//------------------------------// // In The Dark Of The Night // Story: Twist Ending // by Rrazz //------------------------------// I've actually had this story for a while, just haven't gotten around to uploading it here yet >.< So yeah, better late then never right? Anyway, not a great deal to say. Its a self insert story...still reading? Cool, hopefully its a good read, I'm trying to keep the main character as grounded as possible. I've read WAY to many of these stories where the SI character is insanely overpowered or winds up with every pony wanting into their pants...and that won't be happening here res assured. I can't promise it'll be a GOOD story :P But I'll be trying my hardest to make it an enjoyable read. So hope you all enjoy :) Twist Ending Chapter One: In the Dark of The Night... _______________________________________________________________________________________ "Damn it!" I hissed as I carefully ducked behind a pillar, a hand pressing against my shoulder as I did my best to stop the blood that was pouring out of the wound. The harder I tried the worse it seemed to bleed though. I'd need to think of something else…But I didn't have time for that, already I could feel the chilling presence of my attacker looming closer, slowly tracking me down. Gritting my teeth against the pain, I glanced about uneasily, searching for the shadow. Though given the low light that seeped into the old fortress, it wasn't surprising that there were dozens to choose from, any one of which could be hiding the Nightmare. It was toying with me, it had been all along. Only striking when it served to disorient me further. "I must admit, its been fun watching you struggle." A cold voice hissed in my ear, the sound seemingly coming from every direction at once. "Watching you and you're…Friends try in vain to stop me. "Trying, and failing..." It continued, and I risked a glance around the side of the pillar, hoping for a glimpse of either the creature, or one of my companions, there was no way I could face it alone, not with my bare hands. "You were an excellent puppet, I must admit." It taunted, and unbidden a flash of memories assaulted my mind. Past failures…"I couldn't have done it without you…" It continued to taunt me, my teeth ground together as the pain from my shoulder mixed with the mental assault as it forced me to dwell on the past. "I'd…Never help you." I growled quietly through my teeth, doing little more then stalling at this point in hopes of thinking of some brilliant, last second strategy or escape plan. "Oh but you did!" It replied, mocking tone that made me want cringe. "Why do you think they failed? Why do you think the Elements failed?" Again a flash of memory, this time from mere hours before…When everything had started going wrong. "You cause this…All of it!" Still distracted by the memories, the pain, I failed to notice the shadow detaching itself from the wall and moving closer, slowly taking on the shape of a vaguely humanoid figure. "That is why I brought you here…That is why I ensured you made it this far. The Elements would no doubt have been my undoing again…But you…You're presence changed everything." Blinking away the images, I finally caught sight of the grinning shape in front of my, glowing eyes piercing my soul as they bored into my own. Despite my instincts screaming at me to run, I simply stood still, staring blankly at the creature as it gloated. "You ruined everything, broke the link." I could hear the grin on its voice. "You're feelings got the best of you. You killed them in a pathetic attempt to save, her." More memories were conjured up, reminding me of what I almost had…What'd I'd lost. Gritting my teeth tighter, I snarled and rushed forwards, closing the gap in two quick strides before I lashed out with one clenched fist. It was quicker and it easily closed a hand around mine, and tightened its grip until a sickening crack made me cry out in pain. With little effort it shoved me backwards, connecting with the pillar I slid down into a sitting position, the pain and blood loss starting to get the better of me. I wasn't cut out for this. How easy it would be to end this now." A clawed hand closed around my throat and hauled me up off the ground. "How easy it would be to squeeze the life out of you and end it now…With the Elements shattered, there's nothing left to stop me…" I felt the grip starting to tighten around my throat, my breathing grew shallower, and then with a sharp cough I stopped entirely. My still usable hand tried in vain to pry myself loose, to no effect. "Maybe you should join her in hell. Maybe you'd enjoy that?" Darkness started to creep into the corners of my vision, again I glanced about vainly, there had to be something I could do… "Go ahead." I coughed, cringing at the taste of blood in my mouth. "She might be gone, but the others will, find a way to end you." I barely heard the Nightmare's laughter, my senses starting to dull. "They'll fail, just like, you." Its grip tightened further, and I could just barely feel the bones in my neck starting to crack under the pressure. I poured all the strength I had left into trying to fight the creature off, It responded to my words, but I didn't hear, everything was fading to darkness. I didn't even know if it snapped my neck or not, as I was to far gone by the time it made up its mind… _____________________________________________________________________________________________ "Hm…No, no, NO. That doesn't sound right." With a few taps of the keyboard, the last paragraph vanished and was soon replaced by a new, different line of text. Seconds later it vanished as well. "Why doesn't anything, WORK!" I snapped, my fingers drumming against the keyboard as my gaze wandered over the last few paragraphs of the story in front me. It should have been easy. It should have been done three days ago! But for some reason I could just, not get the ending right. And it was driving me insane. Muttering a few choice words under my breath, I set to work retyping the last few paragraphs, trying variations on wording, altering the entire page and starting it entirely even. But for some reason the ending of this story, the story I'd worked on for months just never came out *right*. A sigh forced its way past my lips as I ran my hands through my hair. "Come on Simon, think! It's up there, just put it into words and be done with it!" I hissed quietly, knowing my parents were asleep only a few rooms away. The last thing I wanted was to wake them with my frustrated cursing…I'd done that enough times this week already. After another ten minutes of frustrated typing, I sighed a second time, a hand shifting up to remove my glasses, the other idly moving to rub my tired eyes in the process. "Maybe I should finish it in the morning." I commented, slipping my glasses back on, I glanced at my computers clock. 2:35 am Hell, I'd been at this for almost three hours now. I should have gone to bed, heck I knew that was the best idea, I had a habit of doing my best thinking while I slept… Instead of doing the smart thing however, my fingers idly tapped the Alt-Tab keys, and the story I was writing was replaced by my Steam games list. "Ten minutes." I mumbled to myself, despite knowing it was a bad idea I still hit the play button on the first game that looked appealing and put the story from my mind… _________________________________________________________________________________ With a satisfied grin, the Nightmare cast the now limp human aside, the lifeless body landing in a heap a few feet away. "Delusional till the end." It commented, idly flexing its claws and admiring the fresh blood on them. There was just one last loose end. The five ponies that still remained…They were in the castle somewhere, hunting for their missing friends. Its gaze flicked to the human once again. It was a regrettable outcome, but the human had done his job, he'd ensured the Elements failed, that through his own actions the group was divided and easy pray. With even one of them dead, the Elements of Harmony couldn't be used, and in turn it couldn't be stopped. Its gaze shifted again to a second broken body a short distance away. A scowl formed as it recalled what had ultimately been their undoing, somehow the human had developed feelings for one of the ponies, had thought it would be wise to abandon them and fight it alone. Of course his precious pony hadn't let him run off had she? No, the love sick filly had come running to save her precious *Friend* and had fallen right into its claws. It had been all the incentive the human, Simon needed to fall into its grasp, and now they would all pay the price for the fool's actions. Without her, the others would fall just as easily. Its thoughts were interrupted when a voice reached its ears, closely followed by another. And soon enough more started to peak its interest, all calling out one or the other's name. Its grin returned. "Like moths to a flame." It paused for a moment, before responding in kind, calling out to the group. Though its voice had changed, now sounding like the pony they searched for, rather then the shadow fiend they feared…Soon enough the clip clopping of hooves drew closer, following the urgent cries for help they thought was coming from their friend… __________________________________________________________________________________________ Despite the late hour, and despite the grim words on the screen, I smiled. For the first time since starting this chapter, I was genuinely happy with the result. Sure it was grim, sure I was killing off *myself* in a sense. But that was part of the plan… I'd decided from the start, when I'd first come up with the idea for this lame, self insert fan fiction, that it would end on a sour note. Every story of its kind I'd read had always wound up being in the same fashion. 'Hero arrives in X universe. Hero somehow winds up saving the day through either his presence or some unknown gift they'd received as part of their dimension hoping. And in the end they got the girl/guy of their dreams on top.' I had no issue with that. However I'd wanted to be different. I'd concocted the idea that the story would go in the opposite direction. The hero would end up in the universe of my choice, in this case Equestria. However instead of saving the day and proving to be the hero, he'd wind up ruining everything by accident, end up getting everyone killed. Worst of all being the girl he fell for; he'd lose her, and then lose the fight entirely. It was a pretty grim ending for the story, but its how I wanted it. Grim, dark, and unexpected. No twist ending, no come from behind victory…No happily ever after. I sighed heavily, feeling the usual pangs of regret I had when I wrote something like this, despite them being fictional, I still felt a sense of regret whenever I hurt or killed a character in one of my fictions. In this case they were the Mane Six! The My Little Pony characters I'd come to enjoy watching when my friend had talked me into watching Friendship is Magic (And I hadn't regretted it for a second). I pushed the feeling aside however. I might not like the idea of harming the characters, but hey, once this was done I could always write some nice Shipping tale or something and put my mind at ease…It WAS just a story after all… I glanced over at the clock as that thought crossed my mind, and I felt my eyes widen as I realized it was now past 4 am. "Hellllll!" I groaned, a sudden wave of exhaustion hitting me. I'd been so caught up in the moment that I hadn't realized just how tired I was. Without thought I tapped the Save key, committing my story to my computers hard drive, then closed it. I could handle the proof reading tomorrow. And then I'd upload it and that would be that. The story would officially be over…It felt good to finally finish something for a change. Yawning, I went through my typical last minute check list, checking emails, ensuring no one had contacted me via Steam or the like. It was a routine I'd perfected over the years to the point that I could do it blind folded. Yes this was I spent my days, sitting on my bed with a keyboard and mouse, wasting day after day on video games and writing fan fiction. For most this would have been a easy going weekend, or a day off. For me, this was life. Occasionally I'd chuckle at myself, having turned into the stereo typical 'nerd'. I was twenty years old, living at home with my parents (not that I had issues with that) and wasting my days playing video games. Oh sure I left my room plenty, but the fact remained that my 'life' centered around a mouse and keyboard, hardly a productive way to live. I didn't have a job or many friends, being social weren't one of my skills… But I didn't complain often, right now I hummed quietly as I scanned over the few emails I'd received since looking a few hours ago. My mind was still focused on the story however. A small part of me regretted the choice of ending. Despite planning this from the start, I couldn't shake the feeling that it wasn't right, that it should end differently somehow… I shook my head, blaming it on exhaustion. A few minutes later and I'd switched the monitor off and stretched out on my bed. It was a quiet night, not much happening. I was looking forward to a good nights sleep, and then I could finish the damn story and start making plans for my next project. That thought stuck with me well after sleep had taken hold and I'd tuned everything else out… Sadly, fate had other plans, as I awoke soon after. Initially I kept my eyes closed, however the unfamiliar sounds that greeted my awakening senses roused me fully and I risked opening them to glance about the room. It was brighter then when I'd fallen asleep, the light seeping in through the curtains of my room indicating that it was likely morning. So I'd been out at least a couple of hours. The sounds finally pierced my brain and I cringed slightly at the realization. The loud pattering of rain on the tin roof of our house…The loud rushing of wind sweeping through the trees, and after a few moments the low rumble as thunder rolled in. I blinked slowly, willing my eyes to focus, it was a clear starry night when I'd gone to bed…how long had I been out? My eyes settled on the clock on my bedside table, the screen was blank, shifting slightly, I glanced about the room. The various lights from my computer, TV and DVD players were absent. Power outage…Just what I damn well needed… I wasn't bothered by the darkness, even if I did prefer to sleep with the TV on, however it was more the annoyance that I'd have to reset everything once the power returned that bothered me. "Screw it." I muttered, not willing to wait out the storm. Instead I rolled over and closed my eyes. It wouldn't be hard to just sleep through it, I could hassle over the details in the morning… Barely a minute had ticked by before I noticed a light shining through my eyelids, something bright…Guess power was back already. Despite my better judgment, I opened my eyes. And frowned as I spotted my clock, it was still dark. But the room was lit up like usual, meaning something was back on… I risked a glance about the room, and my eyes settled on my computer monitor. Somehow it had not only turned back on, but had power running to it…I could only blink stupidly as I took in the details, a word document was open as well. I'd closed all of them before bed…Maybe it was the power cut, maybe it had thrown the computer out slightly? Snatching up my glasses case from the bed side table, I quickly slipped them back on and pulled myself into a sitting position. The text heading the document only confused me further. Divided and Conquered Chapter One That was the name of the story I'd been working on, but why was it on chapter one? I was up to chapter thirty by now… I don't know why, but my gaze dipped downwards, focusing on the computer box briefly. The green light that indicated the computer was actually on and powered was absent…Which meant the computer was off, yet here it was, with a document open… "You're losing it Simon…Dreaming no doubt." I commented, idly removing my glasses once again. That had to be it, I was dreaming about the story or something…Weird way to dream about it, but hey, I've had crazier… Before I could go back to sleep though, I spared another glance at the screen, oddly enough even without my glasses the text was still visible. The first paragraph caught my eye… It detailed me waking up to a storm, one that hadn't been there when I'd gone to sleep…Waking up to find my computer acting strangely. I felt my heart rate quicken as I reread the text. "I didn't write that…" It was then I noticed more text literally appearing before my eyes, detailing my disbelief at what I was reading, the confusion that I was feeling was being put on the page before me. My confusion as to what was appearing on the screen was typed up in vivid detail as well. A thought crossed my mind, and the story penned itself faster. Indicating I though this was a dream, and that I was contemplating trying to wake myself up. "Damn that's creepy…" I muttered, and sure enough the comment appeared on the screen. I licked my lips, suddenly noting my mouth was dry. This was well beyond creepy. I'd had creepy dreams before, who didn't have nightmares, but this was so, unusual, so vivid. It was like I was actually awake and seeing this… Suddenly a new line of text appeared, and, unable to resist I kept reading. A chilling voice suddenly whispers in you're ear…Its words are little more then an inaudible mumble, but whatever it says chills you to the bone… A heartbeat later, I almost jumped off my bed when a cold voice assaulted my ears, the chill it sent down my spine lingering long after it spoke. "Wake up…Wake up…" I mumbled to myself, now well and truly freaked out by how wild my imagination had decided to be tonight. Out of instinct I brought my hand up and smacked my palm against my forehead. I was shocked, and annoyed when a sharp pain ripped through my skull and wrist from the contact, the blow dazing me for a moment. Blinking, I glanced back at the screen, and was horrified to note the text was still there, still appearing at a rapid rate. I closed my eyes, still not convinced I was awake, but refusing to read whatever was appearing regardless. Had this been under different circumstances, I'd have been taking notes, this sounded like a damn good story idea to what little of my mind took the time to think about it…I was a fan of the dark, horror stories, and this was shaping up to be a good one, a possessed computer that was writing reality? Heck yeah! But, no this was really happening, and it was creeping me the hell out! Finally I risked opening my eyes again, and was grateful to find the computer had somehow turned off again, the story gone but not forgotten. I was alone in the half light of the morning once again. "I knew it was just a dream…" I chuckled uneasily, the throbbing in my forehead a grim reminder that I was either far from dreaming, or losing my grip on my sanity… 'Like you had a grip on it to begin with.' I thought with a roll of my eyes. Before focusing on the situation at hand, well I was wide awake now. That dream enough to put me on edge… Fumbling about in the dark, I retrieved my flashlight and flipped it on. Idly casting a glance about my bedroom. Nothing was out of the ordinary, my pet cockatiel was sound asleep in his cage, everything else was scattered about where I'd left it. I shook my head, reminding myself that it was just a bad dream. A drink would settle my nerves. Then it was back to bed. I could take notes on this tomorrow and maybe turn it into a new story! That prospect brightened my mood, and I soon set off for the fridge. _________________________________________________________________________________________ It was during my hunt for something to quench my third, that I realized the unsettling night was far from over; in fact it had only begun… I frowned as I waved my flashlight about, scanning over the contents of the fridge. There were various types of soft drink I could crack open. A bottle of pepsi max on the top shelf caught my eye, but I looked past it, focusing on the half bottle of chocolate milk I'd brought a few days ago and had cracked open earlier that night. "No more milk before bed." I mumbled, blaming it for my…Episode, earlier. A lot of people claimed cheese and the like could induced weird dreams, maybe my trigger was flavored milk or something. Finally I gave up the hunt and just stole the pepsi bottle, no one would miss it, I was the only one that drunk it after all. And damn if I didn't need something to calm my frazzled nerves. "Simon…" My ears perked up at the sound of someone calling my name, I could barely hear it over the pounding rain and the howling wind, but it was there. A moment later I heard the voice again. "Hmm?" I idly nudged the fridge door closed and spun on my heel, assuming the storm had woken one of my parents too. As I spun around however, everything seemed to happen at once. The storm suddenly stopped, no it didn't just ease or calm. It just, vanished, the rain, the thunder, all of it just instantly ceased. As I completed my turn, flashlight snapping up to try and spot who had spoken to me, I found myself plunged into an unnatural darkness. The flashlight couldn't pierce the sudden gloom around me, and the kitchen had vanished. All I saw was pitch black in all directions. I slowly spun on the spot, noting that literally everything was gone. "The hell?" I gave my light a light whack, before tipping it upwards. The bright beam of light dazzled my eyes; I was quick to drop it again. "You've done well…" A chilling voice reached my ears, and I shivered, instinctively snapping around to face the direction it had come from, naturally I found nothing but darkness. "Who's there?" I called; the voice scratched a nerve, like I knew it but couldn't place it. All I knew was it wasn't my parents… "What's the matter…Don't recognize," Suddenly a shape burst from the shadows, causing me to leap back a step in shock, my eyes widened as I met the glowing red eyes of the figure. Spotted the sharpened teeth. "ME!" It snapped, grinning wildly as it saw the shock register in my expression. "Wh-What the hell!" I whispered as a dozen emotions fought for dominance in my mind. Disbelief, shock, horror, outright fear. Others flashed through my mind, but they moved so quickly I couldn't process them all. Of course I recognized the figure. The Nightmare as I'd come to refer to it…The horrific monster I'd conjured up in my head, and had put to paper when I wrote my story. My fright slowly began to subside as I dwelled on that notion. Dreaming, I was still dreaming…Ha, jeeze I was NOT having a good night, was I…"What are you doing here?" I asked slowly, deciding that if I couldn't wake up, I might as well play along…Damn this thing was even more terrifying then I'd imagined… "You finally did it! You finally finished the story! Congratulations!" I stayed silent, not sure what the hell was going on anymore. "But, I'm afraid you're role isn't complete…" It fixed me with another glare that caused my blood to freeze in the veins. Even as my heart started to beat faster and I tried to back away from that horrible gaze, I found myself rooted to the spot. "You wrote the play…Now all I demand is that you play you're, part..." With a dark chuckle it shifted backwards, vanishing into the shadows once again. Though even as it disappeared, leaving me alone, I could still hear its voice on the non existent wind. "Enjoy you're fantasy while it lasts…It'll be you're last!" I'm not sure what happened after that…Suddenly I felt light headed, my eyes forced themselves closed, and I was simply forced back to sleep. A part of me figured that was the end of this surreal nightmare. That I was finally waking up. How I WISH that was the case…