"We're back guys." Me and Twilight walked into the room, hips swaying and huge grins on our faces. After our little game of chasies, he had hard the concerned muttering coming from the main room, so we thought we would play a small prank on them.
Trust me when I say that Twilight had a pretty dirty sense of humor, even for a bookworm such as her! She's never like that when spike's around but judging from the amount of romance novels she reads, she's no stranger to it either. The only other I can say that actually has a dirtier mind is Rainbow (no surprises there!). Pinkie is a close third...
Well... As we walked in a certain cyan mare shot out and tackled me, wrapping her forehooves over and under my arms, lifting me away from Twilight. "I'll save you Woods!"
I could see her shit-eating grin from here. Twilight looked amused but disappointed, she anticipated a shocked reaction from Rainbow. Damn her... I wanted a good prank, so I slapped that flank, causing her to help and drop me on the far side of the room.
Now it was my turn to play mr. Fuckberrygiggles...
"Twilight! You didn't..." Rarity and Applejack spoke in unison with almost rehearsed synchronisation. This prompted me to giggle my tits off and Twilight herself to chuckle. At least we got two of them.
"No You two it was just a joke, I don't know her well enough to try anything like that. By the way, is there anywhere in town that I can buy supplies from? I would really appreciate some things like maps or a compass or something." Everyone seemed to settle apart from Pinkie, her hair remained poofy but her grin subsided slightly.
"Awww, Woodsy never got any smoochie woochies from Twilight, that's not interesting at all!" We all rolled our eyes and brushed off Pinkie's last remark. Rarity soon spoke up.
"I suppose, there is a mountaineering store towards the town square and I can make some suitable clothes for you for on your travels. As for food, Fluttershy took it upon herself to get you various supplies for on your journey. I hope you don't mind me asking but would you prefer a... w-weapon for your travels? By law here in Ponyville, it is illegal for a non-pony to possess weapons in town, however I think the princess may grant you a pardon of Twilight were to send a request. I would be very upset if something were to happen to you dear." They all nodded in agreement, save Applejack who was sat on her haunches with her fore-hooves crossed, staring out of a window with a thoughtful scowl on her face. I payed no heed to it as I smiled at everyone, their kindness needs rewarding at some point in the future. Which reminds me...
"Rarity, do you have any parchment and a tool for drawing? Simple graphing will do although I'm afraid I don't work well with a quill and ink." I think she caught my drift as she bolted out the door with such a buzz that I've never seen before. I caught a glimpse of the horizon, the sun laying gently on the land's line, the sky darkening with a burning red in response. Judging by the position of the sun and the fact that it was closing in on fall, I estimated the time to be around six in the evening. That was fair enough, I could talk with this group, get acquainted and prepare to leave tomorrow, finally setting off around noon.
"While you wait I'll send that request off to the princess, I wouldn't expect much Woods. I can try and convince her that you'll need it I case you come across any beasts on your travels. They tend to crop up in the forests around and on the roads between towns, making many places very dangerous." Twilight cantered off up to her study, levitating her quill and parchment out for the weekly ritual which was writing letters to royalty.
Fluttershy spoke up after Twilight had disappeared from view "S-so... um... mr Woods? If it's not too much t-trouble... I need to ask... what kinds of a-animals do y-you have where you're f-from? If you d-don't mind that is..."
This little pony was just too cute. Sorry guys but you just can't say no to pleading puppy dog eyes like that. You'll upset the universe or something. " It's no trouble Fluttershy." I flashed a warm smile to her which she graciously returned " We have round about the same species as you do, minus the bloodthirsty monsters such as the Manticores or Timber Wolves. Where I come from though we have an abundance of forest wildlife; foxes, rabbits, squirrels, badgers, raccoons, regular wolves. And ofcourse you've got the humans like me who are the dominant species just like you ponies."
That was as much as I was giving... good, she seemed satisfied with that answer. She nodded pleasantly and receded to a nearby couch with a dreamy look in her eyes... creepy.
Tail's a twitchin, that basically means get out and about before I break something... "Yo girls, is it okay of I took a jog on the outskirts?" They glanced at me briefly, Applejack's eyes narrowing in slight suspicion. Eventually they all nodded with a few light peeps or affirmation.
Yes! Go time!
I didn't hesitate as I dashed out the door into the streets.
"FREEDOOOOOOOM!" I wailed, leaping into a fast succession of flips, scaring numerous groups of ponies and causing a few to even faint! I didn't care in the slightest, powering on till I reached the far edge of the town towards the entrance. I'd figured that Zecora had already gone on home but on second thought I realised that she wouldn't let me set off on a long journey without a goodbye.
Therefore I slowed to a walk along the outskirts of the forest. She would be round he somewhere, providing that it would be in my general interest to take a casual walk along the forest line. She knows fine well I wanted to get out of that forest, creepy place. You could say that my time there wasn't the best in the world...
Understatement of the century...
Ever since I got here anything that had sharp teeth or even a hint of predatory sense wanted my palls served on a platter. Hell even the PLANTS wanted me stir fried in a monkey stew! Yeah it was pretty annoying at times but after I had my mini breakdown I realised that I had been given something to help me survive in this annoyingly controversial world. You see in a world where you have an outline, cell shading and magic, you also have death, gore and disease. And to prevent me from being taken by said death and disease, discord had made sure I was granted with a heightened knack for strength, speed and reflexes to make up for my lack of sharp claws or teeth. But on the other hand that really wasn't saying much when faced with beings like Chinotaurs, Hydras, Manticores etcetera etcetera.
You see my point...
My tail did give me an insane edge in combat though, which is a godsend when fighting timber wolves who will follow you up god damn trees to get you! It allowed me to have a greater sense of balance and allowed me a great amount of control over my body position even when in freefall. I guess that was the reason I was able to pull off that neat trick in the library when I ran along the ceiling to get away from Twilight. Put all of that together and you have an awesome package that comes in wrapping labeled 'awesome' and 'intense' when it came to survival.
This train of thought brought me back to my first encounter with a Chinotaur. I freaked, I we'd and I made a whole mess of my underwear all in the time it took for me to turn and run like a demented jackass. Of course it caught up to me and it was only my heightened reflexes that allowed me to leap out of the way. I hid myself in the undergrowth, hoping that it would give up and leave, but I must have fucked lucky's sister or something cause it found me shortly after.
Again, out of reflexes and instinct alone I halted it's lunge by grappling it's pincers before they lopped off my oversized noggin. That's when I realised that not only was I stronger than I was before, this monster was EXTREMELY light in contrary to it's size. Seriously, if an earth pony kicked hard enough you could topple this pansy. So that's when I started my little Bear Grylls life in the creepy forest. Discovering that Chinotaurs' weaknesses is being tossed about like a wet flannel and a Manticore doesn't like it's tail being touched. Yeah it got easier and easier from there to the point where I could walk down the Everfree pathway and come out refreshed and relaxed.
Still, I would give it all up to be home again.
I continued along the forest edge, keeping an eye on the darkness in the wood whilst scanning the flower beds for Zecora. If I didn't find her there she must have already went home... well she must have had something to do so I'll have to pop by her but then head back to the library, I still need supplies for my trip, and a destination... preferably.
I eventually turned down the pathway to Zecora's hut, craning my head back to glimpse at Ponyville, then turning back and advancing into the hushed darkness. Laziness has been taking nibbles from me over the past week, now that I'm not hyperventilating at the first glimpse of teeth and eyes, therefore I was feeling slightly fatigued as I strolled down the dirt pathway through the forest. Then a new bug decided that I needed a big sloppy bite taken from me, and my face was the tasty side considering how my features had dropped to a dissatisfied scowl...
Boredom.
God fucking damn it.
What am I supposed to do when on a pathway to a striped witch doctor? Fuck all, that's what. Suddenly the usual mysterious and exciting sights of swaying branches and small wildlife scuffling just out of the undergrowth. Cute little bastards. The bunnies here were skittish, but god damn they were fearless. I've seen a mother bunny stare down an Ember Viper then take their babies away without another incident. It just goes to show that sometimes, even the most innocent looking creatures pack a pretty nasty bite. Still, watching then still didn't stall my gut-wrenching boredom. I found myself almost wishing that a Manticore would get lost on the path and spy me as a steaming Sunday dinner. But of course that wouldn't happen...
...it was a Wednesday...
I mean seriously, how can I be bored when I'm stuck in a world full of magical, mythical creatures, more than half of which would quite happily use my intestines as Christmas decorations. Nice crowd. Not shitting you, I've had worse neighbours, at least these beasts want my entrails for food rather than material to sacrifice to the unholy goat or something. Well I get stuck in a wondrous world, which I'm sure many people from my world would kill to get here, and I have fuck all to keep me occupied other than my own thoughts as I walk. Take one idea, shoot it then grab another one, tear off it's testicles then grab another one. It goes on but no ideas I had at the time would help, not when I was partially exhausted and bored still simultaneously.
A scream, followed by a roar.
Yes! Something partially interesting! Well it's not like I can just pass it by, someone is about to be torn apart by a Manticore, so leaving them be just because I'm in a lazy mood would kinda label me as an arse to be honest. That's not what I was thinking of though, my first thought was 'Shit I hope I'm not too late'. That's right ladies ad gentlemen... fucking cliché as hell.
I didn't even chance a second to worry as I dashed off into the shrubbery, caring even less about the nicks and cuts that appeared on my limbs on the way. The trees thickening further up the path prompted me to take to the branches, swinging and leaping from trunk to trunk in a series of rolls and flips. Like a grade A baws. No time for that! I expanded my line of sight by taking my run higher, listening for the tell tale signs of unintentional dinner. Shit!
It was a pony! ... And a Mantico-
...oh... Royal fuck nuts on a stick...
A feral Manticore.
Not a normal Manticore, no, a fucking FERAL one!
Normally I'd pause the video and take questions, give uninterested answers, slap the person that gives a stupid arse question about 'what are Manticores and why do you give a shit?'
Simple answer really, I'm allergic to cats, hence a driving passion to burn the tails off all cats. These has scorpion tails which weren't affected by fire. That just makes me more mad. Feral Manticores are a good two hundred percent nastier, with their heightened physical aspects such as strength, speed, reflexes and intelligence, they are a pretty nasty bunch. Furthermore, them being smarter doesn't make them any more pleasant to be around.
Worse to be honest.
Being of the 'Feral' category means that they use their expanded brain power to be devious in their attacks and plan ambushes beforehand. It makes them sneaky, dastardly and INFINITELY more dangerous. The only time I've ever fought one was a good fortnight ago and even then I just gave up and ran.
...And ran...
...And ran...
... You get the point. Well, it looks like whatever pony had just pissed it off must be the pony with the single worst luck on this side of the universe. It was cowering near a tree whilst the Manticore was slowly making it's way towards it, relishing it's fear and savouring it's terrified quaking.
I grabbed the last branch and swung myself in a large arc, landing directly between the pony and it's apparent predator in waiting. It was safe to say that both of the creatures there were equally shocked. It was even safer to say that the pony behind me was in fact a mare. She was a bright teal in colour with a matching sweeped mane, sporting a single silver streak down the centre. The mark on her flank was that of a harp, golden with no background, figures... she can play the harp no doubt. The two last facts I noticed about her was the horn that was protruding from her shaggy mane, and the number of scratches and claw marks streaming across her flanks.
I spoke without breaking eye contact with the manticore "You alright back there?" The unicorn startled for a second, clearly shocked by the turn of events occurring before her but to her credit, regained her composure for long enough to reply.
"Been better." she replied shakily. Funny, she's in possibly the worst shit that can happen within two hundred miles and she can still crack a funny?
...I like this one.
"Fair enough. Now here's the thing... I want you to run in the direction I just came from, that will take you to the pathway leading to Ponyville. Once you get there, head west and you should arrive there in twenty minutes. Got it?" I pointed in the direction I just came from. What followed was a heavy silence, broken only by the impatient growls from the manticore. The beast watched us with contempt and restrained amusement, clearly we were putting on a show for this cancer ridden kitty. Where the fuck do they make animals like these? It's like god is up there, jigsawing this fucked up mama who wants my testicles on a rotisery, then drops both it and me into a forest just for his own amusement.
Many bibles will be burned when I get back.
The silence still hung after that while, the manticore slowly creeping closer, pushing how far it can come before either we react or it can get us in killing range. Finally the silence between us was broken by a single word.
"No."
I pretty much lost my shit at that point "What the HELL do you mean NO?! Get OUT of here! I'll distract it and you ca-"
"Never! I'm not leaving you alone with that thing, plus you're gonna need someone to watch your back in case more come. Sorry dude but I'm not leaving 'till we're either dead or that thing is..." I couldn't see her but I could tell she gestured towards the manticore, speaking of which had come close enough and was now dipping it's shoulders, readying a pounce.
"Well we're gonna have to put up soon 'cause here it comes!" just as I said that, the beast leapt right for us, paws out and wings spread like a menacing angel of death. I leapt out of the way and the unicorn enveloped herself in a teal light, vanishing for a moment then reappearing besides me, causing the pretty kitty to crane it's head frantically in confusion.
"That was nice. If I could learn magic, you have totally got to teach me how to do that."
"Only if we get out of here first, it's hard to teach cat food magic... not that I've tried." She laughed nervously, shaking visibly at the sight of pretty kitty.
"We ARE getting out of here. No if's, no maybe's. We are gonna put pretty kitty in it's basket then skip... or in your case trot back to Ponyville and pretend this awesome shit didn't happen!" I gave her a smirk and an optimistic thumbs up over my shoulder, which seemed to unnerve her funnily enough.
Sigh, bitches never be pleased.
At that moment, the manticore finally figured out our position and quickly advanced on us, roaring in frustration. It lifted it's paws for a sure strike but we were already out of reach. I had flipped over it's claw and rolled down it's back away from it's dangerous front and dodging the awaiting tail at the back.
... So many bibles...
I kicked off the ground and landed in the distance away from the beast. I spotted the unicorn a few yards away from me, donning a defensive stance and awaiting the manticore's next move. It quickly spun around and flew directly at me, I got into a low stance. As it reached me, it slowed down and lifted up onto it's hind legs, claws up in the ready and it's eyes trained on mine. It unleashed an onslaught of blows with it's claws in a number of different directions, which I fluidly dodged with moderate effort. Meeting horizontal swipes with ducks or swift back-pedals and vertical swipes with sidesteps or rolls.
Eventually, it grew tired of mindlessly flailing and brought both it's pass up to body slam me. A notion which I quickly replied with a hay-maker to the stomach, sending the beast reeling back in pain and roaring in outrage. I heard a enthusiastic "Yeah!" from the unicorn which caused me to smirk.
I quickly made my way over to her and turned back to face the manticore "You got a plan?" she said. Honestly, if it were any other time, I would have made a hilarious comment about screwing the plan but this wasn't funny town he were fighting in. Like it or not, this is serious so we need a plan, jokes aside... for the moment.
" It needs to lose it's tail. The base of it has a shit load of nerve endings so tearing it off should incapacitate it for a good while. We can use that time to finish it while it's down. It'll be tricky but once we have the tail off victory is pretty much ours. If you can enrage it, get it's focus entirely on you, I can sneak round the back and get a hold or Mr Stabstab back there. Once it's off we can get a rock and cave it's skull in. Don't worry about it getting you if you keep using your teleport spell... thingy. You okay with this?" I turned briefly to get a look at her expression, which was stone hard in determination.
"Estatic."
We leapt into action, just as the giant feline was getting up. The teal mare flashed a teal light then appeared I front of the manticore "Over here you waste of fur!" she jeered. The manticore roared in anger and attempted to swipe at her, only for her to dissappear in a flash of green light and reappear a few metres away with her tounge sticking out.
This pissed fluffy off something bad, prompting a number of leaps and lunges at the teal pony, all yielding the same result with her flashing in and out of existence, laughing hysterically and sending a barrage of taunts towards the overgrown house cat.
I, meanwhile had snuck up to the canopy and was positioning myself for an aerial strike on it's back. I figured if I dropped down from the trees, I'd be out of it's line of sight, therefore going unnoticed until I had a good grip on it's tail. I leapt from tree to tree, testing the strength of the branches and keeping an eye out for the sweet spot with the widest visual range. I finally found it and perched on it to steel myself in and prepare my attack. I knocked on the tree hard in a rhythmic pattern to attract the attention of the unicorn, who I had lost sight of for a brief moment. Shit! I scanned the shrubbery in search of my companion, for a sign that she was still well and the plan was a go.
It was a mistake.
I finally spotted her, still dodging the giant cat but sagging in exhaustion. Her eyes were almost glazed over and her breathing was deep and ragged. Her reaction time was slowing too, the cussing and taunting had all but ceased as the manticore continued it's pursuit relentlessly. Her luck finally ran out. At the last moment, a claw snagged her flank again, extracting a howl of pain from the wounded mare and she teleported again, reappearing wobbling in disorientation. I swear you could almost see the manticore smile as it turned and brought it's tail in a wide arc, catching her across the chest and leaving a horrific gash in it's wake. Venom spurted from the tip during it's attack, trailing across the wound then flying across the forest floor once it finished it's trail across the mare, just under her neckline. She was sent back a few yards, rolling and finally falling into a crumpled heap near a tree. The manticore slowly advanced, it had finally caught it's victim and was again savouring the moment before it would tear into it's new meal with gusto. The unicorn had now resigned herself into defeat, head down and tears trailing down her cheeks, awaiting the fate that had held her not five minutes ago.
I lost it again. Turning towards the front side of the branch, I aimed myself towards the Manticore's back. The beast had apparently forgotten about me in it's silent celebration for it's prey. I took this as an opportunity to strike, bend low, tighten my core muscles and leap directly at it. I twisted in midair, stretching one arm out and the other at my side for aero precision, locking the beast in my sights and stretching for it's tail which was twitching in anticipation.
I came into contact with the tail, swinging round and hitting the floor with a soft thud, sliding upon meeting the hard ground and bringing the tail along with me. I pirouetted as I slid, twisting the tail once, twice, three times to weaken the nerves and joints in the base of the tail, receiving an almighty howl of pain as a reward. At the end of my slide I planted one foot away from me in a grounded stance, my abdomens twisted in an an angle that had the hand holding the beast's tail facing the beast itself and the other, clenched and outstretched away from it. I reversed that, bringing my occupied arm round behind me in a massive tug, straining muscles and yelling to boost my power output and psyche. The tail came with my arm and twisted off the beast at the base, tendons ripping and skin splitting in a spiral motion, stretching and snapping sickeningly, accompanied by an even louder howl which was adorned with a dash of a whine.
The manticore reared back in pain, lost in the storm that was agony, riddling it's mind and rendering it immobile. I didn't hesitate as I brought the hulking appendage in a wide arc, once again slamming it against the beast's abdomen and sending it flying back towards the far side of the small clearing. The manticore probably couldn't focus at this point. It was writhing in pain beside a tree, not taking any notice as I slowly approached it with it's previous limb. The look in it's eyes was completely animalistic, instincts glowing from it's eyes, drowning all logical thought in a molten pool of burning pain. All traces of intelligence were gone, leaving only a broken animal with nothing left but it's last breaths. It knew this and I knew this, it wanted to die.
I brought the tail above my head, poised to bring it down one last time on the creature and end it's suffering and possibly the suffering of more potential prey for years to come. I finally bought it down swiftly, aiming the poison tip towards the temple I actually pierced the eye socket of the beast, bringing forth a sickening crunch, followed by a squelch and finally a dying gurgle as the manticore resigned itself into death's cold embrace.
My mind was blank for a time, noting only the steady flow of the mixture containing both blood and venom. Trailing slowly down the feline cheekbones of the creature in it's pitiful sta-
VENOM! SHIT!
I span quickly and ran over to the teal unicorn, who had not moved since being knocked down from the infernal tail that lay useless on the ground beside the corpse. I stooped low and raised her head to me, leaving the shoulders slumped so the venom couldn't enter her bloodstream too fast. "You took a nasty blow there hun, might wanna take a look at that once we get back to Ponyville." I smiled to her.
She gave a shaky giggle "Yep, can I have the Daring Doo bandage please? I think I earned it." aww this made was just too good to leave like this. She coughed violently and quivered in my arms, her eyes rolling slightly from the pain then partially focusing on me again.
"I think I deserve a nap after... that. Celestia I'm so sleepy..." her eyelids fluttered and her irises became blurry as they glazed over. This worried me greatly, shaking her sharply.
"No no! Come on now honey bun, you can't sleep yet. I didn't leap out those trees just for you to take a dirt nap. We're gonna get you back to Ponyville and gave a unicorn friend of mine fix you up. Just whatever you do, do NOT close those pretty eyes of yours." she giggled at me and nodded, her eyes still fighting open from the exhaustion that had turned to her, pulling her into the same realm as beastie. I grasped her forelegs and brought them up, taking her with them and depositing her in a bridal carry, making sure her head was nestled into my shoulder so it wouldn't loll over and cause her more pain. I quickly got to my feet and took off in the direction of Ponyville, skipping the pathway and continuing on through the shrubbery. I leapt over bushes and kicked off of trees to give me more momentum as I ran, determination and a drive to bring this mare back to safety fueling my every action, giving me energy which had no end, swirling inside me and exploding with fighting spirit. She was breathing deeply and shaking in my arms, heating up in order for her body to expel the poison. This only caused me to pick up the pace, setting off into an almighty barrel through the woods, kicking off tree after tree and sliding over growths which set to hinder my advance towards this unicorn's salvation.
Whilst I was running I noticed a small voice in my arms speak to me, squeaking and breaking with the exhaustion tugging at it's lips. "I never got your name hero."
I looked onwards, never slowing but gracing her words with the uttermost respect and surprise. I was no hero. Not if this was the result of my chivalrous actions. Yet I could not find the resolve to argue with her at a time like this so I answered with honesty "Woods, my name is Woods."
She smiled "Woods eh? Sounds about right. Kind and gentle, yet brutal and mysterious. Sometimes a little playful. The name fits you well, it's like you belong here in the forest, you have the same personality." that caught me off guard for a second but I just brushed it off. She was a mare on a thin thread yet she wasn't tiptoeing any more. She was stronger than I first made her out to be. My opinion of her only grew to the point where the determination to save her had grown to a casing inferno around my soul. It licked at my muscles, halting the ache of fatigue and granting me power to push forward for the last stretch to Ponyville. I glanced at her briefly and caught her tired smile, eyes resting on my face, probably trying to focus on something so she wouldn't slip into unconsciousness.
"By the way I didn't tell you my name." she smiled wider as she said those words, her eyes slowly but steadily falling till her eyes were just a slit, twitching to stay open but only in a struggle which proved futile. I looked to her for a moment, concern flooding my heart at her falling face, I simply nodded to her in anticipation, causing her to smile sleepily at me.
"My name is... Lyra Heartstrings." she whispered before her eyes closed and her head lolled back into unconsciousness.