//------------------------------// // Confrontation // Story: The Phantom Pony of Everfree // by LightningSword //------------------------------// “Okay, the meetin’ of the Cutie Mark Crusaders will come to order!”  Apple Bloom tapped her hoof on the podium inside their clubhouse, and Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle looked attentively to their friend.  “Now, we all know that Fluttershy’s been havin’ trouble with this pony that she wants to help,” Apple Bloom briefed her friends, “but we only know that he’s some kinda . . . well . . . .”   “Curmudgeon?” Sweetie Belle offered.   “Yeah, somethin’ like that.”  Apple Bloom replied, remembering Sweetie Belle’s gift with words. “Well, we know that this ‘Nocturne’ friend o’ hers is some kinda ‘crummujin’ who doesn’t know anythin’ about friendship. We’ve been brainstormin’ since yesterday, and so far . . . well . . . .”   “We got diddley,” Scootaloo added dejectedly.   Apple Bloom sighed in response.  “Yeah. Pretty much . . . .”  As a result of their ponderings, theories had ranged from Nocturne being a wizened old geezer like Cranky Doodle Donkey, to him being a powerful supervillain like Discord—both of whom were shown friendship and saw the light in the end.  Neither case, nor any in between, seemed to fit the current situation, mostly because of the little information they had to work with.   “Well, we know all that stuff already,” Sweetie Belle mentioned.  “But we don’t know what Nocturne is like. We didn’t hear that much from Fluttershy, except that he’s always alone. We don’t know what he looks like or how he acts. We don’t even know where he lives!”   “Good point,” Apple Bloom agreed as she stepped down from the podium to join them.  “I think that’s what we gotta do first. We gotta figure out where Nocturne lives so we can meet him. Then, we can talk to him ourselves, and Fluttershy won’t need to worry anymore.”   “And Fluttershy will have a new friend!” Sweetie Belle squeaked.  “And Nocturne will have friends, too! So then he’ll be nicer to everypony!”   “And there’s always a chance we could get our cutie marks, too!” Scootaloo joined in excitedly.  “Because if Nocturne ends up making friends, it’ll be because of what we said, and that could end up being our special talent!”   “Cutie Mark Crusaders Friendship Counselors!” Apple Bloom cheered.  She put in a front hoof, and Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle mimicked her, putting theirs on top.  Together, they raised them into the air for a group chant:   “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS! YEAH!”   After a brief pause, Apple Bloom was the first to ask the necessary question.  “So, how do we find out where Nocturne lives?”   There was an even longer pause as her two friends considered the question.  “Gee, I don’t know,” Scootaloo answered dubiously.  “But he must live here in Ponyville. I mean, I don’t know anypony that Fluttershy knows in other towns.”   “I know!” Sweetie Belle suggested.  “Let’s look at the library! Twilight must have records of everypony who’s ever lived here!”   “Good idea!” Apple Bloom replied.  “Let’s go!”   And the three fillies made their way to see Twilight at the Golden Oaks library.   ***   Yesterday’s apology to Fluttershy hadn’t helped matters at all.  In fact, all it did was sow the seeds for vengeance.   “I gotta get back at that ‘Nocturne’ creep somehow!” Rainbow Dash growled to herself.  Even now, as Rainbow Dash was on her way to join Twilight for lunch (she was paying, which is the main reason Dash agreed), the resentment she had over Fluttershy’s unnecessary encounters with the Phantom Pony, on top of the pain of her failure and humiliation, burned her up inside like a wildfire that refused to be extinguished.  “Scaring Fluttershy . . . embarrassing me . . . he can’t keep doing this. I may have put Fluttershy in that mess, but if he wasn't such a jerk, it wouldn't have turned out as bad as it did! I just have to give that Phantom Freak a piece of my mind! And it’s the perfect way to make things up with Fluttershy! I'll show him he can't mess with my friends and get away with it! I don’t care how scary he is. Next time I see him, he’s going down!”   “You tell 'em, Dashie!”   “YAAH!”   Rainbow Dash was startled by a voice behind her, and when she turned, she saw Pinkie Pie standing behind her, a wide grin on her face.  “Pinkie!” she yelled at her.  “Jeez, don't do that!”   “Sorry, Dashie,” said Pinkie, her eager smile remaining, “but I heard everything, and you're right! That Phantom Pony is a big, fat meanie!!”   At this, Dash was confused, and somewhat irritated.  “Wait,” she asked, “so, you heard all that? Have you been following me?”   Pinkie nodded, her puffy pink mane bouncing up and down with her.   “And you never said anything?!”   Pinkie nodded again, bouncy curls and all.   “Well, why?!” Dash finally blew up, her annoyance coming unhinged.   “Sometimes I like to follow ponies who talk to themselves,” Pinkie explained, still grinning, “just to make sure they're not talking to me! But once I'm sure they're not, sometimes I get interested in what they're saying, and I can't stop listening! Like once, I was following Spike, and he sounded like he was talking about some romance novel he was writing! Did you know that Spike writes romance novels? Well, maybe more than one, but I only heard about the one, and it had Rarity in it, and it was so romantic—”   “Pinkie!” Dash interrupted, and Pinkie Pie stopped, looking back at her inquisitively.  Dash suddenly saw this as a perfect opportunity, and requested, “I want you to do me a favor real quick, okay? Go find Twilight and tell her to take a rain check on that lunch, okay? I gotta take care of something.”   “You can count on me, Dashie!” Pinkie replied dutifully, saluting.  “I'll tell Twilight all about your epic quest to defeat the evil Phantom Pony!”  Suddenly, the pink mare unleashed a mighty gasp.  “OH!! I get it now! That’s who those cookies were for! I knew Fluttershy was making you hero cookies! And you deserved those hero cookies! YAAAAAAY, RAINBOW DAAAAAAAAASH!”   And she hopped away, singing a victory song for Rainbow Dash at the top of her voice.   Rolling her eyes at Pinkie Pie's zealousness (and not having a clue what cookies she was talking about), Rainbow Dash turned and made a new path.  Her destination: Everfree Forest.   The Phantom Pony's territory.   ***   Sitting at the outdoor café where she had planned on having lunch with Rainbow Dash and Spike, Twilight involuntarily thought back to hers and Fluttershy’s encounter with the Phantom Pony yesterday.  Just the thought of those monstrous wings casting a shadow over her made her shiver.  Ever since, the Alicorn had been worried about her compassionate friend.  Fluttershy’s assessment of the mysterious pony was completely illogical to Twilight; if he was willing to go to such lengths to be left alone, why did she have such a problem with that?  Twilight did understand, though, how broken up Fluttershy was; being a student of friendship herself, Twilight was always under the impression that friendship could solve any problem, up until now.  But the Phantom had made it clear yesterday.  As difficult as it would be for either of them to admit, Fluttershy’s kindness simply wasn't enough—it was entirely possible that the Phantom just didn't want friendship.   Twilight’s thoughts were interrupted by Spike pounding limply on the table.  “Food . . . .” he whined as if he hadn’t eaten in weeks, “must . . . have . . . food . . . .”   “Oh, Spike, relax,” Twilight chuckled.  “Rainbow Dash should be here any minute.”   “Easy for you to say,” Spike grumbled back.  “I wanted Fluttershy to come, but I’m starting to feel glad we didn’t invite her. At this rate, we’d take forever just to order!”   Twilight sighed and rolled her eyes.  “Spike, I want to show Fluttershy some sensitivity,” she explained.  “I wanted her to come too. But she’s been needing some time to herself lately.”  As easy as it would have been for Fluttershy to say yes, Twilight knew after what happened with “Nocturne” yesterday, Fluttershy was still having trouble coming to terms with this dead-end she'd reached with the Phantom.  She needs a little time, Twilight thought to herself with a sigh.   After a few minutes, Twilight began to worry.  As overly dramatic as Spike was acting about this, Twilight had to admit, it was a bit strange.  It wasn't like Rainbow Dash to be late for anything (or to be slow, however it was interpreted).  She looked up and down the road that their table stood next to, and saw movement from one end of it—a pony in the distance grew in size as she approached.  Twilight was relieved at first, but then she heard the mare’s voice and saw her come into perfect focus almost simultaneously:   “HIIIIIIIIII, TWILIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT!!”   Twilight and Spike turned to see none other than Pinkie Pie bouncing up the road towards them.  She appeared to be singing some sort of epic ballad in Rainbow Dash's honor.  She stopped right in the middle of the road, next to the café and Twilight and Spike’s table.  “Hi, guys!” she greeted them much more calmly at close range.  “Just the pony and dragon I wanted to see!”   “Uhh . . . hi, Pinkie,” Twilight greeted her dubiously.  “So, why are we 'just the pony and dragon you wanted to see'?”   “Yep, that's what I said!” Pinkie confirmed before answering.  “Welp, I was hopping along earlier today, off to the store to get some alligator disinfectant, ‘cause it’s really hard to make at home, even though the store brand is smelly and never washes out, and I saw Rainbow Dash, and she was all like, 'Fluttershy's all upset', and, 'I’m all grumpy and indignant', and then she went, 'I'll show that guy!', and I was all, 'YAAAAAAY, RAINBOW DAAAAAAAAASH!' See, told ya that's what I said, 'cause that was copied and pasted! And then I scared her, and then I talked about Spike's romantic novel with Rarity in it, and then—”   “Pinkie!!” Spike yelled out urgently, interrupting her; he was dragging his paw across his throat.  “Ix-nay! Ix-nay!!”   “Wait, hold on,” Twilight stepped in, still confused.  “Who was she talking about? She'll show whom?”   “The Phantom Pony!” Pinkie said with a grin.  “That's why she told me to tell you she won't be here! She’s off to teach him some manners! And I know Dashie's going to give that old stinker a good what-for!”   “WHAT!?!”   “Yeah,” Pinkie agreed, “and a 'for', too. That makes ‘what-for’!”   “Is she crazy?!” Twilight screamed.  “She has no idea what Nocturne is capable of! All Fluttershy did was pass through his territory, and he scared her out of her wits! If that’s all he does to a trespasser, who knows what he’ll do to Rainbow Dash?!”   Spike looked at Twilight, looking more than a little befuddled himself.  “Who's Nocturne?” he asked.    “I'll explain on the way!” Twilight replied urgently, jumping from the table.  She turned to her Earth pony friend.  “Pinkie! We have to get to the Everfree Forest! I don't care how tough Rainbow thinks she is! She doesn't know what that Phantom could do to her!”   Pinkie looked concerned for a moment, but was more than up for the task.  “Da-da-da-da, da-daaaah!” she announced a cavalry chant, “CHAAAAARGE!!”  And she zoomed back up the road where she’d come, leading the way.   Twilight and Spike left the café (Twilight left a few bits on the table beforehand) and broke into a run behind Pinkie, outputting all of their energy just to keep up with her.  “Hey, Twilight!” Spike called out as they sprinted, “I don’t know who this ‘Nocturne’ guy is, but is he really bad enough to take on Rainbow Dash?”   “It’s not a question of if he can, Spike!” she answered frantically.  “It’s what he’ll do to her when he does!”  I don’t even want to imagine that, Twilight finished in thought as she, Pinkie and Spike raced from the cafe.   ***   “HEEEEEY!! GET OUT HERE, YOU PHANTOM CREEP!! GET YOUR PLOT OUT HERE THIS MINUTE!!”   Rainbow Dash paced angrily in front of the border to the woods, waiting for the Phantom to come out and face her.  On her way over, her anger had intensified little by little; getting away with upsetting her friend Fluttershy and scaring them both shamefully seemed less and less like the primary offense within seconds.  Sure, up until a few days ago, she thought “the Phantom Pony of Everfree” was just a myth, but it was still no excuse to force Fluttershy to face him again.  She was responsible for this mess, and she was going to make it right by making sure “Nocturne” learned his lesson.  After she was through with him, he would never come after Fluttershy again.   But this wasn't just to make Fluttershy feel better; this was personal.   “Aw, forget this! I’m done waiting!” Dash fumed before she jumped through the trees and began pushing through the dense green of the forest.  “If he’s not gonna come out and face me like a stallion, then I’ll go straight to him! I’ll humiliate him on his own home turf!”  Dash lumbered through the thick grass and shrubbery, obscured on all sides by ever-darkening shadow.  Her ire swallowed her fear; no creature, great or small, harmless or hazardous, would frighten her now.   “Hey!” Dash bellowed, stopping occasionally to glance around.  “You listening?!”  The sounds of her ruckus sent scores of small animals running in frightened scatters.  “Show yourself and face me like a real horse! You think you can make my friend cry?! You think you can humiliate me?! Don’t you think for a minute that you’re gonna get away with this! You're nothing but a coward! You hear me?! A coward!!”   Nothing happened.   For a long while, there was nothing but silence.  Even the sounds of the forest had been all but quenched; the crickets had fled the scene after Dash's loud arrival.  “Yeah, that’s what I thought!” Dash roared, the Phantom’s perceived absence making her courage swell.  “I knew you couldn’t handle the toughest Pegasus to come outta Cloudsdale! And don’t you even think of try—”  Dash stopped, freezing in place when she saw something in a low corner of underbrush.  She turned her head slowly towards it, and there they were, summoned up right on cue—two burning red orbs.   The radiating pools of red blinked, and their owner stepped out from the cover of the shadowed brush, wings twitching feverishly at his sides.  “It was foolish of you to come back here,” the Phantom’s voice spoke dangerously low.  “I have no fight with you. Get out, now, or I’ll make you regret it.”   Dash was silent for a time, the classic curse of unpreparedness stifling her words and movements.  She quickly recovered, though, and made a daring attempt to save face.  “Hah!” Dash barked, flaring out her own wings.  “That's a laugh! I mean, look at you, acting all big and tough from inside the darkness! I'll bet you wouldn't be so intimidating if I could see you!”  She was now making conscious effort to keep her underlying fear from breaking her voice.   “Last chance!” the Phantom warned, his voice seeming to chill the dark air.  “Leave! Now!”   “Or what?!” Dash challenged, her brashness growing with the Phantom’s hesitation.  “You’ll scare me and send me flying away? I’m not Fluttershy! I won’t cry just because you look big and scary! You’re not even a threat! You just turn on the flash and growl a little bit while you hide in the woods! You won’t even step outside the border, will you? You might think you’re bad, but you’re nothing but a cowardly freak!”   The Phantom's eyes widened at that last word.  It was as if it had triggered something in him, something ominous.  And Dash sensed it immediately when the Phantom’s widened eyes slowly began to narrow once again.   “Say it again.”   The command was nothing short of a counter-challenge.  Still, Dash’s slowly draining valor had a sudden, strong effect on her constitution.  The fear she’d thought her anger had overtaken was now back, and prominently on top.  “Wh- . . .” she tried to reply, “. . . wha—”   “SAY IT AGAIN!!”   At this, Dash’s strength of heart vanished instantly.  She released a slight whimper that even she didn’t remember making.   The Phantom approached her, his gargantuan, demonic wings spreading slowly and the red light intensifying in his eyes; soon, the light was almost blinding.  Dash backed up, her fright now taking full control of her body.  With every step he took forward, she took one back, until she felt the rough surface of tree bark bump against her behind.  Her breathing quickened, her eyes widened, and her whining continued.   “That’s what I thought,” the Phantom snarled, his words a callback to Dash’s earlier arrogance.  “Now, let me clarify the precarious situation those words have just landed you into.”   And with that, he bared his teeth, stood on his hind legs, and gave a powerful roar that seemed to shake the woods around them. He stretched out his frightening wings to their maximum span, knocking over the remnants of a rotting tree with one of them.  Now, it had become abundantly clear to Rainbow Dash that she had been a fool.   She never even saw his hoof coming . . . .