The Illusion Of Sanctity *DO NOT READ YET*

A unicorn slid silently in between the trees of the dark forest, her violet mane shrouded in a black cloak. Her white coat was streaked in mud and sweat, and her normally impeccably kept hooves were caked with dirt, grime and leaves. She continued forwards doggedly, her body moving with a will all its own. Nearby, a similarly cloaked figure was moving with the same eerie silence, her pink mane bereft of its usual puffiness. Finally, above them flew a third cloaked figure, though it was cloaked instead in grey and blue, the better to hide against the sky. They gradually grew closer, converging upon a single point. The hut was still in a state of chaos, and three pairs of hoofprints were clearly visible, leading off into the trail-less Everfree.

The trio of ponies, without any sort of communication, began walking at the same time, quickly increasing their pace into a gallop, following the prints in the mud as it started to pour, fat drops of water falling from the sky. The white unicorn, unable to stand the strain on her mind any longer, plunged into the blackness of oblivion as her body continued, its eyes glazing over as it continued inexorably toward its final goal.

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At the moment, its final goal was, in fact, the two ponies and one zebra who currently sat, staring into the flickering light of a small fire. The cave roof they were sheltering under acted as a sort of funnel, continually drawing the smoke up, until it slid out of the entrance and dispersed into the sky. One of the ponies, a purple unicorn mare, was asleep, the days she spent in the forest, half-witted and dying of thirst, taking their toll as she continued to sleep like a stone. The other pony was awake, and the orange mare was conversing with the zebra in worried tones.

"So, Zecora, you're tellin' me that this is the real Equestria, and everything else we've been seeing is just one of them fancy magic tricks? I guess it's gotta be true...I mean, i can see it with my own two eyes."

Zecora nodded, then nodded again, all the while talking in her rhyming way.

"It has always been this way,

Since the start of Celestia's day.

You can see the pain running through our land

and are yet unable to take a stand...

The alicorn sisters,

they speak in whispers

of things no creature should have to hear.

Beware, for there is much to fear."

Applejack mulled the words over in her head, storing them away like a barrel of cider, then yawned.

"Well, ahm gonna hit the hay. It's been one heck of a day, and I think we all need a good sleep.

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Rainbow Dash spun, bucking the stallion in the chin with as much force as she could muster, knocking him off his hooves. Spike nearly went flying off her back, but caught hold of her mane just in time, jerking her head painfully to the side as yet more guards closed in. They were surrounded on all sides, pegasi holding them down with the threat of spears so Rainbow couldn't take off. She began to slow down, despair weighing heavily upon her. She grabbed Spike off her back, held him in her hooves, gave him a weak, half-hearted grin and threw him as hard as she could. Then she quietly drew herself up, waiting for the inevitable.

The despair suddenly began to weigh less.

She could feel it flowing out, the space it occupied being filled by something else, something...different. A light feeling, that made her feel as though she were flying while her hooves were still rooted to the earth. She struggled for some seconds to recall what the feeling was called as the Canterlot guards closed in on her, when it made itself clear in her mind. The feeling was the feeling of freedom. Then once again it changed, turning into a feeling of white-hot power, a feeling of distilled rage, mingled with bliss, and rolled into a bundle with hope, hatred and sadness. An entirely new feeling, implacable, unnameable, and filling her with energy. She began to feel as though she would turn to ash, and yet the feeling continued to rise. Her eyes shut. She could take no more.

At that moment, a word sprang unbidden into her mind, racing up her throat and out of her mouth as she shook from the strain of the energy.

"SPECTRA!"

The feeling rushed out as quickly as it had came, condensing into shafts of rainbow light around her, pulling them forward, condensing them into a ball of every color which suspended in front of her. Not knowing why she did it, she stepped forward and punched the orb with all her strength. it cracked, and suddenly a blast of light, not dissimilar to a sonic rainboom in appearance, burst forth from the light, the ball flying into a million shards as a dome of pure rainbow power expanded around her, blasting the guards, simply vaporizing them where they stood.

As the smoke cleared, Rainbow Dash looked around, seeing only empty armor and discarded weapons. She looked to the sky, rubbing her eyes as it began to flicker, and the mountains around her began to swim. The pegasus staggered, tottered and finally pitched forward, her consciousness fading like a candle flame.

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"Hey, Bonbon! I'll be in Manehattan for a few days. There's a new harp that I'm going to buy!"

"Alright, Lyra! I'll see you then!"

As the green unicorn walked out the door, she nonchalantly slipped a dark green cloak into her saddlebags, making sure it was properly hidden. She had no wish for others to learn of her "night job". She set out at a brisk trot for the Everfree, making for the path near Fluttershy's cottage, which was suddenly and inexplicably vacant. The animals were being fed by a new pony in town, a unicorn filly a little older than Applebloom, named Larksong. Her cutie mark was a songbird, and she could charm animals, other ponies, even trees, into helping and obeying her by singing to them. She was a definite cause for worry for Lyra. She often stared suspiciously, sometimes snooping about for rumors. Lyra didn't get where she was from being careless. It was possible that the filly could be a Lokisian, thought the mare, and stayed well clear of the cottage as she trotted into the dark forest.

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The Princess of the Night sighed as the moon slipped over the horizon, ushering in the dawn. She retired to her chambers in the castle, casting three Lunar-magical locks upon the door to ensure she was undisturbed. When she was sure she was alone, she sank down upon her bed, sighing heavily. Though the goal was of utmost importance, her sister's tactics worried her. Mind control spells were of the highest level of forbidden magics, and the cruel freedom of mind she had left with her subjects was most unlike Tia. For the first time since Equestria's inception, Luna began to doubt.

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Among the creatures of this world, some are born with the innate ability to see through the Lie from the day they are born. Named after the ancient Horse god of tricks and lies, they are known as Lokisians. They present the greatest threat to the Princess' rule, as they know all of their deceits related to Equestria, and due to their exposure to the magic, can sense where magic has tampered with the world. Unicorns are the most common Lokisians among ponies, due to the magical nature of the affliction