The Accruing Phialby PwnySwag290ChaptersChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 6 Chapter 1DISCLAIMER My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic is property of Hasbro, Inc. A figure, shrouded in darkness crept slowly amongst the discarded foliage littering the forest floor, it’s glowing red eyes evilly traced Its target; two ponies walking along the dirt path separating the forest. It keenly observed them from the dusky canopy for a few more minutes, never losing sight of them. How succulent they look... No... it could not be having these thoughts. It needs them alive- for now. The creature knew where they were headed, and the creature was feeling the urge to hunt. It slunk away into the cold undergrowth in search of prey. Soon, it would have its prize... Soon... Some time later, the wind was blowing softly through the trees, the few leaves that were left were rustling playfully on the ground. In the forest- all was quiet: except for two dark shapes moving quietly up the winding dirt path. As the shapes moved closer, it became apparent that they were ponies. One- a Pegasus painted with a vibrant turquoise tinted coat flecked with crimson patches. His wings flapped gracefully at his sides. Odd looking horns protruded from his head and through his emerald mane. Accompanying him was an earth pony; his coat a deep purple colour, a simple green cloak adorning his back. The cloak had pockets filled with various items of an alchemical nature, many kinds of herbs and containers; further supplies of this kind were also in the saddlebags at his side. The wind messed his light brown mane as he walked; the trees were swaying more and more as the wind picked up. “We had better hurry,” The earth pony thought to himself. “It’s getting dark and it feels like a storm’s coming” As if in responding to his thoughts, his Pegasus friend spoke up. “How much further is this place Umbra? I’m getting tired.” “Not much further, Tyedye” Responded the earth pony, as he pulled the map out of his saddle bags to check the distance to their destination. Holding down the map with one hoof, he could see that they were only a few miles away from it; the town of Ponyville was their destination. “Why don’t you fly up and check?” Umbra suggested. “Nah, I’m too tired.” Replied the Pegasus dismissively. “Wow, a Pegasus tired of flying! I never thought I’d see the day!” Umbra replied sarcastically. This earned him a flat look and a light punch on the shoulder from the Pegasus. “Ow. That one hurt a little” Umbra said, his voice once again oozing with sarcasm. “Now if you’re quite done, we should probably hurry before it gets dark.” Umbra finished. In response, Tyedye nodded, landing with a heavy thud. Deciding to pick up their pace, they continued down the road. The wind gradually increased and the sun slowly disappeared behind the horizon as they walked. As they reached the top of what seemed to be the hundredth hill they had encountered, a beautiful sight came into their view. Before them there stretched at least 50 acres of beautiful looking farm land. Hundreds of apple trees were arranged in lines across the fields; off in the distance Umbra could see two ponies, doing farm work. One was bucking the trees to harvest the apples, while the other took the buckets of harvested apples away in a large wooden cart. They continued on past the farm, and eventually the small town came into view. As they walked from the outskirts towards the town square, buildings and ponies became more frequent. Umbra gazed into the various shop windows as he walked past, noting where the shops where he could gather supplies if needed. Not quite sure where the library was, Umbra decided to ask for directions. “We should split up, Tye.” Umbra suggested. “It’ll go faster if we are both asking. Just don’t get lost.” In response, Tye nodded and flew off. Umbra wandered around for a while, looking for somepony to ask. Approaching a pink earth pony mare, he decided she would be a good place to start. “Excuse me, can you-” Halfway through the sentence she interrupted him, gasping loudly and bolting from the scene, leaving only a pony shaped smoke cloud. Not sure what had just happened, or how a pony could leave a cloud shaped like it’s self, he continued looking for somepony to ask. Eventually he approached two mares, once again hoping to get directions. “Hello. My name is Umbra Nightshade. Could one of you lovely mares please direct me to the library?” He smiled nervously and waited for a response. The two mares exchanged glances and then one of them spoke up. “Sure, if you head down Stirrup Street, you can’t miss it. It’s inside a huge tree.” She said, offering a bright smile. Umbra thanked the two mares, and walked off to look for Tyedye. He soon found him, surrounded by a group of Pegasi up in the air. One of them, a butter yellow mare with pink mane, was chatting shyly to him. She was talking so quietly that Umbra could only make out the odd snippet of speech. .” …And are those real horns? I’ve never seen a Pegasus with horns before…” She said, avoiding eye contact with him. Tyedye grinned and nodded, clearly enjoying being admired so. Before he lost him to his fantasies completely, Umbra decided to make himself known. “Tyedye, get down here now!” Tyedye looked around for the source of the noise, and landed once he spotted Umbra on the ground. “Any luck with the directions?” Umbra questioned, raising an eyebrow. “Nope. He said simply. “Well…Derpy tried to help me, but she just ended up confusing us both.” “Well, luckily I happen to have been more… serious in my efforts, and I know where we’re going. Follow me.” Umbra said, walking off in the direction of Stirrup Street. Before following his friend, Tyedye turned and waved a hoof at the two mares he had been talking to. “Bye girls!” He shouted, before being interrupted by a rather disgruntled looking Umbra and dragged away by the mane. After another few minutes walking, they reached their destination; the library was indeed carved out of a tree. The tree seemed to still be alive despite being hollowed out to house the books and the librarian. Umbra guessed at some kind of magical preservation… “possibly implemented by one of the princesses themselves, given the status of its current resident…” Umbra had become so lost in thought he had walked face first into the trunk of the great tree. Tyedye snickered and covered his face with a hoof. Now he was closer to the tree, Umbra could see more of the detail of it; it must have had at least three floors, guessing from the windows placed up the length of the trunk. There was also a balcony on the top floor. “An unusual addition to a tree.” Umbra thought. “Then again, so is living in one” He said, thinking aloud. “What?” Asked Tyedye, confused. “Err… nothing. Ignore that last statement.” Not wanting to waste anymore valuable time, Umbra gathered his courage and knocked. He was terrible at meeting strangers. He raised his hoof and knocked loudly. Chapter 2DISCLAIMER My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic Is property of Hasbro, Inc Inside the library, its current custodian, Twilight Sparkle, was busy rearranging the books and checking for (and repairing) any minor damages the books may have sustained. They were after all, mostly public books, and Twilight always found it alarming how careless ponies could be with books. Suddenly, a loud knock at the door interrupted her train of thought, causing her to briefly drop all the books in her magical grasp. Reacting quickly, she caught them all again. “That was close.” She thought to herself, breathing a sigh of relief. She opened the door with her magic and stuck her head through into the main room to call her assistant to answer the door. “Spike! Get the door please!” She shouted. No answer. She listened intently for what she knew she would hear. Yep, there it was, that deep rumbling that could only be Spike’s snoring. Levitating a book over to the sleeping dragon’s basket, she opened the book, and slammed it closed, causing a loud thud mere inches away from the dragon’s face. His eyes snapped open and he yelped, jumping clear out of his basket and onto the floor. “Huh? Wha? I’m awake, Twilight!” Exclaimed the dragon, running over to the unicorn, saluting. “Excellent.” She said, smiling to herself. “Spike, get the door please.” With this she levitated the book towards herself, and retreated back into the room to her work. Once the door had closed, the dragon rubbed his eyes and yawned widely, grumbling to himself as he walked towards the door. “This had better be something important” The dragon mumbled to himself, as he grabbed the handle and turned. On the other side of the door, Umbra was becoming increasingly nervous. His smile widened unnaturally, and sweat dripped from his forehead. The door creaked open slowly, revealing a baby dragon. Umbra wasn’t particularly surprised; even he had heard of Twilight Sparkle and her draconic assistant. She had after all, saved all of Equestria Twice. Umbra stared at the dragon, unsure how to start the conversation. “Uhh…” He croaked. “I… uh I mean to say… is Miss Twilight…” Umbra stuttered. Tye rolled his eyes, swooping down in front his friend and pushing him back with a foreleg. “What my friend here is trying to say is… Is Twilight home?” From behind Tyedye, there was an audible sigh of relief. “Sure. She’s in the back. She’ll be out in a minute.” With this the dragon proceeded to a small basket placed on the floor, curled up and went to sleep. Umbra looked around the great library. The whole place had a magical feeling; both literally and metaphorically. The shelves themselves were actually carved into the great tree; many hundreds of books lined the shelves, and there were a few pony high piles scattered around the floor. Umbra saw a copy of Super Naturals: Natural Remedies that are Simply Super. He had read that book many times, given its practical uses in alchemy. High above him, Tyedye was also inspecting the books on the higher shelves. He scanned them with level disinterest until he came across one particular shelf. Grinning to himself he pulled issue one of The Amazing Spider- Mare off the shelf and sat down to read. Umbra looked over at him and grinned at his friend’s antics. It was at that moment that the door to the back room of the library opened, and a lavender unicorn walked through, a contented smile on her face. Looking through the door behind her, Umbra could see many books, arranged neatly on the shelves. “Hello, my name is Twilight Sparkle, faithful student of the Princess Celestia. How may I help you?” Twilight asked, smiling happily. Tyedye was the first to speak up. “Hi, my name’s Tyedye Tundra, and this is my friend, Umbra Nightshade. We’re here for a book.” He said simply. “Well you certainly came to the right place! May I ask what kind of book?” “I’m not really sure.” Tyedye responded. “You’d be better off asking him.” He motioned to Umbra, who since the mare had entered the room, had said nothing and looked very nervous. As Twilight approached him he grew visibly more panicked. He thought back to earlier when he had asked the two mares for directions. This was much different in his mind. He would actually have to talk to her for an extended amount of time. He was so lost in his panicked thought that he hadn’t noticed the mare stood in front of him. His eyes widened as he noticed her. She merely smiled and held out a hoof. “Hi. My name is Twilight Sparkle.” Slowly, Umbra reached out and grabbed her hoof, shaking it slowly. “I… Don’t think we’ve been properly introduced.” He said, trembling slightly. Umbra looked over his shoulder at Tyedye, clearly looking for support. Tye grinned encouragingly then motioned with his hooves for Umbra to continue talking. “My name is um-Umbra Nightshade” He said, once again stuttering. “I am the faithful student of Princess Luna, and I have come here seeking information on the dark phial…” He trailed off, and was soon interrupted by Twilight. “Wow! So you’re the Princesses’ new student!” She, said putting a hoof to her chin and inspecting him. “I expected you to be… taller.” She seemed almost disappointed. Umbra was unsure how to react at being inspected by a mare, but luckily she interrupted his thoughts before he got too lost. “Anyway, I do believe I’ve read about that before. Let me see…” With this she wandered off, inspecting the shelves and occasionally pulling a book down with her magic. Pretty soon she had a small stack of books, and she added titles until it was just taller than her. She levitated the books over to him. “Here. There should be some information somewhere in these.” She said. Umbra nodded in response, mouth agape. “Mind if help you look?” Twilight asked, smiling happily. “I love to read and I need to refresh my memory on some of this.” Umbra nodded in response, and Twilight levitated him a book down, also doing the same for herself. The book she had given to him was called “A Guide to Equestrian Myth and Legend” Umbra opened the cover and started to read. The book held many strange legends; there were tales of hairless apes that had the knowledge necessary to use tools, and speak. Eventually he came to the magical objects section of the book. He was disappointed to find no mention of the phial. Twilight; however, seemed to have had more luck. “Ah ha!” She shouted, clapping her hooves together and jumping up excitedly, with book in tow. She placed the book down on the table in front of him, standing next to him and motioning to a line in the book. “Here”, she said, and began to read aloud. “The phial is an object said to contain great magical power, and is capable of amplifying the effect of any potion brewed or stored in it by a thousand times its original strength.” She took a breath and continued. “While its exact location is currently unknown, the last time it was seen… was somewhere in the Marehara desert. It is said to be guarded by beings of great power…” She trailed off. “The Marehara?” Asked Umbra, “But that’s months away! We might even need an expedition! Then again, organizing an expedition for something that might not exist and don’t know the location of might be tad ridiculous… Not to mention the costs it would incur if we found nothing…” Umbra stopped. Everything had gone strangely quiet. He looked around the room, realizing only now that everypony had been looking at him, and he had been thinking aloud again the entire time. He quickly looked to the floor in embarrassment, but recovered several seconds later. “Well,” said Twilight “looks like you two have a long journey ahead.” “We’ve had a long journey to get here.” Said Umbra “Well I’m sure you’re both very tired. It’s already dark, so you’re quite welcome to stay here.” She said. “The beds are in here” She motioned to a door at the back of the room, opening it with her magic. Behind the door, Umbra could see a few beds and a magically sustained fire to heat the place. Umbra and Tyedye slowly walked the staircase into the dimly lit room. Ther were five single beds arranged in a row. They picked beds at random, too tired to care. It had only become apparent how utterly exhausted Umbra was until he had reached his bed. Umbra removed his cloak and placed it carefully on the peg on the wall; the various items contained within the pockets clinking and jangling as he did so. He carefully placed the saddlebags at the foot of his bed. Seeing that his friend had already done so, Umbra scrambled under the covers of his bed. “Night, Tye” “Good night, Umbra” They exchanged. They were soon soothed to sleep by the gently flickering flame. The road to the Everfree forest was quiet. Even the animals that usually prowled the Everfree were quiet. Tonight was their turn to be afraid, for, that night an evil far greater than them prowled the forest. Luna’s great moon cast beautiful shafts of blue tinted light onto the forest floor, creating a patchwork of light and dark. In one of the darkest shadows, a pair of red reptilian eyes scanned the road in anticipation. “Soon, they will pass this way” It thought to itself. Then I will finally get what i… There it was again. That familiar urge. Chase. Hunt. Kill. Feed. This instinctive urge was the only thing that silenced the voice in its head. The voice that told it what to do… “Stupid creature!” It thought to itself. “How was it supposed to get anything done while hunting?” The creature ignored it’s own thoughts, it’s forked tongue flicking in the air in search of the next prey. There was a lot to choose from here… Chapter 3The Accruing Phial- Chapter 3 The next morning, Umbra was awoken by a brilliant shaft of mid- morning sunlight from the high window across the room. It woke him slowly, and he creaked his eyes open, shutting them again as he covered his face with his pillow. He contemplated trying to ignore nature’s wake up call and go back to sleep, but he stole the idea from himself; he would have a very busy day ahead of him planning and buying the necessary supplies for the long journey ahead. Donning his glasses, he dressed himself in his cloak and proceeded towards the stairs. He glanced over at his friend, who was still sleeping soundly in his bed. Somehow, the pillow had become scrunched up between his friend’s horns. Umbra decided to let him be for the moment; they had both been very tired and he probably wouldn’t appreciate being woken up. As he reached the top of the stairs, his nostrils flared; picking up the scent of frying eggs and toast. His stomach growled impatiently, and he realized he was suddenly very hungry. Thinking back he hadn’t eaten for days. He slowly opened the door, the smell of the delicious food intensifying as he did so. His mouth was practically watering at the thought of cooked food. He moved across the room, moving quietly so as not to disturb Twilight, who was happily humming to herself as she cooked breakfast in the kitchen. He took a seat at the table as quietly as possible. She turned around, noticing him sat at the table. “Oh good, You’re up. I was beginning to think your breakfast might get cold” She said, levitating a plate of fried eggs and two slices of toast over to him. Twilight took a seat at the table, levitating her own breakfast over. “I hope you like eggs and toast!” She said, clearly trying to strike up a conversation. “Yes. Thank you.” Umbra Responded quickly, and began eating. She levitated her own breakfast up to her face, taking a bite out of the sandwich. “So…” She continued. “Did you sleep well? “Yes.” “Beds comfortable?” “Yes” “How was the journey?” “I guess it was OK.” Umbra looked up at the unicorn. She was clearly becoming annoyed at his refusal to have any kind of proper conversation. “Why won’t you talk to me?” She asked, almost distraught. “Did I do something wrong?” “He’s shy.” Both Umbra and Twilight turned to look for the source of the voice, although Umbra already knew who it was. Sure enough, at the top of the staircase was Tyedye, a pillow nestling neatly between his horns. “He’s shy.” Continued the Pegasus, walking across the room and into the kitchen. “He finds it difficult to talk to mares” As he approached, Umbra gave him a long fiery glare that would have had a hydra worried. The Pegasus however, merely walked over to the nearest plate of breakfast and pulled it to the edge of the counter. He hit the plate, causing it’s contents to fly through the air and into his awaiting mouth. The plate continued spinning for a few seconds before landing neatly on the pillow located on Tye’s head. Twilight did not understand. “Why? What exactly makes me so hard to talk to compared to colts?” She said, trying to understand Umbra’s reasoning. Umbra sighed. That cat was already out of the bag. He might as well go down with the ship. “Well,” Umbra said, “Most colts aren’t as... cute as fillies like you.” Twilight’s cheeks flushed red. “That’s a very flattering thing for you to say.” “Just remember, we’re friends. Whenever, you try to talk to me, talk to me as friend. Not just another mare.” She said, reaching a hoof across the table and grabbing Umbra’s hoof. “I…” He began. “I suppose you are. You’ve already taken us in and given us food, neither of which I can thank you enough for-“ She interrupted him. “Then don’t thank me. Just think of me as a friend.” From that point on, Umbra had a new friend. After breakfast, Umbra and Tydye had set out into Ponyville with Twilight as their guide. They had toured various shops with Twilight’s help, gathering the necessary supplies for their journey. Their supplies included a week’s worth of food, larger saddlebags and various herbs for Umbra’s alchemy. Their next stop was Carousel Boutique. Twilight approached the door of the grand boutique, it’s various tiers towering above her. Umbra and Tyedye fell in line behind her, as she raised her hoof and knocked on the door. She looked at Umbra and Tye. “My friend Rarity owns this place. I’m sure you’ll like her.” Twilight said. “One minute dear!” Sang a harmonious voice from behind the door. Around a minute later, the door knob glowed a soft baby blue, and the door creaked open, revealing a stunningly beautiful alabaster unicorn with a curled amethyst coloured mane. “Oh! Hello, Twilight Darling! I wasn’t expecting a visit from you today. She looked past the purple unicorn at Umbra and Tyedye. “Who are your um… friends? “These are my new friends Umbra Nightshade and Tyedye Tundra” She replied, stepping to the side so the duo could walk forward and properly introduce themselves. Umbra was first to step up. “Hello Miss Rarity. I am Umbra Nightshade. He bowed, lowering his head. He backed away, allowing Tye to step forward and introduce himself. Tyedye stepped forward, grinning his trademark grin and offering his hoof. Rarity stared at it in bewilderment, before slowly raising her hoof to meet his, shaking it slowly. “Now shall we get down to business?” Twilight asked. “Can we please come in, Miss Rarity?” Umbra asked, taking a step toward the door. “Why yes! Of course darling!” She said, wandering back inside. “Do please close the door and wipe your hooves!” All three entered the boutique, taking the unicorn’s advice and wiping their hooves. Twilight closed the door with her magic. “Now darling, what is it you wanted?” Rarity asked, addressing Umbra directly. “Umm… two more cloaks, much like the one I have now. Please.” Said Umbra simply. “May I take a look?” Rarity asked. Before he could respond his cloak glowed a soft blue colour and unbuttoned itself from his neck, floating towards the alabaster unicorn. She eyed it scrutinously, with eyes narrowed and a hoof held up to her chin. “Oh, darling this simply won’t do!” Cried the unicorn dramatically. “It needs a complete redesign!” “But... I like it the way it is!” He protested “Nonsense! The unicorn said. “I insist.” “And how much is this going to cost?” Asked Umbra sceptically. “Oh, don’t worry about the price darling! Any friend of Twilight’s is a friend of mine and I can offer you a generous discount.” With this she swept him up in a tide of chaos, taking measurements, doing sketches attaching templates to back and shoulders. The whole affair had Umbra feeling very, very, uncomfortable. He felt like he was being forced into some sick experiment. Several hours later, the process was finished. “You sure do work fast, Rarity.” Umbra commented. “I’m not even sure what just happened.” “Why thank you, darling. I do try my best and I take pride in my work.” She said, levitating a box over to him. “Here are your new cloaks, darling. I know you’ll simply LOVE them! Do try one on.” She removed one of the cloaks from the box, and Umbra lowered his head to allow her to attach the drawstring. The cloak flowed over his back like water, rippling as it did so. The instant it touched his back, Umbra felt… warmer, somehow. And the fabric! It was soooo soft. He turned his head, inspecting it. The cloak had a multitude of pockets arranged neatly in rows at his sides. All were easily in his reach. “I saw all the supplies you were carrying around, dear, and I thought you could use some extra pockets.” She said, smiling happily. “What do you think, dear? Do you like it?” She said expectantly. “Hmmm…” The earth pony said. “Stylish yet practical, Soft and warm, Plenty of room for my alchemical supplies…” “Yes. I love it” He said. “I cannot thank you enough for your hard work, Rarity.” “You are quite welcome, dear. Now do run along. I hear that we both have lots of work to do.” The unicorn said, smiling pleasantly. Umbra nodded. She was right after all. It was around noon when they left the Boutique. The trio of ponies spent the next several hours gathering the rest of the supplies needed. Their final destination was a confectionary store known as Sugarcube Corner. As it came into view. Umbra had an odd feeling as they approached; the town seemed strangely abandoned, and the lights were off inside the store. Umbra opened the door to the store. So it is open… He thought. He peered through the door, attempting to let his eyes adjust to the inky darkness. Just as his eyes began to adjust, the lights abruptly flicked back on. When his sight returned, most of the residents of the town had appeared “SURPRISE!” They all shouted in unison. A familiar looking pink pony appeared, seemingly from nowhere right in front of him “Surprise!” She yelled. “Darn. I always do it too late.” She said, disappointed Chapter 4The Accruing Phial - Chapter 4 Umbra Nightshade was a not a happy pony. For one thing, he was upside down. For another, he had no idea where he was, other than the fact that he was outside. He had the worst headache he ever had the misfortune of experiencing: It felt like two Ursa Majors were wrestling inside his skull. He dared to open his eyes; and instantly regretted it. His headache felt like it had gotten ten times worse, Maybe fifteen. He stood up carefully, groaning as he did. He remembered very little from the party last night. He had been having a good time, making friends… Then he tried the punch. After that, he remembered nothing. Looking around, the first thing he noticed was his location. Beneath his feet, the strong branch of a tree supported his weight. He looked around, and saw nothing but dense foliage and other branches. He turned around, suddenly wondering why he was so cold. His eyes widened as he realised. He scanned the area quickly, looking for his cloak. He eventually spotted it, caught on a tree branch and swaying gently in the breeze. He carefully reached out a hoof in an attempt to reach the cloak. It was no use. He could not reach. He tried again, this time attempting to grab it with his mouth. Leaning forwards, he stretched his neck as far as it would go. He felt his body start to fall as he leaned forward, and he quickly reared back to prevent himself from plummeting into the foliage. He looked around, scanning the area for any other way down. He looked down; and regretted it immediately. The ground looked very far away. He had however, noticed a branch that looked solid enough to support his weight just beneath his cloak. The only problem was that he would have to jump. He thought about it before executing his idea. The consequences of failure were steep. He would fall from the tree, definitely sustaining broken legs when he landed. Given that he had no idea where he was, it could be several hours before he was rescued, if he ever was. On the other hand, success would mean getting back his cloak and being that much closer to the ground. He had to do something, and he was tired of being stuck in this tree. He crouched low on the barked surface, his rump raised in the air. He swallowed his fear as he prepared to jump. He jumped, pushing himself towards the cloak. He flew the air, and grabbed the cloak with his mouth. He swayed, still carried by the inertia of his jump. He hung there for a few seconds, unsure how to free himself. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t have time to find out. The branch supporting his cloak bent downwards, unable to support the extra weight. Umbra’s eyes widened as the limb snapped with an almighty crack, sending him plummeting toward the branch below. He hit the wood hard, cracking his head on the branch as he landed. His head swam and his vision blurred. He closed his eyes, and the world disappeared in a sheet of inky darkness. Tyedye’s eyes slowly creaked open. He scanned his surroundings. The room was dimly lit, with a few beds in it. He was laid in the bed, the covers messily bunched up on his body. Shafts of bright light shone from the lone window in the room. Tyedye rolled out of bed, trying to figure out where he was. He couldn’t remember anything after the party. Tyedye looked around once again, realizing where he was. This was the library’s spare room. So he had made it back there at least. He couldn’t help but think something was missing. The answer hit him like a ton of bricks. Umbra. He wasn’t here. He had to find him. Tyedye took to the air, flying up the stairs and busting through the front door. Twilight turned around just in time to see a blue and turquoise streak fly through her front door. Umbra stirred, feeling something poking him hard in the ribs. He ignored it and turned over, screwing his eyes shut. The something spoke. “This is my napping tree! Hey... are you ok? Your head looks kind of… hurt.” The voice said, concerned. Umbra looked at the source of the voice. It was a cyan Pegasus mare with a multi hued mane. She spoke once again. “Do you need some help getting down? Because the amazing Rainbow Dash can help!” “Urgh… yes please.” Umbra said, clearly pained by his injury. Rainbow grabbed him, being careful so as to not aggravate his injury. Her wings strained to keep them airborne. She managed though, dropping him to the ground roughly. “Oops. Sorry.” She said, smiling sheepishly She hovered just above him, waiting for him to stand and walk away. Umbra attempted to stand, and collapsed under his own weight. “I… I’m fine.” Said Umbra. Rainbow Dash was not convinced. “Just… Help me back to the library” He said through teeth gritted in pain. “Don’t worry, I gotcha.” Said the Pegasus, landing next to him. He placed a foreleg over her shoulders, using her to support himself. She shifted under his weight, trying to make herself more comfortable. The Pegasus had no trouble supporting him, despite him being a head taller than her. “You sure are strong for a Pegasus.” Umbra commented. “That’s just my amazing muscles. No big deal.” Rainbow said with fake modesty. They quickly arrived at the library. Rainbow Dash pushed the door open, entering with Umbra. Twilight was stood in the library, inspecting a book quietly. A look of relief spread across her face when she noticed her two friends. “There you are! I see Rainbow found you. I was beginning to worry. Tyedye’s already out looking for you. Someone had better tell him you’re safe.” Umbra removed his leg from Rainbow’s shoulders, supporting himself shakily and proceeding into the library. Wordlessly, he proceeded to the kitchen table. He set about brewing a potion, first of all setting a pan of water to boil over the fire. He then cut several herbs and crushed them using a pestle and mortar. He dropped this into the broth, and it began to glow a deep azure. Umbra grabbed a small pouch of golden dust and poured a small pinch into the broth. Sparkles of light exploded from the liquid surface as the dust touched it; when the lights had cleared, the mixture had turned a deep golden colour. Umbra carefully pulled out a small glass phial and poured a small amount of the potion into it. He grabbed the phial in his mouth and tilted his head back, shuddering slightly as he finished it. “I forgot how bad it tasted…” He said, pulling a disgusted face. “Is that all?” Twilight asked, concern painted on her face. “Will you be ok now?” “I’ll be fine, Twilight. I just need some rest.” He said, already proceeding to the spare bedroom downstairs. He turned to Twilight. “Promise me something?” Umbra asked, addressing Twilight. She nodded, smiling. “Find Tye, and tell him I’m safe.” “I will. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Twilight took care not to ‘stick the cupcake in her eye’ too hard. “Thank you. I don’t want him to worry.” Umbra walked down the stairs. He got into bed, falling asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow. Twilight turned to Rainbow Dash. “Rainbow, help me find Tyedye . I have a promise to keep.” Twilight and Rainbow Left the library at the same time, deciding to split up to cover more ground. Twilight headed towards the town centre, hoping to find him asking around the shops. Rainbow decided to scout the entire town to look for the Pegasus. As fate would have it, Dash was the first to find him. She swooped down, hovering next to him, just in time for him to stick his head in a tree. “Umbra?” He called out. “Are you in here?” Rainbow tapped him on the shoulder. “Huh? Is somepony there?” He turned around. “Oh… Hi.” He said, disappointed “I was hoping you might be my friend Umbra. Have you seen him?” “Yeah, I’ve seen him. I, the amazing Rainbow Dash rescued him and now he’s in the library, resting up.” “Well that’s a relief.” Tyedye said, visibly relaxing. Tyedye looked at the other Pegasus, an idea forming in his mind. “So, are you as fast as they all say?” Tyedye asked Rainbow looked slightly offended. “Was there any doubt?” To Rainbow, this was clearly a statement of fact. “Care to prove it?” Tyedye asked, a cocky smile spread across his face. Rainbow shoved her muzzle into his “Was that a challenge? Because it is totally on!” Rainbow shouted. With this the two Pegasi took off into the air chasing after each other, laughing. Chapter 5The Accruing Phial- Chapter 5 Light spilled through the high window in the library’s spare room. Umbra shifted in his bed, pulling the covers over himself in protest. He didn’t want to get up. Today would be the day they left Ponyville. These last two days had been among the strangest of his life. He had gotten so drunk at a party he couldn’t remember anything. He had woken up in a tree, and knocked himself unconscious. Now he was about to set off on the journey of a lifetime. It was unpredictable and dangerous. To say he was not looking forward to it was an understatement. He woke Tyedye, nudging him gently with a hoof. “Hey, get up. We’re leaving today, remember?” Umbra continued prodding the Pegasus until he turned over in bed, shooting the earth pony an angry look. “I’m awake, you can stop poking me now.” The Pegasus rolled out of bed and stretched, his wings unfurling to their full length. Together they ascended the stairs, walking into the main room of the library into the kitchen. Over breakfast, Twilight, Umbra and Tyedye discussed the route the duo would take. “The closest town to the Marehara is Appleoosa, so that’ll be our last stop.” Umbra said, indicating Appleoosa on the map. “Actually, you should head towards the Everfree.” Twilight said. “What? Why?” Umbra said, clearly confused. “I was doing research while you were recovering, Umbra. I found a book that mentioned a map in Celestia’s old castle in the Everfree that is said to show the way toward whatever the holder desires. If you get the map and think of the phial, it should show you the way.” She explained. Umbra thought about it. “Hmm… That could save us a lot of time.” He turned to Tyedye. “Unfortunately, we need that map.” Tyedye nodded, a determined look on his face. An hour later, both Umbra and Tyedye were fully packed and ready. Alchemical supplies, food and sleeping bags had all been packed. Umbra and Tyedye tentatively walked out into the early morning sun, followed by Twilight and a sleepy Spike. Twilight followed them to the edge of town, and when Umbra turned around, he saw that they had gathered quite a crowd of ponies by simply walking from the library. The residents of Ponyville obviously wanted to wish them good luck. This certainly surprised Umbra; He didn’t even know most of these ponies. He must have done something impressive at that party. He stopped, turning to face Twilight. “Thank you for all you’ve given us, Twilight. Umbra said.” Twilight offered a hoof, and Umbra reached a hoof up to shake it. Before their hooves touched, she wrapped her forelegs around his neck in a warm embrace. At first, Umbra was surprised, and then he returned the hug with equal affection. She looked at Tyedye. “Don’t think you’re getting away without a hug, Tyedye!” She jumped towards him; giving him the same affection she had shown Umbra. He grinned and hugged back. “Thank you, Twilight” He said, grinning his grin as the mare hugged him. As Umbra turned around to set off into the forest, he heard the crowd cheer, and turned, waving a leg in farewell. He looked back, noticing that Tyedye was still soaking up the admiration of the crowd, a huge smile plastered across his face. Rolling his eyes, he grabbed his friend and walked off, Tyedye still waving a hoof and grinning as they went. Umbra turned his head, still walking as he addressed the crowd. “Goodbye, everypony! We promise we’ll come back safe!” Umbra said. He wasn’t so sure about that himself. As he walked away into the forest From beyond the treeline, a pair of red reptilian eyes watched intently. As they entered the forest, it seemed to close in around them, like it was trying to prevent their escape. Ancient gnarled trees curved their branches towards the road as if to grab them. Umbra looked around nervously. It was going to be a long journey through this place. Several hours passed without incident, and as they progressed Umbra was becoming increasingly anxious. He decided to take a break, Tyedye joining him. Umbra grabbed his canteen and took a swig. His ears pricked up. He could have sworn he had heard something… Jumping to attention, he turned around just in time to see a Pegasus fly from beyond the treeline towards him. Umbra launched himself out of the way, and the Pegasus hit the ground face first, throwing up a large cloud of dry dirt. When the cloud cleared, Umbra caught his first real glimpse of the Pegasus; He was wearing what appeared to be some kind of modified Wonderbolts uniform. Its colours were a dark crimson with purple flare, instead of the usual navy blue. He looked around, getting up and shaking the dust off his muzzle. He looked around, seeing Umbra and Tyedye for the first time. “Either of you see a grey, wall eyed Pegasus fly past?” He addressed the pair of ponies. “Nope, sorry.” Umbra said, smiling apologetically. The Pegasus looked at the ground in disappointment. “Oh well. I really hope Surprise finds her…” said the Pegasus sadly. His head snapped back up, and he looked at the pair of ponies, an eyebrow raised. “Hey, why are you this far out in the Everfree anyway? Nopony is ever out this far unless they’re lost.” Tyedye and Umbra quickly glanced at each other, Umbra making frantic signals to not say anything. “We’re looking for an ancient artifact of power.” Tyedye stated. Behind him, Umbra face-hoofed. “Ooh, ooh I can help! Can I come with you?” The Pegasus asked, his face lit up in delight. Umbra rolled his eyes. “You might as well, now you know about our um… Expedition.” Umbra said, irritation tinting his voice. “Great!” The Pegasus said, ascending as he spoke. “I’ll go grab some supplies and my tent!” He flew away in the direction of what must have been Ponyville. “How long do you think he’s gonna take, Tye?” Umbra asked. He did not want to stay still for too long. Tyedye immediately soared into the sky, trying to judge the distance of Ponyville form their current location. He landed with a soft ‘pomf’ noise as his wings folded back up. “Maybe twenty minutes there, and a little longer on the way back, depending how much he packs. Plus, he’ll probably want to say goodbye to somepony, so maybe just over an hour.” “Great.” Umbra said, pouting. “Why did you tell him why we were out here anyway? It was supposed to be secret!” Umbra said accusingly. “Well, i figured since you already told most of Ponyville it didn’t matter anymore.” He responded calmly in spite of his friend’s accusations. “Hmph. Well, fine. I’m going to look for some non-killer plants.” Umbra huffed, walking away. He explored the immediate area around the river with intent, being careful to keep Tyedye in clear line of sight at all times. Tyedye, for his part, seemed to be amusing himself by upturning small rocks with his hooves. Umbra eventually returned, his saddlebags a little more full with the various herbs he had collected. He returned to Tyedye, who was still flipping rocks. Umbra approached him curiously. “Why are you doing that?” Umbra asked, an eyebrow raised. “There are bugs.” He said. “I like the way they look. They’re like tiny monsters. Some of them are really cool.” “Yes, bugs are indeed fascinating. They are truly resilient for such small creatures.” Umbra said. This got him thinking on all the types of insect, and their survival techniques. Tyedye smiled to himself; his friend had clearly entered a state of deep thought, as he was often prone to. Tyedye laid on the rough grass, closing his eyes and nodding off. A pair of reptilian eyes glimmered in desire from the deep undergrowth. It’s prey was vulnerable and Unwitting... “NO!” The voice in it’s head shouted. “WE NEED THEM ALIVE!” It was too late. The creature was running on instinct, something not even the voice could overcome. Umbra snapped out of his reverie, something catching his attention out of the corner of his eye. He stood up slowly, looking around the clearing for any signs of life. He heard a twig snap behind him, and he tensed his muscles, ready for anything. Suddenly a shape burst from the foliage, heading straight for him. Chapter 6 Chapter 6 The Accruing Phial Chapter 6 Umbra had expected the attack, and rolled out of the way clumsily. He landed on his side, weighed down by the saddlebags attached to his sides. Quickly he scrambled to his feet, looking around for any sign of his assailant. There was no sign of it, but Umbra guessed it wouldn’t give up that easily. He crouched once again, readying himself for another attack. His ears whipped anxiously. The suspense was killing him. Suddenly, a thought hit him. Tyedye was still asleep. He was a sitting duck. “Tyedye, wake up!” Umbra said, his voice low but urgent. The Pegasus looked around sleepily. “Something’s attacking us!” Umbra said, his voice once again filled with urgency. The Pegasus stood, taking to the air and gently flapping his way over to Umbra, stopping a few feet above him. “What are you talking about? I don’t see anythi-“ His words were cut short as a dark shape burst from the undergrowth and grabbed him out of the air. The creature and Tyedye hit the ground, struggling with each other as they did. Umbra caught his first real glimpse of the creature; It appeared to be some sort of giant hooded cobra, its golden scales shimmering beautifully as it tried to rend his friend limb from limb. Tyedye was struggling valiantly against the grip of the creature’s strong, muscular arms, its sharpened claws digging into him in various places. Tyedye bucked hard, hitting the creature on its scaled snout. It screeched in pain as blood streamed from its face. Umbra stood in shock as the creature lifted Tyedye up by his neck, clearly intent on crushing the life out of him, Umbra snapped out of his shock, quickly grabbing a phial full of a bubbling green liquid from his saddlebags. He flung the phial, and it shattered on the vile creature’s head, its contents spilling over it. The creature let out another horrid screech of pain as the acid began to burn its face. It dropped the panting Pegasus, frantically clawing at its face. Suddenly, something flew out of the sky towards the creature, hitting it with such force as to send it flying bodily towards the treeline. The creature hit a tree with a great crack, falling limply to the bottom before slithering away dejectedly to lick its wounds. “You better run! Tell all your friends what happened here!” The Pegasus shouted triumphantly. The Pegasus alighted, approaching Umbra. Now that his brain had cleared, Umbra recognised him as the Pegasus who had offered to help them before. “Looks like your friend needs help” The Pegasus said, indicating Tyedye. Umbra trotted over, a look of extreme worry upon his face. He quickly checked the Pegasus over, muttering the problems to himself as he found them. “Cracked ribs, sprained wing, minor blood loss, multiple lacerations… This is bad.” Umbra admitted. He ran over to his saddlebags, preparing to make a potion He looked over to the Pegasus, issuing orders to him. “Make sure he doesn’t move too much, I’m going to mix a healing potion for him.” The earth pony’s voice had an air of seriousness and authority which prevented any kind of defiance. The Pegasus nodded, and slowly walked over to the injured pony. Umbra quickly set to work. Several minutes later, the potion was ready and brewed. Umbra walked over to his injured friend. Pulling his muzzle open with a hoof, he poured the potion in bit by bit, rubbing his neck to make him swallow. As the last of the potion was swallowed, the Pegasus seemed to visibly improve. His shallow breathing returned to normal, and his body seemed to relax as the pain lessened. Umbra sat down heavily, his face the very picture of relief. The Pegasus joined him, sitting down next to him. Grabbing the flint and steel from his saddlebags, Umbra gathered several dry twigs and set them alight. He sat down again, warming himself by the fire. He patted the ground next to him, inviting the Pegasus closer to the fire. “He’s going to be out for a while.” Umbra said, motioning to Tyedye. “We might as well take a rest.” The Pegasus stretched his wings to warm them in the heat of the fire. “I just realised something.” Umbra said thoughtfully. The Pegasus looked at him curiously. “Yeah? And what’s that?” he asked. “You saved my life and Tyedye’s and I don’t even know your name.” He replied simply. The Pegasus laughed. ”No, I don’t suppose you do!” He offered a hoof. Umbra reached out, and shook it. “Name’s Lightningbolt Stormcloud. Most ponies call me Lightning, or Bolt.” “My name is Umbra Nightshade, faithful student of Princess Luna.” The Pegasus seemed genuinely impressed. “You know the Lunar Princess? Is she really as scary as they say?” “Not really. She’s back to her old self now. She’s still getting used to modern Equestria, though. She can be a little cranky at times, but who isn’t?” The Pegasus smiled, and it eventually escalated into full blown laughter. The pair spent the next hour getting to know each other, talking, telling stories, laughing and generally having fun. Tyedye slept peacefully as they talked. “We should get going. It’ll be dark soon and we shouldn’t stay here.” Umbra said as he packed away his things and buried the ashes of the fire, leaving no trace that they had been there. “Shouldn’t we wake Tyedye?” Lightningbolt asked. “Well, that’s not exactly possible.” Umbra began. “You see, he’s more... um...” He struggled for the words. “He’s more sort of in a coma than asleep. He’ll be fine, he just needs a few days rest, a week tops.” Umbra explained calmly. Lightning was not reassured. “Are you sure he’ll be ok? What about eating? And going to the bathroom?” “Hmmmm” Umbra mused. “Well, he should be able to eat if we put food near his mouth. As for going... He’ll do that himself. We just have to keep him clean.” Umbra said, in a matter of fact “Lightningbolt looked at him, disgusted. “Anyway, we have to figure out someway of carrying him. Oh, idea!” Umbra exclaimed as he grabbed a blanket and approached Lightningbolt. Lightningbolt looked at Umbra quizzically as he tied a knot in the blanket, attaching it loosely to his neck. Umbra did the same to himself, forming a sort of hammock between. The pair of ponies crouched low, and Umbra stretched his neck to roll Tyedye into the soft grasp of the hammock. The pair of ponies left their former camp, their charge in tow. Lightning looked over at Umbra. Between his saddlebags, alchemy supplies and the comatose Pegasus between them, the earth pony should have been struggling to walk, or at the very least showing a sign of effort. He wasn’t. Lightningbolt, on the other hoof, was already breaking into a sweat. Lightningbolt looked at Umbra “Can’t you... at least show... some effort? You’re starting to... hurt my self esteem.” Lightningbolt said jokingly, between lungfuls of air. “What can i say? We earth ponies are certainly robust.” Umbra replied. Having come to small clearing, the group stopped. Umbra looked around. “This will do.” He said, inspecting the clearing. He untied his half of the hammock, and Lightningbolt did the same, Lowering Tyedye carefully to the ground. The two ponies began setting up camp, as the sun disappeared behind the treeline, leaving the forest in darkness.
Chapter 1DISCLAIMER My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic is property of Hasbro, Inc. A figure, shrouded in darkness crept slowly amongst the discarded foliage littering the forest floor, it’s glowing red eyes evilly traced Its target; two ponies walking along the dirt path separating the forest. It keenly observed them from the dusky canopy for a few more minutes, never losing sight of them. How succulent they look... No... it could not be having these thoughts. It needs them alive- for now. The creature knew where they were headed, and the creature was feeling the urge to hunt. It slunk away into the cold undergrowth in search of prey. Soon, it would have its prize... Soon... Some time later, the wind was blowing softly through the trees, the few leaves that were left were rustling playfully on the ground. In the forest- all was quiet: except for two dark shapes moving quietly up the winding dirt path. As the shapes moved closer, it became apparent that they were ponies. One- a Pegasus painted with a vibrant turquoise tinted coat flecked with crimson patches. His wings flapped gracefully at his sides. Odd looking horns protruded from his head and through his emerald mane. Accompanying him was an earth pony; his coat a deep purple colour, a simple green cloak adorning his back. The cloak had pockets filled with various items of an alchemical nature, many kinds of herbs and containers; further supplies of this kind were also in the saddlebags at his side. The wind messed his light brown mane as he walked; the trees were swaying more and more as the wind picked up. “We had better hurry,” The earth pony thought to himself. “It’s getting dark and it feels like a storm’s coming” As if in responding to his thoughts, his Pegasus friend spoke up. “How much further is this place Umbra? I’m getting tired.” “Not much further, Tyedye” Responded the earth pony, as he pulled the map out of his saddle bags to check the distance to their destination. Holding down the map with one hoof, he could see that they were only a few miles away from it; the town of Ponyville was their destination. “Why don’t you fly up and check?” Umbra suggested. “Nah, I’m too tired.” Replied the Pegasus dismissively. “Wow, a Pegasus tired of flying! I never thought I’d see the day!” Umbra replied sarcastically. This earned him a flat look and a light punch on the shoulder from the Pegasus. “Ow. That one hurt a little” Umbra said, his voice once again oozing with sarcasm. “Now if you’re quite done, we should probably hurry before it gets dark.” Umbra finished. In response, Tyedye nodded, landing with a heavy thud. Deciding to pick up their pace, they continued down the road. The wind gradually increased and the sun slowly disappeared behind the horizon as they walked. As they reached the top of what seemed to be the hundredth hill they had encountered, a beautiful sight came into their view. Before them there stretched at least 50 acres of beautiful looking farm land. Hundreds of apple trees were arranged in lines across the fields; off in the distance Umbra could see two ponies, doing farm work. One was bucking the trees to harvest the apples, while the other took the buckets of harvested apples away in a large wooden cart. They continued on past the farm, and eventually the small town came into view. As they walked from the outskirts towards the town square, buildings and ponies became more frequent. Umbra gazed into the various shop windows as he walked past, noting where the shops where he could gather supplies if needed. Not quite sure where the library was, Umbra decided to ask for directions. “We should split up, Tye.” Umbra suggested. “It’ll go faster if we are both asking. Just don’t get lost.” In response, Tye nodded and flew off. Umbra wandered around for a while, looking for somepony to ask. Approaching a pink earth pony mare, he decided she would be a good place to start. “Excuse me, can you-” Halfway through the sentence she interrupted him, gasping loudly and bolting from the scene, leaving only a pony shaped smoke cloud. Not sure what had just happened, or how a pony could leave a cloud shaped like it’s self, he continued looking for somepony to ask. Eventually he approached two mares, once again hoping to get directions. “Hello. My name is Umbra Nightshade. Could one of you lovely mares please direct me to the library?” He smiled nervously and waited for a response. The two mares exchanged glances and then one of them spoke up. “Sure, if you head down Stirrup Street, you can’t miss it. It’s inside a huge tree.” She said, offering a bright smile. Umbra thanked the two mares, and walked off to look for Tyedye. He soon found him, surrounded by a group of Pegasi up in the air. One of them, a butter yellow mare with pink mane, was chatting shyly to him. She was talking so quietly that Umbra could only make out the odd snippet of speech. .” …And are those real horns? I’ve never seen a Pegasus with horns before…” She said, avoiding eye contact with him. Tyedye grinned and nodded, clearly enjoying being admired so. Before he lost him to his fantasies completely, Umbra decided to make himself known. “Tyedye, get down here now!” Tyedye looked around for the source of the noise, and landed once he spotted Umbra on the ground. “Any luck with the directions?” Umbra questioned, raising an eyebrow. “Nope. He said simply. “Well…Derpy tried to help me, but she just ended up confusing us both.” “Well, luckily I happen to have been more… serious in my efforts, and I know where we’re going. Follow me.” Umbra said, walking off in the direction of Stirrup Street. Before following his friend, Tyedye turned and waved a hoof at the two mares he had been talking to. “Bye girls!” He shouted, before being interrupted by a rather disgruntled looking Umbra and dragged away by the mane. After another few minutes walking, they reached their destination; the library was indeed carved out of a tree. The tree seemed to still be alive despite being hollowed out to house the books and the librarian. Umbra guessed at some kind of magical preservation… “possibly implemented by one of the princesses themselves, given the status of its current resident…” Umbra had become so lost in thought he had walked face first into the trunk of the great tree. Tyedye snickered and covered his face with a hoof. Now he was closer to the tree, Umbra could see more of the detail of it; it must have had at least three floors, guessing from the windows placed up the length of the trunk. There was also a balcony on the top floor. “An unusual addition to a tree.” Umbra thought. “Then again, so is living in one” He said, thinking aloud. “What?” Asked Tyedye, confused. “Err… nothing. Ignore that last statement.” Not wanting to waste anymore valuable time, Umbra gathered his courage and knocked. He was terrible at meeting strangers. He raised his hoof and knocked loudly.
Chapter 2DISCLAIMER My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic Is property of Hasbro, Inc Inside the library, its current custodian, Twilight Sparkle, was busy rearranging the books and checking for (and repairing) any minor damages the books may have sustained. They were after all, mostly public books, and Twilight always found it alarming how careless ponies could be with books. Suddenly, a loud knock at the door interrupted her train of thought, causing her to briefly drop all the books in her magical grasp. Reacting quickly, she caught them all again. “That was close.” She thought to herself, breathing a sigh of relief. She opened the door with her magic and stuck her head through into the main room to call her assistant to answer the door. “Spike! Get the door please!” She shouted. No answer. She listened intently for what she knew she would hear. Yep, there it was, that deep rumbling that could only be Spike’s snoring. Levitating a book over to the sleeping dragon’s basket, she opened the book, and slammed it closed, causing a loud thud mere inches away from the dragon’s face. His eyes snapped open and he yelped, jumping clear out of his basket and onto the floor. “Huh? Wha? I’m awake, Twilight!” Exclaimed the dragon, running over to the unicorn, saluting. “Excellent.” She said, smiling to herself. “Spike, get the door please.” With this she levitated the book towards herself, and retreated back into the room to her work. Once the door had closed, the dragon rubbed his eyes and yawned widely, grumbling to himself as he walked towards the door. “This had better be something important” The dragon mumbled to himself, as he grabbed the handle and turned. On the other side of the door, Umbra was becoming increasingly nervous. His smile widened unnaturally, and sweat dripped from his forehead. The door creaked open slowly, revealing a baby dragon. Umbra wasn’t particularly surprised; even he had heard of Twilight Sparkle and her draconic assistant. She had after all, saved all of Equestria Twice. Umbra stared at the dragon, unsure how to start the conversation. “Uhh…” He croaked. “I… uh I mean to say… is Miss Twilight…” Umbra stuttered. Tye rolled his eyes, swooping down in front his friend and pushing him back with a foreleg. “What my friend here is trying to say is… Is Twilight home?” From behind Tyedye, there was an audible sigh of relief. “Sure. She’s in the back. She’ll be out in a minute.” With this the dragon proceeded to a small basket placed on the floor, curled up and went to sleep. Umbra looked around the great library. The whole place had a magical feeling; both literally and metaphorically. The shelves themselves were actually carved into the great tree; many hundreds of books lined the shelves, and there were a few pony high piles scattered around the floor. Umbra saw a copy of Super Naturals: Natural Remedies that are Simply Super. He had read that book many times, given its practical uses in alchemy. High above him, Tyedye was also inspecting the books on the higher shelves. He scanned them with level disinterest until he came across one particular shelf. Grinning to himself he pulled issue one of The Amazing Spider- Mare off the shelf and sat down to read. Umbra looked over at him and grinned at his friend’s antics. It was at that moment that the door to the back room of the library opened, and a lavender unicorn walked through, a contented smile on her face. Looking through the door behind her, Umbra could see many books, arranged neatly on the shelves. “Hello, my name is Twilight Sparkle, faithful student of the Princess Celestia. How may I help you?” Twilight asked, smiling happily. Tyedye was the first to speak up. “Hi, my name’s Tyedye Tundra, and this is my friend, Umbra Nightshade. We’re here for a book.” He said simply. “Well you certainly came to the right place! May I ask what kind of book?” “I’m not really sure.” Tyedye responded. “You’d be better off asking him.” He motioned to Umbra, who since the mare had entered the room, had said nothing and looked very nervous. As Twilight approached him he grew visibly more panicked. He thought back to earlier when he had asked the two mares for directions. This was much different in his mind. He would actually have to talk to her for an extended amount of time. He was so lost in his panicked thought that he hadn’t noticed the mare stood in front of him. His eyes widened as he noticed her. She merely smiled and held out a hoof. “Hi. My name is Twilight Sparkle.” Slowly, Umbra reached out and grabbed her hoof, shaking it slowly. “I… Don’t think we’ve been properly introduced.” He said, trembling slightly. Umbra looked over his shoulder at Tyedye, clearly looking for support. Tye grinned encouragingly then motioned with his hooves for Umbra to continue talking. “My name is um-Umbra Nightshade” He said, once again stuttering. “I am the faithful student of Princess Luna, and I have come here seeking information on the dark phial…” He trailed off, and was soon interrupted by Twilight. “Wow! So you’re the Princesses’ new student!” She, said putting a hoof to her chin and inspecting him. “I expected you to be… taller.” She seemed almost disappointed. Umbra was unsure how to react at being inspected by a mare, but luckily she interrupted his thoughts before he got too lost. “Anyway, I do believe I’ve read about that before. Let me see…” With this she wandered off, inspecting the shelves and occasionally pulling a book down with her magic. Pretty soon she had a small stack of books, and she added titles until it was just taller than her. She levitated the books over to him. “Here. There should be some information somewhere in these.” She said. Umbra nodded in response, mouth agape. “Mind if help you look?” Twilight asked, smiling happily. “I love to read and I need to refresh my memory on some of this.” Umbra nodded in response, and Twilight levitated him a book down, also doing the same for herself. The book she had given to him was called “A Guide to Equestrian Myth and Legend” Umbra opened the cover and started to read. The book held many strange legends; there were tales of hairless apes that had the knowledge necessary to use tools, and speak. Eventually he came to the magical objects section of the book. He was disappointed to find no mention of the phial. Twilight; however, seemed to have had more luck. “Ah ha!” She shouted, clapping her hooves together and jumping up excitedly, with book in tow. She placed the book down on the table in front of him, standing next to him and motioning to a line in the book. “Here”, she said, and began to read aloud. “The phial is an object said to contain great magical power, and is capable of amplifying the effect of any potion brewed or stored in it by a thousand times its original strength.” She took a breath and continued. “While its exact location is currently unknown, the last time it was seen… was somewhere in the Marehara desert. It is said to be guarded by beings of great power…” She trailed off. “The Marehara?” Asked Umbra, “But that’s months away! We might even need an expedition! Then again, organizing an expedition for something that might not exist and don’t know the location of might be tad ridiculous… Not to mention the costs it would incur if we found nothing…” Umbra stopped. Everything had gone strangely quiet. He looked around the room, realizing only now that everypony had been looking at him, and he had been thinking aloud again the entire time. He quickly looked to the floor in embarrassment, but recovered several seconds later. “Well,” said Twilight “looks like you two have a long journey ahead.” “We’ve had a long journey to get here.” Said Umbra “Well I’m sure you’re both very tired. It’s already dark, so you’re quite welcome to stay here.” She said. “The beds are in here” She motioned to a door at the back of the room, opening it with her magic. Behind the door, Umbra could see a few beds and a magically sustained fire to heat the place. Umbra and Tyedye slowly walked the staircase into the dimly lit room. Ther were five single beds arranged in a row. They picked beds at random, too tired to care. It had only become apparent how utterly exhausted Umbra was until he had reached his bed. Umbra removed his cloak and placed it carefully on the peg on the wall; the various items contained within the pockets clinking and jangling as he did so. He carefully placed the saddlebags at the foot of his bed. Seeing that his friend had already done so, Umbra scrambled under the covers of his bed. “Night, Tye” “Good night, Umbra” They exchanged. They were soon soothed to sleep by the gently flickering flame. The road to the Everfree forest was quiet. Even the animals that usually prowled the Everfree were quiet. Tonight was their turn to be afraid, for, that night an evil far greater than them prowled the forest. Luna’s great moon cast beautiful shafts of blue tinted light onto the forest floor, creating a patchwork of light and dark. In one of the darkest shadows, a pair of red reptilian eyes scanned the road in anticipation. “Soon, they will pass this way” It thought to itself. Then I will finally get what i… There it was again. That familiar urge. Chase. Hunt. Kill. Feed. This instinctive urge was the only thing that silenced the voice in its head. The voice that told it what to do… “Stupid creature!” It thought to itself. “How was it supposed to get anything done while hunting?” The creature ignored it’s own thoughts, it’s forked tongue flicking in the air in search of the next prey. There was a lot to choose from here…
Chapter 3The Accruing Phial- Chapter 3 The next morning, Umbra was awoken by a brilliant shaft of mid- morning sunlight from the high window across the room. It woke him slowly, and he creaked his eyes open, shutting them again as he covered his face with his pillow. He contemplated trying to ignore nature’s wake up call and go back to sleep, but he stole the idea from himself; he would have a very busy day ahead of him planning and buying the necessary supplies for the long journey ahead. Donning his glasses, he dressed himself in his cloak and proceeded towards the stairs. He glanced over at his friend, who was still sleeping soundly in his bed. Somehow, the pillow had become scrunched up between his friend’s horns. Umbra decided to let him be for the moment; they had both been very tired and he probably wouldn’t appreciate being woken up. As he reached the top of the stairs, his nostrils flared; picking up the scent of frying eggs and toast. His stomach growled impatiently, and he realized he was suddenly very hungry. Thinking back he hadn’t eaten for days. He slowly opened the door, the smell of the delicious food intensifying as he did so. His mouth was practically watering at the thought of cooked food. He moved across the room, moving quietly so as not to disturb Twilight, who was happily humming to herself as she cooked breakfast in the kitchen. He took a seat at the table as quietly as possible. She turned around, noticing him sat at the table. “Oh good, You’re up. I was beginning to think your breakfast might get cold” She said, levitating a plate of fried eggs and two slices of toast over to him. Twilight took a seat at the table, levitating her own breakfast over. “I hope you like eggs and toast!” She said, clearly trying to strike up a conversation. “Yes. Thank you.” Umbra Responded quickly, and began eating. She levitated her own breakfast up to her face, taking a bite out of the sandwich. “So…” She continued. “Did you sleep well? “Yes.” “Beds comfortable?” “Yes” “How was the journey?” “I guess it was OK.” Umbra looked up at the unicorn. She was clearly becoming annoyed at his refusal to have any kind of proper conversation. “Why won’t you talk to me?” She asked, almost distraught. “Did I do something wrong?” “He’s shy.” Both Umbra and Twilight turned to look for the source of the voice, although Umbra already knew who it was. Sure enough, at the top of the staircase was Tyedye, a pillow nestling neatly between his horns. “He’s shy.” Continued the Pegasus, walking across the room and into the kitchen. “He finds it difficult to talk to mares” As he approached, Umbra gave him a long fiery glare that would have had a hydra worried. The Pegasus however, merely walked over to the nearest plate of breakfast and pulled it to the edge of the counter. He hit the plate, causing it’s contents to fly through the air and into his awaiting mouth. The plate continued spinning for a few seconds before landing neatly on the pillow located on Tye’s head. Twilight did not understand. “Why? What exactly makes me so hard to talk to compared to colts?” She said, trying to understand Umbra’s reasoning. Umbra sighed. That cat was already out of the bag. He might as well go down with the ship. “Well,” Umbra said, “Most colts aren’t as... cute as fillies like you.” Twilight’s cheeks flushed red. “That’s a very flattering thing for you to say.” “Just remember, we’re friends. Whenever, you try to talk to me, talk to me as friend. Not just another mare.” She said, reaching a hoof across the table and grabbing Umbra’s hoof. “I…” He began. “I suppose you are. You’ve already taken us in and given us food, neither of which I can thank you enough for-“ She interrupted him. “Then don’t thank me. Just think of me as a friend.” From that point on, Umbra had a new friend. After breakfast, Umbra and Tydye had set out into Ponyville with Twilight as their guide. They had toured various shops with Twilight’s help, gathering the necessary supplies for their journey. Their supplies included a week’s worth of food, larger saddlebags and various herbs for Umbra’s alchemy. Their next stop was Carousel Boutique. Twilight approached the door of the grand boutique, it’s various tiers towering above her. Umbra and Tyedye fell in line behind her, as she raised her hoof and knocked on the door. She looked at Umbra and Tye. “My friend Rarity owns this place. I’m sure you’ll like her.” Twilight said. “One minute dear!” Sang a harmonious voice from behind the door. Around a minute later, the door knob glowed a soft baby blue, and the door creaked open, revealing a stunningly beautiful alabaster unicorn with a curled amethyst coloured mane. “Oh! Hello, Twilight Darling! I wasn’t expecting a visit from you today. She looked past the purple unicorn at Umbra and Tyedye. “Who are your um… friends? “These are my new friends Umbra Nightshade and Tyedye Tundra” She replied, stepping to the side so the duo could walk forward and properly introduce themselves. Umbra was first to step up. “Hello Miss Rarity. I am Umbra Nightshade. He bowed, lowering his head. He backed away, allowing Tye to step forward and introduce himself. Tyedye stepped forward, grinning his trademark grin and offering his hoof. Rarity stared at it in bewilderment, before slowly raising her hoof to meet his, shaking it slowly. “Now shall we get down to business?” Twilight asked. “Can we please come in, Miss Rarity?” Umbra asked, taking a step toward the door. “Why yes! Of course darling!” She said, wandering back inside. “Do please close the door and wipe your hooves!” All three entered the boutique, taking the unicorn’s advice and wiping their hooves. Twilight closed the door with her magic. “Now darling, what is it you wanted?” Rarity asked, addressing Umbra directly. “Umm… two more cloaks, much like the one I have now. Please.” Said Umbra simply. “May I take a look?” Rarity asked. Before he could respond his cloak glowed a soft blue colour and unbuttoned itself from his neck, floating towards the alabaster unicorn. She eyed it scrutinously, with eyes narrowed and a hoof held up to her chin. “Oh, darling this simply won’t do!” Cried the unicorn dramatically. “It needs a complete redesign!” “But... I like it the way it is!” He protested “Nonsense! The unicorn said. “I insist.” “And how much is this going to cost?” Asked Umbra sceptically. “Oh, don’t worry about the price darling! Any friend of Twilight’s is a friend of mine and I can offer you a generous discount.” With this she swept him up in a tide of chaos, taking measurements, doing sketches attaching templates to back and shoulders. The whole affair had Umbra feeling very, very, uncomfortable. He felt like he was being forced into some sick experiment. Several hours later, the process was finished. “You sure do work fast, Rarity.” Umbra commented. “I’m not even sure what just happened.” “Why thank you, darling. I do try my best and I take pride in my work.” She said, levitating a box over to him. “Here are your new cloaks, darling. I know you’ll simply LOVE them! Do try one on.” She removed one of the cloaks from the box, and Umbra lowered his head to allow her to attach the drawstring. The cloak flowed over his back like water, rippling as it did so. The instant it touched his back, Umbra felt… warmer, somehow. And the fabric! It was soooo soft. He turned his head, inspecting it. The cloak had a multitude of pockets arranged neatly in rows at his sides. All were easily in his reach. “I saw all the supplies you were carrying around, dear, and I thought you could use some extra pockets.” She said, smiling happily. “What do you think, dear? Do you like it?” She said expectantly. “Hmmm…” The earth pony said. “Stylish yet practical, Soft and warm, Plenty of room for my alchemical supplies…” “Yes. I love it” He said. “I cannot thank you enough for your hard work, Rarity.” “You are quite welcome, dear. Now do run along. I hear that we both have lots of work to do.” The unicorn said, smiling pleasantly. Umbra nodded. She was right after all. It was around noon when they left the Boutique. The trio of ponies spent the next several hours gathering the rest of the supplies needed. Their final destination was a confectionary store known as Sugarcube Corner. As it came into view. Umbra had an odd feeling as they approached; the town seemed strangely abandoned, and the lights were off inside the store. Umbra opened the door to the store. So it is open… He thought. He peered through the door, attempting to let his eyes adjust to the inky darkness. Just as his eyes began to adjust, the lights abruptly flicked back on. When his sight returned, most of the residents of the town had appeared “SURPRISE!” They all shouted in unison. A familiar looking pink pony appeared, seemingly from nowhere right in front of him “Surprise!” She yelled. “Darn. I always do it too late.” She said, disappointed
Chapter 4The Accruing Phial - Chapter 4 Umbra Nightshade was a not a happy pony. For one thing, he was upside down. For another, he had no idea where he was, other than the fact that he was outside. He had the worst headache he ever had the misfortune of experiencing: It felt like two Ursa Majors were wrestling inside his skull. He dared to open his eyes; and instantly regretted it. His headache felt like it had gotten ten times worse, Maybe fifteen. He stood up carefully, groaning as he did. He remembered very little from the party last night. He had been having a good time, making friends… Then he tried the punch. After that, he remembered nothing. Looking around, the first thing he noticed was his location. Beneath his feet, the strong branch of a tree supported his weight. He looked around, and saw nothing but dense foliage and other branches. He turned around, suddenly wondering why he was so cold. His eyes widened as he realised. He scanned the area quickly, looking for his cloak. He eventually spotted it, caught on a tree branch and swaying gently in the breeze. He carefully reached out a hoof in an attempt to reach the cloak. It was no use. He could not reach. He tried again, this time attempting to grab it with his mouth. Leaning forwards, he stretched his neck as far as it would go. He felt his body start to fall as he leaned forward, and he quickly reared back to prevent himself from plummeting into the foliage. He looked around, scanning the area for any other way down. He looked down; and regretted it immediately. The ground looked very far away. He had however, noticed a branch that looked solid enough to support his weight just beneath his cloak. The only problem was that he would have to jump. He thought about it before executing his idea. The consequences of failure were steep. He would fall from the tree, definitely sustaining broken legs when he landed. Given that he had no idea where he was, it could be several hours before he was rescued, if he ever was. On the other hand, success would mean getting back his cloak and being that much closer to the ground. He had to do something, and he was tired of being stuck in this tree. He crouched low on the barked surface, his rump raised in the air. He swallowed his fear as he prepared to jump. He jumped, pushing himself towards the cloak. He flew the air, and grabbed the cloak with his mouth. He swayed, still carried by the inertia of his jump. He hung there for a few seconds, unsure how to free himself. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t have time to find out. The branch supporting his cloak bent downwards, unable to support the extra weight. Umbra’s eyes widened as the limb snapped with an almighty crack, sending him plummeting toward the branch below. He hit the wood hard, cracking his head on the branch as he landed. His head swam and his vision blurred. He closed his eyes, and the world disappeared in a sheet of inky darkness. Tyedye’s eyes slowly creaked open. He scanned his surroundings. The room was dimly lit, with a few beds in it. He was laid in the bed, the covers messily bunched up on his body. Shafts of bright light shone from the lone window in the room. Tyedye rolled out of bed, trying to figure out where he was. He couldn’t remember anything after the party. Tyedye looked around once again, realizing where he was. This was the library’s spare room. So he had made it back there at least. He couldn’t help but think something was missing. The answer hit him like a ton of bricks. Umbra. He wasn’t here. He had to find him. Tyedye took to the air, flying up the stairs and busting through the front door. Twilight turned around just in time to see a blue and turquoise streak fly through her front door. Umbra stirred, feeling something poking him hard in the ribs. He ignored it and turned over, screwing his eyes shut. The something spoke. “This is my napping tree! Hey... are you ok? Your head looks kind of… hurt.” The voice said, concerned. Umbra looked at the source of the voice. It was a cyan Pegasus mare with a multi hued mane. She spoke once again. “Do you need some help getting down? Because the amazing Rainbow Dash can help!” “Urgh… yes please.” Umbra said, clearly pained by his injury. Rainbow grabbed him, being careful so as to not aggravate his injury. Her wings strained to keep them airborne. She managed though, dropping him to the ground roughly. “Oops. Sorry.” She said, smiling sheepishly She hovered just above him, waiting for him to stand and walk away. Umbra attempted to stand, and collapsed under his own weight. “I… I’m fine.” Said Umbra. Rainbow Dash was not convinced. “Just… Help me back to the library” He said through teeth gritted in pain. “Don’t worry, I gotcha.” Said the Pegasus, landing next to him. He placed a foreleg over her shoulders, using her to support himself. She shifted under his weight, trying to make herself more comfortable. The Pegasus had no trouble supporting him, despite him being a head taller than her. “You sure are strong for a Pegasus.” Umbra commented. “That’s just my amazing muscles. No big deal.” Rainbow said with fake modesty. They quickly arrived at the library. Rainbow Dash pushed the door open, entering with Umbra. Twilight was stood in the library, inspecting a book quietly. A look of relief spread across her face when she noticed her two friends. “There you are! I see Rainbow found you. I was beginning to worry. Tyedye’s already out looking for you. Someone had better tell him you’re safe.” Umbra removed his leg from Rainbow’s shoulders, supporting himself shakily and proceeding into the library. Wordlessly, he proceeded to the kitchen table. He set about brewing a potion, first of all setting a pan of water to boil over the fire. He then cut several herbs and crushed them using a pestle and mortar. He dropped this into the broth, and it began to glow a deep azure. Umbra grabbed a small pouch of golden dust and poured a small pinch into the broth. Sparkles of light exploded from the liquid surface as the dust touched it; when the lights had cleared, the mixture had turned a deep golden colour. Umbra carefully pulled out a small glass phial and poured a small amount of the potion into it. He grabbed the phial in his mouth and tilted his head back, shuddering slightly as he finished it. “I forgot how bad it tasted…” He said, pulling a disgusted face. “Is that all?” Twilight asked, concern painted on her face. “Will you be ok now?” “I’ll be fine, Twilight. I just need some rest.” He said, already proceeding to the spare bedroom downstairs. He turned to Twilight. “Promise me something?” Umbra asked, addressing Twilight. She nodded, smiling. “Find Tye, and tell him I’m safe.” “I will. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Twilight took care not to ‘stick the cupcake in her eye’ too hard. “Thank you. I don’t want him to worry.” Umbra walked down the stairs. He got into bed, falling asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow. Twilight turned to Rainbow Dash. “Rainbow, help me find Tyedye . I have a promise to keep.” Twilight and Rainbow Left the library at the same time, deciding to split up to cover more ground. Twilight headed towards the town centre, hoping to find him asking around the shops. Rainbow decided to scout the entire town to look for the Pegasus. As fate would have it, Dash was the first to find him. She swooped down, hovering next to him, just in time for him to stick his head in a tree. “Umbra?” He called out. “Are you in here?” Rainbow tapped him on the shoulder. “Huh? Is somepony there?” He turned around. “Oh… Hi.” He said, disappointed “I was hoping you might be my friend Umbra. Have you seen him?” “Yeah, I’ve seen him. I, the amazing Rainbow Dash rescued him and now he’s in the library, resting up.” “Well that’s a relief.” Tyedye said, visibly relaxing. Tyedye looked at the other Pegasus, an idea forming in his mind. “So, are you as fast as they all say?” Tyedye asked Rainbow looked slightly offended. “Was there any doubt?” To Rainbow, this was clearly a statement of fact. “Care to prove it?” Tyedye asked, a cocky smile spread across his face. Rainbow shoved her muzzle into his “Was that a challenge? Because it is totally on!” Rainbow shouted. With this the two Pegasi took off into the air chasing after each other, laughing.
Chapter 5The Accruing Phial- Chapter 5 Light spilled through the high window in the library’s spare room. Umbra shifted in his bed, pulling the covers over himself in protest. He didn’t want to get up. Today would be the day they left Ponyville. These last two days had been among the strangest of his life. He had gotten so drunk at a party he couldn’t remember anything. He had woken up in a tree, and knocked himself unconscious. Now he was about to set off on the journey of a lifetime. It was unpredictable and dangerous. To say he was not looking forward to it was an understatement. He woke Tyedye, nudging him gently with a hoof. “Hey, get up. We’re leaving today, remember?” Umbra continued prodding the Pegasus until he turned over in bed, shooting the earth pony an angry look. “I’m awake, you can stop poking me now.” The Pegasus rolled out of bed and stretched, his wings unfurling to their full length. Together they ascended the stairs, walking into the main room of the library into the kitchen. Over breakfast, Twilight, Umbra and Tyedye discussed the route the duo would take. “The closest town to the Marehara is Appleoosa, so that’ll be our last stop.” Umbra said, indicating Appleoosa on the map. “Actually, you should head towards the Everfree.” Twilight said. “What? Why?” Umbra said, clearly confused. “I was doing research while you were recovering, Umbra. I found a book that mentioned a map in Celestia’s old castle in the Everfree that is said to show the way toward whatever the holder desires. If you get the map and think of the phial, it should show you the way.” She explained. Umbra thought about it. “Hmm… That could save us a lot of time.” He turned to Tyedye. “Unfortunately, we need that map.” Tyedye nodded, a determined look on his face. An hour later, both Umbra and Tyedye were fully packed and ready. Alchemical supplies, food and sleeping bags had all been packed. Umbra and Tyedye tentatively walked out into the early morning sun, followed by Twilight and a sleepy Spike. Twilight followed them to the edge of town, and when Umbra turned around, he saw that they had gathered quite a crowd of ponies by simply walking from the library. The residents of Ponyville obviously wanted to wish them good luck. This certainly surprised Umbra; He didn’t even know most of these ponies. He must have done something impressive at that party. He stopped, turning to face Twilight. “Thank you for all you’ve given us, Twilight. Umbra said.” Twilight offered a hoof, and Umbra reached a hoof up to shake it. Before their hooves touched, she wrapped her forelegs around his neck in a warm embrace. At first, Umbra was surprised, and then he returned the hug with equal affection. She looked at Tyedye. “Don’t think you’re getting away without a hug, Tyedye!” She jumped towards him; giving him the same affection she had shown Umbra. He grinned and hugged back. “Thank you, Twilight” He said, grinning his grin as the mare hugged him. As Umbra turned around to set off into the forest, he heard the crowd cheer, and turned, waving a leg in farewell. He looked back, noticing that Tyedye was still soaking up the admiration of the crowd, a huge smile plastered across his face. Rolling his eyes, he grabbed his friend and walked off, Tyedye still waving a hoof and grinning as they went. Umbra turned his head, still walking as he addressed the crowd. “Goodbye, everypony! We promise we’ll come back safe!” Umbra said. He wasn’t so sure about that himself. As he walked away into the forest From beyond the treeline, a pair of red reptilian eyes watched intently. As they entered the forest, it seemed to close in around them, like it was trying to prevent their escape. Ancient gnarled trees curved their branches towards the road as if to grab them. Umbra looked around nervously. It was going to be a long journey through this place. Several hours passed without incident, and as they progressed Umbra was becoming increasingly anxious. He decided to take a break, Tyedye joining him. Umbra grabbed his canteen and took a swig. His ears pricked up. He could have sworn he had heard something… Jumping to attention, he turned around just in time to see a Pegasus fly from beyond the treeline towards him. Umbra launched himself out of the way, and the Pegasus hit the ground face first, throwing up a large cloud of dry dirt. When the cloud cleared, Umbra caught his first real glimpse of the Pegasus; He was wearing what appeared to be some kind of modified Wonderbolts uniform. Its colours were a dark crimson with purple flare, instead of the usual navy blue. He looked around, getting up and shaking the dust off his muzzle. He looked around, seeing Umbra and Tyedye for the first time. “Either of you see a grey, wall eyed Pegasus fly past?” He addressed the pair of ponies. “Nope, sorry.” Umbra said, smiling apologetically. The Pegasus looked at the ground in disappointment. “Oh well. I really hope Surprise finds her…” said the Pegasus sadly. His head snapped back up, and he looked at the pair of ponies, an eyebrow raised. “Hey, why are you this far out in the Everfree anyway? Nopony is ever out this far unless they’re lost.” Tyedye and Umbra quickly glanced at each other, Umbra making frantic signals to not say anything. “We’re looking for an ancient artifact of power.” Tyedye stated. Behind him, Umbra face-hoofed. “Ooh, ooh I can help! Can I come with you?” The Pegasus asked, his face lit up in delight. Umbra rolled his eyes. “You might as well, now you know about our um… Expedition.” Umbra said, irritation tinting his voice. “Great!” The Pegasus said, ascending as he spoke. “I’ll go grab some supplies and my tent!” He flew away in the direction of what must have been Ponyville. “How long do you think he’s gonna take, Tye?” Umbra asked. He did not want to stay still for too long. Tyedye immediately soared into the sky, trying to judge the distance of Ponyville form their current location. He landed with a soft ‘pomf’ noise as his wings folded back up. “Maybe twenty minutes there, and a little longer on the way back, depending how much he packs. Plus, he’ll probably want to say goodbye to somepony, so maybe just over an hour.” “Great.” Umbra said, pouting. “Why did you tell him why we were out here anyway? It was supposed to be secret!” Umbra said accusingly. “Well, i figured since you already told most of Ponyville it didn’t matter anymore.” He responded calmly in spite of his friend’s accusations. “Hmph. Well, fine. I’m going to look for some non-killer plants.” Umbra huffed, walking away. He explored the immediate area around the river with intent, being careful to keep Tyedye in clear line of sight at all times. Tyedye, for his part, seemed to be amusing himself by upturning small rocks with his hooves. Umbra eventually returned, his saddlebags a little more full with the various herbs he had collected. He returned to Tyedye, who was still flipping rocks. Umbra approached him curiously. “Why are you doing that?” Umbra asked, an eyebrow raised. “There are bugs.” He said. “I like the way they look. They’re like tiny monsters. Some of them are really cool.” “Yes, bugs are indeed fascinating. They are truly resilient for such small creatures.” Umbra said. This got him thinking on all the types of insect, and their survival techniques. Tyedye smiled to himself; his friend had clearly entered a state of deep thought, as he was often prone to. Tyedye laid on the rough grass, closing his eyes and nodding off. A pair of reptilian eyes glimmered in desire from the deep undergrowth. It’s prey was vulnerable and Unwitting... “NO!” The voice in it’s head shouted. “WE NEED THEM ALIVE!” It was too late. The creature was running on instinct, something not even the voice could overcome. Umbra snapped out of his reverie, something catching his attention out of the corner of his eye. He stood up slowly, looking around the clearing for any signs of life. He heard a twig snap behind him, and he tensed his muscles, ready for anything. Suddenly a shape burst from the foliage, heading straight for him.
Chapter 6 Chapter 6 The Accruing Phial Chapter 6 Umbra had expected the attack, and rolled out of the way clumsily. He landed on his side, weighed down by the saddlebags attached to his sides. Quickly he scrambled to his feet, looking around for any sign of his assailant. There was no sign of it, but Umbra guessed it wouldn’t give up that easily. He crouched once again, readying himself for another attack. His ears whipped anxiously. The suspense was killing him. Suddenly, a thought hit him. Tyedye was still asleep. He was a sitting duck. “Tyedye, wake up!” Umbra said, his voice low but urgent. The Pegasus looked around sleepily. “Something’s attacking us!” Umbra said, his voice once again filled with urgency. The Pegasus stood, taking to the air and gently flapping his way over to Umbra, stopping a few feet above him. “What are you talking about? I don’t see anythi-“ His words were cut short as a dark shape burst from the undergrowth and grabbed him out of the air. The creature and Tyedye hit the ground, struggling with each other as they did. Umbra caught his first real glimpse of the creature; It appeared to be some sort of giant hooded cobra, its golden scales shimmering beautifully as it tried to rend his friend limb from limb. Tyedye was struggling valiantly against the grip of the creature’s strong, muscular arms, its sharpened claws digging into him in various places. Tyedye bucked hard, hitting the creature on its scaled snout. It screeched in pain as blood streamed from its face. Umbra stood in shock as the creature lifted Tyedye up by his neck, clearly intent on crushing the life out of him, Umbra snapped out of his shock, quickly grabbing a phial full of a bubbling green liquid from his saddlebags. He flung the phial, and it shattered on the vile creature’s head, its contents spilling over it. The creature let out another horrid screech of pain as the acid began to burn its face. It dropped the panting Pegasus, frantically clawing at its face. Suddenly, something flew out of the sky towards the creature, hitting it with such force as to send it flying bodily towards the treeline. The creature hit a tree with a great crack, falling limply to the bottom before slithering away dejectedly to lick its wounds. “You better run! Tell all your friends what happened here!” The Pegasus shouted triumphantly. The Pegasus alighted, approaching Umbra. Now that his brain had cleared, Umbra recognised him as the Pegasus who had offered to help them before. “Looks like your friend needs help” The Pegasus said, indicating Tyedye. Umbra trotted over, a look of extreme worry upon his face. He quickly checked the Pegasus over, muttering the problems to himself as he found them. “Cracked ribs, sprained wing, minor blood loss, multiple lacerations… This is bad.” Umbra admitted. He ran over to his saddlebags, preparing to make a potion He looked over to the Pegasus, issuing orders to him. “Make sure he doesn’t move too much, I’m going to mix a healing potion for him.” The earth pony’s voice had an air of seriousness and authority which prevented any kind of defiance. The Pegasus nodded, and slowly walked over to the injured pony. Umbra quickly set to work. Several minutes later, the potion was ready and brewed. Umbra walked over to his injured friend. Pulling his muzzle open with a hoof, he poured the potion in bit by bit, rubbing his neck to make him swallow. As the last of the potion was swallowed, the Pegasus seemed to visibly improve. His shallow breathing returned to normal, and his body seemed to relax as the pain lessened. Umbra sat down heavily, his face the very picture of relief. The Pegasus joined him, sitting down next to him. Grabbing the flint and steel from his saddlebags, Umbra gathered several dry twigs and set them alight. He sat down again, warming himself by the fire. He patted the ground next to him, inviting the Pegasus closer to the fire. “He’s going to be out for a while.” Umbra said, motioning to Tyedye. “We might as well take a rest.” The Pegasus stretched his wings to warm them in the heat of the fire. “I just realised something.” Umbra said thoughtfully. The Pegasus looked at him curiously. “Yeah? And what’s that?” he asked. “You saved my life and Tyedye’s and I don’t even know your name.” He replied simply. The Pegasus laughed. ”No, I don’t suppose you do!” He offered a hoof. Umbra reached out, and shook it. “Name’s Lightningbolt Stormcloud. Most ponies call me Lightning, or Bolt.” “My name is Umbra Nightshade, faithful student of Princess Luna.” The Pegasus seemed genuinely impressed. “You know the Lunar Princess? Is she really as scary as they say?” “Not really. She’s back to her old self now. She’s still getting used to modern Equestria, though. She can be a little cranky at times, but who isn’t?” The Pegasus smiled, and it eventually escalated into full blown laughter. The pair spent the next hour getting to know each other, talking, telling stories, laughing and generally having fun. Tyedye slept peacefully as they talked. “We should get going. It’ll be dark soon and we shouldn’t stay here.” Umbra said as he packed away his things and buried the ashes of the fire, leaving no trace that they had been there. “Shouldn’t we wake Tyedye?” Lightningbolt asked. “Well, that’s not exactly possible.” Umbra began. “You see, he’s more... um...” He struggled for the words. “He’s more sort of in a coma than asleep. He’ll be fine, he just needs a few days rest, a week tops.” Umbra explained calmly. Lightning was not reassured. “Are you sure he’ll be ok? What about eating? And going to the bathroom?” “Hmmmm” Umbra mused. “Well, he should be able to eat if we put food near his mouth. As for going... He’ll do that himself. We just have to keep him clean.” Umbra said, in a matter of fact “Lightningbolt looked at him, disgusted. “Anyway, we have to figure out someway of carrying him. Oh, idea!” Umbra exclaimed as he grabbed a blanket and approached Lightningbolt. Lightningbolt looked at Umbra quizzically as he tied a knot in the blanket, attaching it loosely to his neck. Umbra did the same to himself, forming a sort of hammock between. The pair of ponies crouched low, and Umbra stretched his neck to roll Tyedye into the soft grasp of the hammock. The pair of ponies left their former camp, their charge in tow. Lightning looked over at Umbra. Between his saddlebags, alchemy supplies and the comatose Pegasus between them, the earth pony should have been struggling to walk, or at the very least showing a sign of effort. He wasn’t. Lightningbolt, on the other hoof, was already breaking into a sweat. Lightningbolt looked at Umbra “Can’t you... at least show... some effort? You’re starting to... hurt my self esteem.” Lightningbolt said jokingly, between lungfuls of air. “What can i say? We earth ponies are certainly robust.” Umbra replied. Having come to small clearing, the group stopped. Umbra looked around. “This will do.” He said, inspecting the clearing. He untied his half of the hammock, and Lightningbolt did the same, Lowering Tyedye carefully to the ground. The two ponies began setting up camp, as the sun disappeared behind the treeline, leaving the forest in darkness.
