There weren’t many things that Goku had scene in her life that she would really consider to be amazing where she lived, not unless they were something done by the Queen or any members of her family branches. That wasn’t to say that her fillyhood wasn’t full of many exciting things, because it was certainly full of them, even in a City like Canterlot. It was just that it was mainly done by either the Nightstalkers and the Shenrons, most especially by her older sisters and her parents, be it involving them or either side of her family. The one of the things that the Goku could say was the one of the most amazing things she had seen was her with brother. The colt managing to lift up an entire council meeting table worth of food, and that was when he was just a baby, which only added further to her awe. Her Mom told her that she and her sisters had all done something similar when they were mere babies, but seeing it first hoof from her own point of view was something that would no doubt stay with her forever. Other than a few occasions, nothing else really caught her eye while she was in that City, other than the things that happened outside.

Now though, it would seem that the tan Thestral was in for another big surprise, only this time, it was with her friends, in the most dangerous forest in all of Equis. This surprise coming in the form of one of the few adult friends that she made during her fillyhood and her fighting an Everfree creature that had appeared in Ponyville while she wasn’t there. While she wouldn’t really call it one of the most amazing she had scene, she’d definitely put in on her list of top five or ten. Though she had a feeling that she’d be in for much more as the adventure through the Everfree continued, only this time with extra hooves.

“Well, he shouldn’t be bothering us for the rest of this trip.” Violet Fire murmured as she flew down to the Zephyr, the mares and her team. “Although I think I may have gone a little bit on that last attack I sent on him.”

“W-well, yes, it looked like you did.” Fluttershy admitted, cringing. “D-don’t worry about it though, you were only doing it to keep us safe. I’m sure that Mor'du will be alright, provided that he survives that fall.”

“I’m pretty sure that he’ll be alright.” Zephyr said as reassuringly as he could. “Given all of those wounds that he got before running into us, he looks like a pretty tough guy. Plus, he has wings, so if he manages to stop himself from falling, he’ll only leave off with a few burns.”

Rarity looked over at him with a raised indigo eyebrow. “A few burns, dear?”

The royal blue stallion sighed. “A few major burns.”

“That. Was. Awesome!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, zooming up to Violet Fire. “You moped the bucking floor with that bastard! And you did it all by yourself too, combining three powers at once!”

“I wouldn’t say that sweetie.” Violet replied patiently. “I would say that I prevented you all from being potential lunch for a bat winged version of the bears of the Undiscovered West.”

“I think that’s an accurate way of putting it.” Lightning Shadow said with a chuckle. “Regardless of how its put, its accurate that we’ve officially eliminated the possible next enemy on our future hero’s mission.”

“I would probably say blown right out of the sky.” Fast Tracks chuckled. “But yeah, I guess that I can put it like that too.”

“U-um, you guys…” Blue Skies said softly. “…I don’t want to interrupt, but, maybe we should check on Zephyr and the other mares here. They look up, pretty banged up.”

“More like we were all just seconds away from turned into confetti!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed with a slight shiver. “Seriously you should’ve seen what that giant black scary not so cuddle teddy bear did to us before you came! He just kept roaring at us and slicing at us and smashing us with his tail and body slamming us and-”

“I think they get the gist of it, Pinkie Pie.” Goku chimed in. “In fact, I think they can guess what happened just by looking at the slashes on all of our bodies.”

“Yeah, that…wasn’t exactly fun.” Twilight said, wincing down at the slashes on her bloodied body. “Anyway, Violet Fire was it? I hope I don’t sound rude when I ask this but…what did you mean when you said we had met before?”

The ebony Pegasus paused, raising to life her goggles so Twilight could see her gleaming yellow eyes. “Yes, we did, about four years ago before you left Canterlot. You don’t really remember me Twilight?”

“U-um…no I don’t…my memories kind of hazy to be honest with you. In fact, I haven’t really though much of Canterlot since I moved to Ponyville.” Twilight murmured with a shameful blush. “Could you um…elaborate for me please?”

“Seriously Twilight?” Zephyr replied before Violet could speak as he stepped next to the lavender mare. “Violet Fire and her teammates live in the darker corners and underground bases in Canterlot City. They’re not really scene very often because of how active they are during the night time, with very few occasions during the day. You, me, Goku, and our parents would sometimes hang out with them whenever we had the time, or when they weren’t on duty and just came to visit the Queen. Not to mention that they’re friends with both my and Goku’s parents, along with yours, did you forget that?”

Twilight pondered over Zephyr’s words for some time, before a look of recognition came to her face. “Oh, my Celestia…you’re right! I remember now, it’s all coming back to me…okay, now I remember now.” The blush that was on her face just moments ago came back tenfold and she looked up at Violet apologetically. “I’m sorry about that Violet. I can’t believe that I had actually forgotten one of the ponies from my own fillyhood.”

“Don’t worry about it, sweetie. There are many ponies that do tend to forget me from time to time, even if they’re my close friends.” Violet replied understandingly, smiling sweetly. “I’m just glad that Zephyr and Goku remember me and the rest of my team.”

“You’re damn right we do!” Goku squealed, rushing over and tackling Violet in a hug with Zephyr following close behind. “Of all the ponies I expected the Queen to send after us, you were honestly noton that list! I honestly though that Queen Celestia was going to send the Wonderbolts here!”

“Yeah about that Goku…she kind of did.” Fast Tracks murmured. “See, she was planning on getting the Wonderbolts to come here, but they weren’t with us when the Queen called all of us here. Long story short, the Queen was in a rush, and she had Captain Violet Fire send one of our cadets to the Wonderbolts Headquarters.”

“M-my sister Crimson Skies was the one that was sent there.” Blue Skies said timidly. “She was the closest one near us and there weren’t any other Shadowbolts available.”

“I see…” Rarity murmured. “Do you think that they made it to Ponyville already?”

“Of course they did!” Rainbow Dash said confidently. “This is the Wonderbolts we’re talking about; fast is what they’re all about! Hey, I bet they’re already scouting through this forest and looking for us right now!”

“Somehow I doubt that.” Storm Shadow murmured quietly, but still loud enough for Goku to hear. The tan Thestral glanced over at her, but made no comment, too focused on her hugging of Violet Fire.

“Whatever you say honey.” The ebony mare giggled, stroking Goku’s mane.

“Um, excuse me, Ms. Violet Fire.” Fluttershy said softly, walking up to the Pegasus. “Forgive me for my, um…straightforwardness, but…is that a roseray hanging from your neck?”

Violet blinked, looking down at her roseray before smiling up at Fluttershy. “Why yes, it is, it indicates that I’m from the Kindheart Rosario Clan, one of the Top Seven Clans of Equestria.”

“Oh, I see.” Fluttershy nodded, glancing down at her own roseray. “It’s just that, um…I have the same roseray too.”

“Really? Oh my goodness, that’s so wonderful!” Violet Fire beamed, rushing over and taking Fluttershy’s hooves in her own. “I get to meet another member of my clan, and outside of Canterlot City! What a coincidence this is huh?!”

“U-um…yes, a r-really big c-coincidence indeed.” Fluttershy replied, her cheeks flushing pink at Violet’s kind smile, and the warmth of her hooves. “I-it’s really nice to meet you, um…V-Violet Fire…m-my name is F-Fluttershy Kindheart Rosario Tenshi.”

“Fluttershy hm? Well, I can see why you were given that name.” Violet Fire said, cooing slightly as Fluttershy’s cheeks became pinker. “Oh, I’m sorry, where are our manners? I didn’t even say hi to the rest of your friends.”

After giving a pat on Fluttershy’s head, the ebony mare stepped away far enough so she could face the rest of them. “For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Violet Fire Kindheart Rosario, and I’m the Captain of the Ariel Flight Team Shadowbolts. These are my teammates, Fast Tracks Nightstalker, twin sisters Lighting Shadow and Storm Shadow Shimauma and Blue Skies Kyuketsuki.”

“Well, it’s very nice to meet you Miss Violet.” Rarity said politely. “My name is Rarity Belle Cifer, member of the refined and dazzling Cifer Clan. This is Pinkie Pie Soshi, Rainbow Dash Wisp, and Applejack Sweet Apple Titan, and of course, Fluttershy’s told you who she was, and you already know Twilight as it seems.”

“Yeah, after she had literally forgotten she had met them for nearly a minute.” Rainbow Dash snickered, only to yelp when Applejack kicked her left hind leg.

“Can it.” The farmer hissed, before turning to the Shadowbolts. “Anywho, it’s real nice t’ meet y’all on this fine night. Ah have t’ be honest, Ah wasn’t expectin’ ya t’ come at th’ time that ya did. Ya know…with that critter tryin’ t’ make a meal outta all o’ us.”

“We know, we’re sorry that we gave you such a scare.” Lightning Shadow said sheepishly, playing with some of her mane. “We had a couple of run ins with a couple of the animals in the Everfree, which took up a good portion of our time.”

“Is that why it took you longer than it probably had to for you guys to get to us?” Goku asked, contemplatively. “I can smell the scent of a Shinomōkin and a Doragontora on you all.”

“Yeah, w-we did.” Blue Skies mumbled sheepishly. “Let’s just say that we ended up demolishing a good part of the forest when we ran into them.”

Rainbow Dash chuckled. “Oh, we don’t doubt it.”

“Anyway, we should probably get a move on before that Battookuma comes back to finish what he’s started.” Violet suggested. “Knowing them, they’re gonna be back here in a considerably short amount of time, and I’d rather not take my chances by staying here.”

“Good idea darling.” Rarity nodded. “The sooner we get out of here, the less I have to worry about that ruffian trying to melt me as if I was mere ice cream.”

“Ya mean like the hoard of ice cream that ya always keep inside o’ yer fridge?” Applejack asked teasingly.

“Not that kind of ice cream!” The fashionista snapped back. “I only eat that kind of ice cream when I’m under times of stress and I don’t have any inspiration! So that does not count at all!”

“Yeah, sure it doesn’t.” Goku snorted. “Really Rarity’ how cliché can you get?”

“Hold on, you really have multiple tubes of ice cream in your fridge?” Zephyr asked, not quite believing what she was saying.

“She sure does Zephie! Loss and loads and loads and loads of delicious ice cream all just for Rarity!” Pinkie Pie chirped. “She doesn’t eat it much though, like she says, and only does if she’s like reeeeally stressed out and having one of her overdramatic fits on her sofa! Some time I really wonder how she can’t get as big as a marshmallow from eating so much ice cream!”

“Like how you can’t get even chubbier from eating so many sweets?” Twilight asked, her eyes running down Pinkie’s chubby, yet still quite attractive body frame.

“Exaclty!” The pink pony nodded, smiling widely. “Then again, there are stallions who don’t always go after mare that’re skinnier than licorice. There are some of them who like it when a mare gains a bound or two; makes them look tastier in their eyes!”

“Um, P-Pinkie…” Fluttershy stuttered. “I don’t think that’s what Twilight meant.”

“What? I’m just saying that some stallion’s love a mare who’s a little chubby.” Pinkie giggled; a sly grin etched on her face. “Take it from me, I have lots and lots and lots of meetups with a few colts stallions who like chubby mares. And trust me when I say, that they were some parties~.”

“TMI there Pinkie Pie, TMI.” Zephyr said a blush burning on his blue cheeks. “As great as it is to hear that you’re having fun, we kind of need to get going. We have a dark goddess to beat and a town of ponies to save, and if we waste time talking about how many times you got laid, it’s gonna hinder that.”

Pinkie Pie raised an eyebrow at that. “You’re not just saying so you don’t have to tell us about your sex life, are you?” Grinning wider, she leaned in closer to the Solar Guard. “Speaking of which, how many mares did you party with and turn into cream pies?”

“PINKIE!” Rarity shrieked, pupils contracting.

Applejack’s face scrunched up in disgust. “Really girl?!”

“I am not going to answer that question.” Zephyr stated bluntly, trotting ahead of everypony else. “In fact, I am going to pretend I did not even hear that!”

“Good idea.” Rainbow Dash murmured. “’Cause she will make you go on forever about all the juicy times you may have had, no bullshit.”

“Father Shenron Almighty…” Goku hissed, her bat ears pinning back. “I’m really sorry about that Violet Fire. My friends can be pretty outlandish at times…even at times like this.”

“That’s okay, it looks like you’ve got yourselves a real good bunch of friends here.” Violet replied with a giggle. “You must’ve gone through a lot to get friends like these.”

“You have no idea.” Goku uttered quietly. “You have no bucking idea.”

Over more than half an hour had passed since the seven mares had their rather frightening encounter with the Battookuma in the Everfree Forest, along with the unexpected, yet welcome arrival of the Shadowbolts, After thatunpleasant experience, Goku had suggested that they all take a breather and try to relax so they could gain their strength, all of them having burnt quite a bit of energy since first arriving in the forest. Since the Shadowbolts were now their accompanying them on their journey, none of them had to worry too much about any nearby creature sneaking up on them and giving off any surprise attack. They were a bit worried about Mor'du coming back to finish what he had started, but Violet Fire reassured them that she and her teammates would keep them safe. She had given them specific orders to keep on the lookout, for the bat winged bear and anything else. Something that made Zephyr and the seven feel a lot more at ease in the unnatural woodland.

This, however, did not solve the problem of the girls’ wounds, which were in danger if possibly getting infected if they weren’t immediately tended to. Luckily for them, Storm and Lightning Shadow happened to come from a clan that was known for specialized healing, so they were able to help the girls and Zephyr. This allowed Fluttershy to be free of the burden having to once again heal her friends, for she didn’t think she could take another hit, especially after the fight with the Timberwolves. Thankfully, the food that they had foraged in the forest at the very beginning of their adventure was already working to replenish their magic supply. Add to the fact that they had their new comrades with them, and they had a chance to get back into peek magical condition. Despite this, they all knew that it wouldn’t be long before they’d have to fight for their lives again, unaware for the surprise that they’d be in for.

“Ugh, how much longer are we going to be travelling through these dense woods?” Rarity groaned. “I honestly can’t seeing, or stepping into any more of this icky muck!”

“There’s no telling how many of these trees we’re going to be going through Rarity, so we’re just going to have to bear it.” Twilight murmured; her horn ignited to light the way. “Besides, we were all pretty much anticipating that we’d be getting ourselves dirty, so there’s really no use in complaining.”

“Yeah, Ah mean, we’ve been in dirty places b’fore.” Applejack added, her booted hooves making squishy sounds on the mud floor. “Then again, even Ah’ve never been in a place as dirty and dense as this…not that Ah’d ever tried t’.”

“Who would even contemplate setting hoof in this forest like we are for reasons not congruent to ours?” Fluttershy asked. “The only reason that I even try to go inside is to rescue any of my animal friends if they wandered too far off from my cottage. Other than that, I try not to go in it too much, least I get into a fight or get eaten, like the last few times we were.”

Goku glanced over at Fluttershy, a jet-black eyebrow raised. “Is that the only reason?” She asked just low enough for only Fluttershy to hear.

“That reminds me.” Zephyr said, his ears perking. “Back at that Battookuma’s cave, you had mentioned that you had seen him before, what did you mean when you said that you had seen him before?”

“You mean Mor'du?” Twilight asked, looking over at her foalhood friend. “Oh, that’s…kind of an interesting story Zephyr.”

“Interesting how?” Violet Fire asked, her own interest peeked.

“Well, um…” The lavender Unicorn said hesitantly. “…it’s interesting actually involves Spike, in more ways than one.”

At this new revelation, the Blue Skies and the rest of her teammates, her captain included, snapped their heads to the buttermilk Pegasus. “Wait, Spike is in the story with the Battookuma you and Captain Violet fought? H-how?!”

“It, um...it all happened about four years ago.” Fluttershy replied. “It was six months when Twilight had first moved to Ponyville; I was nineteen at the time when I met her, her little sister Crescent Shield and Spike. I admit, I was quite shy and nervous when I first met her, but I found her to be quite sweet, and I just loved her brother and sister! Spike was just so sweet, and her sister was just adorable! I don’t think I’ve ever seen any foals that were so precious! Well, other than Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Fire Flash, and um…Sheton.”

“Hmhm, yeah, Spike is pretty adorable.” Lightning Shadow giggled, a fond smile on her face. “It looks like he managed to win over other ponies other than us. Once you get over the fact that he’s half dragon, you’ll see that he’s a really swell little hatchling, right sis?”

Storm Shadow looked off to the side, a blush forming on her face. “Y-yes.”

“He sure did!” Pinkie Pie giggled, her own cheeks blossoming. “I remember the first time that I met Spike, and I very nearly squeezed the life out of him when I saw him! I literally felt my heart about to burst out of my chest when I saw him, and that does not happen often! That just goes to tell you just how adorable I thought Spike was!”

“You mean like with Sheton?” Goku asked dryly, an amused smile on her face. “How you nearly suffocated him inside your huge mass of chest fluff?”

“Exactly!” The pink pony giggled, nodding her head rapidly.

“Ah can’t really say th’ same.” Applejack admitted, rubbing the back of the head. “T’ be honest with y’all, Ah was kind o’ scared when Ah saw him. With all that Ah know ‘bout dragons an’ all, Ah was afraid that anythin’ that Ah did would anger him t’ th’ point where he might cook me int’ apple fritters.” A smile of her own came. “Turns out, that turned t’ be the opposite with Spike, ‘cause he turned out t’ be a pretty levelheaded guy, hard worker too…an’ it takes a lot t’ piss him off…well, unless ya mess with Twilight an’ lil’ Crescent.”

Twilight giggled. “Accurate way of putting it AJ…Spike is the one individual you don’t want to tick off for any reason. Besides Goku, and any other Shenron and Nightstalker for that matter.”

“True that.” The tan Thestral nodded, fangs gleaming as she smiled.

“I’m ashamed to say that I wasn’t quite won over by Spike the same way my dear friends were, especially Fluttershy.” Rarity sighed guiltily. “I don’t have anything against dragons, but I was absolutely terrified when I first saw him! Those curved claws, and those gleaming, yet needle sharp teeth; not to mention that tail blade…who wouldn’t be scared of something like that?”

“P-probably somepony who isn’t a Kirin or Dragon.” Blue Skies replied. “Though I can see your point there Miss Rarity. A creature or somepony like that isn’t something or somepony that should be messed with, regardless of how young they are.”

“Definitely not.” Zephyr nodded, looking down at his draconic roseray.

“Well I certainly wasn’t scared when I met Spike!” Rainbow denied. “In fact, I thought that all of his dragon parts were actually pretty cool. I mean sure the little guy nearly snapped my neck when he hugged me, but it’s not like I hadn’t got any injuries like that before. There was also the fact that he could actually breathe fire despite being half pony, and he could even use it to fly too! Like how awesome is that?!”

“Exceptionally awesome if you ask me.” Fast Tracks smirked. “Spike sometimes did that whenever he challenged us to a race, and it was really cool to see. Though, he did end up burning our suits more often than not because he got carried away.”

“Maybe, but it’s always so adorable whenever he does it!” Violet Fire giggled, a blissful sigh leaving her. “Anyway, Fluttershy, how is Spike involved with the Battookuma again?”

“Huh? Oh right!” Fluttershy said as she got back on track. “A-anyway, the incident with Mor'du took place six months after Twilight, Crescent Shield and Spike move to Ponyville. Spike was spending the day with me at my cottage while Twilight was practicing her combat magic, and she didn’t want him getting caught in the middle of it. So she had him stay with me for the rest of the day, and it was really fun. Sometime after dusk, Spike had headed back home while I was doing some nighttime feeding when Dr. Fauna came to my cottage and told me that Mor'du was in town and he was attacking. I went with her into town and saw that Mor'du was near the Town Square rampaging and chasing after ponies, and there were a few that were even trying to fight him. I planned to use my Solar Stare to make him stop, but somepony stopped me…that somepony being Spike.”

“Now before you ask, Spike didn’t stop her because he trying to.” Twilight emphasized before anypony could ask. “Fluttershy was stopped because…Spike decided to fight Mor'du.”

“He what?!” Lightning Shadow shouted as Violet Fire gasped. “Spike actually fought an animal from the Everfree?!”

“You bet he did!” Pinkie replied cutely. “And boy when I tell you, when Spikey laid into that scary teddy like he was cookie dough, he laid into that teddy! You would think he was shooting out endless streams of confetti out of a never-ending party cannon how much Spikey laid into that teddy!”

“That’s puttin’ it a might lightly Pinkie.” Applejack snorted. “More like he was turnin’ that varmint int’ black apple sauce. It was probably th’ most frightenin’ thing Ah have ever seen in mah entire life…makes ya wonder what else the little apple is capable of.”

“You mean other than changing size, breathing fire, and summoning blades at the end of his tail?” Goku asked teasingly as Applejack shivered.

“Somethin’ along th’ lines o’ that.” The farmer replied.

“Oh goodness…I had no idea little Spikey ended up having to fight a creature of this forest.” Violet whispered, both hooves coming to her muzzle. “Did…did he win?”

“Yes, but not without sustaining injuries of his own.” Fluttershy replied grimly. “Spike ended up getting slash marks on his left eye, and some along his neck chest, and side along with a bite wound on his stomach. He also got even more slashes along his legs and back, and a partially torn ear, as well as…some fangs missing.”

“Holy shit, he got that many injuries?!” Fast Tracks hiss, his face scrunching up. “Aren’t dragon scales supposed to be like, super tough against cutting attacks and all that.”

“Against things like knives, daggers and swords yes.” Fluttershy explained. “Though not if its inflicted by another animal that’s just as powerful as a dragon, or another dragon. Then again, Spike wasn’t in his full dragon form when he fought Mor'du, possibly because he didn’t want to end up killing Mor'du in their fight. Whatever the reason, Spike got a good number of injuries after that, but luckily, they weren’t life threatening. After that, I took Spike back to my cottage, and treated his wounds before they could get infected.”

“That’s a relief, I really thought that things were going to be worse off for Spike.” Violet sighed, relief washing over her. “So…what happened after that?”

“Well, Spike ended up sustaining quite a few scars, which Goku Snowflake Midnight, and Sheton had seen when they reunited with him.” Twilight replied, glancing over at the tan Thestral. “Another thing that happened was Spike’s reputation in Ponyville increasing in the aftermath of the battle, and did it skyrocket. In fact, a few days after the fight, Mayor Mare visited me and Spike, and had us come with her to the Town Square to make a very important announcement. In front of everypony along with the girls, she officially declared Spike as the official Guardian of Ponyville!”

“Whoa, wait a minute!” Fast Tracks said, holding his hooves out. “You mean to tell me that the Mayor of that big ass town we had seen in our flight made Spike the protector of it?!”

“You bet your bat winged ass that she did!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “In front of us and just about everypony in Ponyville, Mayor Mare made Spike the protector of the entire town from this very forest! Hay, she even gave him a trophy and a medal to show her appreciation!”

“Awwww, now that’s just adorable!” Blue Skies cooed. “That was so sweet of the Mayor to do that for Spike!”

“If ya ask me sugarcube, he deserved it.” Applejack nodded. “Despite his age, Spike risked his life t’ save everypony from becomin’ lunch fer that varmint. No other child would’ve had the guts t’ do somethin’ like that, but Spike did, an’ he had th’ bark t’ back up his bite.”

“You should’ve seen the look on Spike’s face when he was given his awards!” Rarity giggled, resisting the urge to squeal. “He was jumping around the stage and cheering; so much so that Twilight and Fluttershy were worried that he’d reopen his wounds. Luckily, he had calmed down before that happened, but he almost squeezed the life out of Mayor Mare when he hugged her in thanks.”

“Hmhm, I can picture him doing that.” Zephyr chuckled. “Spike has the tendency of hugging somepony too tightly when he doesn’t mean to. She’s probably had some serious neck sores for the next few days.”

“Oh, I bet that she did.” Rainbow snickered. “Trust me, I feel her pain all too well.”

“My, that was quite the unexpected story there Fluttershy.” Violet Fire commented. “I figured that Spike was up to something with Twilight when they left, but I never would’ve expected anything like this.”

“Me neither; Ponyville is a peaceful place, but it does have its crazy moments from time to time.” Fluttershy nodded. “Still though, even I wasn’t expecting what happen four years ago to happen, especially since it involved Spike. Regardless, I’m glad that everypony was saved and Spike survived fight. I just wished that I had known about Mor'du sooner, so I could’ve used my Solar Stare to send him back into the Everfree.”

“There wasn’t anything that could’ve let you know about that incident Fluttershy.” Twilight said comfortingly. “It was already happening before you were even there, so it was going to happen regardless if you were in town or not. And Spike probably would’ve had to fight…Mor'du in the end, so it’s not your fault.”

“Yeah, I wasn’t anywhere near Ponyville when this happened.” Rainbow Dash added. “I didn’t even find out about it until the next morning when I went to go visit Applejack. If I had known I would’ve sent that bastard flying to the other end of this forest. Of course, Spike already took care of that, but…you know what I mean, right?”

“Yes, I do, thank you girls.” Fluttershy said, smiling. “Thank you, I just feel like I should’ve known this would happen.”

“We all do Fluttershy, it’s just something we have to deal with is ponies, but you manage it overtime.” Storm Shadow said, ruffling her wings. “Though, if you don’t mind me asking this, what this so called, ‘Solar Stare’ is?”

Fluttershy turned her gaze to the Shadowbolt and opened her mouth to speak, but almost immediately snapped it shut. Her head shot up straight and her ears perked upward, her eyes narrowing as they flashed in the darkness. Zephyr noticed the buttermilk Pegasus’s change in body language and he too was on high alert.

“Everypony stop!” Zephyr commanded. “I think Fluttershy’s sensed something.”

At this, everypony else stopped their walking or flying and turned to look in Fluttershy’s direction, all of them also on guard. All chatter ceased immediately as they watched the beautiful Pegasus mare, who was scanning the area. Fluttershy slowly trudged ahead of the group, stopping just behind the Shadowbolts. As she flicked her ears back and forth, the wind suddenly picked up and she sniffed it a few times.

“Um, Fluttershy…” Violet Fire said softly, a look of concern morphing onto her face. “Is there something wrong, sweetie?”

“Everypony,” The buttermilk Pegasus said slowly. “We need to get way from here, right now.”

“W-what?” Blue Skies asked. “Why?”

“I can smell another animal coming this way.” Fluttershy replied. “And it’s coming in fast.”

“There is?” Lightning Shadow asked, now on the alert. “What is it?”

“Oh no,” Rarity groaned. “Don’t tell me it’s that dreaded Battoookami coming here to finish us off again.”

Before Fluttershy could reply, Goku interjected. “No, it’s not that.” She replied, her bat ears flicking about. “It’s something else...something else entirely.”

“Well, what do you smell G?” Rainbow Dash asked impatiently. “Spill it!”

Right at that moment, everypony’ ears picked up the sound of something snapping from ahead of them. The sound vibrated within their ears and echoed about the small area they were in, making them all freeze in place. Just a few seconds after that, a loud snarl came from the shadows of the trees, making everypony’s blood curdle within their veins and their fur stand on end.

“Now what in th’ hay was that?” Applejack asked, her eyes narrowing. “It sounded like Granny tryin’ to send an apple core down our garbage disposal.”

“I have no idea, Jackie!” Pinkie Pie replied. “Whatever it was, it sounded scaaaaaaaryyyy!”

“Captain, I think now may be a good time to get these girls out of here.” Fast Tracks murmured, turning to look at Violet Fire. “Something tells me that whatever is here is not friendly.”

“As if our new friend hadn’t made it so frighteningly obvious.” Zephyr murmured, flicking his tail about.

“Right, good idea.” The ebony black mare said, her voice just above a whisper. Not taking her eyes of the trees in front of her, Violet Fire began addressing Zephyr. “Alright, Zephyr, listen up, I want you to take Goku, Fluttershy, and the other girls out of this clearing while we-”

That was all that the Pegasus mare was able to say before a roar suddenly burst from out of the trees, going at such a high volume that it nearly split the eardrums of everypony around them. They covered their ears with their hooves, trying to block out the noise as the ground beneath their hooves shook, nearly making them lose their footing. Not even a minute after that, a bright orangish yellow light appeared in the darkness of the woods before a huge stream of fire burst from the trees, burning those that was in its path. Goku, who was the first to see the fire coming, reeled back in shock, so much so that she didn’t have enough time to dodge it.

“Goku!” Rainbow Dash shouted, zooming towards the tan Thestral just in time to knock her out of the way of the stream of fire. As the two mares tumbled to the ground, the others jumped out of the way as well, narrowly missing being caught by the flames. They watched as the fire sailed passed them into the trees behind them, burning them to the point where they looked as black as coal.

“What in th’ buckin’ hay?!” Applejack shouted, feeling her heart beating against her chest. “What in tarnation was that?!”

“That was a stream of fire, Applejack! What do you think?!” Rarity shrieked, holding her tail as if it was the most precious thing in the world. “It nearly singed my beautiful tail off! Where in the world did it even come from?!”

“Uh, girls…?” Goku said as she sat up next to Rainbow Dash, her expression grave. “I think it may have to do with our new friend.”

“What do you me-” Rainbow Dash began, only to go quiet at what she was seeing. “Oh…”

“Oh no…” Twilight whimpered, as she, Applejack, Rainbow, Goku and the others all stared wide eyed at what was in front of them.

Slowly emerging through the burnt trees and shadows, piercing slitted eyes shining through the darkness of the trees, was a large adult male Manticore. It was size of the Doragontora, if not slightly smaller by the looks of it, but by no means any less menacing. It had smooth yellow fur that was a shade lighter than Fluttershy’s, which did nothing to hide the bulging muscles from underneath, which looked to have a few veins popping out. It had a large thick mane that looked to be redder than blood, framing its face perfectly with bangs hanging from either side of its face. Its whole body was packed with muscle, and it had what looked to be remnants of recently dried blood on its fur, as well as its teeth.

On all four of its paws were razor sharp curved claws that were twice the size of kitchen knives, each of them as white as the teeth the Manticore was bearing. It had massive dragon wings that were the size of the average adult dragon, going from its broad muscular shoulders all the way down its back, reaching its flank, the wings lined up with razor sharp spines. From behind the Manticore, slowly whipping back and forth, was a thick muscular tail that was almost as thick as Mor'du’s tail. At end, where a large tail tuft should’ve been, was instead, the tail of a scorpion, the curved tip raised in the air and ready to sting. The tip of the tail glinted in the light of the Moon, very much the same way that its crystalline blue eyes glinted back at them with an unfathomable amount of iciness.

“Wow! Look at the size of that kitty!” Pinkie Pie gasped, her jaw dropping open. “That’s gotta be the biggest kitty that I’ve ever seen!”

“That’s not a kitty, Pinkie.” Storm Shadow said lowly, her piercing blue eyes narrowing as her ears flattened. “That is an adult male Manticore.”

“A what now?” Applejack asked, looking over at the light grey mare.

“A Manticore.” Violet Fire repeated firmly, loud enough so that the farmer and everypony else could hear. “Another dangerous creature that inhabits the Everfree Forest, much like the Doragontora’s Timberwolves, and the Battookuma’s do. It’s said to basically be a lion that has the wings of a dragon and the tail of a scorpion, as you can all see right now. The Manticore is known to be the third largest carnivore here, and possibly the most dangerous one there is.”

“The most dangerous?” Rarity asked, giving an audible gulp. “H-How so?”

“It may not be as big as Battookuma, but it’s said to have strength equivalent to that of a dragon, with speed and agility to match.” Shadow Step replied lowly. “It can also fly, and breath fire like a dragon, like the fire that streamed past us a moment ago, hot enough to burn an entire clearing, and leave nothing but ash and scorched earth. Not to mention it’s also an incredibly strong and fast flyer, and has an insane amount of stamina, which wouldn’t be possible if it was a normal cat. Its claws are sharp enough to slice through even the toughest of mark, and even armor, with teeth and jaws strong enough to snap the biggest and strongest stallion completely in half. Their most dangerous weapon, however, lies within their tails.”

“Their tails?” Rainbow Dash asked, raising a prismatic eyebrow in confusion. “What’ so dangerous about their tails?”

“The part where it’s that of a scorpion.” Twilight replied; her voice low yet apprehensive. “Many types of Scorpions are known to have potent amounts of venom stored into their tails, and they used the tip of their tails to inject venom into their victims. This in turn liquifies their prey and allows the Scorpions to devour them more easily. It’s the same thing with the Manticore, only it has a bigger scorpion tail, which means it’ll have a larger abundance of venom inside of it. Not only that, but since its attached to the end of their actual tails, they can swing it stab and swing it around, allowing it to slice their opponents or victims and send the venom coursing through their veins.” The lavender mare gulped as a beat of swear fell from her forehead. “That’s when the real danger sets in…”

“Real danger?” Applejack stuttered. “W-what real danger?”

“The danger that comes when the Manticore’s poison enters into your system.” Fluttershy replied softly, yet grimly. “The poison it contains in its Scorpion tail is very lethal, even more lethal than that of a normal Scorpion’s which makes the effects of being bitten all the more lethal. If you get stung, or even sliced by the stinger, the first thing that’ll happen is that you’ll feel is a burning tingling sensation in your skin. This is due to the poison being at such a degree it’ll make it feel like your skin is on fire. Next, you’ll feel a numbness start to take over your entire body which will also dull your five senses, especially your ability to sense magic. You’ll also have difficulty breathing, especially when flying very fast, and it’ll also be hard for you to swallow anything in your mouth. Your vision will blur, and you won’t be able to see anything clearly around you other than blotches of color, and unless you get medical treatment as possible…you may end up having a seizure.”

“Seizure?” Pinkie Pie repeated. “You mean like how I go all shaky and wobbly whenever by Pinkie Sense reaches its maximum pitch?”

“If it's anything similar to what Fluttershy described, then yes.” Blue Skies replied, nodding. “And trust me when I say, it is not as fun as it sounds.”

“Holy shit” Rainbow Dash breathed, staring up at the Manticore. “One sting from its tail can do all of that?”

“If what Fluttershy’s saying about the Manticore’s tail is true, then yes.” Goku replied, her fangs bared as she scratched the ground with her forehooves. “Which means that we have to keep as far away from his tail as possible, so we won’t have to suffer any of those symptoms.” She gulped as she mentally added, ‘Well, at least the rest of the girls and the Shadowbolts do. Since I’m also a Shenron and can transform into a full-blooded dragon, I’m immune to any kind of poison, even in my Kirin or pony form, so I won’t have to worry about him stinging me. Doesn’t mean it’s not gonna hurt like Tartarus if I do though!’

Twilight suddenly turned to Goku, and, as if reading the tan Pegasus’ mind, said, “Wait a minute…Goku, you have a dragon form, and from what I have read on dragons, they have an immunity to any kind of poison injected in them. Since you’re a Kirin, shouldn’t that mean that you can survive the Manticore’s poison too? Even though you’re only half dragon?”

Before Goku could reply, she was cut off when she heard a roar from behind her, and whipped her head around just in time to see the Manticore lunging at her. The tan Thestral screamed and leaped out of the way just as the giant dragon winged lion slammed into the ground, causing smoke and large chunks of rubble to fly in all directions. He cleared the dust with his wings and let out another roar, signaling to the ponies in front of it that it was ready to fight.

“It looks like our new friend is done waiting.” Violet Fire murmured. “Can’t really blame him for it. I’m not one to keep others waiting anyway, especially at a time like this.” The ebony black mare got onto battle stance, panting her forelegs wide and flaring her wings. “Shadowbolts, prepare for battle!”

Author's Notes:

Well there you are guys, the next chapter with the famed King of the Everfree Forest! Now, for this chapter, I wanted to keep it at a more steady pace, because I felt that I had rushed it a bit too fast, so I decided to add a little backstory involving Spike and a little reunion between Goku, Twilight, Zephyr and the Shadowbolts. Speaking of which I had decided to go and add the backstory involving Mor'du as a way of explaining that how Fluttershy and Twilight knew of the Battookuma, which was an idea that I had because of a bio that I was making about Spike, while I was writing his AU backstory. I don't know if I'm actually going to be showing a flashback of how exactly that played out, but at least you guys have some explanation as to why this is, and I hope it clears the air of FLuttershy and Twilight's knowledge of Mor'du and how Spike was involved in it. Also, just saying, the battle will come in the next chapter, because I believed that this one went on for a little too long, so I decided to add the fight scene in the next chapter. However that's not the only thing that will be shown, for things will get a bit more...fluffier next time...okay much more fluffier!

Well, that's all for today. Stay tuned for a fight between the bolts of the shadows and the king of the everfree, with some lightheartedness at the very end!