The sun was shining and the birds were singing, the sky was clear and everything was a bliss.
The kids were arriving to the school, trotting and giggling happily as always.
They entered their classroom and saw as Miss Cheerilee enter after them and sat on her desk.
"Well fillies and colts, sit down and calm down," Said the teacher with her charming and motherly tone of voice.
It took a minute but all the little ponies were soon sit and waiting for their lesson.
"Miss Cheerilee!," a hoof was raised by an orange pegasi , "Where is Applebloom?"she asked
"Applejack said she was in bed with the pony flu. So maybe she won't come tomorrow either."
Scootaloo frowned and felt disappointed. Her teacher soon began her lesson but was interrupted by a gray mare with blond mane and big yellow eyes.
"Hi Miss Cheerilee, any news,” asked the mare with extremely worried voice and swollen eyes.
"I'm sorry Derpy, but no pony has seen her yet," whispered the teacher so the kids won't listen. "But please try to calm down, I'm sure she is okay, and I will go see you as soon i know something, alright?"
Derpy goes outside and takes flight. She left Cheerilee feeling very useless and sad but she still had plenty more kids to teach, so she returned to her job.
Applejack sent her little sister to school. Apple Bloom exited the farm with a smile but she's soon interrupted by her big sister following her.
"Wait Apple Bloom, I have a better idea: don't go to school today" said the orange mare with a big smile.
"What? Why," asked Apple Bloom with a surprised looked on her face.
“To spend some quality time with your big sis of course” said Applejack while taking her little sister with her hoof onto her own back.
“Wait, what about Miss Cheerilee?” the puzzled filly asked.
“Ah’ already told her that you have some flu and it’s contagious” affirmed Applejack
“Really?! are you sure?” At this point Applebloom was excited with the biggest smile a filly could make, she jump out of her big sis and hugged her.
“That’s what sisters are for, just don’t say anything to Big Mac or Granny,” said Applejack in a rather happy and enthusiastic tone.
“You’re the best sister ever!, let me just go for something at the treehouse, and we can be on our way”
Apple Bloom trotted happily to her clubhouse and decided to leave a note for her friends in case she wasn’t yet at home when they finished their classes for the day. She wrote it and her face was filled with happiness, the one only a filly can have. As she finished writing it and putting it on the table her sister called out: “Apple Bloom!” You’re taking your time aren’t you?” said the orange mare, with some urgency in her voice.
“Ah’m sorry big sis, let’s go” she trot through the door of her club house and followed Applejack.
Twilight Sparkle walked through her castle and see two pegasi guards talking and one holding a photo of a young filly, she was filled with an immense amount of curiosity, so she approached them.
“Hello everypony, is everything alright?” She asked and smiled at them.
“Princess Sparkle, “ they both bowed and took off their helmets. “A mare gave us some unsettling news, this filly here has been lost for days” He showed her the photo.
Her expression filled with terror when she realize she knows that little filly.
“It’s Dinky, one of my friend’s daughter” her face turns sad and the eyes became watery,
“I heard that she ran away , but I can’t believe it yet .. even when .. enough.. we need to help now” .
Her guards put their helmets back on and followed her out of the castle, as they walked around Ponyville they are stopped by some pink mare with a straight mane and sad face.
“Uhmm, hi Twilight, hi guys, I need to show you something” she said and start trotting,
They didn't answer, they just followed the mare. Twilight looked at her friend’s mane, she only goes flatten when something bad happened or when she is really broken. Her color is a grayish pink, she’s almost never like that.
As they trot behind Pinkie till the outsides of the town she points near the entrance of the Everfree forest, the guards quickly realize what happened. They see some fabric covering something on the ground near a dying tree. Twilight would have never expected what she was about to see. The two guards step in front of her and tried to stop her from getting any closer.
“Please Princess, you don’t wanna see that” One of them said.
“Step aside Bright Star” She said while moving them away with her magic.
“We will do it Princess, just go back to the castle,” They tried to convince her but to no avail.
Twilight face was becoming green once she felt that smell, she wanted to stop and trot away, but she was the princess, she had responsibility to her subjects. Her horn lit up as she levitated the fabric that was on the dirt, Twilight Sparkle was shocked, frozen to that moment, her face showed no sadness nor anger, she could not move.
Near her hooves, the body of a filly lying with most of the skin taken from the little body, her hind legs torn apart from the rest of the body, the neck cut to almost decapitation, the mane was shaved off, only one eye was still on the little unicorn’s face, and worms have been giving themselves a feast out of the once beautiful filly.
Twilight Sparkle took two steps back her face green out of disgust, her eyes watery, she took some more steps aside and threw up on the floor. The guards were checking the body for any clues that might still be left of the identity of that filly, and they found one, on its belly, still some fur left, a pale purple color; “So familiar,” one of them thought. She was the daughter of a certain mail mare that had gave them the photo of a little unicorn with that exact coat color.
One of the guards named Thunder Chaser escorted the princess back to the castle so she could calm down. The other was left there to investigate.
Later on the afternoon, fillies and colts finished their classes they all looked happy that one more day of school was over, they didn’t suspect what had happened during their class. Applejack was in town, with her cart selling apples, then she saw all the little ones going to their homes and saw a very sad Derpy talking to a royal guard, which made her curious but she knew it was best not to mess in other pony’s business. Twilight was again outside, being escorted by Bright Star as she approach Applejack’s cart, and explained to her what had happened, the orange pony took off her hat and they took a minute of silence.
“We must be very careful, and take care of the little ones more, as I can not allowed this to happen ever again. Ponyville used to be such a calm and lovely town,” the princess sadly said .
“Ah hear ya, and ah feel terrible, ah’ll go visit Derpy later to give my condolences” Applejack replied.
“By the way, where is Apple Bloom? haven’t seen her today”
“Oh, she must be on her clubhouse with the girls, that’s where they always are in the afternoon.”
“Very good, but you should still check on them soon”
Hours passed and another report of a supposed runaway filly, this time an earth pony named Sunny Daze. This got Princess Twilight worried sick, though her guards have seen awful things; she had never experienced such misfortunes. Now they may have another murder in their hooves.
Twilight came across Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo while talking to other ponies that might have seen something.
“Hey girls, how are you?” She approach them trying to not sound worry to not scare the fillies.
“We’re fine, trying to earn our cutie marks” Scoots said.
“And where is Apple Bloom? I thought she’d be with you in the clubhouse.”
“Nah, she’s sick or something, Applejack said to Miss Cheerilee she wasn’t going to school today” answered the filly.
“Applejack didn’t tell me that she was sick...” Twilight was confused at the sudden information. She deported to the place where Applejack had her cart but she wasn’t there anymore.
Applejack was entering her farm again, pulling the apple cart. She unhitched herself and then when to talk to Granny Smith and Big Mac about the sad news, after she told them, she make her way to the Cutie Mark Crusaders clubhouse, only to find Scootaloo with a piece of paper on her hooves.
“Howdy there Scoots,” she greeted the filly and approached her.
“Uhmm hello... I was just about to leave,” Scootaloo answered nervously while trying to hide the paper.
“Where are the girls,” Asked the mare with a suspicious look plastered onto her face.
“They are.. they went to get some things for our crusaders stuff you know ..” she had an awful poker face making Applejack even more suspicious. “But I have to help them so...” She jumped out of the window and trotted away.
“Hold it, little filly,” Applejack tried to follow her, but when she stepped out of the clubhouse Scootaloo was gone.
“What in tarnation?” She was baffled by the little one’s behavior and started to worry.
She then made her way to town to ask for Twilight’s help and perhaps the guard’s help too. She soon faced Twilight who was also looking for her.
“Twilight, ah can’t find Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle! Ah saw Scootaloo but she ran as if was trying to hide something from me.”” she said in a desperate tone.
“What? but I just saw Scootaloo with Sweetie Belle, and you forgot to tell me that Apple Bloom didn’t attend school today because she was sick.” Argued Twilight with a serious looked on her face.
“What the heck do you mean by that?”
Surprised Applejack felt her eyes become watery, as if she was about to cry.
“She went to school, I mean ah sent her there … what is happening Twilight?! “
Her voice broke, her face lost all her usual happiness and she began to shake her legs.
“You sent her to school? oh no, I .. we need to …” she could barely talk at the revelation.
“Guards!!” She managed to yelled to which immediately her two closest guards responded, blowing a horn to call for backup. Four more appeared , two pegasus and two unicorns.
The guards in groups of two began trotting around town looking for the missing filly. Twilight’s mind was on that small body the group found earlier, and she didn’t wanted to believe that the pretty Apple Bloom could be harmed. Her tears began to flow as she was flying through the city with a pegasus guard. Applejack was trotting around and she ran into two cutie mark crusaders.
“Sweetie Belle, glad you’re here, where’s Apple- ..” she felt a knot on her throat, how could a small filly like Scootaloo ever get to town before herself?. It didn’t make sense. Even with the scooter she knew on the way to town she didn’t saw Scoots anywhere.
“You!” she yelled at the orange filly as she lifted the filly up with her hooves.
“Where is Apple Bloom? Ah’ wanna know, right now!” she was yelling and holding tight the little pegasi.
“Applejack you’re hurting me! She was home sick with the flu, didn’t you tell that to Miss Cheerilee?” Applejack’s eyes opened wide, her tears flowing now like a river, she was starting to lose her mind.
“Don’t lie to me I saw you in the clubhouse,” Applejack screamed as she started to shake the orange crusader.
“Leave her alone!” Sweetie Belle yelled and began to cry at the sudden shock of a situation. She just couldn’t understand what was going on. The screams and struggle made a few ponies approach them, as well as a couple of a couple of guards who immediately called the Princess to intervene.
“What was in that paper darn kid?, and don’t you lie to me” She kept asking and holding Scootaloo close, as Sweetie Belle kept on crying and screaming.
“APPLEJACK, STOP RIGHT NOW,” The princess arrived and with a glow of her horn she took Scootaloo away and order a guard to grab her friend.
“What were you doing to that filly” she questioned her friend, “Have you gone completely mad?”
“That little filly knows something, .. ah… Apple Bloom ...ah can’t find her! “ Applejack said while struggling with the guard. “Ah saw her hiding a piece of paper and then she ran away from me!”
“That’s not true,” yelled Scootaloo.
Twilight stared at her friend’s eyes, and the little filly’s eyes. Somehow she knew neither of them was lying.
That’s when the obvious truth hit her.
Applejack, Twilight and the guard named Bright Star returned to the Apple's barn. He searched around the trees where “Scootaloo” disappeared. And found out a crumpled piece of paper. She turned to where the the princess was seated and trotted to her. Then, Twilight saw the paper.
“Today is so great! My sister said I can miss school so we can have some sister relaxing time!
But she said Granny and Big Mac don't have to know; so it's gonna be just the two of us!
We'll be going to the lake and she says I can pick the next place!
She will tell Miss Cheerilee, that I'm sick or something, so is all good, don’t you worry girls …. see y’all later .
Apple Bloom “
Suddenly even the strong guard felt sick, and they all knew what that meant.
Something had taken Applejack’s place and told a lie. This was something that happened early in the morning. Several hours earlier.
“No. No. no…. this can’t be happening” Twilight said and her tears began to drop down her cheeks, while Applejack quietly trotted as fast as she could towards the lake.
Bright Star and Twilight Sparkle chased after her, hoping to still have time to save the little filly.
But that guard knew, on his experience, after so many hours, it is nearly impossible to still find the missing pony.
They arrived at the lake, and nopony was around. The guard saw a red stain in the root of a tree.
Blood.
Following the small drops of blood they discovered a bow. It used to be pink, but was now stained red.
The followed some strange hoof prints, that followed to another piece of fabric, hiding almost a whole body. The fabric wasn’t big enough, and two yellow hind legs of a small filly were slipping out. The guard took the blood-stained fabric away.
A well known filly was presented. Her hind and front legs were ripped apart from the body, her skull was cracked open, her torso was ripped open and her guts were scattered around her. Her eyes were missing, but her mouth had a grimace of pain and suffering, and the yellow her cheeks were wet from the flow of tears. She was alive during all the butchering and torturing.
Applejack tried to go closer to her beloved sister, but the guard stopped her. It took all his strength and magic from Twilight to be able to restrained her.
She fought with all her might, but she ended up on the ground, crying and screaming as she felt her heart had just been ripped out of her body.
Twilight could only cry and think about the other filly, the one they still haven’t found. She was shaking at the moment, and with the idea that another corpse could be out there, just waiting to be found.
Apple Bloom’s and Dinky’s fate could not escape her mind. The town had been the choice of a wicked, vicious and evil mind beyond of what she and her friends had to fight. But who were they? The answer was soon quite obvious. A creature capable of lies and deceit. Only one.
Only one.
