Rainbow Dash ran through the dark streets of the unknown town. She looked over her shoulder in terror, noting that the dark figure chasing her was catching up. She looked straight ahead, pushing herself to gallop even faster than she already was.
Ahead of her was what seemed to be an endless street, towering and shadowy buildings looming on both sides. The night time sky was cloudy, the light of the moon shining occasionally before disappearing behind yet another cloud.
Streetlights flashed by, giving the image of a moving painting with a single misplaced streak of fluorescent orange. Rainbow would have thought it was a nice image, if it hadn't been for the insane laughs of the bipedal chasing her.
As of the moment, she only cared about trying to get away from the being before she was caught. Even then, she knew it and more of its kind would hunt her down. They were everywhere, after all.
As she continued to run, she felt tears fall. Memories of past times with her friends assaulted her mind. She didn't want to die. Not like this. She had so much to live for. She let out a sob of mixed terror and grief.
Looking over her shoulder, she could see the being barely a few steps behind, swinging its' blade. It had a psychopathic grin on its' somewhat skeletal face. It whispered nonsensical gibberish before laughing maniacally again. She gasped in terror, pouring everything she had into her speed.
Whipping her head around, she saw the outline of a building with the door slightly ajar. She ran faster and harder than she ever had ran or even flown before. She looked over her shoulder again.
To her horror, the thing was nearly on her. It was within a metre of her tail and was reaching towards her. Her life flashed before her eyes as the being prepared to strike. But before it could land a blow, she realized she was inside.
She skidded to a halt, kicking the door closed. As the door slammed shut, she heard a loud crash from outside, followed by a roar of frustration. Her eyes widened in terror as the thing outside attempted to break the door down.
Quickly grabbing anything she could find, she barricaded the door, then leaned against the barricade. After several minutes, it gave up. Rainbow was safe.
Rainbow finally awoke from her exhausted slumber, finding herself slumped uncomfortably against the barricade she had created. A painful and irritating headache pounded against her temples, which she massaged using her hooves. Looking around, she finally took in her surroundings.
She was in what seemed to be a massive atrium of sorts, which reminded her of the main room in the Castle of Friendship. There were large silk banners hanging from the ceiling, all of which had an abstract design on them. A marble desk was situated between two sets of stairs, both going upwards. The whole room gave off an aura of pristinity and cleanliness.
Rainbow got up carefully, not wanting to bother her already-broken wing, and was immediately hit with a rushing sensation as her headache worsened. She leaned against the barricade, waiting for it to pass.
Suddenly, the lights simultaneously blinked out, leaving her in complete darkness. She jumped in surprise, backing up into the barricade. Pressing up against it, she listened carefully.
In the distance, she heard hoofsteps. They were soft and delicate, almost as if whoever was making them was trying to be stealthy. Rainbow huddled against the floor, hoping not to be seen by whatever atrocity was coming for her.
As the hoofsteps came closer, Rainbow began hearing a voice whispering to itself. She couldn't understand what it was saying, nor if the voice was friendly or hostile, but it was unnerving nonetheless.
Suddenly, the sounds began to move towards the stairs. Rainbow, looking upwards at the ceiling, silently prayed for her safety. If the thing noticed her, it would be the end.
It continued walking down, then came to a stop in front of Rainbow, who was trembling in fear. It stood there silently for quite a while, seeming to be listening for something.
Just when Rainbow thought it never would, the thing moved on. Rainbow waited until she heard it leave the area to let out a relieved breath. As she did so, the lights came back on.
Looking around to make sure no other unwelcome surprises lay in wait, she cautiously got up. She walked quietly to the base of the stairs, before climbing them and sticking her head over the top.
If that thing was still in the building, and if it was attracted to noise like she thought, she couldn't risk making any noise to dismantle the barricade. Thus, her only option was to find an exit out of the building as quietly as possible.
She gazed around carefully, before climbing the last step.
The room she was now in appeared to be an art gallery of sorts, similar to the one in Canterlot. It was filled with paintings, statues, and creations of all sorts. The walls were painted white, a single dark blue stripe along their middles. The marble floor had blue lines separating the different exhibits, of which several had barriers of red fabric to protect them. Along with that were two other rooms which had more artwork in them.
Rainbow noticed the exit on the far wall, and decided to try it. To her surprise, it worked. The door opened without a sound, and Rainbow decided she would have to find someplace else to escape the beings on the streets.
Suddenly, she heard a rustling sound. Her eyes widened as she realized where it was coming from. She turned quickly and saw the being that had been whispering to itself a few metres away from her tail.
She stared at it in terror, her pupils contracting. It stared back ominously. Rainbow trembled as it did so.
Its' neck cracked as it somehow managed to turn its' head upside-down. Rainbow could feel a primal scream building in her throat. Frozen in fear, she watched as it spun its' head around.
The head glared at her before the monster let out a deafening roar and sprinted at her.
Rainbow Dash didn't wait for long when she saw the being come after her. She unfroze and began to run for her life.
And so, it was back to the endless streets of the forsaken and dark town. Rainbow ran and ran. Finally, she risked looking behind her to find...
Nothing.
The street was empty, no matter how long she looked. She slowed to a trot, still looking behind her. She knew it couldn't be that easy.
As she looked behind her, she accidentally bumped into something. Thinking that she must have bumped into a building, she looked straight ahead.
The being looked down at her, an evil smile on its' corrupted visage. Realizing her mistake, she attempted to back away, bumping into something else. As she looked behind her, she saw the being again, this time with its' head in its' clawed and bony hands.
Rainbow let out a yelp, backing into yet another version of the creature, this time with its' head and neck between its' legs, curving upright. Rainbow looked around in terror.
Wherever she looked, more and more of the creature appeared, each version more twisted than the last. She couldn't take it any longer.
Rainbows' mind finally snapped.
She screamed wordlessly, wanting to find some way, somewhere, to escape this thing that was haunting her. Her hooves were on the sides of her head as she tried to block it all out.
At long last, all but one of the creatures disappeared. The one that remained walked slowly towards her, its' smile twisted and misshapen. Rainbow backed away, practically begging the creature to spare her life.
Its' smile remained unchanged, as it reached one arm towards Rainbow. It continued coming towards her.
Rainbow bumped against a building and curled up in a ball. Then, she heard the monster, the atrocity, begin to whisper. The more she listened, the more clear it became.
Finally, the whisperings grew silent. Rainbow opened her eyes, only to find the things' spinning head an inch from hers. Its' clawed hand stroked her mane.
