Escape to Realms

by Flutterwhy4

On the Board

Escape to Realms

Chapter 4: On the Board

By Flutterwhy4

“Whuu…” I lean forward, rubbing my bloodshot eyes, wondering what bizarre sight will await me this time. I take my first look. The sky is blue, save for a rainbow and some clouds. There’s grass all around in rolling hills of verdant green and songbirds are singing. Am I back in Equestria finally? There’s nopony else around, not even Rarity or Pinkie Pie, still, I’m relieved to be back in an element that makes sense. I stand up and fill my lungs with fresh air.

Not having any company is a change of pace and it blesses me with some personal time, time that will be spent thinking things over. The perfect weather and picturesque landscape is almost distracting from the roiling chaos in my head. I never expected when I woke up this morning that my day would be so odd. For that matter, I don’t even know what day it still is. Every time I blank out it feels like a matter of mere seconds, but with no frame of reference... no-no, I can’t start to think that way; those thoughts will drive me mad.

My mind rattles with unanswered questions. I find myself lost in a sea of mystery so large it’s difficult to even pick a point to start a train of thought. I suppose my most basic question is the most pressing. It’s a question I’ve never once had to ask myself, a question far too philosophical for the reach of a simple arcade pony. Is this reality? It seems as though these brief experiences couldn’t possibly be real, but…

I have to know for sure.

I spin around and take sight of one of only a dozen or so standalone plum trees dotting the grassy hillscape. My hooves press into the ground and I take off galloping towards it, a bit too fast. I slow my pace, but every fiber of my body is still screaming for me to stop. My squeamish eyes squeeze as tight as they can and my muscles go tense.

THWACK!

“Owwwwwww!!!!” I hit the tree headfirst, harder than a pony ever should and glance left, tumbling hard into the dirt. Rolling on my back, my hooves nurse my throbbing noggin and apply pressure as I squeal in dismay.

“Hey! Whuddja do that for?” a deep, dopey voice asks. I cock one eye open and look around, still gripping my skull like a vice. There are no ponies or anyone else around. “Over here!” the voice says again, this time my ears focus on the source. I open my other eye and glance up the thick, smooth, amber trunk that has just caused me so much pain. To my astonishment, the tree has a face, but not a face of bark and wood, a face of white, frosting-like shapes. Three white blobs for the eyes and nose, and a long rope for the mouth, a mouth which is frowning at me.

I must’ve hit my head harder than I thought. A talking tree may be the least weird thing I’ve encountered today, but my mind is a little fuzzy. As the sharp discomfort begins to retreat, it gives way to dull aches all over my body, especially my neck.

“I don’t just go smackin’ people who’re mindin’ their own business! Or, at least, if I could, I wouldn’t… ‘cause that’d be rude!” the tree scolds me.

“Ehh, sorry. I didn’t think you were…” I pause, trying to find the words to explain myself. I want to say ‘alive’, but I that's not right. “…just, sorry.”

“It’s okay. I’m a tough customer, seems like you learned your lesson anyway!” the big tree says with a sly chuckle at my misfortune.

“So, can I ask you a question? Where are we?”

“Where are we?" He pauses. "Why, we’re here of course! Where else would we be?” the tree answers haughtily. I stand up, my injured head not requiring constant coddling anymore.

“I mean, where is here?”

“Here is here, just like there is there.” The oafish tree leans a branch towards a nearby hill as if to point. I begin to doubt the value of this conversation. While I’m thinking of a better question to ask, my eyes wander up my leafy friend to spot the plumpest, shiniest, purple fruit I’ve ever seen in my days. It seems like forever since my last meal and I am feeling pretty famished.

“Say, uhh. I don’t mean to impose, but that fruit you have looks delicious. Would it bother you if I had one?” I try to be as polite as possible.

“You want one of my plums? Well sure! Go right ahead!” The friendly, frosting-faced goon leans towards me slightly so that I may pluck a fruit for myself. I grab the biggest one I can reach and the stem snaps free from the branch. My teeth waste no time sinking into the tender morsel. Juicy bursts of flavor tantalize my tongue with every fleshy chew. It’s sugary, yet perfectly tart. I gobble my snack like a greedy child and lick the purple liquid from my snout with a big smile.

“Mmmm, thank you so much! That hit the spot!”

“My pleasure, friend!” the tree replies.

“So, you said we’re here, but what if I wanted to leave here, which way should I go?”

“Why would you want to leave? What’s wrong with here?” The tree’s white mouth frowns.

“Nothing! I just… want to go somewhere else. I like to go places.”

“I never go anywhere but here, but I guess you could go anyway you want to go someplace else.” Maybe he doesn’t have any useful information. Nah, I’m just not thinking like a tree, there has to be a way to communicate what I need. I think and think, trying to put myself in his place.

“But if you weren’t rooted to the ground…" I pause, carefully crafting my question like an attorney. "and you could come back here at any time, is there any place you’d want to go, even just to visit?”

“Well, I guess I’d like to meet the king, but he lives in Candy Castle and that’s an awful long ways away I hear.”

“Yes, and where would I go if I wanted to get to this castle??” I shout my question out of excitement.

“I’ve heard you just follow the rainbow road. It’s over there.” The tree leans towards a hill in the distance and I can see a small trail in a full spectrum of colors.

I'm about to pay my goodbyes and thank the tree for his help when a frantic chirping sound draws my attention skyward. Two bluebirds, fleeing a familiar butter-yellow pegasus, whiz by overhead.

“Oh! Come back! I don’t want to hurt you!” Fluttershy mews, hovering above the tree and I before looking down. “Token!” She swoops down as if to tackle me, but lands softly beside me instead. “Oh, am I glad to see you! Are you okay? What happened?”

“Whoa, slow down Fluttershy. I’m fine, are you?”

“Yeah, I’m okay, but I was in Ponyville, and there were scary monsters and then the next thing I know I was here and there was nopony around and I got really scared and then I saw some birds and I tried to talk to them, but they flew away and-“ I put my hoof to her mouth.

“Easy, everything’s fine. Just relax, please.” I say, trying to be as gentle as possible.

“Ahem, do you two know each other?” asks the plum tree.

“Oh wow! A talking tree!” Fluttershy’s eyes light up and she scampers over to him. “I have so many questions! What’s it like to be a tree?”

“It’s nice. What’s it like to not be a tree?”

“It’s… nice.” Fluttershy replies, poking at the tree with her soft hoof.

“This is great Fluttershy, but we should get going. We’ll talk on the way.” My impatience gets the better of me and I grab her pink tail dragging her away from her new buddy. “Thank you for your help Mr. Tree!” I shout back as I head in the direction of the rainbow road.

Fluttershy seems to accept my plan and follows along willingly. I swear that girl gets a bit of Pinkie Pie in her sometimes, but luckily she's settled down and her usual demeanor comes though once more as we walk and talk.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Oh my! So after Pinkie Pie, and then Rarity, you got sent here?” Fluttershy asks.

“Yeah, where I meet you. It seems I’m running into everypony one-by-one.” I reply, half answering her question, and half recounting the events for my own head to process.

We reach the path on which we are to be traveling. It’s a winding, technicolor road of smooth stone pavers: large squares, each the width of the road and each a different color from the last. It doesn’t take long walking for me to notice the pattern: red, purple, yellow, blue, orange, green. I repeat the colors in my head as I trot, making it difficult to concentrate. Red, purple, yellow, blue, orange, green.

“Are you okay Token?” Fluttershy asks, snapping me out of my color-counting delirium.

“Y-yeah, I’m fine. I’m just, a little stressed out.”

“Is there anything I can do?” the kind pegasus asks, walking a bit faster than me so as to make herself more visible. I want to tell her no, tell her that she shouldn’t worry about me, but I know she won’t take that for a satisfactory answer.

“I don’t know Fluttershy. It’s just hard to relax when everything is so upside-down and you don’t know where you are.” She seems disappointed, but perks up quickly.

“Come here.” she says, motioning for me to step off the road. I hesitate. "Come here, don't be like that." What do I have to lose? It’s not like time is a factor when you don’t even know what time it is or if time even applies anymore. I follow her.

“What are we doing?” I ask.

“Just lay down.” Again, with some reservations, I do as Fluttershy asks. Tucking my legs underneath me I lay down on my belly. “Sometimes I do this for my animals when they need to relax.” The yellow pony crawls beside me and wraps a hoof around my neck, pressing into my tender muscles. I stiffen at her touch. “Oh I’m sorry!! Did I hurt you??” she squeals.

“No, please, it’s good.” I encourage her. She kneads my neck once more and I start to relax under her caring hooves. I crane to look at the mare; I can tell she’s concerned so I give her a smile and her face brightens. My chin finds a soft home in the grass and Fluttershy adjusts to my change in posture.

Her every touch applies the perfect pressure, firm yet tender. The weight of the strange world melts away, not to mention the tingling aches from my tree incident. As my skin yields to skilled hooves, I realize how lucky I am. No longer am I fighting ghosts, or zombies, or racing against a clock, but lying in a field with a friend who cares about me. If I can’t get back to Ponyville, I’d be happy to stay in this moment forever.

“Feel any better?” Fluttershy asks softly, still pressing on my neck and shoulders and occasionally rubbing my temples.

“Yes. Yes, thank you very much.” My voice leaves my throat like almost something of a purr. This gets a giggle from Fluttershy and she strokes my mane with one hoof. Her kindness is something to be envied, though it’s unsurprising, she is the Element of Kindness after all. I know I’d never stop or think to give somepony a massage, and Fluttershy and I aren't even the best of friends, but she couldn't stand to see me unhappy.

I know Fluttershy will keep this up until I tell her to stop, and knowing that I could fall asleep under her gentle touch I decide it best to stand up and continue on our way. I meet her gaze and give her a big hug. The flowery smell of her pink mane is almost as relaxing as her massage. I step away and grab her hoof, leading her back onto the rainbow-colored road.

As we travel together along the twisting path the grassy ground begins to whiten, despite no change in temperature. Up ahead an odd sight creeps into view. Red and white striped candy canes thicker than my legs stand proudly from the white-covered ground.

I sweep some of the white powder coating the ground up into my hoof; it’s fine and not cold in the least. I give my hoof a lick and my tongue recognizes the flavor of pure sugar.

“Hey ‘Shy! Check this out!” I look over my shoulder and Fluttershy is on her hind legs licking at one of the enormous peppermint candy canes. “Come on, we should keep going. There’s more peppermint ahead if you want.” I say, poking her wing and chuckling.

A noise resonates from the path ahead, but I think nothing of it until it gets louder. Thuk… thuk… thuk…thuk, a dull repetitive sound. What could be making such a sound in this land of candy? This candy land? That irritating déjà vu returns. The peppermint forest stands out in particular, but the road and everything before is now vaguely familiar. It seems an inescapable feeling and it has to be relevant, but I don’t know how.

“Do you hear that?” I ask.

“Yes, I hear it.” Fluttershy replies. At least it isn’t just me.

“It’s getting louder.” Suddenly the noise stops and we do too. I hold onto Fluttershy, keeping her still and protected. Candy canes as thick as my body now tower over us, a daunting, silent forest of red and white. The noise doesn’t return. Cautiously I step forward, leading a trembling pegasus.

The only sound is our hooves on the colorful pathway through a sugary peppermint prison. I would never have thought that something as innocuous as a children’s treat could become so unnerving when supersized and multiplied.

“Halt! Who goes there?!” A clown-like voice shouts. An axe swings inches over my head and slams into a nearby candy cane with a thunderous clap sending shards of razor-sharp peppermint flying outwards. Ahead of us, appearing without warning is a creepy, enormous thing: a biped nearly three times my height and with features much like the fleshies from my previous adventure with Rarity. His face is round with beady eyes and a pencil thin grin framing a giant red ball for a nose. The axe-swinging maniac has arms and legs of solid peppermint which extend out to pink gloves and red sneakers respectively. His body is covered by poofy, pink shorts and shirt, like great balls of cotton candy and he wears a pink cap with an upturned brim.

I’m frozen at the sight of this creature. Even ignoring his crazy grin and pink appearance I feel something very off about him, though having an axe flailed towards me doesn’t help my opinion.

“Let’s get out of here.” I whisper to Fluttershy, backing away slowly. She doesn't follow my lead. Instead, she steps forward towards the zany candy man.

“I’m Fluttershy, and this is Token, sir.” she states. Why is she doing this, has she lost her mind?

“What business do you have in my peppermint forest?” he responds, keeping his axe at his side.

“Oh. Is this… your forest? We were, um, on our way to see the king and w-we have to pass through to get there, if it’s alright with you, of course.” There’s a pause; every second feels like a minute. I swallow, wetting my dry throat.

“Oh, you’re off to see King Kandy are you?” he asks.

“Y-yes sir.” Fluttershy stammers.

“Well why didn’t you say so? Sure you can pass through! The name’s Mint! Mr. Mint! Pleased to meet you both!” He extends a gloved hand to Fluttershy and I and we shake. “I was doing some chopping when I heard you and thought you might be out to get my peppermint trees without permission! Terribly sorry about that!”

“Oh it’s okay, no harm done!” Fluttershy responds cheerfully. I’m simply dumbfounded. What I thought was a psycho-monster turned out to be just a lumberjack protecting his property? And I was ready to turn tail and run.

“Say, can you do me a favor? I’ve got something for the King, would you be so kind as to deliver it to him for me?” Mr. Mint says to the yellow pegasus, all while grinning at me.

“We’d be honered to!” With Fluttershy’s approval, the peppermint man reaches into his back pocket and pulls out a small piece of paper wrapped like a scroll and tied with a piece of red ribbon. So much red and white in this forest, it’s starting to make my eyes sore. I let the pink-maned pony take the scroll as I’m still put off by Mr. Mint’s initial welcome. We thank him for letting us pass and promise him safe delivery for his letter. As I’m walking away, I realize he might know more about how to get the castle.

“Hey, one more thin-“ He’s gone when I look back. “Whoa, he must be in a hurry. Isn’t that weird, Flutter-“ I look back and Fluttershy is no longer by my side. I glance skyward, no flying pegasus… not even a sky, just a white void! Oh no! I look down and the whiteness has replaced everything. I’m floating in limbo, lost in an endless space like a chunk of driftwood in the great sea.

Comments

[SuperChaosKG]

CANDYLAND?!! Oh, Flutterwhy4, your first non-clopfic and I see you are awesome!