Equestrian Darkness

The Third Day of Heat began like the First 2, With the Only Difference Being the Attitudes of the Ponyfolk. Some Had spent plenty of time at the lake for their liking, and those who did still come to the lake seemed almost reluctant to spend another day In the water. Spike went with the Cutie Mark Crusaders that day to Make sure they stayed out of Trouble as they went around Ponyville.

At around noon, Pinkie Pie made a Comment that if she spent anymore time in the water, she might just grow some gills. By this time, The 5 Pony Friends Had all noticed and been concerned by the absence of rainbow dash. Around 1 they all decided that they needed to go see rainbow Dash and see how she was, for fear she had become ill or hurt. Little did they know that Somepony else had thought the same thing, but with different intentions, and darker expectations. Within Minutes this Pony had Managed to Fly to Rainbow Dash's Home, Whilst rainbows Friends Still Prepared to Journey to the sky. Their Purple Mane Flowed behind them as they Made Haste to the Sky home.

Just as this Pony arrived they Heard A clamor just inside and hid. After The Cloaked Figure Kicked Tank Off their leg and back into the house with a cursing, the Dark Pony Stepped to the Edge of the Cloudbase and Then Leapt into the air, descending into the distant Everfree forest. As soon as the Cloaked Figure Was Far away, the Mystery Pony Snuck through the front door, closing it behind them. Finding Tank struggling to get off his back, they Righted Him and Then continued quickly and Quietly, following the whispers and whimpers of A certain Sky Blue Pony.

When the Purple Pony crept into the room, their fears were confirmed. Rainbow Dash Was Pale, and Was Curled into a ball in the corner of her room. Whispering Unintelligable things to herself amidst frightened whimpers and pained whines. Just as the Purple Pony was nearing the Seemingly Broken Pegasus, they Heard Noises outside and Dove into the Closet.

The Sound was that of Twilight and Friends arriving in her balloon to Rainbow Dash's Home and Knocking on the Door. After a few moments of no reply, Twilight Knocked again. "I Don't Get it." She thought to herself. "Normally Rainbow is the One trying to get me outside, I Hope she's okay."

"Say, Do Y'all hear something?" Asked applejack. Once Everypony Was Quiet, They All Could hear the faint sound of Scraping.

Fluttershy looked up and Noticed Tank In the Window, scraping as frantically as his slow Body could manage. Fluttershy Noticed this and Remarked "I think somethings Wrong". Without a moments thought Applejack Reared up and Bucked the Door down.

"Applejack!" Exclaimed Rarity, "You don't even know if the Door was Locked! Now its Ruined."

"We'll have time to fix it later, If rainbow is In trouble i don't think she'll care about her door" said AJ as she Ran in Followed by twilight and Pinkie Pie.

Fluttershy went and Grabbed Tank, Who was obviously upset. Everypony Spread through the Home, Looking for Their Friend. Applejack was the one Who ran upstairs and found Rainbows Bedroom.

Once inside, the Sounds of distress from rainbow were easy to hear, and she was easy to find, still curled up in the corner. As soon as Applejack laid eyes on Rainbow dash, she Called to the Others. "Ah Found Her! Get Up Here Quick!"

Twilight was the First to arrive in the room. With a look of concern she trotted over and sat Next to Rainbow Dash. She Touched the Blue Pony on the Shoulder and Tried to Say "Whats Wrong?" But Before the First word left her Mouth, Rainbow Dash Recoiled from the Touch of her Friend as if wounded, and With a Hoarse Scream Bolted To the Door. In Her State of Delirium though, the Normally Very talented Flier Missed most of the Doorway, Connecting Her Shoulder and Wing with the Doorframe and Throwing Herself Downstairs and Into a Wall. The other ponies stood frozen either on the stairs or at their base, staring at their friend, now unconscious.

Rarity and Pinkie Pie Both Screamed When Their Friend Tore By them and Into the Wall, And Fluttershy Almost began to cry. Twilight Ran to the Top of the Stairs, "Get her Into the Balloon Girls! We're Going to the Hospital!" And Began to go Downstairs with AJ close Behind, When AJ heard something from the Bedroom. Going Back in, Aj Saw the Closet Door Sway Ever So Slightly. As She moved Closer to It, she Said Loudly "Who's There? Y'all Best Show Yerself or this'll Get Ugly". When She Was only a Foot from the Door, It Burst open and Connected bluntly with her Muzzle as a Flash of Purple Tried to Get Past her.

Within Moments AJ was Wrestling Furiously with The Unknown Pony, Assuming that They were responsible for Hurting Her Friend. Blows Were Thrown and Kicks Landed, But within a Minute AJ had the Purple Pony Pinned and Was Thrashing Her Against the Floor, All the while Yelling Her Questions, "Who are You?!" "What Did Y'all Do To Rainbow Dash!?" and So on. However her questions availed nothing, as she had already Beaten the Purple Pony Unconcious.

Twilight Yelled to Applejack, "Stop! We need her to Tell Us What Happened!" After Realizing that the Intruder was Unconcious, Aj Stopped Thrashing and Stood up. After Only Moments of Thought, AJ grabbed the Purple Pony and Dragged them Downstairs into the Now Crowded Balloon.

After a Few Minutes they reached the ground, and While Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy Rushed Rainbow Dash to the Hospital, Applejack and Twilight Brought their New 'Friend' to the Library.

"Get Rainbow to the Hospital, Girls," Yelled twilight, "We'll see what this pony knows and meet you there!" After Tying them to a Chair, AJ began to shake them awake. Once awake the Pony Struggled and then Realized the Situation and stopped. "Who Are You" Asked Twilight, "And what did you Do To Rainbow dash?"

The Purple Pony Squirmed Before Replying Boldly "I Was Trying to Help Her" to which Applejack Responded By Kicking the chair over. The Pony Grunted as they hit the floor, and Their Appearance seemed to Flicker for a Moment, Which Applejack Missed but Twilight Saw.

Once she finally grasped what she had seen, she gasped "She's a Changling" as Fear Washed over her.

"What? Here?" Applejack responded. "Might as well Just call Celestia Right Now then" AJ said Coldly, as she dragged the chair back to an upright position.

"NO WAIT!" The Changling Spurted just before tipping Backwards in the now uneven chair and hitting hard against the Ground, Smashing their Head as the Chitin Audibly Cracked and the Disguise Faded Completely. At this the Changling Began to shed a few tears as they said, "Stop! I was Trying to Help! Give me a Chance to-" But was Cut short by AJ who yelled,

"Y'all can just keep quiet!", now fuming over the thought that Rainbow might be hurt.

The changling finished with "Explain" in a voice barely louder than a whisper.

"Applejack, calm down for a second" mentioned twilight. "What do you Mean you were Trying to help? Why should we trust A changling?"

To Which the Changling Replied, "If You don't rainbow Dash Won't be the same after what is Happening to her." At that the Two Friends Were Quiet.

After a moment, Twilight Picked up a Knife using her Magic and Moved Closer. The Changling Seemed to Choke, but then just pressed against the ground, facing Away from twilight with a pained scowl, as if resigned to fate, while tears continued to go down their face. But the Wound never Came, Instead The Ropes Went lose as Twilight Let her Go. "If you are being Honest," said twilight, "then we'll trust you. But if That's a lie, then we'll be glad to see what the Royal guard does to captured Changlings." The Changling Sat there quietly, then Nodded.

"Applejack, Get going to the Hospital, make sure Rainbow is Okay. I'll be Right behind you." said twilight, who was now getting a first aid kit to bandage the changlings head from a high shelf.

"What and Leave you with a changling? Y'all can just forget that Idea." Applejack rebuked, then looked back at the changling with a scowl. "If you lie to us, i'll be glad to drag you to the Canterlot dungeons myself, Got it?"

The Changling nodded weakly as they sat up. Twilight approached with the first aid kit, and asked "Who are you?"

Sitting up straight, the changling wiped their Face. "My Name is Nightshade, and you already know i'm a changling, But please believe me when i say that i'm Different. Not all Changlings willingly give allegience to the Queen. A Few, like myself, Go into exile in other lands in order to avoid her schemes. But we can talk more about that Later. Your Friend has been Poisoned by another Changling i've been tracking for weeks. I believe he's been feeding off of your pegasus Friend. I will gladly tell you everything you want to know later, but right now we need to go and Help your friend before any damage becomes permanent." The changling then Slowly Changed back into the Purple Pony they were disquised as, a Purple flower with 5 petals and a yellow center as the cutie Mark. Twilight Recognized this Flower, as it was one that was incredibly poisonous. The changling Spoke once more when the Change was finished, "Please, we need to hurry if we are going to help your friend."

After a few moments in quiet deliberation, Applejack and Twilight Both Bolted for the Door, Nightshade Close Behind them. A couple minutes later they were at the Hospital and in the Room with Rainbow Dash. Nightshade explained That she had to wait till Rainbow Was awake, and Then Explained What she had before to the Ponies in the Room.

Then, After realizing that it might be a while before Rainbow woke up, Nightshade Began to Tell Her Story.

As She had Mentioned Before, Some Changlings choose not to follow the Rule of Queen Chrysallis. When Nightshade was younger, her mother was in the Royal Courts, though she hated every day of it. She Helped Nightshade to leave, but was unable to Come at the time because of Tension inside the Royal Courts. Nightshade Later Found that her Mother had been Executed for suspected treason against the Queen. Since that Time of Her Youth nightshade had become a vagabond in the lands of equestria, roaming from place to place with no real home. In the Coming Years she Met two other Changlings like her, another Mare named Angel Trumpet who lived alone in a distant cottage and a Colt named Oleander who supposedly lived within an hour or two of travel from Ponyville.

Nightshade then Began to Tell of More Recent events, such as the Surfacing of Gympie-Gympie, a notorious villain even among changlings, known for cruelty and a lust for power. Gympie had been reportedly seen crossing into equestria within the last year, and Nightshade had determined to find him once she learned that he performed her mothers execution before he was chased from the royal courts after he brutalized another high ranking changling. Queen Chrysalis had long thought he was extreme, even for a changling, and had often thought of removing him from his position. Nightshade had finally followed him to the area surrounding ponyville but she hadn't been able to actually find him until he attacked Rainbow dash. She had also heard Gympie was traveling with an accomplice named Belladonna, though she hadn't found any evidence of them being anywhere near Ponyville.

The reason Gympie was so dangerous was that he had supposedly found a way to absorb Power from Emotions other than Love. And Even Though None Were actually as potent as Love, gympie had found that it was easier to Extract power from Fear and Despair, almost as powerful as love, and that he could gain power from them more readily than Love. Though Nightshade and Her Friends hadn't yet Figured out why, they all believed that Gympie was attempting to Gain Power, and a lot of it. Angel Trumpet had Set out more than a week ago to Search out a ruin rumored to be near where gympie crossed the border into equestria, but of which there was no actual record or proof, and even though there was no obvious tie between it and Gympie, they had strong suspicions.

After sharing all these things, Rainbow dash began to stir, which immediately got everypony's attention. Rainbow dash Slowly Opened Her Eyes, and even as they first opened, it could be seen that she was still full of fear, so much so that she began to shake. Acting Quickly, Nightshade Began to use her magic, fueled now by the surrounding love and concern of Rainbow's Friends, and Attempted to Clear the Mind of Rainbow Dash, Whose eyes began to glow slightly.

"Speak to Her" Nightshade Whispered to the Ponies.

"Dashie are you there?" Blurted Pinkie Pie.

"Rainbow Dash, We're all Here" said twilight.

"Rainbow, Can ya Hear us?" Asked Applejack.

Rainbow Dash Stopped shaking when she heard her friends voices, but tears started coming from her eyes. "Girls?" She Almost Started Sobbing. "I'm Scared."

"Rainbow Dash, You Don't Know Me, But My Name is Nightshade. I'm Here to Help You, but in order to do that I Need you To focus. Can you do that for me?"

"what?" asked rainbow dash with a sniff.

"I'm going to Help You, but i need you to Concentrate. Can you do that for me Rainbow?"

"I... I Think so" Said Rainbow Dash, whiping her Nose.

"Rainbow, I think you've Been Poisoned. Have You eaten or drank anything strange Recently?"

Rainbows Dash's eyes grew wider, and her voice started to get shaky as she said, "Poisoned?"

"Rainbow i need you to think. You're going to be okay, but i need you to Work with me okay? Did anyone give you anything out of the ordinary recently?" Nightshade was now directly next to Rainbow Dash on her Left.

"I... I... there was a box at my door last night, i think."

"what was in it?"

"A drink Powder"

"Do you remember What Color it was?"

"I think... it was blue"

"Are you Sure?"

"I Think so. I Mixed it with water and drank it right before i was going to go to bed, and then..." Rainbow's Eyes Started to overflow with tears again.

"Then What Rainbow? What Happened?" Nightshade asked, a hint of Desperation in her voice.

Rainbow Dash choked on her Tears, "After that all I Can Remember Are My Nightmares. I wan't to forget those." She said sniffling.

"That's Fine Rainbow. Forget the nightmares. Don't think about them. Do You remember Anything else?"

"I... I don't... Somepony at my door... then just the nightmares..." Rainbow Dash Started to Cry again.

"Thats okay Rainbow, Don't think about them. We're all here for you. Think about your friends, Okay? Keep talking to them for me? Can you do that?"

"Yeah. I can do that." She said, her crying now under control.

Nightshade Stepped away From Rainbow dash, and Fluttershy, rarity and Pinkie Pie began trying to help rainbow Dash Stay Calm. "Applejack, are you familiar with the plant Poison Joke?" asked Nightshade.

A quizzical look washed over applejack, "Yeah we had a Bad run in with it a while back. Why?"

"I Need you to Get some For Me. Wear some Gloves and You'll be fine, but i need you to get some." Applejack looked at Twilight, Confused. After Twilight told her to hurry, AJ ran out the door. Nightshade then Spoke To Twilight, "Do you Know anywhere you can get Firespinner?"

"Fire-What?" For once twilight was hearing of something for the very first time.

"Firespinner, its a Plant. Do you know anypony that is really into Rare or special Herbs?"

"Uhh... Zacora is into that stuff. She Might Have it."

"Thats as good a chance as any. I'll Work to keep rainbow dash Calm and awake, But while i do that i need you to get that for me. When You and Applejack come back with those i'll be able to Help Rainbow Dash More. Hurry."

With that Twilight Ran out the Door. Meanwhile Nightshade thought to herself, "Now all thats left is to Try and Minimize Her memories of all this. Poor Pony, I can only imagine what her nightmares were." At that Nightshade Shuddered and Went back to Using magic to Keep Rainbow Dash Awake and Calm.