Of Webs and Books

Her body was convulsing slightly. She couldn't even muster up the strength to say a word or think a complete thought. Her body was failing on her, and Twilight was scared. She shivered.

You know, it's pretty hot outside. And you're shivering? a voice in the back of her mind said. Twilight had no response.

How can you respond to.. yourself?

All of a sudden her spine went erect and stiff. She was lying flat as a board on the seat, gasping slightly, not moving at all. The pain was subsiding, but it was not completely gone.She tried flexing her back, but the muscles tightened even harder. She tried moving any part of her body. But it was like her body shut down on her. She was a sitting duck.

But you're laying down? Wouldn't that make you a laying duck? Her senses were obviously still on hyper mode, since she was hearing voices.

Slightly sarcastic voices.

It was reaching Pinkie-hyper mode. What is happening to me!? she wondered when her mind had stopped throbbing uncontrollably. It started acting up ever since she left the lab. She couldn't lift a hoof or even use the most basic of magic. This would become a real problem when she reaches her stop.

She could hear every breath and every word being said on the taxi wagon. Her ears were like radars.

I think.. the worst is over, she thought. The worst .. of what? What was this occurring in her body? Her body was unbalanced like a.. her mind was searching for a comparison. Like a triple beam balance! she thought of science. Science was real and factual. She needed that, in this moment of insanity. Science made sense, which nothing right now did. Science is-

Only you would think of science.

I love science!

Oh yeah. I know.

She felt exposed , like a nerve and like a coiled spring, ready and tight. She was laying in a awkward position, which made her want to move to a better position. But she couldn't move. This day wasn't going well for Twilight.

You saw Doctor Whooves, right?

She couldn't help blushing and her heart didn't cease to skip a beat, like it always did when she thought of.. him.

It didn't help that she could feel everything. It was like she was laying on needles.  Every piece of fabric was sticking to her back. Her eyes were sealed shut, refusing to open.

Velvet seats are the worst. Why are they so scratchy and sticky??

You just complain! And complain. And complain.  

What was that voice? It was coming from the back of her head, like a whisper in her ear.

Suddenly, her ears perked up. She caught the words being uttered across the wagon like they were being shouted at her face.

It's a male, she confirmed. She heard another voice. Make it two males.

" I'm bored!", whinnied one voice.

" Cool story, tell it again.", answered the other voice.

" Shut up!", There was a pause. "Hey.. I got an idea!"

" You finally gettin a job?", snickered the other pony.

" Nah, man, look at that mare!"

" What bout her? Other than she looks like she's having a heart attack or somethin'.."

" Nah, nah watch this!", The pony got up and started trotting softly across the wagon. Twilight guessed that he was trying to sneak around. It wouldn't make sense for him to be stomping on the floor.

Twilight's pulse quickened. Are they talking about me?

You see any other mares? answered the voice in her mind.

My eyes are closed! How am I supposed to know?

I thought you are on "hyper- senses mode " or something.

I don't even know that means!

Twilight struggled frantically, but her back was tensed to spring, refusing to budge. She tried to wiggle, but her body wasn't responding to anything. She was as still as a Pinkie Pie watching paint dry.

The pony got closer, snickering softly.

I don't want to get murdered! The possibilities raced through her head.

Or raped! Twilight was panicking.

Who'd wanna rape you?

...Are you saying I'm am not rape material?

The pony bent over slowly...

She whimpered, softly.

.. and placed a water bottle gently on her forehead.

Twilight was relieved, if not slightly disappointed.

All that secrecy and stomping for nothing?

You wanna get raped?

The pony snickered and stepped back.

Twilight was ready to think nothing more of it, certainly not if that condescending voice is responding.

A drop of water from the side of the bottle started falling.. slowly down the bottle..

To land softly on Twilight's forehead.

It was like someone turned on a switch. Twilight's eyes flew open. She flung forward with blinding speed, sending the water bottle flying in the air. She propelled herself upward with all the energy she was holding in her body. With amazing agility, she landed in a crouched position on the aluminum roof.

This all happened in less than a second.

It took a while, until Twilight fully opened her eyes. She stared at the bolts on the ceiling.

Since when do chairs have bolts?

Check again.

It took a second for her to fully realize what just happened; where she was, no longer on the seat.

But on the roof.

She stared at her hooves, which where stuck as if they were glued to the ceiling.She gasped and her hooves unstuck. She fell back to the floor, and landed perfectly crouched on all four hooves. Her mind was sluggish against what had just happened.

She stood motionless for second.

Did I.. just..?

Scare the hell out of someponies?  Yes.

She was cut off by the murmur of ponies behind her.

They were staring at her like she sprouted a second head. This wasn't the first time she's received that look but this time it was for a reason Twilight was not too sure about.

They gave her a wide berth, all crowded together to avoid contact with the crazy mare.

A group of earth ponies stood behind a blue scrawny, pegasus pony, and a big, green earth pony, who stood next to a red mare, her saddlebags drenched by the water.

Why are they are staring at me?

Aww, gee I don't know... It's a real mystery.. Perhaps it was the fact that you stuck on the roof! mocked the voice

"My brand new bag is wet!", the mare cried looking at the ruined bag.

Did she not see you stick to the ceiling?

Twilight got up blindly fast from the floor, blinking uncontrollably,

" I'm.. so sorry, miss I didn't mean to do that-", she placed a apologetic hoof on her bags, " I-

She stopped when she realized that her hoof was not coming off the bags. She tugged as hard as she could , but it refused to let go.  She tried to back up, colliding with the metal pole in the center. Her front hoof stuck to it like a magnet. She looked down and tugged but it was simply and undeniably..

Stuck.

She looked around at the angry pony mob that was gathering.

*gulp*

" Hey! Are you trying to steal something or what?!", a green, buff pony yelled.

HUH?

Twilight realized that her hoof was not in a good place to be.

She looked at him, anxiously, " I'm trying.. but my hoof is..."

He started forward, all ready to shove her off.

Whatcha gonna do?

Twilight backed up fast and with a ripping sound, the bag was ripped off the mare's body, stuck on Twilight's hoof. Twilight's mind went blank for a split-second.

Twilight stared at it incredulously , then smiled weakly at the angered colt.

" Heh, heh,...Oops?".

" ARE YOU SERIOUS!? THAT BAG COST 18 BITS!! OH, YOU'RE GONNA GET IT!", the pony head toward her, ready to push her down.

" Am I?", taunted Twilight.

She gasped. She did not want to say that at all. It was like she was being told to say it.  It slipped out unconsciously and she knew it was impossible to retract that.

He started running towards her, aiming to push her to the floor.

I don't think so, buddy.

In one movement, she dodged his tackle, and for a moment, his eyes searched around for Twilight. She reared up with one hoof on the pole and kicked him fully on the face, with a strength that made apple trees everywhere shudder in fear.

He fell to the floor, groaning and clutching his face, his self-esteem lay crushed, like his jaw.

Twilight gasped. She didn't mean to do that. Or any of this.

WHAT IS HAPPENING?! She was terrified, riding on an adrenaline high.

Her head was still processing the stuck-on-the ceiling fact. It was not ready for the beating-up-ponies fact.

The rest of the stallion's friends, couldn't believe their eyes. That nerdy looking filly, with a bag full of books, took down their strongest friend with one kick. They snorted and pawed at the ground, getting ready to take Twilight down.

" Wait, no - don't I-!"

This is gonna be good.

One pony ran straight for Twilight. She flew up , with one hoof on the pole, swung around the pole and hit him with enough force to crush a brick. He went flying into the background and lay, clutching his stomach.

She landed back on her rear legs.

She gasped and couldn't stop blinking. What am I doing?

" I'm sorry!", she cried , "I- I didn't meant to- she was cut off by the swinging hoof of the scrawny pegasus.

She ducked, grabbed his hoof, twisted, and threw him over her shoulder into the hard floor.

HAMMER TIME!! The voice was enjoying this too much.

Where'd this voice come from?!

The last pony saw his friends, bloodied and bruised. He knew that direct attack wouldn't work. He looked around and saw one of Twilight's big book sticking out of her bags on the floor.

She saw him and pleaded, " Please! Not my book. Not my book.. Not my-"

The pony grabbed it and swung it toward her with all his might.

She punched clean through the book, sending him to the floor with a sickening crunch.

That was my Vintage Collector's Edition!! She pouted, while the ponies lay on the floor gasping for breath.

She looked around at the scene timidly. She couldn't explain this to anypony, no one would believe she accidentally beat the crap out of them. She tentatively lifted her right hoof and with a grinding noise, the pole was ripped from the floor. She turned around and as she swung, the pole hit two recovering ponies in the face, knocking them out cold.

The pole came off her hoof as quickly as it had stuck.

Twilight looked frightened at the crazy abilities she suddenly possessed. And she was scared.

Are you kidding? That was awesome!

There was still the mystery of that slightly mean voice.

Her eyes darted at the remaining stallion and his mare. She saw she had the mare's bag in hoof. She tentatively threw the bag back. The mare backed away scared.

Oh, come on.

Twilight felt bad for the mare. She had to give the bag back. It wasn't her fault she was sucked into this madness.

The driver announced that they arrived in Lower Ponyville. Twilight grabbed her books fast and bolted from that wagon.

The remaining mare watched as she ran away, " Did you see that ?"

The colt gasped, "She's like Buck Norris!", he stared at the fallen ponies.

She asked," Did you catch her cutie mark?"

The colt shook his head

She shook her her exasperated " The only time you don't stare at at mare's flank..."

The colt blushed indignantly, " Hey!.. I was.. watching her crazy moves!" He reddened.

The mare sighed, " Right... "moves". She was actually kinda nice.." She started rifling through her bag.

" Hey! That bitch stole my watch!"

Twilight jumped out, ready to run. She felt something in her hoof.

What's this?

It was a gold watch. Twilight was puzzled until she remembered that she was supposed to be running away. She threw the watch in her bag and started running.

Twilight sprinted through the crowd, weaving with surprising agility. What is HAPPENING?!?

She was going to have one of her trademark breakdowns.

" Got- to - get - home!", she ran faster than ever for the home stretch, running past every pony with amazing balance for going 40 miles per hour.

If you don't slow down, you're gonna hit the wall.

"Don't tell me what to -UMPH!" She ran straight into the wall of the library with a loud thump.

What did I say, smartass?

The impact brought Spike's attention. He opened the door,

" I swear, Rainbow Dash, if you break another window, I'm gonna"- He saw Twilight plastered on the wall.

" What are you doing, Twilight? Spike knew his friend was crazy but she always had a reason. At least, sometimes.

She stood back, jittery, " I was uh.." she thought of something she would say, " Checking the wall's strength in the case of a direct pony attack."

"I gotta say," she rubbed her head, " It's pretty strong".

" Sure, Twilight". Spike started walking inside the library. Twilight followed in jerky manner, taking in the brightness of the wood. It was stabbing her eyes. And it sounded like some pony was grinding nails on the floor. She looked around for the source of the noise and saw Spike dragging his feet across the floor.

Oh dear Celestia, stop MOVING! She was wincing and cuffing her ears.

Spike noticed Twilight was acting weirder than usual, which was a cause of alarm. She was looking at everything like she was seeing it for the first time. She winced every time Spike took a step and touched her ears.

" Um, Twilight, are you okay?"

"Huh? What?", She was blinking rapidly and twitching all over. Her nerves were jumping,mangled and crazy. Everything started magnifying, so that she could even see the dust particles in the air.

" Are you.. okay." Spike backed up slightly, because Twilight looked close to another one of her breakdowns. Her hair was sticking out, the hoof was twitching, and one eye was smaller than the other. It wasn't pretty last time. Spike was always scared of Twilight's somewhat fragile mind. Only takes a little to make her go crazy.

She was staring at him with that creepy, I'm -gonna-murder-you face.

" Of course Spike I'm fin- WATCHAA!. Twilight reached out her hoof quickly and was holding on to something in the air, eyes drilling into it.

Spike was startled to say the least. He couldn't believe that she was holding a... " Is that a... a fly?" He was stunned.

Twilight eyes stared at it intently. She hated that fly with every once of her being. It's constant noise was killing her. She wanted to get rid of it, eat it  or..

Did I just .. want to eat .. a FLY?! She was close to putting it in her mouth. Her eyes twitched.

With an enormous amount of self control, she let it go. It flew around her, buzzing, Twilight's eyes never leaving it. Spike watched with amazement at Twilight's  inner battle and her new ability to catch flies.

" How did you-" Spike was stopped by a hard hoof in his mouth. Twilight was shushing him loudly. One eye was half-closed.

"Just.. shush. You are. SO. LOUD." Twilight's ears were close to bleeding. She needed quiet. Quiet and Space. Quiet, space and .. food. She was so hungry. I need food, *NOW*!

She walked past Spike rapidly, with quick movements, into the small kitchen. She grabbed every food item she saw and started walking out, bundles of frozen food in hoof, stacked comically high. Spike was following with his jaw on the floor. She backed away up the stairs, slowly and agile, " I. Just. Need. Quiet." She ducked into her room and closed the door. She locked it and threw all the food on the floor.

She opened all the containers quickly and eat every morsel of it, viciously. Not a crumb was spared. It didn't matter if it was frozen, it was being eaten.  She ate like she hasn't touched food in years. After her rapid and messy feast, she paced the floor anxiously, occasionally unsticking her hooves from the floor.

" What -*twitch*- happened, since I left the Tower?" She was trying to make sense of this crazy situation.

" That wagon incident, the fighting, the quickness," she thought about it hard, turning over every situation.

" Is there a possibility of..*twitch*.. a mutation of some kind?" She crossed that out because it has to enter directly into her bloodstream.

" No infections or illness of some sort," She was thinking it over, while licking the macaroni and cheese off her mouth.

.

" Other than everything being really loud and clear, I feel... healthy." She thought back briefly on the spiders.

" They would have to bite me or something. I would have felt it." She couldn't help thinking she was wrong. She was missing something, she was sure of it.

Are you sure about that ?

"And what is this voice?!?", Twilight has heard it ever since she left the building.

I'm your conscience. Go burn things.

" Consciences are supposed to be good!"

I'm on break?

She was still trying to grasp how she suddenly had two voices in her already stuffed head.

" But when did you show up? Have you been in there all this time?"

I came with the spider.

  Twilight 's mouth suddenly went dry. She suddenly felt something on the back of her neck. She lifted a trembling hoof, and reached down her neck . She felt around and felt a bump. Her mind was putting the pieces slowly together...

Her heart stopped. She felt a strong, string protruding from it. She grit her teeth and pulled on the string. With a small gasp, she pulled the string out. She shakily pulled the string out of her mane. Her eyes looked to the end of the string, hoping not to see what she dreaded. She glanced down and saw..

A dead, red, spider.