Copper Head woke in a sweat, his dream still vivid in his mind. He could remember a large unicorn named High Noon, a dreadful cavern, and a monstrous dragon that was about to devour him. He looked around, making sure that he was no longer dreaming. All seemed normal. There's his stack of comic books, arranged alphabetically from “Bat Stallion” to “Wonder Mare”. There's his mining gear, rusty from long use and dirty from the day before. There's his row of family portraits. There's his... wait. What is that? Copper Head looked close at a small figure sitting at the foot of his bed. He couldn't recognize it from the shape, and it made a weird sound as it breathed. “Hello?” He called out to it, but it didn't respond. “Who's there?”
“What? What do you want?” The figure jumped up from the bed and spun to face Copper Head. “First, you toss and turn in your sleep, and now you purposefully wake me up for no reason! I have a sun to crow at in an hour, but until then I would like some peace!” The shadow glared and resumed its original position on the bed. Copper Head now knew exactly who it was. It was Cluckwurk, the family rooster. Copper Head's father found Cluckwurk in the forest... well, half of Cluckwurk. Some animal had attacked him and left him there to die. Copper Head's father crafted a new body for him. A body made of steel to make it strong and alchemical to make it move. However, being made out of metal makes Cluckwurk now unable to fly, but able to take a hit from a moving train.
Copper Head carefully got out of bed, so as not to disturb the bird. As he left his room, he passed by all of his family photos. He smiled as he looked at the memories captured in the tiny squares. His favorite picture was of his entire family in the Ore family reunion. Looking at all the pictures, he realized how many twins there were in his family: Hard Rock and Heavy Metal, Inkie and Blinkie, Diamond Dust and Pearly Gates, Coal and Slag. But not him and his sister. Aside from being older than him, Tin Tail never got along with her younger brother. She always worried about her appearance, so much so that she wouldn't even help with the simplest of tasks. Copper sighed and moved on to the next picture.
Next was a photo of his father and mother. His father's name is Iron Mane. Iron Mane got his name from his bright grey mane that he had ever since he was a child. When he was a teenager, he dyed it black to better match his brown coat. Over the years though, he started letting it return to its natural grey. Copper Head admired his father. He was hard working, loyal, honest, and generous; something Copper Head tries to emulate, but his anger sometimes gets the best of him. His mother's name is Cobalt. She came from a rich family who would have had her married off to some snobbish rich stallion from Canterlot. She always recalled one suitor who said, “Your coat is as beautiful as the morning sky, and your mane deeper than the deepest blue.” Which is an accurate description of her. But with all the suitors she had, she fell in love with Iron Mane and ran away to be with him.
Copper Head left the photos and grabbed his mining gear. His family had just started work on a new mine, and Copper Head loved exploring all the cave systems that crisscrossed through the mountain on which he lived. What could he say, he's addicted to the excitement of discovery. He trotted quietly down the stairs, but the clanging of his mining equipment made it hard to be silent. He reached the door and opened it. A cool morning breeze rushed through the door and Copper Head inhaled the cold air. He looked over his shoulder. All was quiet. He slowly closed the door, and once he was a little ways from his house, Copper ran to his favorite spot on the whole mountain. He stood on a cliff that overlooked the neighboring countryside and gazed at the land in the light of the sunrise. The rays of light revealed the great green canopy that was the Everfree Forest, the gleaming patches of red that was Sweet Apple Acres, and the multicolored splotches that made up the buildings of Ponyville. He sat there for a bit, his heart longing for life in the city. Life that was ever changing, just like the caves he loved to explore.
After the sun had cleared the horizon, Copper Head left the cliff and made his way to the new mine. There was a warning sign at the entrance of the mine to ward off any stray ponies that might be interested in the cave. Beyond the entrance of the mine was the beginning of the minecart tracks and a row of lanterns. Copper Head took on of the lanterns and lit it. He set it on the ground next to him and pulled a lever next to the cart tracks. There was a loud screech followed by a continuous squeak. The noise got louder and a minecart appeared from the darkness. Copper Head hopped in with the lantern and pulled the lever again. The mine cart took off again into the gloomy cavern. Copper Head soon left the light of the entrance, and all light now came from the sole lantern that Copper Head held in his mouth. The light from the flame danced along the cave walls as the minecart rolled past. Copper Head smiled as he remembered when he used to be scared of the shadows cast by the light of the lamp, but he had grown out of that. The minecart reached its destination and screeched to a halt. Copper jumped out and inspected the cave walls. They were marked with arrows that led to the excavation spot, and away from dead ends and holes in the cave floor. He followed the arrows as they led him into the twisting labyrinth. He finally reached his destination, a dead end where three bare walls of stone stood. One of them had sprung a leak, and was plugged up and abandoned. The wall adjacent to it held some iron ore that Copper Head had excavated earlier, but he decided to keep heading in that direction to see if there was any more. He strapped on his special RockBreaker brand horseshoes and double checked to make sure they were on tight. RockBreaker horseshoes are made of forged steel and the sharp spike in the front is specially designed to break rocks when mining. Copper Head reared and struck at the rock with his right hoof. He felt the rock easily crumble from the impact.
Copper Head broke rock for about another hour before stopping to rest. He progressed about 10 or 11 feet which was good for a lone pony working a rather wide tunnel. He wondered when his father would get there to help. They could have probably gone twice the distance he had, but Copper Head always got up before everypony else. He listened for the sound of the mine cart since it was too far into the darkness to see. He didn't hear it, but he did hear something else. He hadn't heard it before in the caves, but it was familiar somewhere else. He concentrated on the sound, and the realization of what it was frightened him. Running water. He quickly grabbed the lantern and rushed to the wall where the water leaked from before. To Copper Head's dismay the wall was leaking again, and already the water was hoof deep. From the look of it, there was a crack higher up in the wall that they must not have noticed before. Copper Head reached up to cover the crack with his hoof, but made a grave error. His RockBreaker horseshoes were still on and they only made the crack even larger. Gripped with panic, Copper Head reached for the lantern; but tipped it over in his haste.
All became black, and Copper Head quickly became disoriented. He could feel the water continue to rush through the hole in the wall, but there was no escape. Copper Head could try to find his way in the dark, but getting back through the twist and turns of the cavern was going to take a miracle. Suddenly, Copper Head could hear breathing. He stopped his own breathing to make sure he wasn't hearing himself, and sure enough, there was something else in the cave with him. It panted heavily and seemed to draw closer to him through the darkness. The stallion then began to hear splashes of water as something stalked ever closer to him. Then all sound stopped. Copper Head dared not move in case whatever was out there hadn't heard him yet, but the beating of his heart seemed loud enough to alert all of Equestria. Seconds passed then a minute, and there was nothing more. Copper Head relaxed a bit, but he was far from safe. He felt warm breath down his neck, and knew that whatever was out there had found him. He felt a sharp pain in his leg as the creature started dragging him somewhere into the depths of the cave, into some unknown abyss.
The creature dragged the stallion down into its lair which Copper Head guessed was towards the bottom of the mountain. They kept going farther and farther down the mountain when suddenly a bright light made Copper cover his eyes. The monster had dragged him into a room within the cave lined with brightly glowing crystals. There was a hole in the low ceiling which let in the sunlight which reflected off of the crystals. In the middle of the room sat a pool of sparkling water, and in the middle of the pool stood a pillar of rock. Copper Head would have found it quite beautiful had he not been captured by some monster, which threw the pony in a corner of the room as it walked to the pool to drink. Copper Head finally got a good look at it as it lapped water. It was actually a large black wolf with scars and ugly matted fur. The wolf didn't take long to drink, and was upon the pony again in an instant, “So, you are to be my meal today, hmm?”
Copper Head was shocked when the wolf addressed him, but managed to find the courage to utter, “Please, don't eat me!”
The wolf laughed, “You stink of fear, little pony. That only makes you all the more appetizing, and I haven't had pony in such a long time. Only squirrels, birds, and lizards, which gets very boring after a while.” The wolf started to circle Copper Head, who by this time was paralyzed with fear. “What's your name little pony? Oh, wait. I don't care! You're just Lunch to me!” The wolf grinned revealing only a set of teeth on the right side of his mouth, and nothing on the other. The teeth it did have were yellowed and sharp enough to tear a pony apart.
Copper Head had lost all hope, until he heard a clink when he took a step back. His RockBreakers! He had completely forgotten about them, and planned a counter attack. He waited for the wolf to circle in front of him, before striking with his front hooves. The wolf was taken by surprise and took the brunt of the impact. The RockBreakers tore into the wolves skin, cutting him above the eye, and across the leg. It howled in pain, “Gah! You want to play that way Lunch? I'll have you know I've been playing this 'game' a lot longer than you.” The wolf lunged at Copper Head and swept him off his hooves. As Copper Head hit the ground, the wolf knocked the RockBreakers off his feet.
Copper Head rolled out of the way and hopped to his feet. The wolf looked amused, like a cat playing with a trapped mouse. The beast stepped slowly closer before rushing at him in a burst of speed. Copper opened his mouth to shout, but instead got a mouthful of fur. The pony took the opportunity to bite down on the wolf's neck. The wolf howled as the pony drew blood. Blood. Copper Head couldn't believe how great it tasted. He could feel his heart race, his blood boil, and his thoughts shorten to one word: kill.
The wolf tried to shake the pony, but Copper held on with a carnivorous rage. The wolf slammed the pony into the ground and against the wall, but still he held on. The monster jumped into the pool of water in an attempt to drown the pony. Copper was forced to let go, and the wolf took this opportunity to get away. As the stallion emerged from the water, he looked at his reflection in the pool. He had grown fangs. Long vicious teeth for tearing apart prey. Good for killing this wolf with.
As it retreated, the wolf turned to look at the pony and something caught his eye, “You! You're one of them! I should have noticed it earlier. I was going to eat you, but now... Krafty's interested in special little ponies like you. You haven't seen the last of me.” It turned and quickly retreated down the path.
Copper Head quickly gave chase, yelling at the wolf as it disappeared, “Come back, coward!” The pony followed the wolf until he reached an exit out of the mountain. The area right outside the cave led straight into the Everfree Forest where the wolf hid himself from his pursuer. “Wolf! Get back here!” Copper Head yelled into the dense foliage, but received no response. He stamped the earth and his breath came fast. He could feel his entire body being engulfed in a flame with some unknown hate fueling that fire. He called again, but still no answer. He could no longer hold back and charged blindly into the thick foliage. The Everfree Forest was no match for this new monster that had entered its domain. Bushes, thorns, vines, boulders, even trees – nothing could stop Copper Head as he searched the forest for the wolf that had dared to attack him. The dense plant growth soon gave way to mowed lawns and cobblestone paths, but Copper Head paid no notice. He could only focus on the task at hand. He studied his surroundings and found no sight of the animal. There were only other ponies. Unimportant. He raced through the streets, knocking over carts and tearing through crowds. He was unaware of the destruction he was causing, and the attention he was garnering from bystanders. As another crowd dispersed, one particular pony didn't sense the danger. She sat on the ground talking to a bunny that was trying to warn her of the oncoming danger. Copper Head's body didn't respond in time, and he was about to collide with the pegasus. He was mere feet away from the other pony when he was hit with a magical bolt. He turned to face his new attacker, but not before getting hit with a few more blasts of magic. He hit the ground hard and instantly blacked out.
“I don't know anything about this irregular cutie mark. Spike, get me that book on unique cutie marks.” Copper Head could hear unfamiliar voices and the sound of tiny feet rushing around. “Hmm, it's not in here either. Let's try the one about magical deformations.” Copper Head opened his eyes a little. He could see a flash of purple and a lot of books. “It's not in here either! I may have discovered something new! Spike, get me something to write with!” Again another flash of purple. Copper Head tried to move his legs, but it felt like they were tied down. “I wonder if the strange cuite mark is somehow connected to the fact that he partially deflected my magic bolt earlier. It was like his body has a natural resistance to magic. I noticed it took a lot more magic to pick up a pony of his size than it should have.”
“You!” Copper Head opened his eyes fully and struggled against his restraints, “You were the one who hit me?” He stared into the face of a purple unicorn her horn aglow as she kept a quill and parchment afloat. Before the unicorn could speak, a small purple dragon pushed her away and swatted at the stallion with a rolled up newspaper.
“Stay back Twilight! Who knows what this guy will do. He almost hurt Fluttershy for no reason.” The dragon made a huge mistake when he hit Copper. The stallion was still in a fit of rage and took the strike as a personal attack. Copper pulled hard against the chains that held him down and he could feel one of the links give way and finally snap. With his freedom, Copper Head lunged at the dragon who proceeded to scream and run away.
Around the room they went, resembling a purple and red hurricane. Spike threw books at his pursuer, but they bounced harmlessly off of him. Copper was getting every closer to his prey. Closer, closer, now! He pounced at the dragon and smiled in anitcipation... but it seemed as if he was frozen in the air. It was that unicorn again! He struggled in the air, but it was no use. “Stupid unicorn! Stop interfering!”
“I'm not a stupid unicorn! My name is Twilight Sparkle, and my research indicates that I'm at least a genius.”
Something clicked inside of Copper Head when he heard that name, “Twilight Sparkle?” He could feel the burning anger flow out of his body, “Then that means you're Pinkie Pie's friend right? My name's Copper Head and she's my cousin! She told me about you and her other friends.” He realized what he had done and blushed, “I'm so sorry! I... I don't know what got into me. After I met that wolf it felt like I wasn't in control of my own body. I would never hurt you or any of Pinkie Pie's friends!”
Twilight put a reassuring hoof on his shoulder, “It's alright. For some reason, I feel like I should believe you. You seem like a completely different pony from that pony that chased Spike around my house. But... if you don't mind...” Twilight looked at his flank. “I'd like to ask how you got that strange cutie mark.
Copper looked confused, “Cutie mark?” He quickly turned to look at his own flank and was shocked by what he saw. Where once was nothing, sat a gleaming new cutie mark. A black pointed helmet with a set of ominous glowing eyes. “Glowing cutie mark... just like High Noon. Then that means what he said was true. I am just like him.”
Twilight glanced at him, “Did you say something?”
Copper nodded, “Yeah, I think I know something about this. Last night, I dreamed that I was in Tartaros and met a unicorn named High Noon. He said that I was just like him, but I'm not sure what he meant by that.”
Twilight rubbed her head, “Hmmm, High Noon. I've heard that name before. Oh right!” She pulled a book off the shelf. She flipped to a page with a picture of High Noon.
Copper studied the photo and thought to himself, That really is him. I guess I wasn't just dreaming, but really did visit Tartaros. To Twilight he asked, “What does it say about him?”
She scanned the page for information and after about a minute she said, “He was a crytpozoologist and a gifted magical marksman. He lived in a town called Buckerud that was northeast of Canterlot until an avalanche destroyed it. He mysteriously disappeared after an expedition funded by Celestia to capture an Enfield ended in failure.” She closed the book and sighed, “Looks like there's nothing in here to explain your cutie mark, but now I'm intrigued by something else.” She put her hoof on the book, “A missing unicorn, something called an Enfield, and a failed expedition funded by Celestia herself? I would like to solve this mystery, wouldn't you?”
Copper Head nodded, “Yes, but the only pony alive that would no anything about that would be Celestia herself. I doubt we can just waltz into Canterlot and ask her ourselves.”
“That's where you're wrong, friend. As Celestia's number one student, I have direct access to the Princess.” She put the book back on the shelf and headed upstairs. She returned with Spike in tow who was outfitted with pillow armor and a rolled-up newspaper sword. “Oh Spike put that away! He's not going to hurt you anymore.”
Spike jumped off of Twilight's back with his “sword” raised, “He's like that now, but he can snap at any minute! Don't trust him for a second!” He swung the newspaper in the air in front of Copper Head's face.
“Oh, stop it Spike.” Twilight took the newspaper from Spike's hands and replaced it with a quill, “Now write this down,” she cleared her throat before speaking, “Dear Princess Celestia, today I have made a new friend named Copper Head, and there are some interesting items that I have learned from him. The first is a new kind of cutie mark. One with a magical glow even though he isn't a unicorn. The second is a mystery surrounding a unicorn named High Noon who we believe you might have known. We would be grateful if you know anything that could reveal the truth about either of these mysteries. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.”
Spike finished the letter with a final flurry of penstrokes and whisked the letter away with a breath of fire. “There it's sent. Can he leave now? I still don't feel comfortable with... belch!” Spike coughed up a letter, and opened it. “She replied already?” He read the contents and handed the letter to Twilight, “Looks important.”
Twilight took the letter and read it aloud,
Twilight Sparkle,
I need you to come to Canterlot as quickly as possible. If High Noon is involved, I'm afraid a great evil is looming on the horizon. An evil that could be the end of Equestria. I have sent a chariot towards Ponyville and would request that you start traveling towards Canterlot to meet it as soon as possible. Time is of the essence.”
Twilight put the letter down, “That isn't like Celestia, but we have to follow her orders.” She turned and addressed the stallion, “Give me a minute and I'll get my things together.” She walked up the stairs with the dragon following close behind her.
Copper Head watched her go, but his mind was lost in thought. Who was High Noon? What happened to him? And what evil was the Princess talking about? He rubbed his head. “What I would do to be back at home... home! My family is probably worried about me... but now I'm caught up in some adventure with a unicorn I just met and the Princess is involved...” His thoughts were interrupted by hoovesteps behind him.
Twilight had finished packing and had a pack bursting with scrolls and books, “You ready to go?”
“Not quite yet. I need to tell my family that I'm leaving.”
Twilight smiled, “Of course, Spike can send a letter while we are gone.”
Spike crossed his arms, “I'm not doing anything for him. My legs still hurt from running around the library.”
“Spike!” Twilight glared at the dragon, “That's no way to act! Now, where does your family live Copper?”
“On top of the mountain, Pinkie Pie knows where it is if Spike can't find it.”
“You heard him Spike. Let's go Copper Head.” She opened the door and left.
Copper Head followed close behind her. Once he was outside he finally realized how late it had gotten. The sun was already setting making Copper wonder how long he had been knocked out. He just hoped that his parents weren't too worried about him. He looked to see if he could find his house, but the trees on the mountain blocked the view.
“Hey! Let's get going! It's not good to keep the Princess waiting.” Twilight was already on the road out of town, and Copper Head ran to catch up with her. “You sure you're ready to go?” Copper nodded and walked beside her as they walked through town. The two talked for a bit, but not about anything interesting. By the time they reached the edge of town, the sun had already gone down and a small sliver of moon hung in the sky. Twilight used a spell to ward off the darkness, but it wasn't very bright and Copper Head felt uneasy.
“I think we should walk faster or something. I have a bad feeling about this.” Copper Head continually checked over his shoulder, but he couldn't see anything in the darkness.
“Don't worry so much. I'm sure we'll run into Princess Celestia's guards soon, and besides; I'll protect us with my magic if I have to.” Copper merely nodded, but he couldn't shake the feeling he was having. They walked on, but there was still no sign of the chariot. Things were also starting to get strange as well. Small animals would run past the them as if they were scared, and Copper Head's feeling of dread only grew.
“Oh, looks like Lunch found himself a friend.” A voice echoed through the night, and Twilight and Copper Head stopped dead in their tracks. Copper Head knew that voice, it was the wolf's voice. “Lunch will have to wait though. I can't go behind Krafty's back; he would be very sore for killing one of your kind.”
Twilight increased the brightness of the light, but even then the night was impenetrable. “Who's there?” She hid the fear in her voice well, and Copper Head could tell that she had been in her fair share of danger.
Copper Head faced the darkness, but addressed Twilight, “I know who it is Twilight. The voice belongs to a wolf that tried to eat me earlier. I fought him off, but he must have come back for revenge.”
“Almost!” The voice sounded closer than it had before, “I'm here for revenge and a meal. Thank you so much for bringing a unicorn with you. Their horns make great toothpicks!” The wolf laughed and both of the ponies felt chilled to the bone.
Twilight swung around trying to find him in the darkness and yelling, “Show yourself!”
“As you wish.” From the edge of the darkness emerged a pitch black paw, followed by the rest of the body. He looked nothing like the monster Copper Head had encountered earlier. His coat was completely smooth and inky, as if it was made of darkness itself. His eyes glowed red and his half set of teeth shown bright like the moon. “I do like my prey to see what ends them.” He licked his lips and stepped closer to Twilight.
Copper Head jumped in the way, “Hey! Leave her alone! I'll beat you again like I did earlier!
This only made the wolf laugh, “Ha! Your kind may be powerful, but at your level, you could never realize your potential in just one day. Now move!” He swiped at Copper Head who was too slow to react. The stallion felt like he was hit by boulder as he was knocked to the ground.
The wolf closed in on Twilight, but she teleported next to Copper Head as the beast lunged at her, “Don't worry Copper Head! I'll teleport us back to safety.” Twilight charged her magic and the last thing Copper remembered seeing was a bright purple flash which forced him to close his eyes.
Copper Head slowly opened his eyes, only to be met by another pair of eyes. Glowing red eyes. The wolf laughed, “Looks like she left you, Lunch!” Copper Head was paralyzed. Did she really leave him there? “Not that it matters much. I would have caught you no matter where you ran.” Copper Head could hear the wolf walking around him, and could feel his tail as it brushed against him. “You know. King Krafty has a few rules he makes the cadets learn. It would have helped you in our little 'game' earlier.” The wolf leaned in and whispered, “Play to win. If you lose, you might not get to play again.” Copper Head felt something hard hit his head which knocked him out immediately; those final words echoing in his ears.