“The soul that has conceived one wickedness can nurse no good thereafter.”
- Hoophacles
It started out like any other morning in Ponyville. In a cozy cottage, near the Everfree Forest, the gentle pegasus mare, Fluttershy was waking up and preparing to feed her many animals. She hummed to herself quietly, as she was known to do, as she set up all the various foods. But, something was different about today; it was unusually quiet. The butter colored mare noticed none of her animals inside the cottage. She supposed they could all be outside. But when going outside, Fluttershy didn’t see any of her animals in sight. At this time of day, they would all be scurrying towards her to get some delicious food.
“Hello?” she called out. “Where are you my little critters? I have a yummy breakfast for you.”
Fluttershy looked around and so nothing.
“Hello!?” she called out again, just a little louder this time.
She was beginning to worry. But then she heard some whimpering coming from inside her chicken coop. Walking up slowly, so as not to make her little friends more nervous, she peeked her head inside, and saw many different species of animals huddled together in fear.
“What’s the matter, little ones?” she asked with great concern. “Is there some scary creature nearby?”
Most of them remained seemingly motionless, showing only the tiniest hints of shivering. Out of the pile of animals jumped Angel Bunny, her most beloved pet. The normally confident bunny had a clear look of fright on his face, something Fluttershy rarely saw in her furry companion. If he was scared, she knew it must be serious.
“What’s the matter Angel Bunny?” she asked.
Angel motioned Fluttershy to follow him. They made their way towards the border of the Everfree Forest, near a seemingly ordinary bush.
“Is this the spot, Angel?” she asked softly.
Angel rapidly nodded his head, pointing continuously at the bush. Both of them let out an audible gulp, as the timid little mare made her way closer to the bush, and moved some brush aside.
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From up in the clouds, Rainbow Dash (self proclaimed greatest flier in all of Equestria) was napping lazily as she was prone to. She’d finished her work early, and felt she was deserving of a good rest. Suddenly, she was woken up by somepony screaming in terror. She would’ve fallen off the cloud, if not for the fact that she remembered in a split second that she had wings. Disoriented at first from waking up, the cerulean mare realized it was her best friend Fluttershy screaming in terror.
“What the hay is wrong with her now?” she said out lout to nopony in particular.
She zipped down to her as fast as she could.
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Rainbow Dash made her way to Fluttershy and Angel’s location in ten seconds flat. Uncharacteristically, she was panting like mad for worry of her oldest friend.
“Fluttershy!?” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “What’s the hays the matter!? Are you hurt!? Are you animals hurt!? Something stolen!?”
Fluttershy’s pupils were so small, like the size of bits; she was shaking and shivering and sweating like crazy. Angel wasn’t in much better shape.
“Did your shadow scare you again?” asked Rainbow Dash, rolling her eyes. “I keep telling you, it’s something everypony has…”
“N-n-n-no, R-r-rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy finally managed to whimper out. “Th-th-the b-b-bushes.”
“What about them?” Dash interrupted.
S-s-somep-p-p-pony in the bushes!” Fluttershy continued.
“What? Somepony peeking on your or something?” she questioned.
“N-nooooooo,” she continued to whimper, tearing up frantically, now unable to say anything.
Under normal circumstances, Rainbow Dash would’ve figured Fluttershy was just overreacting to some little situation. But, this was…different somehow. Fluttershy wasn’t just scared, she seemed saddened as well. The rainbow pegasus went over the bushes cautiously and moved some brush aside very slowly.
“HOLY BUCKING SHIT!” Rainbow Dash Cried out.
Now she was acting out of character, as she let a blood curdled scream. Now she saw the source of Fluttershy’s terror. It was body, a dead body. Some poor pony had been attacked; torn to shreds and mangled beyond belief, with hardly any flesh left on its bones. Organs were strewn about in a puddle of blood. It looked like it had been eaten. Rainbow Dash came very close to throwing up at the sight.
“Get back in your house now, Fluttershy! Angel, go with her!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash. “I’ll go get Twilight.”
Fluttershy nodded slowly at her best friends orders, still teary eyed from the shock of what she just saw. Angel accompanied her to the cottage as he‘d been ordered (not that he needed to be told to comfort his owner), while Rainbow Dash made a sprint towards Ponyville to get Twilight. Her mind kept racing as to what could’ve done this; she’d never seen anything like this in her life. It could’ve just been a random animal attack; Celestia only knows what all lived in the Everfree Forest. Could it have been a Timberwolf attack? Those things were dangerous and had the strength and sharp teeth to do something like what she saw. But she’d never heard of Timberwolfs ever getting their fangs on a pony before; but she supposed there was a first time for everything.
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Twilight was just getting up, when there was a sudden succession of rapid knocks at her door.
“Who could that be at this time of day?” she thought to herself.
The alicorn princess made her way to the door to let whoever it was causing the racket in.
“Yes, yes! I hear you!” Twilight Exclaimed. “Oh…Rainbow Dash? What in the world are you doing pounding my door?”
“Fluttershy! Everfree Forest! Body!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash, gasping like mad.
“Please slow down, Rainbow Dash,” said Twilight, unable to fully understand her friend.
“Fluttershy…outside her cottage,” Rainbow Dash explained slowly. “Just on the outskirts of the Everfree Forest. She and Angel found a body! A ponies body! And I think it’s been eaten!”
“What!?” asked Twilight in shock. “By what!?”
“If I knew I wouldn’t be coming to you, would I!?” yelled Rainbow Dash.
Twilight’s ears drooped at her friend’s tone.
“I’m sorry, Twi, I really am,” she said in softer tone. “But you should’ve seen Fluttershy’s face. She was so scared and shivering like I’ve never seen. And the body…sweet Celestia it was awful!”
“We better get the sheriff,” suggested Twilight.
“We have a sheriff?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“Recently instated,” explained Twilight. “The mayor felt we needed law enforcement, to seem more important. Since I’m a princess now, and living in Ponyville still.”
“Go figure,” thought Rainbow Dash. “We might actually need some law enforcement.”