I can't escape this love, I want it the way it was;
Forever, and always;
Don't you leave me here, Alone in all this fear,
Forever, and always...
-"Dead Inside," by Skillet

She was nothing. Everything was darkness. Even the pain was gone, for nothing cannot feel pain. The time that passed may have been a moment or an eternity, she did not know. However long had passed, eventually she became a whisper in the darkness, and slowly, a very faint glow. She felt a different kind of darkness envelop her; not the dull, black death that was, but instead a cool, peaceful restful sort of darkness. This darkness was dotted with tiny glimmers of light, like stars in the night sky. Of course, she thought to herself, this new darkness is the night. The glow that she was grew ever so slightly brighter and began to take form, and then she began to feel a soft warmth wrap itself around her. It reminded her of when she was a child. It was safe and happy. It was love.

The suffocating darkness continued to fade away, until Twilight became aware of the soft bed beneath her. She felt someone drape a fluffy blanket over her. Twilight groaned softly, feeling as though she'd woken up after sleeping for a hundred years.

"She is returning to us. Fetch her some cider, Cadence," she heard Luna say softly. Twilight felt the warmth around her fade slightly, and she opened her eyes. She was lying on a bed, and Princess Luna was lying beside her, her horn glowing ever so slightly. Princess Cadence climbed up on the bed beside the other two and offered twilight a nice hot mug of apple cider. Twilight sipped it slowly, letting the warm, spiced, golden liquid fill her senses.

"How do you feel, Twily?" Cadence asked.

"…ok," she said slowly, "what…why did…I don't understand," tears sprang to her eyes as she remembered what had transpired.

Luna placed a comforting hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "Shh…it's alright now, little one. You're safe. Believe me when I say, my heart knows no greater sorrow than the fact that we could not warn you before you were placed on this path. Our Lady even forbade us to say anything to you until now."

"Why did she hurt me? How did she do that? It…it was almost like she took away my soul..."

Cadence started crying softly and turned her head away. Twilight looked questioningly at Luna, who said, "My dear child…I'm afraid our Princess would not have been able to do what she did…if she had not already taken your soul from you." Luna closed her eyes and took a deep breath to compose herself.

Twilight's eyes went wide with horror, "What?! How could she…I don't understand!" Cadence started crying harder, all of the anguish she had held inside as she had quietly watched in horror as Princess Celestia had taken Twilight finally pouring out of her.

"It is very old magic," Luna continued, "older than Equestria as you know it. You'll find no books about it, nor any that mention the era in which it existed, save those in Celestia's private collection, though no one but she and I have ever seen them. That era ended right before the beginning of Equestrian history as you and everypony else in this world understand it."

Twilight could barely wrap her mind around what Luna was saying. She looked at Cadence, who nodded as if to confirm what Luna was saying. "Please, Luna, tell me more," Twilight said.

Luna nodded. "Long ago, alicorns were the prime inhabitants of Equestria. There were no unicorns or pegasi or earth ponies. We were all alicorns. Magic was the ultimate ruler in the land at that time. Whoever wielded the most powerful magic ruled the land. Various noble bloodlines with generations of magical talent in their heritage squabbled for ultimate power. Eventually, somepony discovered a way to increase their magical power in an almost unlimited fashion. This was the birth of soul magic. One pony would take the soul of another pony, and not only would their magical power increase wildly, but they would also receive a measure of that pony's special talent. In addition, the pony whose soul they took would be forever bound to them. This pony would still have their own magical abilities, but they were wholly in thrall to the pony who took their soul."

"Eventually, though, society began to fall apart. Those who took souls took more and more, competing with their fellows to become the most powerful. No one was safe. When common ponies got their hooves on information on how to take souls, total chaos erupted. They were tired of being subject to the noble, uber magical bloodlines, and so they took power for themselves. Celestia and I, we were daughters of the Heavensky bloodline. What was left of our family had barricaded ourselves into our home, but it was only a matter of time before the mobs came for us. Now, even without any sort of enhancement, Celestia was uniquely gifted in the magical arts. She found me in my chambers and told me she had perfected a spell to put an end to this once and for all, but even with all her power, she did not have enough within her to successfully cast the spell. She…she asked me for my soul. To save us all, she asked me for my soul. I was young and afraid. I knew my sister loved me and would not ask if there was any other way, and so I consented and allowed her to take my soul."

"She held me close and formed a shield around us, and then she cast her spell. Everything was suddenly overtaken by the most brilliant flash of light. I don't know if it lasted for a minute or an hour or a day, but when it faded, we were standing in a field, surrounded by confused creatures Equestria had never seen before. They stared at us in awe, and it did not take long for them to declare Celestia their princess. These creatures were like us, but they were different. Celestia had changed all of the alicorns save us, and she had wiped all of their memories away. Each alicorn had been split, it seemed, and they were the first unicorns and pegasi. Those who had no souls had become earth ponies. At the time, I was in awe of her genius. She had ended the horror without killing anyone. We helped the new ponies build a new world for themselves, and they revered us as their rulers. Some even thought us gods. All was well. However….eventually, things changed. Even performed for right reasons, soul magic is a terrible thing with a terrible price."

Before Luna could say more, the door to the room opened, and Celestia stood in the doorway. The way the light shined behind her made her look like a terrible black shadow of herself. She spoke in a sultry voice, "I require your services, Mi Amore Cadenza…" her eyes seemed to smolder like hot coals. Cadence stood obediently and walked toward her Princess.

"I am eager to please you, my Lady," she said respectfully. Celestia smiled wickedly.

"Dear sister, you should let poor Twilight sleep. It is late, and you have a beautiful night to keep watch over," Celestia said as she left with Cadence.

"As my Lady bids," said Luna. To Twilight, she said, "Rest now, little one. I will tell you more tomorrow."