Into the Forest
Another time, another place...
"So...you're still watching him?" an orange pegasus asked a silver coated unicorn mare. "You don't ever get tired of it, do you?"
"You don't either." she replied, chuckling. "After all...I believe today will be different for him."
"How so?" the stallion asked as he glanced at the dish the mare was staring at before draping his wing over her, nuzzling her side.
"I think..." the mare let out a small breath. "I think he's about to learn the truth."
He quickly stopped his nuzzling after hearing this. "The truth? Do you mean about us?"
The mare shook her head, almost giggling as she did. "No, far from it. What I mean is, he's about to learn the truth about...her."
"I see." the pegasus replied, letting out a long sigh as he did. "Tell me, do you think they'll ever forgive us if they find out about each other?"
"I don't know." She then gave him an all-knowing smirk. "He is your son after all."
Flash's training ground outside of Ponyville...
Flash was standing in the center of a clearing with Iron, Springer and Twilight off to the side. The defender was doing a series of breathing exercises, feeling the wind around him as he slowly prepared his body. As he did, Springer stood to said, surrounded by ropes tied to a log in front of him while Twilight had the book Flash had gotten from Soarin open in her hooves as she waited for it to begin.
"You ready?" Springer asked his partner.
"As I'll ever be," Flash replied as he jogged on the spot.
Twilight did a slight gulp before asking, "Are you sure about this? You haven't been studying this very long."
"I need to put it into practical use," Flash responded while stretching his legs and muscles. "How else am I gonna know how far I am to mastering it?"
"I guess you have a point," Twilight replied, a small sigh following. "Though this seems a little extreme..."
"And if he doesn't do it, at least I get a show out of it." Iron added with a dark chuckle.
"Very funny," Flash said before turning to his jakhowl partner. "Alright bud, you know what to do."
"Right, I'll begin the count down from thirty." Springer nodded as he unsheaved his claw.
Flash nodded back before standing up straight and closing his eyes. As the sound of Springer's counting rang through his ears, he took long deep breaths to calm himself. He tried to feel the slowing of time, the wind flowing as he felt his wings twitch at the senses around him.
Then, he heard Springer's count hit zero.
"Go time."
Flash's eyes shot open, only to hear a certain snap of a rope. From the side, a boulder attached to a rope swung down towards him. Seeing this, Flash leapt into the air and spun, allowing him to barely dodge the rock. But before he could even come to a stop, he heard the sound of something else being thrown through the air. Looking around, he saw a large log attached to two ropes swinging down at him. Seeing this, a regular pegasi would have slowed their momentum, trying to descend quickly to dodge such an obstacle. However, instead of slowing his momentum, Flash flapped his wings once and used it to shoot himself forward. Once he was close enough, he stuck out his front hooves and grabbed hold of the end of the log. He curled himself up against the timber and began rolling down it. Once at the end, he uncurled and extended his back legs to shoot himself forward.
"Not bad," Twilight said as she watched him. "Wish I was that maneuverable."
"Meh, whatever." Iron shrugged before smirking at Springer. "Let's see how that idiot does against twice as much stuff."
Springer nodded and cut a bunch of the ropes, unleashing a horde of objects. As this happened, Flash's ears perked up, causing him to look at the new sounds. There, he saw all manner of rocks and logs flying at him. "Oh Celestia," he said before randomly dodging them. He did alright for the first few dodges, but eventually a stray log caught his wing. His focus immediately vanished, causing a rock to hit him as well. Then another log, followed by two rocks that struck him on both sides.
"OOOH!" The three observers said as they flinched from seeing Flash be sandwiched between the boulders.
"That had to hurt," Iron commented, slightly chuckling as they watched Flash slide out from between the rocks and land on the ground with a thud.
"You okay?" Springer asked as Flash picked himself.
"Ugh...ow." The pegasi replied as he rubbed his head, pain striking all over his body. "I think my heart, liver and stomach have switched places...but all in all, I think I'm okay."
Twilight walked up to him, dusting him off with her hooves. "You're not okay Flash. You lost focus and that's why you're hurt."
"I know, I know...geez lousie, this would be so much easier if I had Lightbringer." Flash mumbled, slightly groaning as well.
Twilight smacked the side of his head. "This isn't about simply blasting your problems away Flash. There'll be a time when you can't use your Celestic Gear to protect you, so learning these techniques will be important."
"I know that Twilight!" Flash growled. "Look, Soarin's figured out how to do it, so I should get it easy."
Twilight just rolled her eyes. "Soarin practised for years to enter the Theta State, and he can only do it for a few seconds. It could be decades before you're able to master it."
"In the meantime, maybe you should stick to what you're good at Sentry." Iron remarked, a big evil grin on his face.
"I am good at this," Flash whined.
"Hardly," Twilight joked, smirking as well. "Though you do seem to have gotten the clearing your mind part down." She then turned to Springer and whispered. "Probably because there's little in there to clear."
"I heard that Twilight." Flash said as he turned to her, steam coming out of his nostrils. "Wanna say that again to my face?"
"Oops," she said before running off, Flash in hot pursuit. Iron and Springer watched as the pegasus chased the unicorn, who teleported away whenever he got close.
"Ugh...this is why I hate working with this idiot." Iron grumbled, facehoofing. "Just get a room already."
"What does that mean?" Springer asked innocently.
"Umm..." Iron mumbled, only to be saved from the explanation as Twilight let out a loud yelp, returning their attention to the two. They saw Flash had gotten hold of her and was now running his wings over her.
"Stop!" Twilight yelled between giggles, "that tickles!"
"That's why I'm doing it," Flash replied with a smile on his face.
Iron just rolled his eyes, before hearing a new voice catch his attention.
"FLASH!"
Everypony turned to see Spike rushing towards them, scroll in claw, causing Flash to cease his assault on Twilight and help her up.
"What's up Spike?" Flash asked once the little dragon was close enough to them. Spike, panting from the run, held up a scroll with Flash's cutie mark emblazoned on it. Flash took the scroll and unfurled it, before reading what was on it aloud.
Dear Flash,
I'm writing this note to tell you that some old friends of mine will be arriving in Ponyville for a few days. Because of this, I would like you to show them around and help them with whatever they need.
Your mentor, Grand Hoof.
"Old friends?" Springer asked.
"Yeah...but there's no names written here." Flash replied as he looked the scroll over.
"They must be very important if Grand wants you to help them," Twilight added, scratching her chin in thought. "Though it is odd that Grand didn't tell you what they need help on...or who they are."
"Maybe they're just some old retired guards," Iron guessed, shrugging.
"We'll just have to wait until they get here," Twilight ended, getting a nod from the others before they made their way back to town. As they did, Iron took a different path as they got closer to Ponyville.
"Guess I'll see you later," Iron said as he began to walk off.
"Going somewhere?"
"Fluttershy asked me and Applejack to help build a new cave for her bear friend."
"Ah...well, have fun Iron." Twilight said as they watched him walk off. Once he was gone, she chuckled. "Wonder how long it'll be until those two finally figure it out?"
"Figure what out?" Springer asked innocently.
"You'll see," Flash replied, chuckling as well.
At that moment, they entered the town and decided to get a snack at Sugarcube Corner. That is, till a certain orange blur zip past them, conjuring up a dust cloud that gave the four a lung full of dust. Flash then flapped his wings, pushing the dust cloud away before speaking. "Hey!" he yelled before coughing again.
The 'hey' was enough, making the blur came to a stop and revealed itself as the little filly Scootaloo. She looked back over her shoulder and saw them. "Hey," she said as she turned around and zoomed back to them. "What's up Flash?"
"What are you up to?" Flash asked once she was close enough to them.
"I'm going to hang out with Sweetie and Applebloom. We're gonna try and get our cutie marks in snowboarding."
The group all gave each other a questioning look before turning back to the filly. Spike was the first to ask. "Don't you need like...snow, to snowboard?"
Scootaloo shined a big grin. "That's what Sweetie said, but I figure mud can work just as well." The four of them each gave her a frown, making her shrug. "What?"
"I'm not even gonna say it," Flash told her, slightly grumbling.
"Same," Twilight agreed. "I would say don't go, but you probably wouldn't listen."
"True," Scootaloo said, shrugging.
"Just be sure you absolutely want to do it," Flash tapped her chest before beginning to walk away. "And if you do, think of what Rarity might do to you if Sweetie comes home covered in mud." With that, they left the little filly to mull their warning over.
"She's gonna get in trouble, isn't she?" Springer asked when got out of earshot. "Shouldn't we stop her?"
Flash shook his head. "No. Its just like Twilight said, she'll do it anyways." The pegasus then hung his head, "Though I wish I could help her instead of just preventing every disaster her and her friends make."
"I agree." Twilight nodded, crossing her hooves. "And I really wish that I was wrong." She turned to Flash, seeing his expression, making her pat his back. "What's wrong Flash?"
"Oh uh...I don't know." Flash replied, showing a small frown. "It just reminds me of...me."
"You?"
"Yeah. It reminds me of what I used to be..." Flash gave a slight smile to Twilight. "Before I met you."
"Oh...yeah, I can see that." Twilight blinked, rubbing the side of her head. She then saw Flash's expression sour, knowing that he was remembering the days of being an orphan on the streets. Here, she decided to pat his shoulder. "It's okay, you've got us."
Hearing this made Flash smile. "I do, don't I?" He gave Twilight a small hug. "Thanks."
"No problem." Twilight returned the hug back. "Now, let's get some food. Treats on me."
"Don't have to tell me twice."
The Next Morning...
We find Flash, Springer and the rest of the Mane Seven at the train station, waiting for the train carrying Grand Hoof's friends to arrive. Out of all of them, Pinkie was the most excited, bouncing in place. "Oh boy! I can't wait to meet them! I'm gonna throw the biggest welcome to Ponyville party EVER!" She jumped into the air and stayed there.
"Calm down Pinkie," Applejack told her, causing the pink earth pony to freeze before slowly returning to earth. "Old ponies like these probably ain't up to big parties like yours."
"Phooey," Pinkie said, her mane slightly deflating.
"I'm sure they would still like a party," Twilight assured her, patting her head. "They might instead like a...small, quiet one."
"That sounds like fun," Fluttershy said quietly.
"I hope these old guards can tell us some cool war stories," Rainbow added.
"Maybe it'll inspire me to create a new fashion line," Rarity agreed. "I do need some new ideas..."
"I just hope they're not gonna try and judge me," Flash interrupted in a nervous voice.
"Why would they do that?" Twilight asked him, blinking.
"They might have been through some incredible adventures when they were younger," Flash explained as he continued to look down the line. "Compared to them, I'm just some kid."
The girls all rolled their eyes at Flash's modesty. However, before they could say anything, the sound of a train whistle caught their attention. They looked around and saw a train heading towards them, pulling up to a make a cloud of steam in its stop. Everypony looked into the steam as the passengers emptied out onto the platform, until they saw a pair of older stallions walk out.
"Hello," Flash said as he walked over to them, "it's nice to meet you. I'm Grand Hoof's apprentice, Flash Sentry."
The two stallions stared at him weirdly.
"Grandpa!" They all turned to see a unicorn filly rushing over to them, followed by a unicorn mare. "It's great to see you!" the filly said as she hugged one of the stallions.
"Great to see you too pumpkin," the stallion replied as he hugged back. They then all turned to Flash, who chuckled as he slowly stepped away. The stallions, filly and mare quickly left the station, leaving the group to giggle at Flash's embarrassment.
"Flash Sentry?"
They turned around and saw two ponies step out of the now descended steam. The first was a unicorn stallion who looked the same age as Shining Armor, if not slightly older, with gray fur and a black mane. He wore a pair of half moon spectacles and his cutie mark was a red cross with an arrow sticking out of it. The second was an earth pony mare who looked their age, with a light green coat and a mane that had both blue and pink in it. Her cutie mark was a flower with some kind of chain around it.
"I believe you were waiting for us?" the unicorn asked as they stepped towards the group.
"Um...yes?" Flash wasn't sure how to respond.
The mare giggled at his response. "I'm Heather, Heather Bloom. My associate here is First Aid. I believe your mentor sent you a message about us."
Realisation hit them like a bolt of lightning.
"Your Grand Hoof's old friends?" Flash asked in shock and disbelief.
First nodded with a smile. "That is us!" She then turned her head, seeing the confusion on Flash's face. "What? You were expecting somepony else?"
"Well..." Flash chuckled as he scratched the back of his head. "When I thought about meeting Grand Hoof's old friends, I was kinda expecting somepony...well, old."
Once again, they duo chuckled at this. "Sorry to disappoint you." Heather cackled. "Though I do see where you're coming from."
"Oh no," Twilight interrupted as she stepped in front of Flash. "We're not disappointed, we just weren't expecting you. We're pleased to meet you, I'm Twilight-"
"Twilight Sparkle," First Aid interrupted before pointing at the group. "Yes, we know who you are. Along with Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, Spike and Springer."
"You've heard of us?" Rainbow asked suspiciously.
Heather nodded. "Oh course, Grand told us all about you. Besides, you're the heroes that stopped both Nightmare Moon and Discord, why wouldn't we know about you?"
"I like them," Rarity told the group, who all nodded in agreement.
"Well, it's nice to meet you," Flash said as he stepped forward. "Let me be the first to welcome you to Ponyville."
"Happy to be here," First replied as they began to make their way out the station and into town. "You would not happen to know of anyplace we can get a bite to eat? Its been a long trip and the train snacks were not exactly filling." The next thing he knew, Pinkie was in front of his face.
"No problem!" she exclaimed with a giant grin plastered on her face. "Sugarcube Corner is the place to be for all your snacking pleasure!"
"Sound delicious. Please, lead the way."
And Pinkie did, bouncing ahead of the group as they made their way to Pinkie's bakery home.
"So, what brings the two of yah to Ponyville?" Applejack asked as they made their way through town.
Heather turned to her, a calm smile on her face. "We're travelling scholars. First is working to become a doctor and I'm a botanist. We travel all over Equestria and its outskirts to learn about different medical and floral sciences." Heather then patted First's side. "We've even managed to combine several of our discoveries to help cure many serious diseases."
"I see...so, why are you here?" Twilight asked, scratching her chin in curiosity.
"We've learned that there's a zebra living around Ponyville in the Everfree Forest that is known for her medicine." Heather replied. "We haven't met one in a long time, so we're here to see her."
"You mean Zecora?" Rarity asked.
"You know her?"
"We're close friends." Twilight nodded as they arrived at Sugarcube Corner. "We could probably introduce you to her if you like."
"That would be great," Heather said as they stepped into the bakery and gathered around one of the larger tables. "You think she can teach me about the flora of the forest?"
"I'm sure she could," Twilight said before turning to Pinkie. "We'll just have a snack first and then head over to Zecora."
"Excellent idea," First Aid replied before he turned to Pinkie. "What would you suggest?"
Pinkie's usually large grin grew even wider, before she rushed over to the kitchen and returned with a platter of cup cakes for them to try. First and Heather both slicked their lips at this.
Meanwhile...
At the school house, recess had just begun. A white unicorn filly was trotting away from the school, followed by an orange pegasi filly and yellow earth pony filly. The unicorn didn't look happy, her eye twitching as she glared at the pegasi.
"Sweetie Belle..." Scootaloo muttered, twiddling her hooves. "How long are you gonna give me the silent treatment? I said I was sorry." Sweetie remained quiet as she got closer to the edge of the playground, where a wooden fence kept them from going into the forest. "How was I supposed to know Rarity was gonna go nuts?"
Sweetie gave her the most deadpan stare ever. "It's Rarity. How else was she gonna react?!"
Scootaloo just rolled her eyes. "So you go a little dirty. That doesn't make it my fault that Rarity wouldn't let you back in the house and levitated you into the bathroom through the window."
"It was your stupid idea to go 'mud-boarding' in the first place!" Sweetie yelled. "And she made me take three baths!"
At this point, Applebloom decided to interject. "Alright Crusaders, that's enough. Scootaloo said she's sorry, so there's nothing else to say. Agreed?"
The two other fillies sighed before nodding. "Agreed," they both said.
"Great." Applebloom nodded as well. "Then lets get to thinking up our next cutie mark trial. Sweetie Belle, its your turn."
"Okay...um..." Sweetie Belle mumbled, trying to think. As this was happening, the three of them were unaware that a pair of eyes was watching them from within the safety of the trees.
Back to the Mane Seven...
On the edge of town, the Mane Seven and their new friends were heading towards Zecora's hut in the forest.
"This is quite exciting," First Aid said as they walked. "I have always wanted to learn about zebra potion making, but never had the chance to study their techniques."
"I guess going all the way to the zebra lands would be quite the trip?" Rarity asked.
"Indeed." First replied, nodding. "But now I can learn everything right here...hopefully."
"Yeah..." Rainbow added in, twiddling her hooves as she did. "Though uh...just a heads up. Zecora...talks funny."
"Rainbow!" Fluttershy barked, giving her a disapproving glare.
"What?! Its true!"
"Even so, that's just plain mean!"
Heather just gave them a confused look. "In what way does she...talk funny?"
"She talks in rhyme," Flash explained, rubbing the side of his head. "And uh...we don't know if its a zebra thing, or a Zecora thing. Just uh...go with it. Trust me."
"Interesting," First said, tapping his chin.
"By the way," Flash interjected, raising an eyebrow. "You never said how the two of you and Grand met."
"Oh, we met him several years ago." Heather replied, waving a hoof. "We had learned that a small settlement had come down with an unusual virus and we decided to check it out."
"Grand had also been sent to investigate," First continued. "He was there to see if the virus was going to spread and to see if he needed to incur a quarantine. He uh...was not too happy that we were there, but we refused to leave and told him that we wanted to help."
"He finally agreed and we got to work, eventually discovering that it wasn't a virus causing the town's sickness. Somepony had poisoned their water supply." Heather added, her eyebrows raising up and down. "We eventually managed to find a cure and help Grand bring the ones responsible to justice. Ever since then, Grand's kept in contact with us whenever he can."
The group were impressed with the story. Especially Twilight, who spoke up,"That's an amazing story. Maybe you can teach me a thing or two about different medicines and flowers."
"We would be happy to share our research with you," First said as they got closer to the edge of the forest. "You are Princess Celestia's student, correct?"
"Yes. I am-"
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"
They all froze and turned towards the sound of the sudden scream. Twilight's eyes shrunk as she said, "That sounded like it came from the school." As soon as her words left her mouth, two other ponies screamed at the noise.
"Applebloom!" Applejack yelled.
"Sweetie Belle!" Rarity cried.
Suddenly, they were all almost blown off their hooves as Flash shot into the air at it top speed, zipping off towards the school.
Rainbow hopped in place before flaring her wings. "Hey! Don't leave me behind!" With that, she also shot into the sky and flew after him.
Seeing this, Twilight motioned to the group. "Come on!" Twilight yelled as they rushed towards the school. Flash, with Springer hanging on for dear life, was flying through the air at his top speed. They got closer and closer to the school, hoping beyond hope that whoever had made the scream was okay.
That is, till they arrived at the school.
As Flash reached the building, he could feel a rush of fear overtake him as his eyes now saw school yard outside of the building. There, he saw Cheerilee and the school foals all rushing away from the schoolyard. As for why they were running, he saw the culprit and Flash almost started to backpedal.
It was some kind of red snake like monster, though it was only ten meters in length and had a large thin spike like instrument on the end of its tail. The strangest thing about it though, was that it had a pair of pincer arms half way down its serpentine body that looked similar to a scorpion's.
"What is that thing?" Springer asked as they got close to it.
Flash did a slight gulp. "I don't know, but we need to get it away from everypony." As he picked up his speed, he saw the creature look down at something in front of it. It was two fillies that Flash knew all too well, and they were cowering around something that was laying on the ground. "Oh no..." he gasped when he realized what they were holding. "SCOOTALOO!" His top speed seemed to double, causing him to skyrocket towards the creature and slam into it. The force of the tackle caused it to be thrown clear of the fillies, who Flash turned to. "Get out of here! NOW!"
"We can't!" a teary eyed Sweetie replied, "That creature stung Scootaloo! She's unconscious!"
"She's too heavy to lift!" Applebloom finished.
Flash growled at hearing this, quickly turning back to the creature. He was about to yell at the fillies again, only to tap the side of his body. "Oh great," he said as he reached for Lightbringer, only to remember that he had left it at home when he and the others went to meet First and Heather. He looked back at the creature, only to see an aura blast fly through the air, striking the monster in the side of the head and sending it flying backwards. Flash looked back and saw Springer, who had leapt off him when he had gone to tackle the creature. Looking behind his jakhowl partner, Flash also saw Rainbow flying towards them.
"What the heck is that thing?" She asked as she got closer.
"It doesn't matter," Flash told her as she pointed to the fillies. "Scootaloo's hurt. You need to get her to the hospital."
Looking down and seeing her unconscious fan, Rainbow nodded before flying down and picking up all three of the Crusaders. She flew off with them in hoof, leaving Flash and Springer to deal with the creature.
"I'll keep it distracted and you hit it when you see an opening. Got it buddy?" Flash told Springer, receiving a nod from the jakhowl. Flash shot at the creature, quickly starting to circle around it at top speed. This caused it to become agitated, snapping it's claws at the pegasi. As it did this, Springer summoned another aura sphere, which smashed into its lower jaw. The creature let out a horrid hissing as it slivered back, quickly taking a fighting stance after the blow.
"Alright buddy, I think we just made it mad. Get ready, I'll get another opening and-"
Before Flash could say another word, a series of metal poles shot out of the ground between it and its opponents. Flash and Springer turned to see Iron, Piecemaker stuck into the ground only a few feet away.
"Need a hoof?" He asked.
"Not needed," Flash replied with a smirk, "but appreciated."
Seeing it was now outnumbered beyond what it could handle, the creature turned back to the forest and slivered back inside. With it gone, the three defenders turned back towards each other.
"What the heck was that?" Iron asked, a slight growl in his voice.
"Not sure," Flash said before flexing his wings, "but that doesn't matter right now. Whatever it was, it stung Scootaloo. We have to go make sure she's alright."
"Flash!" They turned to see Twilight and the others rushing towards them. "Is everything alright? We saw Rainbow flying away so fast that we couldn't even call out to her!"
"No time Twilight." Flash turned to his partner. "Fill them in, I'm going to the hospital."
Springer gave a small salute before Flash shot into the sky, his wings soaring in the air as he headed towards the injured filly.
As soon as Flash arrived outside the hospital, he headed inside so fast that the automatic doors barely had time to open. He rushed over to the desk, where Nurse Redheart was sitting. "Scootaloo, where is she?" As soon as she gave him the directions, he was off again, down several corridors and up a series of staircases. Finally, he arrived in the corridor he was told to find, seeing Rainbow, Applebloom and Sweetie Belle outside a room.
"Flash!" Rainbow cried out seeing him.
"Rainbow, how's Scootaloo?"
"We don't know," the pegasi mare replied. "The doctors took her in and we haven't heard anything else."
Flash sighed, turning to the fillies standing next to them. "Alright you two, I need you to tell me exactly what happened."
The two nodded before beginning their story. They had been on the edge of the playground planning their next Crusader outing, when the creature had shot out of the forest and attacked them. Scootaloo had been the first to react, pushing the two of them out of the way before being stabbed by its tail.
"Then she just collapsed," Applebloom finished.
"You know the rest," Sweetie muttered, tears dropping down her face.
Flash sat back and mulled over the information, trying to think of some way to use it to help Scootaloo. However, nothing he thought of felt like it could help. "I see...That creature, I've never seen anything like it."
"Yeah...what was that thing?" Rainbow asked.
"It was a Scorpentine!"
The all turned towards the voice, seeing First Aid and the rest of their friends arriving in the corridor.
"You know what that thing was?" Flash asked as he got up and walked towards them.
"I have studied them before and recognised it from your partner's description. Scorpentines are hybrid monsters similar to Manticores. Their venom is a well known ingredient in many different cures."
"So why was that one here?"
"I don't know," First replied, scratching his chin in worry. "But I am more concerned about its size. Even at full size, a Scorpentine should not be more than fifteen inches long."
In that moment, the doors to Scootaloo's room opened and the doctor came out.
"Please tell us you know how to save her." Twilight asked as they gathered around him.
The doctor let out a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry, but whatever venom was injected into her, it's causing her blood to become infected. If we can't find a way to purify it...well...." They all looked through the door, seeing Scootaloo in bed and still unconscious. The look of pain on her face made them all feel a sense of dread.
"There has to be something we can do!" Rainbow asked in a panicked voice.
"Maybe a blood transfusion?" Twilight asked, "Let's drain the infected blood and give her some new blood to cure it."
"Usually that's what we would try," the doctor replied, "but unfortunately, Scootaloo has a very rare blood type. We don't have a donor for it."
"There's gotta be something ya'll can do," Applejack said. "She's just a filly."
"There is," First interrupted, getting everypony's attention. "Like I said, Scorpentine venom is used to help cure many illnesses. One of those illnesses, is Scorpentine stings. If we mix it into a potion that will neutralise the venomous toxins, the venom will become an antivenom that we can inject into her blood to cure it."
"So we need to get some of its venom?" Springer asked.
"Yes," First nodded. "Without it, the cure will not work."
"Well then," Flash said with a stern expression on his face, "looks like we're going on a Scorpentine hunt."
An hour later, we find Flash stepping out of the library with a saddlebag and Lightbringer strapped to his side. Twilight, Springer and Spike followed him out, Twilight speaking up to the pegasi. "Are you sure about this?"
"Its the only way," Flash told her. "I'm gonna find that monster and get a cure for Scootaloo."
"Flash!" They turned to see Applejack rushing towards them with Zecora in toe.
"Zecora! Do you know what's happening?" Twilight quickly asked.
Zecora nodded. "Indeed I do young Twilight, to hear what happened is a horrid sight."
"Please tell me you have a way to cure her," Springer asked her.
However, Zecora simply sighed before shaking her head. "Though it saddens me to say so, my answer to your question is no."
They all frowned at hearing this. As they did, Flash let out a long sigh before saying. "Well, if that's the case, I've got no choice but to hunt that thing myself." He turned towards the Everfree Forest.
"Flash..." Twilight added, tapping his shoulder. "That's reckless and you-"
"I have to Twilight," the apprentice knight interrupted. "Its our only way to save her."
"I...I know." Twilight replied, her ears drooping down. She knew the look he had on his face all too well. "But be careful." Flash nodded before they all headed over to the edge of the forest. There, they saw the rest of their friends waiting for them while First, Heather and Rainbow were all wearing saddlebags.
"You all ready?" He asked as they arrived.
"I still think I should go with you," Iron grumbled, nudging Flash. "You'll need extra muscle against this thing."
Flash turned to him and shook his head. "Sorry Iron, but no. I need you and Springer here as a safety net in case it comes back. I don't want anypony else getting stung."
"So then why are they coming with us?" Rainbow asked as she pointed at First and Heather.
First slightly chuckled before explaining in a deadpan tone. "You will need somepony to mix the potion once we get the venom. The particular strain of venom loses its potency very quickly, so we will need to mix it as soon as possible."
Heather nodded. "And my expertise in magical plants will come in handy. The Everfree Forest isn't the most documented place in Equestria, so we'll likely be flying blind."
"Maybe it'll be best if we all go after this thing?" Applejack suggested, showing a face of obvious concern. "Safety in numbers ya know."
Flash shook his head again. "No. We're on a time restraint, so a larger group will just slow us down. Me, First, Heather and Rainbow will be the only ones going after this thing. The rest of you do what you can to help Scootaloo." He then turned to Zecora and Twilight. "If we don't make it back in time, it'll be up to the two of you to find an antidote." He received two nods before turning around, glaring at the forest in front of him. "Alright, let's get this party started!"
Meanwhile...
Back at the hospital, Sweetie Belle and Applebloom were watching over Scootaloo. The filly was beginning to thrash in her sleep, causing her friends to grow concerned.
"Hold on Scootaloo," Sweetie told the weakening filly, "Flash and the others will be back with the antidote soon."
"She's right, just keep fighting." Applebloom assured her, tears flowing down her face.
Despite their words of encouragement, Scootaloo continued to thrash. Seeing this, the two shared a troubled look before looking out the window. They both prayed that Flash and his team would be successful.
Back at the forest...
Flash, Rainbow, First and Heather were making their way through the forest. They had now gone further then anypony had gone before, having passed the castle of the two sisters and were now in the thickest part of the woods.
"Stay close everypony," Flash told them as he used Lightbringer to carve them a path through the thicket. "It's easy to get lost in here."
As Flash was busy hacking away at a large barrage of thorns in front of them, he felt a certain tinge in the back of his spine. With this, he stopped his slashing, making the trio behind him come to a stop as well. "What's up?" Rainbow asked when he stopped cutting.
Before Flash could reply, whatever it was he had felt, sprung into action. It shot out a nearby bush and wrapped itself around Rainbow and Heather's legs.
"What the?!" They both yelled before being pulled into the air. Flash and First watched as they were lifted into the air and saw that it was a mass of living vines, squeezing the two like sponges.
"Living vines?" Flash asked in amazement, his blade slightly twitching.
"Fascinating," First commented, his eyes shining at the sight. "I have never seen such a thing."
"Oh yeah?!" Heather barked sarcastically, "You think this is interesting?! Wanna swap places and get an in depth look?!"
"Hold on!" Flash cried out as he flexed his wings and took to the sky. He then rushed towards the two and brandished his Celestic Gear, slicing the vines and freeing the two mares. First's horn turned on, instantly grabbing both with his magic and slowly let them down. As they reached the ground, Flash landed right by then. "You okay?"
"I'm fine," Rainbow replied, brushing her body with her wings. "Let's just get going already."
"We'll need to watch out for more of those vines," First commented, brushing off Heather. "This forest has just shown us that it doesn't exactly like us."
"Right...let's get going," Flash grumbled, sheathing his blade. "Keep an eye on your surroundings. Who knows what else is out here."
"And you two better stick close," Rainbow told Heather and First. "No offence, but a pair of eggheads like you won't stand a chance against the stuff in here."
The duo nodded, making Rainbow and Flash turn around and continue on. As they did, Heather and First however remained behind for a moment and shared a smirk. Behind them was another living vine tried to sneak up on them, only for an an arrow to suddenly fly out of First's bag, cutting the vine in an instant.
"Hey!" They heard Rainbow call out, though she didn't look back at them. "you coming or what?"
"We are on our way," First replied as he and his earth pony partner followed after them.
Back at the hospital, everypony was watching as Twilight and Zecora worked to help the doctors treat Scootaloo. Zecora had just returned from her hut, carrying bags filled with different potions.
"This potion will not cure the affliction," she said as she handed Twilight a bottle of green liquid. "But it should help lessen the pain's infliction."
Twilight nodded as she took the bottle in her magic, pouring it down the filly's throat. As soon as she swallowed, her pained look seemed to weaken, though the pain was still obvious as she shivered under the hospital bed sheets. The sight made the onlookers all wince, scared that she wasn't going to make it.
Among them was Mrs. Cheerilee, who was watching with tears in her eyes. "This is all my fault. I can't believe I let a foal in my care be hurt like this."
"Nonsense darling," Rarity assured her with a hoof around her neck. "Nopony was expecting that creature to appear."
Applejack nodded in agreement. "She's right. And don't worry, Scootaloo will be fine. Flash and the others will get that cure, no problem."
"Yeah!" Pinkie added with a repeating nod. "Flash can do it! He's a royal knight after all."
"I hope you're right," Cheerilee mumbled, still shivering at the sight. "Oh Scootaloo...."
"Don't worry," Twilight told her, tapping her shoulder with a small smile. "If I know Flash, he's already on his way back with the antidote."
"We're never gonna find that antidote," Flash said after his team had squeezed their way through several large trees branches that had grown over the floor. They were now in a circular clearing, roughly thirty meters in diameter.
"We're getting close," Heather assured him as they dusted themselves off.
"What makes you think that?" Rainbow asked, only to see her move over to a patch of bright red flowers.
"Because we have just found a bunch of Red Oleanders. They are the go-to food for Scorpentines," First explained, leaning down to pull one out of the ground. "Not much for ponies though."
"Are you saying that they'll come by to eat those?" Flash asked, only to get a nod in return.
"Great!" Rainbow said as she flew over to the patch. "So all we gotta do is wait for one to show up, then we snag it and get its venom!"
"Except we will need more than one," First told her as he and Flash moved over to them.
"Scorpentine venom is stronger the bigger the Scorpentine," Heather explained, grabbing the flower from First and put it in her saddlebag. "Considering the size of the one that attacked Scootaloo, we'll need at least five normal sized Scorpentines to equal its poison dosage."
Rainbow didn't like the idea of waiting for five of those things and trying to catch them all sounded even more annoying. However, her thoughts soon erased that idea as she froze in mid-air. "What if we got the poison from the one that stung her?"
"Well, that would be preferable," First replied. "But that thing could be miles away."
"Or maybe...its right behind you!"
Flash, Heather and Rainbow quickly spun around, only to come face to face with the ten meter long snake scorpion hybrid. The Scorpentine slivered out of the trees into the clearing, its pincers preparing to attack.
"The Scorpentine," Flash whispered.
"It really is that big," First said as he used his magic to correct his glasses. "Incredible. This might be a new record for Scorpentine length."
"First!" Heather scolded him, smacking him with her tail. "Let's catch it first, then admire it!"
"She's right," Rainbow said as she landed in front of the two. "This thing's going down."
"Rainbow and I will keep it distracted," Flash told them as he raised Lightbringer. "You guys stay back and look for a chance to get the venom."
"Err...right." First complied after Heather nudged him again.
"We'll follow your lead," Heather said with a nod.
Flash and Rainbow both gave either a nod, their wings flaring. "Then let's do this. Rainbow, you go first, and watch that tail."
"Right!" Rainbow replied before she began flying in circles around its head. Seeing this, Scorpentine extended his claw to grab her, "Too slow!" She barked as she dodged a swipe of the claw. "Missed again!"
While this was happening, Flash was flying low, getting close to the creature with Lightbringer primed. Once close enough, he did a ninety degree turn and used his back legs to kick it off the ground. "FLASH CUTTER!" He yelled as he shot up the monsters body, slicing Lightbringer into it as he did.
The Scorpentine let out a high pitched hiss of pain, causing it to thrash wildly around the clearing. As it did, Flash and Rainbow retreated to a safe distance, watching the monster thrash.
"Great...we made it mad!" Rainbow grumbled. "Was there a reason for that?"
"The only way to get the venom is to make it try and sting us." Flash replied, rolling his eyes. "Then we use that opening to fill a container."
"I have the container ready," First said, showing a jar with his magic. "Now just get it to sting you."
"Okay." Rainbow said, pointing at the Scorpentine. It had finally stopped thrashing and was now staring them down, clicking its claws as it did so. It then started swiping at the pegasi, who managed to dodge the attacks.
"Missed me," Rainbow mocked it as she flew backwards. As she continued to dodge the claws, the monster primed it's tail. The monster swiped at Rainbow again, causing her spin in mid-air, dodging another blow. "Missed me again!" That is, till the stinger flew out to the side, striking her side and barely grazing her. The blow sent her flying, making her scream as she was sent flying into a large tree and falling to the ground with a thud.
"RAINBOW!" Flash yelled, his distraction allowing the Scorpentine to use it pincers to grab him. Before he could react, the monster thrust him into a tree, making him drop Lightbringer.
"FLASH!" Heather yelled, panic covering her face.
"Stay back!" Flash told them as he struggled to pull himself free from the pincer. However, he soon wished one of them could help when he saw the Scorpentine raise its stinger-ended tail. "Oh no."
As the stinger shot towards him, Flash flinched at the oncoming pain, closing his eyes. He was ready for the blow...only to feel nothing. Flash cracked an eye open and what he saw made them go wide.
The Scorpentine's tail was being pulled back by a long green chain with a metal flower head shaped instrument on the end. Flash followed the chain to its source and saw it was Heather, who was holding the chains handle in her mouth, pulling the tail away.
"What?!" Flash asked in amazement.
Suddenly, a hail storm of arrows appeared out of nowhere and struck the Scorpentine in the back, causing it to cry out and release Flash. The pegasus dropped down, grabbing Lightbringer and took the sky, his wings twitching in pain as his flight reaction started. Once in the air, he looked at where the arrows had come from and saw First Aid. He was carrying a silver crossbow like weapon in his magic. At the same time, Heather's chain unwrapped itself from the Scorpentine's tail and retracted until only the flower was visible. Flash soon landed behind them, amazed at what he was seeing. Heather and First stood side by side, looking up at the monster before looking back over their shoulders.
"Still think we don't stand a chance against stuff like this?" Heather asked.
Flash was just dumbstruck. "Who the heck are you guys?"
The two of them just smiled.
"I am First Aid, the Healing Knight!"
"And I'm Heather Bloom, the Floral Knight!"
Flash's eyes went even wider as he realised who they were. "You...you're Royal Knights?!"
They both nodded before the Scorpentine's cry caused their attention to change. The creature raised one of its pincers and brought it down to flatten them, but the three quickly dodged the attack. Heather was the first to leap into action, pointing the end of her weapon at it.
"BLOOM FORCE!" A tornado of leaves shot out of the weapon, striking the creature all over it's body.
As this happened, First turned to Flash. "You need to get back in, I will cover you." He pointed his crossbow at Flash. "AID FORCE!" A beam of light shot out of the weapon and struck Flash, causing him to be enveloped in a bright aura.
"Whoa!" Flash said as he felt the pain he had sustained in the fight begin to dull while his body also felt like he had just taken a six hour nap. "I feel...good."
First chuckled, nodding. "Indeed. My magic is not very effective in one on one combat, but in a group? It is the best of the best."
Flash flexed his wings. "I'll say. I've never felt so powerful!" He turned to the Scorpentine and shot into the sky, raising his weapon and spinning. "FLASH DRIVER!" He created a giant tornado, bigger then he had ever made before, which struck the monster in an instant.
Meanwhile, Rainbow managed to regain consciousness and pull herself out of the wreckage of the tree. There, she saw her three teammates fighting off the monster, making her blink at the amazing sight. Seeing Heather and First with weapons was confusing, but seeing how well they were doing, she decided to take to the sky.
"Flash Cutter!" Flash yelled as he unleashed the energy blade.
"Bloom Lash!" Heather cried as her chain extended and the end flew at the monster.
"Aid Bolts!" First exclaimed as he fired off several streams of light, which faded to reveal arrows, all of them striking Scorpentine.
The three attacks struck the monster, causing it to fall backwards and land into a bunch of trees.
"Awesome," Rainbow said as she landed.
"We can keep this thing at bay," First commented as he re-aimed his weapon, "but we will never get its venom like this. We need to detain it somehow."
"I can try and wrap it up." Heather suggested, tugging her weapon.
"We need more than one rope," First told her as readjusted his crossbow. "That is not going to be enough Heather."
"Or maybe...we need more vines." Flash said with a smile on his face. With that, he took back to the sky and flew at the monster's face. He gave the monster a taunt with his hooves. "Come get me!" With that, he shot into the trees, the enraged Scorpentine following after him.
"What's he doing?!" Rainbow asked, pointing at the fleeing pegasus.
"I think I know," Heather said with a smirk, motioning them to follow Flash.
Flash was flying as fast as he could, trying to keep ahead while not losing the trail he had previously forged. The Scorpentine was close behind, using its pincers to rip through the trees so it could follow.
That is, till Flash came to stop. He had reached his destination.
Flash turned back to the monster, smirking as he did another taunt with his hoof. The Scorpentine let out a roar, swinging both pincers. Flash quickly flapped upwards, dodging the strike. As he did, Flash landed on the monster's back, quickly pressing up to the monster's body as it started to try striking it's back. Flash kept still, dodging each claw.
"Come on...come on!" he muttered after dodging another swipe from the pincers. "Where are-ah!" He looked at the ground and saw the vines moving closer to it, meaning he needed to take it down now. Quickly shooting upwards into the sky, Flash raised his sword over his head, spinning as he did. Lightbringer began to shine, causing him to turn into a shining wheel of light that shot towards the Scorpentine. "FLASH...GRINDER!" The wheel struck the monster in the head, acting like a buzz saw on the beast. Flash then stopped spinning and kicked the creature, causing it to fall backwards and crash into the ground.
This was all the vines were waiting for, as they shot at the Scorpentine and began to wrap around it. Its mouth, pincers and tail were soon completely locked into place. Seeing this, Flash landed a few feet away, only to hear the hoofsteps of First, Heather and Rainbow rushing toward him. When they arrived, the Scorpentine saw them and began to thrash, but doing so just made the vines hold on tighter.
"Great work Flash," First said as he pulled out the jar and moved over to the creature's tail. The Scorpentine saw him getting closer and tried to stab him with its tail, but First was faster and managed to block it with the jar. The venom quickly filled the jar, making First step back in surprise. A second later, it was full and First pulled the jar away, showing the purple liquid inside. "Alright! We have it."
They all smiled seeing it. "Great! Now, let's make the potion."
Heather and First quickly got to work, mixing the venom with several other ingredients. Flash and Rainbow kept an eye on the Scorpentine, ready to act should it manage to break free. However, that was unnecessary, as the vines continued to pull at the creature.
A few minutes later, First held up the jar, which now had a bright blue liquid in it. "Done!"
"Great!" Rainbow exclaimed, grabbing the potion. "I'll get it to the hospital." She didn't even wait for an answer, as she was already in the sky, breaking every speed law possible as she shot to the hospital.
Seeing this, Flash turned to the duo. "Let's get going. I have a feeling this is far from over."
The journey back to town was a blur, with the only thing on Flash mind during being Scootaloo's recovery. As they arrived back in town and rushed to the hospital, Flash found that a large crowd had now gathered there. Pushing past them, they got inside and rushed to Scootaloo's room.
"Girls?" Flash asked as he moved over to them and saw the sombre look on their faces. "What's wrong?"
Twilight turned to Flash, tears in her eyes before rushing over to him and throwing her hoofs around him. "I'm so sorry! Its...its too late."
Flash's heart almost stopped hearing that. "She's..."
"She's still alive," Rarity told him, her own eyes brimming with tears. "But the venom had infected so much of her blood that the cure won't work."
"We weren't fast enough," Rainbow said, her wings clinging to the floor as tears began to appear under her eyes. "I...wasn't..." She couldn't say another word, causing Fluttershy to go up and hug her, tears already falling down her eyes. At the same, the others all began to cry as well.
All of them, except Flash.
"NO!" He almost screamed as he pushed Twilight off and moved over to Scootaloo's door. "We didn't go through all this just to fail! There has to be something we can do!"
Everypony gave him a sympathetic look before First stepped forward. "Flash, her blood is too infected. The only way to save her now would be to replace her blood with new uninfected blood."
"Then that's what we'll do," Flash replied, snorting.
"Were you not listening earlier?" Heather asked him, glaring at the defender. "Her blood type is rare. We have no donors."
"Indeed." They all turned to see the doctor enter the room. "Her blood is so rare that only three percent of ponies in Equestria has it. Triple Z!"
"Yes...it is the worse possible scenario with that blood." First added, sighing. "It is the one blood type that appears in the worst of times when trying to save a patient."
"I agree...and I don't remember helping anypony with that blood type First. I think this is the first for us..." Heather continued, her ears flopping down.
However, Flash ignored their ramblings. Instead, his mind began to process something different. "Triple Z....triple....z." he muttered, blinking. "Why does that sound familiar?"
Twilight tapped Flash shoulder, worry on her face. "Flash? You okay?"
"No...I..." Flash put his hoof over his head, memories flowing through his head. "Discord..."
"WHERE?" Pinkie asked as she looked around wildly.
"Discord?" Twilight replied, leaning slightly back. "What about him?!"
Flash shook his head at her. "Triple Z....I remember..."
At that moment, a certain memory played in his head.
Hearing this, Discord simply laughed. "You?! What can you do? You're nothing!"
Flash's glared hardened. "You don't know anything about me."
Discord just raised his eyebrow at this. "Don't I?"
...
"Oh! Might I suggest a change in careers? Its about how rare your triple Z blood type is. With Royal Knight mortality statistics, you'll likely end up bleeding out without anypony to blood transfuse you some."
The memory stopped, causing Flash to rub his forehead in surprise. "Discord...yeah, he said that, didn't he?"
"What are you talking about Flash? What do you-"
Flash quickly interrupted her, waving his hoof in front of her. "My blood...its Triple Z!"
"It is?!" Twilight gasped, slightly backpedaling. The rest of the room did the same before smiling at one another. There was still a chance. That is, till Twilight walked back up to him. "And Discord made you remember this?"
"Yeah..." Flash gave a reluctant nod. "He said that when I...fought him with Springer." Flash then saw Twilight's sceptical face, making him speak up to stop her next comment. "I know what you're thinking, but we're out of options Twi. We have to try." Flash turned and walked up to the doc, flexing his hoof. "Take my blood. Let me try and save her."
First walked up to the doctor and adjusted his glasses with a wink. "Very well. Let us begin."
And so, they took some of Flash's blood and mixed the antidote before placing it in an IV. As they hooked it up to Scootaloo, First had the rest wait out of the room, including Flash. The next few hours would be the longest anypony had ever experienced, as they waited to hear whether the blood and antidote had worked.
"Come on," Rainbow said as she and Flash paced outside her room. "How long's it gonna take?"
"We have to be patient," Fluttershy told her.
"You be patient, I want some answers!"
Twilight on the other hoof, was glaring at Flash. "You need to calm down Flash. You just donated blood."
Flash gave her an almost death glare, "I'm fine Twilight. I'll rest when I know Scoots is safe."
In that moment, the door opened and First stepped out.
"How's Scootaloo?" Flash asked, appearing right in front of him with fear in his eyes.
First's sombre expression made them all fear the worst, only for him to change it into a bright smile. "The blood and cure are working, she will be absolutely fine."
The whole hospital was awakened by the uproar that rang through the hall, as the group all cheered hearing their friend was safe.
"She will need to rest and recover for a few day, but she is out of the woods." First then turned to Flash. "Can I talk to you for a moment? I uh...need a second opinion over something else."
Flash gave him a confused look, but nodded and quickly followed First into an empty room.
"What do you think that's about?" Applejack asked the others.
"I don't know," Twilight replied as she stared at the door.
Meanwhile, back in the forest, we find the Scorpentine is still wrapped up.
The creature was now asleep, small snores escaping its mouth. That is, till it heard the sound of a stick breaking. Quickly waking up, the creature saw a green aura radiated around it's body. The monster's eyes shrunk as it saw what the aura was doing to it.
The creature began to shrink!
It kept shrinking until it was about fifteen inches long. And as it hit this height, it was then levitated away from the vines and moved towards the source of the broken stick.
"Oh, poor thing," a dark female voice said. "What did they do to you? Oh well. Despite the hiccups, I would say that this little experiment was a success." A large jar appeared from the darkness, which the Scorpentine was dropped inside before a lid sealed it. "Don't worry, I have plans for you little one."
With that, the jar was levitated back into the dark of the night.
The Next Morning...
As Celestia raised the sun over the horizon, its rays streamed in through the window and hit Scootaloo's face. The filly flinched away from the light, her eyes slowly opening at the heat of the rays began to warm her body. She let out a long groan as she sat up, quickly noticing she was in a hospital bed.
"Hey! You're awake."
She looked around and saw Flash sitting in a chair next to her bed.
"Hey..." she said in a small moan as she laid back. "What happened?"
"You don't remember?"
"I remember...something...coming out of the forest and then...nothing. Just pain."
Flash sat up and placed his hooves on her bed. "Let me catch you up." He told her about the giant Scorpentine, how it stung her and how he, Rainbow, First and Heather ventured into the forest to get the cure. "But when we got back, it turns out we were too late and the venom had infected too much of your blood. Turns out, we needed to deliver the antidote and replace some of your blood to save you."
"Really?" Scootaloo asked, blinking at the defender. "Who's blood did I get?"
Flash let out a small chuckle, tapping his chest. "Mine. Turns out, we share the same very rare blood type."
"Triple Z..." Scootaloo replied, looking back at the ceiling. "I remember being told about my rare blood when I was younger..."
"Well, it turns out that I have it too."
"Heh...what are the odds?" Scootaloo said with a smile.
Flash's smile wavered. "Yeah, about that..." Flash sat back down, causing Scootaloo to almost flinch at the sight. But before she could say anything, Flash continued. "First did some tests on our blood to make sure we were compatible. Turns out, our blood is incredibly similar..." Flash let out a small sigh, slightly looking away from the filly. "That kind of similarity, it uh....it only exists between members of the same family."
This got Scootaloo's attention. "What are you saying?"
Flash let out another sigh, looking back at the filly. "I...don't know how to say this, but...the doctors found out something more when they compared our blood." The pegasi began to twiddle his hooves, making Scootaloo slightly shiver in fear. She had never seen him be so...nervous. To her, he was always confidant and daring, things she always looked up to. That is, till Flash got up and walked over to her.
Then, his mouth began to move again. As it did, three words came out that would change both of their lives forever.
"You're my sister."
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And I am Rockhoof, The Shovel Knight.
And the Jedi has returned. Now all we need Sombra to say, 'No, I am your father.' and Flash will have to search his feelings because he knows it to be true. And maybe add some Grand Hoof saying 'If you strike me down, I will only become more powerful than you can possibly imagine' Because the Force is strong with this one and Flash only knows the truth from a certain point of view
Great chapter. When the blood was mentioned, I thought that Flash and Scoots might be siblings. Great chapter. It was good to meet new Knights and a new villain here.
Great chapter, not only for the new knights but for that bomb at the end. How will this change the story from this point onward? Now I'm wondering if you are going to give Flash and Scootaloo the same relationship in your Power Ranger series.
Wait, that figure towards the end...the one that kept the Scorpentine and has a green aura. Is that Chrysalis?
I actually was expecting this.
8644519
Hi Rockhoof, the Shovel Knight. I'm Darth Redbeard.
Give the writer a break. It's hard to come up with names and titles.
Awesome chapter.
Nice to see more of the Royal Knights.
So, Flash isn't going to get a new haircut in this series?
Okay, now that that's out of the way, what kind of superhero origin story are you building up for Flash? It's getting good.
8644817
8644836
Lame, huh? I'm sorry. I'm having a hard time getting over the fact that Hasbro changed his hair. It's not bad, but I honestly don't know which style I like better.
I know. You drop a bomb on us, and the first thing I ask about is his hair.
8644854 I wasn't laughing at that. I was laughing at the fact that at this very moment, I'm writing a chapter where that happens.
8644817
Surprised am I, that comment on my Star Wars theme comment you made not.
Nothing regret I
8644886
Umm, there wasn't much to say about it. It was just a long yet admittedly entertaining string of references.
8644905
Not gonna lie, did not see that red herring
Okay my mind is blown.
I really think the author doesn't know how long a meter is especially since he claims that the normal size is 45 centimeter and this creature is over 22 times the length of a normal one sometthing that the story does not make clear in the character reactions.
The Scrorpain one of the most deadly creaturesin the everfree frost.
I saw it coming the moment we got to the two ponies hiding in the cave.