//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: Everfree Forest and the Vim Factory part 1 // Story: Twilight and Rarity Partners In Time // by DryvernX //------------------------------// The four unicorns of the past and present, were still traveling through the time hole. "Equestria past. Everfree Forest." The screen said. Before a white glow came at the end of the time hole trip. The four unicorns were engulfed by the glow. Soon, Twilight, Rarity, along with their filly counterparts were sent flying out of the time hole. They all managed to land on their hooves in time. "Do time holes ever know, when to send a lady out, gently?" Rarity humphed, as she made sure Filly Rarity was okay. "Focus Rarity. Now where are we this time?" Twilight asked, as she and her filly counterpart checked their surroundings. They were in some kind of dark forest. A very familiar dark forest, as both Twilight and Rarity began to shake a little out of worry, while the clueless Filly Twilight and Filly Rarity were confused. "This is... the Everfree Forest." Twilight shook in slight fear. As they looked around, and saw dark bushes and trees everywhere. "Out of all the places, why the Everfree Forest?!" Rarity screamed. "Wait, Rarity, I don't see any of the creatures around." Twilight realized, as she couldn't see any of the Everfree creatures around. She activated her horn to detect nearby life, but couldn't feel a spark of any Everfree life nearby. "Nor can I actually detect them." "You're right Twilight. Almost like they've vanished. Where's the creatures in the forest?" "I don't know. But something tells me, that the Shroobs are behind it." Twilight said, as she put all her fear and worry aside. "I agree. Those ruffians should pay for turning the places around here into wastelands." Rarity nodded, as she stood ready for action. "So where should we go?" "Lets start with this way." Twilight said, as she pointed to the right direction. The two unicorns, along with their filly counterparts then started walking the right path. They continued forward, until they reached a very large tree in front of them. "Okay, we are now nearby a very large tree. Where do you think we go now Rarity?" Twilight asked her friend. "Anywhere to get out of this dreadful..." Rarity said, but before she could continue, the four suddenly heard something. "...l...i....g...h...t..." They heard somepony speak nearby, but it was really weak. "Huh? Who said that?" Twilight asked, as the two unicorns sat their filly counterparts down the ground. "M...i...s..." The same voice suddenly muttered. The two unicorns, along with Filly Twilight and Filly Rarity started checking their surroundings, but couldn't find anypony nearby. Rarity soon started to shake in fear. "It's... not a ghost is it?" "Rarity calm down. We've already been through this. Ghost's doesn't exist." "I know. But if it is a ghost, it's lucky that I don't have my magical vacuum with me. But if it comes near me, I will tear it to..." Rarity threatened, before she's cut off, by the voice once more. "Twi... ight." The voice muttered. The unicorns now realized where the voice came from. "The voice. It's coming from that tree." Twilight realized, as she pointed to the tree. The four unicorns walked closer it, and then saw something slightly curly, dark blue, and pink. "That... that looks kinda... familiar." Rarity said, as she got closer to the curly thing stuck on the tree. Then suddenly, it turned up. "Twilight Sparkle..." The voice said, which turned out to be Bon Bon. Both Rarity, and the fillies jumped up in surprise, and ran toward the bushes. Twilight however stood there quietly, as she was shocked at Bon Bon, being stuck in the tree, thanks to the vines, tying her up. "Twilight Sparkle..." "Bon Bon?" "Yes it's me, Bon Bon. I was... on the... time machine... with... Princess Celestia." She explained weakly. "You were? Where's Princess Celestia? Is she alright? And why are you stuck in that tree?" "As... as soon as we arrived... in this time... we were... attacked. A fierce... alien race known as... the Shroobs... came... out of nowhere..." "Go on." Twilight said. (About 20 minutes, after Chrysalis's airship retreated from Canterlot) The time machine started appearing on top of the ruins of Canterlot. It landed in front of her old throne. Princess Celestia, along with her followers, Lyra and Bon Bon, stepped out of the time machine. Princess Celestia was shocked at the ruins, and destroyed remains of Canterlot. "Oh my goodness! What's happened here?" Lyra and Bon Bon continued checking their surroundings. "Was this before Canterlot Castle was built Bon Bon?" "Don't know Lyra. But it could use a bit of... "Bon Bon replied, until she stopped, and started to shake in fear, upon what she's witnessing arriving to the throne room. "EEEK!" They both screamed, as they both ran behind Princess Celestia's flank, and hugged each other tightly. Princess Celestia on the other hand, was recovering her senses of the Canterlot ruins, and watched, as more than a hundred Shroobs walked up to her. "Who are you?! What are you creatures?! Tell me at once!" Princess Celestia firmly ordered them. But the Shroobs ignored her. They then turned both left and right, where the Shroobs in the middle stepped back. She then noticed a very tall female Shroob, who had a royal like figure walk up to her. Celestia assumed she was their leader. "Who are you?" Celestia asked, but the royal Shroob didn't respond, but instead walked closer to them. Celestia, Lyra, and Bon Bon took a step back, as the royal Shroob was very close to them. It then surrounded it's alien hands with pink energy orbs, as Lyra and Bon Bon was starting to get more afraid, while Princess Celestia was shocked at the Shroob's display of power. "Help!" "I want my mommy!" Lyra screamed. "Princess Celestia was... taken... by the Shroobs..." Bon Bon explained, as Rarity came out of her hiding spot, carrying both Filly Twilight, and Filly Rarity on her back. "And I was... captured by... the trees... of the Everfree Forest..." Rarity felt bad for Bon Bon. "Oh you poor dear." "And what's the trees for? Why did they bind you to it?" Twilight asked curiously. "These trees... they're slowly but surely... siphoning away all our... magical power... our vim... The pure vim... then flows through the... roots of the trees.... deep, deep underground... It is gathered... at the Shroob Vim Factory... in the heart of... the Everfree Forest." Bon Bon continued. "Rumor has it... the magic is... somehow changed at the... Vim Factory. It's mixed with awful chemicals and... becomes the fuel for... the Shroob's flying saucers..." Bon Bon explained further. The unicorns couldn't believe it more, what the awful Shroobs are planning on doing. "That's... horrible. And insane!" Twilight said, out of disgust. "Why those ruffians." Rarity said out of anger. "Come on darling. Let us help free you from this horrid tree." Bon Bon however shook her head. "Twilight... You must... leave me... Hasten to... the Vim Factory... It is all that matters now... besides my friend Lyra. Somewhere... in that horrid place... is a... Cobalt Star Shard... I just know it..." "Really?" Both Rarity and Twilight asked in surprise. "The Cobalt Star... and Princess Celestia..." Bon Bon is about to explain... until 5 flying saucers suddenly appeared above them, and started firing an energy blast toward them. The first one hit near Rarity and the fillies. "Yikes!" Rarity screamed, as she ran back to her hiding spot with the fillies. Twilight on the other hand was at first too shocked to run. "What the?! How did they find us so quickly?!" Twilight exclaimed, as she ran around the tree to dodge the blasts. She would've made a barrier, but the blasts they fired were too quick for her to react. As she ran for cover, one of the blasts suddenly hit Bon Bon, creating smoke around her. Twilight gasped. "Bon Bon!" As the smoke cleared, a purple mushroom, similar to the Shroobs was now in her place. The Bon Bon mushroom fell down to the ground, as Twilight ran up to what remained of Bon Bon. "Oh no! What have they done to you?!" Twilight said, as she felt agony and sadness, in Bon Bon's poor fate. "The... shards... Gather..." Was all she heard. But the rest sounded too dull for her to listen clearly, as the voice was soon too weak to listen to at all. Rarity then arrived with he fillies. "Poor Bon Bon. Do you know a spell that can turn her back to normal?" Twilight however shook her head. "I'm afraid not. The mushroom appears to be too resistant to my magic." "Well those ruffians are gonna pay. Lets find the Cobalt Star, shut down the awful Vim Factory, and get back to our time." Rarity suddenly declared. Twilight felt proud for her friend's declaration to take on the Shroobs. "I'm glad that you're in it. Lets continue, and find the factory." Twilight said, with Rarity nodding in agreement. They let their filly versions climb up to their backs, and started continuing on their path. As the unicorns continued their way through the forest, they noticed more ponies tied to the vines of several trees in the Everfree Forest. Rarity felt disgusted by the numerous ponies, having their power sucked away. Most of the ponies around, were also too weak to even speak. They eventually reached a huge red and purple dome in front of them, along with two metallic Shroob Arms in front of the entrance. "There is the entrance Rarity. I bet the Cobalt Star is in there." Twilight speculated. "Normally, I would've refused to go in there. But knowing that it's the only way, to get more clues to where Princess Celestia is... i'm in." Rarity said, as they walked toward the entrance. Soon they walked inside the entrance passage, where they saw every kind of machinery inside. "Wow. This Shroob technology must be really advanced." Twilight said, as she watched in awe, of the interior. "Focus Twilight. The Shroobs are our enemies." Rarity reminded her, as Twilight soon snapped out of her thoughts. They then reached a large room, with two doors on the other side. "Two doors. Which way Twilight?" Rarity asked, as she and Twilight put the fillies down. "I don't know. But maybe we should try..." Twilight said, until suddenly, two insectoid pony like species suddenly jumped down from the ceiling. Twilight and Rarity certainly know what race they are. "Changelings?!" "What are they doing here?" Rarity asked. The Changelings were a bit different. They wore some sort of advanced green steel armor, both had a hammer equipped to their horns, and both wore a special helmet with an antenna above. The right one spoke first, with a metallic light voice, none of the ponies barely understood. "AREA RESTRICTED. ALL NOOB INTRUDERS 2 B HAXORED BY US L33T HAMM3R BROZ.!" "What did they just say?" Rarity whispered to Twilight. "I don't know. Maybe that's almost the same Shroobs speak in pony language. The Shroobs must've brainwashed them." Then the left one spoke, with a slightly deeper voice than his comrade. "WE R TEH SHROOB ALLIES. WE ROXOR U AND THEN ROFL. THEN U AM CRY. WE RECEIVE ORDERS THRU ANTENNAS ON THESE L33T HELMETS. THEY R HOTNESS. WE MUST OBEY ALL ORDERS. WE LIKE 2 PWN NOOBS 4 TEH MASTER SHROOBZORS. U = NOOBS. BROZ. = L33T. PREPARE FOR TOTAL PWNAGE. WOOT! WOOT! WOOT! WOOT!" Suddenly, a large wooden nose suddenly appeared above both Twilight and Rarity. It started sucking up air with it's nostrils. Twilight and Rarity suddenly felt themselves leaving the ground. "What's happening Rarity?!" Twilight screamed. Before Rarity could reply, both unicorns were stuck in the nostrils of the wooden nose. "EW! So gross! Get off me!" Rarity exclaimed, as she did her best to struggle herself out of the nose. Filly Twilight and Filly Rarity both panicked, and called out for them, while the two unicorns were helplessly taken away by the wooden nose. The two Changeling then looked at the two baby unicorns. "NOOBZ STILL R NOT PWNED. CONTINUE PWNERSHIP UNTIL ALL NOOBZ R PWNED" The right one said. "TEH ESCAPE IS IMPOSSIBLE. WE ARE 2 L33T. WE OWNZ JOO. U WILL GET FLATZORED BY R L33T HAMMERS." The left one said, as they both prepared to fight the two unicorns.