//------------------------------// // The Journey Begins // Story: Terror in Equestria // by Darth Redbeard //------------------------------//         As dawn broke the very next day, the group gathered a few miles outside the town, all packed for the journey. Each one packing as much as they could really carry. Keam packing the lightest as she wasn’t going to be carrying much for her part. At most, it was her sleeping bag, compass, food, water, paper, and pencils.         Ones like the Pegasus Posse, carried larger packs. Calm being the largest of the five, was carrying enough equipment for at the very least, fifty ponies. Rivet, being the smallest, traveled light as to be the scout of the group. Many others such as Wildfire were used to carry most of the wood for their fires while Crimson, Trilby, and Daffodil carried the maps, compasses, and sundials.         “Everypony ready?” Crimson asked. As the group nodded, he began to head west, beginning the journey that would help change Equestria. For the better or worse, they would never know.         Just five hours of walking, the group was soon hit by the most annoying thing that explorers and travellers alike deal with. Something that drives ponies, dragons, griffons, and even alicorns mad with insanity. The most powerful thing in the world.         “Are we there yet?” Moonblast asked. The dreaded “Are we there yet” question.         “No,” replied Trilby.         “Are we there yet?”         “No,” answered Crimson.         “Are we there yet?”         “No.”         “Are we there yet?”         “Yes.”         “Really?”         “NO!”         “Be nice to my daughter, Flamiris,” Dusk Chaser growled.         “Then get her under control!” Flamiris exclaimed. Before the two could get into a fight, the Pegasus Posse got between them and held the down as Trilby and Crimson went over and knocked both of them out.         “Are you OK dad?” Moon wondered. When her dad didn’t reply, she turned to Trilby, who had knocked him out. “Why did you do that?” Tears formed in her eyes as she stared at Trilby.         “I didn’t want to do that,” Trilby replied. “I didn’t have much choice unless we wanted a fight.”         “So he’ll be OK?” Moon asked. Trilby nodded as Crimson checked to see if both were out cold before turning to Calm.         “Calm, can you carry Dusk? I’ll get Wildfire to carry Flamiris.” Daffodil asked.         “Of course,” Calm replied, putting Dusk on his back while Wildfire grabbed Flamiris and flung him over his shoulder. “Hopefully it’ll be calmer for a while.”         As soon as he finished, a young mare walked over to Calm.         “My you’re strong,” she said, batting her eyelashes at him. Calm’s face turned red as he took to the air to avoid her.         “Vital Spark!” Trilby exclaimed. “What have we said about scaring off the rest of the party?”         “Why all I want is some lovin,” Vital replied. Crimson, Wildfire, and Trilby went back to the front of the group, but not before they heard a whistle from Vital.         Night soon fell upon the group as they began to set up camp.         “We’re only a few miles from our destination,” Tacitus observed as he studied the map. “If we get up early enough, we could make it by night fall and begin exploring the next day.” Tacitus could hardly hold his excitement back being here on this expedition. For years he had hoped to make a difference in Equestria and now he had the perfect chance.         “If we don’t run into many issues while there,” Midnight Blaze said, wanting to make sure that she would get to tell her family about her adventure in the future. One of the first ponies to explore the rest of Equestria so there was no way she would let this opportunity pass.         “Well, let’s get some shut eye,” Crimson ordered. “We got a long day tomorrow.” Everypony soon went to sleep, all except for Trilby, Daffodil, and Crimson.         “You two still sure you want to do this?” Crimson asked.         “We were picked by Luna to lead this and we’ll see it to the end,” Daffodil said. “Besides, somepony has to keep you from getting yourself killed out there.”         “Just like I have to protect the two of you,” Trilby agreed. “We protect each other just like we did when Luna was about to kill us in her Nightmare form. We stick together.”         “Very well,” Crimson replied, tears forming in his eyes. “We stay together to the very end.” After that, they fell asleep, preparing for the next day.         Back at the Everfree ruins, Celestia had gathered the ponies together to build a new capital. One that could still be close to the old castle, but provide more space for her subjects away from the horrors of the Everfree Forest. As she walked towards her stage, she suddenly had a vision.         “Hurry!” Trilby yelled. “Run for the cave!” Just as he was hit by a green spell, his body falling to the ground, devoured of all life.”         “Trilby!” Daffodil exclaimed, running over to her friend but was soon hit as well, he life force leaving her. Dusk ran back to hold off whoever was attacking but met the same fate, Moonblast watching before she ran into one of the henchmen.         “Say goodbye,” he said, before Moonblast was no more.          As the others ran, they too were son hit. All that remained was Crimson, working on a potion to help fix the problem. Just as he was close to getting it finished, along with a weapon to fire the antidote to help his friends, the spell hit him, finishing them off.         Celestia gasped as the vision left.         “Guards!” she yelled. Five of her guard ran into the throne room. “Find the expedition and order them to return. They’re in danger if they continue!” The guards left as Celestia looked out the window. “Please be alright.”         Back at the camp, the group had woken up and began eating.         “So if we make it by nightfall, we should be able to explore for the next five days before returning to Celestia,” Rivet suggested, excited to see new lands.         “If we move now we can,” Daffodil said. After they packed up, they began moving faster than before, hoping to reach the unknowns of Equestria before night shown across the land again, not knowing that they were walking into their doom.         “Are we there yet?” Moonblast asked.         “NO!” Everyone else groaned.         “Please don’t start with this again,” Red Moonlight begged, trying not to lose her temper.         “Are we there yet?” Lightning Dusk asked, not knowing that the others had lost it.         “ARGH!” Crimson, Trilby, and Calm yelled, before lunging at Lightning, all three of them knocking him out.         “Anypony else?” Crimson asked, his right eye twitching. The others shook their heads before they all continued on.