Breathe in! Breathe out!

I’m finally breathing now, but it’s dark and I can’t see anything… You know, it’s really strange to not breathe for centuries!

Um, I think it’s been that long? I don’t know?

Breathe in! Breathe out!

I finally open my eyes and look around…

I see a decrepit old stone centaur to my right and to my back left, I can’t help but notice an enormous stone changeling queen there!

Breathe in! Breathe out!

“Oh, golly!” I whisper to myself before looking around the darkened courtyard…

I see the pale moonlight coming down from the sky and I see how it shines on the grass here in this desolate park…

Breathe in! Breathe out!

I glance around and wonder just how much security this school has at night?

I blink and decide not to chance it! I look up at the sky and find the right star…

Once I see the one that will guide me north, I squat and take off with my wings to fly towards it! I know that direction will take me to the Everfree!

I’m not really sure what time it is or how long I flew? I spotted a road earlier and simply followed that, because I know the road leads north out of Ponyville and into the forest…

I see a treeline and I keep flapping! Even after all that time, my muscles seem to be in good shape? I guess they don’t really atrophy in stone?

I’m breathing heavily by this point and taking in every precious gulp of air I can get with my snout!

I cross the treeline and begin flying into the forest…

It’s even darker here and underneath the tree cover, the moon doesn’t penetrate it much… I can only see spots and splotches of moonlight on the forest floor, but that doesn’t concern me right now.

I need to hide!

I look and I spot a darkened opening some distance to the side of the trail… I veer my course in that direction as I continue flapping through the air!

I see a gray stone cliff face approaching me through the trees as I continue going that direction and I eventually land right in front of it… I look forward to see a darkened opening, roughly 7 or 8 feet high and maybe 5 feet wide…

I blink and think that’s probably a good spot? So, I begin trotting inside…

Since it’s dark, I don’t think flying in here is a very good idea…

I trot in and see the stone floor and as my eyes slowly adjust to the darkness, I begin to notice that this cave just keeps going back…

I also don’t think going too far into this place is a very good idea?

I trot into what I’m guessing is an antechamber and then, I turn my body around to stare outside…

I hear crickets chirping and I think I heard an owl hoot at another point?

This is so disorienting!

I turn my body to stare outside into the darkened forest….

I wonder how much longer before the dawn?

I don’t know how long I waited… I just sat there with nothing to do… It was a lot like Tartarus, except this time, I didn’t have Tirek to talk to… That’s both good and bad, actually…

Finally, I see the first slivers of sunlight coming into the forest…

I know the sun rises in the east and I know it’s coming up, right where I can see it outside the cave…

This cave must face to the east!

I turn my head right, now knowing that direction will take me towards Ponyville again…

I suddenly wonder if I should go back?

Well, it’s the morning, so surely they know my statue isn’t there, right?

I begin to look around thinking that a disguise might be the best idea here?

I blink when I can’t find anything but rocks in the cave and then stare back outside…

Well, if I’m going to learn anything, I’ll need to head up there! I think to myself before taking the first few tentative steps outside the cave with my hooves…

I hear birds chirping and I feel the warm morning sun beaming on my face… I smile when I suddenly think about how wonderful it is to be alive again!

I sigh and turn my body to the right… Okay, here I go! I think before launching myself into the air and flapping with my little wings again!

I see the ground underneath moving the opposite direction as I flap through the forest toward the other side of the treeline…

I cross it and suddenly see lush bright green grasslands below me in the early morning light…

I smile as I feel the wind on my face…

This is so great! After all this time, I’m finally free! I think as I continue heading towards town…

I need to scope out that courtyard! I want to know what they’re doing!

I see the town approaching on the horizon and I know the school is just a little distance inside.

I also know that they might be searching for me by now, so I’d do well to keep a low profile!

I look below me and see streets busy with different ponies heading this way and that. I also see many other pegasi in the air with me now, but none of them seem to be paying me any mind?

I stare further into the city when I see the gray structure that I know is the School of Friendship!

I begin flapping harder thinking that the sooner I get the information I want, the sooner I can get out of here!

I see the side of the school approaching and I slow my flapping so I begin to lose altitude and get closer… I eventually land on the side of the school and I trot on the top of it to make my way to the courtyard…

I look down and I see a tall purple alicorn and several smaller ponies all around the platform that holds Tirek and Chrysalis and once held me…

I see Twilight speaking to a tan earth pony with a brown mane…

I don’t know what she’s saying, but she seems to be yelling or barking orders?

Then, I saw something I never thought I’d ever see… I saw Twilight’s horn glow and the earth pony lift off the ground! I saw him get thrown through the air in her magical grasp! I also saw that brown stallion crash into the stone wall… I heard a sickening crunch…

I cringe when I think of the pain that pony must be in!

My eyes are wide when I see the purple alicorn turn towards me and take off to flap my direction!

I duck behind the stone railing so she doesn’t see me!

I blink and think to myself as I begin to process what I just saw…

Twilight just threw that poor pony into the wall! I wonder if he broke anything?

I soon see the purple alicorn flying overhead and away from the school as she continues flapping…

I see her disappear in a flash of purple light in the sky…

She didn’t even check to see how that pony was…

I get up and look again over the railing…

I see a red unicorn stallion there now, wearing a white coat…

I see his horn glowing white and the brown stallion’s body soon rises and then floats over to an awaiting stretcher on the grass…

Okay, so he’s seriously hurt! I think to myself before deciding that there’s not much else I can learn here…

So, I turn my body back towards the north and take off to begin flapping that way!

I need to make it back to the cave!

I land just outside of the entrance, with my new findings inside my floof…

I found two apples that will help me as I know I need to eat, and I also saw a stream to the west…

This information is almost a side note in my mind at this point, though…

I thought about that earth stallion…

I wondered what he could’ve said or did to make Twilight do that?

I… I blink for a moment as my mind processes everything for the umpteenth time…

I let out a sigh as I turn towards my inner monologue…

I spent a very long time in stone… I don’t really know if the ponies were justified in what they did, but I do know one thing… You can’t be bad and not expect the rest of the world to fight back… I don’t know if anypony is fighting Twilight right now, but I do know that there soon will be… That’s not how a good ruler acts and I’m not going to accept that… I need to overthrow Twilight Sparkle!

Next Chapter: Chapter 2: Scarlet Eclipse Estimated time remaining: 14 Minutes