I was awoken by Prodigy swinging a stick through me. Just because I don’t need sleep doesn’t mean I can’t zone out. “The hell Prodigy?” I ask shivering, sweet Celestia things going through me feels weird.
“Get up Mr. I’ll keep watch, we’re moving,” She says swinging the stick one more time “I swear even when you can’t really get tired you are still the laziest pony I’ve ever met,”
“Alright, alright I’m up just stop doing that, it feels really creepy,” I say ignoring her comment “So where is the other one,” I ask looking around for Shadow Bolt,
“Necromancy isn’t the only thing I know how to do,” He said appearing out of thin air
“What in the hell?” I say taken back by his sudden appearance. He chuckles, I swear when I get my body back the first thing I’m doing is smacking him.
“I swear If I got caught dealing in your body I’d be screwed, cause when I put your soul back nobody would be able to believe you did it yourself,”
“That’s enough you two, Shadow here is also rather fond of other rune magic’s like this one here, which allows him to make an invisibility cloak,” Prodigy explains. “In layman's terms he draws on cloth and it makes stuff happen,” So wait there is more magic that non-unicorns can do? I’m begging to feel a lot less special
“That is the gist of it, these cloaks will help the two of us to not be caught while traveling,”
“With any luck we won’t need them,” Prodigy says putting one in her bag. “We should tear down this camp and try to hide anything that lets them know we were here,”
While Shadow and Prodigy got started tearing everything down I decided to take a little stroll through these woods and try to figure out were exactly we were. The shaded woodland area helped narrow it down. At first I thought maybe it was Hollow Shades, but that is a little far out of Fillydelphia to teleport 3 ponies. I thought for a moment and then remembered that we saw a wooded area at the foot of Foal Mountain when we were coming in. Not that knowing where we are is really a big deal as we’re leaving, but still it’s nice to know where you are when running from the authorities. “So, aside from away from here where we headed?” I ask floating back into the area that was camp, they did a really good job at taking everything down.
“Well, we need to get to your body in Manehattan. So that is a plan,” Prodigy says, I raise an eyebrow “ I said it’s a plan I didn’t say that’s what we are going to do, what we need to do first is get further away from Fillydelphia. I was only able to get us far enough out of town to buy us some time to rest for the night, if we don’t get a move on the guards will catch up,” So I was right about where we were.
“So which way to you propose we go?” Shadow asks looking at her
“Hang on let me check the map,” She says pulling a map out of her saddle bag, wait what?
“Why did you bring a map with you, we were just going to talk to him, right?” I ask pointing at Shadow Bolt.
“I grabbed it at the train station in case something happened, but enough about that I have a plan. We head back to Ponyville and grab somethings from my house, then head to Dodge Junction and lay low a while so we can think of something,” She said rolling the map back up, I didn’t like this idea it had a few to many holes in it.
“I don’t like this, but I also don’t see any alternative,” I say looking at Prodigy then towards Shadow.
“Wouldn’t it be a bad idea to go back to your house?” Shadow Bolt asks her
“Well hopefully, we can make it there before anypony else does and I can grab what I need and go,” She answers “Worst case scenario there is some guards there and we have to sneak past them,” Well at least she had a plan.
We figured it would be best to stick close to the railway so we’d know where we were, so sticking to the tree line and keeping the rails site we headed west to Ponyville. I was so busy thinking about all the stuff going on I almost hadn’t heard her shouting my name. “QUANTUM CITRINE!” I looked behind me raising an eyebrow. Then I noticed the river between me and them, oh I see.
“Sorry about that, got a little sidetracked,” I said as I got to where they had stopped. They both rolled their eyes.
“Well we are not going to be able to go around this river that’s for sure,” Prodigy said looking at the map. “The nearest bridge is a little ways that way,” She says pointing south. Pulling out the Shadow cloak -I hate to admit it but that’s a good one- Prodigy adds “Might want to put these on its just open fields from here till damn near Ponyville,” Shadow Bolt nods and puts his on as well.
“What about me?” I asked sarcastically. That just got me cold stares from both of them “Ah come on loosen up, besides this is the last time I’ll see you for a while,” I say smirking. They just groan
“Is he like this all the time?” He asks her
“Pretty much,” She replies putting the hood on and disappearing. Shadow does the same thing and like that I can only see where their hooves are on the grass, “Come on we need to get a move on, I want to at least get to the outskirts of the Everfree forest before nightfall,”
“Wait the Everfree Forest is on the southern side of Ponyville isn’t that out of our way?” I ask following along She explained,
“Yes it is a little out of the way, but the reason is so we can drop off what we don’t need going into Ponyville somewhere safe and pick it when we head to Dodge Junction,” I guess that makes since.
“Wait so we are cutting through the Everfree Forest?” Shadow asked raising an eyebrow at least I think he did,
“Yes, I’ve lived in Ponyville long enough to know how to get through the forest not to mention a certain zebra owes me a favor, why you scared?” Prodigy replied I laughed
“No, I’m just not sure it’s the wisest choice to go through it,” He said.
“So you are scared?” I ask smiling he just snorts and asks
“Can I just put him in a soul container? It would make this trip a lot quieter,” I look towards where Prodigy presumably is with wide eyes. It feels like minutes goes by before she responds
“While it would make the trip quieter,”- Prodigy please don’t- “I would rather you didn’t,” Oh thank Luna “BUT, If he keeps being annoying like he has been I may let you do it,” gee thanks.
“Fine I see how it is,” I say folding my hooves across my chest “Nobody respects a good joke,”
“I’m only kidding Quantum,” Prodigy says with a chuckle. As of late I’m not too sure about that
“I wasn’t,” Shadow butted in. Of course he wasn’t.
After what felt like forever we finally got to the bridge. “Well it is a bridge,” I say looking at the railroad tracks going across it, “Just don’t get stuck going across it and you should be fine,”
“Says the pony who doesn’t have to worry about being a pancake if a train does come by,” Shadow says removing his hood.
“Don’t worry, we’ll have plenty of warning before the train gets to close,” Prodigy states jumping onto the track “Like Quantum said just don’t get stuck,” she adds as Shadow jumps up next to her. “Now let’s hurry up and get across before a train does show up,” and just our luck not five seconds after she said that we heard a whistle blow from behind us. “Well shit,” She said, already about half way across the bridge. “Come on, we need to move, like now!” She shouts bolting across the bridge with Shadow close behind
“Well isn’t this nice,” Shadow shouted running behind Prodigy
“Less talking more running,” She yelled behind herself.
We had barely reached the end of the bridge when the train had caught up to us Prodigy and Shadow had jumped into the ditch on the side of the tracks, me on the other hand had a very chilling experience, the inner workings of a train look really complicated.
“Holy sweet Luna that was uncomfortable,” I said shaking my entire body, or at least what classified as my body at the moment. Shortly afterwards I heard a chuckle coming from the ditch. “I don’t see stuff phasing through you, so stuff it,”
“Oh believe me I know how it feels, It’s just funny seeing it happen to someone else,” I heard Shadow reply. I just glared at him with a look that said shut up.
“Are you two arguing again?” Prodigy asked rubbing her head “Because if you are I’m going to knock you both unconscious,” Before I had a chance to be a smart-ass she added, “If you say anything about already being unconscious, Quantum, you are not going to like me,” Alrighty then that idea went out the window.
“Killjoy,” I murmured. She just glared at me.
“Now that we are out danger, we should take a moment to catch our breath,” she said sitting in the ditch. I can’t say I blame her for wanting to take a break, but it was getting late and if we were going to get to the forests edge before night fall we didn’t have much time.
“Hate to break it to you Prod, but we don’t have a lot of time before nightfall,”
“You’re right we should get moving, but I need a minute,” rubbing her eyes she says “Ugh, I didn’t think this shit through at all,”
“Really? Cause this seems pretty thought through to me,” I said sarcastically. She looked at me with evil eyes, “Calm down I was only joking, no need to get mad,” I stated trying to save myself from her wrath. “I understand we’ve all been through some shit these past few hours, I’m just trying to lighten the mood a little,”
“I know, Quantum, It’s just super stressful right now, and before you say anything I know it’s my fault, but you know I act on things before I think them through all the way,”
“As much as I hate to break up this little bonding moment, we really should get a move on,” Shadow Bolt Interrupted. I was going to say something but Prodigy cut me off
“He’s right we should head out before it gets too much later,” putting the cloak away she added “It is way too hot for this thing right now, besides there isn’t any pony settlements between here and our destination,”
“What about the Diamond dogs?” I ask knowing the areas around Ponyville.
“So long as we don’t go over the rugged hills over there,”- She says pointing to them- “They shouldn’t bother us,” That’s a relief.
“Let’s see you’ve got the Everfree Forest right next to Ponyville and Diamond Dogs not all that far away. Whose bright Idea was it to build Ponyville where it is?” Shadow asks shaking his head. Prodigy and I looked at each other and shrugged. Well to be fair he does have a point.
Dusk, usually a nice time of day, Celestia is lowering the sun and Luna starts to raise the moon, but when you are on the edge of the Everfree, dusk is more unsettling then anything. Prodigy was right about one thing ponies don’t like going into the forest regardless of time of day so camping so close to it is a good idea in the since that we are not going to be found by guards or other ponies. Of course there is still the creatures that actually live in the forest that we have to worry about.
“We shouldn’t have to worry about the creatures here,” Prodigy said not sounding a hundred percent about that. That makes totally makes me feel better, not. “Look guys its only for the night once morning hits we get through to Ponyville, get what we need and bolt back through, the forest will cover our tracks for us,”
“That sounds like a plan to me, now I’m going to sleep so unless my head is in somethings mouth, don’t wake me,” Shadow said laying down, If we didn't need him I may have arranged that.
“Quantum, at least try to keep watch this time, I don’t want to wake up missing anything,” She said also laying down. Hey I don’t always space out like that, I just had a lot on my mind that night.
“I’ll try, goodnight,” I replied turning away
Wait, something was off.
Like really, really off.
I turned around then noticed it.
In the middle of camp where Prodigy and Shadow where laying down was a patch.
Of little blue flowers.