Race Against the Cock

The last time Spike had turned into a mindless beast and grown to a gargantuan size, he'd been easy to track. Stopping him had been a great difficulty, but finding him had been a piece of cake, and now, wandering through the streets in the unsettling cross between day and night, Twilight thought back to that time and wished he was just a little easier to find. She didn't miss the mayhem he'd caused, but she sure missed the reliable trail that led to him. As it was, she wasn't sure he'd cause any less mayhem this time around, so the increased difficulty in finding him was already a net loss compared to the previous experience.

There were some footprints in the dirt that she could just about make out if she squinted, too undisturbed to be anything other than recent, and too large and bestial to be anything equine, which aided her for a few minutes. Before long, however, they disappeared into the grass, and the purple alicorn was left glancing around aimlessly, unable to pick up the trail. Sighing, she tried walking in the direction she thought they led, hoping to come across something that realigned her direction.

To her surprise, it didn't take long for her to come across somepony else. The first thing that alerted her was the noise of what sounded like a mare in pain, prompting her to hurry towards the source. Her view of the mare was blocked by a wagon laden with milk bottles, glinting with droplets of condensation, but the cargo informed her of who exactly it was, and sure enough, when she rounded the wooden vehicle, she was greeted with the sight of the town's blue-maned milkmare. Slumped against her cart, the straps of the harness loose around her waist, she glanced up as the alicorn stepped hurriedly beside her, her arm drawing to a sudden and suspicious halt.

"Good morning, Princess Twilight!" she greeted enthusiastically, beaming brightly at the purple princess. "It's rare to see you up this early! Not that it isn't good to see you, just a surprise, is all. Would you like your milk to go?"

"No thank you, Milky," Twilight answered, her eyes drawn to the ruffled state of the cheery pony. Even as the curvaceous earth pony spoke, her countenance genuinely bright and upbeat, there was an underlying strain to her face, her breathing a little more labored than it ought to be, and her posture seemed off, somehow. "It sounded like you were hurt. Are you okay? Why are you sitting down?"

"I'm not hurt, no," Milky assured her, chuckling softly. "I've got an itch, and it's giving me a bit of trouble. It's nothing I can't handle, though, don't you worry. I'll be back on my rounds in no time at all." She tried to straighten up, letting out an involuntary huff as she moved.

"An itch?" Twilight pressed, eyes raking up and down analytically. "Is it...severe?" The hesitation she received told her that her hunch was right. "Is it somewhere it shouldn't be? Somewhere you've never had to scratch before?" Again, Milky hesitated, and chuckled nervously.

"I-I don't want to burden you with my problems," she stammered. "But, if, say, I was hypothetically having this problem, would you happen to know anything about how to deal with it? I've been scratching for a while, and it's barely dealing with the issue." She blushed, the vibrant red tinging her daisy-yellow cheeks.

"I'm afraid not," Twilight lamented, sighing. "If you try...um...scratching, it might go away. I think. I wish I could be more helpful." Glancing around, she peered into the darkness. "Has anypony else looked as though they were suffering the same sort of itch?"

"I can't say I've met too many ponies on my night rounds," Milky explained, fidgeting in place. "But I did hear some strange noises coming from some of the houses when I dropped off their milk. I didn't think much of it - it's not my place to snoop - but now you've mentioned it, it definitely seems suspicious. Maybe they were feeling the same way I do." As she pursed her lips thoughtfully, her hand, stuck down her white milkmare pants, began to move, the shape visible to the observing purple pony. "And there was that big fella who barrelled past me while I was taking a break. He seemed to be in a hurry, but I don't think he was a pony."

"He?" Twilight asked, her ears perking up at the mention. "Tall and broad? Muscular? Tail?" At the flurry of nods, the princess pressed on. "Which way did he go? How long ago?"

"He ran right past me, heading that way," she replied, pointing ahead. "He might've been running to the town center but that's just my guess. As for how long ago, oh, I'd have to say...five...ten minutes ago? Maybe fifteen?"

"Thank you!" the purple mare uttered gratefully, her urgency kicked back into full gear. "I'll come back and help you when I get this situation under control!"

"Of course," Milky called out after her as she jogged away. "Take care of yourself now, Twilight!" With her piece said, she let her head loll back against the wood of her cart, her wrist rotating more powerfully under her work clothes. Once again, the drawn-out moans and groans grew louder, becoming more prominent as the beleagured earth pony surrendered to her condition. The noises faded behind Twilight as she moved towards the center of the town, leaving the poor pony to deal with her troubles on her own. She needed to find Spike.

Hurrying through the deserted town, a flurry of thoughts fluttered through her mind. Where was he running to? What was his plan? Was he being driven by greed again, or was there some other motivation to his aggressive, possessive bout? If the situation wasn't dire, she might've enjoyed the mystery, puzzling over his behavior and trying to draw conclusions from her observations, like a particularly enthused anthropologist, but currently, it was driving her crazy with worry. If it weren't for the motivation to protect her friends and her community, she'd have started panicking a long time ago. Instead, she tried to claw desperately at the clues, wondering what he could be doing, where he could be heading.

He'd claimed to be hungry, so perhaps he was heading to the market? No, that couldn't be it; the food was packed away at night, and besides, he'd said he wanted her specifically. Did that mean he was looking for prey? The thought horrified her, but that didn't add up either. He hadn't eaten her, and she doubt he'd ever do anything so violent and brutal, even in his growth state. Instead, he'd done something else to her; he'd physically imposed himself, pinning her down and using her in ways she couldn't begin to describe. He'd clearly enjoyed it, sought the activity out, and she could understand why, even if the realisation made her face burn with the return of that shameful enjoyment. She'd never felt anything so intense as that mental explosion, that big buildup and release of tension and energy. It had been inhibiting, and yet freeing. Maybe that's what he wanted; he wanted ponies to give him that release. Yet, he had the entire town, and he'd passed by Milky Way, who was suffering just as she had been when Spike had been drawn to her. It couldn't just be random ponies. Perhaps he was seeking his friends.

Her eyes widened in terrified realisation, and she stopped in her tracks, scant seconds before a beastly, barbaric roar tore through the night, shattering the silence like a blast of thunder, with a deepness to rivial the bass of such. The air vibrated around her, rippling from the concussion of the bellow, and the fur on her arms stood up in shock. Before it had wound down, she was already sprinting towards its source. She didn't need to check to know where it was coming from.

"Rarity!" she shouted, spotting the busted door from the other side of the street. Upstairs, one of the windows was illuminated from within. In the blink of an eye, she barged her way into the boutique, weaving between the toppled mannequins and turning sharply to bound up the stairs, two at a time. "Rarity!" The mess wasn't too severe, which hopefully meant he wasn't feral - he couldn't have hurt her. He simply couldn't... "Rarity!"

Like the front door, the bedroom was open wide, privacy ignored in the dragon's pursuit of his goals. Even so, hurtling into the room at full-pelt was like smacking into a brick wall face-first. The room stank of some thick, cloying odor, pungent and seemingly onmnipresent. The air was humid, so infused with the reek that it seemed to be a physical presence, pressing hotly into her nose, caressing her head and seeping into her clothes and fur. When she breathed in, as she had to, she could feel it being drawn up her nasal, heavy and pervasive...and so, so desirable. She shook her head, refusing to let it fog up. Demanding her senses obey her, and not her desires, she refocused on the calamity before her.

The towering drake was looking at her, his eyes beady and piercing, his purple scales glistening in the lamplight from the varnish of sweat. His breathing was the loudest and throatiest in the room, deep drags in and hot growls out, and his chest rose as his body greedily pulled in great lungfuls of air. As she'd seen before, his male organ was protruding horizontally, throbbing in time with his heartbeat, its fleshy surface slathered with his own creamy produce. Thick dollops dropped to the floor in wet splats every few seconds, joining the pool of thick fluid he'd deposited. It was when her eyes drifted to the bed that she realised just how much of a mess the room was. In the light, it was obvious that every surface was splashed with substantial amounts of the sticky substance Spike had made, from the floor to the walls and even the ceiling - the ceiling! The furniture was stained in his gunk, and the normally flawless sheets and fabrics that adorned the room was saturated in ivory goo. She gawked as the epicenter of this mess became apparent to her, the sight too chaotic for her to recognise at first, until her brain managed to comprehend the image in front of her.

The unicorn she'd come to save was even whiter than usual, her features caked in goop. Her nightwear, usually pristine and stylistic, lay like torn rags around her, discarded and ruined. The mare was exposed, her bosom and crotch open to the naked eye, but so layered in slop that making out any sliver of pink skin was nigh impossible. Even so, she could see the rapid rise and fall of her friend's chest, which meant she was breathing, gasping in what oxygen she could between the strings bridging her open mouth.

"...Rarity?" Twilight asked, nervously. "Please tell me you're okay!" To her shock, the unicorn began giggling, her voice raspy as she convulsed and cackled. Her hand shakily swept over her face, gathering a huge handful of the viscous fluid coating her, and loudly slopped it onto the bedsheets beside her. She continued to laugh, rising and falling in bursts of energy every few seconds. Gawking, the purple mare blinked several times, the experience far beyond anything she'd expected. Her confusion and surprise coalesced into disapproval, and she turned her gaze to Spike, scowling. "You're in big trouble, mister."

"No," the titan growled, baring his teeth. "Spike hungry. Spike want."

"You're coming home with me, right now." Twilight stood her ground, narrowing her eyes. She kept her nervousness to herself; she needed to stop him.

"No!"

"Yes."

"No!" The drake began to stomp towards her, snarling fiercely, his breath hot even from a distance. For a second, the alicorn's heart skipped a beat, and she froze, fearing what he'd do to her. Then the moment passed, and she channeled her magic through her horn.

"Yes!" she insisted, raising her voice as she focused on his limbs. A brilliant rasperry aura flashed into existence, coiling around the muscle-bound legs of the almighty drake, sealing the two steely pillars and causing the dragon to tumble forward, thrown off-balance by his own momentum. Throwing out his hands, he caught himself, thumping loudly to the floor and sending a small rumble through the building. Before he could move, more vivid ethereal coils ensconced his wrists, binding him to the floor, pulling him onto his front. He yanked, trying to break the spell, but the magic held him firm. His tail cracked like a whip, smashing a chunk of wood from a chest of drawers, and that was sealed in magic too, clamped down harmlessly. His body tensed, muscles rising as he heaved, but he couldn't move. The alicorn gritted her teeth, feeling the strain in her horn as he fought with her, but she persisted. He may have had the muscle, but she had the magic, and in that arena, he had no hope of defeating her.

"Oh my," the unicorn chattered off to the side, giggling in a meandering pitch. "He does sound magnifique when he struggles. Our little Spikey Wikey has really grown into a tough, strong..." She petered off, leaving her sentence unfinished.

"Are you okay, Rarity?" Twilight asked, turning what attention she could to the sullied mare. "Are you hurt?"

"Hurt?" came the reply. "No, of course not! Well, I suppose I might be a little sore, but with such a dashing, romantic gesture, one can accept the few innevitable consequences."

"Romantic? What do...Nevermind. What happened? What did he do to you?"

With a blissful sigh, the mare pulled herself up into a sitting position, wiping her eyes clean and beaming a soiled smile at the alicorn. "I was awoken by a dreadful racket downstairs, like some ruffian was attempting to break into my beloved boutique. At first, I ignored it, believing it to be Opal or some creature making a noise outside, but when I heard the stairs creaking, I knew it couldn't be anything other than an intruder. I turned on the lamp and went to check, but before I could, the door burst open and in strode the most dashing knight I've ever laid eyes upon."

"Do you mean Spike?" Twilight asked, wondering how this story lined up with the scene before her. "Spike broke into your home?"

"Saying broke in is such a nasty turn of phrase, darling. I see it more as an unorthodox entry."

"He broke your door down, and he..." She gestured around the room. "...caused this. What is this, anyway? What did he do?"

Her question earned another simper from the caked mare, and she fell backwards theatrically onto the sheets, a squish resulting from the impact of her body against the marshy fabric. "He was everything the novels said; brazen, brash, bold, strong, and handsome. He thrust open my door and took me in his arms, cradling me close. I was afraid, but he looked at me with such noble confidence. Don't be afraid, he said. I'm here to protect you, my fair lady. No harm will befall you. Tonight, I am your protector. Your shining knight. Your prince."

"Spike said that?" Twilight asked, incredulously. From the floor, the constrained beast growled and snarled, writhing angrily against his entrapment. "This one here? He said that to you?"

"Not in those words, no," Rarity admitted, starting to sit up again. "Not in any words, actually. But it was his intention. Anypony could've seen it. The most powerful expressions of love are not spoken words, darling. Honestly, I thought you loved those novels I gifted you!" She huffed in moderate offense, attempting and failing to flick her mane out of her face. "It was the way he moved, the way he held me close, the way he refused to let go. The subtlety of physical affection, darling."

"And the mess was part of this physical affection?"

"It must've been," the soiled unicorn agreed, glancing around as nonchalantly as she could manage. "Whatever happened next, it was the most thrilling moment of my life! My heart raced, I felt things I can't put into words, and I was brought to the cusp of fainting!"

"Fainting?" Twilight pressed. "That's not good! Spike shouldn't be making you faint!"

"Twilight, darling, fainting merely shows that one is overwhelmed, and being overwhelmed by romance is not something to be rejected."

The mulberry mare looked her friend up and down, trying to determine what was wrong with her. Had she been brainwashed? Replaced by a convincing actor? A changeling, maybe? No, that didn't make sense, and not least of all because Spike hadn't had enough time to fetch a changeling during his escape. She shook her head and tried another approach.

"You hate getting dirty, Rarity," she reminded the prim pony. "You hate having your beautiful ensembles ruined, and just look at how messy the room is! How messy you are! How long are you going to have to wash your mane?"

"I am surprised at you," Rarity gasped. "Looking a gift horse in the mouth? This is a gift from him to me, and look how much there is!" She gestured to the sea of white, pointing to the abundance to prove her conviction. Twilight frowned, noticing just how much there was - she hadn't had to deal with that much when Spike had used her. If this was a gift, as Rarity said, or at the least, showed how much he liked a pony, did that mean he didn't care for her as much as he cared for Rarity? She shook her head, annoyed at herself for entertaining the ridiculous idea.

"Even if it is a gift, he should ask you first," she answered. "And come during the day, when you're not sleeping. This whole escapade has been disruptive to me, and I'd like to go home now. Are you okay to clean up here?"

"Alone?" Rarity asked. "I was rather hoping a certain dashing drake might stay behind to help little old moi with such a task, and maybe-"

Twilight sighed, rubbing her head. The conversation was going nowhere, and a dull presence in her head was growing denser as the infatuated mare continued on with her insistence of how ideal the situation was. This wasn't normal, no matter what she said; Spike was an aggressive animal, the night hadn't ended yet, the milk mare had failed to make her rounds, and now Rarity was insisting she'd been visited by a charming suitor. Everypony was acting strange, herself included, and she needed to figure out what was going on. First, she needed to make sure Spike couldn't rampage through the town. If only she could focus. A yawn pulled at her mouth, and she felt herself sagging.

With a start, she opened her eyes. What was that? She'd been falling asleep, for no particular reason. The dullness in her head was growing, her mind slowing as everything became heavier. She tried to fight it, her eyes drooping in spite of her lack of willingness. She had a job to do, and that...that....

She jerked her head up again, startled out of a near sleep. Something was wrong. Very wrong. As if sensing her weakness, the drake shoved against the magic restraints, managing to move from his original position. Twilight strengthened her hold over him, the aura flaring brightly, but it soon began to fade again, dispersing in time with her dwindling willpower. She focused, the brightness of her magic the only color she managed to make out while darkness closed in around her vision. She couldn't afford to lose him again, not when she'd just caught him! Sweat beaded on her brow, and she winced as her knee thudded against the floor. She shook, her body straining with the effort of maintaining her magic, her will pitted against the dragon's, their muscles tensed and their teeth gritted.

"Twilight?" It was Rarity's voice, travelling to her from a continent away. It sounded muffled, almost an echo, and she tried to turn to face the mare. She couldn't see clearly enough to make out her friend. "Twilight! Twilight!"

"Twilight!"

Her eyes shot open, and the mare blinked at the space around her. She wasn't in Rarity's bedroom anymore, and her fatigue was completely gone. She looked around, trying to get her bearings, her eyes struggling to adjust to the new environment. She couldn't see any walls, or any particular landmarks at all; the furtherest field of her vision was a blur or smear, and she couldn't guage distance. There was nothing to mark where she was or how far any point was away from her - not that there was anything to judge distance to, though. The landscape, if it could be called that, consisted of various shades of blue, from blunt and passive further afield to more luminscent around her hooves, almost like a mist or a bleary gleam, though she couldn't view it as such. Whenever she peered, it lost form, becoming nothing but transient colours, ethereal and ephemeral.

Don't forget

The phrase was whispered delicately, so much so that Twilight wondered if her mind was playing tricks on her.

Is the list complete?

A second voice made its way into her head, coming from nowhere, and yet as clear as day. The words registered to her, but she couldn't figure out their source. She didn't even recall hearing it, just understanding it.

We need to be up early tomorrow. Don't sleep in.

Twisting left and right, the mare tried to make sense of the voices, her hooves moving noiselessly along the incorporeal ground. Picking a direction that looked like it might lead somewhere, she started forward, the flutter of whispers growing more persistent.

"Hello?" she called out. "Is somepony there?"

I don't want to be late, but the alligator's in the way

Why is the guitar blue? I needed a laundry hamper, not a sandwich.

Whatever was being said, it wasn't being said to her, Twilight realised. She was merely privy to the conversations, or whatever they were supposed to be. A myriad of voices piles atop one another, each individual one poured into her brain to be recognised before being shoved aside by the next, ecclectic and esoteric in their content and delivery.

More muffins! More! More!

You've just brought a sword to a hug fight, buster!

Well, without a pillow, I need something else to rest on, so...

You're feeling it too, aren't you?

A kiss? I don't see why not...

Twilight's pace increased to a jog, her heart thudding louder in her chest, the pounding in her ears the only noise she knew to be real in this featureless prison. Without the clomping of her hooves against the ground, she didn't feel like she was making any progress, her legs working without any sort of feedback, and yet she ran, faster and faster, the voices following effortlessly.

I don't know, but it feels right...

C-careful, it's tender!

Why does it feel so good? Why does it feel so right?

K-keep going...

I'm not stopping until we're both passed out!

"Hello!" Twilight called out. "Anypony! Where are you? Where are we?!" She covered her ears, the barrier making no difference to the sounds inside her head.

Twilight

Twilight Sparkle

Twilight!

"Twilight!"

The unicorn looked up, her eyes springing open as a voice, a real voice, called out her name. She hadn't realized she'd scrunched her eyes tightly, trying in vain to keep the noises out, but the sound of her own name banished her other concerns. In the distance - at least, some distance away - she spied another figure, tall and slender, and her heart lifted with hope. There was somepony else here after all, and somepony who knew her! Her resolve returned to her, and she ran towards the other creature, the voices quietening as she drew closer. There was no gallopping clop against the floor, not even the muffled thud of hooves against grass, but she could see her target looming through the shifting air of this reality.

Like hitting the surface of a lake, Twilight felt a cold resistance wash around her and she skidded to a halt, shocked at the sudden sensation. She felt normal immediately afterwards, but there was no denying she'd passed through something. That was when she realised the voices had stopped, the accompanying noise from which she'd been unable to escape moments previously now gone. With a sigh of relief, she looked up, a smile stretching her muzzle as she spied the figure who'd called out for her.

"Princess Luna!" she breathed, hurrying towards the tall blue mare, happy beyond words to see somepony she could trust and rely upon. If there was anypony who could give her answers and help her in solving this budding crisis, it was another alicorn, especially one with so many years of experience.

"Hello, Twilight," the regal princess greeted, retaining an air of majesty that put Twilight at ease, the weight of worry lifting from her shoulders. "I'm sorry for calling you into my realm so suddenly and without warning, but I fear this is urgent."

"Your realm? This is all a dream?" Twilight asked, glancing around. A thought occured to her, and she frowned as the unexpected . "You can pull ponies into a dream at any time without them doing anything?"

"This is a gestalt of collective unconsciousness," Luna explained, gesturing to the shifting hues of the immaterial space around them. "We are all bound together by hopes, dreams, ambitions, and emotions. Adopting the night as my domain has granted me the power to interact with this connection between ponies and stabilize it, forming a hub, of sorts. From there, I can access the dreams of my subjects and watch over them. Yes, because the connection is exactly that - a connection between us - it also means I can draw my subject's minds to me. I reserve this for the most urgent of situations, however, such as now."

"The voices," Twilight said, her unease taking hold again. "When I arrived here, I heard ponies talking. It was a jumbled mess, like random thoughts tossed out into the open air. It was like they were inside my head. Is that normal?"

"Creating a connection between minds will mean that thoughts will cross over, intertwine, and be experienced by others," Luna informed the smaller mare. "Usually, each pony's mind is sealed off to the world, their thoughts entirely their own. In their dreams, their thoughts remain their own, unconscious or otherwise, until somepony else enters. When something is experienced by all ponies on a deep and powerful level, the barriers break down. Out in the causeway of unconsciousness, the bridge between dreams, all thoughts mingle and meld."

"Why aren't we hearing them now?" the mulberry mare asked hesitantly. "And what caused the barriers between minds to break down in the first place? What experience was so powerful that everypony in Equestria felt-" She stopped, eyes widening. "You know about the hex?"

"Hex?" the Princess of the Night repeated. "I do not know of a hex. I know of the event to which you are undoutedly referring, but I know not of its origins, or much other than its perfidious effects on my loyal subjects. I have know since the signs emerged in their dreams, and in this place. The...manifestations...of its effects are as daunting as its effects in the material world, but it does allow for a clear warning."

"Manifestations? Effects? What-?" She frowned at Luna's dour expression, the blue princess looking over Twilight's head to something behind her. Turning, the younger alicorn's eyes widened, and she shrieked, jumping back a full two meters. "Wh-what are those?!"

"Manifestations," Luna repeated, eyeing the slithering mass of appendages as they wobbled and swayed, remaining tens of meters away from them. "The monstrous form to represent your so-called 'hex'. In our minds, it looks as such."

"Th-that's the hex?!" Twilight asked, grimacing. On the one hand, they were creepy and apparently predatory; Fluttershy might've had a soft spot for things that crawled and snuck, but it was easy to see them as dangerous for almost anypony else. On the other hand, they looked like stalks or vines, the sort found in the Everfree Forest. If that was all this hex was, or how it appeared when forced into a physical form, it could be defeated with little more than the combined effort of the Elements, or the power of friendship and unity. It would be a tough task, but not insurmountable, as she'd first thought. "Why isn't it attacking us?"

"For the same reason you no longer hear the voices," Luna replied, directing Twilight's view to where the stalks had halted. Just in front of them, a haze, like an influx of heat, seperated them from the two princesses. "This is my domain, and I rule here. I am immune to whatsoever it may seek to throw at me, and any who cross the threshold of my power are as safe as I." She stood up straighter, adopting a more regal stance, and began walking. "Come, Twilight. I must explain what I know, so that we can stop this...hex."

"Where did it come from?" Twilight asked, unable to peel her eyes away from the horde of manifestations as they wiggled at her. She backed away, following Luna's voice. "When did it happen?" A few seconds of silence followed, the soundless plodding of hooves lending an eerie disconnect to the experience.

"It is important to know that this is not some new enemy," came the response, after the measured silence. "Tonight is an unfortunate return. The disorder you are seeing tonight is something we have witnessed before. When I was young, a mere filly, Celestia encountered it for herself, and succeeded in vanquishing it from the world, bringing harmony to the land. I know not how, and by the time I matured to the age she had been when she had encountered the threat, it had vanished entirely from Equestria. I never needed to know the details, and so I never asked. It was always my sister's brilliance, as far as I knew. Another example of why she deserved to be the ruler of the day."

Twilight turned to face Luna, frowning at the news. Even as she walked, she cast glances behind herself, hesitant to let the manifestations out of her sight for long. She didn't trust them, protected by Luna's might or not. "Why now?"

"Again, I know not," the Princess of the Night stated. "Perhaps it was recalled. Perhaps it was replicated. I would need to know more of what this hex or plague truly is, and as I said, I only know of it second hand."

A swirling shimmer caught Twilight's attention, and her eyes were drawn to the source. As Luna spoke, a portrait formed in the air next to them, keeping pace with their walk, taking shape into a vivid, detailed scene. It wasn't just an image, though; she could see past the foreground, the various elements of the environment possessing a proper distance from one another, like the scene was cast directly from reality. Everything inside, however, was still, like a photgraph of an exciting slice of a day. The smaller alicorn was transfixed, watching the images shift as she listened to Luna's words.

"The harmony created by the unity of the three tribes had allowed for great productivity, for a time," the blue alicorn spoke. "There was co-operation, prosperity, love..." The portrait took the shape of an idylic scene, earth pony foals flitting about in the fields while pegasi foals flapped in the air just above them. Adults dug furrows into the earth with hoes, laughing as they worked, their spirits as warm as the sun beaming down on them. "It was everything we hear and venerate within Hearth's Warming songs. But as time passed, the land was tainted with jealousy, envy, anger. Disharmony seeped into the hearts of Equestria's inhabitants, and the land of joy became one of suspicion and arbitrary hatred."

The portrait morphed into a new scene, one where two stallions glowered at one another, pointing accusingly, rage baked into their expressions. A mare stood between them, concern lining her face as she extended her arms, acting as a barrier between their unheard argument.

"Where once lay friendship and trust, paranoia and contempt held sway. Communities of inseperable peers were now infested with deceit and deception, and divided into self-serving cliques. It was not always visible, nor consistent, but it was always pervasive and persistent, emerging from the same causes and manifesting in the same way. The noble soul of Equestria was marred by this illness."

Once again, the portrait shifted form, revealing the interior of a small, austere hut, an earth pony stallion pushing open the crude wooden door and striding inside, his face a mixture of confusion and discomfort. The object of his attention was another two ponies, a plain earth pony mare and a pegasus stallion, the former laying back on a straw bed, her roughspin tunic pulled up to her hips and her legs slung over the pegasus' shoulders. Her face was red, and her mouth hung open, her eyes rolled back in a look of bliss, the pegasus' visage an iron mask of concentration and focus. Twilight recognised the position from her first encounter with Spike, when he'd shoved his anatomy inside her. Had she looked like the mare, she wondered? The emotions present on her face certainly seemed to match what she'd felt.

"It could not continue," Luna narrated. "There was too much disruption, too much disharmony between ponies who should be, and were, friends. The pernicious, perfidious presence that had corrupted the hearts of ponies could be allowed to remain no longer. Through careful observation and dedicated study, Celestia determined and isolated the cause of this sickness, and removed it from society entirely. I was aware of it only in terms of peripheral understanding, and the information given to me by my sister. Shortly after, we ascended to the throne, and our rule was one over an Equestria that did not know the horror of this chaos." The portrait changed to a timelapse of a green plain in Equestria, the sun circling through the sky and cycling out with the moon a thousand times over, and then a thousand times more. A house sprung into existence on a hill overlooking a forest, and as the night became day and day became night, more houses emerged, trees grew in organized lines, and the town she recognized as Ponyville swelled into its present state. "Hundreds of generations, safe and secure from this knowledge. Until tonight, we have kept the peace." Luna stopped, turning to look at Twilight somberly. "It must be stopped again. It is our duty to our subjects."

It was a staggering story, and one which meant an incredible amount of responsibility. Not just a monster, a beast, or some ancient evil from Equestria's past; this was deeper, more dangerous than some singular threat like Nightmare Moon or Chrysalis. There was no list of foes. There was just the duty she had to protecting her ponies from whatever it was controlling them. She felt the resolution swell up inside her, aided by her previous experiences of confronting threats to Equestria and its society.

"I'm ready," the mulberry alicorn stated. "What do we need to do, princess?"

"I must stay here," the taller alicorn informed her. "It is my task to watch over my subjects and ensure their dreams are purified and safe. If ponies are confined to their dreams, they cannot wake and succumb to the false desires this illness installs in their hearts. When asleep, their bodies cannot be turned against them, and I can protect their minds. This is what I can and must do, but it is merely a preventative measure. You must be the one to find a solution, and only my sister can help you with such a feat."

Twilight tried to listen, but the insistent whisperings she'd heard before had returned, subtly enough that she didn't realise they were there at first. She rubbed her ears, turning around to look towards the manifestations. She peered into the distance, trying to make out their shape in the odd darkness of this realm.

"Why only-" The question she was going to ask was cut short when a shout of alarm issued from behind her, followed by a whoosh of air. Spinning around, she discovered the other alicorn was gone, leaving her alone. "Princess Luna?" Snapping her head left and right, she tried to catch sight of the mare, spinning on the spot as without achieving anything. "Princess? Where are you?"

A stiffled scream of defiance reached her, and Twilight looked in the direction it had come from, gasping as she saw where the princess had gone. The stalks that had been harassing Twilight since her arrival in this strange realm had finally slipped past Luna's defences when her attention was divided, ensnaring her and hoisting her up into the sky. There was one for each limb, and another for her prominent horn, ensuring there was no escape. Gritting her teeth in determination, Twilight concentrated the magic in her own horn, readying a powerful beam to slice the unwelcome assailants and free her friend and peer.

She didn't get the chance. A sudden tightness gripped her leg and yanked, sending her sprawling. A yelp escaped her at the fall, expecting to hit hard ground, but the impact never came. Instead, she was left dangling, her free leg soon wrapped in a bind of its own, followed in due course by her arms, her horn, and a thick winding grip around her midriff. She tried to wriggle, struggling against the unyielding clutches, but they didn't so much as budge. She was lifted smoothly to a point which - she presumed was higher than the ground - brought her level with the other abductee, a preview of what was to happen. Twilight kept pulling and twisting, but nothing came of it. She could only watch.

The objects were easy to make out up close, when she could see them without any way to avoid them. They were slender purple stalks, prehensile and flexible, if their coiling presence was any indication, and they moved with a startling agility and fluidity. They really were almost like vines, she realised; the way they ensnared her and the other alicorn, the creeping slither and speedy lashing that were familiar from her experiences within the Everfree Forest, and the way they moved as one, as though some great consciousness controlled all of them. Their grip was absolute, but comfortable, and no matter how hard she pulled, they never squeezed so tight as to hurt her, just hold her.

Princess Luna's clothes were torn, each fragmant picked off and discarded into the void, and as Twilight turned her full attention to the other alicorn, the manifestations plucked the last remants free from Luna's body, leaving the respectable, dignified mare in a very undignified position. Having only ever seen the Princess of the Night in formal regalia, which emphasised her poise and grace, and highlighted all of the assets of her feminine form, seeing the dark blue mare stripped of everything and held spread wide was gobsmacking. Even when imprisoned by Chrysalis, the princesses had been bound in full attire, offered that small mercy; this was absolute, removing any veil of privacy or respect.

With her limbs restrained and her magic nullified by the muzzling of her horn, there was nothing Luna could do to stop the manifestations encroachment, their skulking, predatory wiggle unabated. One snaked its way up the blue mare's flat belly, sliding through the valley of her cleavage and curling towards the dark protrusions of the princess' nipples, which slowly but surely hardened in response to the contact. Luna let out a disapproving vocalisation between a huff and a moan, and yet, even with the resistant writhing, there was no denying the undertone of enjoyment to her tone. As if sensing this, the vine circled around one of the mare's perky buds and tugged it lightly, forcing a louder moan from the mare, albeit through clenched lips.

Twilight was so enraptured by the sight of something toying with an Equestrian princess in such a strange, alien manner, that she nearly missed the second manifestation positioning itself at Luna's crotch, her mind taking several seconds to process the fact that the purple tentacle was gracefully stroking up and down, flicking its tapered end against the bare, exposed flesh of the princess' vulva. Her eyes widened, this demonstration even more unfathomable than the brazen play with the princess' mammaries, and with such a shocking, appalling sight, she could do nothing but watch, and wonder why it seemed so smooth. Surely it shouldn't be this smooth and easy? Before she could ponder the thought too long, the vine lowered itself into a resting position, and - with a full-length wiggle that shook rapidly along its tubular body - plunged deep into one of the most powerful ponies in the land.

Luna's cry was throaty and loud, the alicorn unable to suppress the feeling of being so roughly penetrated. Her gasp transitioned into a feminine whine, and she closed her eyes, her mouth agape as the length in her began to move, withdrawing before thumping back into her, the resilience of the vines suspending her the only thing to stop the force shunting her back with every thrust. It was mesmerizing, in a startling sort of way, witnessing something so unprecedented and so unnatural occur right in front of her.

A sharp tug Twilight yanked from her hypnotic state, and she gasped as her clothes were torn from her. They came away easily, ripping like paper at the direction of the vines, their tendrils grasping and pulling at her attire until her garments were scattered shreds. She moved as much as she could, trying to frustrate their efforts, hoping to keep her underwear out of the reach of the grasping limbs, but they merely tightened and forced her compliance, halting her enough to ripp her panties and bra, leaving her fully exposed. As they had done with Luna, the purple lengths slithered up her body, smooth and comfortable against her skin, yet moving with sinister purpose and intentions. Her breathing hitched, the apprehension of what was about to happen sending a shiver through her body.

Her hesitancy remained as the first of the vines pressed against her mons, its smooth, warm surface gliding between her labial lips. The same warmth and wetness that had woken her up began to stir in her again, her body tingling with the same confused, senseless need that had slowly encapsulated her when she was exposed to Spike's presence. Their touch was soft and gentle, yet with every brush against her skin or flesh, she grew warmer, as if flushing from the contact. Her heart thumped, beating powerfully in her chest, and she began to pant, whimpering in a mixture of anxiety and interested anticipation. Her rational mind wanted to escape, to free Princess Luna and defeat these monstrosities, but her instinct was conflicted; did she want to leave? Were they so hideous? Maybe she needed to stop worrying, to submit to their caresses and touches, their exploration of her teets and loins. Something thin pressed curiously against her anus-

"Leave her alone!" Luna commanded, projecting her voice over the fleshy slaps that filled the air around her. Her tone was firm, the slight waver to her voice insignificant over the strength of her demand. "You are here for me, not her! I have much more to give!" The presence around Twilight shrank, the excess vines pulling away and leaning towards the other alicorn. "Yes, you know what I can offer. If-" Her words were silenced as a thick vine shot forward and burried itself into the blue mare's maw, beginning its rigorous pumping as the one between her legs had done. A third dipped lower, sneaking behind the vaginally-occupied vine, and wormed its way out of sight, pulling a sharp whine from Luna, her back arching.

As enthralling as the sight was - and more than a little exciting, as shameful as it was to admit - it couldn't disguise the sensations between Twilight's own legs. The tip of the vine toying with her had begun to flick at the sensitive bud atop her vulva, waving left and right to brush against it insistently, as though knowing that such a movement would send pulses of pleasure through the mare. Twilight panted, her hips shaking from the pangs that spread through her, the needy itch that she'd managed to sate in her bedroom returning in time with the swishes against the bundle of nerves. Everything felt hot, and she needed relief, which was something escape wouldn't give.

There was scarcely a second between the cessation of the grinding and flicking before a brand new sensation rocked her. The thinness of the vine sought out her entrance and rammed forward, several inches burrowing into her hidden passage in a split second. She shrieked, her walls clutching the intruder as it filled her, stretching her to fit itself, and a rush rippled throughout her body. Her back arched, her nerves igniting as the shock travelled up her body and back down, bouncing from synapse to synapse and richoeting down every limb to the tips of each of her digits. The first thrust alone - the very first - had left her gobsmacked and speechless, save for the delighted cry ripped from her lungs, her body tingling from the inside out.

If it had planned to wait to move until she was lucid enough to maximize the effect it had, it was unclear. Receding to the tip in a slow, smooth drag, it shoved itself into her canal once more, roughly making room for its girth, the penetration sending another jolt of intense pleasure through the captive mare, expelling a grunt from her. If it hadn't been for the vines holding her, she probably would've been knocked back a foot, at least, but it was clear from what was happening that there was a purpose to her usage; they had designs on her. The next few thrusts were the same, and the few after that the same, but maybe a little faster. If there was an increase in speed, it was exponential, each one minimally quicker, making it hard to notice. Far more importantly, though, was how good it felt, the satisfaction of being filled with something that had no hesitation, no caution, just pure, instinctual desire. It was exactly what she needed, and it seemed to know exactly what that was. It was as if this creature, or collection of creatures, was designed for her - for this, whatever this was.

In the moments Twilight managed to gather enough sense to look around, she saw the scenery around them shifting, altering between places she knew whenever she looked away for too long. The Golden Oaks Library, the vines emerging from floating books and the spaces in shelves where those books had been housed. Eyes closed, pleasure, eyes open. Her old classroom in Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, where Princess Luna was laid across the desk, papers flung onto the floor to make room. Blurry vision from the intensity of a particularly strong thrust, and then they were in an unrealistically large broom closet, the clang of a metal bucket accompanying their stifled moans and the fleshy slapping. Was this affecting her mind? The kitchen in Sugarcube Corner, a bag of flour toppling from a cupboard and exploding, filling the air. Reading her mind? The tower she lived in during her time in Canterlot, her naked body pressed against the window, exposing her for the city to see as she was mercilessly used. What was this? Was she being conditioned by using her memories to create a favorable sentiment towards subservience?

The minutes bled together into a blissful amalgam, her body numbing to everything except the sharp sparks and waves of stimulation, and the growing hotness, which rose from a background glow to something unignorable that threatened to dampen the wonderful feeling of her determined violator. The repeated pumping produced a sloppy, slick sound, something fitting that seemed to compliment the stuffing of her route just perfectly. She was so slick that the process was effortless, the vine able to sink into her until she had no more room to fill, its form still seeking more of her interior to claim even as that reality became apparent. Unlike Spike's member, which was firmer than a steel beam and harder than diamond to the touch, the vine was flexible and light, allowing it to undulate inside her in tiny wiggles, adding a little bit extra to the mindless experience. It was still tough enough to satisfy the odd new urge, but the way it flicked against the deepest wall of her anatomy, as though licking her, was something strange and highly, inexplicably electrifying.

A tension was building in her, the pleasure coalescing into something stronger and more significant, something she recognised from last time. It was powerful, innevitable, and she gasped as it drew nearer. Her muscle tensed, her body began to tremble, and she tried her hardest to stifle her moans; she bit her lip, stilled her vocal chords, and generally did her best to retain some of her dignity. It was all fruitless - she couldn't stop herself from crying out any more than she could avoid hurtling from the peak of pleasure that the vine was rocketing her towards, and, when she reached that peak, there was a moment of focus, of startling vertigo, before she plumetted.

The explosion was intense, as it had been last time, the compacted sensations surging from her core to saturate the rest of her. Her mind blanked, overwhelmed by the howling storm, feeling as though she were falling from an impossible height, the rush and the excitement far greater than any deadly drop. She writhed, shaking and flailing her limbs sporadically, her erratic movements counteracted by the hold of the living restraints suspending her.

Her ears roared with the beat of her heart, her breathing rapid and uncontrolled, and her hips rolled of their own volition, the mare only becoming aware of it when lucidity returned to her and she looked down. The feisty appendage was still hammering at her hole, plundering her insides with abandon, and though she was more numb to it, she felt the beginning of the cycle again, her body already accumulating the pleasure of such unexpectedly wonderful abuse. Glancing at the other alicorn, she witnessed what she imagined she herself had looked like, the blue pony grunting and groaning past the obtruction lodged in her throat, her body trembling as she dealt with the feelings forced upon her. The vines thickened, each of them pulsing, and with a final plunge, they stilled, rhytmically contracting for several seconds before withdrawing. Luna coughed, viscous white spilling from her mouth and oozing from her nethers.

That shouldn't have pushed Twilight towards the dizzying heights of release. What had happened to Luna was vile, degrading, disgusting - yet she couldn't help but experience a swell of giddiness at the occurence, wanting to feel it just as her peer had. Glancing down at the pounding vine, her voice a staccato of whines, squeals, and moans, she saw and felt it thicken, a series of bulges travelling along its length like golf balls down a hosepipe, far too big for what it should be. The contractions kept it going, drawing closer to the end of the vine, and closer to her. The pressure in her rose, the friction building into a searing blaze, the anticipation stacking, until the length drew back and rammed as deep as possible into her.

The momentous mass reached her entrance, stretching her slightly as it pushed past her elastic walls, and she felt a hot splash as it erupted inside her with such force that some spurted messily around the stalk, spattering her legs white. The alluring burn sent her tumbling over the edge again, and she shuddered and yelped as the current zipped through her nervous system again, assailing her with vibrant bursts and pulses. She was still being filled, the fluid pouring into her interior and flooding every nook and cranny. She was so full, and so, so satisfied. When she clenched down, she squeezed out some of the goop, feeling it ooze past the vine's girth and flow down her legs.

She didn't know if she closed her eyes or if her mind was too occupied processing the feeling rushing through her to let her see, but her vision returned at some point, along with feeling in her limbs. She wasn't bound anymore, and she was apparently laying on the ground. The transition had been seemless, and after several moments trying to control her breathing, she groaned and rolled herself onto her side, pushing herself up.

"Are you okay?"

It was Luna. Twilight looked up at the concerned expression frowning down at her, the tall woman hunched over her, fully clothed. Noticing the disparity between them, Twilight blushed and covered herself, attempting to preserve any dignity she could help to salvage from this situation.

"I-I'm fine," she stammered. "Very confused, but fine. Also very naked, but since I don't have any extra clothes, I'll just have to keep being fine."

"Your form in this domain is exactly as you wish it to be," Luna replied, offering a hand to the smaller mare. "If you wish to be clean and clothed, then you shall be. I suggest opting to banish the semen before reclothing yourself."

"Semen?" the purple mare asked as she took Luna's hand and allowed herself to be pulled to her hooves, pondering Luna's words.

"The ejaculate," Luna spoke, realising as she did that it didn't clarify anything. "The thick white substance excreted by the manifestations, as well as - I have no doubt - ponies in the waking world by now. It is a symptom of our predicament, and I expect we shall be seeing a lot more of it unless we can halt this turn of events. But first..." She waited patiently for the smaller alicorn to make herself decent.

Trusting the princess, Twilight closed her eyes, visualised herself as she had been when she found herself in this strange place, and tried to believe that was how she looked. Several seconds passed, and nothing seemed to change, but when she opened her eyes again and inspected herself, she was fully dressed, and looked respectable again. She sighed a breath of relief, feeling better already.

"Come," the Princess of the Night directed, beginning to walk away. Surprised at the sudden progression, but having no other option, Twilight followed. "We must act, for we have far less time than I believed. You need to seek out Celestia and have her repulse this incursion, as she did millennia ago."

"Why me? You're her sister, and I'm just-"

"A princess," Luna reminded the other mare. "You have the authority, capability, and duty towards Equestria that I do. We are not of separate status, you and I. However, my duty is here, among my subjects, in a domain that is my duty exclusively. I cannot abandon that. Even drawing you here to inform you of the situation was a gamble, and one that was costly. I am sorry for what it cost you." A forlorn flash crossed Luna's visage for a moment.

"I-it's okay, really," Twilight managed, feeling awkward. "It wasn't that bad." At her words, the regret on Luna's face was replaced by disappointed resignation.

"Of course," the blue mare said. "The phenomenon alters ponies' perception, makes them susceptible to its whims. You wouldn't be too concerned, not in the moment. Much like the others. I shouldn't have expected you to be less affected."

"The others?"

Instead of answering, Luna waved her arm, translucent images appearing around her in the swirling fog. There were variations, no two images identical, but all were life-sized apparitions of two or more ponies engaging in some phyiscal activity that looked so alien, and yet she recognised as the weird predatory behaviour Spike had thrust upon her. There were mares underneath males, mares atop males, males pistoning against mares from behind, hands and tongues and mouths and muzzles locked and roaming in ways that she hadn't had the imagination to conjure up before this very moment. Hundreds of them, stretching away into the distance, colours clashing as she switched from one to another, watching on in awe. Two mares, one aquamarine and the other applegreen gray, ground their crotches against one another, moving in a choatic synchronization. An orange earth pony bounced on the lap of a muscular red stallion laying on a bale of hay, the two grunting throughout their activity. A gray pegasus stallion alternated between kissing two pegasi females, his hands occupied between their legs, his large phallus grasped in their hands as they tried to massage him, working clumsily amidst the spontaneous affection.

"As I said, everypony is affected," Luna reiterated, dismissing the visual cacophony. "It is dangerous. The most damaging effects of this shall not be felt for some time, but already, it is distracting ponies from their lives, stopping them from focusing on work and doing what is necessary to keep their own wellbeing, as well as that of the kingdom's, on track. They are too enamored with the new feelings, the innate desire to obey their new instincts and subconscious. It will be the end of Equestria if it continues."

"And Princess Celestia can stop it?" Twilight asked, aghast at the true scope of this threat. If this was what had happened to Spike, to Rarity, to Milky Way, to her, then the thought of it being so widespread as to affect the entire kingdom and its very rulers was utterly horrifying. It had changed a savy business owner into a hedonist, a loyal sidekick into a feral beast, and a hardworking night-shift worker into somepony driven wild by an inescapable, crawling need - if that was the fate for Equestria as a whole, it was unthinkable.

"She must," Luna declared. "I will keep as many of our subjects in a restful sleep as I can muster, ensuring that they do not cause havoc. You must make haste to Canterlot and aid my sister in repelling this vile incursion." As she spoke, a window opened up next to the blue princess, revealing a mare crawling through a desert, sweating profusely, panting like a dog. With a flick of magic from Luna's horn, the sand transmuted into water, and the mare was left splashing in the shallows on all fours, a smile broadening on her face. Behind her, a small wave took form into a shape similar to a tongue, which splashed against her loins, pulling a whimper from its target. Rather than loosing shape, it lapped against the mare's nethers again, flicking up and down in smooth, steady strokes, leaving her in a state of delighted contentment. "I must quench their thirst, relieve the heat burning within them."

The window closed, and beside it, another opened, within which was a mare running through a forest. Behind her, a timberwolf pursued, noticeably lacking the fangs and claws for which they were known. Instead, swinging obscenely beneath it was a humungous member, firmly erect. It was gaining ground, closing in on the fleeing pony. With another flare of her horn, the mare stepped on a patch of leaves, which gave way, sending her tumbling into a pit. She screamed, but was caught by a mass of tentacles, which grasped her and kept her safe.

"I must ensure my subjects remain satiated and in good hands," Luna continued, the tentacles shining the same shimmering cobalt as her aura. One of them that wasn't holding the mare's limbs curled up and carassed the mare's cheek soothingly, allowing her to relax. She responded positively, smiling and closing her eyes. "I must ensure they are cared for, made to feel safe and comfortable. This is my task, one I must endeavor to continue while you embark upon yours."

"I understand," Twilight assured, watching on as the mare was slowly stripped of her articles of clothing, a familiar awe taking hold of her. A touch of concern arose in her as Luna stepped closer, eyes fixated on the tentacles, one of which turned towards the alicorn. She decided against questioning Luna's actions, figuring she couldn't be corrupted so easily. She was just ensuring the dreaming mare was safe, right? "I won't fail you." A resolve began to take hold again, and she balled her fists in determination.

"All of Equestria rests on your success," Luna replied, reaching into the window. As she did, her arm became incorporeal, a mere shimmer of dots and sparkles. "You will find that the world is strange, and you must be aware of the dangers that it imposes. Do not succumb to the temptation, but..." She paused for a moment, focusing on spreading the mare's labia, allowing one of the tentacles to slide into the pink inner confines of the mare. "...remain open to new experiences."

"I understand," Twilight repeated, nodding and attempting to ignore the feminine moans from within the window. "I'll bring your message to Princess Celestia, and together, we'll banish this affliction once again. Equestria will return to harmony."

"I pray that it does." She closed one window and opened another, peering into yet a different strange dream. "Return to the waking world. I shall return to my duty. Good luck, Princess Twilight."

As she had done before, Twilight closed her eyes, her consciousness drawing in around her like a blanket, receding and receding until the sensations around her disappeared, and she was left floating in nothingness, a collection of thoughts and memories. These, too, began to drift apart, her derparture from the dream complete. Slowly, surely, her thoughts coalseced again, pulling back together, and sensation returned to her body. It was time.

Waking up was far easier and more immediate than falling asleep had been, and she didn't feel drowsy or require a small period of reflection like she did when she was normally roused from her slumber. She was back in Rarity's bedroom, resting on the floor, and she couldn't hear anypony else. Sitting up, she glanced around, met with the sight of a clean room. The bed was stripped down, the walls, floor, and ceiling were immaculate, and the white unicorn was absent. She stood herself up, glancing around. Spike was gone, of course. She didn't know what she had expected, but the situation had changed anyway, and he was now the least of her concerns. Equestria was at stake, and one roaming dragon was nothing compared to the stability of the kingdom. At least he was friendly...in a way.

She met Rarity downstairs, the unicorn emerging from the laundry room as the alicorn entered the floor of the shop. The purple curls of her mane were scaggly and unkempt, and were still infused with the remains of Spike's enthusiastic offering, as was her coat. She looked crusty and almost groggy, though the sight of the purple pony perked her right up.

"Darling," she greeted. "Are you quite alright? You fell asleep rather suddenly, and Spike bolted out the door and ran into the streets. I was rather hoping he'd help me clean up, but it appears he hasn't quite nailed down the proper etiquette for courting a lady." She tutted and shook her head. "He is young, I suppose. There is still time for him to learn."

"I'm fine," Twilight answered, her mind too preoccupied to engage with the whimsical nature of the fashionista's musing. "I've got to go, though. Princess Celestia needs to see me in Canterlot, urgently."

"Right now?" Rarity asked. "So late? Very well, but I simply cannot go in this state. I shall need to shower before we seek an audience with the princess."

"You won't be coming," Twilight informed her. "I need to leave now, and it's something I have to do alone. I'll come back as soon as I can. Until then, stay here, stay safe, and make sure the others are okay."

The fashionista seemed unsure, but nodded, clearly trusting that the alicorn had her reasons. The time when the two would second-guess one another had long passed, and both knew to trust when the other was making a decision on a basis to which they themselves were not privy. Stepping forward, she extended her arms to embrace the alicorn, but was stopped when the taller mare wrinkled her nose and leaned back.

"Yes, well," she murmured, chuckling sheepishly as she stepped back, glancing down at her crusted fur. "Perhaps after you return, I'll be in a better state to give you ample encouragement."

"I'm sure you will," Twilight replied, offering a smile. "Stay safe."

"And you too, darling. Whatever it is you're doing, make sure you come back in one piece." With a final dainty smile, she turned and began her walk up the stairs, limping a little, as though sore. Twilight watched her go, eyes following the swaying rump of her friend until it disappeared. With a deep, steadying breath, she exited the boutique into the unnatural dawn.

The streets weren't as quiet now. There was definitely movement, ponies milling about and trying to determine for themselves what was going on. She felt conflicted for a moment, wondering if she ought to stay and help them, but the reality of the situation stopped her. She couldn't do anything against this, not by herself, and the longer she delayed, the longer the hex's effects would ravage Equestria. With a heavy heart, she crouched, unflaring her wings behind her, and leapt into the air, flapping with all the grace and might she could muster. It was hard to leave home behind, but it was necessary.

From the air, everything was quiet, save for the whistle of the wind past her, and the beat of her wings against the wind, but she couldn't console herself with the peace. Eyes fixed on the silhouette of Canterlot in the distance, she drove herself onward, determined to reach the mountain city, ignoring the stillness around her, and accompanied only by the sounds of her flight and the singular goal of finding Celestia.