//------------------------------// // The Forest // Story: The Legend of the Everfree // by Shadowmane PX-41 //------------------------------// A single van drove on the mud-soiled road towards the Everfree Forest. A single arch stood at the entrance with the forest's name, wide enough for the vehicle to go through it. Despite being made entirely out of wood and paint, there were vines climbing up the sides of it. Applejack was driving the van with Rainbow Dash sitting next to her, looking at a map. The rest of the girls were sitting behind them, talking about all of the stuff that they had planned for when they got to the camp. The girls were all lost in their thoughts and didn't even notice when the van stopped at the end of the road. "Come on, everyone! We're here!" Rainbow Dash called back as she shot out of the door and walked over to help her friends. Everyone climbed out of the van and made sure that they had gathered all of their belongings before Applejack locked the van and slid the keys into her pocket. When they were secure, she made her way deeper into the woods, where Camp Everfree laid. "It feels like forever since we were last here." Applejack put her hands behind her head and smiled as she inhaled a scent that widened her smile. "And these plants still smell the same, even after all this time." "Yep. It truly feels like we're back in the Everfree Forest." Rainbow nodded as she leapt over a root. "You girls might wanna watch your feet." "And you came back here every year?" Sunset looked at how the leaves in the tree were covering up most of the sunlight. "It kinda looks like somewhere kids would be afraid of when it gets dark." "When you're alone, Sunset," Pinkie said. "But with friends, it's fun to explore the forest!" As the girls started to walk down a thick trail towards the camp, the girl who had been chased by Miasma's men the other night watched from afar and started to follow them, using the trees as cover. "Only a little bit more to go, Sunset." Fluttershy held Sunset's hand as they continued their trek. "Trust me. Once we get there, it'll all be worth it." "I just hope you're right, Fluttershy," Sunset said. "Because we've been walking for five minutes straight and I haven't seen a single camp, other person, or any sign of food or water." "The walk's always long, Sunset, but Fluttershy's right. There's gonna be some great stuff to do and some great grub after each activity." Rainbow Dash stopped and patted Sunset on her back before the two of them went forward again. "We've been here every year, and we pretty much know this place like the back of our hands." "Except for that!" Pinkie Pie pointed towards a number of trees with words on them written in a dark shade of red. "Well, I certainly don't remember this being there before." Applejack ran towards the message. "What does it say?" Twilight asked as she gently grabbed her glasses and readjusted them. If you're camping here, you'd best beware, because danger's lurking everywhere. Miasma's forces will return. Treekillers who want to see the forest burn. All of a sudden, a thick fog rolled in, shrouding all of the girls entirely. "Fog? That wasn't here the last time we went..." Twilight pulled out a handkerchief and began to wipe the mist out of her glasses. "Maybe the camp decided to invest in some fog machines?" Rainbow Dash shrugged. "Or maybe there's a bigger campfire than usual?" Fluttershy raised her index finger. "Whatever the case, this isn't normal for the forest." Applejack crossed her arms. "Something's going on, and I don't really like it..." After a while, the fog died down, and Pinkie Pie looked back at where the message was. Her jaw then hung wide open as she noticed that the words had been removed entirely and were replaced with simple trees. She stepped backwards slowly and fell over a root behind her, smashing against another tree and banging her head in the process. The noise had caught the girl from before off-guard. She fell from the trees and landed heavily on the ground by Sunset's feet. The girl groaned before climbing to her feet and attempting to run away, only to be stopped by Rainbow Dash grabbing her shoulder. "Were you spying on us?!" Rainbow tightened her grip slightly. "Ow, ow, ow! Sweet lord, let go of me!" The girl winced and contorted as Rainbow Dash refused to let go. "Who are you?" Sunset stepped forward and gently pulled Rainbow Dash's hand off of the girl's shoulder. "And what reason did you have for following us?" "Sorry about that." She stood up and brushed some leaves and dirt off of her dress. "My name's Gloriosa. I've lived in this forest for over a few years now, and I was worried you girls were Treekillers." "Treekillers?" Applejack cocked her left eyebrow. "They're dressed up in these grey outfits with patches on the side. You can't miss 'em." Gloriosa walked over to the tree she had fallen out of and hugged it. "They're trying to destroy my babies, but I won't let them! Geoffrey, Sam, Teresa, Joshua, and many more trees that I've named in this forest are all at risk of being chopped down by that witch!" "This girl's even kookier than me, naming almost every tree in a forest," Pinkie Pie smiled. "Can we make her our friend?" "We barely even know the girl, Pinkie!" Applejack threw her arms outwards. "Didn't your mom ever tell you not to talk to people you don't know, let alone make them your friend?" "Well, we technically do know her by now. Isn't that right, Glori?" Pinkie gave Gloriosa a little hug. "Yeah! You totally know me if you know my name, Pinkie!" Gloriosa's hug transitioned from the tree to Pinkie. "And I'm sure I'd like to know your friends as well! Any enemy to the Treekillers is a friend of mine!" "Who do these so-called Treekillers work for, Gloriosa?" Rarity stepped forward. "They work for some mogul called Ms Miasma." Gloriosa pulled out a ripped off patch from another pocket, showing the emblem that each of the de-forestation employees wore. "Miasma De-Forestation Co. They're the biggest name in the destruction of forests. Their reputation proceeds them, and Miasma decided to bring them all to this one." "Miasma?" Rarity parroted. "Miasma's a woman in her fourties. White hair, black eyes, business suit, and a very large vocabulary that would have you believe she's someone from a play or something..." Gloriosa used her fingers to list off each detail. "Kinda reminds me of Principal Cinch..." Twilight crossed her arms. "Do you think they might be in league with each other?" "I highly doubt it." Sunset shook her head. "Cinch was ruined at the Friendship Games, and I don't think that she'd have the guts to stoop so low to the point where she'd want to destroy an entire forest just to spite us. But this Miasma woman, on the other hand, sounds like the kind of person who would do that without a second thought." "It doesn't matter what forest is on the chopping block for her. Just as long as she gets paid for its' destruction, she doesn't care about anyone or anything in it." Gloriosa balled her hands into fists. "That's just plain mean!" Fluttershy exclaimed. "Would she do it even if there was a petition to save the forest, or if the government deemed it a historical landmark?" "Miasma hates anything that gets in the way of her payday," Gloriosa said. "Children, rival companies, even the law. She'll always find a way past them just to complete her destruction of the forest and get paid." "Why would she ever need the money?" Sunset put her hands by her hips. "I overheard some of her Treekillers saying that she's going to donate it to her city's mayor so that he can oversee the construction of a brand new city in place of the Everfree Forest." Gloriosa put the patch back in her pocket. "Heartless. I know." "Well, we're not gonna let her do that!" Rainbow Dash fist-pumped. "This forest holds a special place in our hearts, and I'd rather eat worms than see the day it gets torn down by some old hag who sits in some fancy-schmancy skyscraper!" "But how are we gonna stop her?" Sunset asked. "I mean, you alone, taking on a whole de-forestation company? That seems like million-to-one odds. And that's not even taking into account how many men and women work for Miasma." "That's where you'd be wrong, Sunset." Gloriosa smiled and leapt back into the trees. "There is a legend buried deep beneath the soil here. The Legend of the Everfree." "The Legend of the Everfree?" Everyone chorused. "It's an old tale. I was told it each and every night by my father when I was a baby." Gloriosa hung down from the branch she was standing on. "It's also a long one—one that would take days for me to tell without getting bored. But for now, you girls can rest easy." "Why can't you just tell us the story now?" Twilight tilted her head. "The Treekillers' latest site was wrecked by me, and now Miasma's main concern is looking for me, rather than cutting the place down. Unless she's multitasking and doing both, in which case I really need to be getting back to the Housetree..." She swung up into the leaves. "Don't you mean treehouse?" Rainbow Dash deadpanned. "No. I mean Housetree. Geez. There is a difference, after all..." Gloriosa darted off into a deepre part of the woods, her voice echoing as she left. "Find me at the lake tomorrow!" "Well. That was weird," said Sunset as Gloriosa's voice vanished. "Anyway, we'd best be getting to camp." Applejack looked down the path they had been walking on. "Camp Everfree's only thirty seconds away." "Wait. A random stranger just showed up out of nowhere, telling us that an evil woman is planning to tear down this forest, and you just want to keep going?" Sunset twitched. "Whether it's true or not, we haven't seen any of those Treekillers so far, and I don't hear the sound of logging machines revving up in the distance." Rainbow looked back at Sunset and the gang before heading off with Applejack. "We'll simply have to wait for now, and I'm not getting back in that car until we've had the camping trip of our lives." "Rainbow's right, Sunset." Fluttershy walked Sunset and Twilight over towards the camp. "This Gloriosa girl seems nice and all, but she hasn't really shown us any evidence that the forest is under attack." "Either way, we should be on guard." This time, it was Sunset's turn to cross her arms. "The message we saw and Gloriosa's arrival were no coincidences," she said. "I have a feeling that this won't be any normal camping trip..."