CAM_09 IS OFFLINE

by RunicTreetops

9:00 P.M.

A group of three excited fillies huddle together in a quaint Maretime Bay bedroom. On their television, the Clip Trot profile page for Pipp Petals is pulled up, displaying a small window reading "The Pipp Petals Paranormal Spooktacular Livestream Will Begin Soon!" The three fillies whisper to each other as they get bundled in for the evening. Outside their window, the sun is slowly beginning to set on Equestria, just as it does at the end of every day. They've been waiting weeks for this livestream, and they can't wait for it to start!

Suddenly, the window begins showing footage from a higher quality camera than the fillies are used to seeing.

---

9:00 P.M.

The feed shows an excited Pipp Petals pointing the camera towards herself as she and seven other ponies walk along a path of crumbled stone. The path looks like it has seen better days. Occasionally, they pass by a decrepit building that is caving in on itself or boarded up, but most of the time the background consists entirely of piles of rubble.

"Heeeeeelllooooooo Pippsqueaks! This is Pipp, and I'll be your lead paranormal investigator today! Tonight, we're going to be exploring the one, the only, CANTERLOT CASTLE! Eeeeeee, this is going to be so fun! Tell 'em why, Sunny!"

Pipp shakily points the camera to Sunny Starscout, the mare walking a few feet in front of her. Sunny turns to the camera with a look of surprise, apparently not expecting to be asked a question.

"Oh, um, ahem. Canterlot Castle is one of the most important places in Equestrian history. It used to be the capital of Equestria, and it was where Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and eventually Princess Twilight Sparkle all ruled from! It was in that castle that Nightmare Moon was defeated by Celestia! It was where Princess Cadance and her husband repelled a changeling invasion! Aaaaaand, it was where the princesses supposedly raised and lowered the sun and moon every day!"

"See, Pippsqueaks?! This place is kind of a big deal~! As far as we know, nopony has explored the castle since it was abandoned. Apparently, those who tried reported seeing strange shadows and hearing ghastly wails coming from within, so none dared to venture inside. No one knows what it's really like in there... UNTIL TONIGHT! Today, I'm joined by the lovely Sunny Starscout~"

"Hello!"

"The brave and noble Hitch Trailblazer~"

"H-hi there! I'm totally not terrified by this idea!"

"The ray of sunshine that is Izzy Moonbow~"

"Hiya! I've gotta say, all of Canterlot really looks like it needs some cleaning up. I mean, do you see all this dust?!"

"My always inquisitive sister, Zipp~"

"...Uh, hi."

"The mare of many talents, Jazz Hooves~"

"Hello everypony!"

"The somewhat distracted Rocky Riff~"

"Does my mane look okay? It needs to look good now so the side-by-side after we wrap up is more noticeable..."

"And last but certainly not least, Misty Brightdawn!"

"O-oh, um, hello everypony!"

"Together, the eight of us are going to explore this spooky castle in the dead of night, and try to uncover evidence of anything... paranormal!"

The camera shakes for a moment as if being grabbed by somepony else, only to reveal that Sunny has forced Pipp to point the camera towards her.

"Before we go any further, I would just like to clarify that you should not try this at home. The castle is sure to be extremely dangerous due to its age, and I plan to personally ensure that we do not disturb anything of historical significance. So, er, please do as we say and not as we do!"

The camera points back at Pipp.

"I couldn't have said it better myself, Sunny! Oh, and look! We've arrived!"

The camera flips around, revealing the ruins of Canterlot Castle. It has definitely seen better days, with a few walls appearing to be caved in and several of its iconic stained glass windows shattered. The drawbridge that used to be raised and lowered to allow passage over the stream passing in front of the castle has collapsed, and though it conveniently covers the now-stagnant water and can probably be crossed, to say that it is rotted would be an understatement.

With varying amounts of trepidation, the eight ponies make their way across the bridge and find the grand set of double doors that is the entryway. One of the doors appears to be loose and is easily opened, slowly swinging to the side with a loud creaking noise.

"This is it Pippsqueaks, we are about to be the first ponies in decades to see the inside of this castle!"

The group makes their way through the newly opened door, leaving it ajar as they enter the grand entrance hall. What remains of the red-carpet-like entrance and the tapestries lining the marble walls reeks of rot, and it seems as though all but a few tatters have been eaten up by mice or whatever other vermin might have made their home here. The last of the day's sunlight is barely peeking through a couple of still-intact stained glass windows near the back wall. As the ponies make their way to the center of the room, their hoofsteps echo loudly through the empty chamber and the several adjoining corridors.

Pipp, Sunny, Izzy, Zipp, Rusty, and Misty let out varying degrees of "ooo"s and "aah"s, while Hitch and Jazz appear much more nervous.

"Alright Pippsqueaks, here's the game plan. To everypony present, consider this our final review of our plan of attack. We have nine cameras, with one going to each of us. Camera 1 will go to Sunny, who is going to investigate the throne room. Camera 2 will go to Izzy, who volunteered to check out the kitchen. Camera 3 will go to Rocky, who is probably the only pony here willing to go to the library and not get distracted by all the books. Not to worry all you history fans, we'll be back another day during the daytime for a more 'archaeological' approach to exploring the castle. Camera 4 will go to Hitch, who is going to explore the gardens around back. Camera 5 will be Zipp's, and she'll be checking out the bedchambers that used to belong to the princesses. Camera 6 is Misty's, and she's the brave soul going into the dungeons! Camera 7 is Jazz's, and she's going to act as our auxiliary explorer, weaving in and out of the different areas based on what we experience during the night. Camera 8 is going to be a stationary camera, and I'm going to double back and set it up right outside the entryway. You know, just in case. Finally, Camera 9 belongs to me. I'll be right here in the entrance hall all night with all of our equipment, maintaining the livestream and watching over all of you through the cameras and audio equipment we brought with us! Does everypony have their designated flashlights, walkie-talkies, and cameras?"

One by one, each pony confirms that they have the necessary materials, though Hitch raises a question.

"Uhh, Pipp? Can't our cell phones do all three of those things?"

Izzy interrupts before Pipp can respond.

"Well, duh! But what's the fun in that? If we make it too safe for ourselves, the GHOSTS won't want to come out and play!"

"R-really?"

Pipp actually gets to respond this time.

"It also adds to the atmosphere. We've gotta keep up the spooky tension, you know? That's why we left our cells at home!"

"I-if you say so..."

"Come on, Hitch, we talked about this. If you really don't want to do this, you don't have to. You can just leave, or stay in here with me if you like."

"N-no. I mean, NO! I'm a grown stallion, and I don't believe in ghosts! I can handle some old garden no problem."

"Well, if you insist."

For the next twenty or so minutes, the livestream consists of the eight ponies setting up their equipment. For a moment, a shadow in the background of the feed seems to peek out from a hallway before slinking away once more, though that might just be a trick of the light as the sun finally sets and the castle is bathed in darkness.

"Alright everypony, make sure your cameras are secured around your necks. Are you all ready?"

Collectively, the other seven ponies let out a yell. "Yeah!" And with that, those seven ponies begin to set off in different directions, ready to see what the evening has in store for them.

"And remember Pippsqueaks, by clicking that arrow next to the stream, you can switch between the video feeds whenever you want! Hold on to your flanks, because it's about to be a night to remember!"

Author's Note:

The next nine chapters of this story, CAM_01 - CAM_09, can be read in any order. As such, please feel free to read them in whatever order you see fit. In fact, I encourage you to read them "out of order." However, the final chapter, 6:00 A.M., must be read last. Have fun experiencing the Pipp Petals Paranormal Spooktacular Livestream as you see fit!

Comments

[overdue]

very cool idea... I'm thinking dungeon first

[raven618]

Ooh, encouraging the readers to read out of order, interesting.

[mygoodness]

"Alright Pippsqueaks, here's the game plan. To everypony present, consider this our final review of our plan of attack. We have nine cameras, with one going to each of us. Camera 1 will go to Sunny, who is going to investigate the throne room. Camera 2 will go to Izzy, who volunteered to check out the kitchen. Camera 3 will go to Rocky, who is probably the only pony here willing to go to the library and not get distracted by all the books. Not to worry all you history fans, we'll be back another day during the daytime for a more 'archaeological' approach to exploring the castle. Camera 4 will go to Hitch, who is going to explore the gardens around back. Camera 5 will be Zipp's, and she'll be checking out the bedchambers that used to belong to the princesses. Camera 6 is Misty's, and she's the brave soul going into the dungeons! Camera 7 is Jazz's, and she's going to act as our auxiliary explorer, weaving in and out of the different areas based on what we experience during the night. Camera 8 is going to be a stationary camera, and I'm going to double back and set it up right outside the entryway. You know, just in case. Finally, Camera 9 belongs to me. I'll be right here in the entrance hall all night with all of our equipment, maintaining the livestream and watching over all of you through the cameras and audio equipment we brought with us! Does everypony have their designated flashlights, walkie-talkies, and cameras?"

My GOODNESS-

[Boltstrike58]

"This is it Pippsqueaks, we are about to be the first ponies in decades to see the inside of this castle!"

Minor nitpick: If the castle is really in such a state of disarray, it's probably been longer than decades. Centuries, maybe.

[RunicTreetops]

11726288
I agree, but until we're given a canon number of years between G4 and G5, I'm playing it safe with the terminology I'm using, haha!