//------------------------------// // The Legend of Everfree // Story: Everfree // by J3sterking //------------------------------// Aside from one specific incident, when she met Starlight, Sunset had never had trouble moving between the pony and human worlds. She always adjusted on the quicker side. She climbed to her hooves, dusting herself off. "Hey, Princess. Thanks for letting me come over and talk. Something absolutely huge happened." "No problem! We should be able to wrap this up quickly, especially if it isn't...um..." Twilight paused, eyeing Sunset's mane. "...Important." "Yeah, I didn't comb it out thoroughly this morning," Sunset said. "Not that big a deal." "What's with the flower?" Spike asked. "Flower?" Sunset reached up, pulling a small, off-white flower out of her hair. Even though her geode didn't manifest on this side of the portal, for reasons she still hadn't worked out, she did still have some access to its power. Just enough to feel an ancient, Equestrian magic lingering around the flower. "Oh, uh...nothing, I guess," Sunset said. She put it back in her hair, choosing to think about it later. "So, did you find any books on Gaea Everfree?" "Scattered mentions," Twilight replied. "Most really old. The only other option I can think of is Princess Celestia, but--" "I don't think that'll be the best idea just yet," Sunset said for what felt like the millionth time. "I know, I know, you say she would welcome me back. I'd prefer not to test that just yet." "I mean," Starlight said, shoving an ancient tome to the side, "shouldn't you just say hi?" Sunset turned, seeing Starlight Glimmer seated with an Earth Pony she swore she knew the name of... "Juniper?" she asked. "Eeyup!" Juniper said, attempting to turn the page in her book. "Oh. I forgot you'd come over to hang out with Starlight. I'm not intruding, am I?" "Not at all," Juniper said, hoof slamming into her book. "Gah! How do you people manage without fingers?" "I've always asked that, too," Spike muttered. "Here you go, Sunset! The only book we found with anything extensive on Gaea Everfree." "Trouble?" Starlight asked. Juniper looked up as well, straightening her glasses with one hoof. "If there was, it was a thousand years ago," Sunset said, "but no, there isn't, really. I'm just here to brush up on an old friend." "What?" Twilight said, confused. "Eh, it's a bit of a story. Let me sit down, I'll explain." Once upon a time, in the early days of Equestria, the ponies stumbled upon a strange forest. The forest seemingly grew on its own, constantly expanding, and the animals inside were wild, violent, and completely uncontrollable. Few ponies ventured in, and fewer came out. Those that did spoke of a witch in the woods. A creature of enormous size, with hair of roots and branches, and clothing made of vines. She had massive claws, and golden eyes in pools of tar. Wherever she left, a thick trail of gem dust lay scattered behind her. She named herself Gaea Everfree, and bestowed blessings on those with the courage, and fortitude, to brave her forest. The Princesses of the new land foresaw trouble, and called upon Starswirl the Bearded to halt the Everfree Forest's growth. The sorcerer braved the woods, time and again, to cull its growth...yet he never saw the fabled Wood-Witch. Time passed. Even after Starswirl was gone, the forest grew no further, yet ponies still received the blessing from Gaea. Until, one day, she left her woods. Without warning, the Wood-Witch struck the nearest town, in a fit of terrible wrath. The ground quaked, and the trees themselves assaulted the ponies. The Princesses arrived, and, using the Elements of Harmony, banished Gaea from the world forevermore. Ponies thereafter never saw the Wood-Witch again, but every once in a while, they would find the special flowers of her blessing. Sunset closed the book, letting out a slow breath. "Okay, that answers one or two of my questions, but gives me so many more." "I'm still trying to wrap my head around Applejack," Twilight said. "She turned into Gaea Everfree?" "No, she's apparently always been that. Same old AJ." "I need to have a talk with my world's Applejack," Twilight muttered. Sunset laughed. "Probably not. Gaea's from this side, after all—she is your Gaea, so what would Applejack be instead?" "Good point," Twilight said. "She's probably just an above-average work pony." "Back to the point," Sunset said, "Gaea fought the Princess, and was banished...but why was she so mad? Did you read the stories before the one about Gaea?" "Several times, throughout the years," Twilight said. "The Gaea one I normally skipped because the lack of data in it bugged me." Sunset raised an eyebrow. "What? It skips over half the story! An incredibly angry nature spirit just wanders into Equestria? Why was she angry? What made her try and level a country that wasn't even a hundred years old?" She said...'crazy plant witch trying to destroy Equestria'. Geez, was she not joking? Sunset sighed. "Are you sure you have to find out?" Twilight asked. "Maybe you could just wait until she's ready to talk..." "She's obviously feeling bad about it," Sunset said. "I want to help her feel better, but how can I do that if I don't even know what she did?" She flopped forward, letting her hooves drape across the table. "It's so frustrating," she muttered into the crystal surface. "Well," Twilight said slowly. "I do have one idea." "I don't want to bother Princess Celestia about this," Sunset said firmly. "No, I had somepony else in mind..." Sweet Apple Acres looked the same in any world, Sunset decided. The only differences were clear concessions to the difference between humans and ponies, such as shorter doorframes and the differing levels of technology. Sunset trotted up the walkway with Twilight, saying, "I still don't think she'll know anything, Twilight." "We're not necessarily asking Applejack," Twilight said. "I have a few ideas, after the library failed. Number one: Granny Smith!" "Granny Smith," Sunset repeated. "She's not that old, Princess Twilight." "Yes, but she's lived close to Everfree longer than anypony else!" Twilight said. "And besides, Princess Celestia personally gave them this land to use! I'm certain she'd have told them anything important about Gaea Everfree!" "Eh..." Sunset ran a hoof through her hair. "Yes, it would have made sense, but she does a lot of things that no pony else can make sense of either." "Well, since you still don't want to talk to Princess Celestia--" "For good reason," Sunset said. "I like my limbs being attached to my main body, Princess Twilight." "She would never," Twilight said firmly. "But, in any case, outside of her and Luna, we have Granny Smith, and Zecora. Zecora lives in Everfree, and while I'm normally willing to trek through there, I don't know how much time you have." "Eh...probably hours yet, barring temporal complications across two worlds," Sunset said. "That said, the same reason with Princess Celestia follows here." Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Then do you have an option other than Granny Smith?" "Point taken," Sunset said with a sigh. She looked up, seeing apples fall from a tree into buckets at the base of it. In front of the tree was a pony that was somehow distinctly recognizable. "Hey, Applejack!" Twilight called out, waving a hoof. "Howdy, Twi!" Applejack said, stepping over to the next tree. "Who's yer friend?" She bucked it, letting all the apples fall into the buckets. "This is Sunset Shimmer, from the human world," Twilight introduced. "Good to see you. Uh, meet?" Sunset shrugged with one hoof. "Other worlds. I know you, yet I don't." Applejack chuckled. "Must get a might confusin, huh?" "Eh, it rarely comes up," Sunset said. "You'd think two Twilights in one room gets confusing, but we all just call her 'Princess'." "Huh. Guess that makes that easy." Applejack bucked another tree, adding, "Well, just comin' to visit, or ya have something in mind?" "Well, uh, as much as I'd like to say I didn't only stop by because something happened..." Sunset chuckled awkwardly. "I know that feelin'," Applejack muttered. "Don't fret none about it, y'hear?" "Gotcha. In any case, I was doing some research on an Equestrian creature that showed up in our world." Sunset paused, considering her 'abridged' version of the story. Applejack grunted, bucking another tree. "Well, don't Twilight know what it is?" "Eh, not really," Sunset said. "Nothing more than what I already knew." "So am I supposed to know more about it?" Applejack asked, standing up and frowning. "I don't see how." "Well, you or Granny Smith," Sunset said. "Have you heard of someone called 'Gaea Everfree'?" Applejack stared at her, then shrugged. "Nope," she said. "Doesn't ring any bells." "I see," Sunset said. "I didn't expect you to, really." "Maybe we'll have better luck with Granny Smith," Twilight suggested. "I doubt it," Applejack said, bucking the next tree. "Any story about those woods she knows, she made sure to tell us. They can be mighty dangerous, and she wanted to make sure we knew." "Huh," Twilight said. "I guess Princess Celestia didn't mention it to them. Well, if she thought Gaea was destroyed, then she may not have thought she needed to." "Regardless, I'm out of options that don't involve risk of dismemberment," Sunset said. "So, I'mma head home now, okay?" "Princess Celestia wouldn't do that," Twilight said. "Regardless, I'm not going to have my only time returning to see her when I just happen to be looking for something else, too," Sunset said firmly. "If I have to, I'll say hi some other time. Just not now." "Alright," Twilight said. "Well, if you still have time, maybe we could hang out around Ponyville?" "I could give ya the Apple Family tour," Applejack said. "One question," Sunset asked. She pointed to the nearest tree, saying, "How are you doing that?" By the time they returned that evening, Sunset felt slightly better about her lack of luck—although she hadn't quite figured out how to buck apples from trees, either. "I wouldn't worry about doing any more digging," Sunset told Twilight, as they climbed up the doors to her castle. "I'm pretty sure that Princess Celestia is the only one who really knows about Gaea Everfree anymore. Since we have a story of her, then we can assume that there aren't other stories because there was nothing else to record. I guess AJ thought that she was recorded better." "I think she probably assumed you were going to go talk to Princess Celestia," Twilight put in. "Or that," Sunset admitted. "She did mention her by name, but...dang it, I'll go talk to her some other time." Twilight pursed her lips, pushing the doors open. "I really think you ought to reconnect with her." Sunset let out an aggravated sigh. "I don't think she wants anything to do with me, Princess Twilight. Why else would she have given you the journal?" Twilight didn't answer. "See? She doesn't want anything to do with me, Princess." Sunset pushed upon the door to the portal room, only to be immediately wrapped in massive white wings. She blinked in surprise, seeing a familiar tri-color mane flow around her. "Thank goodness you're alright," Celestia said. Sunset sputtered, blinking in shock. "Hi, Princess Celestia," Twilight said casually. "What are you doing here?" "I came as soon as I got Starlight's letter," Celestia said. "The Wood Witch has returned, right?" "Um," Starlight said. Sunset looked around Celestia, eyeing the shame-faced unicorn, and Juniper looking somewhat shocked behind her. "I've been trying to say that, uh, it's fine and that Gaea was reformed." Celestia stared at her. Luna, off to one side, lowered a halberd. "Couldn't you have said that in your letter?" "Stop, stop, stop," Sunset said, breaking free from Celestia. She glared at Starlight. "You sent her a letter?" Starlight chuckled. "Well, you, uh, were all off on your 'I'm so bad and she won't want to talk to me' thing, so I just...sent her a letter asking about Gaea, so...you wouldn't have to!" She gave a nervous smile. Sunset glared at her. "Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time!" Starlight said defensively. "I'll make some tea," Twilight said, trotting past. Sunset looked to Celestia, then said, "I will...go help he--" Her muzzle ran right into a violet barrier. She blinked, rubbing her nose as she stared at the scowling Twilight. "She came all this way to check up on you," Twilight. "Talk to her." Sunset gulped, then looked back to Celestia. "I...thought you might want some space," they both said. "Yes, that is all well and good, but I do believe we have something seriously pressing at the moment," Luna said. "I would very much like somepony to explain what is with Gaea right this second." "Luna—" Celestia began. "No, Tia, this is important," Luna stressed. "You said she is reformed? How? When? Should we evacuate Ponyville in case she decides to come out?" "No, everything's fine," Sunset said. "It's a bit of a story..." "We have time," Luna said simply. "Luna," Celestia said chidingly. "Please, we all know that all you two were going to say was how you missed each other, you're both sorry, and that you should have reunited sooner," Luna said. "Touching, really, but I'd rather this not end on a sour note thanks to the Wood Witch. Start from the beginning." "I...suppose I would like to hear about your adventures anyway," Celestia admitted. Sunset met her gaze, then nodded. "Well, here goes." 'At the beginning' turned out to be a little further than she had thought. To properly explain Applejack's returning memories, she had to go back to the Camp Everfree visit. It took quite a bit of time, but she did eventually explain everything to an extent that Luna was satisfied with. "Well, it sounds like everything is well in hoof," Celestia said. "Indeed," Luna said. "We are afraid that we do not know much about Gaea, either, dear Miss Shimmer." "Then why were you so concerned?" Sunset asked, taking a sip of her tea. "Because she's been around for a while, and she is a wild, violent thing," Luna said. "She stayed in the Everfree, for the most part. That flower in your mane was often a gift to those who successfully braved the Everfree. They were supposed to bring good luck." Sunset pulled the flower from her mane, holding it in her magic. Her telepathy was numbed, but she could still feel Applejack through the flower. "I don't know if she even thought about it. She didn't mention that she was giving me it." "Gaea was not a spirit of trickery," Luna said. "Even at her most violent, she simply wouldn't give the flowers." "How...how violent are we talking here?" "You've heard the expression...'nature is red in tooth and claw'?" Luna asked simply. "Gaea would feel no remorse whoever, or how many, died in the Everfree. She crafted it from the roots to the leaves. It was a wild place of wrath." "And why did she leave?" Sunset asked. She gestured to the storybook, still sitting at the table. "Why did she suddenly decide to attack?" "We never learned," Luna said. "Yes, it was...a distressing matter," Celestia said. "We were already dealing with innumerable threats after Starswirl's disappearance. King Sombra, Discord, and Merry Gold...and Gaea, something that had previously never left her forest...thankfully, we stopped her before anypony died." "She almost killed ponies?" "Verily," Luna said. "Though, this one might be better to show than tell." Her horn lit up, and suddenly the scenery changed. Sunset found herself standing in an old-fashioned Equestrian village, with a few ponies trotting about. She looked down at her hoof, seeing the ground through it. "Oh, this is interesting," she said. "Luna, she doesn't need to see this," Celestia said. "Her friend has changed since we knew her." "She needs to know, and this gets the point very well across," Luna said firmly. "Princess Luna's right," Sunset told her mentor. "I want to know. How else could I help her deal with it?" Celestia drew her mouth to a fine line. "I'd want my friends to know, too, if I were in Gaea's position," Luna said. The ground rumbled. Sunset wobbled, unsteady, and looked around. A great crack split the air as the ponies devolved into panic, running about as a massive chasm opened up across the ground. Vines burst from the ground, reaching out towards the closest ponies and ensnaring them. As they tried to run away, their flesh and fur turned to wood and leaves, leaving them frozen in horrified positions. Then Gaea rose from the chasm, face alight with fury. Sunset had been imagining Applejack, but saw something that belonged in Timber's campground story. She screamed in blind fury, swinging her hands around, toppling buildings with powerful earth-quakes. Gaea snapped her head up, looking at a bright light that suddenly appeared. She screamed in fury as Celestia and Luna—neither looking any younger—descended, Elements of Harmony in tow. And all of a sudden, everything stopped. "This is the Gaea Everfree I remember," Luna said casually, trotting around the angry nature spirit. "We rarely ventured into the forest in those days. I, personally, had only seen her before once. After this day, however, we moved our castle into the forest, to better prepare in case she returned." "She never did," Celestia said. "I eventually moved the capital to Canterlot. Everfree was too violent to expect most ponies to travel to." "Why?" Sunset asked. "Why was she so angry?" Gaea's face was frozen into an open-mouthed scream of fury. Sunset walked through a mess of blackberry brambles, phasing through them, as she looked up at Gaea. "You shall have to ask her," Luna said. Her horn lit up, and a familiar rainbow blast struck Gaea. A bone-chilling scream pounded in Sunset's ears, and she flinched back instinctively, as the nature spirit simply...disappeared. No turning to stone, or simply fading out. In the space between blinks, she was gone, and only a few measely scraps of black ash floated away. After a second, the scenery faded, and they stood in Twilight's castle once more. "The petrified ponies did return to normal afterwards," Luna said. "In fact, you could say that no permanent harm was done, really." "Perhaps," Celestia said stiffly. "I do not know what drove her to anger. Nor did I ever know what happened to her. I thought she'd simply been destroyed." Celestia paused. "Let her know that I forgive her, please, and that if she should ever like to visit...my door is open." "I...I will," Sunset answered. "I'm certain such a visit would be interesting," Luna said idly. "Luna, it's about evening now. Would you mind heading back and lowering the sun for me?" "What?" Luna asked. "Art thou not returning just yet?" Celestia reached over one wing, and pulled Sunset closer to her. "Ah. I see. Well then, let me not disrupt your family bonding," Luna said, wings flaring. She gave them both a smile. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Sunset. Do visit again sometime." She flew out the window, soaring off into the sky. "So," Sunset said slowly. "That...wasn't the only adventure I've had." "I'd love to hear more," Celestia said with a smile.