Smoldering It Over

by Turtlehaus

Chapter 8: Boulder Choices

I had awoken considerably early the next morning. Once more I had taken up refuge near the river, ensuring that I would do little to no damage in or around Ponyville. I had decided that my stay near the riverbank would be more comfortable if I tried to make it more like home, and started looking for some rocks. It had taken several hours to find enough stones, of moderate size, to make half a wall to the potential hut I was going to be building.

Much like the homes in the Ashen Fields, stones were the preferable way to build a Flame Pony residence, and the gravel underfoot was a better flooring then wood. Even though many of the ponies in Ponyville had opened up their homes to me, a gesture I had thanked them over and over again, but none were proven to be fire proof. Much to their displeasure I assured them that a spot near the river would best suit me for the time being.

With an hour's worth of work, I had one wall of my makeshift home coming up to my chest. It was just wide enough not to be considered a pile of rocks to the untrained eye. Ponyville did not have much in terms of large stones or boulders and it was apparent that I would have to venture into the Everfree Forest to reach the base of the mountains to find more suitable rocks. I beamed with pride at my wall, it wasn't much but it was enough for a Flame Pony. Besides from the possibility of rain, my impromptu home was coming together nicely.

I walked out of my home, which wasn't hard, and stretched in the early morning sun. Preparing to lug rocks for the rest of the day, I set off down the river towards the Everfree Forest. Eventually, I happened across the dirt road from yesterday and made my way towards the forest.

Reaching the edge of Ponyville, I looked into the Everfree forest realizing how menacing it seemed to be. It seemed a little out of place when compared to the bright and lush hillsides of Ponyville but it was nowhere near as disturbing as the Dark Marsh. Shrugging, I continued on into the forest with my eyes set on the mountain on the other side and looked forward to the gloom of this place.

It was much greener then the marsh, but the quiet gloom that seemed to hang over this forest was similar to life in the Ashen Field. The path wasn't all that clear of brush. I had to dance around fallen branches and carefully trot over fallen leaves.

"Dear me, could it be? A Flame Pony in the Everfree?" A voice, speaking in rhyme, said aloud.

I looked over my shoulder to see an unfamiliar pony stepping out from the bushes. She had a saddle bag on her back, her black and white stripes resembled the two varying degrees of Flame Pony color, a cutie mark of a grey spiraling sun and she wore gold pieces of jewelry. She did not seem threatening nor did she seem threatened, she did seem quite surprised though, but it wasn't new to me.

"Hi..." I began. I turned to face her. "I'm Smolder of the Ashen Fields, you can call me Ash... or Matchstick, Blaze, Mr. Flame Pony, Sparky, Fireball or Fizzle if you like."

I was surprised in my ability to recall all the nick names I had been given since yesterday.

"Zecora is my name, and to the nicknames I will add... Wild Flame." She replied in rhyme once more.

"Thanks, I guess." I said feeling that this nickname trend was not going to end.

"So Zecora, where will this path take me?" I asked curiously, hoping that she was familiar with the area enough to give me some directions.

"Deep into the forest does this road wind, the further you go the more spiders you will find." Zecora warned.

"Spiders, huh?" I asked not sounding at all surprised.

It wouldn't be my first time coming across spiders but it would be interesting to see how big the Everfree Forest grows them.

"What is it that the Wild Flame seeks? Perhaps I can help so you don't get lost for weeks and weeks." Zecora asked, offering her help with a smile.

"Well it's really not all that important." I said with a chuckle.

I felt kind of embarrassed to tell her I was looking for rocks, but Zecora seemed interested as she waited for me to answer.

"I'm looking for some stones I could use to help build a hut." I confessed.

"Does the Wild Fire seek stones to help him build a home?" Zecora asked.

"Well, you know the fire and all. Wood and I don't really get along." I mumbled feeling embarrassed.

"Never fear, the stones you seek are very near." Zecora said encouragingly.

"Really?" I asked feeling surprised.

"Follow me and you shall see." Zecora said walking past me.

I began to follow her, keeping a safe distance between us, but after a few feet Zecora turned to look back at me surprised by my cautious nature.

"Anxious you are, that much is clear, walking beside me will help your fear." Zecora stated.

She turned back towards me, she came right up alongside me and I immediately tried to move away. Unfortunately for me, Zecora shadowed me step for step.

"Zecora, I appreciate that you're willing to help me but I would feel a lot better if you were a safer distance away." I confessed.

"Relax and be at peace, for I can watch out for myself at least." Zecora said motioning me to move along with her.

I moved along begrudgingly. We made our way down the path, it forked a few times into much shallower trails and eventually she directed me off the main path. Zecora was still much closer then I would have liked, but she seemed to pay no mind to it. I had made it a point, perhaps even a rule, never to walk next to any non-flame pony, but it didn't seem to matter how many points I was willing to make; Zecora wasn't going to budge.

"Tell me, if you please, how a Flame Pony in Ponyville came to be?" Zecora asked curiously.

"I guess you can say I came looking for help," I began, knowing full well that my intentions were much more dishonest. "The Kingdom of Flame Ponies is struggling to get by, but because of our past transgressions no Flame Pony believed any other pony was willing to help."

"The deeds of old affect the new, now all this trouble has fallen on you." Zecora replied.

"Princess Celestia has offered me a chance to speak in front of the summit to plead my case on behalf of the Flame Ponies. It comes with a few strings attached, laced by the Princess herself, to prove to her and the other ponies that we have changed for the better." I continued.

"A pony to move a mountain on his own is sure to find it easier to move to it stone by stone." Zecora said.

For a moment I had to think, I don't believe she was trying to speak in riddles just to make it harder to understand, but rather, she was trying to make it easier for me to wrap my head around. It was true that moving a mountain is practically impossible, but moving a rock from the mountain itself is much easier to do.

As I thought on it, things started falling into place in the sense that the burden that I had placed before myself was this mountain. That I could not fix everything at once. Rather, I should take the time to tackle each problem one at a time and not try to fix everything at once.

"So you're saying that I can do more if I focus on specific problems rather than trying to fix the whole issue? Right?" I asked.

"Nail on the head is what you hit, and it does not surprise me one bit." Zecora replied.

This particular statement from Zecora was easier for me to understand.

"So if I take my time, pick my battles, I can avoid messing up all together?" I asked, thinking more about it.

"Those who play with fire are surely to be burned, but those that have will have learned." Zecora said with a smile.

She glanced at the space between us and we were nearly side by side. I had not noticed, nor did I feel panicked, but I did feel as though I had been taken in. I had played right into Zecora's hooves.

"You are more in control then you think, give it some time to let that feeling sink." Zecora said in a matter of fact tone.

As she had said, I let this feeling sink in. I did not burn her nor did I accidentally bump into her, but in fact she herself was mindful enough not to run into me. Leaving myself so much room between ponies was making the wall that already exists between Flame Ponies and the outside world much thicker than it needed to be, but thanks to Zecora I've managed to thin it a bit.

"Here is where they are, the biggest stones in Ponyville by far." Zecora said pointing her hoof towards the clearing up ahead.

Even from here I could see very large boulders resting under moss and other foliage.

"Thank you, Zecora." I said bowing my head to her.

"Good luck to you Wild Flame, and to your Summit, I wish the same." Zecora said to me.

We parted ways, Zecora returning back down the path and I to make use of these boulders.

Cutting rocks was one of the first thing Flame Ponies had to learn. We had to build our own homes from the stones of the mountain, and carry it back ourselves. So, if at all possible, we would find the most circular boulders we could to roll them back. Fortunately for me, the Everfree Forest had them in vast quantities. I had to burn off the moss, dig for bit, kick the boulder to free it from the earth, but it was easy pickings from then on. With my boulders all picked out, I was ready to rock and roll. Smolder the dork, I thought to myself.

Rolling a boulder wasn't hard, a pony just needed to pay attention to their surroundings, and use the weight of the boulder to their advantage. As sad as it may seem, it was a game our foals and fillies played regularly. I had rolled my boulder for a time before I noticing a slight decline in the path. I decided to get in front of the boulder to ensure it wouldn't roll away on me. As I stepped around my boulder I spied some figures in the distance. I struggled to see whom it was but my heart sank when I noticed the number of legs the figures had.

"Spiders." I whispered to myself.

I crept back behind my boulder to hide my flames and peeked around the side.

"It will take time for them to figure out this here pony has gone missing, and by that time we'll have already had dinner." Said a spider.

"How much you think we're going to be able to eat with just one pony? It don't look very meaty. It's even got stripes on it, is it safe to eat?" Spoke up another spider.

I could feel my stomach drop. Did they have Zecora? They must have; she is the only pony with stripes. She must have gotten caught on her way back from showing me the boulders.

"Of course, all them ponies have a ton of colors. Just don't eat the green ones, they are organic." Said another spider.

"I wonder if there were more ponies wandering around here?" Asked another spider.

"We won't find out if you keep squawking like that! If one of them ponies hears us, it might try going for help and then we'll have some real trouble on our legs." Hissed another spider.

My mind began to race for ideas of how I could help her. Unfortunately, I was stuck between a rock and a group of spiders.

"Do you hear something?" A spider asked.

The boulder rolled down the path, the speed of the boulder was slow, but it did make the ground shake with every revolution. The spiders quickly backed away as the boulder came to a stop before them.

"What's this then?" Asked a spider.

"It's a rock you moron." Said another spider.

"It looks more like a boulder to me." Replied another spider.

"So what if it is?" Asked the spider.

"Well how did this one get here? I don't think boulders go for walks." Asked the confused spider.

"I ain't ever seen no rock get up and move." Said a matter of fact spider.

Leaping atop the boulder I spewed fire at the closest spider. It screeched and rolled around on the floor, flames consuming it. I whipped my head around and sent flames towards the other spiders that went scrambling into the forest hissing. I had hid behind the boulder, using it to get close before preforming my sneak attack.

"Zecora!" I shouted out loud looking around.

"Wild Flame, can it be? Did you come to rescue me?" Zecora called back.

Off to the side of the path was a pit. I leaped from the boulder and ran right up to the edge. I peered over to see Zecora sitting at the bottom looking up at me.

"Are you alright?" I asked quickly.

"I'm alright, just sitting tight." Zecora replied.

"Okay, okay, okay, okay." I mumbled to myself quickly looking around.

Besides from trees, brush and leaves there was nothing to help Zecora out of the pit; at least nothing I could touch. The spiders began to reemerge from the trees, stepping carefully onto the path and clicking their fangs together. I turned to face them, flaring my mane; trying to make them back off.

"It's that Flame Pony from last night!" A spider cried.

"Well what do you know, it is!" Shouted another spider.

"Go get some help; we're going to need it!" Another spider cried.

I watched a spider skitter back into the forest while five spiders began to inch their way towards me.

"Go for help Wild Flame, these spiders are not playing games!" Zecora shouted.

"Neither am I." I said feeling the fire rage inside me.

I picked the closest spider to be my target. Flames shot from my mouth hitting the spider right in its face, watching it screech in pain. The other four spiders pounced towards me. I ducked the first one, but felt several legs strike me from the others. I was knocked to the ground, but the spiders quickly retreated screaming and cursing my fire.

"We cannot touch him! Cursed little thing! It burns to touch!" A spider cried in pain.

Ignoring my pain, I charged them. To every spider's surprise, I galloped at full speed, spitting fire from my nostrils hoping to intimidate them. I stopped short of ramming the lead spider, leaping over him with a tremendous jump and landed upon its back as it hissed in anger.

"It burns! It burns!" the spider cried twirling in circles.

Already doing half the work for me, I began to spew fire. Acting like a sprinkler, the spider spun round and round as my flames swirled with it. The others ran into each other screaming in fear as they tried to get out of the way.

The spider I stood upon suddenly threw me from its back and I crashed down onto the ground. I rolled a few times as the spiders quickly mobilized to intercept me, but burned themselves trying to take hold of me. I flared my mane to force them back as I got to my hooves and rear kicked the closest spider to me.

My mane flared again, I drew a deep breath and spat a fireball towards the lot of them. The ball of fire hit the center of their group and plumed forcing them to separate. They seemed hesitant to approach me again, but I could see that their anger wasn't going to hold them back. A spider charged me with the others in tow. I spewed fire once more but the spider leaped up into the air; catching me by surprise. Backing up quickly, it turned out to be not enough as the spider dropped down atop me.

The Spider lifted its body so that it wouldn't get burned as it began to spit webbing from its mouth. It was the most disgusting I had ever seen or felt. I struggled against the webbing, it was moist, sticky, and it was hard for my flames to dissolve it effectively. Only one thing came to mind.

My flames erupted, consuming me in fire and burning away the webbing. Igniting my Flash Step, my flames shot out burning the under belly of the spider towering over me. The spider screamed and flailed its legs in pain trying to put distance between us. The spider lost its balance, it slid sideways into the pit, barely catching itself as some of its legs fell in.

"Ow! It bit me! The pony bit me!" The spider cried as Zecora chomped down on its leg.

The other spiders had backed away in fear of my flames. My fire was swirling around me, empowering me for the moment. I charged them without giving them the chance to retreat. I tackled the first spider, knocking it to the ground before spewing fire upon it. Striking it with my hooves to keep it from biting me. I raced towards the next spider, my Flash Step still flaring. It could barely let out a cry before I tackled it, watching it bounce across the ground. Another spider tried to stand up against me, trying to strike, but I flared my fire burning its legs.

"Let go! Let go!" The Spider cried trying to pull its leg from the pit.

Leaping towards the spider stuck in the pit, I chomped down on its leg and began to pull; much to its displeasure. The spider tried to swipe at me with its other legs but was too busy trying to fight off both Zecora and I to decide who to hit first. The spider slid towards me while I pulled and pulled until I saw Zecora appear at the edge of the pit still clamped down on the spider's leg. With one final tug, I pulled the spider from the pit, quickly striking it in the head to knock it out; Zecora was free from the pit.

"What a nasty taste, I will surely need toothpaste." Zecora said spitting on the ground.

"Our pony is escaping! Our pony is escaping!" A spider cried.

Jumping in front of Zecora, I flared my flames once more to try and keep the spiders from advancing, hoping to buy her sometime to get away.

"You need to run, Zecora!" I shouted over my shoulder.

"To leave a friend behind, is not how I repay in kind." Zecora said refusing to leave.

Before I could argue further, three new spiders emerged from the brush behind us. I looked around to see the burned spiders being helped away by others. From the trees more spiders lowered themselves from their webbing, and slowly surrounded us. I flared my flames a few more times trying to keep the spiders from getting any closer and it worked to some effect. Until the ground began to shake, and it began to quake over and over.

The sound of trees being uprooted violently echoed through the forest, Zecora and I stared into the forest wide eyed. Large tree trunk like legs came reaching out from the trees, pulling the trunks from their roots and moving them aside. A spider of enormous size loomed over the uprooted trees, fangs the size of wagons, and eyes so black it looked like large chunks of coal. It was the Queen of Spiders.

"You have hurt my children!" The Queen shrieked.

Strings of web flew from her mouth, whipping from her fangs with every word. Her front legs struck the ground, breaking up the earth and pulled herself closer. I showed a bit of force and spewed fire into the air before her. The Queen reeled back, pulling her front legs up to her face to defend herself.

"Accursed Flame Pony! What business do you have here in my kingdom?" The Queen demanded angrily.

"Zecora, do you have any ideas?" I whispered, ignoring the Queen.

"Answer Flame Pony! Answer!" The Queen shrieked.

"Your spiders were trying to make a meal out of my friend!" I shouted back.

"Business of ours is not of any concern to Flame Ponies, vile retched creatures you are! Burn everything! Hurt everyone!" The Queen screamed.

The other spiders anxiously paced around us as the Queen hissed with disgust.

"A bottle of dragon powder is what I carry, the end result will be quite scary." Zecora whispered back.

Wingston used to make dragon powder, it was used to make fireworks, and in large quantities it was used for blasting large amounts of rocks in the mines. Although, Wingston would only use a pinch of it to have explosive results for fireworks, but a whole bottle would probably knock these spiders all the way to the Crystal Kingdom.

My mind raced for other ideas, seeing as Zecora would get caught in the blast I didn't think we'd be able to use it. That's when I saw my boulder from earlier. I motioned to Zecora, pointing towards the pit and nodded towards the boulder. She seemed to get the idea.

"We shall snuff out the Flame Pony and then feast on the striped one!" The Queen cried.

The spiders hissed in understanding, getting ready to charge in. The Queen raised her front legs once more, preparing to smash us into the dirt; it was now or never for us.

"Zecora! Go!" I shouted.

Zecora reached into her bag retrieving a clear bottle filled with bright orange flakes. She dropped it onto the ground before racing off towards the pit. Distracting the Queen with a display of my Flash Step. I darted around in front of her and leaped towards the boulder; just narrowly avoiding her enormous leg swiping at me. With a mighty kick I rolled the boulder forward, with Zecora sliding into the pit.

The boulder rolled for a few revolutions before dropping into the pit and acting like a cork. Trapping Zecora inside. The spiders looked very confused at our spectacle. I smiled, knowing Zecora was safe, and that's when I felt the Queen's leg swipe me off my hooves. I had about four seconds of air time before hitting against the ground hard.

I could feel the ground shaking. Steps from the Queen approaching me. I lay in a heap on the ground unsure of what was up or down. My Flash Step had fizzled out, and I wasn't sure when I'd get feeling back in my everything. My eyes began to grow dark, the thunderous steps of the Queen echoing in my ears. The words of the Queen and the spiders were muffled to me now, and darkness slowly took me.

"Wake up Sweetheart."

My eyes shot open. My body exploded with fire, it swelled and roared around me. I gasped aloud; my heart pounding out of my chest. I was on my hooves staring down the Queen who had recoiled from my sudden awakening. The flames raged across my body, throwing fire high into the air and turning the ground beneath me to glass. My ears straining to listen, to hear the words I had never heard before, but wanted to hear again.

"Curse the Flame Pony! Curse it!" The Queen shrieked in frustration.

I suddenly became aware of my situation. Gathering my wits, I looked for the bottle of Dragon Powder. I saw the bottle beneath the Queen. Rearing up on my hind legs I took a deep breath, I put everything I had into my blast of fire; targeting the bottle beneath the Queen. The heat from the fire reacted to the powder inside, the bottle cracked and then a flash of white light blinded me. The explosion followed right after.

I had to blink hundreds of times to get the world to come back into view. I had been thrown off my hooves again. I'm not sure how far but it wasn't as bad as the landing. I'm pretty sure a spider had broken my fall, but a tree decided it wanted to wrestle and pinned me.

Flaring my mane I burned away part of the tree and pulled myself out from underneath it. The plan had worked. We knocked down every tree and spider for at least a hundred feet in every direction.

The boulder that had been hiding Zecora was partially intact, the top of the boulder had been broken up, but it seemed to have done its job. I started to move, but felt a sharp pain at my side. Hugging my side, I decided that Zecora wasn't going anywhere and I could take my time in reaching her. The spiders around me were either unconscious or dazed. The Queen had taken most of the blast. It must have thrown her straight up into the air. I deduced this by her not being here anymore and that she must have fallen down somewhere else.

Reaching the boulder I began to question how I would get it uncorked from the pit. To my surprise, a touch from my hoof caused the boulder to crumble and cave in. Showering Zecora with dirt and pebbles; she did not look amused.

"Sorry." I mumbled weakly.

"It is alright Wild Flame, I hope that you are the same." Zecora said with concern.

"I'm alright." I fibbed.

"I am once again stuck in a hole, perhaps I should have been a mole." Zecora joked.

"I can see if I can find another spider to drag over." I replied looking around.

There was no spider close by, but what I did see was Princess Celestia gliding down with Princess Luna by her side. Their expressions seemed to be that of shock, but I don't think they were surprised to see me. Princess Celestia looked around at the splintered trees, dazed spiders and areas of burning wood. Princess Luna moved away to begin zapping a few spiders with her horn. Princess Luna routed them away from us, watching them scurry away before surveying the rest of the area.

"Hello." I said with a weak smile

"Hello." Princess Celestia replied striding over to me.

Princess Celestia peered over the pit to see Zecora smiling back up at her. Her horn began to glow causing Zecora to float out from the pit and be placed next to me.

"Would any pony like to tell me what happened here?" Princess Celestia asked.

"The story is long from beginning to end, and it all started when I met my new friend." Zecora began.

"I'm listening." Princess Celestia stated.

I decided to let Zecora do most of the talking. I offered a 'yep' every now and again to the story. Truth be told, my head was still spinning from the kick the Queen had given me and not to mention the explosion that followed soon after. Even when Zecora spoke of our plan to defeat the Queen, I found myself watching Princess Luna chase away the remaining spiders. I felt myself smile at this sight.

"The Queen?" Princess Celestia asked in surprise.

"She was big and full of fright. She was indeed an ugly sight." Zecora said, making a face of disgust.

"So that's when Smolder ignited the dragon powder?" Princess Celestia asked guessing the next part of what happened.

"Not before getting me to the pit, did Wild Flame blow the Queen to bits." Zecora assured her.

Princess Luna strode up to Princess Celestia.

"I checked the surrounding area and saw the Queen making her way back to the mountain. I've also routed the remaining spiders that tried to head deeper into the forest near Ponyville." Princess Luna reported.

"Well Smolder, it seems that you have a way of attracting attention." Princess Celestia remarked, glancing over at me.

"I was just looking for some rocks." I mumbled.

"Rocks?" Princess Luna asked curiously.

"Flame Ponies make their homes from rock and stone." Princess Celestia explained to her.

My stomach turned. I felt embarrassed now. It had to be in front of Princess Luna too.

"The damage is minimal." Princess Luna said looking around the blackened area. "This area has been dense with brush and trees. The explosion was contained for the most part."

"Thanks to the Queen's big belly." I chuckled.

Princess Celestia raised an eyebrow at me and I quickly put my smile away. Although, Princess Luna smiled at the thought of it and it made my heart jump.

"When I said to prove that Flame Ponies had changed, I did not imagine you swimming through rivers or facing down spiders in attempts to save ponies." Princess Celestia said sounding a bit surprised.

"Me either." I mumbled.

"But I am very grateful that you would put yourself in harm's way for the sake of other ponies, Smolder. I would not recommend making it a habit, of course." Princess Celestia said with a smile.

"Thank you." I said feeling very grateful for her praise.

"My thanks as well, if you could not already tell." Zecora chimed in.

"Be joyful Smolder of the Ashen Fields! For you have bested the Queen of Spiders!" Princess Luna said aloud nudging my side with her hoof.

A sharp pain shot through my body and for the second time that day I blacked out.

Comments

[Robot Sparky]

WEEEEEEEEEE! VIOLENCE!
Lightning, why do you want violence so much?
too much X-COM
oh