A Lyre's Song

by Sparrow9642

Rating: teen
Tags: Tragedy, Twilight Sparkle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Death, Lyra, Romance, Original Character, Bon-Bon, Suicide / Self Harm, Horror, Starlight Glimmer, Violence
Length: 18709

What if love was tested, along with trust under the influence of something unexplainable?

What if love was tested, along with trust under the influence of something unexplainable? Is love strong enough to overcome an unknown evil, or is there a force stronger than love itself?

Published 2018-11-01 04:20:01 UTC
Last updated 2018-11-01 04:20:01 UTC

A Lyre's Song

A Song of Love and Happiness

"Happy anniversary!"

Lyra Heartstrings peeked her eyes open, being slightly startled from the mare in her sight of vision. Just inches from the bedside stood Bon Bon, a smile on her face and her eyes glimmering with happiness. Lyra came to her senses and with a giggle, smiled back.

"Happy anniversary," she replied with a joyful tone to her voice.

In response, Bon Bon just pressed her lips to Lyra's, which Lyra accepted, enjoying her marefriend's embrace in that moment of bliss. It had not even been five minutes into her day, and already she was satisfied. The kiss broke, as Lyra yawned and rubbed her eyes free of the leftover sand in the corners of her eyes, planted there by the sandmare the night prior.

Bon Bon giggled at the sounds of Lyra's long exaggerated yawn, turning away from the bed.

"What do you want for breakfast, sleepyhead?" Bon Bon asked sweetly.

"Anything is fine, Bon," replied Lyra, stretching and slowly finding her way out of the bed sheets.

"Blueberry pancakes it is then," Bon Bon concluded. "Just don't fall asleep again. We've got a long day ahead, and we can't afford to lounge around."

"Alright, alright. I'll be down in a minute. Just give me a minute to straighten up, Bons," Lyra promised, lifting the covers from her body, and planting her hooves on the floor.

"Alright. I'll get the pancakes started, just don't get the brush stuck in your mane... again," Bon Bon concluded.

"Don't worry, Bons, I won't," Lyra said with a sheepish smile that spelled out reasons that made Bon Bon unsure if she should've left Lyra alone, as she walked out of the room.

Once the coast was clear, Lyra proceeded into the bedroom bathroom, closing the door behind her. To wake herself up a little faster, Lyra drenched a provided washrag with some hot water and wiped her face a few times. The heat and steam was more soothing than anything, and as a result, Lyra had begun to fall asleep again.

Lyra caught herself and to counteract the effects of the heat, she quickly shifted the water temperature running from the tap to ice cold. She soaked the rag again, and ran it over her face again, quickly countering all the effects of the hot rag. In a mix of her simple naivety and sheepish actions to resolve the issue, she muttered out two words, staring at herself in the mirror.

"I'm up."

After a breakfast that seemed more like a five star meal fit for only the finest of mares, Lyra and Bon Bon had proceeded with their plans for that day. Lyra had managed to style her mane without hitting any snags, despite her small conflict with the hot washrag just before. She wanted to look decent for her beloved Bon Bon, and just from the glance of bafflement and the light blush on both of Bon Bon's cheeks, she clearly had succeeded.

The blueberry pancakes that Bon Bon had made were sweet and nothing short of delicious. Even though it was meant to be simple and quick, it had seemed like it had been cooked a five star chef. Bon Bon was a great cook, regardless, but Lyra knew it was Bon Bon's way of showing her that she had never regretted a moment being wedded to her, despite her naivety. She found it more cute than anything, and was one of qualities about Lyra Bon Bon loved.

The two had been friends since high school, but their first meeting had not been the most pleasant of greetings. In fact, it was the exact opposite. Bon Bon or "Hard Candy" as she had been addressed back then, was part of a group of mean mares that picked on the more "unusual" students. Lyra was one of those students, constantly speculating on a world beyond Equestria after seeing an illustration of unusual hieroglyphs in a history book. Some strange imprint with five separate ligaments of different lengths. She thought it was some sort of bizzare and disfigured hoof imprint, or possibly some otherworldly creature from beyond Equestria.

This had caught the eye of Bon Bon's group of mean mares, and resulted in relentless taunting, harassment, and misery for Lyra. Bon Bon or Hard Candy was by far the most brutal and relentless, even inflicting physical pain toward the young aquamarine mare. Lyra had been cornered in an alleyway by Bon Bon's group, and it was at this point that Lyra had reached a breaking point. Bon Bon had gotten into Lyra's face, taunting, laughing, and spitting the lone filly's face. Once the spit made contact, Lyra had struck back in defense, landing a hard kick to Bon Bon's ribs.

The impact had made Bon Bon falter just a little, quickly regaining her composure then striking back at Lyra with punches and kicks. By the time it was over, Lyra was on the ground in a great amount of pain. She was bleeding from her mouth and crying from both the painful strikes and the mental pain she had no choice but to toughen through. The school system was mediocre and preferred to watch students get tortured, so Lyra had no help there.

Out of all the hardship, Lyra had begun to make excuses not to go to school, starting with faking a cold. That lasted four days, and no matter how hard she tried to convince her mother and father otherwise, she had to go back to her personal Tartarus. The bullying continued for weeks, until Lyra was faced with a test of forgiveness. One day in the halls, Lyra had spotted the gang of mean mares Bon Bon had been part of. They had cornered somepony and were attacking their prey with vulgar insults of anger. Lyra wanted to just keep walking and not even get involved, but something was telling her to stay. Had she not, she would never had been wedded to her precious Bon Bon.

It was when Lyra caught eye of the victim that she felt conflicted on whether or not to help end the violence. On the floor with two streams of tears and visible injuries, was Hard Candy; the one mare that had made school a living Tartarus for Lyra. Part of her was urging her to jump in and help, while another wanted to see her worst enemy receive more torture as Bon Bon or Hard Candy had dealt her. Much conflict infused young Lyra, until she saw that Bon Bon had made eye contact with her.

She didn't motion Lyra to help, only stared in humiliation and desperation, not expecting Lyra to help her of all ponies. Why would she? Another kick was inflicted to her leg, following an audible crack that echoed in Lyra's ears. Hard Candy had been broken, and it wasn't long before a wailing scream of pain and desperation for help escaped Bon Bon's mouth. The mares just laughed at Hard Candy's screams, and finally backed off, ending their assault with a single round of spit being fired at their victim. Luckily for Lyra, she wasn't their next target and they just left in the opposite direction.

Lyra wasn't sure what to do, eyeing the now-broken mare she had a deep hatred for. She stood motionless for a minute or so, debating on whether to walk over and help her worst enemy or to follow the lead of her tormentors by adding one more wad of spit to her injuries. She REALLY wanted to add the additional torture, but then remembered back to that day when she was in the same position as her worst enemy. If she just added insult to the injuries that Not-so-Hard Candy already had, she would be no better than those mares who tortured her.

As much as Lyra didn't want to, she swallowed her envy down into the pit of her stomach, and walked over to where Hard Candy lied in pure agony. At first, Bon Bon cowered, afraid that Lyra was just going to get her much-deserved revenge, but became shocked when Lyra didn't attack her. Instead, Lyra only held out her hoof in an attempt to assist her.

"Come on. You need help," Lyra said through gritted teeth.

"I don't understand," Bon Bon replied in confusion. "I don't deserve your help, after all the things I've done to you."

"You're right. You don't deserve my help," Lyra started. "In fact, I'm the LAST mare you deserve help from, but that's not how I am."

Bon Bon was baffled. She didn't know whether or not to trust the mare that hated her most.

"Do you want my help or not?" Lyra said bluntly. "I'm not going to hurt you, if that's what you are afraid of."

"Why though? I've done nothing but treated you like manure since your first day here. How can you be so generous to somepony who doesn't deserve it?"

"Because, I forgive you," Lyra finalized softly.

Bon Bon, once again, was baffled.

"Y-You... y-you what?" Bon Bon muttered.

"I forgive you," Lyra repeated in a calm voice.

The words Lyra had spoken continued to repeat in Bon Bon's ears, as a sudden wave of emotion and sadness took hold of Bon Bon's soul. Tears immediately began to shed, as she burst into a state of emotion that Lyra was even shocked at. Lyra would have never thought there was a shred of anything nice in the body of a pony so cruel, but she wasn't one to hold a grudge on anypony. Even if they didn't deserve kindness.

She abandoned her motion of helping Bon Bon up, and instead, leaned down to where she was level with her on the cold ground. Bon Bon was too distressed to focus, so Lyra did the best thing she could've in this situation; she leaned inward with her hooves extended, and wrapped them around the distraught mare. The warmth and tightness of the hug caused Bon Bon to jump in the surprise.

This was a different feeling than anything Bon Bon had felt. It was warm, welcoming, and friendly. She hesitated, continuing to sob, but found herself returning the hug. Her hooves caressing over Lyra's soft aquamarine fur felt like something she had never felt before. Something her father found useless in his eyes. A blossoming of a promise. The blossoming of a friendship.

Bon Bon hugged tighter, sniffling as she spoke.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry I put you through Tartarus! I'm sorry I hurt you, spit on you...EVERYTHING! I'M SORRY FOR EVERYTHING!" Bon Bon protested through her sobs of mixed emotions and sorrow.

"Shh... it's okay. I forgive you, Hard Candy. I forgive you for everything you and the others did," Lyra said softly, continuing to comfort the mare that used to be her worst enemy.

In the pause of emotions and sadness, Hard Candy pulled away, wiping her eyes clear of tears, revealing puffy bloodshed eyes.

"Actually, my real name isn't "Hard Candy," explained the mare. "Hard Candy was just the name that group gave me, because my real name was considered "stupid and unworthy" to them."

Lyra was curious and shocked at the same time. She had only known this mare as "Hard Candy," yet that wasn't even her real name?!

"Then, what's the real name behind "Hard Candy?" Lyra asked.

The mare paused, turning her head away from Lyra.

"It's stupid. You'd laugh at it," she replied in a shaky voice.

"Try me," Lyra proposed. "Can't be worse than mine."

Taking a deep breath inward, the mare with no name stuttered out the answer.

"My real name is, Bon Bon," confessed the mare.

Lyra took in the name, and let out a small chuckle.

"That is pretty silly," she confessed.

"I knew you'd laugh!" Bon Bon pouted in anger.

Lyra shook her head, reassuring Bon Bon she was mistaken on what she meant.

"It's funny in a good way! I love it!" Lyra assured.

Bon Bon was unsure of how to answer that, seeing she wasn't sure if this mare was pulling her leg or if she was sincere.

"You think your name is silly?! I'm named after an instrument!" Lyra confessed. "My name is Lyra! Lyra Heartstrings!"

Once the name was announced, Bon Bon immediately burst into a mild laughter.

"Wow. You weren't kidding! Compared my name, your name definitely is worse than mine!" she said, continuing to laugh.

Lyra took no offence, as this was her intention from the start.

"See! We fit perfectly!" Lyra assured.

"I guess we do!" Bon Bon agreed, as both burst into a fit of laughter.

From that moment forward, Lyra and Bon Bon had been inseparable. Two ponies that hated each other once, turned out to be the perfect couple. It wasn't until college that the two had discovered their preferred choice of gender. It was a challenge for both of them to bring light, but it became obvious after their friendship had started to become more... intimate.

The two would have occasional mare-nights, where they'd get together and just do whatever the night brought. The first sign came when Lyra started to get aroused from the sight of Bon Bon, along with her constantly getting nervous around Bon Bon. It was to the point of where she had begun to fancy herself up whenever the two met up. Whether it be for a simple task or a mare-night.

The second sign came when she had to share a bed with Bon Bon one night, and she constantly found herself nuzzling up against Bon Bon, and enjoying the feeling of Bon Bon's body heat against her body. It had happened so many times that Lyra ended up sleeping elsewhere to avoid Bon Bon catching her in the act of nuzzling up against her.

She had also had an urge to do much more, but ended up being able to control herself from doing such acts. At first, she wondered if it was just accidental and maybe it was due to her body looking for heat to warm up her body. She quickly debunked that as negative, because it had not been cold that night. They had even slept on top of the covers to escape the heat.

The last and obvious sign she was attracted to Bon Bon intimately and romantically, was when the two accidentatally kissed. It had been one mare-night, when Bon Bon had made it to the kitchen for a snack. Lyra had decided to check on Bon Bon, seeing she had taken longer than usual, and just like how most accidental kisses occur, the two had bumped into one another, and in that sudden action had pecked their lips together.

Both knew it was accidental, but at the same time, both mares had felt something "special," and didn't want it to end. Bon Bon especially, seeing she too had found herself feeling strange around Lyra.

The night Lyra had been nuzziling against her, it had awoken her, but she loved the feeling of Lyra nuzzling against her body and nearly cried when Lyra moved away from her. Both came clean one mares-night and even though the conversation was uncomfortable and hard for both the mares, it ended in them experimenting with one another to see if their assumptions were right or wrong. It didn't take long to figure out that both were right, resulting in a night of bliss.

Both of them did get judged for being a couple of the same gender, but as long as they had each other, they didn't care what other ponies thought about their relationship. As they made their way into the Ponyville Market, numerous stallions and mares stared daggers at them. The couple just shrugged off the fact that they were being stared down , and continued with their business in the market.

Bon Bon was normally the one who handled the shopping, so Lyra just stood idle, answering any questions that may had been addressed to her. To the ponies that made the motion to stare at them, Lyra just gave them an eye roll, showing she was not offended or affected by their attempt of an insult. As usual, the shopping trip didn't take anymore than ten minutes, and Bon Bon had a preferred pony to go to for payout.

The pony was a young mare named Sunflower Spring. She had only been working as a cashier in the Ponyville Market for a little over a year, and was one of the few ponies that judged Bon Bon and Lyra for being a same sex couple, thus why she was Bon Bon's preferred cashier.

"Good morning, Sunflower!" Bon Bon said in a greeting voice.

"Bon Bon! How's my best customer, or should I say customers?!" Sunflower greeted in a happy voice.

"The best we'll ever be," Bon Bon replied, referring to the multiple daggers being shot at the two in the marketplace.

"Nevermind them. You know they only do it because the ones who don't have a problem with your relationship would be looked at weirdly if they didn't follow," Sunflower assured, writing down the prices of the items Bon Bon had purchased.

"Sad that ponies think like that anymore" Bon Bon agreed, grabbing her small purse to pay for the items.

While doing the math for the final tally, Sunflower had spotted an item of interest.

"Wine? I didn't ever see you as an alcohol drinker, Bon Bon," Sunflower questioned in mild surprise.

"Hehe. I only drink for special occasions," Bon Bon clarified.

"Oh, do tell. What's the occurrence?" Sunflower asked with much curiosity and wide eyes.

"Well, today marks mine and Lyra's one-year anniversary, and we wanted to do something special for the occasion," Bon Bon confirmed, her beloved nuzzling her muzzle in a romantic manner.

"Happy anniversary, you two!" Sunflower exclaimed happily.

Sunflower suddenly dropped the pencil she had used to tally up the total for their purchases, and leaned forward, motioning the couple to follow her lead. Bon Bon and Lyra leaned forward, following Sunflower's lead.

"The wine's on the house," Sunflower whispered. "Take it and have a great anniversary! Be sure to save me a glass though."

Bon Bon giggled, nodding her head and awaiting the final price.

"That brings your total to 50 bits," Sunflower confirmed, knocking off the additional 100 bits that would have been added if the wine were not free of charge.

Bon Bon laid 60 bits out on the counter, tipping Sunflower an additional 10 bits for the free wine. Sunflower bagged the additional items, handed them to Bon Bon, and collected her tip, placing the other 50 in the register.

"I'll be sure to save you a glass," Bon Bon whispered, then walked out of the market, noticing Sunflower wink one of her eyes.

I'll look forward to it!

About an hour had passed, and the scent of the secret dish Bon Bon had decided to cook for the two engulfed the house. Lyra sat idle in on the living room couch. She felt her stomach growl at the smell of the dish that Bon Bon had forbidden Lyra from even seeing, and licked her lips in the aroma of the scent. The scent was like that of a freshly baked loaf of bread with a hint of some other ingredients Lyra was not familiar with.

She knew one thing about the dish just from its scent; it was a fancy dish, causing Lyra to wonder where Bon Bon had learned to cook so well. If this dish was anything compared to the blueberry pancakes she had cooked for breakfast that morning, Lyra wasn't sure what to expect. At the sound of the clattering of dish plates, along with silverware being placed on the kitchen table, Lyra suspected that dinner was close to being served. Her theory was confirmed when Bon Bon stood in the kitchen entranceway holding a smile.

"Dinner is ready," Bon Bon said cheerfully.

Lyra quickly made her way to Bon Bon, and took her hoof in hers, navigating into the kitchen, where a set table with two dishes and wine glasses sat idle. The dish smelled and looked delicious, as Lyra sat down in her provided chair and waited for Bon Bon to take her seat before doing anything else. Once Bon Bon was seated, she placed out her hoof, which Lyra quickly took in hers.

"For us, I decided to try something different and unique," Bon Bon said. "Something that resembles our love and our relationship."

Bon Bon released Lyra, then in unison the two mares took a bite of the dish, which looked like some sort of manicotti dish, spread with a sauce composed of multiple spices, and topped with daisies. Red rose petals outlined the plates, with the bottle of fine wine next to the wineglasses. In Lyra's mind it seemed like a fitting dish and had a vibe of romance; perfect for a romantic occasion.

Sticking their bites into their mouths, both of them immediately were baffled by the taste. The spice variation was perfect with no spice overpowering another, and the sauce had a perfect amount of sweetness to it with just a small hint of spiciness. However, the cheese and daisies added a kick that gave the dish just the right amount of taste to even out the spiciness, causing both to smile. Bon Bon had succeeded on her very first try.

Lyra smiled, assuring her beloved Bon Bon that the dish was delicious, which Bon Bon caught, and smiled back. She reached for the wine, but Lyra quickly intervened.

"Allow me," Lyra assured. "It's the least I can do after all the love and effort you put into this dish, Bons."

Bon Bon blushed, pulling her hoof back and allowing Lyra to pour her a glass. Carefully, Lyra used a provided corkscrew to release the cork from the bottle's opening, and with focus and gentle care, poured the red liquid into Bon Bon's glass. She followed afterward, pouring herself a glass. Lyra wasn't necessarily the biggest fan of wine, but for this occasion, she could make an exception.

She set the wine to the side and grabbed her glass, raising the glass into the air. Bon Bon followed, raising her glass as well.

"To us and many more years of being together," Bon Bon announced as the two glasses clinked together, and the two mares took a sip from their glasses.

Sitting their respective glasses to the side, Lyra and Bon Bon dug into their dishes once again, staring into each other's eyes as they ate.

The sound of the Ponyville Fountain's running water relaxed the couple as they sat on one of the provided benches, admiring the monument. Both of them were slightly buzzed from drinking a little too much wine, so the running water helped to ease their minds. They would be regretting it in the morning, but in that moment, neither of them cared the slightest about what would follow the next day. This was their night.

Lyra -being the most affected by alcohol- sat nuzzled against Bon Bon's soft chest, breathing in the mixed smell of their dinner dish and Bon Bon's preferred body wash. The body wash smell like a mixture of wildflowers, including her favorite; a very rare flower that only grew in certain places throughout Equestria. The Midnight Blue Lotus.

She had only seen one in her lifetime when she was a young filly, navigating through one of the most popular landmarks of Equestria. A set of caves that were said to have been formed by a dragon centuries before the births of the royal sisters. A landmark known as, the Dragon's Burrow. Lyra had visited the landmark and while the guide had been leading her group through the caves, she had spotted a large group of small blue flowers. The flower had seemed mystic with its petals having a variation of colors. The flower only grew in damp and dark areas where natural streams of water ran through the underground, allowing the plant to grow naturally.

The smell the plant emanated was a mystic smell, and was rumored to even have healing properties. Ever since that day, Lyra had been infatuated with flower, and was the main reason why her favorite color was midnight blue. Whether or not the scent had healing properties was a mystery to her.

Bon Bon gently ran her hoof through Lyra's mane, as the two drunken mares watched Celestia's sun slowly lower behind the horizon, and Luna's moon take its place in the starry sky. It truly was one of Bon Bon's favorite sights to watch, especially with Lyra. The pair had made it one of their nightly activities even before the knot had been tied, and was definitely something both of them could enjoy, drunk or not.

"Ready to go home?" Bon Bon asked nicely.

Lyra nodded her head as a response, too buzzed to bother responding. Bon Bon giggled, helping Lyra from the bench.

"Come on, Lyra Drunkstrings," Bon Bon said playfully. "Don't be falling asleep too quickly. I still have one more activity before our anniversary ends."

Lyra jumped at that statement, knowing what Bon Bon was referring to.

"Oh, don't worry, Bon. I'm not buzzed enough to miss out on that," she said seductively, giving Bon Bon a look that aroused Bon Bon just a little.

"I figured so," Bon Bon replied back in her own tone of seduction. "You better hold up to your word, otherwise I might have be more 'rough' than I usually am."

That tone aroused Lyra almost immediately. Her body grew hot at Bon Bon's look of seductive encouragement.

"You can go as rough as you want, Bons. Just be warned, I don't play nice back," Lyra whispered seductively into Bon Bon's ear, causing her body to immediately heat up in arousment.

"I look forward to it," Bon Bon whispered back in Lyra's ear, as the pair made their way back to their home for a night of bliss, not hearing the loud explosion in the distance.

A Song of Fear and Paranoia

The following morning started with nothing but a pounding headache for Lyra, while Bon Bon was able to shake off the effects of the aftermath easily. It wasn't her first ordeal with an aftermath of drinking just a little too much alcohol, so she had grown used to hangovers. Despite her head feeling like it was going to explode, Lyra hadn't regretted the events of the previous night, especially the end "activities."

One thing was assured, after the final activity, she had slept like a newborn foal through the remainder of the night. Bon Bon had kept her word and had tired her out, but that didn't mean she hadn't kept her's as well. The two mares had passed out in an embrace, both from their actions and the alcohol. Bon Bon had awoken first, as usual, and before hopping out of the bed, and proceeding to taking a shower, had lightly kissed Lyra on her left cheek.

The sound of the shower starting up was what had caused Lyra to stir, and almost immediately her head had begun to pound. As much as she didn't want to leave the comfort of the bed, she knew she had to, so she lifted the sheets from her body and scurried to the bathroom. Her steps were like the booming stomps of a dragon or a giant, causing her head to ache. However, the steam of the bathroom that escaped while opening the door helped to ease the thumping against her skull

The shower continued to run as Lyra gazed at herself in the mirror. Her mane was ruffled and sweaty, which caused her to startle a little, but she quickly stirred back to reality and just smiled at her reflection.

"What a night," she said, with a slight giggle escaping her mouth.

She grabbed the provided brush in an aura of magic and ran the brush through her messy mane in attempt to style it just a tiny bit. She planned to shower as well, but Lyra preferred to not deal with snags while shampooing her mane, so she always brushed her mane prior to washing. Luckily for her, the brush' s bristles glided through her mane without snagging, however, in the process something unusual caught Lyra's attention.

In her head, she swore she had heard a mild whisper amongst the sound of the shower and the thumping against her skull. Lyra thought about asking Bon Bon if she had said something or if she may have been whispering a track of Countess Coloratura's latest record, but then she remembered that she had drank too much wine.

Probably just a side effect from the hangover, Lyra thought to herself, shrugging off whatever she may had heard.

She finished brushing her mane, and quickly hopped in the shower with her beloved Bon Bon. Not an uncommon action, seeing the two had been showering together even before marriage.

The hot water eased Lyra's pounding headache as it ran over her body, along with a light kiss from Bon Bon. Lyra smiled as Bon Bon made conversation with her.

"Rough morning?" Bon Bon asked.

"You have no idea," Lyra replied, giggling. "My head feels like it's going to explode."

"That's normal," Bon Bon claimed sweetly. "Don't worry, I've got some remedies that will help with your headache."

"I wouldn't doubt that," Lyra said with another giggle.

Bon Bon responded with her own giggle, leaning in for another kiss, which Lyra accepted and enjoyed in the mix of the heat of the shower and being in the presence of her beloved Bon Bon. The kiss was released quickly, as Bon Bon nuzzled her head against Lyra's.

"When you're finished, come back into the bedroom," Bon Bon said sweetly. "Best cure for a hangover is rest."

"Alright," Lyra replied, kissing Bon Bon sweetly.

Bon Bon accepted it, and released, turning from Lyra and stepping out of the shower, leaving Lyra to her own thoughts. Lyra proceeded to grabbing the bottle of shampoo, not wanting to waste any more time than she needed to. Her head continued to pound, as she squirted a small bit-sized glob of shampoo into her hoof, rubbed her hooves together, and maneuvered it throughout her mane. The shampoo quickly turned to suds, as she did her best to wash out the sweat and whatever else may have been in her mane.

While washing, Lyra once again caught something unusual; just like before while brushing her mane, Lyra once again heard something like a mild whisper in her head. Once again, Lyra just decided to shrug it aside as a side effect of the hangover, and continued to finish up washing her body.

Once she finished up her shower, Lyra returned to the bedroom as Bon Bon had instructed. Bon Bon was standing at Lyra's bedside with the bedsheets folded over nicely.

"Just take it easy. Slow and steady steps," Bon Bon instructed.

Lyra followed her beloved's instructions, taking easy steps toward her side of the bed. Her headache had fallen to a more milder level of pain from the steam of the shower, therefore her steps no longer felt like thumps against her frontal lobe. Slowly and steadily, she made her way to Bon Bon, and positioned her body into a comfortable position. Bon Bon assisted, lying the sheets over Lyra's body gently.

Bon Bon followed up, placing a glass of cold water on the surface of Lyra's nightstand.

"Get some rest, and inbetween rest breaks, I want you to drink some water slowly," Bon Bon instructed in a sweet and motherly tone. "If you need anything, just yell for me, don't get up."

"Alright, mom," Lyra joked, causing Bon Bon to giggle and roll her eyes.

"Alright, no more jokes," Bon Bon said sweetly. "Rest and water. Got it?"

"Got it," Lyra replied sweetly, as Bon Bon turned away, and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

At the sound of the door closing, Lyra followed Bon Bon's instructions, taking a small sip of water. She swallowed the cold liquid down her throat, then closed her eyes into a slumber.

Lyra opened her eyes, only to find herself in the bed, her limbs aching and her head feeling like small bombs were going off in her skull. Bon Bon was there with her, snoozing like a foal, and a smile spread across her face. Bon Bon's mane was a sweaty mess, looking as if her mane had been ruffled by somepony. Lyra just smiled, listening to Bon Bon's sweet and shallow breaths. Lyra attempted to lean inward for a kiss, but found her body unable to budge from its current position.

Lyra attempted to move, but it was as if her body was full of lead. She couldn't move a muscle, causing her to immediately panic in desperation, beginning to overhear something she swore she recognized. A shallow whisper muttering something she couldn't make out. That was when her body began to move, but not by her own force. Her body had moved on top of Bon Bon's body in a dominant mount.

It felt like she was watching a movie, only instead of the movie being on a screen, it was from her line of sight. She thought she was just going to awake Bon Bon by booping her nose, but things took an immediate dark turn when she saw her hooves reach out toward one of her spare pillows, gripping it and moving it over toward Bon Bon's head. Lyra felt a tear escape her eye, as she screamed for Bon Bon to wake up, only for her screams to be unheard. The climax came, as Lyra watched in terror and shock, her hooves gripping the pillow, flail down violently over Bon Bon's head.

Bon Bon didn't move at first, only continued to sleep, until her inability to breathe finally came to attention and Bon Bon began to struggle and flail her hooves in desperation. Bon Bon's screams of desperation only came out as mutters of fear, sadness, and pure desperation. As a result, the pillow was just pressed down even harder on Bon Bon's head. Lyra just screamed screams of silence and horror, watching the horror unfold. She cried desperately, unable to escape from the horror.

After much longer than it would normally take for a pony to suffocate, Bon Bon finally began to succumb to the suffocation. Lyra just wanted to close her eyes and escape this Tartarus she had entered, watching as her beloved fell limp. Just when she thought the worst had passed, the pillow was lifted, revealing a pale Bon Bon. However, with a sudden inhalation of air, it was made clear that Bon Bon had been spared, but only had a small shred of life left in her.

The events of the scene took a grim turn once again with Lyra remaining on top of Bon Bon, raising her hooves into the air. Lyra-already broken- had no choice but to watch as the her other body came down with their hooves, straight into the face of Bon Bon. The horrid image of blood splattering into her sight became visible, along with Bon Bon having a horribly broken muzzle. Blood seeped from her nostrils, as yet another hammerfist landed into Bon Bon's face, causing more blood to obsure her vision.

It was at this point that Lyra had reached the urge to vomit, watching the horror continue. Another hammerfist hit. Then another, another, and another. Blood splatter covered the walls, the bed was soaked with crimson, and Lyra's vision had become nothing but a crimson red filter. The worst part of it all though, was that Bon Bon was still alive by a tiny shred. Lyra prayed that this horror show was over, but it became obvious it wasn't, when the events continued to worsen.

The unknown Lyra had begun to drag Bon Bon's near-lifeless body out of the bed, down the stairs, and into the kitchen. Lyra immediately shuddered, knowing where this was going, noticing the sink full of water. Her fears came true, as she watched her other body dunk the head of Bon Bon into the water. She cried for mercy, wanting this horrorshow to end, but it didn't end. It only continued to devastate and tear Lyra apart.

Every time Bon Bon would be close to drowning, this monstrous version of Lyra would immediately pull her head from the now crimson water. This action repeated multiple times, until finally, Bon Bon was left in the water to drown for good. Lyra sobbed massively, watching as the demented version of herself made its way back up the stairs, and into the bathroom. It stood before the mirror, reflecting a blood-soaked version of herself in dread and unconditional terror.

Lyra continued to hold back the urge to vomit. She didn't know what to believe. All she knew was that she couldn't believe what she had just witnessed. She had killed her beloved in a very brutal and malevolent manner. In the mix of terror, confusion, and loss, she overheard that same mild whisper once again. What followed was completely unexpected; the other Lyra smashed their head into the bathroom mirror, causing shards of glass to fly everywhere.

The impact had caused the mare to fall to the bathroom floor, but the strange thing about the ordeal, was that Lyra had actually felt the impact, yet she wasn't bleeding like her other pony. The final set of the horrid sequence of events ended with the other Lyra gripping a glass shard, and impaling the shard into her throat and slashing it violently through the entire perimeter of her small throat. Lyra felt the pain sting her entire throat, but nothing happened to her, while her other self convulsed on the floor and gagged, a massive pool of blood being forming around her. It all ended with the perspective fading to pitch black, and before screaming in desperation of escaping this Tartarus, heard the same mild whisper reverberate throughout whereever she may have been.

The whisper spoke something that she couldn't make out, as she screamed in desperation.

"Lyra! Lyra!" Bon Bon yelled in consideration, having been alerted by a bloodcurtling scream from downstairs.

Lyra finally stirred awake, breathing rapidly in fear. Her body was drenched in a cold sweat, and her heart was racing at a rate that would be considered nearly fatal. Lyra struggled to come back to reality, as Bon Bon did her best to comfort her beloved. Lyra caught sight of her beloved Bon Bon, and quickly pulled her into an embrace. Bon Bon accepted and rubbed her hoof along Lyra's back.

"I'm sorry," Lyra apologized, sobbing at a mix between the horror she had experienced and Bon Bon's concern.

"Shh. You don't need to be sorry, Lyra," Bon Bon claimed gently. "What in Celestia happened?"

Lyra attempted to explain what had caused her to fall to a state of despair and pure terror, but just as she was about to speak, all the events that had just occurred had escaped her. She tried to remember, but it was all just a giant blank, and Lyra couldn't explain why she couldn't remember something so traumatizing. Baffled and unable to process anything, Lyra responded with the only answer she could give in that moment.

"I don't remember," Lyra replied, continuing to hold Bon Bon close, not wanting ever to let her go.

Bon Bon followed, unsure of what to think about the situation.

"I'm here as long as you need me to be," Bon Bon said calmly, continuing to hold Lyra.

The embrace went on for an hour, before Lyra even dared to try going back to sleep. When she did, Bon Bon stayed. She refused to leave her beloved's side.

Two days passed, and Lyra's condition had only seemed to worsen. The nightmares had grown more haunting, almost seeming realistic in nature. The torture methods had become more violent and grotesque, causing Lyra to jolt awake with an urge to vomit each time. As an attempt to help the sleep deprived unicorn get some much-needed rest, Bon Bon had given Lyra some medication that helped ponies sleep, but it had not been effective in the slightest. Lyra's nightmares continued and each time Bon Bon would question her on the contents of the nightmare, Lyra's thoughts would immediately go blank. It made no sense, as most traumatizing nightmares were normally burned into the victim's memories.

Bon Bon knew that all-too-well, as she had had her own fair share of terrifying nightmares. However, the most she had ever experienced after she had awoken was a cold sweat, heavy breathing, and an increase in her heart rate. Never had she awoken screaming so loud that it sounded like she was being murdered or tortured, nor with the urge to vomit or sweating so badly that it had left a spot in the sheets. She had become concerned for her beloved Lyra, afraid that one of these times, she would never wake up. Medication had not helped, nor a warm and relaxing bath with a massage afterwards.

Bon Bon had run out of options and had scheduled Lyra for a doctor's appointment, hoping that a reason for these sudden nightmares could be found. In the two days of no sleep, Lyra had become paranoid as well, afraid to even be near or around Bon Bon. Even Bon Bon had seen a change in Lyra's approach, seeing anytime she attempted to kiss Lyra, hug Lyra, or even get close, Lyra would turn away. It hurt Lyra the most, but something told her that she needed to remain distant, otherwise her nightmares could become a reality. Another sign that told her to stay away, was the fact that what started out as a side effect from her hangover had become a constant presence in her mind. She feared she might have been going crazy, but in her mind she wanted to believe it was just some sort of sickness she had caught. But, that still didn't explain why what had started as a whisper had become more audible, and that it increased any time she got near Bon Bon.

Why was this happening, Lyra wondered, and more importantly, was it too late? She prayed to Celestia that this doctor could find the cause of this whole ordeal. She just wanted things to go back to normal. For her to be able to live a happy life with her beloved Bon Bon. For the terrifying and haunting nightmares to end. For that damn reoccurring voice in her head to be silenced.

That was all she could do. Pray and hope, as she made her way through the double glass doors of the Ponyville Hospital. The waiting room was packed with ponies of all ages, which was not uncommon at all. Luckily for Lyra, she didn't have to wait long, mainly ten minutes after doing all the paper work. It turned out most of the waiting room was inpatients already administered in the hospital, doing their daily exercise to avoid getting blood clots in their forelegs.

Lyra was called back quickly, being led by a nurse she was familiar with. Nurse Redheart; one of the hospital's kindest yet strict nurses on staff. She was led to a smaller room after being weighed and given the usual vitals examination. With a few words and an assuring smile, Lyra was left alone, fidgeting with her hooves while examining the interior of the room and a chart describing and labelling the anatomy of a pony's body.

Between her fidgeting and examining, that reoccurring voice in her head made itself known. She couldn't make out what was being said, only that it was more mild than usual. Lyra didn't make any movements, nor did she state anything toward the voice, thinking it was just her mind playing tricks on her. She only continued to fidget and examine the chart, waiting for the doctor to arrive. It was about another five minutes, before the sliding door to the room slid open, entering a brown coated stallion with a chocolate brown mane and blue eyes.

On his nametag was the name "Dr. Bronston," which Lyra quickly recognized as the former Canterlot Morgue medical examiner. He had decided to return to simple medical practice after an occurrence in the morgue he found bizzare. Lyra remembered reading the story in the newspaper, and even found it bizzare herself.

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Heartstrings," Bronston said professionally.

"Good afternoon, doctor," Lyra replied.

"So, what seems to be the problem?" he asked with concern, grabbing a spare mini notebook and pencil.

"I'm not sure," Lyra explained. "In the last two days, I've been restless due to nightmares that I've been having. I wake up screaming, sweating to death, and my heart rate is at a rate that most doctors would consider in the range of near fatal.

"I see. Don't take this personally, it's just part of my job, but prior to having these nightmares, did you partake in drug activity?" asked Bronston.

"What? No!" Lyra retorted. "All I had was two glasses of wine!"

"Alright, alright, Mrs. Heartstrings, I'm only asking, because it says I have to. Okay?"

"Right. I'm sorry, doc," Lyra apologized, confused on why she had reacted so angrily.

"Apology accepted," Bronston accepted. "Now, you said you had wine prior. You are aware alcoholic beverages can cause nightmares, right?"

"Yes, I am," Lyra replied. "However, that was TWO DAYS AGO, and the beverage has since then, made its way out of my system!"

"Mrs. Heartstrings, I'm going to have to ask you calm down, or I will have you escorted out of the building," Bronston warned.

Lyra paused, taking a second to calm down. She had once again snapped unintentionally, and didn't know why. It could have been due to the lack of sleep, but normally she was conscious of her actions. She just gave her best answer.

"Sorry doc. I haven't been able to sleep for two days, so I snap easily," she said apologetically.

"Understood. Just understand I'm just doing what I'm told to do," Bronston claimed.

"Right. Carry on," Lyra composed. "I'll do my best to answer."

"Good," Bronston finalized, continuing to follow asking the questions on the sheet he gripped.

Lyra explained how the details of the nightmares escaped her mind whenever she tried to explain what had occured, along with the voice in her head that proposed gibberish she couldn't understand. Both of those claims made Bronston raise an eyebrow in consideration, unsure of whether Lyra was telling the truth or if the deprivation of sleep was causing her to say things that were complete nonsense. That wasn't his job though. His job was to find a solution.

"Alright. Mrs. Heartstrings, I'm going to order you a stress test," Bronston explained as confidently as he could. "After that, I'm having some blood work ordered, an MRI, and a mental and physical test done as well."

Lyra wasn't too satisfied with all the unnecessary tests being proposed by Bronston, but at this point, she felt like she had no choice but to follow the doctor's orders. She nodded her head in agreement as Bronston finished writing down some things in his notebook. Once he finished, settling the pencil between his right ear and skull, he turned to Lyra with a smile.

"Don't worry, Mrs. Heartstrings. We will get you better," he assured.

"I hope you are right..."

Many hours passed of endless testing, and after what seemed like forever, Lyra sat in wait for the results. She hadn't been cured, seeing the voice still remained, speaking the same gibberish. As the clock ticked, she attempted to make sense of what the voice was saying, but it was too muffled and distorted to even hear clearly or fluently. All it was causing her, was a headache, so she rubbed her temples to try and soothe the aching. Once again, it wasn't effective at all and seemed to only antagonize the voice even more.

The sound of the door sliding open startled the mare out of her trans of concentration, feeling her nerves settle and her headache subside as Bronston took a seat, settling a large stack of papers and documents onto the tabletop. Lyra sat in suspense, hoping that somewhere in that large stack was the answer to what in Celestia was going on with her body's state.

"Anything doc!?" questioned Lyra in a form of worrisome anticipation.

"I'm afraid not, Mrs. Heartstrings. I've checked your results, and everything seems normal. Your temperature is a safe 98.3 degrees, all of your vitals are healthy, and your mental state is as normal as it normally seems to be," Dr. Bronston assured, cycling through the stack and organizing the papers along the tabletop.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't help you find anything, Mrs. Heartstrings. I've literally done all I can to help, and in the end, I believe your answer doesn't lie in the medical field, which is why I'm going to recommend seeing a psychiatrist for your current predicament. Unexpected terrifying nightmares and a voice in your head seems more like a psychological issue than a medical issue. I truly am sorry, but that's all I can do."

Lyra sat speechless. She had come her hoping for an answer to what ever may be wrong with her, but here she was back at square one with no clue on what to do except follow Bronston's advice. In some manner, she felt betrayed and angry, like there was more Bronston could do. He was just to busy waiting for his paycheck to want to help her solve the mystery behind her situation. With those thoughts, something happened that Lyra didnt expect; that same chilling voice reverberated in her skull, but this time it was different. The gibberish she had heard before was now clear as day.

The reverberating voice muffled out anything Bronston may have said, as Lyra listened, hearing what seemed like a mixture of whispering and some form of a conflict. She didn't know what to do, feeling some invisible force tell her to ignore the whispering and get out of there. She felt a sudden strong urge overcome her body the more she listened to the voices in her head.

The urge felt like a pure hatred, as Lyra felt her sanity start to fall to a comatose state, and her personality had begun to change to a more malevolent mindset. She eyed the doctor with daggers of rage and persistence, noticing Bronston's pencil settled on the tabletop. The volume of the voices increased, and even in A comatose state, Lyra could make out the dialogue of the voices now. The dialogue made her shudder and immediately sent her into a panic.

The voices were telling her to kill Bronston. That he had promised her that he would help her. He would make her better. He would cure her. He had lied, and instead did nothing but earn a paycheck. That's all doctors are good for. That's all they do. Take money, and leave ponies to suffer in pain. He should be punished for his lies. For his betrayal.

It seemed like she was listening to a record being played in reverse like she had in her teens. It made her feel uneasy, yet it also made feel her feel powerful in some way. She wanted to punish him, because the voices were telling her the truth. She wanted to take that pencil and shove it through his neck, forbidding him from ever speaking a lie ever again in his pathetic life. It took her a minute to realize that while in her comatose state, she had been reaching outward for the pencil, and while she was still sane, took her open opportunity to leave. She darted out of the room like a rocket, and despite Bronston objecting and trying to call Lyra back, never turned back. As she trotted like a mad horse, she thought to herself on how she could ever even have such sinister thoughts.

The voices in her head yelled for her to turn back and give Bronston his punishment, but Lyra refused and ran nonstop until she was out of the hospital and beyond.

After succumbing to exhaustion, Lyra took a seat on the ground. She had ended up just outside of Ponyville, and now sat with fear, confusion, and dread on what had just occurred in the hospital. If she had not come back to reality any second sooner, Bronston would have been bleeding to death from a pencil being impaled into his neck. Lyra shivered, not sure what to do or think. All she could think was what if that had been Bon Bon and instead of a pencil, the weapon had been one of the knives she used to cut vegetables. A tear escaped her eye at that thought, unsure of what to do now. She took deep breaths, small bits of sweat dripping from her muzzle, as she attempted to even find a solution to what had just happened. She had just nearly killed somepony, and had no control over her actions as it happened. Fear was all she could feel. She had never had the urge to harm another pony, nor the urge to kill, so what in Equestria had caused this, and more importantly, could she stop it?

Lyra thought back to what Dr. Bronston had suggested; a psychiatrist. She didn't dare take another chance of possibly killing somepony. That was when it hit her like a ton of bricks. Did she dare return home? She would be endangering her beloved Bon Bon, but where else could she go? Lyra swallowed hard.

"Where can I go?! What can I do?! Am I going bucking crazy?! How can I stop this!?" Lyra ranted, following her slapping herself in the face, regaining her composure. "Easy Lyra, you can't be afraid of this. You are stronger than some voice in your head speaking pure gibberish! You need to quit worrying so much about this voice. It's only something caused by sleep depri... depri... deprication?I think that's what Bon Bon called it anyway. Whatever... I just need to concentrate. I control me! Not a damn voice! It's all your head, Lyra! Nothing more!"

With every bit of confidence the mare could muster, she stood back up and made her way back to her home, attempting to hold a smile as she walked. That smile never came. Only a sense of fear.

The sound of vegetables being chopped up was all Lyra heard, as she closed the door to the house and steadily made her way into the home. Bon Bon became aware of Lyra's presence, as she turned from her half-chopped up vegetables to her beloved in a very unstable condition. She kept her distance, attempting to mutter out anything.

"So, what did the doctor say?" Bon Bon asked.

"Nothing I didn't already know," Lyra replied bluntly.

Out of the stillness of the silence of the house and Bon Bon's unsure expression. The whispers came once again, but this time, the message was said in a violent and demonic tone that made Lyra's hooves nearly collapse.

PUNISH HER. SHE PUNISHED YOU. NOW, TAKE YOUR REVENGE! SHE'S A SLUT. A WHORE WHO CHEATS BEHIND YOUR BACK WITH THE CASHIER. SHE LIES! SHE DOESN'T LOVE YOU! SHE USES YOU FOR HER PLEASURE! SHE DOESN'T DESERVE LIFE, BECAUSE SHE RUINS OTHERS! DESTROY HER!

"SHUT UP! SHE WOULD NEVER HURT ME! YOU'RE LYING!" Lyra yelled in anger, not aware that she was yelling at blank space in Bon Bon's eyes.

YOU'RE AN USELESS IDIOT IN HER EYES. SHE PRETENDS SHE LIKES IT, BUT IN HER EYES, YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A WASTE!

"No... you're lying! YOU'RE LYING!" Lyra exclaimed, conflicted.

She didn't want to believe the voice, but in ways she did want to believe it. Why had Bon Bon chosen to stay with her? Let alone, marry her? She was a mare who couldn't even brush her mane without messing up or cause an even bigger mess. Had Bon Bon really only used her for pleasure and nothing more? Was she really cheating on her with Sunflower Spring? Sunflower was VERY supportive, had asked Bon Bon to save her a glass, and even winked at her when they left that day. Could it be true? The voice continued to antagonize her as these thoughts ran through her head.

SHE'S A USER. YOU SHOULD SEE HER WHEN SHE'S WITH THAT BITCH, SUNFLOWER SPRING! SHE ALL OVER HER. TOUCHING HER AND KISSING HER EVERY...

"Lyra!"

The voice was interrupted by Bon Bon, standing with a look a worry and confusion. Lyra came to her senses, not aware of what she had said. Lyra made eye contact, confused yet slightly angry. That same feeling of hatred had returned, as Lyra finally spoke, a look of anger expressed on her face.

"Do you?' Lyra said quietly.

"What?" Bon Bon replied in confusion.

"Do you use me?" Lyra replied with a hint of anger. "Am I just your free card for pleasure?!'

"Lyra, what are you talking about?" Bon Bon asked, getting into a defensive stance, just in case she had to do any drastic actions. "I've never used you for pleasure. You're the mare I chose to love for the rest of my life. When we have our moments behind closed doors, it's for the reasons I married you, and nothing else. Why are you thinking I use you?"

Lyra felt sincerity in those words, but the voice was telling her otherwise. Lyra attempted to shake her head free of the voice, but it only made it worse.

ALLOW ME TO SHOW YOU THAT SHE'S A DIRTY MARE THAT USES YOU!

Lyra tried to ignore the voice antagonizing her thoughts, but it was quickly interrupted by a set of imagery, as Lyra felt her body enter that comatose state once again. All she could see was an image of Bon Bon kissing and intimately touching Sunflower Spring. At first she didn't even think twice that this was real, but as the imagery went longer, Lyra became conflicted, seeing the imagery seemed real, then it only grew more real. The imagery faded back to reality where Lyra could hear Bon Bon speaking to her, but next to her was Sunflower Spring with a look of seductivness all over her face.

Lyra blinked twice to make sure she wasn't just seeing things, but Sunflower was there both times, French kissing and caressing her tongue along Bon Bon's neck. Tears filled Lyra's eyes as she watched Sunflower Spring continue her dirty deeds, saying something in the process.

"Move aside you dumb bitch! She's mine!" Sunflower claimed violently. "She's always been mine!"

That made Lyra's anger rise, as she leaked tears, and yelled out in fury.

"Get off of her, you dirty slut!" Lyra commanded lunging forward, only to hit nothing but air.

At least, that was what Bon Bon saw, lunging out of the way. She watched as Lyra continued to fight some invisible force that she couldn't see. She wasn't sure what to do, afraid that if approached Lyra, she might put herself in danger. She didn't want to hurt Lyra unless she had to, and kept her defensive posture, as she neared Lyra, growling in frustration at the kitchen wall.

"Lyra!" Bon Bon yelled.

Lyra ignored her, continuing to tell at the wall. She had no choice but to get Lyra's attention by pulling her attention from the wall, or whatever she was yelling at. Bon Bon reached out her hoof and tapped Lyra's shoulder. The second the contact was made, Lyra stopped yelling, and instead, turned slowly where she was eye to eye with Bon Bon. Bon Bon felt uncomfortable, looking at the yellow bloodshot set of eyes staring at her, full of tears and pure anger.

"And you... You broke the promise you made to me!" Lyra yelled, lunging violently out at Bon Bon.

Bon Bon managed to dodge Lyra just in time, watching as Lyra went flailing into wall on the other side of the kitchen. Lyra wasn't giving up that easily, turning toward Bon Bon again, sliding a large knife out of its slot on the knife set holder.

"Lyra! What are you talking about?!" Bon Bon pleaded with confusion and sadness audible.

"Don't play dumb, you unfaithful slut! You never loved me! It was always that cashier, Sunflower!" Lyra violently claimed. "You just stood there while she kissed your neck! What kind of mare were you to just stand there while my heart was ripped in half!?"

"Lyra, Sunflower isn't here! I've never slept with her! We're just friends, nothing more!" Bon Bon pleaded, not wanting to get defensive with her skills as Special Agent Sweetie Drops. "I love you and only you! Please, put the knife down and let me help you!"

Lyra paused, holding the knife's tip outward. She stood motionless for a second before responding.

"You want to help me?! Then join your little whore friend in Tartarus!"

Lyra ran forward with the aim to pin Bon Bon against the wall, and wasn't stopping. Bon Bon abandoned all attempts to talk sense into Lyra, and resorted to defending herself. Bon Bon caught the knife, feeling it it cut into her flesh a tiny bit, but nothing hurt worse than the pain she felt in her heart. Lyra pushed forward hard, but Bon Bon had the upper hoof, kicking the blade out of Lyra's grasp, falling to the floor. Lyra attempted one more lunge, but was stopped by a kick to her liver, immediately causing her to lose her breath. Before she could recover, Bon Bon finished the assault with a spinning kick to Lyra's left temporal lobe, knocking her out instantly.

Bon Bon sobbed, as she watched Lyra fall to the floor, unconscious. She wanted to vomit, but instead, proceeded to getting Lyra to a controlled environment.

"I'm sorry, but you left me no choice" Bon Bon said through sobs, landing a soft kiss to Lyra's left temporal lobe, where she had kicked her. "Please forgive me for this...

A Song of Tragedy and Loss

When Lyra woke up, her head felt like it had been struck by one of Big Macintosh's hooves during Applebucking season, causing a serious headache. Her vision was blurry, as she made an attempt to look around, unaware of where she was. The last thing she remembered, was strangling Sunflower Spring in the kitchen, before she felt a nasty strike to her left temple. Then it was just black up to her awakening in this strange place. That was when her panic began to stir like a hive of angry bees.

Her eyes burst open, as she attempted to move, but quickly was stopped by something. Lyra sprung her head upward, now in full panic mode, and only grew more panicked as she saw that her hooves were strapped and completely restricted. Her heart race as she started to struggle and attempted to free her hooves. She had no idea where she was or who had put her here. Her memories were too foggy to remember what had happened before everything went to black, as her heart rate increased. In the stir of her progressing panic, a door opened from behind her, entering a female nurse.

"Lyra, calm down," the nurse said, urging Lyra to listen. "You are only being restrained so you don't cause harm to yourself. You are safe here."

Lyra didn't sense anything malicious about this nurse, so she did as the nurse had instructed, calming down.

"Where am I? How did I get here?" Lyra asked.

"You're safe. You were brought her by your marefriend due to drastic reasons," the nurse said comfortingly.

Lyra felt her heart drop, seeing she had no memory of doing anything to Bon Bon, only attacking Sunflower Spring.

"Oh Celestia! Is she hurt?! Did I... attack her?!"

Tears had begun to form in Lyra's eye sockets, as she stared at the nurse with desperation.

"Despite some minor cuts, your marefriend is fine," the nurse assured, but Lyra couldn't help but release tears.

"Celestia... what have I done..." Lyra stuttered. "How could I... I promised to never harm her...

The nurse interrupted, snapping Lyra out of her state of shock.

"Mrs. Heartstrings, I'm going to have to ask you to remain calm," instructed the nurse, turning her head to the door where two buff stallions stood. "Tell her she's awake."

Lyra didn't know what to think of the nurse's words as she gently released Lyra's hooves from the straps, causing Lyra's sense of insecurity to falter. She felt safe, yet she was disgusted with herself. Even if it was only minor cuts, she had hurt her beloved Bon Bon, and that made her sick to her stomach. She wiped her eyes free of any remaining tears then slowly stood up on all four of her hooves, feeling slightly dizzy. The nurse assisted, helping Lyra stand up straight and take careful steps. Her hooves felt like they had no support, so each step seemed like forever to Lyra, but eventually she managed to regain the strength she had been missing.

Feeling confident that Lyra could walk alone, the nurse released Lyra, staying close, just in case Lyra wasn't fully able to support herself. After only a few minor struggles, Lyra was able to walk steadily by herself again. Now that Lyra had had a chance to take in her surroundings, she found that she was in some sort of large cell with the company of only a bed, sink, and toilet. At first glance, she would've assumed she was in a prison cell, but unlike prison cells, this place was much more clean and welcoming.

It was wide and very open with a large plexiglass wall on one side and a door for the staff to enter through on the other side.

"What is this place?" Lyra asked.

"A containment cell," the nurse confirmed. "Don't worry, it's not designed for criminals or mentally ill ponies."

"Then, what is it designed for?" Lyra asked in a shaky voice. "If I'm not a criminal or mentally ill patient, then what am I?"

"This one is designed mainly for quarantine patients," the nurse explained. "When you were brought here, your marefriend explained that you had been acting like you were dillusional; attacking things that were not even real, and claiming you were seeing things that were not even there. You are being kept here, until we can be sure you are sane again, and that you are stable in both your mind and body."

Reality hit Lyra like a ton of bricks. Now she knew that the voice in her head had fooled her, and that Sunflower really was just an illusion. She was clueless as to what was causing this, where this unexpected voice had come from, and was powerless to stop it. Off that statement, the same distorted whisper caressed her thoughts again, and Lyra immediately objected.

"Get out! Leave me alone!" Lyra objected, alerting the nurse.

"Mrs. Heartstrings, what's wrong?" asked the nurse.

"It's back! The voice that made me attack Bon Bon! It's telling me to attack you! To kill You! To seek out Bon Bon and finish the job!" Lyra confirmed, beginning to leak tears.

The nurse stared in bafflement, watching as Lyra continued to struggle. She was shaking her head violently, lunging herself towards the closest wall. The nurse intervened, catching Lyra before she could hit the wall.

"Lyra, I need you to calm down!" the nurse ordered, as Lyra started to growl in her grasp. "If you don't, I have no choice but to restrain you!"

Lyra just growled and continued to fight against the nurse, not holding back. The nurse attempted to hold Lyra, but the strength was unlike anything she had experienced with patients in the past. She had no choice but to call for assistance. She grabbed her radio and sent the transmission.

"I need assistance! Patient has gone hostile! Repeat! I need assistance!"

It didn't take long for the same two buff stallions to rush back into the room and quickly rush to action. One of them grabbed Lyra in a tight grip, while the other quickly grabbed a syringe and inserted it into Lyra's neck. The sedative acted fast, as the stallion gripping Lyra felt her body become heavier and heavier, until she was deadweight. Lyra had been put into a temporary sleep, so while the window of safety was open, the two stallions carried Lyra back to the bed and strapped her down, making it impossible for her to cause harm to anypony.

The nurse breathed heavily from her fight against Lyra, as she looked up at the stallions with worry in her eyes.

"Get this cell contained as fast as possible," the nurse ordered. "No outside contact is to be allowed, until we can get this one under control. Order an EEG. We need to get her brainwave activity under examination immediately."

The stallions followed her orders, and with the nurse leading, walked out of the cell.

Lyra awoke once again, her head and vision fuzzy, only to discover that she couldn't move. She struggled for minute, until she heard a voice coming from the speakers in the room.

"Mrs. Heartstrings, please remain calm," the voice said from behind the speaker. "Your brainwaves are currently being monitored, so please do your best to cooperate. It will help us to determine what is causing you to become hostile towards others."

Suddenly, Lyra understood what the deep voice of a male stallion was referring to. A large number of small electrodes were attached to her head, around the most active parts of her brain. Being restrained, she had no choice but to follow.

"Alright, I'll try," Lyra agreed.

"Very good," the doctor replied. "Now, we need you to tell us when you start to hear this "voice" you said causes you to turn hostile. It may help us to determine how to approach how to cure you."

"Alright," Lyra agreed, waiting for the voice to come.

Ten minutes passed, and nothing came. Lyra was confused, unsure of why the voice had gone quiet, when normally, it was active any other time.

"Mrs. Heartstrings, are you holding back?" the doctor asked. "If you are, you don't have to worry. Your room is contained and you're unable to cause harm to yourself or anypony."

"I swear I'm not," Lyra confirmed. "I don't understand. It normally active, but it's been completely silent."

Lyra thought to herself for a minute, then realized something that was missing that always triggered the voice. That was when she knew what she had to do.

"Bring me Bon Bon," Lyra stated. "I can guarantee that will trigger the voice."

"Mrs. Heartstrings, we have been given a no-contact order. Therefore, we cannot allow anypony near you."

"It doesn't have to be direct contact, just outside the glass. Please! It's the only way to trigger the voice!"

A moment of silence followed, then the same male voice came over the speakers again.

"Very well. You are only allowed to see her and speak to her what you may though, that's all we can allow," the doctor finalized.

"That's fine," Lyra agreed, preparing for what could have been her most difficult confrontation, hearing a door open from the outside, and feeling her bed being rotated upward to an angle where she could see through the glass.

The sound of hooves approaching emanated from outside the glass, as Lyra took a deep breath. Bon Bon came into view at what seemed like a slow pace, stopped, then looked inward through the glass. At the first glance of Lyra's condition, Bon Bon gasped in a mixture of shock and sadness, seeing her beloved restrained and mentally exhausted. Her horn had been enabled with a magic restricting device, her fur, mane, and tail a mess, and puffy bloodshot eyes that screamed tiredness. She felt her heart drop at the sight, and barely held back the urge to cry, as Lyra made eye contact.

"Hello, Bon Bon," Lyra said.

"Lyra...

Bon Bon stumbled at her words, trying to find something to say.

"I don't know what to say, except why? Why did you attack me? Force me to hurt you? Why Lyra?"

Bon Bon had begun to sob saying those words, wanting an explanation on why these recent events had occurred.

"I-I don't... I don't know!" Lyra objected, feeling her emotions start to take over. "All I know is it all started the night after our anniversary! It came from nowhere, and started as a mild whisper that I thought was just from the wine, but now, I know that's not the case... I just want it to go away! I want things to go back to normal!

Lyra had begun to shed tears through her desperation of just escaping this Tartarus.

"That's why I brought you here, Lyra. So these ponies can help you, and things can go back to normal," Bon Bon assured calmly.

Lyra shook her head.

"No, Bon Bon. Things will never go back to normal," Lyra claimed, causing Bon to fall to confusion. "The day we were wed, I promised to protect you. To be by your side through sickness and health. To never harm you, but... I broke that promise by attacking and nearly killing you!

"Lyra, you weren't yourself. You were..something else. That pony that attacked me wasn't the mare I wed. It wasn't you."

"That doesn't excuse the fact that I didn't tell you about the voice," Lyra confessed. "Maybe then, this could have been prevented. Maybe if I wasn't such a damn idiot, I could have prevented putting you in danger! But instead, I ignored all the possibilities and ended up nearly killing you!"

Bon Bon couldn't deny anything. Everything Lyra had said was true.

"I can't control it... The voice in my head forces me into some comatose state where I can't control anything I do! I nearly killed Dr. Bronston that day in the hospital! I nearly committed murder, Bon Bon!" Lyra claimed, crying through her words. "But...with you, the voice is different. It told me to punish you. That you cheated on me with Sunflower Spring...And the truth is... I believed It! It showed me an illusion of her kissing and licking your neck! I believed it like a bucking idiot!"

"Lyra... Don't blame yourself," Bon Bon said with sadness in her voice.

"But it IS my fault! I had a choice to believe it or ignore it, and I believed it! Instead of trusting the one I love the most, I chose to let it control me!"

Lyra sobbed for a moment, then continued to speak.

"Bon Bon, I broke one of the promises I swore to my dying breath... On that day we were bonded for eternity, I promised to trust you no matter what... I broke something sacred... I have nopony to blame but myself. Voice or no voice...

Bon Bon felt her heart skip a beat. Lyra was right. Everything she had said was true to its word, and there was nothing she could say, otherwise she would just be lying to herself.

"If I can't even trust the one I love the most over some voice in my head, then how can I protect you? The answer, is that I can't. I can't even protect or trust myself!"

"That's why I brought you here, Lyra," Bon Bon said nicely. "To cure you and help you. You are being too hard on yourself, and are blaming yourse...

"Bon Bon, stop lying to yourself!" Lyra snapped. "You know what I'm saying is true, and you can't deny that!"

Bon Bon hung her head, knowing Lyra was right.

"If I can't protect you, then our bond will never last," Lyra stated, starting to tear up. "When this all started, the voice came when I was with you, and ONLY when I was with you! It will never stop... it will only progress, until my nightmares become reality! I may not remember them, but they always had one thing in common; you... That's the one thing I can remember, and now I see it...That these nightmares are what may become a reality as long as you are there... As much as it pains me... To save me and for me to protect you, you have to let me go, Bon Bon."

Bon Bon's blood ran cold after those words were spoke. A pain and shiver ran through Bon Bon's entire body, standing and staring in shock, as tears began to flow from her eyes. She could hardly speak, as she nearly collapsed from the impact and pain she had received.

"W-What?!" Bon Bon said in sadness, feeling her heart faint. Lyra... D-Don't say that!? Please! T-There must be another...

Bon Bon couldn't form words, completely shocked and lost. She was hoping this was a dream, and any moment she'd wake up and be next to her Lyra, kissing her awake. She waited and waited and waited, but her eyes never opened to the comfort of the bed. They only remained open to the sight of her Lyra, restrained to the bed.

"Lyra... I love you... Y-you are my beloved. T-the mare I-I chose to spend e-eternity with," Bon Bon said shakily.

The truth killed Lyra on the inside, almost as much as it did Bon Bon, but for her beloved. For her beloved's safety. For both their lives, this had to be done. Lyra began to sob from the pain burning in her heart, as she spoke back.

"I love you too and always will, but to save both of us, you have to let me go," Lyra spoke through her sobs. "It's the only way, and as much as it hurts, just promise me one thing, Bon Bon. When you leave, you will not look back. You will walk out and never come back to this place. Promise me."

Bon Bon continued to sob, looking at Lyra with tear-filled eyes.

"I can't... There must be another way to stop this! A way for us to live our lives the way we swore to on the day we were wed! I can't just... I can't just walk away from you! Not like this! There must be a way for both of us to live on happily! T-there must...

Bon Bon stumbled again, realizing that she was once again, lying to herself. In the stir of Bon Bon lying to herself, she collapsed to the floor, with only her knees holding her up. She broke down for the last time, releasing every bit of emotion she had left inside of her entire body. Lyra just watched and stared with hurt in her heart, awaiting the final moment she'd ever see her beloved Bon Bon again. She swallowed hard, watching as Bon Bon stumbled slowly, back up onto all four of her hooves. Bon Bon gave Lyra one final look, before stating one last thing.

"I promise," she stated, touching her hoof to the glass wall. "I love you."

Bon Bon pulled her hoof from the glass, causing Lyra to feel as if that action had ripped her heart out of her chest. With that, Bon Bon turned away from the glass wall, and walked out, not taking her eyes off of her beloved. Once Lyra was out of her sight, as much as she wanted to turn around, she just kept in her mind that she had made a promise that she had to keep. She walked and walked and walked, until she exited the sealed door to that wing of the ward, never looking back.

Once Lyra was sure Bon Bon was gone from her life, she didn't hold back, and let all of the emotions she had left inside of her, escape in a fit of pure agony.

Two weeks later

It had been two weeks of pure silence and dread for Lyra, still remaining in containment. She didn't understand why the doctors continued to hold her there, when for two weeks, the voice had completely dissipated. She should have been released a few days after making the hardest decision she had ever had to make; letting the one she loved and cared for the most go. The initial hurt still stung her heart every single day she remained in that same room with the the same four walls, creating a heaviness within the first four days of being stuck there. She had endured an overpowering depression that had caused her to fall to a state of being suicidal. While she had contemplated performing such actions, Lyra wasn't a quitter and knew that if she even attempted suicide, it would only make her stay in this place longer than it already had been. So she waited and waited and waited, but no changes came. She remained in her containment like a rabid animal.

It wasn't until after fourteen long days and nights that something finally happened. Seeing her hostile behavior towards other ponies had stopped, Lyra's no-contact order had been lifted, and she had been allowed contact with nurses and doctors once again. The explanation for why she had remained in containment wasn't due to her behaviors or anything to do with her at all. It had been due to some recent activity outside of the facility. The activity had been described as something similar to Lyra's condition, causing hospitals to become swamped with patient admissions within a week.

Giving the epidemic outside of the facility had been similar to Lyra's, the doctors had decided not to chance Lyra's condition worsening, and instead, had decided to keep her until the epidemic passed. The first week of Lyra's containment had been all about befriending the doctors and nurses, which Lyra had managed to do easily, even obtaining a notebook at request. There's was no particular reason why Lyra requested a notebook and quill. Lyra planned to use it as a way to keep herself company while recording her thoughts in each passing day, it killed time while she was locked in her room. She already had fifty pages worth of thoughts by the fifth day, had broken five quills, and had already had to request another notebook.

By the twelfth day, another fifty pages had been occupied by her thoughts, documented and stored under her bed to read later that night, until she fell asleep. It was now the fourteenth day, early toward the evening, and Lyra sat on her bed, writing down her thoughts. The notebook only had a very small number of pages left, before she'd have to request a fourth notebook. In the stir of silence and the quill's tip scurrying along the paper's surface, something caught Lyra's attention, hearing her cell door open. This was strange, seeing she had already been given her dinner. Lyra felt a tingle deep in her stomach, watching as the nurse on the evening shift entered in what seemed like a rush, as if she were trying to outrun something.

The nurse breathed heavily, rushing to Lyra in a frenzy. Lyra dropped the quill and notebook, feeling that tingle erupt into a sense of fear.

"Lyra, you need to get out of here! NOW!" The nurse claimed, her voice sincere and full of fear.

"Why?! What's wrong?!" Lyra asked in confusion.

"The epidemic that we told you about has spread, and it's taking the facility by storm!" the nurse explained, grabbing Lyra and leading her toward the exit. "Ponies in this place and outside the facility are killing each other! It's a bloodbath!"

Lyra felt a chill caress her spine at the sound of those words, allowing the nurse to guide her to safety. She was led out of the cell, into a long hallway, and out of that section of the ward, only to come to a sight that would forever traumatize Lyra's thoughts. A hall of corpses, all horribly killed. One corpse had had its head completely smashed into the wall by two back hooves, to the point of only being recognizable by the name tag on their bloodsoaked white coat. Another had a massive laceration through their throat, sitting in the pool of blood that had formed from the fatal method of killing. Lyra was haunted by the sight, hearing screams in the distance, as she continued to be lead by the nurse through the mayhem.

As they approached the front entrance, the scene became filled with violence. Ponies were mangling and attacking one another very violently. Lyra did her best to avoid catching the attention of any of the other ponies in a hoof-to-hoof fight to the death, getting a feeling in the pit of her stomach. Something seemed familiar, like meeting a long lost friend for the first time. The nurse had managed to surpass the mayhem, and made her way to the outside, where only pure pandemonium followed.

Bodies. Hundreds of decapitated, butchered, and horribly mangled bodies were dead on the ground. From fillies to elders, all bodies of all heights and sizes were spread throughout the entire town of Ponyville, some still moving or quivering. Lyra caught sight of a filly with their back legs broken, attempting to crawl away from their attacker, reminding her of that day in the halls. Bon Bon's group had managed to dislocate her back leg and fracture it. It wasn't anything drastic, but this poor filly had nowhere to go, seeing she left a trail of of crimson with her drags. She would be dead soon. Lyra's thoughts were interrupted, as a sudden halt came, following the nurse shaking her head and struggling. In that moment, Lyra knew exactly what was happening.

"Lyra, you need to run," the nurse said directly through her struggles. "Get away from me, before "it" takes me! Go! Get help! Get help, before there's no ponies left to seek! GO!"

At the sound of that claim, Lyra listened, darting away from the scene and into Ponyville, hoping to find a place to hide, while thinking of any place she could go to go for help. She ran into the center of Ponyville, where the sight of more corpses awaited her, until she eventually found refuge in a shop. The once joyful sweets shop, known as Sugarcube Corner. She took a seat, exhausted from running for so long and horrified by what was happening. She knew what was happening, and that every pony within Ponyville had come down with what she had experienced two weeks ago. In some way she was relieved, knowing she wasn't crazy, but something about this seemed odd. Why was this only happening now?

She had experienced this horrific phenomenon weeks ago, and now was it only hitting all of Ponyville like a plague? That made no sense, but sense wasn't really the important matter in that moment. She had to find help, if there was any pony sane enough to help her. She thought long and hard about any ponies that could find a solution to something so mysterious and violent. The only beings that came to her mind, were the two royal sisters; Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, being experienced in strange epidemics that had occurred in the past thousand years.

That idea was almost immediately shot down the drain, seeing it was only possible to get to Canterlot by train or teleportation. The train conductor was more than likely dead or in combat with another pony, plus it was an overnight trip, so it would be too late by the time she arrived. As for teleportation, Lyra neither had the strength or skill to teleport from Ponyville to Canterlot. She was weak, and wasn't strong enough to handle something as powerful as teleportation. With that idea out the window and dead on the ground, Lyra could only think of two other ponies; Princess Twilight Sparkle and Starlight Glimmer, most likely residing in the Castle of Friendship in a time of crisis. That was a possible trip she could make, giving she didn't run into any ponies along the journey. Lyra couldn't really pick and choose now, seeing time was not on her side. With her mind made up and holding a grin of confidence, she took off in hot pursuit of the Castle of Friendship.

Lyra stood just before the doors to the castle, immediately sensing an oddness about her current position. This was a castle, home to royalty, and there had been no sort of guard against any ponies that may have been a threat? This immediately made Lyra assume something was wrong, but she wasn't going to quit. That wasn't how she was. With a deep inhale of breath, Lyra pushed inward on the giant castle doors, opening with an eerie creak and an eerie silence similar to a whisper, as she eyed the foyer.

The foyer seemed untouched, like the castle had been abandoned. Cob webs were visible, showing signs of not having been cleaned for a long period of time. As Lyra entered, a chill slithered up her spine, due to the dead silence of the castle. The castle normally had a welcome feeling, but in that moment, Lyra felt as if she were trespassing and was being watched by unseen eyes. Passing the foyer, Lyra walked down the hall leading to the crystal throne room, but almost immediately, Lyra felt like she should've turned around at the sight of the hall.

Doors had been ripped off their hinges by a force Lyra guessed was a blast of magic from a unicorn, due to the burn marks visible on the door, broken against the opposite wall. There was also visible fragments of rainbow colored hairs and purple feathers scattered on the floor, along with specks of blood on the floor as well. It only grew more disturbing the closer Lyra got to the throne room, noticing a trail of blood leading into the throne room, larger patches of blue and purple feathers on the floor, and visible burn marks on the walls and floor, caused by magic blasts.

Lyra came to the conclusion that she had come across the site of a fight, and judging from the color of the feathers, had been between Rainbow Dash and the princess herself. It only became more obvious that she was correct, noticing charred blue feathers on the floor, and upon stepping into the throne room, seeing the corpse of Rainbow Dash, impaled by the roots of the old Oak Library high in the room. Lyra felt her blood run cold, as she examined the room more thoroughly, seeing four additional corpses on the floor. All of them very familiar.

First, was a yellow bodied corpse with a pink tail and a cutie mark composed of three pink butterflies. Where the head used to be was nothing more than a bloody pulp of brain matter, smothered into the crystal wall, where she had died a long and agonizing death. Lyra recognized the corpse as Fluttershy. Ponyville's timid and most kind-hearted pegasus. The sight almost made Lyra throw up, but the horror didn't end there.

Closest to her, was the headless body of Rarity, now lifeless. Her death had been by decapitation, but not by the force of a weapon. Only hooves, seeing the visible bruise marks at the base of the neck, along with violent indentations. Somepony had literally squoze her head until it popped off, and had hung her head from one of the roots of the old Oak Library. Not far from her, a pink and lifeless body lied, killed by violent suffocation. Her face was a pale pink, while her body was a more lively coloration. Lyra recognized this corpse as Pinkie Pie; Ponyville's party planner and the element of laughter. Lastly, was two things.

The first was the body of Applejack, killed by a stab through her heart. The second, was a fragment of some sort. It didn't take Lyra long to figure out that the bloody fragment was a unicorn horn, and just from the color, knew that it had belonged to Princess Twilight. Lyra stared in horror at the bodies around her, feeling like all hope had been lost, until something made her jump. She dropped the fragment to the ground, and immediately got into a defensive stance. However, as she saw what had made her jump, she immediately dropped her defense.

Before her, was a terribly injured Princess Twilight, dragging herself across the throne room. Lyra became sickened and shocked at the sight; Twilight was covered in dry blood, her horn decapitated, wings broken, and both her back legs broken. Twilight looked like she had been broken, as the princess made eye contact with Lyra.

"Lyra? What are you doing here?!" Twilight asked in worry. "You shouldn't be here!”

"Princess, what are you talking about? " Lyra asked in a shaky voice. "What happened here?!"

"Lyra, listen to me! You need to get out of here, before it's too late!" Twilight pleaded. "Run while you still can! Get out of Equestria!"

"Before what?! What's happening, Princess Twilight?!" Lyra pleaded, hoping for answers.

From the shadows, a voice came.

"Perhaps I can help bring things to light," spoke Starlight Glimmer, walking up to Twilight's side.

"Lyra, run!" Twilight pleaded.

"Now, now, Twilight... Is that any way to treat a guest," Starlight claimed, slowly pressing her hoof down on one of Twilight's broken legs. "Now, QUIET DOWN for a bit, while I give our guest the answers she seeks!"

As Starlight's voice grew in volume, she had put more pressure on Twilight's broken leg, causing Twilight to scream and cry in agonizing pain. Lyra stood in frozen fear, unable to follow Twilight's instructions to run away. Starlight rose her hoof from Twilight's leg, and looked at Lyra.

"Now, allow me to explain, Lyra," Starlight explained. "You are probably confused on why the events you experienced two weeks ago from now are just now affecting the entire Ponyville population. Well, two weeks ago, I cast a spell on the Twilight and her little band of friendship enforcers, and just like you, found themselves constantly trying to kill one another. The spell originates from the forbidden catacombs of Canterlot, outlawed, due to its violent nature, but when you are looking for a way to get revenge on nuisances who ruined what you worked so hard to build, it's almost too perfect!"

"B-but why? Why would you want to kill your friends?!" Lyra snapped.

Starlight laughed in response.

"These six were never my friends! I pretended to be their "friend," even earning their trusts, when all along, I was still the same! They took away my perfect rule of equality, and after Twilight had finished her "friendship is magic" garbage, I knew that destroying their friendship wasn't enough to make them pay. So, I played their "friendship is magic" game, until I knew I had found the perfect solution!"

"Turns out that the spell was even more powerful than I had thought. My first time attempting to cast the spell, I succeeded, but as a result, a large surge of magic occurred, spreading throughout the entire proximity of Ponyville.”

“Watching Twilight destroy all that she had worked so hard to earn, along with her breaking her own wings and legs to prevent herself from being able to hurt any other pony was near intoxicating! Now, the almighty Princess of Friendship knows how it feels to lose everything!"

"But... Bon Bon was with me when this all started, so why was I the only one affected?" Lyra asked. “And, why is the spell no longer in effect? It used to be a constant thing, but now it’s just silence?”

"Perhaps Bon Bon is a little stronger than somepony as naive as you, Heartstrings," Starlight said sarcastically. "Seeing she had lasted this long, that was just enough for me to recruit her. As for why the spell is no longer in effect, the spell affects its victims all differently. Perhaps the reason why it hit and left you so quickly, is due to how weak and naive you are really are."

"You! You forced me to push her away! All out of the sake of revenge! You ruined my life!”

Starlight shook her head.

"Now, now, Lyra. Who said I intended to push her away?" Starlight proposed. "My only intent was to put these six in their place, not ruin your relationship. In fact, let me propose a deal. I have Bon Bon, and she is safe. I can give you her back, and as long as you stay out of my business, you two can live your happily ever after in the new Equestria I plan to create. First, I'll take Ponyville. Then Canterlot. Then the Crystal Empire. So on, so forth. If you don't accept my offer, well, then I guess you'll never see your beloved Bon Bon ever again."

Lyra paused, thinking hard about the deal Starlight had offered. She could be with her Bon Bon again, and live a happy life. If she didn't accept, Bon Bon would be removed from her life for eternity, a pain she didn't want to feel again. But, was Starlight being honest, or was Lyra being played for a fool?

"Why does it matter?" Lyra proposed. "You've already broken me, made me lose everything, and the world I once called my home is falling apart. You've won, and I never had a chance to succeed. Why I've even bothered coming this far, rather than just letting a pony kill me, I don't know, but it was pointless! Therefore, I have one request, Starlight. Free me! Just free me!"

Starlight smiled maliciously, giving Lyra a glare that made Lyra feel a fear come over her.

"Are you sure that's what you want?" Starlight asked.

Lyra sniffed in sadness, feeling her emotions break.

"Yes... I've had enough" Lyra said slowly.

"Typical. You always were weak, Lyra," Starlight insulted, placing a hoof under Lyra's chin. "Don't worry. I'll take good care of Bon Bon."

Lyra didn't respond, hearing Starlight erupt a surge of magic, casting the spell. At first, Lyra felt normal, then her body fell numb, falling into darkness and feeling all of her sadness, stress, and hope fade to nothing but a lost memory. It wasn't much longer before everything went to black, and Lyra felt nothing. No pain. No worries. No hope. It was finally over.

Lyra awoke with a gasp, opening her eyes to a familiar site. She was in her bed, on her side where she normally slept. Sweat drenched her forehead, as she sat up in complete confusion, unsure if she was really in her home. She remembered the voice. The violent images. Her days in the ward. Ponyville being covered with bloodshed and corpses of ponies she once knew. Had it really all just been a terrible nightmare? Lyra patted herself with her hooves, feeling each one, so she wasn't dreaming.

She smiled in relief, feeling all the stress and hurt she thought she had endured escape her. She was home, awake, and with the one she loved most. Lyra turned toward Bon Bon's side of the bed, noticing it was currently unoccupied. Lyra jumped, rushing out of the bed, and down the stairs, but stopped halfway, catching the smell of breakfast emanating from the kitchen. Lyra let out a breath of relief, continuing down the stairs at a normal pace.

She peeked into the kitchen, seeing her beloved Bon Bon at the stove, humming a tune to herself. Lyra walked into the kitchen, catching Bon Bon's attention, almost suddenly.

"Morning sleepyhead!" Bon Bon joked, walking over to Lyra and kissing her. "I was afraid I was going to have to tickle you awake. It's nearly afternoon."

"Sorry Bons, I guess you really knocked me out... along with the wine as well," Lyra stated.

Bon Bon raised an eyebrow, giving Lyra a look of confusion.

"What wine?" Bon Bon questioned.

"The wine we had last night," Lyra replied. "You know... for our anniversary."

Bon Bon continued to stare at Lyra with her eyebrow raised.

"Lyra, we didn't have any wine last night. It wasn't even our anniversary," Bon Bon assured with a hint of confusion. "You must've had a bad dream, and you're still recovering from it."

Lyra stood with an unsure feeling, because she knew that she had drank wine the previous night, remembering the bitter taste stinging her tastebuds. Some sort of sense in her mind told her that something was off, and that her previous assumption of her supposed "dream" was false.

"Have a seat, Lyra," Bon Bon said sweetly. "Breakfast is nearly done."

Lyra eyed Bon Bon with suspicion, watching her closely. Almost immediately, just by watching Bon Bon's movements, Lyra could tell something was amiss. She walked in a different pattern than normal. A pattern Lyra had never seen in their first year of marriage, nor recognized. Something was off, so she went with a tactic that would help determine if her new assumption was either true or false.

"Bons, what's my favorite flower?" Lyra asked.

"Why do you ask?" Bon Bon replied. "Lyra, are you ok?"

"Just answer me," Lyra said bluntly.

"Alright, no need to be hasty," Bon Bon said. "It's daisies. Happy?"

Lyra immediately knew something was off, because Bon Bon had answered incorrectly. Daisies were not her favorite flower; the Midnight Blue Lotus was her favorite. The real Bon Bon would know that without hesitation, meaning this Bon Bon was a fake. She was dreaming. Lyra eyed the knife on the table and gripped it in her magic, causing the fake Bon Bon to jump.

"Lyra, what are you doing?!" said the dupe.

Lyra didn't listen and walked toward Bon Bon with the knife still gripped in her magic. The dupe attempted to reason, but Lyra responded by pushing the dupe back further, until it was against the wall. Another giveaway that this was not her beloved, was the fact that Bon Bon would have defended herself, rather than just allowing somepony to back her into a corner. With the knife raised, the dupe tried to sway Lyra one more time.

"Lyra, please... I love you!" pleaded the dupe.

"I love her too, but you're not her!" Lyra yelled, plunging the knife into the dupe's throat, following gagging and choking.

Lyra watched, not a single year in her eyes, as the dupe died, and she proceeded to pulling the blood soaked knife out of the dupe's throat. Holding it in her magic, Lyra's heart raced, knowing what she had to do. She had to wake herself up.

"Time to wake up, Lyra," Lyra said, slashing her throat, feeling the sting of the blade tearing through her flesh and the warm crimson blood leak down her neck. It didn't long for her to wake up, back to reality.

Opening her eyes, Lyra was met with the sight of the inside of a wagon, currently mobile. Before her, were a large number of fillies in what seemed like a trans, being controlled by a spell of some sort. Their eyes were open and blank, as if they were lifeless, but seeing breaths were being cast, the fillies were still very much alive. The sight was slightly haunting, but Lyra just sat idle, noticing these ponies all had something in common; all of their flanks were blank, which immediately caused Lyra to wonder why these fillies were spared. Having a feeling of who was pulling the cart, Lyra felt her anger rise, sitting and waiting until the wagon would come to a stop.

Two hours passed, and the wagon finally halted to a stop. Lyra remained sitting, hearing the pony disassemble themselves from the wagon, and walk around towards the back entrance. Lyra prepared herself, hearing the door begin to open, and watching as all the zombified fillies became active, almost as if they were robotic. The door opened, and Starlight Glimmer entered, so to keep herself from being caught, Lyra blended in, remaining idle.

"Subjects, welcome to your new home," Starlight said. "A place of peace, freedom, and no judgement on who you are. We are all equal here!"

The fillies became mobile, and began to march in equal fashion, out of the wagon. All, except for Lyra, who remained still in her seated position.

"Lyra, that means you too," Starlight commanded, but Lyra remained still.

Lyra stared at the floor, hearing Starlight approach.

"Typical spells! Looks like I'm going to have to work with this one, before I can move onto lands outside of Equestria," Starlight exclaimed in a fit of anger, as Lyra acted, kicking upward with her right back leg, striking Starlight's throat.

Starlight lost her breath and speech immediately, as Lyra followed up with a strike to Starlight's muzzle, knocking her to the floor. In defense, Starlight attempted to use her magic, but was quickly stopped by a violent kick to the ribs, knocking the breath out of her and causing Starlight to lose her guard. While letting out a groan of pain from a couple of her ribs being snapped, Lyra landed another strike to Starlight's face. Being too dazed to react, Lyra managed a dominant posture on top of Starlight's body, pressuring one hoof against Starlight's throat and raising the other high in the air.

Starlight choked from the pressure on her throat, blood seeping from her nostrils and open wounds, as Lyra glared with pure anger.

"Where is she?!" Lyra commanded. "Where is she you twisted witch!?"

No response came, so to persuade Starlight more, Lyra pressured her knees inward on the set of ribs that were broken, causing Starlight to scream in agony.

"Where is she?!" Lyra commanded once again.

Starlight muttered through the mix of her pain and agony, laughing and coughing.

"She's gone," Starlight stated through coughs and mild laughter. "Even if you find her, she will never find you. She's a lost memory, just like Equestria is! All has been destroyed! All are dead! Even if you kill me, you'll eventually kill yourself!"

Lyra stared angrily, muttering one last thing before finishing the job.

"Rot in Tartarus!" Lyra claimed, pressuring her hoof down on Starlight's throat, hearing the demented unicorn choke and struggle for breath, until she finally, fell limp on the floor.

Lyra rose from atop the unicorn and stepped out of the wagon, finding herself in a town composed of two rows of buildings, and a lone house at the end. Off to the side, was the group of fillies in a state of confusion, no longer in a zombie-like state. Lyra thought about assisting the fillies, but decided it might be best to let the spell they had been put under wear off before even trying to make conversation. Lyra resorted to searching the town for Bon Bon, seeing this was more than likely the place where Starlight had taken her "recruits."

Lyra called her beloved's name, peeked through each window, and checked every building. What she found was nothing short of disturbing, finding rooms that were designed to brainwash the unfortunate victims that had been placed there. A shiver slithered down her spine, as she came to the final building, peeking through the window. Sitting in a comatose state, was Bon Bon. Lyra shouted her name, but no response nor sign of Bon Bon catching her attention came. Lyra resorted to the door, only to discover that it was locked up, but that wasn't stopping her.

With all the strength she could muster, Lyra blasted the door off its hinges with her magic, entering the room, where a recording of a voice repeated over and over. Lyra rushed to Bon Bon, ignoring the voice.

"Bon Bon! Bon Bon!" Lyra yelled, shaking Bon Bon, only to receive nothing.

Bon Bon seemed like she was in the same zombified state as the fillies had been been in the wagon. The voice continued to speak, as Lyra caught onto what was causing Bon Bon's state; the voice recording. To shut the voice down, Lyra shot a beam of magic at each of the speakers emanating the recording, silencing them, forever. With the voice silenced, Bon Bon began to stir, confused on where she was and how she had gotten there. Lyra approached slowly, which immediately, caught Bon Bon's attention. Making eye contact, Bon Bon spoke.

"Lyra?" Bon Bon said dazily. "Is it really you?

Lyra didn't answer, only pulled her beloved in an embrace, emotions beginning to escape both mares.

"Why are you here? I thought you wanted me to let you go?" Bon Bon said through sobs.

"I never wanted to let you go, Bons!" Lyra replied, letting her emotions flow. "I was just afraid! Afraid that I would hurt you! I never forgot about you! Never let you go, because I love you too much!"

Lyra and Bon Bon's tears continued to flow, as that moment of being reunited at long last continued.

"All I ever wanted was you! From the first day our friendship was formed! You are my beloved, and despite what I said, we'll get through this!"

It seemed like Lyra was screaming to the heavens above, as Bon Bon heard the sincerity in Lyra's voice.

"I love you more than anything else in this world, Bon Bon, and I'll never let you go! Not ever again!"

Bon Bon hugged Lyra tight, taking in the love and truth being expressed in that moment. She was happy and sad at the same time, feeling her heart drop.

"I love you too, Lyra," Bon Bon said. "But, our life together can't be. Please... forgive me for this...

Lyra suddenly felt a painful sting, as the blade of a knife punctured her back. She lost her breath, feeling the knife puncture her back multiple times. Her embrace with Bon Bon was shortened as she fell forward, being caught by Bon Bon. The pain from the multiple stab wounds singed Lyra's nerves, feeling the blood leak out. Bon Bon cried, holding Lyra's head back, while resting her dying body on her lap.

"W-w-why?!" Lyra mumbled weakly, feeling a numbness slowly fall over her body.

Tears escaped Bon Bon's eyes, holding her beloved like a mother would hold their child.

"She made me do it," Bon Bon stuttered through sobs. "She cursed me to do it."

Lyra knew who Bon Bon was referring to as "she," causing her to understand. Bon Bon dropped the bloodsoaked blade that she had hidden under her tail.

"Forgive me," Bon Bon muttered as she broke down into tears, feeling Lyra's pulse weaken slowly in the comfort of her hooves.

Lyra leaked tears, feeling the numbness increase to the point of her feeling like her body was floating. The only thing she could feel, was Bon Bon's hooves holding her tight, and the warmth emanating from Bon Bon's body.

"I-I-I forgive y-you, Bon's," Lyra muttered, as her sight became blurry. "I-I l-love you..."

With her remaining strength, Lyra kissed Bon Bon for one last time. Bon Bon kissed her back, feeling her tears fall from her face, onto Lyra's body. Releasing the kiss, Lyra's body fell limp with one last breath escaping her body. Bon Bon continued to hold her beloved close, not letting her go, as her final cries of anguish for Lyra to come back, echoed throughout the town. The mare she loved, gone. The land she loved, gone.

"LYRA!" she screamed, crying and sobbing. "LYRA! I'M SORRY! COME BACK! COME BACK TO ME! LYRA!"