(Dramatic Thunder)

It was a dark and stormy night in the small town of Ponyville. A mist of rain gently poured from the thick clouds above as a thin mist blanket the ground. This did not discouraged the little fillies and colts from celebrating nightmare night though. They happily giggled and laughed as they played games and pulled small pranks here and there.

But this night was haunted by a mysterious creature. It slowly creeped over a group of fillies and raised its two appendages. In one swift motion, it-

(Dramatic Thunder)

Struck a dark cloud and sent those fillies running scared as lightning shot to the ground. Rainbow Dash, dressed in her Shadow Bolt dress, laughed and laughed until she doubled backwards on a nearby cloud and held her sides in from the sheer giggles-

(Dramatic Thunder)

And jumped out of her suit and clung to a lonely cloud above with her fur standing on its end. She quickly cast her eyes down and found Sonic doubling back and giggling madly. His face was painted with a pale yellow color with a fake axe sticking from the side of his head.

"No fair!" She shouted, "You can't strike clouds without going through! Only pegasi can do that!"

He stuck his tongue out at her and continued to giggle while walking away to another spot. Rainbow only answered him by sticking her tongue out at him before flying away to find another group of fillies to scare.

Tails could only stare at the ground with his face glowing bright red as nearby stallions all around him pointed and laughed hysterically. As expected, he was walking along side Twilight as they were making their way to a nearby souvenir stand.

He didn't know what was more embarrassing, whether it was Twilight trotting so close to him and rubbing up against him in public as if the two were getting married, or rather it was the ridiculous idea of who to cosplay.

It started with a small disagreement of what they would be wearing before they set out. Tails wanted to wear something that would impress a little filly than scare. His idea involved building a robotic appendage around his arm that would look like that his appendage was cut off and rebuilt out of metal. He even had the idea of pouring a little fake blood on his shoulder too make it look more realistic. He would build them for ponies as well.

Twilight's idea involved dressing him and herself as a wizard by wearing dark elegant cloaks. She would make a decorated staff for Tails with a jewel crested on top.

They debated on what they would do… Until Twilight suddenly caught a book from the corner of her eye and found a copy of Breaking Dawn sitting on her desk. It was at this point she begged and nearly cried for him to cosplay the main character from the book.

Tails wasn't just wearing a black T-shirt with jeans that hugged him so tight that he was waddling like a penguin that was about to take a crap, Twilight decided to try to her best of her ability to dye and redo his hair so it would be black and curly.

Twilight did her part by coloring her eyelashes with the darkest eyeliner Rarity could offer and colored her main and tail a dark brownish color. She completed the outfit by casting a spell that would make small fangs poke out of the fox's upper lip.

Twilight trotted her way to the stand with Tails waddling behind until a large dark figure suddenly galloped passed them. Before they saw what it was they heard fillies screaming and galloping in different directions as this figure began to chase them. While the figure was chasing them, it galloped to a nearby hilltop and raised its front hooves in the air and began kicking them.

(Dramatic Thunder)

The lightning strike revealed a headless Knuckles raising a long silver sword in the air with Applejack wearing a muzzle with black and red armor covering her body. With a ghostly mad laugh they galloped down and began chasing some of the stallions and mares in town.

The two had this planned since the beginning of the month. McIntosh had to go through a little trouble to make the Armor, and I took Rarity a little while to cast a invisible spell on his head to complete the costume. All they had to do was gallop around different parts of Ponyville and chase whatever came across their path.

---

"Um…Mr. Tails Doll," Pinkie nervously called down her chicken suit as the doll was hidden under a thick layer of white feathers, "I-I'm not too comfortable about this."

The little doll only glanced up at her and gave her the biggest and creepiest grin he could muster. His voice became smooth but cracked as he reassured her, "Don't be… We're gonna have a good time."

Those seven words were enough to send chills down Pinkie's back. No matter how hard she tries, she could never muster to become used to his downright creepy smile that reeks with malice.

As planned, she skips around town and clucks like her usual routine. While she was talking and laughing with other ponies, she scanned for the most populated block in Ponyville. It didn't take her long to find a spot where nearly a dozen games were set up, with hundreds of ponies gathered together to mingle with fillies playfully chasing each other in their adorable costumes.

She knew exactly what to do. The pink pony strut around to find a clearing in the dense crowd of ponies. When she finally found a little space, she stood straight up… And began her act.

Without warning, she took in a deep breath and screamed to the top of her lungs. Her body began convulsing as foam began to form on her lips. She violently collapsed on the ground and began going into a full fledge seizer. For several long seconds she continued convulsing until her body lay limp; becoming completely still.

For the final stage of their plan, she screamed again; this time a scream of pain. The belly of her costume began to rise and lower on its own, something sharp gliding underneath her suit and poking itself against her stomach. Suddenly, her stomach tore itself wide open, blood gushing wildly as a creature burst itself into the open with its claws lashed out.

"RAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH… Huh?"

The jewel on top of his head dimmed as the doll saw absolutely no one watching them… No one, not a single soul within miles from them.

Completely bewildered, The Tails Doll climbed out of the now ruined chicken suit and began looking. Pinkie, of course completely unharmed, stripped herself of her blood soaked suit and stood to her hooves; just as confused as he was.

"Where is everyone?" The doll asked, turning to her pink friend.

"There were ponies here just a second ago!" Pinkie answered, "I swear!"

They then heard a faint and far away scream from another street corner. When they cast their eyes towards the other end of the street, they saw a small group of fillies running; jumping into a barrel in an attempt to hide from whatever was chasing them. The Tails Doll and the Pink Pony suddenly saw somepony galloping to the middle of the street… A dark blue alicorn wearing armor to be precise.

She spread her wings, gracefully but frighteningly as she evilly laughed only a mad mare can.

"CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT! THOU HAVE NOT MADE AN OFFERING OF SWEETS IN OUR HONOR! HIDE WHILE YOU CAN, FOR WHEN WE FIND YOU, WE WILL DINE ON YOUR MEATY FLESH!"

(Dramatic Thunder)

She held her pose for several second before retreating her wings and trotting away, her appearance changing just slightly while her armor disappeared.

"It's Nightmare Moon!" Pinkie shouted before galloping away and clucking like a chicken… Even though her chicken suit still lay on the ground in a bloody pool.

The Tails Doll just stood in the middle of the street in complete disarray as this pony began to silently giggle to herself before disappearing behind a building. In the misty rain, he stood completely alone, his mind still trying to process the fact that his whole scheme has been thwarted by this mysterious Alicorn.

After several minutes of staring into the open space, he began to snarl; His face twisting in anger as the jewel on top of his head began to glow a dark red color.

---

On the outskirts of Ponyville, just at the very edge of the Everfree Forest; stood Luna's chariot that was overlooked by two night guards. They patiently waited for the princess's return, dressed for the occasion as for everyone else in Ponyville. It can be boring guarding a chariot for nearly two hours while their princess have her little fun with the locals, but hey; being paid for extra time and for the holidays is always worth it.

And the candy… Oh the sweet candy that awaited them upon Luna's return!

When midnight struck, when the full moon is hanging right above their world, the guards noticed Princess Luna trotting her way towards them on the dirt road with a large bag hanging on her side.

"Just like old times, your majesty?" One guard called with a warm smile.

She chuckled while dropping the bag, "Just grab a mouthful and escort me back, I don't want to miss movie night with Shining Armor and Cadence."

The gave a quick salute and dived their heads into the bag and pulled back out with a mouth full of chocolate and sweets with their cheeks inflated. They let out a quite moan of pleasure as the flavor melted on their tongues.

As one of the guards began to carry the bag to the chariot, however; they noticed Luna staring at something behind them with her pupils dilated into small peas.

"You're majesty?"

She only pointed. When the guards turned around and jumped back with a jolt of terror.

"SWEET MARY, WHAT IS THAT!?"

Without thinking the guard hurled its spear towards the approaching figure. It hit him square on the chest, skewering him with blood gushing from the front and back. For a moment the figure stood still, staring back at the guard with wide eyes.

Then growled and immediately yanked the spear out of its chest, sprinting forward with the spear in its hand. The guard instantly squealed and took off, but the small figure instantly gave chase and easily trailed behind him, poking at the guard's flank with his spear.

"YEA! YEA! HOW DO YOU LIKE THAT, YOU JERK!"

Luna continued to watch in complete confusion as this thing continued to chase the poor guard, continuing to poke him on the but until he finally retreated into the Everfree Forest.

"AND I'LL SHOVE THIS THING UP YOUR BUTT THE NEXT TIME YOU STICK A SPEAR IN MY CHEST!"

The figure then turned right around and marched right up to Luna's chariot with a blood covered spear in his hands. There was continuous pouring of blood from its wound, leaving behind a long trail of red where he was chasing the guard and forming a poll right underneath his feet.

As the figure stood right beneath the chariot, Luna and the other guard instantly recognize the little ball of fire.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is stitching a wound like this!?" The doll shouted, with his vengeance fulfilled but still infuriated, "I have to stitch the front and back, not to mention the blood making my fabric slippery!"

The guard instantly drew his own spear at him, but took a couple of steps back out of fear. The thing has been skewered by a spear and it's just shrugging it off like its nothing.

And the amount of blood, the wound was still gushing ever since being stricken!

Luna didn't take any defensive measures, having heard the stories of the Tails Doll from Twilight's recent reports, but she did puff out her chest and stood tall; sneering at him to remind him who was in charge.

"What business do you have with me, creature?" She addressed him with a firm voice, "I have royal duties to fufill-"

"Oh, I'll tell you my business, honey!" The doll shouted with the jewel on top of its head still glowing red. He pointed towards Ponyville with its claw, "You see that little town just beyond that hill? That's my hood!" He then pointed a claw at her with angry eyes, "You don't ever go into my hood! This is my territory! Mine! Mine alone!Not yours, Mine!"

Princess Luna raised an eye brow, "What foolishness do you speak of? As co-ruler of Equestia, I maintain rule and possession within our boarders… You have rights to this town as well as anyone else, but I and my sister control it."

The Tails Doll shook his head, "NO! What I'm talking about is the rights to scare! I've been looking forward to this year all year and you ruined my brilliant plan to scare the crap out of everypony around me! If you haven't shown up, my night would have been perfect!"

Luna chuckled, "If you haven't acknowledged already, this night is dedicated to the day I regrettably let my jealously take me and turn me into Nightmare Moon, not to simply scare everyone for no cause," She leaned towards him until her nozzle touches his snout, "Hence the name 'Nightmare Night'?"

The Tails Doll pushed her away and stood tall, "Listen, toots! I, The Tails Doll, the myth, the legend, the face of terror, the abomination, the wicked creation, have cursed this town since my arrival! Almost every night I scare somepony, and every pony I scare is haunted for months by nightmares! No matter how big the ego, no matter how tough or fearless my victims are, I always get my pony!"

For a brief second his face soften and looked away, "Of course, I'll admit that I'm changing my ways in hopes that society will accept me," He turned right back towards her and snarled with his razor sharp teeth clutched together, "But this is the one night that I can take my most terrifying form, and I WILL NOT let you ruin it!"

Luna rolled her eyes and dismissed everything he said while addressing her remaining guard, "Gallop to the Everfree Forest and escort the missing guard back here so we can leave for Canterlot. I will be fine with this…Thing."

The Tails Doll growled as the guard began to trail the fleeing guard. If there's one thing that the Tails Doll hates more than anything, is being insulted.

"Now," Luna said to him, "Be like the wind and be gone… You have committed crimes against the throne by insulting me and disrespecting my authority, but I'm going to overlook those charges because you are not worth my time."

His eye twitched… Then he suddenly began to grin.

He stuck his makeshift hand inside his wound, moving and twisting his appendage while making a sick squishing sound that killed the silence between the two. The Tails Doll slowly pulled his hand out while holding a handful of cotton that's been soaked with blood.

He took aim and hurled it at the Princess's cheek.

The bloody cotton ball hit her with a slat, slowly sliding down until it splatted on the floor. Princess Luna instantly whipped her head towards him and snorted in anger, drips of blood sliding down her cheek.

"Now… Here's what going to happen," The Tails Doll said with a pointing claw, "We're going to do a little scaring raid in Ponyville. Whoever out does the other will be deemed the scariest. If you lose, Luna, you lose the right to scare anybody else in this town. If I lose, then I'll leave… Got that?"

She cast daggers at the little doll for several long seconds, pondering the idea whether she should accept his challenge or not.

It's not like his challenge is legit, Luna thought, he holds no authority over anything other than his big ego… Still, it'll be funny to crush this doll's spirit, it's not like I have anything to lose.

She nodded her head while stepping out of the chariot, keeping her blazing stare at him, "Challenge accepted, you rodent."

---

"Oh boy!" A young colt squealed with his bags filled to the brim with candy. His belly was plopped from sweets and his lips and parts of his cheeks were sticky from murdering a handful of gingerbread ponies, "Several houses down the streets just waiting to be tricked or treated! And I'm not even half way down the street yet!"

The Tails Doll and Princess Luna popped their heads out of nearby bushes as they watched the colt ring the doorbell with his bag held proudly in front of him.

"We shall start with something simple," The doll whispered with determination in his eyes, "Scare the innocents out of a child," He turned his head and put a claw on her chest, "Think you can do that, fluff puff?"

"Oh please," Luna sighed while rolling her eyes, "This task will be nothing compared to my abilities."

Before the doll's eyes, Luna closed her eyes and deformed her body into a mystical dark blue mist and slithered her way underneath the colt's feet.

The Tails Doll raised an eye brow in interest.

As the colt began to ring the doorbell, Luna materialized right behind him while flapping silently in the air. Without making a hint of sound, she changed her appearance into something a little more horrifying… Nightmare Moon.

With a flick of her horn, dark clouds formed behind her and-

(Dramatic Thunder)

She slammed her hooves to the ground and lowered her head as the colt jumped around and landing on his flanks.

"YOU'RE OFFERINGS OF SWEETS ARE LONG DUE, LITTLE COLT!"

The colt was so much in shock that he couldn't pull himself together to move. Just her mere presence was enough to paralyze him cold.

"N-N-N-Nightmare Moon," He whimpered, "I-I'm sorry I… I just forgot!"

She inwardly giggled to herself when she saw the colt's plumped little belly. 'Nightmare Night' put on the most angry face she could and poke his stomach with her hoof.

"WHAT'S THIS? THOU TOOK IT UPON YOURSELF TO INTAKE MY OFFERING!?"

The colt managed to back up just by a tad, "I… Uh…"

"THOU HAVE LIED TO THE RULER OF THE NIGHT!?"

The colt could feel his heart stepping beats as the mare inched closer and closer towards him until she was standing just over him.

"I-I-I-I-I-I" The colt finally broke down, "OKAY! I'LL ADMIT IT! I WAS FOLLOWING ZECORA TO YOUR STATUE UNTIL I ATE THE OFFERING! I DIDN'T WANT TO GET EATEN, BUT I JUST COULDN'T HELP MYSELF! THE CANDY WAS SO GOOD!"

Luna finished it with a hoof stomp and flashing her fangs at him. She let salvia slide down from the bottom of her lip as a finishing touch

"WE SEE THAT YOU'RE CARRYING A LARGE BAG OF CANDY, LITTLE ONE! WE WILL SPARE GOBBLING YOU UP IN EXCHANGE FOR YOUR OFFERING!"

The colt didn't think twice. He dropped whatever he had and stumbled to the door before he has to endure anymore.

With a satisfying smile, she took the bag and teleported back to the bushes, where the Tails Doll was waiting.

She was greeted with a raised eyebrow… If he had any.

"What's up with the broken old English?" He asked.

"Habit," She answered quickly, then sneering at him as she set the bag down, "What do you think, vile creature?"

He poked his lip out and crossed his arms, "Not bad… Sudden, frightening appearance, and fear of life. I pay you some respect for knowing your stuff."

"I've been doing this a lot longer than you have," She gruffed.

"But that was nothing!" He scolded, "I can pull something like that in my sleep!"

"Prove it!"

The Tails Doll popped his head from the bushes and scanned the neighborhood for any potential victims. While he was looking, he suddenly heard voices of two fillies trotting to his direction. He snooped back down before they could see them.

The targets were already picked. He peeked through the bushes to see who he will be scaring.

"…My God."

It was Diamond Tiara trotting with her friend dressed as he guessed, princesses. Usually it goes against his policy to scare the same victim twice, especially for a cute filly who's already terrified of him.

But for the sake of his honor, he'll have to break his standards.

He saw them approaching to somepony's door, and he took this time to tip-toe behind them unseen, putting a little space between them and himself.

Now in position, he took in a deep breath and relaxed, letting his body go limp and into a state of tranquility. The jewel dangling on top of his head began to glow as his body slowly levitated from the ground. All left to do now was wait.

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon moaned in frustration after waiting for almost five minutes for somepony to answer the door. As they were considering going to the next house, the door slowly creaked open. The two fillies were greeted by an old grey mare leaning against a crutch.

"Aw," The old mare wheezed, her legs shaking slightly as she slightly adjusted, "You must want some candy, huh?"

The two snorted in aggravation and nodded their heads.

"Well, just wait right here… I've made some cookies for you sweet little angles."

After waiting for an excruciating ten minutes for the mare to walk to the kitchen and back, the fillies gave the mare a cheerful smile as she dumped the cookies into their bags and slowly closed the door… Their smiles instantly faded.

"My Gosh!" Silver Spoon snorted, "Did you see the wrinkles on her face?"

"I know," Diamond Tiara sighed, "Her flabby legs almost made me puke! Can they take a little time to be, like… NOT disgusting? And to think that we have to take care of these ponies!"

As soon as they turned around… Diamond Tiara screamed to the top of her lungs and shot inside the house before her friend could even blink.

Silver Spoon, however, stood still and stared at the mysterious object that floated before her in complete curiosity. It was a mask shift doll with a red jewel dangling from the top of its head, with eyes covering a good proportion of its head with makeshift claws on its hands. It blankly stared at her… Lifeless.

Against her better judgment, she took a couple of careful steps towards it. Pretty sure there was a colt lurking nearby using telekinesis for a cheap scare.

(drip)

(drip)

(drip)

The doll continued to stare at her as she took her careful steps. She notice a small pool forming beneath the doll, driplets of a mysterious liquid dripping beneath it.

(drip)

(drip)

(drip)

For a moment she stopped, staring at the doll cautiously for any kind of movement. It haven't moved a bit, its eyes still staring lifelessly at her. She continued her approach.

(drip)

(drip)

(drip)

She was now within feet from it. She looked very closely at it for any kind of aurora unicorns usually give when levitating objects, but mysteriously enough, she saw none.

What she did see, however, was a strange red stains on the side of its lips and fur. When she quickly cast her gaze down, however; she gasped in horror.

"Is that… Blood!?"

She suddenly heard heavy breathing above her. When she looked, she saw the doll looking down and staring right at her, It's dark pupils growing wider and wider until its entire eyes was pitch black. A stream of blood seeped from its eyes and lips.

Then it smiled… A smile so horrific that the mental image burned in the terrified filly's skull.

As she began to slowly back away, it suddenly cricked its head to one side, making a sickening crunch that echoed the silent night.

Before her mind could process the surge of fear that pumped through her veins, the thing started floating towards her with its claws reaching out for her.

She screamed to the top of her lungs and bolted to the door, turning the knob frantically to get inside.

Only to find it locked.

Silver Spoons whipped her head around and found the terrifying doll just seven feet from her.

"LET ME IN!" She screamed, "FOR GOD'S SAKE OPEN THIS DOOR!"

As soon as she heard a click she galloped in and slammed the door behind her. The Tails Doll began to gently float back to the ground, laughing hysterically as he disappeared back behind the bushes with Luna. The princess of the night could only stare at him as he clutched his stomach in and fell over in a fit of giggles.

"That… Never …Gets… Old!" He burst out, trying to speak property, "There's nothing like a child's scream of terror to get the blood flowin'!"

Princess Luna raised an eyebrow, rather intrigued by the little doll.

"You took a rather subtle approach, yet proven to be rather effective," She commented, "You withheld your scare until the very last minute. Only when she reached the maximum point of suspense you scare her… You're appearance was very unsettling too, only adding to the effect."

The Tails Doll finally calmed down enough to stand on his two legs and breathe. He crossed his arms and puffed out his chest with pride.

"You admitting defeat, princess? I won't blame you if you do, there's no shame in being second best."

She shook her head and glared at him with angry eyes, "Hardly! The Princess of the Night is capable of far more than your capabilities!"

The Tails Doll came within inches of her face and stared at her with wide black pupils and a big menacing grin.

"Then let's get down to business!"

---

Just outside a pony's bed room was a faintly glowing red dot that snuggled itself behind some bushes, with dark pupils peaking between the branches and through the window. The Tails Doll stared intensely at the bed in the dimly lit room, looking for any signs of movement.

Just a moment later the covers shifted along with the stallion's body as he turned over in his slumber.

Everything is working for her so far, the doll thought.

As if on cue, the lighting in the room began to change to a deep dark blue with a strange white mist seeping from the floor. The Tails Doll saw the closet emitting strange bright colors that illuminated through the cracks of the doorway.

The Stallion began to toss and turn more frantically with his eyes squinted tight, his legs kicking and bucking as he began to sweat on the covers.

"N… No," The stallion whispered, "… I… I don't…"

The white mist around him began to intensity with the room becoming mysteriously darker.

"W… What do you want from me?" He continued in his sleep, "N-no… Not that… Anything but…"

His kicks became more frantic.

"G-get away from me!... No! D-don't eat me! G-get away!" He began screaming, "No! NO! NOOO-"

The Tails Doll watched as the Stallion shot awake from his sleep, panting deeply with sweat soaking his sheets and pillow. He looked around in confusion while feeling his own face and body, partially his neck. He took a couple of deeps breaths, sighing in relief as the back of his head hit the pillow.

"Just a dream," He chuckled, thankful to be alive, "Just a stupid drea-"

Creeeeeek

He gasped as he saw the closet at the foot of his bed slowly creaking open on its own. For a moment, he saw only darkness beyond the doorway.

Then he saw white fangs reflecting from the dim light.

Before he could scream a dark figure shot out of the closet and leapt for him, pushing a hoof against his mouth and straddling him. The stallion could only whimper as Nightmare Moon slowly lowered her head towards his, her eyes blazing blue with her mouth slightly ajar, flashing her fangs and mouth at him with her tongue massaging the back of her teeth. The stallion struggled in his panic, but was firmly held down by the alicorns weight. Sylvia began to slide from the pony's mouth, dripping on the stallion's neck as she eyed it with hunger.

Luna readied her horn and lunged straight towards his neck. Right before touching him, she cast a weak spell on him to knock him out.

Changing back to her graceful form, she giggled to herself and teleported back outside, reappearing where the Tails Doll was hiding.

He appeared out of the bushes and shook his head at her while giving her a very confused look.

"Now what the heck was that all about? You scare the bejesus out of him and put him back to sleep."

Luna only smiled as she pointed towards the window.

The Tails Doll followed the direction of her hoof and raised his methodical eyebrow.

"…I don't-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The Tails Doll jumped in surprise as the stallion shot up and screamed murder to the top of his lungs while kicking and bucking wildly in complete confusion and panic. The two heard several loud thumbs on the wall followed by a crash as the Stallion fell off the bed and hit the floor.

The Doll stared at the window with eyes as wide as saucers in disbelief.

"…"

A small grin began to cress across his lips.

"…Km… BAHAHAHAHAHA!"

He hit the floor in a roar of laughter as he held his stomach in.

"Learn that trick when Celestia decided to 'cuddle ambush' me when we were fillies," She proudly explained, "While she was deep asleep I filled her dream with a nightmare and scared her again when she woke up. She hit her head against the wall and fell unconscious that night, and awoke screaming for her daddy the next morning… She didn't sleep for days."

The Tails Doll continued to laugh hysterically, tears seeping from his eyes as he kicked his little legs. The stallion inside the bed room climbed back on the bed and curled his legs together, looking over his shoulders and around frantically. He was shaking frantically with his eyes wide open and blood shot.

"Impressed?" Luna asked with a smirk.

Her question was immediately answered as the Tails Doll regained himself and stared at her.

"N-n-no, of course not!" He shouted, his eyes set with determination, "Any idiot can scare someone in their sleep, even a colt can do that!"

Luna sighed in annoyance, "Admit it, you was impressed-"

"Not to the slightest!" He shouted, "I can scare a fully grown awake stallion like that!" He snapped his metal claws.

Luna's grin only grew wider, "Have you ever scared somepony without waking them?"

The doll opened his mouth to spur something but found himself beaten… His ears flopped down with his eyes expanding with worry.

"I didn't think so."

He continued to stare at her dumbfound until his lips curled into a snarl.

"You think you're somethin' special, huh!?" He shouted, "Just because you can peer inside someone's dream makes you some kind of god!?"

" …Pretty much. Do you know any morals that can manipulate dreams?"

He growled again and stomped his foot in anger.

"Th-th-th-th-that means nothing! NOTHING! I don't need to get into somebody's head to be horrific! I don't even need a horn to scare someone… Unlike YOU!"

Luna giggled, "Well, can you do something that is equally or even more impressive?"

The doll put a claw to his chin and thought for a moment, then snarled as he gave the princess another glare, "I can send you Royal Guards, the very ponies that are sworn to protect you, into a full blown panic!"

She chuckled, "Ha! Our stallions have stared death in the face and spat on it's face! They've undergone intense training that would break even the best of-"

"What about the guards that were escorting you here?" He asked with a blank stare.

She caught her tongue and stuttered.

"Uh… Th-they were just my carriers. My real guards can stand to the likes of you!"

The Tails Doll crossed his arms, "I would love to see that!"

The princess put a hoof to her chin, smiling, "Tell you what… I'll teleport you inside my chambers and let you try to scare Equestia's most highly trained troops; elites that are armed with state of the art magic with the capabilities of holding off a squad of hostiles all by themselves. Fear to them is undefined, any foe that would dare to stand against them buckle in fear when they attack."

The doll chuckled, "I'll send the entire rank into a panic."

Luna charged her horn, "Bets are on, foolish creature!"

Before Luna teleported the Tails Doll cringed when he tried to come up with an appropriate plan. This wasn't just anypony he'll be scaring, he'll have to scare actual soldiers that have seen and fought war.

I didn't want to do this, He thought, But I have no other option… I'll have to use my own magic.

---

It's a rare sight for Equestian citizens to see an Elite guard in public. On the few occasions that an Elite walk the streets of Canterlot, ponies would instantly step aside out of complete respect.

They were the best of the best, the guards that have proven themselves to be wearing the mystical golden armor. Their stories reached beyond the equestrian boarders, stories about their courageous heroism and their long time code of honor.

There were two of those elites trotting the upper halls of the palace, walking right past Luna's room. One of those solders were staring at the other, their bodies completely covered in armor with helmets shielding their faces.

"You checked the lower floors," He asked in his deep voice, "Was there anything worth noting?"

"Not a thing out of place." The other said, "All rooms secured and inspected."

With a nod of their head the began to make their way down the wide open hall and to the spiral stare case that lead to the first floor. It was a long walk, in fact a ten minute walk to one end of the palace to the other.

As the sound of clanking metal echoed throughout the entire hall, one of the elites decided to have a little chat with his partner.

"So Dave, uh… H-how's it been?"

The other, shorter elite turned to him.

"Fine, just fine."

"Oh, that's great."

They continued in silence, with the taller guard glancing away and scratching the back of his head with his own spear. He glanced back at his friend with a blush hidden behind his helmet.

"So uh… Have you… Inspected Celestia's room?"

"Yea, I always do. It's in the protocols."

The taller stallion leaned a little closer and began to whisper, "Did you… Check her closet?"

" …Huh?"

"Does she wear any panties when she goes to bed?"

The smaller soldier just stared at him through his helmet with dilated pupils.

" …What!?"

"You must have looked in there at least once," The taller stallion stated, "Does she wear panties or not?"

"Dude… Sick!"

"Everyone in the ranks are wondering, Dave… You're the only guard that knows the secrete."

"Wha-I-I-I-I-I don't!" the elite shouted, "I don't peep into somepony's dresser like a pervert!"

"Don't you lie to me, Dave." The stallion warned, "You know the secrete, you know you peeped in her drawer at least once."

"I haven't, you sicko!"

"What color was it?" The elite persisted, "was it red, pink… Maybe green or was it even black-"

"I don't know because I haven't peeped inside her drawer and I don't care if she does!"

"…Did it have holes in it?"

"I DON'T KNOW!"

"Something is seriously wrong with you," The taller stallion implemented, "All of the guards think she's hot… Not saying she's hot is like saying… You're not a guard-"

"Listen, I don't find her attractive because, well… She reminds me of my mom."

"You're mom?"

"Yes, Stan! In fact that's her whole political figure for the entire country! A mother! Whenever somepony look up to her they're suppose to be like 'wow, she's awesome because she cares for her Kingdom like a mother to a child!'"

The taller elite blankly stared at him for a moment.

" …Was you're mother hot?"

"NO, STAN JUST… NO!"

Much to Dave's relief, they finally reached the spiral stair case. Upon going down they bumped into one of Luna's prized night guards.

There would be usually half a dozen of them inspecting other sections of the castle and occasional street patrol. If there was one thing Night Guards were famous for was stealth and intimidation. When they do patrol, no citizen will ever see them. Stealth and protection is their top priority, no citizen will ever see a night guard on patrol. In fact, no pony that works for Luna doesn't have some kind of invisibility spell.

"Oh! Stan and Dave," The night guard greeted, "How's it been?"

"Dave was about to tell me if Princess Celestia wears panties or not." Stan quickly answered.

"For the last time, I don't know if she wears panties!" Dave shouted, "I didn't care to check and I didn't want to check!"

The night guard just stared at him, "…Do you inspect Luna's room by any chance?"

Poor little Dave just sighed, "You're a manifestation of Luna's magic. Why don't you know this?"

"She summons us before she sleeps and ask us to guard her bedroom… I always wondered if Luna wears panties too."

"What is it about the princesses that ya'll find so attractive!?" Dave asked, "Isn't it at least a little disturbing that Celestia is a mother figure and you ponies are fantasizing about her?" He turned to the night guard, "Night Fang, you're a part of Luna… She's technically you're mother!"

Night Fang and Stan glanced at each other, "What are you saying to us, Dave?" Stan asked while raising an eyebrow.

"I-I mean just think about it! Celestia is our proud motherly figure and the Royal Guards are calling her hot. Does it disturb any of you? It's like being attracted to your own mother! It's just sick!"

Stan stared back at him, "…Dave…" He trotted closer to him until he was just in front of him, "Maybe we don't mind having a mother complex."

Dave felt vomit rise against his throat when he heard him.

"…I'm checking the royal bathroom."

With that bombshell Dave simple past them and headed down stares without saying another word. With Dave gone, Night Fang and Stan decided to continue down the hall and check the other rooms of the upper floors.

"So…" Stan said, "What you been doing?"

"Well, Stan," Night Fang said, "I could tell you, but then I would have to kill you."

"Making sure that Luna doesn't get in awkward situations with the civilians of Equestia?"

" …Yea… Something like that."

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!"

Out of complete instinct, Stan immediately charged his horn and cast a quick teleportation spell specified to take him to the other elite's position. Night Fang began to gallop down stairs.

When Stan reappeared, he stood behind a doorway with his partner standing in the middle of the tiled bathroom with splashes of blood covering the walls and ceiling. They were pools forming on the floor from the ceiling that were dripping with a red liquid.

"What's wrong, Dave."

"W-what do you mean what's wrong?" Dave shouted, "There's blood everywhere!"

Stan stared at him and the rest of the room for a moment.

" …Is that you're blood?"

"No! If this was my blood I would be screaming, 'Oh sweet Celestia help me I need more blood!'"

"O.K. Um…" Stan thought for a minute, "We need to uh… Call the maids and have them clean this up, because Princess Celestia doesn't like to see blood when taking a pee."

"No, you Idiot!" Dave shouted while charging his horn, "We need to call for backup! Someone or something has infiltrated this castle!"

Crawling out the last stall was an invisible being staring hungrily at Dave through a red haze as the thing began to stalk towards the elite. With its makeshift claws formed into a fist, he charged a bit of magic into it and-

(SMACK!)

"OW!"

Stan jumped in pain as he spun around, only to see nothing. He checked his flank and found a part of his armor dented.

"What's wrong, Dave?"

"Something hit me!"

The creature crawled to the other side and-

(SMACK!)

"OW!"

Stan ran to the elite's side.

"There it was again!" Dave shouted, snapping his head left and right for any signs of the intruder.

Suddenly they found Night Fang standing at the entrance with wide alerted eyes.

"What the heck happened here?"

The creature quickly crawled to the night guard and levitated around him, reappearing behind him while still invisible.

(SMACK!)

"OOHH!... What was that!?"

(SMACK!)

"AOH!"

No matter how much the night guard swirled or looked, he couldn't find any trace of his attacker, only light bruises on his flank.

"We can't fight it in here!" Dave shouted, "We have to leave!"

With that the three guards galloped out of the bathroom and began making their way to the barracks that connected to the castle. The Tails Doll, who was pulling his own dark magic from his jewel, held on to his invisibility while giving chase with his levitation. He hasn't exercise this much magic in ages, and he already felt a headache coming on.

(SMACK!)

"OOO!"

Stan leapt forward as something struck his flank with enough force to bend his armor plating.

(SMACK!)

"OW"

(SMACK!)

"OOOHOHOHOHOH!"

(SMACK!)

"Wait, Stop!"

Stand and Dave freeze while Night Fang stared at the two.

"This isn't working," He said, "If we keep running that thing will keep attacking us."

The Tails Doll took this time to levitate back down and recover as much as he can while staying invisible. He felt his headache subsided somewhat, but no doubt present.

"Well, what do we do?" Dave asked, "We have to alert the others somehow. I tried to sent a signal only to be hit by that thing!"

"Alright, calm down," Stan began to address them, "Stan and Night Fang, sent out a quick pulse to let the others know of the disturbance."

Before he could blink he felt the pulse hit against his horn.

"…Okay." Stan softly commanded, "Now, back up against the walls."

The three guards turned their bodies and began to back up until their flanks bumped into the walls.

"What now?" Dave asked.

"Here's what we're going to do," Stan explained, "We're going to swing our legs and body wildly while staying in our spots. There's no way the thing can hit us without hurting itself."

The two guards just stared at each other… Wishing that either would have a better idea.

"Now…" Stan mumbled in a low and menacing voice, "…Let's dance!"

At once, they stood on their two back legs and began punching and kicking the air like intoxicated karate students.

"Yea!" Dave shouted, "Where you at! Where you at! You got nothing!"

"Shake it!"

"stick a move, baby!" Stan shouted.

The Tails Doll had to use every stitch of his body to hold his giggles in. They 'fought' for five straight minutes, sometimes tripping over themselves and hitting the unforgiving floor. The doll had to turn his head to avoid bursting out loud in hysterically.

"What the Celestia's name are ya'll doing?"

The two elites and night guard turned their heads down the hall and found a low ranked royal guard staring at them.

The Tails Doll seized his moment and charged right for him with his fist reared back.

(SMACK!)

"OOOHH!"

The Royal Guard stumbled backward and plumped on his flanks, a light bruise appearing on his chest.

" …What the he-"

(SMACK!)

"OW!"

He popped back to his hooves when something punched him on his flanks. While he was looking around and seeing absolutely nothing, his mind came to one conclusion.

" …Ghost…"

The two elites and night guard stared at him.

" …It's a ghost…"

The guard's eyes began dialating as his breathing became heavier.

" …GHOST! GHOST!"

The guard began to take off down the hall.

"GHOOOOOOOOSSST!"

The Tails Doll, still invisible by his own magic, took off to an open room and rushed in. He was greeted by a large room containing several doors, possibly the servant's chamber.

Positive that he was out of sight, he hide himself behind a large vase and finally let his dark magic subside. He leaned against the wall and began panting a bit, letting his magic regenerate as he rest for a bit.

"First phase of my glorious plan completed," he whispered to himself, a smile stretching across his face, "Time to begin phase two."

---

Thirty minutes later

"Alright, Stallions!" Captain Armor shouted on a high stand, facing hundreds of saluting Royal Guards and the few and proud elites that stood in front. The meeting was called to attention as soon as Stan, Dave, and Night Fang reported back with the encounter with the mysterious enemy that would dare insult their own brother, "Gather into your ranks and initiate a full search of this castle! We have an intruder in our mist! A 'ghost' you might say!"

Guards towards the very back glanced at each other.

"Do not be intimidated by this intruder! According to our elites, they have detected a dark magic that's cloaking it from the naked eye! Very mobile, fast enough to chase any stallion with ease!"

Shining Armor's speech only intrigued them more. There hasn't been a break in of the palace for hundreds of years.

If they don't count Twilight's 'intrusion' when she tried to break in to the Palace library.

"Be warned, this intruder is highly dangerous! According to a night guard, it's capable of punching through enchanted armor! There was also was a gruesome murder scene in the second floor bathroom, victim yet to be found!"

A handful of lower ranked guards turned pale.

"Be on guard! Use your horn to pinpoint the source of the intruder!"

Little did anypony know that this 'intruder' was stalking right behind the captain with his body cloaked with a fist drawn back.

"Stay in your ranks! And never EVER leave any stallion alo-"

(SMACK!)

"OOOWWW!"

Everyone gasped in surprise when they heard their captain shout to the top of his lungs.

"It's here!" A guard shouted, "The ghost is in here!"

Shining Armor spun around and immediately hurled a fire ball behind him… Only to miss the intruder by mere inches.

Being no fool, the doll jumped off stage and hid under stage before anypony could cast a spell that will give him away. By the time the elites fired their magic detections, the Tails Doll was powered down.

What good is detection magic if the intruder isn't using magic?

Out of sight, the doll began to devise his next scheme. He has their attention, no doubt, and everyone is now staying in this room in search of him.

"We're detecting nothing, Captain!" An elite shouted, "There's no sign of magic anywhere other than out own!"

"It has to be a ghost!" A low ranked guard shouted, "It has to be!"

"Don't you lot dare lose your nerve in front of me!" Shining Armor commanded with a high and deep voice, "Where going to find whatever is haunting this castle and we're going to irradiate it!"

The Captain spotted a small group of Royal Guards shaking in their boots as they reared their spears to their sides.

"COURAGE!" He screamed, "YOU KNEW EXACTLY WHAT YOU WERE GETTING INTO WHEN YOU SIGNED INTO THE MILITARY! NOW STAND TO ATTENTION!"

At once the group stiffened with their faces going blank.

The Tails Doll was still trying to conjure a plan to shake these stallions further. So far, they stood their ground, not running in total fear to his antics so far. Luna wasn't lying that these stallions were trained to face fear.

Just a simple hit and run tactic wasn't going to cut it; he needed something that will cut the army to the heart.

Now, The doll thought, what's going to make them panic?

He thought of military training, wars, whatever related to army subject to try to shake them. What would shake an army during a time of trouble?

He looked up and saw the shadow of Shining Armor pacing left and right, trying to come up with something that could help them pinpoint the intruder.

Suddenly… A light bulb flashed above his head.

An army's courage always rest with the commander. If something where to happen to this commander, the army's courage will fall with him.

Before he could ask himself the question of how to deal with him, he knew exactly what to do.

With a devilish snicker, he patiently waited. They were still a few guards casting the detection spell, searching high and low for the intruder. One elite came close when he briefly checked under captain's stand that loomed over the crowd… Good thing the small door was an outie.

After several minutes, the last guard stopped his search, deactivating the magic detection spell and simply waited for orders from the thinking captain.

The Tails Doll carefully creped the door open and peaked left and right for any guards. Seeing none, he carefully tiptoed out and flexed his claws. The idea was brilliant, simply brilliant! But in order for it to pay off, he'll have to be quick.

Shining Armor was still trying to 'figure out' this intruder. Without any leagues of any kind, they were stuck in this room until it makes the next move. They know that this thing was in here… Somewhere. Probably watching them and anticipating their next move. Whatever this intruder is, it's surly was formable. Not even their best spies could penetrate their watchful eyes, and they even volunteered to try!

(CLICK!)

Suddenly, complete pitch black darkness covered them as the lights above mysteriously shut off. No one could see anything an inch from them, only guided by the sound of mumbling guards. As Shining Armor was about to shout something, he saw something from the corner of his eye.

It was a floating, glowing red jewel.

Shining Armor stared at this mysterious object as it ever so slowly levitated towards him. The captain had his horn charged, pointing at the jewel for any kind of surprises it may store.

As he was about the cast a lighting spell, however; the jewel lunged for him.

Two makeshift claws gripped his cheeks and held his head in place. Before he could retaliate in anyway, he was met by two big eyes with black pupils staring straight into his.

Shining Armor suddenly felt numb.

Those dark eyes expanded until the creature's whole eyes were completely black. The Captain felt his conscious slipping from him; his mind and all sense of feeling escaping from him as the doll's eyes continued to stare into him.

After just mere seconds of being grabbed, the doll let him go, letting the lifeless body hit the floor with a soft thud.

The Tails Doll snickered under his breath as he deeply slit his own arm with his claw, spilling blood all over the unconscious captain and letting a pool form underneath him.

An elite managed to charge his horn with all the magic he had and cast a spell that lit the massive room with a glowing light. All of the guards were frantically looking around, some trying to charge their horn to light the room before the elite did.

"SHINING ARMOR!"

Every guard shot their eyes towards the stand and found a guard galloping towards the unconscious stallion. Everypony followed after him, either teleporting up or taking the stares.

At the moment when the guards laid eyes on him… Their hearts stopped.

There was blood… Lots of it. Covering the captain with a large pool underneath him. An elite put a hoof on his neck and found his muscles completely stiff, frozen as ice. His eyes were wide open, staring at everything and nothing with his mouth slightly gapped in shock. There wasn't a cut on him, but as a guard checked for a pulse… They felt nothing.

"Captain!" An nearby elite shouted, shaking his stiff body, "Captain!"

No response, just a shuffle of the boards beneath him.

" …He's gone." An elite lowly spoke, a hint of fear betraying his voice.

A handful of lowly ranked guards dwelling in the back began to shake with their light armor clanking.

"W-w-we were right there with him," one whimpered, "He's dead… The ghost killed him."

"He was just right there just moments ago," Another whimpered, slowly beginning to back up to the double doors that lead outside, "Th… This is not worth it! I didn't sign up for this!"

"Don't lose your heads!" The elite shouted, "We're going to hold our ground! We may have no idea what this thing is, but if we stay together we'll find whatever's been haunting our grounds!"

That surely didn't ensure too many guards.

"How do you even catch a ghost?" a guard asked out loud, "We couldn't even detect it with our magic! How can you expect us to catch it?"

(SMACK!)

The elite that was emitting the only source of light toppled to the ground, blinding everyone in the room with pitch black darkness. Before any stallion had a chance to cast another light spell, the electric light that hung above them mysteriously flickered back on.

The very next thing they found was an elite laying in a pool of blood with his body frozen stiff as a board. Two other elites rushed to his side and yanked his helmet off. His eyes were wide open, blankly staring ahead lifelessly.

"We have another guard down!" One of the elites shouted.

They suddenly heard the only exit open. As the stallions cast their gaze, they found a guard slowly backing away to the outside.

"I-I-I can't take this!" He shouted with a trembling voice, "You ponies can die in here if you want to! I'm running for my life!"

"HALT!"

The stallion paid no need to the elite's command and galloped to the opposite direction. The elites noticed a small group of lowly ranked guards inching their way to the door.

"No one leaves this room!" One of them shouted, "We have sworn to protect this kingdom! Fleeing from battle is considered treason, punishable by death!"

"W-what do you expect us to do!?" A guard asked out loud, panicking, "It's a ghost! How do you expect us to fight something we can't see or touch it!?"

"Running away like cowards isn't going to solve anything!" An elite shouted at them, "As your superior, I command you to not go through that door!"

The lights, just for a split second, flickered. The guards that were near the exit saw a shadowy figure appear at the very back of the room, floating with its arms stretched out with a glowing red jewel dangling from its head.

The guards screamed and hightailed it out of there, not giving the elites another piece of mind.

"GET BACK HERE!"

They were long gone before the elite's orders reached their ears. The remaining guards snapped their heads around and found nothing, only a simple meeting room.

Just when the guards were about to issue another search, the lights flickered again. The guards looked around, trying find anything… Anything at all, that would hint the location of the intruder. Again, all efforts were futile.

The lights continued to flicker until they were blinding by darkness again. Before they could cast a lighting spell, the lights came back on.

All of a sudden, they were greeted by a massive handwritten message on the back wall. The message was covered in blood, letters slowly distorting as the blood slowly dripped downward.

GET OUT

The guards could only stare at it in shock… The lights only went out for five seconds and this message somehow appeared on the wall.

"What do we do?" A guard asked.

The elites said nothing; only to continue staring at the message as well as the rest of their surroundings. Their breathing were controlled, their stance stood cautiously but firmly. The lowered ranked briefly cast a glance towards them.

They were scared. Even through their own armor they could tell that the Royal Guard's most honored ponies were sweating.

The lights flickered again. With each brief of light the guards caught, the message on the wall became more and more distorted.

"I don't like this," An elite mumbled, "Not one bit."

(SMACK!)

A guard jumped as the lights above flickered off. Again, before anyone could summon a lighting spell, the lights mysteriously turned back on.

The next thing they saw was another elite laying lifelessly on the floor with blood splattered across his armor.

The guards that stayed behind began to shake.

"Th-this is stupid," One said, "We're going to get picked off one by one by this thing."

"Just… Hold your ground." An elite commanded, his voice shaky, "We're- we're not running."

Again, the lights above flickered on and off. The guards looked around and suddenly noticed fresh blood stains dripping on the other walls.

One guard silently backed away to the door and galloped off without anyone noticing.

(SMACK!)

An elite yelped and jumped high in the air with the lights turning off. Again, before any of them could cast a lighting spell, the lights turned back on.

Another elite down, body frozen stiff on a pool of blood.

"…that's it!" A guard shouted, galloping towards the double doors, "I'm getting out of here!"

The rest of the guards followed, galloping for the double doors and disappearing out of sight. The the few elites that stayed behind made no objection, though; remaining perfectly quite as they intensely waited.

After several minutes of waiting, nothing happened. The Tails Doll was patiently waiting under the stand, just waiting for that one guy to take a stand.

As if on cue, an elite slowly trotted forwards; stomping one hoof on the floor and raising his head high.

"... I AIN'T GOT ALL NIGHT! COME OUT HERE AND FACE US! THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO BREAK US! YOU WON'T EVEN FACE US YOURSELF! YOU'RE NOTHING! DO YOU HEAR ME! NOTHING!"

The elites behind him could hear a faint echo from the stallion's dare. They stood quite, only companied by the sound of their slow breathing. A couple of minutes passed in absolute silence.

Suddenly, the guard in front of the pack heard unnatural breathing behind him.

He and the rest of the elites quickly shot around and jumped back when they found another guard that was lingering behind them on the floor in a pool of blood… With something floating above it.

It lowered itself ever so slightly and placed a claw on the stallion's armor.

"There's nothing more fresher than a soldier's heart," The Tails Doll carefully slipped his makeshift hand into the guard's armor and began making squishing noises with his lungs, making it sound like he's sticking his claws in the stallion's chest, "Don't you agree?"

There were only five elites standing against this threat… Two of them began to slowly back away.

"It's strange, though." The doll continued, his soft voice being carried throughout the entire room, "One death never satisfies me. Another death never fulfills." He then stretched his smile, "But it's sure fun."

An elite immediately hurled a fireball at him, only to miss when the doll shifted slightly to the left.

"Oh, It seems as if somepony wants to play… I can play too,"

The lights above flickered off immediately. They didn't care to try to cast a lighting spell, they charged their horns and opened fired in the darkness. When the lights flickered back on, they found another elite lying in a pool of blood with the doll floating above the body.

The elites fired at it again, only to have it shift and miss it by inches.

The lights go out, the elites fire blindly in the dark, the lights come back on, another elite laying in a pool of blood.

Only three elites remained.

"… It's no good." One elite whispered, his voice trembly greatly as he stared at the floating doll with it staring right back, "We can't beat it."

An elite slowly began to back away to the door… Then turned tails and galloped out. The elite that dared to challenge the doll turned around and shouted.

"Get back here! You have a duty to fulfill!"

The other elite whipped around and galloped after him, disappearing out of sight.

Only the last elite remained, alone, all of his brothers either dead or fled out of the haunted room. The stallion snarled, not even daring to give this thing an inch of ground.

"… Come at me." He growled, taking steps closer towards the floating doll with his horn pointing right at him, "COME AT ME!"

The doll made no movement, but simply stare at him from a distance.

With a roar of rage, the elite charged his horn and charged blindly at it. While the Tails Doll shifted, the elite levitated a spear next to a fallen guard and skewered it when passing. The doll plopped to the ground with a splat, blood gushing from its wound with the spear poking out of its stomach.

The elite shot back around, huffing and panting from the sudden charge. He found the doll lying lifelessly on the floor with the weapon stuck half-way through him.

"Not so big and tough now, huh!? ARE YOU!"

When the stallion stared at it for several long seconds with absolutely no signs of movement from it, he smirked… To think he is the only stallion to have faced the Tails Doll head on and actually win.

His smile faded when he saw the doll slowly standing back up on its two legs, staring straight at the soldier with its large dilated eyes.

"Quite the contrary."

The Tails Doll reached behind and began to slowly push the spear further into his own body. The weapon eventually fell below the doll's feet, completely covered with the doll's blood.

It was at this moment when the elite began to take cautious steps back. The doll floated once more, easing his way towards the guard.

"Now it's my turn to play with you."

Beginning to panic, the guard began to cast fireball after fireball at the doll. The Tails Doll shifted slightly away from each shot, letting them hit the wall behind him. The doll inched his way closer to his final pray.

"…WHAT ARE YOU!?"

The elite found himself backed up against the wall. Before he could fire a spell, the doll floated towards him and gripped his head with his claws, staring at him dead in the eye with his dark pupils expanding to the very outer rims of his eyes.

"Tell your brothers happy Halloween when they wake up."

The doll continued to stare into the elite's eyes until the guard froze stiff. The Tails Doll let him go, letting the last pony in the room fall to the floor with a thud. Since there was no one else to scare, he skipped pouring blood on him.

The doll backed up, panting heavily from exhaustion; the jewel on top of his head was faintly glowing from the massive amount of magic he exercised. He took a good long look of his work.

In his mind, this was the best scare he performed since his escape from Sonic R.

"Hm," He pondered, putting a claw on his chin, "There's something missing," After a minute of thinking his smile crept back on his face, "Oh! I know!"

---

The first thing Shining Armor saw after he 'woke up' was the floor on the side of his face. His mouth and lungs quickly inhaled a fresh punch of air after being out for an half an hour. He blinked instinctively, tears forming from being open for so long.

When he stood up, though; he saw several elites and soldiers on the floor in a pool of blood… In fact that was all he mostly saw was splatters of blood decorating the walls and the tiles underneath him, even the ceiling was dripping with blood.

With energy drained from him, he slowly staggered to his hooves. His vision blurred from the tears trying to moister his dry eyes.

He noticed that the room was completely wrecked. Tables were turned over, the stage he was standing on was completely destroyed, it was a miracle that it didn't collapse on him.

When his vision began to clear, he saw something glowing from the corner of his eye. He quickly shot his head around and saw a strange doll standing several feet away from him. The doll lifelessly stared at him as he curiously neared it.

The next thing he saw was the doll grabbing the fur on its own head and began to slowly tear it off its shoulders.

The Captain didn't know if he had any energy left after being awaken from unconsciousness… But he redefined the term 'adrenaline rush' when he screamed to the top of his lungs and galloped to the double doors with his tail tucked between his legs.

---

The Tails Doll came walking out of the fort with a big victorious smile on his face while plucking his handy needle and thread from behind his ears. While he began to stitch his head back together, he spotted Luna staring at him from a dark alley with her jaw dropped open.

The Tails Doll felt his smile stretching wider.

"What's wrong, Luna?" The doll asked with the biggest grin on his face.

It took her a solid minute for her to even speak.

"...D…Did I see my very own captain galloping out with his tail tucked between his thighs?"

The doll just nodded, "And I take that you saw everypony else gallop out of there, yea?"

"H-how did you even… My stallions have trained for years to… Just… HOW!?"

The Tails Doll finishes stitching the last thread on his neck and slowly strutted in front of her, crossing his arms and sticking out his chest.

"Well, I'm just good like that, you're highness." He simply answered with a cool voice, "It's a natural born talent that I hold dear. I don't know what I do, but I just do it."

Luna finally shook her head and redeemed his poster, standing straight up and putting on her signature poker face, "You have truly proven yourself, creature. Not even my," She swallowed… She's going to have a little talk with the captain and the rest of those putty tats tomorrow morning, "Guards could stand up to you... Pushing my pride aside, I can honestly say that you are truly a force to be reckoned with."

The Tails Doll chuckled with glee… The doll was about to declare himself the true terror of the night until he caught his own tongue. He took in a deep breath and sighed.

"You know," He began to approach her, "You ain't bad either, I mean I don't know anyone else that can peer inside dreams and give nightmares… Even I can't do that."

"And I can't pull my own head off and stich it back," She chuckled.

Luna took in a deep breath and extended her hoof towards him, giving him a small smile.

"It's been nice competing with you, Tails Doll. I am proud to see you as an equal."

The doll looked at her hoof for a second, as if contemplating what she was doing. With a grin, he stretched out his makeshift hand and gently shook it.

"Yea uh, sorry about everything I said earlier."

"No problem, my apologies to you too."

The doll let go of her hoof and staggered around awkwardly. Luna glanced away and scratched the back of her head.

"So," Luna said, "I'm planning on watching a horror flick with Shining Armor and Princess Cadence tonight. You're welcome to join us… Maybe even try to make amends with the captain."

The Tails Doll in held with excitement and clutched his claw together, "What are ya'll watching!?"

"I'm not for sure," She answered, "The captain said something about Zombies, though."

"OOOOO!" He oozed with glee while hopping in place, "I love zombies!"

---

One hour later

Princess Luna, the Tails Doll, Shining Armor, and Princess Cadence were all sitting on a big luxury beanbag with the only source of light sitting in front of them. The T.V. turned to a shade of red when a group of zombie ponies surrounded a helpless mare and proceeded to dine on her flesh.

Luna was sitting comfortably on one side of the beanbag with a large bowl of popcorn on her lap. She took another sip from her soda drink hat, then proceeded to levitate another chocolate candy bar to her gaping mouth… There was a whole stack of sweets sitting right by her, and she's not sharing.

The Tails Doll was standing on his seat the entire time, hopping up and down like an exited child with tiny droplets of blood seeping from his lips. He jammed his claws into his popcorn and shoved it into his mouth, smacking loudly as he glued his eyes to the T.V.

Shining Armor and Cadence could be found leaning as far away as they could from the exited doll, whimpering as they watch him. The Tails Doll finally sat down and turned to them.

"I know that we got on the wrong foot, captain, but I petrified you in the name of my honor… No hard feelings?"

The captain silently nodded.

"Nice wife, by the way," The doll added, "If I was a pony, I'll be scorin' her myself… Popcorn?"

He shoved his popcorn towards the trembling two. Princess Cadence peeked inside the bowl and found the top layer of the popcorn completely covered by the doll's own blood.

She turned green and silently puke behind her seat.

Temporarily distracted, he turned his head towards Luna and recoiled slightly… She was almost laying on her back with a chocolate bar stuck in her mouth, her little belly was plumping out.

"Jesus, girl! Cut it back a bit, you'll blow up with that much food."

Luna slowly sat up and turned her head to him while still chewing on her chocolate bar.

"Huh?"

"I mean, look how much food you stakin' over there! You can feed an orphanage with that stack of sweets."

She glance at her stockpile of food for a split second then turned back to him, "So?"

"I understand that it's movie night, but… Too much of something can be a bad thing."

"I'm not worried," Luna sighed annoyingly, turning back to the screen.

The doll stared at her in amazement. He didn't know anyone else that can devour that much food, "If you don't want to get fat, then-"

Luna instantly turned her head to him and glared, "I beg your pardon?"

"I mean if you eat that much food, it's going to show around the waist, honey. I can see your stomach inflating a bit."

She sneered, " …Are you calling me fat?"

"Well," The doll looked down and looked at her hanging stomach, "Yea."

The Tails Doll didn't expect her to instantly shoot up and trash the food around her, stomping her war towards him with thunder crashing in the background. The doll fell on his back in surprise, his pupils dilating in fear.

Shining Armor and Princess Cadence took this time to quietly escape through the back door.

"H-how dare you call me fat!" She screamed, "I have you know that my body proportions are perfect."

"Now I-I-I-I didn't mean anything by it!" He said with a shaking voice, "I-I have nothing against fat mares, honest! They can be just as beati-"

Her eyes began to glow white with her horn glowing. The chamber began to shake violently as she began to charge her horn in rage.

"MOMMY!"

Then she discharged, consuming the room in a bright white light. When Luna got a hold of her temper, she found the doll completely missing from his spot. She gasped in shock… Yet again has her sensitivity caused her to unleash her magic on someone.

She was sure that the spell didn't kill him, but it did send him somewhere… Somewhere very far away.

" …Oh dear."

---

Author's notes

There is a third part, but I'm going to hold it off and work on the story… The bonus is done anyways.

I'm going to try to get the next chapter done within two weeks. Shouldn't be too much, though.

Signing out… Have a good one!

God Bless

Harry