//------------------------------// // Fluttershy 2 - A Long Way to Go // Story: Dawn of a New World // by KingBrony //------------------------------// The cave was dark...Fluttershy found herself staring into an abyss that seemed to pull her in even closer. "Pinkie Pie!? Discord!?" Fluttershy called out. There was no response. I'm all alone. A shadow moved in the darkness, causing Fluttershy to jump again. In a panic, she turned back to the entrance of the cave, but it was gone. The shadow dropped right behind the scared pegasus. As she turned to meet it, she stared at herself. ...At least, it looked like Fluttershy. The mane was dull in color and covered in dirt and blood. Her fur was soaked in red as well. There was a gleam in the pony's eyes that seemed to stare right through Fluttershy. "Please...don't..." The yellow pony squealed to her counterpart. It made no response as it lifted up a hoof, revealing a large and bloody rock. Fluttershy tried to run, but she couldn't move. The rock came crashing down. "NO!" The pegasus woke up with a shock. She was on the forest floor, huddled up against a tree. As she looked up, she began to calm down. Only a dream...or, was it a nightmare? She looked around. The sky was still in its state of limbo. Hearing something move behind her, Fluttershy gasped and jumped into the air. It was only a sleeping Pinkie Pie, who was laid out on the other side of the tree. Discord was nowhere to be found. The pegasus's tummy began to grumble. Do we have any food? Fluttershy looked around for something she could eat. An apple, a leaf, anything. As it began to rumble again, Fluttershy decided to go in search of food. The pegasus made her way into the forest. The light made it not as scary as it could have been. Fluttershy was thankful for that, at least. She tried looking everywhere for berries and fruit, but made no luck. Others must have taken them... She soon came across a small, white rabbit. Upon seeing it, her mind immediately thought of Angel. "Angel? Is that you?" She gasped as she made her way to the rabbit. It turned and stared at Fluttershy. "Oh. I'm sorry. I thought you were another bunny." Fluttershy said to the little white thing. He just stood there and stomped at the ground before running off. "Wait!" Fluttershy followed the rabbit. "Won't you help me find food?" The rabbit jumped along at a quick pace, leaving Fluttershy to have to fly after the creature. As it approached a large bush, Fluttershy nearly came on top of it to catch him. SNAP. Fluttershy passed the bush, but lost sight of the rabbit. The sound she heard came right from the bush...it was a metal sound, one that she had never heard before. As she turned back, Fluttershy gasped and cried. The rabbit fell right onto a trap. Metal teeth snared the rabbit's leg and dug right into the flesh. Blood was everywhere as the rabbit began thrashing about. Fluttershy quickly flew to the hurt animal. "Shh...it's okay." Fluttershy said, trying to use her motherly tone. However, upon seeing the blood, she saw something that made her stomach growl. She stared at the rabbit flesh that lay exposed in front of her. The rabbit was crying as it tried to pull its leg out. Why does it look so...delicious? Fluttershy asked before quickly wondering why she felt that way. No...I can't...EAT him! Fluttershy quickly remembered the manticore she killed in that cave, and looked back to the rabbit. It had lost a lot of blood by this point and ceased chattering. It lay down on the ground, about to pass out. "I'll help you...poor bunny." Fluttershy said, causing the rabbit to perk its ears up. Fluttershy looked around her for something...something. She remembered the cave. The manticore. The rock. Fluttershy found a nice-sized rock. Without even thinking, she picked it up. The rabbit had a faint smile on its face as the pegasus lifted it up. After slowly realizing what was going to happen, the rabbit began chattering again. The pegasus stared at the rabbit before she began to sing. Hush now, quiet now... ********* Fluttershy broke the trap with the rock. She looked down at what she had done. The rabbit was no longer moving, but it was free from the trap. The rock was smeared with blood and rust as Fluttershy tossed it aside. She stared at her prize, her meal. Not waiting any longer, Fluttershy picked up the dead rabbit and bit right into the leg. She pulled off something and began to chew....And spit it right back out. "That's disgusting!" Fluttershy coughed as she almost choked on the rabbit meat. Already, she began to cry over the fact that she killed an animal when she began to think of a cake. Maybe if I bake it...oh, but I have no...! It didn't take long for Fluttershy to make a fire, but it was roaring in a matter of minutes. Fluttershy took the time to remove the fur from the rabbit, as she didn't like the taste when she bit into it. Granted, she didn't like the raw meat either, but she hoped a fire would fix that. Pinkie Pie woke up to the smell of a fire burning and something that smelled good. "Ooh! What's that smell!?" She jumped up and went to the source of it. Fluttershy was huddled over the fire, making noises as if she were chewing something really...chewy. "Fluttershy?" The pegasus's ears pricked up as she turned to her friend. Pinkie Pie gasped in horror as she saw her friend, the kind and gentle Fluttershy, holding the remains of a dead rabbit. Meat hung from her mouth, and her eyes were bloodshot. Pinkie Pie stepped back. Her hair began to deflate. "Are you...okay? Why are you..." "It tastes good, Pinkie Pie. You should try some!" Fluttershy said before taking another bite. "Um...no thank you. I'm good eating some cake, or fruit!" Pinkie Pie said with an uneasy laugh. Fluttershy could tell that even she was creeped out by this. It didn't matter though, as Fluttershy had never been so full before. "Ah, Fluttershy, I see you discovered the joys of meat!" Discord's voice broke the awkward tension as he appeared right over the fire. He was carrying a basket of fruit, which he dropped right onto the ground. Fluttershy finished up her meal and looked to the draconequus. "Where were you?" "Oh, I went to Vanhoover. That's where we are, by the way." Discord said as he picked up an apple from the basket. "You know, I could teach you all about the different animals you can eat, if you want. I know some really good recipes!" Inside, Fluttershy was crying. I killed another animal! She thought to herself, ignoring Discord. Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie approached the fruit basked and helped herself. "I...killed..." Fluttershy began sobbing. "It's okay." Discord said. "Anything we can do to survive." Rainbow Dash said the same thing. Look where that got her. Pinkie Pie swallowed an apple, then approached her crying friend. "It's okay, Fluttershy! I don't see you as a monster!" Fluttershy smiled at hearing this, but her insides were all twisted up. "Now, we can't stay here too long!" Discord said. "It's a long way up to the north. If you thought the Crystal Empire was the furthest thing north, you'd be very wrong. The sooner we get going, the sooner we get there!" "Are we going to stop by the Crystal Empire on the way?" Fluttershy asked. She wanted to see Berry Bunches again. And anypony else who survived. Discord laughed before saying no. "We have a strict schedule. If we stop by there, you might not want to keep going. I'm not the one who wants to visit my brethren, so you'll have to stay with me the whole time." Fluttershy looked down at the fire. There were pieces of her meal that were scattered, causing her further grief. She walked away quickly. "Let's go, then!" She said. "Um, Fluttershy?" Discord said. "It's the other way." The pegasus stopped in her tracks and blushed before quickly turning around. Pinkie Pie bounced alongside the two as they made their way north. Vanhoover was a rather large city. It was nowhere near the size of Manehatten, but it was big enough for Fluttershy to be encapsulated. It was destroyed, like most of Equestria, but the main difference was that there were still ponies here. At first, Fluttershy thought they were affiliated with that group from Las Pegasus...but as she walked by, she knew they weren't. There were fillies, colts, and mares who looked like they were just trying to get by. Some were trading with other ponies, while fillies ran around and played games. Overall, it looked pretty pleasant. Fluttershy wanted to interact with the ponies, but they were too far away, and Discord did say that they were rushed for time. Maybe Equestria isn't lost, after all... North of Vanhoover, the temperature began to change drastically. It was hard for Fluttershy to continue moving, which Discord noticed. "Are you cold, Fluttershy?" The pegasus nodded her head. In response, Discord snapped his fingers. A warm fur coat appeared around Fluttershy. It was very puffy and yellow, with small pink lines on the sides and back. She immediately felt the coat's warmth throughout her body. Discord smiled before continuing on. "Hey! What about me!?" Pinkie Pie asked as she continued bouncing along. Discord sighed and snapped his fingers again, creating a pink coat around the pony. She began to roll around with it, laughing as she did. "Ooh! It's soo warm!" "Are you okay, Discord?" Fluttershy asked as he floated along without anything on. "Draconequus aren't affected by weather." He said quickly. "That's one reason they are all hiding in the far north. It's a real pain to have family reunions, sometimes." The landscape up here was beautiful. To the east were green rolling hills, while to the west was a beautiful ocean. The grass was a bluish-green, and the twilight in the sky made everything look as peaceful as it could be. Fluttershy loved being able to see new places a lot more than before the world ended. Maybe something good did come out of this. With a lack of trees up here, Fluttershy was able to see for miles in every direction. There was no wildlife or anything that looked dangerous. Just her, Discord, and Pinkie Pie. The entire adventure comprised of Pinkie jumping up and down while asking the most random questions. Even Discord grew tired of it as they began bickering with each other. This actually made Fluttershy laugh. It felt like hours before the group stopped to get some rest. The atmosphere looked exactly the same, but they all felt exhausted from the trip. Discord took out the basket of fruit again as they all sat down next to a large pile of rocks. Fluttershy took an apple and stared at it. She couldn't help but see the poor bunny she had ended earlier that day. It was so helpless... "You gonna eat that?" Pinkie Pie said as Fluttershy lowered it back into the basket. "I'm not in a mood to eat..." Fluttershy responded quietly. "Still full from that rabbit?" Discord said with a laugh, biting into an orange. Fluttershy shot him a glare, but quickly broke into tears. "It's a fact of life. Things die, and some things eat other things." Discord said as he waved the orange around. "You think the dragons eat only gems? That the Griffons only eat anything that doesn't move? Ha!" "I'd say you're becoming a fine young dragon, Miss Fluttershy." He laughed once more. If I were really a dragon, I'd find a cave to sit in forever. Fluttershy stood still and quiet, causing Discord's laughter to awkwardly pass. "Look, Fluttershy...if you can get past these things, you'll be much better. I promise you that!" He finished up the orange. ********* Later that night, Fluttershy tried drifting off to sleep once more. When she did, she found herself in a familiar place. It was a white room, as empty as it was the last time Fluttershy saw it. She also saw her friends. All six were there, including Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy was overjoyed to see their faces. "Girls!" She called out, but nopony responded. Soon after, Rainbow Dash disappeared, and the room changed color. The area Rainbow Dash stood turned black, leaving the rest of the room as it was. A small roar was heard from above. As Fluttershy looked up, she saw it. A giant Sleipnir hovered over the other ponies. None of them seemed to notice except Fluttershy, who screamed as it approached her. "Fluttershy..." "Please don't eat me..." "Fluttershy..." "What!? What do you want!?" She could feel the room getting colder as a chill went up her back and into her wings. She could see her friends, but she felt truly alone.