EntiQuest [OLD]

by Sputniik

CHAPTER 3

The world was suddenly a pale shade of brown, the air was now made up of bits of dust. And yet, the air was so still...
Twilight lazily wondered.

It was only until then, that she had realized it was deathly silent, and it felt like bodies lay, just was weakened as herself. But she knew they weren't really there..
Then she realized-- her eyes were just barely open.

The mare cracked open an eye, only to recoil and wince at the sudden pain attack, and the fluttering of loose dust. She raised a hoof to eye level. Rubbing out the dirt and dust, she groaned.

How long had she been out? And what exactly happened?

Standing up on unbalanced legs, the Alicorn glanced around. Before her mind could catch up with her aching body, she felt a warm liquid slip down the side of her face. She cautiously reached for her right eye, then flinched, as the warmth slicked down her leg and splat into the dust.

Blood.

Suddenly, the mare felt as if the ground beneath her was spinning in sickeningly fast circles.

Something was missing, though. Her blood-stained hoof pawed at the dirt. Her ears flicked around, curiously. Someone was supposed to be there... someone?
Where was Danny?

Twilight's frazzled mane and state of mind seemed to vanish, as she spun around in frantic circles, hoping to find something- sound... movement... anyone. Her ears flicked up again, in shock, as she heard a faint, rusty-metal clank. Her head twisted instantly behind her-- back at the lab, just a few yards away.
The place was destroyed, and if Danny was in there...

"No... no..." she mumbled, just a breath. "No, Twilight, you're better than this..."

Shutting her eyes tight, Twilight exhaled, releasing a great breath she didn't know she'd been holding. Violet eyes opened, as the princess glared up at the mangled laboratory. The doors had completely fallen off, and there was no more shine to the luminescent, blue-glass doors.

Another clank.

On instinct, Twilight backed up a few hoof-steps, and luckily for her, instinct was right.

A large, metal bar swung off the top of the building, supporting the top of the doors. It came loose, and crashed into the dirt, creating a large cloud of dust, all over again. Flecks of rock and glass flew in every direction.

Unfurling a wing to block herself, a sharp sting of pain ran up her spine. Twilight bit back a yelp, and gasped, as she slowly returned the wing to her side. Her ears flattened against the sides of her head as she suddenly felt another wave of exhaustion.

She let her body drop limp into the dirt. Batting away the dust-clouds, she suddenly found interest in her crimson-stained foreleg. Its metallic scent slowly filled her nostrils; the mare dug her snout into the dirt.

It was like a hit in the head with Deja-Vu; The alicorn awoke to a clouded world. Except now, it was night and the moon was out, few stars visible. Something in the air felt.... unsettlingly off. The dust clouds eventually faded away, revealing the ground, stones, and forest in the distance. Tilting her head in attempt to see past the trees, a dizziness came over her.

Something was wrong, and she knew it. She could smell the odor of something.. unique, nearby, but couldn't place her hoof on it. But something about it's musky smell was unsettling.

Raising slowly to her hooves, ignoring the dizziness, the mare blinked the blur from her vision. It was definitely night, the shadows of the forest, darker than before. Then there was another familiar presence. Twisting her head back swiftly, she met eye contact with nothing but the remains of the laboratory.
"Miss me?"

"Ah!" Twilight shrieked, leaping backwards and stumbling onto her side, into the dirt. She felt her heart racing, the sound pounding in her ears. Sighing, she glanced up at the source, this time, met with a recognizable face, in the shadows of the dark night sky.

Twilight pulled back her ears and narrowed her eyes.

"That was not funny!" her body was still involuntarily quivering. "Y-you almost scared me to death!"
For a split second, Danny had almost come off as appearing utterly concerned. That was misplaced with a roll of his eyes.

"Right... well, you done? We have to get back-" He cut himself off and motioned to the portal, a good amount of yards away. Twilight stared for only a second, before her gaze reached the dirt.

"Uh... no... see, the lab is..." she winced as her ears pressed against her skull.

"I.. think I'd have that figured out by now," Twilight's reply was a look of realization. "Pretty sure that's a crucial detail for someone who had been finding their way out of a literal annihilated laboratory with phase-proof walls."

A look of sympathy came over the alicorn's face, but changed her angle where the moon shone on her back, so most of her body was hidden from sight.

"Right... uh, sorry.."

No.. it's not supposed to be this way..

Again, the wave of weakness washed over her, as she slowly lowered to herself to her stomach. She held her head, as the world seemed to shift all of a sudden. There was a golden light in the distance that pulsed with brightness. It seemed to burn like a fiery bullet through her skull. It's burn spread across her head, past her ears and neck, and sent a chill down her spine.

It happened too fast, everything was unclear. And there was the hot pain that stabbed her head and crept like venom down her back. Every nerve in her body was numb, but.. it hurt. Scenes flashed behind her vision. The burn was unbearable.

Suddenly, there was an echo of a growl, a scream, and then a flash of white light. The light was bright and blinding, but it was brief, like.. a memory. The pain faded away and was replaced with something else, but the pain had died in the light. It was gone.

Then it was all over.

Author's Note:

Ah, I hope I haven't missed anything
Modestly, I spend more time writing than editing. I take hours to write out a single chapter, and I'm way ahead in the story in my rough draft. Up to a part where I introduce a
New character. It'll hopefully get.. interesting soon. Or perhaps,
Even sooner than meets the eye. I'm trying to take my time with this
Story, unlike my other fan-fictions. Anyways,
I hope to write a new chapter at least every month,
And to improve as I go along~