In a Flash of Lightning

by Onomonopia

Hush Now, Quiet Now

This experience was something new and totally terrifying for Billy as Pinkie flew through the streets with the poor kid in tow. Fighting creatures of evil, machines bent on world domination and other super powered villains never terrified Billy, but being dragged through a town by crazy pink pony while the rest of the town stared at him was just terrifying. He was half ready to call down the power of SHAZAM when Pinkie came to a stop in front of a building that looked like a giant gingerbread house.

"We're here," pinkie said with a smile, bouncing up and down while Billy shakily got to his feet, trying to lower his heart rate. Pinkie flung open the door to the gingerbread house and pushed Billy inside, despite his protests. The moment he saw what was inside the house though, all desire to resist melted away as he laid eyes on the majesty that was the Sugarcube Corners sweets. Stacks of cupcakes lined with frosting decorated the front display case, mountains of brownies and chocolate cookies towered over the counter and the most angelic of cakes rested on the side of the room, sitting in a beam of light as if the heavens themselves deemed it perfect. Billy, ignoring the looks that the other patrons were giving him, walked right up to the display case and gazed longingly at the treasures inside.

"Have I died and gone to heaven?" he whispered.

"Well, I don't know if you died, but I would definitely say you're in heaven. Welcome to Sugarcube Corners!" Pinkie said with a huge smile, ringing the bell on the counter a few hundred times. A blue pony with a mane that looked like frosting came out from the back room. She came skidding to a stop at the counter, balancing two babies on her back.

"Sorry about that, I was-" Her sentence died in her mouth as she saw the creature that was pressing its face up against the glass of the display case. "Um, friend of yours, Pinkie?"

"Yup, his name's Billy and I think he likes sweets almost as much as I do," she said with a smile, watching as Billy moved on from the cupcakes to the mounds of chocolate. "Get him whatever he wants. It's on me." She called Billy over and showed him the menu, his eyes growing to the size of dinner plates when she said he could get whatever he wanted. Both Pinkie and Mrs. Cake's jaws dropped when he ordered nearly everything on the menu, scooping up the pile of sweets into his arms and sitting himself down at the nearest table, ignoring more stares from the other patrons.

"Wow, you must really like sweets," Pinkie commented to herself as she sat down next to Billy, after paying for the food. Billy nodded, so stuffed with sweets that he couldn't answer. Pinkie watched as he continued to stuff his face, smiling at the smile he had. "Pretty good, huh? Bet you don't have stuff like this back where you're from?"

"Nope, well yes, but there nowhere near as good as the stuff here!" He grabbed another handful and stuffed his cheeks again, the result causing Pinkie to laugh.

"Can I help?" she asked. Billy nodded and the two proceeded to finish off the sweets just as Twilight walked in through the door, huffing tiredly.

"There you two are. I've been looking all over Ponyville for you," she said.

"Oh, hi Twilight! Billy and I were just enjoying some of the best sweets yet!" Pinkie said with a smile, pointing at the smiling Billy, who was resting in his chair. "I'm surprised he could eat so much seeing how little he is."

"Yeah, Pinkie can you come here for a minute?" Twilight asked, motioning for Pinkie to join her at another table. When Pinkie had hopped over and sat down, Twilight began to voice her concerns. "Look, I know you love making new friends and all, but we don't know that much about Billy. Like, where did he come from or why is he here?"

"Silly Twilight, the CMC told us he came from Earth and he said he's here to pick up a friend," Pinkie replied happily, rolling her eyes. "As a princess, you really need to learn to listen more."

"That's not the point. How do we know he's telling the truth? Sure, he looks and acts like a foal, but maybe that's all it is; an act. I'd like to keep him in the library until we know more about him," Twilight whispered, trying to get her friend to see reason. But she forgot that she was talking to Pinkie.

"Why would we do that? He's our friend and I wanted to show him the rest of Ponyville," Pinkie asked in confusion, not sure if she understood Twilight's question.

"I'd just like to keep an eye on him."

Pinkie placed her hoof under her chin and began to think, trying to think of something that would benefit them both. "I know! How about you show Billy around! That way you can keep an eye on him while he gets a tour. It's perfect!" Twilight considered this for a moment. Pinkie's idea actually was a pretty brilliant idea. It would allow Twilight to learn more about Billy and show him the town. Would Billy agree to it though? 'Worth a shot...' she thought.

"Thanks Pinkie, your idea is brilliant," Twilight said with a smile. She stood up and walked over to the still motionless Billy, sound asleep in his chair. "Um, Billy, would you mind if I asked a favor?" Billy opened his eyes and looked curiously at Twilight, before nodding his head and motioning her to go on. "I was wondering if you would mind if I showed you around Ponyville instead of Pinkie?"

"Will you drag me around at Mach two?" he asked.

"No."

"Then I am perfectly fine with you showing me around," Billy said with a smile, jumping out of his chair. "So where we going first?"

"How about Sweet Apple Acres? Applejack asked if you would like to see their farm," Twilight suggested.

"Sure, sounds fine," Billy agreed. "Um, Applebloom isn't there, is she?"

"Yes, why?"

"She scares me a bit." Twilight chuckled as the two made their way to the farm. Twilight continued to question Billy relentlessly, to which Billy continued to avoid answering the questions directly, which annoyed Twilight. He was trying to hide something, she could tell, but she wasn't sure what. He answered her questions well enough, but she couldn't get the full answer out. As the two got closer to Applejack's farm, Billy started answering questions less and less, focusing more on the apple trees and the barn off in the distance.

"This is incredible," Billy whispered, gazing at everything in awe. "I've never seen an apple farm this big before."

"Judging by the look on your face, I take it you've never seen a farm before," Twilight asked with a smile. Billy shrugged and ran ahead a bit, wanting to see the farm as soon as he could. Twilight shook her head slightly and chased after him, smiling at his childlike wonder. He hid a number of secrets, but from what the CMC had told her, he was nice enough. Maybe after enough time he would tell them everything.

"GAH!" Billy's scream immediately put Twilight into worry mode, and she raced to the barn to see what was the matter, hearing barking mixed in with the screaming. She arrived at Applejack's barn just in time to watch Billy race by with a very angry dog on his tail. Winnoa was the herder and watchdog of the Apple family and she was very good at her job.

"AAAHHHH!! Good dog good dog good dog!" he cried as he ran, trying desperately to shake the growling dog. Winnoa was determined to protect her owners' land and she raced after Billy with fierce determination in her eyes, mere inches behind his heels. Twilight watched the scene unfold with an amazed expression before she spent the next few minutes laughing as the chase continued, ending when Billy climbed up one of the apple trees to escape Winnoa's fury.

"When you're done laughing, I could really use some help!" Billy yelled down at her, flinching when Winnoa almost grabbed his pant leg. Twilight, still chuckling, walked over to Winnoa and placed a hoof on her head. Winnoa's attitude went from angry watchdog to happy puppy in a moment. She recognized Twilight as a friend, and after one last growl at Billy, walked over to her and sat down at her side, tail wagging happily.

"It's okay, she won't try to hurt you as long as you're with me," Twilight said with a chuckle, watching as Billy climbed back down the tree, eyeing Winnoa carefully. He landed on the ground and brushed his pants off, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, never been much of a dog person," he grumbled, glaring at Winnoa, who returned the glare with an added growl. Twilight stepped between the two.

"As much as I would love to watch this continue, I think it's time you met the Apples," Twilight said, pointing him towards the house next to the barn. Billy inhaled deeply and dusted off the rest of his clothing, walking up to the door and knocking on it. There was the sound of movement from inside and a moment later, Applejack answered the door.

"Well howdy! Welcome to Sweet Apple Acres Billy, so glad you could come. Now that yer here, let me show ya around some," she said with a smile, wrapping a hoof around Billy's shoulder and pointing him towards the apple trees. Twilight rolled her eyes as she watched them go, Billy once again was sucked off into another one of her friend's worlds. Twilight followed from a little ways off as Applejack talked about what the apple farm was like and how she and her brother for the most part kept it running, even mentioning the beavers that she hated so much.

"So let me introduce ya to the rest of the family," Applejack told Billy, steering him back towards the house. She threw open the front door and half-dragged Billy into the home. He wasn't too sure he wanted to face Applebloom on her home turf. Once inside, he came face to face with Applebloom, a big red stallion and an old green mare who eyed him in a funny way.

"Consarn it Applejack, what'd ya bring home this time?" she asked in a bit of a rage.

"Aw calm down granny, this here is a friend of Applebloom."

"I have never seen him before in mah life," Applebloom said in a flat tone, not making eye contact.

"Applebloom, it's bad to lie. You were the one telling us about him back at the library. Don't try lying, ah was there." Applebloom growled and left the table they were sitting at and started to walk upstairs, mumbling something about how Billy always seemed to ruin things. The others were just about to continue talking when Applebloom fell over with a thud.

"Applebloom!" Applejack cried out and started to rush over to her sister, when she too collapsed on the floor. Big Mac and Granny Smith followed as well, passing out like the other two. Billy raced over to their sides, trying to wake them up. When that had failed, he raced outside to find Twilight, hoping she would know what had happened. But just like the rest of the Apples, he found Twilight passed out on the ground, mumbling incoherently to herself. As if that wasn't bad enough, the sky was an ominous black, with little dark balls of energy floating around.

"I don't know what's going on, but I need to find somebody awake and quick." Billy, after making sure the ponies were comfortable, raced back to Ponyville as fast as his legs could carry him. The sight in the town was no better than at the farm. Ponies everywhere were passed out on the ground, mumbling to themselves and faces contorted in pain. The ponies of the town had passed out in the exact same spot that they had been awake only minutes ago.

"What...or who could possibly do this?" he muttered, moving more of the ponies that had fallen asleep in dangerous situations out of the way. And then he saw something that scared him, even with his great hidden power. The pony walking down the street was massive, much bigger than him and a weird dark energy was coming from its maw, blanketing the town in the dark spheres. Billy took cover behind a carrot stand and watched the creature walk down the street.

"So that's who putting everyone to sleep," Billy muttered to himself, watching as it stopped over a mare and looked down at her, eyes beginning to glow. The mare's face contorted with even more pain and shadows began to emerge from her head. The pony opened its mouth and inhaled the shadows, growing a little larger in size. And if Billy thought that its form was creepy, he shivered when he heard it speak.

"So, you fear spiders, do you?" it said in a whisper that sounded like death, "Too bad you will have to spend the next thousands years in mortal fear. Sweet Dreams," it said with a chuckle, walking away from the whimpering pony. Billy's eyes narrowed at the act of cruelty, his conscious telling him to go and crush the pony, but his training held him back. He knew practically nothing about this pony and charging in there head first would end up getting him and others hurt. He'd have to find out more about this pony, so the library would be his next stop. Checking to make sure that the pony was no longer around, he snuck through the city on his way to the library. No pony had been spared from the dark pony's wrath, as even all of the Elements of Harmony had fallen under the spell. Pinkie was actually passed out in the street with a smile still on her face.

"At least someone's sleeping well," he muttered, reaching the library's front door. He opened it quietly and slipped inside, looking at all the books on the walls. There were literally hundreds of them and for some reason; none of them were where they were supposed to be. He desperately went through a bunch of books on legends and myths, but couldn't find anything.

"Dang it, I'm not getting anywhere like this!" he growled, tossing one of the books across the room.

"Hoo?!" Billy looked over to where the hoot had come from, and a very annoyed Owlicious glared at him from his perch.

"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you," Billy muttered. "Wait a minute, you're awake? The spell or whatever didn't affect you!" he said with a smile, running up to a very confused Owlicious. "Does that mean that the spell only affected the ponies? That would explain why I wasn't affected, but that would also mean...Spike!" By Billy's logic, if the spell had only put ponies to sleep, then Spike should still be awake as well. He bolted upstairs and threw open the door, looking around for the dragon. He found him asleep in his bed, snoring away.

"Great, did the spell really affect you to? Spike, wake up!" he yelled, shaking the dragon. Spike's eyes shot open and he started looking around the room in confusion.

"What's going on!?" he asked. "Billy? What are you doing here?"

"Not important right now. Do you have any books on legendary ponies that can cause sleep and nightmares?" Billy said quickly, dragging Spike down the stairs. "All the books here are out of place and I can't find anything."

"That's because you haven't lived with Twilight for a year and learned how she organizes things," Spike said with a smirk, walking over to the food and kitchen section. He looked over at the number of titles and stories, before pulling out a dusty old book with a picture of four ponies on the front, with death and destruction behind them. "The terrors of the ponies of the...well, I can't read that word, but this will be the book you're looking for."

Spike handed him the book and the two rushed over to Twilight's dinner table, where they sat down and opened the old book. They flipped through the pages, looking through all the creatures and monsters of ponies past. The Cyclops, the gorgon, colossi; none of whom were the creature that they were looking for.

"What does it look like?" Spike asked after a few minutes of searching.

"It's massive, wears a black cloak, has dark eyes and a menacing voice. That and it can also create nightmares and eat ponies' dreams." Spike started flipping through the pages until he finally reached a page of the pony that fit the description.

"Erebus," Spike began, reading the page in fear. "A pony of the greatest evil. It tried at to conquer the world on multiple occasions. Defeated over a century ago by the combined efforts of Star-Swirl the Bearded and the two princesses, a battle that covered nearly all of Equestria in darkness. The magic wore off once he was sealed away in stone, to be imprisoned for a thousand years. His full powers allow him to cover the land in a darkness that will put anypony to sleep and can cause the most terrible of nightmares. He can also eat these nightmares and gain power based on how strong they are. The only known way to stop him is...the Elements of Harmony," Spike finished in a whisper. Billy smiled at Spike and jumped out of his seat.

"Okay, now that we know what we're up against, we can go bring him down," Billy said with a smile, slamming his fist into his palm. Spike looked as if Billy had just told him to take all the books off the shelves and de-organize them in front of Twilight.

"Are you crazy?! We don't stand a chance against that thing! Didn't you read it? Only the Elements of Harmony can stop him! That's what Star-Swirl wrote," Spike argued, pushing the book into Billy's face.

"Come on Spike, we can take him," Billy tried to assure him, pushing the book away. "You said that you faced a tyrant once in the...Crystal Kingdom? What difference is this guy?"

"The difference is that I had my friends backing me and I wasn't alone," Spike growled.

"Spike, I'm hurt. You wouldn't be going in without your friends. You've got me," Billy said, pointing to himself with a smile. Spike's eyes widened when he realized that Billy was right, he was his friend. And while he was terrified of this Erebus, he always tried to believe in his friends and that would mean he'd have to believe in Billy.

"Alright, so what's the plan?" Spike asked. "Wake the Elements? Get in contact with the princesses? Call for help?"

"None of the above. Every single one of the ponies in all of Equestria is asleep. So it'll be up to us," Billy explained, walking to the door. "The plan is simple: get me in front of Erebus." Spike's jaw hit the floor. Billy wanted to tackle this demon on his own, without any help or backup?

"Billy, are you sure-?" Billy turned around and looked at Spike with a smile.

"Spike, do you see me as a friend?" Spike wasn't sure why he was asking this, but the look on his face seemed serious.

"Y-yes."

"Do you enjoy having fun with your other friends?"

"Yes."

"Do you want this Erebus guy to take over your world?"

"No."

"Then trust me and come with me," Billy said with another smile, flinging open the door and racing outside, with the little dragon close at his heels. The two ran through the streets of sleeping ponies, looking for the pony named Erebus. They found him standing over a grey pegasus, drinking in the shadows of her nightmares.

"Hey, EREBUS!" Billy roared, gaining Erebus's attention. The dark pony ceased draining the nightmare and turned to face the two, nearly twice as big as the last time Billy had seen him. Spike was really beginning to doubt his decision, but Billy stood strong, facing down the creature without fear.

"I'm only going to ask once, return the world back to normal and hand yourself in or else this is going to get messy," Billy said loudly, staring down the pony. The pony looked shocked to say the least, not quite sure what to say to this...thing that called him out and stared him down.

"I must admit, I am not used to one of your...stature...trying to intimidate me," Erebus said with a slight chuckle, walking casually over to Billy, who stood his ground while Spike cowered behind him. "You know my name, but I do not believe you have given me yours."

"Name's Billy. Now are you going to give up or...?” Billy began as Erebus walked straight up to him, looking at him in interest.

"Forgive me if it seems like I'm being rude, but I've never seen something like you before," he said with some interest. "I always try to learn a little about my adversaries before I...dispose of them." Erebus slammed his hoof into the ground, shaking the entire town and knocking Billy as well as Spike off of their feet. His hoof created a crater in the ground, where a dark hoof reached up through the crater. A shadow in the shape of the pony dragged itself out of the ground and started to advance towards Billy, death glaring in its eyes. Billy smirked at the single pony that was barely as tall as him, until more and more ponies began to pull themselves out of the ground, each of them beginning to advance towards Billy and Spike.

"Um, Billy, was this part of the plan?" Spike asked nervously, beginning to back away. But before either of them could move a few feet, the dark ponies let out a shriek and charged the two, barely giving Billy enough time to toss Spike out of the way before he was completely buried under a mass of darkness. Spike could only watch in terror as the ponies circled around Billy, crushing him under their sheer mass of bodies. But amidst the swirl of darkness and destruction, a solitary source of light appeared for all those trapped in the darkness. And to this very day, Spike would always remember the first time he heard the word...

"SHAZAM!"

Comments

[NightmareKnight]

Yes, new chapter. And for all who think of first posting?

DENIED!

Edit:

"I always try to learn a little about my advisory’s before I...dispose of them."

Think you meant adversaries.

Pinkie and Mrs. Cake were both jaw-dropped when he ordered nearly everything on the menu

Were both jaw-dropped? You should probably change this to 'Pinkie and Mrs. Cake's jaws dropped' or 'were both stunned'.

Would you like a pre-reader for your story? Or if you have one, another one? I'd be glad to help.

[Grahf]

i do love captain marvel, he is just entertaining

[HIEfan]

Gah! Cliffhanger! Just at the best part!

[Onomonopia]

2532895
Thanks for the offer, but this story is essentially done and proof read, despite a few small errors. I might need a proof reader on the next one, however.

[NightmareKnight]

2533439Well you know who to call if you do need one. I'm always available. Unless some weird bizarro shit goes down. Like rolling blackouts or something... eh, barring any unforeseen circumstances, I'm good.

[butterfield pancake]

Nice Spike will now know Billy's secret

[SolarNight00]

"Will you drag me around at Mach two?" he asked.

The "Holy Shit!" Scream Eddie makes near the end of VENOM.

*AHEM!* HOLY SHIT!