A Cloudsdalian Hengstwolf in Ponyville

She experienced a new kind of nightmare.

Usually she only dreamed of silly stuff like losing a competition, or being completely alone, or her precious pet tortoise passing to a better life, but her subconscious mind had just then decided to amp things up unexpectedly. She could see somepony in the distance, laying still and stiff on the grass... What was that about? A thin trail of crimson tinted the ground, it seemed to be coming from the deceased far-away mare, but after looking at herself... why was she soaked in it too? That was definitely not her own body's blood, she simply had a feeling it wasn't; she wouldn't feel so disgusted if that was the case. Oddly enough, she couldn't take her sight off it, the bright color was oddly alluring, even had a little irresistible charm to it she couldn't explain. Perhaps it was all natural, perhaps she should get closer to that carcass and-

“Rainbow Dash!”

The pegasus was being violently shaken by the element of honesty, it took her a few seconds to process that was even happening as she woke up.

“Unghh... calm down, I'm here! It's like, early in the morning, why... how are you even-” She looked around. She wasn't in the sky. She wasn't in her house, nor in one of her comfortable napping clouds. Quite the total opposite in fact. And what the hell was that smell?

“Twilight and the rest need us urgently, now! Y'hear?!” Her friend's expression was a bit inscrutable, there was fear mixed with anger towards no one in particular, all highlighted by teary eyes. Dash had never seen something like it, and it was alarming. “Follow me!” shouted the earth pony before taking off.

Getting up, shaking the remaining sleepiness out of her, she tried piecing everything together: she'd gotten the skull, gone back to the town and then to sleep in her high-up bed—well, apparently not. It's a miracle Applejack had managed to find her, she hadn't the faintest clue what she was doing near a pond in the middle of...

She looked around. She'd been here before, to relax once in a while. So her new somnambulist self definitely knew where she was going. Was it sleepwalking, even? Certainly she'd done more than just walk, there was this extreme tiredness still clinging onto her as if she'd run a marathon, and a weird taste of iron on her tongue, maybe she just got hurt like yesterday when she-

Right, the skull. She for sure had lost it forever. She'd add it to her long list of things to worry for later, right then her friends needed her.

❈❈❈

There they all were, everypony except Fluttershy. They seemed shocked by something... actually, shocked would be an understatement. Rarity was at a considerable distance away from the group, muttering under her breath while looking like she was trying not to gag, Pinkie was trembling and covering her eyes, Applejack was staring solemnly at whatever was causing this agitation most likely, and Twilight stopped talking to the former mentioned when she noticed Dash, flying towards her with a concerned expression.

“I'm glad you came, Rainbow Dash. I- we don't know how, or why, but this morning some of Fluttershy's pets were found…” She looked down. It was the first time she had to explain something like this. “Promise you'll handle what I'll show you, alright?”

“Twilight, I don't like this, stop acting weird... just tell me what's going on!” She demanded with a hint of annoyance that very poorly masked her worry.

The princess merely nodded, asking Dash to come with her, crossing the territory's little bridge and heading to a part of the cottage's blooming yard westward. The rest didn't particularly care for her presence, unlike the small animals surrounding the current point of interest. They felt strangely frightened by the pegasus's presence and hopped away. She wasted no chance in peeking, and it took her a considerable bit to process the scene.

It was something else.

There was no concept of anything even remotely resembling vivisection in Equestria, nor murder as far as the average pony knew, so this was comparable to their ilk seeing a new color. Exposed bloated innards, cartilage poorly covering skeletal structures, red liquid freely flowing out of a small, freshly rotten creature that lay nigh unrecognizable.

“We buried the others, but Fluttershy insisted she'd do the honors for this little guy…”

Dash wasn't listening.

“It was her who first saw this, early in the morning, her scream woke me up and-”

From one moment to another the alicorn heard the by then familiar sound of heaving followed by retching, she quickly turned to hold Rainbow Dash whose legs were seconds away from fully faltering.

She was alone in this, the others had surely never touched an anatomy or physiology book in their lives, she cursed herself for having let them see something like that with no preparation whatsoever. She just called them to comfort Fluttershy but their insistence on wanting to witness the crime scene was troublesome. Maybe she should've been less vague with what had happened? It was too late anyway.

Applejack strode to Twilight, “Ah’ve got this, you go to the cottage.” Rather unsurely, she did as such, gently getting Dash off her when she was certain she wouldn't fall and giving the cowmare one last look of trust before cantering off.

“Rainbow?” Her gaze was lacking aim, her eyes had the mangled body in their field of view but refused to fathom it any further, just like her brain. It was derealization occurring in real time, and to top it all off the scent of such unspoiled red tenderness just felt... scarily right.

“Rainbow…”

The mare in charge was her then, she had to think and quickly. No real useful solutions manifested into her pressured thoughts, all she could concentrate on was her stricken intimate who needed help, and mere pleading and talk was not enough. Something more physical, more personal, to show she was there.

An embrace.

Blights of agitation and turmoil clinging onto the winged pony washed hence for just midges to remain of them as her shaking body stabilized after it felt the soft clinch of another. That was enough to bring her back to life.

Their hug loosened.

“Y'alright now, buttercup?”

“You smell good.”

“What?”

“N-Nothing, er- what? I said nothing.”

Seconds of mutual blushing and parted glances later, Applejack supplicated, “Just... help me with those two will ya?” As if to accidentally exacerbate the belief she needed assistance, Rarity's coughing finally gave in to barfing, causing her to cry inconsolably in disgust and trot away.

“Wait!” She sighed, frustrated. “Take care of Pinkie, ah’ll be right back.”

Before Dash could protest, the earth pony had already taken off. But she wasn’t any expert in comforting others, especially if the others in question was- wait where was she?

Dash turned her head to incidentally meet Pinkie Pie’s which was just inches away; with a wobbly mouth, tearful puppy eyes and extended arms she pathetically begged, “Can I get a hug too?”

❈❈❈

‘Twas close to midnight.

Applejack’s bedroom was pretty ornamented, much to the guest pegasus's surprise. She couldn't recall the last time she stepped hoof on that place, probably ever since she first moved in to Ponyville, where she'd insisted on checking out the farmhouse fully. It was the first time she'd seen something so… rustic. Cloudsdale's architecture style was nothing like it.

“AJ? You awake?” she mused hoping for no answer, staring emptily at the ceiling.

“Mhmm.”

She'd knocked on the Apple family residence's door that evening after she found that she just couldn't sleep at all on her own, to her shame. Tank was brought along too, of course. Despite all, she couldn't bear to share the same bed as her, so she slept on a cushion parallel to it.

“You think Twi is alright?”

The alicorn had gone to Canterlot. The working theory was some sleek beast had somehow managed to escape from Tartarus, she was off to confirm. Frankly, a better question would've been if any of them were alright.

“Ah’m sure.”

…

“Are you alright?”

No answer to that one.

“I-I mean, ‘cus I'm the bravest pony I know, y'know? And even I don't feel all that good, so…”

“Ah’m not.”

“Right, silly question, sorry for-”

“No,” She turned back, looked at her, “don't be, ah’m… ah'm glad ya care. Really.”

A tinge of pink took over Dash's cheeks, despite her against it. That tone of voice was just… it was new.

“Y-Yeah, it's nothing,” an unconvincing yawn followed, “well I'm tired goodnight,’’ then an even more forced-sounding snore. Applejack chuckled heartily.

“G’night, sugahcube.”

Did she just act like a schoolfilly in love?! She told herself she hadn't reached that point yet but her rapid beating heart and unfocused mind certainly didn't help the matter. Hell, she was sweating too. She surely hadn't felt this way damn ever. No, it couldn't be love, she was far too cool for that, and she didn't love mares that way! So what if she liked her competitive attitude, her resilience and bravery, the cute little nicknames she gave her that made her feel special, her sweat dripping off her gorgeous light orange coat and-

“Ngh!”

A sudden warm twinge afflicted her all over, her stomach searing as well and rumbling also, as if she hadn't eaten a single thing in ages. She made her way to the hallway's nearby bathroom and locked herself there.

“C-Crap…”

Breathing exercises would probably help, she thought, those same ones she'd tried just before almost all of her Wonderbolt practices to keep calm.

Crunching, popping noises coming from her changing and bulking tendons ringed through her sensitive ears and made her cover her mouth with her hooves to stop a piercing shriek of agony from waking everypony in the house. She was past the point of wondering what was going on and instead focused on getting out of Applejack’s home as quickly as she could; heading to a hospital sounded like a solid plan.

Another crack, this time from her spine jutting upwards, immediately caused her to weakly drop to the floor and her eyes to water. She wasn't the kind of mare that'd pray to Celestia but maybe there was a first time for everything.

It was her limbs' unfortunate time to indescribably suffer as blood-soaked dew claws popped up on her front legs and each of her hooves split into three claw-like parts, as if her body was trying its best to create paws, cruelly regrouping and splitting hundreds of tightly woven nerves in the process. At that point, she couldn't scream even if she wanted, the only thing her throat was capable of letting out were hurried gasps and whinnies.

Was it divine punishment? Karma? She was aware she wasn't the most perfectly moral pony out there, but surely there were others that deserved this far more. Couldn't have been because of that stupid skull... right?

Musing time was up, interrupted by another set of delicate nerves, her teeth's, accommodating unnaturally to new forms; gums bled and pearly whites designed purely to munch greens lengthened and sharpened into predatory fangs that could easily kill any member of her own species with nary but one chomp. She was only half aware of how much she was salivating and growling from this. Forsooth, she was overall only half aware at that moment.

More than grueling it was to stay conscious during the whole ordeal, but she abided. She had to. For herself, for her friends, for...

For her.

Unsurprisingly, easier said than done.

In came the metamorphosis's final steps, taking place in her skull: whiskers jotted out of her snout, her nose moistened and blackened, and excruciatingly her muzzle elongated. Her cranium's new shape took with it her previous rational brain, swiftly replacing it by a wolf's. Such concepts as intelligence or fond memories were foreign for this simple, ill-begotten being.

Finally opening her eyes, they saw the world anew, inky pinprick pupils surrounded by shining yellow.

Like a dog drying out, the wolf shook itself, making what remained of its old coat's hairs all fall so that it was replaced by darker fur, and not long after it raised its head to let out its call, a hideous howl, a dirge of death.

A new kind of nightmare.