Scootaloo was led deeper into the forest by the strange pony. The undergrowth became increasingly thick as the crawled through the low hanging branches. The canary colored pegasus led the way wordlessly, never ensuring the filly behind her was keeping up. Scootaloo wanted to hang on to the skin cloak draped over the mare so she wouldn't be lost but was too frightened to step within her reach.
The brush opened up to reveal a large tree with strings of beads hanging loosely from the lower branches, and sloppily painted markings on its trunk. Scootaloo noted what appeared to be a door in the base of the trunk before the pony ahead of her spoke.
"Come inside, little one." She ordered from behind her long pink mane.
Scootaloo nervously did as was told. The door to the hollowed tree opened without a sound, making the orange filly feel as though it was a living thing swallowing her whole.
Inside the tree was surprisingly spacious. The floor was set lower than the ground outside, with the steps from the front door leading to a large, black cauldron in the center of the room. Inside the cauldron bubbled a sparkling fluorescent green liquid, it seemed to be boiling despite there being no fire beneath it.
The mare spoke as she unceremoniously removed her cloak, dropping it by the door.
"My name is Zecora. It is the name given to me by my predecessor and will be yours before the day is through." Zecora spoke plainly.
"Wait, what?" Scootaloo's mind turned in on itself, trying to process everything she was seeing, while still trying to forget what she had just seen earlier.
Zecora sighed. "I don't have time for lengthy explanations, you will know everything in due time. For now, know that I am the witch of the forest, and the forest called you to succeed me. Noir confirmed it to me."
Upon saying the name, the black raven perched by the window let out a soft caw.
Scootaloo felt as though the world was spinning away from beneath her hooves. Struggling to stay upright, she cast her eyes to every corner of the room, as though there would be some escape waiting for her. Every surface denied her silent pleading, seeming instead to draw closer.
As Scootaloo's chest quivered from her accelerating heartbeat and shallow rapid breathing, she felt a hoof run gently through her mane.
The whole world stopped. The frightened foal turned her eyes upward to see Zecora's gentle smile.
"Trust me."
This was only the second night Bloom had ever tried sneaking out of the house. She knew now however, that Applejack wouldn't be at home to keep her inside, since she was out searching for the moonlight creatures. One of those creatures lie in the pit of town square and weighed heavily on Bloom's mind.
Bloom walked casually to town square in the dead of night. The streets of the dark night were empty, not even the robed ponies were anywhere to be seen.
Bloom arrived to see a large sheet covered the pit where Iron Pyrite was being held. The sheet had gold thread inscribing strange symbols along the edge and was pinned down with stakes at each corner.
The yellow farm filly took one of the four stakes in her teeth and uprooted it. Apparently making enough noise for the prisoner to notice.
"What are you doing?" Iron cried in nearly a whisper, as to not disrupt the quiet of the night.
The filly responded at the same volume, going over to the next stake. "Ahm gettin' you out of here!"
"Are you insane!?" Said Iron. "You of all ponies know that's the most hair-brained-" Bloom cut him off.
"Ah know you're not a bad pony. Ah aint gonna let ya die without doin' somethin' about it!" Bloom removed the second stake and with the corner of the sheet in her teeth, she pulled it aside, uncovering the grate.
Iron looked up through the uncovered grate and saw the open sky. Moonlight poured down into the pit and Iron Pyrite felt its power wash through his body. The patchy hairs of his coat started to stretch and lengthen, his muzzle pointed and his teeth sharpened. Hooves split into claws and muscle expanded throughout his body. The chains holding him burst under the pressure of his growing stature and finally, the beast of the pit took the grate above him in his claws and ripped it from the ground.
Bloom had taken several steps back, and while her body urged her to run, her heart commanded her to show faith in the monster that crawled from the pit.
The beast's dark eyes looked into Bloom's, and it stood still for a moment.
Turning away, the creature carefully took the sheet that Bloom had uncovered into its claws. He then turned back to Bloom and sat, almost like he was waiting for something.
Scootaloo's eyes were wide and unfocused. She stood in the silent room, listening for the echoes of Zecora's voice as she was commanded, trying to ignore the display before her.
Zecora's lifeless body dangled motionless from the ceiling as though it were a puppet with the strings cut. The mare's eyes were missing, leaving dry, black holes in her skull, her jaw was slack, revealing a long sharp tongue that fell over her teeth. Many cuts appeared over the dangling limbs, but no blood spilled. The body that hung there was dry, many flies and mosquitos had swarmed over the carcass but found nothing to be had.
Zecora's voice drifted quietly through the room like the air itself.
"Halo of burning light shall herald the end. Spores of the eldest will reach across the land and raise up eternal daylight from the earth. Before empty glass,the stars become lifeless."
The orange filly saw darkness encompass the room, leaving only the glow from within the cauldron visible. Looking inside, she saw a clean skull float up to the top. A crack formed from the nose that ran along the center.
Upon touching it, the skull dissolved and left a bracelet of the teeth of wild creatures in her hoof.
Everything returned to normal. Natural light filled the room again, and the hanging corpse was gone. The young pegasus brushed aside the new pink streak of her mane aside and wrapped the bracelet around her fetlock. She then looked to see the eyes of Noir, the raven fixed on her.
The filly Pulled a hide cloak over her back and waited for a moment as the raven perched itself on her haunches, letting out a caw.
"Zecora... yeah, it has a nice ring to it."The filly mumbled as she stepped into the darkening woods.