Day 7 Supply Check
- 5x Crates of 12 Applies
- 1x Makeshift Spear
- 3lb Lion Ant Meat (Ew? Not Gonna' Happen)
- 1x Equestrian Military Bow. 7x Steel Arrows. 30x Makeshift Wooden.
- 2x Crates Medical Supplies. Bandages, stitches, that kind of thing. Wish someone knew what they were doing with it...
- 6x Loaves of Semi-Fresh Bread
- NO Cider Whatsoever!
POA: Even if there's only four of us at the moment, we NEED more food if we're ever gonna get out of here. Otherwise, we're soooo boned.
- R. Dash
When Rainbow's eyes fluttered open, she expected to find herself in the darkness of the Everfree Forest. Instead, she found herself faced with absolute oblivion. She was surrounded by a black void, blacker than the most silent cave in the deepest of nights. Yet for some reason, she could still see her hooves. It was then when it hit her that she had to be dreaming.
"Huh," she said, standing up. "Well, this is a weird one..."
She didn't often have lucid dreams, but the few she did have weren't anything like this. They usually involved her flying, being awesome, or a mix of the two.... though mostly the latter.
"Mph, not like weird things haven't been happening lately anyway," she grunted, before rolling her eyes. "Though that's the total understatement of the century."
With a flap of her wings, she went airborne, hoping her mind would conjure something in the empty void. Nothing came-- it was the same blackness everywhere. Sighing in defeat, she eventually floated back to the 'ground', though the fact that it was nearly indistinguishable from the sky almost caused her to crash land.
"Oh, come on!" Rainbow shouted towards the heavens. "Everything's going crazy outside of my dreams! Come on, brain, can't you give me something?"
"My... aren't we a... talkative one?" a strange, ethereal voice suddenly croaked from behind her. Its speech was disjointed, odd, as if it hadn't completely mastered the Equestrian language.
She twirled about, gasping in horror at what stood before her. It was a bipedal figure, much taller than her, with gleaming, green eyes upon a fur-less body. Perhaps that was the reason it chose to wear a straight-kept suit, though one much more different than those made for ponies. It covered it nearly in its entirety.
"W-Woah!" she gasped, her ears sagging as she tried to contain her fear. "W-What are you supposed to be?"
"I'm afraid... that question can be answered at this moment." The suited stranger then knelt down, its eyes unblinking, unemotional, yet its voice was filled with a strange, almost malicious darkness. "I don't believe... your time has come just yet in full. I have... other, mmmm, 'clients', to deal with, so I will have make this terse: where have your friends run off to?"
Rainbow swallowed hard, glancing away from it, her shame overtaking her fear. "I-I don't know. They were taken by these... these creatures when this whole thing began. And Fluttershy..." She closed her eyes. "She just disappeared one night... I should have done a better job keeping my eye on her..."
"Mmmmm," the entity pondered. "Then you should probably... focus all efforts on finding them, hm? When you can answer my question, we will speak again..."
"Speak again?" Rainbow said, a sudden bravery overtaking her. "What are you talking about, buddy? This is my dream. You were made by me! We can talk any time I feel like it..." She shivered slightly. "Not that I'd ever want to..."
With that, to Rainbow's horror, the creature let loose a sinister, guttural chuckle. "Wake up and... smell the ashes, my dear." Its eyes then narrowed, silent yet burning into her. "This is no one's... dream."
Rainbow woke up, panting furiously. She was no longer in darkness. Instead, the familiar, and ironically comforting sight of the Everfree Forest's embrace loomed over her, blocking out the alien skies that so reminded her of her predicament. The forest was virtually untouched by the alien fauna and flora that had begun appearing everywhere else for some reason. Whether it was the Tree of Harmony's doing, she didn't know, but what she did know was that while the Everfree Forest did bare some foragable food within it, her rumbling belly quickly reminded her that it wasn't enough.
"Ms. Dash, are you alright?" Time Turner blinked, him and the others sitting by a small tinder file nearby. Rainbow knew that in all his brilliance, Turner already knew the answer, but she didn't feel like talking about it either way.
She glanced away from him. "Yeah, just had a weird dream."
Turner raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" She could tell his inquisitive eyes were analyzing her, but unlike the entity's in her dream, they didn't really give her much discomfort. Still, talking about it was the last thing on her mind. It was daylight, or the current version of it, which meant there wasn't much time for foaling around.
"Mmm, Princess Celestia's still raising the sun," Rainbow said, sighing in relief. "A good sign."
"E'Yup," Big Mac nodded.
"Though I've got to wonder what that big blue shield surrounding Canterlot is all about?" Lyra said. "It doesn't look like any spell I've ever seen..."
"They could be trapped by something," Rainbow noted.
"Or," Time Turner said, raising a hoof. "Perhaps they're simply trying to keep themselves safe."
"They're not cowards!" Rainbow spat. "If they could do something about all of this, they would!"
"I don't think their actions have to do with fear," Time Turner said calmly. "More with pragmatism. If they were to be attacked, they may not be able to fulfill their roles any longer, nor contend with the new worlds hovering over Equestria. My best guess is that they're the only ones keeping them from crashing down on us."
Lyra shot him a blank look. "Why do I always get the feeling that you know a lot more than you're letting on?"
"I know as much as you do about the present situation," Turner said innocently.
"Not just about the present situation, either," Lyra said suspiciously.
"Alright, alright!" Rainbow moaned. "I'm sorry for even starting this. Come on, we can't start getting all paranoid, that's the last thing we need. You guys gotta fight that kind of thing - it'll only get worse the hungrier we get."
"E'Yup," Big Mac nodded.
Time Turner smirked at him. "Always one to call it as you see it, huh?"
He nodded again. "E'Yup."
"He should direct weddings, they'd certainly be much quicker, and in my book, that's always a good thing," Time Turner smiled, before hopping off the log he was sitting on. "Now then. Speaking of being hungry..."
"He's right," Lyra said, agreeing. "We need to keep scavenging food."
"And look for more survivors," Rainbow added. "During my last flight over Ponyville, I didn't see many bodies. I think a lot of ponies did what we did and ran for it when those... those bugs started crawling through town."
"Those bodies," Lyra said softly. "Anypony--"
"No, most of them were guards," Rainbow said, giving Lyra a bit of guilty relief. "They died trying to defend us... but I think they succeeded. I didn't really see any civilian bodies."
"A shame more of them didn't go into Everfree," Time Turner said, his voice turning sorrowful for the first time. "Something's been keeping it relatively clear."
"Yeah, but it's still dangerous in here," Lyra said. "The aliens are scary, yeah, but here thar be Manticores."
"Trust me, I know how dangerous the Everfree Forest is," Rainbow said. "But we gotta go with the devil we know at the moment. Plus, once we got enough supplies we can roll over to the castle me and my friends were trying to fix up. I'd bet we'll find more refugees there. We'd be safe from both aliens and Everfree monsters."
"Yeah, hopefully," Lyra smiled.
Rainbow smiled at her. "That's the spirit, Lyre!"
"Lyra," she moaned.
"Hehe, sorry," Rainbow said, blushing slightly. "Terrible with names..."
"That was the fifth time, though," Big Mac said, chuckling lightly.
"Sixth, actually," Time Turner said, joining in with Big Mac.
"Alright, shut up, you guys!" Rainbow said, rolling her eyes and sticking her tongue out. "Out of all the stallions I had to get stuck with, it had to be the ones who think they're funny."
"You were askin' for it," Big Mac smiled.
"Yeah, yeah," Rainbow groaned. "You guys about ready to do a day's work or are we gonna sing campfire songs all day?"
"Call it, Rainbow," Turner nodded. "Who's doing what?"
"Right," Rainbow nodded. "Okay, you and me are going to skirt town and see if we can find any survivors, Turner. My eyes plus your brain should make this easy."
"Sounds good to me," he shrugged. "I'll strike the fire before we move out, then." With a cry of his odd, favorite saying ("Allonz-y!"), he was off, a bucket held in his muzzle.
"Man, that guy is weird," Lyra said, once he was out of range.
Rainbow raised an eyebrow, her voice growing sarcastic. "Then you two would make the perfect couple."
"Heh, maybe," Lyra pondered. "He is kind of cute--" Her eyes widened. "Hey, wait a minute!"
Rainbow smirked. "What goes around comes around. But yeah-- you and Big Mac are gonna hit Sweet Apple Acres."
"We already checked there for food," Big Mac pointed out. "There ain't nothin' there."
"That's a double negative, though!" Lyra said excitedly. "So that means there is, right?"
Big Mac gave her a deadpan glance. "E'Nope."
"Are you absolutely positive, Big Mac?" Rainbow asked.
He nodded. "The fields were harvested before the Portal Storms started. We already got what wasn't sold to Filthy Rich in them crates we have," he explained, though he quickly furrowed his brow a second later, tapping his chin. "Although..."
"Although what?" Rainbow said.
"Mmm," Big Mac said, sighing slightly. "Well, there might be a chance that the personal bounty ain't gone yet. We always keep a few trees to ourselves for fresh fruit. It might not get us much, but..."
"At least it'll get us somewhere!" Lyra proclaimed.
"E'Yup."
"Alright, sounds good," Rainbow said. "You two be careful, though. The last I checked, those fields are covered by those stupid giant ant things."
"The lion ants?" Big Mac grunted. "Well, as long as there ain't too many of em'..."
"I've seen a few of them burrowing though... digging through the earth like it's nothing," Lyra shivered.
"Mmm, be hard for them to dig through there with all the tree roots," Big Mac said.
"Still, be careful," Rainbow said, before taking hold of the make-shift spear she had made the other day. It wasn't really anymore than a large, sharpened tree-branch, but Rainbow had put her heart into it. "You want to take the spear?"
"Na, I'd be better off buckin' anything we see," Big Mac noted. "Be for the best-- those things take training to get good at."
"And a lot to make," Rainbow nodded, smiling proudly down it. "We learned how to make these during Wilderness Survival training in the Wonderbolts Reserve. You'd be surprised how often Pegasi can break their wings and get stuck somewhere."
"You should teach us one of these days!" Lyra grinned.
"Easy, Lyra," Rainbow said, annoyed. "You need to be focusing on what Unicorns do best: shooting things with their horns. Have you even been reading that combat magic guide I found?"
"Erm... reading isn't much of a problem," Lyra peeped. "However, putting it into practice..."
"We're gonna need more than just bows and spears to defend ourselves, I'm betting," Rainbow said, a no nonsense look on her face. "Just keep it up every chance you get."
"Hehe!" Lyra giggled. "That's what he said!"
...
There was absolute silence save for the crackle of the fire. Big Mac looked at Rainbow, a knowing, horrified gaze on him. Rainbow returned the glance. After a few, eternally long seconds, Big Mac looked at Lyra, an utmost serious expression on his face, and said:
"E'Nope."
Lyra sighed, folding her arms with a light frown. "Pinkie thinks those jokes are funny."
Rainbow stuck her tongue out. "And Pinkie needs to stop spreading those jokes around."
She made a pouty noise, her frown deepening.
Rainbow chuckled. "Don't worry, we're just messin' with ya, Lyra."
"E'Yup... sorta," Big Mac said.
"Yeah yeah yeah," Lyra moaned. "Come on, Big Mac, let's get going. Maybe we'll find somepony who appreciates my awesome jokes!"
"Yuh huh," he grunted, before nodding towards Rainbow. "Right now. Take care, Ms. Dash."
"Ms. Dash, huh?" Rainbow blushed. "When did we switch from a first to last-name basis?"
"I just think you earned the title," he smiled.
"Well, thank you then, Mr. Mac," she winked.
"Bleh," Lyra gagged, rolling her eyes. "Come on. Better separate you two lovebirds before this gets any worse. Come on, Mac N' Cheese!"
Big Mac gave her an incredulous glance, to which she merely smiled innocently at, before turning back to Rainbow. She merely covered her mouth, trying to repress giggles. "Erm... hehe... good hunting, Big Mac."
"E'Yup," he moaned.
"Woo yeah!" Lyra beamed, grabbing him and tugging him towards the forest exit, singing:
"Adventure time!
Come grab your friends!
We'll go to most distant lands!"
Rainbow Dash blinked when they were out of sight, a literal look of worry on her. "He's gonna kill her."
"Who's gonna kill wah?" Time Turner asked from behind her. He was busy pouring a bucket of water on their small fire, letting loose a plethora of steam and a titanic hiss.
"Eh, nothing," Rainbow shrugged. "Come on, let's get goin'."
"Sounds good to me," Time Turner nodded, making a quick few notes in the journal he had a habit of carrying around. He soon finished and stuffed it in his travel bag, before giving Rainbow a quick salute. "Lead the way, then."
With that, Rainbow nodded back, gripped the Ranger bow she had found, slung its respective quiver, and began their search.
Multiverse Lifeform Notes
On the worst case scenario and me and my companions don't make it out of here, I hope whoever finds this journal will make use of it. My name is... or was, I suppose you could say in this case, Time Turner. I've encountered many strange creatures in my peculiar occupation, but I've been very overwhelmed by the massive number I've encountered in the last few days. I'll be using this to make notes on them all. Naturally, this has to do with the massive Resonance Cascade Failure likely occurring throughout the multiverse, but I won't bore you with the technical wibblly dibblies.
Anywho, one of the first creatures I've encountered, and what seems to make up a large majority of the creatures I've seen around Ponyville, are the buggers best described as lion-sized Ants. I'll call them Pincers for now, though Lyra's idea of Antlion is starting to grow on me. Anywho, there's nothing much to know about these entities. They're definitely hostile, from what I've seen, though whether this could simply be because of a territorial nature isn't known yet. What is known is that you don't want one to get within spitting distance of you.
They're capable of quick bursts of flight with two, hidden insecticide wings, making them even more dangerous, and their frontal talons can easily rip flesh. They seem to have some type of hive mind, and rely on pheromones in order to mark potential threats, though each is capable of acting as a single entity. The good news is that, like with other insectoid creatures I've encountered, certain sounds in the ultra-sonic range could likely passify them. However, without the tools to create such a sound, a sufficient blunt trauma aimed at their heads should do the trick. I'm not one for harming mother nature, but self-defense is self-defense.
That's all for now. Stay frosty, Skitter.
Note: If your name isn't Skitter, disregard that. However, if it is, bet you were pretty freaked out there, weren't you? Haha!
A few minutes later, the duo began cutting through a thicket of brush, heading in the direction of Fluttershy's cabin.
"Heh, it's kind of funny," Rainbow Dash spoke up.
"What's that?" Time Turner asked.
Rainbow Dash glanced at him, ducking under a heavy branch. "Just seems like this is the first time I've ever spent time with you for more than a minute or too, ya know?"
"Mmm, well," Time Turner shrugged. "Ponyville is a big town. You can't possibly hope to know everypony in it. Unless you're that bouncy pink one, that is."
"Heh, you mean Pinkie Pie?" Rainbow laughed. "But still. You've lived here as long as I have, though the only pony I've ever seen you with is Derpy."
"And what's wrong with Derpy?"
"Oh, nothing!" Rainbow quickly stated. "Derpy's like a sister to me. We were buds back in flight camp. I uh... kind of looked out for her... just like--" She paused, wincing at the thought of Fluttershy.
"She mentioned the same to me," Time Turner smiled.
"Yeah," Rainbow sighed, silencing herself for a moment.
The two continued their trek through the brush in silence for a moment, before Time Turner broke it.
"She'll be alright, you know, Fluttershy, that is," he said confidently. "Everypony will. I'll make sure of it."
"Well, glad you're feeling optimistic at least," Rainbow mumbled.
He smiled lightly, a certain ethereal twinkle in his eye. "Believe it or not, I've seen situations similar to the one we're in. Perhaps not of its scope, but similar..."
Rainbow turned her head towards him, giving him a sarcastic smirk. "What, in a science fiction movie?"
His smile didn't falter. "Something like that." He then frowned lightly, glancing away from her. "I just wish my tools I need to help fix this were working at the moment... this Resonance Cascade seems to disabled most of them."
"A Resonance wah?" Rainbow said, giving him an odd look.
"A Resonance Cascade Failure," Time Turner explained. "This isn't some freak act of nature. Someone, somewhere caused this; most likely by meddling in sciences not many should be meddling in." He tapped his chin, before muttering to nopony in particular, "Perhaps an accidental folding of the 13th and 17th dimensions via influence on the 7th through a Class Q manipulation of strange matter overfolds--
"Woah, woah! What?" Rainbow blinked. "What are you talking about? You're starting to sound like Twilight when she's had too much coffee."
"Huh," Time Turner said, shrugging. "I suppose I'll take that as a compliment. She's fairly brilliant, you know. But um... layman's terms... layman's terms... ah!" He began to make circular shapes with his muzzle. "Alright, think of our universe as a bubble. Now think of the 13th and 17th dimensions as a sort of membrane surrounding said bubble. A manipulation of the 7th, which controls the thickness of said membrane could theoretically thin that membrane and... well... the rest is obvious."
Rainbow Dash nodded slowly, an incredulous look on her. "Righhht. And you learned this at... clock fixing school?"
He smirked. "It requires a lot of spatial thinking."
"Uh huh," Rainbow said, shaking her head while, unknown to Time Turner, making a twirling, 'he's crazy' gesture with one of her hooves. "Right, we'll talk about this later once I've uh... gone to the library a few more times. I think we're getting close."
"Better than close," Time Turner said, pointing ahead. "We're here."
Indeed, they were. Gazing out of the forest, Fluttershy's cabin was dead ahead, boarded up and seemingly abandoned. However, it wasn't what grabbed the duo's attention. Shuffling in formation in the distant Ponyville were a number of strange, humanoid figures. They appeared to be wearing some sort of heavy, blue suits, complete with a full-head-cover gas masks. In their hands they held a number of strange looking box-like objects that somewhat resembled the weapons Rainbow had known the griffins to use, muskets. However, the most peculiar thing about them was their chatter, which seemed to consist of deep, distorted growls that could be heard as far as even Rainbow and Time Turner.
"Overwatch. Civil sector sweep reports no sapient contacts. Class-2 Biotics have cleared the place out. Multiple Type-26 entity casualties. Be on high alert for more active biotics. Over."
"Woah, who are these guys?!" Rainbow gulped. "And why do they all sound like they've been drinking too much hard cider?"
Time Turner shared her worried look. "Trouble."