Slendermaneby DarkswirlChaptersDecisionsTwilight SparkleRarityApplejackRainbow DashFluttershyPinkie PieThe ChaseConfessions of PastThe FirstDecisions"Quiet down, everypony!" Mayor Mare shouted as the crowd hushed itself, save for a few mumbles and whispers. "Thank you all for coming. For those of you who are unaware of the situation at hoof: somepony, or something, is kidnapping ponies. Or so we think. Out of the last seven ponies to go missing, all were seen going into the Everfree Forest willingly." The room felt freezing at the mention of the name to everypony. Stories had been passed down from generation to generation about the horrors of the Everfree Forest and brave adventurers who went in but never came out. It was common knowledge that anypony stepping inside the shadows of the towering trees there was playing with their own life. "So what are we gonna do about it?! I say we burn the whole thing down! It's been nothing but trouble for ponies!" a voice shouted from the back, and a wave of murmurs sounded in agreement. "Settle down, everypony! We don't have permission to destroy an entire forest, and since Cloudsdale lays above a part of it, they'd be inhaling the deadly smoke. Now, I've brought it up with the Princesses and they both agree that something needs to be done. That's why, since the royal guard is busy on the Gryphon Border, Twilight Sparkle along with her friends will go in with the Elements of Harmony to find out where the missing ponies have gone and bring them home." the Mayor stated, pulling back a curtain to reveal the Bearers of The Elements of Harmony, each adorning their respective necklace while Twilight wore her tiara. The crowd stomped their hooves as if a single creature in approval, their voices drowning out the mayor as she tried to regain order until she finally just gave up. "Are we all ready?" Twilight asked, standing with the rest of her friends at the edge of the Everfree Forest. "Yepperoonie!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, bouncing on her hooves as the rest of the group stated their presence. "Oh, this'll be sooo fun! We'll fight dragons and find buried treasure and save the world and bring back the ponies and get ice cream and find the lost city of Atlantis and-" Taking the hint from her friends' stares, Pinkie Pie smiled sheepishly and shut her mouth. "Alright, first stop: Zecora's." Twilight announced. Something was definitely wrong here. Although the Everfree was dangerous, Zecora seemed to know a lot about how to keep the creatures from bothering her. But instead of the soft column of smoke that usually arose from Zecora's chimney even when she wasn't home, the group stumbled upon Zecora's "lawn" (If it could be called that); laden with masks tied to sticks and strange markings on the ground. The group shared a look before Twilight cleared her throat. "Uh, Zecora?" The shutter on one of Zecora's windows popped open just an inch before slamming shut. The sound of something heavy being moved could be heard clearly from outside the hut before Zecora opened her door. "Quickly, quickly! Come inside, less it see and take your hide!" she said as the group noted the urgency in her voice and quickly made their way into Zecora's home. As Twilight brushed past Zecora, she noticed her eyes never acknowledged that the group was making their way past her. It was as if she was looking past them all, past even the forest. Searching for...Something... After Rainbow Dash, the pony last in line, had made her way past Zecora, the zebra threw the door shut and proceeded to block it with a heavy bookshelf. "Zecora, what's going on?" Twilight asked sternly. "I cannot say, I do not know! I only pray it will not show!" Zecora whispered in terror as she rushed around her shack, checking to make sure shutters were shut, locked and then barricaded before huddling in the corner and shuddering. "Zecora..." Twilight begged. "Please, we're looking for some missing ponies. Have you seen them?" Zecora shook her head and let a tear drop from her muzzle. "There is no hope, leave the weak; it already has those you seek..." "Zecora!" Twilight shouted, only to be tackled by the zebra as she covered her snout with her striped hoof. "Keep it quiet and I will tell, how it came to be; this hell!" Zecora growled before lifting herself off of Twilight. The group gathered around the zebra curiously as Applejack helped Twilight back onto her hooves. Taking a deep breath, Zecora began... "Its name nor species they've ever heard, let alone a chirping bird. It roams these dark, haunted wood to search for ponies that are good. It stares them down 'till they submit, and then...They're simply swallowed by it." Zecora whispered sadly. "That makes no sense!" Rainbow Dash whispered in disbelief. "Hush, Rainbow. Somethin's obviously got Zecora scared enough not tuh have been comin' intuh town for the last couple'o days." Applejack said in defense of the broken zebra mare. "You should have stayed and kept your breath, for now there is no peace; only death." Zecora whispered, her eyes widening at some unseen force. And then, a slow, raspy knock sounded at the door to Zecora's hut. Twilight SparkleMusic Twilight Sparkle "Ugh...Wh...Where...Where I am?" Twilight Sparkle asked herself aloud as she opened her eyes. The last thing she remembered was being inside Zecora's hut...And then, a knock at the door...Then nothing. She couldn't remember anything past that. But here she was, propped up against a tree without any of her friends in sight and the moon high in the sky. As she rolled over onto her hooves and stood up, her horn caught something leafy, pulling it from the tree and sending it floating face down in front of her. Twilight raised a hoof defensively and looked around before flipping the piece of paper over. What in the name of Celestia is going on here? "Okay, ha ha! Very funny, Zecora." Twilight said with an awkward laugh, hoping that Zecora or one of her friends would come out and they would all have a good laugh before going off in search of the missing ponies. But nothing moved, and Twilight simply stood there for a while. As she trotted along the cluttered forest floor, the light from her horn began to dim from tiredness. "No..." she mumbled, half awake. "Gotta keep going...Gotta find the others..." A twig snapped behind Twilight and she let out a shriek, slamming into the side of a tree as she spun around. Just trees. Nothing but trees and leaves and rocks and twigs. Twilight thought to herself as she scanned the area behind her. Content with not seeing anything out of place, she resumed her original direction and fed more energy into her orb of light. "H-Hello?" Twilight called out. "Is anypony there?" She didn't really expect an answer, but even the growl of a predator would have comforted her at least a little; anything to prove that she wasn't entirely alone in this forest. Giving a sigh of loneliness and fear as she collapsed to the ground from exhaustion, her magic gave out and she was bathed in darkness. She managed to carefully feel her way over to a tree and huddled into a ball to escape the cold. The temperature wasn't low enough to kill a pony, even after a long period of time, but it was still uncomfortable nonetheless. Her head shifted as she tried to get comfortable and, with a start, she realized in horror that she wasn't wearing her tiara! Her strength suddenly returning to her, she leapt to her hooves and dashed off back into the forest; hoping to recover her precious weapon. She didn't even notice that among the trees stood a creature as tall as Celestia with five, vine-like tentacles waving softly towards her... Impossible. Twilight thought. Improbable. Completely a coincidence. There is no way in Equestria. Before the sitting unicorn stood the ruins of a large castle; one that Twilight remembered fondly. It was the same castle that she and the other Elements had battled, and beaten, Nightmare Moon all those years ago. But something was off. Twilight could remember every little detail about their trip to and from the castle, but none of the landmarks in her mind were the same. The hanging bridge was gone, and not even the canyon it had crossed was anywhere near the castle; but Twilight was absolutely positive that this was the same castle. "Show yourself!" Twilight suddenly screamed, calling out to whatever Zecora had warned them all about. She wasn't even sure what she would do if the being did actually present itself, but she just needed to be sure. She needed to be sure that she was right about something; that this wasn't all a game, and most importantly... She needed to be sure she wasn't going insane. When no answer from anything came, Twilight let out a scream of frustration before slamming her hooves against the ground. Now, Twilight wasn't one to even be considered as a violent pony, but when the fear of being alone tugged at her heart well...Let's just say its better to not have it so. After Twilight had expelled all her pent up rage on the ground beneath her and the trees around her, a single tree stood standing in the distance. Only it wasn't a tree. After squinting her eyes and taking a few steps forward, Twilight noticed something peculiar about the..."Tree". The first being that it was slowly moving; towards her. The second being that it had five leafless "branches" on it, two on either side and one that looked like rested on its back. The third thing, however, was the fact that it was not a tree. It was a pony. Instead of rushing towards the tall, eerie pony Twilight stood her ground, frozen by something. It's not a pony. It's something else. Gotta get out of here. Gotta move. GO! her brain shouted, kicking her hooves into overdrive and sending her galloping into the ruins of the castle where she thought she'd surely be safe. If only the young weren't so naive. What was that thing? Why was I so afraid of it? Twilight Sparkle took a moment to think back on what had just happened. Okay, so it was creepy, but so what? Zecora was creepy when we all first met her, but she's not a bad pony. Still...Something about that thing... Twilight wiped a tear from her eye before it could go any further down her face. She was cold, alone, and scared of that thing, whatever it was. Surely it was either waiting patiently outside for her or already searching the castle carefully. Eventually, Twilight knew, the thing would find her. And it would be the end. Twilight Sparkle! Celestia's stern voice broke into Twilight's head. Princess Celestia! Twilight Sparkle, for your crimes against the crown I hereby sentence you to death! W-What?! No, it wasn't me! It wasn't my fault, I swear I didn't do anything! Princess, you have to believe me! I will hear no more from your traitorous mouth! Guards, take her away! "NO!" Twilight shouted in horror as she sat up, waking from her dream and sweating. It was all just a dream; a terrible, horrible dream. Rubbing the blurriness from her eyes, Twilight also shook her head clear of the nightmare before getting to her hooves. "...Wha...?" she said, confusedly as she still saw blurriness in her peripheral vision. Rubbing a hoof against her eyes did nothing but make the blur spread, the colors blending into nothingness as the area of her clear sight slowly grew smaller and smaller. That is, until a skinny, black tentacle placed itself on Twilight's shoulder, and her body froze in terror. RarityMusic Rarity "Oh, this place is absolutely filthy!" Rarity exclaimed, carefully and squeamishly putting her hooves down in the mud and trying to go as slowly as possible to avoid getting even more filthy. "Twiiiliiiight! Piiinkie Piiiiiie!" she whined, not receiving any reply. Sigh...Looks like you're on your own, Rarity. No matter, we Belles are not ones to fall so easily to the elements...Whatever elements those may be... With that last comment, Rarity took a nervous glance at her surroundings: To her left and right stood a sea of trees that seemed to stretch on forever but were too thickly knitted to travel through. Before and behind her was a path cut through the forest, that Rarity had been following since she awoke, and was covered in mud. Looking further back behind her she couldn't see anything despite the bright moonlight, but continued on nonetheless. It wasn't long before Rarity's hooves began to grow sore. Now, one would think that a pony so prim and proper as Rarity wouldn't take kindly to such length on such a rough path, but this was not the case for Rarity. She truly had been walking for quite some time and her hooves felt liable to fall off at any moment if she did not stop. Reluctantly, the white unicorn settled herself into the cold mud to rest her aching hooves and take a moment to think. Just where am I exactly? No doubt still the Everfree, but where in the Everfree? Come to think of it, why haven't I seen the others? I know the forest must be huge, but surely Rainbow Dash at least would have been flying overhead, looking for us? Letting another sigh, Rarity shifted and felt something...Out of place beneath her. Standing up once more and using her magic to clear away the mud beneath her (which really didn't help, since underneath the mud was just wet dirt), revealing an eerie drawing. "Don't look or it takes you? Is this some kind of cruel joke? Pinkamena Diane Pie, you come out here this instant!" Rarity yelled, her temper flaring. She did not like to be toyed with, especially when the circumstances appeared to be as dire as they were now. Ponies were missing and the group had been split up, but Pinkie Pie was playing games at a time like this! Out of the corner of her eyes, Rarity caught something moving inside the treeline. "Aha! Pinkamena, you come out here this instant!" she ordered, receiving no response. "I'll give you until the count of three before I come in there, missy! One....Two...Three!" Letting out a groan of frustration, Rarity carefully picked her way past the trees and set off towards where she last saw movement. "Pinkie Pie, dear, this isn't funny anymore! Please, come out!" Rarity said in slight fear. She was almost certain of it now; whatever was out there was not Pinkie Pie, or any of the rest of her friends. No, this was something different. She could feel it. Of course, now she could also feel the hard, jutting roots of the trees beneath her as she continued to pick her way through the forest. "Stupid, stupid pony! You could have stayed on that disgusting mud road and have actually been somewhere by now if you hadn't gone off chasing phantoms!" Rarity said to herself. "I HATE THIS FOREST!" It wasn't long before, much to her relief, Rarity managed to find her way out of the thickly knitted section of trees. She was still inside the Everfree Forest, however; evident by the abundance of trees that never ceased to surround her. But now, she was in an entirely different setting. Sure, there were still trees beyond trees beyond trees, but now there was a building within her sights; one that she happily trotted towards. "Hello, is anypony home?" she called out, not wanting to trespass. However, when she received no answer, which did not surprise her at all, she determined that she had free reign and gently nudged open the door to the two story building. "Ugh, the smell is absolutely horrid!" she exclaimed at disgust, covering her snout with a hoof and awkwardly trotting forward. "Hello, is anypony home?' she called again. This time, she did receive an answer; albeit not one she was hopeful for. Floorboards creaked under her weight and the wind blew gently into any opening in the house it found. "Completely abandoned." Rarity sighed irritatedly. "Perfect." "Oh my, how absolutely wonderful! And it goes so well with my necklace!" Rarity said giddily as she spun around in front of a large, slightly dusty mirror while wearing an ancient dress that had only taken a bit of magic to clean. "Why, if I could recreate this design my name would be in every newspaper in Equestria! 'Rarity: Fashionista extraordinaire recreates a design lost to the ages and climbs the ladder of Canterlot's social elite!'. I can see it now..." Clearing her throat and giggling awkwardly at nopony in particular, Rarity slipped out of the dress and settled down on the comfortable (despite being incredibly old) bed. And then, something rattled in the dresser from across the room. And then a pause. And then another rattle. And then another pause. This happened again and again until Rarity cautiously approached the dresser, her horn glowing as she suddenly yanked open the dresser drawer. Her heart stopped as her eyes flicked over to the mirror; stuffed in the corner and angled so Rarity could see behind her. Inside the dresser drawer sat Twilight Sparkle's tiara. Behind her stood a pony as tall as Celestia herself with five long tentacles quivering out of its back. It looked at Rarity through the mirror and stared for a long while as her gaze locked onto the blank spot where a face should have been. Her vision hazed quickly as it slowly reached out for her. But before she was taken, she heard its dark, raspy voice speak into her mind: When you stare into the abyss, the abyss stares back at you... ApplejackMusic Applejack "Gosh darnit..." "Dang roots... "Mashed pataters..." Mumbled curses made their way out of the orange earth pony's mouth as she leapt over overturned tree after overturned tree. Something big had gone through here, and she was going to find out what it was. "Manticores...Bumblin' Ursa's and what not..." Applejack continued. She was in a foul mood after waking up in the middle of the forest with nopony to be seen for miles around. Not to mention the fact that she could hardly make out the shapes of the overturned trees in front of her against the black night sky, which granted her plenty of bruises and few cuts here and there. Letting out an irritated huff, Applejack launched herself upwards and clung to the side of an overturned tree, her hind hooves scrabbling against the bark as she tried to push herself up. When she had managed to get a hoofhold on the tree and haul herself up, Applejack found herself staring up at the beautiful night sky rather than at the path before her. I wonder what Big MacIntosh and Granny Smith are up to...No doubt lil' Applebloom's in bed by now, bless her heart. Sighing to herself before squinting her eyes and looking ahead, Applejack carefully mapped out how to get to where she was going... "Hello? Anypony out there? Twilight? Rainbow Dash?" Applejack called out, hoping to be heard. If anything did hear her, it did nothing to alert Applejack. Sighing to herself, Applejack settled down on one of the logs to get some sleep; it'd be morning eventually and she'd have an easier time navigating and keeping an eye out for her friends. Just before she managed to doze off, however, the sound of something fluttering in the wind caught her attention and forced her to open her eyes. In an instant, a piece of paper smacked into Applejack's face harmlessly, sticking there even after the gentle breeze had stopped. "What the hay...?" she whispered to herself after pulling the piece of paper off of her snout and taking in the image. "Now what in tarnation...Rainbow Dash, git down 'ere!" Applejack shouted towards the sky, convinced this was a bad attempt at a prank by a certain rainbow colored mare. But no matter how sharply her eyes searched the clouds or surrounding trees, Applejack saw neither head nor tail of her friend. But she did see something a few yards behind her. She squinted her eyes, trying to make out what she saw. But she couldn't. Heh, must be my eyes playing tricks on me again. she thought as she turned and settled back onto the log. And the thing crept closer. Letting out a yawn, Applejack awoke. The sun had still not risen, and she felt as if she had slept for at least five hours. As she stretched, Applejack reached up to adjust her signature hat... Only to find it missing. Intense searches around the logs proved fruitless, and at the idea of loosing her hat forever she cried. She sat down in the cold dirt and cried. And cried. And cried. And cried. He felt pity, for once in his life. He knew what it meant to her as he took it; read it through her memories as if it were a book. A book that told the story of their passing, the tale of the hand-down, and the legend of the commitment. And for once in his life, he had felt pity. Pity for a creature whose race had shunned him for what he was, despite his differences going only as far as looks. But he would get what he wanted through this, oh yes. He would get them all the same in the end, and many more would come to him. Foals. he mumbled to himself. "Can't be gone..." Applejack sobbed, hanging her head low as tears leaked from her eyes and blurred her vision. She wiped away both eyes with a hoof but the blurriness remain; and Applejack paid no attention to it. In fact, she paid little if any attention to anything until the blurriness took over her entire vision and a familiar feeling pressed itself against her head. "M-Mah hat!" She said in amazement, getting to her hooves and spinning around; expecting to see one of her best friends. Instead, she let her hoof drop from her head and glue itself to the ground as she froze. And the creature slowly wrapped its tentacles around her hooves and body, pulling her closer and closer towards him... Rainbow DashMusic Rainbow Dash "Come on out and fight like a real mare!" Rainbow Dash challenged, not daring to take flight again. She had learned her lesson over and over each time she tried and was thrown to the ground. When she first awoke, her immediate thought was to take to the skies to get a better view. Ground. When she tried again, thinking her wings were just messed up... Ground. She hadn't moved far from the spot she woke up in. "I said show yourself!" Every time she tried to gallop towards where she had seen the tentacles come from nothing was there. No animal, no pony, nothing. Nothing except trees. Tree after tree after tree. Whatever it was out there, it was taunting her; playing with her like a cat does a mouse. She was part of its cruel game where it set her down in a small clearing under the night sky, but punished her every time she spread her wings. To Rainbow Dash, it was time to start bucking trees. If only AJ were here... she thought with a grin before darting off towards the nearest tree, slamming her back hooves against it. Bark. Wood. Tree. Bark. Kick after kick with her hind hooves had done nothing to reveal whatever was toying with her. "Alright, this is your last chance! Come out her so I can beat the hay out of you or I'll come in there and do it!" The only answer was the gentle flutter of a single sheet of paper making its way down from the sky and in front of Rainbow Dash. It was insulting her! It was taunting her! Enough was enough. Crumpling up the piece of paper and tossing it to the side, Rainbow Dash let out a war cry and charged to the second treeline, only to trip over some roots as she reached it. "So that's how you wanna play?! Alright, let's play then!" Silence. Rainbow Dash panted and flared her nostrils in anger as her eyes carefully scanned the area. Nothing moved for a good few minutes until Rainbow Dash shook her head to clear the slight blur in her vision. She knew whatever it was that had done all of this was still out there. And she wasn't going to stop looking for it. The hours seemed to tick by slowly and the moon held its place in the sky and the need for a fight left Rainbow Dash's body. She could still feel its presence, still feel it following her. But she couldn't see it, and she needed to see something before she could hit it. So her plan was to walk. Make it think she had given up. Slow her pace until it was right on top of her, poised to strike. And then... Rainbow Dash let out a cry of victory as she threw her hind hooves out from behind her, catching the creature's jaw and causing an audible crack as her hoof connected. But it did not fall. As Rainbow Dash's vision blurred and she felt very hot, she stared in horror as the thing slowly and violently forced its neck back into place. It simply stared before lashing out with its tentacles. The same tentacles that had thrown her on the ground, over and over again. But she couldn't fight this time. She couldn't even scream. FluttershyAuthors Note: I apologize for the shortness of Applejack and Rainbow Dash's chapters, but I can promise a lengthy Pinkie Pie chapter (since she is best mane six) and an incredible plot twist! Music Fluttershy "H-Hello...?" Fluttershy squeaked, not willing to move an inch from her little 'cave' in the upturned roots of a tree. She had woken up not far from here and instantly took refuge from the Everfree Forest. Without her friends to support her in this dark place, Fluttershy felt as if nopony was ever going to find her; except as a neat little pile of pony bones hidden under a tree. The thought brought tears to her eyes; tears that she tried her best to hide. But alas, they were tears that did little to sway the entity that lurked outside; waiting for her to make a move. Darling little Fluttershy... he spoke to her in her mind, his raspy voice straightening itself out the best it could and taking on a soft yet deep and echoing tone. Wont you please come out and play with me? I'm so very alone out here... "N-No...I can't...You scare m-my animals, and you kidnapped those p-ponies..." she stuttered as she shrunk into a smaller ball in the safety of her treecave. Fluttershy, that's an awfully mean thing of the Element of Kindness to say, now isn't it? Whatever have I done to you? "I-It doesn't matter if you haven't done anything to me or n-not...You're a b-bad pony..." With that, the voices stopped. She held her breath for a while until she was almost positive that the being had departed. But that belief was shattered as an aged piece of paper fell gently from above and slid into the opening of Fluttershy's treecave. YOU LITTLE WHORSE! he shouted in her mind, causing her to wince in pain and cover her head defensively. HOW DARE YOU CALL ME AN EVIL PONY! DO YOU KNOW WHAT I HAVE BEEN THROUGH, LITTLE ONE? DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD I TRIED TO MAKE IT RIGHT, ONLY TO HAVE IT ALL CRUMBLE BENEATH MY HOOVES? I AM NOT A BAD PONY. THEY WERE THE BAD PONIES, AND THEY PAID FOR WHAT THEY DID. AND NOW... So shall you... The tall, slender hooves of the creature slammed into the ground at the entrance to the treecave and Fluttershy huddled into the farthest corner as tentacles began angling down and gliding slowly towards her. She shut her eyes tight and cried quietly, preparing for the worst. But the worst never came. When she opened her eyes, the creature was gone. She was safe. "I-Is anypony out there...?" she asked quietly in terror. "Just Slendermane..." a dark, raspy voice whispered from beside her. Her screams echoed throughout the forest before they were silenced completely. Pinkie PiePinkie Pie "Twitch'a twitch'a twitch..." Pinkie Pie mumbled to herself, glaring through her eyes and standing perfectly still as she scanned the area in front of her. "Pinchy knee, check...Three, two, one..." Pinkie Pie braced herself for the inevitable and sidestepped Slendermane's falling tentacles an instant before they would've struck her. Spinning to face her attacker, she took a step back as Slendermane knelt in front of her so that their faces were level before a crudely stitched mouth appeared on Slendermane's face, tearing open and letting out a furious roar. "Pinkamena Diane Pie..." he growled as his body huffed and heaved in anger. "Howdy Mr. Grumpy pants!" "I told you to stay away from me." "And I told you no." Pinkie said happily, oblivious to the intense death-stare he was giving her. Pinkie had always been the strange one to him; always the one that never cowered in fear at the sight or hint of him, always the one who greeted him like he was just another pony. She even managed to become immune to the stare that brought so many of her kind down so that Slendermane could absorb them into his conscious and torment them until the end of time. "What do you want." "Isn't it obvious?" "I will NOT release them!" he shouted, preparing to attack her again before her giggles through him off track. "Oh Slendy, you're so silly! Always thinking you can read me like a book. Oh, oh! Tell me what I'm thinking now!" she joked. If he had eyes, they'd be burning pits of hatred. "Now listen here, Mr. Grumpy Ol' Meany Meanster Pants." Pinkie began. "Sure, I want my friends back and the other ponies you took, but I know that's not gonna happen." At least not until I get what else I want... "You know what I want, Slendy. Heck, it's even what you want, so why do you keep fighting it?" There was a pause between the two as Slendermane's breathing slowed and he stood up straight, towering over the pink mare who smiled obliviously. "Because times change, Pinkamena. 'Slendy' is gone; only Slendermane lives here now." "If that's true, then why are you doing what you're doing now?" Slendermane didn't quite follow, so he simply stood there; waiting for Pinkie Pie to explain. And as if reading his mind, she did. "I mean, you're not just going around kidnapping ponies because it's fun! I mean, it might be fun for you now, but it wasn't back then! That means that a part of Slendy still lives on, or else you wouldn't be doing what you're doing. Nopony does anything without a reason." Pinkie Pie answered. "I am not a pony." "You're right. You're not a pony. You're my friend." At this, Slendermane let out another roar. "LIES, ALL LIES ALL THE TIME! YOU HAVE NEVER LIKED US; NOPONY HAS! AND NO PONY SHALL!" After saying his piece and spilling his rage, Slendermane dashed off into the forest. But Pinkie Pie did not surrender. The Chase"A hop, a skip and a jump!" Pinkie Pie sang to herself as she raced along the forest floor after Slendermane, leaping over roots and dodging under branches. She felt so alive, so wild, so free! Just like back when... No, she couldn't think about that now. He would never be the same if Pinkie got distracted and let him get away. "Slendy, wait up!" she called. A piece of paper smacked her in the face, but she just shook her head clear of the paper and kept going. "Ain't now how, ain't no way!" Pinkie Pie shouted. Pinkie Pie. His first friend. His first true friend. The little filly he had met all those years ago who brightened up his day with each visit and made him smile on the inside while he could not on the outside. He remembered fondly of the time when Pinkie drew a face on his blank head before he threw the memory out of his head. She had made him her world. And he had made her his. But she would just leave like the rest; laugh in his face when he showed up to 'hang out'. It was after many of those times that he snapped. It was then that he tapped into his power and made those ponies fear him rather than laugh at him. But that was many years ago; a long time since before the rest of her group had even been born. Perhaps he'd tell them all her secret while they were trapped in his head? That would be sure to splinter their friendship and get her to leave him alone. And yet, part of him couldn't bring himself to even think further on that. Pinkie Pie had come back, after all those years of her being gone. She had come back and did not laugh at him, did not taunt or tease him. And then the darkness washed over him again. The doubts and lies that he'd been feeding himself to justify his actions had grown strong over the years since her disappearance, and he had happily leapt into the pool of despair that he had drawn himself. Snapping himself out of his thoughts and focusing on a way to throw the mare off of his tail, Slendermane had only a moment to notice that the pink mare was sitting happily a few feet in front of him before he tripped over his own hooves and slid to a halt just before her. Happy eyes met a cold, blank face as the two stared at each other for a long while. Neither of them blinked; or rather, Pinkie didn't blink as Slendermane could not. Slendermane was the first to move, rising to his hooves and towering menacingly over the pink mare. Listen to me, and listen to me good: Slendermane whispered into Pinkie Pie's mind. I will never be your friend again. I will never sit in the shade while the day bakes the grass with you again. I will never eat another one of your disgusting 'cupcakes' ever again. I WILL NOT RELEASE YOUR FRIENDS, AND I WILL MOST CERTAINLY NOT LET YOU LEAVE HERE! At the mention of her cupcakes, Pinkie Pie's eyes widen and her hair shook, as if unsure whether to stay poofy or deflate. In a short time, it decided on the latter and hung limply at the side of Pinkie's head as her eyes started to water. Slendermane felt the barrier between he and her break down as she submitted herself to the despair and darkness that he had to offer her; the barrier that she had struggled so hard to maintain so that she could try and become his friend again. As Slendermane started to absorb Pinkie Pie into his conscious, her memories flooded into him. No, no, NO! Confessions of PastDo you remember when we first met? No, stop this, Pinkie Pie. You looked so lonely just sitting there at the edge of the forest, watching all the younger ponies play with each other... I SAID STOP! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME, MY POWER IS TOO GREAT! And do you remember what I said to you? "Hi, my name's Pinkie Pie and you look lonely, so I'm gonna make you smile!". Do you remember that? He did. He remembered it ever so clearly. He could never forget that memory. And do you remember what you said to me? I said, "Hi Pinkie Pie, my name is...Well, I don't know my name..." That's right. You didn't have a name back then. You simply existed and you were content with that for a while. Do you remember what we tried naming you? Longlegs the Stallion, Tallmane the Slender, Slenderpony... And then? ...Slendy... That's right. You and I both agreed on Slendy. And do you remember what we did the whole day? We talked. We just talked, nothing more, nothing less. We talked about each other, about what we saw, where we've been...You had lived your whole, short life in the Everfree Forest back then. But you came everyday to the edge just to watch the other ponies. You watched them in envy, wishing to go down and play with them; but you were too afraid, too shy. And then Pinkie Pie came along and dragged you, literally, down the hill and out of the forest to the other ponies. Of course they would be nervous at first; you were a new pony with no face. You can hardly blame them for that. But they all opened up when they saw that I had brought you along. And then they laughed at me behind their backs and came up with tricks to humiliate me. There was a silence between the two again as Pinkie Pie sighed sadly. True, and for that I'm sorry; Pinkie Swear. I never meant to hurt you...I didn't mean to make you cry, but tonight I'm cleaning out the past. We're starting anew, Slendy. Those ponies are gone and the world is a different place. We can't change the past and how much it hurts, but we can push for a better future. To the rest of Equestria, you're just an old mare's tale; no offense. Nopony knows if you even exist or not, but you can show them that you do. And you can show them who you really are: A pony, just like them and a friend...A friend to me. They'll just laugh and hurt me again, Pinkie! Why can't you see this?! Oh Slendy...Take a minute to look at my friends that you've captured. They've all done things that earned them a glare from other ponies, you can't please everypony, but then they went out of their way to make things right and were forgiven. You can't just give up, Slendy. If you do that then every other pony will give up on you and we'll be back at square one. You have to push for what you want in life, and you and I both know that you don't want to keep capturing ponies and trying to force them to be your friends in your head; you want real friendship, friends who you can trust even if you don't have control over them in your head. Friends who you can hold when you're feeling sad or lonely, or just plain ol' snuggly. Do you trust me to be your friend and do you trust yourself to try your hardest to make friends? Slendermane thought long and hard, his thoughts hidden from the prying eyes of the pink pony he kept shut inside his head. With a sad sigh, he opened his mind and dumped the ponies he had absorbed out into the forest floor. Shaking her head to clear the wooziness, Pinkie Pie stretched and looked around. Sure enough, every single pony that had gone missing over the last two weeks was sound asleep on the forest floor; save for her very bestest friends who were in the same state as she was. But as she finished surveying her work, her eyes searched for another pony; one she still had one last thing to do with. "Slendy?" "..." "Slendy?" Pinkie continued quietly, hopefully. Slendermane turned his head towards Pinkie Pie while still aiming it down at the ground in defeat and sorrow. Pinkie Pie smiled softly and pulled a box of crayons from her mane. If Slendermane had eyes, they would be shining brighter than the sun. "W-What are you doing?" he asked, falling into step with his younger self from the past. Pinkie did the same as she drew a mouth on Slendermane's snout. "I can't kiss you if you don't have a mouth, silly." Pinkie Pie said, matching the exact tone from all those years ago and even planting the kiss in the exact same spot; although this time it lasted a bit longer. When Pinkie Pie had finished, Slendermane paused for a moment just like he did back then before asking for a red crayon; to which Pinkie Pie happily gave him. And so he drew blush on his cheeks. Special thanks to Shadow Bolt for finding this picture and posting it for me! The FirstDerpy Hooves "N-No! Get back, I changed my mind! I don't want it, I don't want it!" Derpy screamed as her hooves carried her away through the forest. Something was following her. Something wanted her. It had lured her in with its whispers of justice. Justice against the father who had abandoned the filly and its mother. Justice against those who constantly laughed at her as she did her best to get by in life. Justice against those who took their anger out on her little filly. But it was a trap! It was a ploy to get her to come to it, so that it could do what it had done to all those who stepped hoof in the forest before her! Derpy didn't try to wipe away the tears from her eyes as she ran past tree after tree with long scratch marks down its trunk, no doubt from the creature's sharp tentacle...Things. She didn't try to fly up through the thick canopy of leaves and branches that stood above her, because the creature was always right behind her, just waiting for her to do so so that it could wrap its cold, lifeless tentacles around her waist and slam her against the ground again. No, running was her only choice; and run she did. She ran as fast as she could for as long as she could, thinking of her little filly and hoping that the forest would eventually end. And her wish came true. At least, in part. Life has a funny way of twisting things, you know? The forest did in fact end; but with a cliff overlooking even more forest. She had been going the wrong way the whole time. As she collapsed into a ball of ruffled feathers and heaving flank, she felt the creature draw closer; her vision going blurry with each step it took towards her. Slowly, carefully... Taunting her. She heard the whispers again now. And she screamed.
Decisions"Quiet down, everypony!" Mayor Mare shouted as the crowd hushed itself, save for a few mumbles and whispers. "Thank you all for coming. For those of you who are unaware of the situation at hoof: somepony, or something, is kidnapping ponies. Or so we think. Out of the last seven ponies to go missing, all were seen going into the Everfree Forest willingly." The room felt freezing at the mention of the name to everypony. Stories had been passed down from generation to generation about the horrors of the Everfree Forest and brave adventurers who went in but never came out. It was common knowledge that anypony stepping inside the shadows of the towering trees there was playing with their own life. "So what are we gonna do about it?! I say we burn the whole thing down! It's been nothing but trouble for ponies!" a voice shouted from the back, and a wave of murmurs sounded in agreement. "Settle down, everypony! We don't have permission to destroy an entire forest, and since Cloudsdale lays above a part of it, they'd be inhaling the deadly smoke. Now, I've brought it up with the Princesses and they both agree that something needs to be done. That's why, since the royal guard is busy on the Gryphon Border, Twilight Sparkle along with her friends will go in with the Elements of Harmony to find out where the missing ponies have gone and bring them home." the Mayor stated, pulling back a curtain to reveal the Bearers of The Elements of Harmony, each adorning their respective necklace while Twilight wore her tiara. The crowd stomped their hooves as if a single creature in approval, their voices drowning out the mayor as she tried to regain order until she finally just gave up. "Are we all ready?" Twilight asked, standing with the rest of her friends at the edge of the Everfree Forest. "Yepperoonie!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, bouncing on her hooves as the rest of the group stated their presence. "Oh, this'll be sooo fun! We'll fight dragons and find buried treasure and save the world and bring back the ponies and get ice cream and find the lost city of Atlantis and-" Taking the hint from her friends' stares, Pinkie Pie smiled sheepishly and shut her mouth. "Alright, first stop: Zecora's." Twilight announced. Something was definitely wrong here. Although the Everfree was dangerous, Zecora seemed to know a lot about how to keep the creatures from bothering her. But instead of the soft column of smoke that usually arose from Zecora's chimney even when she wasn't home, the group stumbled upon Zecora's "lawn" (If it could be called that); laden with masks tied to sticks and strange markings on the ground. The group shared a look before Twilight cleared her throat. "Uh, Zecora?" The shutter on one of Zecora's windows popped open just an inch before slamming shut. The sound of something heavy being moved could be heard clearly from outside the hut before Zecora opened her door. "Quickly, quickly! Come inside, less it see and take your hide!" she said as the group noted the urgency in her voice and quickly made their way into Zecora's home. As Twilight brushed past Zecora, she noticed her eyes never acknowledged that the group was making their way past her. It was as if she was looking past them all, past even the forest. Searching for...Something... After Rainbow Dash, the pony last in line, had made her way past Zecora, the zebra threw the door shut and proceeded to block it with a heavy bookshelf. "Zecora, what's going on?" Twilight asked sternly. "I cannot say, I do not know! I only pray it will not show!" Zecora whispered in terror as she rushed around her shack, checking to make sure shutters were shut, locked and then barricaded before huddling in the corner and shuddering. "Zecora..." Twilight begged. "Please, we're looking for some missing ponies. Have you seen them?" Zecora shook her head and let a tear drop from her muzzle. "There is no hope, leave the weak; it already has those you seek..." "Zecora!" Twilight shouted, only to be tackled by the zebra as she covered her snout with her striped hoof. "Keep it quiet and I will tell, how it came to be; this hell!" Zecora growled before lifting herself off of Twilight. The group gathered around the zebra curiously as Applejack helped Twilight back onto her hooves. Taking a deep breath, Zecora began... "Its name nor species they've ever heard, let alone a chirping bird. It roams these dark, haunted wood to search for ponies that are good. It stares them down 'till they submit, and then...They're simply swallowed by it." Zecora whispered sadly. "That makes no sense!" Rainbow Dash whispered in disbelief. "Hush, Rainbow. Somethin's obviously got Zecora scared enough not tuh have been comin' intuh town for the last couple'o days." Applejack said in defense of the broken zebra mare. "You should have stayed and kept your breath, for now there is no peace; only death." Zecora whispered, her eyes widening at some unseen force. And then, a slow, raspy knock sounded at the door to Zecora's hut.
Twilight SparkleMusic Twilight Sparkle "Ugh...Wh...Where...Where I am?" Twilight Sparkle asked herself aloud as she opened her eyes. The last thing she remembered was being inside Zecora's hut...And then, a knock at the door...Then nothing. She couldn't remember anything past that. But here she was, propped up against a tree without any of her friends in sight and the moon high in the sky. As she rolled over onto her hooves and stood up, her horn caught something leafy, pulling it from the tree and sending it floating face down in front of her. Twilight raised a hoof defensively and looked around before flipping the piece of paper over. What in the name of Celestia is going on here? "Okay, ha ha! Very funny, Zecora." Twilight said with an awkward laugh, hoping that Zecora or one of her friends would come out and they would all have a good laugh before going off in search of the missing ponies. But nothing moved, and Twilight simply stood there for a while. As she trotted along the cluttered forest floor, the light from her horn began to dim from tiredness. "No..." she mumbled, half awake. "Gotta keep going...Gotta find the others..." A twig snapped behind Twilight and she let out a shriek, slamming into the side of a tree as she spun around. Just trees. Nothing but trees and leaves and rocks and twigs. Twilight thought to herself as she scanned the area behind her. Content with not seeing anything out of place, she resumed her original direction and fed more energy into her orb of light. "H-Hello?" Twilight called out. "Is anypony there?" She didn't really expect an answer, but even the growl of a predator would have comforted her at least a little; anything to prove that she wasn't entirely alone in this forest. Giving a sigh of loneliness and fear as she collapsed to the ground from exhaustion, her magic gave out and she was bathed in darkness. She managed to carefully feel her way over to a tree and huddled into a ball to escape the cold. The temperature wasn't low enough to kill a pony, even after a long period of time, but it was still uncomfortable nonetheless. Her head shifted as she tried to get comfortable and, with a start, she realized in horror that she wasn't wearing her tiara! Her strength suddenly returning to her, she leapt to her hooves and dashed off back into the forest; hoping to recover her precious weapon. She didn't even notice that among the trees stood a creature as tall as Celestia with five, vine-like tentacles waving softly towards her... Impossible. Twilight thought. Improbable. Completely a coincidence. There is no way in Equestria. Before the sitting unicorn stood the ruins of a large castle; one that Twilight remembered fondly. It was the same castle that she and the other Elements had battled, and beaten, Nightmare Moon all those years ago. But something was off. Twilight could remember every little detail about their trip to and from the castle, but none of the landmarks in her mind were the same. The hanging bridge was gone, and not even the canyon it had crossed was anywhere near the castle; but Twilight was absolutely positive that this was the same castle. "Show yourself!" Twilight suddenly screamed, calling out to whatever Zecora had warned them all about. She wasn't even sure what she would do if the being did actually present itself, but she just needed to be sure. She needed to be sure that she was right about something; that this wasn't all a game, and most importantly... She needed to be sure she wasn't going insane. When no answer from anything came, Twilight let out a scream of frustration before slamming her hooves against the ground. Now, Twilight wasn't one to even be considered as a violent pony, but when the fear of being alone tugged at her heart well...Let's just say its better to not have it so. After Twilight had expelled all her pent up rage on the ground beneath her and the trees around her, a single tree stood standing in the distance. Only it wasn't a tree. After squinting her eyes and taking a few steps forward, Twilight noticed something peculiar about the..."Tree". The first being that it was slowly moving; towards her. The second being that it had five leafless "branches" on it, two on either side and one that looked like rested on its back. The third thing, however, was the fact that it was not a tree. It was a pony. Instead of rushing towards the tall, eerie pony Twilight stood her ground, frozen by something. It's not a pony. It's something else. Gotta get out of here. Gotta move. GO! her brain shouted, kicking her hooves into overdrive and sending her galloping into the ruins of the castle where she thought she'd surely be safe. If only the young weren't so naive. What was that thing? Why was I so afraid of it? Twilight Sparkle took a moment to think back on what had just happened. Okay, so it was creepy, but so what? Zecora was creepy when we all first met her, but she's not a bad pony. Still...Something about that thing... Twilight wiped a tear from her eye before it could go any further down her face. She was cold, alone, and scared of that thing, whatever it was. Surely it was either waiting patiently outside for her or already searching the castle carefully. Eventually, Twilight knew, the thing would find her. And it would be the end. Twilight Sparkle! Celestia's stern voice broke into Twilight's head. Princess Celestia! Twilight Sparkle, for your crimes against the crown I hereby sentence you to death! W-What?! No, it wasn't me! It wasn't my fault, I swear I didn't do anything! Princess, you have to believe me! I will hear no more from your traitorous mouth! Guards, take her away! "NO!" Twilight shouted in horror as she sat up, waking from her dream and sweating. It was all just a dream; a terrible, horrible dream. Rubbing the blurriness from her eyes, Twilight also shook her head clear of the nightmare before getting to her hooves. "...Wha...?" she said, confusedly as she still saw blurriness in her peripheral vision. Rubbing a hoof against her eyes did nothing but make the blur spread, the colors blending into nothingness as the area of her clear sight slowly grew smaller and smaller. That is, until a skinny, black tentacle placed itself on Twilight's shoulder, and her body froze in terror.
RarityMusic Rarity "Oh, this place is absolutely filthy!" Rarity exclaimed, carefully and squeamishly putting her hooves down in the mud and trying to go as slowly as possible to avoid getting even more filthy. "Twiiiliiiight! Piiinkie Piiiiiie!" she whined, not receiving any reply. Sigh...Looks like you're on your own, Rarity. No matter, we Belles are not ones to fall so easily to the elements...Whatever elements those may be... With that last comment, Rarity took a nervous glance at her surroundings: To her left and right stood a sea of trees that seemed to stretch on forever but were too thickly knitted to travel through. Before and behind her was a path cut through the forest, that Rarity had been following since she awoke, and was covered in mud. Looking further back behind her she couldn't see anything despite the bright moonlight, but continued on nonetheless. It wasn't long before Rarity's hooves began to grow sore. Now, one would think that a pony so prim and proper as Rarity wouldn't take kindly to such length on such a rough path, but this was not the case for Rarity. She truly had been walking for quite some time and her hooves felt liable to fall off at any moment if she did not stop. Reluctantly, the white unicorn settled herself into the cold mud to rest her aching hooves and take a moment to think. Just where am I exactly? No doubt still the Everfree, but where in the Everfree? Come to think of it, why haven't I seen the others? I know the forest must be huge, but surely Rainbow Dash at least would have been flying overhead, looking for us? Letting another sigh, Rarity shifted and felt something...Out of place beneath her. Standing up once more and using her magic to clear away the mud beneath her (which really didn't help, since underneath the mud was just wet dirt), revealing an eerie drawing. "Don't look or it takes you? Is this some kind of cruel joke? Pinkamena Diane Pie, you come out here this instant!" Rarity yelled, her temper flaring. She did not like to be toyed with, especially when the circumstances appeared to be as dire as they were now. Ponies were missing and the group had been split up, but Pinkie Pie was playing games at a time like this! Out of the corner of her eyes, Rarity caught something moving inside the treeline. "Aha! Pinkamena, you come out here this instant!" she ordered, receiving no response. "I'll give you until the count of three before I come in there, missy! One....Two...Three!" Letting out a groan of frustration, Rarity carefully picked her way past the trees and set off towards where she last saw movement. "Pinkie Pie, dear, this isn't funny anymore! Please, come out!" Rarity said in slight fear. She was almost certain of it now; whatever was out there was not Pinkie Pie, or any of the rest of her friends. No, this was something different. She could feel it. Of course, now she could also feel the hard, jutting roots of the trees beneath her as she continued to pick her way through the forest. "Stupid, stupid pony! You could have stayed on that disgusting mud road and have actually been somewhere by now if you hadn't gone off chasing phantoms!" Rarity said to herself. "I HATE THIS FOREST!" It wasn't long before, much to her relief, Rarity managed to find her way out of the thickly knitted section of trees. She was still inside the Everfree Forest, however; evident by the abundance of trees that never ceased to surround her. But now, she was in an entirely different setting. Sure, there were still trees beyond trees beyond trees, but now there was a building within her sights; one that she happily trotted towards. "Hello, is anypony home?" she called out, not wanting to trespass. However, when she received no answer, which did not surprise her at all, she determined that she had free reign and gently nudged open the door to the two story building. "Ugh, the smell is absolutely horrid!" she exclaimed at disgust, covering her snout with a hoof and awkwardly trotting forward. "Hello, is anypony home?' she called again. This time, she did receive an answer; albeit not one she was hopeful for. Floorboards creaked under her weight and the wind blew gently into any opening in the house it found. "Completely abandoned." Rarity sighed irritatedly. "Perfect." "Oh my, how absolutely wonderful! And it goes so well with my necklace!" Rarity said giddily as she spun around in front of a large, slightly dusty mirror while wearing an ancient dress that had only taken a bit of magic to clean. "Why, if I could recreate this design my name would be in every newspaper in Equestria! 'Rarity: Fashionista extraordinaire recreates a design lost to the ages and climbs the ladder of Canterlot's social elite!'. I can see it now..." Clearing her throat and giggling awkwardly at nopony in particular, Rarity slipped out of the dress and settled down on the comfortable (despite being incredibly old) bed. And then, something rattled in the dresser from across the room. And then a pause. And then another rattle. And then another pause. This happened again and again until Rarity cautiously approached the dresser, her horn glowing as she suddenly yanked open the dresser drawer. Her heart stopped as her eyes flicked over to the mirror; stuffed in the corner and angled so Rarity could see behind her. Inside the dresser drawer sat Twilight Sparkle's tiara. Behind her stood a pony as tall as Celestia herself with five long tentacles quivering out of its back. It looked at Rarity through the mirror and stared for a long while as her gaze locked onto the blank spot where a face should have been. Her vision hazed quickly as it slowly reached out for her. But before she was taken, she heard its dark, raspy voice speak into her mind: When you stare into the abyss, the abyss stares back at you...
ApplejackMusic Applejack "Gosh darnit..." "Dang roots... "Mashed pataters..." Mumbled curses made their way out of the orange earth pony's mouth as she leapt over overturned tree after overturned tree. Something big had gone through here, and she was going to find out what it was. "Manticores...Bumblin' Ursa's and what not..." Applejack continued. She was in a foul mood after waking up in the middle of the forest with nopony to be seen for miles around. Not to mention the fact that she could hardly make out the shapes of the overturned trees in front of her against the black night sky, which granted her plenty of bruises and few cuts here and there. Letting out an irritated huff, Applejack launched herself upwards and clung to the side of an overturned tree, her hind hooves scrabbling against the bark as she tried to push herself up. When she had managed to get a hoofhold on the tree and haul herself up, Applejack found herself staring up at the beautiful night sky rather than at the path before her. I wonder what Big MacIntosh and Granny Smith are up to...No doubt lil' Applebloom's in bed by now, bless her heart. Sighing to herself before squinting her eyes and looking ahead, Applejack carefully mapped out how to get to where she was going... "Hello? Anypony out there? Twilight? Rainbow Dash?" Applejack called out, hoping to be heard. If anything did hear her, it did nothing to alert Applejack. Sighing to herself, Applejack settled down on one of the logs to get some sleep; it'd be morning eventually and she'd have an easier time navigating and keeping an eye out for her friends. Just before she managed to doze off, however, the sound of something fluttering in the wind caught her attention and forced her to open her eyes. In an instant, a piece of paper smacked into Applejack's face harmlessly, sticking there even after the gentle breeze had stopped. "What the hay...?" she whispered to herself after pulling the piece of paper off of her snout and taking in the image. "Now what in tarnation...Rainbow Dash, git down 'ere!" Applejack shouted towards the sky, convinced this was a bad attempt at a prank by a certain rainbow colored mare. But no matter how sharply her eyes searched the clouds or surrounding trees, Applejack saw neither head nor tail of her friend. But she did see something a few yards behind her. She squinted her eyes, trying to make out what she saw. But she couldn't. Heh, must be my eyes playing tricks on me again. she thought as she turned and settled back onto the log. And the thing crept closer. Letting out a yawn, Applejack awoke. The sun had still not risen, and she felt as if she had slept for at least five hours. As she stretched, Applejack reached up to adjust her signature hat... Only to find it missing. Intense searches around the logs proved fruitless, and at the idea of loosing her hat forever she cried. She sat down in the cold dirt and cried. And cried. And cried. And cried. He felt pity, for once in his life. He knew what it meant to her as he took it; read it through her memories as if it were a book. A book that told the story of their passing, the tale of the hand-down, and the legend of the commitment. And for once in his life, he had felt pity. Pity for a creature whose race had shunned him for what he was, despite his differences going only as far as looks. But he would get what he wanted through this, oh yes. He would get them all the same in the end, and many more would come to him. Foals. he mumbled to himself. "Can't be gone..." Applejack sobbed, hanging her head low as tears leaked from her eyes and blurred her vision. She wiped away both eyes with a hoof but the blurriness remain; and Applejack paid no attention to it. In fact, she paid little if any attention to anything until the blurriness took over her entire vision and a familiar feeling pressed itself against her head. "M-Mah hat!" She said in amazement, getting to her hooves and spinning around; expecting to see one of her best friends. Instead, she let her hoof drop from her head and glue itself to the ground as she froze. And the creature slowly wrapped its tentacles around her hooves and body, pulling her closer and closer towards him...
Rainbow DashMusic Rainbow Dash "Come on out and fight like a real mare!" Rainbow Dash challenged, not daring to take flight again. She had learned her lesson over and over each time she tried and was thrown to the ground. When she first awoke, her immediate thought was to take to the skies to get a better view. Ground. When she tried again, thinking her wings were just messed up... Ground. She hadn't moved far from the spot she woke up in. "I said show yourself!" Every time she tried to gallop towards where she had seen the tentacles come from nothing was there. No animal, no pony, nothing. Nothing except trees. Tree after tree after tree. Whatever it was out there, it was taunting her; playing with her like a cat does a mouse. She was part of its cruel game where it set her down in a small clearing under the night sky, but punished her every time she spread her wings. To Rainbow Dash, it was time to start bucking trees. If only AJ were here... she thought with a grin before darting off towards the nearest tree, slamming her back hooves against it. Bark. Wood. Tree. Bark. Kick after kick with her hind hooves had done nothing to reveal whatever was toying with her. "Alright, this is your last chance! Come out her so I can beat the hay out of you or I'll come in there and do it!" The only answer was the gentle flutter of a single sheet of paper making its way down from the sky and in front of Rainbow Dash. It was insulting her! It was taunting her! Enough was enough. Crumpling up the piece of paper and tossing it to the side, Rainbow Dash let out a war cry and charged to the second treeline, only to trip over some roots as she reached it. "So that's how you wanna play?! Alright, let's play then!" Silence. Rainbow Dash panted and flared her nostrils in anger as her eyes carefully scanned the area. Nothing moved for a good few minutes until Rainbow Dash shook her head to clear the slight blur in her vision. She knew whatever it was that had done all of this was still out there. And she wasn't going to stop looking for it. The hours seemed to tick by slowly and the moon held its place in the sky and the need for a fight left Rainbow Dash's body. She could still feel its presence, still feel it following her. But she couldn't see it, and she needed to see something before she could hit it. So her plan was to walk. Make it think she had given up. Slow her pace until it was right on top of her, poised to strike. And then... Rainbow Dash let out a cry of victory as she threw her hind hooves out from behind her, catching the creature's jaw and causing an audible crack as her hoof connected. But it did not fall. As Rainbow Dash's vision blurred and she felt very hot, she stared in horror as the thing slowly and violently forced its neck back into place. It simply stared before lashing out with its tentacles. The same tentacles that had thrown her on the ground, over and over again. But she couldn't fight this time. She couldn't even scream.
FluttershyAuthors Note: I apologize for the shortness of Applejack and Rainbow Dash's chapters, but I can promise a lengthy Pinkie Pie chapter (since she is best mane six) and an incredible plot twist! Music Fluttershy "H-Hello...?" Fluttershy squeaked, not willing to move an inch from her little 'cave' in the upturned roots of a tree. She had woken up not far from here and instantly took refuge from the Everfree Forest. Without her friends to support her in this dark place, Fluttershy felt as if nopony was ever going to find her; except as a neat little pile of pony bones hidden under a tree. The thought brought tears to her eyes; tears that she tried her best to hide. But alas, they were tears that did little to sway the entity that lurked outside; waiting for her to make a move. Darling little Fluttershy... he spoke to her in her mind, his raspy voice straightening itself out the best it could and taking on a soft yet deep and echoing tone. Wont you please come out and play with me? I'm so very alone out here... "N-No...I can't...You scare m-my animals, and you kidnapped those p-ponies..." she stuttered as she shrunk into a smaller ball in the safety of her treecave. Fluttershy, that's an awfully mean thing of the Element of Kindness to say, now isn't it? Whatever have I done to you? "I-It doesn't matter if you haven't done anything to me or n-not...You're a b-bad pony..." With that, the voices stopped. She held her breath for a while until she was almost positive that the being had departed. But that belief was shattered as an aged piece of paper fell gently from above and slid into the opening of Fluttershy's treecave. YOU LITTLE WHORSE! he shouted in her mind, causing her to wince in pain and cover her head defensively. HOW DARE YOU CALL ME AN EVIL PONY! DO YOU KNOW WHAT I HAVE BEEN THROUGH, LITTLE ONE? DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD I TRIED TO MAKE IT RIGHT, ONLY TO HAVE IT ALL CRUMBLE BENEATH MY HOOVES? I AM NOT A BAD PONY. THEY WERE THE BAD PONIES, AND THEY PAID FOR WHAT THEY DID. AND NOW... So shall you... The tall, slender hooves of the creature slammed into the ground at the entrance to the treecave and Fluttershy huddled into the farthest corner as tentacles began angling down and gliding slowly towards her. She shut her eyes tight and cried quietly, preparing for the worst. But the worst never came. When she opened her eyes, the creature was gone. She was safe. "I-Is anypony out there...?" she asked quietly in terror. "Just Slendermane..." a dark, raspy voice whispered from beside her. Her screams echoed throughout the forest before they were silenced completely.
Pinkie PiePinkie Pie "Twitch'a twitch'a twitch..." Pinkie Pie mumbled to herself, glaring through her eyes and standing perfectly still as she scanned the area in front of her. "Pinchy knee, check...Three, two, one..." Pinkie Pie braced herself for the inevitable and sidestepped Slendermane's falling tentacles an instant before they would've struck her. Spinning to face her attacker, she took a step back as Slendermane knelt in front of her so that their faces were level before a crudely stitched mouth appeared on Slendermane's face, tearing open and letting out a furious roar. "Pinkamena Diane Pie..." he growled as his body huffed and heaved in anger. "Howdy Mr. Grumpy pants!" "I told you to stay away from me." "And I told you no." Pinkie said happily, oblivious to the intense death-stare he was giving her. Pinkie had always been the strange one to him; always the one that never cowered in fear at the sight or hint of him, always the one who greeted him like he was just another pony. She even managed to become immune to the stare that brought so many of her kind down so that Slendermane could absorb them into his conscious and torment them until the end of time. "What do you want." "Isn't it obvious?" "I will NOT release them!" he shouted, preparing to attack her again before her giggles through him off track. "Oh Slendy, you're so silly! Always thinking you can read me like a book. Oh, oh! Tell me what I'm thinking now!" she joked. If he had eyes, they'd be burning pits of hatred. "Now listen here, Mr. Grumpy Ol' Meany Meanster Pants." Pinkie began. "Sure, I want my friends back and the other ponies you took, but I know that's not gonna happen." At least not until I get what else I want... "You know what I want, Slendy. Heck, it's even what you want, so why do you keep fighting it?" There was a pause between the two as Slendermane's breathing slowed and he stood up straight, towering over the pink mare who smiled obliviously. "Because times change, Pinkamena. 'Slendy' is gone; only Slendermane lives here now." "If that's true, then why are you doing what you're doing now?" Slendermane didn't quite follow, so he simply stood there; waiting for Pinkie Pie to explain. And as if reading his mind, she did. "I mean, you're not just going around kidnapping ponies because it's fun! I mean, it might be fun for you now, but it wasn't back then! That means that a part of Slendy still lives on, or else you wouldn't be doing what you're doing. Nopony does anything without a reason." Pinkie Pie answered. "I am not a pony." "You're right. You're not a pony. You're my friend." At this, Slendermane let out another roar. "LIES, ALL LIES ALL THE TIME! YOU HAVE NEVER LIKED US; NOPONY HAS! AND NO PONY SHALL!" After saying his piece and spilling his rage, Slendermane dashed off into the forest. But Pinkie Pie did not surrender.
The Chase"A hop, a skip and a jump!" Pinkie Pie sang to herself as she raced along the forest floor after Slendermane, leaping over roots and dodging under branches. She felt so alive, so wild, so free! Just like back when... No, she couldn't think about that now. He would never be the same if Pinkie got distracted and let him get away. "Slendy, wait up!" she called. A piece of paper smacked her in the face, but she just shook her head clear of the paper and kept going. "Ain't now how, ain't no way!" Pinkie Pie shouted. Pinkie Pie. His first friend. His first true friend. The little filly he had met all those years ago who brightened up his day with each visit and made him smile on the inside while he could not on the outside. He remembered fondly of the time when Pinkie drew a face on his blank head before he threw the memory out of his head. She had made him her world. And he had made her his. But she would just leave like the rest; laugh in his face when he showed up to 'hang out'. It was after many of those times that he snapped. It was then that he tapped into his power and made those ponies fear him rather than laugh at him. But that was many years ago; a long time since before the rest of her group had even been born. Perhaps he'd tell them all her secret while they were trapped in his head? That would be sure to splinter their friendship and get her to leave him alone. And yet, part of him couldn't bring himself to even think further on that. Pinkie Pie had come back, after all those years of her being gone. She had come back and did not laugh at him, did not taunt or tease him. And then the darkness washed over him again. The doubts and lies that he'd been feeding himself to justify his actions had grown strong over the years since her disappearance, and he had happily leapt into the pool of despair that he had drawn himself. Snapping himself out of his thoughts and focusing on a way to throw the mare off of his tail, Slendermane had only a moment to notice that the pink mare was sitting happily a few feet in front of him before he tripped over his own hooves and slid to a halt just before her. Happy eyes met a cold, blank face as the two stared at each other for a long while. Neither of them blinked; or rather, Pinkie didn't blink as Slendermane could not. Slendermane was the first to move, rising to his hooves and towering menacingly over the pink mare. Listen to me, and listen to me good: Slendermane whispered into Pinkie Pie's mind. I will never be your friend again. I will never sit in the shade while the day bakes the grass with you again. I will never eat another one of your disgusting 'cupcakes' ever again. I WILL NOT RELEASE YOUR FRIENDS, AND I WILL MOST CERTAINLY NOT LET YOU LEAVE HERE! At the mention of her cupcakes, Pinkie Pie's eyes widen and her hair shook, as if unsure whether to stay poofy or deflate. In a short time, it decided on the latter and hung limply at the side of Pinkie's head as her eyes started to water. Slendermane felt the barrier between he and her break down as she submitted herself to the despair and darkness that he had to offer her; the barrier that she had struggled so hard to maintain so that she could try and become his friend again. As Slendermane started to absorb Pinkie Pie into his conscious, her memories flooded into him. No, no, NO!
Confessions of PastDo you remember when we first met? No, stop this, Pinkie Pie. You looked so lonely just sitting there at the edge of the forest, watching all the younger ponies play with each other... I SAID STOP! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME, MY POWER IS TOO GREAT! And do you remember what I said to you? "Hi, my name's Pinkie Pie and you look lonely, so I'm gonna make you smile!". Do you remember that? He did. He remembered it ever so clearly. He could never forget that memory. And do you remember what you said to me? I said, "Hi Pinkie Pie, my name is...Well, I don't know my name..." That's right. You didn't have a name back then. You simply existed and you were content with that for a while. Do you remember what we tried naming you? Longlegs the Stallion, Tallmane the Slender, Slenderpony... And then? ...Slendy... That's right. You and I both agreed on Slendy. And do you remember what we did the whole day? We talked. We just talked, nothing more, nothing less. We talked about each other, about what we saw, where we've been...You had lived your whole, short life in the Everfree Forest back then. But you came everyday to the edge just to watch the other ponies. You watched them in envy, wishing to go down and play with them; but you were too afraid, too shy. And then Pinkie Pie came along and dragged you, literally, down the hill and out of the forest to the other ponies. Of course they would be nervous at first; you were a new pony with no face. You can hardly blame them for that. But they all opened up when they saw that I had brought you along. And then they laughed at me behind their backs and came up with tricks to humiliate me. There was a silence between the two again as Pinkie Pie sighed sadly. True, and for that I'm sorry; Pinkie Swear. I never meant to hurt you...I didn't mean to make you cry, but tonight I'm cleaning out the past. We're starting anew, Slendy. Those ponies are gone and the world is a different place. We can't change the past and how much it hurts, but we can push for a better future. To the rest of Equestria, you're just an old mare's tale; no offense. Nopony knows if you even exist or not, but you can show them that you do. And you can show them who you really are: A pony, just like them and a friend...A friend to me. They'll just laugh and hurt me again, Pinkie! Why can't you see this?! Oh Slendy...Take a minute to look at my friends that you've captured. They've all done things that earned them a glare from other ponies, you can't please everypony, but then they went out of their way to make things right and were forgiven. You can't just give up, Slendy. If you do that then every other pony will give up on you and we'll be back at square one. You have to push for what you want in life, and you and I both know that you don't want to keep capturing ponies and trying to force them to be your friends in your head; you want real friendship, friends who you can trust even if you don't have control over them in your head. Friends who you can hold when you're feeling sad or lonely, or just plain ol' snuggly. Do you trust me to be your friend and do you trust yourself to try your hardest to make friends? Slendermane thought long and hard, his thoughts hidden from the prying eyes of the pink pony he kept shut inside his head. With a sad sigh, he opened his mind and dumped the ponies he had absorbed out into the forest floor. Shaking her head to clear the wooziness, Pinkie Pie stretched and looked around. Sure enough, every single pony that had gone missing over the last two weeks was sound asleep on the forest floor; save for her very bestest friends who were in the same state as she was. But as she finished surveying her work, her eyes searched for another pony; one she still had one last thing to do with. "Slendy?" "..." "Slendy?" Pinkie continued quietly, hopefully. Slendermane turned his head towards Pinkie Pie while still aiming it down at the ground in defeat and sorrow. Pinkie Pie smiled softly and pulled a box of crayons from her mane. If Slendermane had eyes, they would be shining brighter than the sun. "W-What are you doing?" he asked, falling into step with his younger self from the past. Pinkie did the same as she drew a mouth on Slendermane's snout. "I can't kiss you if you don't have a mouth, silly." Pinkie Pie said, matching the exact tone from all those years ago and even planting the kiss in the exact same spot; although this time it lasted a bit longer. When Pinkie Pie had finished, Slendermane paused for a moment just like he did back then before asking for a red crayon; to which Pinkie Pie happily gave him. And so he drew blush on his cheeks. Special thanks to Shadow Bolt for finding this picture and posting it for me!
The FirstDerpy Hooves "N-No! Get back, I changed my mind! I don't want it, I don't want it!" Derpy screamed as her hooves carried her away through the forest. Something was following her. Something wanted her. It had lured her in with its whispers of justice. Justice against the father who had abandoned the filly and its mother. Justice against those who constantly laughed at her as she did her best to get by in life. Justice against those who took their anger out on her little filly. But it was a trap! It was a ploy to get her to come to it, so that it could do what it had done to all those who stepped hoof in the forest before her! Derpy didn't try to wipe away the tears from her eyes as she ran past tree after tree with long scratch marks down its trunk, no doubt from the creature's sharp tentacle...Things. She didn't try to fly up through the thick canopy of leaves and branches that stood above her, because the creature was always right behind her, just waiting for her to do so so that it could wrap its cold, lifeless tentacles around her waist and slam her against the ground again. No, running was her only choice; and run she did. She ran as fast as she could for as long as she could, thinking of her little filly and hoping that the forest would eventually end. And her wish came true. At least, in part. Life has a funny way of twisting things, you know? The forest did in fact end; but with a cliff overlooking even more forest. She had been going the wrong way the whole time. As she collapsed into a ball of ruffled feathers and heaving flank, she felt the creature draw closer; her vision going blurry with each step it took towards her. Slowly, carefully... Taunting her. She heard the whispers again now. And she screamed.
