Ravenous Appetite

by Shaded Blood

Rating: mature
Tags: Death, Main 6, Gore, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Other, Fluttershy, Spike, Cutie Mark Crusaders, Tragedy, Horror, Violence
Length: 14068

How far would you go for a sick friend? Would you seek a cure? Powerful magic? A healer of legend who was said to be able to cure any ailment? Failing that, would you be able to do what is necessary to save the lives of many others?

An unknown illness has befallen one of our heroes shortly after the events of Swarm of the Century. No pony seems to know what happened or why and she herself is refusing to speak to them about it.

In her weakened state, she is unable to refuse the treatments and medicines that her friends and the doctors force upon her for the sake of her health. She knows they're only trying to help, but her mind is growing foggy. At times she can hardly understand what they're saying, much less recognize who they are.

Her stomach has been hurting a lot more lately, perhaps it was just something she ate?

---

There is much more to this sickness than what can be seen from above the surface. The sands of time pour against our heroes as they rush to find a cure for their fallen friend.

Meanwhile, enemies seek to take advantage of the distraction to Elements of Harmony, giving them the courage to step out of the shadows.

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AN: Hey guys! I just want to let you guys know that YES this story is going to feature another Equinox Pony, but not in the same light as my other story, The Power of the Equinox, btw of which if you like this story, and haven't seen my other, why not go give that story a look? * Shameless self promotion is relevant.*

Published 2018-07-11 17:50:07 UTC
Last updated 2019-01-07 07:26:26 UTC

Chapter One: Hunger

Three Days after Swarm of the Century-

The bright rays of the sun bathed Ponyville in a golden shine as the ponies that lived there went about their daily lives. A Pegasus here and there working to maintain the weather, Earth ponies in their farms and gardens growing food to sell at the market, and Unicorns inside their shops, using their magic in tandem with their special talents to craft beautiful artworks or build functioning devices. All seemed well in this bustling little town where everypony knew everypony and not a soul meant harm to another.

But then...

" PARASPRITE!!!" The sound of a pony screaming this simple word sent the whole town into chaos as they all rushed to get indoors, slamming windows and locking the entrances. Many of the produce sellers and farmers took extra steps to secure their products and gardens using large wood crates. Some who were brave enough, peeked out from behind their blinds to see the expectant swarm of colorful little monsters, bent on eating everything in their path.

Only to see a cyan blue pegasus mare with a rainbow mane and tail rolling in the street laughing.

" HA HA HA! You should have seen your faces!" Rainbow Dash guffawed as she tried to raise to her hooves, only to receive a smack to the back of her head, pushing her forward and back into the dirt.

" Dangnabit Rainbow! Ya plum gave me and mah kin a heart attack!" Applejack, an orange earth pony mare with a blonde mane and tail held together with red hair ties, exclaimed as she put the brown stetson she used to knock Rainbow forward, back onto her head with a huff. Rainbow pulled herself back to her hooves and turned to smirk at her friend.

" C'mon AJ, it was just a prank, no pony got hurt." As she said this, the townsponies slowly began to make their way back out of their homes, many of them still warily looking around for a rogue swarm of parasprites.

" Prank or no, ya still disrupted the whole market, and on a Saturday! Ya'll know this is the busiest day of the week for most of us." She turned and began the walk back to her stall, where a young filly with a yellow coat and red mane and tail tied up in a pink bow waited for her. Rainbow trailed along behind her, still chuckling at her ' minor' prank.

" But that was the whole point! When else was I going to get a chance with so many ponies together? NEXT Saturday? There's no way I could wait that long on a good prank!" Applejack sighed as she lifted up one of the apple crates she had turned over and inspected the apples that now sat in a bunched up pile on the ground. She grimaced at seeing a few bruised ones here and there.

" Ah don't rightly care Rainbow, a prank like that can cause a whole lot more than just a few ponies running fer the hills. Look at this! This whole crate was full of bright, juicy and delicious apples! Now ah have to go through and pick out the damaged ones from yer little stunt. That's bits AH'M losing because YA'LL wanted to have a laugh." She turned a harsh glare on her friend who now had the decency to look sheepish, rubbing the back of her mane with a hoof while looking away.

" O-oh... uh, oops?" With a huff, Applejack turned to the rest of the crates and nodded at them.

" Ya can apologize by helping me turn over the rest of these here crates and going through them to throw out all the apples ya cost me. Applebloom, go on and find yer friends to play, I have another to help with market today." The yellow filly, Applebloom, whooped in joy while Rainbow Dash groaned. She darted off in search of her friends while Applejack and Rainbow began to pick through the apples, throwing the bruised ones into an empty crate and placing the good ones back on the cart. After about an hour of silence, Rainbow Dash looked to Applejack with an apologetic look.

" Hey AJ, I really am sorry. I guess I just didn't think that the prank would cause a lot of trouble like this." She lowered her head and Applejack took a deep breath.

" Yer right Rainbow, ya didn't think. But ya know better now and that's a good lesson to learn. It's best that ya learn it this way, rather than have ya try something and have an even worse outcome." Rainbow simply nodded with her head bowed. Applejack glanced over to her friend and raised a hoof, lightly tapping the back of her friend's shoulder.

" It's alright RD, ya learned yer lesson, that's good 'nough fer me. 'Sides the prank wasn't exactly a BAD one, ya just need to consider a better time an place fer those sorts of things." Rainbow looked to her friend and smiled.

" I gotcha AJ, thanks." Applejack merely nodded and stood up, the apples finally cleaned up. Rainbow followed her lead and watched as she walked behind the cart and turned a sign that said ' closed' to ' open.'

" Now what?" The rainbow mare asked as she looked around for something to do. Applejack just smirked.

" Now, ya have to help bring in the customers. Normally Applebloom does a great job, but ah think it's because she is an adorable little filly an most ponies just can't say no to that face." She gave a light chuckle while Rainbow merely raised an eyebrow.

" Ok, bring in the customers... Uh, how do I do that?" Applejack stared at her for a moment before shaking her head.

" Ya'll weather ponies need to come down from the clouds more often. Just start hollerin! Make the apples sound irresistible, even though they already are. Ya got wings, fly out there and start tellin ponies about the cart, direct em this way." She started to make shooing motions with her hooves at the pegasus, who looked out towards the mass of ponies that now bustled about the market square and gulped.

" O-ok." She stuttered as she began to walk out towards them. Applejack watched her go with no small amount of pleasure. A tapping to her right caught her attention and she found a white unicorn mare with a stylish purple mane and tail standing next to a purple unicorn mare with an even darker purple mane and tail, a magenta and pink stripe streaked through both her mane and tail, and a young purple and green dragon which stood carrying several packed boxes all with three diamonds engraved on them.

" Well howdy there Rarity, Twilight, Spike." She addressed each of them in turn, tipping her hat.

" What can ah do ya fer?" Rarity smiled at her friend and levitated a few bits over to the counter.

" Good morning Applejack dear, we just came from Twilight's library and wanted to see if anything new was going on at the market. We heard from a few of the other carts that a certain, ahem, ' Rainbow Maned Catastrophe' had caused quite the scene. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?" Applejack simply chuckled as she took the bits and brought out a medium sized box and began to fill it with apples.

" Oh ah might know a thing or two. Ya see RD decided that she wanted to prank everypony in town that she could, all at once. So she shouted somethin about- oh hang on a tick." She took a moment to tie a piece of twine across the top of the box, making sure it was sealed tight. Once it was closed, Rarity levitated the box of apples and placed them on the towering stack that the small dragon was already struggling to carry. Twilight merely giggled and lit up her horn, taking half the stack from the young drake and hovering it along behind her.

" Anyways, she shouted somethin about parasprites and that was bout the same as kicking a bee's nest. Everypony scrambling to get indoors or protect their produce. Ah wasn't much different honestly, turned over every crate of apples here at the cart to keep em safe, then dove under the cart with Applebloom. Wasn't long after we heard and saw her laughing in the square, to which ah dragged her over here and made her clean up her mess." The two mares and dragon looked around for the cyan pegasus, but could not see her. Applejack pointed a hoof out into the market, where they saw her now, hovering over the crowd.

" Ah got her out there now trying to pull in customers to make up for the damaged apples she cost me." With a nod they turned back to her.

" Well, it certainly sounds like you had an energetic morning." Twilight said as she now gave a few bits to her friend for another box of apples. Applejack looked to her curiously.

" Oh, we uh, ran out last night too." She blushed brightly as the sound of her stomach rumbling could be heard. Rarity, Applejack and Spike all laughed while she did her best impression of a goldfish.

" I'm hungry ok!" Rarity took a moment to wipe a tear from her eyes as she chuckled.

" It's ok dear, you're still a young mare." Twilight groaned as she buried her face in her hooves. Applejack just grinned as she pushed a box of apples to her friend, who after taking a moment to notice them, smiled gratefully and took them in her aura.

" So wait, if you have Rainbow helping you with the cart now, where did Applebloom go?" Applejack turned to Spike, who posed the question and gave a knowing smirk while he lightly blushed.

" Ah gave her the day off to go an play with her friends. Ah'm sure if you asked, Twilight would let you do the same." She gave a look to the unicorn, who smiled warmly and nodded.

" I don't see a problem with it, Rarity?" Rarity gave a small sigh, but her horn lit up and she took the packages from Spike's claws, a small smile playing on her lips.

" I hate to give up such wonderful help, but we can't keep dear Spikey-Wikey all to ourselves now. Go on and find your friends Spike." Spike looked to each with bright eyes and a smile to match.

" Thanks so much!" He rushed and gave Twilight a hug and took off down the street.

" Make sure you're back home before dark! And stay out of trouble!" Twilight yelled after him, her mothering instincts demanding that she at least give him a curfew. All she got in response was a raised claw with an ' ok' symbol. Shaking her head, she turned back to Applejack who stared after the young drake with a smile.

" What?" The question pulled Applejack from her reverie and she raised an eyebrow at Twilight.

" Ya'll really don't know?" Now it was Twilight's turn to raise an eyebrow and for Rarity to chuckle.

" Dear, Spike has a crush on Applebloom." Twilight nearly dropped her packages and her head whipped to look at Rarity. They winced at the sound of multiple vertebra cracking at once.

" WHAT!?" Everypony within a twenty yard radius of the three stopped to stare at them. Twilight gave a crooked smile and they went about their business. Turning back to Rarity, she fumbled with her words, trying to form a sentence.

" Bu-u-ut, he, you, crush, Applebloom!?" Applejack shook her head and came around from behind the stall, grabbing a bottle of water and popping off the cap.

" Here Twi, drink this, it'll make ya feel a bit better." Twilight took the water and promptly chugged the whole thing while Rarity took a deep breathe.

" Twilight darling, Spike has been over me with his little crush for some time now. Of course he still comes over and helps to carry my things when I ask, because we are friends. I put my hoof down on his little crush months ago. He was understandably upset at first, but after sitting him down and talking to him, I explained WHY it couldn't work. The difference in our age is just too drastic, he is still a growing young drake. On top of that, I'm not too certain how YOU would feel if something ever became of it." Twilight was breathing heavily now, having chugged the whole bottle of water and nodding as she slowly came to understand the situation.

" O-ok. I can get that, but why Applebloom?" Applejack gave a hard stare at this, to which Twilight quickly raised her hooves in defense.

" No-not that there is anything wrong with it! It-it's just, out of the three of them, I always kinda thought he might go for Sweetie Belle?" Rarity gave her a deadpan look.

" Twilight if he had gone an gotten a crush on Sweetie Belle, to be frank I would have swatted him out the door with my broom." They looked to her in confusion.

" Think of it this way, he had just gotten over a crush on me, and now suddenly he has a crush on my younger sister? Whom almost looks like me, with the exception of mane and tail color and style. I can see that play from a mile away, it would be an attempt to replace me, with something that is ' almost' me." They both nodded slightly, though Twilight's nose scrunched in indignation.

" But Spike isn't like-' Rarity raised her hoof, causing her to stop.

" I know that dear, but I don't want to take any chances like that. The fact that it has been months and he never once showed interest in Sweetie Belle is more than enough to convince me that that is the case of course. Now however, with him having a crush on Applebloom, I know for a fact that he is every bit the gentle drake we always knew him to be." She smiled at her friend and nodded in the direction that Spike had gone. They turned to see Spike and Applebloom walking together with their friends, an orange pegasus filly with a purple mane a tail name Scootaloo and Rarity's younger sister Sweetie Belle, a white unicorn filly with a curly light purple and pink mane and tail. They were all laughing and talking to one another as they made their way across the market towards Sugar Cube Corner.

Spike had a constant light blush on his cheeks as he walked beside Applebloom, who seemed oblivious to his plight as she bumped up against him, laughing and joking with him and her friends. Twilight smiled softly as she watched her young drake walk along.

" They grow up so fast." Turning to see Applejack wipe a small tear, she smiled brightly, tears brimming in her own eyes as she turned and watched them enter the building, a pink mare with a bright messy pink mane and tail greeting them with all the energy of a sun.

" Yes... yes they do..."

In an Alley beside the Market-

A butter yellow pegasus mare with a long pink mane and tail, sat trembling as she peeked around the corners of the alley, making sure that no pony had spotted her.

' Did they see? How could they have seen? I kept him so well hidden!' She panicked in her mind as her right hoof cradled a small red orb that was well hidden within her mane. A small chirrup sound could be heard and she ducked back into the alley quickly.

" Shh, shh, it's ok little one, I don't think anypony saw us." The pony, Fluttershy, whispered to the thing in her mane. Fluttershy cautiously looked about, making sure that nopony could see or hear them as she began to make her way through the back of the alleyway.

' I don't think anypony saw us, but it's best to go home anyways. Just to be safe.' She nodded as she kept her hoof to her mane, covering the small red orb that nuzzled into her mane further.

It had been three days since the parasprite incident, and though Fluttershy knew it was best to have removed them all from the town entirely, she couldn't help herself with just one. Only this time, she knew how to keep it in check. After seeing how the creatures multiplied at such a rate, she found that she could keep it from multiplying by feeding it once a day, and only small food items, nothing larger than the parasprite's own body. She had kept this one out of the swarm ever since the incident and has had no complications from it.

It was very affectionate and she loved it dearly, just as she loved all her animals. Angel was understandably upset at first, but after some bribing with a veggie salad, he came around. She had yet to name the little guy, or girl? She didn't really know how to discern their gender yet.

However there was a growing problem, and it showed to be a bigger one than she had imagined. As she made it to the trail out of town that would lead to her cottage, she made sure that nopony was watching, and then buried her muzzle into her mane, nuzzling the critter that made its nest there. She breathed in deeply, her eyes nearly rolling into the back of her head as its fruity and intoxicating aroma filled her nostrils.

It smelled GOOD. Really good. At first she had thought it smelled nice when she nuzzled it the first time. But it slowly grew into an addiction, one she could not bear to be without. The parasprite thought nothing of the strong inhalations as it merely nuzzled back into the kind mare that had taken it in. Fluttershy continued to walk forward down the trail, barely taking notice of where she placed her hooves now, so focused on getting more of the delicious smell.

There were even times when she was at home, where she would seclude herself in the bedroom with her little friend, simply to nuzzle and smell it. After a short while, her hoof came into contact with something and she nearly tripped, snapping her out of her daze as she looked around to find herself at the small bridge that led to her cottage. Blinking owlishly, she came to her senses once more and smiled as her wings fluttered, carrying her over the bridge and up the path to her home, the sounds of birds and smaller critters filled the air with the sounds of nature. As she opened the door and entered the home, a small white rabbit met her with crossed forelegs and a tapping foot. She looked to him in confusion before realization hit.

" Oh Angel, I'm so sorry, but I just couldn't get you your carrots today. Something came up at the market and I had to leave. You understand don't you?" The small rabbit gave a sharp glare and proceeded to turn his back on his owner, then began to hop away.

" I'm so sorry Angel!" She yelled after him as he turned and entered the kitchen, the sounds of pots and pans banging, being the tell tale signs that he would make something himself. Sighing, Fluttershy flew over to her couch and lay down across its surface.

" What a day. I didn't even get to do any of the shopping that I wanted to do. But I suppose it's alright, there is always tomorrow." A small squirrel jumped up to the arm of couch and tapped her head. Turning she watched as it began to point to a calendar on the nearby table. She gasped at seeing the date.

" Oh dear, that's right! The market is closed on Sundays. I guess it will have to be Monday then..." she sighed and lowered her head. The sound of a small chirp pulled her attention back to her mane, seeing the sad eyes of the parasprite that lived there.

" Oh it's not your fault little one. We can't help that everypony else is afraid of you because of what you do in large numbers. It's just in your nature." She giggled and gave it a nuzzle, pausing to breath in again. A happy sigh escaped her lips as she breathed out. She breathed in again, and then breathed out. She continued this in silence for several minutes, her eyes drooping and her head feeling heavy.

' Maybe.. maybe a nap will make things better... yea...' She dozed off into a light slumber as the parasprite nuzzled closer. The sounds of her animals going about their day, acting as soft lullaby for the kind and sweet mare as she breathed in the addicting smell of the parasprite. It smelled so lovely... so yummy... so tasty...

* CRUNCH... Crunch... Crunch...*

Author's Note

Shaded: Sooo? Eh eh? What do you think?

* Smack!*

Shaded: Ow! What did I do this time!?

Twilight: Stop fishing for compliments, it's unbecoming.

Shaded: Awe come on, you gotta admit this is good!

Twilight: The writing is adequate, however I feel you should have spent more time on the relationship between Fluttershy and the Parasprite.

Shaded: ....

Twilight: Well? Aren't you going to do this disclaimer?

Shaded: ... I do not own MLP: FiM or the Equinox Ponies...

Twilight: Good boy.

Chapter Two: Insatiable

" Has anypony seen Fluttershy?" Rarity asked as she calmly sipped from the straw of a cup. She looked around at her gathered friends at the table outside Sugarcube Corner. Rainbow Dash continued to munch on her favorite blueberry cupcake as she raised an eyebrow at the fashionista.

" Not that ah'm aware?" Applejack said as she lifted an apple and took a bite from the surface, juice flowing down her chin. Twilight took a moment to put her book down and looked around them.

" Now that you mention it, I haven't seen her at all today. Doesn't she always come to market on Saturdays?" Everypony nodded as they looked about, only to jump as a flash of pink leapt into view.

" Fluttershy went home!" Pinkie Pie, a bright pink earth mare with a messy pink mane and tail shouted as she dropped herself into a chair at the table, a tray of almost a dozen cupcakes in her hooves.

" I saw her this morning going back home after Dashie's little prank." She then proceeded to stuff her mouth with three cupcakes at once as she spoke around them.

" E' eemed uful orrid out umfin" They looked to her in confusion. With a sigh, Rarity levitated a napkin over to her and began to clean frosting from around her lips.

" Pinkie dear, if you would please try that again, but with less food perhaps?" Pinkie simply giggled and nodded her head vigorously as Rarity struggled to keep up with the napkin. After a few moments, she swallowed and leaned over, snatching Rainbow Dash's juice glass and taking a deep gulp, much to Rainbow's dismay.

" *Ahem* I said, she seemed awfully worried about something. I mean with how quickly she ran out of town and in the direction of her cottage." The friends all looked to one another with hints of worry.

" Do you think my prank scared her that bad?" Rainbow felt the twisting of guilt in her stomach as she looked down at the table. A hoof clapped her on the shoulder and she glanced over to see Applejack shaking her head with a grin.

" Nah, that gal's stronger than we give er credit fer. I doubt the prank had much to do with it." Rainbow gave a slight grin in response, but still felt as though her heart was in her hooves.

" Maybe... but it wouldn't hurt to go and apologize either, just in case." They looked to Twilight as she stood, lighting her horn and placing the book back in her saddlebags, along with a few bits on the table to cover for her own drink and food. Rainbow took a silent moment to contemplate this before nodding.

" Yea, yea your right. I should go apologize, I don't want her to be hiding away the whole weekend now thinking that some parasprites are actually attacking the whole town again." With a hearty flap of her wings, Rainbow shot into the air and angled herself towards the direction of the shy mare's cottage.

The others looked to one another, before looking down at Rainbow's half eaten cupcake and glass of juice, which Pinkie was currently slurping from again. With a sigh, Rarity reached into her own saddle bags and placed a few bits on the table.

" I swear, that mare will owe me one for this." The others chuckled as Twilight waved to them.

" Well, I'm heading home, it's getting late and I have to make sure to stay caught up on my studies." Both Applejack and Rarity raised their eyebrows as Twilight began to walk in the opposite direction of the library.

" Pardon Twilight, but uh, the library is that way." Applejack stated, nodding her head in the actual direction that Twilight should be going. Stopping in her tracks, Twilight gave a nervous chuckle and began a brisk walk in the right direction.

" I knew that! I was just uh... checking to see if you knew that!" If possible, Applejack's eyebrow rose higher. Twilight could feel herself beginning to sweat beneath the mare's gaze and proceeded to trot off towards her home.

" She was going to spy on Spike wasn't she?" Rarity and Applejack turned to Pinkie as she pulled the remaining few cupcakes towards her. Looking to one another, Rarity snickered into her hoof while Applejack rolled her eyes.

" Ah wouldn't doubt it. That mare has become more protective over the lil' feller ever since he confessed to her that he felt like she was his mother. Which ain't exactly wrong, considerin' how the two of em' came together." Rarity nodded as she levitated her own glass towards herself and took a small sip.

" Indeed, I still remember that. The poor dear broke down into tears and wouldn't let go of him until she passed out. It was an emotional day for the two of them. It's not the first time she has sneaked off to check on him while he was running an errand or two for either her or me. Did I tell you that a stallion once refused him service at a stand simply because he was a dragon, and Twilight bore witness to this?" Applejack and Pinkie both looked to her with wide eyes.

" Wha- No! Who the hay was it? Ah'll give em a piece of mah mind!" Applejack stood up angrily, straightening her hat as she looked out around the market place. Rarity however leaned over and placed her hoof on Applejack's side and shook her head with a grin.

" You won't find him dear. As it happens, the stallion was an out of towner who had brought his wares. He left in quite the hurry when he suddenly found that all of his wood working tools came to life and began to chase him all the way out of town." She ended with a giggle as Applejack and Pinkie both guffawed at the tale.

" Well ah'll be, the little filly is a firecracker after all." Applejack snickered and turned to sit in her chair once more. Looking to the sky, she gave a soft sigh at the amber and orange hues.

" Gonna need to be gettin' home soon. Granny'll tan mah hide if we don't get the rest of the chores done before nightfall." Rarity nodded and proceeded to levitate a few bits onto the table between them.

" I'm already paying for Rainbow, may as well live up to my Element and pay for both of ours as well." Applejack smiled in thanks.

" Ah' appreciate it, jus' don't go askin' me to model fer yer next line of clothes will ya?" Rarity snickered into her hoof.
" Oh ho ho, we'll just have to see Applejack." With a laugh, the two stood to their hooves and waved back at Pinkie, who now lay upon the table asleep with a happy smile and cupcake frosting on her lips.

- With Rainbow Dash-

The wind was cool against her mane as Rainbow flapped her wings to gain altitude, using a nearby thermal to help boost her even higher as she kept her keen eyes on the ground below. The cottage she was searching for sat about a half mile outside of town, on the edge of the Everfree forest. Though it should not have taken her as long as it has for her to get there, no one ever said that she was ready face her friend.

' Dangit, why'd it have to be Fluttershy.' She sighed as she flapped her wings softly.

Fluttershy and her had been friends for almost as long as she could remember. They had met just shortly before flight school, their parents introducing them to each other when both of their fathers began work at the weather factory. Despite having such varied interests, they became fast friends and were nigh inseparable. Rainbow always protected her from bullies and Fluttershy was always there to cheer her on. It made her heart ache when she did something that caused any sort of pain to her friend.

Spying the top of the cottage a short distance ahead of her, Rainbow sighed and angled her wings into a slow dive.

' Best to just get it over with.' As she closed in on the home, worry crept into her face. Normally the sounds of animals would be almost deafening to those who weren't accustomed to it. But now it was strangely silent. As she touched down on the bridge leading up to the small home, Rainbow looked about, her ears flicking in every direction, searching for the familiar sounds that always came with being at Fluttershy's.

" Huh... I guess their all asleep?" Looking to the burnt orange sky, she raised an eyebrow in confusion.

" Kind of early though?" Shrugging her shoulders, Rainbow trotted her way up the path, taking care to follow it exactly as she felt her heart once more drop to her hooves. As she approached the door, she raised a hoof and held it there, waiting to knock.

' Ugh, why is this so hard...' She clenched her eyes shut and softly tapped her hoof on the door. With a quick twist, she pulled a one away away from the door.

" Oh well, guess she's not home!" She chirped, spreading her wings and readying to take off, only to hear the sound of the door knob turning behind her, and grimacing at her luck.

" H-hello?" A strangled and hoarse voice came from within the cottage. It a raspy cough followed the voice and Rainbow immediately grew worried, turning quickly to face the door, trying to peek in.

" Hey Fluttershy? It's me Rainbow, you uh, you ok in there?" A quiet shuffle and another cough followed a brief moment of silence, before the door opened wider and Fluttershy stepped out onto her porch. Rainbow's eyes grew wide as she took in her friend.

Fluttershy stood before her, a haphazard mess. Her mane stuck out in several places and her butter yellow coat look pale and messy. Her eyes were blood shot and her lips were pale. Her wings were dragging onto the ground, the feathers dirty and a few twisted in directions that made Rainbow wince.

" What is it Rainbow?" Her hoarse voice broke Rainbow from her reverie and she quickly rushed up to her friend.

" Oh my gosh! Are you ok!? Are you sick!? Do you need a doctor!? I'm so, SO sorry about my prank!" Fluttershy had to step back a few hoof steps to get Rainbow out of her face.

" I-I'm fine, I'm fine I promise. Prank? What prank?" Fluttershy looked mildly confused as she looked to her friend who hovered closer in worry.

" Forget about that, you are NOT OK! We gotta get you to the hospital, come on!" Flying around behind her, Rainbow tried to hook her forelegs under Fluttershy's barrel, only for the mare to duck under her and back further into her home.

" NO! I-I mean. No. I'm fine Rainbow, I'm just feeling a bit under the weather is all." Rainbow lowered herself back to the ground and looked her friend over again.

" Are you sure? You look a lot more than just ' under the weather' to me." Fluttershy shook her head and did her best to give a smile to her friend.

" I'm fine, I think it was just something I ate before laying down..." Her smile did not reach her eyes, but it was enough to fool Rainbow. The prismatic mare gave her friend a stern look, before slowly nodding her head.

" If you say so... do you want me to stay over and help take care of you? I could still go and get Nurse Redheart, she does house calls I think?" Taking a moment to fight back a cough, Fluttershy shook her head.

" Th-there's no need. Angel has been helping to take care of my needs, he's been big help." Fluttershy did her best to smile once more, though this time, Rainbow could see the strain on her face. With a huff, she turned and spread her wings once more.

" Alright then, but, you better be ok by tomorrow or I'm getting the Nurse Redheart over here pronto!" Fluttershy nodded to her friend, raising her right hoof to wave.

" I'll do my best, have a good evening Rainbow." Turning slowly, she walked back into her home and closed the door softly, the sound of a lock being turned could be clearly heard from the outside. Rainbow looked back to the door of her friend and grimaced. Something about all this didn't feel right. Flapping her wings, she took to the skies and made a beeline for her home.

' You had best take good care of her Angel, or I'll get Gilda back here to teach me how to make rabbit stew!'

- Within Fluttershy's cottage-

The sounds of coughing filled the air of the darkened cottage. A form shuffled about near the window, watching as her friend flew away. Once she was sure that the mare would not turn back, she turned and rushed back to the kitchens, leaping over the overturned coffee table and the splintered remains of the kitchen door. Upon arriving within, she dove once more into the already open cupboard, yanking out every food item she owned.

" S-so, so hungry!" Using her teeth, the mare tore open the box of oats that she currently held and began to pour them into her mouth, chewing greedily and mixing it with the jug of juice that she pulled from the open fridge earlier to help it go down.

When Fluttershy had first awoken from her nap, the first thing that she noticed was a lovely taste in her mouth. It was like mixing every fruit that she loved together in a beautiful and intoxicating cocktail and left her wanting more. It was merely moments after that she realized her little friend was no where to be found. In her haste to locate him and his precious scent, she had turned her entire house nearly inside out, scaring many of her animals into their burrows and many more back into the woods.

Even as she searched for him in a panic, her stomach had begun to rumble with an insatiable hunger. Perhaps an hour of searching and she could no longer take it, her pressing need to eat overriding her addiction to the smell of the parasprite. She had rushed to the kitchen, shattering the door and forcing open both her fridge and cupboards. At first she had tried to cook, but it was taking too long. She needed food right then and now!

Forgoing the cooking process, she began to eat everything that she could. Fruits, berries, oats, vegetables, she even got into some of the food she fed to her animals. She didn't care however, she just knew that she was hungry and nothing was working. Nothing she ate seemed to take away the growing and insatiable urge to eat. When a knock came to her door, she panicked and it took all her strength to drop the food, clean up herself a bit, and make her way to the door.

The whole time she spoke with Rainbow, she couldn't help but wish she would just go away, go away and let her EAT! The mare made her think of all kinds of foods with her colorful mane. The red like juicy Sweet Apple Acres apples, the green like a delicious kiwi fresh from harvest, the blue of her fur like a ton of blue berries piled in front of her. It was torture to let something so delicious sit just inches before her!

Every time Rainbow spoke, she managed to snap her out of her daze and realize that the mare before her was indeed a mare, and not a pile of fruits and food. It did not stop her stomach from churning with hunger however.

Fluttershy's eyes shook wildly as she tore into a can of yams with her teeth, the sharp metal of the can cutting into the sides of her lips a bit, pooling blood into her mouth along with the fruit. A spark of flavor exploded in her mind and Fluttershy let out a groan of ecstasy. Licking her lips more, her eyes glazed over.

In the corner of the kitchen, high up in cabinet, Angel watched his owner with no small amount of fear and worry. She had been on a one mare rampage all day, destroying her home. Now she ate everything in sight and it scared him. Looking back into the cabinet, he could see the shivering and cowering frames of other creatures who called this cottage home. With a quiet glance back, he froze as he stared back into the haunting eyes of Fluttershy, who now looked directly at him, blood dripping down the sides of her lips.

" So... hungry..."

Author's Note

Shaded: * covered in Bandages and more than a few casts* So as you may have noticed, I pushed this one here out a whole HECK of a lot faster than I thought I would...

Twilight: * Reading a book* Subtle persuasion has its... benefits...

Shaded: * Sweats profusely* R-right... I uh... I don't own MLP: FiM or the Equinox Ponies...

Dimmed Star: Don't you think they get the point already? Do we really need to have a disclaimer after EVERY new chapter? Other stories don't do it.

Twilight: It's best to be safe, after all, this one here does have a tendency to... Neglect his duties...

Shaded: * Sweats Bullets*

Chapter Three: Ravage

Fluttershy tossed and turned in the depths of her bed, her eyes shut tight and her body covered in a heavy coating of sweat, her coat pale and her mane and tail tangled and matted. Her eyes bore dark bags and her face contorted in pain as she wrapped her hooves around her stomach, a pain like she had never felt before gripping her whole frame. She bit her lower lip as a fresh wave surged through her body, causing her to release a sorrowful whimper of the agony she felt. The pain across her blocking out any pain she felt from biting into her lips around the cuts caused from tearing open many cans of various food items, dried blood crusted the corners of her mouth.

Unbeknownst to her, flashes of a dark red light arced through her skin for brief moments as each wave came, lighting up the veins of her blood and the muscles beneath which seemed to almost move of their own accord in ways that they never should. The lights only lasted for a second every time, fading as quickly as they arrived. Without the light exposing the machinations beneath her flesh, one could see that her very skin seemed to almost be moving, twisting and squirming as though a thousand large worms were burrowing beneath the surface, the fur on her body lifting and swaying with the movements. Her wings lay limp behind her, many of the feathers bent at odd angles and even a few lay strewn about her.

" Wh-wh-why... why do-does it h-hurt so much?" She whimpered as tears dripped down the side of her face, soaking her pillows and sheets along with her sweat.

Angel watched from the crack of her open bedroom door. He trembled in both fear and worry as he watched the form of his owner writhe and squirm beneath the covers of her bed. The events of the night before still fresh in his mind. Her sudden and abrupt impulse to search the house in a panic, overturning furniture and opening every drawer and cupboard, looking for the creature she always kept in her mane, only to get worse as, her search's focus changed almost on a dime as she had launched herself through the now splintered remains of her kitchen door, tearing in to any and all food containers with rapid abandon.

The sight of the mare turned eating machine was frightening to say the least. Many of the other creatures had quickly vacated the premises and even those who did not, dare not show themselves to the mare for fear of how she would treat them in her panicked and starving state. Glancing to the windows of her room, he grimaced at seeing that the frames closed tightly, not letting him get a good judge of what time it was from where he was. With a worried look to Fluttershy, he took a deep breath and slowly pushed the door closed, a silent click the only sign that he had been there. He waited cautiously with his ears alert, but he did not hear the sound of coverings being thrown off, the flapping of wings, or the soft clip of hooves on the wooden floor.

Releasing his breath, he turned and quickly hopped down the stairs and towards the kitchen. Upon passing through the doorway, he could see many of the smaller animals that stayed were searching through the strewn about boxes and cans, looking for something to eat. Ignoring them, he hopped to the counter next to the sink and pushed open the wooden frames of the window, allowing the light of the sun to flood the dark room. Blinking to clear the spots, he shaded his eyes with a paw as he looked to see the Sun's place in the sky.

It was almost midday, the mare had been in agony ever since she had forced herself to stop eating and to try to lay down late in the night after nearly clearing out the kitchen of anything edible. Reaching up, he grabbed both his ears and pulled them down tightly in frustration, where was that rainbow mare!? Hearing a soft clang, he snapped his head to see that a squirrel had knocked over one of the empty cans in its search, every creature in the kitchen looked to him varying degrees of fear. The squirrel merely raised up his fore paws in a placating gesture as Angel glared at him. Looking back through the window, he searched for any sign of the pegasus mare that had been here yesterday, hoping against hope that she would come back soon, his owner needed help.

- Ponyville-

Rainbow Dash worked lazily through the clouds, her usual can do attitude much more subdued than usual. The other weather pegasi weren't too bothered by it, if Rainbow wasn't riding their flanks than that meant that they could work at a much more relaxed pace, it didn't stop a few from worrying however.

As Rainbow slowly pushed a medium-sized cloud into position, she hovered in place with one hoof still touching it, her eyebrows furrowed in thought.

' I hope Fluttershy is OK, I really wanted to go and check on her this morning, but they just had to come to my house last night and ask me to work the team early this morning.' She groaned as she pushed off the cloud and flew back to the group that she was working with, her eyes and ears passively working to keep her from crashing into others and maneuvering out of their paths.

' What's wrong with her anyway? The feather flu? No, she wasn't coughing enough. The pony pox? ... Nah, I don't think she had any welts on her.' She gave an exasperated sigh as she pushed a small cloud a few feet before stopping.

" Should I talk to the others before going to get the Nurse?" She thought out loud, her worry only growing as time past.

" Talk to the others about what?" Rainbow felt her fur stand on end and she whipped around to come face to face with none other than Pinkie Pie.

" Pinkie!? What!? How!?" Normally Rainbow was more than just observant in the air, but somehow the pink anomaly had just sneaked up on her! Pinkie smiled a bright smile as she simply held up a tray of cupcakes.

" Plot convenience!" Her voice as cheerful as ever. Rainbow stared at the exuberant mare for a moment, taking in the dozens of balloons above her that were all tied to a yellow band wrapped around her barrel, her back hooves dangling in the air as she raised the tray higher.

" Riiiight..." Rainbow let out slowly as she leaned back a bit, the cupcakes getting closer it seemed. Shaking her head, she gave the mare a critical look.

" I mean, what are you doing up here Pinkie? And what's with the cupcakes?" Showing a bit of strain on her face, her tongue sticking out and she struggled, the mare began to kick her back hooves and brought herself a bit closer to Rainbow, forcing her to sit on the cloud to prevent herself from being pinned between the hyper baker and the fluffy bit of water particles in the air.

" Isn't it obvious! I saw you from outside the bakery, you just looked soooo sad and I thought that maybe you were still sore about having upset Applejack and Fluttershy with your prank. So I decided that you needed some cheering up! I went back in side as quickly as I could and started baking up some muffins! But then I remembered that you don't eat muffins all that much, which meant I had started baking a batch for no reason! Luckily though, that batch wasn't completely wasted because the mail mare came by, smelled the cooking muffins and bought the whole bunch! But then without the muffins to cheer you up, I decided that maybe you would like a cake instead! So I started to bake one of those and-" A cyan hoof covered the rambling mare's mouth, muffling her a bit as she continued to ramble. Rainbow gave her a dead pan stare after a few more minutes passed, her normally earth-bound friend still going. With a bit of hesitation, she removed her hoof.

" -but then I wondered if the twins even LIKED whipped cream, I hadn't ever seen Mr. or Mrs. Cake give them any-" Rainbow replaced her a hoof, muffling her once more as her other hoof reached forward and took a single cupcake.

' I wonder when she's gonna take a breath?' She thought idly as she took a slow bite of the baked good. Just a short moment later and Pinkie finally came to a stop, her cheeks spread to show that she was smiling brightly beneath Rainbow's hoof, her sides rising and falling rapidly as she breathed heavily. With a quirked eyebrow, Rainbow removed her hoof, revealing her shining smile to the world.

" So basically, you brought me cupcakes?" Pinkie snorted and snickered.

" Of course silly, I just told you all about it! Do you want me to go over it again?" Rainbow's eyes widened in fear and she quickly shook her head.

" Uh, no thanks Pinks, I think once is good enough." Pinkie nodded and looked down to the tray she held and grabbed a cupcake for herself.

" So what was it you were mumbling about?" She asked as she stuffed the whole thing in her mouth, chewing with her cheeks bulging out. Rainbow just sighed and looked down to her own food and shifted uneasily.

" I... I don't know if I should say. It's not really my business to tell, but I also feel like as her friends, you guys should know what's going on. I also really want to go and check on her..." Pinkie swallowed her food audibly and gave the prismatic mare a worried look.

" Her?" Rainbow glanced up and nodded.

" Yea... it's uh, somepony close. They aren't feeling very well and I told them if they weren't better by the time I came by today, then I was gonna go get a doctor or something and have them come out to their home. I wanted to go and check on them this morning, but work got in the way." Pinkie nodded in understanding, another cupcake in her hoof.

" I get it, you're really worried about them, but you also don't want to upset them by intruding on their privacy. If it's that important to you, then you should just go, I'm sure that if you asked, somepony here would be willing to cover for you." She smiled as she licked some of the pink frosting off the top of the cupcake. Rainbow rubbed her shoulder with her hoof, having placed her own half eaten cupcake back on the tray.

" I'm not sure Pinks, I'm the manager and if I don't stay to make sure this gets done properly, I'll have to take a lot of flak from Mayor Mare." Her and Pinkie both sat in silence for a moment, Rainbow deep in thought as Pinkie chewed her food at a more sedate pace.

" I can take over from here." The sudden voice made both mares jump. Turning behind them, they found Thunderlane hovering just a few wing beats behind Rainbow. She raised an eyebrow at him.

" Really? Thunderlane, you're lazier than me at times, and that's saying something." Thunderlane rolled his eyes and started to move away.

" Fine then, I guess you don't want to go and check on your friend." Rainbow quickly got to her hooves on the small cloud, her wings flared and her eyes wide, panic clear in their depths.

" No wait! I mean... ugh." She dropped her head and sighed. Thunderlane hovered in place as he glanced over his shoulder, waiting. Taking a deep breath, Rainbow raised her head and looked directly at him.

" Thunderlane, would you please take over for me so that I can go and check on my friend?" The two stared at each other for a moment, before he smiled and angled himself back towards them.

" Sure thing boss. I'll take over from here and make sure everything gets done." A smile broke across Rainbow's face.

" Oh my gosh! Thank you so mu-" He raised a hoof, cutting her off. she looked to him at first in surprise, then slight worry as he grinned.

" On one condition." She groaned, her tail lashing behind her and just nearly hitting Pinkie's hoof that held Rainbow's half eaten cupcake. The mare yanked her hoof back and looked to the offending tail with mock offense.

" I knew it wouldn't be that easy, alright Thunderlane, what do you want?" She grumbled as she glared at him. He simply chuckled and raised both his hooves in a placating gesture.

" No need to look like you just signed a contract with Discord, boss. I just wanted a cupcake." Rainbow perked up at this, realization dawning on her. With a grin, she turned and used one of her wings to scoop up a single cupcake as Pinkie scarfed down the remains of the one she had been eating. With a show of dexterity, she flicked the pastry and Thunderlane fumbled with his hooves to catch it, getting bits of frosting on his hooves.

" There ya go! I gotta get going, real quick though. Make sure all the clouds are distributed according to the layout plan you guys were given this morning and remember to sign off on the board in the office for the amount of clouds we used, the time it took for distribution and how much was left over so Cloudsdale can send us more for next month's shipment. Thanks again dude." She turned quickly as he just waved her off while taking a bite of the pastry. Stepping off the cloud, she hovered over to Pinkie and gave the mare a quick hug.

" I'm not normally one for mushy stuff, but thanks Pinks, I needed that." Pinkie grinned and hugged her back with one foreleg, the other keeping the tray of cupcakes out of their way.

" Anytime Dashie, say hi to Fluttershy for me!" Rainbow yanked back and stared at her in shock for a moment, before chuckling and flying off, her voice carrying back on the wind.

" You are so random Pinkie!" The baker smiled as she waved at the retreating mare's back. Thunderlane hovered over and watched her leave as well, sneaking another cupcake from the tray while Pinkie was occupied. Taking a glance to the earth mare, he looked up to the many balloons holding her up, all out of hooves reach for her.

" So uh... how are you gonna get back down?" Pinkie looked to him with a bright smile, a smile that held back a hundred jokes, a hundred laughs of joy, and a thousand expressions of compassion and love.

" I have no idea!"

- With Rainbow Dash-

Rainbow flapped her wings in quick succession, gaining speed as she made her way through the air above Ponyville. Dropping her altitude by several feet, she made sure that she was below the cloud layer as to prevent ruining any of the work that had already been completed in this section of the sky. Her eyes darted to and fro across the ground, keeping an eye out for a yellow coat and pink mane trailing across the ground.

' It doesn't look like she's gone out or anything, which can only mean she's still holed up in her home. Darnit Fluttershy, you should have come with me to the doctor!' With a determined glare, she angled her flight to another path off to the right and away from the direction of Fluttershy's cottage. She could clearly see the large white outline of Ponyville's hospital just a little ways off. As she approached, she stopped flapping and allowed herself to drift towards the double doors.

It was well-known around Equestria that flying inside a hospital is illegal. Not only was it distracting for some customers, but was also quite disruptive of the work being done. The displaced air caused by flapping wings sent paperwork everywhere, light weight utensils such as scalpel blades and needles could also get picked up and flung about, creating a dangerous safety hazard. Then there was the psychological damage that could be caused to patients who had just lost such a gift, whether it be the loss of a wing or damage somewhere internally that prevented flight. Rainbow shivered at the thought, folding her wings tight against her barrel.

As she trotted through the doors, she came into the main lobby of the hospital, a desk clerk sitting at the front desk was currently occupied with balancing a pencil on its tip on the edge of her nose. The guard pony looked up to her as she passed by, checking her frame for anything of note, before looking back down to the book he held. Stepping up to the counter, Rainbow waited for the desk clerk to notice her.

Nearly a minute passed before she coughed loudly, causing her to jump and straighten herself, the pencil falling to the ground with a loud clatter only to be ignored.

" Oh! Um, hello, how can I help?" She asked with a nervous smile playing on her lips. She was an earth pony mare with a grey coat and blue eyes, her mane a dusty blue that was neatly kept in short ponytail. Rainbow ignored her slightly flustered state and jumped straight to the point.

" I need a doctor to make a house call! It's important so please get the best one you can as soon as you can!" Her tail whipped about behind her, showing her impatience. The mare blinked at her for barely a moment, before her eyes widened and she nodded, quickly pulling a sheet from a nearby stack of forms and folders and reached to take another pencil from a cup full of them.

" OK, so this is an emergency, then we'll need to do this quickly. I'll need your full name, the name of the patient and your relation to them. After that I'll need both your address, the address that she is currently staying at, the nature of the emergency and anything you can tell us about her current state of health. If you know anything about their medical history, we'll need that as well, oh and before I forget, is the patient a mare?" She looked up from the growing stack of forms as she filled in her own bits of information. Rainbow groaned at this.

" Awe come on! Didn't I just say this was important! Can't we do all that after?" The mare shook her head.

" I'm sorry ma'am, but it has to be done now or we can't help you. Everypony has to do it." Reaching forward, she tapped the golden bell that sat on the desk, a loud chime echoing through the lobby. After barely a few seconds, a young earth pony mare came rushing through the hallway to the left, her red glasses slightly askew as she rushed forward, an uneven stack of papers in her left foreleg's grip and a neatly sharpened pencil in the crook of her ear. Her light red mane was held loosely in a bun as bits of it stuck out in various directions and her short tail wasn't faring any better. A coat of pale pink fur showed signs of ruffling as she rushed about, her cutie mark of a file cabinet overshadowed by a quill and inkwell sat on her flanks.

" Y-yes Miss Staple?" She looked to Rainbow briefly before turning back to the clerk, now known as Miss Staple. The simple black tie that hung around her neck swung with her movements.

"Thank you for being quick Ginger Snap, I need you to go to the nurses station on the third floor and look for Doctor Horse. His schedule has him listed there for today. Let him know that an emergency house call has come up and he's needed at the front desk immediately." The young mare nodded vigorously and quickly made her way back down the hall she came from. Miss Staple turned back to the paperwork before her and went ahead and picked up her pencil again as she talked around it.

" When you're ready ma'am." Rainbow groaned, before reluctantly complying and giving what information she could. Almost fifteen minutes passed as they pushed through the paperwork, Rainbow answering everything quickly in hopes to get through it faster while Miss Staple wrote it all down.

" OK, last thing, do you know if Miss Shy would feel uncomfortable having a stallion doctor examine her?" After a moment of silence she looked up to see Rainbow's look of confusion.

" Why would she be uncomfortable with a stallion doctor? He's a DOCTOR, he's just there to help, right?" Miss Staple put her pencil down so she could speak more clearly.

" True, he is here to help and I've known him for almost seven years now. I can tell you that he is a great pony and has never harmed a soul. But some mares feel uncomfortable with a stallion as their doctor. Some feel as though a stallion doctor is using their degree as an excuse to look at a mare's bits without getting into trouble, while others simply prefer to work with the same gender because it makes them feel less exposed." Rainbow nodded slowly, slight understanding showing across her features.

" Ooookay, I guess that makes sense. But I don't know how Fluttershy feels about doctors. I've never actually seen her get sick or hurt enough to have to actually need one." Miss Staple nodded and picked up the pencil once more just as the sound of hooves came from the hall off to the side. Rainbow turned to see a white earth pony mare with her pale pink mane and tail in buns, a white cap with a red cross in the center sat on her head and the image of a red cross with four red hearts in the outer corners rested on her flanks.

' There sure are a lot of earth ponies in this hospital.' She idly noted as the exhausted young mare followed up behind the nurse, a white saddlebag bearing the medical red cross adorning both sides. Ginger Snap stopped just behind the nurse, breathing heavily as she fought to catch her breath.

" I'm sorry for the wait, but Doctor Horse is too busy to be able to make any house calls now. He just got called into surgery for a broken Maxillary bone." The nurse stated to the clerk as Miss Staple nodded and finished off the paper in front of her, Rainbow was flabbergasted.

" What! Well isn't there another doctor?" The nurse shook her head and Rainbow was prepared to go off again, her wings flared angrily.

" Now before you get too upset, I'll be taking his place. I'm Nurse Red Heart and I'm training to be a doctor under Doctor Horse. I may not have my license yet, but I can at least get a list of symptoms, blood samples and urine samples for the Doctor to look at once he's available. We'll go and check on the patient and come back to have him give a prescription after seeing the list of symptoms and testing the samples." Rainbow huffed and fluffed her wings before folding them.

" ... Fine, just make sure you get everything you can to help her." The nurse nodded and walked up to the desk, Miss Staple pushing the signed paperwork into her hooves.

" Everything is filled out Red, she just needs to sign off after the house call is finished and you'll be all set." Red Heart nodded and walked up to Ginger Snap's side, opening one of the bags and placing the stack of papers inside.
" Sorry about this Staple, but I'm borrowing your intern for a bit." Staple waved her off.

" It's been pretty dull here today, she could use some of the work." Red Heart walked back up to Rainbow, who had turned away from the desk and now faced the doors to the exit.

" Lead the way." Rainbow whooped as she bolted for the door, Red Heart following after and the still out of breath Ginger Snap hurrying to keep up.

Author's Note

Shaded: * Slowly peeks around a corner.* Is this ok? Is this safe to do?

Twilight: I'll let you slide. You've got two stories going so it can't be helped when you updated them alternatively.

Shaded: Phew, so glad you understand.

Twilight: That said, it also means that if you neglect either one of them for too long then things might get worse for you.

Shaded: W-w-worse?

Twilight: Oh you thought everything before this was the most that I could do? Oh you poor poor bastard.

Dimmed Star: He forgot that magic is a thing, didn't he?

Twilight: * nods with a smirk*

Shaded: * Trembles is shock* ... I-I d-d-do not own MLP: Fim or th-the Equinox Ponies....

Chapter Four: Devour

A rapid knock on Fluttershy's door went unheard throughout the quiet of the house. Rainbow Dash paced anxiously out front for a few more moments as she waited for a response. When none came, she quickly rapped her hoof on the door again, louder this time.

" Fluttershy! Fluttershy it's me! Open up already!" She hoped to catch the shy mare's attention. Perhaps she was still asleep? Groaning in annoyance, she glanced behind her to make sure that the nurse and intern were still with her.

Nurse Red Heart sighed as she looked around the small cottage, noting the many obviously well lived in bird houses and nests, but strangely there were no birds to be found. In fact, it was well known around Ponyville that Fluttershy's home was always filled with different sorts of animals, which only made the quiet that surrounded them all the more eerie.

Banging on the door once more, Rainbow Dash began to lose her patience as she took to the air, beating her wings to take a few paces back.

" Fluttershy if you don't open this door right now, I'm busting it down!" She proclaimed, the nurse and intern looking to her in shock.

" Miss Dash! I understand you are upset, but breaking into your friend's home is not the right way to settle this!" Rainbow ignored her advice however as she awaited a response.

" You got to the count of-" The sound of the door creaking open stopped her mid sentence as she and the two other ponies looked into the darkened doorway, expecting to see a somepony there. What greeted them however was something else entirely, Rainbow grimaced at the sight, slowly bringing herself back to the ground.

" Angel." She huffed as the small rabbit looked up to her with a glare. Glancing past her, he saw the nurse and intern, his eyes lighting up as he spied the medical cap on the nurse. Leaping past the weather mare, she gave a shout of indignation at being ignored, he began to jump up and down before the nurse, squeaking and moving his forelegs in the direction of the cottage. Red Heart glanced between the small white rabbit and the dark entryway.

" What is he saying?" Ginger Snap asked as she came up beside the nurse, looking at the bunny inquisitively. Taking a deep and worrying breath, Red Heart stepped past the frantic mammal, giving him ample time to jump on her back as she made her way around Rainbow and through the door.

" I have a guess..." Her voice was low and worried the two who looked after her. Taking a nervous swallow as she worried about what she might find, Rainbow Dash pressed in after her, Ginger Snap tentatively following.

The home was dark, all of the windows having been closed shut. After a few moments of carefully traversing the unknown living area, Red Heart stepped on something that gave out a sharp cracking sound. Lifting her hoof, she leaned down to get a better look. It appeared to be a picture frame, fragments of its glass front were scattered about it.

As their eyes slowly began to adjust to the dark home, more and more of the destruction that had taken place previously became apparent. Rainbow Dash looked around the home in awe, running the edge of her wing over the overturned coffee table.

" What in Equestria?" Their moment of awe was cut short however as Angel began to squeak and jump up and down on Red Heart's back. Looking back at him, he pointed frantically towards a hall of stairs nearby. Only nodding, she turned and began to make her way through the wreckage and up the stairs. Rainbow Dash followed after the nurse quickly, while Ginger Snap took a look through the broken door that lead to the kitchen, her eyes wide at seeing that even that had not been spared.

The stairs creaked as Red Heart and Rainbow Dash made their way up to Fluttershy's room. The air in the house was stuffy, but the tight stairwell only made that even more apparent. The sound of their heavy breathing filled the small hallway.

" I don't see how Fluttershy can live in a house like this..." Rainbow Dash glanced to the walls and ceiling, feeling claustrophobic. Upon finally reaching the top, Red Heart pushed the wooden door open and gasped at the sight before her.

Much like the downstairs, Fluttershy's room was a mess. Her nightstand was overturned, a tray of birdseed scattered on the floor. The closet was open with its myriad contents thrown about. The bed itself remained intact, but the comforter on top was torn, much of it's stuffing strewn across the bed's surface. The sound of whimpering caught her attention and she focused on the mattress where the rest of the blanket was clumped together.

" Miss Fluttershy?" She asked carefully as she approached the bed, Angel jumped off her back and retreated from the room as Rainbow Dash entered behind her. Seeing the state of the room, she stared slack jawed at the mess, before making to dart around the nurse and head for the shaking form beneath the covers.

" Flut-!" She choked slightly as Red Heart held up her foreleg, catching her across the chest and neck while she stared intently at the mare before them. Looking to her in surprise, Rainbow snarled angrily.

" What are you doing!? Let me go!" Red Heart shushed her with a simple motion of her hooves.

" Quiet Miss Dash!" Red Heart hissed, a fierce concern in her eyes. Rainbow growled irritably, before backing away slowly. Nodding in appreciation, Red Heart looked back to the bundle of blanket and began to approach her.

" Miss Fluttershy, my name is Nurse Red Heart from Ponyville General Hospital. I'm here on behalf of Miss Dash. She says that you weren't feeling well and that it was a medical emergency. Can you come out for a moment?" She asked carefully, her tone soft and soothing. The whimpering beneath the blankets continued unabated. Taking a few cautious breaths, Red Heart raised her hoof and gripped the edge of the blanket, slowly beginning to pull it from the mare. Rainbow Dash held her breath nervously as she watched, her chest tight and her heart beating heavily.

Angel watched them from the door, his eyes wide with fear as he waited for the blanket to be removed, his every instinct screaming at him to run.

As she pulled the blanket aside, Red Heart's eyes could only grow wider at what she revealed. The dark red light pulsing through her would-be patient nearly mesmerized her as much as it worried her. She lightly touched her pale yellow fur with her hoof, feeling as the flesh beneath moved and twisted in unnatural and more than likely painful ways. Looking to the mare's face, she noted Fluttershy's pained expression, the blood on her lips and torn skin around her mouth. The sounds of her whimpers far more prominent now that they were no longer muffled beneath the blanket.

" Wh-what's happening to her?" Rainbow asked worriedly, causing the tunnel visioned nurse to jump at her sudden appearance next to her. Gasping for breath out of her shock, she glared at the mare, only to be ignored as Rainbow pushed past her to check on her friend.

" Fluttershy! Fluttershy can you hear me!?" She practically yelled, but to no avail as the mare refused to wake. Pushing her aside, Red Heart stared her down.

" Miss Dash, right now I need you to leave the room." Rainbow looked to her in shock, then anger.

" What? No way!" She spread her wings, giving a hearty flap in agitation as her fur bristled and the two stared one another down.

" Miss Dash, I have to insist that you leave the room! I can't do my work with you hovering over the patient or myself. Ginger Snap!" She shouted in the direction of the door even as she and Rainbow Dash pushed at one another. The sound of hooves rushing up the stairs, a stumble here and there, met their ears.

" Y-yes Nurse?" The young intern stammered as she entered the room, stepping past the rabbit that waited anxiously in the doorway.

" I need you to take notes while I work, Miss Dash, if you please?" Rainbow glared at the nurse, who only met her gaze just as strongly. The sound of Fluttershy's voice whimpering broke the tension in the air however and she sighed in defeat.

" Fine..." Pulling back from the nurse, she grumbled as she glanced to her friend, who whimpered and twitched in pain. Opening her mouth as if to say something, she stopped as nothing came to mind. With a groan of frustration, she turned and stormed from the room, her tail lashing the air angrily. Ginger Snap shut the door behind her as she left, Angel now resorting to lying on the floor and trying to peek under it from the outside of the room.

Giving a sigh of relief, Red Heart turned to look over her patient once more.

" Let's get this started then, Ginger Snap, come here."

Downstairs-

Rainbow Dash paced the trashed living room angrily, her anxiety and worry only serving to fuel her.

" This is some real manure... I brought them here to help, and now they won't let me see her... Dangit!" She yelled as she swing her hoof forward, kicking it into the leg of the shredded couch.

" Gah!" Yanking her hoof back, she shook it in pain as she hopped out for a moment. Gradually it faded and she found herself sitting in the middle of the living room, the tip of her hoof in her mouth as she nursed it.

" What in Equestria is going on..." She wondered, the memory of the flashing dark red light passing through her friend's body replayed over and over.

' I bet the egg head would know... she knows everything... Wait, that's it!' Her eyes shot open and she grinned as she stood to her hooves.

" I bet Twilight could figure this out in no time!" Trotting to the door, she wrenched it open, her wings spread and ready to fly.

" Don't worry Shy, Twilight will know what to do." Her words were lost to the wind as she snapped her wings hard, sending herself through the air and towards town.

Upstairs-

Red Heart carefully dabbed a stick with cotton on the end at the wounds around Fluttershy's mouth, the other end of it firmly clasped between her teeth through a thin white medical mask. Both she and Ginger Snap, who sat a short distance behind her, had donned the masks and a pair of medical gloves to prevent infections to either of themselves of the patient. Leaning over, she dropped the now over used stick of cotton onto a small tray that held many more, along with a disk of alcoholic solution and a few other utensils.

She had attempted to take the mare's blood pressure, but the cuff proved useless when it became apparent that the fluctuations of her veins would not give a consistent reading. Even more so, taking a blood sample while they moved in such a way could prove risky. It aggravated the nurse to no end, but for the moment she was reduced to a strictly visual study as she attempted to clean the wounds that she could see.

" Lacerations around the lips appear to have been caused by something jagged, no real internal damage but sutures will be necessary to reduce scarring." Red Heart commented around a new stick of cotton as she cleaned the wounds, the sound of a pencil scribbling away behind her filling the quiet room. As she looked closer, her eyebrows creased upon finding small specks of something in the wounds. Putting down the cotton stick, she retrieved a pair of tweezers from the tray, plucking a small sample of the specks and dripping it into a bio-hazard bag nearby, before sealing it and setting it aside.

" Possible contaminants in the wounds, I'm taking a sample and will have it tested when we arrive back at the hospital." Taking a break from cleaning the wounds around her mouth, Red Heart leaned closer to further inspect the strange arcing red light and motions of the mare's flesh beneath her fur. She watched as the veins stretched and twisted, before snapping back into place as though made of rubber. Listening to her breathing, she could hear the hitch that Fluttershy made with every pulse of the light. Leaning back, Red Heart sighed carefully as she took in the mare as a whole.

" This is way out of my league..." She whispered. The whimpers of pain and anguish from the mare before her drew her from her thoughts and she jumped when, finally, Fluttershy spoke.

" ... So... hungry... hungry..." Red Heart couldn't quite make out what the mare was saying even as she leaned forward and strained her ears.

" Miss Fluttershy? Are you awake? Can you tell me what did this?" She asked, hopeful. But the mare did not respond as she only returned to her quiet whimpers of pain. Sighing, Red Heart picked up the stick with cotton and moved to set to work once more, before pausing. Glancing around at the dimly lit room, she grimaced at having only just now realized that she had been working with minimal light and there was a good chance that there was something she couldn't see because of it.

" Ginger Snap, could you open the windows and let the light in? I need to see more." Ginger Snap quickly placed the clipboard and pencil to the floor as she moved towards the nearest window.

" Y-yes Ma'am." Red Heart rolled her eyes a bit, interns were always nervous wrecks but this filly was the worse case she had seen yet. It wasn't as though they were treating some wild beast for Celestia's sake. Stepping up onto the bed with her forelegs, she leaned forwards with the stick of cotton and reached for Fluttershy's upper lip, just as Ginger Snap opened the window and sunlight flooded the room.

In that brief instant, Fluttershy's eyes snapped open, light blue eyes bloodshot and a film of grey over her pupils. With a horrendous screech that deafened those around her, she snapped forward, clamping her teeth down on the foreleg of the nurse who screamed in both shock and pain. The scream of terror from the intern joined the nurse as she jumped away from them both and huddled against the wall while Red Heart struggled to pull her leg from the mare's mouth.

" LET GO!!" Red Heart shouted in panic, her eyes wild as she yanked her foreleg. But this only served to have Fluttershy bite even harder, blood dripping from her torn lips and the vicious bite in the nurse's leg. Throwing all decorum aside, Red Heart began to strike the mare upon her head with her other hoof, screaming in pain as the bite force increased.

" LET GO OF ME YOU BITCH!!!" She screamed once more, before suddenly a light green lamp shattered against the sickly mare's head. Her grip on the nurse's foreleg vanished and Red Heart scrambled as far back as possible until she was against the wall. Ginger Snap stood a few steps from the bed, shaking as she held the remains of the lamp in her hooves. Blood trailed from the bed where Fluttershy's head lay and Red Heart who was slumped against the wall, breathing and whimpering. She held her leg close to her chest, the blood pouring from a gaping bite wound was staining her white fur to a dark crimson.

Fluttershy now sported a few large bruises on her head and a few more gashes due to the lamp, but her breathing was even for the most part, only interrupted by the occasional whimper of pain. Ginger Snap backed away slowly, her mouth gaping open and tears in her eyes as she trembled.

" Wh-wh-what... I... " She could not find the words as she turned to look at the nurse for guidance, before fearfully snapping her attention back to the mare on the bed. Red Heart cried for a few moments, her heart pounding in her chest and her eyes shut tightly as tears fell.

" G-g-get th-the tra... trauma kit..." She whimpered out after a few moments. Hearing her voice, Ginger Snap looked back to her at a loss, uncertain. Opening her eyes and glaring at the intern, Red Heart forcefully began to crawl towards the discarded saddlebags that she had brought, a trail of blood dragging behind her.

" T-trauma kit! Be-before I bleed to death!" She exclaimed even while trying to reach for the bag with her uninjured hoof. Ginger Snap's heart was pounding in her ears, but finally she moved. Rushing around the downed Nurse, she ripped open the bag and dug through its contents before pulling out medium sized plastic container that read Trauma.

" I-I'll guide you." Red Heart spoke, gasping as the young intern looked to her, fear and panic clear in both of their eyes.

Author's Note

Shaded: You know, they say hindsight is 20/20, yet I can't help but feel that no matter how many times I end up in these situations, I never get any better at avoiding them... Why is that?

Twilight: Because no matter how much you think you " Learn" from these experiences, it never helps when the one putting you in them, is smarter than you.

Shaded: ... Touche....

* The sound of a crank being turned is heard*

Shaded: By the way, where did you get the funding for a tank filled with Piranha to be installed in the floor? For that matter, HOW did you get it built without me knowing!?

Twilight: I drugged you and sold your kidney, now shush.

* Crickets chirp*

Spiderlocke: Oh um.. oh dear... You aren't really going to drop him in there are you?

Twilight: It's not like I can't revive him after... * Mumbles* if there is anything left... Sooo why not do the Disclaimer Spider? You don't get to get out much after all.

Spiderlocke: Oh, Really! I can? *Ahem* Um, H-hello everypony, it's nice to meet you. I-I'm Spiderlocke and um, Shaded Blood does not own MLP:FIM or the Equinox Ponies, um, also Thank you all for reading and supporting the story.

Shaded: Tell them about the Discord!

* Chains drop lower suddenly*

Twilight: I said shush you! Let her have her moment!

Spiderlocke: Oh dear... um, i-if you would like, please join the Discord Server as well, there should be a link around here somewhere...

Discord Link!!