Spike Character originally by NekuChan. Flash/Gigi and new Spike art by Karn/Princess Purrpaws
Being slung through the air until he lost all track of time, Spike had been forced to close his eyes, the pressure of the monster’s torture whipping and shearing his face with an unrelenting gale. Despite the agonizing pain and terror the unfortunate foal was suffering, it was a blessing to shut his eyes. Now blind to the horrors of playtime, Spike could only hear the plethora of horrified screams and dying chirps of the terror struck foals. It was only after what felt like an eternity that the monster stopped, sitting down roughly, with the poor foal yelping involuntarily at the sudden bump, before suddenly falling his back hitting the linoleum floor with a soft thud.
Gasping as the impact knocked the air out the tumbling foal, Spike writhed and convulsed on the floor, his chest rising and falling at a rapid pace. His eyes fluttering open, the foal’s vision came in to focus as he saw the monster above him, holding a pair of wooden blocks. Smashing them together, the monster cackled wildly, pleased with the tumultuous sound, each striked meeting of the pair causing Spike’s injured and weakened body to flinch, the foal desperate to flee.
Trying to force himself to roll over, his muscles and joints in raw agony, Spike started to whimper, seeing the monster bring the blocks closer and closer as it struck them together, again and again. Watching in horror as the monster brought the wooden toys to the floor, with Spike directly between them, the foal could only flail his nubs, far too weakened and injured to put up a fight. Chirping slightly as his eyes began to water, Spike clenched his eyes shut, accepting his fate.
Looking to her watch as she finished the last bite of her breakfast, Diane wiped her mouth with a napkin and rose from her seat. “Ok kids, time’s up!” Hearing several pleading groans and sullen pleas, Diane simply shook her head as the children put their toys and foals down and lined up to leave the room. Walking over to Karen, she put on a feux smile. “Would you mind walking the children to studyhall while I put up their toys? I’d do it myself but I just assumed you’d rather not…” Letting her question trail off, Diane simply nodded lightly to the foals strewn about the floor.
Wrinkling her nose, Karen nodded as she slowly stood up from her chair. “Sounds like I get the better deal there!” Walking away from the desk, Karen then led the children in a single-file line out of the playroom.
Once the last child had left, the door closed behind them, Diane sighed to herself. First she retrieved the plastic bin and began to place the toys back within it, occasionally having to forcibly remove a wounded or dying foal from the playthings before depositing them back in the bin. Making her way to the enclosure, she walked over the gate and began to take the toys from the foals as well, prompting more than a few to start tearing up and cry. Once the bin was full yet again and placed back in the corner, Diane then reached above the plastic cubbies for an old and worn wicker basket.
His head against the smooth, linoleum floor, Spike slowly opened his eyes as he heard the words of the black-maned woman. Chirping and peeping from the pain, the foal scarcely noticed the monster dropping the blocks mere inches from the fluffy baby. Trying to catch his breath, Spike couldn’t help but scream as he heard the monsters running around him, their stomping and trampling feet thunderous as the ground beneath his wounded back shook. Holding his nubs over his face, the foal gave in to his baser instincts, peeping as he tried to hide from the stampede of monsters. Even after the monster were gone, led away by the yellow-maned woman, Spike kept his eyes closed, curled up into a defensive ball as he chirped and peeped in vain for his mother to come and save him. Feeling something grasp at him, the foal began to flail wildly despite the pain, feebly trying to push away whatever thing was trying to hurt him now.
"It am otay Spike! Nu am munstah! Buh yu nee’ tu cawm downsies an’ get upsies wite nao!"
The alicorn put his hooves around Flash, grunting as he helped the girthy foal to his feet. Still shaking and chirping, Spike looked around the room as he suddenly found himself standing. Before the little foal could begin to cry, the alicorn held him close, burying the foals face into his fluff.
"Jus’ nu wook "Spike…*sniffle…Jus’ nu wook…"
Although she didn’t really like the woman, Diane had to admit that Karen had a point. As she began to retrieve the played with foals, it was clear that most of them would need to be disposed of. Placing the clearly expired fluffies in the basket first, Diane then turned her attention to the foals that were too injured or upset to ever be played with again.
Flash held Spike firmly against him, not wanting the poor foal to see what was coming. While the black-maned woman had just finished collecting their murdered kin, it was what came after that always upset the alicorn the most. Watching as the black-maned woman began to collect the wounded and dying foals, one by one in the basket, Flash tried his best to be brave for his friend. He knew that if the foal were to get too upset or to show how injured he truly was, the black-maned woman would take him away, and as long as he drew breath, the alicorn wouldn’t allow that. Even now as he too closed his eyes, he could still hear the aftermath of playtime, the injured and dying now begging for any kind of love or mercy.
“*chirp…*chirp…*chirp…*huuu…huuu…huuu…HEWP!!! *chirp…*chirp…*chirp…BABBEH NU CAN FEEW WEGGIES!!! *chirp…*chirp…*chirp…WAI WEGGIES NU WOWK!!!..*chirp…*chirp…*chirp…”
“*chirp…*chirp…P’wease nices’ wady…*chirp…*chirp…babbeh hab tu mani huwties…*chirp…*chirp…*chirp…nee’ huggies an’ wuv…”
“*SCREEEEEEE!!! NUUUUUUU!!! MUNSTAH NU HUWTIES!!! MUNSTAH NU HUWTIES!!!”
*chirp… … …*chirp… … …*chirp… … … …"
Placing foal after injured foal into the basket along the fluffy cadavers, Diane then walked over to the sliding glass door, unlatching it and walking into the fenced in backyard of the daycare, a large gray tarp covering the middle of the yard. Placing the basket down on the grass, she then pulled the supports out of the ground, moving the tarp and revealing a large pit filled with ash and soot, the occasional foal corpse visible within. Taking the basket, Diane simply turned it sideways as she shook it vigorously, the moaning and screaming foals tumbling out along with the dead ones. Once the basket was empty, Diane replaced the supports for the tarp, save for one, a corner of the pit still visible. Standing up, she then went back inside, her grim task nearly complete.
It wasn’t until after the black-maned lady had taken the lost foals outside that Flash let go of Spike, the pair opening their eyes as the foal shook and tremored, still recovering from the pain and trauma he had just been through. Looking around the room, still shaking like a leaf, Spike could only chirp and peep, his body still in an tremendous amount of pain. Walking around and looking over the foal, Flash could see some bruising but thankfully nothing that seemed permanent. Nuzzling him lightly, the alicorn knew that he had to calm the foal before the black-maned woman returned, and began to hug the chirping foal, lightly and gently rubbing his back, careful to avoid the freshly darkened skin.
"Deww, deww Spike…yu am otay…Huwties am ba’ buh nu am tu ba’…Nao, twy an’ cawm down an’ maek tawkies tu Fwash…"
Still shaking in the alicorns arms, Spike wept, his chirps slowly becoming words once again.
"*chirp…*chirp…H…hao…hao mani…*chirp…hao mani babb…babbehs we…*chirp…*chirp…babbehs we wose Fwash ?"
“*sniffle Wost a’te babbehs…”
“*chirp…*chirp…N…nu…nu kno hao…hao mani dat am. Am…am…a’te awot?”
"Am tu mani ,Spike…*sniffle…Am tu mani…"
Walking back through the door, Diane began to collect the remaining foals and placed them, one by one, back in the pen. While there weren’t many to put back, all the leaning and bending was murder on her back, but she knew better than to use the basket. Early on, she had tried to use it to move foals back into the pen, but the moment they were in it, most would begin to cry and peep, with a few even starting to scream. Once the babies were back in the enclosure, Diane then looked amongst the foals within, carefully watching how they were acting and trying to see if any hadn’t been distracted enough during playtime.
Now back in the pen, Spike had visibly calmed down, only slightly wincing as he trotted along the padded floor. Walking towards a small group of foals with Flash, the foal saw that as the alicorn’s wings bounced with each step he took, one was slightly crooked and not flapping as easily. Once they were with the other foals, some happy and peeping, some crying and mewling, Flash spoke up, addressing the foals.
“It am otay babbehs…it am otay…nu mowe yewwin’ ow cwyin’…dah scawy pawt am ovah fow nao. Wady am comin’ back not wong fwom nao…su Fwash nee’ yu aww tu be bwave an’ stwong! Nu mowe saddies ow heawt huwties, onwy huggies an’ wuv! Nao, babbehs dat nu am cwyin’ ow huwties, wook fow a babbeh wiff saddies an’ gib dem huggies! Gib dem wuv!”
Slowly, the foals began to walk around, from the ones who hadn’t witnessed playtime, to those who weren’t hurt, finding other babies that were crying or peeping in distress and wrapping their nubs around them. As more and more of the troubled fluffies were hugged and held, Flash smiled as he began to hear them coo and chirp happily. Watching in awe of his alicorn friend, Spike also smiled weakly, despite how much it made his muzzle hurt. Looking throught the crowd of foals, he looked for Gigi, desperately wanting hugs and love from his filly friend. Not seeing her, the foal began to panic slightly, galloping even as he winced from the pain shooting through his whole body, screaming for his friend.
"Gee’gee ?! Wewe am Gee’gee?! GEE’GEE!!! WEWE AWE YU!!!"
Finally, the foal saw her, the filly being right where he’d last saw her in the waiting area. As he approached Gigi, he could see that she was shaking, her gaze still where the unlucky foals had been during playtime. She saw, thought Spike, running as fast as his injured nubs would carry him. Tearing up, the foal was frantic, desperate to save his friend. If I can just hug her, it’ll be ok, thought Spike, with Gigi now close enough to turn slightly as he rushed towards her.
Moments away from his friend, Spike watched as Gigi turned towards the pen’s gate, her gaze upward as the black-maned woman stood over her. As the filly stared towards her, trembling with shock, she screamed.
“*SCREEEEEEE!!! MUNSTAH!!! GEE’GEE NEE’ WUN WAY’ FWOM MUNSTAH!!!”
Even as she turned to run, it was too late. As her underdeveloped nubs tried in vain to aid in her escape, the black-maned woman leaned down and grabbed her by her scruff, placing her in the basket. About to scream as he tried to run towards her, Spike felt a hoof cover his mouth. It was Flash, tears streaming down his face as he solemnly shook his head to the foal before wrapping his hooves around the whimpering fluffy. Trying his best to control himself, Spike once again buried his head in the alicorn’s fluff, unable to watch as Gigi was taken away.
Diane could tell instantly that the pink foal was broken, just by the way she stared at her. Once she had began to scream, that only confirmed it for her, as she grasped the fluffy by it’s neck fluff and placed it in the basket. It happened nearly every playtime, with at least one foal watching the children roughhouse with the fluffies. While it seemed that some would forget, there were always a few that would become too emotional or frightened for playtime. Even as Diane heard the filly mewl and chirp from the basket, she looked to the rest of the foals. Satisfied as she saw them hugging contently, the sounds of coos and content peeps echoing from the enclosure, Diane made her way back outside. “Wonder why she can’t be more like the rest of them…”
Tumbling slightly with each step the black-maned woman took, Gigi chirped and shrieked as the wooden interior of the basket scratched and tore at her with each stride her captor took.
“*SCREEEEEEE!!!..*chirp…*chirp…*chirp…Hewp!!!..*chirp…*chirp…sum’wan sab Gee’Gee!!!..*chirp…*chirp…*SCREEEEEEE!!!..*chirp…*chirp…”
Her pleading and begging ignored, the filly tried her best to curl up, tucking her legs against her chest as her front nubs covered her face. As the black-maned woman opened the sliding glass door, she walked over to a large pit, from which the faint sound of panicked and pained chirps and peeps could be heard. Crouching down, the black-maned woman tilted the basket, with Gigi screaming in horror as she rolled awkwardly free from it before falling down, her nubs flailing frantically.
“*SCREEEEEEE!!! P’WEASE!!! NUUUUUUU!!! HEWP!!! *SCREEEEEEE!!!”
As the filly struck the ground, her head impacting at an odd angle, there was a dull but audible crack. After a few moments of ghastly noises, with the pink foal kicking her front nubs as she shook atop the pile of ashes, her body mercifully went still.
