Land of the Unknown

[Kiryu2012]

Part 1: Prolouge

It moved silently through the murky waters.

It was not a fish, had no flotation bladder to keep it from sinking, though it's chemistry allowed it positive bouyancy in the water. It was not a mammal, did not go to the surface for air. It did breathe air, but at the same time it took in oxygen from the water around it.

It had been swimming for miles, and though it did not know time, it had been moving nonstop for days in open water. The water itself wasn't like normal water. It was not saltwater, and was gelatinous at the surface.

It needed to feed, it's gastric juices were slowly eating away at it's stomach. It had come towards land for food, and a new territory.

Trixie walked slowly across the sand. The blue unicorn had been forced to close down her buisness ever since she had been discovered using special effects for most of her magic skills. Despite this, however, she blamed it mostly on Twilight Sparkle.

"Oh that wretched mare! She will rue the day she ever made a foal outta me, the Great and Powerful Trixie!"

It turned slowly, hearing a voice on the shore. A voice meant a living thing.

Prey.

It slowly swam towards shore.

Trixie let out a huff and sat down on the sand. At this time in night the sand was freezing, but she didn't care.

"Oh, who am I kidding! Nopony will ever see me the same again! I'll have to go back to living as a joke, a mockery to unicorns everywhere!"

It now detected the living thing on the sand, a quadreped sitting down and possibly talking to itself. Now was the moment it had been waiting for. Now it could feed.

With a flick of it's tail it attacked.

Trixie didn't know what happened, nor will she ever find out. All she could see was a blur of what looked like blue, then stabbing pain in her back, then the bizarre feeling of being thrown underwater. Trixie struggled, against what she couldn't tell, but then she felt her hind legs being torn off with mere tugs. The last thought that went through her head was that now at least she would no longer be a disgrace to the unicorn species. Then, as she died, the last sensation Trixie felt was that she was being eaten.

It gripped the dead prey with it's long claws, stripping the blue coat off and revealing the pink flesh. It tore through the soft flesh with it's teeth, feasting greatly and slowly sinking back into the waves. After eating most of the flesh and internal organs, it sucked the eyeballs from the skull, ate the tongue, and cracked the bones apart, sucking out the marrow. Soon only a few bones were allowed to sink to the seafloor.

It was now nourished, but the thing wasn't enough to keep it fed for long enough. It would need to hunt again soon.

Turning around, it swam out into the bay, seeking out new living things.

[Kiryu2012]

Part 2: The Discovery

Twilight Sparkle sat upon her bed, a book laid open before her. The lavender unicorn was reading with great interest the lifecycle of the Great White Shark, said to be the most dangerous breeds of shark. Twilight had seen one before; that shark was claimed to be the descendent of the killer shark nicknamed 'Jaws'. The shark was currently on display in the Canterlot aquarium, and was living suprisingly well, even though most Great Whites couldn't survive long in captivity.

Twilight had long been interested in sharks. Unlike most other ponies, who would see sharks as mindless killing machines, Twilight saw a great creature that was slowly dieing out and needed to be protected. Already were other ponies that shared her thoughts saving Great Whites and other sharks from extinction. They're efforts would bring back the species and keep the natural ocean food web in balance.

However today, Twilight was going to get a hay of a suprise.

Twilight looked up as Spike entered the room. The purple dragon was panting, most likely having run from somewhere, and held a scroll in his right hand.

Twilight got off her bed and stood up, knowing this was something serious.

"What is it, Spike?"

"Twilight, *pant*, there's...something you need to see...*gasp*...The princess sent me this."

Lifting up the scroll with her magic, Twilight gasped from what she read:

Dear Twilight,

I regret to inform you that there's been a murder. Trixie, may she rest in peace, was killed by an unknown cause in the continent, Minecraft. We can't say for certain what killed her, but after finding the bones of what was left, we know this was Trixie thanks to DNA tests, some ponies are saying she was killed by a shark. However, we found tracks of an unknown creature, and I need you to find out what was the cause of Trixie's death.

Wishing you luck, Princess Celestia.

Twilight stared at the scroll in shock. Trixie, out of all ponies, was killed? By an animal? The very thought chilled her; what kind of animal would be powerful enough to kill a unicorn like Trixie? She would have to find out, to save the lives of anypony else.

"C'mon, Spike."

"Wait, you're taking me as well?"

"I can't do this alone. You will need to come with me, for the more there are of us, the more lives we can save."

"But Twilight! That thing- what if it gets us?"

"There's no chance of that Spike. The attack occured by the water, so this thing must be a marine animal."

With that, Twilight levitated Spike onto her back and teleported to the crime scene.

They appeared shortly afterward on the continent, Minecraft. They stood in a small forest, a cow-sized elephant looking at them before slowly walking across the grassy trail. Up ahead, Twilight saw the beach, where several cops and investigators were already studying.

Trotting up to them, Twilight announced herself with an ahem.

One of the ponies, a light brown stallion with a dark brown mane and a police hat for a cutie mark looked up at her and Spike.

"Thank Luna you're here, Twilight. We've been trying to find anymore evidence to prove the others wrong."

"Prove them wrong about what?"

"That a shark didn't do this. Sharks aren't this aggresive; ya don't see one just jump onto land to kill a random pony. It doesn't make sense."

"Well the Princess sent us here to help you with that fact." Twilight pointed at Spike, who had already jumped off Twilight, when she said us.

"Alright then. Name's Brody."

The trio walked over to the crime scene, where a light blue pegasus stallion with a green mane and a shark cage with a Great White was writing down notes.

"Hey Hooper! What've you found yet!"

Hooper turned and faced the trio. "Well I've gathered enough evidence to prove the ponies wrong and clear the sharks' name."

"We don't need to hear that now, Hooper. We need to find out what killed Trixie."

Twilight stepped in.

"First we need to know why Trixie was here in the first place?"

Hooper looked up at Twilight.

"We called on of the ponies to last see Trixie. He said she was leaving to somewhere after her buisness shut down."

Twilight put a hoof to her chin.

"So she came here to vent. Makes sense to me. But then how did she die?"

Brody pointed towards the scene, where there were hoof prints and the tracks of some unknown creature.

"See those tracks? She was obviously on shore, and whatever killed her came from the water. Folks are saying some crazy stuff, like the shark somehow grew legs and walked on land."

Hooper let out an angry sigh at this.

"That's the problem with these kinds of crimes; somepony dies in the ocean, everypony else just blames it on a shark."

Twilight felt a stab of pity for the sharks at those words. The ponies only feared and hated sharks because of Jaws' massacre due to possible insanity. This was the work of something more, and Twilight was determined to prove it.

It was then Spike pointed at something in the water. "What's that?"

Twilight looked to where Spike was pointing, and saw a white something with something blue hanging over it. Using her magic Twilight lifted the thing up and brought it up to her face.

It looked like a shark's tooth, complete with a triangular shape and serrated edge. However, it was elongated, and curved backwards. Turning it around, Twilight saw that it was rounded at the sides. The blue stuff was actually a scale, like that of a lizard. The scale had tiny ridges, almost like shark denticles, and was a bright blue in color.

"I think we just found the proof of this not being a shark attack."

Hooper tilted his head.

"Why?"

"What kind of creature lives in the ocean, and has round shark teeth and lizard scales?"

"Nothing. Nothing I ever heard of."

[Kiryu2012]

Part 3: The Attack

Berry Punch and Colgate walked through one of the few trails used by ponies in Minecraft. The two mares decided to camp out in the forest, though Colgate wasn't sure if it was a good idea.

"Berry, is this really a good idea?"

"Of couse it is, Colgate! We need to get out more anyways."

"But haven't you heard of the killing on one of the beaches here? What if we get attacked?"

"Aw shucks Colgate, there's no way that's gonna happen! We're far from the ocean. What could possibly go wrong?"

It moved through the brush, silent.

It's shaggy brown fur helped it blend in with the shadows, it's whip-like tail occasionally snapping a branch off.It hadn'e eaten in weeks, and though it was using up it's fat preserves, it wanted to kill. For food. For blood.

It sniffed the air, detecting two mammals. Perfect prey.

It silently began to stalk them.

Berry Punch headed into the brush, Colgate staying behind.

"I'm gonna get some branches for our fire. Be right back."

Colgate could only nod as Berry disappeared into the foliage. She hoped she would return safely.

It spotted one of the mammals, a horse-like creature with it's back turned towards it. It was in the perfect range.

It reared up onto it's hind legs and walked forward, leaving behind three-toed footprints.

Colgate tensed up. She heard the sound of deep panting, near-silent footsteps coming towards her, a shadow moving over her.

Colgate slowly turned...

Just in time to see five ivory claws aimed at her.

Colgate could only scream a moment before her life ended.

It watched the horse's head fly off from it's swipe, the head rolling across the ground and stopping, blood forming underneath it. The headless corpse fell to the ground, blood spraying out.

It then sensed the other mammal's arrival.

Letting out a growl, it moved in for the kill.

Berry Punch had galloped back, hearing Colgate's scream and rushing to help her from perhaps a black bear or something.

What she saw instead, was Colgate's headless corpse and the creature that killed her. Berry, in her terrified state, could only make out a large shape with dark brown fur, and a long tail whipping around behind it. Berry stumbled backwards, before falling on her back and crawling away as the beast slowly walked towards her on it's three-taloned feet.

"Oh, God...Oh, Jesus...Oh, God...Oh, Jesus..."

The thing's claws then raised up, revealing five ivory white daggers that gleamed in the sunlight.

That was all Berry knew, save for the following pain, then darkness.

It sensed that the horse was dead, it knew from having gutted it with it's blow. Reaching down, it picked up the body with it's long jaws, before dropping it aside the other horse's corpse.

As it fed, blood splattered across the tent that was set up just moments ago.