//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 - Finally! An Encounter!! // Story: Beneath the Mask // by TheDrunkenJinjo //------------------------------// The Cutie Mark Crusaders stood at the edge of the Everfree Forest, peering into the darkness. Apple Bloom turned to her companions with a look of determination. “Ya’ll girls ready?” Apple Bloom asked. Scootaloo nodded her head. “As ready as I’ll ever be.” She said turning to Sweetie Belle, who simply nodded her head as well. With all three in agreement, the CMC began their trek to Zecora’s hut. Immediately as they crossed the threshold to the forest, the world seemed to darken and get ever so slightly colder. The three halted for a brief moment, reconsidering their actions, before steeling their collective nerves and continuing on. The farther the CMC went into the forest’s murky depths, the greater the urge became to give up on the entire expedition. Still, they persevered, spurred on by their desire for cutie marks. Soon enough, however, Sweetie Belle began to vocalize her opinions. “G-G-Girls,” Sweetie Belle stuttered, “I r-really, really think that w-we should give up on this and--” “Give up?!” Sweetie Belle was cut off by a very indignant Scootaloo. “There’s no way we can give up now! Not when we’re almost there!” Scootaloo was still trying to put up a brave front, but the cracks were beginning to show. “C-C’mon, Zecora’s is just a little farther down the--” *SNAP* Scootaloo’s ear twitched towards the sudden noise. Looking back at her companions, she realized she didn’t even have to ask. They had heard it as well. The fillies stood stock still as they panned their eyes around the underbrush, looking for the source of the disturbance. ‘It’s nothing. Probably a rabbit that stepped on a twig or something. Nothing to worry about.’ Scootaloo rationalized. “A-A-Anyway, l-like I was s-saying,” The orange pegasus stammered nervously, “w-we’re almost there. Let’s k-keep moving.” Scootaloo turned around to continue down the path and ran face first into something soft. She stumbled back and put a hoof to her muzzle. “What the... heck...?” Scootaloo trailed off when she got a good look at the obstacle. It was extremely thick and covered in what looked like reddish hair. And it was attached to something. Craning their necks up the obstacle’s length, the fillies pupils shrank in horror at what they saw. A terrifying beast, with the body of a lion, the tail of a scorpion, and two huge bat-like wings. The monster looked down at the young ponies with eyes full of malicious intent. It grinned viciously, razor sharp teeth glistening and dripping with saliva. “M-M-M-MANTICORE!!!” The three shrieked in unison. They immediately turned and began galloping in the opposite direction, screaming their heads off all the while. The manticore roared with enough force to shake the trees as it darted after them, determined to not let it’s prey get away. *************** Braxton was beginning to get irritated. He had long since past the clearing he woke up in and still couldn’t find any sort of break in the trees. His feet were nearly numb from the strain of constant walking, and he had nearly resigned himself to wandering the woods for all eternity. But then he saw it. Light. Directly in front of him, small rays of sunlight finally pierced the perpetual darkness. Braxton let out a small chuckle that grew into a giddy laugh. Despite the protests of his feet, he dashed towards the light with renewed vigor. ‘Finally! Finally, I can get out of this hellhole and never look back!’ Braxton thought excitedly. The light was getting closer now. So close he could see past the thick underbrush and into the small field beyond. He was mere yards away from freedom. Then he heard something that made him stop in his tracks. “What the hell was that?” Braxton wondered aloud. He heard it again, louder this time. Three high-pitched screams. ‘Those screams...’ Braxton thought, turning towards the sound. ‘They sound like... little girls? What are little girls doing in a place like this?’ He heard the screams again. ‘Those don’t sound like screams of joy, like the kind you get at a playground or something. They sound terrified.’ The man inferred. Braxton looked over his shoulder at the exit that was only steps away and sagged his shoulders in defeat. “Goddammit.” He uttered simply, before charging off in the direction of the screams. *************** The CMC ran as fast as their little legs could carry them. They ran around trees and jumped over rocks, but no matter what they did, the manticore stayed hot on their hooves. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo began to get a little ahead of Sweetie Belle who, being a unicorn, did not have the endurance to keep up with the other two. Sweetie Belle clenched her eyes shut and pushed herself to catch up. Unfortunately, they came across a large root in the middle of the path. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo saw and jumped over it. Sweetie Belle did not. She hit the root at full gallop and fell hard to the ground, kicking up dirt that clung to her white coat. Trying to get back up, she realized that her back right leg had gotten twisted in the wayward plant. After a futile attempt to untangle her leg, she tried to call out to her friends. “Apple Bloom, Scootaloo! Wait! I’m stuck!” Sweetie Belle hollered, but her cries were in vain. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo continued to run, unable to hear her over their own shrieks. *Grrrrrrrrr* Sweetie Belle’s pupils shrank further when she heard the manticore’s deep growling. Whipping her head back around, she saw the beast stalking slowly towards her. It deliberately accentuated each step, enjoying the look of sheer terror on Sweetie Belle’s face. With a long, forked tongue, the beast licked his lips in anticipation for it’s next meal. Sweetie Belle was helpless before the monster. She was afraid. Tears streaked down her dirt-stained face as she began to realize that this was the end. She screamed. *************** The most ear-splitting, terrified wail he had ever heard pierced Braxton’s ears, and it made his blood run cold. Picking up his speed, he sprinted towards the source. Bursting through the trees, what he saw made him freeze in his tracks. A horrific animal of some kind walking towards what looked like a tiny equine. Braxton’s eyes went wide as saucers. ‘Okay, river serpents are one thing, but what the flying FUCK is that?! Some kind of lion-bat-scorpion... thing?’ He looked towards the equine next. ‘And a... horse, I guess? But that doesn’t look like any horse I’ve ever seen.’ Then the horse opened it’s mouth and screamed amazingly loud. The same scream Braxton had heard moments before. In that instant, everything clicked for him, and he knew what he had to do. He threw a rock at the beast’s head. The stone impacted the creature’s temple and it let out a grunt of pain. The beast stumbled back as it rubbed it’s head with a front paw. “Hey, Lion-O!” Braxton shouted. Both the monster and the horse looked in his direction and Braxton got his first good look at the horse’s features. It had a much shorter muzzle than a normal horse, and had an extremely expressive face. It’s mane and coat were caked with dirt, and it had a few scrapes and cuts. The most intriguing part, however, were it’s eyes. They were big, almost too big for it’s face, and Braxton could see the glint of intelligence in them. He could also see undiluted fear. Braxton returned his attention back to the monster itself. It was looking at him with confusion, which soon gave way to anger as it recognized what exactly had thrown the rock. “Why don’t you pick on something your own size?” Braxton taunted. “Or are you too much of a pussy, cat?” Braxton grimaced a bit at his pun. ‘Man, that sounded way better in my head.’ He thought. The beast growled menacingly at the new challenger. Braxton followed the creature with his eyes as it paced in front of him, thinking about how to handle the situation. He didn’t have long to think, however, as the beast let loose a blood-curdling roar and charged at him. Braxton narrowed his eyes as the beast got closer. ‘Wait for it... Wait for it... NOW!’ Just as the beast lunged for him, Braxton rolled to the side, causing it to slam face first into a tree. Braxton righted himself and spun back to face the monster. It roared and clutched at it’s now broken snout. Braxton allowed himself a cocky smile when he saw the beast’s pain. The beast let go of it’s face, which was now bleeding heavily, and glared at the man with a look of pure rage. It released another deafening roar and charged Braxton again, and he, again, tried to dodge to the side. But the beast was ready this time. The monster halted with incredible precision, considering the momentum it just had, and whipped it’s tail in the human’s direction. Braxton righted himself again just in time to catch an eyeful of the broad side of the appendage. The tail slammed into his torso with astounding force, enough to fling him about twenty feet into a nearby tree. The impact knocked the air out his lungs, and Braxton landed on the forest floor with a audible thud. The aching in his midsection was intense, and he knew immediately that he had at least cracked some ribs. ‘Hopefully they’re not completely broken, ‘cause that would suck major ass. Still, that hurt like a motherfucker.’ He thought dryly. He looked over from where he lay to see the beast grinning with victory, pawing at the ground in preparation for another charge and lunge combo. Ignoring the pain in his abdomen, Braxton pushed himself to one knee and glared at the beast as it came at him. ‘Alright, I’m done fucking around with this thing.’ He thought as he unholstered his revolver. Braxton aimed and fired two rounds at the charging creature’s right leg. They were both direct hits. The beast’s howl of pain was absolutely deafening, almost as much as the gunshots themselves. In fact, Braxton was sure he had felt the ground vibrate. The beast was still coming, but the shots slowed it’s charge enough to give Braxton the opportunity to sidestep out the way. Blinded by rage and pain, it did not have time to stop itself before slamming into the same tree Braxton had. The impact was less forceful than last time, but due to the beast’s already broken nose, hurt it a lot worse. The battered and bloodstained beast looked at the human with red eyes full of hatred. Braxton simply leveled his gun threateningly at it, holding one hand to his ribcage. The two stared each other down for what seemed like an eternity, with the creature’s eyes shifting periodically from Braxton to the trapped pony behind him. Realizing that it was fighting a losing battle, either that or thinking one small filly wasn’t worth the struggle, the beast slowly began to back away. Finally, it turned and limped back into the darkness of the forest, but not before throwing one last menacing growl and a death glare Braxton’s way. *************** Sweetie Belle couldn’t believe her eyes. She just watched some giant, two-legged... thing face-off with a manticore. And it had won. As the manticore retreated back to the dense growth, the giant slowly lowered the long, metallic object in it’s... hoof?... until it was hanging by it’s side. The giant released a heavy exhale and relaxed his posture, though one arm was still holding the area where the manticore’s tail had struck it. Sweetie Belle stared in wide-eyed awe, her mind buzzing all sorts of questions. ‘What is this thing? Where did it come from? How does it stand on only two legs? What is that metal tube it’s holding?’ ‘Why did it protect me?’ Sweetie Belle snapped out of her reverie when she realized that the giant was staring right back at her. She froze under it’s gaze, unable to tear her eyes away. The two kept their eyes locked, unblinking, for an almost uncomfortable amount of time. During the impromptu staring contest, Sweetie Belle got a good look at the giant’s face. She noticed that it’s dark eyes were very small compared to a pony’s, and that it was mostly hairless aside from a collection of braids hanging loosely on top of it’s head. It also seemed to lack a muzzle, and it’s tiny ears seemed stiff and immobile on the sides of the head. Sweetie Belle heard the distinct crunching of grass and saw that the giant was moving steadily towards her. Suddenly remembering her situation, she tried desperately once again to untangle herself from the root that bound her, but it was too late. The giant already stood directly over her, casting it’s shadow, and about to do Celestia knows what to her. ‘That’s why it fought off the manticore. So that it could have me all to itself!’ Sweetie Belle thought fearfully. ‘It’s probably going to eat me, or worse, drag me back to it’s cave and keep me as it’s prisoner!’ Many awful scenarios ran through the filly’s terrified brain, each one more horrific than the last. As the giant loomed above, she clenched her eyes shut in preparation for the inevitable. *************** Now that he was right upon the tiny horse, Braxton could see that it was, judging from size alone, most likely a young one. And, going by it’s softer features and body type, a girl as well. ‘I guess that would make it a... filly, right? A unicorn filly, judging by the horn. Sure, why the fuck not, right?’ Braxton concluded. He could see through the layer of dirt that her coat was an off-white color and her mane, oddly enough, was a two-tone mix of pink and purple. The filly had been struggling to free herself, but seemed to realize the futility of it. Now, she had her eyes shut and her head turned away, as though expecting to be struck. Braxton looked down at the tiny horse’s cowering form and felt a pang of sympathy. ‘Looks like she’s had rough go of it.’ He thought, furrowing his brow. ‘Nearly being eaten by that monster, and who knows what else she’s gone through. Poor thing must be petrified.’ Braxton holstered his gun and knelt down so that he could be closer to her level, wincing a little as he did so. “Hey, hey, take it easy. I’m not gonna hurt you.” He said as gently as he could. After a few seconds, the filly’s eyes fluttered open slightly and she moved her head slightly back towards him. “Y...Y-You’re n-not?” She asked fearfully. Braxton was only mildly surprised that the filly could talk. In fact, he was kind of expecting it. After all, he had held a conversation with a river serpent and battled a lion-bat-scorpion. Not to mention he was currently talking to a unicorn. It’d be tough to find anything in this forest that shocked him anymore. Braxton shook his head. “No, I’m not. My name’s Braxton, by the way. Do you have a name?” He asked with a kind smile. The filly hesitated a little before answering. “S-Sweetie Belle...” She stammered finally. Braxton chuckled internally. ‘Sweetie Belle, huh? Heh, cute name.’ He lowered his eyes to where Sweetie’s leg was tangled in the root. “Alright, Sweetie Belle, I’m gonna try to get you out of there. Sound good?” He asked. Sweetie Belle simply nodded her head. Sweetie Belle tensed up under his touch, but eventually relaxed a bit when he began untangling her leg. As he worked, Braxton caught Sweetie Belle eyeing his gloved hands with a look of wonder. Her eyes followed every movement of his dextrous appendages, until finally her leg was free once more. Braxton admired his handiwork. “There you go. You’re all se--Hey, wait!” He didn’t get to finish, because as soon as her leg was released, Sweetie Belle turned and tried to run off. However, she didn’t get more than two steps before falling down again. She let out a sharp cry of pain when she hit the ground and Braxton rushed to her side, momentarily forgetting about his own injuries. “Oh my God, what’s wrong? Are you alright?” He frantically asked. Sweetie Belle shook her head furiously. “No! Oww, my leg!” She cried, pointing a hoof to the hind leg that had been trapped moments before. Braxton lifted her leg up, causing Sweetie to wince a little. ‘Well, I know next to nothing about equine anatomy,’ He thought as he examined the limb, ‘But, it doesn’t look broken or anything. Most likely just a sprain. She probably got it when she was twisted up in that root.’ Braxton set the leg down and looked sternly at the filly. “Why did you try to run away just now?” He asked her. Sweetie averted her eyes from his gaze. “I-I don’t know... I guess I was just... a little scared...” She said quietly, rubbing her hooves together. Braxton sighed and shook his head a bit. “Listen, I get that you’re scared, Sweetie Belle. I would be, too, in your position. But, you’ve gotta believe me when I say that I don’t mean you any harm. If I did, I would have let that monster have it’s way. I only want to help you, but you have to let me, okay?” Braxton said calmly, hoping he would get through to her. Sweetie Belle returned his gaze hesitantly to find him staring back at her. For a few moments, nothing was said between the two. Just her bright green orbs locked with his dark brown ones. But in those moments, Sweetie saw no deceit in his eyes, only legitimate concern for her wellbeing. After her brief bout with indecision, Sweetie Belle made her choice. “Okay.” She said, nodding her head once firmly. The corners of Braxton’s mouth turned up into a warm smile. “Good.” He said, glad to have gotten her cooperation. “Now then, back to your leg. I’m no expert, but it looks to me like just a sprain, nothing too major. Still, we should probably take you to a doctor or something, just to be safe.” He decided. “Well, there’s sort of a doctor that lives in the forest. Her name’s Zecora, and she’s knows a lot about medicine and stuff like that.” Sweetie Belle piped up. “Where does she live?” Braxton questioned. “A little bit down the path.” Sweetie said, pointing with her hoof. Braxton nodded. “Then let’s go!” He said with finality. “Wait!” Sweetie shouted as Braxton began to stand up. He looked back at her, eyebrow raised in confusion. “W-What if we run into another manticore, o-or something worse?!” She asked, slightly panicked at the thought. Braxton put a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry! I can handle anything that comes our way, Sweetie Belle. Trust me.” He said with a confident smile. Sweetie Belle seemed to calm down at this, and she smiled back at him. Taking this as a confirmation, Braxton swept her up in his arms, holding her like he would a baby. Sweetie Belle squirmed at first, but eventually relaxed when she realized what he was doing. “You ready?” He asked when she had gotten comfortable. “Yeah.” She uttered simply, looking up at him. With that, the human and filly began their walk to Zecora’s hut, both of them hopeful not to run into any more threats on the way. ‘Every time I try to get out, this damn place drags me right back in.’ Braxton thought with a small shake of his head.