"Third Time's the Charm,"

by OwntheLoner

Rating: mature
Tags: Sad, Original Character, Spike, Tragedy, Twilight Sparkle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Human
Length: 1307

They say karma's a bitch. I think she's got it out for me.

A planetary and now dimensional traveler, running from his past, awakens in the Everfree forest. He carries a massive burden with him, far more weighty than his clothes and tools. His only desire is a home. Hopefully, he gets it, and more.

First fic here. Constructive criticism is greatly appreciated! Thanks for reading!

Published 2014-05-18 22:20:05 UTC
Last updated 2014-05-18 22:20:05 UTC

Not the worst place I've woken up in

Great, I thought. This is fan-fucking-tastic. Not only did I have to use the portal again, it stuck me in the middle of a damn forest!

I stared at the forest floor for a moment, then let out a sigh.
It could of at least stuck me somewhere close to civilization.Well, there was no use bitching about it. At least it put me somewhere relatively normal. I’ve woken up in some weird-ass places in my life, so this was a welcome deviation from the usual.

I began to survey my surroundings. It was apparent that this was a damn creepy place. The trees blocked out a lot of the sunlight, so it was very dark. Plants covered the ground, making a mix of greens, blues, and oranges. I could hear the local fauna making a mash of screeches, caws, and hisses. I swear, I saw some fuckin’ eyes staring at me! Whatever this place was, I sure as hell didn't want to be here. I had to get out of here, and fast. Who knows what creepy shit is hiding in here.

I decided to check my gear before I started looking for people. Hopefully, I didn’t lose anything, not after the last time.

Swords(Both of them)
Check.
Pistol and ammo?
Check.
Backpack, and various tools?
Check.

It’s a pity I wasn’t able to pack any food, I managed to get a few water bottles though. It’s better than nothing, I’ll say that.

I checked my clothes for any tears or other damage. Fortunately, everything was in good condition, albeit kinda dirty. I guess it was a good idea to wear all black today.

Satisfied that I still looked damn fine, I decided to go find civilization, or whatever passed for it out here. I didn't have a map or anything. All I knew was that I was in a forest of some sort. I did the only I could: Sigh, pick a random direction, and be on my way. It’s worked for me before, so lets see what happens this time.

So I found out two things while traipsing through the greenery:
First, my instincts still haven't failed me, as I managed to find a trail. Two, once I get out of here, I am never coming back.

Seriously. Screw this place! First, I saw this weird-ass chicken/snake hybrid through the bushes.Years of experience has shown me that you shouldn't mess with something you know nothing about. So in no way was I about to kill myself over something like that.

I mean, It's not like its easy to kill me, but just because I'm near-invulnerable doesn't mean I should act stupid.

I also got attacked by...something. I think was a manticore or something. I'm pretty sure that's what they're called. It was a lion with bat wings and a scorpion tail. It was pretty threatening, but not nearly as scary as something like that should be.

Remember those swords I mentioned earlier? As I said, there are two, a curved red one named Radiator, and a long-bladed blue one without a name, because I suck at
naming things. It's situations like this that made me start carrying weapons around all the time.

Anyway, the manticore came charging straight at me, trying to cut my head off. Unfortunately, he didn't know who he was fucking with. I pull out Radiator with from my left scabbard and sliced the bastard's arm off. When it stopped and recoiled from the pain, I jumped and kicked it in the side of the head. The beast fell to the ground, knocked out. I stepped around the growing pool of blood, and continued on my way, until I reached the point where I am now.

I figured that there was only one thing left to do: Follow the trail and hope it leads somewhere better than here.

With that thought in mind, off I went.

...

Finally, for the love of Arceus, I'm free!

Now that I was free of that forest, I could focus on finding civilization. Hopefully, whatever creatures living there would have food, because tramping through a forest in a black t-shirt and black jeans would make anyone hungry.

I started following the trail. Hopefully it would take me to a town or city. Hell, I'd take a village or even a group of tents, as long as there was somewhere to sleep and something to eat.

At least the walk there wouldn't be too bad. There was a lot of greenery on both sides of the path: Trees and bushes and the like. Birds emitted varied tweets and caws as they flew overhead. I even spotted a few squirrels here and there. The scene was very calming, and I felt the stress of my forest trek melt away.

But I was still hungry as hell, so a lot of that went unnoticed. What I did notice though, were a few colored blurs in the distance. I don't know if it was hallucinations or somethin', but those blurs looked a hell of a lot like buildings.

At least they're civilized. It'd be a pain in the ass to converse with a bunch of savages. It's hard enough adjusting to a new place.

I feel that whatever they are, this is gonna be interesting, to say the least. So let's jump right in, shall we?

I pulled my pair of binoculars from my backpack and looked at the town ahead, I could make out a quadrupedal figure standing in an open area with various structures, along with a biped. As I moved in closer, I noticed something...peculiar. No just normal peculiar, but fuck-I’m-high-as-balls peculiar.

I turned the binoculars around and cleaned the lenses. I took another look at the town in order to make sure what I was seeing was real.

What I was seeing was a goddamned winged purple unicorn and a small dragon. They were walking through what appears to be a market, with stalls manned by a variety of multicolored ponies.

…
…….
…………..
………………….What the fuck?...

No seriously, what the fuck? Am I having a fever dream right now? Out of all the universes I could've gone to, I ended up here?!

Well, there are far worse places I could've ended up. I know I've been saying that a lot, but it's true. I'd honestly rather be trapped here than a lot of other places that I've been.

But still, what the hell?

In any case, if I wanna stay, I gotta learn how to interact with the locals. I suppose only observation could help me with that.

I looked at the ponies again, and noticed something else. Something I knew might come in handy later on.

All of them were bowing to the purple unicorn/pegasus hybrid. That must mean that it was a local leader. I also noticed that the leader was a girl, or mare, which be far more appropriate here. Not as important, but still good to know.

Given my appearance, I might cause a disturbance if I walk into the town in broad. I didn't want that to happen, especially not on my first day here.

Realizing what I would have to do, I sighed for the second time that day. I grudgingly began to look for a secluded spot to hide. I would have to go in at night, locate the leader, and attempted to get help. I doubt she'd appreciate me waking her up at a ridiculous hour, but it was my best shot.

My stomach complained noisily. I sighed once again.

This is gonna be a long day.

Author's Note

Welp, here's I have so far. Please leave a coming giving me feedback. Every comment helps me get better at this writing stuff. Thanks for reading!