//------------------------------// // Chapter 17 // Story: The Power of Portals // by Flames173 //------------------------------// "Ok, so, I think that if we're going to have any chance of finding some secret bunker that's housing a kidnapped princess then we'll have to split up." I said shortly after we entered the woods. "No, haven't you ever watched movies? When you go into a forest, you never split up! Someone always dies!" Fred complained. "Why are you scared? You're the one carrying a shotgun." "It's a flaregun." "You can still use it to blow the heads off stuff." I added quietly. "So, what do you suggest we do then?" "We stick together in a group." "But if we're split up, we have more groups so we can cover more ground and find Celestia faster." "But I don't want to die!" he shouted, staring at me intently. "But I want to save this world!" I stared back at him. "Wow, you can just feel the tension." Jodi said. "And I swear I see lightning shooting from their eyes, like in a cartoon or something." Fred and I stared at each other, a staring contest for the ages. "What do you think they're doing?" Fluttershy asked Luke. "Knowing them, they'll stare at each other like that until one of them blinks, and the winner is the one who's plan is used." Luke explained. "Well, I'm just gonna start looking for Celestia." Fluttershy said, leaving the small group and going deeper into the woods. "Dude, you know I'm gonna win." I said, lowering my stare into a glare. "Not even in your dreams." Fred said, doing the same. "Hey guys, uhh, Twilight and I are going to start looking too." Jodi said as she and the alicorn slowly flapped their wings, preparing for flight. "You going to come too?" Jodi asked. The two mares waited for a few seconds for a response. "Yeah yeah, after this." I said, staring at Fred even harder. "Ok, let's go then." Jodi and Twilight flew off. "So umm, I'm just gonna. Leave now." Luke said awkwardly before wandering off into the forest. Fred and I kept staring at each other. My eyes started watering and I could feel my eyelids quivering. Fred smirked. "I won this." he said. He smiled smugly and made a show of yawning as if saying 'ha, I'm better than you because I can go longer without blinking'. "Dude, you just blinked." I said as I gave my eyes a break and blinked several times to get them wet. "What?" "When you yawned, you shut your eyes. So I win." "Aww come on. That's not fair." "Yeah it kind of is. So, I guess we're splitting up then." I looked over to where the others were standing. "Well, looks like its just you and me." Fred said. I sighed. "All right, let's get going. Follow me." "You lead the way, because I have no idea what this place even is." "You do realize that if a manticore attacks us, we're doomed right" "Yup. That's why I got this." Fred said, adjusting the strap on the flaregun. "Let's get going." I said. I flapped my wings, beating the air to hover shortly above the ground. I ventured into the woods with Fred in tow. "I hope you know where you're going." Fred said, I could hear the fear in his voice. "Hey man, look on the bright side, we good be in much worse places, like ancient greece. They have hydras, Medusa, Hades, hell hounds, and the namean lion." "Makes me glad to be here." "Branch." "What? OW! You could've warned me!" "I did. I said branch to warn you about the branch that hit you're face." "Oh, I see." Fred said as he rubbed his face. I laughed as we continued our search. I heard a faint roar and a gun shot. I looked back at Fred. "Fluttershy!" he shouted. "What?" "That was her rifle going off! She must be in trouble." "Ok, it came from over there. Let's go see if she's all right." I said before flying through the forest at full speed, Fred blindly chased me, head down as to not get any branches to the face while we ran. *** I burst into a clearing in the woods and looked around. Fred arrived seconds after me. I saw a flash of yellow through some of the brush, it was quickly followed by a flash of orange and red. "What was that?" Fred asked. "The manticore." "Dear God." "FLUTTERSHY, COME BACK HERE, WE CAME TO HELP YOU!" I shouted, I flew into the forest, chasing after what I assumed was Fluttershy running by at a high speed. "Buh, uhh, ta, JOE!" Fred tried to get me to stop, but instead joined the chase. *** "What do you want from me?" Fluttershy cried. She stopped running and turned around to look at the manticore. Not that she had much choice, she was trapped at a stone cliff, and her rifle was out of ammo. "You know well what I want." The manticore said. "No, I don't. Just tell me, I'll give it to you!" Fluttershy was quickly thinking through everything she could do. She could take a clip off of the leather strap and put it in the rifle. No, that would take too long. She could try to fight the hybrid nightmare. No, even if she were strong enough to hold back it's paws, it still had a lethal stinger. "I want my father back!" "Huh?" Fluttershy was taken aback by the request. "My father, he was slain by that zebra you call a friend! I heard you're the only pony that can go to the depths of Tartarus and retrieve a soul." "Yes, I can, but in return for another soul only." "Then give the devil a soul! I don't care who's, just give me my father back!" "I can't kill some pony else just for your desire." "Do it, or I will bring my father back in replace of you!" the maticore roared, his neck fur bristled. "Don't you lay a claw on that pegasus!" a voice shouted from the nearby woods. Joe flew out from the trees and kicked the manticore in the back of the head. "No pony touches Fluttershy!" I screamed in it's face. The manticore hissed and swiped a paw at me. I jumped out of the way of it's sharp talons. "My father will come back no matter what you say or do!" The manticore snapped forward and swung it's tail at me, too fast for me to escape. Then, a bright pink, nearly white, light erupted from the woods and smashed into the manticore's face. Shortly after, it exploded into fireworks. Fred ran from the woods and punched the manticore's nose. *** "So, do you think they finished their little staring contest?" Jodi asked Twilight. "Probably by now. Not even the Equestrian Record holder would still be staring this long." Twilight explained. "Who do you thin-" Jodi was cut off by a loud explosion. "What was that?" Jodi asked, totally freaked out. "Fred's flare!" Twilight said, panicked. She instantly turned around and flew off towards the light. "What?" Jodi asked, flying after the lavender alicorn. "Fred must be in trouble!" "Why don't you just flash us there? Can't you do that?" "I can, but in a panicked state of mind, I can't focus, so the teleportation spell will put us anywhere within ten miles of the target location." "Oh." *** I wonder what Joe and Fred have decided on? Probably splitting up since the rest of us did. Luke thought to himself. He heard a loud bang and saw bright light in front of him. Oh those dolts. Luke's horn glowed as he activated a teleportation spell. There was a small flash of light, and he was back at Fluttershy's cottage. What the heck? How did I get here? Luke looked around, a little worried that his flow of magic must be broken or something. Oh, magic must require focus, and panic ruins focus. *** "What are you two doing?" Fluttershy asked, a hint of fear in her voice. "Saving you!" Fred shouted as his hoof connected with the manticore's jaw. "Stop that!" the manticore screamed. He swept his paw at the earth pony. Fred pushed back with his head. He gritted his teeth as he held back. "Leave Fluttershy alone!" I shouted. I flew as fast as I could and grabbed the manticore's tail. He fought back as I held his stinger from attacking any pony. "You two are weak." The manticore taunted. He swung his other front paw at Fred. Fred stuck a hoof out and stopped the paw in it's path. He put his other hoof on the paw he was holding back with his head. He glared at the manticore who glared back. "Give up now and we won't hurt you." Fred said confidently. "I'd like to see you TRY and hurt me." the manticore laughed. He pushed his paws together as hard as he could, instantly crushing Fred in his grasp. "NOO, FRED!" I screamed. I pulled the tail in rage, trying to rip the manticore from the ground, and fling him onto his back. "Hahaha! You are such puny creatures!" "RRRAHHHHHH!" Fred screamed. He pushed back against the manticore's paws with impossible strength. "NO ONE, INSULTS, ME!" He pushed the paws backwards on the manticore's body, passing his shoulders. "I WILL PERSONALLY SEND YOU TO TARTARUS!" Fred pushed back more, so he could get his face inches from the manticore's. "Say hi to your father for me." Fred slammed his head forward, bashing skulls with the evil hybrid. There was a loud cracking noise. The manticore fell back. I released my grip on it's stinger. "Is it over?" Fluttershy asked. "Yeah, we won." I said. "All thanks to me and my super strength." Fred boasted. "Yeah, but he would've stung you if I weren't there." I said unamused. There was a loud grumbling behind us as the manticore got back up. "Get out of here before we really kill you!" I said, flaring my wings. The manticore hissed and his eyes turned to slits. He spread his wings and flew off. "You will rue this day!" he shouted flying away. "Fred, Joe, Fluttershy! Are you three all ok?" Twilight and Jodi asked in unison as they flew into the small clearing. There was a flash of light next to Fluttershy as Luke transported in. "Please magic, be this the right place!" Luke said, clenching his eyes shut as tight as possible. "Luke. Hey man, open your eyes." I said. Luke opened one eye first then the other. His face went from one of fear and suspense, to one of relief. "Oh thank Celestia. Now, I suppose we should go find Celestia now huh?" "Yup." Everyone said at the same time.