//------------------------------// // Giving in // Story: Remnant of a Nightmare // by Rainedash //------------------------------// No, I couldn't sleep. Not yet. Later, but not now. Now, I needed to think of what to say to her. How was I going to explain my actions? Also- Stupid stomach, shut up. I held my hoof to it, feeling it twitch. It didn't make sense – granted, nothing did anymore. I began idly chewing on the end of my hoof. Still, there had to be some logical reason for this limited return. That should have been enough to last me a day... unless perhaps, the relationship between quantity and nourishment was an exponential one rather than a direct one. In which case, one large feeding would be worth far more than a group of small ones over time. I wouldn’t be able to sustain myself on just snacks over time. Still, this could be useful information. For now, it doesn't matter though. If I was going to think clearly for this, I'd need just enough to last the rest of today. Then, Luna could possibly help me. “Spike!” He ran in immediately. “I'm going out again.” “No.” He stood in the doorway, arms crossed. “Twilight. You aren't going back out. Not with everything that’s happened.” I growled. “Spike, I'm hungry. I need to feed. Get out of my way.” He shook his head. “This is for your own good, Twilight.” He tried to shut the door, but I appeared in front of it in a flash and blocked it from closing. I could see the fear in his eyes. “Spike. I am going out, and you can't stop me!” I looked him in the eyes. He gulped, and his knees started to shake. I pushed the little dragon out of my way, and he fell onto his back. I didn’t mean to hurt him, but it worked. As I started to turn and head for the stairs, he grabbed ahold of my tail. “Wait, please,” he pleaded. “At least let me help you.” He was probably trying to be helpful right now, but I doubted that he had the stomach to help me hunt. “Spike, what could you possibly do to help me now?” “Um... um...” He tapped at his head. “I got it. You remember the cloaks that Rarity has made for you?” I nodded. The details were fuzzy, but I knew she had made me some over the years. “Well, I'm sure some of them are dark and you could use them to blend in or something.” Holding up my leg to look at its color, I had to admit that this could be a good idea. Pale purple was easy to notice. “Alright Spike, if it makes you feel better, I'll take one.” We headed down the steps, with him behind me the whole way. I saw that he was fidgeting a lot, but I didn’t say anything. He’d been really nervous around me the last few days. It was understandable. He went ahead of me and opened up the door leading further down. “It’s down here.” I walked past him, through the door. “They're right down there, in the back. The box they're in should be marked.” The basement had never been kept in order, but it suited me. I knew where everything was, and that's all that was important. Besides, I had science to do, and organizing things was his job. I trotted across the walkway, and the moment I was all the way in, a click sounded behind me. I knew he didn't just do what I think he did. I shot back to the door and tried to turn the handle. It didn’t open, of course. “Spike, let me out! Now!” I turned around and bucked the door, all it did was push me forward and make me land face first onto the floor. From the other side came the sound of something heavy being dragged across the floor. It stopped right in front of the door. The little so-and-so was barricading me in! Over and over I pounded at the door, the noise echoed throughout the basement. “Let me out!” “Twilight, I'm doing this for your own good. I'll let you out when Luna says it's ok, and not a moment before.” He scurried away. My stomach announced its hunger once again. He just didn't understand. If I don't feed, I'll... The thought of the last time I lost control resurfaced. I was so close to doing something horrible, something unforgivable. I leaned against the door and begged for him to let me out, but he didn’t answer. *** I can't say how much time had passed. Minutes? Hours? My thoughts were getting hazy as I paced the floor for the hundredth time. The only noise came from my growling and snarling. I wanted- I needed prey. A nice succulent pig again. My breathing was heavy, erratic. Hm, maybe a cow this time. Applejack has plenty of those, she won't miss just one. I stopped. The thought of the cow running scared with me right on its tail pleased me, bringing a smile to my face. I think I get it now. Being a predator isn't a bad thing; it's a good thing. It meant that I had moved up the food chain. It was only natural that I feed on others. Though maybe there's a prey better than cows or pigs. A type of blood that can sustain longer than lowly animals. A type with more magic in it. I scratched at the door and growled, wanting out again. The dragon was gone, or just really quiet. My prey was out there somewhere, I just needed to get to it, and then I'd have all the blood I needed. The blood I craved. The blood I deserved. Who wouldn't want it? It was such a sweet source of life. “Spiiiiiiike? I'm better now Spike. You can let me out.” No response. He really was gone, wasn't he? Some assistant he turned out to be, won't even help me in my time of need. That was fine, I'd find my own way out. I tried channeling my magic through my horn – it sparked and went dead. Magic wouldn't help me now. I surveyed the room for anything useful. A bunch of boxes were laying around, and there were a several small windows right at ground level. It'd be tight, but I'd fit, probably. I pushed large boxes against the wall, stacking them one on top of another until I created a new set of steps. I was so close now. I looked up at my way to freedom, seeing that it had gone dark. Night had come. Prey were easy to catch when they slept. I pulled myself up the boxes and pushed the window open. Freedom was finally mine. I let out a howl in celebration. Dear Celestia that felt amazing to do, to give in to the animal within. Why didn't I do this before? *** I started to head to my hunting ground in the Everfree, but something new caught my interest. The ponies in town were mostly asleep, save for one, it would seem. From the other side of the market came the clip-clop of a pony wandering around. It wasn't a heavy enough step to be an earth pony, but there wasn't the sound of rustling feathers. A unicorn? They have plenty of magic in their blood. Maybe that was what I've been missing all along. I couldn't sustain myself on animal blood because there wasn't enough magic to them. A cockatrice or something like that might have some, but not squirrels or pigs. The unicorn was getting farther away. It would be good, delicious prey. I crouched down into a familiar stance and followed the sound, sticking close to the merchant stands. I hoped that they provided enough cover to block the prey's sight of me. I had gotten close enough now to hear its mindless prattle about a shopping list and never enough hours in the day. Peering out from behind the stand, I finally saw it. It was a white unicorn mare. Her neck was slender and beautiful. It called out to me, tempting me with what surely lay beneath its skin. One chance was all that I needed. She had turned away from me, giving me that opportunity. However, like before, nothing ever went right for me. As I tried sneaking out from cover, she turned again, our eyes locking onto one another. “T-Twilight! Um, what a p-pleasant surprise,” said Rarity. I remained in my low stance and stepped closer to the prey. In turn, she backed away, though her eyes never left mine. I stepped closer. From this distance, I heard the pleasant thumping of her heart, such a nice little sound. “W-what are you doing out from the, er, I mean, why are you up so late?” I kept getting closer, and she kept backing away. “Um, I-I had a... had c-chat with Spike earlier, and...” She immediately took off in a white blur. I think I like it more when they run. Down the street and through the alleys we went. I was just a hair faster than her, and was getting closer with each step. The whole way she screamed bloody murder at the top of her lungs. I lunged, dragging her to the ground. She struggled and thrashed about in my grip. Her heart was beating so quickly then. It was beautiful. While trying to get away, she smashed a stone into my head, keeping me from my prize. I bared my fangs at her. When she saw them, she froze in shock, and momentarily stopped struggling. “Help! Monster! There's a monster!” There was a problem that came with noisy prey. Lights from the houses we passed were flicking on, and ponies were poking their heads outside. One prey was fine, but many were dangerous. I wondered if I could feed quickly or drag her off, but it was already too late. “Twilight, what are you doing?!?” a familiar voice called out to me. I blinked and stared down at Rarity -- who was crying now. I stepped off of her. The others were staring at me in silent horror. I didn’t like it, their eyes burned. ‘Run’, whispered a little voice in my head. I obeyed. Where? To the only place they wouldn't follow me. *** The forest was quiet tonight. My stomach let me know just how upset it was that I didn't feed, but I couldn’t go back now. Each step was getting harder. It took a lot of effort just to keep moving forward. It felt as though I was trying to wade through concrete. I had waited too late to feed. Even if I did catch something in here, it wouldn't help. One more step was all I got before my legs refused to move anymore, and I fell to the forest floor. Darkness was overtaking the edge of vision and slowly crept towards the center. I started curling up into a ball. In this moment, my thoughts returned, and I realized just what I had done. They all knew now. I could never return to Ponyville. I just lost everything.