//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 // Story: Freddy's New Job // by ImmaGenericWriter //------------------------------// A shudder ran down Applejack’s back as she shut the barn’s door behind her and locked it. There was obviously a crazed animal on the loose. She was honestly worried about them. Those three might have been big, but if anything could overpower her brother then it would be more than a match for them. Her mind now set at ease, she began the short trot back, ready to put this crazy day behind her. GET DOWN! Applejack obeyed the disembodied voice almost by instinct, even though she had no idea why she had to get down. She soon got her answer when she heard a deafeningly loud shriek, filled with a mix of pain and glee. Not even a tenth of a second later did something fly over her, close enough to knock her hat off. There was a sound akin to that of crumpling a piece of paper, only much louder, as whatever flew over her impacted the door that she had just closed. Applejack got up to face her attacker but was only met with a pile of splintered timber exactly where the door had been. She gulped in fear. If whatever the thing was did that to a thick wooden door, what would it have done to her? Applejack waited, ready to strike or get out of the way of whatever might emerge from the barn. She waited, and waited, but nothing jumped at her. After another a minute of waiting, Applejack slowly approached the barn. She picked up her hat as she passed it, taking comfort in the small sense of security it provided. There was no movement; nothing tried rip her throat out even as she turned some of her attention to the wall near the entrance. She soon found what she was looking for and flicked the flashlight on. After the fiasco with the Vampire Fruit Bats, Pinkie Pie had insisted that she keep at least four flashlights hidden around the orchard in case of flashlight emergencies. At the time she had refused, insisting that she would never need them. Pinkie had ignored her and hid them anyway and made her Pinkie Promise not to remove them. Applejack sent a silent thanks to her hyperactive friend’s shenanigans. Being able to see properly, she swept the light around the barn. It was completely empty, that thing nowhere in sight. Wait… She scanned through the structure again. Freddy, Bonnie and Chica were gone. “Huhuhu…huhu, ahhaha…” The sound was unmistakably that of a giggle. But unlike the innocent, heart melting giggle of a child, this one was slower, deeper and just… wrong. Throwing every bit of caution to the wind, Applejack broke into a gallop. She wanted nothing more than the safety of her house at that moment. She’d just have to lock all the doors, and then she’d be safe. She looked over her shoulder as she ran, wondering if anything was chasing her. Right next to the barn stood Freddy. He was leaning slightly forwards, as if he was trying to look down on her. One of his arms was lifted slightly into the air and waving slowly from side to side. He’s too far, he can’t get me! I’ll be fi— Applejack never got to finish her thought as she rammed face first into something solid, knocking her back and allowing her to see two sets of teeth rushing towards her. Out of pure desperation she pushed forward as hard as she could, sending her tumbling past the metal beast through the gap in its legs. She had no time to celebrate her small victory; Chica would get her at any moment if she didn’t run. She barely made it two steps before she saw Bonnie standing near the house. She immediately realized what was going on. They were cutting off her escape routes. She shot a quick glance towards Ponyville. Sure enough, a menacing red figure stood in her path. Its eyes seemed to have tiny white lights shining from them. She could also clearly see a hook in its right hand. It didn’t take much imagination for Applejack to figure out what would happen if any of these monsters caught her. With no other choice, she sped towards the Everfree Forest. Applejack tried to scream for help, but only a choked sob came forth. She hadn’t even noticed the tears coming from her eyes until then. Even as she ran, she could see flashes of yellow at the edges of her vision. When she looked directly at the spot of colour, she would see Chica staring at her. She occasionally saw Freddy and Bonnie, but only when she shone her flashlight on them. Their natural dark coats kept them partially hidden in the night. There was no need for her to even look behind her to confirm that the red one, which was without a doubt the fox that attacked her brother, was chasing her at full speed. Applejack knew they were leading her into a trap, much like how she would herd sheep. Eventually she could no longer see any of her tormentors and stopped to get her breath back. But why would they lead her into the forest? If they were fast enough to constantly get ahead of her, why would they even bother, there was no way she could outrun them. Despair hit her at the same time the answer to her question did. They were toying with her. Applejack gulped. She couldn’t afford to tear up any further. Even the slightest impairment to her vision could mean her death. She turned slowly in a circle, using the flashlight to give her some vision in the darkness of the Everfree. Not seeing anything, she walked deeper into the forest towards Zecora’s hut. The Zebra might be her only hope of survival if they didn’t stop her from reaching it. Her pace was severely limited by her lack of vision and even further affected by the fact that she couldn’t stop looking all around her. Without warning, the flashlight she held between her teeth ceased giving her the light she relied on so much. “No, no, no, no!” she shouted, taking the device in her hooves. She frantically pressed the on button to no avail. She could get no more than minimal light and some static. “Work, darnit!” Applejack finally got her wish. She also got a clear view of a golden bear sitting in front of her before her light died again for a split second. When the light blinked back, the bear that looked an awful lot like a smaller version of Freddy was gone. Applejack spun around so quickly in her search for the yellow Freddy that she nearly lost the grip on her flashlight. No matter how hard she looked, she couldn’t see the thing anywhere. What’s goin’ on… Surely they can’t jus’ disappear? As she was about to make a wide arc around where she had seen the newest monster, Applejack saw something laying on the same spot the Golden Freddy had appeared. When she got close enough she could make out that it was a mask looking a lot like the one Freddy wore. Only with fewer holes in it. Applejack made a growling noise. She might have been scared, but this was going above and beyond hunting her. This had escalated into psychological torture. “Enough!” Applejack shouted, lifting the mask above her head. The flashlight lay at her hooves, barely illuminating the forest in front of her. “If ya wanna kill me, then do it! Ah’ve had enough of this!” The flashlight stuttered on and off a few times before finally dying completely, leaving her in total darkness. When the lights eventually came on, Freddy stood in front of her, one arm already outstretched to take her. Even though she had prepared herself, Applejack still cried out in fear and fell back onto her rump while the Freddy Mask fell onto her head. Applejack just sat there, eyes shut tight and shaking violently, waiting for the end to come. But it never did. Summoning up what remained of her courage, she removed the mask. The flashlight was on, and Freddy was gone. “Wha?” Applejack finally managed, unable to form any coherent words. Dumbfounded, she held the Freddy Mask in front of her and studied it closely. Nothing looked special about it, but there had to be something. Right? How could a mask fool such a monster? Surely he would have seen that her body was unchanged. She shook her head, clearing those thoughts away. Ah’ll worry about that later. Ah need to get to Zecora. With a plan set, she put the mask partially on and resumed her terrifying journey to Zecora’s house.