Escapade

by Essbie

Rating: teen
Tags: Original Character, Dinky Hooves, Adventure, Shining Armor, Gore, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Doctor Whooves, Sad, Other
Length: 9548

A sequel to "All These Lights". Time Turner is connected to a series of events that are an immediate result to his actions before returning to Ponyville that Hearth's Warming Eve.

Time Turner returned on Hearth's Warming Eve. After his six month disappearance with no memory of what happened other than the belief he fixed something, he was finally reunited with his family. However, things that were meant to be forgotten have a way of creeping up on him as the mysterious death of a Royal Guard and sightings of creatures make headlines in Equestria. Before long the creatures go from lurking to actively making appearances, bringing havoc with them. In the midst of all this, the Doctor begins to realize that this is linked to his six-month disappearance.

A kinda-sorta sequel to All These Lights.

Published 2013-09-01 15:20:02 UTC
Last updated 2013-10-08 02:13:00 UTC

All A Game

1: All A Game

“You all know what I expect of you. Only one team will come back, and they will be rewarded for their success. Find the escapist, bring them to me, and when all is done, I will grant your prize.”

“…”

“You. Come with me.”

~~~

He stood before the massive gate, steeling himself for what he would encounter in the building beyond. All signs pointed him to here: the incessant grinding from within the place, the newspapers scattered about despite the lack of readers and writers, and then there were the literal signs themselves. They were faded, but the arrow shape was obvious, constantly directing him to this edifice.

It looked like a factory, yet it was a castle, but felt like neither. It was a box; one that contained something terrible. It would probably kill him, but he didn’t heed these thoughts.

He had to go inside.

~~~

Time Turner stumbled into the bathroom. His head was throbbing and his stomach was doing backflips. “Oh Celestia…” he muttered, throwing his face into the toilet. For better or for worse he did not vomit, but the feeling of nausea remained. Heart pounding, he tried to gather his thoughts as he collapsed in a heap on the floor.

It was a nightmare, yet it wasn’t. An all-too-familiar feeling welled in his chest. It was so real, but it never happened… or did it? It felt like a memory he never had, or had long forgotten. That what it had to be – a memory, it gave him that itching in the back of his mind that screamed something close to nostalgia while being the exact opposite. It was something he feared and something best left forgotten.

The bathroom door creaked open, and the sound of rushed hooves came to a halt next to him. “Time! What’s wrong?”

“N-nothing, Ditzy,” the stallion said. “Just… a nightmare.”

The pegasus laid a hoof on her spouse. “Do you wanna talk about it?” she asked.

He shook his head. “I’m fine, luv.” Carefully lifting himself to his hooves and steadying, he looked into her face. “Let’s just get back to bed.”

“M-mm.” Ditzy shook her head. “It’s almost seven.”

“It’s a Saturday.”

“Friday.”

The Doctor groaned. “I know too much about time to be losing track of it!” he chastised himself.

“You okay, muffin? Anything I can do to help?” At Ditzy’s words, Time Turner’s hoof dragged down his face before falling away. She was being serious; He bit his tongue and reminded himself of that. Despite his effort to respond seriously, he couldn’t keep a straight face for too long. He didn’t laugh, but his face kept twisting into and out of a grin, much to Ditzy’s delight.

The sound of the front door opening and closing reached their ears. Sparkler was the only other pony in the house that got up this early. She started work early at the local jeweler’s. Her job wasn’t grand; she simply kept tabs on the front of the store unless the manager’s expertise was truly needed. It wasn’t what she had in mind for the long run, but it was within her interest and it was a convenient way to get bits for what she had in mind. No one knew what exactly that was but herself, but it wasn’t hard to guess at.

“What do you say we get some breakfast?” Time Turner suggested with a smile, pushing the nightmare away.

~~~

Sparkler’s eyes scanned the article. Short as it was, it was strange enough to garner attention and become the major headline. Nothing like this had happened recently – nothing this grim:

ROYAL GUARD FOUND DEAD, FOUL PLAY?

CANTERLOT -- Last night, Royal Night Guards responded to a commotion at the entrance of the Royal Palace to discover one of their own was dead.

The fallen was identified as Corporal Cavern Shade, who was posted above the entrance. Initial statement by the Lieutenant Commander of his unit declared that the cause of death was a mystery.

"It seems that he had fallen to his death," Lt. Cmnd. Wall Flower stated. "Which is very suspicious given that he could fly."

Evidence referred to at the time was said to have suggested the Corporal had been murdered. "We've ordered an immediate autopsy in case we missed something," Wall Flower added. "We've also tightened our patrols. We didn't find any intruders after the incident, but that doesn't mean there weren't any."

The autopsy results should be released by tomorrow.

“Weird.”

“What’s weird, Spark?”

She looked up from the paper to see her father coming into the kitchen. “The headline? What’s happening in dear old Equestria today, eh?”

Sparkler sighed. “Read for yourself,” she said, levitating the paper over to him in a magical glow. She watched her father’s face change to that of confusion as he sat down across from her and read the article. “Now you know.”

“Huh.” The subject changed there. “So, how close are you?”

Again, she froze mid-bite. “What?” she asked through a mouthful of bread.

“To your goal? Bits? You’re not staying a cashier, are you?” Time Turner elaborated. Her mom nodded in agreement, taking a seat between them.

“Oh! Not close enough,” Sparkler answered. “I’m still saving u– Dad, I’m not a cashier!”

"Oh really?" Ditzy chimed in. "What's your job then? 'cause it looks a LOT like being a cashier!"

Sparkler clenched her teeth. There was no point in arguing anymore – she was a cashier, much to her dismay. However, small steps were better than no steps at all, and she was getting paid.

“Whatever, I gotta go now anyway.” Sparkler stood up and hugged both of her parents. “See you later,” she said after opening the door. As she closed it, she added: “Don’t go anywhere.”

Those words meant nothing to anypony else.

~~~

Dinky lay in her bed, eyes wide open. It wasn't the restlessness of a filly that kept her awake, nor was it the fact that she was ready to wake up. On the contrary, she was as tired as somepony who had been woken in the middle of the night, which was what happened.

She woke up to be gripped with fear.

There was somepony in her room, staring at her as she tried her best to disappear under the blanket. She doubled her efforts by facing the other way, but she didn't scream. Only foals screamed, and she was a big filly – one who could handle this herself, without her parents. It was just a matter of working up the courage to turn around and face them and, if it came to them, give the intruder a good wallop.

Yes, that's what she would do! Give them a whack! Dinky finally caught her shaking breath and put on her war face as she lifted herself up to face the corner.

Only the intruder was closer now – at the foot of her bed. Her war face disappeared with the shock of seeing the monster.

No... it wasn't a monster; it was an old unicorn stallion. His features could be seen through an eerie blue glow around him, showing squinting eyes and a rather long beard. She couldn't tell what his mane and coat looked like, nor could she see a cutie mark, but she could make out a cape with hood draped across his back.

The stallion peered at her as the two sat in silence, letting it settle thicker than cement. Finally, a voice broke the silence.

"A picture is worth a thousand words," he said in a wizened voice. "And words are said to be weapons. Do you understand, Dinky Hooves?"

Dinky couldn't move, and she didn't dare make a sound. How did he know her name?

"My dear filly, why are you so frightened?" the stallion asked. "I'm here to help you."

"H-help me?" Dinky repeated. "H-how are you g-going to help me?"

"As I was saying..." he began to explain. "If a picture is worth a thousand words and words are said to be weapons, what is the picture?"

A riddle. That was how he was going to "help her"? What a crock! What use was that riddle to her, she could barely remember her times tables! "Is this a joke?" she asked.

"Of course not, Miss Hooves." The glow around the stallion slowly dimmed. "I'm not here to make folly. I'm here... to warn you. Be vigilant of what you and others see, but take care not to look too closely!"

"What does that mean?" Dinky asked, crawling to the foot of the bed. "Who are you?"

“A spectator.” The last of the glow disappeared, and the stallion with it. “You must go now. Until we meet again, may the Sun and Moon guide your hooves!”

Dinky stared into the space the stallion once stood. A light suddenly shone through the window – light coming from a set of lanterns, but she knew there were no lanterns near her window. There was no stone either, yet she saw a lot of it. It looked familiar...

Canterlot! This was the entrance to the castle – right above it, actually. The stone was darker because of the night and previous rain, but she knew it was the home of the Princesses.

"I'm definitely dreaming," she said to herself. The view unexpectedly reversed, turning 180 degrees and moving slowly in that direction, only to shift down at a puddle. Yellow eyes stared back at her from it, startling her. The puddle was reflecting the image of one of those night ponies in armor. It wasn't hard to realize what was with the turning from there; she was seeing from the eyes of another pony. How was this possible?

Well, it was a dream, so she was probably having some fantasy of... whatever this was.

While she pondered, a shape appeared in the reflection behind the stallion. This caught his attention. "Who's there?" he said as he turned quickly.

Dinky blinked.

A terrible sound struck her – like a breaking glass along with ripping pages and hooves dragging across a chalkboard. She shuddered, clamping her hooves over her ears as she witnessed what happened next.

The guard was stumbling as he tried to stabilize himself while trying to keep an eye on whoever was with him. He lifted his front hooves onto the stone barrier that kept clumsy ponies from falling off the ledge and grunted in pain. Even with blurry vision, the guard managed to focus on his hind legs as a clawed hand grabbed one. Dinky had seen a similar looking limb from pictures of Griffins, but this was very different. She thought she could see fur.

The creature lifted the guard's hind leg and pushed it – causing the guard to flip over the ledge. Dinky could see the perpetrator through his eyes – but it was so blurred she couldn't make out anything more than the fact that it was big. Bigger than a pony.

"Fly!" she pleaded the guard. "Call for help! Do something!"

The view shifted, looking straight at the fast-approaching stone walkway as the guard plummeted head-first.

The guard screamed. So did Dinky. The window went dark.

~~~

Somewhere, a figure rubbed its dew-covered head as it crouched in a large garden.

~~~

Somewhere else, another figure stared into the eyes of creatures that seemed to be made of wood. The Timber Wolves snarled at what they perceived to be their prey. The victim in question remained stoic as he raised his arms. If he was going to die, he would not be alone.

One at a time, the wolves met his weapon until none remained. Their efforts were not in vain, however, as the figure lurched as he grasped a bite wound in his side, blood leaking through his gloved fingers. It was severe, but he had a duty to fulfill.

He would not die until it was finished. He was not allowed to.

~~~

Two guards stood at a table, opposite from a unicorn mare in a lab coat. On the table lay a guard – dead by mysterious circumstance. Finally, the Captain of the Guard and Lieutenant Commander would find out what killed this soldier.

“What are the results?” the Captain – also a prince – asked. “Murder?”

“Well…” the Doctor started. “It’s complicated.”

“You mean you don’t know,” Wall Flower guessed.

“Oh, I do know, but… it’s just… complicated. Simple, but–“

“Complicated,” the Night Guard interrupted. “Just let us have it.”

The mare sighed. “Well, it was the fall that killed him but... he had a heart attack.”

“What?” Shining Armor began pacing. “A young stallion with Royal Guard training – physically and mentally fit – is dead from a heart attack?” Wall Flower's expression matched what his Captain summarized.

"The nature of it seems to be magical or... well, you said it yourself so it's not possible, but mental. There were signs that indicated he was put under sudden and violent stress to the point his heart couldn't take it. Also, another unusual sign were his eyes."

"With all the blood I saw I swear his eyes were..." Wall Flower trailed off from there, looking at the pony shaped mass that lay under a white sheet before him.

"That was... ah... his nose. His eyes were intact and bloodshot... too bloodshot, like they were extremely strained."

"What does it mean, Doc Willow?" Shining Armor asked. "Your best guess? What killed Cavern Shade?"

The mare shrugged. "I really don't know, the evidence goes all over the place. He had a heart attack caused by an outside stimulus. My best guess?" Again she shrugged. "Fear."

"Absurd," Wall Flower said.

"I think so too," Willow said, stepping around the table, facing the two guard directly. "Like I said, it's all over the place."

The two guards took a deep breath. "What do I say?" the Lieutenant Commander asked.

"To the press or the family?"

~~~

A pair of shadows lingered in an alleyway. One was notably taller than the other and, as such, spoke with authority.

“It was unnecessary,” he said, as if scolding the other figure, which remained silent. “You’re a fool! A death is a mystery, but a cause even more! They’ll find out how he died and become suspicious!”

Again, the one he spoke to stayed silent.

“We must hurry.” The figure turned away and walked. “The others will be ahead of us by now, and we mustn't attract more attention. Let's hope our 'peers' have more tact than to leave evidence of our 'game'."

Finally, the other spoke as he followed his leader. “A game it is.”

“Yes,” the leader sighed. “All a game.”

Author's Note

Here it is, the psychedelic (...????????) first chapter! The next chapters will focus on individuals more, so there won't be many switches between scenes. I would compare this with chess, but this is more like TF2 with this kind of set up stage. Consider it as such, we won't be focusing on all these characters at once.

The Sparkler part was supposed to be longer, but it digressed from everything going on. It was more... "Sitcommy" is the only thing I can say about it. I didn't like it, and that probably caused it to get a little clunky.

I'm writing this kind of oddly. I'm starting in Microsoft Word and transferring text to the editor here, typing a bit there, and transferring it back to Word to see if it needs grammatical editing. Kinda takes a while but it works.

Doctor Willow's name is Willow Bark (because Willow Bark as medicinal qualities). I pulled her character out of my ass. That sounds wrong, but I said what I meant.

Also to make things clear right now: It's not furries. They have fur, but they're not furries.

EDIT: I want to see if I can get away with giving every chapter a musical theme. To test, I've put a link to The Engine City (Bioshock soundtrack) in the chapter title.

Seeing Things

2: Seeing Things

"When you arrive there, one of you will gather information of this place as opposed to the main priority."

"Why is this?"

"Curiosity, that's all."

"..."

~~~

Screams of bloody murder came from Dinky's room, making Time Turner leap from his seat and gallop there instinctively. She had bad dreams before, but nothing ever made her scream like that. He wouldn't be surprised if the neighbors heard it.

As he pushed the door open, he saw her huddled on the floor, shaking in terror. He couldn't help but remember his own episode just an hour earlier, hairs standing up all down his spine.

“Dinky!” He took her and held her tight. “It’s only a dream! You’re all right!”

She wasn’t. Her eyes were bugged out, red and full of tears. “They made me see it!” she howled. “They killed him!”

“It was only a bad dream dear,” he whispered. “It… wasn’t real.”

Dinky stopped screaming, but the shivering, the tears, and the look of terror remained. Time Turner could only hold her gently rock her in an attempt to comfort her. “It’s okay,” he whispered. “We’re here.”

Ditzy, previously standing in the doorway, trotted slowly into the bedroom to take over – she was much better at dealing with this sort of thing. After wrapping the small unicorn in her wings, she looked up at her husband with worry. In that moment, she thought that her crossed eyes saw something in her husband’s face. Did he look scared, or just really worried? It was just a filly’s nightmare; there was no reason for it to be either. She shook it off as just a mistake.

“I’ve got it from here,” she whispered to him, turning her attention back to Dinky. “It’s okay, Muffin. I’m here, Daddy’s here. Nothing bad is happening, it was all just a dream.”

Dinky wasn’t so reassured. For different reasons, neither was her father.

The stallion turned and left the room, carrying a net of questions with him. "Maybe it was nothing," he said quietly to himself. "Maybe it was."

An image of a red book with worn edges and bits of paper sticking out suddenly came to mind. He recognized it, but didn't remember how. "A journal... mine? I've never kept a journal, I don't think." Maybe it was important.

Maybe it was nothing.

~~~

Pipsqueak had gotten up early. This wasn’t an accident; the future adventurer of lands unknown wanted to go do something before school. For the past few days, he had been visiting the cottage on the edge of town.

A few days earlier he had gone there to see if the rumors were true about Fluttershy taking care of an actual parrot – the truest mate of a pirate (the ones he loved to read about)! Indeed they were, along with something a bit unexpected. The young colt had suddenly found he was interested in all the animals. Perhaps it had something to do with those adventure stories with the gentle wood-dwelling ponies that had a way with animals. In the case of Fluttershy, those stories were indisputably true! Whatever the case, he was interested in what it was like to be a sort of “beast master”.

As he rushed around his grandfather – who sat at the kitchen counter drinking a cup of tea while reading the newspaper – the colt managed to nab his breakfast, a piece of bread, and his favorite bandana from next to the elder. After attempting to say goodbye past the full mouth, he ran out the front door.

Nor’easter looked up and stared for a bit. The door opened again as the colt rushed back in a grabbed his forgotten backpack from the hook next to it and left. The elder looked back at his paper. “Hmph. Some adventurer… forgettin’ ‘is things like that.”

Pipsqueak passed the buildings by with haste. All was a blur to him. There weren’t that many ponies out and about in the morning. In fact, the only one he passed was a familiar magenta unicorn who’s name he couldn’t recall. Ponyville was a small town, just not too small so that everypony would know each other’s names, talents, birthdays, and guilty pleasure. The only names everyone was certain to know were of the Element Bearers and Mayor Mare (if that even was her name).

Finally, he came to the edge of town. There was only a little way to go until the cottage from where it sat by the edge of the dreaded Everfree Forest. How he longed to discover its secrets! Unfortunately, when the opportunity ever arose to go deep into the forest, he would freeze in his tracks. An adventurer was never afraid, but the point of an adventure was to come back and tell others what you discovered. The Everfree wasn’t a place one could just trot into and hope to come out of; it was said that many who went too deep were never seen again. But the Bearers of Harmony went that deep, right? So who was to say that wasn’t really true?

Timber wolves, manticores, hydra, dragons and cockatrice, that’s who. No one could argue with them; if a hedgehog could be a good lawyer, than a creature from the Everfree could be a politician. They were immensely convincing with their ways.

The cottage came into view, just as he heard the rooster crow. Something caught his attention as he approached the fence. An odd yet familiar smell lingered in the air. What was that? The answer was on the tip of his tongue to the point he swore he could taste it. Hold on, that was it! A taste that was like the smell! It all came to him. After a little misadventure a few months ago involving the Cutie Mark Crusaders and a rock pile, he had bitten his tongue.

That was blood then. That smell was blood. A feeling a dread came over him. One of the animals must have been hurt badly or…

Pipsqueak began searching for the source of the smell. It was too strong to be a little blood, there had to be a pool nearby. He only hoped it was just blood and not anything else. Blood and gore were not secret to him. The former was fine in stories, but the thought of a pony or an animal being ravaged was something he was rightfully repulsed by. Anypony who wasn't had to have something wrong with them – it just wasn't right.

The animals must have noticed it too as they were acting strangely. One of the chickens (he didn’t know which) peeked out of the coop for a second before disappearing in a cloud of dust. That was when Pipsqueak saw it.

A smear of blood ran along the side of the coop, forming an arc. The area below where the smear disappeared was the source of the scent. It was a simple puddle of blood, not as large as he thought. It was as if somepony clumsily splattered half a jar of tomato sauce. Why was the scent so strong? On a more important note, who was the donor? Not one of the animals, he thought. There would have been a commotion loud enough to wake Fluttershy in that case. The blood had to come from something from off the property.

"Or maybe some rogue is about!" Pipsqueak imagined. "An' he's plottin' somethin' awful in the Everfree, it looks like!" Without another thought, he made his way down the path to the wood.

Sure enough, there were a lot of red drops of blood along the path. They became more and more frequent the longer he followed them. Suddenly, the trail came to an end. There was more blood here, covering the leaves of some of the Everfree's vegetation, along with uplifted dirt and some hoofprints. A pony had been here, he concluded, but where could they have gone?

That's when he noticed his surroundings. The Everfree Forest was full of life, and this, oddly enough, was unsettling. He could barely make out the rays of Celestia's sun through the thick layer of leaves above. Who knew what was lurking amidst these trees? Was something watching him? He swore he could see unearthly shadows moving about, along with glowing yellow eyes peering at him from between branches. With the weight of the forest seemed to be bearing down on him, Pipsqueak just couldn't take it anymore.

He quickly turned, only to slam into something yellow. He fell back with a scream. "Pleasedon'teatme, pleasedon'teatme, pleasedon'teatme..." he repeated, eyes tightly shut. After a second of nothing happening, he opened his eyes a crack.

It was Fluttershy. She too was shivering in fear, hooves covering her eyes. "Miss Fluttershy?" Pipsqueak got back up on his hooves. "What a' you doin' out here? I thought ye were in bed!"

The pegasus lifted her hooves from her eyes. "Pipsqueak? W-why are you out here? No, this isn't where you want to be." She turned and whispered something to herself. Pipsqueak could barely catch it, but thought she said "...might be awake now". Thinking nothing of it, the colt informed her of his findings.

"Yes, I heard something earlier this morning," Fluttershy said. "It sounded like a poor creature that was hurt in a terrible accident... I-I saw the blood, and I knew I just had to help them."

"But I thought you were scared o' the forest, miss!" Pipsqueak said. "No offense, just... ye did!"

"I am scared of it, b-but the thought of an injured animal out there... Well, I got my emergency kit–" she motioned to the saddle bag she had on, "–and went searching for it."

"Well, eh... did ye?" Pipsqueak asked.

"...oh, um, uh, yes. Yes I did." Neither pony said anything for a moment. Just as the awkward level reached critical, Fluttershy broke the silence. "Come on, Pipsqueak. We... we'd best be going."

The two of them started to make their way back to the cottage. As the trotted, Pipsqueak took a look back.

He thought he saw something. A white face with a beak just as pale spattered with blood. Just as soon as he saw it, it disappeared into the shadows.

"Must be this place... it's gettin' under me skin," he tried to reason with himself. The hairs on the back of his neck didn't stand down no matter how hard he tried.

~~~

"Are you sure you're okay muffin?"

Without responding to her mother's question, Dinky grabbed her things and left, heading for school. She went in a quick yet steady trot, determined to get through the day and get that dream out of her head. Try as she might, she couldn't get those words the stallion said out of her mind.

"I'm here to help you."

How, by telling a riddle then traumatizing her? It only got worse after she woke up and had her breakfast when she saw that news article. Was that the guard whose eyes she was looking through? It had to be; she knew what the entrance of the palace looked like, and that's where the article said the guard's body was found. It wasn't just a dream – this had actually happened, and she somehow saw it.

"If a picture is worth a thousand words and words are said to be weapons, what is the picture?"

How the hay would she know? She wasn't good with riddles, she was only nine! Great, now she had to actually dwell on it because of how important it seemed.

"A word is a weapon..." Dinky said to herself. "A picture is a thousand words... a thousand weapons? What the heck does that mean?" After only a second of dwelling, she came to the conclusion that this was the first time she ever encountered something so important yet so meaningless at the same time.

With the school coming into view, she thought about the last thing that elder had said to her.

"Till we meet again, may the Sun and Moon guide your hooves!”

Who said goodbye like that? She'd never heard anyway say farewell in such a mystical way before. Did anypony say that in Equestria? Maybe Miss Cheerilee would know.

She was the second foal to enter the schoolhouse. Pipsqueak was already at his desk, taking off his red bandana. That silly colt always wore that thing wherever he went, sometimes forgetting Miss Cheerilee had a rule against hats and bandanas. The only ones who managed to find a loophole were Applebloom and Diamond Tiara – the bow tied her hair and the tiara was really a headband.

There was something a little off about Pipsqueak. Usually, he was full of zeal, but now he was calmly putting his bandana on the desk and staring straight ahead at the board. If he was any other foal, Dinky would have assumed he was reading what Miss Cheerilee was putting up on the board ("The History of Cloudsdale"). He wasn't even paying attention to anything – he just had the thousand-yard stare. This worried Dinky incredibly. She would put aside her dilemma to see what was wrong in a minute, but right now she had a question to ask.

"Miss Cheerilee?" she said, approaching the desk.

The teacher put the chalk down and turned to her student. "Good morning, Dinky, is there something you need?"

How could she explain this? "I, uh... wanted to ask you about something I heard. A phrase, I think."

"Something you need to know the meaning of?"

Nopony could put it better. "Yes. 'May the Sun and Moon guide your hooves.' What does that mean?"

Cheerilee put on a pondering look. "I've never heard anypony say that, but I've seen that in stories. It was used often more than a thousand years ago as a farewell or a blessing. It appears often in the stories a legends from before the banishment of Nightmare Moon. I don't think anypony says it anymore – it's rather... archaic."

Well, clearly that explained the stallion's age. Not at all, really, since he looked better than Granny Smith, whom everypony knew was possibly the oldest mare in Ponyville. There was a lot Dinky had to keep track of from that dream, as she felt it was all important. As such, she made a mental note to write it down in her extra notebook later.

Dinky gave her thanks to Cheerilee and took a seat next to Pipsqueak, who was still staring into space. "You okay?" she asked. The colt jumped in his seat, startled.

"D-Dinky, dear– I mean... Dinky," he stuttered. "S-sorry, I'm just... feelin' a li'l glum. Rough mornin' an' all, there was blood on th–" he cut himself off. "Just... never mind me. I'm as fit as a fiddle."

"Blood?" Dinky asked. "What blood?"

"Nothin', don't ask me, lass!"

"Tell me!" Dinky said in a pleading tone. "Pleeeease?"

"Nay."

"Hrmph... Squeaky."

"What was that ye jus' called me, lass?" The colt, feeling challenged by this absolute insult. No one mocks his name like that! "If ye were a stallion, I wouldn't hesitate t' give ye a clobberin'!"

"Tell me what happened!"

"Not on yer life, Dinky!"

"Squeaky! Squeaky! Squeaky!" Dinky repeated, feeling utter joy from this poor colt's suffering.

Pipsqueak groaned. "Fine, ye coaxed me into it." He swallowed bitterly before beginning his tale. "This mornin' I was visitin' Miss Fluttershy's cottage – don't ask why o' you'll be gettin' t' know plenty o' fishes before sundown. When I got there, I found this trail o' blood goin' into the Everfree."

"Tell me you didn't follow it!" Dinky whispered, afraid of what was to come.

"I can't, Dinky, cos I did. I followed th' trail to its end. Nothin', but I did run into Miss Fluttershy... literally."

"Was she..."

"Nah, she was fine, lass. Seemed t act a wee bit strange, but was fine. She heard some racket this mornin' an' followed that blood to where I wound up. Some animal was hurt bad, so she went lookin' an' patched it right up."

"What was it? A deer?"

Pipsqueak suddenly looked grim. "She never said. But... I thought I saw... somethin'. When we were leavin' the place, I looked back at me 6 o' clock an' saw it."

There was a long silence. "Well? What did it look like?" Dinky asked.

Pipsqueak couldn't say. "Alright kids! Get out your textbooks and open them to page 223," Cheerilee instructed. "We'll be reading about the founding of Cloudsdale and how important it is to Equestria – asides from its weather factory, that is."

Dinky had to put her quest down for the day, at least until recess. She got her book out of her bag and opened it up to the page they were told. Her mind wandered back to the conversation, specifically how it started.

"Dinky... dear? Ugh." Shaking off the mushiness, she passively glanced out the window and froze.

Something big sped past it, casting a shadow over Cheerilee's desk. It didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the class.

"What was that?" a colt asked.

"What was what?" another replied.

"That shadowy fella that flew by," a filly told them. "Who else saw it?"

The room filled with raised hooves and chants of "me", "I did", and "anyone got a pencil".

"Quiet down, class," Cheerilee ordered. "It was probably just a certain pegasus doing another stunt of hers."

"Her stunts are cool though!" Scootaloo's voice called out. "Besides, whatever that was, it wasn't her. It was big!"

"Oh, don't be sil–" Cheerilee stopped as she looked out the back window. "That... that's not a pegasus."

The class turned around. Outside, they could see a tall creature with big black eyes and a long pale face that resembled a bird's head and beak, only spattered with red. The rest of the creature was covered in black. It was turning its head, as if it was scanning the area.

"Featherweight," Applebloom said, prodding the skinny colt's shoulder. "Get a photo of that thang." The junior photographer nodded and got out his camera.

"Ready..." He clicked, and the camera flashed. The creature noticed this and leapt into a stance. Something glinted on its arms for a second. As suddenly as it had readied itself, it was gone, disappearing in the direction of the forest.

"I want all of you to stay where you are! I will be right back, don't near the windows!" Cheerilee yelled as she left through the front door. The class erupted into excited murmurs. Most of them speculating on what it was they saw. Others, like Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, were indifferent, talking about plans for the weekend. Dinky turned over to Pipsqueak. Again, he was staring into space.

"That was it..." he said. "Th-that was what I saw in the forest this mornin'!"

~~~

The stack of papers slammed down on the desk in front of him. "What's this?" Shining Armor asked.

"Panic, sir," the messenger guard stated. "Reports of mysterious creatures in a few city areas. Canterlot, Trottingham... Ponyville."

"Ponyville..." the Captain murmured. "My sister's there, yes?"

"She's not due back for another day, sir."

The blue-maned stallion sighed. "Very well. I'll look over these. In the meantime... send some troops to the reported locations." He picked up one report in his magic and began reading.

"It's merely panic sir... is it wise to scramble the guard on short notice."

Shining stopped reading and slowly put the paper down, leaning over the desk. He stared right in the messenger's face, making the colt sweat.

"One," he stated. "You. Are not. My adviser. I don't not have an adviser, but if I were to pick one, it wouldn't be you." the guard gulped and backed away. "Two: we are not scrambling them. We are upping the security around the palace and sending some extra guards out to see if there's any truth to these rumors. Three: I. Will not. Take. Chances. Do I make myself clear, Corporal?"

"Sir, yes, sir!" The guard said, despite his shaking.

"Good. Now go do your job."

The messenger saluted before hastily going off to do his duty. As soon as he left, in came Wall Flower.

"What's happening, sir?" The Lieutenant Commander asked.

"Creature sightings around Canterlot, Trottingham, and Ponyville. I wonder why they're nowhere else?"

"Immediately after one of my guards is killed, too. Coincidence?"

Shining shrugged. "Possibly... hey, why are you here, anyway? I didn't summon you."

"I accidentally received a message intended for you," the bat pony explained, tossing a scroll onto the pile of paper. "It's from your wife, sir."

"Oh! Thanks, Wall. I could use it, Celestia knows."

Wall Flower nodded as the Captain opened the scroll. "I'll be going now, sir."

"Hold on, Commander," Shining said. "About the creatures..."

"What about them?"

"I want you to managed the search in Canterlot."

Wall Flower was taken aback. Usually, that would be the Captain job, to oversee patrols of the capitol. "But, sir–"

"I'll be managing the search in Ponyville," the unicorn stated. "It's only for a couple days, I believe. So I'll come back and transfer you to that section when I return with my sister."

"I see, very well sir. Anything else?"

"Yes... keep your eyes peeled. See if these creatures are real, and see if they can communicate if they are. Find out what they want, but don't let your guard down."

The winged stallion nodded, saluted, then left.

Author's Note

Here it is! Chapter 2! Isn't it strange how a story with Doctor Whooves as a main character doesn't have a lot of him to offer yet? Well, don't worry about that.

I may have rushed towards the end, sorry if it shows.

Enjoy!

EDIT REGARDING CHAPTER MUSIC: It seems Youtube has been doing their job. Sadly, I do not remember what i had for this chapter's theme, feel free to choose your own.

Messages

Chapter 3: Messages

"What if one of their kind gets in our way?"

"Magistrate didn't say..."

"..."

~~~

News of the sighting spread through the entire town like wildfire; everypony knew about it before noon. Shortly thereafter, news of the sightings in Canterlot and Trottingham was made known, earning a frenzy of conspiracy theories, especially from the Flower Sisters.

The town's "personal" Princess Twilight began a prompt investigation into the sightings herself, assuring the town that a dispatch of royal guards would be arriving that day as a security measure on the noon train. She started by questioning the class that got a good look of the creature. If everything went all right, then she would have gotten the photo Featherweight had taken. Unfortunately, the class had their fair share of impatient idiots – Snips and Snails couldn't wait to see how the picture came out that they took the colt's camera and exposed the film. With that evidence destroyed, all Twilight had to go on was word of mouth. Two foals in particular seemed to know a great deal, but only one of them was really talking.

"Thank you all for your cooperation!" Twilight said after informing Cheerilee of the two foals she wanted to speak with some more. "Now I have a little bit of bad news. Because of everything that's been going on, you're class won't be able to contin-" She couldn't finish. The entire class stood from their desks and started filing out of the front door. "Uh... sorry... about this?" she said with a look of disappointment.

Dinky and Pipsqueak were pulled out of the crowd squeezing through the door. "You two," Cheerilee said. "Princess Twilight would like to ask you more questions."

"Why us?" Dinky asked, sitting at the closest desk with a huff. Her question wasn’t answered until the last student left the schoolhouse. Only she, Pipsqueak, the Princess, Miss Cheerilee, and a sudden tension in the air were in the room. Strange, she hadn't felt such tension since...

~~~

Time Turner lazily watched the clock on the desk tick forward in its endless march. The bell on the front door hadn't rung for the entire day. The hype over the mysterious creature sightings had slowed business in his little shop to a halt – unlike the clocks on the walls that never stopped, if he could help it. He let out a bored yawn and waited a bit longer, but there was still nothing – no money today.

He got up from his backroom desk and stretched his limbs. Well, if that was how it was going to be, he might as well close up early. Customers would be back in droves tomorrow, that much he was certain. Besides, he had heard rumors that the school would be letting the students go home early. It would be a great time to catch up with Dinky on a few things, things involving nightmares.

"Now," he scolded himself. "That's just cruel! Why would I do that to my own daughter?" The state she was in that morning was a sure sign that she didn't want to talk. After she cried herself out,she got up and did her normal routine, only she hardly spoke. Her eyes told him that there was something bothering her – something she needed to think about, maybe. Even as she left she was acting coldly; Ditzy had informed him that she didn't even say goodbye! That wasn't Dinky – she was always a sweet filly no matter what troubled her. This was entirely different, and it was disturbing to him as her father.

The Doctor agreed with himself, it was time to get the jump on whatever was troubling his daughter before it grew into anything. "No, that's not it!" he said to himself. "I'm just going to pick her up from school! Maybe chat with her, but that's it!"

A ringing of a bell came from the front of the store. A customer? Now? Another ring told him that they had left. "I swear if it's one of those blokes that go and complain about my customer service because they weren't served the instant they came in..."

As expected, there was neither hide nor hair of the pony. However, a telegram-sized card was lying on the counter. At a single glance he knew it wasn't an actual telegram – there were no "STOPs" in the message. He started to read it.

Either there was a glitch in the printing or whoever typed this was incompetent when it came to capitals, but it was the subject matter that truly stood out. Manuscript? Him? In Trottingham? He had never attempted to write a story in his life, but… Trottingham. This book this Tome DeWatt was implying was found in an alley in Trottingham, but it couldn’t be the one he woke up in before Hearth’s Warming, could it? If it was then…

A red book with worn edges and loose pages sticking out.

It was his journal, if it was a journal. But why wait until now to remember it? Why was it now that all this was coming to him? “Maybe it never had a purpose until now…”

Another ringing of the bell knocked Time Turner out of his thoughts. It was Cheerilee, looking distressed and panting in the doorway. "Mr. Turner!" she shouted.

"Miss Cheerilee, what is–"

"Please hurry!" she interrupted.

"I was just about to come and pick up–"

"Dinky's having some kind of episode and... please! I can't do anything!"

It was like being hit with a brick. "Is she alone in the schoolhouse?" he yelled.

"No, Twilight Sparkle is with her, but she doesn't know what to do with this and... please hurry!" With that, she rushed back out the door.

~~~

Shining Armor stepped off the platform and into his destination. Various guardsmen hurried past him to the posts he had instructed them to. The Ponyville detachment's head, Lieutenant Hookshot, an Earth pony, was waiting for him by a lamp post adorned with a large poster:

A BLUE ALERT STATUS HAS BEEN
DECLARED FOR THIS TOWN

Citizens are not to enter the Everfree Forest alone. Citizens are not to enter the Everfree Forest in a group of two or more without authorization or Guard escort. Citizens are to report to their place of residence by 8 in the evening and are to stay indoors until sunrise. If a citizen is unable to arrive at their place of residence, they may report to Town Hall or other government or emergency building (i.e., Clinics, Hospitals, Guard Stations). Inter-city travel by hoof must be done in a group of 2 or more with authorization. Inter-city travel by train is allowed in groups of two or more without authorization. Anypony caught in violation of these conditions will be detained until alert status is lifted and may be find up to 750 bits.

If you spot suspicious activity of relevance, report to the nearest Royal Guard.

"Lieutenant Hookshot," the Captain said. "How is everything here? How are the citizens reacting?"

"Sir!" Hookshot saluted. "Everythin' has been in order since the announcement, sir!"

"At ease, Lieutenant. How is the mayor treating this?" The two of them started trotting to the Guard Station.

"By the looks of it, she's tryin' her best to keep the morale up in the townsfolk." He chuckled. "Only problem is, the morale hasn't been goin' down. Now, there's no harm in what she's doin', I jus' don't get the point."

"Like you said Lieutenant," Shining said. "There's no harm, no help. All is well."

"Nnnnot quite, sir."

The Captain stopped in his tracks. "I thought you said everything is in order?"

The guard adjusted his helmet out of nervousness. "Well... yes sir, it is but..."

"Hookshot..."

"Yes sir, it either is or isn't, I know. This is outside the town, sir. More precisely, the Everfree."

The unicorn squinted. "Report."

"Sir!" Hookshot snapped back into the guard attitude. "Accordin' to the town census, one Ponyville citizen does not live in the town, but in the forest. A zebra named Zecora has a hut in the Everfree."

"Why hasn't anyone brought her to the town, then?"

"The hut is her place of residence, and even in Blue Alert status we cannot uproot a citizen from their place of residence accordin' to chapter three, subsection three of the Guard's Code of Conduct."

Shining Armor mentally slapped himself. Of course he, the Captain of Equestria’s Royal Guard, would forget that section of the Code! Even so, he believed he could find a loophole in this newly remembered information. “A resident cannot enter the Everfree alone, right?”

“Yes sir,” Hookshot answered. “Says it right on the sign.”

“So, technically, if she stepped out of her house, she would be in violation?”

Hookshot stared blankly. A mare galloped past the two, but neither paid her any mind. “Well… uh… forgive me, sir, I didn’t think of that. Should we go detain her?”

“No, that would be entrapment,” Shining Armor said. “We’ll just go to her home later and–“

“Pardon me! One side! Out of the way!” A stallion attempted to barrel between the two of them, only for Shining to snag him by the mane with his magic.

“That’s a little too close for comfort,” the Captain said, directing his attention to the Lieutenant again. “Who’s this?”

“His name is–“

“Let me go!” The stallion interrupted. “She needs me!”

“–Time Turner, sir,” Hookshot finished. “No record except a missing pony report.”

“Missing? I think I found him.” Shining said, not attempting to hide the irony in his voice.

“Are you two serious?! My daughter is in trouble and you two are–“ Time Turner started furiously.

“Calm down, Doc!” The Lieutenant sternly put. “From the top. What kind of trouble is Sparky– Sparkler in?”

“Not her! Dinky!” Time Turner began desperately as Shining dropped his magic grip. “Cheerilee came by and told me she was having some sort of fit! The Princess is there, but she can’t do anything! I’ve got to go…” Time Turner began galloping at full speed to the schoolhouse again. “Sorry for bumping you gents!”

The two guards were left in the street. Several ponies who witnessed the small altercation went back to their business, save for a trio of mares that seemed to start gossiping about it. All of this went unnoticed to Shining Armor as a single thought crossed his mind.

“My sister… can’t do anything?” He said to himself in disbelief. “I’ll believe it when I see it. I’ll be seeing you in headquarters at dusk, Lieutenant; you may return to your post.” With that rushed order, he started following the sprinting colt.

“Sir! What about the issue with the resident in the forest?” Hookshot called after him.

“Later, Lieutenant!” The Captain shouted, barely looking over his shoulder.

~~~

She slammed her hoof into her head again. This was, what, the 90th time? However many times she did it, it never worked. She knew it wouldn’t work every time she did after the fifth. From there on she started yelling at him as she did it.

The old stallion was back, staring at her from behind her teacher’s desk. “Go away!” She yelled. “Wake me up! Wake up!”

“You’re not sleeping, Dinky,” the stallion said. “Please stop that… you’re hurting yourself, child!”

The microcosm that was the schoolhouse never seemed more uninviting than now. The colors had dulled to almost monochrome, and the three other occupants had suddenly been replaced with this unwelcome guest. Out of all the changes, the chalkboard was the largest.

"DROWN"

A choking sensation filled her. "Help!" She heard the cry as it was muffled by a splash.

"It's not really happening child," she heard the stallion say. "You just need to understand..."

"DROWN"

Her fur felt drenched as she scrambled, hitting her horn against the desk. It hurt incredibly as she slammed down, trying to murder the experience. The head was forced down to the bottom.

"A great disturbance has been made..."

"DROWN"

Desperation filled her as she felt she couldn't breath. She leaned her head far back for one more strike.

"...and you cannot escape the wickedness he has brought."

"DROWN IT IN THE STREAM."

Darkness closed in. She felt her go, but it still wasn't over. She could see it like a movie playing endlessly in her mind.

The last bubbles rose to the surface, carrying the lost life with it as they slipped between the assailant's clawed fingers. "Who knew?" A creaky voice said. "Food can talk, after all..." A metallic scrape sounded as she felt her eyes – no, the killer's – stare with hunger at the victim.

The sound she made was one even she didn't know she could make. She let loose and slammed a final time into the desk.

~~~

"Deborah?" Applejack called as she search for the heifer. "What in tarnation are ye doin', wanderin' from the herd like that!"

The Bearer of Honesty had been taking her rounds, inspecting the fencing of Sweet Apple Acres. Every month, either she or Big Macintosh would take a look and see if any part of the fences needed repair. The purpose? Well, it was some hard work that needed doing. Fences were important on a farm, after all! An old fence couldn't hold up Apple Bloom if she were to climb over it, and Celestia knew that filly had something for climbing the fences! Besides, it gave Sweet Apple Acres a good image. No one was going to get their apples from a farm that's falling apart, after all!

It was while she was inspecting by the cow pasture when one of them approached her with concerns. They had heard Deborah cry out for some help a short time ago, and thought she had gotten her hooves stuck in a burrow or something. Nothing the farmer couldn't handle, of course.

"Deborah!" She called again. Her patience was beginning to wear thin. "I ain't mad at ya for leavin' the herd, but ye gotta be more careful!" She was approaching the part of the property the river ran through now. Not too far from the pasture, but even so, this was getting ridiculous. Where was that cow? "Deborah!"

The river came into view. "Heavens t' Betsy! Where is that–"

"Why do you make them so faaaat?" Applejack jumped. He eyes lay on a black form kneeling by the river... a river that was running red. "You don't eat them." The form was speaking in a creaking, menacing voice.

"J-Just who're you?" Applejack challenged. "What in the hay are ye doin' on mah–"

A rumbling sound came from the stranger. It was laughter – he was laughing at her. "Charmin' voice ye got there," he mimicked. "Bet it gets you a lot of offers."

"Ye makin' fun o' mah accent, now?" Applejack could feel the fury boil from her hooves to her hate. "You listen here, mister, ah ain't got a single clue 'bout why yer here or what yer talkin' about, but I get th' hint that we're not gonna be gettin' along, so I suggest ye clear out!"

"I will," the voice answered. "But... can you answer a question?"

"What're ye–"

"Does an hourglass mean anything to you? And please hurry up, I'm quite eager to get home to lunch..."

"I think ye better leave," Applejack put firmly.

The stranger seemed to freeze, and it began to slowly turn his head to face her. His face was one that struck bolts of terror into the farm pony's heart. A long, pale face with a sickening smile – a permanent, fake smile only a mask could give, spattered with red. "Answer me..." His tone was rising with anger.

"Git!" Applejack responded. "I got a heifer t' find, ye darn spook! Masks 're for Nightmare Night!"

"Ha!" He whipped out, shining object. "Answer the question and it won't be you!"

This was getting dangerous. The object he had revealed to her was a knife covered in red. This colt was really trying to give her a scare! At least, that was what she thought until she noticed how it was holding it.

Fingers. Clawed and covered in fur.

"Yer a Diamond Dog, ain't ya?" She took a step forward.

"A what?" The masked dog said.

What? No... it can't be... "You got a refined voice fer yer species!" She said, pointing out the nearly civilized – albeit coarse – tone of the stranger. "Must've taken some practice! So what're y' on? Gettin' revenge for that whuppin' Rarity gave y'all a while back?"

"You waste my time," The "Dog" stood on its two legs – standing at almost twice Applejack's size.

"Where d' you think yer goin'?" Applejack got ready to charge the stranger in black. She could take a Diamond Dog outside of it's territory! Only... from the vibe she got from his response to her accusation...

This wasn't a Diamond Dog. A close cousin, perhaps?

Her target grunted. "You must be joking..." He heaved a red-stained sack over his shoulder as he slid the knife away. "Come on then, do your worst!" He challenged.

The farm pony charged. The stranger whipped around, launching something at her. It was too fast for her to dodge, and slammed into her face with a clunk. It felt as if she had been headbutted by a bull! Applejack skidded as she fell to her side in a grunt of pain.

It seemed like an eternity before she could sit up. The creature was gone. "Damn it!" She cursed, rubbing her sore nose. Her hoof came away from her face; glistening red from what she knew had to be a nose bleed.

Wait... she wiped above her nostrils, though. She wiped her cheek with her clean hoof. More blood! Where did it come from?

She looked back and saw the object the creature had thrown at her. It was a small brown sack with stains of red – red that must have gotten onto her own face. Curiosity overwhelmed her; what was in that sack that made her feel like she took a brick to the kisser? She stepped closer to inspect it, knowing it had to be quick. Deborah was still out there in trouble. She would have to remember to report this to the guard later. Until then, the sack grabbed her attention.

Her took hold of a loose flap, and something clunked out with a familiar sound. In front of her lay a cowbell. A bloody cowbell. A cowbell with the name "Deborah" on it.

She quaked. "Oh no... no please... it... it CAN'T be..." She dared continue, opening the sack fully.

Deborah's eyes stared back at her, yet saw nothing. "No..." That large sack the creature was carrying. "No!"

"Why do you make them so faaaat?"

"I'm quite eager to get home to lunch..."

"NOOOO!"

Author's Note

Blood! Blood! Gallons of the stuff!