A Hero's Origins
By TheAlienBrony22

O' the Glory to Pushin' Daisies

On a moonlit rainy night, the RV drives through the mountains, and all seems peaceful. On the inside, however, there's chaos being stirred amongst the teenaged passengers. "Just throw it away, Chance, it's not that big a deal!" Sunset yelled out.

Chance groaned, clearly annoyed. "How about no! Besides, it's your turn anyway, and I already fulfilled my responsibilities for the week!" Chance argued.

Luna looks on ahead of the road, her eye twitches as the two teenagers argue in the back. Chance and Sunset were near their beds, and it was clear that Sunset didn't appreciate finding Chance's torn up shirt, the one he wore during his first encounter with Gilda, suddenly dangling near her face.

Sunset groaned, looking frustrated. "It's just a shirt, ya dipstick! Look, I get things haven't been easy lately when it comes to not knowing what Gilda's up to, she's out in space for crying out loud," Chance looked away, but Sunset forced her friend to look at her. "But that doesn't mean you have to obsess over that first encounter, or ya might end up like how Luna did a couple days ago with that helmet!" Sunset remarked.

Chance snatched the ripped shirt from Sunset's hands and glared. "You wouldn't get it unless you were in my position when it happened. One moment, she stabs me in the back and rightfully blames me for her mutation," Sunset glared at him for a moment, but he kept going. "Now, I'm thrown for a loop! She saved my life and made me go back to Earth! She could've stranded me on the moon, or force me to be sent to another galaxy, for all I know, but she wanted me to leave her behind, and go back to Earth. I'm not saying she can be saved, but maybe the possibility isn't as small and minute as I initially thought. Bottom line, I like to remind myself why I keep going the way I am with that shirt, it's not that bad." Chance explained, still arguing his point.

Sunset took a deep breath and sighed. She was still mad, but in a strange way, she knew where he was coming from, but that didn't justify keeping a dirty ripped shirt for weeks, nearly a month and a half without repairing it, or even cleaning it. "Bud, I get it, but you could at least clean the damn thing! it's your shirt, and if you're not gonna use it, fix it or clean it, then toss it in the trash, for god's sake!" Sunset rationalized.

Chance rolls his eyes and decides to comply, opening the window, and chucking the shirt out into the night, drifting amidst the pouring rain. "There, ya happy, princess?" Chance asked in a mocking tone.

Sunset scowls at the boy, and he scowls at her right back. "I didn't say for you to toss it out of the RV!! Honestly, is it that hard to be responsible!?" Sunset remarked.

Chance frowned. "I've saved innocent lives, even some of the guilty ones, with my alien powers. I don't misuse them for my entertainment," Sunset looked at him skeptically, and Chance sighed. "Okay, I did it the one time, but you were enjoying it too, that was before Luna told us about the Plumbers, that can't possibly count! I can afford to be a little lazy, every now and then, I'm human, too, ya know!" Chance argued.

The two yelled in frustration and went to the booth, sitting on opposite sides of each other. Chance pops his left shoe off and starts scratching his foot like a madman. "Look, I just wanted to take a nap and ignore the itching sensation that's driving my foot crazy, but you're starting to drive me crazy!" Chance rebutted.

Sunset groaned. "I'm telling you this because I'm your friend, you need to learn a little something about personal responsibility!" Sunset argued.

Chance pulled his sock off and started scratching his foot, even putting it on the table to relieve the itching sensation better. "Man, my foot is itching like crazy!! It's like ants are crawlin' in my foot or something!!" Chance griped.

Luna sighed, reaching under her seat as she grabbed a yellow bottle. "Chance, here's something to relieve that itching. It gets rid of all kinds of fungus," Luna tosses the bottle and Chance manages to catch it. "I don't know why you two are arguing over this, even Celestia and I argued, don't get me wrong, but we never argued over something as small as this, what's the real issue between you two?" Luna asked.

Sunset looks up from her laptop and sighs. "I'm trying to figure that out myself, he woke up on the wrong side of the bed today." Sunset griped.

Chance groaned. "Only because you did first," Sunset sneers at that comment and puts in her headphones. Chance reads the label on the bottle. "Athlete's Foot Powder"? Well, I guess I am an athlete, of sorts." Chance comments, opening the bottle.

Sunset rolls her eyes. "An athletic supporter, maybe, but an athlete, you are not." Sunset remarked.

Chance glares at the girl across from him and applies the powder to his shoe, even putting some of it in his sock before slipping them back on.

As Luna drives down the slick wet road, two young boys limp out onto the road, holding each other up. They're both dressed in camp uniforms similar to that of Camp Everfree's, but they were a yellow-ish green with dark green pine trees on their left sleeve. One boy looked like he had tanned skin, while the other had cocoa brown skin. One had black hair that was combed back, and the other had messy and spiky light brown hair, and both had some kind of mold-like infection on each other's opposite arms.

The two looked ahead, seeing headlights coming their way. They froze up, and started to scream as the headlights catch them. "They're coming! Heeeelp uuusss!" The two boys exclaimed in unison.

Luna's eyes widened as she slammed on the brakes as fast as she could, but with how slick the road was, she was fearing the possibility that the RV wouldn't stop in time. The teens noticed the RV trying to stop, and looked up ahead. "Miss Luna!!" The two teens exclaimed.

Luna turns the RV and swerves on the road, trying to not hit the children, and much to her luck, she doesn't. However, the two boys are clearly experiencing shock, and nearly fall off the cliff as they hang on to an exposed tree root, hanging on for dear life to avoid the injury, or death, by the tall drop. Luna is about to tell the two teens to save them, but Chance was already out the door, sprinting with a determined, and fearful look in his eyes. Chance transformed into Tallahoss without a moment of hesitation and looked down over the rail, seeing the two boys hanging there.

Tallahoss jumps off the cliff and grabs the two boys as he falls. They yell and scream as they descend, but the Vreedle holds them close as he takes the full extent of the fall. Tallahoss guards the two boys as they keep tumbling down the hill, hitting the forest floor as they roll into a clearing.

The two boys are disoriented, they open their eyes as they look at Tallahoss' face. "You two alright, no broken bones, bruises and such?" Tallahoss seemed unfazed that he had a large tree branch or two sticking out through his body, which freaked the two boys out a lot, causing them to faint on the ground. "I'm gonna take that as a "no", just in case. Better get these fellers back to the RV, can't risk 'em catchin' a cold," Tallahoss notices the mossy infected growths on their arms and becomes more concerned. "And that doesn't seem like your run of the mill common cold, either... darn it." Tallahoss gritted, carrying the two boys under his arms as he ran back the way he fell.

Back at the RV, the two boys are more easily identifiable as they lay in the booths, covered up the best they could. Chance seems to be over-examining the unconscious boys, a look of concern plastered on his face. "They're fine, right? There's nothing wrong with them in any way?" Chance asked.

Luna was surprised by Chance's change in attitude, but decided to keep it to herself. "Yes, like you asked me the last four times since you brought them back up here, they're fine. The mossy growths on their arms are rather odd, but it can be treated. It'll take a little time, maybe three-to-four and a half hours to clear up, but they'll be fine, you don't need to worry so much." Luna reassured.

Sunset looked at the two boys, and her eyes widened. "Holy shit, this is Button Mash and Rumble! They're a long ways away from Canterlot City, and judging by their outfits, rather than going to Camp Everfree, they must've signed up to go to Camp Opinicon this summer instead." Sunset explained.

Chance looked at her in confusion. "Rumble? Like, Thunderlane's little brother? Damn, if he knew what happened to his brother right now, he'd be freaking the hell out, much like I am!" Chance looked over at Button Mash, seeming more confused. "So, Button Mash left Canterlot City, too? Guess his mom was finally fed up with him playing those games so often, thought going to a summer camp outside of Canterlot City's limits would do him some good, now look at 'em, they got moss growing on their arms like a damn staff infection! Who the hell is watching out for these kids!?" Chance questioned, clearly pissed off at the situation.

Luna put a hand on Chance's shoulder. "Let's find out, then. I saw a sign for the camp a little ways back. They must have a nurse." Luna suggested.

Chance's eye twitched, and a look of fury formed on his face. "What a great idea, go ask the nurse that was supposed to keep an eye on two infected campers, and lo and behold, because they didn't do her job, these two nearly got ran over!" Luna could tell the boy was angry, but from the sounds of it, he was particularly pissed, she could hear his vocal chords straining to keep his anger in check. "If there's a nurse still there, they're getting every piece of my mind, whether they asked for it, or not!" Chance yelled, hopping in the front seat and strapping himself in.

Luna and Sunset looked at each other, and regardless of what Chance's motives were, they needed to get to the bottom of this. Luna got herself in the driver's seat, and Sunset sat on her bed as the RV drove down the road, making an immediate change of plan to go to Camp Opinicon.

After an hour of driving, Luna finally spots a sign reading "Camp Opinicon" and parks in front of the main building, as it continues to rain and thunder. The trio walk in, with Chance leading the march, anger and frustration boiled up inside, it almost felt like he was going to explode into a raging fire ball. "Just remember, Chance, we need to talk to them." Sunset cautioned.

Chance slammed his fist on the double doors. "Hellooo? Anybody home?" There wasn't a response. They waited for a few minutes, but no one came to the door. Chance knocked on the door even harder, even showing that the door was starting to splinter due to how hard he was knocking on the wood. "Chance, calm down, I know you're clearly angry, but let's handle this with some tact, let's calm down and be rational." Luna stated calmly.

Chance took a deep breath, and gently pushed the doors open, exhaling as he tried to calm himself down. The inside of the building was some kind of dining hall, and judging by the sense of warmth they felt in the air, there was food recently made. Sunset closed the doors and the trio looked around. "This place looks abandoned, recently," Luna looked over to a plate of spaghetti, and held her hand over it. The steam that came off it was warm upon contact. "Food's still warm, meaning it was recently prepared. Looks like they left in a hurry." Luna identified.

Sunset looked over at Chance, who was trying to control his emotions. "Maybe they heard Chance was coming down, it would explain why everyone, including the staff, are basically nowhere in sight." Sunset joked.

Chance whipped around and glared at the girl, startling her for a moment with how fast he got up in her face. "Two kids are in the RV, likely sick from some kind of infection, and were abandoned, left behind by the staff. Make jokes all you want, I'm taking this seriously, and I'm going to seriously hurt the heartless freaks who thought abandoning children like this, was a "genius" idea on their part!" Chance gritted through his teeth.

The sheer rage and vitriol could be felt in every word, and Sunset didn't need to use her powers to finally understand why he was getting angry. This felt personal, and judging by how emotionally charged her friend was at that moment, Chance was going to make someone, or something pay for this. Suddenly, they hear a sudden loud crash of thunder, and the lights go out.

Quickly, Luna pulls out her phone and turns on the flashlight it had. He shines it on Sunset, then on Chance, who decided to use a few of the paper towels to cover up the spaghetti. Chance looks over at her, and frowns. "What?! I'm making sure we can save this for when those two in the RV wake up, they're likely gonna be hungry, and who knows how long they've gone without food before we showed up! It may seem like the staff recently left, but who truly knows, besides those kids?" Chance remarked defensively.

Luna decides to not argue with the teen, and hands a second flashlight to Sunset. "You two can share this one, if you're not still bickering over your personal issue." Luna commented.

Sunset clicked the flashlight on, and Chance quickly made sure the plate of food was properly covered and secure. Sunset shines the light on her friend, who clearly wasn't in a good mood. Sunset sighs, reaching out to put a hand on his shoulder. "Look, I'm sorry about the joke. If I knew you were gonna take it personally, I wouldn't've made it, I didn't think you'd take it too seriously anyway," She noticed how Chance's mood and attitude seems to have lessened, yet he still felt incredibly intense. "Pal, just how personal does this feel for you? Is this resurfacing bad memories?" Sunset asked, genuinely trying to understand her friend's alteration in attitude.

Chance didn't answer, but for Sunset, that was all she needed to know. Before she could pry any further, the sound of crashing pots from the kitchen interrupts them. As they shine their lights at the door, they could see someone wearing a camp uniform retreat into the shadows, only to vanish from their sight.

Luna moves forward, shining her light through the door window before opening it and exploring the kitchen. As Sunset walks forward with the flashlight, Chance follows close behind, braving the cover of darkness with no sign of backing down. At the end of the kitchen, Sunset rests her flashlight on a pantry door slightly ajar, with six pairs of eyes glowing back at her, making her blood run cold.

"AAHHH!!!!" Sunset shrieked, jumping back as she bumped into Chance.

The flashlight fell out of her hands, rolling on the ground as it reveals that the eyes only belong to three small kids, each one they recognized. One was the daughter of Spoiled Rich and Filthy Rich, otherwise known back at CHS, as Diamond Tiara. The other two were kids that Sunset knew more personally. One had faded red hair, styled to look like Dash's hair style, tanned skin and magenta eyes. To Sunset, this was Dash's biggest fan girl, Scootaloo. The other girl was a bit prettier, in the sense that she had a bit more makeup on, though most if it looked ruined now. Mascara ran down her face, her hair was frazzled, and she looked like the other two girls she hid with. Terrified for their lives. This girl was also Rarity's younger sister, Sweetie Belle.

Luna and Sunset were shocked, as was Chance, but he was justifiably pissed that not one, not two, but five children were abandoned and left behind. "Is it safe to come out?" The three girls asked, shuddering in fear.

Chance nodded to the kids and motioned for them to come out. "Considering no one else seems to be here, kids, adults, or otherwise, you are, in fact, safe to come out, nothing's gonna get you," The three of them were scared, but they slowly stepped out of the pantry, with the three of them running to Luna and Sunset. "Kids, if you don't mind me asking, where's the nurse, or the counselors for that matter?" Chance asked, making sure his tone was not aggressive and loud, but soft and welcoming, trying not to perceive himself as a threat.

Scootaloo stepped forward. "W-We heard something outside. We thought it was one of the counselors, but i-it wasn't... it... i-it-it..." Scootaloo shuddered, tears whelled up in her eyes as she clutched onto Sunset.

Diamond Tiara stepped forward. "It was some kind of freak nasty monster!! It crawled out of the ground and started attacking people. Campers, counselors, the nurse, too! Some of the adults tried to evacuate as many as they could, but they left without us. We were running to the buses, but the doors closed and they sped off, all while the monsters tried to get us." Diamond explained, shaking profusely.

Chance looks over to the wall, noticing a wall-mounted phone. He quickly goes over to it and puts the receiver to his ear, but no noise comes of it. "Landline's down, probably because of the storm, classic horror movie cliché," Another crash of thunder rings out, causing the kids to cling to Sunset and Luna more. "How many of you were left behind, if you can remember?" Chance asked.

Sweetie stepped forward and cleared her throat. "About twenty-five of us were... They picked us off, separated us and the camp just got quieter and quieter the more people they took," Chance's blood ran cold, yet he felt it reach a boiling point, and the chill that ran up his spine just made him feel sick. "Button, Rumble, Scoots, Diamond and I are all that's left... w-we don't know where Rumble and B-Button went, but they s-said they were g-going to... t-to get help..." Sweetie felt Scootaloo pull her into a hug as she started to whimper.

Chance clutched his head, his anger and rage was at a fever pitch, but he still made the attempt to wrangle his emotions in, save them for the freak that deserved it. "Okay, is there any food or non-perishables left in that pantry?" The three girls slowly nodded, and Chance moved over to one of the tables, yanking the table cloth off. Chance went into the pantry, yanking the flashlight out of Sunset's hands so he can use it as a light source. The sound of rummaging through shelves could be heard, as well as some kind of fabric being tied together. Chance came out, carrying the table cloth, which was then used as a makeshift bag to hold the non-perishable foods inside. "Alright, here's the plan. In case we end up stuck here for a little bit longer, we're gathering all the food in the pantry, as well as taking whatever medication is still in the nurse's office, just to be safe. By the way, don't worry about Rumble and Button, we managed to find them before this weird monster thing could, they're resting and recovering in our RV, they'll be fine, and you three will be too," Chance sat the bag of food near the front door. "Luna and Sunset, you take care of the food situation, I'm going to raid that nurse's office and grab what I can, or grab whatever's left. You three get in the RV and make yourselves comfortable, talk to Sunset or Luna if you need anything, or if something about Rumble and Button change. I'll be back in a flash." Chance explained, running out of the front doors before anyone could object.

Luna and Sunset looked at each other, both rendered speechless by what just happened. "Did a switch get flipped in his head when he tumbled down the hill? This is clearly personal to him, but that was the first time I ever saw him act like that. What just happened?" Sunset looked over at Luna, who was guiding the three to the RV. "Miss Luna, do you have any idea what could've happened to him?" Sunset asked.

Luna shakes her head, much to Sunset's dissatisfaction. Luna waited till the three girls entered the RV, and closed the door, only to look at Sunset, seeing the confusion and concern on her face. "I'm not entirely sure, but one thing I can agree with you on is that this whole situation, children being abandoned and essentially left behind to rot... it's striking a personal cord with mister Marsten, likely making him remember a memory from when he was their age," Sunset's eyes widen a bit, a twinge of worry washes over her as she looks at the nurse's office nearby, to which Chance is trying to break into with a crowbar he found lying around. "He is on the defensive, he's emotional, he knows what it's like to be that young, to be afraid, to be in danger in a place you're supposed to feel safe, he's likely experiencing some kind of emotional attack, and is trying to cope... he wants to hurt whatever or whoever did this, the thing that put innocent children at risk of injury, illness, and death. He's trying harder than he ever has before to make sure these kids are secure and safe from danger, just to make sure no more children end up getting taken by whatever's here, end up dead, left behind... or worse. Go after mister Marsten, try to reel him back to reality and assure him that he's not alone in this. I'll stay here, and keep an eye on the kids." Luna expressed.

Sunset nodded and ran in the direction Chance did moments ago, while Luna walks to the RV, unaware that something is watching them... something that's become rather green with envy, as it hides in the shadows, glaring at Sunset, in particular.

Chance forces the door open to the nurse's office. Almost immediately, he sees a cabinet full of medicine bottles and boxes, each one likely full of pills, pain relievers or supplements of a similar sort. Chance, unwavered by this stroke of luck, marches inside, the sound of wood and glass crunching beneath his shoes didn't stop him as he tried to open the cabinet.

Chance pulled on the doors, but they wouldn't budge. Confused, the hero tried again, only to be met by the same result. Chance looked down, and noticed a metal coil attached to a padlock, and it was bound around the cabinet door's handles. Chance wasn't going to give up so easily, so without a moment of hesitation, Chance looked around and noticed a baseball bat underneath the nurse's desk. Chance took a moment to look at the office as a whole, noticing how scattered and thrown around everything was. It was like a struggle happened here, and the fact that he forced the locked door open didn't do anything but help add to the carnage.

Chance reached down and grabbed the bat, feeling the sensation of cold metal on his skin as he lifted it up. Just as he turned around, he saw Sunset standing in the doorway, growing concerned for her friend. "Hey, I see ya found a bat. It's not exactly the right time to be playing little league, ya know?" Chance didn't respond, he just moved forward and readied the bat, focusing on the glass windows of the cabinet. Sunset panicked and grabbed the bat, which seemed to be pissing him off. "Chance, I'm sure there's a spare key somewhere, we don't have to wreck this place... well, no more than it already was. I know you're trying to do what's best for those kids, I get it and I respect that, but on the off chance the staff come back after the problem's been solved, let's not make things harder for others, okay?" Sunset requested.

Chance's expression lessened as he lowered the bat, but he didn't let it go. Sunset walked over to the nurse's desk and started looking through the drawers, all while keeping an eye on her friend, but the both of them were clearly unaware that something was watching them both "They don't deserve this," Sunset looked at her friend, seeing the distress, the hate, the rage, the fear, the concern, it all felt too familiar, he couldn't hold his emotions in check for long, and he needed to vent his frustration. "They didn't deserve to go through any of this, that's not okay at all." Chance gritted, clenching his teeth together as if he was straining to hold something back.

Sunset looked through one of the larger drawers, and managed to find a small key buried under a couple files. "I know, it's a scary situation for all of us, but we can still save these kids from... whatever's causing this. We just need to push forward and keep our heads together," Chance fell silent, and for a moment, Sunset felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end, all while Chance's body trembled and shook. "Chance, just calm down, there's nothing we could've-"

Chance whipped around, glaring at Sunset with a burning fury in his eyes. She could see the tears welling up in the corners of his eyes, and the way he moved himself around, he was struggling to keep his emotions in check. "Twenty-Five, Sunset. TWENTY-FIVE kids, stranded and left behind to fend for themselves against some unknown threat, and those five kids in the RV, if they're truly all that's left..." Chance's eyes widened as he heard the words come out of his mouth, he felt nauseous, he felt physically repulsed by the idea that those twenty kids didn't make it. Without warning, Chance let his rage take control, and slammed a fist into the wall, punching a hole clean through to the outside. Sunset was startled for a moment, but Chance fell to his knees, dropping the bat and clutching the wall in a desperate manner, enraged sobs escaped the teenager. Sunset walked over to the cabinet and removed the lock by using the key. She opened the cabinet doors, but then she looked back at her friend, and she knelt down to try and reassure him. "We could've gotten here sooner... t-those poor kids, whatever got them, they didn't stand a chance, not a damn chance in hell... they were left to die here, and aside from running and hiding, it would only work for so long... it makes me angry, it makes me sick, to know those kids likely died here, fighting for their lives as a bunch of cowardly counselors abandoned them. They never got to see their parents again, those parents never got to say goodbye... They didn't deserve this, and someone needs to pay." Chance growled, letting the tears stream down his face.

Sunset patted Chance's back, all while he slowly broke down, hunched over broken wood and shattered glass as his tears dropped to the ground. "Hey, you're not alone in this. Luna and I, we're feeling what you're feeling right now, but we're staying strong for those kids. If we're their last hope of escaping this nightmare unscathed, we have to stand tall and persevere for them. You're trying your best, but it's clear this feels personal to you, doesn't it?" Once again, Chance didn't answer, but Sunset knew she was on the right track. "What happened, pal, where's all this coming from?" Sunset asked, holding her friend close.

Thunder roared out in the distance, the occasional flash of lightning seemed to illuminate a figure standing in the door, only for them to be gone amidst the cover of darkness.

Inside the RV, Diamond, Scootaloo and Sweetie are bunched up together, wrapped in a towel. Meanwhile, Luna is trying to look around in the big bag of food for something to prepare. Meanwhile, Scootaloo is chowing down on the plate of spaghetti that Chance had tried to wrap up, much to Sweetie's displeasure. Scootaloo swallowed down her bite of food and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I was a bit hungrier than I thought." Scootaloo apologized, nervously chuckling.

Luna pulled out a few cans of tomato soup and sat them on the counter top, then crouched down to look for a pot. "I don't suppose you three want to help me make some soup, would you?" Luna asked.

Diamond Tiara sighed and stepped forward. "I sincerely doubt we'd be of much help. Thanks for coming around when you did, though, vice principal Luna." Diamond thanked.

Luna smiled. "You're very welcome, miss Tiara, but I think the one you should be thanking is one of my students. They're a bit brash, sometimes, but that's only because he cares." Luna remarked.

Before the rich girl could say anything further, the door opened up, revealing Sunset and Chance as they haul in two duffle bags full of medicine. "For a summer camp, they really had some serious hospital-grade stuff in here. Aside from your typical painkillers, ointments and a huge locker full of some helpful stuff we couldn't get yet, there's also Tourniquets, Morphine, as well as tons of Epi-Pens, blood thinners, vitamin supplements, even immuno boosters and allergy suppressants. This place was seriously stocked." Chance explained.

Sunset placed her bag on the ground, and Chance did the same, all while the kids were unsure of what to say. "So, what's for dinner?" Sunset asked.

Luna grabbed one of the cans of tomato soup and tossed it to Sunset. The teenaged girl caught it and examined it closely. "All of this soup, and not a single grilled cheese in sight." Sunset quipped.

Chance smiled, but only for a moment. "Saltines also work well with tomato soup, though they're just salty and way too dry," Chance looked over at Rumble and Button Mash, noticing that they haven't woken up yet. "Those two are still under, huh?" Chance inquired.

Scootaloo nodded. "They seem pretty out of it. Maybe now that we're all together, and in a vehicle, can you guys get us to town so we can call home?" Scootaloo asked.

Chance looked over at Luna, and she moved over to the driver's seat up front. Luna turns the key in the ignition, but much to the dismay and confusion of everyone in the RV, the engine starts sputtering.

Chance and Luna walk outside, just as another shower of rain gets ready to come down on top of them. Luna and Chance open the front hood, only for the both of them to be surprised, shocked, and more confused than before. The engine was covered in grey growths, as well as noticing chunks of moss, a few mushrooms, a couple daisies, and a few roots covering the inside. "Huh, the engine's covered in some kind of fungus," Luna closes the hood, and Chance is seething. "Looks like we're hunkering down here for a while." Luna stated.

Chance groaned, gritting his teeth as he looked around the abandoned camp, trying to find some semblance of a sign, something to tell him that they weren't alone here. "If and when I find who and/or what is behind this, I'm not giving them an ounce of mercy, not a singular iota of mercy." Chance stated angrily.

Luna walked forward and pulled the teen into a hug. "Mister Marsten, I know you're upset, and you're likely very angry about the whole situation that unfolded here, we're not telling you that your anger isn't justified, or irrational, but you must temper your rage. Whatever forces are at play here, I'm sure if we calm down and handle this with calm and reassurance, we'll persevere and get through this. Do you understand?" Luna asked, her tone was calm, collected and motherly, though her delivery was firm and stern.

Chance didn't hesitate to nod his head. As Luna let him go, Chance winces and holds a spot on his stomach. Luna tries to reach out, but Chance backs away. "Don't, I'm fine. It's just an old wound flaring up again. We should get the kids and the food to somewhere else while we can, maybe use the mess hall as a temporary base of operations? Board up the windows and only use the front door when absolutely necessary." Chance reassured, immediately changing the subject.

Luna was confused and her concern was becoming rather piqued, and she moved closer to the teen. Chance was about to back up, but Luna grabbed the bottom of his shirt and lifted it up, seeing a wound around his gut that didn't seem to heal all the way. It was reminiscent of a bullet wound, but Chance pulled away before Luna could examine it further. "Mister Marsten, is that-?"

Chance pulled his shirt down and avoided looking at Luna. "Where Moonshine shot me when I was little? Yeah... it is. Look, I don't like talking about that incident, and after what happened during the whole Helm of Freyja thing, I'm not exactly open to discussing this with you, not now. I still need time to get over that, so let's drop it and focus on what's happening now." Chance responded, avoiding the subject of his wound.

As Chance walked back to the front door of the RV, Luna sighed and followed after him, worried about how all of this was going to unfold. Unbeknownst to them, however, multiple beings watch them from behind the trees, growling from multiple sets of mouths. One particular figure stares at the RV with contempt and fury, their glowing green eyes shrunk to the size of pin pricks as they glared at the heroes.

As the trio moves the kids, along with the food and medicine to the camp's living quarters, Chance feels a sudden itching sensation in his foot, and it's a lot worse from how it felt before they got to camp Opinicon. As they go into the counselor's cabin, Chance stops and puts the medicine bag down as he scratches his powdered foot, sitting on the ground as he tries to relieve the unpleasant sensation. "This athlete's foot powder isn't doing what it's supposed to do! I might need some stronger stuff, or I'm cutting this foot off, this is irritating!" Chance remarked, clearly not liking how his itching isn't quelling.

Scootaloo watches as chance scratches his foot like crazy. "Athlete's foot, huh? Everyone gets it here, especially me." Scootaloo remarked.

Diamond Tiara shuddered. "One would consider keeping that to themselves, ya know. I should've gone to camp everfree for the summer, at least Canterlot City would be five miles away, at least." Diamond griped, she was clearly terrified of her situation.

Luna laid Button Mash and Rumble on the bottom bunk of one of the beds. "You kids stay here, and do what miss Shimmer or mister Marsten ask of you. Miss Shimmer," Luna looks towards the teenaged girl, who's giving Luna her full attention. "Keep an eye on Rumble and Button Mash, I'm gonna see if I can't get some of that fungus off of the engine," Sunset nodded, and Luna turned towards Chance, who was practically scraping his hoot against the wall to appease the persistent itch. "Mister Marsten, if something happens, you and miss Shimmer need to work together and keep these kids safe, understand?" Luna asked.

Chance stopped scratching his foot and looked up at Luna. Chance nodded his head without hesitation, but something didn't seem to sit right with the young hero, and Luna could see it in his eyes, but she didn't comment on it, and walked to the door. "If I can't get the fungus off the engine tonight, I'll see if I can rustle us up a meal in the kitchen, just so we don't go hungry. I left a couple tomato soup cans in the RV, so it wouldn't be that hard to cook something. I'll be back." Luna announced.

As Luna left the cabin, Sunset sighed. "Let's hope she brings back only Tomato soup, and it has no meal worms inside it." Sunset remarked.

Chance gagged at the thought. "Great, ya ruined Tomato soup for me, thanks for that," Chance shuddered, thoroughly disgusted by the idea that now lived rent-free in his mind. "There's gotta be at least one intact care package in here somewhere, they can't all be gone, right? One of those counselors had to have smuggled a box full of candy, or some fast food, or something somewhere in here." Chance suggested.

The two teens look underneath the beds, but can't seem to find anything. "Darn it, not a single package in sight, this is not boding well." Sunset remarked.

Chance groaned, but before he could say anything, Rumble and Button both woke up, sitting up fast in a cold sweat, fear in their eyes. "THEY'RE HERE! ALL AROUND US!" Button Mash exclaimed.

Chance and Sunset whipped around to see the two boys now awake, and also noticing how the three girls were starting to freak out. Chance walks over and crouches down to the girl's level. "Easy now, don't panic, it won't solve anything. Take a couple deep breaths, close your eyes and just focus on going home to your loved ones, focus on being safe. Everything's going to be okay, we're not gonna let anything, or anyone hurt you or torment you further, understand?" Chance questioned, keeping his tone of voice low and calm, as to not scare or intimidate the children.

Sunset looked over at her friend, noting how the girls were doing their best to follow his instructions. Sweetie Belle was silently sobbing, barely even reaching a whisper, but Sunset knelt down and held the sobbing girl close, trying to calm her down. Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara were able to calm themselves down, but it was becoming rather clear that Sweetie Belle wasn't gonna be that easy to calm.

Sunset sighed. "O-Okay, Sweetie Belle, just calm down, try to stop crying for a moment, you're okay. Nothing's attacking us, nothing's trying to hurt us... just calm down, and think- th-think about about Rarity, she wouldn't want to see you in such a dangerous situation, a-and if she were here, she'd do everything in her power to make sure you got out of here safely. Think about Rarity, or think about Apple... Bloom..." Sunset's words were falling on deaf ears, but she still tried to calm the sobbing girl down. Sunset looked towards her friend, and he silently motioned to her that he'll give this a try. "Sweetie, please, we need to think about our next course of action... try to calm down for now, okay?" Sunset pleaded.

Sweetie's sobs started to slowly increase in volume, and Chance moved to try and hold Sweetie still. "Kiddo, look at me. I need you to look at me, okay?" Sweetie slowly opened her eyes, they were starting to become red from how much she was crying, and she looked at the teenaged boy in the face. "Listen to what I have to say. You're going to be fine, and you're going to see your sister again. You're going to see Apple Bloom again. You're going to see your parents again. You're going to live, you and your friends are going to survive and escape this horrid place," Sweetie sniffed and wiped away the tears forming in her eyes, still looking deathly terrified of the situation unfolding around her.

Sunset and Chance could both see her calming down a bit. "Okay, did you get all your feelings out, feel a little better?" Sweetie thought for a moment and hesitantly nodded, and Chance smiled. "Good, now listen to what else I have to say. I won't lie to you, or the rest of these kids you're trapped with. It seems like things are beyond saving right now, I'm not sure if we'll be able to save the few that got taken by... whatever's going on here, but I give you my word. I pinkie promise that we'll get you all out of here safe and sound," Sweetie slowly started to relax, closing her eyes as she took deep breaths, like he previously instructed. Sunset stepped back, and watched in awe as Chance kept talking Sweetie down. "You're doing fantastic, kiddo. Think about how Rarity will be proud of you, knowing that not only you'll be safe in her arms again, but that you stood your ground and faced an unfamiliar danger unlike the various stuff that happens typically in Canterlot City, and kept your friends safe. Sure, I won't lie to you, this is a very dangerous situation, but Rarity and her friends recently had to fight aliens for the very first time, imagine how Rarity must've felt when she was worrying about you. It's what you're feeling right now, and it's okay to feel like that, but it's not okay to let that feeling overwhelm you. keep your cool, stay calm, and collect as much of your courage from within yourself, and you'll survive and escape this place. Stay strong for Rarity, stay strong for Scootaloo, stay strong for Diamond Tiara, for Rumble, for Button Mash, for Luna, for Sunset, for Apple Bloom. Stay strong for me, okay?" Chance calmly encouraged, slowly backing away.

Sweetie let out a long, slow exhale of breath, and smiled, pulling Scootaloo in for a hug. Sunset was shocked, she couldn't believe what she just witnessed. She looked over at her friend, completely thrown for a loop by how he managed to handle the situation. "How... w-what-- h-how did you-- Since when did--"

Chance looked at Sunset, a somber yet content smile formed on his face as a singular tear fell from his face. "I simply gave her what I didn't have at her age at the time, someone to keep me grounded and focused, without screaming at them like a lunatic," Sunset opened her mouth to speak, but Chance held his hand up, stopping her in her tracks. "Before you say a word, I have you and Luna to keep me in check, and this is very personal to me, no child should be scared for their lives in a place they're supposed to feel safe. You might have the ability to feel what others feel, but I can speak from personal experience on this particular topic, the kind that I wish I didn't have. Plus, it also helped to mimic what Luna usually does to talk me down the best I could," Sunset was at a loss for how to even unpack what he just said, but Chance simply got back up to his feet and looked over at the stunned and silent boys that awoke from their unconscious slumber. "Alright you two, talk to me and give me all the details. What did you mean by "They're here"? Who and what are you two talking about?" Chance inquired.

Rumble and Button snapped out of their momentary stunning and start to recollect their thoughts. "I-It's Gaia Everfree, from the ghost story!!" Chance and Sunset's eyes widened and they both looked over at each other, then back at the two boys. "She came here one day and started going bananas! She took this camp by storm, and those weird mushroom monsters that follow her commands started snatching people and dragging them to the forest!! We're all that's left, and- a-a-and--AAAAHHHH!!" Button Mash started to hyperventilate, and Chance brought Sunset over to the bedside.

Chance gestured to her geode, and Sunset seemed to get the message. Sunset placed her hand on Button Mash's head and activated her magic. "Relax." Sunset softly commanded.

Button Mash's breathing slowed down until it eventually came to a slight stop, allowing for the boy to lay down and relax. "Gaia Everfree came back and started attacking people, claiming that she was taking the world back from the people who squander the forest's resources, whatever that means." Rumble briefly explained.

Chance looked over at Sunset, and she seemed to be internally panicking. "Hey, listen, keep calm. I'm gonna--" The sound of a woman screaming rang out from outside, along with several loud crashes of thunder, bright flashes of lighting crackled in the air as the rain started to really come down, it was like a sudden flood. "That sounded a lot like Luna, just now... Okay, change in plans, then. Sunset, you stay here and keep the kids safe. I'm not all too convinced on this "Gaia Everfree" story, but it does sound like someone we both encountered before I became a superhero. I'll go get Luna, and we'll hunker down in here till the storm lets up." Chance explained, walking over to the front door.

As Chance grabs the door knob, All five of the kids tackle him to the ground, much to Sunset's surprise. "Don't go!! Don't go out there, you won't come back!" Button Mash exclaimed, pleading desperately for the teen to not leave the cabin.

Chance manages to get himself back on his feet, but Rumble is still clinging onto his leg. "Th-They'll find you, and you'll be lucky enough to come back without an arm, or a leg!" Rumble exclaimed.

Chance smiles and gently pulls the kid off his leg. "Relax," Chance raises the Omnitrix into view. "I'm just gonna go undercover." Chance reassured, leaving the kids confused by what he meant.

The ground slowly bulges as Excavole burrows through the wet malleable ground. Chance initially wanted to use Vitaguar and have his enhanced senses pinpoint Luna's location through her scent, but he knows cats hate water, and Vitaguar was no exception, so Excavole was his second best option. As Excavole follows a trail of trees with mushrooms, he stops to take notice of an abandoned excavator on top of a hill. Once he reaches the top, a pit stretches out in front of him; completely covered in bizzare-looking vegetation, large thorn-covered vines all stemming from a central shaft dug in the ground.

Excavole shuddered. "Something tells me I'm gonna have to go down there..." Excavole told himself.

As the mole walks forward and passes by a few plants, they open up to reveal eyes, all of them secretly watching him. Excavole stops at the edge of the shaft and peers down it. Just as he does, however, purple and black vine-like tendrils covered and riddled with thorns suddenly shoot out of the hole, and begin to make their way towards the alien mole. Excavole panics and tries to run away, but they quickly wrap around him and slowly pull him back. Excavole tries to use his claws to cut the vine-like tendrils, but they don't seem to be strong enough, and he eventually loses his grip, forced to be pulled down into the dark.

Excavole squirms as he tries to wriggle his way out, but he just keeps descending into the hole. "Probably not the first to say this, but I've seen enough japanese cartoons to know where this goes, and I'm not okay with this!!!" Excavole exclaims, his cries for help ring out as the storm rages on.

Eventually, Excavole hits the bottom of the hole, and the tendrils keep dragging him through a tunnel. As he starts to finally break through some of the tendrils that had him ensnared, he notices Luna strung up in the tunnel. Luna's eyes widen in horror as her eyes fall upon her student. "Chance-Mmp!!" Luna's cry for help was abruptly cut off by more of those vine-like tendrils wrapping around her mouth.

Excavole slices through the tendrils and manages to finally break free, and starts running after his vice principal. While the mole digs through the ground, he's forced to resurface in one of the tunnels as the Omnitrix times out, and Chance tumbles forward in the cave, now reverted back to his normal form. "Ugh, fucking great, the Omnitrix chooses now to turn me back, and yet, it hasn't let me down as many times as Jean has, so I guess I can let it slide this time," Chance gets up, finding that the cave he was in was rather unsightly, but he needed to find Luna, he wasn't leaving this summer camp hellhole without her. "MISS LUNA!!" Chance called out, hearing his own voice echo out through the tunnel.

As Chance looks around, some mushrooms start to chitter and move. Chance stops for a moment, and suddenly, the mushrooms come to life. Revealing eyes, arms and legs, and twin mouths, it becomes more than just obvious that this was an alien-related issue, because this was too fucking weird to be anything else in Chance's eyes. They slowly walk towards him, but Chance immediately breaks into a full-on sprint as he tries to get out of the tunnel. Chance jumps over a few of the monstrous mushrooms and keeps trying to find a way out, but he soon finds himself getting tired.

As Chance stops to catch his breath, a giant trapping plant emerges underneath him and snaps at his feet, causing him to fall flat on his back. The mushrooms catch up and dogpile him, though Chance manages to shove, kick and punch a few of them away, giving him time to hop over a couple more and keep running away. Eventually, Chance manages to reach the end of the shaft; mushrooms, vines and tendrils were encroaching right behind him. Without a moment to lose, he quickly climbs out, digging his fingers into the walls as much as he can to have some form of grip on the dirt wall he desperately scaled to save his own life.

As Chance climbs out, he notices the excavator, and gets an idea. Chance makes a mad dash for the construction vehicle and jumps in the driver's seat, trying to figure out how to work it. "It's times like this where I wish I just randomly picked up a book and learned something from it." Chance remarked.

The tentacles and vines begin to move closer to the vehicle, but Chance manages to barely get the engine started, and shoots an aggressive smirk at the vines and tendrils. "Hope you freaks don't mind me getting to "the root of the problem"!" Chance quipped.

Chance shifts the excavator into gear and drives it forward, pushing all the mushrooms back down the shaft. The tendrils and vines, however, don't fail so easily, and quickly wrap themselves around the excavator. Chance scoffs, clearly pissed that the plan only partially worked, and jumps out of the vehicle as the excavator's lifted high in the air. "There's always something that throws a random wrench in a good plan!" Chance's eyes widen as he ducks his head, watching in awe and shock as the giant construction tool is lobbed a good fifty feet away, crashing down in the distance. "Well damn, mother nature, you good!?" Chance exclaimed, running back to the camp as fast as he can.

The vines and tendrils retreat down into the hole, all while binding around a humanoid figure, they sneer as they retreat into the hole, the climax of this nightmare was on their doorstep, and they did not want to be stopped after coming so far.

Back at the counselor's quarters, Sunset looks out the window, seeing shadows shift in the rough downpour of rain, all while the kids sit anxiously, huddling together to try and stay safe. Suddenly, Chance throws open the door and slams it shut, panting and breathing heavily. "Okay, you might not believe me when I say this, but-"

"-There are giant killer mushrooms, everywhere!" Button Mash exclaims in terror, tucking his head underneath a pillow.

Chance sighed. "Err, yeah! And-"

"-They're taking over the camp amidst the crashing downpour of rain!" Sunset added.

Chance frowned. "Yes, and they got Luna, too!" Chance stated.

Sunset's eyes widened with fear and concern. "That's not good, we need to get her back, but those mushrooms seem to be pretty aggressive," Sunset looked at a book on the shelf, seeing that it was about mushrooms, she grabbed it and started to slowly skim through it, looking for some kind of solution. "They must be a dormant species that came alive when the camp dug in this new area, judging by the excavator that we saw get tossed in the air from here." Sunset remarked, looking at Chance with an incredulous expression.

Chance frowned. "Oh sure, like that's my fault. I didn't expect a bunch of puny vines and tendrils to suddenly throw a machine like a soda can, give me a break, Shimmer!" Chance rebutted defensively.

Rumble stood up. "This just confirms everything we knew from the start, we gotta get out of here!" Rumble exclaimed.

Chance sighed. "The engine's still likely covered in fungus, so it won't start. Luna could remove it, but it's not like we planned to leave without her," Chance looked at Sunset, seeing the unease in her eyes. "Hey, try to focus on what's happening now, okay? Let's get the kids somewhere a bit safer, then we can discuss the plan. We're gonna be fine, and so will they." Chance reassured.

Chance and Sunset grab the bags of medicine, and keep the kids close to them as they leave as a group. "What do you think they want?" Sunset asked.

Chance looked at Sunset. "Be specific on who you're talking about, because I'm starting to think Rumble talking about Gaia Everfree might not be a coincidence." Chance stated briefly.

Sunset swallowed a bit of air and sighed. "If this is Gloriosa's doing, why would she go through such extreme lengths, and why attack another summer camp?" Sunset asked.

Chance shrugged his shoulders. "It's likely that her powers are finally starting to deteriorate her mental fortitude, and she's becoming rather... feral, in her approach." Chance theorized.

Sunset frowned, but not because of her friend's answer. "What about the other thing, the possibility of this being some kind of alien... what's your stance on that, what does this alien get out of this?" Sunset asked.

Chance looked at her face, she was getting desperate for a solution. "Hypothetically--" Chance was cut off as the ground started to shake. Suddenly, a towering blue bulbous fungus on a stalk suddenly erupts from the ground in front of them. "They probably just want us! For plant food! Back to the cabin, now!!" Chance exclaimed.

As the group runs back inside the counselor's quarters, they throw themselves against the door to prevent those mushroom monsters from getting in. Unfortunately, however, another one starts bursting from the floorboards, dubbing it to no longer be safe inside the cabin. "I already thought there was a fungus among us, but this just isn't fair! Back outside, ASAP, and stay together!" Chance stated.

The group runs back out as the fungus tears through the shack. Bulbous fungus after fungus erupts from the ground around them. Eventually, no more come, and the fungi settle in; their long stalks creating almost another forest around the group, all while the rain is pouring down, thunder and lightning crash and flash through the sky. "I don't suppose them stopping all of a sudden is a good thing... right?" Chance asked.

Diamond shook her head. "Actually, it's worse. Those are puffballs, containing BILLIONS of mushroom spores!" Everyone's eyes widen in terror. "If those mushrooms mature and release those spores, they could spread over the whole state, maybe even the whole country!" Diamond Tiara explained.

Rumble scoffs. "Since when did you know so much about mushrooms?" Rumble questions.

Diamond sneers and crosses her arms. "I don't intend on living off my family's fortune forever, doofus!" Diamond Tiara remarked.

Sunset gets in-between the two before something escalates. "Alright, break it up. We need to stick together, not try to tear each other apart, understand?" Rumble stuck his tongue out at Tiara, all while she turns up her nose and keeps her arms crossed. "Chance, what's the plan here?" Sunset asked.

Chance pulls Sunset aside, and judging by the look on her friend's face, he wasn't too confident in whatever plan he just concocted. "I'm going Jump-Kick. I'll get Luna out as fast as I can, and then I'll tear these towers down with a few well-placed strikes." Chance stated.

Diamond got in-between the two teens. "That's not going to work, the only way to eliminate a mushroom is to destroy its mycelium." Tiara corrected.

Chance looked at the rich girl with a confused expression. "It's what-now?" Chance asked.

Sunset frowned. "The mycelium is like its brain, Chance. Take out the brain, take out every last freaky fungus trying to get us, and we save the world, yet again!" Sunset explained.

Chance looks over at the direction of the hole, and he had a gut feeling he knew where this 'mycelium' thing likely was. "Then that's where I'm going, to kill a mushroom's brain... yeah, why not. You all sit tight, I'll be back in a flash," Chance begins to walk away, but Sunset stops him, which confuses him. "What, did I say something wrong?" Chance asked.

Sunset sighed. "I'm coming with you. Luna, she... she means a lot to me, too, you know." Sunset stated.

Chance frowned. "Sunset, you know damn well that I know you care about Luna, but those kids need someone to watch out for them, and out of the two of us, you're the most capable, you're the most grounded out of the two of us. I'm the only one who has a chance to go down there, and make it out alive," Sunset wanted to protest, but then Chance held up the Omnitrix. "We might share a bunch of stuff, pal, but we don't share this. I give you my word, we'll come back from this. You take care of the kids, and I'll take care of the overgrown piece of shitake controlling those spore buds and bring Luna back in one piece. Can we agree on that?" Chance explained.

Sunset pulled Chance into a hug, and he returned the embrace. "Be careful, I don't want to lose my friend down there." Sunset stated.

Chance nodded his head, and the two head in opposite directions. This was do or die, and they were both gonna do their best, they just hoped they weren't too late.

Jump-Kick glides above Excavole's trail. The bird stops to take another look at the mine. It's less wondrous than before, and more giant mushrooms can be seen sprouting farther away, along with some black thorny vines. "Dude, this is getting worse." Jump-Kick quietly said.

The avian runs towards the shaft and dives in head first. Once he gets to the bottom, he makes a mad dash through the tunnels, periodically stopping to look around. "LUNAAA?" Jump-Kick calls out.

There's no response, not from Luna, at least. The sound wakes up some living mushrooms, but Jump-Kick keeps moving, not really caring for the mushrooms at the moment. From the shadows, a feminine figure slowly reveals herself, her glowing green eyes glare daggers at the transformed teenager, and then her eyes change to a fluorescent purple, and the ground starts to shake.

Back on the surface, Sunset and the kids run through the camp's archery range and hide behind a target. All the while, it's becoming very clear that the children are starting to worry if they'll actually survive. "If we make it to the dining hall, maybe we can barricade ourselves in the kitchen." Button Mash suggested.

Diamond scoffed at the idea. "And fight these things off with what, a spatula? We're trying to survive the mushrooms, not sauté them!" Diamond remarked.

Sweetie buried her head in her knees. "We are so dead meat... Oh I hate it, hate it, hate it here! Why did Rarity have to sign me up for this place!" Sweetie cried out.

Suddenly, the ground starts shaking beneath their feet. A giant blue mushroom raises Sweetie and Button up from the ground; Rumble and Diamond fall off, but Scootaloo and Sunset manage to catch them.

As it stops growing, flaps on its cap open up, revealing tendrils that quickly bind around Sweetie and Button, causing the two to scream out as it gobbles them up. As it starts digesting them, Sunset quickly scrambles to find a weapon, and happens to see a few arrows and a bow nearby. "Six years of maining Archery in MMOs, don't fail me now." Sunset told herself, making a mad dash for the bow and arrows.

Meanwhile, Jump-Kick comes to a fork in the tunnel. As he decides which path to take, tendrils lower from the ceiling and try to surprise him. Much to their failure, Jump-Kick quickly slices them up with his quick sharp talons. "Keep your tendrils to yourself, creep!" Jump-Kick warned, running down the path on the right.

Sunset readies the bow and fires a few arrows, managing to barely shoot the giant mushroom down, gases spewing from it as it collapses to the ground. "And they say Shimmercode can't aim with a bow. If I was streaming right now, chat would have no excuse." Sunset remarked, feeling rather proud of herself.

Diamond, Scootaloo and Rumble help Button and Sweetie out. As they cough and recover, two identical mushrooms start sprouting beside the dead one. "Move it!" Rumble exclaimed.

The kids run through the archery range; mushrooms rising all around them. Just as they start to gain some distance from the rising mushrooms, they abruptly stop at a tower with rock climbing walls. "We need to get to higher ground, everyone up!" Sunset stated.

The kids were about to object, but considering their situation, they just decided to climb. Sunset let the kids go first, lagging behind to catch any of them if they fell. Sunset looked over at the dark shadows of the woods, seeing an all too familiar set of eyes staring her down from the dark. Once the kids were up, Sunset quickly started climbing.

Meanwhile, Luna slowly wakes up, just as Jump-Kick tears away the fungus blocking the room's entrance, seeing Luna stuck to the wall. "Miss Luna!" Jump-Kick yelled.

Jump-Kick quickly runs over, immediately ripping off her binds. Luna weakly leans onto the transformed teen, clearly lacking a lot of her usual strength. "Chance..." Luna replied weakly.

Jump-Kick shushed her. "Save your strength. I'll have you free in just a-" The all too familiar sound of the Omnitrix's beeping rings out, and in a flash of red light, Chance is transformed back into his normal self. "Omnitrix, what part of "NO" do you not understand!?" Chance reprimanded.

Luna looked up, her eyes widening at the figure that stood behind her student. "Chance, move!!" Luna cried out desperately.

Before Chance could react, black thorn-covered vines and purple tendrils began to ensnare and wrap around him. He tried to break through them, but it was too much for him to handle. "Luna!!!" Chance cried out.

Chance saw the face of his attacker for a moment before his vision was obscured, and he was not happy with how things were turning out.

Sunset climbs to the top of the course, leading the children the best she can. "Come on, we have to keep moving! You can do this!" Sunset encouraged.

As they all make it to the top, they take notice of the zipline. The tower they were on was connected to a zipline that stretches across the fungi forest and to the camp entrance. As Sunset studies it, Diamond Tiara and Rumble start fighting over the first trolley.

"Me first, I almost got ran over trying to save our butts!" Rumble argued.

"No! I'm going first! I'm not playing second fiddle to some second-rate dork!" Diamond insulted.

Sunset gritted her teeth and made the two kids look at her, she scowled at the two, and suddenly they stopped fighting. "Does it really matter?! Our lives are in danger, so of course it doesn't matter! Just for that, you two are gonna share it, and that's final!" Sunset remarked firmly.

Diamond and Rumble sunk for a moment, and sighed. The both of them grabbed one side of each trolley, and zipped down the line. Button and Sweetie did the same, with Scootaloo hanging onto Sunset's back as they went last. Scootaloo cheered as they made their daring escape from the monstrous mushrooms.

In a room deep underground, Chance and Luna are strung by tendrils against a wall. As Chance tries to get the Omnitrix to work, he discusses the situation with Luna. "So, somehow, in some way... Gloriosa Daisy, the same psycho chick that tried making a dome of thorns around Camp Everfree, managed to escape where she was confined, and now she's on a rampage?" Chance questioned.

Luna nodded, though it seemed like she was missing something about this whole situation. "It's hard to imagine that she'd just target a random summer camp of her own free will, something about miss Daisy isn't right, and I mean more than her still having magic, when we escape, stay on your guard, mister Marsten," Luna looks down, noticing that Chance was struggling to push the faceplate back down. "Any luck with using the Omnitrix?" Luna inquired.

Chance shook his head, still struggling to press the core back into place. "Ugh, I'm trying, ugh. I think it needs more time to recharge-" before Chance can utter another word, he suddenly succeeds, and the Omnitrix starts to glow green uncharacteristically, and begins to undergo a transformation.

Chance's body starts to burn up, all while his veins bulge and travel up his arm. His eyes, ears, nose and mouth start to leak an excessive amount of smoke, so much so that the smoke envelops his entire body. Suddenly, a strange desaturated red material grows and molds itself over the smoke, creating two black smoke tunnels on its shoulders, and two horn-shaped smoke tunnels from the top of its head. The head of the creature opens its four white eyes, and the Omnitrix forms on the creature's right pectoral. A pair of white shorts form on the alien's lower body, along with black leggings.

The creature hisses, letting a couple bursts of red flames puff out from the horns, and the alien grips its round exaggerated fingers into fists, and strikes a violent pose as smoke and fire erupt from the alien's head.

The flash of light dies down, leaving Luna surprised and stunned at the new alien's appearance. "Seems like the Omnitrix has something else in mind, what's this one supposed to do?" Luna asked.

The alien looked itself over, unsure as to what exactly he transformed into this time. "Okay, now I'm convinced the Omnitrix is fucking with me, I've never been this one before," he points to himself, only to flinch for a moment when a small stream of fire streams out of his engorged fingertip, burning the vines and roots away. The alien carefully tries it again, and burns away Luna's binds. "But I am starting to like what he can do. I've heard of playing with fire, but this takes it to a whole new level." the alien remarked, its voice was growling, but at the same time, it sounded like it was also choking on some kind of smog.

Luna and the new alien nod and get ready to leave. "Let's get out of here, Luna, this place is driving me up the wall." The alien remarked.

"You're not going anywhere." A warped feminine voice called out.

Luna and the new alien stayed on their guard, until more vines and tendrils managed to catch them by surprise, pulling them into the ground. Before the pair could understand what just happened, they emerge in a giant cave room below, which is barely containing an enormous pink mass of tissue, roots, and spores. "The mother of all fungus", as it were, and lo and behold, the other mother was perched right on top of the enormous pink mass, now dressed clad in a dress made from blackened leaves, and it was all held together by more of those black thorny vines and purple tendrils. Gloriosa Daisy, one of the former camp counselors for Camp Everfree, was now completely turned into a malevolent depiction of Mother Nature.

"I communicate with all vegetation on a telepathic level. I speak to you myself, because I know you wouldn't understand." Gloriosa responded bitterly.

Luna and the new alien gasped, all while Gloriosa let a wicked grin form on her face.

As Sunset and the kids continue ziplining, one living mushroom makes it to the top of the rock climbing tower. It uses its sharp cap to cut through the zipline rope, and the kids start falling. Thankfully, the giant mushrooms on the ground broke their fall, luckily enough. Rumble and Diamond wince as they get up, but Sunset makes sure they get back on their feet, all while she fires more arrows at the pursuing mushrooms, but this was proving to be a futile effort.

Hundreds of living mushrooms in the way of the main building stare them down. Button anxiously looks around, and spots a small storage hut. "In there, hurry!" Button cried out.

As the group run towards it, the mushrooms immediately descend onto them, trying to get ahold of them. Tendrils erupt from the ground and shoot towards them. Button looks behind him and screams as they get closer, though Sunset is luckily able to get everyone inside and shut the door, before the tendrils slam against it.

Sunset lets out a momentary sigh of relief, only to wince as Rumble and Diamond start arguing. "We wouldn't even BE here now if YOU didn't make us hide in the kitchen! Who hides in a kitchen, for crying out loud!?" Rumble argued.

Diamond Tiara growled. "You wanna talk about bad ideas? You and Button decided to leave, and as a result, you nearly got RAN OVER! At least we were safe in the pantry, and with food, no less!" Diamond rebutted.

Rumble sneered. "Knowing you, ya prissy rich kid, you would've eaten everything before we got a crumb to ourselves!" Rumble insulted.

Sunset gritted her teeth and grabbed both of the arguing kids by the ears, silencing them immediately. "STOP IT, both of you! I don't care who started it, it doesn't matter who started it, or whose fault it is. What matters is you're stuck together, and instead of trying to tear each other apart, you need to stick together. One more argument, and you can find your own way back to Canterlot City. Got it?!" Sunset reprimanded, glaring daggers at the two.

Diamond and Rumble looked at one another, and though they didn't like the idea of working together, they knew that they'd both be mushroom food if both their plans didn't work. Diamond and Rumble shook hands for a brief moment and nodded their heads. "...Okay. We're sorry." The two agreed in unison.

Sunset nodded her head, though her scowl didn't change. "Good, because we're gonna need to FIGHT our way out of here." Sunset informed, grabbing a baseball bat from the corner of the room.

The kids looked around the room for a weapon and some protective gear, and thankfully, they found exactly what each one was looking for.

Back inside the deep depths of the hole, the new alien and Luna were staring at Gloriosa and the large pink mass. "I'm gonna take a guess here. You're the 'beauty', and the pink freak behind you is the 'brainiac'." The alien remarked.

The pink fungus brings the alien closer to it and reveals a mouth lined with sharp teeth. "They prefer the term 'mycelium', you uneducated creature." Gloriosa stated.

Luna struggled to get out of her binds, but Chance seems to finally be understanding what exactly is happening here. "I'm starting to think Gloriosa is only partially responsible for what's been going on here. The real mastermind is Mr. Mushroom Head over here, these two might have some kind of connection or something," just as he said that, the mycelium lowers the alien closer towards its open jaws. "Oh man, is it really that hard to be a vegetarian?" The alien remarked.

Gloriosa moved closer to the alien. "Struggle as you may, you cannot stop us. Soon, we will consume every living creature on this planet." Gloriosa stated.

The alien glared its eyes at the psychotic woman and burned away the roots and tendrils holding him in place. "Well, hate to burst your bubble, but you're NOT starting with us!" The alien resisted.

The alien breaks free from Mycelium's vines. As he starts falling, he reaches for the ceiling, which inadvertently causes his hands to shoot out fire, and propel him to the side, all while black smoke escapes the ports on his shoulders and head. As the alien struggles to control its newfound flaming propulsion, his hand slips and he fires a small fireball at Mycelium, and it explodes upon contact, which seems to make Gloriosa wince and cringe in pain. Curious, the new alien resumes blasting himself towards Luna, freeing her from the vines. He lands her on one of Mycelium's large roots, while Gloriosa rushes in to attack on her own.

The alien gets in front of Luna, and points its fingers out as they start to ignite. "You wanna get roasted that bad, huh, then enjoy getting flambéed at point-blank range, curtesy of SMOKESCREEN!" Smokescreen exclaims, blasting several flaming bursts of fire, smoke and embers at the power mad woman.

Sunset kicks the door to the hut open, and leads the kids into the fight. Sunset wields the bat; Rumble is decked out in hockey gear and stick; Sweetie has a visor and a paintball gun; Scootaloo excitedly holds a baseball pitcher machine like a railgun; Button nervously wields a canoe paddle; and Diamond wields a screwdriver in each hand. The group run toward a group of Fungal Force, ready to fight for their right to live.

Sunset bats the first few away, then kicks a couple over to vent some frustration; Sweetie and Scootaloo shoot some with paintballs and baseballs; Rumble shoots a puck that hits and bounces off multiple mushrooms; Button manages to swat and smack a couple of the mushrooms away before the paddle end snapped off, leaving him with a jagged wooden spear; Diamond Tiara stabs a few of the mushrooms in the eyes and generally just keeps her distance.

As Sweetie and Button continue, one mushroom climbs to the top of a giant mushroom and stands on the edge of its cap. It jumps off to attack them from above, but gets shot away by something. Sweetie and Button look back and see Scootaloo lowering her baseball gun. "Say hello to my little friend, you poor excuses for pizza toppings!!" Scootaloo cries out, laughing as she fires more baseballs at incoming mushrooms.

Sweetie and Button smile, cheering Scootaloo on. "Nice shot!" Unfortunately, their victory is short lived as they see more mushrooms coming up behind her. "Scootaloo, run!" The pair exclaim in unison.

The duo drop their things and run away. Scootaloo, not knowing what the two were saying, looks behind her and sees a horde of stampeding mushrooms. She still has a few baseballs left, and decides to fire them all in rapid succession. It didn't take long for her to finally run out of ammo, and she eventually runs away with the others, discarding her now useless baseball gun.

They all run away. Sunset, Rumble and Diamond turn a corner around a group of giant mushrooms, while Sweetie and Button follow close behind. Scootaloo almost takes the wrong way, but immediately corrects herself as she continues to laugh to herself. The mushrooms luckily stop at the fork and consider which way to go. The kids stop running, as they reach the shoreline, semi-disappointed that some of the canoes were destroyed.

Sunset frantically looks around and spots an abandoned rowboat. "You kids thinking what I'm thinking?" Sunset asked.

The mushrooms eventually found their way to the shoreline, but were immediately bombarded by a turned over canoe plowing through their horde. "CHARGE!!" Sunset and the kids exclaimed, pushing through the monstrous mushrooms.

Scootaloo laughed and curb-stomped one of the mushroom monsters. "Take no prisoners!" Scootaloo exclaimed.

Diamond and Sweetie stop and watch as Scootaloo does her thing. "She's really enjoying this, isn't she." Diamond remarked, surprised and kinda frightened by Scootaloo's confidence against the mushroom monsters.

The group drops the boat once the RV and the main building are in sight. As everyone beelines to it, Scootaloo is suddenly grabbed by a tendril and snatched up high in the air. Rumble turns around and sees her; he opens his hockey bag and pulls out a pair of skates. "Really hoping this works, or I'm gonna be wishing those mushrooms catch me," As Scootaloo tries to free herself from the tendril, she notices Rumble on the ground twirling something above his head. Rumble was twirling around the skates, tied together like a pair of razor-sharp bolas. "Hey you freaky worm-thing! How's about you split!" Rumble exclaims, throwing the blades at the tendril; slicing it clean in half and dropping Scootaloo right on top of him.

Scootaloo gets up and pulls Rumble to his feet. "Thanks for the save, maybe you're not the jerk I thought you were." Scootaloo commented.

As the two run into the kitchen, Sunset finally closes the door, locking and blocking it.

Meanwhile, Smokescreen and Luna were busy taking care of two problem at once. Luna was busy keeping Gloriosa distracted, while Smokescreen was burning Mycelium's roots with his flamethrower fingertips, yet despite what both of them did to slow them down, it almost seemed like nothing was actually working.

"Resistance is futile, worms. For even if you destroy him, you cannot possibly destroy the billions of our spores we're about to release into the atmosphere." Gloriosa remarked, seeming calm and confident in her victory.

Smokescreen rolled his eyes and kept setting fire to Mycelium's roots. "Don't you worry, little miss pushing daisies, I'll take care of them next!" Smokescreen remarked.

Unfortunately, just as the alien said that, the Omnitrix started to time out. In a flash of red light, Chance is transformed back into his normal human self, and vines quickly ensnare both him and Luna. Mycelium pulls them close and lowers them slowly into its jaws, all while Gloriosa watches with a twisted smile on her face.

Chance tries to break out, but it almost seems impossible. Chance looks over to Luna, seeing the concern on her face. "Luna! ...I-I'm sorry." Chance whispered, his breath hitching in the back of his throat.

Sunset and the kids have barricaded the front door with every table and chair in the room. Though, as they turn to the other set of doors, mushrooms come walking in from them. They turn around, screaming, as the mushrooms and tendrils also manage to bust open the barricaded set of doors. The creatures now surround Sunset and the kids.

Sunset closes her eyes tightly, then she grunts, her eyes glow a bright blue as magical tendrils manifest from the palms of her hands. "Don't you dare lay a tooth on these kids. Go back to the mushroom hell you freaks of nature were spawned from!!" Sunset roared out, numerous tendrils began to grab the mushroom monsters, and started to swat them away, throwing them through the walls, the ceiling, she was not going to let these monsters do to these kids like they've already done with the last twenty.

Sunset rushes forward, leaving the five kids to look on in shock and terror as the shadows depicted a brutal and savage display of what can only be described as Sunset using her tendrils to personally eviscerate and dismember every single mushroom monster that got remotely close to those five children. If those kids weren't scared already, they were plenty scared now. Not of the monsters, but of what Sunset did to the monsters.

As Mycelium holds Chance and Luna over its open mouth, multiple red tongues rise up to them. Luna kicks one away, much to Mycelium's and Gloriosa's irritation. "I won't go down without a fight. If I'm going down, I'm at least gonna kick the fun out of this fungus!" Luna remarked, taking her frustration out on the next tongue that rose up towards her.

Chance thought about what Luna said, and suddenly looked down at his shoes, specifically the one that was full of athlete's foot powder. "You took the words right out of my mouth, miss Luna!" Chance remarked, trying to slip his shoe off.

Luna stopped and looked at her student in confusion. "I did?" Luna asked.

Chance nodded, giving a smug smirk to both the Mycelium and Gloriosa, much to their confusion. "I wonder if Athlete's foot powder works on alien fungus. No time like the present, not like I have a lot of options left!" Chance remarked.

Chance swiftly kicks off his shoe, and even slips his powder-filled sock off, watching both fall into the Mycelium's mouth. To Chance's satisfaction, and Gloriosa's concern, Mycelium starts bleeding and reflexing in pain. Chance manages to free his right hand and reaches over towards Luna, pulling the rest of the bottle out of her back pocket, cracks it open and drops it down too. Mycelium's roots start breaking and it falls to the floor, dropping Chance and Luna. It convulses before completely exploding in a tidal wave of goop.

Gloriosa begins to panic, screaming out in frustration and defeat. Before Luna and Chance can try and stop her, she flees the underground chamber, and the duo decide that now is the best time to leave.

Up on the surface, the mushroom monsters continued to keep coming, and Sunset was covered in various body parts that came from the monsters. Just as Sunset was getting ready for another onslaught, watching as the first mushroom steps forward toward the kids, it starts shaking; its body twists up until into a thin figure; and falls to the floor. All the other mushrooms do the same.

Sunset takes a deep breath, and her magic slowly deactivates, letting her magical tendrils fade away. "What just happened? Why are they all shriveling up?" Button asked shakily.

Sunset sighed, smiling towards the children. "Chance just happened. Nice job, pal." Sunset remarked weakly, passing out on the floor.

The kids calmly walk outside, past the twisted, fallen, dead mushrooms. "This camp ROCKS!" Rumble and Button Mash exclaim in unison.

Diamond Tiara scoffs at the boy's reaction. "I don't know what camp you're talking about, but I'm NOT participating at this camp again, not after this!" Diamond Tiara remarked.

Scootaloo and Sweetie walked side-by-side, smiling as they finally relax. "I wouldn't say it was that bad. Would've been a little better if Apple Bloom was here, though." Scootaloo remarked with a chuckle.

Sweetie giggled. "I honestly wouldn't mind coming back next year, if it means the whole 'alien mushroom monster' thing doesn't happen again." Sweetie responded optimistically.

Sunset smiled, but was soon surprised to see Chance and Luna running back to them. "Is everyone okay!? No one's hurt, right? No bruises, cuts, bleeding, who needs to go to the ER?!" Chance called out.

Sunset pulled the mildly panicked teen into a hug, with Luna embracing them both. "Good to see you too, bud, I can hardly almost believe ya did it!" Sunset remarked.

Chance shook his head, confusing Sunset. Chance pointed up at the large bulbs full of spores. "We're not done yet, but we're at the homestretch. We still got to stop those spores." Chance reminded.

Everyone looks up at the puffballs, still standing tall. Chance suddenly remembers something and he turns to Scootaloo. "Hey, you did say everyone here gets Athlete's foot, right?" Chance asked.

Scootaloo nodded with a cheeky grin. "I was usually the one who had it the most." Scootaloo added.

Chance looks over at the infirmary, and rushes over towards the building, with everyone following after him.

Inside the infirmary, Chance opens a cupboard stocked full of powder bottles. "Never thought I'd ever call a cupboard full of athlete's foot powder the jackpot, but here we are," Chance grabs one of the bottles, and then looks at the Omnitrix. The teenager gets a pretty solid idea. "I think I know how we can get this stuff out there, we just need to wait a little bit for the watch to recharge." Chance remarked.

After a fair bit of waiting, daytime finally starts to come up on the horizon. Without a moment to lose, a cloud of foot powder starts raining down from above. Sunset shakes the powder down, riding on top of Fumesquito with the wind in their faces. The powder makes the puffballs instantly shrivel up, all while Sunset was laughing and hollering with joy.

A few hours later, the trio, along with the five kids they were able to save, were sitting down celebrating at a pizza restaurant, waiting patiently for the authorities to come and take them home. "Nice work, pal. Couldn't have done it without you." Chance commented, chowing down on a thick slice of pizza.

Sunset smiled. "Anytime." Sunset thanked.

The trio enjoy their pizza with the kids, enjoying each other's company, and from Chance's point of view, this felt pretty nice. It was calm, it was happy, though he still wanted to pummel the snot out of those counselors, he was fine knowing he, along with Luna and Sunset, managed to keep these five kids, these five tough little survivors, alive and well.

Chance did feel bad that the other twenty will never return home, but there wasn't anything he could do about it, even though he wanted to do something. Regardless, he felt relatively at peace, and he had another new alien to use, so he was getting stronger, adding another set of powers to his repertoire of transformations. Chance grabbed another slice of pizza and took a huge bite out of it, and though the pizza was topped with several types of meat and three different cheeses, it tasted like victory.

Victory never tasted so savory before.

Author's Note

And that was "O' the Glory to Pushin' Daisies", my version of "Camp Fear".

Getting this out of the way, the twelfth alien has made its debut, and it's Smokescreen! Smokescreen is based off of some early concept art for Heatblast, but technically, it's not Heatblast.

Smokescreen is the Omnitrix's DNA Sample of a Typhoctian from the planet of Mistrosol

I also managed to figure out how to add a bigger image, yippee!

Anyways, I don't have a lot to talk about for this one, so I hope you enjoyed this episode, and don't expect the next one to be out too soon, it's one of the more important episodes again.