//------------------------------//
// In the Unquiet Silence 
// Story: The Ancient Heart of the Everwood Dragon 
// by Grey Faerie 
//------------------------------//

	"Okay, thanks. I'll see you later Spike." Twilight hugged him and they all said good bye.
Nurse Lightwind guided them to the back, through a hallway and passed closed doors. The painted white wooden walls looked raw. The doors creaked as they walked by. At the back of the hospital was the mental ward. It sat closed and cold.
She opened the doors and they followed. At the end of the main room, the patients sat shivering. Their wounds could be seen sneaking out from under the bandages. Rope burns and scrapes reddened their skin. The twisting vines had torn at their skin wishing to be let in. They dragged them down hungering for the refreshing drink that ran in their veins.
The survivors weren't very coherent when we got to them. It sounds like some sort of forest wraith. They all agreed it looked like a tree. Twilight shivered again. She walked forward to the closest one.
"Um, excuse me? Can I have a moment to talk to you?" She crept slowly towards the stallion.
"What! What? What is it? Where is it?" His arms pressed hard around his body. He gripped himself ever tighter.
"Please. Tell me. What was it you saw?" She implored quietly.
"It... It was a tree. It was huge. As big as the surrounding trees, no! Even bigger! The vines oh the vines..." He pressed his eyes shut as tight as they would go.
"I'm sorry, but please, what else. What exactly did it look like?"
"It... well, it looked sort of like a dragon."
"A dragon?" She looked at the other girls. They looked just as surprised.





They walked back to the city hall. The rest of the patients had said the same things. It looked like a tree, the vines attacked them, it resembled a dragon as well.
"A dragon that looks like a tree. Or a tree that looks like a dragon. How odd." Twilight muttered to herself.





"Now, hold zee sword firmly. Good. Raise it up over your head and strike down." Helden Guard smiled. Spike had gotten the hang of the sword pretty quick. He had been sloppy at first, just swinging it around. But now he was practicing the basic forms.
"Just know, in a real battle, no one vill care about correct form, but, it is very important. It's about skill." Helden swung the sword in an arc, "Technique." He passed it from hoof to hoof. "And talent." He struck the wooden pole with the sword in mouth. He took it out. "Remembering how to swing the sword correctly is a matter of life and death."
Spike smiled and got into position. There were six areas of the body. High, middle, and low, left and right side.
"Hey! This part is sort of like fencing. I've done this a little with some of guard ponies." He struck out in a fencing pose.
"Yes, zat is correct. You vill find zat some principles carry over. Oh, greetings, Princess." Helden bowed to Twilight.
"Hello Helden. Has Spike been good?"
"Yes, very much so. He is a very good student." He smiled at Spike who blushed.
"Look, look! I have a bow and arrow, and a sword too! I'm like a real knight now." Spike puffed out his chest.
Twilight chuckled and tilted her head. "Are you sure you should be having those? They aren't toys."
"I know that! Helden said to 'Only point at a target you are villing to kill,' " he said in his best imitation.
"I guess. Come on. We're going to the hotel we're staying at. It's called the Carrie Inn. We need to discuss the plans for our next move."
"Alright then. Bye, Helden! I'll keep practicing!"
Helden nodded and walked away as well.
"... It's all so cool you've got to see me. It's like a zis and like zis." Spike swung the sword.
"Hey! Don't be swinging that so much. I still can't believe he gave you a real sword." Twilight huffed.





"We're here!" Twilight announced as they entered the room. The girls had two rooms to sleep in but were all currently in the main banquet room for planning.
"Hey, Twilight!" Pinkie waved at her.
"Hi, girls. Spike, put those things down now. We're inside."
Spike grumped at her and put down the bow and quiver. He keep the sword though and walked to the far part of the room to practice.
"Wow! That's so cool!" Pinkie remarked.
"Isn't it? Helden gave it to me. I'm practicing to be a soldier like him," Spike said proudly. Rarity giggled.
Spike stabbed the empty air as he imagined the six points and stuck out at them. He raised the sword and struck it down over and over until arms were getting tired. At times, he would look over at the girls as they talked over the map. Spike sat on the chair, picking up his cup of water and sipped from the straw. The girls all looked so grown up. It was always so odd to him. On a normal day, they were just ponies of Ponyville. Going to market, taking walks, playing games. But here they were planning a defense against an unknown creature of the forest.
Twilight was pursing her lips. That could only mean she was in deep thought. She tapped her lips now. Did she have an idea? No, she looked at the map with frustration.
Spike looked around the room but it was plain and wooden. The top part of the walls were plastered white with pictures of landscapes of hills and forests. Couldn't they just have put in a window? Those things are right outside.
Oh hey! The girls were getting up.
"So where are we going?" Spike jumped off the chair.
"You are staying here. I'm going to go look for more sightings of strange creatures with Pinkie, Rainbow, and Rarity. Applejack and Fluttershy are going to look into communicating with the animals."
"What! But I want to do something." Spike complained.
"Why don't you go to the city hall then? I think they would enjoy having an excellent assistant like you there."
Spike kicked at the dust. "Fine."





It was odd. The forest was silent. There were trees scattered along the way to the new field clearing. Fluttershy smelt it first, fresh dirt and metallic. A barricade was set up down the path. It looked unharmed. Broken logs and twigs started to cover the ground. The ruins of a barricade came within sight. A red tinge covered parts of the shattered wood. The open field was covered with saplings and full trees but they could tell the ground had been recently dug up.
Copper smell and red stains were all that was left of the ponies underfoot. Applejack shuffled uncomfortably on the dirt. They walked closer to the field. There were no sounds of bird song. Fluttershy looked around more closely. They both cautiously trotted through the trees. Nothing was stirring.
The tree line for the forest came within sight. They stopped to listen. The only sound was the shaking of leaves in the wind. Fluttershy was trembling when Applejack looked over to her. She looked at Applejack with uncertainty. Applejack nodded to the forest. They needed answers.
The shadows of the forest fell on them with owl wings. Quick and silent, it only promised death. Fluttershy strained her ears for the sound of birds, squirrels, anything. There was only nothing.
The two of them now wish they had the other girls with them. They were out here in enemy territory. The lush underbrush gave what little sound there was to the forest. They both stopped and looked around. Fluttershy cringed and held her eyes shut. It was too strange to her.
"Hello! Is anybody there!?" Fluttershy called out.
"Wha... By golly, Flutters, you've got to be quiet."
"Hello!! Anybody! Anything! Where are you?" Fluttershy ran around calling out. Applejack tried in vain to get her to quiet down. The noise covered any that might have been made by another creature.
A bird flew down into Fluttershy's face. She squeaked in fright then realized what it was.
"A bird! Hello, friend." Fluttershy was still twitching with nerves.
It chirped back to her. Applejack calmed down as well. Fluttershy talked with the bird for a few minutes. Her face was contorted in confusion. She shook her head. Finally, she looked defeated and nodded.
"So?"
"It's... I don't know." Fluttershy shook her head.





They got back to the hotel near night fall. The girls and Spike all crowded in one of the bedrooms.
"It's so strange." Twilight started, "There have been no sightings before of any 'tree creatures'. I've looked through every reference book I could find. Nothing. No mention of dragons or trees intermixed."
"It was too quiet. No birds. No little animals." Fluttershy's eyes were wide. "We did managed to find one bird." A strained smile crossed her face.
"What did it say?" Twilight asked.
"It was confusing. It said we shouldn't mess with the tree dragon. That it is a part of the forest, it's not bad, it's just protecting the land. I couldn't understand all of what it was saying. It kept going on about the land, the trees, moving land in the forest. About living in the dragon. I don't get it." She shook her head and sighed. "I asked why there were no animals in the area. It said it was because it was tainted land. They were too scared to go back yet."
"This is just great." Twilight rubbed her forehead, "Let's get some rest. We have a lot to do tomorrow."