"Why does Dashie have to be so mean to me? I'm doing my best to help, but it's not my fault that little accidents happen now and then!"
Derpy Hooves flew slowly over the forest, lost in her thoughts. It was a humiliating afternoon. The Pegasus were in charge of rounding up rain clouds to help with watering crops in preparation for the season's harvest. The recent drought had meant that suitable clouds were scarce and the Pegasus needed to be extra diligent as they managed the precious few water-laden clouds.
She had worked extra hard this week, trying her best to impress Rainbow Dash, but all her hard work came tumbling down the moment she realized that the cloud she had herded over the crop fields was no ordinary cloud. Before anypony could react, the cloud rumbled menacingly and to everypony's horror, lightning flashed out, soon followed by something even worse: large hoof-sized balls of ice. The ponies working the field scattered in panic as the rocks of ice descended, flattening and pulverizing the defenseless crops. Just as quickly as it happened, the storm ended, and Derpy knew she had failed again.
"I can't help being me! I know I'm not as smart as Twilight or as strong as AJ, but I try as hard as anypony!" cried Derpy. Large tears rolled down her cheek as she sadly flew on, going no where in particular.
"Just go home, Derpy! Take the day off! We'll finish the work without you!" Rainbow Dash's words repeated over and over in her head. She knew Dashie had good reason to be angry with her, but...
Derpy's train of thought was suddenly broken by the sound of a scream far below in the forest. Snapping back to her senses, Derpy realized that she had flown much further than she thought. The forest below her was dark and unfamiliar and something inside her warned her that something was not right. Another scream echoed across the forest, and Derpy recognized that it was the sound of a mare in distress.
She dove down into the forest at top speed searching for the source of the scream. Her heart pounded as she feared what she might discover. If it wasn't too late, would she be able to help? What if she messed up again? Why did she have to be on her own out here? If only Twilight or Dashie were here - they'd take charge and know what to do!
The Pegasus flew at great speed, nimbly darting between trees and swooping beneath fallen branches and overgrowth. Her adrenaline was pumping, and she realized she had never flown like this before, with such a sense of urgency and precision. Dashie might even be impressed if she could only see her now!
A moment later, she reached a clearing in the forest and discovered the source of the screams. It was not a pony in trouble, but a Night Elf girl from the Kaldorei people that lived beyond the mountains. The Night Elves rarely ventured beyond their territory, and the few encounters between ponies and elves was usually brief and diplomatic, but never social.
The Night Elf's wrists were bound with heavy rope and her arms pulled up and tied to a branch. Nearly all of the girl's clothes was stripped from her, her body helplessly exposed and vulnerable to the creature which was the cause of the girl's screams. A giant slime oozed around the girl's legs, enveloping her lower limbs in its thick green ooze. Appendages emerged from the slime's body, like long tendrils from a vine. The tendrils snaked around the girl's naked body causing her to cry out.
Derpy had encountered slimes before. They were relatively benign creatures, and played an important role in the forest's ecosystem, clearing away dead and rotting organic material by absorbing and dissolving it within its jelly-like body. However, some slimes were more aggressive than others and were considered very dangerous. Even so, these slimes could be easily evaded by any creature which was highly mobile. Unfortunately, someone had made sure that this girl would be far from mobile.
The slime began forming a large appendage and moved slowly towards the Night Elf's exposed lower torso. The Pegasus' mind raced - she had to do something! She swooped across the clearing and placed herself between the girl and the slime. The creature was much larger than Derpy, and its huge mass towered over the little pony as it prepared to devour the helpless girl. What could she possibly do to save the Night Elf? If only Fluttershy were here! She could reason with any forest creature and would know what to do with this slime!
The slime's appendage continued moving towards the girl's groin. In desperation, Derpy stuck out a hoof and poked the appendage. "Stop! Please go away, slime! This filly is not for you to eat!"
The slime's appendage oozed around the pony's hoof and Derpy instantly felt a strong sucking sensation, drawing her hoof further in. She cried out in panic and pulled her hoof as hard as she could. To her good fortune, she was barely able to extract her hoof from the appendage. Much to her relief, the slime's appendage withdrew and merged back into its body, but she knew that the slime would attack again soon.
She had to do something, but she felt helpless against the slime. It was so big and she had never dealt with anything remotely like this before. Her mind raced trying to come up with ideas to combat the creature. Throwing rocks and sticks at it wouldn't do anything, the slime would just absorb it all. There had to be something she could do - but all her ideas involved throwing rocks and sticks!
Before Derpy's mind could fill with utter panic, a voice spoke out. It was the Night Elf, and she could clearly see that her tiny rescuer felt overwhelmed by the situation.
"Be brave, little pony! Our people might not be best friends with your kind, but we hear many tales of your courage and wisdom."
Derpy was surprised that the girl could speak pony so fluently, but the situation hadn't changed. "I don't know what to do! I'm too small and the slime is way bigger than me!"
"Try to be calm and think!" implored the Night Elf. "You know these forests better than I, but I do know one thing about these creatures - they can be driven away by substances that irritate their bodies. Think! Is there anything around here that might work?" The girl's eyes brightened with a sudden thought. "Could you make a fire? Slimes are very adverse to heat and fire!"
The Pegasus' heart sank - she couldn't make a fire if her life depended on it. Even using flint, it was a struggle, and she had no supplies with her. "Oh gosh! What can I do? Come on Derpy, think!"
The Night Elf was about to speak up again and offer some more encouragement when the Pony suddenly spread her wings and bolted straight up into the sky. Derpy called out as she flew away. "Don't go anywhere! I'll be right back!"
A few minutes passed and the Night Elf feared that her time was up. The slime had regrouped and was preparing a new appendage to assault the girl with. The girl squeezed her eyes shut and prayed to her deity. "Elune, please save me or at least ensure that my demise will not be an agonizing one. I don't want to die today!"
As the slime prepared to attack, the sky over the clearing suddenly darkened. Wind began to swirl around the trees, kicking up dust and debris. The Night Elf looked up in surprise and saw clouds rapidly forming overhead. The air took on a strange quality as charged ions began building up. The wind became stronger and wilder as the sky became black, turning the forest clearing into a scene of swirling chaos.
And then the wind stopped almost as quickly as it had appeared. The clearing became deathly quiet and still. The slime paused, sensing something was wrong. It was almost as dark as night, the afternoon sun completed obscured by the black clouds. Before the slime could react, a streak of intense light shot up from the ground into the clouds. A split second later, the deafening roar of thunder shattered the air, as loud as a mountain top exploding from a volcano. Instantly, another streak of lightning erupted from the ground, inches away from the slime as it flew up into the clouds.
The hairs on the Night Elf stood up on end from the electric charge in the air. The slime knew it was time to retreat, and without a moment of hesitation, it quickly exited the clearing and returned into the forest.
Her heart still pounding, the girl looked up into the sky. The clouds began to dissipate rapidly as a lone figure quickly soared about. Finally, the sky became clear again, the sudden storm fading away. Derpy flew down and began biting at the ropes, freeing the girl.
Released from her restraints, the Night Elf immediately dropped to her knees and knelt before Derpy. "I owe my life to you, and to Elune for guiding you here. I never knew your people were so adept at mastering the forces of nature! I know some druids who would be very impressed by your command of the clouds. Thank you for saving me!"
Derpy blushed brightly red. It wasn't often that anyone would genuinely praise her like this.
"Aww it wasn't nothing!" She looked down shyly at the ground and smiled. "My friend Dashie says that if there's one thing I'm good at, it's blowing things up!"
The Pegasus trotted over to the Night Elf and nuzzled the girl's face with her own.
"Come on!" she excalimed exuberantly, "I want you to come to Ponyville and meet my friends!"
--- End ---
