"...oh..oh..oh man......oh man oh man oh man...Twilight? Twilight!?"

Vinyl remained on the floor, breathing intensely and quickly as she hesitantly called out for me. I came up to her and tried to calm her down, helping her back on her hooves and making sure she wasn't injured.

"Oh Twilight, wha- what's going on?"

As much as I wanted to tell her I knew I didn't have the time or resources to explain it fully to her.

"It's very important Vinyl and to make a long story short, I was wrong on my theory. Horribly wrong. All I can say is I'm sorry Vinyl. " I managed to say and forcing myself to smile in sincere apology.

Vinyl looked at me with her pupils dilated in fear and I knew right then and there I would probably face the pit of Tartarus for my mistake. I felt so helpless, so useless because there was not much I could do about Vinyl's predicament. All I knew is that there wasn't much time left and I needed to act quickly if I even had a remote chance of saving her and not just her physical form but what really made Vinyl Vinyl.

"Twilight..oh man..oh God...I just saw my dad die...oh man..this can't be happening...this can't be happening..it's just a dream right? Just a theory right? Right??" Vinyl cried out to me softly, her tears streaming down her face as she collapsed on the floor in despair.
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How could I let Vinyl watch her own father die? How could I? I thought maybe witnessing her father's death would save her spirit, her memory, but I was wrong. It wasn't a question of ethics, of morals but rather a question of what if? So what does that make me? A pony searching for answers in the name of science or a pony who doesn't know anything? My own curiosity might be the one single factor that will lead to the demise of Vinyl Scratch but there is always that slight chance it could quite be the opposite. I was hoping the latter was correct. Never before in my life have I pinned all of my thoughts and opinions on pure hope such as this moment. I wish every solution could be answered by the method of scientific evaluation. But that is not always the case. Sometimes hope is the only answer we ponies have.
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"Right. But I have a solution. The only problem is we must act now or we may never have the chance again. From the short time I've known you I've learned that you are an exceptional resilient pony, perhaps the toughest I have seen in a while. Because of this reason I know confidently you can do this. I believe in you Vinyl Scratch and I will continue to do so for as long as I live." I managed to say with the most tranquil voice I could muster.

Vinyl, with her eyes soaking in tears, nodded her head as she slowly got up.

"You're right Twilight. You're right. Let's go." She confidently said, wiping her tears away and clearing her throat while sniffling her nose.
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I gave her a quick nod and told her to follow me as quickly as she could. I asked her if she was able to gallop and as a response she started galloping, so in return I did as well. The ponies we passed looked upon us with curiosity and I pondered about what they could have possibly thought what was happening but I knew I had no time to think of such things. I kept looking behind me to make sure Vinyl was alright and every time I did, I was constantly shocked at how quickly the time I had was vanishing. As I suspected, Vinyl was slowly losing herself little by little because with each passing glance I did, she started appearing slightly different than before. Not only was her appearance changing but so was her way of speaking and even her memories. At one point during the galloping she even asked me what Earth was and what humans are, as if she was a young filly asking these questions and completely unaware of her prior experience with Earth. At this moment I could only think of what I've done. Could I really save her? Could I really save David inside?
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"Okay looks like we're here. Come Vinyl, we must hurry!"

I trotted up the stairs of Celestia's palace as quickly as I could with Vinyl right next to me. Pretty soon we made it to the front doors, only to be stopped by the guards. However the guards realized how desperate the situation was and they let us through with no hesitation. Once inside, we both looked for Celestia and did not waste much time doing so.

"Celestia! Celestia! I need your help! We need your help!" I called out to the Royal Princess, whom appeared in front of us both suddenly.

"Oh dear, I was afraid of this." Princess Celestia said upon seeing Vinyl's deteriorating state.

Vinyl, with her state of mind now slipping away, looked at the Princess and I with such a dumbfound expression on her face that I could have mistaken her as one without intelligence, except for the fact that she proved to be rather intelligent before this affliction was wrought upon her.

"I think I know what to do." I told Celestia desperately, hoping that the Princess would concur and guide me to the solution as she has done time and time again

But my hope was not there, for Celestia did nothing but stare at Vinyl Scratch with such a coldness I did not know the Princess was capable of. For a brief moment it felt as if all of Equestria had gone into a chillness indescribable save the words that the Sun had temporarily become the Moon. I watched Vinyl stand next to me and eventually fall down next to me as her mane became a mane of tri-colors; no longer the perfect duo of blue and cyan but of white as well. She squirmed on the ground, shaking rather violently as I watched on in a horrified state because not only did her mane change colors but so did her entire being, such as her horn and her tail. But even as I watched helplessly, my mind found a possible answer. In this moment, it was all Vinyl Scratch had.

"ventos Equestria, me hic locus hominibus, terrae nisi hic amor et consanguineus necem eius non coepit", I chanted softly in the ancient human language, Latin.

I hoped that the words I had chanted would take immediate effect, certain that this was all I could do. Yet nothing happened and I was at a lost, because I had failed. It was foolish of me to think that old words could save her. I continued to watch Vinyl Scratch writhe on the floor and hung my head low, knowing there was nothing I could do.

Octavia.

The word floated into my mind and I was uncertain of its origin.

Twilight, get Octavia. Maybe she'll know what to do. You just have to remind her. You remember what happened to Octavia, don't you?

Tears started to form at my eyes, my memories of what had happened in the past still fresh and as a result, painful.

Yeah you do remember. You remember everything, don't you? Everything.

"No, it's not possible" I whispered to myself, shaking my head in ignorance.

Is that so? Then why is Celestia ignoring you? You want me to remind you?

My tears became fat rivers, streaming down my face and causing a emotional buildup in both my chest and nose to occur.

Yeah, I guess you do. Remember how nice Octavia was? I guess she still kinda is but not in the way she used to be. I'm talking about when she or rather he was- you guessed it- human, a walking, breathing kind of human. Oh the irony Twilight, of how Octavia became a pony in the same exact way Vinyl did. Theory? Pfft the only reason how you came up with that "theory" you told Vinyl is because of what had happened before, which consequently was the same thing.. I could laugh at this. I would laugh at this but I'm just a figment of your imagination. Who would've known that these two poor bastards would've fallen in love? Two ponies, out of all the possible outcomes anypony could have predicted and under the same circumstances, happen to meet each other, the both of them secretly being former humans who had died and were "saved" by Celestia? I mean seriously think about it Twi, several years ago as part of your training Celestia gave you the task of saving poor Octavia. Octavia used to be a somewhat witty kid who took risks; a deadly trait combined with what you were about to do. But despite all of your fancy education and book smarts and your "hope", you failed big time. And so poor Octy lost herself or rather should I call her Jack? You remember that name don't you? Jack, Jack Beringer. What was he, English or something? From England or some country like that on Earth. Doesn't matter, except the persona that destroyed him, Octavia, kept that element, that strange accent he used to fondly speak in. Unfortunately in this case that is all you managed to save, and it wasn't even on your behalf.

"That's not gonna happen again, I guarantee it..I won't let it happen..."

BULLSHIT! You know that's a damn lie! In fact, that's the same freaking lie you told Jack years ago. Look at him now! He thinks he's an "artist", a "musician". Why don't you visit him or rather her anymore? It's because you're ashamed. Don't you remember how terrified he was, how scared he was that he was going to die but not by how nature intended? I mean, what fate is worse than that? To die not by blade but to die by mind. That is perhaps one of the greatest tragedies in life Twi, because how does one mourn the loss of one who is not even existent anymore to begin with? Surely what that pony used to be is gone but the pony itself, well physically anyway, is not. You brought this horrible question upon the family of Jack Beringer and you hoped that suppressing your memories would lessen the atrocious misdeed you have done.

But in fact it has done nothing but create guilt that could've otherwise been avoided. You had an opportunity to save Jack and you missed it. But if you must be so insistent on your stupid little belief of "hope", you have one more chance, and I'm not talking about chanting a few ancient mumbo jumbo words. I am talking about a legit plan, one that could either work or become a disaster. At this point, you don't have much going for you anyways. Don't get me wrong Twi, we're not friends. I just don't want to see you screw up again. So this is what you're going to do. You're going to get Octavia, trigger her memory (what little she has of it left) and do what you should've done for her. Then get those glasses you made. Yes, those stylish magenta glasses that you had originally made for Octavia. You see Twi, you weren't wrong about the whole memory thing and perhaps the notion of doing aforementioned would save the victim. It is just how you approach the reminder that could have good consequences and bad. What you did managed to keep Vinyl, or rather David, alive but barely; as if he were given an adrenaline shot.

Right now we must prep the surgery room, figuratively of course, and gather what instruments we need; one of those being Octavia and yourself along with the glasses. Once this has been fulfilled, teleport to Earth with the other two, gather what memories of David's past life you can and come back to Equestria. Once you have done that, infuse the memories recorded on the glasses into the glasses themselves and place them upon Vinyl. Then, and maybe then can you save Vinyl by chanting the proper spell. I mean of course you tried that with Jack and all he ended up with was a bowtie on his neck. But don't get discouraged, I know I'm right and if you do this correctly, Vinyl Scratch will continue to be who she really is, and not a former shell of herself like what happened to Jack. So, what do you say? Sounds like a plan? Ah Celestia, you're still crying like a baby.

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The voice in my head was right about everything, from the beginning to the end. But I had reasons not to do to Jack what I am about to do to Vinyl. One of those was perhaps the biggest one; completely losing Jack all together and consequently ending the entire timeline of not just Earth but of affected timelines, such as Equestria. I tried the hardest I could do but I know I failed back then. But for Jack's sake and for David's, I will not repeat the errors of my past. I will save David, even if it costs my life and ultimately the universe. Oh, it's amazing at the time how I desperately wanted to believe that.