Dreamscape

by Jaestring

Prologue

Twilight shined the small penlight into the filly’s eye, but when she redirected the beam her pupils remained tightly constricted. The young, tawny pony had black circles around her eyes and her coat was mussy from lack of washing. Her eyes stared, unfocused, past Twilight into the dark corners of the room, her raspy breath the only sound in the dark.

Twilight pursed her lips as she turned to face the Earth pony’s mother. “How long did you say she had been displaying these symptoms?”

“Three days,” Octavia looked past Twilight to cast a concerned glance at the filly. “Though, the nightmares started several days before that. Vinyl and I didn’t think much of it, we only brought her home two weeks ago.”

Twilight nodded, a young filly having a few nightmares wouldn’t seem to out of the ordinary, let alone one who had just been brought into a strange, new atmosphere for foster care. “Her doctor gave her a clean bill of health?”

Octavia’s tail flicked as she shifted her hooves. “Yes, he just said she was probably exhausted from the stress of the move. When he saw her yesterday after the new symptoms started… he was baffled.”

The filly’s attending physician was supposed to meet Twilight for this appointment. It was a way to reduce liability, not to mention it was sort of a tradition in cases such as this. She made a mental note to see him before she left Ponyville.

Vinyl stepped from behind Octavia, her eyebrows furrowed. “Can… can you help her?”

“Maybe, I’m not sure yet.” Twilight reached out, doing a check of the filly’s pulse and respiration to compare it to when she had arrived. So far, no change. Just the same, weak rhythm.

A notebook and quill levitated out a knapsack that had been thrown to the side, surrounded in the lavender glow of Twilight’s magic. The pen scribbled furiously across the page in Twilight’s meticulous handwriting.

“These nightmares she has been having, has she told you about them?”

Vinyl sighed, her glance drifting towards the filly. “Vaguely. Just that she was being chased by monsters.”

More scribbling.

Twilight turned her attention fully back to the new parents. “Can you describe these monsters?”

Octavia and Vinyl shared a quick glance before Vinyl, who pushed her sunglasses further up her muzzle before she mumbled, “Only that they have red eyes.”

The scratching of pen on paper continued for another moment before the book suddenly slammed shut. She set book and quill to the side before moving over to the heavily draped window. “Prepare yourselves.”

Twilight pulled hard on the cord, drawing the drapes apart and bathing the filly in a beam of noonday sun.

Almost as soon as the light hit her she let loose a shrill scream, retreating from the light until she was backed up against the wall. When she was pressed back as far as she could go, she slammed a hoof against the wall. Then the other.

Then she started to ascend.

The filly was actually crawling up the wall! She didn't stop until she was pressed against the ceiling, her head tilted at what should have been an impossible angle. She hissed from her vantage point, revealing that her teeth had sharpened to points.

Twilight observed this with an air of calm. Stepping forward, the quill floated up to take more notes. It stopped suddenly and dropped in response to the filly’s laugh. A laugh meant for the body of a large stallion, not a child.

“And just what do you think you’re doing?” The filly’s head cocked to the side, but then it kept twisting until it was nearly upside-down.

Twilight swallowed, but took a step forward, keeping eye contact with… it. “I am here to release this filly from your grasp. I’m…”

The filly laughed again, her smile seeming to grow wider with every ‘ha’ until it nearly split her face from ear to ear. “I know who you are, Twilight Sparkle. Do you honestly think yourself so powerful, just because you’re an alicorn?”

She fell from her spot on the ceiling, and as she did so the light caught her eye just so they glinted red for just a moment. As she landed Octavia and Vinyl recoiled, holding each other with wide eyes.

“You have only been crowned for what, a year? Two? You don’t even have the power to understand me, let alone banish me. Begone! And leave me to my charge.”

With a snap, the drapes slammed closed. The filly dropped to the floor, breathing ragged and shaking.

Twilight stared at the filly for a few moments before running through the doorway. “I’ll be right back!” She yelled at the distraught parents as she passed.

It was only moments after she reached the back of the house that her legs went out from under her. She was covered in a cold sweat, taking several deep breaths to steady herself. Once she had caught her breath she called out. “Spike? Spike! Get over here, I need you to take a letter.”

There was a sound of clanging as the dragon fell down from the window ledge. He barely seemed to notice the impact and stood, racing over to Twilight. He wobbled on his long legs, courtesy of a growth spurt from the previous summer. “Wow, Twilight! Did you see that? That had to be…”

“Yes Spike, that was the real thing. Now, I said I need you to take a letter.”

“Right!” He dove into his own bag that was propped up against the side of the house, pulling out a quill and parchment. “I still don’t understand why I had to stay out here.”

Twilight ignored his last statement, opting instead to stand and pace. “Dear Princess Luna…”

“Luna? But you always…”

Twilight narrowed her eyes, meeting the wide-eyed stare of the oversized lizard. “Dear. Princess. Luna.”

“Dear Princess Luna. Right.” He began writing, staring intently at the parchment.

Twilight nodded and returned to pacing. “Dear Princess Luna, it seems what you feared has come to pass. The Nightmares have reached Ponyville. So far there have been five separate cases. The symptoms have been exactly as you described…”

After a long-winded explanation of her findings she turned to watch Spike as he scribbled her final plea.

“I greatly am in need of your assistance Princess. Please hurry.”