//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: The Night's Fangs // by Cavenerd20 //------------------------------// The beast ran through the forest, following the spoor of blood. It could smell the fear of its prey, and it could almost see the scent trail leading in between the trees. All three scents led to the creature’s next kill, and all three drove it mad with bloodlust. It slowed its pace, stalking closer to its unsuspecting prey. The victim-to-be was lying on the ground, gasping for breath. The beast moved noiselessly forward, from behind and upwind of the prey. Then it leapt, pouncing on its prey and quickly immobilizing it. The beast flipped the prey onto its back, and bit deeply into its neck. The taste of warm blood filled the beast’s mouth as the gurgling whimpers of its prey filled its ears. It continued tearing at the soft flesh as the poor victim’s cries were rapidly silenced. The creature drew back to look at its prey in the ray of moonlight streaming through the trees. At first the prey seemed to be a pink earth pony, and then it seemed to be orange. No… Then the body seemed to shift, and the victim was a Pegasus, first yellow, and then blue. NO… Then the wings seemed to disappear, and the body was a white unicorn, then it grew wings again and turned lavender. No no no no… Suddenly the body seemed to grow larger, and had a beautiful dark blue coat, with a silvery-blue mane. Lovely blue eyes stared blankly into space, unseeing…lifeless. NOOOOOOOOOOO!! AAAWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Philip leapt off of the couch and splayed out on all fours, panting heavily, his eyes darting from side to side. He looked around him, and saw bookshelves lining the walls; he was in the castle library. He noticed the lanterns that had been providing light were out. Every detail of the room was clear to him, and he quickly realized that what he had seen had only been a dream. After leaving Carousel Boutique, everyone had gone home with a bit of the wolfsbane from the hospital. Twilight and Starlight had taken him back to the castle, where Twilight promptly began to search her books for any reference to the strange goings-on. Philip and Luna had helped her as much as possible, and after a shower for each of them and a supper of vegetable stew Starlight had gone to her room, and Philip read himself to sleep while Twilight continued her search (“Just a few more books!”). He could hear hooves clopping along in the hall. Just Luna getting water, most likely, he thought. He could also hear the comforting beat of Twilight’s heart where she lay slumped over her desk, having fallen asleep while trying to find any reference she could on humans, werewolves, and anything else that might be relevant. Wait a minute, thought Philip, that desk is across the room. How can I hear her heartbeat from here? Before he could puzzle any further, he heard the sound of hooves in the doorway, and saw Luna, still in her Starlight disguise, entering the library. He got up and walked over to her, careful not to make any noise that might awaken Twilight. “Bad dream, Princess?” he said softly. Starlight jumped with a small squeak, but quickly regained her composure. “Yes,” she said softly, “just a bad dream. I noticed Twilight Sparkle was not in her bed, so I thought to come carry her there.” “I’ll carry her, don’t worry,” said Philip. He walked over to Twilight and gently lifted her up over his shoulder, carrying her like a small child. Then he carefully and quietly walked through the castle corridors to her bedroom, and tucked her into bed next to Spike’s basket. He turned to leave, and saw Starlight staring at him with a puzzled expression. “You seem to be able to see in the dark quite well,” she said, “much better than anypony I have ever met.” “It doesn’t seem all that dark to me,” said Philip. “Well it…achoo!” Suddenly, Starlight sneezed, and Twilight sat up in her bed, rubbing her eyes with a hoof. “Huh? Who’s there?” she said, her words muddled by sleepiness. “Just us carrying you to your well-deserved bed rest, Twilight,” said Philip. “Philip, Luna? Are you there? I can barely see a thing.” It was then that Philip realized that the curtains were drawn, meaning the moonlight was barely entering the castle. He could see perfectly well, however. Weird, he thought to himself. “Go back to sleep, Twilight” he said gently, stroking her mane. Twilight lay down in her bed, and promptly drifted off. “You, too, Starlight,” he added to the mare behind him. “I…am not sure I can.” Starlight dropped her head to gaze at the floor. “I am having…unpleasant dreams.” She went on more quickly, “It is not natural for me to be asleep at night in any case, so perhaps I could just…” “You need to rest, Luna,” said Philip, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder, “you’ve had a long, stressful day. Maybe if you tell me about it, you’ll feel better; maybe even enough to go to sleep.” She looked uncertain, but raised her head. “Very well,” she said, “let us go to your room.” Once they were sitting on one of the guest beds, Philip motioned for her to begin. “I…” she said, “I am…frightened. Not just of the werewolf, but of my fellow ponies. For some time, the ponies of Canterlot have been speaking of me. Ever since my…return, there have been whispers among the nobles that I am still…as I was before. I do not feel welcome among them. And I cannot simply order them to love me.” Tears began to form in her eyes. “You see…” Luna was strolling down the streets of Canterlot in the dead of night. There were few ponies about, which Luna had always found to be rather odd. To her, the city had a magic of its own at night; the marble walls and ivory towers glowed in the moonlight, and the lights of the city from above looked as if the stars had fallen to the earth. Suddenly, she spotted a trio of ponies talking to each other. Sneaking up behind them, she overheard one say, “I do so despise the night time. There’s not enough light to see a thing, it’s just tripping everywhere in the night. Why can’t Celestia just leave the sun up all the time?” It couldn’t be. They couldn’t still hate the night-time could they? “Because we can’t sleep during the day,” said another pony, “but I don’t see what the point of the moon is, or the stars for that matter. I wish Celestia would stop wasting her time on all this and do something important for once.” They served a very important purpose! Many purposes! And Celestia was not the one raising the moon anymore, either! “You forget,” said the third, “It’s her sister doing it now.” “Ah, yes, Luna,” said the first pony with contempt, “why she’s a princess I’ll never know; she actually associates with commoners, just like that Twilight Sparkle! Clearly not princess material.” “Not to mention what she did all those years ago,” said the second, “If you ask me, she’s just biding her time to try again, and Celestia should just throw her into a hydra’s nest while she has the chance. It’s not as if that mare actually does anything important anyway.” They moved out of earshot, but their words still echoed inside Luna’s mind. She flew back to her tower at the castle, locked the doors and windows, shut all the blinds and flopped down on her bed. Only when her bed curtains were shut did she let her tears fall. Why, she asked herself, why do they still hate me? “And then when that werewolf attacked, I was so helpless, as if there was nothing I could do, any more than I can ever order my subjects not to hate and fear me!” She was nearly sobbing by this point, tears in her eyes. Philip gazed gently at her for a moment, and then wrapped her in his arms. At this, she finally broke down, crying into his shoulder. For what felt like hours, he hugged her and stroked her mane and coat, letting her cry until she was reduced to hiccupping sobs. It broke his heart to see her this way. Moreover, he couldn’t help but feel like he identified with her, as if they were similar in this regard. “I feel so lonely,” she finally whispered, “and so, so helpless.” Philip’s mouth was set. It was time for him to end this train of thought; continuing it would only harm her. So, resting his head on her cheek, he gently whispered to her, “You aren’t alone; you have Twilight, and Celestia, and Applejack, and Pinkie, and Fluttershy, and even Rainbow and Rarity. And,” he said, drawing back to lift her chin and looking deeply into her large, sky-blue eyes, “you have me.” She gazed into his green eyes, which seemed to glow in the gloaming. She leaned in and nuzzled his cheek. “Thank you. I feel better already,” she said. Philip smiled at her, and then looked thoughtful. “So, was that what your nightmare was about?” “N…no,” said Starlight, “It was about a pony with a hooded cloak. I could tell it was a stallion when he spoke; he said to me ‘soon we will have Equestria by the throat, as well as its princesses.’ Afterwards he laughed, and I felt a pressure around my throat, as if I was being choked by a noose.” She shivered. “I woke up afterwards, but...” “I had a pretty bad dream myself just now,” said Philip, “but yours sounds…stranger than mine. May I look at your neck?” She threw him a questioning look. “I have a suspicious feeling,” he said. She looked at him for a moment longer, and then let him examine her neck. It was dark, but Philip could see, just under the skin, a slight deviation in color. I knew it. “…there’s a bruise,” he said. “What do you mean?” said Starlight. “I mean you actually have a bruise around your neck, like there really was a noose. It’s very light, but it’s definitely there. I’ve heard of something similar, though I’m not sure what happened or where. I don’t think you were just dreaming; something deeper is going on.” He looked at her softly. “We’ll look into it in the morning, though; it doesn’t look like you were actually being choked, just…like some sort of echo. If there is anyone behind this, they were probably just trying to frighten you, so worrying would be playing into their hands.” They rose, and headed towards Luna’s room. *** Starlight started towards the door of the room, before noticing Philip had suddenly vanished. Thinking he was lost, she retraced her steps to find him turning into Twilight’s bedroom. She followed him and saw that he had crossed to the balcony, and was looking out of the window. As she watched, he walked softly to the door and opened it, slipping out into the night. Curious, she followed him again. “What is it, my friend?” asked Luna, dropping her disguise as she placed a hoof on his shoulder. “Isn’t she beautiful?” asked Philip. Following his gaze, Luna saw he was looking at the moon. “You mean the moon?” asked Luna, confused. He nodded. “Thou…you believe the moon to be female?” “Yes,” he said, “and she’s beautiful. The Silver Queen of magic, mystery and romance, bathing the world in her sterling light as she guards the dreams of mortals. She is the companion to those who find no comfort in the day, and neither mercy nor sympathy from its creatures.” Suddenly, he seemed to wilt. “Often she is the only comfort they have.” He gazed at the moon, and Luna could see it reflected in his emerald eyes. “Oh thou pale orb that silent shines, while care-untroubled mortals sleep, thou sees a wretch who inly pines, and wanders here to wail and weep,” he said. “What was that, dear Philip?” asked Luna, draping a wing over him and gazing into his eyes with concern. “The first few lines of a poem,” said Philip, “but I don’t remember who wrote it. Just that his name used to mean a spring of water, but now it has something to do with fire.” “And ‘tis addressed to the moon?” asked Luna. “Yes,” said Philip, “I think I even heard a song with a couple of the verses as lyrics.” He looked away from the moon for the first time to notice Luna now wore a watery smile. “Would’st thou…could you…sing it to me?” she asked shyly, averting her gaze. He cupped her cheek in one hand, and lifted her eyes to meet his own. Placing his other hand on her face, he held her head in his hands and sang, stroking her cheek in time with the music. Luna could not believe her ears; the song seemed to echo the emotions she had felt so long ago. It seemed as if her own longing was ringing from the past through the voice of her friend. He finished, looking up at the moon once more. “She can be harsh, but she is also kind and loving, and so very beautiful,” he said. “She is the all-seeing eye of the night, ever watchful as she guards her sleeping subjects.” “Oh Philip,” sighed Luna, staring at him wide-eyed, “you sound as if you are in love.” This was very pleasing to Luna; she remembered all too well what others had once thought of her nighttime, and to meet someone who thought her moon and stars were beautiful and good was…more wonderful than she could describe with words. “You love the night, too,” said Philip, gazing back at her, “I can see it in your eyes.” He moved closer, and embraced her. “I guess we’re both moon-addled fools for the night, eh?” “Yes,” giggled Luna, hugging him, “yes, I suppose we are.” “Let’s go to sleep now, though,” said Philip, “the moon should protect you from any more nightmares.” *** They crept back into the room, careful not to wake Twilight. “Try to get a little rest, eh?” said Philip. “Okay,” Luna said with a yawn. Then she surprised Philip by conjuring a bed with her magic and laying down on it, in the room with Twilight. She was out like a light almost the minute her head hit the pillow; she must have been half asleep already. She’s safe now, Philip thought, it’s time to leave. He silently crept to the hall…then paused. He looked back at the mares and the dragon, listening to their hearts beating. Then, he crept back to his room, took the mattress and crept back to the doorway to Luna’s and Twilight’s room. He lay the mattress down, quietly lowered himself onto it, and drifted off to the sound of three beating hearts. When Philip awoke, he could see by the color of the light filtering through the curtains that the sun had not yet risen, and it was still early in the morning. He rose to his feet and stretched, his joints popping slightly. Then he crept quietly to his room with his mattress, and then to the library where he began to read through the books that Twilight had not finished. However, when Starlight Dream and Twilight Sparkle joined him an hour later, he had found nothing relevant. “There doesn’t seem to be anything on werewolves or the Talons of Shadow in any of these books,” he said, shutting the tome in his hands and setting it on a pile of other books. “What shall we do about all of this, if we know nothing?” said Starlight. “Ask your sister about the Talons; they might have formed too recently to be in books, or they may be so secretive that few but her have any information on them.” “I hadn’t thought of that,” said Twilight, “but you’re right; we should ask as soon as Spike wakes up.” “Until then, let’s see about some breakfast,” said Philip, rubbing his hands together. “What do humans eat, anyway? Besides apples, I mean,” said Twilight. Philip thought for a moment, rubbing his chin. “Fruits, roots, shoots, vegetables...” “Can you eat flowers?” said Twilight. “Not most flowers,” said Philip, “and I can’t eat grasses, but I can eat oranges, lemons, coconuts, melons, tomatoes, potatoes, squash, broccoli, celery, lima beans, collard greens, cauliflower, eggplants…how about some cereal?” said Philip, noticing the exasperated look Twilight was giving him. “Cereal sounds delightful to me as well,” said Starlight. After breakfast, the three cleaned up the books, Starlight and Philip arranging them into piles with direction from Twilight. Then, they helped reshelf the books, again with direction from Twilight. “And the basic magical theory texts go there…Spike, you’re awake!” “Yeah,” said Spike, as he walked into the library, “no kidding.” “We were waiting for you to awaken, dear Spike,” said Starlight, smiling softly at him. “We need you to send a letter to my sister asking her for any information she has on the Talons of Shadow.” “Why?” said Spike, “What do we need to know about them for?” “Knowledge is power, Spike,” said Philip. “A sentiment after my own heart,” said Twilight with a smile. “I noticed,” quipped Philip. “I have been feeling rather powerless as of late,” muttered Starlight to herself, though Philip could hear her. She was staring at the ground, looking worried. Poor Luna’s been through enough, Philip thought to himself. She doesn’t deserve to live in fear like this. I can’t leave her; not until she’s safe. “Okay, what does that mean?” asked Spike. “The more we know about them, the harder it will be for the Talons to surprise us and the easier it will be to spot them and anticipate their actions,” said Philip, “so the more intel we have the better.” He paused, though his friends did not notice. Intel; the word sounded like military jargon, though he was not sure what it could mean. “Spike, take a letter!” said Twilight, apparently not noticing the word choice. “Ready,” said Spike, holding a quill and a scroll. Twilight dictated: Dear Princess Celestia, I am writing to you with the request that you send us any information you may have on the Talons of Shadow, so that should we encounter them we will better be able to recognize them and handle the situation accordingly. Your Faithful Student, Twilight Sparkle “Twilight…Sparkle,” repeated Spike, as he finished the letter, “there we go. I’ll send it right away,” he finished, saluting. “Well,” said Philip, “I’d better get to Sweet Apple Acres to help Applejack.” “If you don’t mind, I’d…like to come with you,” said Twilight hesitantly, “because, well, I…” “We wish to learn more about you,” said Starlight rapidly. “Sounds good to me,” said Philip, “let’s get going.” They left the castle, and walked down the street a ways. Then Philip said, “Twilight, why don’t you lead the way, since I have no idea where I’m going.” “Okay,” said Twilight with a chuckle, and they turned in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres. As they traveled through town, Philip heard more whispers regarding him. They seemed to be gaining vehemence and vitriol. He made a mental note to talk to the Mayor about arranging something to reassure Ponyville’s citizens. “Look at that thing.” “I’ll bet those mares have no idea what they’re getting into.” “It’s just waiting to attack, I know it.” “Hah! What’s the matter, you still too clumsy to fly?” Philip paused at this last comment; then he heard a distressed voice say, “Come on, guys, I have to deliver that mail soon or my boss will be really mad at me!” Philip turned to the others and said, “I think I hear trouble, girls; sounds like someone’s being bullied.” Turning in the direction of the voices, Philip took off, the mares following him with shouts of astonishment. As Philip ran, he noticed a rainbow trail leading towards the voices. That’ll be Dash, always sticking up for others. A wagon passed in front of him, and without pausing he leapt onto the top, much to the surprise of the mare pulling it. He then leapt onto the balcony of a nearby building, and from there to the top of the structure. He landed on all fours before rising and continuing his run, leaping from rooftop to rooftop, until he came to the edge of Ponyville. He spotted the trouble quickly from his higher vantage point; three Pegasus stallions, a chocolate-brown one, a light tan one, and a grey one, surrounding a grey Pegasus mare with a messy straw-colored mane. They were in a field not far from Philip’s perch, and the Stallions seemed to be playing keep-away with the mare’s saddlebags, flying above her. “Aw, can’t you catch us?” said the brown stallion, who was holding the mailbag, “Can’t fly good enough? You can’t even take two flaps without falling all over yourself, can you?” “Aren’t you boys a little old to be taking some poor girl’s bags?” shouted Philip from the rooftop. “Who’re...What’re you?” said the tan stallion, looking at Philip in shock. “His name’s Philip,” said Rainbow, who had just arrived on the scene. “How’d you get up there, anyway?” she asked with a shout, looking at the man. “Tell you later!” said Philip, jumping down from the top of the building and rolling to disperse the force. Without losing momentum he ran the rest of the way to the field, where the grey mare was looking at him with her left eye, while her right was looking off to the upper right; she had strabismus, and likely was accident-prone because of it. That explained why she was being bullied, though in Philip’s mind, it did not justify such actions. He felt a well of sympathy spring up in himself at the sight of the poor mare. “Are you here to help me, mister?” she said, her crooked eyes seeming to plead with him to say yes. “Just call me Philip or Phil, and of course,” said Philip, placing a hand on the mare’s head. “Okay mister Philip!” she said cheerfully, smiling like a child. “You gonna start somethin’?” said the brown stallion, pointing with a hoof. “No, I’m here to end this,” said Philip, “you’re going to give this sweet young lady her bag back and stop making fun of her.” “Why should we?” said the tan stallion, while the grey one chuckled. Rainbow opened her mouth, but was cut off by Philip. “Because if you were real stallions, you wouldn’t have taken it in the first place,” he said forcefully, a scowl on his face. “Real stallions don’t pick on others, because they don’t need to. True strength needs no proof; it’s enough to know you’re strong.” The three stallions and both mares looked at Philip in awe. “Wow,” said Rainbow, “that was cool.” “Who are these guys Dash?” said Philip, glaring at the stallions. “They’re some old Flight School Classmates of mine,” said Rainbow Dash, “the big one is Hoops, the chubby one is Score, and the other one is Dumbbell.” “Who’s this, your boyfriend?” said Hoops. “You dating monkeys, now, Derpy?” jeered Dumbbell. “No Dumbbell, she’s never met me before,” said Philip with a devious half-smile, “but let me give you some advice; you won’t get a girl by teasing her. If you want Derpy to like you, give her flowers or something.” “I don’t want to date her!” yelled Dumbbell. “Why so defensive, then?” countered Philip. “Hah,” laughed Rainbow, pointing a hoof, “he got you good!” “Now give the lady her bag, and don’t bother her anymore,” said Philip pleasantly. “Why should we?” said Hoops, who had tossed the bag to Dumbbell. “There are three of us, and it’s not like you can get us up here!” Score, who had flown up to Philip from behind, shoved him, hard. “Yeah,” said Dumbbell, laughing with his eyes closed, “give us one good reason not to-yipe!” While Dumbbell’s eyes were closed, Philip had jumped up and snatched the bag. Philip then let loose a flurry of blows to Dumbbell’s left wing with one hand. It was as if everything had slowed down; Philip could not understand why, but Dumbbell seemed unable to dodge or counter his strikes, soft though he knew they were. He was not trying to hurt the boy, after all. It would be counterproductive to do more than scare him. Dumbbell fell out of the sky with Philip, who grabbed his wings. The moment Philip’s feet touched the dirt, he slammed the brown Pegasus into the dirt on his belly. Then he twisted Dumbbell’s right wing behind his back and said in a low voice, “Listen punk; one thing I never tolerate, no matter what, is bullying. Only people with no self-esteem need to pick on others to feel powerful and only cowards attack single opponents in groups. Real men don’t pick on those weaker than themselves; they defend them from creeps like you. Now back off before I get the Royal Guard to show you how a real man behaves.” “That won’t be necessary,” said a male voice, and everyone turned to see a white Pegasus stallion in golden armor trotting up to them. “I saw that colt push you; these three are going to get a stern talking to, believe you me.” “Why are we in trouble?” said Hoops. “Because you started it,” said the Guard Pony with a glare. “So how long have you been watching?” said Rainbow Dash. “He got here right after you did,” Philip said, “but I guess he decided to let us handle it and just make sure no one got hurt.” “Oh, someone’s gonna get hurt,” said Dumbbell from under Philip. “I heard that, young colt,” said the guard, “and for your sake you’d better stay away from him.” “Yeah,” said Rainbow, “cause next time, I won’t let you off so easy!” “Actually,” said the Guard Pony, “I meant that next time I might not be here to stop him breaking bone. He’s definitely a trained fighter; I almost couldn’t see, but it looked like he was hitting the joints in that young colt’s wing, which crippled that wing enough to ground whomever it was attached to.” “Good eye,” said Philip. “You’re right, of course.” “Uh…” said Dumbbell, looking back at Philip, “so, you’re, what, in the Guard?” “No, but he fights like nothing I’ve ever seen, except in some movies,” said the Guard Pony. Dumbbell rolled his eyes. “I’m going to let you up,” said Philip, “and when I do, no funny stuff. That goes for you two as well,” he said to the other two bullies. They nodded their heads, and Philip let go of Dumbbell and back-flipped off of the stallion. Dumbbell shot him a dirty look, and the three colts left, Dumbbell favoring his wing. “Thank you for standing up for me, Mister Phil,” said Derpy, as he returned her bag. Philip wanted to hug her, she looked so pitiful; her ears drooped and her eyes were staring at different spots on the ground. “Sometimes ponies make fun of me, because of my eyes.” “I had a little help from this Guard Pony,” said Philip, “and for the record, I for one find your eyes to be rather endearing.” Derpy blushed a bit and smiled. “Is there anything else, officer?” he asked the guard. “Call me Pike Line,” said Pike Line. “There you are,” said Twilight, racing up to the group. Behind her was Starlight Dream, coming at a much slower pace. Both mares were gasping for breath, Starlight more so than Twilight. “We’ve…been…looking…all…over,” said Starlight between breaths. “You’re supposed to be taking it easy, Starlight,” said Philip, “I’m sorry for running off, but…” “He saved me from some nasty bullies!” said Derpy. She gasped suddenly. “Oh, I have to go now, or my boss might get mad at me for the mail being late! See you later,” she said, and off she flew. “Your friend here is quite the fighter,” said Pike Line. “He jumped at least twenty feet in the air to get that mare’s mailbag back.” “And you should’ve seen his moves,” said Rainbow, “he was all like powpowpow and Dumbbell just fell out of the air! It was pretty awesome, but I could’ve done better.” Philip smiled, and then proceeded to fill in the other four about where he had disappeared to. Rainbow was impressed, but said she could beat him in a race any time (“With my wings tied!”). The other two, however, wondered how he had done it, and Pike Line seemed skeptical that he had. “Well, I have to be off,” said Pike Line. He flew away, and Philip shrugged. “I guess I’d better get going,” he said. “Don’t want to be late for work at Applejack’s.” “Mind if I come?” asked Rainbow. “Not at all,” said Philip, tousling her mane. She shot him a confused glare, but he could tell she had enjoyed it, if only a little. “You are just going to go to work? After that?” said Starlight. “No reason to let those jerks ruin my day,” Philip replied. “So which way is it to the orchard?” Twilight pointed the way, and Philip looked at Starlight. “You know, I think it would be best to let you rest a bit.” Starlight shook her head. “No, no, I couldn’t! You must be going!” she replied. Philip looked thoughtful. “Well, I can’t leave you two alone, but I could probably carry you if you’d like.” He smiled. “Hmm…” She paused for a moment, thinking. “That sounds interesting,” she said finally, “I would like to try it.” “Me too!” said Twilight, “but maybe later, because I’m sure you couldn’t carry us both.” “Well then,” said Philip, “hop on and hold on, Star.” He knelt on the grass, and Starlight climbed gingerly onto his back. Then, he stood up and walked in the direction Twilight had indicated. As they walked, Twilight said, “So, what exactly happened?” Rainbow grinned, and proceeded to give an animated, blow-by-blow account of what had transpired. Philip chuckled at her excitement. “Wow,” said Twilight, “it sounds like you’re a pretty good fighter.” “I wish I could remember more about myself,” said Philip, “but I do remember one other thing.” “Which is what?” said Twilight. “I know a lot about how to fight without seriously injuring my opponent. I intentionally avoided really hurting him.” “Oh…that’s good.” Philip let Rainbow and Twilight get slightly ahead of them. Then he looked at Starlight. “Star, what did you mean back at the castle about feeling powerless?” “What?” said Starlight, “Oh, y-you heard that?” Philip nodded his head. “W-well,” said Starlight, “when the werewolf attacked me, I was very frightened. It was so much stronger, physically, than almost any living thing I had ever known, and when it came back after all the m-magic I’d used against it, I, I was a-afraid that it was invincible. And it was so…so ferocious,” she said, with a haunted look, “as if it cared for nothing but hurting everything. It was the most terrifying thing I had ever encountered. I hadn’t felt that helpless since I became...in a long time.” She was staring ahead with unseeing eyes, her pupils shrunk to pinpricks. She visibly shook, and Philip had to repress the urge to take her off of his back and into his arms. “Don’t be afraid,” he said to her instead, “do you remember what we decided to do yesterday?” Starlight nodded. “We were going to keep wolfsbane around our necks in necklaces. But I think Twilight and I forgot ours.” Philip smiled and showed her his necklace of flowers under his shirt. “I remembered mine.” “Hey! Hey! Hey!” Philip looked down the road they were walking on; they had arrived at Sweet Apple Acres’ apple orchard, and Apple Bloom was waving at them. “Hi eveypony! I heard y’all were comin’! Applejack’s this way!” She led them into the orchard, among rows and rows of verdant trees ripe with luscious, beautiful apples of all shapes, colors and sizes. The trees seemed to stretch on for miles in every direction, like a sea of leaves dotted with fruity flotsam. Philip had not been entirely truthful when he asked for directions; even from the castle, he had been able to smell the delicious aroma of ripe apples. He had not, however, wanted to admit that his nose was so good. A rhythmic thudding became audible, and they found Applejack kicking at one of the trees. “Come…on…you…” she said, kicking harder. “Oh, howdy y’all,” she said, “Ah’ll be with ya in a sec.” She gave the tree one final kick, and then sighed in frustration. “It’ll hafta wait fer Big Mac an’ the shovel.” She turned to her friends. “Why’re y’all so late anyhow?” “We ran into some bullies picking on Derpy Hooves,” said Rainbow. “Philip told them that they were pathetic ‘cause they were picking on her, and then took the mailbag back from Dumbbell when he wouldn’t give it back. He jumped like twenty feet in the air and put Dumbbell in some wing lock or something, and then he said he doesn’t put up with bullies.” “And I don’t put up with them,” stated Philip, with a severe frown on his face, “…do you mind if I take a whack at that tree, Applejack? I need to vent a little.” Applejack shrugged and said, “If it’ll make ya feel a little better Ah don’t mind.” “Okay,” said Philip. He looked at the tree, remembering the spot Applejack had kicked it. The tree looked awful; the bark had turned the color of rock, and there were no leaves or apples. “What’s wrong with this tree, anyway?” he said. “Well,” said Applejack, tilting her Stetson back, “It caught some kinda blight an’ died. Worst part is, the trunk’s so hard now we can’t cut it down. Must be some kinda side effect of the blight. Ah was gonna just kick it over, but it won’t budge. Ah’m gonna see what’s takin’ Big Mac so long.” “We’ll go with you,” said the other three mares. “I’ll catch up in a moment,” said Philip. They hurried off into the trees. Philip closed his eyes and turned around, facing away from the tree. He focused on all the rage, all the fury he held towards bullies and their stupidity and insecurity and pathetic, sniveling, cowardly, dishonorable… “TSAYAH!!” he shouted, spinning around and kicking the tree. The tree trunk was crushed all the way through. It toppled over with a loud crash as Philip back-flipped away. “Holy smoke,” said Philip, “what the heck just…argh!” He bent over with a snarl as a memory filled his mind. A phalanx of soldiers in gleaming bronze armor charged with loud war cries against a much larger force, hemmed in by cliffs on one side and the sea on another. Philip could feel the earth shaking, see the masked enemy forces approaching; he deflected a strike from a spear with his large round shield, and rallied with his own. He kept stabbing and blocking, until he felt a searing pain and saw a spear protruding from his stomach. He stabbed his own spear through the eye of the opponent and pulled out the one in his gut, only to feel a stray arrow pierce his neck. He fell to the dust. Fight on without me, my brothers, he thought as darkness overtook him. “What the…” Philip said to himself as he rose from the crouch he had sunk into. “Whoa!” said a female voice, and Applejack, Starlight, Twilight, Rainbow, and a red stallion Philip thought must be Big Macintosh came running up to him. “Well ah’ll be,” said Applejack, “Ah guess Ah got it after all.” “Yeah, I guess you did,” said Philip. “Didja at least get ta kick it or somethin’?” said Applejack. “I kicked it all right,” said Philip, “and that must have finally shaken it enough that it fell over.” Philip was not sure why, but he felt that just as with his sense of smell, he should keep his strength a secret. He felt, for some reason, that it would frighten his friends and possibly drive them away. He did not want that. Applejack shrugged again. “Well, it’s down now,” she said. “Now come on, you can help us carry some baskets. Oh, this is mah brother Big Macintosh. Big Mac, this is Philip.” “Pleased ta meetcha,” said Big Macintosh. He and Philip shook hooves/hands. “Charmed,” said Philip, nodding to Big Mac. Introductions done, the ponies and Philip all left for another part of the orchard. There, Applejack and Big Macintosh began to buck the trees, causing apples to fall from the branches. Philip found himself impressed with their strength and endurance as he helped Apple Bloom and Twilight carry the baskets back to the barn (Twilight observing him in what she probably thought was an unobtrusive manner), and after a few hours they took a short break. As they were settling down, a small brown and white Border collie ran out of the nearby farmhouse, barking up a storm. “Hush, Winona, he’s a friend!” yelled Apple Bloom. The dog, Winona apparently, kept right on running and barking at Philip until she got about five feet away. Then she suddenly stopped with a yelp. Her loud barks changed to high pitched yaps, and she kept circling around but did not approach any closer. “Winona what’s gotten into you?” said Applejack with a furrowed brow. “Ah’m sorry! Ah didn’t mean it!” said Apple Bloom, running over to Winona and hugging her. Winona pressed her head into Applebloom, whining. That was probably why they called her Winona. “It’s me, not her,” said Philip, “Opal reacted the same way.” “Opal ran under a chair,” said Starlight, “Winona seems to be barking at you.” Philip nodded. “She is,” he said, “but those aren’t barks of anger. Before, her barks were more territorial. These barks are about the dog equivalent of screaming in terror. Winona’s afraid of me.” “So, animals are afraid of you?” said Apple Bloom, holding a shivering Winona close. “Yes, and I think it may mean something. I don’t know what it would be, though,” said Philip. “If ya have a minute,” said Big Macintosh, walking up at that moment, “Ah’ve got somethin’ Ah’d like ta ask ya.” Philip shrugged, and they went to talk under a tree nearby, leaving Winona to be calmed by Applejack. “Do ya really think that tree fell from Applejack’s kick?” said Big Mac. “No, and I’m betting you don’t either. I could feel the tree shattering when I kicked it, and it left the stump; I’m just glad I didn’t hit that bully nearly as hard.” Big Mac nodded. “Ah agree, but ah ain’t gonna say anythin’; don’t see no reason ta. Ya seem troubled, though; anythin’ wrong?” “Well Big Mac, I have amnesia and I don’t remember anything much about who I am or how I got here, but right after I kicked the tree down I had a flashback where I was surrounded by men like myself. We were wearing bronze plate armor, and carrying spears and large roundshields. We were fighting some battle with another army, and I think I was killed. I can’t imagine how it could be real, but it certainly felt real.” Big Mac chewed on a stalk of wheat in his mouth. “Well, Ah think ya’d better tell the girls about that; Twilight seems like more the kinda’ pony ta help ya with that.” Just then, Apple Bloom trotted up. “Hey, Granny Smith’s makin’ snacks! What kinda fruits ya like? We got apples, oranges, pears, oh, and some grapes! Ya like grapes Philip?” Philip looked off into the distance. “Yes,” he said softly, “I love grapes. And olives, I adore olives. And bathing in the Eurotas at the end of a hard day’s training. Nothing better than that. I really miss it.” He sighed. “Uh,” said Apple Bloom, “well, we got grapes, so…yeah.” She left to fetch something to eat. “Ya remembered somethin’ else?” said Big Mac. Philip nodded, “Apparently I come from someplace that has lots of grapes and olives, and is fairly close to a river called the Eurotas; at least I think it’s a river. It sounded like it was. Don’t know what I meant about training, but from earlier, I think I might have been in an army of some sort.” Big Mac chewed on a stalk of wheat. “Well,” he said, “Ah dunno ‘bout that, but Ah reckon you should ask Twilight. From what Applejack says, she’s one smart little alicorn princess.” Philip nodded; then he heard a branch snap and looked across the orchard. There was a pony approaching, looking directly at him. He got a strange feeling from the pony, a slate-grey unicorn stallion with a cloak that covered his Cutie Mark and a blonde mane and tail. The pony trotted right up to them, and said without preamble, “I assume that you are Philip.” Philip stood and nodded, his expression guarded. “Excellent,” said the pony, “my name is Stone Slab. I was just wondering if you could tell me where to find Princess Luna?” “I seem to recall Princess Celestia and Princess Luna going back to Canterlot after leaving the hospital. I was there with amnesia, you see; don’t remember anything before yesterday morning. They said Luna was going on a vacation for her health, but they didn’t say where.” Philip shrugged, “they don’t know me that well, so…” Philip suddenly spun around and kicked the tree behind him. The tree shook, and a Griffon with brown feathers, tawny fur, and a single eyebrow across the middle of his forehead fell out of the tree. He landed headfirst, and lay groaning in pain at the bottom of the tree trunk. Turning back to Stone Slab, Philip said, “Are you going to introduce us to your friend? He was whispering something about you taking too long while we were talking, and to get on with it.” The Griffon looked up in shock. “No way!” he said in a gruff voice, “How’d you hear me up there!” Philip shrugged again. “Okay,” said Stone Slab, “I’ll level with you; we’re private investigators, sent by Princess Celestia to investigate the werewolf. She has entrusted us with all relevant information to the case. We saw you were not described on our list of Ponyville residents, and that makes you a…person…of interest, so we need to interview you. I advise you to cooperate; we have the full authority of the princesses on our side.” “If that were true, you’d know why I was here and who I was,” said Philip. “Furthermore, your heart rate increased when you said that, and your left eye twitched. I know a tell when I see one; you’re lying.” Big Macintosh looked at him in astonishment. The Griffon looked confused. The stallion said, “Suit yourself; we’ll be back with an arrest warrant.” He smiled, and then slowly began to look worried as Philip stared at him. After about three minutes, he turned and briskly trotted off, the now-angry Griffon behind him. Big Mac whistled; “That was interestin’. Think they’ll really be back with an arrest warrant?” Philip shook his head. “I wasn’t kidding about the heart rate and the eye thing; I can tell when someone is lying to me. They were bluffing, and I called it. Something wrong?” Big Macintosh was looking at him oddly. “Don’cha need ta blink?” he said. Philip blinked. “Of course I need to blink, why…” He paused. How long had he gone without blinking just now? It had to have been at least five minutes. “Pike Line was right,” said Philip thoughtfully. “I’m certain now that I must be some kind of trained warrior, but from where?” “Hey, are you two done talking yet?” said Rainbow from the group a ways away. “The snacks are ready!” Philip smiled and waved…then stopped, looking right at Twilight. “Uh oh,” he said, and then he rose and raced towards the group as fast as he could. “Girls,” he said, “I need to tell you some…what?” They were staring at him. Suddenly, Rainbow jumped right in his face and said, “You didn’t tell me you could run that fast! We gotta race!” Philip shook his head. “Now’s not the time for that, Rainbow,” he said sharply, “I think we may have just seen our were…” “AwooooOOOOOoooooo!” They all started. “…wolf,” said Philip. “It’s the werewolf!?” shrieked Twilight. “No, that sounded like an ordinary wolf,” said Philip, waving a hand at her, “but we need to find…” “EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!”