//------------------------------//
// Chapter 7: Final Confrontation 
// Story: The Following 
// by AusFlick 
//------------------------------//

"Leave her alone!" Crystal snapped. 

"Or what?" the monster hissed.

"I... I will... I'll..." Crystal stuttered.

"You'll do what?" said the monster.

"Listen," said Crystal. "If you want to get to Fluttershy..." She stepped in front of Fluttershy, blocking her from the monster. "You'll have to go through me!"

"That will be something that can be easily arranged!" said the monster, giving an evil grin. Crystal turned of her light from her horn. The red light generated from the monster's eyes was bright enough to see. The monster formed into a cloud and launched at Crystal. Right before it hit, Crystal conjured a blue shield with a horn. The shield was just big enough to cover both herself and Fluttershy. 

The monster was only just too late. It tried to scratch at the shield with no effect. It formed its claw into a fist and tried to smash it. That too had no effect. With each hit, Crystal was grimacing, and at times was groaning in pain. 

"Crystal, are you alright?" Fluttershy asked.

"This shield can't hold us forever," said Crystal. "We need to do something."

"Like what?" said Fluttershy.

As the monster tried to hit the shield again, Crystal groaned again, even louder this time.

"Anything!" 

Fluttershy's mind was moving at rapid fire, trying to think of way to escape. She came up with nothing.

The monster gave up trying to hit the shield and was now trying a new tactic. It turned back into a cloud of black dust, as it propelled itself around the outside of the shield. Its speed kept increasing, zipping around the shield faster and faster. Eventually it was moving like a cyclone, and neither Crystal nor Fluttershy were able to see outside the shield. Unlike the scratching and the banging however, this tactic was actually working.

Crystal and Fluttershy felt the ground vibrate beneath their hooves, as the wind generated from outside the shield roared loudly. Then they heard it. The noise of what sounded like ice cracking, except it wasn't ice. It was the shield. Cracks were generating in the shield from all directions. Crystal had to squeeze her eyes tight, crouching to the ground yelling in pain.

"I don't think I can hold it for much longer!" she yelled. Fluttershy continued to think of a plan, but it was no use. They were screwed.

In seconds, the dome was completely covered in cracks.

"Oh, no," Fluttershy said under her breath.

At that moment, the shield shattered.

The monster flew directly into Crystal. The impact sent her flying across the room, crashing into the wall, before falling body first onto the ground unconscious. She lay there still, eyes closed, completely motionless. Much like how Rainbow Dash had crashed hours ago.

"CRYSTAL!" Fluttershy screamed.

Fluttershy ran to come to her aid, but was almost immediately blocked by the monster. Its glowing, bulging red eyes stared at Fluttershy with rage. Her heart sank, as it felt like it was looking into her soul.

"Poor, Fluttershy!" It boomed. "Scared, vulnerable, frightened, and all alone!"

It was right. She was alone. At this point, Crystal was all she had left. Now it was just her, and it. Fluttershy's heart was pounding harder than ever before, and she was visibly shaking. She closed her eyes, and prepared herself. She knew what was coming.

"It's time to die!"

Before Fluttershy knew it, she was consumed in a cloud of black. Wind was howling, and it felt like it was bursting her ear drums. Black particles scraped through her coat, mane and tail, stinging her as if she was standing in the midst of a sandstorm. Then she felt it. Razor sharp jagged teeth sank into her foreleg. Fluttershy let out another scream, as she instantly felt her entire leg burning up, boiling to a critical degree.

The black cloud had calmed down, and reformed into its physical form, blocking the exit. Fluttershy kept her eyes shut tight, and grimaced, as she felt like the inside of her leg was on fire. She tried to take a step forward, and that's when the pain stopped. Instead of feeling an agonising burning sensation in her leg, now she couldn't feel her leg at all, as if her leg had completely gone to sleep. Her leg couldn't support any of her weight what so ever, and she fell over as she tried to step on it. She couldn't move her leg at all. Fluttershy opened her eyes to look.

Her injured fore leg had teeth marks, and she was bleeding. Then she saw what she felt like was the cause of her leg going to sleep. Under her skin, she saw her veins going black, and the black veins were spreading throughout her entire leg. It didn't take Fluttershy long to realise what had happened to her. She didn't bother trying to get up. Instead, she just lied there on the ground, wondering how long it would take before the venom spread through her entire body and killed her.

Fluttershy glanced over to the monster, which was just sitting at the exit with a massive smile on its face. Fluttershy couldn't believe it. This thing was actually enjoying the experience of watching her lying on the floor suffering. It was enjoying watching her die.

Fluttershy placed her head on the ground, and closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable. She could already feel the poison spreading to her other three legs. She tried to recollect all of her cherished memories that she had with her friends. Rainbow Dash standing up for her when she was picked on in Cloudsdale. Meeting Twilight for the first time. The many amazing dresses Rarity had made for her. The countless occasions Pinkie Pie made her laugh or smile. The delicious meals that Applejack used to make with the apples in her farm. As Fluttershy was reminiscing the many fond memories she had with her friends, her thoughts were interrupted by a noise.

She stopped focusing on her memories to listen. The noise was coming from underground. She twitched her ears, listening intently to work out what it was. While it was very muffled, and almost impossible to hear, Fluttershy was soon able to work it out. It was the sound of yelling and screaming. It sounded like it was coming from several ponies, though she struggled to hear what they were saying. As she listened closely, she was able to work out a few key words.

"Fluttershy... no... and help... "

As she continued to listen, some of the voices became more distinct, one was loud and high pitched, while another was raspy. It was them!

"Oh my," Fluttershy said as her face lit up. "They're ok!" Fluttershy looked over herself. She had completely lost her legs, but she still had wings at her disposal. She rolled into a position that allowed her to spread her wings, before launching herself into the air.

"THEY'RE OK!" she shouted, overwhelmed with joy and relief. Fluttershy wondered how to explain the skeletons if her friends were still alive, but that was the last thing to think about. 

The monster stood tall, once again looking deep into Fluttershy's eyes with rage. Fueled by her determination to get her friends out of here, for the very first time, Fluttershy didn't quiver in fear.

"Am I supposed to be intimidated by that?" Fluttershy snapped. From the little of its face she could see, she could tell that she hit a nerve. It was most likely taken off guard by her question.

"I know you are," it said. "I've taken your friends, and now my venom is slowly killing you." Fluttershy looked down at her body, black veins were now spreading into her body. She didn't have very long to live. "Tell me, are you afraid?"

"I'm terrified," said Fluttershy. "I'm terrified for my life, and my friends. But that's not going to stop me from trying to save them. I'm not letting my fear control me anymore!" 

Fluttershy couldn't tell if it was just her wings flapping so hard that she was getting higher or what, but the monster appeared to have gotten smaller. It was at that moment Fluttershy made a realisation. Everything now made sense. She knew what this thing was, how it worked, and most importantly, how to defeat it.

"You can't hurt me," said Fluttershy.

"I literally poisoned you!" the monster boomed.

"I meant, you can't hurt me anymore," said Fluttershy. "All my life, I have always been vulnerable. I was always easily frightened, and I let it get the best of me. I used to let my fear control me. Rainbow Dash once tried to teach me how to improve my flying, and I didn't do the tasks she set because I was afraid to do it. I've always been the quiet one who sat in the back corner of a room at a party because she was too afraid to make a new friend. I let a creepy figure that was always following me control how I lived my life cause I was too afraid to stand up to it!"

"And your point is?" the monster asked.

"Fear is a natural and very important emotion that is needed for survival. That's how I was able to detect the danger in you. However, I made the mistake of letting it control my life. Well not anymore. When you first found me in the Everfree Forest that night, you saw this in me, and I was the perfect victim as a result. I noticed the more afraid I became of you, the stronger you got, am I right?"

"That is correct," said the monster, which was still getting smaller.

"I've observed that this is in your nature. My fear is what gave you strength, and that's why you were after me! You also thought I'd be more vulnerable if I was isolated from my friends, so you used magic to only be visible to your victims. You're only seen by those of which you want to be seen."

"Exactly!" the monster hissed.

"Clever plan, but you made one teeny, tiny mistake."

"And what was that?"

Fluttershy's face instantly filled with rage, and any sign of fear she may have previously had was gone. She was gritting her teeth, scrunching her nose, and her eyes were bulging.

"YOU TOOK MY FRIENDS!" she exploded. Using every muscle she had left in her body, Fluttershy dived into the monster. She crashed into the ground, and looked up to see where the monster was, only to see there was no more monster. As she dived, whatever strength the monster may have had disappeared, and it crumpled to dust. She did it. It was gone.

While the monster itself was gone, she was still poisoned, which was now seizing up her neck. Fluttershy tried lifting every muscle she could to get up, but her entire body had gone to sleep. Even her wings were now infected. It seemed like the only thing she could move was her head. Her time was almost up. All she wanted to do was rescue her friends, who were still down there, trapped underneath a heap of dirt. She was so close.

In the distance, Fluttershy could her groaning behind her. She couldn't turn her head to look, but she guessed Crystal was coming to. Then she heard gasping.

"Fluttershy!"

Yep, just by her voice alone, Fluttershy could tell it was definetly Crystal. Crystal ran up to Fluttershy, staring in horror to see her bleeding leg, the teeth marks, and the black veins that were all over her body.

"Fluttershy, are you ok?" Crystal asked.

"No," said Fluttershy weakly. "I'm dying."

"Oh my, Fluttershy, what did it do to you? Speaking of which, where is it?"

"It's ok," said Fluttershy. "It's gone now."

"You actually defeated it?" said Crystal.

"Yeah," said Fluttershy. Crystal looked down at Fluttershy and smiled. She was beaming, her eyes shining with pride.

"Oh, Fluttershy," said Crystal. "I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks, Crystal," Fluttershy said softly, before closing her eyes and remained absolutely still.

"Fluttershy, no!" Crystal cried. "No, no, no! This can't be happening!" Crystal placed her hoof over Fluttershy neck and checked for a pulse. She found nothing. Crystal's horn glowed, as she placed it on Fluttershy's bleeding teeth marks, trying to cast her healing spell. She kept it there for a good few seconds before pulling it away. She stared at down at her. Fluttershy remained completely motionless.

"Fluttershy, please!" Crystal pleaded. "Don't you die on me, please!"

Then she noticed the black veins. They were clearing up. The black veins slowly disappeared, and the teeth marks in her leg soon followed. Fluttershy coughed, and opened her eyes.

"Fluttershy! You're ok!" Crystal cried, as Fluttershy woke up, and slowly climbed back onto her hooves.

"Thanks, Crystal," said Fluttershy. 

"Don't mention it," said Crystal, smirking. "Now then, let's get the heck out of here."

"Wait, we can't," Fluttershy said quickly.

"Why not?" asked Crystal.

"Our friends are in here..."

"Fluttershy," Crystal sighed. "We have to let them go."

"No, you're not understanding me," said Fluttershy. "I meant they're in here as in they're alive, and I'm not leaving without them."

"They're alive?" said Crystal. "But where? How do you know?"

"I heard them screaming for my help from under the dirt," said Fluttershy.

"You mean they're actually in the ground?" said Crystal alarmed.

"Yes!" said Fluttershy.

"Then what are we waiting for? We need to get them out of there! Where were you when you heard them?"

Fluttershy ran over to the spot she recalled hearing them. She placed her ear to the ground and listened. They were screaming out her name, with a few uses of the words 'Help us' thrown into the mix. Fluttershy marked an X with her hoof where she placed her ear.

"They're over here," she said. Crystal trotted over to where Fluttershy was standing. Crystal looked straight down.

"Hang on!" she yelled. "We're coming!" She looked up to Fluttershy. "How are we going to get to them?"

"I don't know," said Fluttershy. "Do you know some sort of spell you can use to dig?"

Crystal shook her head. Fluttershy was now pacing as she tried to think of other ideas. As she paced she quickly stopped when she heard a loud squeak under her hoof. She lifted her hoof of the ground, then placed it back on, followed by the same squeaking noise. It sounded like the squeak you'd hear on a wooden floorboard. Crystal's horn glowed as she used a spell to create enough wind to blow a bunch of dirt from under their hooves. Shifting the dirt revealed the massive trapdoor that they were standing upon. The two of them were wandering around the room trying to find a handle.

That was when Crystal spotted the alicorn skeleton. Using a telekinesis spell, she tore the skeleton from its place. Underneath it, covered in dirt, was a large, golden ring. This must have been the handle for the trapdoor.

"I don't get it," said Fluttershy, looking at the alicorn skeleton. "If our friends are really alive, then how would you explain the skeletons, and the smell?"

"Well," said Crystal. "The skeletons are most likely fake, and the smell, well, creating a simulated smell is one of the easiest spells a unicorn can pull off. That thing probably did it to throw you off, to make you more afraid of it.

"Well, it almost worked," said Fluttershy.

Crystal used her telekinesis to grab the handle of the trap door. The door slowly but surely lifted, until it completely opened and crashed onto the floor on the other side of the dome. Underneath where the door was lying was a cubicle hole that sat underground. Trapped in the hole, covered in dirt and soot was Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Twilight. Fluttershy beamed at the sight of them, to see that they were ok.

"Fluttershy!" Pinkie Pie leaped out of the hole and was the first to squeeze Fluttershy in a tight hug.

"Pinkie!" Fluttershy yelled, returning the hug. Never had Fluttershy been so glad to see her, never had she been so glad to see any of them. 

"Fluttershy, you saved us!" Before Fluttershy knew it, Rainbow Dash was too hugging her, just as tightly as Pinkie Pie.

"I'm mighty proud of ya, Fluttershy," said Applejack, climbing out of the hole and wiping the dirt and soot off her hat with her hoof.

Twilight stepped out of the hole. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were finally able to let go, so Fluttershy and Twilight were able to look at each other eye to eye.

"I knew you could do it!" said Twilight, smiling. Fluttershy launched at Twilight, hugging her.

"I couldn't have done it without you, Twilight," she said. "You were there for me the whole time."

"Well, not the whole time," said Twilight, backing away. "But I heard what you said to that monster, and I couldn't be any prouder of you. Learning to respect your fears, without letting them control who you are, is a very valuable lesson to learn."

Twilight and Fluttershy were interrupted by the sound of complaining, though Fluttershy more wanted to describe it as whining.

"Oh, good heavens!" Rarity gasped. "I'm completely covered in filth, and this place looks absolutely horrid, and what in the name of Equestria is that smell?"

Ok, to be fair, the stench was a genuine thing to complain about. 

"Um, excuse me," Crystal cleared her throat. "But don't you think it's wise that we got out of here?"

"Good thinking, Crystal," said Twilight. "Come on, let's go."









As they walked through the tunnel, Fluttershy and Crystal told them about what happened, and what they were doing while they were trapped under the door. When Fluttershy finished talking about how she figured out the monster's weakness and defeated it, Rainbow Dash was full of excitement.

"So you managed to take on that thing all by yourself?"

"Yeah, I did," said Fluttershy.

"Awesome!" said Rainbow Dash.

"That reminds me," said Fluttershy. "Do you think we'll be able to try that flying exercise again later today?"

"You really want to try that again?" said Rainbow Dash. "Are you sure about that? I thought you were too scared to it."

"I am," said Fluttershy. "But I'm not going to let that stop me." Fluttershy recoiled all of the times she experienced over the last couple of days where she had wished she was a faster flyer. "I could really use the practise."

"My goodness," said Rarity. "How far does this thing go?"

"Far enough," said Crystal. As they kept walking, Fluttershy spotted the end of the tunnel. At the other side she could see the daylight that awaited her. It was no longer raining, and any mud there had been had dried up. Even though they still had quite a distance to go, the weather outside looked beautiful. Fluttershy saw the light that awaited her as a representation of her future. She learned how to conquer her fears, she made a new friend, and she had saved her old friends. With the knowledge of what she had learned that night, she planned on putting the rest of her life putting that lesson to practise. Her future was looking bright.

All was well.










The End