Appointment with Evil

by Bronyxy

2 Way Through the Woods

Luna tested a foreleg around the corner of the stone walled building that was giving her cover, to feel the extent of the wind against which she would have to fight if she ever wanted to leave this temporary sanctuary. To her surprise, it wasn’t too bad, so she ventured peering her head round and again it felt nowhere near as dangerous as she had initially feared, based on her experience of getting there in the first place.

Concluding that the strength of the wind was being dissipated by proximity to the ground, she emerged cautiously to try and make sense of the storm, ensuring that her hooves were securely braced just in case a gust caught her unprepared.

Looking around for landmarks that would show her where she was, she noted nothing that could be identified as a town or village, so she wasn’t near Ponyville. However, when turning her attention to the centre of the storm, she realised with a horrifying jolt that it appeared to be directly above the Castle of the Two Sisters. This could not be coincidence, and suggested strikingly that this was no mere meteorological manifestation, but something borne of magic.

Luna had enjoyed a happy foalhood in this castle, but it had also become the crucible where her jealousy had spawned and come to feed off itself, until that fateful night when she had tried to destroy her sister.

She now knew that whatever this was owed its existence to the dark side of her personality. It was all her fault; would she ever be free of the curse of her past actions?

“Tantabus!” she called, “Begone with thy devilment!”

Luna waited, but there was no reaction, so she tried again, but this time with the full Royal Canterlot Voice.

Still no response.

The Tantabus would at least usually acknowledge her, so she would know why she was being punished, but this was clearly something else.

Flying was clearly out, but the wind at ground level seemed to suggest that it should at least be possible to navigate on hoof with care.

She thought about returning to Canterlot to brief her sister, but was concerned how far the storm may have grown in the time it would take to deliver the message.

She thought too about trying to find Ponyville where she could warn Twilight or the Mayor and initiate an evacuation, but reasoned that if the storm had got that far already, then they would be certain to have appropriate plans well in hoof by now.

No, this was not where her priorities lay, she would go on; whatever this was had to be to do with her, and she was therefore the only one who could sort matters out.

Luna puffed out her chest, raised her head resolutely and set off for the castle she had once called ‘home’.

Progress through the Everfree could not have been described as easy, but the forest did at least offer her protection from the strong winds, although this came at the price of so many paths being blocked with fallen and uprooted trees.

Above her, the wind whipped relentlessly at the leafy upper branches of trees, the trunks of which creaked and groaned, begging the torment to cease. Every once in a while, a tree trunk gave up the fight to remain stoic, and a loud cracking sound would signal their final epitaph as they were ripped asunder, their final screams smothered by the howling wind as the forest bore witness to their violent demise.

No creatures showed themselves, even the most fearsome of predators having found somewhere to cower for their own self-preservation; Luna was alone in a forest being ripped apart around her.

Soon, she reached the edge of the forest, the dividing line between the ambiguous protection afforded by the trees, and the exposed ground that marked the approach to the castle. Despite the dangers of falling trees in the forest, Luna had become increasingly consumed by worries about the final part of her journey being across a bare landscape, strafed by a wind strong enough to carry her away, for indeed, such a barrier would surely be enough to prevent her from completing her quest.

Peering tentatively from between the protection of two sturdy trees, Luna stared towards the ruins of the old castle and confirmed her fears that the ground did indeed offer no shelter. However, to her surprise, what trees she could see were not bent over in imminent danger of destruction, but instead looked serenely calm, offering little more than the casual wave of a branch in greeting.

Luna furrowed her brow, momentarily perplexed as to why the storm should have abated so abruptly. Her initial thought was to attribute it to magic, then she entertained whether it could just be the eye of the storm, before considering warily that it could be a tricky combination of both. Whether controlled by freak air currents or by somepony’s intervention, she knew that whatever force had gifted this limited area of calm may change its mind at any moment, allowing the storm to roll back in, leaving anything, or anypony inside exposed to the devastating winds raging beyond.

Fearing that time may not be on her side, Luna took the chance to step out from the cover afforded by the forest and into the clearing.

The wind was eerily still.

Around the perimeter of calm, she could see a sheer turbulent wall of grey rising up, looking as imposing as the walls around a prison courtyard, assuring inmates that there would be no escape.

The way to the castle looked clear, but at the forefront of Luna’s mind was the concern that all could change in an instant, potentially catching her in the open. Without a second thought, she focused her eyes, leaned forward and flapped her wings urgently, speeding off at the lowest level possible towards the protection of the castle, where she felt sure she would start to get to the bottom of the weirdness that was overtaking the Everfree Forest.

Comments

[Bronycommander]

Interesting how this goes