Eternal Night

I shrank back nervously, and smiled half-heartedly at the trio.

“Not another one!” Scootaloo protested, turning towards the others. Her wings were no longer so stunted, I noted. They were like mine: instead of having feathers, they had a leathery membrane that stretched throughout her wing. Her fur was darker and her feathery mane was longer, which fell slightly into her eyes. Her eyes were the darkest red of all three of them, though it was more like a scarlet then a full on red.

Apple Bloom looked at me with a curious expression, her once orange eyes now a bright cherry red. Her hooves were the same color of her eyes, fading into her bright yellow coat. Her mane was also longer with jagged ends. Her bow was nowhere to be found.

Sweetie Belle cleared her throat and smiled nervously. “Eheh, um, who are you?” She hid her face behind her mane in a very fluttershy-like gesture, her once small curls were now longer and ragged. Her horn was twisted and her eyes were a pale yellow.

I realized with a small jolt that my disguise hadn’t worn off yet. I fluttered my wings, and gave a half-hearted smile. “It’s me, Ruby.”

Sweetie squealed and tackle hugged me before the others could intervene. I felt a cold trickle down my back, and one quick glance revealed that my disguise was fading. Scootaloo stared at me with an arched eyebrow and crossed her hooves.

“Why have you come now?” She asked with a bitter tone of voice. Apple Bloom shook her head slightly at Scootaloo, but it went unnoticed. “I mean, we’ve been down here for weeks!!”

I drew my head back. “Weeks? I only woke up a couple days ago. There was still a fresh-ish puddle of blood left from before.”

Sweetie looked confused. “No one was injured, besides our bite marks. But, yeah, weeks. Even though there aren’t ‘days’ anymore, there’s a clock just over there.” At that, she pointed a hoof at the clock in front of a desk with several papers on it.

Scootaloo flicked her tail in annoyance and advanced on me. She had grown a bit taller in the last few weeks and the top of her head came up to my eyes. “Why did you leave us here? Why didn’t you come sooner?!” She thrust her face into mine and I saw tears brimming her eyes.

I swallowed and knelt down so that I was looking her in the eye. “I woke up only a couple days ago, and I’m sorry I hadn’t gotten here sooner.” I stood up slowly, the rest of my disguise having worn off.

“Quick, hide!” Sweetie Belle hissed, and I darted into the corner, squeezing my eyes shut.

I heard her voice and shivered.

“Well, little fillies.” Nightmare’s voice was full of contempt and anger. “Are you ready to join now?”

Apple Bloom shook her head wildly, which I saw through cracked eyelids. Scootaloo snorted and turned away.

“No.” Sweetie took me by surprise by the amount of defiance in her voice. “We will never join you. We saw what you did to Ponyville. All of those flames were hard to miss.”

NIghtmare cackled. “Soon,” She whispered. “Even though your Thestralism keeps you protected, you still can’t resist sucking the very life-blood out of a poor, innocent creature.” I squeezed my eyes tight as she looked over towards Scootaloo, who stood in front of me. “Let’s see how you do after another day without another meal.” Her steps faded away, and I cracked my eyes open.

“This is what she does to you?” I stood up, walking away from the corner and near the door. “She starves you?”

Sweetie shook her head. “Right about now, this really nice guard sneaks us some bottles. See, he’s right there at the end, checking on the prisoners.”

I poked my head out and when my eyes were met with yellow ones, he picked a crate up and walked over.

“How’re my favorite little fillies today?” He greeted the trio as they pressed up against the bars. He set the crate down. “Alright, Bloom, let’s see if the swelling around your throat has gone down.”

The others backed off and I watched with horror as Bloom tore what looked like skin away from her throat, revealing matted fur and a small, swelled up bump where her voicebox would have been. The guard sighed and dug into the crate, bringing out a small bottle. The color inside was a dark green, resembling the leaves on the trees in the Everfree.

Bloom held her head high while he plastered some of the substance on her throat and wrapped it in textured cloth, making it look like there was nothing wrong. She greedily swallowed a small white pill and brought two large bottles full of red liquid over to us. She nudged them over and smiled.

Sweetie and Scootaloo tore into one, while Bloom opened the other carefully, took a few swallows, and offered the bottle to me. I sniffed it, and gulped half of it down, the smooth, fresh liquid trickling down my throat.

“Alright. Ready to leave?” The guard asked suddenly, and the door slid open silently. He held several odd looking instruments, giving each of us one.

I gripped it tightly in my mouth, staring at the guard. He really looks familiar, but what is it?

“Ah, Miss?” The guard raised an eyebrow. “Is there a problem?”

I frowned. “No… Just a little… Confused…”

He shrugged. “Anyways, everyone touch the ends together.”

I walked over to the others, and we placed the ends of the instruments together. The crescent moons began to glow, each one a slightly different shade of blue. Suddenly, there was a bright flash, temporarily blinding me.