//------------------------------// // Chapter Four: An Uneasy Feeling // Story: Focus // by Twyla In Wonderland //------------------------------// Rainbow Dash maniacally smashed the buttons on her controller, as her character vanished into a pool of blood and held her attacker up by protruding spikes. The character then appeared under the vulnerable hanging enemy and slit their stomach open, causing a flood of blood to gush from the wound, drenching Rainbow Dash’s player. The sound of limbs being severed before splattering onto the ground made the room fall silent, which was disrupted by Pinkie humming Rarity’s new song she had written for the band. She looked over at Dash and smiled, despite the fact that she knew she had lost to Dash. “I’m offended that you’re smiling,” Rainbow said bluntly. The game then finished with one final scream. “Fatality!” Pinkie placed the remote down, still humming the song, occasionally singing a few words aloud. “You have attacked…” She went back into humming as Dash looked over at her. “Are you attempting to sing, ‘Getting Stronger’?” Dash asked as Pinkie nodded in confirmation. Rainbow placed her controller down and sighed heavily. She noticed that the others have been gone for over three hours, and so she began to get worried. She leaned over to Pinkie before tentatively asking her a question. “Should we be worried that the others have been gone for this long?” “What, three hours?” “Yes!” “Should I call them?” “No, Pinks. They left their phones.” They both looked over at the clock, as Dash retracted her deep lean, before standing up and putting on her coat. “Come on then, we better go check up on them. To be honest, I’m scared for their safety. I know it’s fearing the worst, but better that way than not worrying at all, before finding out something terrible has happened to them.” “I’ve never seen you this serious about anything before, so we should probably trust your gut on this one, better safe than sorry. Let’s go.” *** Arriving at their friend’s cottage, it was absolutely pissing it down. The girls sat and waited in the car for a few minutes, watching for any signs of movement. across the road in front of Shy’s cottage was Rarity’s car, parked next to the path. Both girls felt an unnerving presence, as though something was watching them. Pinkie began to feel sick, the overwhelming feeling of negativity coating the car and its inhabitants becoming too much for her. As her hair began to droop, she began to smell sulphur. Being rather spontaneous and stereotypical by nature, Pinkie took these as signs indicating the presence of a demon. Her head turns to Rainbow Dash, who was uncertain as to whether or not they should go in as they could be investigating the situation more closely. Rainbow Dash looks back at Pinkie, and what was written across her face told her everything she needed to know. Something was terribly wrong here, and they could all be in danger. The Pinkie Sense never lies. Rainbow felt certain concerning what their next move would be. Her hand latched onto the handle of the car door and pulled it downwards, opening it swiftly. She was about to step out until Pinkie stopped her by placing a hand on her shoulder. “Dashie?” She asked, her eyes filled with morbid fear, “I don’t want to go in there.” “We have to, Pinkie, for everyone’s sake. If there really is something wrong, we have to help out. Besides, they are most likely just hanging out anyway.” “No, Rainbow Dash, you don’t get it. Something’s up with that house. I feel it. If you wanna walk up there and get hurt, or worse... Then, be my guest.” “What’s gotten into you?” Rainbow asked her angrily, as Pinkie snapped her eyes shut. “I just feel an overwhelming sense of negativity, and I don’t like it. Not to mention the sulphur smell.” “What’s up with the smell, anyways? It’s fucking driving me insane.” “It’s a sign of a demon, Dashie. And it’s in that house.” She pointed accusingly towards the not-so-innocent-anymore cottage across the road. Rainbow sighed, “You know what, you’re just being silly, Pinkie. I’m going into the house, and I’m finding out why they are taking so long with this visit, and then I’m going to leave, simple as that. I’m not afraid of anything, after all. If you wanna stay here, go ahead. I’ll have my phone on me, so if you need me, call me.” Dash then left the car and crossed the road, as Pinkie watched her friend walk up the pathway to Fluttershy’s house. “I have a bad feeling about this, a really bad feeling...” *** Dash investigated inside the cottage, there was nothing but blood and glass everywhere. Not to mention the broken doors. Walking in further, the smell of sulphur grew stronger. Rarity was right in what she said back at Pinkie’s, now she needs to find them. The banister at the top of the stairs was snapped clean in half. Acting impulsively, she shouted for her friends, “Applejack! Rarity! Sunset! Fluttershy!” Nothing. Below her was a stained mark, crimson. Dash jumped with a mild yelp and moved out of the way. Upon looking into the living room, she noticed the furniture was destroyed and covered with claw marks. Her instinct was to walk away, but instead she forced herself to walk into the kitchen. The door was broken, cabinets were destroyed, windows were smashed. Rainbow Dash walked back into the living room area before making her way upstairs. At the top was another fresh blood stain, so Dash hurried across the landing only to see Fluttershy’s bedroom door on the ground, and plastic bags haphazardly strewn across the floor of her bedroom, their contents laid bare. These included Rainbow’s ordered bottle of coke and other snacks they should be enjoying together. “Did something happen to them?” She asked herself, as a sudden realisation hit her: the whole house was completely devoid of life. Rainbow began to walk back over to the stairs, a mental war raging within the confines of her now chaotic mind. “Why is the house so eerie and dark? Maybe they ran out as something tried to attack them…? Well, the most damaged place in the entire house is the kitchen by the looks of it, so they must have left through the kitchen door.” Without a second thought, Dash was already in the kitchen. Noticing the lack of an intact back door, she walked out of the house and into the backyard leading to the Everfree Forest. The door had been broken outwards, suggesting something had smashed its way out of the house desperately. She spotted a clear path showing evidence of a possible flight/pursuit through the long grass, leading to the edge of the forest. “They are in the Everfree Forest?!” She then noticed a set of animal prints along the path, and judging by the size, it was a large animal. Rainbow bravely followed them into the forest. After what seemed to have been hours, Dash yelled for her friends once again. “Applejack! Rarity! Sunset! Fluttershy!” Someone shouted back, “Rainbow Dash!” It sounded like Applejack. “If it’s you, we’re over here!” “Coming!” She dashed in the direction of the shouting as quickly as her rapid legs would allow her to. *** Dash arrived at the clearing, and the first thing she spotted was Sunset on a bed of leaves. “What happened!?” “We were attacked by an animal! It caught Sunset by the leg, causing her to fall from the banister.” Rarity said as Dash nodded in acknowledgement. “Well, that explains why there was blood everywhere. What was this animal?” Asked Dash, “It looked like a wolf, but we don’t know if it was a wild animal or even Fluttershy herself, as it was wearing torn pieces of her clothing,” Applejack said. “We need to take her to the cottage…” Dash pushed this ludicrous idea to one side for the moment, and began fumbling to pick Sunset up, however, was scolded by both other girls simultaneously, “No!” They said in unison. Rainbow looked irritated as she rubbed her ears, “Nothing is in there, trust me. Fluttershy has first aid back there. When we arrive, I’ll call the hospital, just please follow my lead on this one.” Rarity and Applejack look at each other, then Rainbow and finally Sunset, who only moaned in response. Finally, Rarity commented on the idea, “Alright, I’m trusting you… Where’s Pinkie?” “She felt uneasy about coming into the cottage, so she’s in my car.” “And how did you know we were here?” Applejack asked. “Your car was here, and you didn’t answer when I was calling for you in the cottage, so I went to investigate. I noticed you must be somewhere outside when I spotted the broken door and animal prints leading to the edge of the forest. Let's get her back, girls, we don’t have time for this.” They nodded and picked Sunset up, Rarity began to walk backwards as Applejack stood to her side, guiding her forwards. As for Rainbow, she picked the other side of Sunset up and began to lug her back towards the cottage. They eventually had her out of the forest and onto the only sofa that wasn’t damaged beyond recognition. “Applejack, you call the hospital. I’ll grab the medical bag!” Dash said, as she left her phone on the table and ran into the kitchen. Rarity sighed as Applejack began to dial the hospital before standing up and leaving the room so Sunset could rest. She thought the cottage was empty, but she was wrong. As Rainbow Dash walked upstairs her phone went off in the living room, Rarity answered it, bringing it up to her ear before quickly jerking it away from the frantic shouting coming from the other end. This could only be one girl, so at her first opportunity Rarity got a few words in, “Hiya, Pinkie.” *** Outside the cottage, Pinkie was screaming as a large animal began rocking the car, barking at her like a rabid beast. “It’s attacking! It’s after me, I’m scared! Help me, please!” The beast smashed the glass of the car door, causing it to shatter and slice Pinkie’s arm as she brought up her left appendage to defend herself. This opened up a large wound on her forearm, which immediately began gushing blood. She screamed in agony as Rarity suddenly realised the severity of her friend’s situation. Rarity ran out of the house, hopscotching the puddles on her way to aid her friend. Pinkie was roughly ragged out of the car, still screaming and clutching her arm. The beast reacted in an unexpected fashion for no immediately apparent reason. It sat down suddenly, wincing and blinking rapidly after dropping Pinkie onto the car roof in the process, thus denting it as her body thudded onto its surface. Its hands were raised and placed onto its ears, as it began to lay down on the damp floor, the rain poured down relentlessly around it. Whimpering in pain, the beast began to regain its senses. It glanced at Pinkie for a few seconds, who was now growing more and more silent as the seconds ticked by. The beast then looked away with a pitiful yelp, as it slowly crawled away before raising onto all fours and making a run for it, howling in its flight. Blood stained the ground as it ran, dripping from its exhausted body, which was soon washed away by the rain. “Pinkie! Oh dear... Are you okay?! Talk to me!” “Help... me...” She passed out cold. The faint sound of sirens blaring in the distance.