//------------------------------// // Chapter 3-1: Into The Woods // Story: My Paper Pony // by Garfield //------------------------------// High above the desert, the steel chariot soared towards the town of Ponyville. It was pulled by a duo of white guards, clad in shimmering golden armour. In the chariot they were pulling were 50 ponies, packed like sardines. Among these were a group of battered ponies, carrying a precious cargo. Looking out of the window, Mario saw the town come into view. Many carriages were entering and leaving the town, heading towards settlements all across Equestria. The hospital on the outskirts of town also had many carriages flying towards it, attempting to cater for the wounded guardsponies.Looks like Luna turned the town into a refugee site he thought. Shortly afterwards, the chariot landed near the town hall, where officials were holding registers for the immigrants to the town. Behind the old building were many tents, set up to accommodate the ponies that had fled to Ponyville to escape. As they were unloaded off of the carriage, a blue stallion walked up to them. "Do you have your papers?" asked the official, in a snooty tone. "Why would we need papers?" replied Mario. "So we know what ruffians we have entering this town" he sneered, not even looking at the group he had accosted. "Stand down, Grand Assembly, these guys are working for me" said a smooth, feminine voice. Walking up behind the ponies, Princess Luna picked up the card holding Fluttershy with her telekinesis. "Great job out there guys, we'll have them all before too long at this rate. Come with me to the library, we have a few things to discuss." Mario and his team followed the princess of the night, flanked by guards wielding spears. Turning around, Scootaloo poked her tongue out at the register taker, who turned his nose up in disgust before finding another group of refugees. The library wasn't too far from the town hall, and had many tents around it, each with the insignia of the royal guard. Many guards were standing about the place, some with bat wings and others dressed in the attire Celestia preferred. "As you can see, I have had to ramp up security around here. Discord isn't too pleased about your shenanigans, and is apparently 'going to step up his game'. Luckily for us, he hid his next prisoner not too far from here." "Whereabouts is the next element then?" asked Scootaloo. "You should let me have a look at that ear, subject. Certainly looks bad" she said, pointing to the fillies bandages. They were covered in sand, and blood had begun to seep through. "But to answer your question, the next bearer is trapped in the Everfree Forest." Collectively, everypony in the room, except the guards who remained as stoic as ever, groaned at hearing that dreadful places name. "Luckily for you, the guard have covered an aerial search of the area and discovered the rough area where it should be" she continued, pointing to an old map she had placed on the wall, next to the cards of Applejack and Fluttershy. "Only a few acres of the forest have had any real magical activity there recently, and chances are that's where the next rapscallion is." "Any advances on curing the curse yet?" Applebloom asked, pointing to her sister. "Sadly not, it seems to be a type of pure chaos energy, stronger than anything ever used before. Not even this amount of energy was used to steal the castle from us" the princess said mournfully. "We'd need the elements to counteract this, and we don't have their bearers or their stones. Hopefully, we can work a solution out later. Our motivation now should be to regain the elements." "Sounds like an idea" said Big Macintosh, as the princess walked over to the wounded filly. "This may sting a little" Luna said, taking off the bandage with her magic. Scootaloo closed her eyes as her ear glowed a dark blue. The large cut sealed itself, and the bleeding stopped. "All done" the moon controller said, smiling. "I don't have much skill in healing magic, so I couldn't replace the missing part of your ear, but I closed the wound. Some of my private doctors could help you but they're over at the hospital treating the wounded." "Thanks princess" said the orange filly, rubbing her wounded ear. "We got you a lemon from the desert" she said, pulling the fruit out from her saddlebag. "As you requested." Luna's face lit up, as she said "I didn't think you would seriously get me that, but thanks!" Biting down on the fruit, Ditzy looked on at the winged unicorn eating the citrus fruit in front of her, trying to avoid being squirted with lemon juice. "Why are there so many ponies coming to town then?" she asked, wiping some juice off of her wing. Drawing her hoof across her mouth, Luna said "We are fighting a losing battle, really. Most of the settlements in Equestria have been rendered grossly unsafe by Discord, and so everyone is trying to stay in Ponyville and the countryside surrounding it. I have been fighting off his magic, but even I can't stand up to the power the sceptre of harmony granted him. Even keeping Tartarus sealed is hard enough, but thankfully Fido hasn't turned against us yet." "Fido?" asked Mario. "My little guard dog at the gates. Despite his appearance, he's an old softy really. So I must stress the importance of you finding all of the elements as quickly as possible, before hell really does break loose." She opened the door with her magic, and escorted them out. "Also, miss Doo, I will inform your superiors of your situation. I foresee they will accept my offer to them, so there is no need to worry about losing your job." "Wait, how did you even know my name?" asked Ditzy, confused. "The mayor was mentioning how her new vase arrived damaged. She seemed to be blaming someone who looks just like you" the princess said, winking. "Also, keep an eye out for ponies corrupted by Discord. They tend to get a bit rowdy" she called after them as they walk off. "My mum is going to be so angry at me for losing an ear" said Scootaloo. "I'd imagine she's worried sick about you" said Big Macintosh, as they walked towards the forest to the west of town. As they walked, they passed a guard who was frothing at the mouth and trying to headbutt the others that were restraining him. They had tied a rope around his legs, and were trying to lock him in the paddy wagon with the other restrained ponies. "I wonder how long it'll be before Ponyville is overrun in chaos again?" asked Ditzy. "I don't know, but we are going to need a plan if we are to survive going into the woods" said Mario, turning to face the group. "How about we go visit miss Zecora? Her shack ain't too far into the forest, and it's easy to get to. Plus, she knows that part of the Everfree like the back of her hoof" said Applebloom eagerly. "Sounds good. Lead the way, squirt" replied Mario, as the group ran from the town to the forest. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ Inside the forest, the ponies remained on a narrow dirt path that wound through the forest. As they progressed further, the road got narrower and rougher, with the tree's growing large and intruding further into the way. A cold breeze blew past Mario, which caused him to turn around quickly. "I think we're being followed, guys" he said, concerned. "It might be another snake. Do you need to be protected by big ol' Scootaloo?" laughed the orange filly. Glaring a look of utter contempt at her, Mario snorted. "I'm feeding you to it first, Scoots" he said jokingly. "How much further to Zecora's place?" "Not far now, should be just over this ditch" said Applebloom. Almost directly after her saying it, a small hut in a clearing of the forest came into view. "Do we just knock, or what?" asked Ditzy, as she slowly flapped towards the hut. "Do not linger out there, For you may receive a great scare" called out a female voice from within the hut. Opening the door, Mario could see a female zebra there. Her mohican was tatty, and her face was sporting a large black eye. On her forelegs were several lacerations, covered in a green gel. "What happened to you, miss Zecora?" asked Applebloom. "Ah, little miss Applebloom, I didn't expect to see you so soon. I was accosted by a group of beasts three, Who tried to steal the secrets of the forest from me" she said, closing the door after all the ponies had entered her hut. "Why would they want to do that?" asked Ditzy. "The Everfree is like a home to me, Making me knowledgeable of all the things you may see. They asked me questions of a certain beast, Which sadly, I know the least. They got annoyed, and began to fight, One of which gave me this nasty bite" she continued, pointing to a particularly gruesome wound on her leg. "What monster was it they wanted to know about?" asked Mario. "Information about the Ursa is what they wished to know, A foul beast, with a temper that shows, It rampages around this area of the wood, Leaving destruction from where it once stood. Beating the answers out of me, I directed them to where you may see The Ursa and its mother, inside their cave. Dire warnings I gave, of those who had found the bear. Not a single trace has been found, not even a hair." "Wait, wasn't an Ursa Minor that thing that trashed Bonbon's house a while back?" asked Ditzy. "I think it was" agreed Big Macintosh. "As far as I can see, Discord hid the next element in the home of the bear." "Bugger. Any advice for us, miss zebra?" asked Mario. "If you must venture deeper into this forest, be aware of a thick mist. For that is the shroud of the home, which belongs to the bear that groans" she said, quickly thinking of rhymes. "Thanks for the help. Do you know what way the cave would be be?" asked Mario. Zecora pointed towards a mountain which jutted out from the forest, reaching high into the sky and peaked with snow. "At least we don't have to climb it. I hope" said Scootaloo. Thanking the zebra for her hospitality, they left the hut. Soon, the trees blocked out the light from the hut, leaving the ponies in pitch black. By some random piece of luck, Discord's current moon was a luminous pink, and the stars were all spotlights. This lit up the sky sufficiently for the ponies to be able to navigate towards the cave. "So what I could gleam from her rhymes is that the Ursa Minor is dangerous, and will outright kill us. Great" said Mario. "Didn't you know how bad it was before? It did rampage through town" replied Ditzy. "I don't really live inside town, I mainly stay in my cottage with my brother and run our little business" said Mario. "I didn't see the bear when it paid a visit, thankfully." "Either way, we are going to need a plan if we are going to manage to sneak into the cave and out again, whilst not dying" said Big Macintosh. "I suggest we slowly creep in and hope that the monster is asleep, and get away without it noticing us." "And if it does?" asked Mario. "Run like hell and try to escape. Although, I don't think it would have any problem keeping pace with us should it come to that" said the large farmpony. "If it comes to it, why don't I distract it a bit to let you guys escape" said Ditzy. "Last time I checked, Ursa Minor or Major couldn't fly, so it shouldn't be able to catch you. Sounds good to me" said Applebloom. "I wonder if it is actually working with Discord though." "Good lord, I hope not" said Big Macintosh. "You certainly seem more focused than usual, Ditzy." "Huh?" asked the grey pegasus as she narrowly missed a branch. "The Doctor has been teaching me how to be better co-ordinated." "Didn't stop you from leaving a dent in my garden" grumbled Mario. "I try. At least I didn't break your roof" replied Ditzy, chuckling. "Yeah, Cheerilee almost cried when she saw what happened to her house that day" laughed Scootaloo. "Good times" said Applebloom, laughing too. "Is it me or is it getting foggier around here?" she asked. The forest had grown increasingly foggier, and the mist turned the entire forest white, apart from the silhouettes of the trees. "It's like a smokescreen!" shouted Scootaloo. "I can't see a thing!" Visibility in the forest had dropped to only a few pony lengths in front of them, and the ground was turning colder and colder, until frost began to cover it up. "It's getting colder too!" said Applebloom, who was jogging on the spot, trying to keep her hooves warm. "I bet Discord is causing this cold weather" said Scootaloo, climbing on the back of Mario. "I'm not carrying you, Scoots" the red stallion said, bumping the filly off of him. "At least, with this mist we know we are close to the cave of the Ursas". "It certainly looks like something big has been running around in this neck of the woods" said Big Macintosh, pointing towards a frozen pile of dead trees, haphazardly strewn across the woods. "By the looks of it, whatever caused this is also rather irritated." "Glorious" snarked Mario, walking towards the broken logs. "With any luck, it will start flying after us." "We might as well follow this trail of destruction" said Ditzy, slowly floating through the air. Suddenly, a blast of pale blue light covered the group of ponies, and threw them into the trees lying about. With a loud crack, Mario felt his consciousness slip from him, causing him to fall into a sleep, along with his other companions, deep in the frozen forest.