Tragic Times

Spike slowly got up. He had fallen asleep while walking away from Fluttershy's cottage. He still needed to get out of this 'void' and feeling sorry for the 'others' wasnt helping him escape. He only had two places left to go to. Sweet Apple Acres and the one he feared the most, 'home'. He didn't know if he was ready or not to see what Twilight had become in this strange, twisted fantasy of some creature, he recently found out was called 'Element of Revenge'. His thoughts were interupted as he heard a scream coming from Sweet Apple Acres. He hadn't noticed he arrived there until then. It seems like he had been walking for longer than he had thought. The scream came again. It sounded like a terrified scream more than a scream of pleasure, like it was for Sweetie Belle. He immediately tried to source out the screams. But he couldn't seem to find any discernable source's. He then noticed a flash coming from the barn. He hadn't thought to have checked the barn for the source of the screaming. He grew more and more afraid as he slowly crept towards the flashing light and louder screams.

As Spike slowly opened the barn door, he saw Apple Jack standing there smiling at the ground. Every time he heard a scream and saw a flash of light, her smile grew bigger than the last.

"A-AJ? Are you okay?"

"Oh, hi Spike didn't see you there. How are you doing?" She said still gazing towards the floor.

"W-Who is screaming? It sounds like it's coming from below us."

"Screaming? What screaming? I haven't heard anything since I came in here to empty the apple buckets."Apple Jack replied, obviously lying through her teeth. This wasn't like the normal Apple Jack. Then again, nothing seemed to be normal in the 'void'. All of his friends were like completly opposite their normal selves. He attempted to sak again. This time moving in closer to the stairs that led to the storage unit under the barn.

"I'll only ask one more time, Apple Jack. Who's screaming down in the cellar?" Spike said trying to sound unafraid.

"Spike, I still have no idea what you mean. We have no cellar, and there is definitely no screaming." She replied, taking the lie even further.

He then rushed past her and ran down the cellar stairs. By the time he had reached the bottom of the steps she had come out of her daze and followed after him. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Big Macintosh was using shock therapy on Granny Smith and Apple Bloom. He turned to Apple Jack with a look of anger on his face.

It's working. It's actually working! The cowpony thought to herself.She noticed Spike's immitation of Fluttershy's 'stare'.

He couldn't hold his anger in any longer. He couldn't stand seeing anypony being tortured like this.

"Apple Jack! How could you do this to your little sister? Even more importantly, your grandmother?"

"What do you mean, Spike? It's just me and you in the barn. There isn't anypony else here. The other's are all in the house." Spike could tell that she wouldn't give up that easily. The lying could go on forever, literally. There were so many different ways to lie to somepony. If she kept this going, he would have heard all of them by the time this was over.

Spike sighed."Why do you keep lying, Apple Jack? You were the 'Element of Honesty', but now you're the complete opposite. What ever happened to the honest truth? Huh? Can you answer me that? Can you even talk withough saying a lie?"

Spike knew it would be no use. Apple Jack would still lie and nothing would change that. When she responded her response had almost given him a heart attack. She had said,"Of course, Ah' can always tell the 'honest truth'. You can always count on me Spike." She said smiling warmly. He should have known that she would be lying. Even if it was a lie it still made him feel slightly better. He had almost forgotten the fact that she and her big brother were torturing their family members. He suddenly thought of his 'family'. Shining Armour, Twilight, Princess Cadence, Twilight's parents, and Celestia and Luna. He just realized that he was basically related to three alicorns, that were all royalty. While he was thinking of this, Big Mac had stopped torturing his family and turned towards Spike.

Spike looked up to see Big Mac walking towards him with a tazer. He came out of his daze and looked around to find a way out. He remembered the stairs behind him. He turned to run up them but found no evidence of stairs ever being there. He was looking for another way out when he felt a sharp pain in the back of his head. He blacked out.

When Spike woke up he was in the center of Ponyville. Something seemed different. Everything was quiet. It's never quiet in Ponyville. Even in the 'void's' version of Ponyville it wasn't quiet. He noticed that most of the streets were blocked off. All except one... the one that led to the Golden Oak's Library. The one that led to Twilight. To home.