While exploring a dungeon with her long-lost sister a mysterious event causes a Death Knight of the Ebon Blade to arrive inside the Everfree Forest on Equestria. With her normal means to return home out of commission, she searches the forest for any signs of civilization encountering hostile wildlife until she arrives at a ruined castle where she encounters the most unusual colorful creatures she has ever seen.
World of Warcraft and MLP DO NOT belong to me they go to Blizzard and Hasbro respectively A World of Warcraft and MLP crossover WoW set during the Legion expansion MLP set at season 1 with modifications
Warnings for the following tags. Gore: Slight dismemberments and occasional blood loss Profanity: Swear words where appropriate Violence: I don't need to explain this Narcotics: Just some mentioning of alcoholic beverages and slight consumption
"Watch out!" was the last thing Vandline heard before she was violently thrown backwards but instead of hitting brick, she heard bark breaking and twigs snapping. Shaking the daze out of her head, she looked around to find that trees surrounded her.
"Where on Azeroth did that blasted mage send me to?" She says with a low, hollow, echoing voice. She looks around the forest as she remembers a region just outside of her home of Silvermoon known as the Ghostlands. Feeling better after having her back hit the tree, she stood up.
"This place almost looks and feels like the Ghostlands," She thinks to herself, "I can't stand here thinking all day there's a war going on, and I must return to Acherus as soon as possible."
Getting ready to return to Acherus, Vandline brings forth her necromantic energy to summon a death gate but soon realizes that, somehow, the gate is unresponsive and refuses to operate thoroughly. She stops feeding power to the spell, learning that the gate will not come to her. "Strange," thought Vandline, "I never expected the gate spell to fail like that."
Pulling out her Hearthstone, she feels that there isn't any energy coming from the stone, almost as if it lost the location she was supposed to return to when out on missions for the Ebon Blade. "This is getting rather annoying," Vandline thought angrily. "When I get back to Acherus, there's going to be hell to pay upon those cursed Nightborne."
Suddenly feeling the insatiable thirst kicking in, Vandling starts heading in a random direction, hoping to find something to beat up or outright kill. After about a third of the day walking, she suddenly hears what sounded like a low growl. Looking in the direction of the growling, she was confused as to what she was looking at. At first, she thought it looked like a wolf, but upon further investigation, it looked to be a spirit in the shape of a wolf with its body wholly made out of wood and twigs.
"What the heck?" she said. "I don't think I've ever seen a creature like you before." As she continues to look at the strange thing, she suddenly hears a few more growls. Upon looking in those directions, she sees more of these wooden beasts. currently surrounding her was a pack of seven creatures
"So that's how you want to play?" she said, "fine then, LET'S DO THIS!" She draws her twin runeblade swords. As she clutches her blades in her hands, she pulls in one animal using her death grip spell and slices the beast in two. What she wasn't expecting was the whole thing to break apart suddenly. "Strange," she said, "I guess any amount of significant damage and the thing falls apart rather easily."
While she thought Vandline was suddenly bit on the wrist, thankfully, her wrist guards were kept in pretty good condition, so the bite mark didn't leave much of a scratch. "Well, aren't you a little opportunist," she said, much to the confusion of the beast.
With one stroke of her free sword arm, she stabs the wooden creature in the general heart area. "I didn't expect you to try and bite me through my armor!" she exclaims "now feel the wrath of the Sin'dorei!" As she pulls her sword arm away from the slain creature and yanks the head off her other arm, she suddenly feels the weight of a paw as she is flown out from the location and into a nearby tree, nearly cracking it in half.
As she shakes her head to get rid of the dizziness, Vandline looks up to see what hit her before growing concerned and then excited to see that the remaining beasts were somehow gathering together to form one colossal creature.
"Well, color me impress!" she says. "You think you can outpower me? a Death Knight of the Ebon Blade?!" The creature, in response, growls very loudly as if to say, hit me with your best shot. Rising to the challenge, Vandline summons forth all her energy she can and then lets out a breath of Sindragosa; she had no idea if these creatures can freeze to death, but that wouldn't stop her from giving it her all.
The substantial wooden creature suddenly faced what looked like a dragon head, shooting forth a frost breath attack, having not faced such a thing before the animal suddenly lost control on one of its front legs, and the neck was suddenly stiff. Seeing her opportunity to strike at the weakened creature, Vandline shot forth, drawing her twin runeblades and jumping towards the neck of the beast, and in one fell swoop, she chopped the head clean off.
Vandline, feeling accomplished with the fact she had defeated the creature, turned around and saw the thing just crumbling apart twig by twig. "Well, that was a nice exercise," she says, "and you sated the hunger for now." After taking a moment to feel amazing for a short time, the Death Knight continues her journey, encountering passive and the occasional hostile wildlife. After about half a day of walking, Vandline comes across her first signs of civilization, or what was left of it anyway. She looks up to see a crumbling ruin of a castle.
"First signs of civilization, and it's a bloody ruin...perfect," she groans. Realizing what time it was, she decides to head inside the castle and makes camp for the time being to recollect her scattering thoughts and think about what to do to return home. As she enters the front of the castle, several points of interest were present to her.
She entered what she guessed must be the castle's main hall, where she could see two flags of interesting designs. They pictured horses with wings and a horn. "They must be what the locals believed in" thought Vandline, "one to control the moon and one to control the sun". Investigating the castle further, she doesn't find much aside from a hallway with interesting armor designs, another hallway with way too many torch scones in the shape of a hoof. She eventually heads up some stairs to reach a room that looked barren, so deciding to take a break, she made camp in. After making her temporary home more comfortable, Vandline thinks back to how this all started.
Inside a tavern at the floating city of Dalaran, Vandline was drinking a local brew when she was approached by her younger sister and Demon Hunter Nosoni. Taking a seat next to Vandline, she proceeds to talk to the Death Knight.
"Some heroes invited me to go to this dungeon inside Suramar, and I was wondering if you would like to join me," she says.
"Oh yeah? who are the heroes, and whats the objective of their dungeon run?" asked Vandline
"Arcanist Valtrois has tasked a few of the heroes to see if they can find a map of Suramars Leylines, and I was unfortunate enough to get chosen," Nosoni says, rather grumbling. "The people who invited me are a priest and a hunter from the Alliance and a warrior from the Horde."
"Oh? Well, I'm sure the Illidari can spare one of their soldiers for a quick dungeon run, and besides, we need to spend some quality family time together after all; I did spend so many years looking for you only to discover that the damnable Wardens imprisoned you" Vandline said with a drip of anger hanging in the air.
"Oh, believe me, I almost feel bad for them. I don't want to be in their shoes when Lord Illidans chosen second in command gets mad remembering what they did to us all those years ago at the Black Temple," Nosoni says gleefully. "I guess I'll learn what happened to you when you stormed the temple last I remember. Weren't you a Blood Knight?" she asks.
"Was I? I can't seem to remember my memories from my previous life. I do remember dieing but who I was back then is a bit of a blank," Vandline says, "The Scourge was rather thorough with their selection process for Death Knights, and I guess the Scourge beat memories from back then out of us."
"So anyways your answer? Will you come with me to that dungeon?" Nosoni asks.
"Sure, I can spare a few minutes. Clearing out a dungeon should be a good exercise when we start clearing out Suramar of those traitorous Nightborne who sided with the Burning Legion!" Vandline says with enthusiasm.
Vandline jolts out of her memories at what sounded like combat. Deciding to investigate, she got up and proceeded to move towards the sound of shouting something that sounded like harmony and friendship. Once she entered the corner to where the shouting came from, Vandlines eyes shot wide open at what she was seeing.
At first, she couldn't believe her eyes but standing right there were what looked like tiny horses talking to each other. Upon seeing them getting up from what looked like a weird one-sided battle, she looks around to see a taller version of the tiny horses laying on the ground as if she, or at least she assumed it was she, was also defeated.
Taking a moment or two to sort through her memories, she remembered that the humans from the Alliance had a name for these tiny creatures called Ponies. However, she wasn't sure if the prone dark blue creature was also called a pony or simply a more miniature, younger horse.
She was about to leave when suddenly a bright light was coming from the roof, almost as if the sun had just barely risen. Vandline looks to see that a different horse creature had arrived though she could tell that she was regal in nature. What surprised her the most was that while the ponies were varied, two of which had horns while another two have wings and the last two had neither, this one had both wings and a horn. The last thing that she was expecting was for the creatures to speak in common, the language of the humans. "Well, that's good news for me, at least since I didn't know if these creatures could even understand me," thought Vandline.
Immediately the other five ponies bowed down to the tall white horse while the tiny lavender pony went up to it. "Princess Celestia!" cried the lavender pony walking up to her and giving what looked like a very odd hug for a tall horse. "Twilight Sparkle, my faithful student, I knew you could do it!" Said Princess Celestia. as Vandline was listening to the conversation, she couldn't help but chuckle a little at the odd-sounding names; then again, her parents named her and Nosoni odd as well.
While watching from the shadows, the conversation soon leads to the currently prone, apparently younger sister to the tall horse. "Princess Luna," Celestia spoke; Luna gasped and was awoken by the regal horse. "It has been a thousand years since I have seen you like this," she said. While the White horse and the younger-looking dark blue horse were speaking, Vandline couldn't help but be shocked since the dark blue horse looked almost the same as the white horse with having both wings and a horn.
"Interesting," thought Vandline, "and it's been a thousand years since they had seen each other, which begs the question as to what happened" while she was thinking this, her instincts suddenly were telling her that now would be a good time to leave before she was spotted. Not even a foot away from the room before Princess Celestia calls her out.
"You can come out of the shadows now, creature," Celestia said. "You better explain your intentions for spying on us." Deciding to get it over with now rather than later, Vandline shows herself and explains her situation.
"Who are you talking to, Princess Celestia?" Asked Twilight a second later, she got her answer when a voice around the corner near where the old Elements of Harmony used to be.
"I'm impressed that you managed to detect me," she said, talking around the corner. "I didn't know if you could sense me or not"
When Vandline entered the room, she heard barely audible gasps coming from the six miniature ponies while earning a glare from Celestia and Luna. After walking a few inches towards the group, the rainbow maned pony and the orange pony with the odd hat got into a protective stance while the yellow pony with the incredibly long mane and tail and the other white pony with the purple mane backed away from the group. Twilight, the lavender pony she remembered hearing the name from Celestia, had what looked like a curious and somewhat scared expression, almost like she was studying Vandline. The pink pony just minded her own business as if she didn't have a care in the world.
While Vandline was getting a good look at the group, Twilight was doing the same, looking over her armor and appearance. She was a bipedal creature. Her mane was blond, short cut, and had a tiny sliver of hair covering one of her eyes, almost like what Fluttershy does when she is shy and looks away. She wrapped her shoulders in armor with spikes and what looked like fur at the end of it. The chest plate, legs, gloves, and boots of the armor didn't have many features that stick out. The color of the entire thing was dark blue, like it was mined from deep within the ice. What scared her the most, however, were the weapons this person was wielding. Her swords were radiating power and glowed a misty blue hue, the pommel of the blades had very vicious carnivore teeth; she couldn't see the guard since the swords were attached to her back. Her eyes radiated the same misty blue that the blades were giving off, and the skin was slightly off-color.
"Who the hay are you?!" said the rainbow maned pony. "If you are here to fight the Princesses, then you better get ready to face me!" yelled the pony, but before she could charge, the orange pony stopped her by biting on her tail.
"Wow, aren't you a fighter!" Vandline said, "fortunately for you, I'm not exactly looking for a fight at the moment."
"Taunting my subjects cant be the only reason your here," Said Celestia. "Maybe you should start enlightening us on where you came from and how you got here?"
"Right, so where exactly to begin?" Says Vandline
"My name is Vandline, and to what I am, my people are called the Sin'dorei, or "Children of the blood" in the common tongue. You can also refer to me as a Blood Elf."
"Blood...?" said Luna Vandline could tell that the princess was thinking about something.
"And no, let me stop you right there. I'm not sure what your thinking, but when we call ourselves the Sin'dorei, it's to represent the fallen kin we lost during the Scourge Invasion of the Third War," Vandline explained.
"Scourge Invasion?" said the purple maned pony Vandline can detect the pompous sounding voice.
"Third war?" Said Twilight, of which Vandline caught a glimpse of intrigued.
"I won't go into too much detail for fear of your yellow friend fainting on the spot," Vandline said to which both the orange pony and the rainbow maned pony went to comfort the yellow pony, "Now that my introductions are out of the way I would like to know your names though I already know you three," she said pointing to Celestia, Luna, and Twilight.
"Because of yer eavesdropping, right?" Said the orange pony with a very odd accent that Vandline cant place. "My name is Applejack."
"I'm Pinkie pie!" Pinkie said, followed by random questions that the Death Knight quickly tuned out. "Not dealing with her right now," Vandline thought, taking the hint relatively quickly, Pinkie Pie proceeds to act like her unusual self.
"Rainbow Dash! I got my eyes on you, so don't try anything funny," Said Rainbow Dash Vandline thinks that maybe she might be a good sparring partner now and then.
"You can call me Rarity though I'm not a huge fan of your attire," said Rarity. "It's too ghastly for my tastes."
"Good, I'm supposed to strike fear into my enemies!" Vandline said, "I don't have time to look 'pretty' when I'm fighting on the battlefield!"
"Eep!" cried the timid yellow pony.
"Can someone give me her name, please? I think I scared the poor child," Vandline said with a soft chuckle.
"Her name is Fluttershy," said Twilight. "And can I ask you a question?"
"Sure, as long as it's nothing too personal, my memory is a bit fuzzy, so ask away," Vandline said
"Well, it's just that your skin tone is a bit lighter than what would be considered normal, almost as if..." said Twilight.
"As if I was raised from the dead? yes, that is true."
There were hints of dread and resentment as Vandline is raised to the ground and coughing suddenly. She turns angrily to see that Celestia had a look of anger towards her.
"Your undead?!" Celestia said, "Who is your master, and where may I find him so that he can be put down!"
"Good luck getting to him, your highness!" said Vandline with some difficulty talking. "Because he is already long dead when both the Alliance and the Horde along with the Knights of the Ebon Blade and The Argent Crusade ended his reign of terror!" and just like that, she is dropped to the ground coughing. She looks up to see that Celestia had a look of confusion, so she explained her situation.
"I can understand your situation with hating the undead but rest assured I have no intentions on bringing the same kind of suffering on your people," Vandline said though she couldn't say the same for her comrades.
"Then why are you still here? shouldn't you be dead again?" Rainbow Dash said
"Guess I should start at the very beginning," Vandline thought. "About ten years ago, I was raised in undeath to serve The Lich King where he had Initiates fight to the death before they were branded as 'true' Death Knights."
"I already hate the sound of this 'Lich King'" Rainbow Dash said
"Continue," Celestia said impatiently.
"At this moment in time, we were assaulting a pathetic human settlement that belongs to a group of fanatics called the Scarlet Crusade though I dare not explain what I did there," Vandline smugly said. "After the slaughter of New Avalon, our "master" sent us on a mission to this place called Light's Hope Chapel."
"Before the battle began, the army we were facing at the time was called the Argent Dawn and had around three hundred soldiers defending the crumbling chapel, of which I'll explain later why it was crumbling, and our forces numbered at around ten thousand."
Gasps were heard around the room. "ten thousand?! there's no way in Tartarus those ponies survived!" said Applejack. "You no-good varmints should feel ashamed."
"Your opinion of us is noted, Applejack, but rest assured the Argent Dawn, which consisted of many races from my world, did survive as the casualties at the time were roughly one hundred dead on their side and roughly one thousand five hundred dead on our side with the remaining Scourge underlings disappearing on us," Vandline said
"The reason for their survival is because two points of interest happened at the same time. The arrival of the Argent Dawns leader, Highlord Tirion Fordring, and the weapon of my leader, Darion Mongrain, was rebelling against him."
"How can a weapon 'rebel' against their wielder?" asked Twilight
"I could tell you the history of the blade, but do you honestly have time for that?" Vandline said, and indeed, the group realized that they still needed to finish the summer sun celebration. Before they left, Celestia had one question for Vandline.
"What will you do now?" she said. "Don't you need to return home?"
"I would if I could; unfortunately, my normal means of traveling around is not responding to me," Said Vandline. "Although I do have some idea on what I should be doing."
"Princess Celestia?" Twilight said, "I have an offer to make for Vandline if she can't return home."
"And what would that be?" Celestia said
"Yes, I'm intrigued by what you have to offer for me," Vandline said
"Well, since she can't return home, she is going to need a place to rest in, right?" Twilight said, "If we explain to the ponies at Ponyville, she could stay with either me or Fluttershy."
"As kind of an offer as that is, I'm going to decline," Vandline said. "What would these ponies do when they see something like me?"
"You should take the offer Vandline," Celestia said, "knowing Twilight, I have a feeling she won't let you cause too many problems for the residents of Ponyville."
"And how would you explain to them about me, Your Highness," Vandline said
"I'll tell them that Twilight here has made contact with a never before seen Intelligent lifeform and that you will be staying close to Ponyville to improve relations with one another," said Celestia
"Well, I guess it does solve my problem of where to go," Vandline said, then she looked to Twilight "this is probably a stupid question, but how familiar are you with magic?"
After a long conversation with Twilight, Celestia, and Mayor Mare, Vandline was allowed to wander freely around Ponyville so long as she doesn't do anything drastic or cause too much trouble. Agreeing to the terms with slight conditions, she decided to stay with Twilight and, agreeing to explain where she comes from and what her world is like, Vandline would get knowledge about Twilights world as well.
Over the course of a week, Vandline had some conversations with the Mane six, starting with Pinkie Pie and explaining to the mare why she can't enjoy the confections at the bakery, Sugercube corner. However, she told Pinkie that she will still eat anything that Pinkie makes even though she can't taste the sugary sweets.
After the conversation with Pinkie, she proceeds to see Rarity. Although she prefers to stay in her armor at all times, Vandline does need to apologize to the dressmaker for her comment at the castle. That apology soon led to a conversation where Vandline explained what her people normally wore for social parties and casual wear. Rarity, amazed at what she was hearing, requested that Vandline give as many detailed clothes that the common Blood Elf citizen might wear.
Following the route she wanted to take, she proceeds to find Twilights assistant, Spike. She was amazed that Twilight had hatched a dragon egg while she was young, so Vandline wanted to speak to him to learn what he knows and tell him that there are dragons on her world and that they were protectors of sorts. When she got to the tree library, she was just a little disappointed about the knowledge, or lack thereof, of the dragon species in this world, but that didn't stop her from telling about what she knew about dragons. Spike instantly became a fan of the Death Knight, and whenever he could, would ask about the Dragon Aspects.
Next on the list of ponies to talk to, she wanted to find Rainbow Dash; however, whenever she asked the residents about her location, they were always vague. Eventually, she found Rainbow and proceeded to ask her various questions like how she could command the weather and all that easily. Rainbow Dash wasn't the best teacher, so she explains as much as she could. What was surprising to Rainbow Dash was that after the conversation about weather magic, Vandline asked her if she wanted to be a sparring partner every once in a while. Rainbow was hesitant at first, but she accepted the challenge and was pleasantly surprised. Although Vandline wasn't as fast as Rainbow, she was very observant and could counter Rainbow's attacks at least eighty percent at the time.
After the sparring match with Rainbow, Vandline walked to Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack introduced Vandline to the oldest sibling of the apple family, Big Mac. She did mention a little sister and a grandmother. Still, due to Applejack not wanting her to meet them, Vandline was glad to see what Big Mac and Applejack do for a job.
On the seventh day at Ponyville, Vandline was about to talk to Fluttershy when a white rabbit intercepted her with a carrot for a weapon. Understanding the situation, Vandline had a one-sided conversation with the rabbit and said that she wants to apologize to Fluttershy for being aggressive and wanted to ask her for something. After the conversation, the white rabbit, who Vandline later learned was named Angel of all things, Vandline was able to have a pleasant conversation with Fluttershy over tea. After tea, Fluttershy was shocked at first with what Vandline was asking of her. However, with a bit of persuasion and a little convincing, she agreed to let Vandline have a sparring match from time to time with Harry the bear.
With her conversations with the mane six done, Vandline went to the library and see what she can learn about the world she is currently on. About two weeks have passed since she started to learn of Equestria and the planet named Equis. She was on her way to return some books to Twilight when Vandline saw Applejack, Twilight, and Spike carrying baskets full of apples. However, it seemed like Spike was throwing some of the apples to the ground. Deciding that she wanted a conversation, Vandline walked up to them when Spike had produced a good-looking apple and ate it.
"Spike!" Twilight said a little angrily. "What?" asked a very confused Spike when he burped a small fireball and a scroll bearing Celesitas royal mark, formed to which Spike proceeded to read off what it had to say.
"Well, that sure is an interesting way to get mail," Vandline said with intrigue.
"It's a letter from Princess Celestia," Twilight said
Spike began to say, "Hear ye! Hear ye! Her Grand Royal Highness, Princess Celestia of Equestria, is pleased to announce the Grand Galloping Gala to be held in the magnificent capital of Canterlot on the twenty-first day of..." Spike proceeds to trail off as if it wasn't all that important "Cordially extend an invitation to Twilight Sparkle plus one guest" Spike finishes
"The Grand Galloping Gala!" exclaimed both Applejack and Twilight repeatedly.
"Grand Galloping Gala? Is it some formal ball?" Asked Vandline
"Yes, and it's held annually by Princess Celestia," Twilight said, still bouncing around.
Spike looked a little unhappy and made a pretend gagging face when he suddenly burped out two gold tickets to the event. "Look! two tickets!" Spike said
"Wow, great! I never been to the gala! have you spike?" Twilight asked
"No, and I plan to keep it that way its all girly frou-frou nonsense anyways."
"That's not entirely true, Spike, for formal events like this Gala is a way for the social elite to exchange word around the city, make alliances with other elite members, and to see if they can get favors from successful business owners or, although very rarely, from the leader of a nation."
When Vandline said that, both Applejack and Twilight were shocked that Vandline knew such things. "Wow, so did you go to any parties, Vandline?" Twilight said
"I never got the chance to attend such parties. I would ask around Silvermoon whenever I visited to get the latest Intel on such things before proceeding with my missions." Vandline said.
"So anyway, Twilight, who you are gonna bring to the gala?" Asked Applejack
"Well, I was thinking that..."Began Twilight she was interrupted when everyone heard what sounded like Rainbow Dash falling from the sky when in reality, she fell from a tree she was napping on
"Are we talking about the Grand Galloping Gala?" Asked Rainbow Dash as if she didn't just cause a crash
"Rainbow, you do realize that you just crashed into your friends, yes?" Vandline said, crossing her arms
"Not important! What is important is what I'm going to be doing! I'm going to impress the Wonderbolts!"
"Who are the Wonderbolts?" Asked Vandline, and before Rainbow Dash could give a snarky remark, she said, "Let me remind you that I am not from here, so whatever snarky remark you were going to make, I would think twice."
"Right," Rainbow said, chuckling a little "The Wonderbolts are these awesome aerial acrobatic team that performs stunts and shows for ponies who wants to watch them."
"Not only that they are also special forces for when Equestria is at war, but they haven't been needed for quite some time since we are at peace," Twilight said
"Oh? so they sound like SI:7 mixed in with members from the Darkmoon Faire interesting," Vandline said. "Anyways, Twilight, I'm going to head to the library and continue reading up on some history, so I'll catch you all later."
"So long, for now, Vandline," Twilight said
"Take care now," Applejack said
"See you in our next sparring match!" exclaimed Rainbow Dash
Vandline waved goodbye for now to the three mares and proceeded to walk to Ponyville. On the way there, she met various ponies, including Mayor Mare, a mint-colored pony, a pony with interesting eyes. She was walking past Sugercube corner when Twilight and Spike appeared behind her.
"Oh hello again Twilight, Spike," Vandline said
"Hell..." She couldn't talk anymore when Pinkie crashed into Twilight, and the tickets landed on Pinkies snout
"AAH! BATS! Oh, hey, Vandline! BATS ON MY FACE!" Pinkie said when the realization hits her, "Wait! are those?"
"Tickets to that Grand Galloping Gala? Yes, they are Pinkie," Vandline said. "You two can sort this out on your own"
Vandline continues to walk around town until she eventually reaches the tree library to which she enters the building and pulls out various books on things such as the Tale of Two Sisters, Elements of Harmony reference guide, and other various books and proceeds to read them for several hours until it went dark outside.
"Hmm, guess I better take a break," said vandline, and just as she got up, the door opened, and Spike came running in. "Bal'a dash, Spike, you sure came in a hurry did something happened?"
"Nah, just needed to get away from Rarity she was trying to get me to dress up for that girly Gala junk," Spike said
"Ah, although I'm sensing that something else is happening, how fares Twilight?"
"Um, excuse me," said a meager voice, and it would have gone unnoticed had Vandline not known immediately who it was. "Ah, Fluttershy, what brings you to the library," she said
"Oh, I'm just here to help clean up the library for a bit," Fluttershy said until Angel lightly tapped her head to correct her. "Oh, I mean, it's for Twilight so that she can invite me to the Gala."
"Ok, now I'm seeing the reason for running Spike," Vandline said, and while Fluttershy proceeded to clean around the library, Vandline decided to talk continue to talk.
"Ok, I think I know what's happening and this is giving Twilight some very not needed stress," she said
At that moment, Twilight came into the library to see that Fluttershy, as well as some of her bird animal friends, were cleaning the house, and Fluttershy was humming a nice little tune.
"Oh Fluttershy," said a depressed Twilight, "Not you too!"
"Unfortunately, it is Miss Sparkle," Vandline said, "but don't worry, I know how to let the others know that you still need to decide."
"Don't hurt anyone," begged Twilight; just then, the door opened, and Pinkie, along with some resident of Ponyville, pulled Twilight in for a song.
"I don't even know what to say about this nonsense," Vandline said. "Spike, you have communication with Celestia, yes?" when she received a nod, she said, "prepare to write down Twilights friendship report in about five minutes while I prepare my own letter" when spike nodded and went out to help Twilight, she went to gather some paper writes a letter to Celestia and then proceeds to set up for the confrontation when she returns to the library. Exactly five minutes a small explosion was heard, and Vandline saw that it was Twilight and Spike.
"Greetings, Twilight I brought everyone here and had a very stern talking to about the tickets," Vandline said to which everyone then proceeds to apologize to Twilight about their behavior and the whole ticket situation.
"Spike, take a letter!" Twilight said and mentioned the Friendship lesson she learned today. After finishing the letter, Vandline handed Spike her own letter to Celestia, and both were sent via dragon fire. "Well, now that this whole nonsense is handled, I'm going to wait for Celestia to respond to my letter."
"You wrote your own letter? what did you ask?" Twilight asked when Spike burped up a scroll.
Spike then read what Celestia had responded to Twilight's letter "My faithful student, Twilight, Why didn't you just say so in the first place?" six tickets then popped out, and spike held them up so Twilight and her friends can see them. Everyone gasped. "Well, now we can ALL go to the Galloping Gala," Applejack said, and just then, everyone heard what sounded like a stomach growling and looked to the source. "Hehe, guess I'm still pretty hungry," Twilight said
"Allow us to treat you to dinner then," Rarity said, and everyone went outside grabbing one ticket each. Spike holding one last ticket was disappointed when the last one left his hand. "How come I don't get a ticket to the Gala?" At that moment, Spike burped out one last time revealing to have two scrolls, one for Spike and one for Vandline. Spike said, "And one for you, Spike," where two more tickets fell out. "Oh, who is this extra ticket for?" he said.
"I do believe that one will be for me as well as that extra scroll you have," Vandline said, where she retrieved both the ticket and the scroll. Spike then went to join the others for dinner. Meanwhile, Vandline was reading the response from Celestia about her question for a certain subject. "I'll be seeing you soon Celestia" she said
It had been a month since what Vandline will forever describe as the 'Ticket incident.' There had been a couple of other interesting events to follow. A week into the month, while Vandline was out in the Everfree Forest hunting Timberwolves and looking for clues for a theory she has been having, she learned that Applejack had saved the town from a stampede of cows which earned her a trophy, but when she went to retrieve she was starting to get sleep deprived. That, in turn, leads to events spiraling out of control. That event ended with a lesson Applejack learned about the importance of asking for help.
Five days after that, Vandline learns that Rainbow had a griffon friend when she was younger and was attending flight school, and that same griffon, whose name was Gilda, came by for a visit only to leave just as suddenly when Rainbow told Gilda that if she couldn't accept her new friends, then they couldn't be friends anymore. Vandline comforted Rainbow by offering a sparring match to relieve some stress about the situation.
At the current moment, about a week since Gilda visited, Vandline was enjoying a little magic show being performed by Twilight. She was watching the latest magic spell to be performed by Twilight on Spike. When Twilight finished the spell, Spike was given a nice mustache where he proceeded to cheer. "Impressive work Ms. Sparkle most mages that I know can only perform so many spells before they need to take a break," Vandline said. "Twenty-five spells is no small accomplishment, Twilight."
"I think this is the best trick so far!" Spike said boastfully while admiring the mustache and fantasizing about Rarity
"As attractive and enticing as you look, it is only just for practice," Twilight said, giggling as she is dismissing the spell. "So Vandline, Spike and I were going to hang out with the girls. Do you want to join us?"
"Sure, I need to stretch my legs anyway, plus I need to gather some supplies for my next excursion into the Everfree," Vandline replied
As Twilight, Spike, and Vandline were heading outside and moving towards Twilights friends, they walked by other residents of Ponyville, including an old pony hauling a wagon full of hay, a mint-colored pony who stared in awe at Vandline. Spike and Twilight talked to themselves, and Vandline was deep in thought about what she needed for the trip.
Her train of thought was interrupted when two colts ran down the path, where they proceeded to run right into Spike. "Woah there! where are you two running off in such a hurry?" Vandline asked. The two colts, Snips, and Snails stopped to address the Death Knight. "Haven't you heard? there's a new unicorn in town!" Snails said, "Yeah! and they say that she's got magical powers than any other unicorn ever!" Snips said
"Really?" Vandline and Twilight both said though Vandline sounded more curious while Twilight sounded sad
"No way! that honor goes to Twilight here," Spike said to cheer up Twilight. "Where is this unicorn?" asked Twilight
"She's in the town square! Come on!" Snails said
"Well, this should be interesting. I've always wanted to test my abilities against a Unicorn. The less-lethal ones anyways," Vandline said. As Vandline, Twilight, and Spike followed the colts, they saw a crowd surrounding a Wagon where the group could hear a female unicorn's voice somewhere.
"Come and witness the amazing talents of the G-r-r-eat and Powerful! T-R-R-IXIE!" Trixie said as her wagon unfolded and a puff of smoke appeared. "Watch in awe as the Great and Powerful Trixie performs feats of magic ever witnessed by pony eyes!"
"Ah, ok, I retract my statement of testing my non-lethal magic against her, for she is nothing more than a stage magician," Vandline said. "Though I am curious to see what she is capable of."
"Wait, you were going to do what?" Rarity asks bewildered
"So what the heck is our sparring matches suppose to be?" Rainbow asks, "I thought you were using your magic."
"If by 'magic' you mean my physical attacks, then no, our matches sate my hunger for bloodlust while at the same time giving me a workout," Vandline said, accidentally disgusting nearby ponies.
"There's nothing wrong with being talented, is there?" asks Twilight nervously.
"Only when they are showing it off," Applejack said, giving a glare towards Trixie.
"Besides, you guys got me when I want to show off," Rainbow said, earning a glare from Applejack. "I mean...Magic Shmagic! boo!" Rainbow said while covering what she said about boasting.
"Well, it seems we got some Neighsayers in the group," Trixie said. "Do you not realize who you are in the presence of?!"
"Did she just neigh at us?" Vandline said, "I don't think I've ever heard you guys neigh before."
"Just who does she think she is?" Rarity said to Twilight
"Yeah! since we all know that Twilight here..." Spike began before he was interrupted by Twilight, who then dragged him away to talk to him privately. Vandline felt that she needed to talk to Twilight when Trixie's stage shot off fireworks and fanfare. Rainbow then flew up to the stage. "What makes you so great and powerful anyways?"
"Why only The Great and Powerful Trixie has magic strong enough to vanquish an URSA MAJOR!" Trixie said, which caught the attention of Vandline all of a sudden as she knew about an Ursa Major but dared not intrude on its home in the Everfree. Vandline then saw fireworks going off in the sky to see that the image was NOT an Ursa Major, but because she wanted to hear what the Unicorn has to say, she didn't say anything to the main six.
When all hope was lost, the Ponies of Puffington had no one to turn to," Trixie said. "But the Great and Powerful Trixie stepped in to save them and drove the creature deep into the Everfree Forest." That bit of info caught Vandline attention as she knew when studying maps of Equestria that the Everfree wasn't near that area.
Snips and Snails started to praise Trixie for her 'accomplishments.' "It's all true my enthusiastic little admirers Trixie is indeed the best in Ponyville." Trixie said, "Don't believe me? Then I challenge all you Ponyvillians. Anything you can do, I can do better!"
"What about non-pony creatures such as myself?" Vandline said
"Sorry, but non-ponies aren't allowed as they can't use magic," Trixie said
Vandline then started to laugh menacingly, which startled Trixie. "Oh, you have NO idea what I am capable of!" She said, "For I have faced much more threatening enemies than an Ursa Major." Gasps were heard from the crowd, but to Trixie, she was not amused.
"Oh please! something far worse than an Ursa Major? As if" Trixie said, "But I suppose you would be a good opening act for MY amusement."
Vandline proceeded to walk up to the stage to issue her challenge. "Since you haven't met me before, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Vandline, and although I don't show it, I do know magic that is far outside of your understanding."
"Well, you odd hairless ape, I hope you can outlast me and my magic," Trixie said, which made Vandline slightly angry for the ape insult.
"My challenge to you is to five minutes against me!" Vandline issued the challenge, "And fair warning. Do not Insult my people!" Vandline then cast death grip on the unsuspecting unicorn, which she then screams before being surrounded by Chains that looked to be made of ice. Trixie then shoots a beam of magic energy at Vandline but was shocked when a bubble appeared around Vandline, and the shot lost most of its power before striking the shoulder pads.
"Come on, Trixie! is that the best you can do?! I've seen more threatening spellcasters where I came from!" Vandline taunted, which angered Trixie. Vandline proceeds to unsheath one of her swords.
"Wait, you said magic! why are you pulling out a sword?" Asked a very frightened Trixie.
"Take a closer look at the blade," Vandline said to which then Trixie realized that the sword was enchanted with magic. She wanted to call off the duel when Vandline then used another death grip and, while being very careful, Vandline gave a minor wound on one of Trixie's legs.
"And with that, I think you survived long enough of my attacks," Vandline said to Trixie. "This duel is over, and Trixie is the winner." Vandline then said to the crowd.
"Wait, what?!" Trixie said
"I did say you have to survive, and you survived for five minutes," Vandline said. "Just know that if you ever call me an ape again you will regret ever facing me again." she said softly to Trixie, which sent a chill down her spine.
"I think that's all the time I have" Trixie said to Vandline, which then made the crowd of ponies disperse from the stage.
"Did you have to be so rough on the poor dear?" Asked Rarity earning nods from everyone else.
"She will live, and the small wound I gave her will heal in time," Vandline said. "Hopefully, this lesson in humiliation will be enough to end her boasting. If you need me, I'll be in the Everfree clearing out the surrounding area" Having said that, Vandline then walks to the Everfree. Six hours pass and night have fallen, making Vandline return to Ponyville. She reached the outskirts of town when Vandline heard screams from where Trixie made her camp.
"What's going on?" Vandline asked when she saw the giant blue Ursa. "Oh, you have GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!" she then yells. Vandline saw that the Ursa was chasing Snips, Snails, and Trixie. Running at a full sprint, Vandline barely makes it in time to save the Trio from being squashed by the Ursa blocking the paw with her swords. "RUN RIGHT NOW!" She yells at the group. Vandline knew that she was outmatched by the Ursa when she saw Spike bringing in Twilight. "ANY TIME NOW, TWILIGHT!" Vandline said to Twilight, who was casting what looked like multiple spells at once.
Vandline was starting to lose her grip when the Ursa lost some of its strength behind its attack. Having the strength to get away from the creature, she pushed against the paw and rolled to the left towards Twilight. "You have a plan, yes?" Asked Vandline, her answer came when musical notes sounded through the air and rocked the Ursa to sleep.
She then saw a water tower container being lifted, heading towards the barn where the cows resided, and was placed in the mouth of the Ursa, almost like a baby bottle. "Keep going, Twilight." Encouraged Vandline where Twilight then lifted the blue bear and was returned to a cave in the Everfree Forest. Cheers then rang out towards the pair as Twilight and Vandline saw the others coming in for a group hug.
"That was amazing, Twilight," Applejack congratulated
"I'm sorry! please don't hate me," Twilight said
"Hate you? why whatever for darling?" Rarity asked
"I know how much you all hated Trixie showing off her magic tricks, and I just thought..." Twilight said but was interrupted by Vandline
"Ms. Sparkle, what you did wasn't showing off! You saved the town and me from that Ursa."
"Saved? what do you mean, partner?" asked Applejack
"I was already exhausted when I was done being in the Everfree when I heard the commotion. I would have been a little squashed myself had Twilight not used her spells fast enough," Vandline said. "By the way, Twilight, that was some excellent thinking using music and milk to quell a beast as that Ursa."
"Well, since it was just a baby, I.."Twilight began when she was interrupted a second time by Trixie.
"Wait, that was just a baby?!"
"Indeed it was Trixie," Twilight said, "and it was cranky when somepony decided to wake it up." Everyone looked towards Vandline at first but was corrected when Spike brought Snips and Snails forward. "Well, if that was an Ursa Minor, what does an Ursa Major look like?" Spike asked
"Trust me when I say you don't want to know Spike," Vandline said. "Now, Twilight, I believe you have a little punishing to do towards the young colts while I have a little chat with Trixie," she said, looking menacingly towards Trixie.
"Wait, why do you need to talk to me for?!" Trixie asked frightened
"Nothing too major, just a little friendly advice." Vandline said after gaining a little distance from the crowd, she turned towards Trixie and said, "Take my advice when I say tone down the boasting I should know since I've lost many good brothers and sisters in arms to foes because of their boasting."
"That's it? You're not going to threaten me again?" Trixie asked
"So long as you don't get on my bad side, then you have nothing to worry about. Now I believe you should be on your way to your next gig, I assume?" Vandline asked
"Yes..." Trixie said, thinking about something. "Yes, I should be on my way."
It was midday when Vandline was returning from the Everfree Forest. She has made great progress with her research of this world and was all but certain about her theory, with the last piece yet to be seen. Vandline agreed to Celestia's request to join with the main six when they go to the Grand Galloping Gala, and in return, she would get to see the final piece of her puzzle. While Vandline was making her way back to Ponyville, she reflected on what happened in the last few weeks.
First, there was the incident with Trixie and Vandlines 'performance' with the show mare. Word reached Celestia, and Vandline was reprimanded for almost certainly scarring Trixie for life, but she was slightly forgiven for the rescue attempt on her and the two young colts that the Ursa Minor almost smashed. She still needed to keep her violent instincts on the low end of its spectrum, so Vandline doubled her efforts by exploring and fighting more of the Everfree Forest.
A few days later, when Vandline returned from Canterlot after having her armor and weapons checked on, she was roped in to deal with a dragon situation. Although she offered to handle the dragon alone, Vandline was going for support in case things get out of hand. In the end, the situation was very close to getting out of hand had it not been for Fluttershy to convince the dragon to leave on peaceful terms and also to apologize for his behavior after R.D. kicks him in the face. Before he left, however, Vandline wanted to know about the dragon race, so after the main six left, the dragon, whose name Vandline forgot to ask about, shared a few interesting points about his kind. Sadly she couldn't get any more information as he wasn't too helpful on some subjects.
Two weeks after that and Ponyville was getting ready to receive a huge rainstorm due to an incident with a weather schedule. Vandline kept an eye on things when she spotted Rarity trying to fix all of the loose branches while Applejack tore them down again. The two got into a fight, and Vandline tried to break it up when the rainstorm began, and the Trio ran for cover. The three of them did end up with Twilight at her home, but Rarity and Applejack couldn't get home due to the storm. Twilight seeing this as a perfect opportunity pulls out a book about sleepovers. While Vandline wasn't all that keen to participate, she didn't want to ruin the mood for Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack, so Vandline decided to head to her room for meditation. Vandline was taken out of her meditative trance when the top of a nearby tree fell on the library. After cleaning up the mess, Vandline scolded Rarity and Applejack about the mess, but she forgave them after learning their lessons. The rest of the night was spent peacefully.
"I swear these ponies are going to drive me nuts," Vandline said as she made it to the outskirts of Ponyville. She stopped when noticing how eerily quiet it is. "And now Ponyville is a ghost town?" she continued to advance into town when she heard a whispering sound. Turning to the source of the noise, she spots Pinkie trying to get her to come over to Sugercube corner. She also spots Twilight and Spike heading to the same location. Deciding to play along with Pinkie, she meets up with Twilight and Spike and heads inside the bakery.
"Hey Vandline, do you know what's going on?" Asks Twilight
"I only arrived myself after returning from the Everfree, but for some reason, I sense fear in the air. I was actually just about to ask Pinkie what's going on," Vandline said. The trio entered the bakery to find it really dark.
"Pinkie, what are you doing alone in the dark?" Twilight said
"She is not alone, Twilight," Vandline said, and indeed out of the darkness came Twilights' other friends and Applejacks younger sister. This is the first time Vandline has met the younger apple.
"Ok, what are you all doing in the dark?"
"We're hiding from her!" Applejack said, pointing outside of a window Twilight and Vandline looked to see who's out there only to see a cloaked figure. They couldn't see much of the cloaked figure, but the figure was digging into the ground for some reason.
"Well, I can see why you would be suspicious but outright fear? I think you're exaggerating," Vandline said
"Did you see her Twilight? Zecora?" The little filly said
"Apple Bloom! Don't say that name!" Applejack said
"I saw her glance this way," Twilight said
"Glance e-e-evilly this way!" Pinkie corrected
"And then a bunch of you freaked out," Twilight finished saying. While the ponies were talking, Vandline kept staring at the cloaked figure, trying to get as many details about the figure as possible. Vandline then saw that Twilight and the other were gathering around the window again. The figure then brought a hoof to the hood to remove it, revealing black and white stripes.
The ponies around Vandline and Twilight gasped around them, and Rarity commented about the figures looks.
"Will you guys calm down shes a zebra," Twilight said
"Huh, so you guys have your own Zhevra here," Vandline said. "Although you call it a zebra?"
"Whats a Zhevra? I don't think I've ever heard them called by that." Twilight asked
"I guess it's my world's version of your zebra, except it has a horn on its head though they can't use magic last I remembered," Vandline said. "Whether they are called Zhevra or Zebra doesn't really matter to me at this current moment."
"My books say that she comes from a faraway land, but I don't think I've seen her in Ponyville before. Where does she live?" asked Twilight.
"that's just it; she lives in the Everfree forest!" Applejack said
"Odd, I don't think I've seen her there while I've been doing my expeditions in there though every once in a while, although I do see signs that someone has been there picking up herbs," Vandline said. "What makes the Everfree so special about her?"
"It ain't natural. The plants grow" Began Applejack.
"The clouds move," said Rainbow Dash."
"And the animals take care of themselves," finished Fluttershy before all three of them said, "All on their own"
There was silence for a few seconds before Vandline started to laugh. "You can't be serious, right?" she continues to laugh for a good minute before calming down. "I'm sorry, but what you described as 'Unnatural' is very natural to me. I'll explain later what I mean by that later."
Pinkie then went on a little rant about Zecora before singing a little song about her. Vandline actually thought it was a little catchy.
"This is all just gossip and rumors," Twilight said. "What exactly has she done to describe her as evil?"
The group then began to tell Twilight about the 'evil' acts she does in Ponyville.
"I have a question for you all then," Vandline began. "When you first met me, what exactly did I do?" The group thought about this for a second before Vandline continued, "I acted peacefully before revealing what I truly am the stories I told you then. Do you think that I'm evil?" The group was shocked when she said that during all the time that they knew Vandline, she might have been overly aggressive in certain areas, but overall she was like a very protective guardian.
"There's a human saying that I learned that fits this description perfectly, but I won't say it until you all learned this yourself," Vandline said before she went out to investigate Zecora. Little did the group know, Including Vandline, was that Apple Bloom had left before Vandline left.
Vandline was nearing Zecoras' last location but saw that she was no longer there. Upon investigating, she learned that Zecora was heading back to her home in the Everfree. She was about to head off when she heard Applejack yelling.
"Vandline! Did you see Apple Bloom?" asked Applejack
"Last I saw, she was with you lot," Vandline said
"She must have gone after Zecora."
"Well then, let's hurry! I have my own questions for Zecora."
Vandline and the main six ran to the Everfree Forest. After about five minutes of searching, the group found Apple Bloom trailing behind Zecora. Vandline noticed the blue flowers, and with a quick reaction, she stopped before touching the flowers but didn't have time to warn the group as they were already in the field of flowers.
"Uh oh," Vandline said
"Apple Bloom!" Yelled Applejack which caused Zecora to look behind herself, looking towards the group, which caused Apple Bloom to be spotted. "you get back here right now!"
"Beware! Beware! Those leaves of blue are not a joke," Zecora said, which caused Vandline to get a closer examination for the flowers. Vandline couldn't quite tell, but she sensed that the flowers need to have stayed away from at all costs. Deciding to stay away from the flowers, Vandline proceeded to yell towards the Zebra but was too late as she has disappeared.
"Why couldn't you listen to your big sister." Applejack said to Apple Bloom
"Applejack, she probably has a better understanding of the current situation than you might realize," Vandline said. "You should return home right away I have a feeling your ordeals are yet to be resolved."
"And what will you be doing, Vandline?" asked Twilight
"I'm going to have a chat with a Zebra," Vandline said, which caused an uproar from AJ, R.D., Rarity, and Pinkie. "Need I remind you as to what I am? IF Zecora does give me trouble, then I can handle myself."
"Be careful of her curses!" Pinkie warned
"There's no such thing as curses," Twilight said
"oh, you poor, poor, child, if only you knew what my world could really throw at you Vandline thought to herself. As the group headed back home, Vandline proceeded to follow the same path that the Zebra took while being careful of the blue flowers. On her way, she found more signs of someone traveling here frequently. After about five minutes of following a path, she found a hut when she suddenly heard a voice behind her.
"Begone foul creature of undeath! You shall not take my soul to your master," Zecora said she was about to strike Vandline when she blocks the hoof with her hands.
"Relax! I bear no ill will towards you, nor do I serve a master anymore. I have my own free will!" Vandline said
"Then why are you here?" Zecora said
"You tried to warn the ponies about the blue flowers, but because of your...reputation around the paranoid residents of Ponyville, they most likely assumed you were trying to curse them," Vandline said
Zecora gave a good long look towards Vandline before relaxing. "If you speak the truth, then in the morning, we must make a brew for your friends," Zecora said
"I wouldn't say we are 'friends' exactly, but if you know an antidote to the blue flowers, then you can give me a list of ingredients, and we can make it tomorrow." Vandline said, "By the way, I know your name, but you don't know mine, so please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Vandline."
Zecora and Vandline went into Zecora home, where Vandline saw many items and decorations related to the Zebra. "hmm, reminds me of my allies back home," Vandline said
"You are familiar with what you see?" Zecora asked
"There is a lot of familiarities, but we probably don't have time to talk about it. Your list?" Vandline asked to which Zecora gave the Death Knight a list of ingredients. "Excellent by tomorrow, I'll have everything you'll need"
Night has fallen, so it was too late to get one ingredient from the flower shop in Ponyville, so Vandline decided to return to the Library and catch up on some reading one book in particular, called Supernaturals, caught her attention so with nothing better to do she read the book.
In the morning, Vandline heard a scream coming from Twilights room. said pony came crashing down, going through all sorts of books to find a cure for her condition. "Good morning, Twilight. Is something the matter?" Vandline asked. When Twilight showed her horn Vandline was very shocked to see it in such a condition. "Well, that's certainly embarrassing," Vandline said, chuckling to herself.
"This is no laughing matter, Vandline! There has to be a reason for this! An Illness, An allergy?" Twilight said, getting worried
"A curse!" Spike yelled
"I said a REAL reason, Spike."
"I wouldn't dismiss Curses so easily, Twilight. I know a lot of people who would say otherwise."
"Curses aren't real Vandline. They are just artificial. fake magic"
"Oh, you poor, poor child," Vandline said, shaking her head, "you may think they are fake but, where I come from? they are most certainly real, and I've been a victim to some of them on more than one occasion, but if you insist on thinking they aren't real, then don't say I didn't warn you."
Twilight was just a little nervous around Vandline now. "A-a-anyways l-lets continue with the topic at hand."
"Might I suggest giving this book a read?" Vandline said, giving the book, Supernaturals to Twilight
"Vandline, I don't think I'm going to find a solid answer in here," Twilight said, so Vandline puts the book away for now when Apple Bloom and Applejack came to the library. "Oh, speaking of Curses, I must go to the flower shop to pick up a few things," Vandline said. As Vandline was walking, she heard a lot of commotion coming from the library. Deciding that time was on the line, she bought the ingredients needed and proceeded to head back to Zecoras hut. Little did Vandline know that Apple Bloom was following her.
After an hour's walk, Vandline made it to Zecoras hut, but then she heard something behind her "Show yourself!" Vandline yelled only to see that it was Apple Bloom. "Apple Bloom? What are you doing here?"
"I was following you to see what you were doing." Apple Bloom said, "But Applejack tried to stop me and to have me return to the others, but since she was tiny, I placed her on a little tree limb and continued to follow you."
Vandline was surprised that Apple Bloom did such a thing to Applejack, but she wanted to warn Applejack for her treatment of Apple Bloom, so she let it slide. "Apple Bloom, why don't we go meet Zecora now? I'm sure she will be happy to meet one pony who isn't superstitious." Vandline said to which Apple Bloom smiled and walked in with Vandline.
Vandline gave the supplies to Zecora to begin making the cure for the Poison Joke that the main six found themselves in. It was a good thing that Vandline didn't step on the flowers as she didn't want to find out what kind of joke the flowers would give her. The cure was about done when suddenly, an upside-down flying Rainbow Dash came crashing into the house with a very small Applejack acting as the rider. Vandline didn't have a lot of time to act before Rainbow and Applejack crashed into the pot containing the cure. Twilight and the other also came charging in.
"Ok, Zecora, you will release Vandline and Apple Bloom from your mind control this instant!" Twilight said
"ENOUGH!" Yelled Vandline while casting chains of ice on everyone minus Apple Bloom and Zecora. "Well, this will certainly be an interesting conversation with all of you, and now Zecora needs to make a new batch of the cure inflicting on all of you."
"A cure? What the hay does that mean?" Applejack said
"Oh, this is going to be fun" Vandline said to which she then explained what has been happening to everyone. After finishing her explanation and why everyone is a fool, Twilight asked Zecora to kindly make a new cure so that everyone is free of the effects of the Poison Joke. Later everyone was at the spa getting treated. "Well, Twilight, I believe this would make an excellent report for Celestia, although you do owe me some money for the flowers I bought back in Ponyville," Vandline jokingly said.
After everyone was done with the day they returned home, Vandline decided to walk with Zecora back to her home to ask about a few things. "So Zecora, you lived in the Everfree for a while now, yes?" Vandline asked when she received a nod she continued. "Ive explored this jungle more times than I can count but I always appreciate more eyes so if you want can you do me a favor?"
As dawn rose on Ponyville, Vandline was currently getting some exercise inside the Everfree forest. Most of the creatures that Vandline was fighting were the Timberwolves, as it would seem that the more hostile creatures are just staying away from her, almost like the forest can sense her hostility.
Screaming at the top of her lungs, Vandline charges forth towards another pack of Timberwolves. She was impressed with these creatures since they don't seem to give up even when faced with a significant challenger, though at this point, she was getting sick of facing these wooden beasts. Having had her fill with combat, she sliced the last standing Timberwolf.
"There! that should be enough to sate the hunger for now. Guess I should return to Ponyville and report to Twilight." Vandline said with a huff of her chest. Putting her swords away on her back, she dug into her bag when she first set out on her journey from Acherus all those years ago. She pulls out a journal and begins to look through her entries about her expeditions. After finishing the latest to be written in the journal, Vandline puts the journal back into her bag and makes her way to Ponyville.
Reaching the outskirts of Ponyville, Vandline notices a carriage being pulled by the Royal Guards. Curious, Vandline quickly makes her way to the library, where she spotted Celestia talking to Twilight. Upon entering the vicinity of the two ponies, Celestia is the first to speak to Vandline.
"Ah, Vandline, you're just in time," Celestia said
"In time for what exactly," Vandline asked
"I need you to do me a favor. I have recently been receiving reports of strange activity near a small town called Appleloosa, and the descriptions do not bode well."
"So you want me to investigate for you?"
"Indeed, here are the papers describing the creatures you may be facing" Celestia then levitated a scroll to Vandline describing the creatures she will be facing.
"I'll have a look inside once I reach the town," said Vandline "Twilight is there someplace private where nobody can see us? what I'm about to do is only for you and Celestias' eyes."
"Hiding something?" Celestia asked
"We should be able to hide close to the Everfree," Twilight said. Vandline, Celestia, and Twilight walked to the edge of the Everfree away from prying eyes. Celestia and Twilight were confused about why Vandline asked to hide when they felt energy coming from her hands. Celestia recognizes it as necromantic energy, so she went to the defensive while Twilight was curious. A few seconds later, they hear an echoing neighing sound, and a horse as tall as Celestia came forth from somewhere nearby.
"I honestly didn't think that would work," said Vandline. "Meet my trusty mount when I was traveling around my world." Celestia and Twilight were somewhat horrified when the creature appeared. The horse was covered in armor almost similar to Vandline with some differences, like odd skulls that both of them never saw before. The horse's legs were gone but had what appeared to be ethereal energy forming the legs for it.
"What is that?" Asked Celestia, a little concerned
"We called them Deathchargers, but I do have a name for him," Said Vandline. "I knew your reactions would be horrified, which is why I asked to be secretive about this. Now, are there any roads that I can take to make it to town?"
"There should be some roads that don't see a lot of traffic by my little ponies," Celestia Said "The one thing you should be worried about is the train tracks which delivers supplies to Appleloosa."
"Ok, the less I'm seen, the fewer headaches you'll have to deal with" Vandline then looks to Twilight, and with a smug, she says, "Don't cause too much trouble while I'm gone" Twilight fakes a little laugh while Celestia did chuckle a little. Vandline then gets on her mount.
"Right, I'll have the situation dealt with soon" Vandline then heads off towards Appleloosa, avoiding the eyes of Ponyville residents. She gave Ponyville one final look before she ventured into the unknown towards Appleloosa. A week passed, and she reached the outskirts of a desert when she was intercepted by an unknown assailant and taking a direct blow to the chest. She lands on her back with a hard thud.
Quickly getting up, she dismisses her Deathcharger and quickly draws her twin runeblades looking around for her unknown assailant. Hearing footsteps behind her, she quickly turns around and blocks an attack from a Felguard demon. Having faced these foes many times, Vandline pushes her attackers' sword and delivers a twin diagonal slash at the demons' chest.
"What do you think you're doing here demon" Vandline said with venom when she said demon "Come to exploit this world?"
Instead of a reply, the demon charged at Vandline with a roar and raised its sword to strike her down. Having anticipated this move, Vandline ran towards the demon. With precise movement, she sidestepped the downward swing of the demon's sword while delivering multiple slashes on its arms. Vandline was enjoying toying with the demon, but she had a mission to complete, so with one more charge at the dazed enemy, she plunged her runeblades into the back of the demon and swiftly ended its life.
"Damn, I wasn't expecting the Legion to be here on this peaceful world." Vandline said she swiftly brought out the scroll that Celestia gave her and read the contents.
Vandline. By now you might have faced the assailant that my little ponies have spotted and I suspect that you know who you are facing Vandline gave a few seconds thinking why she wasn't told back in Ponyville but dismissed that thought thinking she didn't want to worry Twilight
So far they seem to be avoiding my citizens, but because they are relatively close to Appleloosa, I fear they may be spotted soon, which is why you are on this mission for me. Inside this scroll, you'll have a location to go to where I suspect they may be. Please bring a swift end to these monsters before they harm my ponies
With her objective clearly understood, Vandline summons her Deathcharger again and proceeds to head to the designated location. It takes a few hours but seen she begins to see signs of Legion activity. Thinking she is getting close, she dismounts her mount and dismisses it. Vandline moves at quickly and quietly as she can to avoid alerting any possible sentries. Hiding behind a rock, she hears demonic voices commanding lesser demons. Peaking her head out from behind the rock she sees a few demons on patrol. She spots some Imps, Wyrmtongues, and more Felguards raiding what looks to be a caravan. She takes a look around before seeing a small group of ponies being herded into a cage on wheels, most likely to be taken back to the main camp.
She heads to the captured ponies quickly, shushing the ponies to avoid being seen, and then climbs under the wagon. A few seconds later the wagon begins to moves. She hasn't spotted the imps though she does hear the ponies being teased so she assumes the Imps are riding on the cage, making sure the ponies were tormented.
After about thirty minutes underneath the wagon, it suddenly stops, so Vandline, quickly acting on her instincts, gets out underneath the wagon, pulls out her runeblades, and swiftly ends the lives of the Imps and a few Wyrmtongues. she doesn't see the Felguards. Hence, she suspects that they must have left the wagon to these lesser demons. Quickly capitalizing on this opportunity, she interrogates the surviving Wyrmtongues.
"Start talking you weaklings! Why are you on this planet?!" Vandline says to the wyrmtongues.
"W-W-We don't know! The inquisitor is the only one who knows!" one of the demons said. "We only take these creatures so we can eat!" another demon says. This quickly puts a hold onto Vandlines' original plans as now she needs to ensure the captured ponies are rescued and any other captives.
"Fine, I'll pay a visit to your leader, but first, you ARE going to give me the key to this cage before I slice off your pathetic heads!" Vandline said threateningly, which did produce a key as well as other trinkets "And if you value your lives more, you will tell NO ONE!" the two Wyrmtongue demons did as Vandline said and proceeded to return to their original duties.
Quickly turning to the cage, Vandline tells the ponies she was sent by Celestia to exterminate these monsters while also telling them her side objective of rescuing any possible captives. After unlocking the cage, Vandline tells the ponies to hide somewhere and wait for literally every demon running towards one location.
Taking a few moments to make sure the ponies hide, Vandline starts booking it around the fel camp and quickly spots the Inquisitor demon talking to a projection she recognized as an Eredar. As she gets closer she starts hearing the Inquisitor demon speak to the projection.
"Our scouts on this world detect nothing of significance. I would advise we leave before we draw unwanted attention from the mortals"
"No, continue the search on this planet I know there is something we can use here for Lord Kil'jaedan" the Eredar demon said
"Very well Mistress." the Inquisitor demon said before turning off the projection. When the demon started to turn around was when he was attacked by Vandline slicing across its chest.
"Cursed mortal! You will pay for that!" the Inquisitor demon said
"Keep talking demon! I want to know what you're doing here!" Vandline said shouting at the demon which caused more demons to approach her location
The Inquisitor demon chuckles a little "You think you can intimidate me? No I think I shall present your corpse to my Mistress and your soul will be mine to interrogate! I know where you hail from, so I can't wait to extract the info on how you are here!"
"We shall see about that" Vandline whispered to herself knowing she is surrounded. About fifteen demons have appeared to support the Inquisitor, including more Imps and Wyrmtongues, a few Felguards, and one Doomguard. The first to initiate combat was five Imps and five Wyrmtongues to overwhelm Vandline, although they are considered lesser demons they can still be threatening in numbers.
Vandline slices in half three of the Imps and impales two of the Wyrmtongues before going on the defensive when the remaining Imps decided to throw some fireballs. Vandline surrounds herself with an anti-magic shell to negate some of the damage and slices off a few arms on two of the Wyrmtongues. The last Wyrmtongue felt a little brave and surprised Vandline by jumping on her back but soon realizes his mistake when she gave the biggest death glare she can give to the Wyrmtongue who proceeds to jump off her back and runs away before being killed by the Doomguard demon.
Deciding that it's now time to finish off the intruder, three of the felguards decide to try and impale their spears into Vandline but she dodges the spears, which caused two of the felguards to kill the remaining Imps while the third one hits the ground. Quickly going on the offensive Vandline slices at the head of the nearest felguard it doesn't do a whole lot of damage but it did irritate the demon into a rage.
Using the enraged demon to her advantage, she taunts the demon to charge at her while facing the other two felguards in a melee. Timing the attack the demon just barely missed Vandline but accidentally stabbed one of the felguards in the heart, killing it instantly. Deciding to now finish off her attackers, Vandline stabs one of the demons with her runeblades and slices open the gut of the demon and then slices off the hands off the other demon effectively disarming the demon.
"What are you doing you fools! KILL HER!" the Inquisitor demon shouts at the remaining demons who proceed to advance on Vandline. Deciding that now would be a good time to retreat, she finishes off the demon who had its guts spilling out and heads to the Inquisitor demon. In one motion of an attack, she slices off the head of the Inquisitor demon before running off into the camp and looking for more captured ponies or more demons to kill. After a thorough search of the camp, only finding more demons, which Vandline quickly killed, she was about to leave the camp when the Doomguard from earlier arrived in front of her.
Getting into a combat-ready stance, Vandline parries an attack from the demon before she was kicked in the gut by the demon. Quickly getting up, she blocks another attack by the demon, only this time, she sliced off one hand on the demon and proceeded to unleash a multi-slash combo before finishing off the Doomguard by impaling its head with her runeblades.
Satisfied that she cleared the camp she gives it one more search for any clues on why the Burning Legion was here on Equestria. Finding small bits of intel and freeing a few ponies who were captured Vandline proceeds to leave the camp. After giving a thorough look at the intel Vandline decides to hunt down any Legion patrols and destroy more camps. She realized that this mission was going to take a few weeks or a month to finish.