Four Hooves

by destinedjagold


3 - 17

Lightning occasionally lights up the dark atmosphere. Thunder roars from the stormy heavens. Violent gusts of wind rustles the treetops of the Storm Forest.

On the very center of the forest is a large clearing, where in the very middle lies an old castle in ruins, its broken pieces scattered all around.

A group of creatures emerge from the bordering trees, blinking at the ruins before them.

“What the—?” Twilight gasps in surprise. “What is that doing here?!”

Xana blinks and turns to the surprised mare with a raised eyebrow. “I'm more surprised that you just saw this now, love.” She looks back at the ruins. “It was visible before we crossed that ... wild wooden pathway earlier.”

“What even is that?” Syroc asks, blinking.

The kangaroo rubs her chin with her free hand. “Now that I see it up close, I gotta say, that's a strange-looking rock formation.”

The panther looks at her with an arching eyebrow. “Are there rocks with that color?”

Xana shrugs. “This is the Storm Forest.”

“Touché.” Syroc shakes his head and gazes back at the ruins. He blinks, and then looks at the mare. “You look like you know what that thing is.”

Twilight turns to them and nods. “I do.” She gestures at the ruins with a hoof. “That is the Castle of the Two Sisters,” she tells them as she turns back to the ruins. “Which shouldn't exist in this version of Equestria!”

Syroc arches an eyebrow.

“Cattle?” Xana asks. “And their two sisters?”

Twilight turns to them and blinks. “...I don't think I've explained it to the both of you.” She then turns to the deer. “But I remember you were there when I explained it.”

Sienna rolls her emerald-green eyes. “All I remember was soup.”

The mare blinks, and chuckles. She shakes her head, her small smile gone. “Basically,” she begins, gesturing all around, “this Equestria isn't real.”

Syroc arched eyebrow arches even further. “...it looks and feels real enough to me.”

“Mmmrrrfff...” the sleeping stallion stirs in his sleep.

Twilight shakes her head. “That's true, but false as well.”

Syroc rolls his eyes. “I'm starting to see why they called you the Crazy Mare, Twilight Sparkle.” He frowns at her. “Because you don't make sense.” He smirks and adds: “I'm aware of your killer reputation, but that's not crazy.”

“Yeah, for you,” Sienna says, glaring at the predator.

Twilight sighs. “Back on the topic, it's a long explanation—”

The doe cuts her off: “Our Equestria right now isn't real because something or somedeer changed things in the past, and it caused this Equestria.”

Three sets of eyes stare at her.

Xana tilts her head to the side.

Syroc blinks at her. “...What?”

Twilight sighs once more. “Like I said, it'll take a while to explain it properly.”

“Soooooo let me get this straight, love,” Xana says, looking at the mare. “This whole crazy adventure you and your group of friends are doing is ... is to change back what was changed?”

The mare and the deer nod their heads.

“That's the basic of it, yes,” Twilight says. She turns her gaze back to the ruins, her brows furrowing. “That castle is from the real Equestria. It shouldn't be here, but here it is.” She starts walking towards it. She pauses and blinks. “And now that I think about it, that bridge from earlier shouldn't even be here as well!” She shakes her head and continues trotting. “Something tells me we're about to see whatever ... or whoever changed everything.”

“Ain't that exciting,” Syroc says, rolling his eyes as he and the others follow the mare. He turns and smirks at the doe. “So, why are you still here?”

Sienna glares at him. “You know exactly why I'm still here.”

“I do remember earlier today that you had the chance of running away from me,” Syroc says, still smirking. “While I and this oversized dog were walking on that wooden crossing.”

Sienna's eye twitches. “And what? Get myself eaten by timberwolves lurking around the forest?”

The panther shrugs. “You're fast. You can outrun those twigs no problem.”

The doe angrily shakes her head. “Not in total darkness, I can't.” She glares at him. “And I have Xana and Twilight to help me when you try doing anything funny.”

Syroc shakes his head in amusement. “You're depending on them far too much, little doe.” He gazes ahead, still smirking. “You should learn to be more independent.”

Sienna glares at him more.

Xana has been listening to their conversation, but decided not to say anything.

Seconds later, the group arrives at the large entrance of the ruins. Despite the many gems lighting up the dark place with their multicolored lights, Twilight still shines her horn, illuminating the inside of the ruins with purple light.

Xana lets out a whistle. “That's a lot of gems.”

“Eh,” the panther rolls his eyes. “Prey relies too much on it. They start crying when their gems don't work anymore. It's pathetic.”

Twilight walks inside after surveying the area. She looks back and motions for them to follow her.

Syroc blinks, his ears twitching as he the others follow the purple mare. “I hear Reykan up ahead.”

Twilight nods her head, her horn still glowing. “I sense Seri's gemstone close by, too.”

“It's strangely a bit warm in here,” Sienna comments, eyeing the large hole on one of the walls. She suddenly stops, her ears twitching, and soon those ears droop as she senses faint vibrations from her dainty hooves. “I ... sense something large is approaching.”

The rest of her companions stop and turn to her.

Twilight blinks. “...The dragon is probably awake and...” She blinks once again, looking at the many gems scattered and piled around. “...this place must be its lair.”

“Dragon?” Syroc asks. He blinks. “Ah, that giant lizard from earlier is a dragon, is what you mean, right?”

Xana shakes her head. “Whatever it's called, I don't want to become lizard food.”

Syroc smirks at her as Twilight ushers them to hurry up the curved stairs. “Heh, I agree. It would be humiliating for a predator to become prey.”

“Then why won't you prey on it?” Sienna asks, still glaring at him.

Syroc rolls his eyes. “I know how to pick my fights, deerie.” He grunts. “...most of the time, anyway.”

Twilight and the rest arrive on the second floor of the ruins, and hurries toward the other end of the hallway as she and the others finally feel the faint vibrations on the floor.

Syroc throws a smirk at the doe. “Still feeling safe around these two?”

Sienna glares at him. “Twilight can just teleport ourselves away from here, leaving you to deal with that drag-on.”

Xana rolls her eyes as she readjust the sleeping stallion on her shoulder.

The group arrives on two sets of spiraling staircase. Twilight quickly takes the one on the right, the rest following her.

“Why not the other one?” Syroc asks. “I smell my bro's scent on that one.”

“Doesn't matter,” Twilight yells back as she hurries up the stairs. “They lead towards the same floor anyway!”

“Then why are there two of them?!” the panther asks back.

“Is that you, Syroc?” the group hear Reykan's voice as they arrive on the third floor, or at least what is left of it. “And what's a floor?”

Twilight dims her horn as she and her group turns—their gazes lock on the huge, green and scaly dragon walking on all four through the trees that surround the ruins.

Xana whistles lowly. “That is one big lizard...”

“Oh, hey!” Reykan says happily, tail wagging. “Jay's okay!”

“Are you okay in the head, still, Reykan?!” Moon Gaze squeaks, sitting on his back and pointing at the purple mare. “I thought you said she's dead!”

The cub shrugs.

“That is not a good response, you know!”

Twilight shakes her head and turns to the panther cub. “Where's Seri?”

“Reykan said you were dead!” Moon Gaze squeaks at her as the cub sits down and points up the stairs with his good paw.

Syroc blinks at where the cub is pointing. He looks back at this brother with an arched eyebrow. “Are ... you okay, bro?” He looks back up. “There's nothing up there.”

“We'll become nothing if we don't do something about that drag-on!” Sienna yells.

Xana glares at her. “We'll be nothing sooner if you don't keep your voice down, love,” she says, ignorant of the stirring stallion she's carrying on her shoulder.

They then turn to Twilight, who has been staring at the broken staircase.

“Am ... I dead yet?” the brown stallion whispers, blinking sleepily at the purple mare. “Oh, hey, Twilight. Are we in pony heaven or something?”

Xana carefully brings him down on all four hooves.

Jay slowly shakes his head, shaking the sleep off of him. “Oh, I'm alive.” He blinks, staring on the ground. “...wait...” He quickly looks up and gasps. “Holy—!” he covers his mouth with a hoof, his gaze on the dragon emerging from the line of trees. He notices a large and smirking panther standing beside him, and he gasps through his covered mouth.

“Let's go,” Twilight suddenly declares, approaching and then walking up the stairs.

“No, wait!” Moon gaze squeaks.

“Twilight,” Reykan calls as he stands up on three paws.

Twilight stops and looks at him.

“Seri is gone.”

Twilight nods her head and looks up the stairs again. “I know. And I think I know why.”

The others watch as Twilight reaches the last step but still continues—

—and she disappears in thin air.

No flash. No magic. Nada.

Thunder roars. Howling winds. Dragon steps.

Twilight's head suddenly pokes out from nothingness. She smiles at the others. “I knew it! An illusion spell!” She blinks. “Well, sort of.” Her hoof appears, motioning for them to follow her. “Come on!”

Twilight returns to the nothingness.

Another set of thunder roars, howling winds, and dragon steps.

Syroc sighs. “Magical freaks...”

“Well,” Moon Gaze squeaks. “It's either through there or through that dragon.”

“Hey bro, you're hurt,” Syroc points out as they slowly approach the stairs.

Reykan rolls his eyes as he starts walking up the stairs.

Syroc smirks at him. “Looks like you can't hunt for a while.”

“Shut up,” the cub replies, eliciting a chuckle from the larger panther.

Xana follows them, and then the doe.

“Sienna?” Jay calls, blinking at the doe, who stops and throws an angry look at him. “Was... That was really Twilight, right?”

“Why do you care?” she asks back before following the others.

Jay blinks, frowns, and follows them up the stairs.