//------------------------------//
// The Hut in the Woods 
// Story: A Forgotten Past 
// by Protocol 
//------------------------------//

The Hut in the Woods


"There was once a time long past, a time of chaos. Legends spoke of a red cloud that came to the land and wreaked its havoc upon the world, until one day it mysteriously vanished. Peace returned to the land, and the chaos was soon forgotten in time, the legends along with it. Yet, the chaos remained, slumbering outside of civilization, waiting for an opportunity to return…"



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Dusk. The daytime's liveliness and cheerfulness had fallen into slumber, replaced by the quiet serenity of the night. Creatures hiding from the light had come out to thrive, embracing the dark. The forest seemed filled with new life, from the towering heights of the trees to the lush fields lying underneath. 

It was here that a young, skinny earth pony stood, trying to wake the unconscious body of his mother. 

"Mom? Get up, mom. You have to wake up."



The two had lived with a father and a newborn brother in their previous village, living humble but happy lives. While the colt and his mother were out on a picnic, the town was invaded by timberwolves. Thirsting for blood, the ravenous creatures tore apart the villagers, leaving the town empty and the streets flowing with red before departing on full stomachs.

By the time the two had returned to their village, they found nothing but corpses littering the houses. Possessions were broken and unusable. The mother decided to gather all the salvageable supplies for a trip to the East, seeking help and refuge for her and her son. 

There was not much food left. The wolves had already devoured and clawed most of the food to pieces, leaving only a few vegetables enough to last one pony a week. The grown mare figured that if they hurried, they would be able to make the trip in about five days. 

This left the pair of survivors with a dilemma: one of them wouldn't make the trip; there simply wasn't enough food. On the other hand, if they stayed, they would be finished off by starvation or the timberwolves, if they returned. The ponies gathered their things and trudged onwards to the East, left with no time to grieve or lament over the loss of loved ones.

Even with what had happened, their spirits were not broken. The two tried their absolute best to reach their destination, to find help. Be that as it may, they simply shot through their food supply much too quickly. The mother stopped eating after two days, giving her portions to her son. She was desperate as to not lose anyone else. 

After another excruciating day of travel and near starvation, they were in a forest clearing, with their food finally run dry. The mare was travelling slower than her son, deprived of food to fuel the journey. The young colt looked back at his companion, and screamed her name in shock when she collapsed in the field.

"Mom! Mom! Mom…" His voice grew into a whisper, seeing her breathing lightly on the grass.

"Leave me. You have to… you have to get… to next town… get help…" Cut in pieces by a rasping voice, the mare's final words to her son urged him to survive, speaking with a parent's love. With the last of her breath, she whispered, "You have to… live." Her eyes closed shut, and her head hung limp. The colt knelt down next to her, tears streaming down his face.

He continued in choked sobs, "Come on, mom, wake up. We have to get to the town, right? Mom, please, Get up." He stood there for a while, trying to rouse the sleeping corpse. The colt was tired as well. Days of continuous travel left his body worn, fatigue seeping in through his bones. Too shocked and numbed to do anything else, the colt curled up next to his mother, crying himself to sleep in denial of death.



The forlorn colt awoke in a wooden hut, covered in blankets. He didn't recognize the place, nor the surrounding animals. They looked similar to animals he had known, but their coats were grey, and each of their left eyes were larger than their counterpart, leaving a stream of red glow in their wake.

"Don't worry, they won't hurt you," said a voice behind him. "They've just changed appearances, they're still only animals."

The colt turned around to face a grey, black-maned unicorn with an eye patch over her left eye. She seemed to be in the same state as the other animals around the hut.

"What's your name, young one?" she asked.

"Hope Seeker," he replied. "What's yours?"

"My name is Star Charmer. You can just call me Star."

"Well, um, nice to meet you, Star. Where exactly am I?"

"You're in my hut, a little ways off from where I found you.  You were lying unconscious in the forest fields yesterday, near a corpse. Was that your-"

"Mother. So, I guess that means she's really…"

"Yes. She was already gone when I got to you. I'm... sorry for your loss." Star didn't seem to know what to say; she just looked away with a downcast expression.

Hope Seeker lay in a melancholic state, mourning over the death of his mother, and the rest of his village.

"Here, have something to eat." As she said this, the unicorn levitated a tray of food in front of the grieving colt. At first, he felt too depressed to eat. Yet, when the smell of steamed carrots hit his senses, he began to wolf down on the grub greedily. He had been starved, even through his mother's last portions of love.

"You seem pretty hungry," said the mare. There was a pause as Hope spared no time to talk, inhaling the food as fast as he could. The final carrot disappeared down his gullet, and the colt coughed a few times, getting small bits of orange dislodged from his windpipe.

"Thank you," Hope said. "I haven't had a proper meal in days…"

"What exactly were you doing out in the middle of nowhere, anyways?" the grey pony questioned.

"My mother and I came from a village that was attacked by timberwolves. We were trying to get to another town east of here, and find a place to live." As the child recited these short sentences, memories came flooding back. A wave of sadness washed over his face.

"I'm sorry to inform you, but there is no village to the east," Star stated, with a morose voice. "At least, not anymore. The timberwolves had struck first in that town, before moving onto other villages."

The brown earth pony's mind filled with alarm, eyes darting around outside. "But, doesn't that mean they can come to this place, too?"

The unicorn pointed her head to a pile of pans and pots to the side. "Sharp, loud noises such as the clash of metal will frighten off the wolves. It’s a pity that nopony else managed to figure it out yet."

Hope settled down. "Oh..."

Suddenly, the conversation took a turn. "I'm sorry to say this, but you can't stay. It is not a place for the likes of you. You can sleep the night here, but you should leave first thing in the morning."

"What? But, but I have nowhere to go. You said the nearest villages were attacked by timberwolves. It would take too long to get to the next one. And besides, I-"

Star Charmer felt a pang of guilt. "Do you have anyone else that you know left?"

"…Not anymore." 

The atmosphere turned hesitant, as the unicorn debated whether to let the colt stay or not. Eventually, her conscious won the battle. "Fine. You can stay. But only for a few weeks, until I can pack you enough supplies to leave. You can live here until then."

The sorrow melted away from the young pony's face, thankful that he had found a place to stay, if only for a brief time. "Thank you." The conversation concluded, and the two began their new lives together.



At first, Star Charmer was very distant and cut off from Hope. However, with the various activities and mishaps the two shared throughout the week, she opened up to him, treating him like part of her family. The once somber mask of the unicorn was now more color-filled and lively, and Hope got to see the first of her smiles after a few days. The threat of kicking Hope Seeker out was soon forgotten, and Star got accustomed to Hope just as the colt had gotten used to the strange glowing eye and the eerie fauna around them.

Once they had become friendly, however, the caretaker noticed that her colt was still feeling down about his village. She often noticed him in trances, bird watching near the lake. One day, she decided to try and cheer him up.

Hope was deep in thought. The misery of his losses were all too clear. All his friends and family were killed by the timberwolves, and his mother had- "Ackpthhh!!" The pony was jolted sober by a splash of ice cold water in his face. He looked up to see a laughing unicorn in front of him.

"What was that for?!" the wet colt cried.

Still chuckling, Star Charmer replied, "You shouldn't be so sad all the time. It's not right for someone your age."

Anger and shock faded away, replaced by a grateful smile. "Thanks, Star. I guess I needed that."

"Don't mention it," she said back, as she turned around and walked away. Hope cupped some water from the lake and threw it in her direction. He was rewarded by a shriek caused by his target.

"Got you back!" he said, snickering at the unicorn.

Turning around, the mare put on a look of amused determination. "Oh, it is on."

The two spent the day pulling numerous different pranks on each other, getting more extreme as the other did something even more spectacular. What started out as sneaking up on each other and shouting "Boo!" or placing bugs on each other manes gradually escalated as the pranks involved hiding tools or making the other fall into a puddle full of mud. The last prank involved a net, which didn't go so well for either the planner nor the victim.

As the young colt set up a net to snare the unicorn, Star Charmer noticed him plotting. Not seeing the net, she snuck up behind him, planning to give the other pony a scare. She lowered her head down to his head and whispered into his ear, "So, what are you doing?" 

"Eep!" was the reply as Hope lost grip on the taught rope holding the net from deploying. The encompassed area of a few feet sprang up, dropping leaves as the net revealed itself. The ponies were both caught off guard as they rose two into the air, a heavy rock replacing their weight on the floor.

Squished and uncomfortable, Hope looked to his fellow captor with an indecisive smile. "Maybe I should have thought this through."



After many unsuccessful attempts, the two were free of their roped prison. "I still can't believe you managed to set that up, Hope," said Star Charmer, clearly annoyed but impressed by the young pony's endeavors.

"My father used to work as a colt scouts leader, and he taught me a few tricks," the brown pony responded, shaking the green leaves out of his mane. "Say," he asked, "why does every animal around here except me have grey coats and a glowing red eye? I've been wondering about it for awhile, now."

The grey coated mare gathered her thoughts. "Do you know what 'chaos' is?"

"It's when everything is messed up and unorganized, right?"

"Well, I guess you could say that. It's actually the absence of order and harmony. It spawns something that shouldn't exist in any society, but is still there nevertheless," she explained. "Near this region lurks the living embodiment of that chaos, which I call Discord. Discord is a red cloud brimming with electric-like chaos currents, and the cloud moves and shapes itself as if it were alive."

"It sounds like a monster to me. Clouds don't come to life, do they?"

The reply was set in a very serious tone. "This one does, and trust me, it's not just some monster. It is what caused every other monster and animal around this area to have the traits that make them stand out."

"How does that happen?" the question was simple and inquisitive, but the answer was grim and frightening.

"Chaos is not part of the natural harmony. If any living creature ever so happens to touch that cloud, its color will fade and it will lose its left eye to the chaos; the organ itself along with its vision."

"Aren't you worried that you might lose your other eye, too? I mean, you'd be left completely blind!"

"Look around, Hope. Do you see any animals missing both eyes? No. This is the extent of the change. We are confined to the limits of a perimeter around Discord, but we still live our lives normally."

Star Charmer continued, "but you must never come into contact with Discord. When ponies are affected by Discord, the results are different. When the red cloud touches a pony, the chaos will try to take over. The pony sometimes ceases to exist, turning into part of Discord forever."

Chills ran down the earth pony's back, and another question popped into his mind. "What about you, then? You're a pony, and you seem to have come in contact without becoming part of it."

"There is one way to counteract the takeover. You must remember."

"Remember what?" Hope was clearly confused about Star's statement.

"Remember anything from your past life. Remember your family, your home, or even just a name. It doesn't have to be yours. This is the only way to escape from the Discord. I have learnt about it from other ponies who were affected like me."

An arrogant reply followed. "Well, that doesn't seem so hard. I mean, you just have to remember anything? It sounds almost impossible to not remember."

The unicorn reprimanded him back with a stern voice. "Don't be so sure of yourself! I have seen many a pony fall to Discord. Once it reaches you, your mind becomes like fog. It is hard to grasp onto reality itself, much less memories. And, what's more is that whatever you can't remember, you forget forever after the cloud leaves you. There is no cure for a memory taken by Discord."

The earth pony gulped back his cockiness. "I'm sorry…"

Star Charmer regained her composure. "It's all right; you didn't know. Now, go to bed. It's getting late." With that, she got up and walked into her own room, leaving the small brown pony to dream of  grey animals and red clouds.



Hope Seeker awoke in the middle of the night, to a squeal of a boar nearby. He opened the door and stepped outside, seeking the source of the noise. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he caught a boar in a bush. It too was stained with the grey coat and the blood-red eye of the local fauna. The colt assumed that its leg was caught in the brambles and thorns of the bush, and trotted over to help it out. 

He was within less than ten paces of the animal when he realized something was wrong. The pig started to squirm uncontrollably, breaking most of the branches in the bush. Then, its remaining eye began to emit red light from it as well. Writhing and thrashing the plants around it, the boar itself rose into the air and glowed crimson. It burned brighter for a short moment before bursting into a sanguine mist. The mist reformed itself, compressing into a cloud. Hope could see sparks of electricity igniting within the cloud, before it darted off into the forest, being consumed by the main body of Discord which was now visible. The cloud, with the boar assimilated into it, floated away maliciously, having taken another life.

Stunned by the spectacle he had seen, the pony walked back slowly to the wooden hut. He was greeted by a worried unicorn, standing outside the front door. "Where were you?" Star asked. "Don't go off by yourself like that in the night. You might get hurt, and-"

She was cut off by an angry Hope Seeker, who spoke through teary eyes. "The reason there aren't any animals missing both eyes... is because once they lose their other eye, they disappear!" Stupefied by his outburst, Star Charmer stood there with her mouth agape. Losing his anger, the colt asked with an expression of pain, "Why?"

The unicorn snapped back to reality. "I'm sorry. I was going to tell you, but I could never bring myself to do it. It's just that, well, I loved seeing you laugh and smile. I couldn't take that happiness away from you; it was just too cruel." In the pale light of the moon, Star charmer looked pitiable, frail and broken.

"Will you disappear as well, then? Become part of Discord?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so," she stated sadly. "I've studied for ways to prevent the transformation, but have only managed to find ways to delay it. The animals I tried to save lived longer, but all eventually succumbed to the chaos. I, too, am running out of time."

Desperate for love, Hope pleaded with his caregiver. "Please, don't leave me alone again, Star. Please, stay with me."

Star Charmer turned away, too pained to look at the earth pony. "I can't do anything about it. I thought I'd come to peace with that fact a long time ago, but your coming here… it's made it more difficult."

"But-"

"I'm sorry, but you must leave now. As I've said before, this isn't a place for ponies like you. I hardly have any time left myself. There's food for your trip in the back shed. Take it and head South."

Having lost the will to speak, Hope turned around and started to circle around the house. He halted when he heard Star Charmer's words again. "Hope, I just want you to know… even though you've made things difficult for me, I've genuinely enjoyed every moment we've been together. Thank you."

Sobs could be heard from both ponies, and Hope broke into a gallop as he bit back his tears. He came to the back of the hut, and picked up the saddlebags on the floor. He looked back one last time before departing the place he had thought of as a home.



Hope was dead. Or maybe not, but he might as well have been. The last pony he had called friend had cast him away, staying alone by herself to die a dog's death. He had nothing in the world left to live for. The colt cursed at himself for not being able to do anything. These thoughts were interrupted when the earth pony noticed a red haze nearby. It was Discord, come to try and claim him as his own. Hope Seeker ran away from the red beast as fast as he could, propelled by the sheer fear instilled by his witness of the boar's death.

When he turned around to see its position, the sinister mist had disappeared, nowhere to be seen. Hope stopped in his tracks, relieved that the danger had gone away. A memory came to mind. The cloud was right next to the mountain pig when it had died, proximity letting the lightning streaks devour the creature. If it was here now, and heading back to its feeding grounds, it could only mean that-

"Star." The shock of realization hit home hard as the colt remembered the unicorn's words: I hardly have any time left myself. 

Running back in the direction of the house, the colt was flustered with panic. 'Hardly any time' couldn't mean this very night, could it? But then again, who knows? Star might actually die.

Ditching the heavy saddlebags weighing him down, Hope sped up, fruits and vegetables spilling out on the grass behind him. He no longer cared about them. All he wanted was to help Star Charmer, even if it was an impossible feat.

Panting from lack of breath, the colt arrived at the scene dripping in cold sweat. He could see a red light at the door, and a grey unicorn standing still in surrender, ready to accept her inevitable fate. The tendrils lowered down upon Star Charmer, as her body started to dematerialize and change into part of the mass.

"Star, NO!" with the cry, the colt leapt into the air, hoping to knock the unicorn out of the thing's clutches.

Drawing ever so closer to her demise, Star Charmer turned to the charging pony with widened eyes. "Hope? What are you doing?! DON'T-"

Hope Seeker crashed into the unicorn. Literally into her, as Star Charmer warped into the swirling red mass, and the young child was swallowed up into the cloud. 

"What have you done!?" the horrified consciousness that had once been Star Charmer cried out. "Now you might be lost in here as well!"

The disillusioned colt couldn't see anything out of the sparks of chaos generated in the red backgrounds. "I… I've already lost everyone else, I don't want to lose you as well!"

There was a deep, malevolent laugh echoing within Discord. The voice that spoke next was not one that either of the ponies recognized, brimming with venom and hatred. "Well, well, well. What do we have here? A child trying to reunite with one of my victims? How sweet. You can both spend eternity together within my being. Fuel my body so I can have my revenge on those who call themselves 'Harmony'."

The roar of thunder rolled around the scene. "No!" declared the silhouette of the unicorn, "You may have taken me prisoner, but you will NOT have the child! I will not allow it!"

A mocking cackle could be heard. "You? Oh, that's just rich. Alone, the keepers of reality couldn't stop me! What can a single pony like you do?"

"I can try. You never know what'll happen for sure, really." Even the young colt could see through the hollow threat, as the shadow's horn produced a green overglow. Waves after waves of magic tried to puncture the vapor, dissipating into thin air shortly after rebounding back.

"See? Neither you nor the colt can escape this place. Just accept your fate and be cast into the abyss."

"If magic won't work, maybe a sacrifice will." The form of Star Charmer was almost gone, blurry as a whole and patches of body missing pierced by the mist.

"And what can you possibly sacrifice to save yourselves?" the voice taunted.

"There is no way to save myself, but I can at least give the child a chance from being consumed by you. I sacrifice myself. As long as Hope is alive, I will make sure you cannot take him."

The voice of Discord seemed to waver for the first time. It slowed down to a whispering threat. "You wouldn't dare."

The silhouette broke into an incantation, her body evaporating as she chanted. 


"I give you my being, my essence of fire,
To protect you from evil and harm.
Let it be a shield to guard away demons,
The monsters and powers of dark.

I give to you, my great sacrifice,
To pay for all of life's tolls.
So take my last gift, and treasure it well,
My friendship, my love, and my soul."


When the recital had ended, and Star Charmer had disappeared entirely, the red veil was invaded by a light green hue, cutting deep into its fabric. A void opened up inside the haze, and Hope Seeker could see the outside world. 

"Go" The voice of the unicorn still remained. "I can hold this for a little while." Hesitant but urged to survive, the brown colt bolted out the exit, finding himself once again in the forest. The hole in the cloud sealed itself almost immediately after, still battling with the last sacrifice that Star Charmer had made.

As the child began making his way back to his saddlebags, Discord sparked and roared. Its voice was audible now, furious and vengeful. "YOU THINK YOU CAN ESCAPE ME?! I WILL DEVOUR YOU ON THE SPOT!" The cloud somehow seemed to be weakened, producing sparks of chaos less frequently and its size smaller considerably. It was now approximately the same size as the young pony, but still held all of its evil intents. With a last attempt at revenge, it lashed out and tackled the colt to the ground.

Already, Hope could feel his essence being drained away. He felt too weak to stop Discord, but a voice rang through his mind. "Remember, Hope. Remember your past life. Remember anything. It will keep Discord unable to destroy you."

So, Hope Seeker tried to remember. He tried to remember the life he led in his village, playing with friends and spending time with family. He attempted to recollect the faces of the people he had known, loved, and who had loved him back. Yet it was impossible. Discord knew exactly what his thoughts were, and he covered every memory, name, and person in his past that he tried to call up in fog. The pony could not remember. He started to fade away, just like countless victims before him had.

He clawed frantically at his mind, trying to find something, anything that would spare him the fate. He found nothing. It was like his brain was emptied of every single event in his past, drained of all its cherished remembrances. Then, out of the nothingness, a word was thrown to him, by someone who cared about him deeply. A name. He caught that name, and held onto it with all of his strength. The demonic entity tried to rip it away from him, but the colt's consciousness held it firm. The attack seemed to last for hours. Maybe it was more, maybe it was less. It was hard to tell. When the relentless assault finally ceased, the equine was left weak and almost powerless, but alive nonetheless. He fell into a deep slumber, giving way to the fatigue of the flesh.




As the dark hours passed away, the dawn's faint morning rays crawled over the plains. The creature awoke from his slumber, having survived the long night. Survived…? He thought to himself. What happened last night? I can't remember… anything. Anything at all. 

The creature's memories were nearly blank, and his bewildered and half-conscious state left it as an unsalvageable wreckage at the bottom of his mind. Still lying on the grass, the figure looked up to see the morning arrive. The stars were fading past his vision, being covered up by the sunlight. Out of the countless dots of light hanging in the sky, the creature noticed one in particular. A small green star, burning brighter than the rest until it too, winked out to make way for the day. 

A pang of hunger left the figure awake and sober. He sat up and clenched his fists. When he opened them up, the figure was greeted by two handfuls of small, red berries. Was that normal? Who knew? He had no memories of the past left. Maybe it was always this way. He satisfied the hunger from the fruits, chewing away at the sweet red orbs.

The battle in the dark had ended disastrously, both sides suffering heavy losses. The creature once known as Hope Seeker was no more. His memories had been stolen by the chaos. His flesh and blood was mutilated, changed beyond recognition. 

In return, he gained a new power: the power to bend reality to his will. The spirit of chaos had exhausted itself trying to take the child's life, but could not win against Star's soul. During its final attempt at murder, the red cloud had been destroyed, and sealed away inside of the victim he had targeted. The body became a prison for the spirit, but wisps of chaos seeped out of it in the form of this new power the creature had gained.

After he ate his meal, the creature took another dive deep into his mind. He tried to find something, anything that could tell him who he was. But the memories were blank, as blank and unmarked as a sheet of fresh snow. As he swam through the depths of his thoughts, the creature thought to himself, Who am I? As he went deeper and deeper, he became even more discouraged. There was nothing there. Nothing except-

"A Name," the creature spoke. He had found only one recollection of the past in the blankness of thoughts, and it would become the foundation of what shaped his identity. "My name… Discord." Spreading his wings, Discord leaped up into the air. His serpentine form slithered through the sky, propelled by mismatched wings. With his hair flowing in the wind, he glided across the sky, towards the sunrise. Towards a new beginning.