“Beats me sugarcube.” Applejack replied with sigh, careful to step around another patch of poison joke. “For a partner that says he wants us to go someplace, he sure as hay ain’t making it easy to get there.”

“Tell me about it!” Rainbow Dash cried, stopping momentarily from the zig zag pattern she had been flying around in, desperate to find any clue to a path, a trail or anything. “We’ve been at this for what feels like hours! Is a sign saying ‘This way to the station’ too much to ask!?”

“Um girls, not to be a bother-” Rarity began.

“I’ve already told you Rarity! We don’t have time to rest!” Twilight snapped letting her bad mood get to her. Rarity felt for a moment like telling her what for, but knew that it wasn’t the time given what she was trying to warn her about. Thankfully, Fluttershy came to her rescue.

“Um, Twilight, I think she means to say we aren’t alone...” That snapped Twilight out of it. Ears and magic alert, she scanned her surroundings now for life signs instead of pathways. No sooner had she done this, did something begin to speak to them.

“Hey Hey! What have we here?” Try as she might though Twilight couldn’t pinpoint where it came from.

“Looks like some ponies!” Cried another voice.

“In this neck of the woods?” Yet another, each time whatever these were spoke, it was always a new member.

“They come a long way to be here!”

“Well then! Let’s give em a show!”

“Yeaaaaaaah!” Cried the first voice as it’s owner leaped out of some trees to land directly before Fluttershy, causing her to skitter back in fear. Twilight could only stare the the strange animal that stood before her. Never in any of her books or studies had she come across such a thing. It had legs and feet like a monkey, but it’s head and face more resembled that of a canine. At least a canine was the closest animal she could compare it to. The thing’s mouth was long and pointed, it’s ears long like a donkey’s. Though it sported a tail, it wasn’t like a ponies or dogs in any shape or form. Instead it was a long wisp with a tuft of hair at the end. Much like a lions. The oddest thing however, at least to Twilight was the fact it seemed to be covered in some strange hybrid of fur and feathers. Many of them red or orange in color with small patches of white.

“W-What are you?” Twilight couldn’t help but ask as the creature regarded her with glee.

“What am I?” He repeated cheerfully, “What are you?”

“Trespassers I think!” Cried another one leaping out of the foliage. This one looked even stranger to Twilight then the first one. While much of it’s make up was the same, it’s muzzle was drastically different. Instead of it’s nose being on the top part of it’s mouth, as it would be with any other canine, this one’s nose was a short stub with a mouth underneath it completely. Much like a minotaur.

“Is that what you are? Trespassers?” Asked the first one. Before Twilight had a chance to answer though, she found herself speechless. From the silence of her friends, she had a feeling they were dealing with the sight they saw before them about as well as she was.

The creature, whatever it was, had popped it’s own head off, and was bouncing it up and down in it’s hand!

“H-How...” She stammered before the rest of the things came out of hiding. Even with her shock, she was just able to make out five of them. One for each of them if it came down to a fight. She only wished she knew where Pinkie had gotten to.

“Hey come on! Why all the labeling?” Another called, this one seeming to have a mustache of feathers.

“Yeah!” Cried yet another, “Maybe they just want to have a good time!” Immediately upon it saying this, at least two of the creatures began to bang sticks together, creating an eerie rhythm. Much like whenever Pinkie Pie broke into song, the very air around them appeared to produce the right effects to enhance the tune.

“That’s right!” Cried the first one, which Twilight quickly labeled the ‘leader’ if these things even understood such a concept. The leader Hobbled over to the center of the little clearing they were in, as he rubbed two fingers against his side, producing a small flame as he did. With a hearty laugh, he threw the flame to the ground, creating a small fire which Twilight only now noticed was safely contained within a ring of rocks.

“Now listen up Ponies!” The leader sang in a chilling voice, as his co-horts echoed him in tune with nearly the same line: Listen up ponies!

“You shouldn't have come here!” Shouldn’t have come!

“But since you’ve come around” Since you’ve come round

“We’ll teach you the basics!” Teach you them!

“As I shake my pretty little head” Shake my pretty little head

“And tap my pretty little feet” And tap my pretty little feet

“Feeling brighter than sunlight, Louder than thunder, bouncing like a yo-yo” WOO!

Twilight knew she should be doing something. Should be gathering her friends into some sort of defense, or conjuring some sort of plan. The problem was the things she was seeing these creatures do was making it very difficult to do anything but watch in fear, with only the slightest hint of awe.

Shortly after they began to sing, did everything go up a notch in the weirdness readings. Heads were flying up and being passed around them as if they were beach balls. One had apparently swapped it’s arms for two more legs as it did possibly the most flawless cartwheel ever. Rarity was absolutely appalled by all of them, but was too busy trying to keep them from touching her to say anything. Rainbow Dash had tried to fly up, only to be grabbed by some of their arms, which she quickly found weren’t attached to bodies anymore. The shock had caused her to fall to the ground as she wrestled with the offending appendages in a vain attempt to dislodge them.

Want to see more? Make sure you keep track of the story:

http://www.fimfiction.net/story/36348/the-equestrian-box

Just wait till you see what Pinkie Pie does...