THEY HELPING US!? THEY'RE DEAD, RIGHT!?"

Right away Star seems to regret her words. Looking up at Adagio with a sorrowful, apologetic expression, she is surprised to find the mare looking back down at her with understanding as she replies, "Yes, they are. I watched Sonata and Aria be torn limb from limb in front of my eyes..."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean..."

"...but even though it destroyed me inside, I never gave up. I kept fighting for them, and because of that, I found this group. Is it stupid to go to battle with forces much stronger than out own? Is it foolish to fight a losing battle? Yes, it is. But in this situation, there is no better alternative. I too see how stupid this plan is. Many of us do. But we're going to fight anyways, for all those we lost."

"But, what about Princess Twilight? If you don't think she abandoned us or was defeated, where is she? Why did she suddenly disappear one day, and why did her friends begin dying soon after?" Star quietly asks.

"I don't know," Adagio says, lowering her head. "I wish I had all the answers, but I don't. But even though I don't know where Princess Twilight is, I know one thing for sure. She will return in time to stop Oblivion. And do you want to know a secret? She once told me, almost sixteen years ago now, that she wanted to train an apprentice. That she had found a sweet little pegasus filly who..."

"But that doesn't make sense! How could Princess Twilight train a pegasus in magic!?"

"I never said she wanted to train her apprentice in magic, now did I? She wanted to train her apprentice in friendship," Adagio explains.

"But wait, that doesn't fit. Isn't it Princess Twilight who used to say that friendship is magic?"

Laughing, Adagio pats Star's head proudly and replies, "Yes she did. And it can overcome the greatest of odds. Pain, sorrow, death, and even time itself. She said that whenever Equestria faces its greatest problems, a friendship of generations is the only thing that can save it. So tell me Star, what will you do?"

Smiling as tears cascade down her face, Star thinks back to all of her close friends. Bri, Chupa, Agelian, Scatter, Terra, and Devlin. Pinkie, Spike, and Fluttershy. All of the newer friends, all of her family. Everyone she knew and loved who died. They may be gone, but their strength remains inside of her. And with a new found confidence in her heart, she tells Adagio, "I'll win".

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Eyes slowly fluttering open, fogged mind returning to clarity, Star sits upright in her bed. Looking around for a second, she realizes where she is and jumps in surprise, falling to the floor. Beads of sweat freckle the entirety of her face as she leaps back to her hooves and bolts to the window, only to find that Ponyville is just waking up for a brand new, fire-free day. It was all a dream, no, a nightmare. Fifth time this month too. They've become ever more frequent as of late, and it's been harder to tell which is truly a dream, and which is reality. It's enough to have driven her insane, yet she remains levelheaded, knowing she needs to keep her sense for the upcoming battles with Oblivion's forces.

Yet even among all of the other nightmares she's suffered, this one seemed the most real. The vivid detail and length of it. The pain and sorrow she felt, and the others that she talked to. Everything about it just seemed like it was really happening. How can something THAT real be all in her mind? It terrifies her. Even going to bed these days seems like a bad idea. Maybe this is all because of Oblivion. Could his influence be seeping in? The very thought sends chills down her spine, and she decides to just ignore it and head downstairs for breakfast.

Ever since this all began back on March 12th, she's had this weird tingling feeling crawling along her back. She could never quite place what she was so afraid of. It just didn't make any sense. They were the destined heroes, right? They can stop Oblivion's reign of terror...right? Yet as time has progressed since that day, everything has begun to come into a clearer focus for this little pony.

Princess Aurora was wrong. She and her new friends aren't anything special. They're ordinary ponies thrust into an extraordinary situation. Yes they've gathered most of the Elements of Harmony, but anypony could do that. Anypony with a good heart displaying some kind of admirable trait could easily summon up one of them. It's happened many times in the past, and will continue to happen in the future.

All of this began when she left her sister’s home to make it on her own. She figured that she knew what to do with her life. Yet after everything she's been through, she's starting to doubt that. Two days after she left, the dark stars came. Mysterious entities in the sky that seemed to herald in the end of days. It was only through numbers that she and her friends defeated the possessed stage actor Sevulva Star. They foolishly believed back then that they had some kind of destined power; that they had won.

Only a month later, on the order from Princess Aurora, they traveled to Canterlot in order to meet with the family of the long missing Princess Twilight Sparkle. During the meet, they quickly discovered that the princess's mother, Twilight Velvet, had become the conduit for Oblivion's dark energies. She was possessed very much in the same way as Sevulva had been. They did manage to save her, yet in the end it didn't do anything to stop the forces of evil from continuing on in their plans.

On May 21st, Agelian discovered the first of the Elements of Harmony; the Element of Faith. It, with the others, had mysteriously disappeared from the Tree of Harmony in the Everfree Forest long ago. Now it had been found, but put them no closer to victory. Two months went past and they met Trixie Lulamoon, helping her save Canterlot from a pack of enraged ursas that she herself had accidentally let loose. They stayed to help fix up Canterlot after that, and returned home twelve days later. Bri disappeared from town at that time.

Tensions began to rise in their little group. She and Terra began to fight; arguing over what to do and how to handle things. Luckily for them, Chupa was there. She acted as a mediator between the two sides and calmed everypony down. This allowed the filly to discover the Element of Peace. Soon after that, Equestria's Got Talent came to town. Yet during the event, Oblivion returned in physical form and murdered Trixie. They managed to ward him off, but they couldn't truly stop the evil being. Thanks to these past events, Terra began to work alongside Fluttershy to create the Ponyville Militant Task Force. Another wasted effort that hasn't done anything worth noting.

As Star pours herself a bowl of cereal, she thinks about how it was around this time that she met a mare named Lyra Heartstrings. It was a complete chance encounter that allowed her to travel through time itself and into the distant past. She met the six heroes of legend; Twilight Sparkle and her five friends. But yet again, she had to face off against Oblivion. And once again, even though they technically won, the feeling of victory never came to her. She returned to her own time and found a lead that helped find Bri with the Brotherhood of Silent Pathfinders. They had a lead on the long missing Pinkie Pie. And due to a party Bri and her new friend Scatter planned that day, the former received the Element of Joy.

So many things continued to happen in the lives of these ponies. Things that would seem astronomically impossible. They solved a murder mystery at the LaDix mansion outside of Transylmania. They located and gained the help of the God of Chaos, Discord, who was discovered to be Oblivion's brother and the greatest unicorn mage of all time, Starswirl the Bearded. He sacrificed himself in a wasted effort to stop his brother. Everyone was ponynapped and then rescued soon after by Devlin and Meteor Spark. Devlin got the Element of Determination then. But in the end, it was just a distraction so that the Agents of Oblivion could kidnap Princess Aurora.

The friends chose to split up for a time after this. Some of them remained behind in Ponyville to help search for the princess. However, some of the others decided to go to the Detrot City Music Festival so that they could try and calm themselves down after all the pain that had occurred. It didn't work, however, as Agelian was possessed by Oblivion during the trip and unwillingly murdered his own marefriend, Dinky. When they finally reached Detrot, the grief-stricken Agelian decided to help the musician Vinyl Scratch rescue her own marefriend, Octavia Melody. They also managed to stop an attack on the city by Oblivion's "Agent of Destruction", The Harad.

The Agent told them that they had the remaining Elements of Harmony. She realizes, of course, that when looking back on that it was a lie. A simple distraction to try and dishearten them. And at that time, it did really cause a hit to their overall morale. Shortly after that they had to find the missing Derpy Hooves, who had gone on a trip with the Apple Family without telling anypony in order to clear her mind after losing her daughter. Terra and a young doctor named Zebasiz Shadowbane stopped another of the Agents, and a psychotic doctor, named Hugo Strangehooves. Terra then earned the Element of Honor, and the body of the now deceased Captain of the Royal Guard, Everclear, was discovered.

Then, only a week ago now on November 25th, everything changed for the better. Bri and Scatter went on a two day mission across Equestria on behalf of the Brotherhood. And during that time, they ended up finding and recruiting Pinkie Pie back to their side. They were promoted to be Ponyville leaders of the Brotherhood for their efforts and success. And now, well now it seems like things are starting to look up. At least, she hopes. Looking down at the bowl of milk-drenched cereal, and the spoon resting in her hoof, she wonders if this sudden peace will last, and if Pinkie Pie will really be able to help them stop Oblivion. Only time will tell.

Everything she and her friends have gone through has affected her physically, emotionally, and even mentally. Before all of this began, she was confident and strong. She believed in herself and was ready to be her own pony. But now...well now she isn't entirely sure that it was the right choice. She's become much more quiet and timid around her friends, even seeming to fade into the background most of the time. Since the fight with Terra, she hasn't wanted to say or do anything that could end up going horribly wrong for her or those she loves. She can't even think of much worse right now than causing them pain because of her mistakes.

She looks over to her living room. It's normal of course. No burning rubble having exploded in through her front door. She hears no screams of terror echoing through Ponyville's streets. Everything is as normal and uneventful as it could be. She yawns quietly to herself and gets up, leaving the breakfast sitting on the table behind her. She walks over to her living room sofa and sits down, thinking and doing not much else. She can't shake this eerie feeling that the dream was more than just that; like it meant something. Could it really be....no! Shaking her head violently, she yells at herself, "IT WAS JUST A DREAM! IT WASN'T REAL! THEY CAN'T HURT YOU ANYMORE!"

But she stops at that last statement, freezing in fear as her eyes widen. That's a lie. Oblivion and his forces are still out there, and they can do a lot to hurt the little mare. She can't handle all this pain. She feels like she's going to just fall apart. Deciding to scrap the cereal, she decides that she needs to just head out and clear her mind. Go to work, enjoy the company of others, and just forget about this horrible nightmare.

Getting back up, she puts the cereal into the fridge for later and grabs a blueberry muffin from the basket atop her fridge. She then grabs her uniform, stuffs it into her saddlebag which she then puts on, and heads out the door. As she steps into town, the bright morning sun rising from the East temporarily blinds her. And that's when it comes to her. She remembers back in school she was once told that some ponies held this belief of dreams being able to prophesize the future. It had always seemed kind of silly to her back then, but now...could it be? Could she have been seeing visions of what could be coming if Oblivion isn't stopped in time? And if so, can she and her friends truly make this nightmare just that? A simple dream that won't come to pass?

"Forget work. Some things are just more important," she says as she changes her direction, heading now towards Bri's house so that she can begin gathering her friends. They'll meet at the library, and they'll discover the meaning behind this nightmare. They have to find out what's going on here, or Oblivion will have won.

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"So..." Star speaks up, looking around the main room of the library at her friends who have gathered. It's almost surreal to see them all again after having just looked upon their corpses in her dream. Composing herself as the others exchange a confused glance, she continues, "I bet you're curious as to why I've asked all of you here this morning."

She awaits an answer from one of the eleven of them; Bri and Scatter, Agelian, Terra, Chupa, Devlin, Grace, Fluttershy, Spike, Pinkie, and Dr. Zebasiz are all standing there before her. She just went out and gathered everypony that she could possibly think of at a moments notice. Those who she knows could be of great help to her during this time of need. Granted she still isn't entirely sure of what she even needs assistance with, as the dream wasn't wholly clear. Even if one of them were able to decode her nightmare, what would they actually be able to do? Where would they go from there?

"The thought had indeed crossed my mind," Grace groggily replies as she wipes the sleep from her eyes.

"I'll get right to the point then. Well...I had a nightmare last night."

Everyone turns to face each other in a sudden confusion, then at once look back at Star herself. They've had nightmares before. Everypony has. This certainly isn't that big of a deal, right? Sighing at her friends reactions, Star elaborates, "I was haunted by this nightmare the entire night. Yet, unlike most dreams, this felt real. It was heavily detailed and intricate, as if more of a vision than a true dream. When I awoke this morning, I could remember the entire thing with shocking clarity. This can't be mere coincidence. I think that something or someone is trying to tell me something important."

"Star..." Agelian quietly says, an expression of worry etched upon his face, "it was just a dream. You're thinking way too much into things, and only making these connections because you want to."

Nodding glumly, Chupa adds, "Yeah Star, don't worry about it. We've been through Hell and back lately with this war against Oblivion. You're subconsciously making connections that don't even exist. You WANT it to mean something because you want us to be closer to taking Oblivion down. Some miracle breakthrough and all. But I just don't believe that it's going to happen. At least not like this, and not anytime soon."

Damn Chupa and her prodigal intellect are the first thoughts in Star's mind when suddenly, she and everypony else are surprised as Pinkie suddenly yells out, "NO, WAIT!" Bouncing around the room with a huge grin on her face, the pink mare giggles a little as everyone's attention turns towards her. Stopping, she releases the wide grin and explains her sudden outburst and excited actions.

"This could actually be something, everypony! After I had left for exile over fifteen years ago, I met a lot of different ponies. I heard things that I would've never believed before. At one point there was a strange stallion who taught me about something he referred to as precognitive dreams. Couldn't Star have had one of those, huh huh HUH!?"

"Precogni-what now? I've never heard of such a thing," Grace grumpily replies, still showing signs of being tired this early in the morning.

Stepping forward suddenly, Zeb nods and with a smirk says, "No, Pinkie's got something here. Precognitive dreams are a phenomenon in which somepony is actually able to subconsciously predict future events during the course of REM sleep. It's very rare though, and as such I've never personally seen or heard of a real life case of this in my lifetime. But it is definitely possible."

"RIGHT!" Pinkie shouts, "some of the ponies I've met even call it The Sight! It's like a super power! Star, you can see the future!"

"Now hold up just a moment everyone. Let's say that this is true. I'm not saying it is, but just for arguments sake, if Star is really able to predict the future with this precognitive dream, what good will this do us? Can a power like this actually help us defeat Oblivion and his Agents? Will it stop the dark stars from returning? Was there even anything particularly important about this dream that might give us a clue? You haven't actually told us anything about this nightmare, Star," Terra says.

Once more, every eye in the room turns to Star, expecting a reasonable answer to this very good question. To be honest, however, Star herself doesn't really have a good answer. She doesn't know if this can truly stop Oblivion. She only knows what she saw. But she should tell them all what she did see. Solemnly looking down, she tells them everything that happened in her nightmare. From the destruction of Ponyville to the force holed up in the Pie Family mines planning a rebellion against Oblivion's rule.

"Wait...you mentioned sitting against a bright, glowing crystal, right?" Fluttershy suddenly calls out. The loud, outspoken question from the normally quiet pony surprises everyone, causing them to nearly jump in place. Star nods and the golden coated mare continues, "That sounds just oh so familiar for some reason. Yet for the life of me I can't place why. Maybe it's because I was in my cottage for so long, and have yet to leave Ponyville much since, but I can't remember..."

"THAT'S IT!"

Another outburst, this one succeeding in causing many of the group to pop up in shock. They look over at Pinkie who once again is grinning from ear to ear while giggling and...vibrating intensely. Terra sighs and asks if she can explain herself. So, she turns to face Fluttershy and Spike and yells out at the top of her lungs, "THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE! Remember how it glows brightly in the sun!? It was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO pretty!"

"Omigosh, she's right!" Fluttershy exclaims, it all now coming back to her, "maybe the answer to your dream is in the Crystal Empire. I mean, I don't know for sure, but that glowing crystal could definitely be pointing you there, right?"

"Well, we can't all go," Scatter speaks up, having been completely silent up until this point.

"What do you mean?" Star asks.

"It isn't like before. Princess Aurora returned to us, remember? She's being closely monitored, so we can all go, can't we?" Devlin asks.

"No, we can't," Scatter insists, "some of us need to stay back and protect Ponyville. Star said that in her dream Ponyville had been attacked. The town was burning and many ponies had been horribly mutilated. If all of us go to the Crystal Empire with her, it could easily spell the end of Ponyville for good. That alone could lead into an all out attack on Equestria as a whole. It'd possibly lead to her dream coming true, which we can't afford to allow."

"Well then, if we're splitting up can we have Star stay here? I really don't want her to be in any more danger," Grace calmly says, looking with sincere worry at her younger sister.

Walking over to Grace, Star smiles and takes her hooves in her own. She assures her that she'll be alright, telling her, "I need to go, sis. It was my nightmare, my sight. I need to be there in order to lead us and look out for anything else that might be able to remind me of what happened in the dream. Don't worry, I'll be fine. My friends will protect me."

Walking up to her best friend, Bri nuzzles up against Star and with a smile volunteers to join her in the Crystal Empire. Scatter steps forth as well, and lets Grace know that they will do anything and everything in their power to make sure Star remains safe and comes back to her. Thanking them, Star turns to the others and asks both Fluttershy and Pinkie if they can come as well, considering the two of them know the Empire, having been there before in the past.

Nodding, Terra gallantly adds, "That means that I, Agelian, Devlin, Chupa, Grace, Spike, and Zeb will remain behind. We'll do our best around here; keep our eyes out for any problems and all. If the need arises, we will protect the town with our lives. As for the rest of you, make sure you all come home. All of you. We can't afford to lose anypony else to the enemy. We...we can't afford anymore heartbreak. Don't just protect Star during this journey, protect each other."

The five friends set to go to the Crystal Empire nod, strong determination shining through their confident smiles. Laughing slightly, Bri then notes, "Wait, we should split up evenly, six and six. That means we need one more to join us. Somepony who would be really helpful. How about you Zeb? You know more about precognitive dreams than any of us, and as a doctor, you do have some medical training, right? That could prove useful."

"Well, I was more of a physician of the mind, not the body. But you are right. I have had some bodily medical training as well. I'd be honored to join the rest of you."

Everyone looks at each other, now equally split in their missions. The last time their group was in this position they lost an innocent young mare to Oblivion. Agelian can't help but remember those moments more so than the others. This thought does of course worry them all, but they understand that this is their only option right now. It could be the key they need to finally gaining an advantage in this war. This dream, it can't just be a mere coincidence, right? It has to mean something.

*********************************************************************************************

The Friendship Express grinds to a screeching halt at the gorgeous, crystal-covered station at the head of the empire. Unlike the cold, barren, frozen tundra that surrounds it, the land is covered in a bright emerald-green grass. Due to a magical field that surrounds the entirety of the empire, the heat of the sun is magnified just enough to allow it to live under an eternal summer-like state. Because of this, the Crystal Empire is home to many a unique fauna and flora. The pies made with the crystal fruit alone as to die for, according to the testaments of both Pinkie and Fluttershy on the ride up.

Unfortunately, they aren't there to take in the sights or taste the delicious crystal empire food. They have only one goal in mind during their trip, and that's decoding the cryptic precognitive nightmare Star had suffered under just the night before. If they can achieve that, it might just help them get ahead in the war against Oblivion's forces. If not, then they might all be doomed to the absolute destruction of Equestria.

Yet despite their main goal clear in mind, none of them truly know what to do now that they've arrived. As the six of them step off of the train and onto the platform, they turn to face each other with a questioning expression. Even Pinkie and Fluttershy, the only two of their group who truly know the area, don't know where to go from here. It's not something they've ever had to deal with before. Who would they even begin to ask about this? Most ponies would laugh in their faces at the mention of a dream prophesying the future. They'd look like loons.

"Star, did you see anything else in your dream that might relate to the Crystal Empire?" Pinkie asks, hoping that they might be able to piece everything together.

"That's the thing," she replies, "I don't know. I've never really been interested in studying up on this part of Equestria. Remember, not even the crystal in my dream made me think of here. I honestly have no idea what to do at this point. The only thing I know about the Crystal Empire is that it was host to one of the worst dictators the world has ever seen; King Sombra. Other than that, I'm pretty much clueless."

Defeated, Pinkie Pie hangs her head and sinks into the shadows of her friends, pulling out a cinnamon bun and quietly eating it. Noticing this, Fluttershy goes to comfort her friend. She knows that after coming out of exile, Pinkie only wants to be helpful again. Star sees this as well and encouragingly tells her, "It was a good idea though. You had the right idea for sure, it's just that I don't know as much as I wish I did. I'd suggest we begin asking around."

And so the six of them begin to ask the other ponies, both crystal and otherwise, on the platform if they've heard anything lately about strange dreams. They question everypony around them for what seems like hours, but to no luck. Not a single pony knows anything, and at this point some of them are beginning to get annoyed by this strange group of tourists questioning them. Leaving the platform, they begin to head into the city when Fluttershy speaks up once again.

"Wait, what about Shining Armor? He should still be at the castle, right?"

"Hey, that's right!" Pinkie replies, bouncing up and down in excitement, "Shining Armor can definitely help us! If anypony knows what's going on in the empire, it'd definitely be him!"

"At this point, we probably don't have any other choices," Scatter adds, tired himself from the questioning. Bri snuggles up to him and nods in agreement, and soon everyone else joins in. That's their plan then, to head to the Crystal Castle and see if the prince has any useful information for them. Smiling, the six of them begin to trot up the streets towards the center of the empire where the giant, glowing castle rests.

As they walk along, almost all of them look around them in awe. The strikingly beautiful sights all around are just so much to take in. The glittering crystal ponies walking around, the shining buildings made of pure crystal. Everything is just so breathtaking. Yet to their dismay, they don't have the time to stop and look at the scenery. Maybe when they finish finding out what they need to, one way or the other, they can relax for a short time and enjoy the empire before heading back.

Of course, all of that is just hope. Nothing is ever guaranteed in an age of strife and war, especially not happiness. As they walk down the road, the number of ponies steadily increases. Fillies and colts run around laughing and waving flags. A mare walks by while munching on a delicious looking corn cob. And a couple of stallions are comparing hoof-weaved straw hats. This is not at all what they expected to see. But then again, they can't really complain, now can they? It's happy and joyous, as if the dark stars and Oblivion's forces hadn't even affected the empire. But then again...with that magic field, maybe they hadn't. Maybe just a happy thought.

Soon the six of them reach the center of town to find a large group of stalls, ponies running and playing everywhere, and cheering coming from not too far off. There's even a pair of ponies playing some weirdly shaped instruments that seem to get Pinkie REALLY excited. Fluttershy smiles as well, as if remembering something from the past. Yet only they seem to understand what's happening. Instead of interrupting their excitement, however, Star stops a nearby mare walking past and asks, "What's going on today?"

"Oh, it's the Crystal Fair," the mare replies in a solemn, monotone voice. She doesn't carry any food with her, nor flags or even a simple smile. For a pony in the middle of a big fair like this, how can she be so down? Pinkie instantly notices the unhappiness of the mare and bolts over at an unexpected speed, knocking Star down to her flank and surprising the sorrowful mare. For once, the pink pony has a very serious expression on her face as she asks the mare a very serious question.

"Who are you and why is that smile upside down!?"

Taken aback by Pinkie's frankly rude introduction, the mare rolls her eyes and grunts out, "There's nothing to be happy about here in the Crystal Empire. These ponies all live a fanciful lie, forgetting how horrible of a past this ground is stained with. And the Crystal Fair...it only makes things worse. And my name is Amber Leaf, by the way."

"We're sorry if we were being too pushy," Scatter says, pulling Pinkie back, "we've been facing a lot of pain lately ourselves. It's actually why we've come here today. We're trying to find out about something our friend Star is has undergone. I know it might seem like a long shot, but by any chance would you know anything about precognitive dreams or the forces of Oblivion and his dark stars?"

Amber's eyes suddenly widen at the mention of Oblivion and she falls back. Recoiling away from them in fear, the mare tries to get away, but is stopped by Bri who apologizes profusely for Scatter, who soon steps forth and apologizes himself. However, Amber doesn't seem to hear them. Her eyes stare forth without seeing. Her mouth hangs open, yet not a word passes between her lips. She's physically there, but emotionally and mentally somewhere else.

She soon snaps out of her trance to find the six ponies standing over her in worry and fear. They never meant to hurt anypony of course, in any way. Shaking it off, Amber bites her lower lip as she notices the tears streaming down her cheeks. So many memories flooding back to her at once, and right away she knows that fate must have sent this group of ponies to the Crystal Empire today, and put them right in her path. This was destiny.

"Y...yes. I know everything about who Oblivion is, where he came from, and what his grand plan is. You mentioned something about a...precognitive dream? I think that it might be important. Can you....can you tell me all about what you saw?"

Agreeing, Star recounts the terrifying nightmare once again, this time to this mare she's never even met before. Amber listens intently, nodding and only speaking when asking for clarification on something. When Star finishes, it's clear to Amber that this is indeed one of the ponies of the prophecy. She knows she can trust this Star Rider, and that she has to, if Oblivion is ever to be stopped.

"Ok, come with me back to my home. I'll tell you everything I know about Oblivion; past, present, and future. I don't know if it'll help you take him down, but if there's even a slight chance, I have to take it because....because...." Amber says, beginning to tear up, "Oblivion took everything from me."

********************************************************************************************

Upon entering the beauteous crystal home in the northern end of the empire, the six friends are politely ushered to the living room and asked to make themselves at home. Meanwhile, Amber Leaf heads off into the adjoining kitchen in order to prepare some tea and zesty cucumber sandwiches for her friends. It only takes a moment for her to disappear from the sight of the others, and instantly they begin to exchange glances as if to prompt somepony to speak up. For what seems like an eternity the six sit there in utter silence until finally, sick of the refusal to say something, Scatter quietly asks the others, "You guys do realize how suspicious this is, right?"

"You're right," Star replies, sighing at the thought, "it's too perfect for us. We see a pony walking by who just happens to stand out from everypony else, and she just so happens to know exactly what we need to know? I hate to think this way, but in these dark times, we can't really trust something like this."

"Exactly," Scatter nods in agreement.

"Not exactly," Bri suddenly replies, trying to hold back from yelling in frustration, "Star was given a gift with this precognitive dream. Yet nopony called that suspicious? Something clearly told her that she needed to be here, and I believe that Amber is why. I don't know what it is, but I have a feeling that she's been holding this in for a long time. Even her going to get us drinks and snacks is a way of her putting off having to tell us everything. She's afraid, because she knows something that could put her and others in danger."

"But then why is she so readily willing to open up for us? She doesn't know us from any Johnny Four-Shoes out there," Scatter debates.

"Think about it. She's been holding back these secrets for so long now, and a group of determined ponies suddenly stumble upon her asking the right questions. She has to know that there's a reason she happened upon us today. It's fate for both us and her."

"I...I think Bri might be right," Fluttershy tells the others.

"Yepperoni!" Pinkie calls out before falling over and snorting as she bursts into laughter.

Right then, Amber comes back from the kitchen, pushing a cart on which are the trays of food and drinks. She begins passing them out to her visitors and then takes her own before sitting on the only remaining seat in the room. Scatter motions to the others to be on their guard just in case, and everypony nods. A minute passes by as Amber sips silently from her tea cup and takes the occasional bite from her sandwich. Two minutes...five...ten. Eventually, Zeb clears his throat which gathers Amber's attention, causing the mare to blush heavily out of embarrassment. However, Bri seems understanding and just smiles forth.

"I'm so sorry. It's just...this is hard for me," she tells them quietly, looking down at the swirling brown liquid in her cup.

"It's alright, don't be afraid," Bri gently says, flashing the nervous mare a warm smile.

Amber chuckles slightly and replies, "That's easy for you to say. Fear is the only thing I've felt for over a thousand years now."

"You think it's easy for us? No offense Miss Leaf, but you have no idea what we've been through. We've been fighting Oblivion all year now. We've had close friends die. One of our own back in Ponyville was possessed and forced to murder his own fiancée. We know you have a dark history involving Oblivion. And we know that you want him gone. So do we. We're here to help you, but only if you can help us first. So please, trust us."

Everyone looks at Bri in shock. Both firm, yet assuring. It's almost uncharacteristic for the normally bright and cheerful mare. However, the sudden sound of a soft crying breaks their focus and they look back at Amber, who's begun to sob to herself. Hooves shaking, she sets down her teacup before an accident can occur and nods a little too hard. Standing up, Bri walks over and embraces the mare in a hug, whispering in her ear, "It's alright now. Just let it out."

"Damn I love her," Scatter quietly says before blushing. He then gathers the courage and loudly says to the crying mare, "She's right, Amber. We're here because we too want to stop Oblivion, for good. If there's anything you can tell us that might be able to help, we'd appreciate it."

"I...I don't know if it can help stop him," she finally replies as Bri releases her from the embrace, wiping the tears from her eyes, "but I'll tell you everything I know. I'm sorry for stalling like I was. I'm ready to talk now." Looking to Star, she smiles and adds, "I don't know why, but I have a feeling that you need to hear this more than anyone. So please, use this information to help save Equestria."

"I will."

"Thank you. Now...I guess the best place to begin would be about ten years prior to the disappearance of the Crystal Empire over a thousand years ago now. I ran a small tea and coffee shop in the empire's central square. Every day I'd serve customer after customer, but there was only one regular that I saw every single morning. His name was Crimson Crystal, a magical history professor at the empire's academy. He'd stop in before heading to the school each morning to order coffee. He always took it black with a shot of vanilla and a dash of cinnamon."

Sniffling slightly, Amber begins to tear up again. Noticing this, Fluttershy smiles and passes over a handkerchief she happened to bring with her. After a few seconds, Amber thanks the pegasus and continues, "Every morning we'd chat. He talked about his students, often bragging about their essays or projects. He'd ask me what I did outside of work. We got to know each other fairly well. So one day, he out of the blue asked me if I'd like to go to a jousting match with him. It caught me off guard, but I accepted. Neither of us called it as such, but that was our first date."

"We soon began to go to all kinds of places around the kingdom on our off times. He bought me gifts often, including a jeweled vintage tea pot I'd been saving up for. We dated for a few months, then one day we went out to dinner. We left the restaurant that night engaged. I was on cloud nine. He was the sweetest most wonderful stallion I'd ever met. He never treated me poorly, but also never tried too hard to act like I was his princess. He respected me, and I loved him oh so much."

"So what happened?" Zeb asks, a worried expression on his face. The others all look at him with expressions telling him how rude he was to ask, all except Star who seems too captivated for her own good.

Noticing their reactions, Amber raises a hoof and tells them, "It's alright. Something did happen. I had found this book on magical history in a store and gave it to Crimson. One day after classes were over, he didn't come to pick me up from work as expected. So I went to his classroom at the academy to find him completely engrossed in the book. He told me that he had discovered an ancient spell hidden away in code within the pages. However, he said he was unable to translate it."

"Over the next days, he began to study diligently on what they could mean. I let him, of course. He seemed really excited about it and I was happy about his passion for the subject. Weeks past without even hearing from him, however, and I became worried. So I went to the academy after work one day only to find out he had sent in a letter of resignation a few days before and hadn't come in at all since. I went to his home and found him sitting on his bed with dozens of papers surrounding him and the bed itself. He seemed disheveled. But as soon as he saw me, his eyes lit up and he told me that he had discovered the origin of the spell. It was from the time of the Unicorn Kingdom." Simultaneous gasps escape the six friends, but they allow Amber to continue.

"He asked if I could help him continue the studies so he could learn the spells effects. I reluctantly agreed. I realize now that it was a mistake. We finally decoded it. To my surprise, Crimson still showed how much of a gentlestallion he was and asked me to go home, afraid that the spell might hurt me if it went wrong. That was my second mistake; listening to him. Over the next few days he not only didn't contact me, but every time I tried to reach out to him, he outright avoided me. I couldn't take it anymore. Something was wrong. So I began watching him, and one day followed him to a frozen lake in the arctic north just outside of the empire."

"What I saw there chilled me more than the weather ever could. Crimson was engaged in a magic duel against what seemed to be a ghostly apparition of himself. The copy looked outright evil. The red crystal cutie mark was pitch black and his eyes glowed an eerie green. I tried to run to Crimson to help, but he put up a shielding spell and told me to get away while I could. I just couldn't believe it. I didn't want to leave him."

"The fight was evenly matched and went on for hours. The copy then shot a spell at the lake itself, shattering the ice layer atop it. I watched as Crimson helplessly fell into it's depths, chased by the doppelganger. I screamed, I cried. I slammed my hooves against the shielding spell. After a minute, the spell broke. But not because of me. I knew instantly what had happened, but I didn't believe. I ran to the lake, shouting his name at the top of my lungs. I dived into the ice cold water, but couldn't find him. I came back up, nearly passing out from the cold of the water soaking into my fur. I felt myself fading when suddenly, I saw him."

"He rose up from the lake in a burst of magical energy. My joy brought me back from my near unconscious state and I ran to him. But when I got close, I noticed right away that this was not my Crimson. It was the apparition, but no longer ghostly. He had gained physical form, and I instantly knew that he had taken my lover's body. My foolishness caused me to attack him in a blind rage. He tossed me aside with ease, summoning forth shackles with his magic to chain me up, at which point he dragged me across the ice and snow back to the empire."

"The Crystal Princesses guards tried to stop him as he entered the empire, but he killed them all with ease. He then broke into the Crystal Palace, towing me behind, and proceeded to impale the princess on her own scepter. He proclaimed himself the king, and ordered the citizens to call him by his new name before shackling them as well."

"New name?" Star quietly asks, swallowing a lump in her throat as a cold sweat trickles down her forehead.

She already knows exactly who Crimson Crystal had become, and it scared her senseless. And as Amber spoke out the name, a chill runs down her spine, "King Sombra. He enslaved the entirety of the empire and forced us to work tirelessly for him. He kept me in a cage next to his throne, and called me his little songbird. The nickname infuriated me, as it was what Crimson used to call me. But despite my rage, I became more depressed than anything. Months past and he began to go to war with the rest of Equestria. Eventually, Princesses Celestia and Luna took him down in a two-on-one fight. They combined their alicorn magic to confine Sombra to a shadow form, and then banished him. In his last move, however, he forced the empire itself to disappear along with him. And you know what happened after that."

"And...King Sombra was..." Star begins, tears forming in her own eyes at the horribly saddening tale.

"Yes. After Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor saved the Crystal Empire and killed Sombra, I found the book my Crimson had been studying. It told me everything. Sombra, or rather the spirit that murdered Crimson and possessed his corpse was the former king of the Unicorn Kingdom, Maaebjan. When Crimson used the spell that one day, he had unwillingly brought Maaebjan's spirit back into this world. That's why he was avoiding me. He was trying to protect me that entire time. I knew of King Maaebjan from Crimson, thanks to his fascination with history, and knew right then how bad this all was. If he ever found a way back to our world again, it could easily spell the end of the world."

"He hadn't been strong enough yet when he was banished by the royal sisters. And when our current leaders killed him, he had also yet to regain his full strength since returning to our world. It's the only reason he was able to be taken out. After Sombra's death, my depression worsened. Everypony else was jubilant at being freed. But they hadn't been in love with Crimson, and didn't mourn his death every second of every day. When the dark stars came, I knew that he had returned. And I soon heard rumors of someone named Oblivion trying to take over Equestria. He was back, and there was nothing I could do."

"Thank you for telling us this," Star tells her, getting up to do as Bri had before. Followed by her friends, she proceeds to hug the poor mare.

After letting her go, they return to their seats at which point Scatter sighs as he leans back and notes, "Unfortunately that doesn't tell us how to stop him."

"ARE YOU KIDDING!?" Pinkie blurts out, "OF COURSE IT DOES!"

"Pray tell then, how?" the stallion grumpily asks.

"If everything in Amber's story is true, then we know his biggest weakness now! Magic! Every time Oblivion falls, it's because of magic, right!? He's overpowered by spells more powerful than his own!"

"That's all well and good Pinkie," Star says, "but then how do we gather enough magic to stop him? Eventually he will have too much power for us to stop."

"Don't you see Star? We've already been doing what we need to. We've got all but one of the Elements of Harmony, the strongest magical artifacts known to ponykind. If we can get the last one, and combine it with the inborn magical powers of Pinkie and all of the unicorns on our side, we can easily stop him!" Bri laughs.

Pinkie nods and in a comically serious tone tells her, "You've learned well, my apprentice."

It's true then. The Elements really are the key to stopping Oblivion. Her faith in the Elements had begun to wane as of late. She and her friends had stopped believing in ever finding the last one. Now, all because of her dream, they've learned Oblivion's greatest weakness and are that much closer to stopping him. That's when it clicks, and she falls from her seat. Everypony else looks at her in shock and confusion as she begins laughing in pure joy.

"I know what my dream meant now! It wasn't just showing me a possible future. It was telling me that even despite what seems like overwhelming odds being against us, there is always a hope. In the nightmare, the rebellion's forces represented that hope. And now, our knowledge and the Elements of Harmony give us hope to defeating this monster once and for all! And I think I figured something else out as well. I believe that the princesses are alive, and that Oblivion has them held captive. They have the power to stop him, so he needed to get them out of the way early."

"That...makes perfect sense actually," Scatter quietly replies, shocked by this sudden revelation that he hadn't even considered. Smiling, Star thanks Amber and hugs her again. She knows now what they must do. It's like the stories of when Princess Twilight utilized the combined magic of her fellow princesses and herself to fight the super powered Tirek. Only now, she and her friends will be combining the strongest magic in history with their own. They can rescue the princesses and save Equestria. She finally understands. Her dream led her here, and it's that same dream that now drives her to continue and succeed. They will defeat Oblivion.

Hours later, Star walks back into her house after the long train ride back to Ponyville. All her friends have gone home for the night to rest, ready to begin preparations in the morning. They have a goal now, and they're ready to put it into motion. Walking upstairs to her bedroom, she looks at her bed and smiles. It seems like an eternity ago now that she woke up, and she couldn't be more tired. This time she's ready for whatever her dreams have to tell her, and so the young pegasus lays down and slowly drifts off to sleep, right as a golden headband magically appears on her pillow beside her.