Lookin For Love (In All the Wrong Places)

Chapter VI: Scars of the Past

"Son of a wet goat, another small fry!" Elana held the end of her fishing line up to her face, scowling at the small sardine at the end of the line. "I guess I can just head home without any fish this time." Elana shook the end of the line, dislodging the small fish from the hook, but just as it began to fall into the water a much larger saber toothed salmon jumped from the river, eating the sardine whole in a single bite.

Elana quickly dunked her head into the water, biting randomly at the salmon in an attempt to catch it. However, the salmon quickly slapped her in the face with it's tail and made off downstream like a speedboat. She dragged her head from the water, rubbing her cheek as she cursed under her breath.

"Great, just perfect. I spend half of last night going for nocturnal bass and all I end up doing is feeding some out of season jerk..." Elana snorted angrily while staring at her reflection in the water. Her mane was a little bit frazzled , her Mohawk style almost falling apart in the middle, making her look like she had a very badly done bowl cut.

She sighed to herself, doing her best to wring the extra water from her mane with her front leg. "I really miss styling jel, keeping this style is such a pain without it." Elana stared at her surroundings, eyeing them with an almost dejected feeling. In the distance she could see a few duck-billed dinos foraging water weeds upstream as well as a couple very frightened micro-raptors drinking from river near them. It wasn't like she couldn't appreciate the scenery, the lush jungles and ample supply of potable water was a welcome relief from the barren Savannah that was her homeland.

It's been what, two years now to the day since I arrived here? She looked at her reflection in the water, her scars on her face a constant reminder of why she couldn't just go home.

Elana picked up her fishing pole and began to fold it into halves until it fit neatly in her hoof. She turned in place and set it down inside a large basket. In the basket were various leafy greens, lots of wild fruits and vegetables and a single cage trap that contained a dozen or so crawdads and one very crowded dungeon crab.

" I can't wait to eat you. I never expected to find a sea faring crab in a river; let alone one the size of a beach ball." Elana licked her lips, imagining the stew she was going to make with the dungeon crab. Boiled wild carrots, a broth made from it's legs, some pepper and sea salt, a few potatoes and greens; just the thought of a hearty meal made her mouth water.

She leaned over and picked the basket up in her mouth, smiling from ear to ear as the images of her next dinner flooded her mind. I guess I ought to see the bright side; that salmon may have gotten away, but I got a weeks worth of seafood still. Pretty good haul for a three day trip if I do say so myself.

Elana began to walk alongside the river when she heard a very loud shouting coming from maybe a couple dozen or so yards ahead of her.

"What do you mean you can't find them?! One's bright green and red and the other yellow and pink, it's not like they don't stick out!" A gravely, but loud voice said.

"B-but we lost their scent! The yellow one must have flown far away by now, we risk barging in on another tribes territory if we track them much further." Another one said, his voice trembling.

"That sounds like a hunting party." Elana moved near a set of bushes and set her basket down. She lifted her head just barely above the bushes, tilting her head slightly to the right as to keep her mane hidden.

In the meadow ahead was a group of about five or so raptors; not just any raptors, mortal enemies that she had fought before. "They are a bit outside their normal range." Elana whispered to himself. "But, by what they said it sounds like they are hunting flying dinos." The thought felt odd though, there was no reason for raptors to attempt attacking and killing such high energy cost prey.

"S-sir, what if we meet...her out here? Last time a hunting pack was out this far she killed one and crippled two others" one of the raptors said.

"They were weak! They deserved death and more for getting their tails handed to them by an inferior life form" one of the raptors in a feathered headdress replied angrily.

Yeah, I remember that encounter, snapped the lookouts neck before the other two even knew what was wrong. Too bad Sadis wasn't one of them though...Elana thought to herself.

She watched as the group fanned out to search the area. However, one of the larger ones was heading toward her hiding spot. Well, I wasn't pinning for a fight today, hopefully I can kill him before he makes any sound to alert the others...

The raptor slowly moved toward her position, bobbing his head up and down and looking from side to side. He got within a few feet of the bush and his eyes narrowed.

"I can smell you behind that bush, either come out and surrender or become my prey" The raptor demanded.

Suddenly a head of cabbage flew from the bush, striking the raptor square on the nose and exploding into dozens of leafs, blocking his view. Before the raptor could react a blur of black and white leaped from the brush and landed a blow on his neck, followed an uppercut right to the chin.

The raptor fell over, clutching his neck in agony, gasping for air. Before he knew it, he had a hoof had on his head pinning him to the ground. He stared up into deep red , terrifying eyes and muttered "Y-you..."

"Yeah, what about me?" Elana said, smiling. Elana twisted with her back leg on the raptors head with all her weight. She felt the raptors neck snap with a satisfying crunch followed by it taking its last breath before going entirely still.

"Well, that's one less adult out of the way...well, him and one of my cabbages." Elana surveyed the surrounding terrain for the raptors tribe mates. She didn't spot any of the smaller juveniles nearby so she leaned over and picked up what little of the cabbage was still reasonably edible and tossed it behind her into her basket.

"S-stand down!" Elana heard from a few feet behind him.

She slowly turned her head, glaring at the raptor with one eye.

"D-don't move!" The raptor demanded, holding out a spear as he stood there, shaking uncontrollably.

Elana kinda felt sorry for the poor thing, though only briefly. He was barely her size, maybe two or three years old at the most, effectively little more than a child. He watched as the poor juveniles teeth clattered as he used all his energy to keep the spear he was holding stable in his hands; barely stable.

Poor thing doesn't even have any hunting feathers to his name yet. The tribe must be really short clawed if they are sending out all the green young-lings. I guess I'll just scare him off, the young ones screech too loud to kill at his age. Elana thought to herself.

"Listen closely child, I just dropped a raptor four times your size and skill level in a matter of seconds and he was far from the first I have escorted from this mortal coil." Elana turned in place, putting her hoof on the tip of the spear. "Now, the way I see it is you have two options. You can move along and act like you didn't see anything or..." Elana pushed the tip of the spear quickly and forcefully to the ground, snapping off the stone tip.

The raptor jumped back, staring as what used to be the end of his spear. His face went flush with the cold sweat of fear as Elana took a step toward him, the Zebra grinning ear to ear.

"I can snap your spine like I did that spear and toss you in a tar pit." Elana cracked a sinister grin at the raptor. "The choice is yours, either you didn't see anything or you slowly burn to death for days."

The raptor froze in place, swayed from side to side before fainting and falling to the ground.

"I guess that counts as a choice." Elana reached behind the bush and picked up her basket in her mouth before trotting off at a brisk pace.

I guess the adults don't explain how I operate to the kiddies. They should know by now I kill them indiscriminately, though maybe that one will grow up to be... Elana almost wanted to laugh out loud. The mere thought these raptors ever being more than filth was humorous to her.

"How silly of me, they will never be more than monsters." Elana stared into her basket at her haul. "I can't wait to celebrate another dead raptor."

***

Elana ducked behind another tree as a group of raptors ran by her, each of them shouting to catch the yellow and green ones, that they were to be sacrificed to their lord. She had hoped to not run into any more patrols on the way home, but they seemed incredibly intent on catching whatever these creatures were that bested them. She even had one flat out ignore her as ran by, something that normally would have resulted in a confrontation.

This doesn't make sense, even if prey got away from them they are way too far outside their territory. I get that they worship that old battered Rex, but to risk getting into a war with other territories over a meal or a sacrifice is crazy. Elana thought to herself.

Just then another squad of raptors ran by, this time shouting about how if they didn't find them soon that Saw-tooth would eat their leader.

Pfft I could only hope.

Elana waited for a few more minutes, sneaking from tree to tree along the jungle path, making sure she wasn't spotted. After a few tedious minutes she managed to reach a tree with a small set of rocks arranged into a sundial at the base. She surveyed the surrounding bushes to make sure she wasn't being watched and reached around at the base of the tree, looking for something the grab onto.

"Ahh there it is." Elana felt a single piece of smooth wood followed the rough feel of heavy rope. She took one more scanning look around her before climbing the tree.

I'll never get used to this, it's just so strange. Elana thought to herself. Being able to climb up a invisible rope did have its advantages. No creature could find her hideout from the ground and even if they saw her it would look like she was climbing on air; making the creature watching second guess its own sanity. Still, the feeling of not being able to see what she was climbing on made occasional slip ups all the more terrifying.

She made her way quickly up the side of the tree until he saw a large clump of branches. She reached forward and her foreleg passed through them without so much as a rustle. Ahead of her were entirely visible rungs on her rope ladder and the balcony leading to her home. She quickly pulled herself up the rope ladder and onto her balcony. However, as she set her basket down, she had a sudden sinking feeling something was off.

What is that smell?Is that what I think it is?

Elana raised her nose to the air and began to smell something that was kinda like a combination of sweet and gym funk. She knew he had smelled this scent before, but couldn't exactly put her hoof as to where. Oddly enough it seemed to be emanating from her home. "Did my fridge give out while I was away?"

The thought crossed her mind, but she had no idea what limited leftovers she did have in reserve could possibly make such a scent. "Maybe I accidentally unplugged it as left..." Elana opened the door to her home, only for the scent to hit her like a truck; followed with her staring at the source. Sitting across from her, looking out the window was a mare; a pegasus mare.

It appears I have guests... She was slightly smaller than her in size, though quite a bit less in terms of muscle tone. She had a bright yellow coat with a light pink mane and tail. She seemed completely mesmerized by whatever she was staring at out the window and hadn't even noticed she was standing a mere dozen feet from her. Elana looked over her, taking note that she was probably in her late teens to early twenties. She seemed a bit less sporty than the pegasus from her homeland , Then again she had heard of Pegasus that were not weather ponies; a thought which still struck her as odd.

Well...it has been a year since I last had company. I wonder what brings them here? Elana could still smell the strong smell of mare musk about her home. I hope for their sake that they didn't...

Suddenly Fluttershy turned her head and let out a little gasp of surprise. Standing no more than five feet from her was a Zebra mare staring at her. This must be the owner of this tree house. I figured it was too well kept to be vacant. Fluttershy thought to herself. The mare in front of her seemed to be waiting for her to say the first word, but she just couldn't get the words out. This mare, this Zebra had a commanding presence about her. Her mane was a poorly kept Mohawk , her stripes ran both directions down her body, much unlike Zecora's and her body seemed to be covered in small scars, especially around her ears and a large deep one through her cutie mark, which seemed to be a barely visible bonfire; and her eyes, her deep red blazing eyes; accentuated by a red scarf she had around her neck sent shivers down her spine.

They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity, neither one being able to speak to the other as if they were both sizing the other up.

Calm down girl, if she wanted to hurt you she could have done so already.

"It seems that I have guests. I cannot say that I am happy about this intrusion, but at the same time I am curious as to how you found this place." Elana stepped forward, closing the door behind her. "You can start by telling me what and where that smell is coming from."

"Oh, I'm very sorry about all of this. We were told that this tree house had been abandoned for years. Though...when we got here we noticed it was well, very well kept." Fluttershy bowed her head respectfully. "Please forgive us for this intrusion!"

"Wait, us?" Elana asked, though her question was quickly answered by a quick glance at her bed.

Laying in her bed was another mare. This one was an earth pony, about the same size as the pegasus bowing in front of her. Her coat was a bright green , though covered in bandages in some spots. Her mane was a light amaranth with little light vermilion highlights interspersed throughout. Her back leg was covered in bandages, obscuring her cutie mark and there were bloodied bandages on the floor by the bed. She was still sound asleep, but her breathing seemed a tad more labored than normal.

"I will take a stab in the dark, though it seems quite obvious. You were attacked and captured by raptors?" Elana asked.

"Yes. We escaped from them just yesterday." Fluttershy responded. "Oh, how rude of me. My name is Fluttershy and the mare in the bed is Tree Hugger."

"My name is Elana Von Garrim, you may call me Elana for short. So..." Elana stared at Tree Hugger, still sound asleep in her bed. The bite wound on her leg was a dead giveaway as to how she was disabled and by whom. However, she had a sinking suspicion that another kind of crime had befell this poor mare; one she hoped her suspicions were incorrect about. "I have a suspicion that she was...injected with a green liquid and by raptor named Sadis, am I correct?"

"How do you-"

"Never mind how, I need to know how long ago and the dosage." Elana said, cutting Fluttershy off.

"About sundown yesterday, give or take" Fluttershy said, tapping her hoof against her chin. "Also, that Sadis raptor injected the whole syringe into her from what I remember."

Elana sighed. "Filthy monster, yet another victim. "Elana growled, though she composed herself when she noticed how scared Fluttershy looked. "We are in for a very long few days then. That's quite a lot of poison for a mare of her size."

"B-but he said it would only last six hours!?" Fluttershy shot a panic glance at Tree and then back to Elana. "Is there a cure? Any treatments?"

"Sadis is a pathological lair, he will say anything to stir fear up in his victims. However, there is a salve I have in reserve that will lessen the intensity, but I have yet to find a viable treatment for his poison. Then again he doesn't exactly make a lot of it; ponies in this land are rare." Elana tapped her chin with her hoof. "I would say we could capture him, but you look like not much of a warrior. No offense."

"None taken...but I don't think we can capture him anyhow. I ...kinda sorta...killed him during the escape." Fluttershy kicked the floor, seemingly embarrassed.

Elana was taken aback, staring at this small pony in front of her. A pony that seemed more at home arranging flowers than combat. "I do not believe you. I have tried for months to kill that mongrel and every time I am foiled by his subordinates or Sadis himself."

"She did though." Tree Hugger said as she sat up in bed, stifling a yawn. "I don't remember most of it, but I do recollect Fluttershy snapping his neck and spinning it like a top." Tree, blinked for a moment before putting her foreleg across her forehead. "I think I'm getting a fever though; least the heat part is gone."

Elana just stood there, staring at Fluttershy in both shock and disbelief, her mouth agape. "I..I.." Tears welled up in Elana's eyes. No, don't do it. Do not look weak in front of them... She tried her best to keep her emotions in check, but her knees gave out and she collapsed on the floor, crying uncontrollably.

"I don't get what's going on" Tree said scratching her mane.

"Do you know what you have done child?" Elana sobbed as she wiped away tears from her face.

"I ummm..." before Fluttershy could answer she was pulled into a warm embrace by Elana.

"You have made me cry for the first time in a long time. He's dead... so many avenged." Elana sobbed, pulling Fluttershy into her embrace harder.

Fluttershy didn't know exactly what was going on, until she noticed the scars visible under Elana coat at close range. Multiple straight shallow bands ran across her back, visible claw shaped gouges in her flanks and the unmistakable pattern of teeth marks over her Cutie Mark, or ...what was left of it.

Oh, I get it...she was one of his victims...

"I...well" she was at a loss for words. Her mane was soaked not with tears of sadness, but those of joy. She barely knew anything about this mare, but she could empathize with her. All those bottled up feelings were coming out. Fluttershy put her foreleg behind Elana's neck and patted her mane. "There, there. Let it all out."

She stood there, with a middle aged mare bawling her eyes out into her shoulder for what seemed like an eternity, though it was probably only a few minutes at most. Fluttershy slowly pushed Elana away, making sure to keep eye contact and speak softly. "I guess we both have a lot to talk about..."

Elana inhaled, her breath ragged and short from the crying. "Yes, yes we do."

***

"So, let me get this in order. Saw-tooth picked Tree here as a target for a meal. Then you haphazardly glided over one of the most dangerous crossings in this entire jungle only to be captured by raptors and well..."

"Sexually assaulted?" Tree added, cutting Elana off.

"I was going to try and use words that were a little less on the nose, but yes, that and seriously injured. Then you...transformed into some kind of batpony and killed Sadis as if he were and insect, punched a tree down as a show of might and then carried yourself, Tree Hugger here and all your equipment away for miles as if they weighed nothing?"

"I mean, that's what happened" Fluttershy said nervously.

"I know it sounds like something out of a superhero comic bo-

"I believe you" Elana said, curtly.

"Really?" Tree asked. "I mean, they way Fluttershy put it, it kinda does seem farfetched."

Elana smiled. " I have seen many a strange thing in this jungle and during my life. You story doesn't even make my top ten in the strange wonders I have witnessed. By chance, can you actually bring out that form whenever you please?"

"I well...I can try, but she is a bit fickle" Fluttershy said.

"She?" Elana asked.

"Well, I guess we, err...I " Fluttershy put her hoof up to her chest tapping it. "I guess we would be correct. We are one in the same, but different parts of the same personality. When we are in discord with one another we are little more than just a ravenous fruit bat, but last night she let me have full control. I still don't know all the details though, this is only the first time it has happened, having full control I mean."

Wouldn't be any fun if I let you have control all the time. I wouldn't be able to sneak cheesecake at night if that was the case. voice in Fluttershy's head said.

"Wait, seriously? I blamed that on Angel!" Fluttershy said to herself.

"Ummm, shy; you're talking to yourself hun" Tree said calmly.

"Oh, sorry. As for bringing her out...I can try." Fluttershy took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She could briefly see a room filled with fruit, with herself lounging in a pile of it. She reached out and touched her the batpony reflection of herself, only to have her hoof deflected away at the last moment.

Not now. I'm still tired from yesterday.

Fluttershy opened her eyes, gasping for air. Droplets of sweat rolled down her brow and off her nose. She could feel fangs forming in her mouth and sticking out, but only briefly. "S-sorry, she doesn't really want to come out right-" Fluttershy noticed Elana was looking at her strangely. A turn of her head made her quickly realize Tree was as well.

"You transformed there for a second. You wings were all like, leathery, you had fangs" Tree said.

"Your ears were larger and pointed and when you opened your eyes they were red for a couple seconds." Elana sat up. "I guess I have no reason to doubt you, but it is a very strange thing to watch such a transformation first-hoof."

"It feels strange too. I can hear things from far away, my sense of smell is greater and I can close my eyes and see every detail in my mind for miles around." Fluttershy lifted her foreleg up to eye level. "The feeling of being stronger is the most intoxicating feeling though. I can lift a little bit more than my own weight in flight, but in that form I feel light as a feather; like I could toss a boulder the size of a house if I wanted to."

"I can vouch for that. When we were...well, doing things on your bed last night I could feel how strong she was under her coat." Tree blushed briefly before continuing. "I don't think I have ever experienced anything like it. Layers of muscle upon layers, but she didn't bulk up in the slightest. Oh and that tongue ..." Tree blushed furiously "S-sorry, didn't mean to go into that much detail."

A few moments of awkward silenced passed before Fluttershy broke the silence.

"So...I'm not sure if I should pry, but how did you end up here?" Fluttershy asked.

Elana lowered her head and said nothing.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"No, it is okay. It's best I get it off my chest, it been far too long without anypony to socialize with." Elana inhaled deeply "You see, before ended up in this place I was a nature warden in the Elshimo expanse. Me and my mate would deal with the occasional poacher, companies illegally dumping and the like. We would also take count of the animals living in the expanse and make sure there wasn't any imbalance between predator and prey."

"That place is clear on the other side of the world. It would takes months by boat to get there" Tree added.

"Warden? So you work with animals as well?" Fluttershy asked with exuberance.

"Not in the same way somepony from Equestria would, no. While talk can sometimes get the job done we...had to occasionally kill to keep the balance in check" Elana said.

"T-that sounds horrible!" Fluttershy said.

"I know it does. Things are different in my country. The shortage of weather patrols to keep the plant-life healthy leads to food shortages and eventually famine. It's a dirty, ugly job, but wardens keep the balance so others can survive. The sacrifice of few saves the many as to say." Elana sighed, noting the distraught look she was getting from Fluttershy. "I wish it was all sunshine and rainbows like it is in Equestria, but it is what it is."

Fluttershy pondered for a moment, before sitting down, clearly distraught. "Sorry, it's just ...I take care of animals, lots of them in fact. We talk with one another, eat together and I help them out with their problems. The thought of killing them it just, feels terrible."

Elana nodded. "It is terrible. Before I ended up here we had to move a pride of lions to another section of the expanse to keep the balance in check. The lead male refused and we were forced to confront him. We tried to tranquilize him, but he kept coming, forcing me to put a spear through his neck."

Fluttershy winced at Elana's words.

"However, the pride was moved and is doing much better now that the lands they now occupy are not as over-hunted as before. Let me ask you this Fluttershy; say you were a miner and you saw a runaway cart filled with ore rush by you and towards a group of eight other miners and an alternate track with just one miner on his lunch break. In front of you is a switch that will ensure that the cart will change tracks to the one with the single pony on it. Do you flip this switch?"

Fluttershy mused for a few minutes. "I...I would stop the cart myself, with my own body if need be."

Elana smiled. "Self sacrifice, that is a rare answer, not exactly the right one, but close. You understand the concept at least; the moral thing is to do the least amount of harm as possible. Not every situation you will run across has a win for every creature involved; you can make all the right choices and still end up with a bad outcome."

Tree put her foreleg around Fluttershy trying to comfort her. "We had that happen more than a couple times during this trip."

Fluttershy sighed. "I get it, sorry for interrupting you."

"It is fine. Ponies from Equestria struggle with how ...unforgiving many other parts of the world are. As I was saying me and my mate Jenna were to be married the following winter. We were short on funds for the expanse as well as the ceremony so we took on a couple; a pair of earth ponies on safari as a way to help sure up our fiances." Elana stood up and walked to the window and gazed out it, a frown forming on her face.

"We had done safaris for all kinds of ponies, almost a hundred for me and fifty or more for my mate, Jenna."

"Jenna? That's a mares name isn't it? I thought that part of the world had some...pretty nasty laws about filly fooling" Tree interrupted.

"It does, however the expanse lies outside the reach of those laws and we had the blessing of a few local tribes. The Elders in the nearby city would not dare start a fight so outside their borders; not when we have backing from the elders. We had planned the safari for a single weekend and had packed accordingly. Jenna had a bad feeling about a storm to the south, but the weather patrol assured us that it would stay south. She however packed extra rations, a few power crystals-" Elana turned around and pointed at the ceiling, stopping Tree before she could ask the question. "And spare medical supplies. Her philosophy of too much is better than not enough proved to be accurate."

"Can I grab a drink real fast? My face feels a bit warm" Tree asked.

Elana laughed. "By all means, my home is your home."

Tree stood up, her face still wincing in paid as she hobbled over to the makeshift fridge and pull out a tall wooden pitcher of water.

"Are you okay?" Fluttershy said, standing up in an attempt to help Tree along.

"It still hurts where I was bitten. I mean, it's magically healed up for the most part, but it sure smarts to put much weight on it." Tree said, hobbling over to Fluttershy and nearly dropping her water as she sat down.

"It will most likely be that way for at least a few days. There is most likely some residual muscle tearing." Elana stared at where her cutie mark was. "They... do not hold back when disabling prey."

Tree sat down and began to chug the water from the pitcher, nearly downing the entire thing in just a few gulps.

Elana's eyes narrowed. She walked over to the cabinet near the cooking pot and opened it. She pushed a few wooden and plaster pots out of the way and grabbed what looked like the bottom half of a dried out coconut with her mouth. She closed the cabinet and walked back over to Tree, setting the coconut down in front of her.

"What's this? I never seen anything like it." Inside the coconut bowl was a a bunch of mashed up herbs, but the herbs kept changing color as if they were a rainbow.

"It is a breed of plant that is very rare back in my homeland, but can be found near swamps all over here. It is called Vira's Bane" Elana explained.

"I think I have heard of it. Doesn't that herb go for about twenty thousand bits per pound?" Tree asked.

Elana raised one eyebrow. "Had no idea it was that expensive. Even so, eat it. Your excessive thirst may be a symptom of infection."

"Infection? A-are you sure?" Fluttershy asked worryingly.

"No, but better safe than sorry. Raptors are not exactly know for having exceptional dental hygiene, so there's no knowing how much disgusting filth was injected into her during the bite." Elana stated curtly.

Tree nodded in agreement and picked up the bowl in her hooves. She slowly began to lap up the crushed herbs into her mouth, though she paused briefly to wince as she swallowed them. "Bit on the spicy and bitter side. Like , ultra five day old used tea leaves bitter."

"Well the best medicine usually tastes pretty bad" Fluttershy added.

"That it does. Anyways, we headed out early in the morning just before sunrise. The two mares we were guiding were most likely from Equestria, roughly collage aged and both extremely energetic and excited. Jenna had to yell at them a couple times to get them to calm down; she needed their full attention to explain how emergencies work and what to do and not do on safari." Elana leaned her head back, closing her eyes.

"Shortly after noon was stopped for lunch. The two mares brought along extra food for the trip and shared with us some mushroom stew one of their grandparents had made. However, as we were packing up I noticed a storm coming in from the horizon. The clouds were very low the the ground and dark." Elana opened her eyes. "Jenna told me she had an odd feeling about it and it wasn't too long before she was proven to be right. A streak of green lightning struck the ground no more than a few feet from camp. I yelled at the others to pack their things quickly, we were going to move to small oasis with large amounts of tree cover."

"Isn't it dangerous to move to tree cover during a storm?" Fluttershy asked.

"Not as dangerous as being the only tall object in an open savanna" Tree added.

Elana nodded and continued her story. "After some fidgeting with backpacks we made it to cover just as the storm came in over us. I'll never forget how strange it felt, the air was thin and the sky above us changing colors randomly. Everyone suddenly got dizzy, the two mares were on the brink of panic, but before they could utter a word, everypony collapsed on the spot."

"We came to no more than a few minutes later, but found ourselves in a dense jungle. Jenna was trying to calm the two mares down as I got out my map and compass to get our bearings." Elana got up and walked to a small cabinet by the makeshift sink. She reached in with her hoof and pulled out a silver chain with what looked like a silver locket at the end. She walked back over to Fluttershy and Tree and set in on the floor between them.

Fluttershy leaned forward, just as the locket opened. Inside was what looked like a magical compass, though the needle in the middle was spinning in all directions. Above the compass portion was a black bar that has some green numbers appearing randomly then switching to another set of numbers.

"Okay, so I get the compass is funky, but what's the numbers for?" Fluttershy asked.

Tree moved forward to inspect the device. "I think that's one of those estimators for latitude and longitude, I seen them sold in Canterlot."

"Correct. However, we found that using this device was mostly worthless. It would occasionally point the correct direction, but most of the time it was useless." Elana touched a small green gem at the base of the compass to reveal a picture where the compass used to be.

"Oh, its a picture of you and ...is that Jenna?" Fluttershy asked.

In front of a backdrop of Trees standing to the right of Elana was mare that was bright white with no stripes to speak of, though judging from her jewelry was quite obvious that she was still a Zebra. She seemed to be slightly shorter than Elana with light blue eyes and a barely visible cutie mark in the shape of a wave on her flank.

"This was taken a week before the trip that led us here. She had just been upgraded to a first class ranger." Elana closed the lid of the compass somberly. "We spent a good ten or so minutes trying to calm down the other two while trying to get our bearings. That is when we spotted one of the raptors for the first time. Jenna quickly notified me and we both ducked behind some plants before we were spotted. However the other two..."

"Screamed like idiots?" Tree interrupted.

"No, they noticed the raptor was wearing a headdress with a few feathers in it and actually waved the creature down for directions. Here we are in an unknown land with creatures that are so removed from our time as to be unknown and one of those ditzy..." Elana closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "So flagged it down and it just laughed at them. It unsheathed a machete made of bone and gave an ultimatum; surrender to become slaves or become food."

"I'm guessing they have no redeeming qualities in the slightest" Tree said.

"Not this particular tribe, no. I have come across other tribes that while they will hunt you if you run, will trade with you if you give them a deal that is heavily one sided in their favor. Needless to say the two didn't know what to say and the raptor was approaching our position. When it got within a few yards of them I nodded to Jenna and we ambushed it."

"D-did you kill him?" Fluttershy asked.

Elana rose one eyebrow at Fluttershy curiously."Of course we did. I knocked him down with a cut to the leg and Jenna stabbed her hunting knife through his skull before he could get up. You don't try and barter with an apex predator, not when it gives you an ultimatum like that."

"I don't really condone violence, but after what me and Fluttershy went through, I totally get your reasons" Tree stated.

"As my papa once said, corpses don't get to take the luxury of the moral high ground. I am glad you get where I am going. " Elana took a deep breath. "Sorry, I did not mean to soapbox. Anyways, the two mares we were with, were both petrified with fear. Jenna had to smack some sense into each of them to get them moving and explain we are in a very dangerous survival situation."

"I have a feeling that wasn't the only raptor out there..." Fluttershy said.

"No, no more than five minutes after we slew that one we heard a horn sound, they were coming for us and we need to either kill the rest or hide. I proposed we kill them all, but Jenna pushed a different plan. She told me we cannot fight an entire hunting party, not while trying to protect the dead weight that was the tourists we were guiding. She dug her back legs into the dirt very hard to give a false direction lead and then set an obvious snare trap. We knew there would be no way they would ever fall for it, but it would slow them down."

"Did it?" Fluttershy asked.

Elana nodded. "A few more hours of running and setting dumb traps actually bought us time. Time enough to get out of their territory. Thankfully we stumbled upon this old shack, though when we found it it was hard to see and overgrown with vegetation...and leaky, very very leaky."

"Wait, you didn't build this home?" Tree asked.

"No, it had apparently been the home of a doctor that had died some time ago. We spent the night in the old decaying shack. In the morning me and Jenna decided to head out and told the other two to be quiet and stay put. Thankfully we were not gone long, we found a good source of water and food in a nearby river." Elana stared up at the ceiling at he power crystal in the middle. "It turns out the two that we thought were useless had some skills after all. The denser of the two had a degree in construction while the excitable one was actually a transfer to my country and was already well versed in shamanism. When we came back they had managed to hide some of the structure with an illusion spell."

"I see, so what were these two's names?" Fluttershy asked as she eyes the crystal above her in awe.

"Blitz and Fritz. Some of the most annoying mares you will ever meet, but..." Elana lowered her head as she tried to choke back a tear. "For the year we lived together in this home...they were like family."

Fluttershy had the sudden urge to give Elana a reassuring hug, but was beaten to the punch by Tree Hugger.

"I know this hard hun" Tree said as she loosened her embrace "You can stop whenever you want."

Elana nodded. "It is okay, It is best to get this out in the open."

Tree nodded and stepped back, sitting back on the floor next to Fluttershy.

"Jenna and I were quite shocked when we got back. Here we thought we were in a survival situation with dead weight at our backs and it turns out they had some fairly remarkable talents." Elana stared up at the crystal above . "Well, I guess workable would have been a better word, but it was more than nothing."

"Everypony is special in their own way" Fluttershy said.

"In any case Jenna and I told them the bad news, that we had no landmarks to work with at all and were completely lost. Worse yet, Jenna notified me that were were in an overlap between two factions on less than friendly terms, one on one side of the river bank and the other on our side. The raptor we had killed was part of a patrol party and the only reason we still lived is we were just outside their patrol range."

"Stuck between a rock and a hard place" Fluttershy added.

Elana nodded. "Exactly so. That said, they were much more active during the night than the day; a fact we exploited many a time." Elana's stomach grumbled briefly breaking her chain of thought.

"We had a meeting and came to the conclusion that trying to find civilization immediately would be a death sentence to all of us. Trying to signal for help would get us found out by local tribes of raptors, which would lead to being eaten. This compounded with the fact that the Blitz & Fritz were both entirely useless in a combat situation led us to only one solution; train them to be rangers." Elana stood up, stretched out and headed over to the fridge, pulling out the basket with veggies and the large crab she had caught earlier.

She then walked over to the pot and set them down.

"And then what happened?" Fluttershy asked.

"Oh, well...I" *grumble* "Can I finish the story after we eat? I don't really eat much when I'm out during foraging trips" Elana said as she opened a cabinet above the pot, rummaging through some spices."

"Oh, I can help!" Fluttershy said enthusiastically.

"I can do some stuff too. Not much, but I can like, stir and stuff" Tree added.

"You just rest Tree, the more you push yourself the slower you will heal. Fluttershy, can you fetch some water from the tank upstairs?" Elana asked.

"Upstairs?" Fluttershy scanned the room, but could not seem to find anything resembling stairs.

"Oh, right...first day here." Elana laughed and walked to the side of the bed. She tapped three times on a notch on her wall and the floorboards that were once the ceiling began to slowly descend as she moved out of their path; forming a set of wooden stairs as they reached the floor. "Blitz worked tirelessly the first month she was here. Within the first week we had the structure in good shape and at the end of the month she completed this safe room."

"Wait, on her own?" Tree asked, clearly surprised.

"No, well...it may as well have been. We tried to help, but none of us had any experience in building. We did however cut wood and deliver it to her as needed." Elana walked past Fluttershy back to the pot. "The hot water tank is at the end of the room."

Fluttershy nodded in affirmation and began to climb the stairs. As she reached the second floor she could hardly believe her eyes. The room was around the same size as the one she just came from, but much more ergonomic with it's space. Cabinets were built into the walls as well as the dressers. Even the hot water tank was built into the structure as its top had a fold down bench that went across it.

"T-this is amazing. Tree, you gotta see this!" Fluttershy said.

Tree groaned and began to limp up the stairs. She started to mumble a complaint when she stopped just short; in complete awe of the room in front of her.

"Holy cheese biscuits..." Tree said to herself. "There are first class hotel rooms in Canterlot that are not as well built as this."

"I am glad you like it. If Blitz were still around I am sure she would be ecstatic with how much praise you are giving her work" Elana yelled.

"I'm flabbergasted at how you got all the materials for this. The logistics must have been a nightmare." Tree said.

"Fritz was a shaman, one that was nearly a master when we reached here. She can transmute one element to another with some limitations and loss of quantity. Some of the more exotic elements such as the cotton for the beds was easy, the copper for the pipes...not so much. Bit too many explosions for my tastes."

Fluttershy stared at the room for a few minutes until she realized why she came up here to begin with."Oh right, water." Fluttershy walked across the room, noting how solid the cedar floor was beneath her hooves felt. Tree had followed behind her, though still with a limp.

"Is that what I think it is?" Tree pointed at a door that seemed to blend in with most of the wall if not for a small opening at the top where one could easily make out a shower head.

"Yeah, looks like it" Fluttershy said, opening the door next to the water heater. Inside was a stall roughly five feet long by three feet wide; just enough for a couple mares. The entire interior seemed to made of finely finished oak and coated with what looked like tree resin. Just to the left of the shower head, a few inches below it was a small tray that jutted out. Sitting on it was a coconut with a hole bored into the top and a bar of brown soap.

Fluttershy stepped out of the shower and opened one of the cabinets. Inside were rows and rows of makeshift glass jars filled with herbs, dried spices and even something that looked like dried, salted fish. She opened one cabinet after another searching for something to carry water in.

There's enough food up here to last a single pony months if they need to. Fluttershy thought to herself.

"There is a bucket in the cabinet above the bed. Use that!" Elana yelled.

Fluttershy stood on the bed, her hooves sinking into the soft cotton that was the mattress and opened the cabinet. Inside was a box of tools, mostly stone with a few brass ones and a wooden bucket with a dried vine rope for a handle.

"So, can I possibly take a shower?" Tree yelled downstairs.

"Did I not say my home is your home earlier? Just try and keep it short, the outside feeding tank is only thirty gallons and the inside only fifteen" Elana yelled up the stairs.

Tree motioned for Fluttershy to pass her the bucket. Fluttershy nodded and Tree slowly turned the copper faucet handle. The pipes shuddered for a few seconds and cold water started to flow into the bucket. It seemed to have a faint smell of cut grass to it, though Tree figured that was because it was rainwater. She handed off the bucket to Fluttershy and dashed to the shower as fast as her limp would allow.

"Sorry, I really REALLY feel funky and not in the good way" Tree said as she peered over the slit in the shower stall.

"It's fine. You need to clean up your fur and the wounds that have scabs on them anyhow. Infection is not fun." Fluttershy said.

"Yeah...I know. You think she...I mean Elana..." Tree paused for a moment. "Nah, forget it. Ill ask you later."

"Is something wrong?" Tree asked.

"Nah, not wrong, just bad timing. Now shoo along, and no peeking!" Tree said.

"How is it peeking if we are all technically naked all the time anyhow?" Fluttershy asked.

Tree laughed, harder than Fluttershy had heard her laugh in a while. "That's actually a good point." Tree turned her attention to the faucet and turned on the hot water, pulling up a small tab next to it to have the water rain down on her. "You help Elana with the food, I'll be down in a jiffy to help...well, help best I can."

***

"T-that was fantastic" Fluttershy said as she laid back in the bed, rubbing her belly. "It's been awhile since we had anything more than the bare minimum rations to eat."

"Yeah, that top notch. The way the spices worked well with the crab and the root vegetables; I didn't peg you for such a good cook." Tree said, taking a drink of her tea. "Also, this teas interesting, did you say it was made from some kinda wild peach?"

"It is made from a kind of mutant peach that grows spikes, you can find them floating or more accurately, stuck to you if you spend any amount of time fishing in the river." Elana took a sip of her tea. "Also, I am no cook; that recipe belongs to Jenna."

"You didn't have to go out of your way for us, but thanks all the same" Fluttershy said, smiling.

"It is no bother. It has been very long since I have had guests, that an I owe you a debt for the killing of Sadis." Elana took a sip of her tea and set it down beside her. "As for the story before dinner, where was I exactly?"

"You decided to stay put and train Blitz and Fritz as ...rangers was it?" Fluttershy mused.

"Ah, yes. During the day I would have Jenna keep watch for any patrols that got too close. For a few hours I would have them come at me with wooden sticks in an attempt to hit me, then knock them on their behind and teach them what they did wrong." Elana giggled. "I remember how clumsy they were when they first started. Blitz could throw a nasty swing, but lacked any control while Fritz had the opposite problem; plenty of control and finesse , but no power."

"So, how long did it take them to get ready?" Fluttershy asked.

"At the end of the second month they were both starting to get the better of me two versus one. Slow learners, but Fritz had started to work in shaman magic into her fighting style. She would use wind magic to push me with gusts of air and to increase her own speed. Blitz had formed a kind of deliberate disarming tactic, she lacked the coordination of fine strikes, but she was getting exceptional at using her weight and balance to disarm and knock opponents down."

Fluttershy looked down at her own hooves; if she hadn't been such a pushover, she could have spared Tree Hugger a great deal of suffering. "I wish I had that kind of ability..."

If I wasn't such a doormat...

"Do not do that" Elana said, staring at Fluttershy.

"D-do what?" Fluttershy said, quickly taking the gaze off her own hooves.

"Doubting yourself like that. You both did what you could with what limited skill sets you had. You were also up against full grown raptors that have only known the hunt their entire lives; even if you both had been skilled at combat and at full strength, there was not much you could have done." Elana watched Fluttershy for a moment, the mare lowering her head shamefully.

"Flutters, what matters is we got out of there alive. If you hadn't used that power when you did, we would both be well done right now" Tree said, patting Fluttershy on the back to reassure her.

That's the problem, I didn't so much use it as it used me Fluttershy thought to herself.

"You are alive; many creatures, my friends and family included cannot say the same thing." Elana watched Fluttershy for a few moments, waiting for her to stop staring at her hooves before continuing her story. "Around that time Fritz had developed a totem warning system that she carved into the trees around our home, soon Jenna was able to join in on their training. By the time the third month ended, they were both our equals."

"That's actually kind of impressive. They built all of this and managed to be on par with rangers of all things. Kinda puts the royal army of Canterlot to shame really" Tree said.

"To be fair, most of the bad guys that invade or attack Equestria kind of outgun them by a lot" Fluttershy added.

"Soon we started to map out the region around us, but this is where we ran into a nasty hitch; we were discovered that no matter what direction we went, we would always end up looping around."

Fluttershy and Tree stared at one another, then back at Elana. "Looping around?" They both asked together.

"Yes. Imagine that we headed due west with no serious obstacles in our way, and I mean a straight line dead west, no deviation. After about a week or so, you would end up right where you started, so roughly two hundred or so miles." Elana noticed the confused looks on Fluttershy's and Tree's faces. "I know, it was hard for me to wrap my head around it at first as well, but this...I guess alternate world warps the very physics we know and comes back on itself like two domes stuck together that mirror one another."

"Wait, you don't know about the exit not to far from here?" Fluttershy asked.

"We...I know of three possible portal based exits. One is due north of here, about another days or so travel. Its sitting by some kind of large plant that kills anything that comes near it. Another is located at the bottom of a lake, about two hundred or so feet under the water and the last one is inside a volcano, just above the lava line." Elana sighed. "Sadly two of the three options were entirely bunk. You lungs would explode inside your chest before you even got remotely close to the one in the volcano and the one at the bottom of that lake leads to the bottom of shark gully in the equestrian sea; close to three miles under the water."

"We were headed to the only one we knew, one we were told was a bit north of here." Fluttershy put her hoof to her chin "Now that you mention it, there was some kind of lethal plant near it; at least that's what were were told."

Elana shook her head. "You would have never made it..." Elana stood up and walked over to her bed. She reached underneath it and grabbed a rolled up bit of parchment. She walked back to her spot where she was sitting previously and set the scroll on the floor, opening it up to reveal a crudely drawn map.

Tree leaned forward, she noticed a badly drawn rendition of the house they were currently in and differently colored sections of the map. "I see we are currently in the house; what do all the colors mean?"

"Spheres of influence, hunting grounds and patrols of multiple different raptor clans. The one past the river is called the Rock clan. I am on somewhat stable relations with them as I have traded food with them on occasion." Elana pointed to a brown circle that was colored in which territory ended just short of a volcano. "They also pay me in herbs and the like for each high ranking Blood clan head I bring them." Elana moved her hoof to the east where a large section of the map was covered in a blood red blob.

"This is the clan of Sadis and their chieftain Breem. They are the largest power in the region by a long shot, they are also the most brutal as you are well aware." Elana moved her hoof north until it was over a colored purple circle. "This clan is the biggest enigma of the three. They do not trade and they kill on sight. However, they are all capable of some kind of magic, so the other two clans avoid them like a plague.

"Wait, so there's no safe way to reach the way out of this jungle?" Fluttershy asked.

Elana shook her head. "There is. Our original plan was going to take about nine months of prepwork; but we kept running into a snag. The crystals we needed to brute force our way or sneak to the exit are all controlled inside Blood clan territory. We tried on a couple occasions to trade with them, but it always ended in a battle."

Elana rolled up the map. "We later found out that they hate all pony kind and will enslave or use them as little more than concubines. The area you escaped from is most likely their sacrificial altar to Saw-Tooth, whom they worship as a deity."

Fluttershy put her hoof to her mouth and let out a whimper. "T-they are keeping sex slaves?"

"From what I heard, the ones that they fail to break in the same way they attempted to break Tree here are killed and eaten...or more accurately, bred to death and then eaten. My information is less than accurate, but we think they have at least a dozen, if my source in the Rock clan is to be trusted."

Fluttershy hugged Tree tightly, terrified for her friends safety. "T-they were going to feed her to that Saw-Tooth guy..."

"Yes I remember you mentioning that. In any case our original plan was cancelled then and there. Going back home was a near impossible feat without removing the Blood clan from power." Elana sighed "It took days of deliberation. Blitz and Fritz were against it, but after we heard they were keeping prisoners we decided then an there that their leader had to go."

"So...you have killed a lot of them, haven't you?" Tree asked.

"We have, well over a hundred by last count" Elana said.

Fluttershy knew how Tree felt about violence, but at the same time the horrible thing she went through could have changed her opinion. "Tree are you okay?"

"I really don't like killing. I get doing it for food and in self defense in extreme circumstances. I never thought I would actually want to do so for vengeance. These Blood guys just...rape, kill and whatever for kicks; it just seems like pure evil." Tree stared at Fluttershy. "Fluttershy, I want to rescue those mares they captured, I don't care how."

Fluttershy watched as Tree's expression changed back an fourth between one of conflict and determination. "I-I don't know how we could even, I mean..."

Elana shook her head. "Let me finish my story before you make any rash decisions."

Fluttershy watched as Tree continued to stare at the floor.

I knew I would have to deal with the fallout of what happened to her eventually. The only reason she's been fine so far is because she could barely remember what happened...

"So, after a few months of picking off spares we decided we had reduced their numbers enough to create a hole in their main village. Jenna and me would distract them from the south, going for a false push while Blitz and Fritz used an invisibility spell powered by one of our scavenged crystals to get in and kill the chieftain." Elana sighed deeply. "Only, that plan went south rather fast."

"They were captured?" Tree asked.

"I don't know what happened. All I know is they were captured and we were suddenly surrounded. We killed a few more before the sleep darts we were hit with took us both down. When I awoke I was in a iron cage across from Jenna, like you Tree, she was chained down. I could heard screams on the other side of a building." Elana took a deep ragged breath, doing her best to not cry.

"Please, if it hurts that much-"

"No, you must know." Elana said, cutting off Fluttershy. "I could hear Blitz and Fritz screaming as they were being ...broken in as they called it. For hours I tried to break my cage and for hours they continued to use them as playthings. Then the screaming suddenly stopped...then, Sadis appeared."

Elana growled, her eyes full of anger, though it quickly subsided. "He laughed and said they were most likely dead. He then injected Jenna with his foul concoction. He...did horrible things to her for hours as I tried desperately to break free. She never gave in once, never gave him the satisfaction; she was a true ranger till the bitter end. He then tossed her in a cage, barely conscious and ...started on me."

Fluttershy leaned forward, reaching out to pat Elana, but Tree stopped her, shaking her head. "She has to let this out hun, she will stop if it hurts too much."

Elana nodded. "It hurts going back over it, but it needs to be said." Elana composed herself, inhaling deeply before continuing. "For three days her brutalized our bodies and for three days neither of us would give. He...he did so much damage to Jenna, we both knew she had next to no chance of surviving another session. She managed to pilfer a key off a adolescent that used her as a way to relieve himself earlier in the day. She managed to get out, but broke the key in doing so."

Elana did her best to keep herself composed, trying hard to choke back the tears, but at this point they were flowing freely. "She told me, to be strong, to live for the both of them.She started to cry, took off her favorite scarf and wrapped it around my neck. She then reared up with the last bit of strength she had and kicked my metal cage down the side of a hill, freeing me. The last I heard as I was tumbling down the side of that hill was the sound of twisting iron and the sound of fighting. She had resigned herself to a warriors death."

Tree and Fluttershy both moved to Elana's side, both patting her and nuzzling up against her in effort to comfort her.

"T-thank you. I managed to drag my beaten body back to our home and heal up. The toxin, pain and torture were horrible, but nothing compared to losing my entire family." Elana nuzzled Tree then Fluttershy, returning the affection.

"That took a lot of bravery to get that out and to strangers no less" Tree said.

"You must have had that bottled up for a long time now" Fluttershy added.

Elana wiped the teared from her eyes and took another sip of her tea. "Thank you both. I feel a bit better getting that off my chest. However, now you know what you are up against."

Fluttershy looked at Tree and Tree did the same back, both will stares of determination.

"We will figure a way out of here, we both promise."