> Friendship Is Magic, Part 3
>  by Cii
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------





Prologue

        
        Once upon a time, on the magical Equestria Islands, a bustling, yet rather small community of the two pony races thrived on the many different islands, those being the Earth ponies and the Unicorn ponies. They only had themselves and their families to take care of and have always lived in peace as far back as they can remember. 
To the south of Ponyville on a family-owned farm, a door swung open as a unicorn mare named Hinawa and the youngest of her twin unicorn foals, Luca, walked out with her, as quiet as the young filly ever was. 
Hinawa had a magenta coat and a cutie mark of a giant white heart with two smaller hearts hovering on either side of the larger one, both angled slightly outward. Both her mane and tail were long and straight, and dark-brown in color. 
Luca had an orange coat with a long blond tail and a big blond mane, each ending with a slight twist at the end. She had not received her cutie mark yet, though she was still at a very young age and understandably would not have one appear until she was older. 
Hinawa was levitating a group of three saddlebags onto her back as she walked outside, one for each of her twins and another for herself. An earth stallion with a dark-brown coat and a light-brown mustache -- whose mane was covered by his cowboy hat -- followed close behind the two fillies. He bore a cutie mark of a flintlock intertwined with a matchlock. His name was Flint, the husband of Hinawa and proud father of his beautiful twins. He stopped in the doorway and waved a hoof at two of the three most precious ponies in his life. 
        “I hope y’all have a fun time visiting grandpa,” he said, “And I’ll see ya in a just a few short days.” Claus, the older twin unicorn, raced out of his family’s house with the energetic air he always seemed to have around him, especially because of the colt’s young age. Claus had a light-blue coat with an orange mane and tail, much like Luca’s, but with the twist being in the middle of his mane, which was also pulled back slightly. Like his twin sister, he was also too young to have received a cutie mark just yet.
        “I can’t wait to play with all of grandpa’s cows and pigs and chickens and the dragons in the valley, and--” The eldest of the twins exclaimed rather quickly, obviously excited about their departure.
        “Hold on there, Claus,” Flint interrupted, “I don’t want ya to be playing around with those dragons, they’re a lot bigger than you and I don’t want ya to hurt yourself.”
        “But dad, they’re really friendly and would never hurt anypony without any good reason.” Claus retorted, “Anyways, I only play-fight with them. They know we’re all just having fun.” The colt shot a wry glance at his younger twin sister, “Maybe I can even get Luca to actually play with us this time...” He chuckled under his breath. Luca met her brother‘s gaze and quickly looked back at the ground, sweeping a hoof at the dirt in an awkward silence.
        “Okay, but at least be careful around them, I don’t want you two gettin’ hurt over there.” He said as he lowered his head so his hat covered his eyes.
Hinawa glanced backward at Flint and raised an eyebrow with a smile, “Excuse me, did you say 'two’?  What about me?” she asked comically, “I suppose this third pony is just here for transportation purposes?” She laughed at her own sarcastic question.
        “Of course not, I just meant, uh...you two groups of ponies! Eeyup! The adults group and the foal group.” Flint responded with a silly tone to his voice, though he kept his head lowered.
        “I know honey, I’m only joking!” she said, “And don’t you worry, I’ll keep an eye on them as well as my dad.” She nuzzled Claus as he trotted up next to his mother.
        “You father? Alec?” Flint looked back up with surprise and laughed, “You mean you’ll keep an eye on both our children and your father, don’t ya? Looks like you’ll have a lot of foalsitting these next few days!” He laughed until he noticed Hinawa was no longer nuzzling her foals, but glaring at Flint. He awkwardly ceased his laughter and cleared his throat. 
“I mean, um...I’m sure you’ll both be a great team watching these two and I hope y’all have a wonderful time!”
        Hinawa couldn’t help but laugh at her husband’s awkwardness, and at the sight of Hinawa laughing, Flint began as well, with Claus following suit so that everypony except Luca was enjoying a good laugh before eventually departing as the sun just began to set.

        The three unicorn ponies left their home, heading north through Ponyville and further northwest through a nice, bright and beautiful forest. It was known as the Foreverfree Forest, a peaceful woodland home to nature’s usual animals like birds, deer, frogs, and the occasional group of bats or snakes. 
After about an hour of walking through the woods, Luca, being the easily exhausted cryfilly she was became tired and asked to ride on her mother’s back for a short while. Hinawa, trying to be a loving mother that would do anything for her little foals, obliged and though she realized it would be an even more strenuous hike now, still carried Luca and each of their saddlebags on her back for the rest of their trip. 
        After almost three hours, Hinawa and her twin foals finally made it to her father’s farm, and Luca had already been asleep on her mother’s back for the better half of the trip. 
Alec was already waiting for them on his porch, and told the three unicorns they could sleep for the night, since the moon rose a short while ago and he had beds already made. Alec was a unicorn pony as well, and had a grey coat with a light-brown mane and tail, and a white beard. He had a cutie mark of what appeared to be a set of various farming tools closely jumbled together in a pile, and he was wearing the same old hat he always wore, his flat-brimmed brown hat. 
The two ponies that were still awake from the walk to the farm were tired, and accepted Alec’s offer of going straight to bed. They both trotted upstairs to Luca’s and Claus’ bedroom and Claus immediately flopped down onto his bed without even covering up, and was already half asleep. Hinawa levitated Luca off her back and into her own bed as she still slept. She levitated the covers over Luca and Claus, tucking them into their beds and unpacked their saddlebags as they slept, then headed back downstairs.
        “So, how are your little foals doing? Pretty excited to be back? I’ve missed you all so much, you know.” Alec said to Hinawa once she departed from the twins’ bedroom, just to make small talk. 
        “Well, Claus seems very excited to play with your animals and with the dragons nearby. He’s always been full of energy and never seems to tire out from anything. He even walked the whole way here with me and didn’t seem fatigued at all until he laid down in his bed.” she responded. 
“As for Luca, she still seems to be unmotivated and is usually crying about almost anything she has to do, as if she is always overwhelmed by any task. I mean, she isn’t depressed or anything, she is still cheerful most of the time, and has quite a few friends around, it’s just that she gives up too easily and never wants to do too much of anything when somepony asks her to. I’m not sure how to help her try to overcome that, nothing I’ve tried seems to work anymore...” Hinawa said sadly, and Alec put a hoof around her shoulder.
        “Don’t you worry about it, she’ll grow out of it soon enough. Just get some sleep for the night, it’ll help clear your mind.” he said, and led her to the door to her room, “Just remember: give her some time to do things for herself and she’ll get better. Trust me.” Alec magicked the door open and let Hinawa go inside to get some well-deserved rest.


* * *


        After a few days of playing at their grandfather’s farm, Luca and Claus finished getting ready for their last night they would spend at Alec’s, since they would be leaving the following evening. Once they climbed into bed and were just about to drift off to sleep, Luca mentally noted a sense of finality in the air, but not about the final night sleeping at her grandfather’s; this seemed to be of a much grander scale. 
Nevertheless, Luca took one of the most wonderfully long and refreshing naps she ever had. Whether it was brought on by the unnerving feeling she felt as she began to drift off to sleep or not, she didn’t know. After what felt like quite a long time, her peaceful sleep was crudely destroyed by a sharp, loud knocking on the bedroom door the following morning. As Luca became more conscious while still keeping her eyes closed, she realized the loud knocking wasn’t coming from the bedroom door, but the front door, which just made the noise all the more noticeably louder.
        “Luca! Are you still sleeping? Wake up!”  Somepony called.
        Oh, it’s Claus... Luca thought while still laying in bed, eyes closed, yet fully awake now.
        “The dragons brought their baby over today so we can all play together! You’ve got to come out and play with us this time!”
        Fine... Luca thought and rolled out of bed. She trotted over to the mirror and levitated her hairbrush and brushed her bed-head back to how she always kept it. As she brushed, she stared at her horn in the mirror, wondering why she couldn’t seem to execute any spells she had been taught, aside from the basic levitation that all unicorn fillies and colts learn by instinct at a very young age.
After finishing putting her slight twist in her mane in place, she headed downstairs to go play with Claus for once, since she had been making excuses the past few days as to why she couldn’t play with him. 
        We are leaving tonight anyway, I owe it to him to at least play once before we go, she figured. Anyway, there aren’t any more excuses to be busy with anymore. 
Instead of playing with her adventurous brother during the past few days, she had said she was either busy helping Alec with the farm, busy picking some sunflowers with their mother to bring back home, or busy talking with the other animals on the farm. Luca seemed to have a natural talent with speaking to, and connecting with other animals, no matter what species they were, she understood them and they saw her as a kind pony. Hinawa was baking some apple pie in the oven and noticed Luca coming down the stairs.
        “Good morning, Luca! Claus was just calling for you, he’s been playing with the dragons all morning and wanted you to play with him.” Hinawa said, “I’m making your favorite lunch snack: apple pie! So just go outside and give Claus some company, and I’ll come get you both when lunch is done, alright?” she smiled, and resumed cooking, not exactly waiting for Luca to respond, although they both knew the shy filly wouldn’t say anything anyway.

        Luca stepped outside on the crisp, early hours of the morning and saw Alec working on the farm, as he usually did this early. He caught sight of Luca stepping out on the porch and after levitating his shovel and pail onto the ground, he trotted over to her and hugged her.
“You three are headed back home later, aren’t you?” he asked, “Oh, I’m gonna miss you after you leave; be sure to come back again soon, it was really nice to have you all here again.” Luca remained silent, but smiled and chuckled a slight bit. “If you were looking for Claus, he’s right over there, playing with the dragons.” Alec added, pointing a hoof toward the east, where the mountains began, and where the dragons lived.
Luca thanked Alec and walked over to the mountains just next to the farm. Just around the corner, there was Claus with the two dragons and their baby dragon, a small, green, happy baby dragon who apparently couldn’t speak yet. Claus spotted Luca and called her over to do some play-fighting, and Luca slowly walked over.
        “This is how we play-fight, okay Luca?” Claus demonstrated and backed up slowly, “You just get a good running start...” he galloped straight toward the dragon, Wait--straight toward the dragon?! Luca thought, “And then just--” SLAM! Claus ran headfirst into the dragon, as the dragon roared and fell over on its side.
        “Claus! Why did you--” Luca started, but stopped mid-sentence when the dragon got up and laughed, along with the baby dragon who enjoyed the sight of the play-fight, as it seemed.
        “Don’t worry, I’m fine,” the dragon explained with a deep voice, “This is what we’ve been doing for a while, and it’s the first time our baby came along to watch.”
        “Yeah, this is how the dragons and I have been having fun, and the baby likes to watch it too!” Claus explained as well, “The harder you run into them, the more they like it! Here, you try this time, Luca!”
        “You’re sure about this?” Luca asked Claus.
        “Yeah, it’s completely safe.”
        “Okay, if you all say so...” Luca decided to try her hoof at it and took a few steps back as Claus did before, lined up with the father dragon and charged, galloping at top speed, and ran headfirst into the dragon and knocked him down. The dragon let out another loud, comical roar for his baby, who fell over on his back and started rocking back and forth from laughter.
        “See, that wasn’t so bad, was it?" Claus asked, “Pretty fun, huh?"
        “Yeah...that actually was fun!" Luca exclaimed.
Alec and Hinawa appeared from around the corner of the mountain.
        “Okay, my little ponies,” Hinawa called, “Breakfast is ready! Say goodbye to your dragon friends!” The ponies said their goodbyes to the dragons, and the dragons to the ponies before all going their separate ways.
        After having breakfast together and helping Alec with the farm once more, the ponies went in to begin packing their saddlebags to head back home.
        “You’re planning on leaving already?” Alec asked with concern, “But it’s still early!”
        “I know, but we have to leave a little bit earlier to get back home in time, we still have to go through the Foreverfree Forest and all, dad.” Hinawa explained.
        “Oh, come on! I’m sure these little foals would be okay here, the forest is so peaceful,” Alec laughed and added, “I’d bet even cowardly little Luca could live out here on her own, it’s just so nice and peaceful out here!” Hinawa noticed a piece of paper with a quill and ink all bundled together in her saddlebag, with which she meant to write a note to Flint to let him know they would be on their way back soon, and to look out for them. She levitated the quill, paper and ink in front of her and walked out the front door. 
She relished the cool late-morning air on her smooth coat and finally set her paper and ink nearby as she dipped her quill and began to write as Luca and Claus continued packing their saddlebags.

“Dear Flint,
Just as you thought, the foals were running all around the farm and mountains, helping dad with the farm ever since we got here a few days ago.

Claus is still an adventurous colt and is always full of energy as he ever was (he must take after his father), and Luca is still reserved and quiet most of the time. But they both seem to love helping around the farm as well as playing, neither one of them seem to tire from it all.

Dad seems sad to say goodbye to his grandfoals after being able to see them for the first time in quite a while, but he’s been worrying about us leaving since we got here. Either way, we should be back home by this evening.

After being around the sheep back home for so long, I forgot how nice and refreshing the mountain air feels in comparison to back home, I wish you would have been able to come this time.

How about next time we decide to come back up you can come along and I’ll just get somepony else to watch our sheep; we should really be up here all together as a family.

We were all thinking about you the whole time we were up here; Claus, Luca and I (and even Alec asked how you were). When we get back hopefully around dinnertime, I’ll make something with your favorite ingredient: apples! How does that sound?

Anyway, we’ll see you tonight!

With love, your dearest Hinawa”

        Hinawa tied the note onto a carrier pigeon with her telekinesis and sent it off to Flint. She watched the bird fly south through the trees in the direction of her home, and started inside to check on her foals. 
Just before she magicked the front door open however, a group of pony-sized shadows zoomed across the sky with the...wings? ...Attached to them and in an instant passed over Alec’s house, much too quickly for Hinawa to see what exactly they were. It followed the path her carrier pigeon took, going south into the forest. Hinawa assumed it was a type of small dragon judging by its wing size. She walked back inside and went to gather the twin foals and go on back home.
> Chapter One, Part I: A Societal Grieving Malfunction
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Just a fair warning: Although this is a fic that is rated everyone, there are now certain grimdark themes that are not for everyone and could be considered too extreme for some...warning just in case.








Chapter One


Part I: A Societal Grieving Malfunction




        FWOOM! FWOOM! CRASH!! The trees in the Foreverfree Forest began to catch fire and fell in groups all around the forest animals as they all tried to flee the inferno. Packs of all types of animals that lived in the forest -- boars, snakes, birds and rabbits, among others -- all scattered while trying to dodge the trees that fell all around them.
        The trees still glowing red and orange after they had fallen in the devastation, still burning; casting long shadows on the forest ground and lighting up the night sky as if it were once again morning. 
        A large group of squirrels and rabbits ran past a small section of trees toward the northern side of the forest that hadn’t been touched by the flames yet as two unicorns donning spiked metal helmets peered out from behind the trees once the area was clear of animals. Not that it mattered what animals had escaped or not; there were probably even birds still in the trees that had just fallen asleep for the night in a tree that was burning now. Or perhaps there weren’t. Still didn’t matter. 
        The masked unicorns knew this, and both stepped completely out from behind the group of trees, revealing their large, mechanical wings. They promptly folded them back inward with a small puff of smoke exhaust coming from the base of the wings, which were attached on either side of their body. The helmets they were wearing had two menacing protrusions, one larger one in the center for show, large and drooping like a stalactite just behind their head and the smaller protrusion where their horn was fit in, free to use their magic.
        They walked a safe distance away from each other and the next group of the trees they had targeted. Without saying anything, they looked at each other simultaneously and nodded together, aiming at a group of different trees for each of them, their horns producing a pulsating red tinted aura. 
        From their horns a giant blob of fire propelled toward the trees, hitting the trunks with a force strong enough to snap the tree right in half from the strongest point and still engulf the rest of it in flames. The pair flew away from the horribly beautiful sight, bathed in a red glow against the purple-black night, which disappeared slowly on their coats as they soared higher into the sky, ultimately passing through the cloud barrier where they were not able to be seen anymore.
        That was because their job was finished now. More groups of unicorns with mechanized wings flew in from the clouds and landed, reenacting the same destructive scene as the couple that went back up into the sky. 
        After a few fleets of these mechanized unicorns had gone through every bit of the forest, there were no more trees for the animals to take shelter in or under. In fact, there were scarcely any animals left in the forest at all, though just minutes prior the forest was completely inhabited. During the last raid of the mechanized unicorns, one had spotted a fallen dragon, it seemed. There had been no extensive research on this specific animal, so just as they were about to leave, the unicorn decided to take it. 
        It was heavier than the unicorn expected, all the dead weight strained the unicorn’s concentration on his levitation spell and it took a few seconds for his metal wings to help him get off the ground. This proved unsuccessful, as the masked unicorn immediately lost his concentration and dropped the dragon’s body. 
        He contemplated to just wait for rigor mortis to set in, maybe make the trip a little easier, but there wasn’t any time to waste sitting around; it may have been in the dead of the night, but there was no doubt the citizens of Ponyville would wake up to all the noise and investigate. He had to leave now. Leaving the dragon’s lifeless body for now, the last of the mechanized unicorns flew up through the clouds, and the purple-orange glowing fluff of a cloud closed shut behind him. And once again nopony could see where the culprits had gone to.


***


        To the south, all of Ponyville had awoken to the truly awful sight and sound of what was now left of the Foreverfree Forest. They panicked when they had seen what had become of their peaceful forest. The town’s alarm bell to the north had officially been sounded from the earth pony that held this job. 
        Another earth pony, Thomas, who sported a dark grey coat and red mane color with a red ambulance light for a cutie mark ran as fast as he could out of the southern end of Ponyville and toward Flint’s house. Just outside the front entrance to Flint’s house, Thomas began banging on the door. 
        “Flint! Get out here! The forest is on fire!!” he yelled, and without even waiting for half of a second, tried to open the door but realized quick enough that Flint had locked it.
        “Flint!! Hurry, come out!! The forest is on fire!! A big ol’ flamey, firey fire!!!” After literally another second of no response, he placed his hooves on the doorknob tightly, twisted and leaned back, putting all his body weight on the doorknob in a desperate attempt to get the door open. He slipped and fell on his back and realized the doorknob had come undone and was still in his hooves.
        “GAH! Why’d ya hafta come off now of all times?!” he screamed at the doorknob and tossed it aside, and began pounding his hooves on the door screaming as loud as he could, “FLINT!!!!” Suddenly, the door opened and Thomas fell on his face. He got back up on his hooves and saw Flint standing in the doorway.
        “Oh, Fire! Er, Flint! Come quick, the Foreverfree Forest is engulfed in flames!” Thomas said, panicked, “You gotta help me help anypony that needs any help in the help -- er, fire -- I mean, forest!”
        “The whole forest?!” Flint asked, shocked, “What about Lighter and Fuel? Any idea how their cottage is doing out there?”
        “Yeah, they’re out there, but I have no idea what shape their house is in.” Thomas replied. “We just need to check to make sure they’re okay, along with any other ponies that may have been in there at the time that still need help.” The duo galloped as fast as they could through the southern entrance to Ponyville, and out the northern exit to investigate.
        
        Just outside of Ponyville, the ringing of the alarm bell became devastatingly loud, because of Dirpy-Doo, who held the job of being the town’s alarm bell-ringer. 
        Dirpy-Doo was a mute earth mare with googly-eyes that could look in all sorts of directions, had a light-grey coat, blond mane and a cutie mark of a series of three bubbles in a straight line as if imitating an ellipsis. 
        She sat on top of a tall wooden pillar along with a bell and hammer in order to see everything going on around her and the other ponies on the Equestria Islands, and to ring that bell in an emergency.
        “Hey! Dirpy-Doo!” Thomas called up to the mare, “Can you see what’s going on in the forest or find anypony in trouble?”
        The mare remained silent and just kept ringing the bell, looking around in multiple directions at the same time and began eating a muffin from a whole stash she kept with her on top of the wooden pillar.
        Thomas sighed and said, “Well, that’s Dirpy-Doo for you. Still as silent as she ever is.” Flint and Thomas let her be and galloped past the pillar, heading in the direction of the forest to the northwest.
        As the two stallions began nearing the entrance of the Foreverfree Forest, they had both noticed a large amount of smoke that began pouring out of the opening and through the top of the forest. 
        Once they entered they realized though the smoke was a bit heavy, the southern end of the forest seemed rather untouched. Venturing further into the forest they found Bronson, a citizen of Ponyville collapsed on the forest floor. Flint and Thomas ran up to help him.
        “Bronson! Are you alright?” Flint asked.
        “I’ll be fine, I only breathed in a bit too much smoke looking for Fuel...Lighter’s little colt is still in the forest somewhere...you go and find him, I’ve gone as far as I could...” Bronson explained. “There’s no time to lose! I’ll go back to the entrance, you two just go find Fuel!”
        Without hesitation, Flint and Thomas dashed for the northern end of the woods. When they reached the middle of the forest, they couldn’t believe what lay in front of them. The once-green forest floor was now red with the glow of fire, littered with bits of trees devastated all over, black smoke filling the air just above their heads through the tree-less forest ceiling.
        “Geez...how could this happen..?” Thomas wondered aloud. They both made sure to walk north, while still scanning the forest all around them for a little colt with a spiked-up brown mane.
        Suddenly, both Flint and Thomas heard a faint coughing coming from somewhere around the clearing to Lighter and Fuel’s cabin. Flint was the first to reach the sound and saw the pony coughing was Lighter, who was pinned under a pile of freshly-burnt branches.
        “Thomas, it’s Lighter! I found Lighter!” Flint called out, and Thomas came trotting over and helped Flint take the branches off of Lighter. He was still laying on his back, exhausted from having the wind knocked out of him.
        “What were those things..? I only caught a glimpse of some shadows, but they looked like flying ponies...” Lighter managed to say. “I went outside to see what the noise was, the one that turned out to be the trees being burned down...
        “Fuel...Fuel’s still in the cabin...Just get him out of there, Flint. And if you could just help me get out of here, Thomas...I need to breathe clean air pronto...”
        Both ponies knew what was to be done, and went their respective ways.

        Flint continued north on his own until he reached Lighter and Fuel’s cabin. The whole cabin, inside and out was completely engulfed in flames. 
        There is no way Fuel can be in there now, Flint thought, I could check around behind the place, hopefully that little colt managed to-- A small figure moving around in the attic window stopped Flint in his tracks. 
        He took no time in readying himself for a plan, there was no time to lose, the place looked like it was ready to collapse at any second. The stallion galloped toward the front door and bashed it down.
        Upon entering the house, Flint noticed all the broken boards that had fallen from the walls and ceiling burning around him and quickly ran up the stairs to the attic, ramming aside anything in his path that stood in his way of reaching Fuel. 
        Once up the stairs, Flint scanned quickly and saw a little colt with his spiked brown mane collapsed on the attic floor. Flint felt relieved, it was Fuel!
        “...Flint?” Fuel asked, surprised and confused, and probably couldn’t see very well with all the black smoke clouding his vision.
        “Hurry! Get on my back!” Flint ordered, and bent down on his front hooves. “The place is going to fall apart at any second!” 
        The splintering red walls began to give as Fuel crawled onto Flint’s back. Once Flint felt the colt hanging two hooves off either side of him, he stood up and galloped downstairs with the colt in tow, but the exit was blocked by more large pieces of burning wood. 
        Flint had to act fast, so he jumped through the nearest window, causing an entire side of the house to crumble as they landed outside in the forest.
        As the cabin fell apart one wall at a time, Flint looked at Fuel and sighed a breath of relief, and Fuel gave Flint a big, exhausted smile. They were both covered from head to hoof in black soot from being inside the burning house.
        Flint noticed a hot spring nearby, away from the worst of the smoke. He trotted over to it in order to rejuvenate them both, if only for a short moment.
        He didn’t regret it, since it washed off most of the soot that covered them, only leaving their faces a charcoal-dyed coat.
        “Thank you so much Mr. Flint!” Fuel said, feeling loads better. Then he added, “Mr. pitch-black-soot-faced Flint!” he began laughing, but Flint remained serious and silent. The two earth ponies began to trot out of the still-burning forest. 
        “Hey, have you seen my dad? He wasn’t home when our house started burning.” Fuel asked, looking up at Flint.
        “Yeah,” Flint answered blandly, “He’s being taken care of by Thomas.”
        “Thomas? Oh, boy...” Fuel laughed, “Let’s just hope he’s still in one piece when we find him, right?”
        “How can you be cracking jokes at a time like this?” Flint stopped walking and snapped back, “You almost burned alive and your father’s in critical condition as far as I know!”
        Fuel was taken aback and after a stunned moment spoke back up.
        “I’m sorry, I heard that it’s natural to laugh after you’re gone through a life-threatening moment...” Fuel said glumly, “Something with your body chemicals and their defense mechanism...” Then he gave a small hiccup-like laugh and the two ponies continued walking.
        They were almost out of the forest when Thomas ran up to them and sighed a breath of relief.
        “Oh, Flint! You rescued Fuel!” He took a look at both of the ponies and remarked, “Your faces are both pitch-black and covered in soot! You should go wash up after you’ve seen Lighter. He’s right over here.” He guided the two ponies around the corner to a hurt Lighter on a board, being tended to by a few of the citizens of Ponyville.
        “Dad! You’re okay!” Fuel laughed and trotted up to Lighter’s side.
        “That voice...” Lighter said and managed to open an eye and roll over on his other side, “Fuel! You’re okay! But you’re pitch black and covered in soot!” He looked over at Flint.
        “Thomas told me you went to save my colt, and I see you did it...Thank you, Flint.”
        “Woah, I never heard Lighter thank somepony before...” Lou, another resident of Ponyville chimed in.
        “It was no problem,” Flint said, “But are you alright? You look like you messed your hoof up somethin’ nasty...”
        “This? This is nothing!” Lighter scoffed, “All I have to do is snap it this way and that...” He began to sit up and twist his hoof to prove his point, but was held back down by another pony from the village, Tessie.
        “No, Lighter! I’m going to ask you to not move much for a few more days.” She said, and Lighter grumbled.
        “This has become quite the strange day...” Bronson stated, “First the strange shadows in the sky Lighter mentioned, then the fires in the Foreverfree Forest...speaking of which...” he turned back at the forest, which was still on fire, “It would be nice if we had a nice rain soon to help put out the fire. But we haven’t had rain in such a long time, I even forgot what it felt like...”
        Strangely, as soon as Bronson finished saying this it began to sprinkle, washing off the soot from Flint and Fuel’s faces.
        “...And now it’s raining.” Thomas said, dumbfounded, “...Oh! I wish I had...” Thomas attempted to think of something he would have liked to have, in a humorous attempt to have his wish granted like Bronson, but came up with nothing. He sat in silence for a moment until everypony realized Dirpy-Doo had been ringing the Ponyville bell.
        “Oh, we should probably head back into town and let Dirpy-Doo know we’re okay, and let Lighter rest,” Bronson told the other villagers, “Great teamwork tonight everypony, I’ll see you all tomorrow!"
        Everypony cheered except for Flint, and began walking back into town to get some sleep, or in Lighter, Fuel and Flint’s case, get patched up.


***




        Now that the rain clouds were in place and the fire was being put out, the mechanized unicorns would just have to make sure nopony was still in the forest, especially this “Lighter” it seemed the pony’s name was, who had a cabin they needed to get rid of to conduct more research. When the scouting from the sky was complete, and all the remaining ponies had gone south into Ponyville, they could once again continue research on what was once a forest, now a flat clearing to scavenge for more subjects. 
        As a small group landed, they almost immediately spotted the body of a dragon, just like the other mechanized unicorn had mentioned. Now that they brought along the correct kit, it was time for their first environmental experiment, among a few others to do on this night...


***


        Over at the Carousel Inn, Tessie finished putting the last few bandages on Flint.
        “...And be more careful next time, you can’t afford to rush into situations like that all thickheaded!” She scolded, “You have a family to take care of! What if something happened to you out there?” At the mention of his family, Flint realized he hadn’t seen or heard from Hinawa or his little foals all day, and they were supposed to come back tonight...
        Flint said goodbye to Lighter, who was staying at Tessie’s -- the closest pony to a nurse Ponyville had -- with Fuel for a while. That is, until he was feeling better and could have another cabin built for him. 
        Flint trotted back outside and headed south back to his farm. Immediately he had an uneasy feeling.
        Hinawa’s carrier pigeon was at the doorstep, asleep, and nopony was inside the house. Nevertheless, Flint took the letter that was attached to the carrier pigeon’s foot, which still had Hinawa’s scent lingering in the small fibers of paper, and read to himself:

        “Dear Flint,

        Just as you thought, the foals were running all around the farm and mountains, helping dad with the farm ever since we got here a few days ago.

        Claus is still an adventurous colt and is always full of energy as he ever was (he must take after his father), and Luca is still reserved and quiet most of the time. But they both seem to love helping around the farm as well as playing, neither one of them seem to tire from it all.

        Dad seems sad to say goodbye to his grandfoals after being able to see them for the first time in quite a while, but he’s been worrying about us leaving since we got here. Either way, we should be back home by this evening.”

Flint’s heart dropped.

        “After being around the sheep back home for so long, I forgot how nice and refreshing the mountain air feels in comparison to back home, I wish you would have been able to come this time.

        How about next time we decide to come back up you can come along and I’ll just get somepony else to watch our sheep; we should really be up here all together as a family.

        We were all thinking about you the whole time we were up here; Claus, Luca and I (and even Alec asked how you were). When we get back hopefully around dinnertime, I’ll make something with your favorite ingredient: apples! How does that sound?

        Anyway, we’ll see you tonight!

        With love, your dearest Hinawa”

        Flint ran inside the house to be sure they didn’t just get home earlier and fell asleep somewhere while he was out. Nopony was in the house, and Flint was panicking now. 
        He ran back to Ponyville and told his closest friends his situation. He asked for Issac, Thomas, Bronson, and any other stallions that could help him look around the path between Ponville and the Foreverfree Forest for his family. 
        Luckily, everyone in the village loved Flint and Hinawa and their little twin foals, so the stallions asked more ponies, who asked even more ponies.
        Soon, most of the town formed a search party to be on the lookout for Hinawa, Claus and Luca. Even Boney, Flint’s trusty dog sensed Flint’s worry and caught up alongside him soon after everypony began the search. 
        Although Flint could not understand what Boney meant with his barking and whimpers when he saw his canine friend running up to him in the middle of the town, he had a feeling Boney could tell that he was worried and slightly panicking.

        With a couple dozen ponies in different areas of the Foreverfree Forest, as well as Flint and Boney working together, Flint felt grateful that he had made such understanding and helpful friends in the town next to his farm. 
        He felt a lot more hopeful that as long as everypony worked together, they would find his family and he could put his mind to rest knowing they would be safe in their house after what happened to the forest tonight.
        Flint and Boney eventually ended up around in the northeastern area of the forest and noticed Bronson and a few other ponies gathered around another fallen tree, although this one was jammed between two hills. 
        When he trotted up next to it he noticed this tree was snapped in half as well, blocking any further access beyond the two hills, but it seemed that it had never caught fire unlike the rest of the trees. Bronson had a quizzical look on his face and was thinking of a way to get around the fallen tree. 
        He trotted up to one side of the fallen tree, and stuck his head through the leaves to see the other side and gasped.
        “How can it be possible...?” Bronson questioned, jaw agape when his head came back from the other side of the tree, “There are more trees like this one on the other side, not burned, yet still snapped right in half!”
        A pony walked up and stopped in front of the tree and pointed her hoof at markings on the ground.
        “These look like claw gashes of some sort,” the pony explained, “Obviously whatever did this to the trees ahead wasn’t a pony...”
        “Maybe it was...ghosts?” another younger pony chimed in with a hint of fear in her voice.
        “Oh silly,” the first pony said reassuringly, “There is no such thing as ghosts.”
        “Let’s split up and find another way around,” Bronson suggested, “There’s got to be some other way around this tree so we can figure out what is going on, and hopefully find your wife and foals, Flint.”
        Everypony departed to search more of the areas around the northeastern end of the forest until a citizen called out for Flint with panic in his voice.
        Flint galloped along with Boney at his side toward the pony that cried out and found himself at the base of a cliff on the outer edge of the Gorgeous Gorge which towered over the ponies higher than two Ursa Majors stacked on one another.
        “What? Did you...find them?” Flint asked, trying to catch his breath as two other ponies nearby came over.
        “On top of the cliff there...See that dead tree? I think it’s...” The pony pointed his hoof to the top of the cliff, but couldn’t seem to finish his sentence.
        Flint squinted to see what was caught on the branch billowing in the wind. It was small, long and looked like...
        “Hey, Flint...isn’t that Hinawa’s ribbon?” Wess, an older earth stallion carrying a saddlebag asked.
        Wess had a grey coat and a disheveled white mane that matched his mustache. He wore a cutie mark of a robber’s mask wrapped around a blank-white artist’s canvas, as he was a master in his self-proclaimed “thief arts”.
        As Flint looked back at the tree on the cliff, he realized Wess had been right, it was Hinawa’s magenta ribbon stuck in the branch. He had to get up there somehow, Hinawa must be waiting for him up there when she got lost and couldn’t get down, Flint figured. She put her ribbon in the tree branch to signal where she had been, probably trying to get out of the way of  the fire in the Foreverfree Forest, or whatever had snapped the trees nearby.
        Yeah. that was all it was.
        “Wess, do you have something to climb to the top with?” Flint asked, knowing Wess was sure to have something in his thief-arsenal that let him sneak up to places only unicorns had a possibility of levitating up to.
        “I actually didn’t expect to be climbing up rock walls...but Duster’s home and he should be able to bring something back from our house.” Wess explained. “I believe I have something in this saddlebag that Boney can use to get his scent and find our house...Aha!” Wess exclaimed and pulled out a pile of used bandages from his saddlebag. 
        “He just got these off not too long ago, the poor old moron tried some thief arts too difficult for him to pull off and ended up twisting one of his hooves.” He bent down holding the bandages in his mouth for Boney to sniff. At once, Boney whimpered in disgust.
        “Did you get his scent, boy? Make sure you remember it, now.” Wess leaned in closer to be sure. Boney pulled his head away from the smelly pile of dirty, old bandages and let out out a yelp, which translated to (“AAUGH...why would you still keep those with you?! And quit shoving them in my face!”) They were apparently too much for his nose to process. 
        “Okay, then! Off you go!” Wess exclaimed and put the bandages back into the saddlebag and exchanged it for a small yellow cloak, to which he draped over Boney’s back. “Go find that moron! He should know what the yellow cloak code means.”
        Boney barked in understanding, which  translated to (“Aye-aye!”) and took off running to Wess’ house. 
        After a trip back through the Foreverfree Forest, past Ponyville and eastward over a bridge Boney was in front of the two thieves’ house.
        He began barking at the window and scratching at the door, but still no answer. Boney ran a few circles around the house until he stumbled upon a broken board at the bottom of the back of the house. It seemed to lead directly to the basement, so Boney crawled in to start from there.
        Luckily, Duster was asleep on a bed in the basement, surrounded by numerous tools he must’ve been practicing with.
        Boney quietly whined, which translated to (“And...does Wess have him sleep down here in the dirtiest, dustiest part of the house? That’s kinda sad...”) Boney couldn’t help but feel pretty bad for him as he watched the earth pony sleep.
        Duster had a long, slender face and a darker-beige coat that hung a bit longer over his hooves which were just barely visible. He sported a red-tinted thin mustache and buzz-cut mane that wrapped around his head and between his ears. His cutie mark was that of some of his thief tools with a broken graduation cap sitting atop the pile.
        Boney walked over to the side of the bed and barked loudly to wake Duster up and lead him to the other ponies.


***




        Boney groaned softly, which translated to (“How ish thish guy shtill not awake?!”) since he was practically halfway through Ponyville and still dragging a sleeping Duster by the scruff of his neck and saddlebag straps that Boney had even packed for him.
        Suddenly, for almost no reason at all Duster decided to wake up...at the entrance to the Foreverfree Forest.
        Duster was understandably confused as to why Flint’s pet was dragging him into the forest at this time of night, and confused as to why he hadn’t woken up sooner.
        But wait, that yellow cloak...it was Wess’! Somepony was in need of rescuing at a high altitude! Boney barked at Duster, which translated to (“This way! Follow me!”) and took off running deep into the forest with a clumsily running Duster just behind him due to his bum hoof.
        Dear goodness, the forest...Duster realized. It’s completely leveled...He took in the sights of a barren forest, trees turned on their sides and a cloudy night sky, fully visible with no trees to hinder its view.
        Duster and Boney met up with the group of ponies on the opposite end of the forest, just on the border of the Gorgeous Gorge and Duster had to stop a moment and catch his breath. He stretched his hooves one at a time, and his back left hoof made a sound like bubble wrap popping which he didn’t know was either a good or bad sound, there was no more feeling in that hoof anymore. There hadn’t been any since that accident--
        Almost as soon as the thought entered Duster’s mind, he made himself repress it. There was a pony to save now!
        Wess walked up to Duster with grave seriousness and began, “Duster...this is your moment. All these years you have studied the thief arts. It is time to put them to the test now; a pony up there needs our help! Show these ponies the Wall Staple technique!” 
        Wess backed off, letting Duster through to the cliff wall. Duster physically and mentally shook negative thoughts away, as this would be the first time using this technique for real. He didn’t want to mess this up.
        He slid his saddlebag off and took a bundle of giant ladder-like staples in his mouth, and one by one lined them up with the wall and mashed his hoof into the center, digging them into the cliff face.
        He continued this, climbing higher and higher using the Wall Staples as steps until he eventually reached the top of the cliff. He did it! He felt like he could do anything now! Nopony could stop him! He met Wess’ cold gaze from the forest floor...and saw him smile and nod in approval.
        He felt giddy now, calling up Flint as he scanned the top of the cliff. There were huge prints of some kind all around...a dragon’s, possibly? His gaze passed over something stuck in a dead tree nearby. 
        It looked like a ribbon he saw somepony wear before...Tessie? No...L-- Hinawa’s.
        And it hit him. By the time he realized what Flint was up here for, Flint and Boney had climbed to the top thanks to his Wall Staples.
        The rain suddenly stopped. The two ponies and dog looked around the night sky, seeing nothing but clouds, now apparently drained of their rain.
        “Well, I have a minor handicap,” Duster said, wiggling his back left hoof, “But I should be able to keep up with you guys just fine.”
        Flint nodded and went directly to the ribbon stuck in the tree. He snatched it out of the cold, dead branches greedily with his mouth. It smelled like Hinawa...
        Flint looked around once more. She’s right here...Right. Here. But I still don’t see her...Flint began to grit his teeth in anger, loosening the strands of fabric he held in his mouth. He decided to put it in Duster’s saddlebag when he realized he would eventually rip it to shreds in anger if he didn’t find her soon.
        A high-pitched beeping coming from the other side of the cliff caught the group’s attention as they walked around boulders blocking the path. The three stopped short when they saw just around the bend the most confusing sight any of them had experienced.
        
        The beeping was coming from some alien machine, operated by two metal-masked unicorns with technological wings boring into their coats.
        The unicorns pressed many buttons on the machine with their hooves, which gave off a wave of white lightning that passed over the creature sitting on a circular platform, connected to the machine.
        What lay on the platform almost passed for an ordinary boar, if it wasn’t for the dead meat that took up about 60% of its body, leaving the other 40% nothing but metal plates, screws and additional protrusions that looked nothing less than horrifying.
        “Are those...ponies?” Duster asked, his mind still deciphering what it is looking at. “And what are they doing to that hedgehog?”
        “Wait, a hedgehog? I thought it was some kinda boar.” Flint pointed out, glancing at Duster and feeling even more unsure now than he was a moment ago.
        “Let’s go see what they’re doing.” Duster said, bravely walking up behind one of the mechanical unicorns and tapping it on the flank.
        The unicorn immediately jumped and dropped a booklet, but didn’t notice. When the two unicorns saw the two earth ponies and dog, they scrambled behind the creature on the platform and pressed more buttons on the machine.
        The platform whirred to life and lightning danced all around the boar-creature. Its eyes quickly shot open and Flint realized its eyes were angry, blank and dead. 
        60% dead boar flesh and 40% heaps of metal acting as a solvent to keep the meat together, was the best way to describe it, Flint noted.
        Those cold, dead eyes were looking at Flint with malice as it began moving its feet slowly in place. It suddenly bent down, acting not unlike a lion about to pounce on its prey, and a burst of steam shot out of one of its many protrusions, and the hind legs sprang forward.
        The hog began squealing wildly in a rabid, choking, guttural sound as it tried biting and bucking the ponies and dog in a mess of--not even saliva exactly--fluid all around, a look of pure, wild animal kill-or-be-killed instinct in its eyes.
        Flint was kicked onto his back and Duster tried defending himself with an extra Wall Staple he took in his mouth as Boney leaped onto the back of the hedgehog, who just ended up getting his paw pierced by one of its metal quills. He shook his paw in pain and tried biting the back leg of the boar. That got its attention!
        The boar turned around to look at what bit its back leg just as Duster came down on it with three Wall Staples, pinning it down between the ground and themselves. Flint and Duster began furiously hammering at the Wall Staples with their hooves so that they pressed into the hog’s decaying meat slightly.
        The creature was now at their mercy, pinned to the ground and making a piercing sound like none they ever heard before. It was almost scary, the way the disturbing high-pitched sound of fear was dissonant with the look of anger and hatred in the creature’s eyes.
        The two ponies glanced up at the mechanized unicorns with freshly-disturbed eyes, who were watching them a safe distance away in awe.
        “Do we...put it out of its misery?” Duster suggested, an unsure tone in his voice.
        Flint looked back down at the creature, then back at the unicorns. They were still watching, both like a bloodthirsty audience at a Colosseum and like scared foals in the audience of a horror film that was too much for them to handle.
        Flint knew he would have to do it, he didn’t want Duster to have to go through with this. Flint gave one last look at the creature stuck against the ground, writhing and squealing from its boar parts, and popping and hissing from its metal parts. 
        Flint brought both front hooves on top of the Wall Staple closest to the creature’s neck...and slammed down, digging the Wall Staple into the ground and through the creature’s flesh and metal; a mixture of miniature metallic explosions and tearing of muscle until the boar stopped squealing and the metal quit hissing.
        Neither pony could believe what they had just been victim to. Victims of a creature that just tried to kill them, and victims of what they partly became from the skirmish.
        This time when Flint looked up, it seemed the horror film these fillies were watching was much, much more than they could bear.
        The two mechanized unicorns took off running around the bend and Flint, Duster and Boney gave chase. They were cornered at the edge of a tall cliff with nowhere to go.
        Looking out over the edge of the cliff, the two unicorns jumped to escape their pursuers...and with a quick hiss and puff, the mechanical wings extended and allowed the two unicorns to escape, flying towards the horizon.
        Flint beat his hooves against the cliff floor, questioning their escapees about “WHAT ARE YOU WHAT WAS THAT THING WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT", and “I KNOW YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH MY WIFE AND FOALS, WHERE ARE THEY", cursing the unicorns for “WHAT YOU MADE ME DO JUST NOW”, and sarcastically congratulating them for, “CREATING MORE MONSTERS THAN YOU BARGAINED FOR TONIGHT”.
        Duster couldn’t help but feel disturbed at Flint’s primeval ranting. He walked over and picked up the booklet the one unicorn dropped when they first startled them. He gave it a quick read-through and didn’t know whether to show Flint or not, at least not in his state of mind right now.
        “WHAT DID THOSE BUCKING FOALS DROP???” Flint shouted, suddenly right next to Duster before he realized it and made him jump.
        Duster didn’t say anything, but handed it to Flint so he could read. It’s for the best if he knew this, at least. Duster thought.
        Flint opened the first page and an insignia of the drooping stalactite part of the mechanized unicorn’s helmet stared back at him. After that was some sort of motto, or mantra or something, written in bad mouthwriting:





Work Harder


Do it Better


Make it Faster


Makes us Stronger


More than Ever 


Hour After


Our Work Is Never Over


---


We’ll mix and match this and that to create whole new things nopony’s ever seen before!


I dub it the “Intriguing Equestria Chimera Project”


We will modify everything slowly and steadily...







        There were a few equations, notes and drawings scattered throughout the rest of the booklet that Flint couldn’t decipher, nor cared to.
        It took every ounce of Flint’s will to not rip the book to shreds right then and there, burn it, stomp on it, and feed it to the dragons on a silver platter. But instead he ignored that feeling for the time being and gave it to Duster to put in his saddlebag.
        “What is this, just some kind of sick...project to them?!” Flint managed to say with a little trouble. “They’re doing something with my family, those...” He couldn’t find the words he was looking for this time.
        A familiar voice shouted from down below, but aside from knowing it was Wess, Flint couldn’t make out what he said. 
        After taking a long final look over Gorgeous Gorge that lay ahead of him, Flint turned around back toward the Foreverfree Forest and began climbing back down to the forest floor, followed by Duster and Boney.


***




        Once the three were safely back on the ground of the forest floor and saw no sign of Flint’s family aside from Hinawa’s bow, they began walking back into the heart of the forest, where it seemed everypony had gone off to.
        Wess caught up to them shortly after they headed into the forest, breathing hard.
        “Flint, I called up to you! We found them! They’re alright!” he said, smiling and jumping at each emphasis.
        Flint immediately felt all his negative feelings melt down his hooves and away from his body and he finally began to laugh.
        “Are you kidding? They’re okay?!” Flint still couldn’t believe it and started trotting in place, feeling impatient...he needed to see them all now! Haha!
        “Well, that’s the thing...” Wess started, “We have Luca and Claus...Tessie’s watching them now. As for Hinawa...” Wess trailed off and Flint began to feel apprehension rising out of the ground just as quick as it melted off his coat a moment ago.
        “What? Where is she?” Flint gasped, his breathing quickening.
        “...We still haven’t found Hinawa. But the kids were at the river, so they’re drying off now...go see them, maybe they can help you find Hinawa and figure out what’s going on.” Wess said, then added, “I can watch Boney for now, and Duster...you come with me for now too.”
        Duster and Boney wanted to go with Flint, but understood that he should be alone with his foals. They departed along with Wess to the exit of the forest.
        
        Flint walked up around the bend to find some of the ponies that were helping locate his family taking good care of Luca and Claus, Tessie even wrapped blankets around them and sat them in front of a campfire to dry their wet coats.
        Tessie saw Flint walking up to the small group and bowed away to let him talk with his children.
        “D-dad...” Claus said, shivering his words out, but coming up with nothing else.
        “Mom--mom’s...” Luca said, quaking in fear and from the cold, more pronounced on the timid filly’s face.
        Claus slammed a hoof into the ground a little too much like Flint had just done a short while earlier and said, “Darn it...darn it...I could’ve...” then closed his eyes and buried his head in the folds of the blanket.
        “What happened, Claus? Luca?” Flint cautiously asked, trying hard not to make them re-experience whatever just happened; he never saw his children this disturbed before, all the while hoping himself nothing bad happened.
        Neither foal could look Flint in the eye and both remained silent until Flint turned around and bowed his head, silently hoping everything was fine.
        “FLINT! FLINT!!” Bronson called out, but stopped on the other side of the campfire when he saw Flint was having a moment with his foals.
        But Flint couldn’t wait. There was only one pony left to find, and Bronson seems like he needs to tell him something important. Flint trotted over to the other side of the fire.
        “What’s the matter?” Flint asked, warily. He could see beads of sweat forming on Bronson’s neck as he managed to choke out a few words.
        “I...uh--I have some good news...and I have some um--bad news.”
        “Oh, no no no no...please, what is it?”
        “...The good news is...we finally found Hinawa, and she’s on her way over here right now.”
        “OH THANK GOODNESS, that mare had me so worried tonight, she doesn’t even--”
        “As for the bad news...well...we have a group of about five unicorns tending to her at the moment to get her over here.”
        “What are you talking about, Bronson? What’s going on, Bronson?” Flint’s voice began to rise in pure fear.
        “...Flint. Eh...” Bronson tried to get around saying it, hoping that somehow he could fix it by not outright telling Flint. But how could he not? He just had to say it. There was no fixing this.
        “...She’s not going to make it.”
        Something snapped in Flint. He stared blankly through everything in front of him, seeing past Bronson, the fallen trees, past the Gorgeous Gorge, Canterlot, through whatever mountains that lay beyond that he didn’t even know existed, his gaze piercing through icebergs, volcanoes, oceans, buildings, looping all the way completely around the world and ending up staring right at the back of his own head which made him come to, if only to try to speak.
        “Not...going to--to...” Flint stammered, keeping his blank expression.
        “I’m sorry I had to be the one to tell you...” Bronson said, feeling more shameful than he ever felt in his life. Is that right? Shameful? Bronson thought so, but couldn’t recall 100% if that was right.
        There was suddenly a lot of commotion coming from further north. It was the unicorns working their medicinal magic and carrying Hinawa toward the campfire. Flint almost had them stop so that Luca and Claus didn’t have to see, but he figured it would probably be for the best.
        Then Flint saw them. Bronson was right, a group of five unicorns from Ponyville, one levitating Hinawa’s barely-living body and four more concentrating spells as hard as they could to keep her conscious for the time being.
        They came to a rest on Flint and Bronson’s side of the campfire, the fifth unicorn levitating Hinawa down, then using healing spells as well.
        She had a gaping hole in her chest, as if something was pierced through her heart.
        “Dear goodness, what happened?” Flint asked, then immediately wondered if he should have asked such a question.
        “Flint..?” Hinawa opened her eyes and smiled. “I don’t have...any time at all, really. Heh. But...funniest thing...it was a dragon that did this. A harmless dragon...on our way back from dad’s...”
        “A dragon?” Flint asked in disbelief.
        “Mmhm. Except...one side of its entire body...it was made of metal, or something...”
        “Oh, no...no...” Flint’s worst nightmare had come true. He looked on as the five unicorns continued giving all the healing power they could give before Hinawa could speak again.
        “Do you know what was going on with that dragon?”
        “Yes...” Flint said, tilting his solemn gaze downward, “Yes I do, but don’t you worry...we’re  gonna figure out what in these vast Equestria Islands is goin’ on around here, and you’ll live on through us.”
        “Don’t you worry, I’ll get you through this...even if it has to be in another life, I will see this through to the end with you all.” Hinawa looked around at all the ponies that cared about her, surprised to see not one pony was crying except for her and Luca.
        “Move me over to my daughter, please...” She managed to speak again with some effort through tear-stained eyes, and the unicorns levitated her over to speak with Luca.
        Flint let her have a moment with Luca and saw as they both went from teary-eyed to full-blown bawling, saying things he never heard the conversation to, before she began talking to Claus who didn’t budge much at all.
        The unicorns moved Hinawa just next to the fire as they began to exhaust their magic...it was time.
        “Everypony, I thank you all for being here for me in these last moments...”
        Hinawa’s gaze turned so that her line of sight was looking at her family, that is Flint, Luca and Claus and said her final words, as the unicorns began collapsing from magic exhaustion. Flint didn’t know what she meant when she said them, but knew she knew more than they did already, and had plans worked out in her mind, the last time it will be used...




“I leave the rest to you now.”




        And with that, the healing magic completely stopped flowing...and she was gone.
        So that was it. A pony’s life slipped away before his very eyes. His Love's life.
        Except...Flint didn’t know how to react at all now. He had already lost any sense of reality just from hearing she wouldn’t make it minutes earlier. He took two steps away from her body and dropped to his hind legs and began hitting the ground.
        Harder. Harder. HARDER. HARDER. HARDER.
        He stood up quickly on all fours in a fit of apathy, and slammed his face into the burning fire, not feeling the embers just as well as he had been for the past few minutes.
        His face emerged from the fire with a burning plank held between his teeth, wildly swinging around, carelessly whizzing by the residents of Ponyville, still not caring.
                DOESN’T MATTER, just missed Tessie; NOT REAL, narrowly missing Bronson; NEVERMORE REAL, the five unicorns jumped back even though they were too exhausted; EVERYTHING’S LOST NOW, this time striking a pony named Abbot.
        Bronson tried to grab the board in his mouth to no avail, then with his two front hooves, which he somehow managed. He was looking right into Flint’s eyes now, full of sadness, anger, and confusion most of all...and yet nothing at all.
        “Flint, stop! Your foals are watching! Don’t do this to them! They’ve been through enough already! And so have you! CALM DOWN!” He tried reasoning with him, but Flint kept trying to force the board out of Bronson’s hooves.
        Lighter came up behind Flint and gave him a swift clonk to the back of the noggin.
        As Flint fell, there was still no pain, no feeling, just numbness, and he just gave in and let unconsciousness do what it needed to.
        The second Flint hit the ground, everything went black immediately.
        Nothing is real any longer.

> Chapter One, Part II: Searching and Reconstructing
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Chapter One


Part II: Searching and Reconstructing


“Don't worry, you will never become like her. We will protect you. FOREVER.”


~Story of the Blanks

        Flint began reliving past events spent with his family: Hearth's Warming Eve pageants, Candycostume Nights, Hinawa leaving for Alec's, Summer Sun Celebrations, Winter Wrap-ups, Hinawa leaving for Alec's, Running of the Leaves, Hinawa leaving for Alec's--
        Quit going back to that, Flint told himself.
        But I can't help it... another side seemed to say, It was the last time I ever saw her as herself...
        He gave in and subconsciously allowed himself to remember those memories from just a few days ago.
        Laughing at his awkward joke and his wife's silly sarcasm, while the half-mechanical dragon's face rose out of the deep violet sea—wait, that's definitely not right.
        No. This is no memory, he thought, transitioning into a scary half-conscious-half-vegetative state. I'm dreaming right now, aren't I?
        The second he formed his thoughts, the dragon's head was towering over them, its neck itself  was taller than his house. It was flashing its razor-sharp fangs in a wicked smile directly above Flint.
        No, not even a dream...
        The sky turned a dull gray-green hue as clouds quickly circled around the ponies' heads. Flint glanced back at his family only to find Luca and Claus had disappeared, leaving Hinawa looking up in horror, hooves trembling. 
        Flint followed the twisting path of the dragon's neck from the water to just above Hinawa, glaring down at her with fear in its eyes. Two mechanical unicorns burst out of the clouds above, landing on its large forehead easily. Whether they had shrunk or the dragon's head grew larger once again, Flint wasn't sure but believed it was the latter.
        The mechanical unicorns had been leering down at Hinawa, then turned their attention toward Flint. For a moment Flint could see nothing but a tunnel vision of blackness with the glowing yellow eyes focused on him. 
        When he snapped back to, the unicorns looked back at Hinawa and stood up on their hind legs, raising their forehooves above their shiny metal-plated heads. Their metal wings flared out to the sides with a hiss and pop and spread completely out.
        They swiftly and powerfully brought their front hooves crashing down onto the forehead of the dragon together, which caused the fearful dragon to cry out in pain as a fang was knocked loose. The mechanized unicorns immediately repeated the same action, shooting its left fang out at an alarming speed straight down.
        Flint already knew which pony was directly under the dragon, so he turned and faced the other direction, not needing to see what happened next. There was a scream coming from directly behind him, followed by a thud.
        This was a nightmare. I'm stuck in a nightmare, why did I just let go of reality I don't want to be here anymore let me OUT...
        He tried to close his eyes to escape this new reality but was only greeted with the images the eyes in the back of his head were bearing witness to. Nowhere to look, nowhere to run away to, nowhere to hide...And then screams.
        There was screaming...but not from Hinawa anymore. Some kind of distorted howling now, a mixture of the dragon's cry and ponies cheering victoriously, with interjections of indiscernible ordering between, cutting the noise off sharply for a quick second before returning to the sounds.
        “MOM--!” Luca's high voice rang out louder than she ever used it before and echoed throughout the forest.
        No...This isn't...I'm not seriously...
        “MOM, QUICK-- RUN! JUST RUN!!” Claus' voice screamed in desperation before gasping into short sobs.
        I can't take this...How am I hearing this? That's impossible...
        “No, you two go! Get to Ponyville now!” Hooves running quickly on the grassy forest floor for a minute followed by a yelp of shock and splashes of water.
        This is worse than dealing with the present...this is over with! I don't need to hear it anymore!
        The last few sounds happened quickly, almost happening all at once.
        Cheering and shouting.
        A loud computerized roar.
        A heavy swing and a stab.
        A short cry.
        Metallic puffing and hissing, growing quieter along with the cheering.
        A couple unrecognizable voices calling for help, then telling some twins to go with them.
        More unrecognizable voices, collectively planning.
        The twinkling of unicorn magic.
        A wet suctioning sound and a dull thud of something hitting the forest ground.
        The slow, steady clip-clop of hooves working their way back to Ponyville.
        Anything's better than living like this...I'd rather live to see anything after this instead of being forced to relive what made me want to escape reality in the first place. Even if it would be Hell for me to live on, I always have a chance to make things better in the future...Unlike here.


***


        “...gratulations...You...the honor of be...” A familiar voice drifted and echoed around Flint.
        Finally...I'm awake?
        Flint opened his eyes halfway and realized he was laying on his stomach on a cold concrete floor. The voice spoke again.
        “So, yeah. You're the very first. Nopony's ever been thrown into Ponyville's jail.” It was Bronson.
        I'm back! Oh, thank goodness...But did he mention something about jail? Flint thought, silently thanking anything and everything he believed in, in the back of his mind.
        “I mean, we're finally putting it to use after all these years. We built it and then just never had any reason to use it!” Bronson gave a friendly laugh.
        Flint stirred, twitching his hooves around the cement, but Bronson hadn't noticed.
        Bronson continued, “Anyway, I can't say I know how you feel, but just take it easy here for a while. Abbot's recovering fine after last night, and I'm sure he has no hard feelings against you. We all offer you our deepest condolences.
        “So just take it easy here for a while, maybe get a little more rest if you have to...”
        No. Not again.
        Bronson trotted over to the door and pushed it open with a hoof. Flint opened his eyes long enough to watch Bronson walking out of the prison, noticing his cutie mark. It was a golden sheriff’s badge.
        Right, he's the only law-pony in Ponyville...I suppose I understand why he would throw me in here...I lost it last night...but for a good reason.
        Flint stood up and took in his surroundings. He was in a small rectangular concrete cell with a wooden table in it all within a bigger room that was the jail. There was a window to Ponyville outside and another open window opposite the other, both with metal bars running up and down so nopony could sneak out of them. The only door in the concrete cell had a rusted lock on it, as it had never been used before.
        Hoofsteps began to trot around one wall from the outside, then turning and walking the length of another. They stopped just outside the door to the jailhouse, and a little hoof slowly and carefully pushed the door open.
        A little blue colt walked in, and to Flint's surprise it was Claus! Flint couldn't be any happier than he was now, just to see his little colt! Unless of course Luca was here too, but Flint didn't see her.
        “Pssssst! Dad!” Claus said, acting secretive.
        “Claus! Great to see ya!” Flint said, beaming. “Did Luca follow you here?”
        “No...last I knew, she was at Mom's grave all day crying...” Claus looked down at the floor and swept a hoof.
        “I see...” Flint sighed. “I understand. Just let her know if you see her--” Flint started, but was interrupted by Claus sticking his hoof between the bars and over Flint's mouth.
        Claus turned his head around toward the door and Flint realized there was somepony walking near the jailhouse, but trotted past.
        “There isn't any time just yet, Dad...Bronson's nearby and I don't want him to catch me talking to you. Just take this.” He slid an apple he was holding between two bars onto the ledge of the window.
        “Apple cores aren't meant to be eaten because apples are really tough in the center.” He said, emphasizing the two words strongly.
        Claus trotted over to the door, stopped and added, “I'm gonna get real strong. Stronger than any dragon...strong enough that even an army of dragons couldn't stop me!”
        He turned and looked in Flint's general direction, but not into Flint's eyes.
        “Dad...I just...” He hesitated a moment before he took off galloping.

        Flint was alone again, left to wonder what this apple was all about. Really tough in the center, huh?
        Flint checked the window to make sure there wasn't anypony around the jail as he picked the apple up in his mouth. He tossed it up in the air, turned on his front hooves and bucked the apple as it came falling back down. 
        It splattered against the wall, and Flint didn't realize anything different about it at first. He began licking the mess off the wall, cleaning it so Bronson doesn't become suspicious. His tongue licked something hard and rough, like sandpaper.
        He spat the object out onto his hoof and realized it was a hoof file, what ponies use to dull the sharpness of their hooves, usually used at a spa during a pedicure.
        Flint looked at the rusted door lock and back at the hoof file. After a quick putting-two-and-two-together, Flint took the hoof file in his mouth and began sawing back and forth for a while until the lock gave and broke.
        The hoof file became whittled down to an unusable nub now, so Flint threw it aside and cautiously stepped outside into Ponyville.
        As long as I'm not seen by Bronson I should be fine...
        
        Flint began walking toward the center of the village when Duster stopped him.
        “Hey, Flint...I just wanted to let you know that your wife's burial went smoothly...” He said with a look of sorrow in his eyes. “Sorry you were out cold, but we had to get it over with before it becomes chillier outside. Autumn's just around the corner...”
        “I understand, Duster...it's fine.” Flint said, sincerely. “But have you seen either Claus or Luca around here lately?”
        Duster looked up, thinking for a moment and said, “Well...Luca is still at Hinawa's grave up north I believe, but I haven't seen Claus around.”
        Probably still being secretive...Flint figured.
        “Alright, thanks...I'll go talk to her.” Flint said, and the two ponies waved a hoof at each other and went on their ways.


***




        Alright, so...north of Ponyville, huh? I never knew we had a graveyard to the north... Flint thought, passing the time as he trotted up to where he thought just Nippolyte's house stood.
        He spotted Nippolyte, a unicorn pony levitating a chisel and rock to carve words into tombstones. Nippolyte was the tombstone-carver and gravedigger, who did his job for Hinawa's final resting place today. Nippolyte had always carved messages into tombstones as a hobby and always set them up near his house, but to Flint's recollection nopony has ever died in Ponyville before.
        “Hey, Nippolyte...could you tell me which grave is Hinawa's?” Flint asked, looking around at the many tombstones sitting around Nippolyte's shack, all empty save for one now.
        Nippolyte set his carving tools on the slab he was working on and answered slowly, “Yeah...up around the bend to the right and due north. Y'know, the cliff overlookin' the Equestria Islands.” Then he added with a wink, “I figured you'd appreciate that, seein' as you'll someday – 'n' hopefully not soon – be restin' there alongside her, both keepin' watch over the ponies livin' on the Islands that love y'all with all their hearts...”
        “Thank you kindly, Nippolyte. Yeah...that is a wonderful gesture you did for h-- us...” Flint answered with an appreciative smile, almost choking back tears. “I'm heading on up to visit her and Luca now. See you later!” He waved a hoof in departure and a tombstone caught his eye. There was only one thing written on it, which couldn't have been engraved by Nippolyte anytime recently.


“I leave the rest to you now.”




        It was almost too strange a coincidence...was she with him right now?
        Honey, would you like to accompany me to see our daughter?
        Silence. Flint believed what he wanted and began walking around the hill, as Nippolyte pointed out. On the other side Flint saw a line of most of the ponies from Ponyville in small groups, having paid their respects earlier at the funeral. As he began walking past the long group, he caught their mournful looks and nodded occasionally to show he thanks them for coming.
        He finally made it to the end of the line and saw Alec and Luca still bowing on their forehooves in front of the tombstone marked, “Wife of Flint, Mother of the twins Claus and Luca, Daughter of Alec. May the beautiful mare Hinawa rest in peace here for all eternity.” It was surrounded by lots of sunflowers from all the ponies in Ponyville. Sunflowers were her favorite...
        Flint walked up behind Luca and bent down on his forehooves alongside her. He saw tear stains under her eyes, being touched-up by fresh tears.
        He sighed and asked, “How're you doing, Luca?”
        Without looking up Luca responded in a slow, depressed tone, “Dad...I thought you said anything can come true if we pray to Celestia from the bottom of our hearts? I kept praying that we would all get out of there safely...” she turned around and snapped, “But not even that helped! There is no Celestia!”
        Flint, taken aback with mouth agape, was too bewildered and sad for his daughter to yell back at her for saying that. Luca turned back around after catching some of the other ponies' eyes nearby. Flint stood back up and walked over to Alec's side. He had a saddlebag packed with things for his trip to Ponyville, no doubt. Before Flint could begin talking, Alec started.
        “She doesn't mean it, Flint...she's just upset like the rest of us. By the way, have you seen Claus anywhere? He said he was going to get you wherever you were and come right back.”
        Flint realized Alec was still at his house last night, so he didn't know Flint was thrown in jail. “I saw Claus when he got me, but he took off somewhere after. He didn't come back here?”
        “No, I've been here the whole time.” Alec answered, “Haven't seen him.” Luca's eyes snapped open fast but she tried to hide it.
        “Luca...do you know where your brother is?” Flint asked cautiously, knowing she did but also knowing she was very fragile at the moment.
        “N-no...” she answered, still trying to hide her tear-stained wide eyes.
        “Luca...I know you know where he is...it's not the right thing, to lie.” Flint said softly.
        “But I don't!” Luca said, turning to face Flint, “I promise I don't know anything about Claus taking revenge on the dragon that killed Mom!”
        “...I never said anything about taking revenge on that dragon...” Flint said slowly. Then snapped, unable to control himself any longer, “How does he think he can do that?! Which way did he go?!”
        Fresh tears began forming in Luca's eyes again and she said, shaking her head violently, “I DON'T KNOW! HE DIDN'T WANT ME GOING WITH HIM AND I COULDN'T STOP HIM...” She whimpered a little and, unable to take any more, she galloped off.
        Flint didn't chase after her, but was determined to find his colt. Just before he could take off, however, Alec spoke again.
        “I'll go with you, Flint. That's my grandcolt we're talking about! And I know some ponies that may be able to help us to locate Claus.” He gave a determined smile and began trotting away from the grave, Flint following closely behind.
        Before they were too far, Flint spotted Bronson talking amongst the groups of ponies around Hinawa's grave site. He tried to steer clear of his view, but Bronson saw him as they ran by and never said a word.
        As they entered Ponyville, Flint bumped into Caroline, an earth pony who works at her family-run bakery in town. He ran into her so hard they both fell flat on their backs, and sent a loaf of nut bread into the air. Caroline sprung up fast and caught it with a hoof and offered it to Flint.
        “I was just looking for you! I was going to give you this nut bread as our family's condolences! It was the same bread Hinawa and I used to bake when she came to visit...” She helped Flint up, gave it to him, and without another word trotted away.
        Flint asked if he could use Alec's saddlebag to keep the nut bread in, and Alec obliged. Flint felt eyes watching him from behind. When he swirled around, he saw two of Ponyville's best friends and comedians, Bud and Lou watching him.
        “Can I help you two?” Flint asked, as they began grinning widely.
        “We just wanted to know if you could tell us what you think of our new comedy routine?” Bud asked.
        “Yeah! It's a new joke I came up with!” Lou laughed.
        Bud smacked Lou. “We came up with...”
        “Oh yeah, anyway...” Lou turned towards Bud and put a hoof on his face.
        “Hey there Lou...” Bud began, slightly muffled by a hoof covering his mouth, “Um...are you feeling okay today?”
        “Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just feeling a little hoarse.”
        They both turned back to Flint and bent their heads to the ground in a bow.
        “So...” Bud began.
        “Whaddya think?” Lou asked.
        “It's uh...good. Pretty funny.” Flint said, wanting to get moving, but not act like a jerk.
        “'Pretty funny'?” Bud asked and smacked Lou again. “I told you we need better material!”
        As they began arguing Flint leaned in close to Alec. “Let's go, quick!” And both stallions took off toward the Foreverfree Forest.


***


        Upon entering the Foreverfree Forest, Flint had noticed throughout the flat space that creatures he used to find in the forest had started to return. However, something was different about them. He remembered the field mice...but didn't recall them flying awkwardly with big wings crudely attached. 
        All of the animals had some new quirk to them the more he observed his surroundings. The squirrels had new feelers that they twitched all over the ground and the fallen acorns; birds were catching worms from deep in their holes with tentacles; and the bats that were sleeping in a cave nearby were almost impossible to recognize, since their bodies were enveloped in large elephant ears.
        Near the other end of the forest was a river in which lay a few frogs. Alec gave a whistle and the frogs lined up single-file, and Alec hopped onto their backs one at a time slowly. The frogs didn't sink for some reason. Flint followed Alec and hopped across slowly, crossing the river before the frogs swam off again.
        Just up ahead, Flint noticed a house sitting in the middle of a lake shaped like a six-pointed sparkle. Alec looked over his shoulder and explained where they were to Flint.
        “These are my good friends, the Uniments. They're seven powerful unicorns, taught by a legend long ago, but they were chosen one day – long before you and I were even thought of – for something not even I know. They lived isolated from the rest of the Islands, doing whatever it was they had been chosen to do.
        “Mind you they are probably thousands of years old now, but I'm not sure of their exact age. All I know is that their youth has stayed intact throughout these hundreds or thousands of years. They're sort of all-knowing, so I'm sure they can help us find Claus.”
        The two stallions walked up the stone steps to the oddly-shaped house. Alec knocked, opened the door and entered with Flint following behind him.
        Flint saw six rather tall, but still very young unicorns turning around to greet their friend Alec. Near the door was an orange stallion with a turquoise mane that slept on a bed; a yellow mare with an orange mane sipping tea; and a gray stallion with a shiny silver mane to their right. Across the room there was a dark-pink mare with a violet mane and white highlights sitting in a chair; to her right there was a black stallion with a hint of blue, and had a red-and-yellow mane; and to the left of the chair sat a white mare with a light-violet and pink mane.
        The midnight-blue one ran right up to Alec and Flint and welcomed them both.
        “Alec! Hey, long time no see! We were just having our monthly tea together! How're you doing? And who's this with you?” he asked.
        “Hi there, Triheart!” Alec said, “This is my son-in-law Flint, and we just needed some help finding somepony and thought y'all could help us.”
        “No, no no! Not before we properly introduce ourselves to a new friend!” The mare sitting in the chair yelled across the room with a smile, “This is my home and I feel obligated to do so before we can help you!”
        She pointed a hoof at each pony around them, giving Flint their names, though Flint couldn't be sure he would remember them all immediately.
        The sleeping orange stallion was Snails, “Soooo sleepy, eh.”
        The yellow mare closest to the door was Pumpkin, “Welcome, my little ponies.”
        The silver-maned one was Spellswirl, “Nice to meet you.”
        Triheart, the one that greeted Alec and Flint.
        The one with the white coat sitting to the left of the chair was Sweetie Belle, “Hi, Alec's friend!” She waved a hoof frantically at Flint.
        “I am Cyder Sparkle,” the dark-pink one said, pointing a hoof at herself, “And the only Uniment not attending is Snips. BUT – now that we're all acquainted, what did you need to know? Who's missing?”
        “It's my son, Claus.” Flint said simply, “He went off to kill a dragon a short while ago.”
        “Oh, yes! He actually stopped in here not long ago. Um – little blue colt, an orange mane?” Cyder asked, animating her hooves to help describe the pony.
        “Yeah, that'd be him.” Flint began getting impatient, tapping a hoof slightly on the ground.
        “He mentioned something or other about avenging his mother and asked me to teach him a new spell. I figured if it's to avenge one's mother it's rather important, so I taught him one I knew he could handle.” Cyder smiled proudly, then saw Flint glaring at her.
        “Well, he can't just run off trying to use spells he just learned to kill a dragon just for a clear and proud conscience! Something's going on with the creatures around here, and it isn't safe for him!” Flint realized he began to feel angry again, the same feeling as last night.
        I can't afford to lose it now, just calm down... He told himself, Let's just get Claus back safe and sound and then we'll all be a family again...no more going after dragons or investigating the creatures...we'll all just live peacefully and let things play out as fate intended.
        Cyder was taken aback by Flint's outburst, but understood there was no time to waste.
        “He ran toward the plateau through the cave behind my house. I'm sorry to waste your time, but if you go now hopefully you can catch him; it wasn't too long ago that he left.” She explained.
        Without a word, Flint ran out the front door, leaving Alec shocked for a moment before he said goodbye and left quickly to catch up.
        Most of the Uniments had a hoof hanging in the air from trying to wave goodbye, but the two earth ponies were too sudden in their departure to notice their gestures.


***


        Just as Cyder had said, there was a hole to a cavern behind her oddly-shaped house. Flint was dashing quickly to get through it and out to the plateau on the other side.
        “Wait up, Flint!” Alec called out, following his son-in-law, “Be sure to check for him inside the cave too!” On the inside it was dark, but shortly after entering Alec heard hoofsteps slowing down just up ahead. He caught up with Flint just around a corner and was able to see more of his surroundings.
        Flint was inconspicuously watching someone from behind a rock. Was it Claus? Alec peeked his head around Flint's.
        “Did you find him? Why are you hiding?” He asked.
        “Shhh!” Flint hissed quietly, touching a hoof to his mouth then towards two ponies laying on the cave floor, resting. Except Alec hadn't seen pony accessories like the ones these wore...or, more accurately, ponies like them at all.
        They had metal helmets with two protrusions on them. One for a magical horn, the other...to look like it had a large tumor of some kind or something? So they were unicorns, no doubt. The other thing that struck him as odd was that they had mechanical wings splayed out to their sides that seemed to be welded or surgically implanted into their skin. Ponies with wings? How does that even work?
        As Alec tried to figure out who or what these ponies were, he snapped out of it to realize Flint was walking slowly and silently toward them.
        “Flint, what are you doing? What are they?” Alec whispered, but Flint ignored him. “Wait for me!” Alec called out in a hush. Flint checked the ground for a moment and picked up a good-sized stone in his mouth.
        Before Alec could object to what he noticed Flint was preparing for, the mechanical unicorns seemed to be able to sense the two stallions closing in and immediately sprang up. This caused the eyes of their helmets to light up, which cast a white-yellow glow around the cave walls as they moved their heads around.
        One spotted Flint just as he attempted to hurl the rock at its metal head. It caught the stone inches from its face with a levitating spell and returned it with an even faster force. Flint jumped out of the way with a shout and it ended up striking Alec on his back, right where his saddlebag strap was.
        Able to catch the two earth ponies off guard, the mechanized unicorns used their gained seconds wisely and took off throughout the many twisting halls of the cave. Flint and Alec – even through a sharp pain on his back – followed close behind until they reached the exit to the plateau.
        Outside there sat another alien machine connected to a circular platform with odd objects around it. It would have been just like the one Flint saw electrocute a boar to life the night before, if it wasn't for the noticeably larger size. It looked big enough to hold an Ursa Minor, but Flint didn't want to believe that. A metal bear from the stars? That would probably be the worst possible outcome of this machine.
        The mechanized unicorns tried as quick as possible to gather their belongings with a levitation spell and this time snatched all of their possessions. They once again took off with their crude wings to the sky, but not before Flint leaped higher than he ever had before and grabbed one by the tail with his mouth. The second unicorn either hadn't noticed his partner fell or didn't care and needed to get out of there, speeding off towards the clouds. They both came crashing down just as Alec left the dark confines of the cave and ran over to help Flint. He fell on the unicorn with all his weight as Flint scooped up another stone with a hoof and raised it threateningly, back hooves holding the unicorn down.
        “WHERE'S MY COLT?!” He yelled, the anger rising once again.
        “No Flint, wait!” Alec called out desperately and reached out to hit the stone out of  his son-in-law's hoof before he did anything he would regret. “We're just looking for Claus, not killing these ponies!”
        Flint looked down at Alec disbelieving, “Are you serious?! You call these things ponies?! After what they did to our peaceful forest and the creatures that lived there?! And I know is this one had to have seen Claus around here some short time ago!” He went to body slam the unicorn but was held up by a levitating spell, immediately followed by being thrown across the plateau with a great force. Flint slammed into the outside wall of the cave and saw Alec being tossed next to him just as he opened his eyes.
        The mechanized unicorn dropped one more item but didn't bother picking it up and flew off successfully this time. Upon trotting up to it, it seemed it was a Mr. Smartypants doll. Claus' Mr. Smartypants doll. It was one Flint had given to Claus when he was younger along with a Miss Smartypants doll for Luca. Claus' was in rather poor condition, being almost as old as he was. Only this one was neat and tidy. And had a pointy stalactite stamped on the bottom of its stitched hoof.
        Those... Flint began cursing the unicorns in his mind, They take Claus' security doll that I gave him, fix it up and label it as theirs?! What kind of ponies do something that insulting and weird?! Flint kept gazing at the doll in his hoof until Alec's voice called for him up ahead.
        “Flint, I found something! It looks like Claus' horseshoe!” This made Flint snap out of his inner thoughts and rushed ahead. Upon trotting up beside Alec, it was Claus' horseshoe. Alec scooped it into his saddlebag and remembered the nut bread inside, so the two ponies shared the loaf. There was a tiny roar nearby. Flint and Alec reeled their heads around and saw a small, green baby dragon hiding behind one of the boulders nearby. One that couldn't even speak. It gave an anguished growl and walked further up the plateau.
        “Do you suppose that baby dragon has seen Claus?” Alec asked, as the two ponies began following their last and only lead ahead. Nearing the edge of the plateau the baby dragon stopped and ran off to the side behind another boulder. What is it hiding from?
        Another two horseshoes. Claus' next two missing horseshoes were in front of them. Flint looked around but saw no sign of his colt. He called out, but still no answer. Flint decided he would take the missing horseshoes and keep them with the other for now. He walked up to them and--
        STOMP.
        ...What in the hay was that?
        STOMP. STOMP.
        Oh, sweet Celestia... Flint believed he had witnessed all the horrors he could imagine in the past day, even in his mind's eye, but this... This was a true nightmare come alive.
        What stood before Flint and Alec now was somehow even worse than a mechanical Ursa Minor, and it wasn't an Ursa Major. It was a dragon. No, the dragon. As it gave out an earth-trembling roar Flint saw the hole for the missing fang in its open mouth on the half of its body amateurishly created from metal.
        This is the dragon that killed Hinawa... Flint let that sink in for a moment. And the one that could have Claus! His anger rose higher than before and he blindly chucked rocks as fast as he could at the dragon, which all bounced off its metal-plated head. The dragon turned its attention toward the onslaught of rocks and stones, locking eyes with Flint.
        He noticed its left eye – the side of its body made of metal – was gone, only to be replaced with a red glowing light like the mechanical unicorn's helmet lights. It seemed to focus on Flint before breathing artificial fire from a tank lodged in its throat, which Flint ran out of the way of. He quickly jumped over a boulder and covered behind it, the flames licking the left and right sides of the large rock, but not touching Flint.
Alec was unsure if he should stop Flint or help him. This dragon was out of control, but it had a baby right here and was still somewhat alive. He noticed the baby dragon cowering behind a boulder near him and Alec went over to comfort him before he would stop Flint. Before Alec could reach the baby dragon however, the mecha-dragon swung its tail around and knocked the wind out of him, throwing him up against a rock wall on one side of the plateau.
Flint was still behind a boulder, gathering rocks and avoiding the mecha-dragon's attacks. Alec was too busy being concerned about his lower-back pain. Flint peeked over the boulder and saw the dragon bending its neck under an overhang of a stalactite sniffing Claus' horseshoe...With Alec incapacitated, Flint acted quickly and gave the weakest point of the overhang three quick strikes with a hoof, dropping it on the mecha-dragon's head and knocking it out cold.
Alec regained his senses and galloped over to stop Flint from doing any more damage to the mecha-dragon, now that it was unconscious. Flint had already menacingly walked up next to it with a sharp rock in his mouth.
“Flint, don't do it! You'll just make this baby go through what Luca and Claus had to!” He called out desperately, trying to reach Flint's lawful pony senses. The baby dragon ran over and began licking his father's face. Flint didn't care. This was the edge of the plateau and no Claus. Perhaps he was in the dragon's belly. Was it made of metal too? ONLY ONE WAY TO FIND OUT...
Flint slowly walked up to the two dragons, father and son, and stopped. He swiftly raised the stone in his mouth...then was knocked on his back by the baby dragon.
“NO!” It yelled at him, fear, anguish and hatred in his eyes and voice. His first word? He walked back over to his father and continued licking his face until the dragon's right eye opened. The metal half of its body seemed to have malfunctioned from the strike of the stalactite and nothing on his left half was moving. Still, Flint noticed the right eye of the dragon blinked one tear out, which for some reason pierced Flint deep into his soul...
The baby dragon gave a little loud roar with its tiny voice that cried out for his father which echoed throughout the plateau and all around the crevices of Gorgeous Gorge which surrounded them. Flint didn't want to leave the dragon just lying there, but the baby dragon was determined to keep Flint and Alec away with all it could. Flint decided to leave the dragons alone and go back into the cave to look for Claus, let nature do what it does...although in this new era, what is nature anymore?
“Come on, Alec,” Flint said, dropping the stone from his mouth and motioning a hoof to go with him, “Let's give the cave another look-through.”
“Right behind you.” Alec responded, hesitating by watching the two dragons have their moment together.
If only Flint had looked over the edge of the plateau, where the mangled body of his only son lay lifeless, last horseshoe still on his hoof...



~


Until now, the ponies of Ponyville never knew true sadness.
Sunny or cloudy days, they always greeted each other with smiles.
They had literally lived in harmony with both each other and the creatures in the forest.
Strong would help the weak, and those ponies fortunate would always help those less fortunate.
Now it appears Ponyville has learned all too much about sadness.
Everything suddenly changing for the worse...
When did this change begin? Where? What set the string of events in motion? Why?
Like toys, the peaceful animals of the forest are slowly being tampered and transformed into indefinable creatures that attack ponies
Ponies have lost houses, families or sanity already, like the case of Flint, among others.
Who is the mysterious group that wears pointy metal helmets?
Why are they able to soar in the sky unlike anypony else, muddying up the once-beautiful blue skies of the Equestria Islands?
The mysteries have begun to pile up.
And this tale begins...
...as a tragedy.