The Beginning Of The Great Terror
The morning was beautiful, the sun, still low in the sky, shining without a cloud to block it's rays. It warmed each blade of grass, making it pleasing to the hoof. Many ponies were still curled up in their beds, savoring that last moment of deep sleep. However, a certain lavender pony named Twilight was up and about, even so before the dawn. Though the morning was delightful, she knew of the true dread that was within it. She spent most of her morning exploring the deaths and missing reports that had occurred over the last few days. Two of them were her friends. As advised, she kept quiet about it, hoping no pony would notice them gone. And they hadn't. Not yet, anyways. But, look as hard as she could, Twilight could see nothing that would answer her questions. The only lead she had was one from last night, a blood trail leading into the Everfree forest. She had first suspected Timberwolves, but there was no way they could have killed a pony, or had any reason to drag them from their homes. She sighed heavily, placing the book that she was currently looking at back on its shelf. No matter how much she hated to console the zebra, she would have to. Zecora knew the place all too well. Gather a few necessary items. and saying goodbye to Spike. Worry was clear on his face because of the items in her saddle bag, giving away she thought she might be gone for a long time. With a strong hug from the purple dragon, she set off.
Traveling the forest was no hassle, but much fright came in place of it. She knocks on the door to the strange looking home, still feeling uneasy because of the masks that hung around it. A voice called from inside, the normal rhyming that the owner used.
"Come in, little pony, are you not glad that it is sunny?" Hesitantly, Twilight walked in, her hooves clopping on the floor and the boiling pot the only noises that filled the room.
"Yes, it is very nice outside today, isn't it?" She said, the smile on her face fading as she added in a whispered tone. "Too nice for what's been going on." The striped pony looked up, frowning.
"I do not understand, did something not go as you planned?" Trotting over, she motioned for the Unicorn to sit.
"Well, things have not been going the way I planned. Not the way any pony planned. Zecora, there have been missing ponies, young and old, and lots of them. And some of them have been proven to be dead. . ." Twilight trailed off, unable to go any further. Mostly because a couple of her friends were taken. She pawed lightly at the ground, biting her lip.
"Ah, I see." Standing, Zecora walked over to her boiling pot. "Lucky for you I made some tea." Zecora looked down at her pot and mixing it. A surprised inhale broke the silence.
"How is tea going to help me find them at all?!" She said, standing as well. At first, the only response was a chuckle. Then, Zecora fixed a large bowl of the strange black tea, hot steam rising and disappearing in the air.
"This tea is not what it seems, all we have to do is look past the steam." The bowl was brought to Twilight's face, the steam heating her face quickly. It began to stir by itself, churning and splashing. When it stopped, a scene of great horror was reveled. A creature draped in a black clock was dragging a bloody body; however, Twilight was able to determine who it was. It was Rainbow Dash, her wings in an awkward position, more than likely broken. A low, growl came from the Pegasus's throat, and she managed to mutter a few words.
"Just you wait.." She hissed, her voice cracking and horse. "I'll get you for this." With those words, her eyes unwillingly rolled to the back of her head, and she closed them. A cold sweat formed on Twilight's brow as she thought the situation through. There was no way in heaven or hell that something would beat Rainbow Dash to such a submissive state. She could have flown away so easily... but it was clear she didn't. Why didn't she? With a shaky sigh, she backed away from the bowl.
"There is no way. . . that. . . that thing exists!" Twilight shouted, her voice giving away her true terror and concern for Rainbow Dash instead of the creature.
"Oh, yes there is. But why it is here is a difficult quiz." She murmured, and went to a closed in area, coming back out with a dagger.
"Wh-what will I need that for?!" Twilight stuttered, shaking harder, as if it was possible.
"You need to fight, or else you will not see the daylight. Follow the blood, and stay away from the mud." Zecora answered, handing the dagger over. Only one last word came from her mouth. "Go." Without a moments hesitation, fueled simply by the urge to protect her friends, she ran off into the dark forest, giving an eerie feeling that day had long passed. She had no idea where she was going. No real direction was set, Twilight simply ran to the east of Zecora's home. As she ran, her head pounded, full of questions that went unanswered for a while. She ran till her legs gave out, ignoring the pain in her legs for a long time. When they did, she sat at a tree, huffing and leaning against the wood, ignoring how it scratched at her back, as if it wanted her off, and out of it's sight. Her horn glowed, and she brought out a sandwich, beginning to eat slowly. If she wanted to get anything done, she'd have to on a full stomach. Her munching was the only noise in the forest, quiet taking her over once more. When Twilight finished, she looked around, her eyes taking in all the could and her ears drinking up every noise that occurred. On every side of her was more forest, dark and tangling trees enclosing her. In the middle, though, there was a large clearing, an extremely large medical looking house was placed directly in the middle of said clearing. It appeared to be in decent shape for how old it seemed, the court yard and garden looking like they could have been considered beautiful at one point. But, all the concrete and marble was cracked, and any flowers that were left were wilted, grey, and ugly. The house itself was just as bad. It was dull, the chipped paint revealing it had been painted multiple times. There were some broken windows, and the walls were covered with vines. She frowned a bit, feeling a slight twinge of fright and. . . a strange feeling that she couldn't quite put her hoof on. What she did know was she needed to go inside. A large sign was placed conveniently before the steps to the front door, but it was also covered with parasitic greenery. Twilight pulled it off, reveling the name of the medical facility. It read, in horribly written letters: Everfree Asylum
A shiver ran down the Unicorn's spine, and uncertainty washed over her. The image of Rainbow Dash flashed through her mind, her heart reminding her brain of what she needed to do, of who she needed to save. Bravery replaced every doubt in her mind, and she walked up, opening the front door with no issues.
That's strange. . . Twilight thought, but shook her head. She needed to focus. Swiftly, she took out her flashlight, flicking it on. Thank Celestia she thought to pack that. The scene before her was possibly more horrid and nerve-wracking than the outside. A single florescent head light dangled, flickering on and off. There was what seemed to be a front desk, a skeleton of a middle aged pony with its head on the counter the only evidence of any life whatsoever. Blood was all over the floor, some areas more spread out, as if some pony had been dragged. Other areas were puddles of the burgundy liquid, suggesting they must have sat there, either dead or bleeding out. No bodies had appeared yet, for which Twilight was thankful. She walked forward, pushing past another door. The next area was more pleasant. There were doors about five feet apart, a hospital like look to them, with names and numbers on each door. Each of the rooms held about two ponies, or at least they used to. The hallway was very well lit, so Twilight put away her flash light and walked on. At the end of the hundred meter hall, there was a stair well, leading to the next floor. Twilight knew to check thoroughly, she'd have to go from the bottom up, and this place more than likely had a basement. She opened the door, and sure enough, there was a flight of stairs leading to the basement next to the ones going to the second floor. The walk down the stairs was short, and the basement was just as badly lit as the front room. Though Twilight suspected there would be some form of power provider down here. She kept going through the basement, her flash light back out. There was a door at the very end of the large, open basement, on the other end the exit. Deciding to check it, she opened the door and peeked through. When all was determined safe, she went in. The room was about two hundred feet across, and a hundred feet wide. She then began an investigation. This investigation was cut short when the open door slammed shut, and the battery's in Twilight's flash light went dead.