Zecora the zebra was old and wise. She knew more about magical healing than anypony. Sunflash lay unconscious on top of a table in her house in the Everfree Forest. Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders were gathered around him anxiously.
"I never saw a snake that big before," Rainbow Dash said as she paced fretfully back and forth.
Pinkie Pie was jumping up and down in a panic. "Why is he sick? I thought badgers were too big to get sick! Is he gonna die?"
Twilight put an arm around her. "Sunflash'll only get well if we stay calm. Relax, or we'll end up nursing you too."
"How many times did the snakes bite 'im?" Applejack asked for the hundredth time.
"They bit 'im in the side an' the back o' the neck," answered Apple Bloom. "Sunflash kept on fightin', ever after bein' bit. It was incredible."
"We all owe him our lives," said Sweetie Belle.
"By Celestia's mane!" exclaimed Rarity. "Who ever heard of a beast so mighty that he slayed two serpents after being struck by them?"
Twilight said, "I've written a letter to the Princesses telling them what happened. They were supposed to come over on the train today."
Fluttershy's eyes were glazed with tears. "Isn't there anything we can do?"
Zecora was bathing the badger's fevered brow with leaves. She checked the poultices which she had applied to her patient's wounds, saying,
"I've never seen a beast of such strength before tonight.
No creature known to me could survive an adder bite.
If he doesn't die in the next few hours,
The ability to heal him may be within my powers."
"Yore poultices seem t' work right well," said Applejack. "How d'ya make 'em?"
The zebra recited the recipe, which had been in her family for generations.
"If beast be bit by fang of snake,
And lying near Dark Forest Gate,
This ancient poultice you must make,
To thwart the hooves of fate.
Find berries from the rowan tree,
Add one small green pine cone.
With one young leaf of raspberry,
Pounded flat beneath a stone.
Heat over a flame 'til colored dark,
Stir fast to make a paste of it,
Bind hot and tight with aspen bark,
Unto the limb the serpent bit.
Change oft from dawn until nightfall.
Make sure the beast lies still.
Mayhap he'll live to thank us all,
If he be strong of will!"
"Well, nobeast is stronger of will than Sunflash," said Rainbow Dash.
Just then the door opened and Celestia and Luna entered. Behind them came an enormous female badger, even bigger than Sunflash.
The ponies bowed respectfully to the princesses, but when the female badger saw Sunflash lying on the table, she let out a cry and rushed over to him. "Sunflash! Sunflash, my son!"
"Wait, who is this?" Rainbow Dash asked, confused.
"This is Bella of Brockhall, Sunflash's mother," Celestia explained.
"What a cruel twist of fate," Bella lamented. "I finally find my son, only to see him dying before my eyes."
"Well, he's not dead yet," said Applejack. "Zecora is doin' everything she can ta heal him."
"Hush, this creature needs his rest.
Peaceful sleep is what is best," said Zecora.
In his dreams, Sunflash the Mace saw the gates of Dark Forest. He lay on the ground as they began opening before him, slowly, oh so slowly; without sound of a creak, the mist shrouded timbers moved. He felt his body being drawn toward them and could not resist, did not want to resist; the burning pains within him eased as he felt the desire to enter Dark Forest and rest. As the gates opened wider he saw two mighty Badger Lords, fully armored. One carried a fearsome sword, the other a double-headed axe. Now a third badger joined them. This one was simply clad and carried no weapons. He smiled at Sunflash.
"My little Sunflash, do you not know me?" he said.
Sunflash smiled back through the tears that welled in his eyes. "Father!"
"Yes, my son, I am Barkstripe, husband of your mother, Bella of Brockhall. These two Badger Lords are Boar the fighter, your grandsire, and Lord Brocktree, your great-grandsire. Listen to them now, they have something important to tell you."
Boar the Fighter and Lord Brocktree barred the gate entrance with sword and axe and spoke as one.
"You cannot enter here, Lord!"
Sunflash felt a great silence come over him. He wanted to join his sires, not be rejected by them. He felt alone and helpless. "Why do you refuse me entrance when I am weary and wish to sleep, and why do you call me Lord?" he asked.
Again the sepulchral tones of the Badger Warriors rang out: "There are many long seasons to be lived before you come here. Do not surrender, rise up, the mountain awaits you! It is in need of a Badger Lord."
Dark Forest and its dread gates receded from Sunflash's dreams; now he wandered lonely through sunlit vales and flower-strewn hillsides. Lying down in the cool shade of a great oak, he looked up at the sky. A shadow passed over him and a face appeared; Sunflash found himself staring into the most beautiful face he had ever seen. It was a badger, wise beyond dreams and calm as a still lake in the dawn. He knew instinctively it was Bella, his mother. In that moment he felt sadness and joy, yearning and fulfillment. Comfort and serenity shone through her smile as she stroked his golden stripe and began singing:
"Arm not alas sand, way south in the west,
So star land a mat, that's where I love best,
Sand not as alarm, lone seabirds do wing,
And alas most ran, list to me whilst I sing.
I'll walk alongside you, my lost little one,
We'll find the mountain…"
"Salamandastron!" Sunflash bellowed, finishing the song.
Suddenly he was awake again, but he still saw the female badger's face above him. Sunflash spoke, just one word.
"Mother."
"Son."
