//------------------------------// // Chapter 7: Shades of Grey (1 of 3) // Story: Displaced into Nothing // by Rockstar_Raccoon //------------------------------// So... I’d like to take a moment to compare and contrast the social norms regarding violence, between pony-dominated Equestria society and Westernized human societies. Ponies are not, as humans often believe, a race of pacifists.  They can be rude, aggressive, warlike, and even downright murderous, just as much as humans.  That being said, they are primarily herbivorous, and have pretty much adapted to live in harmony with the natural world.  They literally have a virtue in their culture, which does not have any real human parallel, that involves the facilitation the various functions of nature, including the animals, and another which involves living alongside nature, with no clothes between them and their world, just like other animals.  It would not be considered at all outlandish, in pony culture, to literally walk out into the woods, naked, and have a cuddle with a wild raccoon or rabbit. In fact, Fluttershy lets bears and bobcats into her home and even sleeps in the same bed as them as if they were some beloved family member: other ponies only consider this to be a mild eccentricity. Now, that isn’t to say you won’t hear them talk about eating things like eggs, insects, and even sea animals like the imported Hippogriff Fish-Oil tea.  It is not unheard of for, say, the hungry pegasi of coastal cities to swoop down upon the ocean and pluck fish, or Unicorns to lure in small animals and kill them for sustenance, sometimes eating them raw, perhaps even alive, for their magical energy.  Twilight Sparkle herself has, in fact, mesmerized birds into a sleeplike state and eaten them right off of her hoof on more than one occasion. The utility of consuming other animals is just considered to be a fact of life, often compared to the way that the bear eats the fish, or the cat eats the mouse: one creature dies, another gains sustenance, as is the way of nature. What isn’t natural to ponies is cold, calculative violence with fatal intent.  Stomping a mouse and frying it up is one thing, repeatedly stabbing a moving opponent with a spear as they desperately try to keep you away is another.  It takes months of training to get members of the royal guard acclimated to the concept of doing grievous harm to an opponent, and even then, they’ll only do it if you push them: ponies are creatures molded by harmony, and the instinct of killing is all but a distant memory to them.  While a unicorn could do any number of horrific things with their horn-spells, like say, create a series of explosions which go off in a chain aboard a ship, or tear the life force directly from an individual’s body, or create a hyper-thin blade to run through the necks of a group of opponents simultaneously, there are virtually no accounts of them going so far as to turn their own bones into spears and tear their opponent into pieces through brute force. And there I was, covered in blood, staring at ponies who had just seen me literally do exactly that. “Hey girls.” I began in a calm voice, using my magic to push the gore from my fur and onto the ground, “I’m sorry you had to see that.  I was attacked by that monster and I didn’t realize you would get here so soon. I think we should all just calmly walk away from this place, and go back to the castle before it gets dar-” “NO FUCKING WAY!” Rainbow cut me off with a roar, her wings raised in the air, blades at the ready, “WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED‽  WHAT THE FUCK DID SHE JUST DO TWILIGHT‽  WHAT THE FUCK DID SHE JUST KILL‽ HOW THE FUCK DID SHE JUST TEAR HERSELF APART?  ARE YOU EVEN A FUCKING PONY‽ WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON!!!” “Rainbow,” I said, raising a hoof gently, “Nopony is in danger.  I was just using my magic to fight a monster. That’s all. Now, if you’ll just calm down, we can al-” “CALM DOWN?  CALM THE FUCK DOWN‽  FUCK NO!” she took another step forward, as if ready to attack at any moment, ”NORMAL PONIES DON’T DO THAT!  WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU‽” “Rainbow, I’m not a pony, remember?  I am a spellcaster from another world.  This body is just a manifestation, just like the form I turned int-” “YOU WHAT‽  YOU’RE A FUCKING ALIEN‽‽  TWILIGHT! SHE’S A FUCKING ALIEN!!” “Rainbow!” Twilight said, hurriedly waving her hooves to try and calm her down, “It’s ok!  I know she’s an alien, I’m the one who found her! We told you this remember?” “You didn’t tell me you were SERIOUS!!” Rainbow shouted, eyes bulging out of her skull. “Rainbow, literally everypony else knew.  You are the only pony who didn’t believe her.” “I-it is t-true...” Rarity finally croaked out, reaching up a hoof to wipe some of the vomit off of her lips.  She gagged slightly, trying not to go into a dry-heave, “Rainbow, Meta told me and Applejack herself.” And THAT is why you always keep your lies to a minimum. Rainbow was still beside herself, a blood vessel on her face approximately 67.2% of the way to bursting, “Are you... Are you fucking KIDDING ME‽  You knew she was this fucking... THING, and you didn’t say ANYTHING‽” “Well... I don’t think anypony was aware that she... that her true form...”  Rarity glanced over at me and almost immediately began to retch again, whipping her head away and heaving on the ground, spittle dripping from her muzzle as she tried to get the taste of bile from her mouth. “Twilight.  You HAVE to tell the other princesses about this.  I mean, HOLY SHIT, Twilight, we’ve been harboring a fucking ALIEN PREDATOR!”  She ground her teeth, “Captain Spitfire’s gonna throw a fucking fit when she finds out about this!!” “The other Princesses already know.  Luna was just here this morning to meet her.” “And for the record,” I piped in, still standing where I was, so as not to spook them, “I’m not technically a predator of your species or any other: I’m just very good at changing my own shape.  I don’t really have a ‘true form’, as you call it, only the ones I make to fit the situation.” Rainbow had a moment of bafflement, in which Applejack found the words to step in, “Twilight what the hay!  If y’all know she was capable o’ this kinda mess then why’d y’all let her around Ponyville?!” she stomped a hoof, “Twilight, mah whole family lives there!  How could ya endanger everypony’s lives like that‽” “Girls...“ Fluttershy said below a generally audible volume. “I didn’t know she could do that, but she was just... here, and she seemed nice, and...” “Seemed NICE‽” Applejack started to boil over, “Twilight, she just ripped some creature inta’ literal pieces!!” “Girls...“ Fluttershy, why are you so bad at just raising your voice the first time? “SHE COULDA KI-” Applejack was cut off. “Applejack...”  Pinkie Pie had placed a hoof firmly on AJ’s withers.  She stared into her eyes with a weight of woe. “Wha... Don’t you start tellin’ me ta giggle at the ghosties!  She’s fuckin’ terrifying!” “But Applejack...” Pinkie Pie said, her voice a complete lack of her usual bliss, “Just because... Just because somepony looks scary to you doesn't mean they're a bad pony...” Applejack hardened, “But she AIN’T a Pony, Pinkie!  And she did’n just look scary, she tore that thing to fucking shreds!!”  She stomped her hoof, trying to pull away with a toss of her head. Pinkie held tight, “Remember Zecora?  And Discord was scary, but now he wants to be friends!” Applejack growled, “That don't count Pinkie!  They never turned into... Whatever that was!” She shook her head. “Um... Actually...” Fluttershy finally managed to speak audibly, “Discord can be pretty scary when he makes his body parts fall off... And sometimes, when he's not thinking, he shows me his... um... his organs...”  She hid her face behind her hair... “That sounds rather gastly, Fluttershy,” Rarity croaked out, trying to cringe away the new thoughts, lest she begin vomiting anew, “You should tell him to stop.” “Oh, well, he doesn't know any better because he's not used to living with Ponies, or, um... anyone else... so he forgets.  And I was thinking, maybe, um... Meta doesn't think that... That's scary...” “Aaactually,” I ventured forward, “I wouldn’t have done it if I’d known you were about to get here.  I knew it would’ve been frightening, but it seemed like the most direct route to my goal...” Twilight sighed, shoring herself up before beginning anew, “Look girls, I've known Meta pretty much since she got here, and even when she's scary or does things that make Ponies feel uncomfortable, she's never given me any reason to think she'd actually try to hurt somepony.” “She sure put the hurt to that dragon-thing just now.” Rainbow half-assed, the adrenaline still working its way out of her system. “That was a Demon, and it just tried to bludgeon a group of children to death for fun.” I stated, “It outright stated it was here to kill this world's guardians.  If I hadn't attacked him, I have no reason to believe he wouldn't have tried to kill you next.” Even Twilight wasn’t expecting that bit, “Wait... What?” “The fillies told us there was a unicorn mare fighting a monster near the road to Zecora’s.” Rarity recalled, “They didn't mention any of those other details.” “Why didn' AppleBloom say somethin’?” “How much time did she have to tell you?” I deadpanned. There was a pause.  Rainbow answered again, grimacing slightly, “Welllll... we kinda ran off from the restaurant in a hurry, so... I guess they didn't really have time to say what else had happened...” “...Soo...?” Twilight raised a brow and cocked her head, begging the question. They stopped, and I could feel the metaphorical gears turning in their heads as they searched for a way to rationalize the new information into their existing worldviews. Finally, it was Applejack who gave in with a sigh, “Fine.  Ah guess Ah owe her an apology... Listen Meta, Ahm sorry I thought any ill of ya.  I think you're scary and all, but that ain't no reason to be ungrateful for you savin’ my kin.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes away, looking like she’d rather be somewhere else right now, “Yeah, I'm sorry too... Spitfire keeps telling me I don’t think before I act, I guess she's right...” “It's fine.” I stated, “I expected you to be afraid of me, and I’m not about to let myself be offended if you don't trust or even like me.  The important thing right now is that there's a demon on your planet, and he’s likely to bring others.” I started walking back toward town, “We should get back to the castle and plan our next course of action... Twilight, Spike can send messages to the other princesses, right?” “Right.” Twilight replied with a nod, falling in to walk beside me again, throwing an uneased glance over her shoulder. Rainbow rolled lazily in the air above us, dipping in, “Soo wait...” she began to speculate, “If you’re an alien, what planet did you come from?  Does everypony on your planet have those powers? Are you from a race of shapeshifters?” It seemed as if she’d forgotten for the moment that she was seeing me as a monster, her fascination with potential alien superheroes taking over. “No.” I clarified, hesitantly, “I’m something... Different... At this moment I’m some sort of anomaly.  A one-in-a-trillion-chance occurrence. I’m not really sure that anything quite like me has been observed by my species - or yours - before.  I wouldn’t know though: I don’t have a complete set of memories, and we can’t trust the ones I have...” “Yeah, but like, did you come here in a flying saucer?  Do you suck out ponies’ brains?” You know Rainbow, if I did, I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t look so excited... “No, I was dragged across a world-line between my planet and yours, and I haven’t tried sucking out anypony’s brains... well, not yet, at least...”  I shot her skull a smirk. She backed away slightly, and it was quiet for a moment, aside from our hooves transitioning from the grassy field to a dirt road running along the outskirts of town, the late-afternoon sun beginning to cast an orange glow on the rooftops it could strike. “So Meta, you seem to know what that creature was.” Twilight surmised, “What are we up against?” “It’s called a Dreadlord.” I recited, “They’re a product of one of the Infernal Planes, used as the front-line commanders of a force of demonic invaders known as the Burning Legion.  Seeing as you aren’t in the middle of a war with them, I’d say he’s the spearhead of some larger strike-force.” “Wait.” Rainbow interjected, “If he’s the spearhead...  How long has he been hiding out in the Everfree?” “I’m guessing since about a week ago.  That’s when I found Meta.” Twilight mused, “Luna told me there were multiple incursions through the barriers between our universe and the outside...” “But... Why here?” Rarity asked, “What use could our planet possibly have to them?” “Magic.” I stated, “I wouldn’t call myself an expert, but I’m pretty sure the field around this planet isn’t typical.  It’s much stronger and more stable than any I can recall, and in the hands of a extraplanar being powerful enough to work on that level?  It could be a valuable resource...” “But if they know enough to know that,” Rainbow came in again, “Why start with Ponyville?  Why us? We have, like, magical rainbow powers! The tree grew Twilight, like, a giant magical castle of friendship or whatever!  Wouldn’t they realize that this would be like, the hardest place to take on?” “If they realize that, it may be their strategy.  If you want to win a war fast, you go for the strongest asset before a defense can be mounted...” I trailed off, “Then again...  Why wouldn’t they open with a stronger force? Ugh...” I put a hoof to my head, thinking it would be churning if it were real, “So many things here just don’t add up.  Not only was he completely unprepared to fight something like me, but he kept talking about someone named ‘Megan’, as if she was some sort of ‘guardian’... But that’s you all, and Discord, right?  You’re the ones who’ve defended Equestria and this planet in the past. And as far as I know, Megan is a fictional character who exists only in my mind...” “Megan...” Twilight slowed, putting a hoof to her chin, “I may have heard that name before.  I think she was one of the heroes in a mythology book. But... Most of it wasn’t even translated into modern Equestrian: not many ponies alive today would even know about her, and even then, she was just a story...” “So wait...” Rainbow quirked an eyebrow, “This guy is looking for characters from ancient mythology?  How’d he get that mixed up?” I thought for a moment, “You know, that connects with another thing that doesn’t add up: I keep thinking that Dreadlords aren’t supposed to be real either, like, they’re fictional characters from a book I read a long time ago.  I have no idea how one exists here and now...” “Meta... You remember what Princess Luna said, right?  About how you might actually be a fictional character? What if that’s what’s going on here?  What if something is bringing fictional characters into existence to fight each other? What if you were supposed to be Megan, but you got mixed up with Marey, and now you’re something entirely different?” “That could explain how this is happening, but it’s still not a why.  Luna and I both agreed, Twilight, this kind of thing doesn’t happen naturally.  Something powerful from outside your universe had to have planned this.” “But what would something that powerful possibly gain from making fictional characters fight like that?” Rarity balked, “Amusement??” “I don’t know...” I furrowed my brow, rubbing my chin with a hoof, “It’s as if some sort of occult hand is reaching down from above, trying to move us like pawns upon some giant chessboard towards some unknowable grand scheme...” “An occult hand?” Twilight raised a brow, giving me an odd, half-amused look. “You know, like, some invisible, powerful force we don’t understand.” I explained, awkwardly, “People use that phrase, right?  Whatever, anyway, we’re going to need to track down their base before they attack for real.” Rainbow glanced at the sky, “Well, I dunno about recon tonight: it’ll be dark by the time I can assemble any sort of team for a flyover.  There’s no way we’d be able to comb an area that big in the dark...” “Hmm...” I tapped my chin with a hoof as we rounded the corner and headed for the looming structure of Twilight’s crystal castle, “I sensed the direction of their altar when I discorporated the dreadlord’s form, and I could probably tell you a bit more if I was close enough to sense it, but even then, I’m not sure it’s something we should attempt without backup...” “Right, so we just wait ‘till tomorrow then?” Applejack asked. “I don’t see what else we can do.” Twilight dipped her head, “We tell Celestia and Luna what happened tonight, and tomorrow we head into the Everfree with a team of guards at the crack of dawn.” “Um...” Fluttershy ventured as we moved up the walkway, “I don’t suppose I could just... stay home?  I mean, if this is a job for the guards...” I shook my head, “No can do Fluttershy.  Twilight needs all five of you for the elements of harmony to work, and she may need to call them up without much warning if there’s a larger incursion going on.” “Right,” Twilight gave a nod, “All of us need to be ready to leave from here by dawn tomorrow.” “Well, ah told mah family ah might be spendin’ the night here, so ah guess ah’ll just stick ta that plan...” Applejack stepped in front and placed her hoof on one of the massive crystal doors, which already stood slightly ajar, letting the rest of the late afternoon air breeze into the grand foyer. “Alright everypony, we’ll have Spike send a letter to Celestia and spend the night here.  Rainbow, Applejack, go over to the castle guard post and bring back the officers on duty. They’ll need to mobilize the local guard in case there’s an attack.  Meta and I will go get Spike...” Everypony nodded and we split up, with Twilight and I heading upstairs while the others either stayed in the map room or headed for another wing of the castle. “How are your energy levels?” Twilight asked. “Good enough...” I said, gliding up the wide staircase beside her, “the fight didn’t really take much out of me.  Slowing my own rate of decay is one of the things I’m constantly improving on, but there’s only so much that can really be done.  I’d say he took a day off me, tops, but I’d hate to see what happens if I had to fight him again...” Twilight nodded, “Well, if all goes as planned, you won’t have to fight him alone...” “One can hope, but you know what they say: ‘no plan survives contact with the enemy.’” we came to the top and I set down, trotting next to her, “Next time, he’ll be waiting for me, and he’ll know not to use a mundane weapon on me again.” Twilight cringed, “Right... And anything with any sort of spell-cleaving potential, like one of Luna’s swords, is likely to do some serious damage on you...” I nodded, “I could probably handle him either way, but I’d have to be much more careful next time.”  I shook my head a little, “We’ll just have to cross that bridge when we come to it... How were things on your end?  Did you find Lyra?” She sighed, trotting silently down the crystal hallway for a moment, our hoofsteps echoing against the walls, “Yeah... She actually said she hasn’t written much about Marey, or an alternate version of the setting, so she showed me her fanzines, and explained to me which details were different, but...” she trailed off with some confusion. “But what?” “They all had subtle differences in them.  I think fanfiction writers just like to change things to give it their own spin or make their concepts work, or just to make them more ‘realistic’.  Do you think you could look at them later? I mean, you didn’t really give me enough for me to go on...” I nodded, “When this is dealt with... Sure.  If it’d shed more light on the situation, then yeah, it’s not like we have many other leads at this point...” We walked up to Spike’s door, and Twilight knocked, “Spi-ike!” No answer. She knocked again, “Spike?  Have you already gone to bed?” No answer. She lit her horn, screwing with the privacy lock he’d installed and unlatching it, opening it just enough to poke her head in, “Spike?”  She pulled her head back, “He’s not in there...” her brow furrowed, “That’s odd... normally he’s home by now, but I didn’t see him downstairs... Where could he be at this hour?” “Maybe we should check the library?” I tossed out. “Maybe... The balcony is thi-” “TWILIGHT!!” Somepony shrieked from the front of the castle. “RARITY!” Without a beat missed we turned and bounded down the hall back towards the main room, her at a full gallup, me flying. (I’d’ve phased through the walls, but I’d already discovered that they weren’t very permeable to any form of energy I could become) We burst back to the main room to find Applejack had carried one of the guard officers out of the hall that lead to the empty barracks.  The blood from his wounds dripped with down their coats and dotted the floor, but he was breathing, and Fluttershy and Rarity had rushed over with a first aid kit to bandage him. “Wha- What happened‽” Twilight, rushed to the side of her guard. “We found ‘im curled up like this at the desk.” Applejack called on our approach, “the others were there too, but...” she trailed off with a cringe. “Three confirmed causalties.” Rainbow muttered distantly, wiping the blood from her hooves onto her chest as she flew in behind them. “Too... Fast...” the orange guard said, “We... Couldn’t react... Didn’t think I was gonna...” “Flash, Flash,” Twilight put her hoof on him, looking him in the eyes, “I’m going to cast a healing spell on you, but I need you focus for a moment, can you tell me anything about what they looked like?”  She lit her horn and a purple glow poured over his body. “H-hooves... Two hooves... Maybe... a minotaur?” he groaned, wincing as Fluttershy poured more alcohol on him, “He... I think he had horns... And... His sword... His sword glowed green...” He closed his eyes, gritting his teeth, “That’s... That’s all I saw before he got me too...” Twilight nodded, “You did what you could.”  She furrowed her brow as she finished weaving the spell, letting it loose on him, “I can’t heal this kind of damage with a quick spell, but I can at least get it all to hold back in place.  You should be fine by the time you replenish that blood.” Flash let out a sigh as I felt the magic of harmony flow through his body, remaking what order had intended it be before its mangling.  Flesh was reknit, bones reset and bonded, veins were reconnected. By the time it was done, Flash had fallen halfway asleep, and the remains of her spell flickered through his body.  That gave me an idea... I stepped away, focusing my energy, “Hang on... If this monster used dark magic to sneak up on them, I might be able to sense it...” I spread my wings and focused, reaching out to sense the ambient energies in the air, tinkering with that magical web that seemed to be woven into the castle. I could feel the lingering essence of dark magic in the air, and it stood out against the harmony which the castle exuded, but... it was faint... muddled... Whatever mechanism the castle used to disrupt dark powers within had wiped most of it away, leaving only a faint, smeared residue. I furrowed my brow, “There’s not enough of it left for me to say anything... If only this castle recorded what happened here...” As if in response, I felt the presence of a very powerful entity with massive reach stirring just beneath the surface of reality, moving within the fabric of the castle’s existence.  Even its minute movement caused me to quiver... The “map table” lit up. “Wh-what?” Twilight walked over to the map table, “It’s... It’s showing the castle now?” Sure enough, the map had created a representation of the first floor of the castle.  It rushed in to show the side doors. A large figure, cloaked in shadow and too swift to really make out, slipped in through the entrance.  It slipped down the halls, keeping to the walls and sometimes the ceiling, exploring, searching... It would stop occasionally, sitting still beneath the hood it had drawn, as if listening, before moving swiftly along. “Woah, Twilight, this thing does surveillance recording?  Why didn’t you warn me?” Rainbow cringed, thinking of things she’d done in the castle. “I had no idea it could...” Twilight said, watching the figure move about. It just about made a beeline for the guard post, where it swiftly drew a pair of double-ended swords, which glowed a sickly green, and barreled through the first pair of guards it saw, leaving them in ruins.  Flash and another guard looked up just in time to see it rush them, drawing their own swords to defend, but it was no use: it swiped right through them, halfway-decapitating the other guard and cutting through Flash’s wings and barrel on his left side. “Wait!” I pointed a hoof at the image, and it halted abruptly, “Back it up... Stop there!” The frame was frozen on the image of Flash falling, a scream of terror and agony etched on his face as his wing came halfway away and his side was split open, blood spraying over the clean crystal of the walls. “Ah... Dear... That’s quite a grisly place to stop, don’t you think...?” Rarity cringed, diverting her head, still queasy from earlier. I ignored her, pointing to the figure, “Look.” In this instant, his hood had fallen halfway back, the cloak opening up to reveal his body.  He didn’t seem to wearing that much armor at all really: he was wearing a pair of torn cloth pants, but had nothing covering the purple skin of his bare torso, and little more than strips of leather wrapping the wrists leading up to his clawed hands.  His feet were hooves, as Flash had noted, but the face looked almost human, save for his pointed ears, massive goatlike horns, and the blindfold through which a faint green glow could be seen where his eyes should have been. He also had a pair of enormous, batlike wings, just like the Dreadlord... It was like nothing out of this world, or even my world, but the strangest thing of all was just how familiar it looked. “Wait... is that...” I narrowed my look, “...Is that who I think it is?” “Who do you think it is?” “I... Can’t remember it all, but... He’s from the same story the Dreadlord was from...” I explained, “It’s odd though... I specifically remember him as being some sort of demon hunting warrior, a protagonist who killed Dreadlords, not... Whatever he’s doing here...” The projection began to move again, the creature leaving the guards, having dispatched them all.  It flew swiftly down the hallways, twisting and winding until the library came into view. Spike was sitting in the middle of it, looking over some books, cross-referencing some notes while the monster slipped in behind him. “Spike... No!” Twilight put her hoof to her mouth. Spike looked up from what he was doing turning to look at the door, just in time to put his hands up as the creature barreled into him.  It grabbed him by the neck and slammed his thrashing body to the floor, then again, then again, then again... “Spikey Wikey!!” It held Spike up, who now hung limply from the massive hand, and turned to leave with him.  The view followed as he ran out of the castle, and faded away, replaced by a map of the area around Ponyville. The image of a green flame now burned above the Everfree... The seven of us stared in horror for a moment as it burned its sickly hue. “They...They took... Spike...” Twilight’s legs shook, and she put a hoof on the table for balance, her eyes wide and quivering, “Spike...” All of us gritted our teeth. “We need to go after him.” I stated. “But...” Rarity said with short breath, “Without him, we don’t have any way to bring the princesses...” “If I fly straight to Canterlot right now, I could have the princesses here in a few hours.”  Rainbow Stated. “That won’t be fast enough...” I glanced around the table, “We have to go in alone.” Rarity’s eyes widened, Fluttershy just cowered more...  Rainbow spoke up, “Alone? Are you nuts?? This guy just took out four guards like they were schoolfoals!  There’s no way we can handle him alone!” I shook my head, this is just like that night on Hangman’s Hill... I put my hoof on the table, firm, “We don’t know what this guy is planning.  A couple of hours may be too late. These guys don’t seem to know how to be gentle, one of them almost killed the Crusaders, and this one could kill Spike, or worse, send him to the Infernal Planes as a sacrifice to bring more Demons in.” I glanced back down at the table, “And they already have a good few minutes head start: I’d say we don’t even have a whole hour to spare.” “Shit...” Twilight breathed, glancing back and forth between the options, “Alright everypony, grab what you need and meet up on the edge of the Everfree.  I want to leave in the next half hour. You know the path...” She turned to Rainbow herself, “Rainbow, you have time to bring a message to the guard station across town, right?” Rainbow looked her dead in the eye, “It takes me nine point eight seconds to cross from here to there at top speed.  What do you need?” “Good.  Go tell them to rally the militia and ready a defense in case they attack the town while we’re gone, and have their fastest flier send a message to the princess.  Tell them about the two demon attacks, that we’re following them into the Everfree, and to bring troops immediately.” “You want me to bring an escort back?” She closed her eyes grimly and shook her head, “The town has too few guards as is, especially with four down.  They need to be ready in case these things show up again...” Rainbow saluted, “On the double, Twilight!”  She shot off. “Everypony else, you know what to do.” With a few quick nods everypony turned to rush in different directions, scurrying off to gather provisions for the long walk ahead...