Everfree Castle Hassle in Ye Olde Castle (Closed)

[Bellosh]

Somehow, Moondancer knew this day would come. When a pony has an adventure-loving shovel bum like Pocket Change for a magic guild mate, they should not be surprised to eventually find themselves on an excursion into the Everfree Forest. Heck, the guy even admitted once to considering this dreaded locale an ideal spot for a date. Moony for the life of her didn’t see anything romantic about an ancient wood home to pony-eating timberwolves, uncontrolled weather patterns, and trees with such crooked trunks and jagged roots that they might as well be screaming “I hate Equestria and everything in it”. At least, it seemed like that was what they communicated to Moondancer every time she tripped on a root.

And yet it wasn’t actually Pocket Change’s idea to come here to these neck of the woods. A couple weeks ago, a banquet he and Moondancer attended together in Canterlot took a turn for the peculiar upon meeting a certain mare. The unicorn’s name was Presteza; a painter from Trottingham who travelled far and wide for her art. Apparently, she had the unusual idea to travel all the way to the abandoned abode of the princesses in the middle of the Everfree, all so she could know firsthoof how she should paint it. Pocket Change then managed to convince Moondancer that the two of them should join up with Pressy; he said something about thousand-year-old magic books for the Spellbound magic guild to study and stuff.

It was Moony’s idea to also hire somepony else to safely lead the group to the castle. Naturally, she turned to another member of Spellbound for the job; the explorer Trekker. One of the newer members of the magic guild, Trekker knew places like the Everfree like the back of her hoof, and she knew plenty of magic spells to keep monsters at bay if need be. So far, that green unicorn and her silver fox hadn’t steered them wrong yet, even if this trip had eaten up much of the day already. Not knowing they were mere moments from glimpsing the castle ruins and the rope bridge leading to it, Moondancer asked their guide; “How much longer to the castle do you think it’ll be, Trekker.....?”

[starswirlthebearded]

Trekker was used to always being on the move, and she's been most everywhere in Equestria. The Everfree forest was no exception, naturally she's been everywhere. The flora and fauna was like none she ever saw in other areas of Equestria so she always loved returning, though many would be weary of the creatures, though Trekker knew which to avoid and which to run from, and those that weren't so bad (and not all were bad).

It wasn't long ago that Trekker had went to a magic guild to improve her magic and perhaps connect with other adventurers and mages. She met many interesting ponies, including an intern at her Alma Mater, Moondancer and her special somepony Pocket Change, an archeologist assistant and amateur adventurer himself. Trekker was hired by the two to lead a small group to an excursion through the Everfree forest to the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters. While Trekker had been in the area she never did go in, hearing legends of traps and "Shadow ponies." Still she was curious and perhaps going with a group plus Chrome it would be enough to make sure nopony got lost or hurt in the castle, she could at least handle as much in the forest itself.

Trekker knew they were very close, coming up to the bridge which was surrounded by fog. There was also the legendary tree of harmony below. However Moondancer did not know and inquired to their location.

“How much longer to the castle do you think it’ll be, Trekker.....?”

Trekker was a bit lost in thought making sure they were on the right path, and listening closely for Chrome to give any warnings with his animal senses. Moondancer's question snapped her out of the daze she was in. "Hm? Oh! Sorry about that, I was focused on our surroundings, I'm not used to traveling in a group with other ponies to talk to and Chrome isn't the best conversationalist..." She replied apologizing for being not so talkative on the journey. "We are almost there. That fog over there is concealing the bridge, and just across is the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters. Just under is a legendary tree too." Trekker answered succinctly. Trekker never did trust that bridge. She focused her magic and used it to support the bridge with telekinesis.

"I'm supporting the bridge so it should be safe. I heard it was out for a long time before this, so I'm always weary when I cross it." Trekker stated as she carefully cantered across the bridge. Upon exiting the bridge the Castle was just coming into view.

"See? Look! There it is, we can see it now." It was closer than most people expected from the bridge due to various obstructions, but it wouldn't be long now to reach it. Hopefully the Castle itself will be as interesting as the stories Trekker heard were.

[tacobob]

Pocket Change could not hide the fact that he was very pleased they were going on this mini-journey. Not only would he finally get to explore the fabled ‘Castle of the Two Pony Sisters', he would be able to introduce his very special some-pony to the magical and wonderful world of ADVENTURE! The stallion had managed to convince the mare after their exploration of the guild hall's previously uncovered underground and their battle against the Changelings, that she was ready for a proper, all-Equestrian adventure in the infamous Everfree forest, particularly the more 'romantic' section that involved the old castle. The unicorn was curious if any of the tales he had heard or read about over his lifetime were actually true. Stories of dark shadow ponies that inhabited the ruins, or incredible traps and secret doors that just had to be laying about in the castle. He was also curious if any of the books in the fabled library had survived over the years.

While he had faced his share of dangers over his relatively early adventuring career, from his own shadow monster lurking in dark caverns, to hordes of nasty stinging insects, there was still something about the Everfree that gave him the case of the willies. Thankfully his magic had improved since his last adventure, and he had brought along both an experienced spellcaster in the form of Moondancer, an experienced explorer known as Trekker, her pet fox, and a new member to the guild, the painter Presteza, or was it Pretzel? He had yet to really get to chat with the cute little mare.

Pocket had first met the mare known as 'Silver “Trekker” Sparks' after an abortive trip through the 'Froggy Bottom Swamp' ended up with him being bedeviled by a crazy bug pony, his horde of insects and a slightly silly Pinkie Pie. He had admired Trekker for her cool and collective nature even when things started to go south. While the sight of the advancing critters had caused Pocket a good deal of alarm, Trekker was a real pro and handled herself well in the face of the tiny, biting creatures. Pocket learned a good deal from her, and he knew she would be both an excellent addition to 'Spellbound' and an perfect companion during their Everfree journey.

He nodded as the mare spoke, but something was wrong, "Legendary tree? What legendary tree?", the stallion had heard about the creepy forests, the ruined castle, the Timberwolves among other fantastic Everfree finds, but a 'legendary tree'? Curious, he glanced over at the mare, "Now that's a new one. I hadn't heard about this tree before, is it under the bridge, or under the castle?"

[Pretzelparty]

The idea of a magic guild wasn't really the type of thing Presteza would have been in to. Her own magical issues not withstanding the mare's interests in the castle were almost entirely artistic. The ancient home of the sister princesses had to have a veritable treasure trove of paintings that should both admire and seek to surpass. The chance to see where the princesses lived in the past on it's own was a pretty enticing offer too, it was downright exciting!

So far the ponies she was traveling with seemed like decent enough folk. The mare called Moondancer seemed especially nice. Her and trekker had gone to the school for talented unicorns in Canterlot; the same school her big brother had gone to and the one she was going to go to before her talent started calling. Ever since the painter discovered her talent she had discovered she could in fact cast spells decently but the only way she could cast was with her favorite paintbrush. She much preferred using her natural strength though.As they came upon the bridge she noticed Moondancer asked their guide a question.

“How much longer to the castle do you think it’ll be, Trekker.....?”

"Hm? Oh! Sorry about that, I was focused on our surroundings, I'm not used to traveling in a group with other ponies to talk to and Chrome isn't the best conversationalist...We are almost there. That fog over there is concealing the bridge, and just across is the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters. Just under is a legendary tree too."

Soon a wide smile found it's way onto the painter's face,"A legendary tree?! Trekker, ya gotta show us that tree later! If it's legendary I totally gotta paint it!" she said, looking like she was ready to start jumping for joy at the prospect of painting something truly fantastical. Hopefully the aforementioned tree didn't disappoint in regards to how the peppy little painter from Trottingham imagined it. While they approached the bridge Trekker began to support it with her own magic.

"I'm supporting the bridge so it should be safe. I heard it was out for a long time before this, so I'm always weary when I cross it."

"See? Look! There it is, we can see it now."

The painter smiled even wider and started to gallop forward,"C'mon ya slowpokes! We ain't gettin' any younger!"

[Bellosh]

"Hm? Oh! Sorry about that, I was focused on our surroundings ...just across is the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters. Just under is a legendary tree too."

"Legendary tree? What legendary tree?"

"A legendary tree?! Trekker, ya gotta show us that tree later! If it's legendary I totally gotta paint it!"

Oh, OHHH! Moondancer kinda knew what the group was talking about! “I think I can field this one girls,” replied the informative aetherology student; “...And Pocket. I’ve been hearing that there's some sort of cosmic tree. Apparently, Twilight Sparkle and her pals juiced that tree up with the Elements of Harmony to stop that haywire half-day, half-night chaos a while back. That’s uhh… what I remember, anyway.”

"See? Look! There it is, we can see it now."

"C'mon ya slowpokes! We ain't gettin' any younger!"

Even as they spoke, the veil of fog surrounding the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters slowly lifted, as if it knew of the coming of visitors. All four ponies could now see the abandoned fortress in all its dilapidated glory. From a cursory glance, one could tell that the rain and vines had a lovely time attempting to break the place down. It almost looked like it could actually be the hideout of an evil sorcerer, save for the fact that no obvious aura of darkness could be felt.

Moondancer did not desire to end up a splatter on the ravine floor due to carelessly running across the rickety bridge; she almost got nausea looking down into the deep gash that she tepidly trotted over. Presteza on the other hoof lacked any concern, galloping up ahead of the others. “Don’t run off Pressy!” Moony warned with a shout; “We don't know if it's safe up ahead.....!”

[starswirlthebearded]

Trekker was trotting along as the others discussed the tree that she spoke of. Perhaps I shouldn't have said anything about it, She thought to herself, letting out a sigh. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy being helpful to ponies, especially friends from Spellbound (and ones that were paying her no less to keep them safe).

Moony answered everypony's queries about the tree, something even Trekker couldn't do. She had merely seen it when it was dying. She never knew why it was dying but when she saw it clearly was. It looked nothing like it did in the ancient tomes. So she really didn't know all too much about it, but she did know where it was if they really wanted to see it after the Castle excursion.

“I think I can field this one girls,” replied the informative aetherology student;“...And Pocket. I’ve been hearing that there's some sort of cosmic tree. Apparently, Twilight Sparkle and her pals juiced that tree up with the Elements of Harmony to stop that haywire half-day, half-night chaos a while back. That’s uhh… what I remember, anyway."

"I really wouldn't know about that Moony, I've only seen this tree, and when I did it didn't look too great, certainly not like it did in the books and tomes I had heard about it from." Trekker replied "However if it is back to it's former glory it might be worth looking at on our return trip." Trekker said in a nonchalant nature. As she said that Presteza dashed ahead at the sight of the castle.

"C'mon ya slowpokes! We ain't gettin' any younger!"

“Don’t run off Pressy!”Moony warned with a shout; “We don't know if it's safe up ahead.....!”

Trekker looked at the energetic painter mare dash ahead against the warnings of Moony. Turning to her calmly and looking at Pocket Change she said, almost with a sense of disinterest "Don't worry, I'll get her before something else might..." As she said that she teleported in front of Pressy.

"Hold on there Pressy. We need to take this slow, we are still in the height of star spider season and there are other creatures that lurk about the forest. We need to be careful." Trekker warned Presteza as she ensured that she would slow down. "Now let us wait for the others to catch up. Moony and Pocket are still back on the bridge after all. You'll have all the time in the world to paint once we are inside and together."

[tacobob]

“Oh yeah. That day. I sort of slept through most of it.”, the stallion grimaced a bit as he remembered the previous day, “Had a bit of a rough night and had to lay low for a bit to calm all the aches I was feeling.” After spending the previous day attending class, Pocket Change spent the rest of the night with his closest of colleagues, Whiz Kid and Razzle Dazzle at the 'Pony' where they played a game of ‘stump the barmare’. Fortunately for them, the barmare was highly skilled, unfortunately for them, their wallets and their next day bodies, she probably or at least apparently knew about ever possible drink in existence, from the very obscure like the ‘Hock Cobbler’ to the completely fictional. Pocket was still trying to figure out how she knew what an 'Fellip Nectar' and an ' Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster' was and how to make them properly. The unicorn stallion spent the better part of the following day both on and under his bed, and the rest in the bathroom. And apparently both Whiz and Razzle were now a couple.

The stallion was more than pleased that he had missed out on yet another silly bout of drama. From what he had heard, the skies were all rather crazy, and there were rather terrifying and seemingly intelligent mutated black thorny root that were popping out everywhere. The stallion had simply decided to avoid the day knowing how extra bright everything appeared during the 'Sumer Sun Celebration'. He let out a 'humph' when the young mare referred to both him and the others as 'slow-pokes'. "Go running blindy through the Everfree Forest and you definitively won't be getting any older.", the stallion snorted.

"It's a cosmic tree?", considering all the crazy that normally invaded the infamous woods they were now gamboling about in, an mystical and magical tree wouldn't be terribly out of place here. "Ooh.", his eyes drifted away from Presteza where they fell upon the old castle. "Doesn't look as bad as I thought it would be. Still has walls and a roof. We're going to need to be very careful once we enter this place. Beyond the ghost stories, I've heard all kinds of tales about the crazy traps that are in here. Not sure if Celestia put them there, or maybe whoever inhabited the castle after the whole 'Nightmare Moon' mess.", the stallion added as they continued to make their way towards the ruins.

[Pretzelparty]

“Don’t run off Pressy! We don't know if it's safe up ahead.....!”

"Hold on there Pressy. We need to take this slow, we are still in the height of star spider season and there are other creatures that lurk about the forest. We need to be careful.

Now let us wait for the others to catch up. Moony and Pocket are still back on the bridge after all. You'll have all the time in the world to paint once we are inside and together."

Pressy had already gotten quite a bit of distance between her and the rest, however it seemed that Trekker was able to close that distance pretty easily thanks to a teleportation spell. Soon the tannish mare came to a skidding halt, stopping just in front of Trekker. As much as she hated slowing down Trekker and Moon Dancer were right... she couldn't make out what pocket change had said but he was probably right too.

The mare gave a slightly embarrassed chuckle in front of trekker,"Hehe... I guess yer right. I jus' got a bit carried awa--" the mare froze a moment as she noticed some movement at the edge of the forest. "Uh... are ya seein' that?" she asked pointing her hoof to the dark forest's edge.

Out of the dark came a ligneous leg with a few appropriately wooden claws. Several glowing green eyes appeared and the set of jaws that came with them soon emerged from the forest's edge. Rather than showing shock and terror Presteza had a wide grin on her face as she looked over the imposing creatures. Turning to Trekker she practically beamed at the green unicorn,"Trekker, isn't this cool! Real live timber wolves!" The mare seemed completely oblivious to the oncoming danger the gigantic wooden monsters presented... that or she plainly didn't care.

[Bellosh]

Oh no, timberwolves!!! Moondancer knew that Presteza shouldn’t have rushed on ahead; if it hadn’t been for Trekker, something worse might already be happening right now. And yet with Pressy’s nonchalant attitude towards the pack, an unfortunate incident could very well yet occur. Moony felt a lump in her throat as she saw for the very first time part of what made the Everfree Forest such a dangerous place.

If there was a silver lining, it would be that the timberwolf pack had not an interest in Moondancer and Pocket Change over in the rear. Moony herself was able to keep her cool despite the immense fear she experienced, mainly because back during Nightmare Night, she helped run an educational event about legendary creatures just like these timberwolves. That, and the fact that later that same night, she faced down a group of changelings and successfully avoided a ghastly fate of being cocooned for food. If the young mare got out of that encounter without a scratch, what chance did a group of dumb monsters stand against a herd of four smart ponies?

“Pressy!!!” Moondancer screamed as the threat became apparent; “Whatever you do, don’t run or look them in the eye!” Giving in to the instinct of galloping away would instantly make the timberwolves give in to their own instinct of chasing down prey, while the latter would be perceived as an act of aggression and also provoke a charge. But like any predatory animal, they’d run away the moment somepony fought back.

To this end, Moondancer picked up a nearby rock with magic and chucked it at the nearest timberwolf. If the girl was lucky, an accurate hit would cause the wooden wolfie to break into pieces. It’d have to do, considering Moony’s neglect for offensive magic.....

[tacobob]

Pocket Change quickly made his way with the others towards the wayward little mare,“No. I believe the statement, if you did in fact see any actual Timberwolves would be ‘Aaaah! A Timberwolf! Please stop ripping my limbs off!’ These creatures are never ‘cool’ or even ‘chilly’, they’re. Oh dear. There are actual Timberwolves here with us.”, the unicorn had read about the magical guardians before, and even saw a few pictures, but to actually see them in person. They looked a good deal larger than he had thought they would be. While his first instinct was to run for the hills, the young spellcaster realized he was not with just any group of ponies, he was with some of the finer spell-tossing unicorns he had known. “Try to keep them off my flank for a moment, I want to see if this works.”

In the old days of Equestria, Pocket Change would probably been well versed in combat spells ranging from magical missiles he could summon to strike at his foes all the way to being able to bring down the very lighting to rain down at his targets, but these were modern times where such spells were rarely taught, so he had to make due with what he had. While not sure what looking directly into their eyes would do, the stallion decided to follow Moondancer’s words of advise and to simply avoid full eye contact. His horn let out a greenish glow, similar to the rather unpleasant magical energies that spewed from the great constructs. In just a few moments, his own magic surrounded one of the Timberwolves, where he played a game of ‘tug of war’ with his target. It was his magic against whoever had created the golems. If he was successful, his telekinesis would simply pull the creature apart, both breaking up the magic that was housed in the creature and its somewhat crude body of sticks and leaves. If this did not work, he would simply smash it against the nearest tree until it broke. It would be crude, but hopefully affective.

“Do any of you know any magical disruption or dispel magics? Not sure if breaking these creatures will stop them for good.”, he grunted as he worked on his own magic.

[starswirlthebearded]

The mare gave a slightly embarrassed chuckle in front of trekker,"Hehe... I guess yer right. I jus' got a bit carried awa--" the mare froze a moment as she noticed some movement at the edge of the forest. "Uh... are ya seein' that?" she asked pointing her hoof to the dark forest's edge.

Pressy seemed a bit embarrassed but Trekker's words, though she wasn't entirely sure why. Still it was good that she managed to catch her before anythin-... What's that smell? ....... It couldn't be...Trekker was simply fooling herself, she knew that smell, she'd know it anywhere. With an air of trepidation she slowly turned her head towards where Pressy was pointing, and there they were, the glowing eyes of a timberwolf... She hoped that Pressy would be smart and not ru-

"Trekker, isn't this cool! Real live timber wolves!"

Well that was an unexpected reaction, as Trekker raised her hoof to her face. Really Pressy? THAT is your first reaction? She quickly threw up a barrier to protect them. "Pressy... Timberwolves aren't... exactly... warm and cuddly creatures..." Trekker began to explain to Pressy. Trekker tried to think of a way she could explain to the young mare the danger they were in... This was their domain and though they don't often leave the forest, their destination was in the forest... This posed a problem. "Look... Pressy, I know you're interested in all manner of creatures, and so am I, but these timberwolves, they don't wait around for you to paint them. Their first instinct is to always attack, in some ways that makes them more frightening than dragons whom usually just ignore ponies as nuisances." Hopefully Pressy would get the message while Trekker thought up a way to get everypony out of this sticky mess without injury.

Try to keep them off my flank for a moment, I want to see if this works.”

Trekker looked back at Pocket Change and nodded, while the timberwolf reached the edge of the forest looking ready to pounce on Trekker and Pressy. Pocket Changes magical aura surrounded the timberwolf seemingly trying to take it apart. Having dealt with them, and having tried that before, Trekker knew it wasn't a very effective tactic... Right then a rock landed just behind the timberwolf making it look towards the origin, Moondancer. Trekker had to think fast but nothing was coming up. Normally she'd use a disruption sp-...

“Do any of you know any magical disruption or dispel magics? Not sure if breaking these creatures will stop them for good.”

Yes! One of those and then teleport away, but... wait. "I do Pocket, but... they erm... reconstitute rather quickly after it... Luckily we aren't dealing with multiple, otherwise they tend to take offense and make something more dangerous..." They were lucky that it was likely a scout from the pack looking for something to hunt and it seemed to have decided to try and take the small ponies on it's own. "I could blast it now but that wouldn't do much... we wouldn't get far before it was chasing us, and whether or not we'd make it to the castle is... well... I don't know that we could." Trekker looked at Chrome and a crazy idea hit her! "AH! I don't think I've ever tried this before, but it might work." Trekker looked at Chrome and whispered "Hey Chrome while it's distracted by Moondancer try and get behind it or close, and when it breaks apart take the top part of the head and toss it in the gorge, hopefully that will buy us enough time" With that Chrome yelped and started making it's way around to the timberwolf.

[Pretzelparty]

"Pressy... Timberwolves aren't... exactly... warm and cuddly creatures... Look... Pressy, I know you're interested in all manner of creatures, and so am I, but these timberwolves, they don't wait around for you to paint them. Their first instinct is to always attack, in some ways that makes them more frightening than dragons whom usually just ignore ponies as nuisances."

Presteza had to stifle an urge to giggle at Trekker's first reaction before she started her lecture, of course she knew how dangerous Timberwolves were! She may have been naive and exceptionally excitable but she wasn't stupid. "Don' worry about it, Trekker! I only need ta see 'em once and I can paint 'em later. Besides I've got professional adventurers like you and mister change with me!" she said cheerfully, still seemingly uninterested in the slowly advancing wooden creature approaching them. Luckily for her a rock soon collided with the creature's head and it's attention soon went elsewhere.

Everypony else was alreayd hard at work trying to deal with the timberwolf but so far there seemed to be little effect on the monstrous wooden being. From what she remembered reading about these creatures back at her family's manor in Trottingham she recalled that they could reform themselves very quickly even after destroyed and Trekker's statement only enforced that thought.

Soon the wheels in her head began to click...

Trekker looked at Chrome and whispered "Hey Chrome while it's distracted by Moondancer try and get behind it or close, and when it breaks apart take the top part of the head and toss it in the gorge, hopefully that will buy us enough time" With that Chrome yelped and started making it's way around to the timberwolf.

"Actually, Trekker. I think I've got an idea! Tell Chrome ta come back.",Making sure she stood her ground she made sure to yell loud enough for Pocket to hear her. Once Trekker hopefully did what she asked, the young painter took her brush from her saddlebag and galloped towards the slowly re-combobulating creature and before it could fully reform the mare dashed in front of it and charged her paintbrush with magical energy and soon summoned a powerful windy blast that sent the entirety of the timberwolves remains tumbling into the gorge and disappearing into the mists below.

[Bellosh]

What transpired next to Moondancer seemed like a great slowdown of time, a perception caused by the sudden intensity of the situation. Her first stone missed its mark, but at least the one timberwolf thought more about the projectile than one of the ponies. Pocket Change managed to break apart another of those magically-assembled creatures; or more accurately, smash the thing against a tree. Presteza followed that up by using some fancy-shmancy wind magic to blow the pieces into the gorge, just moments before they were able to fully reform.

During this time, Moony threw a second rock at the first timberwolf. DUNK! This time, her magic throw aimed true. The stone shot right into what passed for a timberwolf’s mouth. While it didn’t make it into the throat, and ended up promptly spat out, the creature and its comrades lying in wait decided that they have had enough of this fight. Craving easier fights, the wooden canines promptly turned tail and ran away together, off to the south. The day was won!

“Hey, they’re turning back!” Moondancer cheered. She knew they’d retreat, just as long as the group stood its ground; “Is everypony o.... kay?” A peculiar object in the young mare’s field of vision right then distracted her, an odd piece of wood jammed in a loop of an above-ground tree root not far from the cliff edge. If she squinted hard enough, it looked almost like a-; “Is that a... a timberwolf head I see stuck there?” asked the incredulous mare. Did that come from the golem Pressy blew into the chasm? Would that thing do anything if you approached? Probably was best to stay away from it, Moony thought.

[tacobob]

"Ugh.", the stallion grimaced as he took in the stench that seemed to pour out from the Timberwolves, "Blasted things smell like swamp cabbage mixed with Sneezewort!" The animated wood beasts were not up against helpless lost ponies, but were instead up against skilled unicorn adventurers, so it wasn't a question of if they were able to stop the golems, but how quickly. Thankfully, things went over without anypony getting hurt. After a quick glance into the darkness surrounding the small group with the aid of a light spell, the unicorn quickly made his way towards his move beloved mare, Moondancer.

"Looks like it. I'm sure a simple dispel spell will return it back to simple wood.", Pocket Change studied the head, but kept out of reach and made sure to follow the mare's warning by not looking at in it the eyes. "Always thought these things were created to simply guard, but I guess once its original goals were removed, they probably just wander and make things difficult for those who get in their way. Or maybe.", he glanced towards the direction of the strange magic tree they had mentioned before the attack, "They could simply be attracted to areas or items of great magic. I'd probably want to avoid getting near this tree if it's infused with powerful magic. I'm sure Princess Twilight made sure to throw a few protective spells over it to keep it safe from any-pony or any creature from harming or taking its magic, but if you all want to check this 'legendary tree' out, I'll be for it, if not, we can continue our trek to the castle."

Pocket Change glanced towards his little group as he waited for their response.

[starswirlthebearded]

Trekker let out a sigh of relief knowing that Pressy wouldn't pursue the timberwolves to paint them or treat them with and quarter. Still she seemed rather green in all of this adventuring. "That... is good to hear" Trekker responded, slightly confused by the mare's demeanor. She was clearly naive, had they been closer to the forest edge they'd have certainly been attacked in the moment of hesitation that Pressy had in her awe of the timberwolves. Regardless Trekker was curious of the mare's plans, but couldn't leave it all to chance, so she prepared to attack if anything went awry. Trekker whistled to call back her pet fox and as he returned Trekker. As she did, the wolf in the grips of Pocket's magic field was blown apart by Pressy's wind magic. She blew it to the ravine, leaving too little for the creature to reform. With that and another stone thrown by Moony, the Timberwolves turned back.

Trekker looked at Pocket whom suggested that there be some way to prevent them from reforming permanently. Trekker shook her head at the stallion. "If such magic exists, I would surely like to know it. It isn't the first time I've encountered these creatures and have tried every sort of dispel magic I learned at Celestia's School and in my own studies. None have worked. They are either not gollums or use a type of magic that is not easily affected by unicorn magic" Trekker explained to Pocket. She was no mare's fool, and tried several times, The one time she came close only angered them and made them form a larger more dangerous timberwolf as she told them previous. Perhaps her heart wasn't in it as she didn't like ending anything, but still, she did try... more than once. But now that that was settled it was time to press on. Trekker lowered her shield and waited for the others to catch up so they could progress as a group once again. "I'm not sure what they are attracted to other than food...or trespassers. But I do not believe we need to worry about the tree, it has apparently survived in this forest since the time before Discord's rule 1000 years ago, I'm sure it will last for at least 1000 more. But never mind that! Let us press on towards the castle. We could always visit on the way back to see for ourselves."

[Pretzelparty]

“Hey, they’re turning back!” Moondancer cheered. She knew they’d retreat, just as long as the group stood its ground; “Is everypony o.... kay?”

“Is that a... a timberwolf head I see stuck there?”

"I'm great, as usual!" ,chirped the mare cheerfully before approaching Moondancer and Pocket Change back near the bridge. The mare levitating her brush back into her bag she looked down over where her friend's gaze indicated where the timberwolf's head was. "Yep, sure looks like it! I think he'll have his paws full tryin' ta reform when the rest o' him is down in that ravine." she said with confident smirk. The winds blowing through the gorge made the still angry looking head rock on the root it hung upon, "We might wanna get movin' if that head fall down and join's the rest of it, it might be ticked off enough fer a second round."

"They could simply be attracted to areas or items of great magic. I'd probably want to avoid getting near this tree if it's infused with powerful magic. I'm sure Princess Twilight made sure to throw a few protective spells over it to keep it safe from any-pony or any creature from harming or taking its magic, but if you all want to check this 'legendary tree' out, I'll be for it, if not, we can continue our trek to the castle."

"I'm not sure what they are attracted to other than food...or trespassers. But I do not believe we need to worry about the tree, it has apparently survived in this forest since the time before Discord's rule 1000 years ago, I'm sure it will last for at least 1000 more. But never mind that! Let us press on towards the castle. We could always visit on the way back to see for ourselves."

Pocket's thoughts on the idea of checking out the magical tree below were pretty logical, if the princess did indeed return the element's to the tree she would probably see that some sort of measures were put into place to keep someone from trying to remove them. On the other hoof, were there many who would come all the way out here for something they might not even be able to use and risk getting devoured, turned to stone, etc to try and steal them away? Trekker made a convincing case too but ultimately Presteza didn't care too much for why the timberwolves were here, all that mattered for the moment was that they were taken care of and the intrepid little group could get on with their trip to the castle,"I'm on board with trekker!Besides, I doubt somethin' that's rooted ta the ground is goin' anywhere anytime soon."

[Bellosh]

Wresting her gaze away from the timberwolf head, Moondancer didn’t have anything to contribute to the discussion between Pocket Change and Trekker. Presteza meanwhile sounded very wary, and agreed with the eventual suggestion to head into the castle. Moony concurred with this course of action; “I’m with Trekker too! Maybe there’s a book in there that talks more about those timberwolfies. Or maybe there’s a whole bunch of timberwolf books! Anywho, you’re on point again Trekker.”

Leaving the professional explorer to lead the way, Moondancer followed, making sure to keep close to Presteza. Can’t have the painter running off again and endangering herself, no sir! “Try to stick with us from now on,” the young mare quietly reminded her travel companion in a gentle manner; “Okay Pressy? If any of us get hurt, you know it’ll be a pain in the rear to get help. So; promise to stick like glue to me from now on?” True, from what little Moony knew of Pressy, she reckoned the other to be the more seasoned traveler. But pointing that fact out would have given the moon-flanked mare's concerns less gravitas, or so she assumed.

Taking care of that detail, Moondancer asked of Trekker and Pocket Change as they came within range of the derelict front gate; “Hey you two adventurers, care to give us girls some expert commentary about the area we're trotting through?”

[tacobob]

"Guess that would make sense.", Pocket Change kept his voice down low, as he hoped not to attract attention from the Everfree's other mysterious creatures. "I always assumed those Timberwolves were made by unicorns simply to guard or protect, and they would probably place safeguards on their creatures, so none of their rivals would be able to just 'poof' them away with common Abjuration spell such as dispel or disjunction.", while he was speaking to Trekker, the unicorn tried to keep his eyes on the path as he did. "I guess in order to properly shut down one of them, you would have to learn how they were made, or what makes up that nasty green energy that flows through their eye-sockets and bodies. Maybe when I'm brave enough, I could hunt one of those creatures down, break its woody shell and collect some of that primal looking energy contained and see what it's made up of. Would make for an interesting afternoon.", the stallion added with a smile, "But I'm fine with not checking out the cool-mystic-super-magic legendary tree. Sometimes there's magic out there, that mere mortal ponies like ourselves should not tamper with."

He overheard bits of what Moondancer had said to the newest member of their guild. He was rather curious about the books they might find in the old ruins. Normally, such books left unattended for so long would have turned into dust, but he could only assume the magic these tomes probably contained had kept them in one piece for so long. Pocket Change had guessed that losing her sister had been utterly devastating for Princess Celestia, so much so that she simply had abandoned their castle after the defeat of Nightmare Moon. "This is by far the furthest I've been in these woods. To be honest with you all, while stories of this place had intrigued me over the years, those same stories have kept me away. Crazy monster. Unmanageable weather. Animals that take care of themselves. That last bit isn't that bad."

He cleared his throat, "As for advice? Er, stay together. That’s pretty much it. I'm sure you've all read enough horror books to know that by now. The pony who wanders off alone gets eaten. So let's keep trotting. Those clouds are starting to get a little on the dark side."

[starswirlthebearded]

Trekker took a look around to see if anything else seemed out of place. She really couldn't think of anything more dangerous coming after them in this particular area... The area around the castle tended to be the safest from creatures. There were some unruly plants to contend with at times, but on the whole, those were easy to deal with. Trekker looked up at the ominous clouds appearing, it seemed as though they were in for a bit of rain or worse.

"This area?" Trekker inquired... "There really isn't much to say really, what just happened was rather out of place. The plants tend to control the wildlife around here." Trekker stopped herself... She just realized what she said must sound crazy to those unfamiliar with the area. "What I mean is... the brables in the area tend to attack moving things, both for protection and food. So long as we stay on the path we should be fine though!" Trekker said with a smile, clearly looking around and Chrome being on rather high guard. She wasn't sure if anyone would notice but she hoped that nopony would. After all she didn't want to worry anypony on this expedition. "Still... the castle is right up ahead, so this is really one of the safest areas of the forest."

Trekker stopped abruptly. "Oh right! Before we go in... Keep your wits about you. I've heard from other explorers who went into the castle that there were these strange...traps... or something... Nothing was harmful, but better to be safe." Trekker said as they finally reached the oddly clean doors of the castle... "You know, I know I said others have been here, but this seems oddly clean for an abandoned castle..." Trekker said as she opened the door and peered inside of the castle ruins.

[Bellosh]

*Three months is long enough; I'm skipping ahead*

"You know, I know I said others have been here, but this seems oddly clean for an abandoned castle..."

Keeping close to everypony else, Moondancer also found the detail that Trekker noticed to be peculiar. "Then do you suppose somebody's living here once again? I mean, is that even legal? Don't Princess Celestia and Luna still own this castle technically?" Stealing a peek through the front, Moony gasped at what she saw; "Oh my gosh..." Far from looking forgotten, there were obvious signs that someone, or something, was doing their hardest to renovate the castle's majestic atrium. A tarp covered a portion of a hole in the roof, the floor was clean like a whistle, and there were even a few wall-mounted paintings that looked way too modern for the art styles of a thousand years ago. "You know," the magic student suddenly started forming second thoughts; "If this place really is being rebuilt by someone, doesn't that like, make us trespassers?"

[tacobob]

“The door wasn’t locked and there’s no sign asking us to ‘keep out’, so we can’t possibly be trespassing.”, Pocket Change added with a shrug. Even if the door was locked, one would just need to simply walk through one of the many giant gapping holes that were left in the walls. And while there appeared to be work going on in the castle, it was about as romantic as one of his dig sites, so there will probably more exploration going on than smooching. Something else did bother the stallion. “Traps? Unless someone is maintaining them or they’re magical in nature, I seriously doubt any of those would work after all these years. Our biggest worries are going to be unstable flooring and crumbly walls.”

While he enjoyed reading ‘Daring Do’ books as an colt, even back then, he couldn’t help but roll his eyes during the explorer’s adventures, especially when the heroic mare was exploring ancient and supposedly uninhabited temples. Their traps were always perfectly maintained and in perfect working condition. It was as if the evil undead diamond dog mummies contacted an handy-pony when their spike traps or poison dart hallways were malfunctioning.

"From what I've heard, Princess Celestia never set hoof in this place after she was forced to vanquish her sister all those years ago. Wouldn't blame her. I'm guessing one of your wealthier ponies probably evoked their right to claim ownership of this properly. I'm guessing it's either Blueblood, or maybe even Ponyville's Filthy Rich snatched up this place. I just wonder how long the castle innards were exposed to the elements. That itself is such a shame, since the original art and books were probably long destroyed."

Once Trekker entered the ancient building, the very gabby unicorn slowly followed, making sure to hold the door open for Moondancer and the oddly silent Presteza. "We'll just have to be polite guests and be careful not to break anything."

[Pretzelparty]

"You know, I know I said others have been here, but this seems oddly clean for an abandoned castle..."

"Oh my gosh... You know, If this place really is being rebuilt by someone, doesn't that like, make us trespassers?"

As the small group of intrepid adventurers calmly trotted through the castle, A certain little artist had a twinkle in her eye that might even blind a sun princess with it's intensity! This architecture, the masonry, the statues decorating some rooms, and the ornate suits of armor... this place was an artistic gold mine! The interior decorator of this place had to have been some kind of visionary, she really had to brush up on her history and figure out who it was who had put this place tog- oh wait, Trekker had a point. There was barely a speck of dust to be found in this place and if there was anything untouched ruins NEVER had any shortage of it was dust and dirt (at in her own experiences with them.)

Hearing the worry in her friend's voice she stopped a moment and looked around,"Well, Moony. It's not like there's anyone here right now who'll turn us over ta the guard. As long as we don't break anythin' I'm sure we'll be good... Also I like ta think that 'the boss' would be able ta help us out if we hit any tiny snags or stuff like that." While Moondancer responded to her friend's words they may notice that they were one pony short as their group continued down the corridor. It wouldn't be a grueling search however to find the Inspiration driven mare in their group though as she had only fallen a bit behind as she stood agape, staring at a positively amazing looking tapestry.

I'll let rest of our group describe a part of a the tapestry... maybe all our combined thoughts can give this thread a slightly more focused direction?