Forces of the Void: Rise of Chimpara

It was panic in the streets and her poor, short legs ached with pain as the moon started its rise into the starry sky. She had never had to run so much and so far in her life, but the screams behind her made her keep pressing forward. By Celestia, those screams... Ponies behind her were dying, while the ponies before her that were faster clung to the hope of escaping with their lives, but all she could hear were the screams, and the sound of flesh being torn from bone.

The smoke monsters had just appeared that night. Her older brother had always told her that there were monsters, but she never believed it.  She’d always thought it was just part of a harmless prank he pulled on her, that stupid jerk!

“Run, Lily, run!”

That stupid, brave, dead jerk..

Distracted by her thoughts, the filly tripped and fell. She scrambled to get up against her aching, protesting body as the almost ethereal  but certainly sinister snarls got close. Looking back, she could see it too clearly again; the glowing green eyes, the body of disgusting smoke, somehow taking a predator form, and its maw.  The mouth was the worst: the horrible and all too real teeth, sinister and curved, ready to tear the flesh off her young bones.

A group of three of the monsters slowly approached her, blood ceaselessly dripping from their jaws as they looked at her eagerly, deciding that she would be a tasty morsel for a hunger never sated. Their muscles tensed and the lead monster, bowed slightly, then pounced as the filly screamed...

He had been running since the attack had started, no breaks, no rests. He had to keep going. He had to make sure it was known. The sleepy town of Foal's Field, in the fiefdom of Hoofshire had fallen to fell, unknown beasts.

The guards opened the gates as he approached, his messenger's insignia glowing in the night, and he dashed on past. He had to tell the princesses!

A bolt of red magical energy smashed into the monster and threw it back into its hunting mates as a stallion, wearing the armour and cloth of the Equestrian Guard stood over Lily, his horn still glowing and ready to fire. Stepping forward, he didn't glance back at the poor filly as he gave his orders.

“Get the heck out of here! We're being overrun! Go t-”

The young filly screamed as the monsters took advantage of the stallion's distraction; all too large and terrible jaws dug into his side as he yelled in surprise and blasted one of the monsters away. Kicking the monster off his flank, he brought his magic down on the third while screaming at her to run.

She didn't even think about it, and allowed her tired legs to carry her as far as they could as she focused on ignoring the blasting sounds of combat spells cast, the tearing sounds of teeth in flesh and the gurgling of a voice cruelly silenced.

The doors to the castle opened and the messenger stumbled in, too exhausted to do anything else but keep himself upright and moving. Leaning against the wall, he headed down the Midnight Wing, the branch of Princess Luna, the Princess of the Night. Stumbling into the office of her chief advisor, he dropped the note from his jaws to the floor.

“Sir.. Word from Foal's Field.”

A stallion approached from his desk, his cold, analytical green eyes staring at the messenger until he came to stand in front of him. Using his hoofs to carefully unseal the note and lowering his head to the floor to read, his face changed through several successive expressions as he read the message. Surprise, pity, disgust, fear and urgency played in his eyes, and he rolled up the note, picked it up with his mouth and dashed out the door.

An older foal she once played with was pulled down from alongside her, dragged to the floor screaming and begging for help the disgusting howls and the nightmarish sound of flesh being carved from bone filled her ears, and she blocked it out.

'Strong girls don't cry..'

Her eyes disobeyed her thoughts, watering no matter how hard she tried to stop them. She tried to run faster in an attempt outrun the sounds of her friends, her home, begging her for help. More Equestrian Guards dashed past her, not sparing her a glance as the gates were in sight.

A monster pounced from the shadows to the side, ripping at her lucky green dress, loving made and labelled for her by her grandmother, but failed to grab her. A blast from a guard knocked it to the floor, and Lily allowed herself from hope. She was going to make it!

The grey furred, blue mane and green eyed advisor to the Princess of the Night charged into her quarters, flushed with fear and exertion.

“LUNAR POOL. WHY DOEST THOU INTERRUPT MY REPAST?!” Luna questioned in her still sometimes used Royal Canterlot voice, causing the young stallion to wince at the volume.

“Your Highness, a most urgent message has been delivered. It needs your immediate attention.” He spoke coolly, despite his underlying emotions and anxiousness. Releasing the note so that she could use her magic to lift it, he bowed as he waited. The note hovered in front of Luna's face for a few seconds and then she turned to look at him, orders about to be spoken.

As the reinforcements arrived, they stared at the horrible sight that played out as if in slow motion before them. The streets were stained with blood and littered with bodies. The air was cold, as if the pained spirits of the dead lingered in their agony and unrest. When the first of those to escape reached the outpost miles out from the small town, they had immediately mobilised and moved out to mount a defence. But they were too late.

The youngest member turned away and lost the contents of his stomach, but none of the veterans could blame him. By Celestia, the stench! The foul smell of death permeated everything, befouled both the living and the inanimate and stood as a horrifying testament to what had happened here.

The report would be bleak, and it would be sickening. The captain would later write the full extent of the carnage caused by these unknown beings and the indiscriminate manner they had attacked all the ponies that sought to flee with their lives. And he would be forever haunted by the sight of the filly in the green dress.