Under cover of night, a cloaked figure walked quietly up to the side entrance of the Ponyville schoolhouse. The windows of the building were shuttered, and no light filtered through. She rapped a hoof against the door three times. There was no response.

"It's Twilight. Mac sent me."

The pause grew so pregnant, she started to wonder if she'd arrived on the correct night. But finally, Twilight Sparkle heard the sound of a flipping latch. The door creaked open, and a familiar pony ushered her inside. Cheerilee looked carefully this way and that before shutting and locking the door behind them.

The interior of the main schoolroom was dimly lit by a few candles. Ten chairs had been arranged in a circle, and eight ponies were seated. Of those present, Cheerilee and Big Macintosh were the only ones Twilight knew as friends. One of the ponies in the circle was just a young foal, and the ponies adjacent to her didn't look related to her. Another of the ponies wore an unusual hat. Judging by the looks on most of their faces, they weren't expecting a princess to join them this evening.

Twilight Sparkle hung her cloak on a coatrack. Two empty chairs were positioned next to Big Macintosh. Cheerilee sat in the far one, flanking the empty seat which had clearly been reserved for Twilight. "I'd like us all to welcome Princess Twilight Sparkle to our group. Why don't we—"

"It's Twilight. Just, Twilight. Please," said Twilight, taking the place between her friends. She shifted her haunches uncomfortably against the seat of the foal-sized chair.

"Of course, Twilight. Now, some introductions," Cheerilee said. At her direction, each of the ponies in the circle introduced themself to Twilight, by name and occupation; but none of them said anything about why they were here.

"Now that we know each others' names, why don't we start by letting Twilight share some of her experiences?" said Cheerilee.

Twilight looked at the expectant faces surrounding her. "Um... If it's okay, I think I would feel more comfortable listening to other ponies speak first," she said.

Cherilee pursed her lips for a moment. "I'm afraid that's not how it works. I can assure you, Twilight, everypony here is as nervous as you are. You're a good friend, and although I trust you, most of these ponies haven't interacted with you in an informal setting. Before the group can open up to you, we need to hear your admission. It will help to show us that you belong here."

"We're on your side," said a homely-looking earth pony wearing a hat made from crumpled tinfoil. An actual, homemade tinfoil hat: the ultimate cliche in lunatic fashion. Twilight Sparkle rolled her eyes, then shut them tightly and lowered her head. This was just ridiculous.

One of the other ponies scowled at him. "I told you to leave that stupid thing at home," she said.

"Look, I... I really shouldn't have come here. I'm sorry for wasting your time," said Twilight, as she carefully avoided eye contact with everypony. She stood up to leave.

"Twilight, please," Big Macintosh begged, rising to his hooves. After a moment of awkward silence, he sat back down and stared at the floor.

It took Twilight a while to react. The imposingly-large earth pony looked ironically vulnerable; even desperate. Tartarus, they all looked pathetic, even Cheerilee, and she was one of the brightest ponies Twilight had ever met. Big Mac kept his gaze hoofward, but fifteen other sad, hopeful eyes looked up to her. Her heart ached for them; yes, even the hat guy. Even if she didn't belong here, she felt an obligation to help them.

Deep down, Twilight knew it was just an excuse; but at least it was a good one.

She sat back down. "Okay. Okay."

"Look," said Cheerilee, "I know this is hard. A pony's first night is never easy. But nopony is here to judge you."

"Well, to be honest, I'm just as concerned about me unfairly judging all of you," said Twilight.

"As long as you treat us with respect, you'll be fine," said Cheerilee. "Being in the Paranormal Society doesn't mean you have to endorse, or even believe, what any other pony here says. Okay?"

"Fine. Look, everypony... I'm a scientist, above all else," said Twilight. "Even when I study magic, I break it down as much as I can. I don't believe in supernatural voodoo, or superstitions, or astrology, or any nonsense like that. I mean, I can barely accept Pinkie Pie's extrasensory abilities, and even then only because they can be reliably replicated. I believe there is a logical explanation for everything in this world, even the things I'm here to talk about. I just don't know what it is yet. Applejack knew about this group, because of Big Mac..."

"Do your friends think you're crazy?" interrupted a walleyed pegasus. She spoke very softly, but with sharp intensity.

Twilight shook her head. "Not exactly, no. My friends just think I'm under a lot of stress, and that maybe I'm imagining things because of it. I am under a lot of stress, of course. It comes with the job title." She paused for a moment and stared at the floor in the center of the circle, then took a breath deep enough to dive for pearls.

"It all started with the dreams," she began, and the room fell silent.

"A little less than a year ago, around the time we defeated King Sombra—this was in the Crystal Empire, but I'm sure everypony here heard the news—I began having these bizarre nightmares. I suppose I can't exactly call them nightmares, because I never remember any details; but I wake up in a cold sweat, so what else would you call them? Whatever the dreams are about, my memories of them fade away as soon as I wake up. At first it would happen several times per week, but now I get maybe one or two per week. Anyway, when it first started happening, it was an overwhelming relief to feel the memories flush away. So I'd just let it happen, and I tried to put it out of mind. But now that all these other things are happening, I think the dreams might be some kind of a warning sign. Ignoring them for so long may have been a mistake."

A short murmur of acknowledgement echoed around the circle.

"Eventually I started noticing these, I guess I'd call them, inconsistencies in things. It's hard to put a word on it, because the phenomenon manifests in a wide variety of ways. I can't really say when I started seeing them everywhere, but they started really bugging me right around the time I became a princess. The first oddities I noticed were images. Like, I'd see somepony's flank—an adult pony, I mean—and their cutie mark would be missing entirely! The catch is, it would only happen if I was looking at it out of the corner of my eye. Once I turned to look at it directly, the mark would appear. Now, at first I just figured it was just my blind spot, which is a common optical illusion caused by the location of the optic nerve. The way it works is, some of what you see in your peripheral vision is missing, so your brain fills in the details with a kind of emptiness. Mystery solved, right? But it was happening in areas of my vision that shouldn't be affected. And then I started seeing other things that couldn't possibly be caused by my blind spot, because there were specific details. Like, I'd see somepony's legs overlapping in an impossible way, or a flank with two different cutie marks. I even started seeing exact duplicates of the same pony in a crowd of faces."

Twilight looked around at the faces of the other ponies, all of them rapt with wonder. Cheerilee's eyes were smiling, but wet with emotion.

She knows, thought Twilight. What I'm saying makes sense to her; it makes sense to all of them! Holy Celestia, I might actually be sane...

"So, then it started happening with my semantic memory," Twilight continued, her speech flowing more energetically. "For example, a book title would change, and I'd know it, because it would be some book I've read many times, or one I looked at daily in the library, back when the Golden Oak Library was still alive, I mean. All of this was driving me crazy, so I started experimenting. I practiced looking at things in my peripheral vision until I could analyze the details, and then I started to notice even more inconsistencies. I've been documenting this for a couple of months now, actually. Oh, and one time I wrote down the title of every book in the library, and then reviewed the list a day later. One of the book titles had changed, two were missing, and a new book had appeared: a book I'd never even seen before!"

"Sshhh," cautioned foil-hat. Twilight realized her voice had risen rather dramatically.

"Sorry," she said, lowering her volume by a few notches. "Anyway, it started affecting my episodic memory, too. My day-to-day memories don't always mesh up properly anymore. Sometimes dates are completely wrong. Sometimes it seems like somepony had to have been in two places at the same time for a sequence of events to make any sense. And the worst one is, sometimes things just feel wrong, and it's hard to objectively measure that sort of thing. Like, my friends and I might solve somepony's friendship problem, but when I stop to think about what we actually did, it wouldn't make any logical sense. Why did we do what we did? How did it work? That sort of thing. To be safe, I've had several batteries of cognitive testing performed, so I know I'm not suffering from dementia. So either this is some new kind of delusional insanity, or something very strange is going on."

Twilight paused for a moment. "Do any of you understand what I'm saying?" she asked.

"Show of hooves?" said Cheerilee, with a smirk. Nine ponies raised a hoof.

"It matches up with my experiences almost exactly, Prin—I mean, Twilight," said a dark-pelted pegasus stallion.

"Eeyup," said Big Macintosh.

"Oh yes indeed," said an unicorn mare dressed in a casual button-up shirt. "Especially seeing strange things out of the corner of your eye, and that nagging feeling that nothing makes sense anymore. That happens to me at least once per week!"

"How often does it happen to you?" asked an earth pony mare.

"Now? Several times per day, with rare exception. A day free of disturbances only happens when I spend most of the day in the castle, actually," said Twilight. "Actually... I can't even recall the last time I had a normal day."

"D'you know how come the weird stuff happens?" squeaked the little unicorn filly, her eyes bright and wide. "Cause we don't."

Twilight shook her head. "Not yet. But recently, I remembered the dreams that seemed to start the whole thing, so I've tried keeping a dream log by my bedside. I can only write a few words on paper before everything goes blank, but my current theory is that the nightmares are actually old memories, like the time Spike ran away from home, or the time we negotiated a treaty with one of the buffalo tribes. The word 'buffalo' has come up several times in my dream notes, actually. I've tried using magic to open up my dreams, to no success. Zecora's potions haven't worked either. Up until today, Zecora was the only pony I'd confided in with all the details. She hasn't noticed anything herself, but she seems to think I'm on to something big."

"Twilight, do you think the hidden dreams hold any recent memories? Or do the all of the dreams involve memories that predate your paranormal experiences?" asked Cheerilee.

"I'm fairly certain that none of the words I've written upon waking refer to recent events," said Twilight. "So that might be a valid hypothesis."

"Very interesting," said Cheerilee. "Well group, I think it's time for Twilight to hear from some of us."

The rest of the group began to describe their experiences. Big Macintosh felt fatigued all the time, yet had no difficulty completing his chores, which he was certain should be impossible; doctors said he was perfectly fine. Several ponies saw impossible things, usually in their peripheral vision. Tinfoil-hat pony heard voices and believed he was being abducted by strange, two-legged beings on a monthly basis. One of the pegasus ponies said she saw ghosts and believed she was the reincarnation of Star Swirl the Bearded. About half of the group had unsettling dreams they couldn't remember. The filly's story was the most heartbreaking one of all: she swore she'd had an older brother just a year ago, but her parents didn't remember him, and all of his things had disappeared when he did. Other than the ghost-seeing pony, nopony remembered anything unusual happening to them until about a year ago.

"Do you have any theories at all?" Twilight asked the group.

Cheerilee bit at her lower lip. "There's something more. You need to be warned about the Visitors."

"Visitors?" asked Twilight.

"They're aliens!" whispered the pony in the tinfoil hat.

"Nnope," countered Big Macintosh.

"Well, we don't really know what they are," said Cheerilee. "Twilight, I'm curious: how do you think we found out about you?"

"Huh? Well, Applejack referred me to the group, because of Big Macintosh..."

"Nnope," repeated Big Macintosh.

"Wait. What do you mean? Applejack gave me a letter telling me to show up here," said Twilight.

"I'm afraid you have it the wrong way around. Applejack doesn't know anything about the group. She thinks it's some kind of a secret, invite-only meditation class," said Cheerilee. "Big Macintosh is the one who told Applejack to refer you. The note she hoofed you was written by him."

Twilight sighed. "Well, great. So you can tell just by watching me that I see things? Ugh! I really thought I was hiding it well."

"Actually, you hide it very well, Twilight," said Cheerilee. "I'm afraid I have some unsettling news. We knew you were one of us because you're being watched. Nearly all of us are, although a couple of our members seem to have escaped their attention. I've seen ponies spying on you on three separate occasions, over the past two weeks alone."

Twilight's jaw dropped. "What? But... You've got to be kidding," she said. "I mean, let's be rational about this; I'm a princess, so of course ponies are going to watch—"

"Ponies are going to watch, yes," Cheerilee said. "But they're not going to follow you around town without ever approaching you. They're not going to carefully keep tabs on everything you say and do, for hours at a time, and occasionally take notes. Especially when they aren't citizens of Ponyville in the first place."

"But, who are they? What do they look like? The royal guard needs to be notified of this immediately! This is beginning to cross the line between 'weird' and 'crime'," said Twilight.

"I understand how you feel, but it's not that simple," said Cheerilee. "I was going to reach out to you for help before I even knew you were having the same experiences as the rest of us. I started watching your daily routine, because I couldn't think of the best way to approach you with something this crazy. That's when I noticed the Visitors were already keeping tabs on you. They only follow ponies who have experienced the inconsistencies you mentioned."

"They can take any form," said the walleyed mare. "Usually they just hide in crowds, though."

"Horsefeathers. It's changelings," said Twilight. "I have to notify Princess Celestia and Princess Luna immediately."

"We want to involve them, absolutely, and that's why your support is so important. We're fairly certain the Visitors aren't changelings, though," said Cheerilee.

"Why do you say that?" asked Twilight. "Do you know who they are?"

"No. But I read up on changelings after the attack on Canterlot, and we've never seen a Visitor in a changeling's hatchform. Changelings need to revert to their hatchform on occasion, and the Visitors seem to be around all the time. They can do things changelings shouldn't be able to do, as well. For example, they change forms instantly, without any magic signature, light, or sound. They can even control some of the paranormal events you've experienced. Twilight, one of the foals I teach is a Visitor—I'm one hundred percent certain."

Twilight slumped over in her chair, stunned. As the wheels in her head turned, her eyes scanned empty space in front of her rapidly as though she were reading the pages of an invisible book. "Okay. Has anypony confronted them yet?"

With that question popped, everypony looked very uncomfortable.

"Once," said Big Macintosh, very softly.

Cheerilee closed her eyes, and her voice dropped to a whisper. "Initially, many of us tried to talk to them, but they would just disappear or run away. However, there was one member of our group in particular who determined he would confront them in public. He tried on numerous occasions."

"Oh no. What happened?" asked Twilight.

"Our member... he was a pegasus pony, an adult stallion. That's all we know anymore, and then only because one of us wrote it down. We can't remember his cutie mark, or anything about what he looked like. For Celestia's sake, Twilight, we can't even remember his name! He's gone, just like that. Completely, totally, gone. It's like he was purged from reality itself. Of course, we hope it's an isolated incident, but I think you see the implication..."

"There could be countless others. I mean, you'd have no way of knowing," said Twilight. "Dear Celestia."

"Pretend you can't see them, Miss Princess Twilight," urged the filly. "Please."

"It's good advice, though it's hard to spot them at all unless you try," said Cheerilee. "You're not likely to bump into one by accident. But now you know a little about what we're up against. Twilight, whatever this is, it isn't just in our heads. This is a menace. Ponyville, and quite possibly all of Equestria, may be in grave danger."

Twilight's face grew pale, but she stood up from her chair straight and tall. "I will leave for Canterlot tomorrow morning," she said. "Based on what you've told me, it's probably best I not inform my friends about this yet. I'll start with Princess Luna, because I have questions to ask about my dreams, anyway."

"Thank you so much, Princess," said one of the ponies, and everypony else echoed the sentiment.

"Please be cautious, even with Luna," advised Cheerilee. "We don't yet know if the Visitors can impersonate specific ponies the way changelings can."

"I'll be sure to watch my flank," said Twilight.

"Alright, it's getting very late, everypony," said Cheerilee. "We'll each leave the schoolhouse in five-minute intervals, as usual..."

---

Twilight Sparkle arrived in Canterlot on Wednesday, the day after the meeting. No, wait; that wasn't right. It must have been longer than that—the meeting was on the weekend, wasn't it? And yet she'd left right away, hadn't she? But the calendar at the train station... It was happening again. Twilight shook off the uneasiness within her as she approached the castle.

"Princess Luna is waiting for you in her chambers," said one of the royal guards at the castle's main entrance.

"Thanks," said Twilight, faking a smile. She hadn't sent any messages to Luna in advance of her visit. How could Luna have known I was coming, she wondered?

Minutes later, Twilight Sparkle stood in front of the doors to Luna's chambers. No guards were posted, which seemed odd given Luna's schedule; she was normally asleep at this time of day. It's probably a trap, realized Twilight. Still, she was fairly certain she could hold her own against any pony in Equestria, even Princess Luna. She decided to play dumb. Was that the same thing as playing it cool, she wondered? She'd have to ask Rainbow Dash later.

At the first knock, both doors swung open. "Come in," Luna's voice called. Twilight entered the room, and the doors shut behind her. Princess Luna lay on the floor near an empty fireplace. The curtains were dark, keeping the room dim. Luna was unadorned by clothing or armor, and sat beside a plate of cookies, a notebook, and a chess set already prepped for a game.

"I've been waiting for you, Princess Twilight Sparkle," said Luna. "Come. Sit with me," she urged.

Twilight walked forward and sat, frowning. "Look, before we say anything, I need to ask you something," she began, but Luna put a hoof to her lips, then motioned to the notebook. On the notebook, something was written, but it wasn't legible. Twilight stared at it for a few seconds before realizing the letters had simply been modified by a diagonal reflection. It was the kind of cipher even a small foal could read. More importantly, it was easy to read and write without error.

Only one sentence was written there. "Write like this," it said. Luna hoofed Twilight the pencil.

It might still be a trap, thought Twilight.

"Do you remember when you returned to Equestria, how your mane glistened like the stars in the night sky?" wrote Twilight, and passed the pencil to Luna.

"On the contrary. Without my magical mantle, my mane was short and rather plain. Cornflower blue, to be specific. Satisfied?" Luna skillfully wrote her words upside down, facing her guest. Once finished, she returned the pencil.

"Thank goodness, it's really you. How did you know I was coming?" wrote Twilight.

"I have been watching you recently. Others may be watching, as well; hence the odd choice of communication. It is for our safety," wrote Luna.

Luna spoke out loud. "Have some cookies, Twilight Sparkle, and please, make the first move," she said, pointing to the chessboard.

"Thank you," said Twilight. She moved queen's pawn forward two, then wrote, "Tell me what you know."

"I presume you are here because you have troubled dreams, or perhaps you have noticed some unusual things in your daily affairs?" wrote Luna.

"A great understatement," wrote Twilight. "I'm hallucinating, mysterious ponies are watching me, and many things I experience make no logical sense."

"I am surprised you did not come here sooner," wrote Luna.

"I should have come sooner."

"It was fortunate that you waited."

"Why?"

"Ignorance is bliss."

"No, it isn't," wrote Twilight. She looked at the chess board again, and spoke aloud, "Huh. You moved your knight out after cracking? That's the King's Indian Defense. It's a hypermodern opening," she observed.

"Yes," said Luna. "I have been reading up on chess. Much has changed over the past thousand years, as the masters have learned to, how do you say it: 'up their games', I believe? I am still trying to catch up with the times."

"Well, you'll probably beat me. I'm no grandmaster," said Twilight. Then she continued writing, "Tell me what is going on. Some of my friends are scared. At least two ponies have gone missing."

"I am sorry to hear that," wrote Luna, "but friends can be comforted, and perhaps missing ponies don't wish to be found."

"What?" Twilight blurted out, then covered her mouth with a hoof.

Luna continued writing. "Read me closely. You have a perfect life, Twilight Sparkle. You have friends who love you. You go on grand adventures, and you make ponies' lives better. You want for nothing, and are greatly blessed."

Twilight made her move, then took the pencil back. "Yes, I am," she wrote. "I know I'm very fortunate, and I'm grateful for my opportunities, Princess. Are you trying to tell me I'm placing my life in jeopardy by looking for answers?"

"I am informing you of something most unfortunate. You may be forced to choose between that which you value most, and the answers you seek," wrote the elder princess. Luna then took Twilight's knight with her bishop. "Check," she announced.

"Ugh," said Twilight, seeing the quagmire she'd entered, though she wasn't certain where she'd first gone wrong. She moved her king, conceding a pawn. "You're going to win now, I'm certain. I should forfeit," she said aloud.

"How interesting. I never took Twilight Sparkle for a quitter," quipped Luna, stone-faced.

Twilight's fur bristled. "Fine, make your move," she said, then took the pencil back. "I don't understand how merely knowing something can ruin my life," she wrote.

Luna took one of Twilight's rooks. "Check," she said, then retrieved the pencil. "No matter how much your heart may desire something, you cannot judge its worth until you know its full price. But please, try to focus on the game for a moment, would you?" she wrote.

An angry, frustrated look crossed Twilight's muzzle. Luna was taking piece after piece. Maybe if I'm extremely lucky, I can pull out a stalemate, she thought. Twilight moved her king out of check for a third time.

Luna ceased her tempo and moved a knight forward to support her bishop. It seemed like a sensible move, but then Twilight noticed something unusual. Most of the pieces on the board were focused on a single, critical spot, and this made the board very easy to read. She took a moment to do the math, and realized she had the upper hoof! Luna had made a fatal error. Twilight could force a series of trades, sacrificing all but three of her pieces, and in the process trap Luna's king. She kept analyzing the board, staring at it for several minutes in silence, but the plan still looked foolproof. It was a forced mate in seven, leaving Luna with no choices at all.

I must be wrong, thought Twilight. Luna must have an out, probably several, even though I can't see them yet. The odds of a step-by-step forced mate of this length are impossibly slim! But my choice is clear, she reasoned. Twilight moved her remaining rook right up next to Luna's king.

"Check," said Twilight. Luna calmly moved her king, taking Twilight's second rook.

"Check," said Twilight. Luna intervened with a bishop, taking Twilight's knight.

"Check," said Twilight, yet again. Luna moved her king, taking the bishop.

Three similar moves followed: check, check, and check. Finally, Twilight placed her queen adjacent to Luna's king, sacrificing her strongest piece to force Luna to move her king right up against the edge of the board, blocked on all sides by her own pawns, her bishop, and Twilight's remaining knight.

King takes queen, pawn advances, and...

"Checkmate," Twilight said in a surprised voice. It was stunning. Twilight had only her king, four pawns, and a knight remaining on the board. Luna had an army, having lost only three pawns and one bishop.

"Congratulations," said Luna.

"I don't think so. Princess, you threw the game," said Twilight.

Luna took the pencil. "Are you certain of that, Princess Twilight Sparkle?" she wrote, and passed the pencil to Twilight.

"Yes," wrote Twilight. "You could have made the fatal mistake, of course. But that ending sequence of moves—I've never seen anything like that. The odds that a board like that would develop naturally from play must be a trillion to one! The evidence is clear: you're a genius at chess, and you orchestrated the entire game so I would come from behind and win."

"Congratulations again: this time on your deduction. However, I invite you to pretend for a moment that I lost our game legitimately. Does a come-from-behind victory feel satisfying?" wrote Luna.

"Yes. Of course it does," wrote Twilight.

"Even when you must sacrifice all of your pieces to achieve it?"

"Actually, that makes it even more satisfying. It's a more dangerous strategy, and therefore more impressive. In chess, all that matters is the king. That's how the game works."

Luna smiled, but her eyes betrayed a sadness. "Of course. But how would you feel if these were your friends?" Luna levitated the ten chess pieces Twilight had lost.

"I don't understand," Twilight wrote, then quickly crossed out her words as the meaning struck her. "Is looking for answers threatening my friends? Stop playing games, and tell me!" Twilight's writing darkened as she pressed the pencil down firmly with her telekinetic magic.

"Looking for answers does not endanger your friends, I can assure you. But with your eyes opened, you may no longer be able to see them in the same way," wrote Luna. "You might feel like something terrible has happened to them, even though no change has occurred. Twilight, I must now be blunt in my warning. If you go down this path, you will no longer be able to return to the life you once knew."

"Look, you know I'll do whatever it takes to protect my friends. But stop playing games, and tell me what the buck is going on." Twilight scowled at Luna as she hoofed back the pencil.

"I am willing to tell you everything, but you must make a choice. If you choose to heed my warning, you will return to Ponyville, entreat your friends to ignore the oddities they have seen, and resume your idyllic existence of success and friendship. You and your friends will he happy and healthy, and fortune will smile upon you for the rest of your days."

"Or?" wrote Twilight.

"Or, you may choose to throw everything away, and learn the truth."

Twilight read Luna's words, and sighed. "I must assume that you know this truth, and you seem perfectly fine to me. Princess Celestia seems fine as well," wrote Twilight.

"Princess Celestia is completely unaware of the truth. I believe she may have detected the disturbances, but if she has, she has kept it to herself."

"Are you serious? Why in Equestria haven't you told her?"

"Twilight Sparkle! Have these words of mine words fallen upon blind eyes? Celestia has not had the opportunity to choose, and for this I thank the Stars. I love my sister dearly, and I want her to be happy above all else. Do you understand this concept of love, or do you not?"

Twilight paused and tapped her pencil rapidly against the paper in frustration, before writing, "Are you telling me that you, personally, would rather forget the truth you've learned?"

Luna paused a moment after taking the pencil back. "I am sorry, Twilight. I cannot answer that question," wrote Luna.

"Well why the buck not?" yelled Twilight, standing up and snapping the pencil cleanly in two. Both pieces fell onto the chessboard with a noisy clatter.

"Sit, and I will answer your question," said Luna, and Twilight sat and brooded. "I cannot tell you, because your choice is not mine to make. Twilight Sparkle, you must live with the choice you make today, and all of the consequences to follow subsequent. I cannot allow you any room in which to blame anypony other than yourself for the decision you will make."

Twilight Sparkle began to cry, and Princess Luna quickly hoofed her a silk handkerchief.

"This isn't fair," said Twilight, closing her eyes as she held the silk against them.

"I know this. I am truly sorry," said Luna. "Truly, I am."

"You already know what I'm going to choose."

"Yes. I knew this long before you arrived."

"I'll want to tell Princess Celestia the truth. Surely you know this."

"It is possible you will, yet far from certain, I think."

"Okay," Twilight sniffled, wiping tears from her cheek with an ankle and blowing her nose with the cloth. "Well... Luna, if the truth is really as bad as you say, isn't there at least a way to show me a part of it, so I can make an informed decision?"

Princess Luna smiled gently, and placed a hoof on the back of Twilight's head, propping it up. "You are wise beyond your years, Twilight Sparkle. Tonight, I shall show you a small glimpse of what lies beyond the veil. I shall enter your dreams, and there we shall observe your nightmares together. Then is when you will make your decision."

"Do you think it will change my mind?" asked Twilight.

"Neigh," said Luna.

---

Twilight Sparkle had a very hard time getting to sleep, even in the castle's palatial guest suite. Eventually she relented and took the sleeping pills that Princess Luna had given her. She drifted into slumber almost immediately.

When Twilight came to, she was lying face down in the dirt of a barren scrubland. Princess Luna stood beside her, and offered her a hoof up. Twilight stood up, coughed, and took a moment to dust herself off.

"What... what is this?" asked Twilight.

"You must tell me. It is your dream, and your memory," said Princess Luna.

Twilight looked around. The pair of alicorns stood from a high vantage point, looking down upon Appleloosa. The sun was at its zenith, and it was a very hot day.

"I remember this; this is where we negotiated the trade deal between one of the buffalo tribes and the Appleloosans. But... something's wrong," said Twilight. She looked down at her coat, her hooves, the dirt. She picked up some dust and rubbed it between her hooves. It was dirty, of course, but somehow it was too dirty.

"What is it?" asked Luna.

"This...? Princess, this is a dream? Somehow this is more real than when I'm awake," gasped Twilight. "The texture, the imagery, the smells, my voice; dear Celestia, even my hooves! The detail is, I mean it's just, completely overwhelming my senses, I can barely think..."

"Yes, my apologies. It has been quite a while since you had your true senses," said Luna. "It will take some time for you to reacclimate."

"Luna, what is wrong with me? Are my senses being dulled by some kind of magic? Is everypony in Equestria like this?" asked Twilight.

"Your senses are dulled, and everypony you know is in the same situation. But I think it is more important, at the moment, for us to watch your dream unfold," said Luna. She then pointed to a large dust cloud in the distance, one quickly encroaching upon the village.

Twilight could clearly see the enormous buffalo that constituted the stampede. She could make out Appleloosan citizens, as well, most of them lying on the roofs of buildings with guns cocked and ready. Guns? What were those? She struggled to remember. But then a familiar voice caught her attention: her own.

A dozen hooves distant stood another Twilight Sparkle and her five dearest pony friends. They didn't seem to be aware of her presence. None of them were smiling, not even Pinkie Pie, who currently wore an obnoxiously sexual burlesque outfit that made Twilight feel both strange and uncomfortable. Fluttershy was off to the side by herself, in a fetal position, softly crying.

"We've failed, girls," said the other Twilight. "I'm sorry."

"Bucking hell, Twilight," said an angry-looking Applejack. "I should be down there right now, ready to fight and die alongside my kin! We should all be down there. This is a bunch of horseshit," she said, then snorted inward and spat a thick wad onto the dusty ground in front of her.

"We're here on official business, AJ," the other Twilight responded, her voice very tired. "We represent the entire princessdom, and we're not permitted to take sides. Besides, it's not exactly a fair fight. We all know who's about to win."

"The buffalo don't deserve this," said Rainbow Dash. "They were here first, no matter what the score is now."

"And they don't understand our concept of property rights," added Rarity. "It's not like they're trying to commit a crime by using this area for religious purposes."

"Fine! I know! It's just a tremendous steaming pile of bullcrap, alright?" shouted Applejack. "Nopony's in the wrong, and ponies on both sides are gonna die anyhow. Fuck me, fuck this day... Hell, fuck all of us."

Twilight couldn't remember what many of those words meant, but they sent a frightening chill through her bones.

Pinkie Pie approached Applejack and tried to comfort her. Applejack shoved her face-down into the ground.

"Twilight, why do we need to be here anymore?" said Pinkie, picking herself up off the ground and backing away from the group. "Nopony wants to see this."

"We have to see it. Somepony on the outside of this battle needs to remember what happened on this day," said the other Twilight. "Do you think I want to watch ponies die? Besides," she said, with a deep sigh, "if something actually does go wrong, I'm not about to stand here and watch everypony in Appleloosa be massacred. If the tide swings the wrong way, we intervene and save as many villagers as we can, law be damned."

"Thank you, Twilight," said Applejack.

"Hay! What about saving the buffalo?" complained Rainbow Dash. "Anypony give a shit about their lives? These are not bad quadrupeds! They were peaceful before any of this territorial crap went down!"

"We all care about the buffalo, Dash. They'll stop aggressin' as soon as a couple have gone down," said Applejack. "I mean... they just got to. They ain't no match for firearms, they'd be crazy not to see that."

Pinkie Pie walked over to Fluttershy and cuddled up against her. "I'm not going to watch with you, Twilight. I'm sorry."

"It's okay," said other Twilight. "It's my burden. None of your girls need to see this."

"It's our burden," said Rainbow Dash. She reached out a hoof to Applejack.

Applejack growled at Dash for a moment, then sighed and bumped hooves. "Our burden," she confirmed.

Rarity stepped back a ways, then walked over to Pinkie and Fluttershy. "I... I don't think I can bear to watch either, ladies. Dear Celestia, save us all," she whispered.

The thundering dust cloud drew close to the village, and then the first shot rang out. A loud bellowing noise sounded, and the dust cloud parted; then things became a chaotic blur. Several buildings were butted hard, and two collapsed entirely. Buffalo were dropping to the ground left and right. The sounds were terrible: screams of the buffalo, screams from the stallions and mares, and crying foals who could not be soothed. One pony had been gored through the barrel and hung like a grisly trophy from a buffalo tusk; several others were trampled into broken shells. Even though they watched from a large distance, the carnage was clear and obvious: the streets on one side of the city were already stained red.

Ponies and buffalo bleed the same color, thought the real Twilight Sparkle. Then her knees buckled and she vomited over a wide patch of dusty earth.

"Stop it, please, STOP IT!" she screamed in a raspy voice, and Luna mercifully complied.

---

The two alicorns stood in an empty area with a white marble floor and a deep blue, sunless sky. Twilight immediately collapsed onto the floor.

Her body was still too detailed, so she closed her eyes. But she could hear the sound of her blood pumping as it raced through her ears; she could feel the pain of her stomach; she could sense her joints aching as her hooves ground against the smooth, cool surface of the marble. Worst of all, she could still remember every horrid little detail of what she had just witnessed.

"I am deeply sorry, Twilight," said Luna, and Twilight felt the other pony nosing gently against her throat. Slowly, Twilight stood up, and gasped as she felt Luna's warm embrace. It was surprising, and very strange, but it helped clear her mind. They held one another for what seemed like minutes. Twilight felt Luna gently kissing her neck, and her mind whirled with confusion and strange feelings. Slowly, she disengaged from the hug. Twilight stood on her own four hooves for at least a minute more before she had the strength to speak.

"Explain this," asked Twilight.

"The earlier memories you have from your time in Ponyville, and quite likely many of your memories as a foal, have been... retouched, in a manner of speaking. Your memories have been made softer, gentler. Happier," said Luna.

"I can't believe this. That was real?" asked Twilight. She sat back down against the hard marble surface.

"Yes. That was the real memory. How do you remember it?" asked Luna.

"It's, it's just so ridiculous," said Twilight, chuckling darkly. "I actually remember a pie fight. I mean, that makes no sense whatsoever, right? I guess I just never stopped to think about it. Can you even imagine? My heavenly Sun. A bucking pie fight. I thought we solved a violent crisis by throwing pies at each other. I feel... so incredibly foalish," she admitted.

Luna nodded. "Now you see the innocence you will be giving up," she cautioned.

Twilight sniffed and wiped her eyes. "Yes, but... okay. I'm overwhelmed, but I can handle it. I can take this. I still want to remember, and I still want to know who, or what, is making me forget."

Luna sighed. "Twilight, I have one final word of caution," she said. "This memory of your past only scratches the surface. Even if I helped you to remember everything with perfect clarity, you would still know nothing of the truth from which I am yet trying to protect you."

"There... you're saying there's something even worse than this?" said Twilight, her face aghast. "Worse than having such awful memories like these in the first place? I can't even imagine."

"Worse? I cannot judge that. But there is more to your situation than a few altered memories and life through a sensory fog. Do you really want to travel to a world where this makes sense, Twilight Sparkle? Are you not happy where you are?" asked Luna. Her face was sad, but almost false; like an actor reading through an emotional script for the fortieth time.

"You already know my answer," whispered Twilight.

Luna sighed. "Very well. Return to Ponyville and say your goodbyes. You shall not see your friends again for quite some time, and when next you do, I fear it will be your intent to spread this disease among them."

"And after I return?" asked Twilight.

"One week from the evening of your departure to Ponyville, you shall go to sleep as you normally do. During that sleep, your body shall cease to exist. Then we shall meet," said Luna.

"Oh. Do I need to pack anything, or is that even possible?" asked Twilight.

"It is not. Your choice has been made; all you must do is wait."

---

Twilight brought all of her close friends, including Zecora and Spike, to the next meeting of the Paranormal Society. In that meeting she revealed everything she knew: every last detail, down to the blood spatter on the streets of Appleloosa. Fluttershy cried, as did the foal, and they were comforted by the others. Cheerilee questioned whether Twilight had made the right decision, even though they both knew the schoolteacher would have done the same thing. Most ponies were afraid to ask Twilight for any more details, but everypony wished her good luck, and hoped she would return soon. Her friends promised to take care of things in her absence.

Later that week, Pinkie Pie organized a private "You're Going to Another Dimension Maybe Or Something Else Weird Could Happen Party". It ended up being a somber affair, despite Pinkie Pie's best efforts to lighten the mood. Applejack was angry, but at nopony in particular. She was mainly worried that Twilight wouldn't find any satisfying answers to return with. Spike was worried that Twilight might be in way over her head. Rarity was worried that Twilight wouldn't have a thing to wear, and Pinkie Pie was worried that Twilight wouldn't get enough to eat. Rainbow Dash was worried that Twilight would realize just how worried she actually was, and Fluttershy, well... Fluttershy was just plain worried.

On Twilight Sparkle's last night in Ponyville, Pinkie Pie stayed awake while her friend slept, up until the moment when she disappeared.

And that was that.

---

Twilight Sparkle sat on the concrete floor of Star Swirl the Bearded's vaulted and spacious laboratory beneath Canterlot Castle. The secret historical site had become little more than a tiny encampment for five ponies in hiding. She reflexively tried to fluff her wings about her, and was once again reminded that she wasn't really an alicorn princess. So instead, she pulled a dirty blanket more tightly around her scrawny legs, and drank some warm yet revolting fungal broth, as her mind attempted to process everything that had just happened to her.

It was a blur, that first bit of waking memory: the moments just before Luna had teleported her to the safety of the lab, before she would vomit the sludge from her lungs and begin to gather her senses. She could barely recall her body unceremoniously splatting against the filthy floor, the only cushioning against impact being Luna's telekinesis. She'd had just enough time and sense about her to wipe the slime from her eyes and witness Princess Luna levitate a crude wax version of Twilight Sparkle into position.

Yet even in those dawning moments, before she would take her first breath in more than ten months, Twilight had already witnessed a vision which would haunt her until the end of her days. Oddly enough, the terrible image was not the pods dangling above her: the pods containing her emaciated friends, her brother, her foal-sitter, and her mentor; the pods where each pony floated in a fantasy world where the magic of friendship and adventure would keep their slowly-beating hearts brimming with a steady supply of love upon which the changelings would feed.

It was their smiles.