The Maze

Chapters

Chapter 1: The Tomb
Chapter 2: The Monster
Chapter 3: Two Sisters
Chapter 4: The Exit
Chapter 5: The Hospital
Chapter 6: Drawing Sticks

Chapter 1: The Tomb

“So…” Scootaloo turned to her friends and furrowed her brow. “How does this thing work again? I mean I get that it’s magic and all, but what exactly does it do?”

The Cutie Mark Crusaders sat inside their clubhouse, staring into an oval mirror. It didn’t appear too special – it was about half a metre high, had a silver frame, and looked exactly like the kind of leaf-decorated thing one could find in their grandparents’ attic. Save for the dust and rust, perhaps.

“Well, I ain’t rightly sure.” Apple Bloom tilted her head and matched gazes with her reflection. “I mean the vendor didn’t tell me much in the first place. And the note ain’t sayin’ a lot either.” She tapped her hoof on a piece of paper.

Sweetie Belle sighed. “I still don’t think stealing it was a good idea.”

“Come on, Sweetie Belle,” Scootaloo said. “We were over this like a dozen times already! What do adventurers do?”

Sweetie’s eyes shifted to the side. “Lots of stuff.”

“And what do they do in most stories?”

“Take magical artefacts from evil ponies; I know.” Sweetie sprawled her hooves on the floor and pouted at the mirror. “It just feels bad to steal from a shop.”

“An evil shop.” Apple Bloom nudged her in the side. “Don’t forget that part. Or do you think sellin’ things like that stupid Alicorn amulet is okay? Besides we’re givin’ it back later, after we get our cutie marks.”

“I guess,” Sweetie said, and sighed again. “I just wish there was a better way to get them.”

“Hey, it’s not like we didn’t try.” Scootaloo frowned at her. “Basement exploration and pantry raiding didn’t work, though, and it was you who didn’t want to go into the Everfree forest.”

Apple Bloom shook her head. “I didn’t want to go in there either, remember? Zecora is as far as you’ll get me – I’m all for gettin’ our cutie marks, but I ain’t too keen on getting petrified by a cockatrice. One time was enough.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “Let’s just get on with it. I sure hope you’re both right about this, though. I’m not going back there again to get a better piece just because your lame mirror couldn’t cut it.”

“Hey!” Apple Bloom said, her brows clashing together. “I chose it because it was the only thing there I knew at least somethin’ about! I only stopped by that tiny village with Applejack for a little while, and she dragged me off before I could get a proper tour. Be glad I remembered the way back to it.”

“You could have at least grabbed some sword or something. Who’s ever heard about an adventurer hauling mirrors on her back?”

“Hey! If you’re so smart, why don’t you…”

Sweetie coughed and waved the paper in her hoof. “Can we just get started, girls? Please?”

“Sure.” Scootaloo shot the mirror an ugly look. “Sorry, Apple Bloom; I just really hope it works.”

Apple Bloom smiled and gave Sweetie Belle a small nod.

Sweetie brought the paper to her eyes and furrowed her brow. “The Mirror of False Vision. To use the mirror, say the phrase and stare deep inside of it.” The letters of the magical formula were written in an ugly, spiky scrawl, as if somepony deliberately tried to make it look more mysterious. Needless effort – the words were so foreign that their pronunciation alone was a mystery of its own.

“Cermin madubi, wazi malinaw?” She cocked her brow. “Well, that’s what it says anyway.” Her stare dug into the mirror’s surface.

At first, she only saw her reflection stare back at her. Her mane was kind of messy. Then, the image began to ripple and change. “Girls, I see... I think it’s our schoolyard.”

Their heads bobbed over each of her shoulders, leaning as close to the silver glass as possible. “I don’t see anything,” Scootaloo said.

“Well, I guess it only shows for the one who was sayin’ the magic phrase.”

“Shh!” Sweetie frowned at them and turned back to the mirror. “Oh, there’s me! And somepony else... pink coat... oh. Diamond Tiara.” She rolled her eyes. “We’re standing next to each other, talking... I bet we’re arguing. Now I turned to her and...” Sweetie’s face flushed as she saw herself putting her hooves around Diamond Tiara’s head. Then she pressed her into a kiss. “This mirror’s a liar!”

“Well, duh!” Scootaloo smirked and pushed herself in front of the artefact. “It’s the Mirror of False Vision; of course it’ll show some nonsense! Cermin madubi, wazi malinaw.”

Sweetie looked behind, at her flank. “I didn’t even get that cutie mark. Stupid mirror!”

Scootaloo made space for Apple Bloom, her face just as flushed as Sweetie’s. “Y-yeah. It’s dumb!”

Apple Bloom said the magic words and turned to them. “I don’t get it. It’s showin’ me and my parents. What did you girls get?”

“Chicken,” Scootaloo said and looked away. “I won’t say more than that.”

Apple Bloom snickered. “Are you sure it’s showin’ wrong things? Sounds pretty accurate to me.” The glare Scootaloo shot her turned the next giggle into a chortle. “Anyway. What about you, Sweetie?”

“I don’t want to talk about it!”

“Yeah...” Apple Bloom said, her shoulders sagging. “Maybe it’s because the vendor was on a lunch break? It didn’t even feel like a real adventure.”

“That’s because it wasn’t!” Scootaloo shoved the mirror aside. “I’m telling you from the start – we have to find something real! Like a dungeon. Or some beast’s lair! Or at least destroy the thieves’ guild... if there was one.” She put her forelegs around both their necks and pulled them closer. “You get what I mean? Something heroic! Something ponies will sing about for ages to come!”

Sweetie squirmed out of Scootaloo’s embrace. “All those things sound dangerous.”

“Well, duh!” Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “Adventuring is dangerous. That’s why none of our attempts worked – we’ve been playing it safe.”

“I’m still not going into the Everfree,” Sweetie said. “There’s nothing heroic about aimlessly stumbling around the forest, hoping we won’t end up eaten. That’s just plain stupid!”

Scootaloo furrowed her brow and tapped her chin, slowly nodding. “Point taken. But there are other places we could go.”

“Such as?” Apple Bloom kept glancing in between the mirror and her flank. “Maybe we should go snatch a sword, like you said.”

Scootaloo shook her head. “No way. We’ve been too cautious for too long – an adventurer needs to take risks. I mean bravery is like a pre-requisite for this cutie mark.”

“And where would you want to go?” Sweetie asked. “There aren’t any dangerous places around Ponyville save for the forest, as far as I know.”

“Well... uhh...” Scootaloo rubbed her chin. “I don’t know of any exact place, but I bet Twilight has a book about it.”

“No kiddin’. She’s got a book about everythin’! But why would she lend us somethin’ like that?”

Scootaloo grinned. “Come on, you know her. She’ll be so excited that we want to read something that she won’t ask. And even if she did, we’ll just say it’s for a school project. Say we need a book about some ruins – ruins are pretty dangerous, right?”

“Well... alright. If it’s really the only way… But no Everfree! I promised Rarity, remember?”

“Yeah, yeah. Let’s go!”

———

The wind howled among the twisted trees of the Everfree forest as the trio approached a circle of eroded rocks.

“I don’t like this place,” Sweetie said, casting wide-eyed glances at her surroundings. This was the exact kind of place she feared she’d end up in when Scootaloo came up with this cutie mark idea.

“You said you won’t go into the Everfree Forest, and this is next to it. Don’t be a chicken!”

Apple Bloom giggled. “You’re the one to talk, Scoots.”

“Cut it out already!”

“Don’t be such a wuss.”

Sweetie trotted to a stone slab in the ground. The surroundings boulders were mostly weathered, crumbled-down remains of what used to be pillars, and the stone itself, while probably rectangular in the past, was now nothing but an oval, scratched piece of rock. Whatever structure used to stand there, time and elements ruined it beyond recognition. “The entrance is supposed to be under it, right?”

Scootaloo nodded. “We get in and start an awesomely cool adventure! Real adventure!”

“Uh... I ain’t tryin’ to shoot down your hopes or anythin’, Scoots, but...” Apple Bloom trotted forth and tapped on the stone. “How are we supposed to get under that thing?”

Scootaloo froze and looked at the enormous rock again. “Didn’t the book say how?”

“Not a word.”

“Uhh...” She shot them a sheepish smile. “I... guess I didn’t think of that. Can’t Sweetie levitate is away with her magic?”

“Sure.” Sweetie rolled her eyes. “Just like you can blow it away with your wings. It’s massive!” The corners of her mouth twitched up. “What a shame. I guess we’ll have to find some other way to get our marks. I vote for exploring Rarity’s attic!”

“Come on.” Scootaloo scratched the back of her head and laughed. “We’re not going to leave now, right? M-maybe it just needs a... a magic phrase!”

“Yeah...” Apple Bloom said. “I don’t think that—”

“Hocus pocus, abracadabra!”

“As I was sayin’, I don’t think that—”

The ground shook. With loud screeching, the stone began to move. It was slow at first, pushing away the dirt in front of it, and then it got faster. After but a few seconds, it slid away completely, revealing a dark hole with stairs leading down.

Apple Bloom winced. “Really now?”

“Come on, girls. Let’s go!” Scootaloo waved her hoof and set off, disappearing into the hole.

“I really don’t like this,” Sweetie said, peering into the darkness.

Apple Bloom patted her on her back. “Calm down. I bet there’s nothin’ there anyway; it’s just some old ruin.”

“Spooky old ruin.”

Apple Bloom giggled. “Adventurers need to be brave – it’s good it looks scary! You saw for yourself that somethin’ easy ain’t goin’ to cut it. Come on, it’ll be fun.” She followed after Scootaloo.

“Well, if you say so...” Sweetie took a deep breath and trotted down the stairs as well.

The inside of the tomb was dim, but the entrance let enough light through for them all to see, after their eyes had adjusted. As far as ruins went, this one looked rather ordinary – crumbling walls covered with moss, floor was made of dirt, dust everywhere... There was, however, a hallway leading from the room, its destination hidden in the dark. Judging by the width of it, this place could be massive.

“Alright, ready for adventure you two?” Scootaloo’s wings buzzed and her face stretched into a wide grin. “Finally a cutie mark worthy of our flanks! We’ll get them this time – I can feel it.”

“Yeah!” Apple Bloom shouted.

“I guess.”

“Great!” Scootaloo clapped her hooves together. “Onwards then!” She marched into the darkness ahead, vanishing from their view in a matter of seconds. “Hurry up, Sweetie! You gotta light the way.”

Sweetie shuddered and lit up her horn. It sure didn’t look ‘fun’ so far. Still, a stroll through an old, empty ruin was well worth a cutie mark. She took a deep breath, clenched her teeth, and trotted onwards.

The passage’s width didn’t sit well with Sweetie. She wasn’t that good at controlling her magic yet, and her horn’s light didn’t reach the walls. It was like they were alone in a vast, dark room, where a monster could leap at them from any direction.

“Oh hey,” Apple Bloom said. She pointed somewhere in front of them. “I think I’m seein’ light ahead.”

“What?” Sweetie leaned forward, squinted, and saw a small, orange dot in the distance that seemed to pulse and change colours between red and yellow.

“Sweet! It’s finally getting interesting.” Scootaloo brushed past Sweetie, walking to the edge of the illuminated area.

As the dot got closer and bigger, the air changed – it no longer smelled of old moss and mould; it was fresh and chilly, like taking a walk through the Ponyville park at night.

Sweetie stopped. “I... I think we should go back.”

“What? Why?” Scootaloo asked, turning her head and frowning.

“It feels like we’re outside... but it’s so dark! It’s hours till sundown, and it’s so quiet. Don’t you think it’s weird?”

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “You’re just scared.”

“W–well, duh! We’re walking through an old ruin right next to the Everfree forest. Of course I’m scared!”

“Come on, Sweetie. There’s nothin’ to be afraid of; it’s empty.” Apple Bloom smiled at her and laid her hoof on Sweetie’s side.

“And how do you know that?” Sweetie shook the hoof off. “Explain why the air is different! Or... or what that dot is and why is it in an ancient ruin.”

“No idea,” Scootaloo said, her eyes as bright as gemstones in the sunlight. Everything that made Sweetie Belle feel uncomfortable seemed only to bolster the her friend’s excitement. “But that’s exactly what’s cool about adventuring! Figuring this stuff out.”

“But you know, if you don’t feel like goin’ with us...” Apple Bloom shrugged and continued trotting forward. “We can make it to the light ourselves. You can just turn around and go back.”

“Wait w— Oh!” Scootaloo’s eyes widened as a big grin snuck onto her lips. “Yep. Exactly. Just wait for us in Ponyville. We’ll tell you all about how we got our awesome cutie marks once we get back.”

Sweetie bit her lip and watched as the darkness absorbed them. She was no coward, but she wasn’t the bravest of ponies either, and this whole business gave her a very bad feeling in her gut. It wasn’t that any of this was particularly scary – it’d been two years since she overcame her fear of the dark – but this place was so close to the Everfree, and once some rabid monster living here jumped at them, it would be too late to turn back. Not to mention how convenient it was for the entrance to magically open up and the fact this ruin was important enough to make it into a book. Sure, it was just one paragraph, but it did say to avoid this place. Exactly the reason why Scootaloo couldn’t resist picking it.

Then again, maybe this really was just some empty old ruin sealed by a magical rock so that no monsters could get in, opening up only to ponies. Maybe the air came from some lone hole leading to the forest above them, and the orange dot was just a piece of orange glass that reflected her own light. And even if there was a monster somewhere in there, what kind of a friend would she be if she let them battle it on their own?

She shuffled her hooves for a while longer, took a deep breath, and galloped onwards. “Girls, wait up!”

As she neared, the dot grew into a ball, and the ball took the form of a burning stick stuck in the ground. Her friends were nowhere to be seen.

They sure didn’t waste any time.

Sweetie harrumphed and glanced at the torch. A piece of wood covered with some cloth at the top – nothing interesting, apart from the fact that it found its way into an ancient crypt and kept burning regardless of time. Assuming somepony didn’t place it there right before they’d arrived, of course.

She furrowed her brow and looked around. It was just as dark as before, but the torch’s light revealed what her horn couldn’t: there were no walls. Instead, she stared at a dense barrier of trees, brambles, and thorny bushes that seemed to dare anypony to go and try their luck at getting through them. Somehow, she must’ve gotten into a forest, and somehow, it was dark even though it was noon about three or four hours ago.

Not even the Everfree is this dark.

Creepy things like this were exactly why she didn’t want to go in here. She should just turn around and go back home. Surely there were better ways to get an adventuring cutie mark than this. She could bring Rarity and Twilight and others along; they would take care of any monsters, find her friends, and Twilight would probably be happy to explore for a bit.

Sweetie took a few steps past the torch. There was no way she was leaving her friends alone in this, even for a while.

Four paths lead from where she was – every other direction was completely blocked by the trees and thorns. The ones to her left and right were nearly overgrown and, while they were theoretically possible to walk on, Sweetie doubted her friends would pick them. They wanted an adventure, not a tedious journey full of scrapes and bruises. Which left the one she came by, and the one forward.

She shivered and walked straight ahead.

“Girls?”

The pathway was significantly narrower than the hall from before, and Sweetie had to take care to avoid getting scratched by the thorns jutting from every direction. Not that she was particularly successful.

Soon, the torch disappeared from her view, and everything she could see bathed in her green aura. She strained her ears for any sounds, but didn’t hear anything save for the whistling of wind among the branches. Still, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom couldn’t have gotten far.

“Girls? I–I’m here.” No response. Sweetie frowned and moved onwards. They should hear her by then – how much of a head start could they get in that short while?

One moment she was avoiding a particularly nasty-looking thorn, the next she stood in a clearing, staring at a large fountain right in front of her. It poured strange, glowing water that lit up the entire area and easily outshone her horn.

Sweetie trotted closer. Why would such a thing be there? Who built it? How was it still working, and why did it glow? She cocked her brow and tilted her head to the side. Her friends must’ve already been through here, else she’d see them. How did they handle it?

In stories, these places were either really good, or really evil. There was no in-between with magical water. If she drank it, she could get really powerful, or she could drop dead.

She smacked her lips. In the stories, evil water was also usually all dark and creepy, right? Sure, it looked pleasant sometimes to fool adventurers, but they always got some sort of a warning first; it wouldn’t be fair otherwise. All that meant that this fountain was probably, no, definitely safe. Plus, she could use some refreshment. She wouldn’t be reckless; she would just dip her tongue in it to see if it’s safe… Sweetie’s front leg hit something as she approached and sent it rolling on the ground.

She shook her head and bent over. An unlit torch, similar to the one she saw earlier, lay next to the fountain. Before she had the time to ponder it, she heard a sound. It was obscured by the trickling of water, but it was unmistakably there, as of somepony trying to hold back laughter.

She looked back at the fountain and shook her head again. Why did it look so appealing? Probably because it was. Still, better check out that sound before she guzzled down as much of it as she could.

Sweetie crept to the opposite side of the fountain and froze. A figure huddled in the shadows there, its back turned to her.

“Uh... hello?” Sweetie took a step forward.

There was definitely some sort of laughter. It was rather quiet, somewhere between a chuckle and a giggle, but there was no way it could be anything else.

Sweetie’s horn light landed on the pony and showed orange fur and purple mane. “Scootaloo?” She breathed out and trotted in front of her. “Scootaloo, I—”

Scootaloo’s eyes were wide and bloodshot, and her mouth was stretched into an unnaturally wide grin. “Sweetie! How are you?”

“Uh... Why—”

“Why are you laughing, Scootaloo? Drink from the fountain and you’ll be grinning too!” Scootaloo’s left eye twitched.

Sweetie looked the glowing water again. It no longer looked so appetizing. “Are you alright?” she asked, turning back to her.

“Is the sky yellow and the water blue?”

Sweetie scratched her head. “Uh...”

“I’m righter than a bent corkscrew!” She jumped up and pulled Sweetie into a hug, whispering in her ear: “What about you? Still afraid some ghost will do a ‘boo’?” She giggled.

Sweetie pushed her away and scowled. “Stop acting like this!”

“Then what should I do? Behave like the pegasus that never flew? The advantages of that are meagre and few.” Scootaloo winked at her.

“I don’t care.” Sweetie looked at her with her eyes narrowed. “Just start acting normal again.”

For a fraction of a second, Scootaloo frowned before returning to her abnormal grinning, and slowly nodded. “If you wish to reject the new then I will prematurely end this debut, but my return will soon be due. Until then, I wish luck to the both of us two.”

She bowed and her smile vanished as she shook her head and rubbed her eyes. “Wha...? Uh... Sweetie?” She blinked a few times. “S–sorry. I don’t know what came over me.” She started massaging her mouth. “Don’t drink that water. It’s... weird.”

“I figured,” Sweetie said, and pulled her off the ground. “Are you alright?”

“I... think I am now. Thanks,” Scootaloo said, frowning. “I could see and hear everything, but... it just wasn’t me, you know? I kept thinking weird things, doing weird stuff, talking funny... And what the hay is a ‘debut’? Just don’t ever drink that stuff.”

Sweetie nodded and looked around the clearing. “Where did Apple Bloom go? Did she drink it too?”

“Oh. Her.” Scootaloo scowled. “No.” She pointed at a nearby path. “She said she’s heard something and that she’ll only be gone a sec. I wanted to follow her, but first I took a sip.” Scootaloo gave her a sheepish smile. “You saw how that turned out.”

“At least you’re fine now,” Sweetie said. She returned the smile, turning towards the path. “She said she’d be right back? How long ago was that?”

“Two minutes. Or was it five?” Scootaloo furrowed her brow. “I’m not sure.”

“That’s not that long. But maybe we should go after her just in case.” Sweetie waited for Scootaloo to nod and trotted towards the passage.

Chapter 2: The Monster

It had only been five minutes, yet Sweetie Belle’s face was already contorted into a deep scowl. Each step she took meant another stab from a thorny vine or a twig pulling at her mane, and it looked like she had many more ahead of her still. She gritted her teeth and broke off a small branch blocking her way. “Do you see her anywhere?”

“I don’t see anything.” Scootaloo struggled forward and squeezed next to Sweetie Belle. “Slow down; I don’t have a glow stick strapped to my forehead.”

“Watch it!” Sweetie Belle cried, wincing as the thorns dug into her coat now that her friend crowded her against them.

“Oh hey.” Scootaloo pointed ahead. “A crossroad.”

Sweetie Belle took a few steps forward and saw it too – the path ahead split off to the left and to the right. “Where to?”

“No ideaaactually, I think we should go to the right.”

“Why right?”

“Because...” Scootaloo furrowed her brow. “Because... I don’t know. I just feel like we should. Call it a hunch.”

“A hunch?” Sweetie Belle asked, cocking her brow.

Scootaloo rolled her eyes and drew out a long, growly sigh. “Look, do you have a better plan? We can go left if you want, but it’s as good a guess as going my way.”

“Fine,” Sweetie Belle said, sighing. “Right it is. I just hope we don’t end up lost.”

“No worries. I’m good at orientation. Besides, Apple Bloom can’t be far now. Let’s go!” She waved her hoof and turned right.

———

‘A hunch’, my flank! She’s just trying to look like she knows where she’s going.

Sweetie Belle frowned and, for about the twentieth time, quickened her pace when Scootaloo told her to hurry up.

They must’ve gone through at least a dozen crossroads by then, and Scootaloo trotted through each of them without as much as a second of hesitation. Always talking about how they’re getting closer to Apple Bloom, always saying that she must be just one more crossroad ahead.

“I’m coming!” Sweetie Belle said, groaning as she saw yet another junction. “Are you sure this is the way Apple Bloom went? You said she just wanted to check something near the clearing. We’ve been walking for nearly half an hour!”

Scootaloo’s face split into a grin. “What is near one minute can be far the next.”

“What?”

“Never mind. Come this way.” She turned and walked to the left.

Sweetie Belle shook her head and looked around. Whether Scootaloo was really getting those hunches – something Sweetie Belle heavily doubted by then – or just trying to look confident by storming heedlessly into the nearest opening, it hardly made a difference. The maze looked the same everywhere. It didn’t matter if they went right, left, or forward. They always ended at yet another crossroad, lined by yet more trees and thorny bushes. She was pretty sure that even if they found Apple Bloom by some miracle, they wouldn’t be able to find their way back anyway.

She took a step towards Scootaloo and stopped. Not everything was the same after all, it seemed.

The bushes in the ‘wall’ to her right were much smaller than their regular counterparts, and there were bigger gaps between the trees. What was more, she thought she saw a flash of light among the branches.

“Scootaloo?”

“Yeah? What is it?” Scootaloo looked back, frowning. “The more we dawdle around, the longer it’ll take us to find Apple Bloom.”

“What’s there?” Sweetie Belle pointed at the opening.

“There?” Scootaloo waved her hoof and turned back forward. “Nothing. Just trees. Don’t go there.”

“I think I saw something.” Sweetie Belle stepped over the thorns and bushes and fought her way forward through the undergrowth. Light usually meant good news, right? Well, perhaps save for glowing water. Still, almost anything was better than more plodding through that stupid maze.

“I told you not to go there!” Scootaloo said, groaning, as she went after her.

The walk was strangely easy for Sweetie Belle – the branches blocking her path were few in number, and the bushes she stomped over were small and sickly, their thorns about as sharp as the edge of a butter knife. Nice change.

Scootaloo, on the other hoof, wasn’t so fortunate. The way she chose, while being the shortest, was full of protruding roots, bushes extending their pointy twigs from every direction, vines hanging from the branches, forming entire drapes in front of her… For every step she took, Sweetie Belle made four.

“It’s getting brighter. I think I see... Wow.” Sweetie Belle passed the treeline and gaped.

She stood in front of a marble building, at least ten meters high, that was etched from top to bottom with enormous crystals and gems. The jewels shone as bright as the sun, producing coloured light like some sort of rainbow factory and bathing Sweetie Belle and her surroundings in a multitude of hues. A small, stone path led to the structure’s door, lined by pools of crystal-clear water on each side.

“Don’t go there, Sweetie Belle!”

Sweetie Belle turned around and saw Scootaloo entangled in the vines like a mummy. “Why not? It sure beats trudging aimlessly through the forest. Plus, maybe we’ll find something that’ll tell us more about this place.” She trotted onto the path with a smile.

Upon closer inspection, what she took for a doorway turned out to be one of the many carved ornaments, and the structure seemed to be just an enormous, decorated boulder. Rather disappointing. There was, however, something protruding from it.

“Don’t touch it!” Scootaloo had finally managed to rip herself from the treacherous foliage and stood at the beginning of the path, pacing on its edge.

The protrusion was a small, round, brown box made of some metal. Nothing too special about it, apart from the fact it was stuck inside a stone slab that was part of a strange structure inside a mysterious maze that was hidden under an ancient ruin.

Sweetie Belle tapped on it. “It doesn’t do anything.”

“Great. Come back now!”

“I’ll try taking it. Maybe there’s something inside.” Sweetie Belle put her hooves on its sides and pulled. It slid out with ease. “Oh hey. It’s pretty sma—”

The ground rumbled.

“Come back! Run!”

“O-okay.” Sweetie Belle shoved the box into her mane – not the most secure of places, but it had to do, seeing how she had nowhere else to put it – and ran onto the walkway.

The ground rumbled again, and the entire structure leaned to its side. The bottoms of the pools cracked open, and the ground around the path began to crumble. Then, with a deafening crack, the structure collapsed into itself, revealing the opening maw of an enormous chasm.

“Hurry up!”

The tremors made Sweetie Belle stumble. “I’m trying!” She sped forward, the stones behind her falling down one after another. Her hocks were already hovering over the abyss underneath, and she was barely halfway.

She forced herself to move faster but kept only centimetres ahead. It was as if the path had quadrupled in length. “I... I can’t... I...”

“Just hurry up!” Scootaloo jumped up and down, her wings buzzing, and waved at Sweetie Belle to come closer. “Faster! Come on!”

Scootaloo seemed a bit nearer, but the stones then started crumbling right from under Sweetie Belle’s back hooves. She was jumping from the already falling boulders onto the more stable ones.

“Help me!” She stared at the crumbling path ahead, every glimpse of the darkness underneath sending a shiver down her spine. Did those stones just start falling faster? She looked back up.

“I don’t know how to help you!” Scootaloo glanced in between Sweetie Belle and the road’s remains. “You have to jump!”

Sweetie Belle was only a decent leap away from safety now, and her hind legs propelled her with all the strength she could muster. She flew through the air, the path under her crumbling entirely, and extended her hooves towards her friend.

Time slowed down. She saw Scootaloo reach towards her, their hooves mere inches apart, and stretched her forelegs as far as she could. Scootaloo was nearing, but so was the abyss underneath. With one final jerk, Sweetie Belle strained her sinews to their maximum and gained a few more millimeters.

It wasn’t enough.

Nononononono!

Her pupils dilated as the darkness filled her vision, and she squeezed her eyes shut, focusing on her horn. If she could just levitate herself…

Green aura surrounded both of her front legs. The falling ended with a painful yank.

“Huh?” She opened her eyes on a crack – she wasn’t falling anymore. “It... it worked? It actually—”

“How about you stop admiring the view and climb up?” Scootaloo asked, dangling from the ledge above with one hoof and holding Sweetie with the other.

“Scootaloo?”

“Sorry to rush you, but...” She clenched her teeth. “I won’t last much longer if you don’t help!”

Sweetie Belle nodded, grabbed at Scootaloo’s coat with her other hoof, and started climbing up. It took a few minutes, but after a plethora of curses – from Scootaloo – and apologies – from Sweetie Belle – she finally rolled onto the firm ground and pulled her friend up.

“How... How were...” Sweetie Belle took a deep breath and wiped sweat from her forehead. “How were you so quick?”

Scootaloo rolled her eyes and looked away, dusting off her coat. “I’m always quick.”

“But you were still standing on the ledge when I started falling; it’s impo—”

“I told you not to touch that box!”

Sweetie Belle blinked. “The box!” Her hoof sprung towards her mane. “It’s still there.” She smiled and pulled it out.

“Do you have any idea how lucky you—”

“Oh look. It’s not a box!” Sweetie Belle flipped it around, showing a red magnetic needle and earning another glare from Scootaloo. “It’s a compass!” She lifted it to her eyes. “I think. Maybe. It’s weird.”

“Are you even listening to me?”

“I think it’s broken.”

Scootaloo groaned and stood up. “I’ll try to find a path back.”

“The needle just keeps spin— Wait up!”

Scootaloo spun around, scowling. “Why? It didn’t look like you needed my help finding the way here. I’m sure you know the best way back too!”

“Sorry for not listening,” Sweetie Belle said, bowing her head. “But... it worked out in the end, right?”

“Yeah, because nearly falling to your death was totally worth it.” Scootaloo shook her head. “Next time, just do as I say, okay?”

“Okay.” Sweetie Belle’s ears drooped as she followed Scootaloo back to the crossroad.

“The needle just won’t stop spinning,” she said as they got back onto the path. “How am I supposed to do anything with it?”

Scootaloo shrugged. “I guess you just risked your life for useless trash.”

“I guess...” Sweetie Belle frowned and put the compass back in her mane, wrapping a strand of hair around it. “I hoped it could help us with finding Apple Bloom. No luck, it seems.”

“Yep. Rubbish,” Scootaloo said, turning her muzzle up and away from Sweetie Belle.

“Oh, come on! I’m sorry, alright? Stop being mad at me.”

Scootaloo sighed and her mouth broke into a small smile. “It was getting hard being angry at you anyway. Just stick to me and don’t wander off like before, and we’ll find Apple Bloom in no time. But when I tell you to do something, you do it. Okay?”

Sweetie Belle nodded and pressed on through the overgrown passages. It wasn’t like she was planning on getting off-path again; not after this disaster.

For a while, the only sound was of their hooves thudding against the ground and of dead branches rustling in the wind.

“Hey, Scootaloo?”

“Yeah?” Scootaloo peered ahead, pushing a stray branch out of the way.

“You said you just have a hunch that Apple Bloom is this way, right?”

“So?”

“It’s just that...” Sweetie Belle bit her lip. “Having a hunch once or twice is normal, but we’ve turned dozens of times and... well... it isn’t normal. Are you sure this is the right way?”

“Not normal, huh?” Scootaloo grinned. “Let’s just say it’s a bit more than just a hunch.”

“What is it then?”

“It’s like… Like every time we get to a crossroad, I just know which way to go. No idea why; I just do. But hey, if it tells us how to get through...”

“I... suppose we shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

“Exactly!” Scootaloo turned back to scanning the path ahead.

Sweetie Belle scratched her head. “How will we get out of the maze once we find Apple Bloom? Will you get these hunches again?”

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “How in Equestria would I know something like that? I don’t have a map on me; it’s just a feeling that comes and goes.”

“Then how do you know we’re going to Apple Bloom and not towards some horrible monster?”

Scootaloo stiffened mid-step. “I... Well... I mean I... Gah!” She scowled at her. “I don’t know, okay? But if you’ve got a better plan, just go ahead and lead instead!”

Sweetie Belle’s ears folded back. “Sorry I asked.”

Scootaloo shook her head and turned towards her. “I’m just tired of you constantly doubting me! We shouldn’t go inside the ruin, I don’t think we should follow the light, there’s gotta be a better way than that, I think we should go off the path and nearly get killed because of a broken compass...” She jabbed her hoof into Sweetie Belle’s chest. “I’m not perfect, okay? But at least I do more than just whine, complain, and put us in danger!”

Sweetie Belle recoiled. “That’s not fair... I helped you with the water thing.”

“And I helped you when you nearly fell to your death! And what did you do? You complained that it was ‘impossible’. Well, sorry for catching you!”

Sweetie Belle took a step back. “What’s gotten into you?”

“I... I just...!” Scootaloo groaned and kicked a nearby root.

“Look, I’m sorry if I...”

Scootaloo shook her head again. “It’s fine.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.” Scootaloo took a deep breath. “Sorry. It’s just this whole situation. We’re lost, Apple Bloom is who knows where, creepy stuff happens all the time, you nearly fell down into a bottomless pit... I thought adventuring was going to be be more fun.”

“Nothing that bad happened so far.” Sweetie Belle smiled and moved next to her. “We’ll just find Apple Bloom and walk out. And who knows, we might yet get our cutie marks at the end of this.”

Scootaloo looked her in the eyes. “You really think so?”

“Sure!” Sweetie Belle grinned and trotted onwards. “I mean, if this isn’t a proper adventure, then I don’t know what is. We’ve just got to press on. Apple Bloom could be right behind the next corner.”

Scootaloo took another deep breath and followed. “You’re right. She’s gotta be somewhere. We’ll find her.”

“Exactly! There’s nothing to be afraid of. It’s just an empty old ruhmph!”

Scootaloo leapt next to her and stuck her hoof inside Sweetie Belle’s mouth.

Sweetie Belle spat it out. “Scootaloo, what the hmph!”

“Shhh!” Scootaloo scanned their surroundings, and slowly released Sweetie Belle’s mouth. “Alright,” she whispered. “Do you see that hole in the ‘wall’ there?”

Sweetie Belle squinted ahead. There really was a place about twenty steps ahead that had no trees or bushes on the path’s left side. Some sort of faint light seemed to come out of there.

“We’ve got to sneak past that quickly and quietly. Don’t ask why; we just do. This is the strongest ‘hunch’ I’ve had so far. And turn off your horn. Clear?”

Sweetie Belle nodded.

“Good. And remember – not a peep!” Scootaloo pressed herself lower and skulked forward, checking the ground with her front hoof and clearing it of any twigs before stepping on it.

Sweetie Belle’s light died, and she, with a raised brow and far lesser thoroughness, followed her friend’s lead.

The hole quickly neared, and Scootaloo’s movements grew more and more tense. When she reached the wall opening, she picked up the pace but remained quiet, accelerating to a trot and slowing down only after she was on the far side of the opening.

Sweetie Belle continued just as before, slowly pushing away anything from under her hooves. She was about halfway across when she finally got a good look at what got Scootaloo so upset. She stiffened in an instant.

The sky above was pitch-black and star-less, and the only light came from some fluorescent flowers that bathed both the hole and the clearing behind it in their bluish glow. However, that wasn’t what caught Sweetie Belle’s attention.

In the middle of the opening, showing Sweetie Belle her back, stood a white-coated mare with purple and curly mane and tail.

“Rarity?” Sweetie Belle asked in a trembling voice. What was she doing here?

Scootaloo facehoofed. “I said sneak!” she shouted in a whisper. “Speaking is the exact opposite of that!”

Sweetie Belle glanced Scootaloo’s way before turning back to the mare. “But... it’s my sister.”

The mare began turning around. It definitely wasn’t her sister. Instead of the beautiful blue eyes Rarity had, this... creature stared at Sweetie Belle with two pupil-less, onyx orbs. And while her mouth looked exactly like her sister’s, it was sewn shut.

“What have you done?” Scootaloo said, this time without whispering.

“But... But...” Sweetie Belle couldn’t force herself to look away from those eyes. They were like magnets, pulling her pupils towards themselves.

The mare didn’t move a muscle. She just stood there. Yet somehow, she was getting nearer. It was as if the ground in between them compressed itself to shorten the distance.

Sweetie Belle knew she should run away, but… a second or two longer wouldn’t hurt anypony, right?
Something grabbed Sweetie Belle by the head and forced her to turn away. Her eyes refocused, and she found herself staring at Scootaloo’s reddened face. “We’ve. Got to. Run!” Scootaloo took her hoof and started dragging her away.

“S–sure.” Sweetie Belle’s legs slowly began to move again, stiff as if she sat on them for too long. She shook her head and, in a moment, galloped right after her friend. “Whatever you do, don’t look her in the eyes!”

“I figured!”

They skidded around the next corner and ran as fast as their legs would allow.

“Did we lose her?” Sweetie Belle asked, risking a quick peek behind. The mare stood in the middle of the path, unmoving, yet the distance in between them kept shortening anyway, like somepony zoomed her in a camera’s objective. “No, we didn’t!”

“Alright,” Scootaloo said as they pressed through a particularly narrow part of the path. “I’m going to lure her away; you continue straight ahead. That’s where I think Apple Bloom is.”

“Wait, what?” Sweetie Belle’s eyes widened. “You can’t! She’ll—”

“Just run straight ahead, no matter what. I’ll find you later!” Scootaloo skidded to a halt.

“But—” Sweetie Belle slowed down.

“Run!”

She shivered and quickened her gallop.

The mare got closer and closer to Scootaloo, until she was right next to her. The scene was getting darker as Sweetie Belle got further, but the mare’s white coat shone enough for her to see how the monster turned towards Scootaloo. What happened next was anypony’s guess.

Sweetie Belle maintained the pace and sniffed. How could this be happening? Why was she even here? She should be heading to Sugarcube Corner at around this time, getting a milkshake and maybe a cupcake with her friends.

Instead, her stomach grumbled, her coat was torn by the ever-present thorns, and she must’ve looked like she had been camping in the wilderness for the last week without access to any sort of bath. Not to mention the Rarity-like monster that chased her for who knows what reason was just about to... do something to one of her best friends.

She mentally slapped herself. Scootaloo was fine! She had to be. Now wasn’t the time for what-ifs. Now she had to focus on important things, like...

Like figuring out where to go next.

She slowed to a trot as she approached another crossroad.

She said straight ahead. Straight ahead…

Sweetie Belle trotted in place and bit her lip as she looked from one path of the Y-shaped junction to another. Both roads seemed wider and more comfortable to trot on than the ones she braved before, but neither told Sweetie Belle what lay beyond. If she didn’t pick one soon, the mare could catch up to her. Assuming she was still chasing her, of course. Then again, for how long could Scootaloo possibly hold her up? Just one stare was enough to—

Sweetie Belle mentally slapped herself again. She had to figure out which way to go and fast! Or maybe it didn’t matter; maybe all that mattered was for her to just run somewhere away.

She thought she heard a stick crack behind her and spun around, the compass flying out of her mane. There was nothing there but the usual trees and bushes. Then again, her light didn’t reach far; who knew what hid in the shadows?

Okay. Okay. I need to calm down. Calm down, Sweetie Belle...

She bent over for the compass.

I really ought to put it somewhere better than my mane.

She was just about to tuck it back in, when her hoof froze. The magnetic needle wasn’t spinning anymore. In fact, it was clearly pointing at the path to the right.

Without a second to ponder it, Sweetie Belle scooped it up and galloped in that direction.

The crossroad had already vanished from her view by the time she dared to look back. The mare was nowhere in sight. Perhaps she should wait for Scootaloo, after all? She could be hurt and in need of help, or maybe she escaped and was stumbling towards Sweetie Belle, silently begging her to slow down...

She shuddered. If she waited and it was that monster, not Scootaloo, who came out of the dark, then—“Ooof!”

Sweetie Belle smashed into something, knocking the air out of her lungs, and fell on her rump.

“Sweetie Belle?” the object said in an all too familiar voice.

“Uh...” Sweetie Belle shook her head. “Apple Bloom?”

Chapter 3: Two Sisters

“...and that’s pretty much all that’s happened,” Sweetie Belle said, pushing away a branch and waiting for her friend to walk past.

Apple Bloom’s coat was covered with grime and scratches, and her mane was ruffled, like she forgot to comb it in the morning. Combined with the torch illuminating her bloodshot eyes, she looked like she just crawled out of a grave. She even lost her bow. Despite all that, however, her tone remained steady, and unlike Sweetie Belle, she still seemed full of energy.

“So... you found Scoots back at the fountain, she was rhymin’ more than Zecora, and then you just went and asked her to stop? And she did?” Apple Bloom furrowed her brow. “That sounds a bit too easy.”

“She said she took just a small sip,” Sweetie Belle said, waving her hoof. “Besides, she acted pretty normal afterwards.”

“Okay. So then she knew everythin’ about where to go, sayin’ she’s got this weird hunch, right?” Apple Bloom shook her head. “Sweetie Belle, that’s definitely that water actin’ up!”

Sweetie Belle shrugged and hung her head low. “Does it even matter anymore? That monster got her.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Of course I know that!” Sweetie Belle said, her head shooting up and her eyes digging into Apple Bloom’s. “What else could happen? You think Scootaloo just flew away? Or how else would she escape?”

Apple Bloom shook her head. “All I’m sayin’ is that Scoots ain’t a pony to give up so easily. Plus, if that water gave her a map, who knows what else she got? We shouldn’t lose hope yet.”

“I guess…” Sweetie Belle took a deep breath and managed a small smile. “So, how do we rescue her?”

“First thing first,” Apple Bloom said. She pointed at Sweetie Belle’s mane. “Can I see that compass of yours?”

“Nuh-uh.” Sweetie Belle shook her head and grinned. “First you’ve got to tell me what happened to you, or you’ll just start tinkering with it, and I’ll never know.”

“Fiiine,” Apple Bloom said, rolling her eyes. “It’s not even interestin’. Long story short, I went for a walk, looked around, tried to get back, and found out that the way I came just ain’t there anymore. Then I was just stumblin’ around, saw some weird stuff an—”

“What stuff?”

“Nothin’ important. It was just… bad and kinda scary.”

“For example?”

“There was a pile of it. Like once, I saw somethin’ that looked an awful lot like our barn back home, but it was all dark and broken.” Her head drooped. “I didn’t go in, but I still saw stuff through the window. I saw... shadows.”

“Shadows?” Sweetie Belle asked, wrinkling her brow. “What shadows?”

“Well... just one shadow, really. It looked like a pony with a stetson hat that... kinda swung in the air a little. While bein’ held by a rope. ‘Round the neck.

“Oh.” Sweetie Belle bowed her head as well. “I’m sorry.”

“Yeah.” Apple Bloom looked back up. “But I reckon it’s just some kind of nonsense. I mean I also saw a clearing where there was just a puddle of somethin’ red with large pieces of your mane around it.”

Sweetie Belle’s eyes shot wide open. “What?”

“It was pretty creepy,” Apple Bloom said, shrugging. “It’s obvious it was just somethin’ playin’ tricks on me now. No big deal.”

Sweetie Belle cocked her brow and looked at Apple Bloom’s reddish eyes. “No big deal, huh?” She chuckled as her friend scowled and turned away. “So, is that all you’ve seen?”

“Yeah. We weren’t apart for that long anyway.”

“But what did you hear when you left the fountain clearing? Did you figure that out?”

“What I heard...” Apple Bloom furrowed her brow. “Oh. Oh! That’s what I told Scoots, right?”

“Uh... Told?” Sweetie Belle tilted her head.

“I didn’t really hear anythin’. I just needed a while to cool down.”

“Cool down why?”

“She didn’t tell you?” Apple Bloom licked her lips. “You see... me and Scoots had this argument. We were both gettin’ all angry, so I figured it’ll be better if I went somewhere alone for a minute.”

“Explains why she was so irritable the whole time. What were you arguing about?”

“I ain’t tellin’ you. It was nasty, and we have better stuff to worry about. You promised me a compass, remember?” She extended her hoof.

“I suppose you can tell me later. Here,” Sweetie Belle said and levitated it towards her. “It’s kind of odd.”

Apple Bloom looked at it, moved it around, and smiled. “It’s pointin’ at me. When I move, it moves too.”

Sweetie Belle nodded. “That’s what I’ve thought. I can use it to track you down if we split apart again.” She frowned and her shoulders slouched. “Pretty useless now, though. Do you think we could find another one that would point to Scootaloo?”

“I’m not sure,” Apple Bloom said. She scratched her head. “I mean why would anypony ever make a compass that keeps pointin’ to me, of all ponies?”

Sweetie Belle shrugged. “I’ve seen weirder stuff here than that.”

“But you said it was just spinnin’ at the start.” She flipped it over several times. “There ain’t no buttons or anythin’. Why did it start pointin’ at me all of a sudden?”

Sweetie Belle shrugged again. “I haven’t the foggiest. It was pretty convenient, though. Too bad it doesn’t point at Scootaloo now. Or at least at the exit.”

Apple Bloom looked at the compass, then at Sweetie Belle, then at the compass again. She rubbed her chin and tapped on its metal frame. “What did you do?”

“What?”

“Look.” Apple Bloom pointed at the magnetic needle. It spun around, but rather than circling the dial like when Sweetie Belle found it, it moved on a small arc.

“I just said...” Sweetie Belle furrowed her brow and snatched the compass from Apple Bloom’s hooves, levitating it in front of herself. “Show us where Scootaloo is!”

The needle changed direction.

Sweetie Belle smiled. “Well, that’s one mys—Hold on.” The needle moved. Slowly, but surely. “She’s on the move.” Her eyes widened. “She must still be running from that monster!”

Apple Bloom winced. “Uh... Sweetie Belle?”

“We’ve got to move fast,” Sweetie Belle said and started pacing around. “When did we split up? About... fifteen minutes ago? She can’t keep this up for much longer.”

“Sweetie.”

“I mean I know she’s fast and everything, but this is too long, even for her! It’s a miracle she didn’t fall from exh—“

“Sweetie!” Apple Bloom stuck her hoof in front of Sweetie Belle’s mouth. “You said you saw her torch next to the fountain, right?”

“So?”

“Well, I’m just wonderin’ how she’s runnin’ if she can’t see anythin’.”

Blood drained from Sweetie Belle’s face. “But you said she wouldn’t give up. That the water...”

“I was just tryin’ to calm you down. I mean, it could happen, but it’s just a guess.”

“So you mean she’s…”

Apple Bloom nodded, her ears folding back. “Maybe she’s just been captured, though. I-I mean not every monster likes eatin’ ponies, right? M-maybe it ain’t even hungry.”

“Right!” Sweetie Belle gave her a sharp nod and looked back at the compass.

“What do we do?” Apple Bloom asked. “Follow it?”

“No,” Sweetie Belle said. She cleared her throat. “Show us where the entrance is!”

The needle changed directions again.

“Hey!” Apple Bloom snatched the compass away from Sweetie Belle and scowled. “Are you bein’ serious? We ain’t leavin’ her here!”

“Then what should we do?” Sweetie scowled back. “Gallop right to the monster’s front door? We’d just get captured too!”

“No, nothin’ like that. But that doesn’t mean we should just walk away! There’s got to be somethin’ we can do.”

“Oh? Like what? I say we get out, tell Rarity and the others all about this place, go back, and free Scootaloo. If you have a better idea, I’m all ears.”

Apple Bloom stared Sweetie Belle in the eyes a while longer before looking away. “I... guess that’s a good plan.”

“Sure it is.” Sweetie Belle smiled and reached for the compass. “Now, where to...”

———

“Show us some other way!”

“Show us the path that goes ‘round this thing!”

“Show us a different way to the entrance!”

“Start workin’ or I swear I’ll...!” Apple Bloom held her hoof above the compass as if she was about to punch it.

She and Sweetie Belle stood in front of a gigantic stone door set in a huge, gray wall. A stone door that refused to budge.

“I give up.” Sweetie Belle shook her head and sat down on a nearby rock, one of the many strewn about, leaving the compass with Apple Bloom. It kept pointing towards the gate, no matter how they phrased their request.

“There’s got to be more than just one way through! I mean, we didn’t go through no door on the way here, so why do we have to pass it on the way back?” Apple Bloom asked, shooting one last glare at the compass and throwing it to Sweetie Belle.

She caught it with her magic. “I’m pretty sure the maze changes as we go. You said that the path back disappeared after you left Scootaloo.”

“Figures,” Apple Bloom said, kicking a pebble. “Guess we’ll have to find a way through, then. Which means solvin’ that stupid thing.” She sighed and trotted to the door.

There were no handles or any other obvious way of opening it, but there was a message carved in the stone. “‘Two sisters are like...’” Apple Bloom frowned and turned to Sweetie Belle. “I ain’t good at riddles. Any suggestions?”

“A bit too many.” Sweetie Belle hopped off the boulder and joined her friend by the gate. “Do we even know how to answer it? Is there some way to write the answer there, or...?”

Apple Bloom shrugged. “We can try sayin’ it. But what?”

Sweetie Belle rubbed her chin. “There are dozens of things that could go there. Two halves of the whole, sleeves on a shirt, peas in a pod...”

An ear-splitting crack echoed throughout the maze. They both spun to its source and saw one of the stones there crumble to dust, revealing a pit underneath. They silently looked at each other and crept to its edge.

The pit was about three metres in diameter and was secured by a rusty, metal grate. The gaps between bars were so wide, however, that should either of them be careless, they could easily fall through.

Sweetie Belle stuck her horn as low as she could and squinted into the darkness. “I think I see another grate there. It must be really deep.”

Apple Bloom took a pebble and threw it in. They heard a few clangs, each of them quieter and quieter. They waited for a rattle, thud, or splash. It didn’t come.

Sweetie Belle scratched her head. “Why would anypony build something like this?”

“No idea, but...” Apple Bloom bit her lip. “I have a bad feelin’ about it. We should go back and keep on riddlin’.”

“Maybe we already guessed it right and this is a—”

A deafening roar reverberated from inside the hole, shaking the ground, followed by the putrid stench of rotten meat and creaking of metal.

Sweetie Belle turned and met Apple Bloom’s wide-eyed gaze with her own.

“This definitely ain’t no reward for solvin’ the question!” Apple Bloom galloped towards the clearing’s entrance, only to stop a second later. The entrance was no longer there, and the forest around them seemed thicker than ever. “We’re trapped!” She ran back to Sweetie Belle, yanked her up, and dragged her back to the door. “I already said I ain’t good at this stuff! So guess!”

“Uh... Umm...” Sweetie Belle winced when another roar assaulted her ears, this time much louder. “Two sisters are like... Like best friends!” She looked at the door then at Apple Bloom. “Did that wo—”

“Watch out!” Apple Bloom pushed her away moments before a large, flying rock would’ve smashed Sweetie Belle’s head. Instead, it hit Apple Bloom. She screamed, the torch falling out of her hooves, and collapsed to the ground, clutching her left hindleg.

“Apple Bloom!” Sweetie Belle rushed to her, glancing around for any other airborne boulders. Fortunately, there were none, and the leg seemed relatively undamaged. “Apple Bloom, are you alright?”

“Do I look alright to you?” Apple Bloom gritted her teeth, tears falling from her eyes. “Help me up.”

Sweetie Belle pulled her to her hooves, only for her to fall back down again when yet another roar made the ground tremble. It was louder, and so was the screeching of metal.

Sweetie Belle lifted her back up again. “Can you walk? Where did that rock even come from?”

Apple Bloom slowly lowered her injured leg, let it touch the ground, started shifting her weight, winced, and jerked it back up with a hiss. “I’ll manage,” she said, glaring at the stone that hit her. “I saw it, alright. It started flyin’, all this blue shine around it, right after you guessed. You must’ve been wrong since it aimed for you.”

“For me?” Sweetie Belle’s gaze shifted to Apple Bloom’s leg. “I’m so sorry!” She hugged and pressed her tightly to her chest.

“It’s fine.” Apple Bloom pushed her away and smiled. “But now we really oughta solve that riddle!”

As if to confirm her words, the thing in the pit roared again. Worse yet, the sound of breaking metal couldn’t have been further than a few meters from the surface.

Sweetie Belle nodded and tottered to the door. “Two sisters are like... like...” She checked the plethora of boulders surrounding them and gulped. “Like... I don’t know!” She turned to Apple Bloom, tears in her eyes. “It could be so many things! How should I know what they compared it with? And if I start guessing, we’ll just get pummelled by rocks!”

“If you don’t, that monster there will have us for dinner!” Apple Bloom turned her head to the hole and shuddered. “Just think!”

“Alright.” Sweetie Belle turned back to the door, shivering. “Two sisters are like... like... Help me out!” She said, looking at her friend again. “You’ve got to have some kind of an idea!”

“I—”

The ground shook again as something heavy hit the metallic grate securing the top of the hole.

“I don’t know! You’re the one with a fancy-speakin’ sister! You’ve got a better vocabulary than me.”

“Alright, alright!” Sweetie Belle turned back to the door. “Two sisters are like...”

The metal bars were giving way, several of them flying broken out of the pit and landing nearby.

“Like... like a salad made of carrots and—”

“Like an apple pie!” Apple Bloom shouted. The door opened with a click.

“How did—”

Apple Bloom pushed Sweetie Belle through the door, limping right behind her while constantly turning her head towards the hole. Something long and enormous penetrated the last grate and shot high in the air.

The gate closed without a sound before Sweetie Belle could get a better look, and the roars of the monster ceased.

She staggered to a stop and turned around. “How did you know that was the answer?”

“I didn’t.” Apple Bloom took a deep breath and frowned at her injured leg. “But Applejack keeps sayin’ this stuff, and I was sure that whatever you were goin’ to say would just send more rocks at us. Two sisters are like a salad? Really?”

“I was under pressure,” Sweetie Belle said, blushing. “How’s your leg?”

“Terrible.” Apple Bloom drew another deep breath, letting it out with a hiss as she tried to touch the injured area. “Somethin’s wrong with the knee. I can barely move it, and it hurts when I do.”

“Maybe we’ll find something to help you here.” Sweetie Belle frowned as she looked around, at the forest that once again pressed at them from both sides.

Apple Bloom forced out a chuckle. “I kinda doubt we’ll find a hospital ‘round here.”

“Just some cloth to tie the leg would help,” Sweetie Belle said, shining her horn’s light onto the path ahead. “Back to walking, I guess.”

“I guess not.” Apple Bloom pointed ahead. “I see somethin’ there.”

Sweetie Belle squinted and saw it too – a group of rectangular lights, as of windows on a house. Oddly, there was something familiar about their arrangement.

“Another clearing this soon? Maybe we shouldn’t go in there. So far, these places have been nothing but trouble.”

“Sure, but...” Apple Bloom looked left and right. “There ain’t no other way to go.”

“Why am I not surprised?” Sweetie Belle sighed and marched forth, slouching. This was going to end badly; she just knew it.

As they neared, the lights grew bigger and the structure’s outline more defined. In fact, they could already make out which building the light belonged to.

“The boutique?” Sweetie Belle did a double take. “That makes no sense at all!”

“I told you I saw somethin’ that looked a lot like our barn.” Apple Bloom brushed past Sweetie Belle and walked all the way to the shop, peeking inside a window. “It was in ruins, though. This one’s lookin’ just fine. And I don’t see any scary stuff inside either. Do we have to go in?”

Sweetie Belle reached for the compass. It pointed to a path on their left. “I don’t think so.” She looked back at the boutique. “But... No scary stuff, you say?”

“Weren’t you just sayin’ it could be dangerous?”

“I know,” Sweetie Belle said, wrinkling her brow. “But if there’s going to be some fabric anywhere in this maze, it’ll be there.”

“What would we— Right.” Apple Bloom scowled at her knee. “Stupid leg!”

“We’ll be quick.” Sweetie Belle pulled the door handle and slipped inside.

The Carousel Boutique was... well, the Carousel Boutique. It looked exactly as it should – the stand with mirrors, the thick velvet curtains, the mannequins with finished and half-finished dresses... It was as if somepony teleported it there from Ponyville. The only thing missing was its owner.

“Rarity?” Sweetie Belle said, turning her head left and right as if expecting her sister to walk out from behind one of the curtains. No such luck.

“Did you really think she’d be here? Maybe waitin’ with a hot bath and a cup of tea?” Apple Bloom giggled before hissing as her hoof touched the ground, and took a piece of green cloth from one of the mannequins.

“It was worth a try,” Sweetie Belle said, leaning under Apple Bloom and supporting her as she tied the leg to her body. Not much of a treatment, but enough to keep the leg from getting in the way and bumping into rocks and such. Plus, she now didn’t have to strain herself keeping it up.

“What’s that?” Apple Bloom asked in a muffled voice as she made the final knot on the improvised bandage.

“What?” Sweetie Belle followed her gaze. “Oh. No idea.”

A neatly wrapped present with a big, blue ribbon rested on top of the sewing machine. A tag dangled from its side.

“Well, go take a look then. It could be important.” Apple Bloom leaned off of Sweetie Belle and pushed her towards the package.

“I’m going; I’m going!” Sweetie Belle threw her an ugly look and walked to the sewing machine, lifting the paper to her eyes. “‘From Rarity to Sweetie Belle.’ Huh... It’s her hornwriting. She always makes these curls on the letters.”

“Wait, you mean she actually could be hidin’ in here?” Apple Bloom shot a long look at the curtains. “Okay, probably not. But somethin’ else could be, waitin’ for the right moment to ambush us!” She spun around, measuring the mannequins with her gaze.

“Wouldn’t it have jumped us by now? I mean the perfect moment would have been when you were bandaging yourself,” Sweetie Belle said. She waved at her. “Come here. I’m going to open it.” She slowly undid the bow and raised the lid. Inside was a photo of her sister.

Rarity struck a pose in the picture, showcasing one of her best dresses from a few months ago. Sweetie Belle flipped the photo over.

“I am the escape.” Sweetie Belle looked at Apple Bloom with cocked brow. “That’s what it says on the back. What’s it supposed to mean?”

“Give it here.” Apple Bloom grabbed it, looked at it, and jumped away as if she’d just got hold of a snake. “T-that was a really bad joke, Sweetie Belle!”

“What?” Sweetie Belle picked it off the ground and jerked away as well. ‘Rarity’s’ face filled the entirety of photo, and her vast, obsidian-coloured eyes stared directly into the lens. Fortunately, even though she could feel her legs go stiff for a moment, it was relatively easy to look away.

“S-Sweetie Belle... I have a really bad feelin’ about this.”

Apple Bloom kept turning around, as if seeing the boutique for the first time.

Sweetie Belle looked up. “What the...”

The heavy curtains had turned into crude cardboard drawings, the doors to other rooms were obviously mere paintings, and even the walls looked more like a foal coloured them with a crayon. It was as if they’d stepped into the backstage of a school theatre.

“Let’s get outta here.” Apple Bloom limped out of the boutique, Sweetie Belle right behind her. Then they turned towards the forest path and galloped until the last lights of the ‘boutique’ vanished.

Chapter 4: The Exit

Apple Bloom stopped and leaned against one of the nearby trees, sticking her hoof in front of Sweetie Belle while gasping for air. “Alright. That was... That was bad. We ain’t ever goin’ into any buildings here again!” She looked back in the boutique’s direction and, even though she couldn’t possibly see it past the vegetation anymore, couldn’t help but shudder.

“You got a bandage out of it; you have no right to complain.” Sweetie Belle took a few deep breaths as well and shook her head. “You know what’s really strange, though?”

“So far? Everythin’.”

“Yes, but what’s really, really strange?”

“Uh...” Apple Bloom scratched her head. “It all looks really, really strange to me.”

Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes. “The weird thing is how the maze places familiar stuff everywhere. How could it know about Rarity or what my house looks like? We didn’t even talk about it. Can it read our minds? Did the book say anything about it?”

“You saw it yourself – that book was just plain useless. It didn’t say anythin’ about all of this! Just where the ruin is and that we shouldn’t go in.”

“Maybe that’s why Twilight gave it to us so easily,” Sweetie Belle said, tapping her chin. “She knew how useless it was and forgot that one place had its position marked in there. Come to think of it, it was the only ruin there with its position written down. All the others were way too vague about it – ‘Somewhere in Saddle Arabia’ or ‘North of Crystal Empire.’”

“So?”

“It’s just weird, that’s all. I mean why take the time to write down the exact location of the least described place in the entire book?” Sweetie Belle shook her head and sighed, kicking into a nearby root. “Stupid maze! Nothing about it makes any sense.”

“Maybe it knows stuff about us from Scoots. You said she acted weird after drinkin’ that water.”

“Maybe,” Sweetie Belle said, furrowing her brow. “I still don’t like it. I hope the entrance is near.”

“It better be. I mean, we’ve been walkin’ forever! We should’ve reached it ten times over already.”

Sweetie Belle nodded and walked forth. “We’ve got to hurry. If we don’t find it soon, it might be too late for Scootaloo.”

The path was a bit wider than before and could be traversed without getting scratched. It could mean they were going in the right direction. Or that the maze was subtly guiding them towards some sort of a trap. It mattered little – it seemed like the maze got them wherever it wanted to anyway.

Sweetie Belle turned a corner and staggered to a halt. “Oh, come on. No way! Again?”

“What?” Apple Bloom lifted her gaze from the ground. “Are you kiddin’ me? We don’t have to go in, do we?”

Ahead stood another building, its windows dark, that looked curiously similar to the Ponyville spa. Except the town would have had to be hit by a hurricane for it to look like this. The door was wide open, holding onto one last hinge, the sign was torn off, the windows were broken, and the walls were splattered by dirt and filth.

Sweetie Belle gulped and pulled out the compass. She knew the answer even before she looked at it – there were no other paths leading from the clearing, nor was there a way around the building. “Sorry.”

Apple Bloom slouched and hung her head low as she shuffled towards the door. “There’s goin’ to be somethin’ terrible there.”

“The spa isn’t big. The back door should be just a few steps away from the entrance,” Sweetie Belle said, looking at the mud-stained walls again with her legs wobbling. In this maze, ‘should’ rarely equalled ‘is’. Not to mention distance didn’t matter that much if there was a big, ravenous monster in between them and the exit.

Maybe it’ll be a nice, proper, empty ruin for once.

She didn’t believe it herself.

The door creaked as they walked past it. The moment their hooves crossed the sill, it slammed shut.

“I knew goin’ in was a bad idea!” Apple Bloom said, her voice trembling about as much as her legs.

Sweetie Belle spun and, with her teeth gritted and eyes closed, rammed into the door with all the strength she could muster.

The door didn’t open. The remaining hinge gave way, and the door collapsed with Sweetie Belle falling on top of it.

“Oh.” Apple Bloom cleared her throat and looked away. “I... guess it must have been the wind. Anyway, where’s the exit?”

Sweetie Belle got up, her heart pounding like a hammer, and turned around.

The spa’s inside looked just like its outside – everything was covered by filth and thick layers of dust, as if nopony had set a hoof in there for several months. Or at least she hoped that was the case – she didn’t fancy meeting whatever perverted version of Aloe and Lotus the maze might’ve prepared for them to meet.

As for the layout, the spa was a circular building with a large, wooden tub to Sweetie Belle’s left and the mineral and mud baths to her right, along with the hooficure stand. They had seen better days – the remains of deck-chairs and rugs lay all around in varying states of decay and destruction. The back door was right ahead, a few steps away, just like she said it would be.

If the maze thinks a destroyed spa is going to horrify me, it must be mistaking me for Rarity.

Sweetie Belle chuckled and strode ahead, grabbing the back door’s handle. Her smile froze on her lips. “It’s locked.”

“What?”

“It’s locked,” Sweetie Belle said, turning around with a frown. “We’ve got to find a key. The forest was too thick to go through.”

“Can’t we just buck it open or somethin’? The other door went down just fine.”

Sweetie Belle measured the back door with her eyes. Unlike the entrance, this one rested securely on its hinges and showed no sign of rot or other weakness. How perfect. “I... don’t think that’s going to work. Maybe the key’s somewhere around here. I mean, if the maze wanted to stop us, it could’ve done it a thousand times already.”

“Or maybe it was just playin’ with us and finally got bored.”

Sweetie Belle frowned. “Let’s hope it didn’t. I’ll take the right, you take the left.” She trotted towards the hooficure section and rifled through the remains.

Broken combs, bent clippers, spilled oil and scent bottles... it was as if something took extra effort to damage every single thing. Or maybe those clippers were supposed to be bent that way; Sweetie Belle wasn’t sure. She’d never had a hooficure. Be that as it may, there was no key among the refuse.

“Have anythin’?”

“No. Keep searching.”

Next were the mineral baths. Sweetie Belle usually liked those – she wasn’t sure what all the things Aloe and Lotus poured in there were, but it smelled nice, the water was warm, and the massages afterwards were great too. These baths, however, smelled like somepony filled them with unwashed clothes and let them float in there for a few weeks. At least it was still relatively clear, and she could see that the key wasn’t there.

The spa echoed with a loud splash.

“Apple Bloom?” Sweetie Belle turned around just in time to see Apple Bloom’s soaked head emerge over the tub’s edge.

“I-it’s s-so c-c-cold.” Her teeth rattled as if they were about to fall out.

“What are you doing in there?”

“S-s-searchin’.” She took a deep breath and dived.

Sweetie Belle shook her head, rolled her eyes, and turned to the mud baths – easily her most disliked part of the spa visits. The mud was slimy and weird to the touch – it was like having plaster applied to her face – and the cucumber slices covering her eyes only made the experience worse. If only it didn’t take so long! She could talk Rarity out of making her take a hooficure, she couldn’t talk her out of making her lay in the mud.

She scrunched her muzzle and plunged her hoof into the slimy depths. It was cold and unpleasant, running her hoof through the sludge, and Sweetie Belle was becoming more and more convinced she was just wasting time – why in Equestria would anypony ever put a key inside a pool of mud? Then again, she didn’t see it anywhere else either.

Her hoof touched something solid. It barely brushed against her fur, but it was certainly there somewhere. In a rush of adrenaline, Sweetie Belle leaned further over the edge and stuck her other front leg inside. She kept bumping into it, but the slippery nature of the mud made it as difficult as trying to grasp a wet bar of soap.

“Come here,” Sweetie Belle said through her clenched teeth, chasing the object by the edge of the bath. She could never get a good grasp, but as far as she could tell, it was rather big and circular for a key – somepony must have put it into a tube of some sort to keep it from getting damaged.

With another loud splash and a gasp, Apple Bloom emerged from the water. “S-Sweetie Belle!”

“Come over here, I think I ha—”

“I’ve g-g-got it!” She raised a big, metal key above her head.

“What?” Sweetie Belle looked back at the mud. “But then—”

The ‘tube’ grabbed her hoof and pulled her in.

The brown sludge was cold and bitter, as Sweetie Belle found out when it filled her mouth, muffling her screams. Before she could as much as spit it out, something strong pushed her under the mud level and pressed her against the basin’s bottom. Or was it the bottom? It wasn’t as hard as it should be, nor did it feel as cold as she would expect... Using as much strength as she could muster, she wriggled out of the thing’s grasp, her head breaking through the surface, and managed to suck in a bit of air before being dragged down again.

Then, everything began to rise, and she was brought onto her haunches. She managed to swipe some mud away from her eyes and look, but all she saw was a tall, dripping figure of liquid dirt. The mud-monster clutched her tightly to its chest – so tightly, in fact, that it was getting hard to breathe.

She coughed out some of the sludge. “N... No. I... I can’t...”

The monster opened its eyes, and Sweetie Belle stiffened. They were pitch-black.

Once again, she couldn’t avert her gaze. She couldn’t move at all, actually. She wasn’t paralysed; she just didn’t want to move, even though she knew she had to. It was like staring into two dark pools of swirling energy that constantly promised that if she kept looking for just a fraction of a second longer, she’d see something amazing.

Sweetie Belle recognised Apple Bloom shouting something, but it sounded weak, muffled. As if they were far apart. She stared into those midnight orbs, watched as the mud trickled down the monster’s formerly purple mane, and felt herself get smaller, or perhaps the eyes getting bigger. They filled her view more and more, their surroundings growing dim, until she couldn’t recognise where they ended and where the rest of the mare’s face began. As if they formed a world of their own, which desperately tried to drag Sweetie Belle into itself. And it did.

Apple Bloom’s shouts and the splashing of mud were muted in a matter of seconds. All she could hear were her heartbeat and... tinkling. As if somepony broke a window, and the shards now fell to the ground like a waterfall, giving off a cold, sharp jingle as they flew.

She had no body. She was nothing but consciousness floating through the void, listening to the strange ‘music’. Even the heartbeat dampened, making the other sound even clearer. No song Sweetie Belle had ever heard could equal to this simple yet beautiful ruckus.

She thought she heard something else too, however. Something hidden behind the jingle. Some voice. Had Sweetie Belle had any ears, she’d strain them to hear more. It was louder and louder, but still not quite intelligible. She almost couldn’t hear the heartbeat interference anymore, but it wasn’t enough. Just a bit less noise, a bit more volume to the voice...

Pain. It took her a second to realise it, but a new sensation added itself to this world and quickly outmatched everything else: a dull ache that shook with her entire existence and dragged her back to reality. The world faded, and the eyes returned to their original size.

No... I need to hear...

Sweetie Belle took in some air with a wheeze. Her lungs hurt like somepony squeezed them with his hooves, and her face as if it got hit by a rock. Everything felt so cold. The mare’s coat felt almost warm in comparison to the mud they were bathing in, and Sweetie Belle pressed herself against it.

“...swear that I’ll do it again if you don’t stop huggin’ it!”

Hearing returned, and sanity with it. Something flung a hoof-worth of mud into Sweetie Belle’s eyes, stinging her eyes and breaking the eye contact with the mare. With another gasp, Sweetie Belle put her back hooves on the mare’s thighs and sprang up, slipping out of the deadly embrace. She sprawled on the floor, banging both her knees and her chin. She started getting up, but her legs buckled under her.

“Hurry up!” Apple Bloom shouted, grabbing her by the hoof and dragging her across the floor to the now open back door.

Sweetie Belle managed to stand up this time and made a few wobbly steps forward before collapsing on the path outside, clutching her stomach.

Apple Bloom slammed the door shut behind them and turned the key, spun around, and bit her lip as she stared at Sweetie Belle.

Sweetie Belle tried to speak, but all that came out was a gurgle. The taste of mud returned to her mouth as she got on her knees and gagged. Then she gagged again. And then she vomited. The brownish, half-solid liquid came out of her in litres. It seemed that while none of it got into her lungs, thankfully, she instead managed to drink half the mud bath.

A loud bang shook with the door.

“Finish it up!” Apple Bloom switched glances between Sweetie Belle and the spa’s exit. “We ain’t got much time!”

“Wha... Wha... Wha...” Sweetie Belle threw up again and gasped. “What happened? W-why does my face hurt?” She wiped her mouth and sniffed. Her stomach seemed to have calmed down for the moment, but it was as if her strength left along with the mud. Her muscles were sore, like she’d been running all day without breaks, and walking alone suddenly sounded like a serious challenge.

“There’s no time for that! Run!” Apple Bloom limped forward with surprising speed, grabbing Sweetie Belle’s hoof and pulling her forward.

A loud explosion shook the ground as they turned the second corner, accompanied by cracking of wood.

Apple Bloom looked at Sweetie Belle, her face as pale as a piece of paper. “Check the compass!”

Sweetie Belle let go of her, maintaining her gallop, reached to her mane, and nearly fell down again. While her hair proved to have remarkable properties for item storage, it couldn’t possibly defeat a mud bath. “I... I don’t have it!”

“Don’t have it?” This time, it was Apple Bloom who tripped and fell to the ground. Despite her injury, however, she soon caught up to Sweetie Belle. “You don’t have it?” She shook her head, her lips stretching into a smile while her eyes flooded with tears. “She ain’t got it.” She sniffed and let out something in-between a laugh and a sob. “We’re goin’ to die here because she ain’t got it.”

“We... We must have been close!” Sweetie Belle said, slowing down and taking a few breaths. Looking back, the mare’s white silhouette was already looming a short distance behind them.

Apple Bloom waited for nothing and ran onwards, with or without her friend.

“Wait up!” Sweetie Belle galloped after her, some of her strength coming back. “There were no crossroads so far. Just... just turns. Maybe we’ll be lucky and—”

A small clearing opened up just behind the next corner, a lone torch burning in the middle of it.

“The entrance!” they shouted in unison and sped up.

Finally! Even if the mare pursued them outside, it would just be a matter of calling for help. Ponyville would make quick work of this creature.

Sweetie Belle couldn’t help but grin. They’d bring a whole army here to search for Scootaloo! Dozens of guards chopping down this cursed forest, bringing an end to this place. And who knows? They could even get those cutie marks – if this adventure wasn’t worth them, nothing was.

They ran past the torch and into the dark corridor ahead. The smell of mould and stale air filled her nostrils and, upon peeking back, the mare wasn’t even past the torch yet! They could make it. They would make it. Sweetie Belle was certain of it. They passed this maze’s trials; they fought the evil of this place and won. The escape was their reward.

When Sweetie Belle looked left, she could see the exact same grin on Apple Bloom’s face. It was time to end this. She sent a little, bright flare of victory into the darkness ahead as she galloped. The exit couldn’t be further than half a minute away.

The flare hit a tree trunk and split into dozens of little sparks. Both fillies skidded to a halt, staring with their jaws dropped and eyes widened. The path was plugged by a monolithic wall of wood, as if a dozen trees merged together. The left and right sides were blocked by the regular amount of foliage, but the organic barrier stretched even there, cutting off any possible route to the entrance.

Tears burst into Sweetie Belle’s eyes, and a large, bitter lump formed in her throat. “What do we do?” Her voice was as thin as a hair.

Apple Bloom kept staring at the wall, slowly shaking her head. “No... No, this ain’t true. It can’t. No...”

Sweetie Belle threw a peek behind, already knowing what she’d see. The mare actually moved this time. One hoof after another, as if she knew they had nowhere to run to and found some sort of sadistic pleasure in putting off their inevitable demise.

They could try running among the trees to their left and right, but it would only be a matter of minutes before either of them got tangled in the thorny vines and chased down. Seconds, in Apple Bloom’s case. Sweetie Belle couldn’t imagine her making it further than a few meters in her state. It was true that she could still try, but... what was the point? The exit was blocked, and if there was any other way to escape, they had no way to find it without the compass.

Sweetie Belle pressed herself against her friend and watched as the mare neared. It was rather ironic that she’d be killed by something that looked almost exactly like her sister, the very pony she always ran to for protection.

At least it won’t hurt. It was... pleasant before.

“Don’t look her in the eyes!” Apple Bloom dug her head into Sweetie Belle’s coat, as if looking away could save her.

Sweetie Belle looked ahead expressionless. The mare even moved like Rarity, raising her hooves high and delicately putting them down afterwards. The maze made its monster well.

The mare’s horn glowed and Apple Bloom yanked her head up, her eyelids magically forced to open.

With a sigh and a little, almost invisible smile she didn’t even know she’d made, Sweetie Belle met the mare’s gaze. Apple Bloom kept twisting and turning at first, but even she fell limp after a while. The eyes grew bigger.

Sweetie Belle was just about to plunge into their depths again when their power was rudely interrupted by a rock the size of a hoof hitting the mare’s right temple.

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom stiffened, looking at each other, at the mare, and then at the source of the disturbance. The vegetation to their left was dry and decayed, turning into small, withered husks before their very eyes. In the middle of it stood...

“Scootaloo?” Sweetie Belle did a double take.

Scootaloo nodded, grabbed her hoof, and started dragging her away.

“Wuh... Wait up!” Apple Bloom climbed to her hooves and limped towards them, shedding the provisory, now soaked and filthy, bandage and using her injured leg. She was still nowhere fast enough to keep up with Scootaloo’s tempo, however.

The mare lost no time either and went after them, using her strange distance-compressing skills again. Sweetie Belle couldn’t be sure, but she thought she saw her lips droop by a miniscule amount, the stitches pulling at her skin and opening the wounds. No blood came out, however.

Scootaloo still held Sweetie Belle’s hoof tightly in her grasp, pulling her ahead at such a speed that it was a wonder she hadn’t tripped yet.

“Wait for Apple Bloom!” Sweetie Belle shouted, trying to slow down, but it was like trying to slow down a carriage rolling down a hill.

“Can’t. The mare’s moving in for the kill.” Scootaloo dragged her around the corner of one of the crossroads and pushed her onto her butt. Then she lifted herself on her hind legs, and fell down with a loud stomp. As if on command, numerous saplings and vines sprang from the ground, growing at an impossible speed, and before Sweetie Belle knew it, the passage was blocked.

“But... But...” Sweetie Belle shook her head, and her face reddened. “You can’t just leave her there!”

“She’d slow us down – her leg was ill.”

Sweetie Belle gaped at her. Then she sprang up and tackled Scootaloo to the ground. “Destroy those trees! Clear that path again! Do it! We’ve got to—”

Scootaloo stuck her hoof in Sweetie Belle’s mouth and pushed her off. “If we take her, our chances are nil.”

“You’re rhyming again,” Sweetie Belle said, taking a long look at her. Scootaloo looked strangely... normal. Just like when they entered the maze – a bit of ruffled fur here and there, but no injuries, no scrapes, no twigs... nothing to indicate she went through the same, if not worse, ordeal as them. Upon closer inspection, however, Scootaloo’s eyes betrayed a faint glow.

Sweetie Belle shook her head. She didn’t have time for another argument about this. “Open up the way. We’ve got to help her, no matter our chances! We can’t just abandon her.”

Scootaloo stared at her, her face as still as a mask. “We can and we will. I thought you wanted to escape, or do you like this sort of thrill?”

Sweetie Belle grit her teeth. “I want to escape, but with both of you! I don’t know what that water did to you, and I don’t care. Save Apple Bloom, or you’ll have to go home alone.” Through the small gaps in between the trees, she could see the filly in question limp past them. “And hurry up!”

Scootaloo scowled and grabbed Sweetie Belle by the leg.

Sweetie Belle jerked her hoof away before Scootaloo could tighten her grip. “Oh, no. I’m not being dragged away again! Help Apple Bloom or I’m staying right here, in this spot!”

Scootaloo stayed silent for about ten seconds staring at Sweetie Belle with narrowed eyes. Then, she pulled something from her mane and threw it to her. “You disappoint me – I will have to use some of my skill. Follow this – don’t lose it again – and your purpose you will fulfill.”

It was the compass – it was even still covered by mud stains. Sweetie Belle looked at the needle, which pointed somewhere behind Scootaloo. “How did you get this? And what do you mean ‘fulfill’. Like escape?”

Scootaloo smirked and, after a moment, gave her a quick nod. “See me at the exit. Perhaps Apple Bloom will be with you still.”

The plants she created earlier withered and died like the ones before, and she strode away, hopefully to distract the mare again. Sweetie Belle waited a while, peeked out, and when she saw no apparent danger, continued the way Apple Bloom took.

She found her only a minute’s walk ahead, curled into a little ball and squeezing her eyes shut.

“Apple Bloom?” Sweetie Belle prodded her with the tip of her hoof.

“Sweetie Belle?” One of her eyes peeked from under the eyelid, looked Sweetie Belle over, and then opened all the way. “Where did you go? I... I was tryin’ to keep up, I swear! But then I lost you and... and there was no light and...” She sniffed and wiped her eyes. “Thanks for coming back for me. Where’s Scootaloo?”

“Taking care of the monster. She’ll meet us later.” Sweetie Belle smiled and pulled her up. “Of course I came back for you. Are you okay?”

Apple Bloom looked at her injured leg, which was downright bloated now, and shook her head. “It ain’t lookin’ good. Should’ve kept it bandaged. B–but I can still walk!” She made a few steps forward, keeping the leg above ground at all times. “See? I ain’t fast, but I can move.” She frowned. “Please don’t leave me behind. I know I’ll be slowin’ you down, but... but...” She stared at her for a while, opening her mouth and closing it again, and sighed. “There ain’t no ‘but’. I’m just baggage.”

Sweetie Belle hugged her around the neck and giggled. “You might be a slowcoach, but you’re still my friend. I wouldn’t leave you behind if there were twenty monsters chasing us!” She levitated the compass in front of Apple Bloom. “And look what I have. Scootaloo was acting weird again, but she said it’ll lead us to a proper exit. Plus, I think we’ll be safe.”

For the moment, at least.

A smile appeared on Apple Bloom’s face as she nodded and began limping to where the compass was pointing them.

Chapter 5: The Hospital

“Scoots said... said what?” Apple Bloom’s mouth dropped open as she stared at Sweetie.

“It must’ve been that water. She was acting really weird. I’m sure that wasn’t what she was really thinking,” Sweetie said, frowning. Even though she was right.

Apple Bloom was able to walk, as she’d said before, but that was it. Anything faster than that was out of the question, and she needed to take breaks every few minutes. No wonder, considering her state. Her knee had turned into one big, swollen bruise, and she winced, hissed, or bit her lip every few seconds, her eyes constantly full of tears. Worse yet, while Apple Bloom didn’t seem to realise it, Sweetie noticed that her breathing had gotten heavier and that she sometimes stumbled from one wall of the labyrinth to the other.

Bathing in ice-cold water. Should’ve figured she’d need something to dry herself!

“Yeah, I’ll...” – Apple Bloom took a breath – “I’ll prove her wrong! About everythin’!”

Sweetie nodded and forced a smile, her eyes darting towards the knee again. “You’ll show her. We’ll both reach the exit, even if she doesn’t believe it.”

“Yeah! Just... just like I was right before!” She started laughing, but the sound died in her throat.

Sweetie pressed her hoof against Apple Bloom’s forehead. It was burning. “Before? What do you mean?” Maybe they should return to the boutique. Scary or not, nothing chased them there, and it had plenty of fabric to keep Apple Bloom warm.

“That argument we had! Don’t... don’t you remember?” Apple Bloom frowned. “You ain’t... ain’t so forgetful normally. You sure you’re okay?”

“Right, the argument you and her had by the fountain. What was that about?” Sweetie asked, furrowing her brow. Perhaps she could try pressing against her, sharing some of the body heat. Not much, but better than nothing, right? No, that was a stupid idea – she could barely stand, let alone press against her.

“It was about you.”

“What?” Sweetie cocked her brow. “You argued about me?”

“Yep!” Apple Bloom said, nodding so vigorously that she nearly toppled forward. “We were talkin’ about whether to... to turn back or continue, even though you stayed behind.”

“Really?” Sweetie smiled. “So you agreed with me after all. I told you it was a bad idea to come here, and you saw it too. How did she win that argument?”

Apple Bloom puffed out her chest and her grin widened. “She didn’t. I won! I said we should continue walkin’, because you... because you would definitely be comin’ after us in a while.”

Sweetie’s smile faded. “So, you mean we’re here because of you.”

Apple Bloom shook her head. “That ain’t the point! The point is I said it ain’t... ain’t like you to leave us alone in an adventure, and you didn’t! I was right! Scoots thought you were... were scared and would go back home.”

Sweetie’s face contorted. “That’s very... nice of you.”

“No problem.” Apple Bloom winked at her. “That’s what... wha... what friends are for, right?”

“Right,” Sweetie said, rolling her eyes. “How are you doing?”

“I’m fi... fi... fi...” Apple Bloom gasped for air, squeezed her eyes shut, and stopped dead in her tracks.

“Apple Bloom?” Sweetie dashed to her, checking the leg and temperature. For all she could tell, it was the same a few minutes ago.

Apple Bloom exhaled and collapsed to the ground. “I’m fine. I just... just need a break.”

Sweetie nodded and sat beside her. “How long?”

“I dunno. How long does a nap take?” Apple Bloom yawned and closed her eyes.

“Are you kidding me?” Sweetie sprung up and shook her. No response. “You can’t sleep in here!” She jabbed her in the chest, but all Apple Bloom did was swat her hoof away and groan.

Sweetie huffed and dug her hoof under Apple Bloom. She lifted her enough to crawl underneath and loaded her across her back. She was no doctor, but she was pretty sure that taking a nap on cold ground while feverish was not a good idea.

“No... put me down.” Apple Bloom yawned again. “I ain’t... ain’t weak. I can walk.”

Sweetie made a shaky step forward. “Just... save up your energy.”

Apple Bloom wasn’t heavy, but she wasn’t light either. How long could she carry her? Ten minutes? Twenty? For the first time, Sweetie wished for a clearing. Any clearing. No matter what, there would be a chance of finding something to help her friend.

Sweetie choked back a sob. They should’ve gone back to the boutique right after Scootaloo had left them. Of course Apple Bloom needed to dry herself! It wasn’t even that far from the entrance... assuming the maze didn’t change again. Maybe it wasn’t too late to turn back?

One glance at her friend dissolved the idea. She needed more than just a bit of cloth to cover herself; she needed a doctor.

“Hold on, Apple Bloom,” Sweetie said, maintaining a cheery tone despite the tears pressing into her eyes. “We’ll make it out of the maze soon. I-I mean we’ve got to. We have the compass and everything, nothing’s chasing us...”

“We got out so... so fast?” Apple Bloom giggled. “You’re the best.”

“Not quite there yet.” Sweetie looked at her and wrinkled her brow. Apple Bloom kept staring somewhere ahead.

“I mean that was quick! Did I... did I sleep the whole way?” She squinted. “I ain’t sure if the hospital is open at this hour, though. Or are they always open?”

Hallucinations. Sweetie knew it was bad but not this bad. She frowned and looked back ahead. She was staring at a hospital.

It was a villa-like building, just like the one in Ponyville – it had the same path to it, and the same sign stood next to its door. Most of its windows glowed with light and illuminated the pristine plaster around them. No wonder Apple Bloom thought they were back home.

Sweetie blinked. “What?”

“We gotta go in.” Apple Bloom slid off Sweetie’s back and stumbled forward in a zigzag line.

Sweetie gaped a little longer before shaking her head and trotting after her. There was no way this wasn’t a trap of some sort. Then again, what other choice did they have?

Apple Bloom barged in through the door, falling flat. Sweetie was but a step behind.

The interior matched the exterior – an exact replica of the Ponyville one. It even had the same kind of ancient, worn out magazines in the nearby stands!

Right behind the front door was a large waiting room with halls to its left and right, and two staircases ahead. In between them stood a small booth – the reception – with a white mare in her twenties smiling at them.

Sweetie furrowed her brow. “Miss Redheart?”

“Hello, Sweetie Belle. What’s the problem today? You seem like you’re in dire need of some plasters,” she said, chuckling. “And of a bath too.”

“What are you doing here?”

Nurse Redheart cocked her brow. “Working. Like every day.”

“But... But...!” Sweetie pointed outside. “We aren’t in Ponyville! We’re in a big, evil maze, and there’s no way you don’t see it!”

“What?”

“Just go outside and look!”

“I don’t think I’d see much in this dark,” Redheartsaid, smiling and shaking her head. “You fillies and your adventures...”

Sweetie scowled. “This isn’t a joke! We’re in the middle of a—”

“A little help here.” Apple Bloom still lay on the floor, her breathing raspy and laboured.

“Oh dear.” Nurse Redheart leaned over the counter and squinted at her.

“Something’s wrong with her knee. It’s all swollen and purple. And she has a fever!” Sweetie said and pulled her friend off the ground, supporting her weight and walking her towards the counter.

“Let me see her leg.” Nurse Redheart walked from inside the booth and crouched next to Apple Bloom, putting a hoof on her forehead.

“Can you heal her?” Sweetie asked and bit her lip, looking her in the eyes. Strange or not, this hospital might’ve been Apple Bloom’s only chance.

“I think so. We’ll just give her some medicine to get rid of the fever, and then our doctors will take care of the leg.” She patted Apple Bloom on the head, walked back inside the booth, and picked up the phone.

Sweetie breathed out with a grin. “See, Apple Bloom? I told you it’ll be alright.”

The hospital’s intercom crackled to life. “Operation ward, prepare for a new patient. I repeat, all personnel in the operation ward.”

“The operation ward?” Sweetie asked, frowning. “Is it that serious?”

“I’m afraid it is. But don’t worry,” Redheart said and smiled at Apple Bloom. “Today’s prostheses are so advanced that you’ll hardly notice a difference.”

“Proste-what?” Apple Bloom furrowed her brow.

“What?” Sweetie sprung up. “No! Don’t get rid of the leg; are you crazy?”

Nurse Redheart frowned. “Don’t you want your friend treated?”

“Like this? No! Just give her the medicine. Don’t cut off her leg! You aren’t even a doctor; you can’t diagnose her like that!”

Redheart scowled. “Sweetie, calm down. It’s for the best.”

“No, it isn’t! Stop it this instant, or—”

The nurse pressed a big red button on her desk, and two burly stallions appeared from nearby halls, each of them headed for one of the fillies.

Sweetie’s pupils dilated. “No. I’ll be calm, I promise! Call them off! You don’t—”

One of the stallions grabbed Sweetie around her waist and dragged her into the hall to the left. The other pulled Apple Bloom to the right.

“Doctor Shrink needed in the psychiatry ward. I repeat, Doctor Shrink has a new patient.”

———

Sweetie was shoved into a dimly-lit room, and the door behind her slammed shut. Then it clicked.

She tried the handle – no success – and turned around with a huff.

The room looked different from the rest of the hospital. For starters, the walls were painted light yellow – as opposed to hospital white – thick carpet covered the floor, wooden furniture lined the walls, and the windows were hidden behind wine red curtains. Sweetie only saw drapes this fancy at the boutique. This room was something special, especially considering the couch. It looked kind of like Rarity’s divan, save for the brown colour, and faced a different door to Sweetie’s left. Next to the sofa stood a chair and a small coffee table with a jar of something that looked an awful lot like a mix of random pills.

The door rattled and opened. “Oh, hello. You are Sweetie Belle, correct?” a small, blue-gray unicorn stallion said, closing the door behind himself.

“You’re going to cripple Apple Bloom; you’ve got to stop it!”

“I am Doctor Shrink. Please, take a seat.” He motioned towards the divan while walking towards the chair.

Sweetie bolted to the door.

“Now, now.” The doctor clicked his tongue and caught Sweetie with his magic then levitated her onto the sofa. “Your friend will be treated in but a few minutes; you’ll be able to see her then.” His eyes narrowed as he sat down. “Provided you can convince me you don’t need to stay a bit longer here. For your own safety, of course.”

He reached into the jar. “Would you like a bonbon?”

“No.”

He shrugged and put a hoofful in his mouth.

“What do you mean, ‘my own safety’?” Sweetie asked, a scowl plastering itself across her face. “I’m fine. Apple Bloom is the one in danger!”

Doctor Shrink levitated a notepad to himself and put on a pair of glasses. “Miss Redheart has informed me that you kept insisting on being in maze of some sort. Please elaborate.”

This was a waste of time. Apple Bloom was about to be mutilated! “We’re in a maze, and you’re probably just some weird magic monster.”

“Interesting.” He wrote something down. “Are you plagued by monsters often?”

There had to be a way to get rid of him somehow. She knew he didn’t lock the door; she just needed to stop him from using his magic on her. “Only since I stepped into the maze.” Her eyes jumped from object to object.

“What kind of monsters?”

Maybe she could hit him over the head with something? No... Monster or not, Sweetie knew she didn’t have it in her. “Pretty much just the one that looks a bit like my sister. And you and nurse Redheart, I guess.”

“What’s your relationship with your sister?”

There! Sweetie saw a bunch of medicine boxes in one of the glass cupboards. “I love my sister. I mean, we argue from time to time, and I guess I get angry at her here and there, but she’s still the greatest pony I know.”

“And the monster? What does it do?”

The doctor kept staring into his notepad, occasionally giving her a glance from above the glasses’ rims. Getting the cabinet open shouldn’t be that hard if she kept her cool and used as little magic as possible. Her horn started glowing with a very dim, green light. “Mostly chases me around and tries to kill me.”

“I see.” He popped another bonbon in his mouth and noted something. “So we have a maze and a monster in the form of your sister that chases you through it.”

“Uh-huh, sure.” Sweetie stared at the small glass door behind him that she’d just managed to open up a crack. Now, which bottle should she take?

“Do you see this maze often?”

Sweetie cocked her brow and looked at him. “I see it ever since I entered it. We’re inside of it even now.” The bottle with the bed sticker on it. That could do the job. Sweetie waited for him to look back at his notes and started levitating it.

“Interesting.” He reached for a treat. “Are there other things in the maze?”

The bottle took to the air and flew out of the cabinet.

“I asked you a question.” He looked up at her.

Sweetie cut the spell and winced as the bottle fell with unavoidable rattle.

He started turning around. “What was—”

Sweetie screamed and grabbed her head, falling from the sofa onto the floor. The doctor was with her in seconds.

“My head! It hurts!” It did; she accidentally banged it against the floor as she fell.

“Oh, dear.” Shrink frowned, and his horn started glowing as he brought it to hers. The pain faded immediately. “What happened?”

“Uh... a very... sudden headache.” Sweetie put on a crooked smile and climbed back to her seat.

“Oh? Very interesting.” He pegged down another line. “Do you have those often?”

“No.” Sweetie levitated the bottle of pills again and slowly dragged them across the floor and under the table.

“I see. Now, back to my original question – are there other things in this ‘maze?’”

“Mostly weird and scary things I’ve known from somewhere else. My home, the spa...” She undid the lid.

He smiled and nodded. “Yes, it’s beginning to make sense. Have you been under a lot of pressure lately?”

“Only in the maze.” Sweetie waited for him to stare into his notepad again and slammed the cabinet shut.

“Oh, what now?” he said, scowling and turning around.

Sweetie levitated the bottle from under the table, poured several pills into the bonbon jar, and tucked the rest under his chair.

He turned back. “I have to have that cabinet fixed.” He cleared his throat. “So, no stress buildup? That could be serious.” He wrote something down and put several ‘bonbons’ in his mouth. He winced. “Why, those taste terrible.” He gulped them down with a wince and pushed the bonbon jar away. “I think I might know what ails you.”

“Really?” Sweetie stared at his face. How long would it take for the medicine to start working? Hopefully before Apple Bloom got massacred.

“Yes. Although it’ll need a few more sessions to confirm it, I think the maze is a projection of your mind, with the ‘scary’ places representing some of your mental issues.”

“You mean I’m crazy?” Sweetie asked, cocking her brow.

He chuckled. “That’s a very negative way to phrase it.”

“But you do, right?” She scowled at him. “You think I’m wrong in the head and have hallucinations!”

“Please, calm yourself.” He frowned, pushing the glasses to the root of his muzzle.

“Well, if this is a hallucination, how are you going to explain the maze? Just look outside! I know it’s dark, but I’m sure you can send a little flare there.” Sweetie crossed her front legs and smirked. Obviously, some disguised monster wouldn’t let itself get contradicted by actually looking. She was just curious as to what kind of excuse he’d make.

He smiled. “I don’t see why not. And I don’t think I’ll need a flare either.” He walked to the window and opened the curtains. The room was filled by warm light of the setting sun.

“What?” Sweetie ran next to the doctor and gaped. She was looking at Ponyville. Not some scary, weird parody of it; the real one. She could even see the ponies milling about. “That’s... that’s impossible!”

“Is it?” the doctor asked, sitting back down in his chair. “Why do you think so?”

“It makes no sense, it’s... I...” Sweetie gasped. “My coat! It’s all dirty and tangly! How would that happen if I wasn’t there?”

The doctor looked at her from above his glasses. “I can see your coat is a bit ruffled, but I think you’re overdramatizing it.”

“What?” Sweetie looked down at herself. She was perfectly clean and combed. “But... But I...” She could swear she was caked with filth a second ago.

“Please, go on. I want to prove to you that a treatment is necessary. One can only heal when she wants to heal.”

Sweetie reached into her mane. The compass was gone. “But... Apple Bloom.”

Shrink nodded. “Yes. Your friend. I’m afraid not everything that has happened was a hallucination. Apple Bloom took it upon herself to bring you here when you started talking nonsense during a game of tag and, while chasing you after you ran off into the Everfree forest, broke her leg. Luckily, you turned back and, despite the rather... disturbing things you’ve said, managed to bring her here. She’ll get a cast; don’t worry. She won’t get ‘crippled.’”

Tears pressed into Sweetie’s eyes. “You’re lying.”

“Am I? Are you absolutely sure?” he asked with a smile.

“O-of course I am!” She frowned and shook her head. “What does this all mean? The monster—”

“The ‘monster’ is your subconscious sensing something is wrong and trying to protect you. Your sister, firmly etched as a figure of adoration and protection in your mind, is the natural image it takes.”

“It didn’t look like it was trying to protect me.”

“Of course. Your subconscious seems to be rather... radical. It tries to stop the stress caused by your delusions by shutting down everything. I advise avoiding it, else it could cause blackouts.”

“But... But...” Sweetie’s breathing quickened. She knew she was in the maze. And yet just looking out of the window clearly proved the contrary. “Why would I even have hallucinations?”

Doctor Shrink frowned. “That, I’m afraid, is yet to be determined. But I’m certain that whatever it is, we’ll be able to help you. You just have to remain calm for the moment and keep your head clear – if something seems very unlikely, such as being in a maze, it is probably not real.” He yawned. “We will need to keep you here for some time. If the hallucinations don’t return, you’ll be free to go in a week or two. If they do...” He let the sentence hang in the air for a few seconds and motioned towards the door facing the sofa. “Come now. I need to get the physical examination out of the way. Maybe you just hit your horn badly and didn’t realise it.”

Sweetie nodded and trudged after him. If she took everything she knew and put it together, the version of her being insane was a lot more likely than the one with magical, underground maze filled with mysterious trees and things that seemed tailored for her. If anything, it supported the doctor – it was full of things she knew; it was her mind. She should probably tell him about the pills.

He yawned again and rubbed his eyes. “This way.” He opened the door. Past them was a fifteen metres drop.

Sweetie recoiled. “W-where’s the floor?”

“Right there.”

“No, it isn’t,” Sweetie said, staring down the shaft. She could see grass deep down. On the other hoof, she could also see a perfectly normal room right behind the hole. Just far enough for her to not be able to make the jump.

“I assure you that it is.” He stretched his limbs and squeezed his eyes together a few times. “Remember what I told you earlier. Is it more likely that it’s a hallucination or that somepony built a room without a floor?”

Sweetie put one of her legs where the floor should have been. It went through. “There isn’t any floor! You saw it!”

“I saw you hover your leg inches above the tiles,” he said, sighing. “How about I prove it to you?” He walked onto the empty space, blocks of stones flying out of nowhere and supporting his hooves. “See?”

Sweetie prodded the emptiness with her hoof again. No stone came. “Can’t you just lift me over it with your magic?”

He shook his head. “I need you to truly realise that none of this is real. You have to confront your hallucination and disprove it to yourself.”

Sweetie switched glances between him and the drop. He was right – this was definitely a hallucination. Then again, knowing that and actually stepping into empty air were two completely different matters.

“It’s the first step of your treatment. Do this, and you’ll be that much closer to healthiness. You’ll no longer be plagued by your sister’s shade.”

“I know, it’s just... It’s hard.” Sweetie bit her lip and slowly raised her front leg.

“Don’t be afraid. We’ll go visit Apple Bloom right after we get through the examination; I promise.” He smiled. “Soon, you and your sister will be together again and enjoy lying at the spa without any nightmares bothering you.”

Sweetie gulped and moved her leg forward. Then she jerked it back. “Hang on. I never told you me and her like to go there.”

He chuckled. “A simple assumption on my part. You said it’s a familiar place, and considering who your sister is...”

Sweetie scowled. “I never told you who my sister is, either! And I know I don’t know you from around Ponyville. So how would you know?”

His smile faded as he yawned again. “Word gets around. Especially in a small town. Confront your hallucination already.”

Sweetie backed away from the hole. “Word gets around about her, maybe, but about me? How would you know I’m Rarity’s sister?”

He pressed his lips together. “I asked your friend. Please don’t make me restrain you.”

“And when would you do that? She was taken to the operation room right after she came in! And... and how would she tell you about what happened? The game of tag, which I don’t remember, or the Everfree? She could hardly talk!”

His lids seemed to close on their own, but he always jerked them open. “She could talk without a problem. You’re delusional.”

Sweetie’s eyes widened. “Where’s... where’s Scootaloo? She’d definitely come here with us if anything bad has happened. She wouldn’t just leave us on our own!”

Shrink scowled and walked back over the empty expanse. “It seems like we need another...” This yawn took a good five seconds. “...another session. Please sit back on the sofa.” He sat back on his chair with a thud.

Sweetie stayed where she was and stared at him.

“Please, sit back.” He exhaled. “Please, sit brrrrrpft.” His notes fell out of his hooves and onto the ground.

She tip toed to the door to the hall, slowly opened it, and slipped out of the room. Then she started shuddering.

It was like somepony kept splashing buckets of lukewarm water on her back that froze the moment it hit her. Her entire spine tingled as shivers shook her body, and she had to gasp for air to keep the enormous, bitter lump in her throat from suffocating her with sobs. He’d nearly talked her into suicide! How could she be so gullible?

She wiped her eyes, picked herself up, and sniffed. The hospital looked... different. As if it aged by decades while she’d been talking with the ‘doctor’. The plaster was flaking off all around, forming little piles on the floor; the doors had their wooden parts battered, and the metal ones were rusted; and finally, there was the matter of flickering lights. If there was still any doubt, it was gone now. Apple Bloom definitely wasn’t going to get a cast.

Sweetie started walking, then trotting, and then went into a full gallop.

All was quiet. The only things she could hear were her hoofsteps and the creaking of various half-open doors. What if Apple Bloom wasn’t there? What if she vanished and left Sweetie alone in here?

She shook her head, and a bit of dirt fell to the ground.

What?

She skidded to a halt and lifted her hoof to her eyes. Once again, she was covered by filth and grime, her mane ruined in such a manner that had Rarity seen it, Sweetie would probably get grounded for an entire week.

She reached to the top of her head and smiled. The compass was there. She resumed the gallop and navigated back to the reception area.

Nurse Redheart was still there – or rather, what remained of her: a pile of bones lying on the chair with a nurse cap on top.

Sweetie gulped. She knew it was all just a part of the maze’s game, but... what if it wasn’t? What if nurse Redheart had just been another pony trapped in here, her mind twisted like Scootaloo’s was?

No time for such thoughts. The operation room was straight ahead, to the right of the entrance. And if the shadows moving in the door’s small windows were any indication, something was happening there.

“I’m coming, Apple Bloom!” Sweetie sprinted past the many doors by her sides without giving them a glance.

“Heeeeeelp!” Apple Bloom’s voice sounded crystal clear, free of any previous dizziness.

Sweetie smashed into the large, double wing door and sprawled down on the floor. Something stopped her, and it wasn’t the wood. She reached forward with her hoof and met an invisible barrier that sparkled under her touch.

“Hold on, Apple Bloom!” She jumped back on her hooves and, standing on her hindlegs and leaning against the invisible barrier, peeked inside the operation room. Just in time to see a pony in chirurgic attire lower a bonesaw onto Apple Bloom’s leg..

“Stop!” Sweetie banged her hooves on the force field. “You don’t have to cut it off! Just sto—”

A high-pitched scream cut the air and dug into Sweetie’s skull. She stared for a few seconds longer and then slowly slumped onto the floor.

Chapter 6: Drawing Sticks

It had been over an hour, and Sweetie Belle still sat there by the wall, staring ahead and twiddling her hooves. She could just stand up again and look at what was going on in there, but that would mean risking she’d see Apple Bloom. And she didn’t want that; not in her condition.

She should’ve been faster. She could’ve easily escaped the doctor sooner – he’d have been too tired to stop her anyway. She should’ve tried attacking the barrier with her magic– maybe it was weak and would give in easily. She could still try that now, but what was the point? The damage had been done.

Even if they got out of the maze – something that seemed more and more unlikely by the hour – Apple Bloom was irreversibly crippled. Even if she got that stupid cutie mark, what good would it do? How could she go on more adventures with her leg missing? And not just adventures. How would she even do simple things like applebucking or running?

Apple Bloom’s life was over, and it was Sweetie Belle’s fault! She guessed wrong at the gate. She sent her to search the water tub at the spa. She led her inside this accursed hospital. She, she, she, and only she! Maybe she should’ve just listened to Dr. Shrink and taken that step.

Then again, what else could she have done? She couldn’t have known what a wrong guess would do, and if she had dived into the cold water, it’d just be her who’d fallen ill instead. And going to the hospital, despite getting her her leg chopped off, was probably preferable to a feverish death.

That, however, changed nothing of the fact that she should’ve tried harder. She should have stood her ground at the very beginning! She convinced them not to go into the Everfree; she could have convinced them not to go in here either.

Something made a loud, zapping noise, and Sweetie Belle toppled on her back, staring at the opening door. Her eyes widened. A white pony, his face completely obscured by his doctor’s mask, pushed Apple Bloom out of the operation room and walked back inside.

“A-Apple Bloom?” Sweetie Belle looked her over with tears in her eyes. “Are you okay?”

In hindsight, it was a stupid question. Apple Bloom stood there with her eyes wide, staring forward, and a frown frozen on her face. Her leg was gone. Instead, she had some weird, metallic rod growing out of her thigh. It seemed to meld with the flesh. The lack of any sort of bandage made the bright-red veins under her skin easy to see, as well as how they circled the contraption. It was as if they’d cut the leg off and then used the metal as a plug to stop the bleeding.

Whatever it was, Sweetie Belle was certain she had never seen a peg leg like this before. Its shape was vaguely similar to a regular pony leg, except it was much, much thinner – like somepony took the leg’s bone, put skin on it, and turned it into metal. There was even a metallic knee joint.

Apple Bloom flinched when Sweetie put a hoof on her side.

“No. I ain’t okay,” she said and looked at Sweetie Belle. “They cut it off. They didn’t even give me anything for the pain; they just... started hackin’ at it. Over and over and over, until… until...” She sniffed and fell around Sweetie Belle’s neck, her body shaking with sobs and wails.

Sweetie Belle returned the hug, pressing Apple Bloom towards her chest and squeezing her eyes shut. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve come soo—”

“I passed out. I... I couldn’t help it. Then I woke up and... and saw... saw...” Apple Bloom dug her face deeper in Sweetie Belle’s coat and let out a long, muffled scream, followed by incomprehensible cries, as well as waterfalls of tears.

They stood like that for several minutes until, finally, Apple Bloom’s tears ran dry. She released her grip and wiped her eyes, turning her bloodshot gaze towards the entrance. “We got to get out of here. I don’t like this place. I... I hate it!”

“The hospital?”

“This whole labyrinth. It’s tryin’ to kill us. And it will if we don’t get out soon!”

Sweetie Belle nodded and pulled out the compass. “Hopefully the exit is near. Can you walk?”

“I... I don’t know yet,” Apple Bloom said, taking a few steps forward. The leg moved like the others, but with a short delay. Walking might be okay, but anything faster would probably cause a limp again. She scoffed at it. “It’ll do.”

“Okay. Just tell me if you need anything.” Sweetie Belle forced a smile and headed towards the reception area.

They walked past Redheart’s remains – Sweetie Belle made sure to block Apple Bloom’s view of it – and finally escaped the infernal hospital. Unsurprisingly for Sweetie Belle, the Ponyville she saw from Doctor Shrink’s office was nowhere to be seen, as was the sun. Once again, her horn played the role of a torch.

“Alright, which way now?” Sweetie Belle asked, reaching for the compass.

“Uh... I think I know.” Apple Bloom pointed forward. A wide path was blasted through the vegetation ahead, filled only by decaying, dead leaves and rotten, shrunken tree trunks.

“I guess Scootaloo got tired of waiting for us,” Sweetie Belle said and smiled, looking around. “She’s not here, though. Weird.”

Apple Bloom shrugged and walked forward. “I ain’t waitin’ for her. If she can do this, I’m pretty sure she can get wherever she wants, no problem.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s her waiting for us at the exit right now.”

And I’m not sure I want to meet her.

Scootaloo’s newfound strength and apparent insanity weren’t a good combination. Even if she had helped them so far.

Sweetie Belle shook her head and followed Apple Bloom. No sense worrying about that before they actually met her.

The path was straight – no turns whatsoever. There were also no crossroads. Rather curious, considering how many paths there had been in the maze. Shouldn’t Scootaloo blast through at least a few of them? Or did she think them so stupid and incompetent that she plugged all the side-paths she could find, just so they couldn’t get off-track? In the end, however, it wasn’t important. All that mattered was reaching the exit.

As they went, mist slowly began to form around them. At first, it was just a haze at the edge of Sweetie Belle’s light. Then it drew closer and closer, and they were soon encased in a greenish, glowing pillow of cold steam.

“Fog ain’t ever good news,” Apple Bloom said, pressing closer to Sweetie Belle.

“Yeah. But we have the compass. We won’t get lost,” Sweetie Belle replied, peering ahead. When she dimmed her horn’s light, she could actually see a bit further. There was a small blur in the distance that kept drawing her attention. It was probably just the mist playing tricks on her eyes, but she could swear it was slightly greener, more concentrated than the rest.

“I guess.” Apple Bloom sighed. “I just hope I won’t catch a fever again from this. I ain’t too keen on spending more time at the hospital. Even if it was in Ponyville.”

“No wonder. Bad memories, right?”

Apple Bloom chuckled. “Nope. I ain’t squeamish like that. It’s just really boring there.”

Sweetie Belle giggled. If Apple Bloom could recover her sense of humor, maybe things weren’t that bad after all. The blur, however, refused to disappear.

“Hey, Apple Bloom, do you also see this green blot there?” Sweetie Belle asked, pointing ahead.

Apple Bloom squinted. “Hmm... Yeah. I mean kinda. It’s blurry. Might be just a part of the fog.”

“Probably.”

Hopefully.

As they neared, the spot grew bigger, and so did tension in Sweetie Belle’s muscles. Maybe they should go back. Surely there was a go-around there somewhere.

“We should turn around,” Apple Bloom said, her eyes glued to the blur as well.

“Yeah.” Sweetie Belle pulled out the compass. “Show us some other way to the exit.”

The compass kept pointing forward.

“I suppose that settles it,” Sweetie Belle said, sighing. “Do you think you can run?”

Apple Bloom looked at her prosthesis. “Maybe. I ain’t really sure what it can do.”

“Alright. Just get ready.”

The spot was getting near. Whatever it was, it would emerge from the mist at any second.

Sweetie Belle took a deep breath and whispered, “On three. One... Two...”

The white spot dissipated before their eyes. Just a particularly dense piece of the fog.

Sweetie Belle laughed, her muscles relaxing. “I guess we were a bit too jumpy this time, right?” She breathed out and looked at Apple Bloom. She was staring right into two obsidian eyes.

Sweetie Belle stumbled back and fell on her hocks. The mare’s eyes weren’t paralysing this time. In fact, she didn’t do anything at all; she just looked at her. Apple Bloom, in the meantime, cowered behind one of the trees by the edge of the path.

“W-w-what do you want?” Sweetie Belle asked, inching back.

The mare’s horn lit up with its black aura, and a small package landed in front of Sweetie Belle. It was wrapped in gifting paper with a big blue bow, and the tag on it read ‘From: Rarity’ and ‘To: Sweetie.’

Sweetie Belle shakily reached for it, pulled at the ribbon, unwrapped the paper, and lifted the lid of the box. Inside lay a photo.

“What does it mean?” she asked, looking back at the mare. The photo showed Apple Bloom and Scootaloo having fun on a swing. Sweetie Belle remembered it – she took that photo about a month ago.

The mare stayed silent and motionless.

Sweetie Belle, her gaze jumping between the photo and the mare, turned the picture around. ‘Don’t trust them.’ She turned it around again. The picture was gone, another message in its place. ‘Come to me.’

“No.” Sweetie Belle frowned and got back on her hooves. “I-I’m not playing another one of the maze’s mind games!”

The mare tilted her head towards the box.

“What? I-is there another message, or...” Sweetie Belle glanced towards it, and her eyes widened. Inside lay a beautiful, silver dagger, its edge honed to perfection.

The knife levitated out of the box, surrounded by a dark aura, and as Sweetie Belle looked back in the mare’s eyes, she could feel her limbs and tongue stiffening. The dagger aimed for her head.

No! No, no, no, please don’t! I came too far to—

The dagger slipped itself into Sweetie Belle’s mane, and the power holding her in place vanished. The mare turned around and started silently walking away. She looked back, as if checking whether Sweetie Belle was coming, and then slowly disappeared into the mist. Sweetie could swear she saw her lips droop again.

“W-well... That was weird,” she said, turning to Apple Bloom, who was still huddling behind the tree. “It’s safe now. I... guess we should continue.”

Apple Bloom peeked from behind the trunk and nodded. “What did she... it... whatever want?”

Sweetie Belle shrugged. “Beats me. But she didn’t try to kill me this time, so that’s a plus.”

“I saw her give you a box. What was in there?”

“Nothing important, really. Just another weird photo.” Sweetie Belle reached to her mane and checked that the dagger was still well hidden. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Apple Bloom, but she didn’t need to know, did she? The mare left them alone this time, and Sweetie Belle really didn’t want to press her luck by going against the monster’s wishes, written or implied, when she didn’t have to.

Apple Bloom nodded again and walked back onto the path.

The mare wasn’t the only thing that had vanished. The mist dispersed after she left, revealing a stone staircase not farther than ten meters ahead that led to an elevated platform. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom exchanged glances.

“Do you think we might be gettin’ close to the exit?”

Sweetie Belle reached for the compass again and moved it from left to right. The needle moved by a significant bit. “Very close.”

They climbed up the stairs and froze. The only thing above the platform was a long, metal spike set in a solitary wall. It was covered in dried blood. Scootaloo stood next to it, a smirk plastered across her face. “It’s been a while since you passed me by,” she said, nodding at Sweetie Belle. “May I ask why?”

“It’s–”

Apple Bloom brushed past Sweetie Belle and jabbed her hoof into Scootaloo’s chest. “You! You wanted to leave me behind!” She put her new leg in the air and pointed at it. “This is all your fault!”

“Apple Bloom. Hi. Again trying to play the tough guy?” Scootaloo chuckled and swathed the hoof away. “We all know that’s just a lie.”

“Why you...!” Apple Bloom gritted her teeth and raised her front leg, hovering it in front of Scootaloo’s face.

Scootaloo pressed the hoof back down. “Sometimes, you should try to standby, and on your brain instead of muscles rely. Now, now. Don’t look at me all wry, or it’ll be you, not Sweetie Belle, who will die.”

“What?” they shouted in unison.

Scootaloo grinned. “Didn’t you know? If escape one wants to try, sacrifice she can’t deny.” She pointed at the spike.

Sweetie Belle pulled out the compass again. This couldn’t be it, could it? After all they went through, all the trouble to survive and press on, one of them had to ‘sacrifice’ herself? Unthinkable!

The needle pointed straight at the spike.

“So that’s why you wanted me to follow you so badly?” Sweetie Belle asked, the compass falling out of her hooves. “So you could just throw me at this thing?” She felt her eyes welling up. “You... you monster. If somepony will end up ‘sacrificed’, it sure won’t be me!”

“Yeah!” Apple Bloom said, scowling. “If I have to choose between a good friend and a crazy one, I know which one I’ll help!”

“The water’s effects, I can no longer defy, but once I escape, its power will dry,” she said, giving them a smug smile.

“What?” Sweetie Belle asked, and Scootaloo rolled her eyes.

“She means it ain’t clear which one of us should... go.” Apple Bloom gulped. “I mean, she’ll be the same old Scoots once she gets out of here; she ain’t the obvious choice.”

“Go? You can’t be serious! There’s got to be some other way.” Sweetie Belle looked at Scootaloo. “Tell us!”

Scootaloo shook her head, still smiling. “All the other ways will lead you awry.”

“Sweetie Belle.” Apple Bloom laid her hoof on Sweetie Belle’s back.

“It’s not true! It can’t be.” Sweetie Belle blinked and sent tears rolling down her cheeks. “We... we can’t go along with this!”

Apple Bloom sighed. “And what are we supposed to do then? I ain’t waitin’ for a rescue that ain’t comin’.”

“But... but...” Sweetie Belle stared into Apple Bloom’s eyes. “How can we just... pick one of us to die?”

“Straws.”

“What?”

“Straws.” Apple Bloom pointed at the nearby trees. “We’ll take some sticks and draw. The shortest one goes.” She looked at Scootaloo. “That okay with you?”

Scootaloo shrugged.

Apple Bloom nodded and stumbled down the stairs.

“Are you crazy?” Sweetie Belle glanced between her friends. “She’s charmed! She won’t respect the result if she loses!”

“At least then we ain’t gonna hesitate, though.”

Apple Bloom climbed back, three sticks in her hoof, their bottoms covered. “You each take one; I’ll get the last.”

Scootaloo stepped closer and pulled out a stick.

Sweetie Belle bit her lip and reached for one next. It was significantly shorter than Scootaloo’s. “Dang.”

Apple Bloom held up the last one. About mid-size between the two.

“Oh, come on. This just isn’t fair.” Sweetie Belle made a step back, her voice shaking like a leaf during a thunderstorm.

“It’s the fairest method we got,” Apple Bloom said and slouched. “I’m... I’m sorry. I wished it’d be...” She sighed. “Doesn’t matter now, does it?” Her voice constricted.

Scootaloo laughed. “It’s time to say goodbye.” She moved towards Sweetie Belle, her eyes glowing like two lamplights.

“No!” Sweetie Belle pushed Scootaloo away and levitated the knife out of her mane. “Stand back, both of you!”

Apple Bloom backed away, but Scootaloo merely stood in place. “Oh my. Is there a place where similar I could buy?” She laughed again.

“Is that the unimportantthing that monster was givin’ you?” Apple Bloom asked, scoffing. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“There was no reason to!” Sweetie Belle kept looking at Scootaloo. “I don’t know how we’ll escape, but we’ll do it. And nopony will die!” She shook the knife against Scootaloo. “Got it?”

“To that, I can only reply...” Scootaloo leapt at Sweetie Belle, knocking the knife away and breaking Sweetie Belle’s spell. “Different escape is just a lie!” She pinned her to the ground and pressed her hooves against Sweetie Belle’s neck. “It doesn’t matter how you’ll die!”

Sweetie Belle looked at Apple Bloom. “H-help!”

“I’m sorry, I... We drew the sticks and... and... I...” She took a step back, bowing her head.

Coward!

Sweetie Belle clenched her teeth, drawing small, laborious breaths, and looked Scootaloo in the eyes. “You... won’t... kill me!”

She kicked Scootaloo as hard as she could with her free hooves, adding all the raw, unrefined magic she could muster to the blow. It was inefficient, but it worked – Scootaloo, for about the first time in her life, finally ‘flew’. Straight at the giant spike.

A quiet ‘splort’ reverberated in the air as her body hit it, and the glow in her eyes died in a matter of seconds.

Sweetie Belle stared at it with her mouth open. “I... I...” She looked at Apple Bloom.

Her friend gaped at Scootaloo, then at Sweetie Belle, and then started shaking. “You... you killed her. W-why?” Her face drained of all colour, tears quickly forming under her eyes. “How... how could you? Go to Tartarus!” She galloped away without any sign of a limp.

Sweetie Belle heard a door slamming shut. “What?”

Slowly, like morning mist disappearing under the barrage of noon’s sun, the maze vanished. The trees and brambles wavered like waves on a pond, and disappeared. The platform suddenly had walls and windows, and the floor turned into a wooden one. Sweetie Belle stared at the dagger and saw it change into a regular gouger they used to make woodcuts. The maze slowly transformed into their clubhouse.

Finally, the spike changed into a table. Scootaloo lay by it with her skull split open, the rest of her body completely intact.

“B–but...” Sweetie Belle heard tinkling, as of somepony breaking glass. She turned around. The Mirror of False Vision stood right behind her, its surface still showing images of dark trees before even they shook and vanished, leaving behind only Sweetie Belle’s own reflection.

The end.