Beyond The Everfree Orbby Pegasus FeathersChaptersChapter 2: The InvitationChapter 3: The JourneyChapter 4: The Voice Within The BarnChapter 1: Strange MagicChapter 2: The InvitationMorning had arrived in Ponyville. Twilight Sparkle had just woken up, and made her way down to the library. She found a scroll tied in a red bow at her doorstep as she walked outside to check the mail. The purple unicorn pony used her magic to open the letter and she began to read it over. “Dearest Twilight Sparkle, I have received your letter written in the darkest hours of the night last night, and I have made my decision as to what to do about this ongoing phenomenon. Since you were unable to find anything related to what could be happening, I have decided to send you and your friends on the journey of a lifetime. You will explore the Everfree area that is encased in the strange pink bubble and report back to me your findings. You six will go where nopony has dared to set hoof in ever since the event occurred. I know you will fulfill my assignment just as you did with the research project I have given you yesterday. I have faith in the six of you will adventure out and bring back information that will benefit ponykind. Signed, Princess Celestia.” Twilight took a moment to process what the princess had just sent her. She knew she had to go get her friends and notify them immediately. Twi tossed the letter to the side as she prepared to go around Ponyville to where her friends reside. “Spike, I’m gonna need to watch the library for a little bit, I’ve gotta go. I’ll explain later when I get back. It’s very important.” She called out to her dragon assistant as she packed her bag and and headed out the door. It was a beautiful, seemingly normal day in Ponyville as the unicorn trotted to her friends places to recruit them on her journey. Her first stop was Fluttershy’s cottage. Twilight knocked on the shy pegasus pony’s door. “Um, yes, come in” she heard as the door opened in front of her. “Oh Twilight, what are you doing here?” Fluttershy and the purple unicorn stepped inside. “I have some urgent news, from the princess. It’s about the pink sphere phenomenon surrounding Everfree forest.” Twilight took out the letter and showed it to her friend. “Oh my, that does sound exciting. My little Angel hasn’t been acting right ever since it appeared. I’d love go, but wh-what if we run into anything big, and scary?” Fluttershy jumped at the thought of monsters lurking in the area. “Fluttershy, this is important. Princess Celestia is sending us here for research. What we find may benefit all of Equestria. I’m sure whatever is out there won’t be too big or too scary for the six of us to handle. It won’t just be me and you, she’s sending all of us.” Twilight explained the letter to the frightened pegasus. “Oh that does make a difference.” Fluttershy replied, coming to her senses. “In that case I’ll go, for Equestria! I just hope there aren’t any m-monsters!” The yellow and pink pony frantically flew to the other side of the cottage, much to Twilights frustration. After much convincing, Twilight and Fluttershy went and got the others, and all met back at Golden Oak Library. “Alright girls, here’s the plan. I hope you packed everything you need for our journey. This may be a long and exciting trip, and we may come across extraordinary things. I know we can do this, even if you’re as nervous as I am” Twilight looked over her friends, then Spike. “Spike, while we’re away, I’m extending your duties of watching over the library. No matter how long this quest takes us, I know you’re just the dragon for the job. After all, you are my number one assistant!” Spike looked up at the bookish unicorn with modest eyes. “Hehe, sure Twilight! I’ll make sure nothing happens while you’re gone. What are assistants for?” All of a sudden Spike felt the presence of a white hoof scratching atop his head. “I just know my little Spikey-wikey is up to the task!” Spike blushed as he heard Rarity’s reassurance. Twilight looked back one more time at the baby dragon as he waved goodbye. “Good luck everypony!” he called out, as the group of friends stepped out the door, and into the unknown. Chapter 3: The JourneyTwilight Sparkle, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy all stood at the edge of the Everfree Forest, staring at the massive, pink, glittery ball that surrounded it. “Well girls, it’s time” Twilight Sparkle edged closer to the magical mass. In the corner of her eye, she saw a pink hoof reaching out. “Pinkie DONT!” Twilight screamed, as Pinkie’s hoof snapped back as an instinctual reaction to Twi’s yelling .”Nopony knows what is going on here, nor have they ever been, we must assume that whatever this is isn’t safe, I know everypony is curious but we can’t take any risks.” Pinkie stepped back a little, about a foot away from the force field. “Sorry Twilight, but it’s so pink and bright just like me, I couldn’t resist!” The party pony bounced with excitement as she heard Twilight give instructions to the group. “Alright girls, I’ll go in first, then everypony will follow. We must stick together in an unexplored area, it’s for the best.” Twilight put one hoof through the glittery orb, making sure it was safe to pass through, then stepped all the way in, followed by Rarity, then a bouncing Pinkie, until everypony was in the forest. Except for one. Standing back at the entrance, was Fluttershy, flying above and looking nervous. “It’s ok, Fluttershy, we’re here for you.” Twilight called out to the scared pegasus. “Come on through, sugar cube, we promise we got your back through and through.” Applejack motioned the yellow pony to come on in with her hoof. Fluttershy nodded her head no, then continued flying in place. “Come on now, Fluttershy, it ain’t so bad in here, is it Pinkie Pie?” “Nope, absolutely-positively not!” Pinkie replied with a smile on her face. “I said no!” Fluttershy flew down and turned around to go back home. “I got this.” Rainbow Dash, speeding out of the force field grabbed Fluttershy by the tail, dragging her through the pink energy, “Was Applejack right? Or was she right!” Rainbow Dash felt confident about getting her friend to join them. “I guess it isn’t so bad here, if you think about it a lot of my critters come from the Everfree forest, especially my sweet little Angel.” Fluttershys thought process was interrupted by Twilights voice, telling the ponies it’s time to get going, “Alright everypony, like I said, if we all stay together, everything should be fine. We’re here for one another.” The Mane Six nodded in agreement, then set off deeper into the forest, Twilight admired the sparkly scenery, nothing seeming different at first glance. Still, Twilight kept trotting along, until she she heard Applejack call out. “Twilight, come take a gander at this.” “What is it Applejack?” Twi ran quickly to where her friend was. “ I knew the Everfree forest was unnatural, but I ain’t never seen anythin’ like this.” Twilight walked over, then examined the creature AJ was looking at. “It appears to that the ears on this bunny are made out of... cupcake frosting?” The purple unicorn looked on in confusion. “And the tail is a cherry!” Pinkie exclaimed, nudging the animal and causing it to scamper off before Twilight could collect more information. “Pinkie! That bunny could have been a valuable piece of research!” “Sorry Twilight, but cupcakes are always fun, they remind me of parties, and that little guy looked dee-licious!” Pinkie licked her lips at the thought of a scrumptious cupcake. “We got no time to lose, we must continue on to see what else is umm, interesting is a good way to put it.” Twilight looked back at the pack on her flank. The six were ready to continue on when they noticed somepony was missing as they started walking, yellow feathers left behind in some nearby bushes, Applejack picked one up, and upon further inspection noticed it was awfully familiar. She stepped back from the bushes, her voice trembling. “W-where’s Fluttershy? Has anypony seen her?” “Not since I dragged her into this place” Rainbow Dash shrugged her shoulders, not particularly recalling the whereabouts of their friend. “Last time I saw her, we were checking out the mirror puddle together. But come to think of it, I haven’t seen or heard from her” Rarity chimed in. “We gotta go back to the entrance to the forest, she may have gotten scared and tried to escape” Twilight started running, with her friends in hot pursuit, until they heard something that made them stop dead in their tracks. A soft but distressed voice could be heard in the distance from where they came. “Somepony help me”. “Did anypony hear that?” Rarity, terrified, looked around with a hoof to her ear, before being interrupted by Applejack. “Fluttershys in trouble, we gotta move. And FAST!” The orange mare swiftly turned around and headed in the opposite direction, following the quiet yet agonizing screams of the shy pegasus. The group got to the bushes where they found the feathers, and heard a guttural noise that was unponylike. Come to think of it, nopony had heard a noise like that come from even a dragon. ”What. was THAT?” A horrified Rainbow Dash flapped frantically at the horrible noise. “I don’t know, but I don’t hear Fluttershy screaming for us anymore, we better go see if she’s ok.” “Maybe she got away and is just lost.” Twilight gulped, her legs shaking as she stepped into the bushes. Applejack tried to hold back her tears as she answered the purple unicorn. “With screams like that, I don’t think Fluttershy is lost.” The farm pony wiped her eyes with her hoof as she followed Twi into the bushes. Another scream pierced the awkward silence of the forest, only this time it was somepony else. “What is it Rarity?” Rarity choked back sobs, as she trembled in fear at the sight before her, unable to speak. . “Fluttershy, if you’re out there, we’re comin, ya hear?” Applejack called out into the forest as the group tried to find their friend. Rarity fell back on her hind legs, in disbelief at the sight in front of her. Tears filled the white unicorns eyes, as she refused to believe what she was seeing. The other four ponies rushed over to where they heard Rarity’s scream, they too shocked at what lay before them. It was Fluttershy, laying in a pool of blood surrounded by her own feathers. One of her wings appeared to have been torn off, and a good portion of her throat and chest was ripped open, exposing her rib cage. Twilight stepped closer to the body once she recovered from the shock, examining the damage to their friend. “It appears that whatever attacked her had intentions of eating her, that much is clear. But whats not exactly clear is what did this and there’s not a lot of evidence to go by. Timber wolves, bears, and other wild creatures don’t usually prey on ponies, but attacks aren’t unheard of.” Rarity wiped her eye with her hoof, trying to control her sobbing at the loss of her best friend. “But Fluttershy was the kindest pegasus around. All the critters trusted her to care for them, she wouldn’t hurt a parasprite. What would, no what COULD do such a horrific thing?” Rarity collapsed to the floor, burying her head in her front hooves. Applejack looked over at the distraught unicorns. “We promised Fluttershy that we would be here for her no matter what. And we failed. I know this ain’t nopony’s fault, and this thing was probably stalking her every move, and we weren’t payin’ attention. Some friends we were.” Tears streamed down Applejacks face as she felt the embrace of Twilights hoof around her shoulders. “Now Applejack, you’re absolutely right that it was nopony’s fault this terrible event happened, and I know that you may feel that we were bad friends for letting this happen to Fluttershy, but the important thing is that we don’t take any blame for her death, even if it’s easier said than done.” Twilight stood up and faced her friends. “How about we go back to the barn and call it a night?” Everypony needs time to process what happened, we can always set out again in the morning, The least we can do is find a cause for this whole phenomenon.” Twilight and the girls headed back for Sweet Apple Acres, which isn’t too far from the exploration site, but not before giving their best friend a proper burial and saying their final goodbyes to the fallen pegasus. Chapter 4: The Voice Within The BarnTwilight and her friends decided to call it a night and have all settled at Sweet Apple Acres in the barn for the remainder of the night. But after the tragedy that had ensued in the Everfree Forest, nopony could sleep, and deprivation was starting to take its toll. Rarity was pacing back and forth, while the other ponies sat in a circle by a lit lantern in the center of the group. “I can’t believe it. We left our friend to DIE. How does everypony feel about that? Fluttershy is dead because of us. Just go on and explore the forest while our best friend is ripped to shreds by an unknown beast. Isn’t friendship supposed to be MAGIC?” Rarity started panting heavily out of anger, as the pacing turned into stomping, creaking the floorboards of the barn with every enraged hoof step. The white unicorn was clearly in a state of both sleep deprivation and shock. Pinkie Pie stretched her hooves and went to get up, but immediately sat back down after hearing the loud thud of hooves slamming down against the floor. Rarity was about an inch away from a scared Pinkie, staring at her, almost reminiscent of Fluttershy’s stare. “Nopony leaves this barn until I say. No. Pony. Got that?” Rarity’s chest moved up and down rapidly, as she collapsed out of exhaustion from her rampage. Pinkie Pie gave a nervous smile at the fashionable pony as she muttered the phrase “Okie... dokie..lokie.” “Now Rarity thats just crazy talk. Yer actin like a loon ya know that? I know it’s a darn shame that this happened to our friend, but ya can’t go trappin’ everypony in here like rats.” Applejack stood up, in an attempt to challenge the purple and white unicorn pony. Rarity, angered at Applejack’s rebellion opened her mouth to fire back, but was cut off when they heard three words that made everypony’s blood run cold. “Somepony help me.” Rarity’s jaw hung open, as she took a few steps back, her whole body shaking to the point she could barely hold herself up. Applejack’s ears perked up, just to make sure the voice wasn’t some sort of auditory hallucination. Rarity finally spoke, but was barely able to form a coherent sentence. “Di-di-did anypony else hear that?” Now Applejack was feeling a combination of anger and fear, as she yelled out into the darkness of the barn, hoping that the noise was just a result of the gang not getting any rest, or perhaps a manifestation of Fluttershy’s tragic death being on everypony’s mind. “Somepony is messin’ with us and it ain’t funny. What did our friend do to deserve what happened to her? Ya hear me?” Applejacks eyes darted around the barn, her tail twitching and flicking up and down, the orange pony now on high alert. Another noise broke the eerie silence of the night, this time sounding like a slight rapping on a window. The farm pony grabbed the lantern that lit the living room and raced to the kitchen window, catching Twilight’s eye. “Applejack, where are you going?” The purple unicorn was the calmest out of all the remaining five, yet the situation was definitely taking a toll on her too, though she tried to stimulate her mind by reading a book. She was not met with an answer to the question she had asked. Applejack held the lantern to the window in the kitchen above the sink, and what she saw made her eyes almost pop out of her head and her heart jump into her throat. The orange mare darted out of the kitchen at top speed, almost rivaling Rainbow Dash. When she returned to where her friends were, AJ could barely catch her breath as she shook like an autumn leaf. “What happened? Is everything ok?” Twilight closed her book and ran over to where Applejack was, seeing the country pony almost in a catatonic state. Word vomit poured out of Applejack’s mouth as she gasped for air mid-sentence, “It had the ears and nose of a pony, but that head shape was definitely not. It didn’t have any lips either, the head and teeth were more like a wolf or an Ursa than any pony I’ve ever seen, and the eyes, they were too, too KIND for such a beast!” As the farmer tried to catch her breath, a loud noise that sounded like the shattering of glass erupted out of thin air. Nopony moved a muscle, no one could. The five were all frozen in place with fear as they heard footsteps stepping down onto the floor of Applejack’s barn, followed by a louder noise that was not too far off from what Fluttershy’s bear call sounded like. But it didn’t sound exactly like how anypony remembered when Fluttershy would blow it, it had a bit of softness to it that just about made everypony’s mane stand straight up. Rainbow Dash gulped, as she looked toward the kitchen, but was terrified to even move an inch further, The light of the lantern on the floor did make out a shape in the direction Rainbow was staring, The beast did in fact have the features AJ had described, but now it that made it’s way into the barn, a body was visible as well. It appeared to have a mix of Griffin and pony features, with the feathers falling out but no visible bald spots yet, the front front feet were the paws of a griffin and the back legs Rainbow Dash was sure were pony hooves, but the light didn’t quite stretch far enough to tell. The hellish creature opened its jaws as it seemed to be moving towards Twilight and her book, as it spoke again. “Twi help” came out of the beasts mouth, quiet but still audible, as it stood in the doorway, facing the purple unicorn. A whimpering Twilight just slowly back into the corner, not exactly sure what was going on or what she was seeing. Was this horrific thing really there or was it simply everypony’s imagination? That question was soon answered when Rarity lit up her horn, and stood up the only one seemingly brave enough to see what was happening. Rainbow Dash’s jaw hung open at the sheer speed and and agility of the Flutter creature, as it grabbed the white unicorn by the tail and started dragging her around the barn, her screams could be heard from all of Ponyville, the thing knocking Rarity into just about everything Applejack owned as it played with her. After being tossed around like a ball among a group of fillies at recess, Rarity landed with hard smack against the barn floor. Applejack was nearby and saw the whole thing unfold, as her head moved back and forth with wide eyes, desperately wanting to help her friend but knew she couldn’t. Rarity, in pain from such a hard landing, tried to stand up and make a run for it, but the beast was one step ahead of her, pinning her to the floor, the last thing she saw was sharp pointy canine teeth, as they met with the white pony, ripping a sizable chunk out of her chest, then swallowing the cut of unicorn meat. The creature’s big green eyes looked towards Applejack, Pinkie, Twilight and Rainbow Dash, teeth now red and dripping with blood. A voice cut through the silence. “EVERYPONY GET BACK!” Applejack furiously picked up the lantern, charging the horrific monster then throwing it as hard as she could, years of apple bucking definitely paying off. The barn lit up with bright orange flames as the gas lantern exploded, setting the Flutter beast ablaze. A smell of burnt feathers and fur covered the inside of the barn, but no one seemed to particularly mind, as they watched the fire consume the creature. The girls could hear the creature scream “Somepony help” followed by “me” as the monster choked on the resulting smoke, letting out the scream of a shy and quiet pegasus as the flames started to die down. The ponies swore they could the final words of the horrendous thing as the fire went out. “It burns”. The charred creature collapsed to the floor with a thud as light began to fill the barn and stretch over Sweet Apple Acres. Morning had finally arrived in Ponyville. Author's Note I Chapter 1: Strange Magic3 AM in Ponyville. Golden Oak Library was dark except for the faint pink glow of unicorn magic. Twilight Sparkle had exhausted all hours of the night looking for answers to the event plaguing parts of the city. Weary and worn, Twilight flipped through page after page, going through every book on her shelves. Spike, her assistant, was growing exhausted as well, but the dire need for answers or even just a bit of closure kept the baby dragon awake like a caffeine shot. “Twilight, have you found anything yet?” The dragon yawned, his lack of sleep showing. “I’m afraid not yet, and I’m getting closedown to the last books I own. There’s just nothing in here that even comes close to what is happening.” The purple unicorn put another book back and levitated another one to her desk. Princess Celestia had given her a research assignment ever since the strange pink force field appeared around the Everfree Forest, and could even be getting bigger for all anypony knew. Tired to her core, Twilight reached for her quill pen after putting the last book back on the shelf. “Spike, take a note.” The unicorn pony began writing her response to the Princess that would be delivered by morning. “Dear Princess Celestia, I have stayed up all night with my number one assistant flipping through page after page, book after book, and still no answer as to what could be going on. Nopony knows what this force field is or where it came, and my studies have shown there’s never been anything remotely similar in history that wasn’t the cause of magic. There are very strange things I have heard talking to the ponies who live nearby, with reports saying that the clouds move on their own, the animals aren’t acting like themselves, even Fluttershy said they’ve been more aggressive and alert lately. There even was light reported before your highness had a chance to raise the sun in the morning. I’m not sure what the next step is, but I will be awaiting whatever it may be. Signed, your faithful student Twilight Sparkle.” After Spike had sent the letter off in a puff of green smoke, Twilight and her assistant both headed up to bed, hoping to get some sleep before the Princess responded the following morning.
Chapter 2: The InvitationMorning had arrived in Ponyville. Twilight Sparkle had just woken up, and made her way down to the library. She found a scroll tied in a red bow at her doorstep as she walked outside to check the mail. The purple unicorn pony used her magic to open the letter and she began to read it over. “Dearest Twilight Sparkle, I have received your letter written in the darkest hours of the night last night, and I have made my decision as to what to do about this ongoing phenomenon. Since you were unable to find anything related to what could be happening, I have decided to send you and your friends on the journey of a lifetime. You will explore the Everfree area that is encased in the strange pink bubble and report back to me your findings. You six will go where nopony has dared to set hoof in ever since the event occurred. I know you will fulfill my assignment just as you did with the research project I have given you yesterday. I have faith in the six of you will adventure out and bring back information that will benefit ponykind. Signed, Princess Celestia.” Twilight took a moment to process what the princess had just sent her. She knew she had to go get her friends and notify them immediately. Twi tossed the letter to the side as she prepared to go around Ponyville to where her friends reside. “Spike, I’m gonna need to watch the library for a little bit, I’ve gotta go. I’ll explain later when I get back. It’s very important.” She called out to her dragon assistant as she packed her bag and and headed out the door. It was a beautiful, seemingly normal day in Ponyville as the unicorn trotted to her friends places to recruit them on her journey. Her first stop was Fluttershy’s cottage. Twilight knocked on the shy pegasus pony’s door. “Um, yes, come in” she heard as the door opened in front of her. “Oh Twilight, what are you doing here?” Fluttershy and the purple unicorn stepped inside. “I have some urgent news, from the princess. It’s about the pink sphere phenomenon surrounding Everfree forest.” Twilight took out the letter and showed it to her friend. “Oh my, that does sound exciting. My little Angel hasn’t been acting right ever since it appeared. I’d love go, but wh-what if we run into anything big, and scary?” Fluttershy jumped at the thought of monsters lurking in the area. “Fluttershy, this is important. Princess Celestia is sending us here for research. What we find may benefit all of Equestria. I’m sure whatever is out there won’t be too big or too scary for the six of us to handle. It won’t just be me and you, she’s sending all of us.” Twilight explained the letter to the frightened pegasus. “Oh that does make a difference.” Fluttershy replied, coming to her senses. “In that case I’ll go, for Equestria! I just hope there aren’t any m-monsters!” The yellow and pink pony frantically flew to the other side of the cottage, much to Twilights frustration. After much convincing, Twilight and Fluttershy went and got the others, and all met back at Golden Oak Library. “Alright girls, here’s the plan. I hope you packed everything you need for our journey. This may be a long and exciting trip, and we may come across extraordinary things. I know we can do this, even if you’re as nervous as I am” Twilight looked over her friends, then Spike. “Spike, while we’re away, I’m extending your duties of watching over the library. No matter how long this quest takes us, I know you’re just the dragon for the job. After all, you are my number one assistant!” Spike looked up at the bookish unicorn with modest eyes. “Hehe, sure Twilight! I’ll make sure nothing happens while you’re gone. What are assistants for?” All of a sudden Spike felt the presence of a white hoof scratching atop his head. “I just know my little Spikey-wikey is up to the task!” Spike blushed as he heard Rarity’s reassurance. Twilight looked back one more time at the baby dragon as he waved goodbye. “Good luck everypony!” he called out, as the group of friends stepped out the door, and into the unknown.
Chapter 3: The JourneyTwilight Sparkle, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy all stood at the edge of the Everfree Forest, staring at the massive, pink, glittery ball that surrounded it. “Well girls, it’s time” Twilight Sparkle edged closer to the magical mass. In the corner of her eye, she saw a pink hoof reaching out. “Pinkie DONT!” Twilight screamed, as Pinkie’s hoof snapped back as an instinctual reaction to Twi’s yelling .”Nopony knows what is going on here, nor have they ever been, we must assume that whatever this is isn’t safe, I know everypony is curious but we can’t take any risks.” Pinkie stepped back a little, about a foot away from the force field. “Sorry Twilight, but it’s so pink and bright just like me, I couldn’t resist!” The party pony bounced with excitement as she heard Twilight give instructions to the group. “Alright girls, I’ll go in first, then everypony will follow. We must stick together in an unexplored area, it’s for the best.” Twilight put one hoof through the glittery orb, making sure it was safe to pass through, then stepped all the way in, followed by Rarity, then a bouncing Pinkie, until everypony was in the forest. Except for one. Standing back at the entrance, was Fluttershy, flying above and looking nervous. “It’s ok, Fluttershy, we’re here for you.” Twilight called out to the scared pegasus. “Come on through, sugar cube, we promise we got your back through and through.” Applejack motioned the yellow pony to come on in with her hoof. Fluttershy nodded her head no, then continued flying in place. “Come on now, Fluttershy, it ain’t so bad in here, is it Pinkie Pie?” “Nope, absolutely-positively not!” Pinkie replied with a smile on her face. “I said no!” Fluttershy flew down and turned around to go back home. “I got this.” Rainbow Dash, speeding out of the force field grabbed Fluttershy by the tail, dragging her through the pink energy, “Was Applejack right? Or was she right!” Rainbow Dash felt confident about getting her friend to join them. “I guess it isn’t so bad here, if you think about it a lot of my critters come from the Everfree forest, especially my sweet little Angel.” Fluttershys thought process was interrupted by Twilights voice, telling the ponies it’s time to get going, “Alright everypony, like I said, if we all stay together, everything should be fine. We’re here for one another.” The Mane Six nodded in agreement, then set off deeper into the forest, Twilight admired the sparkly scenery, nothing seeming different at first glance. Still, Twilight kept trotting along, until she she heard Applejack call out. “Twilight, come take a gander at this.” “What is it Applejack?” Twi ran quickly to where her friend was. “ I knew the Everfree forest was unnatural, but I ain’t never seen anythin’ like this.” Twilight walked over, then examined the creature AJ was looking at. “It appears to that the ears on this bunny are made out of... cupcake frosting?” The purple unicorn looked on in confusion. “And the tail is a cherry!” Pinkie exclaimed, nudging the animal and causing it to scamper off before Twilight could collect more information. “Pinkie! That bunny could have been a valuable piece of research!” “Sorry Twilight, but cupcakes are always fun, they remind me of parties, and that little guy looked dee-licious!” Pinkie licked her lips at the thought of a scrumptious cupcake. “We got no time to lose, we must continue on to see what else is umm, interesting is a good way to put it.” Twilight looked back at the pack on her flank. The six were ready to continue on when they noticed somepony was missing as they started walking, yellow feathers left behind in some nearby bushes, Applejack picked one up, and upon further inspection noticed it was awfully familiar. She stepped back from the bushes, her voice trembling. “W-where’s Fluttershy? Has anypony seen her?” “Not since I dragged her into this place” Rainbow Dash shrugged her shoulders, not particularly recalling the whereabouts of their friend. “Last time I saw her, we were checking out the mirror puddle together. But come to think of it, I haven’t seen or heard from her” Rarity chimed in. “We gotta go back to the entrance to the forest, she may have gotten scared and tried to escape” Twilight started running, with her friends in hot pursuit, until they heard something that made them stop dead in their tracks. A soft but distressed voice could be heard in the distance from where they came. “Somepony help me”. “Did anypony hear that?” Rarity, terrified, looked around with a hoof to her ear, before being interrupted by Applejack. “Fluttershys in trouble, we gotta move. And FAST!” The orange mare swiftly turned around and headed in the opposite direction, following the quiet yet agonizing screams of the shy pegasus. The group got to the bushes where they found the feathers, and heard a guttural noise that was unponylike. Come to think of it, nopony had heard a noise like that come from even a dragon. ”What. was THAT?” A horrified Rainbow Dash flapped frantically at the horrible noise. “I don’t know, but I don’t hear Fluttershy screaming for us anymore, we better go see if she’s ok.” “Maybe she got away and is just lost.” Twilight gulped, her legs shaking as she stepped into the bushes. Applejack tried to hold back her tears as she answered the purple unicorn. “With screams like that, I don’t think Fluttershy is lost.” The farm pony wiped her eyes with her hoof as she followed Twi into the bushes. Another scream pierced the awkward silence of the forest, only this time it was somepony else. “What is it Rarity?” Rarity choked back sobs, as she trembled in fear at the sight before her, unable to speak. . “Fluttershy, if you’re out there, we’re comin, ya hear?” Applejack called out into the forest as the group tried to find their friend. Rarity fell back on her hind legs, in disbelief at the sight in front of her. Tears filled the white unicorns eyes, as she refused to believe what she was seeing. The other four ponies rushed over to where they heard Rarity’s scream, they too shocked at what lay before them. It was Fluttershy, laying in a pool of blood surrounded by her own feathers. One of her wings appeared to have been torn off, and a good portion of her throat and chest was ripped open, exposing her rib cage. Twilight stepped closer to the body once she recovered from the shock, examining the damage to their friend. “It appears that whatever attacked her had intentions of eating her, that much is clear. But whats not exactly clear is what did this and there’s not a lot of evidence to go by. Timber wolves, bears, and other wild creatures don’t usually prey on ponies, but attacks aren’t unheard of.” Rarity wiped her eye with her hoof, trying to control her sobbing at the loss of her best friend. “But Fluttershy was the kindest pegasus around. All the critters trusted her to care for them, she wouldn’t hurt a parasprite. What would, no what COULD do such a horrific thing?” Rarity collapsed to the floor, burying her head in her front hooves. Applejack looked over at the distraught unicorns. “We promised Fluttershy that we would be here for her no matter what. And we failed. I know this ain’t nopony’s fault, and this thing was probably stalking her every move, and we weren’t payin’ attention. Some friends we were.” Tears streamed down Applejacks face as she felt the embrace of Twilights hoof around her shoulders. “Now Applejack, you’re absolutely right that it was nopony’s fault this terrible event happened, and I know that you may feel that we were bad friends for letting this happen to Fluttershy, but the important thing is that we don’t take any blame for her death, even if it’s easier said than done.” Twilight stood up and faced her friends. “How about we go back to the barn and call it a night?” Everypony needs time to process what happened, we can always set out again in the morning, The least we can do is find a cause for this whole phenomenon.” Twilight and the girls headed back for Sweet Apple Acres, which isn’t too far from the exploration site, but not before giving their best friend a proper burial and saying their final goodbyes to the fallen pegasus.
Chapter 4: The Voice Within The BarnTwilight and her friends decided to call it a night and have all settled at Sweet Apple Acres in the barn for the remainder of the night. But after the tragedy that had ensued in the Everfree Forest, nopony could sleep, and deprivation was starting to take its toll. Rarity was pacing back and forth, while the other ponies sat in a circle by a lit lantern in the center of the group. “I can’t believe it. We left our friend to DIE. How does everypony feel about that? Fluttershy is dead because of us. Just go on and explore the forest while our best friend is ripped to shreds by an unknown beast. Isn’t friendship supposed to be MAGIC?” Rarity started panting heavily out of anger, as the pacing turned into stomping, creaking the floorboards of the barn with every enraged hoof step. The white unicorn was clearly in a state of both sleep deprivation and shock. Pinkie Pie stretched her hooves and went to get up, but immediately sat back down after hearing the loud thud of hooves slamming down against the floor. Rarity was about an inch away from a scared Pinkie, staring at her, almost reminiscent of Fluttershy’s stare. “Nopony leaves this barn until I say. No. Pony. Got that?” Rarity’s chest moved up and down rapidly, as she collapsed out of exhaustion from her rampage. Pinkie Pie gave a nervous smile at the fashionable pony as she muttered the phrase “Okie... dokie..lokie.” “Now Rarity thats just crazy talk. Yer actin like a loon ya know that? I know it’s a darn shame that this happened to our friend, but ya can’t go trappin’ everypony in here like rats.” Applejack stood up, in an attempt to challenge the purple and white unicorn pony. Rarity, angered at Applejack’s rebellion opened her mouth to fire back, but was cut off when they heard three words that made everypony’s blood run cold. “Somepony help me.” Rarity’s jaw hung open, as she took a few steps back, her whole body shaking to the point she could barely hold herself up. Applejack’s ears perked up, just to make sure the voice wasn’t some sort of auditory hallucination. Rarity finally spoke, but was barely able to form a coherent sentence. “Di-di-did anypony else hear that?” Now Applejack was feeling a combination of anger and fear, as she yelled out into the darkness of the barn, hoping that the noise was just a result of the gang not getting any rest, or perhaps a manifestation of Fluttershy’s tragic death being on everypony’s mind. “Somepony is messin’ with us and it ain’t funny. What did our friend do to deserve what happened to her? Ya hear me?” Applejacks eyes darted around the barn, her tail twitching and flicking up and down, the orange pony now on high alert. Another noise broke the eerie silence of the night, this time sounding like a slight rapping on a window. The farm pony grabbed the lantern that lit the living room and raced to the kitchen window, catching Twilight’s eye. “Applejack, where are you going?” The purple unicorn was the calmest out of all the remaining five, yet the situation was definitely taking a toll on her too, though she tried to stimulate her mind by reading a book. She was not met with an answer to the question she had asked. Applejack held the lantern to the window in the kitchen above the sink, and what she saw made her eyes almost pop out of her head and her heart jump into her throat. The orange mare darted out of the kitchen at top speed, almost rivaling Rainbow Dash. When she returned to where her friends were, AJ could barely catch her breath as she shook like an autumn leaf. “What happened? Is everything ok?” Twilight closed her book and ran over to where Applejack was, seeing the country pony almost in a catatonic state. Word vomit poured out of Applejack’s mouth as she gasped for air mid-sentence, “It had the ears and nose of a pony, but that head shape was definitely not. It didn’t have any lips either, the head and teeth were more like a wolf or an Ursa than any pony I’ve ever seen, and the eyes, they were too, too KIND for such a beast!” As the farmer tried to catch her breath, a loud noise that sounded like the shattering of glass erupted out of thin air. Nopony moved a muscle, no one could. The five were all frozen in place with fear as they heard footsteps stepping down onto the floor of Applejack’s barn, followed by a louder noise that was not too far off from what Fluttershy’s bear call sounded like. But it didn’t sound exactly like how anypony remembered when Fluttershy would blow it, it had a bit of softness to it that just about made everypony’s mane stand straight up. Rainbow Dash gulped, as she looked toward the kitchen, but was terrified to even move an inch further, The light of the lantern on the floor did make out a shape in the direction Rainbow was staring, The beast did in fact have the features AJ had described, but now it that made it’s way into the barn, a body was visible as well. It appeared to have a mix of Griffin and pony features, with the feathers falling out but no visible bald spots yet, the front front feet were the paws of a griffin and the back legs Rainbow Dash was sure were pony hooves, but the light didn’t quite stretch far enough to tell. The hellish creature opened its jaws as it seemed to be moving towards Twilight and her book, as it spoke again. “Twi help” came out of the beasts mouth, quiet but still audible, as it stood in the doorway, facing the purple unicorn. A whimpering Twilight just slowly back into the corner, not exactly sure what was going on or what she was seeing. Was this horrific thing really there or was it simply everypony’s imagination? That question was soon answered when Rarity lit up her horn, and stood up the only one seemingly brave enough to see what was happening. Rainbow Dash’s jaw hung open at the sheer speed and and agility of the Flutter creature, as it grabbed the white unicorn by the tail and started dragging her around the barn, her screams could be heard from all of Ponyville, the thing knocking Rarity into just about everything Applejack owned as it played with her. After being tossed around like a ball among a group of fillies at recess, Rarity landed with hard smack against the barn floor. Applejack was nearby and saw the whole thing unfold, as her head moved back and forth with wide eyes, desperately wanting to help her friend but knew she couldn’t. Rarity, in pain from such a hard landing, tried to stand up and make a run for it, but the beast was one step ahead of her, pinning her to the floor, the last thing she saw was sharp pointy canine teeth, as they met with the white pony, ripping a sizable chunk out of her chest, then swallowing the cut of unicorn meat. The creature’s big green eyes looked towards Applejack, Pinkie, Twilight and Rainbow Dash, teeth now red and dripping with blood. A voice cut through the silence. “EVERYPONY GET BACK!” Applejack furiously picked up the lantern, charging the horrific monster then throwing it as hard as she could, years of apple bucking definitely paying off. The barn lit up with bright orange flames as the gas lantern exploded, setting the Flutter beast ablaze. A smell of burnt feathers and fur covered the inside of the barn, but no one seemed to particularly mind, as they watched the fire consume the creature. The girls could hear the creature scream “Somepony help” followed by “me” as the monster choked on the resulting smoke, letting out the scream of a shy and quiet pegasus as the flames started to die down. The ponies swore they could the final words of the horrendous thing as the fire went out. “It burns”. The charred creature collapsed to the floor with a thud as light began to fill the barn and stretch over Sweet Apple Acres. Morning had finally arrived in Ponyville. Author's Note I
Chapter 1: Strange Magic3 AM in Ponyville. Golden Oak Library was dark except for the faint pink glow of unicorn magic. Twilight Sparkle had exhausted all hours of the night looking for answers to the event plaguing parts of the city. Weary and worn, Twilight flipped through page after page, going through every book on her shelves. Spike, her assistant, was growing exhausted as well, but the dire need for answers or even just a bit of closure kept the baby dragon awake like a caffeine shot. “Twilight, have you found anything yet?” The dragon yawned, his lack of sleep showing. “I’m afraid not yet, and I’m getting closedown to the last books I own. There’s just nothing in here that even comes close to what is happening.” The purple unicorn put another book back and levitated another one to her desk. Princess Celestia had given her a research assignment ever since the strange pink force field appeared around the Everfree Forest, and could even be getting bigger for all anypony knew. Tired to her core, Twilight reached for her quill pen after putting the last book back on the shelf. “Spike, take a note.” The unicorn pony began writing her response to the Princess that would be delivered by morning. “Dear Princess Celestia, I have stayed up all night with my number one assistant flipping through page after page, book after book, and still no answer as to what could be going on. Nopony knows what this force field is or where it came, and my studies have shown there’s never been anything remotely similar in history that wasn’t the cause of magic. There are very strange things I have heard talking to the ponies who live nearby, with reports saying that the clouds move on their own, the animals aren’t acting like themselves, even Fluttershy said they’ve been more aggressive and alert lately. There even was light reported before your highness had a chance to raise the sun in the morning. I’m not sure what the next step is, but I will be awaiting whatever it may be. Signed, your faithful student Twilight Sparkle.” After Spike had sent the letter off in a puff of green smoke, Twilight and her assistant both headed up to bed, hoping to get some sleep before the Princess responded the following morning.
