Ooh, why hello there. What an honor to be in your presence! My name is...well, that's not really important. What is important, however, is that you have entered a wonderful, wonderful place today. What is this place, you ask? Well, I'll tell you. As you probably already know, It's October. What you might not know, however, is that October is one of my super favorite months. It's my birthday month, It's nice and cool with the autumn weather, and most of all…
It's that wonderful month when it's perfectly fun to be scared.
…And there's free candy. Who could ask for more?
With that said, I welcome you to EpicSmiley12's super Spooktober Spectacular. I've been busting my brain preparing for this, so that every day this month I will be able to post either a one-shot or short story, all leading up to some special things on the big All Hallow's Eve. Prepare yourselves for parodies, horror stories, and dark tragedies featuring my three favorite fandoms. We're kicking it off with three new one-shots for AATC, MLP, and CBs. So please, sit back, relax, and let the nightmares consume you.
Here comes the first MLP one-shot: The Bell.
The morning sun rose above the mountains, bathing everything it touched in its soft golden light. Despite the beautiful early morning scenery, not a sound or soul emerged from beneath the sunlight. Even the Everfree Forest, in all its feral, untamed splendor, was still and quiet. The entire region stayed this way until the sun had moved a little rather along its path across the sky. Now it was just about nine o'clock in the morning. Still, within the town closest to the great forest - a small town called Ponyville - all was quiet. No birds, no voices, not even the trickle of water from the town fountain filled the air. Then again, such silence, once foreign in the charming little village, had been present there for generations.
It wasn't until the sun's great light had reached the peak of its arc in the sky that something stirred. On top of a weathered, brown hill, caked with dust and debris from years gone by, stood a lone building. It had seen much better days; the door was faded and rotting, and the thatched roof had all but fallen in. Somehow, the bare frame of the old Ponyville schoolhouse had survived the test of time, and the building hadn't completely collapsed. The same couldn't be said for the playground and lawn. Grass that had once been green, lush, and neat had turned into overgrown stalks of brown, dry foliage perfect for hiding a number of critters. The slides, swings, and merry-go-rounds of the recess area had been all but totaled. Their metal appendages were twisted and charred, and the structures lay tilted over like a colony of dead beetles.
And through all of this, something moved.
The weakened front door swung open; a loud crrreeeeaaak sounding as it did so. For a full minute there was silence. Then, almost in slow motion, a spiceberry purple hoof crossed over the threshold. It was followed by another, and they moved until the front half of an earth pony could be clearly seen. Wisteria purple hair fell down her shoulders, and pale green eyes peeked out from under her bangs. She looked around quickly, and then spoke in a soft, lilting voice.
"Alright, my little ponies, recess is over. It's time to come inside."
She stood still in the doorway. Her eyes were determinedly fixed on the playground. If somepony had been passing by, surely they would have thought it strange; a mare standing in a wrecked school and staring at the destroyed scene around it would seem uncanny at least. However, the oddity of the situation was not the fact that she was standing among wreckage, but the fact that she was standing there at all. She stood stock still, as if paralyzed, for a good while. Then she slowly turned around, going back into the classroom and shutting the door firmly behind her.
Her hooves never came two inches off the ground.
"Um, are you sure this is the right place?" A colt's voice asked. While the voice wasn't young, it wasn't that of a full grown stallion; it most likely belonged to a pony around fifteen years of age. The owner of said voice was standing just north of the Ponyville train station. He had a forest green cloak pulled over his dusty violet shoulders. Though his face was hidden, the worry was evident in his tone. Not far from him stood another pony. He had no cloak, but a scarf was wrapped around his entire head and neck like a turban. Stormy gray eyes were the only facial features visible, aside from some shale gray tufts from the pony's mane.
"It's the right place," the other pony spoke. The voice was a stallion's, harsh and gravelly; it was much older than the first. "It's the only place we've seen that looks like this…"
"Um, Rock Ranger," the younger pony started. The hood of his cloak glowed a light yellow, and it fell back to reveal a teenaged colt with dark blue eyes and a tousled golden mane from which a violet horn could be seen. "Not that I don't trust you, but...will the spell really work? What if it fails?"
"It can't fail," stallion known as Rock Ranger said brusquely. "I know it won't."
"How can you be so sure?"
"I've seen it work on an entire zebra village. There's no reason why it shouldn't work here," Ranger peered up at the sun, the position of which indicated that it was about ten minutes after two o' clock. "Come on, Rigel. We're losing time."
"Right," Rigel blinked. Rock Ranger began to trot toward the ancient village. The old buildings had long since fallen into disrepair. The town hall had all but fallen in on itself. Not too far from the town, Rigel could see an open field, or what could have been an orchard with how large the space was. There was no barn, though he thought he could see some structure standing in the middle of the field.
"What happened here?" the unicorn asked, sheer curiosity getting the better of him. "Wasn't Ponyville one of the most important Equestrian cities?"
"It was," Rock Ranger said. "And eventually, it lost its glory."
"But...how?" Rigel pressed. "I know what the archives say. I know the stories you told me...but what happened here?"
"If we manage to get to the library, perhaps we can find out," the other pony said.
They walked in silence for a while. Finally, Ranger stopped in his tracks. Rigel, who had still been marvelling at the history around him, walked straight into the older stallion. He stumbled back and was about to apologize when he noticed what Ranger was staring at.
"A schoolhouse…"
"There's a spirit here."
"Really?"
"I've been feeling their presence the whole time we've been here...but this...this one is strong."
"Well...should we try it then? Maybe you're right; maybe it'll work and the village can go back to normal!" Rigel hopped a little. "I promise I'll do my best."
"And I don't doubt you in the slightest," Rock Ranger nodded discreetly. "But this will take more magic and effort than anything you've ever done."
"I-I'm sure it can't be too hard," the unicorn said. "I've been studying my flank off for this! I've read the legends, the stories, the facts. I can handle it."
"If you say so…" Ranger seemed to glance downward. "Then get tracing."
It didn't take long for Rigel to take off his cloak completely. He placed it gently in the tall grass. His horn glowed, and in the air above him a sickle of magic formed. It was as golden as his aura yet five times as brighter. He swung it in a wide circle, instantly chopping away the overgrown grass and weeds surrounding him. Rock Ranger stood away from him at a reasonable distance, watching the younger stallion prepare to cast the spell.
Then he saw something move out the corner of his eye.
He narrowed his pupils, and his body became stiff and still. His vision was trained on the lone schoolhouse beside him. In a single moment he had thrown off his turban and somehow drawn a sharp-looking weapon from it. his mane tumbled down around his face, and his eyes seemed to flash a pale green. Rigel seemed oblivious to what was happening, and had gone from cutting down the grass to using his magic to inscribe what looked like runes into the soil of the circle he'd created.
"Now, Rising Star, I told you time and time again that you simply cannot pass notes in class," Cheerilee said. "And I want you to apologize to Light Note; it isn't nice to so loudly interrupt her presentation." The mare paused for a moment. No reply came from the empty classroom.
In the back of her mind, Cheerilee was worried. Not for the relationship among her students, but for their safety. It had been three full days since the Announcement. Princess Twilight Sparkle had returned to Ponyville and told them all of what was to come; rather, what she had predicted was coming. If Twilight was correct, and she almost undoubtedly was, a terrible threat from the Outlands was coming. She took a deep breath, then shook her head and tried her best to put on a smile. The Changelings had been defeated once before. What's to say they couldn't be defeated again?
"Thank you, Light Note," Cheerilee said. "Okay, next up is Scootaloo...Scootaloo? Is Scootaloo here today?"
There was no reply.
"Alright then. That means that Crystalline will go next."
There was silence for exactly four minutes and twenty-five seconds.
"Thank you, Crystalline. That was a wonderful presentation. Who's next?"
It was then that something caught Cheerilee's eye from the window. Her head jerked up sharply. She hesitated for a moment, then stood up from her seat at her desk and started toward the door.
Rock Ranger had put his weapon away. It was a clever little device; the blade could fold into itself for storage, was easy enough to wield without a horn, and when opened it unfolded and slid into position perfectly. However, he was too in shock to use it now. Standing in front of him was a mare, a mare that he had known of for the longest of times. The ancestry was far too lengthy to be traced in a timely manner, but somehow he knew he was related to this mare...her eyes, and her mane; the very way she walked seemed familiar. But that was impossible.
Rock Ranger had no family. Not anymore.
He of course understood the high probability that this was an apparition, a reflection of the past, but that made it all the more intriguing. It was one of the few times in his life he actually wanted to communicate with a spirit, though he had seen them all his life. He wanted to reach his hoof out, and take her own in it. He wanted...he wasn't quite sure. Wants had never held a prevalent space in his mind. He had always done what was necessary, none of this "wanting" business.
"Who are you?" the mare asked. In that instant, Ranger's eyes went wide. The voice...it struck so many bells in his mind, and yet the gong that would send the memories back had not sounded. He knew this mare, he knew this voice, but he couldn't place it anywhere.
"..." he opened his mouth to speak, but before a word could leave him he felt a choking sensation in his throat. He gagged and tried to wrench himself free from the strange feeling, and turned to find some...thing staring at him.
Smoky black tendrils were coiling and stretching around him. He gritted his teeth at the monstrosity before his eyes. Blood red eyes glared right back at him. Luckily, the grisly appearance of the beast had no effect on Rock nowadays. Blood and entrails staining the mangy black coat of what might've once been a pony. No mark adorned its stained, mangled flank.
"A Blank," he muttered. "I should've known. We're so close to the for-RIGEL!"
Said unicorn had been spending the entire time preparing the spell. His eyes were closed, and still he didn't seem to notice the other Blank as it lunged toward him. Rock Ranger grabbed his dagger and deployed it in record time, jumping forward and striking the monster in its head. It fell back from Rigel, hitting the circle of runes and screeching in pain before collapsing into smoldering dust. The first Blank hissed and rushed for Rock. The earth pony dodged and, landing next to the schoolhouse, twisted his weapon so that the moment the Blank got in range it would impale itself. When he withdrew the blade, green blood spurted to the ground.
"Changeling spirit…" Rock muttered. "Looks like the Forest is the root of the problems, too...nothing an extra exorcism can't fix."
"Who are you?" the pink mare before him said. She had been silent through the whole ordeal, as if the entire scene hadn't even occured. Again, before Rock Ranger could reply, he was interrupted; this time by the light encircling his young unicorn companion.
Rigel was standing in the middle of the rune circle. His eyes were still closed, and his breathing slowed. Light grew and expanded from the circle, growing and growing until it encased the entire hill. The mare gasped and clutched at her head. Rock had the strangest urge to reach out again, to help her stand, to demand that Rigel stop, that he was hurting her…
"AAAAAUUUUUUUGH!" Cheerilee screamed in agony. She sank to her knees and put both front hooves to her head. Memories flashed through her mind at a dizzying pace. Everything that had happened, from the day she'd shown up at school to the moment the army of Changelings and monsters had stormed the building. She remembered the frightened faces of her students, she remembered the screams, the tears, the pain…
She remembered her darling boy, who had gone up to Baltimare with his father to visit family…
She remembered his letter, the one she'd received just the night before, describing the new friend he'd made in the city, a sweet-sounding filly named Ebony Geode...
She remembered somehow ending up talking to Pinkie Pie, and learning with surprise that her sister Inkamena had a daughter of the same name…
She remembered the fear of never seeing her son again…
She clearly recalled the final moments, when the changeling army and their monstrous allies had prepared to do away with the children. She stood as strong as she could...for as long as she could. Despite the screams and tears and pleadings she stood strong.
She remembered the sudden trauma, and the sudden silence...
And without so much as a flicker she was gone.
Rock Ranger watched with mild regret as the mare disappeared from the earth, on to a higher being. He turned and watched the village as the light engulfed it. He watched the spirit bell form within the light, and heard the soft ring as it sounded with every soul the spell released. After countless rings, the bell dissipated, and Rigel opened his eyes and plopped onto the ground. The light faded, revealing the darkness of the night.
"Whew...you were right, that was difficult," the unicorn said. "But it worked! Can you believe it? We freed a whole town from a curse! All the souls are free now…" he turned his head to the sky.
"Yes…" Rock took a glance back at the schoolhouse. He could feel no presence. The dark and mysterious structure now looked simply lonely. He bowed his head slightly.
"What's the matter?" Rigel asked. Ranger shook his head and turned back toward the village.
"Nothing. Come on, let's get to the library. We'll stay there for the night. Tomorrow we go into the forest and exorcise the demons there."
"Aw, can't we get a break?"
"You break while you sleep tonight. Let's get moving."
"Sigh…"
There was silence on the hill at the Ponyville schoolhouse. Never again did a soul roam that ancient village, not until decades later when the first of the settler ponies thought to lay their cornerstone there. No-one remembers what went on there, and though a tiny bell remained from when the exorcism took place, a soul has yet to recall for whom it rang.
And that's that. I hope you liked it! These stories are gonna give me heck to write, but hey, I'm undergoing serious author training! This is gonna be fun, right? Hehe, right?
Please leave a review if you have any comments or suggestions. Might I add that a lot of these stories will rely on the reader to interpret the purpose behind the words, so that they will be able to infer what's happening. I dunno, I guess I just like writing that way. :)