Twilight stepped out of the shadows, hoof in hand with Sans.

The familiar sight of her kitchen was pleasantly familiar, to say the least, regardless of whether or not it was still partially destroyed. She let out a long breath that she didn't realize that she had been holding.

“*Your teleports aren't so bad,” Sans acknowledged her with a nod. “*If you keep practicing, I'll bet you can actually land on target someday.”

“Sans, when I do it, I land exactly where I mean to,” she brushed some invisible crumbs off her chest. “It takes years of practice, solid mental gymnastics and sufficient energy.”

“*Whatever you say, kid,” the skeleton shrugged with a grin. “*Just, uh, make sure you don't wind up getting worn out doing it. Take it from me.”

“Wait, is that Twilight?” she heard from the room adjacent, only for Rainbow Dash to barge into the kitchen with Fluttershy in tow, confusion plain on her face. “Twi? How long have you – you weren't even in here a second ago!”

“Twilight, are you alri-” Fluttershy started, voice failing her as she noticed the grinning skeleton standing directly behind her. Even Rainbow Dash seemed taken aback.

“... Jeez,” she rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly, suddenly noting that she wasn't blinking. “Discord said you had a new friend or something, but, I, uh... thought he'd be...”

“Taller?” Twilight offered helpfully.

Sans was not amused.

“*Name's Sans,” the skeleton waved, smiling wider. “*Nice to meetcha.”

“Is that Twilight?” a familiar southern drawl wafted from upstairs. “Hang on, I'ma comin'!”

“We've been trying to find you,” Rainbow Dash explained a little sheepishly, keeping one eye on the visitor. “Pinkie's out back, and Rarity is throwing a little girly fit over trying to fix your couch. Figures,” she shrugged. “Also, you, uh... you realize that thing is... dead, right?”

“We know,” Twilight nodded. “Sans is going to help us get Spike back.”

The pegasi shared an uncomfortable look for a brief moment. Rainbow leaned against the wall, and Fluttershy played with a wingtip uneasily.

“Um...” she started quietly, unsure of where to look. “Tw-Twilight... Rainbow Dash tells me you've-you've been, um... are you o-okay?” Fluttershy finished weakly.

“I'm think I'm pretty okay,” Twilight walked between them into the room adjacent. “Well, considering. Will somepony get Pinkie? We need everypony ready for saving Spike.”

“Already here!” a vibrantly pink springy mane bobbed into view in the wreckage of her front door, swiftly followed by an interested Pinkie Pie. “Is that the Spike guy? Looks weird, doesn't really look like a 'Spike',” she rubbed the bottom of her chin as she inspected the skeleton more closely. “Spike sounds like a cool dog name though.”

“*Name's Sans,” the skeleton repeated himself, hand sticking out to greet her. “Nice to meetcha.”

“I'm Pinkie Pie!” she grabbed his hand and shook it hard.

*Pfffffft. *

Everyone froze at the sound.

All of a sudden, Pinkie Pie began giggling madly, tiny whoopie cushion revealed in her hoof.

“*I think I like you,” Sans beamed widely. He turned to wave to the final two ponies on the stairwell, the pale white one being forcibly dragged back downstairs by the only pony he'd ever seen with freckles.

“No, no, no that thing is dead and gross!” Rarity wailed as she was forcibly dragged back down. “I'm not shaking hooves, I'm not touching that filthy thing!”

“*Hey,” Sans grinned again, staring her dead in the eyes. “*I'll have you know that I wash my bones on a regular basis.”

Then Rarity fainted.

Applejack sighed heavily, effortlessly throwing the comatose unicorn over her back.

“*Uh... she okay?”

“Don't encourage her,” Applejack deadpanned as the remainder of her friends grouped together and began adorning themselves with odd pieces of golden jewelry. “She tends ta 'faint' pretty regularly. Gotten pretty good at playin' dead.”

“*Not as good as me,” Sans chuckled.

And, to his surprise, Applejack cracked a weak smile.

True to her word, Rarity was standing on her own with an unnerved expression toward Sans a few moments later, pretending to fluff her mane to keep from looking right at him.

“So... is anypony going to explain what's going on?”Rainbow Dash asked at last when they were all prepared. “I mean, Discord said we needed to be here, and I don't trust him as far as I can throw him-”

“Well I do,” Fluttershy interrupted, only to meekly hide behind her curtain of mane when she received a number of glowers.

“Some thing is messing with our timeline,” Twilight finally spoke, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. “To the point that memories are being messed with.”

“So it is Discord's fault,” Applejack stamped a hoof against the floor. “I done told-”

“No, it's really not,” Twilight's determined frown grew. “Something that doesn't belong in our world did this. And if we're going to get my baby brother back, I'm going to need all of your help.”

There were a couple of concerned glances exchanged between her friends, though none of them spoke.

After an uncomfortable silence, Rainbow Dash spoke.

“... Twi,” she shook her head. “Even if I don't really know what's going on, I'm still behind you. No matter what.”

“I secon' that motion,” Applejack nodded, stepping forward into the semicircle. “Even if right now it seems like you're a few apples short of a bushel, somethin' had t'have done this to the library. Too much raw destruction to be Discord...”

“I'll help, but don't let that thing touch me,” Rarity butted in, her own dimly glowing amulet joining the others and growing a little bit brighter when she did. “Sorry, dear, but it's just a matter of principle.”

“*Nah, it's all good,” Sans shrugged in what might have been understanding or irritation, she couldn't tell. “*Not everybody is open minded. If they were, their brains would start falling out,” he grinned.

Rarity muttered something extremely unladylike.

“Um, I-I want to help, too...” Fluttershy stood beside Rarity facing Twilight and Sans in the semicircle they had created. Twilight was the last to adorn her piece, the tiara glowing even more brightly as she approached the others, relieved smile etching its way through weariness.

“... Thank you,” she bowed her head a little, a tear forming in her eye. “Thank all of you. We're going to save Spike. I know it.”

“So, not to point out the elephant in the room...” Pinkie adjusted her own amulet uncomfortably. “But... how are we supposed to save somepony we don't even know?”

“Do you remember when Discord messed with everypony's heads and fiddled with their memories?” Twilight answered coolly, which was met with a round of dissatisfied looks.

“I'd... rather forget that,” Rainbow Dash rubbed her foreleg with the other awkwardly.

“Oh!” Pinkie bounced up and down. “I know what you're getting at, I know I know I know!”

Twilight's horn began to glow brightly.

“The memory sharing spell,” she nodded, firm look in her eyes. “I'll need everypony to hold still for this. I don't know if I can manage to split it equally all at the same time.”

“*Uh, kiddo?” Sans interrupted by tapping her on the shoulder. “I know that now seems like kind of a bad time, but time's a wastin',” he bounced one bone finger off of his wrist a couple of times to emphasize his point.

“Fair enough,” Twilight sighed. “Spike first, memories later. Everypony... link hooves.”

Her friends complied, one by one, each joining another until they stood in unison. Twilight took Applejack's hoof on the end, connecting her other hoof with Sans who took the hoof of a very, very displeased looking Rarity.

“... Everypony ready?” she breathed in both excitement and fear. “We're about to go where nopony has gone before.”

“Does anypony else get a really bad vibe from the way she just described that?” Pinkie frowned suddenly, even looking as if her mane had deflated a little.

“Do it,” the unicorn nodded, and Sans grinned.

Then the world imploded.

One moment they were all standing in a perfect circle in Twilight's demolished living room, charred books littering the ground along with splinters of poorly swept up wood and debris, a little chilly wind blowing straight through. The next, they were all standing stock still in the middle of nowhere.

Literally, nowhere.

It was black as far as they could see, nothing but tarry black shadows all around. For a few moments there was a shared panic from the blindness, but one by one their elemental jewelry began glowing dimly in the darkness, lighting up their faces and revealing their worried expressions, nopony daring to let go of another.

“... Where are we...?” Rainbow Dash shuddered, wings ruffling as she looked around the yawning maw of nothingness.

“*Nowhere,” Sans was standing with his hands in his jacket pockets just outside of the circle. Nopony had even noticed him move. “*Welcome to the void.”

“This is where Gaster is keeping Spike?” Twilight's breath caught in her throat in dismay. She could only imagine what her poor brother must have been going through. “We have to find him, Sans; time is of the essence here!”

“Gaster?” was the general consensus amongst the others, but she didn't bother to clarify. Twilight turned to the skeleton, determination in her eyes.“Sans, do your thing – we need to find him, and fast.”

No need.

The group of ponies broke away from each other with a shriek at the too tall figure that was standing directly in the middle of the circle, painted on smile somehow seeming to look directly into them all at once without moving.

“*... 'sup, G?” Sans waved weakly.

“Now, girls!” Twilight shouted. “All together!”

Doctor Gaster's holed hands were clasped neatly one over the other, almost patiently as the luminescent glow of every pony around him cast brilliant rays into the darkness, swirling and whirling together into a massive, multicolored stream that struck him from every angle all at once. The resounding explosion knocked them back a few feet, and after the smoke cleared, Gaster was nowhere to be found.

“... Did-did we do it?” Rainbow Dash blinked, flicking her amulet once as if to test it, the light inside still glowing brightly. “Was that it?”

“I-I think so...” Fluttershy shifted uneasily, the surrounding darkness suddenly feeling as if it were closing in.

“*No.”

Gaster stood directly behind Twilight, shadows creeping out from the crack over his eye. She jerked away and magically propelled herself backward and out of his reach, brows furrowed and mouth clenched tightly.

Poor, deluded children. What did that awful skeleton fill your innocent little minds with?

“Give me back my brother!” Twilight stamped her hoof against what might have been a floor, but was too dark to make out. Sans was beside her in an instant, something bright and blue glowing in one of his fists, but she couldn't tell what.

He probably told you that I'm just some awful creature, everyone felt his voice inside their heads as he reappeared beside Rainbow Dash, leaning over him with a large smile. She instinctively bucked, but by the time she did he was already towering over a terrified Fluttershy, hands still clasped neatly together.

He probably told you that I'm evil to the core, that I'll make you all suffer for all eternity.

“Where is Spike?” Twilight shouted angrily, drawing in magic to herself in defensive preparation.

Before she knew it the monstrous figure of Doctor Gaster was leaning directly over her, his smile all too wide and little orange and blue lights glowing in his eyes.

You've made a terrible mistake in leaving your trust with him.

Twilight blasted the figure but only wound up heating air, as Gaster was gone when she tried to lance him. The darkness enveloped her, obscuring her vision even with both glowing elelmental amulet and lighting spells. Where had all of her friends gone? Where was Gaster?

Where was Sans?

Where was she?

Twilight paused for a moment, eyes rolling wildly back and forth.

And then, against all odds, she saw him.

Spike was curled up in the fetal position with his back to her, tail tucked up into his arms. Twilight bounded across the darkness with a speed she didn't know that she possessed. She skidded and almost tripped struggling to get to the unconscious little drake, letting out a deep sigh of relief as she scooped him up in both hooves and pressed him to her chest.

Spike was breathing, but just barely.

It was a long, slow sort of breathing, as if he were in a comfortably deep slumber. He didn't move when she called his name, only worrying her further.

“Rainbow?” Twilight shouted for her friends. “Rarity? Pinkie Pie!”

There was no answer.

“Fluttershy?” her voice began cracking and her knees seemed oddly weak. “... Applejack? Anypony?”

Still there was no answer.

“... Princess? Discord? … Sans?” she cried weakly.

But nobody came.

Welcome to my special hell.

Twilight whirled to face the white masked figure, forcing herself to stay standing.

“What have you done with my friends?!” she screamed, magically sending out signals in every direction at once in desperate search for the missing ponies.

“*They're out.”

Twilight jumped at the sound of Sans's soft tones in her left ear, half terrified and relieved in equal measure.

“They're all safe?” Twilight breathed.

“*Well, they're not here anymore,” Sans shrugged, glancing back at the oddly unmoving figure of Gaster. “*I got them out as fast as I could after your plan A went hot dog shaped.”

And after all that effort, Gaster's hands appeared in the air beside him without arms. Not a single one of you bothered questioning, not even wondering why you do the things that you do.

She glanced down at the barely breathing Spike in the crook of her hoof. Something inside her began to burn furiously, the heat growing from her belly up into her throat.

“You foalnapped by brother,” Twilight spat angrily. “What made you think I was just going to let you get away with it?”

Child, you have no idea the things I've done, Gaster's painted smile seemed to stretch a little more, and he was instantaneously a spare few feet before them. And you still haven't asked the most important question of all. What you should have asked since the very beginning, when your little friend began filling your head with lies.

Twilight paused, defensively readying a shield as she glanced over at Sans, who was, for some reason, avoiding her gaze.

Why didn't he save your brother in the first place?

Twilight looked back and forth between Gaster and Sans.

“... What are you talking about? Sans? What does he mean?” she asked with a slowly growing suspicion, feeling as if something unpleasant were crawling along her back.

Yes, little comedian, Gaster's hands were somehow all around them, the empty hole in every single one of them like eyes. When do you plan to tell the truth?

“*... Forgive me, kid.”

“Sans, what does he mean?” Twilight repeated, clutching her brother to her chest even tighter, feeling the drake slowly fall limp. “What have you done?”

“*... So,” he shuffled his feet slowly, as if there were something very important that he had to pay attention to on his slippers. “*You know how I said that Gaster exists in the void?”

Twilight didn't respond.

“*That was only... partially true.”

“What do you mean?”

See for yourself.

The darkness around them... shifted.

It was almost like watching a stone dropped into a pond. Little ripples began swallowing others all around them, on the floor, in the distance, in the blackened sky. The world rumbled, and a clearing opened up above them that took Twilight a long moment to take in.

“... Oh Celestia save us.”

“*It's... not just a void,” Sans said quietly. “*It's the same void that I found when I pushed too hard. Because, I found that when I pushed too hard, when I broke the unbreakable, I found...”

Twilight's mouth was hanging agape as she stared up at the dimly glowing white rectangular figure somehow high above and near at the same time.

Code.

It was lines and lines of code.

“I-I don't understand...”

I don't expect you to, Gaster replied, almost a little sadly as the numerous hands vanished into his flowing black coat.

“*This was your plan the whole time, huh, G?” Sans kicked an imaginary pebble, as if it could kick away some of his frustration. “Terrorize a bunch of innocent kids?”

I am showing you this, Sparkle... Gaster's voice was softer now, but it still almost itched to listen to. Because you alone are capable of changing this.

Lines of code.

Twilight was still reeling as she read further on, some interspersed bits with what appeared to be scripted dialogue.

“Sans, when I do it, I land exactly where I mean to,” she brushed some invisible crumbs off her chest. “It takes years of practice-

“I said that,” Twilight breathed. “Why is it repeating what I said?!”

Sans gave her a sad, almost apologetic look.

“*Sorry, kid. I said you weren't going to like the revelations.”

“Revelations of wh-?”

It was like a book.

From what she read, it was like she was reading the story of her own life. Of the lives of ponies around her. Like everything was recorded in detail, as if it displayed nothing but information about her life.

As if she were no more than an imaginary character in a storybook.

Twilight suddenly felt as if she were going to be sick.

All of creation, all that you know, is nothing more than a lie. A whisper of a dream of a memory, an imagination casting a shadow.

“*I'm sorry.” Sans faced her fully, hands in his pockets. “*I truly am, so, so sorry.”

And now what will you do? Gaster was still standing in the same place, but somehow seemed even closer than before. What will you do, little pony, knowing the nihilism that awaits you?

“... You really want to know?” Twilight stood with her brother dangling from one hoof, her head down and eyes concealed by her mane. “After all this, you really want to know what I'm going to do?”

Twilight brushed the mane from her eyes, revealing that they were glowing bright purple.

“Stick with plan B, and rip you limb from screaming limb.”

... So I see.

Gaster vanished as an enormous blast of violet energy sizzled the place he had just been, missing him by bare inches.

“You want to know what?” Twilight carefully laid her brother on the ground, nodding toward Sans to get him to safety. The skeleton touched her brother gently and vanished, reappearing on her opposite side with a glow in his eye. Said eye was glowing bright blue, emanating a light all on his own. “Even after all this, even after your stupid spiel, I'm still going to kick the ever living crap out of you for hurting my baby brother.”

Gaster's face... melted.

It twisted into a vicious smile, eyes ripping and tearing back and forth for a second as if there were something beneath his mask trying to break its way out.

You are not prepared. You are nothing compared to me.

“And you wanna know something else?” Twilight said loudly, Sans beside her in a flash. “This isn't even the biggest thing I've learned today. Tell me, 'Doctor', did you know that ponies have souls?I sure didn't. But I'm telling – no, warning you. Because I know you aren't that accustomed to my world,” she evened her stance, clearing her mind and drawing in as much magical energy as she could, watching as Gaster pulled his hands together like a puppet master, creating more and more of the floating hands around him in a semicircle, palms facing upward toward them.

“See, doc,” Twilight's eyes narrowed. “I don't care who or what you are. I don't care about your stupid plans. You messed with the wrong unicorn, and you are going to never hurt my family again.”

Twilight's hoof was outstretched towards Sans, who met her with his own firm grasp. The glowing blue light in his eye grew even brighter as rippling chords of pure energy flowed down his arm and into Twilight, her horn suddenly sprouting a whirling blue flame.

Yes, I know, he seemed almost pleased as he launched a blast of crackling black energy toward them. That's the plan.

Twilight met the overwhelming roar of energy with a blast of her own, digging in her hooves and pushing back with all of her might. The violet and blue swarming blast overtook the other in an instant, ripping through the void for what seemed to be miles and miles, an eventual explosion boiling the air and sending shockwaves back toward them. Gaster was standing in the air, one hand flicking toward them.

“*Move!”

Sans was nowhere to be seen, but she leapt sideways anyway, nimbly dodging a number of black bones piercing the ground with a series of cracks. She felt her right hoof lift upward on her own, and an equal number of purple, glowing bones went sailing through the air toward Gaster. He met them with copies of his own, each one exploding into little piles of black and white dust.

“Sans?” Twilight whirled, an odd, burning sensation in her chest as she searched around for the missing skeleton.

“*I'm right here,” she heard herself say in an odd tone, one hoof raised to her chest to feel her heartbeat. “*Right here with you kiddo. So don't hold back, okay?”

Do you even realize, Gaster appeared behind her, the low and high hum the only indication to teleport out of the way in time to see gigantic black lines of pure energy roast the place she had just been. What you're doing? What you are destroying by helping him?

“I'll tear the whole world apart if it means saving my brother!” Twilight screamed, her voice tearing.

I didn't mean him.

Twilight slowed, drawing in magic, feeling the rise and swell of energy come to her so easily she might as well have been beckoning it.

“*Ignore him, just blast him already!”

Twilight did just that.

For a moment she thought that she had managed to destroy Gaster, but when a bit of the smoke cleared a rippling black shield of pure energy fell away from him, and his grin grew.

You idiot.

Two floating hands appeared on either side of her, and she barely managed to force herself out of the way in time to keep from being incinerated. She threw her own blast of magic back at him, hardly noticing the floating white monstrous skulls in the air beside her, humming with that same low and high pitch before launching an earsplitting shriek as humongous bolts of power tore through the void and demolished the spot Gaster had been a bare millisecond previously.

He's just too fast...!

Twilight's shoulders were heaving from the effort, but then she saw it; the little cracks on the figure's face were growing in size, and his leer had changed from one of false cheer to anger.

“*He's falling apart,” she heard Sans behind her ears. “One more ought to do the trick.”

You don't even know why you're doing what you're doing... Gaster's voice seemed quieter, shakier.

Twilight drew in magic, steadying herself.

I could have saved you all.

That got her attention.

Twilight paused momentarily, feeling the heat in her chest turn a little cold.

“... What do you mean?” Twilight asked, cautious in case he should have any more surprise attacks.

You're all doomed, Gaster had only one floating hand outstretched toward her, forefinger pointing accusingly at her. And all because you fail to see the cycle you're forcing yourselves into. I could have broken the cycle. Instead, you choose to break reality.

“... Explain.”

“*Kid, not now...!”

The world as you know it...” Gaster wheezed, drawing near, almost looking to be limping. He didn't seem quite as tall as he did before, either. The illusion that is reality... if we continue this fight, all of creation as you know it shall come unraveled. I assume that the pudgy one told you that this was the only way to truly 'stop' me.

Twilight, ever so slowly, nodded once.

“*No, no no no...!”

Do you even know why I am here? Gaster asked quietly, suddenly standing right in front of her. Tell me if you know. Tell me, child.

“I-I know that you're here to cause chaos,” Twilight backed off a step.

Gaster did something unexpected.

He laughed.

It was a high, hollow sort of laugh, the kind that sent a little shiver down her spine and made her blue mane (blue?) fall into her eyes when she shook her head.

I did not come here to destroy. I followed to escape, he pointed another finger at her, and she noted silently that even his hand seemed to be cracking. To stop the destruction of reality.

... Sans, what does he mean?

“*... If we break this world,” she heard herself say aloud, “*It can be repaired. You can't.”

And thus we come to our age old dilemma, Gaster gave a low, sad sort of smile. Kill millions of innocents in order to stop a single madman, or refrain from action and allow a rampage to occur. What to do, oh what to do.

Gaster stumbled, falling and catching himself, hand resting on one long knee.

Go ahead, he looked up at them. Kill a broken old monster. Have your 'happy ending'. It won't change anything.

“*... Destruction isn't the right way to get what you want, G,” Twilight's vocal chords again worked on their own. “*I could have saved you from the beginning.”

But you didn't. And you never will.

Ever so slowly, Gaster began to fade away. Bits of his head floated away into dust, his hand crumbling and falling away as the lights in his eyes went out.

“*... I'm sorry. I really am, truly, so, so sorry.”

She felt herself crying, shoulders shaking a little, even though she didn't know exactly why.

“*... Come on, kid. Let's forget all of this, and just... go home.”

Twilight hummed a cheery tune, carefully making herself a lettuce and cheese sandwich. A couple of sizzling eggs floated in her magical grip as she layered each piece of toast lovingly with mayonnaise, hay, and a little sprig of wild onion. With one hoof she carefully flipped the finished eggs onto the plate, so that her breakfast was almost perfect, identical to Spike's; the only difference being that his looked almost like a smiling face, and was a little bit cooler and had no Spike near it whatsoever. The unicorn finally poured herself a cup of hot coffee, taking in a long, deep breath through her nostrils and letting the scent fill her as her smile grew.

“Breakfast is great, Twi,” Spike said through a mouthful of hay bacon, gulping down his morning coffee as if he hadn't drank anything in a hundred years.

“I'm glad you like it, Spike,” Twilight kissed the top of his head, making him scrunch up his face.

“Ew, unicorn kisses,” he rubbed the top of his head as if to get it off. “Don't you know that's how you get cooties?”

Twilight only gave a small giggle. The skeleton sitting with his slippers up on the table grinned, hands behind his head in a relaxed sort of way. Sans ate more than both of them combined, although how she couldn't quite determine. All he would say is that it 'tended to go right through him', which Twilight did not find nearly as amusing as Spike seemed to. The sun shined in brightly through the windows, a warm breeze wafting in through as the familiar voice of Rainbow Dash outside rang in her ears.

Twilight's smile grew a little.

It was good to be home.

Spike lay flat on his back in his little bed, listening to the quiet snores of the unicorn sharing the room with him. He stared up at the ceiling for a long while before sitting up in bed, wrinkled blankets falling as he did so.

He glanced toward her with a soft smile on his lips, sneaking out of bed to ensure that she still there, and was sound asleep. Spike gave a little small kiss to the exposed part of her forehead.

Then he smiled, clicked his talons together, and vanished from the world altogether.