The Mare in the Woods

The knocking on the door grew louder, and grew into banging. The bangs echoed throughout the large foyer. Mérstur stood still, while Shock readied himself for whatever stood behind the door.

"Why do you stand still, and not unsheathe your blade?" Shock asked.

Mérstur turned to his guest, "How can you tell our guest is an enemy?"

"Well--" Shock was cut off.

"You can't. And if you decide if the unknown is an enemy, then you'll be overcome easily, as we are surrounded unknown." The old colt finished his sentence.

Mérstur walked over to the door and opened it, while Shock Bolt stood still objecting. Standing in the doorway was a grey pony that felt familiar to Shock Bolt.

"Greetings old man, I think you have something I want." The grey pony stepped inside aggressively.

Mérstur replied, "I have nothing of any use to you here. Now I believe you should leave, before I have a word with your father."

"Bah! My father can't do anything to me!" The grey pony shouted. "Now, if you'll gladly hand over what I want."

The grey pony extended his arm, and dark sharp dark shards shot quickly, from his hoof, into the old stallion's heart.

"NO!" Shock Bolt screamed.

The old knight fell to the floor, and let out a deafening shout. As the jagged sharp dark shards stuck out of his back.

The grey pony stood over the dead Mérstur, "Should've given me what I wanted old pony. Now..." The pony bent down and took a photo from the retired knight's coat. Shock bolt couldn't see what the photo was of, but he was too enraged to care.

""I'll kill you! You're sick!" Shock ran towards the fallen pony.

"I'll leave you to sort that out with my new pet." The grey pony scoffed, as sharp shadows covered him and he disappeared into the floor.

Shock stopped in his tracks as he reached Mérstur. The fallen pony reached for his cane, which had snapped in half. Inside the cane was a key looked rather large.

"T-Take... This..." Mérstur sputtered as blood spat from his mouth.

"Yes, of course. But what does this unlock?" Shock asked.

"There is... A lockbox in the room upstairs... Inside is a--" The wounded pony tried to explain, but was cut off.

The four (4) shards stuck in his upper body began to pulse. Suddenly, a black circle began to form around the two ponies.

"W-what the--" Mérstur pushed Shock out of the radius of the circle, and the blue pegasus fell on his back.

"R-Run..." Mérstur was covered by a wall of shadow that shot up from the dark circle.

Shock Bolt's eyes widened, as the wall of shadow lowered. When the shadows disappeared, a large dark creature with four (4) sharp shards for legs stood before him.

"Well, time to run." Shock scrambled to his hooves and flew to the top of the stairs. At the top of the stairs was a giant door. The blue pegasus bursted through the door, and began to search to well-lit room.

"Lock box... Lock box..." Shock Bolt frantically ravaged through cabinets and drawers.

*CRASH*

The dark monster burst through wall, and let out a blood curdling scream. The monster crawled onto the ceiling and smashed the sharpened end of it's legs into the roof above them. As it scampered on the ceiling it knocked over the hanging candle chandelier. As the chandelier hit the floor, the table underneath it shattered. A metal box fell out of the chandelier and onto the floor.

"That's it!" Shock dove for the iron box, put it between his arms and flew out the door and into the foyer.

"Gotta get out. Gotta get out..." Shock thought to himself as he flew for the entrance door.

He smashed into the door and tumbled outside in to the rain and into the mud.

"I've gotta find the others and get out of here! It'll only be a matter of time before that thing catches up."

The panicked blue pegasus galloped off into the stormy night, and into the dark forest. As the monster loudly thumped and destroyed the mansion bit by bit.