A Touch of Chaos

by Written Out

Unwelcome Guests

“Here we are, girls. Is everypony ready?” The six mares had finished their visit at the spa, and were lined up in front of the Everfree Forest. Twilight stood in front of the other five, giving them a little pep talk before they entered.

Applejack shuddered at Twilight’s words, the bulging bags on the farmpony’s back shivering with her. “Land sake's. Ah swear, no matter how many times we enter this place, it never gits any better.” Her bags were full of apples and various apple-themed foods, having been chosen along with Pinkie Pie to bring the food for this excursion. In addition to the foods, the end of a length of rope was also poking out of the bags.

Pinkie zipped over, her own saddlebags filled with enough sweets and pastries to keep everypony on a sugar high for the entire trip. “No worries, AJ. So long as we’re all together, there’s nothing to be afraid of. Well," she added as an afterthought, "except for manticores, timber wolves, Ursa Major and Minor, avalanches, falling trees, poison joke, plants with effects we don’t know about, cockatrice, hydras-“

Rarity cut her off before she could say any more. “I think that’s quite enough helping, dear. You’re scaring Fluttershy.” Indeed, the cowardly pegasus was curled into a small ball on the ground, and had been curling up tighter and tighter every time Pinkie rattled off something scary.

Rainbow Dash sighed and flew over to comfort her friend. “Don’t worry, Fluttershy. Even if something does attack us, you’ve got the fastest pegasus in Cloudsdale on your side.” She arrogantly gestured at herself. “Even this creature of Discord’s won’t get past me. I’ll beat him into a pulp before he even knows what’s going on.”

Fluttershy lifted on hoof and looked up at the bragging pegasus. “Oh, I hope it doesn’t come to that.”

“I hope so, too,” Twilight said, backing up Fluttershy. “If we’re lucky, Fluttershy’ll be able to persuade him to come with us without any difficulties, even if you have to use The Stare, but we have to be prepared for the possibility that you can’t. Since Discord’s involved, we can’t afford to ignore any possibilities.”

Rarity cut her off before Twilight could begin another speech. “We know, darling. We also know that we simply can’t allow something connected to Discord to roam free. I don’t like it, but we’re prepared to use force if we must.”

“And you call that look being ‘prepared to use force?’” Rainbow Dash snarked from over by Fluttershy.

Rarity tossed her well-groomed mane back, brushing it into place. “But of course. One simply must looks one’s best no matter the circumstance. And in case you’ve forgotten, we’re trying to keep this civilized.” Turning, she led the way into the forest, daintily stepping around a patch of mud.

Applejack followed after, unconcernedly stepping directly in the same puddle of mud. Looking over her shoulder at Twilight directly behind her, she asked the question that had been bugging her. “So, we got any plans for rustlin' up this here varmint, sugarcube?”

“Pinkie found him down this path. Then she and I found him again in a clearing not too far away from the first spot. We’ll head to the clearing and look around there. I expect the creature has made its home in that area.” Rainbow Dash and Pinkie followed after her, bringing up the rear. The pink mare was talking excitedly about making a new friend while Dash was obviously only half-listening.

Rarity’s voice filtered in from the front. “This is going to be hard enough to find without you alerting everything about us being here, Pinkie.” Pinkie giggled good-naturedly before running her hoof across her mouth to represent zipping up. The group proceeded to the clearing without incident, only Fluttershy’s quiet questions to Twilight about the nature of the creature breaking the silence of the forest. Rarity would occasionally fire back questions of her own from where she led the group, since Twilight hoped her practiced designer's eye would notice anything out of place.

“So this is where we saw it last,” Twilight said as they reached the clearing. The clearing was a little different than she remembered. The wood the creature had been cutting down had vanished - he must have returned and dragged it away. Twilight’s eyes skimmed across the forest line. She didn’t think the creature was nearby, but it didn’t hurt to check anyway.

Turning back to the group, she saw Rarity and Fluttershy had set up a picnic blanket for them to eat on while Applejack and Pinkie were setting up the food they had been carrying. “Where did Dash go?” Twilight asked as she walked over to them. Pinkie pointed up at the canopy. Following Pinkie’s hoof, Twilight could just make out a rainbow streak above the foliage before it vanished behind the trees.

“She got bored and decided to scout the area,” Rarity said. Her horn lit up and several plates of food floated over to her. “Here you go, Fluttershy,” she said, passing out some of the food to the other pony.

Twilight sighed theatrically as Fluttershy thanked Rarity. “Honestly, Dash,” she muttered to herself as the rest of the group began settling themselves in. “Why can’t you just be a little more patient?”

“Ta be fair, it’s not like she needs to fear this feller none,” Applejack said from where she leaned against a tree near the outskirts of the clearing. “Don’t sound like he kin fly, so she could be able to escape without any problem.”

“Do you think she’d even try to escape?” Twilight asked flatly. Applejack didn’t answer. Twilight sighed again before grabbing an apple cruller for herself and sitting down next to Pinkie. The pink mare had already eaten three full cakes and was making good headway on a fourth. How does she- Twilight wondered before squashing that train of thought. Any attempt to understand how Pinkie did what Pinkie did just ended with headaches.

Twilight took a couple of bites of her cruller before Rarity suddenly spoke up. “Twilight, could you tell me something?” the white unicorn asked, idly staring at a piece of cake on a floating fork in front of her. She sighed quietly before letting the fork float to the ground and focusing her attention on Twilight. “Why did the Princess ask for us to go? I understand if the royal guard is unable to leave Canterlot, but surely there’s some other guards nearby.”

“Whaddya mean, Rarity?” Applejack asked from where she was leaning against the tree. “Obviously it’s because we’re the bearers of the Elements o' Harmony n’ all that. No offense to yer brother, Twi, but what use would the guards be against somethin’ like Discord? Personally, I don’t like the idea of some trace of Discord’s hangin’ around town, so I’ll be just as happy to see it gone.”

“That’s not what I mean,” Rarity said. “Though I agree with you about getting rid of this creature. The idea of what would happen if Sweetie Belle met it...” The thought of her little sister meeting with the creature of the forest had Rarity swooning for a second before she shook it off and focused on Twilight. “No, what I mean is why send us? Technically speaking, we’re just civilians. Doesn’t she have ponies trained to go into dangerous places like here,” she gestured around them at the Everfree Forest, “ and deal with whatever trouble arises?”

“There’s another problem,” Fluttershy pointed out. Everypony blinked in surprise at her except for Pinkie, who hummed happily as she devoured her sixth cake. Fluttershy speaking against Celestia? Fluttershy buried her head under her hooves as her friends regarded her in wonder. She spoke up anyway, her voice quivering as if it just occurred to her that she was questioning the Princess’ decision. “Why send us without the Elements? If this is some scheme of Discord’s, what does she think we can do with the Elements of Harmony?” Rarity gently placed her hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder, giving the meek mare a reassuring shake.

Twilight remained silent, her face scrunched in thought. She hadn’t considered any of these questions and had just focused on achieving her mentor’s request. Why did the Princess ask this of them instead of sending any other guards? Sure, they had fought Discord before and knew what to look for to see if he was directly involved, but it wasn’t like Discord was known for his subtlety. Just look for the cotton candy clouds. The houses floating upside down could also be considered a clue.

“Do you think it might be another test?” Pinkie asked. The group looked at her and she quickly clarified what she meant. “Whenever there seems to be a threat to Equestria, we always seem to be in the middle of it. Like that time with that black smokie guy or Queen Meanie or that buggy pony or the time we went to Candy Mountain to save the mystical Gumdrop Princess.” The others just stared at her incredulously.

“Ah... don’t think Ah remember that last one,” Applejack said after a few seconds. “Do ya think this’s another time when Equestria’ll be threatened?”

Pinkie just shrugged at Applejack’s question. “How would I know? I’m just a baker.”

---

The group remained silent after their conversation, each of them thinking about their own reasons for being there and wondering why Celestia would have sent them. Except for Pinkie. Nopony was really sure what Pinkie was thinking. Twilight had long since given up counting the number of cakes the mare had eaten and was absent-mindedly wondering how Pinkie had managed to pack all of them in her saddlebags when Dash returned.

“So, did you see anything?” Twilight asked from where she was lying on the picnic blanket. Rarity was lounging a few feet away, using a snoozing Fluttershy as a cushion. Applejack was lying against a tree, her hat pulled down over her eyes while Pinkie juggled half a dozen cupcakes, occasionally catching one in her mouth and eating it before pulling another one out of somewhere and continuing to juggle.

Dash landed beside the food and answered while looking over everything and deciding what to eat. “Yeah, no biggie. There was a cave at the end of the path, and an awesome waterfall not too far away. We’ll be able to hear it pretty soon.” Having made her decision, she grabbed an apple fritter and started chowing down. Her mouth full of fritter, she continued to talk. “With shelter and fresh water, we’ll probably find the creature there.” Twilight pulled out a quill and a scroll, running down her checklist of things to accomplish before meeting the creature again.

“We should probably be moving that way soon, Ah reckon.” Applejack pushed her hat up with one hoof and looked at Pinkie. “Sugarcube, could ya toss me a cupcake?”

“Okie Dokie Lokie.” Without seeming to changing the pattern her hooves were following, a cupcake was suddenly flying through the air towards AJ. Applejack simply opened her mouth wide, allowing the cupcake to land perfectly inside.

Twilight finished going over her checklist, finding nothing outstanding, and put it away.“I agree, AJ. Alright girls, break’s over.”

Rainbow Dash, having finished off her fritter, stuck her head back into the bags before pulling out another fritter and walking away with it held between her teeth. Rarity gently shook Fluttershy awake and they folded up the blanket before following after Dash. Pinkie shoveled all her cupcakes into her mouth and she and Applejack collected their saddlebags before walking after the others. Knowing Dash was not good at peace talks, Twilight trotted to the front of the herd beside her. With Dash leading the way, the group made it to the cave without any difficulty.

“Oh boy, so this is where new friend lives?” Pinkie bounced excitedly into the cave, not hearing or just ignoring Twilight’s dismayed cry of “Pinkie!”

Applejack sidled beside Twilight, who looked like she wanted to rush into the cave herself. “Don’t you worry about Pinkie none,” the farmpony comforted. “Ah reckon that mare can take care of herself just fine.” Twilight was about to say she was more concerned about Pinkie scaring the creature again then she was for Pinkie’s safety when Pinkie’s voice echoed out of the cave.

“Aw, nopony’s home. Ooh, cool. Echo! Echo!” Hearing that it was safe, Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy entered the cave.

Fluttershy turned to Dash before going in. “Are you coming along?” she asked.

Rainbow Dash shook her head. “Nah, I don’t really like caves. Besides, somepony’s got to keep watch in case the creature returns.” Fluttershy was surprised by the brash pegasus’ thoughtfulness but chose not to comment on it, instead turning and following the others.

Inside, she found the others were already poking around the cave. A fire was burning in a firepit at the center of the cave, a small cooking pot filled with a mysterious bubbling liquid resting on a thin flat rock above it. The strangest thing about the setup was the way that the smoke from the fire was curling around the pot before being drawn into it, almost as if the concoction was pulling the smoke into itself. Twilight was staring at the pot, muttering about how she had never seen anything like this before. “The smoke is drawn… no, that’s not right. The natural properties of smoke mean that it is raised by warm air, so this could only happen if it suddenly cooled. But how could there be a pocket of cool air just above a fire?" She pulled out a small vial and scooped out a tiny amount of the bubbling liquid. "What is this stuff?”

At the back of the cave, Rarity was examined a collapsed pile of rocks. Because of her experience jewel hunting, Rarity knew that the rock pile was actually blocking off access to a much larger area of the cave, even if she couldn’t tell the actual size of the area. She was about to ask for somepony to help her move them when Pinkie suddenly spoke up.

The pink pony’s tail had started twitching, and there was only one thing that could mean. “Twitchy tail, twitchy tail. That means something’s going to fall.” Pinkie possessed a mysterious ability she called the Pinkie Sense. With it, she was able to predict the close future, though she couldn’t control it and nopony understood it. As the others turned to look at her, Rainbow Dash shouted at something outside the cave. Something flew into the cave and landed in the middle of the room, bursting and covering everypony except Pinkie, who dove out of the way, in a mysterious foul-smelling green liquid.

Rarity, who got a face full, was absolutely disgusted and not afraid to tell everypony about it. “Oh, yuck. What is this abominable ichor? I’m absolutely covered in it. It’s in my mane. It’s in my mane! Getitoutgetitoutgetitout!” Running her hooves through her precious mane, she started pulling out globs of the goop, trying to get rid of as much of it as possible.

In comparison, Applejack had simply wiped the stuff out of her eyes, ignoring the rest, and was already making her way for the cave entrance. “Ah dunno, Rarity, but we had better see what Rainbow was shoutin’ about.” Outside, they found Dash had her wings flared out and was staring at the surrounding vegetation. “What happened, sugarcube?” Applejack asked.

“I’m not sure. Something just flew into the cave after you girls entered,” Dash replied. “I think somepony threw it and- whoa, that’s nasty.” She had just caught sight of the unpleasant ooze that was covering her friends. “What is that stuff?”

“I don’t know,” Twilight admitted. “If I had time to analyze it, I might figure it out, but-“

“It’s a relaxant for felines,” Fluttershy interrupted. Except for Rarity, who was staring at the woods with a look of horror on her face, the group turned to the local animal expert. Fluttershy withered a little under their gazes before taking a deep breath and returning their looks. “The smell usually causes them to feel more playful, and I use it sometime to help them lose their stress."

“Girls…” Rarity said slowly, not looking away from the forest.

“Ah don’t get it,” Applejack pointed out. “Why would anypony feel the need to go and cover us in some fancy kitty relaxant?”

“Girls.”

“That’s only when it’s diluted,” Fluttershy answered. “When it’s this concentrated, the feeling of playfulness changes. It becomes the malicious playfulness of the cat playing with a mouse, toying with their prey before killing it. I never let any of my friends smell that, and always make it somewher-“

“Girls!”

“What do you want, Rar…i…ty? Oh.” Twilight was looking in the direction Rarity had been staring at, her mouth hanging open. She swallowed loudly once before continuing. “Fluttershy, do you think you would be able to calm a feline that smelled a highly concentrated dose of this stuff?”

“Not as long as the kitty continued to smell it, no. Sorry.”

Twilight licked her dry lips, the others staring at her in confusion. “Do you think that a manticore would be affected in a similar way?”

“I’ve never tried it, but I would think so. So, yes.”

“Ah, I see. Then we should probably be running.”

The mares turned to look in the direction Twilight and Rarity were staring at to see that a manticore at slipped out of the forest and was making its way towards them. Its belly low to the ground and its eyes locked unblinking on them, everything about it screamed 'predator hunting prey.' The girls froze up, staring at the hunter coming towards them. The horrific beast’s scorpion tail lashed the air threateningly, its wings were spread wide in order to make it seem even larger and more intimidating, and its fanged mouth was slightly opened in a malicious smile.

Applejack took an unwilling step back. “So…uh…any ideas, Twi?” she asked quietly, not wanting to provoke the frightening creature in front of them.

“Sorry, Applejack, but I-“

“Look!” Rainbow Dash interrupted, pointing with a hoof. “Its wings are injured.” Indeed, the manticore’s wings were tattered, torn, and still bleeding, almost like a tree had fallen on it recently. The cogs in Twilight’s brain, which had frozen in fear, started up again at this new piece of information.

“If it can’t fly, then we should be safe if we can get to somewhere it can’t go. But where? There are no cliffs nearby-“ Twilight gasped in realization. “The river!” Stepping forward, she began concentrating magic into her horn. “When I give the signal, run for the river. If we can get across it, we should be safe.”

Dash's mouth gaped open in dismay. “Twilight, that’s crazy! I know I didn’t mention it before, but we’re on the upstream side of the waterfall! If anything goes wrong, we’ll be swept off!”

“We don’t have time to argue!” The manticore was nearly within pouncing distance, and its muscles were bunching up in preparation to leap. Twilight took a deep breath to calm her nerves before screaming and unleashing her spell.”GO!” The area was covered in a blinding white light, robbing the sight of the manticore. Snarling in rage, it leapt at the spot the ponies had been standing but, unable to see, it missed them. Still able to smell them, covered as they were in the green goo, it took off in pursuit.

Running as fast as they could for the river, the mares began screaming in fear when they heard the sound of the manticore crashing though the forest behind them. Glancing behind her, Rainbow Dash saw the creature was closing in on them and would quickly catch them at the rate it was going. Gritting her teeth, the cyan pegasus turned and flew directly at the creature chasing them.

Pinkie gasped in horror, seeing what her headstrong friend was doing. “Dashie, what are you doing?”

“I’m not covered in that stuff, and I can fly,” Dash yelled back. “I’ll buy you guys some time. Don’t worry, I’ll catch up.” She flew directly under the manticore’s nose, causing it to reel back in surprise. Pinkie thought for only a moment before turning back to help Dash. Further ahead, Twilight had stopped running and was staring behind her in dismay and fear, watching her friends apparently sacrificing themselves. Dash hurriedly waved for her to go on ahead, shouting all the while. “Get going, Twilight! Pinkie and I are clean, and I can fly her out of here, but you’re still covered! Don’t just stand there, get moving!” Below her, the manticore snarled at Pinkie, who had just smacked it between the eyes with a tree branch. Turning away from them, Twilight took off.

At the river, she found Fluttershy had already flown across and was dancing on her hooves anxiously, worried for her friends’ safety. Applejack had pulled the rope out of her bag and tied it into a lasso, and was spinning it above her head. Launching it across the river, she snagged it on a sturdy-looking tree stump. Yanking on it a couple times to make sure it was secure, she gripped it in her mouth and gestured for Rarity to cross. Rarity leapt on the rope and began running across, balancing on the rope like a tightrope walker. When she was about halfway across, an explosion of noise followed by a wave of air knocked her off the rope. Barely able to clasp one leg around the rope before the force of the river washed her away, she could do nothing but scream for help, struggling against the merciless pull of the current. Fluttershy took flight and flew towards her friend as fast as she could.

Looking upstream, in the direction the blast had come from, Twilight’s eyes widened in shock at what she saw. A giant tree had somehow been torn from its resting place on the water’s edge, and was heading towards Rarity and Fluttershy. Applejack was watching the tree in horror, her hold on the rope meaning she unable to do anything to help the mares in the river, Twilight dashed beside Applejack and concentrated her magic as quickly as she could on the massive tree. Wrapping it in a purple glow, she stopped it only meters away from where Fluttershy was now helping Rarity grab onto the rope. She could feel sweat forming on her brow from the effort required to hold the tree against the force of the river, but her friends were in danger, and she would. Not. Let. Go.

A roar from behind her and the sound of breaking branches heralded the arrival of the manticore. Rainbow Dash was riding on its back, trying to avoid the sting of its fearsome tail while Pinkie Pie tried to distract it by screaming nonsense and throwing the last of remaining sweets and pastries at it. The manticore spotted the two mares still standing on the riverbank, and began making its way towards them, only slightly slowed down by the efforts of the distractionary duo. Twilight and Applejack exchanged looks – the unicorn straining under the effort of holding the tree back and the earth pony with the rope clenched firmly between her teeth. Twilight gestured with her chin towards the river, and Applejack nodded unwillingly before leaping into the rushing water. Gripping the rope as tightly as she could and hating herself for abandoning her friends, she and Rarity were swept away. Since the rope was anchored to the opposite bank, it swung around and brought them directly to the far shore. Pulling themselves out of the water, they and Fluttershy turned and could do nothing but watch as the manticore approached Twilight.

Seeing that her friends had safely made in to the other side, Twilight released her spell and sagged in exhaustion as the raging river swept the tree away. Turning her head, she saw that the manticore had almost reached her and she could already feel the warmth of its breath. Dash had managed to get off its back and was holding it by the tail, digging her hooves in the ground and trying to prevent it from reaching Twilight. Pinkie had run out of sweets and was holding onto Dash. Their faces were locked in expressions of strenuous effort and their hooves dug furrows in the ground as the monster continued forward, uninterested in them. Twilight had enough energy for one last spell, and she began preparing it as the monster reached her. As it raised its paw, preparing to bring it down upon her, she unleashed her final spell… and teleported.

Teleporting across the river, she had only a moment to recover before she was buried under the hugs of a laughing Rarity, Fluttershy, and Applejack. On the other side of the river, the manticore stared uncomprehendingly at the spot Twilight had been a moment before. Pinkie ran past it, and leapt as far as she could above the river, a huge smile on her face and her legs spread out as wide as she could make them. She looked as if she intended to fly across the river, but that was not her intention. Rainbow Dash flew up behind Pinkie and wrapped her hooves around the other mare’s torso, flying them across the river to join in the pile of laughing, crying mares. The manticore paced at the edge of the river a few times before giving up and returning to the forest.

---

Dear Princess Celestia;

Today I learned that no matter how fearsome the challenges you face in life are, if you work together with your friends, you can overcome almost anything. The bonds of friendship make anything possible, and there is nothing more valuable than a friend that stands beside you. I am so very lucky and grateful to have so many wonderful friends in my life, and I would not give them up for anything.

But that is not the only thing I wanted to tell you. Yesterday, my friends and I discovered a creature in the Everfree forest that seemed to be touched by Discord’s magic. It was unaffected by any spell I cast and managed to escape. Today, after a failed attempt to find it, I developed a spell that would allow me to detect any sources of Discord’s magic. This would give me a generally idea of its location, and would let me track it indirectly. To my dismay, I found three sources: one was in the Everfree, which is the creature I told you about; one was in Canterlot, which I believe is Discord himself; and the last was far southeast of Canterlot. I don’t know what it is, but I fear the effects of anything connected to Discord running free.

Your Faithful Student;

Twilight Sparkle

---

Dear Journal,

I met those creatures again today. They, along with four similar creatures, entered my cave. They know where I live! I will have to relocate tonight. I was lucky that they didn’t find me because I was out collecting firewood when they arrived. I chased them away by unleashing the manticore I had captured, but they managed to escape.

As they were escaping by crossing the nearby river, I was curious, and tested them by blowing up a large tree upstream of them and letting it fall in the river. They escaped it, and I was very impressed, journal. Not only that, but I learned a lot about each creature’s physical capabilities. I think I will be able to set up some effective traps for each of them.

I wonder if these creatures are edible? Nah, better not find out. If their bright colouration means anything, their flesh is probably extremely toxic. I'll have to be cautious until I understand their capabilities.

One of the creatures, one with a horn coming out of its head, apparently was able to stop the tree without touching it. I can understand the ones possessing wings being able to fly, but I do not understand this… this ‘magic’. I still do not know its full limits, so I will have to be careful in the future.

I must go, journal. I must begin setting traps and I need to move to a new cave.

Comments

[Platinum2094]

Dude, you have an awesome ability to convey the feel of this adventure.
I was on the edge of my seat for half of this stuff!
Anyway, can't wait for more!

[LordBucket]

Someday I'd like to see Twilight deal with some big scary monster simply by lifting it a half inch of the ground, so it has no traction and can't move.

[chinlamp]

Wow, Twilight is an idiot. She's wondering 'why did the Princess get us to do this?' and telling her friends that this is a mission from the Princess when Celestia said simply to 'keep an eye out'. Twilight hadn't even told her about this (something I was thinking as they had the discussion and was confirmed by the letter at the end).

If this were the show, that wouldn't even be addressed. Here's hoping you do.

Also, this thing is clearly scared of them, and doesn't want to have anything to do with them. I know it's 'somehow connected' to Discord, but if it's not doing anything harmful, and wants nothing to do with ponies, wouldn't the best course of action be to adopt a policy of observation and non-interaction until such a time as it looks to be a threat? Rather than capturing it and risking turning it into an enemy? You'd think Twilight would think of that (what with having a military brother and supposedly being the 'logical' one).

[PaxMano33]

If their bright colouration means anything, their flesh is probably extremely toxic.

i love this guys sketchy biological reasonings in regards to, well... everything. its hilarious. i wanna see his reaction when he discovers that the ponies are actually just a bunch of neohippies that draw hearts over everything and eat cupcakes.

but it wasn’t like Discord was known for his subtlety. Just look for the cotton candy clouds.

that reasoning is what will kill them all. im not sure whether or not to blabe the ponies or you for this blunder, Author. you are the one who included the chess scene in the beginning, and as much as i love it, i must admit that it is distinctly uncharacteristic of him. on the other hoof, the draconeqqus is an immortal and supremely powerful entity. is it honestly that hard to imagine him putting measures of ...i dunno, FORETHOUGHT into his actions? hes not an idiot, Twilight. He is probably the most dangerous thing in your universe. underestimating him is a mistake.

Pinkie possessed a mysterious ability she called the Pinkie Sense. With it, she was able to predict the close future, though she couldn’t control it and nopony understood it.

we know. rehash it again, whydontcha? i didnt quite catch it in the entire episode devoted to the concept.