//------------------------------// // All a matter of perspective // Story: Dead Birds // by Stray Dog Kane //------------------------------// “So, I figure, what’s next?” Gilda said, moving a checker piece. “I hardly understand this magic crud, and now it’s trying to drive me crazy. Best move is to stop caring, I think.” As Gilda prattled, her opponent Angel the bunny, moved his piece. “I mean, it’s not like it matters,” she added I’m still going to lose,” and she moved her piece again. Angel then moved his promptly, jumping over four of hers and scooping them off the board. He made the mistake of blowing a raspberry at the losing griffon, cue the board and remaining pieces flying with the sweep of her claw. While Angel ducked, Gilda let herself smile. “Damn, that felt good,” she said to herself. Sure she was picking up later, but that was cathartic. Angel, however, looked upset by her actions. “Yeah, yeah you were winning,” Gilda said smugly. “I got that. Bite me, I don’t care.” “You always seem to be that sore loser, Gilda,” A voice behind her said. As the griffon had been getting used to this, she didn’t even turn to face the weirdo. Good news: it was someone new. “What is it?” Gilda asked with a checker pieces in her claw, still not turning to face Discord. “You doing that check up now?” “Indeed,” he said. In not even a snap of it’s fingers, both him and her were now in chairs facing each other. "And I'm not a walrus," He waved his arms. "Note the lack of flippers." He showed his claw and paw. “Clearly not flippers, don’t you see?” "And that stupid tooth?" Gilda deadpanned, pointing that detail out. "As a cigar is a cigar, a tooth is a tooth, but enough about that G,” Discord said whimsically as he put his fingers together. “We've got a few things to discuss." "Uh huh?" Gilda said cautiously. She knew this wasn’t going to be fun. Well, fun for her any way. That snake walrus looked like he was going to enjoy hearing her groan. “What it about?” “You did give Fluttershy and I quite a fright this morning,” said Discord. “She called upon me after she found you. And from what she had told me I’ve had some doubts that you followed the good doctor's orders.” He rose his eyebrow...thing. “Do you understand why?” “Took that pill,” Gilda answered with a shrug. “So?” “Yes you did,” Discord said with that eyebrow now lowered and his eyes more narrow than possible. “And I’m guessing you didn’t keep either your eyes or beak shut while you traversed, am I right?” “So what?” Gilda said dismissively. “So, I saw some freak--things with eyes and tentacles.” She grimaced then, just the memory was unpleasant enough, but she shook it off. “One even got me for a sec before the others jumped him.” She let her usual smugness cover it, or tried too. “Freaky, but meh. Just more stupid weird stuff.” “If I told you some were windigos in a more natural habitat, would you believe me?” Discord’s face was now normal, aside from that silly grin as Gilda looked back unblinking. “I know, quite a stretch!” he mocked briefly. “Those stupid winter things?” Gilda replied with some surprise. “Every Hearth's Warming those things feel like a bigger joke.” She let herself chuckle at the absurdness. “I bet those losers ain’t so dangerous as they say they are.” She could see Mr. Discord only looked less pleasant as she went on. His smugness was now a frown. “Do you wish to tell me no griffons fear them?” he asked. “Guess those things like ponies, what can I say?” Gilda still chuckled, leaning back in her chair. “More flavorful, huh?” “You can say not to joke about them,” Discord sighed. The lack of humor in his voice seemed abrupt, even killing Gilda humor for a moment. Her own smug humor dropping as he bent his head closer to her. “They can only manifest in Equestria to a limited degree to feed. Back where they live, they can do much worse as they prey on each other. Or other white meat, as they wait for another opportunity.” “Opportunity?” Gilda asked, wide eyed. “Being things that feed on hate and cold, they look for sources,” he continued. “Places they know the way to, consistent places that are common enough knowledge to them.” as Discord continued, his chair disappeared and he began pointing to a small graphy--thing that had not been there before. It had the monster she saw, shapely and all, causing the griffon to cringe a little. Beneath the picture was some writing, a simple caption of “do not want”. “Equestria is being just one of the places they go to from that void,” he added as Gilda looked on. “But they can go near anywhere.” “That void?” Gilda asked, now quite curious. “That the place I go when the world...um, melted?” “It’s something like a dimension, or even a dream.” Discord said. “A bit of a hard concept for your griffon mind to handle,” he explained as the graph-thing flipped over to reveal a mass of black with a new caption. “You just keep thinking until you go insane to make sense. It’s all that big.” It read, and the griffon only scoffed back. “Try me,” Gilda said with crossed arms. “I just saw some lights and wind noises. So what’s so big about it?” “And if I told you that Fluttershy told me it looked like something else to her?” Discord’s smugness was back again. “If only before she shut her eyes again in fear.” “Something else?” Gilda raised a brow. “Then again, what doesn’t scare that pony?” Discord chuckled as he turned another page, revealing another picture, a blank page with a dot calling itself a map. The dot being marked as “Perceived reality here (except when otherwise).” Gilda let out a grumble. “Well that just stupid.” “The minds of most sentient creatures see things like that in different ways,” Discord replied, but could see Gilda head shaking. She didn’t believe any of this. “Imagine, if you will, a dimension that your own eyes couldn't see. Or could see, but it was beyond the mind's own ability to comprehend.” He looked more smug on this, and even as Gilda was more annoyed he carried on. She grumbled as she faceclawed. “I’ve seen people who saw such places such as great battles there. Or a road, or an empty city…” Then Discord’s features looked unimpressed, but still had a laugh. “...and one fool who saw that beyond as a bunch of ladies with handbags in a muddy field.” “Hand bags?” Gilda asked, eyes wide by the absurdity of the mental image. “Are you part eagle or parrot, Gilda?” he joked, but the griffon huffed at that. “Like you got anything cool, dork,” with Gilda’s snarkiness, her beak fell off. For a moment she was shocked and beak-less, but soon had an angry look. She simply picked up her beak to put back on her face. The snake walrus had a chuckle as Gilda checked to see if it worked, opening and closing her mouth before speaking. “That magic is overpowered, dweeb,” Gilda added angrily. “You trying to be cute now?” “No, this is cute.” To Gilda, Discord’s smile and the eyes just said so much wrong now. The same for his tone, as well the petals and sparkles the now circled him. “Perhaps a bit too cute, G?” he said in a suggestive voice. “Or would you like something as delightful?” His now misty eyed features were smooth and creepy inviting, and the griffon shrank back with horror of a different kind. “Oh, heck no!” she yelled. Discord let out another laugh at Gilda’s response as he changed back. But despite Discord’s enjoyment, he still sighed and went to a more humorless tone. “Still, I believe the fact Fluttershy found you screaming, and the fact your skin was cold to the touch does give reason for you to be worried.” He wasn’t being smug on this, just direct. The griffon blinked and gulped. “Even you wouldn't want to see the gates of delirium, and the thoughts that dwell there.” “The wha...?” Gilda was taken aback a bit, even with all this drivel. “What the heck is the gates of delirium?” she asked, wishing for a straight answer. He instead answered by flipping to a page with the simple words “A reality is just what we tell each other it is.” Gilda piffed, lost for words or patience either. “Except when otherwise,” Discord added. “Reality's little more than walls, and with enough magic walls do break down. And with reality, so to do minds.” “Lame,” was Gilda opinion on that statement. “What’s with you and all this big talk? Are you going to tell me what’s up with this ‘gates of delirium’ crud or what?” He then flipped to another page, it was covered with stuff...lots of stuff. The textures were on a page, that was the clear part. But at the same time, despite being in two dimensions, it was well past that to Gilda’s eyes. Looking at it, the griffon felt like she was losing herself. Her mind was there, so was her angry conscious when she could find it, but for that moment she felt so small now. Insignificant to anything she could see. Then, if not before, she knew how little her actions would impact anything beyond a desire to scream about how insignificant she was. With all the trials and triumphs of her past reduced to the prattlings of a child to it’s much older, colder parents. That sobering instinct faded to a growing anger. Against the horror of a lack of meaning, she was ready to challenge that abyss and what dwelled in it with righteous anger. Griffon kind had already built itself on fighting back, even to battle things as old as adult dragons. She wasn’t going to be that exception, to flee from such challenge. Then suddenly, from that emptiness, a face and claws came forth from within it. Roaring as it gazed at Gilda and swiping it’s claws with a venomous howl from sabertoothed fangs. She knew that creature, and every part of it horrific history from griffon history books. Now it was there to cut her life short. To never be known for her greatness, only her meat. If Gilda had let out a shriek it would have been involuntarily, as her only recalled action was to fall back from her chair in a scampering, blind panic. Only knowing a desire to get herself away from that creature she saw before it got her. Only then, realizing there was no sound anymore, the griffon knew that it wasn’t there. She turned back to see the page was blank except for a simple “See?” Gilda didn’t speak, still shaken from what just hit her. “Discord?” Gilda’s head quickly looked to see Fluttershy looking almost as scared as she was. The griffon moved her beak, trying to find words, but couldn't while her legs were clenched together in terror. “Oh my!” Shy yelped. “Discord, what have you…?” “Oh, she only saw the most horrifying thing she could imagine,” he said simply. “At least for the next five minutes…or so.” “Discord…” Fluttershy’s eyes were narrow, upset by the creatures dismissal of Gilda’s state. Despite what that thing could do, it yielded. “I’ll tone it down, miss….” Discord surrendered, clearly nervous and apologetic. Shy simply nodded, still with a frown, and trotted to the stricken griffon. “It’s ok, Gilda,” she said softly as she nuzzled her. “You don’t have to be…” That was as far as the cooing could get before Gilda snapped herself out of it. “Gah!” Gilda yelled as she rolled away from the pony. “I’m alright, I’m alright! Geeze!” she said, not entirely happy. Fluttershy looked pleased for whatever reason though. “You two play nice from now on, ok?” Fluttershy added, looking back to the other creature in the room. “No problem,” Discord replied, and the pegasus left. “Really...really lame dweeb,” Gilda said between breaths. As she got to controlling her trembling, she had to hope she didn’t wet herself just then. “Don’t...do that,” Gilda added with a angry talon in the walrus thing’s direction. “What in the heck did that...stuff you had me look at do to me? “I would strongly recommend you take Fluttershy's advice and keep your eyes closed next time,” Discord said, not even answering for it to her. “It would reduce such ugly encounters, and then you can dream safely.” While Gilda simply looked back with an unhappy look, he nicely smiled back. “It would do well for your sanity score, even if sanity is a one trick pony at times,” he added. “Oh whatever!” was the Gilda’s answer, still annoyed by the lack of clear answers to her situation. “Lousy...geeze,” she sighed as she got back to her chair with one other question. “So, what are these dream pills anyway?” “It’s a concoction of my own design,” Discord said with pride. “It’s like Luna’s dreamlike abilities, but on a new scale even she cannot do.” He gave her a wink and a nudge. “But don’t tell her. Princess ego and all that.” “So what was Fluttershy taking them for?” Gilda asked, pointing in the pony’s direction. “She got nightmares this bad too?” “She had a spot of...bother some time ago,” Discord said, stroking his chin thing while looking aside. “I found her so afraid to sleep it was heart breaking, so I whipped them up just for her. Little Fluttershy was sleeping soundly ever since.” “Why?” Gilda asked, quite interested to know that story. “What was she so scared of?” “Cross my heart, hope to...” Discord added, as he made some hand gestures. But Gilda face clawed, she knew she wasn’t going to get an answer again. “Really?” she groaned back. “Sorry, it’s all quite personal,” Discord said with a good natured smile. “So please, don’t ask about it. As a genuine courtesy, if you please?” He rolled his eye, as if to remember who he was talking to. “I know that is a difficult thing to do, but do try hard miss.” “Ok,” Gilda shrugged it off sigh. “So what are these pills doing to me then?” “Did anyone ever tell you a dream is a wish that the heart makes?” Discord asked, his features curious. “Whose heart?” Gilda asked. Truth be told, she never heard that one before. “Exactly,” was the answer he gave. While the creature looked gleeful, like the griffon now knew, Gilda rolled her eyes to that cryptic answer. “Really?” she said with mock surprise. “Again, not one straight answer from you dorks?” “There is just one more thing. Gilda...” Discord held up it’s hand to stop what further rant the griffon was about to give. “Fluttershy told me you did have a dream, so how did a windigo get it’s will into you?” Gilda felt a bit worried then, and a tug at the heart strings made it worse. She could feel a claw around the rest of her heart. The Snark had already been made clear to her how she couldn't speak of it. Her death was quite final among other things. “Guess I ran into it,” she said simply, if a bit nervous and hoping Discord didn’t second guess. “That dream was stupid anyway! Besides, when that thing grabbed me it got my head feeling like it was frying. So what was that about?” “Well, prolonged contact can cause some damage, both mental and physical,” Discord said, now rubbing Gilda’s head gently. Odd, with his legs and waist in front with his head and arms coming from behind where she sat. “It’s like a mind being affected by sonic wavelengths,” Discord continued, his rubbing annoying more than confusing. “At first you see something, then you want to be there, then pop go the mind.” Gilda’s pifft was to be expected, and it just seems to get the walrus angry. “You don’t get to joke about them,” Discord said stoically, even strikingly serious as he looked the griffon in the eye. “Your eyes were white this morning, and even you have to remember how you felt.” “White?” Gilda seemed to understand the severity of this. “Like, totally?” she gulped. “I-I know my head wasn’t on straight, but am I going crazy then? Or was I dying or something?” “Let’s just say you had a bad brain freeze,” Discord answered calmly, for whatever reason now assuring. “A very bad freeze that no one wants to experience. That aside, things looked well enough when you were much nicer.” Gilda faceclawing had the creature laugh again. The chairs were gone, and they were standing on the floor again. Normal as could be. “You do well by your doctors orders from now on, Gilda,” Discord added. “She does have your best interests in mind.” He shrugged with a smile. “Do no harm and all.” He then pulled the string on the multi paged graph stand, rolling it up for easy storage. “Lovely,” Gilda deadpanned. This absurdity was getting old. “And, in the mean time I’ve got damage control,” Discord said with little enthusiasm. “Damage control?” Gilda already knew the answer. She did it after all. “Didn’t you hear?” he said with with a look. “A pair of farms suffered heavy damage last night, but you wouldn't know anything about that?” That look he gave was telling, but Gilda figured he was only bluffing. Maybe, the griffon couldn't tell if anyone knew what really happened. Maybe even herself... “Get bent,” she countered, and cue him bending himself in several angles causing her to let out a sigh. “If I say buzz off…” He then made buzzing sounds with a wave his fingers as he left the room in an eye blink. “...Yeah.” Gilda left a talon up, hoping to come up with a better comment, but failed. She simply put her claw down. Pinkie had felt tame compared to this guy. For a moment, she was going to get that checker board she tossed picked up. Then maybe see if the bunny was up for another game. But only then saw that Angel and a goldfish had started a game. How it moved it’s pieces was a mystery the griffon did not wish to think too hard on. The fact the pair looked back to her like she was the weirdo didn’t help. “I’m just...going to my room,” Gilda said, pointing a thumb talon away from the madness. “Maybe rock back and forth for a bit. You guys good?” Angel and the goldfish shrugged. “Things are loopy enough for me already...” She shook her head left. Gilda figured if Fluttershy needs her she’ll call. Maybe a bath might help her, water’s still real right?