Twilight shivered and tightened her jacket. The air around the group had gotten colder as they descended the staircase, and now it was barely above freezing. Every few steps, Fluttershy let out a new whimper while Rainbow Dash continuously glanced back to check her saddlebag. Twilight kept the lantern hovering steady. Her horn gave off an extra glow of light just behind it. They were the only light sources on the stairs. The darkness weighed in around them, constantly threatening to envelop them entirely with every flicker of the lantern’s flame.

Fluttershy stumbled and slipped forward on the final step. Dash quickly bent to catch her while Twilight peered out ahead. Small clouds appeared in front of her mouth with every breath, and she worked hard to keep her legs from shaking. The stairs had ended in a tight hallway, with barely enough room for the three of them to stand side by side. She studied the walls, and noted that they were made of the same jet black stone that constructed the temple’s exterior. No light reflected off them, making everything seem even darker than it already was.

Up ahead, a lantern rested on the floor. “Pinkie!” Twilight called out. The ancient walls absorbed the sound of her voice, taking any echo with it. “Pinkie! Is that you?”

There was a pause, and then the response came back. “Hang on! I’m just checking the map.”

Pinkie Pie’s voice was unmistakable. Dash, still propping Fluttershy up, yelled out into the dark divide. “Pinkie! What gives with just ditching us back there? Slow down for a second!”

“Come on, before she starts moving again.” Twilight gently leaned in to help Dash move Fluttershy along. The trio walked steadily ahead, their hooves silent on the floor. Twilight glanced back towards the staircase, but it had already been swallowed by the blackness.

They found Pinkie at the end of the hall, where it branched off into three separate corridors. She was staring intently at her map. Her tongue stuck out of her mouth and her brow furrowed in concentration. She silently traced her hoof across the paper.

“Pinkie, where are we going now?” Dash asked. She looked over Pinkie’s shoulder, following along with the map’s twisted black line.

“Hang on, I got this…” Pinkie muttered. She looked back and forth between the corridors and her map. Dash shot a wary look at Twilight, who shrugged.

Suddenly, Pinkie stopped and turned around with a smile. “Alrighty, let’s go!” she said. With a flick of her wrist, the map rolled back up and she quickly hopped down the passage to their right. “Follow me guys, we’re nearly there! Stay close now, don’t want to get lost. No telling where you might end up then.”

“Hey Pinkie, not so quick!” Twilight said, moving up behind her. Fluttershy pushed herself off of Dash and walked forward, whimpering softly. Dash rolled her eyes and followed up behind.

The group moved briskly through the tunnel. Occasionally, Dash stopped to adjust her saddlebag, or Fluttershy paused to take several very deep breaths and reassure herself, but largely they walked in silence. Ice had formed in small patches in several spots along the stone and multiple times they had to steady themselves against the wall to keep from slipping.

Pinkie continued to lead the way, her lantern bobbing up and down with every hop. They hit several more intersections, but Pinkie’s consultations with the map became briefer and briefer the farther they went. By the sixth juncture, she barely glanced at it before she turned and rushed down the next path. Twilight tried to keep track of the twists and turns and where they were going in relation to the temple above, but it wasn’t long before she found herself completely lost.

“Hey, Twilight,” Dash whispered, quickening her pace to match Twilight’s. “Where do you think she’s going?”

“I would guess that place she told us about before,” Twilight whispered back. “Where the big… thing is, and all that. I just hope she really knows where she’s going.”

“How can she know that at all?” Dash asked, raising an eyebrow. “This all keeps being way too weird for me.”

“She got us down here, didn’t she?” Twilight responded, limply gesturing at the passing walls. “Right now, I’m a little more curious as to how she’s able to move so fast based on a map with no scale or points of reference.”

“I don’t know how she can even call that a map.” Dash eyed the rolled parchment that was balanced precariously on Pinkie’s bounding backside. “It’s just a long black line. Not exactly the best directions, even without somepony like her giving them.”

“I guess we’ll just have to… wait.” Twilight stared ahead. Pinkie had stopped in her tracks in the middle of the hall. There was no intersection this time, and her map remained untouched. She muttered quietly to herself.

“Great, now what?” Dash asked, not taking a step forward.

“Maybe she’s still trying to figure things out,” Twilight said. She hovered her lantern higher into the air. The shadows around Pinkie lengthened, but she remained completely motionless.

“Maybe she’s finally lost it… or at least lost it more than she already has,” Dash said, her eyes narrowing. Behind them, a loud thump sounded out as Fluttershy fell to the ground.

Twilight whirled around. “Fluttershy! Are you alright?”

“Um, yes, I-I’m fine,” Fluttershy said, her voice shaky as ever. “I think I… I just tripped on some ice, t-that’s all.”

While Twilight knelt down to tend to Fluttershy, Dash jogged forward to catch up with Pinkie. She slowed as she approached. Pinkie’s lantern lay between her hooves, blocking some of the light from Dash and giving Pinkie an orange outline in the dark. Her voice was a steady stream of gibberish and noise, with no words that Dash recognized.

“Hey, Pinkie,” Dash said, cautiously reaching a hoof out to tap Pinkie on the shoulder. “You doing alright up here? Pinkie?”

Pinkie stopped muttering. Her face slowly turned around. She looked up and smiled at Dash. “I’ve got it. I’ve really, really got it this time.”

“Yeah, we know you do, Pinkie,” Dash said, patting Pinkie on the back. “You keep telling us–”

Pinkie’s hoof snapped out, grabbing hold of Dash’s shoulder. Dash instinctively flinched backward. “No, I mean, I really have it now,” Pinkie said, staring Dash right in the eye. “Don’t any of you see it? He’s the answer! He sees us… he sees you.”

Dash stared back, speechless. A red drop appeared on Pinkie’s face, running down out of her tear duct. Dash slowly pushed Pinkie’s hoof off.

“That’s great, Pinkie,” Dash said, taking a big step back. “Uh… tell him I say hi.”

“I can see…” Pinkie’s eyes travelled off Dash. She turned back around and walked forward again at the same speed as before. Dash stood in place as she left. Twilight and Fluttershy walked up behind her; Fluttershy limped slightly on one leg, but she did her best not to wince.

“What did she say, Rainbow Dash?” Twilight asked.

Dash turned, her eye twitching. “Twilight, I think we may want to consider getting out of here. Really, really soon.”

“Second-to-last turn!” Pinkie shouted. She had reached another intersection, and before the others could even say anything, she hooked left and hopped down a passageway. Twilight hurried forward, Dash and Fluttershy reluctantly keeping pace behind her.

“Second-to-last turn before what, Pinkie?” Twilight asked as she rounded the corner. Pinkie walked ahead of her, slower than before but still moving with a purpose.

“This place is super old, Twilight. Did you know that?” Pinkie asked without turning around. “I mean, I know you can tell its old just by looking at it, but it really goes waaaay back. Back when Luna and Celestia were just little fillies, and even a little before that.”

Twilight raised her lantern higher into the air, only to have it scrape against stone.

It’s getting really narrow in here, Twilight thought. How does Pinkie keep managing to bounce so high?

“There wasn’t even land here at first,” Pinkie went on. “Just a big, deep ocean. It’s still here now, too. You could even go for a dip, but you’d have to break through all the ice first. Because once it started to get colder and colder, the very tippy-toppy part of the water froze over. Then ponies moved in.”

As Pinkie turned a corner, the map rolled off her back and onto the floor, but she didn’t slow down.

“Uh, Pinkie, your map,” Twilight said. She stooped to reach for it.

“Don’t worry, I memorized it.” Pinkie turned back to Twilight for a split-second. Twilight gasped when she saw dark crimson lines running out of both of her eyes.

“Pinkie, what’s… what’s wrong with your–”

“And one day, they met you-know-what,” Pinkie said, picking up her story from where it left off. “And it started to do what it does best. But, and this is the really neat part, do you know what happened next?”

“Pinkie, I don’t–”

“That’s right! They caught it!” Pinkie did a little twirl, her voice sounding ecstatic. “They tricked it and trapped it and bottled it up! That’s really quite something, especially when you think about it, because there’s really no way they should’ve been able to do that but they still did it anyway.”

Twilight heard close shuffling behind her. She turned around and saw Dash and Fluttershy move in, their ears perked towards Pinkie.

“Twilight,” Fluttershy said slowly, “w-what is Pinkie talking about?”

Twilight shook her head. “It sounds like the history of this place, but… I’m not sure.”

“It sounds like a load of gibberish, if you ask me,” Dash said. She slid forward, tugging her bag along as it got caught on Fluttershy’s wing. “Whoops! Sorry, Fluttershy. This thing’s a little heavy.”

“I-it’s alright, Rainbow Dash.” Fluttershy bent her wing down, allowing the bag to slip off. “It’s not your f-fault. It’s just r-really cramped in h-here.”

“Yeah, about that,” Dash said, looking around the wall, “is it just me, or are the walls closing in the farther we go? Like, literally closing in.”

“I’ve noticed that too,” Twilight said. “They’re moving closer and lower. At this rate, we won’t even be able to turn around soon.”

“Figures.” Dash sighed. “I don’t suppose now would be a good time to ask if we could go back?”

“We’ve come this far,” Twilight replied. “And we can’t just let Pinkie wander off on her own.”

They came across another intersection, and Pinkie went straight ahead.

“But then, once they had it, what were they supposed to do with it?” Pinkie’s hoof shook as she brushed her mane out of her face. “They had nowhere to put it. So they built a place to put it. A big prison, in the one spot in Equestria where it could never ever escape. It’s these stones here. Did you know that? They come from a very different place.”

She tapped the walls, her hoof gliding along the smooth surface. “Have you ever actually seen a thermite charge go off? Any of you? They don’t work the way they do here. It’s this place. They knew it way back when, even if they were just using torches and bonfires. All this place. And it’s not even just with fire! They’re multipurpose and really, really cool. They can even work to trap it.”

“Which they did.” Pinkie looked up. “Like I was saying. They built this place, stored it, locked it, and threw away the key. Left it to just wither away. And then they all went off to experience long lives and lived happily ever after.”

Pinkie giggled. The sound echoed, catching Twilight by surprise.

“But like I said, that was a very long time ago. Since then, ponies forgot what was here and why they had to stay away. Eventually, some more ponies came up here, long after the old ones were gone, and this place was discovered again. They knew it was a special place, but they had it a teeny bit wrong as to why it was special. No, what they did was come in and start to worship that thing! Can you believe it? They thought it was a god.”

Pinkie paused to scratch her chin. “Which wasn’t far off, I guess, but they were definitely jumping to conclusions there.” She shrugged and went back to hopping.

“Pinkie, why are you telling us all of this?” Twilight asked. Her shoulder bumped against the stone walls, causing her to quiver through her jacket. Behind her, Fluttershy let out another small “eep!” as her wings tightened against her sides. Twilight passed the lantern back, which Fluttershy earnestly gripped onto.

“Don’t suppose you know any wider paths to take, Pinkie?” Dash asked, squirming ahead of Fluttershy. “Or is it supposed to get this tight?”

“And so things stayed like that for a really, really long time more, and Equestria continued on, and everything just sort of happened the way it happened.” Pinkie kept hopping along. Her speed never wavered and her sides never so much as brushed against the walls. “And eventually the ponies here all died out, and the thing was all alone again. Because it could never wither away, either. Not really. Ponies got that part wrong. It’s in no rush to grow up. It will always be as it is. All alone. And it was so angry to be alone. Not just angry at all the ponies that put it there, and not even angry at not being able to do what it was up here to do in the first place. It was mostly pretty steamed with itself for being caught to begin with.”

Pinkie stopped abruptly and scratched her head. The others bumped into one another as they stopped behind her.

“Although I guess it would also be mad at the ponies for that part, too,” Pinkie said, her eyes twitching. “Maybe it just wanted some friends… it forms very close friendships, you know. The kind that last forever and ever and ever.”

“Still convinced we should keep going forward, Twilight?” Dash whispered into Twilight’s ear.

“I admit, I am getting worried that Pinkie may not be all there,” Twilight said.

Dash released an exasperated sigh. “You think? Have you been listening to her at all for the past day?”

“Why does s-she keep saying all t-that stuff?” Fluttershy asked, still holding fast onto the lantern. “H-how does she k-know any of it?”

“I don’t know. I guess she got it all from her books,” Twilight said. She scratched her forehead. “But some of it doesn’t make any sense. I mean, there was an ocean here back when Equestria was still forming, but that was eons ago. It’s been nothing but solid rock under the ice long before ponies ever started showing up.”

“No time to dilly-dally, girls!” Pinkie shouted. She took off down the hall, practically galloping. The others carried on after her. As they ran along, the floor sloped down beneath them.

Has it always been doing that? Twilight wondered.

“Following a pony who’s talking crazy down a path we can barely fit in seems like a really bad idea,” Dash said. She kept close behind Twilight. “And did you see her eyes? Something’s very messed up with them.”

“W-what’s wrong with her eyes?” Fluttershy strained to look past Twilight at Pinkie’s slowly distancing figure.

“She’s crying,” Dash said. She traced a hoof down her own cheek under her eye. “But it’s not tears that are coming out.”

“So it was just waiting and waiting and waiting!” Pinkie was shouting now, getting farther ahead of the others. “Just waiting… and thinking. Until finally more ponies came. And it could finally stop doing all that waiting and thinking and start having some fun of its own.”

There was the sound of tinkering glass, and Pinkie’s light vanished. Twilight ran to the spot of the sound and nearly stepped on the broken remnants of Pinkie’s lantern.

“Pinkie!” Twilight shouted. She stopped and listened for the sound of hoofsteps up ahead. “Pinkie! Wait up!”

“But, and I really hate saying this, because it’s something that I’d never think would even be possible,” Pinkie’s voice shot back from the dark, “it shouldn’t have been concentrating on having so much fun. It got distracted, it got lazy. It split off from the path it was supposed to follow and the tasks it was supposed to complete.”

“Pinkie!” Dash shouted out. The three ponies ran in single file, their jackets rubbing against the walls and their heads barely clearing the ceiling. “Yeah, definitely some wrong here. Be ready to get us out of here, Twilight.”

Twilight’s horn shimmered in response. Her beam of light intensified, shooting out ahead. The corridor seemed to go on and on forever. They could no longer hear Pinkie’s hoofsteps.

Suddenly, the floor dropped away. Twilight fell down several feet, landing awkwardly on her chest. Fluttershy tumbled down on top of her, while Dash was able to catch herself and flap overhead.

“Oh! Sorry Twilight,” Fluttershy said, rubbing her head. “I didn’t mean to.”

“It’s alright, Fluttershy,” Twilight said. She slowly got to her hooves and her breathing intensified for a moment. “Dash, you still with us?”

“Right up here,” Dash answered. “My lantern’s busted on me, though.”

“Mine too,” Fluttershy said. She meekly prodded at the mangled metal box. The exterior glass was only cracked, but the oil cartridge had burst. Twilight directed her beam of light around them.

They had fallen out of the corridor into a much larger space. The walls rounded around them in a wide curve. Twilight looked up, but couldn’t see the ceiling.

“We’re here!”

Twilight jumped in surprise as Pinkie popped up right in front of her. The pony grinned madly while blood streamed from her eyes. She didn’t look quite at Twilight, but rather somewhere just behind her.

“Pinkie! Don’t scare us like that!” Twilight shook her head. Pinkie giggled and hopped backwards.

“Isn’t this place cool, guys? It looks even better than I thought it would!” Pinkie took a step back, her head scanning the walls. “Be careful though, it’s going to start getting really fractured up ahead.”

She scratched her head. “Huh. Wonder what I meant by that?”

Twilight stared at her, lost for words.

Pinkie shrugged and scurried around the room, quickly slipping back into the shadows. “But now’s no time to go sightseeing, anyway. There’s too much lost time to make up for!”

“Uh, did you see where she went, Rainbow Dash?” Twilight asked. Her horn continued to flash over the room. She heard Dash flapping above her, although the pegasus did not respond.

“Do you guys need lights?” Pinkie chirped from the other side of the room. “Well why didn’t you say so?”

Three solid hoofsteps sounded in quick succession. A row of torches along the wall ignited. Twilight blinked at the sudden burst of light, shielding her eyes with one hoof in the process. As she grew accustomed to the newfound illumination, she lowered her hoof and studied the room.

It was a perfectly round chamber. The walls were smooth and featureless. The only deviation was a small opening just above head level, which led back into the passageway they had all come from. Like before, the black material reflected no light. Twilight glanced upward, but still couldn’t see the ceiling.

Or maybe it’s just so dark I can’t tell if I’m looking right at it.

A large, round ring of stones occupied the center of the room. Twilight stepped forward to examine them. They made up a very shallow well, filled to the brim with clear water. Twilight could see the bottom about a meter down, if that. Unlike the rest of the walls, the floor under the water was solid white in color.

Pinkie stood on the other side of the well. She peered down at the water, her body shaking in anticipation. “Alright, time to get things moving!”

Dash landed next to Twilight. “Something’s wrong. We need to get out of here.”

“I already told you, I don’t know what’s going on with Pinkie,” Twilight said. “But if she brought us this far–”

“Twilight, I don’t know what Pinkie’s planning, but… but it isn’t good.” Dash pointed to Pinkie. “Just look at her. Look at how she’s acting. She needs to stop.”

Twilight looked back and forth between Dash and Pinkie, then nodded. She stepped over to the well, across from where Pinkie was positioned.

“Pinkie, wait!” Twilight shouted. To her surprise, Pinkie paused what she was doing and looked up. Twilight stared into her eyes, somewhat taken aback. They had become a shade of dark blue all the way across. Twilight couldn’t even be sure if Pinkie was looking back at her.

“Uh… what are…” Twilight stumbled for a moment. “What are you planning to do, exactly, Pinkie?”

Pinkie grinned. “Everything I said I was going to do, Twilight. Time to turn the clock back. I can’t let him down now, can I? What kind of pony would I be if I did that?”

Pinkie reached down into the well and dipped the bruise on her ankle under the water line. The well bottom glowed brightly, and beams of light shot up out of the water. Twilight shielded her eyes again as she backed away towards the walls. The bottom glowed brighter and brighter, to the point where Twilight couldn’t look directly at it.

“This is the ultimate goal, you see,” Pinkie said. “It’s always been a matter of getting things back to the way they used to be. Before this thing failed to do what it was supposed to do, before any ponies came stumbling up here to just start messing around… before there were any ponies anywhere at all, even.”

“Pinkie, stop!” Dash cried. She swooped forward, only to smack into one of the beams of light. She fell to the floor. “What’d I… what the hay was that?”

Before Twilight could respond, a loud ringing filled the room. It bounced off the walls and pierced into the ponies’ heads. The three ponies quickly covered their ears, desperately trying to block out the noise.

“Twilight!” Fluttershy screamed over the din. She pressed herself down on the floor, her hooves clamped firmly on her head. “Twilight, look!”

Twilight turned over and stared at Pinkie. She had taken her hoof out of the water and held it in the air. Her bruise glowed with the same intensity as the well.

“I’ve almost got this!” Pinkie shouted, the smile on her face expanding wider. “No more mistakes, no more missed opportunities, and no more messing around on petty revenge. I’ve almost fixed everything! I can do it!”

Pinkie twitched in place and dove forward. The entire front half of her body disappeared under the water, her rear legs pressing firm against the side of the well to hold herself in position. Her tail jutted into the air, waving around from side to side.

“Twilight, get her out of there!” Dash screamed. She flapped up again, only to be sent back to the floor by another light barrier. She shoved against it, pushing forward but getting nowhere.

Twilight’s horn shimmered. A purple field snapped into life around Pinkie’s body, only to quickly vanish. The water flickered for a moment, and the beams of light turned grey. They drew together into a solid wall and slammed forward. The three ponies were sent sprawling backwards against the wall.

The trio lay in a heap, still struggling against the noise. Twilight felt the walls tremble; the temple shook again, like it had when the staircase opened. Over the ringing, there was also the very definitive sound of something shifting deep down below their hooves. Something very big.

Then, without warning, the ringing stopped. Silence descended on the room as the shaking faded away. Small trails of dust fell from cracks in the ceiling, but other than that there was complete stillness.

Twilight was the first to stand. She pulled herself up, gently sliding Fluttershy off of her leg first. She brushed her head and shook off the small pile of dust that had fallen on her back. Behind her, Dash groaned; she rolled over onto her side and pushed herself up with her wings.

“Is everypony alright?” Twilight asked. She helped Fluttershy stand while Dash woozily leaned against the wall.

“I’ve had just about enough of these really loud noises,” Dash said. She flexed her jaw and tenderly touched her right ear. “This one’s still ringing.”

The sound of splashing caught everypony’s attention, and the three looked over to see Pinkie reemerge from the well. She wheezed several times, spitting up drops of water and coughing hard. The well continued to glow brightly, reflecting off the water droplets on her skin. She tried to pull herself all the way out, but her hooves didn’t come up. The water rippled gently as she tugged several times, trying desperately to free herself. No such luck, however; her hooves were stuck on something under the surface.

Pinkie looked up and stared at Twilight. The streaks of blood were gone, and her eyes had returned to their normal appearance. Her smile had vanished, and replaced instead with a trembling frown.

“Twilight…” Pinkie pleaded. The edge that had been developing in her voice all evening was gone now. “Help.”

The well rippled again, and Pinkie was yanked underwater. Her body sank down, disappearing into the light.

“Pinkie!” Twilight rushed towards the well. “Pinkie!”

“Hey, wait!” Dash moved forward to grab Twilight when the temple shook again. Walls cracked and torches fell from their perches, splitting in two as soon as they hit the floor. The floor jolted from left to right with enough speed to knock each pony off her hooves. Twilight’s head hit the floor. With her ear to the ground, she heard a great rumbling approaching fast.

The surface of the well exploded. A massive jet of water shot upward, soaring into the air like a geyser. It smashed into the ceiling with enough force to dislodge the stonework and blast away mortar. The cracks in the walls widened exponentially, thrusting themselves outward as the shaking of the temple intensified.

“Twilight, get us out of here!” Dash cried out. “We have to–”

A blast of water hit Dash in the face, cutting her off. More water jets shot out from the cracks in the walls. One hit Twilight in the abdomen, knocking the wind out of her while it shoved her to the ground. For a brief moment, she was surprised at how warm the water was. Then another jet pushed her head under water.

The well continued to glow brightly, giving Twilight a clear view of her surroundings. She turned herself around and kicked off the ground. Her head barely reemerged above the rising flow; she felt the water rising around her as she gasped for breath. She swam in place, her hooves unable to touch the floor anymore. Looking around, she noticed even more cracks opening into the walls. Each drew water away from the room into some unseen section of the temple.

The flow started to push Twilight around. She kicked frantically to stay on course, but the current was too strong. As she was carried towards a large hole in the wall, she spotted the others on the other side of the room. Dash had a tight grip around Fluttershy’s waist and was half-flying, half-kicking at the stream in a fight to stay above water. Twilight tried to cry out, but a splash to her face when she opened her mouth took her breath away.

Twilight tried to concentrate. She looked at Dash and Fluttershy, a purple field appearing around her horn. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something large and black moving towards her. A large chunk of the ceiling had been knocked loose and plunged straight down. Twilight kicked back as hard as she could, just barely dodging the bulk of the object. She was less lucky with the stray brick that followed it, which smacked her just behind her ears.

Twilight’s eyes flickered. She barely registered the large tremor that ripped the room in two. In front of there, the blurry shapes of Dash and Fluttershy were torn apart, each of them disappearing down a separate crack. Her eyes finally closed completely and her head sagged back as the powerful current swept her away into the unknown depths.

Fire. Everywhere there was fire. The smell of burning paper lingered in the air, and ash floated to the ground. Wood was completely consumed by flame. Embers glowed at the base of the tree while fresh infernos ignited up above. There was no noise during all of this. The world was completely silent.

Twilight stood in front of the library. It was like she was stuck in a photograph. The chaos in front of her, of the library burning up in one fireball, was frozen in place. Flames licked the air, but never spread down whatever branch they were on. The spectators that surrounded the library were similarly motionless, though Twilight had a funny feeling that even if things were happening in real time, they still wouldn’t move.

Except for the figure standing right in front of her. He moved. He was a dark blur, and she couldn’t make out any specific details about what he looked like, but she could tell he was moving. She was struck by a nagging sense of familiarity that she knew who he was. He walked towards her. A nondescript smile pushed through the haze that was his face.

Twilight tried to speak, but no words came out.

The figure spoke for her. “You’d better wake up. You’re not done yet.”

Follow the light. Follow the light and I’ll make it.

Rainbow Dash hurried forward, her hooves pounding on the stone. She could hear water lapping at the stones behind her, but with every step, the sound receded. Her wings were folded down over her sides, cradling the saddlebag against her abdomen. Up ahead, a single spot of light was her only source of illumination.

She ran to the light as quickly as she could manage. Her face strained from a pain in her leg, acquired when she’d been slammed into some rocks by the churning water. It gave her a limp, but she powered through it as best she could.

A lantern lay on the floor ahead. Dash recognized it as the lantern Pinkie had dropped earlier. The glass was cracked, the copper bottom dented.

But the light went out when Pinkie dropped it, Dash thought. And this isn’t where we were before. How’d it get here?

“Hello?” Dash called out. “Is anypony there?”

There was no response.

“Twilight? Fluttershy?” Dash took a few steps forward, he ears perked for any kind of new sound. “Can anypony hear me? Hello!”

Still nothing. Dash shivered. Her jacket had been ripped off in the surge of water, and she was soaking wet. The faint heat from the lantern felt good, but it wasn’t enough. Dash glanced back as she picked up the lantern. She could still hear water splashing against the walls. Beyond that, the sound of falling rocks rattled in the distance.

Just keep moving. If I can just get out of here... then it will all be alright. Maybe I can find the others too… maybe.

Dash shook some excess water out of her wings, and ran down the dark tunnel.

Twilight’s eyes snapped open to the sight of utter darkness. She didn’t move, instead letting her body take in the surroundings. She felt wet and cold all over. Water dripped off her jacket, which was nearly ripped in two. The hard stone floor pushed into her sides at uncomfortable angles, but for the moment she let it be. Her head was spinning, and she felt something hot and sticky leaking out of her ear. Somewhere off to her right, water occasionally dropped into a puddle. For a moment, the distant hum she heard convinced her she was still dreaming. Then she realized it was the sound of rushing water off in some direction, muffled by layers of stone and ice.

Slowly, very slowly, she sat up. She fumbled around in the dark, searching for something to latch onto. Her hoof found a wall, and she shuffled over to lean back against it. She’d only moved a few inches when her jacket caught on a sharp edge, and was torn off entirely. She rubbed her body with her hooves, brushing as much water off as she could.

Good thing it feels warmer in here. Though there’s no telling how long that’ll last.

Her breathing was labored, but as she sat up she found herself feeling a little better. She waited for her eyes to adjust to the darkness, but a few minutes later everything was still pitch black.

“Hello?” Twilight called out. Her voice echoed, repeating the word several times all around her.

Echoes. I must be somewhere new… or the stones have started to selectively echo again.

A small spark of light appeared at the tip of Twilight’s horn. She cried out in pain, and the spark vanished. Her hoof shot up to her head. She grimaced as she felt around, tenderly touching the growing bruise at the top of her skull.

Concussion maybe? That shouldn’t interfere with my magic like this, though…

She inhaled deeply. The spark appeared again, coming into focus slower this time. She winced as the light increased, her eyes struggling to stay open and her jaw clenched. The light flickered, vanished again, and then came back again, finally remaining steady. Twilight let out a long exhale. She directed her new beam of light around the room. Her eyes travelled slowly along the walls.

It was a larger chamber than the one before, and completely empty. The same smooth black material made up the walls, in which there were no holes or exits. The only way into this room was a large crack in the ceiling, from which water dripped down at a constant pace.

“Hello?” Twilight called again. “Can anypony up there hear me? Hello!”

Her voice continued to echo around, but that was the only voice she heard. She got to her hooves, looking at the hole in the ceiling as she did.

Nopony here… where are the others? Did they make it out of this okay? What about Pinkie? What if they… if I’m…

Twilight shook her head. “No,” she said aloud. “They’re fine. They’re just up there somewhere, and I need to find them. We all need to get out of here.”

Twilight braced herself on the floor. Her horn shimmered all over. She dug her hooves down as the pain intensified in her skull. Rings of light appeared around her several times, never staying for more than a second. She sighed.

Nothing down here. Gotta get back up, and there’s only one way to do it. You can do it, Twilight.

She shut her eyes. Her horn glowed intensely. The light rings reappeared, multiplying this time instead of fading away. The light grew brighter and brighter, and then, with a loud CRACK, Twilight disappeared.

“Hello? If there’s anypony out there, you gotta say something!” Dash shouted off periodically as she flew down the corridor. Her injured leg was pulled in next to her, while her wings flapped clean and easily. The hall was wide, so she never touched the walls. The lantern bounced back and forth as it hung around her neck, tied in place with a ripped piece of fabric from the saddlebag.

Up ahead, an intersection appeared. Dash slowed to peer around the three offered pathways. One was blocked by debris, but the other two were open and clear.

Man, I hate mazes. At least one of these looks like it goes up.

She shook her head and flew down the path to the right. The sloped passageway rose beneath her, and before long she was flying almost straight up. The walls flexed around her, showing off many long cracks. The shadows from her lantern danced in front of her the whole time.

Yeah, yeah, creepy shadows, I got it. Still just looking for that exit.

Eventually, she reached the top of the tunnel. It turned down to one side, abruptly leveling out into another long corridor. She took a quick look behind her at the top. A sheer drop sat below her.

Huh. Wonder what they needed a path like this for? It took me a while to fly up it… how deep were we?

Dash shrugged and turned back around. Her eyes scanned the walls as she sailed down the path. Somewhere along the vertical path they had changed from the jet black stones to the more traditional brown ones.

Getting warmer, Dash thought with a glimpse of a smile. Long cracks extended down the walls in both directions. Some were tiny ruptures, while others spread out to an area twice Dash’s size. She peeked through a few of the larger holes, but saw only darkness.

The light in the tunnel flickered. Dash looked down to see that her lantern was starting to die, the small flame shaking in the light.

“Hey, come on, don’t do this to me now!” Dash landed and examined the oil tray. “No leaks… how do these stupid things work, there’s gotta be a– there we go.”

Dash hit a dial, and with a fresh flow of oil the flame roared into new life. She breathed a sigh of relief, then noticed something on the top of the lantern. Something reflective. Looking up, she saw a dim light in a wall down the hall.

Dash wasted no time running to it. The wall in question had a massive fissure running parallel to the floor. Dash got in close and squinted; a lit corridor could be seen on the other side, with several torches planted in the wall.

Jackpot! Dash studied the wall. It was in bad shape, worse than the ones she had passed. Besides the main crack, a spiderweb of smaller fractures spread all over.

One of my charges should do it, unless… maybe I can just…

She leaned back, and delivered a strong kick just under the main crack. The wall jumped, several large stones falling down the other side. Dash smirked, and hammered out four more kicks. The fifth one sent a section of the wall crumbling to pieces in front of her.

Dash stepped into the new room, coughing at the dust in the air and looking triumphant.

So much for your stupid maze. Back in the light now, all I gotta do is–

There was a cough somewhere to her left. Dash’s expression dropped and she spun around, instantly taking a low defensive stance. Her wings twitched, ready to flee at a moment’s notice.

Apple Bloom lay sprawled out on the far side of the room. She was covered in bruises, and her twisted mane obscured most of her face. A large patch of stone had collapsed from the ceiling onto her leg, pinning her in place. The part of the leg still visible was dark purple in color, and a small pool of blood seeped out from under her.

Dash didn’t move. Did I do that? No, she’s too far back, must’ve been that earlier shaking. Or something else… how long has she been here?

Apple Bloom coughed several more times and raised her head. She eyed Dash, a mixture of tears and blood falling down her cheeks.

“Rainbow Dash…” she said, her voice strained and weak. “Please… help me…”

With great effort, she raised an outstretched hoof in Dash’s direction. Dash took a step forward.

“How did you…” Dash stared at Apple Bloom, her mouth agape. “What are you doing here, Apple Bloom? How did you get here?”

“Please… please help me. I-I’m stuck,” Apple Bloom pleaded. “I just want t-to go home. P-please…”

Dash took another step forward, then froze. She was never tested.

“Uh… just, uh, hang on, Apple Bloom,” Dash said. She turned to look in her bag. “I gotta do, uh, one thing first.”

Apple Bloom tried to speak, but instead coughed some more. Dash kept searching her bag.

Nothing but charges, I could’ve sworn I packed the– what’s back there? Is something back there?

Dash glanced behind Apple Bloom. The back half of the room was bathed in darkness. Dash squinted to try and pick up any moving shapes.

Wall’s rippling… it can’t be, that doesn’t make any sense, it’s just my imagination. There can’t be anything there… unless…

“Rainbow Dash, I… I don’t…” Apple Bloom coughed again, harder than before. Specks of blood shot out of her mouth, hurling through the air and landing just shy of Dash’s hooves.

“No!” Dash took several steps back. Her wing shot into the bag.

She’s one. Gotta be one. It got to her friends. It got to her sister. It got to her.

“I know what’s going on. You’re not fooling me.” Dash’s wing reemerged clutching a charge.

Apple Bloom’s eyes widened. “Rainbow Dash, please! I… I j-just need–”

Took Spike, took Rarity. What if she’s taken Twilight or Fluttershy already?

Apple Bloom’s face bulged, and she vomited on the floor. A small pool of blood spilled out amongst the bile.

Dash scrambled back again. “Not me, alright? You’re not getting me!”

Took all the others, I could be alone now, all alone…

Apple Bloom, her hoof shaking, reached out. “Help… me…”

All alone. Alone with that thing. Can’t let it take me. Can’t let it win.

“I said,” Dash screamed, “you’re not! Getting! ME!”

Dash flicked the switch and tossed the charge. Her wings extended and she took off, flying out of the room before the thermite even hit the floor. She heard it explode; the resulting wave of fire completely illuminated her surroundings. Walls shook around her. Stones and mortar, already weakened from the shaking before, were jolted completely loose by the explosion. They crashed to the floor in a tremendous din that echoed down the hall.

They weren’t enough to cover the sound of the screams, however. Dash never turned around. She just kept flying forward, her determined expression undone only by the small tears that dropped from her eyes.

The room flashed with light as Twilight entered it. She staggered to the side as soon as her hooves touched the ground. She was pale, and her eyes took a few seconds to properly focus.

Alright, that one hurt. Twilight rubbed her head. She was developing a headache and it got worse with every teleportation. And I’m… where am I?

She looked around the room. It was made of more of the black stones, but several torches had been installed along the walls. The walls were still smooth and unblemished, with not even a single crack to be seen.

At least this one’s got some light in it. Twilight walked down the passageway ahead of her. Though the water had long since dried off her, she still shivered.

“Hello?” she shouted. “Can anypony hear me?”

How big can this place be, she wondered as she walked along. And I can’t teleport accurately… how can I search it all? What if I just keep ending up in places I’ve never been?

Twilight turned a corner and slipped. Catching herself before she fell all the way down, she saw the source of the problem: water. Large patches of the floor were covered in puddles of lukewarm water. She hurried forward at a faster pace, a beam of light shooting out from her horn.

“Hello? Hello?” she shouted again. She glanced down every side passage she came across, though they had all caved in. “If somepony’s out there, you’ve got to say something! Hello?”

The beam of light from Twilight’s horn circled all across the walls and floors as she ran forward. It passed over another caved-in tunnel and Twilight skid to a stop. She backed up and stared into the alcove. Something damp and yellow was huddled against the wall.

“Fluttershy!” Twilight ran in to examine her friend. She bent over and gently turned Fluttershy’s head towards her. “Fluttershy! Can you hear me?”

Fluttershy’s eyes slowly opened. She blinked a few times, recoiling at the light on Twilight’s horn. Twilight quickly redirected the beam elsewhere. A long, deep cut ran down Fluttershy’s forehead and Twilight could see several red drops coming out of tears in her jacket.

At least her jacket is mostly dry now. It’ll keep her warm.

“T-Twilight?” Fluttershy’s voice was faint. “Is… is that you?”

“It’s me, Fluttershy, it’s me. You’re alright.” Twilight put a hoof on Fluttershy’s mane, gently rubbing her head. “What happened to you? How did you get here?”

“I… I’m not…” Fluttershy paused to take several deep breaths. Twilight heard her wheezing with every inhalation.

“I’m not sure,” Fluttershy said. “Rainbow Dash had me back in the other room, b-but then the water hit us, and we got separated, and I… I ended up here.”

“Yeah, I got tossed around, too,” Twilight said. “I’ve been trying to find you guys for a while now. I haven’t come across Rainbow Dash yet, though.”

“What a-about Apple Bloom, or… or Pinkie?” Fluttershy asked. She looked up at Twilight, her eyes wavering.

Twilight shook her head. “Come on, Fluttershy. We’ll find them. Here, let me help you…”

Twilight grabbed hold of Fluttershy’s shoulders, and the two tried to rise. Fluttershy stumbled and fell against Twilight, letting out a small cry of pain in the process. Twilight looked and saw Fluttershy’s eyes clenched shut.

“Almost there, Fluttershy,” Twilight said. She bent over to give Fluttershy some more leverage, and the two finally stood all the way up. Fluttershy’s breathing sounded increasingly labored, but she said nothing.

“There we go,” Twilight said. Fluttershy continued leaning against her as all four of her hooves shook. “Alright, are you ready to go? Let’s just take a few steps out of here.”

The two hobbled forward. It took Fluttershy a few moments to get each step going. Shortly after they left the alcove and emerged back in the main hall, she broke out into a coughing fit. Twilight held on to her to keep her from falling back down. As Fluttershy finished coughing, Twilight noticed several red drops fly out of her mouth and onto the floor.

“I’d teleport us forward,” Twilight said, trying to sound helpful, “but my magic’s been acting up a little since I got carried away. Last few times I did it, I ended up somewhere other than where I wanted to go.”

“What d-do you m-mean? A-are you alright, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked. With a moderate amount of effort, she turned her head to look at Twilight. “Did you g-get hurt?”

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Twilight reassured her. “Just got a little knock in the head.”

The two of them rounded a corner up ahead, and came face-to-face with a complete tunnel collapse. The ceiling had caved in and completely buried the floor below. Twilight glanced into the hole above. It stretched up another few floors, all of them in similar states of ruin.

“Hello!” Twilight shouted. She heard her voice echo up into the temple, eventually disappearing into the rock. Her ears perked up, but there was only silence.

“This place is a mess,” Twilight said after a minute. “Every room I’ve been to is more wreckage like this. That shaking must’ve really done a number on these old stone walls.”

“W-where should w-we go now?” Fluttershy asked. Twilight could feel her trembling under her jacket.

“Hang on, give me a second,” Twilight said. She took a few deep breaths as her horn sparked. “We’ve got to find Rainbow Dash. She’s probably out somewhere on her own too. Maybe we should go somewhere central. She should be able to find her way down to us then.”

I sure hope she can, at least. Twilight grimaced, and with a burst of energy, the two zapped out of the room.

Dash flew forward as fast as her wings would take her. The corridor twisted and turned around her, but never had any intersections or deviations. It was ultimately one long, uninterrupted passage. The walls had stopped shaking long ago, but still she flew on.

Lookin’ for the exit, where’s the exit… when does this stupid temple run out of tunnels…

Dash’s head kept turning from side to side. Her eyes desperately searched for any kind of way out, any passage to more light. The torches on the walls were becoming few and far between, while the lamp around her neck was flickering out again.

Gotta find the way out before it goes out. If I’m stuck here in the dark…

Dash shuddered in midair. Up ahead, the tunnel curved right. Dash whipped around and tossed her wings up, sliding to a stop. She was at a wide intersection, one that branched off into three different routes. Each new tunnel was unblocked by debris, and turned off into a different direction.

“Oh come on!” Dash shouted aloud. She paced back and forth across the floor, cursing under her breath. Her hooves stamped down on the cold stone floors multiple times. Rocks chipped from under her, and she heard several bits of stone crash to the floor below. She paused in place. Raising her hoof again, she struck the floor in three quick strikes. A tiny fragment of the floor fell away. Light shined up the new hole, and Dash bent over to peek through.

A single torch on a wall stared back at her. On the floor beneath it, a long cable ran along the base of the wall.

“Bingo!” Dash grabbed another charge from her pack and placed it on the ground. She flipped the switch and flew back, getting around the corner right as it blew up. The sound of stones tumbling around echoed through the hall to the point of making her dizzy. Eventually, the sounds died off, and Dash pulled her hooves off her ears and peeked around the bend to see the results.

The hole took up the entire section of the floor in the intersection. Two of the other paths had also caved in, and dust was still trailing out of the third. Dash quickly ran forward and hopped down to the lower level.

Those lines gotta be the ones that… yes, this is it!

Dash clapped her hooves together. She was standing back in the entrance tunnel, staring at the collection of wiring and cables that ran from the base to the tube chamber. Her explosion had brought the ceiling down and blocked off one side, but the other was free and open.

Doesn’t matter which way I go now, both lead to an exit. Nearly free now!

Dash skipped forward, but only made it a few steps before she heard a loud CRACK over her head. She tentatively glanced up. A long crack ran through the ceiling, starting from the hole she made and continuing all the way down the hall. As she watched it, it grew wider and wider. The stones of the ceiling trembled in place.

Dash gulped. “Uh-oh…”

Dash flew forward before the first stone fell. She rushed forward as the whole ceiling collapsed. Stones nipped at her heels while dust shot up to obscure her vision.

Straight shot either way, unless there’s that door, but if I’m going to the base it’s just a hole, assuming it hasn’t even fallen down yet, just gotta get there, come on, come on… There!

A hole carved into the wall appeared ahead on the left: the entrance to the base. Dash sped up, whipping around it just as a huge slab of the opposing wall crumpled forward. Her hooves were over her head and she powered into the room, sliding along the floor as she closed her wings. Behind her, several tons of rock finished piling up, sealing the hole for good.

Good to be back.

Dash threw her head back, resting on what little carpet remained on the floor. She shut her eyes as she lay sprawled out, breathing in silence. Overhead, a gust of wind slammed onto the base. Dash winced as the walls rattled, and the howling wind outside picked up with a new energy.

Yeah, I missed you too.

A smile flashed across her face. She opened her eyes and put the lantern down next to her. There wasn’t much light coming out of it now, but it was enough. She glanced around the room.

Some new holes in the wall, ceiling’s falling to pieces, window’s cracked, furniture’s burned and destroyed… and it’s cold. Way too cold. I can’t stay here.

Her smile faded. She stood up, the pain in her leg flaring up again.

Just what I need. Come on, I can work through that, don’t need my legs to get out of here anyway. Just gotta find something to stay warm and I’m gone.

Dash rubbed her legs a few times, then scanned the room. A half-buried scarf caught her eye, and she headed towards it.

Then she saw movement. There was something in the room with her.

Dash jerked into the air, flying up so fast she smacked into the ceiling. It groaned in protest, and several cracks spread themselves out even further. Dash didn’t notice. She peered into the dark and saw the shape of something scurrying around the far wall.

“Hello?” she said, her voice tinged with nervousness. “Uh… Twilight? Fluttershy?”

Something moved towards the light. It took a few more steps, making a series of clicks with every bit of motion, and finally came into view.

Applejack’s head stared up at Dash. It sat nearly upside down on eight long, spindly legs that had sprouted out from the base of her skull. Two tall stalks jutted up from her chin, a large eye on top of each one. The head growled at Dash. Applejack’s mouth moved to the sounds of a quiet, yet utterly distinctive guttural noise.

Dash’s jaw dropped. “Oh you have got to be–”

The window of the room cracked and imploded from a massive gale, cutting Dash’s curse short. Shards of glass fired into the room, several of them striking the back of the creature. It scuttled forward a few steps, its loud screech overpowered by the sound of the wind as it flooded into the room.

Dash’s wing was already in her bag, snatching up another charge. The thermite fell through the air, landing right by one of the creature’s legs. One eye stalk looked down to examine it, while the other stayed with Dash, who shoved herself into the corner and shielded her eyes. The resulting blast completely incinerated the creature, while the burst of fire lit the room right up.

For a moment, Dash felt the heat roll over her body. Then the ceiling bulged inward, and with a loud CRACK, half of it collapsed inward. Snow poured into the common room, bringing with it a deep chill. Within seconds, it was half buried in powder, and more continued rushing in from outside. Dash shook her head, took one final look around, and flew through the new hole into the night air.

The edges of Dash’s mane froze almost as soon as she was out in open air. The wind hit her from every direction, and she had to constantly blink to keep bits of ice out of her eyes. Her wings flapped furiously against the storm.

Just keep moving, keep moving. Keep the blood flowing. Keep moving, I can’t stay out here long.

The wind shrieked her around, but she managed to keep a steady course going straight up. She arched high into the sky. The vast storm cloud lay directly ahead of her.

After ascending for some time, she slowed down. Still fighting the wind at every turn, she turned around to look at the temple. It was barely visible, a black mass against the white snow. Dash stared down. She constantly shook her hooves to keep ice from forming along them.

Just… just one pass. That’s all. Really quick, and then I’m out.

Dash dove down, the wind pushing her along even faster. Soon she leveled out, turning on one side to perform a wide, circular turn. She tried to shout, but the wind swallowed her words before they even left her throat.

Come on, come on… Give me a light, a fire, one of Twilight’s spells, something… anything…

Nothing. The darkness never yielded any light, and the only movement besides her was the mounds of snow being whipped around. Dash strained her neck as her circle completed, and turned back upward.

I’ll… I’ll come back. I’ll go get help. I promised I would, so that’s what I’m gonna do.

Dash blinked rapidly, holding back any tears before they had a chance to form and freeze. The dark clouds boomed overhead, swirling in an angry display. Dash pushed her way through the black mass and entered the heart of the storm. The winds increased their force while ice formed in near-solid sheets in the sky. Dash dodged and weaved through the weather, her teeth gritted against the arctic fury. Her wings were a blur now; her heart beat in time.

Gonna punch every cloud I see once I’m out of here… just a little further now, this can’t be that tall. It can’t be.

Dash squinted. The heavy ice was taking its toll. She was virtually blind in the cloud, guided solely by her sense of direction. Several times, a clap of thunder erupted around her, shaking her to the point that her nose bled. The drops immediately froze in the air. Another boom of thunder left Dash’s ears ringing, though not badly enough to block out the perpetual sound of the wind.

Then Dash saw it. The faintest glimmer of light. She pushed forward, ignoring her aching muscles and burning chest. Her hoof reached out ahead of her, guiding her towards the sole source of illumination in the sky.

Dash burst through the top of the clouds like a shell from a cannon. The ocean of black dropped away to reveal a world of clear, dark orange skies. High above her, a few select stars twinkled peacefully. She felt the sun warm on her back, melting the ice away with every beam.

Dash paused a few seconds to take several deep breaths. Then, giving her body one last shake to dislodge any remaining bits of frost, she stretched out and threw her hooves into the air.

“YES! I made it!” she shouted, her tone one of pure, exhilarated joy. “Can’t beat me! Not falling rocks or big monsters or harsh storms. I WON!”

Dash glanced down, still panting. The black clouds extended in all directions for as far as she could see. She shook her head at the sight, tossing her head back and smiling. Her hooves remained elevated as she continued to soak in more of the sun’s warming rays.

Wait a second.

Her hooves dropped to her side. Slowly, Dash turned to face the source of the light. The sun hung low in the sky, a hard orange color compared to its usual blinding yellow. The sunken crest of the moon hung just above it, the two bodies frozen in place. Dash cocked her head to one side.

Alright, that’s a new one. I’ve heard of some thick storms, but thick enough to block out daylight?

Dash felt a strong breeze hit her in the back. She spun around and found herself staring at a vertical wall of clouds. It reached high into the air, curling down at the top like a colossal wave. It came from all directions to converge right on Dash’s position.

Dash gaped. “That’s… that’s not fair.”

The wave broke and crashed on top of Dash before she had a chance to move. They punched Dash straight down. She plummeted through the sky, her body twisting in the wind. Dash worked to spread her wings and regain control, but the force of her fall kept her spinning.

Just need an updraft, something to get level again, something to get back in control.

Dash flipped over as she left the clouds, her back facing the ground. Sharp bits of ice sliced long impressions into her neck and shoulders. Dash felt the sting of ever cut as her blood froze in the wounds.

Come on, sudden stop will work, just gotta spread em…

Dash’s wings launched straight out. She held them as wide as she could. They caught air, turning her back around just in time to see herself meet the ground. She threw her shoulder out and tried to brace herself.

The impact sent snow skyrocketing into the sky. Dash slid along the ground, first pushing through snow and then a solid layer of ice. Even over the din of the weather, Dash heard the bone in her leg snap like a twig. The pain shot through her so fast that she almost puked on the spot. Instead, she screamed louder than she ever had in her entire life. Her good hooves slammed down into the ice, finally slowing her down and bringing her to a stop.

It took Dash a few seconds to draw a full breath in. She felt a sharp pain stab up her side with every breath. She snuck a peek at her front right leg, cringing as she saw the unnatural angle it hung at.

Just a… just a minor setback. Gotta…. gotta keep moving, gotta get back in the air. I can do this. I can do this.

Dash rolled over, yelping in pain as she bumped several broken ribs. A dark object appeared out of the corner of her eye. Her saddlebag, finally ripped free of her by the force of the impact, lay precariously on a nearby snowdrift. The wind tipped it forward, and it slipped down onto the ice.

A single charge dislodged once it reached the bottom. Dash watched as it landed on the switch, tripping it forward.

Oh…

Dash shut her eyes as it ignited, taking the rest of the charges in the bag with it. A huge fireball launched into the sky, lighting up the area around the impact crater. Enormous cracks sounded out, and Dash sensed the ice shifting beneath her. She worked against the protesting pain in her legs and tried to stand, only to slip and stay down. She tried to flap her wings, only to realize she couldn’t even feel them anymore. They hung by her sides, completely non-responsive.

The ice cracked open, and Dash fell through. The water hit her like a thousand knives stabbing every inch over her body, and it was all Dash could do to not scream out. She sank down into the dark, completely limp in the freezing water.

Start moving!

Dash kicked around, breaking out of her stupor. Her three good legs propelled her forward through the icy water. Suddenly, her nose bumped into a solid ceiling of ice. She had come to the top, just not where she fell in. Dash flailed. Her head looked every which way for the original hole, but she could hardly see her hoof in front of her face.

Don’t panic. You can get out. Find leverage, start kicking.

She felt a second wall of ice jutting down behind her, and quickly repositioned herself. Pressing her back against the new wall, she leaned back and delivered a solid kick to the ice above. The speed of the blow was dulled somewhat by the water, but it still hit hard. Dash heard something crack, and this time she knew it wasn’t her.

That’s it. I got this. A few kicks and I’m back on track to get home.

With kick after furious kick, Dash kept at it. Her jaw was set to keep any water from getting in, and her eyes tried to see through the blurry display. Her lungs felt like they were on fire. Dash clenched her jaw even harder and kept kicking. She heard more cracks.

Get out of here, fly back up. Don’t stop for anything, at all. Not until I get back to civilization.

At first Dash thought it was just the water. Her vision blurred. The cracks sounded fainter.

Don’t hold back now. You’ll still have plenty of energy for the flight.

She put more effort into it. She felt her lungs wither inside her, ready to embrace instinct and take something in, anything in. Her jaw opened, just a little, and water rushed in.

Gonna get back to other ponies. Get them out here to help the others while I get patched up. I can send a whole army of them ahead, that should do the trick.

A cough emerged, purely on reflex, and it got worse. She ignored what her mouth as doing and kept kicking. More cracks. Each kick grew dimmer, each order to extend her legs got harder to send.

They’ll find them. Then we can all go home, we can all be safe again.

Dash lost her grip against the back wall, and she floated free. Her legs kicked out, but they didn’t hit anything this time. Her head swung down while her expression faded, her jaw hanging loose.

We can… we can all be safe… perfectly safe… as soon as I get… get out of here…

Gradually her body grew stiff and her legs stopped moving. The view of the ice faded away as her body sank deeper and deeper into the abyss. Endless darkness lay before her.

Just gotta… just gotta… just… I can do this… I can…. I… I…

Twilight and Fluttershy snapped into the room about a meter above the floor. They fell as soon as the last sparks of light flickered out. Twilight rolled to one side with a grunt, Fluttershy to the other with a yelp.

Twilight rubbed her head again, this time brushing away a bloody nose as well. She looked around. The chamber was dimly lit, large and full of half-lit candles. She stood up, only to fall backwards into something hard. She turned and found herself facing a large, empty glass tube.

“Oh, here we are,” Twilight said.

“Fluttershy!” Twilight turned and saw Fluttershy working to get up. She breathed harder than before, and lines of blood ran down one of her legs.

“I… I’m okay,” Fluttershy murmured. “I just need a minute. Are we… back?”

“Looks that way.” Twilight looked around the room. The tube chamber looked the same as when they had left it, although the walls were extensively damaged. Huge cracks traversed them, many extending up onto the ceiling. “About time. I’m sorry it took so long, I’ve been trying to get us here for the last half hour. I just… I don’t know what’s happening to me.”

Twilight rubbed her head again and shivered. It still shot out a constant barrage of throbbing pain.

“No, Twilight, it’s alright,” Fluttershy said. She rubbed her own leg, but looked at Twilight with a solid look of concern. “You’ll b-be alright.”

Twilight smiled. She looked up at the ceiling. “That shaking did a lot of damage in here as well. It doesn’t look stable at all. We should probably move out of here, before anything–”

Without warning, half of the ceiling collapsed. It crumbled down in a large mass towards the center of the room. Twilight ran forward, only to be blocked by several stones that were quicker than she was. Fluttershy screamed and rolled to the side, barely dodging the falling debris. The mass broke right through the floor, and the whole temple leapt into the air from the force of the impact. Twilight was sent backward into the tube, while Fluttershy rolled around on the floor.

The crashing down below continued on for several minutes, getting deeper and more distant. Eventually, it stopped entirely. Twilight took a few nervous steps forward. A full third of the chamber floor was gone, the tube base and another selection of candles gone with it. Fluttershy was off to one side of her, still working on standing up.

“I’m alright again!” Fluttershy said, her voice strong and determined.

You really don’t look it, Twilight thought. She stared at Fluttershy as she hobbled up. Fluttershy steadied herself and stared back.

Twilight nodded and walked towards the hole. She looked down, and her eyebrows rose when she saw a round white light looking back at her. It wasn’t very big, and was several stories down, but it was perfectly clear. As Twilight watched, it moved slightly from side to side, shimmering in the dim light.

Underwater…

“I think it’s that room Pinkie led us to,” Twilight said. “I don’t remember it being that deep before, but– wait… something’s happening again.”

“What is it?” Fluttershy asked, nervousness breaking back into her voice. “Is… is the temple falling apart again?”

“No, no, nothing like that. It’s that light, it’s…” Twilight narrowed her eyes. “There’s a dark spot inside it.”

It appeared in the center of the light, and worked its way outward. The spot was lumpy and uneven, but widened at a steady rate. Twilight saw the water down below start to bubble.

Maybe some more rocks down there? Dust making the water murky? Twilight studied the spot as best she could. Actually, it kind of looks like it’s something… coming closer…

“Oh!” Twilight’s eyes widened. “Fluttershy, back up! Get away! Something’s about to–”

A huge object burst into the room, coming up through the hole at a ferocious speed. More stone tumbled down along the walls, and there was another series of loud crashes and bangs. Twilight tossed herself backward and scrambled around the fallen tube. She pushed herself low to the ground, sliding around the side to peer out and get a better look. A small gasp escaped her at the sight.

The creature was enormous. A gargantuan stalk of flesh and muscle, it nearly reached the ceiling before it stopped and curled down. Large tentacles broke out of it at random intervals, along with dozens more feelers and tendrils of much smaller sizes. Eyes were everywhere. New ones popped out of its skin every few meters, looking in all directions. Its skin was in constant motion; muscles migrated around while tentacles were withdrawn and expelled in a dizzying display.

Twilight backpedaled towards the wall. She looked over, but couldn’t see Fluttershy anywhere. Directly to her left were the doors to the room. One door had popped back open again, and Twilight saw a faint hint of light on the other side.

Twilight looked back and forth between the door and the creature. It wasn’t doing anything yet beyond stretching into the air and taking up space. All the eyes focused on a spot on the other side of the room.

Twilight risked it. “Fluttershy! Can you hear me? Where are you?”

She tossed herself forward to the other end of the tube and looked up. The eyes never turned in her direction. She shouted again, “Fluttershy!”

“Twilight… leave…” The voice was as feeble as Twilight had ever heard, but it was definitely Fluttershy’s. Skirting along the far wall, Twilight slinked forward. There was a low, barely visible glow on her horn. She grunted through the resulting headache. Ducking past a tight grouping of candlesticks and lab equipment, she rounded to the other side of the hole.

Fluttershy lay on the ground straight ahead. Her legs were sprawled out, though her head was looking up.

“Twilight,” she said again, her voice quieter still. “I… You must leave. Now.”

“Fluttershy, what are you–” Twilight froze when she saw the tendril snaking along the floor. It had ripped through Fluttershy’s jacket and implanted firmly into her back. It was pulsating, but at a very slow rate.

Twilight looked back at Fluttershy’s face, and noticed her eyes. They were locked with the creature, her expression intense and never blinking.

The Stare? Twilight gasped again. No way!

“Twilight, I can… I can feel it…” Fluttershy said. Her voice was starting to crack. “I know what it’s… it knows what’s coming. This place won’t last, not for much longer. It can’t get out, not here, but it… it will…”

Fluttershy grunted. She dug her hooves into the floor. Her head bobbed back and forth, but her eyes never looked away.

“Fluttershy, I can… I can…” Tears welled in Twilight’s eyes. She desperately tried to think of a solution, any solution. Her horn glowed brighter still.

“Twilight, you’ve got to leave…” Fluttershy’s eye twitched. The creature stirred with activity. More tentacles popped out from on high, descending slowly towards Fluttershy. The pulsating tendril became more active. “I can’t… I can’t hold out much longer…”

“Fluttershy…” Twilight took a single step back. She looked back and forth between Fluttershy and the monstrosity. She watched several jaws of differing size rip out from under its skin.

“RUN!” Fluttershy screamed. A wall of flesh slammed down on the floor between the two, and Twilight turned and ran. Her horn flashed up for a second, and then went dark. Twilight stumbled for a few steps while her skull beat with agony, but kept moving forward. She rolled around the tube and scrambled out the door.

A roar entered the temple. It was like a combination of the storm and a dying animal, and rattled the temple so hard Twilight felt her bones shake.

This is it, right here, it’s gonna bring the whole place down, right here and now…

Eventually, the roar faded away. Twilight looked down and found she was still running down the corridor, headed straight for the temple entrance. Behind her, she heard the sound of the chamber doors disintegrating under some huge force.

It’s chasing me, not gonna let me leave. It can’t.

Twilight pumped her legs and dashed down the hall. Torches snuffed out as she clattered by. Walls and stones fell to pieces at her heels.

I can outrun it. Doors are ahead, quick left, and I’m outside. I’m outside, I’m gone.

Twilight saw her target and didn’t slow down. She turned her head, shut her eyes, and threw herself into the double doors. They burst open, one falling off its hinges. She clattered to the floor, narrowly avoiding a collision with the pile of sharp splinters and rocks that used to be the opposing set of doors. Twilight turned and headed down towards the front doors.

The pile of snow ahead was the same as it had been the last time she saw it. That single, untouched claw remained visible, and Twilight forced herself not to look at it. There was a series of loud crashes behind her, and she felt air blowing by her. She rushed forward, skipped past burnt pieces of wood, and slid right down the snow.

It was a short little hop forward from there, and Twilight was outside again. She didn’t stop running outside. She hurried past the carriage that was still parked dutifully out front. Twilight noted that it didn’t look worse for wear in the slightest. The wind met her with full force, but she pushed through it with ease.

Suddenly, Twilight’s whole body was illuminated. She finally slowed, turning around a few meters away from the entrance. Her jaw dropped as she looked up into the sky.

A solid wall of white light shot up from the temple. It was as wide as the structure but thinner than parchment, and it stretched through the clouds above.

What now, what now… more from that well? What the hay is going on?

Twilight peered into the light. Massive dark shapes swam in the background. They were constantly in motion, but never came into focus.

A bunch of little ones? Or… one big… thing…

Twilight blinked. The beam started shrinking, closing in on both sides. The shapes grew closer together, connecting to each other until it was a single dark mass. The wall grew thinner and thinner, until it was no wider than Twilight’s horn. She could still see the spot of black in the center.

The outer sides of the wall met, and the beam exploded outward. A thunderous clap of energy pushed out in all directions. Twilight was tossed backward, flying high in the air across the snowy fields. The sound of the wind died down, and all Twilight could hear was the high-pitched ringing in her ears.

She came down on a snow bank some distance from the temple. The loose powder cushioned her fall, and she drifted gently to the bottom. She kicked at the snow, clawing her way out. The ground rocked and bucked all around her, tossing her around. The drift disintegrated, and Twilight rolled out onto the ground. The shaking gradually faded away, and everything was steady again.

Twilight shook her head, feeling all over her body.

I… I’m in one piece. Everything is… fine.

She stood up, marching through the deep snow towards the top of a nearby hill. Reaching the top, she gazed out over the temple.

It was a pile of ruins now. Every wall had fallen in on itself; every bit of mortar had become dislodged. Falling snow rapidly covered the remains, and Twilight watched as part of it disappeared under a thick white cloud.

Twilight walked backwards, slowly turning around to trudge forward through the snow. She worked for every step as the wind tried to keep her back. Ice stung her face, and she felt her headache getting worse and worse.

Ahead of her, dark shapes appeared on the horizon. She took a knee as they approached, the storm still wearing down on her. There were four shapes, and they spread out as they closed in on her. Twilight tried to stand back up, but her body wouldn’t have it. She collapsed face-first into the snow, breathing heavily. Her eyelids fluttered shut.

Need to… need to rest… just for a second…

She was aware of shouting very close by. She willed her eyes back open, and found a bright yellow coat looking back at her.

“Miss Sparkle! Miss Sparkle!” Hawks shouted at her. His voice cut right through the storm, clear and audible over the wind. “Can you hear me? Miss Sparkle!”

“I… I…” Twilight muttered. Hawks ripped his jacket off and quickly wrapped it around her. Twilight caught sight of the image of a compass on his flank. A second pony came up behind her to help Hawks lift her up.

“Maple! Pine! Go check it!” Hawks barked, directing the other two shapes towards the fresh ruins of the temple. He turned back and looked into Twilight’s eyes. “Miss Sparkle, what happened? Where are the others?”

“I…” Twilight took another deep breath, and leaned her head forward onto Hawks’ chest. “I think I want to go home now.”

Without another word, Twilight passed out.