Goliath

Prologue
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The breeze was gently swaying the field of long grass. Shimmering with different shades of gold as the bright rays of the sun shined upon it. The murmur of the soft wind was all she heard above her as she and her father rested under an apple tree, until her father spoke.
"Folkshine, have you heard of gargantuan beings of stone and metal that moved about?" A mischievous grin spreading out across his face as he said these words, he knew his daughter had a fascination toward mythical creatures as he had. But he knew she was terrified of the bigger creatures that lived in the land of Equestria.

The young filly with large turquoise eyes and a light golden coat that shone in the sunlight, stared up at her father. Eyes filling with curiosity and interest, but with a slight noticeable tinge of fear that was apparent in the way her ears dropped down. Her long flowing mane of light vermillion curling at the edges as it always did whenever she moved her head. She made a whimpering sound and replied, "N-No daddy. Are they... scary?"

With that, the father threw his head back in a bark of laughter which showed his white teeth and the insides of his mouth.

"Hahahahaha! Scary? Of course my dear! They are at least the size of an ursa minor, if not bigger. With the look that resembles a mountain, rocky, and strewn with plants and mosses!" The young filly shrank even further backwards at that, but kept her large eyes on her father.
"But mind you dear, this particular creature is not at all dangerous, unless… Unless of course you threaten IT first,"
Then he started to stroke his curled moustache.

"There is however, a tragedy to these poor things." At that, Folkshine's ears perked up. Her eyes shining ever so brightly.
"A tragedy? What's wrong with them dad?" She stood up, no longer looking afraid, but more sympathetic. Her eyes growing wider with concern, as if a mother was worried for her child. Mr.Folkshine leant closer to her until they were looking eye-to-eye. The ends of his moustache quivering as if he looked to be prepared to explain to his daughter the meaning of life.

"In protecting themselves, my dear. That is, to KILL another pony, animal, or creature. To do so, would mean that they would perish themselves. The magic that grants them life will cease. Leaving them lifeless on the spot. To age as a part of the landscape. A cruel play of the heavens if you will. As these creatures are… quite friendly and even sentient, albeit they lack the ability to speak."

The filly covered her mouth with shock, falling back onto her haunches as her eyes widen in shock. "That-That's terrible!"
A comforting hoof wrapped around her as her father embraced her in a hug. "It's just how things are, Folkshine. Remember that not all big things are as scary or dangerous as they seem… And more often then not, they will have a reason for their behaviour."

The young filly took all this in and nodded her head, a look of sympathy and understanding dawning on her face. She then closed her eyes and buried her head in her father's comforting hug. The breeze ruffling her coat and singing a strange lullaby, drifting her off to sleep.

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She awoke with a start, her mane in a mess of hair and her eyes wide in alarm. Quickly getting out of her bed, she looked in the mirror, and in the mirror she was greeted with a mare that looked like she had just had her hair ruffled by a swarm of parasprites. There were slight dark bags under her eyes. The mare groaned as she went to grab her brush. As she started to brush her flowing, yet always-so-curled-at-the-end mane, she recollected the dream she had again. She's been having it quite often as of late, though it seemed strange as it was her childhood memory of her time with her father. She looked down and pondered.

"What could it mean?"

She decided to brush the recurring dream aside for now and go into her study to look through the scrolls that were sent to her by the various adventurers that wondered the land. She worked as a scholar, but most of her time was spent collecting stories and information about creatures that inhabited this world. More so, mythical and magical creatures just as her father had done, although she worked more with information rather than actually going on expeditions. She was just too scared of the hidden and lurking horrors that came with undertaking such expeditions.

Though she herself was afraid of the many things that lived outside the safeties of Equestrian civilizations, she was still addled with the memories of the stories and adventures that she heard from her father from when she was a very young filly, though he himself passed away long ago. Many around her, friends neighbours and colleagues speculated that although Folkshine shied away from adventures, her father's blood still ran through her veins and that, with time. She will blossom to be one of the most adventurous ponies that ever lived. Just like her father.

Now, Folkshine herself knew of these rumours. But she did not believe it was true. Sure, she was the daughter of a explorer pony, but she was too afraid to face down the creatures as her father had. Thus, she relied on the explorers out there to send her the material she needed to write about the Equestrian wilderness.

"It's all nonsense… I'm not like my dad, " She muttered to herself as she sat down in the chair looking glum, and resting her head on her hoof. Starting to fiddle with the writing equipment that was strewn out across the desk in front of her.

"Well, lets just get this over with."

As she lifted her spectacles and placed them on the bridge of her nose to begin reading the pile of reports and other parchments for the day, there was a knock at the door.