Shadow Prophet

They booked a night. Well, they didn't really book a night. More like Rainbow Dash picked a lock on a room and they stayed there overnight. Later, Shadow would regret the decision. But then, he would think, there really wasn't any other choice, was there?

There were two beds in room 237, and it was decided very quickly by the mares that they would get both beds and he would sleep on the floor.

"Oh, come on! Please? You two could sleep in the same bed!" Shadow begged.

They said simultaneously: "What? No!" Shadow sighed in defeat and agreed to sleep on the floor. They were all terribly tired and passed out right as their heads hit their pillows.

They slept silently for about three hours, then it happened. It started with a lamp in the corner of the room flickering for a moment, then turning on, even though the switch that controlled it stayed off. On the wall the lamp was next to, the foreboding shadow appeared out of the shadow of mist on the wall. Next to where is stood, the shadow of a doorway appeared, so dark that you couldn't see the wall anymore. The ponyless shadow approached the sleeping Rainbow Dash and hovered over her.

Shadow Prophet mumbled in his sleep and turned over on the floor towards the active lamp. The sudden light woke him up and he was for a moment confused. He sat up and saw the Dark One's shadow on the wall next to Rainbow's bed.

"Rainbow Dash!" He yelled. Raven Wing and Rainbow Dash both jerked awake. The moment Rainbow's eyes opened, the Dark One's shadow jumped out of the wall and into 3 dimensions, as it had done when they met for the first time. It grabbed Rainbow's hoof and before she knew what was going on, she was on the floor and being dragged by a demonic shadow creature. Not a great way to start your day.

Shadow grabbed at Rainbow's hoof, but was dragged with her, not even slowing her down. Raven jumped at the shadow creature, but she went right through it, landing on her hooves and looking around, confused. The shadow headed towards the doorway shadow, and once it was in front of it, it stopped moving, calmly reaching out a transparent hoof towards the wall.

Shadow tugged at Rainbow's hoof, but even though the creature wasn't paying any attention, he couldn't get her out of its grip.

"Come on! Pull harder!" Rainbow begged. Shadow pulled as hard as he could, and Raven went up behind him, wrapped her hooves around is waist, and pulled him. All they managed, however, was to lift Rainbow into a plank position.

Meanwhile, the beast put its hoof on the wall and turned it. There was a sound that was like an echo of a turning doorknob, and then the shadow pulled, opening a door that appeared as it opened. It wasn't made of shadow, but black wood.

It pulled Rainbow Dash again as it went through into the darkness beyond, yanking her right out of Shadow's grasp, who tumbled and fell on his side next to Raven Wing. Rainbow screamed as she was pulled through the door, and it closed behind her, silencing her scream. The door vanished in the shadow of a mist-like effect, and the lamp turned off with a click sound.

Raven, who was sitting on her flank, leaning backwards with her front hooves on the floor behind her, stared into the darkness. There was nothing there. There had been, but it was gone now, and it wasn't coming back. In about thirty seconds, the shadow had already taken one member of the group, it could easily get the rest of them.

In the silence, Raven heard Shadow crying. It wasn't a loud sound, but a very soft and consolidated sob.

"Shadow?" Raven asked, turning her head to where she thought Shadow would be.

"It's hopeless," he said in a wobbly voice. Definitely crying. "I can't stop that thing, I can't get back home, and I can't stop the Universe from ending completely. It's all hopeless. I'm just an insignificant little speck who's trying to change the direction the river of consequence flows, but it's more of a Niagra Falls than a river."

Raven didn't know how to respond. But then she did. "Yes, you can. You just have to believe in yourself."

"Oh, don't give me that soppy, cliched bullcrap," He replied.

"But it's true. There are hundreds of ponies who were as 'insignificant' as you think you are, but because they believed that they could do great things, they ended up becoming great. It's all a matter of will, and I was pretty sure you had a strong one for a while."

Shadow didn't respond.

"Either way, lying there and crying isn't going to help anything. You need to get up and think of what to do next. I haven't known you for long, but I do know that you can be good at getting out of a tight spot most of the time."

There was a shuffling, sound, the sound of Shadow standing up. He trotted across the room and turned on the light.

"Isn't that dangerous? It could come back," Raven said.

"No. I don't think it even wants us. It was just that we were in it's way."

"What do you mean?" Raven asked, standing up. Shadow had red, puffy eyes, but the tears were gone.

"I think," Shadow started, moving over to Rainbow's bed and sitting down on it. Raven sat on her bed across from him, listening intently, though she was sure she probably wouldn't understand most of what he would say.

"that that... thing isn't just some random monster. I think it's much more important than you think. I think it's the Angel of Death."

Raven did understand this, but now she was wishing she didn't. She looked around the room in spite of herself.

"You've probably already read about how I saved Rainbow Dash at my welcoming party."

"Yeah," Raven replied. "I never liked how she was dancing with Doctor Whooves."

"Who's that?" Shadow asked.

Raven waved her hoof. "No pony. Never mind."

"Well, I think I saved her from death. And I think I wasn't supposed to do that."

"What's your point?"

"Basically, Rainbow Dash cheated death, so death came around for a personal visit to take her with him. This whole time, it was Rainbow who was being chased by the monster. Not you or me."

The epiphany momentarily sucked the breath out of Raven's lungs. She began to think back, and it did make sense.

"So... what do we do?"

"The Universe is still collapsing, and there are still lots of rips in space-time. We find one of those, and begin our search for Rainbow Dash."