Ultimate Defence of the Realm - Teaser
by John Routledge

Based on Friendship is Magic, created by Lauren Faust
And My Little Pony, created by Bonnie Zacherle
Render Unto Hasbro That Which Is Hasbro’s...

“Applejack!”

Twilight screamed as she saw the unconscious head of her friend disappear behind yet another corner. She raced after it, her hooves slipping on the wet stone surface. Her heart hammered in her chest and her breath dragged in her throat. She was exhausted, both physically, mentally, and magically. She had no idea where she was, no idea where she was going, and no idea what was dragging Applejack - and which had picked her friends off one by one.

All she knew was that the Princess had asked them to investigate something unusual in the ruins of the Tiraseum, deep in the Everfree Forest, near the castle ruins where they had defeated Nightmare Moon. She knew from her studies it was part of the old city built near the ancient castle. And that the ground below was filled with tunnels and caverns where the entertainment had been prepared. And that some of the entertainments once practiced here had been so terrible Celestia and Luna both still refused to speak of them.

That and green light. Whatever she was chasing seemed to really like green light. Or it emitted green light.

Or is was made of green light?

Twilight caught sight of her friend one last time before rounding that corner and seeing it was a T-junction. To her right it ended in an alcove. To her left was a short corridor leading to a vast room, illuminated by more of the sickly green light scrolls that she and the others had found occasionally upon the ground. In the dim underground it was bright enough to let her see everything.

Her own ragged breathing echoed off the distant walls. The room truly was vast, with at least fifty yards to the nearest doorway leading out. Twilight had no idea what had taken her friends, but she had seen how quickly it could move. She had been able to follow it as it dragged Applejack away. There was no way it could have gotten that far before she arrived!

“Applejack!” Twilight shouted. “Applejack!”

She looked over her shoulder before edging her way into the room, and towards the glow-scroll. She knew she would see best when it was behind her field of vision. It was the only thing she had left. Her friend couldn’t have simply vanished! Twilight’s reserves were gone but she would still have picked up that flash of magic, even several corridors away. But what had happened?

“Applejack!”

She stood next to the glow-scroll, carefully surveying every inch of wall and floor. Nothing! Then the scroll began to fade, as had all the others. She walked around it one last time, hoping she might spot something new, or catch something that had been hiding in her own shadow. Still nothing!

The darkness was starting to close in all around her. The farthest wall faded away, and the others followed as she circle of what she could still see began to collapse inwards. Twilight tried desperately to cast a light spell, one of the simplest and easiest spells that every unicorn learns, but all that came out of her horn were a few weak sparks.

“Applejack?” Twilight whispered.

And then the light was gone. Twilight held her breath and listened, then snapped her head around when she heard a quiet thump. She spun in that direction.

“Who are you!? What have you done with my friends!?”

The darkness didn’t answer her, and Twilight could see nothing, but she could hear it moving, coming towards her, and trying to circle round to the side. Twilight turned to keep it in front of her. A couple of times it tried to rush her, but she refused to run, even though she wanted to.

Even though she couldn’t see, even though she was surrounded by stone walls, and there was nothing but a maze beyond them, she still really wanted to run, but she held her ground.

It was standing right in front of her. She could hear it breathing.

“Show yourself!”

Twilight got her wish.

Sudden light, sudden blood red light, started to boil and froth and smoke out of something held in twisted black claws just to the left of her muzzle. The face in front of her was a thing of nightmares, with tiny hard eyes and a misshapen skull with horns and it snarled at her and its mouth was blood red with teeth and teeth and more teeth and far too many teeth and Twilight screamed!