Twilight landed and returned to the temple, seeking her sisters and mothers. She found them and fell to her knees, crying, holding her chest.

"Dash! She's just gone!"

They didn't say anything, and Twilight could see them smiling and crying.

"Girls...?"

Pinkie and AJ were smiling at her, and Rarity and Celestia were looking at her. Twilight looked around, confused, and asked them, "What's wrong with all of you?"

Celestia slowly walked to her and kneeled to her level.

"Twilight, it's time. It's time to go. She's waiting for you, and you don't have enough time." Celestia suddenly dropped to her hands. "I don't have enough time. You must go now."

"Mother...?"

Twilight couldn't speak as she noticed her sister standing, smiling. She called out to them, but they didn't react at all, which upset her.

"Why isn't anyone talking!? Why aren't you moving!?"

Celestia didn't say anything; she placed her face on Twilight's forehead and kissed it.

"Twilight Sparkle. Your sisters...aren't..." Celestia started crying, something Twilight had never seen while living with her.

"Mother...? Why are you crying?"

"Because, my child. They aren't real."

"What? Not real? What are you talking about? You're not making sense."

Celestia cried, and Twilight didn't understand. She hugged her daughter and whispered, "I'm sorry. I couldn't save them. I failed to protect them. " She held her tighter, "At least I saved you and Dash...for now."

"Mother...?"

Celestia didn't say anything.

"What am I missing? Tell me."

"The truth..."

Twilight watched as her sisters stood there, pointing to the temple, not saying anything. The temple started to glitch out, which upset Twilight.

"Tell me the truth, Mother. Now. Who are you? Are my sisters real? Or just fake!?"

Celestia slowly leaned back and put her hands on her cheeks, smiling.

"My name is Harmony, Twilight Sparkle. A program to protect you and your sisters until the goddess came. To take you away from this dead world. You see, you have been asleep for the last three years. And soon, you have to wake up early. The damage to my system is failing. I'm dying."

Twilight shook her head, not understanding, "So, I'm dreaming then? Aren't my sisters real? You aren't my mother?"

"No, I'm your mother—a program created by the real Celestia to save you and your sisters from death. You don't remember because of the gummies that she gave you. If you want to remember, you need to wake up. Go through the temple."

Twilight was crying and didn't want to wake up if her sisters and mother weren't real.

"Why!?"

Harmony cried and hugged her, "Because, my child. This won't be your ending. We won't let it. You are made for something more; we both know it."

Twilight held her, "I don't want to leave you or them. They are real. My sisters, I love them. And you, I love you too, mother. I can't leave!" cried Twilight, but she could see her sisters doing the same pose as her mother like they were connected to her. Soon, they bugged out and disappeared.

"Go, my sweet child. She's waiting for you in the real world."

Twilight slowly turned to the temple, seeing it become a door made of light. She looked at her mother and asked, "We?"

Harmony looked up and just said, "Dash."

Twilight quickly looked at the door. She needed to go, but she couldn't leave her mother. She picked her up and dragged her to the exit. She wouldn't leave her; that's not what a friend or daughter does.

"Mother, hold on! We are leaving!"

Harmony couldn't move her legs and told her daughter, "Leave me; you don't have time."

Twilight cried and shook her head. "NO! I'M NOT LEAVING YOU TO THIS FATE! ITS LIKE YOU TOLD ME ABOUT THE GODDESS! I'LL FIGHT AGAINST FATE AS WELL! I'LL MAKE SURE WE LEAVE, ALL OF US!"

Harmony could see her determination. This made her cry, "I love you, my sweet child."

"I love you too..." Twilight suddenly felt herself being pushed into the door of light. She turned, seeing her mother as a white faceless being made up of zeros and ones, waving at her.

"Mother!"

"What a wonderful light, a spark that rivals her light..." said Harmony, as the shut closed in front of her, as the world around her started to fall apart.

The door shut closed with an echo, forcing Twilight to wake up. She found herself back in her bed, but something was different. A screen glass door covered it. She tried to push it, but it was locked tight. No matter what she did, it wouldn't open. Twilight looked around, looking for anything to help her.

"MOTHER!? SISTERS! DASH! ANYONE!? HELP ME!"

Nothing but her voice, echoing, could be heard. She couldn't see anyone or anything. She was alone.
Twilight could feel the bed shake and listen to a voice outside. She put her ear to the door and could hear someone.

"HELLO! I'M TRAPPED!"

Twilight placed her ear back on the glass door. She couldn't hear the voice. She screamed and punched the glass door, keeping hitting it and crying. She wanted to get out and find Dash.

"I promise to find that exit. That's a promise, Dashie."

She started to think and remembered her magic training. She closed her eyes and poured all her magic into her fists. They began to glow brightly. She opened her eyes and was happy her training was the most petite real. She punched the glass door, cracking the glass.

"That's it!"

She did it again, making a hole in the glass.

"Yes!"

She kept punching until she made a sizeable hole in the glass, which allowed her to stand up. What confused her was that the whole room was dark and covered in dust, along with being in ruins. She carefully stepped out of the sleeping bed tube. She could see the other tubes. She quickly rushed to one, which was Fluttershy.

"SISTER!"

Twilight reached it and stood there, filled with shock and confusion. Soon, sadness filled her heart.

"Fluttershy!"

Twilight stepped back and saw a skeleton inside...a child skeleton.

"No...this has to be a nightmare!"

Twilight looked into the other beds but saw the same results. Each of her sisters and her friends were all dead.

"This isn't right. They were fine! Mother is alive! This is a nightmare!"

She suddenly had a headache, which made her remember something, but she heard something, which made her push the headache away. She turned and saw a blue hand rising from a bed. She knew whose bed it belonged to, which filled her with happiness.

"Dash!"

Twilight rushed over, hoping that Dash was okay.

"Hold on, Dashie! I'm coming!"

Twilight reached the bed, but she was filled with sadness like before.

"B-Big...Ho-orn..." coughed Dash, her arm dropping back on her black flesh.

Twilight carefully helped her up. She could see that Dash was severely charred. Most of her skin was gone, replaced with burnt flesh. Only her left arm was still cyan. She looked like she hadn't eaten in her month, as she was skin and bones.

"Dash, it is me! Twilight, can you hear me?"

"B-Big Ho-orn...!" Dash weakly smiled at her, and her only good eye looked at her "Y-You're a-alive!"

"Yes, I am. Let's get out of here."

Twilight grabbed her and tried to get her out of the tube. But she was stuck and couldn't move her, not without ripping the tubes that were in her arms.

"Hold on!"

She pulled the tubes out, seeing nothing leaking out like it was empty from the start. She helped her and headed to the stairs, heading back upstairs.

"Don't worry, Mother can fix you with her magic! We just need to find her."
Twilight looked down at her, who wasn't looking good. She looked back up and ran faster, getting closer to the stairs.

"Big horn?"

"Hold on, Dashie!"

When she finally reached the door, she tried to push it, but it felt heavy. She then used her magic to push the doors open.

"MOTHER! DASHIE IS...is....h-hurt..."

Twilight stood there with Dash. She could see the world—dead. The sky was grey, and all plant life was dead. There were no signs of green or anything. She started to shake, looking at the ruined shrine.

"No...this is a lie!"

"Big Horn?"

"This is a lie! This is a lie! I don't believe it."

Twilight started to hyperventilate, and she was freaking out. Her body couldn't take it. She wanted to faint, but Dash's good hand touched her cheek.

"Remember...remember what was happening before you came here. The drugs should be out of your system."

Twilight looked at Dash, and she could see her smiling. Twilight didn't know why, but she felt like Dash knew the truth, and so did she. She didn't want to believe it until the headache returned. She held her head.

"I remember..."

Twilight could remember how another planet was heading to Equestria in a few years. Everyone was preparing for it, and her mother brought her here the day it was about to hit the earth. She looked down, seeing two skeletons near the door. She knew who remains these were. It was her mother and her younger sister. They sealed the door from the outside and died when the planet clashed with their own.

Dash held her, explaining what happened after the impact. "There was a fire a year after we slept and lived in the simulated world. Our friends and sisters died, and Fluttershy was the last to burn alive. Harmony saved me, but I was badly burned, as you can see." She could feel her strength leaving her, making Twilight set her down on the ground. "The fire did so much damage to the Harmony that she only had enough power to keep you asleep for the next two years."
Twilight could tell that Dash needed to get treatment fast. But the question was, how? There must be someone alive. Dash could read her like a book and answered her.

"Big Horn..." wheezed Dash, holding her hand. "Everyone is dead. We are the only ones left. Harmony scanned the world and found no life signs. Not only that but other shelters, like ours, were also destroyed by the impact. We were lucky for some reason. Harmony had her theory on why, but the reason is unknown."

Twilight was trying to hold herself together, but it wasn't working. She dropped on Dash's chest, crying.

"Why?"

Dash petted her head, trying to keep her calm.

"Big horn, you need to go."

Twilight slowly looked up, "Go?"

"Go, she should be coming soon...that's what Harmony said."

Twilight asked who, but she remembered her life in the online world.

"She's...real?" hope started to fill her.

Dash smiled and nodded, "Yes. She's coming...to take you away. That's why we told you...to be strong..."

Twilight realized what Dash and her mother were doing. They were preparing her to be saved and to keep living. She hugged Dash, crying again.

"You'll be coming with me! She'll save us!"

"Big Horn...I'm dying..."

Twilight froze, shaking her head, "No. No. She can save you; she's a goddess, after all! She can save you! BELIEVE IN HER! HER SPARK!":

"Big Horn, please..."

"NO! I DON'T BELIEVE YOU! HER SPARK! BELIEVE IN IT, YOU WILL BE SAVED!"

Twilight cried as she saw Dash sadly looking at her. She didn't want to believe in the truth.

"Big horn, I'll never see her, as I'll die here."

"Stop talking like that. You'll live."

"No, I won't, and you know it." Dash placed her hand over Twilight's longhorn, touching it softly. "Like I said, I love and admire your big horn. It's one of a kind, unique, and beautiful," she smiled at her, crying. "I love you...I don't want to leave you, but I promise to find you again. We will meet again, my friend, no matter what."
Twilight could see the sincerity in her eyes, but she didn't want her to leave her.
"Don't make promises you can't keep."

"I mean it."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Dash was getting weaker and weaker, but she smiled and told her, "Now go, Big Horn. Leave this world. I'll be waiting for you. When we meet again, I'll tell you how much I love you and kiss you."

Twilight smiled and nodded, "Yeah. I'll be waiting for you..."

Dash smirked, and her eyes slowly closed. Her spark went out, leaving Twilight alone.

"I promise to find you...and I'll keep you to your promise. No matter what, even if it takes a lifetime, I'll see you again, Rainbow Dash."

Weeks later.

Twilight buried Dash near the shrine; as she told her, all life was dead. There were no animals or plants. Only cleaned water was from below the shrine in the bedroom area. She was sitting on the steps of the shrine. She hadn't eaten in those weeks, to the point that she started to get thinner.

"Come on, you said that she will come for me."

Twilight didn't feel hungry; she felt like she would vomit if she ate. She looked at the grey sky, seeing the dark clouds passing by. She kept waiting for her, the goddess-like her mother believed in.

"Are you really real?"

Twilight couldn't take it. She slowly lay on her side, and she felt a tear rolling down her cheek. She was losing hope.

"I can't stay here..." she closed her eyes, not caring if she died here. "I can't. I need to find her again. I believe in you as well. I believe in the spark!"

Twilight could feel herself getting cold. She was going to die...until she suddenly felt warmth. She slowly opened her eyes, and her hope returned. She could see a rainbow star-shaped light floating in front of her. She knew it was her.

"It's you....you came..." She soon fainted...

"Not just a spark but also hope."

Author's Note

Spark pic was drawn by @glitch_nsfw on Twitter. Warning: as their @ says, it's an nsfw account. You were warned.