The sound of the clinking and clanking of the wheels of the carriage was strangely relaxing to Starlight, though it did seem to be an escape from hearing the many conversations that were going on from the other passengers in the carriage that she was in. Many were business ponies, who were writing lists and paperwork with their fellow companions whilst travelling. A mare and her filly were sitting together, reading a picture book, not too far away from where Starlight was sitting. A silver stallion was chatting to another pony four tables down from where she was sitting, who was eating a large bag full of doughnuts. The smell of sweet jam was strong and replaced the stuffy smell of the train carriage, which was getting to a point where it was beginning to make Starlight sick. She opened the window and peered out to watch the passing towns that the train sped past and waved at ponies who waved from their gardens. They sped past one of the stations and continued travelling towards the Crystal Empire, usually blowing its whistle to alert ponies who were too close to the platform edge. Starlight was soon distracted though when the ticket inspector came into her carriage.

"Tickets please."

Everypony quickly grabbed hold of their bags and purses and pulled out their train tickets, ready to present to the ticket inspector. Starlight pulled out hers and presented to the smartly dressed stallion, who had a pocket watch for a cutie mark and bright green eyes which carefully looked at Starlight's ticket in order not to miss out anything important. Using his magic, the stallion pulled out a clipper and snapped at the ticket, before handing it back to Starlight.

"Thank you, miss."

He walked on and inspected the rest of the passengers, whilst also trying not to trip up on the suitcases that were too big to be placed on the overhead rack above the heads of those who were sitting down. Starlight looked back out of the window and saw that they were about to reach Canterlot, the last international station before the Crystal Empire, and noticed that they would be pulling into Platform 1. Starlight felt the train change onto a different line before it crept up slowly into the station. There was already a gathering of potential passengers who were willing to get on, along with the odd Canterlot guard.

Once the train stopped moving altogether, Starlight pressed her hooves against the window frame and looked out. She noticed a few of those who were waiting, but other than that, it seemed to be the odd Crystal Empire resident (judging by their crystal bodies), builders who were working on the railway and the Canterlot guards. However, something didn't seem right.

None of the passengers attempted to get on.

There began to be murmuring between the passengers who were already on the train, as they all looked out. The expressions of those who were outside seemed to be a mix of fear and confusion. It was, to Starlight, that they didn't really want to get on the train. And there was another thing about the group of ponies that Starlight noticed; there was at least one pony near a carriage, all except for the one and the very rear of the train, which seemed to be empty.

"That's odd," Starlight said to herself, "what's wrong with that carriage? It's only the guard's apartment. And he did seem to be a lovely stallion. It's not like he was going to hurt anypony."

Starlight settled back into her seat and tried to get comfortable as she could, but frankly, it wasn't the most comfortable seat that she had sat on in whilst travelling on a train. Each time she moved, Starlight could feel the springs underneath the fabric, which poked into her skin. Then again, at least it was more comfortable than the bed she used to sleep in the town where she stole its residents' cutie marks, which used to be something that didn't even seem to class as a bed anymore. And to see colour, in general, was still something new to Starlight, as the houses in the town she ruled were all the same; bland, dull and grey.

Ten minutes had passed and nothing had happened. As she looked around inside the compartment, Starlight noticed that some of the passengers were packing their saddlebags and suitcases, as if they had officially decided that they were going to step off and try to catch another train. More ponies began to do the same, before walking off to one of the doors and standing just before it, waiting in case the voice-com told them that they were going. However, to everypony's demise, that was not the case, as something that they didn't want to hear.

"Fillies and gentlecolts, may we have your attention, please?! We are sorry to announce, but the 09:35 Mainline Service to the Crystal Empire has officially been cancelled due to dangerous weather. It may have seemed that there is a storm brewing near the Empire. For your safety, we have cancelled this train and we recommend that you disembark and wait for further instructions. Thank you for your attention and on behalf of this train service, we wish you all a pleasant journey."

All of a sudden, the carriage that Starlight was in was lifted with the cries of moans and disappointment. Soon afterwards, the passengers grabbed hold of their things and stormed out onto the platform. Starlight herself was not impressed and couldn't hold back the urge to speak out her fury.

"Shit."

Starlight knew that there wasn't any point in staying on the train anymore and made the decision to get off with her things. She squeezed past the ponies who were blocking her way from disembarking and trotted onto the platform, where she moved out of everypony's way and stood near the crossing which connected the middle to the main platform. Before Starlight did anything, she thought about what she would do next. She had three options.

One: wait for the next train, however, that would be hours later and quite frankly, this was Canterlot International, so there would be hundreds of ponies waiting for that train.

Two: call a friend. But then, Starlight knew that she only had a few friends and not many were living in Canterlot.

Three: ask somepony who took passengers to youth hostels or hotels to take her somewhere to stay until the next train came along.

Starlight picked up her things and went over to the main station. At first, it seemed that nothing was amiss, but when Starlight reached the platform, she noticed what looked like a pony in a long, black cloak.

The pony was clearly a stallion but was slightly taller and slender-shaped. His legs were thin, but not boney. There was still flesh around his body, but there were some patches where it looked like he had been beaten. His bruises were as black as plums and under his back hood, there was a pair of dimly lit yellow eyes, with a tiny red pupil appearing in the middle. Around the eyes, there were lines of scars crossing over his grey face, covering the lips and touching down to his neck. Those were the only features that Starlight could see, as it was painfully clear that the rest of his body was covered by the cloak that he was wearing. It was so long, that it traced on the floor behind him.

After a while, Starlight reminded herself of what she was meant to be doing. Besides, she had to let Sunburst know that she was going to be late. Before Starlight walked off to find somepony to help, the stallion quietly trotted up behind her, giving Starlight a shock, making her fall on the ground and gasping at the dark figure. But for some reason, Starlight didn't dare crawl away. Instead, she remained lying on back, looking up at the stallion in awe of his slender shape, which looked like something out of a ghost story, rather than something that would exist in Equestria. Before Starlight could finish thinking, though, the stallion spoke.

"May I help you, miss?"

His voice was sinister and deep. More to the point, he sounded more like a snake than a pony. He ended his sentence with a short hiss before he stopped talking altogether. At the offering of kindness, Starlight simply smiled and accepted the hoof of the stallion, who pulled her up without a groan or strain in his character. It was as if Starlight weighed nothing more than a feather. In response, Starlight chuckled nervously and grinned.

"Oh, my! Thank you, kind sir. That was very noble of you."

The stallion stood up straight in order to meet with Starlight's eye level.

"I didn't mean to scare you," he said, trying not to hiss like he did before, "I was just... one of the taxi drivers at Canterlot International. I heard all about the cancelled train to the Crystal Empire and so I decided to wait in case anypony wanted somewhere to stay overnight. I guess that you're..."

He trailed off, but thankfully, Starlight finished his sentence for him.

"A passenger from the train. Yeah, it's been a long and painful journey. I'm moving into one of my friends' apartment today. I study magic. I don't suppose that there are any hotels or youth hostels where I can stay for the night? I won't stay long though, I would need to catch the earliest train tomorrow."

The stallion smiled under his hood. He allowed Starlight to see his identification, letting her know that he was an actual taxi driver. He also pulled out his paper, which Starlight read very carefully. Knowing that there wasn't anything wrong, Starlight eventually agreed for the stallion to take her to somewhere where she could sleep peacefully. But she didn't want to rush in though; after all, it was still morning in this part of Equestria, so she would only go to the hotel to dump her things, go and explore Canterlot for the day, go back, sleep at the hotel and then catch the 05:00 train to the Crystal Empire. It all seemed realistic enough.

"You seem... very organised, miss-"

"Glimmer. Starlight Glimmer."

Starlight shook hooves with the stallion. As she did so, Starlight could feel how thin the stallion's arm was and how she could feel the bone inside. Anything sharp or heavy could easily damage his arms without putting in too much effort to leave a large scar. It was like touching a ghost; cold, uncomfortable and unpleasing. Starlight made eye-contact with the mysterious pony and saw the disgusting yellow colour inside his eyes.

"Mystery. Montgomery Mystery. Nothing more than a messenger and a taxi driver. You, on the other hand, seem to be a very important mare, I dare say. I also, during my free time, study magic. I'm surprised to meet a pony who has so much in common with me. I'm, you could say, very original."

Starlight laughed, snorting as she did so, before using her magic to pull her luggage closer to her. Mystery just smiled back. He then picked up Starlight's luggage and gently placed it on the luggage rack. Mystery then politely held out a hoof and helped Starlight step into the cart, giving her a cushion and a blanket to keep her as comfortable as possible. Using his magic, Mystery pulled the removable roof of the cart over Starlight's head and then hooked himself to the cart.

"You look like you know what you're doing, don't you?"

Mystery looked back and smiled at Starlight's complement.

"I do try to offer the best service to my passengers, Miss Glimmer. I may not have a first class cart, but it's all about the effort that goes into everything which matters greatly to me. It's a competitive business in Equestria, so there's no room for disappointment whatsoever."

The way that Mystery talked to Starlight was what made her uncomfortable. But then, what was there to worry about? Starlight reminded herself that part of friendship was not to judge other ponies and creatures, especially even if it was to do with their voice and their physical appearance. If this stallion was going to help her in any way, then she should take the offer. Besides, she really didn't want to do any more travelling today.

"Alright, I'll take the offer," Starlight replied, "how much are you taking from me?"

Mystery had a moment to think before responding to Starlight's question.

"Five bits. Nothing more than that, I promise."

Starlight pulled out her purse and handed over the currency to Mystery, who then placed the money into one of his pockets and then started trotting along the road to the nearest youth hostel. Starlight laid back and relaxed, knowing that she wouldn't have to do anything else. She started enjoying being dragged by Mystery, almost so that she began to feel tired and soon enough, she started yawning.

"Tired?"

Mystery smiled, looking back at his passenger. Starlight smiled back.

"Yeah, I certainly am. I do hope that where I'm staying is comfortable enough to just fall into a deep sleep. I would love a king-sized bed to lie down on!"

Mystery laughed, before looking forwards again.

"Oh, don't worry Miss Glimmer, I'll make sure that you find somewhere suitable enough to rest. I'll certainly make sure of that."

And with that, neither Starlight or Mystery spoke for the remainder of the journey. Instead, they made it a quiet, peaceful journey through the busy streets of Canterlot.

The Friendship Castle
Three Days Later

Fluttershy and Rarity noticed outside that the weather was getting worse. Over the past three days, there had been a huge storm spreading over certain parts of Equestria. Today, it was covering over Ponyville, making it feel to the residents that it had turned dark earlier, which didn't go well with Fluttershy, who sneaked along the corridor of the castle with Rarity at her side. The darkness had made the castle very black, engulfing all possible light inside. Rarity was using her horn to produce light so that she and Fluttershy could see where they stepped, but still, the darkness swept over them like a thick blanket. Fluttershy was whimpering quietly, which Rarity didn't find entertaining enough to listen to.

"Fluttershy, darling. Why do you have to make such a noise when you're afraid? You were just like this in the Castle of the Two Sisters a few years ago; don't tell me that you haven't learnt to stand up against your fears yet?"

It took a while for Fluttershy to reply, as she wasn't really listening to Rarity. She was busy looking behind her shoulder and out of the castle's windows, fearing for whatever could be stalking her from behind her. Rarity, of course, knew that there wasn't anything really there, so this whole drama was a complete waste of her time.

"Oh, Rarity! It's the weather outside; it's so... terrifying. I hope my animals have managed to find their shelters for the night. They could be cold, frightened or injured!"

Rarity rolled her eyes in disbelief, before continuing to walk down the corridor. She could clearly still remember the incident when she and Fluttershy were trapped in a tiny room, which was located next door to the hall of hooves, where they accidentally scared their friends Rainbow Dash and Applejack. But this was Twilight's castle, so there shouldn't really be anything to be afraid of.

"Look, we're just going to see Twilight and the rest of our friends," Rarity explained, "I wonder if Twilight will allow us to stay over tonight. I don't fancy going back home in the rain; oh, my mane will get ruined for sure!"

Fluttershy suddenly gave Rarity a hug, which came to Rarity unexpectedly, before continuing to walk on.

"Rarity... you're just the best friend a pony could have! We both hate something that is not so much as a problem compared to everything else in Equestria! You're a pony who I can fully understand!"

Rarity smiled back, returning the favour of Fluttershy's hug, before continuing on walking to where Twilight said that they should meet. They walked up to the door, before Rarrity used her magic to open it, and they went through to the other side, where they saw Twilight and the rest of their friends.

Twilight and the Mane Six were sitting around the Cutie Map in their chairs, waiting for the meeting to begin. Spike was in his usual space and the only two chairs that weren't ocupied were Fluttershy's and Rarity's. When the two ponies sat down, Twilight cleared her throat, before she started talking to her friends.

"As you may know, the weather has recently turned on us in the most extreme of ways. I am sorry to announce that this storm will be lasting throughout the remainder of the night, so the damage to Ponyville will be worse than it already is. With that said, Princess Celestia has given each of us a group of around four hundred helpers to clean up the damage that the storm has caused. Of course, I will be spliting you all into your species' groups. Rainbow Dash will go with Fluttershy and the Pegisi, Applejack and Pinkie Pie will help the earth ponies and Rarity will join me to help the unicorns. Hopefully, with amount of hooves that we have, we can clean up Ponyville in as little as two days. Any questions?"

Applejack raised a hoof, in which Twilight nodded for her to speak.

"Oh... er... problem with that, Twi. What abou' Starlight Glimmer? She's in the Crystal Empire, right? Wouldn't you want to ask her to come back to help us?"

Twilight nodded her head.

"You have a point there, Applejack. She's fine to continue studying with Sunburst. She'll make up for it, I'm sure. She's a very tallented pony, so I'm sure there is soemthing for her to do."

Applejack nodded back in response, before sitting back in her seat again. Rarity was the next to speak up.

"Is there another reason why you wanted us here, Twilight?"

"There is," Twilight replied, "I thought it would be acceptable to invite you all to join me during this storm, so that I know that none of you are hurt or whatever. I'm just worried."

Rainbow Dash scoffed.

"Well, we're here to stand your ground, Twilight. It's not like we're going to leave your side. That's not what friends do, you know that, right? Chill, Twilight. We can play a game or something to pass the time."

"Oh! Oh! Oh! I would love to play a game! What game is it? Is it hide-and-seek? Is it Cluedo? Is it Hoofball? What? What WHAT?!"

Pinkie Pie seemed very excited when Spike had surgested to play a game. Twilight knew that it was something that could perhaps distract them from the storm that was sweeping through Ponyville. However, before Twilight could grab a game from one of her cupboards, the Cutie Map flickered and started beeping loudly. Pinkie Pie gasped.

"WHAT. IS. THAT?"

Twilight backed away from the table, trying to get a better view of who would be calling her.

"I... I don't know. It's late at night. Who would call at this hour?"

The map's light then stretched up towards the ceiling, swifting and morphing into a different shape. After a while, the figure of a stallion appeared into view, later revealing himself to be Sunburst. Twilight then walked closer to the map, feeling a little relaxed after seeing it was just a friend.

"Oh, hello there, Sunburst. How are you doing, tonight? Why are you calling at this hour? It's late at night."

Sunburst was panicing and hyperventerlating. It was a while, until he brought in the energy to reply to Twilight's question.

"Princess Twilight! I'm so sorry to disturb you! I had to call you; this is urgent! I don't mean to make you panic but-!"

Twilight pulled a disgusted face. She couldn't understand what Sunburst was trying to say to her. It was all too much to listen to.

"Sunburst, calm down! What's going on?! Why are you panicing? This is an urgent message, you say? What could be the matter? Is it the storm?"

Sunburst shook his head hastly.

"No, it's nothing to do with the storm. It's Starlight! She's-!"

Twilight interupted.

"Oh boy, Starlight Glimmer, eh? Let me guess, she's gone OTT with her magic, has she?"

Sunburst shook his head again.

"Can I guess?!" Pinkie Pie asked, "She's escaped to Cupcake Land!"

Suburst shook his head for a third time.

"Nothing to do with that! It's about Starlight, yes, but nothing to do with her magic. I think. Twilight, she's... gone! STARLIGHT GLIMMER HAS VANISHED!"

There were gasps across the room. Twilight had completly frozen in place. Starlight Glimmer had vanished? No. It wasn't possible. Why would Starlight vanish like that? It didn't make sense.

"GONE?!" Rarity asked, "WHERE?! Why would she vanish?" Sunburst shugged.

"I don't know! I don't know why she would have vanished. That's why I asked you."

Twilight had a moment's silence before saying anything back to Sunburst. But even she was clueless to what could have happened.

"Okay..." Twilight began, but struggled to find the words, "...we'll be at the place she vanished, where we'll meet you. Where did she vanish exactly?"

Sunburst thought for a moment, before replying back.

"She was last spotted at Canterlot International. Apparently, her train was cancelled, due to the bad weather. I don't know where exactly she is, but I'm guessing she's in Canterlot. Have you any ideas, Twilight?"

Twilight placed a hoof under her chin and thought for a moment, before replying back. She then thought of something, but it seemed to be risky.

"Alright. I have an idea. We'll travel to Canterlot tomorrow, meet up with Princess Celestia and Cadance and search for Starlight. I assure you, Sunburst, that she couldn't have gone too far. Thanks for alerting us this unfortunete news. We'll see you tomorrow; have a pleasent night."

Sunburst nodded in response before he vanished from the Cutie Map. Everyone in the room was left speechless. There was nothing more that could be said. All except, surprisingly, for Fluttershy.

"Where could she be, Twilight?"

Twilight looked back at her.

"I don't know, Fluttershy. I don't know."

Author's Note

~~Note: there will be further works with "found it on tape" themes to~~ Canterlot Bridge~~.~~
This has sadly been cancelled at this moment in time, however, Equestria's Dark Universe is continuing regardless with I Am Not a Monster. Hopefully, I will be writing a third horror story as well in the near future.