Nightmare Moon's Mask

by yoshiXII

Wandering

Sweat dripped down my face. Miles stretched out endlessly. Everything I saw was either grass, a few flowers, or occasional ponds. Nothing was distinguishable in these plains. The bland grass continued on for so long that every time I saw it I felt like retching. Can you believe it has been three days since the day I departed? And here I am, even more miserable than ever.

When I first set out, I walked opposite of the path to Hyrule Field. According to the map, I would be crossing into uncharted territory. Soon, when I broke out of the Lost Woods, I saw the grasslands I would be stuck in for days. Somehow, I still don’t need to eat. It’s probably because … I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. One less thing to worry about. Eventually, I walked so far that I couldn’t even tell which way would be back to Hyrule. I couldn’t tell where I was going. I could have wandered in circles and still be unaware because everything was exactly the same.

I kept walking, despite exhaustion threatening to consume my spirit. I haven’t even slept, because it felt too exposed to sleep in such an open space in contrast to my house in the Lost Woods. Desperation, fear, and loneliness pushed me onwards. I just want to see something new, something fresh, something that can tell me that this journey was all in vain. Even animals seem forsaken in this land. I barely see anything besides the few lost birds or scampering squirrels. If this is what lies beyond Hyrule, it’s not worth venturing.

Anyways, it was too late to turn back. After a while of non-stop walking, I started feeling numb. My body was screaming at me to stop this silliness. I ignored it and forged onward. I didn’t even notice the dark spots that appeared on the edges of my vision. I was too determined. Unfortunately, my legs collapsed beneath me and I fell on my stomach. I used my hands to drag myself forward. Inch by grueling inch I crept forward. I did this for a few yards before my hands grew bloody and fell limply. My mouth was filled with grass and dirt while my clothing was completely caked. The dark spots grew bigger. I closed my eyes.

---

My eyes fluttered. A huge blur of white enveloped my sight, seemingly preventing my endeavor. I struggled against this brightness until finally I could see once more.

A black obsidian floor stretched out under me, immaculately clean. So clean, I could see my own reflection. White marble columns supported the air at regular intervals all around me. The sky above was white as well, making this place seem barren and empty. It was as if there was a uniform maze around me, trying to lose myself in the blandness of this place.

I stood up, wondering how I could have ended up in such a weird place. I slid back my clothing at my wrist, unveiling my blue skin. I grimaced a little and pinched it, hard. The dull throb of pain that accompanied me was enough. Something was wrong here, and I had no idea what it could be. Where was I? How did I get here? This place didn’t surprise me too much though as it was pretty similar to the repetition of the grassy plains.

I gazed about me, trying to see if there was anything different to my scenery. The white marble pillars only leered at me, offering no explanation to me whatsoever. I started walking around, looking around. It didn’t matter which way I went, it was all the same. I kept walking, seeing if there was an end to this.

“Solus, I presume.”

I glanced around me until I looked behind me. I saw something mystical. It was a floating fuzzy orange orb or something like that, spinning around in place, with fine grains of dust flicking out and to the ground. At the center, it was mostly orange-whitish, and it was only around the edges that it had its orange texture. Something about it was alluring and authoritative, like something far greater than Ganon, yet not as renown.

“Y-yes,” I said, “How do you know my name? Or who I am?”

The thing made a soft exhaling sound. The thing exerted a weird aura that made me feel like it was infinitely intelligent. It was a weird feeling, since back at home I never had anyone address me directly in quite a while, especially not someone this meaningful.

“I suppose I should start at the top then,” the thing said, “It’s been a while since I told the tale, or be fortunate enough to have an audience."

“At the beginning of existence, there were many deities that decided to make their own lands from the nothingness that is the cosmos. For example, the land you came from, Hyrule, was created by the Golden Goddesses. Now understand that there are millions upon billions of these gods and goddesses that made vast, creative lands. There are so many places out there that used to be disconnected.”

I stood there, wondering if what it was saying was true. The story he was weaving seemed plausible thus far, and considering its weird state of being, it would probably wise to heed its words. “Now how does this relate to me?” I asked.

"Hold on, we’ll get there in a minute. Many other beings we like to call Jaoks roamed the cosmos as well. These were lesser beings compared to the gods and goddesses. I am one myself and we tend to stay in this form. We can also be whatever we desire in the mortal world.” He briefly flickered through a bunch of transformations: a tiger, a wolf, a giraffe, and a crane.

“Together, we bridged the gap between each world. Since the places were so far apart, the distance was rather great even with the bridges and consequently, many worlds didn’t mingle. However, some brave beings like you decide to leave and set out for the greater truth. They ultimately get lost in the bridges and collapse and we have to decide whether or not they survive or not. If they are worthy enough.

“Before we get to your story, let’s explore mine a bit further. As I said, I’m a Jaok and every one of them was assigned a role after their divine intervention. My role was to be the ‘wall’ between reality and illusion. Reality is upheld by the illusion that every being in every world sees. There are two others that maintain each, but I’m meant to make sure that any mortal will be unable to see between the two planes of existence. Thus, this place we are in is the place between reality and illusion I created. It retains original substances of reality, but still has that subtle illusion about it.

“Now we get to you. Us Jaoks observed everything in all the lands. I took a special space for you. I can tell you are an independent, strong-willed person who can decide the outcome of his own fate for himself. Whether it is good or bad, the future had much potential for you. Because of your unique personality, many don’t get along with you. You’ve tried to find your own place, but can’t. You don’t belong in your society because you are somewhat omniscient. You have the power to influence events where others cannot. I’m sure you’ve seen another like you. The Happy Mask Salesman.”

What? This thing was saying a bunch of hogwash. Yet it all made sense, in a creepy way. It felt like I almost knew about this absolute truth beforehand. Its explanation clicked in my head, fitting with all of the puzzle pieces I’ve seen before. The woods “choosing” me as special, the Salesman’s words, and my mysterious past. My past.

“Why am I so special, anyways? What makes me different?” I asked.

It flickered a bit before answering, “Your birth. It was when the excess matter that the goddesses formed together to make something special. This doesn’t actually determine if that individual will leave or not, and others without this process can also leave. This happens only once in every world, but in yours it happened twice. The second was the mask salesman. You two both formed at once, making you like twins, though he was born in a curious place called Termina. He is very similar to you, in terms of original nature, but he has chosen a different path.”

I couldn’t even make sense of it. What was the significance of this and how would it affect me? “Why have you brought me here?”

“You were in the bridge, and I had to make my decision. Life or death. I have you here to give you a chance. I’m curious enough to see how you will handle this.” Out of the depths of his orange-whitish oval, a cow figurine floated out.

Yeah, you heard me right, a cow. It wasn’t even that spectacular as well. Any pottery maker or sculptor could have made this with ease. Was this thing joking or what? What purpose would a cow serve? I must have gazed disbelievingly at it because the Jaok said,

“This will allow you to travel through time and space. A way to travel through the worlds in a more graceful manner and help carry out your goals.”

I looked at it, holding the cow near my chest. “How come people need these special ‘cows’ to travel? Aren’t the bridges enough? Anyways, how will these cheap cow figurines allow me to travel?”

It chuckled a little, wobbling a bit. A glanced at it suspiciously. It replied, “The bridges are primarily used for gods and the like to travel through without having to access the world from space. We never expected people to actually try to travel outside of their realm, but it became curious to see it occur. It was never meant for people of a world to visit other ones. But, a few of these beings became curious enough to travel and we decided to keep the bridges there to test the longevity of them.

“Then there were the cows. Cows are sacred beings and, believe it or not, they are relatively hard to carve even for Jaoks, which is why they are used to transport you to all sorts of places. You use them by pushing its head back into its body and it will take you to a random place at a random time unless you tell it where you want to go and at what time. Use it well.”

The Jaok’s dust started to flick out even more. It expanded a little, trembling as it did so. I could tell it was about to leave, but how could I possibly let it go?

“Wait!”

The Jaok stopped and reverted back to its original size. I opened my mouth, thinking about the questions that I had. It seemed impossible to put them into words anyways. But, there seemed to be something nagging at me that didn’t make any sense.

“Can I go back to Hyrule? Can I tell anyone about this?”

The Jaok took a moment before answering, “No.”

I gulped. I wondered if this was a good thing. Would I become a nomad forever? Like the Gerudos? Was it worth it? Was this what I wanted? Well, it had to be better than staying in boring old Hyrule. Knowing that there were so many places out there for me to explore, it made my heart soar. I wanted to understand what could be out there and what I could do with my life.

The Jaok finally imploded on itself, leaving a tiny orange dust lying on the ground. I looked solemnly at it for a second, before lying back on the ground. I hadn’t realized how tired I was until my head touched the cold obsidian. So sleepy...

---

I woke with a start. What a weird dream I was having. Maybe it had to do with the fatigue I endured yesterday. It was the dead of night right now: not even crickets were chirping, reflecting the emptiness of this desolate plain.

I stood up, knowing fully that I should probably just sleep until it was daylight again. Still, some part of me wanted to keep venturing. That dream I had motivated me and once again, I could feel energy coursing through me.

I yawned, stretching out. I looked around my surroundings before my gaze fell upon a cow figurine, contrasting to the grass. The cow. I picked it up in wonder. Maybe that crazy hallucination wasn’t just a dream. Maybe it was true. I couldn’t imagine what potential I could have now with this cow. The truth the thing conferred to me came rushing back, making me stare at the night sky with all its stars. Life truly was a wonder.

I gazed back at the ordinary cow figurine in my hand. I had second thoughts, looking at it now. What if that thing was just playing me for the fool? This cow couldn’t possibly have the mystical attributes the thing thought it had.

Nevertheless, I followed its instructions. I pushed the head in. Its neck retracted into its body until it was just a tightly compact cube of a cow figurine.

I closed my eyes, bracing myself for what was to come. A few seconds later, I opened my eyes, staring at the cow. I shook it a little and growled. Was this all a prank? I was right about to throw it on the ground in disgust when it happened.

The cow’s eyes shone purple. The spark shimmered and disappeared as quickly as it came. I stared at it, puzzled. Then, a white beam shot out of the eyes directly at me. I shielded my eyes. A mysterious pulse coursed around me, vibrating like crazy. I felt my feet leave the earth and my hands relinquishing the hold on the cow. A chant called from the depths of nowhere, and the buzzing grew louder and louder.

---

Shing! I fell to the ground on my back and the cow landed on my stomach. I grunted before opening my eyes to wonder what arbitrary place it took me. A great migraine filled my head and the world flickered before me.

What?! That’s all I could think of, just ... I don’t know. I can’t believe where I happened to end up. If this was what other worlds held for me, I don’t even know if I want to venture any further.

I was in this blocky world. Everything I saw seemed to be made of squares. Everything had this shape that made it seem very crude and rudimentary. What is this place? How could it be that this is a world in its entirety? I couldn’t believe that the laws of physics would allow this place to exist. Just, I don’t know what to say.

To spare myself the confusion, I think I’ll just summarize using select few choice words.

Essentially, this weird Italian man (made of the blocks too) came in. By the way, did I mention the hills in the “background” have eyes? Well anyways, I hid in scattered bushes and watched him jump like he was on the moon all over the place. A bunch of weird brown mushrooms with feet started charging at him. If he stomped on them, he would smoosh them into nothingness. A few times, he was unlucky and was hit by the brown mushrooms or fell into a bottomless pit. He would leap into the air and fade through the ground. Then, he would magically appear at the beginning of the place and continue. We eventually came upon brown blocks that he could smash to bits with his gloved hand. The ones with question marks would either have red mushrooms, making him grow; fire flowers, which made him change suits and spew fireballs; or coins, though there was nothing on the block to indicate what it would produce. With the mushroom, he could have one free hit, and the fire flower suit thing gave him two hits. More and more enemies sprouted up, some are even more bizarre than the brown mushrooms. Gigantic fish that flew out of the water, giant turtles that hid in their shells when hit, plants that grew out of green pipes and spat fire, cannons that shot cannon balls with faces, more things in shells, more things in spiky shells, lava balls that shot on their own accord, turtles that threw hammers, and to top it all off a huge turtle in a shell that spat fire and threw stuff that the Italian would have to jump over to touch the axe and cut the bridge, making the turtle die in lava so that the Italian guy could go reconcile with some weird girl in a pink dress. What? Just what? What was I talking about? Something, something, something.

Well, I sat in awe, hiding behind the lava pit staring at the two that were fixed in place reveling in the moment. I guess it makes sense; they were parted for such a long time... They weren’t moving. At all. Not breathing not anything, just standing there. Like statues. Frozen in time. Perpetually stuck. I would have gone and tapped them, but the lava blocked me. After looking at how this entire world perplexed me so much, I guess one more mystery didn’t exactly surprise me. What was it with this enigma of a world? What does this say about future worlds?

I don’t know. Next world I suppose. I pressed into the cow’s head again, wondering what could await me on the other side. So started my inconsequential adventures into limbo. My own quest to journey where everything won’t make sense.

---

I gasped. The mysteries of the universe only served to perplex me even further with the Jaok’s explanation. What did it expect of me? Did it really think that I would actually accomplish something? It said something about great potential and the ability to choose my own fate. I just want to stop being so alone, even though the sub-deity said I wouldn’t belong. I still held some hope.

Well, enough rambling. I ended up at some barren wasteland. All I saw was garbage. Nothing but garbage. That’s right; I was in an uninhabited place. So much for socializing with the people. Mountains of trash filled the landscape of the polluted landscape, with battered signs and faded remnants of a civilization. Only, the trash stacks were a little different. Something unusual...

All of the mountains were made of trash cubes. Obviously, that wasn’t all that natural though, something had to have done that. But, who could? Who could live in such a deserted place? And who could stand the solitary confinements of being alone, working on making huge trash cubes?

I was already eager to see who this person would be. Maybe he or she could tell me how to deal with the lonesome lifestyle. Even though we were raised in different circumstances, we both have the same mentality of dealing with the harsh realities life had to give.

I started walking. The combination of dirt and scraps crunched beneath me. I glanced around me. Directly in front of me was a sign saying: “Welcome to Earth, home to humans” The last part was blotted out by some crude paint. It hung on its side, providing the foreground for the trash piles. Everywhere else around me had a desert region, almost like the Gerudos with nothing but more trash and other noteworthy man-made landmarks like a sign that read “BuykLarge Gas”. A small breeze picked up, reflecting how deserted this desolate world was. I couldn’t imagine what happened here. What could have occurred to allow this to happen?

I headed to the trash piles because whoever made them would probably stay around there. How insane would this person be? What could have pushed the person to such a redundant lifestyle? Were there more than one? Questions only grew more numerous as I sought to find answers.

As I drew nearer to the trash, I wondered how the person would be capable of making such things. Surely this was a physical demanding activity and must have been quite difficult. The trash now surrounded me, leaving me unaware of which direction to go. Narrow canyons were formed with the mountains and I stumbled aimlessly on this empty place.

Eventually, the heat got to me. Sweat poured down my forehead, while I tried to distinguish what was reality and what was an illusion. My entire throat felt like sandpaper and my tongue was completely devoid of any saliva. I travelled in this haphazard fashion, spinning around in circles, wondering where I could go. My rational thoughts disintegrated and I still kept onward.

Man, was this place huge. I couldn’t even tell where I was. The trash piles proved walls for a maze and I was a rat trapped inside. Eventually, I collapsed on the ground, though still conscious this time.

I exhaled in ragged breaths while taking in the harsh, scratchy atmosphere. Each time I coughed, nothing would come out, and my entire body would shudder violently.

I felt a sharp jab on my shoulder. I ignored it. I couldn’t harness the strength to respond. It came again, this time harder and prodded me three times. A groan gurgled from the back of my throat as I heard whirrings and clickings behind me. Who knew what this person was?

I felt some cold claws dig underneath my stomach and lift me. Surprisingly, the person managed to lift me up with what seemed like no effort. I hung like a rag doll suspended in midair before the person decided to move.

The ground passed before me at a snail’s pace. Everything was a blur on the ground. The person carrying me moved at the same pace rather steadily, like he or she just rolled across the ground. I closed my eyes, exhausted and fatigued.

When I opened them, I stared at a dark ceiling. Glancing around me, I noticed all sorts of junk littering the shelves of where I was. It was a dark room, teeming with all sorts of weird items. This person was probably a hoarder.

I realized that I wasn’t thirsty anymore. The person must have given me water. I stood up, wondering where he or she was so I could so my thanks and ask him the questions that perplexed me.

Walking along the shelves, I found … it. What? What was it? Well, apparently it was a box with two stiff, metal arms; two eyes stuck to its neck; and weird triangle things with grooves regular intervals as feet. On the bottom right of the center box was a name: Wall-e. How is this possible? Is this thing unnatural? Made of only man-made objects? Has this society come that far? If so, then how come it was so... deserted?

“Um,” I said tentatively, “Who are you?” I wanted to ask it “What are you?”, but felt it would be too rude.

It didn’t respond. It stared at me curiously, as if studying me. It had a lot of emotions displayed in its eyes despite it being a hunk of metal. I could almost feel it trying to communicate with me, despite the fact that it couldn’t talk.

“I just wanted to say,” I said awkwardly, “Thanks for saving my life. It must be a lot to be stuck in this wasteland by yourself. Doing your work alone. Do you think we can be friends? I mean there are some differences between us. But how do you deal with the loneliness?”

My words came out in a tumble as I tried to say everything at once that was in my mind. I felt embarrassed for talking to it, as if expecting a response. I was too lonely at this point and I desperately wanted to talk, even with it.

Wall-e just looked at me somewhat sympathetically, as if it knew what I was going through. It must feel pretty lonely too, even if it only has artificial intelligence, it must feel what normal people do. Wall-e must have made a decision because it turned sadly away. It must have known it could never be my friend since communicating wasn’t a real option.

“Su-or-ry.”

I gaped at the robot. It could talk. But why did it choose not to? Was it because it was difficult or maybe it had limited vocabulary. Maybe the long years of being suspended in this horrible limbo of a civilization had devastated its capabilities. Maybe it knew that talking would only lead to disappointment and it only wanted to work. Maybe it chose not to. Maybe it didn’t like the company of people. Maybe something happened to it that it preferred to stay where no one was. Maybe there was an entire civilization full of these machines. Maybe.

But that was all speculation. I decided not to talk back to it. It probably didn’t enjoy my company that much, but felt that it must rescue me. So here we were two parallels. One who was forced into the cold reality of no companionship in a wasteland and another who was lonely amongst many people in a hospitable land because of being born differently. Through all our differences, we were very much alike, yet couldn’t relate. Two lines that will never meet.

The Wall-e left me in the dark place alone and rolled on out with its traction, roller, metal things. I didn’t blame it. It probably didn’t know what to make of me. I sighed for a little, before sitting down. Time to leave.

---

“Who are you?”

I stared up into the old man’s crisp, blue eyes. His snow white hair dangled down to his waist and his beard drooped on his chest. He was draped in all white, shining brighter than the sun herself.

I was apparently on a small ship of some sorts. With me were two small people who were only about two feet tall. One of them was grievously old and the other seemed young with angst running through him. Next to them was a tall, elegant man who also had long hair. Standing with him was an intimidating woman with blonde hair.

“Speak! What devilry brought you here?”

I opened my mouth, flabbergasted. “I fell out of the sky.” It was the best I could think of on such short notice. I carefully hid the cow in my costume pocket.

The old man looked at me cautiously before saying, “I am Gandalf the White. Joining me would be Bilbo and Frodo Baggins, Elrond the Wise, and Galadriel the Fair,” he gestured to each one respectively. “We are headed to the Undying Lands and beyond. What is your business?”

I don’t know. How do you explain that you somehow teleported here without meaning to? Especially since there was no other way that I could have gotten on here. “Someone played a trick on me, and I ended up here.” I winced slightly.

Gandalf’s brows furrowed as he implicated the possibilities. He muttered a little to himself before giving up with a huff. “Well, we are here to escape Middle Earth aren’t we? If you choose to join us, you are more than welcome. Just keep in mind that there is no going back.”

I nodded, gazing at each of the members of the boat in turn. Frodo seemed repulsed by my appearance and Bilbo looked tired. Galadriel and Elrond looked at me with no expression, judging me silently. I scooted to the edge of the small ship as quietly as I could, trying to avoid those burning stares. I tried to imagine myself in their light. A short person with a creepy mask and eccentric dressing styles. I glanced to where the ship was heading, a horizon in the distance. An expanse of a wide harbor graced the land with small towns lying just beyond, nestled in elegant trees. I sighed wondering if I should just go again, but it was worth a chance to see the “Undying Lands.” Who knows what it might offer for me.

I sat in silently. The bloody sunset tinged the calm, pristine waves surrounding us. Looking behind me, I glanced at the mystical land the travelers seemed to be leaving. It seemed a shame that I had to miss out exploring a new land and instead had to be on a boat to an island. The travelers themselves seemed to be rather tired and expectant of this vacation. I couldn’t get over how conspicuous and intriguing I must have been to them.

The boat quietly sailed onward for several hours, regardless of the awkward silence that forged between us. Presently, the wooden pier rose up sharply to the right. The boat sailed until it was right next to it and stopped by itself.

Gandalf threw down a wooden plank leading onto the pier. He plodded along it, murmuring to himself as usual. The other denizens of the boat followed suit. As they reached the pier, the woman they called Galadriel gazed back at me and gave me a long insufferable look while the others kept walking. Something wise, yet curious. It was fleeting, as she wandered away like an ethereal presence.

They continued onward off the dock to meet the rich dark soil. A repertoire of birds echoed throughout the island in the midst of great trees that obscured the travelers’ view of their destination. Soon, they vanished in the mystical glow of the forest.

I remained on the deck of the boat until I was sure they were far enough away that I wouldn’t be able to run into them again. Then, I ran off the boat and took off in a direction I was sure didn’t coincide with theirs. Trees lashed out at me and roots threatened to trip me as I made my mad dash through the forest.

Eventually, I slowed down to a stop. I stood there, panting with a stitch in my side as I took in my surroundings. This entire island seemed rather relaxing as if it was like a retirement home. The magnificence that was accomplished on this island seemed in part due to the inhabitants. I just wanted to stay here for the rest of my days and lose myself in the wonder.

But, all I wanted right now was to explore further. After my meeting with the Wall-e, I had no desire to meet anyone new. It would be nice to be a traveler in the universe, ever present and omniscient. With that in mind, I forged recklessly onward in a random direction, the sun fading into darkness.

The symphony of the forest rang out as I picked up my pace. Weaving my way through the woods proved easy in contrast to the Lost Woods. Soon enough, I reached the break in the forest to a huge clearing. In the very center stood an immense temple with intrinsic symbols traced on every surface. It appeared to be built from bricks of compact and dried dirt that decayed over time. It was only one story, since the opening of it led deep into the underground. I walked up to it and traced the symbols, wondering what language it could be.

I glanced around the rest of the clearing. There wasn’t much else left here besides grass. I wondered what civilization could lurk in a temple underneath. They seemed fairly reliant on their own resources if they didn’t need to come above ground.

Seeing nothing else for it, I decided to go down. Down to the earth.

The stairs crumbled a little beneath my step. A small amount of rubble rolled down into the dark abyss. I listened for it to stop. Ten seconds. I gulped, glancing nervously at the walls flanking me. The same mysterious runes were imprinted on them as well, only adding to the unsettling tension building inside me.

When I was about halfway down the stairs to hell, a whir echoed off of the walls. Presently, the runes right next to me glowed crimson-red. They flashed for a few seconds before the glow seeped into the connecting runes. Within seconds, the entire stairwell was lit with the dim light. At that point, it was my only source of light that kept me from stumbling in the dark.

I swiftly hit the end of the stairs and I peered cautiously into the room ahead. Lit by the same symbols, the room appeared vacant besides a white flashing screen set into a stone slab in the middle of the room. I stepped into the room from the last of the steps. Unidentifiable dark clumps of insects immediately scattered to the various cracks between the symbols. I glanced past the platform through the doorway to the next room. It was just a smaller version of this room, though it didn’t appear to lead anywhere.

I walked up to the slab and peered at the screen. It mystified me; I’ve never seen anything like it before. The screen appeared ingratiated as part of the slab with its borders dissipating into stone. Why does it glow? What does it do? This perplexed me as I read the message on the screen. “Equestria: Home to the Equines.” I tapped it, expecting it to do nothing.

The entire screen vanished. A few seconds it reappeared as a white screen with blue text in various rectangles scattered randomly around. I tapped each of them in vain before giving up. Everything was in gibberish besides a faint white text scrolling at the top. It read: “Optimization levels: 23%. Current functionality of ripping portals: 2%. Preparation of Ponification machine: 67%. Probability of happenstance: 80%. Current progress: 43%. Dimensional interference: Minimal.” The numbers fluctuated as I read it.

I glanced frantically about before spotting more text popping out on the bottom. This time it read: “The Equestrian Diarchy is governed by our benevolent Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, though the Diarchy is merely formal and the correct form of government is actually a democracy. Expect a fair yet primitive society of the ponies with the occasional monster. Equestria is the aftermath of the Abiogenic War and the Conflict Wars on the planet Earth with all sentient human life forms terminated. Unfortunately, a discrepancy appeared as a form of magic, making everything spontaneous. Any uprising or rebellion is strictly prohibited and unadvised as anypony to cross the line shall be terminated. -Sincerely, the Fallow.”

I stood there as the color randomly changed and yet more gibberish flew out again. After feeling like an imbecile, I heard a loud shearing sound. The distinct ripping sound was followed by nails on a chalkboard. As I reeled from the shock, I glanced at the wall in the next room. A small hole was present that looked out into the nebulas and the cosmos in space. Objects whizzed past as the hole ripped apart. An interdimensional portal.

Soon, the portal finally settled as a white space. A blank canvas. Leading to some queer place called Equestria.

It stood passive for a few moments. Then, it turned to chaos. Rocks and debris flew past me at a frightening velocity into the portal. Soon, the force became stronger and stronger as I started to skid along the floor. I tried to turn back, but to no avail. The vacuum dragged me inch by inch until my feet left the ground. I glanced desperately around the room as I flew through it. A sense of nausea engulfed me as I fought to regain some balance. I shot through the smaller room and within seconds, I saw the edges of the portal fly past me. I closed my eyes.

Comments

[yoshiXII]

2597286
Sorry if I didn't make it clear, but I meant it in a mental strength kinda way. Like the mask only helped by giving him confidence, but the other skull kids didn't interact with him enough to see it. But thanks for the critique, though I'm a bit too busy at the moment to find a proofreader. I'll be sure to contact you once I find the time.

[OmegaMajora99]

I find it frustrating that this isn't an original concept anymore, as I to am working on something like this.

[yoshiXII]

2597959
Yeah, I just found out that someone already did a story called Discord's Mask.

[OmegaMajora99]

2599759
Yeah, and the problem with that is my story is very similar to Discord's Mask and I'm afraid I might be accused of stealing his idea despite the fact that I came up with the concept months before he did.

[xenomorph1987]

the conversion beuro?