That one town no one knows about.

"Sweetie Belle. Rise and shine little filly..." A soothing voice gently broke through the haziness of a dreadful dream. Sweetie let out a groan as she turned on the other side, mumbling something about not going anywhere today. "Come on now, we have things to do..." Lock gently nudged the little filly.

"M..mhh? Rarity? Where ...where am I?" Sweetie mumbled, finally opening her eyes. She expected to see her sister, but instead was met with the sight of a hesitantly smiling earth pony she met the night before. Her eyes shot wide open and the filly quickly sat up. "T-that wasn't just a bad dream?" She asked, somewhat hoping that the answer would be different from the obvious one, but alas.

"I'm sorry, Sweetie Belle. If I could, I'd make this all just be a bad dream, but it's not, and we should get going. It's already a late morning."

"Where... are we going?" The little unicorn asked, getting off of the bed and following the older mare.

"We're going to town to get some breakfast." Lock explained calmly. "You haven't eaten in a long while, you must be hungry."

"And when will you tell me what's going on here?" Sweetie remembered their talk from yesterday. She still wondered why she couldn't just -leave- the town.

"After we eat." Lock opened the door and calmly walked out.

The morning was rather beautiful, if not a bit damp from the storm. The bright rays of the sun caressed the lush grass on the ground, drying up the last of the morning dew. Some puddles had formed here and there, but none were on the main path the two were taking, so their hooves were safe from the dirt. Sweetie followed Lock silently, looking around the place. The houses where ponies lived in seemed nothing special; just bare wooden houses, the kind you'd rent if you went camping somewhere for the night. They didn't seem like the kind you'd call a home. No paint, no decorations and if Lock's house looked anything like the rest of the houses, then no furniture either, decorative or practical. This was rather strange...  Sweetie glanced towards the entrance of the town, just behind a few small houses still being built. The entrance seemed so far away... surely it didn't take her that long to get from it toward's Lock's door step, but now it seemed like it would take a good long walk just to reach it. Shaking her head, Sweetie Belle looked in front of her, concentrating on where they were going. She then noticed something; Love Lock was an adult mare, but her flank was just as bare as her own. That was very odd and Sweetie would ask her about it, but... back in Ponyville, she got teased for being a blank flank, and she was just a filly. It must be hard to be a blank flanked adult. Lock must have gotten teased a lot back in her own home and might be very sensitive about the subject. Not wanting to add salt to a wound, Sweetie kept shut about the matter and instead started looking around again.

A short walk later, the two were in the center of the town and the little filly couldn't believe how different this place was! So many buildings, all of them beautifully decorated with the most gorgeous of pastel colors! None of the buildings were the kind one would live in, though. They were shops in one way or another. Bakery store, fruit stands, clothing shops, accessory booths, you name it! There was an empty playground further away, but it was no ordinary one! Along with the usual swings and a teeter totter, there were carnival-esque rides! a carousel, some carts and several other rides! Sweetie got a little bit distracted for the moment, but shook those unwanted thoughts away and focused back on Lock, who guided her in to one of the bakeries.

Inside The shop there were a few ponies already eating, two standing in line and one taking orders. All of them glanced at the fillies briefly, taking a moment to eye Sweetie Belle before getting on with what they were doing. There were a few things odd about this place, as Sweetie had noticed; Firstly, there was no cash register. None of the ponies that stood in line paid any bits, nor did the serving pony ask for them. Secondly, none of them talked to each other. They didn't greet Lock, nor did Lock say hello first. Despite eating tasty pastries, the ponies looked rather down and without any motivation. Lastly, the most eye catching oddity that got Sweetie's attention was the fact that none of these ponies had cutie marks... She wasn't going to ask Lock about hers, but when the town is full of blanks, it does raise a legitimate question. She won't ask yet, though. Those stranger ponies were so un-welcoming that Sweetie didn't feel like talking in their presence.

Lock had taken her place in line while Sweetie was busy thinking and had gotten them their breakfast. She calmly walked them both to a table and gave Sweetie her share. "Eat up. I hope you like it." Lock said before digging in to her on meal. Sweetie carefully eyed the odd-looking meal and the strangely shaped dessert. This looked edible, but not something you'd buy at a bakery. The food looked a bit over-cooked or sloppily made. Good thing Lock didn't pay money for this, because it certainly wasn't worth the bits. Despite the critique, the little filly was ,indeed, very hungry, so even if the food did look a little... 'home made' she ate it without a problem. Not sugar cube corner quality, but it was okay.

"Thank you." Sweetie nodded at Lock, who only returned the gesture with a light smile.

"Come, let's leave." She offered and got up. With no objections, Sweetie followed out and as soon as they had left the building she spoke up.

"Why is everyone here without their cutie marks?" She frowned lightly in confusion.

"It's.... well, it's complicated, Sweetie Belle..." Lock sighed, glancing away.

"You said you'd tell me about everything after breakfast. We ate. Tell me!" The little unicorn pouted,demanding an answer.

"Oh, how about we visit the playground first, hmm? There's really no reason to rush to the story. It won't go anywhere!" And without waiting for Sweetie to protest, Lock hurried over to the rides.

"B-but wait, I-..." Sweetie pouted. Lock could use a lesson in conversational manners, that's for sure! Not having much of a choice, Sweetie Belle followed the older pony.

Once at the playground Lock smiled at Sweetie Belle. "Don't these look neat? Which one you want to go on first?"

"I want to know about the-"

"Carousel? Great choice!" Lock rushed Sweetie to the carousel before getting on one of the seats.

"Hey, wait, I-"

"Should get on before I start it, come on, it will be fun!"

With an annoyed pout, Sweetie got on to one of the seats and Lock started the ride. As much fun as the ride normally would be, Sweetie just couldn't enjoy it. She had to know everything, but Lock didn't seem willing to talk about it. Time was passing by and with each minute she was sure her friends and family were growing more and more worried. She couldn't do this any more, if Lock wasn't going to talk, some pony else will! Determined to get her questions answered, Sweetie jumped off of the ride and started walking away.

"H-hey, where are you going, Sweetie?" Lock stopped the ride and quickly followed her.

"You aren't answering my questions and I need to get home, so I'm going to ask other ponies for help."

"I told you, you can't leave."

"But WHY?!" Sweetie raised her voice in frustration. She lightly stomped the ground with her front feet a few times, expressing her annoyance."I need to know, but you've been avoiding my questions! I can't just take rides and be happy when my friends are all probably worried and looking for me! So please, just tell me!"

Lock watched the stressed little filly for a moment before glancing away and biting her lower lip. This was hard to say just as it was hard to listen and accept it. With a sigh, Lock gave in.

"Very well, sit down."

Sweetie instantly plopped her plot on the ground, staring at Lock intently. "Well?"

"...Are you sure you don't want to grab a drink first? You must be thirsty and-"

"Lock!" Sweetie huffed. For an adult, Lock sure was childish!

"Okay okay, fine! just.. give me a moment..." The mare inhaled deeply then exhaled slowly. "Well... I can't say if everything I'm about to tell you is true, since I've only gathered rumours... see... no pony stays in this town for longer than two months, so most information has been passed on by word of mouth, or by little hidden notes here and there that were found around the village."

"Where do they go after that?" Sweetie inquired.

"I'll get to it...  lets start... from the beginning." Lock paused a bit, gathering her thoughts. "You've already noticed that this town is filled with ponies that have no cutie marks...  It's rare, but sometimes ponies don't ever get a cutie mark, or get it very very late."

Sweetie Belle got a bit concerned. What if she or any of the cutie mark crusaders never get theirs? "But... I have never ever seen an adult blank before..." She commented.

"Most likely because they've ended up here. Us blanks... well... we are looked down upon by other ponies. We're talentless, useless ponies without a purpose. Most of the time we run away from home in search of a place more accepting of our little flaw and more often than not we get lost."

"I got lost!" Sweetie interrupted. "I wasn't that far though, I think... but then these... dark shadows, like the ones in the sky last night... they brought me here!"

"They brought all of us here. When they find a lost blank, they bring it to this town. Markone is a town no pony knows about, unless you're here yourself. It's surrounded by strange magic I believe, so no matter how far you run for the woods or how high you fly, you'll just end up going nowhere..."

"But why do they want to keep us here? And you said ponies stay here for two months the longest, don't they leave?"

Lock kept silent for a bit. "We... we are here... well.. this town is created so that we get a chance to earn our cutie marks. Every day the stores get new cooks, new tailors, new gardeners and such. We rotate between each and every job we can think up in an effort to find our cutie marks. We are given two months for it... I heard, that if we get a cutie mark, we can leave..."

"And what if we don't?" Sweetie blinked.

"...You heard those ponies last night, didn't you? ...They both had arrived here exactly two months ago..."

Sweetie froze up in fear. Why... why did this place exist? What do those shadows do with the ponies? "What.. what are they? What do they want with us? "

Locke looked around, hesitant to answer. "I'm not.... I don't know Sweetie...  I don't even know if everything I've told you is true or not... if the ponies that get their cutie marks can leave, how come no one has ever heard of this place? Surely the cutie marked ponies would've spoken up! Warned the others about running away... It just doesn't make sense... And why get rid of the ones who fail? Where do they take them? Can't they leave them here forever? Can't this village be dedicated to all those poor blanks that search for a better life? Why can't this be the sanctuary that we've all been looking for..." Lock had to stop talking as a word more and her voice would've cracked. Her eyes were glossy, full of sorrow and remorse, but she didn't want Sweetie to become upset as well, so she took a moment to calm down and dry her tears. Lock inhaled deeply then sighed slowly again. "You shouldn't worry though, Sweetie Belle.  We can't change anything. Most of us adult ponies have had out whole lives to try and earn a cutie mark, the situation is pretty hopeless for us, but you... you're just a little filly. There's so much potential in you and so many things you can try that you haven't tried yet... I'm sure you'll earn your cutie mark in no time and be out of this cursed place..."

"But... what about what you said earlier? About ponies who get cutie marks and leave not telling anyone else about this place... it' suspicious, isn't it?"

"I'm guessing that whatever magic binds us here erases our memory of this place as soon as we leave, that's all. I guess those shadows just want to keep this place a secret, for good reason too."

"But what if I can't earn a cutie mark? Me and my friends have been trying so hard, we even made a club dedicated to finding our cutie marks!"

"I'm sure you'll get yours here."

"But what if I-"

"You will."

"Even if I-"

"You will."

"And if I-"

"You will, Sweetie Belle." Lock smiled at her softly. It was a rather sad smile, but she tried her best to be sincere about it. "Now lets go and do some work around here... we can go try and pick some berries for our nightly snacks. The fruit I've gathered last time is close to rotting anyway..." Lock started to walk off slowly.

Sweetie Belle felt awfully confused and... she couldn't even put the feeling she felt to words... Hopeless, maybe? The situation sure seemed like it was, though...  No matter Lock's efforts to cheer her up about her future, Sweetie knew that she wouldn't earn her cutie mark here... And poor Lock! How long has she been here already? How long does she have left? Even if Sweetie got to get out of here, leaving behind a friend like that wasn't right. There must be some other way around this... there must be another way out.