Chapter 15
Twilight Sparkle paced back and forth in front of the carriage. “Girls, Princess Celestia has given us a very important mission. This is probably the most important mission we've had yet.” Though she wore an air of confidence, she felt anything but. “We are going after not just Discord, but also Morrigan.”
With an anxious sigh, Applejack spoke softly, “Ah'm not sayin' we shouldn't be doin' this and all sugar-cube...” She dug idly at the ground with a forehoof. “It's just... We nearly lost it all when we fought Discord last time. Ah honestly don't see good odds for us if we're fighting two 'Draco-whatsits.'”
Princess Luna strode to Twilight Sparkle's side, as if to reinforce her sister's faithful student. “Fear not, Honest Applejack.” Her tone was confident, and reassuring, nothing like the way she was on Nightmare Night. “Morrigan is not at her full power at the present time; our human friend is a vessel for a good portion of her power. For added measure, I have volunteered my abilities to assist in this endeavor.”
Rainbow Dash seemed to perk up at those last words. “Alright!” she cheered. “With the Princess on our side, we'll be unstoppable!”
“Since we are likely to be facing both Draconequus siblings at once, Princess Celestia has granted us full use of the Elements of Harmony.” Twilight said, more confident now that Luna had her back. “In addition, we are granted free access to any supplies we may need, as this is not likely to be a simple affair.”
The Alicorn Princess ignited her horn, and from within the carriage a familiar jewel-encrusted container floated out and presented itself to Twilight. With a nod of gratitude towards the Princess, the lavender unicorn enveloped the case in her own levitation spell. Quietly, Twilight floated the Elements of Harmony from the box towards their living embodiments.
After a moments pause, Twilight glanced down at the ground. “Girls, we can't expect Goldenrod to solve all of this. Rather, if he does anything in an attempt to stop Morrigan, he'll die.” There was an audible gasp from the group. This was the first any of them had heard this; Twilight and Luna had remained deliberately silent on the matter, hoping to tell Goldenrod in person. “The only thing keeping him alive is the very limited magical energy he expends each time he does something.”
Except Twilight and Princess Luna, everypony was floored by this revelation. It began to sink in that since learning to use magic, the human had been increasingly liberal with his use of it. He didn't know, and he was going to die because of it.
It was Rarity that broke the shocked silence. “Darling, if what you are saying is true...” The fashion unicorn glanced anxiously towards the Everfree. “Then if Morrigan catches Goldenrod, she'll take back her power...”
“She'll return to full power and be free to do many wicked things.” Everypony turned to stare at Pinkie Pie. Her eyes seemed out of focus, and her hair seemed like it could go limp at any moment. “It might not even be contained to Equestria! Nopony would be free to laugh and play, 'cause there'd be nothing to laugh about!”
Twilight glanced at Pinkie and Rarity before turning to face the Princess. “Princess Luna, on the transition from Canterlot, I wrote down any supplies I could think of for this mission. Would you be able to send your guards into Ponyville to get them?” She glanced anxiously at her friends. “At this point, I don't think it is safe for us to separate. We'd be extremely vulnerable by ourselves.”
“Of course, Twilight Sparkle.” The Alicorn smiled. “I agree wholeheartedly. The list, I take it, remains in the carriage still?”
- - -
Walking beneath the forest canopy, Warren fumed at his misfortune. It seemed like regardless of what he tried to do in this world, Morrigan would wreck anything good or pure around him. The more he thought about it, the more the Draconequus seem to be his perpetual bad-luck here in Equestria. What did I ever do to deserve this? It’s not like I stole her power on purpose. Despite this, she goes and drags the girls into this.
He cast a wary glance back over his shoulder. The dim shade of the overhead foliage made it hard for him to see anything, meaning he couldn’t see too far ahead in any direction. It wouldn’t take much for anything to get the jump on him, and he knew it. This whole place is eerie, all I can hear is the cry of crickets... and maybe something else. Cicadas? I thought this was supposed to be a place so bizarre that not even crickets would venture in.
Pausing to take in the sounds around him, he smiled momentarily as the familiar summer buzz filled his ears. At least some things stay the same between worlds. I’d recognize that zeee-zeee-zeee buzzing anywhere. It’s just like when we all went camping in Maine when we were kids. His smile faded when he thought about his family.
Questions had crossed his mind quite a few times since he arrived here in Equestria. What were they doing now? Were they as angry with him as he’d been with them? Had they even noticed that he’d gone missing? Has Father passed on yet? More and more, however, he found himself wondering what they’d think if they ever found out he was living in a rural town, a universe apart from the likes they knew, living among colorful, talking, flying, and magical ponies. He imagined that they’d scoff at the very thought of a pure-blooded city boy like him living in the country.
‘Warren in the dirt and mud with a bunch of horses? Don’t make me laugh.’ The spectre of one brother laughed at him. ‘Working in the flower shop with Mom is one thing, but he’d never survive in a place like that.’
He shook his head, attempting to clear the thought from his mind. I was only like that as a kid! So what if I hated camping? I grew out of it! That was true, to an extent. Even in his adult life on Earth, he’d never strayed out further than the suburbs, even during his tenure as a butler. Try as he might to explain it away, they were all ultimately just excuses.
‘He’s living with a bunch of friendship loving animals, you say? That social recluse?’ It was his mental representation of his eldest sister’s turn to have her say. ‘He couldn’t care less about animals, never mind make friends with them. He wouldn’t know how!’
Again, Warren fought the thought. That’s not true! Everypony here is so nice; they aren’t just animals! It occurred to him that fighting with mental apparitions of his kin was the last thing he should be doing, but the voices kept coming. I couldn’t have been a butler if I lacked the social graces to interact with people! It was another lie he told himself. He knew it was one thing to be polite, respectful, and able to take orders, and a completely separate thing to truly interact with people.
‘Warren’s just as selfish as the rest of them.’ his father wheezed inside his head, as he plodded on deeper into the forest. ‘The boy wouldn’t even consider helping his siblings make amends.’
No, that’s not true. I’m nothing like them! His mind was screaming now. He could practically hear every word the mental avatars of his family spoke as they continued to tear apart his personality. Each word they spoke tore at him, striking true in his heart. An empty feeling slid in to replace his heart, and his stomach bottomed out.
‘Was I really like that before I came here to Equestria?’ It was a small, childlike voice that spoke this time. It took a few moments before he realized it to be his own, as it had been when he was a colt. ‘Have I really changed so much? Was I really that deluded? Maybe something good did come of me being here...’
Of course something good came of it! He slumped against a tree, exhausted. Scootaloo has someone who cares for her and wants to be there for her! I’m there for her!
Another voice, one he truly hated, filled his ears. ‘Oh poor human, so full of self doubt.’ Morrigan’s cool, hateful voice echoed around him, blotting out all else. He stared around, looking for the source of her voice, but could see nothing but the stand of leafless trees surrounding him. ‘Who is to say you are really making a difference? She has lots of friends who watch over her! You mean nothing but trouble to her and she’s better off without you!’
“Shut up, you horrid witch!” he mumbled weakly, before slipping and falling into the mud. “I know how she feels about me, and it ain’t that I’m a bother to her!” He pushed himself to his feet and strode on through the woods. “Even if she hasn’t come to terms with it, it’s almost certain that she sees me like some sort of big brother figure! She said as much about her dreams!”
‘Tut tut, frail human.’ The chiding voice rang out inside his head. ‘You should know more than anybody that dreams aren’t real, nor do they all have meaning!’ More of that sibilant laughter he’d come to associate with the Draconequus began to fill his mind. ‘A pony like her could never care about a sour man like yourself.’
“You’re probably right.” he said with a yawn, once again slumping against a tree. “Scootaloo doesn’t need someone like who I was back on Earth in her life.” His legs couldn’t hold him up any longer; he slid down into a sitting position at the base of the tree. “That’s why...” He felt so weak. “Equestria shaped me into the person she needs me to be.”
Warren grinned victoriously to himself as the voices inside his head grew silent. So what if I’ve changed? he thought happily to himself as his eyelids grew heavy. People change all the time! It’s just another learning experience...
- - -
Fluttershy sat in a cloud above the group, staring out across the orchards in the direction of the Everfree Forest as she waited anxiously for Princess Luna’s guards to return. The sooner they returned bearing the supplies, the sooner she and the others could confront Morrigan and Discord. She shuddered to think what the encounter would be like, and she wasn’t looking forward to it, but still she felt it necessary to think about.
It angered her more than she’d ever admit, hearing that Morrigan had taken the young fillies and colts of Ponyville hostage. What could she possibly gain from taking them? What did she plan to do with them? The questions flooded her mind, and the thought of a powerful being targeting children filled her with a fury she’d never felt before.
What made waiting even worse was that Goldenrod was out there, stumbling around the Everfree, possibly itching for a fight, and here she was stuck here on a cloud beside Rainbow Dash simply waiting. Every minute they wasted waiting was another missed opportunity to catch up with Goldenrod and warn him about his magic usage. The longer she waited, a dark whisper in the back of her mind insisted, the more likely she was to find him barely clinging on to life.
She felt incredibly sorry for him. In addition to the whole magic situation, he’d been stranded in an unfamiliar world, twice transformed against his will, and had been dragged into a conflict he needn’t be a part of. Even if she didn’t understand the situation completely, anypony could see how alienated somepony would feel in his situation. In spite of it all, he’d managed to bond with Ponyville’s loneliest filly and bring a light to her eyes that nopony had truly seen since her parents had died. None of it was fair; not for Goldenrod, and especially not for Scootaloo.
A piercing howl from somewhere in the Everfree took Fluttershy’s attention away from her dark ruminations. It had definitely been a timber wolf. She looked expectantly about the forest treeline, hoping to catch sight of the animal. Even if they were savagely feral and dangerous, she still couldn’t dislike them; they only acted according to their natures.
“You heard it too, huh?” Rainbow Dash said beside her.
Fluttershy nodded quietly, only half paying attention. It occurred to her that for an unpredictable, chaotic place where the elements of nature did not rely on pony shaping, the Everfree was incredibly still. Not a single tree stirred, as though the wind itself was afraid to be there on this day. The thought of the Everfree being still was somehow even more disconcerting than its ‘regular’ state of natural chaos.
Without warning, a pillar of large black birds shot out of the forest canopy off in the distance. The geyser of crows quickly dissipated, and she couldn’t help but watch as they circled strangely above the spot the murder had erupted from. There was something vaguely familiar about the way they flew, but at this distance, it was too hard to make what it was that was so familiar about it.
“Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy whispered, pointing her hoof in the direction of the birds. “I wonder what the crows are circling?”
The rainbow maned pegasus looked thoughtfully at the murder of crows for a moment, and then back to Fluttershy. “Who knows?” she replied disinterestedly. “It’s the Everfree forest, Fluttershy. It’s about as random as you can get without Discord.” As if to accentuate Dash’s point, the avian mass of black circling over one spot in the Everfree flew apart in all directions.
Defeated, Fluttershy leaned back to stare up at the sky. “I guess you’re right.” she mumbled.
Down below, the pair of pegasi heard a shout. Peering over the edge of their cloud, they saw Pinkie Pie and Applejack down by the road helping one of Princess Luna’s royal guard back up towards the farmhouse. Even from this height they could tell something wasn’t right. His helmet was missing, and the membrane of his bat-like wings was torn.
Rainbow Dash was the first one down. Fluttershy gazed off in the direction of Ponyville one last time, hoping to catch sight of the other three guards following suit. Instead, she was treated to the sight of the citizens of Ponyville, gathering en masse at the bridge that spanned the river separating Ponyville from Sweet Apple Acres and the rest of the farmland. Each pony in the group bore either a torch or some blunt instrument they’d grabbed at random. Not needing to see any more, she rapidly descended to join the group in front of the farmhouse.
“My Princess!” the guardspony wheezed, leaning against Applejack’s strong shoulders. Fluttershy saw that he had been battered and bruised, his once gleaming chest-plate now dented and dirty. “The citizens of Ponyville have betrayed us!”
Everypony looked at him in shocked confusion. “Explain yourself!” Princess Luna responded almost too quickly, unable to completely mask her own fear. “Where is the rest of your unit?”
“We went into town for the supplies, like you asked. They were waiting for us.” he replied, coughing. Without warning, the guard spat out some teeth, as though his jarring cough had dislodged the already loosened teeth. Fluttershy winced as she realized they were his front teeth. “They had a mean look about them, like thome thort of red glint in their eyeth. They thouted that we were traitorth! Thaid we were harboring one of the monthterth that took the fillieth and coltth. They captured and beat uth; only I ethcaped. The otherth are thtill tied up in the town hall.”
Twilight Sparkle bowed her head toward the valiant guardspony. “Thank you, kind sir, for risking your life to get a warning to us.” She looked towards Princess Luna, awaiting an approving nod before continuing. Satisfied that she was not acting out of line, Twilight turned to Big Macintosh. “I know we’ve asked a lot of the Apple family as of late, but could you please see to it he recuperates? Take him inside and lock up tight.”
“Anythin’ for a family friend an’ the Princess.” Big Macintosh said gravely, bowing towards Princess Luna before helping her remaining guard into the farmhouse.
“Twilight Sparkle, I commend your compassion in the face of danger.” A tight-lipped smile played across Luna’s face. “My sister was most wise to place her trust in you. You would make a fine consort of the Royal Family.”
Twilight lowered her head, and cast a sidelong glance at Fluttershy. “I wish that I could say that my reasoning was purely compassionate, Princess Luna, but it would be a farce.” She heaved a heavy sigh before gazing off towards Ponyville. “I once said that all the ponies of Ponyville were crazy, and that is unfortunately true now. I think Morrigan has purposely turned Ponyville against us all in an attempt to distract us. Chances are that they went after your guards because they were trying to aid us by getting supplies.”
“If Big Macintosh, Scootaloo, and your guard are all safely locked up inside the farmhouse,” Twilight breathed deeply. “I don’t think they’ll go after them, as they aren’t perceived to be helping us. If we make a show of leaving the farm, they should have no reason to stay. They’ll either chase us until we lose them, or they might just chase us out of Ponyville.”
“No offense Twilight,” Rainbow Dash said with a snort. “But your plan stinks. It plays entirely on using us as bait. What kind of friend uses her friends as bait?”
Fluttershy watched anxiously as Twilight bit back a scathing retort. If they started arguing now, they might not have an opportunity to escape the mob that was bearing down on them even as they spoke. It was very important that she get their attention. “Um... Excuse me, girls? I think we should really-”
“Then why don’t you tell me your AMAZING PLAN, oh Great and Powerful Rainbow Dash!”
“Why are you comparing me to her?” Rainbow Dash shouted.
“‘Cause yer bein’ an attention horse!” interjected Applejack.
“GIRLS!” Princess Luna shouted, falling easily back into the Royal Canterlot Voice. She coughed, embarrassed as everypony turned their rapt attention on the Princess. “I believe Kind Fluttershy wishes to speak. Perhaps it would be wise to listen to what she has to say.”
Once everypony in the group had locked their gazes on Fluttershy, stage fright kicked in. “Oh, um...” she faltered, kicking idly at some dirt. “I just wanted to remind you about the angry torch-bearing mob bearing down on us!” she squeaked.
- - -
The atmosphere of the Everfree forest never changes, Scootaloo noted as she crept through the shade and bramble of the forest. So why does it feel so different? The sense of danger was still there, but at the same time, it felt like all the wildlife had fled the area. There wasn't the regular sensation of eyes bearing down on her at all angles, and somehow that was so much worse.
A chorus of crickets and cicadas sang to the filly as she followed Goldenrod's tracks. It struck her as odd that there were any crickets or cicadas in the Everfree at all, given the dark nature of the place. The only symptom that the place was still dangerous was the solitary howl of a timberwolf off in the distance. Every other time she'd ever been in or near the forest it had been deathly silent. It was reassuring to know that she'd at least hear danger before she saw it.
Despite Nurse Redheart’s warnings that she wasn't completely healed, Scootaloo used her fledgling wings to propel herself along the ground at a faster speed. She buzzed along an inch off the ground, following Goldenrod's bizarre footprints. It helped her feel safe as she flitted above the tracks, knowing that he had seemingly come through this area without incident.
As she went on through the woods, his tracks became more staggered, occasionally diverting to a tree. At these points, his footprints dragged out, where she thought he probably slid down against a tree to rest. Indeed, when she stopped to examine this last tree, there was fresh mud smeared against the tree. Maybe I'm close?
Sure enough, as she followed his trail into a small grove of zap apples trees, Scootaloo found Goldenrod slumped underneath one such trees. The trees were unmistakable with their rainbow-striped fruit, but it wasn't zap apple season. After all of the trouble the Cutie Mark Crusaders had gotten into during the last zap apple harvest, she knew the signs as good as anypony else, and she hadn’t seen any of them. Yet here she was, staring at a bunch of zap apples trees ripe for the picking.
Plodding up to his slumped form, she saw his eyes were closed, and that he was as still as stone. She wasn't even convinced he was breathing; that was how still he was. I'm too late, she thought to herself. Unable to think of anything else to do, Scootaloo climbed up onto Goldenrod's lap and rested the back of her head against his stomach.
Through half-lidded eyes, she stared up at the sky, through the canopy of the grove. A beautiful rainbow aurora danced above them. She just wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn't come. So much had happened lately, and as hard as she tried, she just couldn't shed a single tear. With one final sad sigh, she turned to nuzzle his chest one final time.
“I'm sorry I didn't make it in time...” she muttered to nopony. Slowly, she crawled off of her friend’s lap and cast one last forlorn look at him. As though to torture herself, she imagined his head shifting ever so slightly. What hurt most about it all was that his body was still warm, as though she’d missed him by mere moments.
Defeated, she turned to follow the trail back to Sweet Apple Acres. Explaining herself to everypony wasn’t something she was looking forward, but the shame of failing her friends made it difficult to care. The filly had made it no more than a couple of steps when something behind her growled.
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No author comments this week because my team is insane.
Warren is in the mood for chicken. Just saiyan.
He's just scared of the were-cactus powers Goldenrod has.
^
.....CLIFFHANGER AAAHHG
769527
Aren't Zap Apples really fully of chaos magic or something? Seems like the fruit would be compatible with Morrigan's magic that is currently powering Goldenrod.
Anyone else expecting a sort of Amnesia the pony's decent when reading the cut off description in the feature box.
769703 While that is true, don't forget the rate at which it is implied they grew. In the series it was implied to have taken at least a couple of days, yet here it happened in a matter of moments [even if Fluttershy missed the 4th sign and didn't get a chance to see the 5th].
In past chapters, I've implied that the magical bleeding effect described in Chapter 12 has had profound effects on plant growth. It implied that this effect is what spurred the accelerated growth of the of the zap apple grove. Were he to feed off this entire grove, it would not replenish his stores by much. At most his hunger would be sated.
You have a good mind to consider this though.
769759 People made the same sort of comment early on when Displaced was first posted on Equestria Daily.
Excellent chapter. I'm still hoping that nothing bad will happen to Goldenrod and hoping that he doesn't die.
If he happens to kill morrigan or discord, could he eat them to gain more power? sans FEAR 3 in a way....
770240 The idea crossed my mind, but I'm not sure just how well that lines up with my plans.
770252 Omnomnomnomnom Draconequus..... tastes like chicken....
770291
...And pork
and beef
and... carrots? Well that was a bit odd I suppose.
At any rate, hes going to need to find a mana battery fairly soon it seems. My solution? Lucky Charms, they're magically delicious for a reason.
770240 THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE
So mystifying! Why have you added this cliffhanger?
Almost as bad as Anthropology.
No mistakes that I can see. Good. The Grammar Nazi inside of me can rest.
If I end up finding something...
Anyways, can't wait to see if it's an insane Warren, or a timber wolf, or Morrigan.
P.S. I hate you. You leave me begging for more. Normally, that'd be a good thing, but I suspect "more" won't come soon.
769703 Magic-battery-deus-ex-machina? Yes please.
772273 Oh it won't be too long. Given my timing the last few times, you can probably see chapter 16 coinciding with the next chapter of Anthropology.
It would also be somewhat worrying if there were any major mistakes in the chapter. I have four ponies that edit for me.
772273
Your Grammar Nazi membership has now been revoked, as a violation has occurred.
"Good. the Grammar Nazi"
Evidence shows you have failed to capitalize the T on 'the' after starting a new sentence.
772622
25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m0p2b6BY161qknvc5o1_500.jpg
Can't wait to see more man! This is a pretty interesting story to say the least.
770291
Does that mean scootaloo is a baby draconequus?
why u make me hang on cliff
775651 It was just such a fun place to end the chapter.
772622
I am a disgrace...
Well, might as well fix it...
I am depressed right now. I can't believe I missed that.
Anyway, we all make mistakes, and that was my first mistake, in, what, three years?
Anyways, thanks for telling me.
A Timber Wolf or Zombie GoldenRod?
781363
I never said she checked for a pulse.
C'mon, Warren, stop being silly and wake up...
...
Warren...?
*sigh* Just leave him there, then, I guess...
...
...
Is that a cliff--? OH SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii........................................ *splat*
772622
"Good. The Grammar Nazi"
encrypted-tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSN4PurTbKZRBlVYZY_99eUEgCI_b0wFrPIA_tRN0FZW-WI0x54
First, he said Grammar Nazi, failure to capitalize the first letter is an affront to Punctuation Nazi status.
Second, there was a grammatical error, the period was unnecessary and the sentence should have been written: "Good, the Grammar Nazi inside of me can rest."
I am now applying for a promotion on the board of Grammatical National Socialists.
Worst pickup line ever.
(Let's just say that consort does not mean what you think it means.)