• Published 11th Jan 2017
  • 4,388 Views, 214 Comments

The Crystal Prep Files - FoxMcCloud7921



Taking place during and after the events of "Legend of Everfree", the girls from Crystal Prep become aware of magical oddities taking place at and near their school.

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Chapter 2

Author's Note:

I probably should have posted this last chapter but I was rather eager to get this story posted ASAP. I'm quite surprised how many hits this story has gotten already which apparently means people really like the Shadowbolts. :twilightblush: Well, I guess I do too, and I really wanted them to be like the anti-Mane 5 meaning despite being friends they always act hostile towards one another (for the most part) so I hope I can keep you all entertained.

(Also kudos for finally updating the character list but still I can only choose five? :unsuresweetie:)

For the rest of the day, Sunny Flare didn’t say a word to anyone. Luckily, no one said a word to her either so she was fine with that. Perhaps her friends were right, maybe she was chasing down ghost stories but after what she had seen, there was a blurred line between fact and fiction.

After classes were done, she spent some time on the computer in the library. She went through any newspaper or news channel but there was nothing she could find that would define “unusual.” That left her with only one option left.

She left the school and walked downtown to one of the drugstores. She didn’t have to go far as she found the tabloids right next to the cashier. It was any wonder a paper such as the Enquirer would still be in business since no one buys into phony news, or so she had assumed. Despite her reservations, she didn’t have many choices and picked up a copy along with two other similar magazines.

The cashier chuckled. “So you’re into that kind of stuff huh? You’re the first I’ve seen in awhile to purchase those. Looking for Nessie or UFOs?”

Sunny gave her a look as she paid by credit card. “Funny, I thought the people here hired you to do your job, not to presume that you think you know people.” She then took the magazines and ignored the cashier’s sudden look of surprise. “Have a nice day.”

She found a bench outside and started reading. Not surprisingly, it spoke a lot about things that made magic from another dimension seem credible. There was apparently a half-goat, half-man living somewhere in Manehattan. A vampire-like girl that was apparently killing off apple crops near Appleloosa.

Sunny was starting to regret her recent purchases as she flipped to the Enquirer. More of the same until… Then she found something interesting. There was a farm just outside of where the Everfree Forest stood. The owner said livestock had been disappearing every couple weeks or so and he had been seeing weird lights in the sky, almost like an aurora borealis. Honestly, he said, he wouldn’t be surprised if it truly was aliens cause up until now this kind of thing never happened.

Well, it certainly couldn’t be aliens, she thought. At least not from outer space. What if, hypothetically, there was a distortion in space and it ended up sucking in the poor cow or chicken? That seemed crazy cause most animals run away…unless it happened beneath their feet.

Sunny then got her phone out and called her mother. “Hey Mom…I’m going to be late tonight so don’t worry about dinner, I’ll find something in town…Don’t worry it’s just something for school that’s all. …Yes, I always carry a bottle of pepper spray with me…I will, love you too. Bye.”

She then found the address and plugged it into her phone. It was about three miles out from downtown and right now she wished she was able to drive but the bus would have to do. She then looked down at her shoes sadly. “Sorry, might need a new pair after this…”


A girl wearing a Crystal Prep uniform on a bus heading out to the boonies seemed rather out of place, but aside from a few side glances none of the other passengers on board said anything. She wasn’t able to get off at the farm directly but luckily the stop was about half a mile away. She was certainly glad to have brought cash with her today.

As she walked, she considered her options. There was no point talking to the farmer, he would only repeat what was already stated so she would have to do her investigation all on her own. That meant possibly going into the forest.

It was already starting to get dark by the time she reached the farm. As they said, the edge of the forest was a short distance away. There were cows and some horses out in the fields but they didn’t seem perturbed in any way.

Despite how it looked on the outside, the inside of the forest had a clear pathway which led even deeper. Sunny’s logic would have told her maybe perhaps it was some sort of predator that got to the livestock. But then again, the animals were fenced in and from what she saw, it would’ve taken a lot of force to break through that fencing. “Maybe animals can disappear into thin air,” she thought.

Aside from the chatter of critters coming out, there was nothing here. She found a log to sit on as she stretched her legs and waited. Still nothing happened. Now she was starting to think she was just wasting her time.

However, she noticed as quickly the chattering had begun, it had quickly stopped. Sunny was no nature expert but that meant one of two things. Either something was already on the prowl or something was about to happen. She then got up, using her cell phone as a flashlight. She didn’t hear anything moving, despite how quiet it was.

Suddenly, she felt the ground shake and start to cave in underneath her. She turned and ran but she quickly lost her footing; again Sunny regretted her choice of footwear. She jumped and managed to get her arms around the log she had been sitting on. Luckily the log was too heavy to roll by herself.

She looked behind her and instantly wished she hadn’t, for there was nothing below her feet. A large distortion was under her feet and the little bit of ground and said log she was holding onto was keeping her secure. She couldn’t see a bottom, only what looked like a reflection of the forest she was currently in.

She tried to push herself up but she had no footing, having to rely on her upper body. Unfortunately, doing that and hanging onto the log was causing her grip to weaken. She wasn’t going to scream for help. Who was going to hear her?

“Damn it…” she cursed, realizing her predicament. Well, if she died and honestly if it wasn’t quick it would happen eventually, she hoped at the very least her friends would come to her funeral.

Just as she was about to fall, however, a pair of hands managed to grab hers. “Hold on!” The voice belonged to Indigo Zap and Sunny Flare had never been happier to see her. “Need some help here!” Someone put their arms around Indigo’s waist and slowly Sunny was pulled out of the gaping maw onto actual solid ground.

Panting from fatigue and partly from relief, she saw that the other girls had shown up with Indigo. “How…how did you find me?”

“Lucky guess actually,” Indigo said as she got up and dusted herself up. “You’re welcome by the way.”

“What the hell were you doing out here!?” Sour Sweet snapped. “You trying to get yourself killed!?”

Her words caused Sunny to flinch. “I was looking into something…”

“Well, I think you found it,” Sugarcoat said, glancing right behind them. As Sunny looked behind her, the distortion suddenly starting to shrink until all that was left was solid ground. “So…I guess that Sunset girl didn’t fix everything after all.”

“We’re miles away from the school, are you saying it’s starting to spread?” Indigo asked.

“It’s just a theory,” Sugarcoat stated. “Think of earthquakes for example. Depending on the magnitude, the shockwave can go on for miles and miles. Canterlot High was the epicenter and we’re still feeling aftershocks.”

“So…what do we do?” Lemon Zest asked fearfully.

Sugarcoat frowned. “I’m…not sure what we can do. If this keeps progressing it could happen in the middle of urban areas. I don’t even want to think of the amount of casualties there’ll be.”

“Now do you see why I wanted to do something about this?” Sunny said. She sighed. “But it’ll have to be another day…I’m surprised I didn’t twist an ankle or something.”

“Yeah, can we leave here already?” Lemon asked.

Suddenly there was a loud growl nearby. “Ugh, seriously Lemon can’t you tell your stomach to shut up?” Indigo asked.

“Um…that wasn’t me…”

The growl came again. “Um…guys…?” Indigo said.

“It’s probably just a timberwolf,” Sour said. “It’s not stupid enough to attack five of us.” She then pulled out a Swiss army knife. “Especially me.”

“That’s…not the sound a timberwolf makes,” Sugarcoat said slowly, and the alert expression on her face told everyone she had no idea what it was.

The creature suddenly burst from out of the bushes and the silhouette showed it was big. Upon closer look, they saw it had the head and body of a lion with bat-like wings and a scorpion’s tail. “What the hell is that!?” Lemon screamed.

“…I’m pretty sure that’s a manticore,” Sugarcoat said calmly.

“That’s not funny!” Indigo snapped.

“Seriously, now you doubt me!?” Sugarcoat snapped back at her.

Sour suddenly flung out her arm and the knife she had been carrying flew and landed into the manticore’s shoulder. However, it barely flinched. “Uh oh…um…new idea,” Sour said. “RUN!”

Weeks of practice for the Friendship Games came in handy right about now. They were able to get out of the woods but they forgot that their adversary could fly. It suddenly dropped down in front of them again.

“Okay…he doesn’t want to let us go,” Indigo groaned. “Wish I would’ve brought an axe or something….”

Sunny suddenly had an idea. “Hey…Indigo,” she said quietly. “You got your lighter with you?”

“Yeah why?”

“Give it to me.”

“What? Why?”

“Just give me the damn lighter!”

Indigo slowly took out her lighter and placed it in Sunny’s hand. “Everyone stay back…” Sunny cautioned them. She then lit the lighter and took a step forward. “Come on kitty…I bet you’re hungry aren’t you?”

“Yep…she has a death wish…” Sour commented.

The manticore was willing to take the bait. It then lunged towards her. Sunny smiled as she pulled out the can of pepper spray. “Hope you like it hot!” She pressed down on the spray and suddenly the lighter lit up like a flamethrower.

The manticore roared in pain as its face got scorched and it fearfully went back into the air and retreated back into the forest. Sunny then tossed the lighter back to Indigo. “They say that pepper spray tends to be very flammable.”

“That was AWESOME!” Lemon yelled, giving her friend a hug. “We just took on a mythical beast and won!”

“Well I’ll give her an A for creativity,” Sour said as she picked up her knife that the creature left behind.

“Unfortunately it’s still very much alive,” Sugarcoat said. She then crossed her arms. “Of course, if I had thought of borrowing Father’s Winchester then that would be a different story.”

“Listen girls,” Sunny said, suddenly feeling bashful. “I’m not really good at saying this but…thanks. Thank you for saving my sorry butt.”

“So you’re going to ditch the lone wolf crap?” Indigo asked.

“That depends…are you going to help me out with this?” Sunny countered.

Indigo snorted. “I think it’s too late to ask. But you know what they say: Shadowbolts stick together!”

“And where does it say that?” Sugarcoat asked.

“Seriously girl, your parents should have named you Buzz Kill.”

The five of them laughed as they headed back to Sugarcoat’s car. Luckily she decided to bring the SUV. “Oh Sunny, I noticed you tore your skirt,” Sugarcoat said. “I can give you my extra pair until you get it re-sowed.”

Sunny looked down and groaned. “My mother is going to give me an earful for this…but thanks though Sugarcoat.”

“Alright Team Leader, so what’s our next move?” Indigo asked as they headed back to town.

Sunny thought for a moment. “There’s no doubt the Everfree Forest seems to be a hotspot of unnatural imbalances. I think if we’re going to figure anything out, that’s the best place to start, at Camp Everfree.”

“Okay, so what’s the itinerary then?” Sour asked.

Sunny smiled. “Who feels like cutting class tomorrow and going on a road trip?”