Destiny's Call

by Keragon Sharp

Rating: everyone
Tags: Original Character, Cutie Mark Crusaders, Adventure, Random, Discord, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, Human, Main 6
Length: 4730

When a strange young mare comes out of the forest, nopony knows how to react. Her weird behavior and lack of magic skills and a cutie mark confuse everypony. But the strangest part is she disappears into the forest every night.

When a strange young unicorn comes out of the forest exhausted from the cold of night, nopony knows exactly how to react. Her weird behavior and lack of magic skills and a cutie mark despite the fact that she's twelve years old confuse everypony. But the strangest part is she disappears into the Everfree Forest every night, and doesn't return until before the sun rises. What secrets does the odd filly keep, and why would she have to go into a forest filled with dangerous creatures every night?

Soon to be turned into a full-color comic with my incredibly talented friend Foxstar5!

Published 2013-06-24 03:40:02 UTC
Last updated 2013-08-02 01:12:14 UTC

Prologue

Discord stared into the strange one-way window, watching the one it's strange powers had chosen for his plot. Although it was late at night, and all of Equestria was asleep, he was still wide awake. “She has great intelligence, decent bravery, balanced harmony, and even loves a little chaos.” He let out a small chuckle into the night. “A good fit for my plan. I may have been reformed, but one last imbalance won’t hurt anypony.” He quietly laughed again. “Hhm-hhm, soon enough, young element. Soon enough.....”

Chapter One: The Sparkle

Struggling against the beating heat and the handicap littering my own feet, I prayed to whatever gods may exist to give me strength. "God, why me? I'm only thirteen!" I cursed to the sky. "Why did my own mother force me into this?"

Suddenly, I felt the very Earth slip out from under me. In a most embarrassing fashion, I fell to the scorching white asphalt, a pebble ripping a small section of my face open.

Alone and bleeding, I looked up to the mystical, cyan sky. I could hear footsteps approaching. "Who's there?!" I shouted. "Please, help me, whoever you may be! I can feel my very soul slipping into darkness..."

"Oh stop it, Madisyn. You're so overly-dramatic!"

"Well sorry, mom," I said sarcastically, "but if I can't use words dramatically, I won't be able to be a good writer or actor."

"Suuure Madisyn. But you only fell while rollerblading," my mom just rolled her eyes and stuck out her hand. "Now come on. I'll help you up."

I grabbed her hand and tried to pull myself up with those stupid roller blades still on my feet, only to fall flat on my bottom again.

"I think you might need to bring out a chair or something."

"Or maybe you could just take your roller blades off."

I blushed, annoyed she was right. Again. "Yeah, I could do that too." I started to take off those annoying things on my feet.

While ridding myself of the annoyance on my feet, i started to feel the blood from my cut reach my lips. It was a small cut, but I can't stand blood. "Hey Mom, can you get me-" I looked up to see my mom was gone. Was I really that tied up in getting off those roller blades? I got up, glad I could stand without feeling like my life was on the line. She probably went inside to get a band-aid.

I walked into the house and to the bathroom, where we kept the band-aids. sure enough, she was there rummaging through the cabinet, murmuring "Now where did it go?"

"Mom," I sauntered over to the cabinet, pulling out the unnecessarily pack we have, "they're right here."

She pretended she knew they were there all along. "Oh, yeah, they are right there. Thanks anyway though."

***

“Come on, Tiger!” My silly brown-and-white tabby cat walked around my room like he’d never stepped paw in there before. Once he was sure he had looked over and checked everything in sight, from my bookshelf filled with adventure novels to my TV-stand littered with Nintendo games, he carefully walked over to my bed and hopped onto my soft cyan blanket, which I was already under.

“Are you finally done? You've been sauntering around for three minutes, silly cat!” I playfully scolded him, even though I was completely aware that he has no idea what I was saying.

My mom entered my room to tuck me in and say goodnight. “Come on Madisyn,” she said, “don’t pick on kitty for being slow. Even if it does take a while for him to get into your bed.”

I ignored her chastisement and went to another subject. “Why do I have to go to bed so early Mom? It’s only nine o’clock! I should at least be able to stay up ‘till ten.”

She stared into my big hazel eyes with a stern look. “Madisyn, you’re only thirteen. You need your sleep!”

“That’s exactly my point. I’m a teenager now and I should be able to stay up at least thirty minutes longe-”

She put her finger on my lips. “No, Madi. You need sleep for school. It’s the end of the school year anyways. You can stay up all night in the summer, but as long as you still have school, you need to go to bed at nine o’clock.”

My mom turned off the light and gave me a good-night-kiss. “Good night Madisyn. Sweet dreams.”

“G’night mom.”

I usually have very vivid dreams, and that night was no exception. I was walking through a dark forest filled with trees with strange dark blue-green leaves. I had no choice but to walk forward on the path, for the road behind and beside me was shrouded with bushes and trees. It seemed like I was walking through the ominous woods forever, until I heard faint laughter from all around me. But it didn’t sound like regular, ha-ha-good-joke kind of laughter. It sounded more like sinister, you’re-walking-into-my-trap kind of laughter.

I kept walking, but at a slower, more cautious pace. After more lonely trudging, I saw a tall figure in the distance, standing in a clearing. “Hello?” I yelled to get their attention. I walked towards the figure to see it was a white stone statue of some sort of creature. Well, at least a few creatures put together. It had a deer’s antler and a goat horn, a lion paw and a bird’s claw as front legs, a lizard claw and horse hoof as back legs, and a snake’s tail with a tuft of fur on the end. “What is that?” I said in confusion, but then thought, well, not like it’s going to answer me.

But my thought was soon proven wrong when there was a startling flash of lightning near behind me. It was so close I could feel the static on my neck. I quickly turned around to make sure there was no fire, but mostly I was just scared. There wasn't a mark on the ground that the lightning strike would have left, and no clouds in the sky that would have caused the lightning. Still a little frazzled, I turned back around to face the odd statue. But the only problem was, the statue wasn't there.

I stood there in disbelief, straining my mind to fathom why a nine-foot-tall statue would just disappear. Confused, I cautiously walked toward the small white column that the statue was previosly standing on. I put my hand on the cool stone, still pondering how the tall object could have just vanished. Suddenly, I felt a rush of wind behind me. That same cackle vibrated through the air. I turned in all directions, afraid that something would come out of the trees and abduct me, or worse. I stared into the forest, my back to the short pillar. I walked a step forward, expecting something, when I felt a strong, looming presence behind me. Slowly, I turned around to confront what was sure to be a vicious beast from the woods. But the creature I saw was scarier than that. It was the statue.

At least, it was as if the statue had come to life. The once silvery stone figure was now very much alive, and in full color. I struggled to make words come out. “Wh-What are- Wh-Who-"

The odd animal put its paw up, as if telling me to stop. “Please, allow me to introduce myself. Have you ever heard of the word ‘discord’?”

Before I could answer, or even snap out of my shock, the strange animal said, “That would be me. I am Discord.”

I broke out of my state of confusion and stuttered, “I-I’m...”

“Yes, Madisyn. Caring, funny, and adventurous are all traits that match you well.”

“H-How did you...?”

The creature named Discord suddenly disappeared in a white flash and appeared behind me, hovering in mid-air. I spun around, wondering how the heck he could do that. “You see, I’ve been observing you for a while, as I feel you would make a good fit for my plot. Being good instead of evil can be quite boring, you know, especially if you’re an all-powerful being.”

I just stood there, staring at Discord, as if it was my turn to be the statue. I felt a strange mixture of feeling, but one thing I wasn’t feeling was fear. I strangely enjoyed the being’s presence, and wanted to know more. “To clear up the confusion, what do you want me to do? I’m just a thirteen year old girl. I can barely take a horror movie, and gave up after the first temple in Twilight Princess.”

Discord seemed to pause for a second at the words "Twilight Princess", but ignored everything else like he didn’t hear a thing. “Oh don’t worry young one. You’ll know what to do soon enough. In time the truth will all be revealed. But do not tell anyone of this vision." He put his claw in the air for emphasis. "Everything must be kept secret from anyone you know. Do you understand?”

“I don’t know what else to say but yes,” I promised Discord. “I won’t tell anyone anything.”

“Good. Now just wait, and soon your questions will be answered. After all, good thing come to those who wait. The thing I want you to do is strengthen yourself for the challenges ahead. There will be difficult tasks and choices in the future, so you must be prepared." Everything started to fade, and Discord's voice gained an echo effect. "Good luck Madisyn. Good luck!”

The dream faded, and I was back in my bed at home. I looked around to see if everything was still the same. I checked my digital clock. Nothing was different except for the time, ten minutes before the usual time I would have to wake up for school, so I just started getting ready. Throughout the entire morning, and the entire day, I couldn't help but remember Discord’s words. “In time the truth will be revealed.” I wanted to know if it was just a dream, or a real vision of something. I suppose I will just have to wait.

Author's Note

Wow, first chapter! This was pretty easy and really fun to write, but got harder when introducing Discord. Making your own character is easy, but making sure an already existing one doesn't break character is pretty challenging. But perspective is also important, and you have to make something that matches everyone's perspective(Suited for Success much?). But to clear up confusion, the prolouge is in a dimension far, far away (aka MLP world) while the first chapter is in our world, but it's as if the show and franchise My Little Pony does not exist. I got inspiration for Discord's introduction from Disney's Hercules, and originally he was just going to be standing there doing nothing. Pretty boring and dumb, huh?

Chapter Two: Enter the Magic

It had been five days since the strange dream-vision I had, and still nothing more during the day or night. Now lying in bed, ten minutes before my bedtime, I was starting to think it was only a dream, a trick of the imagination. It’s a shame, too. I wanted to know more about this “Discord” character. Was he really communicating with me through my dream? Or did my mind create the odd being? These questions had consumed my mind for the past school-week, and not even Language Arts, my favorite class, could get my mind off that mystical dream. There were so many questions I had, yet I was nearly certain they would never be answered.

That night was like any other night; my cat inspected my room and got into my bed, my mom kissed me goodnight and turned off the lights, and I took thirty minutes to fall asleep. Before plummeting into slumber, I whispered into the night, “Discord, be my imagination or reality, answer my questions tonight......”

My first dream in five days, and it didn't end well. In fact, it didn't end at all. I was back in that same forest at what seemed to be the same time of night. I didn't want to hesitate this time. I wanted answers. And I wanted them now. I ran right into the forest, ignoring any foreign flora that brushed past, hoping to find Discord in that same clearing. But I was only partially satisfied. I came across the clearing after a while, but couldn't find Discord anywhere. Instead, I found what looked like an extremely overly fancy mirror, and three stones on the ground. I looked around, making sure there was no one else around. Suddenly, I heard a voice, Discord's voice, echo through the air with a poetic tone. One of these stones will assist in your plight; brute force, magic, or the gift of flight; you must choose the one you believe is right; and it will guide you throughout all day and night.

I gasped. "Discord! Where are you?" The only answer I received was his rhythmic laughter.

Apprehensively, I shifted my gaze towards the stones. They were each a bit smaller than the size of a fist, and each had a different symbol carved into its surface. The first had a simple sketch of a horseshoe, the second a horn a unicorn might have, and the third a cool-looking wing. said to choose one to “assist in my plight” although I failed to see what plight I was in, and how a rock with a cute drawing on it would help. But I had to choose, so I began to think which one I should choose.

Brute force is not my style, I pondered, so that’s out of the question. Magic and flight are both cool things, so I guess I’ll choose between those two. I began thinking which I should pick when everything around me suddenly rippled, and I figured the dream was starting to fade. I panicked and looked between the two, frantically wondering which I should choose. Magic or flight, magic or flight. Come on Madisyn, think, think, think!

“Oh forget it!” I grabbed the rock with the unicorn horn and picked it up. Suddenly, the rock started to shake violently, and all the creases in the rock that made up the image started to glow. First red, then green, then blue, then purple, and finally an amazing array of so many colors I couldn't name them all before the stone started levitating while still in my hand. The flying rock shot fifty feet straight into the air, dragging me with it. I couldn't let go, or I would plummet, and although I wouldn't die, the dream would end after I was so close to answers. The rock suddenly barreled right for the strange small pool on the ground. I closed my eyes and braced for the impact.

But there was no impact. I heard a whoosh, and opened my eyes to see I was lying on the grass in the same clearing. The rocks and odd water holder wad vanished, and I was back on the ground. I tried to stand up, but it felt improper, and I fell to the ground. I sat up straight, but then saw something that mesmerized and shocked me much more than my first dream. I no longer had my hands or fingers, but a more.... equine body form. I couldn't help but stare at the changes that must have occurred when my eyes were shut. Now understanding I was a horse of some form, I tried to stand up on all four legs like a normal horse would, which actually wasn't that hard. My new body form was not difficult to control or use; it was as if I had always had it. I looked around for any other signs of life to help me or a pool of water to look at myself. I couldn't find either, so I was forced to trudge into the shadowy, ominous forest.

After what seemed like a few hours of walking through the night, I felt afraid, thirsty, exhausted; I thought I would die. But it’s only a dream. Then why does it feel so real? I was about to give in to weakness when I saw what looked like buildings in the distance. I started to run, no gallop -I have to get used to this horse body- to the town. I broke through the forest and was finally in what looked like civilization. But it had to be midnight, and everyone was asleep. I couldn't take it. I was so afraid I yelled out with what felt like my last breath.

"Help! Someone please!” I burst into the night as I started to pass out. “Help...me..."

Chapter Three: World of Wonders

I woke up in a bed that didn’t feel like my own, surrounded by voices saying things like; “Who is she?” “She came from the forest.” “Is she a witch?” I struggled to open my eyes, and could barely see what and who was around me. I heard a voice say, “She’s awake, give her room!” ,then saw a light purple blur walk towards me. “Are you okay? When you came out of the Everfree Forest last night with sticks in your mane, I couldn’t just let you lay there. I had to help you!”

I blinked a few times and tried to focus on who was in front of me. My eyes finally adjusted, and I could see clearly. But what I saw, I couldn’t believe. It was a lavender-colored pony, with purple eyes and a dark indigo mane with a pink and purple stripe going through it. I was so startled, I fell right out of the bed I was occupying.

The purple mare rushed over to me. “Are you okay? I didn’t mean to startle you.”

I was so confused why this horse could talk, but then looked down at my own body (which felt odd), and realized I was still a horse. I could see better in daylight and wasn’t worrying about dying, so I could see my body was a light crimson. I stood up, regaining my composure, and looked at the purple pony. I could see better now, and saw that the mare had both a horn and wings.

“Sorry,” I said, “but I just-“

Wait a minute; why can I talk too? What is this place? , I thought to myself as I looked down at the floor, confused.

The violet-colored pony looked at me in worry. “You just what?”

I looked up and saw that there were more ponies behind her, some with wings, some with horns, some with neither, but none with both. But they were all staring at me.

“I- I just... was surprised. Sorry.” I gave a sheepish smile.

The unicorn with wings (or pegasus with a horn?) breathed a sigh of relief, and then introduced herself. “Well, my name is Twilight Sparkle, and-“

Suddenly, a pink pony with a darker pink poofy mane and what looked like a lemon cake on her head came up from behind Twilight, got right in my face, and started blabbing away at a rather fast pace.

“Hi! I’m Pinkie Pie! I planned a little party just for you, because when you came out of the Everfree Forest you looked sick! I even made the cake myself! So do you like it? Huh?”

“I, uh, I”, I was at a loss for words, still a little frazzled. “Thanks, uh, Pinkie Pie. But where are the decorations?”

"Oh! Don't worry about that!" Pinkie suddenly got a brightly colored cannon out of nowhere. "I've got my party cannon!" She fired the cannon at a wall, and instead of destroying that side of the building, it decorated the wall with streamers and confetti. After a few more shots, the entire room was decorated with colors.

“Oh Pinkie, you went through all this for a strange pony who came out of the forest?” Twilight Sparkle walked over to Pinkie Pie. “You really do care about everypony you meet.”

“Wait, she’s done this before?” I asked.

“Oh yeah, I do this for everypony who moves to Ponyville.” Pinkie Pie said while still somehow balancing that cake on her head. “But wait, are you going to move into Ponyville? Where do you live? In the forest? But that doesn’t make-“

“Maybe we should let her explain, Pinkie.” Twilight looked at me. “But I would like to know as well. Would you mind telling us at least your name and where you live?”

“M-Me?” I stuttered. I wondered what to say. Everyone in this world seemed to have a name that wasn’t exactly a name, and was more like two words put together that described their personality or look. I didn’t want to say my real name, or they might suspect something. Then what would happen? I don’t know what kind of insane things this world of ponies has, and I certainly don’t want to find out the hard way. So, thinking fast, I thought up a name that matched both my color and my likes.

“I’m, um... Ruby Flame, and, well...” I thought of an excuse as to why I would be in a forest. "Well.. I was on my way to move to Ponyville, when a monster started chasing me! I had no choice but to leave my cart of items, or else it would have slowed me down. I lost the monster behind the trees, but I was so scared, I kept running until I got to Ponyville. And well, you know the rest." I put on a smile to try to sell it off.

The two ponies stared at me for about three seconds. Then Pinkie Pie grabbed my front hoof and shook it rather fast while still balancing that cake on her head and said, “Okey-dokey-lokey! Nice to meet you Ruby Flame!” She finally stopped vigorously shaking my hoof. Pinkie then loudly proclaimed; “Now it’s time to PARTY!”

Twilight stopped her before she could party (I guess?) and instead asked me, “Wow, you've been through a lot. I had my own theories as to why you were in the forest, but I guess that explains everything." I noticed a hint of disappointment in her face. "Before a welcome party, would you like me to take you around Ponyville and introduce you to my friends? I’m not sure if you’ve been to Ponyville before, Ruby Heart, but I would be happy to show you around the town.”

“Um, sure, I guess. That would be nice.”

The crowd behind her sighed and left, disappointed that the party was postponed. Twilight ignored them, and instead told me, “It’s settled then. I’ll show you around Ponyville. Let’s start our tour outside my house.”

“And then we can party?” Pinkie Pie asked.

Twilight nodded. “Then we can party.”

Chapter Four: A New Struggle

Twilight walked down the stairs. “This way.”

I followed Twilight to the room below what I was pretty sure was Twilight’s bedroom -how generous of her to give up her bed for a stranger- this one’s walls being lined with bookshelves filled with books. I couldn’t help but stare at all the novels and encyclopedias that lined the shelves. All the legends and lore of this new world, and fantastical fictions of monsters and heroes completely blew me away. How did I not notice this while up in that bed?

I struggled to talk, struck in wonder by all the knowledge crammed into this one room. “Do yo- You actually-“

Twilight turned around, cheeks pink with embarrassment and what seemed to be flattery. “Yeah, these books are all mine. Why, are you a fan of reading?”

I slumped to the floor, still in awe of everything. “A fan... doesn’t nearly describe it.”

I snapped out of my daze long enough to notice what looked like a dog bed by the wall, covered with a light blue blanket. "Hey, Twilight, do you have a pet?" I asked.

"Oh, that's my assistant, Spike." Twilight trot over to the little bed. "Spike, wake up. We have a guest."

The thin blanket rustled, and out of it emerged a very large, groaning purple lizard with green spikes on its head going down its back. It yawned and stretched.

“Spike, huh?” How original, I thought to myself. "So, how is he your assistant? And what kind of lizard is he?"

"Well, he's actually a baby dragon, and he writes letters for me and helps me out around the library. Spike, this is Ruby Flame."

The baby dragon yawned and got out of his most likely uncomfortable bed. "Hi, uh, Ruby Flame."

“Hi Spike." I turned my attention to Twilight. "So, he doesn't bite or anything?”

“Hey!” Spike scolded, offended. “I may be a baby dragon, but-" he was briefly interrupted by a yawn, "-that doesn’t mean I’m... uh...”

“Barbaric?” Twilight and I both suggested at the same time. Twilight looked at me, impressed. “Wow. I didn’t know you had such a wide vocabulary for such a young pony.”

Flattered, I somewhat mumbled, “Actually, I’m thirteen. But thanks. Heh-heh.”

“Oh. Anyway, Spike, fetch our guest some water, please.”

The little dragon ran back downstairs, and came back up with a glass of water in his hands. Or, claws, I suppose. Seeing it, I suddenly realized how thirsty I was. My throat was so dry, I’m surprised I was able to talk clearly before.

“Thanks, Twilight. I could really use some water.”

Spike held out the glass in front of me. “Here you go Ruby Flame."

Wait a minute, how am I supposed to hold it with this? I thought, putting my hoof up in front of me.

“Is there something wrong, Ruby?” Twilight asked. Her voice carried an odd mix of concern and suspicion.

“Um, no, it’s fine.” I turned around and grinned. I faced Spike again and put my hoof out, the flat bottom up. After a few awkward seconds, Spike got the hint and put the glass on my hoof. This’ll be a challenge. I balanced the cup best I could up to my lips and started to tilt it, letting the water enter my mouth. Feeling the cold, refreshing liquid on my tongue peaked my thirst to a maximum level and I was soon greedily guzzling down every last drop, not caring if I was spilling, or if the glass was slipping.

Suddenly, the cup slipped out of the little grip my hoof could give, and tumbled towards the floor. I took a few clumsy steps back and shielded my face with my right foreleg, expecting to hear a loud CRASH! of the glass hitting the floor. But it never came. I put my hoof down, and looked in shock to see that the glass had been suspended in mid-air, surrounded by a mystifying pink veil. I guess the sheer awe I was in must have shone on my face.

“Ruby Flame?” Twilight asked, confused and worried. “Are you alright?”

I looked over at Twilight and saw that the horn on top of her cocked head was glowing in a similar manner. “A... Are you doing that? H-How?”

“I’m using my horn, of course!” Twilight almost seemed to scold me for being so unaware of what she was doing and how. “I know younger unicorns may not be experienced in magic, but levitation is the most simple and common form. You’re a unicorn, too, why don’t you know of it?”

Suddenly Pinkie, who I forgot was here, spoke up and said, “What if she hurt her head in the forest and forgot stuff about magic?”

“Oh my gosh! I didn’t even think of that!” Twilight Sparkle exclaimed. “You were in the Everfree Forest, after all. The forest’s strange magic could have done odd things to your mind and health! I should really run some tests.”

“T-Tests?” I uttered. “What do you-“

Before I could finish, Twilight pushed me forward down another two set of stairs. “Hey, wait! Where are we going?! Hey!”

Author's Note

This one's a bit short, which I apologize for, but hey! A chapter's a chapter, right? .....Right?