"Chaos is a very interesting matter. Some may look at the effects of chaos and find humor. Others may look at chaos and feel dread. Often, chaos and harmony are viewed as polar opposites. However, why is it possible that an Element of Harmony can be allied with the physical embodiment of chaos?" -Time Turner
Stepping into the mansion, Wondering Wind felt his world turn upside down... literally. Upon passing over the threshold, the pegasus found himself falling upwards. As he flailed his legs, Wind looked up and noticed that there was a bright light shining from above. Between him and the source of that light was Fluttershy, her wings outstretched as if she was flying toward it. Discord flew past Wondering Wind in a serpentine fashion.
"Come on now!" Discord spoke beckoning toward Wind, "Flap your little wings. Otherwise you'll splash against the ground."
Considering how fast the light was growing closer, Discord's statement was very likely. Stretching out his wings, Wind attempted to fly, however the unbalanced atmosphere made it difficult. Soon both Fluttershy and Discord were gone, disappearing beyond the light. As Wondering Wind drew closer to the light, he realized that the source of the light was some sort of hole.
Reaching the hole, Wondering Wind felt forces weighing him down, like toothpaste being squeezed through a tube. Thankfully, none of his organs were squished or bones broken as he was pulled through the passage into another bizarre expanse. Upon entering the extraterrestrial plane, Wondering Wind found it easier for him to fly. It was almost like a night sky filled with strange objects, landscapes and creatures. One of these creatures resembled a blue badgers with large mouths and small wings. Discord hadn't been lying either, the "ground" appeared to be an expansive ceiling consisting of black and white tiles. Some of the tiles were broken allowing bubbles to leak through.
What appeared to be planets with faces seemed to float in the void, their large broad smiles making Wind feel jittery. Their eyes followed him like some horrifying monstrosity watching its prey from a distance. Large hand like creatures moved through the void like cuttlefish contracting their tentacles in order to move through the sea. Dice of various shapes and sizes flew through the world like comets.
There were cotton candy cloud islands that had various creatures resting upon them. One island had what appeared to be dragons. Only these were covered from head to toe with eyes. Another had a giant squid that had two great wings and thousands of tendrils, the creature bathed in the chocolate milk produced by a pink cotton candy cloud.
Eventually Wind caught sight of Fluttershy and Discord, as well as the location they were heading to. It appeared to be an island, which may have once been apart of a grass field that had been torn away from the earth. In the center of this island was what appeared to be another house. In front of the house was a garden composed of blue flowers. Around the strange island were more pink cotton candy cloud, which released chocolate rain into the void. Fluttershy and Discord hovered over the island waiting for Wind to arrive.
Once Wondering Wind was reunited with Fluttershy and Discord both of them landed on the island. The grass felt soft against Wind's hooves. All three of them walked toward the house with Discord leading the way with Fluttershy following behind. Wondering Wind cautiously stepped into the room fearing that gravity might change again or perhaps something worse would happen. Thankfully no such thing happened.
The interior was made of oak wood with a blue carpet covering the floor. From this room there were two doorways leading to separate rooms as well as a winding staircase that both lead to the floor above and the basement below. In the center of the room was an oak table, which was encircled by a few strangely shaped uncomfortable chairs and a lounging bench, all of which had green cushions. Fluttershy sat down on the lounging bench and motioned for Wondering Wind to sit in one of the chairs.
On the walls and ceiling were various doors and windows revealing different landscapes behind them. One window showed a radioactive wasteland while another revealed another world where ponies harvested trees that sprouted from giant, red apples. There was even one with giant pony shaped robots walking about.
"Please sit," Fluttershy spoke, "there are something I need to tell you if you wish to return to your ordinary life."
Wondering Wind obeyed and sat in the chair. Once Wind had attempted and then failed to find a comfortable position, Fluttershy turned to Discord.
"Discord could you please make some tea?"
The Draconequus nodded his head in acknowledgement before snapping his fingers and disappearing, only to reappear seconds later. This time he wore a tuxedo with a fake, black mustache attached to his snout. In his hands was a tray with a teapot, three teacups and a sugar cube holder. After setting the tray down on the table, Discord snapped his fingers returning to his original attire and sitting down in another chair as the teapot floated through the air pouring the tea into all three cups. The cups then hovered in the air and moved gently toward their intended drinkers.
"I recommend you take one of the cubes." Fluttershy spoke as the lid to the sugar cube holder removed itself revealing small red cubes within. Two cubes hovered in the air. One floated over to Fluttershy who placed it in her tea. Wind followed suite taking the cube and putting it in his cup. The cube resolved and the tea took on a red appearance. A sweet fragrance wafted up from the tea into Wind's nostrils. Sipping the tear, Wind tasted a familiar flavor as his thirst grew.
"Don't drink it too quickly," Fluttershy spoke, "one thing you will need to learn is the ability to control your thirst as it is a vamponies greatest weakness. If they can't control it they will feed indiscriminately and draw attention to themselves resulting in a swift death either from a hunter or from a vampire who doesn't want the attention."
Hearing Fluttershy's words, Wind tried to control his drinking taking only a sip of his blood tinged tea and pushing away the temptation to drink further. Once Fluttershy was certain that Wondering Wind was heeding her words she continued.
Discord snapped his fingers and a small pink cloud appeared above his palm. Grabbing the cloud, Discord squeezed it over his cup causing chocolate rain to drip down from the cloud into the tea. Holding the cup to his lips, Discord drank causing the cup to slowly drain away leaving behind a chocolate tea mixture, which floated in the air.
"Your next greatest weakness is the day." Fluttershy took a sip of her tea, "As you know first hoof the sun causes us to burst into flames and unfortunately due to the colorful way our flames burn, spontaneous combustion isn't a good excuse. This can be easily avoided by applying sunscreen or by wearing extra clothing. However you should be careful as applying sunscreen during the winter or wearing heavy clothing during the summer may hint at your vampiric origins Also you will have to find time during your day to reapply your sunscreen and during such times you will be vulnerable to attacks from any hunters that are aware of your vampirism."
"So vamponies can walk out in the sunlight." Wind said taking a sip of his tea.
"Yes," Discord spoke, "however as Fluttershy stated you will need sunscreen or an umbrella. Both of which can easily draw a hunter's attention if you're not careful."
Finishing a sip, Fluttershy continued, "Decapitation will kill you but that is pretty obvious since that will kill any pony. Fire burns just like sunlight. Wooden stakes can't really pierce our skin but a metal beam with the celestial sigil of Celestia, the princess of the sun, can damage us and negate our healing abilities. It is believed that the sigil was crafted by Celestia herself for this task but nopony knows for sure. Also garlic doesn't hurt us, it just makes it difficult to smell ponies that are nearby."
"So that is why you needed my blood," Wondering Wind spoke, "The stake that had pierced you was preventing you from healing."
Fluttershy nodded, "Yes, the hunter had underestimated me and thought that her stake would keep me from healing and that I would bleed out. Thankfully you showed up and helped me."
"So is that it?" Wind asked sipping his tea, "Is that all the information I need to know?"
"That is all you will need to know if all you wish to do is blend into society and resume you normal life." Fluttershy answered.
“But what about my wings?” Wind lifted his wing and was surprised to see that they looked normal.
“As long as you don’t go too long without maintaining your thirst, your wings should appear normal.” Fluttershy replied motioning to his wings, “Otherwise your wings and fangs will become more apparent.”
A smile grew on Wondering Wind's face. While he might still be a vampony at least he could try to maintain his life. Perhaps he would be able to confess his love to Crystal Clover after all. It would be difficult but it could be done.
"But remember," Fluttershy interrupted his thoughts, "be careful around the ponies you love. The beast within is always hungry and the blood of those you love is the most delicious. If you can't control your hunger, it will consume you and everypony you love."
Wondering Wind bit his bottom lip. What if he couldn't control his hunger? What if he bit Crystal Clover? What if he killed her? Seeing Wind's sullen expression, Fluttershy placed what appeared to be a business card onto the table.
"There is a company called Blood-Source that will supply you with the blood you need." Fluttershy said gesturing toward the card, "They specifically ship blood to those who were unwillingly turned into vamponies and just want a normal life. When you return home try to contact their number on your smartpone."
To Wondering Wind, Fluttershy's actions felt like that of a doting mother, trying her best to insure the safety of her child. It reminded him of his aunt who was the closest thing Wind ever had to a mother. His biological mother had died shortly after giving birth to him and as for his father... Any thoughts of his father were filled with contempt.
Wind took the card off of the table, "So what happens now?"
Discord smiled, "Once you're ready I will teleport you back to Manehattan. Where ever you want to go?"
"Can you teleport me to my apartment?" Wind asked.
"Let me see." Discord spoke pulling a map seamlessly out of nowhere, "Your apartment should be... ah! Right here!"
Discord indicated the location of Wind's home on the map with a talon. The dimensions on the map seemed rather bizarre to Wondering Wind. The fact that the map had two Norths and five Wests on the compass made Wind question Discord’s abilities.
"Well, then I should be leaving." Wind stood up from the chair and moved over to where Discord was standing. Bracing himself for the magic of Discord's teleportation magic.
"Before you go," Fluttershy spoke raising a hoof, "As a vampony you also have the ability to hypnotically control other ponies. This can be helpful in covering your tracks or even obtaining some blood in an emergency. However it has some restrictions. First, it can only work on one pony at a time. Second you need to make eye contact with the pony and concentrate on your commands. Any major distractions can break the hypnotic gaze. Also be careful what you tell the pony under your command as they will do exactly what you tell them to."
"Is that it?" Wind asked. Fluttershy nodded and Discord snapped his fingers causing Wondering Wind to blink into total blackness.
Wondering Wind stumbled around in the darkness feeling around for anything? After tripping over some fabric and banging into a wall, Wind discovered a light switch. Flipping it up, Wind found himself blinded by the light bulb above. Once his eyes had adjusted, Wind realized that he was back in his apartment or more specifically in his living room.
Home sweet home.
The floor was covered with a brown looking carpet, which was frame by the white walls and ceiling. There was a brown leather coach which sat in front of a wide screen television with a small, wooden table in between. Some discarded clothes piled on the ground.
The first thing Wind did was pull out the card for Blood-Source and called the company’s number on his smartpone. The number was 1-256-637-6697. With the number typed in, Wind hit the "call" button and held the phone up to his ear. The call rang twice before an electronically masked voice spoke over the phone.
"Hello."
"Yes, my name is Wondering Wind," Wind spoke nervously over the phone, "I was given this card and I was told you could help me with a problem I have."
There was a long pause that made Wind sweat. Finally the voice answered.
"Very well. We shall send a representative to your location soon."
"Wait don't you need to know my..." Before Wondering Wind could finish, the call ended. Not sure what to do next, Wind instinctively went into the kitchen. After looking through the refrigerator, Wind remembered that normal food would no longer sustain him. Upon closing the fridge a thought occurred in Wind's mind.
Pulling out his smartpone, Wind went through his contacts and found Clover's number. The two of them had exchanged numbers when they had been working together on a group project together for a history assignment.
Wind was about to push the "call" button but changed his mind as he realized that it was five in the morning. However, he did noticed a few text messages on his smartpone. Apparently one of Wondering Wind's friends, Shot Glass had been trying to get in contact with him. Shot Glass was a young earth pony stallion who very computer savvy.
"Where r u? I hav something cool 2 show u?" said one of the text messages.
Realizing that he would have to go to school, Wind remembered what Fluttershy had said about the sunlight. Going into his bathroom, Wind examined his cabinets for any sunscreen. Wind could talk to Shot Glass later.
The room itself was small, comprised of a toilet, bathtub, sink and a mirror with a drug cabinet inside. Like the rest of the apartment, the walls were white which framed a blue tiled linoleum floor.
After looking through the drug cabinet, Wondering Wind managed to find a small bottle containing some sun screen. It wasn't a lot but it should be enough to protect him the sun long enough for him to buy some more. Closing the cabinet door, Wondering Wind jumped when he saw another pony's face in the mirror. The pony appeared to be a stallion wearing a pair of black sunglasses that covered his eyes. He wore a black suit, which matched his black mane and gray coat.
Slowly the stallion pulled himself through the mirror into the bathroom. Judging by the stallion's grunts this was no easy task.
"Okay, next time I'll just take the front door." The stallion grumbled as he tried to catch his breath.
"Who are you?" Wind asked, concerned by the intrusion.
"I am a representative from Blood-Source," The stallion answered, "I believe you called requesting for some help."
"Ye-Yes."
Wondering Wind escorted the Blood-Source representative out of the bathroom into the main room of the apartment. The representative pulled up a chair next to the table in the living room.
"Please grab a bowl of water and bring it here," The representative spoke, "once you return with the bowl we can proceed."
Following the representative's orders, Wondering Wind went into the kitchen and pulled a ceramic bowl out of one of the cabinets. After filling the bowl using the tap water from the sink, Wind returned to the living room and sat it down on the table.
"Alright. First things first." The representative pulled out small lamp of sorts and after holding it over one of Wind's hooves, it turned on. A purple light from the lamp touched Wind's hoof causing it to burst into flames. Naturally, he screamed as the flames engulf his hoof. It felt as if his hoof was being eaten away. Turning off the light, the representative took Wind's hoof and placed it in the water causing the flames to disappear. As Wondering Wind recovered, the representative jotted some notes down on a notepad.
"Now that I know that you are indeed a vampony and not some imposter," The representative spoke, "Can you give me your name?"
"Wondering Wind." Wind answered rubbing his hoof.
"Very good." The representative continued to write. "Now tell me, would you prefer your blood in liquid or powdered form?"
"What is the difference exactly?" Wind asked. The representative pulled out a packet containing a red powder and a vial containing what Wind was sure to be blood.
The representative explained, "While blood in its liquid form is purer and would provide you with more strength, it also decays very quickly under the inappropriate circumstances and is easier to be detected by others. Powdered blood while lacking some of the flavor can be stored and concealed easily. It can be mixed with water or some other form of drink and with the additional ingredients that have been added nopony will be able to tell that it is blood. So which one would you prefer?"
Wondering Wind contemplated this matter. While the liquid blood would be useful as he would have to drink less often. What if something happened and he had to miss a drink? Would his hunger consume him? Perhaps it would be better to take the blood in powdered form as it would be easier for him conceal his need for blood.
"I'll try powdered." Wind answered.
"An excellent choice," the representative spoke, brandishing a box containing thirty packs of powdered blood, "I will have some more delivered here tomorrow."
Leaving the box on the table, the representative stood up and started to head toward the door.
"Wait," Wind called out, "what is your name?"
The representative turned to face Wind, "I don't give out my real name due to safety reasons. However, if we meet again you may refer to me as BSR-3129."
With that being said, BSR-3129 left out the front door.
A little tired from the day, Wind took a packet from the box and went into the kitchen and poured the contents of the packet inside. With the packet completely empty, Wind filled the glass with water, which changed to a reddish magenta color. Putting the glass to his lips, Wind gulped down the precious liquid. While the taste wasn't as strong as it had been when he partake in Fluttershy's meal, the drink did nourish him and Wondering Wind could feel his energy returning.
Once Wondering Wind finished his drink he began the task of preparing for his college classes. At least from now on he wouldn’t have to worry about sleep when cramming for a test.
Rainbow Dash sat at her table examining the file presented before her. Out of the twenty hunters sent to incapacitate Fluttershy, only four returned. Most of the casualties were killed by the Chupacabras, which had been alerted to their presence by an explosion that was suspected of being caused by a rookie hunter. However, one of the casualties was suspected of being killed and feed on by two vampires, which Rainbow Dash suspected to be Fluttershy and the stallion she had seen.
While on the record it wasn't her fault, Rainbow Dash didn't feel any better. The day before Dash had the chance to kill Fluttershy in the Manehattan subway system, however her feelings of friendship had disturbed Rainbow Dash, causing her to leave Fluttershy behind. For once in her life, Rainbow Dash had regretted being the Element of Loyalty. It was her loyalty for old friend that had cost sixteen hunters their lives. Dash took a sip from the glass in her hoof, its red contents trickling down her throat.
Closing the folder, Dash blew her bleached mane from her eyes. After being turned into a vampony, Rainbow Dash had realized that it would be difficult for her to conceal her identity over the decades with her rainbow colored mane. As a result she regularly bleached her mane and tail so that nopony would know that Rainbow Dash, one of the greatest Wonderbolts in Equestrian history was a vampony.
Changing her identity had also been a helpful means of protecting herself and her family, ten years ago during what was referred to in Equestria as the Changeling Wars. They were a series of long drawn out battles between Thorax, the new king of the Changelings; and Queen Chrysalis, who had spawned a brand new hive and had sworn to use it to destroy Thorax and to achieve control over Equestria. Now, while both sides were no longer fighting, they were still waged in a cold war, gathering resources until one could defeat the other with certainty.
Standing up from her desk, Dash walked over to a bulletin board with various pictures and documents connected by various colored strings, taking her glass of blood with her. The various documents included information on the illegal Vampony Blood Trade. While there were various legal sources for vamponies to receive blood there were some who sought out more exotic tastes. Often, these vamponies would hire other vamponies to kidnap ponies for use in the illegal Blood Farms or as a personal blood slave.
It wasn't just ponies from Equestria. Zebras from the Zebra home country and horses from Saddle Arabia were also taken into the trade. Often these vamponies would pretend to be recruiters seeking out talented individuals to work for them. Most of these ponies were impoverished and would jump eagerly in joining one of the recruiters or sending one of their children with the recruiter if it meant putting food on the table. However, it was all lies. Once these ponies were in their grasp, the vamponies would take their captives and drag them into the mirror-world.
In the center of the arrangement was a picture of Fluttershy. From the various sources Rainbow Dash had been given it would seem that Fluttershy was high on the ladder of the illegal Vampony Blood Trade.
"Why?" Rainbow Dash asked rubbing a hoof against the picture. Why would Fluttershy do something like this. She was the Element of Kindness, so why would she be willing to harm so many ponies?
However, to Rainbow Dash and the Equestrian authorities it didn't matter. What mattered was insuring that Fluttershy's trade was stopped and woe to anypony that stood in Dash's way. The fact that Fluttershy had also harmed Scootaloo didn't help Rainbow Dash's mood either.
Dash took another sip of liquid blood from her glass. Out of all the ways to acquire blood, Blood-Source was probably the most legal and best means of doing so. The company would take the excess blood from the various bloodbanks around Equestria and give it to the few vamponies living in Equestrian society for free. The only thing Rainbow Dash didn't like about the company was how strict they were when it came to concealing the identities of their customers. Even if given a warrant by the Equestrian Royal Guard, Blood-Source would have refused to give up the names of their clients. Well, at least they had integrity working for them.
Remembering back to her encounter in the mirror-world Rainbow Dash remembered the stallion she had seen walking with Fluttershy. He was a youthful pony, and was kind of cute. However, judging my the scent he left in her nostrils, he was a new addition to vampony society.
Suddenly Rainbow Dash's glass fell to the ground, shattering and splattering the remaining blood upon the wooden floor. That was the solution to her problem. If this stallion had recently been sired by Fluttershy then no doubt she would be watching from afar to make sure that he was safe. That was the window Rainbow Dash had been looking for.
Wondering Wind sat in the cafeteria eating his lunch during the two hour break he had between classes. Algebra and Biology. During this two hour break, he had studied for half an hour before buying an apple from the cafeteria along with a soda. After sitting down, Wind careful slid the contents of one of his powdered blood packets into the soda before drinking it.
The cafeteria was filled with the sounds of other students talking and eating. The floor consisted of yellow and brown tiles with the walls painted a pale yellow. Looking down at the soda in his hooves, Wind could see the red glow of the blood within.
One thing Wondering Wind had noticed was how blood now seemed to have a radiant glow to it. An inviting aura that felt like the fluid was alive, encouraging him to drink it. Thankfully this glow didn't pass through pony flesh.
Lifting his eyes from the drink, Wind saw Shot Glass walking toward him. The earth pony had a blue coat and white mane, which were covered by a puffy, red jacket.
"Where have you been?" Shot Glass asked sitting down across from where Wind sat, "I have been trying to contact you all weekend!"
"Why should I tell you?" Wind said jokingly, "You're not my keeper."
A disheartened look appeared on Shot Glass's face, after a moment of silence, Wind smiled. Hopefully this little distraction would keep Shot Glass from asking too many questions.
"What is it you want to share with me?" Wind asked.
Smiling Shot Glass pulled out his smartpone, "So I have been doing some coding and I believe I may have a means of hacking into the Glimmer app."
A frown crossed Wind's face and his eyes narrowed, "Is that a good thing?"
"It sure is." Shot Glass answered, "If I can manage to hack into Glimmer and show the access point to the company responsible for making the app, I could be hired for a anti-hacking agency."
"Alright I guess that could be a little bit cool," Wind spoke his worry easing away, "but why the Glimmer app?"
"Why not," Shot Glass indicated toward the Glimmer app's spell menu, "if somepony were to hack the system they might be able to use spells that they were not authorized to use on the app. Besides Glimmer is the most popular app out there."
Proud of himself, Shot Glass sat back in his seat, a large smile stretching across his face. Pleased to see his friend happy, Wondering Wind took a bit out of his apple. While the apple itself did nothing for him, the juices from the apple were refreshing.
Looking up from his plate, Wind was pleased to see Crystal Clover walking over holding a tray of food with her magic. Crystal Clover smiled as Wind waved her over to sit down next to them. She sat down sitting her tray before her. Her tray consisted of an apple, three celery sticks, a mass of carrots and a container of ranch dressing.
"Hello, Wondering Wind." Clover said taking a bit out of a celery stick. Wind was about to respond but Shot Glass beat him to the punch.
"Clover, how are you doing today?"
"I'm doing great." Crystal Clover said smiling, "I just completed an exam, which I am sure I passed."
Hearing a bit of commotion, Wondering Wind looked up from his plate to see that a purple unicorn mare with a red mane, tripped and dropped her tray of food onto the floor. Embarrassed by the incident, the mare did her best to clean up the mess.
A thought entered Wondering Wind's mind. Perhaps this was the time for him to ask Crystal Clover out. Gathering up his courage Wind began to speak, "Clover I have a question to ask you?"
The mare turned to look at Wind, "What is it?"
Wind scratched the back of his head, "I was wondering if maybe you would like to go see the gallery with me, later this week? I heard they have a really interesting exhibit this weekend."
Feeling certain that Clover would say no, Wondering Wind braced himself for the worst.
"Sure," Clover said eating another celery stick, "It sounds like it could be fun."
Shock washed over Wondering Wind. She had accepted his offer. It took him all his energy to keep his jaw from dropping.
"That is great."
Wondering Wind couldn't believe it. Crystal Clover had actually said yes. Now Wind just needed to prepare for the trip for date. Perhaps a new set of clothes would be good.
"So, Wind why is there so little food on your plate?" Shot Glass asked.
Wondering Wind's heart stopped for a second. It was true he did usually order more food. Perhaps it was his new "diet" that caused him to change his routine without noticing the attention it would have.
"I just wasn't feeling all that hungry today." Wind answered smiling in order to cover up his worry.
"Okay." Shot Glass shrugged.
"Hmmm..." Crystal Clover said looking at Wondering Wind.
"What is it?" Wind asked.
"I just hadn't noticed how red your eyes were." Clover said. This statement temporarily caused Wind's heart to stop. He had planned on trying to find some contact lens to disguise his new eyes but must have forgotten.
"Really?" Wind said trying to play it off as if it was nothing unusual.
Clover nodded, "They are a little unusual. Sort of gives you a strong, assertive look."
"I'm sorry." Wind said looking down at his food.
"Don't be," Clover placed a hoof out to touch his, "some mares like that in a stallion."
Wind blushed at the comment, which made Clover chuckle a little. Out of the corner of Wind's eye he would have sworn he saw Shot Glass give him a weird glance, however when he looked over Shot Glass seemed to just be eating his food.
Looking up from his food, Wondering Wind realized it was five minutes until his next class. Standing up from the table, Wind ate the last of the apple, picked up his bags and left the cafeteria. A slight dance in his step as he walked to class.
Fluttershy sat underneath a tree at the edge of the forest, with the bright sun overhead. The sound of birds chirping along with the sound of rushing water from a nearby creek could be heard. This was the dream, Fluttershy had been having for several years now. A dream that always ended badly.
"Hello," A masculine voice spoke from the shadows of the forest, continually echoing off the fabric of her mind, "Its been a long time."
Standing up Fluttershy stared into the dark forest to see a shadowy shape with red eyes staring back at her. The birds had stopped singing. Fluttershy knew who it was and she knew she had to run or else be consumed by it.
As Fluttershy ran, the sun above turned blood red. She jumped over a creek, which no longer flowed with water but instead with a thick, red fluid. The shape followed, unaffected by the terrain.
"Oh come on now." The shadow said as it changed its form to resemble that of Fluttershy, only with all her vampiric attributes exaggerated, "I just want to talk."
Eventually Fluttershy found her old cottage she had once lived in back when she lived near Ponyville. Back when she was mortal. Running inside, Fluttershy slammed the wooden door shut and locked the door. Looking through the peephole in the door, Fluttershy saw the shadowy mockery of herself standing in front of the door.
"Fluttershy, Fluttershy let me in," The monstrosity spoke, trying to squint back at her through the hole, "Let me into the deepest recesses of your mind."
The doorknob jiggled.
"No!" Fluttershy yelled, "I'm not letting you in!"
"Come on now," The shadow whispered temptingly, "Let me into your mind. Let me take control."
The jiggling of the door knob grew louder. Fluttershy slouched to the floor, terror filling the very fiber of her being.
"Just think, if you let me in you can forget all the pain you caused." The shadow spoke seductively, "You can forget the pain you caused, Scootaloo and that one stallion. What was his name again? Of yes, Wondering Wind, that's it!"
"BUCK OFF!" Fluttershy screamed holding her hooves to her ears.
"Buck? Oh yes, that is a word your kind uses to express anger and extreme annoyance, isn't it."
Fluttershy could almost feel the shadowy tendrils touching her house. Touching her mental sanctuary. Continually prodding for a small crack in her defenses. She could feel the cottage trembling as if it were doll being shaken by a filly.
Eventually the shaking stopped and Fluttershy could feel the shapes tendrils withdraw.
"Fine, you win for now," The shape spoke, "I can't breach your defenses..."
A sigh of relief left Fluttershy's mouth. Perhaps this nightmare might finally end. However, looking through the peephole, Fluttershy could see that the figure was still there, only this time it was taking on Wondering Wind's form.
The monster smiled, "Perhaps you will be more willing to let me in if I take over his mind. What price will you pay for me to set him free?"
"You-you," Fluttershy stammered, "You better leave him alone!"
"Or what Fluttershy," The shadow spoke as it changed its form once more this time into a unicorn stallion who was clearly of a vampiric nature. He had a blue coat along with a gray mane and tail. The Cutie Mark of a heart broken in half being held together by two hooves rested on his flank, "You couldn't even save him, so what makes you think you can save this little colt."
Fluttershy stared in horror at the monster's new form.
Smiling the shadow faded away, "See you later."
Fluttershy jerked awake from the nightmare to find herself covered in sweat. A sharp sound rang throughout the room. It was merely second before Fluttershy realized that she was screaming. Tears streaming down her face.
Discord burst into the room, "Fluttershy, whats wrong? Are you all right?"
Sobbing Fluttershy pulled Discord toward her, pulling him in for a hug. She cried softly into his shoulder. The Draconequus patted her on the head, "It's okay, Fluttershy. You're safe here."
Lifting her head from Discord's shoulder, Fluttershy looking into his eyes, "We need to warn Wondering Wind. It is coming for him!"