Lyra’s hoofs rang staccato against the floor as she paced. Rainbow Dash stared at a yellowed picture allegedly depicting the founding of the Twilight Bureau.

Dash pointed a hoof at the dragon standing next to the founder.

“Hey, where did all the dragons go?”

“There never were any dragons,” Lyra said. “It’s just a legend.” She stopped and huffed. “What’s taking them so long?”

The foyer saw many ponies pass through, some surprised to see Rainbow Dash out and about so early (early for her, anyway). No one approached her as she moved from painting to painting.

“You know, I’ve never been here,” Dash said. “I mean, in the waiting room. It’s kinda neat, these paintings.” She turned to look at Lyra. “Hey, do you think the mare that painted these things was actually there?”

“It was a stallion, and no,” Lyra said. “They would have tarnished by now if he actually was there.”

Finally, the door to the main office of Spoiled Rich, the director of the Twilight Bureau, swung open. She sauntered out and aimed herself directly at Lyra.

“Do you seriously think you’re the first pony to come up with some harebrained scheme to destroy the phantoms?”

“No, I’m the first pony to come up with a working scheme-”

Strangled sounds of surprise and disapproval rammed Lyra’s response. Spoiled Rich was clearly taken aback by this pony not being intimidated, and was fishing for some kind of comeback. Rainbow Dash flapped over and stood next to Lyra, fixing Spoiled with a stony stare. Several ponies passing through the foyer stopped and watched. Office doors opened as heads poked out, anticipating an exciting drama to interrupt their daily lives of bureaucratic boredom.

Mayor Mare wasn’t having any of that in her city hall. “Ladies, in my office, please,” she said, casting a warning stare over her curious subordinates. Disappointed heads returned back into the offices from whence they came, and doors shut behind them.

“Now, let’s hear your idea, Ms. Lyra,” and here Mayor Mare fixed her patented warning stare on Spoiled Rich, “and we’ll decide the veracity of it.”

“How can an idea be hungry?” Dash mumbled.

Carefully, once again, Lyra shared her idea of destroying the phantoms, of lighting all of the lanterns at their fullest extent. She was proud of herself for pitching her idea without pause or consideration for Spoiled Rich’s grunts and sighs of exasperation and outrage.

“You have no proof that any of this will work,” Spoiled Rich said, immediately launching into her rebuttal, not even allowing a pause of thought to enter the room. “We never light the lamps that bright because of the stress on the system. We’ll have lamps going out all over Ponyville within minutes, and then what? How will the ponies know when to go inside for the phantom time? Why does it even have to be at Phantom Time anyway?

“And furthermore,” Spoiled Rich said, letting Lyra’s reply die in her open mouth, “your idea of having this done during Phantom time? You’d risk other ponies lives over your harebrained—yes, it is harebrained—scheme?”

“Well… we’ll all be volunteers.”

“Really.” Spoiled Rich said, her lips flattening in scorn. “Volunteers to get torn apart by phantoms.”

“I’m a volunteer,” Rainbow Dash said. “I’ll take on any phantom any time.”

Spoiled Rich nodded respectfully toward Rainbow Dash. Lyra imagined the gesture shredding her insides, having to be respectful to another pony. “Rainbow Dash, we all appreciate the work you do for us, saving stragglers from those awful phantoms. But you have to understand, you’ll have multiple ponies in multiple locations, all over the world. Far be it from me to ever impugn your abilities, but even this may be too much for you.”

“Well, whatever it is you got, I can fly fast enough.” Dash said, unfazed. “Faster, even.”

“If I may interrupt,” Mayor Mare said, her softer tone gently smelting away Spoiled Rich’s accusatory iron. “I wonder how you came up with this idea, Ms. Heartstrings.”

“A lot of research at the library,” Lyra said. “Mostly about the history of the Twilight Bureau,” and she explained her findings, her voice carried away on a wave of excitement. Mayor Mare sat at attention, leaning into the rushing tide of Lyra’s ideas. Even Spoiled Rich couldn’t resist the fresh enthusiasm bubbling from Lyra’s sincere heart.

Rainbow Dash surfed at the crest, and wiped out. “Not to mention the Princess told us ‘more light’,” Dash said.

She knew it was a bad idea the instant it left her mouth. The room dropped several degrees colder as harsh silence billowed through it, only interrupted by the slap of Lyra’s hooves against her face.

“Uhh…”

“The Princess,” Spoiled Rich said, an edge of antagonistic laughter poking her throat. “You two actually saw the Princess, an old myth, and decided to do what she told you to do.”

“Well,” Dash said, and for the first time, her cool and relaxed nature fled.

“Yes,” Lyra said, throwing herself upon Dash’s blade. “We saw the Princess in the library, and she told us ‘more light’.”

More silence, though Spoiled Rich’s ear-splitting grin was loud enough. She wafted it between Lyra and Mayor Mare, just waiting for the big ‘No’ to come out.

“I see,” Mayor Mare said, coldly. “Well, Lyra, your ideas are interesting, but outside of actual proof, we’ll just have to call your plan far too risky. However, if you do happen to come across any actual proof, please do not hesitate to share it with our office.”

“I won’t, Ms. Mayor,” Lyra said, deflated.

“Will that be all?”

“Yes.” Lyra inched out of her seat. Dash followed, neutral, looking at nothing. “I thank you for your time, Mayor Mare. And your time as well, Spoiled Rich.”

Spoiled Rich dropped her gloating and stood, looking professional and concerned. “We appreciate your sense of civic duty, Ms. Heartstrings,” she said, and nodded.

Lyra and Rainbow Dash quickly trotted out of City Hall.

“Ugh, those darn narcs!” Rainbow Dash said, casting an angry look back at the city hall. “Always talking about vorscacities and imp yunes, whatever that is. I stay away from City Hall, every time. Who needs ‘em?”

“Yeah,” Lyra said, staring at the ground.

With a mighty flap of her wings, Rainbow Dash landed in front of Lyra, staring intently at her. Lyra finally lifted her head.

“I’m sorry,” Dash said. “I screwed up in there talking about the Princess.”

“That’s okay, Dash,” Lyra said. “It’s something that really happened, so I don’t think it’s a mistake at all. It’s their fault for being so closed-minded.”

“Well, you should have said I was wrong, or acted like I was joking-”

“No,” Lyra said. “We’re in this together. I’m not going to set you up as a joke. Besides, it feels… well…”

“Yes?”

“Like… it’s wrong to deny that we saw the Princess. Like I’d be betraying her if I claimed we didn’t see her.”

Dash’s head turned to the side, her focus drifting, as she stared into some mysterious distance. “Yeah,” she said.

“Yoo hoo, girls.”

Dash regained focus and eyed a mare approaching them from the direction of city hall. Lyra turned, and forced a smile. “Hi, Rarity.”

“Lyra! A pleasure to see you.” She held out a hoof to Rainbow Dash, who shook it. “Rainbow Dash, I presume.”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I am Rarity. I’m with public works, the head of the design team.”

“I’m the night watch,” Rainbow Dash said, smooth and distant.

“Yes, your reputation precedes you.” Rainbow Dash gave a tart look at Lyra and silently mouthed ‘precedes’. “I hope neither of you will be offended, but I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation with Spoiled Rich and Mayor Mare.”

“You ‘overheard’ a closed door conversation?” Lyra asked.

“Well… eavesdropped, if you insist.” Rarity placed a delicate hoof in front of her lips, more of a mimic of discretion than the actual thing. “If I may get right to the point-”

“Please.”

“-I have also seen the Princess, and I agree with your plan to rid ourselves of the phantoms.”

“You saw the Princess too!” Lyra said, sunny excitement like a disinfectant to her disappointment.

Rainbow Dash moved in. “You think we can get rid of the phantoms?”

“Yes,” Rarity said. “And I’m not the only one that will help you.”

“Wait a second, this is weird,” Rainbow Dash said. She poked a prodding hoof on Rarity’s chest. “You’ll believe us just like that? Just because we said the Princess told us ‘more light’, and that’s that?” She stalked toward Rarity, who backed away. “How do we know this isn’t some trick to get us arrested?”

“Goodness, but you do have trust issues,” Rarity said.

“Yeah. Fighting phantoms will do that.”

Slowly, as if communication from another world, Rarity said, “'The void beyond the clouds’. The Princess said that to me, weeks ago. Goodness, I had forgotten all about it—like it was a dream—until you two showed up in the city hall. The memory suddenly came back to me, of what she said, and I simply had to eavesdrop. If the Princess told you more light, then more light it is.”

"The void," Rainbow Dash said. She turned to Lyra. "I knew it. That thing beyond the cloudline... I knew it."

"I... I always did too," Lyra said.

Rarity raised an eyebrow. "So you just believe me as well?"

"I know this sounds crazy, but yeah, I do," Lyra said, and Rainbow Dash gave a nod. “Did you say more ponies would help us? Because we need all the help we can get.”

“Yes, though not enough to light all lamps simultaneously.”

“When you get the chance, get them together and meet me at my… uh, Bon Bon’s house as soon as you can! We’ll see you there!”

“Really,” Bon Bon said. “That’s actually what you’re going to do tonight.”

“Well… yes.” Lyra said.

It was bad enough that Lyra decided to use her house for some goofy fan meeting, where all members claim to have seen the Princess and even hear her speak. Several said they even saw the Beast. The house was already full of Lyra and Dash, but Rarity had brought Applejack, Fluttershy, Starlight Glimmer, and Trixie, who denied that the Princess was real and couldn’t wait to shove it in everyone’s dumb faces, but was here only because Starlight Glimmer was, and Big Macintosh, who at least stood to the side and was super careful not to ruin anything. He was also the most taciturn pony Bon Bon had ever met, and, of the crew assembled, got on Bon Bon’s nerves the least.

Yes, that was bad enough, but what they had planned was illegal and dangerous. And so, so stupid.

“I’m in,” Bon Bon said.

Lyra’s face lit up in surprise and glee. “Really?”

“I clearly can’t stop you—any of you—from doing this, and I’m already implicated by letting you guys use my house for your plans, so I might as well go in all the way.”

“If Trixie was you, I’d run like hay.”

“Then why don’t you?” Bon Bon said.

Trixie flicked her long mane over her shoulders. “Well, I’d really like to see it blow up in your faces. So I can laugh.”

Bon Bon cast a querying look at Starlight Glimmer, who only responded by scuffing a hoof and looking at the floor. Why does she put up with her? Why does anyone?

Starlight Glimmer was a lamplighter, like Rarity, and was given the most specific instructions of the ponies the Princess appeared to.

“For the past two months, I’ve been stealing poles, lanterns, and fuel,” Starlight Glimmer had told them, when the group had been comparing their experiences with the Princess. “I actually forgot that the Princess had told me to do it, but I still, somehow, kept carrying out her wish.” She had brought them with her, five for each unicorn - Rarity, Trixie, Starlight Glimmer, and Lyra. Trixie and Lyra were given quick lessons on usage. There was no real skill required to be a lamplighter; it was really more of a prestige position, a job offered to unicorns who exemplified positive civic traits.

The earth ponies—Big Macintosh, Applejack, and Bon Bon offered protection for the unicorns as they lit the lamps to their highest degree. Rainbow Dash was air watch, with Fluttershy providing support. Rainbow Dash was just paranoid enough to figure that, if lighting all of the lamps to their brightest extent really would get rid of the phantoms, then they’d come out to stop the them.

“I mean, it makes sense, right?”

No one disputed it.

"Remember guys, if a whole lot of phantoms come out, get to shelter immediately. We'll try again later." Rainbow Dash took off to scout the area.

It was when the nine walked out into the darkening lamplight, into the cusp of the phantom hour, that the implications of their plan, the stomach turning truth of it, finally sank in. The adrenaline from giddy conspiracy, full of hope in the bright and warm house, curdled and left them anxious and even guilt-stricken.

They were lighting the lamps. Illegally. Unplanned. While not the most heinous crime, it was the crime with the most social stigma attached to it.

“Oh heavens, what are we doing?” Rarity said, her head swerving like a tennis match, looking for an answer from her fellow co-conspirators.

“Saving this town,” Applejack said. “Destroying the phantoms. What the Princess wants us to do.”

“Let’s not start panicking yet,” Rainbow Dash said, flying above them. “Alright, we have our marching orders, so let’s-”

The shutters at the top window of Sugarcube Corner burst open, and Pinkamena stuck her head out. Her long hair obscured half of her face, but one crazed eye pierced the group walking in the street below. They froze.

“What are you guys doing?” Pinkamena asked. “Are we getting out of here?”

“Uhh…” Rainbow Dash started. She desperately looked at her group for support, but they were too busy staring at Pinkamena Diane Pie, the town doomsayer.

“We’re going back to Equestria, right?” Pinkie slammed the shutters shut, and the front door to the bakery immediately opened as Pinkamena trotted out, with no pause between the events. The quickness with which she went from her second floor room to the front door was impossible, and everyone felt uncomfortable (except for Trixie, who just knew she could make it happen faster).

“Whatever you guys are doing, I want in,” Pinkamena said.

Again, Rainbow Dash’s response was, “Uhh…”

“Oh, it would be great to have you,” Fluttershy said, approaching Pinkamena . “We could use another defender. This way, we could split up the four unicorns and have an earth pony with each one.”

“Not a bad idea,” Applejack said. “We’d work quicker that way, that’s for sure.”

“Good,” Pinkamena said, as she trotted toward the group. “I’m tired of this ugly gross stupid place. I miss my family.”

Fluttershy filled Pinkamena in on their plan while the group skulked at the central fountain, which had a dragon statue poised in the middle. The gang was viewed with some curiosity by the retreating populace, ponies going to the safety of their houses, wondering why a group with tree branches and coffee cans were hanging around the fountain. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy took to the air, watching over Ponyville, waiting for the streets to empty so they could commit their crimes.

“Why can’t you just make them invisible?” Applejack asked Trixie, too aware of pony eyes peering at the odd combination. “Sticks and cans don’t make any sense.”

“Look, if they were invisible, I wouldn’t be able to see them,” Trixie said. “The Great and Powerful Trixie doesn’t have enough time to work with, so lay off.”

Dash flew back. “Everyone is gone in my hemisphere,” she said. They looked toward the horizon, waiting in silence for Fluttershy’s return.

It was a short wait. “Everypony has gone home,” she said.

“Then allow me to disillusion our equipment,” Trixie said, as she cast a canceling spell.

Rainbow Dash was far too aware of the eyes of the gang waiting for her to give the order. So she summoned resolve into her heart, and said, “Let’s mosey.”

Pinkamena showed no hesitation as she galloped toward her section of the lamps. Starlight Glimmer hesitated, and then followed her guard. The rest dispersed toward their targets spread throughout the world.

Except for Bon Bon and Lyra. They were already there.

“Well, here goes!” Lyra said. She levitated the kerosene can, unscrewed the cap, and poured its contents into the fuel reservoir. She then used the indented end of the pole, shaped to fit the specialized lamp bolt, to turn the lantern to its brightest (and most fuel consuming) capacity.

“Whew! Those things really shoot out the light!”

“This is so stupid,” Bon Bon said. “I mean, they have timers on these things, so why do they need lighters in the first place? Just keep them fueled with kerosene, and that’s that.”

Lyra gasped. “Hush your mouth, Bon Bon, this is a sacred duty.”

“Whatever,” Bon Bon said, as she trotted behind Lyra to the next lamp. This one was put out, so after filling the reservoir, Lyra used the flint end of the pole to spark the wick, lighting it.

“Sacred duty to keep earth ponies down, more like it,” Bon Bon said. “This is just some ritualistic garbage unicorns came up with to give themselves a higher status. I mean, why does a unicorn have to use a pole to light or snuff this stuff? You can just use your magic, right?”

“Sacred. Duty,” Lyra said. She was grinning; she loved Bon Bon’s angry rants. “Besides, all these lamps are magic-proof to prevent tampering. Otherwise we—”

A scream, muffled by the distance traveled through the alleys and turns of Ponyville, reached their ears. Rarity. The two stiffened. In the distance, above them, they heard Rainbow Dash’s faint, “stay on course!”

Lyra and Bon Bon trotted to the next lamp in silence, worried and scared. Bon Bon kept an angry vigilance around her, on the lookout for any phantom. Around the world, the other members that heard the scream also wondered; is this just a normal phantom attack, or will it portend something more?

Lyra squeaked, and Bon Bon quickly turned her head, tense. She relaxed.

“It’s the defective phantom,” she said, smirking. She turned toward the wide-eyed Lyra and snapped, “Get to it!”

Lyra moved toward the next lamp, forcing herself to tear away from the defective phantom standing at the street corner, watching them. The phantom was a purple earth pony mare with a cutie mark of grapes and a strawberry. There was no pony in Ponyville that looked like her, so she was a true simulacra, a copy without an original. She was called the defective phantom because she never attacked or harassed the populace. She wasn’t even scary.

Full of fear for Rarity, themselves, and anger—always anger—Bon Bon went against her normal cool-headed judgment and said, “What are you out for, phantom?”

“D-don’t talk to it!” Lyra said.

“It won’t do anything,” Bon Bon said. “This is your end. How does that make you feel, eh?”

The defective phantom said, “It don’t matter. None of this matters.”

Bon Bon soured. Lyra made a snouty whinny of fear and rushed to the next lantern. Bon Bon followed her, keeping a lookout. The defective phantom followed them, keeping a respectful distance, and Bon Bon got angrier.

“Hey,” Fluttershy said, as she descended. “Did you guys hear Rarity?”

“Yeah!” Lyra said. “Is she okay?”

“She’s good, Big Macintosh took care of it,” Fluttershy said. “I’m doing a checkup, so keep it up! It’s looking really bright.”

The defective phantom held up her hooves and yelled, “That’s not Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy snarled at the traitorous phantom. Bon Bon did not hesitate, and rushed at the phantom Fluttershy, matching snarl for snarl, ready to tear it apart. A different pair of hooves kicked her withers.

Bon Bon slid away, forcing awareness through her pain, seeing that she was surrounded by a herd of snarling, ravening phantoms, cutting her off from Lyra. Lyra dropped her pole and backpedaled from phantom Fluttershy.

“Those aren’t ponies either.”

“Shut up!” Bon Bon shouted. Screams and shouts echoed throughout the world. The real Fluttershy’s “eep” came from above. Rarity shouting, “You brutes!”, Applejack’s neighs of rage, Rainbow Dash’s muffled commands, Trixie shouting, “Fools!”, and ringing unicorn blasts of magic. The sky was full of the flaps of phantom wings.

Well, I guess we were on the right track, Bon Bon thought. She charged through the gang, in a hurry to get Lyra and get inside, to safety. Their little group could not face this many phantoms.

A phantom Dizzy Twister swooped behind Lyra, hooked her hooves under her forelegs, and lifted her into the air. Lyra flailed as a surprised yelp turned into a fearful scream.

Bon Bon shouted, “Lyra!” She pushed through the phantoms kicking and biting into her coat, struggling to save Lyra before she was lifted too far. “Use your magic!”

Lyra cast blindly, too panicked for precise shots. Desperately, Bon Bon retreated to a narrow alley, jumped from wall to wall, and clambered onto the rooftop of a cottage. She raced toward Lyra, hopping from roof to roof, hoping just to get there fast enough before she became forever out of her reach.

Lyra focused and was putting up a better fight, jabbing the phantom with her hooves, but a phantom Medley swooped in and kicked her in the jaw. Lyra went limp, and Dizzy Twister gained altitude.

Bon Bon made it to the building closest to Lyra, galloped to the edge, so painfully aware of Lyra being lifted higher. She used her earth pony magic, jumped, and felt the earth below her surge and push her up.

She reached out, high above the building, both hooves extended to grasp the phantom and bring her back down to earth. Her hooves grasped empty air, and Bon Bon began her descent, tears welling up as she watched Lyra being carried into the sky, where the void awaited. She let out a wretched sob and readied herself to fight, below, for whatever was left.

Rainbow Dash didn’t expect this to turn so bad. After all, they had the commands of the Princess herself, the twilight being who directed them to the quest of more light. They couldn’t possibly lose.

They were losing hard. She had a welt on her flank now, above her cutie mark, when she dove into a thicket of phantoms. It was especially irritating because the welt came from Trixie, who blasted blindly at a phantom trying to pull Applejack into the river. Applejack at least kept her cool and made every attack true—you could count on earth ponies for solidity. For some reason, unicorns always went into panic mode. Dash didn’t understand it.

But now she was flying to the equator, where Pinkanema and Starlight were dealing with their own phantoms. Starlight was doing that blind panicked blasting that the other unicorns were doing—really, what was up with that?—but Pinkanema was assaulting with a fury that Dash certainly didn’t expect. Her eyes were spirals of madness, and there was no courage in her assault, only fearlessness—fearlessness gets ponies hurt. Pinkanema wasn’t even paying attention to Starlight Glimmer, screaming and blasting at the phantoms closing in on her.

Dash flipped and dove straight into the pack, landing on a phantom Pokey Pierce with such force that it dematerialized into a cloud of burning coal and purple shadow. Rainbow Dash had never seen that before, and if the situation wasn’t so desperate she would think that maybe that void out there, beyond the clouds, was overextending itself by sending so many phantoms. But Dash had to save Starlight Glimmer first.

“Starlight, keep your back to the tree and watch the skies!” she said. Rainbow Dash pushed into the awful gang, aiming to get between them and Glimmer.

“Pinkanema! You have to save Starlight!” Rainbow Dash heard her voice say, and saw her phantom hovering over Pinkanema. It pointed straight at her. “That phantom Dash is goin-”

Rainbow Dash lunged at the phantom, flicking out a hoof and punching the fake right in the jaw. The phantom Dash rolled over and used her wings to fling herself upright. Rainbow Dash flapped her wings, keeping her momentum, ready to destroy the fake with one mighty kick, when Pinkanema kicked Dash in the barrel, earth pony power stealing her breath and sending her reeling.

Starlight Glimmer took this opportunity to start screaming, shut her eyes tight, and blasted at the phantom Rainbow Dash. The attack was telegraphed, and the phantom dodged it simply.

“Pinkanema! Starlight’s been replaced too! We need to do something!”

Rainbow Dash struggled to stand on her hooves, forcing herself to shake her head. She couldn’t even speak a denial, and it would only get lost in the cacophony of Starlight Glimmer’s screams and blind blasts.

“Wait a minute,” Pinkanema said, her eyes unscrewing toward sanity. “Something’s wrong here.”

“I knew you were worthless,” the phantom Rainbow Dash said, flapping in place, folding her forelegs across her chest. “Why did we even take you along? You can’t-”

A claw reached out, faint, transparent, and grabbed the Rainbow Dash phantom. Even Glimmer stopped screaming enough to watch, and said, “It’s the Beast!”

The beast picked up the phantom and slammed it to the ground, head first, and it burst into burning coal and purple shadow.

“No way.” Rainbow Dash pushed herself up, staring at the beast. She forced herself to breathe now, and managed to tell Glimmer, “Don’t attack him!”

“I’m not!” Starlight Glimmer said, her tone hushed with amazement.

Pinkanema teared up and whispered, “Lero.”

Dash startled at the surge in her heart. “W-what?”

The beast gently placed a transparent hand on Pinkanema’s head, not touching the solid matter that was Pinkanema, but she sighed and relaxed as if he had.

The beast turned his attention to Rainbow Dash, his hazel eyes giving her a jolt. She pawed at the ground, but bravely met his stare. He pointed toward the horizon, Rainbow Dash reading concern and immediacy in his expression, amazed that she understood this strange creatures look and gesture. She nodded.

“You guys, get inside right now!” She took off toward where he was pointing.

In the sky, she said, “Oh no.”

Lyra, unconscious, was being carried toward the cloud bank. The phantom Dizzy Twister sneered at Rainbow Dash, daring her to stop her. Dash stuck out one hoof and flew to what she hoped would be above phantom Dizzy, to stop her from carrying Lyra to the void. Dash constantly scanned the world below her, and saw Fluttershy following her below, carrying out her mission plan of shadowing Rainbow Dash. Good, Rainbow Dash thought. She’ll catch Lyra if I can’t.

Rainbow Dash sensed the attack, and quickly pitched out of the way as a phantom Blossomforth dove toward her. She thrust out a kick, hitting it in the back, and allowed herself only a millisecond of smugness as it plummeted to the ground.

Her ascent was halted as Derpy and Cloudchaser grabbed her from both sides. The phantom Dizzy Twister passed into the cloud line.

Dash shouted, “let go!” and struggled against their grasp, desperate, watching Dizzy Twister fly into the clouds, disappearing from sight. Pain wrenched her heart, and she growled as she fought against the pegasus holding her back.

From below, Fluttershy flew up, unseen by the phantoms, and tapped phantom Cloudchaser on the shoulder.

“What are you doing?” Rainbow Dash said through clenched teeth. Just asking that weakened the might of her struggle.

Fluttershy cleared her throat. “Pardon me for asking, but could you please let go of Rainbow Dash? We’re very busy right now.”

The phantom Cloudchaser hissed at her, baring suddenly growing fangs, dripping with slime. Her grip on Rainbow Dash loosened, and Dash twisted out of her reach, slammed down her rear hooves against phantom Cloudchaser’s face, and launched herself toward the cloudline.

“Get inside!” she shouted, but Fluttershy was already headed toward the watchtower. The two phantoms hesitated, before Derpy pursued Fluttershy while Cloudchaser went after Rainbow Dash. Neither were fast enough.

Rainbow Dash entered the clouds, and passed through them into the vast unblinking void. There was no fanfare, no mental cheer, nothing to mark this significant passage in her life. Fear didn’t matter. She had to do it. She had to save Lyra.

Phantom Dizzy Twister was a speck against the blind darkness, and Dash flew toward her, Lyra’s unconscious body the totality of her focus. She didn’t see the phantom Dizzy’s evil grin, as it flapped in place.

Is there a ceiling? Is that why she can’t go any further? Dash wondered. It didn’t matter if the phantom was ready to flee again. No pegasus, phantom or otherwise, was faster than her.

She held out a hoof as she got closer to phantom Dizzy, seeing the grin, thinking that it’d be simple to just pivot around and kick her in the back, grab Lyra, fly back down…

Thunderlane materialized in front of her. She had never seen a phantom materialize. It was instantaneous, but in her memory was a white pulsating maggot with rotten meat woven around it by long multi-jointed black claws, and a burst of nothing I can’t get it out of my mind and Thunderlane was on her, hitting her.

She blinked despite the goggles, her head knocked back, and phantom Cloudchaser caught up and gripped her barrel. Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth and managed to get her wings free, at least not falling to the ground, but phantom Thunderlane wouldn’t stop hitting her, and the bruising pain was pushing Lyra from her awareness.

Phantom Cloudchaser bit her, and Dash grunted. She struggled, and looked toward phantom Dizzy Twister. They made eye contact, and, with no ceremony, the phantom dropped Lyra.

Rainbow Dash surged toward the falling body, but the restrainers were too strong.

“Let… go!” Rainbow Dash said, but the phantom bit harder, and Dash screamed. She couldn’t give up. Lyra hadn’t reached the cloud line Why can’t I break free and her heart surged toward Lyra, toward the fall. Her head snapped back and one of the windows of her goggles shattered, shards spilling out into the sky.

Fluttershy slammed her rear hooves into the phantom Cloudchaser.

“I TOLD you we were BUSY!” Fluttershy shouted. She grappled with the phantom Cloudchaser, gripped her head, and twisted. “I even said PLEASE!” A thunderous snap, the phantom Cloudchaser’s pupils pinpricked, and her limp body fell upwards, fading into the void.

Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth, deftly avoided phantom Thunderlane’s attack, and pushed herself away from him, hoof out, diving faster than she ever had before, straight to Lyra, who now passed the cloudline.

Wind poked it’s finger into Rainbow Dash’s broken goggle and pulled it off of her head. She squinted against the wind resistance, tears pulling from her eyes, and pushed harder than she ever had before.

She was carrying a transparent cone around her.

A new trap? It didn’t matter, she pushed against it and felt it narrow around her, Lyra’s body straight below her, falling, limp, eyes closed, unconscious. The ground was rushing up too fast, too fast for Rainbow Dash to rescue Lyra, but she thought I will save her and pushed harder. She felt pegasus magic spark in her, and she pushed that too. Nothing was going to stop her except the ground. Bon Bon was running, bloody, but was encumbered by phantom Honeydew. Applejack pushed Trixie into an abandoned shed, and was pulled back by a gang of phantoms. She couldn’t see Rarity and Big Macintosh, they were on the other side of the world. Pinkamena and Starlight Glimmer just had to be inside, they just had to. She saw the Beast, running toward Lyra, but he wasn’t going to be fast enough. Only I am, she would have thought, but she was past conscious thought now. She was past everything except speed, and finally, she broke through the cone.

“Applejack!” Trixie shouted, trotting in place. “Stop fighting those things and get in here!”

“Tryin’,” Applejack said, dodging an aerial attack from a frothing Cloud Chaser. She knew a phantom was coming up behind her—the earth didn’t lie—and she timed a rear kick perfectly to phantom Caramel’s jaw.

A rainbow boomed across the sky, and the phantoms screamed. Applejack looked at her kicking hoof in confusion.

“What’s going on?” Trixie said, watching the phantoms fade with silent screams. She lurched out of the shack she was hiding in, and gasped as she looked up into the sky.

“Did… Rainbow Dash…”

“Sonic Rainboom,” Applejack said. She viewed the sky in wonder. “What’s going on?”

“We’re getting out of here,” Lero said, as he strode into physicality. Trixie looked up at him, first in fear, and then in scorn.

“Oh. It’s you.” Lero barely gave her a glance, contempt hiding behind his eyes. He was there when Trixie came with her Alicorn amulet, and made his friends perform awful, humiliating toil, like some devil torturing souls in the hell of Ponyville—a hell Trixie created. Twilight may have forgiven her, but Lero didn’t.

Applejack gently prodded his thigh. “It’s great to see you again, partner.”

Lero grinned. “Same to you AJ.”

Trixie scoffed.

“Oh my word,” Rarity said, watching the rainbow light parade across the sky. The phantoms near her and Big Macintosh fell upwards, disappearing into the air.

“Is this what Twilight meant?” Big Macintosh said, a welt across his back fading away along with the phantoms. “More light?”

“Twilight!” Rarity said. “We… we’re going back to Equestria!”

Some distance away, Pinkie Pie shouted, “I told you so!”

“What?” Starlight Glimmer said.

“Oh, it’s just Rarity,” Pinkie said. “Quick, let’s get to the library!”

“Okay, but why Pinkie?” Starlight said. “Pinkie Pie!” Her concern changed into excitement. “You’re Pinkie!”

“Hey yeah I am, now let’s get to the library! Twilight’s coming back!” Pinkie ran toward the Golden Oak, and shouted, “To the library everyone!”

Lyra was knocked out in the world she thought she knew. She woke up into memories of the old one as her eyes slowly opened, opening into the lies that were her life. The experiences she had and never wanted changed her, like a sculptor working the wet clay of her soul. She remembered now; she didn’t want to, but the stubborn memories returned.

Acting like her coming to Ponyville at the same time Twilight did was a coincidence. Having to pretend that she didn’t know Bon Bon was a secret agent the whole time. Her own clandestine work for the crown, work that was only allowed to her with the realization that death was preferable to revealing it, and the will to carry it out. How she had to change herself to contain the raging contradictory multitudes that broke within her. Her demolishment.

Lyra also woke into her love, the most gentle yet most firm hands sculpting her soul, stronger than death and regret. Love was the shore her waves crashed against, and it would never erode. Love was her strength. Rememberance was over; time to play her part, to put on her mask, and to hide her face from those she loved.

Her natural unicorn fear of high places spiked, but she was being held by the strong forelegs of Rainbow Dash. Lyra hooked one foreleg around Dash’s neck, gently, and slowly beamed.

“Hi.”

“Hi yourself,” Dash said. “Let me land somewhere.”

“My hero.”

“Whatever,” Dash snorted. She lowered Lyra in front of Sofas and Quills. There was anxiety in her actions, and she scanned skyward for Fluttershy. She relaxed when she saw the yellow outline flying toward the center of Ponyville. She heard Pinkie’s distant shout of Golden Oak.

“Well, let’s go get Twilight and Lero,” Dash said.

“Wait,” Lyra said. She hooked a foreleg around Dash’s neck and pulled her in for a kiss. Rainbow Dash grinned, Lyra feeling it against her lips, causing her to grin, and they both broke the kiss, laughing.

“I wanted to do that all day,” Lyra said, smiling. “I love you, Rainbow Dash.”

Rainbow Dash drew Lyra into a hug, resting her chin on her neck. They both wrapped forelegs and hooves around each other, sitting so that they pressed heartbeat to heartbeat.

Rainbow Dash sighed. “I love you too, Lyra,” she said. She pulled back from the hug and held Lyra’s face in her hooves. With a mischievous smirk she pulled the edges of Lyra’s mouth upward, creating a goofy smile. They both laughed.

They galloped toward the library.

Ponyville was waking up.

Doors opened, windows lifted, and ponies took to the streets in amazement and remembrance. The phantoms were transparent and dazed, and though they were watched with wariness, no one was afraid of them. They weren't even attacking.

Lyra and Rainbow Dash dodged through the pony multitude, Lyra galloping while Dash flew overhead.

“Lero!” Rainbow Dash shouted. She veered to the left, and Lyra turned and followed, beaming as she saw that beautiful creature, her stallion, kneel and hold out his arms.

Lyra sped up, beaming a mischievous grin as she used her magic to grab Dash’s tail.

“Oh no you don’t!” Dash said, using her pegasus magic to break the hold. It was only enough that she tied with Lyra as they both leapt into Lero’s arms. They leaned in to kiss him, and their mouths touched his and each others’.

He fell on his rump onto the grass, holding on to his mares, and smiled at the ridiculous three-way kiss, Rainbow Dash on his left and Lyra on his right. They all laughed together.

“Dude!” Dash said, when she pulled back. “The way you destroyed that phantom was awesome!”

Lero arched an eyebrow. “It was more desperation than anything else. I didn’t want Pinkie going crazy… uh, crazier. Now let me up, girls.”

Rainbow Dash regretfully left his roaming hand to grab it with her hooves, pulling him up with her flapping wings. Lyra didn’t leave his embrace, and instead used her magic to pull him to his feet again. She did this while casting smugness at Dash and her physical efforts.

“I’m not looking at you,” Rainbow Dash said angrily, and Lyra only grinned as she hooked her hooves around Lero’s neck.

Dash flew around and deposited herself on Lero’s back, hooking the points of her hindhooves into his belt, and casting her forehooves over his shoulders. She kissed the back of his neck, where his hair was growing out again, and deigned to cast Lyra a glance. They stared at each other, moving with the rhythm of Lero’s gait, not paying attention to the ponies around them.

Near the library, Lyra pecked Lero on the cheek, bounded to the ground, and galloped toward Bon Bon. Rainbow Dash also left with a kiss, and flew over to praise Fluttershy for her attack against the Derpy phantom. Fluttershy’s response was to hide behind her flowing mane, shyly avert her eyes, and flick a hoof at the ground.

Lyra stopped just before bowling into her, swinging hooves around to hug her.

“Oh boy, a hug from Lyra,” Bon Bon said. “My favorite thing in the whole world.”

“That’s some nice sarcasm you got there,” Lyra said. “Especially since you’re hugging me back.”

“Hmph.” Bon Bon wasn’t able to hide her smile, either, even after they separated. “We’re still here, so why are we remembering things now?”

“We’re waking up. The veil has been lifted—”

“Not convincing. I’ll wait for the official Twilight Sparkle announcement.”

They gathered around the Golden Oaks library, though no one entered while Pinkie stood guard. There were no questions on why they should listen to Pinkie. After all, she was the only one who remembered Equestria, the world they came from. She had inquiry into special knowledge before, so they trusted that it should be the same.

Pinkie Pie, riding high on the wave of a dearly missed endorphin rush, used will power she didn’t even know she had to wrangle her runaway euphoria into something slightly more controlled. There would be no bug-eyed exclamations and skull-splitting grins gushing onto the confused and frightened (and sometimes guiltily aroused) populace. She could feel Twilight Sparkle stirring, like bubbles popping on the surface of the deep well that was Pinkie Pie’s magic. Those phantoms and that nasty darkness hovering above them couldn’t hold her back anymore.

“Alright guys!” Pinkie Pie shouted, pushing against the gate to hysteria, only letting one manic giggle escape. “Get ready, because here she c-”

The library sparkled golden, like an outline drawn in stars. The bark and leaves, showing the ages the tree had lived through, lost detail and flattened as the gold flowed through them like veins. The Golden Oak shrunk comically, like a banzai tree, until it burst into a rainbow of magic. Twilight Sparkle casually walked from the burst, and fully entered into the world.

Her trajectory was aimed at her herd. On instinct, Lero opened his arms, and she landed into his embrace. She closed her eyes to a joyful cheer as Lyra and Dash crowded around each other, trading hugs and quick, chaste kisses. They did have an audience, after all.

“Hmph,” Trixie said, giving the herd a disgusted side-glance. “love is just a bunch of chemicals.”

“Oh, I know,” Fluttershy said, breathlessly. “Isn’t it wonderful?”

“A moment,” Twilight said. She cast her spell, and the dragon statue in the middle of the fountain glowed with amber light. The marble cracked as Spike shook of his sleep.

Spike hopped over the fountain and landed on the cobblestone walkway as pieces of marble fell from his body.

“It’s about time,” Spike said, looking sourly at Twilight Sparkle. “What took you so long?” Rarity hugged him first, destroying his sour teenage expression.

“I’m sorry Spike,” Twilight said with a giggle, and pounced on him and Rarity, holding them in a royal hug. Fluttershy leapt at Twilight to join in, and Applejack, Starlight Glimmer, Big Macintosh, and Rarity jumped in as well. Trixie was pulled in by Starlight Glimmer’s magic, and struggled in terror.

Lero was hugged and kissed from all sides. His human cultural standards of reserve and distance arose, feeling nervous and awkward at the affectionate tableau being afflicted upon him, but Lero ignored it. Adult ponies were more showy in their affection and love, and he had over four years to get used to it. It always amazed him, though, how ponies were so easy in there affections, so freely loving.

“Ladies… gentlecolts, I thank you for freeing me.” Twilight said, as the group hug broke. “Now if you’ll pardon me,” and she launched herself into the sky, and hurled magic to the pulsating void.

The beam broke the cloud cover, vaporizing it instantly, and punched into the oily blackness of the outsider, the invader into the fair lands of Equestria.

The void screamed.

Hair stood on end as ponies felt magic course from the earth, through them, taken from them, and focused into a blue and purple beam aimed directly at the heart of the void. Twilight burned away whatever filters and resisters stunted her power, locks that would take Lyra intense meditation to break, gone in less than a second.

Starlight Glimmer gaped in awe. She felt the magic Twilight used more acutely than any other unicorn there, and she finally understood, from a depth at and beyond conscious thought, that if she had wanted to, Twilight could have simply killed her, and there was nothing Starlight could have done to stop it.

“My goddess,” she whispered.

She was aware of Lero next to her, and she turned to see his gaze, as blank and pitiless as the sun.

Lero didn’t like Starlight Glimmer, either. He trusted her even less than Trixie, who was at least open about her hostility. Starlight’s conversion seemed too pat and convenient to him, and even though this was just how ponies did things—quick to apologize, quick to forgive—Lero remembered the struggle against Starlight Glimmer.

But she was civil, so Lero would be civil too. He nodded, and turned his attention back to his glorious mare, his wonderful Twilight, as she tore an opening from Ponyville into Equestria.

In Equestria, in Granny Smith’s house, Luna clattered her teacup into its saucer.

“Oh ho, what is this?” Luna said, arching her head toward the area Ponyville was supposed to occupy. “The daemons are spilling through a keyhole.” She looked toward her sister, seeing solid green eyes, dull like old paint. “Oh, so now the world audit arrives,” Luna said.

Enter into the infinite labyrinth of another’s brain—

“Please don’t,” Luna said, placing a silencing hoof on Celestia’s mouth.

“Granny Smith, I thank you for your hospitality, and the tea,” Luna said. “I hope you’ll forgive Princess Celestia, she’s busy parsing through a great deal of data.”

“Oh, it’s no hassle at all!” Granny Smith said. “If it comes right down to it, I reckon I could get Big Macintosh to make… to…” Granny Smith placed a hoof against her temple, delicately. “Land sakes, did I forget my own grandchildren?”

“It’s not a sign of age,” Luna said. “What was once taken from you has now been given back.”

Granny Smith creaked as she jumped from her rocking chair. “Where are they?”

“They’re coming back now,” Luna said, as she left her chair to head outside. “Please watch over Celestia so I can assist Twilight Sparkle.”

Luna strode through the windy grass, her mane following its own breeze, and led her senses bleed out into the gyre of daemons flowing into the keyhole. She cast into the keyhole and felt warmth, closeness, familiarity; sunlight parting oak leaves, diving into a blanket fresh from a clothesline, the heart quivering at the distant laughter of a friend, Ponyville, my friends.

Time is the mercy of Eternity—

“Oh my word!” Luna said, wings and hackles up in startled anger, searching Celestia’s face. “Why are you stealthy now?”

-without Time’s swiftness, which is the swiftest of all things, all were eternal torment.

“Stop, please,” Luna said, putting her hoof once again on Celestia’s mouth. A little too forcefully. Celestia jerked her head back. Trancelike concentration was on her face, but Luna imagined surprise.

“Sorry, sister. Now pardon me, as I have work to do.”

With a mighty lunge, Luna flew into the air, focused her magic into a fine beam, and stuck it into the keyhole.

Twilight Sparkle felt it, too. Luna’s crowbar prying open the hole, letting the daemons spill in and include Ponyville in their equation of the world. Phantoms disappeared as ghosts, docile and bored, as they were phased into the magicae mundi that devoured all psychic energies and gave power to magic.

Their tiny world expanded, stretching beyond the horizon they remembered. The lamps were gone, shining only in the past now, in the phantom Ponyville, but light still remained.

Rainbow Dash noticed first. “Can you see!” she said, tapping Lyra and pointing at distant horizon.

Lyra, lips parted, pushed herself into the gentle rays. “The sun,” she said, amazed that she ever forgot. Everyone felt it, so powerful and primal that Twilight Sparkle’s deconstruction of the void’s hold was almost forgotten.

“It’s shining on me!” a filly squeaked.

Medley swooped into the air. “It makes me feel so free.”

“So alive,” Flitter said, joining her, excited and awed. “It makes me want-”

The void flung itself downward.

Twilight Sparkle felt the panic of the void when her magic touched it, but now rage flowed from it; the panic was welling up from the ponies below. Twilight’s changed the cast of her spell, and pushed against it. She had burned through considerable reserves of her stamina (but not her magic), and sweat poured down her face. Below her, Starlight Glimmer cast a spell and pushed against it. Other unicorns cast their own spells as a range of colored beams, brighter and move lively than the negative blob could understand, pushed against the void. It slowed, but didn’t stop.

It was suddenly yanked away.

“Sparkle!” Princess Luna shouted, using her royal voice. “Push it toward me! I shall control where it descends.”

Twilight Sparkle strained, tiring from digging into her own reserves and other ponies’. Luna’s royal voice rocketed through out Ponyville, and Twilight had the help of every unicorn there, blasting the void with their magic, pushing it along, their beams many colored ropes lassoing the blot in the sky.

“Oh no you don’t!” Applejack said, bucking a phantom Applejack that was trying to worm its way to Twilight. Other ponies, especially earth ponies, attacked the decaying phantoms the void was spewing out, desperately pulling from the magicae mundi, sending them toward Twilight in crazed desperation. But they were weak, and easily dispatched. Like a drunkard, the void was scraping the dregs after emptying the barrel.

“Don’t get to full of yourself, now!” Applejack shouted. “These things still bite.”

Rainbow Dash zipped into the air, acting on instinct, and pushed into the void, flapping furiously. After the initial fear passed from the panicked pegasus, they tapped their courage and joined in on the assault, channeling their own special magic to push against it. Some complaints about how greasy and gross it felt against hooves weren’t enough to tamper their mighty push.

Twilight wasn’t sure what Luna was up to, but she trusted her enough to assume that she had the right idea… whatever that idea may be.

“Hey,”

Startled, but never losing focus, Twilight turned and said, “Berry Punch?”, and then, instinctively, realized it’s a phantom.

“Is that who I am?” phantom Berry said. “I don’t want to go back. Please help me.”

Twilight had too much to do now, to think about the oddity of a phantom asking for help, of this all being a trap, and the thought of course Berry Punch’s phantom wouldn’t follow orders, but Twilight only said, “I’ll try.”

The black nothing of hate was fully in Luna’s grasp now, and she remembered the dark sandy beach, the gentle roll of the tide.

“Oh ho, I recognize you,” Luna said. This was indeed an escaped archetype, or at least one that copied itself outside of its ancient land. There was no overwhelming fear now, not for Luna. Inside that place was one thing (a fearful, baffling thing), but Equestria was her realm. Even though, she was grateful to Twilight Sparkle for weakening it enough that she could bear this violent thing away.

She saw white and pink flying in her peripheral vision.

“No! Cease immediately!” Luna said, flying away from Celestia.

Oh rose, thou art sick

“Begone!”

Thankfully, Celestia settled on the grass, indifferent to everything around her, her horn glowing. The sun peeked over the horizon. It’s amazing she can still shove that rotting corpse around in her trance, Luna thought.

Without Celestia distracting her with her weird phrases, and with help from the magics of Twilight Sparkle and Ponyville, Luna fully focused on the screaming black void, screaming like the rushing of congealed winds. Through the roaring came the squeals from Sweet Apple Acres. She still felt the remnants of her power from hours before, when she assisted in dispatching that archon, and though this void was a slippery being, it was too weakened, too thinly stretched to fight back.

She yanked it from the tiring Twilight, shouted at the unicorns and pegasus, “Release!” and cast the void into the swine.

Twilight Sparkle was exhausted, but she cast holding spells toward the phantom Berry Punch. The phantom slipped from her grasp, and faded away, returning to the source.

"I'm sorry," Twilight said. "I'm sorry."

The phantom smiled. It was a sad smile, and then she was gone.

The sty gate burst open as the pigs ran, squealing, thundering across the dewy grass.

“Ho!” Luna shouted, flying above them. “There lies the riverbed. Don’t throw yourselves against it.” With some irritation, she realized the pigs were too busy digesting to pay attention.

“Sorry my dears, I underestimated its astral weight.” She cast gentle cushiony magic between the swine and the cliff edge, stopping their mad run. Their senses slowly returned as the void was broken apart.

Luna landed in front of the glutted pigs, and bowed. “Thank you for your assistance in ridding the world of this being.”

One of the pigs said, “Not magic. Hard to eat.”

Celestia walked toward her with a steady stride, legs seeming to operate independently instead of as a whole, as if each leg were being operated by separate ponies. Luna eyed her stiffly. She wanted to fly to Ponyville proper and congratulate her dear friends, but felt she had to wait for Celestia to say whatever awful cryptic thing she was going to say.

Celestia dinged like a typewriter, and a continuous roll of paper spilled from her mouth.

“Ah, the audit is over,” Luna said, as she reached a hoof toward the boundary of the paper and Celestia’s lip, and tore away the sheet.

Celestia coughed as her eyes regained focus and luster. “Why did it do that?” she said, sticking out her tongue and going ‘bleh’.

“I may have changed some of the output settings,” Luna said, perusing the sheet.

Celestia almost asked why, but she knew the answer and scowled at Luna.

“Daemons in working order now, though this nyktomorph was able to remove Ponyville from their operations. That’s honestly quite terrifying, though I wonder why only Ponyville and not all of Gaia.”

“Ignorance or lack of power,” Celestia said. “Or it simply didn’t want us to notice.”

Luna pouted. “You didn’t praise my term.”

“Nyktomoprh is a very clever name,” Celestia said without mockery.

“Thank you.”

“A shapless being in the shadows, using darkness to hide its motives, whatever those may have been.”

“Hmm. I won’t be wasting time applying motives to good Mr. Lero’s archetype.” She continued to peruse the paper.

“Well… fourteen percent chance that Starlight Glimmer won, and this is her world.”

“We already suspected that,” Celestia said. “Which is why we allowed these avatars to follow their mundane psyches.”

Celestia was referring to the incident when the friendship map tasked Starlight Glimmer with resolving a dispute between the royal sisters. Their ruse was unsuccessful in determining if Starlight Glimmer had faked her defeat in her battle with Twilight Sparkle.

Beyond that, the two would occasionally allow the biological functions, the materially anchored stimuli and thought processes of their respective avatars, to take control, despite the emotional distress and physiological blindspots this caused. Their ponies, after all, were biological machines, forever anchored to the material world, and it was important to the two diarchs to experience reality as ponies did. They wanted to never lose their love or compassion for these beings, to never become distant and even contemptuous because of their subjects’ limitations. So, occasionally, they let their avatars follow their whims.

“Everything in order,” Luna said, sparing a glance at Celestia. “You overacted, as usual.”

“Not quite in order,” Celestia said. “Hex Knock has been altered.”

Luna peered at the paper, interpreting the section on the daemon Hex Knock. She huffed. “Rainbow Dash has been a member of the Wonderbolts all along,” she said, anger flaring. “The Wonderbolts aren’t a megaherd.”

“An odd change.”

“A pointless retcon,” Luna said, using her magic to tear the paper. “That blasted nyktomorph, like an arrogant child, grasping at adult tools and pretending mastery. Did it even know what it was doing? Why this random change?”

“We’ve done far too much this night to deal with those questions,” Celestia said, aching toward Ponyville. “Let’s see our friends for now.”

“It could have caused awesome damage—”

“Luna. Ponyville,” Celestia said, taking flight.

Some hours later, late morning, the tired but giddy friends sat in the secondary dining room of Castle Friendship, drinking green tea and coming to grips with what happened. 'It felt like a dream' was said many times, and the events of another lifetime were fading away into memory.

“What I don’t understand is Discord,” Twilight Sparkle said. “He allegedly was going to come to the play—” she narrowly avoiding going into yet another panic about the canceled play, and the need to reschedule, and so on— “but he was nowhere to be seen in phantom Ponyville.”

Predictably to only Lero, Discord appeared in a poof of smoke.

“Well, I was getting ready for your little soiree, when I remembered it was time to collect my dram.” He pulled out a washed out instant color photographs of him standing in front of a white building with ‘Laphroaig’ painted on the side. “I own a square foot of land on Islay, you see, and I hadn’t visited in nearly a year! I also had to purchase a bottle of 15 year old from the distillery, and when I got back home decided to have a little nip of that beautiful smoky peaty amber Scotch. Are you drooling, Lero?”

“No,” Lero said, wiping his mouth.

“So I opened the canister, and wouldn’t you know it, the lid slipped and fell into my sink! Even worse, the diameter of my drain allowed a perfect fit, and I had quite the time getting the lid out. My claws couldn’t reach into the seams without causing damage, and my refrigerator magnets simply weren’t strong enough—”

“Use your magic!” Trixie shouted.

Vast disappointment in Discord’s gaze. “Tsk tsk. You lack subtlety, as usual. Why should I play an Ace when a three will do?”

“Whatever,” Luna said. “We didn’t need your help in defeating the nyktomorph.”

“Yes, you handled the fanged noumena quite well,” Discord said, challenging Luna’s terminology. She didn’t deign to even show a reaction. “Letting those oinkers feast on an astral being. Of course, this was once again your fault. Traipsing where you aren’t meant to go. My word, how you still have friends with all the damage you cause is a mys—”

Discord quickly shielded himself from the magic attacks from the unicorns, flicked away Applejack's lasso, and dodged a rear kick from the flying Rainbow Dash. He did all of this with his eyes closed.

“As if any one of you could ever hurt me,” Discord said.

“Discord,” Fluttershy said. Discord cringed and shamefully looked at Fluttershy, and cringed again as he saw the sadness in her eyes.

“Apologize this instant.”

Shamefaced, Discord slowly turned toward Luna and said, “I apologize that you cause so much trouble.”

“Discord!”

“Ha!” Discord said, but he disappeared before Fluttershy could chastise him further.

Luna appeared nonplussed by Discord’s wound salting, even derisive. “I can only assure you that I never intend to hurt anyone of you,” she said, “and I am sorry.”

She received reassurances of friendship. She didn't expect anything else.

Lero was tired and confused.

Rainbow Dash was a member of the Wonderbolts. He remembered when she passed the exam, started as a cadet, and joined as a full member. He also remembered her choosing not to join the Wonderbolts, due to it being a megaherd and not wanting to hurt Lero. But it wasn’t a megaherd.

Clearly the events of phantom Ponyville had caused a change somehow, and he was sure only he noticed. He off-handedly mentioned this to Twilight, asking if she remembered Rainbow Dash choosing not to be a Wonderbolt, and his query was met with confusion.

I am an outsider, he thought. Maybe that’s why I have both memories. I’m immune to whatever happened. There was also the possibility that he had some kind of schizophrenic break, but why just that one memory? He could ask Discord, but he knew better than that.

He entered his house alone—Twilight was in some short secret meeting with the diarchs, Rainbow Dash had to do some last minute weather duty, Lyra had to do her round as an auxiliary guardsmare—and was pondering asking Celestia for advice when he saw a canister on his kitchen table. He paused, fearing a trap, and approached the Laphroaig Quarter Cask, with note attached.

He gingerly opened the note, read, “Enjoy! - Discord”, and, in disbelief, popped open the canister and pulled out the bottle.

He stared at it for a little while, waiting for it to change into a polka dotted snake. I can’t believe I’m so weak, he thought, as he unwound the foil to remove the cap. He expected a gloved hand to pop out and smack him in the face with a cream pie, but instead he was met with peat, alcohol, and nostalgia.

Oh geez, he thought, gulping.

He should pour it into a glass, but, instead, he took a chance, put the bottle to his lips, and took a swallow.

He huffed loudly as smacked the bottle back onto his kitchen table, glass meeting oak with a percussive slap. It’s real, he thought, or a fantastic simulation.

He grabbed a short glass from his cabinets, poured himself two fingers, and waited for his mares to come home.

Author's Notes:

Hiatus time. Maybe it was always hiatus time, considering how long it took for me to release chapters, but now it's official. I'll see you when I see you.