The Nightmare Before Hearth's Warming Eve

"DO NOT BREATH IN!" Dr. Whoovenstein cried, as black smoke surrounded them, emanating from the now-in-pieces canister.

"Hang tight, then! Let me get us some space!" Rainbow Death called.

At that, she gritted her teeth and began to flap her single, massive wing. And as if it were a fan, the smoke was instantly blown away, dissipating into the air.

“Hah! You don’t mess with a pegasus who has a wing power of over nine thousand!” she grinned.

"Those soldiers are still between us and the TERRODIS though," Doctor Whoovenstein growled, before putting on a wicked smirk. "But that’s alright. If it’s a whoopin’ they’re a-wantin’, they’ve come to the right place! HAHAHAHAHA!"

"Allow us then, Doc," Rainbow Death grinned, twirling her scythe as both Pinkie, now armed with her dream-space battle-axe, and a snarling Applemoon formed along side her, striking combat poses.

“Awwww yeah! Go Team Elements!” Pinkie cheered.

"I-I can't stand all this fighting," Flutterfright whimpered, covering her eyes with a hoof. "P-Please, just tell me when it's over..."

"Then let loose your instincts again, Flutterfright!" Applemoon called. "Just like when we took down that Windigo! We’re gonna’ need em’!"

"N-No! I can't... I won't!" she cried. "I don't want to hurt any elves... they're not themselves!"

"She's right!" Twilight cried. "They must be under some form of mind control! That's the only way any of this makes sense!"

"It doesn't matter! This is war!" Rainbow Death snarled. "It's them or us! And that means: it’s them!"

The Harmony possessed soldiers halted at that, before droning:

"Your concern is touching, Twilight Soulshard, Element of Enslavement. But empathy will not save you from assimilation. Come. Join us, and together, we will preserve the primary universe. We will spread cheer and joy throughout the year."

“You sound just like that Windigo priest,” Twilight growled. “And I don’t care how many worlds you’ve enslaved, this is the line in the sand!”

"Yeah, you're nuttier than a friggin' yuletime fruit cake!" Rainbow spat, before chuckling slightly."Hehe, see what I did there, Twi- HEY, OH NO YOU DON’T!"

While she spoke, the elves were busy knocking arrows.

But Rainbow was ready for this. Narrowing her eyes, she lifted her head towards the heavens.

"Seria sempy! Taradok ryloth!" she roared. ”By the Eternal Planes of Death, I will blight your path!

And immediately, a bolt of lightning cascaded downward and struck her scythe, giving it an eerie, blue glow.

At the same time, the elven soldiers released their arrows.

“RAUUUUUGHHH!.!.!” Death roared, slamming her blade into the ground before her. A massive shock-wave emanated from it, disintegrating the arrows it tore through. No black smoke was released from them.

The group glanced at her in awe.

"By the night, Rainbow, I didn't know you could do that!" Twilight called.

"That's reaper magic, baby!" she winked. "And there's a lot you don't know about me yet, Twi!"

"Yeah, but still: Flutterfright's right!" Twilight argued. "We shouldn't be killing them if we don't need to!"

"Tell that to the Shadow Guard," Rainbow grunted, motioning towards a nearby trio of gatling gunners taking shots at the aircraft above.

“COME ON! Give em’ hell! Keep it up!

“Get some, baby! Woooo yeah!”

Twilight merely shook her head, glancing back at Rainbow.

"I don’t care! I stand by my statement!" she argued. "Come on Rainbow, we can do this! It’s the honorable thing to do and you know it!"

"You're seriously going to deny me the one chance I may ever have to get to go on a killing spree, aren't you?" Rainbow groaned. "Fine, fine! I won't hurt anything… too much."

The elven soldiers still didn't look impressed. And to make matters worse, Twilight soon heard the sound of marching boots behind her. Another column of elves was coming from the opposite direction.

“Shoot shoot shoot shoot shoot!” she squeaked. “We’re surrounded!”

Both columns raised their bows and knocked arrows.

"Twilight! Bubble-shield us!" Rainbow cried.

"Hang on! Give me a second!"

And as her horn charged, the soldiers droned:

"It will not save you. All forms of life in this world will be assimilated. Nothing can stand in our way. Nothing-"

Then, out of nowhere, a fury of tendrils flew towards them. Each snagged a soldier around the neck. They began to gasp for air, choking.

"Alright! The cavalry has arrived!" Applemoon grinned.

And then Twilight saw him, or her, noghoul was really sure. Standing at the entrance to the courtyard was the Slendermare, his many tendrils flickering in the wind and choking the life out every elf he had gripped.

"SLENDERMARE! DON'T DO IT! DON'T-"

But Twilight was too late. A second later, the two lines of soldiers went limp in his grasp.

"NO!" she shouted. "Nonono! They're not themselves! How could you-"

Slendermare merely shook his head.

Twilight squinted her eyebrows. “W-What?”

And soon, it dawned on her.

"You mean-"

Slendermare nodded.

And a smile crept over Twilight's face. "You... didn't kill them, did you?"

He shook his head again, before retracting his tendrils from the soldiers, twirling them in a particular formation, and spelling out:

"Not a fly."

Twilight’s smile widened.

"Heh, always full of surprises, aren't ya, Slendy?" she winked.

Slendermare merely gave a shrug.

"By the eternal drums: bloody good show, Slendermare! This gives us a clear shot to the TERRORDIS!" Dr. Whoovenstein called, waving a hoof forward. "Come on, let's go!"

Before she followed, Twilight gave Slendermare one last nod of respect. He nodded back, before zooming off in an opposite direction, him having a mission of his own to perform.

The group then made their way down the street, a block between them and the Doctor's machine. On the way, they began seeing corpses of both guards and elves strung along the blood-soaked road, which were... actually normally blood-soaked.

However, soon, it became apparent that the guards weren't totally responsible for the elves’ deaths. Standing by a number of their corpses seemed to be frozen, gray statues of angelic looking pegasi. However, their sharpened, snarling mouths made it apparent they were far from 'angels.'

"Ah, Weeping Angels," Dr. Whoovenstein smiled cheerfully. "I was wondering when they'd join the fight. Just do them a favor and glance away from them so they can continue their work."

Applemoon gave a gulp, glancing warily at the sight.

"Yeah, alright..." she said.

At that, the group looked away, and a second later, the 'Weeping Angels' were gone.

"The elves think they're going to have a jolly good time invading this city," Dr. Whoovenstein chuckled. "But I hope they realize they've just invaded a world of nightmares."

"I-I'm just glad those things are on our side," Flutterfright gulped.

"Yes, but speaking of the elves," Scarity said, lifting a ghostly eyebrow. "I'm surprised their invasion isn't more... well... holiday themed."

"Oh, this is good," Rainbow chuckled. "We're being invaded and naturally, the first thing you do is analyze their choice in style.”

The ghost began blushing fiercely. "I didn't say that was the only thing bad about this whole situation!"

"Sorry, sorry," Rainbow said. "I didn't mean it as an insult...” She began to smirk. “It's just so... you."

It didn’t seem to help, however. Scarity still held an offended look upon her.

"Hmph, if you say so..." she said, folding her arms.

Though a second later, her eyes widened, as she pointed ahead of her. "Though I must say... those look peculiar."

Rainbow lifted an eyebrow, before glancing down the road. And soon, she and the rest of the group gawked at the sight as well. Lacing the street were a number of jack-in-the-boxes, sitting innocently... silently.

"OK... that's not suspicious at all," Applemoon said, glancing warily Twilight’s way.

"So much for it not being a holiday themed invasion," Twilight groaned.

"Well, whatever they are, we gotta keep goin'!" Rainbow announced.

"She’s right. The TERRORDIS is dead ahead," Dr. Whoovenstein nodded. "Hidden in one of the side alleys. We're very close."

“We could go around em’. Take another route,” Applemoon suggested.

“I’m not so sure… who knows what we could run into if we do that,” Twilight said. “We should keep going…”

Applemoon paused, glancing at her warily, but soon gave up the argument.

“If you say so,” she sighed.

The group of seven crept on, trying their best not to disturb the strange, yuletime boxes. Though as soon as stepped within about five feet of them, it became apparent that an alternate route may have been the best option.

A strange melody began to play from them, as the jack-in-the-boxes' tiny, twisting handles began turning on their own.

It was sickening to say the least.

"Oh god! My ears!" Pinkie shrieked, covering them. "The song! It's too cute!"

"Screw this! They already know we're here! Let's book it!" Applemoon shouted, leading the group into a gallop towards the alleyway.

Then suddenly, as if they had sensed their panic, the boxes lept open. Shooting out of them came various clownish figures, teddy bears, and other such things, attached to little metallic springs. The group halted in their treks, their eyes widening in horror.

"Oh my... they're too adorable!" Scarity cried dramatically. "I can't look!"

Applemoon shook her head. "Just ignore them! We've gotta-"

And then, as if the scene couldn’t be any creepier, the figures all began to sing in an eerily happy tone:

"Here comes Harmony!

Here comes Harmony!

Right down Harmony Lane!

Don't resist us!

Or you'll risk us,

Blowing out your brains!"

The group gasped in horror, but Twilight's surprise, Rainbow actually grinned.

"And Hearth's Warming Eve just got twenty times more hardcore," she said, nodding in approval. "Now that's horrible!"

"And the bombers flying around aren't?" Twilight said, lifting an eyebrow.

Rainbow shrugged. "Meh, that's just classic stuff. Ratzi-imitations aren't that scary. This, however, is brilliant!"

And then, popping out of each figure's mouth came a gun.

"Time to join us!" they chimed in a merry tone.

Twilight shot Rainbow a glare, who sweat-dropped in return.

"A-Alright, and my appreciation for them just ended," she gulped.

"DUCK!" Twilight cried.

RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!

Muzzle flashes emanated from each gun as the group did just that. A series of purple tracer fire flew over their heads.

"ACK!"

But Dr. Whoovenstein was too slow. To Twilight's horror, one of the purple beams struck him in the side, sending him sailing to the ground.

"D-DOCTOR!" Flutterfright shrieked.

"Damnit!" Twilight growled. And within a second, her horn began to glow. Immediately, her familiar, blackened, shadow-like bubble-shield surrounded the group. The purple tracer fire struck it with blinding flashes of light (which was particularly annoying for a ghoul’s eyes), but luckily, it held.

Nearly a split-second later, Flutterfright was by the Doctor's side, checking his pulse.

"He's alive!" she announced, sighing heavily. “Unconscious… but I think he’ll be alright.”

“And it makes sense… they're here to infect us, not kill us!" Twilight announced.

Flutterfright then licked her lips, a strange look coming to her eyes as she stared at the Doctor’s neck. “My… and he looks so appetizing… just lying there like that… such an easy meal… I wonder if he’d mind if I-”

"Not the time, Flutterfright!” Twilight growled, the vampony immediately snapping out of it.

“Ack! Stupid instincts!” she squeaked.

"Either way, what the heck are we gonna do without the Doctor?" Applemoon asked.

"We'll have to figure out how to use the TERRORDIS ourselves! It shouldn't be too hard!" Twilight said, sweat now dripping from her forehead as she gestured forward. "Come on, I can't keep this up much longer!"

The group nodded to each other, and then took off into another gallop, making sure to stay in Twilight's shield as they moved along. Scarity carried the Doctor in a telekinetic hold, a clear look of strain on her face as she did so. And just as they made it to the alley-

"Can't... do it... anymore..." Twilight heaved, her shield collapsing. At that, she fell to her stomach, panting.

"Oh no! Come on Twi, you're not about to call it quits now!" Rainbow Death growled, actually wrapping her surprisingly strong, black wing around her and carrying her in its grip, purple tracer fire dancing about them.

"A-Always there when I need you," Twilight struggled to say, smiling towards her.

Rainbow merely smirked, chuckling. "Heh, well, us Elements gotsta stick together! And I don't want to be the one to have to tell Nightmare I left her student behind!"

"Yeah..." Twilight sighed.

They could now see the TERRORDIS. It was essentially a massive, black coffin that stood upright, with a single door etched in its front. They charged towards it, victorious grins on their faces, when suddenly....

PLUMMMMMMMP!

Out of the sky came a giant, grey, teddy bear, its eyes glowing a hot red. It slammed down right in front of the group, cracks forming in the concrete where it hit, and bringing them to a skidding halt. It soon rose to its feet, procuring a massive war hammer slung on its back, the hammer part of it curiously transparent and glowing an eerie blue.

"Ohhhh crap!" Rainbow growled, glaring at Scarity. "And you were complaining that their invasion wasn't Yuletime themed!"

"Well, I suppose I was wrong then!" she huffed, before barreling in front of the thing. "Hey, look at me! I'm most certainly corporeal! Waste your effort on me, darling!"

The two story tall abomination turned its head towards her, scowling with sharpened teeth.

"Target Identity: Spirit. Priority: Zero." it droned in a robotic-like voice.

"Hmph, not good enough for you, am I?" Scarity snapped. "Well then, if we're going to be like that, then let me tell you that your glowing eyes are cliché and not very scary!"

The Teddy Bear ignored her, turning its head towards Pinkie Slice.

"Target Identity: Undead. Priority: One. Assimilate."

"Oooo! It picked me! It picked me!" she beamed, bouncing. "Come on, let's play!"

As quick as lightning, and as the group gasped, she charged forward, her war-axe held in her mouth.

”Terminate…”

The bear’s hammer thundered down, only for-

“Nope!” Pinkie chirped, skirting to the left with super-pony agility, the hammer cracking down right where she once was. Though surprisingly, it didn’t even make a noise as it struck concrete.

"Alert: Agile target. Cannot compensate!"

Giggling, Pinkie then lept upon the hammer’s hilt, and somehow trotted up it with amazing speeds…

“Mind if I axe you a question?” she grinned.

-And a second later, she sent her war-axe through the machine's neck, severing its head.

The group’s jaws dropped. Applemoon scratched her head in bafflement.

“What? I’ve always wanted to say that,” Pinkie shrugged, as she landed in a badass pose, her flank turned towards the beast.

Its head then plopped to the ground, sparkling wires hanging out of it, as its red eyes flickered on and off.

"E-Error. E-Error. C-Cannot access locomotive s-systems. Shutdown... imminent..."

And it went dead. The body soon followed, crashing to the ground.

Rainbow lifted a hoof, her eyes widened in shock. “That was-“ She scratched her head, simpering. “Well- uh, it would have been cooler without the pun.”

"Hehehe, still, I'm soooo glad they sent robots!" Pinkie beamed. "We can go all-out on robots, right, Twi?"

"Knock yourself out..." Twilight groaned, Rainbow Death still holding her tightly in her wing. "Or more preferably... knock them out."

"Come on, then, let's get out of here before they throw more surprises at us!"  Applemoon grunted, glancing at the TERRORDIS. "We may not be riding in style, but it's something!"

The group then made their way around the Teddy Bear's sparkling body and into the mobile laboratory that was Dr. Whoovenstein's home.

And indeed, the interior resembled just that. There were tables strewn about a metal floor, various containers of chemicals bubbling on them. And in the center was a metal operating table that seemed to be standing below a titanic Tesla Coil.

"M-Must have been where he made Derpy Stitched," Twilight whispered, glancing at in it awe, before glancing about the TERRORDIS even more-so. "This place... is amazing."

"For eggheads, maybe," Rainbow chuckled, before making her way over to a control console. "Now we just need to figure out how to work this stupid thing..."

Twilight took a deep breath at that, as Rainbow lay her down beside her. At that, she turned her head towards her, a concerned look etched on her face.

"Hey… you alright? What's wrong?" she asked.

"It's just..." Twilight began. "I don't... I don't like leaving the city like this. I feel like we should be out there helping to defend it.” She took a deep breath. “It was my home, you know..."

Rainbow threw her a warm smile. "Hey, I understand. But as the Doctor said, the elves don't realize what they're up against. They may have tech on their side but they don't have our...." She squinted in thought, before smiling. "Our grit."

"Heh... yeah... I s-suppose you're right," Twilight admitted. "We are a merry bunch of nightmares, aren't we?"

“Darn straight!” Rainbow lifted an eyebrow. “Though it sounds like… something’s still bothering you, isn’t it?”

Twilight paused, though before she could open her mouth, the moment was broken.

"Oooo, I wonder what this button does!" Pinkie chimed.

Twilight's eyes widened. Pinkie’s hoof was precariously close to a big red button on the other side of the lab.

"PINKIE! Don't touch anything!" she shouted.

But it was too late. She had already hit it, and the TERRORDIS began to rattle and shake.

Her friends turned to the dream demon, glaring.

"Oopsie," she sweat-dropped.

"PINKIE!"

And they flew into the void.