//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: First Contact // Story: Wolf Tale // by Solaris Night //------------------------------// "Will ya slow down?!" Applebloom shouted, as she ran through the thicket of bushes. Behind an even more winded Sweetie Belle was barely managing to keep up with her. "Maybe you two should pick up the pace!" Scootaloo yelled back. Unlike her two friends, she had little to no problem traversing the forest. Her small frame and nimble physique allowed her to either squeeze through small gaps or jump over bigger obstacles. The wind that rushed through her mane gave her a unique sensation, like the one that most pegasi felt when they soared through the air. She gracefully jumped over a boulder and landed on the other side. She stopped her run and waited for the other two. After a couple of minutes Appleblooms bow appeared over the boulders edge. "Sheesh, you guys sure are taking your time." she teased as the other girl finally made it to the top of the rock. "Well excuse me." she replied with annoyance in her voice. She reached down and pulled up Sweetie, who was sweating bullets at this point. "It's not like we usually run through a dense forest. Especially while runnin'." she said and jumped down next to Scootaloo. "Also, in case ya forgot, Sweetie is with us, and she isn't exactly tha athletic type." "Hey that isn't-" the white furred girl tried to argue; however, she lost her footing and fell on the ground beside the two. Applebloom and Scootaloo quickly got next to her. Sweetie looked annoyed, before she grumbled. "Forget it." The other two held back their laughter and instead helped their friend up. Dusting herself off, Sweetie shot her two friends a dirty look. "Remind me again, why are we here?" she asked, looking over her clothes in case there were any tears. "Wait didn't Scoots tell you?" Applebloom asked, her eyebrow cocked. "No." she curtly replied. "She just grabbed me and said that she saw something that will get us our cutie marks." Hearing that Applebloom looked at Scootaloo, who was fiddling with her thumbs, clearly embarrassed. "Heh, yeah, I may have forgot to go into details." she said scratching her head. Sighing, Applebloom removed a small twig from Sweetie's mane. "Apparently, yesterday Scoots saw something fall from tha sky over tha forest." The statement earned a look of interest from the unicorn. "She thinks it may have been a meteor that fell." "Heck yeah it was a meteor." Scootaloo exclaimed, once again pumped with energy. "Just think about it. If we find this meteor, we could get our cutie marks in... Uh..." "Meteor findin'?" "Astrology?" "Isn't that readin' tha stars for tha future?" Applebloom asked, putting on a confused expression. "I thought that was astronomy." Sweetie replied, her face equally as confused. "Whatever!" Scootaloo interjected between the two. "The only thing that matters is that we will be getting our cutie marks." she cheered, pumping her arms into the air. Her energetic and hopeful tone inspired the other two and joined her. However, that didn't stop them from asking some quite necessary questions. "Are you sure we are going the right way?" "Aren't we gettin' kinda close to the Everfree Forest?" "I hope we don't get lost." "It's also gettin' kinda late. I told mah sister that I'd be back before lunch." The questions irked Scootaloo, who had to reassure them each time. She sighed, before she regained her composure. "If you two are done worrying, we have a meteor to find." she said, hoping to once again rekindle their adventurous spirits. This time the other two didn't argue or question her, instead they just screamed their battle cries and all three ran further into the forest. It didn't take them long before they found themselves in a small clearing. They decided to make a small stop here and rest. Despite being in a rush, Applebloom had enough time and help from her family, that she prepared some sandwiches and drinks that she brought along. The three girls enjoyed their meal and were discussing about their everyday lives. "So how much father do ya think tha meteor is?" Applebloom asked, as she took a bite out of her sandwich. "I don't know." Scootaloo repleid, which earned a glare from the other two girls. "Hey, don't give me that look." she said chomping into her own snack. "I only saw it from the corner of my eyes when it fell. All I know is that it fell close to the Everfree and that is all." Applebloom and Sweetie exchanged glances, before they both unanimously sighed and shook their heads. Scootaloo began to feel embarrassed at this point, as the realization that she may have been leading them on a goose chase, slowly started to sink in. "Celestia please, save me from this." she prayed in her mind. Right at that moment a loud roar shook the peace of the forest and the girls immediately stood up. "W-w-what was that?" Sweetie asked, her body and voice shaking in unison. "A-ah don't know." Applebloom replied, her frame shivering as well. "But ah don't want to stick around and find out." "Agreed." Scootaloo affirmed. Before they even got the chance to clean after themselves, another roar, this one a lot different, resounded and something flew out from the edge of the wood and landed just a few feet away from them. They stood frozen in fear, as they looked at what just landed next to them. Before them laid a person. However, it didn't look like a pony, it had some similar features, but it clearly was not a pony. It's frame and build were the same, however that is where similarities stopped. It was clearly male and had fur covering some parts of its body, but the rest of it was bald. Its face was flat, it's nose just a small protrusion. Several cuts and bruises were present on the face, and it was clear that it was severely wounded, as evident by blood drenching it's clothes. The girls looked in shock as the wounded man slowly lifted his upper body. His teeth were gritted, and they saw his fangs, as clear as day. A haggard breath escaped from his mouth when he picked himself up completely. His body was in a bad shape, and he could barely keep himself standing. Trider's vision was blurry, and his head was spinning. He tried to remember what had happened. The last thing he recollected was waking up, after taking a short nap. The wound on his abdomen had partially healed, so he tried to seek help. After that he couldn't remember what had happened, but his gut was telling him that nothing good. As he turned his head to take in the scenery, his gaze fell onto something that wasn't brown or green. A big mass of multicolor laid not that far away from him. His vision was still hazy, so he winked several times, to remove the fog from his sight. After a couple of winks his eyesight corrected itself and he was finally able to see the three scared fillies. He cocked an eyebrow, but before he could say anything, a deafening roar pierced through the canopy. The cry put Trider on alert, as he now remembered what happened to him. He was attacked. Right at that moment a large body jumped through the trees and landed a few meters away from Trider. The creature was huge, easily over two meters tall, maybe even three. Its glowing green eyes stared at the Kanisar and he returned the glare. As Trider continued to inspect the creature, he quickly noticed that it looked like a wolf, however instead of flesh and fur, this wolf was made from wood, branches and leaves. "A woodlf." he said and chuckled. His smile turned to grimace. "Really? That was the best I could come up with?" The Timberwolf growled and wisps of green gas escaped from its maw. The smoke dispersed quickly, however Trider's sensitive nose could still pick it up. "Holy shit! I think your last victim is still stuck in your teeth." he exclaimed, as he plugged his nose, trying to ignore the nauseating smell. The Timberwolf took a small step forward, as it's growl became louder. The motion caught Trider's eye, and he got into a stance. "I don't suppose we could growl this out? One wolf to another." He got his answer when the Timberwolf lowered its body, preparing to jump him. "Yeah." he sighed and smiled. "I'm not much for talking either." At that moment the timber wolf lunged at Trider, who managed to avoid its fangs. When the wolf landed, the Kanisar quickly twisted his body and landed a kick onto its side. The beast barely noticed the blow, as it turned to the man and tried to bite at his arm. Trider again managed to evade the attack, however the dizziness suddenly returned, and he lost his footing. Before he had time to recover, the Timberwolf headbutted him, launching him across the ground, until his back hit a tree. The air escaped Trider's lungs when he impacted the wood. He shook his head and quickly regained his senses, just in time to see the wooden maw closing in on him. Without a second thought, the Kanisar jumped up, making the timber wolf bite down onto the trunk. Seeing his opportunity he reared his arm, which was now covered in sparkling energy. "Piston Cannon!" he shouted as his fist contacted the monster's head. The energy rippled and the head shattered into thousands of splinters. Trider landed on the ground, just as the giant body crumpled and fell apart. He looked at the pile of wood and a smirked. "Heel." he said cockily. Turning his attention away from his dead opponent, he looked at the three strange creatures, each having a different expression on their faces. One was scared, another confused and the last looked at him with actual sparkling eyes. He took a step closer and addressed the girls. "Oi, mind telling me what this place is?" he asked loudly. As he took another step forward, the expressions on their faces all changed to terror. He mentally sighed. He opened his mouth to try and assure them that he wasn't going to hurt them. However, before he could say anything, the hairs on his neck stood up and his danger senses went into overdrive. Time seemed to slow down, as he turned around. He saw the huge wooden claws flying towards him and tried to dodge them. However, he was too late. The claws dug themselves into the flesh of his chest, leaving giant gashes behind. Droplets of his blood flew through the air, as the claws passed. The pain quickly surged through his body, and it made him scream in agony. He tried to retaliate; however, the Timberwolf was faster this time. Its giant jaws latched onto Trider's left arm, the wooden fangs pierced his muscles and once again he was in pain. Now firmly grasped in its maw, the Timberwolf began to shake its head around, flailing the Kanisar's body around, and slamming him into the ground and trees. Then it suddenly unhinged its mouth and threw the man into a tree. A loud crack was heard when Trider's body hit the trunk and his body slumped onto the ground. The Timberwolf looked at the motionless body of its prey, waiting to see if it would continue to retaliate. Once it was sure that Trider was down for the count, it slowly approached, green sap falling from its mouth. Suddenly a small pebble hit the side of the wolf's head. It turned its attention away from the Kanisar and looked at the Cutie Mark Crusaders. The three fillies were holding several stones in their hands, sweat dripping down their faces, as they began to regret what they did. "Uhhhh. Sit?" Applebloom said, her tone filled with fear. The Timberwolf turned away from Trider and began to slowly approach the fillies. The CMC each thought if they could escape this situation, but they knew that it would catch them sooner or later. They huddled together as they stared death right in the eyes. "It was a wonderful being friends with you." they all said at the same time, as tears ran down their cheeks. At that moment the timber wolf lunged at them. The girls closed their eyes. A couple of seconds passed and yet the pain and agony were still absent. They gathered their courage and slowly opened their eyes. The sight astonished them. Right in front of them was the back of the man who they believed was dead and said man was holding back the jaws of the hungry Timberwolf. Trider struggled against the monster's strength, as he held its maw open. His body was now covered in blood, and his left arm looked the worst. He fought through the searing pain and pushed the wolf back with all his might. The large body skid across the ground for several meters, before it stopped. The CMC looked in shock and wonder as they saw how the stranger pushed the giant monster away. Trider looked back at them and locked eyes with them. The girls still feared him, but for some reason they also felt like he wasn't a bad guy. The Kanisar then smiled showing his bloody teeth. "Thanks for that." he said. "I just needed a moment to catch my breath." It was astonishing. The stranger was covered in severe wounds and yet he walked towards the Timberwolf with a smile and almost zero regard for his own safety. The girls were confused, however deep down his demeanor made them feel like they'll be fine. "Now then." Trider said as he cracked his knuckles and watched as the lumbering monstrosity got back up. "It's about time I turn you into firewood." The Timberwolf responded by howling and then charging the Kanisar. But just like the first time, Trider managed to avoid the attack and kick it into its side. Unlike before however, this time he made a huge hole into its side and toppled it to the ground. Trider watched with gleeful expression as he watched the wolf shakily pick itself up. His face quickly turned to displeasure when he saw the pieces of wood begin to glow green and reassemble into the chest of the monster. "So that's how you did it." he said and once again smiled. "Too bad I didn't bring an axe. However, I have something just as effective." Once the Timberwolf was fully reassembled, it turned towards Trider and snarled. The Kanisar snarled back and ran towards the monster. The wolf opened its mouth, in preparation to bite at the man. However, Trider expected that and quickly stopped. Using the momentum, he swung his body around and delivered a roundhouse kick directly at the Timberwolves’s jaw. The attack slammed into the wood that made up the fangs, splintering the sharp wood, leaving the maw empty. Before the wolf could again rebuild itself, Trider thrusted his arm forward. "Open wide." he said with a smile, as he pushed his arm deep into the wolf's throat. "Now then, make sure you swallow." His arm began to crackle as he charged his Solvis through it and into his palm, creating an orb of energy. "Nova Sphere!" The energy burst from within the wolf's body and erupted. The shockwave tore apart the Timberwolf's body, hurtling its bits and pieces all over the forest. Trider was still on alert, learning from his previous experience. He stood still and waited for a couple of minutes before he relaxed. "Timber." he said under his breath, chuckling a bit to himself. Satisfied with his victory he wanted to lay down and take a breather. "That was so cool!" The sudden shout made Trider turn his head and he looked at the girls who were still standing there. When he looked back at them the girls stopped their cheering and gulped audibly. "Right, completely forgot about the living color book group." he thought. Slowly he began to approach them, and the girls once again huddled together, as the bloodied man approached them. "Now then, there are some things I would like to ask all of you." he said, trying to give them a smile. However, in their eyes he looked like a hungry beast that was ready to make them into its next meal. "It was nice knowing you girls." they all said in unison.