//------------------------------// // Lesson 6: Dungeon Detention // Story: Cloudwalker Chronicles // by krafty //------------------------------// It was almost noon when K9 came to get his students to escort them to detention. He was a lot gloomier than usual and his footsteps dragged as he led them down flight after flight of stairs. “You all better not die,” he said over his shoulder, “I can’t afford to lose another class. I don’t think my heart nor my wallet could survive the loss.” The others wondered what he meant by him “losing another class”. “Will you tell us what detention is like now?” Spot said, “You wouldn’t tell us earlier.” K9 grunted, “I could tell you, but you still wouldn’t be prepared for it. I will tell you this though, detention here isn’t like detention in other schools. In fact, it wasn’t even built for detention; it was made for older students to earn extra credit. My brother figured that if anypony could get through that place, then they deserved to have a better grade. Eventually it was turned into a place to also serve detention. Though many teachers figure it’s too dangerous.” “If it’s too dangerous then why make us do it?” Grand Prix said sleepily, “Why put new students into something made for older students?” “Because I only want to teach the very best,” K9 replied nonchalantly, “To be honest, your first assignment wasn’t really to test your determination to finish a mission, though it did test that; but to actually test your adaptability. Being thrown into a new environment is something that some ponies are unable to cope with. However, you four were able to pass easily.” Grand Prix frowned but seemed satisfied with that answer. That or she didn’t have any response. However, Shadowstorm had his own question, “You’re our teacher right? Then, how come you never teach us anything? Like math, or history, or whatever it is that ponies learn in school.” The older cloudwalker smiled and replied without looking back, “Do you believe knowledge can only come from a book? While there is value in books, experience teaches you faster and it stays with you longer. So while I may not read from a book, I can still teach you, right?” Shadowstorm shook his head, “Uh... I’m not sure...” K9 chuckled, “Don’t worry my students. It won’t be long until you get into the normal school routine. I just need to requisition a floor based on your skill levels, and according to Krafty’s needs. He has a lot more to do with Cloudwalker Academy than many would believe.” As they continued their descent, the air grew colder and the walls became eerily moist. Moss grew in dank corners where ponies tread the least. Eventually they reached the bottom floor, which consisted of neither the normal carpet or wood, but dusty stone slabs. There was a small puddle at the bottom of the steps that all the ponies avoided except for Shadowstorm, who intentionally made the biggest splash he could. “Watch it!” Grand Prix screamed as some of the water got on her scarf. She smacked Shadowstorm upside the head. The stallion rubbed his head and laughed at her reaction. “Shh!” K9 quieted them both, “We’re almost there, so now’s about the best time that I tell you what you need to do.” K9 dropped his cigarette into a puddle, took out another one, and lit it before speaking. “The objective of detention is to defeat the monster that lurks at the exit. That’s the only way out.” He spoke with grave tones that made his students nervous just listening to him. “None of the faculty will come to save you, so it’s up to you and whoever else is in there.” K9 stopped in his tracks as he spotted a gate in the distance. He turned to his students and looked at them with the softest look he could muster, “I believe in you guys. From what I’ve seen, if you can work together, you’ll get out of here no problem.” Shadowstorm fake sniffled, “Gee Teach’. I didn’t know you could get so sentimental. Will you have milk and cookies for us when we get back?” K9 rolled his eyes and kept walking without responding to Shadowstorm’s sarcasm. As they got closer to the gate, the faint outline of two ponies could be seen in front of the gates. Copper Head squinted as he tried to see one of them more clearly. He felt like he had seen him before, but something was very... off about the pony. Copper Head gulped when he realized who it was. Brick, the leader of a gang of ponies that Copper Head and Spot ran into, was standing there, guarding the gate. “Oi!” Brick spit, “Lookie who we have ‘ere!” The stallion smiled a toothy smile as they drew closer. “The yella’ unicorn and the cannibal!” He spit in the direction of Copper Head and looked at him with a hostile expression. “Takin’ dat chunk outta my shoulder was mighty painful! But,” Brick turned to the side so that everypony could see. The piece of his skin that Copper Head bit off wasn’t there, but the remaining flesh was a strange green and didn’t look natural, “Krafty done made it all better! Gone and infusiated mah muscles with a bunch a glowin’ rocks.” He tapped his shoulder with his spear, which made a clinking sound. Like metal tapping against metal. “Ain’t nopony goin’ to be takin’ a chunk outta me anymore!” “Ahem,” K9 stepped between the guard and his student, “They’re here for detention. I’m sure that the report came in, yes?” Brick stepped back and eyed the teacher, “Yeah. I got yer report. Go ahead and let ‘em in.” He nodded at the other guard and they both pulled the levers that opened the gate. Brick grinned, “Ya’ll got a tough one this week. Better get in there ‘fore somepony else dies." The four stood around in silence, unsure if they should proceed. As if in response to their silence, a force pushed the ponies forward and they all were sprawled out on the ground beyond the gate. The guard pulled the levers back and the gate was closed. “You can do this!” K9 yelled through the bars, “Just remember that teamwork will help you through this!” He looked them all in the eye before turning away and disappearing into the darkness until only the light from his cigarette was visible, then that too disappeared. “Let’s get going then guys,” Copper Head walked out in front of the group, “I’ll lead the way.” “Woah, woah, woah,” Grand Prix jumped in front of Copper Head, “I’m not going to let a stallion lead me around. Besides, mares have a better sense of direction.” “Ummm,” Spot mumbled, “I think Copper Head should go first. He is bigger than all of us.” “Shadowstorm? You’re on my side right?” Grand Prix gave Shadowstorm a menacing look. The stallion frowned and shrugged, not wanting to get into the argument. “Ugh. Fine, lead the way.” The ponies fell in line behind Copper Head who started at a brisk pace down the passageway. Copper Head was confident that his newly-found ancestry would help protect him and his friends from what lie ahead, but what they found was a surprise to them. Halfway down the dark cold corridor was a pony standing against the wall. Copper Head was the first to see the pony clearly and it looked like King Krafty. “Ah! Copper Head!” The king called out, “Just the pony I was waiting for! Could you come here please?” Copper Head stepped forward and the others started to follow, “Oh, this is just a private conversation between me and Copper Head. I’m sorry my faithful subjects.” Copper Head removed himself from the group and approached Krafty. “Sir?” Copper Head said upon approach. He didn’t really know how to address Krafty, but that sounded the most appropriate. He didn’t consider Krafty to be his king. Krafty smiled, “It’s been a while. Not since you first arrived in Cloudwalker Kingdom a few weeks ago. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something. Have you been sleeping well? Have any dreams?” Copper Head was shocked. Did he know about the dream he had, or was he playing mind games with him? “No sir,” he lied, “No dreams for me.” Copper Head searched the king’s face for an indication that he had detected his lie. However, Krafty didn’t show any change. “Good good. I’m glad you are getting adequate rest. You’ll need it for what you’re about to face. I’ve stationed a special monster here just for you.” Copper Head remained silent, too stunned to say anything. Krafty smiled again and turned down the corridor. From over his shoulder the king shouted, “One last thing. Beware of lightning.” The king laughed to himself and turned a corner. Shadowstorm, Grand Prix, and Spot reunited with Copper Head. “So what did he say?” Shadowstorm asked, “It’s pretty cool that the king would want to talk to you.” “He’s right,” Grand Prix chimed in, “Getting to talk to King Krafty is a high honor for cloudwalkers. I’m almost jealous.” “It doesn’t feel like an honor,” Copper Head replied, “It seems like he knows everything. He asked if I had a dream last night and I did. Can he read minds or something?” Shadowstorm and Grand Prix shrugged. “It’s not entirely impossible,” Spot responded, “Unicorns in Neigh Jing have created machines that can record dreams, but the machine has to be attached to you in order to work. Maybe he has more advanced technology.” Copper Head wasn’t satisfied with Spot’s suggestion. Krafty somehow knew more about Copper Head than he let on. Copper Head sighed, “Let’s just get going. I don’t want to talk about it any more.” The others nodded and Copper Head returned to leading the way. It wasn’t long before the ponies realized what detention really was: a labyrinth. The ponies took multiple turns. Left, right, left, right. Sometimes a path branched off in four or more directions. Leading the ponies to believe that detention was harder than they had thought it was going to be. Shadowstorm tried to fly over the wall, but an invisible force blocked his progress. After traversing the maze for several hours, the team stopped at an open space where a fountain was located. The water spewing from it was crystal clear. The four drank their fill and rested in a corner of the room. “This is pointless,” Grand Prix noted as she sat down, “It will take weeks to get through this maze. Let alone one day. How are we expected to do this?” “Maybe this place is not as big as we think,” Spot reassured, “We can still make it in time.” The two mares started arguing, but neither of the stallions were listening. Shadowstorm decided it was a good time to take a nap, and Copper Head was watching something. From the far side of the room a figure approached the fountain. It walked up to the fountain and drank from it. It either didn’t care that they were there or didn’t notice. Curious, Copper Head walked quietly up to the figure. It was instantly recognizable that the creature was not a pony. Copper Head wasn’t sure exactly sure what it was, but it looked very dog-like. It stood on two legs and carried things around with its long gangly arms. The creature noticed Copper Head’s approach and stopped. It grabbed the bucket close to its body and gripped it firmly. As if it was some great treasure that Copper Head was about to steal. “What does horsey want?” It croaked, “Horsey comes to steal my bucket?” “Uh no,” Copper Head said calmly, “I just haven’t seen anyone else around. I was hoping you would know the way out of here?” The thing gripped the bucket harder than before and warily replied, “Yes. Buckit knows where the exit is, but monster guards exit. The other horsey’s still haven’t beaten monster. Too fast, even for Buckit.” “Other ‘horseys’? Where are they?” Copper Head hoped that the other ponies in detention would help them. “Can you take us to them?” The dog gripped the bucket again and nodded. Copper Head fetched his allies who were only now starting to wonder where he was. They followed the creature down the path he came, but his long stride made it hard to keep up with him. They wandered into another hallway and were soon back in the maze. “Buckit” as he called himself, kept talking about the other “horseys” and a monster they were trying to get past. It occurred to the ponies that this must be the way out of this place. Buckit himself didn’t leave the labyrinth. He said he liked it there because it was dark, cold, and had an enormous amount of good earth. He boasted that he was almost done building his underground home, but he needed to find a way to get the plumbing working right. The creature droned on and on as they took many twists and turns, but Shadowstorm wasn’t about to let someone talk more than him. “So what are you?” Shadowstorm asked over Buckit’s constant mumblings, “Some sort of mutant groundhog?” “No!” Buckit exclaimed, “I am Buckit! Buckit!” He seemed aggravated by the question, as if the answer should have been obvious. “He’s a diamond dog,” Spot explained. “They are a subterranean species that only appear in certain places. You probably haven’t seen any before because of Cloudwalker Kingdom’s high altitudes.” “Diamonds??” Buckit shuddered, “I don’t need diamonds anymore. Diamonds only get Buckit hurt. Dragons take Buckit’s diamonds and hurt him. No, no more diamonds for Buckit.” The ponies were unsure what Buckit was talking about, but the event obviously had a negative effect on him. The ponies had been following Buckit for a while, and they were getting concerned that the diamond dog was leading them into a trap. However, all suspicions vanished as they rounded one final corner. They had exited the maze and were faced with a huge, imposing gate. Between the group and the gate was a small makeshift camp. Small dwellings were made of rubble that came from nearby sections of broken down walls, and a huge assortment of creatures were weaving their way through the assortment of buildings. There were cloudwalkers, unicorns, earth ponies, pegasi, griffins, zebra, diamond dogs, changelings, and even things none of them had seen before. “I’ll take you to the birdies. They’re in charge.” Buckit stomped his way through the camp as the ponies followed. There was a low buzzing sound that came from a group of changelings gathered around something large. The large thing was a male changeling, but was an amalgamation of parts and pieces. It scowled at the ponies and they quickly trotted by. What Buckit led them to was a command tent, not very big, but big enough that somepony could stand up inside. The Diamond Dog poked his head inside and said something to whoever was inside. There was a rustling and two griffins exited the tent. Buckit said bid them good luck and darted away. The larger griffin was a red male, with a black face. He looked very similar to a cardinal. He wore a stoic expression and seemed uninterested in the newcomers. The smaller griffin was a white female, with black speckles all over her coat. She smiled warmly and was very cheery. “What can we help you with?” The female asked nicely. “We need help getting out of detention as soon as possible.” Copper Head replied. “Our teacher gave us an assignment to get out and our grade is based on how fast we can do it.” “Heh, good luck with that,” the red griffin grunted, “We’ve been here for three days and haven’t found a way past this monster. Word is that this one is legendary. Something you only hear of in fairy tales.” The red griffin circled around them, “The name’s Pherrick by the way. The lovely lady’s name is Branca.” He walked around the group twice and stopped by Branca. “You don’t look all that strong, and I won’t be the first to tell you that we don’t need to babysit any of you. Unlike you, most of us are here for extra credit. One final effort to improve our grade before graduating.” He motioned towards the group of changelings that Copper Head and the others passed by, “Some of us here would kill you just for getting in the way of that goal.” “Oh, quiet you!” Branca nudged Pherrick out of her way, “Why don’t you come inside? We just made some tea, and we can tell you all about what’s going on around here.” Branca delightfully swept them all inside and served the ponies tea. The inside of the tent was lined with papers that had a myriad of “X’s”, “O’s”, and lines drawn all across them. Many of them were crossed out in red while other’s had the word “failure” written on them. “We’ve been having a hard time fighting the monster,” Branca mentioned after she noticed the ponies scrutiny of the tent, “These plans were drawn up to fight it, but they’ve all failed.” “There’s no way we can fight it!” Pherrick interjected, “It can attack almost all of us at the same time, how do you fight something like that?” “Ahem, what exactly is this monster you’re fighting?” Spot questioned, “You mentioned that it was legendary, but you never named it.” The two griffins looked at each other as if telepathically deciding who should tell them. Finally Pherrick spoke, “This creature that we’ve been hunting is called the Enfield. Legend claims that it used to guard one of the four gates of Tartaros. We shouldn’t have to fight something that powerful.” Upon hearing the name “Enfield” Copper Head almost spit out his tea. He had almost forgotten all about it until now. Now that he thought of it, High Noon and the Enfield were what started his journey that brought him there. He determined that if he lived through this, he would ask High Noon the next time he saw him. Copper Head decided to keep quiet, and listen to what the griffin had to say. “The Enfield is small, but it’s size betrays its true powers. It can shoot lightning from its body and the amount of objects it can electrocute simultaneously seems almost infinite.” He touched one of the plans and the wall and continued, “One of us was able to get close to it, but the Enfield was so fast that it cut up his face with its claws before the poor fool knew what hit him.” Shadowstorm hopped up onto the table and struck a semi-heroic pose, “But you have US now!” He blurted out, “With our help, we can take this thing down for sure!” Grand Prix, who was sitting next to him, pulled him down and scolded him about being an idiot. “You think you can do it, huh?” Pherrick contemplated, “I don’t see why you can’t give it a try. I knew a few of the guys want to have another crack at it, I’ll round them up.” The griffin left the tent without another word. Branca cleared the table, but she wasn’t as cheery as she was before. She told them to wait outside the tent and that Pherrick wouldn’t be too long. As Spot was about to leave, she was stopped by the female griffin. “Would you do me a favor, friend?” Spot nodded, “What is it?” “I need you to look out for Pherrick,” she looked nervous, “he may not show it, but he is rather weak from the last battle with the beast. I just want him to be safe and I would rather trust in unicorn magic than cloudwalker magic.” “No problem!” Spot smiled, “I’ll do my best to make sure no one gets hurt!” Branca returned the smile as Spot turned and left the tent. Outside, she rejoined the other three. As promised, it wasn’t long before Pherrick returned with comrades in tow. There were maybe a dozen of them, including the strange male changeling from before. Each of them exchanged names, but they were all normal everyday names. Except for the changeling, who called himself Aberration. Together they marched on the gate. “So here’s the plan.” Pherrick shouted so that they all could hear, “A group of our strongest will charge the beast, while the rest flanks the creature from both sides. When it attacks, the first group will break off, allowing minimal casualties and allowing the flanking group to get in close. Then the main group will be ready to reinforce them. This plan has worked the best so far, so we’re giving it another go.” He started picking out ponies for the main group which Copper Head and Aberration were part of along with Pherrick and two other ponies. Everyone else was split up into two flanking groups and they all paused when they got close to the Enfield. The Enfield is a strange creature. It has the head of a fox, the body and hind legs of a wolf, the wings of and talons of an eagle, and the tail of a lion. It appeared to be sleeping, but a keen observer could see that it had one eye open, carefully observing the group that approached it. Small jolts of electricity crackled along its body at irregular intervals, and small tendrils of lightning would occasionally reach out and zap stray flies that got too close. Pherrick raised one of his talons to stop the group, "Alright, on my signal we will commence the attack." For one heartstopping moment, time seemed to drag on as the anticipation mounted. Shadowstorm looked ready as ever to get into a fight while Grand Prix nonchalantly readjusted her scarf. “Go!” Pherrick commanded and the group ran forward. Copper Head was caught by surprise and ended up in the back of the charging team. A brawny pegasus was the first to reach the Enfield, but the creature was ready for them. With one flap of its wings, it was airborne and preparing to throw a bolt of lightning at the pegasus. The pegasus noticed this and started his retreat, but he was too late. The Enfield sent a bolt of lightning his way. The pegasus closed his eyes and braced for impact, but it never came. He carefully opened his eyes and realized that the creature had missed, but in fact the bolt of lightning was redirected. Copper Head wasn’t expecting to be struck with lightning. He saw it head straight for the other pony, but at the last second, the surge redirected itself right to him. When the bolt of lightning hit him, Copper Head dropped immediately. His entire body burned as every nerve in his body responded with red hot pain. His vision blurred and it was difficult to stay conscious. His head felt close to exploding and thoughts came at a snail’s pace. But the worst part was yet to come; the Enfield’s basic thought processes didn’t realize that it’s lightning bolts were redirect to Copper Head so it still blasted whoever got close. Meaning just as Copper Head had recovered from one strike, he would be hit again multiple times. Spot ran to him, but was unsure what to do; knowing that if she tried to help him, she would get struck as well. Back in the battle, everyone noticed what was happening. They felt sorry for the earth pony, but they couldn’t pass up this opportunity to take down the monster that had been besting them for days. The flanking strategy turned into an all out brawl, but even without its lightning, the monster was able to hold its own in battle. The Enfield was surrounded on all sides, but it’s amazing speed allowed it to outmaneuver its attackers even when faced with such odds. Sometimes it would grab an attacker and lift him off the ground before dropping them back to earth. It took all of the attackers’ effort to keep on the offensive against the Enfield, but they were slowly losing steam. Everything was going downhill until Grand Prix stepped up to face the beast alone. “Shadowstorm!” She yelled out, “I need to use my power to beat this thing.” “What?!? Don’t use your magic! I can’t stand it!” Shadowstorm obviously knew something that the others didn’t. “You’ll hurt everyone else!” “If you use your magic first it won’t affect you! The others will have to bear with it.” Grand Prix had a determined look in her eyes that wasn’t normal. Shadowstorm understood and nodded in response. He used his power to sink into the ground and become a shadow while Grand Prix closed her eyes and concentrated all of her cloudwalker magic. An aura enveloped her as she readied her spell. Then, in the blink of an eye, her power faded. To an onlooker, it would seem that nothing had happened, but the spell’s effects were evident to all those affected. Suddenly feeling the effects of Grand Prix’s magic, the Enfield stumbled and fell to the ground. The cloudwalker’s magic has multiple stages and varies in intensity depending on the strength of the target’s mind. The first stage drains all color from the user’s vision, causing disorientation and inability to judge distance. The second stage causes the black and white to switch rapidly, causing a increased disorientation and even seizures. The final stage is temporary blindness which the victim will eventually recover from. The Enfield’s smaller mind makes it incredibly vulnerable to these stages. It took off in flight, but ended up turning a somersault and crashing into the ground. It shot a few more lightning bolts, but they were just directed at the already unconscious Copper Head. Shadowstorm emerged from his hiding place and caught a hold of the Enfield. The Enfield, unable to fight back, admitted defeat and slumped over in Shadowstorm’s grip. In the distance, a clicking sound indicated the group’s victory and the gate lurched open. Shadowstorm jumped for joy before noticing that the monster was gone, it had dematerialized without him noticing. He ran up to Grand Prix and hugged her. Grand Prix pushed him away, but smiled instead of getting angry. “Grand Prix! You did it!” Shadowstorm congratulated her, “but... what do we do with them?” He motioned to the rest of the team who was in bad shape. Grand Prix’s magic hit them as well with varying effects. Many of them were lying on the ground unconscious, while others ran in circles, and others closed their eyes and vomited violently. “We better get them back, it will be awhile before my magic wears off.” Shadowstorm agreed and helped Grand Prix carry everyone back to the makeshift camp. Everyone there was excited that the Enfield was finally defeated, but were sad that their fellow teammates had suffered from Grand Prix’s magic. The only one they couldn’t move was Copper Head. He was covered in burns and any attempt to pick him up would have harmed him more. The unicorns were unable to lift him with their magic, because it wouldn’t work on him for some reason. They all decided to give up on trying to move him, and instead erected a shelter for him. Many came to visit the earth pony, but few actually stayed. Not even Grand Prix or Shadowstorm could bear to look at this mangled form. The only ones that never left his side were Spot... and strangely enough the changeling called Aberration.