The Hotel Equestria
"Great job tonight, team", Spitfire said as she and the rest of the Wonderbolts left the Somnambula Arena. They had, in fact, put on a great show. "Especially you, Crash. That last move you threw in turned out to be a good idea after all".
Rainbow Dash smiled smugly at the compliment. Even after all these years, she still had a massive ego. Still, the double barrel-roll through an electrically-charged ring ending in a Sonic Rainboom had been her idea. After the team got to the town's gates, they said their goodbyes and headed home. Rainbow headed west, towards Ponyville. She had decided she would walk home, even though it was close to a hundred miles. She didn't have the money for a stage, and she needed the exercise anyways. The night was slightly breezy, which she was thankful for. The cool, light wind would keep her somewhat comfortable. She walked on into the night, following the long road home.
After what seemed like hours, Rainbow finally saw a sign of life. Lights glowed in the distance, and she thought she heard the sounds of a formal party. The closer she got, the louder the sounds became. Soon, she was standing in front of a large building. The large neon sign out front said "Hotel Equestria". What the heck She thought to herself, suddenly feeling very tired,I could use a rest. She walked up the long, elaborately decorated path to the large, ornate doors.
A slightly tipsy-looking mare stood in the doorway. Rainbow walked up to her, and looked her in the eye. "I'm looking for a room. I just need to stay the night, so nothing special or expensive".
"Of course. We are having a feast tonight if you would care to join us for that. I'll show you to your room". No doubt about it, this woman was drunk. She slurred some of her words, and spoke with a thick Eastern accent, more than any other she had heard here. The mare lit a candle and lead Rainbow down a long corridor. As they walked, Rainbow thought she heard... voices. It sounded like they were saying "Welcome to the Hotel Equestria. Such a lovely place, such a lovely face. Plenty of room at the Hotel Equestria. Anytime of the year, you can find it here". Rainbow thought that they must be on a P.A. or some other recorded message. The mare in front of her kept rambling on about how she used to be a successful business owner, and how she was rich and famous, and now she worked in some stupid hotel. Ignoring her, Rainbow looked outside instead. There were ponies dancing in the large courtyard. Some looked like they were thoroughly enjoying themselves, and others looked stressed or bored. A few ponies had glasses of what looked like champagne. Suddenly, the mare in front of her stopped. Apparently, this was her room. Rainbow thanked her and walked into the rather large room. She took a shower, wrapped herself in the bathrobe in the closet, and lay down on the emperor-of-the-universe sized bed. Feeling thirsty, she picked up the bedside phone and dialed the number for room service. She asked for an apple cider. The pony on the other end of the line said that they didn't have any, and hadn't for some time. She decided on a soda instead. Cheapos, she thought to herself, Cider isn't that expensive.
Later that night, after she had fallen asleep, Rainbow was awakened by the same odd voices she had heard when she first arrived. Although muffled, she could tell that they had changed. Not in sound, but in what they were saying. The 'Welcome to the Hotel Equestria' part was the same, but the last part had changed. Now, instead of saying 'Plenty of room at the Hotel Equestria. Any time of the year, you can find it here', they said 'They livin' it up at the Hotel Equestria. Such a nice surprise, bring your alibis'. Weird, she thought to herself, What in Celestia's name does that mean? She decided she was hungry, and the pony that brought her to the room had said that there was a feast tonight. She found a flyer advertising it on the nightstand next to the bed. It was about to start. She ran down the hallway, and soon found the Master's Quarters, where the feast was supposed to be. What she saw when she walked in was shocking. The ceiling was covered in mirrors, and glasses full of pink champagne sat on a long oak wood table surrounded by ponies. The mare that had met her at the door earlier welcomed her, her words now intelligible, her accent much lighter now. The change was welcome. The greeting she was given was anything but. Instead of "Hello", or "Glad you could make it", the mare said, "We are all just prisoners here, of our own device".
"What? What do you mean?", Rainbow asked, shocked. She was starting to regret all of her decisions that night.
The mare gave no answer. Instead, she nodded to a couple of stallions standing by a set of double doors. The opened the doors, and a large, unidentifiable beast was brought in. It was alive, just chained up. The stallions unchained the monster, and it was instantly rushed by the hundred or so ponies in the room. They stabbed at it with the knives they had picked up from the table. Obviously, it was dinner. After years of being friends with Fluttershy, Rainbow was mortified by the bloody scene unfolding before her. She tried to tell them to stop, but they cursed at her and pushed her back. They were obviously enjoying this. A unicorn flew up in the air, shattering part of the ceiling. He fell to the ground, moaning in pain. Rainbow tried to go to him, but within seconds he was on his hooves again, slashing at the animal fiercely.
Scared beyond all belief, Rainbow ran out of the room and down the hall, looking for the way out. She had to leave. This place was Hell manifested on Earth. She located the door at the end of the hallway, and bolted towards it as fast as she could. She was stopped by a burly stallion who grabbed onto her mane and pulled her back towards the hall. With terror, Rainbow read what the large brass plaque above the door read.
"You can check in anytime you like, but you can never leave".