Later that day
Working at a restaurant for a griffin, while serving sentient ponies along with more griffins and large bipedal dogs was a unique experience that’s for sure. The customers were wary of me at the beginning but after seeing that I had no intentions of hurting anyone they warmed up to me and things went smoothly after that. As I took the dishes out I observed them. It was strange how similar they lived their daily lives to humans. They chat, they make friends and every little other thing that you would find in an average human settlement.
Although their diet was definitely not similar to that of a human’s. I was amazed to see the diamond dogs eat the various gem-filled foods (maybe the gems here have lesser value than on earth) with almost no hesitation and they could actually chew the gems like one chews on some snack. And then there were the ponies whom were eating sandwiches made with flowers, FLOWERS! Sandwiches will be never the same for me.
Even Iron Law came here and ate some stuff, although I could tell that he was here to keep an eye on me. But oh well, let him have his fun and everything. Later into the day Evelyn came back from school with another female griffin whom turned out to be her mother. She was around the same height as Strong Wind and had yellow-ish colored fur along with deep green eyes.
She was introduced as Aria and I found out that she works as the resident florist. She was a kind and gentle being who cared for her family and friends, that much I could tell of how she interacted with everyone. She thanked me for helping her husband, or mate as they call it, for the day and said that I was welcomed here anytime I come around these parts and I thanked her.
But now I was going back to the inn, with thirty or so bits more in my bag, something that I was grateful for Strong Wind. The moon was already starting its journey across the starry sky and I hurried back so I could watch the sky just as I wanted. Arriving back I immediately went into my room and climbed up to the roof via the window and just laid there gazing at the scenery.
Back on Earth I could never see the sky in such detail. Because of the light pollution the stars were always hidden away but here everything was so clear and beautiful that this alone was worth it that I came here. For hours I just watched the night sky, waiting for sleep to claim me but it didn’t. Something inside me told me not to, that I should be aware and stay awake. So with nothing better to do I decided to take a quiet stroll through the town. I climbed back into the room to grab my back-pack and went out.
The town was silent as I walked down the streets without any general direction. There was no other soul outside than me and to be honest it was a bit creepy like this. Like a crappy low-budget horror movie with me as the leading star. But this all changed when i heard muffled voices down the street. Deciding that it was worth checking out I went there as silently as I could and listened in the conversation.
“Did you get her?” asked someone.
“Yes, she is currently unconscious. Her parents didn’t even hear a thing. They are still asleep there.” replied another.
“Good, then let us hurry. The ceremony starts soon and she is crucial for it.” said the first one.
“Agreed.” said the second and then I heard some shuffling noises indicating that whoever they were just went away. But whoever they were, they just kidnapped someone and I wasn’t about the let them get away with it.
With that decided I went into the alleyway that the two kidnappers were in and followed it all the way. Exiting at the other end I quickly looked around trying to find them. To my luck I caught a glimpse of them down the street, without the light of the moon it would be impossible. I followed them as quietly as I could but kept a safe distance. But from what I saw I could safely assume that they were equines but about what kind I had no idea and it wasn’t because of the poor illumination but because they were wearing cloaks that hid their entire body.
It seemed that they were heading out of town, the way where I came from. I stalked them through the town until they arrived at the edge of the forest where I had to take extreme caution, or I make them aware of my position and lose all chances of finding where they were taking the hostage. At first they were using the same small trail that I used a day before but after a half an hour trek they suddenly turned and went into the undergrowth, leaving the path.
This went on for an hour when I accidentally stepped on a twig making it snap. I quickly ducked behind a tree, so as not to be seen when the shady equines stopped to look around.
“You heard that?” asked the one who was carrying the hostage.
“Yea.” was the short reply.
“What do you think it was? Do you think some of those freaks followed us?” asked the first one again. “Freaks? What the hell is he talking about?” I asked myself but still listened in the conversation.
“I don’t think so. Maybe some stray animal but we MUST hurry. The ceremony begins soon and we HAVE to be there.” and with that they picked up the pace and hurried towards their destination. This time I was even more careful to not make the same mistake as before as I was tailing them. For another hour or two this continued, fortunately with no interruptions when the two cloaked equine arrived at the entrance of an underground cave of sorts.
I saw them walk in but didn’t follow them immediately because in the cave they would surely notice me if something like before happens there. After making sure that they weren’t in sight I went in and saw that this cave had very smooth walls and wasn’t naturally made, no whatever made this wanted this exactly this way.
Continuing down I noticed that there were some smaller branches of the cave but these were not important as I saw that these were rooms. After some more walking I noticed that the floor went downward, meaning that I was going deeper underground and it was getting gradually brighter and soon I noticed why. Along the wall were fluorescent plant life, fungi and moss, that gave enough light that I could see better so I would not fall because of a stray ledge or something that I didn’t see in the dark.
After minutes of walk the fluorescent light of the plant life was slowly replaced by the light of torches or bonfires that were at the end of the tunnel. I slowed down and peeked out of the tunnel and saw that there was a large chamber with the ceiling missing in a place so the light could shine in. Directly under the hole was an altar that would reach to my waist if I walked there. Around the walls were numerous torches which explained the light that seeped into the tunnel. But what was more important was that the cave was filled with cloaked equines, all of which were looking at the altar.
Then another one walked to the altar from the other side, but his facial features were not obscured by the cloak so I could determine that he was a unicorn pony. He had dark brown fur with white mane and black eyes. He motioned for someone and stepped next to the altar.
“My brothers and sisters. Tonight is the night when our dreams come true. Tonight our long and careful plans will set into motion. Tonight is the night when the Cleansing will start.” uh-oh, I don’t like the sound of that. It looks like they are a cult or something. But wait, if they are then the kidnapped girl is. My horrific thought became true when I saw, presumable the same, two pony carry in someone that was eerily familiar and placed her onto the altar. I looked closely at her while they roped her to the stone table and I realized why she was so familiar.
“Evelyn…” I whispered and indeed, it was the daughter of Strong Wind and Aria. The poor girl was just coming to her senses when she realized that she was tied to a stone table by ponies she didn’t knew, of course this situation would be equally bad or even worse if it were by ponies she knew. She frantically tried to get away but the ropes that held her were tight and thus there was no way for her to escape. And she couldn’t speak as her beak way tied too. The ponies finished tying her and went into the mass of other ponies that were standing before the altar. The lead pony was starting to speak again while I was trying to think of a way to save her…FAST.
“With this sacrifice, the Silent One will arrive and cleanse this world of these…freaks.” there they go again with the freak comment but something else made me stop. “The Silent One…it couldn’t be…there is no way that it would be here. Or is there? No I surely just over think things…damnit Jack, FOCUS. You need to save Evelyn. That’s all that matters now.” I told myself and continued to listen to the preacher and nutjob in one as he was going on about how every other species expect ponies were trash and should be just…dealt with.
I was thinking about trying to teleport there and run off with her when something yet again broke my train of thought. The moon arrived at a position so it would be directly over the hole, thus making a circle of moonlight around the altar. Somehow I knew that this would signal the start of the ceremony, I mean what else? Raging firestorms or cataclysmic earthquakes? But my blood ran cold when I saw the lead cultist pull out an ornate sacrificial knife, an Athame if I am correct, from his cloak and held the item in his magical grasp.
“Now, brothers and sisters, the time has come to make our dreams come TRUE!” and with the final word he flung the knife towards Evelyn. Time slowed down to a crawl as I watched the knife going down and saw the expression of pure terror Evelyn’s eyes. Poor girl was about to die and no one would do anything about it. Well that’s not entirely true because I was sure as hell not about to let her die.
All of this mental debate happened in less than a second and something happened inside me. When I saw the blade my emotions were drained and I was left with nothing else than the sheer determination and purpose of saving Evelyn. I concentrated on where I wanted to go and the signs of me using my power were shown. And in the next second I was no longer in the entrance of the cave but in front of the cultist, crouching over a shocked Evelyn. I quickly plunged the knife out of the air, the magical grasp left it the second I appeared in front of him, probably because I surprised him and he lost concentration. The shocked gasps of the other cultists didn’t bother me as I swiftly slit the throat of the lead nutjob. The bastard slowly choked on his own blood and the lack of air but I hardly cared for that, he got what he deserved. I quickly cut the ropes holding down Evelyn who was speechless at my sudden appearance and probably her way to be saved from death. When I cut the last rope she latched onto me, not minding that I was bloody due to my previous action but she didn’t care, she was happy that she was saved.
However I was not this optimistic. True the other cultists didn’t do a thing but that was because of the shock. The moment they regain their bearings will be the moment Evelyn and I will be in deep shit. But there was something that none of us noticed. It was the body of the cultist that I killed, more importantly his blood. The blood that flowed out of the body flowed into a small channel that was around and beneath the altar and it slowly filled up the symbol that the channel was carved into. When it was filled up completely the blood gave off a barely noticeable pulse, you could only see it if you were looking at it directly and even then you would have to look closely.
I started to carry the crying griffin as fast as I could through the cultists whom were slowly pulling themselves together. I was at the start of the tunnel when something strange happened. The lights in the cave started to go out, starting from the other side of the cave where the first torches were snuffled out. And this went on until the whole cave was completely dark, save for the small circle of light in the center of the room. A cold chill ran down my spine and I held Evelyn closer to me. Something was coming and I was sure that I wouldn’t like it. As fast as I could I started to make my way out of the tunnel when the screams and shouts started to sound.
At first I thought that the cultists were shouting in anger that I killed their leader but something told me that it wasn’t that. A deep primal fear told me to not look back, to run and never look back. Because if I looked back I would see something that would forever cause me nightmares. But against my better judgment and instincts I looked back and I stopped in place. For in the small circle of light there was something that I thought only existed in our minds. The minds of people whom were afraid of the dark, knowing that the dark was watching them. Something I read about but didn’t believe that it was real. Sure it didn’t look exactly like the one on Earth but this was no joke.
The being that stood in the light was Slenderman. Or I guess that it was Slendermane here but that didn’t make it less dangerous. It was tall, incredibly so. It was around my height and it was pure white wearing a business suit with a red tie. But the most disturbing thing about it, that it had no face. Or it had a face just no mouth, eyes and nostrils. From its back, black tentacle like appendages were extending striking randomly into the darkness and then a shout or scream would sound into the unforgiving darkness. Now I knew what the shouting was about and i wasn’t too happy that I realized. But as I set my sights on it something happened. I couldn’t look away, I couldn’t breathe and more importantly I couldn’t move. I read that Slendermane could have this effect on its victims but reading about it and experiencing it was two different things.
It looked at me, with its head cocked to one side and it took a step towards me, the other cultists were already dead and it wanted another victim. Probably Evelyn and me but I wasn’t about to let that happen. I somehow regained the bare minimal of my motoric functions and with that I didn’t let Evelyn turn around, I was not about to let her see that…thing.
“Don’t look Evelyn. Close your eyes and take a deep breath.” I warned her and immediately started concentrating on a specific destination, hoping against all odds that I could pull this stunt off. I started to feel the familiar feeling of rushing wind and saw that Slendermane disappeared, at that time I had no idea where it went but I didn’t care. Finishing the teleportation I arrived near Lightning’s hut. I took us here because she was the closest possible destination I could take Evelyn and Lightning could probably give her some medication of the shock that is sure to come.
I frantically knocked on the door to the hut and heard that Lightning was slowly making her way to it, grumbling as I probably just woke her up from sleep.
“Yeah, yeah what is so important…” but she trailed off as she saw the condition I was in. Bloody with a bloody knife in one hand and with the other hugging a young griffin to me. “JACK!! WHAT HAPPENED?” she shouted to me as she made way for us to enter the small hut. I immediately hurried towards the bed and put Evelyn down on it. Checking over her I saw that she passed out, either from the shock of all the things that happened or the strain of teleportation. After all this was the first time I carried someone with me during the travel so I had no idea how it would affect others. I just hope that nothing serious happened to her.
I turned to Lightning who was standing at my side, wide awake now and was looking over the unconscious griffin girl.
“Lightning,” I said to her so she would listen. “please, check over her. You have better medical knowledge regarding the inhabitants of this world so you can tell if there is something wrong with her okay?” I asked her and she nodded and I stepped back letting her do as I asked. I sat down and was thinking about these last hours of my life.
“Jack, what happened?” she asked me while she was tending to Evelyn. I sighed and started to recount everything that happened to me ever since I left the hut two days ago. By the end of my tale Lightning finished checking over Evelyn and was now sitting next to me.
“How is she?” I asked her and she mulled over the answer.
“Well, as far as I can tell nothing is wrong with her. She just fainted from all of the recent happenings. So she will be okay.” she informed me and I let out a relieved sigh, knowing that I didn’t cause any damage to her. But then a sudden thought entered my brain. If Slendermane disappeared and it didn’t follow me then…
I immediately bolted up and quickly grabbed the knife and back-pack while I hurried to the door.
“JACK! Where do you think you are going?” Lightning asked me as she ran after me and I stopped her at the door.
“Don’t come, you need to take care of Evelyn.” I said to her.
“But where are YOU going?”
“I need to go to Trot, something tells me that something bad happened there. I need to go Lightning.”
“But if it’s bad then why are you going?” she asked but I didn’t listen to that, instead I turned to her and said my, hopefully not last, message.
“Lightning, I need to warn the people of Trot about this, and I need to tell Evelyn’s parents that their daughter is safe.” I walked back to her and gently hugged her. “If I don’t come back in four day then do something for me.” she looked at me with tearful eyes as she probably had an idea of what am I going to say.
“If I don’t come back then take Evelyn and run. Get to the next big city as soon as possible and tell the local authority that Trot is no longer here and something horrible was unleashed on Equestria.” she started to shake her head in denial, telling me that I would surely come back but I knew that there was a possibility that I wouldn’t come back here alive.
“Lightning please listen to me. Promise ok? Promise that if I don’t come back in four day, You. Will. Run. All right?” she just mumbled something. I shook her so she would look at me and not mumble into my clothes. “PROMISE ME!!” I shouted at her and she finally gave in.
“ALL RIGHT I PROMISE! Just please…come back okay?” she said softly at the end and I could do nothing else than hug her again and then I stood up leaving her on the floor.
“Okay.” I said and with that I ran into the forest towards the small town. I tried to teleport there but it seems that I was too tired for that so I had to rely on another method of transportation, running.
I have never run this long or fast in my life and I could say that I was starting to get really exhausted but I didn’t give up knowing that time is the essence here and I had very little of it now.
“Faster, I need to go faster.” I said the mantra in my thoughts as I hurried to the town and in my deep concentration I didn’t notice the very faint green light above my head and the small green flash on my legs. But what I did notice that my speed had increased by leaps and bounds and I was running faster than I thought it was possible for me to do.
Hours later while the moon was about to go down I could see the outlines of the small town. It was silent just the way I left it but something was not right. I couldn’t explain it but something felt incredibly wrong with the scene. I walked into the town and went to the restaurant where I worked that day, in hopes of telling Strong Wind about his daughter. I found it and knocked on the door and waited…and waited…and waited but no one came so I immediately started to panic. I opened the door which was unlocked and went into the building.
Looking around I saw a hallway to the right and went there where there was a staircase leading to the upper floor. Walking up on it I arrived to the house of the family and saw that it was dark here and I didn’t hear any noise which was a bad sign. Looking into each room I found the one which obviously belonged to Evelyn. There were games and books across the floor and there was a small griffin doll on the bed. Deciding to look a bit more I slowly made my way to the other door across the hallway. It was closed and I knocked on it, nothing was heard. No voices of sleeping griffins no incoherent mumbles of the recently awoken, nothing.
I opened the door preparing for the worst but the room was empty. There was no one in there. On the walls I could see some family pictures and other stuff but otherwise the room was devoid of life. “Maybe they just went out.” I thought myself but quickly discarded that thought as I remembered those cultists saying that the parents were sleeping. I quickly went out of the house and tried another, this time it was a pony’s house. I could tell because the door was smaller than the other one. I went in when nobody answered the door but the same result was what I got, an empty house with no trace of how they disappeared.
This continued until I practically visited half the town but there was no one in them. I was starting to panic and having virtually no light did nothing to ease my mind. The moon was already down and dawn was coming but it’s always darkest before dawn so I had no other light than what my eyes could see. I could try only one other place where they could be and with that in thought I made my way towards the Town Hall. Arriving before the majestic building I banged my fist on the large doors but there was no answer.
There was something in me that said I shouldn’t open the door, that I wouldn’t like what I would see there. It was the very same feeling I got in the tunnel that said not to turn back and like there I went against it. I simply needed to know what was there. So with a great push I opened the door only to find that the town hall was empty. No, that wasn’t right, there were definitely shapes in there but I just couldn’t define them, it was too dark to see anything else other than the outlines. But something was not right, there was this strong coppery smell with faints of iron and static electricity. I had a feeling that I knew what was in the room but my mind didn’t want to consider this idea.
But as the sun started to come up and light shone down on the world my fears came true as I saw just what was in the Town hall and what caused the smell. I stared with horror and tears in my eyes at the sight in front of me. But there was something else that grabbed my attention. On the wall in front of me, written in blood was a message. A message that I had the nagging feeling was addressed to me. But I could not dwell on this piece of information as the exhaustion hit me like a ton of bricks and with darkening eyesight I started to fell forward into the building. My last coherent thought was this.
“I’m sorry, everyone. I’m sorry.”
Here is the third part of the chapter. I hope that everyone will like it and if not...then please go away.