The golden sun mercilessly beat down on all living things underneath its rays. In this arid wasteland, no one can escape the ruthless conditions of nature. For miles and miles around, there was only sand. Not a single drop of water to be found. For pegasi, flying becomes tiresome. For unicorns, magic is corrupt by the incessant heat waves. For earth ponies, well, they were just plain old screwed. However, there was one pegasus who dared brave these ruthless conditions. Lost within the depth of his own torments, he traveled the world in search for ideal, and absolution. His marine blue mane was one with the wind. Lost in thought, he stopped in his tracks. Hesitant, he looked behind him, yet there was nothing but miles and miles of sand. He realized turning back was not an option. It had never been. His surroundings were a metaphor for his eternal struggle, a mirror reflecting his soul. In a place with nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, he could only fight. He had to fight. The pegasus, whose name was Horus, sighed. Was there no end? He was different from other people. He was the bearer of the Eyes, thus, bound to this fate, he was forever doomed to wander alone. The sandstorm around him had ceased. He smirked, and kept trotting ahead.

Several weeks later, rumors circulated around Equestria. Apparently, some golden pegasus, capable of exerting magic, recently showed up around the area. The citizens could not believe what they were hearing. Everyone shared the same thoughts. A pegasus who knows magic, that's impossible. Yet it was true. Horus came all the way from Memphillies, the jewel of the desert, to Equestria in search of a powerful unicorn. From what he heard, this mare knew almost every spell ever created and once bore an Element of Harmony to save Equestria. But he was not interested in her spell-casting skills, but rather her as a whole. And that name... Twilight Sparkle... Why did it sound so familiar? Was she the one he had been looking for? Whatever the case may be, he knew she was a piece of the puzzle known as his past, and he was ready to do anything to take it.

"Excuse me mares, do you know of a Twilight Sparkle?" said Horus. Alas, the ponies of this town had never been so scared of a stranger since Zecora showed up years ago. The golden pegasus sighed. It seems like his curse keeps effectively repelling the people around him. Physically, there was nothing unusual about him, same for the outlines around his right eye. Yet, if one looks at his flank, where a pony's cutie mark should usually be, they see an eye outlined in mysterious blue traits, one above, one around and one below, all of which curve to follow the shape of the white sclera. Once again, he had to find his way alone. The crowd scattered around him while he kept going head held high. A sweet scent awakened his senses. It was a pleasant aroma, some foreign mixture of strawberries with a hint of vanilla, tingling his nose and circulating through his being. Graciously, he followed the scent to a bakery. Horus then pushed open the door. Behind the counter, a lovely pink mare hummed an oddly familiar tune. Her unusually happy attitude resulted in her hopping all over the place. Finally, she finished her orders and came to the golden equine without hesitation, if not a much more vigorous momentum. She came to a halt and smiled at him, causing him to blush. "Hello... I... Just... Came here to buy a few cupcakes..." he muttered, stuttering nonetheless. "Ah," she replied "A, now there's shy one! Are you new here? No! Don't speak; I know what flavor you need!" She ran back behind the counter and ripped open bags of flour with her mouth. Once the golden equine came near, she began singing what she called "the Cupcakes song":

"All you have to do is add a cup of flour and add it to the mix.
Now just add something sweet not sour, a bit of salt just a pinch.
Baking these treats is such a synch; add a teaspoon of lemon and mint.
Add a little more and you count to five and you never get your fill of!
Cupcakes!
So sweet and tasty, Cupcakes!
Don't be too hasty, Cupcakes!
Cupcakes! Cupcakes! Cupcakes!"

Before he knew it, the pink pony was done. Famished, Horus began devouring the cupcakes. Suddenly, he grimaced and began coughing loudly, trying to catch his breath. The other ponies in the bakery stopped conversing and simultaneously turned to the pegasus, now in terrible agony. An evil smirk appeared on the baker's face. Horus crashed to the ground in a thundering thud. Slowly, she approached the unconscious stallion and whispered: "Now, the Eyes are mine..."

She approached with precaution, fearing the effectiveness of her poison. In the blink of an eye, Horus woke up, walloped the pony around the head, sending her crashing against a wall. The other ponies in the bakery ran for their lives at that very moment, yet less than half actually understood what happened. The keeper of the Eyes spat out the cupcakes. With assurance, he approached the pink equine. "Well faker," he said "Where is the real Pinkie Pie?!" She did not reply. Horus sighed, and then looked away. "Do you want to know how I figured you out? Easy; you had the cupcake song wrong. You only count to five, and it’s a teaspoon of vanilla." Surprised, the imposter asked: "How do you know that?" Horus smiled. Sarcastically, he replied: "The Eyes shall always see the truth."
"Well then," replied the faker, "I suppose you should know about us as well." Actually, Horus didn't have a clue of who they were. He knew there were always envious characters trying to obtain the power for their own causes, but never before did they disguise themselves as someone he's met. They were no ordinary opponents. They knew the two met before. They knew what she meant to him. Are they trying to rid of her so I may never regain my memories? I have to stop them for Pinkie's sake. She's the only bridge between my past and present! The equine unleashed a yellow shockwave and stopped on the impostor pony. Just like glass, the equine's figure shattered into thousands of pieces, before evaporating into thin air. "What other secrets are there?"

Horus heard a faint cry from a remote corner of the bakery. He bashed the turquoise wooden door with a powerful body slam and, accidentally, tumbled down the stairs leading to the basement. Smooth, he said to himself, now I'm bleeding. He noticed a trail of blood dripping down each step of the way. The sound it made sent chills down his spine. He reached for the back of his head. Immediately, the several layers of flesh slipped down his hoof. The further he went down, the bloodier it became. At one point, he felt something hard and prayed he didn't just touch a bone. It was a small gap, but nevertheless, it still hurt. The depth of it however, was another question. The cries became louder as he came closer to a steel door. On it, "FREEZER" was written in large capital letters. He put his hoof on the knob, but quickly pulled it back after a cold burn swept through his body. He looked at the thermometer and knew he didn't have much time. Horus sat down. Full of Zen, he let the powers of the Eyes take over. He summoned an azure cloud, which then wrapped itself around the knob, twist it and pulled open the door. A frozen gust of air then broke his concentration, causing the door to slam shut. The pegasus was about to try again, when he felt a massive blow to the back of his head. He crashed violently to the ground, unconscious.

Two years ago, a tragic event had befallen onto Equestria. Discord had returned, now stronger than ever. He had long, crimson wings, boar-like fangs and his antlers were made of solid steel. He was no longer a petty creature; he was the Discord Dragon. Celestia and Luna immediately rose up to the fight, but only one lived. Discord's dark powers were too much for the Elements of Harmony. Eventually, their powers were consumed by his evil. During the tremendous battle between the Eclipse Sisters and the mighty Discord Dragon, Luna met her end, sacrificing herself to save her sister. Celestia, broken and scarred, didn't stand a chance alone. Suddenly, out of nowhere, two majestic alicorns stepped in and confronted the mighty beast. The first, whose fur shined like gold, used his horn to summon a second sun, and tossed the massive projectile onto the vile creature. The second, with a silver body, whipped a whirlwind with his wings. The two then circled the beast and, repetitively, stabbed Discord. His powers crumbling in a tornado of blood, the vile being used his final breath, and generated a massive explosion and sent the two saviors flying. It was now their turn to make the ultimate sacrifice. They used all of their remaining life force to contain the explosion, thus protecting Equestria as a whole, but also kept the little town of Ponyville intact. Pinkie, who was the last one left in the village after the incident saw him; the golden pegasus, with a pair of mystical eyes on his flank.

Next Chapter: A Search for the Lost Memories Estimated time remaining: 9 Minutes