Kinky Camp Everfree

Some time had gone by and everyone had helped put together everything for rock climbing. Rarity and Applejack were partnered up to race against Eternal and Heat Blitz. Rarity and Heat Blitz were the climbers and Eternal and Applejack were the supporters, making sure their partners would make it to the ground safely.

“Alrighty, climbers! On your mark… get set…” Gloriosa stopped and grabbed her whistle, blowing it, signaling the start of the climb. Rarity started off fair, but when Heat Blitz climbed up two mere steps, he looked up and felt his heart race and clung to the fake rock.

“Heat Blitz, don’t be scared. I know you’re scared of heights, but this isn’t like real rock-climbing like the ones you see on TV. Plus, if even if you lose your grip here, I’ll be able to catch you in no time flat,” Eternal said calmly.

“Easy for you to say! You’re used to high places!” Heat Blitz said.

“So are you, Heat Blitz. We sleep in a dorm room back at school on the 3rd floor. You sleep next to the window, for crying out loud,” Eternal said, squeezing the bridge above his nose. “This shouldn’t be any different.”

“Yeah, but I usually looked at the sky whenever I wake up or am about to fall asleep!” Heat Blitz, said, tightening his eyes shut.

“You’ll never be able to conquer your fears if you don’t man up and face ‘em head on.”

“And how am I supposed to do that?”

“Hmm… you could always try thinking about the one thing that makes you happy and all the benefits that it possesses, anything at all,” Eternal said. Heat Blitz slowly opened his eyes and this time, he didn’t stare up above or down below. Slowly and shakingly, he climbed his way up to the top. He breathed in and out, talking to himself.

“Okay… think positive… think positive. Don’t be scared,” Heat Blitz said. Rarity was almost at the top of the rock. But then, she lost her grip on one of the edges and started tangling and shrieked a bit in terror.

“H-Help! Oh dear!” Rarity said. Heat Blitz got worried and climbed as fast as he could to go and help Rarity.

“Hang on, help is on the way!” he said.

“No worries, Rarity! Ah gotcha,” AJ said.

AJ attempted to lightly pull on the rope, but when she did, Rarity flung all the way up and almost hit the bell. “HEAVENS ABOVE!!!” Rarity shrieked. Applejack’s confused expression made it clear she didn’t pull on it that hard. And when she loosened her grip a little too much, Rarity began to fall straight down, screaming.

“RARITY!!!” Heat Blitz shouted, reaching out to grab her. Applejack tightened her grip on the rope, thus Rarity stopped just before she hit the ground.

“APPLEJACK, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING?!” Rarity asked, scared out of her wits. As the girls kept arguing, Eternal let down Heat Blitz gently and then the two approached the girls to calm them down.

“Rarity, Ah swear! Ah didn’t pull on the rope that hard. Here, let me help you,” AJ said.

“No! I think you helped quite ENOUGH!” Rarity said, putting her hands in front of AJ. Then, all of a sudden, this magic diamond appeared in front of her and pushed Applejack away from her, then heard a splashing sound afterwards.

“Whoa!” Eternal said.

“Did she just…?” Heat asked, dumbfounded. While still trying to process what had happened, Applejack came back, completely soaked to the bone.

“Oh dear, Applejack. I’m so sorry… I think. Did I do… whatever that was?” Rarity asked.

“If I didn’t see it with my own two eyes, I wouldn’t believe it,” Celestia said.

“Same here. We’d better go and get Applejack some towels,” Sunset said.

“I’ll tag along with you. I’ve got a really bad feeling something else is about to happen,” Twilight said, a bit worried. Sunset allowed her to come along and left. Meanwhile, Celestia, Luna, and Sombra were left with trying to piece together what just happened.

“You don’t think this has to do with Equestrian magic, do you sis?” Celestia asked.

“It is possible. This was supposed to be a fun-filled week getaway from the city life and Equestrian magic, but it seems that it can be found almost anywhere,” Luna replied.

“Equestrian magic? What on earth are you talking about?” Sombra asked.

“Sombra, dear. I’m not sure if you’re aware of what’s happened at Canterlot High, but if not, I’ll gladly explain it to you in private,” Luna said. “Sister, this might take a while.”

“Take as long as you need. I’ll stay here and look after the students,” Celestia said calmly. Luna nodded and left with Sombra. Meanwhile, Celestia can tell her sons were getting curious about what they witnessed as well. “Boys?”

“Hmm?” Heat Blitz asked, turning towards his mother.

“Why don’t you two help out with getting the grilling equipment in place. I need to have a little talk with the others.”

“Well… okay. After all, Eternal knows how to cook a lean, mean barbeque. Right, bro?” Heat Blitz asked.

“I suppose it wouldn’t be so bad to get lunch started. Come along,” Eternal said. Heat followed him to go grab the grill. Suddenly...

*BOOM*

The ground beneath their feet rumbled and the source of the explosion came from inside the cabin where Pinkie Pie was making cookies. Eternal and Heat Blitz rushed in and found everything in the cabin completely covered in cookie dough. Gloriosa, Twilight and Sunset all rushed inside to see what had happened.

“Pinkie!” Twilight shouted and coughing, “Are you alright? What happened?!”

“Funny thing.” Pinkie Pie sang as she wiped some dough from her eyes. “I was just making some delicious cookies and coating them in sugary sprinkles when all of a sudden, POOF! Cookie dough shot everywhere. And it happened just as I did this,” Pinkie grabbed a handful of colorful sugar and spread it on the dough, making it explode once again. This time, some of the dough got in Eternal’s face. “Oopsies, sorry.”

Eternal merely wiped the dough off his face and got a paper towel to dry off his hands. “A little dough to the face never hurt anybody, but we’d better get this stuff cleaned up if we ever want to get lunch started,” Eternal said.

“Not to worry, I’ve got this,” Gloriosa sang.

“Wait, Gloriosa!” Heat said. “What do you say I help you clean this place up? You must be constantly exhausted having to do things on your own.”

“Aww, well isn’t that sweet. But I don’t want you and anyone else to be torn away from having the best vacation trip,” Gloriosa said, patting him on the head.

“But it’s not a vacation if we’re leaving you out of all the fun. Come on, what do you say?” though, she admired his devotion, Gloriosa still thought it’d be best to fix this mess on her own. But then…

“There’s no use in talking it out of him. Once he has his mind set on something, he won’t take no for an answer. Think about it, at least with him helping you, you’ll get twice the work done,” Eternal said.

“Oh… alright, you win,” Gloriosa said with a sad smile in defeat. With their argument settled, Gloriosa and Heat Blitz worked together to clean up the cabin while Pinkie Pie resumed baking her cookies. Eternal took this time to get the grill all set up outside.

While he was getting heating it up, Flare Warden walked up to Eternal. “Hey, I didn’t know you had cooking skills. Were you self-taught?” she asked.

“No, Hurricane Breeze taught me. He’s what we call the S-class chef of the group. He can even make regular, common meals taste S-class. Why do you ask?” Eternal asked.

“I dunno, I was thinking maybe if you’re not so busy you could… teach me? I’m kinda terrible when it comes to cooking,” Flare said, scratching the back of her head in embarrassment.

“Sure, it’s not all that hard once you get the gist of it down,” Eternal nodded.

“Great. And… one other thing…” Flare said. “That buddy of yours, Tidal Wave, does he have anyone… special in his life?”

“No, not yet. But if you’re growing attached to him, you can always go and talk to him. He’s a very open-minded individual,” Eternal said.

“Really?” Flare asked. Eternal nodded as the fire started on the grill. “Thanks, you’re a big help.” After their talk, Flare left to tend to her business.

Lunchtime had gone by pretty smoothly and everyone was finally full, compliments of Eternal’s tasty barbeque meals and Pinkie’s yummy cookies. And with everyone fueled up, the CTI students all helped set up their karaoke machine with the help of Gloriosa.

And as a complimentary treat, everyone allowed their gracious host and proud owner of the camp to sing first.

Everyone’s minds were blown away from the song Gloriosa sang and even more so how she blew the roof off. Everyone danced to the beat, minus a certain long, red-haired boy. Eternal just stood there in the crowd with his arms crossed and his eyes wide open from shock and awe.

Soon, she finishes her song and gets a standing ovation. Gloriosa took a bow and put the mic back up to her lips. “Thank you, everyone. You’re too kind. Now then, who here has a song they’d like to sing?” she asked.

“U-Uh, would it be okay if… I could, you know… sing a song?” Fluttershy asked quietly.

“Oh, I agree. Let’s have Fluttershy sing. She has a simply divine, angelic voice,” Rarity said.

“Alrighty then. Come on up here and choose a song that you like,” Gloriosa said. She then handed Fluttershy the mic before stepping off the stage. Fluttershy scrolled through the songs and picked the one she liked. Everyone watched as she began singing and put on big smiles.

All around, there was a big wave of cheers, catching Fluttershy off guard. Yet, the message was clear to her and she smiled for a job well done. Though nervous at first, she held her own and gave it her best shot and the crowd went wild.

Next one up to the mic was Heat Blitz. No one, except the CTI students, knew what to expect from him, but something told the CHS students they were in for a big surprise. And boy, were they right about that. Once he chose his song, he took singing to a whole other level.

Every time he got to the romance parts, he seemed to be gesturing to Twilight without even knowing that he was flirting. The CTI students were way too busy singing along in the chorus parts to notice that Twilight was blushing. It wasn’t long before everyone else joined in with Heat Blitz during the last part of the song.

The moment the song concluded, everyone cheered like they witnessed a one-man concert. “Thanks, everyone. I’m glad you liked my song. So, which one of you fellow campers is ready to take a shot at this?” Heat Blitz asked.

"Hand me the mic. I know just the right song," Sunset called out. Heat Blitz gladly handed Sunset the mic and stepped off of the stage. Meanwhile, Sunset stepped up to the stage and already received cheers from her classmates and staff members. Everyone can already tell she was going to raise the roof in this place.

After selecting her song, she took off like there was tomorrow. Everyone clapped even as Sunset continued to sing her amazing melody. Eternal was also impressed by her incredible singing abilities.

When her song finally finished, Eternal rose up and cheered for her the most. Sunset winked at him, thus causing him to blush and turn away, scratching the back of his head. It made her giggle, knowing he had a soft side.

'Aww. what a cute expression,' she thought to herself. Sunset stepped off the stage and watched all of her friends get on the stage, one by one and sing their songs, including the Principal and Vice Principal. Everyone present gave their best shot at singing what song came to mind. It didn’t matter how well they did but rather that they had a good time singing. Yet, it was amusing to the CHS students to see their normally stoic Vice Principal sing so beautifully.

Then finally... there was one person left. All eyes turned to a certain long, red-haired silent boy. Deciding to give them what they want, he stepped up to the stage and grabbed the mic. "Alrighty, let's see what we got here," he said, strolling through the songs. Soon, he found what he was looking for and started singing. As deep and dark as this song was, Eternal showed he wasn't just all muscle and scary looks.

After his song ended, everyone stood in shock. Eternal thought he might've flopped his song, so he closed his eyes and brushed it off as bad singing. After putting the mic away and stepping off, that's when he got the applause he was looking for. He opened his eyes in surprise, then closed his eyes and walked away. He threw his arm up and made a peace sign.

"Gee, is he really that sore about the late applause?" Rainbow asked.

"He can take a little harsh criticism with a grain of rice, but it did crash down on him like a ton of bricks because he thought he was off with his singing," Shadow said.

"I hope he ain't in a mopey mood," Applejack said.

"If he is, he'll probably head on over to a quiet place to relax," Ground Breaker said.

"Well, where would he be, though?" Applejack asked back.

"My guess is... by the lake. He'll probably stare at his reflection in the water or at the sky," Ground said.

"If you want my honest opinion, I'd say he's always hanging by himself a little too much. We've been with him for a long time now, but I think he needs a really close friend by his side," Hurricane Breeze said.

"Maybe I can do something about it," Sunset said. "I know it's a bit of a stretch and I never got to spend most of my time with him, but I was his very first friend during childhood. I owe him that much after missing out on what he's been doing for so long."

"Normally, I'd crack a joke about you two lovebirds, but I'm just gonna shut up," Shadow said with a relaxed smile, resting his arms behind his back.

Sunset rolled her eyes and just followed Eternal. She quickly found her old friend sitting by the edge of the lake with his legs dipped into the water. Sunset breathed in and exhaled as she walked over and sat down next to him. In order to break the ice, she started a conversation.

“Hey Eternal,” Sunset slowly approached him, “are you uhhh… alright?”

"Never been better. Just needed to cool off, that's all,," he replied, gazing at the sky.

"Are you still upset from the delayed cheers?"

"If I was, I'd be in my tent with the entrance zipped up. It also gives me some time to think about some stuff that's gotten my mind all scrambled."

'Nice to know he's not holding a grudge. Maybe I should change the subject' she thought. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Well, when we first came here and when Celestia ran up to give you a hug, you looked like you were confused. But that's not what puzzles me. Is there... anything about your real mother that you might know about?"

"The only thing I can remember was her silhouette. She looked tall... and graceful... and her mane, well... it looked like it was blowing in the wind, but the funny thing is... there was no breeze whatsoever."

Sunset blinked as her suspicions were confirmed. 'I was right from the beginning. There's no doubt he's her son.' "Maybe, one of these days... I can take you to where she is. I know a way for you to return back home so you can meet her and maybe... stay with her." Sunset's voice became sad in a matter of seconds when she realized she found him a way back to Equestria. But then...

"I'll take you up on your offer to see her, but I'd rather stay here. Due to recent events that have come to my attention, I'm staying in this world," Eternal said. "Besides... I haven't seen you in about 10 years. And we've got a lot of catching up to do."

Eternal gently placed his hand on Sunset’s shoulder, patting it as he hummed silently. The warm feeling had something of an effect on her as she began to feel relaxed. It made her feel happy to be touched by her old friend she missed from so long ago. Scooching closer to him, Sunset began nuzzling her cheek into Eternal’s shoulder, humming softly as fond memories started coming back. She dearly missed her friend, the one she knew since they were five.

*Flashback*

It was back at their village and on that day, Sunset was fetching some fresh water, minding her own business and thinking about getting into a school for gifted unicorns. Just as she was about to fill up the jug with water, young Eternal Flames caught her attention through the water's reflexion as he was up in a tree. She can remember how curious Eternal looked when he saw her for the first time. He got so distracted by her that he made the branch he was standing on snap and fell off the tree, splashing into the water.

It was so cute and funny, she giggled. Eternal thought he was gonna get in trouble and jumped out of the water and hid behind some bushes. Sunset wanted to find a way to get him out of his hiding place, so she hummed a tune while getting the water and then headed back to her home. Her plan worked and saw Eternal following her.

Sunset's next plan was to lure him closer to her and she did so by "accidentally" losing her magic grip on the jug, thus causing it to fall and roll towards Eternal. The plan went along far too easy and he refilled it, then followed her. He hesitated halfway and looked behind him. Sunset looked in the same direction and noticed his father and grandfather. His father looked like he wanted him to come back, but his grandfather urged him to go ahead and join her.

When he looked back at her, Sunset winked at him and gave him the most adorable smile. With a shrug, Eternal went with it and followed her the rest of the way. Needless to say, Sunset's parents had different points of view on her bringing the young colt to their house. Her own dad, like most fathers, got all defensive and tried to protect his "precious little princess" as he put it. But her mom was overjoyed to see that she made friends with "the young prince," but Sunset didn't get what she meant by that at the time. All that mattered to her was finally having a new friend to play with.

*Back to present day*

Those memories brought her so much joy and happiness. Even back then when she was a sheltered genius, even for a filly, Eternal was the first to recognize her as a friend when no other pony would, besides her parents. Approaching her that day made the world to her, dispelled any notion that she was alone. Pulling him into a hug, she took in more of his body warmth as Eternal found him enjoying a familiar embrace.

"I remember the last time we hugged like this. You left to attend this gifted school for unicorns after you got your acceptance letter," Eternal said, stroking Sunset's cheek with his thumb. "But I am curious about one thing. What was it like at this school?"

"It'd definitely give your mind a good workout if you were accepted," Sunset replied. "My head was killing me from all of those spells and reading so many books. Sadly I didn't earn the right to be a princess and... well, you know what happened after that."

"Yet you changed your evil ways. That's something you should feel proud of, especially now that you've got friends by your side," Eternal said.

"I guess you're right. Anyways, as much as I'd love to sit here all day with you, we should get back to the camp. They're probably wondering where we are," Sunset said.

All gathered around a campfire, everyone had their marshmallows on sticks in hand. Hovering them over the flames, they couldn't wait to eat them.

"Hey, who's up for a scary story? I got a hell of a story that'll really wet your pants!" Shadow said with a sly grin.

"You can try, but not a lot of horror stories are real," Sunset chuckled.

"Oh, trust me. This one is as real as it gets," Shadow insisted before clearing his throat. "Basically, this is the tale about a forest deity who lives in this very forest. The deity goes by the name of... Gaia Everfree. She guards the forest from anyone that trespasses on her sacred land by scaring them off with threats of dragging them underground and using their bodies as nutrients to feed the trees." Shadow said in a deep, ominous voice.

No one seemed scared by this, except for Heat Blitz. His whole face was turning pale. "One day, a happy couple built a lodge here so they could one day turn this into a camping resort. Gaia was infuriated and confronted the couple, telling them to leave or face her eternal wrath. The couple said they meant no harm and wanted to share the camp with travelers and in return, they wouldn't set foot into her forest. Gaia, though hesitant at first, agreed to the terms and told them she'd be back to reclaim her land. But didn't say when she'd return." Shadow continued.

Eternal rolled his eyes, but Heat Blitz curled up into a ball, scared and shaken up. "Rumor has it that she's still out there... ready to claim her land today. She could be anywhere. Maybe even... right... THERE!!!" Shadow pointed behind Heat Blitz. In turn, he screamed and then slumped backwards off the log.

"Oh great, now look what you've done," Eternal said, squeezing the bridge between his eyes. "Normally I'd scold you for scaring Heat, but I'm just gonna brush that aside and call on this load of boloney. There's no such thing as Gaia Everfree. She's merely just an urban legend someone made up just to scare people."

"I... I don't know, Eternal," Heat said, climbing back up onto the log and sitting down. He was still shaking violently from the story. "After everything that's happened so far, I'm not so sure if it's even an urban legend. What if she's real?"

"Heat Blitz, since when does Gaia Everfree make people shoot diamonds out of their hands, or make 'em so strong they snap a rope clean in half?" Eternal asked.

“Something like that isn’t a natural occurrence.” Twilight mused, "Remember, the rope was too thick and new to have happened naturally. And on top of all that, it was a perfectly clean cut.”

“Yep.” Pinkie agreed.

"Okay, I will agree that there's something odd going on in this camp, but there's no way it has anything to do with this "Gaia Everfree" nonsense," Eternal says, stroking his chin as he tries to think of a logical conclusion.

"What about that cave you and your brother were watching the other night? Do you think whoever was coming out of there was the one responsible for what's been going on?" Sunset asked, bringing up an idea for Eternal.

"I think you might be onto something here, Sunset," Eternal said.

"Definitely Gaia Everfree!" Shadow added.

"Is that the only thing drilled into your skull?" Eternal asked.

"Hey, hey, don't be hatin', I'm just trying to have some fun," Shadow said, putting his hands up defensively while smiling.'

"Forgive Trixie for asking, but is he always this carefree?" Trixie asked.

"He's also a bit of a laid-back type of guy," Eternal confirms.

"A guy of his stature is laid-back? Trixie finds that hard to believe. Because..." Trixie fanned herself using her hand. "...he certainly does not look like a slacker."

"Changing the subject, I've noticed something about the occurrences that've happened here. It seems the magic here is being directed towards our friends and in different ways," Twilight said.

"What do you mean?" Heat asked.

"Think about it. Applejack's super-enhanced strength, Rarity's magic diamonds, Pinkie Pie with the exploding powder-y sugar, Rainbow Dash with her... uhh..."

"Her super speed. I saw it with my own two eyes when she raced with Flare against Heat Blitz and Tidal Wave," Spark Burst added.

"Amazing. Somehow, the magic here is giving our friends enhanced abilities based on their natural traits," Twlight said.

"Well, if I'm gonna be honest, I always did have a soft spot for strong, hard-working women," Ground Breaker blurted out.

“Well, I say I fit those qualifications.” A feminine voice called out, making Ground Breaker jump. He turned around quickly and caught sight of Gloriosa joining the campers.

"Oh, hey there, Daisy. Y-You don't mind me calling you that, do you?" Ground asked.

"Looks like you've got some competition, eh AJ?" Rainbow teased, nudging AJ's arm.

"She just startled 'im, no biggie," Applejack replied.

"Oh-ho, so you do like him, huh?" Rainbow asked with a sly grin.

"Do we have to separate you two?" Sunset chuckled. While everyone was chattering on, laughing up a storm, Eternal gave Gloriosa a stick with a few marshmallows. She humbly accepted it and joined in with everyone. However, Eternal felt he had no time to celebrate and have fun just yet. He nudged Gloriosa and whispered to her.

"I got something I want to ask you about tomorrow? Would it be alright if I stopped by your office at around maybe... noon-ish?" Eternal asked.

"I suppose, but you should enjoy yourself for the time being. If there's ever a problem, then have no fear, I've got this," she whispered back.

'Why do I have a hard time believing her?' he thought.