Lesson 2: Tests
Copper Head woke in a dimly lit room. He got up carefully in case that wolf was still around, but after examining his surroundings he could tell exactly where he was: a jail cell. He sneaked up to the wooden door and stood on his hind legs to look out the barred window. He could see the dancing flames of a torch and an open cell door opposite him. There was nothing of interest from what he could see. He sighed, and turned around to have a look at his cell. There was a pile of hay for sleeping on, and... that was it. Well, I might as well get some rest, Copper Head thought to himself, My head still hurts from where that wolf hit me. He laid down on the pile of hay, only to be met with a sharp pain in his side. “Ack! What was that?” He looked once again at the hay pile as a figure emerged from it.
“Uhm... I'm sorry I hurt you.” Although Copper Head couldn't see very well in the dark of the cell, he could tell that the pony before him was a mare from listening to her voice. “I was really scared when they threw you in here. I wasn't sure what kind of horrible criminals they would throw in here. So if you're a psychopathic rapist serial killer, please make it quick...”
“Wait what?” Copper Head quickly replied, “I'm not a killer or a rapist or anything like that! So just... calm down.” He couldn't tell if the mare believed him or not, so he decided to share what he knew about how he got there. “Look, I was knocked out and kidnapped by some monster wolf. I guess he brought me here for some reason.”
“You were kidnapped by a wolf, too? Did he have white fur, and claim to be Myobu as well?”
Copper shook his head, “No, this one was black and tried to eat me. What's a Myobu?”
The mare gasped, “You don't know of Myobu? The great fox that created fire? I thought everypony in Neigh Jing at least knew the legends of the Four Great Beasts.” She put a hoof around Copper Head, “You must be one of those neglected ponies I've heard about before. Growing up in the poor provinces without proper learning. Working all day farming, or fishing, or fighting. Yes. Fighting would explain that unusual helmet cutie mark. Oh dear! Are you from the upper Hoof Hills? Ponies from that area are always pillaging and plundering. We have to get you some proper learning right away.”
Copper Head shrugged her off, “Um, I'm from Equestria. Not this Neigh Jing place, and I've had plenty of learning. I went to elementary school for at least three or four years.” Copper Head blushed when he realized that only three or four years of elementary wasn't very impressive. He never needed school since his family were miners, “Anyway, we should try to get out of here. I don't know where we are, but I'd rather be outside than stuck in a jail cell.”
“Well, I do know a spell we could use to get out. I haven't used it before because; well, I was scared of leaving. You'll protect me right?”
Copper Head thought that that was an odd question, but nevertheless he answered, “Sure, I'll protect you. Now let's get going before any guards come to check on us.”
The mare nodded and moved towards the door. Her horn glowed with a blue light, and there was a small click. She pushed the door, and it slid open noiselessly. As if someone took great care in making sure the door made no noise. Suspicious. But now was not the time for that, they both crept out of the cell and trotted silently down one of the dimly lit hallways. There was a deathly silence in the air, as all the cells they passed were empty. Some of them even had spiders webs covering the doorway. The mare was the first to break the silence, “My name is Spot. What's yours?”
Copper Head was caught offguard by the sudden question, “Oh, uh. My name's Copper Head. It's good to meet you. If you don't mind me asking, why is your name Spot?”
The mare stopped at one of the torches and pointed at her muzzle. There was a bright pink spot, that Copper found kind of cute. “I was born with it,” she noted, “Sometimes I get teased for it, but I don't mind.” They continued walking, and the mare resumed talking, “How did you get your cutie mark? The glow is really interesting, I haven't seen anything like it before.”
“I got it from the wolf,” Copper Head flashed back to when the wolf attacked him in the cave, and when he lost all control and hunted the wolf down only to be stopped by Twilight Sparkle, “We fought, and after he ran away I found myself with this cutie mark.”
Spot's eyes widened, “You fought a wolf? You must be really brave. I'm glad someone like you is with me in such a scary place.”
Someone like me? I wonder what she means by that? Copper Head thought to himself. He didn't respond, and they continued in silence down the dark hallways which seemed to go on forever. On and on they walked, their progress unmarked by any recognizable landmark. The hallway didn't veer left or right. It never stopped and not once did they see another prisoner. It was all so strange, as if the entire prison were just part of some crazy dream.
“Eek!” Suddenly Spot screamed, which startled Copper. “There's something over there!” She pointed to one of the many patches of shadow. Copper Head looked but couldn't see a thing, until something scuttled from one shadow to another. “You saw that right?”
He nodded, “Yeah, but what was that?” The stallion ran forward to where the figure hurried to. Peering into the murky blackness he could see a shape, but it was strange and otherworldy. It turned to face him and quickly sprung out of its hiding place. Copper Head was able to evade it, but Spot wasn't so lucky. Copper turned to look and saw a large spider crawling all over Spot's head. Spot herself was scared stiff. The spider harmlessly crawled off of Spot, but she raised her hoof to kill it as soon as she was free from it. She brought her hoof down onto the spider. A loud clap sounded through the corridor as Spot's hoof hit only stone. The spider was hovering safely away from hoove's reach and surrounded by a magical green aura. The two ponies watched as the spider hovered away from them and was placed gently on the shoulders of another pony that neither of them had seen standing there. The pony wore a hood and its face could not be seen.
“I prefer my pets alive thank you.” The pony spoke, but Copper couldn't tell the pony's gender from just its voice, “I'm here to give you an offer given to all prisoners,” The pony took the spider off of its shoulders and started to pet it, “If you are able to pass three tests, you will be shown the way out. If you choose not to accept these tests, you are free to wander around here as long as you want, or till you die. Whichever comes first. Simple yes?” The pony continued to pet the spider, but remained silent as if expecting an answer.
Copper Head was first to respond, “How do we know you're telling the truth? What if we take your test and you don't let us out?”
The pony chuckled, “Consider your options. Take the tests and have a chance at freedom, or don't take the tests and walk these endless halls forever.”
Copper Head looked over at Spot, “He has a point, what do you think we should do?”
“We accept of course. I've taken plenty of tests in my time. I just hope its not on advanced geomagical calculus. I never understood Hoofington's theory of sensitive fractal residue, and I always forget that the magic burst constant is 15.894471... uh...” Spot started counting in her head, trying to remember some obscure mathematical constant.
Copper sighed and turned back to the hooded pony, “I guess we'll accept your offer. What's the first test?”
The pony chuckled, “Oh, it's an easy one! Just find the key to reopen the door.” After the hooded pony finished his sentence. One of the closed doors slammed open and a vaccuum of air started to pull Spot and Copper into it while the mysterious pony remained unaffected. Spot was caught off guard and fell head over heels into the room, but Copper Head held on the best he could. It took all of his energy just to stand in place without falling over. He looked at the hooded pony who took off its hood. To Copper Head's horror, it wasn't a pony. It was some monstrosity with the body of a pony and the head of a spider. Copper couldn't help, but stare at its inverted mouth as it spoke, “Magical resistance? How rare. The wolf did well to bring you here, but why don't you be a good pony and take your test already?” The monster's eyes glowed green and the spider that was on its shoulders flew at Copper Head. The spider hit Copper's leg and caused him to fall; without his footing, the stallion slid into the murky depths.
As the door closed, all light vanished from the room. Then, one by one, a series of torches lining the walls were lit. Each one had a different color of flame, making them appear unnatural. Spot gasped and nearly fainted when she saw what was in front of them, “Bito help us...” Copper Head turned to look at what had scared Spot. When he saw it his heart skipped a beat. Set before them was a long hallway, and at the end was a pedastal with a key and behind that, a door. Filling every inch in between were spider webs. Silvery webs that stretched from floor to ceiling or wall to wall, and on those webs sat thousands upon thousands of spiders. The arachnids ranged in size from as small as an apple seed to as large as dinner plates. Copper Head started to regret accepting this test.
“I think I know what to do here Copper Head.” Spot had regained her composure and was now standing up facing the spiders, “I know some magic that might help us out here.” Her horn glowed blue and a small ball of water started to form over her head. It continued to grow bigger and bigger until it had grown large enough to probably knock out one of the larger spiders. She launched it towards the tangle of webs, but it was intercepted by all of the magical flames in the room. Now it had become worse, it was pitch black and the only light came from the very end of the room where the key was. “Sorry Copper...”
Copper Head sighed, “It's fine, Spot. We'll just have to do this... without magic.”
Spot pressed against him tightly, and Copper Head could feel her shudder, “But... I'm scared... I don't think I can do it. Those spiders will get all over me. I'm scared of spiders.”
The stallion couldn't help but feel bad for the mare, but they had to complete this test to be free. “I'll go first ok? If you follow beside me, the spiders might not touch you.”
Spot hesitated before answering, “I don't know... they could still touch me...”
“Look Spot.” Copper Head was a little more stern with his voice as he was starting to get quite annoyed by Spot, “Do what I'm telling you, and we'll get through this, alright? Now walk next to me. I don't want to leave you behind.” He didn't hear her respond, but he felt her press even harder against his side. He took a step and felt her step with him. I guess that's a yes. Step by step the two advanced in the darkness. Copper Head anticipated the feeling of the spider web against his head, but he couldn't really prepare himself for what was coming. The silken strands resisted against him, but easily broke and covered the stallion. The worst part was feeling the spiders scurry about after he destroyed their web. They ran through his mane and all over his face. Copper Head had to close his eyes, but he kept moving. The two were making good progress, then Copper Head felt himself step in something. He shuddered after realizing what it was: one of the giant spiders had crawled in front of him and he had stepped on it. He could feel the spider's guts on his hoof, but he had to keep going.
Eventually, they made it to the end of the room. Spot ran up to the pedastal, grabbed the key, and unlocked the door. She wasted no time getting out of the room, and away from all the spiders. Once outside, Spot used her water magic to clean the webs and remaining spiders off of Copper Head and herself. “Thank's for protecting me. I wouldn't have been able to do that by myself.”
Copper Head answered while shaking his head to dry his mane, “No problem Spot. Anything for a friend.” After the two were dry, they looked around, and found themselves in a large empty room. There was a light highlighting the middle of the room where a pony sat with her head resting on her hooves. The two approached the mare who turned out to be a unicorn. She had a black coat, a green mane, and a cutie mark of three orbs that matched the green in her mane.
She looked up at them and sighed. As she sat up there was a clinking sound that came from the collar around her neck, which was attached to a chain and a spike set in the ground. She spoke to them in a melancholy voice, “Welcome to your second test. All you need to do is pull the spike out of the ground. Although, it doesn't matter. You'll never be able to do it.”
Copper Head looked at the spike then back at the mare, “Can we use magic on it?”
The mare shrugged, “You don't think I've already tried? I'm telling you it's impossible. Ponies a lot more impressive than you two haven't been able to do it.”
“We have to try! Otherwise, we'll never be able to get out of here. Spot, do you know a spell that can pull the spike out of the ground?”
Spot nodded and walked over to the spike. After examining it, her horn and the spike sparked blue. But it was useless. Spot strained to get the spike out of the ground, but it didn't budge. Her horn sparked again then went out. She started panting and wiped the sweat off her brow, “That spike must have mithril in it or something. It doesn't react at all to magic. It doesn't look like there's anything I can do.”
“Told you. No one can do it. Thousands have tried, and none of them have even gotten close.” The chained mare spoke without looking at either of them.
Copper Head took hold of the chain and smirked, “Hold on now. I haven't had a turn. At least let me try.” Copper Head pulled hard against the chain, but it didn't budge. In his head he was hoping that whatever happened when he fought the wolf would happen now. He was sure that he could pull out this spike if he had that kind of power. He tried and tried and tried, but never did he enter that state of bloodlust. He had all but given up when he noticed something. A small crack had formed where the spike penetrated the ground. “Ha! I might not have pulled it out, but I loosened it a bit. That's more than what any other pony has done.”
“What are you talking about? No one has ever...” She turned and looked. She momentarily had a look of both joy and surprise on her face, but it quickly disappeared as soon as it came. She coughed, “Congratulations. You passed the test. All you had to do was try to pull out the spike. It truly is nearly impossible, but you gave it a shot anyway.” Her horn glowed green and a door opened not far from where the unicorn was chained, “Go through this door to start your third and final test. Good luck to you.”
Copper turned to walk towards the door, but Spot continued to look at the unicorn. “What is your name?” She asked. “How come you're chained up here?”
The other mare was surprised by her question, “In all of the years I've been imprisoned here no one has ever asked me that. They always assumed I was here as part of there test. I... I'm really touched that you would be concerned about me.” She wiped away a small tear, “Being in here for so long can tear down your hope and dreams of freedom. Anyway, my name is Soul Glow. I was imprisoned here by the same pony who imprisoned you, but I'm more of a threat than a potential ally."
“But who put you here? We were brought here by wolves, but you say a pony put you here?”
Soul Glow nodded, “Yes, a pony did put me here. Somepony you will meet after you complete the final test. Now go my little ponies. There's something I have to do, and you have to get out of here as soon as possible.”
The two thanked Soul Glow and walked through the door. They were met by bright sunlight filtering through a large gate. “Oi! Them prisoners are here. Get up boys it's time to administer the last test.” The voice came from a pony near the gate. The ponies he was talking to were lazing about either smoking, playing cards, reading, or sleeping. They all stopped what they were doing and formed a circle around Copper Head and Spot. They were all smirking except the one that addressed them all. He wore a serious expression, and one of his eye sockets was badly scabbed over. He stepped in front of Copper Head and looked him in the eye, then did the same to Spot. After scrutinizing the two ponies, he stepped back and said, “You two beat the first two tests? I woulda though the yella' one woulda cried her eyes out at the first test. It's happened before ta' dames much tougher lookin' than her.” Spot blushed and looked away, “But dat's the past. What we got 'ere is your final test, and prolly the most painful. You two gotta fight mah boys, and if you can beat 'em, we'll open these gates and let you go free. Sound good?”
Copper Head and Spot nodded. There was no turning back for them now.
The leader of the gang smiled, “Good. Name's Brick by the way. What's yours?” The two hesitated, but told them their names. “Copper Head and Spot, eh? Well, I hope ya'll are ready. Get 'em boys.” The group of ponies sprang into action, quickly surrounding the two younger ponies. Two ponies jumped out from their midst and charged the younger ponies. Spot pummeled the one that came after her with a ball of water, while Copper Head met his attacker head on.
By the time Copper Head had pummeled his first adversary, Spot had taken out three more opponents with her magic. I guess she isn't as weak as I thought. She had just been messing up ever since I met her. Copper kept an eye on her as she watched her fight of her attackers while being sure to defeat those that left the perimeter to challenge him. From what he could see, Spot moved gracefully while she fought, and she never let an attack hit her. She jumped, dodged, and rolled between blows as a stream of water flowed behind her to counterattack. It's like she's a completely different person when she's fighting... kind of like what happened to me... Copper Head's focus was brought back to his fight as a hoof collided with his face. He flinched and was immediately dog piled by about four of the stallions. He struggled to get loose, but he wasn't strong enough to throw them off. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the group's boss approach Spot who had her back turned. “Spot! Behind you!” Copper yelled, but the mare was unable to turn around in time.
Brick knocked Spot on her back and stood over her, “You made quick work of my boys didn't ya? But I ain't like them. It'll take more than a lil water to beat me. Let's see how tough you are now.” He raised his hoof and struck Spot violently. She was completely unable to concentrate on her magic while Brick was constantly hitting her with a barrage of hooves. Copper Head redouble his attempt to get free, but he was still unable to escape the weight of the group of ponies. Copper glanced back at Spot and saw that her body was bruised and bleeding from the leader's assault. Then something snapped inside of Copper.
He could feel a burning hatred start to flow through his veins. He could see blood stain the floor, and that small sliver of red grew to fill his vision. “Get off!” He launched the stallions that were holding him down into the air with impressive force. Without missing a beat, Copper Head launched himself at Brick, who was too busy picking on Spot to notice the true threat behind him. Copper Head snarled, “Leave her alone!”
Brick laughed, “Or what? You can't...Gah!” The leader felt a sharp pain in his shoulder and quickly turn to see the red stallion biting into his flesh. “What's into you! Are those... fangs?” Copper had indeed grown fangs which were tearing into Brick's muscle.
Copper Head pulled away, taking a chunk of flesh with him. Brick howled with pain and fell to the floor. Copper Head spit out the meat and licked his lips, “I haven't had pony blood before. It's a bit different from wolves blood. Very minerally compared to the sweetness of a carnivore. You wouldn't understand though. Still being a herbivore and all.”
“What? What are you talking about?” Brick tried to get up, but he had lost too much blood and muscle to be able to stand on all four legs, “All ponies are herbivores.”
Copper Head smiled, showing his large fangs, “Do these look like the teeth of a plant-eater to you? No. These are the teeth of a predator. I gave up being prey not too long ago.” Copper Head meandered over to the wounded stallion and kicked him onto his side, “You're still prey though. And you know what happens when a predator captures his prey?”
Brick's face was a mixture of pain, confusion, and fear. He tried his best to get up and crawl away, but Copper Head just knocked him down again. “Look, you win alright! I'll open the gate for ya'! Please stop!”
Copper snickered, “Stop? You didn't give Spot that option, did you? Let's see what Spot has to say.” He turned and addressed Spot, who was laying on the ground not far away with an expression of terror.
“Please stop. You've hurt him enough.” Spot's voice was soft, but Copper Head could hear her loud and clear.
“Stop? This guy was hurting you just a second ago, and you want me to stop?”
Spot nodded, “You've hurt him more than he hurt me, and he said he would open the gate for us. Isn't that what we want?”
Copper Head stomped on the ground, “No! I want blood! I want the cries of my enemies!”
“Copper Head!” This time Spot yelled, “You're not being yourself! Snap out of it!”
Copper Head looked into her eyes. He could feel the hatred leave his veins. His heart started beating slower and he could feel his fangs return to normal pony teeth. It seemed like Spot was able to turn him back to his old self, “Alright, Spot. We'll do it your way.” He swirled around to look for Brick. He was about a foot away, scrabbling towards the gate which mysteriously had opened itself.
Standing in the light of the gateway was a tall mare covered in armor. She had a blue coat, white and gold mane, and a cutie mark of a lightning bolt running through a halo. Her eyes scanned the scene, but her face remained emotionless. She held a red crystal tied around her neck up to her mouth and spoke into it, “Splints? Send a few people to clean up at the gate. Seems like our visitors were going for extra credit on their test.”
After a few seconds the crystal changed from red to blue and a voice came out of it, “Really? Brick never let's himself get beaten badly enough to need medical assistance. Usually it's the other way around. Anyway, sending a team out their right now.”
“Roger that.” The crystal turned red again and the mare started making her way to Copper Head and Spot. Her pace was slow, but she made long strides so her progress was unbelievably quick. She looked at the injuried ponies as she walked past them, but never stopped to help or ask how they were doing. When the mare reached Copper Head and Spot, she stared at them blankly, “Come with me. Krafty is waiting.” The mare turned and walked towards the exit without making sure the two young ponies were following her. They obliged and followed a step behind her.
“So what were all these tests for?” Copper Head asked the mare. “I find it strange to kidnap people, put them in prison, and then test them.”
The mare giggled, “Oh, that's just Krafty's way of testing you. 'Test your friends and your enemies' he says. They all tested something different about you. The spiders tested your mind. None of them were harmful, but it played off of arachnophobia. The spike tested your spirit. No pony could ever pull it out of the ground. The group of guards tested your bodily strength. It's all a test to see if you're worthy.”
“Worthy of what?”
“You'll see.” As they exited the cave, they were met by blinding sunlight. Copper Head and Spot shielded their eyes from the sun and once their eyes adjusted, they were met with a breathtaking sight. In front of them was a mountain peak, the highest part covered with glistening snow and a majestic castle. Green banners hung from the walls and green flags flew from the highest turrets. They could see ponies like ants coming in and out of the open gate of the castle. A paved road led from the castle down the mountain and branched off into other caves and other parts of the mountain. There were some houses carved into the side of the mountain, but most of the houses were built on a single large cloud that circumvented the peak. The cloud itself was spotted with tiny floating islands that was home to about the only plant life that could be seen at first glance. These islands held the most activity, there were ponies playing, walking around, and just carrying on.
“What is that large cloud for?” Spot was staring wide-eyed at this new environment, clearly forgetting the danger she was in earlier, “Can only pegasi walk on it, or does it have magical properties?”
The mare shook her head, “No it is a normal cloud. It has been there since as far back as anyone can remember, and you'll find that almost everypony here has wings.”
“What about you? You don't have wings.”
The mare smiled, “Sure we do. You haven't noticed them yet?”
Spot looked confused. She doesn't have wings. She thought to herself, If they aren't on her back then where... After looking over the mare, Spot found her answer. On the mare's back legs were wings. They looked like they were put there through some weird experiment, but there they were. “Who are you? What are you?”
“The name is Angel Storm.” She smiled at Spot's confusion, “I am a cloudwalker and this,” She sweeped her hoof over the entire mountain range, “This is Cloudwalker Kingdom.”