Chapter 2
"Spiiike! Oh Spike! Where are you?!" A worried Twilight Sparkle called out in each direction as she walked through the Everfree forest with a timid and scared Fluttershy that had Angel bunny on her back trying to comfort her.
"I'm really sorry for all of this.. If Angel bunny hadn't wandered off Spike wouldn't have gone looking for him…" Fluttershy said apologetically with her head lowered in guilt.
"It's okay Fluttershy, things like this happen sometimes." Twilight stopped and called out for Spike again. "Besides I'm sure he's fine, and at least we found Angel bunny."
Fluttershy appreciated Twilights words but continued sheltering herself under her mane. They continued on for a while before stopping to take a break. That's when they both start to notice the unusual silence hanging over the strange forest that began giving them the chills. As though a great shadow was looming over them and watching every movement.
"Have you noticed something… odd?" Twilight asked as she looked around as if finding something out of the ordinary.
"I thought I was just imagining it myself.." Fluttershy began as she splayed her ears, "But now that you mention it, it is rather quiet…"
"For an unusual forest like the Everfree, this silence is quite unusual.." Twilight confirmed. She lightly drug the tip of her front hoof against the dirt out of light anxiety. "Come on, I think we've rested enough. The faster we find Spike the faster we can leave…"
"Oh, I'm all for that.. I hope he is alright.." The yellow mare got up and followed her.
Spike sneezed as he navigated through a cluster of bushes that kept seeming to get caught on his foot or arm. "NYAGH!" He pulls free from a vine that was tied around his claw.
"Phew.. I thought I would be stuck in that forever.." He dusts off his hands and arms casually. Looking around to retrieve his bearings, then walks off in a random direction. He had gone searching for Angel bunny because he was assigned to take care of him for the day by Fluttershy while she had her spa day with Rarity and Twilight. Rarity's cat was under the care of Sweetie bloom and the Cutie mark crusaders… Whether for the good or bad… And Owlicious could take care of himself as it was daytime and he would most likely just sleep all day.
"Hey Angelll!" He called out while cuffing his claws around his mouth. "Where are yoou?! I'd like to go home nowww!"
He continued onward with his search hoping that Angel bunny would eventually turn up. Not noticing the strange quiet in the woods nor the large piles of "timber" that was only slightly hidden by a few bushes and trees as Spike passed by. After he did and had gone on a ways, one of the piles revealed a pair of ghastly green eyes, and then the others behind it did as well.
"He didn't see us..?"
"We were right here.."
Said the two smaller piles towards the back.
"HUSH! You're going to give us away fools!"
The larger one in the front silenced them, and they waited for a while. Then the first one materialized into a great wolf and stepped forward powerfully. The others followed suite.
"I wonder if He will take the bait.." A medium sized wolf to the right of the larger one asked neutrally.
"He will… You know he will.." The other medium one to the left of the large one answered.
"Quiet…" The large one spoke calmly. " If He doesn't then at least we get a meal.." He chuckles sinisterly as he begins quietly prowling after Spike with the others following along.
Spike was hopping over a large root when he fell over onto his back. "Oof!"
He gets up and dusts himself off. " Sheesh.. I wonder if I go back will I find Angel waiting for me at Fluttershy's cottage.." He says to himself as he walks on. "Now where am I..?"
As he said that the group of Timberwolves only several feet away now let out an ensemble of howls.
Spike froze stiff of fear at first while the wolves approached him. He mustered enough courage to turn his head to see them right there behind him. The lead wolf lowered his head and whispered to the terrified baby dragon.
"Run." Spike didn't hesitate for a second as he attempted to smile then dash off in the other direction.
"How long we letting him go?" One of the small wolves asked anxiously.
"Long enough." Replied the head wolf, still staring into the bushes where Spike had sprinted. Then starting out at a light trot he lead the element of wolves after the little dragon.
After sprinting for some distance, Spike looked back and found that they weren't on his tail so he slowed down just a little.
"Hmph.. Maybe I've lost the-" Before he could finished he spied out the wolves breaking through the brush and charging at him.
"Awe come on!" Spike said as he sprinted once again.
He ran through bushes and vines as fast as he could. Tearing out of them if he had to. Hopping over mud pools or ducking under low hanging branches. All the while the Timber wolves kept right on his tail, but never got too close.
After a distance, Spike saw an oncoming cliff approaching quickly. So to avoid it he tried veering one way or the other, but was dismayed by the smaller wolves who broke away from the pack to cattle Spike into the cliff.
Spike finds himself face to face with a great granite cliff. Breathing heavily from the chase he had just endured. Sweat was dripping down from his forehead out of both exertion and anxiety. He looked over the cliff side to spot out an area to try and climb up but failed.
"This just is not my day.." He says to himself as he places his hands on his hips shaking his head at the cliff. Then turning around to find the wolves, first the 3 larger ones, breaking through the brush. They slowly stalked up to him with wicked grins and sinister glares. The lead wolf took the center, while the right and left hands broke off and surrounded Spike.
As they got closer Spike found himself pushing his back against the wall. Trying his best to give a friendly smile.
"So uh- … Hi?" He says half heartedly. One of the medium wolves scoffs. The large one approached Spike and with his claw flicked the baby dragons forehead. Spike rubs where he flicked.
"Hello, hatchling." The big one answered.
"I am more than a hatchling!-"
"Are you really in any position to argue?"
Spike didn't know what to say and turned his head away.
"So what are you going to do with me? Kill me?" Spike asked. The large one smiled and swerved away from Spike as he spoke.
"No, we're just waiting on somepony.." Then suddenly the wolf turns and back-claws Spike across the face. Spike fell to the ground and groaned in pain as he gripped his face, which now had 3 small gashes on his cheek.
"That should be convincing enough.." The lead wolf said as he then fully backs away from Spike.
"Who are you trying to convince?" Spike asked from his now sitting position on the ground. The wolf didn't have to answer though as a large unicorn burst through the bushes.
His wings were tucked away inside of the armor he wore, nopony but a select few knew he was an alicorn.
He leaped over the trio of wolves and landed in between them and Spike, taking up a defensive stance. Spike saw him and asked himself,
"Wait, isn't that-?"
"RoseThorn.. Its so good to see you again.." The head wolf greeted with an emphasized sarcasm. RoseThorn smirked at the wolf's remark.
"Yeah, Green fang, back at you." He replied sincerely. The wolf scoffed. Mostly at the name that RoseThorn had given him long ago. Timber wolves don't have names to go by, they know who is who by dominance or power.
"There's something different about you.. New leaves..?" RoseThorn commented both as a joke and for real. There was truly something strangely different, and all too familiar about these wolves whom he had seen before. Green fang gave an evil grin, understanding the code.
"You could say that we've gotten a bit more.. 'Somber'" He replied staring into RoseThorns eyes to discern a reaction. To it's disappointment there was none more than the simple tilt of his head. At this moment the outer wolves entered the fray by coming in on either side.
"There's the rascals.." RoseThorn said as he charged a bolt of magic, an aura of pure white, and launched it at Green Fang then to the medium wolf to his left. Both were taken by surprise and were hit directly by the bolts and fell to the ground in lifeless clumps of wood. Their green life essence snaked away into the woods. RoseThorn charged the other medium wolf without a second thought and while doing a back flip and upper cutting the wolf with enough force to shatter its head piece, charged an extra bolt and cast it at the smaller wolf on the opposite side again with a precise hit. Both wolves fell lifeless and fled into the woods. The last one tried striking RoseThorn, but he dodged and brought up his back hoof for a round house kick to the side of its face. It fell lifeless to the ground and the essence snaked away. Green fang's apparition lingered at the forest border spat,
"We aren't finished yet. The King WILL have His revenge! Nopony will be safe from his wrath!"
"Tell me that again when he is actually more than just a shadow!" RoseThorn replied, and the wolf turned to leave.
"You just wait ORDER, you will see." With that Green Fang disappeared in the forest.
"Man, that wolf had no chill…" Spike began, RoseThorn turned and eyed him with a raised brow.
"Well come to think of it, neither did you, RoseThorn." Spike chuckled as he looked at the piles of Timber. RoseThorn got serious.
"Who you talkin' about Spike?" He asked challengingly. Spike just crossed his arms and looked at the unicorn sizing him up.
"RoseThorn from how long we've known each other you and I both know that Fluttershy has more of a chance to intentionally intimidate somepony than you do.."
RoseThorn relaxed and immediately became casual and smirked. "Yeah you're probably right, hatchling."
Spike glanced at RoseThorn at annoyance but ignored it mostly because the cuts of his cheek began hurting. He turned away gently caressing his wound hoping hopelessly that RoseThorn wouldn't notice.
"Awww did Spiky get hurt?" RoseThorn played as he approached Spike.
"Oh hush up it's nothing.." Spike said crossing his arms with his cheek twitching from the pain. He scoffed at his body's betrayal and started walking out of the clearing. "Oh come on lets go!"
RoseThorn shook his head and followed behind Spike. While he acted lightly about what had just occurred, he knows just how serious of a matter that this is.
There you go. Spike knows who RoseThorn is and they happen to be decent friends. However, Spike is not the "Close friend" The RoseThorn thought about in chapter 1. What will happen next? How does RoseThorn know the wolves? Or how does he know what they were talking about when they said "Somber"
Again feel free to share ideas and criticism. o/