I had spent I don't know how long drawing the archaic symbol in ink all around the wing of the castle, setting the traps dozens of times over wherever I could -- around corners, on the walls, anywhere I saw fit. The drawing was now in place everywhere I thought necessary; I had already spoken the enchanting spell that set the trap, now all that was left was to have that awful monster step on it.
I hadn't heard anymore screams since the last few, but I didn't keep my hopes up that the others were safe.
As I set the traps, I kept thinking about what Luna said as we split up. Or rather, what she might have said. I played the scene over and over in my head, trying to re-read her lips, but with no success. Thinking so hard about it helped me drown out some of the harsh reality around me.
Unfortunately, that small, happy ignorance was ended quickly after I heard large, heavy footsteps echoing through the hall in front of me. I came back to Earth as the sound reverberated through the marble floors.
I stopped drawing the symbol I was working on to glare down the corridor, dried tears stinging my eyes and the aftertaste of vomit in my mouth. I clutched the book tightly in my hand before putting it back in my shirt.
Another step. The anger in my gut got stronger. Another. It grew stronger again. With each thunderous thud my absolute hatred for the loathsome creature grew bigger and more powerful.
He poked his head around the corner, a thin stream of unearthly drool hanging off of his chin.
"Ah! Finally; I found you," he said nonchalantly. He reached up to wipe the drool from his face. "Thanks for luring all your close friends straight into their deaths. Really, you saved me so much trouble..."
I said nothing, breathing heavily and angrily. He said "all." That meant that I was the only one left. The only one who could give him what he deserves.
He looked at me curiously. "What? No outburst of rage? No 'Don't you talk about them like that!' or something along those lines?" He snickered before leaning closer to me. "She loved you..." he whispered in my ear, and a tremendous weight landed in my stomach as my breath caught in my throat, though I dared not show him that his scare tactics were working.
"As you all split up after I killed that 'Big Macintosh' fellow--quite the strong one, by the way--she shouted something to you, didn't she?"
I remained motionless, but he knew that it was true.
"That's what she said to you as you turned your back on all of them. 'Nobody, I love you!' She yelled that at you before you ran away, leaving them there for me to pick off, one by one..." He chuckled throatily.
I rounded on him, the anger fully burning through to my skin, and punched him with the strength only born from deep hatred and fury.
He stumbled and lost his balance and landed on the floor as I glared at him, the tears stinging my eyes again. I stood over him now, feeling powerful for a micro-instant as he lay winded on the floor in front of me. That feeling was crushed as he got back up, taller than before, and looking angry.
He inhaled through his nose-holes and looked down on me pitifully. He chuckled again.
"How many times have I struck a nerve with you now; five? It feels like five. Let's see how many more I can fit in before you die..."
His statement and sensually sadistic tone scared me. What more could had he to say?
"Did you know that I can read some of the thoughts and memories of the people that I've killed?" He advanced on me a step. "I like to watch people's lives and thoughts to pass the time; let's see if I can find something from some of your friends...
"Twilight was questioning listening to you in her last moments. Hold on--is that 'blame' in there? Ho-ho, that doesn't sound like something Twilight would think; let's see how Fluttershy thought of this little excursion you planned out. Hmm, she didn't like it either. She just wanted to go home, but was too worried of how you'd think of her if she told you that. Rarity--let's see. She wanted to actually end her own life before I got to her... tsk, tsk, too bad for her, eh? And now for the coup de grace... Luna..."
"NO!" I shouted as I clapped my hands over my ears, not wanting to hear any more of his lies. That's all they were, right? Lies? Just horrid lies to mess with my sanity, right?
He reached down and grabbed my arms and lifted me up to eye-level, also preventing me from blocking out his blasphemy.
"I know what you're thinking; and no, I can assure you that these are all very, very true, Mr. Denial. She just thought the world of you! She was infatuated with you the moment you met in the hallway! She- Don't try to ignore it, Nobody! Embrace the thoughts of the woman you let die! Ha Ha Ha Ha!!"
I shook free of his hold and dropped to the floor. I scrambled to get away from him and dashed down the hall going full-speed. He leisurely followed me at a steady but threatening pace. I spun around, instantly remembering the symbol I had drawn in that spot. I welled up with confidence that he was about to be sent straight back to his Hell and pay for all the suffering and pain he had caused.
"Come on... just one more step... one more... Yes!!" I thought to myself as his grotesque foot landed on the black symbol on the ground. Nothing.
He saw the expression on my face and pondered what it meant for a moment. He then saw what I was looking at and lifted his foot to spot the little mark on the ground. He stared at it for a second, puzzled, then bent down and sniffed it. He came back up and threw his head back as he laughed hysterically.
"Ah ha ha ha ha! You- You tried to- with the symbol- Bah ha ha!!"
Why wasn't it working? I could swear on my life that the symbol was drawn exactly as it was in the book and the spell uttered perfectly. What was wrong! Could it have been the wrong spell or something? No- that doesn't make sense... I...
"You idiot!" he shouted at me, still laughing. "You went through all the trouble of drawing this symbol--and probably more than just this one--and casting that dumb spell, and you completely forgot all about the blood!"
I wanted to kick my own nose in at my stupidity. How could I have forgotten that it was supposed to be drawn in blood?! Stupid! All that time wasted, and for nothing! Stupid, stupid, stupid!
He quickly recovered from his laughing fit, and took on a dark and menacing appearance as he glared at me again.
"Shall I go on about her?"
Fearing more guilty truths from him, I turned and dashed down the hall, not daring to look back even for a second.
I spent an hour running through the endless maze of marble and glass corridors, compelled only by the constant sound of deep thumping too close behind me for comfort. I thought I lost him several times after hearing silence, though the thumping quickly picked back up. I finally found myself in the royal library. I decided to hide in there, lost among the rows of shelves to catch my breath.
I made myself small behind a shelf and listened for the thumping. It grew closer, at that steady pace with which it had somehow kept up with me. It then grew closer, and closer, and then it passed, and I let out a quiet sigh of relief. It continued to move farther away from me until it was nearly silent, save for my tired breathing.
I let the muscles in my weak legs stop twitching before I got up and moved around some more. I sat in one of the chairs and took deep breaths, trying to clear my mind. After I felt calmer and more focused, a sound startled me, causing me to seize up and listen closely again. A thump. Another thump. Another. Another.
I dashed deeper into the maze of shelves and sat silently.
I peeked through a gap between some books and observed the area through them. For a few seconds, I saw nothing as the thumping grew louder. Then a large black mass passed in front of me, causing me to jump back, startled. I cupped my hand around my mouth to keep from gasping as I shuffled away quietly through the rows of books, escaping discovery.
He sniffed the air through his nose-holes deeply, then sighed. "Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum... I smell human blood, hmm-hm-hm..." he said in a deep voice.
I cautiously kept moving through the books, crawling on my hands and knees.
"I know you're in here, Nobody... It's no use trying to hide; I'll find you eventually." He paused, as if thinking some devious thought. "Would you like to know what these Earth, Magic, Air and Omni beings taste like? Hmm? Or maybe you'd like to talk about Luna some more; eh?"
I kept moving as he talked, ignoring the urge to burst with anger.
"Hmm; let's see... The first time she saw you, she thought you were just so handsome. She may not have looked it, but she got all warm and fuzzy inside--like a little schoolgirl who'd gotten her first crush! And that night, after her shift was over, she went to bed and just couldn't get you out of her head--Heh-heh-hmm...
"Let's see--what else? She thought about you all the time since then, she- Hold on, what's this? Oh-ho! A fantasy?! Ha-Ha! And a dirty one at that--Oh Luna, you bad, bad girl... Oh. Um... That one's a bit odd even for me... Hmm..."
His voice kept being distorted and echoed by the acoustics of the room, making it difficult to discern his position. I had to just have faith in my luck after his form vanished behind the rows as we moved. I looked diligently around myself as I crawled stealthily.
I had just made it into the history section when my hand brushed by something soft and cold. I looked down and felt that awful feeling of fear and shock form in the pit of my stomach. Rainbow Dash's body lay there in front of me, her now-dull magenta eyes staring at the ceiling, but seeing nothing; her limbs splayed out in every direction. But the most horrific part was her face: It had an expression of terror and awe forever engraved on her head.
I jumped back, my hand tingling with the feeling of death, and let out a sharp cry that echoed within the marble and wood. I looked to my side, and saw a pair of glowing, red-orange eyes peering at me between encyclopedias about Equestrian literature.
"Peek-a-boo..."