On a dark and stormy night, a lost traveler stumbled into the unknown. With only a dim lantern to guide her, she moved softly and quickly, afraid that any lightning crack now could reveal something she didn't wish to see.
Of course, in the Everfree Forest, the worst of the worst only made itself known when it was ready to strike.
Through the brush and the wind and the rain she continued to move, her heart pumping faster and faster. For she had the distinct feeling she was being watched: and that it was somehow growing darker by the second.
"It's alright... no beastie worth its mind would come in this," she thought. "Not even the ones in these woods...."
However, a sudden shifting of nearby brush contradicted this.
"Or maybe they're crazy enough to try!" she gasped.
She shivered upon this, winced, and continued to move. If she had her bearings right, Ponyville was just ahead: home. It would be safety... sanctuary from this strange, wild place. She would like nothing more to curl up by the fireplace with a good book, enjoying a glass of milk and a Sweet Apple Acres' pie: even if she couldn't read.
The Everfree Forest was something everypony knew bout, but none had barely scratched the surface of what true horrors and mysteries lay within. Ever since the old Royal Palace was obliterated centuries ago, a shard of darkness seemed to infest it...
And at that instant, she realized one thing: the forest was very angry about this. For as she glanced above, to her horror, she noticed the canopy was slowly being enveloped by a snarl of black, ghostly tendrils, the source of the decreasing light.
"T-This must be my imagination!" she gasped to herself, chuckling maniacally.
Then came an almost sadistic, high pitched ringing sound, her eardrums feeling like they were about to explode.
"Oh god - what's that sound?!" she cried. "S-Something is wrong with my mind! I need to- need to leave. Have to get out - get out..."
She twirled about, unknowingly preparing herself to head the exact way she had come...yet someone, or something blocked her path.
"Y-You."
"Oh hai..."
She froze in fright at the horrible monstrosity before her. She couldn't even find the will to scream. Her mind was melting down, and a voice within echoed over and over:
"Come with me... and you'll be... in a world of pure imagination..."
"N-NO!" she cried.
At that, summoning her will, she twirled about and took off into the night.
"COME WITH ME AND YOU'LL GET A BULLET THROUGH YOUR'S!" she shrieked.
In the meantime... the entity just stood there, menacingly...
Scratching its flank.
It gave a long sigh. "I just wanted to show her my twig collection..."
Seventy Years Later - Modern Times
"Soooo yeah... that's pretty much how most of my encounters go," Slendermane shrugged, his voice echoing through the minds of four nearby entities: all sitting within Zecora's hut. "And I gotta say... that was one of my first for a long while. Not many ponies came in here after the whole Nightmare Moon thing. God - what a bitch..."
The group raised their eyebrows.
"My dearest Slendermane," Zecora said soothingly. "Why is it that you hate your old flame?"
Slendermane sighed. "Well... cus I thought she was like me, Pride. Totally creepy and stuff but - well - you know, not evil? But nope - turns out she was just another control freak with envy issues..."
"So in other words - she's just like you," a large, shadow-like Timberwolf cackled. "Only more powerful."
The Slendermane would have shot him a death glare if he had visible eyes. "Who invited you again?"
"It's a monthly meeting, everyone's invited," he said, smirking. "So - here I am!"
"Yay..."
"Be nice, Wrath," a certain yellow pegasus, known as Fluttershy in the outside world, peeped. "Can't you see poor Fear is going through something?"
"He 'goes through something' every friggin' month," the shadow wolf grunted. "You need to get your crap together, Slendy ole' boy."
Slendermane grunted. "How many times do I have to tell you I hate that nickname?"
Wrath smirked. "An how many times do I have to tell you that I don't give a-"
Suddenly, the fifth entity sighed, shaking her head. She was a large, beautiful changeling, but a blue, almost depressive aura about her. "The more things change, the more they stay the same..."
"Oh great," Wrath snorted. "What are you on about now, Sorrow? Please don't tell me you're going to start crying again..."
Zecora gave him the evil eye, to which he merely chuckled at.
"I-I'm not going to cry," she she said, swallowing hard. "I-I'm just saying... these meetings seem to have a particular pattern."
Zecora took her gaze off Wrath, before smiling at her. "I believe we're making headway, if you don't mind my say. I just believe he needs a little more sway..."
"S-Same here," Fluttershy smiled. "Slendermane, didn't you say you took up a hobby to pass the time?"
"Well..." Slendermane said, bringing a hoof to his chin and thinking for a second. "It wasn't much of a hobby..."
One week ago, three small Crusaders tread deep into Everfree, bouncing along with merry looks on their faces.
"Alright girls! Today is the day!" Scootaloo grinned.
Sweetie nodded in agreement. "Yeah! I can feel it in my bones! Cryptozoologists?! How did we not think of this before!?"
"Cus we never had the guts to go into the woods til Scootaloo encouraged us!" Apple Bloom giggled.
She put on a cocky grin. "Keep it comin' - keep it comin'!" she sad in a fake, haughty tone, before chuckling. "Na I'm just kidding. I just hope the Slendermane is as scary as they say!"
"I bet hes terrifying!" Apple Bloom beamed. "Granny said he scared the seeds out of her when she was young!"
"If he isn't just an old pony's tale," Sweetie pointed out.
Apple Bloom shot her a dirty look. "You callin' my granny a liar?"
Sweetie quickly shook her head. "No, I'm saying your granny was looking out for you!" she explained. "What a better way to keep ponies out of the forest then to create a terrifying, horrible, evil monster who's only purpose is to gobble ponies up! Or worse..."
"Yeah," Scootaloo said spookily. "Who knows what other horrid, unspeakable things he could be up to even now-"
Suddenly, the group paused, staring ahead. Scootaloo did the same.
There stood the Slendermane, menacing and evil as could be as he... juggled ten rocks with his tendrils. After a second, he turned his head towards them.
"..."
The Crusaders stared at him blankly.
"...?"
Their pupils dilated in horror.
...
...
"Wat?"
They screamed at the top of their lungs."EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!"
At that, they turned, and darted out of the woods."
"Oh son of a-" Slendermane cried, dropping the rocks. "Why is everything I do scary?!"
"Ugh- Slendermane, get it through your thick, freaky skull -" Wrath grunted. "The reason everything you do is scary is because you're a manifestation of fear!"
"He is correct," Pride sighed. "You passively generate fear in-"
"-Anypony nearby," he sighed. "Yeah - I know, I get it. I'm supposed to be a monster."
Fluttershy frowned in sympathy, before nuzzling the entity slightly. "Slendy... you're not a monster... nobody is a monster..."
"I am!" Wrath said proudly.
Fluttershy nodded to the side, sighing. "Except for Wrath... um- no offense."
"Yeah, that's true."
"Agreed."
He merely shrugged. "I do what I do cus I do what I do."
"Slendermane," Pride said, furrowing her brow. "How about we get to the bottom of this: what exactly keeps you in this abyss? Every month it's the same old thing: you subtly hint that you hate your job but the reason why you never sing."
"She's right. Y-You're in a safe place," Sorrow said softly. "You can tell us anything."
"Yes, you're among friends!"
Wrath gave a snort. "You people are not my friends. Friends are for the weak."
Sorrow wimpered.
"Especially you, Sorrow," he cackled.
Fluttershy then narrowed her eyes, surprising everyone in the room. "A-And with you as a friend, who needs enemies?!" she snapped.
"Yeah - well - your pets are gay and I hope they all die in a fire, Kindness," he grinned.
Fluttershy squeaked.
"Shut up, Wrath, you friggin' a-hole, Slendermane grunted, before taking a deep breath. "And yeah- alright... fine then... You wanna know what's bothering me?"
Wrath rolled his eyes. "This is me not caring-"
He shut up when he was elbowed in the rib by Pride.
"Ouch, what the-"
He was elbowed again, silencing him. He gritted his sharpened teeth, hissing.
"We would be glad to hear what sorrows you endear," Zecora offered.
"Alright then," Slendermane grunted. "You called this a job earlier, Zecora, but it isn't a job. A job you can quit, get promoted, or heck, even get fired. However, what I'm doing? It isn't a job. All of you know this. I am the manifestation of the Everfree Forest's fear, and though I have a certain degree of free will, I have a purpose that was determined before I was even born, if you can even call that. I keep people out of the woods. Why do I do this? I have no idea. Only the forest itself knows. But what I do know is that every time someone dwells too deep, I have this overriding will to scare them away. That is where my free will ends. He gave a dark chuckle. It's funny really: even the name of this place is a tease. Everfree Forest my blank flank! That is why I can never grow... never change... not while I'm here..."
...
The group grew silent at that for a moment: even Wrath.
Finally, Sorrow wiped away a few quiet tears. "W-What are you trying to say?" she asked.
Slendermare gave another sigh. "I'm don't know - I guess I'm saying that... I want something new. I mean - you guys are good company, save for Wrath-"
"Well buck you too, buddy, not that I care...."
"But - I'm sick of just sitting in the woods all day waiting for ponies to scare away. Yeah- I get it, my role is important, but why do I have to do it twenty-four seven?" He glanced at Zecora and Fluttershy. "You two certainly don't..."
Zecora closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "It's just..."
"Oh quit beating around the friggin' bush," Wrath growled. "You wanna start going into town, don't you? Well, that would be fine and dandy if you didn't look like - and have the reputation as - a creepy bastard who psychologically torments, kidnaps, and kills ponies!"
"But that isn't me!" Slendermane cried. "Those are just stories and legends! I've never killed anypony - the things that live here do that!"
"It doesn't matter," Wrath grunted, rolling his glowing yellow eyes. "You'd be screwed if you tried to go into town. They'd be throwing every weapon they have at you! Magic, arrows, explosives, pies, you name it! You're just too freaky!"
"What if I were to be introduced?" Slendermane said pleadingly. "Zecora, you could do that for me, couldn't you?"
"That would not be such a good plan," she sighed. "That may raise suspicions that perhaps I'm not who I say I am..."
Slendermane laughed sarcastically. "Why do you need to hide it?! Why do any of us need to hide it?! We're manifestations of the Everfree Forest's emotions: big friggin' deal! That doesn't make us monsters, or bad people, or douchebags! Well - save for Wrath."
"Yeah"
"Mhmmm..."
"Very true... if you don't min me saying..."
"Yep," he shrugged. "Cry more?"
Pride shook her head. "Ponies fear what they don't understand... this is why I say I'm merely from a far away land."
"You know it's true," Fluttershy whispered. "And even with that: when Pride first started coming to town, all of my friends were afraid of her just because she was a zebra." She then gave Zecora an apologetic smile. "Sorry I had to play along..."
"Not to worry, Kindness: all is well, your motives were fine and swell," Pride shrugged.
"And there we have it," Wrath groaned. "Can I leave now? These meetings are stupid and I want to go terrorize Sleepy Hallow. Those pricks are chopping down our trees!" He put on a wicked grin. "Hehe... well I suppose I'll just have to... 'speak' for them, huh?"
"In a few minutes," Zecora muttered. "Slendermane... you can't go into Ponyville. Though of course it won't get you killed, it would upset the balance they have fulfilled."
Slendermane shook his head. "B-But... isn't it what's on the inside that counts? If I prove to them I'm a decent person-"
Wrath gave a vicious cackle. "This is assuming you actually are a decent person."
"Be quiet, you big meanie!" Fluttershy spat.
"Ohohoho, look who has her big girl dress on today?" Wrath grinned. "Too afraid to hear me out, Slendermane? I thought you were fear..."
He stood stoically.
"Have you ever once thought that maybe the reason people are so afraid of you isn't just because you scare them, or because of the legends, or even the passive fear thing: maybe it just has to do with the fact they can just sense something hideous about you? That maybe - deep down - they know you're nothing just but an unknown force of nature - and nature can be quite... wrathful."
"He's not you," Sorrow muttered.
"Doesn't matter. His very presence generates fear," Wrath shrugged. "Save to us, of course. And who's not to say that his look alone isn't enough to scream 'DOES NOT BELONG!'"
"I-I... what do you mean?"
"I mean we're all freaks -" Wrath grinned. "No other forests are literally 'alive', if you know what I mean, are they? Our very existence, just like the Everfree Forest itself, is just... wrong. Maybe this is why Princess Celestia and Luna constantly ignore us - why they haven't bothered to make contact with us for eons, save for miss Element of Kindness here!"
Fluttershy sagged a guilty head.
He then began to pace around the room. "But you know what? Who cares! Let us be who we are! Embrace it, damn it!"
He then glared at Slendermane, who glanced away from him.
"And that goes for you, too, Slendermane of the Deep Woods," Wrath said slowly, with perhaps a hint of sympathy in his voice. "Embrace it, because If you don't, you're never going to be happy."
"..."
The meeting closed soon after that, with the group departing in silence. Slendermane sauntered into the forest with his head sagging. It was quiet, no animals liked to be around him. And like usual: he was alone with his echoing thoughts.
Embrace it, because if you don't, you're never going to be happy.
If you don't, you're never going to be happy.
Never going to be happy.
...
He sighed. "Maybe Wrath was right... what if we really aren't supposed to exist? What if people know that there's something inherently wrong with us. Maybe that's why Fluttershy is so shy: people are just unnerved around her. Maybe that was the reason Zecora couldn't be accepted so easily in Ponyville. And if they had a hard time: how could I ever try to enjoy the outside world?"
"Are you so sure about that?" a voice suddenly called nearby.
He twirled about, excitement pounding in his heart. "Hello?"
"Hello to you too, old friend," it called again, this time closer..
Slendermane remained silent, thinking, before he recognized who it was...
"Oh - it's you.... What do you want?" he spat.
"To help," Princess Luna said, stepping out of the brush.
Slendermane was not too thrilled to see her. "Like you did a thousand years ago? When you called me a freak!"
"You know very well that it wasn't me," Luna said patiently.
"Oh, that's right. It wasn't you! The real you wouldn't even bother talking to me!"
...
Slendermane tapped a hoof, waiting for her response.
"I apologize," Luna said, swallowing hard. "I was- afraid."
Slendermane huffed. "Welcome to the club..." He then cocked his head. "But I have to wonder - why aren't you now?"
Luna put on a small smile. "Let's just say my time as Nightmare Moon wasn't... completely unproductive." She began to circle the Eldrich Abomination. "I did get a chance to learn who you are, after all. Who you really are, that is. And even better yet: I seem to have inherited her ability to squelch the fear you... radiate."
He gave an apologetic sigh. "Heh... well that's cool, I guess. Sorry for being so rude..."
"I was the one who was being rude all those years ago," Luna said sorrowfully, continuing to circle him. "And it's the reason I have come to help you. You are an elusive one in the dreamscape, you know. I can barely ever even see into your mind, let alone access it..."
"Mph - same for you. I can usually read minds pretty easily, but yours is -" He then gave a cough. "Errrr- wait a minute. I take that back. Um - why are you so overly concerned about your image?"
Her eyes widened. She paused in her circling. "W-What?"
"You know... body image?"
"I am not concerned about my image!"
"Yeah you are..." he chuckled.
"Am not!"
"Are too..."
...
...
Princess Luna flushed furiously. "Alright! Alright! Do my hips look big?! Tia says that Moon Pies can go right towards them! Half the time I don't know if she's, what does she call it - 'Trolling' me or not."
Slendermane shrugged. "Heh... well, you look alright to me, but I'm no expert."
"J-Just... alright?" Luna peeped.
Slendermane groaned. "What are you trying to enter a beauty peagent or something?" he asked, before facehoofing. "Oooooh wait... I see, same old sibling rivalry... Sorrow was right: things never do change."
"Enough!" Luna thundered, emitting gale force winds that caused Slendermane's tendrils to dance and wiggle. Luna winced. "Er - sorry. Royal Canterlot Habit..."
"Anyway - as I was saying before," she muttered. "Your dreams are hard to access... but a few nights ago I was finally able to see into one..."
"... What'd you see? You're not going to go all Sealmund Froyd on me, are you?"
"How do you even know about him?" Luna asked. "I thought you were trapped in here!"
He shrugged. "I scared this one purple pony and made her drop a few books. Now I'm all cultured in stuff! And with that in mind, I'd like to say that sometimes a cigar... is not a peni-"
Luna rolled her eyes, coughing. "No... I saw nothing of... that sort, overcompensating aside. I saw that you were... uncontent... perhaps even afraid?"
Slendermane snorted. "Hah! Me, afraid?! Pffft - why would I be afraid!? I am fear! I mean - could you really um... sense that?"
"You're afraid of spending eternity alone," Luna sighed. "I felt a similar way, once. And as Princess of the Night, it is my duty to help every citizen that I see in need. And you, Slendermane, are a citizen of Equestria, are you not?"
Slendermane chuckled darkly. "Sure, just let me get my birth certificate..."
"Very funny," Luna grunted. "Your purpose is a noble one, Slendermane of the Deep Woods. Nopony is more deservant of a rest..."
"You mean 'nofreak', right? Pony doesn't really apply to me..." he sighed.
Luna narrowed her eyes. "Slendermane: I want to tell you something that took eons for me to learn. You are who you are: and only once you accept that can others accept you."
"Yuh-huh... easier said than done..." he groaned.
"You just need to understand how you fit into the bigger picture," Luna said, smiling. And suddenly, her horn began to glow...
Slendermane began to back away. "Watcha doin? I'm not going to go through some crazy acid-trip vision am I?"
"Nope." And as quickly as it began, her horn dimmed. "Done."
"Done what?"
"I cast a spell on you that should negate your passive ability to spread fear."
Slendermane did a double take. "W-What?! Wait - are you serious?"
Luna nodded.
He shook his head. "So.... wait - this means that if I'm around regular ponies - they won't get all anxious?"
"That is correct..."
His tendrils began to dance about excitedly. "Luna - Princess Luna - do you know what this means?!"
Luna smiled. "That you now have the confidence to-"
"Yeah! I might be able to have a chance at - whatever ponies outside the woods do!"
"By that you mean - have fun, make friends, and partake in joyous games?" Luna suggsted. "I for one particular enjoy 'Apple Bobbing'."
"Yeah! Stuff like that!" the Slendermane giggled, before letting loose a hearty laugh. "By the woods - this - this could be my chance! I mean - I'll still need to fulfill my purpose, but who cares?! I might be able to meet people now - to hang out with them! I can prove to myself that I'm not some abstract spawn of nature! I'm capable of much more!"
Suddenly, his tendrils encircled Luna, gripping her in a strangling hug. "Thank you so-so-so-so-so much! This is going to be totally awesome!"
"Slendermane... I - can't....... breath-" she huffed.
"Oh, sorry," he chuckled, dropping her and turning about. "I can't wait any longer! I wanna head into town now! My gosh, I can't wait to tell Fluttershy and Zecora! And to rub it in Wrath's face... hehe! But yeah, I'm burning moonlight! TO PONYVILLE, AWAY!"
He then began to gallop off.
"Wait!" Luna said, still panting. "Perhaps it would be best if I were to-"
Before she could finish, however, he was gone, leaving Luna alone.
She sighed heavily, before closing her eyes in annoyance.
Slendermane giggled like a maniac as he dashed towards the edge of the woods. When he emerged, he gasped in glee at the sight. It was midnight, yet in the distance, a quaint little town still shined bright with lantern light.
It was almost hypnotic in its beauty.
"Woah! This place is amazing! Look at all the cute little house things!" Slendermane beamed excitedly. "What to do first?" He squinted, thinking a beat, before a light-bulb practically appeared above his head. "Hmmm... well, my friends were right about one thing. I can't just go walking into town: it'd start a panic... also, I could get shot."
Bullets did tend to hurt, even if they couldn't kill him. He had to pick a few out of him before.
"I need some way to formally introduce myself," he said, glancing around. "I could go bug Fluttershy or Zecora, but they might get mad at me for coming into town..." He then gave a determined huff. "Besides, I can do this on my friggin' own! I guess I could get Princess Luna, but... eh, she's probably gone by now... she's got more important stuff to do, usually..." He then shrugged. "Guess my only option is to just walk right into town! Ah well - if I get shot, I get shot."
With that, he began to trot forward, away from the edge of the woods and towards the outskirts of town. He glanced around in fascination. Wooden houses surrounded him of all shapes in sizes. Something he had never seen before, save for Pride's hut.
"Must be nice to have one of those," he sighed. "I really need to build one on my free time... which is... er - ninety percent of the time. I could keep all the stuff I usually keep in null space in it! It'd be cool to actually see it..."
He continued to look around, before his 'sight' eventually fell upon a nearby apple stand. Nopony was attending it: instead, there was simply a coin-jar sitting next to a big basket of golden delicious.
"Huh," Slendermane said, cocking his head. "I wonder if those are any good?"
He then thought for a moment, bring a tendril to his chin.
"Still - it can't be free. That must be what the-" He groaned, face-tendriling himself. "Oh- duh. I have some of those coins! I don't know why ponies like to pay tribute to me... I'm not a corn god or anything. It's kind of weird, to be honest. I should probably give them up to um- what do ponies call it- charity - or something? After this, of course..."
Suddenly, with a puff of black smoke, a coin appeared in one of his tendrils. He gracefully dropped it in the jar, before procuring an apple. He did not bring it to his non-existent mouth, however. Instead, it simply began to dissolve in his tendril, flakes of strange, black energy emanating off it.
"Mmmmmm," he said. "Not bad. Beats the crap out of leaves, berries, and fear, I guess. Bleh, fear tastes nasty. Anyway, now I should probably find some ponies to introduce myself to... someponies who won't immediately panic at the sight of me... definitely not younger ones-"
Suddenly, he heard an eep. Slowly, he turned his head. Standing there, apparently frozen in horror, were none other than the three fillies he met in the woods. The ones talking about 'crusading or some such.'
Crap. This is bad - they were afraid of me juggling, for the woods' sake. Gotta keep it cool.
"Um - hi," Slendermane said, blushing slightly.
They continued to stand there, frozen in shock.
Slendermane 'squinted'. Alright Slendermane, what do ponies say to kids in the books? Ah- wait, I know!
He cleared his throat. "My, aren't you three up late. Better watch out, you're so so adorable somepony might eat you up!"
At that, the three glanced at each other, terrified, before:
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP! MONSTER!"
"AND HE WANTS TO GOBBLE US UP!"
"EVERYPONY! WAKE UP BEFORE HE GETS YOU! RUUUUUUUUUUUN!.!.!"
"Wah! No! I'm not a monster, I'm just a somewhat confused Eldrich Abomination having a mid-life crisis or whatever! Big difference!"
He was too, late, however. The three then twirled about before galloping away, leaving dust in their wake. As soon as this happened, lanterns began to flick on inside the nearby homes. A few faces appeared in the windows, followed by screams.
Oh great...
"OH MY GOD! IT'S... IT'S THAT - THING!"
"It's not just a legend?! Hide, children - quickly!"
"Crap crap crap crapidy crapidy crap," Slendermane grumbled, before bashing himself with a tendril. "Slendermane, you jackass. 'I want to gobble yo up'... You're rumored to eat children, for crying out loud!"
"And he's racist, too!?" a mule called from a window.
"No!" Slendermane shouted. "I'm not racist- oh for crying out loud! Stop panicking, please!"
"He's getting in our minds: trying to trick us!"
"Have mercy, Slendermane!"
He held his tendrils up in an exasperated manner. "I'm not trying to trick anyone, nor do I plan on eating anyone or-"
Another gasp. "That's because he just wants to skin us alive! He'll make our skin into kites!"
"I live in the woods!" Slendermane cried. "I can't even fly kites there!"
Suddenly, there was a gunshot.
"He won't be hurtin' nobody."
Slendermane twirled about, and if he had eyes, they would be widening. Knew this was going to happen... friggin' guns...
Standing there were twelve ponies armed with various weaponry: muskets, rifles, crossbows, pies... nothing he wanted to be hit with. (Save for the pies, maybe)
Well, that escalated quickly...
"Told you that darn thing wasn't a legend!" an old, oddly familiar pony called: one with an apple for a Cutie-Mark.
Another earth pony, an orange one, nodded in agreement. "Mph. Guess you were right, granny." She then narrowed her eyes at Slendermane. "Keep your weapons trained on em'."
The group complied, though Slendermane was too busy thinking to notice.
Wait... Granny Smith?
Slendermane's non-existent jaw fell open.
"Hey, wait! I remember you!"
Granny Smith didn't respond. Instead, she merely glared at him down her rifle's length. The rest of the group, however, winced in pain for some reason.
Slendermane sighed heavily. "Look: I know what this looks like, er- even if I don't know eating an apple can be considered threatening, but still, I'm not here to cause trouble! I just wanted to see a little bit of what's outside the forest.... which apparently is a lot of guns."
...
"Really shiny guns?"
...
"Sooooo... truce? Yes, no, maybe so?"
A militia member gulped. "Oh lord! Does anyone else hear a voice in their head?!"
"I do!"
"What is it?!"
"Oh, for the love of - I don't have a mouth!" Slendermane yelled, louder than usual because of his exasperation. "I have to use telepathic communication!"
The militia members cringed again. One actually dropped a rifle.
"AGH, IT HURTS!"
"MAKE IT STOP!"
"THIS IS JUST MESSED UP!"
"SHOULD WE OPEN FIRE YET?!"
"NOT YET!" the orange pony shouted. "Granny wants to talk to him, first!"
"Oh shoot... sorry - I'm just a little cross a the moment," Slendermane whispered. "Didn't mean to mind-buck you or anything."
"Don't let him screw with your mind," Granny Smith glared. "It's his greatest strength."
"Then what's his weakness?!"
"You're holding it," she said sternly, before turning back to him. "Slendermane: legend or not, it's time you payed for your crimes. Since my family founded Ponyville, there have been over thirty disappearances in the Everfree Forest. This includes my very own sister."
"H-Honeycrisp?!" Slendermane gasped.
Granny Smith gritted her dentures. "So... you know her name. Funny coincidence, too: she and all the others disappeared heading to the exact same spot where I met you all those years ago."
"I wasn't trying to hurt you!" Slendermane gulped. "I- I was only trying to scare you - it's my instinct! But... I wanted to fight against it, so I tried to act friendly. I wanted to hang out a bit... I collected this awesome twig collection over the years I wanted to show you: some from the very first ones of the woods that are now long extinct..."
"You're lyin'," she growled.
"I'm not! Trust me!"
"Then what happened, to Honeycrisp, huh?!" she snapped, a more saddened look in her eyes than scornful. "If you know her name, you must have met her! What the hell did you do to her?!"
"I-I don't know," Slendermane gulped. "I sensed her nearby... tried to do the usual thing, but she was too brave. I should have just forced her back, but I didn't. She went into the deeper woods and just... vanished, after that." He slumped his head in shame. "I'm sorry."
The group glanced at each other, then back at the Slendermane. Finally, the orange pony furrowed her brow.
"Mph - I hate to say, but he does sound like he ain't telling a tall tale."
Granny Smith narrowed her eyes at him. "You sure of that, Applejack? No offense, but just cus' you're the Element of Honesty does not make you a livin' lie detector. Specially against this beastie."
Applejack shrugged. "Even if he is, he's still uh - what's that word Twilight says - sapient - yeah! And sapient critters deserve a fair trial."
"Yeah, a trial!" Slendermane said joyfully, before scratching his head with a tendril. "Wait - what's a trial?"
"You'll see," Applejack grunted. "Now - keep your... your shadow things in the air where we can see them. No sudden movements, alright?"
"Uh- sure," he said, actually managing to freeze his tendrils.
"Now... follow me," she said nervously. "Slowly... we're taking you to a holding cell."
Slendermane quirked his head. "Wah... a holding cell? It's to uh - hold my stuff, right? While I'm at the trial? Cus I don't really have anything on me..."
Ponyville Guard Station
Five Minutes Later
"Ooooooooh," Slendermane said, nodding. "Holding cell. As in - holding me. Gotcha."
Slendermane then sighed, glancing out between the bars - and a new, impenetrable, purple forcefield, at the four ponies in the room."
"Ya sure that thing's gonna hold em', Twilight?" Applejack asked a peculiar, purple alicorn.
Huh, that's weird... I thought only princesses could be those. Maybe it's just a genetic thing.
"I'm not entirely sure," she said. "But it's the best spell I know against dark creatures."
"He's tricky, that one, from what the legends say," Granny Smith said. "He could just be waiting for us to let our guard down."
"Heh, well this guard won't let you down!" an armored, blue, bat-like pony called. "This guy ain't goin' nowhere but the grave!"
"Don't get too cocky, Necrospear," Twilight said.
"Pffft - don't tell me how to do my job, day princess. Trust me, I got this."
Princess? Either she was being sarcastic or... huh. They're usually taller.
"Yes, but I can contact a princess who can."
"No need to get all pissy," she moaned.
"I'm just looking out for you," Twilight moaned. "Princess Luna is only a letter away, you know."
Slendermane chuckled sarcastically. "Yeah... if she isn't too busy laughing her butt off at the situation I'm in. I wonder if that was her plan all along..."
Twilight turned towards him, raising a curious eyebrow.
...
Slendermane cocked his head. "What?"
"Princess Luna is the reason why you're here?"
"She was just the one who tipped the scales," Slendermane shrugged. "I have a lot of reasons for being here. All I wanted was to get out of the forest and see some of the rest of the world: maybe find some people to hang out with. But nope - I get guns in my face. I mean, it was kind of exciting, but still... bullets can't really hurt me, you know. Well - more emotionally than physically, but you get the picture."
"Oh shut your yipper-yapper, Eldy," Granny Smith snapped. "Don't listen to em', Twilight, he's full of it."
"I'm willing to listen to both sides," she said neutrally. "And by the way, Equestria does not support the death sentence, Slendermane..." She winced slightly at the last word.
"Awkward to say in a conversation with me, isn't it? You can just call me Fear if you want."
She shook her head, furrowing her brow. "You know - if I didn't encounter you two years ago, I'd think I had gone insane... again - right now."
"Ooooh, I remember that," Slendermane said. "You didn't have wings back then. By the way, you dropped something."
Twilight squinted an eyebrow. "What are you-"
With that, a book materialized in one of his tendrils, titled: The Pony Mind - By Sealmund Fraud.
Her jaw nearly hit the floor. A small smile overtook her face. "I-Is that?"
"Heh - you betcha."
Twilight furrowed her brow in utter confusion. "You... W-What... what the heck are you?! You're certainly not a normal monster, and I don't think you're a corrupted dark magic user or whatever. As a matter of fact, there are no others of your kind that I know of so... do you mind explaining?"
"To put it simply," he stated. "I'm part of the Everfree Forest's consciousness."
Twilight blinked in awe. "The Everfree Forest... is sapient? It's 'alive'?"
The Slendermane nodded. "Pretty creepy, huh?"
Granny Smith gave a hiss at that, jutting in front of the cell. "Nice try, Slendermane, but I'm on to you. Trying to make Twilight drop the shield so you can gut us all, huh?! Bein' all nice to her to get her to trust ya?!"
"If I wanted to 'gut' you, I could have done it before she even got here!" Slendermane snapped, before taking a deep, apologetic breath. "Miss. Smith - please - I don't want to be your enemy. I'm sorry about what happened to your sister, I really am. I tried to keep her from heading too deep into the-"
Suddenly, he paused.
"Hmph? Keep going," Granny Smith grunted. "I wanna hear this."
She whipped out a hearing horn.
Slendermane ignored it. "That's my purpose, isn't it?" he whispered.
"What purpose?" Twilight asked.
Slendermane looked away from her. How could he have been so blind... well, he had no eyes, but still! He had been alone for thousands of years... how could he have failed to grasp it until now? He had always thought he was just trying to scare ponies because the Everfree Forest wanted some payback, or didn't like anyone within it. However, that might not have been the case.
"The forest isn't trying to scare people people because it doesn't like them... it's afraid," he whispered. He then glanced back at her. "So that means - my purpose isn't to keep ponies out of the woods because the Everfree Forest is angry at them - no, that's not my role. The Everfree Forest is worried about them - worried about them dwelling so deep. I've always known there was some ancient secret within it - something as terrible as Nightmare Moon herself... but what?"
"What are you rambling on about?" Granny Smith grunted.
"And there we have it," Wrath groaned. "Can I leave now? These meetings are stupid and I want to go terrorize Sleepy Hallow. Those pricks are chopping down our trees!" He put on a wicked grin. "Hehe... well I suppose I'll just have to... 'speak' for them, huh?"
He shook his head in disbelief. "It's Wrath! It's afraid of its own Wrath! I - I need to get out of here. I shouldn't be trying to get to know you - it'd kill all the legends about me! You have to be afraid of me!"
"I'm sorry, Slendermane," Twilight said, shaking her head. "But I'm afraid it's too late for that - for all I know, you're trying to trick me right now."
"So, what happens, then?!"
Granny Smith narrowed her eyes.
"What happens? What happens is that you meet the gavel."
"What do you mean he's gone?!" Wrath roared, stamping about Zecora's hut like an angry child. "You're kidding me, right?! Cus there's one problem with that: this joke sucks!"
Zecora sighed. "Why does this bother you, dear Wrath? I always thought you two were destined for a blood bath..."
"Mph," he growled. "Doesn't mean I don't care about the stupid jackass, Pride, even if I want to cut his throat half the time..."
Zecora raised an eyebrow, nonchalantly preparing a new potion as he spoke.
"What?! It's complicated!" he snarled.
"I didn't say anything," she peeped.
He ignored her, continuing with: "-The reason why I care about him though is because the forest cares about him. And it's pissed off that it's gone. And how do I know that it's pissed off?"
"No clue," Zecora chuckled. "Do you?"
"RAUUUUUUUGH!.!.!" The living shadow that was Wrath suddenly turned a piercing red, with blue flames licking the air from it. "BECAUSE I'M PISSED OFF!"
Suddenly, two vials filled with blue and red liquid upon a nearby shelf shattered.
Zecora gave Wrath a glare, and with that, he managed to calm down: his shadowy fur changing back to its usual black.
"Why do you blame him so much?" Zecora grunted. "He might have not have done this had you not busted his gut!"
"I was just telling him as it is!" he hissed. "He needs to accept who he is. I can't believe he hasn't realized this yet, but I need him! The forest has never been too fond of ponies, you know. When they mess with it, I get more and more pissed off... and more powerful! I like maiming, wounding, cutting off a limb or two - but I don't want to get pissed off enough that I..."
He shut his mouth.
"Mmmm, I believe I've had the same thought," Zecora sighed. "Perhaps this is why your head is often so... hot."
He grunted. "I mean - I do want to when I'm pissed, but I want to not want to! You know what I mean?!"
Zecora lifted her eyebrows.
He rolled his glowing eyes. "Whatever - just do me a favor and tell me where that dumb bastard is already, will you? Is he in Ponyville? Is that where he is?!"
Zecora didn't answer.
Wrath face-pawed. "Oh, damnit all. He's lucky he can't die easily, or I'd rip the tendrils off of him!"
At that, he began to thump towards the door. Then, without warning, he let loose a vicious, echoing howl.
...
Silence fell.
Zecora lifted an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"
"Shut up."
...
After a moment, few howls were returned.
"There we go," Wrath grinned.
"You still have not answered my question..." Zecora moaned. "Why do you wish to gather your concession?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Wrath snorted. "I'm going to go get that dumb bastard back! I'll show him what happens when you bite the paw that feeds you!"
"You shall do nothing of the sort!.!.!"
Wrath's eyes widened in malice. He twirled about, glaring at a tall, lone silhouette approaching him.
"Hehehe," he cackled, grinning wickedly. "Well look who it is. You shouldn't be here, you know - it's dangerous to play in the woods-"
A pulsating, blue beam of of light blasted from the silhouette, sending Wrath flying backwards and into Zecora's far wall.
"OOF!" he said, before chuckling darkly. "Ohhh hohoho! Now you bucked up! NOW YOU BUCKED UP! YOU HAVE BUCKED UP NOW!.!.! HOOOOOHAHAHAHAHA!.!.!
With a vicious snarl, he got to his paws and charged the figure, Zecora staring at him in awe. He ducked and rolled as another blast sailed over him, careening into the wall he had just hit.
"Hehehe - nice try, but this old dog can still learn new TRICKS!"
The figure was now in sight, its eyes glowing a hot bright as a storm cloud formed above it. He lunged into the air, his shadow-like teeth dripping with ghostly venom, only for -
"ACK!"
Two massive hooves to careen into him, powered by the wings of an alicorn. He slammed into the dirt, letting loose a shriek, and before he could get into his paws this time, two thunderous hooves pinned him to the ground. He thrashed about like a fish out of water, but couldn't get up...
However, after a moment, he actually stopped, grinning yet again. "So - I'm in my rightful place, aren't I, Princess Luna? Underneath your hooves..."
"Be silent or I will get you a muzzle," she hissed.
"Enough of this!" Zecora shouted, storming before the two, before gazing at Princess Luna suspiciously. "You - what are you doing here? I thought our presence you could barely endear."
"I'm doing a favor for an old... friend," she said, glaring at the two.
"Slendermane?!" Wrath howled with laughter. "You're not his friend! You outright rejected him! He only had something going with Nightmare Moon. And by the way - nice job with that. Hell, seems I have better control of my temper than you do - HAHAHAHA!"
Luna gritted her teeth at him, before taking a deep breath. "I am... in control of my temper." With that, she lifted her hooves off him, before taking a step backward.
Wrath quickly got to his pause, narrowing his eyes. "Yeah, of course you are," he grunted. "People don't change, Princess Luna. Believe me - I know."
She narrowed her eyes as well. "Are you so certain? Why do you think I'm helping Slendermane?"
"Helping him?!" he laughed. "What - so you were the one who encouraged him to leave?!"
"Yes, I did," Luna hissed, before sighing slightly.
"Yet, something went wrong, didn't it?" Zecora said, furrowing her brow.
...
"Or am I... '
Luna began to pace. "You are... correct. I used a spell to nullify Slendermane's passive ability to spread fear and-"
"You did WHAT?!" Wrath roared.
Luna ignored him. "-He took off into town: he was so enthusiastic... I couldn't help but let him leave. However, even with that ability gone, his first attempt at contact went... poorly. He now resides within a prison cell..."
"For a princess, you're not the brightest, are you?" Wrath huffed. "Then again, you are the Princess of the Night. Guess your sis' has you beat on all fronts, doesn't she? Did you really think he would have been able to just waltz into town? Of course he wouldn't be able to! Now - the forest is pissed as hell, and it's all your fault, Your Highhorse!"
He gave a mock bow.
Luna's eye twitched.
"This is no time for placing blame," Zecora sighed. "It is partially our fault that Fear has met such a shame." She then furrowed her brow in thought, tapping her chin, before shrugging. "Well, actually, as a matter of face, I'd have to say it's mostly your fault, Wrath."
"I hate you so much," he snarled, before glancing at Princess Luna. "That goes double for you. And even if it was my fault, it doesn't matter: you're the friggin' princess here. Go free his ass somehow."
"That is not my plan," Luna said, narrowing her eyes.
"Then what is your plan?!"
She grunted slightly. "As much as I hate to admit it..." At that, she actually smirked slightly. "For that, I will need your assistance, Wrath."
...
...
"Wat?" he blinked.
She grinned. "Howl for me. Summon thy pack, my child of the night."
A second later, a series of howls echoed yet again from the Everfree Forest. It was now seven in the morning in Ponyville, and the Crusaders were as restless as possible, having been ordered to stay inside the Apple Family House as soon as they woke up. Upon hearing the wolves, they shivered slightly.
"That's the second time this mornin'," Apple Bloom gulped. "The wolves usually don't go callin' round this time. Wonder what's going on in Everfree?"
Sweetie and Scootaloo shrugged, looking worried as well. "Beats me," the latter said. "I just hope they let us out of here sometime today..."
"That's not going to happen," Sweetie grumbled. "Rarity says that fillies and colts are to stay indoors til the Slendermane's done with his trial."
Apple Bloom chuckled, shaking her head. "It's so weird..."
"What is?" Sweetie said, raising an eyebrow.
"Us referrin' to him like he's a person. He ain't a person... he's a monster - right?"
"Yeah - I've been thinking the same thing," Scootaloo said. "I wonder why?"
"Applejack was talkin' a bit about him last night - to granny - heard em' arguing," Apple Bloom stated. "Said there's no physical evidence that Slendermane's ever hurt anyone... granny didn't like hearin' that. I think she's just lookin' for someone to blame for her poor sister goin' missin' all those years back..."
"B-But what about all the stories!" Scootaloo argued. "All the ones Rainbow Dash told us?"
"Mmmm - but remember what happened with Zecora years back?" Sweetie said. "Seems like when ponies' see something they don't understand they kind of - I dunno - make up stories to fill in the blanks, ya know what I mean?"
"Yeah... I see your point," Apple Bloom nodded. "And Slendermane is pretty scary looking, even if..." She then furrowed her brow. "You know - every time we've seen him, yeah I've felt scared - but - he's never done anything to earn it."
"He was about to throw rocks at us, though!" Scootaloo argued. "Remember back in the woods?"
"Why would he throw rocks at us, though?" Sweetie said, lifting an eyebrow. "If he wanted to hurt us, he could have done it with those shadow tentacle things of his."
Apple Bloom chuckled. "Honestly - it sort of seemed like he was juggling those rocks. Maybe he was bored or somethin'?"
"Or- Or wanted to look less intimidating!" Sweetie said.
Apple Bloom's eyes widened. "As a matter of fact - I think I heard Applejack say that he only wanted to come into town to meet people... to experience life outside of the woods. Makes sense he'd take up a few hobbies." She then sighed. "Man - I feel so bad about running from him now..."
"Same here," Sweetie squeaked.
Scootaloo rolled her eyes. "Ugh - this is going where I think this is going, isn't it?" she mumbled. "We're about to break out of here to visit the Slendermane, aren't we? How do we know he isn't playing games?"
"If Applejack says he ain't lyin', he ain't lyin'," Apple Bloom grunted. "Besides, it's the least we can do."
"Well, alright then -" Sweetie chuckled, before throwing a dramatic fist into the air. "Let's go make friends with an Eldrich Abomination!"
...
...
...
Apple Bloom raised her eyebrows. "What in the name of Equestria is an Eldrack Abominitron?"
Slendermane, sighed, sitting bored in his jail cell. The night guard had long since fallen asleep without alerting anyone to take his post, yet the shield was still active. It didn't matter: he didn't seem too spooked by his presence, but he really didn't have much of a desire to talk to him, either.
"Mph... well, Slendermane. You really screwed up this time. How could you think you could just waltz into town and get away from it? Of course there'd be magic you couldn't handle. Stupid purple pony princess with her purple horn and ... huh - I really hate the color purple..."
He gave a moan, cracking his head against the shield. A small flicker of electricity soared through his scalp.
"OUCH! Damn this thing is strong..." He then took a deep breath, glancing towards the floor. "Great... and this isn't even the worst part. Wait until Wrath hears I got locked up like this. It'll take centuries for him to let it go! Pride will probably laugh behind my back, too, maybe even Fluttershy-"
"Hmmm?"
Slendermane glanced up, gasping in shock. There stood Fluttershy in her natural form: her eyes glowing a soft blue, and vines covering her form. She looked like she was part of the forest itself.
"Um - hi, Fear," she squeaked.
Slendermane shook his head in disbelief. "Uh... hello, Fluttershy. Say... - watcha doin' in your true form? Aren't you afraid someone might... see you?"
"Oh um -," she chuckled. "I haven't been walking around like this. I just needed to transform so I could make sure the guard would stay asleep... you know - so we could talk... naturally."
"Ahhh... that pollen of yours, huh?"
She gave a meek nod. "He won't be out for long... and I've set up a few little friends to let me know if anypony's coming."
"Mph," Slendermane grumbled. "Wish I could do that... and change forms at a will."
"I wish you could too," she said sorrowfully.
Slendermane sighed. "Sorry... I'm just a little jealous, is all... you know I could never be mad at you, Kindness. Besides, you're like that one character in the Batmare comic I found - Deadly Ivy or something - only nice."
She smiled slightly. "T-Thanks... I think."
"I'm glad you've warmed up to me, you know... I thought you'd always be afraid of me."
She chuckled softly "It took me a bit, but I got there. I just wished I had the memories of my former lives... it'd speed up the process."
"Mmmm, weird how that works, isn't it?"
"And confusing," she grumbled. "I still don't know exactly who I am..."
"Welcome to the club," Slendermane chuckled. "So uh- no offense, but what are you here for? Trying to bust me out?"
"Um - I would," she squeaked. "But Twilight's magic is really powerful. However... if it's alright with you, I'd like to vouch for your innocence.."
...
Fluttershy glanced at him hopefully.
Slendermane brought a mock tendril to his chin, before shaking his head. "Yeaaaah.... nope."
"W-What?" she squeaked. "Don't you trust me?"
"No... I just don't trust the townsfolk. Like Zecora said, if either you or her vouched for Mr. Menacing Apple Eater then it'd just place suspicion on you. There's no need for you to ruin your life for mine."
Fluttershy gave a huff. "We're kin, though! Like or not - ... you're like a lost brother I've only just found!"
"You're also very different from me, Fluttershy. I'm sorry- but I can't risk-"
He suddenly paused: his tendrils freezing in place.
"W-What?" she said.
Slendermane gulped. "Uhhh... yeah - bout those detector things... ya sure they work, right?"
"Yeah," she nodded. "They should have-"
He pointed behind her.
Her eyes widened as she twirled about. There stood the three Cutie Mark Crusaders, their jaws dropping at the sight of a spirit of the woods.
"F-Fluttershy?!" Sweetie gasped.
Apple Bloom shook her head, bewildered. "What is this I don't even..."
"Woah - she looks like Deadly Ivy!" Scootaloo beamed.
"Hah! That's what I said!"
Fluttershy merely exhaled, bringing a hoof to her forehead.
The three blinked, more confused than horrorstruck.
...
"F-Fluttershy... that is you, right?" Sweetie squeaked. "You're not like an evil plant-clone, are you?"
She quickly shook her head. "Um- no, it's nothing like that. I uh-... it's very hard to explain. Let's just say - I sort of have... an interesting affiliation with the Everfree Forest."
"She's a manifestation of one of its emotions," Slendermane explained.
"Say wah?!" Apple Bloom grunted, gazing at him suspiciously.
"Yeah, are you talking about?" Scootaloo said, raising her eyebrows.
"Seriously. This day just got really weird," Sweetie added.
Fluttershy sighed, kneeling down to their level. "Don't be afraid. I am the Fluttershy you know. It's just - a few years back I discovered who I truly was. I couldn't understand it myself, but it makes more sense to me now." She then took a deep breath. "I'm the 140th reincarnation of the Everfree Forest's kindness."
Sweetie shook her head in disbelief. "Are you saying that the woods are - alive?"
Slendermane nodded. "Mhmmm. And she's not the only one. I'm its emotion of Fear."
They began to back away from him: nervously.
"He's not mean, though!" Fluttershy said. "He only scares ponies, he doesn't-"
"Fluttershy, no!" he huffed, shaking his head. If he were to play the nice guy now, he might no longer be able to serve his purpose. He had to make fear him. He let loose a deep sigh. "I know who I am. There are things I haven't told you. I uh - I do all sorts of horrible stuff you don't know about! I eat ponies and um... er... trample on tulips?"
Her eyes widened in horror. "You monster!"
"Yeah!" he said proudly. "I totally am!"
The three crusaders raised their eyebrows.
"Waiiit a minute," Apple Bloom coughed. "How can you even eat ponies: you don't have a mouth!"
"Er- uh," Slendermane stuttered. "The same way I eat apples!"
Even Scootaloo furrowed her brow in suspicion. "Uh huh. So you eat ponies and... juggle for fun?"
"Yeah!" Slendermane said, nodding rapidly.
"You sound like you're trying to act like a monster!" Sweetie pointed out.
Slendermane gave a growl. He would have to step up his act. "You fools - I only came into town to gather meat!" Suddenly, he pressed his upper body against the forcefield, his tendrils wiggling frantically. The fillies began backing up again.
"Fear, stop this!" Fluttershy shouted.
"B-Buck off, Kindness!" he snarled.
Her eyes widened in shock. Giving him a glare that could kill, she darted in front of the three fillies, a series of vines flicking off her back and writhing in the air as well.
"I will give you the stare if you keep this up!" she spat.
It as an empty threat: he knew it wouldn't work on him. He wanted with all his might to start piercing the three fillies' minds: to make them see their worst nightmares and fears... yet he couldn't bring him self to.
As Fluttershy gazed at him with saddened, disappointed eyes, he retracted his tendrils and slumped to the floor of his cell.
"I-I'm sorry," he whispered. "That- that is not who I am..."
"W-What?!" Sweetie said, baffled.
"Slendermane - did you just make all that up?" Fluttershy said, a slow smile creeping on her face.
He nodded shamefully.
Apple Bloom furrowed her brow. "B-But why?"
He took a deep, saddened breath. "Cus - to put it simply, my role is to keep people from going to deep into the woods. The forest is afraid they'll be hurt by it. In particular, its other emotion - Wrath. But there's more than that... there's something deep in the forest that isn't to be found. Something not meant for the eyes of this world."
"Huh? How do you know this?" Fluttershy asked.
Slendermane shrugged. "I don't know - as soon as I figured out my true purpose, I just kind of... learned about it. Maybe one of my memories unlocked, who knows? But it doesn't matter. All those disappearances in the woods were my fault in a way."
"How can you say that?" Fluttershy gasped.
"Because I failed in my purpose. I'm supposed to keep ponies from dwelling too deep: and there were times when I let them pass: not realizing the true dangers I was putting them in." He sighed. "Honeycrisp was one of those ponies... and another a hundred years back. Daring Do, I believe. There were many others, as well, not all ponies, either."
"Woah! I wonder if Rainbow Dash knows about that," Scootaloo pondered.
Sweetie brought a hoof to her chin. "So... you're not really a bad guy - you're just supposed to act like one."
Slendermane nodded. "And none of you can tell anypony about this, do you understand? That goes for Kindness- er Fluttershy, too."
"Huh?" Sweetie said. "B-But why?!"
"Yeah, that's totally awesome what you guys really are!" Scootaloo beamed. "You could be like - a superhero duo or something!"
Fluttershy blinked in disbelief. "R-Really? You don't think it's weird?"
"Of course it's weird," Scootaloo chuckled. "But weird can be awesome, like Sweetie Belle-"
"Hey!" she growled.
"-And you look awesome!"
Fluttershy blushed slightly. "Well - thank you, though I prefer my other form..."
"I guess I look kind of cool, too..." Slendermane chuckled, before sighing slightly. "But the point is - you can't tell anyone because I have to keep up the facade that I'm a monster."
Sweetie quickly raised her eyebrows. "B-But Slendermane..."
Before she could continue, Fluttershy let loose an eep. "Somepony is coming! We have about a minute."
"Now they're working?!" Slendermane cried.
"What's working?" Sweetie asked curiously.
"No time," Fluttershy squeaked. "I suppose that fillies are too small to be detected: that's how you got passed! Girls - go ahead and get out of here and sneak home!"
"W-What about you?" Apple Bloom peeped.
"I'll be fine," she smiled, as her vines slowly began to detract into her fur. She was beginning to look more and more normal by the second. "Now, get going! I-If you don't mind..."
"Alright," Sweetie grumbled, before smiling the Slendermane's way. "But before we go - we're sorry for running from you..."
"Yeah!" Scootaloo said. "And there's no way we're going to let them lock you up!"
Slendermane merely cocked his head, awestruck. "You mean... you're not afraid of me at all?"
"Of course not!" Apple Bloom giggled. "You seem like a nice enough... Eldrack Demobination. You're not bad at all!"
"So... you don't even sense there's something wrong about me?"
The three shrugged. "You're just another species, that's all," Sweetie explained. "There's nothing wrong with that. You're no different than a pegasus or a griffin is to me!"
Fluttershy smiled brightly, winking at Slendermane. "See."
At that, Slendermane took a deep breath. "I guess Wrath was dead wrong. I am so going to kick his wooden flank! Cus though I may be a freak, I suppose I belong in this world as much as anyone..."
"Darn right!" Scootaloo called.
With that, the sound of a distant conversation could be heard.
"Come on, girls. I'll take you home," Fluttershy said, now back to her regular form. She smiled yet again at the Slendermane. "Everything will be fine, Fear. I'll try to find a way to free you if you can't do it yourself."
"I appreciate it - I have a job to do, after all," Slendermane beamed.
Sweetie shook her head. "But you might not need to -"
"Your secret is safe with us," Scootaloo smiled, throwing a hoof in front of Sweetie's mouth. "Come on, you two - I don't want to be grounded for the rest of my life!"
"Yeah - let's go!" Apple Bloom nodded. "Bye, Slendermane."
"Bye!"
He blinked.
"Good... Bye?" Slendermane whispered in awe, as the group scrambled out the door.
He shook his head in disbelief. Good bye? A bye that wasn't a shriek? From regular old mortals...?
"I guess coming here was a good idea, after all," he chuckled. "They're good people, these ponies... worth keeping my role to protect. Even if I need to be alone and stuff to do it..."
At that, a contingent of militia members, including Applejack and Granny Smith, a number of day guards, as well as Princess Twilight entered the night station.
"Alright, Slendermane," Twilight said, a neutral tone to her voice. "It's time."
Slendermane merely nodded. He remained silent all the way to the courthouse.
"Tell me again, Twilight, why did you want me to be the judge again?" the Doctor grumbled, taking his seat at the podium of a large, multi-rowed courthouse. The house was packed at the moment with all walks of curious onlookers... as well as the supposed 'victims' of Slendermane's wrath.
Twilight smiled slightly, rolling her eyes. "Because 1. You're one of the smartest ponies in Ponyville, 2. Judge Gavel is sick, and 3. You've dealt with all the strange, strange creatures of Equestria longer than anyone has. You're more qualified to judge Slendermane than anyone. Speaking of which: what do you know about him?"
"Not too much," the Doctor admitted. "All I know is that he seems to be unique to his species. Last of his kind, maybe? Interdimensional traveler? Remnant from a universe before our own? I'm not sure."
"All those theories sound insane," Twilight said, raising an eyebrow.
"I know? Isn't it brilliant!" the Doctor grinned. "You know, I take it back. It's not often that I get to deal with something I know nothing about! This should be fun!"
"Just make sure to concentrate on judging and not researching," Derpy grumbled.
"Yes, yes, smack the hammer make a sentence jibbidy-jabbadi-di," the Doctor sighed, before gazing at Twilight curiously. "But before we begin: is there even any evidence that Slendermane is guilty? Physical that is, not just speculation?"
"Not really..." Twilight grumbled.
The Doctor rolled his eyes, throwing her a blank look. "Then don't you think there might be a small case of guilt before association in this case? I mean, seriously, this whole thing just screams 'misunderstood but freaky looking monster.'"
Twilight huffed slightly. "It could also be that the freaky looking Eldrich Abomination said to kill ponies is actually a freaky looking Eldrich Abomination that kills ponies."
"Surprisingly cynical of you to say," the Doctor said, lifting an eyebrow. "Though that'll change a bit over the years..."
Twilight raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"Nothing," the Doctor chirped, grinning sheepishly, before Derpy planted a hoof in his side. "OUCH! Hey - what was that for?!"
She gave him a blank look. "Quit screwing with the timeline and it won't happen!"
Twilight raised her eyebrows. "I'm just trying to see both sides of the picture here. I trust you to do the same."
"Righto," he moaned. "Come on, let's get this witch hunt-" He coughed. "I mean trial - over with."
Twilight nearly banged her head against the podium. "You're impossible."
"Welcome to my world," Derply chuckled.
"You know you love it," the Doctor smirked, before turning towards a nearby guard. "Righto then. Bring in the-" He chuckled to himself slightly. "The uh- Slendermane."
"Doctor!" Derpy hissed.
"What?! It's so awkward to say out loud!"
"Ugh..."
Only a second later, the doors to the courtroom flew open. The Slendermane appeared from the outside, earning a few gasps from the audience. He was circled by numerous guards, including two who were casting a strange spell that trapped the creature in a blue bubble.
He made his way inside and took a seat.
"Wow ," the Doctor coughed, shaking his head. "I've seen some strange things in my time, but-"
"All rise for the honorable, and completely spastic, Judge..." She winced in thought. "Um... Judge... The Doctor."
The courtroom rose, gazing at both him and the Slendermane apprehensively.
"Alright, now you can sit!" the Doctor quickly said, smirking slightly.
They did so.
His smirk grew. "Now stand again!"
A few murmurs of annoyance came from them, though they followed his instructions.
The Doctor grinned widely. "Now... everyone say Allonz-y on three! One! Two! -"
"Just get on with it, dag namit!" Granny Smith snarled. "I swear- if he wasn't the Doctor..."
The Doctor coughed, gaining smirks from Twilight and Derpy. "Right - please be seated."
With sighs of relief, the audience finally did so.
The Slendermane giggled slightly to himself. "Why is this guy so awesome? And where did he get that suit? It looks pretty good on him."
The Doctor then glanced at him.
"Will he who is nicknamed the Slendermane, Slendermare, Slendy, Tall Mare... ext. ext. ext., come before the podium, please?" he moaned. "I have a few questions to ask."
The Slendermane cocked his head slightly, before moving before the podium. "Call me Fear, Doctor."
The Doctor gazed down at him, furrowing his brow and clearing his throat. "Very well, Fear. You have been charged with a number of crimes, including murder, kidnapping, property distruction, and um - book thievery?" He glanced at Twilight. "That's uh- that's not a law -"
She blushed slightly. "I um - I retract that. I wrote it before Slendermane gave it back to me."
The Doctor slowly shook nodded. "And she says I'm the spastic... Righto, then - you have also been charged with public disturbance and uh..." He gave Twilight another blank look. "Tax evasion?! Seriously?!"
"Hey- Don't look at me!" Twilight said defensively. "That was the ERS."
The Slendermane nodded. "Er yeah... that's kind of weird: I don't really have anything besides what I've found... Does Equestria have a head tax or something?"
Twilight glanced to the side, mumbling: "Stuff that you stole, you mean."
"Ugh - enough," the Doctor groaned. He then blinked in utter incredulity, before shaking his head and glancing back at the list. "Well, that pretty much bloody covers it. Anything else to tuck on the list? Indecent exposure, maybe?!"
...
He smirked. "Well I have one: failing to tell the Doctor where you got that lovely suit, Fear."
The Slendermane shrugged, chuckling. "Heh - thanks, but I was just kind of born with it."
The Doctor chuckled slightly. "Oh, I bloody love Eldrich Abominations... However, now it's time to get serious - Slendermane, you understand the crimes you are accused of?"
He nodded. "I do."
"Then how do you plead?"
...
The Slendermane stood silent for a second, expecting the majority of the ponies in the crowd to be on the edge of their seats. However, he had determined how the outcome of this trial before it began. They had to fear him... for their own sake. A large part of him regretted this. The Doctor was clearly on his side... yet it was the right thing to do.
With that in mind, he sighed deeply, before uttering a single sentence:
"Guilty of all crimes and more, you pathetic walking meals."
As the Doctor's eyes widened, and the courtroom gasped, the Slendermane suddenly flung a multitude of tendrils into the blue shield, cracking it in an instant.
"I KNEW IT!" Granny Smith roared. "We should have taken him down when we had the chance!"
"Sucks to be you," he said coldly.
Twilight narrowed her eyes. "I can't believe this! I actually thought you were innocent, you son of a bitch!" She gritted her teeth. "Either way, retract those freaky shadows of yours or I'll-"
However, before her horn could even sparkle, she was struck by a duo of tendrils, slamming her into the judge's podium and knocking her out cold.
"The Princess!" one of the guards gasped. "Hurry! Take that thing down before he gets warmed up!"
The group of guards charged forth, some wielding spears, some wielding magic. The Slendermane merely closed his eyes, before mentally screaming:
"I WANT EVERYONE TO HEAR: ABOUT DA BIRD! BIRD BIRD BIRD - BIRD IS THE WORD-"
"Oh god... OH GOD!"
"THE HORROR! THE HORROR! MAKE IT STOP!"
"AGGGGGGHHHH!.!.!"
One after another, they collapsed to the floor, gripping their heads in pain: paralyzed.
The Slendermane then twirled about towards the audience, chuckling darkly. Time to sell it... he thought.
"For too long you have wondered into the darkness of my forests, thinking: the Slendermane isn't real, isn't he? He's just a legend! Yet these foolish thoughts are what get so many of you killed. That is why I have come here: to do a favor for you. Now you know that I am very real - and that I'm also very intelligent." He took a menacing step forward, strange, ethereal whispers filling the minds of the attendees. "And before I take my leave, I have just one warning to you: stray too deep into the Everfree Forest and you will never, ever come out!"
Without a second of waiting, he then galloped towards the wall of the courtroom and ripped open a hole in it, before galloping outside and towards the Everfree Forest.
Slendermane smiled on the inside, darting like a shooting star towards the edge of the woods. The trial was over: his case now rested in pieces. And with it, he had forever cemented his claim as the butcher of the Everfree Forest. Yet still, a part of him felt content: if those three little fillies judged him as a decent guy, he couldn't truly be an abomination, could he? He would always remain the misunderstood sentinel of the woods, but would it be so bad from now on?
"I'm 'bad', and that's good. I'm not good, and that's not bad," he sang to himself. "I will never be anyone... but-"
"Halt right there, criminal scum!"
He ground to a halt. Standing before him, as if having come out of nowhere, was a plethora of ponies. He saw Princess Twilight, Granny Smith, Applejack, and even the Doctor and that weird-eyed assistant of his... who shot him a blank look.
"Seriously?" she groaned. "That joke is older than you are!"
"It's retro!" he argued. "Retro is cool! Elder Scrolls was one of the best board games ever made!" He grinned. "In fact, I used to play it all the time, but then I took an arrow to the - OOF!"
Derpy landed a blow on the Doctor's knee. "I hate that joke even more..." she muttered.
The Slendermane cocked his head in bafflement. "Woah - how did all of you-" He quickly cleared his throat, gaining strange looks from the crowd. "I mean- you foalish mortals dare challenge me?! Don't you know who I am?!"
"Ya know, for a thing with no mouth, you still talk wayyyy too much," Twilight mumbled, her horn already powering up.
"Bubble him, Twilight!" Granny Smith growled, glaring at the beast. "You think you could escape what's comin' to ya just like that? I knew this would happen, that's why I brought a stash of my friends here." She leveled her rifle. "I may be just an old mortal, but my mind's still as keen as it was all those years ago."
Slendermane sighed slightly. Threatening an old lady was not something he wished to do: so he simply remained quiet. A bubble of purple soon surrounded him, though he didn't mind. There would always be a chance to escape at a later time, but there was no way it could be this one. As more and more guards and militia ponies poured into the scene, completely surrounding him with guns, crossbows, spears, and pies, Twilight spoke up:
"Don't even try any mental tricks. The Doctor's modified his sonic thing to - uh..." she blinked towards him.
"Cancel out high-band frequencies he can use against use," the Doctor said proudly.
Twilight shook her head in shame. "How did I not remember that?" She then cleared her throat, before glaring back at the Slendermne. "Anyway, as Granny Smith has stated-"
"I'm confiscating your eternal life," the Doctor pronounced. "As well as sentencing you to one hundred days community service! Now: it's off to jail with you! Nopony... or freaky tendril thing, breaks the law on my watch!"
"I hate you. I hate you. I hate you," Derpy muttered.
The Doctor grinned. "No you don't."
The Slendermane stood stoic, resisting with all his might to chuckle at the duo's antics.
Twilight let loose a deep sigh, before shooting the Slendermane with one last glare before pointing towards the Day Guard Barracks. "Guards, follow me!" she proclaimed.
As the commotion continued, nopony realized they were being watched by the woodland's eyes. At first, there were only two pairs, one normal, and one glowing yellow. However, slowly, but surely, they multiplied, and soon it seemed as if the whole forest was watching the spectacle.
"Fear stands alone," Princess Luna whispered to her nearby partner. "Now is the chance to intervene on his behalf."
Wrath quickly nodded. "And uh - no killing stuff, right?"
Luna glared at him. "If you value your existence, then I would advise against it."
"Yeah yeah," he grunted. "I'm just glad you have me on a leash. Otherwise, my pack would be making glue tonight..."
Luna gave a moan. "You're sure you're ready for this? On a scale to One to Ten, how pissed are you?"
"Eight."
"That's surprising."
He chuckled darkly. "Mainly because it's funny seeing Slendermane get carted off in a purple bubble. Totally worth this." He then sighed. "However, I don't like acting like a prick, you know. It's just... my nature. So I suppose he's earned a little bit of help from his... 'friends' for all the crap I've given him." He grinned wickedly. "And my friends too!"
Luna smiled at him, her eyes twinkling. "Thou art a noble demon in the end, Wrath. Bring forth good tidings of fear!"
He smirked back at her. "Heh - I'm actually starting hate you a little less, you know. Just a little. Though I gotta ask: why aren't you helping out ole' Slendy?"
She sighed slightly. "Because in the end: trust can't just be given away. I learned that the hard way. Now... commence Operation Howlstrum."
"Yeah- alright," Wrath grunted. "But you should be banned from naming things, you know."
Luna chuckled at him, and with that, he stuck his snout into the air, before echoing forth a tremendous howl.
Fifty howls echoed back.
As they approached the jail cell, the congregation escorting Slendermane halted, all glancing towards the Everfree Forest.
"Again with the howling?" Applejack muttered. "What in the world is going on in there? Are the timberwolves having a family reunion?"
Twilight swallowed hard at that, however, before pointing towards the forest. "Y-Yeah, and I think I know who's on the menu for dinner..."
What? the Slendermane thought.
"Huh?" Applejack said, squinting, before glancing, bewildered, at Twilight again. "Twilight, what do your alicorn eyes see? I don't see anything!"
The group turned to her. She simpered slightly. "Uh... an army of Timberwolves... heading this way?"
The group gasped at that, their ears perking at the sound of a low rumbling, a series of howls, and vicious snarls. A second later, what only Twilight could see came into view: a battalion of Timberwolves, heading right to town.
Oh crap...
"Oooohohoho nelly," Applejack gulped. "I've never seen a pack that big!"
Granny Smith turned, glaring at the Slendermane. "Friends of yours?!"
The Slendermane froze in place, even his tendrils. Why in the world was Wrath launching an attack on the town? To get him back? To punish the Slendermane himself?
Wrath... what the hell are you doing?! You're going to get your pack slaughtered! If the two main princesses are summoned... hell, even if Luna catches wind... you're going to be kindling!
The Slendermane sighed heavily. If he could: he had to help the town. This could have been all his fault. Besides, even if it cost him their fear of him, at least there would be less Timerwolves in the woods, though Wrath would be reincarnated quickly enough...
"Hmmm?" Granny Smith said, tapping her hoof as if waiting for an answer.
At that, he took a deep, content-filled breath. "It is the Pack of Wrath: a legendary Timerberwolf. I don't know why he's here, but you'll need to defend yourselves..."
"Are they here for you?" Twilight asked, glancing at him in suspiciously.
"I'm not sure..." he shrugged.
At that, Twilight nodded. "Then let's not take any chances," she said, narrowing her eyes. "Guards, militia, anyone willing to fight! Take up positions on the edge of town! Don't start attacking until I give the order!"
"Who's going to watch Mr. Tendrils, then?" the Doctor asked.
"Me," Twilight grunted. "I'm going to to go talk with them. There has to be a connection between the Slendermane being here and their attack. I'm going to find out what. Come along, Slendermane..."
"Yes, mom," he grunted, as Twilight took off into a gallop towards the charging wolves, Slendermane in tow. "Woah!"
"Stop complaining," she snapped, as the two made their way through town square. The ponies there were in a state of panic, some grabbing any weapon they could, though most finding cover in the various houses or shops. "It's your fault they're here, you know."
"Look, I don't know why they're here!" the Slendermane huffed. "Wrath is a prickish guy, and his anger levels are linked to Everfree. I suppose the Everfree Forest is pissed off that I'm gone or something, I don't know!"
"We're not giving you back," Twilight huffed. "You still have to answer for your crimes."
"You mean the ones I made up?"
"What?!"
"That's right, I lied, OK?!" Slendermane sighed, as the two continued to gallop along. They were now on the outskirts of the town. On the rooftops a number of musket-bearing ponies could be seen taking position, and on the streets a number of armored guards braced for the incoming assault.
"You're waiting until now to say this?!"
"Look, I'm just doing my job, OK! I'm supposed to keep ponies out of the woods, and it wasn't til like literally six hours ago when I realized why that was."
"Yes, and I almost believed you, then!" Twilight growled. The two were now galloping through the fields of grass towards the outskirts of town. A single duo approaching a wave of moving timber. "Yet you said it was all a trick-"
"Oh come on! Don't you get it?! I had to lie - and you know why?! It's because contrary to currently evidence, I actually think you ponies are worthy of protection! Protection against your own curiosity! How was I supposed to keep you all afraid of me if I was becoming a sellout?!" He then took a deep breath.
"What do you mean?!" Twilight cried, now only a few hundred meters from the lead wolf...
"I mean I am who I am! I've accepted that! Have you read that one book, Ruckus-Ralph? Remember the lesson of it?!"
Twilight screeched to a halt, her eyes widening. She then glanced at the Slendermane, a sympathetic look on her face. "You'll never be anything but who you are?"
He nodded.
"You mean -," Twilight said, shaking her disbelief. "You were willing to give up the chance to actually get what you want: to have a life outside of the woods... all to keep us safe?"
"That's right." He then took a deep breath. "But now... the jig us up. I have to help you fight these guys..."
Twilight stood still for a moment, dumbfounded. "I'm not sure if I can trust you..."
"Can't blame you..."
The Timberwolves continued to charge.
Twilight turned her attention towards them.
"HALT!" she bellowed.
And to the duo's disbelief, the lead wolf did just that, the pack following his example. Both parties stood in steady silence, the tension hanging in the air like a heavy blanket.
...
"Hehehe..."
Twilight raised an eyebrow.
"HAHAHAHAHA!.!.!"
A grim laughter echoed from the lead wolf: a massive thing, twice the size of a normal one. With one solid, menacing footstep, he lurched forward, meeting Princess Sparkle's eyes.
"Well - well... look who it is. The newest creation of Princess Celestia's neediness," he grinned. With that, he began to circle her and the Slendermane, Twilight watching his every move. "Tell me: what excuse did she have to give you for the gift of eternal life?"
"Don't try toying with me," she hissed.
Wrath gave another dark chuckle. "Honey, I know a thing or two about anger, and there's nothing that pisses people off more than telling what they don't want to hear..."
"I don't want to hear it because it's a waste of time!" she snapped. "You don't even know me! How do you think you can get inside of my head?"
"Hmph - you're right. Don't waste your time or time will waste... you, right? Time you could be spending with your mortal friends. Tell me: how does it feeling knowing you're going to watch the life you were born with slowly wither away and die? Hmmm?"
"Wrath, why are you such a dick to everyone you meet?" Slendermane groaned.
"First impressions matter, you know," he chuckled. "And I see you made an excellent one to the townies here... shame I've come to bring you back to where you belong: it was kind of funny seeing you being kicked around by those who used to fear you so much. Now... you're just a pathetic, washed up excuse for a monster."
"Wait," Twilight said, lifting her brow. "You're here to... bring him back?"
"You know it," Wrath winked. "You see, Slendy here abandoned his post and managed to make an ass out of himself while doing it. He's going to have to step up his game to really fulfill his destiny... so I'm taking him to get a few modifications..."
"W-What?" Slendermane gasped.
"That's right, my friend," Wrath chuckled. "I spoke with the forest itself-"
"Impossible!"
"And it is... unpleased with your performance. You came here to kill the image of you being a murderous monster. You may have succeeded... and that's why, to best make sure nopony enters our domain... you're going to be given the will to kill. The best way to spawn legends is if those legends are real, right?"
Slendermane swallowed hard. "This is messed up, Wrath... even for you!"
"Don't shoot the messenger," he shrugged. "Though I do love a compliment." At that, he glared at Princess Sparkle, who stood frozen with disbelief. "Now then - I give you two options. Give up the Slendermane, or watch us make sure none of you will tread where you're not supposed to ever again. Get my picture?"
"You wouldn't!" she gasped.
"Try me."
...
Twilight glanced at the Slendermane...
"Do it, Twilight... let me go," the Slendermane whispered, bowing his head shamefully.
She glanced at Wrath...
"Listen to him..." Wrath grinned.
Finally, she narrowed her eyes in a stern resolve. "I think I'll take the third option," she said smoothly.
"There is no third option!" Wrath grunted.
"Oh yes there is," she chuckled. "Slendermane lives to protect us, right? Well: why does it always have to be through fear"!
Suddenly, to his surprise, the purple bubble-shield dissipated from around him, and Twilight turned her horn towards wrath.
"You want him? You'll have to get through me."
Wrath actually smiled slightly. "Slendermane... are you really going to let her die for you?"
"Just let me go, Princess Twilight" he sighed.
"You don't have an option," she grunted. "I'm not about to let you lose your choice to not kill for my own sake. Fight with us, and perhaps we can take them down."
Slendermane stood silent a moment, glancing at her. Finally, after a moment, he chuckled.
"You know what, screw it! How could I say no to kicking Wrath's ass?"
He nodded respectfully towards Twilight, before taking a stand besides her. The wolves moved to surround them, barking and snapping their jaws.
"The only thing to fear is Fear itself, right?" Twilight winked.
Slendermane giggled. "Hah! You're not so bad, Twili... even if I really hate the color purple for whatever reason."
"Even you must fear oblivion, Slendermane," Wrath snarled.
Slendermane shook his head in mock pity. "Pfffft... come on, seriously?! Don't you know who I am?!"
Both Wrath and Twilight raised eyebrows at him.
Slendermane took a deep breath, and in an ultra-badass, low voice, proclaimed:
"I'm the mother bucking Slendermane, bitch!"
"Hah! Definitely going on your tombstone!" Wrath smirked, before releasing a tremendous howl. "ALRIGHT, BROTHERS! YOU KNOW THE PLAN! RIP THE TOWN TO SHREDS! HOOOOOHAHAHAHAHA!.!.!.!"
And so the battle began.
Many things happened at once. Most of the Timberwolves, save for Wrath and a small group circling both the Slendermane and Twilight, charged towards the town's lines, while Twilight's horn began to sparkle and crack.
SHIIIIING!.!.!
A beam of light ripped out from it, aimed directly at Wrath.
He grinned, ducked it, and then launched himself into the air.
SHIIIIINGGGG!.!.!
Another beam flew below him.
"Mmmm... never fought a battle, have you?" he cackled, landing behind her and twirling about.
Meanwhile, the circle of wolves charged forward, hoping to overwhelm the Princess of Magic.
"Yeaaaah... nope."
SLING!
SLING-SLING-SL-SL-SL-SL-SLING!.!.!
A fury of tendrils ripped off the Slendermane's back, batting away wolf after wolf. They landed in the open field around the duel, some snapping in half, others laying motionless. However, despite this, he couldn't hit them any quicker than they could recover and charge again.
Half a kilometer away, Granny Smith watched the duel in awe. "What the hell is that thing up to now?!" she snapped.
"Looks like he's givin' a helping... shadow tentacle," Applejack grunted.
"Hah! I knew I was right about him!" the Doctor grinned.
"Can we please concentrate on not getting overwhelmed and then deal with the Slendy issue?!" Derpy moaned. "Sweet Celestia, and they judge me for my eyes..."
"She's right!" Applejack hollered. "All militia, open fire!"
"You heard her!" a ranking militia member called. "Light em up!"
With that command, a literal wave of bullets and arrows rained from the town. They cracked into the wolves, cracking wooden legs in half and turning others into splinters. It was enough to wipe out nearly a third of them. However, they still outnumbered the town's defenders three-to-one....
"Oh sweet mother apple!" Granny Smith gulped. "By the time they get here, only the crossbows will be reloaded..." She then narrowed her eyes. "Whelp, better than nothing! All crossbow bearers, reload! The rest of ya'll, get your sticks n' stones or whatever ya got for short range ready!"
"You got it, commander!"
"Wah? I thought I was the leader," Applejack pouted.
"Silly filly," Granny chuckled. "I was leadin' the militia when you were still learnin' to walk!"
"But you retired!"
She shrugged. "Guess I'm uh... what do you youngins' say, back in the game?"
"Yeah..." Applejack gulped, glancing at the far-away duel between Twilight and Wrath. "I just hope Twilight stays in it..."
Twilight gasped and stood on hind legs, using her wings to stabilize herself.
CLACK!
Wrath lunged towards her, his upper torso colliding with the hooves. He jutted his head forward, snapping at Twilight's face only an inch away while simultaneously trying to dig his claws into her.
"This is just hilarious! How the hell do you think you can protect a country when you can't even protect yourself?!" he cackled.
She gritted her teeth. "I'm only one of many, you monster!"
Yet again, he roared with laughter, before backing down from that attack, quickly ducking, and-
SLASSSH!.!.!
- Swiping at her legs.
"EEEEEP!" she screeched, collapsing upon it as blood poured from a claw-mark. Soon, she began to flap her wings... but not Wrath grinned wickedly, and-
CRUNNNCH!.!.!
- Launched his snout upward and sank his teeth into her right wing.
"AGHHHHH!"
"No flying for you," he chuckled. "That's just cheating."
"Hey!" Slendermane hissed. "Leave that overpowered alicorn alone!"
Wrath rolled his eyes. "I'm not sure if it's more funny or more pathetic: you defending those who have always treated us like scum!" At that, he opened his jaw wide, before putting the collapsing princess' neck between two sets of jagged, black teeth. "Allow me to sympathize with the devil as well, then. If I kill her, she won't have to watch her friends slowly die!"
...
As the wolves clashed against swords, shields, and pies, Applejack stared in horror at the scene a half-a-click away.
"Twilight!" Applejack gasped. "Oh my gosh- that big one's about to kill her!"
The Doctor shook his head. "That's impossible! Princess Sparkle isn't supposed to die at this point in time!"
Applejack gave him a baffled look. "Well, check your future... uh- history, Doc! She looks like she's about to bite it to me!"
At that, Granny Smith grunted, before shoving two, loaded pistols in Applejack's dual holsters. "Well then, it just got personal. As far as I'm concerned, your friends are family. And nothing's gonna mess with that."
At that, the Doctor nodded, before drawing a hidden bo-staff from his pocket. He had not lifted a hoof to fight the whole time. "Mph. And nothing messes with the timeline on my watch."
"Seriously, Doctor?!" Derpy grunted. "How long have you had that on you?!"
He shrugged. "Not long. I carry a bo-staff now. Bo-staffs are cool."
...
Derpy glanced at him blankly...
"What?"
"... Can uh- I have one."
The Doctor grinned widely, before handing her one.
Granny actually gave him a respectful smile. "You may be a goofy one at times, Doc, but ain't we all? I was wrong about you."
He shrugged. "Most are at first."
"Come on, less chattin', we gotta bust through the fighting!" Applejack grunted.
"Right then!" the Doctor cried.
"Follow me, youngin's!" Granny Smith called, before leading the quartet into the fooray.
WHACK!
POW!
CRAAAACK!.!.!
With pistols, bo-staffs, and even pies, they began to cut through the Timberwolf lines and towards the Slendermane and Twilight beyond... save for Derpy.
"Uhhh... Doctor?! How do you use this thing?!" she cried, struggling to swing her bo-staff.
"JUST PINATA STUFF, WEEEEEEE!.!.! ALLLONZ-Y!"
She hoof-palmed, a wolf charging at her. "Not helping!"
...
"Shut the buck up! Like you know anything about friends, Wrath!" Slendermane shouted.
"And you do?"
Slendermane snarled. "Maybe not, but I'm learning!"
"If you say 'Friendship is Magic' next, I'm going to puke woodchips," he gagged.
The Slendermane giggled. "Na, that would be kind of silly." With that, two tendrils ripped from his back, blasting the giant Timberwolf off his hold on Princess Sparkle. At the same time, he simultaneously continued to bat away attacking his cronies. "You know, this is actually kind of awesome! We should do this more often, Wrathy..."
Suddenly, Wrath froze, the rest of the nearby timberwolves doing the same.
"What did you say?" he said, deadpan.
Slendermane cocked his head. "What? We should do this more often?"
"No... not that, the other thing. What's my name again, Slendermane?"
The Slendermane brought a hoof to his chin, pausing in mock thought, before chirping: "Wrathy-"
"WRONG!"
Slendermane froze at that, as the previously black Timberwolf's still fur became a raging inferno of blue fire.
Fear itself whimpered. "Oh crap-"
"RAUUUUUUUUGH!.!.!"
Wrath surged forward like a force of nature, ripping through every tendril the Slendermane through at him. Within a millisecond, he was sending fiery claw after fiery claw at him.
"Woah!" Slendermane cried, dodging and parrying attack after attack. "We-"
SLASH!
"Can-"
"CLACCCK!.!.!
"Work-!"
SWWWIPPEEEE!.!.!
"THIS-"
"RAUUUUUGH!.!.!"
"OUTTTT!.!.!"
It was too late, however. Wrath's jaw was closing in on his neck. Slendermane shivered, his long life of fear flashing before his eyes. He barely had any time to think of what might be ahead, when-
BAM!
BAM!
"SHREEEEAAAAH!"
Two bullets struck Wrath's side, severing both his head and his legs.
"Huh. I feel a little.... tingly," Wrath said, blinking, before the rest of his body dissipated into smoke.
The Slendermane gasped, looking for the origin of his savior...
"Mmmm... I s'pose you can count this as my apology, Mr. Fear," Granny Smith chuckled, blowing a trail of smoke away from the barrel of his gun. Standing beside her, Applejack did the same thing, smiling at him.
If he had eyes, they would be widening.
"HIIIIIYAAA!"
"WEEEEEE!"
At that, the Doctor and Derpy sailed out of nowhere, sending two staffs sailing towards the ring of timberwolves...
CLUNK!
CLUNK!
Who... were no longer there. Their two staffs struck mud instead.
"Well then," the Doctor grunted, trying to yank it out. "I suppose that took care of itself, didn't it?"
Slendermane would have to agree. As the dust and smoke settled from the battle, and as the town's defenders gave a collective sigh, it seemed that the entire army of wolves had either vanished or had fallen apart.
"Mmm, and our farm's wood supply for the winter," Applejack chirped.
"W-Why does that seem wrong," Twilight grunted, trying to get to her feet.
"E-Easy, sugarcube," Applejack gulped. "We're going to need to get you to a Doctor."
"Did somebody say they needed a Doctor?" the Doctor grinned.
"Ugh - No, just no..." Applejack facepalmed. "I can't believe that just happened."
"Not the first time," Derpy grunted, actually twirling her bo-staff before retracting it. "Huh - never thought I'd be so good with this thing."
"You were simply amazing, my friend!" the Doctor beamed, causing her to blush.
"Heh... um- thanks, Doctor."
As the whole conversation unfolded, the Slendermane continued to gaze where Wrath had just been shattered. "I... I can't believe that just happened."
Granny Smith cocked an eyebrow. "So... you did know him?"
The Slendermane slowly looked up. "He was... my brother. Sure he was a prick... but he was kin..."
...
The group stood stoically as the wind whispered by them.
However, after a second, he actually felt a comforting hoof on his back. "I'm sorry," Granny Smith whispered. "Really, for all the trouble. I guess even the old and the wise don't know everything, do they?"
"It's alright," he sighed. "Ironic, though... out of everything in the forest, Wrath was probably the one responsible for your sister... I guess I deserve what happened. I failed to stop your sister, and I lost my brother because of it. I just can't understand why I'm so sad about this..."
"Ugh, will you all cut the sappy bullshit, already!"
At that, the group gasped. A rustling could be heard, as Wrath, fully in form again, alongside of Princess Luna, trotted forward.
...
None spoke, though the one thing apparent on everyone's mind was:
Wat?
"Pffft, you really think bullets could kill me?" Wrath chuckled, before smiling slightly at Granny Smith. "Good shootin', by the way."
Ck-Chick!
Suddenly, she raised a rifle at him. "Wanna test that theory of yours?"
"Miss. Smith, what are you doing?!" Slendermane called.
"We don't know if he caused her death," Twilight whispered.
Wrath groaned loudly. "Oh, That's what this is about?!"
"Miss Smith," Luna said calmly. "Please lower your weapon."
"Why should I?" she grunted. "If Mr. Fear here didn't do it, then who else could it have been?"
"Look, seriously," Wrath grunted. "I didn't kill anyone. Not for over five hundred years: and I never remember killing anyone related to the apple family. That's who you are, right?"
"'Yep," she grunted, still aiming at him.
"Trust me, if you can... if he killed her, he'd be bragging about it," Slendermane moaned.
"Death isn't something to brag about," he muttered. "Even if I want to."
Slendermane cocked his head, 'gazing' at him with utter bafflement.
"Surprised, aren't you? Yeah, I may be kind of a douche and a monster, and though killing is in my blood, being a wolf and all, I've always tried to avoid it." He then actually gave a genuine smile. "And guess what: I actually... felt something besides pure anger earlier."
"Wah? What'd you feel?"
"I uh...," he grunted, grinding a hoof into the ground. "I guess I kind of felt bad for you. I always have my pack to keep me company, ya know, but you? You are kind of forced to keep to yourself, and whenever we have our meetings... well, I guess I could be a little nicer to you. I think it was that reason why Princess Luna was able to convince me to help you!"
"To help him?!" Twilight gasped.
"Tis true," Luna said with a guilty smile. "I asked him to launch this attack, knowing Slendermane would jump at the chance to defend Ponyville."
"Are you off your rocker, Princess Luna?!" Granny Smith grunted, still leveling her rifle at Wrath. "Ponies could be dead right now because of-"
"Are they?" she said, her eyes twinkling.
Twilight slowly nodded her head. "You ordered Wrath not to kill anyone, didn't you?"
"Just to ruff you up a little," Wrath said, before grinning sheepishly. "Uh... sorry about clawing your legs, I guess..."
"Yeah," she moaned. "Got a little enthusiastic, didn't you?"
"Allow me to assist," Princess Luna smiled, before quickly healing her wounds with a beam from her horn.
"Medical magic," Twilight whispered. "How can you-?"
"One thousand years from now, you may find yourself performing the impossible as well," she winked.
"Yeah," she sighed, glancing at Wrath.
"Mph," he grunted. "Guess I'm sorry about trolling you too, I suppose... immortality really isn't that bad."
Granny Smith took a deep breath, lowering her gun. "Well... I guess I've gone off my rocker as well a bit too many times today. Sorry bout' that."
"It's whatever," Wrath shrugged.
"This isn't a good thing, though," Slendermane moaned, gaining an odd look from the group. "Seriously! There's a lot of things in the Everfree Forest take for granted. Now, with both me and Wrath looking like jolly do-gooders..."
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," he muttered. "The forest isn't going to suddenly get perky when people dwell too deep. I don't know why, but it always gets pissed off... and that goes double for me."
"Why aren't you super pissed off now, then?" Slendermane asked. "Isn't the Everfree going to be mad that we sold out?"
"I dunno why," he shrugged. "I kind of feel a little bit of... dunno how to describe it. I guess the forest really does care about its children..."
"Happiness?" the Doctor said hopefully.
"Na, that's gay. Probably just indigestion or something," he grinned. "And just who the hell are you, anyway?"
"I'll explain it to you later," Twilight muttered. "Luna and I must make a few new decrees that all citizens are to refrain from straying too far into the woodlands: for their own safety."
"That would not be wise," Luna stated. "It'd be infringing upon the Equestrian Freedom of Movement Act of 876 ARH. Since the forest is not private property, this rule applies to it. We can post advisories, but that's it."
"Yeah, that's true," the Slendermane nodded.
"Well, this blows," Wrath groaned.
Suddenly, however, Slendermane brought a tendril to his chin.
"Huh - wait a minute..." he said, a lightbulb practically forming above his head.
"Huh?"
"I just thought of something, is all..." he said.
"Watchu talkin' bout, Slendy?" the Doctor asked.
He chuckled. "Think about it: over the years, people weren't really afraid of me, just the rumors of me, right?"
"What are you getting at?" Luna asked.
A slight, shadowy smile actually formed on the Slendermane's face. "Ima get all philosophical, for a second, alright?" A shadowy pair of geeky, though stylish glasses formed on his face. "Fear is nothing but the imagination creating potential scenarios for the future. Most of the time, it's all in our head. It's why I was nearly carted off to jail. So... if the Everfree Forest is to remain clear, someone needs to keep everypony's imaginations stirring..."
"But how are you going to do that when everyone knows you're a big softy, now?" Applejack hummed.
"Same way I've always done it," the Slendermane said. "I'll help create legends."
One Week Later...
A large group of fillies and colts walked through the woods, being led by Zecora. Together, they sang:
"Slendermane! Slendermane! Friendly Neighborhood Slendermane! The King of Fame who has no name! The holder of our parents' blame! Though he may be tame (watch out!), don't mess with Slendermane!"
"So, Zecora, how do you know him, anywho?" Apple Bloom giggled.
"Yeah! Have you known all along that he isn't bad?" Pipsqueak giggled.
Scootaloo giggled, fluttering slightly into the air. "Yeah! This is a story I gotta hear!"
She merely chuckled, trotting along with them. "Let's just say, the more you gaze into this place of wood and bark, the more questions gaze back at you from the dark. There are still many mysteries here to be found... and many you'll wish you had left sleeping sound."
The group shivered, though she merely smiled, winking at them.
"Fear not, though, my little friends, I take Pride in the fact that the Everfree Forest... isn't always an end."
Scootaloo sighed in relief. "Well... that's good I guess. I'd hate to think that there's this giant evil place right outside the town's windows!"
"Yeah! I mean, if Slendermane wasn't that bad, who knows what else might just be-"
"Misunderstood?" the Slendermane cackled darkly, manifesting in a flash of smoke in front of the group, startling them into a collective shriek. He gave them a blank look (haw haw). "Relax, relax!"
"Every time," Apple Bloom muttered. "Every time he gets us!"
"Gotta keep up my practice for the next generation," Slendermane chuckled. "But as for you... you know the way I like to keep you wise of this place's danger."
"Can it be scary story time now please!" Sweetie Belle begged.
"You bet," the Slendermane chuckled. "In fact... today, I think I'm going to tell you a legend. Can anyone guess who this is about?"
The group thought for a moment, before trading off answers.
"Starswirl the Bearded?" Sweetie suggested.
"Clover the Clever?"
"Captain Black Harness?!"
"No, even spookier," the Slendermane said. "Tonight... I'm going to tell you the story of Daring Do and the Ark of Shadows."
"Wah?! But that's just an old pony's tale!" Sweetie complained. "I thought you wanted to tell us real stories!"
"..."
"Oh, right," she chuckled, blushing slightly. "Um - g-go ahead?"
"Hehehe, alright, then. I'll begin. Oh, and... don't mind the cliche."
He then took a deep breath, before clearing his throat.
"It was a dark and stormy night... a spawn of your worst dreams... in this very forest of darkness and screams..."
"I know I say 'oh crap' pretty often. But seriously, I mean it this time: ooooooh crap."
Well... actually the fic is already out. This is just an advertisement, really...
"I will continue my campaign against the humans all intruders."
"Nopony has ever withstood our might friendship."
A Teen Titans crossover fic... in the Strangeverse... that you totally don't need to watch the show beforehand to get into (but maybe read a wikipedia article about: the cartoon, btw)...
"Chief Robin, we're running out of time!"
...
"I need a weapon my hands back."
...
"We've got Jackals Timberwolves in the courtyard!"
"There are things about Halo The Artifact that not even the hierarchs The Everfree Forest understands.
.Yeah, Halo 2 was pretty awesome.They need to remake that shit next.
"There are those who said our hay would never come. What are they to say now?"
Silent Bob Presents: An Ongoing Fic in the Strangeverse that will slowly consume his soul...
