Lookin For Love (In All the Wrong Places)

Chapter III: The Lost Zone

Why does my everything feel numb? Fluttershy thought to herself as she tried to move her body.

"First aid kit, where is it!" A nearby voice yelled.

She watched at Tree Hugger frantically searched her bags for a first aid kit, finally pulling it out from the bottom of the bag full of books. Fumbling with it she opened the kit and pulled out what looked like a blue stick made of crystal. She tried to focus on what Tree was doing, but her eyes grew heavy...she wanted to sleep so much. She could feel vibrations in the air and hear a faint humming sound. Her body felt much lighter than it did before. She slowly opened her eyes, her gaze meeting Tree's.

"Thank Celestia you're alive!" Tree's eyes welled up with tears as she frantically waved a strange crystallized tree branch over Fluttershy's body. "Do you feel tired, any pain or swelling?"

She wasn't sure she could answer her. Her body didn't hurt, but at the same time there still was dull numbness all over. However, when she tried to move her legs, only the front ones would even begin to twitch. "I-I can't feel my"

"On It!" Tree dove into her saddlebag rummaging around until she pulled out a jar filled with a clear liquid. She quickly unscrewed the brass lid and filled it with some strange sparkling water. She then leaned over Fluttershy, her forelegs shaking visibly, her entire face stricken with an expression of panic.

"D-drink this, it's Laki Laki water." Tree said as she held the a brass cap over Fluttershy's face, her entire body trembling.

She slowly opened her mouth allowing Tree to gently pour small amounts at a time into her mouth. It tasted almost minty, but at the same time colder than anything she had ever put in her mouth before. The feeling changed from super cold to somewhat warm as it made it down her throat. After a few moments of drinking small amounts that Tree gave her, she could feel her spine stretch out. It was an odd experience to say the least. It was like somepony had taken a rolling pin to her back while doing acupuncture at the same time. It kind of hurt, but was more of a tingling pain you get when a leg or wing falls asleep on you.

"Okay, Shy, I want you to slowly try and move your back legs!" Tree said, visibly trembling all over.

She tried to move her back legs, but they only so much as barely moved up before she no longer had the energy left in her to keep them elevated.

"Oh thank goodness!" Tree picked up the strange crystal branch and began running it over her body again. Every pass seemed to make her feel just the tiniest bit better, though she still wanted to sleep. Her eyelids slowly lost the strength to keep themselves open, she took a deep breath and drifted away, slowly the only thing she could hear was a panic stricken Tree yelling at her, but seemed so far away. All she wanted now, was rest.

"No! No, no, no, no, stay awake, please!" Tree cried.

There was no stopping it though, try as she might, Fluttershy closed her eyes.

***

She could hear the popping a crackling sound near her and see a warm red light through her eyelids. Her body felt very warm and an odd pressure was on her ribs. She slowly opened her eyes to find a fire not to far away from her. Her entire body ached, ached and stiff, as if she had been sleeping for days. She slowly gazed at her surroundings, she seemed to be in some sort of tunnel or cave. She could see some moonlight coming in from a crack the entrance a solid fifty or so feet away. It was a rather small opening from what she could judge, barely big enough for her to squeeze through.

The feeling of air being blown over her wings caught her attention, bringing her gaze to her wings. Laying on her side with her forelegs outstretched was Tree Hugger, the crystal wand from before laying by her side. She looked worse for wear, there were deep bags under her eyes and she seemed to be neglecting herself.

She could only remember hitting some vines after she saved Tree from that T-Rex, but everything after that was fragmented. She remembered that Tree was frantically doing some kind of first aid on her, but she kept blacking out.

"Tree?" Fluttershy asked.

Tree slowly opened her eyes, her expression quickly changing from tired to full on elation. Her mouth hung slightly agape, her eyes were wide with tears forming on the sides.

"Fluttershy!" Tree lunged at Fluttershy, though a quick whine of pain made her back down with the hugging a bit.

"Oh Shy, your back was broken, blood everywhere, you kept going in and out of consciousness" Tree hugged Fluttershy tighter, tears freely soaking her mane. "The wand indicated there was brain bleeding and organ damage and broken wings...I didn't think you would wake up again!"

Was I that injured? She knew that it took quite a bit of speed to injure a pegasus by any reasonable amount, she must have been moving nearly as fast as Rainbow Dash when she hit the ground. However, despite all the injuries Tree was frantically talking about; she didn't feel that much worse for wear. Aside from the aching and stiffness nothing seemed to be horribly out of order.

"H-how long have I been out?" Fluttershy asked.

"Two days. I- I wanted to go get help, but I couldn't risk leaving you in your condition; especially with all the massive predators around. And I-if you died while I was away...I wouldn't be able forgive myself." Tree began to bawl uncontrollably. "I-I'm just so happy you're alive!"

She understood now; Tree had been mending her injuries non-stop for the last two days. The amount of injuries she mentioned though; she would need some exceptionally powerful magical medicines or equipment to stabilize her, let alone bring her close to a full recovery. "T-thank you Tree." She was so distraught, completely different from her normally laid back self. She seemed to be mostly okay, aside from some minor cuts and bruises.

"N-no, there's no need for thanks. If you hadn't acted when you did I would most likely have been a pile of bones by now." Tree shuddered at the thought of her own death. "What's important is that you survived that. W-when you landed there was a stick in your back leg really deep. I was absolutely sure it ruptured a large vessel; I panicked. There were just so many injuries all at once." Tree broke down sobbing, hugging Fluttershy tightly. "I'm so glad you're okay!"

She couldn't help but sob with her, putting her wing over her side in an effort to console one another."It's okay now, we are both fine. We're both alive and still have one another." She gave Tree an affectionate lick on the cheek, followed by nuzzling her.

Tree smiled, returning the favor with gusto. "A-are you cold, hungry, thirsty?"

"I umm...maybe?" She was actually all of the above, but didn't want to impose; Tree already looked as if she had seen a ghost and was under an incredible amount of stress.

"Sure!" Tree perked right up, standing up and moving to her bags in the corner. She pulled out what looked like a small amount of granola and a flask of water and set them down next to Fluttershy. She then went back and pulled out what looked like some kind of half tucked sleeping bag. She unzipped the side of it and it folded out into a full size blanket.

Fluttershy smiled. Even in the dire situation they were both in, Tree was still prepared. She watched as she seemed to struggle to carry the blanket over to her. It struck her as odd, that a strong mare like Tree would have such problems with a simple blanket; but as she thought about it the reason was plain as day. Tree had been so focused on keeping her vigil over her that she most likely ignored her own needs; most likely not eating, drinking or sleeping well . Judging by how she limped a bit on her back leg, she most likely had pulled her leg at some point as well; barely giving herself a patchwork job to keep herself moving.

Tree went wide of the fire and tossed the blanket over Fluttershy. She then walked over to the food and began to break it up into smaller chunks, handing Fluttershy easier to chew chunks.

Fluttershy watched as she worked like a mare possessed. She was even visibly shaking, as if she were cold, despite the fire.

"D-do you want to share the blanket and food with me? You look cold and tired." Fluttershy asked, lifting one of her wings to allow Tree room next to her.

"I---I well" Tree blushed furiously, she seemed to have taken the request the wrong way.

Fluttershy gauged her reaction, despite Tree most likely shielding her with her own body, Tree seemed somewhat taken aback by the idea. Most likely thinking it a bit too intimate. She would need reassurance. "It's fine, it's just sharing a blanket and body heat. It doesn't have to be intimate...." She didn't really understand why Tree would take it that way, but the thought was nice; even if a bit odd for the situation.

She watched as Tree's face flushed as red as her mane.

"Y-yes, I would like that very much." Tree lifted up one side of the blanket, pushing herself under Fluttershy's wing. She popped her head out the side of the blanket where the food and water was sitting. She leaned forward and picked up one of the granola nuggets with her mouth, giving it to Fluttershy.

She took it from her with care, but the second it was in her mouth she swallowed it in a single motion. "S-sorry, a bit famished."

"Silly, you haven't had anything to eat or drink in two days now. I thought about maybe giving you food and water while you were out, but the risk was far too great that you could choke. I been picking a little at what I had in reserve, but I was doing my best to save some for you." Tree picked up another chunk with her mouth, this time swallowing it with a single bite.

"I appreciate it." Fluttershy nuzzled behind Tree's ear, covering her face with Tree's mane.

"I'm just glad you're okay. It's been really trying the last couple days. Usually I'm way more calm and collected, but no matter what I tried I couldn't stop crying...worrying that you may never wake up." Tree started sobbing, her entire body visibly shaken. "What kind of friend nearly lets her bestie die?"

Fluttershy didn't know what to say. She had dealt with ponies being heartbroken before, but never a feeling of self loathing Tree was going through. There was no way to really console her with words, she had sacrificed her own physical and mental well being for her when many others would have just cut their losses and run.Yet, here she was, angry with herself that she couldn't do more; that she was worthless.

Her mind raced with ways to comfort her, but no words could really help the situation; at least not any that were not her just repeating herself. I need to show her how much she means to me.

"No, you went far and beyond a bestie Tree, you and I are soulmates." Fluttershy leaned in hard, softly running her tongue up Tree's neck.

"Fluttershy I-" Tree didn't resist in the slightest. Her body seemed to like the experience, given her light moaning and lifting her chin to allow Fluttershy more leverage.

Fluttershy knew she had made the right move. Words were only that, words. They meant nothing without action to back them up. Tree didn't seem to even remotely want to resist her aggressive suckling on her neck, in fact she seemed to be turned on by it, her ragged breath and slight raising on her rear giving away just how much she wanted it.She slowly worked up her neck, stopping just behind her right ear, she gave it a quick lick then a very light nibble, making Tree moan for more.

"Nah...Sh-shy, ahn ahn" Tree began to sweat profusely, her body pressing ever harder up against Fluttershy.

Tree was loving every moment of this. She could smell the mare juices flowing from her, despite her using her tail to block that part of her body. She watched as her body contorted, the blood rushing to her face as she blushed and her ears folding back in pure bliss.

"Kiss me you beautiful mare!" Tree cried.

Tree wrapped both forelegs around Fluttershy's neck and pulled her in for a kiss. Fluttershy rolled to the side, allowing Tree to take the initiative and get on top. Their lips touched, both of them turning their heads the opposite directions as Tree pushed in deep. Her lips were soft, almost exceptionally so, they tasted like a new spring rose just coming into bloom. Her tongue was like silk, but at same time strong and wild; batting hers around forcefully as if trying to take her breath away. Tree ran her hoof down Fluttershy's neck, across her chest and to the small spot where her wing met her body. She began to slowly stroke the inside curve, making her wing immediately go stiff with anticipation; a signal that no pony could miss.

Tree slowly pulled away from the kiss, her saliva drooling in a line onto Fluttershy, though she didn't seem to mind. Both of them could feel the edges of their vulva's grinding against one another; little twitches from their tails and bellies telling the other that they were winking. Each knew what the next step must logically be. However, both of them gazed into each others eyes, each of them having their bodies shudder in anticipation; their breathing heavy and ragged.

I want her so much right now... Tree thought to herself. If it had been any other day, time or situation she would have gone into a fit of desire, putting Fluttershy in all kinds of sensual positions; making their bodies sing in harmony. Her hormones were telling her to get on with it, to have sex like a ravenous filly for hours on end. To mash their bodies together in a sea of sweat, passion and love. She wanted her now more than ever before... but deep down, she knew better.

"S-shy...I want you so much , b-but...I can't. I can't risk hurting you in your condition. I-I hope you don't take this the wrong way." Those were quite possibly the hardest words she had ever said in her life. Her own body screamed at her in protest, nearly every fiber of her being telling her to go for it; to fulfill her deepest desires. However, the smallest voice of her conscience told her it was wrong; that the risk was too great.

Fluttershy stared up at Tree Hugger, she felt he slightest tint of hurt, but she knew deep down she was right. To be honest she didn't know if she would survive a lustful tussle with Tree. As much as she wanted her, the time was just not yet right.

"I-I understand, but please tell me when we get out of here and I'm feeling better that we will continue where we left off?" Fluttershy asked.

Tree leaned inward, whispering into Fluttershy's ears. "Once we are back and you're better I plan for us to go at it for hours" Tree lowered her voice, doing her very best to sound sensual. "Like rabbits."

Fluttershy tried not to giggle, hearing Tree talk in such a dirty and obviously cheesy manner was both off putting and hilarious at the same time. She felt the same though, she wanted Tree just as much as tree wanted her. She still gave out a chuckle, followed by a reassuring smile. "I can wait, but I have an idea. Can we ...do it at my place? It will probably drive Angel bunny crazy with all the noise we will be making."

"Deal, I'm up for a little harmless joking, but first, let's get us some shuteye; I haven't slept right in days." Tree stood up and laid down by Fluttershy's side.

Fluttershy rolled over, putting her wing over Tree's back. They stared into each others eyes for a few minutes, both of them not wanting to let the magic of the moment fade. With a yawn and peck on the cheek, Tree laid her head down on her forelegs, drifting to sleep.

We will get through this, don't worry...

***

"All search parities, spread out!" Luna shouted in a commanding tone. "I want every square inch of the Everfree Forrest combed for them."

"You're highness, the professional tracker is still a day's travel away at he earliest, should we just wait for them?" A white pony in blue and gold ornate armor stepped forward. "My men are...hesitant to enter the Everfree by foot. We have all heard the stories about what's in there."

Luna sighed. "I understand perfectly well the dangerous creatures that are in the Everfree, but they have been missing for two days and sadly I cannot track ponies through dreams unless they are actually dreaming. Besides, you are the best of the best; a few bears or dragons shouldn't bother you."

A few of the soldiers lined up began to sweat profusely, some of them even swallowing nervously.

Luna had the sudden urge to chastise each and every one of the royal army guards, but just barely stopped herself from shouting at them in frustration. I swear, Celestia has been slacking on our military training. I need to smack her upside the head when I get back. Luna thought to herself as she examined the mostly cowering wreck that was the 3rd division rangers.

Then again, as much as I dislike cowardice, I can't just rightly send them in there with their paltry training. She knew that Tree Hugger and Fluttershy must have been deep down in the Forrest if they were still alive. If they were in the general zone one to three then they shouldn't be no more than a few hours from exiting the Everfree. However, she knew if that was the case she wouldn't be out here. Deep down she knew they must have gone at least as deep as the end of the shadow zone, possibly even to the midnight zone; though she hoped they had the sense to stay away from there.

A pony wearing a leather jacket and explorers hat came running out of the nearby treeline, tripping over a whip attached to his hip. The pony stood up rubbed his face before walking over to one of the guards and whispering in his ear.

"You're highness?" One of the guards asked in a terrified tone.

"Yes commander?" Luna replied.

"Indiana Bones managed to find a picnic blanket in a meadow not to far from here. There appear to be hoof tracks nearby, but something else was there as well."

The pony in the leather jacket and explorers hat reached into his pocket and pulled out a large, slightly red and tan reptile scale and handed it over to the commander, shaking his head.

The commander took the scale from his hooves and examined it; turning his head from side to side in a vain attempt to understand what he was looking at. "A dragon maybe? Seems kinda big for a lizard scale."

"What did you find commander?" Luna moved closer to the commander to get a better view of the scale.

*Gasp* Luna stepped back, her sudden shock making the commander drop the scale on the ground.

"Your highness! What's wrong!" The commanding yelled, hesitant to pick the scale back up.

Luna took a deep breath, closing her eyes to compose herself. She slowly opened her eyes, fixating her gaze on the scale. "Commander, tell me; what do you think that scale belongs to?"

"I think it may belong to a dragon, but it seems too flexible to be an adult one; possibly a juvenile." The guard put his hoof over his mouth. "Y-you don't think they missing ponies were eaten by a dragon?"

Luna shook her head. "No, look at the edge of the scale; it lacks he sharper fold of a dragon scale. This scale belongs to a large dinosaur, most likely an Iguanadon or a Stegosaurus."

Other ponies began to mumble among one another, some so much as muttering the word impossible and bullshit under their breaths.

"Commander, this is now far worse than I ever expected. They have both have most likely slipped into the lost zone." Luna began pacing back and forth, clearly distraught.

"With all due respect your highness, I thought dinosaurs were long extinct" The commander said, stepping forward confidently.

"They are and at the same time they are not. You see, they still exist in a place called the Lost Zone. It's a small time space distortion in the Everfree Forrest that's usually sealed off from most other creatures. On rare occasion ponies that are either well attuned to nature or lucky end up there...most of them never return." Luna sighed. "There's no point sending any of you in there after them, you don't find the Lost Zone; it finds you."

"I don't follow your highness. There must be some way to reach them" The commander said.

Luna stared into the tree line, a somber expression on her face. "Even if you could find it, I would be sending dozens of ponies to their deaths. No, I will have to go in there alone." Luna sighed. "A literal needle in a haystack."

"Are you sure about this your highness?" The commander asked.

"Yes, send a message to my sister that I'm going in alone." Luna spread her wings and took to the skies with so much force that it knocked the commander flat on his side.

I'm on my way, I just pray I can find you both before it's too late...

***

*RRooowwwrrgggg* Fluttershy's head shot up, waking her from a deep sleep; Tree following shortly after her.

"W-what was that?" Fluttershy asked, barely keeping her breathing in check.

Tree yawned, stretching as she stood up. "It's that Rex from the other day. He has been stalking me by smell for the last day or so from what I can tell. I went out a few times to get some medicinal herbs for your and my own injuries. Thankfully there's a river nearby and he always loses my scent around there."

"Y-you been going out there all alone?" Fluttershy asked.

"Yeah, I been keeping the entrance hidden whenever I went out for supplies with some rocks. I have a feeling that he's getting closer and closer each day. That roar was exceptionally-"

*Thum thum* The sound of heavy footsteps and loud inhaling stopped Tree mid sentence. A deep rumbling sound came from directly above them, bits of dirt and a few pebbles falling onto the fire pit. The light from the exit hole was blocked and what looked like a single large nostril was pushed up against the entrance.

"Under the blanket, now!" Tree whispered as she tossed the blanket over herself and Fluttershy.

The blanket covered both of them, but Fluttershy could still see what was going on though some of the stitching. The large nostril inhaled deeply followed by a brief, terrifying pause. It then exhaled in a snort, kicking up dirt and ash into a cloud that covered the blanket.

"Whatever you do shy, do not move. He may be big, but he can't differentiate colors" Tree said in a hasty, but still terrified low tone.

"I know that..." Fluttershy snapped back with a whisper. She didn't mean to snap, but her entire body was shaking with fear. Deep down she knew that a Rex could quite easily destroy this little hovel they found within an hour if it was desperate enough. She took a deep breath and lowered herself to the ground as low as she could, doing her best to keep her fear in check.

Light flooded into the cave, but only briefly; the Rex soon blocked the light again, this time peering into the cave with his single good eye. Fluttershy held her breath as she watched the Rex's eye move from one side of the cave to another, slowly panning it for the slightest hint of movement. His gaze fell on the blanket a few times, he knew it was out of place, but didn't seem to be in any rush to test it.

He then focused his gaze of a singular spot on the blanket, the exact spot Fluttershy was peering through. They locked gazes, she knew this was it, either he would recognize her stare and go for the kill or he would ignore it and move on. The slits in the Rex's eye narrowed and she knew what this meant; he had recognized the reflection in her eyes as the stare of prey.

*kork kork*

The Rex lifted his head up and growled, clearly agitated that he was interrupted. A few growls and a roar or two later, he walked away from the cave entrance in the opposite direction, swishing his tail angrily.

"H-he knows we are here...our eyes met" Fluttershy whispered, her tone barley containing her panic.

"Calm down, it was only a matter of time before he found us." Tree patted Fluttershy on her shoulder, reassuring her with her lazy stare. "It's all right, he's still injured from his fight with that Stegadon from a few days ago. Even if he spots us out in the open we can easily outrun him."

She knew Tree was right, but it didn't make the situation any less terrifying. From what she knew Rex was much slower than most of the prey it tracked, but it made up for being slow by having high burst speed during an ambush and being relatively silent for it's size.

"I wonder what spooked him?" Tree pushed the blanket off of herself and walked toward the entrance. She could here the sound of chewing outside the hold and some heavy stomping, but not as heavy or the same sound as the Rex made.

"D-don't go, what if he's still out there?" Fluttershy cried.

"Have to take that risk" Tree pushed a couple rocks out of the way and slowly peered outside the cave. Dead in front of her was a sea of green and red, with a few brown and an oddball blue thrown into the mix. There were double pairs of horns sticking out everywhere.

"Fluttershy, you gotta see this!" Tree pulled her head back into the cave and motioned Fluttershy to her.

Fluttershy tossed the edge of the blanket off her and moved toward Tree apprehensively. Tree moved out for the way to allow her to peak out. Just as she did she came face to face with a small frilled dinosaur with only a single stubby horn at the end of it's snout.

"Pony?" The creature said.

"I-I am" Fluttershy said in a terrified tone, though she was completely unaware that she could communicate with this species of dinosaur, though his dialect seemed very close to that of an Iguana or a Bearded Dragon; which seemed very odd for a Triceratops to be speaking.

"Mom! There be ponies here!" The triceratops young-ling yelled.

Before Fluttershy could react there were two or three full sized adult Triceratops staring her down, one of them with yellow marking under her eyes, pushing the young-ling aside.

"Ponies? Preposterous" One said, though he was clearly staring right at her.

"What are they doing here?" Another asked.

The mother of the child stepped forward, staring Fluttershy right in the eyes.

"H-hello m-ma'am!" Fluttershy said, terrified.

All three of the triceratops stepped backward quickly, all of them with clear expressions of shock on their faces.

"It can talk!" One yelled, his front legs shuffling in a combination of excitement and nervousness.

"Indeed, this is strange" another added.

The mother with the yellow lines under her eyes stepped forward, though very cautiously. "It has been many years since I last seen a living pony in our lands and never in my life has one actually spoken to me. You speak our tongue as if you have spoken it your entire life. How is this possible?"

Fluttershy pulled the rest of her body from the cave, sensing that this herd of triceratops were more curious than dangerous. "I-I don't know myself. I just said hello and I knew I automatically...it's kinda surprising for me as well."

Tree Hugger popped her head out of the hole beside Fluttershy. "What's all those weird noises you are making Flutt...oh." Tree noticed three very large triceratops staring right at her.

"Another pony, though this one seems to not know our tongue" one of the triceratops said.

"She seems a bit scared of us. Can you tell her we mean no harm?" Another added.

"I'm talking with them Tree, they don't mean us any harm" Fluttershy said, giving Tree a smile to calm her down. "She's much better at communication with plants and some animals, but her experience is pretty much limited to being chased as food in this region."

"I see, so the question is, what are ponies even doing in this region? I was under the impression that your sun goddess blocked off the entrance to our home from most creatures".

"Well, you see miss, umm..."Fluttershy stumbled on her words,

"I am Prime Matriarch Shulan, but you may call me Shu for short."

"I am Fluttershy, I'm umm...just a simple pegasus, your highness." Fluttershy lowered her head and forelegs in a deep respectful bow. Tree Hugger doing the same once she noticed what she was doing.

Shulan smiled, nodding in approval. "I see, so your kind does know and show respect. The handful of ponies that I have seen never seemed to even try to talk with us, always just watching us from afar, like we were going to eat them at any moment."

"Not to sound rude or arrogant, but my ability is exceptionally rare. Even more so since I'm a pegasus and not an earth pony. Though I sometimes wish I was born an earth pony. Would make my connection with other animals easier to explain." Fluttershy sighed.

"Silly pony, I would give my left horn for an ability like that. Also the sky is the limit for you, there is no place you cannot reach." The other triceratops nodded in approval along with Shulan. "Anyways, what brings you to our lands?"

"We were having a picnic in a meadow not too far from my home when we were chased by a very old, angry and mostly blind stegosaurus. He chased us for a solid mile or two until we ran into-"

"I wondered where old Rupert lumbered off to. Old guy still thinks he has what it takes to woo the ladies during mating season, even blind he never gave up." Shulan blushed, noticing that she had interrupted Fluttershy. "S-sorry, I tend to rant on a bit. Please continue."

"It's fine, we ran into a Rex with one blind eye, the same one your herd scared off" Fluttershy stated.

"Oh...him. Yes, I heard him speaking with other predators before; they call him Tooth-face. He's been a right thorn in everyone's side for nearly a century now." Shulan signed, shaking her head. "If he has been tracking you then I'm afraid he doesn't stop until he gets his target."

"I see..." Fluttershy said, sending a sideways glance at Tree. "You...wouldn't happen to know a way out of the Lost Zone? I only ever been here once before and it was very short."

Shulan scratched the edge of her frill, thinking hard. "There IS a well known exit aside from the random holes that appear from time to time to let travelers in and out, but...well..."

"You don't mean to send them that way, do you?" One of the triceratops asked.

"That gateway is dangerous, every creature that has tried to go through the gateway has been killed by...by that thing guarding it" another triceratops added.

"What are they saying Shy? I can't understand them." Tree asked.

"There is a way out, but it's guarded by something really dangerous. So much so that even this herd is terrified of it." Fluttershy watched as each member of the herd spoke up out of turn, each one pleading for Shulan not send Fluttershy and Tree toward the gateway.

"Silence!" Shulan shouted, the rest of the herd falling silent instantly. "I'm only giving them the option, not forcing them there."

Shulan stared out over the herd, waiting for a single one to speak out of turn. However the herd seemed both terrified and respectful of her, even the younger ones not so much as making a peep. After a few tense moments she turned her attention back to Fluttershy and spoke.

"About a two days walk south of the river lies a very strange tree with a giant flower on top. It is the only of its kind in our lands and we think it was once native to yours. It has killed many a curious plant eater in self defense; or so I've heard. Behind this strange plant is a gateway that leads out into your world, though I do not know where in your world exactly."

"Could I ...well " Fluttershy stared at the ground, thinking of how to phrase her next sentence. "Could your herd escort us that way? if it's not too much trouble I mean."

Shulan shook her head somberly. "As much as I want to help you, I cannot endanger my family and relatives with your presence. If it were maybe a smaller pack of predators after your, then maybe yes. However, you have one of the oldest and strongest predators in these woods after you; we can't risk him getting you then attacking one of our young-lings in retribution or worse killing them for sport until he gets to you. I'm sorry, but this is the best I can do to assist you."

"Oh, I see. Do you know of any safe places to rest along the way?" Fluttershy asked.

Shulan stared at the sky absentmindedly for a moment before speaking. "Yes, about half way is an odd structure sitting high up between two crossed redwoods. I believe a long deceased pony explorer used it a decade or so ago. It may be in disrepair, but its far better than nothing I suppose."

Fluttershy nodded and bowed down gracefully, using her other foreleg to poke Tree Hugger to do the same.

Shulan smiled and bowed in return. "I wish you the best of luck on your journeys." With one more somber nod Shulan turned to her right and began walking, motioning the rest of the herd with her tail to follow.

"So any ideas how to get out of here?" Tree asked.

"Yeah, we head due south of the river for a couple days. There's some kind of tree thing with a large flower on top guarding a gateway out of here. They were kinda vague about it's description though; like they heard of it, but never actually seen it themselves." Fluttershy ducked back into the cave, Tree following shortly after. "We need to get moving quickly though, that Rex wants you as a snack and once he's picked a target he will pursue them until they are his meal. At least that's what the elder told me."

"I'm pretty sure we can outrun him. I mean, that Stegosaurus did a number on one of his legs. I'm surprised he can even walk with an injury like that. Also...large tree with a flower on top? That can be a lot of things actually." Tree mused for a moment. "I know of a few plants like that; some of them pretty deadly to be honest."

Fluttershy grabbed her saddlebags, tossing them onto her back quickly. "She said it was not native to the lost zone and most likely came from Equestria."

"Hmmm" Tree scratched the back of her mane. "Maybe it's an overgrown Momo Fruit plant?"

"I've never heard of that one before" Fluttershy said as she checked that her saddlebags were strapped down firmly.

"It's not native to most of Equestria. It's actually only found in deep, hot jungles. It kinda looks like a giant open red and white polka dot purse." Tree stuck her head into her saddlebag, pulling out a book with her mouth and setting it on the ground. She quickly turned the pages while mumbling to herself. "Ahh here it is!" Tree turned the book and pushed it toward Fluttershy.

Fluttershy stared at the picture for a moment. It looked like a large, but very gaudy polka dot purse. From what she could make out it was around twenty or so feet in diameter and had a large stalk with what appeared to be a pear the size of a full grown mare hanging in the middle. "That's a big fruit, wonder what it's for?" Fluttershy turned the page, but quickly stepped back; aghast at what the pictures depicted.

On the next two pages were a set of pictures depicting a deer and her fawn walking up and eating the fruit.The next picture was of the large sides of the plant beginning to move, only the fawn seeming to notice something was amiss. The last picture depicted the fawn jumping out just as the side of the large plant closed in on the deer, trapping her inside. The last picture is what made her feel ill...the plant crushed the mother alive, spurts of what looked like blood flowing from the sides of each opening.

"T-that's horrible...that poor deer...and now that fawn is an orphan." Fluttershy pushed the book , looking away. "I think I seen enough. I think I'm gonna be ill."

"Yeah, I know. Nature can be brutal and unforgiving sometimes, but you know, we have to be ready for all kinds of crazy dangerous stuff here. My problem is that the description you gave me wasn't enough to identify it. It could literally be anything." Tree noticed the horrified look on Fluttershy's face."Oh don't worry, I know enough about weird plants to know how to get around them."

Fluttershy heard the last echos of the triceratops herd disappear, their footsteps no longer shaking the ground. "We need to move, like right now. That Rex can't be too far from here."

Tree nodded and picked up her book, tossing it into her saddlebags before putting them on her back and strapping them down. "Sooner we get home the better. I'm diggin all the neat plants and animals here, not so much the possible dying part though."

Fluttershy nodded in agreement before sticking her head out of the hole. She quickly looked around to see if it was safe to proceed. Out the corner of her eyes she could see the Rex approaching across a distant meadow. He was only at most three hundred yards from them. Fluttershy hopped out of the hole and motioned Tree to follow.

"We need to run to the tree line as quickly as we can" Fluttershy said as she helped Tree Hugger out of the hole.

"Wait he's not that...oh." Just under two hundred yards away she could see the old Rex smelling the air, trying to get his bearings. "Yeah, let skedaddle before he sees us."

Both Fluttershy and Tree Hugger made a beeline straight for the brush opposite the cave they were in. After they put around two hundred yards between them and the cave, Tree stopped and stared back. "Crap, I forgot the blanket!"

The Rex was already at the cave, doing his best to dig out the entrance so he can get to what he thought was a pony sized snack inside.

"Forget about it. We can find other ways to keep warm at night." Fluttershy said as she watched the Rex roar angrily as he struggled to kick up what looked like blackish rocks.

"Yeah I guess. In a way I think leaving it behind bought us some time, the entire front part of that caves foundation is solid granite. Even with his size it's going to take hours to dig though all that." Tree watched as the Rex managed to stub his toe, roaring angrily before bending over to lick it.

"Good point, but I don't want to be here when he finds out there's just a blanket to eat..." Fluttershy said.

"I agree, he's gonna be one really unhappy camper once he's through that granite." Tree turned around stretched her legs. "I suggest we keep a light gallop for as long as we can, you know, put as much distance between us and being future dino kibble as possible."

Fluttershy nodded in agreement and both of them set off running, Tree Hugger taking point as they made their way into the brush.

***

She drew in breath, but it didn't so much as remotely dent her fatigue. She watched as Tree's back legs moved gracefully in her gallop, while her own just barely managed to keep a trot. They had been running like this for a solid half day, though at about two hours in she realized that calling her exhausted pace a gallop was about as accurate as calling that Rex hug-able. She knew that Tree was intentionally setting her pace as to not leave her behind, but at the same time she could feel frustration coming from Tree that they couldn't go faster.

Tree had asked on three separate occasions if she needed to rest, but each time she declined; not wanting to disappoint her. However, she desperately needed to stop for a rest, her will to not be a hindrance was at its breaking point.

"Hun, we need to stop." Tree stopped a few yards in front of Fluttershy, staring back at her. "I appreciate you trying to keep up with me, but you know, pegasus are just not built for this kind of long distance travel."

"I-I'm..." she wanted to say that she was fine, but she knew from Tree Hugger's stare that she was well past the point of bluffing her. "Yeah, let's take a break."

Fluttershy began to lie down in the grass, only to be stopped by Tree.

"What's wrong?" Fluttershy asked.

"You almost laid down in a bed of poisoned mushrooms is what is wrong." Tree pointed to a small collection of bright red and orange mushrooms just inches from Fluttershy's belly. "They won't kill ya, but I'm sure we don't need an itchy rash added to our problems or you know, a psychedelic trip." Tree looked around them, looking for a safe spot to take a rest.

"That branch up there seems nice." Fluttershy pointed out a large branch a dozen or so feet in the air.

"Good thinking, off the Forrest floor from all the creepy crawlies and a vantage point to spot any potential threats." Tree Hugger began to climb the tree, but stopped a few feet up. "Something wrong shy?"

"No, I just need a moment to catch my breath before I fly up there." Fluttershy unfurled her wings, but they immediately dropped to her sides the moment she tried to move them. "Umm...ok, I guess I was a bit more pooped than I thought."

Tree Hugged hopped off the tree and lowered herself in front of Fluttershy. "Hop on, I'll get you up there."

"Y-you sure you can carry me up that high?" Fluttershy asked.

"So long as you hold tight onto me, it shouldn't be a problem" Tree said, giving a head tilt and a wink of the eye in confirmation.

Fluttershy nodded and stood up, placing her body over Tree. Tree slowly stood up herself allowing her ample time to wrap her forelegs gently around Tree's neck. Her strong, powerful...sexy neck...

No silly, it's not the time for that... Fluttershy winced, trying to push impure thoughts out of her head, but as Tree began to climb they came back in full force. Her powerful back legs, he soft tail brushing up against her own, the feeling of layers of muscles pulling her up this tree without even the slightest hint of fatigue. No, down wingboner! She could feel her own wings rise into he air as blood rushed to them, making her ever the more drained as she tried to keep them folded to her sides.

Her hips wanted to move on their own, feeling the grind of a firm fit flank rubbing near her nethers was agony. She wanted so much to just bite the tip of Tree's ear and start humping into her body on the spot, but that small voice in the back of her head kept telling her to keep herself in check. It was taking every bit of her self control to not act on her impure thoughts. Here she was face buried in a mane that smelled of sweat and flowers, a powerful yet gentle body moving below her as if no weight was on it at all. A sleek yet rough around the edges green coat that she could see losing herself in. Every second was agonizing, she kept repeating in her head that this was not the time or place for bumping fuzzies.

Later, later if we find that rest spot we were told about...then maybe...

"You okay back there shy, you can get-oh" Tree turned her head and noticed Fluttershy was shaking, her wings fully erect for the world to see. "I was about to say you can get off, but I'm not sure if you would take it as the other meaning."

Fluttershy blushed, quickly moving her body to a sitting position on the branch. She turned her head to see that both of her wings were stiff as boards, almost to the point where it was painful. "I- I can explain!"

Tree put a hoof over Fluttershy's lips. "Shhhh, babe, you don't have to explain anything to me. The fact that you had me in such a compromising and dominant position, yet held back nature itself speaks volumes to your personality." Tree leaned forward, her face nuzzling under Fluttershy's neck.

"I-I'm just so...so frustrated. My own body is at war with my mind and I can barely keep myself in check sometimes." Fluttershy knew she didn't need to apologize, but her own mind automatically tried to do so anyways before she could stop the words coming from her mouth.

"No need for apologies hun, it is the mating season after all. Being a bit horny is completely natural for this time of year. I even had my own little train of thoughts running through my head while you were on my back. I can't honestly say all of them were pure either. " Tree Hugger took a deep breath and pulled away from Fluttershy. "Soon as we find a safe spot, we can get this out of our systems, but for now we need to focus on not becoming someones lunch."

Fluttershy inhaled deeply, doing best to calm herself down. She's right you know, but I can't keep holding back nature forever. It will drive me batty to even try... After a few minutes the heat in her body subsided and her wings slowly folded down by her sides. It was odd though, being around Tree made her feel safe, but at the same time hormones kept nibbling away at her composure; pushing her toward an inevitable encounter. An encounter that she feared she wouldn't be able to put off for too much longer.

"You okay hun?" Tree waved a hoof in front of Fluttershy's face, trying to get her attention.

"Oh, uhh...sorry. I think I spaced out there for a second" Fluttershy said, blushing.

"Well, in either case rest for a bit while I get a better view of what's ahead." Tree wrapped her forelegs around the trunk of the tree and pushed herself up using her back legs.

"Sure you don't want me to just fly up there?" Fluttershy yelled.

"Nah, I got it, you need to take a break" Tree Hugger replied.

Tree Hugger continued climbing the tree until she reached another twenty or so feet high. Carefully she put a foreleg around each branch, only putting about half her weight on them to check them for stability. After a few minutes of searching she found a branch that seemed sturdy enough to hold her weight. She slowly started to pull herself onto the branch being careful to distribute as much of her weight over the widest area possible. When she was finally settled she began to pull herself along the branch on her belly.

As she reached the end of the branch she noticed a very pungent smell, like that of rotten eggs. She looked out toward their destination to find only a few dozen trees separated them from a vast solid yellow field. It wasn't very large, only being at most a couple hundred yards across the middle, but it seemed to stretch out for what seemed like dozens of miles in either direction.

"Well, at least the trip is-" just then she spotted a dinosaur, some kind of plant eater with a duck bill and a long backward horn attempting to cross the field. At first the dinosaur seemed agitated, randomly shaking its head as if a swarm of gnats had smacked it right in the face.It didn't seem too worse for wear as it made headway through the field, making very strong and fast strides. However, the moment it reached the middle of the field it swayed from side to side, stumbled a few times, then fell down with a thud.

Tree Hugger watched as the creature tried to pull itself back up, but just a few more audible whines and it laid there, still. She watched as the creatures body went into a fit of spasms then finally stopped moving entirely. She could see the obvious rise in its chest cease.

"Something wrong Tree?" Fluttershy yelled, noting the clear distraught on her face.

"Yeah, you could say that." Tree pushed herself back off the branch and onto the trunk. She then slowly slid down the trunk until her rear end collided with the branch Fluttershy was resting on.

"You okay? That must feel like sandpaper on your coat" Fluttershy asked.

"It's fine. Just a few drops of tree sap on my coat, nothing major" Tree said as she wiped away a few hard bits of tree sap stuck on her coat.

"So, how did it look up there?" Fluttershy asked.

"Not good. There's some kind of field made of some kind of yellow substance. My guess from the lingering smell is it's some kind of poisonous sulfur. It's not too wide across the middle, maybe a hoofball field or two at most. There was a dinosaur of some kind walking across it."

"Did the dinosaur make it across? I mean if we run really fast we should-"

"No, that's way too dangerous" Tree said, interrupting Fluttershy. "I watched that dino walk across the field, but about halfway it collapsed and well...he or she is now very much dead. Didn't take very long after it dropped either."

"So you don't think we could hold our breath and run across?" Fluttershy asked.

"If the concentration was enough to kill a multiple ton animal halfway across in just a minute or two, then a single breath from either of us would be fatal. Worse is if I remember my geology right the gas would be denser closer to the ground than fifteen feet in the air." Tree shook her head. "That poor thing never stood a chance."

"I see...and sulfur can sting the eyes, nose and even ears in high enough concentrations. One little slip-up and we will both be deader than a party thrown by Maud Pie."

"Hey now, that wasn't very cool of you Shy. Funny, but a bit mean ya know?" Tree said disapprovingly.

"Sorry, I'm not very good at joking under stress. Anyways, any ideas to get past the field of death?" Fluttershy asked.

"From what I could see it is easily a days walk around it if not more. Frankly I don't want us to have to spend the night in another hole if I can help it, even more so now that that Rex knows what to look for." Tree looked over Fluttershy's shoulder just in time to watch yet another herbivore drop dead.

"Also if we get attacked by another predator, its an invisible wall; an option between death by asphyxiation or being torn limb from limb..." Fluttershy said, her body shivering at the thought.

Tree Hugger tapped her hoof against the tree branch, thinking hard about how to safely get across the field.

"The options we have are pretty limited. We can split up and meet at the building you mentioned, but that leaves each of us vulnerable. You being on your own with out a second pair of eyes or my knowledge of plants."

"And you without my ability to fly and translate languages" Fluttershy interjected.

"My thoughts exactly" Tree replied.

Fluttershy stared at her surroundings, trying to get an idea of how to get both her and Tree across the field together. Not too far from her on a branch opposite the one she was sitting on was a large clump of tangled vines. "Maybe we can build a bridge across? Or a rope?"

Fluttershy pointed toward the large clump of tangled vines. Tree turned her head and glanced at them briefly before shaking her head. "No, sourcing the parts for a bridge that size would take days of planning and work; time we don't exactly have. A rope to shimmy across with could work in theory, but it would have to be several hundred yards long." Tree turned back to face Fluttershy "and I'm not too sure I would stake my life on tied together last minute rope."

"I guess this means we are walking?" Fluttershy asked.

"It's a bummer I know, but-" Tree Hugger jumped backwards, placing her back against the tree just as a small lizard like creature landed on the branch in front of her.

"Don't be so jumpy, it's just a little gliding lizard." Fluttershy picked up the small lizard, scratching under his chin with her hoof; making the small lizards eyes roll back in ecstasy. "See, nothing to be afraid of. He's just gliding from tree to tree looking for bugs to eat."

"It just..." Tree Hugger stopped mid sentence, her ears perking up and a slight gasp came from her mouth. "That's it Fluttershy! The solution to getting across to the other side!"

Fluttershy stared quizzically at Tree Hugger for a moment. "I'm not sure this little guy can carry us across. I mean, I'm sure he's a tough little guy, but-"Fluttershy stopped mid-sentence, covering her mouth as she giggled. "Oh I get it, I can fly across carrying you. Errr, glide I mean."

"Exactly! Errr...except if I mess up the calculations..."

"We will both be deader than Firefly season two" Fluttershy said, finishing Tree's sentence for her.

"A bit brutal there Shy, some of us haven't recovered from there being no season two. Anyways, yeah, we can't afford to mess this up." Tree reached into her saddlebag and pulled out what seemed to be a survival knife and sat it down on the tree branch. "I'm gonna run a few calculations, see if this is feasible."

"You're...not gonna carve into the tree are you?" Fluttershy asked, staring at the knife.

"No, no. I'm gonna use a marker on the blade. Don't wanna write in my books if I can help it." Tree pulled a black marker out of her bag and began to write on the side of the blade. "You should know me by now, I don't like hurting trees hun."

After a few moments of writing down angles and math that Fluttershy barely understood, she watched Tree Hugger put the knife and marker away and stand up. "Well, by my math we need to get to the top of a tree that's at least a hundred feet high and no more than twenty feet away from the edge of that field. However, you really need more time to rest before we try that."

*Roooooaaarrrrrr!* A loud roar shattered the silence around them.

"But how? He was crippled and we ran as fast as we could!" Tree said.

Fluttershy looked at Tree then at the gaseous field.

"Time we don't have."