Author's Note

Thought I'd do something a little different for this one. Multi-prey isn't my forte, but this is a Hydra, and what better way to "document" a Hydra gulping ponies than to have each head get to do something. I thought about having one of the heads actually chew one of them up, but then thought against it. It's MLP and four of the mane 6. Even with a protection spell to ensure their safety, that's a risk. So I mention it but don't actually use it. Next up we'll be having another visit to the Everfree. And a new guest.

Hungry Quadrahead

Twilight and her three guests hid in the bushes near a large mound of dirt. The Everfree Forest wasn’t exactly the best place to be caught off guard. “Today, we are exploring the apex predator of the Everfree Forest. The Hydra. Most of the time, hydras are the most dangerous creature living in the Everfree Forest. However, we found that during the evening, they are sluggish and quite agreeable. Joining me today are my friends Rainbow Dash, who is always up for a challenge…”

“Hey ponies.” Dash said as the camera panned to her, her voice still low enough so as not to wake the sleeping Hydra.

“Applejack, who saw Rainbow joining me as a challenge to herself…”

“Howdy folks.” AJ said from Rainbow’s other side, her hat back at the caravan at Zecora’s hut.

“And Fluttershy, who wanted to join me for our safety as well as the possibility to study more creatures she wants to become more familiar with.”

“H… hello everypony…” Fluttershy said nervously from Twilight’s opposite side.

“Are we gonna do this or what?” Rainbow asked and Twilight looked at her.

“Be patient Rainbow. This is a documentary remember. We aren’t just doing this to make ourselves more famous.” She said and Rainbow pouted a little but nodded. “Why are they with me today? Well, as any pony who has read the current Canterlot Bestiary knows, the Hydra has four heads. Each head has its own personality. So while they are sluggish, we are going to convince each of them to eat one of us. As a precaution, Celestia has cast a spell on each of us that will cause us to wake up in our beds. As if this was just a bad dream.

“Applejack has volunteered to go first, of course, so we will watch from here while she does.” Twilight said and Applejack nodded as she was coated in a light purple glow. “The spell I cast is a precautionary measure, as well as quite necessary for the documentary. While it is active, which it will remain to be until we are safely at home, we cannot be harmed. Alright Applejack, you’re up.”

Twilight panned the camera to Applejack, who pantomimed tipping her hat. “Howdy folks. Names Applejack, Ah run the Apple Family Farm here in Ponyville with mah brother, mah sister, and my Granny Smith. Ah agreed t’ help Twi because she’s mah friend. And this is quite the challenge. Here Ah go.” She said and the camera followed her as she approached the head nearest to her.

It didn’t stir as she neared it, save for its snoring, and Applejack got close enough she could have touched noses with it. “As you can see, the Hydra is quite the heavy sleeper. This was tested extensively by Canterlot Guards before we ever came out here. Applejack has chosen the head that seems the most sluggish, as when the Hydra chases anypony, this head is the one that seems to lag behind.” Twilight said as she watched, keeping the camera focused.

Had this been any other time, she’d have rushed out the moment Applejack touched the Hydra’s maw and slowly pried it open. This was for a documentary though. Applejack was going to feed herself to the Hydra. Twilight and the other girls watched as Applejack stood in front of the gaping Hydra maw for a moment before she crawled into its mouth. The mouth remained open for just a moment longer until Applejack’s head touched the back of its throat.

With a clack, the mouth closed, and Twilight had to restrain Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash from rushing in. Applejack wasn’t hurt, Twilight had seen her hooves leave the ground before the mouth closed. They all watched as the jaw moved, as if chewing, and Twilight kept a mental note on her friend’s health. Applejack was fine, if a little uncomfortable with getting squeezed by the teeth. The spell was doing its job. After a moment, the jaw stopped moving and the swallow was heard by the head nearest to it, which lifted a little to watch the rather large bulge slide down its sibling’s long throat.

Applejack stopped about halfway down the throat because the Hydra was laying down, but Twilight and her other two friends observed the bulge start to move again. Applejack was dedicated. It disappeared into the hydra’s chest and the stomach bulged ever so slightly. “Alright. I’m next. I’ll take the one that woke up. Twi, hit me with a fast-acting sleep spell. That’ll make the head fall asleep after it eats me.” Rainbow said and Twilight looked at her and nodded. This was the safest option, since that head had been observed to be the most aggressive.

After the spell was cast, Dash stretched her wings and took to the air. “Hey, lizard breath, open wide.” She said and the hydra turned to glare at her and opened its maw to roar at her only for Dash to zip into its mouth and right into the throat.

“That was smart.” Twilight said, keeping the camera focused as Rainbow slid down the long throat. “To avoid the aggressive head’s teeth, Rainbow used her speed to bypass the mouth entirely and enter the throat directly. The spell I cast on her, once she reaches the stomach, will put the head back to sleep, making it safe for Fluttershy and myself once again.” Twilight said as she kept the camera focused on Rainbow’s decent and the bulge of the hydra’s stomach getting larger.

“Ok Fluttershy… do you think you can keep the camera steady? You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.” Twilight said and Fluttershy stared at the bulge in the hydra’s stomach.

“N…no. I’ll go next. You are doing the documentary so… you need to operate the camera.” Fluttershy said and Twilight nodded and looked at the head farthest to the left. The last of the four heads. It was the tamest. The second to last was the most logical of the four. Fluttershy walked towards the tamest one and waited for a moment. It sniffed and woke up, lifting up and looking at the bulge in its belly before down at the little pony that woke it up. Fluttershy didn’t move as the head stared down at her before moving down and looking directly at her.

“Uhm… if it’s alright… my friend is doing a documentary on magical creatures like yourself and… she needs you to swallow us so we can know how your tummy works… so… can you eat me please?” Fluttershy asked and the head blinked and looked at Twilight, who sheepishly waved with her camera floating next to her. The head looked at her for a moment before opening its maw, as if shrugging shoulders it only had a little bit of control over and lolling out its tongue. “Thank you very much for being understanding.” Fluttershy said as she walked into the maw and lay down at the back of the throat. “Ok. I’m ready.” She said and the mouth closed around her and lifted up, tipping back.

Twilight watched the bulge Fluttershy made travel down the throat smoothly and into the stomach, further increasing the bulge. As Twilight walked forward, the head didn’t move save to watch her. “As you can see, each head does appear to connect to the stomach. I am sure the heart of this creature is quite large in order to pump enough blood and oxygen through the massive body and all four heads to keep it healthy and happy. Thank you very much for your cooperation.” Twilight said, speaking directly to the logical head, which was now awake, since it had three rather large “meals” in its stomach. “I’m doing this for your benefit just as much as for ours. If you were to get sick and came to ponies for help, we would need to know your insides just as well as your outside.”

The head stared at her for a moment before nodding. Twilight smiled and was about to walk forward before it simply snapped her up and swallowed. Quick as a wink, she and her camera flowed down the long throat. Twilight didn’t have time to start talking about the process because of her disorientation at being swallowed that quickly but she soon entered the stomach. Looking around, she found no sign of her friends. Her momentary panic was abated when she remembered she could still sense their heart beats. They were alive.

“We have already made a discovery. The hydra’s large body isn’t large just to support the four heads. It also houses four separate stomachs. Each head eats its own food to fuel the entire body.” Twilight said as she walked to the side of her stomach, pressing her ear to it. She could just barely hear Applejack and Rainbow yelling at each other. At the other side, she could hear Fluttershy talking to herself. More for her benefit than anypony elses. “My friends seem to be coping in their own ways. Let’s see if these four stomachs all meet at some point further on.”

Twilight lit her horn and the noise from each side of her stopped as they were all moved into the tubes at the back of the stomach. Each pony moved through the large intestine until they all met one another at around the middle point. “Further discoveries as we move further through the hydra’s digestive tract. The four stomachs all merge into the large intestine by approximately the middle of their long bodies.” She said as she panned the camera around to her three friends. “Now begins our, unsurprisingly, cramped journey through the Hydra’s intestines. Unless you girls want out now. I can do the rest on my own.”

“Yes please…” Fluttershy said, quivering a little. Twilight looked at Rainbow, expecting her to argue, but Dash just nodded and Twilight teleported Fluttershy out, her magic taking her home rather than just outside of the Hydra. Once Fluttershy was out, the other three continued their journey through the Hydra. It was much the same as the manticores, but reaching the end of the large intestine, they were stopped.

“A difference from the Manticore and many other non-scaled creatures, the Hydra has scales covering their rear. Like the ‘vent coverings’ on dragons or aquatic mammals, so water or magma can’t enter their bodies and cause complications, Hydra’s seem to have vent coverings to avoid swamp water doing the same. I think the three of us can force it open, however.” Twilight said and Applejack and Rainbow started pushing with their hooves on either side of the slit like hole. Twilight assisted, pushing into the middle with her magic.

Soon, her too friends were expelled together, rather forcefully, and Twilight slipped out before the hole closed behind her. “And that… fillies and gentlecolts, was the Hydra. We’re going to get out of here before he wakes up and realizes he didn’t just get a meal.” Twilight said and the three of them raced off into the Everfree.

~~~~

Zecora watched the video with interest, Celestia and Luna helping clean the girls off with a potion Zecora had mixed for them. “What you are doing is quite dangerous it seems, but you are doing it for the greater good rather than memes.” Zecora said and Twilight nodded.

“Equestria is seeing it’s longest time of peace in centuries. I felt it was time that we knew everything we possibly could about the creatures that share a border with our town. So little is known about them. Even the Royal Bestiary in Canterlot doesn’t have enough information to be useful to medical ponies who specialize in critters. Fluttershy was even willing to help with this, so we could get the best results possible.” Twilight said and Zecora nodded while Celestia lathered some shampoo into Rainbow’s mane.

“The health of my neighboring beasts is important to me, I would gladly help your endeavors with a small fee.”

“Thank you but I’m not doing this for money. I’m doing this for the good of Equestria.” Twilight said and Zecora smiled.

“Then allow me this in place of reward, allow me to join you when next you fill your board.” Twilight had to pause for a moment to think about Zecora’s offer. Not that she was going to say no, but she had to figure it out.

“Of course. I haven’t decided on which creature to do next, but there are so many here in the Everfree Forest alone. It would be nice to have somepony there to help.”