//------------------------------// // Chapter 14 // Story: Portal 42 // by Paradox //------------------------------// Tyler Did Chris really expect me to do nothing? He should know me better than that. So anyway, I stopped by Twilight's (totally ignoring the fact that Zephyr was kissing my 'sister') house and asked Peter how to break the 4th wall. After he told me, I made him promise not to tell Chris (he can get scary when he's super pissed). Getting back outside, I tested my new powers by walking on thin air (LOOK MA! NO WINGS!). After laughing maniacally for a couple seconds, I landed back on the ground and headed into the forest. I already knew where I was heading, considering it was the most obvious feature of the forest. Teleporting occasionally using my new found powers, I arrived at the "abandoned" castle within minutes. Setting a hoof against the wall, I tested to make sure it was stable, then I started walking my way up (Spider pony, spider pony, does whatever a spider pony does. Can he swing, from a web? No he can't, he's a pony.). When I reached the top, I poked my head up and looked around. The first thing I saw was Mr. Eye patch pony. He was grumbling to himself, probably still angry about earlier. I decided to help him out, and by help I mean knock him unconscious with a kick to the head. Putting on his armor (luckily it fit over my clothes), I flew down to the courtyard, where around fifty ponies were talking and training. I didn't spot any purple unicorns, so I assumed Arcane was in his study or something. After managing to find a door, I went into the castle in search of said study, which wasn't really hard to find. It was in the hallway that had no guards or ponies whatsoever. While the rest of the castle was teeming with them, this hallway was devoid. I was about to knock on the door when I heard a voice from inside. "I found her wandering around outside," the voice said. "So you deemed it necessary to attack a pony who is obviously not a threat just because she was lost?" asked another voice. Tired of eavesdropping, I opened the door wide enough to where I could see, and almost gave myself away. Choking back a gasp, I saw Arcane arguing with a guard who had Pandora standing next to him. She looked afraid, and her wings were strapped to her sides. "What is it now?" Arcane asked, his magic flinging the door open, causing me to almost fall flat on my face. Pandora's face lit with recognition, but she didn't say a word. "I found a guard unconscious on the battlements, sir," I replied, not knowing what else to say. "Oh really now?" He turned back to the guard. "It seems you have allowed a spy into the castle, captain, which means you can go investigate." The captain bowed his head and hurried from the room, leaving me alone with Pandora and Arcane. "So what do you think we should do with her?" Arcane asked. "She couldn't have known anything about it, so we could possibly just erase her memory of this encounter and let her go," I suggested. "An excellent idea, but I'm afraid I can't do that." "Why not?" "Because you are not one of my guards." His horn glowed and I was lifted into the air. The armor disintegrated and fell away. Pandora was next to me, panicking as she tried to stay upright. "I don't think we've had a proper execution in quite a while. I think I shall see what the guards think about it." There was a flash, and I felt like the life was being squeezed out of me. The sensation only lasted a second, then I caught my breath and saw we were in the courtyard. The ponies I had seen earlier were now all staring at use with mixed looks. Some were surprised, while some were angry. There attention was drawn away from us when the doors to the courtyard opened, revealing two guards with a pissed off Chris in between. "Ah, so we have three uninvited guests!" Arcane said, his voice a little louder than it should've been. One of the guards pushed Chris forward, only to lose a couple teeth as Chris kicked him in the face, receiving a large laugh from the gathered guards. The now bleeding guard growled and pushed Chris even harder, forcing him towards the spot where Pandora and I floated. I spotted something glowing out of the corner of my eye, and turned to see a fireball appear next to Arcane. He raised an eyebrow, looking at the crowd questioningly. When they cheered in response, he set us down, only to have chains wrap around our legs and hold us in place. "What were you thinking?" Chris hissed at me. "I was thinking I could kick his ass," I replied matter-of-factly. We didn't get much farther because the fireball had grown bigger and I was already starting to sweat. I thought we were done for, at least until I saw a flicker in the air. "Bitch," I muttered under my breath. Arcane launched the fireball, only to jump back in shock as it exploded, revealing a unicorn with a scythe in her hooves. "That was fun," she said, spinning the scythe and cutting through the chains holding us. She also sliced through the restraints holding down Pandora's wings, allowing her to fly away with Chris and I while Final Hour taunted the guards. When we finally got out of sight, Final Hour appeared next to me with a new pair of wings. "See?" she asked. "This is why I was following you two. To make sure you don't do something stupid like that." "Thanks for saving our asses," Chris said. "Though I think you may have to erase Pandora's memory, otherwise she could get worse." "Good point." Her horn flared and Pandora's expression went from scared and shocked to calm and happy. She probably thought she was just out for an evening flight with her brother and a couple friends. Oh how wrong that thought would be.