//------------------------------// // II // Story: The Platinum Deception // by NeverEatTheLemonsAlone //------------------------------// Void. All around was whiteness. Floating alone through the neverending nothing, a single speck of green light shone. It was a pale green unicorn, her mane and tail a shade rather more like grass or leaves, lying unconscious on an invisible, intangible expanse of white. She groaned, slowly wobbling to her hooves, and looked around. “Wh…where am I?” Her voice echoed strangely through the vast blank world. It was rather…disconcerting. She attempted to move forwards, but felt nothing at all beneath her hooves. It seemed all she could do was stand in place. Whatever this place was, it clearly obeyed different laws than the world she was used to. ”Hello? Is there anypony out there? There was a faint chuckle that came from everywhere at once, then nothing. Clover, naturally, did not take kindly to this. She attempted to stomp her hoof, but ended up accomplishing nothing, and so she contented herself with anger. Do you find this funny, wherever and whoever you are? Well, I don’t. Now tell me where I am!” Oh my, she’s so sure of herself. I wonder, does she understand the situation at all? I wouldn’t do anything hasty… Another faint chuckle faded away into the light. Clover scowled. ”If you won’t tell me where I am, then I’ll find out on my own! Her voice dropped to a low mumble as she thought through complex spells, then her horn lit up. Oh dear, look what you’ve done now. I warned you not to do anything without thinking. A low rumble began to resonate through the nothingness, and Clover could feel her body shaking. She dimmed her horn instantly, but it wasn’t enough; the sound persisted, gradually growing louder until she could feel her teeth rattling in her head from the sheer volume. Then, all around her, eyes began to open up, each one fixing her with an unblinking gaze. Well, it appears that you’ve woken It up. I shant keep you. You’ll be busy. You’re in his world now, after all! There was a final drawn-out cackle as cracks began to open in the blankness, jagged lines of black line splitting through the void as the sound grew exponentially louder. Hurricane could nearly feel her skull caving in. As she watched with dread, forced down by the sound and unable to do anything else, long tendrils of pure darkness began to seep through the cracks, reaching for her. Closer…closer… GASP She awoke and bolted up, chest heaving, in a small bed. Cold sweat ran down her face and her heart beat faster than ever before. Nothing in her life, not anything on the journey, had even come close to matching the sheer, heart-stopping terror that she’d felt just now. She choked in air as her head swung wildly around, absorbing her surroundings. After what felt like hours, but must’ve been only minutes, the adrenaline that flooded her system began to seep out again, and she could recognize where she was. “The hospital…?” she mumbled. “What am I doing here?” Early morning sunlight poured through the window, though something seemed…rather odd about that. She struggled to remember what it was for a moment, until her razor-sharp mind cut through the cobwebs in her brain and she fully recalled the events of what appeared to be the previous day. Her eyes grew wide as she remembered what happened to Platinum, and she thrust herself out of bed and onto the floor, upon which her legs collapsed under her with barely any resistance. One of the doctors rushed in, concern evident on his face. “Easy there, Clover. You’ve absorbed so much magic into your arcane system that it’s a wonder you’re still breathing. That much raw power would’ve killed any normal pony.” Clover gritted her teeth, slowly standing up. The doctor gaped with obvious amazement as she seemingly shook off the effects of the powerful magic surge with little detriment. She looked him dead in the eyes, daring him to tell her to get back in bed, then hobbled past him, kept going by sheer willpower. I need to…get to the castle. Have to…find Platinum. I can do this. As she opened the door to the street with her telekinesis, her head was assaulted with a sudden lance of indescribable pain. She gasped, releasing the magic, and the pain ceased nearly instantly, though a dull ache was left as a reminder. She grimaced. Okay, no magic. No big deal. Making her way up the thoroughfare, a task she’d done hundreds of times, if not thousands, without even thinking, now felt like journeying to the Homeland and back. Each meter was a harsh breath, each breath a bolt through her lungs. Still, she struggled on through the sparsely-populated early morning street, giving a wide berth to the few ponies that did happen to pass. By the time she made it to the castle, nearly an hour had passed and the city was beginning to come alive. She reached the drawbridge, grateful that it was early enough that it was still down, and made her way into the castle proper. The ponies around her looked at her as though she were insane. She chuckled dryly. I suppose I do look it, hobbling around through the castle like an invalid. It didn’t help that most of these ponies had rarely even seen her, given her habit of teleporting directly where she wanted to go. At long last, she reached her destination: the Founders’ Chamber. Bursting through the door, she half-expected to see Platinum there, drinking tea, but of course, there was nopony there. The air was still buzzing, crackling with invisible arcs of pure energy, and Clover grunted as she felt the headache intensify dramatically. Each hoofstep forward was like a mountain on her back, and it slowly worsened as she approached Platinum’s chair. After what felt like days, she reached it, physically and mentally exhausted. There was a sound of hoofsteps at the door. Clover looked up, eyes dull, to see her teacher standing there, staring at her aghast. Her mouth formed into some facsimile of a smile. “Hello, Star Swirl.” He quietly paced over, looking her up and down. “The doctors told me what happened to you. I was on the other side of Equestria at the moment, so by the time I reached the hospital you were long gone. By the Gods, Clover, what did you do to yourself?” She sighed and collapsed into the chair. “Something happened yesterday, Star, and I’m not altogether sure I can handle it on my own.” The older unicorn’s ears flattened. That was perhaps the third time he’d ever heard her say that. Something was very, very wrong. “Clover, what happened here? I can feel more magic in the air than I’ve ever felt in one place.” She chuckled weakly. “I was visiting Platinum. Sit down, and I’ll tell you the story.” He nodded and took a seat in the closest chair to him, the one belonging to Hurricane, then turned to her. Her faint smile dropped, and she began to speak. “So I was in my cave, writing…”