Forgotten

Twilight raced up the main street of Ponyville, out of breath. She passed everypony she thought she knew, but the recognition was never mirrored. Instead, they went about their business, seemingly oblivious to the fact that there was a pony with both wings and a horn in their presence. Unfortunately for Twilight, somepony was paying attention. The newest captain of the royal guard, who just happened to be visiting Ponyville at the time. His name…was Sombra.

The young ambitious soldier had plans and schemes of his own, but for the moment, it benefitted him to be right where he was. He had grown in Queen Celestia's eyes, and had hold of her complete trust. He planned to take that trust, dash it into pieces, kill the queen, and take the throne of Equestria for his own. He had dreams of becoming a king unmatched by any in the world. He would kill anypony who stood in his way, and strengthen Equestria until it was a domineering force. First Equestria…then the world! He thought. Oh…and don't think I haven't noticed you, Twilight Sparkle. Your wings and horn betray your willingness to be a friend, and to enjoy a peaceful relationship with all ponies. I believe Equestria has enough of that. But…I must be patient.

So he never told his guards to go after her, nor did he report her to Celestia. He knew that he had to continue manipulating the queen's trust. It was why he had lied about her sister, Luna, tampering with Equestrian law and order. He had planted a lot of evidence against her, and had caused her death. He had crowned Celestia queen, because he knew she was the weaker of the two. Luna would have been a brick wall against him. Celestia was putty in his hooves. He continued on his way, without so much as a word to Twilight. His plans were working out perfectly, and he didn't need an extra obstacle. But he had to wait for the right moment to kill her. Soon, your blood will flow, Twilight.

Meanwhile, the forgotten princess ran helter skelter into Mayor Mare's office and skidded to a stop in front of her secretary, File Filly. File gave Twilight an odd look, and it was one that the purple pony had come to expect from this world. "Um…" File said in an accent that betrayed her Manehattan heritage, "where on earth did you get those wings?! Did ya glue 'em on?!"

"Um, no," Twilight said sheepishly, "listen, I know you probably don't know me-"

"Nope! Never seen you before in my life!"

"But, I know you-"

"That's creepy."

Twilight shook her head in frustration but kept herself in order. "Whatever, just please, listen to me. I know you're File Filly and you're Mayor Mare's secretary. My name is Twilight Sparkle, and I live in Ponyville."

File gave her an odd look. "Did ya come in here just to state that you live in our town, or did you actually have a legitimate question?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. File was a helpful pony, but she could have a very biting and sarcastic tongue at times. Freakin' Manehattan pony, the princess thought to herself. Out loud she said, "yes, File, I do have a legitimate inquiry, and it is imperative that you act upon it at once!"

"Sure you do," File said sarcastically, "let me guess…the water pipe's busted in your cottage. Oh, or wait…the weeds have grown up in the garden next door to yours."

Twilight forced herself not to take a good, well aimed hoof swipe at the rude pony. "No…I just need to know if my birth certificate is on file here."

"Well, if you live here, then it should be!" File said as she got up. Twilight swore she heard her mutter, "sometimes I deal with the dumbest members of our society," under her breath as she flipped through the files. Then she saw the secretary's eyes widen. The white pony turned to face Twilight. "You did say your name was Twilight Sparkle, right?"

Twilight nodded furiously. More flipping followed, and File's eyes looked like they were going to shoot right out of their sockets. She turned back and, in an awkwardly shocked state, stumbled back to her desk. "I…I'm sorry," she said, "but…you aren't on file."

Now Twilight knew something was wrong. Her friends had all forgotten her, the other ponies in town didn't even recognize her, and she wasn't on file as having lived there at all! It was like she had been completely erased from existence. She backed up and ran out of the town hall, desperately seeking answers. Then she got an idea. Zecora! She yelled internally, she'd remember me! So, without processing the fullness of the situation, she bounded away into the Everfree Forest.

She remembered the path to Zecora's hut and pounded her hooves twice as fast to get there. She noticed that the forest seemed darker than it once was. The vines were eerie, and the trees seemed to taunt her as she ran along. They also seemed to have facial features, and the branches looked like lethal arms reaching out to snatch her up. Focus, Twilight! She told herself as she crashed through the brush.

Finally, she emerged into the clearing where Zecora's hut should have been. But, to her surprise, there was nothing there. The two trees that normally supported the kind zebra's home were radically empty. It was like nopony had ever lived there. The wind whipped around Twilight as she realized she truly was alone in this world. Her mind was riddled with questions, and they stung like flash bees. Did her parents remember her? What about her brother, Shining Armor, and his family? Did she even have ponies that would still love and welcome her?

Out of options, and completely helpless, she flopped down and began sobbing. Nopony remembers me! She thought in complete pain, all my friends…the ponies I loved more than life itself…they've all disowned me! What on Earth am I going to do?!