Just Smileby Fire-DashChaptersPrologueStoriesChapter TwoChapter ThreeChapter FourChapter FiveChapter SixProloguePrologue “Mom?” the young colt called, standing alone in the pouring rain. “Dad? Where'd you go?” He took a few steps forward, hooves splashing in the mud. His ruddy auburn mane was plastered to his head and neck, his tan coat soaked through. He shivered and whimpered as the wind lashed out. His hooves were numb, his body tingling. “M-Mom?” he tried again, voice growing weaker. The colt stumbled, unable to keep his balance in the growing strength of the storm. Trees bent, their branches twisting and reaching like long, gnarled claws. The world was masked behind a thick sheet of warped glass, refractng colours and shapes. Unknown figures loomed up around the colt like monsters, watching him cower. The small pony coughed, finding it more difficult to get air into his lungs. The rain poured harder, [ifaster, and he felt like he could swim through it. Like maybe if he tried, he could float to the top, find his mother and father and all would be well. Everything would be normal again. He started running then. Running from the monsters, the unknown, the terrifying shapes that threatened to devour him in the night. Ran to get away, to find shelter, to see if he really could swim through the storm. Panic and fear washed over him. He couldn't think, couldn't breathe. Lightning flashed overhead, splitting the sky in two. Thunder roared, rattling the air, shaking the earth below. The colt ran harder, at full gallop, weaving around trees and ducking under branches. He couldn't stop. He had to keep going. Had to get away. The world was pulsing around him, clattering, roaring, whirling. He didn't know where he was, where he was going. He just kept running. Faster and faster and faster and— He stopped. Skidding on the sodden ground, losing his balance and smashing aganst a fallen tree. He coughed up mud and water, struggling to stand up. He could see her—just barely. Her thin frame illuminated by the weak stream of moonlight still leaking through the clouds. His mother. Her fur was torn, her body battered and bruised. A foamy puddle of pink stained the earth benieth her. Her mane was ragged and her eyes, once a calming deep blue, were now half-open, glazed over and staring at nothing. “Mom?” asked the colt, his voice sounding feeble. “Mom, a-are you okay?” He nudged her with his muzzle, trying to prod her awake but to no prevail. “Mom!” he called, jumping up and driving his front hooves into her side. She didn't move. He tried again—and again—and again, crying now, screaming for her to please, please wake up! Until finally, he collapsed. Laying on her body, burying his nose into her drenched mane. He cried. Softly at first then louder and louder until his entire body shook with every breath. When his sobbing finally subsided into a soft whimper, the colt felt a hoof on his shoulder. He looked up, tears indistinguishable among the raindrops already staining his face. It was his brother, looking down at him through reddened eyes. He looked like he'd been crying too but it was hard to tell. Suddenly, his brother's hoof felt heavier, pressing down on his haunch, pinning the colt to his mother. “It's your fault,” the older pony snapped. “It's always been you.” He struggled under his brother's weight, gasping for air, coughing, rainwater entering his lungs. It stung in his throat and made his chest ache. He tried to yell, to scream, to cry, but no sound came out. He gargled and choked in the muddy water, kicking and bucking, trying to break free. He felt another hoof on the back of his head as his face was pressed into his mother's fur. He struggled but his brother was too strong, too big. There was nothing he could do. Helpless, the colt gave in. He stopped struggling and laid still, his breathing ragged and painful. He closed his eyes tight. “I'm s-sorry,” he wheezed, unsure if he could even be heard. His voice was rough. It hurt to speak. “I'm so sorry.” His brother let go. Stories[center]Chapter One Stories "I am always at a loss at how much to believe of my own stories." -Washington Irving“The monster came in the dead of the night as thunder crashed and lightning blazed. He walked slowly but fluidly, head held high, eyes blazing.” Rainbow leaned in close, a sly grin spreading across her face. She spoke in a hushed but foreboding tone. Pinkie Pie sat still, eyes filled with awe, eager to hear more. The silver moon glistened high above, giving Rainbow's features an eerie glow as she continued. “He had large wings, massive and dark with a claw at each tip like a dragon's. He stared at what was before him, head level, locking eyes with a young mare trembling in his path. She was paralyzed. The monster grinned, bearing teeth as sharp as knives. He unfurled his wings and loomed over her, rearing up onto his back legs and—" Pinkie screamed, leaping to her hooves and kicking off. She ran in circles, her high-pitched wails echoing through the night. “Pinkie!” Rainbow called, racing over to her panicking friend and holding her back. “I haven't even finished the story yet! Come on, scardy-tail, don't you want to hear the end?” Pinkie took a deep breath, and smiled. After a moment, she began to giggle, puzzling her multi-coloured friend even further. She laughed uncontrollably, getting louder and louder until she was clutching at her sides, her whole body shaking with the effort. Lights were starting to go on in houses. “Of course I want to hear the end, silly. It's just really fun to be scared!” She giggled some more, falling over onto her back and kicking her legs up in the air. The laughter echoed through the empty roads. Rainbow rolled her eyes. She gave a sharp sigh and sat down beside her bubbly friend. “Alright, fine, just don't freak out again when I get to the good parts. And be quiet. Everypony's sleeping, remember?” “But we're not sleeping, so that's not everypony,” Pinkie laughed, her curly mane bouncing with every breath. “I meant everypony else, okay?" Rainbow sighed. "Now be quiet and let me finish the story.". “Alright, alright.” Pinkie sat up, crossing her forelegs. “You sure are crabby this late at night.” Rainbow ignored her and started the story once again. “Now where was I—oh, yeah!” She leaned forward, ears back and eyes narrowed. “The monster let out a growl, low and menacing like a lion getting ready to spring. He scraped his hooves on the ground, ready to charge at the cowering mare. He leaped, landing on her back and baring his fangs. The other ponies of the town who had stood frozen in fear now bolted. They ran in circles, trying desperately to find a place to hide as the mare cried out for help-” “Wait!” Pinkie exclaimed, eyes wide. “How come nopony helped her?” “I don't know. They were scared, I guess, all too panic-y to think to help,” Rainbow explained. “Now if you'll let me continue-” “Does the mare escape? Does somepony break out of their fear-trance and spring to rescue, attacking the monster and driving him away to the land of evil beasts and then they all have candy and sweets to celebrate and-” “Pinkie, whose story is this?” the blue-coated pegasus snapped while stomping her hoof on the ground. “Are you going to let me finish or not?” “Oh, sorry,” the bouncy pony apologized. “I'll be good now.” “Alright,” Rainbow sighed, starting her story yet a third time. “Now as I was saying, the mare cried out for help as the monster raised his hoof. Her scream was cut short as he drove his hoof onto her head, knocking her out with one single blow. He dragged her off as ponies fled to their houses, cowering behind their doors. When he got to the end of the road, he spread his massive dragon-like wings and carried her off into the sky. Off to his lair deep in the abandoned woods.” “Ooh! Then what happens?” Pinkie was leaning in so close, Rainbow thought she'd fall over. “Sorry, that's the end of part one,” the pegasus chuckled. “It's how the story was told to me when I was a filly. In parts.” “Aw...” the party pony hung her head, disappointed. She paused for a second, seeming in thought. “Hey, Dashie...” Rainbow gave her friend a curious look. “Yeah?” “Is this based on a true story with a real monster?” The pegasus laughed, shaking her head. “Nah, monsters like that don't exist. It's all just old mares' tales. Stuff you tell friends over a campfire. That's all.” “Oh, okay!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed and grinned as if all the worries had been chased away. While they had been talking, the black sky faded to a softer shade of grey, lightening the roads. Sun should be up soon, Rainbow thought, rubbing her eyes. She knew she'd be tired all day now but she supposed that's what she got for over-sleeping during a nap the previous day. She yawned, turning her gaze from the sky to her friend who seemed as wide-awake as ever. “Hey, Pinkie, why couldn't you sleep?” The earth pony looked confused for a moment. “I don't know, I just couldn't. My hooves just didn't want to stay still so I let them take me wherever. It's a good thing because then I ran into you!” She smiled, a big, wide-mouthed smile that stretched from ear-to-ear. Rainbow gave her a little grin back. “Yeah, I guess so. Otherwise you wouldn't have heard my awesome story.” She spoke with confidence though, admittedly, she didn't really feel it. Pinkie, well, she didn't seem to always be in control of her movement. The young pegasus did know of the party pony's “Pinkie Sense” that warned her of certain immediate dangers. She wondered if insomnia had something to do with that. If, maybe, her inability to sleep was in itself a warning. Rainbow sighed and decided she was getting worried over nothing. Pinkie was just hyper. She ate tons of candy and it wasn't out of the ordinary for her to be on a sugar rush. There was nothing to worry about, and even if there was Rainbow Dash could certainly handle it. The bravest pony around. There was nothing she couldn't fight off. Nothing. Yet another record-breaking smile spread across Pinkie's face as she bounded around Rainbow with an energy that shouldn't physically be possible. “Your story sure is neat! I can't wait to hear the rest!” As they started to canter down the road a feather drifted by on the wind, ragged and coated in dirt. It caught the attention of the young pegasus for a mere second before she shrugged it off. Just a feather, that's all... though she had failed to mention that the mare in her story, as it had been told to her, was a pegasus. She felt a slight chill down her spine. But monsters such as this one, as everypony knew, did not exist. And stories, of course, were just that -stories. Never anything more. Chapter TwoChapter Two “Sometimes legends make reality, and become more useful than the facts.” -Salman Rushdie The pegasus squirmed, struggling in Lurker's grasp. He held tighter, sure to cover her mouth so she could not scream. Feathers flew and fur was torn as he carried her away, off to the Hidden Place. The place where he could store his treasures, where he could escape from the world and all it's fear. This town was rich in such happiness, such joyful ponies so ignorant of how dark the world could be. He wanted them. Wanted their joy, their pleasure, their bliss. So long had he lived for the dark. Hiding away where nopony could hurt him, where nopony would take away his treasures. He struggled to keep flying as he carried the terrified pegasus. His wings strained under the extra weight but he was determined to keep her. This one would help him, he was certain of it. She could heal the wounds, heal them with silver words and beautiful phrases. Yes, this one would help. Though they were all bright at first, their colours brilliant, their eyes wide and their voices clear, they always faded. All of them. No matter what he gave them, how he cared for them, they faded away into the shadows, sinking deep into sorrow and depression. But this one would be different. This time he would give her everything. He would make her happy, make her stay bright. Her colour would not, could not fade. He would make sure of it. As the deep, inky night sky faded away to a dull grey, Lurker was already past Ponyville. The little, happy town with its little, happy inhabitants. His hunting grounds. Ragged feathers flew away on the wind, torn from the young mare's wings as she struggled. “Shh, it'll be okay,” he cooed in her ear, “I'll keep you safe. I promise.” He made a quick turn in the air, his long, black cloak flowing behind him. His wings were the only visible part of him, silhouetted against the misty, half-lit sky. He was heading for the dark forest. His safe haven. Where he collected his treasures. _____________________________________________________________________________ -Falling. Something... reaching up, grasping, holding, trying to find- Fear. Wide-eyes, panic. She's gone.... Gone! Forever, never coming back. Lost, dead- -Gone. Swimming in the fear, in the hatred, in the sorrow -drowning. Can't keep up. The current... the current.... Help! Somepony! Help! Falling. Down and down and down forever. Wings broken, legs useless. Falling. No way to help..., no way to- “Rainbow Dash!” A voice? Where..., where- “Rainbow! Wake up!” Something heavy landed on the sleeping pony's back, jolting her awake and tearing her away from the confusion of the dream. She groaned, sitting up. The figure got off of her and moved to the centre of her vision. Just a blur. “W-what's going on?” the groggy pegasus asked, blinking several times to clear her vision. She soon realized she had fallen asleep beside the road. Her fur was covered in dust. “I didn't want to wake you, you looked so peaceful all snoring and twitching and making little noises but something's happened!” A pink blur moved around in front of her so quickly, Rainbow was having trouble focusing on it. At last her eyes cleared. Pinkie Pie. Of course it was her. At least she had taken her away from that dream. The falling and calling for help, somepony gone missing. Rainbow didn't want to think about it. “What do you mean? What happened?” She stood up slowly, giving her body a shake. The dust her fur had collected rose to the air in a puff and Rainbow sneezed. Pinkie was jumping up and down, even more hyperactive than usual. She looked urgent. “Somepony's gone missing!” she exclaimed. “Her brother's been looking for her all morning! He said he saw a big, scary monster-y thing carrying something last night. He thought it was just his eyes being all tricky but when he went to look for his sister this morning she was gone!” She started galloping down the road. Rainbow followed, taking everything in. The story was not real, that monster just couldn't exist. Nothing but legends, that was all, just- Pinkie Pie stopped abruptly and Rainbow ran into her from behind. Ponies were gathered all around, staring at something on the ground. Rainbow jumped up, spreading her wings and hovering there in the air above the ponies' heads. She looked down. There, in the centre of the road, lay two distinct sets of hoofprints, some larger, some smaller. Perhaps a mare and a stallion. There seemed to be a struggle. Dirt was dug up, scraped, there was fur on the ground, feathers everywhere. Rainbow shook her head. “B-but it can't be!” was all she was able to say. She looked around, surveying the horrified faces, picking out the brother who had lost his sister. One stallion apart from the others and pacing furiously. He kept shaking his head and talking to himself. She guessed he was blaming himself for what had happened. “R-Rainbow, oh, Rainbow, d-did you hear?” a soft voice called from behind. The blue pegasus spun around, facing a terrified Fluttershy hovering behind her. “Th-they can't f-find her. He s-said it was a m...m-” “A monster?” Rainbow sighed, placing a hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder. “Look, I really don't think that's what it is. She probably just got lost on a walk or something.” They landed away from the others. Rainbow was sure to keep her timid friend away from the crowd. Fluttershy was shaking so hard, she looked like she was going to pass out any minute. “Oh, I do hope y-you're right. M-monsters are scary.” She buried her head in her hooves, still shaking. Rainbow didn't know what to do. “Come on, Fluttershy, there's no monsters. Quit being such a scardy-tail,” the bolder pegasus helped her friend back to her hooves. “Let's go find the others. You'll feel better when we're all together.” _____________________________________________________________________________ Once they gathered everypony in Twilight's library, Rainbow was sure her book-smart unicorn friend would be able to rid everypony of their fears. However, that was not the case. For even the logical, level-headed Twilight Sparkle was having doubts. “I've heard of this before,” she began as they all gathered around. “Of course, it's all superstition but there are some truth in legends.” A book floated down from the top shelf, engulfed in purple magic. Twilight blew on it and a cloud of dust lifted into the air. She opened it up and began turning pages. “Ah ha! Here it is...” She stopped at a page with a less-than-reassuring drawing of a cloaked, winged monster with the title of 'The Lurker'. “Ah don't like where this is goin'...” Applejack mumbled, peering at the tattered old page. Twilight cleared her throat and started reading, “the Lurker is a chimera-type being, a cre-” “A chimer-what?” Pinkie Pie blurted, tilting her head to the side. “A chimera is monstrous creature composed of two or more different animals,” Twilight explained. “Now as I was saying, the Lurker is a creature with the body of a stallion, the wings of a dragon, the fangs of a wolf and the strength of an Ursa Major.” A chill ran down Rainbow's spine. It was just like her story.... “It says here that the Lurker steals mares from their homes and keeps them alive in a place, often a cave, hidden in a dark forest.” “W-what d-does he do to them?” Fluttershy whimpered, pressing herself back against a bookshelf. Her mane was covering most of her face, as though she were hiding behind it. Twilight flipped the page again, her eyes scanning the lines of text. “Unknown for sure. There are, however, some theories.” “Theories? Like what?” Rainbow asked, trying to sound skeptical. She wanted to seem brave, though she didn't feel it. This Lurker, well, it was sounding more and more like the monster in her story by the second. And that stallion, the monster he saw, his sister going missing, it was all too close. She didn't like this. It scared her, though she'd never dare admit it. Twilight eyed the book some more. At last she said, “here it says some believe the Lurker takes the most beautiful mares for his mates-” “The most beautiful!” Rarity exclaimed, holding a hoof up to her head in an overly-dramatic pose. “By Celestia, I'm sure to be next! Quick! Find me a place to hide-” “Calm down, it's just a theory and this whole story is nothing but a legend. There's probably a much more logical explanation,” Twilight reassured her, trying to calm the ecstatic unicorn down. “Yeah!” Rainbow jumped in, perhaps a little too quickly. “I mean, this is all just a story, right? There's no way it could be real. Right, Twilight?” But the purple unicorn shook her head. “I don't know. Stories have been right before.” She sighed and flipped a few more pages. “Here it says he keeps only the best singers and musicians so they can play music for him. If they don't preform well, he... he eats them.” Rainbow turned back to Fluttershy who was still hiding in the corner. “Hey, don't worry. It's probably not the Lurker's doing at all. That stallion's sister probably just got lost, like I said before. These kind of stories, they're just old mares' tales.” “B-but....” Fluttershy couldn't finish. The blue pegasus placed her foreleg around her friend's shoulders, giving her a small grin. “Hey, don't you worry. If it is a Lurker, I'll fight him off for ya.” Pinkie Pie bounced over to them, eyes wide. “You'll fight off the Lurker? But he's so strong and mean and evil and pointy-toothed and-” “Pinkie, I think that's enough for now,” Twilight said, stopping the earth pony from saying any more. “I think Fluttershy needs a break from all this. In fact, I think we all do. As Rainbow said, she probably just got lost and will turn up in the morning. Nothing to worry about.” Applejack nodded. “Twilight's right. We should all be gettin' some shut-eye. Y'all feel better in the mornin'-” Her sentence was cut short by a rather large yawn, a yawn that spread across the room, infecting all the others. “D-do you think we could all stay here tonight, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked softly, “I mean, i-if you don't mind.” The unicorn smiled. “I don't mind at all. I think that should be just fine. So long as I find enough room for you all.” Rainbow watched as Twilight went off to find blankets and things. Her mind wandered back to the dream she'd had that morning. The falling and reaching for something, somepony gone forever, the fear of death. She shook her head. No. That wasn't related to any of this. It was just a weird dream. She found herself chuckling a bit at that. Getting all scared over a dream. It was stupid. It meant nothing. Outside, ponies were looking weary. The whole town seemed to have a very grim air, like something just wasn't right. Rainbow shook her head, refusing to give in to the others' fear. There was nothing at all to worry about. Certainly not anything the amazing Rainbow Dash couldn't handle. But as the night drew nearer, confidence was not something the young pegasus felt. Chapter ThreeChapter Three “The moon looks upon many night flowers; the night flowers see but one moon.” -Jean Ingelow It was barely morning when the cries rang out. Pinkie Pie shot up, startled but before she could laugh and call it a false-alarm, the sobbing got louder. The others didn't seem to be awake yet but she figured it would be alright if she just went to see- She bolted down the road, dust flying up behind her. “What's going on? Why is everypony so sa-” She stopped in mid-stride when she saw it. Clumps of fur, scuffed up dirt and feathers. It was just like before, only this time.... She leaned in closer. Was that... blood? Little scarlet droplets stained the earth, flecked about the fur-clumps, splashed in the hoofprints.“W-what happened?” she asked, unable to take her eyes off of the scene. Somepony next to her shook his head, sighing softly. “Another mare's gone missing.” Pinkie glanced around at all the gloomy faces in disbelief. Another one? she thought, but Twilight said... She jumped up and down, trying to catch everypony's attention. “Hey! Don't worry! It'll be okay! We'll find them and you'll see there's nothing to be afraid of and it was all just a big misunderstanding and everything's just fine and we can all laugh again!” She gave them all one of her patented Pinkie Pie Smiles and waited for the dreary sadness to lift away. Nothing. Nopony even glanced at her. They hung their heads and dragged their hooves. A few pegasai went out to search, some ponies were comforting family members and others just stood there quietly, staring at nothing. Pinkie tried again, grabbing a bottle of bubble soap she'd hidden in a near-by bush (because you never know when you'll need one) and pulled out the wand. She gave it a little puff of air and engulfed the area in glistening, delicate spheres that danced in the breeze. “Come on, everypony! You all like bubbles, right?” She giggled. “Well of course you do. Everypony likes bubbles, bubbles are...” she trailed off, realizing nopony had noticed. Frowning, she to think but was running low on ideas. Maybe they liked dancing or singing or- “Pinkie, what are you doing?” a familiar, level voice questioned. She spun around, facing Twilight and the others as they cantered up the road. She bounded over to them, a bright urgency in her eyes. “They won't even look at me! No matter how many bubbles I blow.” The others examined the area closely. Rarity gave a startled gasp and Twilight shook her head. Pinkie saw Fluttershy take a few steps back and Applejack went over to comfort her. Rainbow just stood there, staring, eyes distant and locked on something just beyond the scuffs and blood-spots. When Pinkie followed her gaze, she saw nothing. “What's going on?” the pink pony asked, seeming to lose some of her energy as she watched her friends get hit by the news. Twilight, for once, looked dumbfounded. “I-I don't know.” She shook her head again, as though trying to clear it. “I think we need to do a little more research.” Fluttershy dipped her head, her mane falling over her face again. “Oh... he's not going t-to take any of us, is he?” Her voice was barely audible. It was as if she felt whoever was doing this would hear her if she spoke above a whisper. Rainbow snapped out of her trance then, turning to her timid friend. “Of course not. I won't let 'im.” The athletic pegasus struck a pose, wings spread out and legs placed in a wide stance. She looked ready to fight. “I think what we all need is a party!” Pinkie exclaimed. “A good party will take our minds off of all this sadness.” “No,” Twilight sighed, holding her hoof up to stop her enthusiastic friend from gathering decorations. “I really don't think a party would be appropriate right now. We need to figure this out.” As they started back to the library, Rainbow hesitated. “I'll catch up with ya later. I think I'm going to go help look for the missing mares.” And before anypony could say anything, she was already off. A polychromatic streak across an otherwise clear blue sky. ____________________________________________________________________________ Once she had gotten away from the others, Rainbow Dash slowed her flight down to an easy glide. She needed to clear her head. She'd had the dream again. The falling, the calling, the fear.... If there was one thing she truly hated it was fear. Just the helplessness of it all. It was so hopeless, so paralyzing. She would like to think that she had no fears, that nothing could phase her, nothing at all. And before that dream, she had believed it. -No. She couldn't start doubting herself now. Not now when a real threat was looming over Ponyville. Not now when her friends needed her more than ever. She needed to be brave, strong, resilient. She needed to be the same rainbow Dash she'd always been -simply awesome. Whatever this thing was, Lurker or not, she would make sure her friends were safe. And that was that. In the midst of her thinking, the blue pegasus had failed to notice she'd been flying over the Everfree Forest. She made an abrupt stop and hovered there a moment, just staring down into the dim, musky woods. Just as she was about to turn around, she heard something. It was faint but distinct and it came from deep in the forest. A voice. She couldn't quite make out what it was saying. She thought she heard the words 'no' and 'rain' being repeated but she couldn't quite catch the rest. Confused, she lowered her altitude, drifting down cautiously, heart pounding. She hovered just above the trees, peering through the dark leaves. Nothing. Taking a deep breath to calm herself down, she called out, “Hello? Anypony there?” No response. Below her, the solemn trees swayed back and forth in the wind, branches clawing and raking at the air like talons, dragging in the light. After a moment, Rainbow decided she was probably just hearing things. “I've got to stop this. I'm getting paranoid...” she told herself, turning around and heading back to Ponyville. All this... strangeness was getting to her. She landed on the road next to where the first mare was taken, seeing only a single pony standing there. It was the stallion she'd seen pacing yesterday. The road had been cleaned up, save for a few deep hoofprints set in the dirt. “She never did anything wrong,” the stallion sighed, not looking up. Probably talking more to himself than to Rainbow. “Hey, don't worry about her. Whoever did this, we'll find him. No problem.” Perhaps the young pegasus was being a bit too certain. It sounded like a lie. Like a big lie meant to disguise something horrible. The stallion only shook his head, his short, scruffy red mane tossing back and forth as he did so. He sat down, staring at the road as if trying to look into the past, see what happened there. After a long pause, he said, “her name was Golden Rose. Never did a single bad deed, always tried to make ponies see the beautiful side of life....” He trailed off after that and stood up again. Before Rainbow could say anything, he was already galloping down the path. She guessed he was going to look for her. “Enough of this,” Rainbow hissed to herself. “All this sorrow and fear's getting us nowhere.” She started racing down the road then, heading back to Twilight's home. She swung open the door and trotted inside. “Please tell me you're closer to figuring this out,” she said sharply, giving her tail a flick. “I'm sick of hearing about how sad everypony is.” Five sets of eyes stared back at her. Nopony said anything. “What?” she asked, still on-edge. “Whoa there, missy. We're all tryin' our best,” Applejack told her, stepping out in front. Rainbow huffed. “So you've got nothing. Fine. We're all gonna just sit here and watch more ponies get taken.” “What's gotten into you, Rainbow?” Twilight asked, lowering a book she'd been looking through and giving her friend a concerned look. “Just calm down. We'll figure this out.” “Yeah!” Pinkie exclaimed, bouncing out from seemingly nowhere and landing directly in front of the frustrated pegasus. “Cheer up, grumpy, have a lollipop!” She shoved a pinwheel-style lollipop in Rainbow's face, all the while smiling as if nothing at all were wrong. Rainbow let the lollipop fall to the floor. It shattered on impact. “I don't need a lollipop,” she grumbled, slamming the door shut behind her as she stepped farther into the room. “Let's just figure this out, okay?” Granted, sitting and reading while figuring something out wasn't exactly Rainbow's style but there was nothing else she could do. No trail to follow, no real clues other than the hoofprints and nothing pointing to where this thing had taken the mares. It was all just one big blank slate. She couldn't take action in any physical way so she'd have to try and think it through. The others just stared at her a moment before finally, Twilight broke the silence. “Alright,” she said, “let's continue.” _____________________________________________________________________________ Another calm night. Calm. Lurker gave a little chuckle at that. Calm. It's always calm, isn't it? Always a perfectly clear sky, fully visible moon, stars glimmering above like jewels decorating the fabric of a peaceful landscape. Peaceful. Another chuckle. These ponies were always peaceful. Peaceful and calm. He clenched his teeth. It's just not fair. He scanned the town below. The quiet houses, the silent roads. There were less night-walkers out tonight. They're afraid, he thought, afraid of me. Of what I'll do. And why shouldn't they be? He was, after all, the Lurker. The one who captured mares late at night, who took them away and hid them where they would never be found. But they don't understand. They will never understand. Never, never, never. As he searched the ground, he caught sight of some movement in the corner of his eye. A young earth pony bounded down the empty road, seemingly without a care in the world. Curious, Lurker stopped, hovering in place just high enough not to be noticed. It was the carelessness of this one that intrigued him, how even in the midst of fear, this one remained unfazed. As the young pony walked, something trailed behind. It flickered and dancing with every little movement made. A banner, perhaps? He glided closer, slowly, calmly, sure to keep his wings silent and his breathing low. Each step the pony made was another bounce, another tune hummed, another bit of glitter tossed in the air. Balloons were tied, streamers were hung, signs dotted the paths behind her- oh yes, her. Lurker found himself smiling. Perfect. Chapter FourChapter Four “Fear cannot be without hope nor hope without fear.” -Baruch Spinoza The morning was terribly still. Silent. So deathly silent that naught a bird chirped, no foals laughed, no mice squeaked. It was the kind of silence you could drown in, a loud silence that made your ears throb and spirit ache. Rainbow sat up, rubbing the sleep away from her eyes. Almost immediately, she knew something was wrong. Very wrong. Spike came down the stairs, looking around at all the ponies sleeping below. “You all stayed over again?” he asked, looking at Rainbow Dash. She nodded, though absently. There was something... off. As the others began to wake up, yawning and blinking sleepy eyes, Rainbow found herself counting heads. One, two, three, four.... She frowned, trying again. One, two, three, four and five including herself. Somepony was missing. The others seemed to be catching on, noticing the concerned expression on Rainbow's face. After a long pause, it was Twilight who asked, “Where's Pinkie Pie?” From there it was all a rush. Just a blur of movement, hooves stomping, wings fluttering. The door was swung open, everypony raced outside, frantic eyes scanning the area, hearts pounding and breathing fast. The streets were full of ponies gathered around. The Mayor seemed to be out in front but nopony was talking. Not that the panicking friends would be able to hear them anyway. Rainbow pushed and shoved ponies aside, forcing her way to the front of the crowd, drowning in the silence -the loud, loud silence that rung in her ears. And just like that, everything stopped. In her frantic fumbling to the front, the blue pegasus had failed to notice the decorated streets, the glittered paths, the signs marked with 'don't worry', 'cheer up' and 'we'll find them'. But now, now she saw everything. For what laid in front of her, directly at her hooves was a tattered, bright pink banner with the words, 'Don't give up, they wouldn't want you to be sad'. Rainbow shook her head. No. She wouldn't believe this. This didn't happen. It couldn't happen! All around the banner lay broken decorations, torn streamers and popped balloons. Hoofprints, large and small dotted the area, trampling happy-face signs and crushing candies. And, commingling with the glitter, lay tiny specks of red. Rainbow didn't want to think about what had happened here, didn't want to imagine it, didn't want to hear about it. But she couldn't stop the images from entering her mind. Haunting images of her friend, who only wanted to help, taken away and hidden in a dark place nopony could find. Around her the others gathered, staring with shock and disbelief. Fluttershy started whimpering, perhaps crying softly. Rarity sat down, as if she no longer had the strength to stand. Twilight closed her eyes and Applejack shook her head, repeating the word “no” over and over again. When the Mayor finally started to speak, Rainbow could hardly hear her. “This is the third mare to go missing in three days,” she began, her voice strong, as a leader's should be, but with the slightest hint of fear hidden in those words. “As Mayor of Ponyville, I hereby declare a curfew for all ponies, no matter the age, to be set at 8:00 P.M until further notice. This is for your own protection. Until whoever has done this is caught and these mares are found, there will be no ponies out walking late at night. Remain inside, lock your doors and close all windows. We do not know how far this abductor is willing to go.” She never mentioned any of the mares by name. Rainbow supposed that was because if she said any of them out loud that would make it more real, more terrifying. Ponies would get angry, start crying, blame others, there was no telling the reactions. And everypony knew Pinkie Pie. There wasn't a single soul who wouldn't be hit by this. The sky clouded over, blocking out the sun. Work that should be done by Pegasai was not going to be done today. Too many distractions, too much on everypony's mind. Every shadow was avoided, mates stuck together like glue. Some ponies remained at the scene to ask the Mayor some questions but otherwise, everypony was off to their home. Rainbow remained still, her friends at her side as they gazed at the decorations, the sparkling glitter, the smiling drawings, the neon-bright balloons. “She should have known better,” Rainbow said at last, not looking at anypony. “She should have known that if she went out she would....” She couldn't finish. She could feel the tears forming in her eyes but she blinked them away, a fierce anger boiling deep inside. “You know Pinkie,” Twilight started slowly, her voice soft. “She just wanted everypony to feel better.” “Why would she do something so stupid?” Rainbow asked, starting to pace now. She wasn't talking to the others, but not quite to herself either. She was talking for the sake of talking, because if she didn't talk, she'd think. And once she started thinking, she'd start imagining, picturing, seeing in her mind all the awful, awful things that could be happening right now to her friend. Every worst-case scenario, every negative outcome- “Rainbow, stop!” She didn't look to see who said it. Everything sounded muffled, like she was in a glass case, locked tight and sealed away. Rainbow closed her eyes tight, trying to shut everything out. This wasn't happening. It couldn't be. Wasn't possible. Pinkie was fine. She never went out. She's at the bakery, at Sugar Cube Corner making sweets for everypony. Everything is just fine. Just fine. But no matter what she told herself, she knew it wasn't true. _________________________________________________________________________ Darkness. Just a big, empty, looming darkness. Filled with the echo of her pounding heart. Pinkie sat up, rubbing her head and feeling something wet on her temple. Blood? Where was she? Certainly not a place she'd been before. No place in all of Equestria could possibly be this dark. “Hello?” she called. “Anypony home?” She started to walk forward but felt something heavy on her back left leg. It rattled as she moved. She started running then, not really sure why, just running. To see if the darkness ended, maybe. Something snagged her leg, tripping her and holding her in place. She struggled but couldn't break free. “You know, it's really rude to tie ponies up," she said. "You won't get any visitors if you keep-” “You'll run away,” a deep voice called, echoing through the dark and bouncing off the walls. “They always leave. Always go away.” Pinkie jumped to her hooves, looking around but her eyes had not yet adjusted to the gloom. “It's awfully dark in here. Maybe you could turn on a light.” “Whatever you like,” came the reply and with it a match was struck. The room lit up then and Pinkie found herself backing up, pressing herself against the wall. A tall figure loomed over her, a long black cloak draped over him, his torn, ragged wings folded against his back, the only part of him she could make out. He brought the match over to a lamp hanging from the ceiling and lit it, letting the soft glow fill the chamber. The room was dusty and dry. Dirt was everywhere. Clumps of it, as though somepony had re-filled several holes, lay in a row along the back wall. Something moved in the corner, huddling into a ball. A chain rattled. She turned back to her captor, confused, still trying to figure everything out. “Why did you bring me here? Want some decorating done? I can throw you a party, put up some decorations, paint the walls a nicer, happier colour-” “No!” the hooded figure shouted, startling Pinkie. She scrunched herself up against the wall, ducking her head as he swiped at her. When he missed, he stomped his hoof down on the ground, causing dirt to fly up everywhere. “It should be dark -has to be dark. Dark and he won't find me. Never again.” “Who won't find you?” The figure shook his head, turning around and opening a large, heavy door in the back of the room. “Wouldn't think to look in the dark,” he gave a short chuckle. “Not in the dark.” And with that, he walked out, slamming the door shut behind him. _________________________________________________________________________ She's got to be out here somewhere! Rainbow thought, weaving around trees and ducking under branches as she flew through the Everfree Forest. She folded her wings quickly to get through a gap, unfurling them again as fast as lightning. A spectrum of colour flowed behind her as she went. Branches caught her face, tugging her fur, scratching her ears, but she didn't even notice. She had to keep flying, keep looking. “Pinkie!” she called, knowing in the back of her mind it was hopeless, that the Lurker would not simply give up his captives. He wouldn't let them cry out. Wouldn't let them hear. But hope is relentless and Rainbow was determined. She looked for hours that felt like minutes, looked until the sun was setting, until she knew she had to go back. In the distance, she could hear calling. Her friends, maybe, or a patrol out to fetch her. Why was nopony else looking? Was she the only one who actually cared? When the sun drifted below the horizon, Rainbow finally started back. She hadn't realized how exhausted she was until she made it to her house. She didn't feel like staying with the others tonight. Tonight all she wanted was to be alone. So the only pony around to blame was herself. So she wouldn't snap at anypony else. As tired as she was, sleep was not going to come easy tonight. For every time she closed her eyes, she saw torture. Every time she started to relax, she started to imagine. To see in her head all the horrors that could be going on right now, everything her friend could be going through. She wanted to go out again, to keep looking but the curfew would not allow it. The pegasus sighed, sitting up on her bed, holding her head in her hooves. Three days. Three mares gone. One of them her close friend, a pony who never wanted anything but to make others smile. That was all. She never deserved this. And now she was gone. Gone. When Rainbow finally did get to sleep that night, the dream was there to torment her. Chapter FiveChapter Five “The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep.” -Robert Frost Time was nonexistent. There was no way to tell an hour from a minute down in the sunless, skyless cave. As far as Pinkie knew, it was always night. But the night there was a starless one, a moonless and lifeless one. The figure in the corner moved again but the earth pony still had not quite worked up the courage to look. She stared at the lamp, watching the candle inside burn down. Watching the wax melt and peel as the flame ate away at the wick. Her head hurt, and that was to say the least. The blood had dried but there was a rather nasty lump there now, bruised and tender. “You have to make him happy,” came a feeble voice from across the room. Pinkie blinked, looking over at the shadowy figure in the corner. “He won't get mad if you make happy.” She tilted her head, taking a few steps closer to the source of the voice. “Make him happy? How?” The figure sat up then, turning two pale, rose-coloured eyes on her. “You need to use your special talent.” Pinkie tilted her head. “But I'm a party-er. He didn't seem to want to party.” The figure sighed softly, lowering her head. “He doesn't want you to decorate. So long as you change nothing, he'll be okay.” “If he wants to be happy, why does he stay in such a gloomy place?” Pinkie asked. “I don't know,” came the weary reply. She sounded exhausted, weak. Pinkie moved in a little closer, close enough to finally see the figure properly. She was a pegasus, light gold in colour with a long, wavy red mane, scruffy, as though it hadn't been brushed in days. She looked dirty and on her head was a similar bump to the one Pinkie was given, though slightly more healed. Her wings were ragged, some feathers torn and her hooves were scuffed. She looked thin, like she hadn't eaten much in a while. Her cutie mark was of a rose and a pen making an “X” on her flank. “I'm a poet,” she told Pinkie before she could ask. “The rose is one of the most poetic things there are, symbolizing everything from love to life to- to death.” The pink pony just gazed at her a moment, her glum expression, her half-open, weary eyes. After a long while of simply looking, it dawned on Pinkie -this was the first mare. She remembered hearing from some ponies that the first mare had been a poet who worked for no profit. “Shouldn't there be another mare here?” The gold pegasus flinched a bit at that. “She wouldn't stop shivering. Poor thing was so afraid. He was yelling at her, telling her to stop being a coward, saying she would need to be punished. Then he unlocked her chain and dragged her out the door. I-I haven't seen her since.” There was a long pause. Both mares sat quietly, heads down, trying to think of nothing. Not think of what would happen if they displeased their captor. Not think of how many more mares he would take. Not think of what was in the piles of dirt along the walls. After a while, Pinkie broke the silence. “What's your name?” she asked, looking up and meeting the young mare's eyes. She looked quizzical a moment, but kept her gaze steady. “Golden Rose,” she said softly. “I'm Pinkie Pie! And you know what, it's not so bad in here. Minus the gloom and dirt and evil captor... it's alright.” “Alright? How could you possibly think it's alright?” “Well...” Pinkie scanned the room, trying to find something she could turn around, something she could make better. With a slight grin, she grabbed her chain, turning it like a skipping rope, slowly at first, then faster, gaining momentum. She jumped in and skipped with it, giggling as she did so. “Come on! Try it!” Golden Rose looked horrified, glancing quickly around the room as though expecting the Lurker to appear at any moment and take them away. “Are you insane? What are you doing?” “I'm skipping,” Pinkie replied with a laugh. “I can see that but... how can you be laughing at a time like this?” Golden stepped a little closer to her, curious, watching as Pinkie jumped. “Well, what would you rather do? Everything'll seem better if you take what you're afraid of, and make it fun!” The laughing earth pony continued to skip, going faster now, her mane bouncing up and down, her hooves pounding the dirt, causing it to fly up in puffs. Pinkie didn't care. She was doing what she did best; having fun. Golden Rose seemed cautious, looking around the room, at Pinkie, at her own chain, at the door. After a long pause, she sighed and picked up her chain, giving the bubbly pony a tiny smile. ________________________________________________________________________ Rainbow was out searching again. She didn't bother to find ponies to help her, they were all too afraid to go out, or so it seemed as she hadn't seen anypony out that day at all. Cowards. Won't even go out to look for their missing friends, their missing family members! She was so angry, but it wasn't at them. They had a right to be scared and so did she but she couldn't be scared. Not when Pinkie needed her. She'd been looking all morning, even skipped breakfast to spend more time out. She hadn't stopped by to see her friends either. No time, no time. The forest all looked the same to her now. The same dark, musky grass, the same tall, looming trees, the same plants, same mice, same everything. Every cave she checked was empty, every tunnel lead to nowhere, every niche, every ledge, every hole in every tree. She'd checked it all and still the forest stretched on. She'd been flying for hours but she didn't feel tired, she just felt angry. Such a burning, consuming anger eating away at her from the inside out. Because it was her fault that Pinkie went out. She should have been watching her, should have stayed up to make sure everypony was safe. It was her fault her friend got taken away and anything that happened to her while she was gone would be Rainbow's fault too. For in her mind, it was all her. Always her. Her own fault that Pinkie wasn't safe at home right now. She should have known. She should have done something. Loyalty is a fierce thing. Rainbow knew she had to find Pinkie, she couldn't let her stay wherever it was the Lurker, or whoever it was, took her. She had to find her. There was no question in it, no other options. Just find her. Find her and everything would be okay. She was loosing focus in flying, her mind drifting, thoughts colliding- -Suddenly, a branch jumped up from nowhere. Rainbow tried to duck but it struck her in the head, knocking her out of flight. She tumbled. Down and down, breaking more branches on her way to the ground. She landed hard, with a sickening crack! Everything went black. ________________________________________________________________________ “Stop crying!” Lurker boomed, shoving the whimpering mare to the ground and striking her across the head. “I hate crying. Cowards and foals cry! What are you? Are you a coward? Because you're certainly not a foal!” He stood over her, wings outstretched. His cloak made him seem like a monstrous shadow-beast come from out of the dark to feed. The mare was shivering, huddled into a ball and sobbing quietly. “I c-can't..., can't stop-” “Yes you can!” Lurker snapped, stomping his hoof down next to her. “Stop now and I won't punish you. Stop now and you can go back in with the others.” The mare held her breath, forcing herself to stop, closing her eyes tight, making sure no tears could get through. She shook a bit and let her breath out slowly, forcing herself to stay calm. Lurker smiled. “There, much better. Now stand up and face me.” She did as she was told, getting to her wobbly limbs, her head swimming. “Look at me,” he hissed, a pair of pale grey eyes blazing from under his hood. The mare took a shaky breath and looked up, holding his gaze. “There. Now isn't facing your fears much better than cowering? Now you can be happy. Now you can make me happy.” The mare took a deep breath before she worked up the courage to say, “m-make you happy?” Lurker nodded. “It is, after all, why you are here. You make ponies happy. I've seen you. Make me happy and no more harm will come.” “B-but I don't know how-” “Yes you do!” Lurker stomped his hoof down again, eyes hard and fierce. “You can make others smile. So make me smile, make me feel good.” “You have to be good to feel good,” muttered the mare, getting a little too bold. The Lurker let out a growl, raising his hoof again and stomping down on her leg. There was a satisfying crunch, followed by a loud yelp. The mare bit back her tears. “I am good! He's the one who's bad. Him. So much hurt, so much-” He blinked suddenly, as if he'd just blanked out. He turned sharply to the whimpering mare. “Get back in the dark room. Back in the dark. Won't find you in the dark.” He grabbed her mane and dragged her with his teeth. She didn't struggle. He blew out the candle lighting the hallway they were in, plunging the two in darkness. He dragged her to the door, throwing it open and tossing her inside, not bothering to look back before he slammed the door shut again. He didn't like punishing them, not at all, but it had to be done. Had to. Because if he didn't.... He wanted happiness so badly, wanted to feel true joy. He didn't want to hurt them- -But weakness should always be punished. Chapter SixChapter Six “Dreams are true while they last, and do we not live in dreams?” -Alfred Lord Tennyson The sky was on fire. Ponies were screaming for help, pegasai fell with burning wings. Mares, stallions, colts, fillies, foals, all burning and screaming and sizzling in the flames. Rainbow bolted, gathering as many as she could, her own coat scorching. She brought them all to a river, the only salvation. But she wasn't fast enough. The fire devoured the land, ate away the clouds, absorbed the sun. It lashed and bit and clawed it's way through everything, leaving it all to ash. In the centre of the torture, one cry stood out. Rainbow didn't hesitate. She flew faster than she'd ever flown before, breaking the sound barrier, blazing through the scorching air, trying to get to the scream. There! She could see! In the distance it was Pinkie alone in the middle of the flames, crying for help. Rainbow flew faster, pushing herself harder and harder, reaching out with both hooves through the fire and smoke, lungs searing. But no matter how much she tried, how far she flew, Pinkie just seemed farther away than ever. The fire burned everything down, bubbling and sizzling and- “Rainbow?” called a voice from far, far away. And just like that, the whole world fell to pieces. The pegasus sat up, blinking to clear her vision. “W-what's going on? Where am I?” She felt sheets covering her. Several blurry figures stood over her in a blindingly white room. When she tried to push herself up, there was a sharp pain in her right foreleg. Her body ached and she felt light-headed, dizzy. “Oh, thank Celestia you're alright!” a familiar voice exclaimed. Twilight? The weary pegasus blinked a few more times and the room cleared up. Her friends stood around her, all save for Pinkie. “When you didn't come home, we all got so worried,” it was Fluttershy speaking now, stepping in closer to the side of Rainbow's bed. “W-we thought he'd gotten you too.” “We hadn't seen you all day!” Rarity continued. “We thought you must be out looking at first but when the sun started to set and you didn't come back, Twilight lead a search party into the Everfree to look for you.” “You shouldn't have done that,” Rainbow said. “You could have gotten captured too-” “An' so could you,” Applejack butted in, eyes fierce. “What were you thinkin' goin' out into that forest all by yerself?” “I was thinking that I needed to find Pinkie Pie,” Rainbow snapped, her own eyes just as fierce. “Or have you forgotten about her?” Applejack looked like she was about to say something but Twilight stopped her before there was an argument. “We haven't forgotten about her, Rainbow. In fact, we've been studying the Lurker and cases like this one where mares go missing to help in understanding what's going on. It's all we've been doing!” She looked the pegasus in the eyes, her gaze calming, concerned. “We won't stop until we find her but we can't go risking getting captured ourselves. We need every head we can get to figure this out.” “Then why'd you go looking for me?” Rainbow asked, still sounding cross. “We knew he didn't take you at night because there were no scuff marks or torn fur on the road,” the unicorn informed her. “And we knew you'd be looking in the Everfree because that's where you went the previous day.” Rainbow shook her head, not hearing any of it. “I can't just sit still while she's still out there.” She tried to get up then but immediately got dizzy, feeling sick. She fell back to the bed, touching her head with her hoof, feeling the bandages there. “You're going to have to,” Twilight sighed. “We found you on the forest floor, you'd hit your head pretty hard and broken a few bones.” “You were out cold!” Spike exclaimed, jumping up onto the bed to get a better look. “You hit a ton of branches when you fell.” “How long was I out for?” Rainbow asked, examining her broken leg and noticing the bandage on her right wing. How was she going to get out now? “Since yesterday,” Twilight told her. “it's about 6 P.M now-” “I've been out all day?” the pegasus exclaimed. She tried to get up again but her friends held her down. “I need to go out! Everyday we don't find her is another day she's... another day....” She got really light-headed then, the world spinning around her. She closed her eyes, trying to calm herself down. “I just need to find her.” The room was silent for a moment. Pinkie's absence was huge. Normally, she'd be the one to dance and sing and bounce all around the room, making everything alright, making everypony feel better. But she was gone now and until she was found, the hole she left would not be filled. At last Twilight said, “we'll find her. But I need you not to go out. Stay here and rest, help us figure this out. We will find her.” Rainbow looked less than reassured but she nodded nonetheless. When her friends finally left, content that she was alright, the injured pony was already devising a plan. ___________________________________________________________________ Her name was Windsong. From the dim light still left by the waning candle, Pinkie could see she was a pegasus like Golden Rose. She was white in colour, like snow, and her mane was a pale, icy blue. Her eyes were indigo and as deep as the ocean. She looked terrified, though she'd stopped shivering now. For a long time after Lurker had thrown her in nopony said anything. Pinkie was able to get her name but that was it. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make this better. The poor mare was covered in bruises and her left back leg hung at an awkward, painful angle as she avoided resting weight on it. Then everything went dark. The candle had burned down, nothing left but a puddle of wax and a tiny stream of smoke wafting away into the air. Golden Rose gasped and Windsong gave a tiny whimper. Pinkie jumped a bit at first but soon realized it was just the dark. And the dark is a lot like the light, just more unknown. The unknown, after all, is the fear. Not the dark itself. It's the not knowing what's near you, what's happening, what might happen, that's what's terrifying. But as scary as the unknown could be, Pinkie knew she had to push that aside. “Don't worry!” She said, jumping up and causing her chain to rattle. There was another whimper from Windsong and a bit of shuffling from Golden Rose. “The dark's not so bad. You just have to use your other senses.” She paused, thinking for a moment before she lifted up her head and started to sing. “In the dark a song rings out, nothing to fear, no need to pout, a gentile voice gleams brighter than the sun. When there's no place to turn, no flowers, grass, no golden fern, the song will show the way, shining brighter than the day. Just smile, and listen closely, it'll be okay. Just smile, calls the voice, showing you the way.” It was a song her mother had sung to her when she was little and feeling down. A song she knew by heart and hummed to herself every time she felt sad. She hoped the others were listening. Pinkie could hear Windsong sniff a bit. “Oh, you're not sad are you?” the pink pony asked, trotting over to the sound. “I just thought, because this song always cheers me up, that, maybe-” But Windsong made a sound Pinkie had not yet heard from her. A good sound, like a half-laugh. Like she was finally cheering up. “I've heard that song before,” came her weak, quiet voice. “My mom used to sing it to me when I was a filly. It's how I discovered my special talent, singing.” Pinkie beamed. “My mom sang it to me too! Every time I felt lonely or sad, she told me to remember the song and I'd feel better.” There was a shuffling noise as Golden Rose walked over to them. “I know it too. My older brother taught it to me. We used to sing it together when our parents went off on trips and we were alone.” she gave a small sigh. “I miss him.” “Hey, don't worry,” Pinkie reassured her, reaching through the dark and tentatively placing her foreleg around Golden's shoulders. “We'll get out of this. You'll see him again and I'll make the biggest most super-fantastical cake you've ever seen to celebrate! And that's a Pinkie Promise!” After a short pause, Golden Rose started whistling to the tune of the song. Pinkie grinned and joined in as Windsong sung the words in a surprisingly strong voice, a voice that echoed through the chamber and filled the mares' ears with silver notes. ___________________________________________________________________ The light had gone out in the chamber. Lurker knew it. He always knew when the lights went out. It was like a sense. Like he could feel the flame burn out, exit the world in a puff of smoke. Like magic. He didn't go to look this time. No, instead he listened. He laid in his own chamber at the end of the hall. He had to go out that night, had to find others, but he also knew they town would be more vigilant now. They would lock up and set a curfew, like all the other ones had done. But this time he was smarter, more careful. He knew how to get into locked houses, knew how to take a mare undetected. He just needed to find the right herbs for something that would knock them out. Last time he'd tried to use force inside a house he nearly got caught. But not now. Now he was better. He'd never guess just how smart I've become. Just how strong I've become. Lurker gave a laugh at that but his thoughts were interrupted when he heard something coming from the mares' chamber. Was that singing? He smiled, laying back in his tattered old bed and letting the music take him. When it stopped, he sat up, opening his door and heading down the hall, slowly, silently. He didn't want to scare them in case the music started again. It did. Oh, how it did. Whistling in tune, singing so soft and yet so powerful. Soothing. So soothing. He couldn't control himself. He threw open the door but the music stopped instantly, replaced with gasps and whimpers. “No,” he said softly. “Keep going. Keep singing. You have to. You must.” He stepped in closer but the mares backed away. He could hear their shuffling. “No!” He cried, stomping both front hooves down on the ground. “Keep singing and I won't have to discard you.” There was silence for a moment. Nopony moved, nopony breathed. Then one of the mares stepped forward.
ProloguePrologue “Mom?” the young colt called, standing alone in the pouring rain. “Dad? Where'd you go?” He took a few steps forward, hooves splashing in the mud. His ruddy auburn mane was plastered to his head and neck, his tan coat soaked through. He shivered and whimpered as the wind lashed out. His hooves were numb, his body tingling. “M-Mom?” he tried again, voice growing weaker. The colt stumbled, unable to keep his balance in the growing strength of the storm. Trees bent, their branches twisting and reaching like long, gnarled claws. The world was masked behind a thick sheet of warped glass, refractng colours and shapes. Unknown figures loomed up around the colt like monsters, watching him cower. The small pony coughed, finding it more difficult to get air into his lungs. The rain poured harder, [ifaster, and he felt like he could swim through it. Like maybe if he tried, he could float to the top, find his mother and father and all would be well. Everything would be normal again. He started running then. Running from the monsters, the unknown, the terrifying shapes that threatened to devour him in the night. Ran to get away, to find shelter, to see if he really could swim through the storm. Panic and fear washed over him. He couldn't think, couldn't breathe. Lightning flashed overhead, splitting the sky in two. Thunder roared, rattling the air, shaking the earth below. The colt ran harder, at full gallop, weaving around trees and ducking under branches. He couldn't stop. He had to keep going. Had to get away. The world was pulsing around him, clattering, roaring, whirling. He didn't know where he was, where he was going. He just kept running. Faster and faster and faster and— He stopped. Skidding on the sodden ground, losing his balance and smashing aganst a fallen tree. He coughed up mud and water, struggling to stand up. He could see her—just barely. Her thin frame illuminated by the weak stream of moonlight still leaking through the clouds. His mother. Her fur was torn, her body battered and bruised. A foamy puddle of pink stained the earth benieth her. Her mane was ragged and her eyes, once a calming deep blue, were now half-open, glazed over and staring at nothing. “Mom?” asked the colt, his voice sounding feeble. “Mom, a-are you okay?” He nudged her with his muzzle, trying to prod her awake but to no prevail. “Mom!” he called, jumping up and driving his front hooves into her side. She didn't move. He tried again—and again—and again, crying now, screaming for her to please, please wake up! Until finally, he collapsed. Laying on her body, burying his nose into her drenched mane. He cried. Softly at first then louder and louder until his entire body shook with every breath. When his sobbing finally subsided into a soft whimper, the colt felt a hoof on his shoulder. He looked up, tears indistinguishable among the raindrops already staining his face. It was his brother, looking down at him through reddened eyes. He looked like he'd been crying too but it was hard to tell. Suddenly, his brother's hoof felt heavier, pressing down on his haunch, pinning the colt to his mother. “It's your fault,” the older pony snapped. “It's always been you.” He struggled under his brother's weight, gasping for air, coughing, rainwater entering his lungs. It stung in his throat and made his chest ache. He tried to yell, to scream, to cry, but no sound came out. He gargled and choked in the muddy water, kicking and bucking, trying to break free. He felt another hoof on the back of his head as his face was pressed into his mother's fur. He struggled but his brother was too strong, too big. There was nothing he could do. Helpless, the colt gave in. He stopped struggling and laid still, his breathing ragged and painful. He closed his eyes tight. “I'm s-sorry,” he wheezed, unsure if he could even be heard. His voice was rough. It hurt to speak. “I'm so sorry.” His brother let go.
Stories[center]Chapter One Stories "I am always at a loss at how much to believe of my own stories." -Washington Irving“The monster came in the dead of the night as thunder crashed and lightning blazed. He walked slowly but fluidly, head held high, eyes blazing.” Rainbow leaned in close, a sly grin spreading across her face. She spoke in a hushed but foreboding tone. Pinkie Pie sat still, eyes filled with awe, eager to hear more. The silver moon glistened high above, giving Rainbow's features an eerie glow as she continued. “He had large wings, massive and dark with a claw at each tip like a dragon's. He stared at what was before him, head level, locking eyes with a young mare trembling in his path. She was paralyzed. The monster grinned, bearing teeth as sharp as knives. He unfurled his wings and loomed over her, rearing up onto his back legs and—" Pinkie screamed, leaping to her hooves and kicking off. She ran in circles, her high-pitched wails echoing through the night. “Pinkie!” Rainbow called, racing over to her panicking friend and holding her back. “I haven't even finished the story yet! Come on, scardy-tail, don't you want to hear the end?” Pinkie took a deep breath, and smiled. After a moment, she began to giggle, puzzling her multi-coloured friend even further. She laughed uncontrollably, getting louder and louder until she was clutching at her sides, her whole body shaking with the effort. Lights were starting to go on in houses. “Of course I want to hear the end, silly. It's just really fun to be scared!” She giggled some more, falling over onto her back and kicking her legs up in the air. The laughter echoed through the empty roads. Rainbow rolled her eyes. She gave a sharp sigh and sat down beside her bubbly friend. “Alright, fine, just don't freak out again when I get to the good parts. And be quiet. Everypony's sleeping, remember?” “But we're not sleeping, so that's not everypony,” Pinkie laughed, her curly mane bouncing with every breath. “I meant everypony else, okay?" Rainbow sighed. "Now be quiet and let me finish the story.". “Alright, alright.” Pinkie sat up, crossing her forelegs. “You sure are crabby this late at night.” Rainbow ignored her and started the story once again. “Now where was I—oh, yeah!” She leaned forward, ears back and eyes narrowed. “The monster let out a growl, low and menacing like a lion getting ready to spring. He scraped his hooves on the ground, ready to charge at the cowering mare. He leaped, landing on her back and baring his fangs. The other ponies of the town who had stood frozen in fear now bolted. They ran in circles, trying desperately to find a place to hide as the mare cried out for help-” “Wait!” Pinkie exclaimed, eyes wide. “How come nopony helped her?” “I don't know. They were scared, I guess, all too panic-y to think to help,” Rainbow explained. “Now if you'll let me continue-” “Does the mare escape? Does somepony break out of their fear-trance and spring to rescue, attacking the monster and driving him away to the land of evil beasts and then they all have candy and sweets to celebrate and-” “Pinkie, whose story is this?” the blue-coated pegasus snapped while stomping her hoof on the ground. “Are you going to let me finish or not?” “Oh, sorry,” the bouncy pony apologized. “I'll be good now.” “Alright,” Rainbow sighed, starting her story yet a third time. “Now as I was saying, the mare cried out for help as the monster raised his hoof. Her scream was cut short as he drove his hoof onto her head, knocking her out with one single blow. He dragged her off as ponies fled to their houses, cowering behind their doors. When he got to the end of the road, he spread his massive dragon-like wings and carried her off into the sky. Off to his lair deep in the abandoned woods.” “Ooh! Then what happens?” Pinkie was leaning in so close, Rainbow thought she'd fall over. “Sorry, that's the end of part one,” the pegasus chuckled. “It's how the story was told to me when I was a filly. In parts.” “Aw...” the party pony hung her head, disappointed. She paused for a second, seeming in thought. “Hey, Dashie...” Rainbow gave her friend a curious look. “Yeah?” “Is this based on a true story with a real monster?” The pegasus laughed, shaking her head. “Nah, monsters like that don't exist. It's all just old mares' tales. Stuff you tell friends over a campfire. That's all.” “Oh, okay!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed and grinned as if all the worries had been chased away. While they had been talking, the black sky faded to a softer shade of grey, lightening the roads. Sun should be up soon, Rainbow thought, rubbing her eyes. She knew she'd be tired all day now but she supposed that's what she got for over-sleeping during a nap the previous day. She yawned, turning her gaze from the sky to her friend who seemed as wide-awake as ever. “Hey, Pinkie, why couldn't you sleep?” The earth pony looked confused for a moment. “I don't know, I just couldn't. My hooves just didn't want to stay still so I let them take me wherever. It's a good thing because then I ran into you!” She smiled, a big, wide-mouthed smile that stretched from ear-to-ear. Rainbow gave her a little grin back. “Yeah, I guess so. Otherwise you wouldn't have heard my awesome story.” She spoke with confidence though, admittedly, she didn't really feel it. Pinkie, well, she didn't seem to always be in control of her movement. The young pegasus did know of the party pony's “Pinkie Sense” that warned her of certain immediate dangers. She wondered if insomnia had something to do with that. If, maybe, her inability to sleep was in itself a warning. Rainbow sighed and decided she was getting worried over nothing. Pinkie was just hyper. She ate tons of candy and it wasn't out of the ordinary for her to be on a sugar rush. There was nothing to worry about, and even if there was Rainbow Dash could certainly handle it. The bravest pony around. There was nothing she couldn't fight off. Nothing. Yet another record-breaking smile spread across Pinkie's face as she bounded around Rainbow with an energy that shouldn't physically be possible. “Your story sure is neat! I can't wait to hear the rest!” As they started to canter down the road a feather drifted by on the wind, ragged and coated in dirt. It caught the attention of the young pegasus for a mere second before she shrugged it off. Just a feather, that's all... though she had failed to mention that the mare in her story, as it had been told to her, was a pegasus. She felt a slight chill down her spine. But monsters such as this one, as everypony knew, did not exist. And stories, of course, were just that -stories. Never anything more.
Chapter TwoChapter Two “Sometimes legends make reality, and become more useful than the facts.” -Salman Rushdie The pegasus squirmed, struggling in Lurker's grasp. He held tighter, sure to cover her mouth so she could not scream. Feathers flew and fur was torn as he carried her away, off to the Hidden Place. The place where he could store his treasures, where he could escape from the world and all it's fear. This town was rich in such happiness, such joyful ponies so ignorant of how dark the world could be. He wanted them. Wanted their joy, their pleasure, their bliss. So long had he lived for the dark. Hiding away where nopony could hurt him, where nopony would take away his treasures. He struggled to keep flying as he carried the terrified pegasus. His wings strained under the extra weight but he was determined to keep her. This one would help him, he was certain of it. She could heal the wounds, heal them with silver words and beautiful phrases. Yes, this one would help. Though they were all bright at first, their colours brilliant, their eyes wide and their voices clear, they always faded. All of them. No matter what he gave them, how he cared for them, they faded away into the shadows, sinking deep into sorrow and depression. But this one would be different. This time he would give her everything. He would make her happy, make her stay bright. Her colour would not, could not fade. He would make sure of it. As the deep, inky night sky faded away to a dull grey, Lurker was already past Ponyville. The little, happy town with its little, happy inhabitants. His hunting grounds. Ragged feathers flew away on the wind, torn from the young mare's wings as she struggled. “Shh, it'll be okay,” he cooed in her ear, “I'll keep you safe. I promise.” He made a quick turn in the air, his long, black cloak flowing behind him. His wings were the only visible part of him, silhouetted against the misty, half-lit sky. He was heading for the dark forest. His safe haven. Where he collected his treasures. _____________________________________________________________________________ -Falling. Something... reaching up, grasping, holding, trying to find- Fear. Wide-eyes, panic. She's gone.... Gone! Forever, never coming back. Lost, dead- -Gone. Swimming in the fear, in the hatred, in the sorrow -drowning. Can't keep up. The current... the current.... Help! Somepony! Help! Falling. Down and down and down forever. Wings broken, legs useless. Falling. No way to help..., no way to- “Rainbow Dash!” A voice? Where..., where- “Rainbow! Wake up!” Something heavy landed on the sleeping pony's back, jolting her awake and tearing her away from the confusion of the dream. She groaned, sitting up. The figure got off of her and moved to the centre of her vision. Just a blur. “W-what's going on?” the groggy pegasus asked, blinking several times to clear her vision. She soon realized she had fallen asleep beside the road. Her fur was covered in dust. “I didn't want to wake you, you looked so peaceful all snoring and twitching and making little noises but something's happened!” A pink blur moved around in front of her so quickly, Rainbow was having trouble focusing on it. At last her eyes cleared. Pinkie Pie. Of course it was her. At least she had taken her away from that dream. The falling and calling for help, somepony gone missing. Rainbow didn't want to think about it. “What do you mean? What happened?” She stood up slowly, giving her body a shake. The dust her fur had collected rose to the air in a puff and Rainbow sneezed. Pinkie was jumping up and down, even more hyperactive than usual. She looked urgent. “Somepony's gone missing!” she exclaimed. “Her brother's been looking for her all morning! He said he saw a big, scary monster-y thing carrying something last night. He thought it was just his eyes being all tricky but when he went to look for his sister this morning she was gone!” She started galloping down the road. Rainbow followed, taking everything in. The story was not real, that monster just couldn't exist. Nothing but legends, that was all, just- Pinkie Pie stopped abruptly and Rainbow ran into her from behind. Ponies were gathered all around, staring at something on the ground. Rainbow jumped up, spreading her wings and hovering there in the air above the ponies' heads. She looked down. There, in the centre of the road, lay two distinct sets of hoofprints, some larger, some smaller. Perhaps a mare and a stallion. There seemed to be a struggle. Dirt was dug up, scraped, there was fur on the ground, feathers everywhere. Rainbow shook her head. “B-but it can't be!” was all she was able to say. She looked around, surveying the horrified faces, picking out the brother who had lost his sister. One stallion apart from the others and pacing furiously. He kept shaking his head and talking to himself. She guessed he was blaming himself for what had happened. “R-Rainbow, oh, Rainbow, d-did you hear?” a soft voice called from behind. The blue pegasus spun around, facing a terrified Fluttershy hovering behind her. “Th-they can't f-find her. He s-said it was a m...m-” “A monster?” Rainbow sighed, placing a hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder. “Look, I really don't think that's what it is. She probably just got lost on a walk or something.” They landed away from the others. Rainbow was sure to keep her timid friend away from the crowd. Fluttershy was shaking so hard, she looked like she was going to pass out any minute. “Oh, I do hope y-you're right. M-monsters are scary.” She buried her head in her hooves, still shaking. Rainbow didn't know what to do. “Come on, Fluttershy, there's no monsters. Quit being such a scardy-tail,” the bolder pegasus helped her friend back to her hooves. “Let's go find the others. You'll feel better when we're all together.” _____________________________________________________________________________ Once they gathered everypony in Twilight's library, Rainbow was sure her book-smart unicorn friend would be able to rid everypony of their fears. However, that was not the case. For even the logical, level-headed Twilight Sparkle was having doubts. “I've heard of this before,” she began as they all gathered around. “Of course, it's all superstition but there are some truth in legends.” A book floated down from the top shelf, engulfed in purple magic. Twilight blew on it and a cloud of dust lifted into the air. She opened it up and began turning pages. “Ah ha! Here it is...” She stopped at a page with a less-than-reassuring drawing of a cloaked, winged monster with the title of 'The Lurker'. “Ah don't like where this is goin'...” Applejack mumbled, peering at the tattered old page. Twilight cleared her throat and started reading, “the Lurker is a chimera-type being, a cre-” “A chimer-what?” Pinkie Pie blurted, tilting her head to the side. “A chimera is monstrous creature composed of two or more different animals,” Twilight explained. “Now as I was saying, the Lurker is a creature with the body of a stallion, the wings of a dragon, the fangs of a wolf and the strength of an Ursa Major.” A chill ran down Rainbow's spine. It was just like her story.... “It says here that the Lurker steals mares from their homes and keeps them alive in a place, often a cave, hidden in a dark forest.” “W-what d-does he do to them?” Fluttershy whimpered, pressing herself back against a bookshelf. Her mane was covering most of her face, as though she were hiding behind it. Twilight flipped the page again, her eyes scanning the lines of text. “Unknown for sure. There are, however, some theories.” “Theories? Like what?” Rainbow asked, trying to sound skeptical. She wanted to seem brave, though she didn't feel it. This Lurker, well, it was sounding more and more like the monster in her story by the second. And that stallion, the monster he saw, his sister going missing, it was all too close. She didn't like this. It scared her, though she'd never dare admit it. Twilight eyed the book some more. At last she said, “here it says some believe the Lurker takes the most beautiful mares for his mates-” “The most beautiful!” Rarity exclaimed, holding a hoof up to her head in an overly-dramatic pose. “By Celestia, I'm sure to be next! Quick! Find me a place to hide-” “Calm down, it's just a theory and this whole story is nothing but a legend. There's probably a much more logical explanation,” Twilight reassured her, trying to calm the ecstatic unicorn down. “Yeah!” Rainbow jumped in, perhaps a little too quickly. “I mean, this is all just a story, right? There's no way it could be real. Right, Twilight?” But the purple unicorn shook her head. “I don't know. Stories have been right before.” She sighed and flipped a few more pages. “Here it says he keeps only the best singers and musicians so they can play music for him. If they don't preform well, he... he eats them.” Rainbow turned back to Fluttershy who was still hiding in the corner. “Hey, don't worry. It's probably not the Lurker's doing at all. That stallion's sister probably just got lost, like I said before. These kind of stories, they're just old mares' tales.” “B-but....” Fluttershy couldn't finish. The blue pegasus placed her foreleg around her friend's shoulders, giving her a small grin. “Hey, don't you worry. If it is a Lurker, I'll fight him off for ya.” Pinkie Pie bounced over to them, eyes wide. “You'll fight off the Lurker? But he's so strong and mean and evil and pointy-toothed and-” “Pinkie, I think that's enough for now,” Twilight said, stopping the earth pony from saying any more. “I think Fluttershy needs a break from all this. In fact, I think we all do. As Rainbow said, she probably just got lost and will turn up in the morning. Nothing to worry about.” Applejack nodded. “Twilight's right. We should all be gettin' some shut-eye. Y'all feel better in the mornin'-” Her sentence was cut short by a rather large yawn, a yawn that spread across the room, infecting all the others. “D-do you think we could all stay here tonight, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked softly, “I mean, i-if you don't mind.” The unicorn smiled. “I don't mind at all. I think that should be just fine. So long as I find enough room for you all.” Rainbow watched as Twilight went off to find blankets and things. Her mind wandered back to the dream she'd had that morning. The falling and reaching for something, somepony gone forever, the fear of death. She shook her head. No. That wasn't related to any of this. It was just a weird dream. She found herself chuckling a bit at that. Getting all scared over a dream. It was stupid. It meant nothing. Outside, ponies were looking weary. The whole town seemed to have a very grim air, like something just wasn't right. Rainbow shook her head, refusing to give in to the others' fear. There was nothing at all to worry about. Certainly not anything the amazing Rainbow Dash couldn't handle. But as the night drew nearer, confidence was not something the young pegasus felt.
Chapter ThreeChapter Three “The moon looks upon many night flowers; the night flowers see but one moon.” -Jean Ingelow It was barely morning when the cries rang out. Pinkie Pie shot up, startled but before she could laugh and call it a false-alarm, the sobbing got louder. The others didn't seem to be awake yet but she figured it would be alright if she just went to see- She bolted down the road, dust flying up behind her. “What's going on? Why is everypony so sa-” She stopped in mid-stride when she saw it. Clumps of fur, scuffed up dirt and feathers. It was just like before, only this time.... She leaned in closer. Was that... blood? Little scarlet droplets stained the earth, flecked about the fur-clumps, splashed in the hoofprints.“W-what happened?” she asked, unable to take her eyes off of the scene. Somepony next to her shook his head, sighing softly. “Another mare's gone missing.” Pinkie glanced around at all the gloomy faces in disbelief. Another one? she thought, but Twilight said... She jumped up and down, trying to catch everypony's attention. “Hey! Don't worry! It'll be okay! We'll find them and you'll see there's nothing to be afraid of and it was all just a big misunderstanding and everything's just fine and we can all laugh again!” She gave them all one of her patented Pinkie Pie Smiles and waited for the dreary sadness to lift away. Nothing. Nopony even glanced at her. They hung their heads and dragged their hooves. A few pegasai went out to search, some ponies were comforting family members and others just stood there quietly, staring at nothing. Pinkie tried again, grabbing a bottle of bubble soap she'd hidden in a near-by bush (because you never know when you'll need one) and pulled out the wand. She gave it a little puff of air and engulfed the area in glistening, delicate spheres that danced in the breeze. “Come on, everypony! You all like bubbles, right?” She giggled. “Well of course you do. Everypony likes bubbles, bubbles are...” she trailed off, realizing nopony had noticed. Frowning, she to think but was running low on ideas. Maybe they liked dancing or singing or- “Pinkie, what are you doing?” a familiar, level voice questioned. She spun around, facing Twilight and the others as they cantered up the road. She bounded over to them, a bright urgency in her eyes. “They won't even look at me! No matter how many bubbles I blow.” The others examined the area closely. Rarity gave a startled gasp and Twilight shook her head. Pinkie saw Fluttershy take a few steps back and Applejack went over to comfort her. Rainbow just stood there, staring, eyes distant and locked on something just beyond the scuffs and blood-spots. When Pinkie followed her gaze, she saw nothing. “What's going on?” the pink pony asked, seeming to lose some of her energy as she watched her friends get hit by the news. Twilight, for once, looked dumbfounded. “I-I don't know.” She shook her head again, as though trying to clear it. “I think we need to do a little more research.” Fluttershy dipped her head, her mane falling over her face again. “Oh... he's not going t-to take any of us, is he?” Her voice was barely audible. It was as if she felt whoever was doing this would hear her if she spoke above a whisper. Rainbow snapped out of her trance then, turning to her timid friend. “Of course not. I won't let 'im.” The athletic pegasus struck a pose, wings spread out and legs placed in a wide stance. She looked ready to fight. “I think what we all need is a party!” Pinkie exclaimed. “A good party will take our minds off of all this sadness.” “No,” Twilight sighed, holding her hoof up to stop her enthusiastic friend from gathering decorations. “I really don't think a party would be appropriate right now. We need to figure this out.” As they started back to the library, Rainbow hesitated. “I'll catch up with ya later. I think I'm going to go help look for the missing mares.” And before anypony could say anything, she was already off. A polychromatic streak across an otherwise clear blue sky. ____________________________________________________________________________ Once she had gotten away from the others, Rainbow Dash slowed her flight down to an easy glide. She needed to clear her head. She'd had the dream again. The falling, the calling, the fear.... If there was one thing she truly hated it was fear. Just the helplessness of it all. It was so hopeless, so paralyzing. She would like to think that she had no fears, that nothing could phase her, nothing at all. And before that dream, she had believed it. -No. She couldn't start doubting herself now. Not now when a real threat was looming over Ponyville. Not now when her friends needed her more than ever. She needed to be brave, strong, resilient. She needed to be the same rainbow Dash she'd always been -simply awesome. Whatever this thing was, Lurker or not, she would make sure her friends were safe. And that was that. In the midst of her thinking, the blue pegasus had failed to notice she'd been flying over the Everfree Forest. She made an abrupt stop and hovered there a moment, just staring down into the dim, musky woods. Just as she was about to turn around, she heard something. It was faint but distinct and it came from deep in the forest. A voice. She couldn't quite make out what it was saying. She thought she heard the words 'no' and 'rain' being repeated but she couldn't quite catch the rest. Confused, she lowered her altitude, drifting down cautiously, heart pounding. She hovered just above the trees, peering through the dark leaves. Nothing. Taking a deep breath to calm herself down, she called out, “Hello? Anypony there?” No response. Below her, the solemn trees swayed back and forth in the wind, branches clawing and raking at the air like talons, dragging in the light. After a moment, Rainbow decided she was probably just hearing things. “I've got to stop this. I'm getting paranoid...” she told herself, turning around and heading back to Ponyville. All this... strangeness was getting to her. She landed on the road next to where the first mare was taken, seeing only a single pony standing there. It was the stallion she'd seen pacing yesterday. The road had been cleaned up, save for a few deep hoofprints set in the dirt. “She never did anything wrong,” the stallion sighed, not looking up. Probably talking more to himself than to Rainbow. “Hey, don't worry about her. Whoever did this, we'll find him. No problem.” Perhaps the young pegasus was being a bit too certain. It sounded like a lie. Like a big lie meant to disguise something horrible. The stallion only shook his head, his short, scruffy red mane tossing back and forth as he did so. He sat down, staring at the road as if trying to look into the past, see what happened there. After a long pause, he said, “her name was Golden Rose. Never did a single bad deed, always tried to make ponies see the beautiful side of life....” He trailed off after that and stood up again. Before Rainbow could say anything, he was already galloping down the path. She guessed he was going to look for her. “Enough of this,” Rainbow hissed to herself. “All this sorrow and fear's getting us nowhere.” She started racing down the road then, heading back to Twilight's home. She swung open the door and trotted inside. “Please tell me you're closer to figuring this out,” she said sharply, giving her tail a flick. “I'm sick of hearing about how sad everypony is.” Five sets of eyes stared back at her. Nopony said anything. “What?” she asked, still on-edge. “Whoa there, missy. We're all tryin' our best,” Applejack told her, stepping out in front. Rainbow huffed. “So you've got nothing. Fine. We're all gonna just sit here and watch more ponies get taken.” “What's gotten into you, Rainbow?” Twilight asked, lowering a book she'd been looking through and giving her friend a concerned look. “Just calm down. We'll figure this out.” “Yeah!” Pinkie exclaimed, bouncing out from seemingly nowhere and landing directly in front of the frustrated pegasus. “Cheer up, grumpy, have a lollipop!” She shoved a pinwheel-style lollipop in Rainbow's face, all the while smiling as if nothing at all were wrong. Rainbow let the lollipop fall to the floor. It shattered on impact. “I don't need a lollipop,” she grumbled, slamming the door shut behind her as she stepped farther into the room. “Let's just figure this out, okay?” Granted, sitting and reading while figuring something out wasn't exactly Rainbow's style but there was nothing else she could do. No trail to follow, no real clues other than the hoofprints and nothing pointing to where this thing had taken the mares. It was all just one big blank slate. She couldn't take action in any physical way so she'd have to try and think it through. The others just stared at her a moment before finally, Twilight broke the silence. “Alright,” she said, “let's continue.” _____________________________________________________________________________ Another calm night. Calm. Lurker gave a little chuckle at that. Calm. It's always calm, isn't it? Always a perfectly clear sky, fully visible moon, stars glimmering above like jewels decorating the fabric of a peaceful landscape. Peaceful. Another chuckle. These ponies were always peaceful. Peaceful and calm. He clenched his teeth. It's just not fair. He scanned the town below. The quiet houses, the silent roads. There were less night-walkers out tonight. They're afraid, he thought, afraid of me. Of what I'll do. And why shouldn't they be? He was, after all, the Lurker. The one who captured mares late at night, who took them away and hid them where they would never be found. But they don't understand. They will never understand. Never, never, never. As he searched the ground, he caught sight of some movement in the corner of his eye. A young earth pony bounded down the empty road, seemingly without a care in the world. Curious, Lurker stopped, hovering in place just high enough not to be noticed. It was the carelessness of this one that intrigued him, how even in the midst of fear, this one remained unfazed. As the young pony walked, something trailed behind. It flickered and dancing with every little movement made. A banner, perhaps? He glided closer, slowly, calmly, sure to keep his wings silent and his breathing low. Each step the pony made was another bounce, another tune hummed, another bit of glitter tossed in the air. Balloons were tied, streamers were hung, signs dotted the paths behind her- oh yes, her. Lurker found himself smiling. Perfect.
Chapter FourChapter Four “Fear cannot be without hope nor hope without fear.” -Baruch Spinoza The morning was terribly still. Silent. So deathly silent that naught a bird chirped, no foals laughed, no mice squeaked. It was the kind of silence you could drown in, a loud silence that made your ears throb and spirit ache. Rainbow sat up, rubbing the sleep away from her eyes. Almost immediately, she knew something was wrong. Very wrong. Spike came down the stairs, looking around at all the ponies sleeping below. “You all stayed over again?” he asked, looking at Rainbow Dash. She nodded, though absently. There was something... off. As the others began to wake up, yawning and blinking sleepy eyes, Rainbow found herself counting heads. One, two, three, four.... She frowned, trying again. One, two, three, four and five including herself. Somepony was missing. The others seemed to be catching on, noticing the concerned expression on Rainbow's face. After a long pause, it was Twilight who asked, “Where's Pinkie Pie?” From there it was all a rush. Just a blur of movement, hooves stomping, wings fluttering. The door was swung open, everypony raced outside, frantic eyes scanning the area, hearts pounding and breathing fast. The streets were full of ponies gathered around. The Mayor seemed to be out in front but nopony was talking. Not that the panicking friends would be able to hear them anyway. Rainbow pushed and shoved ponies aside, forcing her way to the front of the crowd, drowning in the silence -the loud, loud silence that rung in her ears. And just like that, everything stopped. In her frantic fumbling to the front, the blue pegasus had failed to notice the decorated streets, the glittered paths, the signs marked with 'don't worry', 'cheer up' and 'we'll find them'. But now, now she saw everything. For what laid in front of her, directly at her hooves was a tattered, bright pink banner with the words, 'Don't give up, they wouldn't want you to be sad'. Rainbow shook her head. No. She wouldn't believe this. This didn't happen. It couldn't happen! All around the banner lay broken decorations, torn streamers and popped balloons. Hoofprints, large and small dotted the area, trampling happy-face signs and crushing candies. And, commingling with the glitter, lay tiny specks of red. Rainbow didn't want to think about what had happened here, didn't want to imagine it, didn't want to hear about it. But she couldn't stop the images from entering her mind. Haunting images of her friend, who only wanted to help, taken away and hidden in a dark place nopony could find. Around her the others gathered, staring with shock and disbelief. Fluttershy started whimpering, perhaps crying softly. Rarity sat down, as if she no longer had the strength to stand. Twilight closed her eyes and Applejack shook her head, repeating the word “no” over and over again. When the Mayor finally started to speak, Rainbow could hardly hear her. “This is the third mare to go missing in three days,” she began, her voice strong, as a leader's should be, but with the slightest hint of fear hidden in those words. “As Mayor of Ponyville, I hereby declare a curfew for all ponies, no matter the age, to be set at 8:00 P.M until further notice. This is for your own protection. Until whoever has done this is caught and these mares are found, there will be no ponies out walking late at night. Remain inside, lock your doors and close all windows. We do not know how far this abductor is willing to go.” She never mentioned any of the mares by name. Rainbow supposed that was because if she said any of them out loud that would make it more real, more terrifying. Ponies would get angry, start crying, blame others, there was no telling the reactions. And everypony knew Pinkie Pie. There wasn't a single soul who wouldn't be hit by this. The sky clouded over, blocking out the sun. Work that should be done by Pegasai was not going to be done today. Too many distractions, too much on everypony's mind. Every shadow was avoided, mates stuck together like glue. Some ponies remained at the scene to ask the Mayor some questions but otherwise, everypony was off to their home. Rainbow remained still, her friends at her side as they gazed at the decorations, the sparkling glitter, the smiling drawings, the neon-bright balloons. “She should have known better,” Rainbow said at last, not looking at anypony. “She should have known that if she went out she would....” She couldn't finish. She could feel the tears forming in her eyes but she blinked them away, a fierce anger boiling deep inside. “You know Pinkie,” Twilight started slowly, her voice soft. “She just wanted everypony to feel better.” “Why would she do something so stupid?” Rainbow asked, starting to pace now. She wasn't talking to the others, but not quite to herself either. She was talking for the sake of talking, because if she didn't talk, she'd think. And once she started thinking, she'd start imagining, picturing, seeing in her mind all the awful, awful things that could be happening right now to her friend. Every worst-case scenario, every negative outcome- “Rainbow, stop!” She didn't look to see who said it. Everything sounded muffled, like she was in a glass case, locked tight and sealed away. Rainbow closed her eyes tight, trying to shut everything out. This wasn't happening. It couldn't be. Wasn't possible. Pinkie was fine. She never went out. She's at the bakery, at Sugar Cube Corner making sweets for everypony. Everything is just fine. Just fine. But no matter what she told herself, she knew it wasn't true. _________________________________________________________________________ Darkness. Just a big, empty, looming darkness. Filled with the echo of her pounding heart. Pinkie sat up, rubbing her head and feeling something wet on her temple. Blood? Where was she? Certainly not a place she'd been before. No place in all of Equestria could possibly be this dark. “Hello?” she called. “Anypony home?” She started to walk forward but felt something heavy on her back left leg. It rattled as she moved. She started running then, not really sure why, just running. To see if the darkness ended, maybe. Something snagged her leg, tripping her and holding her in place. She struggled but couldn't break free. “You know, it's really rude to tie ponies up," she said. "You won't get any visitors if you keep-” “You'll run away,” a deep voice called, echoing through the dark and bouncing off the walls. “They always leave. Always go away.” Pinkie jumped to her hooves, looking around but her eyes had not yet adjusted to the gloom. “It's awfully dark in here. Maybe you could turn on a light.” “Whatever you like,” came the reply and with it a match was struck. The room lit up then and Pinkie found herself backing up, pressing herself against the wall. A tall figure loomed over her, a long black cloak draped over him, his torn, ragged wings folded against his back, the only part of him she could make out. He brought the match over to a lamp hanging from the ceiling and lit it, letting the soft glow fill the chamber. The room was dusty and dry. Dirt was everywhere. Clumps of it, as though somepony had re-filled several holes, lay in a row along the back wall. Something moved in the corner, huddling into a ball. A chain rattled. She turned back to her captor, confused, still trying to figure everything out. “Why did you bring me here? Want some decorating done? I can throw you a party, put up some decorations, paint the walls a nicer, happier colour-” “No!” the hooded figure shouted, startling Pinkie. She scrunched herself up against the wall, ducking her head as he swiped at her. When he missed, he stomped his hoof down on the ground, causing dirt to fly up everywhere. “It should be dark -has to be dark. Dark and he won't find me. Never again.” “Who won't find you?” The figure shook his head, turning around and opening a large, heavy door in the back of the room. “Wouldn't think to look in the dark,” he gave a short chuckle. “Not in the dark.” And with that, he walked out, slamming the door shut behind him. _________________________________________________________________________ She's got to be out here somewhere! Rainbow thought, weaving around trees and ducking under branches as she flew through the Everfree Forest. She folded her wings quickly to get through a gap, unfurling them again as fast as lightning. A spectrum of colour flowed behind her as she went. Branches caught her face, tugging her fur, scratching her ears, but she didn't even notice. She had to keep flying, keep looking. “Pinkie!” she called, knowing in the back of her mind it was hopeless, that the Lurker would not simply give up his captives. He wouldn't let them cry out. Wouldn't let them hear. But hope is relentless and Rainbow was determined. She looked for hours that felt like minutes, looked until the sun was setting, until she knew she had to go back. In the distance, she could hear calling. Her friends, maybe, or a patrol out to fetch her. Why was nopony else looking? Was she the only one who actually cared? When the sun drifted below the horizon, Rainbow finally started back. She hadn't realized how exhausted she was until she made it to her house. She didn't feel like staying with the others tonight. Tonight all she wanted was to be alone. So the only pony around to blame was herself. So she wouldn't snap at anypony else. As tired as she was, sleep was not going to come easy tonight. For every time she closed her eyes, she saw torture. Every time she started to relax, she started to imagine. To see in her head all the horrors that could be going on right now, everything her friend could be going through. She wanted to go out again, to keep looking but the curfew would not allow it. The pegasus sighed, sitting up on her bed, holding her head in her hooves. Three days. Three mares gone. One of them her close friend, a pony who never wanted anything but to make others smile. That was all. She never deserved this. And now she was gone. Gone. When Rainbow finally did get to sleep that night, the dream was there to torment her.
Chapter FiveChapter Five “The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep.” -Robert Frost Time was nonexistent. There was no way to tell an hour from a minute down in the sunless, skyless cave. As far as Pinkie knew, it was always night. But the night there was a starless one, a moonless and lifeless one. The figure in the corner moved again but the earth pony still had not quite worked up the courage to look. She stared at the lamp, watching the candle inside burn down. Watching the wax melt and peel as the flame ate away at the wick. Her head hurt, and that was to say the least. The blood had dried but there was a rather nasty lump there now, bruised and tender. “You have to make him happy,” came a feeble voice from across the room. Pinkie blinked, looking over at the shadowy figure in the corner. “He won't get mad if you make happy.” She tilted her head, taking a few steps closer to the source of the voice. “Make him happy? How?” The figure sat up then, turning two pale, rose-coloured eyes on her. “You need to use your special talent.” Pinkie tilted her head. “But I'm a party-er. He didn't seem to want to party.” The figure sighed softly, lowering her head. “He doesn't want you to decorate. So long as you change nothing, he'll be okay.” “If he wants to be happy, why does he stay in such a gloomy place?” Pinkie asked. “I don't know,” came the weary reply. She sounded exhausted, weak. Pinkie moved in a little closer, close enough to finally see the figure properly. She was a pegasus, light gold in colour with a long, wavy red mane, scruffy, as though it hadn't been brushed in days. She looked dirty and on her head was a similar bump to the one Pinkie was given, though slightly more healed. Her wings were ragged, some feathers torn and her hooves were scuffed. She looked thin, like she hadn't eaten much in a while. Her cutie mark was of a rose and a pen making an “X” on her flank. “I'm a poet,” she told Pinkie before she could ask. “The rose is one of the most poetic things there are, symbolizing everything from love to life to- to death.” The pink pony just gazed at her a moment, her glum expression, her half-open, weary eyes. After a long while of simply looking, it dawned on Pinkie -this was the first mare. She remembered hearing from some ponies that the first mare had been a poet who worked for no profit. “Shouldn't there be another mare here?” The gold pegasus flinched a bit at that. “She wouldn't stop shivering. Poor thing was so afraid. He was yelling at her, telling her to stop being a coward, saying she would need to be punished. Then he unlocked her chain and dragged her out the door. I-I haven't seen her since.” There was a long pause. Both mares sat quietly, heads down, trying to think of nothing. Not think of what would happen if they displeased their captor. Not think of how many more mares he would take. Not think of what was in the piles of dirt along the walls. After a while, Pinkie broke the silence. “What's your name?” she asked, looking up and meeting the young mare's eyes. She looked quizzical a moment, but kept her gaze steady. “Golden Rose,” she said softly. “I'm Pinkie Pie! And you know what, it's not so bad in here. Minus the gloom and dirt and evil captor... it's alright.” “Alright? How could you possibly think it's alright?” “Well...” Pinkie scanned the room, trying to find something she could turn around, something she could make better. With a slight grin, she grabbed her chain, turning it like a skipping rope, slowly at first, then faster, gaining momentum. She jumped in and skipped with it, giggling as she did so. “Come on! Try it!” Golden Rose looked horrified, glancing quickly around the room as though expecting the Lurker to appear at any moment and take them away. “Are you insane? What are you doing?” “I'm skipping,” Pinkie replied with a laugh. “I can see that but... how can you be laughing at a time like this?” Golden stepped a little closer to her, curious, watching as Pinkie jumped. “Well, what would you rather do? Everything'll seem better if you take what you're afraid of, and make it fun!” The laughing earth pony continued to skip, going faster now, her mane bouncing up and down, her hooves pounding the dirt, causing it to fly up in puffs. Pinkie didn't care. She was doing what she did best; having fun. Golden Rose seemed cautious, looking around the room, at Pinkie, at her own chain, at the door. After a long pause, she sighed and picked up her chain, giving the bubbly pony a tiny smile. ________________________________________________________________________ Rainbow was out searching again. She didn't bother to find ponies to help her, they were all too afraid to go out, or so it seemed as she hadn't seen anypony out that day at all. Cowards. Won't even go out to look for their missing friends, their missing family members! She was so angry, but it wasn't at them. They had a right to be scared and so did she but she couldn't be scared. Not when Pinkie needed her. She'd been looking all morning, even skipped breakfast to spend more time out. She hadn't stopped by to see her friends either. No time, no time. The forest all looked the same to her now. The same dark, musky grass, the same tall, looming trees, the same plants, same mice, same everything. Every cave she checked was empty, every tunnel lead to nowhere, every niche, every ledge, every hole in every tree. She'd checked it all and still the forest stretched on. She'd been flying for hours but she didn't feel tired, she just felt angry. Such a burning, consuming anger eating away at her from the inside out. Because it was her fault that Pinkie went out. She should have been watching her, should have stayed up to make sure everypony was safe. It was her fault her friend got taken away and anything that happened to her while she was gone would be Rainbow's fault too. For in her mind, it was all her. Always her. Her own fault that Pinkie wasn't safe at home right now. She should have known. She should have done something. Loyalty is a fierce thing. Rainbow knew she had to find Pinkie, she couldn't let her stay wherever it was the Lurker, or whoever it was, took her. She had to find her. There was no question in it, no other options. Just find her. Find her and everything would be okay. She was loosing focus in flying, her mind drifting, thoughts colliding- -Suddenly, a branch jumped up from nowhere. Rainbow tried to duck but it struck her in the head, knocking her out of flight. She tumbled. Down and down, breaking more branches on her way to the ground. She landed hard, with a sickening crack! Everything went black. ________________________________________________________________________ “Stop crying!” Lurker boomed, shoving the whimpering mare to the ground and striking her across the head. “I hate crying. Cowards and foals cry! What are you? Are you a coward? Because you're certainly not a foal!” He stood over her, wings outstretched. His cloak made him seem like a monstrous shadow-beast come from out of the dark to feed. The mare was shivering, huddled into a ball and sobbing quietly. “I c-can't..., can't stop-” “Yes you can!” Lurker snapped, stomping his hoof down next to her. “Stop now and I won't punish you. Stop now and you can go back in with the others.” The mare held her breath, forcing herself to stop, closing her eyes tight, making sure no tears could get through. She shook a bit and let her breath out slowly, forcing herself to stay calm. Lurker smiled. “There, much better. Now stand up and face me.” She did as she was told, getting to her wobbly limbs, her head swimming. “Look at me,” he hissed, a pair of pale grey eyes blazing from under his hood. The mare took a shaky breath and looked up, holding his gaze. “There. Now isn't facing your fears much better than cowering? Now you can be happy. Now you can make me happy.” The mare took a deep breath before she worked up the courage to say, “m-make you happy?” Lurker nodded. “It is, after all, why you are here. You make ponies happy. I've seen you. Make me happy and no more harm will come.” “B-but I don't know how-” “Yes you do!” Lurker stomped his hoof down again, eyes hard and fierce. “You can make others smile. So make me smile, make me feel good.” “You have to be good to feel good,” muttered the mare, getting a little too bold. The Lurker let out a growl, raising his hoof again and stomping down on her leg. There was a satisfying crunch, followed by a loud yelp. The mare bit back her tears. “I am good! He's the one who's bad. Him. So much hurt, so much-” He blinked suddenly, as if he'd just blanked out. He turned sharply to the whimpering mare. “Get back in the dark room. Back in the dark. Won't find you in the dark.” He grabbed her mane and dragged her with his teeth. She didn't struggle. He blew out the candle lighting the hallway they were in, plunging the two in darkness. He dragged her to the door, throwing it open and tossing her inside, not bothering to look back before he slammed the door shut again. He didn't like punishing them, not at all, but it had to be done. Had to. Because if he didn't.... He wanted happiness so badly, wanted to feel true joy. He didn't want to hurt them- -But weakness should always be punished.
Chapter SixChapter Six “Dreams are true while they last, and do we not live in dreams?” -Alfred Lord Tennyson The sky was on fire. Ponies were screaming for help, pegasai fell with burning wings. Mares, stallions, colts, fillies, foals, all burning and screaming and sizzling in the flames. Rainbow bolted, gathering as many as she could, her own coat scorching. She brought them all to a river, the only salvation. But she wasn't fast enough. The fire devoured the land, ate away the clouds, absorbed the sun. It lashed and bit and clawed it's way through everything, leaving it all to ash. In the centre of the torture, one cry stood out. Rainbow didn't hesitate. She flew faster than she'd ever flown before, breaking the sound barrier, blazing through the scorching air, trying to get to the scream. There! She could see! In the distance it was Pinkie alone in the middle of the flames, crying for help. Rainbow flew faster, pushing herself harder and harder, reaching out with both hooves through the fire and smoke, lungs searing. But no matter how much she tried, how far she flew, Pinkie just seemed farther away than ever. The fire burned everything down, bubbling and sizzling and- “Rainbow?” called a voice from far, far away. And just like that, the whole world fell to pieces. The pegasus sat up, blinking to clear her vision. “W-what's going on? Where am I?” She felt sheets covering her. Several blurry figures stood over her in a blindingly white room. When she tried to push herself up, there was a sharp pain in her right foreleg. Her body ached and she felt light-headed, dizzy. “Oh, thank Celestia you're alright!” a familiar voice exclaimed. Twilight? The weary pegasus blinked a few more times and the room cleared up. Her friends stood around her, all save for Pinkie. “When you didn't come home, we all got so worried,” it was Fluttershy speaking now, stepping in closer to the side of Rainbow's bed. “W-we thought he'd gotten you too.” “We hadn't seen you all day!” Rarity continued. “We thought you must be out looking at first but when the sun started to set and you didn't come back, Twilight lead a search party into the Everfree to look for you.” “You shouldn't have done that,” Rainbow said. “You could have gotten captured too-” “An' so could you,” Applejack butted in, eyes fierce. “What were you thinkin' goin' out into that forest all by yerself?” “I was thinking that I needed to find Pinkie Pie,” Rainbow snapped, her own eyes just as fierce. “Or have you forgotten about her?” Applejack looked like she was about to say something but Twilight stopped her before there was an argument. “We haven't forgotten about her, Rainbow. In fact, we've been studying the Lurker and cases like this one where mares go missing to help in understanding what's going on. It's all we've been doing!” She looked the pegasus in the eyes, her gaze calming, concerned. “We won't stop until we find her but we can't go risking getting captured ourselves. We need every head we can get to figure this out.” “Then why'd you go looking for me?” Rainbow asked, still sounding cross. “We knew he didn't take you at night because there were no scuff marks or torn fur on the road,” the unicorn informed her. “And we knew you'd be looking in the Everfree because that's where you went the previous day.” Rainbow shook her head, not hearing any of it. “I can't just sit still while she's still out there.” She tried to get up then but immediately got dizzy, feeling sick. She fell back to the bed, touching her head with her hoof, feeling the bandages there. “You're going to have to,” Twilight sighed. “We found you on the forest floor, you'd hit your head pretty hard and broken a few bones.” “You were out cold!” Spike exclaimed, jumping up onto the bed to get a better look. “You hit a ton of branches when you fell.” “How long was I out for?” Rainbow asked, examining her broken leg and noticing the bandage on her right wing. How was she going to get out now? “Since yesterday,” Twilight told her. “it's about 6 P.M now-” “I've been out all day?” the pegasus exclaimed. She tried to get up again but her friends held her down. “I need to go out! Everyday we don't find her is another day she's... another day....” She got really light-headed then, the world spinning around her. She closed her eyes, trying to calm herself down. “I just need to find her.” The room was silent for a moment. Pinkie's absence was huge. Normally, she'd be the one to dance and sing and bounce all around the room, making everything alright, making everypony feel better. But she was gone now and until she was found, the hole she left would not be filled. At last Twilight said, “we'll find her. But I need you not to go out. Stay here and rest, help us figure this out. We will find her.” Rainbow looked less than reassured but she nodded nonetheless. When her friends finally left, content that she was alright, the injured pony was already devising a plan. ___________________________________________________________________ Her name was Windsong. From the dim light still left by the waning candle, Pinkie could see she was a pegasus like Golden Rose. She was white in colour, like snow, and her mane was a pale, icy blue. Her eyes were indigo and as deep as the ocean. She looked terrified, though she'd stopped shivering now. For a long time after Lurker had thrown her in nopony said anything. Pinkie was able to get her name but that was it. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make this better. The poor mare was covered in bruises and her left back leg hung at an awkward, painful angle as she avoided resting weight on it. Then everything went dark. The candle had burned down, nothing left but a puddle of wax and a tiny stream of smoke wafting away into the air. Golden Rose gasped and Windsong gave a tiny whimper. Pinkie jumped a bit at first but soon realized it was just the dark. And the dark is a lot like the light, just more unknown. The unknown, after all, is the fear. Not the dark itself. It's the not knowing what's near you, what's happening, what might happen, that's what's terrifying. But as scary as the unknown could be, Pinkie knew she had to push that aside. “Don't worry!” She said, jumping up and causing her chain to rattle. There was another whimper from Windsong and a bit of shuffling from Golden Rose. “The dark's not so bad. You just have to use your other senses.” She paused, thinking for a moment before she lifted up her head and started to sing. “In the dark a song rings out, nothing to fear, no need to pout, a gentile voice gleams brighter than the sun. When there's no place to turn, no flowers, grass, no golden fern, the song will show the way, shining brighter than the day. Just smile, and listen closely, it'll be okay. Just smile, calls the voice, showing you the way.” It was a song her mother had sung to her when she was little and feeling down. A song she knew by heart and hummed to herself every time she felt sad. She hoped the others were listening. Pinkie could hear Windsong sniff a bit. “Oh, you're not sad are you?” the pink pony asked, trotting over to the sound. “I just thought, because this song always cheers me up, that, maybe-” But Windsong made a sound Pinkie had not yet heard from her. A good sound, like a half-laugh. Like she was finally cheering up. “I've heard that song before,” came her weak, quiet voice. “My mom used to sing it to me when I was a filly. It's how I discovered my special talent, singing.” Pinkie beamed. “My mom sang it to me too! Every time I felt lonely or sad, she told me to remember the song and I'd feel better.” There was a shuffling noise as Golden Rose walked over to them. “I know it too. My older brother taught it to me. We used to sing it together when our parents went off on trips and we were alone.” she gave a small sigh. “I miss him.” “Hey, don't worry,” Pinkie reassured her, reaching through the dark and tentatively placing her foreleg around Golden's shoulders. “We'll get out of this. You'll see him again and I'll make the biggest most super-fantastical cake you've ever seen to celebrate! And that's a Pinkie Promise!” After a short pause, Golden Rose started whistling to the tune of the song. Pinkie grinned and joined in as Windsong sung the words in a surprisingly strong voice, a voice that echoed through the chamber and filled the mares' ears with silver notes. ___________________________________________________________________ The light had gone out in the chamber. Lurker knew it. He always knew when the lights went out. It was like a sense. Like he could feel the flame burn out, exit the world in a puff of smoke. Like magic. He didn't go to look this time. No, instead he listened. He laid in his own chamber at the end of the hall. He had to go out that night, had to find others, but he also knew they town would be more vigilant now. They would lock up and set a curfew, like all the other ones had done. But this time he was smarter, more careful. He knew how to get into locked houses, knew how to take a mare undetected. He just needed to find the right herbs for something that would knock them out. Last time he'd tried to use force inside a house he nearly got caught. But not now. Now he was better. He'd never guess just how smart I've become. Just how strong I've become. Lurker gave a laugh at that but his thoughts were interrupted when he heard something coming from the mares' chamber. Was that singing? He smiled, laying back in his tattered old bed and letting the music take him. When it stopped, he sat up, opening his door and heading down the hall, slowly, silently. He didn't want to scare them in case the music started again. It did. Oh, how it did. Whistling in tune, singing so soft and yet so powerful. Soothing. So soothing. He couldn't control himself. He threw open the door but the music stopped instantly, replaced with gasps and whimpers. “No,” he said softly. “Keep going. Keep singing. You have to. You must.” He stepped in closer but the mares backed away. He could hear their shuffling. “No!” He cried, stomping both front hooves down on the ground. “Keep singing and I won't have to discard you.” There was silence for a moment. Nopony moved, nopony breathed. Then one of the mares stepped forward.
