The pony fumbled around in the blankets, trying to untangle herself. She emerged from the bed, stretching her forelegs in the air while letting out an extended yawn. The unicorn raised her foreleg to rub her eyes awake, and they began to focus onto her bedroom. The sun was shining brightly through her window, filling her library with a natural light.
Twilight Sparkle felt too comfortable in her bed, but she had to get up. She rolled out and landed on all fours, then used her magic to make her bed. A purple glow surrounded the sheets as they tucked into the sides of the mattress. Finished, she went over to the foot of her bed to wake up Spike, her dragon assistant.
"Wake up Spike! We have a lot to do today!" Twilight stated as she approached Spike's bed. There was no answer.
"Spike, get up.. Spike?"
Twilight looked down into the small basket that was Spike's bed, but the baby dragon wasn't there. Being a young dragon, Spike usually slept at this time. He was never one to wake up early, unless we was planning something for Twilight's birthday. Twilight figured he was downstairs making breakfast, but she couldn't smell anything from the kitchen.
"Spike? Are you down there?" Twilight yelled from the bedroom. No response. Twilight groaned in frustration as she walked downstairs, ready to give Spike a lecture for not answering.
"Spike! Where are you?"
Twilight observed the library. For some reason, it felt empty. Twilight didn't like this feeling, as if she was alone. Spike had probably run out to buy some supplies or do something for Rarity. The unicorn turned to ask Owloysius to go through her morning schedule.
"Owloysius, could you please bring me my checklist... Owloysius?"
Where the owl's stand was, stood no owl. Twilight stared in confusion. Owloysius was always perched on her stand, unless Twilight had her doing something.
"Owloysius, where are you?" Twilight called, looking around in hopes that the owl would appear in front of her. She started to panic, but she knew it wouldn't help. The unicorn took a couple of deep breaths to adapt to the sudden change, assuring herself that the baby dragon and the owl had run off early to do something.
"It's okay Twilight Sparkle." she said to herself. "I can go through today's agenda by myself! I'm sure those two will be back shortly."
Fear set aside, Twilight lifted the scroll which was her checklist and began to plan her day. First order of business was collect overdue books. Twilight shook her head in disapproval. When it was time to return your book, you returned it! Some ponies were careless enough to lose copies, and Twilight would have to go as far as Canterlot to resupply. She snatched up her overdue book list, and was surprised at the number of overdue books.
Pinkie Pie had checked out a cook book on unique deserts, but it was due two weeks ago. Even one of Twilight's best friends couldn't bring back a book on time. Twilight sighed and headed out the door, keeping the list in her saddlebag.
When Twilight stepped outside, she stopped. Something didn't feel right to her. That same feeling of loneliness crept back into her and ran up her spine. Usually at this time, ponies were up and about moving along with their day. Colts would be off to work and mares would be buying groceries or help make the village look pretty.
But to Twilight's surprise, the streets were empty. She couldn't hear sounds of trotting or even conversations. As Twilight forced her ears to pick up sound, another wave of fear made her paralyse on the spot. The only sound she could hear was her own breathing. But even if ponies weren't around, wouldn't she be able to hear birds singing their morning melodies?
Twilight looked up, but no birds flew in the sky. She couldn't see any pegasi either. The unicorn was sweating now, uncomfortable with the sudden change in atmosphere. A beacon beeped in her head though, knowing where she could find some form of life. Quickly she turned to observe the beehive that nested on the tree branch of the library. Twilight froze in horror again, as she saw no bees surrounding the hive or flying in or out of it.
What in the name of Celestia was going on? It had to be some sort of joke. There was no way any living thing could just vanish like that. Twilight was still there wasn't she? Yes, she still existed, so other ponies must exist too. Twilight tried to calm herself down and focus on her list.
"Calm down Twilight, it's probably a cruel joke. Maybe Fluttershy has all the animals rounded up for something, yeah that's it. Maybe the ponies are all out planning something to surprise me! Why else would I be alone? And why surprise me? My birthday isn't for months..."
Twilight continued to use her imagination to explain why every living creature just disappeared. She trotted towards Sugarcube Corner, hoping that some pony would walk up and explain something to her.
Before entering the bakery, Twilight quickly darted her head left and right. No ponies were in her sight. She burst open the door, praying that any pony would be inside. No ponies were eating in the booths. Pinkie Pie was not behind the counter like she usually was.
"Pinkie Pie?" Twilight called out. Pinkie Pie would be the one to immediately respond to a friend.
"Mrs. Cake? Pinkie Pie? Any pony?"
Total silence was all Twilight could hear. Fear once again slowly crept up her spine. It was a Monday! Why wasn't any pony here working? The twins! Twilight was sure the baby twins would be here! Twilight dashed up the stairs and burst into the twins bedroom, not caring if she woke them up from a nap. The cribs lay empty.
A grim expression was all Twilight had when she left Sugarcube Corner. Bags had formed under her eyes. No, this wasn't possible. How could it be even possible? Could Discord have returned and gotten revenge? No, Twilight would have felt the seal weaken from his stone statue. She refused to give up hope and decided to try Sweet Apple Acres next.
As Twilight entered the farm, she couldn't find Big Macintosh or Applejack working in the orchards. Granny Smith wasn't out in her rocking chair like she usually was. Twilight searched their house, and gasped in horror. The Apple family always had to wake up early to work on the farm. Their breakfast was still on the table, half-eaten. No way they were just end a meal like that and just leave it there to attract bugs. But there weren't any bugs were there?
Twilight tried the Cutie Mark Crusader Clubhouse, but found out it too was also empty. She couldn't keep herself calm anymore and started hyperventilating. Her heart rate increased and she had to sit down for a moment. As her brain tried to process what was happening, Twilight started talking to herself.
"Every pony didn't just leave did they? But how could they take the wildlife with them? Only Fluttershy could do that... Fluttershy!"
Of course! Fluttershy was probably hiding all the animals at her cottage! Twilight wasted no time galloping to the edge of the Everfree Forest. As she ran, she felt that something else was wrong, but she put it aside.
Twilight Sparkle didn't stop running until she was in front of Fluttershy's front door, and knocked hard on the wood.
"Fluttershy! I know you have all the animals! Open up this instant!"
The house remained silent. The door didn't open.
"Fluttershy! Joke's over, very funny. Please stop this!"
Silence.
"Please!" Twilight lowered to the ground and started crying. She kept begging at nothing for the loneliness to end. Her tears flowed down her fur and into mouth, leaving a salty taste. In between her sobs, Twilight continued to beg for some pony to talk to. She didn't care if it was a friend or a stranger, any pony would do. As she cried, that feeling that something else was wrong kept bugging her.
"I don't want to be alone anymore. I want my friends..."
Twilight eventually ended the waterworks after an hour. Her eyes were dried up. She casually wiped away snot leaking from her nose. Fluttershy's animals could not be heard. No ducks quacking, no cats meowing, no birds chirping, and most disturbing, no Fluttershy.
Twilight felt weak. Her current emotions and loneliness removed any strength she had in her body. She slowly trotted back into Ponyville, but refused to lose hope just yet. Twilight began breaking into random houses, hoping in vain a pony would be inside. She tried Carousel Boutique first.
Rarity and Sweetiebelle weren't home. Twilight spent hours searching through homes, exploring basements, and screaming for help. Not one pony was in their home. Twilight realized she was the only living creature left in Ponyville.
She refused to accept this horrible truth. She desperately began digging into the dirt, hoping to find some worms or maybe some centipedes. All she found was more dirt.
"Argh! Why is this happening to me? Are you up there Rainbow Dash? STOP THIS CRUEL JOKE!"
The sky remained empty. All that was up there was the clouds and the sun... the sun? This tiem Twilight didn't feel fear or loneliness. All the emotion left her soul as she came to a horrifying realization: the sun hasn't moved since she woke up. Twilight figured the time to be around 10:30am, yet it looked like early morning. Half the sky was still pink. If the sun wasn't moving then that meant...
Princess Celestia was gone too.
It wasn't just Ponyville, it was all of Equestria. Twilight was the last remaining creature in the world. Twilight didn't want to admit it, but the realization of all this made her collapse to the ground.
A month had passed since the mysterious disappearance of life. Twilight had gone through her entire library twice to figure out some sort of answer. She had notes plastered on her walls, calculations littered across the floor, and a pile of books stacked to the ceiling. Twilight gave up organizing them.
Trying to survive quickly became difficult. Without insects to pollinate the flowers, they began to wither and die. Without earthworms to filter the soil, plants failed to grow. Twilight's only sources of food were leftover stockpiles of hay, canned goods lifted from houses, and the apple trees from Applejack's farm. She figured she'd be able to hold out for a while.
Something else also plagued Twilight Sparkle: Boredom. Without any new books to read or any ponies to socialize with, life quickly became dull and pointless. The unicorn refused to sleep at night and could only think about her friends. She hoped that they were somewhere, and were thinking about her. Twilight couldn't cry anymore, her tear ducts had run dry.
The one thing Twilight worried about the most though, was insanity. She feared that she might start hallucinating and imagining things. Maybe inanimate objects would come to life and talk to her. Wouldn't that be nice? Something to talk to.
"Isn't that right table?" Twilight said out loud, taking a break from her notes. "I might go crazy. What do I do?... No, my friends didn't abandon me. They simply disappeared... I don't know how! That's what I'm trying to find out!... You're a stupid table! Couch is more interesting than you."
She felt bad for yelling at Table, but after saying things like that, it deserved it.
A full year passed since Twilight woke up alone that day. Food supplies were low. Twilight barely made it through the winter. Without any weather management or the yearly Winter Wrap Up, the white powder had an extended visit. Luckily for Twilight, she anticipated this and stocked up on any food she could scrap up. The apple trees at Sweet Apple Acres were starting to wither and the apples were rotting. It hurt Twilight knowing that the farm would be dead soon, and she was losing a major source of food.
Twilight packed her things and began a trip to Canterlot... by foot. It would take days to reach the city, but the benefits would be worth it. Each hoof followed the old train track leading up the mountain. After a week, Twilight made it to Canterlot.
She knew it would be empty when she got there, but seeing the empty city almost made her heart burst. Her friend were gone, her family was gone, every pony was just gone. Twilight longed to see Princess Luna's night once more, but still the sun remained in it's early morning state.
Twilight figured she'd stay in Canterlot. There was more food, and considering she grew up here it only felt right. But before she could settle into her childhood home, Twilight Sparkle had one thing to do first.
Using all of her strength, Twilight forced the heavy doors open. The throne room was silent. Princess Celestia was not sitting there. No guard ponies hung around the castle. Twilight sighed and tried Celestia's private bedroom. She always dreamed of entering her bedroom, but for some reason it felt wrong. Twilight hesitated outside the door. She decided to respect her mentor's privacy and leave the room alone.
Five years passed since Twilight appeared in Canterlot. The city supplied enough non-perishable food to keep her going. She began to worry though, as more and more plant life disappeared too. Without plants to release oxygen into the atmosphere, she worried that air supply would be limited. It would still be years until that happened of course.
Twilight had spent her time reading everything in Canterlot Archives... twice. She practised magic everyday and forgot about life. She was used to being alone now. If anything she feared the return of life, considering the shock it have on her new lifestyle. Twilight has also made several trips across Equestria, touring cities such as Manehatten or Baltimare. She never had to wait in line for anything, and she was free to take anything she wanted. Twilight even believed she had read every book in Equestria. Her boredom took her to new heights. She used her magic to demolish buildings as entertainment. She became a master at throwing playing cards into a top hat. Twilight had taught herself how to juggle. If Twilight has no experience in it, she craved it for the taste of knowledge.
Twilight had successfully adapted to her new life.
4 years later, or 10 years since every living creature vanished out of thin air, Twilight started to get ill. Her diet of nothing but canned food and boxed goods were having negative effects on her body. Not to mention most plant life was gone, causing a decrease of oxygen. It became harder to breathe up in Canterlot, so Twilight decided to leave. She knew she was going to be a goner soon. She knew where she wanted to be.
After a week passed, Twilight found herself in the town square of Ponyville. The town was worse shape than it was when Twilight left it. Some buildings had collapsed. Applejack's farm was nothing but withered trees. The whole town was dead. Twilight could barely remember a time when there was other life. All she knew now was loneliness.
Twilight opened up a case she brought with her. She laid the six Elements of Harmony in a circle on the town square. As Twilight observed the golden tiara and golden necklaces, memories of her friends returned to her mind.
First was the day they all met. It was also the same day they realized they were the Elements of Harmony, and used their power to stop Nightmare Moon and save Princess Luna. All of their adventures and friendship problems quickly raced through the unicorn's head. Twilight collapsed and did something she hadn't done in years. She cried.
A single word never left her mouth. She gave up speech after realizing she wouldn't stop talking to inanimate objects. Her tears flowed onto the ground, and streamed onto the Elements of Harmony.
"I wish I could have my friends back." Twilight spoke for the first time in years. Her voice had become dry and dull, with no happiness or emotion mixed in with the sound. Twilight closed her eyes fell asleep.
When Twilight woke up, she felt something was wrong. She looked up, and saw the that the sun was setting, and the moon began to rise.