Finding the path that Bill was talking about was not difficult. There is really only one path that most ponies in Ponyville use on the rare occasion that they actually want to venture into the Everfree forest, and nopony strays far from it. Twilight felt a bit apprehensive as she cut off the path and started to count out 50 paces. The Everfree Forest was assuredly dangerous. There were many animals living in there with little regard for social graces. But to most ponies, it went beyond that. The place was just plain creepy. The way that it seemed to impose order on itself was poorly understood and widely feared. As something which didn’t fit in with their views of harmony, it was something to be avoided.
Before long she had counted out 50 paces, but there were no outstanding rocks in sight. She wasn’t surprised. Describing directions using paces was a horribly outdated method, she thought to herself. The thought of heading back home came to mind, but she suppressed it. She headed towards a hill on her right to get a bit of a better view. At the top of the hill the visibility wasn’t great, but still about as good as she was going to get. She scanned the area around her and saw nothing on first glance, but while her eyes were picking apart the details on the horizon, she noticed a spot of grey sticking out against the green about 100 paces along in the same direction. She headed off towards it.
Why did he say the edge of the Everfree forest? That was at least 150 paces into it.
Answers were not forthcoming. When she reached the rock, she realized that she wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. She tried toppling it over or lifting it out of the ground, but it was too heavy and it stuck firmly in place. She slumped over exhausted and stared straight ahead, not quite sure how to proceed. In the catatonic state, her eyes focused themselves in on a stump a little ways behind the rock. She was staring at it for a few seconds before it clued in that what she was looking at. It was the symbol from the cover of the book. It was carved into the stump and charred a little to stand out against the yellowish wood. She rushed over to it and guessed what was required of her. She cast the spell she had learned just a few minutes ago, already feeling much more confident and quick with it. A black bolt arced into the tree.
For a few seconds, nothing happened. Then, suddenly, the earth started to rumble. The tree stump was moving. It lifted itself up skyward, exposing some of the trunk that had been underground a second ago, smelling like freshly disturbed earth. It then came to a halt and once again froze in place. There was a large cavity carved into the stump in a section which had been underground a moment ago. Inside was a note written on a small piece of parchment. She noticed there was an engraving on the inside of the cavity. It looked like a map of the Everfree forest. The note confirmed these suspicions. In a loopy hand, written by quill it read,
Here is a map to help you find your way.
Do not fear the unknown.
March boldly forth, and you will see that there is nothing to fear.
Make your way to the clearing and your path will be revealed.
And above everything, remember that I am always watching out for you.
Signed,
-Your friend
Twilight liked the sound of someone watching over her, however creepy it might be. It gave her a little more confidence. She lit up her horn and got a good look at the map inside the trunk. She found what she guessed to be her present location, marked with an ‘X’, as well as where she was meant to go, marked with an ‘O’. She tried her best to commit it to memory and then put the note back in the trunk and moved on. As she was moving away, she noticed the ground rumbling slightly once more as the stump resumed its prior position.
Through the thick underbrush of the Everfree forest, Twilight made her way towards that elusive ‘O’. She made her way over fallen trees and around thorny bushes. She expected to see some dangerous animals at first, and kept a low profile. She felt thankful for every moment which passed by without any manticores or cockatrices showing up. If they did, she wouldn’t have Fluttershy to rely on this time.
However, the longer she walked, the more she realized that this part of the forest was actually eerily quiet. It seemed like the creatures around here had been somehow driven off. But she knew that there was at least one creature stirring, because she could hear it. Every once in awhile, Twilight would hear the snap of a twig. It would always be quite far off and she tried not to let it worry her, but most of the sounds seemed to be directed from behind her. She tried to block the thought out of her head by focusing on navigation.
At times, she wondered if she was lost, but she maintained her sense of direction. She had read how to navigate using the stars and sun, and now was the time to put that knowledge into use. Surely enough, she soon reached the destination that the note described. It was hard to miss. It was a large clearing with not a single tree in the radius of about 100 paces. The ground was entirely blanketed with vividly coloured flowers of many varieties. In the middle of it all was a small mound of dirt and the stump which would give her directions to her next destination.
It was an inviting sight. Twilight walked casually towards the mound in the centre. As she traversed the field, she felt a strange brushing sensation against her hooves, but didn’t pay it much mind. As she was getting closer to the mound, she noticed that there was something bright and white which was sticking out of the soil. She continued forth and reached the mound much quicker than she had expected. It was then that she got a good look at the white objects. Bones. It was some sort of creature native to the Everfree forest. They were picked clean of flesh and shone bright white against the deep brown earth.
That’s not such a good sign.
Twilight suppressed thoughts of how it had gotten there, and simply focused on casting the spell once more on the stump. She succeeded, and it rose up, revealing another note and map as well as a brown bag which looked rather full. She read the note.
Congratulations for making it this far.
You have shown what it means to be without fear.
Carry onwards—you must look for the next landmark in a swamp.
Yet perhaps your valiant heart is wavering, and your courage fading.
You need something to brace yourself for the long journey ahead.
So have a present, from me to you.
Take some time to relax. And remember, I am always thinking of you.
Signed
-Your friend
P.S. If the flowers are giving you trouble, pay them no mind.
They have a very limited capacity for attention.
Twilight didn’t quite know what to make of the note at the end, but was more interested in the gift. She looked into the bag. There was only darkness. She tried lighting up her horn. There was still only darkness. She decided to reach in with a hoof and hope for the best. She scooped something up and brought it into the light. It was a sandwich with rich barley-rye bread and many different flavourful flowers and hay as toppings. She realized how hungry she had become, skipping lunch to follow Sam around. This had been her first chance to take a real break, and she was eager to take advantage of it. The sandwich was fresh and delicious. The bread was dense and hearty but not stale and the toppings were as full of flavour as if they were picked that very day. Twilight pondered the usefulness of having a magical lunchbag while admiring the view and eating her lunch in peace.
After she had finished the meal and was leaning against the stump, hesitant to get back up, something caught her eye. Something had momentarily blocked the sun, and Twilight looked up towards the sky. Directly above her head, there were now three vultures circling.
Ok, that is really not a good sign. I think I’ll be leaving now.
She stuffed the bag and note back into the cavity. The bag still seemed to be full, strangely. She looked at the little carved-out map in the cavity of the stump for a while, trying once again to memorize it. She saw that her next destination was directly east from where she was. She took note as well of a couple of lines running perpendicular to that direction. They sliced a column across the map with their jagged, whimsical path. She didn’t know what they meant, but figured they might be important. They intersected her path, so she would have to find out soon enough. She set off towards her new destination.
As she was walking from the clearing, Twilight had the distinct sensation that she wasn’t getting anywhere. She had walked awhile, but the edge of the clearing didn’t seem to be getting closer. She felt the same brushing sensation against her hooves as she did while coming in, but this time, she was a little more suspicious. She looked down at her feet. The vegetation was moving, thousands of tiny stems rippling in place and passing her from one to the next. She looked behind her. All of the walking had gotten her no more than 10 paces away. She suddenly understood how the bones got there. She panicked.
Twilight went into a gallop, but the little plants and flowers matched her speed, whipping up against her legs, forbidding her from escape. She tried zigzagging, but it was no use. The whole bed seemed to be one organism, and it seemed to know where she was at all times. She resisted defeat and kicked up her speed. This quickly tired her out. She soon lost her balance and fell, exhausted. She felt the small plants passing her along and pushing her up against the barren mound once again.
She looked up at the vultures. They were circling lower now. They had seen this spectacle before and knew what was coming. Twilight wasn’t about to let herself become carrion, however. She considered her options. She could teleport, but her range wasn’t very good, and the amount of time required to focus the energies once more would render it slower than running. She could levitate, but this was something she had not perfected yet. It was very difficult to do for a sustained period of time, and she knew she couldn’t make it the full way. Things seemed pretty hopeless. Then she thought back to what the note had said.
A limited capacity for attention... How could that help me?
She had an idea. She unearthed one of the white bones and tossed it telekinetically out into the flowers. She watched as almost the entire field swayed towards it and the bone made its way back. She clued in. She knew what she had to do. She levitated the skull of the animal and then flung it out near the edges of the clearing. As the field got to work sending it back, she dashed out towards the edge of the forest. It worked. The plants were demure and still beneath her hooves. She crossed the tree line and breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank Celestia that’s over.
She continued east.
As Twilight walked, she noticed a change in the underbrush. The thick, jungle-like foliage she had been in before had thinned out, exposing sharp, craggy rocks. She even started seeing the sky again. It was getting late in the day, and the sun was dipping into the horizon behind her. Tree by tree, the sky became less obstructed until she reached an open viewpoint.
She was standing atop a cliff. It extended out as far as she could see in both directions. She could also see another cliff directly across from the one that she was on. The whole area was very flat, merely being offset by the change in elevation brought by the two cliffs. In the lower area between the two cliffs, there was dark, thick vegetation that was occasionally interrupted by what looked like some muddy ponds. She guessed correctly that this was the swamp. She also knew now what the parallel lines on the last map had been.
Her destination was between these lines, so she would have to find a way down. She scanned along the cliff for any areas which looked a little less steep than the rest. She didn’t have much luck, but when she looked on top, about 100 paces to her left, she noticed there was a single distinct post sticking out with a plank in the shape of an arrow nailed in. The arrow was pointing down into the swamp. As she approached, she saw in it the same familiar sign. She looked down. There was a steep trail heading down, supported in places by some makeshift wooden stairs.
Well, this looks like the place. No turning back now.
The path was very steep in places, but this was nothing compared to the stairs. They had the distinct feel of rotting wood. They curved and compressed under her weight. A few actually broke. By the time she reached the bottom, she wasn’t sure whether the stairs would be in usable condition to return.
Maybe there really is no turning back now?
She looked back up at her entry route. She brushed off the consequences of this thought. She was pretty sure that, if needed, she could still use a combination of teleportation and stairs to get back up. Twilight looked around. The trees had low lying branches with thick leaves and large capes of mossy material drooping down. On the ground, thick grass and reeds were prevalent. The sun was setting and it was getting quite dark, but light would be hard to come by even at the height of noon in this place. The ground was covered in mud. Walking became difficult, as her hooves started to sink deep into the muck. Luckily, those who had organized this route had foreseen this concern and put down plank walkways in the worst spots. These were rotting also and some were even worse than the stairs had been. It was much better than the alternative, though.
As she walked through the swamp, Twilight started to wonder what kind of creature might live down here. She had seen very few animals, despite the thick vegetation. On one plank-bridge which felt somewhat sturdy, she let curiosity get the best of her. The planks suspended her over a small pond. She looked down into the water to observe the aquatic life. Her eyes slowly adjusted and picked out some lines along the bottom of the murky pond. Twilight eventually decided that the lines must just be little patterns in silt created by waves in water.
Maybe nothing lives down here...
And then one of the lines moved. This little movement had a chain effect and disturbed all the little lines around it to move. The fact is, they weren’t lines at all. They were snakes. Twilight jumped back a little in shock and then started into a gallop. She was deathly afraid of snakes.
Snakes! I hate snakes!
She zipped along the path now, not willing to stop or slow down for anything. She just wanted to get out of the swamp as quickly as possible. If she had slowed down, she might have seen the snake which was lounging in the path. But she did neither. It was slithering away as she stepped on its tail with her back hoof. Reflex action made the snake lash back immediately and sink its teeth into her leg. It scored a direct hit. Twilight cried out but kept running. She stopped when she felt a little safer to see what it was. She looked at the path behind her. A snake was slithering away slowly with a broken tail flopping around uselessly behind it. Her leg had a fresh bite mark with a clear liquid dribbling from it. Soon after this came the blood, dripping down in streams. As the venom travelled through her body she felt a crippling pain in the chest. She cringed and nearly vomited. Adrenaline forced her back up. She looked around in a panic.
“HELP!” she cried out.
“Help me!” she repeated as she looked around frantically.
“Sam! Where are you! I know it is you writing these notes! Come out and show yourself!” she shouted with indignation.
The indignation quickly caved in on itself. “Sam! Princess! Anypony! Help me!”
She looked ahead and spotted the next engraved stump. It was her last chance. She started making her way towards it. It was not far, but the action proved difficult. It felt like all of her muscles were seizing up. Walking became a series of no more than three jerky motions. She nearly tripped many times, but she knew she would not be able to right herself if she fell. She was sweating profusely and breathing in gasps. She cast the spell at the stump while making her way over. It had risen by the time she had traversed the short distance. She pulled out the note. It said something about snakes. There were dozens of empty vials in the stump. She tossed aside the note and started pushing empty vials out of the way deliriously. Many fell to the ground and shattered. Finally, in the back, she found one remaining full vial. It contained a black liquid. She poured half of it on the bite wound and then drank the other half. It tasted awful but she kept it down. She finally collapsed on her side and pulled in her legs. The black vial had not eased the pain. She shuddered on the ground.
I am sorry, Princess. I was too weak.
This was her last thought. Darkness overcame her.
Yet more thoughts came. Thoughts like
Where am I?
and
What am I doing?
and
How did I get here?
came back to her.
Twilight opened her eyes in a bit of a stupor. She felt like she had just had a long and relaxing nap. As her eyes were still trying to focus, she saw a blurry object hovering above her. The blurry object vanished suddenly, however, as if the act of trying to bring it into focus had driven it off. Twilight propped herself up. She saw bushes rustling and heard the crack of branches and brush of leaves getting farther and farther away. She stood up, still warding off a bit of sluggishness. She looked around at her surroundings. More questions arose.
What happened here?
There were broken vials all around the familiar stump and a note with ink now smudged beyond recognition. She formed a theory.
Oh I know what must have happened! I probably reached the next landmark and then decided to have a bit of a nap before continuing on.
She drew close to the stump and lit up her horn so she could see the map. It was getting quite dark now.
Well, I better get going now. Can't spend all day napping. This looks easy enough to follow, though. Just along the path and up out of here, then north east to the next landmark.
She followed along the path in a sort of dream state. She reached the path leading up the cliff opposite the one she had started on. As she headed up the rotting stairs, she had the distinct feeling that she was forgetting something, but she dismissed the thought.
If I’m forgetting something, it can’t have been very important.
The moon was nearly full and it provided enough light to navigate. Twilight walked casually along the rotting stairs and up out of the swamp. She then headed northeast, keeping her eye on the position of a few key stars and constellations. She made her way through a forest of thinly spread trees with lots of exposed rock similar to what she had seen on the other side. After a few minutes of walking, she spotted a small spark flicking in and out of view on the horizon. The spark became bigger and bigger and eventually, she realized that it was a burning torch. She made her way towards it. The torch was stuck into the ground and next to it was her next landmark. She wondered how long the torch had been burning.
She decided to sit down for a moment to bask in the warm glow of the fire. However, the act of sitting down sent a sharp pain through her leg. She stood back up and looked at the source of the pain. On her leg were streams of blood which had dried on, originating from a circular patch of dark red with two distinct circular spots near the top. She suddenly realized what had happened. She remembered seeing the snakes in the water and then running. She didn’t remember getting bitten but could infer the event from the wound on her leg. Terror filled her heart. She was now ten times more afraid of snakes than she was before. She would rather do anything than go back down to that swamp. She cast the spell once again and retrieved the contents of the stump. This time there was an unlit torch and a note. The note read as follows.
I delight in your triumph!
But one leg of your journey remains.
For it, this torch will serve you well.
Though darkness may surround you,
you must simply leave the canvas blank
on which your mind would paint a picture of your fear.
Do this, and we will be reunited at last!
I await your arrival with great anticipation.
You remain forever in my heart.
Signed,
-Your friend
Twilight took a look at the map. She saw that her destination was directly north from where she was. It did not look far. She looked northwards and saw a path forming in that direction. The path led towards what looked like a cave. As she got closer to it, she realized that it was actually a sort of tunnel through a patch of very dense trees. She stood just outside it. Looking inside was like looking in the void. There could be no light seen at the end of the tunnel. The moon lit up the area where she was, but none of that light made it into the tunnel. Twilight lit the torch. It illuminated about 5 paces in front of her. It actually seemed worse on the eyes because now she could not see anything outside that range. Her eyes had adjusted for the bright light she was holding up beside her. Twilight put on a brave face and entered the tunnel.
Walking through the tunnel was like being stranded at sea during the night. She did not know where she was going. The path twisted and turned, seemingly at random. It was deathly quiet. There didn’t seem to be a living thing in the area. Even the trees were barren of leaves. There was no grass beneath her hooves, only gravelly dirt. Her hoofbeats were the only things that could be heard. However, after a while of listening in, she noticed a doubling effect to the sound. It sounded like there was an echo.
This narrow path is hardly the type of place for an echo to happen.
She was suspicious, but pressed onwards. She continued to study the sound. It became an all-absorbing task in the absence of other stimulus. The sound delay would stay constant at times, but small discrepancies could sometimes be heard. Sometimes, it seemed to sync up perfectly with her own. She was sure that someone was following her, but at the same time, remembered the note telling her to suppress her fears. She carried on, but the thought enveloped her mind.
I know somepony is following me. I just know it. They are trying to outsmart me. They are trying to walk at my pace and hope that I won’t notice. I know that is the truth. I just need to prove it. In a second, I will stop and they will not be able to respond in time. They will stumble forwards a step or two and I will have caught them.
And so she stopped in her tracks. Just as she thought, she heard a single extra hoofbeat. That was all the proof she needed. She turned around and addressed the darkness.
“I know you are following me! Step out into the light and show yourself!”
Silence.
“Show yourself! I order you!”
The darkness gave no response.
Twilight strained her eyes to try to see anything that she could. It was no use. She was in a small bubble of light in a sea of darkness.
“I ask you once more! Show yourself! I am not afraid! I will meet you in combat if you wish!” she said, trying to sound brave, although her voice was steeped in fear.
Twilight stood still and waited for a response. A cool breeze rustled through the branches above her. The sound nearly deafened her and the cold chilled her to the bone. She was standing there, shivering, unwilling to speak a word or make a movement for about a minute, but it felt like a lifetime. She realized that it was hopeless.
Even if there is someone following me, he does not owe me a response. He does not owe me anything. I am the caged animal, and he is the zookeeper. I act and he merely observes. He has all the power.
She turned forwards again, biting her lip. The episode had done nothing to help her confidence. She was now visibly shaken and not sure how to proceed. She started walking forwards slowly, but her mind dwelled on the incident.
What if he is armed? He could stick a knife in my back any second without me knowing.
She continued to think thoughts like these. She started to almost expect it to happen. She expected any second to feel a sharp pain in her back as the cold steel sunk in. She listened in to the sounds in the darkness more and more intently until she heard a sound which was not a hoofbeat—hissing. At first it was faint, but then it grew and grew. Twilight first had discounted the possibility of snakes in the area, as nothing seemed to live there. However, in her mind, the possibility soon grew. First, it was simply possible in her mind.
What if they had followed me?
Then it became plausible.
Maybe they are like the flower bed I encountered before—mentally connected with each other?
Then it became likely.
Who knows how these strange creatures in the Everfree forest work? I must admit, even in the books I have read, the documentation is spotty.
Then it became inescapable.
There are snakes all around me just waiting to pounce! I don’t have any antivenom! I am going to die!
At this point, the hissing was deafening. Twilight was shuddering, but still walking forwards, just barely holding herself together. She didn’t know whether to break down and cry or stand up and fight. She felt on the verge of both, but did neither solely due to the virtue of her indecision over which to choose. It was the crippling type of fear which throws logic out the window and breaks ponies down bit by bit. However, against all sway of her broken mind, there was some force, some reflex in her psyche which called something back to her attention at that moment.
Don’t let your fears go to work on an empty canvas! I know what’s going on now. This is all just a test!
Then she vocalized her thoughts as if the act would give them more weight.
“This is all just a test! It’s just a stupid test! It’s all made-up and I don’t believe in any of it! I am not afraid!”
Twilight listened to her voice ring out through the silence. It had the unmistakable mark of honesty. It was the voice of someone who is not trying to hide something, and the fact gave her confidence. In listening to her voice, she noticed something. Rather, the absence of something—the snakes were gone. She had conquered her fear. She smiled at the fact. Even though it had been a victory over something within herself, it felt like a victory nonetheless. She never felt more worthy to join Sam’s mysterious ‘family’ than at that moment.
She kept walking and soon she saw a dim grey light at the end of the tunnel. It came closer and closer until she finally emerged into the moonlight. She looked at her surroundings. She had emerged at the base of a mountain. A stone path bordered by toppled columns led up to a short stone staircase and a massive doorway carved into the side of the mountain.
Twilight climbed the stairs. The door was a triangular shape. It had the same runic symbols carved into it as she had seen so often. It was the same symbol as on Sam’s cutie mark, the book, and the stumps.
This must be it. But how to activate it?
Every time she had seen that symbol today, she had cast the same spell with favourable results, so she had a good guess on how to proceed. The landing to the door was a square platform with large, rusty metal bowls on the each of the four corners. In the centre of the square was a circular raised platform. It had a very ornate design carved into it, lending it the appearance of some sort of altar. Twilight stepped on the altar and cast the spell. A black bolt of lightning shot straight up and then split into four above her head. The four arcs traveled into the rusty metal bowls, igniting a black flame in each. The flames burned strong. They didn’t seem to require any fuel at all. The ground shook as the door crept into life and spread open.
This is it.
Twilight carried her torch and entered the large stone gate.