Trailside Banquet

The air is heavy, and thick, through the gnarled trees of the Zone. It’s like walking through molasses, thought Pinkie as she walked past a couple of floating blue orbs, hovering as still as wax statues. “Glowstone tears"; Pinkie was reminded of Starlight coining the term in her journal - her trusted guide in all this chaos.

Starlight’s journal. The words felt heavy on her chest as they creeped into her mind. She shook her head vigorously, then knocked it against her hoof a few times to squash any remaining thoughts. …can’t let my mind slip! Have to focus! - shouted her internal voice. She realized she needed to rest.

As she sat down close to a nearby bush, she removed the Party Popper from her back, and opened her saddlebag. After some brief rummaging, she pulled out a bottle of Crystal Clear - her beloved. She took a swig of the clear liquid, its burning sensation bringing her wandering mind back to reality. The alcohol washed over her nerves, giving her some calm. She let out a satisfied sigh, the vodka feeling like the warmest of blankets wrapping around her, then proceeded to take out another Puff Pastry. The only sounds Pinkie could hear as she smoked were the occasional crackle of magical energy and a distant roar of something way too far for her to worry about.

Then she heard it: soft voices, echoing through the dense fog just beyond her rest stop. She froze, her ears and tail twitching. She picked herself up, along with the rifle. Her eyes darted from shadow to shadow, constantly on alert. As she heard the voices come closer, she aimed the rifle - a bead of sweat dripped from her forehead.

Her heart drops when she recognizes the shadows approaching her: Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo - the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

They’re not ready for the Zone, thought Pinkie, lowering her rifle as their silhouettes became more clear. They each were wearing their CMC capes and makeshift “adventuring gear” that wouldn't protect them from a normal creature - let alone whatever horrors lie in the Zone. The trio had a bright expression on their faces as they stepped out of the fog. It was Apple Bloom who first noticed Pinkie, who quickly snuffed out her half-consumed candy cigarette.

“Pinkie Pie! We didn’t expect to see ya out here!” said Apple Bloom, cheerful and oblivious to the dangers around her, “We’re just explorin’! Cheerilee shut down the school and we heard all kinds of stories about why, and wanted to see the Zone for ourselves!”

Scootaloo piped up, excited. “Yeah! We thought maybe there’s something in here that could help us finally get our cutie marks! Maybe something cool like ‘Zone Survivor’!”

Sweetie Belle innocently responded to Scootaloo’s words, “or ‘Anomaly Researcher’! But yeah, we’ve been really careful out here Pinkie. Promise!”

Pinkie’s face is stern, her eyes wide with barely-contained panic as she stared at the trio, looming above them like a shadow. She continued staring at their innocent faces, full of smiles that Pinkie desperately wished she could match with every fiber of her being.

Her voice when she finally speaks as she responds to them is so far departed from the cheerful Pinkie the Crusaders were used to when they thought of Ponyville’s famous “party planner” that it shakes the three to their core.

“Get out. Now.” spoke Pinkie, in an urgent, low tone.

It took what must’ve felt like forever for Apple Bloom to respond, her smile dropping in confusion at Pinkie’s command. “...Wait, what?”

Pinkie’s voice trembles slightly, but remains firm, like a parent reprimanding a child. “Get out of here. Now! You have no idea what you’re walking into.” As she speaks, she points in the direction they came from with a stern but trembling hoof. Her eyes darted around, looking for any disturbances in the tree line - for an anomaly that might be attracted by the noise.

Scootaloo becomes defensive at Pinkie’s words, not one to take warnings lightly, “But we can handle it! We’ve been in dangerous places before! The Everfree Forest--”

Pinkie Pie cut her off, her voice rising slightly in pitch, almost cracking. “This isn’t the Everfree Forest! This is the Zone! Do you have any idea what happens to ponies here?!”

The trio remained silent, stunned by Pinkie’s question. They hadn’t given it much thought.

Pinkie spoke again, this time her voice drops to a low growl, her expression darkening with hardened grief. “I’ve watched ponies…friends…lose themselves here. You don’t come back from that. The Zone takes what it wants, and doesn’t care who you are or what happens to you.” she paused, stepping closer and lowering herself to their level. Her eyes are intense, burning with pleading desperation.

“You aren’t ready for this. I don’t care what destiny you think you might find here. You won’t. You need to leave.”

She looked to the ground, holding back tears, and sighs once more before speaking again, softly now. In her words, one could hear her heartbreak - a feeling absolutely foreign to the Crusaders. “I can’t…I can’t lose more friends. Not to this place. Please….just go home.”

Apple Bloom looked at Pinkie - the Element of Laughter - in this state and shedded a few tears. Scootaloo comforts her friend in a hug from behind. Sweetie Belle buries her face in her hooves, completely beside herself as her own tears fall. It was hard to see the notoriously happy pony in such a broken mindset.

“We’re sorry, Pinkie…we had no idea.” responded Apple Bloom apologetically.

Pinkie closed her eyes, and exhaled with relief, abd then nodded to accept Apple Bloom’s apology. “It’s okay. Just…just go. Get as far away from here as you can - and don’t come back.”

She watched as the trio made their way back through the fog, their earlier excitement completely drained away. Pinkie doesn’t move until the CMC are out of sight, her body trembling from the waves of emotions hitting her. Once she is sure they’re gone, she gazes back to the twisted landscape of the Zone, her jaw clenched as she tries to realign herself.

She took another swig of Crystal Clear before robotically putting away the bottle into her saddlebag. Once put away, she picked up her bag and her rifle, and slipped them onto herself. Once she was sure all her gear was in order, she stepped forward, her eyes hollow and distant.

To no one in particular, Pinkie muttered, “Stay out of here. Stay out, while you still can…”