Sometimes, the meaning of a cutie mark isn't obvious. What does a bunch of stars have to do with being great at magic, after all?

For the most part, Twilight Sparkle never paid much mind to this question. A lot of cutie marks are abstract, after all. But while browsing the Star Swirl the Bearded wing of the Canterlot Archives, she finds an old book with a cover that matches her cutie mark perfectly.

Inside that dusty old tome, Twilight finds the secrets of a bygone age, answers to questions she never would have asked, and a terrifying vision of what could have happened to her.