Author's Notes:

Before we get into the chapter, let me just say that due to a scheduling error on my part this'll be the only chapter of this story I publish this month. Next month, I'll be publishing three chapters of this story, including the climax chapter, which I plan to publish on Halloween. In the mean time, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Also, I'm sure, by this chapter, that you can figure out which video game was part of the inspiration for this story.

It had been two days since Twilight had disappeared, and one day since the disappearance of Pinkie Pie.

It was difficult to tell if Rainbow Dash was simply impatient, or if she was worried.

Applejack, on the other hand, if she had been wearing a blouse, would be wearing her worry on her sleeves. And Rarity, with all her melodrama, couldn’t hide her own worry over the two friends that had mysteriously vanished.

As for Fluttershy, well, she probably hid her true emotions the best of all of them. Nopony knew if even Fluttershy knew what she was feeling.

Thus were the emotional states of the four element bearers as they met at the library to discuss what they should do next.

As Spike, dutiful in spite of his fears, offered refreshments to the quartet, it was Rainbow Dash who was the first to speak. She said, “I don’t think we can wait any longer. We’ve gotta do something about our missing friends!”

Applejack nodded and said, “Ah agree. The question is, what do we do? Anypony know what Twilight and Pinkie were studyin’ afore they disappeared?”

Spike turned away from the element bearers, struggling to keep his emotions in check. When, after a few seconds, he was able to speak without, or so he hoped, his voice betraying the worry and grief he felt, he said, “Twilight sent some of the p-pizza to the G-griffon kingdom to get information on th-the ingredients.” ‘Well,’ he thought to himself, ‘so much for my voice not betraying me.’ Still, he continued, “Sh-sh-she found out th-th-that o-one of the ingredients was b-b-bear m-m-meat.” And, he concluded his statement by inhaling a little more sharply than he’d intended.

Rarity was the first to react, trotting toward the distraught dragon and saying, “Oh, Spike.” She then wrapped a forelimb around him.

At last, Spike couldn’t hold it in any longer. He buried his face in the fur at the base of Rarity’s neck and started sobbing.

In the mean time, Rainbow Dash started flying around the main room of the library, looking for anything that might look like a list of some kind.

Back on the ground, Applejack was the first to notice a piece of parchment on the table, and noticed it had writing on it. She trotted to it and, after looking over the list of ingredients, called out, “Ever’pony, c’mere!” As Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy approached her, Applejack continued, “This must be what Spike was a’talkin’ ‘bout.” Pointing a front hoof at one of the items on the list, she continued, “Here it says ‘bear meat.’”

Rainbow Dash, still hovering over the orange earth mare, grabbed the list from in front of her and said, “Let me have a look.” Then, after all but rubbing her nose on the parchment, she pushed it back and said, “Applejack’s right. No wonder we were so sick. But, there’s another meat on the list. Cockatrice.”

For a moment Applejack closed her eyes and bowed her head, removing her hat with a front hoof and placing it in front of her chest. Then she put her hat back on her head, opened her eyes, and walked over to Fluttershy. Putting a front hoof on the yellow pegasa’s shoulder, she said, “Now, Fluttershy, Ah know this is a’gonna be hard for ya. But, Ah need tuh ask ya. Is there anypony in or outta town that knows ‘bout the critters you’ve been a’keepin’ at your cottage besides us?”

Fluttershy turned away from her orange earth pony friend as she answered, “None that I know of.” Quickly turning back to her, she asked, “Why? Do you think somepony out there wants to hurt me by killing my creatures?”

Applejack took a moment to close her eyes and inhale and then exhale. Afterwards, she opened her eyes again and said, “Ah’m sorry, Sugarcube, but it’s a possibility we need to face.”

As the yellow pegasa put a forelimb to her mouth and started whimpering, Rainbow Dash landed between then, but to the side, and said, “Now, let’s not go jumping to conclusions here. We don’t know anypony that’d be so mean to any of us, much less Fluttershy.”

Under her breath, Applejack stated, “It’s just a theory anyhow.”

Rarity said, still holding a sobbing Spike in her forelimb, “Well, we simply can’t just stand here and do nothing. What if whoever is doing such an awful thing kills somepony we know?”

Applejack asked in return, “Well, what if he or she already has?”

Rarity turned a glare on the orange earth pony and said, “Applejack, how dare you say such a thing?”

Applejack turned back to the white unicorn and answered, “Ah hope Ah’m wrong 'bout this, Ah really do. But, the fact of the matter is Twilight disappeared two days ago, and Pinkie Pie disappeared yesterday. For all Ah know, they could be a'visitin’ relatives somewheres. And, honestly, Ah hope they are. But, nopony’s seen ‘em, nopony Ah know of anyways.”

Rainbow Dash asked, “So, what do you suggest?”

Applejack turned to the blue pegasa and answered, “We need to continue investigatin’ these here disappearances and deaths, and Ah suggest we start with that pizza place.”

For a moment Rainbow Dash hummed to herself in thought. Thinking out loud, she said, “You know, there is the possibility that some kind of monster’s behind all this.” The excitement in her voice grew as she started to float above her spot on the floor and continued, “And, if there is a monster killing off Fluttershy’s creatures, it’d be so cool to fight it!” Finally, she dropped down again and said to Applejack, “Count me in.”

Rarity let go of Spike and said, “Well, if you’re going, then I must go. From what I understand, Twilight investigated on her own, and she disappeared. Pinkie Pie must’ve also investigated on her own, and she also disappeared. It shan’t be just one or two of us that goes into the pizzeria. Either all of us go, or none of us.”

As three sets of eyes focused on her, Fluttershy looked away for a moment and said, “Well, if it means that I don’t lose any more of my creatures, or any more of my friends, then I guess I’ll have to go, too.”

At Fluttershy’s agreement, Rarity turned to Spike, stroked his head with the front hoof she hadn’t been holding him with, and said, “Now, Spike, it’s best that you not get caught up in this. I want you to stay here at the library until we return.”

As the white unicorn turned away from him, Spike grabbed her by the closest hind leg and begged, “Please, Rarity, don’t go! I’ve already lost Twilight and Pinkie Pie! I don’t wanna lose any more friends!”

Rarity turned to her dragon friend and said, “Neither do I. And, that’s why we’re doing this. If it means no more friends will be lost, then isn’t it worth the risk?”

Then, Fluttershy said, “You know, Spike may be right.”

A trio of pony voices grunted in confusion, and Spike ran to the yellow pegasa and said, burying his face in her neck, “Oh, thank you, Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy covered the purple dragon’s back in a forelimb as she continued, “Right now the pizza place is busy. We should wait until after it closes before we go investigating it. And besides, Spike shouldn’t be left alone right now.”

Applejack looked down for a moment, then back up at the yellow pegasa, and said, “Yeah, Ah reckon yer right. We’ll wait ‘til nightfall when the pizza place’s closed.” Turning to Rainbow Dash and Rarity, she asked, “That sound good to ever’pony?”

The blue pegasa and the white unicorn answered doubtfully, but affirmatively.

And, with that, the four ponies and one dragon waited until nighttime for the Pegasa’s Pizzeria to close. And, in the mean time, they each took turns comforting Spike, who, more than just simply accepting their efforts to calm him down, seemed to be saying farewell to each of them.

The fact of the matter was they didn’t really know when the restaurant was going to close. They just waited until it was dark outside before leaving the library and heading to the pizzeria. But, sure enough, when they arrived, the place was dark with neither customers nor employees in sight.

As the four entered the now silent restaurant and began their investigation, they kept in either visual or vocal contact at all times, so that none of them would get lost, and they wouldn’t lose track of each other in the multi-room structure.

That is, until it came time to investigate the theater, where the props were displayed.

Applejack tried to keep Fluttershy from entering, but the yellow pegasa, strangely curious about what her friend was trying to hide from her, flew over the orange earth mare’s head to see the displays on the stage.

As Fluttershy approached the displays, whining and sniffling, Applejack approached her and said, “Ah’m sorry Sugarcube. Ah’ll leave ya here to grieve for yer friends, and we’ll search the rest of the pizza place.” And, with that, Applejack left the sobbing Fluttershy alone while she and the other two ponies investigated the rest of the pizzeria.

The last of the rooms to be investigated was blocked by a door which, just as the front door had been, was easily opened.

The orange earth pony led the way, followed by the white unicorn, with the blue pegasa bringing up the rear.

As they followed the stairs down into the darkness, Rarity lit her horn with her magic, providing enough light so the trio didn’t stumble down the rest of the stairs.

Then, from behind them, they heard a familiar, kindly voice above them from the doorway say, “I really don't want to have to kill any more of my friends. So, I hope you don't mind.”

While Rarity and Applejack had to struggle for a place to turn around, the hovering Rainbow Dash had no problems making a one-hundred-eighty-degree turn to face the origin of the voice.

The blue pegasa asked, “Mind what, Fluttershy?”

Before Rainbow Dash could think about what her friend had said, the yellow pegasa continued, “If I lock you in here, and hold you against your wills?”

It’s a wonder that Applejack and Rarity didn’t knock their heads together as they turned and looked up at their yellow pegasa friend and, together Rainbow Dash, asked, “Fluttershy?”

The representative, and bearer of the element, of kindness looked down on the other three element bearers and, with a strangely dispassionate expression on her face, and a matching tone in her voice, said, “This is, after all, my pizzeria. I really didn't want to kill Twilight and Pinkie; but they came here searching for clues, and I had no choice. Now, you have come searching through my restaurant. If you had just stayed home, I wouldn't have to do this. But, like Twilight and Pinkie, you've given me no choice. I’m sorry, my friends.” And, with that, she closed the door.

Rainbow Dash was too shocked by what she’d seen and heard to even think about making an escape. As the clack of a lock closing was deflected around the basement, all the blue pegasa could think to do was slow the flapping of her wings until she settled onto the steps she’d been hovering over.

Applejack was similarly frozen in place.

On the other hand, Rarity turned and continued to make her way down the stairs, her horn providing light as she descended. Then she noticed two familiar pony shapes at the bottom of the stairs and approached them saying, “Oh, Twilight, Pinkie Pie, I’m so happy to …” But, her speech died immediately with her elation when she saw that they weren’t moving. As she prodded the body of the purple alicorn, her absent elation was replaced by terror when she saw the eyes had sunken in.

Before Rainbow Dash and Applejack could fully register what had just happened to them, they heard Rarity scream; and Rainbow Dash jumped at just the right time to avoid the white unicorn ramming into her, as she was backpedaling up the stairs again to get away form whatever it was that had alarmed her.

As the blue pegasa landed again and Applejack turned to see the terrified white unicorn finally stop backing away due to the door behind her, the orange earth mare asked, “Rarity, what’s wrong?”

The white unicorn pointed down the stairs and said, “I f-f-f-found out wh-wh-wh-what h-h-happened t-to T-t-t-twilight. Sh-sh-she’s d-d-d-dead!”

Rainbow Dash just stopped moving altogether. If somepony didn’t know better, he or she might think the blue pegasa had either gotten a stare from a cockatrice, or had died standing. But, the truth of the matter was she felt herself being consumed by a horrifying emptiness. Not a hunger, but a feeling of being all by herself in a room of horrors. And, at least she was right about the horrors part.

Applejack, on the other hand, headed down, morbidly curious about what it was that had frightened Rarity so much. Her display was not her normal melodrama. She was showing honest terror and grief.

With Rarity’s lit horn as far up as it was, Applejack was lucky to make it down the stairs without tripping and falling. The first thing she felt when she made it down the stairs was the soft hair of a long tail under her hooves. As she applied pressure, she felt the hair tighten up on something, causing her to automatically jump over it.

The hair was, based on what Applejack could tell by touch, straight, which must’ve meant it had to belong to Twilight. In fact, after a sigh of relief, Applejack addressed the purple alicorn by name before continuing, “Thank goodness you’re alright. You know, you had Rarity thinkin’ …” Just as Rarity had done, Applejack stopped before she could finish putting her thought into words when she placed a front hoof on what she thought was Twilight’s hip, and realized it was solid. And, too solid for it to be alive.

Applejack pushed the frozen form of Twilight Sparkle onto all four of her hooves, only to see another pony shape not far from it. How she was able to identify it as a pony she couldn’t say for sure. She could only tell who it was because of the mane and tail, which were still curly, even in evident death.

The orange earth mare called up the stairs, “Rarity, Ah’m sorry to have to do this, but Ah’m a’gonna need your help down here. Ah need the light from your horn to let me know if this other pony is who Ah think it is.”

This seemed to snap Rainbow Dash out of her paralysis. She shook herself out, then turned and headed down the stairs after Applejack, who was still holding Twilight’s body up. She walked past the orange earth pony, around in a circle to the other body, and nuzzled it. Then the scent hit her, one that was all too familiar. Mixed with the stench of death was the smell of the party pony.

As opposed to being numb before, suddenly Rainbow Dash was overwhelmed with the feeling of frustration over the loss of her closest earth pony friend. Slumping down over the body of the pink earth pony, Rainbow Dash howled out her name: “Pinkie Pie!” Then, she collapsed into sobs.

At any other time, what Applejack said next would’ve been funny: “Never mind, Rarity.”

Twilight Sparkle had seen all she could take from the grieving of her friends. She turned to her fellow ghost, Pinkie Pie, and said, “We’ve spent enough time in this place. It’s time for us to take action.”

Twilight ascended the stairs from the basement, followed by the pink party pony’s spirit, as she said, “We need to get a letter to Princess Celestia, and I know of only one way to send it.”

Pinkie Pie, partially phasing through Applejack as she moved up the stairs, asked, “But, what if Spike doesn’t see you?”

As she phased through Rarity and the basement door, Twilight answered, “It’s a risk I’m going to have to take.”