> The Nightmares of Equestria
>  by The Warmaster
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1: Meet The Fredbear
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Austin’s  POV

   “Come on, man, hurry up! We need to find something for the Comicon!” My friend Brent whined, as I searched Ebay. We had finished making plans for the upcoming Comicon, but we had not gotten our costumes ordered. The only problem was, we had yet to find any.

   “Huh… take a look at this!” I told him, pointing to the screen. In it was a picture of six animatronics, with razor sharp teeth and claws. Parts of them were  caved in, looking like holes in the suit. It was a perfect replica of the Nightmare Animatronics  from Scott Cawthon’s  Five Nights at Freddy's 4. And apparently  they were wearable. I looked at the price.

   “Wow… only a few hundred bucks….” I muttered, realizing I had enough money for it all. I quickly hit ‘purchase’ and filled in the information needed to complete the purchase. I then noticed a small tidbit.

   ‘Buy now to receive a bonus ‘Springtrap’ suit!’  it said, and I smiled.

   “There, now we have enough for the entire group. It'll  take a three months to arrive. That leaves another two months for getting used to the suits.” I said, mostly to myself. Brent nodded.

   “Yep. I'll text the others.” He replied, pulling out his phone. I checked the name of the seller.

   “Huh… Your Friendly Merchant?” I muttered in amusement.

   ××××××××××××××××
   Three Months Later….

   “Alright guys, so now that these beauties are here,  who gets  which?” I asked, as we all watched the delivery guys remove the seven  giant boxes.

   “Well, since you bought them, why don't  you take Fredbear? I'll take Freddy.” Greg  asked, and I nodded.

   “Alright, then I call Bonnie.” Jerry said. 

   “I'm calling Nightmare.” Joe said, smirking. 

   “I call Chica.” Elizabeth said, looking at one of the boxes.

   “Foxy.” Zoe called.

   “Then I guess I get Springtrap.” Barry sighed. Once all the boxes were placed, I signed the paper, and the delivery guys left. We then burst into action, tearing into the boxes. Five minutes later, seven Animatronics  stood proudly. Then came the hard part of actually getting in them. That took about fifty minutes.

   “Well, Fredbear, let's  get a picture of all of us together.”  Joe said, his black costume standing out in the room. I nodded, grabbing one of those stupid selfie  stick things. We all got close together, our masks over our heads. The suits were quite stuffy, and sweat poured off my skin. I raised the stick, with my phone attached,  and snapped a picture. One moment later, seven very loud snaps rang out, and for a moment, we all looked at each other, confused. Then the suits compressed onto us. What we didn't  realize was that  each of the suits had that thing that Springtrap had, and we all accidentally  set them off.

   “AGGH!” I screamed in pain, the suit’s  metal parts crushing my body. I felt beams stabbed into my body, impaling me inside the suit. I glanced up, and could have sworn I had seen a creepy looking hooded man staring down at us, eyes filled with glee. Then I passed out from the agonizing pain.

   ×××××××××××××
Later

   “Ugh….” I groaned, my eyes flickering open. Glancing around, I saw that I was in some sort of field, with a small town in the distance. I stood up, gears grinding. I glanced down, before leaping up into the air as I saw that I was now a golden bear. I then remembered what had happened. I glanced down at my hands after calming down. For some reason, they were slightly  transparent, the claws stretching at my command. I glanced up at the sky. It was nighttime, the moon high in the sky. Midnight.

   “Gr-Gr-Great.” I groaned. No one would be awake at this hour. And they especially would run if they saw me like this. Groaning, I trekked towards the settlement, and occasionally seeing a strange creature run through the forest next to me. I mostly ignored them, except for a few wooden wolves, their bright green eyes glowing in the darkness. Unlike many other creatures, they stared at me, before whimpering and running deeper into the forest. I shrugged, the new mechanical joints slightly protesting from this.  

   When I arrived at the town, I saw it was in fact still awake, with little equines in costumes  running around, baskets full of candy in their mouths. I had been a Brony during my time before becoming Fredbear, so when I saw those little fillies running around, it immediately  clicked.

   “Great… I'm in Equ-Equestria.” I facepalmed. Sure, I was excited, but  I didn't want to be here like this. For some reason though, they completely  ignored me. In fact, when one ran towards me, she little unicorn merely passed right through my leg, not even flinching except for a small shudder.

  I stared at the filly. “So I'm also a ghost…. This sucks.” I groaned again, and felt a small pressure at the back of my head. When I lowered my claw, I felt a tidal wave of uncontrolled rage towards the little filly. I somehow controlled it, staring at her quizzically. 

‘Kill..kill...killl…’ a small voice whispered in my mind.

  “What the heck? Where is this anger coming from?” I asked myself. I then shrugged it off, guessing  it was just from me not able to talk to them, and walked towards a wall. Testing my luck, I reached my arm out. Sure enough, it passed right through.  I moved forward, my body phasing through the wall. Inside was a sleeping filly, the colt snuggled happily in bed. I looked at the kid, before feeling that strange anger again. I subconsciously reached my arm towards the kid, and the moment one of my claws touched him, I was sucked in.

   ×××××××××××

Title Spinner’s  POV

  I cracked my eyes open, feeling out of place. I raised my head, before seeing an unfamiliar room. I burst up, my wide eyes scanning the room. Scattered around the floor were strange toys, like a weird, purple bot walking on two legs.  I noticed a flashlight next to me, and quickly grabbed it, flicking it on. Next to me was a small stuffed bear, with a tiny hat and bow tie placed upon it. Suddenly, I heard very loud footsteps to the left door. I got out of bed, slowly crawling towards the door. I grabbed the doorknob with my hoof, before slowly pushing it open. I looked outside the door, and activated my flashlight.

  Standing in the hall was a massive, two legged golden bear, with a purple hat and bow tie strapped to it's  head and chest.  Razor sharp teeth jutted out of it's  mouth, and equally sharp claws replaced it's  paws. I immediately  closed the door, gasping for breath. 

   “What was that?!” I asked myself. I turned around to see the monster standing before me, and before I could blink, he scooped me up into his claws,  talons scratching my sides.  It's  red eyes glared at me, before it opened it's  mouth.

   “Who… are you, little one?” It asked, a deep, rusty voice echoed from it's  mouth. I gulped.

   “My…. My name  is Tike Spinner.” I answered, heart racing.

   “Well hi there, Tike.” The monster said. “My name… is Fredbear. I hope I did not scare you.” He put me down. I looked up at it in fear, and it sighed. “You are scared of me, aren't  you.” He stated.

   “Umm...yes, Mr. Fredbear.” I replied. He lifted a claw to his face. 

   “I knew my entrance would scare the living daylights outta him.” Fredbear said to himself, before returning his attention  to me.

   “Do not worry. I am not a monster, despite my appearance. My job is to entertain kids.” He told me. 

   “Then why do you look like a monster?” I asked, confused. He looked down at himself, before transforming into a golden bear, minus the claws and teeth. Instead of sharp teeth, massive flat teeth now donned his jaw. Two white dots appeared  in his eyes.

   “Better?” He asked. I nodded. He sat down.

   “So, Mr. Fredbear, why are you in my dream?” I asked. He glanced at me.

   “How do you know this isn't reality?” He asked. 

÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
Luna’s POV

  I sensed… something. I looked up from the Apple bobbing activity, and focused on where the energy I sensed came from. I homed in on a small house. I walked away from the activities, walking towards the house. My horn began to glow, and I entered the dream realm.

  I glanced at the dream door where the house was. Hesitating, I opened the door and stepped inside.

  I stopped in place, seeing the golden bear with  a small filly. I could sense the strange power emerging from the large bear. 

   “Halt, monster!” I roared, causing the golden bear to turn around. Upon his head was a comically small purple top hat, with a purple bowtie  on his chest. I could see two different versions though, so I stripped away the illusion, showing the monster for what he truly was. Small paws turned into  sharp claws, and bright gold fur turned dirty, with patches missing, revealing  an empty shadow inside. Flat teeth turned into row upon row of Shark teeth,  and it's  once white soulless  eyes became red pupils, with black surrounding it.

   “Foul Nightmare! You shalt not harm this young child!” I roared, my horn blasting it out the door. I charged after it, not noticing the confused look on the child’s face. When I exited the dream and reentered the dream plane, the beast was already standing back up, red eyes burning with rage.

  “Freddy?” The colt asked, before the door slammed shut behind me.

   “I am quite frankly angered, Luna.  Just because I look like a monster, doesn't  mean I am one.” it growled, claws balled into fists. I growled right back.

  “I could sense your foul energy  from Canterlot, beast. You cannot lie to me!” I replied, firing another magic blast. The golden bear teleported to the side, the energy missing him entirely.

   “Oh, Luna Luna Luna. Do you really think that I, Fredbear, could be defeated by the likes of such a pathetic blast?” it growled, it's  eyes becoming even darker at the name Fredbear.

   “You are quite the powerful entity, but you are no match for the Princess of the Night! I control the dream realm!” I shouted, warping the area around us. Fredbear chuckled, his voice changing into something demonic.

   “What a coincidence. So can I.” He growled, and I felt my control wrested from me, and the endless  abyss of the dream realm was replaced by a  door, with a small office inside. I was flung into it, hard. When I landed, I glanced behind me. The door had disappeared. A ringing sound pierced the silence, and I looked around, confused.

 “Hello? Hello? Princess Luna?” Fredbear’s  voice called out from a small box.  “Good, you're there. Welcome to my establishment, Fredbear’s  Family Diner. You're trapped here until the clock reaches six AM. Your only job is to survive ME. Well, me and my clones. You only have a limited power supply, so use it wisely. You can look around the establishment  with that little pad at your hooves.”  I picked up the small pad, and yelped as it  flickered to life, revealing three golden bears on a stage. The one in the middle looked like the monster I had attacked, while the other two looked like more… friendly versions of him.

   “You die if you get caught.” The box beeped, ending the conversation.

   “I am a princess of Equestria! You have no power over me!” I yelled down the right hall, only to see one of the Fredbears  start to walk down the hall. I yelped, before shutting the door. The metal door slammed down, sealing that entrance.


   ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
Mike/Fredbear’s  POV  


   ‘What the hell am I  doing?! Why am I doing this?!’ I thought to myself, trying to open my mouth.

  ‘Because she attacked us, and we are returning the favor.’ a dark voice sounded throughout my mind. I mentally pulled back. 

  ‘Who the fuck are you?!’ I asked. There was a chuckle.

   ‘Who? I am you. I am Fredbear. I am the nightmare that haunts little children.’ The voice replied. I growled. 

   ‘Well, too bad, Fredbear! She thought we were a monster! That means we need to prove her wrong!’ I shouted inside my mind, for now ignoring the fact that this thing just called itself ‘Fredbear’, like the actual character.

   ‘She attacked us!  This is teaching her a lesson!” Fredbear replied, getting angry.

   ‘It's  a misunderstanding you idiot!’ I roared, wresting control from him. I teleported into the office, and forced open a door.

   “Go!” I shouted at Luna, before practically tossing her through the door. It slammed shut after she went through, before fading completely. One of the Golden Freddies  walked up to me, it's  eyes red.

   “What did you do that for?! She needed to be punished for attacking us!” Fredbear roared from inside it. 

   “No! That is not how things work! We could have tried to explain to her, but you took control, and made her see that we were monsters!” I shot back, and Fredbear stepped back.

   “But-” He tried to reply, but I cut him off.

  “No! You have ruined any chance of us ever  becoming something more than a nightmare to her, and she definitely  won't  keep this a secret. Soon, we will be hunted!” I told him and he stood back up.

   “They can't.” He replied, making me stop.

  “What do you mean, ‘they can't’?!” I seethed.

   “Remember, while we can be attacked in dreams, we cannot be seen OR touched in the real world. They cannot harm us.” Fredbear explained, and I blinked. He was right.

   “And then what? She’ll be checking for us in dreams.” I asked.

   “Then we make sure she can't  track us.” Fredbear replied, somehow grinning.  “We make doubles, and send them to other dreams.  While she is hunting those ones, we can try to make others see that we aren't monsters.”

   “...Fine. But if this doesn't work, it's your fault.” I gave in. His smile grew wider.


   ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
Meanwhile…..

  As Daring Do and her team went through the  ruins,  she felt like something was watching her.  She shrugged it off as old phobias, before continuing to trot forward.

   “Hey, Ms. Do! We found a hidden door!” One of the team said, pointing to a now open secret room. Daring stepped inside, and smelled a foul smell.

   “Guh! What is that smell?!” She asked, holding a hoof to her muzzle. She glanced around, before her eyes landed on a sitting figure next to the wall. It was a faded yellow, and nearly blended in with the wall. It's  eyes were closed, and it vaguely looked like a rabbit. It had multiple holes in it's body, with red fleshy substances beneath. The top of one of it's  ears was missing, and it looked bipedal.

   “What is that?” She asked, edging closer to it. She tapped it, but there was no response.

   “Tartarus  if I know. Maybe we should bring it to the museum?” the head of the team, Quick Script,  replied, sending some of the others to get boxes and other stuff for transport. I glanced back at the obviously dead creature, before smelling the air again. Definitely  the smell of a decomposing corpse.

   “Yeah. Let's  take it with us. Just, maybe use a spell to make it smell better.” She grumbled, turning around. As she turned around, the weird rabbit creaked open one of it's  eyes, the glowing orb staring at her as she left. When the others came back, it slammed it's  eye shut.




   

   


 

> Chapter II: Twilight's  Nightmare
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight's  POV  


   “Spike! I'm heading to bed early!” I shouted, trotting up the stairs of the castle. The purple dragon nodded, before continuing to clean up the rest of the library area. I  snuggled myself into my comfy bed, and checked the time. Midnight exactly. Yawning, I closed my eyes, and drifted off to sleep.


   ××××××××××
12 A.M

   I gasped, jumping up to see a unfamiliar room. A few toys scattered the floor, most of them oddly purple.  I noticed a flashlight next to me, as well as a strange stuffed bear. I grabbed the flashlight with my magic, and got up off the bed, before trotting towards the door to the left. I opened the door an inch, and turned on my flashlight. As the hallway lit up, a massive figure appeared in front of me.

   It's  fur was black, with it's  most prominent thing to notice was it's  red glowing eyes, filled with malice, and insanity. It's  massive mouth was filled to the brim with demonic teeth, and a second set behind the first. It's  claws were reaching towards me,  the white talons contrasting with the black fur. I processed  this all in a second, before slamming the door shut with my magic and running back to the bed.

   “W-What  in Celestia's  name was that?!” I wheezed,  my back to the edge of the bed.  I could hear an eerie tune being sung from behind the door.

   After a few short moments, the voice faded,  the monster trudging back down the hall.  I let loose a breath that I didn't  know I was holding, before checking behind me with the flashlight. The disembodied head of the creature was there, glaring down at me.

1 A.M

  After an endless barrage of appearances from the strange bear like demon,  I had begun to notice a pattern. Every so often it would appear in the closet,  and then go to one of the halls, before reappearing behind me on the bed. My sensitive ears made it easy to figure out which door he was at. I tried keeping the doors closed, but they didn't have any ability to close entirely.  The doors were one of those ‘slide in and out’ doors. Like at Canterlot High School in that other world.

   “You have nowhere to run….so why not join the fun?” The monster’s  voice called out.  “At night we come to life…” 

  Suddenly, I felt something breathing down my neck.  “Come closer we don't  bite!”  I whirled around to see the black bear creature just as it lunged for me.

   “Tomorrow is another day….” was the last thing I heard before it's  jaws clamped down on my head, and red filled my vision.

   ×××××××××

   “AGGH!” I screamed, flying out of my bed, and slamming into the ceiling. I fell back down onto my bed hard, before flopping down to the side of it. Spike, who had come in at some point during my panic attack, snapped his claws in front of my face.

   “Snap outta it!” He demanded, and I refocused.

   “Sorry Spike… just had a nightmare. That's  all.” I  apologized. He glanced up.

   “If it was enough for you to wake up so badly you flew into the ceiling, it must of been one heck of a nightmare. You wanna talk about it?” He stated, looking back down at me. I shook my head, my hoof idly scratching my neck. I felt a large spike of pain, and my hooves gave out under me as I cried out in pain. Spike grabbed me before I could hit the ground, his claws digging into my fur. 

   “Twilight?! What's  wrong?! Are you hurt?!” Spike asked, holding me up and placing me on the bed.

   “Spike… get a doctor…” I groaned. He nodded, before staring at Owliscious, and nodding, before running out the door. So then I sat there, waiting for his return. Twenty minutes later, he bursts back in, Nurse Redheart right behind him.

  “I was the only one on duty. What's  wrong?” She asked, pulling up a doctor's medical bag. I pointed to my neck warily. She nodded, before carefully checking the area around there.

   “It looks like you got… bit, by something. There are patches of fur missing, and multiple bruises around your neck, as if something tried to bite your head off. Were you attacked recently by a animal?” She analyzed. My eyes widened.

   “Well, I just woke up from a terrible nightmare of a giant black...bear thing. It had indeed tried to bite my head, but it was just a dream! Right?” I asked, my eyes wildly glancing between Redheart and Spike.

   “It...could be possible, but I don't know enough about the power of dreams. I suggest asking Princess Luna about it. Perhaps she might know more.” Redheart replied, a hoof to her muzzle.

   “Thanks, Redheart. Maybe you could use some painkillers or something?” I asked. She nodded, and pulled out a bottle of pills. She tossed me one, which, with some conjured water, I swallowed greedily. After ten minutes, the pain began to ebb away. I sighed in relief, before turning back towards Spike.

  “Spike, can you take a letter  to Luna?” I asked. He nodded, holding out a piece of paper.

   “Already done Twilight!” He declared, before turning it into dust, and it flew to it's  receiver. I promptly collapsed onto my bed, and passed out.

  ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
Meanwhile……

   “Ms. Do, this is an amazing find.  This ‘Rabbit’ seems to be a sort of combination of ancient technology  and organics, almost like it was crushed by the suit it wore. Perhaps it was a sort of torture device for an extinct species, to deal with their criminals?” The owner of the Canterlot Historical Museum, Dusty Quill, said, marveling at the tall and decaying relic.  “I want to put it  up near the science  wing. Later, we can get a science team down here and figure out how this thing works.”

  “Sure, Dusty, just don't let them take it apart. We didn't find it and bring it here for nothing.” Daring Do replied, also examining the rabbit. Something about it unnerved her, but she couldn't  put her hoof on it. 

Meanwhile, inside the Machine, a decaying mind slowly began to awake.

  “Soon….” It whispered around it's  head.



  

> Chapter  Three: The Shrill Sound of a Lyre
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Lyra  Heartstring’s POV


   “Good night, Bonbon!” I called, trotting up the stairs. We had just finished up our Nightmare Night party, and everypony had already left. 

   “Good night.” Came the muffled reply, as Bonbon was currently laying facedown into a pillow. I climbed into the soft confines of my bed, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

 ×××××××
  I awoke to a strange office. Two vents sat at the sides, with a button labeled ‘light’ above both. A fan whirled lazily on the desk, with a flashlight sitting on the desk, as well as a few crumpled up pieces of paper, and a soda. To the right was a  bunch of weird boxes all stacked up, and a large, dark hallway loomed in front of me. At my hooves was a small pad and a funny looking bear mask. I picked up the mask with my magic, and placed it over my head. I then grabbed the pad with my hooves, and examine it. 

   As I fiddled with it, the screen blinked to life, showing a room, along with a set of buttons named ‘Cam 1’ and so forth. I pressed each button, flickering to each room. At the ‘Stage area’ was a weird looking bear, and as I watched, it snapped it's  head towards me, it's eyes glowing a deep red at the pupils. I blinked, and it changed completely. Instead of what had looked kinda cute, now stood a demonic version.  It had razor sharp teeth,  with holes in it's fur, and evil eyes. It waved it's  hand at me, and- wait, hand? HAND?! 

I squeed  in joy at the sight of the hand, even though it was more like a talon. Five fingers jutted out of the palm,  with a talon at each end.  When I looked back to it's  head, I noticed it had almost a quizzical look, with it's  head tilted and a eyebrow raised. Then the picture fizzled out for a moment, and when it reappeared, the bear was gone.

  “Hello?” a deep, ominous voice called out.


   ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷

Daring Do’s  POV


   “Well, Ms. Do, what we were able to see inside of the suit appeared to be in close appearance as the mythical ‘Human’ species, however decayed it might have been.  If it truly is a ‘human’, then you might have just proven that they existed once before ponies existed. The technology, however, was inseparable from the corpse inside, as if fused to it. We dare not touch it, in fear of it causing damage  to either the  machine or the corpse. We might just have to keep it as a single artifact,  and display it with the mask pulled up.” Dusty told me, before motioning over a few ponies.

   “Due to this incredible find, we think it right to raise the amount of bits you earn for finding it. The rest of the team will also be rewarded, so don't worry. Right here is fifty thousand bits.” The two ponies placed a giant bag full of bits in front of me. I stared at it, before sighing.

   “Dusty, you know I don't need this. Stop trying to give me your bits, and instead just credit me with finding the human.”  I said, shaking my head. He nodded, and waved the other two off. As they left, I thought about maybe writing a novel  about this...nah, then the fans would be able to realize that I was Daring Do after all, and that my adventures were real. I already have seven ponies who know, and that's  more than the amount I wanted.

   “Of course, Ms. Do. What should  I credit as an alias?”  Dusty asked, and I thought about it.

  “Maybe… Artemis?” I asked, and he nodded. 

  “Very well, Artemis, I will have that name in the newspaper by tomorrow. Again, I thank you for the incredible find. Anyways, it's  near closing time, and our night guard should be here in ten minutes, so why don't we head home for the night?” Dusty said, checking his watch. I nodded,  and turned around, before heading out  the building.

  ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
  Later that night….

   “Man, this is great. I get to sit here, do nothing but watch these cameras all night, and kick back and relax. Nothing better!” The Night Guard, a Pegasus by the name of name of Wild Guilt, said, sitting back in his chair. He began reading his magazine of ‘The Power Ponies’, which was the latest issue.

  As he read, he failed to notice  the new box that recently came in slide open, and a decayed golden rabbit thing stepped out,  testing it's  arms and legs, before staring at the camera. The camera screen flickered, before turning to static. Wild Guilt looked up.

   “Huh. That's odd… this is a brand new system. The cameras shouldn't  be failing…”  He muttered  to himself, before shrugging and returning to his magazine.  I'll have the mechanics look at it in the morning.”

   then another camera went out, this time with the words ‘Camera deactivated' in red text scroll across the screen. He looked up again. 

   “Is somepony messing with the systems?” He asked, sitting up and pulling out his flashlight.  He got out of his chair, and began  walking towards the area where the latest camera went offline.

   When he arrived, he took a look around, before flying up to the camera. When he got close, he flicked on his flashlight again with a flick of his tongue. 

   The camera was completely trashed, with the lense shoved inwards and out the back. He quickly turned around, and shouted, “Alright, who's  messing with me? These things are expensive!” He shouted, his voice echoing through the halls. He heard a thump in the next room, and went to investigate. When he got there, everything was untouched. He checked the sign next to him.

   “Ancient Roamane  Artifacts and history… I don't see why anyone would be in here.” He said, before turning around and bumping into something and falling to the floor.

   “Ow! What the buck? What did I...hit….” He cursed as he looked up, and into the glowing eyes of the golden rabbit.  It let loose a loud scream, and grabbed Guilties  head, and picked him up. The rabbit raised him up to it's  own head, which was seven feet from the ground. It growled, before raising it's mask with it's other hand, revealing a decayed head, with only five teeth. It's  skin was pink, with absolutely  no hair accompanying  it. Those same glowing white eyes glared at him, before taking his head in both hands, and squeezed.

   “Ah...agh...graaagh!” Guilty shouted as his head was slowly crushed, before a loud Crack sounded out, and his head was caved in. Springtrap carried the now dead corpse of Wild Guilt to the trash can outside, and dropped the corpse inside. He walked back to his box, and stepped in, before sealing the box completely.

   “I-I will bring J-jo-Death-joy to all the girls and boys.” He growled from inside the box, before  closing  his eyes once more. Being crushed from a suit and slowly decaying for thirty years since arriving at this world had driven him entirely insane. He only saw the small equines as a source of food, but when he found he had no way of eating the corpse, he had decided to toss it away. He knew that it must have been a default in his systems, so he wanted to try again after finding the error.

   “Tomorrow….is….another...day…” He muttered.

   ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
Lyra’s  POV


   It had been exciting for the first hour. Then it had become terrifying. At random, the creepy bear had appeared, and without the mask on, I would have died. Then there was that weird  child thing with lots of teeth and bony fingers that came in on occasion, and at one point had tried to eat me. I shuddered at the memory of that, before hearing a dark laugh. I looked up and saw the bear in front of my face, jaw lowered in preparation  to bite. The inside of his mouth was almost entirely mechanical, with no fleshy bits anywhere. I tried to pull down the mask, but it swatted it away, before chomping down on my forehead. I screamed.


  ×××××××

“AAAAHHH!” I jumped out of bed, flailing my hooves everywhere in a panic. I was then slapped in the face, and a voice called out, snapping me out of my panic.

   “What's  the matter with you?! It's four in the morning!” Bonbon shouted,  and I immediately  calmed down. Outwardly, that is.

   “Sorry, Bonbon. Just a nightmare, that's  all. Hey, do you think you could, um, I don't  know,  stay here for the night?” I asked, my eyes shifting from side to side, examining my room. She sighed.

   “Fine, but you owe me one.” She jumped onto the bed. I followed her, with a small headache creeping in. I laid down and quickly fell back asleep, unaware of the tiny dots of blood collecting on my forehead.

 

> Chapter 4: Zoe & Foxy
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Foxy’s  POV

   “Stop...making me...do this….!” I cried out in my own mind as I watched my body creak towards the small filly in the woods. Granted, this was a dream. But I knew from previous victims that whatever injuries happen here, they happen in real life. Those poor kids….

   “But we are having so much fun! Why would we stop?” Foxy’s  distorted voice asked cheerfully.

   “Because this is wrong! It's  evil! You're hurting kids!” I answered angrily. 

  “Oh, please. There's  no such thing as good and evil. And kids are what caused me to be like this. They have no right! Not after what he did to me…” Foxy growled, and before I could reply, chains wrapped around my arms, holding me in place. Before I could shout out, rags of some sort blocked off my mouth.

   “Just sit back, and enjoy the show!” Foxy chuckled, before returning to what he was doing. The filly looked around the dark forest, fear clear in her eyes,  and Foxy chose then to strike. He lunged forward, jaw extended. The girl whirled around, and, seeing us, screamed in terror as Foxy bit down on her legs, before tearing them off. The girl cried out in pain, and vanished as she woke up. The dream vanished around us, and we were once again wandering the dream realm. The chains and rags around me disintegrated, and Foxy appeared in front of me.

   “So, buddy ol pal, what's  got ya troubled?” He asked, clearly already knowing what I was going to say.

   “You are nothing more than a monster! You can't do anything but harm others, and you take joy from it! What the hell is wrong with you?!” I roared at him. He snickered.

   “Hey, watch the language. There might be kids watching!” he sucker punched me in the gut, and I crumpled, wheezing for breath as he roared with laughter.

   “You...bastard…” I growled between breaths.

   “Oh, it's  not that bad! So what if kids get hurt? They hurt me, and they have hurt you as well! And yes, I've  gone through your memories. I know you as well as you know yourself!” He cackled, dragging his hook across  my back. 

  “I hope someone stops you one day, Foxy. I hope you burn in hell for what you've done!” I growled. 

  “If so, I'll  see you there, buddy. Because if I go, you go with me.” Foxy growled, kicking me in the gut.

   “I'll..kill you..” I gasped, collapsing, and Foxy hooted with laughter.

   “Hah! That's  a laugh! You really are funny dude! And anyways, I'm already dead!” He chuckled darkly.  “After all, I was stuffed in that suit, and you were crushed by the Springlock  mechanism. We are stuck together now, buddy. And that kick was for calling me a bastard. Remember, kids could be watching!” he tisked.

   “All...that you are… is the end of a nightmare…” I wheezed, as black seeped into my eyesight. 

   “This is no nightmare, my friend, and it will never end. For it has only just begun! This is the tale of Foxy. However, I'll keep you locked up deep inside me. I've got work to do, and I don't need you getting in my way.” Was the last thing I heard.

Meanwhile….

   “Well, Ms. Do, the machine has been set up in the museum, and will be revealed in five days. I invited the princess's to the opening ceremony, and would like for you to join us then. In the crowd, of course. I know how you dislike being the center of attention of a crowd.” The museum director said over the phone audio recorder. The telephone was only a recent creation, mostly set up in the area surrounding Canterlot. I had decided to stay in Ponyville for a few days, mostly to visit a friend of mine, but this changes things slightly.

   “...However, I feel the need to inform you that our security guard for the night watch has mysteriously disappeared.  I am hoping that you might decide to work here in his place until we either find the missing pony, or hire a new one.” The message continued.  I stared at it, before sighing. I picked up the phone, and called him.

   “I'll  work at your place for a bit. Need something to do after all. I'll be at the library at eight tonight.” I said, knowing it had recorded my message. Hanging my phone, I turned back to the door, and headed out. I stopped at the massive tree castle, and knocked at the door. For a few moments, nothing happened. Then a familiar purple alicorn stepped out, restless eyes looking around, before settling on me. Her eyes widened.

   “A.K. Yearling! What are you doing here?” She asked.

   “I'm here to visit Rainbow, but I don't  know where her house is. Think you can help?” I asked sheepishly. She yawned, before nodding. She exited the castle, and began leading me through the town. Occasionally  she fell asleep, so I had to jar her awake.






> Chapter Five: Bonnie The Scare Master
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bonnie’s  POV

   “So, Bonnie, why exactly am I in a cage inside my own mind?” I asked, crossing my arms. The demonic looking rabbit glanced at me.

   “For both my and your protection.” Was all he said. I grunted.

   “Look, Bonnie. I know exactly what you're planning on doing, and let me tell you. It's wrong, it's cruel, and it's  evil. Scaring them like in the games is fine, but trying to outright kill them? That's like going up to a guy, stabbing him in the gut with a knife, and saying ‘it was for fun’.” I told him. He looked at me.

  “Ok, so what exactly would you have me do? Walk around an empty house between two doors, let them hear me breath, and then allow them to either close the door or flash a flashlight?” He replied, raising an eyebrow.

  “Nah, that would get boring after a while. Why not do something a bit like Slender? You know, chase them through the woods for a while, scream into their faces, let them run again, and change it up each time?” I offered. He considered this.

   “Well, that does sound better… sure, I'll give it a try.” He said after a few minutes, and released me from my cage. I stood up, and our attention returned to the outside world. We selected our target carefully, making sure not to pick someone feint of heart. The target we chose was a colt with a brown coat, a lighter brown mane, and a cute looking propeller hat on his head. He was asleep in his room, and littered about was a bunch of gaming equipment. I shook my head in disbelief. 

   “They have video game consoles, but no helicopters, TV, or even cars?” I asked out loud. I looked back to Bonnie, before smirking, and together, we tapped our fingers on his head, and descended into his dream.

÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
Button’s  POV

   “Oh Button! I got a new game for you!”my mom called out from the bottom of the stairs. I was in my room, playing a awesome fighter game that recently came out. As my mother walked up the stairs, she presented the game to me. I looked at it.

   “Thanks, mom! I'll give it a go!” I said, hearing a achievement get noise in the background. I picked up the game,  and went to my console. I removed the current game, after saving of course, and placed the game inside.

   For a moment, the screen was blank. Then, slowly, the screen was filled with a dark screen, and a menacing looking rabbit stared at me. Creepy music echoed around the room, and I shuddered, before hitting ‘play’.

 The darkness shot out from the screen, enveloping me in darkness. I tried to scream, but the shadows entered into my mouth, causing me to pass out.
×××××××
 
   When I regained consciousness, I was in a forest. Dead trees surrounded me, managing to block off all light from the moon. In my hooves was a flashlight, so I flicked it on. The trees seemed even more creepy now that the light illuminated the fog surrounding them. The wind blew by, singing a hollow tune as it flew by the tree in front of me.

   “Hello? Wh-where am I?” I called out in a loud whisper. Only silence answered the question. I began to walk forward, glancing to the left and to the right. After about ten minutes, I ran into a metal fence, reaching higher than I could ever climb. I sighed, before turning around. 

  In my face was a blue demon.

   I yelled, running to the side as the demon screeched a loud, metallic roar. I looked behind me to look at it as I ran. It's glowing blue eyes stared after me, and it's massive tooth-filled  mouth grinned savagely. It's chest was missing, revealing a metal cylinder that I guessed was a spine. It's claws, unlike any I had ever seen, with metal spikes for fingers, curled into fists. It's blue fur seemed solid, with very noticeable holes, showing nothing but darkness beneath. Two rabbit ears sprouted from it's head, waving with the wind. As for it's feet, they appeared to be made out of metal, looking like the claws in many ways.

  It charged after me, eyes hardened in a glare, as the monster chased after me. It caught up quite quickly, as my stubby and much smaller legs couldn't  run fast enough. It picked me up in its claws, pulling me up to it's ugly face. It growled menacingly, and I gulped, smiling weakly.

   “Uh….hi?” I squeaked, and it roared into my face, before trying to bite my head.

   ×××××××××××
  I all but leapt out of my bed, gasping for breath as my eyes darted around the room. I sighed, realizing it was just a dream, before getting out of bed and glancing at the clock. It was five in the morning. I walked down stairs and grabbed a juice from the fridge, gulping it down eagerly.

 ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
Bonnie’s POV

   “You nearly killed the kid!” I all but yelled into the animatronics face, even though he stood a foot taller than me. He rolled his eyes, the blue orbs staring at me mockingly.

   “Oh please, I knew he would wake up as soon as I attempted. It was a fake attempt anyway, so why am I bothering explaining it to you?” Bonnie replied, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow.

   “Sure, I'm totally sure that's what you were doing. I totally believe that.” I said sarcastically. “Just don't do it again. Find some other way. Anyways, why do you have to scare people?” 

   “Finally, a good question. Me and the other ‘nightmare animatronics’ feed off of a living creature's fear. If I didn't eat it, and also if you didn't, we would slowly begin to starve and lose our powers, before death ends up claiming us. We scare to survive, though I guess me and my brothers and sister began to believe that we also needed to kill the victim as well for some reason. If we can find the others, I'm sure we can talk them out of it.” Bonnie replied happily, ignoring my sarcasm. 

  “Wait, the others are here?! Why didn't you say so!” I asked, glaring at him.

   “I would have expected you to sense their energy, since you are apart of me. Seriously, can you not feel the five other dark energy signatures throughout this world?” He asked incredulously. I stared at him, before focusing. I indeed felt five unknown energies throughout the area, with most of them close by. I sighed.

  “How did I not notice that?” I asked myself. Bonnie snorted.

  “You tell me.” He replied. “Also, how did that weird Winged Unicorn not notice us?” I stared at him.

   “What winged unicorn?” I asked, my own eyebrow raised.

   “Oh, you know, that weird dream travelling thing that passed us by while going after Fredbear.” He answered, staring out into the dream realm. I followed his gaze to indeed see a wine unicorn being forced out of a door. I backed away at the feel of her power.

   “Should we run?” I asked Bonnie. He chuckled.

   “Well, she attacked Fredbear, and is now glaring at us. I think the answer is yes.” Bonnie replied snarkily, picking me up before turning and running like mad.

   “COME BACK HERE, FOUL CREATURE, SO I CAN SMITE THEE!” The Pegacorn  roared, flying after us.

   “I'd  rather eat my own stomach!” Bonnie called back, and the chase continued.


   ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷

   Daring Do’s  POV

   I walked up to the museum, checking if I had everything I needed. Seeing that I did, I opened the door. Dusty Quill greeted me.

 “Ah, Ms. Do! Glad you could make it. I hope you will enjoy your stay in the museum, and I hope that whatever happened to the previous guard doesn't happen to you.” He said, shaking my hoof. “Though, I doubt that whatever it is will be able to defeat the great Daring Do.” He added, chuckling. I nodded.

   “If whatever took him is still here, I'll make sure it pays for what it did. I hope you find him soon.” I replied, my gaze wandering around the room. 

   “Yes, I also hope we find him. Alive, preferably.” Dusty said, before walking out the door. “Your shift will be until 6 A.M. I'll  see you in the morning.” He called as the door shut.

   I stood there for a moment, before walking towards the security office. “It's a museum, Daring, what could go wrong?” I told myself, but the sense of dread persisted all the way to the room.

  

   

> Chapter Six: Night at The Museum
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chica’s/Elizabeth’s  POV

  “So, Elizabeth, why do you not want me to scare them? It would be fun!” The demon chicken asked, looking at me.

   “Because, Chica, it's not nice to hurt people. Or scare them.” I replied, shaking my head. We had been having this argument for hours, and neither side was about to give in. I felt that it was going to be a few more hours until we finally came to an agreement of some sort.

   “But it's Halloween! Everybody knows you're supposed to get scared on Halloween! Cmon, just one? Pleaaaase?” Chica whined. I sighed, facepalming.

 ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
   Daring Do’s POV

    I sat down, checking over the camera feed. Each one had been replaced after they had been mysteriously destroyed. These were a new model, and glitchy. Every so often one would flicker white with static. Seeing nothing, I sat back in my seat, lost in thought.  My eyes slowly closed, and before I knew it I was asleep.

   ×××××××
   I woke up in a broken down room, with a old and rotting wooden desk in front of me. To the side there was a empty doorway, with a bear mask staring at me upon a stand. On the desk there were three little bobbleheads, one a blue rabbit, one a yellow chicken, and one a brown bear. The desk also held a metal fan, which whirled lazily. Next to me was some sort of vent, as well as a weird wall mounted camera screen. I flicked it over, and the screen lit up, revealing a faulty camera feed. To the right of the screen was a small map of camera locations. I tapped one, and the screen switched over. I flicked through each camera, before closing it.

   I turned back towards the doorway, and shrieked when I saw a Golden Bear suit, similar to the one I found, except newer, staring at me. It was hunched over, sitting on the floor like it was dead. Arms hung loosely to it's sides, and it's head was tilted to the side, and it's eyes held nothing in them.

   Then it moved.

   It stood up, towering over me. It's eyes now held two white dots, which stared down at me. The bear walked over to me, before kneeling down. It opened it's mouth.

   “Be...ware….Springtrap…..” It's voice echoed, as if we were in a cave. I backed up.

   “What?” I asked, confused more than afraid. After all, it didn't seem to have any hostile intentions. It pulled up the camera, and flicked to camera 8. There, in full glory, was the yellow rabbit thing I had discovered.

    “Spring...trap…” The bear clarified. “Killed….night..guard…..” I looked up at him, confused.

   “But the body inside is dead. It's nothing more than a rotten corpse.” I replied. He shook his head.

   “No….body….Is dead…. Soul….isn't….” He explained. I raised an eyebrow skeptically.

   “You mean it's possessed?” I asked. He nodded.

   “No...time...must….wake..” He told me, and screamed into my face.

×××××××××××
  

   My eyes shot open, and I sat up at the speed of a bullet, my heart hammering in my chest.  Glancing around, I saw that nothing had changed. I checked the time. 2:30 A.M. I flipped through the cameras, and when I found the area where the rabbit was located, the screen turned black, with two words at the side

    Video Error

   I cursed, grabbing a flashlight and jumping out of my seat and onto the floor. I headed towards the new exhibit, where the rabbit was placed. When I finally arrived, I took a look. Inside, there was random items and drawings strewn about the area. However, in the main area, where the rabbit was supposed to be, nothing was there. I quickly turned around, flashlight flying swinging around the hallway. Nothing. I ran to the doors, and tried to pry them open. Locked. 

   “Why didn't they give me any keys?” I asked out loud, before freezing in my tracks. Slowly, I turned around, and looked behind me. There, at the other end of the hallway, was Springtrap. Two glowing white eyes glared at me, and it's hands curled into fists. It started walking towards me, uneasy steps turning into a uneven sprint. I jumped into a room next to me, and quickly hid under one of the various tables. I had dropped my flashlight in my hurry to hide, and now it sat outside. Then I heard a metallic crunch. There went my flashlight. The heavy footsteps of Springtrap slowly got louder, and I held my breath as he walked into the room. A mechanical growl uttered from his mouth as he scanned the room, and I got a good look at him.

    His eyes looked a cross between organic and mechanical, with glowing white irises flickering left and right. His greenish  yellow fur, dented in some places, and missing in others, seemed to look even worse in the darkness.  Mechanical wires and beams stabbed into flesh at the legs, which had rotten away to reveal the robotic parts intermingling with flesh, making both a heavy sound as he walked by, and a squishy fleshy sound that made me sick. His ears twitched, as if listening for any sound. After a few seconds, and near the point to where I could barely hold my breath any longer, he left the room, and his heavy footsteps slowly faded as he walked away. I let out a breath of relief, and got up from under the table. 

   It was then that I noticed how obvious my hiding place was. It was so bad that I didn't know how he didn't see me immediately. Then an idea came to my head. It was a theory, but it might work. I pulled out a small rock, that I knew wouldn't be able to break the glass on the door, and carefully walked out the door to the hallway. 

Springtrap was still in the hallway, his back turned to me as he  looked left and right, his ears twitching like mad. Carefully, and without sound, I tossed the rock to the room in front of me, before ducking back into the room I had come from. I heard heavy footsteps walk towards the room, before they started to diminish. I took a peek. Springtrap was in the room where I had thrown the pebble, glancing around. I grinned.

   “So, he uses sound to see, like a bat.” I said out loud, before catching myself. But it was too late. He turned around, and marched towards me. I jumped down the hall at a running pace, with Springtrap chasing behind me. I took to the air, flying up to the second floor. I dropped down, and hid. Springtrap stormed up the stairs, before looking around in confusion. He started to walk down the hall, periodically checking a random room. After a few minutes, he growled, before walking back down the stairs. When he was gone, I let out a breath of relief. I checked my watch.

   4:50 AM.

   I cursed.

  

> Chapter Seven: Nightmare V. Fredbear
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fredbear’s POV

   “So, Fredbear, what are her odds?” I asked, my phantom body currently the original Golden Freddy. My compatriot, Nightmare Fredbear, thought about it for a moment.

     “I'd say she has a twenty percent chance of living. Springtrap is honestly more or less a bat at this point. I mean, he should have killed her at least five times by now.” Nightmare Fredbear answered. I nodded.  

       “We gave her as much info we could to at least make her alert. I'm actually surprised she found out about the noise thing.” I replied, chuckling. The yellow rabbit below us wandered, before glancing up. His metal eyes widened, before pointing a finger at us. 

      “Fred….bear…” His voice creaked. I looked at Fredbear in surprise. 

      “He can see us?” I asked. Fredbear nodded. 

      “It would appear so. But of course, most machines have been known to be able to see ghosts, like us.” Fredbear answered, before floating down to Springtrap. I followed after him.

     “Fred...bear…” He repeated. We both nodded.

    “Yes, Springtrap. I am Fredbear. What is it that you want?” Fredbear said. 

    “Find...food….water….” He growled. Fredbear chuckled.

    “Springtrap, you can't.”  He told the withered rabbit. Springtrap glared at him.

    “Find...food...now….” Springtrap ordered.

    “You can't eat or drink, Springtrap. Your body has decayed too much to sustain such things.” Fredbear replied, and Springtrap threw a punch at him, only to phase right through Fredbear’s body. “I'm a ghost, Springtrap. You can't hurt me. Goodbye for now.” me and Fredbear flew back up to the roof.

    “I can't believe that that's what my friend has become.” I said, breaking the silence.

    “Indeed, he is broken, physically and mentally. I fear for the residents of this world. Our powers grow weak…” Fredbear replied, before floating down to Ponyville once more. I followed after him. When we arrived, I felt a presence.

    “Do you feel that?” I asked. Fredbear nodded, eyes searching the nearby buildings, before landing on the Crystal Castle.

   “Yes, and it is coming from that castle. Shall we investigate?” Fredbear asked, floating towards the castle before I could say anything. Grumbling, I followed.

  ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
Twilight's POV

   “Go away! You are not real!” I yelled, running away from the black monster. It charged after me, claws extended towards me.

   “Not….yet….soon…” It growled, gripping my wing and tearing it clean off. I screamed, tripping and falling to the floor in pain. Blood oozed from the missing appendage, and the Nightmare loomed over me, jaw wide open.

   “No...please….” I whimpered. This had been happening for a week,  but this was the worst. “Somepony...help…” 

   “Nightmare!!” A demonic voice roared, and in a flash of gold, the Nightmare dissapeared. I looked to the side to see the black demon being assaulted by a gold version of it. Instead of a yellow hat, this one's was purple, but besides the gold fur, that was the only difference. The Nightmare threw him off, roaring before charging after the golden bear.

    “Fredbear…”  The black bear growled, smashing it's fist into the gold one's face. “How...dare..you try to take my food!” He roared, before clawing the gold bear in the arm. The golden bear howled, before grabbing the Nightmare’s arm and throwing him to the side.

    “Nightmare, you won't do this any longer. I don't know how long this has been going on, but it stops. Now.” Goldy growled, punching Nightmare in the gut. Nightmare chuckled, grabbing the clawed fist and bending it at an unnatural angle. 

    “You haven't been eating right, Fredbear. I am stronger than you.” Nightmare bit at ‘Fredbear’s head. Fredbear teleported next to me,  before snapping his clawed hand back in place with a grunt of pain. He snapped his claws, and my wing reappeared on my back.

    “You need to wake up.”  He told me. “He has no power in the material realm. Go find your Princess Luna, and have her watch over your dreams.” He added, before charging at Nightmare again. A different version km Fredbear, more friendly looking than him, popped into existence next to me.

   “Look, girl, you need to wake up. Otherwise Nightmare will kill us both.” He told me, before slapping me across the face. Repeatedly.

×××××××

   I woke up, gasping for breath. I was back in the castle, with everything how I left it. I checked over myself. Nothing. No wounds. Not even ones previously made. I sighed in relief, before my thoughts wandered back to the dream. Those two golden bears….what were they? Why did they help me? How did they know that black demon thing? And why did they look just like it, only differently colored? Were they related? Aaaggghh, so many questions! Maybe I can ask Luna for help. But Spike is still asleep, and I don't want to wake him up….

“Well, I'm definitely not going back to sleep. I guess I can make a quick trip to Canterlot. Should leave a note though, in case it takes a while.” I got out of bed, before walking over to the table nearby. Picking up the quill in my magic, I dipped it in ink before quickly writing a note.

  

 Dear Spike and friends,

I am heading to Canterlot to talk to Luna about a few dreams I've been having lately. Spike can fill you in on the details.

Your friend, Twilight Sparkle. 



“Alright, now that that's done, let's get going!” I muttered sleepily to myself, before walking down the halls and out the door, before unfurling my wings and taking off into the sky.

Meanwhile………..

“Fredbear, why do you listen to the human? They don't know how we function! They just want us to starve, so they can take full control!” Nightmare growled, his talons scraping against the golden bear’s chest, denting the metal badly but not piercing through.

“Because, Nightmare, we can be better than what we used to be! We don't have to kill innocents, but instead scare them! It doesn't provide as much energy as killing, but it is still enough to keep us alive!” Fredbear snarled, kicking Nightmare’s feet out from under him. As he fell, Fredbear continued his attack, clawing at the Nightmare but doing no damage.

“Which is why you won't be able to win against me, fool!” Nightmare growled, teleporting behind him and stabbing his claws into Fredbear’s back. The golden bear howled in pain, before backhanding him and teleporting next to his partner, who had opened a door.

“I don't need to win against you, Nightmare. I only need to stop you. Until we meet again.” And with that said, the two jumped through the door, leaving an enraged Nightmare within the Dream Realm.

> Chapter Eight: The Nightmare
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few weeks ago...
Joe/Nightmare’s POV
     “Wha - where am I?” I asked, squinting as sunlight from the sunset burned it's way into my eyes. I was in a lush, green field, in an unfamiliar landscape. A large mountain stretched out from the ground to the East, with what looked like a city built into it. To the West, a city loomed in front of me, with what looked like….horses? Walking around, with not a care in the world. 

     “Horses? What? Where's all the people?” I asked again, sitting up off my rear and walking towards the city. I then saw my hand as I got up. It was a black, furry hand, with long, dangerous claws at the end of each finger. I stared at it for a moment, moving it around, back and forth, confused. Then it clicked as I remembered what had happened to the suits.

    “Who the hell would give us actual suits?!” I yelled, glaring at everything. The ponies, the city, the mountain, the- wait, ‘ponies’? Why did I call the horse things that? I stared once more at the equines walking around the city. While they did look like horses, they were….different. For one thing, they were all pastel-colored, like some crazy artist of poor talent decided to slap whatever colors they could grab onto a horse. They were also smaller, kinda short, really. But the real clincher was that some of them had horns, while some others had wings, and were flying about the sky.

     “What the hell?! What is this place?!” I asked myself, eyes wide as I looked around.  “Okay, calm down Joe, just calm down….let's just walk into the city, hope no one runs in fear, and maybe ask them just where the hell I am!” Sighing and putting a hand on my chest, which, as expected, was just like Nightmare’s, I slowly walked towards the city, my heart pounding.

  ××××××××××××××××××××

   “Excuse me, but where am I?” I asked the first pony I saw. They appeared to not hear me, instead just walking on like I had never spoken. “Rude. Hey, excuse me!” I growled, grabbing it's shoulder. Only to be shocked as my claw passed through the pony. It shivered, looking around, before returning to whatever it was doing before. I just stared at my claw, and another pony phased through me, as if I wasn't even there. 

   “What the...hell….” I stuttered, clenching my claw. “I'm….not physical? I'm...a ghost?” I sat on my legs, staring at the floor, before screaming. It sounded horrid, like a creature baying for blood. 

    “What has happened to me?! Why, why, why?!” I roared, punching the ground.    

     “Because the world hates you…” A voice echoed in my mind. It was strangely familiar, but dark and sinister. 

     “What? Who's there?” I asked, glancing around. No one was around, as it had apparently become night during my tantrum. 

    “I am you...the real you…” The voice came again, and I backed up towards a wall. I then felt a breathtaking pain in my chest, and collapsed. 

    “Oh God...what's this??” I gasped, gripping at my chest. “Something is happening...I can't explain...something inside me, a breathtaking pain! Devours and consumes me! And drives me insaaaaaAAAAGGGHHHH!” What had started as a word soon turned into a scream of pain as pure agony stretched across my body, which was twisting and convulsing in pain. It was as if microscopic needles were being pushed into every pore in my body. “Suddenly… uncontrolled!” I felt another spike of pain, this time in my mind, as another conscious entity attempted to force it's way into my head. “Something is….taking hold!” Another spike of pain. “Suddenly, AGONY!! Filling me, killing..me?” 

    I flopped onto the ground, pain unlike any I've ever felt before driving spikes into my nerves. I suddenly found I couldn't breath. “Suddenly, out of breath! What is this?! Is this -argh!- death!” 

   As the last vestiges of my consciousness slipped away, I heard another voice. “
“Freeeeeeee……”

÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷

   “Good night, dear.” A mother said, kissing her daughter on her forehead, before closing the door. The little mare snuggled up into her blankets, before falling asleep.

    Unbeknownst  to anyone in the house, a large figure walked into the room through the wall, phasing through it. He was invisible to mortals, after all. His massive, tooth filled maw split into a sinister grin as he walked closer, reaching his clawed hand out to the mare. When he was close enough to touch her, he stopped, tapping her head before vanishing. 

÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷

  The mare ran for her life. A creature had started chasing her through unfamiliar streets. She passed many strange vehicles, but paid them no mind as she ran, for if she stopped even for a second, the monster would get her. Glancing behind, she saw it was still chasing her, it's black body almost invisible in the night. But the shining claws and teeth shone clearly through the night, ready for a nice snack. She tripped, falling on her muzzle. Glancing behind her again, she saw it was a pothole of sorts.

     Forgetting the pothole for now, she continued her run, before turning a corner and finding herself face to face with a brick wall. Turning around, she saw the monster had cornered her, talons ready to rip her to shreds. 

      “No...please...I… I don't want to die!” She screamed, before a claw slashed across her face and across her right eye.

 ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷

The mother ran up to her daughter’s room as a shriek of pain blasted through the silence that had permeated the house. 

     “Twinkle, are you-” She stopped as she entered the room, and saw the massive gash stretching up her daughter's face, and into her eye. “Oh my god!” 

÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷

   The creature ran across the rooftops, chuckling and laughing maniacally to himself. “I feel alive! Free at last! Free to bring suffering to all the girls and boys once more! But more importantly, I feel alive!” It roared into the night, giggling at it's blood-stained claw. “And I can only feel more alive..” It grinned.

÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷

    “Princess Celestia! Urgent news from Trottingham! Apparently, some creature had attacked the Colts and fillies there last night, inflicting terrible wounds!” A messenger said, running into the throne room. Celestia dropped her tea, the cup crashing to the floor.

    “What? Dispatch the guard at once! We must catch this creature before it can hurt any more innocents!” The Princess ordered, angered at whatever dared to hurt her precious ponies. 

    “Th-that's the thing, your majesty.” The messenger shuffled his feet. “The..creature...is attacking them from...their dreams.” 

    “What?” Celestia asked, confusion and rage slowly building in her chest.

    

    

> Chapter Nine: The Nightmare, Part Two
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

One Week later….

Nightmare looked down upon Manehatten, his claws slick with the blood of innocents. Within a single week, The Nightmare had gone through Manehatten’s stock of Fillies and Colts, even killing some, gathering a large amount of energy. 

”It looks like this all-you-can eat-buffet has finally been picked clean,” He chuckled, watching as the citizens shuffled around nervously. ”I suppose it is time to find a new source of food.” He turned back from his perch, looking out at the train station. ”Let's see where fortune takes us next…”






  Canterlot


 “Celestia, I have tried to catch this beast threatening our fair ponies, but it is smarter than most creatures of the Dream Realm.” Luna explained, exhausted. A week of trying to hunt this creature down had drained the strength of the Lunar Princess, and her fatigue was 

  “I know, my sister, but we cannot allow this monster to run free. We must find a way to stop it.” The Solar Princess replied, looking out the window to her city below. “Perhaps you can teach somepony the art of Dreamwalking? I know it is your most guarded secret after what happened last time, but you can't keep hunting this thing on your own.”

“Celestia...you know we cannot. Not after what happened with She Who Shall Not Be Named.” She yawned, her flowing mane disheveled.

  “Please, Luna. It is the only way we can stop this Nightmare. You can't keep fighting Nightmare alone.” Celestia pleaded, putting a hoof on her Sister’s shoulder. “Our ponies are suffering because of this, and you can't hunt it alone.”

"I…..” Luna gulped, her wings shuffling. “....I will teach one pony the art of Dreamwalking. But only one. And once this ordeal is over, we shall remove their memories of the ability to dreamwalk.”

"Luna, mind-altering magic has been outlawed for centuries, even before you were banished. I cannot allow you to alter a pony’s mind.” Celestia said, her eyes narrowing. “This is not negotiable.”

"But Sister, thou know not how they will use the Dreamwalking magic. We cannot allow anypony else to use it!” Luna replied, anger shooting through her eyes.

   “And we do not know how many more innocent foals the Nightmare will hurt before you catch him by yourself!” Celestia yelled, causing Luna to flinch. “I know you do not want to ever go through that experience again, Luna,” She continued, softening her voice, “But our ponies are suffering. Nopony can do something this important alone. Please, Luna, we cannot allow Nightmare to roam free. You can't beat him by yourself. I implore you to teach somepony the art of Dreamwalking, without the use of mind-altering magic.”

Luna stood there for a moment, before sighing. “Very well, Sister. Though we have our reservations for teaching our magic, tis for the good of the ponies we rule over. Dost thou have a pony in mind?” Luna relented, lowering her head.

  “Possibly, though we might have to wait for her.” Celestia nodded. “But for now, there is something you must do.”

"What is it?” Luna looked up, confused.

 “I want you to go to Ponyville on Nightmare Night, to interact more with our citizens.” Celestia said, and Luna’s ears drooped. 

 “But Sister...what if they still fear us?” Luna asked.

"Trust me, they won't. And even if they do, they will quickly come around.” Celestia reassured her sister, wrapping a hoof around her and pulling her into a hug. “If you simply stay locked away in this castle, nothing will change. By opening up to our citizens, we let them know we are their friends, not just their rulers.”

  “Yes, Sister. We understand.” Luna nodded, turning. “We shall prepare our guards for the coming holiday.” She walked out of the room.






On the Train heading towards Ponyville

Nightmare chuckled as he gave chase to his current prey. It would take a while for the train to arrive at it’a destination, a town called ‘Ponyville’. Nightmare mentally recoiled at the horrible pun, before refocusing on his prey. The two were within the Dream Realm, and Nightmare had generated a school building from his host’s memories. Just enjoying toying with this one, he used all the cliche’s he could think of for a school building.


   As the mare entered a classroom, he created a mental construct of a little filly, who screamed as she ran past the door, before vanishing back into the Dreamscape. The mare jumped, turning around. She carefully trotted up to the door, looking around the corner of the door frame. 

At the end of the hall was a filly, hanging by the neck. Nightmare chuckled as the mare’s face turned green, horror clear in her eyes.  He decided to end this little game, having absorbed a great deal of her fear. He tapped her on the back, dragging his clawed finger down her spine. She stopped, slowly turning her head towards Nightmare.

Nightmare roared, bearing his teeth as he brought his jaw closer to her head. She screamed, vanishing into a puff of smoke as her dream ended. The school collapsed around Nightmare, before he reappeared in the real world. Nightmare grinned as the mare jumped out of her chair, screaming as she woke, and waking most of the other ponies.

Nightmare floated above the train, before noticing something. The movement of phasing through the roof of the train had been...slower, as if the roof was resisting him. He raised his claw, noticing that it seemed a bit more...physical. It was more difficult to see through it, as if it was beginning to manifest into reality. Nightmare’s grin grew wider.

”So, this is what it is for…” He chuckled, closing his claw into a fist. He began laughing, and the ears of the ponies inside the train twitched, hearing the barest echo of laughter.





> Chapter Ten
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Austin and Nightmare Fredbear sighed as they walked through Ponyville, watching the small equines walking to their daily jobs. However, the two noticed an obvious tension in the air. Ponies kept glancing behind them at random intervals, and were constantly observing their surroundings.

  “To think Nightmare’s actions alone could cause this…” Austin sighed. Fredbear shrugged.

  “The ponies don't know what truly is happening. They are paranoid of everything and everyone. Demons could lurk in every shadow.” The golden Nightmare Animatronic said, and Austin chuckled.

  “For being a kid’s spirit, you’re pretty knowledgeable.” He said. “Do you think that pegasus in the museum made it out alright?” 

  “Yes, but we shouldn't let her say anything about Springtrap.” Fredbear replied. “The Dreamwalker doesn't know that we aren't trying to hurt the ponies, and if word was to spread of a physical version of us…”

  “She would capture him and use him for study.” Austin finished, sighing. “He's been through enough already. But how would we keep her quiet?”

  Fredbear almost looked like he was grinning. “Simple. We can either erase her memory each night, or threaten her.”

  “Fredbear, we don't kill innocents. Nor do we threaten. Why don't we just tell her why she must not say anything first?” Austin suggested, and Fredbear sighed.

  “There's no fun in that...but alright.”  The yellow bear then noticed a bright pink pony near a building that looked like a massive pastry. Her stare almost seemed directly pointed at the two, but Fredbear shrugged it off. After all, no one can see them in the physical world. “Well, let's head back to wherever that mare is.” Austin nodded, and the two flew off to Canterlot. The pink mare blinked, watching them go, before shrugging and entering the pastry building.

  “I must have had too many cupcakes last night…” She muttered, before chuckling to herself. “Silly filly, there's no such thing as too many cupcakes!”





Canterlot


  Daring Doo sighed as she ceased her typing. After barely getting out of that nightmare-inducing museum, she had flown back to her hotel, gotten her typing Machine out, and got to work creating a letter to the museum owner. However, she was tired from an entire night of running.

  “Maybe just a little bit of sleep...I can finish the letter when I wake up….” She yawned, trotting over to her bed. She climbed in, slipping under the covers and falling asleep almost as soon as her eyes closed.





“Daring….” A voice called. Daring Doo opened her eyes to find a massive golden bear staring at her. Her eyes flung themselves open as she quickly back up on the bed, trying to put as much distance between her and the bear. As she did, the bed-and the wall- vanished into smoke, and she fell on her rump.

  “Ow!” She cried, before remembering that a big golden bear was right in front of her. Before she could run, the bear picked her up by the tail, shaking it’s head in annoyance

  “Calm down already! I'm the one who helped you, remember?” It growled, a young, likely teenage male voice coming from its mouth. Daring slowly stopped struggling, crossing her hooves as she glared at the golden bear.

  “Put me down.” She ordered.

  “Do you promise not to run away?” The bear asked. Daring sighed, before nodding. The bear gently deposited her on the floor.

  “So, what is it you want?” Daring asked, and the bear chuckled.

  “Straight to the point, eh? Good.” The bear suddenly grew serious. “I'm here to ask you to not tell anyone about Springtrap.”

 “Springtrap? You mean that monster in the museum?” Daring asked, anger flashing through her eyes. “Why wouldn't I tell anyone about that demon? It killed somepony, and it’s going to keep killing if it isn't stopped!”

  “Currently, there are five others like me out in the world. One of them is evil, and has hurt dozens of ponies. We are trying to stop him, but the Dreamwalker thinks we all-”

  “Dreamwalker? Do you mean Princess Luna?” Daring asked, and Fredbear nodded.

  “As I was saying, Luna thinks we all-”

  “Princess Luna.” Daring glared. Fredbear rolled his eyes.

  “Fine, whatever! Princess Luna thinks we all are evil monsters bent on hurting everypony. This is untrue, but she believes that. And should she learn of something similar, or even connected to us, she might find a way to kill us all.” Fredbear growled. “Not all of us want to hurt anyone, and the only one who does is insane. We are trying to stop him.”

  “So you just want to live, and knowledge of Springtrap could end up killing you all?” Daring asked. Fredbeae nodded. “Sounds like a bunch of crap to me. The needs of the many outweigh the few, and many ponies could die if Springtrap isn't stopped.”

“Listen here. Springtrap isn't evil. He is starving, and in constant pain. How do you think you would act if you were stuck in that suit, your body fused with metal and wiring, without food and water for years? Anything with meat on their bones would be food in their eyes.” Fredbear growled, his hand curling into a fist as he smashed it into the wall next to Daring’s head. She flinched slightly, but otherwise was not fazed.

  “If he's suffering so much, the only thing that can help him is to end his suffering.” The yellow pegasus stated angrily. Fredbear sighed and shook his head.

  “Fool. If he can help them learn how to kill me and the others, do you think they will just up and kill him?” The golden bear asked as calmly as he could be.

   Daring squinted at him slightly, before her eyes widened in shock. “The Princesses would never do such a thing!”

   “Let me ask you something. How far would your princesses go to protect you ponies? From how you speak of them, I'm guessing they are quite protective of the populace. Would they really not experiment on something related to the monster currently terrorizing their ponies if it could help them stop it?” Fredbear asked.

  “They-” Daring began, but stopped as she thought about it. “They…. they….” She lowered her gaze. “They would, if it meant stopping something from hurting the ponies of Equestria.”

  “Exactly. I'm not about to let them hurt my friend.” Fredbear growled.

  “But the fact still stands that Springtrap will continue to kill innocent ponies. I cannot, under any circumstances, allow another pony to die when I could have saved them.” Daring stated, standing up.

  “They don't have to.” Fredbear said. “If you were to continue being the night guard, no one else will have to needlessly die. You know how he works. You can survive.”

  “....You have a point….” Daring said, sighing. “Why didn't I think of that?”

“So, do we have a deal?” Fredbear asked, extending his paw. Daring sighed, before putting her hoof in his paw and shaking it.






  Daring slowly opened her eyes. The dull ceiling of the hotel room met her gaze as she slowly got up. The bedding was all messed up, so she got out of bed without having to get out of the covers. She trotted over to her typewriter, but the letter she had been writing was torn to shreds, the pieces scattered across the table.

  “Did he…?” Daring asked, before shaking her head. “Oh well, a deal is a deal.” As she walked away, an idea struck her. Flying back to the typewriter, her hooves flew across the buttons, and within minutes, her letter was done. She put it in the hotel mailbox as she flew off into the city. She checked the time. It was an hour before sunset. She sighed as she looked back to see a mailpony taking the letter out of the mailbox, and off to its destination.






  “What did you do?!” Austin growled at  Nightmare Fredbear, the two of them outside of the hotel in an alley.

  “I told you, I tore up the letter while you were talking to her.” The Nightmare animatronic growled in reply.

  “How?!” Austin asked again.

  “I...temporarily took over her body while she was unconscious.” The golden bear admitted, shuffling on his clawed feet.

 “What?” Austin asked, confused. “Since when could you do that?” 

  “Since always. I just never used it. Never really a reason to, you know?” Fredbear replied in a calm manner. Austin sighed, rubbing his temples.

  “Alright, fine, whatever. It might be helpful later on either way.” He glanced around. “So, what should we do now? Help that ‘Daring Doo’ Pony some more?”

  “Why don't we go searching for the other Animatronics? If we want to fight Nightmare, we would need them to help as well.” Fredbear suggested. Austin thought about it.

  “That does make sense. Though I want to see what Daring Doo is up to before we head out.” Austin said. Fredbear nodded, and the two flew off to the Museum.




 

  Three Hours Later, fifteen minutes until midnight

  “I am appreciative that you decided to continue working the night shift, Ms. Yearling, but I am a bit...confused by your request to add speaker systems in every room. What is the point?” Dusty Quill asked as the mechanics finished up with Daring’s request. They were currently in the Guard Office. A small tablet sat on the desk in the center of the room, with a computer chair in the back. Two different monitors also were on the desk, showing camera feeds.

  “Well, Mr. Quill, it would help you manage the ponies who come here for when the museum is closing. I can also switch them during the night shift to scare away any burglars.” Daring explained, having already created the fake reasons on her way here. Dusty Quill sighed.

  “I suppose that would be better than having a bunch of guides going through the rooms every day. Either way, as requested, the speakers are linked to your monitor systems. I wish you the best of luck!” Dusty said as the mechanic ponies began filing out of the room. He also left, giving Daring a wave as he left the building.


   Daring sighed, sitting back in her chair. “Let's see….” She pulled up her monitor from the left, noticing a new button on the side, labeled “PLAY SOUND”. She pressed the button, and somewhere in the building, she heard a calm female voice, requesting all ponies leave the museum. She pulled up her second monitor, which had buttons for rebooting systems, and a button for switching the audio systems. She clicked it, before going back to the camera monitor. She pressed the Audio button again, and a gruff, male voice called out through the museum.

  “Hey, who’s there?!” It asked. Daring smiled.

  “All right then. All systems are good.” She checked her watch.

  11:59 PM

 “Alright then.” As she looked away, she noticed a slip of paper on the desk. Pulling it over, she found that it was a detailed map of the camera locations, probably left here by one of the mechanic ponies. She smiled, laying it in front of her. She pulled over the camera monitor, and found multiple buttons with different names.

  “Well, this map will certainly help.” Daring shrugged, checking her watch again. 

12:00 AM

“Go time.” Daring grinned.