Fear of the moon

The night sky began to grow darker, the moon started to disappear behind the black clouds, the air grew colder with every passing second. The two ponies kept moving, despite how dark it was and how cold it became.

“I’m freezing.” Twilight complained. “You never said anything about it getting this cold.”

“Sorry, the moon usually provides all the heat, and light.”

“We’re going to have to start a fire soon.”

“Why not now? “ the pony suggested, she jumped off of Twilight’s back. “I can get a few branches from the brush, make a fire and we could carry it with us.”

“Well, it sounds like a good idea but, how are we supposed to carry it?”

“Ohh! We could be like an explorer in a dark temple or cave! We can carry it on a stick, like a torch!”

“Ok than.” Twilight agreed with her happily. The filly then ran into the forest and came back with a pile of sticks stacked on her back; she dropped all of them on the ground.

“Ok stand back-“

“Wait! Can I light the fire?”

“…Sure, I guess that would be alright,” Twilight took a few steps backwards.

“I always wanted to use this spell.” She lowered her horn and started concentrating, she stood there with her horn facing the pile of sticks.

“…Do you need any, help?”

“No, I can do this. I just to focus.” She continued standing there. Twilight smiled and raised her horn, and in an instant the pile combusted into flames.

“I did it!” the pony started cheering.

“Nice job, I don’t think I’ve ever met a unicorn as good as you.” Twilight smiled. “When we get out of here, I can already tell that you’re going to get really good at magic.”

“You think so?”

“I know so, come on let’s get moving.” The filly picked up one of the sticks and jumped onto Twilights back as she started moving, they then continued wandering towards the tower. Four hours later they made it much closer to the base of the tower.

“Look we’re almost there, a little longer and we’ll-“ she paused as she stumbled over something. “What is this?”

“Oh-no, Ivy Weed. This isn’t good.”

“Why? What’s wrong?”

“Move, you have to get out of it!” Twilight used her magic and teleported out of the black vines.

“We were so close to.” The filly moaned.

“What’s wrong? It’s just a plant.”

“No, Ivy Weed is more than a plant, it has magic powers.”

“Magic, powers?”

“Yeah, it sucks the life out of everything within a distance.”

“And that distance is?”

“Well, right now their saplings so were safe, if they were any bigger then it would be draining you of your life, blood and magic.”

“My magic?”

“Yeah, it does that.”

“Weird.” Twilight picked up one of the many sticks on the ground and threw it into the Ivy Weed patch, the vines started moving around and eventually broke the stick.

“It has a mind of its own,”

“You don’t say.” Twilight replied, she looked around the area attempting o find an alternate path. “looks like it’s everywhere.”

“I guess we’re stuck here than,”

“Don’t say that I know we can get out of-“ Twilight paused then continued talking. “Hand me the torch.” The filly handed her the flaming stick and she threw it into the Ivy Weed, and as it hit the ground there were high pitched shrieking noises and all the plants started moving away from the fire.

“I didn’t know they did that.”

“Well you do now,” Twilight hopped over the thin line the plant was still making and picked the torch back up, she then threw again and the same thing happened. “To be honest I was thinking we could burn all the plants-“ She jumped into the torches light again. “But I guess they have some sort of fear towards fire.”

“Or light, did you notice how this area was completely dark until we started that fire?”

“Huh, you could be right.” She threw the torch one more time then hopped threw the light and onto the other side of the Ivy Weed patch. The two started cheering but stopped as the ground started shaking.

“What was that?”

“…Dragon claws.”

“Dragon claws? What are they?”

“More plants, except, worse” When she stopped talking a tree rose out of the ground.

“Whoa,”

“…I think we should run.”

“Why?”

“The Dragon claw attacks everything around it, interesting fact about them, they’re posed.”

“By?”

“Pony spirits.” And in an instant the tree reshaped it’s self and the top of it attempted to slash the two but the quickly dodged it.

“I can see why it’s called a Dragon claw.” The tree slashed at them again, this time from the side. It managed to hit them and send them flying. Agony fell off Twilight’s back but Twilight was slammed into a tree.

“Twilight, are you okay?!”

“Yeah I’m fine.” She slowly stood up. “That’s a strong tree.”

“This doesn’t make sense-“

“What doesn’t?’

“Dragon claws aren’t supposed to move, something placed it there.”

“How could some pony move it? It was underground.”

“…Agony, she’s changing this place”

“How is she doing that?”

“…Her power. She’s getting stronger.”

“What do we do?”

“Easy, run.”

“…Run? Oh, right it’s a tree isn’t it.” Twilight picked up the filly and started running towards the tower. The tree burrowed into the ground and followed them.

“You should probably run faster, it’s following us.”

“Following-it’s a tree!”

“It’s a haunted tree, and it’s right behind us.” Twilight started running faster, the tree kept following them. When they made it to the base of the tower they attempted to climb it but weren’t able to.

“How do we climb it.”

“Theirs a ladder on the other side.”

“…Oh.” Twilight ran around to the other side of the tower, and as she started climbing the rusted ladder the tree re appeared and dragged her down. It picked her up and threw her away from the tower, the filly was still hanging on to it but she flew back into the trees.

“Twilight!”

“Get to the top of the tower!” Twilight yelled from the top of a tree. “You have to keep going, no matter what!” She started climbing the ladder, Twilight jumped out of the tree and stood there, staring at the Dragon claw waiting for it to attack again.

“Come on,” she whispered. The tree quickly burrowed into the ground and headed towards her, she started running. The tree sprouted out of the ground and Twilight jumped right over it and flew towards the ladder, but it grabbed her hind leg and slammed her on the ground. And as it was about to attack for the last time, there was a loud yelling noise and the filly landed right on it, it started swinging back and forth attempting to throw her off.

“What are you doing?!”

“Saving you! Run! Get out of here! I know you have friends out there, I know they’ll miss you if you don’t get out of here! I have no pony waiting for me! You have them! Now run, get out of here!” She continuously flew back and forth as the tree swung it’s self. Twilight got up and ran to the ladder, she turned around and saw her still hanging on to the tree, it managed to throw her off and she went tumbling towards Twilight, the tree started moving again.

“Twilight,” the pony started talking with little breath still left in her. “Please, run.”

“No, I can’t just leave you here.”

“Please.” Twilight looked up as the tree appeared out of the ground, and using all her magic she incased it in flames, it started screaming and swinging back and forth attempting to put out the flames, but it was too late, it fell down as the flames drew the life out of it.

“Why…”

“What?”

“Why did you stay? Why did you help me?”

“Because you deserve to get out of here.”

“No I don’t, this is my home, I deserve to live here.”

“…What?”

“I remembered who I am. I’m Agony.”

“…No.”

“Yes, I’m her, I’m that monster.”

“You’re not a monster.”

“Yes I am,’

“No, listen to me, your nothing like that Agony,”

“How am I not like her?”

“…Your special.” The younger Agony looked up at her.

“Just like all the stuff in this forest, your special. Your nice.”

“…”

“Come on, let’s get out of here.” Agony smiled, she got up and started climbing the up the ladder and Twilight followed her.