As Twilight and her friends were preparing themselves for the travel to Canterlot, there was a pony who heard the cries of pain and rage from the Everfree during the night. That pony, or rather else, zebra decided to use her harvest time to investigate the cause of those screams. Walking with caution to avoid the dangerous fauna of the place, she couldn't help but notice her trip was calm and uneventful. Also the forest was silent, too much silent. The place was always usually quiet, with nothing but the faint noises of birds and critters living here. But right now, it was utterly silent, no sound could be heard from anywhere except from the hooves of Zecora.

'Such a strange feeling... What in this place is happening ?' The zebra was used to the strange behaviour of the Everfree. But currently even she, the shaman living in the infamous forest was under pressure in that situation. She could easily go through the woods during a predator's hunt or a parasprites' invasion without any fear, she knew how to avoid them. But that silence was something she had never witnessed here, something she couldn't escape, it was deafening to the point where she would gladly meet any animal at the moment, be it a bunny or a manticore.

And a manticore was exactly what she found when she entered the once white field of medicinal flower, now tainted red. Zecora stopped at the edge of the clearing, her eyes widening and jaw dropping at what laid in front of her. Looking without moving for a few minutes, eyes locked on the corpses of what must once have been a group of hunting manticores, she finally regained her senses. She dropped her saddlebags, disbelief still plastered on her face and walked to the carnage. Watching the bodies with a closer look, she deduced with disgust thanks to the not so late state of decomposition that one of the manticore here must had been the one who screamed in the night. She was no stranger to death, she saw in the past twimberwolves eating smaller prey, she was almost not bothered by that anymore. But never in her life she was the witness of something of that scale.

'So that is what awoke me. But what could possibly...' Harnessing her courage and poking a corpse with her hoof, she withdrew it immediately with a gasp when she touched the wound on one of the bodies. Taking several steps back, she watched with intensity where her hoof once was.

'Such a dark power ! What in the names of the spirits happened earlier ?!' Being so close to a dark and foreign power to her, she was almost in a state of panic. Breath quickening, she looked all around the border of the clearing to check for danger of any kind. When she saw nothing was near here and especially not the source of that power, she calmed herself by forcing her breathing to become slower each time she drew breath.

Not wanting to spend anymore time in that clearing, fearing that the beast responsible for that slaughter might be here, she quickly got her saddlebag back and ran to Ponyville after taking a last look to the scene she left behind.

< ====== | | ===== >

When Guts got back to the field of flower in the morning to fill his canteen with water, he stopped at the edges of the trees to observe if there was another beast before entering. Watching for several minutes, he was getting up from his spot when something entered in his field of vision.

'A... horse ? A stripped horse... Nothing surprising here...' he though with a sigh, at least even if this one was malformed with enormous eyes and an abnormal height, it was still a horse. Observing the arrival of this new animal, Guts noticed the facial features on the little horse's face. They were strangely very expressive, almost human-like. Especially when it went to take a closer look to a corpse, he could have sworn he saw disgust plastered on the equine's face.

So he was once again surprised when the little horse touched a corpse and gasped. That was something he had never seen with the ones from Midland, something going on with that animal's behaviour.

Watching the horse running back into the forest from where it came, Guts started to think of his next move. 'Should I follow it ? Maybe it went back to its owner, or at least somewhere closer to civilization...' Considering that to be the best choice at the moment, he slowly rose up to his full height, stepped into the clearing, and walked into the general direction where the animal fled, expecting to find something worth his time.

< ====== | | ===== >

"Ok girls, everypony get inside, I'll finish checking my list." Twilight said.

"Alright Sugarcube, we'll keep ya a seat in the train." the farmer said while entering the car, followed calmly by the others and a very energetic ball of pink.

Nodding, the Alicorn returned her attention to her checklist "So... 'Book on Cryptozoology' from Legend Fauna, check. 'Forgotten Species' from Smart Search, check. Mmmh... Where is my book on 'The Fauna of the South' ?" Looking up to search for her book in her luggage, she saw that she was only a few inches away from the muzzle of another pony with piercing blue eyes watching her with intensity. "AAH !" was all she could scream while falling on her rump.

"My apologies Twilight Sparkle, I did not mean to startle." Zecora said with a little smile badly hidden behind her hoof.

"Hehe, it's fine Zecora don't worry, I was not surprised at all..." Twilight replied a bit too fast while getting up "But I must ask, what are you doing at the train station ? We don't see you often here." she said after recovering from her surprise.

The shaman's smile dropped as soon the Alicorn asked that question. A grim tone escaped from the zebra's mouth "A deep scream into the night I heed. Your advice on the subject I need."

Twilight looked through the window of the wagon where Fluttershy was, checking that she didn't overheard them and then went back to Zecora "So you heard that scream too ? Fluttershy told us she heard something similar last night, but she couldn't go see for herself as she was too afraid of the forest and apparently of a second, louder cry".

"Yes, that last scream I heard too. And an investigation, I've been through." Searching her words for a few second, she continued with unease "A dark result I fear, something terrible happen to now live near."

"Zecora, I think you're starting to worry for nothing, clearly a manticore fighting another predator is not that noteworthy." Twilight said with a little smile, expecting to ease the fears of her friend but the corners of her mouth lowered when the zebra still had a look of seriousness on her face.

"If five dismembered manticores is not noteworthy, what could possibly be ?" the shaman said with a bit of sarcasm, seeing that the Alicorn was not taking seriously the matter at hoof.

A brief look of shock flashed on Twilight's face as she digested the information. She quickly looked once again in direction of where Fluttershy was sitting, thankful that the window of the train car was still closed. "What did you see in that forest ?"

Listening to tale of her friend, she put her hoof in front of her mouth as she analysed what she was learning to come with the best solution. "I must say..." she said after a few minutes of thinking "That much manticore dying is quite uncommon... But not that surprising." Igniting her horn and summoning a quill and a scroll, she quickly wrote a few lines before using magic once again to make the paper and quill disappear in a flash of light. "Well fear no more, I've just sent orders to the guard stationed in Ponyville to go investigate what happened in the Everfree."

Frowning, her friend wanted to argue her choice. "Are you sure it will be enough for our matter ? I think a more drastic solution would be better-" the zebra started but was cut off by Twilight.

"Listen Zecora, both you and I know how mysterious and dangerous the Everfree forest can be." Twilight responded " Species believed to be dead from long ago are frequently spotted by lost wanderers, plants from legends grow in mass in these woods, faint residues of forgotten magic are still present. Even the Tree Of Harmony is in that forest ! Clearly a bunch of animals dying from others predators is not uncommon, and even if those were truly as dangerous as you describe them, do you really think they would be crazy enough to attack a town protected by a platoon of guards ?"

Locking her gaze in the eyes of the lavender pony for several seconds, the shaman finally glanced down and sighed, her signs of worry almost completely gone. Looking once again at Twilight, she said "Very well my friend, "

"That's the spirit !" the pony said with a smile, happy she finally got to reassure the zebra.

Suddenly, the train's whistle came to life, causing both ponies to look at the conductor wagon, where an old conductor stepped outside the locomotive. "Everypony aboard !" he shouted.

Turning once again to Zecora, Twilight quickly grabbed her remaining bags and put them on her back. "Well it seems I have to go." Waving a last time at her friend, she stepped into the car just in time before the doors closed.

Joining her other friends and taking place in the seat they kept for her, she sighed and tried to put herself in a comfortable position for the journey to come.

"What kept you so long Twi' ?" Asked Rainbow while she was laying on her back.

"Nothing, just Zecora who wanted to talk to me."

"Darling, was there a problem ?"

"Nothing of importance, I assure you." The Alicorn said with a smile, as she felt the vehicle starting to move as Applejack watched her with a raised eyebrow.

Meanwhile, Zecora couldn't help but think of what Twilight had said as she Looked at the train leaving the station. It was true that a platoon of guards was now stationed in the town and they should be enough to handle a stray animal from the Everfree. Feeling a bit relieved, she leaved the station and went back to her home while planning new enchantments to protect her house if the new predator were to attack her, just to be sure. At that moment, the shaman, happy to see a solution to this new problem has already been decided, didn't realise she had forgotten to mention to the Alicorn the dark power she felt when touching the wounds of the corpses.

< ====== | | ===== >

Iron Shield was not happy. When he signed into the Guard, he was expecting a quiet and easy career, as the guards nowadays had practically nothing to do thanks to the peaceful era they lived in. When a guard platoon was said to be forming in Ponyville, he was the first to volunteer, eager to live in little town where the ratio between mares and stallions would play in his favour. The earth pony was ready for a new and carefree life. So, when his Lieutenant informed him he had to go into the Everfree to investigate on a slaughter involving manticores, he was definitely not happy.

Currently he was walking, more like trying to move his hooves deep into the mud of the forest, with three fellow guards. His team was composed of the Lieutenant, who was a Unicorn named Gold Lance and two privates Earth ponies. "Lieutenant, where is that clearing you mentioned before ?" he said with irritation.

"Maybe you'll find it in the toilets of the barrack after I'll send you to clean them if you keep talking Corporal." he replied with annoyance in his voice, he had to bear with Shield talking non-stop of how the place was messy, humid and full of insect. "We need to hurry, the natural weather in this place is starting to worry me..."

And he was right. Above them, the dark clouds which were forming since the beginning of their operation started to let rain fall upon the earth. In less than a few minutes, it was a real downpour with the sky painted by the flash of thunder. Darkness covered the Everfree as the sun was masked, leaving the ponies with a reduced field of vision like it was almost midnight.

"Lieutenant, I know princess Sparkle send the order, but should we really continue in this condition ?" One of the other private shouted, to make himself clear above the sound of the storm.

Reflecting quickly on that question, the officer went to answer with a sigh "I think you're right, let's get back to the-"

RAWL
CLUNK

As the ears of everypony in the group swivelled in the direction of the growl and strange noise, Shield asked aloud what all his squad's members were wondering. "What was that ?"

CLUNK
RAWL

"That growl, it's a timberwolf..." said the Lieutenant "But that other sound, I don't recognize it."

CLUNK
CLUNK

"Sir, I think we should investigate that." Said one of the Private

Taking a moment to ponder and take a decision, the order was a surprising one for the squad "Negative, we are going back to Ponyville."

"But Sir, we were tasked to-"

"I said, we are going back to the town !" The lieutenant said with a commanding tone as he turned to his squad "There is too many unknown variables, it's raining, almost pitch black and we don't know how many timberwolves or other creatures we may encounter if we try to investigate. Understood ?"

"Yes Sir." The two privates answered, even if they were curious, they had no power over their officer thanks to his rank and his good arguments.

"And to be honest I don't want to spend more time than necessary in that damned forest..."

Walking back from whence they came from, the group struggled to find the path they took earlier thanks to the dark clouds. After a few moments, the lieutenant started to hear less and less the noises from before, at some point everything was quiet. Too much quiet. Nothing was perturbing his earing, especially not an annoying corporal. Stopping in his tracks, Gold turned around and took a look at his team before asking.

"Where is Iron Shield ?"

< ====== | | ===== >

Shield, if he was wet and hooves deep in the mud, would at least get a bit of entertainment by seeing a timberwolf up close for the first time.

'Buck the lieutenant and his orders, something interesting is happening for once in that Celestia forsaken place !' he thought while trying to follow the source of the commotion.

Having a quiet and easy career was something Shield wanted, but the study of wild fauna was above all the rest for him, having enough books on the subject to make a certain lavender pony back home quite jealous. He knew of course timberwolves were dangerous, we was no fool. He knew how difficult it was for a group of experienced guards to drive off a timberwolf, let alone kill one.

Moving fast while being silent to keep the timberwolves unaware of his presence, his pace slowed for a bit when he spotted claw marks on the trees surrounding him. He almost stopped when he noticed what seemed to be piles of dead wood in the shapes of quadrupeds. He came to a total halt when he saw several trees completely separated in half, closing the distance, he saw that they had been cut in a really clean way.

'What could have possibly do that ?' He wondered 'I know no lumberjack capable of doing something like that, it's almost if those trees were cut in one swing...' Getting lost in his thought, he quickly came back to reality when he heard a loud howl and the strange noise from before coming from behind a couple of bushes, reminding him of where he was.

Getting his courage back, he laid down and started to crawl in the wet mud under the foliage to get a close look at the mysterious scene. Pushing away the last leaves in is way out of his vision, what he saw made his jaw dropped and his eagerness disappeared.

There were timberwolves, three of them admist more than a dozen piles of woods like Shield saw earlier, understanding dawning on him as realised those were the corpse of dead beasts. He watched as the pack of three was walking, slowly, in a predatory manner around what appeared to be something the corporal had never seen before in his life.

It was a tall bipedal being made of metal and covered in a cape with a hood, all of these elements as black as the night Nightmare Moon brought for her return after her banishment, a black devoid of light, of life. But what surprised Shield the most was what was in the arms of this mysterious entity, it seems it was carrying a big plate of metal, handling it like a weapon.

'Wha... What is that thing ?' Going through his memories, he tried to remember reading anything related on that specimen in his books 'What in Celestia's name is that... monster ?' Keeping his eyes on the being, he didn't notice one timberwolf running straight jaw open to the metal cladded being. In less time it took for Shield to realise an attack from the pack was happening, the black biped swung the plate of metal down, crushing the entire body of his foe in one strike and reducing it to dust. The last two of the pack decided to play their final card and charged a the same time from the same direction but to no avail as the being drove his weapon through both of them in a single movement, destroying them as if they were mere flies. Silence fell as the biped took a deep and heavy breath before putting his weapon on his back after waiting for something to happen for several seconds.

'So that piece of metal... is a sword ? No that's impossible, it's... too big, too thick, too heavy, and too rough, that thing is too big to be called a sword, it is more like a large hunk of iron...'

His musings were cut short however, when the monster in front of him stopped in his track and turned his head around in direction of Shield. At that moment, the corporal caught a glimpse of what laid under the being's hood who reduced to nothing an enormous amount of timberwolves. It was an eye, an eye as cold as the frozen landscape of the Crystal Empire, devoid of compassion, mirror of a soul covered in the blood of tens, hundreds even thousands of beings. Shield was petrified, never in his life had he witnessed something that caused a fear so intense like that, a pure and primal fear, like gazing into the maws of a starving ancient demon of Tartarus.

Suddenly the monster took a step towards Shield. Getting out of his catatonic state, the corporal mustered all the will power he had left to get up and run. He ran as far and fast as his stamina and legs could take him screaming at the top his lungs all the way. He ran in direction of the town from whence he came, he didn't stop when he stumbled upon his squad even when his officer called him several times. All he wanted to do was to put as much distance as it was possible between him and this monster, this... demon.

Author's Note

Fear not my friends, for i have returned from Oblivion !

As always, sorry to take that much time between each capter but hey, as fans of Berserk we are used to wait for evey new chapter of the manga, right ?

Also if you have any ideas, suggestions, do not hesitate to write a comment, I enjoy reading each ones of them.

So for now, see you in 7 or 8 months for the next chapter. (Just kidding I'll try to take less than that )

PS : I had an idea recently, do you think it would be great to create another story where instead of Gut and Casca appearing in that version of Equestria, they would go to the 'Your Human And You' verse ? Casca would be in practically the same mental state as the other humans, and with Guts looking for her, do you imagine what he would do to abusive slavers ? Oh boy...