I awoke slowly to the sound of knocking on my door. I couldn’t remember how I had gotten home from Sky Flare’s place last night, but it must have been very late. And whatever time it was now, it was way too early for my liking.
With a groan, I pulled my bedding up and over my head and tried to go back to sleep. I had no desire to see anyone right now, I just wanted a few more hours of sleep.
The knocking was sufficiently muffled, but my victory was short lived. My blankets were ripped from around me with a hard jerk and I was nearly dragged off the bed with them. I rolled to my feet and glared up at the one responsible.
I found myself face to face with Sky Flare and frowned heavily. "What the hell are you doing Sky!?" I barked. My lack of sleep had cut my patience severely, and the fact that I was still half asleep didn’t help my mood much.
"What do you mean, what am I doing?" she scoffed back, "It's morning! We agreed we were leaving Canterlot with the rising of the sun, remember?"
"What?" I mumbled, "Leaving Canterlot?" I paused as her words rattled about in my head. It took me a moment, but with a start of realization, I gradually recalled the events of the night before.
Breezy and Lemon Bloom had thrown us a bit of a going away party. We had pie, caramel glazed apples, and even some wine which I was surprised to find existed in Equestria.
As I woke up more fully, I quickly came to realize that I wasn’t in my room at the palace like I thought I was, I was in some other room I did not recognize. It was much smaller than I was used to, and the walls were made of faded oak planks, not the typical white stone.
"W-where am I?" I asked aloud, though I hadn't really intended too.
"Our spare bedroom you goof," Sky Flare sighed, "You really can't handle your wine at all, can you?"
"I... I guess not." I said, still rather confused. I didn't remember drinking that much wine last night, but I guess my new body had next to no alcohol tolerance. Either that, or the wine they had given me was extremely strong.
"Well, can you stand?" Sky Flare asked, taking a step back to give me some room.
"Of course I can stand," I said, "I didn't have that much... Did I?"
"You mean you don't remember?" She asked me with a growing smirk.
"I remember the pie," I said, staggering a little as I got to my feet, "Then your mother offered me some wine..."
"And after that?" Sky Flare asked curiously.
"W-well..." I tried to think of what had happened after that, but I was only able to recall hazy flashes at best. "There was the pie," I said again, "Then some wine... Then music started playing... Then your mom brought me some more wine and..." It was just all so fuzzy in my memory. The music reminded me of something, then what though? I shook my head to try and clear it and gasped in horror as it came back to me. "Oh god I sang something!"
Sky Flare laughed loudly and grinned at me coyly. "That you most certainly did," she mused, "And you really do have quite a nice singing voice. Some neat dance moves too."
"I didn't..." I whispered in shock.
Sky Flare nodded. "Mhmm," she said, "You did. What was it you called it?" She fell silent and looked off into the distance thoughtfully. "Mika? Mikale...? Michael Jackson!" She said, "You called it the Michael Jackson dance. I had no idea you could move your hips like that by the way. My Mother nearly fainted!"
My jaw dropped as Sky Flare began laughing once again and I felt a scalding blush cover me from head to foot.
I was a huge fan of Michael Jackson's dance moves and music, but I never actually danced like him in public. "W-what was that wine made out of!?" I asked. I felt as though I would die of embarrassment at any moment.
"I'm not sure," Sky Flare said, "My Dad made that particular bottle years ago. Before he even met my Mom. Now he just uses grapes or apples, but back then, who knows?"
"D-did anyone else have any?" I asked, hoping beyond hope that I wasn’t the only one to make a fool of themselves last night.
"Dad had a small cup of it, but that's about it," She said, "I tried some of his wine years ago and that was plenty for me."
I sat down and whimpered in embarrassment.
"Hey, I told you it was strong," She said, "But you still got that Earth Pony stubbornness to you. Shame whatever turned you into a Pegasus seems to have also taken away your Earth Pony tolerance."
I felt a slight twinge of relief at that. She still thought I was an Earth Pony before I became a Pegasus, which meant I hadn't said anything about where I was from, or what I used to be.
"Come on now," Sky Flare said, "Breakfast's getting cold. Mom wanted to make sure we had a good meal to start our little trip off with."
"I don’t think I'm very hungry right now..." I said nervously, "Your parents probably hate me for the way I acted last night..."
"Are you kidding?" Sky Flare laughed, "They had a blast! Dad's already planning to dig out another bottle for when we get back."
She gave a gentle tug on my right wing to get me to my feet and I reluctantly followed after her.
Now that I was moving, I could feel my left side burning with a dull ache. It didn't feel like I'd re-broken any of my ribs, but I definitely strained them with all the dancing the night before. I tried to hide it as best I could, but every shift of my wings caused me to wince in pain.
Slowly, I followed Sky Flare downstairs and into the dining room for breakfast. The meal set out for us smelled wonderful, and much to my added delight, no one else was in the room just yet.
I sat down near Sky Flare, in the same spot I had sat the last time I had been over. My heart was racing as I anticipated Breezy and Lemon Bloom's entry, but every second without them there was one more second I was grateful for.
Before long however, Breezy trotted into the room, with Lemon Bloom following close behind.
"Ahh, there 'e is!" Breezy laughed, "I trust ya ‘ad a good sleep there after last night?"
"Uhh, yeah..." I said quietly.
"What Silver means to say Dad," Sky Flare chimed in, "Is that he doesn’t really remember last night very well. Or at all really."
I shot a mortified glare at Sky Flare, but she simply smiled back at me and shrugged.
"Now we're even," she said simply, "Consider that revenge for keeping my parents little scheme a secret for so long."
Breezy laughed again and sat down. "You don't truly know somepony till you've seen em let loose," he said, "And now that we know ya so well, I feel right fine in lettin' you take my little Sky Flare out on this trip a yers."
“And how could we not dear?” Lemon Bloom chimed in, “You heard the song he sang to her last night.”
“Mom!” Sky Flare barked.
I glanced at her at that, but found her to be looking away from me almost shyly. ‘What song did I sing?’ I thought almost fearfully. I knew a lot of different songs, but what could I have possibly sang to Sky Flare?
Breezy chuckled at his wife’s words and nodded at me. “Aye, I ‘eard it,” he said, “A right proper love song it was too.”
“Wait, what!?” I gasped, “A love song!?”
“You were really drunk Silver,” Sky Flare sighed, still not looking at me, “So don’t worry about it.”
“Drunk or not, a lot of thought went into that song dear,” Lemon Bloom said happily, “So you must have been on his mind for quite some time for him to have come up with it.”
I looked from Lemon Bloom to Sky Flare and back. Sky Flare still wasn’t looking at me, so I had no idea if she was mad, embarrassed, or what, but I was mortified. ‘A love song!?’ I practically screamed in my mind, ‘There’s no way I would have done that! There has to be some sort of a mistake. A cultural misunderstanding, something, anything!’
I groaned and dropped my head a little as Lemon Bloom went on.
“No need to be embarrassed Silver Wing,” she said, clearly noticing my change, “It was a lovely song, and you sang it quite well.”
“T-thanks…” I said softly. I had to find out from Sky Flare later on what exactly I had sang. This was not something I could handle being a mystery for very long.
“I think we’re gonna be late…” Sky Flare sighed, “We should probably get to the Palace and get the stuff the Princesses left for you Silver.”
“What stuff?” I asked, though as I spoke the question, I recalled that the Princesses had said they would give me some supplies and money for the trip.
“Really…?” Sky Flare said flatly, “Equestria to Silver, wake up already.”
“R-right… Sorry,” I said quickly, “The tent, money and food. It should be in my room by now.”
“At least take a few bites of your breakfast first,” Lemon Bloom said, “You two have a long trip ahead of you after all.”
Without waiting for either of our replies, Lemon Bloom began serving us all rather large portions of the breakfast she had prepared. She gave each of us three large pancakes, some honeyed apple slices, and a large glass of orange juice.
The meal itself was quite nice, but there was little talk while we ate. My silence was mostly due to my own embarrassment over last nights still rather hazy chain of events, but I couldn’t help feel that something was bothering Sky Flare. My only thought was that it had to be the song I apparently sang to her. That, or the concern she probably still had over leaving Canterlot and her parents behind for a while.
After we had eaten, Sky Flare slipped on a pair of saddlebags that she had apparently gotten ready the night before and practically dragged me out of her house by my feathers. She was clearly wanting to get as far away from her parents as she could, before they said anything else to embarrass either her or me.
Breezy and Lemon Bloom saw us off cheerfully, each imparting a word or two of advice for the road ahead, and before long we were on our way back to the Palace.
“I’m glad that’s over with…” Sky Flare sighed, “As much as I love them, I really wish they’d just quit it with the comments…”
“Yeah,” I said tentatively, “About those though… What exactly did I sing to you last night? They said it was a love song?”
Sky Flare smirked at me and shook her head. “Don’t worry about it Silver Wing,” she said, “You were drunk. And I know you didn’t mean it the way my parents took it.”
“Didn’t mean what?” I asked, “I’d really like to know what I sang…” She almost never used my full name when talking to me, so something was definitely bothering her big time.
“I don’t know the name,” Sky Flare said simply, “But I remember the words.”
I looked at her curiously and she sighed.
“It went something like… Take my love, take my land, I don’t care I’m still free, you can’t take my sky from me.” She said it quickly, almost whispering the lyrics to herself. Then she cleared her throat and looked away.
‘Can’t take ‘my’ sky from me?’ I thought in surprise, ‘That’s not right. It should be ‘you can’t take ‘the’ sky from me.’ I groaned and dropped my head. I knew the song well, it was the Ballad of Serenity, a simple song from a TV series I loved, but I could see how one word change would make it seem like a love song about someone who happened to be named Sky.
“They thought you were singing about me, but I know you meant the sky itself,” she continued, matter of fact, “I know how much you love flying after all.”
I caught her glance at me for a moment, a half hopeful glint to her eye, then she looked away again just as fast.
I wasn’t sure what to say to that. It definitely was not a love song to her, but she seemed unusually sensitive to the entire topic, so I figured it would be best to just leave it be. A song from a drunk at a party would be far easier to get over than clear words stating the facts.
Once back to my room, we found a number of supplies laid out for us. There were two saddlebags like the one Sky Flare was already wearing, though while hers’ was a light tan color, these were both a lacquered brown. They were simple in design, but tailored specifically for a Pegasus. Unlike normal saddlebags, these ones possessed an additional waistband to help them stay on during flight. Sky Flare’s had the same waistband, so she stuck to using the one she had already packed. Though she did take a few items from the supplies left to us.
Among the rest of the items that had been delivered, we found several packages of dried fruits and other food that could be kept for days on end and eaten without preparation. A pair of tents with matching rain tarps, a map of the surrounding area, and a rather hefty pouch of gold coins, which I intended to use as few as possible of.
There were various other useful items like sling canteens, some basic cooking utensils, and a few candles as well. It was quite the load, but after all my training with Sky Flare, I was confident I’d be able to fly with my share on me, once my ribs were better anyways.
“They sure got us a lot of stuff,” Sky Flare commented as she rummaged through the second saddlebag, “Most of this I already packed though. And I doubt we’ll need two tents.”
“What?” I said surprised, “Why not?”
Sky Flare smirked at me a moment and tilted her head coyly. “What’s the matter Silver, don’t like the idea of sharing a tent with me?”
“No no, it’s not that,” I said quickly, “I just…”
“You just what?” She cooed.
She watched me closely as I tried to think of a safe way to say we should have separate tents, but I couldn’t think of any words to use that wouldn’t get me into trouble. So with a heavy sigh, I simply shook my head and gave in. “Never mind, one tent will work fine.”
Sky Flare laughed and grinned at me cheshirely. “You know, for all your skills in combat and flying, you really do suck at using your words,” she chuckled, “Don’t think about what to say so much, just feel out the situation and speak your mind.” She scooped up the second tent and secured it to her saddlebag before smiling at me once more. “I was joking about the tent sharing by the way. You really are way too easy to fluster.”
I groaned and turned my attention to my own saddlebag. I had watched Sky Flare carefully when she had slipped into hers’ back at her place, and I attempted to do the same. I wasn’t the most graceful at getting them on, but I managed well enough not to arouse any suspicion.
Fumbling with my hooves, I managed at last to close the waistband by sliding one end through the belt like clasp on the other and smiled victoriously at Sky Flare.
“All set?” she chuckled.
I nodded. “All set.” I said. This was my first time wearing saddlebags and they were surprisingly comfortable.
Though my ribs were still tender to the touch, the saddlebags rested low on my body, so their weight didn’t put very much strain on them at all.
“I see you are ready to begin your adventure into the unknown.” A voice called softly from behind us.
I turned to see who it was and found Princess Celestia to be standing in my doorway. I bowed my head politely and nodded. “Just about to head out actually.” I said.
“And I see that our Sky Flare has decided to go along with you, most excellent.” Celestia added.
“You know how he can be,” Sky Flare said, “Somepony needs to be with him, or he’ll wind up lost in the middle of the Everfree in no time.”
“Hey now, I’m not that bad,” I frowned at her, “And I can hold my own if push comes to shove.”
“Indeed you can Silver Wing, but not every encounter can be settled through force of hoof or speed of wing,” Celestia offered sagely, “Sometimes talking things through is the best course of action.”
Sky Flare smirked at her words and I felt her tail whip me softly on the flank. “Hear that Silver?” she teased, “Even Princess Celestia thinks you should speak your mind once in a while, instead of always brooding over whatever you have in that head of yours.”
I shook my head at her and looked back to Celestia. “I’ll do my best.” I said honestly.
“Good,” Celestia smiled, “And remember, trust in your friends. Sky Flare’s knowledge of Equestria and its culture is quite vast. You would be wise to utilize it when you can.”
“I will.” I said.
“Then I wish you the best of fortune on your travels.” Celestia finished. She gave a polite bow, then stepped aside into the hall.
I took that as my cue to leave, and nodded for Sky Flare to follow me into the hall.
“Oh yes, one more thing Silver Wing,” Celestia called, “My Sister wishes for me to tell you that she will be eagerly awaiting your return to Canterlot. Do you know what she means by this?”
I paused for a moment as I too wondered what she meant by that, then I recalled Luna’s strong desire to fight me when I had fully healed. With me leaving like this, our match would have to wait until I returned from my little adventure. I’d have to make sure I was in top shape when I got back so I wouldn’t disappoint her.
“Not off the top of my head,” I said quickly, “Maybe she wants another demonstration when I get back?” I didn’t want to lie to Celestia, but I also didn’t want to upset her by telling her that her sister had asked to fight with me in private when I was feeling better.
“Yes, she was quite pleased with the last one,” Celestia mused, though she had a knowing air about her as she spoke, “Perhaps instead of a stacking tournament, we’ll have a gauntlet next time. A test of endurance, and of the quality of our guards.”
I laughed weakly at the thought of fighting one guard after the next like that, but I tried not to dwell on it too much. I’d do it if they asked me too, but I really didn’t want to make any more of a name for myself than I already had. I knew Stalwart had enjoyed himself, Skyros too, but Malican no doubt hated me now. I wasn’t sure how many other guards were like Malican, but I wanted to stay on the good side of as many ponies as I could while I was here.
“Go on now,” Celestia smiled, “I’ll have to hold the sun up late if you two don’t get moving soon.”
I bowed to her, and caught Sky Flare follow suit, then we both headed off on our journey to see Equestria for ourselves.
The first three days, though interesting and full of picturesque scenery, consisted mostly of wandering through open fields and over rolling hills. With my ribs still injured, I couldn’t fly safely yet, so we were just walking in whatever direction we felt like come that particular morning.
Sky Flare had been like a child since we had left. She was sad, and concerned for her parents at first, but all her fears quickly fell away with each new step we took. She had always dreamed of one day exploring every corner of Equestria, and now that she had the chance, she was like a completely different pony. Every flower, tree, or bush we had come across she had known the name of, and practically every blade of grass seemed to fascinate her to no ends.
“Are you still sketching plants in that notepad of yours Sky?” I asked.
It was early morning on our fourth day and we had just finished breakfast. I was hard at work cleaning up my portion of the mess, but Sky Flare was hurriedly scribbling in one of her notebooks.
“I plan to document each and every one for my parents to see when we get back,” She replied, “I’m almost done though.”
Sky Flare was a surprisingly good artist, especially compared to me. I could barely draw an identifiable circle using my mouth, but here she was drawing plants so real they almost looked like photographs.
As she worked on finishing her latest sketch, my attention shifted to the bracelet Dawn had given me. I hadn’t tried to use it much yet, and now seemed like a good time to try and get the hang of it.
Looking around, I found a small rock a few feet away and pointed the bracelet at it. I focused on the rock tried to remember what I had to do to make the bracelet work. ‘Now what was it Dawn had said to do?’ I thought, ‘Just think like you’re grabbing it with a hand… Pick it up, and bring it to you…’
A soft glow built within the opalescent jewel that was set in the center of the bracelet, and a moment later the rock began to tremble slightly, but it didn’t move.
“Come here rock… Move already…” I whispered at it as I focused harder. Very slowly, the rock began to slide along the grass towards me and I grinned victoriously.
“What are you doing?”
I jumped at the sudden voice and the rock became still once more.
“Geez Sky, you nearly gave me a heart attack!” I sighed. She was standing right behind me now, and must have been watching me as I concentrated. I had somehow missed her approach altogether.
“And you say I need to pay attention to my surroundings.” She laughed.
“In a fight you do, but not out here in a field.” I said.
She shrugged and sat down beside me. “So, what’re you doing?” She asked again.
“This is a magic bracelet that Dawn gave me,” I explained, “It’s supposed to let me move things with magic like a Unicorn does, but I’m still trying to get the hang of it.”
“Really?” She asked, looking closer at the bracelet.
“Yeah,” I assured her, “It’ll be really helpful once I get it down too.”
“Show me.” Sky Flare said, looking back to the rock I had been focused on earlier.
“I’ll try,” I said, “But no promises. I’ve only used this thing once before, and even then, not very well.” I focused on the rock once again, but despite my best efforts, it didn’t even tremble this time.
“You sure she wasn’t pulling your feathers there Silver?” Sky Flare smirked.
I sighed. “I’m sure,” I said, “Just… Give me a minute.”
Taking a deep breath to calm myself, I refocused on the small rock and willed it to lift up. I visualized myself grabbing it with a hand and drawing it towards me. My eyes drifted closed as I put all my thought into the bracelet moving the rock to me, then rather abruptly, I was met with a sharp pang of pain in my forehead.
Sky Flare burst out laughing an instant later and threw herself back onto the grass as she fought to catch her breath.
I meanwhile, was rolling around on the ground in pain, with both forelegs pulled firmly to my forehead.
“W-what was that for Sky!?” I barked when the pain had finally calmed to a dull throb.
“Don’t look at me!” She laughed back, “That was all you there Silver! That bracelet of yours is real helpful alright, if you wanna knock yourself out!”
She resumed her wild laughter and I glanced around my immediate area, and sure enough, there was the small rock I had been trying to move. In closing my eyes, I had apparently flung it right into my own head…
I frowned at the rock, and willed the bracelet to throw the stone as far from me as it could, but nothing happened. With a frustrated groan, I scooped the stone up with a hoof and threw it myself.
“Stupid rock.” I grumbled.
“Oh yeah,” Sky Flare teased, “It was all the rock, nothing to do with the operator at all.”
I frowned at her and laid back down, momentarily defeated by my own actions.
Sky Flare rolled back over to me and sat up. “Mind if I take a look at it?” she asked.
I stretched my left leg towards her and shrugged. “Knock yourself out.” I said flatly. My head still hurt, and so did my pride.
“No thanks,” she said, slipping the bracelet off my leg, “I’ll leave that one to you. You’re clearly practicing hard at it.”
I sighed and looked away from her.
Sky Flare looked the bracelet over for a few moments before I heard her gasp. “Oh wow!” she exclaimed, “This is one of Starswirl the Bearded’s works! But wait…”
I felt her nudge my side to draw my attention, then saw her pointing to the symbols engraved into the band.
“See Starswirl’s symbol here?” She explained quickly, “It’s not his typical signature, this one has a second star within the main star. Do you have any idea how rare this piece is?”
“Yeah,” I said nodding, “Princess Twilight told us a bit about it. Starswirl made a lot of helpful items like that one, then took them all back and destroyed them for some reason. This one was one he missed, or didn’t fully destroy anyways. Dawn had to fix it before it would work.”
“Wait, she fixed it!?” Sky Flare gasped, “That green Unicorn that was friends with all those guards betting against you?”
I nodded.
“But Mom said she was in her Magic Kindergarten class!” Sky Flare said doubtfully, “There’s no way somepony who can barely even manage a music spell could fix something like this.”
“And there’s no way somepony my age had never flown before either, right?” I said, “Yet I never had, now had I?”
“Well yeah, but you’re different Silver, you were an Earth Pony until just recently.” Sky Flare protested.
“Dawn’s a lot like me,” I said, “We both have our little tricks.”
“Well, that’s one impressive trick then,” Sky Flare said, looking back at the bracelet, “To fix something of Starswirl’s is no easy feat.”
I looked at her curiously and watched as she admired the intricate markings that encircled the bracelets band. Her awed look of excitement reminded me of how Princess Twilight had looked when she had first seen it a few weeks ago. “How is it you know so much about magic trinkets Sky?” I asked, “I mean, I know you know a lot about Equestria and its history, but why do you know about magic too?”
“My mother’s a Unicorn, remember?” Sky Flare smirked, “And a teacher. I kinda picked up a few things from her. Even went to some of her classes just to see how Unicorns control their magic. Just because I can’t do what they can doesn’t mean I don’t want to know about it.”
I chuckled at her answer. She sounded a lot like me in that regards. I had been so lost during the dinners with the Princesses that I had decided to learn about magic myself, just so I could have some idea of what was going on. I hadn’t really had time study up on the subject yet, but now that I knew Sky Flare had learned a thing or two about it, I hopped to have her teach me a little during our time together.
“I don’t suppose you’d be willing to teach me what you know sometime?” I asked, “I’d like to know a little bit more than ‘Magic is as magic does.’ Especially if I’m going to be wearing something magical all the time.”
“Sure,” Sky Flare said smiling, “But it’ll cost ya.”
I groaned. “And what will it cost me…”
“I get to draw you wearing this bracelet.” She smiled.
I laughed. “I don’t know, that seems like an awfully steep request.”
“Take it, or leave it.” She said, tossing the bracelet back to me.
I slipped it back on my left leg and shrugged. “I guess I have no choice then,” I chuckled, “Draw away.”
By the time the sun was setting, we had traveled a fair ways east. Far in the distance now, I could see a vast sea of dark green starting to rise up over the horizon. I strained my eyes to make out what it was and quickly realized that it was a forest. A huge, densely grown forest unlike any I had seen in Equestria so far.
“Hey Sky, let’s head that way tomorrow,” I said, pointing to the distant forest, “I wanna check that place out next.”
Sky Flare glanced to where I was pointing and gasped at me in shock. “Are you crazy Silver!?” she said, “No pony goes there! That’s the Everfree Forest!”
“The Everfree Forest?” I repeated. I had heard the name a few times before, but only in passing, so I didn’t know too much about it beyond the name, and that it was of course, a forest.
“Yeah, the Everfree Forest,” She stated, “Ponies go in, and they don’t come out! That place is dangerous Silver. There’s something wrong with it. If you want, we can follow it east to Ponyville tomorrow, but that’s as close as we’re getting to it.”
“And here I thought you wanted to go out and explore every square inch of Equestria with your own hoof.” I smirked.
“Everywhere but there,” she stated, “I have no interest in being turned to stone, eaten by Timber Wolves, or swallowed whole by a Cragadile. Never mind the fact that the weather there is as wild and unpredictable as the plants are!”
“I thought that Pegasai controlled the weather though?” I asked, rather confused by her statement.
“They do, usually,” Sky Flare said, “But not there. That place is wild and dangerous. A few years back it even tried to overrun Ponyville, but Princess Twilight managed to stop it.”
I glanced back to the forest and frowned. ‘It can’t be that bad,’ I thought, ‘No matter how old it is, a forest is still just a forest, no matter what lives in it.’ I had always loved exploring forests, the older the better really, so the prospect of exploring one that not even the locals would go near was incredibly alluring.
“Ponyville it is then,” I said thoughtfully, “I wanna learn more about that forest.”
“Just so long as we don’t have to actually go into it,” Sky Flare stressed, “I am not kidding when I say it’s a dangerous place.”
I waved off her concerns and began setting up my tent for the night. ‘Dangerous as it may be,’ I thought, already planning my trip into the forest, ‘A few minutes just looking around won’t hurt. Sky Flare can amuse herself in Ponyville while I go check it out alone. I’ll be back before she even notices I’ve gone.’
From Sky Flare, I had managed to learn a little more about this Everfree Forest later that night. It was supposedly filled with all manner of dangerous creatures, but the main thing that kept ponies away, was the forest itself. It grew without aid from the outside world. No ponies tended to it, or its weather. It had its own climate and seasons completely independent of the rest of Equestria.
The more I had learned about the place, the more I found myself admiring it. It was exactly like the forests of my world. It grew how it wanted, without anyone pruning or cultivating it. It was free, as its name implied, and that made me think of it like it was a tiny slice of my own world. In my mind, it meant there was at least one place of normalcy here in this strange world. Someplace that was just allowed to exist as it pleased, without aid or guide. It just so happened that the natural freedom I admired it for, was the same aspect of it that everyone else feared.
By about noon the next day, Ponyville was coming into view over the horizon. It looked like a small little village, until I noticed the rather large crystalline castle off to the side.
“What’s with the castle?” I asked, “Seems a little out of place for a town like this.”
Sky Flare chuckled at me. “That’s Princess Twilight’s castle,” she explained, “It was built by magic after she defeated Tirek.”
“Tirek?” I asked.
“He was an evil Centaur that tried to steal every ponies magic,” Sky Flare explained, “But Princess Twilight and her friends stopped him.”
“Sounds like she does a lot for ponies.” I said.
Sky Flare nodded. “Of course she does, she is the Princes of Friendship after all.”
I snorted a laugh at that. “Princess of Friendship?” I repeated, “How can you be the Princess of a state of relations?”
Sky Flare eyed me oddly for a moment than shook her head. “Princess Celestia tasked her with it,” she explained, “I don’t know why, but she did. Just like she tasked Princess Cadence with being the Princess of Love.”
“Wait, so Celestia made them both into Princesses?” I asked.
Sky Flare nodded again. “Yes, she did,” she said, “She also made them into Alicorns, just like she and Luna are. Princess Twilight was a Unicorn before Celestia made her a Princess, and Princess Cadence was a Pegasus.”
“Huh…” I said thoughtfully, “So they weren’t born Alicorns… What about Celestia and Luna then? Were they Unicorns or Pegasus before they became Princesses?”
“No, they were always Alicorns,” Sky Flare said, “At least, as far as I know anyway.”
“So a Unicorn can be made into an Alicorn by the Princesses, as can a Pegasus,” I said thoughtfully, “What about an Earth Pony then?”
Sky Flare smirked at me. “What, you wanting to become a Princess one day Silver?”
I sighed at her and shook my head. “No, I just want to know how it works,” I said, “So can anyone become a Princess or just Unicorns and Pegasai?”
“I don’t really know,” She admitted, “So far, it’s only been Cadence and Twilight that have been turned into Princesses, so the prerequisites are rather vague. But they both had to prove themselves through great trials to be gifted the powers of an Alicorn. It’s not something Celestia does often, or without great reason.”
That was very interesting to me. It meant magic could be gifted to another by a Princess. So it stood to reason that it could be gifted in other ways too, just like the magic bracelet I now wore had been gifted to me. So, even in the worst case scenario of Dawn not being able to get me home again, I might still be able to find a way to do it myself, if I could get my own magic somehow.
We fell silent as we walked on. Ponyville wasn’t much further now. It looked to be just beyond the well-kept forest we were now walking beside. There was a dirt road leading past it, and sectioning off the trees from road was a large wooden fence that ran for as far as I could see.
“Howdy y’all, you two lost?” A voice suddenly called from nearby.
I looked around for the source of the voice and found a light orange Earth Pony waving to us from beyond a wooden fence. She had a tan colored cowboy hat on and wore her mane in a braided ponytail. Behind her was a cart half filled with apples that she seemed to be loading.
I hadn’t noticed it before, but now that I was looking around again, I realized that the forest we were walking beside was actually a massive apple orchard. The trees were huge, and bright red apples filled nearly every one of them.
“Not really, just wandering around Equestria for a bit,” Sky Flare answered, slowing her pace but not stopping, “We’re headed to Ponyville next.”
“Ah, then y’all are on the right track,” the pony replied, “Just keep on down this here path and you’ll be there before you can spit.”
“Thanks.” Sky Flare said, resuming her usual trot.
I smiled at the Earth Pony’s clearly country way of speaking. Up until now, Breezy was the only pony I had encountered with an accent, so it was interesting to find another so soon. It made me realize just how much variety Equestria must have in its people, beyond the rainbow pallet of coat colors.
I nodded my head my head in thanks and followed after Sky Flare, leaving the Earth Pony to her work.
As the orange Earth Pony had said, we found Ponyville just a few more minutes down the road. The streets were filled with dozens of ponies going about their daily tasks. Children ran around here and there, and overhead a few Pegasai drifted about lazily.
“Welcome to Ponyville Silver,” Sky Flare said happily, “Home of Princess Twilight, Sweet Apple Acres, and some of the best parties in Equestria.”
It was a nice enough looking place. It reminded me of those small towns where everyone knew everyone else, and about the worst thing to have happen on any given day was the paper being late.
“It looks relaxed,” I said, “But I’ve had enough parties for a while thanks.” I still hadn’t fully recovered from the embarrassment of my last party with Sky Flare and her family, and I had no desire to repeat any of that night again anytime soon at all.
Sky Flare snorted a chuckle at me, then began looking around for something. A few moments later, she nodded for me to follow, then led me deeper into the town. She headed down one street after another with a purposeful gait. I had no idea where we were going, but she seemed to know exactly where she was heading, so I followed along behind her taking in the sights as best I could.
We passed by numerous shops and houses on the way. I even caught sight of a small school in the distance. There also looked to be a rather high end fashion store in town too. Other than that, I saw a large gazebo in the center of town, and managed to catch a fleeting glimpse of a bakery that would have made any dessert shop owner jealous.
It was nice that we were actually walking around right now. Thinking about it, Sky Flare and I would have likely gone right to our final destination if we had been flying. But grounded as we were because of my ribs, we had been forced into seeing a great deal more of the world that we probably would have missed otherwise.
I chuckled to myself and began to wonder if that’s why the Princesses had said to head out while I was still injured, to force me to see the world from the ground first.
“Aha, here it is!” Sky Flare exclaimed, breaking my train of thought.
Looking where she was, I saw a larger three story building ahead of us. I looked the place over and found a sign out front that read ‘Ponyville Inn. Where you’ll sleep like a Princess!’ I couldn’t help but laugh at the slogan, but I kept it to myself.
“Since we’re here, we might as well sleep under a roof tonight,” Sky Flare said happily, “Unless you’d rather sleep in a tent again?”
I thought about that for a moment, then recalled the Everfree Forest and shook my head. “Nah, an Inn will be nice tonight.” I answered, a sly grin creeping over my face.
‘I can sneak off to the forest easier if we’re staying someplace in town,’ I thought, ‘Tents out in the middle of nowhere make it pretty hard to sneak anywhere. But in a town like this, you’ll think I went to a store or something, not the Everfree.’
“Then I’ll go get us a room,” she said, “Wait here while I see if they have any available.”
I sat down outside and took to admiring the town once more. It reminded me a lot of where I had grown up, minus the cars anyways. It was small, quiet, and everyone seemed friendly and upbeat. There were no skyscrapers ruining the view, no smog choking my lungs, just these ponies, content in their day to day lives. It was a rather nice setting, but I still wanted to return to my world as soon as I could.
A few nostalgic minutes passed as I dwelt on this world’s similarities and differences with my own, then Sky Flare returned with news. She had gotten us a shared room with two beds, on the third floor. The room came with a complementary free meal voucher at a local hayburger place too, so we dropped off our gear and ate out.
I’d never had a hayburger before, and though it paled in comparison to a fresh, juicy beef burger fresh off the grill, it wasn’t half bad.
Night had already fallen by the time we returned to the Inn, and though Sky Flare went straight to bed, I merely pretended to. I laid there, wide awake for nearly an hour before I felt safe enough to risk sneaking out of our room for my little forest incursion.
‘I wouldn’t be gone for too long,’ I told myself, ‘Just a few minutes. An hour at most. Then I’d be back in bed, and Sky would be none the wiser about my little trip into the Everfree.’
Quietly, I pulled out a small lantern from my saddlebags and tucked a box of matches into my vest pocket. I double checked to make sure that Sky Flare was still sleeping, then slipped out of our room and down into the streets of the Ponyville.
There weren’t too many ponies out at this hour, and those few that I had seen paid me no notice.
It took me far longer to reach the forest than I first thought it would, nearly an hour in fact, but I had already made up my mind to see it for myself, so I couldn’t just stop now that I was finally there.
I walked slowly into the forest and almost immediately, I felt a strange air wash over me. It was unlike anything I had felt in Equestria so far. It felt wild and untamed, almost like it was somehow alive. It was like the very breath of the forest was swirling around me, beckoning me to go deeper. It was damp, dark, and old, but so full of life and energy that I could almost feel it dancing on my skin.
I felt my feathers ruffle up at the sensation and grinned into the darkness before me. This forest was very old, and it reminded me so much of the forest I grew up near in my world. It had memory, and it almost seemed like it knew I was standing there before it.
“Hello forest,” I whispered softly, “I hope you don’t mind a visitor tonight.” I paused for a moment, half expecting this forest born from a world filled with magic to answer, but nothing beyond the sound of a soft breeze could be heard in the stillness of the night.
Setting down my lantern, I pulled out my box of matches and carefully held the box between my feet. Taking one of the match sticks in my mouth, I ran the tip across the side of the box to light it and it snapped in two. I groaned and tried again, then again, and again...
“Stupid matches.” I grumbled, spitting out what must have been my sixth matchstick. Looking at my bracelet, I sighed and decided to give that a try. Carefully, I willed the bracelet to take a match and light it on the side of the box.
It took me a few minutes, but much to my surprise, I actually managed to pull it off. The match lit on the box and began hovering before me with the bracelets magic.
“Yes!” I cheered quietly. Being careful not to lose my focus, I moved the match down towards the lantern and lit it. A bright yellow glow quickly filled the area around me and I snuffed out the match with a hoof.
Taking the lantern up in my mouth, I followed its light into the Everfree Forest, my eyes darting from one ancient tree to the next.
The forest was amazing. There were so many strange plants and sounds that I had never experienced before. I had thought Sky Flare had been like a child out in those fields, but the mystery and wonder I was experiencing now would have rivaled hers without a doubt. There was just something about old forest that drew me to them like a moth to a flame, and now that I was inside it, I realized this forest was unlike any I had ever seen before.
I know I had lost track of how long I had been wandering around in here, but at that moment I really didn’t care. Exploring someplace like this was worth the lecture I’d get from Sky Flare when I got back to the Inn. There was just so much to see and feel to simply stop now. Besides, it hardly seemed like the dangerous and pony consuming death trap she had made it out to be on the way here. I hadn’t seen any animals, and no ghosts or creatures had attacked me. It was just an old forest, rich with life and vegetation.
A deep, resounding rumble in the distance drew my attention to the sky and I stared in awed amazement as I watched the stars above slowly vanish behind a darkening cloud front.
“A storm?” I mumbled, “But it was clear and bright a few minutes ago…” Another crack of thunder, this one far closer brought the answer back to me quickly. ‘Crap!’ I realized, ‘Sky had said this place has its own weather system!’
I shook my head at my stupidity and started back towards Ponyville at a quick trot. I wasn’t sure how deep into the forest I had gone, but I had been careful not to wander in too many different directions. I had also made sure to drag a hoof along the ground behind me to create a makeshift trail for me to follow back. The underbrush here was dense, so it was easy to follow the path I had made by lantern light.
After about twenty minutes, the storm had grown far stronger than I’d have liked. The winds were growing increasingly violent, and the trees swayed above me steadily. Branches creaked and leaves and twigs started to rain down from the canopy above, jarred loose by the winds.
It was shaping up to be a very bad storm. And to make matters worse, I had started to catch what sounded like a strange, distorted growl on the winds. I couldn’t be certain if it was a trick of the storm as it rushed through the trees, but it seemed to be growing louder by the minute.
I played it off as a natural occurrence until I could be sure, but with a sinking feeling growing in the pit of my stomach, I gradually realized that whatever was making that noise, was following me.
I slowed my pace and listened closely to the sounds. They were definitely growls, but they were odd. They sounded hollow somehow, and carried the same sound as creaking branches in the night. It was an alien, unnerving sound, but I did my best to stay calm. I had dealt with numerous animals before, wolves, bears, moose, even a rather unhappy mountain lion once, and fear only made you an easy target when dealing with a wild animal.
I noticed the growls soften as I slowed my pace, but I could still make them out through the winds and growing thunder. Straining my ears against the background noise, I noticed that there were multiple origin points for the growl I was hearing, a half dozen at least. They were coming from behind me, and off to my left, and as I listened further I noticed another moving to cover my right as well.
‘Pack tactics,’ I realized, ‘I wonder if these are the Timber Wolves Sky Flare had mentioned?’ I loved wolves, they were one of my favorite animals, but that didn’t mean I wanted to run into a pack of them in the middle of a forest at night.
I cleared my throat and took a steadying breath. “Hello?” I called out to them, “I’m sorry if I’m trespassing in your territory, I just found your forest so amazing I couldn’t help but take a look around. I hope you don’t mind.”
There was a pause in the growls I heard, then they resumed, even louder than before.
“Really?” I said aloud, “Everything else in this world talks! Don’t you guys too?”
If they could, they didn’t respond to me.
I glanced up and frowned at the rolling skies above. Lightning flashed at least every fifteen seconds and the winds were only growing stronger by the minute. ‘I wonder if I can fly in that…’ I thought doubtfully, ‘Probably not, but if I stay low, just above the trees, I should be alright... Ponyville can’t be too much farther now.’
I opened my wings and frowned at the soreness I could still feel in my ribs. I would have preferred not trying to fly just yet, but it was either that, or try my luck with some antisocial wolves on foot.
I crouched low and raised my wings high. ‘One, two… Three!’ I leapt high into the air and flapped my wings hard for the first time since the demonstration. Fire burned in my chest, but I got some good lift despite the pain.
I managed to get through the trees well enough, but the moment I broke through the canopy, the winds of the storm slammed into me like a literal wall. I had never flown in a storm before, let alone one this violent, and try as I might to force my way through it, I was being beaten back with unforgiving force.
I tried to fight my way through the winds with everything I had, but with every flap of my wings, the pain in my chest grew steadily worse. I couldn’t keep this pace up for long, but I couldn’t land with those wolves down their either.
A blinding flash exploded in front of me and I recoiled backwards in surprise. An abrupt shift in the winds caught me off-guard and I was slammed into a tree less than a second later. I quickly found myself tumbling head over heels, cashing into one branch after the next as I fell to the ground far below.
I landed flat on my back in the brush and gasped shakily for air. I thought my ribs had hurt before, but now they were on a whole new level. I would have cried out from the pain had I any air left in my lungs, but as it was, all I could manage was to roll over onto my side and cringe at the pain now radiating from my chest
“O-okay…” I whimpered, “You win… You were right Sky… This… Was a bad idea…” I took as deep a breath as I could manage and forced myself to my feet.
I had lost my lantern in the tumble, and now I was surrounded by utter darkness. My only source of light was the rather frequent flashes of lighting above me, but that didn’t help much.
I heard a deep, hollow growl from behind me and felt my stomach tense as I recalled the wolves. I had clearly not gotten very far if they were already behind me again.
With a steadying breath, I turned to face the growing growls and quickly found several pairs of glowing amber eyes drifting about in the darkness like disembodied wisps.
‘One, two, three, four…’ I did my best to count the pairs while I could. I wouldn’t be able to fight off all of them if they attacked me, but if I had a rough estimate of how many there were at least, I’d have a better idea of what I was in for. ‘Thirteen,’ I finished, ‘Thirteen sets. Great…’
I could feel my adrenaline starting to course through my veins as the reality of my situation started to sink in. My fur and feathers stood up at the danger encroaching on me, and my heart started to beat like a drum in my ears. It was the calm before the storm, so to speak. Any moment now, one of those eyes would turn into a wolf on the hunt and I would be forced to act, injured ribs or no.
I positioned myself so that my back was to the nearest tree and rose to my feet. It hurt to move like this, but my only hope now would be to surprise the first one with a quick hit, then try my luck in running away. I had four legs now, so I should be able to run at a halfway decent speed. Though I had never actually seen how fast I could go before. I had spent all my time flying through air, so running around hadn’t ever crossed my mind as something to try out.
The wait was unbearable, but I had to hold my ground till the very last second. Without knowing where the attack was going to come from, running blindly would only get me killed.
I took a deep breath and watched my surroundings, my every sense focused on the forest for any sign of the attack I knew was coming.
With a crash of leaves and a flash of lightning, my hunters leaped for me. I only saw them for an instant, but they didn’t look like wolves. They looked more like matted meshes of tangled sticks and branches. I didn’t have enough time to get a good look, or to even be confused by what was leaping at me. I could only react and try to escape.
I struck out with my right hoof and slammed it into the lead attacker. It felt like breaking a board. The creature buckled around my strike and rained down over my arm and into me like a scattered heap.
I didn’t understand what had happened, but I couldn’t waste any time. I leaped past the pile of sticks and leaves and ran as fast as my four legs could carry me.
Angered growls and snarls chased after me, but I seemed to be outrunning them, or at least matching them for the moment. The adrenaline driving me dulled the pain in my chest enough that I forgot about my ribs for the time being. I tried to open my wings and take flight again, but the forest was getting denser now, so I couldn’t even spread them to their full size without feeling one of them slam into a branch or get half snagged on a vine.
‘No good,’ I thought, ‘I can’t even get my wings open anymore!’
Luck had been on my side so far, and I had managed to avoid running headlong into a tree, or trip over some rock or root, but through the flashes of lightning above, I could still catch glimpses of the wooden creatures chasing me. They had managed to get parallel to me now and were starting to flank me, herding me deeper into the forest. I didn’t have long. Any second now they’d be on me once again, and this time they’d probably win.
I shook my head angrily, trying to clear my head of the doubt I could feel growing within me. “No!” I growled aloud, “I will not lose now!”
As if in response to my statement, a long, hollow howl drifted through the thunder and the creatures flanking me closed in fast.
I could barely see, but with the thickness of the forests brush, I could hear them as they tore towards me. I leaped over the first one, but a second struck me hard in the flank and I tumbled to the ground. I felt a tearing pain in my hind end a moment later and struck out with my foot reflexively. I hit something and scrambled to get back to my feet.
I managed to make it about a dozen strides before another creature slammed into me from the other side. My ribs screamed in protest as they were struck hard and my front legs gave out under me.
I felt the ground rise up to meet my face, dirt and moss filling my nose as I slid to a stop, then an odd weightlessness overtook me. The ground seemed to have disappeared entirely, and as I flailed my limbs about I found nothing to be in reach.
A final flash of lightning flared around me and I realized that I was falling. I was in a crevasse of some sort and falling fast. I shot my wings out to slow my fall, but with the light from the lightning already gone, I only managed to carry myself headlong into the far wall. With a sudden jolt, I slammed face first into what I could only assume was solid stone and began tumbling through the darkness.