//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Dusk Star // by Axelsims //------------------------------// Day 1 Today, well I’m not sure how to explain it. I don’t have to worry about starving to death in the middle of a forest at least, but I’d best start off from the beginning. When I woke up I was rather hungry, as I expected, also was pretty cranky, which is explainable since I absolutely dread mornings and being hungry doesn’t help. So I went looking around, for my home or at the very least something to munch on. I know sometimes people start to see mirages when they’re on the brink of death. Which is absolutely ridiculous for me seeing as how I’ve been out here for a day at most. However I was definitely trying to claim hallucinations when I saw a zebra wearing a cloak come out from nowhere and start talking to me. It was terrifying to say the least, walking around in the middle of a dark forest and out of nowhere talking animals start walking up to you and asking you questions. She was wearing a cloak which did nothing short of terrifying me of what horrors laid beneath, however after removing the hood i could look clearly at her form. Her hair was in similar design to a Mohawk, something that was usually worn by people wanting to intimidate others, punks and thugs to say the least. Like a zebra would naturally her hair was stripped in shades of black and white. She was also wearing massive golden earrings that screamed out foreign when combined with her hair. . After calming down a bit I found out that the zebra’s name was Zecora, I also found out that she liked to talk in rhyme and it was, to say the least annoying. However I’m grateful that I found her. She took me to her house which was, funny enough inside a tree. The inside however was very foreign and filled with strange decorations, some of which were frightening. By this point however I wasn’t bothering to question it. She took me inside and fed me a meal of some vegetables and fruit. I never was a vegetarian and didn’t plan on becoming one any time soon, so the meal was, to say the least, unfulfilling. However I thanked Zecora for the meal and asked her exactly where I was. She looked at me with a confused look on her face giving me a better view of her worried sapphire eyes. I took this as a negative sign. I had watched many movies and read many novels in my few years that I knew that this would most likely mean that I was somewhere miles away from where I hoped I was, possibly on a different continent or worse a different universe entirely. Sadly I was correct; or at least I think I was. The talking zebra informed me that I was in a place called the Everfree forest. I tried the think exactly if I had heard anything about this place in my classes back when I was in high school, however I couldn’t think of anything. I’m almost positive this place doesn’t exist, at least on earth. If there was such a place with talking zebras, and who knows what else, we would have found it already. Plus it’s definitely not near my home as I would definitely have known about it. But what really bothers me is the fact that I didn’t see anything unusual in my journey so far. Well, other than the talking zebra. No portals or specific landmarks, no ancient ruins or puddles leading to different dimensions. If I walked into this place without any sort of hint as to how it happened, how was I ever going to get back out? I asked Zecora about the subject, sadly she wasn’t entirely sure what I meant when I asked about portals, so after explaining that, which took some time by the way, she looked at me with an even more concerned look on her face and told me that she had no idea. I’m not entirely sure why she talked in rhymes, but it was getting rather annoying. I didn’t say anything about it however as it seems to be her accent and while it’s annoying it’s by no means harmful. Regardless I had a lot more on my mind than just weird accents. I asked her if there were any nearby towns where I could find some assistance, or at the very least something to smoke. Surprisingly enough she offered me a pipe, and said that she had some herbs that could be used to clear the mind. I took her up on the offer, though I was afraid of exactly what zebras smoked and if it was dangerous to other creatures. She told me the side effects, the chemical composition, and all sorts of meaningless facts about the herbs. After a bit I honestly didn’t care anymore, and after being courteous and allowing her to go first, took the pipe and pulling out my lighter began to inhale. After that everything was a bit hazed, I remember talking about my hometown, my family and basically everything about me, we both freaked out over the magical invention that was my lighter, and made fun of each other’s accents. Zecora offered to take me to this place called Ponyville, where I could possibly find some assistance on my journey. I told her I would take her up on her offer.