Chapter 1
“Oh Celestia, my head...”
The plum colored mare was finally waking up from the events of the previous night. She had spent her Saturday night the same way she spends every night, getting drunk off her flank.
“I swear I will never drink again… Aw, who am I kidding? I’ll be drunk again before the end of the day. But buck, will somepony please close the curtains? My migraine doesn’t need any bucking help.”
Several seconds passed with no response. The only sounds to be heard was from grinding metal. This also didn’t lessening her headache.
“Alright fine! I’ll get the damn curtains!”
She tried to lift herself up onto her hooves, only to find that they have been hog-tied together. While unable to pull herself up, she was only able to squirm about on the floor in an attempt to escape her bondage.
Now more alert to the situation, she finally took stock of her surroundings. The light that had been annoying her came from a single lamp that was swaying slowly above her. From the meager source of light, she was only vaguely able to make out the small enclosure she was in. It was circular and the floor was made of dirt. If it wasn’t for the hanging lamp, the mare would have thought she was outside. The fact that there were two doors was also a fairly good indicator that this was definitely a room. One door was large with many claw marks on the it’s surface, while the other door was small, probably only big enough for a pony to fit through. There was also a terrible odor in the air, almost like the smell of rotten meat.
She struggled against her restraints, and as she did so, the sounds from behind the smaller door continued it’s rhythmic scraping. It was a familiar sound, one that anypony who has seen a slasher film could identify. The sound of somepony sharpening a knife on a whetstone.
The panic of the mare’s face was evident as her mind comprehended the situation. Stories have been going around Ponyville for a while now. Ponies disappearing without a trace, never to be seen again. The fact that there has yet to be any connection between the incidents; no witnesses, no clues, and no suspects. She was hoping to Celestia, Luna, and any other deities that might exist that she wasn’t the next one to disappear.
“Al-Alright guys! Prank’s over! You got me! Hehe, Y-You can come out now!” The sounds of the blade were the only response she got. “Look Colgate, if this is an attempt to get back at me after vomiting on your dental equipment, then I’m pretty sure we’re even! Heh...” More scraping. She could feel her heart beat even faster. “Lyra! BonBon! Is this punishment for stealing those bits from your purses? Because I promise to pay it back!” Scrape. Scrape. Scrape. “WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!”
The scraping stopped suddenly. An eerie silence enveloped the area, the only sound being her heavy breathing. Each moment felt like an eternity as she lay there. Just silence and breathing.
…
Scrape.
“AHHH! DON’T FUCK WITH ME! WHAT DO YOU WANT?!”
With that outburst, the knife once again stopped and was replaced with a new sound; that of a door opening. The mare kept her eyes pinned to the source of the noise as the pony began to approach her. As the pony crossed the room, the light caused their features to become more apparent.
Her subjugator, a butter yellow mare with a pink mane, eyes, a sickly green in color with a long scar on her right cheek. Pegasus wings were pressed tightly against her sides. She had a dagger in her mouth as well as a small pendant around her neck, which matched her eye color. The funny thing was, she looked at the mare calmly without even a hint of malice.
“Wait! I know you! You’re one of the Elements of Harmony, right?” The yellow mare just stared back, neither confirming nor denying her assumption. “Yeah, you are! Flutter...something! Yeah, yeah! Oh, and here I thought I was in trouble! You came to save me didn’t you?!”
Fluttersomething still refused to give her a response as she walked over behind her. “Whew! You nearly scared the life out of me. Not sure why you spent all that time sharpening that knife. I wouldn’t think it’d been that hard to cut a rope.” Silence. “You sure are a quiet one, ain't ‘cha? ...Heh.” Silence. “Yeah… So… You gonna cut me free or what?”
The yellow mare reached a hoof up to her mouth to grasp the knife. The mare on the ground relaxed a bit and closed her eyes, knowing full well that she would be free at any moment and could go home and sleep off her hangover. “You know Flutter, uh, whatever, wouldn’t it be easier to cut the ropes from the other si-”
The tail end of her sentence was cut off with a startled cry as she felt the knife sink into her side. She let out a blood-curdling scream as the blade slowly moved along the length of her body. Blood was quickly beginning to pour from the wound as her heart beat faster from panic.
Flutterwhatever removed the blade and wiped the blood onto the ground. The mare was ready to let out another scream when her captor put a hoof over her mouth.
“Shh shh shh. Hush now, dear, or else you will spoil his appetite.” The mare’s bloodshot eyes widened as the fiend spoke. Her subduer moved the hoof away and proceeded to the large door. She gave it three knocks and then moved a hoof to the handle. Soon after, a monstrous roar erupted from the opposite side. “Afterall, Harry has been waiting all day for his supper.”