Fluttershy cautiously stepped out of her house, her desire to check on her animal friends finally stronger than the urge to keep hiding from the storm that had, finally, ran its course. It had been a large, mid-summer thunderstorm, made even worse by the fact that it had originated over the Everfree Forest, instead of being put together by the weather teams. She had been in town, doing some shopping, when the massive banks of dark, angry clouds could start to be seen and heard.
The gossip in the market quickly shifted to wondering why the weather teams didn’t just go and break it up before it got out of hand, but Fluttershy knew why they wouldn’t. Risk life and limb by flying over the Everfree forest, home to dragons, rocs, sphinxes, and other dangerous creatures that could catch you in the air, simply to stop a storm that might not even threaten Ponyville? As she raced back to her house to make sure everything was secure, just in case the storm did head towards their town (and to hide from the lightning and thunder), she once again thanked the stars that she wasn’t part of the weather team.
From the shelter of her home, she could tell that the storm had indeed worked its way towards Ponyville by the frequency of the lightning and thunder. Soon, she heard above the howling of the wind her friend Rainbow Dash yelling orders to other pegasi in an effort to keep the worst of the weather from menacing Ponyville. Knowing that her friend was out there, putting herself in peril for others, Fluttershy risked emerging from under her bed to look out a window. She watched as the weather team fought against the storm, dispersing it as it slowly drifted away from the mystical woods.
Now, with the worst of the weather having been taken care of, Fluttershy joined the rest of the town in checking for any damage that the strong winds may have caused. She noticed that a couple of bird houses had been knocked down, as well as some smaller branches, but as far as she could tell there didn’t seem to be any major problems or, thank goodness, animals hurt. As she took one of the birdhouses between her front hooves and flew it back up to where it had been hanging from, she noticed a plume of dark smoke rising from within the Everfree forest.
Not knowing if anypony else had spotted it yet, she quickly moved to put back the other birdhouses that had been blown down. If everypony else was busy cleaning up, they might not notice it until much later, and Fluttershy decided that it would be a good idea to spread the word about the potential fire hazard as soon as possible. The fact that doing so would also get her farther away from a possible forest fire was an added bonus.
Pleased with her reasoning, she rehung the last of the birdhouses and landed, ready to head into town when a rustling from the nearby woods made her freeze. With a squeak of fright, she darted back up into the branches of the tree, hoping that her shivering in fright wouldn’t be too noticeable by whatever creature was emerging from the foliage...
In Ponyville, an impromptu headquarters had been set up at the town hall. There, the Mayor, with the organizational help of Twilight Sparkle, directed available ponies with tasks to help clean up the town. “Good work!” the Mayor said to a trio of stallions who had just finished dragging away an old tree that had finally fallen over due to the winds. “Twilight, is there anyplace else where they could be of use?”
The purple unicorn looked over her list. “Let’s see, it looks like most of the trouble spots in town have been taken care of, hmm...”
“Well, sugar, if I could make a suggestion?” Twilight looked up to see Applejack walking towards her, with Big MacIntosh and Apple Bloom following close behind. “We just got done lookin’ over Sweet Apple Acres, and while we didn’t suffer any severe damage, we sure could use some help in gettin’ things cleaned up.”
“Sounds good to me,” the Mayor said. Turning towards Twilight, she asked, “Will that be okay, or is there someplace that has a more urgent need?”
“I don’t believe so,” she replied. “Let me double check, just to be sure.”
Before Twilight could finish her scan, the sound of galloping hooves grabbed everypony’s attention. Turning towards the east, they saw Fluttershy and Zecora sprinting towards them at a breakneck pace.
“My goodness,” the Mayor said as the newcomers skidded to a halt in front of the assembled group. “What has you two in such a hurry?”
“Deep in the forest of Everfree,” Zecora said, her voice calm and steady despite how worn out she looked from her running, “A lightning bolt has struck a tree. The sparks then spread to nearby briers, and now it becomes a forest fire.”
Fluttershy, more winded than the zebra, stood there panting and nodding her head in agreement with Zecora’s declaration. “I saw... the smoke rising... from my place.”
“That’s awful!” Twilight said. “So many animals will become displaced, not to mention the risk to Ponyville if the wind picks back up again! Mayor, do you think we could get the weather teams to get some rain clouds together, and see if we can at least contain it before it gets out of control?”
“While I appreciate the thought, I tell you this fire should not be fought.” Zecora said, stunning the other ponies.
“Why not?” Twilight asked, the first to give voice to their thoughts.
“With your manner of farming, you do not know,” Zecora replied, “that fires do help make the forest grow. They remove places where plants grow too thick, and keep the forest from getting sick. And in places burned down to the ground, new life from the ash will soon be found.”
“That sounds mighty weird,” Applejack said, “but then, this is the Everfree forest we’re talkin’ about. I guess you’d know since you live there and all.” The farmer’s eyes grew suddenly wide. “Tarnation! Zecora, your house! Are you going to be alright?”
“That is what has brought me here,” she said with a shake of her head. “The fire will reach my house, I fear.”
“I told her she could stay at my place while we figure out what’s going to happen,” Fluttershy said, having finally regained her wind. “But we need help in carrying her stuff to my place.”
“If my place should burn, I’ll build it again, but I can’t replace the things in my den. Even now, from those things I still learn, so I would hate to see them burn.”
“How long to you think the fire will go on? Isn’t there a chance that the whole woods could burn away?” the Mayor asked, concern evident in her voice.
“Healthy plants are resistant to fire, and when the rain comes, the blaze will expire,” Zecora explained.
“Well, I’ve benefited from your teachings, Zecora,” Twilight said. “I’ll be more than happy to help you out. We should be able to gather up enough ponies to get out there and carry everything away.” The librarian turned to look at Fluttershy. “I know it will be a frightening trip, but would you please come with us, Fluttershy? I would love to have your expertise with animals with us, I’m afraid of what we might stumble onto in the chaos of the situation. You could save us all a lot of trouble.”
“Well, I don’t know,” she said, shrinking down and starting to slowly back away. “All of the fire, and scared animals, and the smoke, I’m not sure I...”
“While I agree that all of those things will be simply ghastly, I’m sure you’ll be plenty safe since you’ll be with Twilight and I.” Walking up to the group was Rarity, with a pair of stallions in tow. “Sorry to interrupt, but Caramel and Blues here just helped me finish cleaning up at my place, so we thought we’d see if we could help out elsewhere. We overheard all of it,” she said, turning towards Zecora, “and after your help with the poison joke, I still owe you. It would be my pleasure to help you out.”
Seeing the zebra nod, Rarity turned back towards Fluttershy. “Please darling, I know how dreadful it might seem, but if I’m willing to get soot and ash all over my coat, or get some thorns stuck in my tail, well surely you too can overcome your fears and help out a friend, hmm?”
“I, I suppose I can,” Fluttershy admitted.
“I wanna help also!” Apple Bloom said to her older sister. “Zecora has helped me out lots too, and I’ve been to her place a lot of times, so I can help guide everypony else! Please, sis, you have ta let me go!”
“No way, no how,” Applejack replied firmly, “That forest is dangerous enough on a good day, I don’t want you running around in there while it’s on fire too!”
“But she helped me when I had the cutie pox! And she helped you with that poison joke! We have to do something!” Apple Bloom pleaded.
“I’d love to, I really would, but we have a heap ton of work to do back on the farm. I’d go, but I need to stay and supervise the ponies that are volunteerin’. It’d be downright rude of me to ask for their help, and then leave them to do it while I go off somewhere else.” Applejack paused as Big MacIntosh leaned close to whisper into her ear. “You sure about that?” she asked, looking up at her brother.
“Eeyup.”
“Okay then, Big MacIntosh said he’ll go. He should be able to carry almost everything by himself, I reckon.” the farmer mare turned to Fluttershy. “Just stay close to him, sugar cube, he’ll make sure nothin’ happens to you.”
Twilight looked over the team that had been hastily assembled. “I think the five of us should be able to get in, grab Zecora’s things, and get back to Fluttershy’s house quickly enough. We could maybe get some more help, but I don’t know how much time we have, so I think we had better get started now. Sound good to everypony?” When nopony offered up any objections, she said, “Okay then, everypony grab your saddlebags, and let’s go!”
Following behind Zecora, Twilight noticed that the Everfree forest seemed much more foreboding than usual. While it was never what a pony would call friendly to begin with, the smell of smoke on the air, the panicked cries of birds, and the soft but constant roar of the fire in the distance made it seem even scarier than it did on her trip into the woods when they were looking for the Elements of Harmony. She glanced back at Fluttershy, and was glad to see that the skittish pegasus was holding up okay. ‘Of course,’ Twilight thought as they ran, ‘we haven’t crossed paths with anything yet either, thank goodness.’
After a tense period of time, nopony was certain exactly how long it took them, they arrived at Zecora’s house. “Okay, everypony, listen up,” Twilight said, falling naturally into the role of organizer. “I gave this some thought on the way here, and I think I know the best way for us to get this done quickly. Big MacIntosh, since you’ll be carrying the biggest load, you should stay outside. That way, we don’t have to worry about you trying to fit back through the door. We’ll bring it out to you, okay?”
“Eeyup.”
“Fluttershy, I think it would be best if you stayed out here with Big MacIntosh,” Twilight said, her attention turning to the yellow pegasus. “As our only flier, you’ll have an easier time than the rest of us making sure everything we load onto him is securely attached, and also if any animals come close, you’ll be in position to deal with them. Can you do that, please?”
“I, I suppose I can...” she replied.
“Great! Zecora, I don’t know if we’ll be able to take everything or not, so we’ll need you to point out which things are the most important. Rarity, you and I will take the bigger items out to Big MacIntosh, and we’ll distribute the smaller things evenly among the rest of us and carry them in our saddlebags.” Twilight looked around at the group. “Any questions?” Seeing nopony voice any, she said, “All right then, let’s get a move on!”
The next twenty minutes were a whirlwind of activity. After a few missteps in the beginning, the process quickly smoothed itself out as the ponies got used to their roles. The only concern that Twilight had was that she could hear the fire getting closer and closer. “Zecora, you know more about what’s happening with this fire than I do. How much longer do we have?”
With a a grim look, Zecora stuffed a book into her saddlebag. “I understand the urge to run, but hold, we are almost done. One last thing, I wish to ask, even though it will be a task. If MacIntosh’s strength if of worthy mettle, see if he can carry my kettle,” she said, pointing to the large black cauldron that she used to brew things in.
Rarity ran outside to ask, while Twilight looked around the zebra’s house. She blinked in surprise at how empty the place now looked. The shelves were practically bare, the familiar masks that had hung from walls had been secured on Big MacIntosh long ago, and even the entirety of the wise woman’s herb collection had be packed away. “He’s willing to try!” Rarity called in from outside.
Her horn alight, Twilight floated the pot outside. She paused to take a look at how much stuff was actually on the red stallion; the pile of possession that had been loaded onto his back was almost as tall as he was! “We’re not going to have any trouble with him leaving the woods, are we?” Twilight asked, suddenly seeing a potential flaw in their plan. “I’m worried about some of the overhangs making it so he fit down the trails we took to get here.”
With a spell of her own, Rarity took the cauldron from Twilight and placed it on the top of the items on Big MacIntosh’s back. “I think we should be okay, I don’t recall anyplace that was particularly onerous in that manner. And besides, if we do come across something like that, we can take the few seconds needed for us to unload what we have to so he can pass, and the put them back on afterwards.”
“Okay then, are we ready to go, Zecora?” Twilight asked, turning to the zebra in question.
Before she could answer though, a chorus of howls echoed throughout the area. Bursting forth from the trees, a pack of timber wolves sprinted past, not even paying the ponies any mind except to avoid crashing into them during their frenzied flight. The group stood stock still, stunned by the close call.
“The fire must be very near, to inspire in them such a great fear,” Zecora commented, breaking the silence.
“Right,” Twilight said, shaking her head in disbelief. “Okay, everypony, let’s get moving! Umm...” she trailed off, seeing Fluttershy doing her best to hide inside Zecora’s big black kettle. That was on top of the pile of things on Big MacIntosh’s back. “It’s safe to come out, they’re gone Fluttershy.”
The only response they got was a series of barely audible squeaks.
“Fluttershy, darling!” Rarity huffed. “I can fully understand your reaction, but if you don’t get out of there, why, it’ll be too much for Big MacIntosh, and then we’ll all be stuck here, in these burning woods. So, please be a dear and come out?”
Slowly, reluctantly, Fluttershy peeked out of the cauldron. Seeing her friends smiling and gesturing at her, she flew down and joined them on the ground. “Can we go now?” she asked, her voice quivering in fear.
“Most certainly! C’mon everypony, there’s no time to waste.” Twilight and Zecora trotted ahead, and started to lead the way.
Less than a minute after they began their trip out of the woods though, the wind made a sudden shift, and the group found itself surrounded by smoke and the sound of trees burning. Doing their best to fight down their fears, the group pressed on, only to come to a halt when a ear-splittingly loud noise echoed from up ahead. Rounding a small turn in the path, they saw that a massive tree, fully ablaze, had fallen down, blocking their way forward.
“Oh no!” cried Twilight. “Okay, we obviously can’t go back the same way we came in. Zecora, do you know another way out? Preferably one that will minimize how much time we have to spend in the forest?”
“To match those needs, I do know one, but I warn you, it won’t be fun.” the zebra replied, looking nervous.
“Not to be rude, darling,” Rarity said, looking as the encroaching fire slowly spread from tree to tree, “but I fail to see how it could be worse than burning to death. Which is what will happen if we spend any more time just standing here!”
Zecora started moving, and the other ponies followed behind. “Since a safer option we currently lack, allow me to warn you of the Razorback.”
“What’s a Razorback?” asked Twilight.
“At first glance, you’d think it a boar, but then you’d notice that it is much more. A nasty temper, it loves to attack, and very sharp spines cover its back. We’ll have to pass quite close to its den, so we’ll need to be quiet, understand my friends?” Seeing the others somberly nod in agreement, she gave them a smile. “I’m sorry if my words give you a scare, but it is only because for all of you I care.”
“We understand, Zecora,” Twilight said. “We’d rather know up front what we might have to deal with, so we hopefully won’t be caught off guard. Just make sure to give us enough advance warning for when we need to be quiet, okay?”
Seeing Zecora nod, Twilight looked back at the rest of the group. Rarity, Fluttershy, and Big MacIntosh all looked a little on edge, but otherwise seemed fine. Twilight understood their nervousness; it was hard to keep a positive outlook when the air reeked of smoke, and the calls of frightened animals echoed all around them. With muted chatter, more to keep themselves distracted than for any other reason, the group continued their trek.
After a while Zecora came to a stop, and pointed to a tree. Massive gouges had been made in it’s trunk, as if an axe had been taken to it repeatedly. “Everypony, take heed, beware! We are now close to the Razorback's lair.”
The other ponies eyed the damage done to the tree apprehensively. “It must have been running pretty fast for it to make such deep marks on the tree,” Rarity said.
‘It did not not, or charge or crash, it merely walked to leave such a gash,” Zecora replied. The group moved forward quietly. As they progressed they saw more trees with similar gouges, and the occasional rock that looked to have been brushed up against by the Razorback. Finally, the forest seemed to open up into a grove, and Zecora put a hoof to her mouth, to signal everypony else the need for silence.
Twilight could see that the trail did indeed cut almost straight across the grove, which also had a small creek winding its way through the area. Off to their right, she could see a small hill, and in it a cave. ‘That must be where the Razorback lives,’ she thought. Slowly and methodically, the group made their way through the grove. Twilight looked back at Fluttershy. She was worried that the timid pegasus would panic, or even worse become paralyzed in fear, but Twilight was glad to see that her friend was managing to hold herself together.
The band of ponies had almost made it’s way across the clearing when Big MacIntosh stepped on a branch. The loud snap it made broke the relative silence of the moment startlingly, causing the ponies to jump in surprise... and Fluttershy to let loose a short, panicked cry of terror before shee remembered the warning to stay silent and clamped her hooves over her mouth.
As one, the five ponies turned to look at the Razorback’s den, their breaths held, looking to see if they had been noticed. For a few seconds, nothing moved. Twilight started to relax; it seemed as though they had been lucky after all, when a pair of eyes appeared in the mouth of the den, tinged red, and looking very angry.
“Everypony, our plan’s undone! No time to waste, we must now run!” Zecora cried as the Razorback emerged from its den.
Twilight stared at the beast. It did indeed look quite like a boar, although by her best guess it had to be almost as tall as she was. Its tusks were long and looked chipped, and its snarling mouth revealed a wicked looking set of teeth. What really caught her eye though was it eponymous back spines; even in the muted light caused by all the smoke in the sky, they still gleamed as they extended from the creature’s back. Twilight had no problem picturing them causing the damage that had been done to the landscape in the area... and wished that she couldn’t see them doing the same to her and her friends.
With a loud snort and a quick scrape of the ground with a paw, the Razorback charged the band. The ponies scattered and managed to dodge the attack, but a small tree in the beast’s path was unable to do the same, and was leveled as the creature skidded to a stop.
“I hate ta say this, but I don’t think I can outrun it with all of this stuff on my back,” Big MacIntosh shouted out in a rare display of verbosity. “Also, I don’t like my chances of fighting it off either. No safe place for me to buck it.”
“I think I could use my magic to tie it up,” Twilight said uncertainly. “It’d take a lot of material, but I’m sure I could do it.”
“No!” Fluttershy protested. “As scary and awful as it is, it’s still just an animal. It’s only doing what it’s supposed to; we’re the ones who aren’t supposed to be here. If you tie it up, the fire could come and kill it!”
Twilight was about to snap back at Fluttershy in frustration when Rarity shouted, “Idea! Zecora, may I please make use of your cauldron?” she asked as the ponies once again dodged the Razorback’s attack. Seeing the zebra nod, the white unicorn’s horn glowed, and the cauldron floated from the stallion’s back.
“Everypony, get moving out of here. I’ll use this and bring up the rear,” Rarity said, floating the giant pot in front of her like a shield, with the open end facing the Razorback. Zecora blinked at Rarity’s rhyme, but nodded and waved the others to follow her. The Razorback paused to consider the strange, floating obstacle, and then reverted to it’s standard mode; it lowered its head and charged.
Big MacIntosh and Fluttershy had already left the clearing, and Twilight and Zecora were at the edge of it, about to make their way back into the forest proper. Rarity gulped, but held her ground. “Rarity!” Twilight called out, preparing a spell of her own to do... she didn’t know, but something, anything to save her friend should her compatriot’s plan fail.
Ignoring the sweat dripping down between her eyes, Rarity focused, and kept the cauldron between her and the Razorback, who charged right into the mouth of the container and crashed into the bottom of it with a loud CLANG! For a moment, Twilight thought that Rarity’s spell would break from the sudden exertion placed on it, but her friend managed to not only hold it, but quickly turn the pot right side up so that the Razorback was held, it’s front half trapped inside the cauldron and it’s hind legs waving furiously but ineffectively in the air above.
“Twilight, I don’t know if I can hold it like this for very long...” Rarity said, her voice filled with worry.
Twilight used her readied magic to help Rarity brace the pot against the giant boar’s thrashing. “I’ll take it from here, Rarity. Great idea by the way, how did you come up with it?”
Releasing her hold on the spell, Rarity beamed at Twilight’s praise. “Would you believe making those dresses you girls designed for the Grand Galloping Gala? I remembered just how impossible it was for me to make Rainbow Dash’s helmet, because my needles couldn’t pierce the metal it was made of. I had to literally pound it into shape in order for it to be molded properly. Anyway, it struck me that the Razorback was like a giant needle, and I could use Zecora’s cauldron like the helmet, and keep us safe. I’ll admit I was worried that the beast might be strong enough to break through, but I figured even then that would slow it down enough that I should be able to dodge. Also, with that much less weight on Big MacIntosh’s back, I figured he should be able to hopefully outrun the beast then.”
Twilight smiled at her friend. “Great thinking, Rarity.” Twilight floated the cauldron back to the mouth of the Razorback’s den, and unceremoniously dumped the boar onto the ground. Seeing the safe confines of its den in front of it, and also still a bit confused by what had just happened, the Razorback scampered into the darkness. Levitating the pot back to where she stood, Twilight turned her attention back to Rarity and said, “Okay, now that that’s taken care of, let’s catch up to the others and get out of these woods!”
An hour later, the band of friends was safely at Fluttershy’s house, unloading Zecora’s possessions from Big MacIntosh’s back and storing them inside the pegasus’s home. All of the zebra’s gear had come through the ordeal in one piece, and the group of friends were now chatting and joking over what they had just gone through. They were moving the last of the zebra’s items into the attic when they all heard Zecora gasp.
“What is it, Zecora?” Twilight asked as the others gathered around to see what was going happening.
“If of our adventure others voice doubt, I have the proof, if I could get it out,” see said, pointing to the bottom of the cauldron.
Twilight looked into the cauldron, and her eyes opened wide. “Oh, wow. One second, I’m sure I can get them with my magic.” Her horned glowed, and soon several sharp spines, each easily several inches long, floated up from the cauldron. “I can’t believe that they were sharp enough to stick in iron, and stay in when the Razorback fell out!”
“Rarity, your plan won the day, with these my thanks I hope I can convey,” Zecora said, offering the quills to the white unicorn.
Rarity stepped up to examine them, her eyes wide. “Oh my, yes, thank you! Even after all they’ve been through, they still have an extremely sharp point to them. I bet with just a little bit of work I could get them turned into the best needles this side of Canterlot.” She looked at Zecora sadly. “I’m sorry that you had to go through all of this though. I couldn’t even imagine what it would be like if my Boutique was to suffer a similar fate.”
“There is no need for you to be sad, because of all of the help I’ve had. Although the house may be lost to fire, my items and memories did not expire. I’ll be able to rebuild again, thanks to the help from all of my friends.”
Outside, a low rumble echoed across the land. Looking outside, they could see grey clouds gather over the Everfree forest once more, and soon the thunder was followed by the steady patter of rain falling, heralding the eventual end of the fire.