Dreaded Shadowsby RinderinChaptersChapter 1: BedtimeChapter 2: Something Lurks in the Darkness Chapter 3: Let Sleeping Monsters Lie Chapter 4: WonderlandChapter 5: BrokenChapter 1: BedtimeAuthor's Note Worry not dear reader! The rest of the story's chapters shall be longer than this, and according to how well the story is reacted to, the update rate should be fairly frequent! Thanks! Bye! Chapter 1: Bedtime Dreaded Shadows Chapter 1: Bedtime "Sleep well darling." Rarity cooed to her younger sibling before tucking her in, a warm, welcoming smile spread across her face. "Goodnight Rarity." Sweetie Belle replied, before yawning and turning to lie on her side. Sweetie Belle had been through a rather tiring day of Crusading. Her energy had finally run out, and she was more than ready to welcome slumber and drift off to a wonderful dream. She could only faintly hear Rarity softly closing the door behind her as the room was submerged into absolute darkness, save for the white light of the moon shining through her bedroom window. Tomorrow was the beginning of a new school year, so I had better get some sleep tonight so that I don't pass out in class... again. Sweetie Belle thought to herself. A soft smile emerged as she found herself losing consciousness and slipping into the dream world. Suddenly, a light tapping sound broke the silence somewhere in the corner of the room. At first it didn't disturb her, but as time passed, the tapping grew progressively louder. Sweetie's smile slowly turned into a frown, as she began tossing and turning in her bed, the tapping growing louder and louder. Finally, Sweetie awoke from her slumber, beads of sweat dripping from her. The tapping had stopped. Sweetie, lay back into her sweat stained bed and sighed, "Darn nightmares." she complained, before turning on to her side again. Just as she closed her eyes, the tapping started up again. Again Sweetie Belle disregarded the tapping completely and attempted to fall asleep again. Then she heard the breathing. Same as the tapping, it too begun as something barely noticeable. Almost as if it were distant and far away. But as time progressed, it too grew louder, until Sweetie Belle finally took notice of it. Still sleepy, she opened her eyes slowly in an attempt to locate the source of the sound. It appeared that it had come from an especially dark corner of her room. No... this corner was just darker than the others, it was completely pitch black, like some kind of void. It was only when the void seemed to shift slightly that Sweetie Belle truly accepted what was going on. Something was in the corner of the room and as the tapping and breathing grew louder, she realized that it seemed to slowly inching it's way towards her. Sweetie Belle was completely overcome by fear, she dared not move, lest she disturb whatever monstrosity lurked in the shadows. Constantly closing and opening her eyes, she silently prayed that her eyes were simply playing tricks on her and that nothing was really in the corner. Of course however, these prayers were in vain. She contemplated calling out for Rarity, but began second guessing herself. What if Rarity couldn't get here fast enough, what if the monster tried to hurt both her and Rarity? Another shift in the darkness made Sweetie realize that she was running out of time, she had to think of something quickly, lest the creature come to close. The monster shifted again, now less than two meters away from Sweetie's bed. Sweetie's breath became strained and her heart rate quickened. Sweetie Belle stared once more into the void, and to her horror, it stared back. Indeed, the shimmer of two beady black eyes became more pronounced as the rest of the monstrosity's feature began to emerge from the darkness of the shadows. The creature's head slipped from the darkness, it appeared sticky and slimy, similar to the wet skin of an amphibian, except as black as night. Perhaps the only part of the creature that was darker than it's skin was it's eyes. It had no muzzle, nor a snout or nose of any description, merely a flat forehead, accompanied by a wicked mouth which was curled into a horrid grin. The monster placed it's claw-like appendages onto the edge of Sweetie's bed, before it opened it's mouth, revealing hundreds of pristine white, sharp, pointed teeth and a disgusting tongue, not dissimilar from that of a serpent's. Instead of pouncing on Sweetie Belle (of whom was already in tears), the creature began to wheeze and cackle, a certain sense of wickedness emitting from the abomination's mouth. The creature's breath was vile and putrid, smelling of decay. It washed over her, making her gag and eliciting frightened whimpers from the terrified filly. It raised one of it's claws and began stroking her scalp, Sweetie dared not move, if the creature was enraged, it would surely spell her doom. So instead, she remained as still as possible, doing her best to control her whimpering and shivering as the monstrosity continued to claw at her scalp. The stroking was not painful, simply unpleasant and it made Sweetie feel increasingly uncomfortable as the creature quickened it's pace. Sweetie closed her eyes, she could no longer bare to see the creature, it was all simply too frightening to the young filly. The creature didn't take well to this, not even a second after she had closed her eyes, the monstrosity leapt onto her bed and pinned Sweetie underneath one of it's claws. It yet again opened it's foul mouth, the creature's tongue began rapidly wiggling around in it's mouth as it neared Sweetie's face. When the creature tried stuffing it's tongue into her mouth, Sweetie's attempts to stay calm and resolved had been completely abandoned. She hastily pulled her head away from the creature and desperately wiggled out of it's grip before screaming as loudly as she possibly could, "RARITY, HELP ME!". Almost immediately, the creature leapt off the bed and shrunk back to the shadowy corner from whence it came. Rarity had spent her night in bed, reading a designer's magazine and sipping from a warm cup of tea. She smiled to herself gleefully as she spotted one of her own dresses in the magazine, astounded by how beautiful it was compared to all the others. With another sip from her tea, Rarity laid down her magazine and instead lifted up her knitting kit and set to work repairing one of her client's scarves. She always felt so at peace when knitting late night. Sweetie Belle had gone to bed much earlier and with surprising ease as well. Normally it would've been a battle to ensure that the filly was asleep, but after checking on her a few minutes afterwards, she found the filly deep into slumber. Rarity slowly closed her eyes unknowingly, her magic working to the pattern of the scarf. Suddenly, somepony screamed from somewhere in the house "RARITY, HELP ME!". Rarity shot out of bed, sending the knitting kit and scarf tumbling onto the floor as she stumbled towards her door and hurried towards Sweetie Belle's room. As she reached Sweetie's door, she could still hear her screaming frantically inside. She pushed the door open and turned on the lights, "Sweetie Belle, are you all right? What's wrong darling?" Sweetie Belle was cowering against the headboard of her bed, her screaming had ceased but she was still panting and crying uncontrollably. Her bed was soaked and the duvet and covers had both been undone and messed up. Rarity approached her sibling and sat on the bed, "Sweetie, what happened darling? Did you wet the bed?" she asked, cutting a glance at the drenched beddings. "I-in the corner..." Sweetie Belle mumbled quietly. "I'm sorry darling, what?" Rarity asked with the most caring voice imaginable. "It's in the corner..." Sweetie spoke up, too afraid to gaze upwards. Rarity looked around the room, still confused as to what her younger sister had meant by 'In the corner'. She looked back to her obviously terrified sibling, "Sweetie... what do you mean by 'in the corner'?" she asked softly. Sweetie Belle finally built up the courage to look at her sister, "It's in the corner, please make it go away!" she cried before gazing once more at the corner from where the creature first emerged from. She reeled back, crying out once again, "RARITY, HELP ME!" before burrowing her tiny head into her older sister's fur. Rarity looked up at the corner confused, "Sweetie, what are you talking about... there's nothing in that corner, or this entire room for that fact," She stood up and looked underneath the bed and then in the closet ", See? There's absolutely nothing in here!." she said, in an attempt to comfort her frightened sibling. Sweetie Belle stopped crying for a moment and looked up at her sister in shock, "W-what do you mean that there's nothing here! Don't you see it in the corner?" Sweetie looked at the corner again, her eyes widening further, "It's smiling at me!" By then, Rarity had begun to become exceedingly worried about her younger sister. Oh dear, what could this poor filly possibly be talking about? There's nopony in this room excepting myself and her she thought to herself. "Sweetie Belle, what exactly is this... thing which you're talking about? Sweetie Belle's mouth gaped wide open, her sister truly couldn't see the monstrosity standing right behind her, it's ugly head hanging right over Rarity's shoulder. It was still smiling, it's piranha-like teeth cascading over each other. It tilted it's head to one side, before opening it's mouth again, to reveal it's horrid tongue once more. It looked at her and then at Rarity's ear. It's one eye had twisted itself to a angle so that it could always watch Sweetie Belle in the corner of it's eyes. "NO DON"T!" Sweetie Belle cried loudly! The creature sniffed once, before thrusting it's tongue down Rarity's ear, releasing sickening sloshing sounds as it grasped Rarity tightly with it's claws. Rarity remained completely confused as to what exactly Sweetie Belle was crying about, she looked at Sweetie inquisitively as her younger sister continued demanding that she stop. In Sweetie's perspective, the creature was choking her sister, it's tongue still deep into Rarity's ear. Her sister had stopped struggling and appeared to be losing consciousness. When Rarity finally stood up, Sweetie Belle seemed to have calmed down slightly and wrapped her tiny forelegs around her sister's neck, constantly repeating the phrase "I'm sorry." over and over again. The creature had returned back to the shadows, having released Rarity from it's grasp, it's wicked smile never leaving it's face even once. It crawled into an impossibly small space underneath her closet, it's eyes still watching from underneath. Fortunately, it appeared that Rarity hadn't been affected by the creature. Rarity realized that her sister had probably just woken up from a nightmare or something of the like, "Darling, would you prefer to sleep in my bed tonight?" she asked sympathetically. Sweetie simply nodded, her gaze staying on the monstrous creature residing underneath her closet. Rarity smiled, "First, let me clean up your bed a little, why don't you go wait in my room a bit while I change the sheets?" Sweetie's breathing picked up again, there was absolutely no way that she was going to let Rarity be in this room alone with that... thing. "I-It's okay Rarity, I'll help you with that!" she chirped as convincingly as possible. "If you're sure darling." Rarity replied with a gentle smile. Sweetie Belle didn't get a wink of sleep that night. She watched the door, acting as a look out, just in case the creature attempted to enter their room. She wondered about the beast, where did it come from? How did it get into her room? Things she would have to investigate. She was fairly certain that it was still there in her room, hiding in the shadows Sweetie couldn't have been happier when the sun finally rose up. She crawled out of bed and made her way back to her room. With some hesitance, she opened the door and as she suspected, the creature was nowhere to be found. Had she imagined it all? Perhaps it had all been a terrible nightmare of some kind and Rarity had found her and brought her to her room. Yeah, that's it she thought to herself, before returning to Rarity's room and collapsing onto the bed. She opened her eyes once, a gleeful smile spread across her face. And then the tapping started again. She searched for the origin of the noise and to her horror, there sat the creature tapping against the base of one of Rarity's closets, a smile spread onto it's face. There it sat, in the dreaded shadows. Chapter 2: Something Lurks in the Darkness Chapter 2: Something Lurks in the Darkness Chapter 2: Something Lurks in the Darkness Two weeks have passed since Sweetie Belle's first encounter with the monstrosity. Every night the creature would emerge from the shadows to torment her and every night she would scream desperately for help. The creature tormented her differently every night, on some nights it would shriek and yell at her, on others it would simply loom over her with it's unnatural smile. However, for the past two nights, Sweetie Belle had been left in peace. And as she lay in her bed, the harsh reality that the peace was about to expire truly dawned upon her. For there in the shadows the creature lurked silently, like a leopard stalking it's prey. Oddly enough, the creature didn't move. Instead, it continued watching her, toying with it's prey before ultimately devouring it. Then something unexpected happened, something new, something sinister and cruel. It appeared that darkness had begun to seep out from underneath the closet. It came like a tidal wave, flowing towards her bed. Soon, the darkness had almost completely covered the floor of her room and had begun to climb up the legs of her bed and onto her mattress. As the darkness swarmed over her, she found that she could no longer move, nor scream. The darkness reached her neck. No, not darkness. It felt as though thousands upon thousands of tiny claws were stabbing at her. As the darkness reached her face, she finally discovered what was really surrounding her. Cockroaches. Hundreds upon thousands of them. As they finally reached her face, she instinctively closed her mouth and kept it shut with as much power as she could muster. However, her efforts were to no avail, as the creature (who had crept up to her bedside) kept her mouth agape with it's claws. The cockroaches poured in, some being crunched and crushed as the monster forced Sweetie Belle to chew. Nasty cockroach innards splattered inside her mouth and every desperate attempt she made to scream was drowned out as more and more of them swarmed down her throat, causing her to gag and desperately cough. After what seemed like an eternity, the creature released her from it's grip. Immediately, she shut her mouth, slicing a hopeful cockroach in half, splashing even more juice onto her fur. Sweetie slid off the side of her bed, landing with a soft thump onto the carpeting. It appeared that the cockroaches had returned to the shadows, leaving her and the creature completely alone. She crawled a bit away from her bed shoved a hoof into her mouth. She could still taste their juices in her mouth and even feel them moving around inside of her body. They had to get out. She felt her body start to convulse as she gagged, the cockroaches still scraping against her insides. Finally, after what seemed like half an hour, her body finally surrendered, vomit spewing out of her mouth, her body convulsing even more as the insects left her body. Only when her stomach no longer had anything to offer her did Sweetie Belle cease her retching and heaving. She collapsed next to the puddle, her throat burning and her mouth tasting of bile. After a few minutes, she drifted off into unconsciousness Sweetie Belle had been fleeing from her assailant for hours now. Cuts and bruises from the tree branches and bushes covered her body. Adrenaline was the only thing keeping her going, that and her will to survive. Her body plead and begged her to stop this torture. To stop running and simply give in. But she was already beyond the point of no return, she had pushed her body to nearly impossible limits thus far and she would continue to do so until she finally escaped. Of course, that would've been possible, had a jagged cliff-face not been blocking her path. She could hear the monstrosity heaving and wheezing, it was no more than five meters behind her. As dirt turned to gravel, which turned to hard rock, she realized that she had run out of both time and forest. She was like a small, insignificant animal, cornered by a ferocious predator awaiting it's next meal eagerly. Knowing that the chase was over, the creature slowly emerged from the woods, a twisted smile spread onto it's face. It stalked towards her with leisure, taking great enjoyment in her suffering. It approached Sweetie Belle (who had backed up to the edge of the cliff) and swiped at her shoulder with one of it's midnight claws, eliciting a shriek of pain from the young filly. It began cackling again, saliva dripping onto the stone below. Sweetie raised a hoof to where the monster swiped at her, warm, black blood stained her hoof as she investigated it. The cut was deep and very painful, yet not fatal by any means. The creature wasn't trying to go for a killing blow too early, after all, where's the fun in that? The creature began to pace in front of her, still cackling away, taking short, strained breaths as it did so. Using one of it's claws, it tugged Sweetie Belle's foreleg, drawing her closer to itself, hold her mere centimeters away from it's face. The abomination took in her fear, it could feel her shivering and it could hear her pathetic whimpering. The creature tightened it's grip as Sweetie Belle desperately tried to tug away. Her efforts were to no avail, the creature simply kept digging deeper into her foreleg, eliciting more cries of pain from the filly. The creature didn't release it's grip until it's claws drew blood. It dropped Sweetie Belle, who could no longer walk properly due to the immense pain, so instead she limped away to the best of her ability. With another wicked cackle, the monster tugged at Sweetie Belle's hind leg with immense strength, making her lose her footing and bust her lip on the stone. Sweetie Belle knew that she couldn't even walk, let alone run away from this creature, so any attempts to do so would be absolutely futile. This was where she would die, the hunt was over. The creature had won. Instead of trying to flee again, Sweetie Belle simply began sobbing, feeding the creature's sadistic nature. The creature looked towards the forest, before releasing a horrid clicking sound, which was responded to by a rustling in a nearby bush. Sweetie Belle looked up with all her strength as her sister was carried in to the clearing atop the backs of a huge swarm of cockroaches. With another wicked smile, the monstrosity moved towards Rarity, each step was accompanied by a clacking sound as it's claws scraped the stone flooring. She could only watch in absolute horror as the creature lifted Rarity away from the swarm and tossed her into the clearing. Sweetie Belle tried to move, but she was too weak. The adrenaline had faded and her body was aching terribly. Even moving her right forehoof slightly caused her insurmountable pain. Rarity had begun to stir, the impact of the creature's throw had brought her back to consciousness. She looked up shakily at Sweetie Belle, "S-Sweetie Belle, is that you?" she whimpered. "R-R-Rarity..." was all that Sweetie Belle could muster, her busted lip causing every word that leaves her mouth to elicit a sharp sting of pain. The creature circled Rarity, methodically planning what it was going to do to it's newest playmate. All Sweetie Belle's strength had left her, so she simply laid there, limply watching as the creature lifted Rarity from the ground by her throat with one of it's black claws and tore her ear off, making Rarity scream in pain. The monster threw Rarity onto the floor and pinned her underneath it's weight, it's spike covered kneecaps digging into her soft flesh. The abomination forced her mouth open, before spewing a torrent of insects down her throat. Sweetie Belle lost her dinner for the second time that night. As a final touch, the monstrosity turned back to Sweetie Belle, it's teeth drenched in blood. The abomination lifted Rarity one last time, making her face towards the cowering filly, before eviscerating Rarity's belly, disemboweling her. Sweetie Belle screamed as the beast finally released her deceased sister and lifted her up as well, dangling her over the edge of the cliff face. The creature smiled once more, before dropping Sweetie Belle into the abyss below. Sweetie Belle... She could still hear her sister calling her as she fell into the void of darkness below. She could no longer see the cliff face, nor feel the sensation of falling. It felt like nothing to her. Was this what death felt like? Sweetie Belle.. Rarity's calls were getting louder, perhaps she was waiting for her? Sweetie Belle. Sweetie Belle had never really thought about death before. It was something rarely spoken about, it was almost taboo in some senses. Or perhaps the population simply ignored death, pushed it aside, like a storm looming on the horizon. "Sweetie Belle!" Rarity screamed from the top of her lungs as she shook her sister, this time she woke up. Sweetie Belle's eyes widened with shock as she awoke. Had that really been a dream? It all seemed so realistic, she could almost still feel the pain from where the monster hurt her. Indeed, she was lying where she had passed out the previous night, on the floor, next to a now dried puddle of bile. Her back ached from lying on the cold flooring but asides from that, she felt fine. Rarity on the other hand appeared to have been crying. Her eyes were bloodshot and her fur appeared to be wet and moist from where the tears had fallen. Instinctively, Sweetie Belle looked around the room for any sign of the monstrosity and luckily saw absolutely no sign that the creature had ever been in the room in the first place. Rarity leaned in and smothered her younger sibling in a fierce hug, "Y-you scared my so much! You were shaking terribly and talking about some kind of monster in your sleep." she cried, fresh tears staining Sweetie Belle's coat. "I-I'm alright Rarity, I promise." Sweetie Belle replied, she had begun crying too. Rarity looked at her sister. She was an absolute mess! She smelled of bile and sweat, her mane was messy and disorganized and her eyes had visible rings underneath them. It appeared like she had not slept at all last night. "Sweetie, you're obviously not 'alright'." Rarity gestured, "I'm going to schedule you a doctor's appointment right away!". Just like Rarity, always worrying about me. Sweetie Belle thought to herself. "I'm fine Rarity, really, you don't have to spend any bits on me." Sweetie Belle replied, smiling with as much enthusiasm as she could possibly muster. Rarity smiled, "What kind of a sister would I be if I didn't look after my younger sibling? Now, you've been acting strange for the past two weeks and I can't bear to see you like this any more!". Sweetie Belle attempted to protest, but Rarity quickly silenced her, "Now listen Sweetie Belle, it's for your own good. Now, you can stay home today and I'll try to organize the appointment for tomorrow, alright darling?". Sweetie Belle simply nodded, there was no convincing Rarity otherwise now. After a few more assurances from Sweetie Belle that she'd be fine by herself, Rarity left to go organize her appointment at the hospital. The bile had been cleaned up and she was completely alone in the boutique, excepting of course Opal who was taking a rather leisurely nap in Rarity's work room. Almost immediately after Rarity left, Sweetie Belle hopped out of bed and searched the entire boutique, top to bottom for the creature. She had searched almost every room when a thought occurred to her. What if it can only move in the darkness?. After all, the creature only appeared at night and the earliest the monster had ever shown it's face was when the sun had only barely risen. But where could it be staying then? The basement. A look of absolute horror crossed her face. There was absolutely no way that she would go into the basement by herself, daytime or not. At least, she wouldn't go alone. Chapter 3: Let Sleeping Monsters Lie Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.Chapter 4: WonderlandAuthor's Note I am back, it's official! As you're reading this chapter, I'd like to mention that this is certainly not a crossover, the likeness of a certain character to another character is both completely intended and completely necessary for her character! It may not make sense now, but it will! Chapter 4: Wonderland A month ago, Ponyville was shocked by the revelation of a gruesome double homicide involving two fillies inside Carousel Boutique, home of the Element of Generosity. We have recently been updated with some very disturbing details of the tragic incident, by Rarity herself. Allegedly, she had visited a local clinic to arrange an appointment for her sister, who had “been having bad nightmares. Whilst she was out, Sweetie Belle (Rarity’s younger sibling) had arranged for her two friends, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, to meet her at the boutique. Once the youngsters had arrived, Sweetie Belle had her two friends into the boutique’s basement, where she brutally murdered them. “Scootaloo, a physically miniscule pegasus, had almost certainly been the first to perish’ claimed Dr. Splatter, a forensics expert from Canterlot. he continues to say “Her neck had been snapped in three different places, and her skull had suffered intense blunt force trauma, caused by what we assume to be brick found nearby the filly’s body.”. Scootaloo had been an orphan in life, with only a guardian in the form of Rainbow Dash, Element of Loyalty. “Apple Bloom’s murder had likely taken a great deal of effort.” says the pathologist who performed autopsies on both of the fillies. “She suffered a great deal of bruising and several deep scrapes along the side of her abdomen. her most noticeable injury and likely the cause of her demise, were twenty seven stab wounds dotted throughout her midsection and upper body. We suspect that several of the stabs had pierced her lungs, causing internal bleeding.” Thus far, little has been heard of Sweetie Belle, who after a short trial had been detained in the Ridgeworks Psychiatric Centre, some ways out of town. From what we have heard, whenever questioned on her atrocious actions on that terrible day, she repeatedly blames her murders on “the monster”. Her older sister, Rarity had later discovered after intense psychiatric sessions that “the monster” referred to a terrible beast tormenting Sweetie Belle’s dreams. Psychologists and psychiatrists alike working at the asylum have determined that Sweetie Belle had been suffering from vivid hallucinations of the beast. The Royal Guard have yet to comment on the incident, merely stating “That they are working closely with Ridgeworks to uncover the truth of what had happened in the basement that day”. Thus far, Apple Bloom has been arranged to be cremated by her older siblings, Big Macintosh and Apple Jack. Several ponies close to the victims have organized a memorial service for the fillies, which is to be hosted within the city hall under jurisdiction of the Mayor herself. We here at The Ponyville Express give our greatest condolences to the families affected by this horrid tragedy. One Week after the incident. Rarity saw only darkness. An all consuming blackness had enveloped her. As though she were lost within the confines of some unimaginably dark hole - falling deeper and deeper into the abyss. As though she had followed a rabbit to a hole and fallen in, yet never hit the ground. She heard nought, nor did she feel. For she was numb - numb to her friends, herself. And thus she stayed in the pitch blackness, away from preening psychologists and conspiring journalists. Away from her friends. I can’t face them - what would I tell them? That two fillies had been butchered in my basement by my own little sister? My sister. She shut her eyes tight again and tried to focus on the ever-present static silence - anything to push out her memories. She couldn’t face the truth, her psyche couldn’t handle it - it was too much for her to handle. No, no, no, no - it isn’t true, it can’t be true. She reminisced of a time gone past, a happier time. A time when everything wasn't so numb to her - when everything was fine. A time when her friends were with her, when she wasn't so alone in her mind - when all she’d think about were trivial, normal, happy things. What dress she’d wear, when her spa session would begin, the smiling faces of her friends, Sweetie Belle’s beautiful smile. Sweetie Belle. It’s all wrong, all those happy memories - they’re so far now. Their happy faces... all … gone - their faces, oh sweet Celestia their faces. So lifeless, like something magical had left their eyes, leaving behind only a bloodied husk. Fake, they were fake, they were too full of life to just vanish - it couldn't be true. Then suddenly, the darkness dissipated, and Rarity found herself forcing her eyes open. She could hear voices, but they seemed so distant. A hoof touched her forearm, and she found herself ripped from her paralysis. She sat in a cold, dark room, which she quickly made out to be her kitchen. To her left stood a concerned Fluttershy, who still rested her hoof on Rarity’s forearm. “I’ve been trying to wake you up for the past five minutes, you were starting to scare me.” Fluttershy said softly, “You shouldn’t be in here in the dark by yourself, it’s not good for you.”. Slowly, she sat down next to Rarity, who had huddled herself into the corner of a set of drawers. “I… I just can’t face it.” Rarity replied softly, opening herself up slightly so that she could face her friend, “I just can’t…”. Fluttershy rested her head against Rarity’s, “I know, it isn’t fair on you. It isn’t fair on any of us. But we need to stay strong, or we’ll crumble.” she cooed. “I know, but it’s so hard… I still see their faces - Apple Bloom and Scootaloo’s I mean. I can’t get them out of my mind… I can’t.”. Rarity broke down into tears, everything had simply become too much for her to bear. “Shh now, go to sleep.” Fluttershy whispered as rarity slowly faded out of conscience and fell asleep against her shoulder. Five weeks after the incident. Moonlight shone through Sweetie Belle’s window, bathing her in light. She sat up in bed, staring plainly into the corner of her room. The monstrosity stared back, yet it no longer frightened her. If anything, she almost wished that it would simply end her - slit her throat and leave her to bleed out on the hospital bed. But she knew it would never happen, the creature loved feeding off her torment - it thrived off her agony. It loved watching everypony around her stare at her in disgust. It loved listening to them whisper of she’s a dog, a lesser being - a monster. But most of all, it cherished watching her try and convince them that it wasn’t her fault - how they’d never believe the truth. No, she was quite safe, the terrible thing wouldn’t dare let her die, lest it lose it’s favourite play-thing. But as the same as every night, she couldn’t take her eyes of its twisting, twitching and writhing form. Something forced her to watch it, so she’d never sleep at night and she’d never sleep at day - too many sick interviews, scheming psychologists and journalists in her her way. So at first she’d hoped that she’d die to exhaustion. Yet even that simple desire was cast aside, because after a while, the doctors had begun to realize that she hadn’t been sleeping. So they forced pills down her throat - to keep her in the vicious cycle. “Why won’t you just leave me alone?” she called out to the ever-twisting form in the corner of her bedroom. She was met simply by a cold silence and a series of scratching sounds. All at once, the darkness evaporated, leaving behind only a writhing smoke cloud, which too dissipated. It… It left… For reasons Sweetie Belle couldn’t quite understand, the beast had followed her command. Left her in the blackness - alone. She almost felt lost, lonely without its terrible company. She’d known its constant horrors at night for so long, that’d they’d almost begun to be become normal to her. As though her hatred for the monstrosity had dissipated had slowly begun to diminish since the deaths of her two friends. Could I have… wanted them to die? “No, no, no, no. T-they were my friends… I loved them, I couldn’t want to have hurt them… Could I?” Then, from where the beast had once lurked, crawled out the terrible forms of two young fillies. Sweetie Belle instantly recognised the pair as Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. Yet… they were different - wrong. Scootaloo’s neck had been twisted and broken to a disgustingly unnatural angle and her forehead had bloodied depression. Apple Bloom had faired no better, as her entire midsection and chest had been drenched in blood. Yet even in the darkness, she could discern dozens of tiny puncture holes. But… but… those aren’t claw marks… “Why Sweetie Belle?” called Scootaloo, as the pair edged ever closer to her hospital bed. “I-It wasn’t me, I swear! It was the monster, you have to believe me!” Sweetie Belle cried out to the two broken fillies. “Why did you hurt us Sweetie Belle? Aren’t we supposed to be friends?” Scootaloo called solemnly, as they reached the foot of her bed. “Please, listen to me! I didn’t do it!” Sweetie Belle plead with them, sobbing uncontrollably. The duo climbed onto her bed and began crawling towards her, dripping blood as they went. Sweetie Belle crept into the corner of the wall her bed was attached to in an attempt to create distance between them. “Wait, please wait! Listen to me!” she cried out as the two leaned over her trembling form. They tore at her with their hooves, gnawed on her limbs. She tried to push them off, but they were far too strong. “HELP ME!” Sweetie Belle cried out into the night, as the two began beating her muzzle with their hooves. Alarmingly, the beast sprung from underneath the bed and tore Apple Bloom off the unicorn’s battered form. It ripped Apple bloom in two and almost instantly, the filly dissipated into a black smoke. Scootaloo’s demise came next, with the creature digging deep into her flank and throwing her light body into one of the room’s walls. She dissipated the moment she hit the wall. The monstrosity regarded Sweetie with a grunt, before returning to its corner. For the first time since its arrival in her life, Sweetie Belle was thankful for the beast’s presence. “We found her with a bloodied muzzle this morning, sir.” reported a nurse, “We think she’s been beating her head against the wall.” Dr. Open Mind considered the nurse’s words with great care before responding, “I’m thinking we should move her into a new room.”. He wasn’t a stallion of much personality or zaniness, donning a simple peach hued coat and a brown mane. He was a unicorn of course, that much was required to reach his station, especially for a case as important as this one. “A padded solitary confinement chamber, sir?” the nurse queried, as though she already expected his answer. “No. I don’t feel it’s safe to leave her on her own anymore, we should move her in with another filly.” he replied, pacing up and down his luxurious office. Trophies, medals and certificates decorated the many display cases he had set up around the room. “But sir… Are you sure that’s such a good idea? Don’t you feel she may be slightly too… volatile?” “I am indeed aware that she may be dangerous, which is why we need to keep a constant watch on whichever room she is transferred to. I feel that more than anything else at the moment, it is important that we reintroduce her to social contact. She desperately needs a friend.” he announced, turning to face the nurse - a pale white mare with a red mane, ageing no more than twenty. “But sir-” she started. “No, she will be moved. I feel I know exactly with whom we should pair her. Nurse Petal, make arrangements for her to be transferred to Wonderland.” Later that morning, Sweetie Belle found herself being removed from her room by a pair of bulky earth ponies. For the first time since she arrived, she got a good look of her new home. The corridors were a dull green, with a multitude of numbered doors on each wall of the corridor. Within some of the doors she could hear speaking, laughing and crying. Other doors were deathly silent, yet all were the same shade of brown with a small glass window near the top.The corridors themselves were watched over by a few clinic hands. “Ehm, may I just ask where we’re going?” Sweetie Belle asked meekly from underneath the huge guards. They remained silent for a moment, she had almost begun to wonder whether they had even heard her when one of them spoke up. “You’re being transferred to a new cell- ahem, room. They’re here to make sure you or the other don’t try anything.” he replied coldly. A new room? The other one? The trio turned another corner and entered a new corridor, which was completely silent. No laughing, crying or speaking, just silence. Near the end of the corridor, stood another clinic hand. Their journey stopped next to the other clinic hand, who watched over a very peculiar door. This particular door had been decorated by multitudes of crayon drawings and had been painted to a deep shade of red. “We’re here.” the clinic hand said nonchalantly, “That’s your new room, Number 18.”. The guards pushed her towards the door and the clinic hand carefully opened it. They quickly pushed her in and slammed the door shut behind her. The room was incredibly dark, darker even than her own room at night. The reason was clear to see, somebody had purposefully shut the curtains. The only light came from a small crack in the curtains, which shed some light into the centre of the room. Somewhere in the darkness, another form moved. A white hoof planted itself in the light. The curtains slowly parted, as the foreleg raised to open them. Light filled the room, revealing a ghostly pale unicorn filly of around the same age as her. She had a long, straight pitch black mane. A simple black chess queen acted as her cutie mark. She turned to face Sweetie Belle, before saying in a soft voice, “Hello, my name is Malice. Welcome to my Wonderland.”. Chapter 5: BrokenSomething has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.
Chapter 1: BedtimeAuthor's Note Worry not dear reader! The rest of the story's chapters shall be longer than this, and according to how well the story is reacted to, the update rate should be fairly frequent! Thanks! Bye! Chapter 1: Bedtime Dreaded Shadows Chapter 1: Bedtime "Sleep well darling." Rarity cooed to her younger sibling before tucking her in, a warm, welcoming smile spread across her face. "Goodnight Rarity." Sweetie Belle replied, before yawning and turning to lie on her side. Sweetie Belle had been through a rather tiring day of Crusading. Her energy had finally run out, and she was more than ready to welcome slumber and drift off to a wonderful dream. She could only faintly hear Rarity softly closing the door behind her as the room was submerged into absolute darkness, save for the white light of the moon shining through her bedroom window. Tomorrow was the beginning of a new school year, so I had better get some sleep tonight so that I don't pass out in class... again. Sweetie Belle thought to herself. A soft smile emerged as she found herself losing consciousness and slipping into the dream world. Suddenly, a light tapping sound broke the silence somewhere in the corner of the room. At first it didn't disturb her, but as time passed, the tapping grew progressively louder. Sweetie's smile slowly turned into a frown, as she began tossing and turning in her bed, the tapping growing louder and louder. Finally, Sweetie awoke from her slumber, beads of sweat dripping from her. The tapping had stopped. Sweetie, lay back into her sweat stained bed and sighed, "Darn nightmares." she complained, before turning on to her side again. Just as she closed her eyes, the tapping started up again. Again Sweetie Belle disregarded the tapping completely and attempted to fall asleep again. Then she heard the breathing. Same as the tapping, it too begun as something barely noticeable. Almost as if it were distant and far away. But as time progressed, it too grew louder, until Sweetie Belle finally took notice of it. Still sleepy, she opened her eyes slowly in an attempt to locate the source of the sound. It appeared that it had come from an especially dark corner of her room. No... this corner was just darker than the others, it was completely pitch black, like some kind of void. It was only when the void seemed to shift slightly that Sweetie Belle truly accepted what was going on. Something was in the corner of the room and as the tapping and breathing grew louder, she realized that it seemed to slowly inching it's way towards her. Sweetie Belle was completely overcome by fear, she dared not move, lest she disturb whatever monstrosity lurked in the shadows. Constantly closing and opening her eyes, she silently prayed that her eyes were simply playing tricks on her and that nothing was really in the corner. Of course however, these prayers were in vain. She contemplated calling out for Rarity, but began second guessing herself. What if Rarity couldn't get here fast enough, what if the monster tried to hurt both her and Rarity? Another shift in the darkness made Sweetie realize that she was running out of time, she had to think of something quickly, lest the creature come to close. The monster shifted again, now less than two meters away from Sweetie's bed. Sweetie's breath became strained and her heart rate quickened. Sweetie Belle stared once more into the void, and to her horror, it stared back. Indeed, the shimmer of two beady black eyes became more pronounced as the rest of the monstrosity's feature began to emerge from the darkness of the shadows. The creature's head slipped from the darkness, it appeared sticky and slimy, similar to the wet skin of an amphibian, except as black as night. Perhaps the only part of the creature that was darker than it's skin was it's eyes. It had no muzzle, nor a snout or nose of any description, merely a flat forehead, accompanied by a wicked mouth which was curled into a horrid grin. The monster placed it's claw-like appendages onto the edge of Sweetie's bed, before it opened it's mouth, revealing hundreds of pristine white, sharp, pointed teeth and a disgusting tongue, not dissimilar from that of a serpent's. Instead of pouncing on Sweetie Belle (of whom was already in tears), the creature began to wheeze and cackle, a certain sense of wickedness emitting from the abomination's mouth. The creature's breath was vile and putrid, smelling of decay. It washed over her, making her gag and eliciting frightened whimpers from the terrified filly. It raised one of it's claws and began stroking her scalp, Sweetie dared not move, if the creature was enraged, it would surely spell her doom. So instead, she remained as still as possible, doing her best to control her whimpering and shivering as the monstrosity continued to claw at her scalp. The stroking was not painful, simply unpleasant and it made Sweetie feel increasingly uncomfortable as the creature quickened it's pace. Sweetie closed her eyes, she could no longer bare to see the creature, it was all simply too frightening to the young filly. The creature didn't take well to this, not even a second after she had closed her eyes, the monstrosity leapt onto her bed and pinned Sweetie underneath one of it's claws. It yet again opened it's foul mouth, the creature's tongue began rapidly wiggling around in it's mouth as it neared Sweetie's face. When the creature tried stuffing it's tongue into her mouth, Sweetie's attempts to stay calm and resolved had been completely abandoned. She hastily pulled her head away from the creature and desperately wiggled out of it's grip before screaming as loudly as she possibly could, "RARITY, HELP ME!". Almost immediately, the creature leapt off the bed and shrunk back to the shadowy corner from whence it came. Rarity had spent her night in bed, reading a designer's magazine and sipping from a warm cup of tea. She smiled to herself gleefully as she spotted one of her own dresses in the magazine, astounded by how beautiful it was compared to all the others. With another sip from her tea, Rarity laid down her magazine and instead lifted up her knitting kit and set to work repairing one of her client's scarves. She always felt so at peace when knitting late night. Sweetie Belle had gone to bed much earlier and with surprising ease as well. Normally it would've been a battle to ensure that the filly was asleep, but after checking on her a few minutes afterwards, she found the filly deep into slumber. Rarity slowly closed her eyes unknowingly, her magic working to the pattern of the scarf. Suddenly, somepony screamed from somewhere in the house "RARITY, HELP ME!". Rarity shot out of bed, sending the knitting kit and scarf tumbling onto the floor as she stumbled towards her door and hurried towards Sweetie Belle's room. As she reached Sweetie's door, she could still hear her screaming frantically inside. She pushed the door open and turned on the lights, "Sweetie Belle, are you all right? What's wrong darling?" Sweetie Belle was cowering against the headboard of her bed, her screaming had ceased but she was still panting and crying uncontrollably. Her bed was soaked and the duvet and covers had both been undone and messed up. Rarity approached her sibling and sat on the bed, "Sweetie, what happened darling? Did you wet the bed?" she asked, cutting a glance at the drenched beddings. "I-in the corner..." Sweetie Belle mumbled quietly. "I'm sorry darling, what?" Rarity asked with the most caring voice imaginable. "It's in the corner..." Sweetie spoke up, too afraid to gaze upwards. Rarity looked around the room, still confused as to what her younger sister had meant by 'In the corner'. She looked back to her obviously terrified sibling, "Sweetie... what do you mean by 'in the corner'?" she asked softly. Sweetie Belle finally built up the courage to look at her sister, "It's in the corner, please make it go away!" she cried before gazing once more at the corner from where the creature first emerged from. She reeled back, crying out once again, "RARITY, HELP ME!" before burrowing her tiny head into her older sister's fur. Rarity looked up at the corner confused, "Sweetie, what are you talking about... there's nothing in that corner, or this entire room for that fact," She stood up and looked underneath the bed and then in the closet ", See? There's absolutely nothing in here!." she said, in an attempt to comfort her frightened sibling. Sweetie Belle stopped crying for a moment and looked up at her sister in shock, "W-what do you mean that there's nothing here! Don't you see it in the corner?" Sweetie looked at the corner again, her eyes widening further, "It's smiling at me!" By then, Rarity had begun to become exceedingly worried about her younger sister. Oh dear, what could this poor filly possibly be talking about? There's nopony in this room excepting myself and her she thought to herself. "Sweetie Belle, what exactly is this... thing which you're talking about? Sweetie Belle's mouth gaped wide open, her sister truly couldn't see the monstrosity standing right behind her, it's ugly head hanging right over Rarity's shoulder. It was still smiling, it's piranha-like teeth cascading over each other. It tilted it's head to one side, before opening it's mouth again, to reveal it's horrid tongue once more. It looked at her and then at Rarity's ear. It's one eye had twisted itself to a angle so that it could always watch Sweetie Belle in the corner of it's eyes. "NO DON"T!" Sweetie Belle cried loudly! The creature sniffed once, before thrusting it's tongue down Rarity's ear, releasing sickening sloshing sounds as it grasped Rarity tightly with it's claws. Rarity remained completely confused as to what exactly Sweetie Belle was crying about, she looked at Sweetie inquisitively as her younger sister continued demanding that she stop. In Sweetie's perspective, the creature was choking her sister, it's tongue still deep into Rarity's ear. Her sister had stopped struggling and appeared to be losing consciousness. When Rarity finally stood up, Sweetie Belle seemed to have calmed down slightly and wrapped her tiny forelegs around her sister's neck, constantly repeating the phrase "I'm sorry." over and over again. The creature had returned back to the shadows, having released Rarity from it's grasp, it's wicked smile never leaving it's face even once. It crawled into an impossibly small space underneath her closet, it's eyes still watching from underneath. Fortunately, it appeared that Rarity hadn't been affected by the creature. Rarity realized that her sister had probably just woken up from a nightmare or something of the like, "Darling, would you prefer to sleep in my bed tonight?" she asked sympathetically. Sweetie simply nodded, her gaze staying on the monstrous creature residing underneath her closet. Rarity smiled, "First, let me clean up your bed a little, why don't you go wait in my room a bit while I change the sheets?" Sweetie's breathing picked up again, there was absolutely no way that she was going to let Rarity be in this room alone with that... thing. "I-It's okay Rarity, I'll help you with that!" she chirped as convincingly as possible. "If you're sure darling." Rarity replied with a gentle smile. Sweetie Belle didn't get a wink of sleep that night. She watched the door, acting as a look out, just in case the creature attempted to enter their room. She wondered about the beast, where did it come from? How did it get into her room? Things she would have to investigate. She was fairly certain that it was still there in her room, hiding in the shadows Sweetie couldn't have been happier when the sun finally rose up. She crawled out of bed and made her way back to her room. With some hesitance, she opened the door and as she suspected, the creature was nowhere to be found. Had she imagined it all? Perhaps it had all been a terrible nightmare of some kind and Rarity had found her and brought her to her room. Yeah, that's it she thought to herself, before returning to Rarity's room and collapsing onto the bed. She opened her eyes once, a gleeful smile spread across her face. And then the tapping started again. She searched for the origin of the noise and to her horror, there sat the creature tapping against the base of one of Rarity's closets, a smile spread onto it's face. There it sat, in the dreaded shadows.
Chapter 2: Something Lurks in the Darkness Chapter 2: Something Lurks in the Darkness Chapter 2: Something Lurks in the Darkness Two weeks have passed since Sweetie Belle's first encounter with the monstrosity. Every night the creature would emerge from the shadows to torment her and every night she would scream desperately for help. The creature tormented her differently every night, on some nights it would shriek and yell at her, on others it would simply loom over her with it's unnatural smile. However, for the past two nights, Sweetie Belle had been left in peace. And as she lay in her bed, the harsh reality that the peace was about to expire truly dawned upon her. For there in the shadows the creature lurked silently, like a leopard stalking it's prey. Oddly enough, the creature didn't move. Instead, it continued watching her, toying with it's prey before ultimately devouring it. Then something unexpected happened, something new, something sinister and cruel. It appeared that darkness had begun to seep out from underneath the closet. It came like a tidal wave, flowing towards her bed. Soon, the darkness had almost completely covered the floor of her room and had begun to climb up the legs of her bed and onto her mattress. As the darkness swarmed over her, she found that she could no longer move, nor scream. The darkness reached her neck. No, not darkness. It felt as though thousands upon thousands of tiny claws were stabbing at her. As the darkness reached her face, she finally discovered what was really surrounding her. Cockroaches. Hundreds upon thousands of them. As they finally reached her face, she instinctively closed her mouth and kept it shut with as much power as she could muster. However, her efforts were to no avail, as the creature (who had crept up to her bedside) kept her mouth agape with it's claws. The cockroaches poured in, some being crunched and crushed as the monster forced Sweetie Belle to chew. Nasty cockroach innards splattered inside her mouth and every desperate attempt she made to scream was drowned out as more and more of them swarmed down her throat, causing her to gag and desperately cough. After what seemed like an eternity, the creature released her from it's grip. Immediately, she shut her mouth, slicing a hopeful cockroach in half, splashing even more juice onto her fur. Sweetie slid off the side of her bed, landing with a soft thump onto the carpeting. It appeared that the cockroaches had returned to the shadows, leaving her and the creature completely alone. She crawled a bit away from her bed shoved a hoof into her mouth. She could still taste their juices in her mouth and even feel them moving around inside of her body. They had to get out. She felt her body start to convulse as she gagged, the cockroaches still scraping against her insides. Finally, after what seemed like half an hour, her body finally surrendered, vomit spewing out of her mouth, her body convulsing even more as the insects left her body. Only when her stomach no longer had anything to offer her did Sweetie Belle cease her retching and heaving. She collapsed next to the puddle, her throat burning and her mouth tasting of bile. After a few minutes, she drifted off into unconsciousness Sweetie Belle had been fleeing from her assailant for hours now. Cuts and bruises from the tree branches and bushes covered her body. Adrenaline was the only thing keeping her going, that and her will to survive. Her body plead and begged her to stop this torture. To stop running and simply give in. But she was already beyond the point of no return, she had pushed her body to nearly impossible limits thus far and she would continue to do so until she finally escaped. Of course, that would've been possible, had a jagged cliff-face not been blocking her path. She could hear the monstrosity heaving and wheezing, it was no more than five meters behind her. As dirt turned to gravel, which turned to hard rock, she realized that she had run out of both time and forest. She was like a small, insignificant animal, cornered by a ferocious predator awaiting it's next meal eagerly. Knowing that the chase was over, the creature slowly emerged from the woods, a twisted smile spread onto it's face. It stalked towards her with leisure, taking great enjoyment in her suffering. It approached Sweetie Belle (who had backed up to the edge of the cliff) and swiped at her shoulder with one of it's midnight claws, eliciting a shriek of pain from the young filly. It began cackling again, saliva dripping onto the stone below. Sweetie raised a hoof to where the monster swiped at her, warm, black blood stained her hoof as she investigated it. The cut was deep and very painful, yet not fatal by any means. The creature wasn't trying to go for a killing blow too early, after all, where's the fun in that? The creature began to pace in front of her, still cackling away, taking short, strained breaths as it did so. Using one of it's claws, it tugged Sweetie Belle's foreleg, drawing her closer to itself, hold her mere centimeters away from it's face. The abomination took in her fear, it could feel her shivering and it could hear her pathetic whimpering. The creature tightened it's grip as Sweetie Belle desperately tried to tug away. Her efforts were to no avail, the creature simply kept digging deeper into her foreleg, eliciting more cries of pain from the filly. The creature didn't release it's grip until it's claws drew blood. It dropped Sweetie Belle, who could no longer walk properly due to the immense pain, so instead she limped away to the best of her ability. With another wicked cackle, the monster tugged at Sweetie Belle's hind leg with immense strength, making her lose her footing and bust her lip on the stone. Sweetie Belle knew that she couldn't even walk, let alone run away from this creature, so any attempts to do so would be absolutely futile. This was where she would die, the hunt was over. The creature had won. Instead of trying to flee again, Sweetie Belle simply began sobbing, feeding the creature's sadistic nature. The creature looked towards the forest, before releasing a horrid clicking sound, which was responded to by a rustling in a nearby bush. Sweetie Belle looked up with all her strength as her sister was carried in to the clearing atop the backs of a huge swarm of cockroaches. With another wicked smile, the monstrosity moved towards Rarity, each step was accompanied by a clacking sound as it's claws scraped the stone flooring. She could only watch in absolute horror as the creature lifted Rarity away from the swarm and tossed her into the clearing. Sweetie Belle tried to move, but she was too weak. The adrenaline had faded and her body was aching terribly. Even moving her right forehoof slightly caused her insurmountable pain. Rarity had begun to stir, the impact of the creature's throw had brought her back to consciousness. She looked up shakily at Sweetie Belle, "S-Sweetie Belle, is that you?" she whimpered. "R-R-Rarity..." was all that Sweetie Belle could muster, her busted lip causing every word that leaves her mouth to elicit a sharp sting of pain. The creature circled Rarity, methodically planning what it was going to do to it's newest playmate. All Sweetie Belle's strength had left her, so she simply laid there, limply watching as the creature lifted Rarity from the ground by her throat with one of it's black claws and tore her ear off, making Rarity scream in pain. The monster threw Rarity onto the floor and pinned her underneath it's weight, it's spike covered kneecaps digging into her soft flesh. The abomination forced her mouth open, before spewing a torrent of insects down her throat. Sweetie Belle lost her dinner for the second time that night. As a final touch, the monstrosity turned back to Sweetie Belle, it's teeth drenched in blood. The abomination lifted Rarity one last time, making her face towards the cowering filly, before eviscerating Rarity's belly, disemboweling her. Sweetie Belle screamed as the beast finally released her deceased sister and lifted her up as well, dangling her over the edge of the cliff face. The creature smiled once more, before dropping Sweetie Belle into the abyss below. Sweetie Belle... She could still hear her sister calling her as she fell into the void of darkness below. She could no longer see the cliff face, nor feel the sensation of falling. It felt like nothing to her. Was this what death felt like? Sweetie Belle.. Rarity's calls were getting louder, perhaps she was waiting for her? Sweetie Belle. Sweetie Belle had never really thought about death before. It was something rarely spoken about, it was almost taboo in some senses. Or perhaps the population simply ignored death, pushed it aside, like a storm looming on the horizon. "Sweetie Belle!" Rarity screamed from the top of her lungs as she shook her sister, this time she woke up. Sweetie Belle's eyes widened with shock as she awoke. Had that really been a dream? It all seemed so realistic, she could almost still feel the pain from where the monster hurt her. Indeed, she was lying where she had passed out the previous night, on the floor, next to a now dried puddle of bile. Her back ached from lying on the cold flooring but asides from that, she felt fine. Rarity on the other hand appeared to have been crying. Her eyes were bloodshot and her fur appeared to be wet and moist from where the tears had fallen. Instinctively, Sweetie Belle looked around the room for any sign of the monstrosity and luckily saw absolutely no sign that the creature had ever been in the room in the first place. Rarity leaned in and smothered her younger sibling in a fierce hug, "Y-you scared my so much! You were shaking terribly and talking about some kind of monster in your sleep." she cried, fresh tears staining Sweetie Belle's coat. "I-I'm alright Rarity, I promise." Sweetie Belle replied, she had begun crying too. Rarity looked at her sister. She was an absolute mess! She smelled of bile and sweat, her mane was messy and disorganized and her eyes had visible rings underneath them. It appeared like she had not slept at all last night. "Sweetie, you're obviously not 'alright'." Rarity gestured, "I'm going to schedule you a doctor's appointment right away!". Just like Rarity, always worrying about me. Sweetie Belle thought to herself. "I'm fine Rarity, really, you don't have to spend any bits on me." Sweetie Belle replied, smiling with as much enthusiasm as she could possibly muster. Rarity smiled, "What kind of a sister would I be if I didn't look after my younger sibling? Now, you've been acting strange for the past two weeks and I can't bear to see you like this any more!". Sweetie Belle attempted to protest, but Rarity quickly silenced her, "Now listen Sweetie Belle, it's for your own good. Now, you can stay home today and I'll try to organize the appointment for tomorrow, alright darling?". Sweetie Belle simply nodded, there was no convincing Rarity otherwise now. After a few more assurances from Sweetie Belle that she'd be fine by herself, Rarity left to go organize her appointment at the hospital. The bile had been cleaned up and she was completely alone in the boutique, excepting of course Opal who was taking a rather leisurely nap in Rarity's work room. Almost immediately after Rarity left, Sweetie Belle hopped out of bed and searched the entire boutique, top to bottom for the creature. She had searched almost every room when a thought occurred to her. What if it can only move in the darkness?. After all, the creature only appeared at night and the earliest the monster had ever shown it's face was when the sun had only barely risen. But where could it be staying then? The basement. A look of absolute horror crossed her face. There was absolutely no way that she would go into the basement by herself, daytime or not. At least, she wouldn't go alone.
Chapter 3: Let Sleeping Monsters Lie Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.
Chapter 4: WonderlandAuthor's Note I am back, it's official! As you're reading this chapter, I'd like to mention that this is certainly not a crossover, the likeness of a certain character to another character is both completely intended and completely necessary for her character! It may not make sense now, but it will! Chapter 4: Wonderland A month ago, Ponyville was shocked by the revelation of a gruesome double homicide involving two fillies inside Carousel Boutique, home of the Element of Generosity. We have recently been updated with some very disturbing details of the tragic incident, by Rarity herself. Allegedly, she had visited a local clinic to arrange an appointment for her sister, who had “been having bad nightmares. Whilst she was out, Sweetie Belle (Rarity’s younger sibling) had arranged for her two friends, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, to meet her at the boutique. Once the youngsters had arrived, Sweetie Belle had her two friends into the boutique’s basement, where she brutally murdered them. “Scootaloo, a physically miniscule pegasus, had almost certainly been the first to perish’ claimed Dr. Splatter, a forensics expert from Canterlot. he continues to say “Her neck had been snapped in three different places, and her skull had suffered intense blunt force trauma, caused by what we assume to be brick found nearby the filly’s body.”. Scootaloo had been an orphan in life, with only a guardian in the form of Rainbow Dash, Element of Loyalty. “Apple Bloom’s murder had likely taken a great deal of effort.” says the pathologist who performed autopsies on both of the fillies. “She suffered a great deal of bruising and several deep scrapes along the side of her abdomen. her most noticeable injury and likely the cause of her demise, were twenty seven stab wounds dotted throughout her midsection and upper body. We suspect that several of the stabs had pierced her lungs, causing internal bleeding.” Thus far, little has been heard of Sweetie Belle, who after a short trial had been detained in the Ridgeworks Psychiatric Centre, some ways out of town. From what we have heard, whenever questioned on her atrocious actions on that terrible day, she repeatedly blames her murders on “the monster”. Her older sister, Rarity had later discovered after intense psychiatric sessions that “the monster” referred to a terrible beast tormenting Sweetie Belle’s dreams. Psychologists and psychiatrists alike working at the asylum have determined that Sweetie Belle had been suffering from vivid hallucinations of the beast. The Royal Guard have yet to comment on the incident, merely stating “That they are working closely with Ridgeworks to uncover the truth of what had happened in the basement that day”. Thus far, Apple Bloom has been arranged to be cremated by her older siblings, Big Macintosh and Apple Jack. Several ponies close to the victims have organized a memorial service for the fillies, which is to be hosted within the city hall under jurisdiction of the Mayor herself. We here at The Ponyville Express give our greatest condolences to the families affected by this horrid tragedy. One Week after the incident. Rarity saw only darkness. An all consuming blackness had enveloped her. As though she were lost within the confines of some unimaginably dark hole - falling deeper and deeper into the abyss. As though she had followed a rabbit to a hole and fallen in, yet never hit the ground. She heard nought, nor did she feel. For she was numb - numb to her friends, herself. And thus she stayed in the pitch blackness, away from preening psychologists and conspiring journalists. Away from her friends. I can’t face them - what would I tell them? That two fillies had been butchered in my basement by my own little sister? My sister. She shut her eyes tight again and tried to focus on the ever-present static silence - anything to push out her memories. She couldn’t face the truth, her psyche couldn’t handle it - it was too much for her to handle. No, no, no, no - it isn’t true, it can’t be true. She reminisced of a time gone past, a happier time. A time when everything wasn't so numb to her - when everything was fine. A time when her friends were with her, when she wasn't so alone in her mind - when all she’d think about were trivial, normal, happy things. What dress she’d wear, when her spa session would begin, the smiling faces of her friends, Sweetie Belle’s beautiful smile. Sweetie Belle. It’s all wrong, all those happy memories - they’re so far now. Their happy faces... all … gone - their faces, oh sweet Celestia their faces. So lifeless, like something magical had left their eyes, leaving behind only a bloodied husk. Fake, they were fake, they were too full of life to just vanish - it couldn't be true. Then suddenly, the darkness dissipated, and Rarity found herself forcing her eyes open. She could hear voices, but they seemed so distant. A hoof touched her forearm, and she found herself ripped from her paralysis. She sat in a cold, dark room, which she quickly made out to be her kitchen. To her left stood a concerned Fluttershy, who still rested her hoof on Rarity’s forearm. “I’ve been trying to wake you up for the past five minutes, you were starting to scare me.” Fluttershy said softly, “You shouldn’t be in here in the dark by yourself, it’s not good for you.”. Slowly, she sat down next to Rarity, who had huddled herself into the corner of a set of drawers. “I… I just can’t face it.” Rarity replied softly, opening herself up slightly so that she could face her friend, “I just can’t…”. Fluttershy rested her head against Rarity’s, “I know, it isn’t fair on you. It isn’t fair on any of us. But we need to stay strong, or we’ll crumble.” she cooed. “I know, but it’s so hard… I still see their faces - Apple Bloom and Scootaloo’s I mean. I can’t get them out of my mind… I can’t.”. Rarity broke down into tears, everything had simply become too much for her to bear. “Shh now, go to sleep.” Fluttershy whispered as rarity slowly faded out of conscience and fell asleep against her shoulder. Five weeks after the incident. Moonlight shone through Sweetie Belle’s window, bathing her in light. She sat up in bed, staring plainly into the corner of her room. The monstrosity stared back, yet it no longer frightened her. If anything, she almost wished that it would simply end her - slit her throat and leave her to bleed out on the hospital bed. But she knew it would never happen, the creature loved feeding off her torment - it thrived off her agony. It loved watching everypony around her stare at her in disgust. It loved listening to them whisper of she’s a dog, a lesser being - a monster. But most of all, it cherished watching her try and convince them that it wasn’t her fault - how they’d never believe the truth. No, she was quite safe, the terrible thing wouldn’t dare let her die, lest it lose it’s favourite play-thing. But as the same as every night, she couldn’t take her eyes of its twisting, twitching and writhing form. Something forced her to watch it, so she’d never sleep at night and she’d never sleep at day - too many sick interviews, scheming psychologists and journalists in her her way. So at first she’d hoped that she’d die to exhaustion. Yet even that simple desire was cast aside, because after a while, the doctors had begun to realize that she hadn’t been sleeping. So they forced pills down her throat - to keep her in the vicious cycle. “Why won’t you just leave me alone?” she called out to the ever-twisting form in the corner of her bedroom. She was met simply by a cold silence and a series of scratching sounds. All at once, the darkness evaporated, leaving behind only a writhing smoke cloud, which too dissipated. It… It left… For reasons Sweetie Belle couldn’t quite understand, the beast had followed her command. Left her in the blackness - alone. She almost felt lost, lonely without its terrible company. She’d known its constant horrors at night for so long, that’d they’d almost begun to be become normal to her. As though her hatred for the monstrosity had dissipated had slowly begun to diminish since the deaths of her two friends. Could I have… wanted them to die? “No, no, no, no. T-they were my friends… I loved them, I couldn’t want to have hurt them… Could I?” Then, from where the beast had once lurked, crawled out the terrible forms of two young fillies. Sweetie Belle instantly recognised the pair as Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. Yet… they were different - wrong. Scootaloo’s neck had been twisted and broken to a disgustingly unnatural angle and her forehead had bloodied depression. Apple Bloom had faired no better, as her entire midsection and chest had been drenched in blood. Yet even in the darkness, she could discern dozens of tiny puncture holes. But… but… those aren’t claw marks… “Why Sweetie Belle?” called Scootaloo, as the pair edged ever closer to her hospital bed. “I-It wasn’t me, I swear! It was the monster, you have to believe me!” Sweetie Belle cried out to the two broken fillies. “Why did you hurt us Sweetie Belle? Aren’t we supposed to be friends?” Scootaloo called solemnly, as they reached the foot of her bed. “Please, listen to me! I didn’t do it!” Sweetie Belle plead with them, sobbing uncontrollably. The duo climbed onto her bed and began crawling towards her, dripping blood as they went. Sweetie Belle crept into the corner of the wall her bed was attached to in an attempt to create distance between them. “Wait, please wait! Listen to me!” she cried out as the two leaned over her trembling form. They tore at her with their hooves, gnawed on her limbs. She tried to push them off, but they were far too strong. “HELP ME!” Sweetie Belle cried out into the night, as the two began beating her muzzle with their hooves. Alarmingly, the beast sprung from underneath the bed and tore Apple Bloom off the unicorn’s battered form. It ripped Apple bloom in two and almost instantly, the filly dissipated into a black smoke. Scootaloo’s demise came next, with the creature digging deep into her flank and throwing her light body into one of the room’s walls. She dissipated the moment she hit the wall. The monstrosity regarded Sweetie with a grunt, before returning to its corner. For the first time since its arrival in her life, Sweetie Belle was thankful for the beast’s presence. “We found her with a bloodied muzzle this morning, sir.” reported a nurse, “We think she’s been beating her head against the wall.” Dr. Open Mind considered the nurse’s words with great care before responding, “I’m thinking we should move her into a new room.”. He wasn’t a stallion of much personality or zaniness, donning a simple peach hued coat and a brown mane. He was a unicorn of course, that much was required to reach his station, especially for a case as important as this one. “A padded solitary confinement chamber, sir?” the nurse queried, as though she already expected his answer. “No. I don’t feel it’s safe to leave her on her own anymore, we should move her in with another filly.” he replied, pacing up and down his luxurious office. Trophies, medals and certificates decorated the many display cases he had set up around the room. “But sir… Are you sure that’s such a good idea? Don’t you feel she may be slightly too… volatile?” “I am indeed aware that she may be dangerous, which is why we need to keep a constant watch on whichever room she is transferred to. I feel that more than anything else at the moment, it is important that we reintroduce her to social contact. She desperately needs a friend.” he announced, turning to face the nurse - a pale white mare with a red mane, ageing no more than twenty. “But sir-” she started. “No, she will be moved. I feel I know exactly with whom we should pair her. Nurse Petal, make arrangements for her to be transferred to Wonderland.” Later that morning, Sweetie Belle found herself being removed from her room by a pair of bulky earth ponies. For the first time since she arrived, she got a good look of her new home. The corridors were a dull green, with a multitude of numbered doors on each wall of the corridor. Within some of the doors she could hear speaking, laughing and crying. Other doors were deathly silent, yet all were the same shade of brown with a small glass window near the top.The corridors themselves were watched over by a few clinic hands. “Ehm, may I just ask where we’re going?” Sweetie Belle asked meekly from underneath the huge guards. They remained silent for a moment, she had almost begun to wonder whether they had even heard her when one of them spoke up. “You’re being transferred to a new cell- ahem, room. They’re here to make sure you or the other don’t try anything.” he replied coldly. A new room? The other one? The trio turned another corner and entered a new corridor, which was completely silent. No laughing, crying or speaking, just silence. Near the end of the corridor, stood another clinic hand. Their journey stopped next to the other clinic hand, who watched over a very peculiar door. This particular door had been decorated by multitudes of crayon drawings and had been painted to a deep shade of red. “We’re here.” the clinic hand said nonchalantly, “That’s your new room, Number 18.”. The guards pushed her towards the door and the clinic hand carefully opened it. They quickly pushed her in and slammed the door shut behind her. The room was incredibly dark, darker even than her own room at night. The reason was clear to see, somebody had purposefully shut the curtains. The only light came from a small crack in the curtains, which shed some light into the centre of the room. Somewhere in the darkness, another form moved. A white hoof planted itself in the light. The curtains slowly parted, as the foreleg raised to open them. Light filled the room, revealing a ghostly pale unicorn filly of around the same age as her. She had a long, straight pitch black mane. A simple black chess queen acted as her cutie mark. She turned to face Sweetie Belle, before saying in a soft voice, “Hello, my name is Malice. Welcome to my Wonderland.”.
