Claustrophobia

by Sketchwrites

Rating: teen
Tags: Tragedy, Dark
Length: 2266

When you are trapped, everything is claustrophobic.

Claus-tro-pho-bia
Noun
Extreme or irrational fear of closed spaces.

To 'Sketch' becoming a pony would be a dream.
But then everything changed.
In reality, it's a nightmare you cannot escape.
(This is a deconstruction of the 'self insert' fic. Based off a rather disturbing nightmare I had a couple nights ago.)

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2014-07-29 01:18:21 UTC

This Word-Chapter 1

Chapter 1- This world

I awoke feeling drowsy and confused. I was lying on dirt, but I was pretty sure I had been lying on my bed beforehand.

I didn't want to get up, no, I was much too tired. I shifted my head in a more comfortable position and willed myself back to sleep.

"Quickly, wake up! We need to get to safety!" A stranger shook my body.

A peeked open an eye, to see my visitor.

Oh goodness.

It was a pony, Pinkie Pie to be exact.

This couldn't be happening. My Little Pony is a television show. Complete fiction.

I shakily stared at my body, already knowing what was going on.

I was a pony too.

My body was purple and my mane and tail was a darker, nearly black, purple. This was the character I had always imagined myself as.

"Quickly, stranger!" Pinkie said, grabbing the hoof I was staring intently at.

"You're a....pony." I said dumbly.

"Yes,yes! We all are!" Pinkie said urgently, rushing me along the ground.

"Where...are we?" I whispered.

This couldn't be Ponyville. The ground around us was blank dirt, leading into a heavily forested area. If I squinted, I could see a few caves.

"The World."

"Which world? Where exactly are we?" I said, fear rising up in me. Something wasn't right. Pinkie would have just told me where in Equestria we were.

She dragged me further across the bare ground, head darting around like she was searching for something.

"What's your name?" Pinkie asked in a rather forced tone, like she was trying to keep her mind off something.

I nearly blurted out my real name, but then I remember that my name would probably be seen as strange compared to the names of the ponies. "Sketch." I used the name of the OC I had took the form of.

"I haven't seen you around... Where have you been hiding? Can I hide with you?"

I swallowed. Pinkie mentioning hiding set off so many red flags in my head.

Something has to be going on here.

"Erm.... I don't know what you are talking about..." Might as well tell the truth.

Pinkie paused, letting go of my hoof. "What? You don't have a hiding place? That's very dangerous, Sketch... The Creatures could easily get you."

I audibly choked. "The what?!"

Not good. Not good at all.

"How naive are you?" Pinkie asked, looking honestly surprised.

"I'm not from here, you see-" I started to murmur.

"Oh! So you are one of those ponies.." She said cryptically.

It was at right at this moment, I decided I no longer wanted to be in the world, or whatever the crap this universe I was called. Too many red flags, too little time.

To the right of us, in the forest, I heard a crunch.

Pinkie's eyes widened. "Oh no. C'mon," she murmured quickly, "we need to go."

Suddenly, a creature burst from the bushes.

It was huge, towering a couple feet over Pinkie and I's petite figures. It was vaguely dog shaped, with a dark green body. Most particular was bright green markings that went through the body, snaking around it. At the creatures rump, the two streams intertwined, forming a twisted tail. It was a quadruped, the front set of paws short than the back, giving the body a slanted angle. It's eyes were a blank green, making it seem lifeless. But it was very much alive.

With surprising speed, it lunged at Pinkie, holding the mare down with sharp claws.

It sunk its long fangs into the base of her neck, right above the collar bone. Pinkie screamed, tears springing into my eyes as the shrill sound assaulted my ears.

I stepped back, fear taking over me. My breathing turned harsh as I watched Pinkie convulse in pain.

The Creature retracted its fangs from her neck, swinging blood off them.

To my surprise, it simply crawled off her and retreated into the forest.

I had expected it to rip into her flesh, then finish me off.

I took a feeble step forward. Pinkie had gone limp, blood slowly pumping out of the wound on her neck and a couple other scratches.

I swallowed dryly. Was she dead?

To my relief, Pinkie stirred. I stepped back and gave her some space. She quickly got to her hooves.

Something was different.

Her eyes, instead of their usual blue, were an ugly green. They were slanted down, giving her a solemn appearance.

Her hair suddenly lost all bounce, reverting to her 'Pinkemena Diane Pie' persona.

My eye twitched and I went very fast in the opposite direction, walking backwards.

"You're the naive new meat. New meat DESERVES TO BE EATEN!" She hissed, licking her lips. The mare crouched down, stalking towards me like an animal.

This couldn't be happening. The whole thing about Pinkie being a cannibal was a joke about a fanfiction.

I screamed and retreated faster, only to slam into something hard and solid.

I slumped onto my haunches, turning my head back.

I had ran into some invisible wall. The impact had sent purple shockwaves racing through where I assumed the rest of the wall was. I gasped.

I was trapped here.

"There isn't enough food for everypony." Pinkie Pie hissed cruelly. "Some have to be sacrificed."

I slumped further down, feel helpless and tears streaming down my eyes.

I could dart in either direction, but it wouldn't matter. I couldn't run far, I didn't have the stamina. She would catch me anyway.

I closed my eyes, sobbing. I just wish she would get it over with, the anxiety was killing me.

My mane fell into my face, somewhat comforting me with the familiar feeling of hair over my eyes. But the purple clumps were alien to my normal brown hair.

Gusts of wind startled me and I felt arms wrap around my chest. I was lifted into the air, crying and screaming. I forced on of my eyes open. Pinkie was on the ground, several feet below, growling and jumping, trying to reach me.

As my acrophobia kicked in, I went into hysteria.

Chapter 2- Flight

Chapter 2- Flight

"LET GO OF ME! LET GO OF ME!" I screamed, my voice dissolving into hysteric blubbering.

I struggled and kicked in the air, trying to hit my kidnapper. I knew enough about animals to know that a horse can kick hard.

"Shut up and keep still! I'm pretty sure you don't want me to drop you." I recognized the voice near immediately.

Rainbow Dash.

I willed my body to stop moving, but I couldn't keep my heart from thumping so hard.

"So high up.." I whispered.

"Stay quiet into we reach the base. You are annoying me." Dash said abruptly.

"Base?" I squeaked.

"Yes, yes. Me and my friend's hiding spot." Dash muttered.

I kept myself from inquiring further, as I didn't want to freak out another pony with my lack of knowledge. If I am going to be trapped here, Dash would be a great ally.

"You saved me." I rasped, trying to calm my rapid breathing and keeping my eyes on her.

Dash scoffed. "I smelled a Creature in the area, and then I saw Pinkie." Just for a second, her brutish facade lapsed. "I didn't plan on her getting bitten so quickly.... Under the effects of that venom, I don't think I could snap her out of it without harming myself..."

I frowned. Venom? Was that what the Creature did to Pinkie? Makes a lot of sense, maybe that's why it just bit her....

"Wait," Dash growled. "Why didn't the Creature attack you?"

That question had been bothering me too. It was only a couple feet away from me. The 'Creature' could have easily bit me too.

I shook my head. I couldn't fathom it.

She stayed quiet the rest of the flight. During this, I worked on trying to get rid of my acrophobia, through exposure. I would turn my head down and get a good look at the sky, then I would look away and try to calm myself down.

It didn't really work. I succeeded in freaking myself out, for really no reason, several times.

I couldn't help but notice that Rainbow Dash was keep a steady altitude. It was pretty intriguing, she never went any higher than the height we were at right now. I assumed it was about the wall I discovered earlier.

"We're here." Rainbow Said, nodding her head at a large cave.

She hovered over the entrance of the cave, tossing me causally onto the stone.

I landed awkwardly on my stomach, groaning in pain.

"Yo, Daring. Look what I found." Rainbow Dash yelled into the shadows.

Daring? No, it couldn't be....

As a orangey tan mare stepped out, my thoughts were quickly confirmed.

"Rescued her from a Creature." Rainbow gestured to my forehead with a blue hoof. "She's a unicorn. She could be pretty useful."

Daring Do narrowed her startlingly purple eyes. "Well, unicorn, what kind of magic do you know?"

I coughed. I had always thought being able to use magic would be awesome, telekinesis could be very handy. But in the pony body, I wouldn't even to know how to start.

"Uhh... You see, er..." I whispered nervously.

Daring Do pointed at a nearby rock. "Levitate that. Right now."

My breath caught in my throat. Heart thumping, I stared directly at it, focusing and glaring intently. I wasn't sure I was doing right, as every unicorn in the show had done magic so seamlessly.

After several seconds of glaring, I finally realized nothing was going to happen.

"I'm sorry." I said quickly and sadly.

Rainbow Dash groaned. "Of all the unicorns in this place, we get the one who can't do magic!"

Daring Do nonchalantly threw her hoof at the mouth of the cave. "Alright, you can go now."

Before she could trot off, I threw my forelegs around her monochromic tail, dragging her down.

"No, please! I'm lost, and scared, and, and...." My voice trailed off into unintelligible sobs.

Rainbow Dash had a mixture of surprise and disappointment. "You're pathetic." She breathed.

Daring Do rolled her eyes. "Do you have any other talents?"

"I can, er...write. I'm really smart, too...." I rasped, shaking. I had to win these two over. I couldn't be alone.

"A writer? Not so useful. I guess we could use a smart one... How about, Dash? Should we kick her out?" Daring muttered.

I bunched myself up, praying she would say yes.

"I guess. But if she bothers us, she's off the mountain."

I sighed in relief. One good thing has happened today.

"What's your name anyway? Mine's Rainbow Dash, and that's Daring Do." Dash said, pointing to her and her friend as she introduced them.

"My name is Sketch..." I looked around. "So you two live here? In this cave?"

Daring nodded, flicking her tail in the direction of the shadows she had come out of. "We gathered up as many blankets we could find and threw them over there. That's the sleeping area."

"Ok...." I swallowed nervously. This was the time, it was now or never. "Can I ask some questions?"

Rainbow Dash sat on her haunches. "Depends what the questions are."

"What happened to Pinkie Pie?"

Dash glared. "Se obviously got bit by a Creature."

"I'm new here. Please, just tell me what that means." I begged.

Daring answered instead. "Okay, there are monsters out there, so far we have discovered three. We named them Creatures."

"Who is we?" I pried.

"Ponykind."

"Continue on, please."

"Creatures track us down, endlessly. It seems like they have no other life purpose. When they finally catch you, a Creature will just bit you. That's it. There has never been any report of a pony getting mauled by a Creature. Once you get bit, a Creature injects its venom into the wound."

I cringed. "What does the venom do?" Pinkie's psychotic behavior came to my mind.

Daring waved her hoof. "The venom, in short, messes with a pony's personality. Some, Dash's friend Pinkie, switch to a homicidal attitude. Some grow sullen and unresponsive. Others just get suicidal. It's a very dangerous situation."

Something Rainbow Dash has said earlier bothered me.

"Is it possible to, say, snap someone out of the effects of the venom?" I asked quietly.

Daring nodded. "Yeah, but its pretty hard. Usually, reminding them of their former self mostly works, but giving them a happy thought can also work. Rarely, you can snap them out of it with a hug or something, if the pony likes psychical affection. But it's dangerous work, especially if the venom makes the pony psychotic." She sighed. "It's the only way, though. The venom doesn't wear off by itself."

I swallowed, taking in everything. This was insane.

"One more thing, Miss Do." I said. "Earlier, I ran into this....wall. Do you know anything about that?"

"Of course. Do you know anything about this? The Wall surrounds all of us and won't let us leave. If it wasn't for that, Dash and I would have left a long time ago."

"Yeah." Rainbow Dash hissed. "The ceiling limits how high we can fly."

I looked distant. I was trapped. There was no where I could go.

My head drooped down. The adrenaline had worn off, and I was exhausted.

I staggered to the place Daring Do had mentioned was the sleeping area.

"I-I'm gonna sleep for a little while...ok?" The two pegasi nodded, looking a bit confused.