Rainbow befalls a horrible accident and finds herself in the hospital, but when shes tormented by horrors of another realm will she be able to fight the rising darkness or fall to its embrace?
He who waits behind the wall shall one day come for us all.
Are we awake? or is it a dream? But for who has yet to be seen.
Not all things are as they seem like the beauty of a Nightmare, or the pain of Dream.
Rainbow Dash was busy clearing up the clouds. The report from Cloudsdale specifically requested perfect sunny weather with not a single cloud in the sky but it appeared that nature had different plans.
She flew through the gray rain clouds, irritated since it seemed as if when she dispatched of one cloud, three more took its place. As time went on it seemed to get darker and darker, leaving Rainbow grinding her teeth and groaning. She certainly was not going to let some stupid rain clouds get the best of her.
With a deep breath the cyan mare firmly put her goggles onto her head with a look of absolute determination upon her face; she was going to clear the sky even if it killed her.
Without warning Rainbow awoke finding herself hurdling towards the ground at a dangerous speed that made her unsure she would survive the impact. The Pegasus managed to turn right side up but this was an uphill battle for the ages.
Her fur was charred black and still smoldered, which smelt of a mix of marshmallow and cotton candy with a hint of beef jerky. She had been struck by lightning from behind; the force was enough to daze her. Rainbow began to frantically flap her wings, unable to gain control as she noticed the torn feathers in her now tattered wings.
As much as she struggled and fought, it only proved to worsen the burning sensation that radiated all over her body, enveloping her like warm water. It made her movements slow as she fought against her impending death. It was not the end she had envisioned for herself but then again who counts on getting killed on the job?
With tremendous force, she crashed into a cloud that had been mere inches above the ground. The soft nimbus had broken her fall but did not prevent further harm. When she crashed, her legs were unable to handle the force and buckled under the pressure upon impact, her legs shattering, bending backwards upon the clouds.
Rainbow could barely register the pain as she found her vision becoming fuzzy and then the corners of her sight becoming steadily darker and darker before her world was covered in darkness.
------------------------------- The cyan pegasus awoke in a hospital bed in a cold sweat, most of her body covered in bandages. " I..It was all a dream...." she muttered under her breath in relief as she looked around, taking in her new surroundings. The last thing she remembered was falling out of the sky.
The room was filled with various 'get well soon' cards, balloons and a wide variety of flowers of all types and colors. The room was silent except for the beeping noise from the heart monitor and the faint hum of the humidifier adjacent to her in the far corner of the room.
She was all alone and from the length of her mane and tail she could tell she had been this way for quite some time. She reached up to touch her face, coming in contact with the oxygen mask upon her muzzle. What exactly had happened to her?
Her thoughts were interrupted as two nurses rushed in excited from the news.
”Good she’s finally awake! Quick get a levels reading!"
The other nurse nodded and trotted over, the nurses horn glowing as she began to take notes.
Rainbow weakly managed to sit up, her chest heaving from exhaustion from that little movement. " W..What happened? How long have I been here?"
She quickly found that speaking was easier than moving but harder than breathing. Her throat strained to squeak out the words as if she had not talked in a long time.
One of the nurses walked over to her and took out her chart.
" The doctor will be here soon. We will inform your friends that you are awake and they should be in shortly."
As if on cue a tall, statuesque stallion entered the room adorning a white coat and a pair of blue glasses. He was a Pegasus like herself with black hair, brown fur with green eyes.
" Miss Dash, for the last five months you have been in a comatose state barely hanging on to life, there were many times we feared that that the thread of life would snap and you would be lost to us forever."
He looked over her new levels on the machines, making sure to check brain waves especially. Normally ponies in comas had very minimal brain activity but Rainbow as always, was very special indeed.
Despite her constant state of being one moment away from the morgue, her brain activity was far above the normal for any pony that was awake let alone supposedly brain dead.
“Five months ago you were struck by lightning while flying through a rain cloud. The resulting shock was amplified tenfold and proved disastrous since it hit you at the base of the neck."
Rainbow Dash was in shock, had she really been in a coma? And if so what was the reason behind the things she saw. The cyan mare shuddered and began to feel nauseous at the thought that those horrible things were a part of her mind.
“Doctor...Is it common for ponies to, I don't know, see things?" She asked sheepishly.
For the first time in her life she was both humbled and full of a mix of doubt and unbridled fear.
The doctor however looked unsurprised even though the case for him was becoming more and more fascinating and exemplary by the moment.
“I would not worry about such things Miss Dash, I'm sure that it was all a dream and nothing more.”
In his mind ideas began to swirl around like water going down the drain. Had she seen what lay beyond death's door? What secrets of the afterlife did this young mare now hold? Is there truly a legendary pony that judges us for our sins that waits at the moment of death?
“I suggest you keep a journal and document any dreams you may have for future reference. Many ponies in your situation often draw what they see."
He encouraged the cyan mare as best he could without sounding like this was in fact the special case that it was. No pony goes back and forth from being alive and dead without bringing back some tokens from the other world. This was the perfect chance for all to discover the truth.
Rainbow Dash nodded to his words as best as she could as the nurses took great care in removing the oxygen mask, She gave an initial cough and following gag or two as she adjusted to breathing without the tube down her throat. It felt good to breathe on her own once again.
“You will be discharged in two days and given some pain medication and sleeping aids for the first few weeks."
He scribbled down the prescription and handed it to one of the nurses who then placed it in Rainbow's file. There was a wealth of information in the cyan mare's mind that if unlocked would make anypony rich and famous beyond compare. He took a bow and left the room with an alarming smile, this would prove to be most incredible indeed.
---------------------------
An hour passed and the nurses had left her in her bed to rest, she laughed to herself. She had been 'asleep' for five months and was so tired it was unreal. Rainbow was looking at the far wall and up to the clock that rested there, hoping that somehow if she stared hard enough time would move faster and she could be out of there sooner. Then a shadow crept its way across the wall before her, the encroaching darkness making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on edge.
She disregarded it at first but as the head appeared to turn her direction the fear rose in her. The beeping of the heart monitor speeding up faster and faster and then a pair of red glowing eyes appeared on the shadow and a disturbing white grin moved across its apparent face. The shadow winked and mouthed something to her causing Rainbow Dash to cry out in the most blood curdling screech ever heard by pony ears, her heart monitor beeping so fast it could be confused for Morse code.
In an instant the nurses rushed in and turned on the lights. The shadow was nowhere to be seen but Rainbow still screamed in terror, The frantic nurses had to sedate the Pegasus as to prevent further harm. As Rainbow began to drift out of consciousness, she recalled the words the shadow had breathlessly said to her.
'Giggle at the ghastly....
Smile at the spooky.
My little Dashie, My little Dashie....
Time to come home.'
------------------------------------------ In her dreams she was always running but from what she never dared to look back and face, For once she was a complete coward, acting like a filly lost in the Everfree Forest in fear of cannibal blank flanks as the story often goes.
The shadow reminded her of such but the fear was something on a different level, She knew if she stopped it would get her for sure, Its voice behind her was a depraved mass of whispers in a tone that was smooth like fine silk. A cool Legato voice that both lured and repelled her at the same time, calling her name in a seductive melody of depraved madness that threatened to claim her soul and yet promised the strength she desperately craved more than ever.
'Why run from me Dashie dearest? We were such friends until now....'
Rainbow continued to run, growling back to her pursuer.
"I would never be friends with you and don't call me Dashie and I am not your dearest." she yelled, hoping it would deter the being that chased her.
But it only elicited an amused chuckle from her would be assailant.
‘Now, Now dear....I held up my side of the bargain...I expect you to hold up on your end of the deal.. .’ -------------------------------------------- Before she could even respond she was awake and panting, her body in a cold sweat once more. This was beginning to feel way too real to be just a dream; it was still so vivid and fresh in her mind so at the doctor’s suggestion, she took the pencil in her teeth and began to draw the strange world she had just left.
The picture was a world of blacks and reds. High jagged mountain ranges with a massive curled hill that either a red sun or moon hung above. In this world she figured it had to be the moon because the skies were pitch black at all times with not a single star in its sky. The resulting image looked like a mix between a faraway world reminiscent of the moon and the depiction of pony hell. She could not bring herself to draw the corpses that were strewn about in this horrible world, the scent of blood and rusted iron prevalent and still in her nostrils as she drew.
Rainbow took a deep breath as she begun to draw the shadow figure that followed her here. In her world it was a simple shadow but in there, in that place, it was far more terrifying.
It stood at Celestia's height with a blood red coat that matched the world around it, allowing it to blend effortlessly into its surroundings. The other details were that of a normal pony but those empty eyes would haunt her for as long as she lived. The eyes were gone and in their place were hollowed out sockets that dripped black ooze from the holes. Its shadow added to the fear and mystery, since the shadow was not shaped as it was. The shadow appeared to be appeared to great, with long tendrils that reached out, searching for unsuspecting prey to ensnare in its deadly trap. The unfortunate were to be met with hollow eyes and a razor sharp, serrated fang filled mouth that appeared to stretch wide enough to engulf any being it came across.
She looked down at the picture, shuddering slightly as she lowered the pencil, looking at her work. It was frightening just how realistic it looked. Rainbow checked the time and sighed in relief. She only had a few more hours before she could leave the hospital and go home. The mare turned back to her art and the color quickly fled from her face as the drawing before her winked and its smile widened, the ooze pouring from its eyes and filling the edges of the paper like water filled a sinking boat, the black substance escaping from the confines of the papers edge and splashing to the floor.
Rainbow screamed and backed as far away as she could from the notepad, frantically pushing the button to call the nurse. She pressed it repeatedly. The resulting beeps were only outdone in speed by the heart monitor once again. Her breathing became ragged as the nurse rushed inside.
"What’s wrong?" the unicorn asked as she rushed to the cyan Pegasus's side, looking for the cause and stepping directly in the black substance.
Rainbow Dash looked in horror as she walked in it as if it wasn't even there. The nurse did not even miss a beat as she rummaged through the drawers and pulled out a syringe containing a sedative, her hooves coated in the black ooze and dripping to Dash's horror. The vial itself was a bubbling red color, looking more like a menacing poison than a simple sedative.
“Please, d-don’t you see it!?" she asked to the nurse with pure fear apparent in her rose colored eyes.
She did not want to even think that she was going insane. She would be the laughing stock of Equestria for sure after this. As Rainbow pleaded with the nurse, the doctor watched with interest from the hall.
She had met something she was not supposed to ever see nor know about, a darkness that was supposed to remain unseen by the normal world.
When Rainbow had finally been rendered unconscious by the nurse, he slowly made his way inside the room, looking with interest at the sketch pad that rested on the table beside Rainbow Dash. He looked at the pictures confusedly for a moment and then saw the figure of her tormentor and could faintly recall a similar depiction in an old book.
It was the supposed chaos bringer. The god of madness, depravity, murder, malice and death. It was not the god beyond the pearly gates but surely it was a start. She had indeed met death and shook its hooves and it had returned for her.
-----------------------------------------
In her following dream, she was motionless as was the being that tormented her relentlessly. It stood in the shadows opposite of her, the outline of the being barely visible in the shadows as it remained silent and unmoving.
She glared at the being, her teeth grinding as she growled in agitation. This thing whatever it was was now ruining her life with a vengeance.
“What do you want from me?" she screamed in a fit of rage to the silent figure.
She wanted answers by any means necessary.
Then the being spoke only two simple words that would inspire more horror than any speech or story possibly ever could:
'Just you.'
She backed away instinctively from whatever this thing was that was so intent on having her for whatever reason. Did it want her dead? Was it there to kill her? Questions like these raced around in her mind at a break neck pace, causing her anxiety to rise more and more by the second.
' My little Dashie....'
Time to come home.'
------------------------
Rainbow was awoken this time by her dearest friends in the whole wide world. All five of them were standing around her with loving smiles upon their faces. Fluttershy was weeping tears of pure joy as her oldest friend was there before her alive and well like the good old days.
“Thank goodness you’re alright now Rainbow Dash. We were all so very worried about you," the yellow Pegasus said as she nuzzled the bed ridden cyan mare.
They had all been told many times by the doctor that the chances of her coming back were near zero after the three month mark and after six, it was best to pull the plug. None of them ever wanted to hear such a terrible thing; the news initially caused them all to break down and cry. But seeing her alive and smiling back at them was the most wonderful thing they had seen in a long time.
“I’m alright now; the doctor even said I can go home later today I hope."
She muttered the last part under her breath. She knew the staff was on edge and there was a chance she would be labeled as a fifty one fifty or more commonly known as a danger to herself and others, a lunatic. It meant one thing for sure, a one way trip to the nearest mental institution and from what she had been experiencing, she would be sent to Morturem institute at the outskirts of Tortures for sure.
It frightened her but not as much as the things she had been seeing the last five months, that thing that had somehow taken root in her head.
'If you're careful not to scream, you won’t get sent away silly filly.'
Rainbow Dash's eyes widened in horror as she heard the voice chuckle in her ear. Oh Princess Celestia, she was awake and could still hear it talking to her with that voice.
Her friends looked at her worriedly when they saw her eyes dilate in fear; their voices were somehow muffled in her head much like trying to hear underwater.
'Now, now dearest Dashie, smile prettily and play pretend or our game will end much too soon.'
She managed to creak out a worried smile, trying not to appear too suspicious. She wanted out of this place and this thing out of her head. She wondered if Zecora would have any remedies for this ailment but as she thought of a solution, the problem reared its ugly head.
'That's no fun Dashie dear. Step out of line and their end will near.'
There was intent in that smooth voice. A promise to harm others if she did not comply. This whole thing was maddening to her, Disturbing to say in the least. Maybe it was all some strange side effect from the near death experience and soon enough it would go away, she thought optimistically until it chuckled with glee.
' Sorry my dear but I'm very much real. The only way I am leaving is if you come with me.'
------------------------------------------------
An hour later Dash was getting ready to leave the hospital. Her friends took the greatest care in packing all of her get well soon gifts.
Twilight was cleaning up when the sketch pad had caught her attention; the curious unicorn opened the sketch pad with a smile, half expecting to see pictures of Dash as a Wonderbolt all over the place. She was however not prepared for the things she saw.
Twilight's eyes widened as she looked over the various pictures depicting what could only be described as a pony hell. Twilight had researched many subjects, the afterlife included. However, the images of the figure with black eyes was certainly not the image of the devil that lurked in pony hell. No, this was a more sinister creature and even worse because there was even less information about it.
The words 'My little Dashie' were drawn on, looking more like claw marks than normal hoofwriting. Whatever those words meant she wasn't sure but Twilight knew one thing for certain.
If Rainbow Dash had seen this thing, she was not meant to have survived the fall.
Twilight had seen something she knew Rainbow Dash did not want anypony to know about, Who would want to tell others about such a depraved being in their dreams. The thought of this monster mercilessly tormenting her friend was enough to make the purple unicorns face twist in contempt. She would not tolerate anything that would harm any of her friends.
Twilight quickly closed the sketch pad and began to ponder the plausibility of Rainbow Dash surviving the lighting strike and the fall of her own volition. The longer the purple unicorn thought about it, the more and more the evidence was piling up against such a thought. No pony can survive being stuck by lightning in the back of the neck let alone while wet. The laws of reality simply wouldn't allow such a thing to occur. Rainbow had been hit directly at the one place where it would cause instant death yet somehow the cyan mare only sustained broken limbs.
The chances of this happening were nonexistent. Even the mighty Princess Celestia would fall dead to such a blow.
Something was terribly wrong and the drawings were a clue as to what.
--------------------------
Rainbow took in her first breath of fresh air in nearly six months; the warming sensation of the wonderful sun light upon her fur was enough to make her forget of the seemingly bottomless darkness she had stumbled upon. The pegasus was glad to swallow her pride and use the wheelchair, her legs far too weak for such things. The bones were healed and the wounds turned into scars, but the ghostly pains of her once shattered limbs and useless wings still lingered within.
With a reluctant sigh she opened the bottle of pain medication and swallowed the red pill. It tasted like cherries and chalk, leaving her mouth horribly dry. As Fluttershy pushed her along gently down the road from the hospital and back towards Ponyville, the all too familiar scent of blood and rusted metal filled her nostrils and overwhelmed her senses.
"Fluttershy, d-do you smell that?" the cyan mare asked sheepishly as she covered her nose in a vain attempt to block out the horrid smell.
The yellow Pegasus beside her looked down upon her friend with deep concern in those cerulean eyes. Rainbow was near frantic again. The look upon her friends face was that of confusion and fear and it only served to raise her concerns higher than normal
" All I can smell is fresh cut grass and the daffodils, Are you alright Rainbow Dash? W-we could always head back to the-"
Her soft words were quickly interrupted by a now manic Rainbow Dash, her eyes pleading to Fluttershy.
“Please, for the love of Princess Celestia don-"
The cyan mare stopped herself mid-sentence. She had to appear like everything was sunshine and rainbows, even if it was quite the opposite.
"I mean, that’s okay Fluttershy. There is no need for that," Rainbow said with a forced smile, looking more and more flustered by the second.
"Please Rainbow Dash, let us just go back real quickly. Maybe it’s a side effect of the medication and we could switch prescriptions,” the gentle pegasus offered as an idea.
She was worried about her dear friend and was trying to suggest the best possible solution for the issue at hand.
Rainbow Dash appreciated her concerns, but being all alone in that room, at that things mercy only frightened her more.
"Fluttershy I really don't think..."
'You’re far too soft Dashie dearest. Allow me.'
The cyan mares smile turned to an enraged scowl, the thing invading her mind and taking control of her body. Rainbow Dash could only watch through her eyes as her body acted upon its own accord.
“I said no. Stop mothering and smothering me. I am not one of your idiotic pets" the possessed Dash screamed at the innocent Fluttershy with an underline gurgling noise in her voice reminiscent of a demonic growl and boiling water.
Fluttershy gasped, unable to handle Dash's outburst. Rainbow was in need of help but was being difficult and resistant.
"Okay D-dash.”
The shocked Pegasus was shaking in her hooves; the odd sound her friend made as she spoke filled her with dread.
Rainbow took a deep breath as she was allowed control over her body once again. This was beyond horrible. Fluttershy was to the point of tears now and the voice was getting louder, able to make her do horrible things.
'Do not cry nor fret for our fun's not over yet.'
--------------------------
Fluttershy dropped Rainbow off at Sugar Cube Corner so Twilight could talk some sense into her. Rainbow was sitting in the pink room all alone, unless you counted the voice in her head. It was like a scene from a horror comic. A party of one she thought to herself.
The lights flickered and went out and as the darkness filled the room. The red eyes appeared before her, the demented smile creeping under it.
"What do you want from me? Leave me alone," Rainbow Dash cried out frantically, her tone far less proud than before.
The response was just the same as before, causing Rainbow resolve to slowly begin to crumble away.
'Just you.'
Rainbow Dash began to hyperventilate, what possibly was this monster before her? Was this a demon? Could it possibly even be the devil? She wondered as she began to back away slowly, as the being approached her to maintain the distance between them.
Of all the questions in her mind, one was the most prevalent. Why her? She could see if she was an evil pony like Nightmare Moon or even like Discord but she was a good pony. She worked hard every day, was loyal, kind and a good friend. Why had she been chosen to be subjected to such a fate?
“What are you? Why do you haunt me?"
The cyan mare’s voice cracked as she spoke. She wanted to know the truth and be done with it so she could be free again. The figure did not reply. It only crept closer and closer to her. The smell of blood and rusted metal filled her nose again as it had done many times before.
'I am *****.'
Rainbow looked at the being cockeyed for a moment. In the moment it had spoken its name only an odd gurgling noise and static was heard. It was almost as if her mind could not comprehend its identity nor its purpose. Before she could ask again, the lights came back on and the figure once more was nowhere to be seen.
Pinkie was bouncing down her stairs with vigor and her trademark smile.
"That was weird Dashie, only the lights in this room went out. Weird right?" she giggled to the frightened pegasus.
It was getting more and more alarming by the second. She could hear it normally but when it came time for her to know its name, it was like it had been censored out. Rainbow looked to the pink earth pony with a determined look upon her face. She would figure out what it was, its name and most of all what it wanted with her and why it would not go away.
"Say, Pinkie do you have some paper and a pen? I want to write to the princess."
Rainbow watched as her friend trotted happily to the table and collected her requested items.
“Here you go Dashie. Do you need any help writing it?" Pinkie asked with her trademark smile.
To this Rainbow simply shook her head as she put the pen in between her teeth. It was a rather private manner and she did not want Pinkie to know.
"So what are you writing about? Ooh! Is it about us? Is it another fantastical life lesson?!"
Pinkie's positive attitude and cheerful grin was putting Rainbow on edge. The last six months were a horror fest that she was slowly adjusting to. She was no longer screaming bloody murder every time she saw it and was able to talk without the urge to vomit or urinate herself for the most part. But this attitude was making her angry with Pinkie Pie for no apparent reason.
' I know what you want to do.
You want to shut up her sunshine and rainbows act for good.'
The voice had once again returned but this time, she would show it who was boss of this body, before it could do something rash like yelling at the top of her lungs to the voice and looking like a complete psychopath to one of the already seemingly mentally unstable ponies in all of Equestria. She thought it over. Perhaps if it could speak into her mind if she responded in her head it would hear, while nopony else would be wiser.
Great, this was the one situation where talking to yourself, or in this case the voice in your head could be the only way out. So with a deep breath she proceed to think to herself.
'No! I don't want to hurt anypony. You, monster, get out of my head.'
'Harsh words Dashie dear. But I am not some monster like Rake or the Slendermane. Frankly, I am hurt that you think that I am in the same group as such insignificant world-bound beings.'
Dash nearly screamed right there. The Slendermane and Rake were actually real? She had always thought they were an old mare’s tale told to fillies to keep them in line. It was frightening to learn that the boogeyman was real and there was always a monster in your closet.
'If not like them... Are you the devil then?' Rainbow asked curiously.
She was now more curious than afraid. Her natural determination shone through. If the other had been visible in that moment, a smile would have been seen a mile away.
Twilight rushed into sugar cube corner along with Fluttershy, Applejack, and Rarity. They were all deeply concerned about Rainbows mental condition, after what Fluttershy had told Twilight she knew that their friend was in need of an intervention.
The purple unicorn closed the door behind them with her magic and took a seat in front of Rainbow Dash, the others each taking a seat, forming a circle. " Rainbow Dash, we came here to talk to you."
The cyan mare looked around, The scene looking more and more like a drug intervention by the moment, Her rose colored eyes looking upon the concerned faces of her friends. The way they looked at her was filled with pure pity and grief 'Poor Rainbow' she snorted knowing that was what they were all thinking as they gazed upon her.
" Whats this about guys? I already said I am fine!" Rainbow said with a disinterested look upon her face, she wanted nothing to do with this stupidity. At that moment she caught herself mid thought, was she actually being this hostile to her best friends? They only wanted to help her yet..All she could think of was how she would wish they would leave her be.
Fluttershy proceeded to take out a small piece of paper.'Oh god,' Rainbow Dash thought to herself, 'This IS an intervention!' The yellow Pegasus looked over to Rainbow and began to read from the prepared letter.
" Ahem, Dear Rainbow Dash,
You have been acting not very nice and we are concerned for your well being. I think we should take you back to the hospital, not only were you very scary. But your voice was very strange.." Fluttershy looked down sadly and folded the paper back up, not wanting to continue reading from some letter. "Please Dash, tell us whats wrong." The yellow Pegasus whimpered to her beloved childhood friend, she wanted to know what was causing Dash to be so aggressive.
'Go ahead..Tell them...
Giggle at the ghastly...
Snicker at the spooky..
HEEE HEEE HAAA HAAA HOOOOO HOOO.'
Rainbow Dash shuddered and shook her head side to side." I am perfectly fine guys, You have nothing to worry about, I am just fine." She spoke with a forced smile and a trembling in her voice, She did not want them to know about such things.. Poor Fluttershy and Rarity would most likely faint from the truth that all of the fears every pony has in Equestria are justified.
Rainbow was positive that they, nor any other pony, would be able to handle the truth about the every lurking darkness that threatens to consume their very souls. Besides, What would she tell them? How could she come across as sane? She did not even know its name even tho she had a good idea that he may be the Devil but this experience has taught her one thing.
Not all things are as they seem.
Twilight sighed and looked into Rainbow Dash's eyes, She did not want to do this but Rainbow had left her no choice. " Rainbow, I did not want to use this method but if you never come to terms with it....You will never be able to go back to normal."
Rainbows smile turned to a scowl as she saw her supposed friend pulling out her sketchbook from her bag. 'That sneaky unicorn!' She growled internally, This was not good at all soon enough everyone would think she was insane and it was all Twilight's fault for being so damned nosy!
'Lookie there...Oh my Dashie, you're in trouble now~~'
That irritated voice chimed in with a sing song tone in its voice, Boy it knew just how to push Rainbow Dash's buttons with deadly accuracy.
"Dash," The purple unicorn continued as she flipped through the pages, opening it to the one of the black and red world she had seen far too often. The ponies all gasped looking at the sight, It was absolutely depressing and so very Grim.
" Is this whats been bothering you Dash? Are you scared of this?" It took Rainbow everything she had not to lash out in a fit like the voice was urging her on to do. Great, she was under their scrutiny,again and it infuriated her.
"Put that away Twilight! You have no Idea what your messing with! I am serious!!" The cyan mare gave her friend fair warning, She knew that it liked to taunt her but she was unsure as to how it would react to them.
Twilight looked upon her , a serious and determined look upon her face. " So am I!" Twilight said as she flipped the page to the being on the other page, and as Rainbow predicted Rarity and Fluttershy fainted on the spot from the sight of it. " What is this then!?"
Rainbow took a shaky breath as she heard it singing Pinkies 'giggle at the ghostly' song in the back of her head as if it was bored from what was going on. " I....I don't know its name alright!," Rainbow said as she begun to breakdown and cry, This was getting to difficult to handle on her own.
" But it says horrible things to me!..and it made me yell at Fluttershy....and....and I'm so scared Twilight. Every time I ask what it wants from me it keeps saying 'just me'..." She had reached the breaking point, the voice chuckling in the back of her head loudly. It was now entertained by her misery.
" What does it tell you?" Twilight asked with concern and anger, this was getting out of hand in her eyes. " And what does this mean!?" The purple unicorn said as she pointed to the words 'My little Dashie' upon the page.
Rainbow gasped as she looked at those words. " I ...I did not write that...I..Its what....It says to me....he keeps saying..Its time to come home.." She sniffled in fear, looking to her friend horrified and broken.
' I told you to play pretend...'
" Oh no, Its talking again..." She whimpered covering her ears in an attempt to block it out.
' I told you to smile.....' The voice was now gurgling, her ears beginning to bleed as the noise became louder and louder, the red liquid trailing down the side of her face. Twilight gasped and ran over, her horn glowing as she tried to heal her friend. Whatever was happening to Rainbow she had to stop no matter what!
Apple Jack and Pinkie ran over in an attempt to see what had caused the bleeding. The concern evident on their faces.
" What is it saying Rainbow!? you have to fight it!!" Twilight cried out as her horn glowed brighter and brighter. " Show yourself monster!!! Get out of my friend!!!" The the room filled with a burst of purple light for a moment and then...
There was total darkness.
'Now is their end...'
Rainbow heard those words and the bleeding stopped as did that horrible noise, She thought maybe it was over but the all too familiar scent of blood and rusted metal that hit her noose, Told her otherwise.
My little Dashie, Silly filly.....I told you not to be too obvious...
The voice was now free from her head and in the room, Twilight's eyes wide in terror as it sent chills up her spine.
" Rainbow....is....that him?" The purple unicorn asked, her voice trembling with fear as the temperature in the room began to drop at a break neck pace.
Rainbow Dash could barley see in this darkness, her breath becoming a fog from the frigid cold. " Yes...that's it... That's Him..."
Twilight took a deep breath and stood still, her horn beginning to glow again in the darkness. " Are you the Devil? Be gone from our homes and our friend evil demon from hell!" The began to cast a spell that would Teleport anything To Tarturus , She only needed its name to cast and that was more than clear. The light filled the room and Twilight breathed in relief, It had worked and the nightmare was over.
She turned to Rainbow with a tired smile, Her friend was finally safe. "It's gone Rainbow, there is no need to be afraid anymore." But instead of the delighted and thankful smile she had expected to see, She was met with Dash's face drained nearly of all color and her eyes widened in terror like something was right behind her.
" It's Laughing.....Laughing for real....Its terrifying." Rainbow muttered sheepishly as the shadow lurked on the wall behind Twilight, Its smile wider than ever before. The sight panicked the Cyan mare, If not the Devil then what in the name of princess Celestia is this thing!?
The lights went out... A scream was heard... And Twilight was face to face with those red eyes and twisted fanged grin.
Nice try silly filly....
I assure if you, you know not my name...
for if you did....
We would have met long ago little one.
Twilight was at a loss for words or answers, This thing was not in any book, Nor in any documents she could find but here it was in her face, the purple mare accidentally peeing herself as she attempted to back away.The smell of blood and rusted metal filling her nose as it approached.
The being crept closer and closer, the smile on its face wide.
' Hush now....the darkness is rising again on our nightmare night.'
The eyes and teeth vanished suddenly, an old melody playing on a forgotten piano that resided in the cakes den room. The eerie tune filling the room as Rainbow looked at Twilight,mouthing clearly 'Run now, Its coming...' Twilight could hear a static noise as a dim light shown from a newly appeared narrow hallway, the was house warping and it was as if they were in a different world all together.
Pinkie looked down the newly formed hallway in confusion and horror, singing her song under her breath. She had lived here for a long time and had never seen this hall before in her life. The wall paper was torn at the edges and peeling from the floor, The print upon it was of blacks and whites with red flowers dotted down it. The floor beneath them was now a black and white tiles floor that was reminiscent of a checker board, The feel had changed from the happy cake shop to a now disturbing mortuary.
At the far end, playing the black baby grand piano sat a pure white alicorn, the cutie marks upon its flanks where that of bloody hoof prints. He looked like a majestic stallion, His hair a flurry of spiked black and brilliant yellow and his eyes without pupils, only the yellow color resided there.
Rainbow looked upon him in confusion for a moment as Twilight was the brave pony who began to venture down the hall. " Who are you?" She asked the stallion who continued to play elegantly. He looked up at Twilight who unlike Rainbow was blissfully unaware. Rainbow saw those eyes and knew for sure...it was him alright, Her personal Devil in the flesh.
" How doth the little crocodile improve its shining tail..,," He mused as he continued to play the piano, A smug grin crossing his face as the wallpaper began to bubble from behind it from the wall. Pinkie backed away with her ears down as the red flowers began to bleed and crack, the eyes of ponies now taking the place of the innocent flowers as bloody hoof prints began to appear on the walls.
" pouring the waters of the Nile on every golden scale, See how he grins..He neatly spreads his claws..And welcomes little fishies in with gently smiling jaws." The stallion finished with a fanged smile, looking to the purple unicorn as his eyes began to bleed black ooze.
"Wh..What are you..." Twilight asked, immobilized by fear as she looked upon its face as the skin on the white stallion began to peel back and bleed.
Silly Filly.... I think you were far from a fun dream anyway.. Remember Silly, The truth is like the sun.
The closer you get, the more you burn.
In that instant as it finished speaking Twilight was suddenly engulfed in black flames, Her shrill screams of pain filling the room like a choir of depravity in the symphony of horrors.
Her fur burned away quickly and boils began to form on her tender skin, The boils popping and oozing black puss as she was cooked alive. She quickly began to use her magic in a vain attempt to heal herself and put out the flames which only proved to make the pain worse.
'Your in my world now miss Sparkle...My rules apply.'
Apple Jack and Pinkie were struggling to get closer to their dying friend, The floor beneath them turning into an odd seeping liquid. The sloshed around in the now black ooze, Pinkie screaming as she was drug under by something. Apple Jack looked around and began to kick and buck into the water, trying to stop whatever was hurting Pinkie.
Kick... Kick.....
Kick.....Crunch
Apple Jack stopped in her tracks, had she got what had Pinkie? She stuck her head under whilst holding her breath and closing her eyes, reaching around for anything. She felt the familiar bounce of Pinkies mane and pulled her up and throwing her onto the solid ground. She gasped for air as she came up onto dry land, the floor returning to normal as she looked to her friend. '' Are you alright Sugar Cube?" She asked as she carefully rolled Pinkie onto her back, Screaming shrilly as she looked upon her friends now caved in skull. One eye was still wide open while the other was hanging out of the socket, her teeth impacted up into her cheek bones leaving her tongue and shattered jaw to hang to one side upon the floor.
'You silly fillies are too predictable....' It spoke as Twilight collapsed dead onto the floor and Apple Jack cried out in horror while holding her dead friend.
Rainbow Dash wheeled her way down the hall, making her way to the other side of the piano. "Why are you doing this!? What kind of monster are you!?" Her eyes were shining with hatred and contempt for this horrible being who had taken her life and made it into a living Hell.
The being pondered a moment, his hoof tapping upon his chin in contemplation. ' To quote the last being I influenced....
What is the sense in making sense?'
Rainbow Dash heard this and suddenly this thing was more dangerous. Discord was involved in this now? This was too weird now. It said it influenced Discord. If not the Devil what in the wide world does that kind of evil!?
She took a breath and looked him, Her eyes filled with the determination she was known for. Rainbow was not going to stand for this anymore, she refused to witness any more evil done to her friends by the hands of this depraved monster
" Why do you want ' just me'?" Finally the question of questions. The entire time she was too afraid to ask it but now she was way past the point of no return, She could never go back to life the way it was before all this, No she was far too lost in the dark to handle the sun again.
' Finally Dashie Dearest....you finally want to know....'
The other stood from the piano and walked towards Rainbow Dash, making sure to trample Twilight's still smoldering body under his hooves, With a well placed step crushing the remnants of the once purple unicorns skull underfoot.
'Behind the wall is where I live, The darkness in every beings heart is my domain...'
He who waits behind the wall, Shall one day come to claim us all.
Rainbow looked into its empty eyes, matching its gaze with her rose colored eyes. Yes it was everything he wanted to see, He wanted to see her like this. Not a cowering mare but the fierce spirit she was, It had taken a few deaths and un-required but entertaining terror to get this point. It was worth it. " If not the Devil, What is your name....why the obsession with me?"
Are we awake? Or is it a dream? But for who is yet to be seen.
' Its time to go back Dash....
The dream is almost over now....'
Around her the store became engulfed in flames, her friends Rarity and Fluttershy becoming mere skeletons upon the floor. Everypony was dead, she was all alone...and then it became clear and they were alone in the darkness once again. ---------------------------------------------
The beep of the heart monitor was now in a flat line, the doctor frantically using the paddles to attempt to bring back the singed and broken cyan mare that had been brought in.
The nurse beside him shook her head and raised a hoof to his shoulders." I'm sorry Doctor, She's gone....Call the time."
The sweating doctor looked up to the clock in defeat, the paddles dropping from his hooves. " Time of death, three pm...."
The nurse turned off the heart monitor and covered the poor dead mare with the white sheet. " Poor thing she was so young."
-------------------------------------
"Why did you want me? Why..show me such things?"
'Like a child wants a toy, I wanted you...
Because you bring color and light to the dark place I live..'
Until I sing the final song to restart this world, you will remain the light that I will strive to achieve
Not all things are as the seem Like the beauty of a nightmare, or the pain of a dream.
The cyan mare floated above the scene in a realm between life and death, seeing herself in the emergency room as the doctor began to call time of death.
"I have been dead this whole time?" the pegasus said with a defeated look upon her face.
Had the last months all been some dream? She had always heard of ponies saying that your life flashes before your eyes in the moments before death but she had never known of anypony to see such horrors before death.
'My little Dashie, We have made a full circle. Tell me Dashie dear do you want me to let you live?'
The thought of this being being Death crossed the rainbow maned pony's mind but death was supposed to be kind, nor did anything say Death had the ability to defy the list. It was set in stone. When a pony's time came there was no way out. There were no compromises. You simply fell to Death's embrace and he led you to the afterlife where your soul would rest in peace. This thing however, had a more insidious agenda.
"Why should I believe anything you say to me? You still have not revealed your name to me. You are not the devil nor are you Death yet you appear to be the worst of both into one being. You talk about some wall and that you rest in the darkness of all beings but in all I learned from this. There is always more when it comes to you." the mare said, knowing the being was watching her this very moment even if it had decided to make itself unseen for the time being.
She knew better by now not to take things for granted, Never would she make the same mistake twice.
'Bravo Dashie, Now you are catching on...Now that you have deduced what I am not, you can begin to find out what I am.'
Rainbow Dash took a deep breath as the scene before her vanished and she was once again in that red and black wasteland, She knew that to it, this was all a sick game for it to be entertained by in its spare time. But for her this was a matter of life or death. She would play its game this time on her terms.
" You mentioned a deal before, what does that mean? Have we met before or something?"
The other appeared in the world beside her, in the form of the white alicorn. It was easier on her eyes for sure but she knew the evil that lurked under the surface. It only smiled at her at first, it was not menacing but instead kind. This was a dark world indeed and looking at the facts, she was the only source of color in this bleak world as it had said before.
------------------------------------------ Earlier that year above Ponyville
Rainbow Dash had been practicing her Sonic Rainboom for an upcoming tournament, She had managed to surpass her previous speed record, easily hitting mach fifteen this time, causing the rainbow to leave color upon the clouds like a pattern down the sides.
As she flew faster and faster, The laws of her world being bent around the glory of rainbow colors that chased behind her,
An unseen crack was made in her reality and into a dark world that waits behind the walls of our own.
The colors and light shone into this depraved world of decay and madness. Its lord who waits to end it all in every world for the first time saw such colors trickling down into his world of blood reds and endless blacks.
The mix of color and light dripped through that small crack like drops of dew on a spring morning, The color and light dripping to the floor to create a puddle of joy from another realm astonishing the being with its splendor, promising of a world made of shimmering lights and vivid colors past his own to make its new home.
With an excited yet demented grin upon its face, the being flew up with zealous to the new found crack. It peered through the hole like a child would peer through a keyhole on Christmas morning, awaiting some mythical being to bring magic to their mundane lives.
Through its small crack, its eyes did spy a cyan mare with hair of the rainbow. The colors danced and chased after her as she flew by. She was swift and brave, honest and true. everything in the worlds it saw it intended to keep intact.
It wanted her She was everything he ever wanted and needed.
A being made of colors and light.
The being was crafty and knew they would never meet unless she were to befall a tragic accident. Would it step on death's toes for his prized mare? It would crush them with glee if it meant getting to keep her by his side. The plan was simple enough, It would send two of his creations to collect data on his new found obsession.
Slendermane and Rake would suffice, Both were good at seeing but remaining unseen a useful skill for striking terror or in this case, stalking prey.
-----
The days went by as it waited the reports, everyday it took glee in watching her fly from behind the slender crack in her reality. But soon it was no longer enough just to watch, He wanted her to be there.
The reports came in, yes she was indeed everything it prized in all beings. She was even stubborn and a show off, both incredible qualities he himself possessed.
Now it needed to think up a plan, a way to bring her to the dark.
------------
Earlier this day
As Rainbow flew through the clouds, it set its plan into motion. It had taken some time but it had managed to make a corporal form to enter her world, The white alicorn hovered above the clouds as Rainbow was flying through the clouds beneath it. It smirked and created more storm clouds for her to fly through.
Lightning struck.
Rainbow was down now and it could take it from there.
It entered her now dying mind, smiling softly as she struggled to hold onto life. The cyan Pegasus was weeping in misery before it. It looked to her, its smile fading.
'Why are you crying? I made sure it would not hurt at all..'
Rainbow Dash sniffled and looked up to him, wiping her eyes sadly.
" I will never see them again, will I?"
It forgot about them. Those other five mares, It could care less about them really but she loved them deeply. This was a problem or perhaps an opportunity. He looked down to Rainbow Dash and smiled.
"If I let you see them once more will you come with me without a fuss?"
The mare nodded and the deal had been made all that remained was the debt to be paid.
-----------------
'The end is neigh Dashie dearest. I held up my end, it is time you held up yours.'
The stallion looked down to her, he knew she would not complain. Now for the first time, it began to rain.
----------------
Rainbow's still body lay in the open casket as one by one the citizens of Ponyville approached her coffin. There were no smiles this day, no songs to be sung. Twilight placed a white rose gently aside her now dead friend. Their beloved friend Rainbow Dash remained loyal to the end.
In their hearts a hole would be from the horrible loss, Her smile would forever be held as a national treasure for every pony to hold onto as long as they lived.
Rainbow's body was surrounded by flowers of every type and color, the tears of everypony falling to the ground like a storm of sorrow.
She watched from the same crack that it had once watched her from, their sorrow moving her to tears. She had been taken away before her time.
It had come for her.
'Do not cry, nor fret. I promised you once it's not over yet.'
Rainbow Dash feared the meaning behind those ominous words. What did it have in store? She watched in terror as the crack began to widen and peel back.
"What are you doing?" she growled at the being before her.
This could not be good at all.
The other vanished and all she could do is watch as it entered her world.
---------------------
Twilight sat in her study, reading her books sadly. She was looking up means of communication to the other side, since she missed Rainbow Dash sorely.
The shadow crept its way across the wall beside her, Its smile wide.
The words upon the page Twilight was now reading had begun to distort, surrounded by odd symbols and numbers before the words began to move around on their own volition upon the page. Twilight's eyes widened in horror as she watched the words move about the page, spelling disturbing things.
My little Dashie, My little Dashie,
she's dead and gone.
My little Dashie,
Don't you want to join along?
A world of madness, aint it neat?
And your death would make it all complete.
My little Dashie,
don't you know that this is your end?
Twilight threw the book as fast as she could manage, Her horn still glowing with magical energy as she readied herself for anything. Suddenly the shelf above her collapsed upon her without warning, the falling books hitting the purple unicorn in the back of the head, knocking her out cold. --------------------------
'Rise and shine Miss Sparkle, You don't want to be tardy to your own funeral do you?'
Twilight's eyes slowly opened, the throbbing sensation in the front of her head causing her ears to ring in pain. Her vision slowly focused as she looked about the dark room, She attempted to move her hooves to find she had been strapped down to a table on her back with her limbs stretched out much like a starfish. She struggled against her bindings, surprised to find there was an iron clasp around her neck and a set of interlocking metal hooks along her mid section. The only free part she had was her tail which swayed back and forth upon the edge of the gurney.
Then, the shadow crossed into her sight. The vision of the demented being with hollowed eyes frightened her normally calm and logical mind. She had never seen such a thing in all her life, She was even an occult fanatic and had never came across this image. It crept slowly towards her, a smile creeping across its face, which only caused the purple unicorn to shudder in response.
She began to concentrate with all her might, her horn beginning to glow. Twilight was attempting to cast a teleportation spell so she could escape, But she was not expecting what happened next.
The being chuckled as a saw was raised from the metal tray that rested beside her, The blade rose to Twilight's eye level.
All she could do was watch in despair. Her magic was taking too long and she would be killed in seconds. Soon enough she would be praying for such a simple and quick release.
The blade met not with her throat but at the base of her glowing horn, the teeth slowly moving their way back and forth at the base. The noise was that of sawing wood. At first there was no pain but as the saw made its way through the external layer she screamed in pain as the metal came in contact with the delicate nerve endings.
Twilight was a screaming mess, her eyes rolling back into her skull as blood poured from her precious appendage. The horrendous pain caused the purple unicorn to pass out with a gurgling noise as drool made its way down her twitching lip.
The figure chuckled and quickly awoke her with its dark powers, there was no hum nor glow. What it wanted to happen became real.
The unicorn gasped as she awoke, the searing pain coursing through her small body as the figure loomed above her with that depraved smile of twisted pleasure.
'Such a horrible student, shouldn't you be paying attention in class?'
The being chuckled with unbridled delight as it looked upon the mares horrified face. It hadn't had this much fun since the black plague and it was going to savor every delectable moment of her anguish.
'Today were studying where magic comes from. Being the Element of Magic you should know that right Miss Sparkle?'
The mare was unable to answer, the pain too much to bear which only served to irritate the ghoulish figure before her. She was a boring thing to dream up after all, and such a lightweight too.
With a heavy sigh it looked down upon the mare. She was no more than a pathetic filly before his eyes and so very disappointing.
'It appears that the fun is over too soon, I should have at least dreamed you a spine[.' the sinister being spoke as it used its powers to force open the purple unicorns mouth, The other was not as fun to play with as it had hoped.
It cracked its neck from side to side for a moment before diving into the mares body.
Her eyes were wide as she watched the skin on her abdomen move as if something were wiggling just under the skin. The sensation flowed through her entire body, her skin beginning to tear and peel from her hooves. The purple flesh bled as it peeled down her body and to her center, the mare helpless as she was skinned alive.
Her vulnerable and bleeding muscles and tendons were now exposed in the crisp air, steam rising from her body from the contrast of the cold around her and the freshly revealed blood.
The shadow emerged from her body with a devious smile, stretching the newly peeled skin with delight, blood still falling from the pelt as it swayed in his hooves.
' Such a frail little filly, her skin delicate like the pages of a book she so desperately craves.'
With a smile the books began to fly from the shelves and towards its, the skin glowing as it swirled them together. The final result horrified the once purple mare. Her skin was the new binding on her favorite books.
'Look Twilight, your dreams have come true.You are forever immortalized in books.'
The mare drew her last breath, her eyes glazing over with deaths kind embrace.
The Element of Magic fell.
-----------------
Rainbow could not see too well from the crack behind the wall, She was not very skilled in directing its gaze like it was. She groaned in frustration.
"Darn it!! If only Twilight were here! I'm sure she could figure out this stupid thing!!"
And then, as if by magic, behind her in the darkness she heard a whimper. Rainbow turned around to meet the sound and to her astonishment, there before her stood none other than Twilight Sparkle. She too was claimed by this horrifying world.
"Rainbow?.." the purple unicorn said as she approached her dear friend.
Could it really be true? Here she stood, Rainbow Dash. Twilight smiled and ran to her.
" I missed you so much!!"
Rainbow Dash was not so happy, Rainbow's mane was frayed and unkempt and those eyes, Twilight's eyes, were now a pitch black, It was only when the other blinked she could confirm she had retained her eyes.
" Twi, Y-your eyes."
Rainbow Dash shuddered and looked upon her friend who was now frantically looking for a mirror.
Twilight looked around in the dark unable to spot anything that could reflect, She then decided to use her magic. Her horn began to glow in the dark.
"Whats wrong Rainbow Dash?"
" Your eyes are black now...."
Rainbow only could manage to say in a sheepish voice, It was not something one heard every day.
" So, That's what it is then. I was wondering about that." Twilight said whilst tapping her hoof upon her chin.
Thank Celestia. Twilight knew what this thing was.
As Twilight was about to reveal its identity, her mouth suddenly slammed shut, the skin peeling off, causing her mouth to vanish completely.
'Now, now that's no fair. No cheating now.'
Rainbow Dash growled, her rose colored eyes narrowed in rage. The fact that the demon had desecrated Twilight's horn as well only added fuel to the fire.
" What have you done?"
'I am letting you have your friends. I wouldn't want you to getting lonely now Dashie dear.'
The voice chuckled in the darkness around them.
'One by one I lure the kittens into my den
Unaware they shall never see the sun again.'
......
A steaming pile of Generosity and a dash of Kindness
The heavens above and hell below. Then where are we? Not many do know.
Rainbow Dash was furious and frightened at the same time, It was going to kill all of her friends now. It had her. Why would it go to such lengths when it had already won the war?
"Twilight, what happened to you?" the cyan pegasus asked to her now dearly departed friend. Twilight stared into her eyes as she tried to recall what had happened to her.
Had she died? Did a spell backfire and she was now hallucinating? There were many logical ideas her rational mind conjured up as a way to explain her sudden removal from life. The emptiness that was growing within her once fulfilled soul proved that something horrific had befallen her and Rainbow Dash.
The longer the purple unicorn thought about what had transpired, the less and less she found in her now fading memories. The funeral for Rainbow Dash was even beginning to blur in her mind like an old film reel, parts becoming distorted and burned at the edges. Everything from that point on was pure white noise, A storm of static like at the end of an old VHS tape surrounding her forgotten memories, Her mind censoring something.
"I don't know Rainbow Dash. I feel empty."
The purple unicorns words struck Rainbow Dash hard. Was nothing sacred anymore? There was no evil it would not stoop to, no depravity it would not commit?
She searched the dark for her tormentor, for Twilight's murderer. But those eyes that leered at her, that pierce deep into her very soul were nowhere to be seen. It had come by only to drop off its haul before venturing off to 'play' once more.
------------------------------
Fluttershy awoke as she normally did with an anxious and irritated Angel bunny siting upon her chest. The agitated woodland creature tapped its foot with no sense of patience, He was hungry and he wanted food now.
Fluttershy met this frown with her delightful smile, kind to the bone the yellow Pegasus was.
"Oh my Angel, Lets go get you something to eat," she said with a smile as she scooped up the small rabbit into her hooves.
She flew down to the kitchen as she hummed a delightful tune.
She made him an elaborate salad rather quickly but with the utmost care, She gingerly sat the bowl down before her bunny friend.
"I'll be right back Angel, I'm going to go get the mail. Derpy was supposed to deliver the chicken feed today," the delightful mare said with glee as she headed to the door.
She opened the door and took a deep breath as she did every day to drink in the fresh morning air. Fluttershy immediately began to wretch and heave, suddenly regretting not opening her eyes before her morning breath of fresh air.
She opened her eyes and wished she had not. They widened as her pupils dilated at the sight before her. The buzzing of flies was the only sound to be heard as she stared in shock, unable to move her body. Before her on a crude metal spike was Twilight's skinned body, The spike was driven through the corpse's mouth and abdomen. The flesh had begun to rot and peel away as insects had begun laying their eggs in the exposed muscles, maggots stirring in the once living being's now vacant eye sockets.
Fluttershy was hyperventilating, praying that she was still asleep and that this was all some horrible dream and then a red light shined in the darkness of the empty eyes like small glowing pupils that moved to focus on Fluttershy's shaking form.
'Wanna play Fluttershy?'
The voice was that of Twilight's but eerily distorted as if it had been stretched and pitched with an odd static noise following its words.
Fluttershy backed away from the corpse as it began to slide itself off the pole, the mix of coagulated blood and entrails smearing onto the metal pole as it moved. With all her might Fluttershy ran inside and barred the door closed behind her with everything she could find, the body cackling and taunting her from the other side.
----------------------
Rarity sighed as she stared at her newest creation, everything she did only served to remind her of her dead friend. She missed her terribly, as did everypony.
She had been up all night sewing as she had done every night sense the funeral, Her dreams only taunted her with the memories of her fallen friend. The unicorn sniffled as she started the sewing machine up again.The room was all but silent except for the hum of the needle as she passed the fabric underneath.
She was the spirit of generosity, a fun target to play with. The shadow lurked behind her with a depraved grin, it knew just what to do to make this game extra special. It came off the wall and took the shape of Rainbow Dash herself, the fur substantially darker and the hair toned down. He did not do as well with bright and colorful. This was the best he could manage.
"Rarity," the specter spoke to the sleepless mare.
This would be fun indeed.
Rarity turned around to meet this voice. It was Rainbow Dash. She was here before her, the sight bringing a tear to her eye.
" Rainbow Dash! But you died. Where are you?"
"I'm behind the wall Rarity, I'm finally here and you know what? Its beatiful."
Rarity watched as the other spoke. Those eyes were wide in madness. Something was horribly wrong. Had she been in the right frame of mind Rarity would have immediately caught on.
All she could register was that Rainbow was here with her, telling her of a beautiful nirvana that awaited every pony after death. Her eyes watered as she stepped closer to her friend.
"But you can't go there. You get to go to hell." its voice roared as it spoke the last word, its shadow creeping along the floors and ceiling to engulf the light around them.
Rarity's dream was now suddenly that of a nightmare, The eyes and faces of several ponies now looking upon her in judgment. The room warped to that of a courtroom, The figure in its white alicorn form took position as the judge and executioner.
Rarity found herself in an iron cage dangling above the room, a strange iron wheel around her throat.
'Today is the case of Rarity. the simple mare of generosity. But alas we shall see, she's not what she pretends to be.'
The gavel struck thrice against the podium as the jury made of greed consumed Rarities all nodded in agreement.
" I have done nothing wrong. This is a farce." Rarity cried out in defense from her swinging confines.
' We have proof to which you shall see.
You are by no means the being
of generosity'
The room became black and red, the eyes of the jury shining with hate and greed as they began to pass up boxes of evidence in order to play judge.
Rarity went to open her mouth as to defend herself once more but suddenly the shadow rose from the foot of her cage and began to turn the knobs around the wheel causing metal spikes to drill into her neck, her blood oozing down. The spikes cut into her vocal chords and rendered her unable to speak. She could only make a gurgling noise.
The judge opened the box and grinned with delight, today indeed was the real nightmare night.
A being in the image of Rainbow Dash approached the jury with a devious smile.
"Ladies and Gentle colts I do hereby present, A horrible sow of failure and regret. A hoard of a dragons and full of contempt, Her sickness tells her its not enough yet. She uses her charms to get her way, honestly dear ponies listen to what I say. This liar will be put to justice by the end of this day!''
The jury cheered on the Shadow Dash's words, all of them chanting guilty as loud as they could.
'I believe no longer
they shall fall for your spell.
Take your last breath,
your going to hell.'
With delight and a sinister grin it pulled the lever aside the podium, The cage's bottom opened and Rarity fell down in the darkness below. The laughter behind her echoed in her ears. She was unaware that this was the first leg of its delightful game.
------------------------
Fluttershy was screaming for help in her cottage. Alas she was too far away from pony ears. It was a big mistake, living so close to the Everfree Forest and so far from Ponyville. Black blood was seeping under the door, the substance traveling up the pile of dressers and chairs in lines looking like trails left behind by snails.
The Pegasus ran upstairs to go get Angel. She would fly away to freedom and escape this nightmare.
"Angel," she cried out looking for the assuredly frightened animal who was most likely hiding under her bed.
She ducked down to check under the bed. She was met with not bunny but teeth ground sharp and eyes glowing red.
She let out a scream. her animals could only watch her body convulse as her head remained under the bed. Fluttershy managed to pull away, her face covered in horrible wounds, her eyes gone. She got up and attempted to run but her long pink tail began to pull under the bed.
"No," she screamed as her body began to get pulled under, her hooves gouging into the wooden floor.
The bed shook side to side as the room echoed with her horrifically pained screams. Her front hooves reaching out from under the bed, flailing frantically before they simply shuddered and fell to the ground. Her hooves dragging under as the sound of gnawing bones and splattering blood echoed in the otherwise silent room.
---------------------------
Rarity awoke floating in a tub of liquid, her normally perfect mane twirling around her like the stingers on a jellyfish. Her body felt heavy and weak, unable to life a hoof. She had been paralyzed.
'Strange what one well placed cut can do.'
She managed to move her head side to side looking for the source of the voice, her eyes half lidded.
'But, it only halts the function you can still very much feel.'
"Why are you doing this?" she managed to squeak out in a pained and softened voice. It hurt so much to talk.
The shadow approached her but had no smile upon its features, It left a more chilling feeling in the unicorn's body than that smile had done before.
' What Dashie wants, Dashie gets.'
Its voice was calm and collected, a stark contrast to the way it normally carried itself about. Perhaps it was the flavor of the pegasus still fresh in its mouth, the sweet taste of liquid life that proved to partially sate its carnal desires.
Only partially.
Rarity's white body was suddenly spread wide, her legs nearly breaking from the pressure. She cried out in agony from the sudden pain in her otherwise dead body, unready for what was in store.
The legs on the white mare continued to stretch before,
Snap, Crackle,
Pop.
Her legs floated in the water, the bones ripped from the sockets but fully attached to her motionless body. The pain sent ripples of nausea through Rarity's sensitive body causing her to vomit violently onto her own body, the sticky mix of food and bile matting down her once perfect white fur. Then the flesh on her joints began to tear. Her eyes tore in pain as she began to bleed, the blood mixing with the bile and food in the water surrounding her.
The blood poured down and the water level began to rise around her, her muzzle the only thing above the water. The bones in her arms now visible as the power urged them to splinter and shatter, her now removed arms falling into the water around her causing the water to rise.
The bubbles formed from her mouth and muzzle as the blood and bile began to rush into her lungs. Rarity began to choke under the water, the overwhelming smell of her own blood making her vision to dim but the griping pain forcing her to remain awake as the near death adrenaline coursed through her veins.
Her eyes widened began to glaze over as the life was strangled out of her, blood seeping from her mouth and flowing into the water.
----------------------
Rainbow Dash was frantic as she tried to look through that infuriating crack in the forsaken world.
" Whats happening out there? This is so stupid," she groaned in frustration.
The suspense too much to handle.
" R-Rainbow."
A voice called to her from the darkness behind Twilight. The cyan pegasus turned in horror, afraid of what she would meet.
Before her stood Fluttershy, her face scarred and eyes missing. The sight was enough to cause Rainbow to yelp in shock.
Beside Fluttershy another being emerged from the darkness, stitches along her joints and the iron wheel still around her neck. It was Rarity. The demon had claimed them both as well.
"N-no. Its, oh Princess Celestia."
Rainbow collapsed into tears at the sight of her friends in such a state. They had been killed by it too?
Rainbow Dash looked around her. The skies was blue and the grass was green. The sun was brighter than it had ever been. Before her were the best friends she'd ever known. They had smiles on their faces, no sorrows or tears, finally safe from that world of fears.
The world was pure and she was free, no longer compelled to run from everything she sees, but the air around them was still as the world and silent.
The cyan mare looked side to side as she walked down the familiar road to town; the road suddenly ended as she met a wall of shadows on the edge of her world.
This was cruel to do.
The figure of the white stallion approached from behind, his yellow eyes that were missing life staring upon the distraught mare.
He had done his best to appease her time and time again. She was all alone so he brought her friends. She was afraid of the dark so he made her a patch of grass under the sun.
He could not make her town brick for brick. He never saw that far into her sunny world.
-------------------------------
Celestia had gotten word that Twilight had gone missing sometime after the funeral as had Fluttershy and Rarity. This entire ordeal reeked of an all too familiar darkness, The shadow lurked upon her wall and then her fears were confirmed. She thought the nightmares were finally over, that it was unable to cross that wall. By chance she had seen it once as it took her parents from behind and pulled them into the dark.
That was long ago while she was a filly, but the fears were still intact, the horror fresh within her mind as it would remain for all time.
The alicorn turned to see its smile, her eyes narrowing in contempt. She stood her ground and did not scream even though she was crying inside.
'Hello Tia. Looking for me?'
It chuckled to her, knowing it had scarred the princess forever in more ways than one.
Celestia glared and was unpleased that it had come back to her world again. The last time it reared its ugly head it took away her only family she had left. She had finally gotten her back from the dark but those fears for a thousand years never would fade away.
"Leave my world or suffer the consequences."
The princess put on a brave face, but it was all an act and he knew it.
The shadow walked off of her wall, the darkness fading to reveal the white stallion form he took in this world.
It grew tired of her pathetic attempts to be brave. Honestly who did she think she was fooling?
'Silly filly, It's not your world and it never was...'
She shuddered in place as the fear began to grip her heart, It was winning this battle and soon would take the war.
Then Luna's screams rang out from her room, the sound bringing tears to the white Alicorn's eyes.
"I came to take back my property. You were so easy to play Tia..." he mocked as he vanished into the darkness, claiming another soul as its own.
The white alicorn rushed upstairs to Luna's room, trembling in fear as she saw the door had already been opened a crack. With her hoof she gently opened the door the rest of the way. The room was filled with blue feathers and the scent of blood. She looked around for her sister as panic swept across her face. The fear was real and her sister had been taken away again.
Celestia cried, for every time she tried to protect her family she would fail again and again. Luna was gone again, dragged behind the wall once more. How could she have ever believed it would ever leave her happiness alone. She had gone through so many hopes and fears, so many wasted years before it was gone from her home.
But in the end, the results were the same and she only had herself to blame. If only she were strong enough to protect the ones she loved.
This time she would reclaim her sister and the ones it took away from their happy lives. She would never again let it ruin the dreams of any other pony.
Celestia ran to the restricted section of the library, determined to discover the truth and more importantly, a way to destroy it.
She knew it fed on fears that lurked in every living creatures heart, but if there wasn't a way to kill it, was there a way to starve it of its strength?
------------------------
Rainbow was looking for that crack so she could see what was going on for real. At last she found the crack and looked outside, at first only seeing clouds but soon saw a hooded figure that stood before her. The pony was white in a hood of black with a scythe in one hoof. Was this Death? Rainbow asked herself as she looked upon the other, her rose colored eyes pleading for help.
"Hush now. I'm going to get you all out of there. It's gone too far this time," the being exclaimed and looked upon her form the other side of the crack.
In that moment he instantly knew why it wanted her, and that the actions of himself and the other deities would come back to bite them in the ass for sure.
It was loose from its wall and disturbing the natural order again, He had to act quickly before it returned. Death knew if it spotted him, there was no chance he would survive the encounter.
Rainbow nodded as her eyes pleaded with her savior. The nightmare would be over and they would all be able to go home to their happy lives.
"What do you mean by this time?" Rainbow Dash could not help but ask the other.
If Death had any insight as to what this thing was then there was a chance for her to use it to her advantage. Death fell silent for a moment. It was a very sore subject but as its target she had every right to know. It would be forgotten soon after the rescue and fixing of its wall.
No pony was meant to remember its face or identity. Those who did suffered greatly. It was the natural order. It was meant not to be known or seen by any being. It was more or less a being that operated behind the scenes.
Death took a deep breath and looked to her so he could explain.
"A long time ago it abused its power and created a life for its own desires. The great moderator and I took the being from this world. It grew then angry and violent, escaping its confinements as it tore a bloody path through the heavens..."
-----------------
The white stallion was flying straight upwards into the heavens at a speed that left the Sonic Rainboom in the same league as Tank the Tortoise. He slew any angelic who dared cross his path, the blood falling to the world below as a crimson red rain.
He burst through the uppermost layer of clouds, his eyes filled with rage and the ever growing madness.
"Where is she?" he bellowed, his voice booming with enough force to knock the many angelic guards onto their rear ends.
He charged forward, goring into the ponies before him as if they were meat on a kebab. Then he finally reached the double doors from his dreams, kicking them in to see the ever so displeasing smile upon that pink mares face.
------------------
Death knew they were in the wrong for doing what they did to the dreamer. He dreamed up their world to awake in a world of darkness.
But the natural way of things meant no pony went behind the wall, no pony met the dreamer.
"He was on a rampage and nearly killed the moderator. His existence outside this realm is disallowed."
Death did not want to reveal too much more. It would return soon enough and be angry for sure if he saw him again.
"Hold tight. I will return soon with the moderator. We're gonna get you guys out."
And with that Death vanished.
----------------
Pinkie was baking cupcakes merrily as she had convinced her self into a delusional state.
"These will be perfect for when Dash, Fluttershy, Twi and Rarity get back from vacation."
She giggled in a sad sort of way as she began frosting the small cakes. Her mind was gone, all of her friends were dying left and right. It was too much to take for the pink earth pony.
'Poor Pinkie... your soul is already broken.'
The voice was almost sympathetic for her situation. He had once gone through the tough denial phase. Reality was cruel and he had come to terms with it, now must the pink mare before him. Instead of fear, her sad smile remained as she looked upon the shadow with red eyes and glimmering white smile. She almost looked as if she wanted to die, or she was about to kill herself.
"Did you take my friends too?" the pink mare asked as she began to sob, her blue eyes filled with tears.
To this he simply nodded. This one was already dead inside, her laughter all dried up and gone. It was a sad state of things to watch this once happy creature be so defeated. He at least hoped to see that smile. The pink mare simply laid down on the counter before the shadow, her eyes a shell of the lively mare she once was.
He shifted to the white stallion. He wanted this one to die as she lived, full of sugary goodness. He began to force feed her all the sweets he could find, her stomach bulging from the food within her. The being then found some chocolate that was used to make fudge, a very rich sweet chocolate. With every cut, her eyes produced more tears but her mouth made no screams. It was hardly a game anymore. It was more like a ritual now. He stuffed the chocolate under the cut skin, making sure to do it as if he were making a delicate dish.
In a moment he opened the still on oven and slid her body inside. The mare screamed in pain as she was cooked alive but a smile crept across her pink face as the end drew near. She would be with them soon. She would be with her friends.
This kill was far from like the others. The others' sadness only proved to rekindle his own. It had been a long time since thoughts of the past. It was not something he wanted to recall per se but it was a part of him and he would not abandon it.
Not as he was.
--------
Pinkie smiled as she found herself at the edge of a hill. Before her were her dearest friends. They were all there. They say home is where the heart is, and Pinkie's heart was with her dearest friends. She did not care about the things that lurked at the edge of this fake world. She would make this darkness feel like home.
Rainbow Dash ran to her with tears in her eyes.
"Pinkie, I-I'm so sorry. If it weren't for me you wouldn't have gotten..."
Pinkie raised a hoof to Rainbows mouth and smiled to her. There was no need for such words.
"It's okay Dashie, I let it get me. It hurt a lot but the face he made was just as sad as mine."
Rainbow Dash was awaiting the other to return with the supposed help he had promised for her and her friends. This place was odd and it was as if time flowed in a different fashion, dripping slowly or raging fast. There was no happy medium, no peaceful pace for this bizarre space. However did this thing manage to live in such a place all this time?
It might have been the stillness around her or maybe even the darkness at the edge of this false reality but she felt herself pondering upon Pinkie's last statement.
He looked just as sad as me
The words were unsettling. It made her mind swirl about in deep thought and then the things that death had revealed only proved to deepen the mystery. Something horrible had happened in this place, something Death wanted to keep hidden from the world.
The natural order popped into her mind once more, how could one disturb it? What was its crime and why did it snap when the thing it made was taken away? Her thoughts about this being only proved to leave her curious.
If it was so bad then why was it seeming to attempt to please me? She wondered to herself.
The answers weren't so clear, but from what she had seen of its power, if it wanted her to suffer it would have done it at the very start. Twilight, having pored over the scrolls in the restricted section of the Starswirl Library in Canterlot, knew that the being before them was at one time a sacred herald of creation. The tome only mentioned that in the beginning there were three created from the first light of life: Death, the moderator and the Dreamer.
"Rainbow, what are you thinking about?"
Twilight's words caused the cyan mare to look over sadly, her eyes filling with tears.
"Why would it do these things? One moment it's kind and offers me a chance to go back to our world, the next it's cruel and kills you all one by one, dragging you into this horrible place."
Twilight looked to her and sighed. So her captor had killed her. At least that mystery had been solved.
"Rainbow, I think this being was once pure but living in this place warped its mind and purpose..."
Twilight had concluded this when this sunny spot had been made for them. It was trying to be accommodating and give them a sense of safety. But the thing had been without others for so long that it was not good at explaining itself or properly getting others without murder of a horrible fashion.
-----------------------
He made his way through Ponyville, the other ponies not even acknowledging his existence. He was little more than a spirit in the world of light and to his disdain, the inhabitants of this world were like every other. The supposed 'Natural order' restricted them from ever knowing him and for those who saw him, they took a one way trip to a mental institute.
It was mainly the Pegasus race that encountered him. They flew so high and often had near death experiences. The cause for the phenomenon of seeing your life flash before your eyes derived from seeing the memories of the one behind the wall that pertain to you. So for one brief moment he is seen as you see your life through his eyes.
He walked down to Sweet Apple Acres where he was certain to find the earth pony working hard to fend off the sorrow. Sure enough, as he approached the farm, there stood Applejack bucking away at the trees. He made his way over to her, his shadow taking form onto the tree.
No matter how refined he looked in this form his shadow always portrayed the truth, the smiling sharp teeth and the glowing red eyes. The pony before him jumped as she looked at it. He always thought it was a cruel irony that they could only see his twisted shadow and never a form that would not frighten them. He got over such things long ago and embraced his dark shadow as his distinctive calling card.
---------------------
Death made his way back to the heavens. This was a most distressing matter and she was needed now. He made his way through the intricate double doors and into the throne room where the pink
mare sat with robes of silken ivory upon her body. She was the distinguished moderator of the world or as we know her, God.
"State your purpose Death," she spoke in a very formal and scrutinizing tone.
She believed all beings were beneath her and were to be treated as such. The hooded pony was panting as he bowed.
"We have trouble madame moderator, it has managed to get out of its world again and it's killing innocents, taking them back behind the wall."
He was in a panic now, this was not good at all for anypony. It was dangerous and had the capability of slaying countless lives more easily than taking a breath on a sunny day. She raised her gaze at this news. That abomination was loose once more and poisoning her perfect world once again.
"We must reclaim the souls and return them to their world as if it never happened."
She knew it would not be that easy, it never was when it came to him. That blasted stallion of depravity ruined her dominion once again. The mare led the way back down to its wall, observing the crack it had made. It was no bigger than a keyhole, but it was more than enough to allow its inhabitant to creep out like the vile smog he was.
Rainbow looked at the newcomer confusedly. Somehow she appeared less useful than death despite the regal way she carried herself. Part of Rainbow wanted to see her captor tear her to pieces. It was a dark part that was slowly making itself known in her mind. Had she always possessed such darkness within her soul or was it the constant darkness around her that inspired such thoughts towards such a prim and proper mare. Either way, she knew that the way this new mare looked upon her, as if she was something to be killed, was not good at all.
"Stand back my ponies. I shall free you," her voice boomed as she expanded the crack to where she would easily walk in without snagging her gown.
With a well placed stomp she began to destroy the small patch of brightness inside the dark world, more intent on peeling the colors and light out than helping them to escape.
-------------
He loomed over Applejack who he had tied on the machine that crushed and ground down the apples to make them into juice and sauces. He felt his crack expand. The stallion stopped his current movements, every tear in his world feeling like a heart attack amplified by strikes of lightning. He needed this one last mare to make the fake world he had made whole, so Rainbow would not be afraid anymore.
The stallion looked up, his eyes narrowing as they turned black with malice. He would not lose his light a second time. He flew up to where Death and the Moderator were dismantling his world, removing the scant traces of color he had managed to bring inside the wall. Death was first to see him. He had been herding out the mares gently as to not alarm the wall's keeper. But the actions of the moderator would prove to call the Dreamer faster than Death would have hoped.
"P-please, you have to understand. They can't stay in that world. They will lose their light and be consumed in darkness."
Death's frightened pleas, did not deter from his purpose nor his calm. The words only proved to fan the flames of contempt and untamed rage within the approaching being of darkness. He looked down upon Death, his fangs barred as his white skin peeled away to reveal the bloody red figure, nails driven into its own hooves to cause pain, proving it was alive. The eyes were removed and left to weep black. The soul was tainted and the tears replaced by its dead blood. The horrific fanged grin that tore up either side of its face with assorted stitches upon the gashes kept the eternal grin, the only way it could bring itself to smile. The wings of bone jutted up from its bloody back, the bones of its spine evident and leaving indention's upon its seemingly stretched flesh. This was proof of the dreams that had died and rotted away as did his feathers.
The mangled mass of stitches down its middle, moving past his visible ribs, to show it was indeed empty inside.
"Like I have been?"
Death cowered beneath its gaze, shuddering as he feared for his life.
The ponies gasped in horror at the true form their captor had. It was truly horrifying. Fluttershy and Rarity averted their eyes from its hideous form which only proved to anger it more. It despised the monster it had become, but it was far past the point of no return. There was no turning back now.
Then, it saw Rainbow Dash's eyes fixed on his form, wide in horror, and it felt like screaming. The look upon the moderator's face was that of sick enjoyment. The monster had taken an innocent. Twas beauty that should slay the beast. Things were falling into place for her. She wanted it to suffer for the last time, when it nearly killed her for taking his created beauty away. Now, it was suffering more pain and torment than she could ever inflict.
The black ooze poured down from its empty eyes as it turned away, There was no way his dream would come true in any life. Death looked upon the form, stinging guilt washing over him. He knew that it had done wrong but it was them who wronged it first. It had lost the ability to dream and was consumed with endless nightmares.
The next thing that happened, no pony accounted for.
Rainbow Dash bravely walked forward, her eyes looking upon its retreating form. She gently tapped his side and felt only pity for the being before her. Saying she was not afraid would have been a blatant lie, but from what she could gather, it never wanted to become this thing.
"Can I ask? What was your initial crime? The one that disturbed the natural order all those years ago?"
Death gasped in terror. She did not need to know that much. Her soul was in jeopardy now. The truth would lead her into the dark again.
"Stop Rainbow Dash. Don't do this to her," he cried out to the dark being before him.
"He said you created a life, one against the natural order..."
Rainbow Dash continued with the question. She felt like it needed a chance to tell the truth since nopony else would give that chance.
"I did. She was the last of my dreams, the last dream I ever had," tt said in response.
Could there truly be the light at the end of the tunnel?
"Stop! You will ruin her. Do you want her to become like you?"
The words Death said cut deep into its broken soul. He would hurt Death willingly to get what he wanted, but would he hurt the last dream he ever had? She had finally returned to life after so very long and her light had found him again. He looked upon the mares and knew they could never last in his world. He had wanted them to bring the light they put into their world into his own, but it all went south in the end. The dream they had once was dead and gone, burned like the pages of a book.
"Dashie dearset, I promised you once I would let you live again. I will grant you this, under one condition."
Rainbow was confused by the sudden change of subject.
"W-wait a sec here? Who did you make?"
Her friends began to vanish as the dark closed in around them, fading.
The last thing she saw was it mouthing out to her with a sad smile as the vision faded from sight.
'Just you'
----------------------------
The mare gasped and awoke in her bed, sweat pouring down the side of her face. It had all been just a nightmare? She sat there in the dark. The dreams had been so vivid and thoughts of the dark stallion consumed her mind.
Are we awake?
Or is it a dream?
But for who has
Yet to be seen.
She sighed, It had all been a very realistic dream, she convinced herself as she pulled the covers up around her. In the darkness around her she could have sworn she heard a whisper.
