The Descent into Madness
In the city known as Canterlot there was a library. Inside the library there were books that held knowledge of most of the known world but what they never contain however is just what is the spirit world like. Thus was the irritation for one Twilight Sparkle.
“Of course the only thing about spirits and it’s on how to tell them apart. ‘A spirit that is created out of sacrifice is a timid creature that tries to help others from the soul of the one who sacrificed them.’ Jeez that would be interesting…. IF I DIDN’T ALREADY KNOW THAT!” Twilight roared in irritation as she slammed the book and tossed it away. Twilight was a lavender skinned girl with a pink highlights in her purple hair.
“Twilight, you DO realize we’re supposed to be researching this house down the street right?” A yellow skinned girl with fiery red and yellow hair said as she walked up, her cyan colored eyes looking down at her partner in annoyance.
“Sorry, but you know I can’t help but look for new information… Something that’s apparently sincerely lacking in this place.” Twilight Sparkle said, motioning to the vacant library around them.
“Yeah, well that’s OUR job remember? Ghost hunters give new information when they find it.” Sunset Shimmer said as she sat down a book of newspaper clippings.
“Look at this… A couple of people lived in the house a few months ago, stayed for a week before they up and left after a fire broke out… The house was barely damaged.” Sunset said as she pointed to one article.
“Lyra Heartstrings and Bon-Bon Sweet, former owners and the first in 4 years.” The red headed girl said as Twilight noticed an interview with Lyra in the article.
“Yeah, and check this out. ‘It always only happened at night. Small things to begin with. But the last night we were there the most awful sounds filled the house, pictures flew off the walls, doors opened then slammed shut constantly, lights shined so bright until the bulbs blew… Bon-Bon and I just layed awake, too terrified to even move. Then... I felt something around my neck… I don’t know what it was, but I got the feeling it wanted to hurt me… We barely got out before the fire took us’”
Twilight finished reading as she looked at Sunset with eyes wide. Sunset sighed, she knew that look. After three years of ghost hunting Twilight still got nervous when it came to reports like these. Sunset would be a hypocrite to say she was never apprehensive about taking certain cases, but she always tried to be the brave one for the both of them. Someone had to after all.
“Hey, it’s alright… We’ve had worse stuff than that before." Sunset attempted to ease Twilight's worries.
"This just seems… I don’t know.” Twilight sighed, taking off her glasses and rubbing her nose. Sunset pulled her closer and kissed the top of her head.
“Hey, need I remind you this was one case you practically begged me to take?” Sunset reminded in a chiding tone.
“I know it’s just… This is related to the Tirek Order. You know that…” Twilight started, looking up at Sunset who placed a hand on her cheek.
“I know, Rainbow was my friend too. I still feel guilty about us knowing…” Sunset began, but this time Twilight stopped her, standing a bit and planting a soft kiss on her lips.
“Don’t… You didn’t do anything, this was my choice… And I don’t regret it.” Twilight smiled as Sunset sighed.
“Yeah. Well then… Who we gonna call?” The redhead said with a smirk as Twilight giggled.
“Donut Joe’s?” Twilight suggested, as Sunset laughed.
“I ain’t ‘fraid of no donut!” Sunset cracked which caused Twilight to laugh as well.
“COCK-A-DOODLE DOO! THE COW SAYS MOO! COCK-A-DOODLE DOO! THE COW SAYS MOO!” A girl with bright pink hair yelled from behind a glass door. The doctors were sighing as the girl ran up and down the walls….. literally. One of them was about to go inside when he heard something over the intercom.
“Doctor Stable to the front desk. Doctor Stable to the front desk.” The man sighed as he headed up to the stairs to the main lobby. He opened the door and saw two regular visitors.
“Ms. Shimmer, Ms. Sparkle. How are you today?” The doctor said as he nodded toward both of them, the two young women smiling in return.
“Hi Dr. Stable… Is Pinkie doing any better?” Twilight asked as the doctor sighed deeply.
“I’m sorry, but there’s still no change.” He said as Sunset began to look angry.
“She’s been here for a year! Are you telling me that there’s been absolutely no change?! That’s been your answer everytime we come here! You’re a quack!” Sunset yelled at him before Twilight drug her away. “Let me tell you something Doc! If Pinkie isn’t better in one more year I will personally tear your hospital apart!” She roared before Twilight rubbed the small of Sunset’s back causing her to relax.
“How did you do that?” The doctor asked, a little shocked.
“You live with her long enough you learn somethings.” Twilight said with a smirk. “So Doc… can we-”
“Yeah. Visiting hours are almost up but she needs you two.” Doctor Stable said. Twilight nodded as she walked towards the glass door with Sunset right behind her. They soon arrived at Pinkie’s cell and saw the girl laughing her head off.
“LOOK! THE SUN AND MOON ARE MAKING OUT!” She shouted upon seeing Twilight and Sunset.
“Pinkie it’s me Twilight.”
“Oh hey Twilight! Have you seen Dashie anywhere? She said she’d take me and the cake twins to the movies! You know I love movies right Twilight?” The pink girl asked her friend. Twilight got some water in her eyes at this.
“Dashie’s…. Dashie’s gone somewhere Pinkie. She’s not going to be back for a very long time.” She said trying to make Pinkie understand.
“Oh… you mean she’s playing hide and seek? Oh that’s fun! Can I play next-”
“NO!” Twilight yelled a little too harshly. Pinkie actually flinched at this.
“But… but it’s just… just a game isn’t-”
“FOR THE LOVE OF GOD PINKIE RAINBOW IS DEAD! SHE’S NOT COMING BACK YOU STUPID PINK HAIRED IDIOT!” Twilight roared at her, the grief of her first love dying now fresh on her mind. This caused Pinkie to fall down on her end of the glass door. Twilight soon realized what she did and gasped a little. “Pinkie I’m sorry-”
“T-Twilight… c-can you leave now? Y-you’re not any f-fun anymore.” Pinkie said as Sunset put her arm around Twilight, ushering her.
“I’m sorry Twilight, she didn’t know.” Sunset said, trying to sooth her girlfriend’s feelings on what just happened.
“You’re right, she didn’t know, but I did. I knew she was just confused and I had no right to say that too her, not like that.” Twilight said, fighting back the flood of tears threatening to spill forth. The pair reached their car, and as soon as they were inside Twilight broke down sobbing.
“I can’t believe I told her that! W-what’s wrong with me?!” Twilight cried into her hands, as Sunset reached over and hugged her as best she could.
“Shh, i t’s alright. If… When Pinkie gets better, she would have found out anyway. Think of this as practice for when we actually do break it to her because you know as well as I do she won’t remember this.” Sunset said, rubbing Twilight’s back as she cried. They stayed like that for an hour before Twilight calmed down, Sunset slowly letting go of her and driving them to their next destination… The Sombra Estate.
The moment Sunset saw the house she immediately thought of that horror home up in Manehatten. The house was aged and had several cracks on the outside of it. She saw that the windows were all cracked except for one which was seemingly intact which made her curious. Considering how old the house was that should have been impossible. The house’s front end almost looked similar to a giant face but not the happy go lucky kind. The face was more akin to a monster or some kind of demon. She also had a sense of forebodance as the house almost…. stared at her soul.
“Alright, let’s get everything unloaded.” Sunset said, as she got out and headed around to the trunk to get their equipment. Twilight however just kept staring at the house. It was as if the entire building was screaming at them not to come near it. She saw a window with the blinds open, and she could see the pitch black interior of the house, staring directly into the darkness. Sunset then tapped on her window, scaring her as she jumped a bit.
“Sorry, just wanted to get some help.” Sunset said, giving a small reassuring smile. She knew Twilight was a bundle of nerves as it was, so she mentally slapped herself for doing that.
“Uh sure, sorry.” Twilight said getting out. As she did she looked back at the window, though now the blinds were closed.
The inside of the house wasn’t any better than the outside. Years of neglect had left it in a state of disrepair and decay. Most of the furniture was somewhat new but most of it was aged and unusable. The house was dark and had a sense of dread and…. hatred. Yes Twilight could feel it now. Whatever lived in this house was definitely filled with anger. Whatever it wanted Twilight knew it wasn’t any good. She and Sunset had to get rid of whatever spirit was in the house and FAST. She moved into one room…. and felt another presence. Not a normal spirit but one that she was very familiar with…. it was HIS spirit.
“Okay Sunny. Set up the thermals.” Twilight said. Sunset nodded as she pulled out a big black case, opening it to reveal a large assortment of thermal cameras. As Sunset began setting the cameras up, Twilight got her laptop and made a mission control of sorts in the rather spacious living room.
As Sunset sat up a camera in the upstairs hallway, she caught something moving out of the corner of her eye. She looked quickly, but it was gone as fast as she saw it. Shaking her head she continued to work, before she felt something touch her back slightly. She quickly finished securing the camera before she rushed back downstairs.
“Alright, they’re all set up.” The redhead said, sitting next to Twilight at her makeshift lab.
“Okay, the sun just went down a couple of minutes ago so…” Suddenly the sensors began flickering to life with readings coming from all over the house. Twilight tried to get a fix on it but she couldn’t find where they began. She was about to tell this to Sunset when something happened. The computer screens began to flicker with static before they showed the face of a man with glowing green eyes and reptilian slits for pupils. His mouth was filled with nothing but fangs and his body, except for his hands which appeared to have claws, was nothing but complete shadow.
“You…. ot wel…. ave no…..urt you.” The man snarled at them before he roared in anger and disappeared. Sunset looked at Twilight who was just staring at the screens with complete fear.
“Twilight…. who…. the hell… was that?” Sunset said trying to sound brave but felt that any moment she would fall over and pass out with fear.
“I… I think that…. that it was Sombra.” Twilight said as she fell to her butt.
“Wait… SOMBRA? As in THE Sombra? The same lunatic who butchered his daughter for…. him? What the fuck does he want?” Sunset asked as she tried to help Twilight up.
Suddenly the house moaned as the doors and windows locked. The house was deathly quiet as the lights went out. Suddenly a glow in the middle of the room appeared and Twilight shrieked in terror as she looked away… It was an image of Rainbow Dash’s bloodied body.
“Twilight it’s not real! It’s not…” Sunset said as she then saw… Herself.
“What’s the matter? Don’t like yourself much?!” Her doppleganger said as it sprouted demonic wings, fangs, and horns. However as quickly as the visions began, they stopped. The doors unlocked and the lights came back on.
“...out… ow… ever… ack…”Sombra’s choppy voice said, as the two just sat there in fear, not making any kind of move. They sat for several long minutes, jumping when they heard the front door open.
“... eave…. ow… urry.” The ghostly voice said again. The two slowly got up, carefully walking toward the door. However as they got closer it slammed shut and locked. They tried to open it, banging on it, both screaming in fear, before they heard Sombra’s voice once more.
“... ooo… ate… e’s… ere…” The voice said before the computer screens cracked and shattered. The house was then in plunged into total darkness.
“Dead… By… Dawn... So says Nightmare Moon” A voice whispered into their ears. As the lights came back on again. As they did Sunset nearly wanted to barf at the sight. Where the room they were in earlier was barren except for the mini lab there was a table… covered with nothing but rotten food and a fat uncooked dead pig. It’s mouth had a rotten apple that was oozing a viscous fluid that smelt strangely of sulphur. The fact that it was dead was what happened next caused them to then scream in terror as the pig opened his eyes and they began to glow green…. just like the face from the computer screens.
“I warned you. I told you to leave but you refused to listen.” The pig said before it barfed up pure shadow that covered the room. The shadows disappeared but the room seemed a little brighter. Twilight was about to say something when she looked up…. and saw one of the most startling encounters she would ever encounter.
The form of a man was floating above them, slowly forming into an exact replica of pictures she had seen of Sombra. Suddenly shadows began flowing into him, embedding themselves into his skin, twisting and tearing his body into horrible positions that were not humanly possible. His arms bending backwards, as his legs bent straight up at the knees, his hands twisting a full 360 degrees at the wrists and the same for his ankles and feet as the shadows then began to dissolve his flesh, showing his organs, and tendons being stripped away as the shadows reformed him into a ghostly spectre.
“I tried to warn you... Get you to leave… Now you are at her nonexistent mercy… I am so sorry.” He said before vanishing. This confused Sunset and Twilight. They had studied up the house. They studied up the house and the possible spirits. The only ones they could find where Sombra and….. his daughter.
“He said her…. He said HER Mercy. Sunset…. I think we’ve been chasing the wrong ghost.” Twilight said before she felt something yank her into another room.
“TWILIGHT!” Sunset yelled before she herself was also tossed into a separate room.
Twilight woke up in what looked like a cellar. She could smell the mold and dust, but also the faint hint of blood in the air. She then heard a familiar tune fill the air.
“Sunshine… Sunshine… Ladybugs awake…. Clap your hands… and do a little shake.” She heard being sung out. She walked toward the sound, following the path of the maze-like cellar, until she came across a light with someone sitting under a sheet.
“C-Cadence?” Twilight asked uneasily as she, against her better judgement, pulled the sheet off, revealing the rotting corpse of a blue skinned girl with rainbow colored hair that shot up from the ground and slammed her against the wall.
Sunset woke up in a strange room. It seemed to be covered in glass which made no sense to her. She lifted up her hoof and rubbed her forehead. Wait…. my HOOF?! She shouted in her head. She looked into a mirror and saw that, indeed, she was in her old pony form. This both surprised and scared her at the same time. No one else other than her closest friends knew she was from an alternate reality. So how was it that this ghost knew?
“Sunset Shimmer... my greatest failure.” A cold familiar voice spoke and echoed through the room. Sunset tried to tell herself that what she was hearing was false and not real…. but that did little help her especially since a twisted form of her teacher appeared above her.
“You… are not… Celestia. She… is kind and forgiving. Whatever you are… you are cold and unforgiving.” Sunset said as she tried to walk, having become so accustomed to using two legs she was out of practice in her natural form.
“Oh I’m real Sunset… I am the thing that keeps you up at night. That haunting memory of the chance at being an alicorn that escaped you. The constant reminder that the Twilight of your true world is better than you… And that you hate her for it. You can’t stand her.” The false Celestia egged on as Sunset covered her ears with her hooves.
“YOU AREN’T REAL! YOU’RE LYING!” She shouted, as she tried to block out the voice.
“If I wasn’t real, could I do this?” The false Celestia kicked Sunset hard.
“Twilight! TWILIGHT!” Sunset called out, as the being above her chuckled.
“Don’t worry my faithful student… With me, you are never alone.” The apparition then reared up as if to stomp on the unicorn, who then snarled as she used her horn to blast the false princess to pieces, shattering the room around her.
Sunset Shimmer woke again… This time back in her human form.
“SUNSET! HELP!” She heard Twilight yell, quickly running out of the dark room she was in and racing downstairs.
“Twilight where are you?!” Sunset yelled as she was then pushed down the stairs by some unseen force. Tumbling down she twisted her ankle and hissed in pain. Crawling toward an old coat rack she grabbed it and used it stand up, making it into makeshift crutch.
“TWILIGHT?!” Sunset called, as she heard a banging sound coming from a nearby door.
“SUNSET GET ME OUT! GET ME OUT!” The frantic voice of her girlfriend called out as Sunset looked over at the fireplace and saw a poker. She grabbed it and hobbled over to the door.
“Twilight! I’m here! I’m here! Stand away from the door!” Sunset said as she got close.
“PLEASE! TELL HER I’M SORRY! TELL RAINBOW I’M SORRY!” Twilight sobbed from her end. Sunset then reared back and then began whacking the door. After several hits the door finally caved in and Sunset busted it open. She then felt Twilight run into her and giving her a VERY tight hug.
“There, there Twilight. I’m here now.” Sunset said as she returned the hug. Suddenly a slow clap filled the air. Both looked over to see a figure standing in the doorway.
“Bravo. Oh excellent work… Trixie couldn’t have done a better performance herself.” The figure said, becoming fully visible. It was a blue skinned girl with long silvery white hair in a magicians outfit.
“Trixie… But… You went miss…” Twilight started, but a dark laugh from Trixie silenced her.
“Oh Trixie did not go missing. She was killed by her bastard of a father, though I believe you met him already…” Trixie said, motioning to the picture of Sombra that was over the mantle, now depicting a scene of him being tortured on a rack.
“You… You’re Sombra’s daughter?!” Sunset exclaimed, the pieces now fitting together in her head.
“Yes, poor ‘Daddy’ never thought of Trixie like that though. Trixie’s mother died during childbirth… And Sombra HATED Trixie for that. Until one day he did something odd. He was nice… and Trixie was so happy… Until she realized it was all just so she could be sacrificed to Tirek in Sombra’s idiotic plans to bring mother back!” Trixie shouted as the house shook.
“So you became a ghost and killed him right?” Sunset said, noticing a small bit of sunlight poking in from the window. Twilight was shocked at Sunset’s seemingly nonchalant tone, but kept her eyes focused on Trixie.
“No Trixie became so much more... Trixie merged with the ancient spirit Sombra accidentally summoned, you may know it as... Nightmare Moon!" Trixie said as her skin became pitch black, her teeth fangs, and a dark flowing ethereal energy flowed from her head like hair.
"Now the idiot has had a change of heart, thinking he can warn and scare away those who come close. I am a vengeful spirit, and anyone who comes here must pay the price.” However as soon as the Nightmare said this, sunlight came in through the windows and she began to fade.
“You fucking bitches… You got me monologuing…” Nightmare said, glaring hatefully at the pair as she faded completely. Twilight and Sunset wasted no time and shambled toward the door and thankfully it was unlocked this time. They wordlessly made it to the care, not daring to grab their equipment. As they got they just sat, going over what had happened in their minds.
“Twilight, why did Sombra show you Rainbow’s corpse? He showed me what I was afraid of, but why was it Rainbow specifically for you?” Sunset asked, breaking the silence.
“I found her body.” Was all Twilight said, not looking at Sunset. The redhead sighed as she started the car and drove them both home.
“We’ll find the Order, Twilight… And we’ll shut them down once and for all. I promise.” Sunset said as they drove into the morning sun.
