//------------------------------// // 20. Fluttershy Visits an Animal Farm :: T/Da/Gore // Story: Kaidan's Short Stories: Vol. 1 - Teen // by Kaidan //------------------------------// {Teen}{Gore}{Dark} Fluttershy goes to Griffonia to cheer for Dash at her first Wonderbolts performance. However, when she checks into a hotel and sees an Animal Farm across the street and curiosity gets the best of her, she doesn’t like what she sees. Story prompt/Requested by: Skeeter The Lurker Part of my one-shot week. ************************************* Fluttershy turned the key, unlocking the door to her room. It had a single queen bed and a small kitchen with a sink and microwave. She put down her luggage and flopped onto the bed. It had been a long trip to Griffonia, and she just wanted to fall asleep right now. Unfortunately, there was no time for a nap. Her friend Dash should be arriving any moment to say hi. She had recently been accepted to the Wonderbolts, and Fluttershy had come to cheer her on at her first stunt show. The room was too dark, so Fluttershy opened the curtains by the window. Outside, she saw a white brick building that took up most of the block across the street. There were large black letters reading ‘Animal Farm’ on the side. She was fascinated and wondered if there was a literal farm inside, like Applejack’s, or if it was some sort of petting zoo. She decided it would be good to find out. With a yawn, she decided it could wait until tomorrow. Soon there was a knock at the door and she hurried to answer it. Dash stood on the other side in her blue jumpsuit with Wonderbolt logos. “Dashie!” Fluttershy cheered. She jumped forward and hugged her. “Whoa, you must have really missed me.” Dash waited for her to let go, then walked into the room. “Nice hotel room.” “Yeah, I’m looking forward to your performance in two days.” Dash frowned “Yeah, about that. . . Griffins don’t have Pegasi to control their weather, and they think there will be a storm. It might delay the stunt show a few days.” “Oh, well I’ll just pay to stay a little longer,” Fluttershy said. “Thanks! You’re awesome, Flutters. I can’t thank you enough for coming to cheer me on. If you need any extra bits or want me to treat you to dinner, just let me know.” She yawned loudly. “Thanks, Dashie, but I’m really tired, and I think I’m going sightseeing tomorrow. Where are you staying?” “Room 402 at the Lioness Hotel.” Dash walked over to the door and pulled it open. “Get a good night’s sleep, I bet you’ll love it here in the Griffin kingdom.” Fluttershy locked up the door behind her and then closed the curtains. After that, she climbed into bed and slid under the covers, and quickly fell asleep. The morning came too soon for Fluttershy. She mumbled and got out of bed, stretching. Griffin beds weren’t as comfortable as the ones in Ponyville, and the finicky air conditioner had trouble keeping the room cool.  She put those thoughts behind her and got ready for the day. Taking a deep breath, Fluttershy smiled and trotted out the door with her saddlebags. It only took a few minutes to exit the hotel and cross the street to the Animal Farm. She was so excited to see what kind of animals they had in Griffonia. Fluttershy entered the building through a freshly painted door and turned to the griffin receptionist. “Welcome to The Animal Farm, can I help you?” she asked. “Um. . . I want to take a look around and see the animals,” Fluttershy said. The griffin raised an eyebrow and looked at her skeptically. “You want to see how we farm animals?” “Yes.” “And you want to just walk right in?” “Um, do I need a ticket?” Fluttershy inquired. The griffin laughed and responded. “No, go right ahead. It’s down this hall behind me. Tell them Carla sent you.” The receptionist started filling her claws and ignored Fluttershy as she walked back and pushed the door open. She trotted down the hallway, smelling a mixture of industrial cleaners and something foul. There was a sign pointing to the right towards the pigs. Fluttershy followed the arrow until she came upon another door. She saw a griffin walk by on the other side, so she quickly opened it up. “Hello, sir, I came to see the animals,” Fluttershy said. “Huh? Who let you back here?” he asked. “Carla sent me.” He chuckled. “Well, my name is Loch. The pigs are right back here.” He pointed behind him towards a large metal door. “Oh, how strange. Why is the whole wall metal?” “It helps us control the temperature for them,” he answered. Fluttershy followed him over to the door and spotted a small thermometer that read forty degrees. He opened the door up and she stepped out of the way. “Isn’t forty a little cold?” Loch stepped back and ushered her in. “Nah, we don’t want them to rot.” Her eyes went wide in horror and her pupils enlarged until they covered up her teal irises. Hanging from meat hooks were dozens of pig carcasses. She vomited on the floor before she knew what was happening. Her next thought was to run before she ended up on a meat hook. Fluttershy sprinted down the first hallway she saw, and found herself in a room that smelled of feces. There were rows of pigs shoved into tiny cages. They couldn’t turn around and could only sleep standing. She screamed and took the next hallway she could to get out of the torture chamber full of squealing pigs. The next room contained hundreds of chickens, stacked five high in at least a dozen rows running the length of the room. There were little conveyor belts for the eggs, and on one wall a griffin was plucking feathers from dead chickens. She felt dizzy and the urge to vomit was returning. Fluttershy had to get out of here quickly. When a griffin stepped out in front of her he said something, but she was too panicked to hear it. The next room she burst into was filled with boxes labeled “hot dogs.” There were large machines producing little sleeves of meat, and Fluttershy lost it. She screamed loudly, drawing the attention of several griffins in the room. Before they could figure out what was happening, the small pegasus had darted under a machine and out the nearest door. She found herself back at the receptionist desk where Carla sat laughing. “Wow, you lasted five minutes longer than I thought you would!” “Beasts!” Fluttershy yelled, staring Carla in her eyes. “How could you?!” Carla’s mouth flopped open speechlessly, terrified and unable to look away from the pegasus. She had never been so scared in her life, especially of a pony. “Killing all those defenseless animals! Locking them in tiny cages! You should be ashamed of yourself!” “But I just work here, at reception!” she pleaded. “No! Until you know what it’s like to be one of those pigs, you have no right to talk! You deserve the same treatment as those innocent animals!” The voice echoed in Carla’s mind, lodging itself in her subconscious. She stared blankly ahead as Fluttershy stormed out the front door, furious. Carla got up and wordlessly walked down a nearby hall and into the room with all the machinery. A couple griffins came up to ask her what the pony was doing back there. She ignored them as she climbed the ladder up to the scaffolding. A griffin was yelling at her to get down, but her blank mind did not register it. Once Carla had reached the top of the ladder, she stepped into the meat grinder and screamed. It had been a full day since Fluttershy had entered that den of evil across the street. She had spent the past twenty-four hours sitting in front of her window, staring at the factory. She did not get up to use the restroom or sleep. Fluttershy had watched as an ambulance carriage pulled up, and carried off something in a black vinyl bag. As night had dragged on, the lights had stayed on and the machines had kept turning their gears, slaughtering innocent animals. Fluttershy heard the knocking at her door, and heard Rainbow Dash calling her name. She didn’t want to eat, the thoughts of what was happening across the street had ruined her appetite. Dash probably wouldn’t understand, but she sighed and got up anyway. Opening the door she smiled weakly. “Hi, Dash.” “Hey, Flutters, you don’t look so well.” “I didn’t sleep.” “Oh, well you can come sleep in my hotel room tonight. You want to grab a bite to eat?” Fluttershy smirked. “I lost my appetite.” “Should we hang out here the—” “No!” Fluttershy barked. “I’ll eat.” Dash put a hoof on her forehead. “You sure you're not sick? If you are, you don’t have to cheer me on.” She grabbed her saddlebags and key card and walked out. “Come on.” Dash followed her out of the hotel, then led her to a diner that served a wide variety of pony-friendly cuisine. They both ordered salads and were seated in the non-carnivore section of the restaurant. “Fluttershy, you haven’t heard a word I’ve said,” Dash complained. “Ahuh.” “Okay, what’s up?” Dash asked. “They eat animals here; hundreds of them.” Dash sighed. “I know, but they’re a different species, it’s their culture.” “I knew you wouldn’t understand,” Fluttershy replied. “What? I understand, you’re just acting so distant and you barely ate your salad.” Fluttershy looked at her friend smiling and relaxed for a brief moment. The images were eating away at her, making it hard to focus. Finally she realized what she had to do, and Fluttershy smiled and laughed. “You’re right, I just need some sleep, let’s go!” Dash gasped at her sudden mood shift. “Awesome, all right.” After they paid, Dash led them to her hotel room. Fluttershy used the restroom and then curled up under the covers of Dash’s large king bed. She stared out the window at the night sky and could see the moon. It did not help her take her mind off the Animal Farm. Dash chatted for a while about their upcoming stunt show, and Fluttershy nodded and smiled. It took some time before Dash took the hint and turned out the light, allowing them to get to sleep. Fluttershy refused to look at the window, knowing it was still out there. She stared at the rainbow mane of her friend as she plotted for tomorrow. She left Dash sleeping in bed early in the morning and headed for the nearest store. Fluttershy bought some supplies, before heading back to the Animal Farm. Dash would wake up, and never realize what Fluttershy was up to. There was a new receptionist sitting at the desk when she entered. “Hello, how can I help you?” Fluttershy grinned and stared her in the eye. “I’m here to take the tour.” She reached into her saddlebag to grab something. “But we don’t have a t—” The baseball bat Fluttershy held in her mouth collided with her skull, interrupting her sentence. She fell to the floor and Fluttershy bashed her skull in over and over again. She then carried the dripping bat back to the pig farm. Loch was there, herding a couple pigs towards the slaughterhouse. “Hey, what are you doing back here, pony?” “Stop. Those that show no mercy deserve none.” Loch froze and suddenly felt like a frightened school filly. “What?” She stared him in the eyes and spoke softly, her eyes wide and commanding. “Release all the pigs, then climb in one of their cages and lock it.” “Okay.” Loch gave her a blank look, and walked off to carry out his orders. Using the stare on the Griffins was intoxicating, addictive, and she gave a feral grin. Fluttershy headed into the next room that contained the chickens. There was a griffin standing near the door so she hit him in the back with the baseball bat, and before he could recover, she beat him to death. Another griffin was flying towards her to stop her, and she stared him in the eyes. He froze mid air, crashing into the cages and knocking several chickens loose. The griffin stood up and shook his head, then saw the pony staring at him. “Freeze.” The griffin gulped and found his legs felt like they were stuck in cement. The next thing he felt was a blunt object cracking his skull in half. Fluttershy looked down at the chickens that had fallen out of the cages. They had been stuck in the small metal cages so long they couldn’t walk. Upon closer inspection, all of the chickens had been maimed and were unable to walk or fly. She leaned down and whispered in the nearest chicken’s ears. “Sorry, my friend, but I need to put you out of your misery now.” Fluttershy spent the entire night in her hotel room, watching the Animal Farm burn. She had left half the staff locked in pig cages as it burned, and had ordered the rest into the meat grinders. Fluttershy had a ridiculous grin on her face as she basked in the warm glow of justice. The next day a rainstorm came. The griffins hadn’t bothered to try and save the burning building. It was long gone when the fire team got there. She sat perfectly still as the rain put out the fire. Once it was out, the sun was setting again. Fluttershy got up and went outside. She picked up a scorched rock from the rubble and put it in her saddlebag before flying off towards Ponyville to prepare. Dash would be fine at the stunt show without her. After all, Fluttershy had more animals to save.