This is chapter 4, and back in the viewpoint of the ponies for the most part. More action and a little drama make an appearance. Thanks to Vultraz168 for your input and help with the spelling. I also decided to edit this to bring it back down to the T rating.
"What… Can… It… BE?" Twilight was getting frustrated. She had searched three volumes of the Encyclopedia of Creatures front to back, with nothing even resembling the things that had left the portal. "It has to be here somewhere!"
"Are you sure you didn't just see some kind of illusion from the portal?" Spike offered, hoping Twilight would stop complaining.
"It couldn't have been… Ah-hah!" she shouted in victory. "Humans!"
"What on Earth is a human?" Spike wanted to know.
"Humans are sentient beings with vast physical and mental differences between members." Kind of like ponies, she thought. "They prefer technological development over magical, and have a wide variety of occupations, hobbies, and even spoken languages. Many have grown so used to adult topics that they constantly…" Twilight cleared her throat and skipped to the next paragraph. "They live in an alternate universe where Earth only contains ponies that are not sentient, or even able to speak."
"What are they doing here, Twilight?" Spike asked.
"Whenever I find out, I'll-" the purple pony began. Just then, Applejack burst in, a look of horror on her face. "Come quickly, Twi'! It's horrible!" she sobbed before dashing back out. With a mixture of curiosity and sadness on their faces, Twilight and Spike left for Applejack's farm.
What they found when they got there was devastating.
Applejack's family had thrown a small family gathering at their apple farm. Then, according to Applejack, an animal she had never seen before decided to join in the "fun". Apparently, it breathed fire at everyone and everything, finding the ponies wherever they hid. Applejack managed to escape before it noticed her, which was the only reason she was unharmed. The others of her family, well…
Applejack led Twilight to a single, still smoldering table and let her look at what was under. It was Granny Smith.
She had severe burns all along her right flank, and some evil-looking cuts on her hindquarters. Granny, like so many others, had been left with her wounds to get to the hospital alone and injured. Medical ponies were rushing about, using drugs and medication to ease the pain.
Even though she knew most of them would live, Twilight couldn't take the sight of the burns. She ran over to a bush and lost her lunch for a minute or two. When she had recovered, she realized that almost half of Applejack's family had been tortured this way, nearly making her retch again. The other half had simply succumbed to the flames too easily to be rescued. Then a thought struck her. "Where is Applebloom?" she gasped.
"I don't know, Twilight!" Applejack cried, tears streaming down her face. "She isn't here like the rest of 'em!"
"Wait." Twilight thought for a second. "I think I know where she went!"
"It was horrible!" Applebloom cried. Her friends were with her in the crusaders' clubhouse, trying to comprehend that such an evil as this existed. "Applejack and I are the only ones left!"
"If we knew what that thing was, we could learn how to stop it, right?" Sweetiebell offered. "But we don't, do we?"
"Well," Scootaloo tried to think, "If it was as bad as you say, then wouldn't Twilight help us out? She knows all sorts of stuff like that!"
"Yeah," sniffled Applebloom, a spark of hope igniting in her. "We could ask her."
Applebloom was about to lead them out when she heard an odd noise from below. She peeked out to see what it was as the noise repeated itself.
"NO!" she yelled as flame crawled up the ladder.
By the time Twilight and Applejack arrived at the clubhouse, it was entirely ablaze. "NNNNNNNOOOOOOO!" the pair screeched. Twilight quickly found the three inside and levitated them out. Applebloom was burnt badly, but could still walk.
Sweetiebell seemed to have the least damage, with only a few minor burns.
But Scootaloo…
Scootaloo was unconcious, and with good reason. She was covered in flame, which Twilight quickly put out. How she made it out alive was beyond Twilight, although she was very happy to see the rise and fall of her chest. "Stay here with the other two," Twilight commanded a crying Sweetiebell. "I'm going to get an ambulance out here."
So, Applejack and Twilight raced off, not remembering what creature caused the disaster in the first place.
The ponies looked sad. Pyro and Balloonicorn both wanted to cheer them up so very badly, but he had already sparkled them with all his might. He approached, and at the sight of him, the three little ponies cheered up visibly. He remembered what he had forgotten to do, and, with looks of hope on the three faces before him, he lifted his lollipop.
A single, high-pitched scream pierced the ears of twilight and Applejack. "Sweetiebell!" they exclaimed together, before racing back to the burnt up tree. Twilight was hoping for the best, but she had a sinking feeling in her gut that she couldn't shake off. When she arrived, her fears were confirmed.
The little ponies were officially gone, with savage slices along their flanks.
The worst part was, the ponies' cutie marks were now clearly visible.
Twilight caught a glimpse of the red figure marching away into the woods, and realized that it was a suit and mask. She swore that she would find a way to stop it from killing off her family and friends. For now, it was headed away from most of Ponyville, so she would help it's victims first.
As she left, she wondered what cruel thoughts lay behind that mask.