The prank I pulled on Twilight could have ended horribly if I didn’t have that camera. She was more focused on grabbing the camera than me at the time so that when she finally got ahold of it she crushed it into a ball. Needless to say that wasn’t what she was planning to do and it made her realize that her control over her magic needed to be refined again. Seeing as I had gone through the same problem recently I was able to give her a few tips. Of course it wouldn’t be Twilight without her coming up with some overly complicated checklist for her retraining.
Other than that and having to pry Rainbow Dash away from the barrel of cider I brought it was a rather typical Pinkie Party. It was a good thing everyone had so much fun as they were pulled away to the Crystal Empire for a few weeks the next day, and once they were finished there Twilight had to stay at Canterlot for a while longer while the rest returned home. I heard something about some strange adventure through a magic mirror but it was hard to tell what was real or not as it was Pinkie that I learned this all from.
Through that time I heard nothing from Princess Celestia on what she was going to do regarding Selene, though Princess Luna was visiting more often to see her. In fact she was actually able to spend a whole week over, which I used to go off into the Everfree to calm my nerves at having to interact with her sister again. I decided to explore a few areas that were close by this time that I hadn’t bothered to go through yet, namely the area around the castle ruins.
While it had been a while since I last explored the forest I could still tell that something was off soon after I entered. I had the distinct feeling of being watched the entire time, and even saw recent evidence of some of the creatures that live in the place, yet I didn’t see any of the actual creatures themselves. This made me think back to what happened when I went through the place with Spike and wondered if there was a connection there.
My attention was dragged away from this problem when I reached the castle and I made my way around to the backside of it. There I found what I believed to be the remains of the old city that went with the castle, but it was hard to tell as there wasn’t much left beyond the occasional pile of rubble or chunk of wall. I did notice something odd while I was there as there were a few trees that just looked off for some reason.
“I don’t know why, but I feel as if these trees look familiar for some reason.” I mutter to myself as I run my paws across the bark of the giant tree. They are easily some of the biggest trees I’ve seen before, dwarfing even the one the library is situated in. As I think that I realize that the trees I am looking at are of the same species as the library, and if this really is part of the old city then it is highly possible that they were once used in the same way.
“It’s strange though, I thought the library was a unique thing but if I’m right then it’s either older than it looks or it originated in the Everfree Forest. I guess the latter is a possibility as the Zap Apples of Sweet Apple Acres are supposed to be from the Everfree as well. It did seem odd that I have never seen any other tree homes like that before outside of this area, especially with how often Applejack complains about pegasi sleeping in her trees.”
While weaving through the large trees I kept an eye out for any that might still be in a livable condition. I could tell where the doors and some windows used to be, but time and lack of care had caused them to seal up as the tree grew into those spaces over time. I made note to check with Twilight about what she knew about how these trees could be grown and maintained. It could be useful to have a bolt hole or two out in the forest ready when I travel through and making it in a tree would be the perfect camouflage.
Soon enough I reached the edge of the grove of these trees and was once again in the more wild forest. I was brought to a halt though as I spotted a large number of timberwolves surrounding the area ahead of me. I knew I could easily handle them if I needed to but I was getting curious about their strange behavior that I just waited for them to make the first move. As I waited I took the time to examine them and noticed that there was one that was a bit different from the others.
First of all it was obviously larger than the others but not in the same way as when the smaller ones combine into a large one. This one actually seemed to naturally be the size it was which brought up another difference. While the others looked to be cobbled together from random bits of debris from trees, this one looked as if it was carved from a single tree causing it to have more of a lifelike appearance. The final difference though, was in the eyes which were glowing a cool blue color instead of the usual eerie green. Whatever was going on it seemed like this one was the leader as the others seemed to defer to it.
After watching each other for a few minutes the odd timberwolf let out a huffing sound before turning away from me which led to the other spreading out into the forest. It took a few steps away from me before it turned its head back to look at me and then started making odd motions. I wasn’t sure why it was doing this but it seemed like it wanted me to follow it for some reason. Seeing as I would have just wandered around at random anyways I decided to play along for a while as it wasn’t like I could get lost with my self-updating map in my packs.
As I followed the timberwolf I made sure to keep an eye out for any surprises as I had no idea what to expect from it. It seemed oddly intelligent compared to the others, which meant a trap wasn’t completely out of the question, yet that same intelligence would mean it would probably know that I could easily take on a large number of timberwolves with a few well-placed fire spells not to mention them not being able to breach my barrier spells easily. Still it felt odd to be following it through the forest as they used to always just attack everything on sight and this recent development could mean any number of things.
Thinking about it there really wasn’t that much I did know about timberwolves beyond what was common knowledge. Discord supposedly created them by corrupting some other creature, but seeing this new breed I was starting to suspect that something else created them first before he got ahold of them. That just led to the question of where this one was hiding as well as why it only now was showing itself.
I had plenty of time to think over this and other problems as I followed it deeper into the Everfree, far from any area I had explored yet. I did get distracted every so often as I am led through stands of fruit trees growing wild and even manage to snag a couple as we pass by. Two of them really catch my attention though as they both seem to be some breed of apple I hadn’t seen before which means Applejack would be interested.
The first one I had mistaken for a cherry at first, but on closer inspection as well as tasting it I found that it was some kind of crossbreed of both a cherry and apple. The second one was a much more dramatic find as I had to rush to a nearby stream and guzzle down water for a good while to get the burning sensation to leave my mouth. Even with that though, it was so sweet and juicy that I was still tempted to bite into another one. Of course if Applejack wanted nothing to do with it I know Pinkie Pie would definitely want some of them grown just for the pranking potential.
It wasn’t until late into the next day that we finally reached the destination that the odd timberwolf was leading me to. I don’t think I would have even found the place if I wasn’t being led to it either as we were pushing through heavy brush one moment, and the next we were all of a sudden near the center of a large clearing. The clearing wasn’t empty either, as I spotted three more of this new kind of timberwolf and they looked to be guarding an alabaster obelisk. Taking a closer look at the three timberwolves I noticed that their eyes weren’t glowing at all making me realize that they were inactive. It would make sense then why they were never seen before if they were only in this well-hidden area and weren’t mobile until recently.
The timberwolf that led me here, I noticed, had moved up to the obelisk and placed it’s paw atop it before turning towards me once more before moving to a vacant spot and suddenly going still. Curious as to why I was brought here, as well as what the obelisk was, I moved towards it until I could see that there was writing on it. I couldn’t quite make out what was written on it though as the words seemed to shift and morph as I watched. Deciding to copy what I saw before I placed a paw atop the obelisk and suddenly jerked upright as information flooded my mind.
A boon for a boon as granted by ancient law
From one ruler to another until time immortal
A boon for Ameterasu the wise and just ruler
Another to Tsukiyomi the defender of all that is pure
Unclaimed goes the third to the nation of Sionnach
A boon for the asking
A boon for a boon
By words immortal a boon shall be granted
Until the end of time shall this stone stand
Until the boon that is owed is claimed by the last
All that needs be done is to speak and be heard
The words of le do thoil a dheonú mo chabhair
From one to another a boon shall be heard
And by immortal law shall the boon be given
I don’t know how long I stood there but by the time I came to again the sun had nearly set. My head was aching from whatever the obelisk did to me but the words as well as the language felt as if they were permanently burned into the inside of my skull. I decided to rest at the edge of the clearing until the next day while I thought over what just happened. I had never felt this type of magic before but it truly did feel ancient. I tried to actually vocalize what I learned from it, but found myself unable to speak the words near the end of it for some reason. With my mind swirling at the implications of all this I soon fell asleep.
I awoke pretty refreshed the next morning and decided to head back home again. Calculating the days I realized that it was almost the summer solstice again and knowing Pinkie Pie she probably would have some party planned today, even if it was just for the anniversary of me arriving in town. While unlikely I felt it was in the interest of my sanity to be there just in case. Of course I found an oddity with the area when I pulled out my map as it wouldn’t show up for some reason. The map started working fine once I exited the clearing which hinted at some very powerful magic being used to seal off and hide the area. Luckily it didn’t stop me from making a note on the map at the entrance to it in case I needed to come back here for whatever reason.
Heading back was rather uneventful, barring another experience with those irresistible fire apples, until I reached the area near the castle. Some strange black thorny vines were growing out of the ravine by the castle and looked to be growing in the direction of town. They were behaving rather erratically as I passed by them on the way home and I realized that I could feel the magic coming off of them and immediately recognized it. “Now what is Discord up to? Did he decide he was done being friends and go back to his old ways again?”
I picked up the pace along the path to my home and was soon met with an odd sight. I found a patch of vines dragging their way back from the direction of my home and looked as if they were carrying something. I watched whatever it was inside of it lightly struggle and my eyes widened when I caught the sight of a pitch black feather. Realizing who was inside of it I used my magic like I usually do with Discords magic and watched as the vine faded away into a mass of bubbles. I quickly rush forwards as they start to pop and catch Selene on my back as she falls out of the mass of pearlescent globes.
“Who?! What?! Flarenza! It’s you! You have to get back to the town fast, these vines started just growing out of the Everfree and started taking over the town! They were avoiding your house for some reason but grabbed me when I left your property.” I pondered this for a second and decided they were avoiding that area either because they don’t react well to the magic there or because they couldn’t sense it at all. Of course in my moment of distraction I didn’t see more vines sneaking up on us until Selene yelled out a warning.
Of course seeing as it was Discord’s magic and I knew about it coming it wasn’t hard to banish the vines into other odd shapes. “Don’t worry Selene, I’ll bring you back home and see what I can do about these things. I don’t know what Discord is thinking doing something like this though.” Selene seems surprised by this information for some reason as we make our way towards my property. “Are you sure it was him that’s doing this? He was hanging around watching me and the other Cutie Mark Crusaders doing stuff when this started and he looked surprised.”
This piece of information was disturbing as I could distinctly feel his magic, and if he was surprised then the implications of this all were staggering. “Well I’ll find out once we get you somewhere safe.” Getting through the forest was slowly becoming a pain as more and more vines kept converging on us. It seemed as if they were specifically targeting Selene for some reason as they completely ignored me before, though me attacking them could have set them off as well.
Soon enough we reached the boundaries of my property to be met with a virtual wall of thorny vines. It looked as if they were climbing up the edge of the bubble that surrounded my property as if it was a physical thing. With my gave following it up I noticed that they went all the way up into the cloud and were somehow changing the ones they touched into some kind of thorn cloud. Not wanting to waste any more time I cleared a path through the vines and dashed into the clear area of my land.
From there it was a simple thing to rush Selene home and drop everything off before going to track down Discord. Finding him wasn’t all that hard considering the bright clothing he was wearing for some reason and I rushed over to him. As I neared I noticed Twilight taking off for the forest, probably in the direction of the castle knowing her and trouble. Depending on what I learned from Discord would decide on if I follow her or not.
“All right Discord, what is going on and what do you have to do with it?” It always is satisfying seeing how high he can jump whenever I sneak up on him. Somehow he never sees or senses me coming, probably why he acts like he does around me. He does recover quickly as he turns and looks at me. “Oh, it’s you. I was hoping you had disappeared into the Everfree for good this time but I guess that would be too much to hope for. What makes you think I have anything to do with this anyways? Didn’t you hear? I’m reformed now.” He tries to put on an innocent display but I don’t buy it.
“Well how about the fact that this situation has you written all over it?” He rolls his eyes at me and winces when I kick them back into his head. “You know I had this same conversation with the others already and as I said this wasn’t me. What kind of friends don’t know how to trust each other anyways?” It was my turn at the eye-rolling, without the part where they fall out of my head.
“I’m not sure if I’d consider you a friend, especially with how overboard you have been with all those pranks.” I pause for a second to think. “Though, granted, you have been cutting back a bit after you set yourself on fire then turned yourself into an ice cube when you tried to put the flames out in the lake.” I chuckle as I remember that moment though he doesn’t share in my mirth. “Either way you forget I can sense your magic which these vines are crawling with. Also for some reason they were targeting Selene and… Why is the sky split into day and night like that?”
Only now do I notice the fact that both the sun and the moon are out though I’m not sure how I missed it before. His meant either the vines were doing something else to the sky or something happened to both Luna and Celestia. That would make three alicorns that would have been attacked, yet they didn’t seem to be going after Twilight like the ones I saw. Discord had been busy rubbing his chin the entire time I thought through this.
“Selene. Selene. Now who was that again? Oh yes, that little Nightmare Moon look-a-like. Well I don’t know why they would be doing that, and you say you felt my magic in these things?” I proceed to demonstrate by showing him what happens to a nearby vine, which turns into a rope of black licorice which I kick away in disgust. “Oh well I guess they might be mine then. Come to think of it you might be right about it being me, just not me me.”
I wait impatiently for him to continue. “I just remembered that these were planted a long time ago before I was first turned into a pigeon toilet.” He shudders at the memory and continues. “They were supposed to capture little Celly and Lulu but something went wrong and I guess they are only now sprouting. Oh but don’t worry, Princess Twilight Sparkle is on the case and soon everything will be all better.” I’m not sure if I should believe him or not, but if what he says is true it would explain why Selene was abducted as well as she is very similar to Luna. Of course at that moment a wave of rainbow colored energy was traveling down the vines, destroying them as it went.
“See? What did I tell you, all better now.” I just shake my head at him before finding a nearby bench to lie on while waiting for Twilight to return. Discord decided to do his usual thing and put up some banners and signs near the forest entrance in his usual patronizing style. It was about an hour later when Twilight and her friends came out of the forest and were met by Discord. I started to make my way over to find out what I had missed and arrived as they were about to part ways again.
“SO Twilight, what did I miss while I was out of town again? And did Discord tell you that the vines were his fault?” She seems glad to see me but lets out a groan at the last bit. “Oh yes, but only after we had already fixed everything by returning the Elements of Harmony to where they belong. I’m not sure if we can ever use them again so I really hope we don’t need them again. Discord was bad enough with them being available to use on him, but now he’s probably going to be unbearable. And really we went through a lot of trouble to return them when he probably could have just snapped his fingers and fixed his own mistake. Of course now that I think about it, it would probably be best not to let too many others know that we may not be able to use the Elements for anything big now.” She lets out an unsure laugh at this last bit, though I wonder where they returned the Elements to. Since it had something to do with the vines and they were coming from the ravine by the castle I made note to check it out later for curiosities sake.
“Well I guess that’s good to know just in case. Of course if you need help handling Discord I could always try and turn him into an ice cube again. It would be a good deterrent at least since it took Princess Celestia a good week to thaw him out.” This gets a few laughs as they remember that incident and they brighten up a bit, though Fluttershy just frowns slightly. “Well since everything seems to be fine now I guess I should go back and get cleaned up. An event like this after a week in the forest doesn’t give you much time to clean up easily, well unless you are Rarity.” This earns a few more laughs and an indignant humph from the white unicorn though she does have a tiny smile even with the teasing.
Just before I leave I remember what I found in the forest. “Oh yeah, you might want to come over when you can Applejack and Pinkie. I found some interesting apples this trip that you might want to try. I’m not sure about one of them but I’m pretty sure you haven’t had anything like the other one.” I try to hide my grin as I try to picture their reactions to the fire apple.