Fulfillment

by Amaranthine Thought

Chapter 2

Emptiness carried me with her everywhere she went. She’d sometimes drop me off so she could go and hunt, but she’d always come back for me. Sometimes, she’d tell me to stay put, but sometimes she wouldn’t say anything, or sometimes tell me to go have fun exploring where I was. It never mattered what I did though; Emptiness would get mad at me for staying when she told me to or for moving when she told me to, or be alright with me moving when she told me not to or staying put when she told me to explore.

At first, even if Emptiness told me to explore, I wouldn’t go near other ponies. Because… I… I was very shy. But then I started having my mane covering my face, and I started hiding behind it, sort of, to help me be braver; but… I was still too shy to approach anypony.

But as Emptiness hunted, some of her victims stayed behind, following after her as ghosts. And I got used to them and started talking with them. We even became something like a family, me and the ghosts; all of us bound to Emptiness together. I learned how to talk to other ponies, how to not be so shy, be braver about Emptiness; but I never really did anything about it.

It wasn’t until Emptiness brought me to Ponyville that I made up my mind to do something against her. Emptiness hunted only on the new moon, when the night was darkest, but she’d spend time outside places and spy, to make sure that her hunt wouldn’t be pointless.

She was happy to see unicorns in town, but she got excited when she noticed that several were children. She hadn’t played The Game for a while, and told me that she would purposefully start it with one of the children, so she could have some fun.

I made up my mind that she wasn’t going to win her game again; I’d find her victim, and tell them all the rules she didn’t talk about, tell them all her secrets, all her methods, and make sure she’d finally lose for once.

Once Emptiness told me that she’d found her new victim to play with, I went out the next day, hoping to find her chosen victim before the next night. I got really lucky that some ponies had noticed that Sweetie was tired, and mentioned that she was a unicorn and her name. But it took me all day to find her, despite ponies telling me where she’d last been; the sun was setting by the time I finally spotted her, headed back home.

I called for her by name, and she looked over as I came.

“Y, yes?” she asked, confused.

“I finally found you.” I told her, relieved, tense for the late hour. “Listen, I have to tell you something Sweetie.”

“Wait, how do you know my name? I don’t know you.” Sweetie said, suspicious, stepping away from me.

“I, I heard it from some ponies.” I told her, and asked her, “Listen, did you see… did you see Emptiness last night?”

Sweetie didn’t have to answer; her eyes told me that she had. “How, how do you,”

“Alright, listen, because this is really, really important.” I interrupted. “You met her eyes last night and she left you alone, but she’s not gone; you just started The Game with her, and you’re going to be playing it with her.”

“The Game lasts for a week, and Emptiness will return every night a couple of hours after sunset, come into your house, and try to take your horn. You don’t hide or run from her; you stay put, and have a bright light with you, like a flashlight. When Emptiness comes for you, you shine it in her eyes, and she’ll run away for a little while. If you prevent her from grabbing you until sunrise, you’ve won that night, and she won’t return until the next one.”

Sweetie stared at me as I continued, telling her, “Locking doors won’t keep her out, and she’s fast, way faster than you. Find a place to say, and stay there all night; the less you move around, the less Emptiness can surprise you. You won’t hear her or see her really; she can hide behind anything, and move from hiding spot to hiding spot, getting closer and trying to make sure you don’t expect her.”

“She’ll make loud noises to startle you and distract you, but she’ll sometimes be there and sometimes she won’t be; don’t let her trick you into focusing on a single spot. And stay quiet: once she gets close enough, she’ll reveal herself, and that makes a sound you can hear if you’re listening and it’ll always tell you where she is if you hear it. You can only flash her eyes when she’s revealed; not any other time, only when she’s fully come out of hiding. Don’t waste batteries trying to see her, it’ll just make it harder to see her when it’s important.”

“H, how do you know,”

“If your flashlight runs out, you’re only hope is to try and hide; Emptiness can see in the dark, but not well, and will take her time searching for you. And you can’t tell anypony about her!” I added, ignoring her half-finished question, Sweetie frowning a little at me. “If anypony tries to help or do something, you’ve forfeited The Game and Emptiness will just kill you and anypony else in the house with you.” Sweetie looked scared when I said that, which told me she’d take my warning seriously; which was really important. Lots of unicorns before made that mistake.

“Did you understand everything?” I asked.

“Y, yes. But, but how do you know all that?” Sweetie asked. “Who even are you?”

“…My name’s Gentle. It’s getting dark; you should hurry home. Find the most open spot to stay during the night; Emptiness can appear even from places nopony could normally fit.”

“But how do you,”

“Get home, and good luck!” I told her, turning to gallop away; I had my own place to get back to, before Emptiness noticed I was missing and came to find me.

That night, Sweetie,

---

“Wait just a moment, just how do you know what Sweetie did that night?” Rarity interrupted, frowning at Gentle.

“Emptiness told me.” the filly responded. “Every morning, she’d return to me and tell me everything that happened every night of The Game.”

“…Do you know why she would?”

“She was insane.” Gentle bluntly said. “She’d be happy one moment, mad the next, pleased by one thing only to be enraged by the same thing the next day. I could never guess what she’d feel about anything. I just got a little warning if she got mad; and most of the time, it didn’t matter, because I couldn’t escape her.”

“That’s…” Rarity began, before hesitating. After a moment, she resumed, saying, “She is much worse than her tale mentions.”

Gentle didn’t respond for a moment. Then she resumed, “That night…”

---

Sweetie listened to me well, because Emptiness found her sitting in the middle of her bed with a flashlight. She’d placed a lantern underneath it, to try and keep Emptiness out of there, I guess, and moved everything away from the bed so Emptiness couldn’t hide behind them. Anyway, Emptiness didn’t have much chance that first night; her bed was too big to just reach and grab her easily from the sides, giving Sweetie extra seconds to blind Emptiness.

But Sweetie was already discovering one of The Game’s cruel tricks that let Emptiness win. She’d already not gotten much sleep the previous night; and now she couldn’t sleep at all.

Even then, she was tired, and as the night wore on, her concentration and focus slipped.

Emptiness didn’t come as early as she could have; she arrived at midnight, and seeing Sweetie’s efforts, started trying to scare and distract her. Peering into her window, knocking on the door and walls. Sweetie was scared; especially when Emptiness opened her door, and smiled at her from outside.

But Sweetie remembered my warning to not let Emptiness trick her, and stayed silent enough to hear Emptiness revealing herself the first few times, always getting her with the flashlight in the first second, Emptiness screeching with each shine and fleeing.

But time wore on, and Sweetie’s reactions grew slower; as sunrise neared, Emptiness scared Sweetie by going under her bed. Letting Sweetie see her shadow before she turned the lantern off, and making the bed shake.

Emptiness almost got her; coming up from behind the bed where it was against the wall, but Sweetie remembered my warning, and turned to blind her. But she didn’t stop there, and as Emptiness flinched from light, Sweetie bashed her head with her flashlight.

Emptiness left again, and Sweetie found she’d broken her flashlight. It wasn’t working anymore. So she leapt off her bed, smashed her nightlight, and ducked into her closet, hoping hiding could save her that last bit of time before sunrise.

Emptiness noticed her missing, and the new dark room, and felt very pleased with how The Game had turned against Sweetie, who’d upset her when she’d hit Emptiness with the flashlight. But since it was an early night, she just stepped in, and started singing as she searched for Sweetie, making up a rhyme on the spot, just to scare her:

“Hide and seek you want to play, a poor choice of game, I have to say. I see in the dark, and know this tactic well, many foals before you chose just as unwell. The search will take little time, and then your horn is going to be mine.”

“Let’s begin by looking under the bed. Are you beneath it, hooves over your precious little head? Hm, no, you’re not there, it’s just dust and some empty air.”

“Next we look up top, and pray that I don’t find you in that spot. Those sheets seem empty, curled, flat, and if I find this your magic trick, I won’t make it quick you brat. Ah, yes, you aren’t there, and so my rage you are spared.”

“You’re cleverer than most, played my game well, but you’ve made a mistake; so few places you’ve left yourself to dwell.”

“That closet door changed from when I saw it last, and I now know where you hid so fast. I’m coming now, you’re running out of time; I’ll find you, and then your horn will be mine.”

Emptiness opened the closet as she finished, and saw Sweetie staring at her with wide eyes, shaking in fear. But even as Emptiness smiled, she stopped, and looked back, to see the sun’s first rays coming through the window.

She’d spent too long gloating, and Sweetie watched her fade away like she’d never been.

Sweetie had won night two of The Game: if Emptiness had found a window open, or a door unlocked, she’d go inside and start The Game the first night, but she hadn’t, so she let Sweetie have the first one.

---

“And that meant Sweetie only had five more to go…” Gentle finished, giving a pained groan, shifting uncomfortably.

Rarity watched the filly shift in place, her hind leg catching her eyes the most; it seemed to be broken. After a moment, Gentle seemed to find a position comfortable, and gave a relieved sigh, Rarity picking up her tea.

“…I remember finding her room that morning, and asking her what had happened to it.” Rarity said, staring at her drink. “She told me she’d wanted to try something new, but I saw her broken nightlight. She’d tried to tell me that it was a nightmare she had, but what nightmare would make a filly run across the room to crush their nightlight?”

“I was mad at her for lying, then yelled at her because she wouldn’t tell me the truth.” Rarity finished, dour.

“She kept it secret for your sake.” Gentle said, breathing slowly.

“…That doesn’t make it any better.” Rarity sighed, leaning her head back to regard the ceiling. A moment passed, and then she looked down at Gentle again.

“Do you need a drink?” she asked, and Gentle nodded. Rarity went and got her a cup of water, and noticed the angry look Gentle had before it vanished as she saw. Rarity didn’t comment, passing the filly the drink and sitting back down as she drank.

Gentle panted a little once she was done, clutching the cup to herself. After a moment, she said, “…Thanks.”

“It was nothing.” Rarity dismissed, neither pony looking at each other. “I assume the story continues?”

“It does.”