You feel as if you’re floating.

With eyes still closed, you move your arms and notice a strange resistance in the air around you. Something tickles your palm and the sensation causes you to gasp with surprise...

...Which forces you to take in a mouthful of foul-tasting water. You cough and a portion of the precious air from your lungs escapes you in the form of bubbles which quickly drift away. Your eyes snap open immediately and you flail your limbs in panic. The low visibility of the murky water gives you little clue as to which way you need to swim in order to reach the surface, so without thinking you choose a random direction and begin powering forward, desperate to cough up the water you’ve swallowed and take a breath of air.

A little over a minute passes and you’ve made no progress. Your mind, desperate for oxygen, begins to shut down and your consciousness starts to fade. The last thing you feel is a tugging on your collar and the rushing of the water all around you...

...
...
...

The water spills from your nose and mouth to the damp ground in a seemingly unending stream as you cough and heave, and you take in large gulps of air in between your bouts of vomiting while a comforting hoof strokes your back.

“I’m so glad I found you... I was so worried...”

An extremely soggy Sun Horse rests nearby, slowly massaging your back as you clear the rest of the water you swallowed from your system. The two of you are soaked to the bone, huddled together on a muddy patch of ground nestled between the countless cypress trees that litter the great swamp you’ve found yourselves in. Though the sun isn’t visible, there’s enough light for you to see that the trees extend for miles in every direction not obscured by the lingering fog.

“What...” *cough* “What happened? Where the hell are we...?” you gasp.

Celestia shakes her head, her dripping mane hanging in large strands and plastered to her neck. “I don’t know. I opened my eyes and found myself here on land. Before I could get my bearings, I noticed a disturbance in the water nearby and realized it was you...” She moves forward and nuzzles you without thinking. “I was so scared I’d lose you... had I been a moment later, I...”

“I get it, I get it,” you half laugh, half cough and push her nose away with your hands. “Thanks for the save, but you smell like wet horse and you’re dripping all over me, so stay on that side of the mud patch until you dry off.”

Celestia frowns, but then quickly begins to smile again. “Well, you’ve recovered enough to banter with me, so I’ll take that as a good sign. And if you’d like me dry, I think that can be arranged...” She stands and slowly trots toward you, an evil glimmer in her eye.

“No. Don’t you dare. I mean it, Cel.”

Her smile widens and she takes another step. “But Anon, I’m merely trying to accommodate you since you find my scent to be so unpleasant...”

“Cel, no.”

Another step.

“No.”

She turns her head.

“NO—!!”

It’s too late. The dripping wet horse shakes her entire body, her mane and tail whipping gigantic droplets of water all over you. When she finally ceases, you’re drenched again while Celestia is relatively dry and prancing in place with happiness.

“Ah, much better!” she sings.

With a sigh, you remove your shirt and begin the process of wringing the excess water out. “I’ll get you back for this.”

“And I look forward to it,” she replies, leaning forward to sniff you. “Oh. I never noticed it before, but a wet human has quite a distinctive odor. It’s... nice?”

You replace your shirt and dry your hands on the damp fabric. “Yeah, it’s my new cologne, ’Eau de Nasty-Ass Swamp’. Seriously, where are we?”

Celestia trots beside you, and together you examine your surroundings. “It’s difficult to say, but I believe it’s...”

“...the southwestern edge of the Cradle, or our memory thereof.”

The two of you turn to face the new voice. There, standing atop the water as if it were solid earth, is the Princess of the Night herself.

“Luna?!” you gasp.

“Lulu...” It’s subtle, but Celestia takes a slight step back and turns away. “A dream, then...”

Luna pays no attention to her sister, instead leveling her piercing gaze at you.

“A somewhat damp welcome to you, Anonymous the Human. Congratulations on reaching Equus Island. We must admit, we were not completely certain you would succeed after we last spoke.”

You cross your arms and glare at the midnight blue horse. “Thanks for the vote of confidence. How are you even here right now?”

“You are dreaming, and the realm of dreams is our domain. It is beyond time, beyond space, and beyond the influence of an island awash in ancient magic. As long as you dream, it is as if you are standing right in front of us,” the dark alicorn explains as she smiles and takes several graceful steps atop the water.

Ah, now you remember why Luna scares the shit out of you. She can tap into and manipulate your dreams anytime she wants, regardless of distance. Your body shudders involuntarily at the thought of Twilight having that ability... it’d be an unending rape-tastic nightmare for sure...

Banishing that thought from your mind, you glance over to Celestia and notice that she’s being oddly reserved. Her ears are turned back and she’s not even looking in Luna’s direction, and the Princess of Dreams herself doesn’t seem to want to acknowledge her sister’s presence at all, instead focusing on your surroundings as she paces atop the water.

“As we told you before, we are here to offer you aid upon your arrival,” Luna says as she turns her attention back to you, a wry smile playing across her lips. “Your journey was undoubtedly tiring for you to seek refuge in sleep so early in the day, but this is most favorable for us. You will be able to act on the information we provide before nightfall, and at this stage every moment saved is precious.”

You sigh and take a seat on the muddy ground. Since this is a dream it’s not like you’re going to be ruining your clothes or anything.

“Information, huh? I guess that’s good, but if I remember all the adventure stories I read as a kid, I’m pretty sure our spiritual guide is supposed to give us some kind of artifact to help us on our quest at this point. Maybe an amulet that repels nerdy purple alicorns or something?”

You turn and wink at Celestia, coaxing a slight smile from her.

Luna chuckles. “Ah, so humans are capable of humor as well, or at the very least monumentally foalish thinking. Even if we were to possess such a thing, we could not deliver it to you in a dream. However, we believe what we have to say will be useful enough. Come.”

She begins walking across the water away from you. You’re initially hesitant to follow, but a very careful step reveals that you can now walk on water as well. With some trepidation, you follow Luna’s starry tail as she moves through the swamp with Celestia close behind, though you catch up to her after a few minutes of walking without sinking into the swamp boosts your confidence.

“You’ve got me curious. What’s so important that you couldn’t tell us before?” you ask.

Luna answers without looking back, “You are currently moored in the shallows surrounding the island on the western side, far from the lone eastern bridge and gate. The damage your ship sustained prevents you from entering the island via the volcano’s mouth. A bit of a quandary, is it not?”

“Yeah... we were so happy to just get here in one piece we didn’t put much thought into how we were gonna get inside. Wait, how’d you know all that?”

She attempts to hide her smile behind her mane. “We have our sources. And thus knowing your predicament, we have brought you here to show you a way into the island that is open to you. Behold.”

You turn your gaze forward to see the path open up into a huge lake surrounded on one side by the many cypress trees of the wetlands you’ve been traversing, and on the other side by the volcano wall itself. A large outcropping of stone and foliage hangs over the lake from the wall and blocks out the sun, blanketing a part of it in shadow.

“Wow... this is perfect!” you exclaim. “We could hide the ship here and no one’d be able to see it unless they wandered in from the swamp!”

Celestia gazes around in wonder. “Yes... this truly is ideal for us.”

“But how do we actually get here?” you ask Luna as she takes a few more steps into the lake. “This place is still inside the caldera, and according to Mac there’s no way we’re gonna be able to fly again anytime soon...”

“There is a bridge here,” she replies. “Though it is not the kind of bridge you are likely accustomed to. It was crafted long ago to permit pilgrims access to the island during the years when the Grand Gate was sealed...”

You hear Celestia’s breathing hitch beside you. “It can’t... it can’t be...”

Again, Luna turns away from her and focuses on you. “There is a small cove to the south about an hour’s sail away from your current position. Move your ship there; it is the bridgehead you seek. Once you arrive, speak the keyword.” For the first time, Luna’s cyan eyes capture Celestia’s own. “We trust you remember it?”

She nods in response. “I do. But how can it still exist...? The magic empowering this gate should have long ago faded away!”

“Some things will never diminish, even if we sometimes wish otherwise,” the dark alicorn replies as she steps back and spreads her wings.

In that moment, your surroundings become hazy and shimmer, an effect which you recognize from past experience means that the dream is coming to an end. Luna turns and takes to the sky, leaving you and Celestia together in the rapidly disappearing marsh.

You look to the larger alicorn, her nose pointed down to the ground and ears folded back in an expression of remorse, and you place a hand upon her withers to comfort her. But to your surprise, she seems to come to some sort of realization and suddenly pulls away from you, galloping after Luna’s retreating form.

“Luna... sister, wait! I know you’re angry, but please... I don’t want our relationship to be this cold after we were finally reunited! We’ve been down this path before and nothing good will come of it!”

Luna stops in the air and turns to face her sister as the dream continues to collapse.

“It is difficult... difficult for us to call an oath-breaker such as thee ‘Sister’, let alone grant forgiveness. The reason we offer our aid is because circumstances have forced you to come to your senses and seek to correct your mistakes, and correct them you shall.”

She returns to the ground and trots over to Celestia. The two lock eyes, each with tears threatening to fall.

“We understand the need to seek for joy to ease the burden,” Luna says softly. “But such joy must only be found in certain places, and in moderation; a lesson we learned well after tasting the fury of the Elements at thine own hooves. So do not entertain the fantasy, for one single moment, that we do not understand what thy true intentions were, or the emotions swirling in thy breast. They spill forth even now from the very name he calls thee, Celosia!”

‘Celosia’...?

Celestia rears back and nearly collapses as if she were suddenly struck. You try to move toward her, but your senses are already starting to fade and you can feel that familiar sensation of falling...

...
...
...

“Well now, ain’t that just the cutest thing ya ever did see?”

“Eeyup.”

“Awwww~!”

A giggle. “I wish I packed my camera!”

You slowly open your eyes to find your trusty crew gathered around you on deck. Seems like you’re still in the position you were in when you fell asleep, leaning against the pilot’s console, as the soreness in your back from where it was digging into your shoulder blade will testify. Celestia’s head is cradled in your lap as she rests curled up beside you, and you appear to be instinctively running your fingers through her mane, scratching little spots to coax small smiles from her as she begins to stir and awaken from her own slumber.

“...How long were we out?” you ask, yawning and rubbing your eyes.

Applejack smiles down at you. “Oh, about half an hour, ah reckon.”

“SISTER, WAIT~!” Celestia shouts as her eyes snap open and she raises her head in panic.

You quickly take hold of her muzzle and begin stroking it to calm her, and your instinctive and immediate reaction surprises you a bit, mostly because it feels like second nature now. Gently but firmly, you turn the frightened alicorn’s head to face you and tell her, “It’s okay, Cel. The dream’s over, but I’m sure we’ll see her again.”

“I... I...” Her panic fades as she blinks the tears in her beautiful eyes away. You gaze at each other, with only the sound of her breathing as her heart rate steadies ringing out in the silence, while the other ponies exchange questioning glances with one another.

Applejack nervously coughs. “Er... ah hate ta ruin the moment, but...”

“Lunch is ready~~!” Pinkie cheers, hopping up in front of the two of you. “We’ve got daisy sandwiches for the ponies and a big old BLT for our Captain!”

And just like that, the spell between you is broken and you turn away, your mouth starting to water, while Celestia pouts and flashes an annoyed glance at the pink party pony.

“You actually found bacon in the fridge?!” you ask her, eyes shining with hope.

“Of course not, silly!” she laughs. “But we did have eggplants, so we made eggplant bacon!”

...Goddammit. You rise to your feet and offer a hand to Celestia, who after a moment’s consideration decides to accept it by placing one of her perfect white hooves in your palm.

“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go eat!” you say.

The ponies, Celestia included, all descend to the living quarters ahead of you, save for Big Mac who remains by your side, looking up at you with a hint of concern.

“Ah hate ta pry, but... bad dream, partner?”

You scratch your head. “Sort of. But I know what we need to do next, so it was definitely worth it. C’mon, I’ll explain everything over lunch.”

You give Equus a quick glance before heading to join the others.

The massive Royal Equestrian Flagship Concordia hovers in the midst of the remains of the once-proud Purple Wings airship squadron. Various maintenance crews move back and forth between the ships that managed to stay afloat in the aftermath of the battle, hurriedly attempting to restart the discharged engines and repair the worst of the damage.

With grace one would expect from a goddess, Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Equestria, gently touches down on the Concordia’s flight deck after returning from the outer boundary of Equus Island. She holds her head high, a proud smirk on her face as the last of her hooves touch the deck to complete her perfect landing…

…And then her back hoof buckles, causing her to stumble forward and face-plant into the immaculately polished wooden deckboards with a smack.

There’s a collective gasp from those present, in addition to some stifled laughter, as one of Twilight’s back legs twitches in the air. With a pop, she separates her face from the floor and jumps back to her hooves, grinding her teeth and flapping her wings a few times in frustration.

“UGH! Stupid flying! Why is it so difficult?! I have a Master’s in Applied Flight Theory for buck’s sake!”

A cyan hoof reaches out and reassuringly pats her on the back. “Aw, don’t worry, Princess, it’s just a crash landing. You get used to it. And hey, since I started training you, you’ve only crashed 138 times out of 210 flights, not that anypony’s keeping score or anything. That’s better than my record when I first started!” The pegasus does a small backflip ending with a dynamic pose. “You just need to put more flight hours in and someday you’ll be as awesome as me!”

Twilight sighs and facehoofs. “...Sometimes I wonder if I chose the wrong instructor. Rainbow, have you seen the others?” Her horn flashes and a scroll pops into existence above her, which she examines intently before dismissing it again. “According to my schedule we have a strategy meeting in 7 minutes.”

Rainbow nods. “Yeah, Rarity just came over from the other ship. They’re in the main meeting room now.” She flares her wings. “Wanna race there? It’s good practice!”

“Yeah, no,” Twilight replies with a sigh. “That’s not happening. You go ahead of me; I need to get an update on the repair work from the officers in charge in order to better plan our next move.”

The cyan pegasus’ wings droop. “Awww... okay, fine. See you there.” She takes to the air and glides into the confusing network of winding corridors that comprise the ship’s interior.

Unfortunately, several minutes of flying around the unfamiliar ship without paying attention to where she’s going results in Rainbow becoming completely lost. She stops in the middle of the hall and looks around.

“What the... every darn room looks the same! Eh... mayyyybe I should’ve asked Twilight where the meeting room was again...”

Before she can ponder her situation further, the sound of overly dramatic crying catches her attention. Curious, she follows it and ends up stumbling upon the room she’s been looking for.

“Baaaaaaw! I’m ru-u-u-uuuuined!” a normally pristine white unicorn wails, sobbing her eyes out while a butter yellow pegasus slowly rubs her back in an attempt to comfort her.

“There, there now. It’s okay,” Fluttershy whispers. “Try to think positive... um... maybe the dress isn’t as bad as you remember it?”

Rarity looks to her friend, her mascara running down her face in a ghoulish display. “Do you really think so? It’s... *sniff* it’s the one Twilight asked me to make. You know, with the star patterns on it?” The unicorn’s blue eyes shimmer, searching for the faintest sign of hope.

Fluttershy grimaces and fights to hold back the bile that’s pooled in her throat. “Oh. *cough* Um, well... um... that is...”

“I knew it!” the unicorn sobs. “It’s absolutely hideous! After she wears that dress to the banquet, the name Rarity will become the laughing stock of the fashion world! I’ll... I’ll have to go into hiding! Change my identity! Live in the streets, performing unspeakable acts just to afford my next meal! This is truly... the WORST. POSSIBLE. THING!!”

“C’mon Rarity, Twilight was probably pulling your leg,” Rainbow says as she glides into the room. “I don’t think she’d really do something like that.”

“Um… I wouldn’t be so sure,” Fluttershy murmurs, glancing around to make sure it’s just the three of them there. “Twilight’s been really, really stressed out lately because of Anon. It’s been… well, it’s been a little scary. I’ve tried talking to her, but she’s been too busy with other things… I hope she’s okay...”

Rainbow shrugs. “Eh, I’m sure she’s fine. This is Twilight we’re talking about! She gets way too hyped up about random stuff all the time. Once Anon stops being such a doofus, quits running, and actually figures out how much she likes him and returns her feelings, she’ll definitely mellow out and go back to being our good old normal Egghead Princess for sure!”

“If… if you say so, Rainbow,” Fluttershy squeaks.

“I certainly hope that will be the case, darling,” Rarity adds. “But as I’ve come to learn firsthoof, capturing her wayward love will be no easy matter. I’ve seen mice scurrying away from Opal for their very lives that’ve shown less determination than he seems to hold to escape from Twilight. I understand that stallions sometimes like to play hard-to-get, but this is becoming ridiculous!”

To accentuate the point, the unicorn dramatically flops back on a conveniently placed chaise lounge that just happens to be in the corner of the meeting room.

“I think you’re right, Rarity,” Fluttershy agrees. “After all that’s happened, I’m really not sure if he even likes ponies. Oh, but, I don’t mean he doesn’t like ponies, I mean, maybe he doesn’t like ponies… like that. Maybe. And maybe there’s nothing we can really do to change it, but it would break poor Twilight’s heart if it were true…”

“Which is why it’s our job to bring him back and make that dummy understand that Twilight is awesome and that she totally loves him!” Rainbow exclaims, hopping around on her back hooves and throwing some light jabs at the air. “We’ll make him see just how crazy he is to ignore her, we’ll make him figure out that he loves her back, and we’ll make Twilight happy! That’s what friends do, right? C’mon, don’t tell me you guys are just gonna give up!”

There’s a giggle from the doorway. “I couldn’t have said it better myself, Rainbow Dash! And it’d also be completely irrational for us to give up now, especially when Anon’s practically in my hooves already!”

“Princess!” the gathered ponies gasp as all eyes turn to the meeting room’s entrance.

“There’s no need to worry, girls,” Twilight says as she steps inside. “Everything that’s happened so far is well within my calculations and the contingencies I’ve already accounted for.” She turns to Rarity and offers a comforting smile. “And while I am disappointed that we weren’t able to retrieve him before he reached the island, I do understand that you tried your best and my Anon can be a hoofful, so you don’t have to worry. The item-which-shall-not-be-named was placed in the ship’s incinerator earlier today just like you wanted.”

The unicorn dives at Twilight’s hooves and begins kissing them profusely. “Oh thank you, thank you, thank you, darling~!”

Twilight blushes and backs away. “Er... right. You’re welcome. Everypony, please be seated.” She trots over and takes a seat at the table, and the other ponies present do the same.

“Thank you all for coming,” Twilight begins after clearing her throat. “Despite the setbacks we’ve suffered, things are finally coming to a close and soon Anon will be mine. I’ve called this meeting so we can discuss our next steps in retrieving him from Equus Island. As you all know, the island emits a powerful magical field that disrupts and ultimately rejects the magic of the upper tier of magical creatures, such as alicorns and full grown dragons. This field prevents me from entering the island directly, but that ultimately doesn’t matter because normal ponies are unaffected by it. All we need to do is send a squadron in, retrieve Anon, and return him to the Concordia, at which point he’ll realize his undying love for me whether he wants to or not and we’ll live happily ever after forever and ever.” She takes a deep breath. “Any questions so far?”

Fluttershy raises a hoof. “Um... but didn’t you say before that they’re searching for some kind of stone that will restore Celestia’s powers? What happens if they find it? We won’t be able to stop her if she’s as strong as she was before...” The butter yellow pegasus trembles a bit for emphasis.

Twilight smiles. “That’s just the thing. It doesn’t matter if they find it, because they’ll never be able to use it!” With a proud nod, she adopts her typical Twilight lecturing pose. “Consider the following: what do you think would happen if Celestia reawakened her alicorn powers on an island covered by a field that disrupts alicorn magic?”

Fluttershy sheepishly looks around. “Um... it wouldn’t work?”

“Precisely!” Twilight beams. “She’d become even more helpless than she already is! In order for them to actually use the Orb of Ascension, they need to leave the island and escape both its primary and secondary magic boundaries, which extend far into the surrounding sea.” She adopts a sinister grin. “And that won’t be possible, because we’ll have the perimeter surrounded by the remaining Purple Wings. Even with our reduced numbers, they’ll be more than enough to stop their damaged airship!”

The Purple Pony Princess rears up and clops her hooves together. “I’ve already run the calculations and they have no chance of winning! All we have to do is bring Anon back and then have the wedding! Yay!”

The rest of the ponies look around at each other and then start clopping their hooves together as well.

“Way to go, Princess!”

“Well done, darling!”

“Woohoo~”

Twilight blushes. “Ahem. Yes, yes, thank you. But keep in mind that the reason our odds of success are 100% is because of all of you! When combined, the power of our friendship is insurmountable! And soon, Celestia will be made aware of that fact firsthoof!” With a grin, she trots to the back of the room and pulls down a map of the island.

“Now, for the retrieval mission. They last thing they’ll expect is an attack so soon, especially since the Purple Wings were incapacitated in the last battle, so I want to send a squadron of pegasi guards to go and capture Anon. Rainbow, you’ll be in charge of this operation.”

The cyan pegasus hoof pumps. “Awwww yeah! Go time for The Dash! Just tell me what you want me to do, Princess, and I’m on it!”

“Slow down, Rainbow,” Twilight giggles. “I’ve prepared something that will help.” She levitates over an anklet with a strange looking embedded gemstone which the pegasus retrieves.

“What the heck is this thing?” she asks.

“That, my good Rainbow, is an enchanted anklet. I based it on an earlier design... it’ll start flashing more rapidly the closer you get to Anon, so you should be able to use it to easily discover his whereabouts.”

Rainbow turns the item over in her hooves. “Oh... okay...?”

“What? Is there a problem?”

She shakes her head. “Nah. Well, not really. It’s just...”

The alicorn sighs. “Just spit it out already.”

“Look, no offense Princess, but the awesomeness of this thing isn’t up to my standards. I’ve kinda got a rep to look out for, and Rainbow Dash always dresses in style!”

“Pffft! PLEASE!” a certain fashionista blurts out, banging a hoof on the table while laughing in a very unladylike manner.

Rainbow shoots an annoyed glare at her unicorn friend before explaining, “If I went into a fight without my cool factor at max it wouldn’t feel right. You know what I mean?”

Rarity nods, regaining her composure. “You do have a point, darling. Now that you mention it, the color does clash with your coat.”

Twilight groans and double facehoofs at her friends’ antics. “...What if I told you wearing it would make you fly faster too?”

There’s a rush of air, and before anyone can blink, Rainbow’s circling the room with the anklet equipped.

“YES! I can totally feel it working! When do we leave?!”

Twilight grins. “Excellent! You can leave after you assemble the rest of the guard squadron, but first there are a few things I should mention. One, the anklet has a slight, minor side effect.”

Rainbow stops and raises an eyebrow. “A side effect...?”

“...And two, if you bring Anon back to me tonight, I’ll give you an exclusive backstage pass to the next Wonderbolts show that’s normally only available to members of the nobility~!”

The cyan pegasus leaps into the air with joy. “YESSSS! I— wait, c’mon, we’re talking an all-access pass, right? Not one of those lame ones that only get you a few minutes to hang out with them before they leave after the show?”

“Well, I don’t know, let me check,” Twilight hums as said pass appears before her in the air courtesy of her magic. “Yep, it says ‘All Access’ right there on the front!”

“Now we’re talking!” the rainbow-maned pegasus shouts with joy, taking to the air and twirling a few times. “Just you wait; I’ll be back with your weird freaky monkey thing in no time!” In an instant, she’s rocketed out of the meeting room and back toward the deck to begin assembling her squad.

Twilight watches the rainbow trail left behind in the air gradually vanish while rubbing her hooves together and cackling evilly. Not wanting to be left out, Rarity and Fluttershy add their own half-hearted evil laughter to the mix.

The purple alicorn licks her lips in anticipation. “I can almost taste you, my sweet, but also salty Anon. You’re like a cute little mouse trapped in a maze I’ve built for you. One by one, I’ll close off the paths you can take... until all you can do is run directly to me! Mwahahahahaha~!”

“Um... Princess...?”

The alicorn snaps out of her megalomaniacal trance. “Yes, Fluttershy?”

“I’m sorry for interrupting your evil laughter, but you never did tell Rainbow Dash what the side effect you mentioned was. I hope it’s not something bad.”

Twilight blushes and turns away. “Oh, that? It shouldn’t be too much of a problem. My, uh, my ‘research notes’ were on the nearby table when I was enchanting the anklet and they sort of got absorbed into the spell. It shouldn’t have any major negative repercussions. Yes, everything’s going to be just fine...”