Sunset Shimmer and the Rainbooms were escorted through one of the de-forestation sites by the men who had captured them earlier. The metallic giants of machines and the dead ground around them gave them a sense of discomfort. It was as if they were standing in a crater that had eradicated everything upon impact.
There was a small building that had been set up entirely from scratch and could easily be moved if the team disconnected each part and loaded it up onto different trucks. Just like the logging mechs, the building was painted piano black, and there were no windows on any of the walls.
"Miasma waits inside, girls," said the man who had led his team when they had been chasing Gloriosa. "Sit quietly and wait until you are called. Then you may speak."
The inside of the building was even more lifeless than the outside. There were no posters, no coloured carpet or doormat, not even the doors had anything that made them stand out. The air was colder inside too, almost giving the sensation that the girls had just walked into the winds of the arctic north without wearing enough clothes.
Rarity shivered. "I know that Miasma's the head of a de-forestation company, but at the very least, she could have sprang for indoor heating."
"Be quiet!" The second man jabbed Rarity in the back with his baton, causing her to yelp. "The word of Miasma and her employees is law for any and all guests, magic-wielding freaks included."
The Rainbooms, unable to muster up the courage to speak, decided to obey the orders and sit down on the couch. The men that watched them were devoid of any and all emotion, and their eyes were also lifeless as the grips on their batons tightened.
Sunset Shimmer looked at each of the men that were now looming over her and her friends. She was unable to make anything out from their clothes or facial expressions. At first, she believed they were under a hypnotic trance, but then she recalled that one of them had been smiling when they had captured them.
A buzzing noise was heard, followed by a voice over the intercom. "Ms Miasma will see you now, Rainbooms," said a female who had just as monotone a voice as the men. "Walk into the office quietly, and do not attempt to speak until she speaks to you. Failure to abide by these rules will result in a strict punishment."
"You heard the voice. Move." One of the men grabbed Pinkie Pie's arm while the rest forced the others off of the couch. Within seconds, they were all moving again into another room.
The next room was even darker and colder than the one before it, and the only light that could be seen was the one illuminating the chairs for each of the Rainbooms to sit down. Everything else could not be seen, even with how powerful the overhead light was, and now when the girls breathed, their breaths froze up.
Each of the girls sat down quietly, and the men who had brought them in walked out of the office before closing the door and locking it up. They couldn't exactly piece it together, but something about the lock clicking made them huddle up and start shaking, as they were unaware of what Miasma would do or say to them.
"Rainbooms. How nice to meet you." Miasma walked out of the darkness with her hands behind her back. Her brows were lowered and she was almsot glaring at the girls. "But I'm sure that you don't think the same of me, especially with what I'm about to do."
"Before things get ugly, might I ask, why did you come for us exactly?" Rarity crossed her arms and cocked on her of her own eyebrows. "Weren't you and your men chasing down that girl?"
"You mean Gloriosa?" Miasma chuckled lightly and flicked her wrist. "Yes, she is a hinderance, but she is not half as a problem as you and your friends."
"What did we ever do to you and your company?" Fluttershy brushed a strand of hair that had fallen over her face.
"You haven't done anything wrong, I admit." Miasma paced back and forth, furrowing her brows as she brushed her hand over her desk. "Not yet, at least.
"You see, girls, my company has never failed a logging job, regardless of the size of the forest, or the number of protestors we have encountered." Miasma's breath was so cold as she spoke that it too froze up. "Every time there is a little bit of resistance against the company, my men have always stamped it out. And after years of this method, everyone knows that when they mess with Miasma De-Forestation Co, they end up playing with a loaded gun pointed at their heads, unaware that at any moment, that trigger could be pulled and their voices could be silenced in an instant.
"With their favourite forests ripped down by my men, the people who used to frolick in the grassy knolls now mourn each and every day, utterly demoralized to find any sense of joy after my icy influence reaches them." She stopped and took a little drink before she hung her head slightly. "It saddens me too, I admit, but for the good of my hard-working employees, sacrifices must be made."
"But what does this have to do with us?" Sunset crossed her arms and raised her left eyebrow. "You've kidnapped six innocent teenage girls who haven't even remotely tried to stop your company from doing their job, but will now, considering how poorly you've treated us."
"Which is why I've been allowed to do this." Miasma reached into her desk and pulled out a loaded MP443 Grach pistol before pointing it directly at Sunset Shimmer's head.
The other girls all gasped and recoiled as the gun clicked. At any moment, Miasma could pull the trigger and leave a massive bullet hole in their friend.
"I know that this is a bit of a shock, but my master's orders are absolute," Miasma's voice got even deeper but she didn't move an inch.
"Absolute?! What kind of sick freak carries a loaded gun?!" Rainbow Dash's arms were thrashing about in front of her, but were quickly raised when Miasma pointed the gun at her.
"Don't say a word, you winged freak of nature! I don't want to hear it!" despite raising her voice again, she was still stationary. "If anything, you're the monster for what happened at not only the Fall Formal and Battle of the Bands, but also at the Friendship Games! My friends have been embarassed because of your pathetic and underhanded actions to defy the natural order of this world, and for that, I will waste no more time in pulling this trigger and ending you right here and now!" Her finger rested gently on it, and began to squeeze, lightly pulling it towards her. Any further, and the bullet would shoot. "Farewell, Rainbooms!"
The gun shot, and a loud and radiant flash surrounded the room for a split second. But instead of Rainbow Dash being shot in the head, the bullet just missed her and the hole could clearly be seen in the wall behind her.
And from the origin of the shot, Miasma was covered in the same sap that Gloriosa had used to destroy the logging machines. She flailed about hard, trying to break free of the sticky trap, but she was completely immobilized. Despite holding the gun in her hand, she could not fire it any more, as her finger was stuck on the pulled trigger, and the MP443 Grach was a semi-automatic gun, meaning the trigger had to be pulled rapidly for multiple shots.
"What is this gunk?!" Miasma screamed as she tried to free her other arm. "Why can't I move?!"
The sounds of guards being beat up could be heard from the room outside, and seconds afterwards, the door opened, revealing Gloriosa and the Shadowbolts standing on the other side.
"Girls! Run!" Indigo shouted from the other side of the door, using her hands to signal for the girls to escape.
Sparing no time, the Rainbooms all ran out of office, almost tripping over each other as they squeezed through the single door in groups of two. Once they were all out, they ran out of the room, with Gloriosa moving ahead with bolas armed to trip up any guard that came their way.
Once they got out, the alarms had been sounded, and the noise alerted all of the men to not just the position of the Rainbooms and Shadowbolts, but to that of Gloriosa as well. After trying to run, the girls all found themselves surrounded again, causing Gloriosa to reach into her pouch and pull out a medium-sized pink stone with archaic markings etched onto it.
"There's nowhere to run, girls!" One of the men spoke through a megaphone. "Surrender quietly, and your deaths will be quick and painless!"
"What do we do, Glori?" Pinkie's knees were quaking as she asked her.
"Do you girls believe in magic?" Gloriosa whispered.
"Yes, but what does that have to do with—"
"Outta here!" Gloriosa declared as she held up the stone and threw it at her feet, engulfing her friends in a pink cloud of smoke. The guards pulled out their own guns and opened fire, only to shoot themselves and collapse around the mist, leaving a few holes with mildly trickling blood pouring out, but nothing too severe.
It was only after the smoke had vanished that Miasma stormed out of the building, shaking down the last of the sap that had ensnared her earlier. She scoffed as she threw it away before marching over to her men, tightening her hands into fists as she gritted her teeth.
When the dust finally settled, the Rainbooms, Shadowbolts, and Gloriosa were nowhere to be found, and had left no visible trail on both the ground and the trees. All that remained was a single pink stone that turned a shade of grey once Miasma picked it up. The marks also vanished once she got a closer look at it.
A quick burst of purple light appeared in the middle of the field where the Rainbooms and Shadowbolts had been playing with the plastic guns and foam darts from earlier. It quickly dissipated and the group of thirteen girls landed hard, with the Shadowbolts on their chests, the Rainbooms on their backs, and Gloriosa on her feet.
"What was that?!" Pinkie Pie quickly jumped up and clasped her hands together eagerly.
"That my friend was a little bit of energy modification combined with the spirits of every tree in the forest, choosing a random spot for us to be whisked away to by means of astronomic and chronologic distortion. Also known as a 'Teleport Stone', which allows the holder to magically land at any random part of the Everfree Forest, but only once." Gloriosa helped all of the other girls stand up and clean themselves off after their rough landing. "So basically, we're away from Miasma's men, but I have no idea where in the name of Ecoloris we ended up..."
"Ecoloris?" Sunset asked.
"He's the guardian of the forest, and the one who intrusted me to keep this place safe from monsters like Miasma and the Treekillers," said Gloriosa as she dusted Rarity and Sunny Flare off. "I would show you a picture, but he prefers not to be shown to the public."
"Alright. It's not even sunset yet, and I've already got a ton of questions and no answers." Sunset stood up and pushed the air. "First of all, why does Miasma carry a handgun; second of all, how is it that you have magical stones that can just teleport us out of harm's way at the drop of a hat; and third of all, why is it always us who makes the villain want to get rid of us?!"
"Sheesh. What pooped in your cornflakes, Sunset?" Gloriosa stopped what she had been doing and walked over to try and comfort her. "I was only trying to help."
"Gloriosa, I believe what Sunset is trying to say is that we've already seen these Treekillers of yours, and from what you've been saying and how mysterious you've been acting, we don't have a reason to trust you until you give us a straightforward answer." Sugarcoat crossed her arms and stood aside Sunset. "How do we know that you're not a spy working for those men?"
"I'll tell you everything tomorrow, girls." Gloriosa looked out into the distance and saw that the sun was beginning to set, painting the empty blue sky into an awe-inspiring shade of orange. "It's getting late, and the camp will be worried sick about where you girls are. You must rest, otherwise you'll be in no shape to save the forest." She held up another little ball and threw it, leaving a cloud of white smoke in her wake. However, a few of the girls that hadn't been struck by it could see her leap up and dart off into the trees nearby.
"What do you think, Sunset? Should we trust her?" Fluttershy asked as she walked across the dew-ridden grass. "She's been hiding an awful lot of stuff from us."
"I'm not sure, but she is right about one thing, Fluttershy." Sunset saw a small red stone that Gloriosa had left behind when the smoke cleared. She picked it up and felt some otherworldly energy resonating from it. "There's definitely something up with the Everfree Forest, and we need to find out what it is..."