//------------------------------// // Chapter 8 // Story: In This Town // by iLikeMuffins //------------------------------// Chapter 8 “I'm everywhere.” It's only been an hour since I've called you, and here you are, standing in front of me on my doorstep. You're sweating all over, did you rush your way here? You should really take your time, kid. Nobody's going anywhere. Unless you're meaning me, then yes, I'm going everywhere. What do I mean by that? That's for me to know and for you to find out. But really, don't you remember the change in our promise? It was more of a deal, but then the word ‘promise’ has a nicer ring to it. What's my deal? Well, you wanted answers, and I told you I'll give you answers... When I feel like it, that is. What's in return for me after I've given you the answers? Why'd you ask? ...well, I couldn't give you any details just yet. But, you'll find out sooner or later. Depends on how fast you can catch up. Either way, I'll just tell you someday, but not today. Anyways, enough of this and come right in. I cleaned the reading room, so don't worry about it. The smell was getting to me, it stinks. I'll prepare something cold for you to drink, you look like you need it. Some soda, perhaps? No..? Water again? Really? Man, kid... You need some taste in your life, and I mean it! ☽ ♕ ☾ “It's been days since they've disappeared,” Applebloom let out a long sigh. “Weeks, actually.” Sweetie Belle patted Applebloom on the back, “Come on, cheer up, Applebloom! They'll be back!” She exclaimed, forcing a smile upon her face. “I hope...” The crusaders have never been so gloomy and sad in their whole lives. After Applebloom's and Sweetie Belle's sisters have disappeared, their parents and family have told them to be more cautious, and have not allowed them to leave the house without any guardian. As for Scootaloo, she had to skip a few days of school in order to take care of her grandmother, who had fallen ill a few days after Rainbow Dash had disappeared. “By the way, how's your grandmother?” Sweetie Belle questioned. “Pale,” was all Scootaloo said. Sweetie Belle's forced smile faded away, and she looked away as she frowned. “I see...” Nothing was as it was ever since their loved ones had disappeared. “What do ya suggest we do?” Applebloom questioned with a sigh. “Our sister's gone, yer cousin's gone... We tried to contact the police, but they found no trace of them... It's a lost cause!” “Yeah, it is,” Scootaloo mumbled, looking away. “We should look for them,” Sweetie Belle suggested. “How do you suppose we do that?” Scootaloo asked. “Well...” “We don't even know where they could've gone,” Applebloom added. Sweetie Belle leaned against the wall and let out a sigh, “Yes, I know that... Of course I know that! How could I not know that?” She shouted. “It's just that... All we've done ever since they've disappeared was sit here in our clubhouse and be all depressed and stuff. We've never tried to help search for them.” “What can we do about that?” Scootaloo looked at Sweetie Belle, “Your family doesn't let you go out alone nowadays.” “I know, but I could sneak out,” Sweetie Belle said. “Sneak out...” Applebloom repeated silently. “Sneak to where?” Scootaloo questioned. “I don't know? To the last place they were seen or something!” Sweetie Belle waved her arms in the air. “We could go to their school and ask if any of the students there seen where Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy had gone to after school.” Applebloom snapped out of her depression and snapped her fingers with a bright smile across her face, “That's a great idea, Sweetie Belle! Why haven't we thought of that before?!” “We did, but we just weren't in the mood to discuss about it,” Scootaloo mumbled. Applebloom placed her two hands on both sides of Scootaloo's face, “We're going to question their classmates, find out where they're at before they've disappeared into oblivion, and we'll sneak out and search for them,” she said. Scootaloo pulled her face back and rubbed her cheeks, “That hurts, you know?” She grumbled. She wasn't really in the mood of the whole ‘sneak out’ thing. But she did want to see Rainbow Dash again. “I'm in.” “Then I'm in too!” Sweetie Belle squeaked. “Not like we've got a choice,” Scootaloo chuckled, looking at Applebloom. “Nope, ya don't got any choice!” Applebloom laughed. “If I get caught, I'll blame it on you,” Scootaloo poked Applebloom on the cheek. Applebloom laughed and pushed Scootaloo till she fell to the ground. Sweetie Belle joined in and tackled Applebloom. It's been so long since they've last laughed and played like this. ☽ ♕ ☾ As Rarity wandered in the forest, with nothing more than a dead phone, she had miraculously bumped into Applejack. Honestly speaking, she'd never thought she would bump into any of her friends in the forest, but she was glad she did. “Applejack, thank goodness you're alright!” Rarity exclaimed. “Rarity? Boy, you sure look...” Applejack looked at Rarity's attire. She was a mess. “Different...” Applejack forced a smile. “Indeed I do,” Rarity let out a sigh. She turned to Applejack, “But you, my friend... You're not as dirty as I am. How?” She questioned. Applejack shrugged, “I don't know myself.” “This forest is awfully muddy, I have to say,” Rarity growled. “Muddy? It wasn't muddy,” Applejack said. “For me, it was!” Rarity shouted. “Just look at this!” She gestured to her dress and her shoes, “I have never ever in my life have seen myself covered in so much dirt!” Applejack couldn't help but laugh. Rarity crossed her arms and glared at Applejack, “Oh, very funny,” she said sarcastically. “How would you feel if you're covered in mud?” “Ah've been covered in more mud than ya can ever imagine. Ah've been born in a farm, after all,” Applejack shrugged with a smile across her face. “Right... I've forgotten about that...” Rarity said silently, only loud enough for her to hear. “Anyway, have you found Pinkie and Twilight yet? I honestly would love to get out of this place as soon as possible.” “Nope,” Applejack shook her head. “Marvelous,” Rarity said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes. “Ready to make a deal with me?” It was that voice again. “No, I'm not going to make any deals with you!” Rarity screamed, stomping her feet on the ground. Applejack backed away, “Whoa, Rarity... Calm down.” Rarity looked over at Applejack, “You can't... Hear that?” “Hear what?” Applejack raised an eyebrow. The voice laughed inside of Rarity's head. “You're the only one who could hear me, so if you suddenly scream or shout like you did back there, people would think you're insane!” Rarity rolled her eyes. She knew whatever was talking to her could clearly see her. Applejack didn't know what she was doing in the slightest. “Rarity? Are ya okay?” She asked. Rarity smiled at her, “Why, yes. Of course I'm fine! Is anything the matter?” “Nice acting skills,” the voice continued to laugh. Rarity couldn't help but find the laugh extremely annoying. “You sure do laugh a lot, do you?” “How nice of you to take notice of that.” “No... It's just that, you're acting a bit different from before?” Applejack said. “Different? How can that be?” Rarity questioned. Applejack shook her head, “Doesn't matter,” she said. “Well, let's just continue our search.” “Sure. You lead the way!” Rarity exclaimed. Applejack nodded her head and walked ahead of Rarity while she followed from behind. “Are you really sure you don't need my help?” The voice questioned. There was a hint of boredom inside of its voice. “I'm extremely sure I don't,” Rarity said between her teeth as silently as she could. “I've made it clear that I don't the last time we've met.” The voice let out a sigh. “I'm in need of some entertainment.” “Find it somewhere else,” Rarity whispered. “I did! But it requires some time before... Well, you know. Like when you charge something, you have to wait before it's fully charged!” The voice exclaimed. “So while waiting for that to be done, I'll be here, watching you.” “Why don't you go mess with someone else?” Rarity questioned, she was getting really irritated. “There's only one more person to mess with other than you,” the voice said, “And she doesn't really entertain me all that much.” The voice let out a yawn. “Is anything wrong?” Applejack asked, turning her head to face Rarity. Rarity raised her hands, “Nope, just thinking out loud!” “If ya say so,” Applejack shrugged at her before turning back to face the front. Rarity growled to whatever was talking to her, “Leave me alone.” “When I want to.” “Leave. Now.” Rarity said in her thoughts. “Nope.” “What will it take for you to leave me alone?” Rarity questioned. “Glad you asked... It's simple, really! All I wan–” “No deals,” Rarity said aloud. The voice let out a sigh, then it mumbled something. It let out another sigh before it begun talking once more. “Rarity, Rarity, Rarity... All I want is a simple deal, is that too much to ask?” “Yes,” Rarity replied. “It's just a deal. Simple, right? All you gotta do is sign a contract with me, then a deal is made!” The voice exclaimed. Rarity heard somebody snapped their fingers. It wasn't Applejack, it wasn't her. Everything around Rarity became black and white, and everything froze, as if time had stopped. Rarity was the only one in color, and the only one that's moving. “What?” Rarity looked around the place. “What did you do?” She lowered her voice. “A simple time spell,” the voice replied. “Now that time's frozen, we can talk normally, can we? Nobody here to judge you, nobody here to think you're crazy. We're all alone here in this empty world!” “It's not empty though. There's still trees, bushes, animals, Applejack, my friends, and not to mention me,” Rarity said, placing her hands by her waist. “I'm not willing to make a deal with you, no matter how irritating you are,” she glared at the sky, not knowing where or what to glare at. “Undo the spell, make everything move again. I'm not making a deal with you. End of conversation.” The voice let out a sigh. “Do you really?” Rarity tilted her head in confusion. “Do you really not want to make a deal with me? To go home, back to your cozy bedroom, take a warm shower, and continue on with your life?” The voice asked. “Don't listen to him, Rarity... It's just trying to lure you in,” Rarity told herself. The voice chuckled. “Fine, I'll let you live the way you want. But let me tell you something interesting,” the voice said before snapping its fingers, bring color back to the world once again, and making everything move. “Time here works differently than back at your home. One day here could be a week there.” And with that, the voice said nothing else. “What're standing there for?” Applejack called out. Rarity shook her head and blinked a few times before turning to Applejack. “Huh?” “Come on, we got people to find!” Applejack motioned her to follow her. Rarity nodded her head and walked towards her. “Sorry, I was lost in my thoughts,” she said. “Don't sweat it. Just tell me whenever yer gonna think 'bout something again,” Applejack said. Rarity just nodded her head from behind, even though Applejack couldn't see her. ☽ ♕ ☾ “Who dares to step into my territory?” The low voice echoed in the small room. Rainbow turned around and pushed Fluttershy up the stairs as quick as she could, “Run!” She shouted in Fluttershy's ears. Fluttershy snapped out of it and nodded her head. She was still shivering, and her movements weren't as smooth, but she ran up the stairs as fast as she could with Rainbow Dash following her from behind. The monster roared, causing the walls to shake. “Keep going, Shy! Keep going!” Rainbow Dash shouted. The monster was now chasing after them, causing the stairs to rumble. The walls were shaking so furiously that some even fell out. “Eep!” Fluttershy squeaked as one of the bricks fell in front of her. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and kept pushing her friend upwards, “This is no time to be scared of a brick! We got better things to worry about! And that is hiiiimmmmm!” The stairs were crumbling, and the monster was gaining on them. “The floor...! It's falling apart!” Fluttershy screamed. “You think I didn't noticed?” Rainbow Dash shouted as she tried to regain her balance. Once she did, she pointed to Fluttershy, “Keep going, Fluttershy!” She shouted. “But!” “No buts!” Rainbow Dash growled. Fluttershy nodded her head hesitantly and ran up without stopping. She looked back from time to time to see Rainbow Dash running after her. Once they've reached back to the hut, they quickly ran out of the hut and hid in the forest. The monster was on the loose. The hut collapsed on the monster, but the monster broke through the broken roof and walls and roared, causing the ground the shake momentarily. Steam was coming out of the monster's nose as he marched furiously into the opposite side of where Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash was. “Do you think it'll find us again?” Fluttershy asked. Rainbow Dash was out of breath and was breathing heavily. “Maybe? But... It'll probably kill us the next round,” she let out a short laugh, “We won't be so lucky when that time comes.” “Are you injured?” Fluttershy asked worriedly. “Nah,” Rainbow Dash shrugged and picked herself up. “Even if I am, I bet it would just be a small cut or something.” “If you are injured, you should tell me,” Fluttershy said. “Yeah, of course I will,” Rainbow Dash laughed. “If I get hurt, that is.” “This isn't a laughing matter! Injuries could cause infections! And when you do have infections, you could get sick!” Fluttershy exclaimed. Rainbow Dash shrugged at her, “Okay then, I'll tell you when I got any injuries.” Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief, “You'd better.” Rainbow Dash looked around, just to make sure whatever monster or creature was after them weren't near them, you know? Even though it went to the opposite direction, it could've turned and change its direction whenever. So, she's just taking precautions. “Looks like that thing's gone,” Rainbow Dash muttered to herself. She turned to Fluttershy and extended her hands, “Well, since we've got nothing else to do here,” she pointed to the collapsed hut before continuing her sentence, “Why don't we leave this place and continue our search somewhere else?” Fluttershy looked at the hut. It was true, they didn't have anything else to do here. Fluttershy turned back to Rainbow and nodded her head. “I wonder what's down there,” Rainbow Dash said as she walked to who-knows-where. Fluttershy gulped. “I don't even want to know,” she whispered. “That thing looked awfully mad when we ran away,” Rainbow Dash said, “Wonder if it was guarding anything down there? Or was it just mad at us for not answering its question?” “Let's... Change the subject,” Fluttershy said silently. “Okay, but you're choosing the topic. I don't have anything on my mind right now,” Rainbow Dash shrugged. Fluttershy took a while to think about what to say. After a minute or two, she finally thought of something. “You remember the book we've found in that hut?” Fluttershy started. “Yeah. Don't understand a thing written in that,” Rainbow Dash said. Fluttershy opened her mouth, “Ah...” She closed it soon after. She had nothing else to say, and had no idea what to talk about the book. The book was unreadable to them, so what is there to talk about? Wherever they were going, there was no chitter chattering. They didn't know what to talk about or what to say to each other. ☽ ♕ ☾ “These kids are interesting, don't you think?” A kid, looked like he was around the age of twelve sat in the corner of the room with his hands crossed as he let out a sigh. He had purple hair and emerald green eyes. He glanced over at a figure who was standing in the shadows. “I have no idea what you're talking about,” he said. The figure standing in the shadows did not walk out from the darkness. It's voice was distorted, you couldn't even tell if it was a male or female talking, and it echoed through the room, even if the room was big and filled with furnitures. Heck, it even echoed in the forest. “Have some fun, kid,” whoever or whatever was in the shadows said. “You're young, you've got all the time in the world! While...” It chuckled. “I, on the other hand, have all of eternity.” “All in the time in the world and all of eternity are both practically the same,” the boy said as he played with the stool he was sitting on, rocking back and forth, making creaking noises as he did. “Aren't you going to leave them alone?” “Why would I? I'm waiting for one of them to make a deal with me.” “But one of them already did.” “Yes... But sadly, she has no memory of it.” The boy stood up and put on his jacket. “Where are you going?” “To town,” the boy answered as he zipped his jacket up. “You mean that small town those girls live in?” It questioned. The boy said nothing and just nodded his head. It laughed and waved at the boy, “I hope you enjoy your time there.” “Maybe I will,” the boy said, heading to the door. “Farewell... Spike.” ☽ ♕ ☾ My apologies, I will have to end it early for today. I've got a party to attend to. A reunion party, to be more precise. Some friends from college came back for a visit, and a few friends from here decided for themselves, “Hey, why don't we throw a reunion party?” And I was invited. I don't really wanna attend their party, and I could. But I miss some of them. They're good friends of mine, so might as well take some time off and meet up with them, am I right? Well, move along now. Yes, we'll continue the story another time. I'll give you a ring when I'm free. You can take your time, don't have to rush over here like you did today. If you do that, then the next time I'll have to tell the story outdoors. You stink of sweat. Well then, farewell for now!