Turns out there was no battle but it was only time for dinner.
To this extent I bid Bella and Scattershot to eat while I stayed behind. Perhaps break the walls of the heroin, see if she has kindness yet undetected. The two mares smiled, but I saw the dust and the debris of travel on them. The rest was well deserved for such delicate creatures, as they were not trained to be brilliantly athletic or eternally spotless, unlike myself.
Grassy Knoll understood my concerns and waited for me back at the desk. Her eyes skimmed the pages of the tome as I returned. “Don’t worry about Tempest. Her loyalty to the village seems to have turned into paranoia, but it’s all with good intent, I’m sure.”
“Then you know her?” I asked. “Has she always been like this? My olive branch is met with only reproach.”
Knoll drew her head from the book to look at me. “Trust me, she’s probably not used to the help, especially from guys. The titans, they came from the volcano. In the night they slipped into the homes and abducted all the males, be they adults or children. For what malicious purpose we have yet to figure out. Even after that terrible ordeal, they tried to attack again, and that’s when Tempest appeared. She’s a regular idol around here, you know, and the ponies here adore her and treat her like a sister.”
“A hero to what end?”
“No compensation, only to help us in this grave time of need. She’s been this town’s protector ever since that caldera formed where there was once a lush hillside.”
“Where does such a gallant heroin hale from?”
“I’m not quite sure. She flew from a cloud and told us not to fear of any other attacks. We were all tormented and skeptical, though she swiftly dispatched the monsters, but I think she expects them daily now. I don’t remember the last time they attacked, but she seems certain they will strike again soon.”
“An idyllic gift from the sky. How fortunate.”
“Think of it what you will, but she is good and she is an unwavering protector. She colors us with hope, something we all once abandoned. As she fights back, we see ourselves in her and realize we too can rise up against this darkness. Maybe that’s why we still have our color.” She paused, observing her hoof: a light green dulled by soot, though still a beautiful shade. “Why don’t you go see her? Who knows? Maybe she just needs someone to talk to.”
“The mouth of a cannon is safer than the mouth of an angered mare.”
Knoll laughed. “You seem like someone she’d warm up to.”
The connotations and undertones of the remark left me a little unsettled, though I did not blush. “What has her origins and her motives clouded in enigma, this I must discover.”
She looked me in the eyes, gentle and benign. “Thank you, Sir Ostentatious. She should be in the café down the street. Good luck!” I nodded to her and turned to leave. Knoll returned to the pages religiously.
***
Upon the streets sprouted a few homes and the familiar streets of vitreous earth. As instructed, I followed the paths to the foretold café at the base of the mountain, a peculiar scene meeting me: three mares, Bella, Scattershot, and the vexatious Tempest were gathered around a table. The table positively glowed with laughter and good tidings, Tempest offering jubilations to spare. I heaved a sigh of relief. Friendly grins looked over a card game as cathartic sounds of joy and dismay drifted in the air. I could hear Tempest’s voice from afar.
“I can fly faster and higher than any other Pegasus here! The sky’s the only limit for me.”
I approached the table, Scattershot and Bella greeting me kindly, though Tempest did not notice me. Her eyes remained fixed on the cards in front of her. She flipped a final card, forgetting her ignorance of me and chuckled proudly. Apparently she had won or something to that reasoning as Scattershot bowed her head in defeat and sighed. “Do you want to take over for me, Ostentatious?” Scattershot wondered.
“Hey! I thought it was Bella’s turn!” Tempest interjected.
“No problem!” Chirped Bella. “Osten hasn’t played yet, and I’m sure he’d enjoy this game!”
I shrugged and said, “That sounds marvelous.” I shot a confident smirk at Tempest. Scattershot and I shifted places as Tempest huffed and scooped up the cards.
“A guy’s idea in a card game is war and cowardice.” Tempest mocked, spreading the cards across the table to shuffle them.
“And yours, my lady, is that of a combination of larceny, embezzlement, and deceit.” She merely scoffed and tucked the cards together into a neat deck.
A hoof dealing out cards, she began to explain the rules. “The rules are simple so you won’t have to think that hard.” Cards began to fly from the top of the deck to the table like sumptuous eagles. “I deal out six cards. We each take turns flipping up cards until all the cards are up, then we count up our points. Whoever has the most points wins.”
“A game of chance? What will this prove?”
“Hey, if you don’t want to play, that’s fine. You can go read a book or something while us girls play.” She motioned to clear the cards.
My legs tensed at the smugness she radiated, like a cloud of poison. “Oh I’ll play your game. Ladies first.”
Tempest snorted and took her lead. She looked over the green faces of the six cards. With the beat of a wing, a current flew to the card of her choice and flipped it over, revealing a nine.
An admirable start, though I reacted and chose the card to my left: an unimpressive four. Tempest’s reaction was obscured by her mask, goggles shining like justice.
“Quite a good poker face.” I complimented. “Perhaps the mask is an advantage. Why not take it off? The heat must punish thy skin most brutally.”
“I’ll manage.” She let out, eyes determined and choosing her next card carefully. Another created wind swooped across the table and picked up her second card: a ten.
I flicked my head upwards, my horn responding well. The rhythm of the heart of the cards carried me back into the potential winner’s arena: my choice revealed an ace. Bella gasped.
“What luck!” Tempest let out as she continued to study the blank backs of the cards. With two cards left, she chose the card directly in front of her: a queen.
I pursed my lips and pondered the numbers. She ended with a score of thirty one, while I only had a score of eighteen. Motionless, I flipped the last remaining card, pondering Lady Luck’s current opinion of me.
She seemed to have an affinity for me, as I drew from Tempest exclamations of disbelief as I revealed the regal king atop his throne. Though victory belonged to no one, the tied score was enough to shake her devotion to the game’s infallible qualities in deciding another pony’s worth.
I smiled and chuckled at the fortuitous circumstance. “How beautiful maleness is, if it finds the right expression. Shall we play again?”
“Nah.” She waved a deep blue hoof of dismissal. “I’m bored of this game. You three play. I’ve got stuff to do, anyway.” Disinclined to wait for a response, her wings picked her above the table and she flew over the dirty roofs and disappeared in a trail of scarlet.
“Hmph. Frailty, thy name is mare.” I hissed.
“Don’t be too hard on her, Ostentatious.” Scattershot soothed.
“She was fine a minute ago.” Bella added with a shrug. “I guess she just doesn’t like you.”
I hung my head at the comment. “Irrationally perhaps?”
“I’m sure she’ll warm up to you as time goes by.” Assured Scattershot, a friendly smile shining. “She was talking to Bella and I like we were long lost friends.”
Streets began to grow empty along with the adjacent tables. The three of us walked from the table back to the Knoll’s home. “We don’t have that kind of time.” I replied. “Tomorrow I will embark to the center of the volcano and destroy the source of these homunculus monsters.”
“By yourself? You sure?” Worried Scattershot.
“I entreat thee, do not fret on my account, for I shall not be alone. Our valiant friend will surely go with me. You two will stay in town to ready the townspeople in case of the worst.”
“Don’t talk like that guy!” Bella laughed, playfully punching me with a hoof. “I’m sure you didn’t come all this way just to lose in some stuffy volcano. If any of the books I’ve read are right, then the hero never fails!”
I laughed. “A kind gesture, though is that what I am? A simple storybook character to be molded by the whim of an author? I am my own pony, whimsical Bella, though I do prophesize my safe return, rest assured.” Bella giggled.
As we neared the door to the home, a crash was heard. As something came in the window, it was the sound of a crescendo. A beast came into the apartment and left magma stains on the carpet. She ran underneath the table, but the monster could see she was unable. We ran into the bedroom, she was struck down. It was her doom.
“Knoll are you okay?” I called.
Sprawled out beneath shards of wood and broken table laid Knoll, out cold from the blow. An igneous fist retracted itself by its master’s side, a sharpened and spiky monstrosity. It towered fiercely over our frames and looked to strike. Blackened blades of molten biotite and hornblende protruded from the creature’s shoulders and other parts of the body like armor. This bastion of thermal destruction raised sunken eyes towards us, flames burning wildly. A jagged mouth opened and let out a thick cloud of smoke with a terrible groan. It lifted a leg and an earthquake shook the earth with every step. Swiftly it brought down a hammering fist to crush us.
In the wake we escaped, though we were out of the frying pan and into its line of fire. It targeted me and employed unexpected speed in its shuffle. An unnatural and unsettling limp brought the creature across the room and to my fallen body. Stone fingers wrapped themselves around my neck and drew me into the air. Burning sensations stormed across my neck, the hellish nails and fingers scalding and charring my neck and tightening their grip. Awkwardly, I struggled to free myself from the grip of death, this figure of vice simply looking on me without emotion. I could not get out the words to scold the beast’s unruly temper as my eyes fluttered with darkness.
The abyss shunned me, for a piercing screech broke my stupor. I fell from the control along with the arm of the monster. Never before had I been so glad to see that shield of scarlet.
Tempest planted herself on the ground and reveled in the abomination’s scream. Leaning in her head to the suffering titan, she asked, “Need a hand?”
The distraction drew the beast off of me and towards the heroin, though I caught the weakness of the creature: A small green insignia firmly placed upon the upper back of the titan. Tempest nodded to me, and I knew my task. Silently I collected a small palette of magic to sculpt a crude missile. I cast the magic missile at the darkness, colliding with the horror’s mark. From the collision drew another piercing scream as hands frantically threw themselves at their master’s back to remove the offender, though the enchantment had seeped its poison in and undone the incantation. Fingers crumbled with the body as an inanimate pile of rocks and stones replaced the terrible fiend.
Bella and Scattershot tended to Knoll as Tempest approached me. Without a word she helped me regain my balance. “How was that for frail?”
I laughed but stopped as pain flashed in my neck. “Uncanny how you heard that and knew to come to our aid, don’t you think?”
“What?! You’re saying I followed you?”
“Perhaps spying on us.” I raised an eyebrow. Tempest giggled.
She examined my neck’s wounds. “The burns shouldn’t be that severe. They’ll be good in the morning, as you should be if we’re going to the citadel.” I smiled back at her.
Knoll got herself to her hooves. Woozy from the attack, Scattershot took her to a nearby bed. Bella came towards Tempest and I.
“Knoll’s good!” Bella piped with a grin. “She’s just a little unconscious.”
“And if this is any indication of the future, these monster’s will be on us by tomorrow.” I turned to Tempest. “We’ll embark in the morning for the mountain.”
She thought for a moment, but the thoughts released themselves and painted Tempest with an unusually friendly air. She smiled. “It’s true. You are from Equestria.”
***
“Dear handsome log of adventures,
I’ve gone without diligence in this practice, and I must rectify the mistake. Tomorrow I will save this town, even if that means joining forces with Tempest. I know not her intentions, but I believe she will enlighten me soon enough. A foreign nature surrounds here, a thick coating of mystery with a hidden center. I shall break this shell and draw the secret from her. I hear something at the wall, perhaps you, father? I must cut this short.
-Sir Ostentatious”
Neither elegant moon nor eloquent sun presented their effects on the charred land. For what I could only assume was morning, I awoke to the tapping of glass outside. No one else stirred. Silently I slipped through the doorway to meet Tempest. From the obsidian floor she floated to lead our trek to the colony of devils. The cadence of her wing beats drummed me on in harmony with my steps.
Pyromania and pyroclastic geysers dotted the sloped path from the sleepy town to metamorphic faces of the volcano. Breaths became polluted with soot and we could go no further. Thankfully, as any good hero of the land would, Tempest directed me to an obtuse boulder protruding rather oddly from a sunken in portion of terrain. Dislodging the obstruction, Tempest revealed a pathway big enough for our bodies to walk comfortably, though darkness lined the walls and suffocated the passageway. Inside the smell of sulfur assaulted our senses and made Tempest gag. A frigid wind drew us in.
“I’ll let you get this one first.” She said when she recovered. A simple illumination charm propped itself upon the tip of my horn to herald us into this new hell. Tempest followed.
The road was marred with nothingness and the unbearable smell, so naturally the time seemed as valuable as ever to talk. “So, what is your story, Tempest?”
“Huh? Why do you want to know?”
“All ponies are siblings, like the seas throughout the world, so why do our winds and waves clash so fiercely?”
She snorted. “Fine, I’ll humor you. I’m from a different village where the same thing happened here where monsters came to take the stallions away. My dad told us not to interfere, though my mom was too strong too let them take them all away without a fight. He said if we let him go the monsters would not come after us. But he’s an idiot for thinking that kind of evil would go by their word. So without a fight or a word he was gone. They demand to be the guards and protectors and demand to make all the decisions. They believe they are without wrong, but this was a purge of the illogical.”
“So you idolize your mother?” I asked.
“Heh, yeah. She was great. No one could take her away from a fight, especially when those monsters came.” She paused. “So they took the fight from her. Dad didn’t seem to notice.”
We wallowed in the awkward silence now casting its shadow over us. This crevice seemed to run to the center of the earth. I racked my brain to think of something neutral to say.
“Do you know I fight on for my own father?” I asked when I could finally cut the stillness of speech. “He was a valiant stallion until the bitter end.”
“I’ll wait until I see it. It even remains to be seen in you. Guys don’t fight, they accept. I’m the example these ponies here need, to show them that they can fight on by themselves!”
“You’ve got a very general idea of me. I’ll indulge you as well: Every mare is a rebel, and usually in wild revolt against herself.” I finished, not looking back to meet her eyes.
“Girls also have an air of mystery you cannot hope to shatter. I don’t know if you’ve ever heard the story of the girl who saved a ship from mutiny by taking a torch and sitting atop a dozen powder kegs, though she knew full well the kegs were empty. Mares keep the world in order by sitting on the mysteries of life, and knowing themselves that there was no mystery.” Tempest laughed in the dimness.
I shook my head. “For my part, I distrust all generalizations about women, favorable and unfavorable, masculine and feminine, ancient and modern. All alike, they result from paucity of experience.” Tempest did not answer nor laugh.
An orange glow in the distance drew a silence over us as we advanced. Miraculously, our passage lead us to what appeared to be the center of this mountain. No pools or plumes of lava rushed with vigor, but rather an empty room of a single artifact. Tsunamis of heat and pressure pounded upon our coat and hooves. In the center of this room, the artifact atop a pedestal shined a vibrant rusty color. An orb of a genuine and familiar quality, the kind used to store magic. The kind that also breaks into a rather nice series of pieces when colliding with the ground.
That thought seemed to not set well with the globe. Swirling smog and gas within the article grew vicious and boisterous as the ground shook. Hands like daggers shot up through the floor. Many of them, though they congregated around one spot in front of the mystical orb. Thickness and a rectangular armored body began to rise and take form as the final and ultimate guardian of this domain.
I allowed the opponent to form, as to initiate a proper fight, though Tempest was less inclined. “What are you doing?!” She cried as her wings kicked into shape and spaced herself between the monster. “Go for the orb!”
I suppose such evil did not deserve cordial battle etiquette, thus I took her advice and began to gallop. In circles I charged around the behemoth, charging spell shots and firing them at its perimeter, hoping to stumble upon the seal. Tempest took to gliding through the air to pierce or slice the monster’s armor, though no such advancements were made. A full circle around the fortress revealed no such weakness, as the other titan had bared. Crouching over its treasure, the massive titan surrounded the orb with its body, unbreakable and impenetrable.
Offensive measures did not faze the protector, but it also did not seek to harm us. The titan chuckled a deep and earthy rumble. As it finished, its mouth remained open. From some unknown location, a voice distinctly not belonging to this titan swept through the room. “Water water everywhere, not a drop to drink!” The voice cackled.
“Who goes there?!” I demanded, throwing my head in all directions. Tempest landed beside me, goggles flaring in the flaming glows.
“How convenient!” The voice lighted up. “Both targets in one place: Ostentatious, the upstart, and Tempest, the hero. You know, you two are the reason the village is still under attack, mainly you, Tempest.”
Tempest did not speak. “How did you discover our names? Why is the town still under barrage?” I demanded.
“So demanding, huh?” Mockery did not scratch my resolve. “You two do not fit into the game, so you must be removed from the board.”
“I will resist thee, yet Tempest is but a fair mare, what has she done to disturb this plan?”
There was a pause. Was it thinking or pondering something? The voice stammered for a moment, then melted into maniacal and ghastly laughter. Fits of it bounced around the walls of the room and startled Tempest and I well. Unbridled delight, almost to a malicious and hellish degree. As it stopped, the voice drew a breath to regain its composure. “Ah, I see. What a good mask, Tempest.”
I didn’t follow. “I don’t follow,” I said.
“I didn’t think so. Here, I’ll help you out, Ostentatious. Don’t say I don’t do anything for you, buddy.” The evil snickered and faded for a moment as the behemoth hacked and coughed. A wave in its body climbed its throat and was regurgitated, the molten projectile clinging itself to Tempest’s face. The bomb knocked her off her hooves and she was sprawled on the heated ground, screaming as the magma began to eat through her mask. Pain only lashed out for a moment before, from above our scene, a cool inundation remedied the searing offender and removed all traces of it from Tempest’s delicate features.
“A test of loyalty, my friend, for such an egregious liar! The masquerade and ‘hide and seek’ game is over. See what you can do about it, Ostentatious. Prove you are that little king you think you are. As a bonus, though, I’ll let you have this one.”
With the remark the voice had vanished and evaporated into the thickness. The behemoth also melted away into the floor as the orb felt fresh air upon its frame. A smile shot to my face. I looked to Tempest, but she was no more.
“Tempest…?” My voice trailed off. No burns upon the face, but an astounding and stark shift of physical definitions. Those goggles and the mask were no more and were gone with the lava, leaving only the hidden face of what could no longer be who I had ventured into this volcano with. Hooves finally flew away from the face and a new sort of jaw emerged. Tempest stood back up, but who was this new form? Those familiar magenta and scarlet strikes in Tempest’s mane remained as did the deep blue coat, but once rounded facial features were now rectangular. Pupils lacked that previously seen sparkle and lead to eyes devoid of luscious eyelashes. The pony, no longer Tempest, stood up to face me.
He tried to look me in the eye, but failed and hung his head in shame. “It was a good mask. It was my mom’s most generous gift. My dad didn’t see hope, but she did and fought on for me.” That feminine yet gruff voice was now only gruff.
What kind of sorcery…I was dumbfounded. “But you knew the titan’s were after you, and you still stayed in town?” I managed to get out.
“No!” Tempest, er…no, his head shot up to defend himself. “Even after the initial abductions they returned! I am this town’s protector!” The heat of the volcano was palpable. Not waiting for me to respond, he recalled the orb. A thunderous kick fired the orb into the side of the wall, shards of glass falling to the floor and the smoke escaping into the air. As it dissipated, earthquakes and seismic activity rocked our battlefield and threatened to cave in around us. Pieces of this most peculiar and irregular puzzle were still being added in my head before I realized he had picked me up and flown me out of the cave. The grip was dainty.
The outside world greeted my confusion with a smile as instead of landing upon volcanic earth, grass met our hooves. Final rocks hit the cave floor and sealed away the evil. That malicious caldera had vanished along with the hazardous air and geysers. A quiet wind flowed across the lush hillside and flowers swayed in the breeze. Upon the village of obsidian now grew verdant fields and flourishing vegetation abound. The sky was still blanketed over with grimness, though the ground was pleasant to stand upon now. He tested the realness of this amazing new landscape by leaning down to a few blades and tasting them. I did the same: a heavenly taste. We had succeeded.
I trotted away from him, unable to resolve this perplexity in his presence. He noticed and flew in front of me to stop me. “Hey, Ostentatious! What’s wrong? We beat them! The village is finally saved!”
I blinked. In that statement, I ignored the voice or the speaker. In the words I felt the same valor Tempest exuded. “You’re right!” I said, realigning my smile. “We did!” I chuckled and stamped my hoof. “Another day, another demon!”
He tried to laugh but it fell short
“What will you tell the villagers?” I asked. “I believe I can see them forming some sort of congress.”
He threw his head back to the village and saw the many heads behind fences and buildings marvel in the new green arena. At first he was shocked, though acceptance grew on him. A breeze picked up his mane. “I have been loyal to them, and that’s all I wanted to be when I came here. I can only hope I am still the same to them.”
I put a hoof on his back. “I don’t think you’ve hit the sky yet, my friend. You’ve discovered a new continent here, Tempest.”
He snorted and looked back to me. “Tempest is the other me. My name is Sirocco.”
***
As one could have imagined, the looks and stares which Sirocco and I received as we returned to the town symbolized mixed results. Whispers in the crowd asked who I was with. Some were too elated to be concerned. Others were simply confused. Bella, Scattershot, and Grassy Knoll emerged from the street to greet us. Bewilderment met them readily as well as Sirocco approached the three mares. He flew to a nearby table and stood atop it, preparing for a proclamation.
“My friends! Please listen to me!” Now all those eyes and their eyes lashes looked on with colorful arrays of confusion. “I am Sirocco, not Tempest. Tempest was heroin, but am I not a hero? I hope that my achievements are still that I have fought for what was right and fair, that I have risked that which mattered, and that I gave help to those who were in need. Perhaps I may have left this town a better place for what I’ve done, even if it was at the cost of a lie. For that’s what a mare, a mother wants: to teach her child to take an interest in life. She knows it’s safer for the child to be interested in another pony’s happiness than to believe in his own.”
He hopped down from the table. “I cannot expect you to forgive me for the lie, so I will let myself out.” His head drooped as he expected and accepted his fate to be cast out, though he met a barrier. Sorrowful eyes met a mare blocking his way. Many of them in fact. Leading the blockade was Grassy Knoll. She put a hoof on Sirocco’s chin and raised it up to meet her.
“Why did you stay here, Te—“ Knoll faltered. “Sirocco. They were after you all along…”
He picked his head up. “Every time they struck I made sure no one fell to them! I took every precaution to keep this town safe!” Though as he realized he had only solidified the status of his deceit, his head slipped away again. “I am a coward. It’s my destiny.”
Knoll, for some reason, found his reply amusing. “A coward would go into an active volcano and remove this monstrous threat and return to us our green?”
Sirocco’s eyes widened. I could tell they had a twinkle in them.
“It’s a lovely day today. Why not stay a while, hero?” She looked to her support with a smile, then back to Sirocco. “I think we’d all like you to stick around for a while.”
Cheers roared throughout the crowd. All the mares of the town had picked Sirocco off of his hooves and put him above the crowd, showing their trophy to the world. As he rode the crowd, Sirocco could not speak. Eyes welled with tears at the unexpected results and the crowd traveled off to the café. The hero never fails.
***
That college of mares all gathered to see our quartet off before we ventured once more into this mad, mad world. Sirocco stood alongside our squad. I was quite happy for the recent gender configuration, as that meant he now bore the task to bear our bags. The whole town wished him well and wished him the best. Grassy Knoll approached the stallion.
“I guess this is goodbye for now.” She said, raising a hoof to shake, her color superbly matching with the fresh grass.
Sirocco nodded. “Such a beautiful color.” He said, raising his own hoof.
“We owe it all to you.” She put her hoof down and embraced him, startling Sirocco, though he soon returned the embrace. Warmth fluttered into the air and revitalized the area. Finally they released each other, our group heading off into the world as we waved goodbye to the group behind us.
As they faded into the distance, Bella raised a question. “So Sirocco, how did you get such a mask?”
“Well, my mom got it for me from a bazaar near my old town.”
I paused. “Do you know what direction such a marketplace would be?”
Sirocco thought for a moment. “I think I traveled on the northern wind, so south of here. What are you thinking?”
“If we find that kind of magic, we may find an even greater source. A glorious lead!” I expressed amusement triumphantly and audibly. The mouth of the meadow’s cave presented itself and we exited. Grass was swiftly replaced by rock as we were left in the unknown once more. Tender light in its traditional beam broke through those sky blockades for a well deserved delivery. A new card I eagerly watched as it twirled in its angelic travel. Gracefully it floated to my hoof and rested itself neatly and face up. Glee welled in my heart as the sun bid me farewell and went back to its slumber. “Prodigal.”
“A new direction and a new guardian for our crusade!” I stood on my hind legs, allowing my other two to flow freely in happiness. I could hear it, a lovely plot advancement calling to me in the south. As my hooves met floor, I took off to the song, beckoning the others to follow. Sirocco, Bella, and Scattershot followed as our southern bound charge of the light brigade.
--End of Book Two--