Twilight in Apocrypha - By Anonymous

>Twilight Sparkle sighed contentedly, a leather-bound tome crinkled softly as she closed it with a brush of magic
>The runes on the page glowed faintly for moment, leaking between pages and out into the dusty air, before fading into wisps of thoughts
>That book had been a particularly straining read, needing several powerful wards to safeguard her mind from the traps the author had placed within
>Not to mention the complexity of the knowledge stored inside its hideous pages
>Twilight scarcely had words to describe what she had read; none that others could comprehend
>A dull chime echoed in the aether as she replaced the book
>The soothing sound bounced from impossibly tall bookshelves and stacks of books twisted with weird geometry before dissipating with a whispered hush that filled Twilight with euphoria
>A scarce few years earlier, Twilight would not have been able to imagine a place such as Apocrypha
>A dimension unto itself, filled with nothing but the accumulated knowledge of untold numbers of scholars, all gathered by a strange deity
>Twilight reached for another book, this one precisely adjacent to the one she just read
>She wasn't sure how the great library was organized, but it seemed to know exactly what Twilight wanted before she herself was aware of what it was
>The iron-clad cover opened with a muted screech of aged metal, revealing swirling rings of ideas dancing amongst each other on the page
>Twilight felt her brain pulse at the maddening chaos, acutely aware that she was incapable of deciphering the meaning behind the information laid out to her
>Hesitantly, she traced the page with a small tendril of thought, cautious of any traps that might lay in wait for the idle seeker
>She had learned that lesson swiftly
>As she carefully edged her way around the maelstrom she began to sweat
>She could feel it beckoning to her, urging her onward
>Twilight paused
>These fonts were always the most dangerous; whispers, lies, promises, taunts, tools to coerce the reader forward
>Nothing was more frightening to her than a secret that wanted to be known
>She tasted at the edges of the runes, such as a worm might when faced with a large obstacle
>Something tickled at her mind; a thought
>Twilight took a deep breath to calm herself before casting a quick cantrip
>The tickle grew to an itch and Twilight cast the cantrip again, feeling a crisp awareness that usually came from a well-caffeinated beverage
>The itch warped but soon resolved into knowing
"Oh, of course! Why didn't I think of that?"
>The happy chirp fell upon no ears in the library
>Twilight cast another cantrip, feeling something shift
>Twilight's perception distorted, the swirling runes on the page seemed to grow restless
>If before was chaos, now was entropy; whimpering death-throes; wounded and savage
>The rings grew to columns, glowing with knowledge, ascending into the murky upperness of a strange new landscape
>They pulsed threateningly
>Twilight Sparkle sighed and let a tickle of thought cast forward into her mind
>And she was awash with knowing
>She could feel it pulsing inside as her wards, slaves and sorters worked on parsing and disseminating the information, working like a pack of ravenous parasprites to devour any information they found
>At first, she had been insistent on storing every line herself through traditional methods; oratory, repetition, flash cards, but it had been too slow and cumbersome
>Now, she was much more efficient at digesting the information she was given
>The towers of light faded, used and tired
>That had been disappointing
>The knowledge was wonderful, intoxicating even
>However, there was no challenge
>The safeguards the author had placed were pathetic; a child could decipher and evade them
>She had outgrown its defenses some time ago
>A thought whispered and Twilight's curiosity piqued
>She wasn't sure how long she'd spent reading that passage
>With a thought of a thought, Twilight summoned her timer
>She'd believed it to be a good idea to keep track of how long she had spent in this place
>However, time was frustratingly convoluted in this realm; never seeming to move at any consistent pace or to any purpose
>Fortunately, the realm had provided an answer to the obsessive student in the form of a countdown
>To what and by whom, Twilight could only guess, but it had taken her a mere standard Equestrian day to translate the strange configuration of symbols into a familiar scale
>She clucked her tongue
>Four days
>Not unheard of, but usually reserved for particularly challenging passages
>It seemed that the author merely wanted to waste the time of whoever attempted to read his work
>The book closed with a dull thump of metal on velum, and was placed on the shelf
>Twilight felt something shift, and the book next in line for consumption fell free from shelf
>It tumbled to the tiled floor, pages pressed pathetically against the cold stone
>In the books place, seemingly conjured from the aether, was a plain volume, similar in appearance to many found within Golden Oaks, it's plainness magnified in the strange fugue that surrounded it
>A presence made itself known, and Twilight spun to greet her host
>"Ah, Pony. We meet again. It would seem Apocrypha has a task for you."
>Eyes. So many eyes.
>When Twilight first encountered the creature known as Mora, she had been scared spitless
>It's octopod eyes held a cold malice in them; weighing, measuring
>Tentacles of pitch writhed thoughtlessly and seemed ready to pluck at anything their master fancied
>Over time, Twilight's fear faded
>Hermaeus Mora was a courteous, if distant, host
>Once or twice, it had even guided Twilight, offering advice when Apocrypha refused to divulge its secrets
>Twilight took a breath and steadied her mind
>She had a test
>Mora plucked the book from the shelf, offering it to Twilight on a pitch limb
>"I'm eager to see your abilities, Pony."
>Twilight nodded, swallowing a dry mouth
>With a quick cast, the cover opened
>Nostalgia
>The scent of aged paper flooded Twilight's nose and taste buds while the crinkling of pages drowned out the gentle hum of reality
>She brought the book close, laying eyes upon the first page
>Empty
>The yellowed pages held nothing
>Twilight probed, seeking hidden meaning lost in the geometries of the page as some books were wont to do
>Nothing
>She turned the page
>Empty
>Turn again
>Nothing
>Twilight looked over the edge of the book, at her formless host
>Mora regarded her coldly, the infinite patience of a god evident in its posture, waiting on her
>She turned the page again
>Empty
>The pages began to turn quickly as Twilight poured her faculties into dissecting the tome
>As she continued, a dull ringing grew in her ears, distant but ominous
>Pages began to blur and the ringing grew louder and louder, soon becoming a dread horn; a constant drone of sound as tall and broad as any wall
>The sound grew maddening as Twilight pushed on, fluttering pages passing so quickly as to create a constant chopping sound as they tore at the air
>Empty
>Empty
>Empty
>Empty
>The drone became a primordial roar
>Twilight turned the final page
>Empty
>Pain
>Twilight blinked
>Pain
>She grimaced
>So much pain
>It spread through her body like black tendrils, seeking untouched areas to infect, blasting her thoughts to white hot pieces
>Twilight groaned, her mind screamed, whispers rose and fell in a muted cacophony
>How?
>Twilight clung to the thought desperately, a beacon in the maelstrom
>How?
>There were no traps, she was sure of it
>No hidden pathways, no ancient seals or curses
>Empty
>The book was empty
>Her vision faded
>Betrayal
>A beast reared its head deep in her mind, shrieking one name, over and over; Betrayal
>The Apocrypha tilted, sliding out from under Twilight while her mind raced at her own foolishness
>She had been so careful, so meticulous, but she neglected the possibility of something else's desires acting upon her
>Twilight screamed in her mind
>Her nerves pulled themselves apart
>Her skin separated and drew back across glistening muscle
>Her bones shattered and knit, only to shatter again
>Her mind was alight, fires burning behind her tearful eyes
>Then, as suddenly as it came, the pain left without a trace
>She whimpered as it receded
>Her vision was filled with black and she heard a faint rustle and a book crossed her vision, remarkable in its plainness
>The blackness moved and a thoughtful hum echoed through the empty halls of knowledge
>"I see."
>The book was offered to her on a pitch limb, it's cover blank save for a small engraving of her Cutie Mark
>Twilight retched, feeling the need to cleanse herself of that blackened essence, but extended a tendril of thought nonetheless
>The first page held a simple line, written in Equestrian runes
"Twilight Sparkle"
>She read the name aloud
>Twilight Sparkle
>A half-felt feeling rose in her gut, dulled by the distance of mind from reality
>A voice whispered in her mind, urging her to turn the page
>The paper creaked as she turned it, dreading the return of pain from only moments before
>Part of her screamed to stop, to close the book and put it back on the shelf, that there were countless tomes in Apocrypha and that skipping one would be of no consequence
>The voice was small, going unheard amidst the cacophony urging her forward, eager to filter and disseminate whatever lay within
>This page, too, was occupied
>At the very top, placed in a position of dignity, was a familiar sequence that followed Twilight throughout her entire life
>Twilight's lips mouthed the words as she read the digits of her birthday for the first time in what seemed like eternity
>Tears formed in her eyes and her brow furrowed in confusion
"I don't understand."
>She flipped through the book, each chapter bearing her Cutie Mark and name; each page a date from her life
>Tears gathered and fell; the more she read the more she cried
>She read of her loneliness, of her studies
>She read of her friend and her triumphs
>She reached the final page
>A tentacle blacker than the dark between stars blocked her sight
>"To read this page is to know thyself, Twilight Sparkle. To read it sets your fate in stone."
>The voices screamed, a muted roar of want, baying with hunger and promising retribution for failure
>Twilight's lip trembled as realization dawned; she had crossed Fate's border long ago
>She gently brushed the obscuring limb aside and gazed at the page
>Twilight gazed back
>Tears of grey ooze leaked from her eyes
>So many eyes
>Some were hers; most were not
>Many regarded Twilight with cold interest, weighing their author
>Blighted black lips, thick with corruption trembled on a swollen muzzle
>A horn poked from between a mangy fringe of hair set between two ears set between two ears set between two ears, horns poking weakly from their own prisons of indigo mane
>Twilight traced down her neck, watching as a tentacle did the same on the creature staring at her from within the pages
>Formless
>Twilight vomited black bile; Ink
>Her skin crinkled as she thrashed in confusion and terror
"I want to go home."
>The voice burbled from her throat, she was sure of it
"I want to go home, now."
>"You know the path, Twilight Sparkle."
"Where's my book? I want to go home."
>A black tentacle traced the corners of the tome that lay in from of the former unicorn
>"You are no longer a creature of the material plane, Twilight Sparkle. To return is to experience agony beyond compare."
"I want to go home."
>"Apocrypha has claimed you, Twilight Sparkle. Would you so readily deny its wishes?"
"Yes."
>"Very well. The way lies open. You may return whenever you feel the call of Apocrypha."
>A tentacle of parchment closed the book and reopened it to the first page
>Twilight focused her being onto the page, seeking a way home
>The runes rose from the page, glowing quietly in the growing murk
>"Farewell, Twilight Sparkle."

>"Twilight? Twilight, where have you gone?"
>A concerned voice reached Twilight's ears, melodious and comforting
>Princess Celestia
>Everything rushed back into Twilight
>She had come to the Princess for help, seeking knowledge on pocket dimensions and travel within them
>Very secret knowledge and open for abuse to whomever mastered it
>Understandably, the Princess hoarded any tome on the subject in her own personal library within Canterlot Castle
>Twilight called out
"Princess? Princess Celestia!"
>She raced into the stacks, eager to see her mentor once again
>"Twilight, is that you? Is everything okay?"
>Trepidation
>Twilight didn't care, she was going to see her friends again
>There, a flowing tale floated from behind one of the elegant cases
"Princess!"
>Twilight cheered as she turned the corner
>"Twilight? Oh, dearest Twilight..."