Prologue: A Dream Or A Nightmare?

Apple Bloom jerked awake to the smell of flowers and tree sap filling her nose. Her heart was racing inside her chest. Instead of a soft bed beneath her, blades of grass scratched at her sides, and when she opened her bleary eyes, the familiar walls of her room were nowhere to be seen.

Wh-where am I? she wondered, climbing to her hooves.

A tendril of wind wrapped itself around the filly’s crimson mane, her pink bow swaying dangerously. Steadying it with her hoof, she glanced around, trying to get her bearings.

Alright, she thought to herself. Looks like I’m in a forest of some sort, though it clearly was not the Everfree Forest. Instead of teeming with life, the trees here towered above her like lifeless statues. There were no vibrant colors, or small creatures scampering in the undergrowth. The whole place just felt desolate.

“Okay Apple Bloom, how’d ya end up in a deep, dark, and particularly freaky looking forest?” she asked herself quietly. She took a few steps forward as she surveyed her surroundings.

Great big pine trees rose up in all directions, reaching towards the night sky with swaying branches. Their roots dug into the hard ground, which was covered with sticks, pine needles, and other debris. While small patches of grass had managed to grow, like the one she had been lying on; everything else from the thick bushes to all the other foliage huddled beneath the trees, leaving plenty of places for somepony or something to hide.

Another cold gust of wind blasted her small frame, sending a drawn-out chill down her spine. She sat down upon her hind legs, wrapping her front ones around herself for warmth; teeth chattering as she rubbed herself in a vigorous attempt to keep out the cold.

“Add f-f-f-freezing to freak-ky f-f-forest,” she stuttered.

The cold winds quickly abated though. As soon as they were over, and Apple Bloom started feeling a little warmer, she climbed back onto her forehooves and began to wander around the forest again, weaving between the pines and ducking under their rough branches. She’d hoped to find something that could help explain where she was and how she had even got there in the first place, but as far as she could tell there wasn’t anything useful. Then she thought of something else. Could any other pony be in here too? She certainly hoped so.

“Hello?” she called out. “Is anypony out there?”

There was nothing but complete, desolate silence in response.

“Applejack?” she cried. “Big Mac?”

Still there was nothing but the deep sound of quiet. Even the strong harrowed wind that had died down left the silence to feel like an empty void that spread down to Apple Bloom’s stomach.

Apple Bloom began shivering again, though not from the cold. She didn’t want to admit it, but her fear might actually be true; she really was all alone. That was the last thing she wanted to believe. Her only choice was to keep trying in hope that somepony she knew might also be in the dark, scary woods with her, where the tree branches hung overhead like dragon claws.

“Applejack?” she cried. “Scootaloo? Sweetie Belle?”

With no answer, Apple Bloom’s voice became raspy as she tried to cry out. Could she really be all alone in the forest? Would nopony ever answer?

“Rainbow Dash?” she called. “Twilight?”

Still, the deathly sound of silence hung in the air. Apple Bloom could feel all her hope draining through her legs as they began to shake. Her mouth trembled and her eyes started to shimmer as she tried to hold back tears.

“TWILIGHT!” she bellowed as loudly as ever. “PRINCESS TWILIGHT! APPLEJACK! RAINBOW DASH! ANYPONY! PLEASE, HELP!”  

Nothing. The impending silence just continued to drag on.

Apple Bloom sat down on the ground. Her worst fear had been realized; she was all on her own. The filly’s eyes welled with tears as questions started running through her head; why was she here? How did she get here? Why her? Was this just one big horrible nightmare?

Apple Bloom’s eyes widened in revelation. This whole thing is jus’ a nightmare and I’m somehow trapped in it. That means there’s only one pony that can help me.

“LUNA!” she cried out. “PRINCESS LUNA, CAN YA’ HEAR ME! I’M TRAPPED IN THIS HERE AWFUL NIGHTMARE, CAN YA’ HELP ME, PLEASE?”

Apple Bloom continued to stare high up at the black sky, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Princess, but there was nothing there but a dark, lonely, and depressing void of nothingness. There wasn’t even a single star to be seen, but Apple Bloom was determined to get the Princess’ attention so she could help her escape this horrible dream.

“PLEASE, LUNA!” she bellowed so loudly that it would have made the Princess of the Night’s Royal Canterlot voice sound like a tiny mouse’s squeak in comparison. “I KNOW YOU’RE OUT THERE, AND I KNOW YOU’RE PRETTY BUSY, BUT I REALLY NEED YOUR HEL—  Ow!”

Something sharp had scratched the bottom of Apple Bloom’s right hoof. She looked under it to find a tiny red graze starting to form in the middle. She spotted the culprit on the ground, a jagged stone sticking out from the dirt. She flopped down and held her hoof, staring gloomily at the fresh cut.

“Great, just what else I need right now.” She looked at the stone with an irritated glance. “Stupid stone, why did it have to hurt like that? If this was a dream it wouldn’t…”

A sudden look of disbelief crossed Apple Bloom’s face, with her pupils shrunk slightly and her jaw hanging down. This isn’t a dream.

“But then... where in Equestria am I?” Apple Bloom wondered aloud.

She stood back up, ignoring the dull pain on her right forehoof, and continued gazing around the forest. If it wasn’t a dream, then how did she get here in the first place?

“Okay, let me just think about this calmly. The last thing I remember, I was home in my room playing with Winona, then Applejack came in saying it’s time for bed. I climbed into my bed and Applejack tucked me in, gave me my goodnight kiss and left with Winona. Then I went right to sleep. The next thing I knew, I felt a strong gust of wind blowing right on my face. I thought that Applejack had forgotten to close my window, but when I opened my eyes, I found myself in this here wood.”

Apple Bloom scratched the top of her head, feeling really puzzled. If she went to bed, then how could she just end up in the middle of nowhere? If it was a dream, then how did she feel pain from that jagged stone after she had stepped on it? If anything, it should have woken her up.

“This makes no sense,” Apple Bloom groaned in frustration. “How could I just end up in a forest from my own bed? This has to be a dream, there’s no other explanation. But then if it is a dream, Luna would have probably been here by now.”

Apple Bloom bowed her head down to the ground. An emptiness had settled into her stomach, and, like the cold, she could feel it spreading through her body. She wanted to give up, to just stand where she was and stop looking. But was it really better to stay put and wait for help to arrive, than to keep on searching in hope to find something that would help her escape the nightmarish forest?

What I wouldn’t give to see mah sister right now, Apple Bloom thought glumly.

A sudden noise, like a growl, arose from somewhere nearby, making her scream and jump.

“W...Wh..Wha.. What is that?” she trembled.

Apple Bloom looked around her to find where exactly the sound was coming from. She thought at first it was emitting from the bushes nearby, but they did not appear to be moving, and the longer it went on, the more it sounded like it was coming from every direction at once. Her ears frantically twisted and turned, trying to identify where the noise was precisely coming from, but could not.

Shaking, Apple Bloom slowly started backing away, looking around with wide, terrified eyes.

What I wouldn’t give to have everypony here right now, she wished.

As the sound continued to grow, Apple Bloom felt her heart beat faster. Her legs began to tremble, and a few beads of sweat started trickling down her forehead. Her mind had gone completely blank, with nothing but the sound filling her ears.

Before she knew it, another strong gust of wind caught her off guard, the force nearly ripping the bow of her mane.

It died down as soon as it had came, taking the mysterious sound with it. Apple Bloom stood perfectly still, staring around into the darkest parts of the woods as she tried to compose herself again.

“If I’m gonna get outta here, I need to get my head together,” she told herself. “Now, what does Twilight do to help her keep calm?”

Apple Bloom tapped her chin with her hoof as she thought back to her time with Twilight.

“Aha, I got it,” she exclaimed.

She placed a hoof over her chest and drew in a deep breath, then let it out in a huge exhale of relief, extending her foreleg out from her chest. Like magic, she started to feel the panic ebb away, and the relief set in.

“It worked,” she beamed. “I feel so much—”

An eerie howl echoed through the forest, making her freeze. Only when it had vanished did she dare to move.

“J-Just stay calm,” Apple Bloom reminded herself. She lifted her foreleg to her chest, preparing for Twilight’s method again.

A dark figure streaked past, close enough it could have touched her.

“AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!” she screamed and took off running deeper into the woods. “HEEELLLLLPPPPP!”

Apple Bloom ran and ran, unaware of where she was heading. All she could think of was getting as far away as possible from whatever it was that had flown past her. Her eyes were almost squeezed shut as she screamed. In her panicked mind she imagined Applejack jumping out to rescue her, but her sister was nowhere to be found.

“P-please, somepony help me,” Apple Bloom coughed, her voice starting to go raspy from her constant cries for help.

Just then another shadowy figure flew over her head. She screeched to an immediate stop, panting heavily, her breath coming in ragged gasps. She looked up to notice some unusual trees leaning in toward one another and forming some sort of an entrance. It seemed to lead to another part of the forest, but where it went she couldn’t tell.

Apple Bloom quickly looked straight up into the sky to try and see what had flown over her. Could it have been Rainbow Dash? She certainly hoped so. But as she searched, there was nothing except the lingering black sky. Apple Bloom gulped and slowly, cautiously, turned her head back to the gaping entrance the trees formed before her. She had almost expected a monster to be lurking there, when her back had been turned; but like the sky, it was only a vast pit of nothingness.

Instead of terror, Apple Bloom felt the heat of frustration creep up on her. This is all some kind ah prank, isn’t it! she realized. Her jaw clenched and nostrils flared.

“THAT’S ENOUGH!” she boomed.

She turned back and stomped her hoof down. “Now listen, whoever’s out there, I’ve had just about all I can stand! Now ya either show yerself and explain what in Equestria is going on here or y’all will be sorry you ever messed with a Cutie Mark Crusader!”

Apple Bloom stood her ground. Her fear had vanished, replaced with courage. If Applejack had been there, she would have been so proud of how brave her little sister looked right then.

“Well?” Apple Bloom asked. “Where are ya hiding? Show yerself, this….”

Something dark was looming up behind her. She suddenly didn’t feel very brave anymore. Her legs wobbled, not wanting to cooperate as she took one huge gulp and slowly turned back around. She looked up towards the shadow, her eyes shrinking and her mouth going slack, opening into a silent plea for help. As Apple Bloom stared up at the mysterious creature that looked back down upon her, she had only one thought in her mind.

I wish I was home with my family right now.