Reaping Eternal Bonds

by Gearebitz303

Chapter One: The Nightmare Awakens

Chapter One: The Nightmare Awakens

Today, is a gloriously sunny day here in Equestria and we find our girls on the precipice of another grand adventure into the unknown. Should be exciting.

"Alright y'all! Seein' as we got everything we need and undercontrol, I just wanted to say one last thing!" Applejack took a proud stand infront of everypony. But rather than give a speech, she turned around and gallop into the Crystal Caverns with a big grin on her face. "LAST ONE THERE IS A ROTTEN APPLE!"

"AH-HEY! Thats not FAIR! APPLEJACK!" Said the angered Rainbow Dash, who took off in pursuit in a blast of rainbow colors. Leaving her heavy pack behind in the dust.

Twilight couldn't care less about the race. She was to distracted watching AJ's plot get farther away from her. Then she was suddenly hit with a random spark of relationship brilliance. "Wait a minute....This could be the perfect opportunity to prove to Applejack that I am not just a bookworm. And then we'll be..." Her mouth smiled widely and her eyes became twinkling stars as her devious plan unfolded in her mind. "APPLEJACK! BED ME! Oh wait...*cough*...I mean...VICTORY SHALL BE MINE!" And she vanished in a flash of purple.

Everypony else seemed to be eagar to race. Rarity and Fluttershy on the other hoof were too stunned to move. It didn't bare on them that Twilight had a...."Applejack wannabe intimate with me?" side.

"Well...That was certainly....unexpected. With that aside, I don't particularly fancy racing. Its messy...and sweaty. And icky. But." Rarity's eyes closed for a moment. When she reopened them, they were spinning like the rolls in a slot machine. Both landing on the golden bits with the sound of a cash register echoing in the background. "For those exquisite money making crystals, I can make an exception!" She reared back on her hind legs and declared. "MIIINE!" Before menically laugh skipping her way into the caverns.

Fluttershy tired to follow the happily skipping Rarity into the caverns, but stopped when the entrance towered over her. She tried to call out before she got to far.

"Wait, Rarity I don't think..." She was too late. Rarity was gone, and all was quiet after that. Panic mode initiated.

Through her eyes, the cavern expanded into a monsterous jaw with jagged teeth, shadowing over her with its darkness. She wheezed and whimpered at the sight, but a hot feeling grew inside of her. Like an inver voice, something told her to stand tall. And so she did. "NO! I CAN do this!" Her new form of confidence shattered the shadow like a popped balloon, and the normal cave entrance came into view. Feeling the abundance of energy, she too joined the fray. Albeit at a very slow and cautioned pace.

Now back to the main race at hoof. Applejack, Twilight and Rainbow Dash are neck and neck, fighting hard for the lead position. Oblivious to the simple fact that only Applejack really knew where the entrance was, the race continued.

Applejack weaved expertly in-between, and up and over the crystals that became obstacles for her. Her athletic abilities and acrobatic skills developed through hardwork and from many of the cowmare competitions gave her a distinct advantage against normal ponies. However, against Rainbow Dash's flying and Twilights cheap teleporting. It was only just enough to keep up with them.

"Oh! I think I see the finish line! Maybe I should slow down and give you two a chance?" Arrogantly stated by Rainbow Dash.

"Don't think- *flash*flash* -That just because- *flash*flash* -You can fly- *flash*flash* -Mean that- *flash*flash* -Yourgoingtowin!- *flash*flash*"

Rainbow doubled back and moved a little bit behind Twilights teleporting path. "You know, that I didn't catch any of that right?"

When Twilight flashed back into existance, she decided to gallop a little to allow Rainbow Dash to actually hear her. Though as she did so, she didn't even take two steps and she already tripped up on a high angled crystal. "I said-DAaah!" She tumbled down its slope into the middle clearing, landing on her neck with her butt sticking up in the air.

Rainbow was too busy laughing to notice the incoming, nearly invisible crystal stalactite that blocked her path. "BWAHAHAHA-Burf!" Smashing face first into it helped soften the damage to the rest of her body. Though it left her dazed and her body slowly slid off and fell towards the cavern floor.

Applejack was only a few seconds behind the other two. As she hopped over a low bridged crystal, she failed to see Twilight lying there in the middle of the cavern floor. Right in her landing path. She warned. "LOOK OUT!" But it was too late, she came in too hard and fast for her to dodge. Unavoidably thrusting her pelvis into Twilight's rear.

For that split second, time seemed to slow as a shockwave of pleasure rippled from Twilight's rear, up her spine, and into her heart and brain. Her back inversely arced as a few happyness tears drifted away from her face. It was glorious for her. That was until the laws of physics took over and Applejack's momentum sent them both rolling across the cavern floor together.

Rainbow on the other hoof, had just picked herself up off the ground when the tumbling purple-orange mass came out of no-where. She tried to get out of the way but got sucked up into the pony wheel as well.

The three of them tumbled end over end until their mare-wheel finally fell apart, and the three of them landed like interwoven noodles. Everything just kept spinning and spinnning, but that didn't mean that the race was over.

Though her head was spinning, Applejack recognized a particular smell. It was the same musky and metalic aroma that the new cave system smelled like, and so she knew that the finish line was close by. Just a couple more feet and victory would be hers. Applejack clumsily scrambled over Twilight with the spiral eyes and tried to climb over Rainbow Dash too, but was stopped when somepony held onto one of her back legs.

"Its not going to be THAT easy!" Claimed Rainbow.

"Let go!"

AJ shook her leg hard, and Rainbow held strong. As to be expected. The two scrambled with eachother on the hard floor for a little bit, only stopping when they heard several clops landing infront of them.

*clop*clop*

They looked up and saw somepony who they didn't expect.

"Ooo. Did I get here first? Did I win? Whoo-hoo..." Said Fluttershy in her soft voice.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash could respond with. "SERIOUSLY!?!"

"Oh! Well if you wanted to be first that would be okay with me. I mean...I don't mind.."

"No Fluttershy, It's okay! You got there first so you win. But how in Equestira did you get here before us." Questioned Applejack.

Fluttershy raised a hoof to a path to her right. A path with the cave entrance in plain view. "I think I just took the wrong path."

".......Oops..I forgot about that."

"How do you forget something like that? You going blind or something?"

"Says the pony who missed it too!"

The prideful response came swift. "I didn't miss it! I just....wasn't looking for it! Thats all!"

Applejack and Rainbow Dash continued to butt heads until Rarity finally showed up with a gleeful bounce in her step.

"Why hello girls! Hasn't this been the exciteful trip already!"

" 'bout time you got here!"

"Yea! What took you so long?"

"My, my. Aren't you two for harsh for words. I take it that the reason why Rainbow Dash is not gloting about her victory, and why you are irritated is that because you both lost?"

Both AJ and Rainbow grunted.

"And what happened to dear Twilight? She alright?"

"She's fine. Just her heads a bit spinning right now." The four of them looked at Twilight. Tossing and turning on her back, she began mumbling something that she would have probably wished to have kept to herself. Too bad...

"Oh..Twilight...your so naughty...*mumble*..I like that....ooo..that feels good Applejack-*mumble*mumble*mumble*"

"I don't know Applejack! Seems like her head is exactly where she wants it to be." Said Rainbow who had this stupid grin on her face.

Applejack face started to turn visably red. "Sh-shut it Rainbow Dash! Wake her up! And...Rarity, I'm sorry about the attitude."

"Oh, darling its quite alright."

"So what were you doing this whole time?"

"Oh, I found a lovely selection of emeralds, rubies and-"

"And me!" Said Pinkie Pie who popped her head out of the bag.

"Pinkie! How long where you in there?"

"WAIT! Where's the gear?" She gave Rainbow a good look down too and saw that she didn't have her bag either. "And you too Rainbow!"

"Oh calm yourself my dear Applejack. I placed it neatly at the entrance, its all there for when we need it."

"And I think I ditched mine outside..."

"Oh for the love of Celestia...." She face hoofed. "And what if we need it?"

While AJ massaged her face with her hoof, she couldn't see Rainbow try to wake up Twilight in the background. Well she succeeded. Though in turn spooked Twilight into getting up too fast for her and she ended up head butting Rainbow in her face. Spazed Twilight had no idea what was going on, and Rainbow had both her hooves covering her face.

"Rainbow. Can you PLEASE....go get your pack. If you find Rarity's stuff just...just leave it."

"FINE! Give me a sec will ya!" She replied while rubbing her face before taking off. This time she took the shorter path.

With Rainbow gone, AJ finally saw an opportunity to talk to Twilight. "Had fun day dreaming?"

She just smiled. "Yeah actually!"

AJ could see a slight blush of red on Twilight's face. She also saw Rainbow fly in from behind and land beside her.

"Alright here. I got the stuff."

"Great! Okay everypony gather up around me." As the other girls gathered around her, she pulled an electric lanturn out from her pack.

"I don't know how long this will be or if it is dangerous or not. So stay close and keep your eyes open." Applejack turned on her lantern and took those first few steps into the unknown.

-----15 minutes later-----

After a little while of slowly exploring the cave, the new sights started becoming repetative. Rainbow colored walls of interlocking crystals lined the walls back to back, and just about every single one of them reflected the light off into another crystal. Creating an amazing light show as they moved through it, similar to a disco ball but entrenched into the ground.

Applejack lead the group on until the path lead her to an steep end into a pitch black area.

She tried to find the caverns edges by using her light, however her light couldn't pierce the darkness very far. "Darn it! Can't see a darn thing.." Then she looked down over the overhang. "Wait a minute. Looks like there is a flat area beneath us." She tried to scan as much as she could with her light, but ultimately concluded that there was only one way to see it all. She had to go down there. By her she meant somepony with wings.

"Rainbow, I need your help."

"What's up?"

"There is an area down there that I want to get to, but I can't see a darn thing. Fly down there and see if it is safe to drop a rope and come down."

"You got it AJ!" She put down her pack and picked up her lanturn.

"Wait! Be careful! We don't know what it is like down there. Just don't go off on your own!"

"Yeah, yeah! I got this!" Rainbow then slowly and cautiously desended into the pitch black abyss. Armed with only her mouth held light, and a big pair of cojones.
Her decent was short as the bottom wasn't that far down. She gave it a good look see and found that it was all clear. "Its clear down here Applejack!" She called out. "Come on down!"

"Alright, here comes the rope Rainbow. Heads up!"

Rainbow wasn't really paying attention to what Applejack was saying. But when the rope came out of the darkness and slamed right into her, she started to think that it was a good idea to pay attention once in a while. "Ouch! My face!" She called up.

"Tie it to something." Said AJ. She could hear Rainbow grumble about something as the rope started becoming more taut. She felt two good tugs and heard Rainbow give the go ahead to desend into the new area. Which AJ eagarly desended on the rope into the abyss.

When she landed, she immediately took notice was the floor wasn't just planar. It had a sort of texture to it. She shined her light down onto it revealing a very dusty but easily distinguishable pattern in the floor.

"Hey Twilight, come take a look at this!"

Twilight took the easy way down and teleported right next to AJ. "Whats up?"

"What do you make of this?" AJ showed her what she was looking at on the ground with her lantern. "Its obviously not natural."

"Yeah, Its symetrical..." Twilight lit her horn and shined her light off to the side. She noticed that the symbols on the ground traveled in a very large circle. "...and seems to be in some sort of repetative pattern. Maybe its some sort of prehistoric language or culture?"

"It certainly ain't pre-Equestrian. This place seems very old, could have came before hoof?"

"Maybe.."

Twilight continued to study the gliphs on the ground, while Applejack noticed a twinkle in the darkness. Curiousity getting the better of her, she approached cautiously. As she got closer, her light revealed a sizable hunk of a white crystal. Easily twice her height, its sheen glicined in her light. She carefully examined the white monster, circling around until she made a startling discovery. Accidentally dropping her lanturn in the process.

Everypony else were just settling down in the new area when they heard something hit the ground. They saw Applejacks lanturn roll out from behind something, but with no Applejack.

"AppleJack? Hey Applejack!" Everypony quickly rushed over to where her lanturn laid. They were wholesomely relieved when they found Applejack was A-okay. Sort of.

"AJ, you okay?" Asked Twilight.

Applejack couldn't take her eyes off of what she discovered. "Uh...Twilight! I think we need to look way, and I mean like WAY before Equestria..."

"Why? Did you find something?"

"Yeah...WE certainly did...." Twilight levitated AJ's lanturn to see what she had found, but then dropped it in shock of what she had found.

The lanturn landed and rolled on the round once more, but this time illuminating the white crystal. And there it was. Casted in shadow and white rock were the remains of some sort of large lizard like creature. Its angular skull, cerated teeth, single forehead horn and a long fore arm were all that were exposed from its crystal prison.

Applejack picked up her lanturn and brought the light closer to get a better look. She found odd scratches all around the exposed arm and head. She drew the quick conclusion. "Sweet Celestia! It was still alive when it got trapped in this crystal!"

"Oh the poor thing." Cried Fluttershy.

"What is it?" Asked Rainbow.

"Given the similarities, I would say that his creature was probably some sort of Koraxus. And it looks like a complete skeleton too!" Applejacks earlier disappointment turned completely upside down into eagerness and excitement at her new discovery. "YEEEHAA! We just made one dilly of a discovery girls!" She reared back and swung her hat around in the air.

Sparking the sense of adventure in all of them. They all reached for their lanturns, save for Rarity who realized that she had left it behind, and fanned out to explore the nearby area.

And one by one. As they explored the cavern some more, they found five white hunks of crystals surrounding a very large black one at its center.

Twilight commented. "I guess its safe to assume that whatever this thing was, it wasn't alone."

The discovery of one of these creatures was unparalled enough. But now there were more perhaps just like it. She nearly lost her cool in all the excitement, but one thing kept her mind on track and from going nutz in excitement. The black crystal at the center of this room. As she glared at it, she could feel an ominously evil presence within it. Which made her curiousity grow even more.

"I don't get it. This cavern seems to be the only large openning here. The ground is more or less flat and with some sort of writing on it. And on top of that we have found several Koraxi imprisoned in crystals. What happened here? Was there intelligent life here before us?" Questioned Twilight.

"I don't know Twilight, but imagine what we can find out from studying them!" Her excitement started getting the better of her. Applejack approached the pitch black crystal. As she got closer, it felt like it was absorbing all the light around it like a blackhole. Not even the reflection nor glint of the light reflected back off its surface.

So she did the one thing that everypart of her body told her to not to do. She touched it! It was smooth, and so very dark and empty. She soon found herself struggling to keep her arm up on it, and her breathing became heavy. Applejack stared in confusion as her body started smoking a white mist.

"What the hay?"

AJ looked to back for help but saw that everypony else had the same thing happening to them.

Very quickly the mist became clouds that surrounded the six of them. Then like the drain of a sink, white mists began to swirl towards the center black crystal, which itself began to glow red.

"Whats going on?" Questioned RD.

"I think its taking our energy!" Answered Twilight.

"What? How?" Rainbow dropped onto one of her knees.

"I don't know!"

"What do we do Applejack?" Asked Rarity.

Run. Run away. Thats what Applejack would have thought if she could. But amongst the swirlling mist, she could see something inside the black crystal. The monster that undoubtedly slept at its core tore into her sole and ripped out every ounce of courage and will that she had. Resembling like that of a hollowed Jack-o-Lanturn on Nightmare Night, its red eyes and long jagged mouth never looked away from Applejacks gaze. Then it started getting closer.

It slowly came out of the crystal. Its long thick head came out of the darkness, followed by two claws that pulled a part of its torso out from its rock. Unsure as to whether or not it decided to not completely pull itself out, it leaned over and locked its red beastly eyes onto Applejacks.

The amount of fear in her heart was immeasurable. Too tired to run. Too scared to think. Her friends may be dieing behind her. And no pony knows that they even took this trip so no outside help would be comming. Her head felt light and her eyes grew dark. She blacked out with the monsters red eyes scared into her memories.

---

Meanwhile, back outside the cavern at the camp. Big Mac was cooking up delicious supper. Its smell traveled with the wind, and right into the caverns.

He pulled up a ladle from his batch of soup and took a sip. Moaning at its delicious taste. "Hmmm! This will be mighty fine with some biscuits on the side."

As he reached over to the table with his freshly cooked biscuits, he felt the ground tremble beneath his hooves. Pausing for a moment to confirm what he felt, he let it go when nothing happened. Snagging a small biscuit off the table for himself, he made himself a bowl of soup. Taking a seat on the picnic table, he was ready to enjoy his meal. Then he noticed the wave ripples in his bowl of soup. He watched it as it grew progressively faster and faster until he could hear the large impacts in the ground.

He looked around to see what was causing it. But when he did, it was too late. Before he could evade, an enourmously large black figure snatched him up from the table and into its jaws. Trampling the camp in its wake. Big Mac could hardly scream because of the creatures long teeth that penetrated his torso caused to much pain. The creature suddenly spun around, destroying the remaining standing emplacements of his camp with its tail and tossed him off into the nearby brush.

His bleeding maimed body slid across the brush covered ground until his back slammed into something small, and sharp. Bloody, battered and confused, Big Mac couldnt see what stopped him. But he certainly felt it. Like when the previous creature that bit him, he felt similar pain as something else pierced his back. Now no longer under the compression of that creatures jaws, he was finally able to scream. "GAAAAAAAHHHHHH" Though distracted by the pain, he could feel the impacts of a gathering crowd of these monsters. He assumed that the thing that attacked him at the camp was there as well.

His eyes were closed most of the time due to the pain. He did his best to crack them open a little when something wrapped around his body and pulled him up into the air. He could see the really large one with a fin picked him up with its tail and brought him up close to its head. Mac feared for the worst, but instead was met with confusion. It muttered something in some unfamiliar, inaubible language, then a small spot on its fore head began to glow.

'IT CAN TALK?' Big Mac thought as he felt the air around him was being sucked into this one spot on the beasts forehead. But as it did, he saw flashes of grusome bodies being eaten, stormy red skies raining lighting, and glowing fields of red filled with smoke and ash in his mind. The images kept coming until the creature dropped him onto the floor and did the samething that it did to him to the other two creatures. Then it tried to speak again.

"Eq-Eques-Equestrian? Big Mac? Is what they call you? You know you don't taste very good." Said the big creature with the fin. Cleaning some of Big Mac's blood off of its teeth with its tongue. Big Mac listened to the other two have difficulties with speaking his language, the big one took notice of their struggles. "Arkain, Othrin. Hurry up and learn its language already! Its boring talking to only Mac here. You two probably didn't even understand a word I said."

'What the HAY is going on here? What did they just do?"

The big one looked down at Big Mac as if it forgotten something. "Oh right! I believe your species do something called, "manners". You know, I just wanted to say...no hard feelings...I kinda just woke up from a nap, and the first thing I do is chew you up and spit you out like yesterdays burnt lunch. You didn't taste very good by the way, just incase you didn't hear me the first time. But I was a little cranky and a little hungry so you can understand right? So for whats its worth, can you forgive me?"

Big Mac was infuriated at this...things! attitude, but the only reason he didn't speak out was because it hurt so much just to breathe that speaking was just not an option. Though visably angered, it interpreted it differently.

"Hewh! Glad we came to an understanding! I'm Zakiid. Your doom bringer and future ruler of your world. Yada, yada, yada! Other extras."

The creature with the wings that had dug in its foot claw into Big Mac's back spoke up, sounding similar to a mares voice. "Wh-why-why...mus-must we...know..lang-language?"

"Took you long enough Othrin. Hmmm. Why's a good question. Becaaaause...If I am going to enslave this world, they need to be able to understand what I am forcing them to do. Otherwise they probably would be running around like Varrakit's on their Robonda. Come along now! We have some friends to be making! And the fields need to be plowed...I have no idea where that came from, BUT LETS GO!"

"Telizio Zakiid, we still have problem!" Said Othrin.

His head was swift to turn about and scowl at Othrin. "WHAT!?"

"Witness?" Said the other, more slender creature in a drawn out slither of a voice.

"Oh...Wow, even with a new language you still talk one word at a time. You need to change that!" Zakiid looked at Big Mac once more, but with a bored expression. "Ahhhh! As for that. Eat it, sleep with it, toss it up thisss....thing called....a tree? What a strange name." He examined a tree roughly his size and scratched his chest with its gimply claw hands. "Anyways do what ever that pleases you. Its life no longer interests me. But don't take to long!" His voice suddenly changed from being a joyfull tone, to a more dark and sinister voice. "This world has a new conqueror! And I would like to get started." And he started walking towards the forest.

Big Mac could move enough to see the two underlings close in on him. But when he saw their shadowy figures loom over his head, he could feel their intent through their ravenous eyes and smiling dirty jaws. Realizing his end was coming, he did all he could to flood his mind with the best memories of his friends and family. Tears developed in his eyes.

Granny Smith.......Applebloom.......Applejack................Rainbow.....I'm sorry...

Then next thing he knew, his body felt like it was on fire. One of the underlings sunk its foot claws deep into his arm and shoulder, but dug its teeth deeper. The agonizing pain flushed throughout his arm and shoulder as it was being pulled away from his body, until to was no longer attached. Exploding in a mist of metalic red, his torn arm was tossed around in its jaws before its pieces were swalloed.

"GAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!-" His screams of agony was like music to the two that were eagarly dinning on his flesh. To all others it fell upon deaf ears as there was no-pony around to hear his cry. He was alone.

The other one went around from behind and dug its fore arm claws into his back. Reaching over his body, its jaws bit into and ripped open Big Mac's stomach. Releasing a flood of blood and organs onto the ground.

Big Mac screamed from the pain, his head lifted a little bit up off the ground and looked to the open blue sky. His mind dreamed about being in some hotel in Las Pegasus alone with Rainbow Dash. Sipping wine or drinking beer. But that split moment of happyness came to an abrupt end when the first underlings jaws captured his throat. Crushing it between its mighty jaws. With a quick snap of the neck, Big Mac stopped screaming, and moving all together.

"Witness...Eliminated..." Said the slender one.

"Hmmm...Equestira is it? I'LL TAKE I-!" Zakiid sensed something behind a tree that was near him. In a swift powerful swing of his tail, it cleaved the tree and several others into nothing but stumps in the ground. The gust from the swing sent most of the debree flying off into the air, revealing a small black creature. Smaller but similar in stature to the dead red one, buts its eyes glowed green with hunger.

"You cannot hide from me!"

"Please! Only a moment of your ti-" The little creature didn't get to speak much before Arkain and Othrin were all over it, about to reap their prey.

"Stop!" Zakiid commanded. Both Arkain and Othrin stopped trying to rip it apart, but never the less held it firmly to the ground.

"Don't waste my time! What were you doing here? SPEAK!"

It struggled beneath its two captures, but still managed to look up to Zakiid who was a little less intrigued by what it had to say. "I was ordered to trail the Elements of Harmony. I don't know what happened in that cavern nor where you came from. But if you wish to conquest Equestria, my king will be most interested in meeting you."

Arkain and Othrin looked to Zakiid for his response. All he did was smile. "Fine then. But if it is not what I expect." The unsuspecting messanger suddenly was pulled towards Zakiid who used his tail and pinned him to the ground below him. "Expect nothing left of your precious king and kingdom. Now where is it?"

"To the south!..." It cried.

"...Into the wastelands!"

Author's Note:

I think I did pretty good here, leave a comment if you'd like. I am almost finished with the concept art for this story. I changed my mind on what I wanted so thats why it kinda took a little bit. But I hope you enjoy it.