"Okay...let me just go over this whole thing, just so I have a clear picture in my head. We've travelled all this way, found a hidden kingdom unknown to Equestria for a thousand years, met the Mare of the Moon, who tells us she plans to invade Equestria once she stops the Tantabus. And the only way we can stop her from doing that...is if we find and stop it first?"

Twilight sighed after Pinkie had finished, slowly nodding her head.

"Yeah, that's pretty much it."

The party-lover looked ahead as they walked, considering that for a moment, before then looking back to Twilight with an incredulous look.

"Us? Find the Tantabus? A creature that can hide in dreams and only be stopped by an alicorn? Is that the thing we've been asked to stop?"

Again, Twilight nodded.

"Correct."

A silence fell between them after that, and instead of looking to Twilight, Pinkie instead looked ahead to Applejack, who was just a few steps further from them.

"Cousin? On a scale of one to ten...just how up-the-creek are we on this one?"

Applejack too hung her head low, glancing over her shoulder to look at Pinkie with a somewhat despondent look.

"Honestly? Ah don't think a high enough number has even been invented yet."

To that, Pinkie looked down to the ground.

"Yeah...thought as much."

A grim seriousness took hold in Twilight's expression as she glanced to her colleagues.

"Look...I realise that this isn't the best situation we could have found ourselves in. But it's also our only chance."

Looking over her shoulder, Twilight regarded the path they'd come from.

"The Queen may believe that her plan is what's best for Equestria...but we all know that's not how our people will see it."

Thinking on that, Pinkie looked to her leader.

"Hold on...if the Queen has this creepy I-can-see-everything thing going on...why can't we just ask her where the Tantabus is before going off like this?"

Twilight shook her head.

"If we did that, then all it'd do is let her now that we can't do this without her, which means she'd probably just go ahead with that plan of hers right then and there."

Pinkie seemed disturbed by that, leading to Twilight looking back to her and Applejack.

"We have a responsibility here. I have a responsibility. The Tantabus has to be stopped, and while I don't know how we can do that...we have to try."

Unfortunately, her words didn't exactly have the desired effect, as Applejack's words soon attested to.

"Pardon me, Twilight...but that ain't much of a plan. Even IF we find this thing...what can we actually do with it?"

Twilight considered that, seeming deep in thought as she continued to walk.

"I'll...think of something."

Naturally, Applejack frowned, then looked ahead.

"Well...ah imagine you'd have a better time thinkin if we didn't have her with us."

All three mares turned their attention to the one at the head of their little convoy; Aurora Dash. Of course, the cyan mare didn't exactly take well to the remark made against her just now.

"You should consider yourselves lucky, outsiders. Her Majesty's orders are for only me to escort you. If my whole squad had been here, you'd be far less snappy with me."

Applejack upped her pace, looking more than a little aggressive as she neared Aurora. Twilight, sensing a fight brewing, immediately got between them, giving Applejack a calming look. The farmer snorted with annoyance, then got back to her usual pace. As for Aurora, Twilight looked to her, trying to sound as grateful as she possibly could under the circumstances.

"When you get back...tell your Queen that we're happy for the escort."

The Captain gave a formal nod to that, looking ahead once more. Twilight, now surrounded by nothing but silence as they carried on through the dark woods, thought about her situation over and over again. Every time she would think of a plan, she would sigh, realising some flaw within it. And every time she came close, one fact above all repeated itself in her foremost thoughts; only alicorn magic can stop it. As one would expect, she was feeling rather down right now, as was everypony else. Looking up to the night sky above, the young unicorn could only pray at this point.

Twilight...

She stopped, her eyes widening considerably, and started looking around. The others noticed her, and they too halted.

"Hey! What's the hold-up?" Aurora called.

But Twilight merely started walking a few steps to the side, her eyes narrowing at her surroundings.

"I...I thought..."

Pinkie looked to her with concern.

"What? You thought what?"

Twilight shook her head.

"I...I don't know. I know it's impossible...but it sounded like..."

Twilight...please...help me!

Urgency took hold of the unicorn, and she frantically started looking around.

"Princess? Princess!"

The others looked to each other with uncertainty.

"What is she babbling about?" Aurora demanded.

Applejack shrugged her shoulders.

"Ah dunno! Twilight? What is it?"

Twilight turned to her.

"Don't you hear her?!"

The farmer glanced around.

"Hear her? Hear who?"

Twilight placed a hoof upon her shoulder, hope now filling her eyes.

"It's her! Princess Celestia!"

To that, Aurora stepped forward, looking both surprised and cautious.

"You wanna explain that, Sparkle?"

Twilight turned to face her.

"I heard her! She's here somewhere! Calling out to me!"

Pinkie looked to her friend with worry.

"Um...Twilight? I know I'm probably the last pony to be able to say this, but...you're acting kinda weird."

Looking to her, Twilight's expression was one of confusion, prompting the pink mare to start explaining herself.

"Princess Celestia isn't here. She's not calling out to us."

But Twilight shook her head.

"No...I know it was her! I just..."

Twilight...please...I need you...

That was the last straw for the unicorn, who now turned to one section of the forest in particular. Without warning, and to the shock of all of them, she started running in that direction. There was a brief moment of confusion and hesitancy from the rest, but it wasn't long before they too started to follow. Even Aurora did so, though she seemed far less concerned, instead bearing a look of seriousness, which Applejack was quick to pick up on.

"What's goin on in that head of yours?"

The pegasus snorted before answering.

"If the sun Princess herself has truly come into my Queen's lands, it's my job to find out and report back."

She looked to her farmer companion and narrowed her eyes.

"Oh, and keeping track of all the mares I was sent to escort would be great too."

Applejack rolled her eyes to this, before then focusing on Twilight yet again. As for the latter, she was not thinking of the others, but instead on her path ahead. Between her natural poor eyesight, the need to constantly adjust her glasses and the darkness of the permanent night around her, she was having obvious difficulty in finding out where, exactly, she needed to go. But, after several minutes of just charging forward, she managed to break through the woods and find herself at some sort of clearing.

"Here! She's here somewhere!"

The others soon arrived behind her, and they saw what was now ahead. A steep cliff-face, just a short distance from the tree-line, and at its base was, unmistakeably, a cave entrance. They watched as Twilight began to run towards it.

"Twilight!" Pinkie called.

But her words were of no use, as Celestia's student continued her charge. The other mares soon followed, and before long, they were within the cave, with even the light of the moon now obscured to them. They fumbled around in the dark, occasionally bumping into some larger stones on the ground, and all the while, Twilight continued to call out.

"Princess! It's me, Twilight! I'm here!"

Aurora grunted to this.

"Touched in the head, this one!"

Applejack, ignoring the pegasus, tried speaking in a calmer tone to her friend.

"Twilight...ah don't know what yer hearin, but..Celestia' ain't here!"

But the unicorn just kept on searching, always going further and further into the cave.

"I...I heard her!"

Then, a sound. All of them drew their eyes to the ground, and saw, right where Twilight had just stepped, that there was a crack in the ground. A crack that now grew wider and wider, spreading all around on the floor surrounding them. They looked to one another, with Pinkie letting out an exasperated sigh.

"...Of course."

The ground gave way, and Twilight, Pinkie and Applejack immediately fell below, into a massive chasm that had been below the floor they'd previously stood on. As for Aurora, she, being a pegasus, had been able to take flight just before the floor had given way, and now lowered herself down. It was difficult, given how dark it was, but even so, she soon found the others. They were shaken, but otherwise unharmed, though they did have a brief bout of coughing as the dust of their fall continued to float around them. As soon as Aurora had landed, however, she looked to Twilight with aggression.

"Okay, that's it! You have completely wasted my time here!"

Getting to her hooves, Twilight looked to her with almost pleading eyes.

"But...but Celestia..."

Aurora planted a hoof squarely in her chest.

"Celestia isn't here, Sparkle! This whole Tantabus thing has made you crazy! You nearly got yourself and your friends killed in here! And for what?! All so you could chase after..."

"Twilight!"

The second voice caused all of them to freeze in place, even Aurora, and they turned in unison to a tunnel that lay to one side of the chasm they stood in. All of them stared at it, waiting with baited breath, before they heard it yet again.

"Twilight!"

Aurora shook her head.

"It...it can't be!"

But Twilight's face lit up, and she once more darted off in the direction of the voice, with the others close behind her. On and on she ran, until, at last, she saw her. Princess Celestia. Her teacher, her leader. She was indeed here, in a larger chamber at the end of the tunnel. There was a large hole in the ceiling, allowing the light of the moon to pour in, illuminating this place. As for the sun Princess, she stood at the far end, looking a little weak in the knees, but otherwise far healthier than she'd been seen to be before. Twilight, naturally, began to walk to her slowly, her eyes almost welling up at the sight of her.

"P...Princess? I...I thought we'd lost you!"

The white alicorn smiled sweetly.

"No, my student...I am here."

She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, seeing Twilight approach her further, her gaze was one of absolute focus.

"I just knew you'd come to me."