A/N
Hiatus...BROKEN!
I still can't believe even under the effects of writer's block, I managed to get a chapter out!
Also, please let me know if any part of this feels too rushed.
This chapter is nearly 2,000 words :D
End A/N
Everfree Forest edge...
Jordan, Jake, Cloud, and Briar finally arrived at the edge of the forest. As they strolled out, the warming light of Celestia's sun was beginning to fade, and soon, Luna's night would take hold. They scoped the area, looking for any sign of the Elements of Harmony.
"Guys, do you see them?" Jordan asked the others.
"Nope." Jake responded in the accent of Engineer.
"Nothing in my sight." Cloud responded.
"Can't see anything from A to B." Briar stated.
Jordan sighed. He took to the air for a better vantage point. Cloud followed suit. They looked down to see Briar still on the ground. Jake made his way to him. "Hey Briar, why don't you go with them?"
Briar turned to Jake. "This." He turned to show Jake his wings. They were wrapped in bandages. Jake's eyes widened a bit.
"When did this happen?" Jake asked.
"Its...not important right now Jakester." Briar stated.
'Jakester?' Jake thought to himself.
"What is important is that I can't fly. I'll have to keep looking at ground level." Briar concluded. With that, they continued in the direction Jordan and Cloud flew in.
In the air...
Jordan and Cloud flew side by side, looking in all directions in search of the Elements. Jordan looked to the left side, while Cloud looked to the right.
"See anything Cloud?" Jordan said to his counterpart.
"Nothing yet." Cloud said, but seeing a bit of movement. "Wait...Jordan, you might want to see this." Jordan craned his head in the direction Cloud was looking. He saw six figures moving in unison, one much taller than the other five. He squinted.
"I knew it." He stated. Jordan signaled to Jake and Briar on the ground, with simple body movements. Jake understood what Jordan was interpreting, while Briar was at a complete loss. He turned to Jake.
"Umm...Jake, is he having a seizure?" he asked. Jake turned to look at him, and gave him a glare.
"He is signaling that they spotted something. Let's go." Jake responded flatly, and they both dashed in Jordan's direction.
Fluttershy's cottage...
Fluttershy brought out chicken feed to the chickens in their coop. She heard them clucking like there was a thunderstorm coming. She looked up in the sky.
She gasped, and shrunk back. "W-what is that?" She cowered a bit. B.B. eventually came out to where Fluttershy was, but he saw her reaction. He made his way to her, wondering what was wrong.
"F-Fluttershy, what's..." a shadow overtook the entire cottage. B.B. turned around and looked up, and saw a large dark cloud start to overtake the entire town. B.B.'s pupils shrank, and he backed up, and right next to Fluttershy. They were both shivering in complete nervousness. They both then turned to each other, and periodically alternated between looking at the sky, and at each other. Suddenly, a downpour of chocolate rain fell on the cottage. Both B.B. and Fluttershy darted back inside, leaving the bag of chicken feed on the ground.
Inside, Fluttershy and B.B. grabbed towels and dried themselves off.
"Now what do we do?" B.B. asked timidly, obviously scared of the situation. Fluttershy looked down at the ground. She had a mix of emotions building in her. She was scared, but she also had never seen anypony either as or more timid as her. She trotted up to him, and held him close to comfort him. B.B. went wide eyed. He held her back, and felt comforted. They both sat in the middle of the room, neither wanting to let go.
Skies of Equestria...
Shadow Breeze flew through the air, on a search for Cloud Dasher. He searched all of Ponyville and Canterlot, and did not find him. He decided to search the Everfree Forest, despite the risks.
"Okay, Everfree Forest, here I-" Shadow was cut off by a sudden burst of wind. He got knocked flying, but regained control, just as chocolate rain started pouring down. He decided the weather became too hazardous to make his endeavor. He landed on the ground, and the wind started picking up more. He darted toward the closest building he could find, which was Applejack's home. He made his way inside, and noticed there was a large red pony at the door.
"Uh..." Shadow could barely make out. The larger pony trotted up to him. He stared intently at him. But eventually, he stopped.
"Eeyup." He stated. Shadow sighed in relief. He held his hoof out. "Name's shadow Breeze."
The large red stallion met his hoof. "Big Macintosh." Shadow made his way into the main room. In it were two more ponies. The young filly made her way to Shadow.
"Howdy there mister!" she stated with great innocence. "Ahm Applebloom!" Shadow just smiled.
"Shadow Breeze." He looked around, and noticed a lime green older pony on a rocking chair. He smiled. 'I'll introduce myself to her later.' He sat on the couch, and made himself at home, but not long after, Applebloom gave him a request.
"Mister Shadow, wanna play tic-tac-toe with me?" she said, giving puppy dog eyes. Shadow couldn't say no to a face like that. He got off the couch, and grabbed parchment. They began playing, although Applebloom kept beating him. But it was all in good fun.
FeatherFoot's abode...
Derpy hooves had just finished baking a tray of muffins. She pulled them out of the oven, and a bit clumsily, placed them on the counter. She was about to get some honey to go with them, but she heard a knock on the door. She dashed up to the door and opened it. She squeed at who it was...FeatherFoot.
"Hi Derpy. Sorry I got here late. Things are getting pretty bad out there." Feather stated. Derpy looked behind him, and dark clouds began to fill the air. Thunder boomed. Derpy got startled and pulled Feather into the house, holding him tightly. Feather brushed her mane.
"It's okay Derpy, you're going to be just-"
*BOOM*
Another bolt that struck just outside the house. Feather jumped about twenty feet before landing back on the ground. Derpy giggled at this. She helped him back up, and hugged him. "Feel better?"
He smiled, and gave her a kiss. "Now I do."
They both watched out the very window where Feather met Derpy, seeing the dark clouds go by, and the rain fall. They turned to each other, and to each other's surprise, beamed, even while the weather was going by itself.
Everfree Forest edge...
Jordan and Cloud approached the figures in the distance. As they made their descent, however, one of the silhouettes disappeared, the tallest one. They were finally able to see what the shadows were. They were, in fact, five of the Elements, but they looked very different. All of their color was drained, and they bore angry expressions on their faces. Jordan's trot changed to a gallop, as he sped toward Rainbow Dash. He caught up with no problem.
"Dashie, thank goodness I-" Jordan was cut off by Rainbow Dash.
"Jordan...why didn't you tell us you were here to destroy Equestria?" She said, very upset and a tear forming.
"Dashie, what are you-"
"ANSWER ME!" Rainbow shouted, alerting the other four. They all turned around, and saw the argument going on.
"Dashie, why would you even-" He stopped himself. "Discord." He looked to the ground, gritting his teeth. As his anger bottled up, Jake and Briar arrived. Jake noticed Twilight, and made his way toward her. He nearly got to her, when he saw her horn glow, and push him back.
"Jake...why..." Twilight asked in a depressed tone. Jake's look changed to worry. He tried to get close, but Twilight's magic kept him at bay. "...just...stay away."
Hearing this, Jake started shedding a tear. Cloud's expression changed from heartwarmth, to worry, and finally swiftly to aggravation. He tried to get close, but Jordan stopped him.
"Cloud, leave this to us." Jordan stated flatly.
"But-" Cloud was cut off by Jordan.
"Please..." Jordan concluded, a tear starting to be shed. Cloud looked back to Briar, and backed away from Jordan.He looked to the ground.
Jordan and Jake attempted to talk to Rainbow and Twilight respectively, but either got yelled at or pushed back. Finally, Jake had an idea.
"Jordan." Jake told Jordan. "Come over here." Jake whispered into Jordan's ear, and he nodded. They both went in two directions. Twilight remained focused on Jake, and Rainbow focused on Jordan. Suddenly, Jordan flies into the air, and taps Twilight. She looked up.
"Peek-a-boo!" Jordan exclaimed. Twilight tried using her magic to grab him, but Jake tapped Twilight as well.
"Peek-a-boo!" Jake stated. Twilight turned around, and tried to deflect him, but Jordan did the same thing, and both Jordan and Jake continued to alternate. Seeing this, Briar burst out laughing, and Cloud was confused. The other four Elements, seeing this display, only looked on. Pinkie Pie, however, was starting to bubble with laughter, but was repressing it. Seeing Pinkie start to vibrate, Jordan whispered to Jake.
"Let's finish this. Pinkie's about to explode with laughter." He stated. Jake nodded, and they both poked Twilight, saying:
"Tag, your it!"
Seeing this, Briar laughed a bit harder, and out of the blue, more laughter, but not from Jordan, Jake, or Cloud. They all turned to Pinkie Pie, who's pink color was starting to return as she laughed. Jake saw this as his chance. He grabbed Twilight, and pulled her into a kiss. As he held her, she tried to pull away, but her eyes widened. She was remembering when she was with Celestia making sure Jordan and Jake were not spies.
*flashback*
"I don't think these two are up to anything that could harm any of us."
"Princess-"
"I assure you my dearest student, that they mean no harm"
***
Jake pulled away from her, and noticed her purple tone was starting to return little by little. After about one minute, her color was restored completely. She collapsed to the ground, but Jake picked her back up. She slowly started coming to.
"J-Jake?" Twilight asked groggily. Jake smiled a wide smile, and turned toward Jordan. He returned the smile. Jake turned back to Twilight. "Where...where are we?"
"It's a long story, Twi'." Jake stated. "And...well...it involves Discord." Hearing this, Twilight darted upright. She turned around. The others, save for Pinkie Pie, who was laughing with Briar, had a gray tone. Twilight knew what to do. She went up to each and every one of them, and reminded each of them of what Celestia had said weeks before. All of their hues returned to normal.
"Girls, we have a situation." Twilight stated. "Jordan was right. Discord has returned. We need to get to the other side of the Everfree, and get Fluttershy." They all nodded, and all eight of the ponies made their way back through the Everfree, no hedge maze this time.
A/N
There you have it!
Once again, if the story feels too rushed at times, please please please PLEASE let me know.
If you have any suggestions for future chapters (also, thanks AnonJ17!), drop me a line!
Till next chapter...
Eternity out!
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