Sally Morningfly is a small white unicorn who lives with her father, Sterling, and her mother, Flower. Sally is raised in a cottage not far from the Everfree forest, opposite to ponyville, and their isolated but happy life is enjoyable. Then Sally finds her life turned upside-down when she loses everything. Now she must see if she can overcome her pain and sorrows to make way for true friendship and let love back into her heart.
East of the Everfree there lay a land of endless rolling hills that only a few ponies called home. Presently in a small cottage, a little ways away from the from the forest, a white unicorn by the name of Flower screamed at the top of her lungs as her husband, Sterling Stonesong clasped her hoof tightly.
The mare's bloated midsection swelled and rippled as the filly she had been carrying was pushed from her body and the squealing bundle was carried by her father so Flower could see her. A tiny white unicorn with the amber eyes of her father snuggled close to her mother, whimpering slightly as it shivered at the new outside world. Sterling looked deeply into Flower's eyes, love overflowing his heart, "So what do you want to name her?" ,he asked as he nuzzled his young daughter as he waited for a response. "I believe that this is Sally, Sally morningfly." Flower finally responded as the newborn gently touched her chin with a tiny hoof. Sterling nodded his approval and they laid down in the bed, filly in the middle, and drifted into a happy sleep.
Four moons passed and soon little Sally was bouncing around in the meadow. chasing butterflies and sneezing as she came in contact with certain flowers. her mother watched from a distance while Sterling plowed the small garden that they harvested each season. Flower glanced up and called out Sally's name, bringing the small unicorn stumbling back on her newborn legs. She ran headlong into her mothers arms,"yes mama?" the filly looked up at her mother with her huge orange eyes. Flower frowned solemnly as she explained her reasons for calling Sally, "Do you see those woods?" the filly nodded as Flower pointed to the Everfree,"You must never go there, dangerous creatures live under its shade" Then, seeing her daughter frown at the subject, Flower placed a hoof on her shoulder and guided her inside as she saw the setting sun. Flower tucked Sally into bed and kissed her gently,"Goodnight, me little one." "wait." Sally spoke up as Flower turned to leave,"Could you sing a song for me?" Flower saw worry in the filly's eyes and thought that maybe she had been a little small for the talk of the Everfree. She smiled and sat beside the bed, slowly brushing the small unicorn's hair with her hoof. She thought for a minute and then took a breath as she began her lullaby.
Come now my sweet one do not be afraid here in me arms you are warm and you're safe
Listen my small one no troubles you keep now here in bed I put you to Sleep
The melody ended and Flower continued to stroke her filly's mane. She kissed the sleeping pony on the forehead and quietly trotted out of the room. Flower padded over to Sterling, who was throwing more wood onto the fire. "What are we going to do with her Sterling. If she stays here her whole life, she will never have any friends. She'll never live a full life." Sterling sighed,"I don't think we need to be worrying about that yet. After all, she is only four moons old. We can cross that bridge when the time comes." he turned back to the warm fire and smiled to himself,"For now, lets just enjoy life, and the pleasure Sally brings to it."
The next day Sally awoke to a golden light shining through the windows, she rolled over and peered at the sun rising from the trees of the Everfree. She giggled as its warm rays warmed her fur and leaped out of bed to go and find her parents. She opened the door to her parents room and bounded inside.
Then she stopped, her parent's bed was empty.
At first the little filly thought that her mother and father were just playing hide and seek. But got more and more discouraged as she worriedly searched the house. She checked everywhere, peeking under chairs and tables. She found nothing. Not even the hearth, which she was sure was used by her father the night before, showed even the slightest sign of being used. The filly got more and more worried as she checked and rechecked all the rooms.
The game was no longer even remotely related to fun, Sally cried out her mothers name, hoping to be heard. She cried for what seemed like a long time before noticing a kind of light flickering outside the front door. She got up and wiped the tears from her eyes, slowly edging towards the door, the light behind it glowing brighter. There was a kind of soft chanting behind it and Sally took a breath as she reached for the doorknob with her hoof, hesitant to find what it was. She finally drew up enough courage and threw the door open. But oddly, nothing was there. Then she noticed that the meadow beyond the front door was not her meadow. the grass was dead and black. The sky, normally a bright blue, shone red and cast a brownish light upon everything under it.
Sally slowly turned to see the dark forest in the distance, the shadows under it's branches seeming to want to leave their tree filled prison and race among the dead fields. Then the little filly cried out as a dark shape rose up out of the tops of the trees, it swirled and danced like a great swarm of birds wreathed in darkness. Sally turned back to the front door to have is slammed in her face. She bucked at it with her back hooves to try and break it down but the door was sealed. Sally screamed as the shadow flew towards her and she got a glimpse of fangs and many, many insect-like eyes. Just before the horde of monsters got to her she sat bolt upright in her bed and her parents raced in. The sights and sounds of her house returned to her and her mother and father whispered soothing things to her as she cried softly into their manes.
Sally had grown another fifteen moons and now spent most of her time happily helping her steadily aging parents with certain things around the farm. Flower's mane was now streaked with silver and her father's normally grey mane was bleached white. The day was a gloomy day to be working in, the sky was covered in clouds so the sun could only barely be seen by a slightly lighter parch of sky. The air was chilly and turned harsh and icy when the wind blew across the plains, and a light mist had begun raining from the sky. Flower was sitting in a rocking chair on the front porch of the house while Sally worked with her father Sterling by planting the seeds as he plowed the fields.
Suddenly they both jerked up as they heard a yell and they turned to see Flower running towards them. Her mane streaming along behind her. "The Everfree! We need to go! The Everfree is rising!" Her panicked words were drowned out as a shadow covered the cloudy sky above the dark woods. Sally let out a whimper of panic, remembering the nightmare of her childhood. It had terrified her then, and didn't need any help doing so now. Then the shadow swirled and turned towards them, it darted forward like a giant wave as it got closer.
Sally watched per parents gallop from here to there so quickly and organized that it looked like they had done this many times before. Flower was levitated tons of food from storage while Sterling was grabbing a few tools from against the walls and strapping them to saddle bags. Sally grew more and more terrified with every passing moment. Finally, they seemed ready and her father threw open the door. He just stood there for a minute, his face slackened expression changed to one of complete determination.
"you to go, I'll be right behind you"
"Sterling no!" ,Flower turned to him as she tried to change his mind. Sally barely heard his words at all and Sterling Shook his head, kissing Flower on the cheek, "I'll be right behind you", he repeated. Flower grasped him in a tight embrace and kissed him back before putting a hoof on Sally's shoulder and speaking calmly to her, "Are you ready?" Sally nodded vigorously in response and they both leaped out onto the meadow.
Behind her, Sally's father charged the mass as it neared, calling to it and waving a farming scythe and leading them away from Sally and her mother. "PAPA!" Sally called out his name repeatedly before her mother dragged her away from her father, who had disappeared into the house, the swarm of insect-ponies following him in.
Suddenly her mother wasn't following her, or with her at all. Then she saw a pale form struggling in the tall grasses and ran over to find her mother, a jagged piece of wood jutting out from her side, the tip reappearing out of the other. Her cutiemark, a blooming rose, was cut in half by a harsh gash in her side. She twisted her head and watched her through sorrowful eyes. All noise seemed to fade from Sally's ears until she could almost hear Flower's unsteady breathing. "come close my small one." Sally layer down beside her dying mother and Flower calmly stroked her mane and sung the lullaby from her childhood.
Come now my sweet one No, don't you cry Listen close to my words And this last lullaby
Come now beloved It is time we part But we'll always be with you Just look to your heart
Her Mother pointed to the Everfree, "there are cough* other ponies beyond the forest. You must find them, and live among friends." Sally stubbornly protested and wouldn't leave her mothers side, "I won't leave you, I'll die with you if those... things come back." Flower lifted a hoof to brush the pony's chin, "I'm so sorry Sally." Sally didn't under stand. Then a light blue aura surrounded her and she saw tears running down her mothers face as she mouthed the words, i love you, And Sally disappeared in a flash of light.
Sally reappeared in a forest, terrified of the past events she ran through the dark woods. A root caught her hoof and sent her tumbling down a into a small clearing. She raised her head to the moon and let out a wail of pain and sadness. Then collapsed into the soft grass and cried herself to sleep.
Sally walked for miles, tears rolling down her face as she was forced to relive her sorrowful experience again, and again, and again... She had stumbled upon what looked to be a worn path, even though it was barely visible due to the vegetation growing over it. She put a hoof to her midsection as her stomach rumbled, reminding her that she hadn't eaten in... However long she had been in the Everfree. The path wound it's way through the Forest, Sally didn't really care which direction she was even going in anymore.
Sally stumbled into a clearing, the dark, twisted trees parted to either side of her. as if they dared not to grow past an invisible line in the grass. She looked up from the grass to have her mouth fall open. Then stared forward at a giant castle, the ruins looming on the other side of an unsafe looking rope bridge.
She slowly worked herself across the bridge, almost falling three or four times when her hoof slipped or a loose board snapped. She made her way through the bashed-in front gates, vaguely wondering how they had gotten that way before pushing the thought to the back of her mind as she traveled deeper through the ruins. Then she stopped, two voices from up ahead spoke out against the silence. Sally ran towards the voices, the conscious part of her mind screaming her to stop, to find out who they were first. Of course, she ignored them.
Sally broke into the courtyard and hurled herself at the nearest pony, a mint green unicorn. Sobbing, she held on tight to the pony, "Thank Celestia! Another pony!" Sally sobbed into the coat of the mare as another walked up behind her, "Uhhhh, Your... Welcome?", answered the unicorn as Sally let go and backed away, calming down a bit, "I've been wandering the forest for so long, sniff* I haven't seen another pony in moons". The two just stared at her, the other, a pale vanilla pony with a curly blue and pink mane, stepped forward and offered her hoof as Sally continued, spilling out her whole story from the death of her parents to the current moment, tear rolling down her face and falling to the mossy-covered stone floor. Their hooves wrapped around her as the ponies gave her a comforting hug to calm her down a bit. "It's ok, shhh, it's ok", Sally calmed down and her sobbing died down to a soft sniffling.
"We should take her back to Ponyville, she needs help", the two ponies talked as they comforted Sally, shivering in their hooves like a terrified filly. "Yeah, maybe we should get Fluttershy or somepony to look after her". They both silently agreed and let go of Sally, the cream mare focusing her sea green gaze on her, "Come with us, we'll get you to someone who can help you". They helped Sally to her hooves and led her from the castle. Sally lingered at the edge of the forest, she just got out, and she didn't want to go back in. The vanilla pony, Bon Bon as she was later introduced, reassured her and they continued on there journey to Ponyville.
The forest didn't like Sally. The shadowy canopy loomed darkly over them, even though it was midday. Every once in a while a snap would cause the three of them to turn around and stare sfter the noise. It had become obvious that something was following them, even though they couldn't see it didn't mean that they couldn't hear it. What ever it was had no sense of stealth at all. It rustled the branches and snapped twigs carelessly in it's pursuit, but never once was it seen.
They heard a thump and a grunt up ahead.
"OOOOOOWW! Sweet Celestia that HURTS!", A definite male voice called out. Lyra glanced at Bon Bon before taking off in the direction, giving the others no choice but to follow. They galloped into a small clearing to find a dark grey, almost black pegasus sitting on his rump, rubbing his head with a hoof. Sally padded close to him, "Are you ok?". The pegasus held up a hoof as if to say just gimme a sec and a few minutes later he looked up, flinching as he moved his head. "I've run into much harder stuff than that" ,he said before quickly adding, "No not really. Geez that stings..." He ruffled a light green, almost white, mohawk as his head throbbed. He got up, stumbled, sat back down, and looked up at the three mares in front of him, "So I'm in pain, what's your name." He frowned as he saw three things, confusion, annoyance, and irritation, "sigh*, My name is Thunderlane...".
Lyra stepped forward, "I'm Lyra, this is Bon Bon and Sally." The dark grey pegasus finally found the strength to stand and nodded to all three of them, "Nice to meet you all."
"So how did you run into the tree?" Sally inquired as they continued on their way to Ponyville. The colt looked over at her with his pale, golden eyes, "Looking for a story are you?" Sally nodded and let the pegasus continue. "Well, I was doing some cloud chasing for Rainbow Dash and-". He stopped as he saw Sally frown in confusion, "You don't know who Rainbow Dash is?" Sally shook her head slightly. "Well I chased it over to the Everfree and it started doing loopy- loops and flying all over the place. I chased it until I accidentally clipped a tree branch with my wing and now I think I might have a concussion." Sally smiled at the tale of his misfortunes.
A snap and a thud made them all turn around, a beat-up, grey, earth pony had just stumbled out of the woods and fell to the ground, he was thin, you could see all of his ribs and part of his hip-bone. Sally sat in stunned silence with Thunderlane while Bon Bon walked over to help up the stranger to his hooves. He almost frantically raised his forelimb in the universal sign of stop. He struggled to stand by himself and opened his eyes to reveal them to be a light turquoise. Then, he stumbled into a tree he looked up at them, a broken look in his eyes, "Please help me".
His body was momentarily wrapped in green flame. His hooves became ridden with holes, his mouth grew a single fang on one side of his mouth, the other was broken, and his body transformed into a cracked and worn exoskeleton. He gave one last look at his watchers before falling to the ground. his mouth slack and his eyes dull.
Sally screamed and backed into a tree. It was one of those- things! The things that had killed her parents. Her mind raced through a series of emotions, Terror, to a deep burning hatred, then she simply sat down and sobbed into her forelimbs. Thunderlane crept up to the creature and poked it with a hoof, "I don't think its dead, I think its just unconscious." Lyra gave him an irritated look, "Well yeah. Ya think he just decided to take a nap?" Bon Bon walked over to the unconscious insect, "Well what do we do with him? He'll die out here and if we take him home everypony will see us." Both Thunderlane and Lyra shrugged. "Come on you guys! You can't be... Like this."
Sally cautiously crept up to the creature while the other three continued their argument. As she got to the unconscious insect she noticed a crack in his plating that ran the entire length of his back. She raised a hoof to touch it but stopped. This was one of the creatures that killed her parents, but she ran her hoof down the scratch none the less. She was surprised to find the armor-plating to be warm, she ran her hoof up and down the smooth surface and then turned to the insects face. She studied its broken features, its snapped fang, it had a black eye, and one of its ears was nearly torn off.
She jumped away as the creature stirred, angry with herself for getting so close. It was probably some evil magic, making her want to help the huge bug. The argument behind her stopped as the insect opened his solid green eyes to slits, a cough escaping his mouth. Bon Bon hesitantly stepped forward, narrowing her eyes and making her way to the creature, "What are you doing here? Where is the rest of your hive?" The insect raised his head in the cream colored pony's direction but dropped it back to the floor and let out another bone chilling cough. "I said SPEAK CHANGELING!!" At this the creatures eyes shot open at the earth pony's unexpected command, "I am alone, my hive chased me out and I got lost in the Everfree" The changeling unfurled a pair of shredded paper like wings, "They almost tore me apart". He coughed again and Bon Bon let out a sigh, "We've decided to take you back to Ponyville, but on one condition", Bon Bon added as the creature's ears perked up, "You will disguise yourself until we reach my house." Lyra coughed in the background, permitting a small smile from Bon Bon, "Ok, ok, our house." Lyra smiled widely at the correction.
Sally watched Thunderlane as he walked beside the changeling, scowling at it every time it drew his attention. The insect lowered his head in turn and limped onward, his rotted hooves making no sound as they passed along the chill-hardened mud path. He looked up as he noticed Sally staring at him before averting his eyes, not once stopping or slowing his pace. Sally turned back towards Lyra and Bon Bon, who were walking in front of her, close enough so that their flanks brushed as they trotted. Lyra suddenly nudged Bon Bon, making her stumble and almost wander off of the path. Sally thought that the mint unicorn was just being rude, until Bon Bon looked over with a grin on her muzzle and leaped at Lyra, sending them both to the ground. They finally stopped rolling, Lyra standing triumphantly over the earthpony. Thunderlane trotted past the two, rolling his eyes, "mares", he said when he thought he was out of earshot. A giggle was heard from the two mares and Sally turned just in time to see Lyra lean forward and press Bon Bon's head back into the grass with a passionate kiss. Blushing brightly Sally turned and trotted hurriedly after Thunderlane.
After awhile they reached the Ponyville side of the Everfree, hiding in the trees with the changeling, "Hurry up and put on a disguise already." Lyra was staring at the changeling who looked down at his hole-ridden hooves. "Its not that simple". He cast a quick look at the impatient unicorn, "I need time to think about this, its not like I can just think of a pony and become them like changelings do when they impersonate anypony, I need to come up with a whole new form".
Suddenly he opened his eyes, "Ok, I-I think I got it". A brief green flame engulfed his broken-shelled form as he morphed into a pony, he grew a long dark purple and black mane and his skin changed into a light grey. He looked around at everypony in a shy way, "Does it look alright?" Thunderlane shrugged, "I guess its cool, but most won't take kindly to ponies without a cutiemark". He smirked as the now grey changeling stallion turned in a circle to see his bare flank. "Also, you'll have to make due with being only one pony species". The changeling just seemed to notice that he had kept both his wings and his horn, "Sorry, I was only a worker in the hive, I-I didn't go on many stealth missions". Lyra rolled her eyes, "Just hurry up already! I've had time to think think of your back story about three times by now!"
Sally realized that she had been staring the whole time, "I- I think that you should be an actor, because you can copy things rather well". The changeling seemed to light up at the idea as both his horn and wings disappeared in green flames, "Yeah, I like that". He made a small smile before looking at the ground and frowning once more, "But what will I do here. I doubt I can just show up and be a pony, I might need a job. O-or something like that". He stammered as Thunderlane glared at him, "Just remember that I know who you are and if you do anything that I don't like I will find you changeling". Another small flame lit up the disguised insects flanks as a pair of masks appeared on his side. "I- I'll keep that in mind. But, um, w-where will I stay?" Again Thunderlane shrugged, "I dunno. I live on a cloud so you sure as hay can't stay with me". Sally watched as Thunderlane flew off, pulling off random aerial stunts as he went. An exhausted sigh came from Bon Bon as she looked over at the two of them, "Come on. Guess you're staying with us tonight". Sally started to follow but then paused, "Wait what's your name?" The changeling stammered at the question as he thought, Lyra just facehooved and continued walking, "Gotta go, I'll be at your store Bonnie". Bon Bon sat down as the changeling thought, "How about Anyone?" Sally and Bon Bon looked up and spoke at the same time, "What?" The changeling nodded, "yeah my name could be Anyone, like, I can be anyone". He let his gaze wander from Sally to Bon Bon and than back to Sally, who realized that his eyes were a warm goldish-brown color. The disguised stallion noticed her staring and shook his head as if to clear it of something, making Sally look away. Why are you staring? He's a changeling not some handsome colt! Sally shook her head and looked back up at the stallion, "Just go with Andy. Its a little less misleading". She walked over to Bon Bon and they trotted through the town to a small two-story building with a large sign reading, Bon Bon's bonbons in big pink and blue letters. Bon Bon pushed through the door and let them in, meeting Lyra in the lobby, "Consider yourselves lucky. Bonnie here doesn't let just anyone stay in her house"
"There is no WAY you can make me SLEEP in the same room with that THING!"
Sally was currently yelling at Bon Bon while Andy the changeling sat to the side and poked at the ground with his corroded hoof. Every now and then he would glance up, sigh and look back down. He could feel Sally's anger, and fear. She was both terrified, and furious. But Andy could understand, sleeping with a monster had a tendency to create these emotions.
The argument had ended as soon as it had begun and Bon Bon retreated to her room for the night leaving Sally in the hallway with Andy to sort things out. "Okay. I will agree to this on one condition", she glared over at Andy, throwing out anger to try to block out her sense of fear, "You will not under ANY circumstance, come within a pony-length of me. If I DO happen to catch you near me, I will kick your sorry behind all the way to FILLIDOLPHIA!!!" Her statement left Andy nodding solemnly, none of this was a surprise to him. Sally walked into the room and hopped up onto the bed, leaving Andy to slowly walk in after her and settle down on the far side of the room.
He closed his eyes, but something kept him awake. Andy lifted his head to find Sally staring at him, her amber eyes calmly locked with his for a second before she turned away and rolled over, once again leaving Andy to himself.
They were back. The swirling black cloud of insect ponies descended down upon Sally once again in a rush of terror. Behind her she heard familiar voices and spun around to find her parents standing behind her, the blackened grass swaying around their hooves. "Come here my Sweet one. Do not be afraid", Sally started to run towards them as the horde of terror closed in on her. Gasping as she galloped head on towards her mother and father. Her lungs burned and her legs ached as she ran on. Then suddenly as Sally looked up at her loving parents, they became dead-looking husks that just barely resembled their former selves. She screamed as they slowly walked closer and turned around to find the swarm still in pursuit. Their hundreds of buzzing wings rising to a deafening roar while the corpses of her parents stepped closer and closer, muttering comforting phrases that just made their appearance even more terrifying. Sally shut her eyes and screamed, waiting for the end to come.
Then everything stopped.
All sound just stopped. The chanting from her dead parents and the roar of insect wings, stopped. Sally opened her eyes to find that the nightmare had vanished, leaving no trace of the horror that had occurred. Curiously she stood and looked around, taking in the scene before her. She stood in a green field, the long grass coming up to her knees.
"Hey, Sal! C'mon don't be such a silly filly, it'll be fun!"
Sally whirled around to see a stallion, well, she thought it was a stallion. Its voice sounded deep and filled her with a warm feeling, while he stood tall a little ways away, but his face was unclear. Be that as it may, she knew he was smiling, and it made her feel happier than she had ever felt before. His muscles rippled under his caramel colored coat as he trotted up to her. "Hey Sal! Race Ya!"
As soon as he said it he bounded off and Sally, not knowing what else to do, decided to just go along with it. She smiled, "Wait for me!", and chased the brown stallion around the hills. Racing around with the stallion warmed Sally's heart. She had never felt like this before, even with her parents. Sometime later the stallion stopped and Sally barreled into him, they both fell to the ground, laughing. The chestnut colt suddenly stopped. They were laying in the grass, so close that they would bump noses if they were any closer. The stallion sneezed and Sally giggled, closing her eyes and putting a hoof to her face.
Then it happened. Sally looked up and for the first time she saw the stallion clearly. He had bright green eyes and a black mane, a smile graced his lips. Those eyes captivated Sally, she couldn't look away and was only mildly aware that she was leaning forward until their lips met. Sally's eyes flew open as contact was made, only to close again as the stallion continued to kiss her. Finally he pulled back, a sad look in his eyes, "Please. Please don't be angry". This was confusing, but before Sally had the chance to ask him what he meant the world swirled away.
Sally woke up the next morning with the stallion's last words in her head. Don't be angry? what's that supposed to mean? She rolled over and noticed something blocking out the light from the window. Then, as her eyes focused, she bit back the scream building in her head. The changeling was sitting next to the bed facing her, his curved horn glowed green. Frozen with fear, she stared as the glow faded and the changeling drowsily opened his eyes. Suddenly he was knocked to the floor as Sally levitated a book from the shelf next to her and threw it into his face. "I-I NEW that you would do it!", a fit of terrified rage once again consumed her, "I should NEVER have trusted you!"
"No! Wait! Sto-", was all the changeling managed to get out as he was beaten relentlessly with basically anything that was within Sally's magic range. Then a loud crack sounded throughout the small room and the levitating objects came to a stop. Wide-eyed and breathing heavily, Sally stumbled from the bed to find a large crack in the changeling's side, running the length of his body. A puddle of blue-green blood slowly seeping out of the hole in his chitin skin. "gasp*! I-I was cough* cough* o-only tr-trying to h-help", his breathing came slow and ragged, "I b-begged you not to be cough* gasp* ang-angry. But you didn't liste...", the harsh breathing became softer and Sally stared at the changeling, unable to move. "Oh, I-I-I- BON BON!"
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