Day 22 (Morning)

The sun rose onto the sky, giving light to all that were under its rays. In the Everfree, the light even reached inside a dark cavern. The stalactites from above pointed at the floor with its sharp tips. The walls were jagged and crude. Even with the sunlight, it was difficult to see inside the cave. But the pony who housed within cared not for these as he slept soundly on the floor. But he was not the only one that resides here.

Bandage felt that there was something on his face. One was warmth from the light, and the other was movement. Opening one eye, he saw, in his perspective, a giant spider staring back at him with its many, many eyes. He blinks. The spider blinks back at him.

A loud shriek rang for miles.

In fear, he hits his face, repeatedly determined to get rid of the pest. Ultimately, he did nothing but hurt himself as the spider had already left the top of his nose. When he stopped hitting himself, he now noticed the spider was already gone. He silently screamed in annoyance as his sleep had been disturbed by a small matter.

Not wanting to ruin his day so early on, the foal distracted himself by checking his hooves' condition. Taking off the vines that wrapped around his right leg, the signs of healing were showing, but some of the damage is permanent. The skin has grown back, but the pigmentation will never be the same, and the grey fur would not grow back anymore. The pain had still been there, indicating that the nerves were slightly damaged. Finished on one hoof, he went on to check the other, which looked to be about the same.

After checking his hooves, he walked over to the brown knapsack he found somewhere within the forest. Inside the bag was his food supplies. He took some of the fruits looking quite disgusted at it as Bandage recalled the ‘flavor’ they contained. As much as he complained, he was grateful he had food to eat. On the left of the bag was a bowl made of stone, filled to the brim with water. He chugged it all down to rid the disgusting taste swimming in his mouth. Packing the bowl inside the bag, he closed it tight and carried it on top of his back, using his wings to keep it from falling.

Standing by the entrance, the pegasus looked through the brown vines covering the opening. He brushed a few of them aside and looked around for any wildlife. The previous days had painfully taught him that it was not easy to avoid the dangers that lurked here. But thorough observation, using covers, mentally mapping, and keeping a close eye to his surroundings, Bandage slowly learned how to get around the woods. And each day he thinks that he is improving each time.

There were a few close calls he had encountered, which he avoided either by using distractions or an old technique, hiding inside the river and waiting for the foe to pass. The latter was a last resort only as he could have wound up lost.

Not seeing any signs of wildlife, Bandage got out and began his exploration.

[Everfree Forest] – (4 hours later)

A tired Bandage was passing in between trees with a bag and bowl on his back. It took much longer than he wanted it too, but there was nothing he could do. Gathering food was difficult as it only grew in certain parts of the forest. Other creatures also ate the fruits, so he needed to save up and collect as much as he could.

When he wasn’t exploring, he would be practicing his flying. The foal could barely keep up with other pegasi his age. He could barely even get ten feet off the ground without resting every five minutes. Since then, he could fly as high as the branches up above him, his speed had improved, and at his best, it takes seven minutes till he needs to stop. Overall, he was making good progress.

While Bandage was walking, he thought about whether he should practice his speed or stamina for tomorrow, but being so distracted, he didn’t notice the branch right in front of him.

Smack.

“Damnit,” he yelled, feeling the pain all over his face. Leaves piled on top of his fallen body, which then flew away when he stood up. He was feeling pissed off as he got up and was even more pissed when he saw the contents of the bowl had spilled on the ground.

“Are you kidding me?”

“The one time you were distracted, a branch hits you in the face, and you had to refill the bowl. Again,” Bandage grumbles to himself on his way back home. Rubbing his temples did not help calm him down.

Some time ago, he developed a habit of talking to himself, which he did reply to now and then—most of the time. For him, it was a great way to cope with the feeling of loneliness. But he never felt lonely. His mom is there, watching over him, he believes it. Though he wonders if she is proud of what he has, or what he would become.

“You’re talking to yourself again,” the pegasus, ironically, scolds himself for talking to himself, making him smile and chuckle a little. But before he could come up with a retort, he saw the cave.

…

Once inside, the colt laid down and thought about spending the rest of his day inside to avoid more stress. Out of nowhere, he heard a growl, taking him out of his sleepy state. Bandages' eyes opened wide. It sounded like a timberwolf’s.

The timberwolf was a wolf made up entirely of wooden sticks with glowing yellow eyes. Their teeth are sharp enough to bite through flesh and strong enough to break bones. They behave like any ordinary wolf, except for the fact that they could come back together when torn apart. Even alone, they can still pose a dangerous threat.

Instincts kicking in, the foal stood up and listened for any other noise. Hearing nothing else, Bandage walked to the entrance one step at a time till he stood by the curtain. Each second he gets closer; his heart beats faster and faster. His eyes clench in fear, but he builds enough courage to open them and open the curtain.

Outside he could only see the Everfree forest. The short green grass covered in an orange-tinted light was flowing in the breeze. The brown trees surrounded the area. But no sign of any timberwolf at all.

Sighing in relief, Bandage turned around and walked right onto the howling face of a timberwolf who pounced at him.

Both he and the lone wolf tumbled out of the cave, tearing down the vines that covered the entrance. They bounced off the ground twice till they both landed across from one another. Bandage had gotten up first and immediately flapped his wings and flew away from the beast who almost bit his tail mid-flight.

Bandage flew a good distance away from the wolf, who was now in pursuit of him despite not being able to reach its prey. Bandage flew above the trees and fought against the wind. When he got far enough, he went to land on one of the branches. As he flew, his wing got caught on one of the vines entangled on his body, and Bandage rocketed towards the ground. Dirt exploded everywhere as he crashed hard on his left side.

Taking advantage of the accident, the wolf sped up and jumped on the colt.

Luckily, Bandage had retaliated by holding the wolf by its neck. The injury had made it painful for him, but he still held on undeterred. The timberwolf did not need oxygen, so all he did was slow down the inevitable. His vision was getting blurry, and tears were forming around his eyes. This was not like the other time. He got lucky and did not have to fight back. Every encounter he had with other predators, he either ran or sneaked past them. With that inexperience, it just might cost him his life.

The wooden beasts’ patience was wearing thin. The feeling of hunger had fueled the wolf, giving it enough strength to push forward till its mouth almost reached the small pegasus. Covered in the wolf’s shadow, Bandage thought that he was scared before, but as he looked up to the predator, he drowned in fear. Scared, he tried to move his head as far back as he could, yet the wolf still drew ever so nearer.

‘Was this it? Is this where I die?’ The questions he asks in his head hurt him. Was he going to give up that easily?

…

“Damn you. Damn you to Tartarus,” he told himself.

“Are you just going to give up like that? After 20 days of living in this forsaken forest?” After he spoke, Bandage moved his head and body forward. The wolf was surprised. How could something so small fight back against it?

“Even after you gave her your promise!?” Every ounce of strength he had. He poured it all into one big push.

With a yell, Bandage threw the wolf away from him. It hit its back against a tree and whimpered. Then it fell on top of a bush lying unconscious. Bandage needed to think of something quick, it won’t be out for long, and he can’t outrun it. He looked around and found a wooden stick next to the creature and wasted no time rushing to it. The lone wolf was stirring up and saw a blurry figure running in its direction. It blinked and saw the blue pegasus colt from earlier and snarled.

Bandage looked to his left and saw the wolf right next to his face. His eyes widened and, with fury, stabbed the wolf's left eye. The wolf howled in pain and shook its head violently, trying to get rid of the stick to no avail. The foal seized the opportunity and jumped on its back, where he lodged the stick deeper and deeper in its head, yelling in rage as he did it. Unable to take the pain any longer, the one-eyed beast jumped back and got the pegasus off it.

It looked at Bandage with a murderous look, snarling, and ran away with the stick still stuck in its eye.

“That’s right. Run—fucking run. Don’t you ever come back!” Bandage yelled back. Not wanting to deal with anything else, he ran back to the cave.

(3 hours later)

By the time he got back, it had already, and the sun was almost setting. He looked at the tarnished vines and walked inside. Going to his bag of supplies, he ate and drank almost everything he had. Afterward, he went to the spot where he slept and laid down once more.

He laid down there in defeat. His eyes held no emotion. He stayed like that till It had been night. When he lifted his head, he saw the light of the moon enveloping him. So, he just rested his head against the rocky floor.

He sat up and looked down at his legs. He was shaking a little, trying not to cry, trying to hold the fear inside. Small drops landed on his hind hooves. Soon he could no longer keep it together and cried. Death had almost grabbed him.

Author's Note

Sorry, it had taken this long to make. I had a good case of writer's block with a side of laziness for the past few months. But now I'm back in the game (hopefully).