Romp

One step. One natural movement of my body. One flex of muscles and tendons that requires barely a conscious thought.

And the screams grow wild.

I lift my front-most hoof to see a crater left in the asphalt of the street below me. The ponies fleeing from my reach gallop faster, though barely.

I lean down, letting the front of my body fall between the buildings lining each side of the pavement. My shadow cascades over the herd of equines trying desperately to escape. An excited shiver travels down my sides as I fight back a grin, before opening my mouth and extending my tongue.

In a single motion, I lap up several of the insignificant little things. Already, I can feel them squirm uselessly against the soft muscle, which just thrills me all the more. What a wonderful sensation.

I relish the feeling as I stand back to my full height. I realize only a few seconds later my wings have spread on their own, casting a far larger shadow across the city proper. The sight only makes the moment all the more sweet.

My ears flick at the muffled screams of terrified ponies sounding from behind my closed lips. I can’t help it anymore; with a twitch, my mouth curves upward into a smile.

Tossing my head, I throw the ponies to the back of my throat and swallow. The wet sound is loud enough to echo against the buildings closest to me.

And though the screams of those now ingested have faded, the world seems to only grow louder with dread.

I giggle.

I giggle until the action warbles into a laugh.

I laugh loud, triumphant, to the world at my hooves.

Then, with a strain, I close my jaw, and set my sights on the next victims. My grin is here to stay.

Feeling a little feisty, I turn to one side and allow myself to plow through a row of skyscrapers, barely reaching the height of my chest. Their frameworks give way with ease as I merely stride forward. The collapsing mess reverberates with a cacophony of wailing, ponies falling helplessly to a doom that seems to transpire with such little climax.

I turn my nose up to the sight, casting a passive spell to move the ponies safely elsewhere. Their doom is not yet.

Instead, my eyes settle on a taller building across another street. Glancing down a moment, my hoof lingers in the air as I deliver mercy upon a few fleeing creatures below. Then, I step forward, allowing my weight to crack the pavement several blocks down the line.

Returning my attention forward, I stand to my full height in front of this one building, nearly as tall as I am – but not quite. I wrap my forelegs around the structure and pull myself forward, being careful to not shatter its fragile composition. Then, checking to make sure the street below is clear, I sit down, swishing my tail to sweep some carts out of the way.

The building in front of me resonates with terror. I can feel it against my limbs as the vibrations of their combined screams fill me with unparalleled joy. I lean my head forward, being careful not to press my horn against the many windows that make up the facade.

My eyes catch one particular mare in an apartment, cowering in awe just a few hooves away from her window.

I smirk. “Boo.”

The single word shatters hundreds of windows with raw sonic force. The pony I watch stumbles back from the bellow, before I shroud her and the apartment in total darkness.

Hugging myself tight against the building, I press my lips around her window and reach in with my tongue, grabbing hold of the powerless mare. She flails for a moment as I pull away, tossing her back into my throat with the usual motion. Her panic subsides almost instantaneously as she begins to travel slowly, gloriously, against the lining of my throat.

I close my eyes for a moment. This sensation never gets old to me.

Looking back at the structure I cradle within my grasp, I smirk once more, then crush the thing down the middle with a squeeze. Rubble and ponies spill all across my forelegs before slowly – from my perspective, at least – they fall to the earth below. Once more, I cast a spell, catching each of the little things to save them from peril.

Then, I glance to the side.

A large park rests just a few blocks down.

I grin wide.

With careful precision, I prance down the street, then through the buildings surrounding the park, being careful to save the victims with my magical hold. Within seconds, the park is effectively closed off from the rest of the world by toppled buildings, smoldering in ruin.

Once the task is complete, I turn my attention to the park and deposit the last group of ponies amongst several thousand more, gathered here with purpose to a fate they can only dream of escaping.

Already, several pegasi are thinking of fleeing the scene, their tiny wings giving them flight.

I stomp against a clearing at the edge of the park, smashing right through the top-layer of soil as the sound shockwaves across the land. The pegasi stumble and fall back to earth with just the one move.

Now that the scene is set, I step forward toward the field of ponies staring up at me. Many bow before me – perhaps out of formality, but more than likely to beg for mercy. Many spit and stammer words of appeal, but their voices barely reach my ears as a panicked noise. I stand too far above to clearly discern any of their statements, too far over their trembling figures to accurately determine their level of fear.

The best way – the only way – to gauge that feeling is through one simple, straight-forward means of observation.

Close the gap as much as possible.

Crouching low, I grasp a few ponies in a fetlock — when a bang from above startles me.

The echo, the sheer power of the sound rattles my bones. I drop the ponies out of shock and look up.

The sky ruptures with an explosion of every color known to ponykind.

And suddenly, I’m ready to throw up.