CHAPTER TEN: THE STORM

October 10

The silence in Sugarcube Corner was thick enough to swim through. Bryn knew silence, such as the austere emptiness of the clearing where he once practiced his phasing, but places like that had their own background noise that melded into a kind of un-silence. Call it the elevator music to loneliness, if you will. This, however, was the complete absence of noise, broken only by the ponies' breaths and by the sputtering death throes of the flames. The fire's cheery brightness was fading fast. Perhaps realizing that the blaze was the room's sole heat source, Applejack crossed to the hearth and tossed on a few fresh logs.

"Didn't she say seven o'clock?" asked Twilight.

"That's what Ah heard. Maybe we're just a mite early."

Rainbow Dash looked around at the half-finished decorations and the tidy shop. Everything was untouched from earlier in the day; the chairs were set upside-down on the wooden tables and the floor was swept clean. "She told me yesterday that the Cakes were visiting some family in Fillydelphia. Pinkie should have been the only one here… so where is she?"

"She was obviously here." Twilight poked at the streamers strewn about on the floor. "Less than an hour ago, judging by the fire, and she was getting ready for the party. Something must have interrupted her."

"Pinkie Pie!" Rarity screeched.

"Ah suppose that's one way ta do it."

When several moments passed and it became obvious that Pinkie was nowhere within earshot, Applejack got up and went in search of her. She knew Sugarcube Corner by heart. It was as familiar as a broken-in saddle; Pinkie Pie had worked there for several years now and since then, she had invited her best friends to parties and sleepovers beyond count. The kitchen and pantry were full to bursting with sacks of sugar and candied goodness, but no pink pony.

An uneasy feeling grew in her chest when she went upstairs to find a solitary candle still burning in the hallway. The fire's warmth had wafted upstairs as far as the bedroom doors, although the rooms beyond were cold and dark and empty. No Cakes and certainly no Pinkie Pie. A thought came to Applejack as she trotted down the stairs- was she in her laboratory again? She returned to the kitchen.

Only a select few knew about the secret chamber below the bakery, and only an earth pony could actually get to it without aid. Placed above the trapdoor was an enormous set of wooden cabinets, stuffed with dishes and other cooking supplies, and weighing in at over seven hundred pounds. Applejack locked her hooves against the floor and pushed. A Pegasus or unicorn could never have physically shifted the cabinet, although a gifted unicorn like Twilight could have levitated it away in a jiffy.

Applejack lifted up the hidden trapdoor and slid down the wooden ladder. She was immediately assaulted by a dank stuffy smell of humidity and decay. It had been years since she had seen the basement; then, she had been in Pinkie's company and Pinkie had invited her down to show her a secret new recipe she had been cooking up. Many of her best culinary creations were born in this very room, hybrids of baking genius and laboratory science such as the Chocolate Raspberry Explosion. Yet from the looks of things, much had changed since then. The strange apparatus of barrels and mixing bowls and test tubes still sat in pristine condition against the far wall, as did the stack of surplus flour sacks and other ingredients, but it smelled as if nopony had even opened the cellar door in months. The candle holders held the melted stumps of tapers long burned out and the only light filtering in was from the kitchen above.

Strangely, she noticed a set of metal chains hanging to the right of the ladder. They creaked ominously when touched. The entire space had a dirt floor, well-tamped and immaculately clean- except for underneath the chains, where the dirt revealed reddish stains and odd patterns scratched into the soil.

Those chains weren't there the last time Ah was down here.

"Just what in the hay is goin' on?" An unexplainable dread intensified with each second. Its source was none other than the chains: they seemed to hold her gaze like electrically charged magnets and there was something unexplainably scary about the rusty metal links and the disturbed dirt beneath, something dark and evil and best kept buried. She couldn't escape the feeling that something horrible had happened to Pinkie.

Turning tail, she leapt up the ladder and dragged the cabinetry back over the door. The kitchen's bright light felt like an extension of the cellar… or was it the fetid stench wafting up from below that refused to dissipate? The stench that clung, even now, to her coat.

She shuddered.

On instinct, she hurried out of the kitchen and ran face-first into Twilight. "Applejack! We were just going to come looking for you! Did you find her?"

"Ah didn't find anything," she gasped, and found that her voice was trembling. She took great gulping lungfuls of air until the shaking stopped. Good, clean air.

"Do you remember her saying anything about going somewhere?" said Rainbow Dash. "You think she would have told her best friends before just disappearing."

"I think we're getting overexcited," said Rarity. "Maybe she went on an errand and meant for us to make ourselves at home until she returned."

"But you know Pinkie. She's never late and never unprepared. If she went on an errand, she would have left us a note." Twilight wandered around the shop, lifting chairs and peering under tables. "It's like she just disappeared. Are you sure there was no sign of her upstairs, Applejack?"

"Ah'm positive."

For the first time, Bryn spoke. "Didn't she say something about zecora? Whatever a zecora is… when we were cleaning up earlier, she mentioned it. Something about ingredients."

"That's right, she did mention going to Zecora's." Twilight's eyes grew as big as dinner plates.

"Ya think something bad happened to her on the way?"

"If it did, there's no time to lose. We need to find her!" The Pegasus took to the air and would have flown to the door if her tail hadn't been caught. This time, it was Twilight who clamped her teeth around Rainbow Dash's striped tail and held her fast.

"Wait. We- we probably shouldn't rush out there. Especially not at night."

"If Pinkie's in trouble, we can't afford ta waste time." Applejack opened the door and her Stetson was blown clear off her head. "Or maybe Ah spoke too soon."

"I don't believe it!" said Rainbow angrily. "There's not supposed to be a rainstorm scheduled for tonight! It's two nights from now and I'm going to smack Thunderlane if this is his fault."

Twilight and Applejack were closest to the doorway and received the blasts of frigid wind full-force. In the short time that they had been in Sugarcube Corner, that same breeze that ruffled Rarity's beaded silver dress had become a howling gale, albeit a dry one; no rain fell from the ugly gray skies above, as Rainbow Dash feared. Only screeching gusts of wind that were cold enough to cut through clothing and fur alike.

"My dress!" wailed Rarity. A huge draft caught the dress and pulled it ungracefully over her head.

"Of all the gosh-darned fussiest ponies. Why'd ya wear such a silly dress anyway if ya knew the weather's been bad lately? Somethin' like that only shows how beautiful ya are and won't keep ya warm-" but, too late, Applejack realized what had just slipped out of her mouth.

If not for the noise of the storm, Applejack's mistake would have been out for all the ponies to hear. As it was, only Rarity heard it, and her mouth opened in a soundless O.

"Applejack..." She sighed and placed a hoof on her friend's shoulder, leading her out of earshot of the others. "I never wanted to hurt your feelings, but I told you how I felt that night when we had dinner. You're my best friend and I would do anything for you. Can't we keep it at that?"

Poor Applejack was flustered and frightened and annoyed all at once. Not only had she let slip exactly what she thought of her friend for all ears to hear, she suddenly realized exactly why Rarity was wearing the dress in the first place. None of her other friends had dressed up for the occasion. It wasn't as if Pinkie Pie's parties were high society events, and playing pin-the-tail-on-the-pony was impossible if you were tripping over a bunch of useless clothes. She's all dolled up because of that- that human. He ain't been here more than a day an' Rarity's already gettin' excited about him.

Or that was how it appeared, in Applejack's mind. Had she blurted out her feelings because honesty was a part of her, or because she just couldn't hold them in any longer? Ah'm dumber than a sack of rocks. She'll never see me in that way, no matter how much Ah can't resist her.

Then, a moment later: Ah can't believe it… after everything, she'd pick some weird-looking monster over her best friend. Angry tears pooled behind her eyes and she blinked them away.

"We can't go out in this weather," said Twilight fretfully, oblivious to the silent distress of her friend. "Besides, I have to find out where Fluttershy went. I haven't seen her since lunch."

"But what if it were us? Pinkie Pie wouldn't let a windstorm get her down. I vote for going out into the forest right now and looking for her." Rainbow Dash landed in front of Twilight. "No matter what."

All five of them stepped out into the street, into a downtown Ponyville that was dark and silent. Every door and window was shuttered against the storm. As was customary for a culture with only candlelight to rely on when the sun set, ponies rarely stayed out later than sundown, and Ponyville's streets were barren.

"I don't get it! Who is running this bucking weather around here?" yelled Rainbow. Unshielded by any of the buildings, the wind's raw power was enough to nearly tear the dress from Rarity's body and to throw dust into the ponies' eyes, and was naturally aimed against the direction they needed to go. Unable to take to the sky without being blown all the way to Canterlot, Rainbow Dash screwed her eyes shut and walked against the cold knives of the storm. They didn't make it two hundred feet down the street before Twilight balked.

"At this rate we'll freeze to death before we get halfway to the forest. We have to turn back! First thing tomorrow morning we'll assemble here and look for her."

"Ah'm with Twi'. If Pinkie's with Zecora, she'll be fine till mornin.'"

Rainbow grumbled but deep down, she knew her friend was right. "I could make it, though," she said under her breath.

---

An hour ago…

Fluttershy held a carrot between her teeth. At the present rate, two things would happen to this carrot. Either it would be bitten in half from the mare's violent shaking and teeth-chattering, or the rabbit in front of her would finally lose patience and accept it as his only meal. She was in no mood to cook tonight, least of all one of Angel's extravagant dinners with fifty ingredients.

"Eat your carrot," she hissed. He shook his head defiantly. "You haven't eaten anything in hours and you're cranky so eat it."

Under her terrifying gaze (the precursor to her actual Stare) he grudgingly nibbled the end of the carrot placed in front of him. There was no enjoyment involved. As soon as Fluttershy turned away to see to his other animals, he spat out a mouthful of orange vegetable and glared at his caretaker with venomous hatred.

The Pegasus had already turned away from Angel, though, and missed his performance. Every window in Fluttershy's treehouse was closed, locked, and covered by opaque curtains. The front and rear doors were likewise locked and held shut by pieces of furniture- her upstairs dresser and part of her kitchen cabinet, respectively- and she had moved them there upon entering the house. She nervously glanced at them every few seconds or so like clockwork. Anything trying to force its way inside would find it difficult, although Fluttershy was not comforted at all by this knowledge.

It wasn't until after Angel rejected the carrot that he noticed Fluttershy's disheveled state. The bags under her eyes, her shaking hooves, and her nervous bloodshot eyes told the story of a pony far beyond ordinary insomnia. A pony pushed to her limits and hanging by a thread, and this thread was quickly becoming frayed.

The rabbit watched as she snatched up a long, thin bottle from her kitchen countertop bearing the label "Smirnhoof" and took a swig. The liquor burned like white fire and left a cloying foul taste in her mouth, but it was the only thing that made the black stallion go away. At least… for a time. At present, she was up to a bottle a day. The general store owner in Ponyville was happy to take her bits while looking sadly at this Pegasus that seemed to deteriorate before his eyes. With each passing day her appearance worsened.

Angel immediately regretted making her upset. But eating a carrot with some semblance of enjoyment wasn't going to make things any better.

She muttered things under her breath: "Have to keep the black stallion out. Can't let him in. Can't let him see. He'll see me. He's always watching, and when he's not watching, that means he's moving. Moving on whispering branches and moving even though he has no bones. Only limbs. Have to keep him out..." She trotted up the stairs to her bedroom, intending to close and lock those windows too, even though they had been bolted shut when she visited yesterday afternoon. Or had they?

A quick check revealed that the windows had not been tampered with. Fluttershy's hoof inched toward the curtain. I shouldn't look... He'll be there...

She looked anyway.

The sun had just set and beyond the eastern mountains was a quickly fading golden glow. Each house and lamppost and tree cast a long spindly shadow, making the streets look like a demented chessboard of light and darkness, and as dusk fell the contrast diminished. Soon all would be overtaken by the night. The same wind that would, in an hour, drive her friends home from their mission was beginning to rustle the tops of the trees. Fluttershy could hear its gentle thrum from her top floor as it transferred its energy down into the tree itself. Directly south of her treehouse was a writhing black expanse of forest that she couldn't see from her west window, but was too close nonetheless.

She noticed the black stallion, not because it had moved, but because it was the only thing in the landscape that was completely motionless. It stood stock-still in the street such that the second streetlamp's light illuminated it from behind. The same apparition that had haunted her since the forest... A stallion, balanced on his hind hooves, with jet-black fur and a wavy mane. Its face was wreathed in darkness.

Was it malicious? She had no doubt about that. The stallion was obviously malicious because of the strange manner in which it always appeared and the irrational fear it created. In the midst of talking to a friend… in her garden… on a walk outside in the morning… it flickered on the fringe of her vision, at a distance and usually camouflaged by shadows. As a rule, it vanished whenever she blinked or turned her head, and in the presence of others. Once, on a walk with Twilight, she had pointed out the stallion only to have Twilight say, "What stallion?"

Tonight was different. Instead of being at the very edge of the forest or behind a building, it was quite brazenly standing in the middle of the street and not even trying to be stealthy. Her gaze was drawn to it and a shiver of terror wracked her body every time she looked at its face.

Then, as quickly as it appeared, it vanished.

Fluttershy's heart was in her throat. She closed the curtain and trotted down the stairs, once more ensuring that her doors were secure.

Three quick knocks rattled her front door, making her shriek. "Fluttershy! Are you home? I need to talk to you."

Twilight? It certainly sounded like her friend's voice. She could barely squeak out a "yes". Only afterward did she realize her error. What if it's someone pretending to be Twilight? Now they know I'm here. Fluttershy shrank back against her kitchen counter and prayed for 'Twilight' to go away.

"You left so quickly from lunch today, and I'm worried about you… please open up? You can stay at my place tonight if it'll make you feel better."

If it really was Twilight, she couldn't risk hurting her feelings by ignoring her. Inch by inch, Fluttershy moved toward the door, feeling like she was making the biggest mistake of her life. When she turned the knob to let Twilight in, there was no purple unicorn waiting on the doormat. There was the monster…

Eight feet tall, its bloody sightless heads staring down at her, a multitude of tentacles snarling at its feet. Tentacles that grabbed at her and pulled her closer to gnashing teeth and darkness. Her back door was bolted shut; there was no escape that way, and certainly no escape through the front door when it was completely blocked by the creature's bulk. She was trapped.

She screamed once as the black horror seized her and tore her flesh to pieces.

In her bed, surrounded by a clutch of worried creatures, Fluttershy woke up from her nightmare. She was still screaming.

---

Rainbow Dash considered herself very lucky to find her house in the maelstrom of inclement weather surrounding Ponyville. Of course, if pressed about the matter, she would say that there was no such thing as luck and a true hero makes her own luck, but even her gifts of perception and finesse had limits, and tonight put them to the test.

Everything about a Pegasus- her lightweight bones, trim frame, and hundreds of hollow and very sensitive flight feathers- is intended to help her swim through the sky and feel its drafts and disturbances. As an earth pony grows crops and shepherds animals, so does a Pegasus shepherd clouds with gentle hooves. Rainbow Dash was the manager of Ponyville's weather department because she had a gift few Pegasi shared: a sixth sense of the heavens. No other pony could control and clear clouds with her speed and dexterity, or predict their patterns with her uncanny accuracy.

And so it was that when she battled her way through the skies above Sweet Apple Acres, she was not surprised to find her house missing.

A Pegasus house, made of cloud and bound with liquid rainbows, could withstand quite a pummeling from the elements. Even hurricane-force winds would only push the structure out of position and not break it apart, and this was exactly what had happened to Rainbow Dash's house. It normally hovered high above Applejack's orchards but was now nowhere to be found. She closed her eyes and sensed the wind patterns in her feathers, reading them like an open book. Her house had blown clear southwest of town, over the White Tail Woods; she let out a string of curses to make a Manehatten dockworker blush and began to shunt it back to town. "Somepony's going to answer for this tomorrow. If Bluebell got the date of the next downpour mixed up…"

Her teeth ground together in anger. Deep inside, though, tonight's unexpected weather felt nothing like a scheduled rainstorm. She knew what rainstorms felt like. As a rule, Pegasi disliked creating wind except in the direst of circumstances and nothing about this wind felt hoof-made. Tomorrow, a certain group of ponies at the weather station would get a piece of her mind.

The damage to her home's cumulus foundation was slight and easily repaired and before she called it a night, she checked her mailbox. Somepony (most likely Derpy) had again mixed up her mail with Granny Smith's and the mailbox was stuffed full of farming magazines and knitting patterns. With a groan she tossed the whole pile onto her kitchen table, reminding herself to redeliver it in the morning. A piece of parchment sealed with an official-looking "L" in navy blue wax caught her eye and she sank down onto her sofa to examine it. A moment later it fell limply from her hooves. After today, and my friend is somewhere out there in the forest missing... is this really happening?

RAINBOW DASH

SWEET APPLE ACRES HEIGHTS

PONYVILLE, EQUESTRIA

Your presence is hereby requested in the Royal Canterlot Night Court beginning at sundown tomorrow concerning the proceedings of the following:

Case # 481

Weather Dept. of Cloudsdale v. Weather Dept. of Vanhoover

STARDANCER, defendant

APRIL SHOWERS and RAINBOWSHINE and BLUEBERRY CLOUD, plaintiffs

You are named a material witness in the above case. Please report promptly to the Court on this date. If you are unable to attend, a representative appointed by you in writing may attend in your stead or, in extenuating circumstances, the trial will proceed at a later date convenient for all parties.

Regards,

FRESH PARCHMENT, bailiff

By the order of Her Royal Highness Princess Luna