>Twilight, an overly terrified Octavia, and yourself have now entered the deeper portion of the Everfree forest, further than anywhere you’ve explored into here
How often do you come this far in, you two?
>Oct: “Never.”
>Twi: “Once, to gather the elements for Nightmare Moon.”
Nightmare Moon? I figured it would have been Discord.
>Octavia: “Pfft, you should have known that the Elements are in Canterlot after the Nightmare Moon incident.”
I wasn’t here when either happened, who’s this Nightmare person?
>they both stop, staring at you in some hopes of you joking
>you look back at them, your ignorance apparently flaunting itself
What?! Look, we need to find Pinkie Pie before-
>Twi: “You never knew about Luna?”
What does Luna have anything to do with this?!
>Twilight looks away in embarrassment and your rage for her bringing in irrelevant info is enough to give you an aneurism
>thankfully you have spent far worse moments dealing with agonizing topics that attempt to disdain a far more important priority to be fretted with this
>that’s an overelaborate way of saying that your jimmies remain unstirred
Let’s keep walking; this place is giving me the creeps, and I’m not one to stand still with an appointment afoot. Fill me in, boss.
>the three of you venture on, the light from Twilight flickering into the consuming shadows dancing about
>it feels as if the forest itself is devouring the waning illumination; before what was once was a bright display is now a small flicker, barely giving you a few feet of trail to follow
Hey, Twilight… are you getting tired from using the light spell? It seems to be going down a bit.
>Twi: “You noticed that too? No, I’ve been using the same level of power in it, and I could keep doing this for hours.”
That’s… not good, then.
>Oct: “What does it mean, is the forest…?”
I wouldn’t think too much into it, but rest-assure I wouldn’t stray off the path.
-----
>it takes another mile down the trail before Twilight finally musters some sort of courage to return to a previous topic
>Twi: “For about a century up until a couple years ago, Princess Luna transformed into a twisted form of herself, known then as Nightmare Moon. She seized control of the day and made it eternally night, and as a result Princess Celestia had to banish her.”
Well, considering the fucker- do you guys mind if I call her a fucker?
>Oct: “What’s a fucker? I don’t care.”
>Twi: “Sure.”
Considering the fucker is now back in her high and mighty position of royalty, I assume she was released and ‘saw the light’, so to speak.
>Twi: “She actually broke out, but my friends and I went to where we’re heading now and gathered the Elements of Harmony, where we defeated her and made her see the error of her ways.”
So she’s no longer evil, technically, just a bitch?”
>Twi: “Ehh… yeah, I guess.”
>it’s very nice to have tolerable friends when you insult royalty
>Twi: “Anon, stop!”
>you freeze on the spot, pulling out the sword and placing a hand on the hilt
Activate.
>the spell binding on it breaks in a wisp of smoke, and a thin layer of fire erupts from the blade
>yes, you now have a flaming sword, although it’s more for show than effectiveness
>the light emitted from it as you took a defensive pose gives a slightly better view, showing what is before you;
>Twi: “Do you two hear that? It sounds like… water.”
There’s a river right here, a wide and powerful one at that. Crossing won’t be easy.
>the sword reveals a good portion of the roaring rapids ahead, and it’s most certainly not plausible to cross
How the hell did you cross this, Twilight? Fly across?
>Twi: “We had a, err… questionable dragon help us across. I could try teleporting us, but I don’t know if we’d make it across.”
>Oct: “Please don’t, that sounds very risky.”
Agreed. Twilight, got a good spell to block water?
>she shuffles her feet nervously, as if she’s fishing for either compliments or a suitable spell
>Twi: “I can do a bubble spell that’ll block most of the water, but I won’t be able to use the light spell…”
That’s fine, that’s what this is for.
>you shake the sword back and forth, the magical flames flickering about
>you really hope it doesn’t consume oxygen like it should; magic, right?
-----
>you make certain to have Twilight over your shoulders, and Octavia in center front
>this is the agreed best way to have her bubble spell center around the three of you
Feeling comfy?
>Twi: “Mmm…”
>oh yeah, she’s definitely enjoying this
Don’t get too comfortable. Last time I did this for Pinkie, I had to deal with a wet vagina suctioning to the back of my neck.
>Twi: “I’ll, uh, try my best. The spell is ready and casted; the radius is about six feet from my position.”
You hear that, Octavia? Stay close.
>Oct: “Aye, aye~!”
>why is she looking at you like that?
>why is she ogling the way Twilight is on your shoulders?
>you subtly ignore this as you take the first step, the musical pony following suit
>she halts when you all reach the river’s edge, and replaces herself behind you
>Oct: “You first, please.”
>panzy, you take three steps in like a boss, noticing the feel of wet dirt as the spell repels the water
>six steps in, you feel the rocking of the water pressing against you, taking a moment to hold your ground lest you be swept away with the current
>Twi: “Be careful, Anon… this is scary…”
Love conquers even the greatest fears, my purple friend.
>your sword lighting forth, you venture until the water comes about halfway up past the bubble
>continuing ever so slowly, you soon realize that-
This river is deeper than I thought; we’re going to be entirely submerged at this rate.
>it’s no surprise that this frightens Twilight, who is shaking on your shoulders
>Octavia’s interesting sounding gasps doesn’t exactly hide her own feelings of fear either
Relax, we’ll be fine.
>you say that, and you may have laced this with certainty, but you have a very unsettling chain of events that’s been encircling you today;
>you have two corpses on your floor of your house waiting to be cleaned up, which the event alone is going to cause all sorts of havoc
>your beloved is missing, possibly dead
>and you, alongside two other ponies, are in the middle of a wildly flowing river, in the cloak of utmost night, inside a labyrinth of a forest that no one will likely find you should trouble befall you
>this is not the time to pretend you’re shaking with your flimsy future, yet there is one thought still persisting;
>she’s alive, and you must find her
-----
>a very unwelcoming two minutes later, the three of you are in the dark depths of the riverbed, at which you estimate to be about thirty feet deep
>this is only a rough approximation though, considering you can’t see much around you outside of the bubble, as you inaudibly traverse the dirt and silt
>Twilight apparently has her eyes closed and a worthy grip around your neck, with Octavia extremely close by your side
>you quietly agree that this invitation for a horrible death is something you won’t bother chortling about
Twilight, how’s the bubble holding against the pressure of the water?
>Twi: “It’s fine, just… keep moving.”
Octavia, how are you holding up? Any songs in mind?
>Oct: “…”
Lively crowd to-… what was that sounds?
>Twi: “Anon, this is NOT the time to be playing any-“
Be quiet, listen…
>it’s a faint murmur, and a low one at that
>you’re barely making ground, wedging your feet into rocks with each step so you’re not hurling away, sliding in the sand when you can’t find a firm grip
>but that noise, it was carnal, deep;
Something is growling in the water, but I can’t tell what.
>Twi: “Fuck! Fuck this, I want to go home!”
>Oct: “Get me out of this!!”
QUIT YOUR WHINING!
>your outburst silences them as the growling continues, somewhat louder this time, and an odd thumbing noise is now following it
Look, I can’t have you guys panic on me, especially you Twilight-
>look, you made a poor mistake assuming that it was growling underwater; it was an honest mistake, really
>but the pounding that shook the ground around you was steadily growing, and within seconds, it was nearly upon you;
>or rather, about three feet behind you, where the ground QUAKES and a terribly large foot settles
>you can’t even stress on how ridiculous titanic this mitt is; you can barely see the toes extend from the pitch black darkness, and each one is enough to dwarf a fucking HOUSE
>it’s a translucent purple paw, barely visible through the puff of dirt displaced by its foot, and riddled with four ominous looking claws that extend yards
What the fuck is that, Twilight?
>???: “GGGRRRRRRRRRRRRUUUGGGGHHH…”
>Twi: “I-if that foot leads to what I th-think it is, it could b-be an Ursa M-Major…!”
>Oct: “Well, we’re dead! D-E-D, dead!”
Wait, I don’t think it knows we’re here; so long as it doesn’t step on us-
>but the goddesses just have to be picky with fate, don’t they?
>the sheer chance of the following could have happened, yet you can’t help but curse and feel that this is a divine prank of sorts
>the foot doesn’t land on you, alright
>the bubble spell literally lodges itself right between two of its bloody toes
-----
>the three of you are lethally bouncing about as whatever the fuck it is takes each step, the bubble threatening to give away as your fiery sword bounces off of it
Keep the spell up, Twilight, our lives depend on it, ugh!
>Twi: “I’m trying, I’m trying!”
>Oct: “AIYEEEEE!”
>after a few seconds of this awful stride, you suddenly feel the creature stop, pause even
>perhaps a thought has occurred in its head; “What the fuck is between my enormous toes”?
>???: “UUUUUUURRRRGGGGGGGGGGUUUUUUH?”
>oh shit, you think you might’ve been right
>with a sudden motion, it tries to release you with a swing of its paw, and very successfully so
>breaking the surface of the river, you’re launched clear across the river, the bubble cushioning most of the crash into the trees
>it’s still not nearly enough to stop the impact from the ground to your shoulder, dislocating it
GYAAHHHH! Fuck. Fuck!
>the bubble spell finally gives in and breaks apart, and you lift your unharmed arm to deactivate the fire spell before it ignites into a hellzone
>you’re half tempted to do so, let this fucking place burn to the ground
>taking a few moments to silently let loose a few vulgar words, you set yourself intoa more dignified position, your damaged arm making blunt complaints with every movement
You two alright?
>Twi: “I think I might have sprained a hoof, ouch…”
>Oct: “Mah, mah beautiful violin case…! It has a scratch!”
Quiet! That thing is nearby, let it pass…
>the entire world is dark, save a glowing entity of massive size, roaring in rage at some creature stuck in its paw a moment ago
>it looks around, snorting as it does, and when it finds none of you, it glowers menacingly before continuing on its personal stroll
>it comes ever so closer, and you notice that it’s following the pathway faithfully
>thankfully it’s only about fifty feet down from the greenery you’ve landed into
>it stomps about noisily, making the world know that it’s king of the jungle, and after a couple minutes the rumbling dissipates
Alright, Twilight, light this place up.
>she gladly does so, a twinge of pain on her face as she reveals a bloodied hoof
>Octavia is unveiled to be crying over a broken violin case, sobbing silently this entire time
Is the violin even broken?
>Oct: “No, but that’s not the point! The case is its shelter, and now it is homeless~! *sob*”
>Twilight rolls her eyes as she puts out the light to use her magic, the glow enough to show Octavia and yourself that the case pieced itself together and is now good as new
>Twi: “Anon, did you hurt yourself?”
One second, light this area up again.
>the area brightens considerably, but not nearly as much as you’d like
>your right shoulder is throbbing now, begging for release
Looks like an anterior dislocation. Mind helping me put it back in?
>Twi: “Put… what back in?”
The ball joint is out of the socket, and I need to reinsert it. Use your magic to grab my shoulder once I realign it, and when I say so, push it back in.
>she gives one of her trademark gulps, but watches pensively as you use your free arm to shove it properly into the right spot
>pangs of agony shoot through your body, but you do your best to grit your teeth and bear with it
>get it, ‘bear with it’?
>ahaaa…
Alright, anytime now is good.
>Twi: “Are you sure? It’s probably gonna hurt…”
You got a healing spell or two, don’tcha? Hurry up before it gets any worse; just a small shove back in.
>the light goes out as a soft glow from her horn holds your arm in place, waiting for the right moment
Smoothly, but quickly, now do it-GUUAYAH!
>you make no waste in voicing your pain this time as it presses through, nerves being pinched and strained muscles relaxing
>Twi: “Anon!”
Light, please!
-----
>you take a couple minutes as you inject a small amount of vicodin into your arm, and then bandaging up Twilight when she finishes casting a healing spell on the both of you
>it’s very frightening when the light goes out for those moments, but your mind has been going into hyper-paranoia mode
>nothing’s coming within half a mile without you noticing, that’s for sure
Let’s get a move on, activate.
>hello, sword of fiery hell, how you missed thee in your hands
>your arm is sore, to say the very least, but your determination holds it firm
>by the time the three of you reach the pathway, however, you soon realize Twilight isn’t faring too well as she collapses
Twilight! What’s wrong?
>you spear the sword into the dirt, and take a knee by her side
>Twi: “This hoof is still killing me, I can’t walk on it well…”
>you’re rocking life with that medicine, and so you offer the most majestic of responses;
>and onto your pounding shoulders she goes
>Twi: “Urggh… are you alright with this? Your shoulder…”
Yeaahhhhh, I can’t feel shit right now, that shot I gave me was one hell of a pain killer. Think you can be my light?
>she gives a slight nod as you sheath the blade, the hilt lightly tapping her plot as Octavia and you continue your stride
-----
How much longer? It’s been almost another hour, and not a sight of anything here; at this rate, we’re gonna be camping here once we find Pinkie.
>Twi: “I think we’re almost there, just a little ways and we’ll reach a bridge.”
A motherfucking bridge. They have a bridge ahead, but they didn’t make one for that river?!
>Oct: “Know well that I’ll be the first to sign the petition to build one there. And more lights. LOTS OF LIGHTS.”
Agreed, but keep it down, I don’t think I want to risk gaining the attention of giant glowing bears.
>you would have thought that one would be easily visible with the whole small radiance effect, but you spot nothing of the sort, including the previous encounter
When we get out of all of this, I’m gonna need a clean-up crew and someone to get me a new couch and carpeting.
>Twi: “When we get out, I’m going to take the warmest bath I can handle, even if it prunes my skin.”
>Oct: “When we get out, I’m going to write a book about how I went in here and conquered the dark abyss of Everfree forest.”
Nice, but it reeks of complete bullshit.
>you give her a wide grin, sword swinging back and forth, and she gives you a smile almost as deviant as this whole fucking forest
>Oct: “Perhaps I’ll let it slip that I was the one who saved both your flanks!”
>the three of you chortle, trying to set the trauma of recent events aside, a light sense of comfort warming over you
>or perhaps that’s the secondary effects of the vicodin, who knows
>you’ll admit it now, you feel it, intensely in fact
>you’re fearful of so many things right now that it’s not even funny
>the fear of death, failure, loss
>the thought is left unsettled as you continue on
>Twi: “Hey, Anon…?”
Hm?
>Twi: “Do you think Pinkie is ok?”
I bet she has a cake already there, waiting for us to join her.
>Twi: “Anon, seriously.”
I don’t know, but it’s better to be optimistic and hope for the best, right?
>she looks forward, trying to find the right answer to this
>she doesn’t know what she wants anymore, as darker thoughts cross her mind
>the possibly of Pinkie gone is both sorrowful… and relieving for Twilight, a chance to ease a grieving Anon and to strike her own flame of romance that’s already to be lit
>this all, of course, remains entirely in her head, unbeknownst to you
>she, along with you and Octavia, are soon to be focused on something else as a booming roar is heard down the path
>perhaps not as deafening as the bear, but you’re fairly sure that any roar coming from the darkness would frighten any person and/or pony
>you all halt, like deer caught in the headlights, as two slanted eyes leisurely traverse into the light
>you’re soon faced with the head of an infuriated lion, which looks ready to turn you and the other two into a well-made dinner
Fuck, you guys have lions in this world?!
>Twi: “Anon… that’s a manticore!”
A manti-what? Oh, wait… fuck!
>behind it’s massively fluffy red mane lies two spread out wings similar to that of a bat; to add insult to injury, it wields a devastating stinger that could easily clear a hole in you
Octavia, fire up that violin, it appears I’m eating cat tonight.
>the end(?)