Biting, chilly winds nipped at the back of the adventurers’ necks as they made their escape. At least one thing remained very much alive and kicking in the Everfree: the weather, gloomy at all hours of the day and drenched of the feelings of emptiness one might experience when they find themselves sheltered by the husks of dead, shadowy trees. Periods of snow, freezing rain, and even hail came down hard, fast, and went away like flies, falling around them in extremely discomforting formations.
Minutes added up into hours as they trekked through the remains of a once-luscious range of forest undergrowth, traveling at a pace so cautious Roseluck took to counting her own hoof steps; a great way to pass the time especially if one is being hunted by the most cunning predators on the planet. Their level of alertness was on par with that of rabbits. The slightest misstep and the ears go up. Chrysalis would halt their progress with each impromptu snap of a twig, and it was only after several lengthy intervals that she decided it was safe to walk normally, so long as they kept their guard up. Their journey would then resume immediately, marred only by the untimely elements ahead of them.
Ditto was somehow spared from the brunt of the more fierce winds that peppered his carrier’s face with ice crystals. His fearful whimpers of being stalked evolved into gentle, almost inaudible coos of wonder. His wide eyes scanned the rolling grey clouds that floated above the forest, and he stuck out his tongue with each period of snowfall. Every snowflake that landed on his tongue made his whole body tingle and his wings buzz about at his sides with foalish delight. It made Chrysalis wish she were a filly again, but those were memories best left buried.
In time, their flight from her tainted homeland reached its end. They took their final steps out of the Everfree Forest and found themselves looking out onto a grassy plain sparkling with dew drops. The air had taken a warmer shift in temperature now that they were finally free from the clutches of the dank undergrowth. The moon remained high in the sky, but Roseluck could tell by its position that its time was due soon. She found it difficult to believe that her body had the energy to stay awake thus far. The sight of Canterlot far off in the distance reminded her of home, especially her old bed back home.
“Thank goodness...” said Roseluck with a heavy sigh, resting on her aching haunches. Her forehead burned as she wiped a length of cold sweat from her brow. She winced, remembering how she had a few unfortunate run-ins with prickly tree branches that whipped her senseless on their way down. There was little else she could do that didn’t involve accepting the pain of her injuries. After all, it could have been much worse than just a few bumps and scrapes here and there. “We made it...finally. How are you holding up, Chrysalis?”
There came no answer.
“...Chrysalis?” Roseluck repeated, peering behind her from over her shoulder.
Chrysalis stood turned towards the forest at its edge, staring forlornly into the blackness with her ears drooping just as low as the sorrowful frown on her face. She thought about calling to her a third time, but chose to remain as she was, silent and still out of respect. What did it feel like to lose it all so quickly, was the biggest question on Roseluck’s mind. And yet, how did it feel to have one’s seat of power suddenly swept up from underneath them and thrown in amongst the fire and burning embers that used to be their kingdom? This was the way of the anarchist, but the tyrannical powerhouse behind her undoing made sure of it that the legacy of the changeling’s old faith was mythologized in the future. If there ever was to be a future.
Chrysalis retained her silence for a few seconds more before moving, turning to look at Roseluck over her shoulder.
“I’m...ready to continue,” spoke the queen, gifting herself with another glance at the trees behind her.
“Are you sure you don’t you want to spend just a little more time here? Maybe take a...leaf or something as a keepsake?”
“No.” Chrysalis was quick to respond, shaking her head before lifting it in favor of building the courage need to bolster her emotions. “I mustn't linger in a pool of my own grief, and removing even the thinnest blade of grass, or the smallest seed of life’s greatest gift from these lands would do me no better. I will honor the dead and the astray, wherever they may have fled to. Should I lean on old memories...I will surely fall again.”
Chrysalis ambled forward at a sluggish pace, seemingly hesitating with some meaning on her first step and uprooting a tuft of damp, green grass. This soft and rich earth beneath her hooves felt new and inviting. On another note, it was the first step she had taken outside of her home ever since the Canterlot invasion. A far cry from the more stable, albeit rock-hard soil of the Everfree she was used to traversing, but she would get used to it. She then nudged Roseluck in the side as she passed her by, her tail swaying.
“Come now,” she spoke. “We must seek refuge elsewhere.”
Roseluck took to mulling over Chrysalis’s words in her head, silently weighing the value of good versus evil for, oddly enough, one of the few times since she arrived in the Everfree. Maybe there was something more to be understood here. For whose lives was she really fighting for?
Their continued journey was one followed by a blessing neither of them had seen coming. Granted, they never exactly planned their escape route in the first place. Ponyville was many miles away, and the plains they traversed through were hilly and pocked with broad depressions between each hill crest. Any creature that took to patrolling the edge of the now-distant Everfree Forest would come up short on their list of defenseless morsels to prey on.
These “bowls” of the hills gave them free range of movement. They could move however they pleased and enjoy themselves for a bit. The soft terra firma amazed Chrysalis. Life was simply teeming above and below it. This was virgin soil left unexploited for what may have been thousands of years. The air she breathed in was perfectly clean too. Not a single whiff would ever bear the misfortune of being unwillingly graced with the scent of rot and animal dung. Take in the deepest of breaths...close your eyes...hold it in, nurture it...and revel; in that order.
His little savior was having no difficulty relieving himself of his excitement. It was a whole new world, his new and fantastic point of view. He hobbled away from his caretakers and had some fun rolling about in the long grass, getting a feel for this new environment, and evidently loving it. Roseluck was starting to regret just letting him go off on his own after he managed to smoothly transition into a hover on his own and land on the ground a few hoof-lengths away without her noticing; quite the early bloomer. Admittedly, her attention was more focused on the fact that they actually made it out of the Everfree with their tails between their legs, or what most of them was left as she found out when she examined her dirt-covered backside which looked akin to Her-Majesty’s. Chrysalis stifled a giggle, but was forced to soften them up when she was met with a glaring stare.
It was many miles and several hours later that they soon found themselves traversing alongside a swift and coursing river. The sun was on the rise, and the moon was retreating to its cozy position on the other side of the world. Both the queen and her aid were exhausted, but had chosen not to risk sleeping out in the open, for the river cut through the plains and onwards to the snow-capped mountains. Ditto, however, was slumbering peacefully atop Chrysalis’s back, tuckered out from too much play.
As the sun was lifted over the horizon, they came to an agreement on helping themselves to a rest stop next to a calm riverbank a fair length away from a clump of whitewater rapids. Roseluck fell to her knees upon arrival, groaning miserably as every aching muscle in her body all contracted at once. Her hooves felt as if they were going to fall right off, and she soon took to settling on her side. It was the most comfortable thing she had laid on in a long while. It was hardly a problem that the grass was wet and the air thick with early-morning humidity. She just wanted sleep; that was all she wanted right now. The bags beneath her eyes may as well have held rocks for all the good they did in suppressing her growing urgency to slam them shut.
“Hoooh...please tell me we get to sleep sometime sooooon?” Roseluck whined rather childishly despite knowing their lives were at risk every second of every day. She splayed her legs out onto the ground, taking comfort knowing the warming daylight would soon be upon them.
Chrysalis forewent answering her, for she had no definitive answer to give. The plains offered next to no protection, and the only sign of civilization was Canterlot’s snow-capped mountain peak, and even then they had no way of getting into the city without running into royal guards and a slew of changeling detection methods. As pitiful in success rate as they were, there was still a chance she would be weeded out even under the guise of a pony.
“We can’t stop moving, Roseluck, at least not out here in the open,” Chrysalis pointed out, testing the calmer waters by dipping the tip of her hoof into it. It felt cool and inviting, and they were all in obvious need of a bath. “There’s no telling what we’ll be up against, and, for all we know, someone may be watching us right this very moment.”
Roseluck breathed a heavy, boorish sigh, hesitant at first in accepting the truth of the matter. “And where do we go from here, huh? We does the tablet say we should do?”
Chrysalis had almost forgotten about the tablet, her mind perhaps too busy with thoughts of staying alive rather than said. On her will, it appeared before her by way of magic. She looked it over it carefully, though there was still so much about it she did not understand.
“That’s...difficult to say. It’s as far from following a conventional paper map as one could get.”
“Just tell me we’re lost and put me out of my misery...”
“Not lost,” Chrysalis replied, glancing to and from the stone scribery every few seconds. “Just unfortunate. Much of what the tablet mentions never existed before, like most major pony cities of today, including any outlying villages. This is difficult.”
“So what’s wrong with going around them?” Roseluck asked whilst drawing a circular gesture in the air.
“Everything between those cities is either barren plains or forests. If ponies frequent either territory, we’ll be in even more trouble than before.” Chrysalis bit her bottom lip, her ears going limp. “What’s even worse is this. Where Canterlot rests on the mountainside now, there used to be a system of natural caves and tunnels that would allow for safe, sheltered passage over the mountains it borders. My only guess is that they have been sealed off by now, especially after the invasion.”
“Why is there never any good news?” Roseluck pouted, rolling onto her belly and heaving another dreadful sigh. “What are we supposed to do then? Where in the hay are we supposed to go to get to Mariposa?”
With a worrisome frown, Chrysalis sent the tablet back to its dimensional strongbox with a puff of green magic. “All I know is that we have very little in the ways of options, but no matter where we go from here we have no choice but to trek over the mountains to reach the other side of Equestria. Our journey continues from there.”
“But that could take weeks! Maybe days if we’re lucky! We don’t even have the key anymore! What are we to do?” Roseluck retorted. Then, a low gurgling rumble erupted from her stomach. She couldn’t remember the last time she had a proper meal, the thought of which only gave birth to another gloomy rumble. At least the grass in front of her looked fresh. It wouldn’t have been her first choice, but she caved in before the hunger pains could and began munching tenderly on a small mouthful.
“I don’t know...regrettably, that’s what we’re going to have to work with. We’ll get through this.” Chrysalis nodded, putting on a faux brave face and dropping it as soon as she turned around. Truth be told, the prospect of traveling naked, that is to say without a disguise, terrified her, and rightfully so. She experienced many a nightmare in the past about being caught, and it was a sure thing that she had some sort of bounty on her head, an undoubtedly hefty one at that. Every imaginary fatal wound would shock her awake, and though she was a more different type of queen now, her past embodiment would not awaken in a cold sweat or with tears in her eyes, but with a constantly renewing vow to bring about her revenge on ponykind. The queen churned a hoof around in the cool waters, unsure of what to make of any of the events most recent and jarring. She compared her mind to the blue swirl she manipulated, though the results she came up with were equally as convoluted.
Roseluck was allowed to rest her eyes for a short while, but was urged that they would need to continue as soon as she regained her energy. With the given opportunity, she soothingly roused Ditto from his sleep to feed and bathe him along the thin shoreline. It was no picnic, but his delightful squeaks and signs of growth, such as his growing fangs, readily made up for her worry. They later followed the river downstream as their chances of not being spotted were far better here than out in the open. Occasionally, a flying stagecoach or a rogue pegasus would soar over them and the land, and they would do their best to conceal themselves behind scattered boulders near the shoreline and steep faces on the hills. Their journey nearly turned even more dangerous when a grey-coated pegasus circled the area several times. Thankfully, Roseluck was spared the trouble of having to explain what she was doing way out here when the curious sentry turned and flew away towards Cloudsdale, which had revealed itself earlier in the burgeoning daylight.
The plains were as boring as they had both expected it to be. They played with Ditto at times, Chrysalis tried and subsequently failed to accept the taste of grass, and an embarrassingly short game of “I Spy” all lasted them a total of five minutes of entertainment. Nothing but varying shades of prairie grasses stretched on for miles in every direction, save the forest they were coming up on now. How did they not notice it again? Was the never-ending lengths of green making them hallucinate like the desert sands of the balmy south west?
Roseluck giggled in excitement and cantered on the tips of all four of her hooves. “Oh, thank Celestia! I never thought I’d be this happy to see a forest again in all my life!”
“We don’t even know if it’s safe yet,” Chrysalis murmured with a clear hint of trepidation, her gaze trailing from the bases to the trunks of the bordering trees they stood before; typical pine trees if she correctly recalled from past scouting reports. She herself had never seen them before. Their sharp-tipped leaves, if they could even be called that, held a unique and zingy aroma. Even the bark of the trees deviated so much from the only home she had ever known. “I don’t know about this...”
“Well I do!” Roseluck cheerily exclaimed after pulling away from a much-needed hug with the trunk of a handsome spruce tree. “We’re going in.”
“What’s there to say that the predators in there aren’t as bad as those encountered in the Everfree?” Chrysalis glanced at Ditto from over her shoulder in concern for his well-being. The youngling looked up from playing with his mother’s hair and nuzzled the closest cheek within reach, his stub of a tail wagging. She smiled back at him and soon returned her attention to Roseluck. “You’re more of an expert than I am.”
“Well duh!” Roseluck rolled her eyes as she trotted in front of Chrysalis to present herself. “I recognize this place from group nature walks I went on a few years ago. It’s none other than Whitetail Wood!”
“Whitetail...Wood?”
“Or ‘Woods’ if you want to be formal. It’s everything the Everfree isn’t. Warm days, cool nights, beautiful plants, and weather patterns that actually make sense!”
Curious as to what Roseluck’s take on what “making sense” meant, Chrysalis turned her head skyward whereupon she discovered the presence of a light, overcast cloud cover, pricked in just the right places so that sunlight may beam down onto the branches of the gargantuan conifers and their neighbors far below. She never enjoyed the idea of pre-fabricated weather. It concerned her on a personal level for the well-being of world’s forests, or perhaps just those that belonged to Equestria’s landscape. If nature did not exist, and should the land find itself without someone to balance the weather, then could it potentially lead to another Everfree? Bit by bit, the origins of the black forest were becoming clearer as the thoughts rolled by. Had the original ruling order within the Ancient Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters remained after Nightmare Moon’s banishment, where the castle was left standing and occupied by Princess Celestia and her subjects in the surrounding villages, could the Everfree have never been brought into existence at all due to a lack of chaos kept at bay by the weather beneath their influence?
Chrysalis couldn’t help but notice that she seemed to be more excited about this than she thought. This new environment was of scally, scent-laden trees, and it would be a whole new way for her to experience the theoretical alter ego of the treacherous forestry of her homeland. She wasn’t too keen on letting Ditto get hurt though. Tales of old evoking furry beasts came to mind from tooth to talon. Still, compared to the Everfree’s fauna, they were a skip through the tulips, but not without reason to be avoided.
“You lead the way this time. I will utilize my senses to safeguard the rear,” said Chrysalis as she fanned her wings in a test of her ability to escape should the need arise.
“Fine by me,” Roseluck replied, starting off on a merry canter into the forest.
Chrysalis gazed up into the breathtaking canopy of the forest again, looming over them like the fabled ents and staring into the back of their necks as they passed beneath their branches. What a sight...but danger could be anywhere. It wasn’t supposed to be this difficult to unwind in the presence of more colorful fauna, right? Roseluck repeatedly encouraged her to stop and smell the flowers, but those blood red stems weren’t going to make a fool out of her. Ditto may have gotten a little too curious and swallowed a bug...or three, and now he giggled every time his fouled breath made his mother’s muzzle scrunch up like a sponge. It was always the little things.
Yet, petal to petal, tree to trimming, there was plenty to love about this forest. If this was the standard then the Everfree was anything but. A more fitting name would find similarities in a rotting wasteland; a bone yard even. She was captivated yet confused by all her senses could took in. Sights, sounds, smells, and the sweet songs of musical insects she surrendered herself to for sake of getting to know them better. Inwardly, she enjoyed this a lot more than a smile or two could ever express. All the plants and flowers were starting to look friendlier. Granted, the fauna’s presence was virtually nonexistent, but this had to be due to their unannounced presence in their territory. This truth saddened Roseluck a little when she realized that no birds were singing, leaving her heart, hopeful for a more pleasant stroll, without resolve.
“...Roseluck?”
The flower sister’s reminiscing was broken by the sound of Chrysalis’s voice behind her.
“Yeah, Chrysalis?” Roseluck replied, looking over her shoulder.
“Do ponies ever...fear forests other than the Everfree? You’re just as vulnerable in here as you were in there.”
“Oh...umm...” Roseluck thought hard, looking to the ground. She doubted anypony would have made this connection before as the Everfree was perhaps the only one with an infamous history behind it. Still, she sought to explain it as best as she could. “...no.”
Short and sweet. Truth is she didn’t know how to explain it. Maybe it was magic, or the absence of nature that kept a pony’s mind at ease with the land around them. Nature itself was about as alien of a concept as it could get without going off into space. Leaving the fate of the land up to the luck of the draw would be environmental butchery.
“Why is that so?” Chrysalis asked. “Are the dangers not as evident as they are in the Everfree?”
Roseluck shrugged. “Not really, to be honest. There’s just not that much here in Equestria that has the potential to gobble us up if we get on its bad side. Most of those kinds of creatures are either in griffin or dragon territories, but even then the worst of it is still in the Everfree. Sure, there are bears, snakes, maybe an angry squirrel or two out here, but beyond that...” Roseluck looked up into the trees and breathed a dreamy sigh. “Equestria is just, you know, a nice place to live.”
Chrysalis’s few lingering tidbits of hope for equal-sided hopes fell just as her ears did. The changelings really did receive the short end of the stick in the game of life, though what wasn’t a wooden stub back then would have already burned away in the fires of misfortune. There was no reason for her to continue mourning her species’ loss, yet she couldn’t help but feel that it remained her final duty as queen. Few fail harder in a government than royalty.
“Sorry, Chrysalis,” Roseluck apologized out of pity. “There’s just no overnight method that could have helped. We all have to play with the hoof we’re dealt with in life.”
“It’s alright,” Chrysalis replied. “I’ve known that for long enough. It just pains me every day to know that we never had a chance to begin with. We have made strides in methods to do away with our inefficient affinities, but nature itself wouldn’t allow it. It’d be best to just leave it at that for now.”
Their journey reached an impasse when they encountered a wooden sign adjacent to a trail path. Much to their disappointment, the sign had no names or distances listed, and whatever was written on it before had long since faded to the point of illegibility. Such rotten luck. Perturbed, Roseluck bunted the post with one of her hind legs, bending it backwards.
“What a way to travel.” Roseluck huffed. “Which way are we supposed to go now?”
“Again, the tablet doesn’t work that way,” Chrysalis replied half-expecting her to bring it up again.
“Ugh, can we forget about that modern-day cavepony’s road map for a little while please?” Roseluck rolled her eyes after shooting down Chrysalis. She sat on her haunches and surveyed the area around her. In the mean time, Ditto was granted some time to run about and explore under the watch of his mother. Like before, his excitement couldn’t be contained, and he ran about the area diving into flowery bushes and chasing a peculiar blue butterfly around in circles.
“I suppose life, no matter its adversities, has it’s simple pleasures,” Chrysalis commented with a new smile as she observed her prosperous prince carouseling the same patch of ground.
“You’re telling me...” replied Roseluck.
Just then, there came an audible snap of a twig nearby. The two mares perked up, and Chrysalis made a quick grab for Ditto, cancelling his playtime. He appeared shocked and relentlessly wiggled in her hold, putting up a wild fuss that seemed eerily unlike him.
“H-Huh? Ditto--uhh! What’s gotten into you?” asked Chrysalis, squeezing him closer to prevent him from falling out.
“Chrysalis, quiet down!” Roseluck sharply whispered. “Didn’t you hear that?”
“Yes, but I--ack!” Chrysalis winced after Ditto started pushing against her soft upper chest.The more and more he thrashed about the more she would have to tighten her grip, but she would be forced to let go without risking hurting him this way.
“Keep him quiet! I think somepony’s coming.”
Chrysalis was at last getting into a position where she could keep him under control. She utilized the holes in her hooves to slip his smaller forehooves through them to act as handcuffs with moderate success. His ability to move was somewhat inhibited. His wings and hind legs, however, were not. Yet, try as he might, he was left completely stuck.
Until a sneaky, firm bash of the head to the chest solved his problem.
The traumatizing blow left him with ample time to slip free and land like a cat on the ground. Not a second more was wasted in running away towards a clump of bushes and leaving his mother in the dust. Roseluck made a hasty dive for him, but her only reward was a face full of dirt and a loss of dignity when she landed just outside the bush he dove through to the other side.
“Ditto, no! Come back here right now!” Chrysalis shouted with an astonished voice left wholly ignored. She frantically teetered on her hooves, precious seconds ticking away as she inwardly debated with herself. Risks were abound left and right. Was she to leave Roseluck to deal with this approaching newcomer or take her with her into the unknown? She’s an earth pony, but they’re readily known for their strength. One such as her could fight off a potential grizzly bear on her own, yes? This was the answer she was forced to go with as Ditto was almost out of sight.
“Wait there, Chrysalis! I’ll go catch--”
“No!” Chrysalis gasped, reaching out with her magic and pulling Roseluck away just before she could land the first hurdle. She then leapt in front of her and turned to look at her. “You stay there and I will go after him.”
“But--wait!” Roseluck stammered long after Chrysalis committed to the chase with a wide forward leap over the foliage, thundering through the forest with her wings outstretched.
Roseluck was left alone, here, in the middle of virtually nowhere, and with an unknown beast closing in. A sudden rustle of tree leaves caused her to whirl around in shock. There was more than enough reason for her to be on edge to not know that it was merely the wind making its gentle greeting. A leaf or two naturally glided down from the treetops, but Roseluck eyed them like a tabby eyes a fly. Slowly she broke down, her nerves failing to keep her senses in check as she backed towards the bushes. This had best not be somepony just playing tricks on her. Even then the odds of it merely being a brave pony who wanted a closer look at a changeling queen of all things were highly unlikely.The thought of them having been followed this whole time was present as well. A lone changeling queen and her infant was a big enough prize as it stood.
Just then, a cluster of bushes up ahead shook like she did now. The chatter of teeth was all she could hear before a single hoof, hardly visible, emerged from the bush and slammed into the ground. Her fright was immediate, and with a start she ran from the scene via the same way Chrysalis had fled.
“Chrysalis!” Roseluck cried as she stamped through the forest and maneuvered swiftly over and around anything that got in her way. “Chrysalis, where are you?! Somepony help!”
If she knew anything about being followed she knew that looking behind her to see what was chasing her could be her worst mistake. The nerve of temptation nipped at the back of her head, but stalwart she remained, albeit not in the fullest. Nothing else mattered right now except her survival. Reminiscent of her previous flight from the Everfree, she had enough energy to run for miles, accounting for, in her opinion, this year’s quota of exercise.
On and on she ran, pulling off evasive maneuvers and escape tactics that were for the most part pointless. Kicking up dirt and throwing down hoof-high blockades wasn’t going to be of much help, but it at least kept her at a distance. It was certain that someone, or something, was after her head. Whatever was tearing up the undergrowth far behind her was in a hurry to get to her. Chrysalis was nowhere to be seen yet, and the lack of a trail kept her fears rolling high.
Her luck ran out when she came to the edge of a tall ravine, skidding to a stop and pushing a few unfortunate pebbles over and into a stream riff with jagged rocks. She yelped, whirling around to face the fact that she had nowhere else to run. She could hear the being steadily close in on her. Off in the steadily-decreasing distance, she watched and listened in horror as hard feet assaulted the foliage at the bow of their charge. The seconds went by the needles on her personal death clock. Her end was imminent.
Suddenly, from behind, a hoof wrapped itself around Roseluck’s hind legs and toppled her over in an instant. She tried to scream out in terror, but another hoof was quick to force itself over her mouth. They dragged her over the edge in the blink of an eye just as the thing giving chase to her dove out of the final bush.
“Mmphh! Hmmff!” The grunts of Roseluck’s intense struggling were muffled by her captor, who’s face remained hidden to her. Squinting her eyes open, she could see the wall of the other side of the ravine but at a lower angle. Her hooves kicked where there was hard rock which made her assume that she had been pulled into a cliff side cave.
Then, something long and smooth wrapped itself firmly around her midsection before pulling her in, squeezing her body against what was apparently another. Next came a head, one that came as a bit of surprise when it whipped around the side of her own and bore a serious stare through luminescent eyes of myrtle green she could recognize anywhere; Chrysalis.
“Mmrfflis!?” Roseluck spoke out in shock, her voice yet again to be left dampened. The eyes squinted angrily at her, and she heard a sharp hush from Chrysalis’ invisible lips pierce the air, one clear enough for her to get the message and affirm it with a nod...only to then have a scream out in muffled fright when she felt something brush against her hind legs. She looked down with eyes wide to find another pair of glowing eyes: Ditto’s, blue and beautiful, though he appeared very afraid. At least she was relieved to know that he was alright.
Suddenly, from somewhere in the distance, a pair of wings were heard beating against the air. As the wingbeats drew closer, Ditto whimpered and curled in to fit close to Roseluck’s underbelly. Whoever, or whatever, was outside certainly had to be exceedingly terrifying, so much so that even Chrysalis looked on edge. She made a simple gesture for the two of them to remain quiet before uncupping Roseluck’s mouth and entrusting her with their safety.
On the cliff above them, whatever creature had neared them came to a soft landing, but there was little doubt remaining in what it was after it stamped the ground twice with a heavy hoof. Chrysalis could smell it, reeking with sweat and grime. They must have been out and about for a long time as indicated by their heavy breathing. She held back from taking a peek at it outside after its movements towards the edge caused small stones to break away and pitter-patter down to the rushing waters below. The precious moments went by until the being outside gave off a rumbling grunt. Again, Chrysalis made an attempt to get a look at it, and she did manage to slide her head outside before her vision was obscured by a cloud of dust kicked up by a powerful wing beat. Roseluck gasped softly and ran to the queen’s aid when the gust caused her to lose balance and nearly topple over to a watery doom. By the skin of her teeth, she was able to latch on to Chrysalis’s tail and yank her back inside. The noise they made was just quiet enough to be drowned out by the sounds of takeoff when the intruder took flight again and soared clear out of view.
“A-Are you alright? What did you see?” asked Roseluck with haste upon righting herself, panting.
Chrysalis followed up after a series of gags and dust-laden coughs. “I’m alright, but we won’t be for long if we stay here.”
“Well, maybe, but what did you see?” Roseluck was anxious to know. Whatever it was must have scared away what was chasing her before. It was self-evident that it had wings, but if it was a pony then it meant civilization was near. It worried her when she was forced to choose whether or not that was good or bad.
“I didn’t get a good look. All I saw were its wings, but the span of them was big enough for a pegasus.” Chrysalis whipped her tail around to her side and inspected it for damage; new damage anyway. Lost hairs usually grow back in a few weeks, though why a changeling’s body insists on making them look they were plucked from a patch of scum in a pond was beyond any conventional explanation that didn’t involve nature.
“Oh...but what were the two of you doing in here to begin with?” Roseluck asked as she surveyed the precarious hideout from the inside.
“Hiding.” Chrysalis replied, frowning sadly after Ditto hurriedly hobbled his way to his mother’s forelegs for comfort. “It seems that we were both being pursued, or hunted, possibly by whatever was just here.”
“No no no...” Roseluck shook her head, biting her lower lip anxiously. “Something chased me too, but entirely on foot. If it had wings I would have been in even bigger trouble. But...” She paused, looking up to Chrysalis. “Thanks for...you know, helping me.”
“It’s a good thing we found this cave when we did. I don’t know what came after us, but I halted its progress as best as I could. It was quick, but not clever. We never heard from it again after that, though I suspect that it’s still out there, looking for us.”
“I guess the same could be said for my monster...” Roseluck shuddered, hoping the gorge that spanned between them would split them apart from whatever horrors that desired their flanks on a silver platter.
Chrysalis nudged Ditto towards Roseluck before stepping to the cave’s edge. She looked down into the channel of rushing water and pondered where it might lead. No doubt away from the mountains, but her bets were on finding a lake. Where there was a clearing she could get her bearings without exposing herself by flying high above the trees. After all, ready convenience was far from her list of priorities.
“It’s too dangerous to remain here, let alone traverse through such dangerous territory. ‘Better place to live’...” Chrysalis guffawed, looking over her shoulder. “Be prepared to get a little wet...”