A Walk Through Everfree

by Spectral Tear

Rating: teen
Tags: Twilight Sparkle, Gore, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Princess Luna, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie
Length: 4814

Choose Your Own Adventure (CYOA) story, featuring you as an earth pony, and a small party.

Twilight Sparkle has sent you on an errand in the Everfree forest, to receive a package from her mysterious provider. All the information you have is that she's in Everfree near 'the Cliff' and that you'll be traveling with Princess Luna, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie. The rest is unknown to you or seemingly your party.

*This is a Choose Your Own Adventure (CYOA) to celebrate Nightmare Night. Oct-31-12

Published 2012-10-28 11:50:01 UTC
Last updated 2012-10-28 11:50:01 UTC

Enter The Adventure

*Welcome to my Nightmare Night story. Please feel free to quit at anytime (shouldn't be THAT bad) and also I'd appreciate a like/dislike and a comment if you have the time, just be fair about it mmmkay? *

*The rules are that you change to the chapter corresponding to the number given by the option you choose, making this a Choose Your Own Adventure, otherwise just have fun! and don't die, that'd probably be bad.*

Twilight Sparkle stands on her porch, waving goodbye as you and your compatriots enter the Everfree. Her words echo in your mind as you trot, "Just get to the cliff and get the package from the correspondent, then come back, simple. Meaning if you mess up, you'll have Celestia to talk to."

Not wanting to anger the almighty Princess of the sun, you make your way through the dense thicket ahead. Beside you trots: Fluttershy bearing a grim expression, Rarity watching her step, Princess Luna providing light but staying behind you, and pinkie pie pronking every which way, now and again returning with some bug or flower that interests her.

You reach the edge of a clearing, a mountain to your left half-hides the full moon above your party. It's bright rays provide slight visibilty as you look over the side of the cliff, noticing a river with plenty of sharp rocks hundreds of feet below. Soon after you arrive, a heavy fog sets in, allowing a creepier version of the newly found area to arise, and the howling wolves doesn't exactly help the suspension. You find yourself pacing near the edge, almost as if it gives you comfort, when the fog dissolves ever so slightly.

A mare can be seen striding leisurely towards your party, and you instantly feel relief wash over you, the steep drop no longer comforts you, and your only wish is to leave. As she approaches a figure of great elegance bounds over your heads, and produces a blinding flash, sending you rocking over to the cliff. The second you realize what's happened, it's too late, you go overboard, the last thought you have is to yell to your party, but who?

(ch.2 Fluttershy)
(ch.3 Luna)
(ch.5 Rarity)
(ch.6 Pinkie Pie)

CH.4 Save Luna

You figure that the attacker isn't an imposing threat at the moment, or at least, Luna is of greater importance. After all she did save your life. So you wander the edge with Rarity and Fluttershy close at hoof. They both watch the dewy grass as they trot behind you, not wanting to bring up the fact that you would've died if not for Luna. After some time you find that a wide ledge wraps around the cliff and leads to the bottom of the great chasm, which you proceed to navigate down.

Your head is filled with thoughts only of saving your princess as you carefully make the journey down. A couple of instances left you bruised and even supplied your left hind leg with a gash, but nothing keeps you from the bottom. Upon reaching the end of the ledge, you turn to share your relief, only to find that rarity is missing.

"Uh...Fluttershy," You start, "Where's Rarity?"

She turns around and scans the path behind you. "I don't see her, maybe she had to take bathroom break and wanted to be discreet. She should turn up soon."

Suddenly you feel the connection start to fade with the princess. But I've gotten so close, you think, why would the connection break now? You begin to make your way towards the center of the gorge, the rushing current of the river is loud enough to distract you from your thoughts. Soon you arrive at where the connection sends you, until it utterly shuts off.

Worry spreads through your whole body, what can defeat an Alicorn as powerful as Luna, even if she is weak? You push through a couple of bushes and peek into a grove surrounded by rocks.

Luna lies on a slab low to the ground, her neck abruptly ending with gratuitous amounts of blood pouring onto the now deep blue grass. You get sick staring at the stump, your princess who has perished in such a horrifying way. You turn, getting ready to lose lunch. Once your hacking is complete, your head lifts, and inside a nearby bush something glows. A pair of blue eyes stare at you, Pinkie emerges from the bushes carrying Rarity, Fluttershy, and Luna's heads. a long blade curves out of her hoof with your reflection shining upon it.

"My name is Pinkie Pie, HELLO!"

CH.6 Pinkie Pie

Your imminent demise compels a shout that would awaken an Ursa Major from it's slumber, "PINKIE PIE!"

She is there faster than lightening, her crystal blue eyes shining with cheer, "The way down is better than the way up," she says. Before you can react, she pushes you down the cliff. Confusion flows through your mind, and fear of the rocks speeding towards you causes you to shut your eyes waiting or impact. What you feel next is indescribable, a sensation of falling turning into the most comfortable spring you've ever felt.

With a bounce, you find yourself inside Pinkie Pie's personal hot air balloon, accompanying the comfortable-looking sofa is a fridge and microwave. Inside are bottles of chocolate milk and cupcakes. A note reads 'Help yourself to these snacks, I'm sure there's a good reason for you to be inside my balloon, PP.'

You arrive at the top of the cliff in no time, finishing the most scrumptious cupcake you've had in a long time. "Have fun?" Pinkie calls to you. You nod and hop out, noticing the attacker has fled, but your party is fine. Rarity lifts herself up, then trots to Fluttershy to help her. Luna stands and looks towards the forest, glaring with malice at the mare who thought she could rid herself of an Alicorn.

Pinkie pronks towards you with something in her mouth. Upon a short glance you determine that the cloth is of the same cut as the attacker's outfit. You can think of only two creatures in all of Equestria that could track the mare down, which do you choose?

(Ch.7 Get Winona to smell the cloth)
(Ch.9 Get Pinkie Pie to smell the cloth)

CH.7 Get Winona to Smell the Cloth

You decide that the best way to make absolutely sure you get on the right path is to trust a non-pony, so Winona is obviously the best choice. The Apple family house is on the road to Ponyville, and that's where you head. The dense forest seems a bit more intimidating seeing as the recent events almost got you killed, but you traverse it all the same. What you don't realize is that everyone in the group spreads out in a different direction than you.

Carefully treading over the moss-covered branches lying on the forest floor, your mind starts playing tricks on you, creating noises that could be imaginary, or not. The wolves you heard earlier seem much closer now, practically gnawing on your delicious hoofs as you stumble around like a madman, searching for a nonexistent being who has the ability and mindset to kill. You glance at every branch that passes your view, and you notice you're using your peripherals more often than not.

You hear screaming and smell the crisp, dark stench of smoke wafting towards you. Bright embers lighten the surrounding trunks of twisted trees, and you emerge through a multitude of grabby leaves, arriving at a gruesome scene. Ponyville has erupted into bright blue flames, all around cottages, once marvels of modern pony work, have buckled under their own weight, support beams disappearing within minutes.

As you grasp the full importance of the situation, you begin to trot forward, determined to save your town. After a few hazy and disorganized attempts at tossing water buckets at the starving flames, the town begins to fall, with no building being spared from their wrath. The last thing you remember is how big the town hall looked when it crushed you.

CH.8 Follow the Attacker

You grasp that Luna is going to have to make it without you for now, but you send Fluttershy to guard and heal her while you get the package. Rarity instantly rushes into the forest without a thought of anypony else, while Pinkie waits for your signal. You race into the dark threads woven by whatever evil being constructed the Everfree, hoping that Pinkie would be able to keep up, and she seemed to be able to do so just fine. Rarity is soon lost along the brambles and branches that infest the otherwise exotically pleasant areas, but you don't have time to worry about her. A trail is left by the mare wearing white cloth, it seems to be some sort of magical debris that sparkles, then fades as if it never existed.

Every once in a while, Luna would send a pulse towards you to let you know she's alright, which comforts you greatly, wouldn't want the princess of night to end up dead after all she's been through. Soon, the trail seems to brighten, but you notice that the sparkles are a bright yellow instead. The smell of smoke escalates and the embers appear more frequently. You then break through the line of branches blocking your way into Ponyville, which helps you to understand the smoke, the town is in flames.

It becomes apparent that the town has been set ablaze by the same mare interfering with the package deal you were sent to complete. The bright sparkles still mix in with the embers rising above you, and whenever they would touch something, and instant fire would spread. You glance about, looking for the best action to take, until you notice Pinkie is staring at something. Twilight's house sits amidst the catastrophe, completely untouched by the scorching light and flames. The lights are off, but the door is ajar, Do you confront Twilight? Or choose to save the town instead?

(Ch.11 Confront Twilight)
(Ch.13 Extinguish the Flames)

CH.10 Go Home

"Listen ponies," you start, "I didn't mean for this to happen to Luna, my dear princess, or for any of you ponies to have to suffer this obviously traumatic experience, but this isn't what I signed up for, so see ya later." You hide a smile and trot off into the trees, taking a quick glance behind you at the confused expressions of the ponies. They're so dumbfounded, all they do is sit there and stare at the branches they last saw you at. Wow, it's like they actually thought I was their friend, well their loss.

You walk into Ponyville central, all the cottages are ablaze and the ponies are frantically scattering around, trying their hardest to extinguish the seemingly unquenchable thirst of the inferno. You scoff, and continue on your path noticing Twilight's left her door ajar on her perfectly flame-proof house. Hmm, she needs to remember to shut door so nopony can get the bright idea of searching her house for evidence, I'll bring it up later. You arrive at your hut, and enter.

The smell of gooey chocolate and warm cookies escapes from the kitchen, where you find Twilight cooking. "Y'know, I can handle myself for at least one day with cooking," you say. "Well, can't your fillyfriend do something nice for you once in awhile? Honestly, it's like you can't accept gifts!" You both smile and embrace for a moment, then head downstairs.

The walls are lined with rows of brains you've collected from 'patients' throughout the past, they look inviting as you sit at your table. Twilight sits next to you and drapes her white outfit across the floor beside her. "Can you really end their lives from here?, I thought that wasn't able to be done because the current spreads too far," She asks.

"I've implanted the devices while you were giving the overview of our mission. By the way, I'll be sure to fetch Rainbow Dash as soon as we're done too, she'll only be a little sluggish from the sedative." You respond

"Well, Why are we doing it from here anyway? I thought the point was to collect the brains themselves, instead of having to retrieve them from here," she says.

"Yes, but this way we can have my servant, Scootaloo, collect the bodies and the brains way outside the detection line, while we sit here safely, and everything looks like a pure accident as they're stranded in Everfree," you respond.

Twilight nods her agreement, "Looks like I love the smart one, I can't compete with that."

"You still have a great plot," you assure her.

She giggles, and watches as you activate the small generator on the table, sending a shock to your party's brains and killing them instantly. "Would you fetch Scootaloo? Tell her we're going to have company tonight."

CH.11 Confront Twilight

You give a glance towards Pinkie, she meets your eyes, but then blushes and starts off towards Twilight's house. You feel like one way or another, the adventure ends here, and you're glad Pinkie will be there with you to see it end. When you reach the door, you notice a white outfit sitting on the porch, a long stream of sparkles fly out and spread onto the nearby buildings. You give Pinkie a nod, and you both enter, ready for anything.

The house is dark, but the flames around the town provide adequate amounts of light through the windows. You hear hoofsteps coming from the top of the stairs. Motioning for Pinkie to stay put, you start ascending, not daring to turn around for fear of not being able to continue otherwise. You hear Pinkie's soft whimpering down below, then it stops suddenly. You push on into the observatory, finding a set of thirteen telescopes gazing at different points around town. Looking through one of them, you see a pony whose hooves had been chopped off by a broken section of metal, and was now lying, bled-out on the road. Another featured a carriage containing Jack's Jack-o-Lanterns according to the sign. Just as you've had your fill of sight seeing, you turn and find Twilight staring at you.

"Do you know what I want for Nightmare Night Mr. Party-Killer? Let me show you downstairs, it'll blow your head off how amazing it is." She starts towards you slowly, almost mindlessly, grinning the whole time. You grab one of the telescopes and toss it her way, she takes a blow leaving a gash on her forehead. "What's wrong? You don't like Nightmare Night do you? I love being able to eat pony flesh without it seeming weird myself, but everypony has their preferences right?" She starts towards you again, and as you go for another telescope, you feel a cloth on your face, and fall asleep.

~~~~

When you awake, your drowsiness wears off almost instantly. You're atop a table next to Pinkie Pie, whose shivering uncontrollably. She sees you wake up and stares at you, mouth agape, fear in her eyes. All you can do is stare back in shock, and wish she had never gotten involved with this. Twilight appears out of the darkness.

"I'm sorry about getting you involved with this too Pinkie, trust me, you were a great friend, and that mane is altogether horrible for this project, but you had feelings for this new character, therefore, I can't let you go."

You reach over and comfort her as best as you can, stroking her mane and giving her a warm hug, whispering, "I never wanted this to happen, I'm so sorry." She looks at you, "Don't be, at least you know the truth and I can die next to you."

"What a happy sentiment!" Exclaims Twilight as Fluttershy enters from the shadows, "Now who wants to become a Jack-o-Lantern first?"

CH.12 Inspect Twilight's House

Twilight's door hangs open, and inside a cold rush of air flows out, enticing you to enter. Pinkie heads inside while you follow close behind. "Fine knave!" shouts Luna, "I shall be named savior of Ponyville alone!" Her wingbeats disappear as you traverse the inner sanctum of Twilight's library. The breeze that seemed enticing when you entered now has a dark feel to it, as if it was starting a preservation process for your body. Inside the confines of the thousands of shelved novels the eery feeling of being watched grew with every step. A loud hoot sends you scrambling as Owlicious dives in and strikes at you with piercing talons open wide. His eyes glow red with fury, his wings beat faster than normal, and a luminescent purple glow surrounds him.

Twilight cackles from the shelf above your head, "Yes, Owlicious, show them the Ponyville welcome!"

Pinkie grabs the nearest book on the shelf, which happens to be the Derpy Hooves Guide on Making the Bestest Muffins Your Pickled Tongue Has Ever Tasted, and throws it straight at Owlicious's full-moon eyes, taking his head clean off. Feathers pour all over the place as Twilight fills the house with her rage. she hops to the floor and tumbles on top of you, placing a cloth over your mouth and sending you into a deep dark sleep.

~~~~

You Awaken to the sound of dripping, and clear your foggy head, then establish a connection with reality. The room you're in contains many a pair of wings as well as the heads of most of the ponies from Ponyville. Beside you lies the heads of Twilight Sparkle, Luna, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Owlicious.

"Ally you have to do is take a head of pony, add it to the mix, now just add a little blood that's boiling, a bit of bird that's a hoot, making these cakes is such a sinch, add a teaspoon of saliva, add a little more, and you count to four, and you never get your fillah!"

CH.14 Accompany Luna in Saving Ponyville

Pinkie realizes the lack of time for decision making, and calls for you to go with Luna, entering Twilight's house herself. You take a mount to glance at each other, then part ways. Luna watches you with an interested expression, then opens her wings to take off, "I'll get water from any towers I can find, you go find the kitten and we'll meet back here in half an hour okay?" You nod in agreement, kittens are your favorite. Luna soars into the sky leaving a trail of blazing purple in her wake. Admiring her awesomeness, you take a step back, then go on your way to finding the kitten.

You've searched every cottage that wasn't waterlogged or burned to the ground, and yet no kitten has turned up, just some iguanas and some weird rodent thing of an unusual size. You call to Luna, beckoning her to land and let you help. She lands just briefly enough to grasp your arms and lifts you up into the sky. The sensation is uplifting, but the smoke fills your lungs quickly, and Luna is getting impatient at your lack of effort.

"Listen, I know you want to help, but even with two ponies here, the workload only doubles, not the fun. I'm sorry but I cannot save Ponyville this way, also, you have some bad hay-breath," Luna says, and drops you into the inferno below.

CH.15 Prologue

The changeling had everpony fooled, except you of course, you knew that Twilight would only ever stoop to such malice and evil in a very corrupt nightmare. It was caught and sent to Canterlot to be studied, while the package came to you, it was what the mission was for after all. You had left it in your bedroom while on your date with Pinkie, which turned out to be the best one yet, the fireworks display was unlike anything you'd ever seen before, truly magical in every way.

"Goodnight Pinkie, just remember what I told you," She nods but doesn't look sure about it. She kisses you goodnight, then heads down the road for home. you watch her for awhile hoping she would understand your decision. If she was to survive, somepony had to die, that's the way the white mare wanted it.

Inside, you set down your things and head to the bedroom, the window is open and letting a breeze creep in, and a shadow. The box has disappeared from the desk you set it upon, and the cold stare burns into your back.

"Can we make this quick? I've had to say things I never wanted to say to anypony ever before, and after this, I'm never doing it again. Do you even know how hard it is to tell your fillyfriend that you're going to survive, but it's the right choce?"

Rarity just nods her baggy head, the blood from her eyes now drips to the floor below, her mane sheds all over the place making a shiny yet smelly carpet. She looks up from the package and speaks, "Time to die."

CH.2 Fluttershy

Your imminent demise compels a shout that would awaken an Ursa Major from it's slumber, "FLUTTERSHY."

The yellow mare, perhaps stunned before but not anymore, shoots a glance at you. Her hesitation is slight, but it deters from the overall reaction you need. She reaches out, barely grabbing your hoof just in time, and holds on to you with her world-renowned petty grip. No doubt about it, the look in her eyes has the compassion shown during a memorial service, currently she is picking out what flowers from her garden would go well on your grave.

"You'll be fine," she whispers, but the fear sets in as she sees the rocks jutting out of the pit below, her frail wings beating at a speed matching that of a pterodactyl perhaps. She loosens up, and panics, not wanting you to die, but a lone white blur catches her gaze. A bunny darts out of the bushes to stare at the scene, the group is still stunned, but this furry critter is alive, and Fluttershy releases a small whimper, wanting to cuddle it sooooo much. No sooner does she realize that her hooves are now empty. "Oh well," she tells herself, "I was in the mood for a funeral anyway, Ponyville sure is getting crowded."

CH.3 Luna

Your imminent demise compels a shout that would awaken an Ursa Major from it's slumber, "LUNA!"

The Princess of the night shakes her daze and turns towards you, preparing to dash. Your hoof lets up, and you start to tumble, vigorously flailing your legs as you go. Vertigo sends butterflies soaring in your stomach, the wind whips your mane, and as soon as you think you're a goner, you feel the Princess's warmth around you.

"Never gonna let you fall," She whispers. You nod and wait to start ascending, but she doesn't move. Her gaze tells you something's wrong, and as her horn begins to brighten she stares abashedly away from you. "Sorry, only one may hold a ticket for this train," She says, giving you a sad glance. The brightness blinds you again, but in a lessened form, then you find yourself standing at the edge once more.

*Luna has created a connection to you with your minds while activating the magic*

Luna is alive, you sense, but a bigger problem stares straight at you, your attacker. Her clothes are pure white, and she has an upright composure, leaving a regal feeling to her presence. While you admire her, she snatches the package from the body of the correspondent and flees into the trees. Your party lifts themselves off the ground and shakes off the dizziness. What is your top priority?

(Ch.4 Save Luna)
(Ch.8 Follow the Attacker)
(Ch.10. Go Home)

CH.5 Rarity

Your imminent demise compels a shout that would awaken an Ursa Major from it's slumber, "RARITY!"

The white mare looks towards you, the glare fading from her proficiency with gems, and lunges out with her hooves, determined to catch you. You stumble back and fall, feeling Rarity grab you just in time. Her endlessly dazzling blue eyes provide you with comfort, it's not as if you're dangling from a five hundred foot drop or anything, just watching those beautiful eyes look into your soul. She spreads a smile across her exquisite features, but her eyes darken a bit as she scans you. Her mind is grinding thoughts like there's no tomorrow, and she leans close.

"You know, I can't stand dirt, and there seems to be a surplus of it upon you." You instantly regret the decision to drop off the cliff, how stupid of you to displease this beautifully groomed mare. Maybe she would forgive you if you offered something valuable in return. She thinks for awhile and gives you an answer.

"Well, if you really aim to please me, as everypony does, then you'd do well to wash up the filthiness you've decided to wear in my presence. Oh look! A conveniently placed river just below you, that'll do just fine. Mind the rocks if you can."

CH.9 Get Pinkie to Smell the Cloth

Pinkie smiles a wide smile and leans down to sniff the cloth. She gets in quite a large whiff, and instantly perks up, she looks back at the forest and tells you to follow, while ordering Rarity and Fluttershy to stay there. Luna perks up and trots alongside Pinkie, you give a glance at the others, who look quite okay with this order, and head into the forest behind Pinkie. The forest bends with your eyes, creating a spherical dimension that's quite discombobulating. You almost go cross-eyed multiple times, but somehow manage to follow the other two through the fog and branches.

Pinkie seems downtrodden as she leads you both towards an awkward-looking light, it's flickering many colors and seems to want to swallow your soul through the grass you trot on, the branches you bump against, and the air circulating throughout your body. Once you finally reach the light, you find the source is Ponyville burning to the ground in a chaotic rage, everypony is scrambling about for dear life, or trying to lessen the flames insatiable appetite. Your first thought, of course is to rush to Ponyville's aid, but you notice Pinkie has other plans.

"Look, Twilight's house, It's fine," she whispers through her tangled mane. You look towards the direction of her gaze and see she's right, Twilight's hovel has been completely untouched by the wrath unleashed around it. That's not the only thing though, her lights are off and her door is ajar, sending the message that something has happened. Luna scoffs, and replies, "Twilight can handle herself, there's an obvious reason as to why her house is that way, the flames present the real problem here." Which is the best choice?

(Ch.12 Inspect Twilight's house)
(Ch.14 Accompany Luna in saving Ponyville)

CH.13 Extinguish the Flames

"Pinkie, the flames are top priority right now, go help Twilgiht!" You call as you head towards the town. She stares at you, wanting to say something, but she ends up blushing and nodding, then makes her way towards the house. Without another thought, you rally anypony who will listen to the square and set teams to retake the city, your unquestionable leadership provides courage in the ponies there, and you lead them to victory by the day's end. Everything is quiet at Twilight's house, and from time to time you hope Pinkie's okay.

While you're helping a team clear a motel a piece of the rafters falls right on you, knocking you prone and sending a wave of smoke into your nostrils. The impact shatters a rib or two, and you end up blacking out, hearing the team captain call for help. The last thing you see is a curly mane that smells like cotton candy.

~~~~

"Wake up sleepy head," whispers Pinkie, "The savior of Ponyville can't be seen like this, so let's get you ready." You smile and get out of bed, pausing momentarily to yawn, then head to the kitchen. Pinkie has waffles being prepared on the stove as she gets ready for your day out together. You embrace her and set to help making breakfast. The sun now shines brightly over all of Ponyville, providing plenty of light for the constructors rebuilding the cottages.

"I think a picnic at the park would be nice today, but we'll definitely have to pause for a cider break, the Apples are creating a HUGE bath for today only." She says. You just enjoy her presence, and relax, loving the day and everything in it.

The End

Prologue:Ch.15