The yellow pegasus slid the bags onto her back as the young dragon continued his protests.
"Please, Fluttershy. I want to help her too." She looked to him with a smile and gently stroked his head with her hoof.
"I know, Spike. But this is far too dangerous for you. I don't want something to happen to you too. Besides, someone needs to stay behind to look after Nyx. Right?" The little drake turned back to the filly in question and let out a defeated sigh, nodding his reply to her query. The concern he was feeling for the pony who had essentially been his mother was apparent to Fluttershy, whom moved her hoof under his chin and lifted his head until their eyes met.
"Spike. I WILL bring her back. I promise." These words brought a hopeful smile to his face.
"I know you will," he replied as she pulled him close. A small black filly joined the embrace but an instant later. As comforting as it was to them, it seemed almost empty lacking a certain unicorn. Fluttershy knew she couldn't stay long, as someone she cared for dearly was in terrible danger. She pulled away and left them with a warm smile.
"We'll be back before you know it." Fluttershy turned and walked across the floorboards of the glowing library. On opening the main door, she was greeted with four friendly faces. An elegant white unicorn stepped forward to meet her.
"Fluttershy, are you sure you want to do this?" The unicorn inquired with concern. "The princess went to gather her guards. We could just await their return."
"And by the time they've finished scouring the forest, Twilight could be long dead." Applejack looked over her normally timid friend quizzically. Rarity quickly gained her composure with a determined glare.
“You’re right. She’s in far too much danger at the moment. She is our friend, and she needs us now more than ever. Let’s go!” She turned about and took a triumphant lead toward the foreboding treeline. The remaining four immediately picked up her pace. All eyes were focused, set forward to their goal. All but two, that is. A pair of green ocular discs were affixed to the yellow pegasus in the group, filled with both curiosity and concern.
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One jumbling mass of logs shattered into pieces, and scattered into ash along the dirt.
“Get outta my way!” Beams of violet energy pulsated towards the timber beasts. One of the feral creatures ducked by a flash of light, forced all of his strength into his legs, and pounced. Before he could reach his target, he found himself engulfed in flames, and soon collapsed. The mystical appendage from which the threatening array had originated ignited once more, more than prepared to continue its battle.
It’s opponents, however, acknowledged how severely outmatched they were, and elected not to torment themselves further. A small clacking sounded from their wooden limbs as they scurried hastily away. The unicorn left in their wake grinned maliciously at the triumphant tone.
“And stay gone.” She sat for a moment to recover from the assault, and breathed the air in deeply. The forest was such a chaotic place, yet over the past few hours she had noticed that the air seemed so much fresher- more tranquil than any she had inhaled elsewhere. Were the circumstances different, she would admire the irony. Perhaps even design some convoluted experiments to uncover the reasoning.
But she had no time. She knew she must press forward. Her hoof rose from the ground slowly, inching closer to her head, and pulled an object from her hair. It was a small trinket, few inches larger than a bit. Yet the loving smiles staring back at her, motivating her, increased its value far beyond even the most exquisite treasures.
Gently, she lifted the bauble to her muzzle, and pressed her lips softly against it, before replacing it in its usual position. She brought herself back to her hooves. Her eyes shot from left to right as they scanned the surrounding area for anything to further disrupt her journey. On deciding that the coast was currently clear, she began a brisk trot to make up the time she had spent on her break. After all, her trek was far from over.
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“I wonder where she’d be in all of this…” A concerned Rarity searched fruitlessly for the familiar lavender coat. All of the mares in the group were generally less exuberant than was custom. All but one, whom maintained an astonishingly clear head so far.
“Torero wasn’t attempting some flashy magic show,” the yellow pegasus responded, “He wanted his name in the history books, as the one who killed the great Twilight Sparkle. If he truly wanted to see her dead, the heart of the forest would be the place to do it.”
Rarity sighed rather contently at this.
“Good. Since we have an idea of where to go, it shouldn’t be too difficult.” Though her friend’s response to this statement shot her enthusiasm back more quickly than it had come.
“None of you should let your guard down. The Everfree Forest spans an area of seventeen miles longitudinally, twenty laterally. So far, we have only explored the northern edge. There is no documentation on the center, because everyone is too afraid to stray from the path. You see, this road we’re following is enchanted with an odor which, while indistinguishable to us, drives away the more dangerous predators.” Rainbow felt that this was an appropriate point in the conversation to offer her two bits.
“Well, I guess someone didn’t cast it right. We’ve already seen manticores, timber wolves, cockatrices... “
“That’s right. We have.” This brought a quizzical expression to the face of the rainbow-maned pegasus. For a moment, she pondered over her friend’s ominous words. It didn’t take long for her to discern their true meaning, which caused her and the three other listeners to begin trembling slightly.
“If those are what the spell lets in…
“what is it keeping out?”