//------------------------------// // Intermission 1: A Tale of Heroes and Fair Maidens // Story: There Is Nothing New Under The Sun // by chasethebrony //------------------------------// Intermission 1 As told by Rainbow Dash.... A Tale of Heroes and Fair Maidens It all started one week ago... The day was like any other day in the small town of Ponyville. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and Fluttershy's pet bunny Angel was being anything but. However, even though everything looked peaceful on the outside, Fluttershy was already afraid. Yesterday, she had received a terrifying note from Princess Celestia herself. It had warned of a terrible presence appearing in the Everfree Forest. The note also mentioned the mobilizing of the guard and the Elements of Harmony to try to capture the beast. She was sorely afraid, but she knew that she had to join the other Elements of Harmony to protect Equestria from the horror within the Everfree Forest. As she went home that afternoon, she noticed that her chicken coop was left open again and her precious friend Henrietta was missing. "Oh no! Henrietta, I'm coming for you!" She called out into the dark forest. Trotting to the edge of the woods, a sudden case of the willies overtook her. Looking around, she felt eyes looking upon her quivering form. Gathering her courage, the sweet yellow mare began her slow trek into the woods. Fluttershy followed the chicken's tracks for hours as they led through the damp underbrush. The woods were unnaturally quiet, almost as if something had scared away even the most brave of the forest's denizens. Suddenly, Fluttershy came upon a clearing and saw that her friend's clawprints had disappeared. However, there was a set of other, mysterious tracks right where the chicken's ended. Looking at the tracks, she couldn't figure out what kind of outlandish beast could create such unusual markings in the loamy soil. A rustle of movement behind her caused the pegasus to freeze. Listening intently, she strained her ears to try to detect the cause of the noise. Another rustle came from behind her. She turned around to see a blur of a creature leap out of the brush at her, and tackle her to the ground. Before she could even resist, the beast had her tied up and set across it's shoulders like a sack of flour. Gagged and unable to scream, Fluttershy could do nothing but watch as the creature carried her off through the woods once more. An unknown amount of time passed with the helpless mare forcing herself to not panic. Finally, the monster arrived at it's lair; a small cave hidden in the side of an embankment. Dragging her behind it, he set her against the back wall and began to use strange incantations to summon fire from a small pile of sticks. This being too much for poor Fluttershy, she passed out into blissful darkness. ---- The smell of charred flesh roused the drowsy mare. Looking frantically for the source of the sickening smell, she discovered the monster bent over the fire holding some sort of object over it. Looking closely, she could see a small pile of white feathers on one end of the room. Eyes widening in sudden understanding, Fluttershy once again blacked out from the shock of her discovery. ---- Time passed without reference. The monster had given the poor pegasus some water, but Fluttershy couldn't help but think that it just wanted her to be fresh for when it ate her next. Turning to face her, the creature began to approach her. Each step echoed in her mind as the last thing she would witness. Just as he was about to reach her, the coverings hiding the beast's cave were thrown apart, and a group of Royal Guards jumped into the lair weapons ready. Not going down without a fight, the creature turned to face them. Releasing a fearsome howl that struck fear into the hearts of the ponies, it leaped into the waiting guards. Fluttershy watched as the fracas progressed. Though the monster was outnumbered, it's overbearing height and immense strength granted it an edge over her rescuers. The sounds of combat had attracted even more guards however, and after a fierce battle managed to subdue the beast. freeing Fluttershy, the guards took her ahead for medical treatment, while the beast was dragged to Ponyville for it's judgement.... ---------------- "Seriously? That is how you think it went down?" I ask. "Well... I may have added to it just a teensy bit. But the good parts were still there. I just made it about.... 14 percent more awesome." Facepalming, I honestly had no idea what to do with her story. As I was about to open my mouth with some sort of witty retort, the sound of approaching guards could be heard from beyond the door to my prison. "Oops, here come the guards. Seeya!" And with a prismatic dash, she jumped back into her hole in the roof and blocked up the entrance to her little tunnel. "Well I'll be damned. That was strange" I muttered to myself.