STAND NAME: EVOLUTION
STAND USER: LUPINA
Stand for Equestria: Origin of Harmony

The rustling of the trees surround the four of you, all-encompassing and drowning out even your thoughts. It's as though the forest itself has grown hostile along with the Timberwolf, and she herself is mad. Unfortunately, you're drawing a blank: all plans get cut off by the sheer insanity that is a talking, Stand-using Timberwolf, and no one's given you advice on dealing with that shit. Still, you get into a battle stance, as does the rest of your group save Fluttershy, who actually backs up a bit as Powerwolf snarls in fury. This...turns out to have been a bit of your mistake in your eyes: the slightest hint of aggression suddenly sets the Timerwolf off. Out of the trees comes vines with that looks like spikes poking through the green, heading right for you and your group!

You fold them quickly, bending them in on themselves, only for suddenly feel something stab into your hooves from below. You jump away to see what looks like a tree root burrowing from the ground, razor-sharp now and glimmering crimson from your blood. This releases the vines, which Powerwolf absolutely eviscerates.

BrownDog77: Forgot this part:

"Five seconds into the fight and I've 'ad enough!" Canny says, suddenly charging towards the Timberwolf while phasing herself into a translucent green. Suddenly, spiked tendrils burst forward, poking through her incorporeal body. "Oh, what the hell?" she asks aloud. They flow through her and her phased out Stand, keeping them from returning to normal to actually hit the Timberwolf. "...This is right annoying."

While she's dealing with that, the rest of you are dealing with the other messes. The Root Spears keep poking from the ground, keeping you from standing and focusing, and as Fluttershy cries out in pain, you know the two of you can't keep going with this things sprouting up. And all the while, Ziggy's floating up, just out of reach of the spears, but still dealing with the vines. One actually manages to stick him, sinking shallowly into his flesh. "Ow!" he shouts. He looks to be in pain, but you can see his eyes beginning to glaze over.

BrownDogg77's Comment (One of Them)

The Timberwolf is really not playing around now, sending forth more tendrils to attack you and the group, this time with razor tips that gleam in the sun. Using New Divide, you shout "Look out!" as you fold yourself away from them, watching them get stuck in the air before backing off. She clearly has a range to these things, an assumption that only strengthens when you realize that the plants behind you aren't actually attacking.

Canny looks bored, still stuck in a whirlwind of the tendrils, before suddenly leaping away from them and returning to normal. She goes back towards the Timberwolf, only to shout "Whoa!" as the spiked tendrils fly towards her. She phases again, and watches as the tendrils shoot through her.

Ziggy grits his teeth, staring at the ones heading for him. At the right moment, Space Oddity raises it's hand up, and the vines and tendrils are sent wiggling into the air, carried by his altered gravity. Oddly, he seems to be getting weaker slightly: he's shaking a little, as is Space Oddity, and his eyelids are drooping. Did getting hit by that vine do something to him?

There's no time to even consider that, however, as Fluttershy lets out a shrill yelp of fear. She collapses to a fetal position, hooves over her head in some attempt to protect her, as the monstrous Stand Powerwolf rips the tendrils to shreds. Claws go through plants, ripping through the greenery faster than you can comprehend in a fittingly ferocious matter. You can already tell that battling another pony would not be a pretty sight, and you're ever the more relieved that it's on your side.

However, it's not strictly enough. The tendrils begin wrapping around Powerwolf's limbs, the Stand ignorantly slashing away as they bond themselves around it. "Fluttershy! Watch out," you warn, "Powerwolf could get overwhelmed!"

Fluttershy peeks her head up and nods, eyes widening at the actual sight. "Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear!" she stammers out, rushing by Powerwolf's side, "Powerwolf, um, c-can you please pay more attention?" The bipedal wolf completely ignores her, Powerwolf slashing and cutting with reckless abandon and furious rage, almost like a maelstrom of death and carnage. More and more plants cover and wrap around it, and Fluttershy begs "Powerwolf!" Powerwolf finally looks, only too late as the plants begin to sprout spikes, close to digging into Powerwolf's flesh, and by extension, Fluttershy's.

But just before they do, Smooth Criminal suddenly arrives, kicking Powerwolf in the jaw and turning the Stand intangible just in time. Fluttershy seems to have felt that, rubbing her cheek in pain, but after seeing the results, she doesn't raise a fuss. With the razor flowers now useless, you fold them down yourself, leaving them trapped on the ground. This allows Powerwolf to rematerialize, a vicious glare being leveled at Smooth Criminal.

"Oh, quit yer gripin', I saved ya!" Canny points out, surprisingly sounding like she has no fear of standing up to this thing.

Stunningly, Fluttershy then marches up to Powerwolf and orders "That's right, Mister! Now, get back out there, but fight smarter!" You have never seen her less demure and meek, and even Powerwolf seems taken aback. With sapience comes surprise, obviously, but you weren't even aware a wolf could look so speechless. It kind of snarls, but relents, backflipping out of the way of oncoming tendrils instead of engaging them.

Noticing the distance limit the Timberwolf seems to have, you inform them "Alright good, keep your distance guys, she’s obviously a ranged fighter since the trees behind us aren’t attacking." You sound calm and orderly, but on the inside, you're still kind of panicking.

The Timberwolf snarls and growls. “My limited range means nothing when surrounded by nature itself!” she growls out, her voice growing more and more vengeful. Suddenly, another set of vines, this time with the heads of Venus Fly Traps, suddenly barrel towards you and your party.

“Plants with teeth? I'm quite good, thank you,” Ziggy says snarkily, deadpan despite gagging on something. His Stand rises back up and raises both arms, gripping them in a bubble of gravity. And then, his smug face locks into one of horror, and without moving anything, he collapses backwards.

"What?!" you ask in your mind. He's not dead, as you can tell from his still moving eyes, but nothing else is moving. "He's...paralyzed?" And then you remember the vine that sank into his flesh. Poisoned. And to make matters worse, his Stand sways and unsteadily floats as though drunk, dropping the vines which let out a gas that lands down on the ground. Everyone's eyes widen, including the still paralyzed Ziggy, as the smoke hits you.

“D-Don't breathe it in, it's-" he mutters, unable to control all of his mouth movements, before letting out a weak groan of pain as one of the traps sinks it's teeth into his shoulder.

Distracted by that, you fail to realize another trap is on top of you until it slams it's teeth through your left wing. "OW! GET IT OFF!" you yell out, flaring your wing out and back to try and shake off the plant. You don't know about the others, but your vision begins to blur and everything sounds so...distant, far away.

You can only vaguely hear the Timberwolf saying “You see you fools?! Evolution will overcome and adapt to it’s environment, despite your tricks!” as your mouth dries up and everything turns so hazy. Hazy and purple...why do you feel the ground under you now?

Luckily, Canny rushes over just in time and turns you intangible, releasing the vine and your lungs from the fog, just as Powerwolf suddenly picks up the paralyzed Diamond Dog and carries him out of the haze towards Fluttershy.

“G-Gyah, t-thanks, babe-" he chokes out again through forcibly closed lips.

Fluttershy stammers for a bit, then coughs from the gas, but then nods once she regains her bearings. "N-No problem at a-all, Ziggy," she tells him right as Canny yells in pain and discomfort from a vine blasting her in the face with the gas, which also lands you flat on your flank.

Canny has a full-on coughing fit as a reaction, choking out through the seemingly long-lasting barrage of them "Oh, that was disgusting!" before removing her hat and firing a gear at it. The sharpened mechanical bit slams through the vine, spreading plant bits around the battleground.

The trap vines are still wriggling around you, ready to pounce at any moment. You chance a look to Ziggy, still paralyzed, and call out “I hope you can still fight like that!" secretly hoping he absolutely can.

Luckily, he just mutters out something as his still-intoxicated Stand clenches it's fist. Suddenly, some of the vines slam down flat, unmoving despite wiggling around, like limp noodles or snakes without traction.

“What did you just do?” Canny asks as she slides back, her Stand doing some weird head bob as it glides back. That'd be a good dance move.

“Maeb 'em heavber," he mutters out through his paralyzed muzzle. Luckily, you get the gist of it.

Just then, another vine with what looks like a cleaver head races towards you, and you yelp "Then make them all heavy!" You duck right as you finish speaking, and dodge lasting damage. But it clips straight through your mane, dropping little hairs on the floor of the forest.

“Nawt tha' simple...Cahn only contro' so many thingsh at one time when I nawt paralyzshed," Ziggy blurbers out, helpless as a vine wraps around all four of his stilted, unmoving legs. They pick him and throw him back, flat on his back. He weakly groans, twitching in dull pain.

Suddenly, you hear a sheer shriek of pain. A cleaver vine clips across Powerwolf's shoulder, and while the Stand's blood just drives it into even more of a frenzy, Fluttershy's left shoulder bleeds in turn. Tears line her eyes; she's clearly not used to fighting period.

As Canny phases at the right time to avoid more cleavers, you feel your inner rage bubble up inside of you. With eyes of determination and righteous anger, you stare down the Timberwolf and growl out "We're going to put a stop to this. Now."

The Timberwolf seems unaffected by your intimidation tactic, walking forward to put everyone back at range. With a low reverberating growl undercutting every word, she responds "Indeed. But it shall be your inevitable demise that finishes this. Evolution always wins." To prove her point, she suddenly presses one of her wooden paws flat against the ground.

You can feel the earth beneath you rumbling seconds before anything happens, passing looks to your allies. Canny is looking around with inquisitive interest, Fluttershy is hiding behind Powerwolf who has not relaxed a muscle since the fight began, and Ziggy finally seems to be regaining feeling after that body slam; his forelegs, or his arms, rather, are beginning to move again at the wrist. Suddenly, the calm before the storm ends as pitch black vines with sickly-green tinted spikes burst from the ground, and grab you and Canny before you can react.

Both of you are slammed into trees, you in particular thrown headfirst. You feel blood leaking from your forehead and everything is spinning as you're dazed. Meanwhile, Canny is thrown in at her side, and you all hear a sickening crack as, presumably, a rib breaks. With the initial surprise attack over, both of you carefully start getting up, Canny on shaky hooves. They attack again. You manage to fold one as Powerwolf rips another up, but more and more sprout.

Ziggy finally regains enough control of his body to start floating, but he's clearly still feeling numb and woozy. Space Oddity physically grabs a vine and activates it's gravity-manipulation, strengthening it under the vine collapses in half at the point it holds the vine. But again, more and more sprout. It's spikes stab into your left back leg, and you're reminded that this crazy Timberwolf is watching all of this with a careful eye. You almost feel like you can't escape, even as you fold and fold more.

BrownDog77's Climax and Ze1a7in's Post-Fight

Seeing as how everything has firmly and precisely fallen out of hand, Ziggy looks over to you as you fold yet another vine. "Say, chap," he starts, woozily ducking under another vine before it, too, is crushed by gravity. "Can you fold a large section of the earth for me? I've got an angle!"

As another Venus Fly-Trap tries to shoot some gas at you, the vines ceding back into the earth as, presumably, her limit is running up, Powerwolf suddenly runs in and tears it asunder, Fluttershy taking cover behind it as it massacres the plant-life. "O-Okay," you say through gritted teeth, "What's this "angle?"

"Spoilers!" he calls out.

Feeling your frustration finally just break through your common sense, you let out an "OH, FINE!" before you fold dirt around the Diamond Dog, kicking up more dirt than he probably intended. No matter how dire the fight's been, a small part of you smiles at how dirty his suit now is.

Ziggy rolls his eyes and says, utterly flat, "Gee, thanks," before doing as a Diamond Dog does best: digging. Space Oddity lets out it's own rapid fire fisticuffs as the earth shatters around it's fist. Dust kicks up and covers everyone, getting into fur and bloody wounds, and you find it harder to breathe. And just plain hard to see, too.

The Timberwolf, now also covered in dirt, snorts at this plan. "A smoke screen? Not enough to save you!" she shouts defiantly, walking through the dirt. "Evolution cannot be contained!"

Ziggy smiles, that much you can see. "Oh, babe," he responds smugly. Celestia above, you hate that voice, "shoulda quit whilst you were ahead! CANNY! PHASE!"

You can't see Canny's reaction too well, but you can spot realization cross her features just before it does yours, as she goes intangible right as Space Oddity's fist shuts tight. Suddenly, you, Ziggy, and Fluttershy are pressed against the ground, a weight upon you all pressing into your backs.

"A-AH!" The Timberwolf yells out, also slamming down prone. The only person left standing is Canny, translucent and intangible. In utter shock, the Timberwolf looks around to see the plant-life also slumping under this weight, her own Stand's plants crushing themselves under the boot of gravity. "W-What...is this?!" she yells out in shock.

“I-I increased the gravity of the dust that got kicked up,” Ziggy struggles to say aloud under the weight of forcibly being unable to move. Again. Sure enough, the dust in the air is gone and everything it coated is now weighed down by the now immensely heavy particles. “Your Stand, the oh-so invincible Evolution, utilizes physical objects, and so they must obey the laws of gravity,” Ziggy smirks. "So much for "can't be stopped," babe."

Canny grins, and truthfully responds "Oh, you bloody brilliant dogger!"

Ziggy smiles proudly. At least, he tries to. “Thanks, now if you’d be so kind as to subdue her? This weight is quite suffocating…”

“What he said,” you groan out, struggling to breathe right.

“Yes…please…” Fluttershy begs. She looks so uncomfortable, but at least she doesn't look ready to bolt.

“Right-o,” Canny agrees, smiling as she rushes forth.

“No, NO!" The Timberwolf begs, trying desperately to run even as gravity keeps her feeling very still. "Stay back!"

“Sorry Lassie," Canny responds, grinning as she turns intangible once more and Smooth Criminal shoots forward. "Time for you to go home, bitch!"

“NO!” she begs again, but too late to stop Smooth Criminal.

“SHAMOSHAMOSHAMOSHAMO! SHAMONE!” Smooth Criminal begins kicking the crap out of the wooden wolf, until the last kick to the jaw breaks her, green eyes fading as her pieces bounce across the ground.

The minute she goes cold, the weight lifts offof you and the surrounding forest, and you even hear a few trees groan with the pressure off of them.

“Right, well, jolly good that worked, then," Ziggy responds, picking himself up as he tries to dust himself. Unfortunately, with all the dirt covering him, a little bit of sweeping with his hand doesn't cut it. He scowls, more than a little perturbed.

“I’d rather not go through that again,” Fluttershy says dizzily as she shakes her head.

“Tell me about it,” you agree as you shake like a dog to get the excess dust off.

“I thought it was kinda fun, actually,” Canny says smugly. You roll you eyes and shake your head. Pointing to the knocked-out Timberwolf, she continues "So, what we doin' with this slag? She ain't dead, yet." She's right: Timberwolves are famous for reconstituting themselves.

“Oh My…” Fluttershy stammers out, color draining slowly from her voice. You step up behind her.

“No no, that wouldn’t be right," you point out, "she's already beaten."

“I know, I didn’t mean we should just off her, ya thick idiot," Canny responds back, rolling her eyes sarcastically.

“Certainly not, she’s got vital information after all,” Ziggy says floating back by your side.

“Yeah she…wait, what?” you do a double take and see that his suit is no longer dirty and looks freshly laundered. “How did you-“

He ignores your inquiry and continues. “She said she knew where the deer were after all, so no matter what you do to her afterward, that bit of info is pretty vital.” He also has a good point there, but that damn suit is distracting you.

“But, um, how can we ask her questions surrounded by trees?" Fluttershy asks meekly, "She might be smart enough to not fall for the dust again."

“Well, we know what her range is now,” you say, deciding to just ignore the damn suit. It's a mystery that will haunt you forever, and you just have to ignore it for now. Shame. "So, let's just take away the plant life within that distance.

“And how're you plannin' on doin' that?" Canny responds, sweeping her hoof over the perimeter. "There's more trees 'ere than there are ponies in Canterlot! I used to live there, I counted!"

"Oh, you know," you respond with a smirk. "Just a little...landscaping."

Bringing out New Divide, you proceed to fold back anything living around the Timberwolf, keeping her isolated in a sweeping circle of dirt. You then nod to Ziggy who increases the gravity on the Timberwolf before Canny begins shaking her. “Come on then, get up!” she orders, actually smacking her disembodied head.

“If you don’t mind that is…” Fluttershy adds. The shaking works as the pieces roll back together and she revives, blinking slowly as The Timberwolf awakens.

“Wha…what’s going…Why can’t I move?” she grunts, completely held in place by Ziggy.

“Good, you’re awake,” you say catching her attention. She scowls again, but that might be her default expression. “So, let’s all just relax and try this again without all the fighting, shall we?”

"I have nothing to say to agents of the Chaotic One!" the Timberwolf growls at you, her voice trembling in rage.

"Chaotic One? She must mean that blighter bastard Discord. What makes you think we work for 'im?" Canny asks with a glare. No wonder she'd be angry, he outright shot her. You'd be mad, too, if you weren't focusing on where this was going.

"Your powers, these 'Stands' as you call them, are filled with chaotic energy," she explains, "And your disrespect for the natural order of this forest." She nods her head towards the folds. "I will not let you harm the Tree!"

"I...don't know anything about a tree, Lassie, but we only want to know where the deer are." Ziggy chimes in.

Fluttershy steps forward, drawing the timberwolf's gaze to her. "Please, Miss Timberwolf, I think there's been a misunderstanding. W-We're not agents of that meanie Discord. We didn't know we were intruding on your territory." You feel proud of how she was able to say that and only stutter once, as she's shaking quite noticeably. Strangely, the Timberwolf doesn't respond, instead continuing to stare at the yellow mare. It almost looks inquisitive, like Fluttershy is a puzzle that she's trying to figure out. A mystery wrapped in an enigma, so to speak. You then see the Timberwolf's eyes visibly widen, and all aggression leave its body.

"You...You are touched by Harmony! You are one of the Bearers!" she gasps out. "I- please forgive me, Bearer of Kindness! I should have recognized Harmony's power within you sooner. If you say that they are not agents of the Chaotic One, then I apologize to them as well. Release me, and restore the forest to normal, and I shall answer whatever questions you have." The pleading in her voice sounds almost alien to you after all the growling rage.

You, Canny and Ziggy look to Fluttershy, who hides behind her mane at the sudden attention before meekly nodding. With some reluctance, you begin putting the forest back to how it was, and Ziggy releases the gravity holding down the Timberwolf. After it is done, the Timberwolf puts itself in a sitting position, forcing your group to look up slightly to make eye contact. You didn't really think about her size, but wow. That alone is an intimidating presence.

"Thank you. I believe introductions are in order," The Timberwolf says. Which, they are, yes. "I was in the wrong, and I wounded you all, so I will go first. My name is Lupina. I have been safeguarding these woods as long as I can remember." The now-named Lupina bows her head humbly. Fluttershy, of all ponies, seems to have scared her straight, and you're still just so proud.

"Well Lupina, I'm Shooting Star, the unicorn is Canny, the diamond dog is Ziggy, and the pegasus is Fluttershy," you introduce. "Now what's this Tree you keep mentioning? Is it the source of your Stand's power?"

"In a sense," she says. Beginning to explain, Lupina speaks "Deep in this forest, in a hidden cave, there is a tree made entirely of crystal. This tree exudes an aura of harmony, and the shaft of a golden arrow sticks from its trunk as if it was stabbed there. This tree bore six fruit, each with a shard of the arrow inside. Each of the fruit was named for the virtue of Harmony that its bearer must possess. The Tree gifted me my Stand, and in doing so gave me intelligence beyond that of my kin. In exchange I enact its will, protecting and guiding this forest."

This new information gives you pause. The six fruit Lupina mentioned can't be anything but the Elements of Harmony, but that implies they originally came from some... Tree of Harmony? You file that away as something to ask Princess Celestia later. There's a lot of things you need to ask her about, it seems.

Ziggy then speaks up, a bit impatiently, "That's nice and all, but we were looking for some deer. You seen 'em?" One track mind, this guy.

"I know of an entire kingdom of deer in these woods, but if it's the group I'm thinking of, then there is another who would know their location better than I. A Zebra shamaness lives in these woods, and knows them almost as well as I. She and I often talk with each other, and she has mentioned a group of deer that constantly try to raid her stores of potions and herbs. If anycreature were to know where to find them, it is her." Lupina then proceeds to stand up, before turning away. "Come, I will guide you to her hut."

Fluttershy gasps. "Zecora! I know Zecora, she came into town a while back. Everyone was w-wrongfully scared of her, though." Whenever that incident was, you don't seem to recall it, but you were busy around this stretch of time where there was some hullabaloo, maybe that's when.

Lupina nods. "Indeed. Hopefully the misunderstanding was cleared," she responds. "She can also help heal you. I understand I wounded some of you rather badly."

You and the rest of the party get up to follow, but before you can go anywhere Lupina starts speaking again. "You were smart to do more to restrain me beyond simply removing the forest from Evolution's range. Evolution affects all plant life, and as a Timberwolf," Lupina turns just enough for you to see her front right leg and half her snout, both of which are covered in large, thorn-like spikes that weren't there previously, a set of vines that sprout from the back of her head floating ominously, "my entire body is comprised of plant life."

She then turns around and starts walking away. It takes you a moment to get over your surprise before you scramble to catch up.

What do you and your party wanna do now?
<----- To Be Continued

Author's Notes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69yguQ_gZkA

And we're finally back! I am...so sorry! God, I feel horrible, like I let everyone down. It's been too long between updates, and that was my bad. A lot happened. I got glasses, tons of drama, other projects, distractions, events, and...the show ended. And I missed it. I miss watching MLP, too, it's been too long. And I completely missed the ending to a wonderful show.

But I'm gonna do right by it, by finally coming back. And I'm here to stay; even if updates are slow again, and I will try to keep that from happening, they will come. I will finish this story, and if there's still interest, I will continue with more. I'm a man of my word.

Question of the Chapter:

What did you think of the Series Finale?

I still haven't watched it, but reading up on what happens...I think it's perfect, and a shining example to the message and story it wanted to tell. Let's hope G5 can do just as well, if not better.

So, yeah, Zecora's hut, apparently. I don't have any rules for next chapter, do whatever feels right. I'm just so elated to be back, and I hope you all come back, too.

Now, let's hit it!