Spectre was pacing up and down at the edge of the everfree forest, careful not to step into the last rays of sunlight the day had in store.

"Why did it have to be a sunny day today," she asked herself, "She had something important to talk about, but didn't want to say what… And it's hearts and hooves day! I just hope that she didn't regret the kiss… maybe I should pick her some flowers… No, not from here. The flowers of the everfree are absolutely beautiful to observe, but it's a bad idea to get close to them, let alone pick them… And I'm pretty sure no florist in ponyville will have any left after sundown… ARGH, stupid sun! Just go away so I can visit my beloved!"

She looked through the trees, at the road towards Ponyville, and saw a familiar figure approaching. She’s coming for me!

Rarity took a deep breath. “Spectre! Are you there, my love?”

Spectre could feel her heart beating in her throat. “I’m here, my dear! Between the trees!” She walked as close to the path as she could, and Rarity went the rest of the distance, eventually embracing each other in a long awaited hug. “Oh, Rarity, what are you doing here?”

“I simply couldn’t wait any longer to see you again, Spectre. I just had to try to find you out here. And I found you!” Rarity gave Spectre a tight hug.

“My lovely muse,” Spectre said, returning the hug.

“My dearest Spectre.”

“Moon of my Life.”

Rarity looked at Spectre. “You’re eyes are kaleidoscopes of brilliant colours.”

“And your mane is as purple as—”

The sound of something teleporting interrupted them. They looked at the source of the noise, and saw Discord standing there with crossed arms. “We get it,” he said annoyed, “you’re in love. Now could you two please get a move on?” He pointed towards Ponyville. “The sun has set! You—” he pointed at Spectre “—can leave the forest.”

“Discord!” Rarity stepped towards him. “Didn’t you notice that we were enjoying this?”

“I did. And I almost drowned from all the sap.”

“And why must you bother me?”

“Because you are dragging out this scene even longer than is necessary, and it gets boring.”

“M’lord Discord,” Spectre said, “With all due respect, can’t you annoy somepony else?”

“Oh, I have an appointment for that in a moment. The Cakes had the incredible idea to let Pinkie eat everything that’s not sold today, and that is something I just cannot miss… Actually—” he looked at a watch suddenly appearing on his claw “—the fun is about to start. But before that, I’ll do you a favour.” He raised his claw. “I’ll bring you back to your house!”

“What,” Rarity asked, “Discord, don’t you dare—”

Discord snapped, and teleported both Rarity and Spectre back to Carousel Boutique.

“This is just perfect,” Rarity said to nopony specific, “here I plan a romantic walk through Ponyville, and then this… this ruffian just had to feel the need to mess with me!”

“I’m sure what you had in mind would have been lovely,” Spectre said, “but I don’t mind the chance to spend just a bit more time with you here.”

Rarity’s expression immediately softened. “Well, I suppose that just means I can give it to you sooner than expected.”

“It?” Please don’t say anything to do with the bedroom.

“Your dress!” Rarity walked over to a locked chest and was about to open it, but hesitated in the last moment. “Close your eyes, darling.”

“They’re closed. You really believe that you can break the curse, huh?”

“I’ll certainly give it my best shot… seeing as you only give me one try… I was really nervous, and I tried to find out what the other designers did for you.”

“You did?” Spectre heard Rarity walking around and fabric rushling.

“Of course. And none of their ideas seemed wrong to me in principle. Trying to guide the attention to your mane, or to your eyes. Highlighting your height, or making you appear smaller… I may not have agreed with all of them, but I knew where they were coming from. They wanted to make you look beautiful… Well, except a few that just made you a standard dress from their line, but I chose to ignore them.”

“Yeah,” Spectre said, “I always tried to be nice to those who actually tried, but those who didn’t even try? I just told them to leave.”

“So here I was, making design after design, fearing I’d never come up with something good. But then I realized something. You don’t want to look beautiful yourself!”

“Oh?” Did she get it?

“No, you don’t. You, my wonderful, lovely lava lamp, you want art to be beautiful. And while you don’t look down on ponies that want to look fabulous themselves, it's just not your thing.”

A smile stole itself onto Spectre’s face, but Rarity was too busy to notice it. She got it!

“Of course, I couldn’t just make you an ugly dress, but I did put practical concerns first.” She paused for a moment. “Actually, I had that in mind from the beginning, but the execution was the… doesn’t matter. What matters is that as the first step, I got a special fabric. It’s comfortable and light, but most importantly, it’s absolutely opaque. And it has a hood, scarf, and fitting sunglasses. No sunlight will ever get through it, so you don’t have to wait for a rainy day to come overground and visit m—I mean, visit Equestria.

“A normal dress would have been too flattery, so I also added long gloves and shoes. It also has big pockets on the sides so you don’t have to carry around a saddlebag. But enough talk, you can open your eyes.”

Spectre did, and saw the dress on a mannequin in front of her. It was black, with a violet stripe originating from the top of the hood separating into two stripes halfway down her neck, with each stripe going to one of her shoulders. There, they split again and went across her back and belly, forming trapezoids on her sides, continuing down her legs. The bags sat in the middle of the trapezoids.

“And here I thought your sketches were beautiful,” Spectre said. She put on the outfit and moved around a bit. “It fits perfectly…”

“Of course! I didn't take your measurements just for my personal pleasure, darling.”

“Yes—I mean, no—I mean, how did you know how loose I want it?”

“Intuition. So, what do you say, my invisible mare?”

“I love it, my love. Even though I can’t kiss you when I wear it.”

“While that’s certainly a tragedy—” Rarity pulled Spectre in for a hug “—at least we can do this.”

“Well, that’s certainly not bad, either.”

Rarity pulled out of the hug, took off Spectre’s sunglasses, looked her in the eyes and said, “But before we seriously become a couple, I need to tell you something. I won’t go beyond kissing, hugging, and cuddling. I’m ace. If that’s a dealbreaker for you, I’m afraid it would be best to end things before they even begin.”

Spectre giggled. “Oh, I don’t think that’s going to be an issue, beloved. I wouldn’t want to go further, anyway.”

Rarity’s eyes widened. “You’re—”

“Also an ace, yes. So, why don’t you get me out of this dress and into your bed for some cuddling?”

Twilight was sorting books in her library. “It’s really entertaining to sort all the books from the old castle,” she thought out loud, “But why didn’t the sisters have any logical order for their library!” She walked over to another crate full of books, opened it with a crowbar, and picked up a couple of books. “Seriously, why is a Necroponycon right next Shaetale Evergreen's Tome on Flora and Fauna, The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide and Magical Hypnosis for Phobias? I personally made sure that all books that were on the same bookshelf in the library were packed in the same crate, but none of these are even close to each other in the DDC!”

She sighed and carried the books over to the table. She placed the first one in front of her in the light of a blue crystal lamp, grabbed the parchment role she used to list everything, and began to write. Necroponycon, 401X, Author: N/A, Edition: N/A, Published: N/A, Condition: Cursed.

She placed it on a book cart and took the next book. And then the next. And then the next. Twilight didn’t notice how much time had passed since she started, but eventually, the entire crate was empty and the books sorted. She wanted to open the next one, but couldn’t find one.

“I’m done?”

Spike opened the door to the library. “Twilight,” he asked with a sleepy voice, “are you still working? You should really go to sleep.”

“I was, but I think I’m done now.” She rolled up the parchment with the last part of the book list, grabbed the other scrolls with the other parts, and levitated them to Spike. “I know its late, but can you send them to Luna?”

“Sure thing!” He grabbed the scrolls, took a deep breath, and sent them on their way in a burst of red flames. He said, “I’ll go to bed now. Goodnight, Twilight,” before leaving the library again.

“So, what do I do now?” Twilight asked herself, “or rather, what do I read now…”

She looked through her collection, and came across a book titled The Wanderer’s Guide to Nachtmares. Intrigued, Twilight carried it back to the table to read it under the light of the candle burning on it.

After a lot more research, I consider it necessary to revisit the topic of Nachtmares and rectify the misconceptions in my earlier journal.

I know now that they are definitely corporal beings, although they are able to turn into mist with their magic.

Not all nightmares are caused by them, but many are. I myself had a few run-ins with those creatures that way, but luckily, received help from a local community of mages. But before I go on, dear reader, I need to issue a warning:

Nachtmares are, without exception, dangerous and evil creatures! Even if they pretend to be good, you can never trust them. They will betray you, they will corrupt you, and they will destroy everything you care for!

And their queen is the worst of them all. The most deceptive, treasonous, and rotten Mare that never saw the light of the sun.

Twilight’s eyes widened. “Celestia was right! We should have never trusted them! I have to find out what else there is to know...”

She focused on the book again, reading the text out loud. “And with that in mind, it is essential that you know the following spell.

“Radiant magic hear my plea, Light the world so I may see. Of fear and terror take the base, For they shan't conquer the equine race.”

The candle flickered in the corner of her eye. I thought I took a crystal lamp because of the fire hazard…

“Fill me with wisdom from head to heel, So that dark temptation I won't feel. With your radiance light the night sky, So that at our fiends mercy I won't lie. The heart of darkness we'll make cry, And all evil shall then die. Let the light that vanished here, Spark again and reappear.”

A question came up in the back of Twilight’s mind. Since when did Spike have red fire?

“With your fire, strengthen my horn, So I may smite those from darkness born. So I may carry your purest light, To bravely end the darkest night.”

Her eyes shot back to the beginning of the page. All words she had already read of the spell had caught fire. Twilight gasped and slammed the book shut, stumbling back from the table. “What spell just catches fire?!” She looked around the room, and noticed that the windows were filled by a reddish glow. “What the hay? It’s way too early for sunrise. What is going on?”

She turned her attention on the book again, that now burned brightly. The fire started to consume the table. “NO! I have to do something… Right! Water from the lake should fix this!” She tried to teleport water into the library, but she couldn’t use her magic. She took another step back, then turned around and bolted out of the library.

She started running down the hallway. “Since when do we have candles in the hallways?” She shook her head to clear her mind. “Doesn’t matter. I need to get Dinky out of the castle!”

Twilight stormed into Dinky’s room, calling for her to wake up, but she wasn’t there. She looked around the room and under the bed, but Dinky was nowhere to be found. And neither were Derpy, Spike, or Starlight.

“Where is everypony,” Twilight asked herself. “Maybe they already got out…”

She ran out of the front door, and saw what had caused the red glow in the windows. It wasn’t the sunrise.

It was fire.

The flames engulfed all of Ponyville. Smoke filled the sky, blocking out the stars. The wind blew soot and ashes into Twilight’s face. Coughing and fighting against tears, she looked at Ponyville. What is happening? Did the dragons attack?

She searched the sky, but couldn’t see any dragons through the smoke. Nothing there… and where is everypony? If the whole town is burning, then there should be ponies running around… Wait, what’s that? Twilight saw a white figure flying over Ponyville, dragging a flame behind it, and breathing fire down to the ground. That’s not a dragon, that’s a pony! But how is that possible… It isn’t! This is a dream!

Twilight sighed from relief. “I worried too much about Daybreaker, and now I have a nightmare about her. But it’s just a dream. Ok, fire, stop!”

She concentrated on ending the nightmare and returning to something nicer, but nothing happened.

“But… but you can do anything in a dream,” she said confused, “so why isn’t it working? I know it’s a dream, I should be able to control everything!”

Roaring laughter filled the world around her, in a voice she’d recognize anywhere. “Oh no…”

A giant flame erupted from the ground in front of her, and the silhouette of an alicorn appeared in it. “You thought this was but a simple nightmare,” the being said in Celestia’s voice, but with malice in her tone like Twilight never heard from her former teacher. A hoof stepped out of the flames, then another one. “But it is I—” her face shot out of the flames “— Daybreaker!”

“No, you… you can’t be.” Twilight walked backwards, shaking her head. “Shaded destroyed you! And she improved the seal!”

Daybreaker laughed again, excited this time. “Oh, she did, but there’s another crack in it, which was all I needed to send another fragment of myself through it!”

Twilight charged her horn.

“Go on, try to summon Luna to help you,” Daybreaker taunted, “she won’t hear it.”

Twilight reached out with her magic, trying to send it out of her dreamscape, but she could feel that something was stopping it from leaving. “What…”

“Surprised?” Daybreaker chuckled, sending shivers down Twilight’s spine. “My little runin with Celestia wasn’t a total failure. I learned a very useful thing from her. How to capsule a dreamscape. You can’t reach the dream realm, but most importantly, nopony from the dream realm can reach you!”

“What do you want from me?!” Twilight shouted at her.

Daybreaker turned around, pointing across Ponyville with her wing. “This! Isn’t it beautiful? How the fire consumes everything?”

“I will never allow that!” Twilight did her best to fill her voice with determination. “You will never destroy my home!”

Daybreaker turned her head just enough to glance at Twilight. “But you will.”

The white pony flying other Ponyville now changed course and flew directly at them. Twilight turned around and ran back into the castle. She threw the door shut behind her. The only thing she could hear while galloping down the dark hallway were her own steps. She didn’t dare to look back or to stop, she just went further and further down a never ending hallway.

The carpet she was running on disappeared, causing her hooves to clack over the cold stone floor, the sharp sound echoing from the walls. Twilight didn’t care, and pressed on, determined to put as much distance between Daybreaker and herself as possible.

Then the walls started to fade away, and without them, her steps didn’t echo anymore.

Then the ground followed, and from then on, Twilight ran through silence, not even her hooves making a sound anymore.

Only the crystal pillars remained, giving Twilight a direction to run in, and soon, she lost track of how long she was running, only having the faint hope of reaching salvation at the end of the darkness she was running into to keep her going.

She felt something behind her.

Heat.

At first, she barely noticed it. But it grew stronger every moment.

When it was hot enough to make her sweat, she could hear wings flapping behind her. Don’t turn around, she told herself, just keep running. Looking behind you will make you slower.

She kept pressing on, and the heat kept rising.

She felt the breath of her pursuer on her neck, flames scorching her coat.

Twilight jumped to the side, past the pillars, hoping to use them as cover. But instead of landing on the ground, she just fell into the darkness.

I have to fly! She tried to open her wings, but to no avail. Oh come on!

Eventually, she saw the burning Ponyville below her. Unable to open her wings or otherwise slow her fall, she crashed into the ground at full speed, the force of the impact pressing the air out of her lungs, silencing the pain filled scream she wanted to let out. Despite that, she had no problem getting up again.

She looked around and saw the town hall in front of her, burning brighter than all dragonfire.

Daybreaker came out of the flames. “So, how did you like that little walk?”

What did she hope to accomplish with that, Twilight asked herself.

“I thought I made that clear,” Daybreaker said mockingly, “I want to break out of my prison and get back into the Waking World, and I want you to help me with it.”

Twilight didn’t know how to respond, and just stared at Daybreaker, who sighed and shook her head. “You could have just fallen for my little trap. Just one more verse, and the spell would have been completed. You wouldn’t have even noticed anything. But now, we have to take the ugly route.”

Twilight declared, “No matter what you do, I will never help you!” But the determination faded from her face under Daybreaker’s laughter

“Oh, but you will! The seeds of your defeat were sown years ago already!”

The pony Twilight had seen flying over Ponyville earlier now appeared on Daybreaker’s right side. At first, Twilight could only recognize her as an alicorn, but then, the realization hit her. She was looking at herself.

“We tapped into her magic once already,” her doppelganger said, “Don’t you remember?”

“When I tried to figure out Pinkie’s sense,” Twilight thought out loud.

The doppelganger nodded. “Wasn’t it a good feeling to just let it out? To just give into it?”

“No!” Twilight shouted, and her doppelganger disappeared.

Daybreaker sighed. “And here I thought you’d care about your friends more…”

“What?”

Daybreaker began to pace around the circle of fire. “If you don’t accept, why should they? And if they don’t join me, they will die once I break free. And the question is only when I will purge the world from darkness, not if I will. But if you become my servant, I will give you the power to draw them to my side as well. And those who serve me will of course be spared.”

The circle of fire began to close in on Twilight.

“You can still complete the spell and serve me willingly, Twilight.” She waved her hoof, and the book appeared in front of Twilight, the page with the spell opened, and walked up the stairs to the town hall. “But I would hurry up if I were you. I may not be able to burn your physical body from in here, but those flames will still hurt.”

Twilight moved to the middle of the circle, her mind racing. I need to find a way out of here! If I can still feel pain, but can’t get injured, I’d just keep on being burned alive forever, and I sure as Tartarus wouldn’t last long then! And me being willing to die doesn’t matter if I can’t die…

Author's Note

Ace is short for asexual