//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: Tome of the Underworld // by crimsonbrony2507 //------------------------------// "Aw come on Twilight, "Spike said to the lavender mare who was trotting up the stairs with him. "Why can’t I come with you and Princess Luna on your late night adventure?" In response, Twilight simply shook her head in disagreement. "I really want you to go, Spike," she exclaimed, "but I just don't want you to get yourself hurt." The purple dragon dropped low to his knees and clasped his hands together as if he was in prayer. "Please Twilight," he begged. "I won't fall asleep this time!" "If you go to bed tonight without sneaking out, I'll make you a special breakfast tomorrow morning." With a smile and no other reason to argue, Spike gave in and advanced to the basket that was his nightly resting place. He stepped into his so called ‘bed’ and slowly drifted off to sleep. With a glow from her horn, Twilight surrounded Spike's sheets in a magical aura and moved the blanket forward until it covered the dragon up to his neck. She turned off every source of light except for Spike's night light and gave him a gentle kiss on his forehead. The lavender mare closed the door to her bedroom with her teeth clenched tightly on the doorknob, then moved downstairs to make final preparations. After placing the saddle with two bags filled with inventory on her back, Twilight used her magic to extinguish everything that gave out a shred of radiating light and exited her tree-shaped haven. Equestrian nights were usually clear and starry, everypony below sleeping soundly in their beds. But tonight, sleeping was the least of the unicorn's concern. She had received an envelope from Luna herself that stated she required Twilight's assistance. To make sure she stayed awake,Twilight stayed up last night and slept through the rest of the day. It was always best to focus when faced with monstrosities from the shadows of the countryside, but she wouldn’t be doing it alone. Standing in front of her was the princess of the night herself. Her attire was a very creative design for royal battle armor, with an ebony-coated tunic protecting her frontal body parts, except for her head and face. The pauldrons themselves were shaped to be similar with the visor of an owl. "Huzzah!" Luna shouted triumphantly. "Thou hast arriveth exactly at the time we hath planned!" "I said I would meet you here at nine o’clock!" Twilight said to her immortal friend. "Yes, exactly at the ninth hour of the post meridiem in the evening! Now that thou hast come, we have no time to waste!" "Are you talking about 'we' as in us in general? Or are you using the royal 'we?'" "Us in general my female companion! Now then, art thou ready for an adventure?" "Luna, will you please stop talking like that?" The Alicorn's smile became evanescent after she heard what was expelled from Twilight’s lips. "I apologize, it appears that my old habits are not dying as hard as I thought they would." "It's no trouble, Princess. So what do you need help with?" Luna turned her body the other direction and made her way out of town. Twilight simply followed her like a lost puppy dog, her thoughts scrambling over what the princess had in store. Fear and suspension grew within her, for Luna was leading her straight into the Everfree Forest. "You see, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna started off, "my scouts tell me there are strange dark magics infesting the Everfree Forest. Since you posses more experience than I do, you will be my guide when we enter the woods!" Twilight gulped and shivered. "What kind of dark magic?" "Word is going around that goblins are infesting the forest, and both of us are going to kill them!" Now she was nervous beyond belief. "Don't be scared! Your fear is like a beacon to those rascals." "Sorry." Both mares advanced into the dark forest, the wind whistled smoothly in front of them. The cold temperatures of the night seeped into their own coats, and the bristled noise from the tree branches was the only sound they could hear within the forest. Stepping into this enigmatic wilderness at night was one of Twilight's worst nightmares. Despite the fact she had entered these woods twice, there was one thing that gave her a reason to be cautious. Her worst phobia was having to encounter the legendary Wendigo. The Wendigo was said to be very cunning, with an unquenchable appetite for flesh. For every living creature it consumed, it grew in size, hunger, and wisdom. The story of this legendary creature had also been told from Zecora's point of view as well. According to her tribal lore, Wendigo was a spirit of cannibalism who was banished to the Dark Realm after he devoured the flesh of priests. Twilight should have found comfort from that little story, but the fear of Wendigo still had a tight grip on her heart. Sweat poured down her forehead as she bit down on her lower lip, scared. Luna placed her hoof on Twilight’s shoulder, reminding her to abandon all fear within her. She brushed the Alicorn's hoof off her and showed a determined look on her face. But the unicorn knew that mere facade would not last very long, but she did not care. They both stopped. Something did not feel right, and Luna was the only one who could sense it. Out from the shadows of the trees, a small company of goblins appeared right in front of them. Standing four and a half feet tall with big heads and pointed ears, their skin gave off a green color with intense acne on their foreheads. They held their weapons, a bone dagger with one hand and a wooden shield clasped tightly with the other. Twilight and her immortal companion reached for weapons of their own within Twilight's inventory. By magic, Luna carried a small, two headed ax, each head resembling a crescent shape. Twilight unsheathed a broad, Iron sword and stood ready for battle. The goblins hissed and spat out profane language to intimidate their opponents, but both factions were not backing down. Seven scores of them charged after Luna while three had their sights on the Alicorn's partner. Twilight swung her sword, leaving an opening for their blood to trickle down from the cut. She materialized three spears from her radiating horn, and by mental command, shoved the spears through the heart of each goblin. Twilight turned her gaze on Luna, to see that she had slain five out of the seven goblins that charged after her. One goblin scratched Luna's right cheek with it's long, malachite coated nails; the other goblin's own weight overwhelmed the alicorn and held her down on the grassy soil. With her hooves cuffed together by the hands of one goblin, fear struck her heart as she saw it's partner ready to drive his dagger through her skull. Grinding her teeth furiously, Twilight shoved her weapon straight down the goblin's stomach and kicked the creature's shin with her back hooves. She pulled the sword out with great force, then knocked her opponent down to the ground with the same kick, except it made contact with the goblin's head. Trembling in fear, Luna's captive let go and ran off with no more intention on fighting. "And let this be a lesson to you," Twilight shouted with rage in her voice. "No pony, or anything cuffs Luna’s hooves except for me!" "Excuse me?" Luna asked as she looked towards Twilight with confusion. "What was that part about you cuffing my hooves?" Twilight's cheeks blushed a crimson red as she gave a nervous smile. "Um, it was nothing Princess!" "Sometimes, I get the strange feeling you view me as more than just a friend." "That's not true!" she lied, "You and I are as close friends as Tim and Eric!" "Anyways, do you mind patching up this scratch on my cheek?" "Not at all, Princess," Twilight said as she levitated a small box filled with bandages. She helped Luna up to all-fours and looked at the minor injury. Blood was slowly oozing down her cheek and, to Twilight's, surprise, the liquid was a completely different color. "I'm impressed," she exclaimed, "Your red blood cells are actually Ichor!" As much as Luna would love to give a lecture about it, that would have to be for another time. The unicorn placed the bandage on the scratch and simply nodded as it sets in on the skin. Both ponies heard painful moaning and turned to see the epicenter that was their little unconscious goblin. Luna approached him and shook the creature with great force to wake it up. She stopped after it's eyelids opened, but continued to hold the goblin down. "Alright fiend," Luna started with anger. "You better tell me who you are and why your kind is running about, or else you will suffer even more from my friend!" The creature drew breath into his lungs. "My name... is Agoriku. I am officer! I worship my lord with great honor! Goblins say that those who feast on living tissue are outcast. Goblins say we are blind and do not acknowledge Melchior as king. But what do they know? Melchior is only a mere king! But my lord, oh yes, my lord is more powerful than a puny king! Alicorn muck say he is one of the Ten Pagan Deities, but he listens to more than prayers from the mediums." "And who exactly is your so called 'lord' in the first place?" "He feeds off many things, but he also has an appetite for fear." The goblin turned his head to Twilight and gave her a smile that sent shivers up her spine. "He has been feeding off of your fear as well! He has seen the strength of your magic, oh yes, and he wishes to invite you over to his lair for dinner." Luna shoved her hoof down the goblin’s throat, blocking the creatures windpipes. "Enough games! Who is your lord?" With one final breath he whispered "Wendigo" and passed away in front of their very eyes. Twilight quivered with sweat pouring down her forehead, feeling as though her very own heart had stopped. The unicorn could not decide whether or not goblin was lying or not. She backed away slowly and tried not to make a sound. Only when Luna looked back at her did she come to a stop. "Twilight, you must listen to me—" "I can't do this!" she screamed as a tear rolled down from her eye. Luna could see the fear and burning anger in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Princess, but I can't go on any further!" "If you run off like a coward, you are only letting your fear of Wendigo get the best of you!" "You have no idea what it was like! I had to suffer an entire week of nightmares when Celestia took me up as her student. Wendigo was in all of them. He was always there, feasting on my family's flesh, devouring on my own horn—" "Those are just nightmares! They all come and go in life!" "But they didn't feel like nightmares at all." She sniffled and a few more tears rolled down her cheek. "They all felt real! they felt almost as if... they actually happened. That fear almost made me do things I would never commit. I almost impersonated Celestia herself so I could order the Everfree to be burned to a crisp." Luna walked up and placed her hoof around Twilight's neck. "We do things in our childhood we come to regret. You did something that I failed to do in my youth, and that thing of which I speak was coming to your senses." Twilight's anger and fear cooled down as more tears flowed down from her eyes. "You're right Princess! I let my own fear get the best of me." "I know exactly how you feel." "How?" Luna sat, motioning for Twilight to do the same. "Do you know the truth of how I became Nightmare Moon? My fear took over my body and changed me to the jealous alter-ego that Tia banished to the moon. As a filly, I remember seeing my mother and father ascending into the heavens. Their aetherial energy passed into space and they became constellations that signify their cutie marks. Many alicorns of old appropriately named this process, the 'Calling.'" Twilight wiped a few tears from her eyes. "Where did they come up with the name?" "My sister told me the Calling means it is time for an alicorn to rejoin with our creator, Animus. As Tia and I continued to mature, my fear continued to grow by each second. I did not become Nightmare Moon out of jealousy. I became her, because I was scared." "What were you scared of?" A tear rolled down Luna's right cheek, and her eyes shimmered softly. "I was afraid of losing my sister." Twilight leaned in close to Luna and wrapped her hooves together, hugging the princess tenderly. "It's okay, Luna, you don't have to be sad." "What could I possibly do if I lost my only sister? I would feel so alone!" Twilight looked at Luna with a smile, and brushed a few tears off the alicorn's cheeks. "I promise you, if it does happen, then I will not leave your side for as long as I live." "How? you’re mortal!" "I would become immortal just to see you happy. No pony deserves to be alone." She placed her hoof on the Princess's chest. "And if there is a possible chance I do leave you, just remember, I will always be here... in your heart." Luna smiled and wrapped her hooves around Twilight. "Thank you, Twilight, you speak words of kindness." "And so do you, Princess." They both chuckled, climbing back to all fours, ready to face the challenge ahead of them. Just as they started off, Twilight frowned as she trod on something underhoof. Looking down, she spotted her hoof poised on a sheet of parchment. She levitated the sheet and displayed it in front of her and Luna. "What do you think this is?" They stopped at their current location and looked over the crinkled note. The unicorn equipped her reading glasses that were covering themselves in her mane and begun to scan through the words silently in her head. "If you are reading this message without it fading away, then you must be the champions my master informed me of. He did not say very much, except you would be ponies. But you should know that this message and I are from another time period. My name is Abraham Ignitus, the last necromancer of the human empire. I once served as adviser to the emperor, but now I serve my master as a disciple of death itself. Your battle with Wendigo will not be a walk on the golden road! There is a way to defeat him, but I have written the description on a different note. It may be among the goblins who have refused Wendigo and stayed loyal to their king. Whom ever their king is in your time, you must find him and convince those mongrels to help you. I wish luck and good fortune upon you all. Twilight folded the paper and carefully placed it, and her glasses in one of her saddlebags. Confusion still blinded her thoughts "I don't understand! What kind of a creature is a 'human?' And do we even know anything about this necromancer?" "I can shed some light upon both questions!" Luna exclaimed. "My father once told me stories of Abraham Ignitus. He said Ignitus was a lone, dark magic user who worshiped death as a god. With no wife or children, he carried the duty to guarding the Tome of the Underworld, an ancient book containing knowledge over certain branches of death magic such as Decomposition, poisoning, suicide. Abraham wrote it all in that book—" She was interrupted when four, dozens of goblins sprang from behind the trees and bushes, surrounding them from all directions. These goblins were completely different in their own attire. Their armor was like that of a tribal warrior, with animal hide covering parts of their bodies instead of just the loins. Standing in front of both mares was a gray figure, taller than the other goblins, but with the appearance of an elf, his forehead barren from any pimple or zit. He stood five feet in height, with long brown hair in braids and yellow eyes. His gloves, boots, kilt and his coat that reached down to his ankles were made from bear hide, and the spear he grasped tightly in his right hand stood seven feet in length with the head made out of titanium. Both mares stood in attack position, not yielding to the impossibility of the battle. But the stranger in front of them waved his hand, signaling 'we come in peace.' They put up their weapons to hear what this stranger had to say. "So," he started off, "you’re looking for Wendigo as well?" Both of them replied with a simple nod. "Then we all share a common goal. Whomever Wendigo calls enemy, we call friend in arms!" "And who are you supposed to be?" They both asked in unison. "My name is Melchior! I am the king of the goblins!" "Sweetie Belle, I told you we are not bringing a crossbow to Fluttershy's," Rarity said to her little sister, who carried the weapon in her mouth. She expectorated the crossbow and objected. "Aw come on! We may need to bring it just in case something pops up at night!" "Now, Sweetie Belle, I understand you want to return to the field of battle again. But our parents said they can deal with those Mucks on their own." "But Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo are fighting all the time!" "That is because they are a rank higher than us, darling. Now then, we must be on our way if we are to make it to Fluttershy's house on time." "Ok, fine," she said, annoyed at the fact that she could not take the weapon with her. The door was shut by Rarity’s magic as she and her sister left their cozy home and trotted down the street to their current destination. The uniquely proper mare usually would not bother with such chores as escorting Sweetie Belle to her foal sitter, but thankfully for the change in her schedule, both sisters had the rest of the day to spend quality time with each other. As they continued to walk down the path, Rarity and Sweetie Belle encountered Applejack and Applebloom right in front of them. Both parties stopped to exchange words with each other. "Howdy Rarity, how are you two doing on this fine evening?" "Simply divine if I do say so myself! Now that you are here, we can all trot over to Fluttershy's cottage together." The small party advanced straight, directly to their pinpointed location. Sweetie Belle and Rarity were behind the group while the farm fillies moved on in front of them. The young white filly leaned close to her sister and whispered. "So which one of us is going to tell them first?" "We are not going to expose our family legacy to them Sweetie Belle." Rarity objected silently. "And why not?" "If we tell them we are... well—" "Come on, Rarity, they can trust us if we tell the truth. Don't you think we’ve kept this secret from them long enough?" "Yes, but I am not going to tarnish our friendship with them. Just imagine Fluttershy's reaction if I told her as well. Our relationship would be over and she'll be afraid to go near me!" "Then don't tell Fluttershy! it's that simple and easy!" "I am not having this conversation anymore Sweetie—" "What in tarnation just happened here?" Rarity and her sister stopped their conversation to see what was going on. It was not just horrible, it was beyond horrible. The small haven that was Fluttershy's house appeared to be on the brink of collapse. Both the exterior and interior suffered immense damage and many animals sustained minor injuries. They went inside and scanned the house to see if anything was left from the disaster. Nothing new except for the corpses of a few druids lying dead on the floor. Sweetie Belle pushed one of the bodies forward until it finally laid on it's back. When she removed the hood, it revealed a grotesque creature with green skin and acne. "Rarity, you have got to come look at this." Rarity walked over to Sweetie Belle and examined the corpse beside the little filly. "A goblin, probably from the Cult of Wendigo no doubt!" "Didn't you explain to me before that the Cult of Wendigo was a myth?" "It appears I was wrong." "Sweetie Belle, Rarity, look what I found taped to the kitchen winder," Applejack said as she pointed at the mysterious parchment taped to the glass object. Both sisters joined their friends in the kitchen to investigate Applejack's discovery. The writing itself was written in what appeared to be black blood. They observed the words in unison and began to read what was written on the piece of paper. "Tonight, our master will finally feast upon the flesh of the virgin Fluttershy! Trying to save her will be futile. For any pony who reads this will be dead afterwards! You have been warned!" Sweetie Belle sighed deeply after reading the note. "Applejack, you and Applebloom hurry on home. Me and Rarity have to get ready for something." Rarity interjected herself before either farm filly could say anything. "Now wait a minute; we don't have our equipment with us!" The little filly shook her head up and down furiously until two sets of the same uniform dropped from her mane to the ground. "You kept our uniforms in your mane? How is that even possible?" "Twilight and I ordered the same shampoo bottle online that says it will make our manes a portable storage for carrying any inventory." "Where did you order this shampoo from?" "Craigslist. Now lets hurry up and—" The whole house rocked as an explosion tore through the kitchen, sending slivers of wood and stone flying through the air like shrapnel. The four ponies rushed out of the room and back to where Fluttershy's front door was. There was a massive hole in the entryway, the garden scorched with intense flame. In front of the mares, but behind the fire, ten scores of goblin druids slowly approached them with great swords in their hands. The first two in the middle of their little line were ready to charge directly at them. However, the two druids felt a sharp stinging sensation driving through their own hearts. As their lifeless bodies fell forward, it revealed the cause of death was two daggers, one dagger for each of the two goblins. The druids turned to see strange armored, cloaked ponies waiting for them behind the fire. Applejack could not get a physical description, but she make out the silhouette of four mares behind the flame. Two of them were earth ponies, and in between them were two pegasus ponies, one of which was shorter than the other. The druids hissed at them and threatened to charge at the small group. And so they did, with frightening growls expelled from their mouths. Immense flames arose and censored the battle between both factions. But the fire alone failed to block out the noise of clashing swords. Applebloom held on tightly to her sister's leg out of fear. Rarity held Sweetie Belle back as her sister screamed "I told you we should have brought the crossbow!" "Don't start this Sweetie Belle! I did not want to put my love life in jeopardy! Especially the one between Rainbow Dash and—" "Hold on partner." Applejack stopped them. "Is there something that you and Rainbow Dash didn’t tell me?" Sweetie Belle broke free from her sister's soft grip. "Applejack, the truth here is simple! Me and Rarity are—" Before she could finish, one of the goblins crashed through the wall in between them. The rain alone quelled the intense heat as they saw the mysterious ponies unscathed and surrounded by druid corpses. As the hooded mares slowly trotted up to them, Applejack and the gang sighed in relief, knowing the danger had passed.The shrouded earth ponies were the first to remove their cloaks; one was grayish-purple and the other was just gray. "Blinkie and Inkie?" Applejack questioned, "but if you're here, then were in the hay is your sister at?" "Well" Blinkie started, "she never accepted the family legacy when she got her cutie mark." "So you're not just ordinary rock farmers?" "Nope!" they both said in unison. The short pegasus removed it's own covering as well, which revealed an orange filly with a pinkish-purple mane. Applebloom was now as confused as her older sister now. "Scootaloo? but if you're here, then where is—" "I'm right here!" The tall, hooded pegasus said after she removed her hood to show off her cyan-colored coat and multicolored mane. "We rushed to get here as fast as we could, but it appears those goblins are giving me a run for my money." "Darling, it was not your fault!" Rarity said with a comforting tone. "But, do you know where to go from here?" "If my awesome senses were tingling, which of course they are!" she said, hinting a bit of cockiness. "My guess is they took Fluttershy to the ancient burial ground. We have two hours until midnight, so we—" "Will somepony please tell me what the hay is going on?" Applejack screamed, enraged by lack of answers to her questions. Rarity sighed and faced her friend with a hoof on her shoulder. "Remember when you asked me and Rainbow Dash if we told you everything there is to know about our past?" "Well of course, Rarity. How come you’re asking me this now?" "While Rainbow Dash and I can honestly say we have told you the truth... We may not have told you all of it."