Part 5: Close Call
Princess Celestia was in a black void, completely alone. The darkness spanned for miles and miles, the sky and ground blended seamlessly. She stood there, unsure where to go, or if it mattered.
“You couldn’t save us...” whispered a haunting wind. It echoed in the abyss, with each repeated sound sounding like some figure from the millenia of her rule.
The Princess looked around, trying to pin down the source of the sound.
“You failed us...” it accused.
Sweat rolled down Princess Celestia’s face. Was it close, or far away?
“We are dead because of you...” it said, sounding as if they were standing next to her, and the cold breeze was their breath. The Princess jolted around, seeing a familiar figure. Or rather figures. There standing in front of the legion was a white stallion, decked in full Royal Armor. There was a straight cut across his neck, above his bite wounds.
“And now you can’t save me.” This voice came from behind, was closer, and much younger. Celestia recognized it, sending chills running down her body. She turned around slowly, praying that she was wrong. It was Twilight Sparkle. The young mare looked up at her teacher, and stared at her. “There is no cure, is there?”
Princess Celestia’s throat went dry, as she choked on her words, “I’m sorry...”
Twilight suddenly leapt at Princess Celestia, fangs bared, and bit her neck. Then the legions of ponies ran up to the Princess, each grabbing a hold of her and started to bite her as she tried to fight them off. Princess Celestia screamed, and tumbled, before hitting the hard floor.
The impact shook her back to reality. In her maddened nightmare, she had somehow entangled herself in the bed sheets and then rolled off her large royal bed. She was still safe, still inside Canterlot Castle. She groaned in pain as she tried to remove herself from the sheets.
“Hard time sleeping dear sister?” Despite the familiarity with the voice, Princess Celestia’s heart still jumped ten feet.
Catching her breath again, Princess Celestia replied back, “Yes, one could say that.”
“Need anything?” The familiar co-ruler approached from the balcony.
“Just some water.” Princess Celestia said.
“I am greatly surprised that you still trust us, dearest sister, even with what has happened with your favorite student.” Luna said, taking a glass with her magic, taking it to the nearby washroom.
“I have no reason to suspect that you had a direct hoof in all of this.”
“Really?” Luna said, over the sound of running water, “The last time you encountered a vampire was when I tried to engineer a rebellion against you a thousand years ago, remember?”
“I remember you as one lacking in the finer arts of subtlety."
"Even so, I still fooled you till the end."
"Yes, but that also means that if this was your doing, you wouldn't bother with keeping Twilight Sparkle alive, you would have her killed outright and then enslave all of Equestria in an instant.” Princess Celestia said, finally having untangled herself from the mess. She took the glass from Luna and drank, before discarding the glass and continuing with a coy smile on her face, “How did that whole thing go again?” she mused, placing a hoof on her chin, “Ah yes, ‘In place of a princess you would have a QUEEN! Not two rulers, but one that is as beautiful and terrible as the dawn! Treacherous as the sea! Stronger than the foundations of the earth!!! All shall love me and despair!’” she shouted, levitating herself a good meter above the ground, and her solar and/or divine glory shining in the dark bedroom.
“...I do not sound like that.” Luna said, blushing.
“Oh of course not, I can’t even dream of being able to match your performance.” Princess Celestia smiled, lowering herself back down, “From how you said it, I could have sworn cheese and ham would start to pour out from your very pores.”
“So we might have... as thou has said before, have been a little ‘over the top.’” Luna shyly looked away, trying hard to hide the blush that had deepened in color.
"Well I suppose my own reaction to the vampires was over the top." Celestia sighed, her face slowly turned sadder as she mused about the past, "It didn't help that I had lost my connection to the Elements after I banished you, the whole kingdom was rocked to its very core."
Seeing Celestia's face, Luna became likewise solemn. "Ah yes, I read about it. That crusade lasted what, a hundred years?"
"Hundred and eleven. I killed all of them, thinking that the vampirism had consumed the mind as well as the body, and without the Elements, I couldn't save them. But now with Twilight acting as she is..."
"... I'm so sorry, sister, you shouldn't blame yourself over it, I was the one who had condemned their lives in the first place. I should have never let my jealousy consume me, I-"
"No, I shouldn't have been so ignorant of your suffering. If I had just listened to you in the first place, none of this would have ever happened."
"And now our combined folly continue to haunt us." Luna mused, as the two of them leaned into each other.
Suddenly, a trail of familiar green smoke snaked its way from the window to in front of Princess Celestia, where it then materialized into a scroll and fell onto the floor. Princess Celestia stepped back away from it. “Oh, it’s probably for you. I haven’t taught Spike how to send letters to you yet...” she smiled.
“Actually, it’s probably directed towards you, since it’s your student that we’re dealing with. Perhaps we have to read it together, don’t we?” Luna said, as she levitated the parchment, broke the seal on it and unrolled it. Both of them read silently at their own pace.
“That thing Spike mentioned about Twilight’s... approval of her new beverage...” Princess Celestia nervously spoke up.
“That’s normal behavior. Provided that her friends follow our feeding instructions, Twilight shouldn’t feel the need to feed off of her friends.” Luna casually said. Celestia breathed a sigh of relief.
“Does the disease infect animals?”
“Some of them. I managed to have it work on a few bats, but I didn’t have the chance to test it on dragons. I was going to try it on a few rats though. Just imagine it, a whole bunch of them scurrying all over your body for your blood.” Celestia let out a disapproving gag as Luna continued, “However, animal blood isn’t as filling as pony blood, so the mostly likely circumstance is that one devours them whole, or drains the creature dry before it gets the chance to be converted. If it could be converted at all.”
“Oh please don’t tell me that is from personal experience, I beg you.” Celestia looked at her sister, with an expression that was split between horror and disgust.
“...Moving onwards, now we get to see just who... Oh. Oh dear.” said Luna.
“Oh dear what? What is it?”
“Congratulations sister, you didn’t just miss any old vampire, you missed our right hand colt: Bleeding Heart.” Luna said, pointing at the illustration of the cutie mark.
“No...” Princess Celestia uttered as her eyes went wide..
“This is problematic to say the least.” Luna sighed, “It’s been a thousand years. That is plenty of time to rebuild the Lunar Army to be tenfold the force it was before. But then again, the question would become how could he hide an army without you noticing?”
“Like you have said before sister, hide them amongst the living while I had searched their graves. Scatter them to the four corners of the kingdom, spread them out to reduce detection AND spread his influence at the same time. I don’t think we can keep this incident a secret anymore Luna, we have to declare a national emergency.”
“NO!” Luna shouted, “If we do that we’ll only tell him that we’re panicking. We have to feign ignorance, so that he doesn’t have the chance to alert any of his subordinates.”
“I refuse to believe that he attacked Twilight Sparkle without any knowledge of her or her connections.” Princess Celestia responded, “We probably have already lost the window of opportunity to stop him from warning his forces. Besides, if we feign ignorance, that only gives him the chance to attack other unsuspecting ponies as well.”
“If we tell the people, there would be chaos and hysteria out on the streets. Innocent lives would be wasted from everyone pointing fingers at everypony else in paranoia.” Princess Luna replied.
The Princesses stared at each other. “Fine then, if you believe yourself to know how Bleeding Heart plans and strategizes better than I, have it your way. But know this: the moment I hear anyone else being attacked by one of those... things, is the moment that I declare a national emergency.” Princess Celestia compromised.
“Understood your Highness.” Princess Luna replied. She bowed, and left to attend to her duties both as Goddess of the Night, and to preparations to counter the ancient threat. Princess Celestia levitated her bedsheets back onto the bed, straightening them out before she laid on them again. It was going to be one of those long nights...
~Two Weeks Later...~
Dear Diary
It’s been awhile since my last entry, mostly because the days have started to blend into one another again. Speaking of days, I’ve noticed that I have been sleeping through most of it, waking up as the sun is closer and closer to relinquishing its rule to the moon, and then feeling sleepy when the morning sun returns. The nights have been very pleasant, though I’m not entirely sure if this is because of my lower temperature or some other influence. This new sleep cycle has not gone without affecting everypony else. I have the feeling that those of my friends who got the daytime hours have the easiest shift. Not to imply that I am hard to deal with (I’m perfectly fine, thank you for not asking,) but that the long hours of the night have started to take a toll on them. Sometimes they would nod off to sleep next to the candlelight. This is most obvious with Applejack, since she normally goes to bed rather early, and wakes up well before the crack of dawn. She’s so peaceful when she sleeps, tired from all her chores, the resting from the sun beating down on her, her strong chest heaving... Uh, sorry, that got weird and sort of creepy pretty quick.
This does however, cut deeply into my daily routines. Right now, everyone who is not my assistant or my closest friend believes the story that I am still recovering from a vicious assault. In retrospect, this is not too far from the truth, just missing a rather small but important detail. The Cakes have sent me some cupcakes, which I let Pinkie Pie eat. While I do honestly appreciate their good will and intent, being deprived of eating regular foods have left me feeling like a rear end of some cosmic joke. They were chocolate with raspberries, my favorites!
Cherilee has sent me “Get Well Soon” cards that everyone in her class had made. It’s really adorable, I put them all in a folder (organized in alphabetical order, of course.) I really should thank her... when I’m not... yeah. I’m curious if Applejack and Rarity have told their sisters the exact nature of why are they visiting me recently. I doubt it though, considering that they would likely blabber it off to someone else, or worse, decide to try to help. I shudder to imagine what they would do as “Cutie Mark Crusaders Vampire Caretakers.” What would that cutie mark look like anyway?
I haven’t been going to the market nowadays, mostly because 1: no one stays open at night, 2: there is quite literally nothing for me to buy anyway. Rarity has taken to bringing some gems for Spike when she brings food for everyone else. I should try to stop her before she spoils him. No, wait, scratch that, I think I’m already too late.
Spike has been running the Library while I’m sleeping on the weekdays now. So long he doesn’t get into fights with Owloysius, I’m okay with that. Speaking of Owloysius though, I haven’t seen him as of late. I know that he tends to migrate for the winter, but it seems that he’s actively avoiding me. I’m curious if it is just him or something that most animals possess. I mean, it’s not like I’m going to try to eat him anyway.
Pinkie Pie is currently taking care of me again. It takes a lot of effort to get her to be quiet. Now, she is my friend and all, but I prefer her in small doses, like candy. But forcing her to stay inside, for at least eight hours, with relatively nothing to do, it can take a toll on some. Especially me. But to be completely honest, if my house is not being used to hold a party, it can get rather dull. The problem usually arises when Pinkie Pie can’t find anything to distract herself with, so she has to resort to bothering me.
Wait, I heard a crash downstairs. I hope Pinkie didn't break something. Again.
Even before Twilight had opened the door to the Library/Living room, a rather familiar, and not to mention intoxicating, scent invaded her nostrils. She gasped in ecstasy when she inhaled deeply the odor. It was blood.
“Oh Dashie, are you okay?” Pinkie Pie asked the cyan mare, who was currently crumpled on the floor with broken shards of glass cutting her body.
Rainbow Dash groaned as she picked herself up, brushing some of the bit of glass protruding from her body off. “I think I am. I think the only things that I broke is my pride...” she said as she turned to her makeshift entrance, “...and her window.”
“I’ll get the broom.” said Spike, retreating to the closet.
“Aw, Twilight is going to be crazy mad now. What does this one make, her fourth?” Pinkie Pie said, worriedly.
“Yeah, you’d think that she would learn to leave some of them open, or at least unlatched.” Dash said. Spike rolled his eyes behind Dash’s back.
Suddenly the upstairs door burst open. “Hey girls, what happened here?” said Twilight, despite what she thought was calming and peaceful, came out as creepy and rather disturbing.
“Oh, hey Twilight,” Dash said, suddenly feeling more than a bit uneasy, “sorry about the window... I, uh, oh boy...” Rainbow Dash saw Twilight, her eyes twitching, her crooked smile, glistening with a bit of spit. Dash's body seized up in fear, despite Rainbow Dash mentally shouting at herself to move far, far, far away from the crazy mare.
“You’re bleeding! Here, let me help you with that...” Twilight said as she moved closer to Dash, walking slowly down the stairs. Watching her, everyone else noted that her eyes were dilated.
Spike leaned over to Pinkie Pie and whispered, “When did we first give her blood?”
“Two weeks ago, on Wednesday.”
“And what day is it today?” Spike asked.
“...Wednesday.” Pinkie squeaked. The words of Luna echoed in her mind as she comprehended the full danger of the situation; “Cover any open wounds you might have, especially before and after Twilight Sparkle has had her blood rations, otherwise the scent might drive her to consume your blood.” Twilight was about to show why you do not, under ANY circumstance, bleed openly in front of a vampire, friendly or not.
To Twilight, Rainbow Dash stank of blood from all her wounds. The sight of Dash’s crimson blood running through and intermingling her cyan coat further clouded Twilight’s mind. Twilight didn’t notice that she was now breathing louder, nor that she had started to drool a little. To Twilight, Rainbow Dash was slowly becoming less her best friend, and more like a pinata. Made of meat and blood, instead of confetti and candy. So really, Rainbow Dash was not a pinata to Twilight at all.
Pinkie Pie and Spike on the other hand were flat out horrified. Can we help her? they asked themselves. After all, it’s generally considered to be a bad idea to get between a ferocious animal and its meal, especially when it’s hungry. Doing so usually makes one another course of the meal. But if they were to run to somepony else for help, Twilight was likely to have finished her meal by the time they came back. As a result, they were frozen in place from indecision.
“Oh gosh, would you look at the time. I have to go do... that thing... in that place... that is not here...” Rainbow Dash stuttered, as she watched Twilight walking closer with a grin plastered on her face that would give the Cat of Cheshire a run for his money, “Uh, bye.” She tried to zip out by going by the way she came in. Emphasis on tried. She was within spitting distance from freedom when Twilight had stopped Dash with her magic.
“Oh no no no, please stay. You’re in no condition to be flying around like that.” Twilight pulled Dash closer to her, completely oblivious to Rainbow Dash’s struggling and flailing, “Here, let me help you, like a GOOD FRIEND that I am.”
“Uh... are you sure?” Dash whimpered, afraid of somehow making the situation much worse for herself. She had expected only to get chewed out for breaking the window, but she did not expect that to be so literal. “You don’t look good yourself...” Rainbow Dash said sheepishly, “I-”
“I’M PERFECTLY FINE~!” She shouted in a rather sing-song sort of way. However, her eye twitching, and her ears flopping around, squeaking slightly, and a strand of drool that had escaped her mouth, all screamed to the contrary. Though the amount of restraint Twilight Sparkle is displaying right now is amazing in retrospect, considering she has almost no other inhibitors to keep her from pouncing on Rainbow Dash right then and there and drain her dry. This fact did not comfort Dash at all.
“Help me.” Dash whimpered pathetically and quietly to Pinkie Pie and Spike as Twilight dragged her to the bathroom, but it was doubtful that she intended to put band-aids and gauze on Rainbow Dash’s open wounds.
“What to do, what to do...” Pinkie Pie said to herself, starting to sweat as she tried to think. Time was running out, and if she tried to intervene, Twilight was sure to unleash her wrath on her. A light bulb sparked to life above her as she remembered something, “Of course!” She ran over to the fireplace and reached into it. She rustled through various items, trying to find the perfect item for this situation. She let out a silent yes when she found it, and pulled it out. It was a humble bulb of garlic. She hastily unpeeled the outer skins and shoved it in Twilight’s face.
“Gah, eww!” She shouted, staggering at the absolutely distasteful smell. Her focus now shifted to the offending vegetable (and pony) Twilight relinquished her magic control over Rainbow’s body. Rainbow Dash did not need to be told that this was her chance to escape, and so bolted out of the library like a bat out of hell. Twilight hissed and screamed, batting the offending clove out of her hooves. The bulb rolled away under the door to the basement, out of reach of Pinkie Pie. Twilight growled, but as the scent of Rainbow Dash's blood left the room, Twilight's eyes began to refocus, “Whoa, I feel a bit dizzy... wait, where did Rainbow Dash go? I thought she was here a second ago.”
“Uh, that thing that she had to go do in that place was really, really important. So she really had to go, otherwise she would be late.” Pinkie Pie smiled, hoping that Twilight wouldn't pursue after Dash, or for that matter decide to eat her instead, “Oh look at the time, it’s time for you to drink.” She ushered Twilight to the kitchen. Spike stood there, horrified at what nearly happened. He shook himself to reality, and resumed getting a broom to clean up the mess.
Outside, Rainbow Dash flew at breakneck speed towards Sweet Apple Acres, It's time to get to be bottom of this! she thought, her heart pounding. She did not want to look behind her to see if Twilight was after her or not. Though considering that Twilight can teleport wherever (and whenever) she wanted, speed didn't matter so much as location.
Meanwhile on the farm, Applejack adjusted the baskets she had placed around the tree. Content with her placement, Applejack turned around with her back to the tree, lifted her hind legs and- “Applejack!” The startling shout from above threw Applejack out of focus, causing her lose her balance, face-planting into the dirt.
“Pardon?” Applejack spat the dirt out as she looked up. It was Rainbow Dash, bleeding, shivering (despite it being a rather warm day for fall), generally looking like she saw things that no pony was meant to behold. "Whoa, Rainbow, what happened?"
“Crazy Twilight happened.” Rainbow Dash replied simply, panting heavily.
“What in tarnation? I don’t think Twi is that hard to-” Applejack said, dusting herself off as she got up.
Rainbow Dash grabbed Applejack and pulled so that her was no more than an inch from her own face as she gave a harsh and serious whisper, “Listen to me, Luna told us about not having any exposed wounds, right? How that makes her 'excited?'” Applejack nodded. "Well," Rainbow Dash continued, "she didn't say that would make Twilight creepy as all heck!"
“So... Twilight did that?” Applejack asked, pointing at the few bits of glass stuck in Dash's body.
"What? Oh, no, that's kinda my fault actually, but that isn't important. I'm gonna go to Canterlot and get some answers from the Princesses myself." Rainbow said, before flying off.
So apparently Rainbow Dash broke another window. She really should pay for all of those some time, its getting annoying. I really wish she would learn not to perform stunts next to my house. Applejack came in later today, interestingly enough. She said something along the lines of Rainbow Dash not going to be able to help anytime soon. I hope Dash is alright though, getting cut like that, bleeding everywhere... such wonderful smell... so much blood... sorry my mind wandered off. Right now, I’m going to go get some sleep for the day.
~Twilight Sparkle