Equestria corresponds with the World Map, in case you were wondering.
Phase 3: Through the Everfree Forest
It's been a rough ride, but you're about halfway back to Ponyville. Spike and Emma spent the entire ride talking, it looks like they're becoming good friends. Twilight has her face glued to a book right now. She looks up from her book and smiles at you; a friendly gesture that means a lot. In only a short few hours you and Twilight Sparkle have become really good friends. This might be a good time to reach out to her.
What do you say to her?
What are your friends like?
Tell me a bit about yourself
"My friends?" she asks, you nodding, "You actually met one of them. Remember the pony with the hat? She owns the Element of Honesty."
So she was one of the weilders of the Elements? No wonder she sprang into action so quickly. You wonder if ponies possessing the Elements are different than other ponies. Since you're curious, you ask her about her other friends.
"Well," she begins, "Alongside Applejack, there's Rainbow Dash who represents Loyalty, Pinke Pie who represents Laughter, Fluttershy who represents Kindness, and Rarity who represents Generosity."
Wait, RARITY?! Of course, she even said she was one of Twilight's friends. You tell Twilight that you ran into Rarity in Canterlot.
"Oh? You met her? Yeah, she's quite the character, isn't she? She was the first one I told about the Guardian after I found out," Twilight looks down, "She and Applejack were my crutch after finding out. I blamed myself for causing Chaos' awakening, but it was Rarity who told me to keep up hope that you would come. I can't wait to tell her that she was right. She may seem prissy and conceited, and to some degree she is," she says rolling her eyes smiling, "But she's probably one of the most faithful ponies I know, and she really is the embodiment of her element."
You wonder if that's why she didn't seem too shocked when she found out that you were the Guardian. Maybe she'll help out as well. She goes back to her book, and for the next few seconds the ride is silent. That is until a large crash is heard, followed by the carriage beginning to shake.
"What the?" Twilight says getting up.
"Twilight! TWILIGHT!" Spike calls out.
"Vale!" Emma cries out as well. You and Twilight Sparkle go over to them. They're looking out the window in fear.
"What's wrong?" Twilight Sparkle asks.
"Twilight, look!" he says pointing outside. You look outside to see a black bird flying around the carriage.
"Chaos knows!" Twilight states, "That bird is one of Chaos' monsters!"
"How do you know?" Emma asks.
"That mark on it's head is Chaos' symbol," she explains. She must be referring to the two red back to back crescent moons on it's forehead. Looking at that makes your heart race, as if it represents your very opposite, the very thing that can destroy you, and with ease.
The bird flies around over to the carriage screeching loudly.
"Twilight!" Spike screams.
"What are we going to do?" Emma cries out.
"Only thing we can do, brace ourselves!" Twilight Sparkle shouts as the bird crashes into the carriage. You and everyone else scream as the carriage falls down to parts unknown.
...ke up...
Wake up...
"Vale! Wake up!"
You wake up suddenly by Emma's voice. You look around you and see both Spike and Emma around you. They look worried, yet relieved at the same time. You must have been out for a while. It looks like you guys are in a forest, but it's dark now.
"Thank goodness," Spike says sighing in relief. He then turns around, "Twilight, she's awake!"
Twilight walks out from where Spike was looking.
"Vale, are you okay?" Twilight asks you as you get up. You nod in response, and Twilight's expression softens, "Good."
"Where are we?" Emma asks.
"My guess is the Everfree Forest," Twilight replies, "That's why it's so dark here."
"I'm confused by that," Emma states, "It was daytime a little while ago."
"The Everfree Forest is the only place in this world where Princess Celestia's magic doesn't reach," Twilight explains, "Normally, she's in charge of rising the sun, and her sister rising the moon. Here though, the weather and light are all out of their hands. Lately though, an eternal darkness has come over this place."
So maybe you haven't been unconscious for hours. An eternal darkness though? This world is stranger than you thought. But instead of pondering how it's possible for a single place in the world to have an eternal night, maybe you should be more concerned with getting out of here.
"Spike, do we know which direction Ponyville is in?" Twilight asks.
"I think we were headed in this direction," Spike says, pointing north.
"Good," Twilight says, then turning to you, "I saw some more monsters up ahead. It looks like we're going to have to fight our way out. Do you think you can fight?" she asks you. It doesn't feel like anything is broken, so you nod, "Great. Spike, you and Emma need to stay close to us."
"Yeah, like I'm going to wander off here," Spike says sarcastically, "I'm staying real close to you Twilight."
"Vale," Emma says flying over to you, "I'm worried what will happen if we run into that monster again. We need to be careful," you nod to her and then walk over to Twilight Sparkle.
"Are you ready?" she asks you. You nod, "Then let's get out of here."
Current Active Party
Vale
Twilight Sparkle
~Everfree Forest~
You begin galloping through the Everfree Forest. It's a straight path for right now without any obstacles. As you continue to run through the forest the path begins to wind a bit. You reach a clearing, where three large bats are seen.
"No..." Twilight says, "Those bats have been cursed by Chaos."
"Twilight," Emma asks, "Can you fight?"
"I'm not that good hand to hand, but I can use magic," Twilight states.
"Vale," Emma says, "You're gonna have to protect Twilight in battle."
Spell casters usually don't have many hit points, and it takes time to power up their spells. Front line fighters should protect spell casters.
"Let's go!" Twilight Sparkle shouts as you guys brace yourselves.
~Battle: Batty x3 (Play Song: Full Force)
"Think we can do it?" Twilight Sparkle asked, a book hovering next to her.
Vale rushed forward and began fighting the Batty in the center while Twilight Sparkle crouched down, her horn glowing. One Batty got by Vale, who was fighting two Battys at the same time. Right before it got to Twilight Sparkle, she stands up, "Fire Ball!" she shouted, sending three fireballs at the Batty in front of her.
Vale turned around to face the second Batty while Twilight Sparkle ran off to get away from the Batty near her. "Harpoon!" Vale shouted, charging forward through the Batty leading with her horn, killing it. Now there are only two.
Twilight used her telekinesis to slam the book into the Batty chasing her, killing it. She then charged up another spell. Vale ran up to the last Batty and shot her darts out of her horn. The Batty then flew over to Twilight and rushed her, making her lose focus onher spell, "Harpoon!" Vale shouted, killing the Batty.
(Play Song: Won The Battle)
"Alright, we win!" Vale said, waving her mane to the side.
~End Battle~
"That was close," Twilight says, "You're pretty good in a fight, Vale," you nod, "Let's keep it up."
The journey continues. Now you guys are moving even faster knowing the hazards of being in the Everfree Forest. It might be best if you avoid combat for a while. After a while of exploring you reach a cliff over a lake. Looking out you see Ponyville in the distance.
"Look Vale, Emma says, "Ponyville is right there!"
"See? I told you," Spike says with a sense of triumph.
"If we keep this path up then we should get there in a few minutes," Twilight says.
"Good, because this place gives me the creeps," Emma says.
With that said you start making your way down the hill. Right when you make it to the bottom though, you see two Trolls and a Batty waiting for you. It can't be avoided. You and Twilight Sparkle prepare for battle.
~Battle: Troll x2, Batty (Play Song: Full Force)
"Stay out of our way!" Vale shouted.
Vale galloped forward while Twilight began charging a magic attack, "Harpoon!" Vale shouted charging through the Trolls. She then began fighting both Trolls by herself.
"Fire Ball!" Twilight shouted, hitting the Batty with her spell. She then ran futher back and began casting her spell again.
Vale destroyed one of the Trolls she was fighting. Right afterwards she ran off a bit to get away from the second Troll. She turned around and began firing darts out of her horn.
"Fire Ball!" Twilight shouted, sending the attack after the Troll that was after Vale. Unfortunately the Batty got to her and began attacking her. It did a weird super sonic attack trying to confuse her. It only did serious damage without confusion, leaving her on her lastr legs.
Thankfully Vale had been charging her magic the entire time, "Lightning!" she shouted, killing the Batty before it did any damage to Twilight.
(Play Song: Won The Battle)
"Alright, we win!" Vale said, waving her mane to the side.
~End Battle~
You and the group continue to make your way out of the Everfree Forest. It's a clear road now, you can even see daylight on the otherside. You try to just run out as fast as you can, but you hear a familiar screech forcing you to stop.
"What the?" Emma asks as you all look around. Spike looks up and points to something above in shock.
"Guys, look!" he shouts. You all look up to see the black bird fly down on top of you. You all jump back in time, but now the bird is standing in your way.
"Damn it!" Twilight shouts, "We were so close!"
"Wh-what do we do?" Spike asks, apparently scared out of his mind. Truth is you don't know what to do. The bird has red eyes, black feathers, and is at least three stories tall. Can you guys defeat that thing?
"Here it comes!" Twilight shouts.
~Battle: Condor (Play song: The Struggle to Survive)
"Be careful, everyone!" Twilight shouted.
Twilight began charging her magic while Vale ran up to the Condor. "Harpoon!" Vale shouted tacking the Condor, only doing minor damage though. The Condor flapped its wings really fast creating a gust of wind pushing Vale back, and then swooped down and tackled Vale with its beak.
"First Aid!" Twilight shouted, casting a healing spell on Vale.
"Thank you," Vale responded as she ran up to the Condor. She then stopped and backed away so she could charge up her spell at the same time as Twilight Sparkle. The Condor flew over to Twilight and shot feathers at her, causing her to lose focus.
"This is not good!" Twilight Sparkle stated, as she was on her last legs now.
"Lightning!" Vale shouted firing her spell at the Condor, once again only doing minor damage. She was able to catch its attention though so Twilight could run off and cast First Aid on herself. Vale continued to fire darts out of her horn, keeping its attention on her. Twilight Sparkle then cast Fire Ball on it, finally doing a good deal of damage, as it screeched loudly.
"Is that it's weakness?" Twilight Sparkle asked. She then began charging up for her spell again, but now the Condor noticed her and began flying over to her again. Vale tried to run over to her as fast as she could, but the Condor took off and tackled Twilight Sparkle, causing her to fall back and scream in pain.
"Harpoon!" Vale shouted hitting the Condor from behind. Now it turned around and flapped it's wings really fast tossing her in the air. When she landed the Condor shot it's feathers at her for extra damage.
"First Aid!" Twilight shouted, casting it on Vale. She then quickly charged up for another spell while Vale continued to fight the Condor close quarter (she had begun to run out of magical power). The Condor shot its feathers at her, but Vale crouched down to brace herself for the attack, reducing the damage it would have done.
"Fire Ball!" Twilight shouted, hitting the Condor, once again doing massive damage. Now the Condor was getting angry, which was bad as they were both running out of options. Vale continued to attack it normally, until she felt strong enough to get it with another Harpoon attack. The Condor then did it's tackle attack on Twilight, knocking her out.
"Princess..." Twilight breathed out as she fell out. Vale then ran up to the Condor and in a last ditch effort did her Harpoon attack, hitting a vital point as the Condor finally fell.
(Play song: Won The Battle)
Both Vale and Twilight are hunched over breathing heavily, "That was... rough..." Vale breathed out in relief.
Vale felt like she had gotten stronger. She learned the technique "Arrow".
~End Battle~
The Condor falls down dead. As it falls, it shatters into tiny pieces of darkness.
"Is it over?" Spike asks from the tree he and Emma were hiding from while you and Twilight Sparkle fought.
"Why don't we get out of here before anything else tries to kill us?" Emma pleads.
"Good idea," Twilight says turning to you, "Come on!" you nod. Spike jumps on Twilight's back, and you all make a serious break for it to the outside world.
~Equestria~
(Play song:The Land of Sylvrarant)
Thankfully it isn't that long from Ponyville. You begin to gallop to Ponyville, trying to avoid all monsters in your path. While you run. Twilight Sparkle strikes up a conversation with you and Emma.
Title of Skit: Thank you for protecting me
"Vale," Twilight began, "I never did thank you for protecting me."
"Don't mention it," Emma stated, "We were just doing what we felt was the right think to do."
"But even still," Twilight Sparkle said, "I would have died there if you guys hadn't helped me. So thanks."
How do you respond?
I was just doing my job
What are friends for?
"Friends..." Twilight Sparkle took that in, and then nodded happily, "Right, friends."
End Skit
~Ponyville~
You finally made it to Ponyville. It wasn't until you stepped foot into town that you realized how tired you were.
"Home..." Spike says as if he had seen heaven, "Home!" he then jumps off of Twilight's back and begins kissing the ground. Sheesh, you think, it wasn't that serious, was it?
"I never thought I would be so happy to see this place," Twilight breaths out in relief, "Vale, are you okay?" she asks you. You nod in response.
"Twilight! Twilight!" you hear someone call out. You look foward and see two other ponies you never saw rushing up to you. They're both pegasi, but while one is flying, the other one is actually running, which you find strange for a pony her age (your only excuse is that you haven't figured out how to fly yet).
"Rainbow Dash! Fluttershy!" Twilight calls out happily as her friends run up to you guys. The one who was flying is obviously Rainbow Dash. She is light blue and had a straight rainbow colored mane and a rainbow colored tail, making her look like a tomboy. Her Cutie Mark is a cloud with a rainbow colored lightning bolt coming down. The other pegasus is almost the complete opposite, being cream colored and having a really long and beautiful pink mane and matching tail, which is so long it runs on the ground a bit. Her Cutie Mark looks like three butterflies, and she looks really sweet and innocent.
"Are you alright?" Fluttershy asks in a sweet voice that's almost a whisper.
"I'm fine Fluttershy," Twilight replies, "We ran into a little trouble, but we're alive, and that's what counts."
"Oh, good," Rainbow Dash says sighing in relief, "The Canterlot pegasi flew in and told us that you, Spike, and somepony named Vale fell into the Everfree Forest. I was ready to fly in after you myself."
"Aw, thanks Dash," Twilight Sparkle says with a smile. Apparently this Rainbow Dash really loves her friends, as she was ready to run right in and save Twilight without any regard for her own life. No wonder she represents Loyalty.
"Well, I expect that from Rainbow Dash," Spike says walking up, "But what about you, Fluttershy? Why were you running after her?" he asks, which is strange to you. Shouldn't she be worried about her friend as well?
"Oh, uh..." Fluttershy says looking away shyly, "I was worried about Rainbow Dash getting hurt... so I was trying to catch up with her to calm her down... I wanted to ask Applejack to come with us..." you can just barely make out what this pony is saying, because her voice is so soft she practically is whispering now.
"Well, that makes sense," Twilight says with a laugh, apparently used to this Fluttershy's mannerisms. Have they been friends for a while? If she's the same Fluttershy who traveled with Twilight to gather the Elements of Harmony, then they must have been.
"Speaking of surprises," Rainbow Dash says now walking up to you, "Who's the new face?"
"This is Vale and Emma," Twilight says, "Vale is the pony I told you guys about."
"You mean this is the "Guardian" of Equestria?" Rainbow Dash asks, almost as if she's incredulous, "I was expecting someone a little more... you know... tough."
"What do you mean?" Emma pipes up, "Vale is plenty powerful! She already fought a giant bird in the Everfree Forest!"
"Ooh, amazing! "Guardian Vale" fought a giant chicken!" Rainbow Dash says sarcastically. You get the feeling it's going to be a while before you and she become friends, "Well, whenever you want a real hero to show you how it's done, give me a holler," she says holding out her hoof, "Nice to meet you, Vale."
She wasn't the nicest to you just now, but she doesn't seem like a bad pony, just arrogant.
How will you respond?
It's nice to meet you too
Real hero? YOU?
You decide to be the bigger pony and shake hooves with her. Everyone else can tolerate her attitude; why can't you, right?
Fluttershy has been staring at you the entire time from a distance. It looks like she wants to say something to you.
"Hi there!" Emma says suddenly flying up to Fluttershy, who screams suddenly and hides behind Twilight, now trembling.
"It's okay, Fluttershy," Twilight says, "They're really nice people," she explains, "Go on and say hi," Fluttershy looks out from behind Twilight, but then hides behind her again when she sees you looking right at her, now shaking her head.
"Oh, come on, Fluttershy," Rainbow Dash says rolling her eyes, "She's not going to bite." Rainbow Dash then flies behind Fluttershy and begins pushing her forward to you. Now without the protection of her friend, Fluttershy begins trembling uncontrollably. Is she really this scared?
"I-I-I" Fluttershy begins, still trembling, "I'm Fl-Fl-Fluttersh-sh-shy..." she says, looking away from you as if your gaze is painful. She's seriously breaking your heart with how timid she is. When you hold out your hoof for a hoof shake, she backs away squealing in fear. It seriously looks like she's about to cry right now, so you decide to leave it be for now.
"Typical Fluttershy," Rainbow Dash says shrugging her shoulders, "I swear she'll cry about anything." You notice Fluttershy look down in shame. Now you have to say something.
What do you say?
Hey, ease up on her
Not everyone is strong like us
!!!
Fluttershy looks up at you suddenly, aparently shocked that you defended her. Rainbow Dash looks a little annoyed, as she crosses her front hooves while hovering in mid air.
"Hmph," Rainbow Dash says looking away, "Well, it's true."
"Anyway," Twilight says, "We've had an exhausting day, and I'm actually really tired. Vale, we should get going to my library." She says, you nodding in response.
"Yeah," Rainbow Dash says, "I gotta jet too. Came up with a new move the other day, and I have to perfect it for the Wonderbolts! See ya Twilight, Spike, "Guardian" Vale!" she says before turning to Fluttershy, "Want me to walk you home before I head off?"
"That's okay..." Fluttershy says shaking her head smiling meekly, "I'll be fine. Besides, the more you practice, the better you'll be when the Wonderbolts see you."
"Alright, thanks Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash says before flying off. You're amazed at how she's still so nice to Rainbow Dash even after being made fun of. She's the pure definition of Kindness.
"Take care, Fluttershy," Twilight says.
"Don't stay out too late," Spike adds.
"Take care Twilight, Spike..." Fluttershy says smiling. You're about to walk off with them, but then...
"W-wait!" Fluttershy surprisingly calls out, stopping you, "Um... thank you Vale... You're a really nice pony..." she says looking away from you, but smiling. You nod thanking her, and then walk off after Twilight and Spike. Could this be a friendship in the making?
~Twilight's Library~
"Well, here we are," Twilight Sparkle says as you walk in.
"Wow, you actually live in the library?" Emma asks.
"Not only that, but I'm the town librarian," Twilight Sparkle explains, "You two should get some rest. Tomorrow we can go out to Sweet Apple Acres to tell Applejack who you are if you want."
"That'll be nice," Emma says, "I really liked her, so it'll be great to see her again. Also, I want to check on Big Mac."
"Well then, let's get some rest so we can be ready for tomorrow," Twilight Sparkle says, "Spike, send a message to Princess Celestia, letting her know that we made it safely."
"Already on it," Spike says, writing in a scroll.
"Good night you two," Twilight Sparkle says, Spike also waving to you." They go upstairs, leaving you and Emma alone.
"Boy, today was a busy day," Emma says, "That Rainbow Dash is sort of cocky, but she seems nice. Fluttershy though... I don't know. She must have a phobia of some sort of meeting new people," you nod in agreement, "I really like this place, Vale. Let's fight hard to protect it," Emma states. You nod and go over to a journal lying on a desk. There's a note next to the journal, written by Twilight.
It's important to keep the Princess updated on everything. If I ever lose my way I know she will pull me back.
Why don't you try this, you think. You decide to write a quick letter to Princess Celestia (save) and then locate you bedroom, ready to put this crazy day behind you.