42 days later…

I stood in the rain, but it didn’t feel like I was. I felt as if the rain fell through my body instead of striking my coat. I felt chilled to the very soul, as the cold rain passed through me. I felt like I was a ghost. That is not what claimed my attention, however. I was standing among a crowd, all dressed in black. The general atmosphere was dreary and sad. I soon realized that I was at a funeral. There were ponies of all colours and ages around me. Looking forward, I saw an old, black stallion Pegasus in a casket with ponies all around. Some were weeping, some were comforting the weeping ones, and some merely stood silently, solemnly. After several more grueling moments however, I saw that a group of five old mares (Two unicorns, two earth ponies, and one pegasus) made their way to the body before laying a wreath on his chest. The one in the lead closed the casket before stepping back again. Then they stood, their heads down as his casket was lowered into the ground by a large purple dragon who stood nearby. I was struck by the oddness of this. It seemed so familiar and yet so alien.

As the casket reached the bottom of the grave, the dragon began to pile dirt over it. He looked tired and sad, even through his hulking and terrifying physique. Every pony in the crowd now stood silent and still, the only audible sounds being the rain and the steady shoveling of dirt. Once the last of the earth was packed onto the grave, ponies began to turn away, walking down the aisle away from the grave. As all the ponies began to clear out, I made my way to the newly dug and muddy mound. I simply walked through the crowd, and nopony seemed to notice me. That was fine. When I reached the grave. I took a moment to read the epitaph. The tombstone read:

Here lies Red Storm; A loyal father, a husband, and a true Knight. 1982-2064 May he rest in the embrace of his Angel.

I was at my funeral. I couldnt help but shake my head in self-disgust. It was terribly obvious from the start, and I felt mixed feelings about it all. I had watched my own funeral, and I was too foolish to realize it until the end. After making this realization, I lay down on the wet grave. 'No point in feeling sorry. I'm dead now. Nothing I can do but linger, and perhaps rest. Just as quickly as I closed my eyes to sleep, I found myself opening them again. A force complelled me to look to my side, and I obliged the urge. I to my left I saw another grave. This one had a single wilted rose laying on it. It was also obviously quite old, as the stone seemed worn with years. Something about it caught my curiosity. Something made me pick myself up and move over to it to get a better look. There, on the tombstone, read

Here lies Fluttershy; A loving mother, wife, and caring Angel of the forest. 1983-2058 May she await her Knight.

It was Fluttershy’s grave. She had died six years before me. For reasons I could not understand, tears welled up in my eyes. I fell to my knees and I buried my face in the dirt of her grave, my tears watering the earth that entombed her body. I laid crying on her grave... but why? What was causing such an intense feeling? I heard the dragon who I realized to be Spike leaving, his steps echoing even in the rain. I lay alone in the field of tombstones and memories. Then I heard movement behind me. I turned around, and there stood a tall, alicorn mare, as black as night. She reached out a foreleg to me before saying:

“Come with me Red Storm. It is time to leave.” I wiped the tears in my eyes away before standing tall. Fury bristled under my skin. Once again, I lost myself to foreign emotion that I could not understand.

“No… I will not leave! Not now!” I roared as I lunged at her. There was a flash blinding white light as the alicorn's horn lit up.

Then, I woke up.