The Angel

“If I don’t come back, take care of her!” Cadance shouted across the chasm. “Don’t ever leave her alone!”

The water elemental spared one last glance as he led the filly away.

“I’m counting on you, Pete”

Tears in his eyes, he left his friend behind.

*

In the deep red glow of the star, Stella, Twilight met the face of horror. The Angel’s gaze stole away her courage and with it, her senses. She washed numb all over. Her silent breath stammered and her eyes shrunk to pinpricks. Every bit of her sank to the floor as her eyes connected with its. Pete froze up when he saw it, promptly falling over and rolling across the floor. Then, all of a sudden, it began its relentless assault.

The creature charged them. It ghosted through the star, but plowed through the table and chairs, sending Stella’s desk and lamp stand flying. Its long flowing cloak blasted air up behind it and exploded the bookshelves. Some books were tossed up into the air, others were crushed and flayed apart by its cloak.

Twilight screamed. She reflexively teleported her and the filly to the far side of the room, letting the Angel smash directly into the wall. The bed was unnaturally cut into long, uniform pieces as the wicked cloak grazed it. However, the frozen Pete was unscathed and sent rolling across the room.

“Angel!? Back down! This doesn’t concern you!” Stella roared.

The spirit’s face had smashed itself stuck in the wall. Its cloak flailed madly in frustration. Twilight watched as hundreds of dark claws appeared first from the cloak and then from every shadow in the room, even her own. The shadowy ceiling transformed into a nightmare forest of writhing, grasping hands.

Some of them clawed at Twilight and Rosetta, but others ignored her. They opened books and read them, tearing out page after page. Other broke legs off the wooden table and beat each other with them. The door had been blocked off by a net of hands growing from the threshold, grabbing themselves in a weave.

In Stella’s blood red light, Twilight had never seen such a nightmare.

Quickly, most of the hands began pulling on the cloak, sometimes pulling on each other if they weren’t close enough. The only ones that weren’t, were busy destroying the library one page at a time. Twilight didn’t bother stopping them. She raced over to the hands covering the door and blasted it with her horn to no effect. She levitated a chair and tried beating the hands off it. Nothing was making a scratch.

“ANGEL, DON’T YOU IGNORE ME,” Stella raged.

Twilight spotted her frozen, icy friend being fondled by a few claws, crying a terrified tears. Pete shot her a look of distress. She tugged him away from the prying hands, and he began melting in relief. Before he had a chance to liquefy completely , Twilight proceeded to bash the door open with him. He froze back up and a few ice cube tears trailed through the air after him as he flew back and forth.

Strangely, that seems to work quite well. The creature screeched and howled with each hit. Twilight enthusiastically beat it a few more times, watching the arms claw crazily around her. They tore mindlessly as the floors, walls and furniture, ruining the small, comfy home. But worst of all, they shredded, mutilated, eviscerated and devastated the books. Tatters of the literature surged the air like a bloody blizzard.

Twilight only turned around once to see the literary carnage.

Scraps of the most powerful books in the universe rained down around her in Stella’s blazing red glow. It was a bloody massacre. Decades of work, the most advanced magical library in existence, destroyed before her very eyes.

All in less than two minutes.

She nearly cried. No more books meant anymore reading, and that meant no more quiet nights of study with Rosetta snoozing in her arms. There wouldn’t be anymore academia or tutoring by the star. Studying had been primary reason for being staying in the dream and without it, all that she had left was Rosetta and her promise to save her. Soon she would know if she could keep it.

Her stay in Paradisium had entered its final act.

With one final swing, the door broke open. She heard several sickening cracks as the hands and their adjoining arms bent out of shape. The monster screamed bloody murder. It thrashed wildly, punching holes into the floor and walls until it was finally free.

Stella’s voice was deep, monstrous and rang from every corner. “CEASE VILE CREATURE,” she screamed, her glow growing crimson then maroon. “TWILIGHT SPARKLE, YOU DARE RETURN WITHOUT THE DIARY AND YOU SHALL REGRET EVERY BREATH.”

Neither of them wasted a second paying any attention to Stella’s rants. Twilight quickly ran for the edge of the balcony while the Angel searched the literary bloodstorm for the unicorn. Despite all the commotion Rosetta had only just started to stir from her sleep. Twilight put a sound proof bubble around them.

“Lyley...? What’s going on? Where are we going?” she asked lazily, trying to peek at the action over Twilight’s shoulder..

Twilight levitated the filly lower to keep her curious eyes away.

“We’re uhh! Just going for a midnight dive! I thought it’d be fun!” Twilight lied.

“Oh... ok... I’m kind of sleepy, maybe we can do it tomorrow?”

“It’s called ‘midnight’ for a reason,” Twilight replied quickly as she threw all of them off the side of the balcony.

Twilight no longer hesitated at the edge of a fall anymore. More often than not, in order to get the day’s playroom, falling was involved. Twilight had gotten use to it to the point where ‘diving’ was synonymous with playtime.

Air rushed Rosetta’s mane, bringing her bursting to life. She didn’t exactly know what to make of the unusual hour, but she always welcomed time with her best friend.

Behind them, the Angel shot out from over the balcony and flew in a wide arc after them. Red bits of paper trailed behind it. Rosetta hadn’t noticed the monster and Twilight did her best to block her view of it, but eventually she fell free of Twilight. She twirled through the air, giggling, before falling silent.

Her eyes grew wide.

“Angel! The Angel is behind us!” she cried, spotting the deathly mask.

Twilight bit her lip. “Yes, yes she is! We need to run away from her now!”

“B-but! That’s where I live! What happened to Lala!?” she asked frantically.

“Lala is okay, but she’s not coming with us!” Twilight lied.

Her lips trembled. She rubbed her eyes and tried to hit herself awake, but she already was.

“This is the worst midnight dive ever!” she sobbed.

Rosetta reached out for Twilight and the unicorn held her close as they dropped into the deep, dark city of spires. The faint light of her horn was all Twilight had to dodge the pointed towers in the complete darkness. More than a few times, her dream sense barely helped her evade one or another.

Behind her the Angel’s claws tore at the world yet again, revealing the stark, white pages of the diary. Instead of the crisp text from before, the words behind the world were bleeding. Twilight looked back to and saw one haunting line. She gulped.

She can never leave.

“Rosy, I need you to tell me what slows the Angel down. Stella told me that if you ran into her there was something you could do to get away,” Twilight said loudly over the rushing air.

“I-i... The lights... The lights can help us get away.”

“Where are the lights?”

Twilight looked around and saw dark, prying claws closing.

“Rosetta!” she pressed. “I need to know where the lights are!”

“They’re everywhere! Just...”

Rosetta squinted. Her tiny horn ignited and the world flashed gold. For a moment, she was blind.

The glare quickly dissipated leaving behind hundreds, if not thousands, of thin threads of light. It was a magnificent tangle of rainbow lines that was omnipresent and nearly mind-numbing. So densely cluttered were they, that they couldn’t fall ten feet without passing through one or more of them.

They were threadlike and thin, shining green, blue, red and every colour of the spectrum. In sections, the lines pulsed collectively, brightening and dulling every few moments.Their light reflected brilliantly off the marble, adorning the city in a shimmering, technicolour coat.

The Angel’s many claws were caught and tangled in the surprisingly pliable lines. It slashed at them, but its claws bounced off helplessly. It screamed out after the friends in great frustration. With their pursuer preoccupied, Twilight, Rosetta and Pete could continue diving with peace of mind. The lights would keep it busy, but not forever. Eventually in a few days it’d claw its way through, but hopefully, Twilight could find a way to end the dream before that happened.

“There! I made the lights!”

“Excellent work!” Twilight nuzzled her. “For your next trick, can you get us somewhere safe?”

“Umm... Can’t we go home?”

Cracks of lightning and thunder beat Twilight to her response. Far above them at the peak, a storm brewed. Ominous, black clouds materialized over their home, downpouring an inky, black rain. Every drop sizzled as it touched the marble and, like a living shadow, spread out to cover the castle completely.

Rosetta was quiet.

“I might be able to make everything better again, but first we have to get away from the Angel. Is there anywhere we can go?” Twilight asked.

“Mmhmm...” she sobbed.

“Where?”

“The outer rings...”

“Seriously?”

“Mmhmm... Follow me,” the filly replied sadly.

Rosetta looked around. She wiped a starlit tear from her cheek and smushed it between her hooves. Faintly, they began shimmering gold. She held her hooves out to a passing line and instead of falling through it, she caught on it, abruptly breaking their fall.

Twilight felt her stomach jump into her throat. Somehow Rosetta’s tiny arm managed to break their fall and hung on so they could swing under and over it. After being slingshotted around the line, they popped up and an unseen force pulled them to light line. They came to a rest, comfortably floating just above it. Another unknown force pushed them along the magic thread, sending them sliding down it like a mine cart on its rail.

Along the line, they swerved in and out of the many spires, putting an ever safer distance between them and the Angel. The dizzying mesh of towers and rainbow light eventually broke free to the night sky. Out in the open, the lights weren’t so overbearing and the deep blues and purples of Paradisium’s painted night sky peeked through.

“You’re sure that the Angel can’t follow us to the outer rings?” Twilight asked hesitantly. It wasn’t clear if she actually preferred fleeing the words of the outer rings over the Angel.

“Mmhmm....”

*

They spent the next four hours traveling along the line slowly making their way to the outer ring. Rosetta went back to sleep in the comfort of Twilight’s diligent levitation, but Pete stayed up with the unicorn. She told him every plan and laid down every piece of relevant information, hoping to come to some sort of conclusion. Pete lazily watched his arm meld to the passing wind, finding it far more interesting than the unicorn’s endless rants. She had repeated the same three plans for the eighth time in a row.

Pete stopped paying attention after the jargon started.

The unicorn laid down the facts. “If I can meta-manipulate her essence, then one could deduce that intra-dimensional magic is possible in a second dimension. However, that’s only if she is a trapped soul and not a construct.” Her face twisted in a logical scism until she nearly knocked him off the line in outburst. “That’s it Pete!”

He metaphorically raised a brow at her.

“I have come to the conclusion!” She paused dramatically.”That I have no idea what’s going on...”

She was quiet for the first time in hours.

Twilight looked back at the castle and the growing storm. The thunder had died down, but lightning still cackled in the depths of the clouds.The mountainous, overbearing clouds have grown tall to enclose a part of ring just above the peak. After only a few hours the rain had covered almost half of the main city in a black ichor. It’d only be a few more until the castle was completely covered. The room that had become her home must have been flooded with ink by now.

“I wasn’t born here Pete,” Twilight said, her eyes pensively fixed on the darkening castle. “I don’t know what I’m doing and if I can’t figure it out, I’ll have to go home.”

Pete gave her long, understanding hug.

*

By the time they reached the outer rings, Rosetta had grown to Twilight’s size. Maybe even bigger. Minute by minute, there was never a noticeable difference in the foal. When Twilight finally looked down to check on her and noticed her change in size, her heart almost stopped. After a dozen doubletakes and a series of baffled grunts, Twilight finally choked out something.

“I-is she okay?”

Pete shrugged.

Twilight poked her and winced as if Rosetta were going through something painful. She was still breathing and seemed to be sleeping peacefully, but Twilight wasn’t convinced. She poked, prodded, inspected and assessed the filly.

Her friend hadn’t changed technically speaking, but she wasn’t the same Rosetta. The wind coursing through her mane was changing. Instead of the whimsy of a foal, Twilight felt the complex emotions of a full grown mare lap her heart. Every inch taller the princess grew, the more estranged Twilight became. She half dreaded the exchange she knew she’d have when her friend woke up.

Twilight stepped off the line and set the sleeping pony down, rubbing her aching horn. Normally, she wouldn’t have been able to maintain levitation for so long, but Stella’s teachings had made her a much more capable magician.

The magical threads across the entire city disappeared as she stepped off, vanishing in a wave that started from her last hoof step. Far above her, the magic coat over the world evaporated into thin air. Twilight watched the spectacle with a weak smile. Her tired eyes didn’t have the strength to appreciate the show. She was sure it would have taken her breath away with a few more hours of sleep. Twilight poked her friend in the side.

“Hey, Rosetta, time to wake up,” she cooed.

Rosetta fluttered her lashes and yawned.

“Oh, good morning Lyley,” she replied casually.

Twilight scratched the back of her neck. “How are you feeling?”

“Pretty good.” Her eyes lazily took in her surroundings, clicking her tongue and yawning some more. Eventually she set her sights on the dark storm and castle. “Woah... what’s wrong with Lala?”

“I think she’s mad because she lost her diary,” Twilight explained, unsure of what to make of the situation herself.

Rosetta sighed. “She lost it?” she asked rhetorically. “Of course she did... Lala, why is it that everytime you lose something you have to make sure everypony knows it?”  

Rosetta’s stomach rumbled loudly. Her face fell flat and unamused.

“And OF COURSE it has to happen before breakfast. I’m hungry Lala! Very! Hungry!” she whined, bouncing with each outburst. “What am I supposed to eat all the way out here?”

Pete nudged her and formed the shape of a doughnut.

“Heh, I appreciate the gesture, but I’m not going to eat you, you weirdo,” she teased. Her stomach rumbled again.

He melted sadly before leaping back up and taking the form of another kind of doughnut.

Rosetta stood up and grumbled as she walked off down a street, ignoring him. Twilight hurried after the cranky mare and smiled to herself. Rosetta hadn’t changed a bit. Maybe she was a bit older and extremely grumpy, but she was still the filly she knew. Pete continued to pester her, taking the form of greater and more delicious breakfast items as she ignored each one.

“Pete! You’re not helping!” Rosetta yelled, her stomach rumbling more.

He melted back down, looking at her wide eyed, his pupils huge and innocent. He took another shape.

“Oh... you didn’t...” Rosetta replied with horror.

Pete was a scone.

Her eyes watered and her lips trembled. “It’s not apple, is it?!” she cried.

The scone elemental nodded, evoking pathetic rumbles from her belly.

“Pete! You are so mean! If you weren’t my friend I’d so eat eat you!”

Rosetta looked like she was about to have a fit, before stomping away from him loudly. She continued her rant to Twilight. “This happens every time, by the way. Whenever Stella loses something she does the same thing. She did this when she lost her favourite quill, her favourite shade, our kettle, every book ever...” she listed.

“What does she do?” Twilight.

“Always makes me go out and find it!” she complained. “Come on Lyley, we have a diary to find.”

Pete was now a complete tray of apple scones that rolled like a wheel next to her. He hopped up and down, trying to get Rosetta’s attention.

“Pete, you really should probably stop before I do decide to eat you.”

Twilight skipped after her. “So, it’s here in the city?” she interjected.

“Yeah, it should be. I don’t know where else it would go,” Rosetta replied. “Oh, by the way, if you ever lose something, try and do it after breakfast. Please!”

The hope that maybe there was one last book to read brought a smile to Twilight’s face. “I’ll try and remember that. But where is it?”

“What? The diary? How would I kn--”  Rosetta paused alongside a timely stomach moan that seemed to speak to her. “Wait... I do know where it is... That’s funny...” She paused again as her stomach rumbled, genuinely shocked by her own knowledge. Her eyes fell to her hoof. She turned it over, investigating it like it held the answer.

“You do? Where is it?”

Rosetta stared off into the void of her hoof, searching far beyond it for the source of this knowledge. “It’s sort of hard to explain. It’s somewhere really dark, but I can feel it.”

“Did you eat it?” Twilight played. “Is this dark place your stomach?”

“No... I....”

Her gaze drifted skyward to the looming city overhead. She spun around a few times before locating it. It was on another ring, but relatively close.

“You see that one spot with all the words?” she said, pointing to a dense, black section of a separate ring.

Twilight swallowed hard. “You’re kidding, right?”

“Nope. It’s over there.”

Despite the mortal danger she was going to put herself in, Twilight smiled. The presence of the diary meant she had been given one last chance. Nothing else could hold the information she sought besides it, and with it, she hoped to bring Rosetta home. Absolution filled her. This would be her last vie for her friend’s happiness.

By the end of today, she’d know if really could make dreams come true.

*

Twilight, Rosetta and Pete held their backs to the wall, almost too afraid to  breathe. They were holed up in a small nook of a building that really only had enough space for one of them to stand comfortably.

But they made it work. Even if Rosetta had to shove her flank in Twilight’s chest and Pete was forced on her back, they fit in the tiny crevice. The water elemental’s slobber dripped over the Twilight’s face as he tried to peek over the ponies at the creatures.

A group of words drifted by them, slowly scanning the streets. They were intensely close to them, the dark mass coming less than a yard from Twilight’s nervous nose. The scent of fresh ink wafted in as they passed. Never before had Twilight been close enough to decipher what they said, but now she could read them intimately. The ones nearest to her read, homestead, curtain and ravenous. When they were clear, Rosetta poked her head out of the conjured camouflage and waved the signal to her companions.

Twilight exhaled. Pete mimicked her movements, wiping bits of himself from his brow.

“Why are there so many of them now?” Twilight complained.

So far today, they had encountered a dozens of vigilent patrols, searching the city. The friends had been forced into hiding, wasting almost an hour waiting out their stalkers.

Rosetta smiled. “Either Stella is looking for the diary or us...”

Twilight gulped.

“She must be livid to be using the words like this,” she continued.

The princess waved both of them back into hiding as yet another group of words floated by.

“She controls them?”

“Sort of. I mean, where do you think they all come from?” Rosetta asked. “Some of the newborns still listen to her, but the older ones think they’re better than her. It’s true, too. Anyway, it’s not like they won’t attack us on sight regardless.”

“Interesting, ” Twilight replied “Another question, why are we taking the streets when we could just fly?”

“It attracts a lot of attention. Also, there is this cafe I want to try out just up ahead.” Rosetta looked anxiously down the street.

“With all these words around? Are you sure it’s the best time to go and sit down somewhere to eat?”

Rosetta put her hoof to Twilight’s chest and shook her head. “Lyley, Lyley, Lyley, there are two things I ask out of life, a hot shower and breakfast. Since I didn’t get the first one, I’m going to get my breakfast.”

Twilight stared her down, but Rosetta ignored her. Twilight hadn’t gotten either of those things, but she wasn’t foregoing the safety of the whole group in their pursuit.

“Is that so? Well, one way to fix that. Pete, execute plan eighty-seven.”

Rosetta turned around and glared at him.

“Pete, don’t you even...” the princess threatened.

Twilight nodded to the water elemental.

Rosetta tried to fly away, but Pete pounced on her. He morphed up and around the flailing princess, encasing her in his watery prison. She tried to cry out in protest, but Pete covered her head, muffling her. Twilight cast a heating spell on him, bringing him up to a comfortable temperature. She went to stand guard as Pete worked his magic. He rocked Rosetta about, turning her over, cleaning her and washing off any grime. Eventually she gave up and let herself enjoy it, sighing in comfort. After a few minutes, he set her back down, patting her on the head.

Rosetta was too lost in the warmth of the makeshift shower to be coherent, purring happily. She lazily played slapped at Pete’s body, splashing herself with warm water. Noticing his friend’s desire he splashed himself on her.

All at once, Rosetta’s pleasure turned to narrow eyes and pursed lips.

“Lyley, I hate you so much...” she said simply.

“False, you love me,” she corrected.

“Fine,” Rosetta conceded. “But we’re still going to the cafe.”

Twilight stood her ground. “You had a shower so now--”

A very timely, very verbal stomach rumble cut her off. That stomach rumble was followed by one from the princess and then a strange, unrelated, gurgling noise from Pete. For a few awkward moments, their stomachs went back and forth, almost talking to each other. Rosetta smirked knowingly, ready to utilize the ultimate leverage over the unicorn. Her own stomach.

“You were saying?’” Rosetta said smugly.

“Fine.”

*

They sat at the end of a long communal, feasting table. It was one of three in the enormous room. The interior was mostly, and unsurprisingly, marble, with uniform pillars spaced evenly between the tables. The walls were decorated with an unorthodox combination of stained glass windows and horizontal fountains.

The crystal water streamed and splashed every direction. It flowed from fountain to fountain, gathering in invisible, floating reservoirs just over head. The miniature lakes and rivers spread up towards a high ceiling, giving an unfathomable depth to endless waterworks. Bright, colourful light poured in through the stained windows and turned the water into a brilliant, twinkling rainbow.

The two ponies surveyed the menus that had been mysteriously placed before them. Pete stood next to them in his usual, blobby form, dressed in formal attire, awaiting their orders.

“Lyley, what’s the Strawberry Breakfast Bruschetta Finis?” Rosetta asked, watching the menu more than actually reading it.

“Uhh, I think it has something to do with yogurt.”.

“Yes... I suppose that sounds... Wha...? What even is this--” Rosetta cut herself short as she tried to decipher another item on the menu.

She turned the menu sideways, and then turned her head sideways before giving up. She would have no luck finding something to eat from this enigma of a menu. She leveled with Pete.

“The Crown Princess, Rosetta of Paradisium, does not desire bruschetta or yogurt! She instead would like the finest waffles! I want them to be fluffy, full of blueberries, smothered in syrup and potentially deep-fried,” Rosetta commanded regally.

“I’d like the Pain Perdu Ensemble with fresh strawberries and pomegranate,” Twilight followed politely. She shot the princess a smug, but composed, look as she delicately unfolded her napkin. In reality, she just ordered the one thing she recognized. French toast.

Pete nodded and hurried off to a back room somewhere. He had become their personal chef over the last few months. After reading Stella’s book on cooking, he had taken a liking to the culinary arts. Stella would never admit it, but Pete’s cooking was the main reason why she let him stay. Being a water elemental, he could work intimately with the food and served up meal after meal with resounding success.

As long as he had ingredients and a stove, he could fabricate almost any dish.

“How are you holding up Lyley?” Rosetta asked.

Currently, Twilight was maintaining an exceptionally powerful barrier spell that encompassed the greater majority of the restaurant. Naturally, they had attracted a lot of attention, but it wasn’t anything Twilight couldn’t handle. Stella’s teachings had made her into a magical prodigy beyond what she was already. Maybe in an hour the shield would come down, but that would be more than enough time to enjoy a meal.

“It’s not that bad. There’s just... I don’t know,” Twilight took a moment to count. “A few hundred vile, devilish entities of death constantly pecking my mind like a flock of crows,” she shrugged. “I basically do this in my sleep.”

“Trust me, the food is worth it,” Rosetta assured nonchalantly.

“So says the pony who can’t even pronounce half the menu.”

Rosetta smirked. “I’m not afraid to throw my best friend out.”

*

About twenty minutes later, Pete brought out their food. He held two huge steaming plates of waffles and french toast, expertly prepared. Warm butter and thick syrup were poured luxuriously over their entrees with fresh fruit neatly placed around the edges. Both the ponies eyed the food hungrily as he approached, the alluring aroma filling their noses.

Pete placed the plates on the table and they wasted no time with their meal. Only the busy sounds of their eating and running water broke the silence.

Rosetta wasn’t well mannered as a filly, and it looked like she hadn’t improved since then. She stabbed the waffles and lowered her mouth to the plate, tearing off mouthfuls of food sloppily.  Twilight sat with proper posture and displayed every point of etiquette she could remember.

“Well, aren’t you fancy?” Rosetta observed, still chewing a large chunk of buttery waffle in one cheek.

“Why certainly! I am in the presence of royalty! One must always put their best hoof forward when dining with a princess.” Twilight took a small, dainty bite of her food.

Rosetta chewed a bit slower, narrowing her eyes.“Hey Lyley, what’s that in your mane?” she retorted.

“What’s what? I haven’t the slightest clue what you’re talking about,” she denied properly.

Rosetta pulled at a small scrap of paper with her hoof, leaving behind a bit of grease in the unicorn’s locks. It was a piece of the book slaughter from the night before. It was singed around the edges and had an eye drawn on it.

“Shan’t a unicorn in the presence of royalty at least groom one’s self?” Rosetta mused, turning the paper over. “Ah, it seems like Lala is spying on us. She’s making sure we’re actually looking for the diary.”

Rosetta stroked her chin.

“How about we have a little fun with her?” the princess suggested. “Are you listening Lala?” she said to the paper. “For kicking me out without breakfast and making me find your diary, we’re gonna play a little game. If we find the diary first, we’re gonna read it and tell everypony your deepest, darkest secrets. If you don’t want us to, you better hurry up and find it yourself!”

Rosetta incinerated the scrap in a blue flare, a grin on her face. She went back to her meal, satisfied.

Moments later, Twilight toppled over, knocked out.

Something shattered her protective shield. Unlike the tiny buzz of the words barely scratching the surface, something unleashed a blaring scream that pierced her mind. Conjuring such a strong barrier had forced her to overextend herself and she wasn’t used to such sharp strikes.

The result was equivalent to being bucked in the head. The white noise rang in her ears. Her vision had gone blurry and she could scarcely remember her own name.

She awoke to the concerned faces of Rosetta and Pete. Apparently it wasn’t of too much concern to Rosetta, as she levitated another fork full of waffle to her mouth nonchalantly.

“What happened? You’re not falling asleep on us, are you?” she blurted out.

“The magic... spell thing ... It’s gone... Something broke it...” Twilight replied groggily.

Rosetta locked eyes with her friend and slowly levitated another fork full of waffle, eating it blankly and closing in on her. Twilight backed up a little, slightly unnerved by her closeness. The princess then magically prodded Twilight’s grip on her own fork full of french toast. Twilight looked at the floating fork, astonished. Somehow she had maintained her levitation on it.

Rosetta threw her eyes at the fork and Twilight skeptically handed over control to the mare. Upon receiving the fork, Rosetta ate Twilight’s french toast.

“So, that’s what that tastes like...” Rosetta said, chewing it through. “I think I might get that the next time we come here. We should probably start running now.”

“Running? Why...? What happened?” Twilight asked, baffled.

Rosetta face remained blank and clueless.

“I have no idea...”

The princess slowly backed away before slipping into a full gallop for the door. Pete bounced after her agilely. Twilight cast a healing spell to help with the drilling migraine the magical backlash had given her. Despite her best efforts, she remained a bit fuzzy, but thankfully still cognizant. She teleported after the princess.

They flanked the entrance, ready to face whatever horrors waited on the other side. Rosetta rounded the door slowly.

What was immediately unusual was that it was suddenly dark. Without the presence of any sort of lighting, the city may as well be a pitch black maze. After closing the door behind them, Twilight couldn’t see farther than a foot in front of her face.

“Well, this isn’t fair,” Rosetta’s voice rang out next to her. “What the hay Lala! How are we supposed to see?”

Rosetta’s horn shimmered faintly, shedding a candle’s light over her own face. Twilight briefly saw that Rosetta had grown to her full height. She was exactly as Twilight remembered when she first met her, tall, confident and powerful.

“Fine, Stella, two can play at this game...” her deep, mature voice declared.

In a blinding gold flash, the lights appeared around them again. The countless, rainbows threads of light illuminated the dark world, revealing swarms of words idly floating about. Despite a few being dangerously close to them, they hadn’t moved or acknowledged their presence. The friends hadn’t been seen yet and Twilight suspected a stealthy approach could keep them hidden. Obviously these words had a sensory blind spot they could exploit to bypass them with ease.

Twilight whispered, barely moving her mouth. “They haven’t seen us y--”

Ignoring the unicorn, Rosetta quickly scanned for a specific line and grabbed Twilight by the flank. With a great heave, she sent Twilight soaring through the air on top of it.

“BWAH!!”

Rosetta followed the unicorn up with Pete, and then herself. The words caught on to their movement and darted after them. Once on the glowing thread, its magic brought them up to a breathtaking speed. At this pace, they were sure to get away until Twilight realized there was something different about these words.

As they sped down the line, the darkness consumed the world behind them. No matter how quickly they fled, the words steadily closed in, suffocating their grasp on reality. Almost in a sphere around them, the words slowly encased her. It wasn’t that they were being chased, but that they were losing their connection to the world. The words were already on top of them and taking them somewhere else. Twilight caught sight of a very familiar set of black claws in her peripheral vision.

She called on her dream sense to carry her faster, but it wouldn’t come. Thinking she wasn’t willing herself hard enough, she tried again with no luck.  

Now, Twilight was stuck to this line as the darkness crept up around her, slowly covering the last bit of vision she had left. As soon as it did, Rosetta and Pete faded away as though as they were never there and she had just been hallucinating.

Paranoia set in, and for a few moments there was silence, save the intensity of her own breathing. The total depth of the darkness had found her. Maybe the words had finally caught her. Maybe it was the Angel. Or maybe she was dead.

In the darkness, she lost herself.

*

Cadance woke up on the flowery fields of the small cottage. Rolling meadows and endless skies, the shining sun and clouds in the shapes of ponies surrounded her. A breeze blew waves over the fields. The cloud ponies moved in still frames, changing every few seconds. They played ball, tag and games Cadance remembered playing as a foal. She released a longing sigh as she watched them.

At first the idealistic scene felt so familiar, so comfortable. She had just woken from a nightmare and the flowers helped her forget it. She drew the fresh air deeply into her lungs, exhaling the tension of her nightmare. She closed her eyes to clear her mind. Images of a Twilight running through the fields flashed before her.

She watched her favourite little filly run through the same fields she laid in right now. Twilight looked happy to her and she smiled.

When Cadance opened her eyes, the world was falling quickly to dusk. The shadows of the flowers quickly spun around them and the golden light of sunset flooded the skies. The ponies in the clouds went to bed with blankets of scarlet and pillows of indigo. The sun was setting.

Cadance looked up to the celestial sphere. Something was odd about it. It wasn’t nearly bright enough to be a sun and it was falling rather fast. Taking a closer look, she realized something horrifying.

It was a city, and it was plummeting from the sky.

“Twilight...!” she called futilely.

She watched it fall. Something that large would end the world if it hit. She wondered if she’d actually woken up or if this nightmare was of the tricky sort, only waking up into another nightmare. She picked a flower from the field and chose to watch it instead. Her hooves trembled as the moment of impact grew closer. The flower wilted up and died. Thankfully the impact never came. Instead the city just fell below the horizon, silently leaving the sky. Darkness fell in its absence.

Cadance looked around to the wondrous, warm glow of the fields.

Each flowers radiated a dreamy light that matched its colour, permeating the air around her. The colours of the flora blended together seamlessly, lightening the princess’s face. Tiny fireflies drifted lazily about. A strong breeze blew in from the direction of the fallen city. She faced it.

She had a feeling that Twilight was in the city. Cadance stood up and looked down the long road ahead of her. The city was far off, but if she hustled she could make it there in time. Before she could take her first step, a flurry of light came racing towards her. Two separate pairs of hoofsteps were illuminated by magical, self-repairing flowers.

“I see it! It’s there! We better hurry up or we’re gonna miss it!”

“Twilight...? No... Who is that?”

Cadance instinctively turned around and took to the skies after the hooves’ trail of trampled flowers.

A memory of a train flashed through her mind’s eye. Twilight sat next to a little, summery white filly with an auburn tail and mane. Twilight was apparently this filly’s friend. Her best friend, in fact. Cadance smiled knowing that Twilight had made time to be this foal’s friend. The foal was shy and nervous and in obvious need of a good friend. When Cadance saw Twilight hug the filly, a giant, gushy grin came over her face.

Cadance saw, from her vantage point, Rosetta and Twilight running towards a train. However, one set of hoofprints was falling behind. Cadance flew down under the lagging hooves and lifted them up a little, carrying them on an unseen wind. Twilight’s hooves rushed forward and caught up to the filly.

“Hey, wait! We’re coming! Don’t leave without us!”

Helping Twilight left Cadance weary and tired. After seeing the unicorn off, she collapsed to her knees. It had taken a lot of energy to pick Twilight up and carry her forward. She watched as the two friends flew themselves to the train. She sighed as the train left without her.

Cadance laid there, panting lightly in her exertion.

“Twilight... What have you gotten yourself into?” she asked.

Cadance couldn’t explain it, but there was an evil and malice about this place. A nightmare rarely wakes up into a pleasant dream. The shadows, the falling city, the haunting voice of the filly, all of it unnerved her. Twilight was somewhere in this world and if she wasn’t careful, the unicorn would be lost or trapped.

“That filly, who is she?” Cadance asked.

In the darkness slept a unicorn. She was tired because she hadn’t slept the night before. Her dreaming self spoke out to her foal-sitter.

“Her? That’s just Rosetta. She’s my best friend.” Twilight said from the void.

Cadance smiled weakly. “She seems really sweet.”

”She is...” Twilight reminisced. ”I met her in a dream and I want to bring her back. I was hoping to introduce her to you one day.”

They shared a silence of growing tension. Cadance’s hesitated with her response. Twilight could feel her old foalsitter judging her from afar. Almost a minute passed. Twilight replayed her last statement in her mind to try and find the source of Cadance’s discomfort. After hearing it enough times it sounded silly, mad even.

Twilight broke the silence.

”Cadance...?” Twilight peeped.

“Yes, sweetheart?” Cadance replied quietly.

“I’m scared.”

“Don’t be Twilight. None of this is real. You’ll be back home soon.”

“It’s not that. I’m scared for Rosetta. She’s all alone here. She has no other friends besides me. I’m trying to bring her home, but what if I can’t? What if I have to leave and she spends her whole life alone?”

Cadance’s face grew innocent as she heard those familiar words. Many years ago she had met a little unicorn without friends. That unicorn was a bit of a shut-in who disliked the notion of having friends, but Cadance knew that she needed at least one. So, she became that friend.

“You have to keep trying. I helped you find friends. I know you can do the same for her...” Cadance said quietly.

There was further silence as Twilight chew on that.

“Why do you think I care so much about her?”

“What do you mean?”

“Ever since the first day, it felt like I foal sat her for years. Despite never knowing her before, I’d probably give my life for her.”

“Heh, that’s funny. Me and Shining were just talking about that the other day. ‘Who would we give our lives for’ was the questions. Your name came up.”

“Oh?”

“Shining and I both would,” Cadance said matter-of-factly. “You’re pretty special to us.”

Twilight’s entire body warmed over in the darkness. Cadance knew the essence of love and despite talking casually, she meant every word she said.

”I miss you a lot Cadance. Sometimes, I play some of the same games with Rosetta that you used to play with me and I end up thinking about you the rest of the day... The things you taught me.” Twilight paused. “Kind of feels like I’m turning into you sometimes.”

Cadance chuckled. “Looks like it. It seems like a very special, very rare pony has entered your life. I like to call those kind of ponies, ‘Twilight Sparkles’. Now, ‘Twilight Sparkles’ are very special ponies, so when you find one, never let go of her,”  she lectured.

Twilight’s heart melted. “I’m not going to... I’ll figure out something...” she promised shakily. ”Am I really that special to you...?”

“You are.”

Twilight sniffled from the sentiment. Her heart was bursting for her old foalsitter, but her words had cut her deep.

“Cadance... I’m not like you... I’m not an amazing foalsitter...” Twilight cried. ”I’m gonna lose Rosetta because I can’t figure out what she is.”

“That’s easy Twilight. She’s somepony in your heart. No matter what you see, or what anypony else tells you, she’s in your heart.” Cadance cried a single tear and levitated it into the air. It shone and sparkled in the light. “I’m going to give you something. When you find it and it becomes a part of you, you’ll never have to leave her. Ok?”

“Really? Thank you Cadance.”

Somewhere in the darkness, Twilight saw a light. As she entered her last dream of the night, her connection to Cadance was severed.

Cadance took a deep, heavy breath that ended on the beginnings of a quiet sob.

“I’m so sorry Rosy... I tried...” Cadance whispered to herself. “You might have to settle for just one friend... I don’t want to give up my Twilight, but you need her more. Please, take care of her and tell her I love her and that I’ll miss her.”

The Princess of Love wept amidst a myriad of glowing flowers, her tears clung to her cheeks and sparkled in the soft colours. The sound of her own mournful howls only drove them harder. She’d sealed Twilight’s fate and only after coming to understand the situation she knew it was the only option. It didn’t make the decision or their consequences any easier to live with.

She had lost a friend.

After a few minutes of crying, she realized she wasn’t alone. The Angel was casually staring down at her.

“Who are you? What do you want?” Cadance asked bitterly.

The Angel emitted a muffled, high-pitched grunting. It lifted up one of its claws and drew a finger through the air, spelling out its thought. The finger left behind a glowing, white tracer.

You’re my best friend.

Cadance laughed sarcastically, tears streaming her face.

“Oh yeah?”

It mumbled some more, writing out another line.

I’m lonely and scared. Please, I need you. Don’t give up on me.

“I don’t even know who you are. I’m trying to help my friend and she’s going to get stuck here. Maybe you should go ask your mother to help you out because I’m not really in the mood,” she jeered.

Lala isn’t my friend. She hurts me.

Cadance sighed and shook her head.

“Whoever you are, you’re asking the wrong pony. I can’t even save the filly I foal sat. Sorry, you might have to deal with that.”

It opened its cloak.

Floating in the center of it was a filly Princess Rosetta with her mouth sewn shut. Spectral threads ran in and out of her delicate lips. Her eyes were puffy and red and she had scraped up and dirtied. Rosetta’s eyes pierced her best friend, tearing her apart.

“Rosetta...?” Twilight replied, mouth agape

Her frail voice mumbled futilely against the bindings in her mouth. She winced with pain.

Lyley, I want to go home.

“R-rosy... I-i...can’t...”choked the unicorn.

Don’t leave without me, please.

*

Twilight woke up in the middle of the street next to Pete. He was shaking her rather strongly and upon seeing her stir, threw himself over her, splashing about.

It was still dark and the lines around her still shimmered. She stood up and did a quick scan. The streets were barren of life, save the unicorn and Pete.

“Where’s Rosetta? she asked quickly.

Pete formed into a pony running and then a book.

“She’s running...? To the diary?” Twilight guessed.

Pete jumped up and down happily. Then he formed into a pony with three heads. Charades was always his favourite game. He prodded her to guess his next shape.

Twilight looked up into the city, trying to remember where the black spot was. After finding it, her  chest tightened up. It had grown to almost twice its original size. Pete jumped in front of her.

“Not now Pete, Rosy’s in a lot of trouble. We need to save her,” she explained.

He sunk a little, one of his three heads falling off.

“Fine, you’re Cerberus.”

Satisfied, Pete saluted Twilight. Together they hopped on a line and darted down it.

*

After almost two hours of travel, Twilight hadn’t seen a single word. Only after flying over the black mass did they reappear. Legions of them migrated towards the center, crawling and climbing their way over each other. She took a few deep breaths and cleared her mind.

The red demon, Stella, flew down next to her with her skeletal wings, landing on Twilight’s shoulder. Upon contact, she was absorbed into the line’s motory magic and heaved a few heavy pants. Beads of bright teal sweat dripped down her face. Twilight just ignored her.

“Finally, I found you!” she huffed. “Where’s my diary?” she puffed.

“I don’t know,” Twilight replied shortly.

“Don’t lie to me. If you don’t have it, then who does?!”

“Have you asked Rosetta?”

“The fool doesn’t have it either!” she raged. “Tell me where it is, NOW!”

Twilight gave the star a deadbeat stare. Enraged the red spines along Stella’s body grew. The tentacles began wrapping around Twilight’s neck, shoulders and face. Stella threatened to choke and constrict her, but she refused to flinch.

Stella’s face was pure frustration. Her eyes and cheeks bulged, her teeth fanning out jaggedly. Her crimson red complexion was turning hot pink and sweat poured from her fat, little body.

“Stella you’re never going to get what you want if you act like such a foal,” Twilight scolded.

Stella’s face twisted in anger, but she eventually returned to her crimson hue and retracting her spines. It was no use. Twilight wasn’t budging and besides, she was too tired from flying.

“I ought to kill you...” Stella huffed. “But it seems like you know where the diary is. You’ll take me to it if you know what’s good for you.”

“I have a pretty good idea. We’re actually pretty close,” Twilight replied.

Twilight scanned the ground and located the center of the mass. She jumped to another line to get in closer. Below them, a figure under was tied down in the middle of one of the city’s many intersection, spotlights tantalizing it. Twilight teleported the three of them to a vantage point atop one of the tall buildings overlooking the scene. Words swarmed the streets around the figure. Luckily the words were far too fixed on the lone creature in the center to notice.

Twilight could barely stomach what she saw, choking on each breath.

In the center of the rioting words was the Angel. Its cloak had been pinned down and words rushed up it, defiling and flogging its innard. It shook violently, thrashing madly against its restraints with every bit of energy it had. Like a trapped animal it senselessly tried to escape its torture, but it was useless. The Angel was helpless to protect the precious package hidden beneath its cloak, to protect Princess Rosetta. The words tortured and assaulted the filly mercilessly.

Every word on the ring had gathered to find its way up the cloak. Starry tears poured out from the the mask’s eyes like a fire hose. The endless stream was unrelenting, unnerving and unstoppable.

“So, that’s who has the diary,” Stella chimed with a smile. “Good riddance. I’ve hit two birds with one stone today. I’ll finally have my diary back and I’ll be rid of the Angel. Lala loves you darlings, teach that Angel a thing or two!” she cheered.

The Angel looked up at Twilight and Pete, struggling to even keep its mask still amidst the torture. The tiny cries of the filly echoed in Twilight’s mind. She shook her head and turned away before a faint but audible whimper sounded behind her. Rosetta was in there, being tortured to death. Twilight’s instinct kicked in and she rapidly analyzed the situation,  formulating a split-second rescue.

Unfortunately, Pete beat her to it. He had heard the tiny screams too and knew who the Angel really was, his best friend.

He heroically leapt from the building and froze himself over, bashing a good chunk of words as he came down hard on them. He melted himself and swung out a long arm that froze solid again, arm-barring a crowd of words high into the sky. Toxic ink burned into his being with every contact he made, but he kept fighting. He dramatically swung around his long, frozen arms, doing his best to crush the words and knock them away from Rosetta.

Stella shouted at him. “Pete! What the blazes do you think you’re doing?! Don’t you interfere!”

After clearing a few feet of space, the words backed off for a moment, sizing this new enemy up. Pete looked up to the Angel and saluted quickly before swiftly working to cut the ropes that held it down. After freeing a small section of the cloak, Rosetta rapidly began spelling out a message with the Angel’s cloak.

I love you Pete.

Before she could even finish the message, Twilight could feel a burning heat leave her shoulder and strike Pete.

He was vapourized instantly.

Sitting atop an overlooking building, on Twilight’s shoulder smirking, was Stella. Her eyes were ablaze and her mouth was smoldering. For a moment the world stood still as Pete’s vapour rose to the sky. All eyes fell to Stella. Even the words looked back momentarily to see where the fireball came from.

Twilight slowly turned her head to confirm her unbelievable suspicion. Shock left her without breath. She couldn’t speak, but words wouldn’t have come to her anyways. At this precise moment her mind was doing everything its power to assure this wasn’t real. An innocent filly was being tortured to death and her friend had given his own life to save her. It was too much to handle.

Stella had just killed Pete.

“Three birds, one stone. That must be a record,” Stella said proudly, floating up and away from Twilight to survey the fruits of her spellwork.

The shock soon passed to hatred. Twilight hadn’t noticed them welling in her eyes, but now silent, seething tears ran down her cheeks. Just as the first drop was about to leave her chin, it turned into a small wisp of purple light. Every falling tear lifted from her coat immediately into either a lavender or magenta star.

The stars shone brighter and brighter as her anger piled on. Soon, they were nearly blinding. She trembled and shook. Every muscle in her body tightened and her horn instinctively lit up. She was only barely containing every senseless urge to mutilate and lash out at the star. In her anger, something became clear to her.

She hated Stella.

Stella had neglected Rosetta, refused her any friendship and now she was a murderer of friends. It didn’t matter if she was a great magician, nothing came before friendship. The fate of the star was made up in Twilight’s mind, but her spell hesitated. Murdering a murderer wouldn’t bring Pete back. As much as she hated Stella, more death couldn’t be the answer. Her horn began powering down until Stella’s smug face tipped her over the edge.

“Be a dear Twilight and go fetch my diary after the Angel has been dispatched.” Stella began to fly off towards the keep.

Twilight’s mind went white. The stars around her became truly blinding, hiding the unicorn in glaring ball of pink and magenta.

”You monster...”

“Mind your tone Twilight. I don’t want to make it four birds today.”

Twilight didn’t even hear her.

“I will take Rosetta from this nightmare. Far away from you...”

“She can never leave, you stupid unicorn.”

Twilight screamed out, recklessly swinging her horn around as a rainbow beam erupted from it. She almost hit Stella, but it ended just above the broken Angel. She teleported to the Angel and around her a column of blinding, white light shot skyward.

From the column appeared hundreds of jumping, bouncing, living books. They were the shapes and colours of animals. Wave upon wave of colourful, animal books poured out from the unicorn’s spell.

The books preyed on the words. Cats pounced on the words, absorbing them in their empty pages. Frogs shot out papery tongues, snatching the words up and chewing on them nonchalantly. Groups of leeches teamed up and sucked the words dry. Her spell continued and even more book monsters were brought forth. Flocks of birds, herds of elephants, insect swarms, leopards, ponies and every animal imaginable charged out in an endless stampede.

The books forced the army of words back, trampling, eating, dismembering and bashing their way through without contest. Trees and vegetation sprouted up, giant venus fly traps, snapping words off the ground and out of the air.

In the vortex of pages and writing, Twilight found herself alone with the Angel. Despite the glaring white light it emitted on the outside, the inside of the pillar was a dark mirror. Only the stars in the air shone any light on the two.

The cloak and mask fell to the street, tired and tortured, but still clinging to life. The Angel weakly looked from Twilight to the shivering bulge in its cloak. Under it stirred a small, whimpering filly. Twilight pulled the surprisingly soft cloth back. It was Rosetta.

“Lyley...?” she squeaked quietly.

Twilight’s forgot all her anger at the sight of the little filly. Rosetta was scraped up and dirty, blood freshly oozing from a few spots. The innocent gleam in her eye struggled to outlast the unspoken horrors she’d seen. She was hurt and afraid and all Twilight wanted to do was make her feel safe.

“It’s ok Rosy. Lyley’s here, nothing can hurt you anymore,” she embraced the little filly, swiftly taking her in her arms. She was icy cold and trembled terribly, clenching onto her friend tightly.

Twilight did her best to warm her up. After a loving reunion, Rosetta had warmed up a little and only shook from her weeping. Their starry tears mixed together and even with the war that raged on outside the pillar, the the only sound was their collectively crying.

“I’m gonna get you out of here,” Twilight announced shakily.

“Wh-what happened to Pete...?” she cried.

Twilight threw together an answer instinctively.

“He’ll be alright...” she promised. “He’ll be better than alright! When I get you out of here, you’ll see him again, so don’t you worry...” the unicorn wept.

“Lyley! You’re big, you can’t cry! Only foals cry!” Rosetta protested, finally noticing stars that fell from her friend’s eyes. “Please don’t cry...”

Rosetta had tried to choke her tears back, but Twilight’s breakdown only renewed her own. They spent the next few moments crying in each other’s arms. Twilight looked up to the mirror surface of the inner pillar and saw something unusual.

The pillar was like a mirror room with several different reflections. In some she saw herself and Rosetta hugging, but in others she saw herself and Cadance. Just seeing the two reflections, side by side gave her hope. They were no different when it came down to what really mattered.

This little filly was counting on her to bring her brighter days.

“Stella’s a big, dumb meanie! I don’t want to go home with her anymore!”

“You won’t have to,” Twilight replied, caressing her small friend’s face and nuzzling her. She buried her tears in her tiny mane. “I’m gonna take you home with me...” she whispered

“I’m gonna read her stupid diary and tell everypony who she has a crush on!” Rosetta exclaimed defiantly, pulling out a familiar book from underneath the Angel’s cloak.

Twilight’s heart leapt at the sight of book. It was a faded navy blue with gold accents on its edges and corners. It was the book that brought her to Paradisium, and it was the one that would take her home. She once thought that the contents of this book no longer mattered. Now she knew it was the only book that mattered.

Every single emotion she knew surged through her as she placed her hoof on the diary. The hope that she could save Rosetta, the fear that she wouldn’t, the love that brought them to this point and the loss of a friend that it cost them.

All of that realized in this one, last, warm diary. Next Chapter: The Star Estimated time remaining: 41 Minutes