The Return of the Changelings

Chapters

Chapter 1: A creature of Mystery
Chapter 2: A Fright Through the Woods
Chapter 3: Pointless Quarrels and Emotional Battles.
Chapter 4: Courage
Chapter 5: Too Good to be True

Chapter 1: A creature of Mystery

As he trotted down the streets with his saddle bags full of depleted rations, supplies and camping gear, Moonshy couldn’t help but wonder at the friendliness of the ponies of Ponyville. As they moved to and from the shops they wholeheartedly maintained smiles on their faces. Of course there were minor quarrels but most solved themselves in the course of ten seconds. He wondered how the ponies of the town achieved such harmony, for Moonshy hadn’t really seen it in such dominance in the other towns he passed through. Could it have something to do with the gleaming, purple tinted, crystal castle at the edge of town?

You see, Moonshy doesn't stay in one place for long. He has a hard time fitting in anywhere. Ever sense he ran, or rather flew, away from Cloudsdale when he was a young foal (due to bullying), he roamed Equestria in search of artistic inspiration as well as a place he could finally call home. So far his travels have only continued to achieve the first goal.

In and amongst the vibrant colored town and rather social individuals, Moonshy seems out of place. His dark, midnight blue hide, helps assure this. His silver mane and tail, while still healthy looking, appear as though they haven’t been combed in ages, a look only amplified by the, less abundant, pale blue strands of hair which move through them both like disorganized wires. As for the rest of his color scheme, his cutie mark, feathers, and eyes are all the same tint of mystical light blue. But, his strangest feature undoubtedly is the crescent shaped deep blue birth mark that surrounds the inside of his left eye.

“Hi” A high pitched and excited voice said behind Moonshy. “What’s your name?!” He spun around to see a bouncing pink pony with sky blue eyes and a mane style which mimics a bumpy balloon.

“Um… Moonshy.” He said nervously whilst backing up slowly. Another tendency of Moonshy’s that makes him stand out is his awkwardness in social situations. Often times he would stumble over his own words when trying to speak or completely bugger up his sentence in a way that didn’t make much sense. Hence, he often tried to avoid other ponies unless he felt he had a good reason to do otherwise.

“Well Nice to meet ya Moonshy! My name’s Pinkie Pie! I haven’t seen you around before so what brings you here?”

“I’m jus- I mean, what I mean is- um… I’m just passing through.”

“Dawww! Just passing through? What about staying for a while and enjoying yourself. We have spas, Shops, games, parties, restaurants,” the fast talking earth pony paused for a second and appeared to count on her hooves, “Almost everything! We even have a library if you like reading those boring old books.” Pinkie Pie grinned a smile as wide as a mile and pushed herself rather uncomfortably into Moonshy’s personal space making him want even more than before to escape this awkward situation before his inadequate social skills set everything awry. That, along with his abnormal birthmark, were always the triggers for his being harassed back when he lived in Cloudsdale. Not saying anything, Moonshy spread his wings, gave one mighty flap, and lifted himself from the ground before flying in the opposite direction with great haste.

“Hey! Get back here! I was just about to sing you a song!” Pinkie Pie screamed somewhat angrily while he flew away. Moonshy sighed in relief but kept up his speed just in case. He looked down for a quick second only to see Pinkie Pie bouncing just below him, staying hot on his tail, somehow. There was a sizeable cluster of clouds just above him and, flying higher, he saw an alleyway corner coming up fast just below him. Quickly he formulated a plan, he was going to fly into that cluster of clouds and then make a sharp turn so that the earth pony below would have a hard time fallowing him. Poof! The grouping of clouds busted apart as he went through them and he panicked, for the clouds in the Everfree forest didn’t break so easily. Well that was a bust, but at least the sharp turn would throw the pony below for a loop.

“HEY THUNDERLANE!” Shouted a confident, determined and rather peeved feminine voice right behind him. “You can’t just go bursting pony’s clouds! I was napping on th- huh!?” A pegasus of reddish pink eyes, sky blue hide, and a rainbow colored main and tail flew up next to Moonshy. “Wait a minute, you’re not Thunderlane.”

“Um, I apologize for your cloud. I didn’t realize it was yours but uh…”

“Ok, I don’t know who you are dude, but-” the pegasus looked forward for a second and her eyes went wide with surprise. She stopped suddenly and shouted again, “WATCH OUT!” BANG! Moonshy felt a splitting head pain fallowed by slight friction burn as he slowly squeaked down a smooth structure. On more hard pain blasted his back once he hit the cobblestone walkway. His dazed vison soon centered back to normal and his eyes were greeted with a grand sight. The purple crystalline castle mentioned earlier could now be seen close up in its full glory. A tree like structure centered with a decorative golden gate held up the actual castle topped with golden panels for the roof. Even if it didn’t have that great gleaming star shaped crystal as the spire, the small castle would have still been grand looking.

“PHA hahaha! New guy, that was so hilarious!” Laughed the rainbow pony.

“Oh my stars! Are you alright?” Moonshy could hear a new, concerned, and intelligent affeminent voice come from above him. That voice was followed by another much more accented voice. And then again by a more familiar excited voice.

“Twilight! Come back! We didn’t finish fitting your dress!”

“Hi again Moonshy! Are you ready for some fun?”

Within seconds Moonshy was surrounded by four new faces which he had never met before his visit to Ponyville. The one with the rainbow colored main, the one with the crazy hair and energetic demeanor, and two more. One with violet eyes, a light purple hide, and a dark colored mane highlighted with dark purple and pink. The other with sapphire eyes, a white hide, and an intricately curled purple mane and tail. They all started to talk to him simultaneously (with the exception of the one pegasis, no unicorn, wait ALICORN PRINCESS!?) until the one he gathered to be named Twilight spoke up.

“HUSH!” Shouted the alicorn. “One at a time please. I’ll start.” Twilight helped him too his feet but, barely remembering the proper manors in this type of situation, Moonshy bowed low with his mussel nearly touching her hooves.

“Forgive me, err… princess. I didn’t… intend to smash into your castle.” Moonshy never felt more nervous in his entire life. He was in the presence of ROYALTY. He felt unnecessarily guilty for his mistake and felt he was in trouble. He didn’t want to be publicly humiliated and have every pony laugh at him. But at the same time he felt he might have deserved it. Trembling subtlety, he awaited the princess’s next words.

Princess Twilight chuckled happily. “Rise, mister?”

“Moonshy” He stated trying to maintain his normal speech in spite of all his nervousness.

“Moonshy, It’s quite alright. Also, you don’t need to bow. I’m no better than anypony else. So, how did you find yourself here?”

“OH OH! I know!” Pinkie Pie waved a hoof in the air before setting it down and bouncing around Moonshy yet again. “You were camping out in the Everfree Forest and ran out of supplies so you came to Ponyville to shop because it was the nearest town. Then I met you and said ‘Hi, what’s your name?’ and after a short conversation you panicked and flew away, you broke Rainbow Dash’s cloud and she chased you so you flew even faster away. Then you smashed into Twilights castle and slid down and that’s how you ended up here.” She finished with an overdramatic breath and grinned yet again.

“Pinkie!” Snapped Twilight. “Is this true Moonshy?”

“yeees…” He wondered how the heck Pinkie Pie knew all this but he decided not to let that distract him.

“Well, I guess that explains why your mane is so horrendously messy.” Said the white unicorn. This understandable assumption isn’t exactly the reason. No matter how many times Moonshy combs his main or tail, it doesn’t cooperate. It’s practically untamable.

“Rarity!” Snapped Twilight yet again.

“Oh um… I appreciate the offer but that won’t be necess-“ His sentence was cut off by Rainbow Dash.

“Moonshy, you are so fast! I bet with a little practice you’ll be almost as awesome as me! You know, There’s a Track just outside of town, you should go there and train with me. What do you say?”

“M- Maybe later.”

Princess Twilight rolled her eyes and smiled. “Never mind my friends, I’d be willing to show you around town if you’d like?”

“No, I mean, thanks and everything but I… think I can find my own way around.”

“If you insist. I’ll be here if you need anything. Also, if you need food, I would recommend checking out Sweet Apple Acers. My friend Applejack works there and her grandmother makes the best apple fritters around. Have a good day.” Princess Twilight began trotting back into her castle along with Rainbow dash and Pinkie Pie. Though Rarity pulled (well, more levitated) out a tape measure and began to measure out his proportions.

“You know, I really can make you look absolutely stunning.”

“Rarity, come on, we still have to finish my dress remember?”

“Oh alright, coming!” And then she trotted off as well, but not without taking one last measurement first.

The Rest of Moonshy’s day went by pleasantly. The bits he made from selling some of his artwork a little bit ago were just enough to pay for what he needed. Some repair jobs on his saddle bags and bed roll. A rejuvenation of his rations, and a new set of paint. He even checked out Sweet Apple Acers. The fritters were great, as Twilight said, but the friend she mentioned was nowhere in sight. Applejack, as he remembered Twilight calling her, was probably out bucking some more apple trees. He made this assumption after listening to her Granny Smith talk for a little bit. It was getting late, however, and with the sight of the full moon, Moonshy wanted to find a place to work on his next piece.

Moonshy’s cutie mark is a crescent moon being painted by a brown paintbrush located on the lower point. Both the moon and paintbrush are surrounded by the same three stars. The moon and three stars are the light mystical blue described earlier. The moon and paintbrush express his artistic tendency to paint different types of pictures depending on the phases of the moon. On a full moon he would paint something bold with bright colors whereas on the new moon he’d paint something mysterious and abstract. Each phase, not just the new and full, have a specific type of painting associated with them. The stars have a far deeper meaning, they represent his habit of observing the world but never really interacting with it. Tonight, he wanted to paint a landscape of some sort. Some place with the chaotic yet natural beauty of nature clashing with the artificial structure of civilization. Sweet Apple Acers would be a good place if not for the unnaturally straight alignment of the apple trees. He would head back to the Everfree Forest but on a full moon the timber wolves would be much more active than normal creating a much more stressful and distracting environment. Not to mention it’s hard to get a good view of civilization from there. He had to find a better place, good thing he could fly.

The Town of Ponyville was absolutely gorgeous at night. Each of the flickering yellow firelights coming from the windows of the houses created their own dancing shadows upon the ground while Twilight’s castle glistened in the best way possible under the moonlight. The streets at night were void of all ponies but filled with the musical chirps of the crickets creating a peaceful feel which Moonshy thoroughly enjoyed. After a little bit of flying came across a lovely hill, wait cottage, wait cottage topped with a hill? Either way it was a few miles outside of town elevated up in a way which overlooks the silent lights of Ponyville. Upon closer inspection he noticed that the area was surrounded with trees and overgrown vegetation ran through by an adorable little creek. The bridge, though obviously artificial, seemed to blend in with the surrounding plant life almost like nature had taken it under her wing. The area was perfect. If he placed himself at the right angle and painted what he saw the painting would turn out exactly how he wanted it. Swooping down, he silently landed in front of the bridge, pulled out his canvas and painting tools and began to do what he did best.

He had only gotten halfway done with what he was doing when a shy mousy voice sounded from behind his canvas.

“Oh angel, I don’t think he wants to lea- uh, ok. Um, excuse me sir, but I believe you’re on my property.” The voice trailed off to a whisper towards the end of the sentence. Moonshy, somewhat irritated at the interruption, looked over to see who the voice belonged to.

The first thing he saw was a pair magnificent turquoise eyes staring back at his and soon the rest of a shy pegasus’s presence. Her hide was colored a nice shade of pale yellow and her well groomed and lengthy mane a shade of pink. The features on her face were a tad bit softer than the ones he saw previously in the other female ponies’ faces giving her an aura of kindness about her. Moonshy wanted to say something, not awkward, to this particular pony for some reason but he couldn’t think of anything.

“Err… I’m sorry, this- this is your property? My mistake, I’m gonna, I should probably jus… go then.” Moonshy let out another nervous smile and started to pack up his things.

"Oh no, I didn’t ask you to do that. I was simply about to ask you,” A small, white, foot thumping rabbit stared daggers at her and crossed his arms. “Oh, I mean, I want you to.” The Pegasus lowered her head and sighed avoiding eye contact with Moonshy before finishing her sentence. “Oh angel, I can’t ask him to leave, I’ve never seen him before and I- I don’t know if he has a place to stay or-“ The little rabbit rolled his eyes and sassily hopped back inside the cottage.

Something about this particular pony set him at ease. He somehow understood her, her timidity, her shyness, the way she carried herself. For once in his life, Moonshy’s nervousness faded away and his mind cleared. He stepped out from in front of his canvas and took a couple steps forward.

“You know, if your furry little friend wants me to leave than I am more than willing to go. It’s quite alright, it’s not like I haven’t been asked to leave a place before.” Moonshy stood amazed at himself. For once in his life he completed a sentence without fumbling for words. Though, he wished he could finish his painting.

“Oh, but I’m not asking you to leave.”

“I think your rabbit would disagree...” Moonshy looked through one of the cottage’s windows and saw the rabbit blowing an insulting raspberry at him.

“Oh, That’s just Angel, don’t mind him he just doesn’t like strangers. Are you sure you’ll be okay out here? It’s getting kind of chilly don’t you think?”

Now that she mentioned it, yes, it was getting rather chilly outside. Nothing he couldn’t endure with a blanket or two. Good thing he had one of those in his saddle bags as well.

“Well, err…” Though the answer was yes, he would be alright out here, he debated saying no because, well, it would be nice to sleep indoors for once. “You know, I’ll think about it. I just would like to finish this painting first, okay?”

“Okay, I see, do you want me to bring you a blanket at least?”

“Um, no thanks, I’ve got my own.” He said pulling out a dark tan shroud of thick cloth lined with a trim of white wool.

“Alright then, don’t stay up too late, I mean if that’s okay with you. I’ll be in my cottage if you need anything.”

“Um wait, before you go in, what’s your name?”

“Oh its uh…” The pony’s voice trailed off into a whisper yet again “Fluttershy.”

“Flutter… Fluttershy? Is that what you said?”

“Well um, yes, it is.”

“Well nic- I mean, Good night then Fluttershy.”

As Fluttershy timidly galloped back to her cottage Moonshy couldn’t help but gaze at her elegant movement. What are you doing? You should get back to the piece! His conscious screamed at him. He shook his head and focused his attention back on the canvas. Good, No distractions here!

Just a few more brush strokes and this painting will be done. Moonshy found himself thinking for the thousandth time. If only I can get this one part right, AH HA! Wait, no… Maybe if I use this color, no that looks unappealing, PAINT OVER IT!” It wasn’t until a half an hour later that he reluctantly settled on one particular shade of brown and finished the piece. By this time, half past midnight, he had made his decision. He was going to stay in the cottage, for the cold and his odd desire to accept Fluttershy’s hospitality finally got to him. He lifted the canvas off its stand and set it down gently. He was in the middle of putting the rest of his supplies away when a sudden and harsh gust of cold wind blew through. The power of the wind pushed up his right wing from the side of his body and stole his canvas from the ground.

“Wait STOP!” Moonshy began to chase after the canvas. The wind was going to ruin his master work! He chased it for a good couple of minutes before the wind suddenly died down and dropped his painting (Incredibly luckily paint side up.) right at the edge of the Everfree forest. He sighed with relief and went to pick it up, until the rustling of leaves in a short distance ahead alerted him of possible danger. He looked around the area before once again attempting to pick up the canvas. His mouth was much closer now, he was about to grab it when the eerie glow of evil teal eyes meet his. The eyes steadily began to rise and come closer until detail of the creature they belonged to became obvious in the moonlight. It had the physique of an underweight pegasus except the wings were bug like and made out of chitin. Two vampiric fangs made up the prime details of the mouth and the eyes were blank and lacking any emotion except hate. The creature’s mane was flat and dead looking and its skinny legs were full of holes that appeared to go all the way through past the bone. It leered its horrendous eyes at Moonshy, like it was observing him, before letting out a loud insectoid hiss and whisking off into the darkness of the canopy.

Chapter 2: A Fright Through the Woods

Pony’s pranced around happily, going about their businesses in Ponyville. They talked, they walked, they muzzled, they hugged and life went about merrily. Particularly Moonshy’s, for he was with an individual whose presence made him quite ecstatic. He looked over to her and couldn’t bring himself to believing what was happening. He was trotting down the street with the timid pony who showed him so much kindness by offering to him to take refuge in her cottage, Fluttershy. Odd… the last thing he remembered was seeing that horrifying creature with the teal colored eyes and vamperic fangs fly off into the canopy of the Everfree forest. Nevertheless he smiled and continued to move. He had no idea where exactly he was going but that was alright, for whatever reason he didn’t seem to mind.

The clouds on the… wait… those aren’t clouds. Its fog, and no ordinary fog at that. It had an unnatural greenish tint to it and seemed to be charged with a form of lightning. It encroached upon Ponyville hastily, like a moving wall with the speed of a battering ram and soon the other Ponies around him began to panic. Screaming, terror, running, it was all that was on their minds. They practically trampled each other in an attempt to escape from the unstoppable threat. Moonshy, with frantic perception, looked around for any way of escape and he realized that Fluttershy is nowhere in sight. Now… he was terrified.

He took off into the air but something violently pulled him back down to the ground and the fog now engulfed him. He could see nothing past the fog, do nothing, feel nothing, he was paralyzed with fear. Manacle laughter sounded all around him, echoing through his ears and never leaving. The laughter turned into an evil chuckle and the clopping of hooves moved in on him. From the fog came a taller, obviously female, version of the creature he saw… last night? Or was it? Moonshy didn’t know anymore.

“You have lots of what I seek, pegasus. That could also be bad, assuming you learn how to use it. So you have me at a quandary, absorb it all from you, or eliminate you, hurmmm?” She disturbingly licked her two fangs and spoke again “I suppose either one will do.” Her fangs glimmered as she opened her mouth wider and the insectoid hiss Moonshy was all too familiar with came from her mouth. There was a short pause before she came down at his neck.

“ENOUGH!” A beam of moonlight pierced through the dense fog and temporarily blinded the creature. Just in time, one half a millisecond later and who knows what would have happened. The creature reeled back and hissed right as an indigo colored alicorn landed right in front of him. When Moonshy opened his eyes for the first time sense the creature’s assault he found that the world around him faded away for an astral dimension to take its place. He was standing on, surrounded, and sheltered by the night sky.

“Young Moonshy,” a strong feminine voice spoke to him before he even had a chance to figure out what was going on. “Do not be afraid, you are safe now.”

Moonshy looked up to see a face he knew well. Princess Luna, for she had aided him many times when nightmares seeped into his mind. Nightmares were always intense for him. He bowed properly, low enough that his muzzle touched the bright stars of what would be the ground. “Princess Luna… I- I don’t know what to say… what happened?”

“You were having a dream, was it not obvious?”

“Were?”

“Well, perhaps it started out as one, what you witnessed turned into a vison.”

“A- a vison? So your say- I mean what are you saying? Of what?”

“Moonshy Art, There are things in this world that will stop at nothing to destroy harmony and the whole of Equestria as we know it. Take a word of advice, do not let them rob you of your most positive emotion. It is one of the most precious things anypony can have in their mind’s possession.” Luna spread her wings, left the ground, and began to fly away. Moonshy, not getting the answers he wanted, took off after her.

“Wait! Princess Luna! What do you mean? WAIT!” Too late, the dream dimension around him faded away into blackness and he fell back into reality with a thud and a flurry of stars.

There was an irritating ring in his ears as he was waiting for his now wide open eyes to adjust to the new lighting conditions. His vison re-centered and when the ringing passed, his ears were greeted with the beautiful singing of birds, his eyes welcomed by the rays of the morning sun, and his face given new life by, wait, is that, LICKING!? Moonshy shot up straight into the air with a startled yelp and he hit his head on a ceiling. “OUCH!” Now he saw that the licking was being done by, not just one, but three woodland creatures. A ferret, a raccoon, and a squirrel. They happily stared at him with unfitting intrigue, as if expecting something out of him, but Moonshy didn’t know what. The creatures, however, weren’t the strangest things he viewed upon awakening. He was inside a structure which, upon further inspection, seemed to be made up mostly of wood and critter sized staircases, holes, and... houses? What would houses be doing inside a house? What was HE doing inside a house?

“Oh my goodness!” Fluttershy’s soft, kind, voice sounded from the top of some stairs just in front of him. “Are you alright? I heard a thump.”

“No uh, it’s fine. I jus- had a wakeup call, that’s all.” Moonshy smiled his fitting nervous smile once again while he rubbed the back of his head.

Fluttershy looked away from Moonshy briefly at the animals down below. He half expected a timid pony like her to scream out of fear, but what he witnessed was the exact opposite.

“You guys, what are you doing waking our guest like that?” She spoke politely and with a soothing voice to the creatures as though they were her friends. “Don’t you know it’s a little bit rude to scare someone like that?” The creatures looked down at the floor as if feeling a bit of remorse. A few seconds later the squirrel reached into its chubby cheeks, pulled out an acorn, and presented it to him as if it were an apology gift.

“Oh, err, I’m sure they didn’t mean to startle me. They were just licking my face when I hit your ceiling. Um… how did I get here?” Fluttershy was about to answer his question when the pupils in her now rapidly widening eyes dilated and nearly filled the iris. She let out a loud gasp and began to panic.

“OH MY GOSH! I FORGOT BREAKFAST! Oh, I’m so sorry you poor little creatures, I didn’t mean to… Oh dear. She rushed out the front door while the three forest creatures who remained in the cottage rolled their eyes and impatiently tapped their feet. Fluttershy came back a few minutes later with bits and pieces of vegetables gathered in a bowl. “Eat up you poor things, I’m so sorry I didn’t make this sooner!” Without even a second of delay, the three animals buried their faces into the bowl of food and were soon joined by plenty others.

SMASH! Fluttershy’s door burst wide open and in rushed the familiar purple alicorn he met yestermorning.

“FLUTTERSHY! Oh my stars, have you seen Applejack anywhere!?” Princess Twilight’s intelligent voice was frantic, as was her demeanor.

“No, I haven’t… is something wrong Twilight?” Fluttershy replied.

“Is something wrong? YES! Something is very wrong. I asked Applejack to help me move some books this morning and she never showed up!”

“Oh, I’m sure she has a very good reason-“

“If she did, she would have at least told me about it. But no, it’s like she vanished off the face of Equestria!”

“Um, Okay. Where should we start?”

Moonshy plopped himself down onto the floor and watched as the two ponies spoke. He felt he had no necessary contribution to the conversation so he listened attentively and thought. He should have guessed Applejack went missing when she was absent from Sweet Apple Acers yesterday. The way her grandmother spoke so highly of her responsibility should have been a tip off.

“TWILIGHT!” The voice of a young boy reverberated through the door fallowed not long after by a scaly purple creature with green spikes and emerald eyes. He wasn’t a pony, he looked to be a young dragon. Moonshy saw more dragons that most other ponies during his travels through the Equestrian wilderness but never up close like this. He was intrigued to say the least.

“I,” the dragon panted “have a message from.” The dragons face screwed up as though he were about to puke and, in a belch of green flame, manifested a piece of rolled up parchment sealed with a red ribbon and… The royal seal!? Okay, now things have gotten much more interesting.

Princess Twilight shrouded the parchment in a translucent purple magic and opened it up. “Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle. My sister has informed me that an old enemy stirs in the Everfree forest. Bring your friends, you and they must attend a private meeting so that we may discuss what to do about…” She lifted her head and her eyes widened with great concern. “Fluttershy Spike, we need to go!”

“But… What about Applejack?” Fluttershy inquired. Twilight stopped suddenly in her gallop out the door. Though Moonshy couldn’t see her face he could tell she was debating something internally. Twilight took a deep breath and on her exhale, she waved her hoof outward as if flicking something off her shoulder. “We’ll find her later.” She explained, looking back. “For now, we have to attend this meeting. Come on!”

Fluttershy, Twilight, and the dragon left the cottage, forgetting to shut the door. A raccoon looked up at Moonshy curiously, confused just as much as he was. He was now alone in the strange silence of the dwelling, for the birds stopped singing, not knowing what to do. I wonder where their friend Applejack is. What does my vison mean? Why did the creature in it look so much like the one I saw near the forest? These questions and many more entered his mind as he thought to himself. He wanted to help somehow but, without any magic, what could he do? He’s just a pegasus with hermitical tendencies who paints pictures. Hardly the stuff of any hero. Hang on, so, a pony named Applejack goes missing, I see a horrible creature outside a forest, then I have a dream which turns into a vision of a similar creature. Her haunting words enter his mind distracting him for a second “You have lots of what I seek, pegasus.” “Absorb it all, or eliminate you.” “I suppose either one will do.” What could that mean, what do I have that anypony could possibly want? What did Luna mean when she said, “Do not let them rob you of your most positive emotion”? What does any of this mean? Moonshy shook his head. “Come on Moonshy! Get your thoughts in order!” His words to himself startled the raccoon next to him. “Some pony- err, ponies, need your help!” Wait… but you don’t have the faintest clue where she is. You don’t even know what she looks like! Moonshy paced around the cottage for a second, barely managing to avoid stepping on the small critters skittering across the floor. Wait… you saw the creature in the Everfree forest. The fog in my vision seemed to come from that direction as well. Does that mean… AH HA! Though he wasn’t exactly sure Applejack would be in there, he saw it as a lead to fallow. After all, Applejack’s disappearance and the arrival of the creatures taking place around the same time have to be linked right?

There he stood, at the foot of the first line of trees. Their roots entangled on each other like a network of spider webs, the twisted branches and grotesquely warped trunks a doorway into a never ending wilderness. As he looked the eerie sounds of unknown creatures invaded his ears sending a chilling shiver down the deepest parts of his spine. No matter how many times he entered this forest (and he has entered it many times before) the sounds and dim lighting never became any less creepy. Every time, Moonshy has to work up a bit of courage before he enters. He did so with a series of deep breaths and calming thoughts, as well as a mental preparation of maneuvers to use in case there’s trouble. Reluctantly, he stepped in, under the shadow of the same imposing canopy where he had met the creature face to face the night before. Looking back, not even meters in, he discovered that he… missed Ponyville, never before had he missed a town.

As he wearily moved through the ever thickening brush, the frightful environment heightened Moonshy’s senses. No sound went unnoted, no potential hiding spot unrecognized. If anything made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up for even a second he would realize it before the prowling creatures did. Nothing yet so far. Moonshy made certain to steer clear of heavy brush and dry leaves, with hopes of making minimal noise. Why don’t you just fly? He asked himself for the umpteenth time. Because, the trees and vines are too closely knit together! Flying is impossible unless you want to find yourself tangled in vines or caught in some creature’s nest. He answered himself yet again. These minor arguments with the impulsive side of his mind kept him thinking rationally, but, when he felt most secure (Typically when he’s resting inside some bushes or traveling through a sunny clearing.), his mind phased in and out of deep thought. When it did this, he often found himself reminiscing about Ponyville. And when it strayed further than typical for most ponies in this situation, he thought about the five ponies he met there. Particularly Fluttershy. What was it about her, specifically her, which intrigued him so? He wondered how he would befriend them, or if they already considered him one. With all of his intuition, he still couldn’t figure it out.

“Who in tarnation are you talking about?!” A pony’s voice sounded a fair distance away.

“Moonshy! Where is the pegasus Moonshy!?” spoke another. That one… it was so familiar. It reminded him of… no, it couldn’t be. He grew concerned at the mention of his name, yet all the while curious. He guessed he didn’t want whoever owned that voice to see him so he approached with caution. His front hooves nearly slipped as the ground seemed to vanish beneath him. Quick reflexes and a couple wing beats shot him back into a nearby bush. Now he was overlooking a ravine. Populated only by jagged gray rocks and two individuals. One was a pony. Orange in hide and green of the eyes. Three red apples dotted her flank and her braided blond hair flowed out from beneath her tan rancher’s hat. The other was the tall, bug like, horrific female creature Moonshy saw in his vison. She resembled an alicorn… in a twisted corrupt way. Her dark irregular horn sprouting out from the top of her head. A demonic green magic resonated off of it, shackling the orange pony to the ground.

“For the last time, I don’t know anypony named Moonshy!” The orange pony insisted. “Now let me go, or I’m gonna—“

“Gonna what? Applejack, are you going to get your friends? Use the elements of harmony on me?” the creature leaned in closer and lifted the pony’s chin and smiling wickedly. “Face it, Applejack, it’s hopeless to resist. You are at my mercy and you will meet your end, unless, you can tell me,” The creatures voice steadily became more tense and enraged “WHERE THE PONY MOONSHY IS!”

“I told you already, I do NOT know any pony named Moonshy.” Applejacks voice remained strong. Fear, though there still, was pushed to the back.

“Very well… I’ll find him myself!” The creatures mouth opened and she made the same enhailing hiss she made when she was about to bite Moonshy in the vision. The image made him tremble, all he wanted to do was shy away and flee as fast as he could, but at the same time… he couldn't leave a fellow pony here to die, especially not off his account. His mind raced, divided between two choices. Run, save himself, but forever live with guilt. Or… Stay here and stare death in the face, supporting the unlikely chance that he would save somepony else’s life in the process. Every muscle in Moonshy’s dark blue body tensed. He could feel himself fighting two different impulses… and then, he felt nothing. In that moment, he was no longer the pegasus named Moonshy, he no longer acknowledged the concept of death. All he was, was a last line of defense between a threat, and an innocent bystander. His wings flapped ferociously, not giving a care about what was to come. They lifted him up into the air, high above the deep ravine. He dropped a can of red paint out of his left saddle bag from a zenith above the creature. It fell with haste and smashed into her skull, exploding everywhere. He dropped from the sky and bellowed out a noisy demand.

“FOLLOW ME! RUN!”

Noticing that her magic shackles now dispersed, Applejack ceased her opportunity and bolted along with Moonshy. By the time the dazed and distracted creature regained focus, Moonshy and Applejack were many meters ahead and well out of range of most of the creature’s magic… most of it. All he did was run. Green beams of energy whistled dangerously close past his dodging form. Only feet ahead the thinning ravine made a sharp turn to the left. Moonshy didn’t know exactly what it held in store for him and Applejack but he knew it was their only chance. The momentum of his dash caused him to power slide around the corner. The friction beneath his hooves burnt, but he didn’t care. He continued to run, Applejack not far behind him. There was a snug little nook just to the right that reared around behind a large rock. A nearly perfect hiding spot… given the situation. One of the maneuvers he prepared in his mind forced his muscles to jump up and over the rock and then flatten out in order to remain as low as possible. Applejack reared the corner just behind him and she almost missed him. Had it not been for his grab and pull of her behind the rock as well, she probably would have kept on running… oblivious to the fact the she could have possibly lived if she hid. Moonshy held her mouth shut so that she wouldn’t make a sound while they waited for the creature (who hadn’t seen them hide) to move along her merry way.

The creature did exactly as he predicted. When she reared the same corner she lost sight of them. She abruptly stopped in her tracks and looked around with enraged eyes. She stomped the ground out of frustration before letting out one more beam of demonic green energy which cut a large crack through the adjacent cliff face to them. Moments of intense silence passed. Moonshy didn’t know what was going on.

What is she doing? He thought. She’s just… standing there, what’s she planning? The creature paced around the ravine. Clop, clop, clop… cla-clop her hoof steps drew closer. Soon… very soon, she would be on top of them, and at that point there would be no hope for either of them. Their demise seemed imminent. Moonshy could feel Applejack tensing, getting ready to bolt yet again, a mistake indeed if that were to happen. Moonshy tightened his grasp on her anatomy. Death was almost upon them both now, but still he sat. Clinging to the fading hope that this creature would overlook them and fly away like the last one did.

She laughed. To Moonshy’s utter surprise she laughed. Her wicked cackle echoing many times over as it ricocheted off the unending walls of the jagged ravine. It sent a shiver down his spine, petrifying him for a brief moment as the sound her chitin wigs fluttered away. The laugh turned into a bloodcurdling screech and it soon became apparent that she was calling something. The sounds of a swarm of cicada... no…more of those creatures, fallowed soon after. The sky grew dark with their shadow. The she-creature, cackled once more as the swarm fallowed her every move.

“Oh Applejack!” She extended the last part of Applejack’s name in a disturbing manor. “Sense you won’t come out… I hope you don’t mind me destroying your friends!”

Applejack began to struggle even more but Moonshy couldn’t let her go. If he did, that creature up there would kill her. What then? (He knew the importance of the elements of harmony… if Apple jack died, the rest would be useless.) The other ponies would have no way of stopping her. He held on to her with all the strength he had left but Applejack was strong. She broke free right as the last of the creatures evacuated the ravine. She ran to the end and stared up. Moonshy caught mixed feelings coming from off of Applejack. Concern, anger, sadness, bravery… but most predominantly… fear, fear that she would never see the happy faces of her friends again.

Chapter 3: Pointless Quarrels and Emotional Battles.

“What the hay is wrong with you!?” Applejack’s angry voice wavered on uncertainty. Moonshy could tell many unpleasant things went through her mind, hints of worry and sadness glinted through her otherwise furious eyes. “Ponyville is now under attack because of you!” Moonshy took a couple steps back. When somepony became angry he thought it best to steer clear till the storm passed. This time, however, he had no choice but to face the brunt of the infuriated. His mind chased many words with the goal of thinking up a response but when the words were caught, they stuck at the edge of his tongue and he was forced into silence. How would you blundering out into the fray have changed anything?

“Well? Don’t you have anything to say about that?” She held firm and stomped a couple steps towards him. Moonshy’s head lowered and he lost eye contact with her. Without saying anything, Applejack aggressively turned her back and she started to gallop away.

“I’M SORRY!” A couple of words finally flew out of his mouth. Oh… how pathetic can you get Moonshy! Sorry doesn’t make up for anything right this moment! He thought to himself.

Applejack halted her gallop. “And just what might you be apologizing about? For holding me back? For putting my friends in danger?”

“I was jus- I was simply trying to save you.”

“Con founded, I don’t need saving! I had everything under control!”

Moonshy nearly croaked, his social inadequateness nearly overpowering him yet again. But a similar attitude to the one he had when he attacked the creature minutes ago reentered his mind. It gave him the courage to, once again, stand his ground.

“Under your control? Against a mob of swarming creatures? Forgive me for… saying this, but that seems pretty daft don’t you think?”

“Well…” Applejack thought for a little bit, not knowing how to respond that rationality. “Well I guess it was a little silly of me to think that way… But that doesn’t change anything. If I had come out like she told me too she wouldn’t be after my friends!”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that. I mean- she would have killed you. Then she would have attacked Ponyville in force… and with you gone, your element would be useless… making the others just the same.”

“Wait… how do you know about the elements of harmony?”

“Well I uh… I heard that creature mention them and associate them with you and your friends… and I guess I just put two and two together. I mean, isn’t it common knowledge now what the elements are?”

Applejack appeared to be puzzled. The expression on her face said so. She went silent for a couple moments before speaking again. “Who even are you feller.”

“Um… call me Moonshy.” He said, almost forgetting that his name was mentioned before. Applejack’s eyes grew wide with intrigued concern.

“I gotta get you out of here!” She spouted, her words startling him.

“Wait, why?” he asked, realizing that he might already know the answer.

“She is looking for you.”

“Who?” Really? That’s a stupid question, why would you ask that Moonshy?

“Queen Chrysalis. You know, the creature we ran from.”

“… Why is SHE looking for me?”

“I was just about to ask you the same question. All I know is that last time I saw Queen Chrysalis, she was feeding off the love Twilight’s brother emitted for princess Cadence. You should have seen him, he was more zombie like than a tired student on Monday by the time Chrysalis was done with him. Luckily Cadence had enough love of her own to stop her and save him.”

Moonshy stood, shocked at Applejack’s story. Is that really what Chrysalis does… she leaches off of ponies’ … love? Such a barbaric concept. Moonshy thought. Why would she want me for that? His thoughts continued for little bit of time before something entered his mind that absolutely terrified him. He, loved, Fluttershy. Not just Fluttershy but all of her friends as well, just in a platonic way. He loved Ponyville and he loved the comfort he felt there. The more he thought, the more he realized that he was so full of love that, if Chrysalis got ahold of him, she’d gain a lot of power. Perhaps this is what Luna meant when she said “do not let them rob you of your most positive emotion.” If Chrysalis absorbed it all from him, what then? She would destroy Ponyville, she would destroy all the ones he considered friends… she would destroy Fluttershy. For a moment his impulses told him to go over there and defend the ones he cared about, but if Chrysalis was indeed there… she would suck the love from him… endangering everypony else. Then again… surely I can’t be the only pony with love. If not me than she would suck it from others. …Oh…. I can’t let that happen either. What to do, what to DO! I don’t see any win in this lose/lose situation.

He turned towards Applejack after all this raced through his head and nodded. “Alright, let’s go.” Hopefully the walk out of the forest will be enough time for me to figure out the loophole in this situation.

“Alrighty then sugercube, time’s-a-wasting.” Applejack spun back around and galloped off. Moonshy fallowing not far behind.

Moonshy was surprised at Applejack’s efficiency in the Everfree Forest. Most ponies are too scared of this place to even set hoof in here, (and for good reason.) let alone navigate, but no, it seemed to him that Applejack had been in the forest a number of times before. She had a strange familiarity with the ground beneath her hooves, she knew what places to avoid and where she could hide. Some of which even he didn’t think about. The only way Moonshy was able to tell that she wasn’t as knowledgeable as him about the forest was in the way she carried herself. There were several points where she almost got lost. She also didn’t express full confidence under the canopies. When such small obstacles came along, he guided her in the right direction. As for actual help… she made it clear on several accounts that she didn’t need it.

An hour or two of trudging through rough terrain and unforgiving brush passed. Now the woods lowered their consistency and Moonshy could fly again, signaling to him that they were reaching the edge of the forest. They were also going the same route as the one he originally took to get to Ponyville. As they got closer his tired limbs gained new energy as his soul was filled with delight. He almost forgot about the problem at hand but once he reminded himself of it the delight was shot down and turned into worry.

Minutes later they came upon the edge of the forest. Looking down the hills at Ponyville he was surprised to find that Ponyville looked absolutely fine. All was calm over the town and he could see many multicolored dots moving throughout. The trees and grass beautifully swayed with the wind and the birds all around sung. Just like when he entered it the first time. All seemed normal. What is this? The calm before the storm? Or was what we saw in the woods all a dream of some kind? He looked back at Applejack wondering if she was thinking the same thing. That look of worry still gleamed in her eyes leaving Moonshy a tad bit puzzled.

“Err… what’s wrong Applejack?”

“It’s just… Chrysalis said she was going to destroy my friends. And yet, there is no sign of her anywhere. It just seems a right bit suspicious if you ask me. I’d better go take a look.” She began to run down the hill.

Suspicious… maybe, but if what Chrysalis said was true… why wouldn’t she strike now. What’s she waiting for? More importantly… why would Applejack look inside the town itself? She’s got to have a reason. Moonshy flapped his wings and rose up into the air, getting ready to fly down after her.

“No Moonshy!” Applejack demanded, stopping Moonshy in his flight.

“Wait- Why not?” he asked nervously.

“Look feller, it’s great that you want to help and all, but because Queen Chrysalis is looking for you… I don’t think it’d be best if you entered town.” Moonshy was about to protest. “No no, don’t take me the wrong way. It’s more to protect you and everypony else. I have no clue what Chrysalis wants YOU for but if my past experiences with her have taught me anything, it’s that if she gets what she wants, it’ll mean big trouble for both you AND the rest of us.”

“She’s not in the town though.”

“Actually… she just might be. Aside from being creepy and completely off the loop, Chrysalis is very clever. She will not be seen as herself if she doesn’t want to be… and she’s good at fooling everypony into thinking she’s somepony she’s not. The very first time I meet her, I didn’t realize what she was. She looked, acted, and spoke like Princess Cadence. Twilight was the only one in our group that suspected anything and I nearly betrayed her because of it.”

Moonshy plopped himself down out of disappointment. He really did want to help… but Applejack made a good point. If a creature such as Chrysalis wanted him for something, that something must be important. He guessed practically giving it to her would be a mistake so he heeded the earth pony’s advice and slumped off.

“Moonshy.” Applejacks voice spoke once again as he turned away. “Thanks for helping me out back there. I don’t know what I would’ve done if you didn’t show up.”

“Your welcome, Applejack.” Moonshy didn’t turn back; he just said that as he sulked back off into the forest.

Celestia’s gleaming summer sun began to sink below the western horizon and the blue of the sky gave way to the beautiful reds pinks and purples of the twilight hours. The clouds like brilliantly blended blotches of blue purple and pink paint on natures canvas of freedom. Luna’s moon just breached horizon’s shackles and rose up as a magnificent waning gibbous giving Moonshy his usual inspiration. When the feeling percolated through his soul though… he pushed it back, something very unlike him. He was too worried, for the looming threat of Chrysalis and her thousands of minions stressed him beyond relief. He couldn’t relax, not even if he wanted to. A minor battle of emotions went on through his head that went a tad bit less than noticed, for he was thinking too much about various things. The usual feeling of tranquility he felt around this time of day seemed to forsake him, as he simply couldn’t stop looking over his shoulder; leaving him paranoid, jumpy and distressed.

The ground suddenly declined beneath his hooves, shocking him out of deep thought. He beated his wings and lifted himself off the ground so that he could get a better look of what was going on. There was a hollow, the canopy above it thinner than normal. In the center lied an odd looking tree. The base of its trunk was conspicuously fatter than the top. Two oval shaped windows, along with some third-world looking masks decorated the front. The four main branches which held up the heavy looking leaves were decorated with bottles and baubles of various shapes and colors, tied on with some brown outdoorsy strips of leather. One more feature made this abnormal tree suspicious… it had a doorway, filled in with a well maintained, tangerine colored, wooden door. The dimming lights, foreign aromas, and eerie green tinting around the rest of the area however made this place a bit creepier than it needed to be. Moonshy landed with a bit of caution and slowly drew nearer. He had no intention of going into the place, but he knew that staying near an artificial dwelling would be safer than resting out in the wilds. Dangerous creatures typically steer clear of ‘civilization’. (That’s a generous word for one hut in the middle of the woods…) Of course… that could all depend on who lives here.

Just for sake of curiosity, Moonshy did take a look at what was inside. He saw nothing but a dim fire set under a boiling cauldron of some mysterious liquid as well as more third-world masks. Who even lives here? He wondered. Why do they have such a creepy taste in décor? What is even brewing inside that cauldron? Weather out of coincidence or straight up suspicion, Moonshy’s mind settled on a disturbing thought. Back when he was an even younger foal than when he left Cloudsdale, he heard stories of zebra witches who brewed potions and cooked young pony’s up into stew using large cauldrons like the one inside. He jumped back, trying not to make much noise, and began to panic mentally. Oh no, What if she saw me!? Oh jeez, if she did, trying to run wouldn’t help, shed just catch me when I least expect it. Wait a minute! I can fly! Idiot… I’m almost certain zebra’s can’t fly. Wait… wouldn’t a witch just make my wings disappear with a hex or something? Oh, what to do, what to do!” He smacked his nose onto the ground to distract himself briefly, long enough to think rationally and calm down. Settle down you twit! Those were just old pony tales. You have seen on multiple occasions that those are just biased opinions presented by simple minded yet imaginative ponies back in the old days. Don’t jump to conclusions simply because of things you heard in the past, think for yourself. Whoever lives here could be just as kind as Fluttershy was, and let you stay… if not, you’ve slept outside before. With Fluttershy’s image popping back into his head, the feeling of worry he thought he suppressed (briefly) came back. Images of Ponyville’s destruction entered and left his mind incoherently. They may not have been linked together, but that didn’t stop those brief flashes from terrifying him. No! He thought as the impulse to run off and help Ponyville tensed his muscles. Going there could kill everypony!

The moon’s silvery light shown through the leaves dotting the ground with pale bluish spots as the sun’s light vanished under the horizon. The beautiful twinkularis made therein seemed to push the eeriness of the hollow back. The inspiration of Luna’s beautiful night broke free of the dungeon worry put it in. It now made a final push in the battle of emotions… and it was nearing victory.

“Worry not, young Moonshy. Everything is under the control of harmony… for now at least.” He could hear Luna’s voice inside his head. A bit unusual no doubt, but that didn’t stop her soft words from pacifying his weariness and alleviating his soul.

“Hang on… for now?” The worry gave one last hurrah in a desperate attempt to hold control of his mind.

“The future is always uncertain, even to the wisest of us. Nothing changes that, weather it’d be peace or war time, the future always holds surprises. It is normal, and healthy to worry about it, so long as you don’t let it interfere with the now. Do what you love Moonshy, and you’ll find that everything will be just fine. Remember my words, for now I must attend to somepony else.” Princess Luna’s voice trailed off into the fade and he could feel her presence leave him… but not her essence. Inspiration finally won. It reclaimed his mind and snatched its long denied birthright. He looked up at the blazing white gibbous which outshined all the amazing stars in Equestria. He smiled, content taking refuge in his fortress of creativity, and then heeded Luna’s advice.

On Gibbous moons, Moonshy always loved to paint portraits. They were concrete, making them easy to understand, but always had a deeper meaning behind them. Sort of like the gibbous moon, most of it is obvious and easy to see, but it hides a fraction of its form, giving it an air of mystery. Tonight, he decided to paint a pony he had met hardly a day ago, Fluttershy. He didn’t know why, after all, he would have remembered Luna more vividly than her. (Simply because he saw her much more recently than Fluttershy) Something in him just decided it. His first guess would have been his love, but that wasn’t quite it, he felt compelled to do it more than anything. He did want to paint her however, so he did. The painting was shaping up nicely, Fluttershy lied on the ground between two trees. The light of the sun hit her perfectly as doves and other critters flocked around her. She was facing her head up, eyes closed and with a cute little smile on her face. She was at peace. The luscious green grass amplified both her hidden and pronounced beauty, giving the picture itself three times the aesthetic charisma it already had. He was almost done, all he needed to do now was paint down the tip of her elegant tail.

“What a lovely piece, worth more than a dime. Tell me why you did it, If you’ve got the time.” A deep feminine voice sounded just behind him, oozing more mystery than it did comfort. Moonshy’s body paled, getting ready for a potential threat. When he turned around to look at his speaker, he nearly jumped out of his skin. There was a zebra woman, a striped mohawk for a mane and black stripes moved out from beneath the golden rings that surrounded her neck. Her intense hawk-like eyes were filled with irises of a sort of dull blue. Massive golden earrings clung to her ears and her oddly cut tail waved through the breeze like a banner.

“Err uh… yes, it is nice, isn’t it?” He said, looking for the quickest escape route out of the hallow.

“What an odd response, I have already made that accusation. Why do you avoid answering my question?”

“Uh… I kind of jus- wanted to, I guess.” Good thing I can understand rhymes.

“But a piece full of such emotion, the reason has to be more than just one simple notion.”

This Zebra was asking an uncomfortable amount of questions. What was it about his reason that intrigued her so? He didn’t really know exactly why he wanted to paint Fluttershy, he just did. All he knew was that he put as much feeling into it as he possibly could, for that was what made a painting like this stand out above the others.

Just answer her question, and maybe she won’t curse you, DANGIT BRAIN! Stop that! “Well, I- I told you already, I just want to… is that not a good enough reason?”

“Well, I guess it is, for one that’s artistic, but why Fluttershy in specific?”

Moonshy’s heart nearly jumped out of his chest. How did she know about Fluttershy? Did she really… no, she couldn’t have. No, no, this Zebra probably just met her at one point in time. She couldn’t have cooked her up in a stew between yesterday and tonight. …Why do you keep thinking that way? You are such a ninny. “… Um… well,” Moonshy blushed a little bit. The true answer was that he didn’t know exactly why, but he thought of one other reason. “Between you and me, I do kind of, sort of, have a little crush on her.”

The Zebra gave a cheeky little smirk which seemed to say ‘Oh, is that so?’ Making Moonshy blush a little bit more. That quickly went away though when he noticed a wicked and hungry glint in her eyes.

“Anyways… I would like to finish this… I- if you don’t mind.” He turned around readying his hind leg and wing muscles to buck and flee. His senses heightened as he listened for the next bit of inevitable danger. He picked up his paint brush and finished off the tail tip hastily.

Hisssss-aghhhhh! An insectoid hiss, the one he heard thrice before, sounded behind him. This… wasn’t the danger he was anticipating, but danger’s danger, and it needed to be avoided. He bucked, bashing what he thought to be the zebra in the face. The creature screeched and staggered back. Moonshy spun around to find that the zebra was no longer a zebra. Its skin, or rather, carapace, was black. Holes took place of flesh, like Swiss cheese, and it’s hateful eyes glowed an eerie teal color. It was… the same creature he met in the woods last night. It cried out a battle screech and reared back on him. He smacked it in the face once again and rose into the air. It made a chittering noise as it shook its head and then did the same, it’s insectoid wings buzzing like a cicada bug’s.

Almost there! Almost past the tree line! I just need to get there and then I’ll be home free! BANG! Moonshy felt his right wing snap, the prominent, piercing, bashing pain reverberating throughout that side of his body. He let out an agonizing scream as he fell back to the surface, breaking the earth beneath him, blacking out temporarily as the wind escaped his lungs. When the blackness faded away he found himself staring up at the creature’s horrific fanged face. It laughed at him tauntingly before it opened up its mouth and began to inhale. Moonshy's body and mind grew numb as he felt some sort of energy leave his soul. His life, as he knew it, was over, there was no hope.

Chapter 4: Courage

Blackness, that was all Moonshy saw. Inky dark barren nothingness. He no longer felt his own breath, his own pulse, but oddly enough something did touch his nerves. A sense of shimmering wavy currents moving around him making his otherwise lifeless body float. It was like flying, except, there was no wind, no pleasurable strain on his wings, no air flowing through his feathers. It was like being in water, except he wasn’t wet, cold, or heavy. It was a pleasant and easygoing sensation, like when one drifts off to sleep. That peaceful, safe, non-worrying experience made him want to stay here forever. It’d be easy, all he had to do was keep his eyes shut and body still whilst the spiritual forces carry him off to wherever the current took them, like a breezy on its annual pilgrimage to a land of pure immunity.

Giving up on life so soon? The conscious in the back of his mind asked him. Giving up on life… what do you mean giving up on… oh sweet Celestia! The peaceful ride began to fade as he felt himself float gently down. Images of places entered his mind. He didn’t quite remember what they were at first but as his steady dissention transitioned into a hastily drop, names became apparent. Details grew out of the haze and emotions flooded his mind once more. His drop turned into a faster-than-possible plummet once emotions and thoughts became linked with the places and… ponies he saw in his mind. Senses returned to his broken body, he was cold, sore, and lying upon the hard grassless ground. Roots dug into his back while pebbles and rocks pinched his legs. Once he had full awareness of everything again he opened his eyes to see the lighting of dawn. He looked around for a minute, gathering his scattered thoughts from the realm of shock.

Attempting to lift himself up he cried out with great agony, for his broken wing felt like it tweaked many nerves with sensitivities locked on the highest possible setting. He let himself flop back down, careful not to let his wing hold his weight. Oh sweet night of Luna… why must life treat me like this? Many thoughts went through his head regarding the injury. Depression flooded his being once he realized… injuries like this tend to change a ponies life, for better or for worse… Moonshy couldn’t see how this could make things better. Oh no! Surely it couldn’t be that bad…. Could it? He thought to himself before he looked over at his injured wing.

The area around the injury was swollen to thrice its normal size. His dark blue hide now tainted with an infectious red. His feathers grotesquely disorganized in unhealthy patterns. It was almost too much for him to handle… thank the four princesses for his experiences with animal carcasses torn asunder in years past. Okay… don’t panic, it may look bad, but the real injury probably isn’t as much so. Feel it! As he carefully twisted his body so that his two front hooves could get a better grasp on it the swell gave way and only a slight pain throbbed. Good, that means I’m performing my first aid correctly. He could feel a distinct separation between two of his bones and when he moved his hooves… both bones moved in unnaturally concerning ways.

Or… maybe it can be that bad. He fought off the impulse to cry, as he realized the possibility that… he might not be able to experience the freedom of flight ever again.

Wait... that’s only if you don’t get it properly treated! Dang it Moonshy, be realistic! You know first aid you twit! His mind once again became battlefield of thoughts.

I only know BASIC first aid! Fixing bones clearly split in two… I can’t do that!

Yes… but you can wrap it and hold it in place; that way the injury won’t get worse, giving you time to get to a hospital.

But that would require me getting… up. The pain he felt when he first tried to get up reentered his form indirectly, like the after-tremor of an earthquake.

“You’re Just going to have to suck it up Moonshy.” He answered himself out loud. “Oh… please don’t be too torturous.” He lifted himself once again… shouting at the top of his lungs seemed to help. He let out one final grunt as the wing hit the ground limply. He was up and on his hooves now, good. Now he could apply the delicate procedure to his broken wing.

Using his left hoof, he steadily lifted his wing. Stopping and redirecting his movement every time the most minor twinge of pain rippled through its structure. Once it was properly aligned he pulled out a roll of ace bandage from his saddle bag and began to wrap it. Once he was done, he attached a sling to it and let it rest at his side. There, that’ll have to do… for now. Now let’s get out of this sun forsaken place! I believe the way out is… that way.

Moonshy turned around and nearly bumped into his canvas. It stood, untouched by everything that happened last night. He was pleasantly surprised at this. Fluttershy’s almost flawless image immortalized with multicolored liquids atop white fabric stretched across a wooden frame. The brush strokes flowed in elegant ripples with her interpreted form. It seemed peaceful, yes that was its purpose but still. It was a bit puzzling, after the chaos of last night, how could something such the opposite survive untainted? He felt a bit guilty, for he realized that he almost left it in his fleeting attempt. Why he did, he couldn’t really say. After all, it’s merely an inanimate object. Moonshy sighed remorsefully and fitted it back into his saddle bag along with the stand.

The throbbing in his right wing proved itself to be a major annoyance. After every cluster of steps he had to stop briefly to wince and groan a bit. The sling and way he had to hold his torso made his usually fluent and sure-hoofed movement awkward and clumpy. Good thing I’m at the edge of the forest, otherwise I’d be timber wolf food by now. They always go after the weak. His travel speed was reduced substantially in his attempts to make things less painful for himself so he spent more time traveling out of the forest than he felt he needed to.

The extra time spent traveling gave his mind the chance to reflect on what had happened. Something bothered him, if the creatures he’s encountered feed off of love and turn you into a zombie-minded puppet… why wasn’t he one? That creature definitely fed off of something last night…after all, his soul nearly left his mortal coil. It was like… he was protected somehow, but by what he didn’t know.

Once he crested the rise he looked down and Ponyville to see, that it was still alright… What? Surely Chrysalis would have attacked this place by now. Twilight’s purple castle still gleamed in the morning sun and the busy streets below still swam with the multicolored dots that were the ponies.

Wait Moonshy! What about what Applejack said! “Because Queen Chrysalis is looking for you… I don’t think it’d be best if you entered town.” He stopped and stood there for a while, juggling a decision around in his mind. Enter town and run the risk of Chrysalis finding him… or find a different town and run the risk of his injury getting worse... and being hunted down by a pack of timber wolves, with no means of escape.

There’s a hospital here, it’d be stupid not to seek help right away.

Yes, but it would also be stupid to endanger your friends, don’t be selfish!

Selfish… I‘m no help to anypony dead!

Yes… but your no help to them here either, they’ll be fine, Applejack is back with her friends now, Ponyville is safe.

That was a good point… Applejack is back with her friends, her element of harmony with theirs. That means the town is safe now right? He would’ve fallowed that side of his conscious if not for his next thought.

The creatures under chrysalis’s control… they can change form… and they seem able to gain the memories of the hosts they impersonate. That means they can feed of love discretely, and walk among the ponies their hosts interact with without raising suspicion. For a queen… what is the best host to take the form of? A leader… that means… Oh goodness… PRINCESS TWILIGHT! If she’s taken the form of her… that means the entirety of Ponyville could be getting fed off of unwittingly! That’s not good, that’s not good at all.

And what do you expect to do about it?

Chrysalis has been looking for me sense the start, I’m the only way she’s going to reveal her true self to everypony else.

Your not saying-?

I am. I have to draw her out.

That’s mad! Every single one of those creatures from here to Canterlot will be on you first!

Not if I move through town discretely. There are back alleyways after all. That little bit of cover for a time is all I’ll need to get close to Chrysalis.

Let’s say you succeed, you get close to Chrysalis and she comes out. What then? She will take your love from you and then what?

Or she might not. Moonshy thought to himself as he remembered an important detail. The creature last night, did the same thing all creatures like Chrysalis do. It attempted to suck out all his yearning for Flutter… but it didn’t succeed. Something protected him. Perhaps, the same protection will come through with Chrysalis.

Well, then she’s just going to kill you!

Moonshy’s mind went blank for a moment. Dread filling his soul, drenching every bit of joy he had stored in sorrowful rain. Sadness, fear, regret; all of it nearly forced him to turn the other way. But then something stomped it out, No he knew exactly what it was, he just never thought himself to have it before. It was pure, unadulterated, courage, plane as the clearest day possible.

The future is always uncertain, even to the wisest of us. He found himself quoting Luna All I know is, that if I draw Chrysalis out, everypony will see her for what she is… and then she’ll have to flee once more, giving everypony the time needed to build up their defenses for the next assault. As for me dyeing… That is a risk I am willing to take.

Chapter 5: Too Good to be True

Inconspicuously moving through the back alleyways proved to be a tad bit difficult. The broad daylight illuminated the colors too dominantly and minimized the amount of shadows Moonshy could blend into. He did what he could to keep his shadow out of line-of-sight but, with so many pairs of eyes prying about, somepony was bound to see something. For the first time in his life, Moonshy found himself cursing Celestia’s vibrant days.

You should have waited for nightfall.

Quiet conscious! I realize that now. But there’s nothing I can do about it at this point.

Several times he had to stop, hide and wait as a pony or group of ponies passed; hugging the wall, making sure his shadow faded into that of the buildings’. A strategy he learned after several times avoiding suspicious characters in his past. It was steadily getting harder to hide though. It seemed to him like more and more “patrols” were being sent out. All seemed to be looking for something.

I haven’t been seen as of yet… perhaps the members of this town are aware of the looming threat… or perhaps… no. Oh Luna, why must your night take so long to rise?

That’s because you came here in the morning you idiot! Why don’t you find a nice barrel to hide in and wait out the day?

I can’t! I have to draw Chrysalis out!

Now? If she’s here, she’s not going to go anywhere, anytime soon.

Well… Moonshy’s sense of urgency was loosening its grip on his mind, but it didn’t entirely leave.

Fine, I’ll wait for a bit. But the second more shadows come along, I’m leaving regardless.

Don’t they come along… at night?

This statement was a slight bit inaccurate. Shadows also came when clouds covered the sapphire blue sky or the sun sank low enough that buildings casted rather lengthy ones. Fortune seemed to favor Moonshy for the moment as the other pegasi grouped together clouds; heavy with condensation and simply itching to precipitate. They were planning a storm, and a big one by the looks of it.

He felt a bit of remorse. He remembered from years past that this was the duty of all pegasi, a duty he was currently neglecting. He tried to spread his wings but then the piercing pain shocked his right side; reminding him of his rotten luck back in the forest. He looked down at the ace wrappings in disappointment, for possibility of him never flying again grew more and more apparent as time pressed on. He realized that if he waited much longer, infection could damage the joint permanently. Unfortunately, heading to the hospital right now would prove problematic for everypony. So, next to a dumpster trough he sat, watching the other pegasi go about their business… all, simultaneously?

As he observed their working habits, something struck him as… off. The way they did things seemed almost… single-minded. They were a bit too militant and organized. Uniformity far surpassing that which a group of small town ponies could ever hope to achieve without military training or… HIVE MINDEDNESS!

Oh great… and here I was hoping my assumption was wrong. The creatures have indeed infiltrated Ponyville! I have to be extra careful now.

Two pegasi flew overhead, seemingly making some patrol rounds, when they stopped suddenly. One of them moved his cyan colored head over to the opal colored one and whispered something into her ear. The opal one looked down at Moonshy, her yellow mane flicking down as she did. The cyan one’s purple tail flittered back and soon Moonshy could tell what they were doing. They were pursuing him. He got up off his rump and tried to walk away as casually as possible. That way he wouldn’t seem suspicious. It didn’t work, for when he reared a corner he heard a faint whoosh fallowed by a flicker of green light. The two pegasi (well… they weren’t really pegasi anymore) now buzzed behind him in hot pursuit.

Moonshy made a dash for it. He slipped through obstacles in hopes that it would throw his hunters for a loop. That didn’t work either. It didn’t help that his wing was making things much more painful as well.

You forget, they can still fly! Unlike you at the moment. Running an obstacle course is going to do nothing but slow you down.

No matter what he tried, The creatures still gained on him. Inches away they were, he could feel their cold breath on his neck, their bug-like wings thunderously attacking his ears. He knew it, they were about to grab him, they were about to sink their vicious fangs into his neck. He almost rammed into a dead end. He had nowhere to go now! The two creatures had Moonshy cornered and at their mercy. He had no choice now but to tremble, sweat, and stare death in the face. He turned around, breathing heavily. He backed up until he couldn’t anymore. Coming upon a wooden platform which elevated him only a few inches up.

“Ha hahaha! What’s the matter little Pegasus? Too much agony in your wing? Can’t fly away? Scared you’ll never fly again?” Those words affected Moonshy on a psychological level, dread filling his soul. The one that spoke had a voice which mimicked a chittering hiss. That voice, sent tremors down his spinal cord and forced the hairs along it to stand on end.

“No!” The other cried, the voice feminine and sounding like a buzz. “You aren’t even aware who this izz do you?”

Oh no! They recognize who I am!

“Does it matter? He’s got a lot of love coursing through his… juicy little veins. I can taste it from all the way over here.” The first creature’s mouth watered.

“This izz the one our mother’zz searching for! Eat him, and you’ll receive the same punishment greedy got!” The buzzy one shuttered.

“Oh come on! Just a little nibble wouldn’t hurt. I’m starving. I’ll leave enough for Mother, I promise I will.” The chittering one lunged at Moonshy, his eyes flooded with so much hunger that he should’ve been blind.

“No!” The buzzy one jumped in front of the chittering one, intercepting the attack and taking it herself.

“Don’t try to stop me you-!” Before Moonshy had a chance to gather what exactly was happening a fight broke loose between the two creatures. Soon, they were both on the ground, fighting like rabid dogs in a pit. They each made their share of sputters hisses and screeches as they tore into each other’s carapace. He panicked, for it looked like the brother was winning this battle. Soon, very soon, the sister will be knocked incapable and the brother’s purely white fangs will sink into Moonshy’s neck. He twisted his head left and right, looking for a way out of the alley, but the only foreseeable way out at this point… was up. Moonshy’s current handicap was going to be the death of him!

The sister screamed, her carapace was cracked and a tiny bit of greenish brown ooze leaked out from her crevices. She spread her wings and flew away awkwardly, as all sides of her stood broken.

“Now, where were we? Ah yes, I was just about to feast on you.” That creature tried to lunge at Moonshy once again. Now, all was lost. Moonshy was going to be some creature’s food. All he did, all he was able to do, was stand and brace himself for the pain which will undoubtedly come before the cold embrace of death. But then, the wood fell out from beneath is hooves and he found that he was falling; falling into darkness.

Thankfully, the fall wasn’t that far. The total distance barely crested ten feet. His fall was broken by something wet, something full of soil, and something smelling of dust. He hit it with a solid slap which knocked the wind out of him. The next thirty seconds were spent gathering all that lost air back up. Finally he looked up, what he reasoned to be a trap door, now closed up, the monster above not seeming to fallow.

Now his eyes were met with a long hallway… seemingly some sort of secret passage, for the hall moved on past his door, all the way through both in front and behind. The under passage was hardly lit, not even a candle to illuminate the path ahead. The only light came through little cracks and crevices Moonshy would not have noticed otherwise if not for the rays coming through them. There were certain floods of light coming through more trap doors like the one he fell through but he dared not go out, because he knew the changelings would no doubt be searching for him up there.

That’s weird though… That chittering one undoubtedly saw where I went. There was no way he couldn’t have. Why isn’t he chasing after me? Why aren’t any of them coming after me? Surely that one would have told others... unless he’s being greedy too. Well, if that’s the case, I guess I can call myself fortunate… even though one of those things hunting me is not much better than all of them. But again… why wouldn’t he have fallowed me down the tunnel?

Moonshy traveled cautiously through the tunnels, this all seemed too… convenient, for him. Not that that was a bad thing, it’s just, suspicious. He checked behind his shoulder every thirty or so seconds to make sure he remained untracked. Unfortunately, his hooves made deep grooves in the muddy ground beneath him. Deep enough that, if anything wanted to, they could easily track him.

Oh boy… I sincerely do hope nothing is fallowing me. If they are, they’ll find me sooner than I’d find them.

KABANG, rumble rumble! The first thunder clash boomed from up just mere feet above the tunnels, signaling that the pega… creatures, now unleashed their storm. The wet patters of raindrops above began seeping through the arched and cracked stone ceiling. As the water from above made the mud even wetter Moonshy found it harder to move. He was also having a tough time keeping his bandages dry.

Well… On the bright side, my tracks will get washed away. Really, that was the only silver lining in all this. You just got to keep pushing on. There will be a safe way out of here soon… at least… I hope there will.

Down one way was a great deal of light. That attracted his attention so he moved forward. A welcoming draft of fresh air, the beautiful sound of running water, and the magnificently simplistic sent of morning due on flowers, grass and leaves all drew him closer. For the first time in what seemed to him like ages, he gave a little simper as that sent reminded him of the one place he felt truly happy. Fluttershy’s cottage. He hurried over, against the draft so that he may come upon the exit.

Wait! What if it’s a trap?

Moonshy stopped just before the exit. A small opening covered with vines and hidden by an overgrowth of river grass. It seemed to be located under Fluttershy’s bridge, for something arced and made of stone rested overhead, stretching across a creek. Moonshy listened for anything suspicious, but the noise the rain made as it hit the creek made it extremely difficult to make anything else out but water.

Well, at least they won’t be able to hear me either… I’ll be careful.

He took a step. Looking around he saw nothing out of the ordinary but rain. That wasn’t the relief it was supposed to be, for the amount of moisture falling from above impaired his vison, keeping him from seeing more than a few meters away. One more step and he was exposed almost halfway. He looked around again, still seeing and hearing nothing of note. He examined the sky looking for shadows flying overhead but he saw none. He took a deep breath, building up the boldness needed to step out. He closed his eyes and prayed that there truly was nothing out there and finally he came out from under the bridge. He climbed up the small incline between the river and the ground nearly slipping on all the wet vegetation. Now he was up, he turned his head towards the general direction of Fluttershy’s cottage to get a good look at it. Though it was barely visible through all the precipitation, what he saw opened the floodgates for new invasion of worry to rush in.

Both halves (the top and the bottom) of Fluttershy’s door looked as though they were torn open, ripped partly off their hinges. The two windows he saw before the rest of the house faded into the mist were broken, and nothing lit up the interior of the structure. It appeared as though something… attacked her cottage. All of a sudden, he stopped thinking. All he knew was that something was wrong, and that Fluttershy could be in danger… or dead. He ran across the slippery bridge, not taking any care to silence the clopping of his hooves. He galloped until he was out of the rain and inside the cottage.

KABANG, rumble, rumble. Another crash of thunder sounded and a flash of lightning lit up the interior of the house. For the instant the lightning illuminated, the shadows of toppled tables, torn couch cushions, and broken pottery reached across the ground. The animal sized stairways and houses sat splintered. Scratches of some kind ruined the wallpaper around him. When the brief light of the lightning disappeared the door behind Moonshy slammed shut, barely fitting within its frame, seeing as the hinges were still broken. His breathing grew heavy and a cold chill ran down his spine once more. He felt thousands of tiny little bugs crawling under his skin, giving him goosebumps and making whatever hair they were attached to stand on end.

GET OUT OF HERE! His instinct screamed.

I can’t! My exit’s been blocked.

THAN FIND SOMETHING AND FIGHT!

I’m in no condition to do that now! His reminder to himself about his broken wing brought fourth more throbbing. He winced, but nothing more because the wound was, in a way, numbed. The wetness of his bandages made the living matter cold.

Another flash of lightning lit up the interior of the cottage and this time, something quickly moved across Moonshy’s line of sight. There was a thud and a muffled yelp as whatever it was flew through to a door just in front of the main stairway. Something, was in here with him! His heart racing faster than the Wonderbolts now. He felt as though his hooves were glued to the floor, as he was petrified to the spot.

You can’t just stand here! That thing will find you if you do!

Well, what should I do then!? I have no way out. Unless I wish to cause further harm to myself, jumping through the window would be a bad option! The glass would make too much noise for one, second off, the shards would cut through my coat. Bleeding out would be bad in this situation. The door is most likely jammed shut as well. So I can’t get out that way.

Well, the fact still stands, you can’t just stand here like a sitting duck! Find a way out! Do it quietly if you can.

How would I find a way out when I can’t see my own hoof in front of my face?

Close your eyes.

What?

Close your eyes, let them adjust to the dark lighting conditions. Come on Moonshy use your common sense!

The stress of fear began to fade away when he did this. He took a deep meditative breath and kept his eyes closed for several seconds. He noticed a quick jolt of light shine through his eyelids and moments later the thunder sounded. A change from the almost immediate thunder/lightning correlation before.

Good, that mean’s the storm is moving away now. Stress leaked away from him as he realized this. Moonshy opened his eyes again after five or so seconds. Now he could see everything a bit clearer. He noticed the torn up couch, the broken pottery, and the splintered animal stairways without help from the lightning. He scanned the area around him, noticing a doorway towards the back of the cottage. The only problem was… that was where the broken shards of the pottery lied. And though he could see things roughly, the details of the shards seemed to blend together. Now, because hooves are hard, it wasn’t cutting himself Moonshy was worried about. It was the noise he would make whilst stepping on them.

Oh, just my luck, a creature in one room and pottery shards blocking another! Well, neither choice seems good, but at least with one I have a chance of getting through undetected.

He moved towards the back doorway carefully and as quietly as he could. He felt for creaky floorboards, avoiding them when they came up. Every step he took was dexterous and quiet, touching tip to back (toe to heel). Once he came up to the shards, he took a second to examine the wreckage. The shards were highly concentrated in one location, but didn’t really spread beyond the doorway.

Maybe I could jump it?

No, that might make too much noise as well.

Might, that’s the keyword there. If I’m to jump, I must make sure it’s controlled. Remember that landing strategy you practiced a while back? Well, now might be a good time to use it. The modification shouldn’t be that difficult.

He tensed every muscle in his body for a brief moment, and then let them relax. If he was going to perform this stunt, he had to make sure everything was loose. He squatted down before pushing off the ground with his hind legs. He was up and over the shards, now to arrange his body just right. He landed, all four hooves touching the ground at almost the same time, he bent his legs with the force of his fall so that minimal inertia was transferred into the floorboards. His land was almost soundless, for a brief moment he felt like a cat landing behind its prey, keeping it oblivious to the fact that it’s there, right behind it. He looked around this new room and saw that it stored various kinds of pots and pans. With a small help from some more lightning, he noticed that these pots and pans were being held up by various hooks and crowded with some shelving and counters.

This must be her kitchen. Moonshy thought to himself. Here might be a good place to start.

There was another eerie thud in the room behind him, this time fallowed with a not-so-quiet “Ouch!” He heard hoof-steps moving closer to the kitchen. Moonshy searched around franticly for a place to hide but as the hoof-steps got even closer, he found that the only thing he could do was back up. Hopefully he would end up in the darker shadows.

CRASH, CLANGCLA CLANG! This sound, combined with the iron he felt on the back of his head made his heart skip several beats. He felt himself grow pale as he realized… he had backed into and knocked over several pieces of cookware.

Oh no! Oh no oh no oh no oh no! Moonshy you stupid idiot! You cheese headed fool! Now you’re about to get found out! You twit! You ninny! You can’t escape now! Everything from here to Fhillydelphia and the ever moving city of Cloudsdale knows you’re here now!

“M- Moonshy?” That voice… it was the voice he had been missing all this time. That was the voice of Fluttershy! Fluttershy was the creature he saw move through the cottage. She was trying to hide from the creatures just like he was. Moonshy couldn’t remember a time when he felt more relived.

“Uh… yes?” He replied in kind.

She rushed him in a way that expressed total sadness, and complete fear. She almost fell right onto him, but he slowed her flop by putting a hoof out front, making sure she didn’t further harm his wing.

“H- HEY! Watch my wing… I- I’m pretty sure it’s broken.” He stammered nervously. Fluttershy didn’t reply. She just fell right into his arms. He almost thought she fainted, but then he realized that there was warm moisture trickling down his shoulder. She let out a distressed squeak. It didn’t take him long to figure out that… she was crying. Her sadness was contagious, making him feel the same, but when it was on him, it came with a side effect of anger. Anger not towards Fluttershy at all, but towards whatever was her reason for crying.

He wrapped his outstretched hoof around her and began to stroke her silky mane as an attempt to comfort her, great concern filling his soul. Fluttershy squeaked and sobbed some more so he continued to stroke her. He wanted to know exactly what was causing her such dismay, even though he already had a pretty good idea. He let her weep a bit longer before finally saying something.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, annoyed at himself for his lack of a lead up.

“Oh, It was horrible… the- they…” She dropped her head and sniffled. Her voice fallowed by a depressed wail.

“They did what?”

“The Changelings… they- they killed them all. All those poor little…” She stopped again, unable to complete her sentence due to her depression and weeping. She needed to say no more than that. Now he knew what had happened. The changelings, which he guessed to be the creatures that have been causing so much toil these past few days, came through and… killed all the animals Flutter cared for. His anger reached a peak, his internal heat feeling like steam. That anger was rivaled only by her contagious sadness. He felt extremely bad for what had happened, guilty for not being there to protect her. His mind raced, remembering every way possible he knew to kill somepony… or in this case, changeling. At the same time, however, his eyes watered and he felt tears coming to the surface. He sunk his head so that it wrapped around Fluttershy’s neck and he let those tears fall out of his eyelids. Quietly, he bawled as well. For the next several minutes, they cried together.

“C- Come on, We should get out of here. I know a way out… I- I think.” Every house, from what he’s seen, has a back door. He almost face-hoofed himself for not realizing that sooner. At least he knew now that there was no creature waiting to eat him or something like that. He took several steps with Fluttershy at his side. He wrapped his one good wing around her so that he could continue to offer comfort. They moved into the other room, the one he didn’t try or enter before, and sure enough there was a back door there. It was wide open… suspicious, yet too convenient to pass up. Looking out he saw that the rain outside had calmed itself down to a drizzle, and bits and pieces of the sun’s rays now poked their beautiful light through. A sight he wanted to see forever, for it seemed a symbol of hope, but alas, the changelings still occupied the town, so they had to move through it discretely. Luckily, his discovery of the underground passageways would make things a right bit easier.

“Um… where, are, we going?” Fluttershy asked, still sniveling.

“There is a… A um, underground tunnel system. It runs all the way through Ponyville, from what I’ve seen. There’s an entrance to it right under your bridge. I- I’m,” His next few words tried to jump out of his throat, but were caught at the last second by the tip of his tongue. “Er, what I’m saying is, they’re safe. A good place to hide out until things… pass.”

“You’re- you’re sure they’ll pass?”

“They will once I’m done with them… hopefully. I’m going to draw queen Chrysalis out of hiding. I think she’s currently disguised as… Princess Twilight, your friend.”

Fluttershy’s eyes began to water again. He didn’t realize that the mention of a friend being an evil queen was hard for anypony to accept. He tried to change the subject before she cried again. He really felt bad when she cried. Social skills such as that however, were not his strong suit.

“Oh, no no no, I didn’t mean…” Before he realized what he was doing, he hugged her. Doing what he could to comfort her yet again. “I… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I jus—“ He sighed “Let’s go, Everything will be alright soon, I promise. I will not stop until I have Chrysalis banished from here for eternity.”

They moved through the tunnels unimpaired by anything except mud. The place was like a maze, thankfully, Moonshy had a good sense of direction. So did Fluttershy, it seemed. They came across a newly formed tunnel link which looked as though it stretched fourth towards Twilights castle.

Bingo! He thought as he noticed the stone bricks transition into purple crystal. He began trotting down the corridor when Fluttershy spoke up once more.

“M- Moonshy?”

“Mhm?” He replied turning around. Fluttershy’s head was down, her pink hair covering one of her eyes. She was looking up at him shyly and one of her hooves were rubbing up nervously against the other. She was about to say something, he could tell by her demeanor. But she was holding off on saying it out of shyness.

“Before we go and… stop Chrysalis,” She continued “I just wanted you to know that, I mean, I just wanted to say that. Oh, why must it be so hard to talk?”

“I- If you can’t talk… than maybe you should let your… actions? Speak for you. Un- un- unless, you don’t really have, anything to--” Fluttershy interrupted him with a peck on the lips. Moonshy reeled his head back, pleasantly surprised at what had happened. She starred her beautiful turquoise eyes into his mystical blue ones. Soon, Moonshy couldn’t help himself, He moved his head closer to hers and interlocked his mouth with hers. He closed his eyes simply to enjoy the moment. A moment that was too good to be true.

Moonshy felt his life drain from him again… and now he realized what was happening. Chrysalis wasn’t disguised as Twilight, like his original theory suggested, she was… Fluttershy! Her body morphed into a dark form and her wicked green eyes pierced deep into his soul. He felt used, stupid, and played. How could he have been so blind!?