//------------------------------// // NEVER Go in the Everfree // Story: The Elements of Love // by UnweptSchlipps //------------------------------// “Why can’t we ever get a break?” Lucky screamed angrily, having resorted to using his bare hooves to attack the shadowy beasts. The six were surrounded on all sides, with the attackers showing no signs of letting up. The forest was as black as midnight, making it difficult to see the already dark shadows. Braeburn was using his hindlegs to buck the monsters wildly. The cowpony backed into something and impulsively lashed out at the object. A quick shout was heard above the commotion, and Lucky’s face appeared out of the darkness, grasping his jaw. “Watch it, mate. I’d like to keep my teeth intact, thank you very much,” the unicorn said angrily before turning back to the fight at hand. But it seemed like a futile effort. Everywhere there was darkness, and out of it spawned the nasty creatures. Cheerilee realized this first, shouting, “Every time we destroy one, another takes its place!” After dispatching another shadow, Lucky glanced around the foliage, trying to remember the way out. Thinking quickly, he launched a bolt of fire into a few trees, toppling them over and creating an exit. “C’mon, mates! Follow me!” the witty unicorn shouted, hopping over the fallen trees. But before she could follow, Redheart cried, “Wait! Where’s Scootaloo!” At the mention of the filly, Soarin quickly wheeled around, scanning the commotion. Finally, he spotted the orange pegasus, who was backed into a wall by a few of those shadows. “Soarin!” the filly cried as one began to reach out for her, four tendrils sprouting out if its back. “You stay away from her!” Soarin cried, willing his wings to zoom towards the filly. The monster’s tentacles inched closer and closer, until it was almost touching the filly’s maroon mane. That was as close as it got. In one swift move, Soarin lowered his head and bashed straight through the shadow, scattering it into the darkness. Then he scooped up the tiny pegasus and quickly veered away from the surrounding beasts, weaving through the large tree trunks. One monster leapt towards the Wonderbolt, causing him to sharply turn. He escaped the shadow’s attack, but in doing so, a large branch pierced his flank, leaving a gash in his side. But it didn’t seem as though Soarin cared, and he and Scootaloo whizzed into the path where Lucky and the others had gone. The pegasi soon caught up with the other Elements, who were zigzagging their way through the forest. Ignoring the pain, Soarin placed the filly on Redheart’s back, giving the group some support from above. Up ahead were Braeburn and Lucky, who were mercilessly shoving the shadows that got in the way. Although they had been galloping through the Everfree for only ten minutes, it felt more like hours to the tired elements. Swatting a shadow away for what seemed to be the hundredth time, Braeburn complained, “Ah thought you said this was a shortcut!” His voice oozing with sarcasm, Lucky answered, “Sorry mate, I had to make some route changes with those BUGGIN’ MURDEROUS BEASTS CHASING US!” Another ten minutes of running, and Braeburn was beginning to wonder if the unicorn really knew was he was doing. But before long, Lucky called, “I see sunlight up ahead!” The others looked forward where, sure enough, the noontime sun was peeking through the dense forest. They galloped faster towards the exit, relief flushing their bodies. The light began to glow brighter and brighter, until finally the group jumped through the foliage and into the warm sun. Having escaped the Everfree and the evil monsters, they immediately collapsed into the green field they found themselves in. Never before had any of them felt so happy to be in sunshine. “Whew, that was quite a run,” Braeburn uttered, wiping the sweat on his brow with his hat. He glanced around at his teammates with a relieved smile. But that smile soon disappeared. The cowpony immediately jerked up, saying, “Wait a sec’, where’s Cheerilee?” Lucky shot up as well, gave one glance back at the forest, and muttered, “Oh you’ve gotta be buckin' kidding me.” The unicorn was ready to gallop into the forest, but he was held back by somepony biting on his tail. Behind him, Braeburn said, “Ah’m comin with you!” Lucky gave the cowpony a skeptical glare, none too pleased with the way Braeburn treated him. But in the end, the gambler rolled his eyes and said, “Okay fine. But the rest of you, stay here!” With that the two shot into the woods together, neither one particularly enjoying the other’s company. xxx As much as she didn’t want to say it, Cheerilee was one thing. Hopelessly lost. To make matters worse, she was lost in a forest with shadowy monsters lurking around, and the only ponies who knew she was there were missing. Not to mention she was only armed with a sack of half-eaten pastries and an extensive knowledge of language and biology. I’m a teacher, not a fighter, the mare thought, stepping over roots and fallen trees. Suddenly, she heard a moaning. The very same moaning she had heard before. “Oh no, oh no, oh no,” Cheerilee whispered, clenching the bag between her teeth. To her horror, the shadows began to creep out of the darkness, their red eyes piercing the gloom. They were slowly coming towards her, like a predator who knew its prey had no chance of escape. Cheerilee tried her best to hide her fear, swinging her bag while saying, “S-stay back! I’ve got pies!” But her hooves were shaking, and her eyes gave way to pure terror. This isn’t exactly how I imagined I would go, the teacher thought grimly. The primal shadows had her surrounded, and every step they took was one step closer to doom. Then, all at once, the beasts shot forward. Cheerilee closed her eyes, bracing herself for the impact. There was a loud thud, the first thing that ran through her mind was, I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead. It took Cheerilee a few seconds to realize she was still standing. It took her another few seconds to find the courage to actually open her eyes. She found herself underneath a dome of light green, a force field, and the shadows had completely vanished due to the impact. More were beginning to seep out of the surrounding area, their sights set on the mare encased in the magic bubble. “Absorb that, you damn freaks,” Lucky’s voice shouted from the foliage. Suddenly, the unicorn jumped out, using the force field to repel the incoming attackers. He made his way to the mare curled up on the ground, while Braeburn dealt with the rest of the beasts. Lucky dissipated the bubble and help Cheerilee up. She responded dreamily, “Thank you…” Then, realizing what she had just did, the teacher cleared her throat and said, “I mean…ahem…thanks for the…assistance.” “No time for dilly-dallying Cheerilee!” The unicorn ran towards the way he had come, saying, “You have time to thank me later!” The duo was followed by Braeburn, who with a final kick, shouted triumphantly, “Nopony messes with Señor de la Kickeroo! YEEHAW!” xxx The trio bursted out of the Everfree, surprising the other trio. The group unanimously decided to take a break away from the forest, so the six ventured a little bit further until they came upon a grassy knoll. There, they laid down together, basking in the glory of Celestia’s great orb of fire. For a while, the six were quiet, some trying to get a nap. Finally, Soarin stated, “Well that was…unexpected.” As much as she wanted to push the memory of those shadows out of her brain, there was something about those beasts that made Cheerilee feel uneasy. Despite their lack of features, for some reason they felt…familiar. The teacher asked, “Was it just me, or did those things…look like ponies?” “I thought so too,” Redheart agreed, and Cheerilee felt relieved that she wasn’t going crazy. “Those shadows seemed to move around like…like us. On four legs.” Speaking calmly, Braeburn told the others, “Whatever they were, the princess said something about shadows attackin’ her kingdom. An’ those things seem to fit the bill.” “Well the princess did say something about a deadly unknown force. So there ya go,” Soarin added, almost too casually. Lucky asked in disbelief, “You’re telling me that that thing taking over the Crystal Kingdom is chasing us now?” “Well…If you put it like that, it sounds pretty bad.” With a scoff, the unicorn muttered, “Buggin’ understatement of the year.” Soarin scooted on over to Scootaloo, who laid on her belly with her head cradled in her hooves. The stallion asked softly, “You ‘ight Scoots?” The young pegasus gave a small smile and replied, “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. Takes more than some stupid shadows to break me.” However, the shadows and their glowing red eyes were still fresh in her mind, as well as the thought of Soarin rescuing her. She looked up at the Wonderbolt’s strong green eyes and whispered, “But um…still…thanks.” “No problem, kiddo. I got your back,” the stallion said confidently, trying to take seat next to her. But when his bottom touched the ground, pain flared up into his body. Soarin had completely forgotten about his wound, which was still very much open and bleeding. “Soarin, you’re hurt!” the filly exclaimed. Away from the rest of the group, Nurse Redheart motioned for the pegasus to come over, calling, “Soarin! Let me take care of that cut for you.” The stallion fluttered over to the nurse, and sat so his rump was facing her. He was a bit embarrassed, but the Wonderbolt nonetheless said politely, “Thanks Redheart.” Redheart didn’t answer, completely stone-faced. “Umm, thanks?” Soarin said again, still to no reply. His wound was bright red, and the branch had cut very deep into his flank. Redheart worked unfalteringly, taking out some stiches she had requested back at Canterlot. “You’re not fazed by much, are you?” the pegasus uttered, looking at Redheart’s stolid face. This time she answered, saying quietly, “I’ve seen all kinds of injuries, Soarin. I don’t get very surprised by anything nowadays.” She manuevered her needle carefully into Soarin's cut, working with a precision not even a magic-user could emulate. Soon the wound was all stitched up, and yet Soarin still felt a jarring pain in his flank. But then Redheart did something quite unusual. She pressed her hoof against the sealed wound, closing her eyes. To the pegasus’s surprise, his pain suddenly washed away, leaving him feeling as though nothing had happened. The nurse took her hoof off the wound, exhaled a deep breath, and opened her eyes. Soarin thought he saw a quick flicker in Redheart’s eyes, but they soon reverted to the usual calm, stolid expression. The duo stood up, and as though she was making idle conversation, Redheart said, “So looks like Scootaloo’s taken quite a liking to you.” Soarin answered, “Scoots? Yeah, she’s a feisty one if you catch my…” Suddenly, the nurse pulled hard on his collar, so that his face was close to hers. “Drift?” he uttered, staring into the nurse’s now fiery eyes. With her voice low, the mare warned, “If anything happens to that filly…I don’t care whether you’re a celebrity or not, there will be consequences, understand?” She let go of Soarin, her face reverting back to its composed state. Soarin, who was taken completely aback by Redheart’s sudden change, began to back away slowly. With her warning still ringing in his ears, the Wonderbolt uttered, “H-how can you say that with a straight face?” Meanwhile, while that pair of stallion and mare talked, another pair conversed. Lucky strode over to Cheerilee, who was glaring up at the puffy clouds traversing slowly across the sky. She saw the unicorn coming toward her, and immediately began to look completely uninterested. “Starin’ at the clouds, are we now?” Lucky inquired charmingly, winking at the mare. Feigning lack of interest, Cheerilee replied, “Huh? Oh, sorry. I didn’t see you coming.” The unicorn sat down next to her, following her eyes to the clouds above. Lucky told her smoothly, “Quite a close call back there, Cheerilee. Good thing I came along when I did.” “Yeah…” was all the mare could muster. Decided that her answer was insufficient, Cheerilee asserted, “Well, um, to be fair, I probably could have gotten out of there anyway without your help.” “Well I hardly think so,” Lucky disagreed, giving her a look that could only be described as, What in the bloody hell do you mean? “Well you…never know,” the teacher quickly said. Then, trying to change the subject, she claimed, “I think I hear Redheart calling me.” “I didn’t hear anything.” “No, no, I heard her. COMING REDHEART!” Cheerilee swiftly got to her hooves and began to walk towards the white mare. A confused voice said, “I didn’t call-“ “Of course you did!” the teacher interrupted, while Lucky was left watching her in puzzlement. Next to him, a little filly spoke, “Jeez, Miss Cheerilee’s really weird.” “You’re telling me, kid,” the unicorn replied. He began to venture off, trying to find a bit of alone time, something he had been severely lacking since the beginning of this adventure. He took out a bagel and began to eat it absently, but to his surprise, the pegasus began to follow him. “Don’t you have some Wonderbolt to cling to?” the unicorn asked. “I would, but Soarin’s actin’ all weird and stuff too. So I guess I’ll just hang with you,” Scootaloo shrugged. “Why hang with me?” With a laid-back tone, the filly answered, “Well, because you don’t seem too bad of a guy.” “Really?” “Yeah, you ain’t bad mister. And believe me, there are some pretty mean ponies at my school. But you…you’re alright.” The stallion could only shrug his eyebrows, the little filly’s comment making him think more than it should have. He didn't know why, but it made him feel...decent. It was a little odd. The duo stopped atop a grassy knoll, where the unicorn levitated his bagel away, floating a handkerchief out of his vest to dab at his mouth. He looked down at the orange pegasus, only to see her staring off into the distance. When he followed her eye, he immediately dropped the items in shock. The filly’s face shone with excitement, while the stallion’s drooped with anxiety. They stood atop the knoll, with the stone cottages of Trottingham waiting below.