Author's Note

My first real attempt at a horror/gore fic. I was inspired by The Thing and The Flood. While there will be gore I don't plan to go crazy with it. This fic will only be three chapters long. Let me know if you have any tips for scary writing or horror in general. It is something I'd like to try to improve in my writing.

Thank you for reading.

The Things That Were...

The Things that Were…

Pinkie was skipping home. The day had been a great one. She joined Rarity and Fluttershy at the spa and even got time to play with the Cutie Mark Crusaders. After all that she could hardly wait to see the Cakes and her two favorite little ponies. Approaching the home Pinkie’s chest tightened, her ears twitched, and her jaw quivered. It was her Pinkie sense. She knew it was but she didn’t know that combo. What she did know is that it terrified her. She began to full on gallop towards the door. Once at the door Pinkie stopped. A grotesque sound could be heard from in the home. It was a laugh. More specifically it was Pinkie’s laugh. For once in her life laughing scared her. She listened to her giggle and shivered as it was layered with a deep hoarse groan. Occasionally a crack of some sort could be heard. Ignoring her fear and shaking hooves, Pinkie pushed the door open.

In the middle of the shop were two bodies illuminated by the white light of the moon. Mr and Mrs Cake were hardly recognizable. Their bodies had massive gashes and their limbs were bent in unnatural positions. Mr.Cake’s was on his side facing the door, a terrible expression of misery still on his face. Standing over him was a creature with black hooves and deformed wings. It’s skin was different colors. In most spots it was near black but others were a sickly shade of greenish yellow. Out of its neck were long pieces of flesh that stretched down into Mr.Cakes side and were tearing their way through his body. As it fed its body changed. The joints on its legs cracked and reversed positions. Bones began to perturbed out from its body. It’s neck shifted some revealing its head which had been flung on to its back. The mane was curly and it was pink.

She took a step backwards out the door. Her body was nearly spasming from how hard she was shaking. It noticed her movement and groaned loudly. Her giggle coming from the head now dangling on the creature.

Pinkie Pie screamed and the creature fled. She kept screaming until the entire town was awake and at her side. She kept screaming as her friends cried with her. She screamed until she could no longer scream.

Twilight was on to it. She had spent nearly a month trying to find a way to track it. Whatever it was she knew she was going to catch it.

“Twilight, are you sure this is a good idea? I don’t mean to pry but… maybe its better if you don’t find it.”

Spikes words caused her to furrow her brows as she went through her notes. She took a moment to pause what she was doing and look down at him. The little purple dragon stared up at her with fearful eyes. She pulled him close to her using one of her wings.

“Spike I have to find whatever monster did this. The Cakes were not just our friends but they were practically family to Pinkie. I can’t let anypony else get…”

She hesitated to describe what they had seen. The mutilation of the Cakes was so severe that they were barely recognizable. She thought of something similar happening to her friends or Spike. Twilight did her best to keep her emotions in check. Spike needed to see her be strong.

“I won’t let it happen again Spike. Just don’t worry okay? We’re gonna all be fine. I’m gonna be fine. That thing is out there. I have no clue if it is intelligent or simply something savage. Honestly I don’t know which is worse. A savage creature is unpredictable. It doesn’t leave a pattern to follow. The scarier thought to me is if there is something out there planning all this. Something or some pony with no morals and no limits. Either way Spike, I won’t let them hurt anypony else.”

Spike typically shied away from Twilight’s embrace but this time he held on to her tightly. Twilight rubbed his head with one of her wings and tried to comfort him.

“Hey don’t tell me you don’t think I’ll beat this thing? Did I somehow lose all my credibility? I wonder who beat Nightmare Moon? Or Tirek? Seriously Spike stop worrying. Nothing bad will-“

She stopped herself. Something bad already happened. Spike spoke into her coat.

“Nightmare Moon or Tirek didn’t… no pony looked like the Cakes did…”

Twilight said nothing more. She just held Spike until someone knocked on the door and let themselves in. Only her friends would let themselves in to her castle as anypony else would be to shy or reserved to do so. Twilight left her desk and Spike followed her. She met her friends in the throne room. Every one of them took their seat save for the only absent member. After briefly greeting them a short moment of silence passed.

“So Spike and I have skimmed through nearly overbook in my library. There was nothing that stood out as even remotely matching the description of what Pinkie saw. The only thing that initially came to my mind was a changeling. Though we know they feed off of love. We have also seen their handiwork at my brother’s wedding. They are more precise and rely on magic blasts or bites to kill. Girls… I don’t know what or who did this…”

Another moment of silence lingered on. Twilight sighed and chewed on her bottom lip for a time before speaking.

“I’m sorry… I looked through everything and-“

Applejack threw her hat down on the floor effectively silencing Twilight. The farm pony’s tear filled eyes glared at her hat. Her lividness was apparent in her voice.

“I ain’t one to pick a fight or be a bully. I try to be good and honest. Y’all know that I consider you family right? I love my family. Love ‘em like the apples in my trees. I would damn near do anything for you gals. Anyone hurts you? Hurts MY family? Hurts Pinkie Pie? I get them back. Now you’re telling us that whatever did this is gone?”

Twilight reiterated what she had said.

“I’m telling you that I tried Applejack. I did my best and I found nothing.”

Applejack wanted to yell. She wanted to take it out on someone.

“Damn it Twilight… I know… I know you did your best. It’s just not fair.”

A new voice rang out from the darker corners of the throne room.

“You all must stop this pity party. It is very unfitting of you all. Pathetic really…”

They all looked around until Princess Luna walked out from the shadows. As she approached them she spoke slowly and methodically.

“The Princesses told you they would send you anything useful and so they have…”

Twilight was made uncomfortable by Luna’s tone. She knew the princess to be a bit rough around the edges but never rude.

“Princess Luna? Why are you here? Where is Celestia?”

Luna put on an over exaggerate pout as she replied.

“Oh I am not sufficient? Twilight Sparkle requests assistance. I attend to my ponies directly and instead of gratitude my presence is doubted. Were it my sister coming to you now, would you not rejoice? Vile little hypocrites… You speak of friendship yet you-”

Twilight stomped her hoof down and charged her horn with magic. She may have fooled her friends but Twilight had studied their kind for many long nights after the invasion. Her horn shot a green bolt that struck the night princess right in the face.

Luna erupted in green flames that began to engulf her entire body. After a short tranformation Chrysalis now stood towering over them. Her presence caught all but Twilight off guard. They all jumped to offensive positions and glared at the changeling queen who began to laugh.

“Why the angry faces? I am here to assist you. If you won’t take my word take Celestia’s for she is the one who sent me. Hello there Spike. Why don’t you be a good little dragon and send a letter to clear this matter fo-”

Twilight stood in front of Spike, effectively blocking Chrysalis’s view of him. She pointed her horn at the changeling.

“What are you doing in my home Chrysalis? You’ve got some nerve. Give us one good reason not to take you down.”

Chrysalis smugly walked in between and around them. She eyed each of them while doing so.

“I can give you two. Friendship for starters you little hypocrites and the nasty business that occurred here recently. Despite what you may believe I was sent here by Celestia. You see when the goddess of the sun reaches out to you all the way in the far corners of the badlands it peaks your interest. Why would the very princess I tried to overthrow come to me? She didn’t come to finish me off as she came alone. Though I may be weakened not even Celestia could challenge the full might of the entire changeling horde. No Celestia came to me because of what occurred right here in Ponyville.”

Chrysalis’s smug expression vanished as she stood eye to eye with Twilight. A tension could be seen in the changeling’s eyes.

“Celestia reached out to me because of what attacked the Cakes. It is something we both fear so much that we would put aside our differences to deal with it. Your initial instinct was correct Twilight. This is or rather, was the work of a changeling.”

Twilight became curious as she took in Chrysalis’s words. She wondered what could drive a changeling to commit such horrific things.

“Why Chrysalis? What would make one of your changelings do something like this? Your kind has never even come close to doing anything like what was done to the Cakes.”

“Nor will they ever Twilight. We may not be allies but that does not make us mindless monsters. The one thing you must understand about changelings is that we are in nearly every way superior to ponies.”

Rainbow Dash scoffed and caused Chrysalis to turn her head sharply.

“You disagree Rainbow Dash?”

The cyan pony stepped forward and glared at the larger being.

“We have better magic, we are stronger, and oh yeah faster! Fine you can change forms and thats kinda cool but that’s about it.”

Chrysalis shook her head.

“I had thought your ignorance preceded you before but, now it is abundantly clear that you are an imbecile. My kind has been starving and dying. In our prime our magic was unstoppable. Imagine all the power of dark magic with none of the… nightmarish consequences. Many of Star swirl’s greatest achievements came from studying my kind. We do not simply alter form we alter strength, speed, and even life span. Our cities were masterfully crafted and spanned across hundreds of miles underneath your land. Hmm. Perhaps I was mistaken. We were superior to your kind. So much so that Celestia even asked us for aid to combat Sombra in his prime. Even then our kinds did not have good relations but, we still had sympathy for the ponies in the Crystal empire. For the first time ponies and changeling were to be united in battle against a greater foe.”

Her eyes saddened. They shifted to the floor and she continued with a softer voice.

“You only briefly encountered Sombra. Even I am thankful that you did not witness his greater evils. He had somehow learned of the alliance forming against him. In order to keep his power he would have done anything. Even wipe out an entire species. That wretched stallion had twisted both magic and science in the worst ways. The result was biological outbreak fueled by some of the darkest magic.”

Twilight’s jaw fell in disbelief. She thought of the description for the monstrosity Pinkie had described.

“Chrysalis are you saying that… that thing was some kind of-”

“Infected Changeling? Yes. That damned thing pushed us back. It spread so fast that our only option was to cave in entire sections of our hive. Do you know what it feels like to have to kill those that you know because they may be infected? To watch as your cities are swallowed deep into the earth? In just under a month I witnessed my civilization fall. Our greatest scholars and historians buried with all which they had recorded and studied. We tried to search for a cure or a treatment but… none was found. Even while being malnourished I am able to best any pony beside maybe Celestia and Luna. You have already seen what I can do when fed. Yet even at my prime I could do nothing against Sombra’s evil. Only the Elements of Harmony were capable of such a feat. Celestia and Luna could only lock away the demon and even that came at a cost. The loss of the Crystal Empire was terrible but there is a reason why your kind despises mine. It is a stigma formed from a fear that has remained constant through time.”

She took in a deep breathe and continued. Twilight could see that part of her was reliving those times. She had never seen Chrysalis express so much grief.

“Ghastly Gorge earned its name from the terrible things that occurred in a town that once stood there. I will not unsettle you with the details but let’s just say not all of the infected perished when the rocks fell on them. They clawed their way out and parts of the ground gave way. A town not to unlike ponyville fell into the earth and into the clutches of the infected. What occurred was so terrible that Celestia and Luna did not even bother to use the elements. No love could purify that evil so instead they purged that town with fire. Rock turned to its molten form and a once delightful little town became the silent gorge you now know. They did not even consult me when they decided to do the same for every other caved in section of my hive. So you can see why they would bring me in on this matter.”

Silence fell on them all and it remained for some time. Twilight walked towards a window that overlooked Ponyville. The town had no longer looked like a wonderful place to gaze at the nighttime sky. Its shadows had grown darker and more sinister. The breeze was a soul chilling breathe of something lurking. Every glistening object was the eyes of something watching. Every little sound was something to fear. Even in her own home she felt like somewhere out there it was watching some pony and waiting.

“How do I find it?”