//------------------------------// // Into The Swamp // Story: Shudderbones: The Necromancer of Flame Geyser Swamp // by SkelePone //------------------------------// "Are ya sure we're headin' the right way, Sweetie?" "This is gonna be so COOL!" "Shhhhhh! I'm trying to read the map!" The echoing voices of the three excited fillies swept across Flame Geyser Swamp, far from the Cajun Earth Pony settlements, and even further from Ponyville. The cloudy dusk sky was darkening fast. Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo were on a mission. A Cutie Mark Crusader mission, of course. The Cutie Mark Crusader Paranormal Investigators were off on a quest to prove the existence of the Necromancer of Flame Geyser Swamp, a mysterious boogeymare that supposedly had powers to control ghosts and raise the dead. Of course, they had been eagerly egged on by a suspiciously optimistic Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. None of the fillies were afraid, though. The Necromancer was just a spooky ghost story to keep foals out of the Swamp. The swamp which, besides the occasional Flame Geyser and large wild monster, was pretty peaceful. Especially as they trotted along the worn path that was outlined on their map. "So what's all this hullabaloo about a neck mincer?" Apple Bloom asked. "It's not NECK MINCER, it's NECROMANCER." Sweetie Belle corrected, being the walking dictionary. "What the hay is a necromancer?" "A necromancer is a unicorn, normally a very powerful one, that practices dark magic and makes deadly brews, especially ones relating to-" Sweetie Belle was interrupted by the third of the group. "DEEEEEAAAAATH!!!" Scootaloo moaned, in a desperate attempt to frighten Apple Bloom. Apple Bloom, however, was not impressed. "I don't buy it. That necro-whatsit is probably some ol' coot that tells scary stories, or maybe kinda like Zecora, 'cept it's in the Flame Geyser Swamp. I ain't scared!" Apple Bloom announced boldly. A flame geyser erupted not too far off, and Apple Bloom dashed over to hide behind Sweetie Belle and the levitating map. Sweetie and Scootaloo giggled. They trudged onward, reaching a rather dark and foggy clearing. In the middle of that clearing stood the most miserable and gloomiest looking mansion that the Cutie Mark Crusaders had ever seen. "He lives THERE?!" Scootaloo gasped, "no wonder he's such a jerk, I'd be pretty grouchy if I lived in that dump, too." The house creaked and groaned as the the three fillies trotted up the porch, ready to fight off some ghosty goos. Nothing happened besides the hoot of a distant owl and the rumbling of the rotting floorboard beneath their hooves. "Boring. Let's go home." Scootaloo started to leave when Sweetie Belle reached up and knocked. Then she shouted. "HELLOOOOOOOOOOO MISTER NECROMANCERRRRRR WE'RE HERE TO SEE YOUUUUUUUU!" The fillies waited in absolute silence, as the house creaked some more. Suddenly, they heard the clopping sound of approaching hoofsteps. The three fillies gasped and held each other in fear as the giant oak door slowly swung open, revealing a purple light enveloping a misty figure. Sweetie, Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom scooted back as the tall figure approached, and then they screamed as the figure revealed itself. The skeleton of an adult unicorn mare, with a jagged crack running down the left side of it's skull, animated by a glowing purple aura. It clattered it's mandible, and the three ran as fast as their little legs would take them. Apple Bloom's bow, in her rush to escape, fell off and fluttered to the feet of the skeleton. As the three vanished among the willows of the swamp, a deep but hushed voice resonated from beyond the door frame. "Numbskull, did you frighten our guests again? Shame on you. And dear me. One of the darlings appear to have lost something. Bring it to me." The skeleton, Numbskull, obediently ducked down, grabbing the bow in its mouth. It wasn't her fault she was a skeleton. She hadn't meant to scare those little fillies. She walked back inside, bringing the bow to her master. "Good. Get my cloak. I'm going to Ponyville." - - - - - - - - - - - - The mysterious shadow figure had traveled rapidly, following the weakening trail of the three fillies. He was just about to reach them, not but a few yards from the Everfree Forest, when he heard crying. At the edge of the woods sat a baby timber wolf. It's mother lay crumpled in a heap, long having stopped breathing. The figure stood over the crying child and the mother. He checked her vitals, which was hard to do to a pile of slag and wood. She was dead. But not for long. A flash of purple and green light lanced through the air, smashing into the corpse. Suddenly, there was growling and snarling as the mother timber wolf fought it's way into reforming itself. The yipping timber pup leapt around its mother, overjoyed to see her walking and breathing again. The figure stood over them as he enjoyed their happy reunion. But not much time could be wasted. He had three fillies to track down, and their trail was growing weak.