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You Wake Up In a Room2,913 words
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The Mercy Seat2,638 words
Piknik na Obochine2,301 words
Veins2,500 words
United We Stand1,699 words
Jammed2,214 words
Them Bones2,120 words
Light in the Darkness2,007 words
The Others2,168 words
Change2,348 words
Shell2,372 words
The Way Out2,575 words
On the Fly2,354 words
Nopony Has To Die2,828 words
Corrosion1,878 words

The Others

“We’ll all die here...” Scootaloo whimpered, sinking her head in her hooves and resting herself against the wall.

It was two days since Apple Bloom’s death and they were still walking through a maze of narrow, moist corridors, all of them looking the same. Drops of water were falling from the ceiling, splashing in the puddles on the floor. Cold wind was blowing through the tunnels; most of the group was coughing and sneezing.

“Come on,” Rumble muttered. “There has to be a way out...”

“There is,” Scootaloo replied. “Just like Apple Bloom...”

“It wasn’t your fault, Scootaloo,” Rumble said. “And it wasn’t your fault, Silver,” he added quickly, seeing Silver Spoon shuddering.

“I bring death to everypony,” Silver Spoon muttered. “Each time somepony dies instead of me... This time it was Apple Bloom, but next time it can be any of you.” She looked into the dark corridor. “Maybe I should go...”

“No!” Rumble exclaimed. “No matter what happens, we’re staying together!”

“Exactly,” Dinky said, looking at Boysenberry, who was sitting on the floor, unfazed by the water, and staring at Scootaloo blankly. “There aren’t many of us left. We have a bigger chance as a group.”

Cold wind became stronger; Rumble shuddered, rubbing his wings against his body. Scootaloo finally stood up and started to walk slowly.

The group trotted through the tunnels, close to each other; scratching behind the walls intensified, urging them to walk faster. The sound changed a bit – instead of the claws trying to dig a hole in concrete it was more like something wet and soft was rubbing itself against the walls. There was also another sound – as if somepony was cleaning the wall with a gigantic brush.

“Strange,” Dinky muttered. “It looks like this tunnel has been flooded recently...”

“I hope nopony was inside when it happened,” Scootaloo said, thinking about Sweetie Belle.

“I’d rather hope it doesn’t happen again soon,” Ruby hissed, squinting her eyes. Everypony looked at her – she hadn’t spoken a word since Apple Bloom’s death. “What? Dunno about you, but I don’t like swimming.”

“I guess it happens periodically,” Rumble said. “Let’s go. I agree with Ruby on this one.”

They walked down the tunnel, carefully trying to avoid the puddles. Featherweight trotted to Ruby and patted her shoulder. She gave him a nasty look when she showed her to slow down.

“Bigger chance as a group...” he muttered when they stayed a bit behind. “I don’t think so.”

“What do you mean?” Ruby asked. “And don’t go all cryptic on me again or I’ll smack you.”

“Only one will get out of here,” Featherweight said. “I figured it out. Soon they will make us kill ourselves in order to progress.”

“Bullshit,” Ruby muttered. “Why’d they do that?”

“That’s the next step,” Featherweight replied, throwing glances around. “And I’m afraid that we’ll be first.”

“I’ll give you a piece of advice.” Ruby turned her head away from Featherweight. “Stand before the wall and hit your head against it a few times. Everypony will rejoice.”

Featherweight ignored her. “I’m sure there are ponies you’d like to get rid of...”

“Boysenberry,” Ruby whispered, staring at the rest of the group. “And Dinky.”

“Boysenberry...” Featherweight smirked. “That’s easy. She’s already a few sandwiches short of a picnic...”

“I want to get rid of her, but I’m not killing her,” Ruby said. “Fuck off.” She quickened up her pace, catching up with the rest of the group. Featherweight shrugged and followed her.

“Think about it,” he said.

Ruby didn’t reply. She looked forward and shuddered, seeing that something was lying by the wall. “What’s this?” she asked.

“The other...” Boysenberry whispered, staring at the dark object, casting large shadows on the nearby walls.

Rumble approached it and shuddered. “It’s a dead zebra...” he whispered.

“The other...” Boysenberry rested herself against Dinky and collapsed. “The other...”

“Shh...” Dinky patted Boysenberry’s mane and hugged her.

“What is a dead zebra doing here?” Silver Spoon asked.

“Maybe there was a group of zebras here too,” Scootaloo replied, staring at the body. It was a colt; he was wearing a leather vest and had a golden earring. His fur was still soaked in water.

Featherweight raised his head. “I wonder what happened to them... Maybe they found the way out...”

“Oh yeah...” Ruby grinned. “Maybe one of them got an idea that if he slaughters the rest, spider duck and friends will come to him and take him home?”

“What now?” Rumble asked.

“Nothing,” Ruby replied. “I was just thinking loudly. Zebras do such things, don’t they?”

“No, they don’t,” Featherweight muttered, blushing. “And that doesn’t bring us any closer to figuring out what happened to that zebra.”

“He drowned.” Dinky trotted forward. “Let’s get out of there before the same happens to us.”

They rushed down the corridor. The walls were covered in scribblings, but this time they were written in an alphabet they could understand. However, the language was different than their own.

“Maybe the zebras left them,” Scootaloo said, staring at the wall. “Maybe we should also write something here? In case the others find this place...”

Silver Spoon nodded. She picked up a piece of rock from the floor and scratched a short message on the grey, concrete wall.

Diamond, if you read this, I’m alive and well. If we’re never going to see each other again, remember that I’ll always love you.

Silver

Ruby sighed and shook her head. “Leave some place for the others, you sappy idiot,” she muttered, grabbing a rock. She then proceeded to write a few words about the mysterious beings that made the others blush.

Scootaloo shrugged and wrote a few words to Sweetie Belle, in case she found that place. She shuddered and almost dropped the stone when writing about Apple Bloom’s death.

Dinky’s message was short. Boysenberry and I are okay. Zippoorwhill, take care of yourself. Boysenberry looked at it and smiled, resting her hoof against the wall and leaving a wet hoofprint under the message. Rumble and Featherweight wrote a similar message, addressed to Pipsqueak, Snips, and Snails.

When they finished, they walked further. The walls there were also covered in scribblings. Scootaloo shuddered, seeing something that looked like dry blood over a message left by some unknown zebra; the letters were barely recognisable – someone had hit the rock against the wall a few times hastily, not bothering with calligraphy.

“I wonder what they say,” Rumble muttered. “That doesn’t look good...”

Ruby rolled her eyes. “Probably something like, ‘a spider duck is coming to eat me, tell my mom that I loved her’ or similar bullshit. Let’s go.”

It was getting darker. The new corridor they’d found was dry, but they didn’t stop there. Their supplies were running low and they hoped to find some food before the night.

“What if they’re trying to starve us?” Featherweight asked Ruby. “Maybe they want to check if we’re gonna start to eat each other?”

Ruby groaned. “Can I know why are you still attached to me like a piece of shit to an old goat’s arse?”

“Maybe they want to see how long it’ll take and if we’ll start from the weakest, like Boysenberry,” Featherweight continued, not staring at Ruby.

“I’d start with you, but I’m afraid I’d catch being retarded from you,” Ruby muttered. “Also, you’re too bony. Not much would be left...”

“If it goes wrong, we can eat Silver. Nopony likes her.”

“Yeah, that’s what you want, huh?” Ruby made a gagging sound. “Get lost, little shit, or you’ll walk further with a broken leg. Maybe your friend spider duck will catch you and fry your brain.”

Featherweight shrugged. They took a turn and saw a small hall. In the middle of it there was a table with food – not as much as before, but still enough to feed them all. In the opposite wall there were openings of two tunnels.

“Where are we gonna go?” Dinky asked.

“We’ll think about it tomorrow,” Rumble replied, staring at the table. “I’m hungry...”

The rest of the group nodded. They gathered around the table, searching for traps, before grabbing food from it. They could barely see the walls from there – it was getting darker with every minute.

“Eat quickly and go to sleep,” Rumble said. “Scoots and I will take the first shift. Featherweight and Ruby will take the second.”

“Over my dead body,” Ruby muttered. Nopony listened to her – they were too busy eating.

Soon, it got dark completely. The foals huddled for warmth by the wall, while Scootaloo and Rumble sat in the middle of the room, watching the tunnels on both sides.

“How are you?” Rumble asked. The room was filled with steady breaths of sleeping foals.

Scootaloo thought for a moment before saying, “Babs and Apple Bloom are dead and Sweetie’s missing.” She swallowed her tears. “Try to guess.”

“Yeah...” Rumble sighed. For a while they were sitting in silence, before he said, “Do you think Featherweight is right? Only one of us will survive?”

“He’s nuts,” Scootaloo replied, leaning closer to Rumble. “But he spends a lot of time with Ruby. I don’t like that.”

“I don’t think they’re plotting something,” Rumble whispered. “Well, maybe she’s plotting his murder.”

“Maybe.” Scootaloo blinked. For a moment it seemed to her that she saw a pair of blue lights hanging in the darkness in front of her. However, after a second or so, the lights disappeared. Scootaloo heard familiar scratching against the wall. “They’re still here,” she muttered. “Spider ducks or something. Maybe they’re watching us?”

“They have a lot to watch,” Rumble replied. “So... zebras were here, right? We’re a group of ponies...”

“So, you also think it’s some scientific project, right?” Scootaloo asked. “Maybe there are other groups? Griffons, donkeys, mules, chan–”

“Shh,” Rumble whispered. “I can hear something.”

Now Scootaloo could hear that too – quick steps coming from one of the corridors. It wasn’t a splashing, irregular sound of spider ducks. Scootaloo could now clearly recognise the noise made by small hooves trotting on the concrete floor.

“Maybe it’s the other group?” Scootaloo asked. “Sweetie?”

“Shh...” Rumble put his hoof on Scootaloo’s mouth. “It may be a trap...”

They listened for a while, but the trotting soon stopped, replaced by whispers.

“I think I heard my name...”

“Watch out. It may be a trap.” There was something familiar about that voice. “Why are we even walking in the night?”

“We need to check that,” the third voice said. “Zip, go and fly there.”

“No way. I don’t wanna smash my head against the ceiling.”

Scootaloo stood up. “Sweetie?” she asked. “Zippoorwhill? Diamond Tiara?”

“Now I can hear it too!” Diamond Tiara exclaimed. “Sounds like that other blank flank...”

“How can we know you’re not a spider duck?” Sweetie Belle asked. Her voice was accompanied by Diamond and Zippoorwhill’s groans.

“How can we know you are not spider ducks?” Rumble asked.

“That’s ridiculous,” Scootaloo muttered. “I’m gonna wake up Ruby and Dinky. We need some light here...”

She saw faint green light coming from the tunnel. Sweetie Belle approached them slowly, followed by Zippoorwhill and Diamond Tiara.

“What the fuck?” Ruby asked, when Scootaloo shook her. “If that’s the boss of this brothel...”

“It’s just us,” Diamond Tiara said.

“Diamond Tiara!” Silver Spoon exclaimed. She stood up and hugged her friend, who backpedalled. “You’re alive!”

“Where’s the rest?” Rumble asked. “We found Tornado Bolt, but–”

“Something took all the colts,” Zippoorwhill replied. “They just disappeared.”

“We saw changelings on the way,” Sweetie Belle said. “Just before Snips disappeared.”

“It wasn’t a changeling,” Diamond Tiara muttered. “There’s nopony here but us and those things...” She pointed at the place where the scratching could be heard.

“We found a dead zebra today,” Rumble said. “And traces of more of them...”

Sweetie Belle looked around, trying to make faint light of her horn brighter. “Where’s Apple Bloom?” she asked Scootaloo.

Scootaloo shuddered. “She’s dead. She... She fell through a trapdoor and...” She lowered her head. “She died.”

Sweetie Belle sobbed. She walked to Scootaloo and hugged her, weeping in her coat.

“Okay,” Diamond Tiara said. “Can we go? We need to find a way out...”

“Diamond!” Dinky exclaimed. “Let us sleep for a while. We can’t see anything anyway.”

“I think she’s right,” Zippoorwhill muttered, watching Boysenberry who looked at her and hissed like an annoyed cat. “We’d better rest for a while...”

“Yeah,” Rumble said. “So, Ruby and Featherweight... Your turn now.”

“Damn,” Ruby whispered.

Author's Note:

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