Science Is For The Mad

Chapter 1

The beastly figure roamed my hallways. I felt a wonderful feeling of both success and absolute terror. I had the lab locked up tight, so he couldn't get in and wreck my life's work. Sadly, there was but one problem; I wasn't in the lab.

I had absolutely no clue what the hell that monstrosity in my house was, and that was surprisingly, a wonderful feeling. A feeling of adventure, wonder, and complete horror. It felt like this world was perfect. And I was going to make it better. Hiding in the bathroom wasn't going to help me last long, so I used a special spell I had learned to see through the door. Nothing. The ghostly shape of a stallion wasn't there to greet my eyes, only my empty hallway was showing; a warm welcoming to step out of the restroom. This creature was very different compared to most of the species I studied; he consisted of a black smoke, thicker than stone itself. The smoke took up the shape of a stallion, and the only part of him that was distinguishable between him and the shadows were his eyes. The dark red bulbs took up most of his "face", and they weren't anymore welcoming than the rest of him.

I decided to name this monstrosity "Tenebris Equum", old pony speak for "Dark Stallion". When he had first seen me, he slowly turned towards me and began to creep forth, a path of shadows following him. His eyes paralyzed me; the red voids staring into my very soul. I slowly began to heat up once I stared back, and as soon as I felt a burning pain in my horn and face, I cringed and closed my eyes, the pain disappearing shortly after. My flesh had regrown, showing that just so long as you stare into Tenebris's eyes, you will slowly burn to a crisp. If you break eye contact prior to death, your flesh will regenerate.

That was when I ran to the bathroom and locked the door. I also learned he has some form of allergy to physical contact with the living. He, at one point, bumped into me and when he did, I heard the most terrifying noise I will ever hear. It sounded like a thousand voices screaming out at once, despair filling the mass of screams. Tenebris recoiled in what I assumed to be pain. I could barely make out words in a strange language I was yet to learn. Judging by the tone, I believed it was a plead for help.

And now here I was, sitting in the bathroom, getting ready to leave to my laboratory. I creaked open the door, to see that there was no Tenebris to be found. Relieved, I creeped out into the hallway. I then sprinted to the lab, unlocked it with my unicorn magic, and stomped in, slamming the door and sliding all 12 locks into place.

"Whew!" I let out a sigh of relief and fell to the floor, panting. I then noticed how much sweat I was producing. "Looks like it's time to send him back to wherever he came from." I grumbled, checking my clock. I closed my eyes and tried to remember which spell it was. Let's see... Fear inducement.... Numbness.... Heat vision....  Extinguish... Incinerate...  Aha! Here it is!" My mind was like a spell encyclopedia. I unlocked the door. Feeling confident, I strode into the hallway. I wasn't sure where to look for Tenebris first, so I decided the kitchen would be the place to look first. I took a left in the hallway, heading towards the kitchen. Once I got there, I was angered by my inability to find him. But, I did not let my anger overcome me.

Because he wasn't in the kitchen, I considered that he might be in the living room. Perhaps he needed a rest? I went back to the hallway, and walked down it. I took a left at the end of the hallway into the living room. I was getting angrier and angrier. Where the hell was he? Trying my best to keep my cool, I decided perhaps the bedroom would be a good option, too. I went to my bedroom and, you guessed it, he wasn't there either. I was about to shout in anger, but I was stopped by the feeling of breathing going down my spine.

"Ah. There you are." I mumbled, my anger changing to fear. I turned around, eyes closed, and swung my hoof into his face. The screams echoed in my ears, filling me with dread. "Don't like it, do ya'?" I asked rhetorically. I hit him again. This time, he flew back. Feeling success swell in my veins, I leaped onto him. The screams didn't stop. I didn't want to kill him, though, so I got off. "Right, seems you've 'ad enough, so I'm sendin' you home. Cheers!" I said, waving goodbye and using the spell known as "Return". My horn flashed grey, and the horrendous beast was sent home. "Good riddance, you bastard." I grumbled. I went back to the lab. Levitating a notepad and pencil off a desk, I began to jot down notes.

Name: Tenebris Equum

Test subject no. 24

Height: Aproximately 7 feet.

Weight: Unclear

Diet: None.

Danger level: 84%

Gender: Male

Similar to: No similarities

Movement speed: 6mph maximum.

Methods of killing: Unclear.

I placed the pad and pencil back onto the desk. There was a knocking on the door.

"I'll be but a moment!" I shouted to the door. I left the lab, closed the door behind me, and opened the front door. "Ah, Cinder! What brings you here?" I asked the mare at the door.

"Well, first, I heard shouting, then weird screaming, then cussing, and I was wondering if you were hurt, Professor." she explained. Most ponies would have an alarmed tone, but she knew about my experiments, and this was practically normal.

"I'm fine. Just had a particularly dangerous test subject." I explained. She nodded in understanding. "I'm not hurt." There was an awkward silence for exactly 32.8 seconds, until it was broken by Cinder's lovely voice.

"Well, best get back to breakfast." she decided.

"I have a nap to attend." I replied. I hadn't slept at all the night before, because I feared getting killed in my sleep. That fear was now gone.

-2 hours later-

I woke up. Now, I could go and look around Ponyville for any time rifts. They would occasionally appear after sending a test subject back. They were easy to fix, luckily. But if they were there too long, the planet could be sucked in. The only reason I only needed to look in Ponyville was because the rifts would only appear within a kilometer of where the spell was cast.

It was a sunny day, and it seemed almost everypony was out in the street. Most  of them were gardening, or chatting, but of course the more "sophisticated" individuals were arguing, or gloating over their money. Yes indeed, the rich residents of Ponyville were morons. They thought they were nobles, but did they risk their lives for the sake of science? Did they dedicate their lives to studying the weird and wonderful? Hell no! Did they risk their life for ANYTHING?! Hell no! They deserved no glory.

I searched for 3 hours, but failed to find a time rift. This was concerning, because there was almost always at least 2. I would soon find an explanation.

I was nearly successful with being outside without communicating with anypony for nearly 3 hours! A new record, ruined by my neighbor Pinkiepie.

"Whaccha' doin'?" the pink mare asked, bouncing alongside me back towards my house.

"Going home." I mumbled. She gave me a concerned look.

"What's wrong?" she asked, tilting her head.

"Nothing. Just concerned about something." I answered, getting worried.

"Why? It's just another normal day!" she questioned, clearly confused.

"Because of something to do with my latest experiment." I replied.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Nothing." I replied.

"Then what's wrong?!" she asked.

"I-.... Nevermind..." I grumbled. Finally, I had gotten to my house. I opened the door and walked inside. Closing the door, I removed my cape and dropped it to the ground. I needed to think for a while.