Everfree Forest Castle Chaos (Open)

[Hawkeye12]

Bulk Biceps, huh? Well that was fitting. The griffon smiled to himself as he walked through the woods with the others. It was actually kind of cool looking, for some reason. Creepy, but cool. He wondered how long of a walk it would be just as Lore began to speak again. Hawk heard him speak of a zebra that lived in the woods. A zebra? Interesting. He had never met a zebra before. Who knew there would be one living in the forest?

Hawkeye simply sighed and cleared his head, taking in his surroundings. No wonder he found the Everfree cool, it had been a while since he had been in the woods. They were the perfect place to shoot arrows, maybe even go hunting. He had heard of a different forest somewhere else in Equestria, the Whitetail Woods, he recalled. The griffon made a mental note to visit there sometime.

[Lux]

It was always ironic hearing Bulk Biceps's name. Did his parents assume he would be this muscular pony when he was foaled? Then again did his parents assume he'd be great with telling stories and knowledge when they named him Lore Weaver? Still maybe the Pegasus could be less.. loud when announcing he was there. The others though were very welcoming of his arrival and so was Lore Weaver.

"Well, glad to have others here. Be on the lookout all. It may be safer in the daylight but not completely safe."

As the four trotted along, Lore noticed something through the woods which made him stop.

"All stop and look over there,"the unicorn said as he pointed a hoof at a clearing illuminated by sunlight and a patch of blue flowers, "Those are Poison Joke, so be careful if you see them that you don't touch them."

[RedCedar]

Bulk stopped along with the rest of the group as Lore Weaver pointed out the pretty blue flowers growing in a sunny spot. They certainly looked nice, especially in the middle of an otherwise darkened forest, but if they had the word "poison" in their name, that was probably a good reason to avoid them as it was. "What makes them so dangerous?" he asked.

[PyroBlaze]

Pyro stopped with the rest of the group, looking over at the poison joke Lore had found. They looked pretty enough, but they certainly weren't fun if you were to touch them. At least, that's what he had heard. He didn't really want to try it out himself, so he would take their word for it.

"They do stuff to you, and not good stuff. It's not always all that bad, but it's never good. At least, that's what I've heard." Pyro said in response to Bulk's question. "We should get going if we're going there and back before dark." He added, beginning to move forward again.

[Hawkeye12]

Hawkeye quickly snapped out of his thoughts, turning to look at the flowers. They were nice, although an odd shade of blue. For one short second, he was tempted to touch them, but quickly shook that thought away. Imagine the embarrassment of... well, whatever those flowers did to you. He did not want to know.

With that, the griffon continued to walk along with the others, now watching his step more a little carefully than before. For a moment, he considered flying, but Hawk didn't want to show that he was nervous. He looked over at Bulk's wings again, wondering if he could actually fly. Meh, whatever. Hawkeye kept walking, his mind drifting off a litle.

[Lux]

Lore realized that Bulk didn't hear about why the Poison Joke flowers, something that looked harmless and actually pretty, could cause so much issue.

"Well the Poison Joke may look harmless, but they have a certain magic to them that when a pony or griffon comes into contact with them the plant plays.. well... a joke on them. But their version of a joke is changing how the pony looks or acts. Sometimes it's instantaneous while other times it happens throughout time. The other problem is that the changes can't be cured without a potion, which is why I mention Zecora. She is able to cure ponies of this problem which is why I mention her."

Satisfied with his explanation, Pyro mentioned that the group should get going.

"You are right, Pyro," Lore said looking up at the sun through the trees, "We have time, but not enough to take a nice stroll."

Saying this the pony stopped hearing a roar coming from deep within the forest. Whatever it was, the unicorn wasn't willing to stick around and find out the source of that creature.

[RedCedar]

Bulk contemplated the glade of flowers a little longer, hearing the explanations of Pyro and Lore Weaver, and why they would be a good thing to leave alone more than anything. He certainly couldn't argue, if they were as likely as they said to do something to a pony that the plant itself found hilarious.

As he was pondering just what a plant would find funny, there came the roar of something distinctly inequine from deep in the forest. Steeling himself, keeping himself alert, he nodded, following the rest onwards into the forest. "Definitely not likely to be a nice stroll." he said.

[PyroBlaze]

Lore had provided his own explanation of what the flowers did, which was more informative than Pyro's own, though he felt his had given enough relevant information that it didn't really require elaboration. All they really needed to know was to stay away from the flowers if they could help it.The knowledge that the zebra living in the forest could cure poison joke's effects was interesting though. He'd keep that in mind if he ever came to the forest and found himself under the flower's effects.

He paused in his walk as he heard a roar. He searched for the sound, but whatever it was was out of sight. He just hoped that went both ways. It had sounded like the roar came from a little ways off, so that was good.

"Just keep your guard up. You never know what you might find in here." Pyro said after Bulk had spoken, continuing on his way as he looked around for any approaching threats.

[Hawkeye12]

Just like the others, Hawkeye stopped in his tracks as a distinct roar echoed through the woods. Out of instinct, the griffon raised his bow, looking around to see where the source of the noise was. But it seemed pretty distant, so he withdrew, sliding his bow back into it's sling on his back. It was a good thing he came up with that sling. It came in handy.

"Well, this is going to be an exciting trip..." Hawkeye muttered to himself as he kept walking with the others. Weird plants, weird animals; what would be next?

[Lux]

The roar in the distance did not bode well for the four adventurers as all heard the sound echo through the forest.

"Ok, not sure what that was but I'm not willing to find out," he said as he looked around the area "luckily it was far away so there is some distance between us and whateve that was."

The group pressed forward as they continued down the forest path, Lore especially looking aware of his surroundings. Occasionally he would take out of his saddle bag a journal and a pencil and scribble something before returning it into his bag. It was a pretty place but dangerous as well.

"You know," he said to the others "this place was always a mystery for me when I first moved here, especially hearing that this was the only place in Equestria not controlled by ponies. No plants, animals or even the weather is controlled. It's as if everything here grows wildly. One has to wonder why the Princesses chose to live in such an untamed place."

In his thinking the stallion almost didn't see what was up ahead as the group rounded the bend. There in the path was a tree that had fallen, one larger that any of the ponies or griffons. Going around it wasn't an option as the trunk extended into the darkness of the forest for as far as they could see. Still the tree did look rotted.

[RedCedar]

Bulk looked about himself, as much taking in the sights of the strange Everfree Forest around him as he was being on guard for anything less than pleasant that might have been lurking there. When Lore Weaver asked out loud why the Princesses would have chosen to live here long ago, the answer seemed perfectly clear to him.

"It would have been easier to defend." he said certainly.

As they came to the felled tree, Bulk stepped forward, testing the rotting wood with his hoof, watching as chunks came away fairly easily. "It's fairly soft. We could get through it, but it would take time." he said.

[PyroBlaze]

Pyro moved along with the rest of them as the group continued on, Lore commenting that he didn't want to find out what had made that noise. He seconded that motion. It would be best to avoid the dangerous wildlife, and animals that roar typically weren't too friendly. Lore also commented on how the forest wasn't controlled by ponies, and he wondered why the princesses had lived there once. Bulk came up with the idea that it would have been easily defensible, which made sense. If the dangers of the forest got to whoever was attacking, the princesses wouldn't have had to even lift a hoof.

"Maybe it wasn't like this when they had been living here. Maybe it has just degraded from whatever it once was like into this after they left." Pyro said, giving his own opinion on the matter. Soon enough, they came across a rotten tree in the road, which Bulk tested with a hoof, declaring it to be soft. He supposed he could try burning a hole through it, but that was probably likely to start a forest fire, which was something he really didn't want to start.

[Hawkeye12]

Hawkeye listened to Lore as he talked, intrigued. He looked around at the strange trees and plants, surprised.

"So, the forest is controlled by... itself? Weird. In the Griffon Kingdom, we control most things ourselves as well- weather, plants, you name it- but without magic. Who knew there was a place where everything grew wildly..."

Hawk couldn't help but think about what Lore had mentioned about why the Princesses chose to live here. It was pretty weird. But then again, ponies were usually weird. Bulk mentioned something about living there in defense, and the griffon nodded slightly. It was a good idea.

"Yeah, that's a pretty good reason. I mean, no one ever comes in here because of its... unnaturalness, right? It probably kept them safe."

As Hawk talked, he almost didn't notice the fallen tree at first. But when he did, the griffon practically skidded to a stop. Dang, that was a big tree. It stretched out off the path into the forest, so he didn't really want to go around and risk getting lost. Bulk suggested that he could cut through it, but that would take time, and he knew none of them would want to be here after dark. He could easily fly over it, but the others couldn't. Unless...

Hawk smirked a little as an idea struck him. "I could fly on top of it, and the pull the rest of you guys up," he suggested.

[PyroBlaze]

(Pyro never said that out loud, about burning the log, that was in his head.)

[Hawkeye12]

((Ah, my bad, I'll edit ))

[Lux]

"So, the forest is controlled by... itself? Weird. In the Griffon Kingdom, we control most things ourselves as well- weather, plants, you name it- but without magic. Who knew there was a place where everything grew wildly..."

"That is why this is such an unusual place," Lore replied while looking at the fallen tree trunk, "When I grew up in Canterlot having nature controlled was something, well... natural to me especially being where even the sun and moon were raised and lowered by one and eventually two Princesses. When I moved here in Ponyville, I learned about this forest but due to the danger I decided not to go there until I learned of the castle inside. So it seems that even Griffons control nature as well in their lands."

The purple unicorn listened as Bulk Biceps and Pyro Blaze. Defense was a good idea from the Pegasus and Griffon as what better place to be then a forest that took care of itself. But Pyro offered an idea that maybe it wasn't always a wild untamed place.

"You know, that is something I've been wondering whether this was naturally wild or if it became this way. Because it does seem odd that one place of all places in Equestria could not be tamed by magic. Then again considering what happened here, specifically the castle that we're about to go to, I can understand if magic affected this forest. Have you heard about Princess Luna becoming Nightmare Moon and her banishment a thousand years ago?

Lore then turrned his attention to the first of what he thought would be many obstacles. He watched as Bulk Biceps dug his hoof into the log, creating a small but noticeable dent on the trunk. With a flicker of his horn Lore grabbed part of the trunk, knowing that he couldn't lift the thing but still wanting to test something out. After a few pulls with his magic he ripped off a piece of rotted wood in a shower of rotted splinters about the size of a small log used in a fireplace in town.

"It's fairly soft. We could get through it, but it would take time."

"You're right, it would take a few hours to break through it, and we can't hope to get to castle and back before nightfall if we did that."

"I could fly on top of it, and the pull the rest of you guys up,"

"That might work, but can you pull up ponies like us and the cart?"

[RedCedar]

Bulk Biceps looked between Lore and Hawkeye a few times as they contemplated how to get the cart over the log, standing in stoic contemplation. As ideas went, lifting the cart over the log did seem the best way, but no reason not to make it a team effort. Turning to Lore, he asked, "Think you can help lift with magic? If you can do that, I can lift from the ground and Hawkeye can lift from the top of the log." It seemed a simple plan, even to him, but it might have been all that was needed.

[Hawkeye12]

Hawkeye nodded slightly, looking at the log before them. The griffon wasn't all that strong, but he had enough muscle to pull up Lore and Pyro, maybe even Bulk too... if he did some of the work. He glanced over at the cart. He had almost forgotten about it! So Hawk would have to pull that over too... he hoped it wasn't as heavy as it looked. At least it was empty.

Then Bulk suggested that the unicorns lifted the log with magic, and the pegasus could get under it while Hawk lifted from the top.

"Yeah, that could work too," he said.

Either way though, he'd have to be on top of the log. So Hawkeye unfolded his wings, flapping them just enough to lift him into the air, and flew on top of the log. He dug his claws into the wood. Bulk was right, it was fairly soft.

"Here, hand me the cart. Let's get that out of the way first," he said, his gold coloured eyes looking down at the group from where he was perched.

[PyroBlaze]

Pyro remained where he was as the others debated how to get over the log. The best idea so far seemed to be simply going over the log, though the cart would be a problem. Bulk had a good idea that they lift it together, and Pyro detatched himself to make things easier. After a moment, he paused, remembering a spell he knew. He facehoofed before sighing slightly.

"Hold on guys, I've got something." He said as he climbed on top of the log, trying to estimate how far he would have to go. When he got it, he jumped back down, hitched himself back into the cart before closing his eyes and concentrating. The cart and him then disappeared in a flash of light, reappearing on the other side of the log, though just barely.

"Well, that could've gone badly. I actually overshot my target, and yet I'm barely across the log." Pyro said to himself, looking back at the log.

[Lux]

Still pondering getting around the log, Bulk Biceps offered to help lift the cart with help. Lore Weaver was unsure how much of an impact he'd make in lifting a huge tree trunk so going over it was the only option. But there was Pyro and Hawkeye there to help too.

"Alright I think we can try that," Lore said as he looked at the trunk. There was no telling how far the tree laid in the forest, but moving it with four could cause the trunk to break free being rotted. Before doing that Lore watched as Pyro blinked out of existence and then his voice being heard on the other side. Being a unicorn Lore knew what that was but nonetheless was amazed.

"Where did you learn to teleport Pyro? That's some pretty high level magic."

[RedCedar]

Bulk Biceps was about to explain that he had meant everyone try to help lift the cart, rather than the log, when Pyro re-hitched himself onto the cart and disappeared in a flash and with the sound of air rushing in to an evacuated space.

Hearing Pyro's voice from the other side of the log, he flapped his own wings with the speed of a hummingbird to lift himself ponderously over the log, standing carefully on top of it and looking to the other side where Pyro and the cart stood waiting. "Handy trick. Nice work." he said simply.

Looking back to Lore Weaver, he said, "We'd better get going, now that we can."

[PyroBlaze]

Pyro looked back at the log as he heard Lore's voice, though Bulk appeared before he had a chance to answer. He gave a curt nod in response to the pegasus' praise before answering Lore's question.

"Picked it up with some help. Namely, my mother. She's a magic teacher." He said before looking forward again. "Bulk's right though, we should get moving."

[Hawkeye12]

Hawkeye was still on top of the log, waiting to see what he needed to do. But out of the corner of his eye, the griffon saw a flash, and he spun around to see Pyro on the other side of the log. "Huh, I knew magic was odd, but I never knew it could do that," he said. It almost made him wish he had magic, just so he could go places without having to walk. But then again, that's what wings were for.

Hawk then watched as Bulk fluttered up to the top of the log near him. He held back a chuckle, watching those wings lift a pony as huge of him was pretty funny. So the two of them were on top and could easily get down, Pyro was already on the other side, all that was left was Lore. He looked down at him curiously. "Need a claw?" he asked.

[Lux]

"Picked it up with some help. Namely, my mother. She's a magic teacher."

"Interesting," Lore replied as Pyro appeared more than just one skilled with fire, "That will be pretty useful once we have this cart filled. How much can you teleport, besides yourself and the cart?"

Two of the four were over the log now leaving Bulk Biceps and Lore to cross. To his surprise the Pegasus's wings were able to lift his massive frame up and over. Now it was Lore's turn.

"Alright, but let me help you out," Lore said as he used his telekinesis to rip away more of the log, creating a makeshift step big enough for the stallion to put a hoof on. Placing one of his back hooves on this step he pulled himself up slightly and reached out for the griffon to help him the res if the way.

[RedCedar]

Bulk Biceps also carefully lowered a forehoof to aid Lore Weaver up on top of the log. After taking another quick scan of the forest from their higher vantage point, just in case they were being observed while they were so exposed, he then fluttered down to the other side of the log beside the cart, ready to help from the ground if need be.