"It was warm... it was soft... it was familiar..."
Little by little, the tangible world around her began to manifest within her.
She felt luminous, she felt transparent, she felt whimsical.
As carefree as if she were resting in a hammock, beneath a blue sky and a gentle breeze.
In the middle of a golden field of ripe barley...
Nothing mattered, nothing happened, and then, suddenly... everything mattered and everything happened.
[---]
"Ughhh..." A groan echoed in the dim light.
Applejack protested as her eyelids stubbornly refused to open. Little by little, consciousness returned to her, like a slow tide dragging away the last remnants of her sleep. After several minutes of struggling to wake up, reality began to settle into her body.
A sharp stinging spread across her back, and a sour taste clung to her mouth—unpleasant sensations that, far from fading, only grew more noticeable with each passing second.
Finally, she opened her eyes and spat to the side, unconcerned by the darkness surrounding her.
The stinging persisted, but after shifting on the cold floor and pressing the sore area against the surface, the discomfort gradually began to ease until it disappeared.
"Much better..." Applejack murmured in relief, lying down, breathing calmly before letting her eyes drift shut once more. The undefined gloom and the lingering drowsiness pulled her back toward rest.
But just before she could fully sink into her lethargy, a new sensation caught her attention.
Lightness. Coolness. Spreading across her coat, particularly over her head and her bare ears.
Feeling unsettled, Applejack sat up, staring into the darkness as she regained her bearings. She remained still for a moment, then, unable to see clearly, rubbed her eyes and glanced around again.
Shadows of familiar shapes surrounded her: tables, sofas, stacks of books, and... ponies?
The sound of multiple soft breaths blended into the dim atmosphere of the room. The barely perceptible sight in the darkness made her briefly dizzy, but as the sensation faded, her now clearer mind began to piece things together.
The discrepancy between her memories and the present became evident as confusion took hold of her.
"Is this...? Where am I?" she wondered between yawns. She was in the living room of a house that, due to the lack of light and her own sluggishness, she couldn't quite recognize. The walls—whose reflections, for some reason, made her imagine she might be inside a tree—were barely distinguishable under the faint glow filtering through the closed windows. Elongated shadows stretched across a cluttered floor, all immersed in a still, strangely familiar atmosphere.
Outside, the hushed whispers of a world ruled by the night were absolute—a distant murmur that barely disturbed the tranquility within.
Why was she here? Why were so many ponies sleeping around her? Why did she feel so light?
Trying to stand up blindly amidst her questions, Applejack stumbled over a bottle. With quick reflexes, she instinctively caught it before it rolled too far. She held it carefully and examined it closely.
"Cider?" she murmured, noticing the strong aroma emanating from the container. Looking around more carefully, she spotted more bottles scattered across the floor.
Then, the memory—or rather, the realization—hit her like a lightning bolt. Suddenly, all the pieces fell into place in her mind.
"Ha, ha, ha..." the mare began to laugh softly. It was so obvious… How could she have doubted so much? Books, wooden walls, cider bottles… The image was clear: the night before, she and the others had celebrated the Summer Sun Rising at Twilight's house, staying there after the party.
"Guess we overdid it with the cider..." Applejack murmured with a slightly embarrassed smile, setting the bottle down on the floor. A sudden hiccup shook her, but she stifled it with a deep breath.
Now everything made sense. The silhouettes of the ponies around her fit perfectly into the picture: they were her friends, still asleep after the long night of festivities.
"I suppose it's still early... Uhhhhhh... A little more rest wouldn't hurt..." she mumbled through another yawn, lulled by the soft breathing of her companions.
Lying back down where she had been, she had no trouble getting comfortable, despite having only a thick blanket as a mattress and a light sheet nearby. She curled up with a peaceful expression and closed her eyes.
Yes, everything seemed to be in order. There was nothing to worry about... she could go back to sleep in peace.
Thus, Applejack thought as she tried to drift back to sleep.
However, sleep did not come.
Something... once again, was frustrating her rest.
Lightness. Coolness. The same uncomfortable sensations as before reappeared. But this time, her mind grasped the cause with clarity.
Something was missing from her head.
Lost in thought, Applejack—still lying down with her eyes closed—stretched out her hooves, searching blindly through the shadows around her.
She didn't find what she was looking for.
"Umphhhh..." The farm pony immediately sat up and checked the head of her simple bed.
Nothing. Her hat was gone.
"What in tarnation...?" she muttered, feeling slightly irritated. Now fully awake, Applejack scanned the darkness of the room, hoping to spot the hat that was so characteristic of her.
The silhouettes of four ponies stood out like ghosts in the gloom. Her friends, no doubt. All still asleep, sprawled on the floor or draped over the furniture, wrapped in blankets and sheets. Though... they looked somewhat disheveled, perhaps from tossing and turning in their sleep.
Applejack chuckled softly as she observed the strange position Rarity had ended up in. The unicorn was lying on the couch a few steps away, her front hooves stretched upwards and her tail bent backward. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish's, letting out polite whistles and rather ungraceful gurgles.
Not far away, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy slept on the floor, barely recognizable beneath the thick blankets covering them. Only their manes peeked out, along with their distinctive breathing. Particularly Pinkie Pie's occasional, giggling snore.
And in the middle of it all, right on the table, lay Rainbow Dash—completely sprawled out. Her unmistakable rainbow mane and the rest of her body peeked out from beneath a mess of blankets, bottles, and a... hat?
"Very funny, Rainbow Dash..." Applejack grumbled in annoyance, grabbing the hat firmly. She wasn't surprised in the slightest that her mischievous pegasus friend had taken it.
Determined to finally get some sleep, she headed back to her bed, ignoring the drowsy protests of the rainbow-maned pegasus. She placed the hat on her head and then...
"Umphh!"
The rejection was immediate. Her mane, almost as if it had a will of its own, sent a clear signal: something was wrong.
That wasn't her hat.
A shiver ran down her spine. A faint, acrid smell filled her nose, making her frown. Slowly, Applejack turned her head toward the darkness of the room.
And then she noticed it.
On the central table, where Rainbow Dash lay, the pegasus's head peeked out from beneath the blankets, mumbling in her sleep. Without the hat Applejack had taken, her rainbow mane was clearly visible under the dim light, but also...
Applejack felt her breath quicken. It took her a moment to recognize it.
Bandages.
Many thin, white bandages covered Rainbow Dash's face, leaving only half of it exposed. Applejack swallowed hard.
"When did she get hurt this bad?" she thought, fear creeping into her mind.
But it wasn't just that.
The bandages, resembling thick strands of a pompous spider's web, stretched beyond Rainbow Dash's body, trailing over the table, the floor, and the furniture. Some were cut, torn, dirty... scattered all over the room.
And they weren't just bandages.
The floor was speckled with dark stains—drips of a thick, black liquid that spread in every direction.
Her breathing grew erratic. Her heart pounded furiously against her chest. The darkness seemed to thicken, becoming denser... more alive.
"Ow!" she gasped, clutching her head.
A sharp pain pierced through her, like a stinger burrowing into the deepest part of her mind.
Memories.
Scattered fragments of a train. An enemy. A battle. A violent dream... or perhaps a nightmare?
The shock hit her in full force. The pain clouded her senses. Applejack clenched her eyes shut, trying to block out the images flooding her mind.
Without realizing it, she stumbled backward… until she hit the wall.
"CLICKK."
The dry sound startled her.
Suddenly, a white light flooded the room, banishing the shadows. Everything became clear in an instant.
With the switch unintentionally pressed behind her, Applejack stood frozen, paralyzed before the now fully illuminated scene.
Far from midnight, outside the world they knew, but still bound by friendship...
Of Twilight's extraordinary group of friends, Applejack was the first to awaken in that land of sensibility.