ROOTS

Chapters

Chapter I: The Fire
Chapter II: Alga
Chapter III: Notes on the Everfree
Prologue: Lore of the Dryad

Chapter I: The Fire

A wind billowed through the Everfree Forest.

The tall oaks and willows creaked and groaned under the weight of decades. Vines and weeds wrapped themselves around the roots, like parasites attacking a host. Colorful orchids and a rainbow of small florets danced in the cool breeze. Color rained down from the canopy of the Everfree, sending down speckled spots of light.

Even then, the forest was pitch-black. An impenetrable darkness radiated from the center of the forest, where the Everfree Deer thrived in relative peace and harmony. Besides the occasional twittering of birds or the croaking of frogs, the forest was silent. No voices to disturb the deep rumblings of the trees, no hoofsteps to shatter the delicate rhythm of nature. None were there to acknowledge this ominous breeze, carrying a scent of ponies and the danger that they come with.

Or so it would seem that none were there to acknowledge it.

A large bush-like plant shuddered, and the twisted trunk unravelled itself in order to reveal something much more than a common plant.

Four long, slender roots pulled themselves out of the ground and rested their flat bottoms upon the dirty forest floor. The leaves of the bush drew themselves into the creature's body, revealing a thick skin of green and brown bark. The top of the body rose up, and a pair of glimmering blue eyes opened. A blue light gleamed from within the creature's abdomen, illuminating various roots and tendrils that make up its body. Several strands of vine stiffened formed a rudimentary mane of scraggly twigs. The dryad whiffed at the air as a pair of flowers bloom on its stiff mane as various grasses grow out with the long, unruly tail.

The dryad recognized the smell that had awoken it. It's a smell those few dryads that remain have come to fear. The smell of smoke. That didn’t quite make sense, considering how it was early autumn, and it was far too humid for any kind of spontaneous combustion. The dryad knew immediately that it would have to investigate.

Another dryad, a younger one, stepped up beside the elder. The younger unfurled several vines from it's back and tugs at the other. Blue lights emit from within both creatures as they acknowledge each other.

"Resin?"

The younger spoke in soft tones, like a rustling of leaves. The younger's feminine voice tinkled across the clearing, the raw magic in her words caused several trees to shudder in anticipation and a family of birds to twitter merrily.

"Alga? Why have you woken?"

The elder's, Resin's, voice was rougher, but it was calming all the same. The greater's voice was reminiscent of the subtle creaking of an ancient oak. The younger, Alga, shuffled a root-leg and looked down in embarrassment.

"You know that the sun will not rise for a long while.” Resin said, “Every sapling needs their sleep."

"Why are you up, Resin?"

"Do not worry about what I am doing.”

“But-”

“No ‘buts’. You are still under five thousand moons old. You must remain dormant until the sunrise. That is the rule."

"I'm over four thousand and a half!” Alga countered indignantly. “Isn't that old enough?"

"No, and when I was four thousand moons old, I listened to my elder. And my elder wasn't nearly as nice to me as I am to you. Need I remind you of your great-grandmother Xylem?"

"It's almost sunrise anyways! It'd be dumb to fold myself back up just to wake up again in a little bit. Can't I stay up with you?" She batted her shining blue eyes in a desperate plea, "Pleeeeease?"

"Alga, do not test me. Saplings must always listen to their elders. Now go dormant, and I'll awaken you when it is time to sun ourselves." Resin stood tall, enough to be adamant, but not enough to be menacing.

Alga scowled, a frown etching itself across the tender bark on her face. She listens, rearranging herself once again to resemble a bush. Other than the occasional grumble of irritation, she complied.

Now satisfied, Resin made his way through the woods, following the scent of smoke. Unknownst to him, Alga remained awake and watched him leave the clearing. She unfurled herself once he was out of sight and looked about eagerly.

Alga loved her uncle, don’t assume she doesn’t. Resin tended to be a little too strict in Alga’s opinion. She was an adventurous spirit, and Resin didn’t seem to want her to do anything fun. So as soon as her uncle had left her, she had leapt up and proceeded to sniff at the air like he had been doing only moments prior.

The younger dryad didn’t quite smell the smoke that had alarmed her uncle.

Instead she smelled something that intrigued her far more than some boring old fire would. It was a natural smell, yet at the same time not so. There was sweat, and there was something a bit more earthy too. And for some reason, it smelled far too floral to actually be any species of flower that Alga recognized. Unknownst to her, the scent that she had been contemplating was that of ponies.

* * * * *

Resin had walked for about half an hour before coming across the blaze.

He had fought his fair share of forest fires. Mostly ones that were only natural burns, for when the forest decided it was time to clear out a patch of older woods to make room for younglings. Resin didn’t exactly like destroying the forest, but it was something that had to be done. And because he and Alga were possibly the last dryads in the Everfree, there wasn’t anyone else to do it. He hated fire. But he had to deal with it. It was a part of his job.

But instead of seeing the regular red and yellow forest fire, he was surprised to see that this one was an unnatural, sickly green. There was something very unnatural about this fire. The dryad could clearly see that these were no mere spouts of flame. This was an act of arson.

Resin studied the fire from a distance and decided that this was the work of a spell of some sort. Obviously one meant to clear away the wildlife and the brush. Resin leapt into action, summoning water from the deposits within the trees. The fire died down some, but not completely.

A few creatures came scurrying out from the hellfire. To his horror, many were burned severely. Bluebirds and cardinals called into the inferno for their chicks, and were only met by the panicked sounds of many more animals trapped within.

The dryad stepped boldly towards the flames, only to cringe away as raw heat licked at his leaves. There was little chance that he could fight off a blaze this severe all by himself. He couldn’t just leave the flames as well. A naturally-occurring forest fire is good, it clears space for young plants and new sprouts. But this magical fire was the very opposite.

Resin looked up at the wall of fire and contemplated his very limited options. He was worried that he would have to evacuate the forest if the fire couldn’t be controlled. Maybe the Deer Tribes could help him. Or even a few dragons. Resin know for certain that he would definitely not be going to the ponies for help.

A rogue wind blasted through and sent several plumes of smoke into Resin. He gagged at the taste, but still drank up the toxic soot in an almost futile attempt to protect the forest surrounding the fire.

A small fawn stumbled out of the blaze; it had a few scratches and slight burns, but was otherwise okay. Resin continued to absorb the smoke, giving the fawn a small path to escape the fiery prison.

“Get over here!” Resin choked, gesturing with several vines towards his underside.

The fawn skittered over towards Resin and leapt underneath his roots. Resin grew his vines around the young deer, becoming something like a protective bubble of wood and greens.

The fire wafted over onto Resin, and he winced in pain. His glowing blue core shone even brighter, coating him in a thin layer of raw magic. The layer then exploded outwards, and the fire was extinguished in a large circle around him. Resin quickly uprooted himself and dragged the crying fawn along with him as he galloped out of the blaze. Sure, he could stop a fire in that way, but he was nowhere near powerful enough to stop this inferno.

“Are you okay, kid?” Resin asked the baby deer after they had gotten a safe enough distance away.

“I’m not a kid… I’m a fawn.” The little one, a buck, whined. “I want my momma!”

“I’m sure you do. What Tribe are you from?”

“Whitetail?”

“Are you certain?” Resin asked, raising his brow as he tended to the charring that was beginning to form on his bark. He hoped that he hadn’t damaged his sapwood, which was practically the blood vessels for a dryad.

“Uh huh.” The fawn nodded his head weakly. The stress was probably catching up to the youngling as the effects of adrenaline wore off.

Resin lifted up the fawn with several vines and placed it gently on his back.

“Let’s get you home, then. Do you know where your Tribe is?”

“Uhhhh… no, sir.”

“Great.”

* * * * *

"And so you see, Princess Twilight! Something lurks out here in the night!"

The melodic tones of the zebra mare resonated across the woods.

The scent of burning wood still hung in the air, and a thin blanket of smog clouded about between the remaining trees. The Everfree Forest had never felt so empty to the ponies accompanying the zebra. They weren’t accustomed to seeing the forest damaged. They were more used to seeing the forest dealing the damage instead. But even the ponies could feel the forest’s pain.

The pair of ponies looked altogether out of place in such a harsh wilderness such as the Everfree Forest. The taller pony mare was a lavender Alicorn bearing a cutie mark in the shape of a shining star. The smaller mare was a soft yellow Pegasus, who seemed content to hide behind her pink mane. Together, the three stood in the dusty ash staring at the smouldering remains of a hut.

"It is a creature that I seek, one who may no longer be so meek. A creature of legends I have always found mad; Princess have you, pray tell, heard of a dryad?"

"A dryad?" the Pegasus squeaked in alarm, "I thought dryads were nice! They seemed so nice in the stories... Th-They don't hate ponies, do they Twilight?"

"No, no," the Alicorn, Twilight, answered. "Dryads are just protectors of the forest. They used to live here in multitudes. But when ponies moved in, the dryads were forced into what little forest we left standing. It's understandable that some adult dryads would be resentful of ponies, but none are aggressive. But nowadays they're pretty hard to come by. It’s kinda hard to believe that a dryad would want to burn down your hut, Zecora. It kind of goes against everything they stand for. Are you sure it wasn’t an accident?"

"No. If what you say is true," the zebra muttered icily, "then what of these weeds that just grew?"

The zebra pointed an angry hoof at the ground near the ruins of her home. Twilight looked at the peculiar vines that were waving about crazily, many of these vines were slowly inching their way towards the unaware Pegasus. Twilight shot a magic spell from her horn and the plant recoiled. The Pegasus, meanwhile, shot up into a tree and out of reach of the vicious plants with a squeal of fear.

"I'm not sure, Zecora. Could they just be an undiscovered species? Or maybe they’re plunderseeds. You know, the stuff that attacked Ponyville a long time ago?"

"No, for mischief was had," The zebra, Zecora replied. "This is the handiwork of a dryad!"

"I understand why you're angry that your house burned down, Zecora. But we really shouldn’t jump to conclusions like this. Maybe I can go back to castle and read up on dryads. I don’t know all that much about them, and I’d like an unbiased view on them, no offense." Twilight smiled at Zecora, who did not return the gesture. "So Zecora, if you feel like remaining in the forest is too dangerous, you can always come to stay at my castle. My doors are open for anypony."

The zebra only nodded.

"So," Twilight said, looking about the forest, "dryads, huh? That's fascinating. I've never met a dryad before. Have you, Fluttershy?"

The pegasus shook head.

"No, never! I've heard stories about them ever since I was a filly, though. My grandmother always told me that they were tenders of the woods and guardians of the wild. They've always sounded so beautiful..."

Zecora snorted but said nothing.

"Well, let's get back to town. I don't like staying here for too long. We don’t want to be Timberwolf food... or plant food, for the matter."

Twilight beckoned for the others and they followed the princess as they trotted together down the path back to the town of Ponyville. Behind them, a pair of glowing blue eyes watch them leave.

Chapter II: Alga

The Whitetail Tribe had celebrated the return of their little buck, thanking Resin over and over and demanding that they repay him somehow.

They had offered him every type of beverage and food and trinket that they owned. Resin had to kindly explain to them that the only sustenance he required was fresh water and sunlight.

They had all nodded in understanding, but Resin had still caught the deer trying to splatter food on his roots.

Beyond a partial participation in the festivities, he had made sure to warn the Whitetails about the fire raging in the South, near Ponyville. The deer were sure to in turn warn their youth about the inferno, and to forbid any of them from pulling a stunt like the little buck had. Then they pledged eternal allegiance to Resin and promised to help fight off the fire (even though he had explicitly said not to) before they recommenced with their festivities.

The dryad left the Whitetails to their parties and began to make his way back into the clearing where he had left his niece.

Alga would most likely want to sun herself by now if she wasn’t already. It was still early in the morning, but Resin doubted that he would make it back home by noon. He’d have to make this whole fiasco up to her. Maybe he could teach her a thing or two about magic? Alga was still a novice, after all. And when she was older she’d have to be able to help him with the daily tasks of a dryad.

Or maybe he could just show her something a little less dangerous. Like how to tend to orchids.

Yes, orchids. That was something little saplings liked. Colorful, pleasant, harmless orchids.

Not something as potentially harmful as fighting a forest fire.

* * * * *

“Alga? I’m back!”

Resin strode into the clearing. He was pleased to see that the fire had not spread there, and probably would not for several more days. They would unfortunately have to relocate.

“Alga, where’d you go, you silly little sapling?”

There was no reply.

“Alga… Are you hiding from me?” Resin asked as he checked up in the forest canopy.

“Okay, Alga. Enough with the games.” Resin said with mild irritation, redirecting his attention to his surroundings. “Come on out. I understand you being angry with me, but I promise I’ll teach you some magic today.”

Still nothing.

“Alga!”

Resin felt himself bristle. He really didn't like punishing Alga for any reason, but after calling for her several times with no answer… That sort of thing couldn't go unwarranted.

“ALGA! Come out this instant!”

Resin made his core flash once more, illuminating the surrounding trees. Said trees glowed with a blue light before lifting themselves up with their thick roots and moving to the side, clearing away the brush as they did so. Resin let out a huff as the search still turned up nothing.

“Young lady! Do not make me take away your privileges! This is your last warning!”

No reply.

“THAT’S IT! No playing with the fireflies tonight!”

Resin waited a good two more minutes before he completely blew a gasket. He cast a spell that halted several songbirds midflight. The birds landed on his back, twittering in mild confusion.

“Hello, sorry to bother. But have you happened to see something like me?” Resin asked the suddenly tame birds. “But smaller? I really must find her.”

The birds chirped their songs and Resin grumbled a short thanks. The birds, now broken from the spell that held them in place, took flight once more.

He really didn't want to perform a tracking spell. The dryads were always expert trackers, thanks in part to their ability to communicate with nature itself. But Resin didn't particularly like tracking because of how taxing it was.

He did it anyways. A trail of blue flowers spontaneously sprouted from the ground, forming a line that continued to grow in the direction that Alga had gone. The thing that make tracking so costly to perform was the amount of growth it required. Sprouting dormant seeds took a lot of magic and effort.

He began to follow the trail, marching along through the overgrowth.

Several birds tweeted above him, and a few squirrels took to following him. Resin ignored the annoying little animals. He didn't have time for their shenanigans. Flatout ignoring the creatures dancing about him, he continued to follow his ever-growing trail of flowers. He could feel the energy leaking out of him like water out of a broken jug. He despised tracking.

Suddenly, the blue flowers curved off into what Resin assumed was an old pony hiking trail. He had always meant to close up the trails, because they were just wasted spaces all over the forest. But the dryad had never gotten around to it.

He was relieved to see that Alga’s path had gone into this trail. But he wasn't relieved to see clear hoof-shaped prints in the ground next to the dwindling trail of magical flowers.

“Oh no.” He whispered.

He started to run, following the hoofprints now.

“No no no no no!”

Resin felt an emptiness in his core. A feeling he had felt once before and never thought he’d ever feel again.

“Please no!” But the thing he had been dreading was unfortunately true. Alga had followed ponies out of the woods. Possibly even the very arsonists who set the forest ablaze.

He could see sunlight through the tree trunks, and beyond that he could see the colorful houses of the pony village located right next to the Everfree Forest.

Alga had gone there. That foolish sapling.

He remembered long ago when his elder sister, Hyphae, had left the forest. She had left him the bulb that would grow into Alga behind to ‘keep him company’, claiming that the ponies were so much more different than from what they used to be. That ponies could change. That ponies could come to accept that they have harmed the balance of nature.

"The ponies are so kind now. Ponies and dryads should learn to love each other, not fear each other. They seek us out, why not let them find us?" Hyphae had said. "I'll be back by nightfall."

Hyphae vanished that day.

Xylem, Resin’s guardian and grandmother, had scolded Resin for letting Hyphae go.

But ever since that day, Resin knew.

He knew that ponies were dangerous creatures. They chopped down trees to build their filthy ‘houses’ and slaughtered wildlife for ‘sport’. They took plants and enslaved them to turn them into 'crops', sad wastes of life whose only purpose was to make a food supply for the ponies. Those greedy monsters, those beasts of destruction.

Ponies only knew how to take. They never gave back to the Forest that bowed to them in fear. They just took and took and took.

Now they had taken Alga, from what the blue trail said as it had crossed over the ponies’ hoofprints. She had left the forest without him, chasing after the very threat he believed to have committed the horrible act of arson. Alga was in a grave danger.

Those ponies… They were up to no good.

And Resin wasn’t going to let them destroy her like they did to Hyphae. Poor, poor Hyphae.

The fear for Alga’s safety molded itself into something deadlier. Resin could feel himself well up in anger.

The one dryad you will never want to meet in an angry dryad. And Resin was beyond angry now. He was outraged, berserk, maybe even ludicrous. And he had all of the Everfree at his disposal.

Resin willed the Forest to hear his call. His call of anger and rage. The ponies are stealing our sapling, our daughter needs us, he rumbled in a language older than any other, we must get her back.

In the trees, birds burst into a sinister song of crows and caws. Timberwolves howled in the distance and the roars of manticores could be heard as well. Trees groaned and creaked, the fresh bark cracking in order to make up for the quick movement as the trees uprooted, using their thick roots as appendages. Should anything go wrong with his journey, the forest would practically explode into the pony village.

Resin’s core glowed, the blue light rivaling that of the sun. But then it dimmed. All at once, the warsong of the Everfree halted. He wasn’t strong enough to go on a rampage. He needed to rest.

Resin fanned himself out, splaying every leaf as he absorbed the great fireball’s heat. He would need to prepare himself.

Outside the Forest was a dangerous world out there for a dryad.

* * * * *

“So why would a dryad start acting so oddly, Zecora?” Twilight asked as they made their way through the midday market of Ponyville.

The Princess halted their conversation to wave to an orange Earth Pony mare in a broad hat, who eagerly waved back and then recommenced the sales of her apples.

“I would not know how they will think, beyond some dangerous hoodwink.” The zebra squinted, not quite used to the bright sunlight.

“Well, let’s head back to the castle. We could do a bit of research. maybe we could bring Spike along next time. I’ve read that Dragons and dryads get along nicely. Maybe we could make a few friends!” Twilight squeed in excitement, “Imagine! Being the first Princess to open Pony-Dryad relations! Eeeeeeee!”
She tapped her hooves together and began to trot much faster than before.

Zecora snorted and rolled her icy eyes. The zebra still did not trust the troublesome dryads, especially since they so frequently raided her stash of supplies in hopes of sabotaging her potioneering. Zecora was not known as one to hate things, but the one thing she hated more than anything else was a dryad.

Fluttershy meanwhile, browsed the many stalls with mild interest as she followed her two friends. She’d occasionally stop and ask about various foods and wares, mostly about their safety with animals. Unknown to the Pegasus, she was being watched. A strange glowing bush shuddered from its place in the Sugarcube Corner’s flowerbeds. A pair of blue eyes followed the floating mare as she quietly appraised every trinket she saw in the vendor’s cart.

Alga was studying the Pegasus.

She had heard that some Ponies were born with wings, but she had always imagined veiny, nasty wings, like on a bat. And she expected Ponies to be gruesome and filthy. But these colorful beings looked less like monsters and more like… gods. Pretty, colorful, and bright gods. With dainty little bird wings and curling horns that didn't resemble anything she had ever seen before. These creatures were beautiful, and powerful as well.

The flower bed was a good example of their raw power. They could force wildflowers to grow in bunches? Without even using magic? Bigger and healthier than any flower from the Forest? How could these Ponies manage such inconceivable tasks? How could they build homes from stone? How could they get trees and plants to grow their food for them?

There were so many questions Alga had, and so little time. For she knew that even now, Resin would be hot on her trail, angrier than ever. Though she was quite frankly scared out of her wits in the Ponyville Market Square, Alga dreaded returning to the darkness of the Forest and to the wrath of her uncle.

And out here, there was so much sunshine! So much water! So many animals and new friends to make! And Alga knew that she wanted to befriend that shy yellow Pegasus first.

“Honey, do you remember this bush being here?”

A plump blue Earth Pony mare waddled over to the flowerbed, obscuring Alga’s view of the Pegasus. A tall stallion sauntered over to look. Slightly annoyed by this interruption of her espionage, Alga directed her attention to the couple.

“Well… no. I don't. Think it’s a weed?”

Weed? Alga thought, Who the hickory is she calling a weed? I’m not a weed!

“Maybe. Let’s just get Pinkie Pie to remove it. She’s not doing anything else productive.”

Uh oh. ‘Removing’ doesn’t sound fun.

“PINKIE! GET THE WEED WHACKER!” The stallion shouted into the house.

Alga winced from the shout, but her chlorophyll ran cold when she heard the whirring that all plants instinctively dread. That rumbling was paired with an overjoyed yippee; which for some reason scared Alga further. What were these crazy Ponies going to do?

“Brrrrrblrbrblrblrblrblr!” A pink mare babbled excitedly as she continues revving up the strange device in her hooves.

Alga shook visibly; but none of the ponies noticed that the bush is whimpering and shuddering in fear.

The weed whacker edged closer and closer to where Alga lay, the blades whirring so fast that the dryad sapling could feel the breeze made by their rapid spinning.

Then, she couldn’t take it anymore.

Alga unfurled herself so quickly it looked like the bush had spontaneously exploded into a pony-like creature in less than the blink of an eye.

The blue mare screamed and leapt into the hooves of her husband, the pink mare fell on her back in surprise, the weed whacker fell as well and sputtered away into some roses.

Everypony in the market gazed at the thing in the Sugarcube Corner’s flowerbed; all eyes were on her, Alga. The dryad had never felt so many creatures staring at her in fear. The blue light that made up her core dimmed slightly.

“Oh my…” A quiet voice whispered.

It was the yellow Pegasus. The Pegasus had heard the screams of the blue mare and came immediately to help. Alga looked up into her cerulean eyes, eyes that were sad and scared but happy and kind.

“Hello, little one. I’m Fluttershy. What’s your name?”

“A-Alga.”

“Alga! What a pretty name for such a pretty… um… what are you?”

“Silly pony! I’m a dryad!” Alga giggled nervously, staring back at the ogling crowd. Where was this leading?

“A dryad? F-From the Everfree Forest?”

“Where else would I be from?”

“Oh my! O-Oh my goodness. I need to get you somewhere safe! Could you… um… come with me? I can take you someplace with food and water. You must be lost, you poor thing. I mean, you can come if you want to.”

Alga looked into the Pegasus’s kind eyes and smiled.

“Sure.”

* * * * *

A small, quaint cottage stood between the Everfree and Ponyville.

It was some distance from the farm called Sweet Apple Acres, but not far enough away to be considered isolated. The cottage was seemingly overrun by several creatures of all sizes and shapes. But what the owner of this cottage considered to be the most elegant creature of them all stood alone in the middle of the cottage’s kitchen. Standing in a large tub of water.

Fluttershy gazed with wide, adoring eyes as she watched the beautiful dryad soak up the bowl of springwater she had poured just for it.

Alga, it’s name was.

What a suitable name for such a cute little… plant… tree… thing. The lichen growing on the woodland spirit’s bark reminded Fluttershy of a patch of pond scum. Not in the disgusting way, however. She would never consider another living thing ‘disgusting’! The shining green was amazing; what with the way it made the dryad glimmer in the sunlight streaming through the window.

“Is it good?” Fluttershy whispered.

Alga nodded; she had been so thirsty. Fluttershy sighed and smiled. At least she was as good at keeping plants as she was at keeping animals. Fluttershy had a sudden light bulb moment. She could get Applejack to help her with this dryad.

“You know, I’ve always wanted to be a tree,” Fluttershy admitted, “because trees are so big and strong and graceful. I’m just… me.” Alga opened an eye and looked straight at Fluttershy, who she thought was the embodiment of grace itself.

“Well, I think you’re a good pony. A better pony than most trees I’ve met.” Alga shuddered slightly as she closed her eyes and remembered an awfully rude sagebrush tree she had met eons ago. It kept trying to outgrow its neighbors and it had simply ignored Resin’s instructions. That had been the only tree that either dryad had been forced to uproot.

Alga finished her drink and stepped out of the large mixing bowl. The dryad looked about the Pegasus’s roomy cottage as the yellow mare dumped the remaining water into the nearby kitchen sink.

“Are these animals your friends?” Alga asked, gesturing towards the various free-roaming creatures.

Fluttershy nodded.

“I raise animals for ponies to keep as pets. So many of them have been here their whole lives though, so I just keep those ones for myself.” Fluttershy picked up a rather grouchy-looking bunny and nuzzled it.

“What’s a pet?” Alga asked.

Fluttershy started to do the dishes as Alga and the bunny watched.

“Oh, do dryads not keep pets? Well, a pet is an animal that a pony keeps and takes care of. Pets are a lot of responsibility.”

Alga propped herself up on the countertop, watching the Pegasus work away.

“So you take animals from their homes in the wild, and then you cage them up fooooor…? What? Slave labor? Food?”

Fluttershy looked up from her dishes in alarm.

“Oh no, no! Oh my goodness, no! Never! We keep them because… They're nice. Its always nice to have companions.” To emphasize that point, the Pegasus lifted up the bunny with her hooves and gave it a nuzzle. The bunny looked mildly irritated, but Alga didn't bother pointing that out.

“Uh huh. Well, my uncle always said that ponies were nothing but slave-masters and crooked thieves.”

Fluttershy returned to her dishes, raising her eyebrows and keeping her gaze on the sapling.

“My. What's your uncle’s name? Is e a dryad, too?”

“His name is Resin, and he says he’s the last guardian of the Everfree!”

Fluttershy’s eyes went wide.

“Is that true?”

“Heck no.” Alga snorted. “Of course there's other dryad guardians. There has to be…”

Fluttershy gave Alga a look. She didn't say anything, but Alga knew what Fluttershy was thinking.

Chapter III: Notes on the Everfree

450 YEARS AGO

“Resin, I don’t want you to follow me.”

The tall, elegant dryad female stood at the edge of the Everfree Forest, facing Ponyville. The long crabgrasses that composed her mane and tail flowed in a wind that wasn’t there. Flowers adorned her chest and neck, creeping up into her mane like ornaments.

Her sibling, a sapling male with a gaze that could pierce stone, stood adamant by her side.

“But you can’t go alone.” The young dryad hissed. “You can’t leave me here, Hyphae!”

Hyphae smiled down at her brother.

Dryad eyes could not produce tears; but if they could, Resin’s eyes would be full of them.

“I must, little brother.” The elder cooed. “Here. I have an idea.”

A viney tendril extended from Hyphae’s back to grasp a bulb hanging under her belly. She plucked it, wincing as it disconnected from her body. A blue smoke of sorts appeared from Hyphae’s core, and it surrounded the bulb, being absorbed by it. Giving life to it.

“Plant this,” Hypha said to her brother, handing it to him, “it will grow into a sapling, much like yourself. And you won’t be alone. And you have Xylem to keep you company as well.”

“B-But,” young Resin stammered, breaking his stony demeanor into something softer, “Xylem is MEAN! She doesn’t like me!”

“Of course she does, she’s our grandmother. She has to like us. She’s obligated to. Now I’m leaving Resin. Don’t follow me. I want you to stay here while I talk to the mayor.”

Resin watched with horror as his sister, his only sibling, stepped out into the sunlight and walked towards the buildings of Ponyville.

She was gone.

He knew even then that Hyphae would never return to the Everfree. It would be weeks before a hoard of hooded ponies dumped her crumbling remains at the very edge of the woods. Xylem had called her foolish. Her demise was her own fault. But Resin couldn’t help but feel guilt.

She was dead the moment she left the safety of the forest.

* * * * *

TODAY

Resin spent a lot of time thinking as he sunned himself.

And he didn't think happy thoughts. He recalled all the dryads he had lost; to ponies, to disease, to just to the circle of life that controlled everything a dryad did. Dryads may be spirits, but they weren’t immortal. Everything had to succumb to death at some point.

Resin thought about his grandmother, Xylem. She had lived a good many thousand years. But the elder dryad had finally died when a pony lumberjack mistook her for brush. The poor thing didn’t even know it was coming; though luckily she hadn’t survived the first initial whack.

After Xylem, Alga and he had met a fully grown dryad by the name of Sage. He had been a great help, and performed most of the responsibilities as guardian of the forest while Resin raised his niece. Sage had succumbed to a strain of illness called the blight, something that he had caught from a grove of oak trees. Sage’s roots weakened first, leaving him dehydrated and fragile. Then his leaves began to slowly fall out; then he slowly starved to death, having no way to absorb sunlight. Resin had buried him beneath a willow tree.

In dryad culture, burial was regarded with contempt, because it prevented the flora and fauna of the surface from recycling the remains into nature. But Sage’s remains could still infect others, and so Resin had been forced to disgrace the elder’s body by pulling it underneath the willow.

Cypress. Buckeye. Juniper. Magnolia. There were countless others. All of them gone, taken by all the various dangers that dryads were vulnerable to.

Resin felt that emptiness once more.

Alga was just another name to add to the long list of those he had lost. Beyond the one all dryads knew as Cernunnos, no other dryads remained. Resin was alone in this world, and that blow was crushing. As a male, he couldn’t produce bulbs. The dryad race would die with him.

Resin’s semi-conscious mind drifted once more towards Cernunnos. Legends told of a king, the first and only king of the dryads. A being so powerful and so vast that it took many moons for him to sun himself. Cernunnos had many abilities that dryads and ponies alike could only dream about. The king of dryads could control the entirety of the Forest, his strength rivalled even that of the dragons. The stories said that Cernunnos even held power over life itself. Giving and taking as he pleased.

It had been Alga’s favorite bedtime story.

Resin couldn't help but wish he was as powerful as Cernunnos. That way, he could just will Hyphae, Alga, even Xylem back to life. Instead of avenging their deaths.

Resin looked out towards the pony village from his sunning spot.

A direct assault wouldn’t do. He was clearly outnumbered. And the ponies had magic spells specially for combat, whereas dryads only performed caregiving spells. He could rule up some animals and plants to storm the town with him, but he didn't want any of his wards to be hurt. Or killed. Resin realized how stupid his original plan had sounded, just full on attacking the village with a small army.

No, he’d have to be sneaky.

Dryads had plenty of practice in stealth magic. It was how they remained undetected so often, by hiding in plain sight using an array of spells that hindered ponies’ attention spans and camouflaged them into the surrounding environment.

He was going to the village upon nightfall. When the ponies slept. If Alga was still alive, he’d rescue her. Then he would demand the ponies extinguish their fire. And if they didn't accept his terms?

He’d destroy them.

Resin smiled.

In the distance, the forest fire continued to burn, sending up clouds of greenish grey smoke. He could barely hear the monstrous roar as the flames ate at the Everfree.

* * * * *

Zecora and Twilight were lounging in the vast library of the later’s castle.

Towers of books surrounded the cozy sofas set up in the center of the enormous room. Lazing upon these sofas were a pair of mares; one Alicorn, and one zebra. They faced each other, though the two were performing two very different evening rituals.

Zecora was performing a headstand, her forelegs crossed and her hind legs splayed out, helping her balance. Her meditation was expected by Twilight, which explained why the lavender mare took no notice in this strange act. Every so often the zebra would let out a sigh of relaxation and Twilight would smile slightly and glance up at her friend. Twilight Sparkle was reading a book, as per usual. She didn't quite know what book it was, she had been reading so many that the titles had all jumbled together.

She was looking for a paragraph, a letter, anything that had to do with dryads and their behavior. Something that could help her understand that curious vine that Zecora had been so upset about.

But there was nothing.

“Zecora?”

“Hm?”

“Why exactly do you think a dryad made that plant act strangely? And even if it was a dryad, what does it matter? The plant wasn’t hurting anypony.” Twilight put down her book and allowed the question to linger in the air. Zecora did not move from her position on her respective sofa.

“Spirits of nature they may be, but capable of mischief as you can see. Dryads can be cruel and hateful as they please, as evident by peculiar plants such as these.”

“So… You’re saying that you simply don’t like dryads?”

Zecora said nothing, but now her tail swished angrily. Twilight decided to return to reading her book before she aggravated Zecora to the point to where the zebra might slip something into her next meal.

Opening the book to a random page, Twilight was surprised to see that the first thing she saw was a few sentences about a ‘tree spirit’. Twilight didn’t know about any other tree spirits then dryads, so she assumed that this was something that had escaped her attention.

“Interesting…” Twilight whispered, and she began to read.

“Princess, since questions are rife, how is your quest to recreate life?”

“Oh, Starlight’s pet project? She’s in the dungeons working on it now. Seems she's been getting a little TOO obsessed with it, if you know what I mean.” Twilight sighed as she thought of her toiling pupil. “So far, we’ve… Rather, she has only made rudimentary golems. And even those fell apart after a few minutes. Maybe we’re doing it wrong, I don’t know.”
0
Twilight paused for a minute to read a few more lines of her book.

“I mean, we’ve even tried NECROMANCY, Zecora. NECROMANCY! That's illegal, by Celestia’s mane! I had to read the most awful book… ‘Shudderbones’ Compendium of Cursed Magick’. Ugh. And it has PICTURES, too…” Twilight gagged. Zecora just hummed quietly.

Twilight finally put down her book. The cover was dusty, and it hid the title. Twilight blew away the dust and read the title aloud.

“Notes on the Everfree, by Starswirl the Bearded. Huh. This could be useful.”

* * * * *

Resin opened his eyes.

The sun had long gone down, and he was ready. He pulled himself up to his full height and realized with mild irritation that every animal he had willed to his aid had fallen asleep.

It would be a good idea to go looking for Alga anyways, before he wiped that miserable pony settlement from the ground. Best not get her caught in the crossfire, in the rare chance that she had somehow survived more than an hour with the ponies.

Resin silently stalked past a colossal sleeping Ursa Major and a pair of snoozing Timberwolves. A Grizzly sat up groggily, blinked at the dryad, and immediately collapsed back into sleep. Resin rolled his eyes and resumed his walk out of the woods.

Resin halted once he reached the edge of the Everfree. He thought of Hypha. She had stepped out, and walked into the very village he was heading into himself. She had been killed almost instantly. What if the same happened to him? Then he remembered that it could possibly have happened to Alga as well.

Now fueled by anger, he boldly stalked out from the cover of the trees and headed towards the low-lying buildings of stone and wood. The various colorful paints on the different houses were dimmed slightly by the night but streetlights kept the dirt roads and occupied homes lit enough for Resin to see clearly without glowing. He made his way for the tallest building; one decorated with bright flags and high arches. It stood in the middle of a plaza as if it were a beacon. And Resin approached it as if he were a moth.

“Alga?” He whispered, keeping an eye out for unwanted adversaries. “Alga, are you there?”

Resin frowned.

If he had to go door to door looking for his niece, it was going to take forever. He would have to find an authority. Resin quickly made a plan: find the pony leader, get Alga, destroy Ponyville, go back to the forest, and then live happily ever after. Easy enough.

Resin looked around for any signs or anything to direct him to the authorities. Of course, there was nothing. This kind of incompetence was to be expected in ponies. Then again, he also couldn’t read. But that didn’t mean that ponies weren’t incompetent!

He’d have to go to another tall building. From what Resin understood, the bigger the building, the more important it had to be.

Resin peered into the night, and smiled as he saw a very tall and very tree-like formation in the distance. Although it was no mere tree; it appeared to be made of crystal. The dryad couldn’t help but feel happy looking at the castle, one of the only things in Ponyville not made out of wood. He could feel some degree of respect towards whomever resided in that estate. The key to finding Alga was going to be there of all places. Resin could feel it in his fibers.

He snuck along, creeping amongst the shadows. Even though the village was dark, some residents were still very much awake.

One building was still brightly lit, with some sort of magical fluorescent entrance with words that Resin did not understand. Inside, Resin could hear singing and laughter, and the stench of sweat, musk, and alcohol filled the air. Outside of the building was a single pony. She was asleep apparently, and upon further inspection, Resin found a bottle containing some mystery substance that reeked of poison. Why would ponies go out of their way to poison themselves?

The dryad left the unconscious mare as he continued on his way, peering through the windows of various houses. Inside, Resin could see the sleeping forms of foals and mares and stallions. The sights of these families made his insides stir, but he tried his best to ignore those feelings.

After a long, silent walk across an uninhabited meadow, he finally came to the castle’s doorstep.

Now here was the hard part.

How exactly does a dryad call upon a pony? Resin had never exactly communicated with a pony before. What if ponies were aggressive without sleep? What if ponies…

No.

Resin shook off these anxious thoughts. He was powerful compared to these weak creatures of flesh; magicwise and in brute strength. Whatever black magic ponies held would surely be negated by his own pure nature magic. Right?

And there he was again. Worrying about the uncertain consequences.

Scowling, Resin willed the bushy tendrils on his back to grow. Within seconds they were thick, twisting branches that were slowly making their way to the thick crystal doors. Then those branches, six branches the size of trees, began to wedge themselves in between the doors. There was an intense cracking sound and the door shattered with a rumbling crash.

He was in.

* * * * *

Spike the Dragon cherished sleep.

He would sleep about eighteen to twenty hours a day on average, a fact he was very proud of. Without at least eighteen hours, Spike would go into an irritable state that would last all day. Or night. Or week.

And when the resonating crash came from downstairs, Spike jolted up not only in surprise, but in anger as well. Who dared wake the fearsome and mighty drake from his slumber? Spike took a deep whiff of the air.

“Huh?” He whispered to himself.

Whatever it was that woke him up smelled… filthy. Like someone took animal droppings, dirt, and mold and balled it all up to make a big old pile of yuck. Spike tried his best to not gag; instead of doing so, he just plugged his nose with a pair of claws. The baby dragon figured that Starlight must be doing some sort of late-night science with her super-secret project that he wasn’t allowed to look at.

Or maybe she was gardening, by the smell of it.

Spike stretched his way out of bed and plopped down onto the floor. Not really feeling up to it, Spike staggered out the door, into the hall, and down the stairs.

“Starlight? Is that you?” He called with a yawn. “Twilight? Either of you ‘Lights?”

What his sleep-deprived eyes saw was not a crazy unicorn busy making some sort of concoction in the entrance hall, but rather a wide-open door and a trail of dirt leading in from outside. From the door came a beam of moonlight. Other than that, the room was pitch-black.

Spike realized with some shock that some of that which was scattered on the ground wasn’t dirt, but rather large chunks of the shattered front door. That sure woke Spike up. Something had forcefully bashed in the castle’s crystal doors. Those doors had to be almost as thick as he was long!

What had done this? And why?

A creaking sound alerted Spike to the presence of somepony or something else with him. Something had broken into the castle! He had to warn Twilight, Starlight, and Zecora!

Spike whirled around and was about to run back upstairs when he tripped on something. Spike crashed to the ground with a thud. Angrily, he looked to see that he had fallen over a… Tree root? Spike clambered back up to his feet in a daze.

What was going on here?! First the door is smashed in and now there’s a tree growing in the castle? Was that even possible? Spike considered the fact that he might just be dreaming.

He angrily reached down to pick up the root when it suddenly lunged for him, wrapping itself around him like a snake around its struggling prey. Spike tried to scream, call for help, something. But the root had wrapped itself around his mouth before he could so much as peep.

“Stay silent.” A harsh voice ordered. The voice was grainy, like whoever it belonged to had a sore throat. “I never expected there to be a dragon hatchling here. But ponies are as unpredictable as they are careless.”

A blue light suddenly glowed in the darkness. It was dimmed by something around it; a cage of sorts. Two more lights blinked into existence, almost like eyes. Spike found himself mesmerized by them.

There was a small voice in the back of his head that told him not to look into those eyes, but an even bigger voice told him not to listen to the smaller voice. The bigger voice told him to calm down and do everything this creature says. Sure enough, the smaller voice vanished altogether.

The root peeled away from Spike’s mouth, and he just kept staring into the creature’s eyes.

The creature stepped into the moonlight. Something that resembled a short tree, but was distinctly pony-shaped. Spike could see various waving vines on its back, and one was thicker and longer than the others. The one that had been previously holding the dragon captive. Spike watched as the thick branch retracted back into the monster’s body in a way that kind of made him want to gag.

“Ah, at least I can still charm dragons.” The creature creaked, observing Spike with mild interest. Spike recalled seeing Applejack inspecting one of her orchard’s trees in this way. “You are very young, poor thing. I wonder how you became enslaved by these ponies. But have no fear, I shall free you from this imprisonment.”

Spike could do nothing but look into the creature’s glowing eyes.

“Now.”

Uh oh. Spike didn’t like the way that the monster said that.

“Take me to your leader.”

Prologue: Lore of the Dryad

"As the very embodiment of life itself they roamed the earth, one with the land, life wildly sprouting and flourishing everywhere they tread. Rumors with long lost origins tell their essence still inhabits the forests of Everfree."
- Starswirl the Bearded, Notes on the Everfree

Nopony in the scientific community knows exactly when the Everfree Forest appeared.

Legend has it that the Forest was formed over a thousand years ago, when Nightmare Moon was banished.

But in truth, the Everfree may have existed long before then. Long before Equestria's founding and the coming of the Windigos. Long before the first Hearth's Warming. Long before ponies even knew of the land that they would call home. Back in those days of yore, the Deer Tribes and the Dragons reigned over the wilderness. And yet, there was another presence in that forest. A presence that many believe has existed ever since the beginning of time itself.

The Dryad is a nature spirit that resides in the plants it tends to and in the wilderness it protects. They stalk the woods in the night and spend the days sunning themselves in clearings. Life for the Dryad was simple: stop the Deer and Timberwolves from their skirmishing, prevent the forest fires that occur regularly with Dragon-keeping, help the Forest with its every need. It seemed a lot of work, but for the dryads, this was but everyday life in a forest lush with life. But when the ponies came, all was different.

Trees were no longer homes, they were resources. The ancient plants were now timber to be used to build ugly, boxy houses. Clearings grew bigger; the unstoppable Forest was now restricted to where the ponies found it convenient. The Deer retreated into the Heart of the Forest. The Dragons left for the distant mountains. The Timberwolf packs were decimated, facing extinction. And as for the guardians, the Dryads, they seemingly vanished altogether.

Ponies rarely caught sight of the gaunt figures, and when they did, they fabricated stories about the spirits of the Everfree. The boogeymare, the Slendermane, all based off these once innocent and peaceful creatures. Creatures who wanted nothing more than to preserve what they had been entrusted with for eons and to help the ponies see the errors in their ways. That never happened. And all the Dryads felt was weakness.

ROOTS