Forgive The Forgottenby enchantedChaptersChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 1Princess Memoriae It had been an especially harrowing week for the Memoriae. Her strength had all but been exhausted by the time she had finished casting her spell with the help of her magic mirror and then it had taken an even larger toll to trap the Celestial sisters in the Everfree forest. The experience hadn’t robbed her of a great amount of her powers, energy she couldn’t rightly regenerate without rest which proved exceptionally elusive now that she’d assumed the role of sole ruler over Equestria. An aggravated sigh tore its way from the Princess as she glared hatefully at the stack of scrolls meant for her to inspect, answer or write into law. If it wasn’t frustrating enough that she hadn’t managed to get a good night sleep in several days, the fact that she had to put up with this tedious and unending volley of work was absolutely absurd! She was a Princess! Royalty! She shouldn’t have to do these sorts of things! “Your Highness?” Memoriae’s eyes snapped angrily to the guard who’d spoken. Said stallion flinched beneath the mares withering stare but was undeterred. “T-The Captain has told me to inform you that he is patrolling Ponyville and will be gone for approximately five days.” He spoke though it was quite obvious he was uncomfortable with delivering the information. Maybe it had something to do with the look of horror and then anger that appeared on his monarchs face. Yeah, that could have been it. “He did WHAT!?” The Princess was suddenly standing, wings flared out as her voice rang inside the chamber as she processed the news. “Why was I not told sooner? What sort of Captain abandons his post without telling his ruler?” She was spitting with rage and it was a wonder how the messenger managed to squeak out. “He did your Majesty…He wrote you a letter…two weeks ago…You never got back to him.” Memoriae’s irritation climbed higher as she gave the unfinished stack of scrolls – nearly as tall as she was – a glare that should have lit them on fire. Actually...they did catch fire a moment later and the Princess looked rather smug about their timely demise. Fine! It didn’t matter. His memories, like everyone else’s had been altered so there was nothing to worry about. There wouldn’t be any reason for him or anyone to go looking about the Everfree Forest so she was safe… “Whatever. I’m going for a walk. Have somepony clean this mess.” She mumbled, stomping like a teenager throwing a tantrum toward the exit and swiftly made her way outside to the gardens. Dawn Star There was never a dull moment in Equestria no matter where it is you happened to be. Whether dining with high society in Canterlot or buying a bushel of the finest apples in Appaloosa, there was always something to warrant the attention of a passerby – provided they knew what to look for. Such was how Dawn Star came to find himself trotting across the bridge into Ponyville, smiling broadly under the sunlight and seemingly unaffected by the summer heat. The Pegasus wasn’t alone of course. No, rarely did he make ventures to any other territories without a small detail of his soldiers at his side. Frankly he believed that they worried too much about their overly friendly Captain and made excuses for joining him whenever he got tired of walking the streets of Canterlot and assigned himself a patrol where they could not stealthily oversee his actions. The thought earned a chuckle and a quirked brow from one of the white stallions in attendance to which he only smiled back and resumed his forward facing stroll across the bridge. Officially there wasn’t anything of deep concern about Ponyville. Things had been almost suspiciously quiet in the recent months but he wasn’t about to complain about the lack of rampaging Ursa Minors or aggressive Manticores. The less they had to do and rebuild the better but it made for a decidedly uneventful day when there were no crisis’s to avert or danger to thwart. So while there really wasn’t a reason for a guard detail to patrol that didn’t mean Dawn was going to neglect it. Better safe than sorry right? The stallion’s attention was quick to stray as they crossed the threshold into Ponyville. It was a quaint little parish not at all as extravagant or overtly decorated as Canterlot but its rustic design made his heart do a joyous bounce in his excitement. He’d been to this sector of Equestria before but it was always worth the trip in his opinion because of all the cities and townships basking under the sun, this one by far was the most troublesome. Well, it had been before Twilight Sparkle had become a Princess. Dawn Star frowned slightly and stopped for a moment. Come to think of it he hadn’t seen much of the book-loving Princess in recent weeks. She usually visited Canterlot so she could chat with…with…who? His mind was drawing a blank because he distinctly remembered speaking to Miss Twilight Sparkle and she’d mentioned she was going to talk with her mentor. But Princess Memoriae didn’t have any apprentices so who exactly had Princess Twilight gone to see? Mildly confused by his lack of information Dawn was about to question his companions when a screech erupted on their left and all heads jerked to the sight. A yellow mare was waving frantically at a small group of woodland critters – and if he wasn’t mistaken a bear which wasn’t small at all – gobbling up her stock of edibles. His thoughts on Twilight evaporated in an amused chuckle, “Go handle it. I’ll be fine on my own.” The guards nodded affirmatively and did as bade, leaving the Captain to take another look at Ponyville. It wasn't long into his evaluation that he was approached by someone who greeted him cheerfully instead of warily glancing at him from afar. Happy to see such a friendly face the Pegasus smiled warmly at her.“Hello Miss, how are you today?” Chapter 2Danny Bullwhip Now Daniel Keaton Bullwhip liked to think he was a very practical pony. He made simple observations and gave reasonable demands, asked only for what he believed was rightfully his (usually) and tried to remain as unobtrusive as he possibly could be. But some days that just wasn’t enough. Days like this when everything under the sun just seemed to fall on its plot and expect to be promptly taken care of, as if he didn’t have other, more important arrangements to attend to. It was just his rotten luck that today was turning into one such day and already he had bitten off more than he could believably chew. “Now I’m tellin’ ya for the last time!” Growing increasingly more aggravated as the day wore on and the cowboy’s tone reflected as much as he scolded the twenty strong herd of cows who all looked reasonably chastised under his accusing stare. “I mean it! I’m puttin’ my hoof down! No more goin off beyond that there fence for anything! Not grazin, not sunbathin, and no chattin’ with that Minotaur friend who I have yet to see Claribelle.” He stressed causing one cow in particular blushed a ripe cherry red. “But,” One piped from the center of the bovine mob, grimacing as she found herself on the receiving end of Danny’s dirty look. “The grass is so much…greener, on the other side…” This did not seem to make the impression she had wanted, if anything the stallion’s look only got darker from her complaint and with an apologetic moo she settled down. Danny sighed, praying for patience he really didn’t have to spare. Not only had all the cows up and left the pasture, broke the fence too but they’d dang near knocked over the hen house and had eaten all the seed! He dragged a weary hoof over his face and made it a point to gentle his voice. “Girls, I know ya like it over on the other side of the fence but while that there grass is greener the timber wolves are bigger. I can’t keep watch on ya’ll all the time and it’d be bad if somthin’ were to happen t’any of ya. Understand?” The stallion’s husky drawl corded through the cows who murmured varied responses of assent and apologies before turning back to the fields they’d been instructed to return to. Sadly this wouldn’t be the end of Danny’s problems. While he now had regained possession of the heard and the timber wolves had been sent packing – he had the bite mark on his left forehoof to prove it if anypony called him a liar – he now had to make a trip into town to purchase more chicken feed and possibly buy some plywood to repair the broken fence. “Jus’ gonna be one of them days…” He breathed tiredly, trudging up the road to Ponyville. Danny was compiling a mental list of the items he needed to buy from the market. The fence along was probably going to need a few boxes of nails and he could always do with a new hammer if the prices were fair, and wood. Gosh he was going to need a lot of wood if he hoped to pen in those rowdy heifers. “What is this,” he scoffed unhappily. “I’m a bronco not a repair pony!” It seemed like every other day he was fixing this or patching that. Bemoaning his ill fortunes of the past couple of days the stallion was more than a little surprised when he felt an intense gust of wind roll over him. He planted his hooves and braced himself against the small gale as his mane whipped around wildly before settling in an ever larger state of disarray than usual. “What in tarnation…” It was a pegasus. Of course it was a Pegasus, it was always a Pegasus. Bunch of no good flying troublemakers they were! He knew he was being arbitrary so he schooled his features to look a little less furious and settled on just being perturbed. A voice rose behind him as he turned to meet the new pony, "Hello! Daniel Bullwhip, correct?" “Uh, Howdy?” Not exactly certain how to interact with a pony who was so…cheery. Frankly it made him a little uncomfortable but he wasn’t about to mention that. Danny was surprised to hear his name and blinked in astonishment for a moment before his eyes narrowed a bit with suspicion. “Depends on who’s askin.” Chapter 3Dawn Star The pony Dawn greeted stopped in front of him with a smile, looking up to meet his sapphire gaze. "I'm good, slightly curious at the moment... How are you?" The words seemed to flow out of her mouth smoothly, the smile remaining. Dawn’s eyes seemed to grow more animated, bright and rambunctious despite the fact that he might very well be well into his twenties and was supposedly on duty. “I’m very well thanks for asking, enjoying the country air and sunshine.” He replied readily, taking an almost exaggerated inhale that caused the breastplate of his armor to clink as his chest expanded to capacity only to deflate with similar swiftness. His grin only faltered for a split second before it had resumed its place on the white stallion’s lips. “Now, about this curiosity of yours,” There was an almost conspiratorial note in his tone which wouldn’t seem so strange if one could recognize the almost knowing glint in his eye. “What’s on your mind – ah, where are my manners.” Dawn bent his head forward a bit, a hoof coming up over his chest as he bowed - the mare did so as well - and straightened, the action graceful and, leaving most to assume, frequently repeated gesture. “My name is Dawn Star, a guard as you can probably tell. Now, what’s on your mind miss? Perhaps I have answers to your curiosities.” With a nod, the Pegasus in front of him greeted him with her alias. "My name is Aurora. Aurora Borealis." Aurora seemed to pause for a while after straightening, pondering he question at hand. It seemed 5 seconds had passed before she spoke again, a smile once again on her face. "Nothing of too much importance... Just wondering why you were here?" And though, she swiftly added on with a flick of her tail. "Not to sound rude or anything..." To his credit, Dawn Star didn’t look at all perturbed by her inquiry. In fact, the stallion seemed to radiate amusement as Aurora gracelessly tried to assure him that she had meant her question in the most cordial way possible. He gave her a complacent smile for her troubles, wanting to let it be known that he took no offense to her words and understood her question for what it was. “Ah, I see. Officially I am here to inspect the town, see if there are any miscreants who need talking to or repairs that need to be made and to report back.” He glanced over his shoulder to the guards who had accompanied him and were wrangling up the critters and were now leading them out of Ponyville. “Unofficially I’m trying to get away from Canterlot for a day.” He smirked mischievously. Aurora let out a little chuckle from Dawn's remark and opened her mouth to respond, but was rudely interrupted by he sounds of panicking ponies. She immediately shut her mouth, and glanced over at the guard, before looking towards Sugarcube Corner, of which ponies were fleeing out of. It was easy to see that the Pegasus was perhaps silently excited for a new even, for when she glanced back at Dawn, a smile lit her face. "I do believe duty calls?" Danny Bullwhip The Pegasus that had so rudely interrupted him seemed to be taken back for Danny's rude reply, but she seemed to shrug it off as she quickly replied with a smile gracing her lips. "Where are my manners?" Sticking out a hoof, she gave away her name happily. "My name is Ashely Dawn, but you may call me Ashely! Oh, and sorry about your mane." Daniel didn’t seem at all remorseful for his rudeness nor did he particularly care if Ashley was offended because of it. ... Okay, that wasn’t entirely true. He would much rather not be discourteous if he could help it, sowing seeds of distrust and dislike unfortunately just seemed to be as much a talent as herding however. The stallion’s brows furrowed down as he looked at the offered hoof, tentatively raising his own and giving the Pegasus a firm shake before retracting it promptly. “Right, Danny. But you seemed to know that already.” He murmured out. “Sorry, mah mouth has tends to run off on me.” The apology was halfhearted at best but genuine if nothing else. His eyes flicked up to his disheveled mane and he simply shook himself until the strands were reasonably positioned again. “S’not a problem, kinda don’t do anything with it anyways. Was there something you were needing? You looked like ya were in an awful hurry to find somepony.” He really hoped it hadn’t been him because usually that meant he was in trouble and he did not have the patience to get yelled at today. Ashely seemed to be opening her mouth for answer when screaming rose into the air, cutting off her voice, and what's he was about to say. "Hey, do ya hear screamin'?" It didn’t appear that they would have time to get an answer as the roar in town drew Daniel’s attention away. “Aw for Pete’s sake what now!” Today was just not turning out right at all was it? He looked to the Pegasus with a new seriousness in his eyes that banished all further social endeavors for the time being. “We gotta get to town and see what’s up.” He didn’t care if she chose not to but the Apples lived here and whatever was attacking the town was threatening their livelihood, which was something he couldn’t allow. Checking to make sure his whip was in place the stallion charged down the road, across the bridge and very nearly slipped on the stray globs of frosting that had rained down from the …cake monster? “Ya have got to be kidding me…” How had they managed to make a cake, of all things, a vicious killing machine! Was nothing sacred anymore? Chapter 4Dawn Star Anything more that Aurora had planned to say was immediately derailed by a rather fearsome sound. A monstrous growl coming from a ways off startled Dawn somewhat but the origins of the beastly noise rose high above the buildings and was perhaps the oddest adversary he’d ever expected to face his the entirety of his career. While his predecessor, Shining Armor, had battled Changelings, protected a kingdom and fought off a cursed Unicorn, the highlights of Dawn’s tenure as Guard Captain was…a giant cake. It wasn’t even chocolate. The stallion deadpanned, looking somewhat disappointed and completely unafraid of the animated confection as Aurora urged him on. “Right, right,” Spreading his wings and letting the wind roll through his feathers. “Gotta fly!” His terrible little catchphrase came before he launched himself skyward and climbed high above the attacking frosting-covered creature. A shout from below – somehow singled out above all the screaming ponies – reached him and was devising a plan. They wanted a hose? A hose would work but where would they get one that could stretch to this length? Maybe that was the norm for them? Whatever the case might've been he did as bade and found a length of another hose, snatching it up and turning the water faucet as high as it could go before returning to the air again to spray the roaring dessert. It was working! The water saturated the cake thoroughly and as more moisture was exposed to its spongy body the slower their confection creature became. There simply was no way for it to continue to support its growing mass and it did not help that the ponies around it were effectively keeping it contained to one area. A brown stallion was working to keep the monster from squishing anyone and others had jumped into the fray, doing their part to subdue their adversary. What did disturb him (just a little really) was that the villagers were…eating the monster. High above them Dawn Star watched, letting his hose fall back to the ground and cringing almost sympathetically for the monster as it wailed loudly. Suddenly, a blast of heated magic roared from across the sky and Dawn Star was thoroughly surprised to notice that Prince Phoenix had arrived – from where he could not be sure – and was assisting them. No sooner had he come did Princesses Icis and then Skybolt as well enter the battle with their own magic, solidifying the cake, still being nibbled away at. “Well, whatever works I suppose!” Laughing raucously as the monster gave a final groan before collapsing into a mushy heap with thick bits of frozen or fire-baked chunks. And the villagers were still eating it! “I think I’ve lost my appetite for a while.” Grimacing despite the amusement he felt for the outrageous situation. Taking a moment to assure himself of the cake monsters demise, the guard flew over toward the two royals. “Prince Phoenix, Princess Icis, what are you both doing here? I wasn’t notified that either of you would be traveling away from Canterlot.” Danny Bullwhip Most of the ponies had already got in on the action or were fleeing from it and another few apparently had plans to just soak the thing. A mare with a hose nearly got frosted by the monster confection before shouting up to another Pegasus that they needed more help. If they planned on getting it all wet so that it toppled over from the moisture then it was better for them all if the monster cake was someplace where it wouldn’t crush anymore buildings or worse, somepony in the wrong place at the wrong time. "Somepony call for the cavalry? YEEEHAW!" Dashing forward he skidded to a halt in front of the vanilla cake and snapped his whip at it, "Down here ya overgrown cupcake!" earning its attention and a few large globs of frosting hurled his way. The expert herder moved like a bull fighter, sidestepping and turning out of range as the cake continued to chase him despite how irritated it was getting with all the hose-wielding ponies. Whenever it tried to go after one Danny would step in and drive it in another direction. Fighting a giant cake monster proved to be very much like dodging a rampant bull, except sweeter and without the horns. Danny bobbed and weaved, offering himself as a distraction as well as keeping the enchanted cake in an open space. His whip cracked loudly whenever it attempted to bolt either to escape or to attack one of the ponies hosing it down and both the noise and the vengeful bite of leather quickly had it chasing him all over again. He kept up this pattern successfully and didn’t let up until more had joined and were able to help him corral it. Overhead he could hear Ashley, the Pegasus from earlier, shouting at it but then there was a silence that left him unsettled. “What did that girl do now?” He grunted as another piece of wet cake sloughed off the creature and nearly caught him. A quick maneuver put him out of range long enough to look up for the mare that had gotten herself stuck at the very top. Just what they needed, a damsel in distress… Looks like he still had a job to do. Gathering speed, the stallion rushed his enemy and jumped straight in the air. Thanks to the pair of Alicorn’s alternatively frying and freezing portions of the cake, Daniel’s hooves were able to find purchase in the monsters unstable body without getting himself caught in the process. He scaled it like it was a mountain and even though he slipped a few times thanks to globs of frosting he managed to make it to the top and grip Ashley by the waist. "Ain't your parents ever tell ya not to stick your hooves in giant, pony-smashing dessert before?" With a hearty yank he pulled her free but didn’t let her go. “This thing’s bout to keel right over so hang on!” And she would if she didn’t want to end up buried in cake pudding. Extracting his whip again he uncoiled the length just as the monster began to sink to the ground and let it snap out. The corded leather wrapped around a weathervane and with a hoot he swung them onto a rooftop.
Chapter 1Princess Memoriae It had been an especially harrowing week for the Memoriae. Her strength had all but been exhausted by the time she had finished casting her spell with the help of her magic mirror and then it had taken an even larger toll to trap the Celestial sisters in the Everfree forest. The experience hadn’t robbed her of a great amount of her powers, energy she couldn’t rightly regenerate without rest which proved exceptionally elusive now that she’d assumed the role of sole ruler over Equestria. An aggravated sigh tore its way from the Princess as she glared hatefully at the stack of scrolls meant for her to inspect, answer or write into law. If it wasn’t frustrating enough that she hadn’t managed to get a good night sleep in several days, the fact that she had to put up with this tedious and unending volley of work was absolutely absurd! She was a Princess! Royalty! She shouldn’t have to do these sorts of things! “Your Highness?” Memoriae’s eyes snapped angrily to the guard who’d spoken. Said stallion flinched beneath the mares withering stare but was undeterred. “T-The Captain has told me to inform you that he is patrolling Ponyville and will be gone for approximately five days.” He spoke though it was quite obvious he was uncomfortable with delivering the information. Maybe it had something to do with the look of horror and then anger that appeared on his monarchs face. Yeah, that could have been it. “He did WHAT!?” The Princess was suddenly standing, wings flared out as her voice rang inside the chamber as she processed the news. “Why was I not told sooner? What sort of Captain abandons his post without telling his ruler?” She was spitting with rage and it was a wonder how the messenger managed to squeak out. “He did your Majesty…He wrote you a letter…two weeks ago…You never got back to him.” Memoriae’s irritation climbed higher as she gave the unfinished stack of scrolls – nearly as tall as she was – a glare that should have lit them on fire. Actually...they did catch fire a moment later and the Princess looked rather smug about their timely demise. Fine! It didn’t matter. His memories, like everyone else’s had been altered so there was nothing to worry about. There wouldn’t be any reason for him or anyone to go looking about the Everfree Forest so she was safe… “Whatever. I’m going for a walk. Have somepony clean this mess.” She mumbled, stomping like a teenager throwing a tantrum toward the exit and swiftly made her way outside to the gardens. Dawn Star There was never a dull moment in Equestria no matter where it is you happened to be. Whether dining with high society in Canterlot or buying a bushel of the finest apples in Appaloosa, there was always something to warrant the attention of a passerby – provided they knew what to look for. Such was how Dawn Star came to find himself trotting across the bridge into Ponyville, smiling broadly under the sunlight and seemingly unaffected by the summer heat. The Pegasus wasn’t alone of course. No, rarely did he make ventures to any other territories without a small detail of his soldiers at his side. Frankly he believed that they worried too much about their overly friendly Captain and made excuses for joining him whenever he got tired of walking the streets of Canterlot and assigned himself a patrol where they could not stealthily oversee his actions. The thought earned a chuckle and a quirked brow from one of the white stallions in attendance to which he only smiled back and resumed his forward facing stroll across the bridge. Officially there wasn’t anything of deep concern about Ponyville. Things had been almost suspiciously quiet in the recent months but he wasn’t about to complain about the lack of rampaging Ursa Minors or aggressive Manticores. The less they had to do and rebuild the better but it made for a decidedly uneventful day when there were no crisis’s to avert or danger to thwart. So while there really wasn’t a reason for a guard detail to patrol that didn’t mean Dawn was going to neglect it. Better safe than sorry right? The stallion’s attention was quick to stray as they crossed the threshold into Ponyville. It was a quaint little parish not at all as extravagant or overtly decorated as Canterlot but its rustic design made his heart do a joyous bounce in his excitement. He’d been to this sector of Equestria before but it was always worth the trip in his opinion because of all the cities and townships basking under the sun, this one by far was the most troublesome. Well, it had been before Twilight Sparkle had become a Princess. Dawn Star frowned slightly and stopped for a moment. Come to think of it he hadn’t seen much of the book-loving Princess in recent weeks. She usually visited Canterlot so she could chat with…with…who? His mind was drawing a blank because he distinctly remembered speaking to Miss Twilight Sparkle and she’d mentioned she was going to talk with her mentor. But Princess Memoriae didn’t have any apprentices so who exactly had Princess Twilight gone to see? Mildly confused by his lack of information Dawn was about to question his companions when a screech erupted on their left and all heads jerked to the sight. A yellow mare was waving frantically at a small group of woodland critters – and if he wasn’t mistaken a bear which wasn’t small at all – gobbling up her stock of edibles. His thoughts on Twilight evaporated in an amused chuckle, “Go handle it. I’ll be fine on my own.” The guards nodded affirmatively and did as bade, leaving the Captain to take another look at Ponyville. It wasn't long into his evaluation that he was approached by someone who greeted him cheerfully instead of warily glancing at him from afar. Happy to see such a friendly face the Pegasus smiled warmly at her.“Hello Miss, how are you today?”
Chapter 2Danny Bullwhip Now Daniel Keaton Bullwhip liked to think he was a very practical pony. He made simple observations and gave reasonable demands, asked only for what he believed was rightfully his (usually) and tried to remain as unobtrusive as he possibly could be. But some days that just wasn’t enough. Days like this when everything under the sun just seemed to fall on its plot and expect to be promptly taken care of, as if he didn’t have other, more important arrangements to attend to. It was just his rotten luck that today was turning into one such day and already he had bitten off more than he could believably chew. “Now I’m tellin’ ya for the last time!” Growing increasingly more aggravated as the day wore on and the cowboy’s tone reflected as much as he scolded the twenty strong herd of cows who all looked reasonably chastised under his accusing stare. “I mean it! I’m puttin’ my hoof down! No more goin off beyond that there fence for anything! Not grazin, not sunbathin, and no chattin’ with that Minotaur friend who I have yet to see Claribelle.” He stressed causing one cow in particular blushed a ripe cherry red. “But,” One piped from the center of the bovine mob, grimacing as she found herself on the receiving end of Danny’s dirty look. “The grass is so much…greener, on the other side…” This did not seem to make the impression she had wanted, if anything the stallion’s look only got darker from her complaint and with an apologetic moo she settled down. Danny sighed, praying for patience he really didn’t have to spare. Not only had all the cows up and left the pasture, broke the fence too but they’d dang near knocked over the hen house and had eaten all the seed! He dragged a weary hoof over his face and made it a point to gentle his voice. “Girls, I know ya like it over on the other side of the fence but while that there grass is greener the timber wolves are bigger. I can’t keep watch on ya’ll all the time and it’d be bad if somthin’ were to happen t’any of ya. Understand?” The stallion’s husky drawl corded through the cows who murmured varied responses of assent and apologies before turning back to the fields they’d been instructed to return to. Sadly this wouldn’t be the end of Danny’s problems. While he now had regained possession of the heard and the timber wolves had been sent packing – he had the bite mark on his left forehoof to prove it if anypony called him a liar – he now had to make a trip into town to purchase more chicken feed and possibly buy some plywood to repair the broken fence. “Jus’ gonna be one of them days…” He breathed tiredly, trudging up the road to Ponyville. Danny was compiling a mental list of the items he needed to buy from the market. The fence along was probably going to need a few boxes of nails and he could always do with a new hammer if the prices were fair, and wood. Gosh he was going to need a lot of wood if he hoped to pen in those rowdy heifers. “What is this,” he scoffed unhappily. “I’m a bronco not a repair pony!” It seemed like every other day he was fixing this or patching that. Bemoaning his ill fortunes of the past couple of days the stallion was more than a little surprised when he felt an intense gust of wind roll over him. He planted his hooves and braced himself against the small gale as his mane whipped around wildly before settling in an ever larger state of disarray than usual. “What in tarnation…” It was a pegasus. Of course it was a Pegasus, it was always a Pegasus. Bunch of no good flying troublemakers they were! He knew he was being arbitrary so he schooled his features to look a little less furious and settled on just being perturbed. A voice rose behind him as he turned to meet the new pony, "Hello! Daniel Bullwhip, correct?" “Uh, Howdy?” Not exactly certain how to interact with a pony who was so…cheery. Frankly it made him a little uncomfortable but he wasn’t about to mention that. Danny was surprised to hear his name and blinked in astonishment for a moment before his eyes narrowed a bit with suspicion. “Depends on who’s askin.”
Chapter 3Dawn Star The pony Dawn greeted stopped in front of him with a smile, looking up to meet his sapphire gaze. "I'm good, slightly curious at the moment... How are you?" The words seemed to flow out of her mouth smoothly, the smile remaining. Dawn’s eyes seemed to grow more animated, bright and rambunctious despite the fact that he might very well be well into his twenties and was supposedly on duty. “I’m very well thanks for asking, enjoying the country air and sunshine.” He replied readily, taking an almost exaggerated inhale that caused the breastplate of his armor to clink as his chest expanded to capacity only to deflate with similar swiftness. His grin only faltered for a split second before it had resumed its place on the white stallion’s lips. “Now, about this curiosity of yours,” There was an almost conspiratorial note in his tone which wouldn’t seem so strange if one could recognize the almost knowing glint in his eye. “What’s on your mind – ah, where are my manners.” Dawn bent his head forward a bit, a hoof coming up over his chest as he bowed - the mare did so as well - and straightened, the action graceful and, leaving most to assume, frequently repeated gesture. “My name is Dawn Star, a guard as you can probably tell. Now, what’s on your mind miss? Perhaps I have answers to your curiosities.” With a nod, the Pegasus in front of him greeted him with her alias. "My name is Aurora. Aurora Borealis." Aurora seemed to pause for a while after straightening, pondering he question at hand. It seemed 5 seconds had passed before she spoke again, a smile once again on her face. "Nothing of too much importance... Just wondering why you were here?" And though, she swiftly added on with a flick of her tail. "Not to sound rude or anything..." To his credit, Dawn Star didn’t look at all perturbed by her inquiry. In fact, the stallion seemed to radiate amusement as Aurora gracelessly tried to assure him that she had meant her question in the most cordial way possible. He gave her a complacent smile for her troubles, wanting to let it be known that he took no offense to her words and understood her question for what it was. “Ah, I see. Officially I am here to inspect the town, see if there are any miscreants who need talking to or repairs that need to be made and to report back.” He glanced over his shoulder to the guards who had accompanied him and were wrangling up the critters and were now leading them out of Ponyville. “Unofficially I’m trying to get away from Canterlot for a day.” He smirked mischievously. Aurora let out a little chuckle from Dawn's remark and opened her mouth to respond, but was rudely interrupted by he sounds of panicking ponies. She immediately shut her mouth, and glanced over at the guard, before looking towards Sugarcube Corner, of which ponies were fleeing out of. It was easy to see that the Pegasus was perhaps silently excited for a new even, for when she glanced back at Dawn, a smile lit her face. "I do believe duty calls?" Danny Bullwhip The Pegasus that had so rudely interrupted him seemed to be taken back for Danny's rude reply, but she seemed to shrug it off as she quickly replied with a smile gracing her lips. "Where are my manners?" Sticking out a hoof, she gave away her name happily. "My name is Ashely Dawn, but you may call me Ashely! Oh, and sorry about your mane." Daniel didn’t seem at all remorseful for his rudeness nor did he particularly care if Ashley was offended because of it. ... Okay, that wasn’t entirely true. He would much rather not be discourteous if he could help it, sowing seeds of distrust and dislike unfortunately just seemed to be as much a talent as herding however. The stallion’s brows furrowed down as he looked at the offered hoof, tentatively raising his own and giving the Pegasus a firm shake before retracting it promptly. “Right, Danny. But you seemed to know that already.” He murmured out. “Sorry, mah mouth has tends to run off on me.” The apology was halfhearted at best but genuine if nothing else. His eyes flicked up to his disheveled mane and he simply shook himself until the strands were reasonably positioned again. “S’not a problem, kinda don’t do anything with it anyways. Was there something you were needing? You looked like ya were in an awful hurry to find somepony.” He really hoped it hadn’t been him because usually that meant he was in trouble and he did not have the patience to get yelled at today. Ashely seemed to be opening her mouth for answer when screaming rose into the air, cutting off her voice, and what's he was about to say. "Hey, do ya hear screamin'?" It didn’t appear that they would have time to get an answer as the roar in town drew Daniel’s attention away. “Aw for Pete’s sake what now!” Today was just not turning out right at all was it? He looked to the Pegasus with a new seriousness in his eyes that banished all further social endeavors for the time being. “We gotta get to town and see what’s up.” He didn’t care if she chose not to but the Apples lived here and whatever was attacking the town was threatening their livelihood, which was something he couldn’t allow. Checking to make sure his whip was in place the stallion charged down the road, across the bridge and very nearly slipped on the stray globs of frosting that had rained down from the …cake monster? “Ya have got to be kidding me…” How had they managed to make a cake, of all things, a vicious killing machine! Was nothing sacred anymore?
Chapter 4Dawn Star Anything more that Aurora had planned to say was immediately derailed by a rather fearsome sound. A monstrous growl coming from a ways off startled Dawn somewhat but the origins of the beastly noise rose high above the buildings and was perhaps the oddest adversary he’d ever expected to face his the entirety of his career. While his predecessor, Shining Armor, had battled Changelings, protected a kingdom and fought off a cursed Unicorn, the highlights of Dawn’s tenure as Guard Captain was…a giant cake. It wasn’t even chocolate. The stallion deadpanned, looking somewhat disappointed and completely unafraid of the animated confection as Aurora urged him on. “Right, right,” Spreading his wings and letting the wind roll through his feathers. “Gotta fly!” His terrible little catchphrase came before he launched himself skyward and climbed high above the attacking frosting-covered creature. A shout from below – somehow singled out above all the screaming ponies – reached him and was devising a plan. They wanted a hose? A hose would work but where would they get one that could stretch to this length? Maybe that was the norm for them? Whatever the case might've been he did as bade and found a length of another hose, snatching it up and turning the water faucet as high as it could go before returning to the air again to spray the roaring dessert. It was working! The water saturated the cake thoroughly and as more moisture was exposed to its spongy body the slower their confection creature became. There simply was no way for it to continue to support its growing mass and it did not help that the ponies around it were effectively keeping it contained to one area. A brown stallion was working to keep the monster from squishing anyone and others had jumped into the fray, doing their part to subdue their adversary. What did disturb him (just a little really) was that the villagers were…eating the monster. High above them Dawn Star watched, letting his hose fall back to the ground and cringing almost sympathetically for the monster as it wailed loudly. Suddenly, a blast of heated magic roared from across the sky and Dawn Star was thoroughly surprised to notice that Prince Phoenix had arrived – from where he could not be sure – and was assisting them. No sooner had he come did Princesses Icis and then Skybolt as well enter the battle with their own magic, solidifying the cake, still being nibbled away at. “Well, whatever works I suppose!” Laughing raucously as the monster gave a final groan before collapsing into a mushy heap with thick bits of frozen or fire-baked chunks. And the villagers were still eating it! “I think I’ve lost my appetite for a while.” Grimacing despite the amusement he felt for the outrageous situation. Taking a moment to assure himself of the cake monsters demise, the guard flew over toward the two royals. “Prince Phoenix, Princess Icis, what are you both doing here? I wasn’t notified that either of you would be traveling away from Canterlot.” Danny Bullwhip Most of the ponies had already got in on the action or were fleeing from it and another few apparently had plans to just soak the thing. A mare with a hose nearly got frosted by the monster confection before shouting up to another Pegasus that they needed more help. If they planned on getting it all wet so that it toppled over from the moisture then it was better for them all if the monster cake was someplace where it wouldn’t crush anymore buildings or worse, somepony in the wrong place at the wrong time. "Somepony call for the cavalry? YEEEHAW!" Dashing forward he skidded to a halt in front of the vanilla cake and snapped his whip at it, "Down here ya overgrown cupcake!" earning its attention and a few large globs of frosting hurled his way. The expert herder moved like a bull fighter, sidestepping and turning out of range as the cake continued to chase him despite how irritated it was getting with all the hose-wielding ponies. Whenever it tried to go after one Danny would step in and drive it in another direction. Fighting a giant cake monster proved to be very much like dodging a rampant bull, except sweeter and without the horns. Danny bobbed and weaved, offering himself as a distraction as well as keeping the enchanted cake in an open space. His whip cracked loudly whenever it attempted to bolt either to escape or to attack one of the ponies hosing it down and both the noise and the vengeful bite of leather quickly had it chasing him all over again. He kept up this pattern successfully and didn’t let up until more had joined and were able to help him corral it. Overhead he could hear Ashley, the Pegasus from earlier, shouting at it but then there was a silence that left him unsettled. “What did that girl do now?” He grunted as another piece of wet cake sloughed off the creature and nearly caught him. A quick maneuver put him out of range long enough to look up for the mare that had gotten herself stuck at the very top. Just what they needed, a damsel in distress… Looks like he still had a job to do. Gathering speed, the stallion rushed his enemy and jumped straight in the air. Thanks to the pair of Alicorn’s alternatively frying and freezing portions of the cake, Daniel’s hooves were able to find purchase in the monsters unstable body without getting himself caught in the process. He scaled it like it was a mountain and even though he slipped a few times thanks to globs of frosting he managed to make it to the top and grip Ashley by the waist. "Ain't your parents ever tell ya not to stick your hooves in giant, pony-smashing dessert before?" With a hearty yank he pulled her free but didn’t let her go. “This thing’s bout to keel right over so hang on!” And she would if she didn’t want to end up buried in cake pudding. Extracting his whip again he uncoiled the length just as the monster began to sink to the ground and let it snap out. The corded leather wrapped around a weathervane and with a hoot he swung them onto a rooftop.
