//------------------------------// // Chapter 9 // Story: An Everfree Meet up // by st6nbones //------------------------------// Solem continued to look for Golden. If it wasn't for the fact that he was in public in the day, he would have turned into a timber wolf right then and there and start sniffing around. But he was and so he just wondered around like a lost puppy. (Meanwhile with Harmony) Glitter Harmony's nervousness quickly came back and she made her way to the small corner in the playground. She watched the other ponies quietly. Most of them were in groups, playing with each other. Harmony began looking into the deep forest which was on the side of the playground. The ponies weren't allowed to go into the forest but Harmony walked closer to it. The forest seemed to have this aura, making her want to explore the forest. The wind began blowing strong and hard. The ground began to shake suddenly. Harmony turned around and saw that the teachers were gathering all the ponies back inside but over the debris, they couldn't see her. Harmony tried running to the schoolhouse but the wind kept pushing and blowing her back. She couldn't fly into the air like the pegasi to escape from the shaking ground. She turned to the forest and ran as fast as she could. Cracks began to grow through the earth. Skeletons of several creatures, ponies, dragons, manticore, chimeras,etc, began to climb out of the cracks and walk out. Harmony's heart thumped in her chest as she took small glances at the creatures. She didn't know what they were and why they were there but she kept running. She then found a small hole at the base of a tree and squeezed inside. She pressed herself against the back of the trunk and breathed heavily. Panic shone in her eyes as she watched the creatures walk past. They all walked around, not caring what was in they're way. Everything that couldn't get out of they're way was smashed and pummeled. The wind had slowed by now. There came some growling from behind the tree Harmony was in. Of course, Harmony hadn't noticed the growling. Her own heartbeat was the only thing that she could hear. She shut her eyes tightly as waited. A large timberwolf walked out from behind the tree. This one was made with not just wood, but vines and stone too. He charged at the undead creatures and began to tear them all apart. But for every one he destroyed, two popped up in it's place. Soon the timber became overcome with the skeletons. The wind stopped suddenly and the ground stopped quaking. Harmony slowly opened her eyes and waited. There was no sound. She slowly trotted out of the trunk, still halfway inside. She stared in horror at the skeleton creatures. There was a timber wolf pacing restlessly. Harmony let out the smallest yelp before scrambling back into the tree. The skeletons tackled the timberwolf and began to hold him to the ground. He struggled but couldn't get out of the dog pile. A larger figure in a giant suit of dark grey armor walked up to the fallen timber. Steam hissed with every step. He looked at the timber then began chuckling. " This is it? This. This is nothing but acircus act and this is all the trouble I get? He sent an idiotic animal that seems too stupid to even sit correctly fight his fight? That pathetic," he said in a echoed techy sort of voice. He laughed and stepped right infront of the timberwolf's face. Then the timberwolf tried to bite him, but he anticipated this and hit the timber right in between the eyes. Harmony peeked out and saw the timber wolf. The same one that had saved her. She couldn't just watch him get hurt. Without even thinking, she let out the loudest yell she could muster. "Hey!" she yelled. "Leave him alone!" The figure turned towards her and began to walk to Harmony. "What? Do you think you can stop me? Hahaha, you ponies are so naive," he chuckled darkly. " This wolf is part of something that you will never understand. And I intend to make sure that this one doesn't live to fight another day through his own will." He said as one of the bigger skeletons went and began to tear off the timbers head. He wined and howled and tried to fight back at it, but he was exhausted. "Don't move, it will only make it worse for you," he said. Harmony whimpered in fear but stayed in the same spot. "P-Please... don't hurt him anymore! It's not fair! He did nothing wrong!" "Oh no! He didn't!? Whatever shall I do!? Stop hurting him!" He said in a mock tone. Then he looked down at Harmony, cackling. "You really are a naive child. You want to know something? I don't care anymore," he said as the boneheads continue to harm the timber. Then the griffin walks up to the figure. "Hello again Golden, what was your hold up?" He asked. Harmony glared at large figure angrily. She had never used her Unicorn Magic before in fighting but she just couldn't stand what was happening. She stomped down on her hoof angrily and sent arrows of sticks and thorns hurling towards the skeletons and the figure in front of her. The sticks and thorns got caught inside the joints of the figures armor or was repelled off of it. The skeletons were too busy to notice. Golden's eyes flash gold and he teleports somewhere. The figure whipped around to look at Harmony. "So. You really want to die huh? Well, lets see what you really can do against stuff like this," he said as energy began crackling off of his armor. He shot a bolt at Harmony. Harmony didn't have time to react. Instead of staying in the same spot and doing nothing, she lowered her head a bright pink light blasted from her horn. It smashed right into the bolt, causing an explosion of smoke. The figure jumped through the smoke at the pony and gave he an uppercut in the jaw. Harmony flew into the air and came back down again. She slammed onto the ground, sprawled out. She shakily stood up and backed away. Her jaw throbbed painfully. "W-What do you want?" Harmony whimpered. "W-Why are h-hurting us?" "I needed to get something but then they didn't agree with what I needed, so I got newer friends that did. Then then the others took one away. Now I'm getting him back," he said as he pointed to the timber. "This was not one of the ones we were looking for." "But revenge doesn't solve things!" Harmony cried. "It only makes things worse! What did you want!" "Umm, wellll, oh no. What was it? Something about a star and a shadow? Oh whatever. I can't have them anymore now that my condition has worsened! And I have them to thank for that!" He announced. He charged up an electrical blast in his palm. Then a fire ball hit him in the back. "What the hell?" She held back a laugh when she saw his expression. Harmony tried to see what had caused the fire ball. "What was that?" "That was me," a horse voice said. The figure turned and looked at it. "You!" A chimera was standing behind him. He had a ram head, panther head and body, and a spitting cobra for a tail. "Yeah, it's me," the heads said in union. Harmony didn't know why but she felt completely amazed at the chimera. She had always wanted to see one, it was in one of her favorite books. "Who are you?" she asked curiously but still cautiously. "Give me a bit and you will know," he said as he went and pounced towards figure, clamping down in his arm. He cried out and began to charge up energy all over his arm, which only annoyed the chimera, who attacked with it's tail next, which constricted around the figures chest and attacked the faceplate. The ram was butting it's head around. The figure had enough of this and had commanded the skeletons to stop messing with the timberwolf and get over to the chimera. They all went and did as told, but then half of them all fell apart as a black wispy substance flew through they're chests. The figure saw this and relized that something wasn't on his side. " Retreat!" He yelled. As he loosed himself out of the chimera's grip and got away. "Hahaha, classic bonehead," the chimera said as it turned away. "Th-Thank you," Harmony announced to the chimera. "Your welcome kid. Though now that I'm thinking of it, what are you? A demon magnet? Cause this is the second time I had to get rid of a situation like this for you," he said. She lowered her head apologeticly. "I-I'm a unicorn. Sorry if I caused you any t-trouble." The chimera's tone softened. "No kid. It's not that. I just say that when I see someone get into trouble with guys like that," "Oh," Harmony murmured. "Uh, who exactly are you?" "Right here is not the place for talking about that. Also if you see a griffin can you tell him that his friend has been looking all over for him?" Harmony nodded. "He helped me earlier in school. He made the bullies go away. He's really nice." The chimera's eyes widened. Then he just nodded and walked away.