A Bit of Mojo

by StormDancer

03 - Understandings, and Those that are 'Mis'

03 - Understandings, and Those that are 'Mis'

Glorious Fortune, Manny Takes, and Careful Planning

"So, let me get this straight Pinkie... that thing out there is the unicorn I nearly killed, who hangs out with a scary evil zebra that nopony likes but that they don't know why, who live out there somewhere, doing things that nopony knows, and they command incredible magics of scary zombie storm evil and bake pies?" Twilight asked with slightly more than a hint of annoyed disbelief.

"Well yheah. It's not like it's a secret or anything!" Pinkie bounced happily, grinning from ear to ear as her friends looked on with various degrees of acceptance. Twilight, clearly, was taking things with a grain of salt while Rarity simply shook her head. Applejack and Rainbow Dash both seemed to accept that Pinkie believed what she was saying, but neither one was willing to voice the question of accuracy. Fluttershy's eyes were wide until Pinkie stopped bouncing and gasped out "Twitchy Tail!"... at which point the friends each dove for the relative safety of the pie laden table. Spike, unfortunately, missed the warning and was in the process of carrying a small stack of plates into the room when a rather large tome tumbled from the second floor to crash on to one of the writing desks, launching an inkwell directly at the young dragon. The resulting racket was enough to make everyone jump. The resulting mess was enough to make Spike groan as he realized that his evening would likely be spent carefully scrubbing the floor of ink and footprints before having to polish away the ink that now covered him from spine to claw.

It was only a moment later that the six mares, after checking with Pinkie, left the safety of the table. Rainbow Dash flitted up to see if they were under attack - books didn't traditionally leap off of shelves after all, though in Twilight's proximity that wasn't always the case. Fluttershy immediately joined Twilight in checking on Spike while Pinkie checked the Pie, cooing to it softly to settle it's nerves. Rarity stood aghast at the horrific contrast between ink and the color 'Spike.' Applejack, however, squinted before frowning and looking towards the library door.

"Hey Twilight," Applejack called out, glancing back at the alicorn before gesturing with a nod towards the doorway, " you put a spell up on the door right?"

Twilight, having checked Spike for injuries and finding that the only bruising was to his pride, looked up before levitating the fallen tome over to another table. "Yep. Sealed it up along with the windows, chimney, gables, venting, and even the water systems. Filtered and semi-permeable of course so we can breathe, but more than enough to keep unwanted ponies, zombies or, I hope, angry furies out." Twilight turned to face Applejack. "Why do you ask?"

Applejack frowned while she looked back at the door. "Because, I coulda' sworn that when we were all under the table, something just got out the door."

Twilight tilted her head and frowned. She had learned long ago that no spell was infallible, that the right combination of effects or conditions could circumvent a defense or open a loophole that was otherwise accounted for, but with the combination of her earlier casting and the existing defenses on the library itself, it seemed highly unlikely that such a thing could occur. Then again, how many times had she personally discovered the weakness in a situation and exploited it to protect somepony or help her friends? Suddenly feeling very vulnerable, Twilight flitted through the nearly encyclopedic list of spells she knew, jumping between fields of magic, theory, and even tricks to try to quickly discover the potential weakness in their defenses.

Before anypony could say a word, Rarity lit her horn, plucking something from near the door and whisking it over to Twilight, who flinched at the unexpected approach. The blue glow flickered out as Rarity deposited her charge on the table next to Twilight as she stepped carefully over. A battered, glossy black feather rested next to the pie where it turned ever so slowly with the fading touch of Rarity's magic. Twilight examined it before looking up and lighting her horn in a furious series of spells which ended up causing the doors and windows to all briefly flash odd symbols.

Applejack, having watched the scene, raised an eyebrow before glancing back at the door briefly. "So, Twi, um.... I get that it's a feather an' all, but what's with the fancy light show?"

"Fluttershy, just to be sure, what kind of feather is that?" Twilight asked, holding a hoof up to Applejack in a placating manner, who nodded, while Fluttershy leaned over to look at the feather more closely.

"Well, it looks like a crow feather." Fluttershy said, tentatively prodding the feather and causing it to slide softly on the table.

"Wonderful," Twilight exclaimed, "I tuned the library defenses to ignore birds because of Owlowiscious and someone exploited that to get something out of the library." Twilight growled for a moment before planting a hoof on her face as she thought. "So, they used a crow, or something close enough to a crow, to get through the spells and steal something from the library? That doesn't make any sense. If they wanted something, they could have just come during normal business hours and -"

"It's not just a crow feather, " Fluttershy nearly whispered, a strange sound in her voice as she looked up. Almost immediately, she recoiled as she found her friends all looking at her. "Um, w-why are you all looking at me like that?"

Rarity smiled and opened her mouth to reply when Rainbow Dash cut her off. "What do you mean that it's not just a crow feather? Is it like, a coatl or a harpie or a wyvern feather or something?"

There was silence in the library for a moment as everypony stared dumbfounded at Rainbow, who suddenly looked quite a bit more nervous and embarrassed than she would ever admit to being. "W-what? I read Daring Do fights all kinds of bad guys! Ahuizotl even makes sure that the arrows his guards use are from coatls so they can pierce magic!"

Twilight, momentarily forgetting the situation, couldn't help but to smile at the change in Rainbow since last year's hospital-trip-turned-petty-theft. Prior to getting her to pick up Daring Do, Rainbow had vehemently opposed anything that even resembled reading books... they were too uncool... and the change was both remarkable and (in situations like this) occasionally very helpful. But, after a moment's thought, Twilight's face grew concerned again. "I don't know if that's actually true or not Rainbow, coatl feathers are rather difficult to come by so the studies to show their magical properties are often rather suspect, but it does raise a good point. It could be a message, you know... 'just so you know I can get in' or that kind of thing?" She paused, noting the mix of worried and disgusted looks on her friends faces.

Rarity cleared her throat before turning her head so as to look disdainfully down at the feather. "Well, whatever it is, I find the color to be utterly tasteless. And look at how ratty the quill is! Not very much of a message in a state like that."

"Um..." Fluttershy quietly tried to get everyponies attention again. "It's not just a feather though..." raising a hoof to point at the feather but keeping back enough to ensure that she didn't touch it again, "it's wrapped at the base with thread and that's not a quill, it's a bone."

While Rarity backpedaled with a chant of "ew ew ew ew ew" and Rainbow Dash responded with a noisy "Gross!" Applejack only made a disgusted face while Twilight looked more closely, scrutinizing the object. Spike took a few steps back whispering something about horrible ponies. Pinkie Pie just blinked, her imaginary friend holding her hooves firmly over her ears while singing a happy song, the result was a comically cheerful Pinkie whose reality simply did not allow for such facts to get in the way.

Twilight, after a few more moments, looked up and smiled at Rarity. "Girls, I don't think whoever did this expected all the spells to be in place in the library. I'm pretty sure they thought they could get out without anypony noticing and only got caught when Pinkie's warning caught them off guard. I'm pretty sure this is part of an amulet to bypass the library's defense spells that got stuck by the door when they got careless in their haste!"

"But, if it let them get past the magic, why would it get stu-" Applejack started, but was cut off as Twilight's magic plucked a book from the 'sporting' section and set it hovering before the friends.

"Because defenses are like fishhooks!" Twilight grinned, blatantly proud of her long-planned explanation to her friends. "Like any defensive system, defensive magic works by targeting likely avenues of trouble and making them either too difficult or too costly to bypass." The book flipped to a page with fly lures depicted by the dozen. "Or, like the ones on the doors and windows, they make certain approaches more desirable than others, resulting in the target becoming caught or disabled by the spells. Just like a fishhook... it's smooth and harmless when it's slid one way, but if you change direction it ....eh... digs in.... you know, this didn't sound quite so disturbing in my head."

While her friends tried to get the image of fishhooks embedding themselves in ponies out of their heads, Twilight tried to come up with a less distressing analogy, but was distracted by her mind trying to salvage her existing explanation. The resulting few moments were unpleasant for everyone present. It was Pinkie Pie who finally broke the uncomfortable silence as she took another bite of the pie slice she had left on the table. "You know, it sounds like when I'm making cupcakes." She gestured with the slice of pie, "You know... making something already super good into something that's even more super duper good so we can sell enough of them to make up for all the ones I give out throughout the day? You just add frosting, sprinkles, candy bits, chocolate, gumdrops, caramel, banana cream, ice cream, creme brule, french toast, pancakes, cupcakes, and then I really like just normal cakes too so we should definitely get enough balloons and streamers for Rose Luck's birthday next Tuesday because she's been really really nice ever since the incident with Trixie and she doesn't have a special somepony to get her gifts and give her hugs. Well, I guess we could give her hugs but it's not the same as mmmmrphlr?"

Rainbow Dash's hoof held Pinkie's mouth shut as she shook her head. Applejack just chuckled and said "That one kinda got away from you Pinkie."

Twilight, nodding, smiled but continued "But, yes Pinkie, I suppose they are kind of like.... cupcakes too. If you know what your target likes, you can make them more enticing, like using their favorite frosting, or make the alternative less appealing, like.... um.... making better cupcakes than your competition. So, yheah.... like cupcakes too. But, even if they have something to help get past your defenses, if they have to do something a bit reckless or move too fast, sometimes the thing can't keep up and you still get caught."

"So, if I made some really REALLY good cupcakes, and frosted them really really nicely, with your favorite flavors and everything, but you didn't WANT my cupcakes so you tried to avoid me but you weren't paying attention and you walked into Sugarcube Corner and you accidentally bought two or three dozen they'd be made of fishhooks?" Pinkie asked with an amazed look on her face.

"Well no, um...yes. Kind of? They wouldn't really be fishhooks but you're missing the point. I think they got in but were startled by Pinkie's twitchy tail and tried to get out too fast." Twilight grinned while Pinkie tried to decide how best to frost fishhooks so they'd not be a problem in cupcakes.

"But they still got away" Rarity intoned looking at the feather with a wave of her hoof. "And I dare say that it is still rather distressing that they managed to get in here at all. Whoever they might be."

"Right, but since they got a bit caught, I can look up things that might be able to get by my spells by examining it and maybe figure out who or what they are!"

"Didn't we already figure out that it's that Storm Dancer punk?" Rainbow Dash snarked as she circled the friends a few feet in the air.

"Sure, but that doesn't explain why he can get by my magic, let alone make you pegasi unable to stop his storms. Without the Elements, we kind of need to plan a bit better for these things girls. We can't just go in and aggressively-friendship him if he doesn't stop when we ask nicely... we have to be prepared!" Twilight explained.

"Right!" Shouted Pinkie Pie, her coat and mane sticking out at odd angles as arcs of blue electricity leapt out randomly. "We can't afford to make mistakes now! Too much is on the line!" She struck a pose worthy of Rainbow Dash, standing upright while leaning on an upturned chair with one leg. Twilight imagined it would look heroic if only she were holding a flag, snapping in a stiff wind, with a glorious sunset behind her. "We need to talk to Manny!"

The lost expressions on everyponies faces popped Pinkie's attention back from her imagined conquest of the land of raisin cookies as Rarity raised a carefully hooficured limb to get her attention. "Pinkie Pie, not to discourage your, um.... enthusiasm, but who is this 'Manny' and why do we need to talk to him?"

Pinkie Pie, ever the party planner, hopped down with a squeak and grinned in a manner that would have made most students of anatomy flinch and burn the books that depicted both skeletal structure and musculature as she giggled. "Manny is Manila Takes! She just got back from her honeymoon in Maremuda and we never got a chance to throw her a wedding party since she eloped!"

Rarity placed a hoof to her face and shook her head, "I highly doubt Manila will be in any mood to..."

"Pinkie Pie! Focus!" Barked Twilight in a rare flash of frustration. "We need to plan how to stop that unicorn uh....fury...." she gestured as she tried to decide if listing off the multiple mythological or thaumic possibilities would be helpful, "....stallion. We don't have time for a party right now!"

Pinkie visibly deflated, though her mane remained somewhat buoyant due to the extremely high electrical charge imparted by the missing slice of pie. "Oh... I was going to ask her about what frosting to use to make the fishhook cupcakes safe... since, you know, her mother is a tactical research assistant at the Solar Defense compound."

"How do..." Twilight gawked before shaking her head and grabbing a slice of the sparking pie and shoving it in her mouth. She chewed a moment with the deep frown of somepony being chastised by the universe as a whole. She simply couldn't figure out how Pinkie Pie could know simply everything that she knew and still seem so completely innoce-HOLY CELESTIA! That pie packed a kick.

---

Wedding Parties for Manila Takes

After finally diverting Twilight from her desire to chemically analyze the pie to determine what powered its electro-thaumic properties, the mares were able to follow Pinkie through the east end of Ponyville towards the home of Manila Takes. The preternatural quiet that had taken the small town was only just beginning to fade as neighbors and guests alike took note of the lack of destruction, chaos, invasions, and the general calm of a non-apocalyptic Ponyville evening. The fact that the town heros were striding through the streets with a determined look (well, except for Pinkie who was trailing a small cloud of white and pink balloons while bouncing), set many more hearts at ease. There was also the recognition that the town was not destroyed and that the horrible zombie invasion had apparently been the drunken ramblings of Berry Punch.... again.

If anypony had cared to ask her, Berry Punch would have happily informed them that she had nothing to do with such a rumor. She had been happily passed out with a bad case of the warm-fuzzies after cracking open a crate of strawberry-something that had been delivered to her back door earlier that day.

As it was, the mares had stopped just in front of the simple stucco and thatch two story that was Manila Takes' home. Despite Pinkie's assurances that they were indeed at the right residence, none of the girls could detect any sign of life from within. The lights were not on, the mailbox was slightly overfull, and most distressing was the fact that the shutters were not in fact locked shut. Undeterred, Pinkie bounced right up to the door and started knocking with her face, a wide grin complimenting her closed eyes in the iconic image of glee she was known for. Applejack was just raising her hoof to pull Pinkie back when the sound of the door's lock being undone drew everyponies attention.

Silently, the door swung inward revealing a tired looking cream coated earth pony with a meticulously pinned white mane done up in a crescent upon her head. Tired amber eyes took a moment to focus before a smile spread across her face. "Pinkie, " the young mare said, though the smile didn't quite reach her voice, "How can I help you... um... and your friends?"

Pinkie took a deep breath and then shouted "HAPPY AFTER HONEYMOON HAPPY TIME BELATED WEDDING BECAUSE YOU RAN OFF TO ELOPE AND I DIDN'T GET A CHANCE TO THROW YOU A PARTY PARTY!" as confetti exploded from the overstuffed mailbox, the streetlights, and the chimney simultaneously. Where the small fireworks had been hidden, as well as the noisemakers, was anyponies guess. Manila watched with a practiced ease while Pinkie tried to get the extra energy out of her system, which took almost a minute, before shaking her head with a smile and offering to let them all in.

The collection of mares smiled politely, Applejack taking off her hat, as they entered, though Rarity hung back for a moment at the door. "Not again dear" she asked Manila, though her inflection implied it to be more of a statement. When Manila gave a somewhat practiced smile, coupled with a small roll of her eyes, Rarity leaned in and hugged her before entering.

Manila's home wasn't small by any means. The rooms were large and high ceilinged, something common to many of the homes in Ponyville, but for all their size, there was precious little open space. Manila's home mirrored her cutie mark in that she clearly took care in making sure of her work before finishing it. So, while her texts were immaculate and never needed an editor to set right, her home was very much a testament to every alternative possibility she didn't feel deserved full and proper publication. While writing, she would often find herself debating what implications the choices of a particular character might have and, unlike other authors who simply plotted their stories out, she wrote out each possibility into what could be considered an enormous choose your own adventure... iff she could ever decide to publish anything other than a normal novel. At the same time, she simply couldn't discard such works, keeping them in neat, albeit complex, stacks as each new work contributed to the continued conquest of the home.

As it was, she had a much smaller, though no less organized, pile of engagement and wedding rings on a pole next to her (never used) fireplace that rose nearly to her shoulder. Rarity could understand the dilemma faced by any prospective suitor, it was a simply daunting decision which could cow even the most stalwart of hearts: how to live in a home with such....... clutter. Manila was a sweet and beautiful mare (if you could catch her when rested) with simply the softest coat and silkiest mane she had ever met. Fluttershy, with her voluminous and soft mane aside, had a very similar figure, though Manila couldn't seem to maintain that level of dedication for more than a few weeks at a time, usually while being wooed by an undoubtedly very attractive stallion.....which would inevitably end once she brought him home. Rarity wasn't quite sure, but Manila might well be her longest standing customer over the years, ordering (and then later displaying, unused) no less than twelve wedding dresses and at least twice that number in evening gowns and formal suits for prospective suitors. The number of garments she had purchased over the years for trips or signings was something Rarity no longer kept track of, but which merited a 40% discount on engagement and wedding related purchases. It was the least she could do.

So, while the rest of the guests looked around for a place to stand, Pinkie and Rarity both took up their prepared seats across from the kitchen, having been to the house many times over the years.

Manila closed the door, seemingly taking a moment to compose herself before she turned to greet her guests properly. Rarity watched pensively, knowing full well that Manila was likely trying her best to keep herself occupied after her latest... foray into the realm of romance. If it weren't for the current circumstances, she would likely have invited the mare over for tea or perhaps a spa trip to help ease the torment the dear soul was undoubtedly struggling with, but as it stood, the situation wouldn't allow her the option.

Rarity glanced at Pinkie, who was nearly buzzing with excitement, and tried not to become frustrated with her friend's antics. It wasn't Pinkie's fault really, Pinkie was simply always looking on the bright side and had a tendency to, how should she think of it.... possess an acute case of blunt optimism which bordered on the clinically oblivious when faced with something that didn't fit. She knew that Pinkie meant well, after all it was not uncommon to see Pinkie literally leaping from pony to pony engaging in impromptu displays of contagious joviality, but that also meant that in sensitive situations, Pinkie was out of her element. Rarity raised a hoof and gently touched Pinkie's shoulder, bringing the almost luminescent eyes of the party planner to lock on her own.

"Pinkie, perhaps you could withhold just a tiny bit of your enthusiasm." She smiled while watching Manila from her seat. Applejack and Fluttershy were in the process of looking around tentatively, most likely trying not to make a mess or accidentally disturb the towering columns of immaculate hoofwriting with a careless wing. Rainbow Dash had taken on a curious expression which appeared to be a cross between disgust, embarrassment, and.... tentative curiosity? Oh my, Rarity thought, she couldn't possibly be intrigued enough by the snippets of stories scattered around to pick up another habit.. could she? The thought was both scandalous and deeply amusing to the alabaster unicorn, whose lips began to curl into a meticulously controlled grin.

Twilight, on the other hoof, was looking around with an almost unreadable look on her face. She clearly appreciated the organization that Manila used to maintain her works, but she also seemed a bit uncomfortable to be standing amongst them. It was a bit of a puzzle that Rarity resolved to file away for a later time. After all, they had business to discuss.

"I do apologize for the intrusion Manila, but we were in need of your mother's expertise regarding the earlier crisis. Though, " Rarity put on her most genial smile, inclining her head just a bit as Manila turned from the door to look at the collection of guests, "perhaps you may find our situation.....enticing?" While Manila blinked for a moment, Rarity's smile grew. It was true that Onelia Take (Manila's mother had dropped the s after marriage) worked for the Solar Defense as a research assistant, Rarity also knew that if they inquired of Onelia herself, the only ponies present which might be able to follow her conversation would be Twilight and possibly Manila herself. By tempting Manila with a minor mystery, she knew that the author would, in all likelihood, become just as curious as Twilight. Unlike Twilight though, Rarity knew that Manila could formulate not only a plan, but a plan that the rest of them had a chance at both following and, more importantly, understanding. Rarity could almost see the scraps of information being strung together in Manila's eyes... tidbits of curiosity began to mesh with her natural perfectionism as her mind began to try to unravel what the town heroes, plus local princess, were doing in her home. Twilight looked to Rarity for a moment and opened her mouth as if to speak, but a tiny motion of Rarity's hoof caused her to pause, a look of confusion crossing her features.

"Miss Belle? I'm not sure I completely understand." Manila tipped her head, much like Twilight Rarity noticed, as she began to carefully navigate around the stacks of papers. "What crisis? I don't recall any crisis recently? Was there another changeling invasion?"

Rarity shook her head.

"A swarm of dangerous animals eating the town?"

Applejack flinched while Fluttershy blushed. Rarity's small grin grew almost imperceptibly as she shook her head again.

"A dragon attack maybe?"

Rarity smiled again while shaking her head, somewhat thankful that Spike had decided to stay behind to 'feather-proof' the library and work the stains out of his scales.

"An ancient god of - "

Rarity smiled but shook her head again.

"Um... a forgotten kingdom with a cur - "

While Rarity was enjoying herself while making sure to get Manila's attention, her friends clearly did not understand the delicate balance between rabid curiosity needing to be tempted and the bull-rush of brilliance-killing bluntness.

"No No No. We need your mother's help with a potentially dangerous, potentially ancient, potentially mythological, potentially near-Discord level proto demigod!" Twilight interrupted, much to Rarity's displeasure, earning the princess a sour glare.

Despite the abruptness, not to mention the sudden displeasure evident on Rarity's face, Manila's eyes virtually glistened with the declaration. "Tell me everything" She almost growled out, all evidence of her former malaise gone.

---

From Forest to Forge

It had taken nearly half an hour to explain the situation and assure Manila that they were not, in fact, teasing her. Apparently the author had been deeply engaged in writing another off-shoot to a novel she had published some years before and had simply not noticed the commotion outside. How, Twilight marvelled, somepony could somehow miss the thundering tempest that had descended upon and overtook Ponyville in less than twenty minutes, was simply beyond her.

Though, upon reflection, discovering Manila's focusing technique could prove to be a wonderful study aide.

Regardless, as the six left Manila's home, Pinkie Pie suddenly leapt out in front of the group only to spin around and yell "HOLD IT!", balanced upon her hind legs while using her forelegs to press back into Applejack's chest. The look in her eyes was deadly serious as the friends and Manila all came to a very abrupt stop.

"Pinkie?" Twilight asked, poking her head around Applejack to look at Pinkie with concern. "What's wrong? Is your Pinkie Sense, I still can't believe I'm asking this, telling you something?"

Pinkie dropped back down onto all fours, sinking low to the ground as if searching for something small or getting ready to pounce before springing back up into the aid with a squeal. "Nope! Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, we never got to throw Manila her party for her 'Happy welcome back to Ponyville after your unexpected, though totally understandable, elopement with that stallion who is clearly hiding from us since you're so totally happily married now' party!"

Rarity's pupils shrank as she glanced back to Manila with a panicked look, only to see the mare rolling her eyes. "Um, Pinkie, you do know that it....well...."

Manila broke in with a slight snuffle, as if discarding something of minor irritation. "He was a jerk Pinkie. So no, but if you'd like we can throw another of your usuals later in the week alright?"

The mares, save Pinkie, all blinked in a muddled form of confusion before looking back at Pinkie uncertainly. The pink party pony had paused midair, her party streamers and noisemakers half unfurled and likewise frozen, before Pinkie drifted back to the ground and reached up to collect her supplies. "Yheah, we can do that too," she said calmly. "You know, if this keeps up though, I'm going to eventually have to just install rolls of streamers in your bushes to save on travel expenses."

Manila's lips trembled for a moment causing Rarity to raise a hoof and Fluttershy to start moving in for a hug before the author suddenly began to chuckle. "Maybe Pinkie. Maybe, but I think the princess is a bit anxious to look into that stallion." She turned to Twilight with a respectful nod of her head. "Princess."

Twilight decided to take control again before any other distractions could derail them. With a smile and a nod, Twilight turned back to her friends as Manila stepped back inside and shut her door. "Alright girls, so, according to Manila, the best course of action would be to let Celestia and Luna know about this and let them take care of it." She waved a hoof dismissively. "Which, we're not going to do. I mean, honestly, if we had to bother them for every little problem, they'd never get anything done." Her friends glanced around between one another but didn't interrupt. "Besides, I'm a princess now too, so this is kind of my responsibility. So, that means plan B." She stomped her front hooves while throwing her head just a little higher than normal, a wide smile on her face.

"W-which is?" Fluttershy asked, her eyes half hidden behind her mane.

"Yheah, what's the plan Twilight? We go in and buck that jerk right in the face and tell him to get out?" Rainbow darted in, clapping her front hooves together with an almost angry grin on her face.

"Girls!" Rarity's voice snapped Rainbow's attention back almost as fast as the pale blue glow tugged her back to the ground. "I believe Twilight was going to tell us precisely that, weren't you Twilight?"

"Yes! After we got her to believe us, while Pinkie was doing that thing with the balloons, Manila and I worked out some likely possibilities based off her latest novel. Since she's been focusing on the Canterlot Changeling invasion recently, she's been busy applying both her literary skill and her mother's tactical advice towards Ponyville....which I REALLY wish I knew ahead of time." Twilight glanced at Pinkie who was listening while offering Rainbow Dash a small box of popcorn she had gotten from somewhere. "Strategically placed defenses coupled with a perimeter network stand the best chance of early detection while a network of pegasi and unicorn messengers could easily coordinate a standing defense. Meanwhile an Earth pony infantry armed wit-... um... Yes Applejack?"

Applejack, who had a dry look on her face with one eyebrow raised, put her hoof back down. "Um, Twi, what about that stallion. I mean, not that I don't think workin out how to stop a changelin invasion ain't helpful, but we were already kind of working on the .... well... you know, actual problem."

Twilight's cheer morphed almost instantly to confusion and then embarrassment as she realized she had become caught up in Manila's nearly voluminous set of potential attack venues... completely getting off course in the process. "Eh, heh. Right, um... since there's probably no zombie ponies and the changelings are most likely not involved, we should probably have Dash scout out where he went while the rest of us help to clear the nearby residents, just in case." She waited while Rainbow nodded curtly and the others either continued listening or nodded assent. "I don't want this to turn into a battle, but if things get really bad, Fluttershy can always ask Discord for help I guess." Twilight made a slight face while even Applejack looked concerned.

"Not to go questioning you Twilight but, Discord? Won't he just, you know," the farm pony paused to scratch her neck nervously, trying not to look directly at Twilight or Fluttershy, " just end up stirring the pot?"

"Well, it's possible, which is why he's our last resort but, if Storm Dancer really is a fury, we're going to need somepony of Discord's caliber to really do anything without the Elements." Twilight's gaze slid between her friends, the situation still not sitting well with any of them. "Look, it's not like we have much to go on here. He controls the weather, which normally is something Rainbow Dash or even Fluttershy could stop, but his storms ignore magic. Likewise, he uses magic, but there we have the same problem. We don't know enough about what's happening to really research anything to stop him, and we don't even know what exactly he's doing or even if we need to stop him. He didn't even technically do anything specific... other than look scary and break Pinkie's cannon." She looked down in self-induced exasperation as she gestured idly with a hoof. "For all we know, he could be possessed by Sombra's long lost cousin's pet or something."

When Twilight looked up again, Pinkie Pie was mere inches from her face, causing her to tumble back in a startle. "Pinkie Pie? What?"

Pinkie squinted a moment more before saying "You never told us Sombra had a cousin with a pet! We should totally invite them to our pony pet play date!"

Five mares shook their heads as Pinkie giggled. Nopony noticed that despite having shut her door, Manila had never passed behind her windows after re-entering her home. The shutters remained wide open and, despite the shades not being closed, nopony had seen her trot back across the room. If they had wondered, it would have only taken glancing inside to see that she was just behind the door, a vacant expression on her face as she stared gormlessly at the featureless wood of her door frame.

---

Here Upon the Vale

The weather was nice for flying. Clouds drifted by, high and thin in the otherwise blue sky as a lone doe grazed upon small yellow flowers that bowed in the gentle breeze below. Bees were lazily drifting from bloom to bloom looking like little so much as a whirring cream/black smear over the meadow. A puffy bunny worked at cleaning its little tummy while the baby bunnies that lingered nearby watched in fascination as the raspberry bushes, yet to bloom in the early spring, dipped and waved on their spindly stalks.

Looking down, the meadowlark watched as a pair of butterflies fluttered haphazardly across the clearing, spinning and dancing as the golden rays of the sun showered down upon the relaxing scene below. To the west, the sound of a crystal clear brook could just barely be heard whispering through the soft rustle that was the sound of the Everfree Forest. All was right. All was good. All was calm.

The meadowlark tipped his head to look across the meadow into the canopy opposite. Nestled between the branches of one of the numerous dark green trees was another meadowlark, its feathers a dull mottled brown. It's feathers fluffed once as it looked across the clearing and chirped a tiny note of recognition before settling in and growing still. The sight was a joy to behold. Taking a deep breath, he started in on his song, the warbling trills leaping from his carefully trimmed beak as he teased out melody after melody. Lilting notes danced and swayed, playfully weaving between grass and flower, alighting upon dew-stained blossoms on their way to the lovely little lark across the meadow. The doe raised her head, finely tufted ears swivelling as she listened to his song, the sun dappling her coat as even the bunnies stopped their lazy antics to listen, captivated.

He sang, the pure joy of spring mixing with his hopes and desires, innocent glee tinted with passionate promises. He sang and sang, the sun slowly drifting towards the horizon as he painted his heart upon the audience who chanced to hear his melodic trills and heartrending dreams. He watched, hoping against hope that the meadowlark sitting across the meadow would be moved to return his proposal, pouring more emotion into his song as she watched him back.

The doe had long since stopped grazing, listening to the avian masterwork being delivered to the world, and stood transfixed as the sun slid slowly into the tree line above. The sky, long the captive audience of the meadowlark's work, blushed as he intoned desires and passions that hinted at cold winter nights and warm, hidden, nests in scenic places where nothing but another meadowlark had any business intruding. Even the stars seemed to glisten with a lovers tremble as they revealed themselves one by one, as if tempted to embrace the hidden joys against their better judgement. If they had, they made no move to excuse themselves as the meadowlark wove his proposal into the heavens and pled his dreams to the listening meadowlark across the clearing.

The doe, sensing his desires, quietly left, disturbing only a few blossoms that would be the only witnesses to his song's conclusion, the bunnies and field mice that normally scampered through such clearings having long since returned to warrens and dens for the evening. So, it was into an empty clearing, littered with dewblossoms and wild flowers that the meadowlark finally flitted, spreading wings to dip slowly into the cooling evening air as he laced himself through the bed of flowers before winging up to join the object of his affections, a dewblossom and blueberry gripped in a single foot as he flared his wings to alight upon the bough with not so much as a vibration to disturb her.

Bowing his head and flexing his wings to show both his attractiveness as well as his appreciation for her beauty, he hopped closer to see if the lovely creature would return his affections.

Yet, she remained still, unimpressed and refusing to even turn her head.

Tucking his wings back in, perhaps afraid of having offended such a beautiful specimen as she, he instead lowered his head and gently presented his gifts, an inch away so as not to disturb her reflections or imply that he was pushy.

Still, she remained unmoved.

Withdrawing his foot, the meadowlark slowly turned and spread his wings. With one final look at the gift of the divine behind him, he flitted off, a mournful tone echoing through the suddenly very large and dark forest... he should have known that there was no way he could be good enough to tempt her.

Below, hiding among the flowers and grasses that bowed and swayed as if weeping for the departing minstrel, a field mouse clutched its tiny paws together, tears glistening in its eyes at having heard the song. Looking up, it couldn't hope to understand how anything, let alone the target of such affection, could resist such a heartfelt and honest declaration of love. With a similar glance to the canopy above, the field mouse scampered off into the night, too upset to even imagine what could have driven the meadowlark to sound so utterly broken.

As the evening drew to a close, the meadow remained empty save for the mottled meadowlark perched upon a bough next to a blueberry and a dewblossom. The sun, long since hidden by the forest's trees, eventually sank below the horizon as if quietly taking even its leave from the sorrowful sight and memory of the mournfully crushed heart of the meadowlark. A slight chill crept into the air as a thin set of clouds drifted overhead, leaving a hazy film over the night sky.

And just as the first moonflower unfurled from its daytime slumber, a slight breeze disturbed the dewblossom left as a parting gift by a forlorn performer. The blossom, light and delicate as the blush of warmth from a lovers cheek, tottered and fell from the bough ... followed a moment later by the still form of a mottled meadowlark who hadn't heard a single tone of a weeping lovers song.

---

Joking Poison

Zecora carefully placed her hooves upon the bank of one of the many streams that wandered throughout the Everfree before lowering herself to take a tentative sip. The cold water, still icy from the snow melt upstream, was clear and crisp, free of the taint of rot or filth that tended to occur every so often in the forest. With a smile, she paused to savor the invigorating feeling of cold before starting to drink in earnest.

She had been walking for the better part of the day, gathering herbs, roots, and other ingredients for her profession when she had stumbled upon a small patch of burning whisper. In her joy at finding such a rare flower, she had spent nearly an hour doing little more than carefully collecting a number of leaves and storing them in her satchel. She would have liked to have taken a number of the plants themselves, but as they were in bloom and she did not possess any flame retardant clothing at the moment, she had instead been careful to note their location with that hope to return later with a ceramic jug for transport.

The day had worn on, her efforts at tending to the hoof-sized white blooms with their signature yellow stems and orange/red leaves had left her with a growing hunger as well as the dryness that accompanied the plants themselves. It was simply a joy to be able to find fresh water so nearby, something she had grown quite fond of since traveling to Equestria from her former home.

Lifting her face from the chilly stream, she caught a drop of water that was about to slip down her chin with her tongue and savored the fading sensation of the wild cold of the ice and snow that would shortly depart for the year. She closed her eyes, inhaling as the drop of water spread across her tongue, it's brisk touch fading to but a memory as she took notice of the smells around her. There were the flowers and herbs in her pack of course, the scintillating crisp of the stream with its airy tang of the mountains, the earthy tones of leaves and decay that formed the basis of any forest, mixed with the sharp tang of flowers and broken foliage from the creatures that lived or passed through here. She took a moment to listen to her surroundings, tracking the call of a starling and the chittered argument between two squirrels. The light touch of a breeze caused her mohawk to send a shiver down her neck as the tiny tufts of hair on her ears brushed an errant length of her mane. She felt the soft ground behind her and the hard stones under her front hooves, a mild dampness from where her muzzle had been recently in the water and the tingle of her skin as the icy chill passed, her lips breaking into a small smile.

Yes, the Everfree might be frightful to many, but to her, it was a vibrant, living thing. She knew there were creatures within its depths that were dangerous, but she also knew that living anywhere came with its own full score of hazards. Unlike anywhere, however, the Everfree was full of so much life and so many many things that she simply couldn't imagine leaving it to live anywhere else.

Her musings were interrupted as she heard the mournful cry of a flitjay winging overhead, its song sad and heartrending in a way that could inspire poets and composers to works of great tragedy or stories of lost love. The song was not altogether unknown to her, creatures passed in the forest frequently, victims of accident or design, but it was uncommon for there to be any that would sing their pain to the world in the stead of another. That this messenger had told her meant that their's was likely still a great suffering that should be tended to.

The bird's song, long since passed beyond hearing, caused the zebra to look around again. She noted the sun was hidden below the dark of the trees, but guessed that she had, perhaps, an hour before it would be truly dark. If she hurried, she should be able to help whatever had brought upon the flitjay's sorrow and still return home before Luna's gaze swept the night sky.

Turning on a hoof, Zecora closed her eyes again, feeling the path the small messenger had taken and oriented herself accordingly before striking out into the growing darkness of the evening.

A number of minutes passed before a small field mouse scampered by, taking notice of a lonely white petal near the stream as tears matted its dark brown eyes. Its whiskers stretched forwards, feeling something in the air as it clutched the petal to its chest and scampered off into the darkness, its path almost identical to the zebra that had just departed.

---

When Walls and Mirrors

Twilight Sparkle stood in the center of a nexus of activity.

Once Rainbow Dash had darted off to try and find the stallion, the other girls had set to work quickly. Fluttershy was hovering near the town square, relaying information and instructions to the hoof full of pegasi who had been available to help while Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie trotted from house to house knocking on doors and alerting the townsfolk to the potential danger should the situation turn sour. Mayor Mare had insisted on a quickly made public announcement and the resulting cluster of ponies had taken the news better than Twilight had expected.

The train station was still intact despite the crushing mob of ponies vying for a seat.

Much better than expected, Twilight thought, after all when a bunny invasion had sent many into fainting spells the exponentially greater danger of a mythological force of anger posed a threat on a totally different order of magnitude. She could honestly say she was proud of them for only just barely rioting. No windows were broken, nopony had been hurt, and the only real damage had been to the flowerbeds between town square and the train station - and even they didn't have flowers yet this early in the season.

Twilight was in the middle of casting another grounding ward when the soft whisper of wings alerted her to Fluttershy's presence. With a smile, Twilight completed her spell, something that would not have been possible if Rainbow Dash were the one to relay information, before turning to her timid friend.

"Hey Fluttershy, what've you got for me?"

Fluttershy smiled softly before dipping in a bit closer and pointing towards the southwest road out of town. "I just thought I should let you know that Blossomforth spotted Zecora coming into town. I hope you don't mind, but I asked her to tell Zecora we might need her help."

Twilight smiled broadly. "No no, that's great Fluttershy. Good work. With Zecora here we can at least find out about that other zebra. Besides, she might know something about that stallion's weird magic."

Fluttershy nodded before touching down completely, taking a moment to look around at the quickly emptying town. "I guess I never realized just how many ponies actually lived here. It's... it's a bit strange seeing the streets getting so empty."

Twilight nodded, already considering what else needed to be done while scanning the streets. "Yheah. It is kind of strange. Everypony's normally going about doing their shopping or gardening or just doing their daily chores, but even though I never see them all out at once, it's certainly a different feeling to see them all leaving at the same time."

The two stood in contemplation for a moment while a number of ponies walked by briskly, a particular white maned blue unicorn in a purple hat eliciting a double take from Twilight before turning the corner towards the station. "And then again, sometimes I think I'm just more surprised at what I've missed just because I'm so often at the library."

Fluttershy looked like she was about to say something when the quick trotting of Rarity's approach brought the pegasus up short. Hopping back into the air, she smiled before rising up towards the flag posts again to help coordinate. Twilight watched her go, a thoughtful expression on her face before turning to Rarity.

"Well, I can't say that this has been my favorite activity for the evening, but the town has been warned and, except for a few stragglers, most everypony either has left, or is waiting to leave as we speak." Rarity finished with a curt nod of her head, her mane bouncing once as if for emphasis. Twilight nodded before using her magic to lift another long metal pole and positioning it near a nearby mop and easel shop.

While she had somewhat gotten used to the apparently random associations of some of the towns businesses (sofas and quills now inextricably connected in her head), others still mystified her. The mop and easel she could see.... an artist might need to clean up after creating a masterpiece after all, but others still struck her as odd like the Button and Toothpick shop. Shaking her head, Twilight started the pole spinning like a drill before driving it firmly into the ground next to the shop corner, deftly attaching a thick wire to its base and trailing it towards the large steel belted barrel next to the town hall.

Rarity watched with a confused, but interested, expression, raising an eyebrow at the wire while she waited for Pinkie to reappear. Twilight drove three more poles into the ground around the square before she turned at the sound of a metered set of hoofsteps approaching from the southwest. Zecora was approaching with a troubled look on her face, a set of saddlebags heavily loaded laying across her back as she took in the collection of poles and wires.

"Twilight Sparkle, I've been looking for you, though it seems you have been busy too." The zebra paused to lower her head and examine one of the heavy wires running across the street, apparently reluctant to cross it before opting to trot around the pole it hung from. Twilight watched with curiosity as she noted Zecora's behavior. "I fear that something dark draws near, even the Everfree is acting queer."

Twilight's curiosity turned to concern. It was one thing to have a potential demigod level creature on the loose, but the Everfree forest was one of the places where even Discord had occasional trouble (though he would never admit it) in manipulating things. If something were disrupting the Everfree, their problems would likely just continue to compound. "What do you mean Zecora? What's gone wrong?"

"I heard a weeping flitjay fly, but found his sorrow to be a lie. The heart he did attempt to woo had already been cut in two!" Zecora's approach once more took a slight detour around the poles as she continued. "The meadowlark had flown away to mourn, but the others mind had since been torn. Something hunts them which I fear, will shortly start to draw quite near." The Zebra closed the last few steps before turning her head and carefully pulling what looked like a stuffed bird from her bags and set it before Twilight.

Taking a moment to look more closely, Twilight was startled to realize the bird was in fact not stuffed at all, but was apparently stunned in some fashion. Looking over it again, she noted the coloration and patterning before assuring herself that it was indeed a female meadowlark. Looking back up, she noted that Zecora was watching her closely. She was about to ask where the zebra had found the poor thing when Fluttershy suddenly scooped up the bird and started checking it over, whispering to it as she flew into a more comfortable role of animal caregiver.

"I know you're busy though I do not see. The purpose of these..." Zecora paused to gesture towards the poles and wires, "...eludes me."

"Oh, they're for what I'm happy to see you for. They're lightning rods!" Twilight smiled, her wings unconsciously opening for a moment, before snapping back closed. "I need to ask you about things that ignore magic. Specifically creatures that can control the weather, prevent pegasi from altering weather systems, and whose magic is immune or heavily resistant to unicorn or alicorn magic."

Zecora gave a blank stare for a moment before lowering her eyebrows and leaning forward a bit. "Twilight Sparkle, what have you done that has your magic on the run?"

"I haven't done anything! Well, at least I don't think I've done anything. I might have nearly killed an angry, weather controlling, demigod on accident, but I'm rather hoping it's just a coincidence really." Twilight gave a nervous smile while looking to Rarity for help. Zecora's expression of surprise lasted only a moment before she started to chuckle in her rich voice.

"I doubt your troubles are quite so grand, but even in another land, such a claim out loud is rarely heard because mistakes are often a missed word. Tell me, princess, what you've seen and we may find what it may truly mean."

"I'm sorry to say Zecora, but I believe that Twilight is actually right this time. That stallion is certainly frightful enough to not be a normal unicorn." Rarity interjected, eliciting a raised eyebrow from the zebra. "Please do not misunderstand, we don't know exactly what he is, but Rainbow dash couldn't even touch his storm clouds and I'm sure you recall what she does for a living."

"Hey Zecora! Twilight, Manny's staring at a wall. Did you know that Fluttershy's petting a bird that's totally not even awake? I found out that I CAN put fishhooks in cupcakes if they're made out of candy canes so now we don't have to worry about King Sombra's cousin's pet anymore!"

Pinkie Pie watched as Twilight slammed into the ground as gravity took hold of her after leaping into the air in surprise while Rarity stood stock still, her mane blasted straight back from Twilight's panicked magic shockwave. Zecora, for her own part, stumbled back a step as she found Pinkie literally leaping out of her saddlebags. Once everypony (and zebra) had regained their composure, the obvious question led the small group back to Manila Takes' home where the mare was found, predictably, staring vacantly at the doorframe.

Before Twilight could even examine her, Zecora pushed past the princess, startling Twilight with the abruptness of her action. For the entire time she'd known the zebra, Twilight had never seen her rude or disrespectful in any way. Even when she had been accused of cooking Applebloom after discovering her home ransacked by Twilight and her friends, she had only responded in a confused anger, demanding little more than an answer for why they were invading and destroying her home. Mistakes aside, Twilight had since become fast friends with the zebra, often spending the odd day in her company conversing (in occasionally difficult to decipher rhyme) about plants, alchemy, culture, and the strange magics that the zebra seemed to be capable of.

The fact that Zecora had simply pushed Twilight aside did not anger Twilight Sparkle - it worried her.

"Zecora? What's wrong? Do you know what's going o...um... Why is she just staring at the wall like that?" Twilight asked once she realized she had started to unconsciously rhyme after conversing with the zebra.

"No. No no no no no. This is worse than words can show!" The zebra quickly took a small brown bottle from her bags and pulled the cork from it with her teeth. A strong, bitter smell immediately caused Twilight to gag and take a step back. Ignoring the scent, Zecora tipped the bottle over Manila's head, pouring the foul smelling watery fluid across the mare's forehead and eyes.

A moment later, Manila Takes shuddered and collapsed where she began convulsing before growing still.

Twilight looked on in horror as Rarity stepped back, a hoof finding her mouth as she glanced between Zecora and her friend, shock and fear mingling as she tried to decide what she was witnessing.

Zecora ignored them all, instead scraping a hoof across the doorstep, drawing tiny curls of her black hooves across the stone as she sharpened it. Manila lay still, her stare blank once more but looking even less focused.

Twilight suddenly realized that the mare wasn't breathing. "What did you do?!?" She shouted, her wings flitting open as she rounded on Zecora, only to have the sharpened hoof tap the tip of her horn, causing her spell to falter, not to mention flinch.

Zecora ignored her as she focused upon the still mare. In one swift motion, she whipped her hoof from where she had tapped Twilight down and across the prone mare's side, a thin slash appearing across her chest, just enough to trim her coat unevenly. Rarity gasped at both the speed and the horror of marring such a well tended coat, but Zecora ignored all that. She was focused upon the thing that was hiding at the edge of her sight.

Twilight was just starting to fire up another spell when Zecora's hoof snapped down next to Manila’s face, where she held her hoof tightly to the ground. "Twilight, do not argue or say a word, What I say must be said or she may not be cured. Touch my mane and take a look, across my shoulder down to my hoof." Twilight blinked but translated as best she could in her head. Stepping forward again, she raised a hoof to Zecora's mohawk before leaning across her back awkwardly and peering over the zebra's left shoulder. When she looked to where Zecora's hoof stabbed the ground next to Manila's face, she gasped and jolted herself back, her hooves snapping to her mouth and hoping that her gasp didn't break the 'no talking' rule.

Looking again, she saw nothing where Zecora's hoof had cut a small notch in the floor, but as she returned to the odd position and looked over the zebra's shoulder, she saw the strange black ribbon that thrashed across the ground, impaled by the hoof. she watched as needle-like protrusions and razor-thin edges slashed at the hard, black hoof of the zebra.

Rarity gasped as she stood confused. "Ze-Zecora, you're bleeding!"

Twilight suddenly realized that to Rarity, it must look as if Zecora's hoof was tearing itself apart.

---

A Spoonful of Sugar

Mojo leaned back as he rested in his room. The dim, purple, candle flame giving just enough light to see the slowly shifting shadows of the chair, table, and collection of simple spears against the wall. Above him, he knew, were a set of small twists of various unnamed herbs bent to resemble animals from the Everfree, creatures he had no reason to fear even this far into the forest itself. He relaxed slightly, the earthy, slightly spicy, scent of the candles blending with the odor of dyes and medicines giving the chamber an almost unreal sense to it. If he were to close his eyes and just relax for a moment, it would seem as it the whole of creation had somehow slipped away, leaving only this quiet, warm, room to float in the endless nothing of space. Mojo closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

snap

The moment broken, the black zebra tentatively cracked an eye open, just enough to watch for the slight shifting he suspected would be at the edge of his vision. The sound had been soft, almost imperceptible, but in the silence of his chamber, this deep underground, sounds seemed to grow stronger.

Mojo waited. He knew something else was in the room, staying outside the small circle of light cast by the dimly glowing candles, watching him, perhaps stalking him. He could feel the attention that was focused upon his body, his face, and even his shadow. Clever, he thought, it knows enough not to cross my shadow in the candle light. With deliberate slowness, he slowed his breathing, taking long, shallow breaths rather than the deep, even breathing he had been until moments before. It wouldn't do to give whatever it was the impression that he was aware of it until he knew more. He didn't quite ascribe to the notion of surprise, but in situations like this, every advantage could be capitalized upon.

Slowly, he drew in fewer and fewer breaths, his heart slowing and his black skin becoming as cool as the soil around him. The sound of his breathing fading by increments until it was as if the denizens of the soil themselves were the only ones present. His vision began to dim, though he kept his one eye cracked just enough to see the fading glow of the candles before him, their colors long since leached gray by his need for precious oxygen. Still, he waited, losing feeling in his hind legs as he slowly deprived himself of the sky's gift.

pffft

The sound was so soft he at first wasn't sure he had heard it at all. He felt the muscles in his ears start the slow process of waking up to search the darkness but he clamped down on his instincts and forced himself to remain perfectly still. An uncomfortable cold began to sink into his chest as his lungs screamed for air. Faintly, he became aware of a pressure on his side, a pressure that was sliding up his chest and towards his face.

There was a moment of confusion when the candle light snuffed out before reappearing again with the most remarkably faint sheen of crimson.

Ah, so it was a deez that had found him. The recognition was not one he savored in his current state. While a greely understood pain and suffering, a deez understood life and rules. That a deez had breached his chambers unnoticed was not a small thing. It implied that something had changed while he was out gathering the tools of his trade. He wasn't sure what, and he was certainly curious now that he had a quite dangerous thing perched upon his face, but at the moment it was more important not to give any indication of life. So, even though his body was wailing internally, struggling against training to remain still, he continued his corpse trance and waited.

He could taste the bitter of iron on his tongue, the flavor of his blood rushing to the surface, desperately trying to draw oxygen through the thin membranes of his sinuses and mouth. His eyes burned with the strain of his increasing blood pressure even as his heartbeat slowed to a grave-like crawl. He couldn't feel his legs and noticed the dim glow of the candle seemed quite a bit further away than it had. The only sense that still seemed to be functioning properly was his hearing, and even that seemed to have a muffled, lower toned quality to it, as if he were listening to things while underwater.

He had just started to feel himself sliding to the floor when the dark form flitted off and departed.

He refused to breathe, instead feeling himself slump to the cold soil of the ground as he counted off in his head.

Uhn, de night ahn de sun.

Doo, of dem der be few.

Trey, de hide in de ley.

Fo-ahr, uhn hide in iss lo-ahr.

Five, doo stray from de hive.

Six, a promise to nix.

Se vun, you betta nah run.

Eight, keep dem limbs straight.

Nine, old-dit ... now yeh be fine.

He took a deep, rattling breath as his vision crashed back with absurd brightness. Coughing, his ears ringing as a deep throbbing muffled his senses in waves as his heart desperately sped up to carry the air to his starved organs. He gasped and gagged, his body curling in as he convulsed, freezing. He couldn't feel anything but the frigid burning of his body as his nerves tried to relay the emergency signals of asphyxiation and suffocation mixed with the cold of being drenched in sweat with only a candle for warmth.

He wasn't sure how long he lay there, shuddering and tremoring as his temperature slowly returned to normal and blood began to slow again, but when he finally noticed the candle again, it was nearly spent, only leaving an inch or so above the pressed clay block upon which it sat. Feebly, Mojo reached towards the candle, trying to draw any warmth he could into his limbs as he recovered.

It was sometime later when he emerged from his room, shaky and still drenched in a cold sweat, and set about gathering his tools for a hunt. If a deez had managed to invade his home, there was something instructing the creature in how to avoid the snares and temptations he had littered all over the area. Something was hunting that which hunts the dark from the shadows.

Something was looking to feast.