//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: Parallel Lives // Story: Project DYES // by Shadow Beast //------------------------------// The train screeched to halt, waking up any sleeping passengers on board. The conductor's call confirmed they had made it to Appleloosa. The four stepped off of the car, saddlebags at their sides. Mirage led the way as they trotted through the desert town. Gravity tried to ignore the looks she was getting. "You could have been something a bit less obvious," Thunder said, noticing her discomfort. "I'm fine," she asserted. "I'm glad they've never seen a griffin before." "Why's that?" he asked. "Let's just say that I don't want to see another griffin in a very long time." Her face dodged from side to side, and her face barely held a shaking smile. The four finally found a hotel, despite Mirage's guidance. They checked into a single, large room and finally found time to relax since their arrival. The griffin found a chair in the corner while the two ponies sat on the bed. The changeling paced the room in thought, his legs strong from prior travels. "So, Gravity," Thunder started. "We've heard what Midnight's been up to; how about you? Why did you go to the Griffin Kingdom?" "Wait!" Desert blurted out before Gravity could respond. "When did we learn what Midnight's been up to?" "You went to bed before it happened," Thunder explained. "The Midnight who wrote those stories you read did so about 1000 years ago. He went back in time after writing the last one, then lived in the past for 1000 years before replacing that self that we both knew about. He's also immortal, apparently. Even brought Gravity back to life." "You guys need to start waking me up for crap like that." Desert crooked his head toward Gravity. "So how did you die?" "Mirage!" Thunder shouted. "It's alright," Gravity said, raising a hoof Thunder before turning back to Mirage. "I was killed by a large shadow monster outside of the Crystal Empire." She looked toward Midnight, who was now still and staring back. She turned back toward the rest. "The monster turned me inside out with his evil magics." She shrugged. "I was liquefied but I suppose there are worse ways to go; I could be brought back from a liquid." "And before then?" Thunder asked. "Ah, yes. Back in the day, I was an executioner. I led the most expendable teams of psychos the Queen could find. She really didn't like me." Gravity looked to the floor, dodging, the others' gazes. "Why did you go to the Griffin Kingdom?" "I was to find a source of immortality." She looked toward Midnight. "Someone said that it could be found there. And Chrysalis didn't want it falling into wretcher hooves." The two ponies crooked their heads at once. "Wretchers?" Thunder asked. "A story for another time," Midnight said. "Completely irrelevant. There are no wretchers near griffin civilization, let alone Equestria." "Still can't help but be curious..." "It's a nightmare wrapped in fangs and blood. Let's not talk about it further," Midnight snapped. "Now I’m really curious!" Desert chimed in. "Tell you what... If we ever come across a wretcher, I'll explain the whole thing," Midnight bargained. "For now, I want to hear the rest of 'Verty's story." "You need something for your throat?" Gravity asked him. Midnight rubbed his throat. "I think it's fine. Sorry about that, Gravity," he said, with greater emphasis on the syllables of her name. "Anyways, I think I'm about done with my story." She stared into Midnight's eyes with a conviction intangible by the ponies. "Fair enough. Anyone up for a walk around town?" The ponies shrugged as Gravity shook her head. It didn't stop her from joining them at the door. They made their way outside, to the desert air and the happy ponies making their own ways down the streets outside. As they stood there, a firm pegasus hoof prodded Desert to the front. "Where's a good place to eat around here?" Thunder asked. "There's a bakery down this street." The unicorn looked over the other three. "I'm assuming everypony likes pie." As they trotted down the path behind Mirage, Midnight could not help but feel like something was off. Everypony was staring at Gravity's feathers. And yet, he could feel the gaze of another creeping on his shoulder, as though someone could see through his disguise. He shrugged it off as they arrived at the bakery. Thunder and Desert each got a pie to eat, and the four sat around a picnic table to enjoy the meal. Then the stare creeped up Midnight's spine again. The changeling looked over his shoulder, distracting even Desert from the pies. Across the way, leaning back from his own table, a stallion stared at Midnight and only Midnight. He was a larger, brown stallion with an eye patch over his left eye. When Midnight's gaze met the stallion's working eye, the stranger smiled and got out of its seat. He trotted toward the four's table. "Let me do the talking," Midnight whispered. "You guys just keep eating." The southern pony was soon upon them. He looked over the table very briefly before returning his attention returned to Midnight. "Well aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" the stranger said in a gruff voice that betrayed his sincerity. "What brings you so far to the south?" "I should ask you what brings you so far North," Midnight said, almost glaring at the one-eyed stallion. "Where are they?" The stallion scoffed. "I can't say I know who you're talking about." "I asked you a question, Kernel." Midnight's tone was almost a snarl. “If you’re gonna talk like that...” The stallion glared back. "I'm afraid they ain't in any place that needs finding." "I just want to talk to them. I know they can explain this." Midnight's tone relaxed. "Want some pie?" Desert called out from the far side of the table. "No thanks," Kernel said in an almost neighborly voice. "I'm on what them fancy ones call a liquid diet." He grinned at Midnight. Desert shoved the rest of the pie into his own face. "Suit yourself," escaped from his overfilled snout. "Kernel's an old friend of mine," Midnight explained. "He was part of the second biggest hive I ever saw." "A changeling?" Gravity raised an eyebrow. "Interesting." "I thought you said there wouldn't be any around here," Thunder said to Midnight. "There really shouldn't be." Midnight turned to Kernel. "You don't travel alone. Where are the others?" "Maybe later," Kernel said. "I'm more confused on why you are not traveling alone." Midnight shrugged. "I joined Equestria... The ponies, that is. The rulers asked me to help out any changelings interested in joining the ponies as well." "Y'all thinkin' that the old twins might want in? They're always talkin' about them 'next steps.' Feeding off love in modern eating and other fancy talk." Midnight smiled. "You can take me to them?" "Us," Gravity added, gesturing around the table. Mirage looked down at the two empty pie pans. A quick glow and wave of his horn sent them flying into the bin just outside of the bakery with perfect accuracy. Kernel chuckled. "Sure. Y'all can come with us." The one-eyed stallion turned from the table and made his way down the street. The four quickly made their way out of their seats to follow him. He trotted past the hotel, the train station, and soon right out of the town proper. He stopped near the edge of a large forest, too wild and unkempt to be part of the orchards. "We're catching the next train out of here," Midnight whispered to Thunder. "I'll explain this all on the ride back." "Y'all better stay 'hind me," Kernel said as he stepped over the first of the underbrush. "Hate for ya to get lost in these here woods." "Stay close, guys," Midnight added. "Even after we find them." The four stuck close behind the changeling guide as they stumbled through the woods. Soon, they all felt the weight of unseen eyes staring at them from the darkness. Strange ooze that glowed a bright green was smeared on some of the trees. "Almos' there now..." Kernel whispered. Then there was a clearing. Kernel sidestepped out of the way. Bright blue eyes glowed in the dark all around them. Two blue pony eyes peeked from behind a tree. The earth ponies they belonged to rounded the trunk together, from the same side. One was a black stallion with white stripes. The other was a mare, white with black stripes, with a long, black and white mane flowing over her right eye. Like the other's, her mane was styled into a mohawk, but its excess weight folded it over her face. They held hooves as they trotted in perfect sync with each other. Stopping a few feet in front of the four, the stallion stood proud; on the right, the mare just as tall smiled at the four. "Greetings, travelers!" the stallion said, smiling. His voice was as deep as one might expect from a zebra, but there was no lack of enthusiasm. "I hope the woods weren't too rough." The zebra mare said in a much lighter voice. It was almost melodic, betraying her honest sense of worry. "Are you each alright?" the stallion asked. The twins crooked their heads together. "Not anymore," Thunder said. A huge frown creased his snout and his head shook back and forth. "I'm going back to Appleloosa. I just... I got some papers I forgot to file back in the hotel room." "Can I--?" Kernel started, reaching out. "Nope!" Thunder gestured to his back. "I got wings! I'll be fine!" "You sure?" Desert asked him. "I'll see you all back in town!" the pegasus said as he took to the sky. He flew back in the direction of their hotel, disappearing behind the treetops. "Is your friend okay?" the zebra stallion asked. "I'm sure he'll be fine," Midnight said, looking back to meet the eyes of his remaining companions. They shrugged back. He turned back to the twins. "I know the papers he's talking about; probably for the best he file 'em while we chat." "And what is it that you want?" the mare asked him. "Just wondering why your hive is so close to the ponies is all." "Chrysalis is gone." The stallion, with the mare, sighed. "We need our own food." "This place has plenty, yet not," the mare added, before letting the stallion finish. "We hunger for more." "I understand," Midnight said. "Kernel told me you were eating in moderation." The stallion nodded. "It's the only way." "Do you two have names?" Gravity interjected. "Yeah, how do they tell you two apart?" Desert added. He awaited a response, ignoring all the looks he was getting. The twins ignored him. "Superior." The mare pointed to herself. "And Lesser." She pointed to the stallion. "We are Advantage," Lesser added. "Is that even a sentence?" Desert asked. "No, it's like a surname," Midnight explained. "Kinda. Superior and Lesser are together so often that most of their followers just call them Advantage." "And what are your names?" Lesser asked. "Midnight Masquerade." "Desert Mirage!" "...Gravity." "And only two are changelings," Superior noticed. "Yeah, but you guys don't bother me," Mirage said. "That is good to hear!" Lesser smiled. The twins turned to Midnight. "We heard you adopt?" Midnight suppressed any display of emotions. "Only changelings who would swear loyalty to the pony leaders. So, I need morally good changelings. A lot like you... Well, what you want to be." "So you do not want us around?" Superior asked in a somber tone. "It's for the best. For now." Advantage nodded their heads as Lesser took a breath. "Alright. Understood." They sighed. "Was nice catching up." "Tell us if you change your mind..." Superior added. "And have a safe trip." Advantage turned and trotted back into the darkness together. The blue changeling eyes seemed more ominous than before. Kernel simply smiled, hiding his own insecurity. He led the three back to the edge of town. "They'll want me back as soon as possible," Kernel said as the others stepped past him. His voice was raspier than before, losing the accent for the sound of an afflicting flu. He coughed a few times into his hoof. "You feeling alright?" Gravity asked. "I thought changelings couldn't get sick..." Mirage said, scratching his head. "I'll explain later," Midnight said. He turned to the sick changeling. "Advantage and I all know I turned them down because you guys are too sick." He put a hoof on his shoulder. "They need to be here with you, not running around Equestria with me." Kernel smiled in between coughs. His grin bore an extra tooth, a curved fang that seemed extra twisted and unhealthy. He turned away quickly and disappeared into the woods, his eye patch floating to Midnight's feet. "Hey, Carnal!" Midnight shouted into the dark, a random accent strong in his throat for a fleeting moment. A single blue eye looked at him from the trees. "Take care of yourself!" Midnight smiled and turned around. He and Gravity followed Desert back into town, back to the hotel. The griffin did not want to have too quiet a journey. "So are we just ignoring the fact that those two were spouting nothing but Haiku?" "Yep," Midnight answered. "Alright then. Fair enough." The three found themselves at the edge of town again. They looked for the way back to the hotel, but found Thunder first. He galloped up to the three, saddlebags on his sides. His hoof reached into one and quickly pulled out a brown feather. He held it out to Gravity. "The local foals seemed to think you'd dropped it," Thunder explained as Gravity took the feather from him. She held the feather to her own brown chest; it clashed with its darker shade. Her mostly white head was out of the question, as were the few yellow feathers accenting it. She gripped the feather tighter in her claws as she looked back to Thunder. "Must be an eagle's. Or a hawk. Not a griffin feather." "Actually, I've seen a lot of griffin feathers before," Thunder said. "The base of the feather denotes a larger creature than some bird of prey." Gravity held the feather out to him. He took it back into its hoof, noticing that the base had been severed by her claws. "It's not a griffin feather." She trotted past him. He lowered his hoof, letting the feather float to the dusty ground. Mirage chased after her. Midnight stopped to look at the feather for a brief moment. He scratched his head, then reached the hoof out to Thunder. With a subtle shake, a few strands of Midnight's mane fell into Thunder's hoof. "It takes one heck of a changeling to shed," Midnight explained. "Gravity probably doesn't have the ability." "Then whose feather is it?" Thunder asked. "Not just whose..." Midnight picked up the feather with his magic, inspecting it closer. "But what." He stuck the feather into his mouth completely. "Dude." "30 second rule, man," Midnight said cheerfully. "...5 second rule." Midnight shrugged. "I'm a changeling. Who cares?" He chewed up the feather and quickly swallowed. "Can't get sick." He beckoned Thunder along as they galloped to catch up to the other two. From the darkness of the forest, two griffin eyes watched them disappear behind the buildings.