Demon Days

by carnivale

Chapter Seven: The Right Angle

Demon Days
Chapter Seven: The Right Angle

Rainbow Dash suddenly realises that she hasn’t looked in the mirror for quite a while. Hell, she doesn’t even remember the last time she saw her reflection in one, anyway. Her mind is too throttled to think clearly, like it has been the past few days, getting worse and worse with every passing moment.

And she thought she was getting better.

Her illness seems to randomly come and go; one day swiftly passing over her like a mere raincloud, and the next day violently sprouting through her again, knocking her back flat on her pillow. She is more than baffled about her sickness, and has no idea whatsoever if it’s something anypony’s gotten before, or if it’s easy enough to cure.

Mulling over everything today has gotten more tiring than she’s anticipated. Her brain smarts. Her body is packed with searing heat, although vague shivers flow up her spine every once and a while. The four plain walls bordering her seem to move in on her, giving her a suffocating sense of claustrophobia.

Depicting the thoughts before, despite the lone mirror hanging on the wall next to the door, parallel to her bed, Rainbow Dash hasn’t looked in it or even given it a quick glance at all since Fluttershy let her stay in her cottage. It befuddles her on how she’s managed to avoid it the two weeks she’s been here, and how easy it’s been to not notice it a whole lot until now.

Hesitantly, she uncurls herself from her balled-up position, and slides off her bed, bringing most of the unkempt sheets with her. When her hooves meet the hard, chilly flooring of her room, another few shivers race up her back like electric fingers as the warm sensation of her bed leaves her like shattering broken fragments.

The mirror towers over her when she approaches it, and nearly recoils at the hideous sight before her.

It’s like when she saw her reflection the morning after her venture into the Everfree Forest, only now worse. Much, much worse.

Her matted fringe is heavily disheveled and a – shockingly deep gray color. Her red, orange, and yellow hues are no more, although it’s obvious the three starting colors of the rainbow were there. The rest of her mane and tail are normal, with the exception of several knots and curls adorning the hair in places. Her coat is a pasty, ashen shade, which causes the dark, purple-ish rings circling her eyes to stand out more alarmingly. Her cheeks are flushed the palest rose, and her magenta orbs are dull, no highlights of streaming light filtering through them at all, it seems. Her voice croaks at the dejected image, and she instantly turns her head away, silent tears beginning to trickle laggardly down her face.

‘Everypony has to see me like this?’ Dash thinks to herself, swiping away the tears with her hooves. ‘I look… awful.'

The last word causes a distinct pang to shoot through her heart, and she collapses onto the floor as a sudden upsurge of nausea hits her like a vicious tidal wave. She shouldn’t be alarmed as quite as she is, because she’s so used to it happening at intervals.

Her stomach maliciously churning from the sudden queasiness, and her brain a dejected mess from seeing herself in that mirror, she staggers into the hall, desperate to locate the nearest garbage basket to heave her lunch into.

: : : :

Twilight Sparkle groans irately when she shoves another book aside, using her magic to lift a fresh one onto the table she is reading at. Her mane is a rat’s nest, and vague bags darker than her coat are like still purple pools beneath her eyelids. The way she props her lolling head on one hoof and the fatigued expression visible on her face shows that she probably hasn’t had a good night’s sleep since a few days ago.

She cracks open another book, and her eyes automatically begin to skim the pages, her pupils mere specks indulged in her violet irises. The door leading to the kitchen suddenly creaks open, immediately startling Twilight out of her book-asphyxia and causing her heart to pound ruthlessly against her chest.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,” Spike atones, with his clawed hands carrying another cup of coffee contaminated with at least five cubes of sugar, under Twilight’s bleary orders. He sets it next to her, and she immediately lifts the murky concoction to her lips.

“It’s okay,” she says, the sugar settling in an uneasy glob on her tongue.

“So, what is all this? You never told me what you’re doing anyway.”

Twilight returns to the words that are wearily starting to fuzz out on the pages, but manages to multitask in telling her faithful assistant everything. “Well, after Zecora told me about the Lookerponies, I decided to read up more on them. I am also determined in studying up some newer, stronger spells to help Rainbow Dash’s condition to the best extent, but I can’t seem to find anything of the sort! I’ve gone through more than half of the library, and it’s finally starting to make my brain hurt.”

“Rainbow Dash’s condition?” Spike gawks, his brain momentarily faltering. It isn’t long until he shakes himself out of his own stupor. “Oh, right, that.”

Of course Twilight told him about Rainbow Dash. He didn’t take it too well, though – Twilight understands because her assistant actually has a strong bond with the cyan speedster, even if they don’t associate with each other on a daily basis. The thought of Dash weak and being grounded for a while caused his eyes to fill with tears that never got the chance to fall.

Twilight rubs her eyes, sighing strenuously. “I just want to help her so badly, Spike.”

“I know. We all do, I’m sure. Fluttershy’s doing her best, we’re all doing our best.” With those consoling words sinking into Twilight’s brain, he moves to exit the room and leave the lavender unicorn with her reading. “I’m sure you’ll find something, Twi.” He says the last bit softly over his shoulder before disappearing out the door.

“I hope so, Spike.”

After about another hour in the chilled dark of the library, the only light source a lanky lamp that towers above her, Twilight is just about to give up on finding any more information when the words on the last pages of a silver-lined book immediately catches her attention. She rapidly blinks her eyes to blot out the blurriness shrouding them before they start skimming the words on her behalf.

A header in bold, murky silver is scrawled across the top of the page, reading the words, ‘The Lookerponies’. Twilight relinquishes a relieved, shuddering breath before continuing to the words below the title.

“The Lookerponies is a patriotic cult that worships Nightmare Moon, otherwise known as the Mare in the Moon, blah blah blah,” Twilight reads aloud to herself, skipping the sentences she already knows about. “…they are said to be located in the Everfree Forest, blah blah… invisible camp… spirits…. oh, here’s something new! It says, the Lookerponies also have the ability to See into the Ulterior, a compelling passageway to the future, and are able to tell things that will happen from the present day forward. The impressive ability to be a Seer is very useful to gain knowledge in if the lives of the clan will still be able to flow, since the amount of light already penetrating them cause them to grow weaker than when they’re consumed by the dark.”

The lavender unicorn is so taken aback in sheer surprise and fascination that she almost sends her nearly-drained cup of coffee crashing to the floor. As the new information sprouts in her boggled mind, she keeps re-reading the same words to make sure what she’s taking in is real, and not a hallucination that’s a result of lacking sleep. Sure enough, she isn’t mistaken.

Being able to see into the future? Is there anything these ponies CAN’T do?

Twilight is so flabbergasted that she even questions her own magical talents, her eyes beginning to clock out but her mind on high alert. She slams the book closed before using her magic to levitate it and gingerly slip it back on the shelf where it belongs. Then, clearing the wooden desk of anything else, props her forelegs on it, her chin resting in a little nook between her hooves. Her eyebrows knit together, her brain reeling and cracking and bursting like a shattering movie projector. Yet her mind scans swiftly through the facts she’s just set her eyes upon, and immediately lights up with a plan that just might save her friend’s life.

: : : :

“And, checkmate! I win again!” Rainbow Dash announces, a triumphant look scrawled across her pallid features, her mouth unfurling in an enormous grin that reaches from ear to ear. Despite her ashen, tedious appearance, her face is as effervescent as ever, seeming as she just won a chess match against Pinkie Pie, who juts her lower lip out in defeat. Her expression is an overall blend of bafflement and disappointment, which just makes Dash gloat that much more.

Then, as soon as the expression began, it is replaced with buoyancy and dons a large smile, similar to the one Dash is wearing. “Wow, terrific move, Dashie! It was so sneaky and super-duper clever!”

“Thanks,” Dash says, soaking up the praise and brushing a hoof smoothly across her chest. “But you did almost snatch my knight with that pawn a few moves ago.”

“Wanna play again?” Pinkie Pie asks, bouncing erratically in her seat.

“Sure, another game wouldn’t hurt,” Dash agrees, clearing the board with a sweep of her hoof to begin a new game.

“Um, excuse me, if it’s no trouble,” Fluttershy timidly speaks up, who is sitting nearby the two game-goers. She brandishes a look of exhaustion, even though she hasn’t been the one playing, yet it’s probably caused by the fact of witnessing twelve games in one sitting. “But I think Rainbow Dash should get some more rest, and it’s also starting to get late. You can come back tomorrow, Pinkie.”

“Awwwwwwww,” both Pinkie and Dash drawl out in unison, their mouths furled in a tight pout and their eyebrows dipping low.

“But it isn’t even dark yet!”

Fluttershy frowns and motions towards the window, which only displays a narrow crack running in between the lacy pastel curtains. When they are tugged back, however, it is evident to plainly see that Celestia’s sun is no longer visible, instead Luna’s moon hangs in the fully-fledged night sky, save for a few, faint sunset colors blending in with each other and the blackness.

“Oh, wow,” Dash says, squinting. She smoothly runs a hoof through her tussled mane, her eyes fixating on a nearby clock attached to the wall. “How long have we been playing?”

“Long enough,” Fluttershy answers, moving to gather up the chess board and pieces and correctly slip them back in their place.

Rainbow Dash presses a hoof firmly against her skull, a small yet painful ache beginning to spark and crackle in her head. Her eyes go hazy, her surroundings meshing together in one great mass, and her stomach does a backflip, but it is nearly unnoticeable. Deciding to brush it off as nothing in particular, she lets a yawn escape her, and her eyes droop. Noticing she hasn’t realized it until now, she is absolutely tuckered out.

“Thanks for coming, Pinkie,” Dash says, giving her pink friend a quick hug.

Pinkie Pie skips to the door, her poofy mane and tail fanning out in her wake. “No problem, Dashie! See you tomorrow?”

Rainbow Dash shoots Fluttershy a look, and the butter-yellow pegasus nods in confirmation. “Of course. Oh! And Pinkie, did you want to take the rest of the cake you brought home? I doubt we’ll finish it.”

Dash begins, “Well – “

“Sure!”

Fluttershy floats into the kitchen to fetch the rest of Pinkie’s confectionary that she kindly decided to disperse amongst them, but nearly sends it crashing to the floor when an ear-splitting scream ruptures the harmonious night air.

“AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!”

She bombards herself out of her kitchen, eyes wide with fear and bewilderment, the cake long forgotten, sure enough haphazardly discarded on the tile flooring a few hoofsteps back. Fluttershy pays no heed to that, anyhow, as she rushes towards the noise that continues to split the night. Blood pulses in her ears, and she approaches the scene; Pinkie Pie is standing, jaw agape and hanging inches off the floor, over a shrieking, writhing Rainbow Dash who foams at the mouth and eyes glazing the color of the moonlit sky.

Before Fluttershy can speak, Pinkie Pie flashes her a helpless gaze, her eyes frenzied and terrified. “I – I don’t know what happened!” she shouts over the screams. “She was just about to say something to me, but then her eyes rolled back in her head and she collapsed onto the floor! I – I – “

“Shh, Pinkie, it’s okay,” Fluttershy reassures gently, her voice nearly drowning in the flood of screeches whirling around the room. “She’s had fits like this before, and this one is the least of our worries.”

Pinkie nods, although she still looks dubious.

Fluttershy dives to her friend’s side, condolingly caressing her in all the right places, her chest, her forehead, the glands of her neck. Everywhere she thinks it can be more than soothing, everywhere she thinks it can be tranquilizing yet firm to make her more relaxed.

But Rainbow Dash continues to scream, her voice grating agonizingly against her already-numb throat, her hooves thrashing around and smacking the ground. “AAAAHHH!” she shrieks. “AAAAHHHHH! It hurts! It hurts!”

Fluttershy’s ears perk up. This is when she realizes that it’s her. It’s Rainbow Dash. It’s not Nightmare Moon speaking or any of the sort, it’s her. She’s FEELING the pain Nightmare Moon seemingly is entrancing upon on her. For what reason? This, she doesn’t know for sure.

Although, for Rainbow Dash, it’s quite different. An excruciating, illegible pain is exploding in her head, continuing, continuing, repeating, repeating. Her vision is blind and fuzzy like a television station out of range. It feels like her body is shattering, bursting into a million pieces only to be rebuilt and then crumble once more. Every part of her body making contact with something ignites a searing fire, causing her to cry out in pain even more boisterous than before. The images from her nightmare flash repulsively, playing out like a cracking movie screen at the back of her eyes, doing nothing to help the matter at hoof. Her veins protrude through flesh, muscles contracting and popping under the pressure of the blazing fire of pain lacing in tandem with her jostling bones and flowing veins.

Tears leak from the corners of her eyes, pooling on the ground near Fluttershy’s haunches. The butter-yellow pegasus is beside herself, her soothing whispers now shifting to words brimming with anxiety and distress. Every time she touches Dash, it only makes her scream more. Every vein, every artery in her body is a live wire, sparking frantically. Tears of her own begin to spring in her turquoise eyes.

Just then, a booming voice echoes across the room, as if they’re in a chasm of some sort, trapped only with the thundering voice splitting their eardrums and causing their blood to run cold.

It says coldly, “War is looming! Battlegrounds will be painted with the blood of our folk! Shall your mind fill with nameless fears! For I hath near!”

Pinkie Pie cowers, stuffing her hooves in her ears, desperately trying to block out the sound. But, just as she does, the voice dies down, being replaced by fearful whimpers as the seething black fades from Dash’s eyes.

The cyan pegasus breathes heavily, her face bunching up in a grimace as if it’s a painful burden. Her coat and mane are drenched with sweat, stringy strands piling in a heap and a new blotch of gray appearing in her hair. Her throat and head ache, and she feels like her brain is oozing out of her ears.

WAR IS LOOMING
BATTLEGROUNDS WILL BE PAINTED WITH THE BLOOD OF OUR FOLK
SHALL YOUR MIND FILL WITH NAMELESS FEARS
FOR I HATH NEAR

Those words continue to mull around them like dew. Fluttershy replays the eerie sentences in her head over and over again, keen on memorizing them to tell them to Twilight later. After all, they could mean something important, and Fluttershy itches to grab a notepad and quill and scribble the words down just in case she forgets. Something suspicious nags at her. A message, maybe?

Pinkie Pie regains her composure, a few stray tears rolling softly down her cheeks. Her cotton-candy like hair is nearing the point of deflating entirely as her heart aches for her sickly friend living with this monster lurking in her depths.

Weakly, she asks, “Rainbow D-Dash? A-are you… alright?”

Grunting, Dash struggles to sit directly on her haunches, one hoof scrabbling on the floor trying to get a firm grip while the other clutches the side of her head. Her magenta eyes squeeze tightly shut, consciousness nearly draining out of her as sharp, malicious pains pound viciously against her skull. “My… my head…”

Fluttershy attentively helps Rainbow Dash crawl to her hooves, letting her lean exhaustedly against her shoulder. “Pinkie, I think you should go home now,” she says gently, turning her kind gaze towards the pony nearing the breaking point. “I promise you can come back tomorrow when everything’s a bit better.”

Pinkie nods, mumbles a small, “See you tomorrow,” and leaves without another word.

Rainbow Dash is nearly asleep on her withers, and Fluttershy, as unwaveringly as she can, guides her up to her guest room, cautious to avoid tripping on the numerous stairs winding up to the second floor.
Rainbow Dash is out like a light as soon as her head hits the pillow.

: : : :

Celestia’s Sun beams magnificently across Equestria, the vivid colors of dawn vanishing in a wink as the sky shifts to blue. As of now, the citizens of Ponyville are beginning to wake from gentle dreams and peaceful slumber, all except one pony, who’s bright-eyed and bushy-tailed much earlier than the rest.

Twilight Sparkle tightens the straps on her saddlebags so they sit more securely on her back, using her magic to do so. The book that holds the information she needs rests in one of her bags, and another containing spells and a specific potion recipe sits in the other. She double-checks her checklist to make sure she hasn’t forgotten anything, and before setting it down, triple-checks it, just in case.

Spike is asleep in his woven basket, his claws clutching the blue blanket that is draped delicately over his scaly body. Every time he snores, he emits a tiny, vague tongue of green flame, and his scales shudder like a crisp leaf fluttering on a wind current. Twilight stoops down to plant a swift kiss on his cheek.

“Don’t worry, Spike,” she whispers softly to the snoozing dragon. “I’ll be back before you know it, won’t take me too long. Also, remember to feed Owlowiscious, okay?”

She knows he can’t hear him while he’s deep in slumber, but she also knows he wouldn’t forget.

On her way down the stairs, she grabs a banana oat muffin from a silver platter laid out on the table from last night in her magic, consuming it as she trots quietly out the door and into the snoozing outside world.

And comes face-to-face with Rarity.

She halts in sheer surprise, nearly dropping her muffin alarmingly in the process. The ivory unicorn also dons saddlebags of her own, a lone pastel-colored scarf slithering out from beneath the flap of one. Her mane is freshly curled, and she flutters her long, onyx eyelashes as she grins slyly at Twilight as the lavender unicorn recovers from initial shock.

“What are you – “

“I know you’re making this trip into the Everfree Forest for Rainbow Dash,” Rarity interrupts.

Twilight scrunches her eyebrows together, her eyes sizing down to minimal slits as she cocks her head warily to the side. “How’d you find out?”

“Spike mentioned it to me.”

“He did?”

“Of course, darling! He’s worried sick about you and your plan.”

Twilight shakes her head. “He doesn’t need to be so. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“I’m coming with you,” Rarity says, her voice as hard as steel albeit brimming with perseverance.

“Rarity, no, you don’t have to. I can do this myself.”

“Twilight, darling, this is not about you. This is about Rainbow Dash, and I am also her friend. I’m going with you, whatever it takes.”

By the looks of Rarity’s facial expression, Twilight can tell the ivory unicorn isn’t going to change her mind or budge her decision. She lets a long sigh escape her. “Fine.”

“Thank you.”

“But just remember, you made this decision.”

“And you accepted it.”

Twilight juts out her lower lip and blows a strand of loose hair away from her face defeatedly. Then, she gently nudges the other unicorn’s flank, and they both silently trot off in the direction of the Everfree.

: : : :

The two unicorns trod wordlessly through town, some passerbys nodding to them or waving or giving them a soft yet audible greeting as they walk past. Ponyville is nearly awake, and the ponies in the penetrating morning light fill the streets with tranquil buzz and friendly notions.

And today is the day after Applebuck Season, and Applejack has already set up her apple booth in the middle of the main part of town. The woven baskets overflow with juicy, scarlet apples, and the shelves are neatly stacked with warm, ambrosial pies, and many other apple confectionaries you can name.

The farm pony’s hoof abruptly connects with the steely wood of the booth, and a sign unravels from the top of it, clearly revealing the words, ‘Delicious Apples Heartily from the trees of Sweet Apple Acres!’ scrawled fervently across the material.

Satisfied, she makes herself comfortable behind the booth, then fixates her emerald eyes on the two familiar ponies approaching her stand.

“Rarity, Twilight!” she says brightly, gesturing for the other mares to come closer. The grin plastered to her face suddenly falters, contorting into a look of befuddlement as she eyes the saddlebags strapped securely to their sides. She knits her eyebrows together in wonder. “Where y’all headed?”

Rarity doesn’t hesitate to tell her. “The Everfree Forest.”

Applejack’s eyebrows questionably shoot up into her fringe. “The Everfree Forest?” she repeats warily.

“Yessssss,” Twilight drawls, the glints of quizzical annoyance visible as her words spill out from between clenched teeth.

“And why in the hay is that?”

Twilight’s hooves itch to just bolt and leave her friends behind to do this adventure on her own, but she finds herself not being able to budge with the farm pony’s scorching gaze locked fixedly on her. She groans lengthily before explaining her plan.

“Well, it’s mighty big of y’all to do this fer Rainbow,” Applejack says. “But it isn’t safe.”

“Applejack, I’m sure – “

“I’d like to come.”

Twilight groans, an irate growl brewing deep in the base of her throat. The hoof that slides bitterly down her face is inevitable.

“What? Y’all need somepony to give danger a good kick in the flanks if yer headin’ out there all by yer lonesomes.” Applejack bucks the air with furious hind legs, expanding on her sayings.

Twilight haughtily decides that Applejack isn’t going to let them go so easily, either. Instead of arguing about it, she reluctantly admits defeat and blinks her drowsy eyes. “Alright, fine. Let’s just move quickly, I don’t want to waste any more time.”

“You got it, sugarcube,” Applejack says. “But first Ah need to make sure Big Macintosh can take over the booth fer me this mornin’, since Ah’ll be gone with you two.”

Her eyes shift over the two unicorns before resting on Rarity’s saddlebags. Her eyes narrow at the familiar lumps in the canvas material and the piece of clothing that seems to be trying to escape underneath one of the flaps. “Scarves? Really?”

Rarity feigns a joking chuckle, and she narrows her own cerulean eyes at the farm pony who grins crudely at her. “Ha ha, well let’s see who gets the last laugh when you’re suddenly freezing cold and you realize you didn’t bring any personal-designer scarves of your own.”

Applejack rolls her eyes. She turns away, the other two mares following in her tracks as she leads them to Sweet Apple Acres, and then the Everfree Forest.

Author's Note:

Eek, sorry for the wait, folks. I've been busy. Hope the long chapter makes up for it though. Not so many big words this time, although I do enjoy using them from time to time to give the story more momentum.

Comments

[I hate you all]

Haha only had to look up one word

[Rainbow sparkle1]

Hope this isn’t canceled because this story is quite the page turner