//------------------------------// // Episode 77: The Quest Begins // Story: Sarah's Adventure's in Equestria // by Zipp Storm //------------------------------// Today was the day. Today, My friends, Mom, Shimmer and I were going to set out to find the Tree of Life. Everyone was gathered in the castle throne room along with the Princesses and Twilight and the Mane 6. "So do you two know where the Tree of Life is, Princesses?" Ren asked. "I'm afraid not. My sister and I have not even heard of this Tree of Life." Celestia stated. "Then how are ya'll gonna find the Tree of Life?" Applejack asked. My cutie mark suddenly glowed brightly as well as my crystal horn. "Mommy, what's wrong with your horn?" Shimmer asked me. "I don't know." My horn and cutie mark sent out a beam onto the Cutie Map and a bright white line was seen moving away from Ponyville and moving outside of Equestria finally stopping at... "Mount Aris? The Tree of Life is on Mount Aris?" Mason questioned. "I don't know, but it looks like the Map wants us to go there." I said. Luna looked at all of the locations. "Looks like you'll have to go through the Hayseed Swamp, through the Forbidden Jungle, across the Bone Dry Desert and the Sea of Clouds to get to Mount Aris once more." "Alright then, let's get-AH!" Suddenly, my scar started to hurt really bad. "Sarah, what's wrong?" Ren asked, frantically. "The dark magic in her scar is causing harm." Luna said. I held my right eye in pain, "Here honey." Huh? My Mom suddenly appeared in front of me with a purple flower, "Eat this." "A flower? How will that help Sarah?" Jamie asked. Nevertheless, I ate the flower or more specifically, I ate the blossoms of the flower and when I did the pain from my scar suddenly went away. "Feel better?" My mom asked. I nodded and let go of my eye. "What did you just give her, Sapphire?" Celestia asked. "It's called a Tuliza plant. It will sooth her discomfort from the scar until we get to Mount Aris." My mom explained. "Okay then I guess we better get going guys." Ren said. "Not so fast!" Huh? We turned towards the door to see to our surprise, "Dad! Emerald! Aura! What are you three doing here?!" I exclaimed. "We heard what happened and we want to help you in your journey, honey." My dad said. "Well, the more the merrier right?" Ren questioned. "Right." Kaede replied. "Sure." Jack added. Soon we were outside of the castle with our dragons. We were all packed with supplies and other essentials. Celestia and Luna nodded, "Safe travels to you all." Celestia stated. "Thank you, Princess." Ren stated. "We'll watch over your Yo-Kai, AXL and your pokemon while you are away, Sarah Gem." Luna offered. "Thank you." I smiled. We mounted our dragons while my mom and dad spread their wings, "You can ride with me, Aura." I offered. Aura nodded and he got behind me on Winter. "Let's go everyone." I called. Our dragons warbled and flew into the air with my mom and dad following behind. After a few hours of flying, we arrived at Hayseed Swamp where we saw a small bayou village below. Our dragons landed on the boards and we looked around. "Woah... this place looks deserted." Ren replied. "That's a fact." Mason said. We dismounted our dragons and explored the supposedly deserted village. Mason and the boys looked at the murky water while the girls examined the houses. All of them were covered with moss in some places. "This place looks interesting." My mom replied. I went over to the boys and stared at the water. "Hey, what's that flower?" Mason asked. I saw a flower moving towards us. It was blue with orange spots on it. Wait... I knew that flower from somewhere. Think, think, think... wait... OH NO! "GET AWAY FROM THAT FLOWER!" "Huh?" The boys asked before I pushed them out of the way just as the flower sprayed me with orange gas. I coughed a little as the others came over. "What the hell newbie?! What did you... do... that... for... WHAT THE HELL?!" Jack exclaimed. I groaned a little before I felt myself collapsing. Ren's POV This is not good. One mintue everything was fine, next minute Sarah is covered in orange spots and passed out. "Sarah!" I went over to her but her mother blocked me. "Don't touch her!" she exclaimed. "Why not?" I asked as Sapphire placed Sarah in a magic health bubble. "What's with the bubble?" Kaede asked. "It's because that flower gave her a lesser known Equestria diseases." Sapphire stated. "WHAT?!" We all exclaimed in shock. "A flower gave her a diseases! That's bullcrap!" Jack exclaimed. "Well believe it because she has... Swamp Fever." Sapphire stated. "What's Swamp Fever?" Carrie asked. "It sounds scary." "Swamp Fever is a highly contagious diseases that not very well known in Equestria except for its symptoms which are Shock Sneezing." Sarah sneezed and released lightning bolts inside the bubble. "Coughing bubbles." Sarah coughed and blue bubble came out of her mouth. "Change of coat and.. the final stage, the infected turn into the tree that carries the diseases carrying flower." We all gasped in horror. "She's gonna turn into a tree?!" Mason exclaimed. "Just frigging great!" Jack exclaimed in anger. "Please tell us there is a cure, Sapphire." I pleaded. "Fortunately yes, the cure for Swamp Fever is Flash Bee honey." Sapphire replied. "Flash bees?" Jamie asked. "I never heard of them." "Flash bees are like normal bees except when they sting you, they sting you with electricity, leaving burn marks on your skin. They are very aggressive in defending their hive." Sapphire replied. "You encounter them before, honey?" Jake asked. "Yes honey and it wasn't pretty." Sapphire grumbled. Sarah coughed and sneezed. "Ugh..." "Well then let's get that damn cure, now!" Jack exclaimed. "Alright, Jack, you and the boys go get the cure. The rest will stay we me and keep my daughter comfortable." Sapphire stated. "Right." I said. "Let's go." We mounted our dragons and headed off into the Swamp in search for the Flash Bees hive. We soon saw a small army of blue surrounded by yellow going into a bee hive. We landed near the hive. "Alright, we found the hive, so how do we get the honey?" Mason asked. "I got this." Jack smirked. Jack climbed the tree and went to the hive.... then promptly took it in his hands and shook it. "Jack, don't do that!" I called. "Oh stop being whimps." Jack said. Then the flash bees came out and hovered in front of Jack, buzzing angrily. "Uh... hi." ZZZZZZZTTTTT "AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" So... that went... horrible! After the Flash Bees got Jack, they chased after us through the swamp and stung us so we came back to the others covered in scorch marks. "You shook the beehive, didn't you?" Sapphire deadpanned. "Jack did it!" Mason exclaimed pointing at Jack who got the brunt of the stings. "Ow... okay.. those bees are tough." Jack winced. Sapphire sighed. Sarah coughed again and this time she had a tree branch sticking out of her cheek! "What the hell? What's with the tree branch?" Jack exclaimed. "She's already turning into a tree? But shouldn't that take days?" Kaede asked. "With normal ponies yes, but with my daughter special properties, it's accelerating the disease." Jake explained. "Oh man, we have to get that honey, now!" I exclaimed with worry. "But those bees won't let us near their hive, especially now since Jack shook their hive." Mason deadpanned. "What was I suppose to do, ask them?" Jack asked. "That's the shy ponies job." "Or you could have just used this mask I found that looks like the Flash Bees Queen so you can access the hive and get the honey." Kaede deadpanned holding a yellow mask that had blue stripes on it. "Where'd you get that?" I asked. "From one of the houses." Kaede replied. "That's Mage Mellowbrooks' healer mask." Sapphire replied. "Who?" Mason asked. "Mellowbrook is an old friend of mine and there is a legend about her." Sapphire said. "Legend tale later, give me this thing!" Jack exclaimed as he grabbed the mask, mounted Silverspike and flew off. "Jack, come back!" I called as I mounted Moonshine and flew off after him. I found him on the branch with the bees hive. How'd he got up there so fast, I'll never know. He had the mask on and approached the hive. He stuck his hand inside and he had a handful of honey. "Alright, this mask actually works." Jack said. "Great Jack, now let's get it back to Sarah." I stated. Jack nodded and leaped onto Silverspike and we both flew back to the village. Now Sarah had a large branch growing out of orange spot on her head. "You got the honey! Yeah!" Carrie cheered. Sarah shock sneezed inside the bubble. "And not a moment too soon." Mason stated. Sapphire took out a spoon and scooped up the honey. She levitated the spoon into the bubble and fed it to Sarah. Sarah swallowed the honey and the orange spots immediately vanished and the branches fell off. Sapphire took down the bubble and Sarah sat up. "You okay newbie?" Jack asked. "Yeah... but.. ugh.. what happened?" Sarah asked. "You caught Swamp Fever from a flower. Luckily, Kaede found Mage Meadowbrooks' mask and we got the honey. Speaking of which, what was that legend about anyway?" I asked. "Right.. well..." Sapphire than explained the tale of Mage Meadowbrook. When she was finished, we were all amazed by her actions. "Woah... that's amazing." Kaede said. "Yeah, so should we take this mask with us?" Carrie asked. "Well, it would be nice to have something to remind me of my friend." Sapphire said. "Why not." Sapphire placed the mask in her saddlebag. "So now where to Sarah?" Jamie asked. "Now we go through the Forbidden Jungle." Sarah replied. We all mounted our dragons and we all flew off towards the Forbidden Jungle. After a day of flying, we made it to the Forbidden Jungle. We and our dragons were walking through the forest, to give them a break from flying for so long. Winter was sniffing the pretty flowers and plants around us. My mom was in the front of us, using her magic to clear away the stray leaves. The heat in the jungle wasn't bad for the dragons, My dad, Shimmer, Emerald, My Mom and I. My friends on the other hand... "Are you out of this friggin forest yet?" Jack grumbled, who was awfully sweaty along with Ren and the others. Their hairs was a bit messy from the heat and frazzled. "Not yet, we'll be out by nightfall." My mom said, earning a groan from my friends. "It's not that bad, guys." I reassured with a nervous smile. "Easy for you to say." Rantaro grumbled. "You can regulate your body heat." "How about you shut your mouth." Jack growled. "How about you lose some weight fasto." Rantaro replied. Jack growled and was ready to punch Rantaro when, "Uncle Jack, no. Please don't fight." Shimmer got in between them and stood on her back legs waving her front legs in front of Jack. Jack growled while blushing a bit, not wanting to harm the tiny filly. "Fine.." Shimmer smiled. "Yeah." and leaped into Jack's arms, nuzzling him. "Alright, alright, you like me." Jack stated, trying not to blush. Shimmer just giggled. Ren came to my side, breathing a little heavy. "Can we.. stop for a minute, Sarah?" he asked. I turned to my mom, "Mom?" "Okay, a little break wouldn't hurt anyone." My mom said. That was relief for my friends who fell onto their backs. Their dragons tilted their heads to the side and warbled. My mom and dad giggled while Shimmer came galloping over to mom. "Grandmom, can we go and play?" she asked innocently. "Play? Well..." My mom trailed. "You go and spend time with your granddaughter, honey. I'll stay here and keep an eye on everyone." My dad stated. My mom and nodded and Shimmer nuzzled her. The two of them went a few feet away from us while I went over to Winter and layed down next to her. I took out my Scepter of Harmony and shined the jewel on it, seeing my reflection in it. I looked at my scar and gently touched it. Would I.. really turn evil.. like Void? Suddenly, there was a scream frightening everyone. I recognized that scream. "MOM!" "Sapphire!" My dad exclaimed in worry. We rushed into the bushes followed by the others into the thick jungle. "MOM! SHIMMER!" "Sarah! Mommy!" I heard their voices and kept running towards them. Finally, I made it to a clearing that was filled with... lions?! The pride looked to be thirty lions strong, "Lion?! Oh you got to be kidding me!" Ren exclaimed in worry. I spotted my mom and Shimmer surrounded by female lionesses and in the front was a large Male Lion that had a diagonal scar over his left eye and dark black mane. "Mom! Shimmer!" "Sarah, Honey." "Mommy." My mom and Shimmer cried. The male lion approached us, "What business do you have here?" he asked in a deep voice. "Our business is that you captured my wife and granddaughter." My dad stepped forth. "Wife?" The male lion suddenly laughed. "Everyone in this forest knows that any adult female that enters this territory belongs to me." "What?!" I exclaimed. "That's a bunch of bullcrap. Sarah's mother belongs to newbie." Jack growled in anger. The male lion turned sharply at my friends. "You humans have no business with us lions." "Anything that has to do with our friend and her family IS our business." Mason growled. "Now let Sapphire and Shimmer go this instant." The male lion roared. "I will never let them go!" he roared. "Oh yes you will!" I roared back as I changed into a female lion and charged right at the male lion. We both fought in a clash of claws and teeth. I could hear my friends cheering me on. "Come on Sarah, get him!" Carrie called. "Show that bastards whose the real King or in your case the Queen!" Jack added. "Go get him!" Ren added. The Male Lion pinned me on the ground. "Why do you insist on fighting a losing battle?" he growled. I kicked him off of me. "I'm not losing my mother or daughter!" I bellowed loudly and let out a proud roar. The Male Lion charged me once more and I lunged at him, leaping into the air as he did the same. We both collided with my teeth digging into his neck, despite the mane. He roared in pain as we both crashed to the ground and I unleashed a series of slash attacks. I finally rammed the Male Lion in his face making him fall to the ground, badly wounded. I stood over him and said, "Don't mess with my family." The male lion got up and limped away in pain while I walked away and towards my mom and daughter. The Lionesses backed away and my mom and Shimmer came up to me. "Mommy, you won." Shimmer cheered happily. My mom hugged my neck and I purred at her. One of the lionesses came up to me. She was a darker shade of brown than the other lionesses, "Thank you, stranger." she said. "You can just call me Sarah." I replied. "Thank you Sarah for you astounding courage and strength." the lioness stated. "That's our Princess." Jack smirked. "We'd like to give you these two gifts as a symbol of our gratitude." two more lionesses came forth one holding an old looking shovel and shield in their mouths. They gave them both to my mom. "Thank you." I said. "No thank you, you have given us freedom, something we haven't experience in a long long time. And for that you have our thanks and our friendship. You may call upon us for anything you may need." "Thank you..umm." "You may call me Zuri." the lioness replied. "Thank you Zuri and good luck." Zuri nodded and she and the other lionesses walked away into the jungle while I walked back to my friends, changing back into myself. "That was some fight." Ren stated. "Yeah you kick his sorry butt." Jack laughed, rubbing his gut. I smiled at my friends "Thanks now come on, let's keep moving. It's going to be nightfall soon." I said. My friends nodded and followed me. Shimmer came to my side and hugged me, "Thanks for saving us mommy." she said. I smiled. "I would do anything.. for my family." I stated. Shimmer giggled and my mom smiled proudly at me as we continued on our journey. That night, I brought out my tent and everyone was inside for the night including our dragons. I was sleeping with family while my friends slept in different rooms. I was sleeping peacefully in my bed with Winter by my side. Suddenly, I felt Winter shifting and suddenly roaring in anger, shocking everyone awake. "What?" I quickly woke up and saw what Winter was roaring at. It was the same Male Lion from before, but this time he had two more male lions by his side. The two other males had light brown manes instead of black. My mom and Shimmer woke up and Shimmer screamed in fear right at the moment Ren and the others came in. "You again?!" Ren growled. "What the hell do you want? Jack growled, raising his fists. "I want revenge on this one for stealing my pride." The black maned lion stated. "The name is Makucha by the way." "Well leave Makucha, before newbie kicks your butt again." Jack threatened. "Haha, she can't possibly defeat me and my two friends." Makucha smirked. I stepped forth growling, "Just try me." I lit my horn and made two more clones of myself. Myself and my clones glowed and changed into lionesses once more. "Bring it." Makucha stated. The three lions lunged forward and the clones and I lunged at them. We tackled them to the ground and had a battle of teeth and claws. I swatted Makucha on the face, leaving three long claw marks on his cheek. He roared in pain and I pounced on him, biting him on the back. He threw me off, but I wasn't going down that easily. I coated myself in my lightning magic and charged Makucha, sending him out of the tent! My clones knocked Makucha's followers out of the tent as well. Makucha himself was now coated in scorch marks and scratches while his followers were covered in bite marks and brusies. I stepped forth, "Now.. leave." I growled. Makucha grunted as he got up and left with his two followers. I changed back into myself and made my clones vanished. My friends and family came forth, "That was awesome!" Ren exclaimed. "Hell yeah! You wiped the floor with that bastard." Jack added. "You fight pretty well for a maggot." Skye added. I sweat dropped at her, "Thank you." My mom stepped forth and rubbed against my waist. "That was a great battle honey." "Thanks mom." Then I let out a yawn. "Come on, let's get you back to bed." I nodded and we all went back inside the tent, ready for a long and hopefully peaceful nights' rest.