Chapter 42
The skeletal marauders would not come into the light, because if they did, it would ignite them with glittering, silvery flames, which made them run away. The light came from an ornate brass lantern, and the lantern was held by a tall, imposing statue, who held the lantern in one hand and a sword in the other.
“It’s a human,” Twilight said as the group huddled around the statue.
Beside the statue, there was a pegasus pony rearing up on its hind legs and striking a heroic pose. The statue itself was wearing armor, it looked like plated mail that had been shaped for the human body. The statue had a helmet that was shaped like a unicorn’s head and it had a long spiral horn. It was covered in lichen and slime, but the statue was still in good condition. The brass lantern it held seemed untouched by time.
A few of the skeletons tested the boundaries, but then ran off when the light burned them. Starlight took a few potshots at them as they ran away. All three of the catacomb tunnels led to this place, and she eyed all three doorways as Twilight took a much needed rest.
“There’s a plaque here,” Trixie said as she cleared away some cobwebs with her hoof.
Twilight, unconcerned about the undead, lowered her head to have a look and set Sumac down on the ground beside her. She looked at the sign, her eyes squinting, and after a moment of trying to read it, she shook her head. Sumac too, looked at the strange letters, but could not read them.
There was a crackle as Starlight fried a skeleton that lingered just outside the edge of the light. She laughed a bit and then resumed her watch to keep the others safe. Meanwhile, Twilight had conjured up a pair of glasses, which she placed on her muzzle and then adjusted so that she might see better.
Clearing her throat, she read the sign. “Megan and Firefly, best friends until the very end. All the known world shall mourn their passing.” Twilight lifted her head and looked up at the statue of Megan, and then over at Firefly. She let out a soft, sad sigh as Starlight zapped another lurker. “I should ask Princess Celestia what she knows about this.”
“You know, Twilight, I ran into a broken statue similar to this one.” Trixie glanced over at Starlight, who was goading the skeletons to come into the light for a little playtime. “I didn’t know what it was. Its in the ruins in the middle of the Shattered Wood.”
“I remember travelling through the Shattered Wood.” Sumac turned away from the curious statues and looked at his mother. “I wanted to see those ruins and you told me no. You said they were haunted.”
“They are,” Trixie admitted, “and I had to keep you safe. Those ruins are dangerous, but the woods themselves are mostly harmless.”
Squinting through her glasses, Twilight nodded. “Starlight, you and I need to plan a visit to the Shattered Wood so I can compare the two statues and see if there are any similarities.” She then paused, and after a second added, “Also, we should see if we can make the Shattered Wood a little safer somehow.”
Sumac, who had never seen anything like the statue of Megan before, stared up at it. She was tall, much taller than a pony, and she was an imposing figure in her armor, even if her statue was covered in filth. He sat back on his haunches, reached up, and placed his hoof upon her armored knee. Much to his surprise, the stone was warm against his frogs, as though it had been sitting in the sun.
Twilight’s glasses vanished with a shower of glittery dust.
“I don’t see another way out of this place,” Trixie said as she looked at the three entrances. “Only the tunnels leading back into the catacombs. We’ve hit a dead end.” Catching her own pun, she snorted and let out a weary sounding laugh. “Heh, dead end.”
The statue grew even warmer and Sumac pulled his hoof away. He felt a strange tingle of magic all around him, it drove away the chill in the air, and then, as he watched, a swirl of rainbow light shimmered around the brass lantern. They were no longer alone in the chamber, two new figures had joined them.
One was a spectral pegasus and the other was the tall, imposing human. Sumac didn’t feel afraid, in fact, he felt quite the opposite. He was relieved to see them. He heard Twilight gasp and Starlight mumbled something about a spirit speaking spell, but he didn’t catch everything she said. He was far too entranced by what he saw.
The tall human figure, Megan as she was called, took a few steps, kneeled down, extended her hand and one finger—then Sumac felt a soft boop upon his nose. His body flooded with a strange warmth and strength. The pegasus, Firefly, smiled at him, her eyes were bright and merry, even though she was long dead.
Megan stood up, held out her arm, and pointed at the brass lantern her statue was holding. She gestured at Sumac, then at the lantern, and then pointed at him. It was clear that she wanted him to take the lantern. Kneeling once more, she held out her hand, laid it upon Sumac’s head, and tousled his mane. As she pulled away, she gave a tug on his ear, and then she was gone. Vanished. She and Firefly were no more.
“Take it, Sumac,” Twilight whispered, her eyes wide and blazing with curiousity.
Using his telekinesis, he pulled the lantern from the statue’s hand. It came away with ease, he didn’t have to strain at all, it was as if the ancient stone fingers relaxed their grip and let go. The lantern blazed with a fierce light and now, held in Sumac’s magic, it offered warmth as well. It was like standing next to a blazing fire and the chill in the air vanished.
He held aloft Megan’s lantern, basking in its warmth. It felt as though the sun was shining upon him now, and he was no longer afraid. Sumac peered at the lantern, taking note of the many little details, and he saw that it was three sided. On one side, there was the silhouette of an earth pony, on another side, one of a pegasus pony, and on the last, a unicorn. Light blazed from the three ponies, coming from whatever was inside of the lantern.
There was a dreadful sound, the sound of stone scraping against stone, and the statue began to slide away, revealing a staircase hidden beneath. Twilight peered down as the statue slid away, and then scooted away as a few dinner plate sized spiders fled the area.
“We’re close,” Twilight said to the others, “we’re real close. I can feel that we are close to one of the items we are looking for. We should go down the stairs. I’m not sure what’s down there, but it seems to be the way forwards.” She lifted her head and looked at Sumac. “You shine your light into the darkness, Sumac. The lantern was no doubt given to you for a reason. It isn’t one of the treasures we came for, but it is clearly a powerful artifact. Be responsible with it.”
Sumac gave Twilight a solemn nod.
A foul smell wafted up from the hidden staircase leading down. Trixie joined Twilight in looking down the steps, trying to see into the darkness. Try as they might, Trixie and Twilight’s horn light couldn’t pierce the blackness, and Sumac realised the purpose of the lantern. It would give light and warmth where no other light would shine.
“I’ll put up some barriers to give us time to escape,” Starlight said to the others. “I wonder if the statue will close the opening after we go down. I wonder what’s down there…”
“Oh, no doubt, all manner of unpleasantness,” Trixie deadpanned.
“Well, aren’t you a ray of sunshine and hope,” Starlight replied.
“Try going into a deep, dark hole with Tarnish and Maud sometime.” Twilight shuddered and her whole body shook. “They start telling horror stories about all of the deep dark holes they have been in—”
“Ah, but they go in together, and that’s kinda romantic,” Starlight said, interrupting Twilight. “You know, Twilight, we should invite Sunburst to come with us on one of our expeditions! If we can keep Sumac safe, we can keep him safe, and he might appreciate having a chance to study something interesting up close—”
“I’ll not be a third wheel on your date,” Twilight grumbled as she flicked her tail.
“Trixie, carry Twilight down the stairs and I’ll seal up these entrances with wards.” Starlight looked at Sumac, then at Twilight, and then at Trixie. “I’ll only be a minute and I have to make certain that we are not followed. The skeletal dead aren’t a big threat, but we don’t need them following us and causing problems if we have to fight a big threat.”
The stairs were narrow and treacherous. Trixie’s legs weren’t the steadiest and her knees creaked as she made her way down, holding Twilight and Sumac aloft. The staircase was circular, with each stair being a thin, narrow triangle, making the stairs all the more hazardous. A putrid stench came up from below and the lantern, which Sumac held high, was the only thing that pushed back the darkness.
“Hello?” Trixie said as she made her way down, her nervousness apparent in her voice. “Hello? I’m armed with a supercharged alicorn and my son... trust me, you don’t want none of this. The Great and Powerful Trixie is in no mood to be messed with… my knee hurts and I want some tea and this makes me crabby. You would not like the Great and Powerful Trixie if she was crabby.”
The stairs ended and became a passage that angled downwards. Trixie took a few hesitant steps, paused, tried to peer ahead into the blackness, and then decided that this was a good spot to wait for Starlight Glimmer. She set Twilight down, who stood on three legs, and took a bit of a break, flexing her bad knee so she could get the kink out.
“That lantern has powerful ward magic,” Twilight said to Sumac in a low, breathy whisper. “I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s holding back the darkness and the cold. We’d be blind and freezing without it.”
“I’m not scared anymore.” Sumac looked Twilight in the eye. “I was real scared. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I was, and I wanted to go home. But I feel better now. I can keep going.”
“Sumac, you shouldn’t be ashamed for feeling scared. Even I get scared, and Starlight does too, even though she’d never admit it.” Twilight gave Sumac a reassuring smile. “Plus, you’re a brave little colt. Trixie told me about how you stood between her and Princess Celestia when the princess came and paid you a visit.” Twilight paused and took a deep breath, then continued, “What you are feeling here is magical fear. I have spells to protect against it, powerful spells, but a little bit of the magical fear will always get through. You have to be a very brave little colt to have handled it so well.”
Hearing these words, Sumac felt better and some of his shame fled from him.
The sound of hooves could be heard on the steps and Starlight could be heard grumbling as she made her way down the dark and treacherous steps. She must have stumbled a little, because there was a clattering sound, and then no sound at all. Starlight came floating into the light, held aloft by her own magic.
“Those stairs are not up to code!” she snapped in a cross voice. “A pony could fall and break their neck or a leg!”
“Um, that might be the idea, Starlight,” Twilight replied.
Starlight stopped, still suspended in midair, and sniffed. She shuddered, made a face, and stuck her tongue out. “Blech! Smells worse than Rainbow Dash after she drinks one of those protein and whey shakes that she insists she needs for her workouts!”
Twilight did not respond, not right away, but after a moment, she nodded her head. “Yeah, those are pretty bad. Sometimes, I think she drinks them just so she can have a good laugh about the consequences.”
Hearing all of this, Sumac could not help himself, he began to giggle as the group got ready to keep going.
The passage was slick with half frozen slime. Trixie was forced to stop and cast an ever so useful traction spell upon her hooves, and Starlight did the same. Every now and then, the passage had openings in the ceiling above them, no doubt shafts that dumped some poor, unfortunate soul down here into the black depths.
There were no bones here, no bodies, not much of anything. Whatever might have fallen down here must have gone down, down into the very blackest depths of this dreadful place of no light. As they walked, Twilight gave them all a lesson about Castle Midnight, telling them that it had been a place for both good and evil. Many battles had been fought here, and the castle had changed owners many times. Now, the creepy old castle was its own master and no one owned it. Castle Midnight had a life of its own, drawing in the very best and the bravest, those who survived the woods around it, and then claiming them in some horrible manner or another.
Castle Midnight was a monster that devoured all who came to claim its secrets.
Unaware, Twilight and the others drew nearer to the very worst of Castle Midnight’s occupants… the very source of the darkness and the cold down in the black depths. The lantern was both a blessing and a curse. It kept away the fear and the cold, it drove back the darkness, but it also kept the companions from feeling the dreadful evil they drew ever closer to with each and every step.
Stats
Page generated in 0.055 seconds
Total duration
1,003 users online
308,696 hits today, 2,004,447 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Zombie Dating: where the undead liven up first impressions!
Hey, you took my Sunburst x Starlight suggestion to heart! Awesome!
7516777
Um, no I didn't.
It was planned all along. The relationships that form around Sumac shape his views on the world.
7516773
Because, everybody would hate me when I would make the subtle implication that Sunburst has more in common with Twilight (And thus, shared interests) than Starlight.
7516782
Sooo... Threesome?
7516786 Worked for Twilight in The Chase.
Looks like Rainbow Dash goes out her her whey to make things smell bad.
7516786
7516798
How curd you bring this up?
"You bring me to the nicest places," Starburst ducked as a beam of energy lanced near where his head had been. The skeleton it was aimed at took the beam straight to the face and disintegrated.
"Ah, you're just saying that!" Starlight giggled in response. Another skeleton attacked from the side and she let fly another energy beam, this time towards the newcomer. "DIE!"
Bleah, how did I get talked into this!? Twilight asked herself using her own magic to attack some weird slime crawling towards them on the floor. Chaperone, my ass. Bodyguard's is more like it.
7516812
Megan. As in G1 Megan.
Edit: Edits?
so does the Lantern contain the Rainbow of Light and is the evil artifact the Rainbow of Darkness?
Aww, Starlight. Just take him somewhere a bit less dangerous than this. This isn't first date material, after all.
Seriously, though, if Sunburst isn't not the adventurous type, I'm sure he'd find a way to be useful. He may not be a super powerful caster but... there are a lot of adventurers who also aren't.
But I'm not that surprised that Starlight would consider "be a powerful caster" to be a prerequisite given who she hangs out with... and her general casting arrogance.
7516803 I smell the plot thickening!
Megan is the one that released the rainbow of light on the original schmooze I think?
I bet we're gonna see the skeletal remains of Grogar, seething is magic akin to King Sombra, with the pony wraith eyes.
Also, why are you such a good writer!
7516850 where's the rainbow of dash?
7516779 Even better!
7516812
Gotta G1 it more often, my good man.
Megan and Firefly are from the original MLP, as is Castle Midnight. (and in the modern show, Tirek of course)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rescue_at_Midnight_Castle
7516878 It only worked on the imperfect Smooze, though. The perfected Smooze was immune.
7517740
Could you not roleplay your sparity fetish in literally every comment you make on every story on this site?
You are as bad as Alondro! But not quite as bad as RealityCheck! Thank Cthulhu for small mercies...
That's a very interesting set of statues of Megan and Firefly, armed and armored as they are. G1, presumably, but with a rather more violent take on events (which is kind of saying something considering the actual events of G1).
Oh wow. Lucky Sumac, first pony to be booped by Megan in probably thousands of years. Plus, cool lantern.
Really, that just calls for a fourth pony to round out the numbers. Step up your game, Twilight.
Dang, that ending. Next chapter!
Make this cannon. STAT!
I wonder if some secret would open up if they put the lantern on the other copy of the statue.
8756752
do do do do do do do do!