Celestia’s sun, high in the sky, failed once more to pierce the eerie gray that surrounded Ponyville. Fog rolled in from the Everfree Forest, a thick, yet wispy mist that rolled over the once verdant Equestrian hills. Sugarcube Corner was closed again, and the clouds remained stagnant as Rainbow Dash, all loyalty to the town aside, was taking yet another “sick” day at home.
Enigma rose from her perch in the clouds where she had remained unnoticed by the wandering ponies below, if they could even be called that anymore. Echoes, that’s all they were; Echoes of their former selves. Though it had only been a month since the Great Paranoia had begun, it seemed like ages to Enigma, ages that could not be reclaimed by any means.
The gray and blue maned white pegasus looked around and felt, as usual, that presence. Nopony knew who or what it was, but it was always just...there. Sometimes, if one tried hard enough, they could almost hear its thoughts emanating through the air. Nothing malevolent had come from the presence yet, but it was a common consensus among the citizens of Ponyville that nothing good would come of it either.
Enigma hung her head in disgust. The Discord incident was one thing, affecting the personalities of some of Ponyville’s most beloved mares. This, however, was another situation entirely. It seemed as though the ponies’ personalities had become as misty and unchanging as the weather, not evil, per se, but suspicious and scared. All could be seen doing double takes whenever they turned corners, while the street behind them was obviously empty. Even the most reclusive of ponies could now be seen traveling in groups, and the usually shy or easily frightened ponies could scarcely be seen out in public at all. In all of her days as a psychic and psychologist for the stallions of Celestia’s guard, Enigma had never felt such utter desolation.
The mare took off from her cloud and hovered low above the small town, noting the amount of ponies in the square; a grand total of 3. Big Macintosh hauled his cart as usual to the apple stand, but he carried an insignificant load. This wouldn’t be noticed by Applejack, anyway, as she hadn't made a sale in days. Nopony wanted to leave their houses without good reason, never mind mingle and shop in the town square. Nevertheless, she minded her apple stand as she always had, hoping to bring some much needed money back to the family. Sitting in the shadows, as if trying to hide, was Sweetie Belle, singing a calming tune to herself. Scootaloo and Applebloom were off with Zecora, but Sweetie didn’t have any intention of going into that forest unless it was downright necessary. She shook a little as she sang, obviously scared, but Enigma had no time to sit down and comfort the filly. No time to lose in this world anymore.
Before flying over to the library, as she did every day, Enigma flew over a pasture by Fluttershy’s cottage, looking to see if the animals were affected in the same way as the ponyfolk were: Nope. All of the animals seemed to be going about their daily business as usual, even Angel, who was busy rapping on poor Fluttershy’s door, demanding she bring out a meal for him though she was too scared to even look out her door’s peephole. Enigma allowed herself a small chuckle at the rabbit’s persistence in the face of hopelessness, but flew onward to her destination.
The princesses may have deemed this a simple natural phenomenon, but I know better, Enigma thought to herself as she cut through the mist like a lithe blade. Mist doesn't last for weeks on end, let alone months, and it wouldn't be so...eerie even if it did. The only time I’ve ever encountered anything even remotely like this was on Nightmare Night, when Princess Luna willed it to be so. Even then, I didn’t feel this mental pressure coming from it. I know this is no normal fog, but who will listen? I myself acknowledge just how ludicrous this idea is, so why in Celestia’s name would anypony else believe me?
Enigma mused to herself for a while in this manner, before finally alighting on a cloud above the library. No doubt Spike and Twilight would be inside by the fire, again re-arranging the books that needed no more organization. The two needed each others’ company in these dark days, though neither of the two would admit it to the other.
Expecting a forcefield of sorts, Enigma carefully inched towards the library, shocked when she found no shielding of any kind against the outside world. She knocked quietly upon the door to the library, which was deadbolted shut, though the clock tower in the square read 3 o’clock. The door rattled and shook for a few brief moments, then creaked open just enough so that a single purple eye could peek through.
“Ah. It’s...It’s just you, Enigma.” stuttered an obviously relieved Twilight Sparkle. “Please, come in, you know you shouldn’t be out there alone these days...” Twilight turned and walked, rather faster than usual, back into the library, mentally beckoning Enigma to do the same. As soon as Enigma had crossed the threshold, Twilight nearly pounced upon the door, closing it shut and making sure the deadbolt was secure. When all was fixed and fasted, she once again turned to face Enigma.
“Please excuse my rather frantic behavior,” Twilight said with a small twitch of the eye. “Been busy busy busy lately, studying everything I have. Somepony’s gotta find a way to lift this fog, and it looks like it’s gonna be me! Not as if the weatherponies are ever going to get to it.”
Enigma didn’t speak for a second, and rather examined the space around her. Organized chaos, as Rarity would describe it, was what lay before her. Stacks upon stacks of books, from ancient tomes to modern spellbooks, lay clustered in every odd corner of the room. Empty mugs, once full of coffee or tea, sat next to each of these, indicating just how long Twilight had truly been awake, busily scouring each book for an answer, a hint, a brief glimpse of freedom from this oppressive fog. Spike, normally not one for studying, gazed intently into “Super-Naturals”, hoping to maybe find an herbal remedy for mist-induced paranoia.
Enigma turned to face Twilight, and with a quiet voice spoke at last. “I apologize for interrupting you. Please, continue with your work. I’ll likely find what I’m looking for upstairs, anyway. However, I must ask, why have you not deployed a forcefield around your library, if you’re so worried?”
Twilight smiled an exhausted smile, one that showed just how many times she had asked herself that question. “Simple, Eni. The answer’s not the only thing I can’t find, I can’t even find the problem. I still feel him...her...it...whatever, in the library with me when the forcefield’s up. I don’t know whether I’m locking it out with the world, or locking myself in with it. “ With that, the purple unicorn returned to her piles of books, curling up next to Spike, a bit closer than she normally would have.
Enigma proceeded upstairs, taking care not to mess up anything on the way. The last thing Twi needs now is anything else to clean up, she thought, seeing as she’s already trying to clean up this fog. Examining the shelves, Enigma saw nothing pertaining to nature, weather, or magic. Perfect. I won’t be needing any of those books anyway. She flew up to the 10th row, picked up a copy of “Voices of the Forgotten”, a great work of Starswirl the Bearded, and began to read. The rest may be afraid of you, or doubt your existence, but I know you’re there. Perhaps you aren’t forgotten, but somepony needs to remember.
On very rare occasions, the spirit of one who has passed on will attempt to assimilate back into the world, but let it be known, ponyfolk, that there is no escape from the void. To expend one's magical energy into trying to bring somepony back from the void is a futile effort. If one was to attempt this, they should take solace in the fact that they will be seeing their loved one again very soon, as they too are to pass into the void.
Sometimes, though, these attempts by the departed do seep through a bit, but unrecognizably so. Voices will be heard from the trees, the wind may blow differently, and perhaps a reflection of one who was never there will appear in a lake or mirror, if only for a second. The souls of the departed manifest themselves in multitudes of ways, yet these true experiences are rare at best, and should not be mistaken for illusory magics.
Enigma snapped the book closed between her hooves, and placed it in her saddlebags. Twilight would not miss it, and she had greater need of it now than anypony else would for a good long time. However, this was neither the time nor place to sit down and have a lengthy read, here where anypony could simply walk in and see what she was up to. No, this required solace, darkness, and a change of scenery. Not many places in Ponyville offered that anymore, though. Who said anything about Ponyville? Enigma thought to herself with a smirk, and she took off over the village.
A few minutes later, she alighted at the entrance to the ruins of the old Royal Castle, deep within the Everfree Forest. Here, in this magical place, study could be carried out in peace and quiet, emphasis on the peace. As always, the Everfree Forest didn’t quite operate like Ponyville did. In this instance, that was a good thing. The fog that surrounded the ruins was the same old fog that always stayed around here, no more than water vapor and air. Funny, Enigma mused, how a place like this used to creep me out, and yet has become my sanctuary.
Resting her weary body on the shrine of the Elements of Harmony, where so long ago a battle of Titans took place, Enigma propped open the book and continued to read, and as she did she felt her mind itself expanding. Thoughts came to her that she never would have even considered, some more lucid than others, yet they did not feel organic. It was as if these thoughts were being implanted into her brain by somepony else, and they went away as soon as she tried to focus her mind on them. They resided only in the peripheral thoughts of her mind, whispering their slight theories and suggestions as Enigma pushed on with her studies.
As the night ebbed by like the tide, Enigma sat and read, all the while pushing away the thoughts of whatever intruder decided that he or she would have a little input in her mind.She knew this couldn’t be healthy or natural in any way, so she flipped through the book to the section “Possesion and Influence” and began to read:
When dealing with spirits, benevolent or otherwise, it is not uncommon for somepony to report that they have been “possessed” by said spirit, if not otherwise influenced. In most circumstances, the so-called possessions are simply an excuse used for committing a crime of some sort, blaming the spirits for their actions so that they don’t have to face justice. This alibi is no longer regarded as credible in Equestrian law, and so is declining in popularity.
A much more believable and common occurrence is for a spirit to attempt to communicate with somepony by means of influencing their actions. Victims of this type of influence report feeling a presence in the back of their mind inserting foreign thoughts, as though communicating telepathically. Funnily enough, these incidents normally turn out to be the work of nothing but spells gone wrong, and not actual spirits from beyond the grave. No explanation can be offered to this phenomenon at this time, however, as no spells create true entities, nor do they raise the dead, so it is difficult to come up with a reason that one would resemble the coherent thoughts of another being.
At this Enigma paused; This book’s information was over 400 years old, so it was safe to say that it was outdated by quite a bit, and did not account for recent innovations in spellweaving. Enigma knew that, more than once, Twilight had conjured spectral aids to assist her in her work around the library and with the princess in Canterlot. The purple unicorn’s magic had been fading lately, however, a sign of the depression and stress placed upon her by the fog.
Enigma sat, puzzled for a moment, wondering exactly what she could do to get this magic out of Twilight. Perhaps I don’t need Twilight, Enigma thought. There are plenty of able-minded unicorns in Ponyville who could help me! But who would have magic strong enough to aid my cause? Rarity? Who am I kidding, she’d be happy to help, but her magic faded even before Twilight’s, to the point where she can’t even levitate a needle anymore. Vinyl? Yeah. Right. Maybe on a good day, if she was feeling helpful and I bribed her with every snack in the world. I simply don’t have enough time or energy to deal with her right now. Trixie might know but “The grrreat and POWERFUL Trrixie” would never stoop so low as to offer her help to me. She put a hoof to her face in frustration, realizing just how futile her efforts would be if she were to seek out another unicorn in Ponyville. The right magic just seemed to run in Twilight’s blood, cut off by this depression like an illness. And then it clicked.
Illness! For all illness, there was a medicine, and for all things medicinal, everypony knew that they needed only to stop by Zecora’s hut for a few minutes and ask the old rhyming zebra for a poultice or two, then they’d be on their way to recovery. That settled it; come morning, Enigma would set out for Zecora’s hut. Now, however, the white mare rested her head on the pedestal and closed her eyes. “My weariness I must defeat, if with Zecora I will treat.” chuckled Enigma to herself, in imitation of the zebra’s rhyming speech pattern. As she drifted off at last to sleep, she could have sworn she heard, if only faintly in the back of her mind, somepony wishing her a good night.
Legion in position? Check. Shields up? Check. Princess Luna’s got the night watch from the tower under control, and Celestia’s secure in her quarters, guards at the ready. No sightings of changelings for months now, and it’s too peaceful to imagine Discord’s about again. Better get back to my room, Cadance might start to worry.
These thoughts were the last to pass through the ever-buzzing mind of Shining Armor, and thusly the Captain of Canterlot’s Royal Guard removed his cuirass and prepared to retire to his quarters for the night. A small headache plagued him as usual, but nothing that couldn’t be explained; It took a lot of energy to keep Canterlot safe and sound. Nevertheless, these headaches were taking on some nasty undertones, starting about two months ago. The headaches weren’t as painful as the ones he’d had when he was being manipulated by Chrysalis, but he now heard the soft whisper of somepony in his ear whenever he got them. He’d inevitably look around, and nopony would ever be there. His vision always seemed fuzzy too, as though it was about to rain, when the city was sunny and dry.
Shining could have spent the entire night pondering the meaning and cause of these symptoms, but he had no desire to. A good night’s sleep will set me right, he thought to himself, as he climbed up the spiral staircase to the tower of Canterlot Castle where he resided with Princess Cadance. Before he pushed open the door to his quarters, he took one last look from the top of the tower over the Equestrian landscape. The many lights of Fillydelphia and Manehattan shined to the East like so many flickering fireflies in the night, illuminating the sky with their urban glow. The faint beats of Las Pegasus ebbed through from the West, where the whole population had gathered to see Vinyl Scratch put on her first West Coast show. To the South sat Ponyville, shrouded in that hopeless mist again, a perfect veil of grey over the quaint town. Shining spared a thought for his sister as he gazed forlornly at Ponyville, wishing there was something, anything he could do.
“But why wish for what you can make happen?” Shining Armor said to himself, laughing out loud at his own epiphany. But how to make it happen? What could he do to lift the veil that his sister, one of the single most talented unicorns in all of Equestria, wouldn’t have done yet? Obviously, this was no ordinary fog, but what risks it contained within its depths were just as shrouded as the little town it covered. As he opened his wooden door, he resolved to himself that, come morning, he would take a little trip down to Ponyville himself and see what could be done.
-
The path swirled before him in the moonlight, rippling like the water of a lake that had a stone thrown into it. Tentatively, he walked forward, afraid to keep his eyes off the path for even the briefest second, in fear that he may fall into the liquidy substance that the path was apparently made of. The owls hooted at him knowingly, as though they could see into his very soul, and their large black eyes reflected the red moon above him.
He pressed onwards, unnerved but not paralysed, not sparing a second thought for just what the owls knew, or to their sources of information. He stole a glance behind him, to see that there was no road behind him, only towering trees the likes of which he’d never seen before. As he walked forwards, more trees grew out of the ground behind him, towering over him instantly, and appearing as though they might have been there for two hundred years or so. There was no turning back, whether he wanted to or not.
The fog began to roll in, pushing from all sides with a great pressure. Frantically, he searched for a place to run to, to hide from the fog. The only solace from the ever-encroaching mist was a large lake to his right, so it was there that he ran to. Panting from the intensity of his panic, he allowed himself to look into the lake. Staring back at him from the undulating pool was himself, scratched and beaten, as though he had been through a perilous fight. As he stared, his reflection began to melt into three images: His sister, covered in blood and curled up on the floor, giving up her unseen struggle; Discord, laughing condescendingly, knowing that he had accomplished whatever it was he had set out to do; and a white mare with a gray and blue mane, a pegasus. She said nothing, but stared at him helplessly, her large purple eyes reading him like a book.
As he stared into her eyes, wanting nothing more than to help her however he could, the water began to bubble. He began to retreat, but the fog pressed him forward, inching him closer and closer to the lake. Steam began to accompany the fog, as the lake came to a rolling boil and turned black as night. The water brought itself up into a massive wave, and crashed down upon him with the force of-
-
Shining Armor woke from his dream in a cold sweat. Lucid dreams were quite commonplace among unicorns, with their magic seeping into their subconscious and affecting their brains, but this was a new extreme. This dream felt a little too real to be anything less than a sign from the world that something wasn’t right, or rather wouldn’t be. This fog surrounding Ponyville could be nothing but trouble for the citizens, and it was his duty as Captain of the Guard to protect them from whatever danger it was that they faced.
“You’re sure you want to go alone? I could come with you.” Cadance said pleadingly, hoping he’d relent and let her join him.
“I’m sure, hon. I don’t want to put you in any more danger than I absolutely have to, and at least one of us needs to stay in Canterlot, just in case something goes amiss” Shining Armor said morosely. He didn’t feel right leaving Cadance behind, but he knew that it just wasn’t safe to bring her with him on this journey. Besides, it would make him a terrible husband to wantonly bring his bride into a dangerous situation.
“Well...okay. but you’d better be careful. If you’re not back within a week, I’m coming after you, with the entire guard if need be” Cadance said, frowning.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” responded the Captain, giving his wife a quick kiss and then setting off on what surely would be the most interesting of adventures.
Halfway through the carriage ride from Canterlot to Ponyville, Shining Armor’s head began to pulse with pain, and his eyes became fuzzy and disoriented. “Umm...guys...” he said in a daze of pain and dizziness, “Could you just put me down here? I think I’m gonna make a quick detour before I go to town.”
“As you wish, sir.” the two white stallions pulling the carriage chorused in unison. They stop the carriage, allowing Shining Armor to get off, and then took off into the sky once more.
I’ve really got to get rid of these headaches if I’m even going to think straight when I go to see Twilight. I know Nurse Redheart at Ponyville General could help me easily enough, but I don’t want to attract any attention to myself. I think I’ll pay Zecora a little visit, see if she’s got anything.
And with that he began his slow walk towards the edge of the Everfree Forest, just out of range of the foggy veil.
