Chapters The chestnut colored earth colt hurried to catch up with the rest of the class. It was their first field trip outside of Manehattan and Dustin Folio, as his parents had named him, was eager to explore everything in the ruins of Coltland. He had almost lost sight of the rest of the class in doing so. Several of his classmates waved their hooves at him to hurry and catch up, and he found himself slightly out of breath as he rejoined his classmates. Apparently halfway through another long winded lecture by their teacher, Miss Quill, waxing on about some chiseled markings on a crumbling wall; this pretty much described Coltland to a T. Crumbling walls, and some broken pottery seemed to be all that remained of the once great pony city. Miss Quill continued in her lazy, rambling manner.
“As you can see, the ancient ponies that lived here recorded much of their history and achievements on these walls. This was common in ancient pony times, as they knew that their scrolls would not last forever. Much of their history and knowledge would be lost if they did not find a more permanent means of communication...”
Miss Quill's voice droned off to a low murmur as Dusty's attention wavered, and he once again found himself gazing curiously around the ruins that surrounded him. He was just about to shake off his mental haze when a slight shimmering near a completely destroyed section of wall caught his attention. His purple-hued eyes widened slightly as his boundless curiosity seized him. Before he was even aware of the sound of his hoof-falls, he found himself near to where he spied the shimmering. He leaned closer, his purple and green mane falling into his eyes. He tossed his head to move it out of his view. “What in the heck?” he thought to himself as he leaned ever closer. There seemed to be some sort of crack in the ground almost completely covered by rubble. And there was some sort of sparkling light just inside the hole. Dustin leaned closer, his muzzle almost touching the crack when he heard his teacher call his name in a loud and annoyed manner...
“Mister Folio, come back here this instant!”
Dusty started and jumped, turning around to rejoin the classmates. His rear hoof struck the rubble and there was a thunderous crash as he felt the world fall away into darkness. He panicked as his hoofs flailed frantically for foothold. Then blinding red pain and a sickening, cracking noise filled his mind before it was swallowed by darkness.
Dusty groaned, his small body was wracked with pain. His head pounded like a war drum as he slowly came to. He tried to move one leg at a time and found that he could, but only with much effort. He exhaled in ragged pained breaths, followed by sharp intakes whenever he tried to move anything too quickly. One of his eyes opened, the other refused to. He could only see dust and darkness at first, then eventually a dim light off in the distance -- maybe a way out?
Dusty could not hear his classmates or his teacher. So after a while, as panic set in, he found himself crawling slowly towards the dim light, his body protesting at every inch. Eventually he found himself at a large stone dais, old and crumbling; covered with various plant growth. He fell upon it, breathing as best he could, completely exhausted from even this short trip. As he lay there he saw that the glowing came from crystals on the ceiling. They were a soft pink and their light was soothing and gentle. It was about the only thing pleasing in his situation. He let their light bathe him and his mind drift, imagining how he was going to get out. Scary thoughts were swimming to the surface: what if he was too hurt? What if he was dying here, alone, in this cave, never having finished school, never even receiving a cutie mark...? He felt tears well up in his eyes and roll down his cheeks. He wanted to go home so badly then. He thought how his parents would be so sad. He closed his working eye, and sobbed painfully on the stone until he lost consciousness once more…
At first he thought he had been found. The voices speaking to him were comforting, but strange. He did not understand what they were saying. But when he managed to open his eye again, he was greeted only by the soft light and the damp, cold dais on which he lay. The whispering was still there inside his head and it seemed to be very insistent that he listen. For when he tried to let his mind wander, the voices would grow louder, almost angry, and when he focused on them again, they would take the tone of a chiding parent, before returning to a soothing cadence once more. What did the voices want? Once comforting, now they only served to scare him even more. Was he going crazy, too? He was hurt, scared, alone, and now crazy? He felt the hot tears splash onto his cheeks again. The words were starting to hurt his head, like somepony was inside his head and pushing on all sides to escape. Eventually, beneath the voices, he began to hear the most gut wrenching screams. It was a while after that he realized he was the one screaming, and the world went black…
It was too bright, Dusty thought to himself. Maybe he was having some strange crazy thoughts as he lay there in the dark. But no, the brightness was not going away. He struggled for a moment, slowly opening one eye. Feeling instantly blinded, he uttered a pained groan and closed his eye again. He heard voices again, but these he could understand; the soft voice of a mare.
“I think he is coming to. Close the blinds, please, nurse.”
Dusty felt the painful light fade and struggled to open an eye again. This time colors swam in his vision. He thought he could make out other ponies, but nothing was clear.
“Shh. Relax there my little pony. You are safe now.” Said the soothing mare's voice, and he felt a gentle hoof brush his mane. Everything hurt, but he felt warm. He realized he was lying in a bed. He tried to move, but the pain was too intense. He heard himself cry out in pain as the gentle mare's hoof caressed his mane. “Don't try to move little colt. You’re not better yet. You just rest. Nurse Calamine will get you some nice daffodil broth in a little while. You should try to eat.” Dusty groaned softly, but tried to relax as best he could. Eventually sleep found him.
Dusty was not sure how many days he spent lying in that bed before he fully awoke. He remembered struggling to drink the broth and occasionally hearing the soothing words of the mare calming him when the nightmares came. He overheard the nurses saying more than once that they had never heard a colt scream like that before. Only a few nurses could bring themselves to stay and tend to him when the screaming started. He only remembered flickering terrors and waking with a sore throat. He still could not talk. He was not sure why, but when he tried, nothing would come out. A nurse noticed the panic in his eye and told him it was okay. She assured him it would heal. That was several days ago, as far as he could remember.
Now he found himself able to lift his head and actually look around. Everything still hurt, but it was a dull ache instead of a sharp, agonizing pain. He could tolerate it, even if his head did still swim a little bit when he moved it too fast. He was in a hospital room, this much he knew. The curtains were drawn and the room was rather dim. It was small, and warm. He seemed to be alone at the moment, lying on a large and soft bed, his body covered in bandages. He felt a pang of fear run through his body; how badly was he hurt? How did they find him? What happened? Everything hit him all at once, and he felt tears well up again, he was sliding the sheet off of himself, and had nearly reached his flank when the door suddenly opened, and he felt himself gasp in astonishment.
A rainbow-maned alicorn entered the room. He knew who she was, but only by pictures and he was completely baffled. Of all the mares, Princess Celestia was in his room! She smiled softly at him and when she spoke he immediately recognized her voice as the comforting mare who was there when he first woke.
“My special little pony,” she said her voice both kind and sad. “I am so glad to see that you are feeling better, the nurses did a very good job taking care of you, and you were very brave and strong to hold on like you did.”
Dusty could see something troubled her greatly, though she did her best to hide it.
“There are things you should know,” she continued. “Although I am not sure how best to tell you or even whether it would do anything more than hurt...” The princess trailed off, her sad eyes lost in thought, darting back and forth as she tried to put words to her thoughts. “There were many nights where I was sure we had lost you, or that your mind was gone and we were only healing an empty husk of a pony...”
Dusty looked at her confused, he did not really understand what she was talking about. She seemed to speak more to the room than to him directly, as though facing him would be too painful and she could not say what needed to be said.
“But you were so strong, and you held on, no matter what. I...” Celestia stopped as her voice became choked with emotion. “I...am not sure if nursing you back to health was the right decision...” She gazed at Dusty, and when their eyes met, she broke into sobs. “I cannot believe I could even think that...”
Dusty just blinked in confusion, tears welling up again as he watched the princess cry. Eventually she regained her composure and began speaking again. “You have a cutie mark...” she said wryly. Dusty blinked, carefully pushing the covers from his flank. He gasped in shock at the image on his flank. It was the image of a strange and old book, bound in chains. Celestia grimaced at seeing the image, and shook her head, her mane flowing through the air like gossamer.
“That is what troubles me. I thought it was impossible, but here it is, on your flank...in your mind...I cannot let you leave here Dustin.”
Dusty's head shot up in panic and shock. He almost vomited as his vision swam, reminding him of his injuries. Celestia gazed at him sadly, “I am so sorry, but not even your family can see you, you are a danger to ponykind.”
Tears welled up in her eyes once more as she gazed at him with pity and sorrow.
“I,” she continued, “I - I will do my best to make your life here in Canterlot as wonderful and comfortable as I can, I promise. But in this room you must remain. I do not know for how long, or if you will ever leave. If you knew what was inside your mind, I...I think you would agree with me...and maybe...when you grow up, you will understand.”
Dusty stared at her in absolute shock. Incomprehensible were her words to him. His mind tried desperately to puzzle together what she meant; was he a prisoner? What had he done? The hot tears flowed freely down his cheeks as he stared at the princess, his eyes wide. She only looked back at him with that same sadness, mixed with a hard resolve. They sat there for what seemed like an eternity before she spoke again, “I am also preventing you from speaking. I am sorry, but it is just too dangerous, you see...” her words were interrupted by a thunderous boom that shook the palace walls.
With her horn glowing softly, she pulled a curtain aside. As the light filled the room, Dusty beheld the splendor that was Canterlot, the city of the unicorns. Awash in was seemed to be an explosion of rainbows, he watched this beautiful sight, for a moment forgetting the sorrow of Celestia’s words. He spied, as did the princess, a powerful magical glow in a nearby building. Celestia stood quickly and turned to Dustin.
“I must go. I...I am so sorry...I will be back.”
She left in a hurry, allowing the room to fall back to its lonely, gloomy darkness. And its lone occupant returned to his own scattered thoughts.
Days turned to weeks, and weeks into months as Dusty spent more and more time reading books and learning about Equestria. He knew he was trapped in this room, this prison in the palace. When he felt well enough to walk around, he quickly found that not only was the door to his room locked, but guards had been placed outside. He heard them talking to each other. Apparently they did not know what was in the room and Celestia did not speak to them when she entered. He enjoyed his time with her, the only other pony he ever saw face to face. He spent many hours, though, sitting in front of the window, watching the goings on of Canterlot. He found himself giving the various ponies random names and stories of their own. They had interesting, if slightly twisted lives in his mind.
Sometimes when Celestia visited, she would read to him. But, usually she brought him new books to read on his own and taught him things about the world he lived in. He could not ask, but she never told him why he was forbidden to speak. And sometimes when she caught him staring at her searchingly, she would tear up and excuse herself from the room. Lately, however, she had been spending less and less time with him. Once he overheard the guards talking about a very gifted young unicorn named Twilight Sparkle who had become her prized student. Dusty hated this Twilight Sparkle at first, blaming her for keeping the princess away from him so much. After a while, he resigned himself to his fate as best he could. One rainy night he was pouring over a tome about monsters and their habitats when he heard the voice of a young filly talking to the guards about the room. He immediately raced over to the door, and strained to make out what the voices were saying.
“What do you mean this room is off limits? I thought everywhere in the palace was okay to visit. Are there monsters in there? Or maybe treasure?”
Dusty smiled wryly to himself. Monsters -- that must be it. That is what he was: a monster. The guards did not reply, but he heard hoofsteps. Then he heard the princess’s voice scolding the young filly.
“Twilight sparkle, you must NEVER try and enter this room, do you understand? Now get back to your studies!” Twilight sparkle tried to protest, but Celestia snapped at her with a “NOW!” and the filly raced off, sobbing. There was silence for a long moment, and then he heard Celestia's voice speaking to him against the door. “I am sorry,” she said sadly, then trotted away, leaving him alone once again…
Dusty lost track of the time, having given himself to his fate. He left the window curtains open as often as he could, the view being his only real experience of life outside since his accident. He tried to find out everything he could about what may have happened to him when he fell, what the old images and sounds were. He quickly noticed, however, that Celestia was careful not to let him read certain books about ancient pony history. Once, she caught him cross referencing some things he found and quickly put a stop to it, simply saying that even knowing too much might be harmful. He spent several weeks in a thoughtful funk after that and ignored Celestia when she visited. She gave Dusty the time he needed and sat quietly, figuring it was perhaps a small kindness. It was during this time that he started planning his escape.
Dusty knew that he was magically prevented from speaking, and that the height of his room made it impossible for him to smash the window and escape. He could not fly, after all. He had no magical horn, so magic was out of the question; maybe he could trick the guards? Celestia had been gone for some time. She had not visited him in over a week, so Dusty decided that maybe some strange noises from inside would cause the guards to investigate. He did not want to get them into trouble. They were only during their duty, but he was a prisoner. As much as he liked Celestia, she was his jailer. So, Dusty waited until the middle of the night, after his meal had magically appeared like it always had. He moved silently to the door. It was a big and heavy oak affair, with iron hinges. Being trapped in the room did not make him the most athletic of ponies, but he turned his back to the door and bucked it with all his might. The door shuddered on its hinges and he heard the guards; there were muffled exclamations of surprise. The buck left his hind legs hurting, but he took a deep breath and bucked again. This time he heard the guards move and speak to each other, debating whether to open the door. Dusty's heart leapt in his chest. He began pounding at the door with his hind legs until he heard the sound of a bolt being pulled back and the murmured discussion of possible thieves inside the palace.
Dusty backed off of the door and waited to dash past the guards and to freedom. He could barely contain his anxiety as the door began to slowly open. Suddenly, he heard the familiar shout of the princess.
“GUARDS! What in Equestria do you think you are doing! Lock that door at once!” Celestia sounded as scared as she was angry. After berating the guards, she let herself in, finding Dusty ready to dash out the door. She closed it behind her with a sigh, and stared at the colt. “I hoped you would understand that you cannot leave. I am sorry, but I’m a little disappointed with you. I do not want you to get hurt and I do not want others being hurt either. You are a danger to everypony, Dustin.”
Her sad eyes watched him as Dusty collapsed into tears on the floor without the gift—the release -- of expressing his sadness and frustration through words. Celestia watched him for a long moment, but the anguish he felt was too much for her to bear. She left him alone again.
Dusty tried his best to lose himself in the books he read. He struggled to live through these ponies and their adventures and stories; their heartache and their triumph. Deep down, though, his heart ached. He was lonely, angry, and bitter. As much as he tried to deny it, he hated these other ponies, they had freedom, lives, families...The thought of his parents brought tears to his eyes. It always did. But at least these days he did not break down into breathless sobs every time he thought of them. Dusty lay on the floor for a long while, pondering the stories in the book he was reading when he heard frantic voices outside his room.
“Celestia has vanished!” shouted one of the guards outside of his door.
“What? What do you mean?” cried the other guard, horrified. “It's the Summer solstice Celebration, isn’t she going to Ponyville to raise the sun?”
“Yeah, but she never made it. She just vanished into thin air it seems.”
Dusty felt his chest tighten, Celestia was missing? What could that mean? Where could she have gone? Was she okay? His thoughts were filled with worry for the princess, and without thinking he raced to the door and pounded on it, opening his mouth to beg the guards to let him out.
What happened next was something Dusty had a hard time remembering. What came out of his mouth was noise – more than noise. Not noise. Not words. But something; something that cut the air, hurt his ears, and suddenly the door and guards were just...gone. Shattered bits of door and empty, twisted armor lay on the floor.
Dusty was too terrified to even think, and he simply bolted blindly out into the corridor, racing through the palace. He had no idea where he was going; every voice caused him to cower in the shadows. His heart beating so fast that he thought his chest would burst. He was not sure how, but Dusty found himself in a small courtyard near the palace entrance. His panic subsided enough for him to look around. It was unnaturally dark and very quiet. Dusty had no idea where he should go. Then, he remembered what the guard had said: Ponyville. That is where the princess was heading. Maybe if he headed there he could find her; or he could find out what happened. It was then that it finally dawned on dusty...he was free! Free from the room! Free from imprisonment! His mind raced as he thought about this. If he found Celestia, she would possibly imprison him again. On the other hand, he cared about her. She had been the only pony companion he had had for the majority of his life. What if she were lost, or scared? What if she were hurt? That settled it for him, he would go to Ponyville. He would find Celestia and he would deal with anyone who tried to stop him.
It had been several hours since Dusty had made that declaration in his head, and now it seemed rather foolish. He had no idea how to get to Ponyville and he had quickly found himself hopelessly lost amid the meandering streets and alleyways of the Equestrian capitol. His mind kept thinking back to the horrifying incident with the guards. The thoughts were always accompanied by a shudder and a struggle to hold back the sobs. He had been too afraid to try and speak again, his mouth felt like glue on the inside. Even as he tried to concentrate of finding his way through the city, he found himself constantly distracted by the gnawing hunger in his belly and the thirst that accompanied it. Dusty lumbered on a block or two before coming across a fountain in a small square lined by shops. It was still dark and the streets were almost empty. He could, though, hear the murmurs of ponies in various buildings talking to each other fearfully. Apparently something terrible had happened to the princess and now her sister, Luna, now ruled Equestria.
Dusty had read about Nightmare Moon in several of the books the princess had brought him. She was some sort of evil specter trapped in the moon, but destined to return. “So this is what happened to Celestia,” he thought to himself sadly as he headed toward the fountain. What could he do against such a thing? Celestia had been right about him being dangerous to other ponies, a fact that tore him up inside. He had never wanted to accept it before, but now that he had seen it with his own eyes the weight of that fact crushed down on him. He shook his mane, trying to disperse the thoughts and focus on getting a drink. His eyes spying the fountain at last, the sound of its gentle gurgle and splash making him almost break into a gallop to reach it. He restrained himself, approaching the square carefully in case any other ponies were lurking around.
Finally feeling like he was alone he approached the fountain, leaning in eagerly to drink. The sight before him in the water caused his heart to seize in his chest in a moment of breathless shock. Who was that stallion in the water? Dustin gazed at the image; haunted purple eyes -- sunk in their sockets, filled with sadness and loss -- gazed back at him. The color was almost gone from the chestnut, leaving an almost ashen colored coat in its place. A long and unkempt mane hung limply about a weary frame. It took a while for dusty to realize he was gazing at his reflection. No longer was he a young colt, but an almost fully grown stallion. Dusty was surprised that he had grown so much; he had never really paid much attention to it, it just never seemed that important. He had no other growing colt to compare himself to as he grew. He was sure that nopony from home would even recognize him anymore, if they even remembered he existed. Dusty shook his mane again, clearing his thoughts. He lapped eagerly at the fountain water. It tasted warm and stale, but that did not matter; it was still amazing. It slaked his thirst all the same.
Now he needed to eat. He could no longer ignore the gnawing hunger, and stumbled a bit as he sped up his canter. He moved aimlessly through the streets, hoping to catch the scent of something edible. He was not above stealing at this point. He had come to terms with that. If he were captured while eating something, he told himself, it would have been a worthy trade off.
Dusty caught the smell of something wonderful and almost walked headlong into the wagon before he realized it was the source of the smell. The thing was a rather garish stage affair and he heard movement inside. Hunger had overridden his fear, though. He snuck up on the opening, which bathed the alley in front of it with a soft warm light. Dusty slowly raised his head to peer inside and saw a silver haired unicorn cooking something on a small camp stove. It was probably just some hay stew, but nothing had ever smelled so good to him. His mouth was watering as he tried to think of a way to acquire some without the mare noticing him. But she had noticed him and stared in shock at first. Then her face showed pity and finally, she spoke with a haughty look.
“How dare you sneak up on the Great and Powerful Trixie in the middle of the night!”
Her voice shook with barely concealed fear, yet she continued. “I could turn you into a frog with but a flick of my mane!” Dusty stumbled back, and fell onto his haunches, but hunger prevented him from running. His growling stomach answered for him. Trixie’s gaze softened for a moment. “I see, it has been a while since you have eaten, has it?” Dusty simply nodded slightly, unsure of what to do and Trixie laughed, it was forced and hollow, but it calmed him a bit nonetheless. “Well, let nopony say that The Great and Powerful Trixie is not as generous as she is majestic!” Trixie ladled some strew in a spare bowl with her mouth, and set the bowl on the lip of the lower wagon door. “It is not much, but better than starving I suppose.”
Dusty moved cautiously towards it, he was not sure how to react the boisterous mare, but he would not turn down any food. He began eating it quickly, burning his mouth in the process and wincing at the cramps that formed in his abdomen. “Slow down there stallion.” Trixie said, her voice more gentle this time. “There is plenty, and you are only going to hurt yourself if you eat it too fast.”
Dusty did his best, but it was difficult, and eventually the soup cooled enough for him to eat it, which he did, albeit still too hastily. “That’s better,” said Trixie with a smile. Though still afraid, she seemed to have relaxed a bit. “Now, do you have a name? The Great and Powerful Trixie does not share food with strangers.” Dusty stared at her again, wondering idly, now that his hunger had abated a little, why the strange unicorn referred to herself in the third person. Trixie looked around nervously, “Well?” Dusty blinked, and shook his head, raising a hoof to his throat and shaking his head again. Trixie blinked, and her eyes saddened a bit. “You’re mute then stallion?”
Dusty simply nodded, unwilling to tell her the truth at the moment, though not feeling good about lying to the generous mare. Trixie frowned, but then gazed at Dusty again, a thoughtful look in her eyes. “Can you write?” Dusty blinked, he was not sure. He had not done so in a very long time, but it seemed worth a try, and so he nodded, Trixie smiled and brought him a scroll and quill, along with another bowl of stew, which he happily ate. This time he gave it a moment to cool. When he had finished he slowly took the quill, which had already been dipped into the ink well, into his mouth and frowned. He tried to concentrate on writing. He knew it would be close to illegible, but still he slowly wrote his name, Dusty. He peered at it for a while before sliding the parchment towards Trixie, who smiled a little. “Dusty, that sounds like a farmer’s name. You from a farmer family, Dusty?”
Dusty shook his head, and motioned for the quill, when she gave it to him he carefully wrote the word “Booksellers” and slid it back in her direction. Trixie arched an eyebrow at this and then nodded. “So, besides starvation, what brings you to the home of the Great and Powerful Trixie?” Dusty blinked and his eyes darted back and forth as he searched for a good answer. But Trixie shook her head, seeing the stallion’s reaction. “We all have our secrets Dusty, you can keep yours.” Dusty felt relieved and that was apparently quite visible, as Trixie laughed softly. “You are just lucky to have met The Great and Powerful Trixie, the most powerful unicorn in all of Equestria!” Dusty blinked and looked at Trixie incredulously. When she saw his face she laughed again and nodded. “It’s true! I once stopped a rampaging Ursa Major!”
With that she launched into a long winded tale of how she strolled into a town and saved it from a giant constellation run rampant, but Dusty did not hear it. The warm stew had gone to his head and exhaustion overtook him. He never heard the end of the story, nor did he remember Trixie covering him with a blanket while he lay in the alley, nor her smoothing his mane with a look of great pity on her face for the obviously troubled stallion. She figured whatever he was running from, it was terrible enough to drive even a large stallion like dusty to such a ragged state.
The jostling of the carriage and the sound of wheels rolling over the landscape greeted Dusty as he groggily opened his eyes and found himself in Trixie’s wagon. He was lying on her bed of hay. As the grogginess slowly wore off, he looked around in shock. What happened? How did he get here? Did she drug him? He sat up and tried to move about, but the carriage hit a bump and dumped him back onto the bed. He laid there for a while, staring at the ceiling, at the pictures of faraway places and of other unicorns that resembled Trixie. Were they her parents maybe? The pictures were plastered all over the ceiling of the wagon. He found himself wondering what sorts of adventures she may have had when he felt the wagon come to a halt.
Dusty blinked and stood, taking a moment to ensure his legs would hold him up. He opened the door to the wagon and peered outside. Trixie stood there, looking tired; obviously she had been pulling the wagon and had stopped to take a much needed break. “Good, you’re awake. You can assist Trixie in preparing some lunch. You slept through breakfast.” Dusty blinked, a confused look on his face. But Trixie gave him no time to ponder the situation before nudging past him and handing him materials to start a small campfire. Dusty staggered attempting to carry it all, but managed to stumble to the site she indicated with a hoof and set the materials down. “Now then, we will have daisy stew for lunch; it is great for the mane and coat you know.” Dusty just nodded dumbly as Trixie proceeded to fix the fire and food. Dusty did his best to help, but found himself to be far more of a hindrance. Yet even as Trixie scolded him, he could see the pity in her eyes. After a short time they both sat and watched the stew heat up. Trixie set about repairing a torn piece of cloth with a needle and thread as dusty watched, somewhat fascinated.
“I could not let you just sleep out in some alleyway, but do not think you can just freeload off of the Great and Powerful Trixie. Expect to be put to work. I do the astonishing magic and you can cook the meals and pull the wagon from now on.” Dusty blinked, and mulled it over, “But,” he thought to himself, “I am out of Canterlot, and Trixie has been kind so far...it seems only fair...” Dusty nodded in agreement to her words and Trixie returned his nod curtly. “Good, that is what Trixie thought, now then.” Trixie frowned and looked the stallion over. He was a far worse sight in the light of day, but still looked better now that he had eaten and rested.
“No self-respecting powerful magician such as Trixie could be seen with such a sorry excuse for a stallion, we need to get you cleaned up.”
Trixie headed to the wagon and fetched a bucket, along with some sponges and soap. “Go over to that stream and fill this up. Then bring it back to the fire for me.” She said in a no nonsense manner. Dusty diligently obeyed, fetched a full bucket of the clear stream water and bringing to the fire, Trixie promptly set the water near the fire to heat up before resting on her haunches and gazing into the flickering flames. “We are going to head to Hoofington first, then Manehattan...” Trixie spoke absently as she let her thoughts drift while she gazed at the fire. Dusty looked up at her at the mention of his hometown. He wondered if his family was still there, with their bookstore, and whether or not they would even know who he was if they saw him.
“I wanted to hit Ponyville first, but apparently some ponies stopped Nightmare Moon and rescued Celestia and they are having a big parade or something. I do not want some lame unicorn upstaging The Great and Powerful Trixie!” At that statement Dusty’s eyes went wide. Celestia was rescued? She was in Ponyville with Twilight Sparkle? Maybe she did not know he was gone yet. But when she did he had no doubt there would be pegasi everywhere searching for him, he made a mental note to stay especially low if any pegasi were around. Trixie seemed to notice him and looked at him with a frown. “What has you looking like a startled filly dusty? Surprised to hear that Celestia was rescued? You should not be it is daylight out, though for a while there even Trixie had her doubts.” Dusty looked away and sighed, he was actually beginning to like this boisterous unicorn, but he could not tell her, even if he wanted too, too risky, and he did not understand it enough himself, and after what happened last time…Trixie interrupted his thoughts, “Water is ready.” She said standing and gazing at it before staring back at him. “Look, Trixie is not your mother, so you take this water and soap. Clean yourself up over behind the wagon while I keep an eye on the food.” Dusty blinked in confusion for a moment, but then nodded and headed behind the wagon. He never thought a good sponge bath with soap and water would feel so good. It took a lot of ache out of his sore muscles and, he had to admit, the smell was far better.
Trixie blinked when she say the freshly washed Dusty canter towards her, he looked like a changed stallion. At the very least he was a rather handsome and clean one. He was still too thin and the eyes were hard to look into for more than a moment, but still. “Much better, now come over here because it is obvious to Trixie that you have no idea what a mane and tail are supposed to look like.” Dusty blinked, but sauntered over, and sat on his haunches while Trixie brought out a brush, and began fussing over his mane and tail, it seemed kind of pointless to dusty, but he enjoyed the attention. He heard her talking to herself, tsking, wondering if he had ever bothered to brush it -- that it certainly seemed like he had not.
When Trixie had finished, she looked over Dusty with a careful eye, “Well, it is not much of an improvement, but it will have to do. No one can look as good as the Great and Powerful Trixie, after all. And the food is ready.” Dusty blinked his head blissfully empty of thought for once as the unicorn was brushing him. He nodded, cantered off to get some bowls, and dished each of them some stew. They ate in silence, which Dusty sensed was rare for the unicorn. It was nice to feel the wind on his face and listen to the birds chirping, the flapping of wings. Dusty blinked and looked around in panic, wings!? The looked like black dots on the horizon, but they were approaching very fast. There was no mistaking them for anything other than pegasi! Dusty leapt up, knocking his stew over, causing Trixie to stammer out rudely. Then she, too, saw what was coming and bolted for her wagon.
Dusty knew he could not go with her, she would just be put in grave danger and so he bolted across the open grass and hills away from Trixie. She called out for him, but he just kept galloping. Hot tears streamed down his cheeks. Why couldn’t they just leave him alone? Dusty knew he could not outrun them and heard them fast approaching. He spied a dense stand of trees off in the distance, but there was no way he could reach it in time. He slid to a stop and turned to face the pegasi, who checked themselves in midair for a moment before regrouping. Dusty gave them what he hoped was a fearsome look and they glanced nervously at each other, their golden armor glinting bright in the sun. Dusty watched them for a moment and then braced his hind legs and took a deep breath, opening his mouth.
The pegasi reacted immediately, scattering to the wind. Dusty bolted again. They had been warned and that was more than he could have hoped for as it gave him the time to dash into the woods. Tree limbs tore at his hide as he heedlessly trampled onward. The forest grew darker and thicker, hopefully thick enough for him to escape. When he finally collapsed in a small clearing he lay there panting, listening, straining to hear any sound of pursuit. But all was muffled and quiet in the dense woods and once again he was alone.
Dusty laid there for a long while, heedless of the time passing, or the growing cold, it was late summer but here in these dark woods it felt more like late fall, and as the sun set, he found himself shivering involuntarily, and began to trot through the dark woods, moving mostly to keep himself warm, as he could barely make out one tree from another in the growing dark. It was purely by accident that he found the pile of brush and libs, more fell into than found in all honestly, but he welcomed anything that was not cold and open ground, and he made himself a makeshift burrow, though it was probably a sad sight in daylight, it felt warmer in the dark that the growing cold, and he curled up shivering, too tired for tears, and dreamt of Trixie.
He awoke to the dim sunlight filtering through the dense foliage of the forest, covered by a makeshift pile of foliage that he had thought was a decently constructed burrow, when in reality it was a few piles of brush thrown on top of him, but it had kept him warm enough, though he certainly felt drained and a bit ill. He ached all over, and his head pounded as memories of the previous day flooded back into his mind, he sighed heavily, and wondered to himself what exactly he had done to deserve this, however, the rumbling in his stomach reminded him that self-pity had yet to get him anything, and it had certainly never filled his stomach, and so, with a heavy sigh, and a groan at his protesting body, Dusty pulled himself free from the mound of brush and looked around. He had no idea where he was, or how to get back to the road, or even if he should try going back to the road, he supposed that any direction was probably better than none, and so he took a deep breath, and set off in what felt like the slightly easier path through the woods.
He was not sure how long he had been walking, but the sun was high in the sky, and the air was warmer and drier and the scenery was actually making him feel a little better, he had never really explored a forest before, and it’s quiet sounds and clean smells made him wish that he could have a quiet home in the woods and be left alone to enjoy them, he could imagine a cozy log cabin with a roaring fire and a big front porch, maybe near a good fishing stream, some good books and a pet to keep him company, maybe a dog or something. A noise nearby brought him out of his daydream, and he scurried to some underbrush and listened intently, it was two voices, one rather loud; the other was only a murmur. Dusty cautiously moved closer, trying to overhear what they were saying.
“Thanks for coming with me to the Everfree Forest Pinkie.” The one voice said in educated cadence that made Dusty frown with thought; hadn’t he heard that voice before? He snuck a bit closer as the second voice replied in a bubbly and carefree manner. “Oh, it’s no biggie Twilight, Zecora told me that there were some berries in this forest that would make some of the tastiest cupcakes and I cannot wait to try them in my new recipe, I am going to make so many batches Twilight that we will have enough for three...no no! Five cupcake parties! Oh it will be so much fun you have no idea!”
Twilight!? Twilight Sparkle! Dusty stood in shock, his heart pounded in his chest, it could not be, he had no idea he was so close to Ponyville, his mind frantically tried to come up with a firm decision, he should go, he should run the other way, that probably led back to the road, and then he could stay just out of sight, and then maybe go home, to Manehattan, maybe his family will recognize him, maybe they could hide him from Celestia and the guards, maybe he could be safe, he thought he could face Twilight, but no, no he could not, he felt like throwing up, and quickly scrambled out of the brush and made a dash in the opposite direction, only to find himself side tackled to the ground by a mass of pink that smelled of cotton candy and cinnamon.
“Hi! I’m Pinkie Pie, what’s your name?” The pink mass said to him, and it took him a moment to realize that he was staring into the large smiling blue eyes of a pink pony. He laid there speechless, and gasping for air while another voice approaching quickly shouted, “Pinkie Pie, get off that poor pony!” Pinkie Pie frowned for a moment but then casually bounced up and off of Dusty and bounced around him instead. He slowly lifted himself up off the ground and stumbled slightly on his legs, only to find himself falling back on his haunches as his gaze met that of Twilight Sparkle’s.
The purple colored pony gazed at him quizzically and cautiously, “You’re an odd thing to find in this forest,” she said, her tone even as she carefully took a step back. She was heedless of the merrily bouncing oblivious Pinkie Pie. “Who in the name of Celestia are you?”
Dusty’s eyes frantically searched for a way to escape, but he had a feeling that if Twilight did not catch him, Pinkie Pie certainly would. Speaking of the pink pony she bounced up next to Twilight,
“If you ask me, he is probably the single biggest pony in need of a party and some friends I have EVER seen! In fact, he looks sorrier than that one time I got Rarity’s hair stuck in the cotton candy machine and we had to use those pruning shears and Big Macintosh’s harness to...”
Twilight glared at Pinkie, “Pinkie, that is enough. I want to know who this pony is and what he is doing in the Everfree forest. By the looks of things spying on us.” Dusty sighed and stood up slowly, trying to project a nonthreatening stance as best he could, while Pinkie Pie giggled
“I think he’s kind of cute, don’t you Twilight, it’s like he’s got Rarity’s hair but with some green in it and those crazy purple eyes and he’s really tall, I bet he is taller than Big Macintosh, but not as beefy and..” Pinkie Pie continued, and Dusty could feel his cheeks grow hot, but lowered his head a bit when he once again felt the burning quizzical gaze of Twilight Sparkle. “I have not heard you say anything yet mister.”
Dusty looked a little panicked, and shook his head with a hoof to his mouth indicating he could not speak. “Well, that’s odd; maybe if I tried a bit of magic I could...” Dusty’s eyes went wide with fear and he shook his head desperately, Pinkie Pie bounced between the two of them for a moment
“Whee! This is a great place to bounce, But I dunno Twilight, he looks pretty scared to me, I’d be scared too if some strange unicorn randomly decided to use magic on me to change my mane color or die my hooves a funny color, you think my hooves would look good dyed a funny color?” Twilight frowned and groaned, blowing her mane out of her eyes, “Fine, fine, I get your point, but I think you should come with us anyhow, back to Ponyville, you look like you are in no shape to be out in the forest alone…” Twilight’s words trailed off as she gazed at the stallion, her eyes fixed onto his cutie mark. “Pinkie, we have to go, we have to go right now!” Pinkie looked confused as Twilight tried to drag her off,
“What are you talking about Twilight? This pony needs food and fun, we cannot leave him out here looking all sad like that, why are you being such a meany big meany mean pants all of a sudden?” Twilight started looking more and more desperate to get away as Pinkie Pie bombarded her with questions, and finally she shouted “No! We have to tell Celestia right away, this pony is dangerous, maybe even more dangerous that Nightmare Moon!” Pinkie looked at Twilight as if she had gone mad, and looked at Dusty, who was at this point backing away shaking his head his eyes pleading with them. “Twilight Sparkle, are you crazy? This pony looks about as dangerous as a daisy sandwich, which he probably has not eaten in weeks. “The pink pony’s eyes were cautious, and she bounced less, and occasionally glanced at Dusty, but it was apparent that she was having a difficult time believing Twilight Sparkle, who by this point had back quite a distance away, and had lowered her horn defensively,
“Maybe I can just hold him here and then we can take him to Celestia ourselves..” Twilight spoke to herself, without much assurance, Dusty meanwhile was scrambling for the underbrush to get as far away from the two ponies as he could get, when he felt his hind legs yanked from underneath him by magic, and landed with a painful grunt on the forest floor. “Pinkie, you go and get spike and the rest of our friends and get back here as quickly as possible, I’ll hold him here till you get back and we can hand him over to the princess.” Pinkie Pie looked confused and a little upset, to her this pony looked hurt inside, and it pained her to see anypony in distress like that, but she frowned and looked at Twilight,
“Okie dokie lokie..But I’m still not sure...” Dustin had picked himself up, and seeing that running would not help, he faced Twilight Sparkle, his face darkened with fear and panic, he could not let himself be locked away in that room again, he loved Celestia, but he had tasted freedom, and he was loathe to give it up. To be honest, Twilight scared him, she really was a powerful unicorn, and she could probably hurt him badly, or even kill him if she chose, he instinctively pawed the ground, he had no idea what to do, and his mind was running a mile a minute, he took another step back, and her horn glowed brightly, Pinkie Pie just stared, she knew she should get help, but this seemed like such a huge misunderstanding, it was obvious that the mute stallion was hurt and scared, why was Twilight acting so strangely? Twilight’s horn grew brighter and Dustin reared up in fear as he was engulfed in purple magic, and thrashed to free himself, his eyes met Twilight’s and he could feel it welling up inside of him, the panic, the fear, it was too much, and as if in slow motion. He heard himself speak.
Dusty felt as if he were trapped in one of those nightmares where you gallop and gallop but cannot seem to go anywhere or get away from whatever is chasing you. He watched as the purple magic that held him buckled as though his words were a visible force. He felt the intense pressure and pain in his ears as the unnatural sounds were uttered from his mouth. He thought he could hear the air being sucked out of the world as the purple energy writhed around him like a snake and then vanished, his body crashing painfully to the ground. It drove the breath from his lungs and left him twitching and gasping on the cold forest floor.
Twilight Sparkle was utterly unprepared for what came next. One moment she held the large and dangerous stallion in the air like a toy, the next something hit her. She felt wrong at first, like everything was unnatural. It was the most horrible thing she had ever felt. Then she knew no more as she was hurled like a ragdoll through the air. Her body fell twisted and broken to the ground with a sickening thud.
Pinkie Pie sensed something was wrong, too. Her body twitched violently the moment Twilight lifted the stallion from the ground. She was too late to do anything as she found herself hurled violently away from the scene and into a nearby tree trunk, the force leaving her unmoving on the ground.
Dusty coughed painfully and blinked several times, feeling dizzy. His lungs hurt and he could taste blood in his mouth. His ears felt plugged like he had been swimming and he ached. Slowly managing to pick himself up off the ground he staggered, seeing the bodies of the two ponies on the ground. A cold numbness overtook him. He felt as though he wanted to burst, his heart hurt so badly. He felt that any punishment would not be enough. Dusty wanted to die. It took every ounce of effort, but he dragged himself over to Twilight, who lay closest. Even though he could feel the tears streaming down his cheeks, his mind still felt numb with the shock and horror that his eyes beheld. He nudged the purple mare gently, and could see her breath, ragged and shallow. He did not know what else to do. Somewhere in the back of his mind he was screaming that he would hurt her more, or even kill her, but nonetheless, he placed her over his back as gently as he could. Then, with a strength that he did not come close to understanding, he did the same with Pinkie Pie, who seemed to be in a better state than Twilight, but only by a small margin.
Dusty started walking, he did not know where he was going, just that he needed to move. He was sure he was hurt. He was sure he was having a hard time breathing, but these sounds and feelings seemed far away, like the noise of the forest, or his hoof falls on the ground. He paid no attention to the world around him, the images of the past few moments replayed themselves over and over in front of his eyes, each time driving that spike of pain deeper and deeper into his heart and mind. He was more confused than surprised at the voices that surrounded him. And he was only vaguely aware of bodies being gently lifted from his back and that several ponies had stopped him from walking after their repeated shouts and concerned questions had not received his attention. He barely felt the prick of the needle in his flank, but welcomed the consuming darkness it brought with it.
He woke slowly, and as he did everything flooded back at once and he wanted to scream his rage and grief until he was empty. Even that was denied to him as he clenched his teeth tightly together, weary sobs wracking his body. He felt warmth near him, and the smell of cotton candy and cinnamon filled his nose and mind. At first it only made it worse, as he had probably killed that pink pony, but after a while he realized that she lay pressed closed to him. She was breathing deeply in slumber and his initial sobs had caused her to wrap a leg over his body and hold him close. Dusty did not want this to end, this warmth and comfort was more than he had ever experienced. Celestia was kind in her own way, but he had not been held this way since he was a foal. He let himself cry in Pinkie Pie’s arms for however long it would be allowed to last. Eventually sleep found him again, but it was an easier rest this time. Even when the nightmares returned, they seemed to have less of a hold on him.
When he awoke again his eyes opened slowly. Pinkie was there, but he could see the flowing rainbow mane of Celestia as well. She was turned away from him. He could hear her speaking quietly, a deep wave of relief flooding him as he heard Twilight Sparkle reply to her words. They seemed deep in conversation, and it was a little heated. Several other ponies stood nearby, with looks of concern mixed with anger and sadness in their eyes.
“Its okay” said Pinkie Pie in a gentle whisper, “Nopony is going to hurt you, just rest here, okay?”
Dusty blinked but nuzzled her gently in agreement, and closed his eyes, trying to overhear the conversation. He let himself continue to enjoy the warmth and comfort he felt from Pinkie Pie.
“You did a foolish thing Twilight,” Celestia said her voice stern but tinged with worry. “Dustin Folio is a dangerous stallion. Not intentionally, but letting him roam free could potentially destroy us all. He could have easily killed both you and Pinkie Pie had his power not been muffled by your spell.”
Twilight’s voice was tired, as she was obviously in a tremendous amount of pain. “But princess," she said, with some effort. "I could not simply let him walk into Ponyville; countless others could have been hurt if that had happened.”
Celestia was quiet for a moment, and then sighed heavily. “Twilight, I do not believe Dustin means anypony any sort of harm, he is unaware of what he is capable of, it breaks my heart knowing that I have isolated him for so many years, never allowing him to grow up as a normal pony, he has never had any friends, or known the love of another.”
Twilight was silent for a long moment before she spoke again, her voice tinged with sadness and confusion.
“My little pony,” she said and took a moment to collect herself before continuing.
“Long ago there was magic given to the earth ponies. They still have it today. Their ability to make things grow, to work with the earth like they do. But there was a time when they were oppressed and abused by the unicorns and pegasi. This was before my time. A malevolent force approached them; we do not know what it was exactly, as it had no name. But it brought them more words, more magic, an offer to break free of their shackles and become dominant.”
Dusty tensed up as he heard them speak, this is the first he had heard of it, and Celestia had been careful to keep him from reading anything that would allow him to piece this together himself. Celestia continued; “These words were never meant for ponies, because as there are words and music that brings life to the earth, that helps things grow and nurtures us, there are words to bring it all to an end. These words are not evil, they are as natural as creation, and Luna and I are very much aware that someday all this will have to end, though we are not privy to the hour.”
Dusty heard Twilight’s breath catch in her throat as his mind struggled to grapple with what Celestia was saying. Was he truly some horrible harbinger of the end of all things? He certainly never wanted to be, and had you asked him he would certainly had told you that he would have done anything in his power to prevent it, as natural as it may be. He tried to quiet his thoughts as Celestia continued;
“I do not know why this happened to poor Dustin and I would not have wished it upon him. Nonetheless it has and none of my studies have led me to a way to help him. So I must do what has to be done, and lock him away again. I do not think he could destroy us all now, but I fear that if he ever managed to understand what was trapped in his head, he would have knowledge that nopony should have and I would be forced to make a very difficult choice.”
Dusty sighed heavily and felt his body go slack. “So that is how it is.” He thought to himself as he felt Pinkie Pie’s hoof rub his back in a calming motion. “I know I have hurt other ponies, I know how dangerous I am, but I never knew…” his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Celestia approaching him.
“Thank you Pinkie Pie, I am sure you have done more for him in these past few hours than I ever could. But I think he knows that we must leave now.” The pink pony slid stiffly off of the hospital bed and looked sadly at dusty as he did his best to give her a teary eyed thank you with his eyes, to which she merely nodded, gazing sadly at him as he painfully pulled himself up off of the bed, and lowered his head, standing next to Celestia, who sighed, and nuzzled him comfortingly before nudging him towards the exit. Dusty looked up to see Twilight sparkle, surrounded by her friends and in a body cast, and as he choked back a sob he gazed at her, his eyes filled with grief and shame and she quietly mouthed “Apology accepted.” As Celestia nudged him once again and he headed for the door;
“I will catch up Dustin, the guards will be waiting for you outside, please do not give them any trouble.”
Dusty nodded, and headed out the door. The guards were not too rough, but he knew that their fellow guards were missing and he was responsible, and he found himself unable to meet their stern gaze as they escorted him to the carriage that would return him to his prison in Canterlot.
Celestia gazed at the six friends for a long moment as she listened to the carriage leave. “It would be best if you all forgot about Dustin, his fate is a tragic one, but it cannot be helped.” Celestia’s gaze was firmly on Twilight as she spoke. “Recover quickly my little ponies, I will hear from you soon I am sure.” With that, Celestia left and Twilight waited a few moments before turning to her friends and quietly and painfully smiled “Gather around girls, I have a plan.”
Dusty gazed out the window of the carriage as it flew through the air towards Canterlot. His mind was filled with thoughts regarding Celestia’s talk with Twilight sparkle. What did Celestia mean by understanding? How could he possibly be more dangerous than he already was? Honestly he wanted nothing to do with being a dangerous pony and he did not understand why Celestia would think that if he understood what had happened to him, he would suddenly become some sort of merciless villain pony. He sighed a bit to himself as he watched the lovely rolling landscape pass by. He was at a loss as to what to do at this point. He figured that being locked away forever might indeed be for the best. But now he had a taste of freedom; it’s beauty and wonder. The only thing to come of it was the horrible injury of some sweet ponies who never did anything to harm him.
Something thudded against the side of the carriage, snapping Dusty out of his train of thought. A loud “Hey!” could be heard from the front. One of the guards was yelling angrily at something outside. Dusty frowned, wondering what in the hay could be going on. He looked out the window, stretching his neck to try to get a better look he heard a loud snapping noise and spun around to see that the back door of the carriage had been flung open, and a cyan Pegasus with rainbow hair was staring anxiously at him. “Well? Come on; let’s go before the guards notice!” Dusty blinked several times and looked around quickly. A look of concentration crossed his face and he galloped towards the Pegasus, leaping out of the back of the carriage. Had he given it any real thought, he would have found the idea to be completely insane. Nonetheless, there he was leaping into the open air. Thankfully being caught by the cyan Pegasus and carried off while a pale yellow Pegasus with pink hair quickly caught up with them. She apparently had been distracting the guards so the cyan Pegasus could break him out. Dusty looked at the two and wished he could ask them who they were and what the hay they were doing.
“Okay Fluttershy,” said the cyan Pegasus, with a strong grip on Dusty as they flew towards the dense Everfree Forest.
“We gotta move fast if we are gonna outrun those guards, so keep an eye out will ya?” Fluttershy nodded. Her soft voice was almost too soft to hear over the wind rushing in his ears.
“Um...okay Rainbow Dash...um...they are kida scary though and um...I’ll keep my eyes open...” Rainbow Dash nodded and narrowed her eyes, picking up speed as they headed further over the dense trees of the forest.
"We’re gonna set you down in this spot over here Dusty,” declared Rainbow Dash.
“Then were gonna make sure we were not followed. Don’t worry bro, we have a plan.”
Dusty just did his best not to lose his lunch over the trees. He enjoyed a flight as much as the next pony, but Rainbow Dash’s breakneck speed was making him rather queasy.
Eventually they reached a small clearing and Rainbow Dash set Dusty down as gently as possible before the two pegasi flew back up to make sure the air was clear of Celestia’s guards. After a few moments they landed and waited quietly with Dusty until several other ponies arrived, including Twilight Sparkle, who was in a wheelchair being pushed by an orange pony in a rather fine hat. A white unicorn with a well-kept mane, and Pinkie Pie, who looked no worse for the wear, followed. Pinkie Pie immediately tackled Dusty, nuzzling him happily with a “Hi there, Dusty!” She left him blushing and staring at the ground after she moved to rejoin her friends.
Twilight Sparkled smiled at Dusty, who still found it difficult to look her in the eyes. Then he looked around at her friends. “Okay, are we ready girls?” Twilight asked. The other ponies nodded and Dusty looked at all of them quizzically.
Twilight smiled reassuringly. “These are the Elements of Harmony, Dusty, and we are going to use them and see if they will help you.”
Dusty frowned and blinked at the necklaces that suddenly appeared on five of the ponies. A tiara appeared on the head of Twilight sparkle.
“Yeah!” said Pinkie Pie in her usual bouncy manner. “Cause even though Princess Celestia said we should forget about you, we were not about to forget about a pony who needed friends so badly. And parties and help. Why, I would just be a pretty poor Pinkie Pie if I just forgot about some pony who really needed a party, now wouldn’t I?” Dusty just blinked and nodded, figuring it was probably just best to agree with Pinkie Pie.
The ponies surrounded him as he pawed the ground nervously looking at each of them. He was entirely unsure if this was even a remotely good idea. Slowly they each started to glow and float slowly in the air, concentrating. At that, Dusty lay down and covered his eyes with his hooves. This was not going to be good at all. Suddenly Twilight Sparkles’ eyes turned white with glowing magic and a massive rainbow beam arced down and covered Dusty. At first he just felt warm. Then suddenly he grabbed his head in pain. The voices were filling his mind again. What were they trying to say? Why were they so insistent? His head felt as though it were going to explode. So much pressure inside trying to get out and so much pressure outside, trying to get in. It made no sense. These voices were trying to tell him something but he just could not make out what they were saying. The pain kept growing and growing. Off in the distance he heard some pony screaming.
It was dark, and Dusty could swear he saw the twinkling stars far off in the distance growing ever closer. The pain had ebbed to a dull roar, but that roar was the only sound he could hear at first. And then, out on the very edge of hearing, he sensed it: a soft, sad song echoing out between the stars, in the depth of the void. His heart ached as the song slowly filled his ears with its message of sadness and comfort. He knew what it was. The words he had been speaking; the song of the end of all things, and it spoke to him, to something deep inside his being, and he understood. He understood it all, and it was both beautiful and terrible to behold. It told him of the quiet of the dark, the eternal peace of nothingness. He knew that it was these words that filled his head when he was a young colt. He knew that outside of his mind, outside of this vast cosmos that sang to him this lullaby of destruction, six ponies were bathing him in the rainbow light of harmony. And for once in his life, he knew exactly what must be done.
Princess Celestia landed in the clearing with several pegasi guards. Her eyes widened when she saw that the elements of Harmony were being used on Dustin. With the full force of her voice she yelled “Stop!”
Twilight and the rest dropped to the ground in bewilderment, leaving dusty lying on the forest floor. The six ponies backed off and gathered together in a protective group. The look on Celestia’s face was a mix of fear and rage.
“How dare you defy me like this Twilight Sparkle? You have no idea what you may have done!” Twilight opened her mouth to speak, but instead, a raspy male voice replied.
“No, princess, no she did not, but she did it for the right reasons,” Dusty mustered, standing shakily to his feet. His head throbbed and he was surprised to hear himself speaking, but he continued. “This has to end Celestia; you cannot keep me locked up out of your own fear."
Celestia turned and gazed at Dustin His haunted gaze was still too difficult to meet, but she stood her ground firmly. “No! Surrender yourself Dustin, I command you! You are too dangerous to roam free.” Celestia’s horn glowed, and she planted her hooves. Her guards began to surround him and Dusty shook his head.
“You're right Celestia. But I will not go back with you. I’m sorry for all the hurt I have caused, but locking me away is not the answer.” Dusty dug his hooves into the earth and snorted. He could not let Celestia stop him. The guards immediately moved towards him, and with a soft word he sent them hurtling backwards onto the ground. He turned to face Celestia again, the fear and rage lighting her eyes up, as her magic flared towards him. He spoke those mysterious words again, cancelling it out and leaving her staring in disbelief. He spoke again and drove her to the ground, knocking the wind from her.
“I am so sorry everypony.” Dusty said softly. The other ponies backed away from him as Celestia struggled to get to her feet.
“Please stay still princess” Dusty commanded gently. The princess glared at him from the ground as he passed by her, walking purposefully toward one pony. Pinkie Pie watched as the sad and haunted gaze of Dusty locked with hers. She stood her ground as he approached her, in spite of the pleading and nudging of her friends. When he reached her he leaned in close and whispered into her ear. He turned and walked away, leaving Pinkie Pie with tears running down her face. He tried hard to hold back his own sobs.
Dusty trotted a little ways away from the ponies while they all looked on, and sat on his hunches, staring up at the sunlight filtering through the early autumn leaves. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. He could already feel the hot tears running down his cheeks as he opened his mouth and sang. The words were sad and sweet; they spoke of peace and endless stars. And his voice was gentle and somber. The tune gripped the hearts of the ponies, even if they could not understand the words. He sang of rebirth, of the winter, and of spring, of the endless turning of the world, and the twinkling of the stars. Celestia’s eyes grew wide as she realized what was happening and she cried and begged for him to stop. But it was too late. It began slowly, as his voice quavered and ached. He held back sobs and the hot river of tears rolled down his cheeks. He began to fade. He could hear Pinkie Pie crying and the princess begging. He only tried to smile back at them. He continued to sing and sing. Eventually the ponies found themselves alone in the forest. The soft song still echoed through the trees like a breeze, but the singer was gone.