I stumbled backward against a large tree, accidentally boxing myself in. The Timber Wolf takes another step forward and it's close enough now that I can smell its putrid breath. A combination of rotten plants and earty mud that makes my eyes water and my stomach churn. I see a decent size stick lying nearby as the timber wolf readies to lunge.
As it leaps I duck and roll out of the way, grabbing the branch as I go. No longer backed into a corner I make a few half-hearted swings at the creature while slowly inching away. "nice doggy, good doggy...you...you don't wanna eat me..." My brow knits in confusion. "Can you even eat me? You don't have a stomach. Your a literal walking pile of twigs and rocks!" My voice takes on an accusing tone as it begins to rise in volume. With the fear I felt only a moment before seemingly forgotten I take a step forward and whack the creature across the snout with the stick.
...That may have been a mistake. The Timber Wolf lets out a gravely howl and soon I see movement out of the corner of my eye. Two more wolves have appeared, one on each side. [Well...I'm boned! It was a nice... short...life.] I realize there's no way I could take three on one and close my eyes and wait for the end... and wait...[Hmmmmm...] Instead of the sound of my bones crunching I hear something that I did not expect... a giggle. I slowly open one eye. There's something standing between me and the nearest Wolf.
It appears to be...[What?! First a Timberwolf and now...] a pony. I don't mean the normal Earth variety. This creature bears only a passing similarity and even that is stretching it. Firstly the height... it's definitely shorter than a regular pony, only about 2 and 1/2 ft. The general shape is softer and rounder and the coloration is usually of the bright Technicolor variety.
Unlike traditional equines the hooves are usually not visible, the fetlocks (a tuft of fur that usually only covers the top of the hoof) being long enough to blend seamlessly in with the bottom of the hoof. The mane and tail appear to be styled and more like a humans then a regular equine, in this case being a light blonde color in stark contrast to it's almost ash gray body. There's usually some sort of Mark or brand located on their flank, on both sides [Excepting production errors. Thanks Hasbro] indicating that the pony in question has discovered their special talent in life, referred to as a cutie mark.
The filly in question sports a magnifying glass [Interesting]. All of these things together would be considered extremely strange to the average individual encountering one of these creatures, but it gets better [Not really]. As my brain struggles to accept the existence of not one but two previously fictional creatures I realized that something else is very... very wrong.
The pony in question... is transparent... I can see straight through it to the equally confused looking Timberwolf on the other side. This thing...which I'm sincerely hoping is a hallucination brought on by the stress of imminent death... turns to look at me... and giggles again. I lose all train of thought... because... her eyes... are glowing.
The filly stares at me with those searchlight-orange eyes and smiles. "Don't worry. I got this." I nod numbly... not quite hearing her. She turns back to the first Timberwolf and a bright glow begins to emanate from her cutie mark. Her body starts to grow even more faint and dissipates until all that's left is a glowing orb. It flashes a few times, bobbing up and down before zipping straight toward the first wolf. The creature shrieks in surprise as the orb goes straight into its chest.
It looks down as we all watch this orb seemingly bouncing around inside it's body. Either due to discomfort or just being as thoroughly freaked out as I am... it turns and takes off running, the other two following close behind. After a moment or two the orb sans wolves floats back out of the forest, towards me. The orb pulses a few times before turning back into the grey and blond filly.
"Hello there." The filly smiles cheerfully. "Haven't seen a human around here in a while. Are you lost?" Despite being a clear indication that I've lost my mind she seems sincere in her concern. "Well..." I look around at the still very unfamiliar Forest. "I'm definitely lost... and possibly crazy...no... definitely crazy. Very lost and very crazy." The filly tilts her head before giggling yet again. "You don't seem crazy to me."
"Says the hallucination." I retort. Her smile droops if confusion as she slowly blinks. "you think I'm a...hal...hallu..." I sighed and rubbed the bridge of my nose. "A hallucination, yes." Her smile disappears completely and she begins to sob. [Oh no... no no no]. Even if I am losing it that's no reason to make a child cry. "Hey now... don't cry... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be rude." I reach out to try to console her... and my hand passes right through her head. "Uhhh..."
Her her crying slows. "Yo...you can't...tu..touch a ghost." I stared dumbly at her. "A ghost?" My brain finally connected the pieces before i smacked myself in the forehead. "Ok... I'm not crazy. I'm just an idiot. I'm so sorry. Wait...If you're a ghost then that means..." I'm pretty sure that time my eyes crossed trying to make sense of everything... and I may have passed out because the next thing I know I'm laying on the ground looking up at two very concerned glowing orange eyes. "Are you okay mister?" I sat up and shook my head a few times. "I think so. It's just been a very confusing couple of days."
"I think my brain just finally gave up on trying to make sense of everything." She giggled again. "Your funny. You've never seen a ghost before?" I shook my head. "Nope. You'd be the first." She nodded in understanding as she touched her chest with a hoof. "Well my names Ruby. Whats yours?" "Mike. Nice to meet you." I answer as I stand up and brush the dirt off of me. "You said you've seen other humans? Can you point me in the right direction?" Her smile thins. "I haven't seen another human in so long, I wouldn't have a clue." My hopes sank a bit at those words. [Great. She saved me from those... things, unfortunately I'm still lost. "How long have you been...uh...like this?"
"Its been about a thousand years or so give or take. I stopped really keeping track after the first 500." My right eye twitched slightly. "1000 years...wow..um... must have been pretty boring?" I shook my head. [What a lame question to ask.] "No, not really. I help out people that are lost and... keep other things from causing trouble." She said nervously. "Like those wolves?" I asked. "Yep, and... other stuff." Her voice trailing off.
"Those things look a lot less intimidating through a screen." I glanced around the forest, making sure the Timberwolves were really gone. I noticed her confused look when her expression suddenly brightened. "Oh...wait. I did find something strange not too long ago. It might have been made by humans. I can show you!" She said excitedly. Ruby trotted off a few feet before looking back at me. "You coming?" Running a hand through my hair, "I guess so. Nothing better to do."
I followed her to the forest for a few hours. As we walked I noted differences in animals that we saw. Back home most animals are skittish and at the first sign of people they run and hide, but here they were mostly just curious. Watching us as we went by. at one point a few small birds fluttered past and one even landed on my shoulder momentarily. [They seem almost tame.] As we rounded another patch of brush we came upon a very overgrown trail. "We're almost there!" Ruby sqeed in excitement, her steps taking on a noticeable bounce. Another few minutes go by and the trail turns into a cracked paved road.
Crouching down I pick up a small fragment. It's very similar to the asphalt that they use for roads, but it shines more in the light like there's glass or Crystal mixed in with it. Standing back up I brush the dust off my hands and continue following Ruby. We finally stopped in front of what appears to be a small cave. At least it used to be a cave. The cave mouth has been cut back and replaced with a stone archway and a heavily reinforced steel door. Here and there I can make out chipped and faded caution symbols and what appears to be a busted keypad next to the door. [A keypad? That means electricity and electricity means civilization.] I fiddled with the keypad for a bit, the cover coming off easily with age.
As I moved some of the wires a small spark cause me to flinch backwards. I turned to Ruby. "At least that means it still has power. That's a good sign... right?" She shrugged. "I dunno. Haven't tried to go in there yet. I can look to see if it's safe?" My eyebrows knitted in confusion as I continued trying to rewire the keypad. "Well seeing as how I don't have it open yet how can you...wait .. nevermind. I forgot...ghost." She nodded and started moving towards the door... and stopped. A confused look crossed her face and she tried again this time looking as though she was trying to push her way into it. Nothing. "That doesn't make any sense. I should be able to pass through this with no problem."
She backed up several feet before taking off at a gallop... before bouncing off the door and tumbling backwards. "Ruby!" I shouted and rushed over to her, reaching out to pick her up... and my hands went right through her. [Ghost...right.] "Ruby! Are you ok?" She looked up at me and her eyes seemed to flicker a bit. [Ghost headache?] "I.. I'm ok...I think. Thats weird." She slowly climbed to her feet before glancing back at the door. "That's never happened before." I frowned as I remembered a certain movie. "I think I might know why you can't go through that. It's probably made of an anti-magic metal like iron [Like in the movie Leprechaun]. I guess it works on ghosts too."
Sitting down on her haunches she crossed her forelegs in front of her in annoyance. "Now what?" I glanced back at the keypad. "I think I've got it. Just need to adjust one more wire." I go back over and twist together two more wires, prompting another spark. I stepped back and look at the door expectantly. Nothing. No movement. I scowl at the keypad and start to move towards it again as we hear a deep, grinding noise. It reverberates through the ground before turning into a high-pitched squeal. I quickly cover my ears but not before hearing Ruby complain, "Even though I don't technically have ears that's still really loud!"
The gear shaped door begins to move inward before being rolled to the left by some sort of mechanism.