"No!" was a voice that screeched from inside a tree, awakening the ponies all around ponyville. Lights flashed on all around the town as the screams from Twilight Sparkle's house continued. "Please! Don't go that way!" She continued until Rainbow Dash flew in the window and shook her awake as her other friends came in to join her.
"Wake up Twilight!" Rainbow said as she shook Twilight awake only to be head butted by Twilight as she sat up too quickly, panting hard from her shock. Rainbow fell backwards and rubbed her head. "Ow! What was that for!?" She yelled with a small temper.
"Take it easy Rainbow Dash..." Whimpered Flutter Shy, "She just woke up from her sleep..."
Rainbow Dash huffed as Apple Jack stepped closer. "You okay sugar cube?" She asked Twilight as she looked over.
"Yeah.. Sorry..." Twilight said rubbing her head as she looked away, a dazed gaze directed down at her blanket.
"It was that dream again... Wasn't it?" Rarity said seeming a bit worried as she looked to her friend.
Twilight nodded and Pinkie Pie frowned, putting on her concentration face. "That's so weird."
"You're telling me..." A voice said from behind, the fillies turned to see Spike was he walked out of his bed with a yawn, bags under his eyes from lack of sleep.
"Sorry buddy..." Twilight said as she looked down, feeling guilty now that she saw how tired Spike was from wakign up every night from her nightmares.
"Maybe your dreams are trying to tell you something..." Flutter Shy piped up before shrinking down shyly as they looked to her.
"Maybe she's right." Apple Jack said, considering the idea carefully.
"Maybe you should ask Zecora about it, she might know." Rainbow Dash added in.
"Oh, oh, oh!" Pinkie Pie said jumping up and down. "I know! I know!"
They looked to her with curious looks, after all, it was hard to understand Pinkie some times. "What is it?" Apple Jack asked.
"We can all go visit Zecora! And we can have a slumber party!" She said brightly.
"I don't know sugar cube... Zecora is a busy zebra she might not have the time or even the room for all of us." Apple Jack said gently.
"Awww..." The pink pony pouted.
Twilight smiled slightly, looking back to her hooves. "I'll go alone to see Zecora in the morning... You all just get some rest." She said, the other ponies nodded and left the house.
"About time!" Spike said stretching his arms before scratching his lower back as he went back to sleep.
Twilight giggled slightly as she watched the baby dragon before laying back herself and gazing up at the ceiling in thought. 'Are my dreams trying to tell me something?' she wondered, contemplating with the idea for closing her eyes at last to get some sleep. She had a journey int he morning and she wanted to be prepared for the trek though the mysterious forest to see Zecora.
It wasn't a long sleep, but it was dreamless at least. Twilight awoke tiredly with a yawn but prepared a small travel bag and made it outside, walking toward the forest while using her magic to hold an apple so she could eat as she walked toward the forest.
For once the forest was eerily silent which made Twilight uneasy as she walked but continued anyway but her memory flashes to the dreams. Her eyes widened, as she looked around, breathing fast as she jerked at every sound in fear. She felt surrounded, she felt eyes burning into her pelt, she could feel the overpowering stench of fear and danger engulf the air, suffocating her. She screams and she runs deeper, heading off trail without meaning too before stumbling to the ground. "No! No! Please!" She begged in fear as she turned over on the back trying to scoot away.
"You run in fear, did you not hear? It is only me on my way to ponyville for some tea."
Twilight looked up, hearing the familiar rhymes of Zecora and she relaxed. "Sorry Zecora i thought you were some pony else...." She admitted and Zecora laughed.
"I see you have come for me, perhaps we should go to my hut and speak on what is your rut." The Zebra said and Twilight nodded with a weak smile, following behind Zecora as she lead the violet mare to the hut in the forest. Zecora closed the door behind Twilight as she walked in and so they went to the table to speak to one another about what was troubling Twilight.
"So what is troubling you Twilight Sparkle? Tell me for I have all night." Zecora said when she was ready to hear what Twilight had to say.
Twilight took a breath. "I have been having this same dream every night...." She admitted, looking down.
"A dream you say? Perhaps there is a way I can help." Zecora offered and Twilight nodded as she continued.
"You see... Every night... I see myself in a forest... It's silent... I don't hear anything... But i know something is there... watching.... Something not of Equestria... But it was there... They were dark creatures... They could only be out in dark places... And they were chasing me... I hear them and I turn before i start to run... I see my friends, as i run... all being attacked by one of these creatures... Flutter Shy trying to befriend one... Rainbow Dash trying to fight one... Apple Jack trying to protect Apple Bloom.... Pinkie Pie laughing at one.... Rarity... She was trying to run.... And Ponyville all in glistening red flames... Then I fall... And when I turn I see it's face... Fangs.... Claws... Red eyes... Black furred... then It would lunge and i'd scream... That's when my friends would wake me up... And now nobody in PonyVille is getting a good night's sleep because of me... That's all I can remember...." Twilight said explaining her dream the best she could, she could only remember fragments but that was the majority of her dream.
Zecora sat there, contemplating the idea before going to her books seeming curious about it all. "I will call for you when I have more information. I know little on this but I will do what I can miss."
"Thanks Zecora... I'll be going now to do a little of my own research now..." She said as she got up to leave.
"Be careful young Twilight, for there is a key to this, you will see."
Twilight nodded and left, walking home now where her worried friends were waiting. She didn't hesitate to hurry home, not wanting another relapse into her dream. She made it home quickly and began to read though her books, looking up every book she had on dreams but it wasn't long till she fell asleep again. Her head resting on a page as her dream unfolded in her mind.
Thick, dense forests surrounded the violet mare as she walked along a beaten, old, dirt path that was nearly hidden by overgrowth of ferns and various other plants. The trees were tall columns of dark toned wood that's many branches covered the sky with its leaves but Twilight knew it was Night despite the fact it was near pitch black in this forest. She walked along, unable to see further than a small distance as she walked onward. Vines hung down limply from various tree branches but she noticed one move and she stopped to watch. It seemed unnatural but then she looked away when she concluded that she was seeing things only to hear something in the bushes not far away before crimson eyes lit up before her. Twilight gasped and took off, leaving the safety of her path to go around it, a dreading feeling over came her and the tense air. She felt deep in her gut that she didn't want anything to do with the beast there but she dared not turn back. She finally slowed down, panting in a clearing as she looked around. She saw nothing but a red glow in the distance. Curiosity got the best of this mare and she went toward it. Moving ever closer to what was before her but froze, hearing something behind her she turned.
"There there...."
It was Flutter Shy's voice, but what was she talking to? Twilight had to know so she went over to see, spotting Flutter Shy at a bush with a sweet look as she tried to coax something out of a bush but Twilight saw the red glowing eyes flash open.
"No Flutter Shy! Run!" Twilight yelled but Flutter Shy didn't hear her as the beast lunged out swiftly like a shadow shooting across a white wall, tackling Flutter Shy and into the bushes with the yellow mare screaming. "No!" Twilight yelled going over to her friend but she and the creature were gone. She looked around then heard another sound.
"You won't get away with this!"
"Rainbow Dash!" She realized and took off toward her voice but arrived just moments before Rainbow Dash jumped at the dark figure and the two rolled into the bushes fighting. "Rainbow Dash!" She yelled again but was too late, she disappeared as well. "No, no, no, no, no!" Twilight said frantically then turned toward the flickering glow in the distance and ran for it, hurriedly, believing it was a camp fire. But froze, an icy chill up her spine as she turned around to Apple Jack's voice.
"Stay back ya hear!" There was Apple Bloom trying to fend off a beast with little apple bloom behind her, right in front of Twilight. "You're not getting this little filly!"
"No Apple Jack! Apple Bloom! We have to run!" Twilight insisted but the beast grabbed Apple Jack with large claws and threw her aside into the forest before grabbing Apple Bloom but spotted Twilight and threw the tiny pony behind itself as it roared at Twilight.
Twilight panicked and took off again, trying to escape it when she hears laughing. "Pinkie!?" Twilight said. "Come on Pinkie we have to run!" She insisted once more as she neared the pink pony who was laughing to the point she was rolling on the floor over the beast right behind Twilight. "This isn't funny Pinkie! We have to go!" She said then felt the hot, moist breath of the beast behind her. Twilight looked over her shoulder, her ears folding back as her eyes widened. She screamed as she took off again, the beast missed her and grab Pinkie, but was dissatisfied by the pony and tossed her aside.
"What are you doing Twilight?" Rarity asked as she trotted into view.
"Rarity!" Twilight said catching up. "We gotta run! We have to! There's something here! We gotta run! Now!" Twilight panted hurriedly.
"Slow down, what's wrong?" She asked then gasped, spotting the beast, her mouth dropped open.
"That's what's wrong now let's go!" Twilight said taking off, Rarity took off after her without hesitation, a look of terror on her face.
"What is that!?" Rarity asked as she ran behind Twilight.
"I don't know..." Twilight said fearfully when they arrived where the light was and stopped, frozen where she was. "No...."
Before her was Ponyville in flames, fires spewing out of every shattered or opened window. The gleaming, dancing flames of destruction seemed to be calling to them to come join its dance, crackling laughter coming from it as it laughed at the two ponies' faces.
"No!" Twilight screamed running toward her tree house.
"No!" Rarity screamed but when Twilight turned, the beast had her in her grasps.
"Rarity!" Twilight yelled trying to use her magic but it just wouldn't work. "Rarity!" She screamed again but was too late, the beast squeezed Rarity to the point she couldn't breath and she went limp in its grasps. "No! No! No!" Twilight said, tears in her eyes, for she had watched a friend die before her when she couldn't do a thing to save her but now wasn't a time for mourning for the beast now was looking to her. Twilight staggered slightly but turned, taking off again. "Spike!" She yelled at her tree and busted inside only to find the baby dragon laying limp on the floor, covering in soot but with a closer look his eyes were wide open but solid black as if something and taken out everything that made him who he was on the inside. Twilight staggered back again, shaken and shocked. "Noooooo!" She screamed again running away into the forest before falling. She turned over crawling back fearfully, her eyes wide. She could see the beast over her. "Nooo!" She screamed. "No! Please! Go away! Leave me alone!" She screamed, unable to tare her eyes from the beast before her.
Crimson pupil-less eyes gazing down at her with a wolf-like muzzle, long fangs as it opened its mouth and snarled at her, solid obsidian body covered in long fur, and large claws on its paws as it stood over her. The beast howled so loud it blew the branches apart, revealing a full moon before staring down at her.
Twilight finally screamed, closing her eyes tight as she made on final effort to escape as it came at her, claws piercing her flesh just when her eyes shot open to find spike there trying to wake her up.
