Rainbow Dash, her face drenched in sweat and her knees trembling, almost tripped over Apple Bloom as she stumbled backwards. The filly was rooted to the spot and scarcely noticed Dash at all. Almost immediately, Applejack stepped in and scooped her up, shoving past Dash to a far corner of the room. Over by the door, Fluttershy tripped and fell, landing right on Pinkie Pie. They twisted around one another, caught in a mess of panic and confusion. Several ponies screamed, though their cries were lost under the jaw’s alien wail that continued to echo throughout the room.

Rarity sat rigid on the floor, her forelegs still wrapped around Sweetie Belle’s head. Her mouth hung open, though she wasn’t screaming. Her eyes were wide as saucers as she stared at what lay before her.

Suddenly, the jaws went silent. Sweetie Belle’s body shifted around while the jaws started to expand, pushing out even more teeth with a series of cracking sounds. Her head went limp, sagging downward into a puddle of flesh.

“Rarity! Get out of there!” Twilight screamed from the back of the room. She hopped off the desk and raced forward, only to collide with Dash as she popped up in front of her. They both sank to the floor in a heap.

Rarity pulled back. As her hooves brushed past Sweetie Belle’s limp face, the filly twitched. Quicker than anypony could react, the jaws shot forward, snapping shut over Rarity’s forelegs with impossible speed.

There was a split-second of silence. Then Rarity threw her head back with an ear-splitting shriek. She tried to pull free, but the jaws sank in deeper. They tore through flesh and dug into bone, a thick, green slime pouring from the teeth. Rarity flailed around, knocking into desks and filing cabinets as she jerked Sweetie Belle's body around with her. It still refused to let go as they tumbled under a desk back towards the door, missing Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy by inches. A kerosene tank slipped off a table and fell onto Sweetie Belle. Fuel splashed over both of them. As quickly as they had snapped down, the jaws opened up, releasing Rarity from their clutches. She collapsed through the open doorway to the common room, bleeding profusely. One of her legs hung on by a bare thread of muscle. There wasn't much left of the other leg at all.

Fluttershy and Pinkie hurried back towards the others. Fluttershy dove behind Applejack, covering her eyes as she crouched into a ball. Pinkie tried to follow suit, only to trip over a broken stool. She collapsed, landing awkwardly on her hoof with a quick cry of pain. Meanwhile, Twilight righted herself and stood in front of them while Dash hurried off to another side of the room. They all stared at the sight unfolding by the door.

Sweetie Belle rolled over on the floor. She vibrated rapidly, her entire body quivering from head to tail. A long, thick tentacle shot up out of the center of the jaws, rising into the air until it was almost four times her height. At its cap was a second head, this one a skinned, slightly deformed copy of Sweetie Belle’s.

The new head growled at the girls. Its new body pushed itself forward, hopping along the ground like some demented jack-in-the-box.

“I’ve got it!” Twilight shouted. She aimed her horn. A purple sphere surrounded the creature, halting its progress. A series of small, insect-like legs sprang out of the stalk and started clawing at the bubble, but to no effect. The bubble lifted into the air and hovered over the desks.

“Twilight, get rid of it!” Applejack shouted. Fluttershy peered out behind her and screamed again when she caught sight of the creature.

“Where am I supposed to send it?”

“Anywhere but here, Twilight, come on!” Dash ducked around another desk and slid to a stop. The bubble was floating between her and the door to the common room.

In the bubble, the legs stopped moving. The second head angled itself until it was looking at Twilight. It screamed again in a higher pitch. The ground shook as the cry shot through the room. Tables shifted and the floorboards creaked. A ripple shot through the purple bubble, and it turned a sickly black hue. The glow over Twilight’s horn flashed a similar color.

Twilight screamed. Her knees buckled from under her and her hooves flew to her horn. She clutched it, crying out in extreme pain.

“Twilight!” Pinkie shouted. Ignoring her leg, she rushed around Applejack and knelt by her friend. “Twilight, are you alright? Twilight!”

Overhead, the bubble disappeared. The creature fell to the ground, landing with a wet SPLAT. It rolled on the floor a few times, sprouting out new appendages to catch and steady itself. Within moments it had righted itself again, and now stood right in front of Dash.

Caught off-guard, Dash froze. The color drained from her cheeks and her mouth hung agape as she stared at the growling beast. The second head met her eyes. The small, fang-filled mouth curled up into a tiny grin.

“Dash, hit the ceiling, now!” Applejack shouted at the top of her lungs. She spun around and positioned her rear legs in front of a large metal table.

“Huh? What?” Dash blinked, her eyes coming back into focus. Her wings shot open and she launched vertically, barely missing a wild lunge from the creature as she passed by.

Applejack aimed and delivered. The table flew forward and hit the creature dead on, slamming it into the wall. It howled out once more, this scream much more guttural than before. Dash hovered overhead, wedged tight against the ceiling. She stared down with fixed, unblinking eyes while sweat dripped off her in buckets.

The creature stumbled up in a disoriented fashion, broken limbs and exposed veins oozing blood and other liquids. Flailing appendages sent lab equipment and papers from the desks to the floor. It hobbled a few feet before it fell again and crashed through the back door, collapsing in a broken heap. It flopped around in the back room, growling loudly as it sprouted more and more tentacles.

“Twilight, light it up!” Dash shouted. Beneath her, Applejack snatched up Apple Bloom and hurried out to the common room, with Fluttershy and Pinkie galloping along next to them.

Twilight grabbed a desk and pulled herself up, still wincing from the pain in her horn. She turned and concentrated on the back room. A small glow appeared on her horn, only to disappear a moment later. Twilight groaned in pain. “I don’t think I can!”

“Well try harder! It’s starting to do something back there!” Dash kicked a second desk in front of the back room door and quickly snuck a peek inside. A dark mass was starting to move around, one much larger than what had come out of Sweetie Belle’s body.

“It’s combining with Copper… it’s getting bigger,” Twilight said. She tried to concentrate again, but her horn failed to respond.

Dash started scouring the floor of the lab, checking under every desk. “Where’d that lantern go? Anypony see it?”

“Hey Twilight, use this!” Pinkie rushed back into the lab with a small white brick gripped in her mouth. She lobbed it over to Twilight. “Flip the switch and throw!”

“Pinkie, what is this thing?” Twilight stared at the object. It looked like a mound of white clay, shaped into a rectangle and with a small metal switch with some wires taped to one side.

A sudden roar from the back room rocked the base, followed by the sound of cracking wood. A large mass of flesh and muscle shifted forward towards the lab.

“Twilight, just do it!” Pinkie screamed. “Throw it and run!”

Twilight pushed her hoof past the metal switch and kicked the brick into the back room. It went right through the broken door and landed square on the creature inside, earning another growl.

“Everypony out of here!” Pinkie yelled. She turned and ran out the door. Dash yelled after Twilight and swooped into the common room as well. Twilight hesitated for a moment, her eyes fastened on the back room.

A bright light flashed as a small explosion rocked the back room, practically throwing Twilight against the wall. A small fireball rose up, bringing with it howling cries of anguish and pain from the creature. The flames of the fire spread fast. They quickly overwhelmed the small room and spread out the door into the rest of the lab.

Twilight rushed out to the common room to join the others. Everypony coughed and shook as they tried to settle themselves. “Somepony grab the extinguisher before that fire burns the whole place down!” Applejack shouted. She still had Apple Bloom clutched under her, and hustled her to the other side of the room next to the kitchen.

Dash rushed over to the supply crate and pushed it over. She fished through the avalanche of items that spilled out, shoving boxes aside and letting the oxygen tanks roll away under her. Pinkie crouched down past the door, rubbing her ankle. Twilight hurried over next to her.

“Are you alright, Pinkie?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Pinkie said. She tenderly touched the forming bruise. “I just tripped is all.”

“Pinkie,” Twilight said, still coughing, “wh-what was that thing?”

“Um, thermite charge,” Pinkie said. She pointed to a small box laying off to one side of the crate. It was packed with more of those white bricks, each one wired with a switch. “They… make fire. I guess.”

“That’s an awfully big punch for a little charge.” Twilight turned from Pinkie and joined Dash at the supplies.

“Uh, yeah.” Pinkie stopped rubbing. “I didn’t think they’d do that. I just thought that’s what we, uh, needed–”

“Wait, where’s Rarity? Rarity!” Dash called, looking up from the supplies. Her eyes found the massive puddle of blood in front of the lab door. It trailed across the room, disappearing down the hallway to the bunks. “Rarity, come back!”

Dash hurried towards the doorway, Pinkie following close behind. Twilight tore her eyes away from the pile and ran after them. “Hey, wait a second!”

She caught them at the doorframe, where they stood motionless. About halfway down the hall, in an even larger puddle of blood, Rarity sat hunched over. Her breathing was labored, and her tongue flapped outside her mouth. One of her wounded legs was healing before their very eyes; bones knit and skin pulled itself together. The other leg was still a stump, but now a small tentacle protruded from it. It writhed around on the floor, absorbing up any blood it came into contact with.

“It… it isn’t Rarity,” Twilight said, pulling Dash and Pinkie back from the door. “Not anymore.”

Rarity looked up. Her eyes met Twilight’s, and she drew her tongue back in. She let loose a low wail. It was much more subdued compared to that of the creature burning in the lab. She cried louder and louder, her eyes never leaving Twilight as she sang her mournful song.

Pinkie slipped out from under Twilight and rushed to the crate. Twilight broke contact with Rarity’s face and looked at what Pinkie returned with: another white brick. Pinkie looked up at Twilight, tears falling down her cheeks.

Twilight nodded solemnly. Pinkie flicked the switch and tossed the charge down along the floor. It slid forward along the thick blood trail, coming to rest right up against Rarity’s midsection. She glanced down at it, the tentacle from her leg snapping over to wrap around it.

The charge exploded. The fuel on Rarity’s skin ignited, and flames completely engulfed her. Her cry changed, becoming a loud, hollow roar that bounced back and forth in the tight hallway. She writhed in place, but made no effort to escape the flames. Her roar carried on, getting higher and higher as the fire consumed her throat and mouth.

Dash was the first to move from the doorframe. She ran to the supply crate and grabbed a small red cylinder. Returning to the door, she attempted to push past Twilight and get the extinguisher in place.

“Just wait a second!” Twilight put her hoof up, blocking Dash.

“Twilight, we’ve got to put that out before it–”

"Just wait!”

The inferno continued to rage. Rarity’s legs gave one final, pathetic twitch, and she slumped all the way to the floor. Her skin blackened and melted away to reveal a burning layer of veins and tissue. Flames inched their way up the nearby walls, spreading along the corridor towards the bunks. Beneath her, the floor started to crack as the fire ate the planks away.

“Alright go!”

Dash ducked past Twilight and tossed the extinguisher down. Hitting the lever with her hoof, she held the hose steady as white foam sprayed out.

“Hey, the lab’s still goin’ up!” Applejack shouted. Twilight glanced over at the lab door. A bright orange glow was visible and growing brighter by the second. She rushed over to the supply crate to find another extinguisher, and then into the lab to combat the blaze.

Chaos reigned for the next few minutes. Dash finished containing the fire in the hall, while Twilight did her best to keep the lab under control. Applejack soon came in to help her with a third extinguisher, while Pinkie made constant trips to the kitchen, always returning with a full bucket of water clenched in her teeth.

Eventually, the fires died out. The smell of burned wood and charred meat filled the air, swirling around with the built-up smoke. A long, heavy groan sounded out from the lab as its fire-weakened roof started to sag inward. The ponies ignored it, instead gathering back in the center of the common room. Several succumbed to coughing fits, though these didn’t last as the smoke gradually cleared from the air.

Slamming the hall door shut, Dash hovered over and flopped down on one of the couches. She breathed heavily, her mouth wide open and her expression vacant. Slowly, she was joined by the others; Fluttershy and Pinkie slid up next to her, while Applejack and Apple Bloom took the opposing couch.

“What are…” Applejack started, staring around the group. “What are we supposed to do now?”

Twilight stood by the wall, facing the soot-covered entrance to the lab. She rubbed her horn. The pain had receded into a faint numbness, though the memory of the shock it had sent through her body still caused her to wince. She sighed and turned to stare back at the group.

“Look…” she said, her eyes sweeping over the other ponies. “I know I'm still me. And if you were all these… things, then you'd just attack me right now, so some of you are still you. Maybe all of you are. This thing doesn't want to show itself, it wants to hide inside an imitation. It'll fight if it has to, but it's vulnerable out in the open. If it takes us over, then it has no more enemies, nopony left to kill it. And then it's won.”

The others stared at Twilight. She stared back, her jaw fixed in a grim, determined manner. Over in the lab, a stray instrument rolled off a broken desk and crashed to the floor.

“I guess we should close that room off,” Twilight said, moving towards the door. Pinkie got up to help her, but Twilight held her back.

“I’ve got this,” Twilight assured her. “Besides, I don’t want anypony stepping on that puddle before I get a chance to clean it up.”

Twilight eyed the streak of blood in front of the door. It was still now, a calm aftereffect of the disaster that had come before.

Apple Bloom sat on the couch, staring straight ahead. She sat unmoving, unflinching, doing little more than blinking and breathing.

“Has she said anything yet?” Dash peered over the couch, not willing to get any closer. The couch had been pushed into the corner of the room, with Dash crouching down behind it.

“Would you just give me a minute already?” Applejack said. She gently put her hoof on Apple Bloom’s shoulder and leaned in. “Hey sugarcube, it’s me. It’s Applejack. You’re safe now, alright? You can say somethin’ now. It’s alright.”

“We’ve given you an hour,” Dash repeated. She glanced from side to side, making sure she was still the only one behind the couch. “And I really wouldn’t stand that close to her if I were you.”

“She’s still my sister until proven otherwise, alright? Right now, she needs all the help I can give her,” Applejack snapped, glaring back at Dash. She returned to trying to shake her sister out of her catatonic state. “That little stunt Twilight pulled earlier with the rubbin’ alcohol didn’t help matters, either.”

Applejack rubbed the small bandage on Apple Bloom’s shoulder. A similar bandage adorned her own shoulder, along with all the others.

“I keep telling you, it was a test,” Twilight said, standing by the lab door. She glanced back down at the few notebooks she’d been able to retrieve before they blocked off the lab door with the dinner table. “It caused a reaction last time, so it seemed logical that it might cause something this time.”

“Yeah, but it didn’t do nothin’ except put each of us in a bit more pain,” Applejack said.

“At least it was something! And right now, a bit of pain is…” Twilight rubbed her horn again, her body tensing up. “Alright, alright, wait…I think I’ve got another idea.”

“Yeah? Lay it on us Twilight, let’s go,” Dash said without hesitation.

“Best be something more practical this time,” Applejack said.

“Alright, um… everypony just bear with me here for a second.” Twilight’s horn glowed as she turned to face Pinkie, who was once again stationed by the bookshelf, surrounded by paperbacks. A purple bubble appeared around her and lifted her into the air, catching her by surprise.

“Hey! What’s the big idea here?” Pinkie protested, reflexively kicking around in the bubble.

Twilight didn’t respond. She looked over the rest of the group. Similar bubbles appeared around every other pony, lifting them into the air one by one until five purple bubbles hovered in the air.

“Twilight, what gives? Put me down!” Dash shouted, her wings flapping uselessly against the magical barrier.

“Twilight, get me back on the floor now!” Applejack slammed against her bubble in a desperate bid to get closer to Apple Bloom. “Twilight Sparkle!”

Twilight looked from pony to pony, searching for any kind of sign. A whole minute passed as she observed them in silence, ignoring all of their shouts. Finally, she sighed, her head drooping down. The bubbles vanished, and the others tumbled to the floor.

“What in the hay was that, Twilight?” Dash asked, pulling herself up from the floor. “You call that a test?”

“It reacted to my magic last time. It reacted in… in a way I’d never seen before,” Twilight said. She rubbed her horn at the memory. “It made me feel… the point is, I wanted to see if it would happen again. If it did, then we would know.”

“But it didn’t!” Applejack straightened Apple Bloom back onto her seat. The filly remained oblivious to the world around her. “Twilight, you’re gonna need to think of somethin’ a lot more certain than that.”

“I don’t know what else to do!” Twilight said. “I’d already tried everything before, and the two bits of new information I learned afterward just proved to be no help at all.”

“Umm…” Fluttershy spoke for the first time, causing the others to turn their attention to her. She was pressed up against the far wall with a small blanket for cover. Her eyes were bloodshot from tears, and she was beginning to hyperventilate from crying so much.

“Do-does this m-mean that... t-that we’re a-all alright?” she asked. Her voice cracked at every opportunity. “T-that none o-of us are… a-are…”

Fluttershy broke back down into a fit of tears.

“I’m not sure,” Twilight said. “It’s entirely possible we’re all clean, and that’s something I desperately want to be true, but we just don’t have any way to conclusively prove it.”

“Yeah, yeah, you said it. None of your tests are goin’ anywhere, that’s for sure.” Applejack turned up from her sister, looking Twilight straight in the eye. “Twilight, look, I’m… I’m sorry for what happened. For how I was actin’. We all just thought you’d gone crazy after that stuff yesterday, but now… well, I wish I’d listened to ya a bit earlier. I don’t know how much difference it would’ve made, but… can’t do much about that now I suppose. An’ I am sorry about gettin’ on your case for these tests. I know you wanna figure this out as much as I do.”

Twilight bit her tongue and took a deep breath before responding. “Applejack, I know how you feel. So you don’t have to… just don’t dwell on it. Not now.”

Applejack dropped her head back down. “So what can we do now? Just wait it out for Hawks?”

“That could take days!” Dash flew up from her hiding spot to perch on top of the couch. “Why should we wait that long? If we’re all clean, then we need to get out of here pronto. And if we’re not all clean, then we might not even last that long!”

“Rainbow, would you calm down for a moment?” Applejack said. “How’re we supposed to get out of here anyway? We’ve been over all this already.”

Dash stared down at Applejack. A look of disbelief formed over the pegasus’ face. “Calm down? You want me to calm down? After a day and a half of you practically jumping to figure out a way to force Twilight to get us out of here?”

“The situation’s changed, Rainbow Dash!” Applejack shot back. “I already admitted I was at fault before, what more do you want outta me? Right now, we don’t seem to have any other choice but waitin’ for help to get here.”

“We have the choice of leaving! Especially if we’re all clean right now. Twilight’s tests could’ve just proved that!”

“We can’t all be clean.” Pinkie’s head snapped up from her book. She had a vacant look in her eyes, looking around the room but never at another pony directly; always just over their shoulders at some point near them. “There’s at least one more.”

The others stayed silent at the remark, casting unsure glances at one another.

“Pinkie, what are you talking about?” Twilight finally asked. “What do you mean at least one more?”

“Because we’ve been here for three days, alright?” Pinkie pointed at the variety of books laid out in front of her, gathering her memory as she bounced from page to page. “Okay, so that’s almost three days, but these things have a driving need to spread themselves around and infect somepony, so at this point there must be another. Unless I miscounted and there should be two, or if Sweetie Belle was turned a lot later than I thought… hang on.”

Pinkie flipped a few pages.

“Pinkie, I don’t know what you’re talking about, but you’re not making any sense,” Twilight said. “You should put those away if they’re causing you to–”

“I dreamed of your library burning down last night,” Pinkie said, causing Twilight to freeze midsentence. “Right in the middle of the day in Ponyville. It started to burn, and nopony around would help, and there was somepony standing in front of it all, looking at me. Smiling at me.”

Twilight gaped, speechless.

“Twilight, what’s goin’ on?” Applejack asked, looking back and forth between Twilight and Pinkie.

“Pinkie’s lost it, that’s what’s going on,” Dash said, shaking her head. “Not that I blame her or anything right now.”

“Pinkie…” Twilight said slowly, “when exactly did you have that dream?”

“Every night since the train,” Pinkie said. “Every time I fall asleep. Same dream, played out in the same way.”

Pinkie cocked her head at Twilight. A faint smile flashed across her lips. “You had it too.”

“I… I…” Twilight stammered.

“You have! The exact same as me!” Pinkie hopped in place, tearing through her old pile of books in a sudden fever of excitement. “Okay, okay, this is good, this gets us somewhere I can work with… I think I can work with it, at least.”

“Alright, whoa, pause here,” Dash said. “Twilight, what is Pinkie talking about?”

“It’s… it’s a dream I’ve been having,” Twilight said. She took a step towards Pinkie’s book pile, trying to pick off the titles she was browsing through. “Or at least, I was having. I haven’t really slept in the past day, so–”

“But you’d have it again if you did,” Pinkie said, interrupting Twilight. “I know. It’s taking me a while to piece all this together, but I know.”

“Pinkie, what are you readin’ anyhow?” Applejack asked, leaning over the couch to get a better look.

“These are my Sugar Cane books.” Pinkie waved over the spread in front of her. “At least, some of them are mine. There was some more on the bookshelf here. Some I’d never even heard of and I thought I’d heard of all his stuff…”

“And you’re getting all this from… these books?” Twilight asked. She glanced skeptically down at the paperbacks. “Pinkie, how is that even–”

“Not one book on its own or anything, no.” Pinkie shook her head and pointed again to multiple pages in front of her. “I’ve sorta been piecing it together. But it’s all here. We’re in the Temple of Proch’No, we unleashed the form that was held here, it’s been attacking and taking us over, and it’s building up towards… um, something. Still working on that part, just give me a little longer…”

“Hey now, just wait an apple pickin’ minute,” Applejack said. “Just what the hay are you two goin’ on about?”

“Okay, I’m calling it, Pinkie is nuts.” Dash turned from Pinkie to Twilight. “Right, Twilight? Right?”

“Is… all that really in there, Pinkie?” Twilight asked. Pinkie nodded in response.

“I don’t believe this.” Dash put her hoof to her forehead and sighed. “Alright, now Twilight is nuts too. Guys, listen to yourselves. Those are a bunch of crummy horror books… why are we even focusing on them right now?”

“Rainbow, they’re probably just random coincidences.” Twilight stepped back from the books and returned to notes. “But at this point we… we can’t discount anything. No matter how strange.”

“That doesn’t even make sense, Twilight!” Dash pressed herself against the wall. “And when you stop making sense like this, it makes me worry even more…”

Twilight eyed Dash closely. “What do you mean by that, Rainbow Dash?”

Dash wiped her mouth, glancing back and forth between Twilight and the others. “I’m just thinking out loud here, and I can’t be the only one thinking it, but… why are we automatically trusting Twilight right now? What clears her over us?”

Twilight withheld an indignant gasp. “I’ve been the one trying to figure things out. I’m the one who tried to really alert you all to this thing in the first place!”

“So what?” Dash’s body tensed up, ready to pounce forward at the slightest moment. She worked to contain herself. “That’s doesn’t mean anything, not anymore. Look, you want to hear a story, Twilight? I’ve got a little one, because I’ve figured this thing out.”

Twilight slowly tapped her hoof on the ground, her gaze never leaving Dash.

“I was in the kitchen late last night,” Dash said, brushing her mane out of her face, “when Sweetie Belle came in. This was after you were all asleep, and she was just getting water or something. And she was acting all sad and depressed, so I talked to her a bit. Tried to cheer her up. I even hugged her. And she went on acting like Sweetie Belle.”

Dash leaned forward, her voice dropping. “But it wasn’t Sweetie Belle, was it? It was one of those things, alright? See, I get it. It really is like you said, Twilight. These things imitate us perfectly. They’re smart. They plan. They wait. Sweetie Belle only came out because of an accident–”

“An accident I caused,” Twilight muttered.

“But still an accident!” Dash raised her voice. “You leave them to their own devices, these things can do whatever, and think of the best way to go about doing it. And who better to go after than the leader of our group, the one who keeps having test after test fail, a pony who always understands everything but is suddenly being stumped by something that keeps giving her more and more information on it.”

“Rainbow, back up. You say you were alone with Sweetie Belle last night?” Applejack slowly moved to one side, positioning herself between Dash and Apple Bloom. “Well how do I know she didn’t go after you now?”

“Why would I bring it up if it did?” Dash scoffed.

“Your own logic here, Dash. Can’t clear yourself because you just say so.”

“But she didn’t do anything!” Dash shouted. “That’s exactly my point! These things are smart! You have to just see who they would take next, just figure that part out, that’s the way to beat them.”

“Rainbow, you’re being hysterical right now,” Twilight says, her voice gaining an edge. “I tried to stop that thing in the other room, and it took down my magic. You saw that!”

“Yeah, and your magic has failed like that how many times before, Twilight?” Dash hovered slowly up the wall. “A pretty convenient time for it to fail, if you ask me.”

“That thing in there was concentratin’ on you pretty good, Rainbow Dash, but waited to make a move,” Applejack pointed out. “It sure as hayfire didn’t slow down for Rarity!”

“I got lucky!” Dash’s head was constantly in motion now, her gaze going around every pony in the room. “I’m still me! I’m the one who’s really figuring this thing out right now. And what about you, Applejack? You’ve been pretty combative about it. Of course, it doesn’t even need to be you, since it’s most likely her!”

Dash thrust a hoof out in Apple Bloom’s direction. The filly shook her head at the gesture, blinking as she wiped some sweat from her forehead. She looked up at her sister. “A-Applejack? What’s g-going on?”

“Apple Bloom!” Applejack leaned in and hugged her sister tightly. “How are you feelin’? Are you alright?”

“I… I don’t…” Apple Bloom descended into tears, shoving her head into Applejack’s warm embrace.

“Stop getting so close!” Dash shouted, shoving herself back against the wall. “Isn’t it obvious now? It started with Scootaloo, and she spread out to the ones closest to her. That’s Sweetie Belle and… Apple Bloom!”

“How would that be smart if it was so obvious?” Twilight stepped past her notes and walked forward, still fixed on Dash. “Rainbow, you need to calm down right now, you are not helping matters at all.”

“Yeah!” Applejack narrowed her eyes at Dash. “I’ve had it up to here with your attitude towards my sister right now. An’ another thing, how does any of this clear you? Apart from already admittin’ to bein’ alone with Sweetie Belle, you’re the one who’s gotten so aggressive so fast. What are you tryin’ to pull, throwin’ the scent offa yourself now?”

“Of course, she was the one closest to the other two,” Twilight mumbled. “I guess it would make sense, and if it was that obvious, then we might just pass it over on accident…”

Applejack’s head whirled around. “Not you too, Twilight! I’ve definitely had enough of that.”

“Girls!” Pinkie shouted, bounding over her books to the center of the room. “What are we doing? This doesn’t work for us!”

Pinkie turned towards Dash. “Especially you, Dashie. You’re the loyal one! What’s going on here?”

Dash wrinkled her brow. “Pinkie, what are you… look, I’m loyal to my friends. But right now, I’m not sure which of you are actually my friends.”

Pinkie scratched her chin. “That’s a bit of a stretch, but maybe that could work… maybe…”

Pinkie took another few steps towards Dash. She was within hopping distance of the couch.

“Hey, not so close!” Dash’s wings flapped. In a flash, she shot up and over the others, flying over to a far corner of the room. She pressed herself against the ceiling, her hooves out and twitching wildly. “All of you just keep away from me right now, alright? I don’t need this. I don’t deserve this. Stuck a thousand miles from nowhere, probably with some big monster that wants to rip my guts out, and in the one part of Equestria that I can’t just push the clouds aside to fly away!”

Another strong gale slammed down on the base, causing the roof over the lab to creak loudly.

“Oh would you shut up!” Dash banged on the ceiling, her hoof making a small dent in the aluminum ceiling tiles.

“Quit tryin’ to distract us like that, Dash!” Applejack said. She grabbed Apple Bloom and drew herself onto the couch Dash had been hiding behind, taking up that corner of the room as her own. “You wanna throw out accusations like that, you know that’s just gonna bring it all back to you.”

“Hey, you want me to back this up? Here, I can explain myself, for you and for Twilight. Because the way I see it, there’s a pretty good chance of it being any one of you!”

Dash pointed her hoof at Applejack. “We’ve got the overprotective sister who’s been trying her hardest to get out of here since this whole thing started, and who was working to split up the group in arguments just yesterday. Good starting point for something that wants to go and wreak havoc with the rest of Equestria.”

Before Applejack could respond, Dash pointed to Apple Bloom. “We’ve got the last remaining filly, who was pretty much inseparable with the other two just the other day, when both of them were taken over.”

Dash brought her hoof around to Twilight. “Then there’s our ever present leader, who’s spent most of her time off alone with what’s left of one of those things, and is apparently the only one who’s allowed to decide what’s true and what’s not about them. Pretty tempting target right there, don’t ya think? Especially when it seems only part of those things need to be dead in the first place to spread. Sweetie Belle was doing something to Copper when she was burned to a crisp. It would just take a little bit left in there to jump onto somepony else.”

“Rainbow, I definitely don’t think it works like–”

Dash ignored Twilight and moved on to Pinkie, who was scratching her leg and didn’t even seem to notice Dash. “I don’t know what is happening to you at all, but it is definitely something not right. And I don’t mean that in the usual Pinkie way, either. This is something else, and each and every one of you can see it.”

Dash spun and faced Fluttershy, who had been silently watching the proceedings and let out a tiny shriek when Dash got to her. “And we can’t forget Fluttershy, because that’s just what it would want us to do! Get into the one you least suspect, the one who’s just always sort of there, and then BAM it gets you.”

Finally, Dash pointed to herself. “And yeah, you know what, there is me. It could totally be me. Except, no, it can’t. You know why? Because if I was one of those things, I would’ve made a break for it at the first possible moment, and believe me when I say I’ve had plenty of moments. I would’ve flown out of here so fast not even Twilight could’ve caught me, just plowed straight through that storm. It wouldn’t have mattered what you thought, because I’d be back home before you found another pony to explain all this too. In fact, whichever one of you it is, you’re probably regretting not going after me sooner. That would’ve solved all your problems, would’ve made your little plan work!”

Dash let her hoof fall to her side. She panted loudly, sweat dripping off her forehead. “But I didn’t leave. I’m still here. Because it’s not me. I’m still here.”

Slowly, as her breathing rate fell back to normal, Dash slid down the wall. “I’m… I’m still here.”

Dash’s eyes fell, her tone following suit and dropping to a whisper. She landed softly on the floor, her head drooping between her knees. Her whole body started to shake. “I’m still… why am I still here? I want to go home. I want to go home.”

Dash rocked back and forth in the corner, muttering softly to herself. The others stared at her.

“Jeeze, Rainbow…” Applejack said. Her mouth stayed open as she tried to continue, but there were no words. She hung her head, brought her eyes back around to her sister.

“Ummm… that’s not right,” Pinkie said to nopony in particular. She stared at her ankle, scratching at it furiously. “Yeah, that’s very different.”

Pinkie scuttled back to her books. She started turning pages at a high rate of speed, barely waiting to read a sentence before turning to another section.

Twilight took no notice of her. “We can beat this thing,” she said softly. She took a few steps towards Dash, reconsidered, and instead walked back to her notes. “We just need to keep a steady head here, and we–”

“I h-h-hear something,” Fluttershy said. She steadied herself against the wall, sniffling and wiping away tears from her eyes. “J-just now, I mean. I… I heard something. It w-was c-coming from below us.”

The group glanced down nervously. Something beneath their hooves cracked. Everypony froze in place, their heads now fixated on the floor. Each listened intently, searching for the source of the rogue sound.

“A weak piece of wood maybe?” Applejack said. “Somethin’ torn loose by the storm?”

“That wouldn’t make a noise below us,” Twilight said.

Dash put her ears to the ground. “I’ve g-got nothing over here. Just a low humming… but I think that’s always been there. Maybe something’s happening to the generator or–”

A loud pop made Dash jump. The sound of metal clanged below them. Overhead, the lights flickered momentarily and then clicked out. The base was plunged into darkness. Fluttershy screamed, while Applejack and Twilight shouted in surprise.

“Hey, what gives? Where’d the lights go?” Dash shouted. A new volley of noise filled the air as feathers flapped and hooves stamped across the room. Furniture scraped across the floor and the glass of a lamp shattered as the ponies fumbled around in the dark.

“Apple Bloom? You still there? Say somethin’!”

“Hey! Who’s bumping into me?”

“Um, that’s me, Twilight. Sorry.”

“Pinkie! Don’t sneak up on ponies like that!”

“Everypony stay where you are, alright? I don’t want any of you getting any closer!”

“Applejack! Where are you? Don’t leave me!”

“I’m right here sugarcube, don’t worry, I got you.”

A light appeared. Twilight’s horn lit up, producing a small glow at the tip of her horn. It wasn’t much, but it proved adequate in illuminating at least part of the room. Long shadows appeared on everypony’s faces. None of them moved when the light went up; they all stayed rooted to the spot.

“Everypony alright?” Twilight asked, the question almost a formality at this point. She got a few automatic, blank nods in reply.

“Hey… hey, wait a minute.” Dash flew to the window, pressing her face right up against the cold glass. “This isn’t right. Where’s the sunlight? The sun couldn’t have gone down already, it’s too early for that.”

The sky outside was pitch black. Dash squinted past her reflection and was almost able to make out the billowing clouds overhead. The view didn’t last, as a flurry of wind pushed another wall of snow past the window, blocking the sky even further.

“Rainbow’s right. It wasn’t near this dark this time yesterday,” Applejack said. She was seated on the couch now, still holding Apple Bloom close. “Is that right up here?”

“That’s beyond the weather up here being out to get us. That’s… that’s something else.” Dash scrambled back, almost tripping on the supply pile. She bent down and, after a moment of rooting around, produced a small lantern. She flicked it on , producing a faint glow.

“The storm clouds are just really thick,” Twilight said. She quickly turned towards the kitchen door. “Right now, we need to worry about what seems to have gone wrong with the generator. One of us will have to go down and look at it.”

Every eye in the room snapped to Twilight. She sighed. “Alright, I’ll go.”

“Yeah, don’t take too long now, alright?” Dash said, clutching the lantern as close to her body as she could. A small box at the corner of her eye caught her attention: the thermite charges. Slowly, as the others watched Twilight walk out of the room, she bent down. Her wing silently unfolded. It scooped up a single charge and brought it up into the fold of feathers. Dash’s eyes twitched left and right as she backed away from the supplies, putting herself against the wall under the window. The small charge felt almost weightless to her.

The door to the basement was jammed. It took Twilight two kicks to get it open, and even then it only opened under creaky protest. Her glow made for an eerie sight as she peered down the stairs. There was no movement down below, not even from piles of dust that might’ve been kicked up by the movement of the door.

Slowly, Twilight descended the stairs. The wood groaned under every step, though nothing gave way. Twilight breathed easily as she reached the bottom and turned towards the generator. She was relaxed; she had been there shortly after they arrived at the base. She knew the layout.

The room was filled with moving shadows as she walked along the icy floor. They danced along the walls, shoving their way past shelves of maintenance equipment and frost covered junk. For a moment, Twilight swore she saw a shape similar to the one projected by the tube two days earlier, but it was gone before she was able to focus on it. Twilight glanced around the shadows one more time and kept walking.

The only other light source came from the opposite end of the room, where the dull red glow of the furnace could be seen through the thick iron grill. Its heat kept the basement above freezing, but Twilight still shivered.

I should’ve grabbed my scarf before I came down, she thought, her teeth chattering.

The generator was situated in the center of the room, just on top of a large concrete block. Twilight craned her neck to study the crude device. Like most generators she had seen, it was a small metal box of coils and wires, all of which were connected to the drive that produced the power. A massive plastic fuel tank sat on top of it, and a series of cables ran up into the walls, where they were further divided and directed into various parts of the base. Twilight didn’t quite understand the specifics of how it all worked, though she made a mental note to read up on them when she got home.

If we even get home, of course, she thought bitterly. She shook her head to chase out such negative thoughts and circled the machine. She only took a few steps before her hoof came down in a small puddle. She bent down to take a closer look: gasoline. A lot of it.

She looked up. Two small gashes were in the side of the fuel tank. The gas puddle was quite large, and drips continued to fall as she watched.

Now what could have caused that?

Twilight gulped. She grabbed some thick duct tape off a shelf and got to work patching the hole. It only took a few moments to apply a few layers, though she wasn’t sure how long it would last. Walking through the growing puddle, her hoof caught on something hard. A gardening claw, the handle with a deep bite impression, lay amongst the spilled fuel.

Twilight frowned. She eyed the tool carefully as she walked by and levitated up a large gas canister. Pouring the fuel in, the tank was again filled. The tape bulged, but it didn’t break; no more gas leaked out.

Twilight flipped a big red switch on the side of the machine. The generator chugged to life. It kicked and wheezed at first, but very shortly it gave in and ran at a constant pace. The basement lights flickered back to life.

Twilight grinned. Alright, taken care of. One less thing, I suppose.

She turned to leave when something caught her eye. She turned and faced the wall behind the generator. Unlike the base, the basement had no pony-made walls. It was essentially a big hole carved out of the snow and ice, situated directly under the kitchen. Twilight stared at the wall, which under normal circumstances would’ve been smooth and uninteresting.

There was a message staring back at her. Big, jagged words had been roughly carved into the ice. Despite the dim lights of the basement, the words were clear:

Twilight studied the writing. It was recent; ice shavings and chunks were still at the base of the wall, not yet refrozen in with the floor.

That definitely wasn’t there the last time I was down here. She reached her hoof out, wanting to scrape over the message, as if to make sure it was really there.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something move. She spun around, her muscles tightening and her horn lowering. It glowed brightly as she prepared for anything, then dimmed as she got a clear look at what was caught on a nearby shelf.

How did that get down–

A loud crash came from upstairs. Her head shot up as the sound of wood and metal hitting the floor reverberated down to her. Pausing only to scoop up a few things, she flashed out of the basement. Another few bits of chipped ice fell from the message as she teleported away. They landed with an inaudible patter on the cold floor, the noise lost under the steady hum of the generator.

Applejack watched Twilight walk into the kitchen. Her hoofsteps could be heard even after the door swung shut. Two small thuds followed the steps, after which they could hear even fainter hoofsteps descending the stairs.

Applejack sighed. “Any more of those lanterns over there, Rainbow Dash?”

“Maybe. Feel free to check.” Dash fidgeted with her lamp, trying to get the weak flame to give off a little more light. Her efforts proved futile, as it was running very low on oil, and she returned to hugging it closely. “Listen, Applejack, everything else aside… you know what I’m talking about with Twilight, right?”

“Rainbow, don’t start with that again,” Applejack said sharply. “After that whole speech you gave… why are you tryin’ to do this now, anyway? You’re just makin’ the rest of us anxious.”

“We should be anxious!” Dash hissed, fumbling with the lantern as she rose up against the ceiling. “Look where we are right now! Look what’s happened! Right now, we need to keep our guard up and be on the lookout for whoever might be one of those things. So I’m looking at Twilight, like the rest of you should.”

“Dashie, it can’t be Twilight.” Pinkie slowly scraped her hoof along the floor, not looking up. “That wouldn’t fit at all. Not here and now, at least.”

“Okay, Pinkie, I’m sorry for accusing you earlier, but you are not helping your case right now either.” Dash shook her head and brushed more of her mane away from her eyes. “Look, never mind you right now. We all just… just keep an eye on Twilight. I’ll figure out something.”

“Rainbow Dash, I don’t even know what you’re talkin’ about now,” Applejack said. “But you need to calm down with all the hoof pointin’. Out of everythin’ that’s happenin’ right now, that’s the least helpful thing to do.”

“Hey, at least I– Hey, where’s Fluttershy? Fluttershy!” Dash called out, her eyes frantically searching through the extended darkness. “Where are you? Did she get away?”

A small whimper came from the corner of the room. “I… I’m still h-here.”

Dash squinted, barely able to make out the bright yellow form by the far wall. “Alright, alright. Just… just checking. Don’t want anypony wandering off now.”

The lights flickered. The hum of the generator whirred back to life, sending power back through the base.

“Hey now, that’s more like it,” Applejack said. She glanced around the room. Everypony looked the same as they had save for Dash, who had shifted places on the ceiling and was considerably paler.

“I’m still gonna keep this close by,” Dash said, patting her lantern. “Just in case. Don’t want to be caught by surprise again.”

“Well, so long as Twilight is sure to–” A loud crash cut Applejack off. Everypony turned to hear a massive THUMP from the other side of the lab wall. The floor rattled and several books fell off the bookshelf.

Dash flinched, nearly shoving her head into the ceiling. “What was that? What’s going on?”

The center of the room flashed. Twilight appeared, her head looking in all directions the moment she was through teleporting. “What was that?” she asked, her attention turning to every pony in the room.

Dash flinched again. “Hey! How about a little warning next time before you sneak up on somepony like that?”

“It came from the lab, Twilight,” Applejack said. “Maybe the roof caved in.”

“The fire did burn it pretty bad…” Twilight turned her attention to the hall door. “I hope that’s the only part that gives way. This place can’t be in the best shape as it is; last thing we need is the ceiling coming down on top of us. Or the floor giving way.”

“Great. That’s just perfect,” Dash said, rolling her eyes. “Just what we need. Now this place is falling apart all around us.”

“What was wrong with the generator, Twilight?” Pinkie asked, cocking her head to one side.

“Somepony tried to sabotage it.” Twilight dropped the gardening claw on the floor. “I found this down there. It was used to puncture a hole in the fuel tank.”

“Why would somepony do a thing like that?” Applejack asked. “What would be the point of shuttin’ the lights off on us?”

“I don’t know,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “I do know it must’ve happened recently. I was down there the other day and it was running fine on a full tank of gas.”

Dash’s eyes grew wide. “Somepony tried to… when could they have done it? Who was alone in the kitchen last?”

“According to that little story of yours, you were, Rainbow Dash,” Applejack said, staring Dash down.

“How high was the hole, Twilight?” Pinkie asked. Her face was calm and serene, and her hoof continued to fiddle around on the floor.

“Uh… a little high up. I had to strain to get a good look at it. It was definitely higher than…” Twilight’s hoof twitched in Apple Bloom’s direction, but she restrained herself. “It was higher than Sweetie Belle or Scootaloo could’ve reached.”

“That still doesn’t mean it was me!” Dash said, shrinking back. “I haven’t been down to the basement at all this trip! I swear!”

“That’s not all I found down there,” Twilight said. She unfolded another object from under her foreleg and tossed it onto the floor: a long scarf, light pink in color.

Everypony studied the article of clothing. “It was caught on a shelf down there, next to the generator. And next to… something on the wall.”

“Something? What exactly do you mean, something?” Dash asked. “And who’s scarf is that?”

“There was…” Twilight hesitated, then took a breath and continued. “There was a message carved into the ice. Something meant for us, I think.”

“A message in the ice? What the hay?” Dash muttered.

“What did it say, Twilight?” Applejack asked.

“‘And as I stumbled down the long path under the earth, my lantern reflected off something in the wall. Steadying myself as I approached, I came across a crude carving in the rock. It had certainly not been there when I traversed this tunnel not an hour before. Taking in the words, a firm chill worked its way up my spine, the very same chill that had made itself known back in the sacrificial chamber. The wall read The Sleeper Awakens, and, in a slightly smaller though no less legible script underneath, You Will Not Be Saved.’” Pinkie looked up, her book staying open in front of her. “Was it anything like that, Twilight?” she asked, staring Twilight right in the eye.

“It… uh…” Twilight stammered. “That’s… exactly what it said. Pinkie, how did you…”

“That’s good, that’s good, I can work with that,” Pinkie said. She folded over the page in the book. “It was that exact message, right Twilight? ‘The Sleeper awakens, you will not be saved’, the whole bit?”

“Okay, time-out for a sec,” Dash crossed her hooves, looking back and forth between Twilight and Pinkie. “Twilight, you mean that something out of Pinkie’s books is carved on the wall in the basement right now?”

“That’s what it says, but it could just be a coinci–” Twilight started, but she cut herself off as her voice wavered. She scratched her chin, slowly turning to look at Pinkie.

“Pinkie, what are you doing carving things in the basement?” Dash asked, pointing down at the floor. “Did you stab the generator too? What are you trying to do to us here?”

“Hey, whoa, there’s no reason to suggest that’s what happened,” Twilight said, bringing her attention back to Dash.

“And I’m sure you’ve got another theory as to why that is, Twilight.” Dash clutched her head, rolling her eyes.

“It is a bit hard to swallow that she didn’t have at least somethin’ to do with it,” Applejack muttered. Twilight shot her a confused look. Applejack shrugged. “Well, even you have to admit it’s a mighty bit peculiar, them matchin’ up an’ all.”

“Well Pinkie?” Dash pressed. “Got anything to say about this?”

“Huh? About what?” Pinkie looked up, her face as calm as it ever was.

Dash swooped down and swiped the scarf off the floor. She hovered over Pinkie, shoving it in her face. “This is yours, isn’t it? What was it doing downstairs? Hey!”

Dash kicked out at a pile of Pinkie’s books, sprawling them across the floor. Pinkie hopped up, her eyes widening. She tried to grab them before they got too far. “Hey, watch it! I don’t know what you’re talking about, Dashie, but I–”

“And quit calling me that!” Dash tossed the scarf to the floor and returned to her high spot on the ceiling. “This isn’t the time to try and back out. That’s your scarf, and it was downstairs next to a message from your books and a busted generator. Add that to all your… whatever you’ve been doing, and it’s definitely making you look pretty suspicious right now.”

Pinkie stared at the fallen scarf, her mouth hanging open in a slight daze. “But I… I don’t know what… I just need to check something, hang on…”

Pinkie reached out for another book, while Dash released an anguished cry.

“Again with the books! Enough of that, Pinkie, enough!” Dash yelled. “Focus on that scarf, on your scarf!”

“Um, I think th-that’s m-mine.” Everypony turned to Fluttershy. She stood up slowly, her knees trembling, and walked over to examine the strip of cloth. “I… I think it m-might be, at least. I don’t know w-what happened to it, though, or h-how it got d-down th-there.”

“Fluttershy? That’s yours?” Dash looked taken aback at the revelation, but she quickly recovered and pointed forward, her arm locking in place in Fluttershy’s direction. “So what were you doing down in the basement?”

“I wasn’t! I mean, I haven’t been, um, down there at all.” Fluttershy shrank backwards, cowering under Dash’s accusing hoof. “I’m sorry if I’m confusing everypony right now, I just, uh, didn’t want Pinkie getting blamed for something that was, well, mine. But I still didn’t do it!”

“We can’t know that, now can we?” Dash flapped forward, sending Fluttershy back to her original spot, shaking and crying. “If you were really so concerned, maybe you should’ve just done what you always do and kept your mouth shut! But now I’m not so sure about you at all!”

“Hey, ease up there, Rainbow.” Applejack leaned forward, glaring. “What reason would Fluttershy have to say it was hers if she actually did it? Maybe somepony planted it there, you ever think of that?”

“Applejack’s right, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said, moving forward to put a hoof down on the scarf. “All we know is that somepony got to the generator, and it might or might not have been the owner of this scarf. You really need to relax right now.”

“Everypony stop telling me to relax!” Dash yelled, her voice ready to crack under the strain. “I’m trying to stay focused right now. I just need to figure this out!”

“We all do, Rainbow! That still doesn’t give you the right to be pointin’ hooves at us!” Applejack stood up from the couch. Apple Bloom retreated back into the cushions, quivering at the noise that surrounded her.

“I’ve got to! Twilight just proved that one of us isn’t who we say we are!” Dash said. She kept trying to push herself back, even though she had long ago hit the ceiling.

“You mean the Twilight you were just tryin’ to convince me is one of those things the moment she left?” Applejack asked.

“You did what?” Twilight cried. She looked up at Dash, her eye twitching. “Rainbow, I thought we’d settled all that!”

“When did that happen? News to me!” Dash shouted back. “You’re the most likely suspect here, Twilight, and you know it!”

“Hey, I’ve just been telling you what I’ve seen and found right now,” Twilight said, narrowing her eyes. “You want to go down there and look for yourself?”

“Oh please, you think I’m that gullible?” Dash said. “Want to get me all alone down there? Come on! You’re the one who’s been down in the basement for sure, you’re the one who could’ve zapped in and out without any of us knowing about it, and you’re still the only one of us who–”

“Why are we all yelling?” Pinkie asked suddenly.

Applejack looked at her. “Pinkie, what are you goin’ on about now–”

“Hey, wait… everypony listen!” Twilight put a hoof in the air, perking her ears up. “Just listen.”

The group waited in silence.

“I don’t hear anything,” Applejack said.

“Exactly!” Twilight pointed towards the window. “The storm… it’s died down!”

The raging howls of the wind, so familiar to the group by now, were gone. A faint silence had replaced it, almost out of place in the circumstances. Dash flew over and looked outside. No snow was flying past her now, not one flake. She looked towards the sky. The swirling black clouds from before were gone. A faint white glow could be seen in one corner of the sky, hidden behind a thin layer of overcast.

“It’s the moon,” Dash said softly. She clapped her hooves together in glee. “I can see the moon! The storm’s gone! It’s clear outside!”

“That left pretty quick,” Applejack said. She craned her neck, trying to see past Dash to get a glimpse of the outside world. “How is that even possible?”

“Well, the weather up here was already acting strange.” Twilight scratched her head. “I still don’t understand these storms that aren’t pony controlled. Maybe they leave just as fast as they arrive.”

“Guys, we can go now!” Dash twirled her head around, a big grin on her face. “I could fly through that with one wing tied behind my back, easy. Don’t you see?”

“Whoa, hold up a minute there,” Applejack said. “We ain’t exactly finished up with things here.”

“Applejack’s right, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said, watching as Dash’s face fell. “Besides, just because it’s fine now doesn’t mean it’ll be fine when we try to leave. You’ve seen how quickly a storm front can move in out there.”

Dash turned back to the window, her grin failing. She put a hoof against the glass, her eyes drawn back up to the white glow in the sky. “But… but we can go now.”

“We should wait for help to arrive,” Twilight said. She kicked the gardening claw. “After what happened here, and with me unable to get a proper test… I don’t think we can do this on our own.”

Twilight looked up at Applejack. “Applejack, you agree with me right? On what we have to do now?”

Applejack’s brows rose. She glanced at the lab door, over to the hall door, and finally down at her little sister. Apple Bloom looked up and tried to smile, though it didn’t last. Applejack gently patted her on the head. “Yeah. Yeah, I suppose you’re right about this one, Twilight. Not much else we can do now but wait.”

“Rainbow Dash, what are you doing?” Fluttershy cried out. She shot a trembling hoof towards the outside door.

Dash struggled with her thermite charge, trying to get it wedged into place next to all the rebar. “Come on, you stupid little… stay in place…”

“Rainbow Dash, stop!” Applejack ran towards the door. Dash kicked her lantern at her. It flew into Applejack’s legs, causing her to trip down onto the floor.

“I can go get help… I can do it!” The charge locked into place, stuck tight between the blocked door and the outstretched metal bars. Dash smiled and reached for the detonator switch–

A bright light flashed over her. Dash vanished from the door, reappearing on the other side of the room. Her hoof brushed over empty air as she glared at Twilight and her still-glowing horn.

“Hey! Don’t ever do that to me again, Twilight! You hear me?”

“Rainbow, we can’t have you– hey!” Twilight ducked as Dash launched up, flying overhead right back towards the door. Dash reached a hoof in front of her, getting closer and closer to the switch with each flap of her wings.

“Oh no you don’t!” Applejack leapt off the floor, tackling Dash out of the air a foot from the door. The two ponies crashed to the ground, rolling around in a furious twist of kicks.

“Lemme go Applejack! Get off me!” Dash tried to struggle free, kicking at Applejack at every opportunity.

“Twilight, gimme a hoof here!” Applejack commanded. Twilight nodded and moved in, only to receive a solid hoof to the chest as Dash landed a lucky hit. Twilight stumbled backward and tripped over the gardening claw, dropping to the floor. She slid a few feet, coming to a stop when she bumped into the hall door. It swung open, the weakened hinges easily giving way to the weight pressed against it.

“Alright, ouch…” Twilight rubbed her chest as she stood up, her hooves still shaking from the powerful blow. Shaking her head, she caught sight of the burned remains of Rarity just down the hall. She quickly averted her eyes, bringing them down to the blood pool in front of it. The blood had dried up by now, though it still left an impression of its original crescent-moon shape.

Twilight blinked. “That’s interesting…” she said softly. She leaned in to get a closer look.

“Um, T-Twilight? Are y-you okay?” Fluttershy slowly approached Twilight from behind, still sniffling.

Back by the window, Applejack continued to wrestle with Dash. “Come on, Rainbow Dash, quit strugglin’! You aren’t makin’ it easier for yourself!”

“I said, let me go!” Dash straightened her back straight up, expanding her wings at the same time. Applejack momentarily lost her grip, and Dash was able to wriggle her off. Applejack fell backwards onto the supply pile with a brief cry of pain.

“Nopony touch me! Ever!” Dash stood up, quickly dusting herself off. She looked toward the barricaded door, which Applejack was now rolling around in front of. She spun around, now facing the tunnel to the temple . She took a step forward, only to catch an edge of one of Pinkie’s books. Still somewhat disoriented from the fight, she slipped, tumbling back down to the floor. The book launched forward along the floor, knocking Pinkie in the arm. She stared down, her eyes widening at what she saw.

“That’s very new…” she said in astonishment.

“Applejack, tie her down!” Twilight shouted, pulling herself out of the hallway.

Before Dash could react, a rope slipped around her head. Applejack had her in a bind. She stood in front of a long coil of rope, freshly snatched from the bottom of the supplies. Dash tried to struggle away, but Applejack kept tossing new lassos out and around her. It wasn’t long before Dash was completely entangled. Ropes covered every limb and both wings, holding her down tightly.

“Get her down on the couch there,” Twilight said. “I want to keep her in one place right now.”

Dash fought as hard as she could, but her binds refused to give. Applejack dragged her over to the couch, tossing her up onto the cushions upon arrival. With a few expert pulls and tugs, Dash was strapped down to the couch. She threw herself forward in a final attempt at freedom; the legs of the couch lifted a few centimeters off the floor, only to settle back down again. Dash was stuck fast.

“You guys are going to listen to Twilight?” she cried out, still squirming under the ropes. “She could be one of those things! Don’t do this to me!”

Applejack breathed heavily, brushing sweat off her forehead. “Just hang tight, Rainbow Dash. We’ll deal with you yet.”

Apple Bloom reached up to her sister. “Applejack, please… I’m scared.”

“It’s alright Apple Bloom, I gotcha.” Applejack scooped her sister up, drawing her into a tight hug over the couch. “I gotcha.”

“Everypony, follow me into the kitchen,” Twilight announced. Everypony looked up at her with interest. Everypony except for Pinkie, who continued to stare and gape at her ankle.

“What’s going on, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked, gently creeping along the floor towards her. “W-what do you want?”

“I’ve got a test to try,” Twilight said. She walked past Dash struggling on the couch and grabbed several boxes out of the supply pile. “This one’s bound to work. It has to. It’s time to settle the matter, once and for all.”