An awful stench.

The cavity is pulled open.

The shifting of flesh.

A separate existence imposes upon another.

They are one.

"Welllll! Look who's brought her hick friend to humiliate me again." The azure mare teased with a big smirk on her face. Her tiny little cart had seen better days but she kept it somewhat clean. Trixie's cape lay upon her back and her star patterned hat hung from it's hook.

Twilight nor Applejack were amused, but they had expected as much from Trixie.

"We're here ta help ya." Applejack grumbled.

Spike waved a claw at Trixie. "App-"

"Spike." Twilight started. "She just wanted a reaction." She mumbled, her mouth a slanted line of annoyance.

Trixie's unrelenting smirk confirmed this. "Best way you three can help The Great and Powerful Trixie is moving out of town."

Twilight shook her head. "Trixie, Steel Gaze told me you saw purple lights late at night. I'm here about that. Can you for once just cooperate? This is important."

For a few moments Trixie sat still. "I don't know what you're talking about Twilight." She scoffed suddenly, her expression shifting to irritation.

Twilight glanced at Applejack, whose face was screwed up in confusion. She could usually tell, but either Trixie had a great poker face or nerves of steel. "Ah cain't tell." She mumbled, eyebrow raised.

"Really? No purple lights?" Twilight asked seriously.

"Guess you dreamed it. Trixie is never afraid." Trixie taunted, crossing her forelimbs in defiance.

Applejack stared irritably. Why couldn't she tell if this stupid mare was lying or not? She never understood how she knew or could tell. She just.. knew. This time? Nothing at all to indicate one way or the other. Her rump plopped onto the floor. She sat and stared at her hooves. Was Trixie really just a good liar? Was something else going on? Was Applejack just useless?

"Get your dirty tail off my floor!" Trixie scolded. "If you leave marks you're cleaning it!"

Twilight sighed. This wasn't going anywhere helpful. She took another glance at Trixie. Hm.

Trixie's eyes are purple.

....

Did the eye color match for everypony else? Why did they match? Surely that had significance.

"Can you leave? Seriously. You leave me without an audience because the whole town hates me and now you're here accusing Trixie of being crazy? Out!" Trixie screeched, interrupting Twilight's thought process.

"Trixie it was never my intention to-"

"Out!" Trixie pointed at the door angrily.

Sweetie Belle scoffed. "Cherilee is a terrible teacher I think. I dont even have time at home to do anything!"

"Yer tellin' me. I could probably build a house out of the darn homework." Applebloom grumbled. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were still sitting next to the river, drying off and basking in the sun. It was a beautiful day.

A grasshopper landed on Applebloom's leg and she curiously looked down at it. "Well hay there little fella." She smiled, gently brushing her little hoof against it's head. "Go on now 'fore Sco-"

Too late. Scootaloo screamed. "Aah! Groooosss!" She whined, swatting madly at Applebloom's leg.

"Friendly fire!" Applebloom did her best to protect the green bug, moving away from Scootaloo. "Scoootaloo! Stop it!"

Sweetie Belle hopped in between them to try and help.

Scootaloo struck Sweetie Belle's leg with force intended for a terrifying threat. "Ow!" Scootaloo yelped. Instead of her hoof smacking into her friend's usual squishy flesh, she hit something harder. A muffled thump wasn't what she expected at all.

Sweetie Belle's eyes widened and she backed away a little.

"Sweetie Belle what're you made of?"

"I'm real." Sweetie Belle murmured. "I promise."

Scootaloo and Applebloom looked at each other, then back at Sweetie Belle.

"Sweetie Belle that hurt. It's like I punched a tree or something." Scootaloo mumbled, holding her hoof off the ground.

"Please don't tell anypony." Sweetie Belle cowered behind her own hooves, pressing her eyes shut.

Scootaloo slowly nodded. Sweetie Belle acting strangely all made sense now.

"You're secretly a-"

Applebloom interrupted. "Are you a robot?"

Scootaloo scoffed. A robot? Ridiculous. Sweetie Belle is clearly a-

"Y-yeah." Sweetie Belle whined quietly. The single word was enough to cause a Scootaloo's train of thought to derail right above a highway, crashing into the road and causing a mental thirty four car pileup.

"Uhhhh.."

Applebloom gasped. "Am I a robot too?" She asked excitedly, knocking on her forehead with a hoof. Felt real enough.

"Girls.. this has to be kept a secret please. Nopony can know. They'll take me away forever." Sweetie Belle pleaded.

Scootaloo and Applebloom gasped in unison, rushing to Sweetie Belle's sides.

"No way are they breaking apart the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" Scootaloo proclaimed, hugging Sweetie's side.

"Yeah! I don't care whatchu are Sweetie Belle! Yer our friend!" Applebloom declared with a big grin on her face.

Seeing as her friends accepted her, the white filly stood up straight. The emotion drained from her face like a cloth wiping away a coat of nail polish. She needn't waste her processes on pretending for now. She could allocate memory to other more important things. "Thank you for understanding, friends."

Her friends looked at each other.

"Oh.."

"My.."

"Celestia!!"

"Our friend is a Ro-" They both almost shouted together. Sweetie Belle planted a hoof over both of their mouths.

"The secret should be kept." She replied flatly.

Scootaloo squealed. "Can you fly?"

"Ooh oh! Can you shoot lasers?" Applebloom asked excitedly.

'Sweetie Belle' answered. "Flight isn't within my capabilities nor would it serve much purpose. Lasers aren't necessary for my personal agenda."

"If you're.. that. Then how is your fur so soft and real feeling?" Scootaloo asked.

Sweetie Belle paused. She thought for a few moments. "I'm very advanced." She found that answer adequate. Hopefully it was one her friends would accept. "Keep the secret and I'll do your math homework." She bartered. Anyone else might have found the sudden shift in her expressions and speech to be unsettling. Her friends found it cool.

"Deal!" Applebloom spat in her hoof and offered it for a shake.

"Gross." Scootaloo mumbled.

Sweetie Belle pressed her hoof against Applebloom's and they shook.

"Yer apposed ta spit to seal the deal Sweetie Bale." Applebloom commented.

"I've no reason to waste my saliva. Producing it requires energy I could spare for other things." Sweetie Belle replied flatly.

"Ah just can't believe it! Why didn't it work?" Applejack huffed, stomping after Twilight as they made their way into Sugarcube Corner. The bell rang, but nopony was at the counter.

Pinkie Pie sprung out of nowhere accompanied by a blast of confetti. "Haaaayyy! girls! You want some cake? Cookies? Cupcakes? Awww! I'm just so glad to see you! What about brownies huh?" The pink party pony ambushed them, speaking quickly.

"Eehehe." Twilight smiled. Pinkie Pie had that effect usually. "No thank you Pinkie. I had a serious question actually." Just like that she was frowning again.

Pinkie paused. "How serious? Did you forget to buy icing this morning and had to run out and get some super fast but get to the store and remember why you didn't have any was because they were out of icing?"

"We're talkin' way more serious than any a that silliness sugarcube." Applejack grumbled. Her pride was hurt. She was the living lie detector for goodness sake. How could she fail Twilight like that?

"Do you keep note of everyone's eye colors?" Twilight asked. "I know it's a weird question."

"Hmmmmmmmmm.... Yup! All in the good ol filing system." Pinkie giggled. "Cmon!" She waved a hoof, pulling a lever behind the counter that opened the wall to reveal a slide. Without a moment of hesitation she dove inside the dark slide.

Applejack and Twilight knew it had to be safe. They couldn't help but be apprehensive though. Regardless they all made it down safe and sound soon enough. Twilight landed last, almost rolling over on her side as her hooves hit the ground.

"We need Octavia Melody, Lyra Heartstrings, Roseluck, Cherilee, and Matlida's eyecolors." Twilight said with a sigh, dusting herself off. The little Pinkie cave was always a wild place to be. Tall shelves and filing cabinets lined the walls. From the ceiling hung a disco ball, what looked like big drips of ice cream, and an excess of party streamers.

A giant blue candy cane rested against the wall a little further inside.

"LA! La la la.. la la la!" Pinkie Pie sang as she manically dug through her files, offering Twilight every file she asked for.

Twilight took them, reading through each name to confirm it.

"Just make sure ya give em back." Pinkie Pie winked.

"Spike." Twilight's expression stiffened.

Her heart might as well have been tossed down a mineshaft.

"The colors all match the eyes of the pony that made each report." Twilight reported, her eyes wide.

Spike had nothing to say for once. He wrote the findings down. It was time to be serious. Like Twilight said.

"Ya think that's why I couldn't tell Trixie was lyin' or not?" Applejack sat. She took off her hat and figeted with it uneasily. "Was that really Trixie?"

"I don't know." Twilight took deep breaths. Not a panic attack. Not now.

"Reckon.. uh. The rest a them ponies are-"

"I. Don't. Know." Twilight narrowed her eyes, casting an unfriendly gaze at Applejack. The message was clear. She needed a moment.

"Maaaaybe we should get some fresh air." Pinkie suggested, pulling Twilight a little.

"NO!!"

Outside? How many ponies? In public?

Those fakes could be anywhere. It's not a guarantee.

Calm down Twilight.

Trixie seemed to know things that Trixie would.

So?

So what?!

The whole town knew about that!!

Could this really be happening? Didn't Applejack mention Applebloom?

Was she a fake?

Was her sister gone?

The needles of anxiety dug deep into Twilight's skin, pulling the sweat from her glands. Her stomach twisted and writhed unhappily. Her throat clenched as if a snake had coiled around it and squeezed as hard as it could.

Her heart beat quickly.

Her eyes widened further.

Pinkie Pie and Applejack shared a concerned look. Twilight was sitting there and rocking back and forth, breathing heavily to herself. A panic attack.

"Ummmm.. Twilight? Who started Nightmare Night?" Pinkie asked a grounding question.

"Luna.. Princess Luna." Twilight shivered, looking at Pinkie Pie. Her eyes darted up and down. She was hardly focused on her pink friend. The pink blob that was speaking to her. The input from her eyes became secondary to her thoughts.

"Who's captain of the Wonderbolts?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"Spitfire."

"Who's Chancellor Puddinghead?"

"A.. a founder of Equestria."

Twilight answered the questions, one after another.

"What color is my fur?"

"Pink, Pinkie. You're Pink."

Twilight slowed down a little with her response, narrowing her eyes at Pinkie. It was working.

"What's your opinion on toast?"

"Toast? Well for starters it tastes horrible." Twilight huffed. Jackpot. "If I wanted to eat charcoal I'd probably.." She paused. "Charcoal is interesting you know. I-"

Applejack interrupted. "Guess what Twi? Yain't freakin' out anymore."

Twilight blinked. "Hm.. yes." She nodded. She did feel a bit better. Still overall uneasy though. "Thank you Pinkie."

Pinkie Pie rushed over to Twilight and hugged her tightly. Too hard. Twilight let out a surprised grunt. It wasn't unwelcome of course.

"Yippiee! Twi Twi say bye bye to your silly panic attack cause Pinkie Pie made it go bye bye!" Pinkie Pie shouted in a semi sing song tone.

"T-thanks." Twilight managed. She squirmed a little. Pinkie Pie was much stronger than she appeared. Her hugs could be deadly in the wrong context.

Twilight wasn't sure of what to do about any of this yet. She was still trying to mentally gather herself. She paced around her room.
Only Spike was with her now, offering suggestions every now and again.

"Why not write Princess Celestia and see what she says?" Spike suggested, pulling a paper from his clipboard and pointing at it.

"I don't want to bother her Spike. She's always busy. This isn't a friendship report. I dont even write those anymore anyway." Twilight rubbed her temples. The implications all of this had was gargantuan. Body snatchers? Was it a changeling scheme? There weren't any other things she could think of that could do something like this, and yet it perhaps wasn't changeling related.

"...the returned individuals do not respond to anti-disguise spells."

"Alright." Twilight mumbled. "Make a copy of the notes to send to her and then write her a message."

It took Spike a few minutes, but since he'd already taken the liberty of copying some of it didn't take too long. He thought she might ask that.

"What message?" He finally asked.

"Dear Princess Celestia.

Attached are notes regarding an ongoing investigation I've been following. I've not noticed any disappearances but the lights mentioned being the same color as each pony's eyes leads me to believe that likely this is related. Trixie Lulamoon claimed to have never seen any lights despite an earlier report brought to my attention by Steel Gaze. She could just be lying for her own purposes or could have even made a fake report just to mess with me.." Twilight sighed. Of course. Trixie hated her after all.

"Regardless it's all very concerning and a second opinion or new data on the matter would be helpful. Right now I'm at a loss. I just feel like the longer I take on this the less time we have. Ponies lives are at stake.

Your Student, Twilight Sparkle."

"Uhhh.. Twilight, are you sure you want me to end it with that? You're a princess too." Spike pointed at Twilight's wings.

"Oh.. ha.." Twilight flapped her wings uneasily. "Right. Just put.. I don't know. I guess friend would be weird, does she consider me a friend?" She thought aloud, pacing around the room again.

Crunch

Twilight lifted her hoof. What had she stepped on?

"Aww.." Spike grumbled, already picking it up. It was one of his collectibles. He must've left it in the floor.

"Which one is that again?" Twilight asked.

"Mane-iac, Twilight." Spike replied, straightening her pose so he could fix it.

"Check this out." He said with a smirk. He pressed a little button on her side and her little eyes flashed red. A little evil laugh came from a speaker on her underside.

"Huh." Twilight smiled a little. "That's neat Spike. I like the glowing eyes." She frowned.

"Glowing eyes." She repeated.

The whistling of wind.

It was a cold evening.

It was getting dark.

Optimal.

Target is alone.

Is Target expecting visitors?

No.

It was patient. It would wait as long as it needed to for the perfect opportunity. It had no concept of boredom or restlessness anyway.

Octavia Melody yawned gently. She glanced at the fireplace. Her pupils grew as she took in the crackling of the fire. It cast an orange glow across the room. The house she lived in was an odd one. It had a thematic split through the center. One side was hers. The others was her housemate's.

Vinyl Scratch was out tonight. Octavia wouldn't admit it but she missed Vinyl. She blushed, pushing away her more.. unsavory thoughts.

Octavia pulled herself from her ever so comfortable seat. It was her favorite spot to be. It's comfort however wasn't enough. She felt uncomfortable in her own home.

Tap, Tap, Tap.

Her hooves tapped against the floor with each step, the only other noise in the room coming from the gentle roar of controlled flames. It wasn't even that cold really. She just needed sound. Anything. She could put on music of course, but that was too much. The fire was just right. Only just so loud that it was there, but not so loud that she couldn't hear. Each window was covered with curtains.

"Vinyl dear. Please come home soon." She mumbled.

Octavia pushed a curtain aside, peering outside into the darkness.

From this window Octavia could see a few other houses, but also to the left she'd be able to see the woods. The sky was starless tonight. Inky black.

She was both thankful and terrified that there were no lights tonight. Many nights in a row now she'd spied purple lights peeking from the bushes. At first she thought it might've been a prank, but it's been so.. persistent. A prankster would've wanted a big reaction and that's it. This has been going on for a while now.

She wanted to be glad they weren't present tonight, but their absence did nothing to quell her unease.

Perhaps Steel Gaze was able to make it stop? She'd reported it to her recently. Perhaps Steel Gaze had scared off youngsters who'd wired up some lights and sat them behind the bushes.

Perhaps Steel Gaze had confronted what it was and..

No. Steel Gaze is surely perfectly fine. She was at home tonight taking apart her old rifles and cleaning them. Surely.

Octavia suddenly focused, her eyes scanning outside the window. Had something moved? It had to be an animal.

Look at yourself Octavia, crouched at your own window, staring outside like a paranoid little foal!

She took a deep breath. A craving settled upon her mind. Tea sounds good.

Octavia made her way into her kitchen, flicking the light on quickly. It was compact and modern. She liked it somewhat. It was one thing her and Vinyl could agree on.

CLANK.

The house's ventilation jolted to life suddenly. It was something Octavia was used to, but it still startled her every now and again. It hummed loudly, pushing warm air throughout the house. Had it gotten colder? Had the fire went out? She did suppose it felt colder in the kitchen.

Octavia readied a kettle, filling it with water and placing it on the stove. She turned the burner on and-

CLANK.

"Excuse me?" Octavia whispered aloud, looking at a nearby vent. The vents didn't stop pushing warm air through the home. Then why the sound? A prickly feeling crawled through Octavia's mind. Thousands of little legs marched unevenly along her train of thought.

She elected to ignore it. Octavia was going to brew her tea and enjoy it.

The thoughts didn't go away as she waited for her kettle to signal that the water inside had come to a boil.

Was it the thing outside? The lights from outside? Had it come for her?

"Damn it." Octavia cursed. It was too quiet in here. "I told you not to go."

THUD.

Octavia nearly jumped out of her own skin. She backed away from the nearest vent. That was close. Too close. Rats. Surely they had rats. She'd call someone about it tomorrow.

Ridiculous. No rat was large enough to make such a sound. All Octavia had wanted was a comfortable night. Something was clearly wrong here.

Octavia started back toward the stove. She couldn't leave the burner on.

THUD. CLUNK!

Nevermind. Octavia rushed out of the kitchen, panting heavily. What the hell was that?! Another loud thud. Something metallic scraped across the Kitchen floor.

Was she going to die?

No. She couldn't. She had to see Vinyl again.

Waves of fear crashed against her mind. She was shaking. Don't just stand there! Do something.

She took a deep breath, trying to think. The door.

Octavia rushed to the front door. She'd rather be outside, safe, and potentially look silly tomorrow than potentially die or face whatever that was. She'd go to Berry Punch's place. Her friend was a drunk but at least she wouldn't be alone. A night forgetting all this might be what she needed anyway.

She tried the door.

....

It didn't budge. The door didn't lock from from outside. What's going on? She pushed at it. Beginning to fully panic, Octavia threw her full weight at the door with a terrified whinny.

Scrrrrraaatch. THUMP!

Octavia turned around. A shock suddenly jolted through her body as she slumped against the damaged door. To her credit she'd managed a crack right down the center. She was an Earth Pony after all. Her vision began to darken as she looked upward at the pair of glowing purple eyes.

"Hello. I'm Octavia Melody."

Was that her own voice? It didn't matter anymore. Octavia almost couldn't feel anything.

A sudden warm feeling. She tried to look downward.

Blobs of red were pooling from her. A blurry figure had parted her ribcage. It pushed what Octavia thought might be it's head inside. "Vinyl. I-I.. love..."

Author's Note

This one is a little longer than I wanted it to be. I write pretty spontaneously. I figured a horror story should probably have a horror scene in it. I wanted to have one in chapter one but couldn't quite figure out where to put it. I hope people get something out of this. I aimed to keep this chapter at 3k words like the first one. I may not abide by that rule for all chapters though. We'll see.