Mystery Misadventure Miscalculated!

After calming the colt, which took a bit longer than expected, the group of five were now travelling in the forest, Zecora taking the lead with Pipsqueak behind her, the CMC in the back.

“Does anyone hear that?” Pipsqueak asked, nervous.

“What are you talking about Pipsqueak?” Scootaloo questioned.

“I think I hear singing from back home…” Pipsqueak replied.

“Nevermind that, it’s probably Granny Smith mixing up a random set of tunes…” Applebloom answered.

“Besides, there’s something more important…” She continued as she walked towards Zecora, who stared back at her, waiting.

“Zecora, I’ve been wanting to ask you this question before Pipsqueak came…where exactly is Sliverbark woods?” Applebloom asked while passing through giant leaves and scattered branches, accidently smacking Sweetie Belle on the muzzle.

“It is actually a neighbor to the Everfree forest, my little pony. This trip to the Golden Lotus will actually be a very short journey.”

“But if that’s the case why didn’t you collect the Golden Lotus before?

Wouldn’t it be very useful as it can cure anything?” Sweetie Belle questioned while rubbing her bright red nose.

“The Lotus is guarded in legend by a dangerous beast. It depicts how adventurers that encountered this creature existence’s ceased.” Zecora replied gravely.

“A…a beast? I…I’ll fight it with my sword!” Pipsqueak quipped.

“I don’t really think your rubber sword will help much, Pipsqueak…” Scootaloo replied.

“But honestly guys, I don’t we have anything to fear. We have been sticking up for each other since we met and went on countless adventures together.” Sweetie Belle remarked.

“Our friendship, between us and our friends…” She added, nodding to Zecora and Pipsqueak. “are as strong as horses. This is something that no beast will be able to break!” She concluded.

“Yeah!” Pipsqueak, Applebloom, and Scootaloo cheered.

“Heh….Hahahaha….HAHAHAHAHA!”

The sudden voice erupted from the depths of the woods, a cold and menacing laughter, which echoed around the group, chilling them to the bone.

“Who’s there? Show yourself!” Scootaloo shouted.

“I am the beast of which you described. The protector of the Golden Lotus, and the enemy you will face.” The voice echoed.

“Well we’re not afraid of some big voice trying to be a bully!” Applebloom yelled back.

“Exactly! We have faced countless dangers on our adventures, and no one has managed to break our friendship!” Sweetie Belle shouted.

“Well then, I guess I will be the first to do so…” A somber voice replied, stepping out of the woods onto the front of the gang. It’s white fur was elegant and clean, as if it was made of light itself, though its teeth and eyes gleamed aggressively, forming a small smirk in front of such an easy prey, scaring the young horses, who hid behind Zecora.

“I can’t believe my eyes…I never found this creature, not matter how many tries…” Zecora was, for the first time in her life, lost for words.

“What…what is he Zecora?” The CMC and Pipsqueak asked, hiding behind her shadow as the beast continued to move forward.

“He’s…He’s a Teumessian fox…The wise yet cunning fox deity that can never be caught…” Zecora stumbled.

The fox smiled, impressed yet not surprised by her knowledge.

“Indeed, zebra. Prepare for extinction!”

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A brilliant flash of light, and it was all they saw before the fox pounced on them, bursting into smoke and covering the group of five in temporary darkness.

“Cough…Cough…Guys? Anyone?”

The smoke disappeared as quickly as it came, and Scootaloo soon found herself alone in the forest, only that the dirt road had become a circle, with the trees blocking every possible path.

“Where am I? This isn’t where we were before…” The pegasus tried running towards the bushes, only to be repelled back by a mysterious force which sent her flying back to the center of the circle.

“No, it isn’t. Your friends are gone, Scootaloo. And you ran away from them.” The fox echoed.

“No! That’s not true! I will never run away from them!” Scootaloo shouted, which the sound was quickly drowned by the fox once again.

“You did little filly. You left them and now they’re in danger. From me…from everything in here. You’re a chicken, a coward. Scared of everything, scared of disappointment, especially from your sister…Rainbow Dash. She is in as much doom as the others.” The voice laughed.

“Rainbow Dash…in danger…I….I…” She sank to the ground, the pressure to much for such a young mind.

“Chicken…Coward…Chicken…Coward…” The voice repeated.

“I’m…I’m…I’m a disappointment.” With these words, she wept, and her entire body slowly started to turn grey.

Satisfied, the fox left for its next target.

“Applebloom? Scootaloo? Where are you?” Sweetie Belle screamed. She was stuck in the middle of a swamp, where the mud on the surface bubbled and dared her to go forward.

“Hello there, Sweetie Belle.” The fox cooed, playful.

“You….YOU! What have you done to my friends!” Her horn crackling with anger, her horn fired out a pale green blast at the source of the sound, which disappeared into the shadows.

“Pathetic first grade magic…just like yourself, is it not?”

“SHUT UP!” She continued to fire bolts of magic until she collapsed, the light fading from her horn as her stamina was gone.

“Arrogant, selfish, overconfident. How can you ever live up to your sister, the spirit of generosity?”

“Don’t you dare…compare the two of us…” Sweetie Belle growled.

“Why not? You two are perfect to compare, both attention seekers, where one prospered while the other was forced to comply with nothing. It’s so pathetic its humorous.”

“You…you monster…just because of my 5th birthday…doesn’t mean that I am worse than Rarity…it doesn’t mean…” The excess use of magic reached its peak, and Sweetie Belle collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

“Interesting…she didn’t break like the other one did…Perhaps I shouldn’t tackle them one by one and in order...” The fox doubted.

Leaving the fainted filly, the fox disappeared into the next area.

Unlike the CMC, Pipsqueak and Zecora were stuck together in the bark of a tree, with thorns surrounding the wood, which prevented them from escaping.

“Um…Miss Zecora, did you find a way out yet? I don’t seem to have any luck with these plants…” Pipsqueak said while trying to chop the plants in half with his sword for the last ten minutes, with a result of not even one centimeter of the plant sliced.

“No Pipsqueak, I have not. The thorns are too thick, the forest has us caught.” Zecora replied, her powders and potions having no effect.

“You do realize that it is not the forest who has you caught, but me, if I presume.” The fox suddenly spoke, causing Pipsqueak to instantly duck behind the zebra.

“Teumessian fox, please, let us and the others free. I promise that I will make sure that none of them ever step in your territory again in the forest of Everfree.” Zecora pleaded.

“Always the protector and the solution to everything, aren’t you, Zecora?” The fox laughed.

“Please Mr. Fox…don’t hurt Zecora…she didn’t do anything wrong…” Pipsqueak whimpered behind her back.

“Mr. Fox? That’s the first time anyone has addressed me like that…You wouldn’t be from Trottingham, by any chance?” The fox asked, amused by the little one’s accent.

“Ye…Yes…” Pipsqueak replied, still glued to the ground.

“How delightful! Two inhabitants of Ponyville who didn’t belong there in the first place!” The fox chanted.

“What are you talking about? We are all accepted residents of Ponyville, that is without a doubt!” Zecora said, annoyed.

“Yeah!” Pipsqueak said angrily, gaining some confidence back.

“Oh really?” The deity whisked around the area, creating a vision for the two horses with a sound of a snap.

The blurry image swirled around in the background of the woods, turning faster and faster as the still pictures slowly moved with the illusion of speed, a mesmerizing sight which hypnotized the two.

“Trottingham and Marefrica are being destroyed…”The voice whispered as he created images of the city and the village collapsing and falling into dust.

“No…my home…” Both droned, captured by the magic.

“Your families are being hurt…” The fox snickered.

“Please…not them…run…” They were frozen in place completely.

“The residents of Ponyille are disappointed with your lack of care of your home town. If you can’t protect the place where you were born, how are you worthy of staying in their town?” The voice concluded.

“I…We…we’re not.” The magic was secured, and the bodies of both horses turned grey. It was impossible to tell if they had been turned to stone, the contradiction shown only by their shocked eyes.

“Heh…that was easy. Now for the core of the apple.” The fox slowly drifted towards the last one remaining, Applebloom, who saw all of the events take place from the top, trapped in a conjured cage. She had not spoken for the entire event, but when the fox stared at her eyes, for once a fearful expression came to its face as it realised its mistake.

"You...My friends...I'LL NEVER LET YOU GET AWAY WITH THIS!!!"