Living Mark of Courage

by Moowell

The Patrol

Epona equipped Snowshoe and trotted along Fluttershy's large branches. It was like a small city within the foliage, with each branch being a street and each large plume of leaves a home to birds and squirrels and other creatures. And changelings. She kept a wary eye out for the strange ponies, all the while searching for the safe that would contain the Element of Kindness.

'Epona, be careful. More changelings have entered the clearing. I won't be able to hold my Stare on all of them.'

"Thanks for the warning, Miss Fluttershy." Epona quickened her pace. "By the way Miss Fluttershy... Do ya have any idea where the safe is supposed to be? No offense, but you're a really big tree. It'll take ages to search every nook and cranny."

'You can find the safe at the top of my trunk, almost directly in the center of my foliage.' Epona looked up. She was near the bottom edge, where the branches had been low enough for her to reach. Several changelings flew past her and into the deeper reaches of the tree. More were flying up from other areas around the clearing and into the higher branches, carrying wingless variants and dropping them onto Fluttershy.

"That's not fair..." Epona tucked her feather deeper into her mane and jumped from branch to branch, slowly making her way up.

A glint of moonlight shining off of a set of shiny carapaces caught her eye, so she paused her ascent and hid among Fluttershy's leaves. A patrol of five changelings was roving the area and heading in her direction. If she moved from her spot, she would be seen and probably attacked, but if she didn't move soon, the patrol would be on top of her.

There was no helping it. She had to move.

"Time to see if these seeds are everything Miss Fluttershy said they were..." Epona withdrew her slingshot and her seed satchel and looked inside. It held five different types of seeds, including the ones used for bullets and the Pegasus seeds. 'Ember' seeds were supposed to burst into flame when they struck something. 'Gale' seeds magically created a sudden rush of wind when broken, and 'scent' seeds would give off a smell that attracted most, if not all, of the creatures nearby. Epona knocked a gale seed and fired it directly into the center of the patrol.

Immediately upon striking the branch, the seed formed a small but violent tornado, catching all of the changelings in its wind and swinging them around each other like balls tethered to a pole. It dissipated a moment later, flinging them all in different directions. One of them flew over Epona's head and nearly took her with it.

She watched the changelings fall as she trotted along the branch. Then she watched them reorient themselves mid-air and start flying back. One of them pointed and chittered loudly at her. The others immediately trained themselves and flew toward her position. "Aww, ponyfeathers..."

Epona began to run. She ducked and jumped as the five changelings flew past, trying to strike her and knock her off the branch. With each pass, they got closer and closer, until finally one of them clipped her hind quarters and sent her rolling on her side. She rolled and slid to the edge of the branch, barely managing to keep from falling. She slowly climbed her way back up, watching her step and making sure not to slip. Only when she reached the top of the branch did she allow herself to look up.

Just in time to see a changeling crash directly into her chest.

The two fell. Epona tried to force the changeling away, but it held fast with its holed hooves and snapped at her with its fanged mandibles. "Get off me, ya dumb bug!" A small seed formed in her hoof which she rammed into the changeling's hard carapace.

A vortex of air immediately swirled around them and tore them apart from each other, flinging them in opposite directions. The changeling flew into another patrol while Epona crashed into the side one of Fluttershy's limbs. She shook her head to get rid of the ringing, then she opened her eyes to see the branch getting further away and eight changelings following her down.

She drew out her boomerang and threw it, striking and stunning two of the changelings before it returned. She prepared to throw it again when she saw another branch go by. She turned her head behind to see. There were only two branches left before she would reach the ground! She pulled out her leaf but then realized that the changelings would be able to catch her easily if she slowed down. But if she didn't stop her fall, she would either be back where she started or dead.

A quick mental search of her inventory gave her an idea as another branch quickly approached. She put her leaf away and pulled out her fishing rod, then flung the line out line as she passed the branch, allowing it to wrap around and hook into the wood. The line went taught, jerking her to the side and up underneath the branch. As she came around over the top, she put her rod away, launching herself at the incoming changelings.

Her power bracelets formed around her hooves as passed through the group and caught two of them in her hooves. She slammed them against each other and against the branch as she landed. She quickly pulled out her slingshot and aimed a hard seed back at the group of enemies, sending the bullet straight through a gossamer wing. The changeling screeched and flew out of control, crashing to the ground below.

Epona ran and started jumping from branch to branch, climbing back up into the tree. The last three changelings flanked her from a safe distance then began to fire a sort of goo from their mouths. One of the shots caught Epona's back leg, trapping and holding it against the branch.

As the filly struggled to free herself, the enemies continued to fire blob after blob. She drew out her sword and shield and hacked at the solidifying glue, but her little sword wasn't strong enough to cut through and her shield was becoming difficult to use from the uneven weight applied by the goo.

On of the changelings flew to her other side. A blob struck her flank. Another caught her sword hoof. Another hit her side and oozed down, solidifying as it reached the branch. Another landed on her back and dripped over the other side. Soon, she was covered in the glue from head to hoof with only her head and belly left untouched. The three changelings leaned their heads back and prepared to finish the job. Epona quickly reached over to her shield, grabbed it with her teeth, and hid it underneath her as three blobs struck the back of her head, holding it against her body.

Having completely cocooned their foe, the three changelings landed on the branch. One of them chittered then flew off toward the center of the tree while the others stood guard on either side.

"Oh, this is gonna hurt..." The changelings turned toward the cocoon and peered at it. A moment later, a strange sound could faintly be heard from inside, almost like something was sizzling. Suddenly the cocoon shattered and exploded outward, blasting them away from Epona.

The filly groaned and spat a little white string out of her blackened mouth, then pulled out her boomerang and struck the two dazed changelings with it, knocking them unconscious. Then she removed her shield from her belly and rested.