The night came crawling over the Everfree forest, and everything within it slowly went dark. Soon it was so dark that you couldn’t even see the hoof right infront your face anymore. And from this moment on, this story begins...
Rainy Cloud walked through the pitchblack darkness. The improvised torch in his mouth barely provided enought light for him to find his way through the forest, and it was more guessing then actually knowing where to step. And so he stumbled more then just once.
Rainy surely knew about the danger the Everfree providet for uncarefull travlors at day, and so he didn’t even wanted to imagine the monsters which would come out at night. He was terrified, and from the moment of when the last sunshine dissapeared, he was already in a state of panic.
So his reaction of dropping the torch, his only source of light out in the forest, wasn’t so surprising at all when the Timberwolfes startet their howling in the far. Luckily the torch didn’t go out. So Rainy Clouds was able to pick it up with shaky hoofes, and he continued his way through the Everfree and towards Ponyville. Now even more frightened than before.
Rainy cloud’s ears stood high in the air, perked up onto their limits. They twirled around, picking up some noise from above. When he looked up in horror, expecting some monster jumping ontop of him, he could see nothing. Just total, pitch black darkness. Not even the or stars could be seen... But he could still hear rashling from above.
It took him several seconds to figure out that it was only the wind in the trees, shaking the branches against each other, and slowly he continued his way. All he wanted was to get home, to his wife and their foal.
Why did he had this stupid idea of walking through the Everfree in the fist place? Oh, yeah... He wanted to be home faster. If he had taken the route around the forest, it would have cost him two more days to arrive home, but through the forest it only was a daytrip.... Normally.
Rainy wandered along the path, and slowly the feeling of being watched crept it’s way up into his neck, sending shiver after shiver down his spine and gripping onto his mind, not willing to let go. He looked around but could only see the shapes of nearby trees standing a few feet away. As longer as he walked, as more certain he got about this feeling. And he shouldn’t wait much longer for confirmation...
Fear started to spread in Rainy’s limbs when he heard a loud *crack* about 15 meter to his right. He had gotten used to the sound the wind made in the trees, but this one was different. It sounded like somepony, or better; something had been sneaking around in the underwood, and then accidently stepped on a dry branch.
Rainy could not move. His mind screamed to run, to escape of whatever was there hiding in the shadows... But he couldn’t. His Legs would not move, no matter how hard he tryed. The fear had frozen him... taken Rainy in his cold, unforgiving grip and filled every part of his body...
Another crack could be heard, this time to his left and only 10 meters away.
Rainy’s head shot to the left, in the direction of the sound and in the shine of his torch he could, barely, make out the dark shape of a crature, approaching him slowly, but steadily...
Like the movement of his head in reflex had pulled a switch in Rainy, he started to run.
He just leapt forward, not caring about being carefull anymore. The panic had taken over his body. It controlled him. His rational thinking had been overwritten by the panic, the onborne reflex to save his life, and so he sprinted blindy through the dark Everfree.
He dodged low hanging branches and trees standing in his way, only to hear the heavy steppes of the creature behind him. Their breathing sounded heavily, and Rainy swore he could feel the hot steamy breath from one of them right in his neck.
Rainy ran through the forest blindly. The torch, a miracle it hadn’t just blewn out, only providing enought light so that Rainy could see in time when to duck or leap to the right or left.
Suddenly a cobblestone wall appeared infront of his vision. He leaped to the right, trying to dodge the obstacle, but it was far to late.
Rainy Clouds ran headfirst into the wall. He stumbled to the ground and stayed there, not able to get up because of the pure pain spreading from his head.
He looked up, holding his head in his hoofes, just in time to see the creatures closing the distance and blocking off every way for him to escape. Rainy looked around in panic. The torch had fallen to the ground when he crashed into the wall, still burning and the only source of light in the otherwise totally dark forest. It was out of his reach.
In the light he could see the creatures for the first time... They were massive. They had a midnight blue fur, and dark blue eyes, deep as inkwells which seemed to glow. Their fangs, long and razor sharp, glistered in the shine of the torch like polished. They were most certainly not Timberwolves, but they did looked like them from form and shape...
But for Rainy it didn’t matter what creature they had similaritys with. The only thing he cared about was that they were here, standing right in front of him, looking down onto him with a hunger shining in their eyes like hellfire...
Rainy slowly backed up further, pressing his entire body against the wall and looking at the cratures in horror.
The cratures moved in closer, now standing side by side. The one on the right let out a small growl, resonating in his throat before it left his snout. Rainy looked up to it in horror, not able to think about anything else then being torn in pieces by this creature. It came closer, now only about two meters away.
Suddenly, Rainy heard a sound which did’t seem to fit in; The sound of a creaky old door being opened.
He looked to the source of the sound. It was an opening in the wall Rainy hadn’t seen in his panic before, and in the opening Rainy could make out the shape of a pony holding something long.... A spear.
The light wich streamed out from inside lightened up the scene a lot better then the torch on the ground.
The pony just stood there for a moment, frozen in place. Then it took a step towards the scene. The two creatures which had until then circled Rainy, led their attention swap towards the newcommer. They slowly approached and split up to flank the pony with the weapon, realizing that it was the bigger threat of the ponies around. But the pony didn’t even waitet that long to give them the opportunity to flank him.
While Rainy slowly backed up away from the creatures, the pony just lifted the spear up like it was nothing and threw it with a great aim and strenght right in the throat of the closest creature.
A wet * shligth* could be heard when the spear entered the creatures throat. It stood there frozen for a moment, then the predators front legs gave in and it fell forward onto the ground. The spear drove in furher and emerged at the creatures neck together with a fountain of dark, deep red blood.
When it finally hit the ground fully it landet on the side, and a red color began to surround the wound, spreading silently on the ground until it seemed like a lake full of blood... The creature didn’t move anymore. It was dead.
In the meantime the new pony had grabbed a sword from somewhere, and when the second creature stroke, The sword awaited it with unpatience. It wasn’t more then a silver flash, striking down on the creature. Blood flew off the blade when it finished it’s way through the flesh and bones, flying a good range until landing in droplets on the ground.
When the creature howled in shock and pain the pony who had stroked did a fast roll to the side, and where it had stood just a second ago, the creature landed. It slid over the ground, leaving a trail of blood behind.
When it stood up again, Rainy could see that the right front leg of the creature... was gone. Where it had been just a few seconds ago, was now a steady driplet of blood. Rainy could see the bone, it looked like it had been cut with surgical precision.
The crature looked angry, like it would strike again. The pony seemed to think the same because it lifted the sword up, ready to attack it when it did. And so it did indeed.
When the creature attacked, it did so with a growl and fast as lightning. The missing leg did not stop the creature from being fast, and before one of the ponies could react it was there, striking at his sword weilding attacker.
Blood flew Again when the creature sank its teeth deep in the ponys front leg, and again when the cold silver of the sword grit his hungry teeth in the bredators stomach, cutting it open half the way. The creature yelped in pain, then it startet to jerk. Blood spilled out of the cluffing wound and onto the brave pony warrior, trapped underneth the dying creature.
Slowly the spasm stopped, and soon it lay still, only the blood still dripped from its wounds. The warrior struggled himself free and looked to the creatures with contempt. Then the Pony stood up and looked over to Rainy, who still layed on the ground. He didn’t move when the blood covered pony limped over to him.
Rainy did took the hoof the warrior offered, and without a word, both the ponies walked into the house, because that is what it was Rainy had crashed into. A house at the end of the Everfree. In the far Rainy could already see Ponyville, and his house...
Author's Note
For this story I got inspired by a pretty mean and bloody nightmare... Hope you guys enjoy... at least a little