Elements of Failure

Chapter One

A small group of six ponies stood at the entrance of the Everfree forest, they knew they had to go into the forest. They had to retrieve the Elements of Harmony from the ancient castle of the Royal Pony Sisters and stop Nightmare Moon.

"Whee! Let's go!" A pink pony with a puffy mane and tail said while bouncing towards the forest. She had a cutie mark of three balloons.

"Not so fast!" Answered a lavender unicorn with a straight blue, purple and pink mane. She had a cutie mark of a large purple star and five smaller white stars. She then continued to speak. "Look, I appreciate the offer, but I'd really rather do this on my own."

"No can do sugar-cube," an orange pony with a yellow mane and tail spoke up. This one had a cutie mark of three red apples. She spoke with a southern accent as she trotted closer to Twilight Sparkle, "We sure ain’t letting any friend of ours go into that creepy place alone. We're sticking to you like caramel on a candy apple."

After speaking up Applejack and the other ponies went into the forest. Pinkie Pie and Applejack in the lead, followed by a yellow pegasus with a flowing pink mane and tail. Her cutie mark depicted three butterflies. after her was a white unicorn with a styled purple mane and three blue gems for a cutie mark. Bringing up the rear was a cyan pegasus with a rainbow colored mane and tail who's cutie mark was a white cloud and a rainbow lightning bolt.

"Especially if there's candy apples in there." Pinkie Pie said while looking back at Twilight, "What? Those things are good." Pinkie added before following Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity and Rainbow Dash into the forest leaving Twilight behind.

Twilight sighed and slowly followed the rest of the group into the forest, moving to catch up and took the lead. The group made slow progress into the forest looking around quietly, "So, none of you have been in here before?" Twilight asked keeping her eyes focused a head.

"Heavens no just look at it. It's dreadful." Rarity said sounding a little panicked to be in the forest.

"And it ain’t natural. Folks say it don't work the same as the rest of Equestria." Applejack said as she looked around, but not noticing a dark blue mist floating along the edge of the cliff face the group was walking on. It worked it's way through the cracks expanding them and slowly started to make the ground weaker.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Twilight asked feeling panic build inside her.

"Noooo pony knows," Rainbow Dash said in a creepy voice floating slowly from the shadows into the light scaring all of them aside from Applejack. "You know why?"

"Rainbow quit it." Applejack said sternly, taking on a more serious attitude to the Pegasus' joking.

"Cause everypony who's ever come in. Has. Never. Come...." Rainbow Dash said, ignoring Applejack as she crept along the ground towards Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie. "Out!" As soon as she finished saying that, the ground crumbled out from under them, the blue mist quickly flying away, completely unseen.

Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash quickly flew up as the ground broke up and crumbled away taking the other four down the side towards a large drop. "Fluttershy, quick!" Rainbow Dash said flying towards the group to try and help as best she could.

"Oh my goodness, oh my goodness!" Fluttershy said as she flew after Rainbow Dash, wanting to help as well.

Rainbow Dash grabbed Pinkie Pie and lifted her into the air as Fluttershy flew past. She grabbed Rarity's tail by the teeth to slow the white unicorn down.

Applejack slid along the ground on her back, grabbing a root in her teeth to stop herself from going any further down the side. She looked down and saw Twilight having trouble stopping herself.

Twilight kept sliding along the ground on her back rolling over just as she got to the edge of the cliff and went over the side, but managed to stop herself enough and hung on by her forelegs, her hind legs kicking at the cliff face to try and push herself back up. Applejack saw her and let go sliding her way down. "Hang on, I'ma comin`," she called down to Twilight as she slid down the slope, grabbing her friend’s forehooves.

"Applejack, what do I do?" Twilight asked in a panic as she did her best to keep from falling. She was now trying to pull herself back up onto the cliff’s edge.

Applejack looked up before looking back down at Twilight, "Let go." Applejack told her trying to be reassuring everything will be fine.

"Are you crazy?" Twilight said upset at what Applejack had said, she didn't want to fall.

"No I ain't, I promise you'll be safe." Applejack said trying to reassure Twilight she would be fine.

"That's not true." Twilight said unconvinced, she felt Applejack was lying to her and wanted her to fall.

"Now listen here, I ain't no liar Twilight," Applejack said, a little angry Twilight would call her a liar. Though in the back of her mind she wasn't sure if Twilight would be safe.

"I'm not letting go!" Twilight said, pulling to get herself back up on the cliff. Her pulling caused Applejack to start sliding closer to the edge of the cliff as well.

"Twilight quit it, yer gonna pull me over with you!" Applejack said feeling herself slide closer to the edge.

Twilight didn't listen, her fear getting the better of her as she felt herself slide closer to falling over the edge, the ground starting to crumble under them from her repeated kicks with her back legs to get better footing. The ground eventually gave way, causing both to fall over the edge.

Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash who had just put down Pinkie Pie and Rarity watched in horror as the two ponies fell. Twilight's horn glowed and flashed as she teleported to the ground mid-fall, the landing causing her to roll but she was otherwise unharmed. Rainbow Dash quickly shot into the air to try and catch Applejack but she just missed as Applejack hit the ground hard with a sickening thud.

The small group rushed over to check on Applejack, but she was already gone. The impact with the ground snapped her neck and crushing her rib cage. The five stood there for a moment, a look of pure horror on their faces. Tears rolled down the cheeks of the group.

Twilight took a long shuddering breath before turning away. "L.. let's keep moving... We'll come back for her body after we defeat Nightmare Moon." She said softly, the rest of the group slowly turning to join them as they continued on their path.