I couldn't sleep.

My mind would not sleep, no matter how hard I tried or how much I tossed and turned. I couldn't get the image of Snowdrop out of my head. Her horrified face, her tiny hands shaking, the sound of her last scream. Every time I closed my eyes, it haunted me since it was ingrained in my brain. Before her body withered away into nothing, I could still hear how her voice cracked and how she yelled my name, appealing and asking.
And the worst part?

I could still feel it.

The punches, the kicks, the way Tirek beat the life out of me, how his fists felt like they were tearing away chunks of my soul with every hit. The way Cozy Glow laughed when she stabbed me. The way Chrysalis mocked me, like I was some weak little thing to be toyed with before being discarded.

I had died.

I had really, truly died.

And yet, here I was.

Lying in my bed, staring at the ceiling, my heart still hammering in my chest. My hands shook. My whole body felt cold, like death had brushed its fingers over me and left something behind.

What the fuck happened to me?

I needed to think.

The Oblivion Wake. Tirek, Chrysalis, Cozy Glow.

They were different from dazzlings.

Tirek was pure strength. A monster in human skin, something that couldn’t be reasoned with, only fought.
Chrysalis was a schemer, someone who got into your head, twisted your thoughts, made you second-guess everything.
And Cozy Glow? That little freak was a sadist. A demon hiding behind a childish smile, someone who found joy in watching others suffer.

I had to separate them.

But how?

They stuck together. I had no magic. No strength. I was just a normal fucking guy.

I needed a plan. I needed something real, something that could actually work.

But nothing came.

Nothing.

And that scared me more than anything.

The night stretched on, and before I knew it, my alarm was ringing.

I barely had the energy to get up. My body was drained, my eyes felt like they were made of sandpaper, and my brain was still running in circles.

Snowdrop was already at my door, arms crossed, giving me that smug look. “Big Bro, you look like you got hit by a truck.”

I grunted, rubbing my eyes. “Feel like it too.”

She snorted. “Did you even sleep?”

I just stared at her. Alive. She was alive.

Her face scrunched up. “What? You’re acting weird again.”

I shook my head. “Nothing.”

She rolled her eyes. “Uh-huh. Whatever. Just don’t pass out in the middle of class, okay? I don’t wanna have to carry your dead weight all the way home.”

Despite everything, a small chuckle escaped me. Snowdrop was Snowdrop.

Still, as we walked to school Everything felt wrong.

Walking through the school doors, it was like I was stuck in some horrible déjà vu. I had done this before. I had lived this exact morning. I had smiled at these people, waved at Sunset, walked these halls.

But now I knew what was coming.

And then I saw them.

Tirek. Chrysalis. Cozy Glow.

Standing there, laughing like they were normal fucking people. Like they hadn’t killed me in another life.

I couldn’t stop myself. My eyes locked onto Tirek.

Hatred burned inside me, so strong I felt like my blood was boiling. I saw him now. I saw all of them.

And that was my mistake.

Tirek’s gaze flicked to me, and in an instant, he was walking forward.

My breath caught in my throat.

No, no, no, not again.

He stopped in front of me, a smirk on his face.

“Well, well. Look who’s checking me up.”

I forced myself to breathe, to keep my face neutral.

Don’t react. Don’t show anything. Just act normal.

“Morning mister.” I said, keeping my voice casual.

Tirek chuckled and extended his hand. Just like last time.

I hesitated.

Last time, I had looked at his necklace. That had made him suspicious.

Not this time.

I grabbed his hand and shook it, forcing a smile.

Tirek raised an eyebrow but didn’t push. “You keep looking at me like that, people might think you have a crush.”

I forced a laugh, playing it off. “Hey, man, I just woke up. I’m barely thinking at all.”

He grinned. “Try to keep it that way.”

And just like that, he walked off, Chrysalis and Cozy Glow following behind.

I let out a slow breath.

Would that be enough?

I didn’t know.

And that terrified me.

Sunset approached me, just like she had before. The same curious look in her eyes. The same warmth in her voice.

“Do you know the Oblivion Wake?”

I gritted my teeth. I had to force myself not to glare in the direction of Tirek and his little circus of monsters. Not yet. Not now.

“They’re just some random band”

Rainbow Dash scoffed. “Nah, dude, they’re like, super weird. They give off some creepy spirit energy or something.”

Yeah. Spirit energy. If only she fucking knew.

We went to the classroom.

Just like before, the girls started singing. The same song. Those same harmonies. I watched them transform, watched their magic come to life,

Again i singed my song, Sunset got me out of a classroom to talk with me, the same talk about chains, again i said i would join only if she will join to, she joined, we singed and she ponified again. She looked at me, the pure joy in her eyes nearly making me forget about everything. She had been so uncertain before, so doubtful of her place in all this. But when she sang, when she truly let go she was amazing.

And yet, I couldn’t focus on it.

Because I knew that no amount of singing, no amount of magic of friendship, was going to stop what was coming.

Still, I played along.

The moment repeated itself, but my mind was elsewhere.

I wasn’t here.

I was still in that alleyway. I was still watching Snowdrop die. I was still feeling my body get torn apart under Tirek’s fists.

I had to change things. I had to.

When we left school, I took a different path.

I took the invitation to go to Pinkie’s.

Snowdrop wasn’t too happy about it.

She pouted, crossing her arms. “So, I have to go home alone?”

I sighed. “Yeah. Just today.”

She narrowed her eyes, then smirked. “Don’t get into all the girls’ panties at once, okay? They don’t like that.”

I groaned, lightly scratching her hair. “Snow.”

She grinned, stepping away. “Sorry, sorry.”

But then her face softened, and for a second, she looked almost… sad.

It hurt.

I knew she’d be fine. She’d be fine.

She was only hurt before because she was with me. If she went home alone, she’d be safe. She had to be safe.

I clenched my fists. I needed to do whatever it takes to stop them. One walk alone wouldn’t hurt her.

I turned and left before I could second-guess myself.

Pinkie’s house felt… strange.

Not because it was weird I mean, yeah, it was chaotic in the way only Pinkie Pie’s place could be but because I shouldn’t have been here.

This didn’t happen before. This was new.

And being the only guy in a room full of girls? Yeah, that was awkward as hell.

But Sunset…

She was glowing with excitement.

She kept looking at me with her bright eyes like she couldn’t believe I was actually here. Like she was still riding the high of ponifying .

She kept checking in on me, making sure I was comfortable, laughing a little too hard at my jokes, scooting just a little closer when we talked.

Yeah. She was like that.

Sunset wasn’t the type to take kindness for granted. She wasn’t the type to let things go unappreciated.

She needed to show gratitude.

And it killed me.

Because no matter how much I wanted to let myself enjoy it, I couldn’t.

Not now.

Not when I had bigger things to deal with.

I leaned back, looking around the room, watching them talk, laugh, plan for the Battle of the Bands like this was just some fun little school competition.

It wasn’t.

I knew that now.

And I had to make sure they understood.

“Man… everyone in this competition is kinda lame.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “That so?”

I nodded. “Yeah. Except for the Oblivion Wake.”

The room stilled for a second.

“You think they’re good?”

I shook my head. “No. I think they’re dangerous.”

Rarity tilted her head. “Darling, it’s just a band.”

I was stepping over a line. But i need to cross that line and say thing i would never have say before.

But I didn’t care.

I had died.

I had watched Snowdrop die.

I wasn’t going to just sit around and pretend this was just a high school event.

I met Sunset’s gaze. “It feels like they use some kind of magic.”

The words hung in the air like a storm cloud.

Sunset’s face darkened. “Magic?”

“Yeah. And not the good kind like yours.”

Rainbow scoffed. “Oh, come on. You really think a random rock band is packing magic?”

“Some girls I know in Canterlot can use magic freely. Why couldn’t they?”

The weight of my words hung in the air like a storm waiting to break. I knew I was pushing my limits. I was saying too much.

But it had to be done.

Sunset stared at me, eyes narrowing slightly. “Okay… you’ve seen girls use magic today. But only the—” She stopped mid-sentence, hesitating. “Well, now me too, we can use it. But that doesn’t mean it applies to just anyone.”

I wiped my face with my hands, exhaling sharply. Under my breath, but loud enough for Sunset to hear, I whispered

"Chains."

Her expression shifted instantly.

Confusion turned into serious understanding.

I could see her brain working, putting the pieces together, even if she didn’t know what the full picture looked like yet.

She turned to the girls. “Maybe… what he’s saying makes sense. If you think about it, Oblivion Wake came out of nowhere and took the Dazzlings’ place.”

The others exchanged glances.

Applejack furrowed her brows. “The Dazzlings? Ain’t that those girls that sang in the cafeteria that one time? Thought they just vanished after that.”

Sunset nodded. “Exactly. We never saw them again after that. But then, suddenly, Oblivion Wake appears out of nowhere, and now everyone is talking about them?” She turned back to me. “Are you saying… we might be dealing with magic?”

Before I could answer, Pinkie jumped in.

She gasped dramatically, throwing her arms in the air. “Oh! So you’re telling us that maybe, just maybe, the Oblivion Wake wasn’t even supposed to be here? That they took the place of a band that was actually supposed to play, and they’re using some kind of weird, spooky magic?”

She took a deep breath.

“And he—” she pointed directly at me, eyes gleaming with wild energy, “knows how it works and maybe even saw it, but can’t say anything because if he does, he’ll suffer for it?!”

The entire room went dead silent.

Applejack turned to her. “Pinkie, I don’t think that’s wha—”

I flicked my fingers.

Yes.

Pinkie had nailed it.

The silence deepened. I could see the realization settling in their minds, see the gears turning, see the way Sunset was now looking at me like she finally understood why I’d been acting so strange.

She placed a hand on my shoulder.

“…That’s what we were talking about when we walked out of the classroom, isn’t it?” she murmured. “You know something. You just… can’t tell us.”

The others nodded.

Just like that.

Just like that, they believed me.

Because Pinkie Pie said something crazy, and somehow, it was exactly what they needed to hear to accept the truth.

This was perfect.

Perfectly normal.

Pinkie had done this before, right? She had called things out of nowhere that didn’t make sense, but ended up being right.

This had happened before.

To Twilight.

And that was my mistake.

I said it out loud.

“…Like Twilight in movies.”

The second the words left my mouth, I felt my stomach drop.

Sunset blinked. “Twilight?”

Rarity tilted her head. “You know her?”

Then Rainbow frowned. “Wait, and what movie?”

Fuck.

My breath caught in my throat. My heart slammed against my ribs.

I looked around the room, my mind screaming at me to find a way out.

I was waiting for it.

Waiting for the penalty.

Waiting for something to happen. For reality to punish me.

But… nothing.

There was nothing.

No pain. No whispers. No force pulling me away.

I had said too much, and yet—

Nothing happened.

No. No.

This wasn’t right.

Every time I had tried to talk about what I knew, about what I had seen, it had always come with a cost. The entity that had sent me back had made it clear, I wasn’t allowed to say too much.

So why why now was there nothing?

I felt Sunset’s gaze burning into me. I looked at her. She wasn’t just confused anymore she was watching me carefully now.

“…What movie?”

I tried to find an answer.

I tried to fix my mistake.

“…I misspoke,” I said quickly, forcing out a laugh that felt wrong in my throat. “I meant, uh, Twilight Velvet. You know. The author.”

Sunset’s frown deepened. “Twilight Velvet writes crime novels.”

Fuck.

Think. Think.

I needed to get off this topic—now.

“Okay, okay, maybe I didn’t sleep much last night, alright? I’m talking nonsense.”

For once, I wished SnowDrop was here to save my ass with a dumb joke.

Pinkie tapped her chin. “Hmm… nah, I don’t think that was nonsense. It felt too specific to be nonsense.”

I felt my soul leave my body.

Sunset took a slow step toward me.

“…Do you know something about Twilight?”

I shook my head. “No.”

Lie.

“…You hesitated.”

Shit.

I forced out a breath. “Look, it’s nothing, okay? I just I need to focus on Oblivion Wake. That’s what matters right now.”

Sunset didn’t look convinced. Neither did the others.

Instead, she just exhaled and nodded. “This talk isn't over.”

I had dodged a bullet.

For now.

But the way she looked at me told me everything.

I had fucked up.

I had to be more careful.

Dring. Dring.

My jaw tightened as I experienced a sudden wave of annoyance.

Who the fuck was calling me now?

We didn’t even have a plan yet. I still had to figure out how to stop the Oblivion Wake. I still had to fix everything I broke.

With a frustrated sigh, I pulled out my phone, my thumb swiping the screen as I glared at the number.

Unknown caller.

Great. Just fucking great.

I pressed the answer button, bringing the phone to my ear. “What is it?” .

For a second, there was silence.

Then—

“Uh, hello. This is Officer Shining Armor. Am I speaking to a family member of Snowdrop?”

The second he said her name, my stomach turned to ice.

I straightened up, the irritation in my voice vanishing instantly. “Wha—?”

“She had this number listed as her emergency contact.”

My heart was slamming against my ribs now. My fingers tightened around the phone. I didn’t even breathe.

Why was he calling me?

“I’m sorry to inform you that there was a fatal accident involving a truck and—”

Fatal accident.

The words shattered my mind like glass.

No.

No.

No no no no NO.

Shining Armor kept speaking, his voice distant, muffled, like I was underwater.

“…We need you to come down and confirm if it’s her body—”

What?

My breath hitched. “What… body?”

My voice didn’t even sound like mine.

“What happened to her?” My pulse was thunder in my ears. I could barely hear him, but his words didn’t even matter anymore.

Because I already knew.

I already knew what he was going to say.

I stood up so fast my chair slammed into the ground.

Shining Armor gave me the address, and that was all I needed.

I didn’t say anything.

I didn’t fucking care about the girls anymore.

I ran.

Everything blurred around me, voices, footsteps, shouts I heard Sunset calling my name behind me, but I didn’t stop.

I couldn’t stop.

Snowdrop.

This wasn’t happening.

This couldn’t be happening.

She was supposed to be fine.

She was supposed to go home safe.

She was only in danger because she was with me.

But she wasn’t with me. I made sure of it. I sent her home alone. She was supposed to be fine.

So why?

Why?!

I sprinted faster, my breath burning in my lungs.

The city blurred past me, streetlights glowing like distant stars, the cold air slicing into my skin. My heartbeat was pounding, my legs aching, but I kept running.

I had to get there.

I had to get there now.

By the time I finally saw the flashing red and blue lights up ahead, my whole body felt like it was about to collapse.

Police cars.

An ambulance.

A crowd.

And—

A body.

Covered by a white hospital blanket.

Everything inside me stopped.

I slowed down, my legs trembling as I took shaky steps forward. My lungs burned, my throat was dry.

No.

No.

Shining Armor was there. I saw him step toward me, his lips moving—he was saying something—but I didn’t care.

I walked past him.

Step by step.

Closer and closer.

The world around me was silent.

I knelt down.

My hands shook as I reached out, my fingers clutching the edge of the blanket.

And then, slowly—so painfully slowly—I pulled it back.

And there she was.

Snowdrop.

Lifeless.

Pale.

Her small frame was twisted unnaturally, her body broken and mangled in ways it never should have been. Her hair was stained red, blood smeared across her face, her arms, her chest.

And her eyes—

Her blind, beautiful eyes—

They were closed forever.

Something inside me snapped.

“No.”

I barely heard my own voice.

I grabbed her by the shoulders, my hands shaking violently.

“No, no, no, no—”

I shook her.

She didn’t move.

She was so cold.

My breath came out in ragged gasps, my chest heaving, tightening, collapsing in on itself.

Tears burned my eyes.

No.

No.

She was supposed to live.

It would have been better if I had died instead.

"You can't," I choked out, my voice breaking. "Wake up, Snow."

I pulled her into my arms, hugging her tightly, desperately, as if I could somehow hold her soul in place.

"You can't be gone. Please. Please, wake up."

My tears dripped onto her bloodied hair.

A warm hand touched my shoulder.

Shining Armor.

His voice was gentle. “She’s already gone.”

I didn’t listen.

“She can’t be,” I whispered.

He hesitated. Then, softly—

“…It was instant death.”

Instant death.

Instant.

She never even had a chance to fight it.

My breath shook.

I felt like I was drowning.

My mind was spiraling, unraveling, coming apart at the seams.

I had to fix this.

I had to undo this.

I had to save her.

I turned my head.

And I saw it.

A sharp, broken piece of a truck’s bumper.

Lying on the pavement.

Within my reach.

Shining Armor was still talking, still saying things that didn’t matter.

I reached for it.

But before I could grab it—

His hand grabbed my wrist.

His grip was firm.

"Don't even think about it," he said, his voice dropping into a warning.

I stared at him.

Then, through my tears—I smiled.

And I let go.

The piece of plastic fell—

Right into my other hand.

And before he could stop me—

I stabbed it into my throat.

White-hot pain exploded through my neck.

I gasped, choking—blood spilled down my hands, down my chest, burning, warm, sticky.

Shining Armor lunged forward.

"MEDIC!" he shouted, panic in his voice now. "WE HAVE A SUICIDE ATTEMPT! NOW!"

I barely heard him.

The pain was all-consuming.

I coughed—more blood splattered onto my lap, onto Snowdrop’s hair.

I felt my body growing weaker.

My vision flickered.

My head lolled to the side—

And then I saw her.

Sunset.

She was standing there.

Frozen.

Horrified.

She had seen everything.

Her face was pale, her hands trembling, her mouth slightly open like she wanted to scream but couldn’t.

I met her gaze.

And through the blood, through the agony, through the rapidly approaching end—

I smiled at her.

And then—

Everything faded to white.

Author's Note

Hey i have a little time to write today but decided i will start this arc now. Annnnd im gonna change the story so it will be longer it should end in 5-6 chapters from now. I hope you liked chapter :3