//------------------------------//
// The Dark Forest: An Inner Sanctum 
// Story: The Quest 
// by LightningBass94 
//------------------------------//

Trixie was the first to exit the forest, galloping as fast as her legs would carry her toward Ponyville. Rainbow had no issues keeping pace with the petite mage as she flew alongside her, but Spike was huffing and wheezing as his smaller legs scrambled to catch up with his equine companions. "This is...why I...never go on...these stupid adventures!" the drake protested between anguished gulps of air. Rainbow snickered at his whining, but Trixie was past the point of laughter. Leaving the chariot behind in lieu of her own four hooves, there was only a single thought on her mind.

"We can do this," she proclaimed. "There are six existing elements at our disposal. We can save Twilight!"

Rainbow was in awe as she watched the unicorn run, an expression of fierce determination painted on her face. Though her every move was calm and calculated, Trixie was terrified to be facing six more creatures just as powerful as Discord. She was a prodigy when it came to illusion, but only because her one true talent was a false bravado; that was the greatest illusion the actress had ever casted.

"I know, right!" Rainbow Dash chimed in, "Isn't it so awesome!? We're gonna' get to kick some monster flank and save the day!"

Ordinarily, Trixie might have agreed, even embellishing their "inevitable" victory alongside the pegasus, but she was far too focused on the task at hand. "We'll do nothing without the others. Luckily, collecting them will be simple. With this element, I can see them..." Both Rainbow and Spike looked at her as if she were insane.

Trixie rolled her eyes and looked forward once more, falling silent. They were quickly approaching her home, just a few meters more. Her Element of Harmony was amazing. Its magic was far more potent than that of the Alicorn Amulet, and as they got closer, Trixie could see the rest of her friends pacing or sitting within the Golden Oaks Library. In fact, she could accurately determine where everyone in Ponyville was and what they were doing. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Trixie determined this was to gauge the potential to surprise anypony at any given time.

With a shove of her magic, the door to the library slammed open, and Trixie came to a skidding halt in the middle of the room. The ponies inside had all stopped what they were doing, staring at Trixie in confused bewilderment. Rainbow came in right after her through an open window, and it was only a few seconds longer before Spike bounded through the door, collapsing from exhaustion. Trixie looked at each of her friends one by one.

By this time, they had begun to shake themselves out of their initial shock. Rarity was the first to show any sign of intelligence, running to embrace Trixie. "Oh, we were so worried, Darling!" she exclaimed. "Pulling away to the full length of her forelegs, Rarity still held on to Trixie by her shoulders. It was then she noticed the amulet around Trixie's neck. "Is that...?"

"An Element of Harmony?" Applejack asked, finishing Rarity's sentence.

Trixie nodded. "Yes, it is. There's no time to explain. We need to save Twilight. Are you all ready to travel?"

Fluttershy shook her head shyly in reply, and each of the others did so in turn. "Y-you know where Twilight's been taken to?" Fluttershy asked.

Rainbow came to the shy pegasus' side and gave her a reassuring side hug. "Don't worry, kay? We've got this. They're on the other side of the Everfree Forest, probably deep in the old mining tunnels."

Fluttershy nearly jumped out of her skin, and with a screech, she ducked behind the sofa. Rarity shot Rainbow Dash a glare, to which the pegasus just shrugged. "What?" Rainbow protested, "I just told her the truth. I knew she'd freak, but I couldn't just lie." It was then that Spike clambered up from the ground and made his way into the kitchen.

Rarity rolled her eyes and looked as if she would begin arguing back when a blue hoof smothered her lips. "This is no time to be arguing, girls! Twilight is in trouble! We need to save her!"

"And we will," Spike replied, walking from the kitchen with sandwich in hand. "Twilight's tough. She's an alicorn princess, for Celestia's sake. We're all a little worried, but I know she'll be okay. We can save her." He took a bite of his sandwich and addressed the rest of the group with his mouth full. "Les'sh get rrdy 'n meet up 'n thrrty minush."

The girls stared at the dragon with the blankest of expressions, trying to figure out just what he said before Pinkie began hopping out of the library. "Okie dokie, lokie. We'll get ready and meet back up in thirty minutes!" The rest of them chimed their understanding and relief for having the jumbled sentence explained before they too shuffled out of Twilight's home.





Twilight's hooves crunched upon twigs and dead leaves as she pushed forward. As fatigued as she felt, there was an itching feeling in her brain urging her to keep moving. The forest she continued to shuffle through was expansive and dark, far darker than the Everfree. W-where am I? she thought.

Between the darkness and the thick fog that blanketed her surroundings, Twilight could hardly see her hooves as they moved unsteadily below her. Up ahead in the distance, there was a pocket of light, and so she set course for that.

Stumbling and tripping on every root and rock that crossed her path, Twilight walked for what seemed like hours toward the light, yet it continued to evade her grasp, as if it were moving away from her the entire time. Tired and frustrated, she quickened her pace. It started as a steady jog, but before long she was galloping as quickly as she could toward the light, desperate to escape the accursed perdition she found herself in.

Nearer now, the light was just ahead. Twilight nearly held her breath in anticipation, staring straight at her goal as she pressed onward. Her hoof snagged on a particularly tall tree root, and the ground came rushing toward her. As she went tumbling forward, Twilight hardly noticed as she entered an expansive clearing.

Twilight lied there, bruised and broken on the forest floor, and with closed eyes she groaned. Bringing a voice to the agony she felt seemed odd. Within what seemed to be hours of solitude, Twilight had not spoken a word. The forest was deathly quiet and seemingly devoid of life, so the only noises to grace her ears had been the sound of her hooves as she stamped through the brush and her own labored breathing. Her voice seemed somehow foreign to her. She was a child, just learning to ride a bicycle, and yet she saw fit to continue. She opened her eyes then, and what she saw there prompted her to speak. "W-what is this place?"

Shakily, she rose to her hooves. The appendages had seen far too much abuse, but the sight before her distracted Twilight from her suffering. There in the clearing, the fog was lifted, and though it persisted, there wasn't enough left to hinder her field of vision. The clearing wasn't without trees, but they were fewer and farther between. Every tree seemed dead, even those that still stood, allowing for natural light to bleed through the thick clouds that hung overhead.

Moss littered the ground like a moist blanket. It was the first life form Twilight could recall other than trees and fungi. She determined this was the heart of the forest, still beating slowly as the body withered away. Accompanying the felled trees, rotting stumps jutted randomly from the mossy forest floor. No doubt the soil was rich in nitrogen and would make for excellent farmland if there was only more sunlight. Still, something must have happened to kill the trees here, and there were no visible signs of a fire.

Twilight sniffed the air, quickly scrunching up her nose as it was invaded by the pungent aroma of iron with a hint of sulfur. Perhaps it had been the site of a bloody battle, and the iron in the blood had soaked the earth, poisoning the trees. Twilight shuddered from the thought and turned her attention to the center of the clearing.

The piece of art erected there was jaw-dropping. It was an expansive four-story home made from stone the likes of which Twilight had never seen. It was ancient, far older than even that of the Castle of the Two Sisters. Though much of it had been blackened and eroded by the weather, and much of the rest was shrouded by dead vines, it was evident the stonework had been that of a master craftsman.

Each hand-chiseled slab had been meticulously calculated to withstand the test of time. Twilight pushed forward. Entranced by the building, she wished to get a closer look at its craftsmanship. The massive door was made from an ancient oak and blackened iron, remarkably well preserved considering how long it had served as an entrance to the home.

Yet, the home still had its design flaws. The second floor balcony looked rusted and unsteady, and many of the windows had no glass left to speak of. Though the shingles which comprised the roof were cut from the same stone as the walls, it was clear that the master who had designed such walls had no part in the shingles. Twilight could only hypothesize why such a meticulous and careful pony would allow for such substandard work to be displayed alongside his own.

As Twilight neared the large door, a symbol to the left of it caught her attention. She couldn't recall having ever seen it before, and yet it seemed highly familiar. It was a simple isosceles triangle with a cross inside it. Twilight spent some time attempting to decipher it until she grew tired of the puzzle. With a defeated sigh, she turned her attention once more to the door. She raised a hoof to open the door, all the while a chanting sounded in her head. Do it. Do it. Open the door. There was a childlike mischief to the words.





The sounds of animals and monsters sounded all around the girls as they trotted through the treacherous Everfree. It was impossible to discern just how close or far away these creatures were from the group, as their collective sounds rumbled through the forest. Applejack was the only one within the group that had been this deep in the Everfree Forest, much less all the way through it. Most of the group's adventures within the forest barely made a dent on any map of the expansive woodlands. Other than Applejack, Rainbow Dash was the only one who had been to the other side, though she'd flown over the forest canopy. Just that pilgrimage had been dangerous enough, with giant birds and tendrils shooting up from the forest to pull the pegasus to her death below.

As such, the two of them brought up the forefront of the group, heads on swivels for any sort of danger coming their way. No one dared speak, lest their voices attract unwanted attention. Fluttershy and Trixie stayed glued to the flanks of their more courageous companions, shaking in their fur as their overactive imaginations tormented them both relentlessly.

Spike and Rarity walked just behind them, rather leisurely, in fact. Rarity felt comfort in the company of her friends, confident that together they could overcome any obstacle. After all, this wasn't the first time any of them had looked danger in the eye and laughed. Spike, on the other hand, felt a sense of pride swelling within him for finally being included in an adventure. He dared any monster to attack, eagerly awaiting his chance to prove his worth.

Pinkie brought up the rear of the company, happily bouncing along the beaten path as if she were shopping in the familiar streets of Ponyville. One could only guess what was running through her head at that moment, and that individual would most likely be wrong.

They had been walking for hours through the forest, and a volcanic smoke was beginning to permeate the air. Applejack slowed to a stop. The others followed suit, giving her puzzled looks as she pulled her saddled bags off and began rummaging through them.

"Y'all are gonna' need these. Trust me," the farmpony explained as she pulled out several pairs of flame-retardant boots. She passed them around the group, skipping Spike of course. The drake was hardly in need of any protection from the heat. The rest of them, however, were covered in highly flammable fur. Rarity looked at the garments in disgust, but even she pulled them on after a moment.

The group was entering the murky swamp Applejack was all too familiar with. With the chimera previously dealt with, it was little to worry about, but the fire geysers still made the way treacherous.

The girls moved on, trudging through and sinking inches into a sludge that slowed their progress to a snail's pace. All around them, the surface bubbled and flames shot high into the air, scorching plants and cooking any misfortunate birds or bats that dared fly overhead. Each of them were being careful now, all aware of the very real danger they were in. The boots helped to keep them from burning in the boiling sludge; however, not one of them believed they would help much against one of the geysers.

The waves of heat crashed against them like the sea to the shore, trying to beat them back whence they came. The smell of sulfur hung pungent in the air. This swamp was like a hell on earth. Up ahead, a grand shadow stood in their way, and it seemed to be approaching them. The closer the creature got, the more ripples it caused. They all prepared for a fight.

After one more gust of heat wafted over them, the creature got close enough for them to see. There crouched a menacing dragon, just as large as the one they'd once tried to reason with atop a mountain. However, this was a swamp dragon. Apparently, it had taken advantage of the vacancy left by the chimera, and it had made the swamp its home. The dragon snarled, its teeth shining like the sun against its dark black-green scales.

"Ah, I see the gods have felt mercy enough to grace me with a meal," the dragon rasped. Acidic saliva poured from the corners of his mouth as he spoke. His tattered wings flared, and mud shook from them in clumps. "It's not often I find creatures foolish enough to traverse my swamp and cross my path. You have saved me the trouble of hunting you all down." The dragon cackled malevolently and lunged, his jaws snapping as his face smashed down right where they had been standing. The girls had all jumped out of the way, and Spike had backpedaled out of range. When the dragon opened his eyes once more, Spike was all he saw.

"And a whelp as well? What do you think you're doing, boy. Move now or suffer the same fate as your companions!" The dragon decided to show some mercy to his own kind.

Spike grimaced. "Absolutely not. I'd sooner let you eat me before you lay a claw on them!"

The swamp dragon grinned madly. "Hm. So be it, whelp. Before we do battle, what is your name?"

Spike puffed out his chest in an attempt to look bigger, more masculine maybe. "My name is Spike!"

"Spike, run!" Rarity called out from near the dragon's tail.

He looked back at his friend with fiery eyes that told of a dangerous mixture of emotion. "No!" he shouted back at her. "I have to do this, or he'll just come after us all! Go save Twilight, and I'll stay here. Believe in me!"

Rarity looked on with desperate eyes. She wanted nothing more than to drag her friend from harm's way, but Applejack was tugging on her shoulder. "C'mon," Applejack begged. "Le's go. He'll be alright. Y'know him. Little guy's tougher than he looks."

With reluctance, Rarity finally turned away and ran, tears left in her wake. Spike was left alone, caught in the gaze of the swamp dragon as they stared each other down. "I am Vilthinex, little whelp. I commend your courage for facing me alone in proper combat, but you are a fool." Vilthinex gave a toothy grin, venom dripping from his fangs.

Spike spat a ball of fire at the superior-sized dragon, surprised to find his venom to be flammable as Vilthinex's mouth caught on fire. Spike's eyes widened as his foe raised up on his hind legs and roared. Vilthinex's claws were busy trying to put out the fire, but his tail swung around to strike at Spike. In his shock, the drake never saw it coming, and the tail hit him like a truck, slamming him into a tree hard enough to have it come tumbling down on top of him.

More durable than his size would make one suspect, the dragon was just fine, and he breathed fire onto the tree to weaken it before he busted through with his claws in fists and a growl emanating from his lips. By this time, Vilthinex had successfully extinguished the flames engulfing his face. His eyes shown with a dangerous light. His face was charred black, and there were claw marks down one side of his face where he'd scratched his scales away in desperation.

"You will not survive the wrath you just invoked, little one. I will see you roasted slowly over your own flame," the swamp dragon threatened, stomping toward his prey.

Spike looked back at Vilthinex with the same deadly gaze. "I will be alive and well long after you're gone, old man. I have more to lose." He shot a flame at Vilthinex, but it was countered by a ball of acidic venom that dwarfed it in comparison. The ball was engulfed in flame, but it continued on its path.

Much to his annoyance, Vilthinex found Spike had managed to dodge out of the way. He scowled. "Why do you fight for those ponies?"

"That's of no concern to you, Vilthinex," Spike spat, glaring up at his opponent. "Come at me!"

Vilthinex's wild-eyed grin served to further accent his menacing presence. "With pleasure," he growled. He began to stomp toward Spike, but he was soon stopped in his tracks, uppercut by the sheer force of a geyser in his path. Ever the clever opponent, Spike had tricked him. In his murderous fury, Vilthinex had failed to see the swamp's surface bubble before him.

By the time the geyser had desisted, Spike was nowhere to be found. Vilthinex sniffed the air and spat at a random tree. The tree withered and melted at the venom's touch. "Come out, whelp. We have unfinished business. You cannot hide from me."

Spike hid behind a boulder, breathing heavily and gripping his sore body. Vilthinex's tail had done him more damage than he thought, and the pain was beginning to blacken his vision. He tried to stand, but found the effort such actions took too much for him. His eyes began to shut. I'm sorry, Twilight.