//------------------------------// // Chapter 036: The Nightmare's Power // Story: Ultimate Equestria // by Leo Pachino //------------------------------// “…wait, wait, wait. It gets better. When the patient woke up, his skeleton was missing, and the doctor was never heard from again!” Pinkie exclaimed before breaking out into maniacal laughter, finishing her long ramble. A small beat of silence followed as Twilight, Fluttershy, and Pinkie continued to walk down the stairs. The other two slowly processed what the hyperactive mare was saying. Unbeknownst to them, a faint yellow mist floated in on their decent. A confused Fluttershy then asked, “What were we talking about again?” “How I lost my medical license.” Pinkie answered. “Wait, wha-” “Hey,” Twilight interrupted. “Do you hear something?” She asked. “Where?” Fluttershy asked. “I don’t know…” Twilight replied. In the corners of Twilight’s twitching ears, a small metallic clinking sounded out from an unknown location. She looked around for the sound she heard, only to see Pinkie and Fluttershy walking down with her, blankly looking forward. She then looked back ahead of her. With a clearer view of the bottom of the stairs, Twilight noticed an orange dot in the distance. “Hey, do you see that?” Twilight asked her friends. She returned her glance to her friends. Much to her surprise, they’re gone. “Hey, where did you two go?” Stopping her walk, Twilight circled around herself and looked everywhere to the vanished ponies. She thought she saw them higher up the staircase, perhaps the result of taking a unannounced break. But as the yellow mist thickened, the harder it was to identify anything. “Do you have a point?” A mare’s voice echoed all around the confused loner. Twilight looked around for the source of the voice, but to no avail. “Who’s there? Where are you? Where are my friends?” Twilight asked to the mustard fog. She then looked back to the orange dot. It had grown into a blurry figure, standing on the stairs near the bottom. It was growing closer. Curious, Twilight walked towards the mysterious being, one step at a time. Minutes of walking passed, but Twilight felt like she hadn’t even moved a step down. The stairwell grew longer and longer as she descended. What seemed like roughly 300 steps at the top of the flight turned into 1000 steps not even midway down. Not only that, but the stairs no longer seemed to be going straight. Some steps were slanted, leaning towards on wall. Pebbles danced across the steps, jumping from one wall to the other. As Twilight descended, the steps spiraled onto the walls. Soon, gravity no longer became an object, as a few steps started to dance across the ceiling. As she drew closer to the bottom, the dark and grey stone surrounding her slowly changed colours and textures. “Of course I have a point!” A male voice then echoed. “There’s two of you?” Twilight asked the orange spec. “What? Don’t you recognize me?” The female voice asked. “Who are you?” Twilight asked. “It’s because we’re villains isn’t it?” The male voice asked. “Villains?” “Or is it you, who is the villain?” The mare’s voice questioned Twilight. “Me? The villain? No!” “Quite, so many lives, suffering, just waiting to meet their end and have better ones replace them.” The stallion added. At this point, the walled were solid white. It still felt like stone through. Perhaps it was a soft thick quartz or ivory granite. It felt like padding if you’d put your face on it. “Don’t you see the obvious?” “What?” “The point?” “Who-” “The sanity?” “I don’t-” “Surely at this point, you would have figured this out. Why don’t you see what everypony is seeing?” “What am I not seeing?!” Furious, Twilight ran down the long sheet of metal, twisting and bending beyond comfort. The hallway narrowed to a point to where her body could barely squeeze through. After each step, Twilight loss a bit of feeling in her legs, to a point where she could only wriggle like a vegetable. “She must be insane.” The unseen mare replied to the invisible stallion. “I’m not insane!” “Quite frankly,” Another mare’s voice suddenly spoke. The voice was right behind Twilight. “You appear to be.” It said. Twilight looked back and saw Rarity’s face. However, this was not Rarity at all. Her body was contorted, standing on her hind hooves. Machine parts made of bone surrounded her torso. It was a monster, a mimic of Rarity in the shape of Korsan. Twilight yelped in fright and stumbles back, nearly slipping from the impossible stairs. “Rarity?!” Twilight exclaimed. “Hello, Twilight Sparkle.” “What happened to you? Why are you in Korsan’s suit?” Slowly, the Rarity and Korsan hybrid walked around the baffled pony. As Twilight examines the figure, the path faded away from the corner of her eyes. Now she was only surrounded in dark metal and white wadding. “Poor, poor, Twilight. Korsan is our king. He is worthy of the throne to all life.” The monster replied. “What are you even saying?” Twilight was given no answer. She was instead grabbed by the shoulders by bony claws and turned around to have her face pressed up against another body. It was a monstrous version of Korsan, this time sporting an eyepatch. “Applejack?!” The orange being screamed, “The electrolytes!” “The what?!” “You still don’t get it do you?!” It yelled. The two bipedal mares circled around the shriveling pony, constantly barking at her with no breaks or a moment to breathe. Their speech degraded from banter to non-cohesive ramblings that Twilight barely made sense of. “It’s complicated.” Rarity stated. “He has a point.” Applejack declared. “He interests me.” Rarity said. “It’s not all black and white.” Applejack said. “I love him.” “I must protect my family.” “There’s no going back now.” “You’re fighting a lost cause.” “We should’ve tossed you into the brig.” “The crazy house,” “The asylum, toss her in!” “You don’t have a single point!” “Twilight.” “Twilight.” “Twilight.” “Twilight.” “Twilight!” “Twilight!” Twilight snapped under the screaming and started to sob uncontrollably. The walls of the padded hallway begin to shrunk all around her, tighter than ever before. Darkness enraptured her vision, leaving only a crack of light to stab her sealed eyelids. Twilight woefully cried, “Stop it! Stop it!” The two beings didn’t stop and continued to angrily scream her name together, “Twilight! Twilight! Twilight! Twilight! Twilight! Twilight! Twilight! Twilight! Twilight! Twilight!” “Please stop!” “Twilight! Twilight! Twilight!” “I’m begging you!” “Twilight! Twilight! Twilight!” “No more! Please! I’m begging! Stop it! I can’t breathe!” “Twilight!” “I want my mommy!” “Twilight!” “I want my daddy!” “Twilight!” “I want my brother!” “Twilight!” “Just make it end!” The two hybrid monsters continued to spiral and harass the fallen princess. A brown shadow appeared in the distance, walking to her. Teary eyed and having her eyelids almost entirely shut, Twilight barely recognized the approaching third being. However, as it entered a metre’s distance and the crack of light, it becomes clear who it was. It was Korsan as a hideous alicorn. With a smiling set of razor sharp red teeth, it grinned ear-to-ear. With solid black eyes and red pinpoint pupils, he stared down at her. Korsan reached down and grabbed the mare by the throat, stabbing the soft flesh with his long, barbed, talon-like needles. All the air immediately exited Twilight’s lungs leaving only the sensation of chocking and sharp pain. Korsan than reaches into his back and pulls out an enormous version of his cutlass, emitting a black aura in the air. He slowly raised the blade high above and readied to strike. He roared in a most demonic cackle, “Pegasi and Earth ponies are inferior, we must shape the world to what it should be, all unicorns, no more suffering…” The heinous alicorn swings down his weapon. A final scream tore from the surrounding ponies. “Twilight!” “No!” Twilight gasps. She opened her eyes from the expected sensation of being chopped in two by the massive cutlass, only to find herself back on the stairway, lying in her own sweat and tears. Fluttershy stood over her, concerned of her friend’s condition. “Wait, wh-wha-what?” Twilight stammered, whipping her head around. “Are you okay?” Fluttershy asked, tightly clutching onto Twilight’s head with her soft hooves in an effort to keep it stable. “What happened to Rarity? Applejack? Korsan?!” “Calm down Twilight, you were only hallucinating.” “Wait, what?” “There was some gas we walked into that was coming from the walls. When we saw you rambling and going into a spasm, Pinkie and I soon realized that we were going crazy. We held our breaths, grabbed you, and carried you down and out of the gassed area. Hopefully, it wears off.” “So it-it was all a dream?” “Yeah.” “Hey, where’s Pinkie?” “Huh?” Fluttershy looked back up the stairs. Only a few steps above the two were Pinkie, head deep in the yellow mist, giggling happily. “Oh my Celestia!” Pinkie screamed out from up the stairs, “I see everything!” “Oh, she’s doing it again.” Fluttershy groaned. “Those shoes are awesome trains!” Pinkie yelled into the abyss. “Doing what?” Twilight asked. “Cucumbers are just beds with alien technology!” Pinkie yelled. Fluttershy answers, “She’s poking her head into the gas for fun. Pinkie, please pull out.” “It’s so beautiful!” Pinkie cried. “Pinkie, come on out, Twilight’s back.” “You betrayed the law!” “Pink-” “Lawwwww!” “Pinkie!” “I am the law!” Now agitated, Fluttershy walked up to Pinkie and pulled her down to Twilight by the ear. “Hehe, it tickes!” Pinkie giggled. “When you’re ready Twilight,” Fluttershy said. Twilight stammers for a moment before replying, “Yeah… yeah, yeah-yeah I’m fine. Let’s go.” After a solid minute of wading through a thick green fog with their breath held, Korsan, the pirate crew, and the mares reached a clearing beyond the haze. Being the first to escape the deadly air, Korsan gasped out for clean air. Everypony else followed in the captain’s steps, crying out for air. “D-did-did anypony inhale the gas?” Korsan asked, pressing a hoof to the wall to support his failing body. “No.” The others replied in a greatly unsynchronized moan. “Juliana?” The ice phoenix soared over from the back of the group to on top of Korsan shoulder. She rubbed her cold head on her master’s deflated cheek. “There you are. Who’s a sweet little lady?” Korsan asked, tying to sound playful with deflated lungs. Juliana cooed in response. “Yes, yes you are.” “Aww,” Rarity giggled at the sight. With the gas gone, the murals on the wall returned to sight, displaying their gorgeous frescos once more. The team continued down to the end of the long path, their eyes glancing at the paintings. As they walked, they discovered something strange about the art. Most of the paintings portrayed an alicorn of some kind, rising from what seemed to be a golden fountain. Each alicorn was paired with a different background and text engraved at the top. “What could this all mean?” One of the pirates asked out loud. “Hey, Korsan,” Dash called out from the back of the herd. “How about you read some of these?” “I guess so.” Korsan said. He then took a moment to clear his throat. He examined one of the murals and read, “’Lady Joan, the Mare of Justice, twas a brave mare of beauty and chivalry. When the royals’ corruption befell upon her kingdom loyal to the forest, she bathed in the holy waters to achieve thy power necessary to overthrow. Queen she then became, and her descendants still rule fair to this day.’” “She does look pretty.” Applebloom remarked, entranced by the detailed portrait of the young white alicorn. Behind the fair alicorn and the fountain was a starry blue sky with a golden light pouring from the sides. The crew moved on to next painting. This time, the wall showed a black stallion against a bright red sky, with dark clouds and volcanoes in the background. The fountain in this piece looked slightly damaged, with a moat of red liquid around it. “This guy looks like a piece of work.” Korsan commented before reading. “‘Sir Cystic, the First of Fury, twas an angry, yet powerful stallion. Cousin to the younger heir to the throne of iron and steel, he sought out the fountain to make himself more formidable to be king. War broke between the soldiers of the cousin and the single alicorn for one hundred years. In time, the cousin died of age, and Cystic took the throne, which he held to with the clench of unwavering strength. To these times, his descendants uphold his power in the heart of fire, but fear his cost in a terrible end.’” “What end?” Applejack asked. “No idea.” “Maybe it was the fall of this island, whatever it was.” Grevious suggested. “It’s a pity that all of this amounted to nothing in the end.” Korsan said. He moved on. “It’s almost as if their lives were pointless…” Maria said. “Don’t be such a downer, Maria,” Yu replied behind her. “That’s my brother’s job.” “Hey!” Yin barked while most of the others silently chuckled. “Still,” Maria replied. “Seeing these tales of such great ponies, forgotten. It might as well be the same fate as for us.” “Don’t worry, I’ll always remember you.” Hands replied, comforting his mare-friend. “Thanks, Hans. That’s so sweet.” Maria replied with a faint smile. “Anything for you, m’lady.” Upon hearing this from Hans, the Shou Brothers make silent barfing noises in reflex. Applejack rolled her eyes at the two immature stallions behind her. “What a butt kisser,” Yu silently remarked to his brother. “Don’t even bother.” Yin whispered back. “You couldn’t even hold one night with a mare.” “I did.” Yu retorted. “Uh-huh, sure,” “It’s true, you just never saw it.” “Hey, if I know that those two lovebirds are sneaking out of their cabins every night to do who-knows-what, then I would tell if my brother’s ever spent the night with a mare.” “Wait, Hans and Maria sneak around at night?” “Exactly,” “What would they be doing?” “I don’t know, they always head down the back into the farm and kitchen.” “Maybe they’re getting a drink from the cellar.” “Nah, Butch would’ve caught them, he always checks the barrels at night. You know how protective he is about the cellar.” Yin replied. “True, true,” Yu nodded. “Who’s Butch?” Applejack accidently asked to the two stallions. “Hey, were you listening in on us?” Yu asked. “Uh…” Applejack didn’t know how to respond. “Take it easy,” Yin told Yu. “She’s on our side, I think.” The calmer brother turned to the Earth pony and explained, “Butch Taylor’s our cook. He’s also the one who’s looking after your friend, Sweetie Belle.” “I saw her in the kitchen with him. Saved our skins, she did.” Applejack replied. “Good for her.” Yin said, deadpan as ever. “Hey, if you don’t mind me asking, how did you twos end up here?” Applejack asked. “My brother and I were arrested for supposedly stashing cards in our clothing.” “Wait, wasn’t it that we were bribing the dealer?” Yu asked. “That was Las Pegasus, not Monte Canter, supposedly.” Yin restated. “But I remember that prison at Gorgonzola.” Yu insisted. “You were getting flirty with one of the mares that was arrested alongside us that worked as a show-” “We don’t speak of her.” “Yeah, yeah, that one time when she dropped the-” “Shut it! There’s a foal with us.” “Oh! And then there was that moment with Bubbles and Pablo-” “Captain Korsan! Want to read another wall?!” Yin yelled out, desperately trying to change the subject. “I’m looking, I’m deciding,” Korsan yelled back. His eye glossed over the murals. Each painting had a story to tell and a vibe to set the mood. “Fascinating, these things are, all dedications to ponies that became alicorns with the Fountain of Balance.” Korsan commented. Soon, the group came across a portrait of a purple stallion with two heads. The background was a warped pattern of black, white, and grey tiles. The golden fountain now looked very simplistic compared to the previous iterations, and very unfinished. Korsan, interested by it, read the writing, “’Sir Dolum, the Serpent of Lies, a selfish stallion that abused his generosities. Despite his raise to be kind and thoughtful, he grew himself spoiled and greedy. Sowed lies upon the earth and used the power of the fateful waters to grow them to his throne. May the golden heart of the fountain treat upon him and his followers as he hath treated others.’ Well, maybe ‘dedication’ doesn’t apply to that one.” “Hey, do you think there are any funny ones?” Yu asked. “Why would there be ‘funny’ ones?” Korsan asked, confused. “I don’t know.” “…” “Idiot,” Yin not-so-subtly coughed. “Keep moving forward, we’ll reach that fountain at any moment now.” Korsan declared. “Come on!” Isyan loudly moaned to the crew. “Oh boy, maybe we should backtrack into the poison gas again. I liked the quiet.” Korsan crudely remarked. “We’ve been walking for an hour. Can’t we take a break?” Applebloom complained. “No! We are reaching that fountain as soon as possible.” Korsan barked. “Bah…” Isyan moaned, having the exact same thought as Applebloom. Eventually, the sounds of gentle splashing echoed in the darkness straight ahead. “Is that it?!” Isyan asked. “Hallelujah,” Korsan simply responded. “Go, go, go!” He exclaimed to the crew. This was it, he thought. This is where the Fountain of Balance had to be! Quickly, a second wind burst across the crowd. They blindly charged forward. “This has to be it, this has to be it, this has to-Ah!” Korsan shrieked as the floor suddenly disappeared from under. He and the others plummeted into a large pool of water. The lit torch stayed alit with Chopin and Rainbow Dash, having not fallen in with the others. They had stopped at the edge of the stone floor before the pool. The light eventually revealed that Korsan and everypony else merely slipped off an unseen end of the corridor. Korsan swam back up to the surface with an agitated ice phoenix on his shoulder. He paddled across the surface of the water, finding it surprisingly easy to do so. The other fallen members soon followed suit as they floated up to the top of the water. “Well, that happened.” Korsan said. “My suit!” Yu cried in terror. “Speak for yourself.” Isyan grumbled. “Where do we go now?” Maria asked. “Oh no!” Rarity exclaimed. “Korsan, your dress, I’m sorry-” “Relax,” the captain interrupted. “that can be easily cleaned and dried back onboard. Now the real issue is where’s forward?” “The place might have caved in,” Horus suggested. “We could just use The Perfection and drill our way-” “Absolutely not. We want to preserve every millimeter of this place for future study. I don’t think we’re caved in. See the walls here, they’re carved, this is clearly intentional.” “But for what?” Yin asked. “…How deep do you think this water is?” Korsan asked. “I’m not sure. Let me check.” Horus replied. With a flick of his horn, the albino pony’s horn shone a bright red. The second light revealed the flat bottom and walls of the pool of water. “They’re about equal to the dimensions of the hallway we’ve been in,” Korsan stated. “Search around for a tunnel.” Horus moved his horn around the deep water, soon coming across an underwater section of the path. It lead to a point where the tunnel returned to air. “Aha! There’s a tunnel ahead, about 100 metres. There we go.” Horus declared. “Are you expecting us to go in there?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Do you even know how long that is? We’ll drown.” Korsan retorted, “Not on my watch.” “Attention all unicorns!” He yelled out to the crew. “Use your magic to create a large air bubble around your head and set your horn glow to its brightest. Your bubble will be your only means of oxygen, so I suggest you swim easily and take easy breaths. The water probably mixed with anti-magic, making it so thick, so don’t try anything fancy with your already weak magic. If you mess up, remember, you are swimming in dense water, so you’ll only be able to move a little to reach a partner’s air bubble. Isyan, supply air to Juliana. Horus and the Shou Brothers, supply air for Applejack and Applebloom. Chopin, supply air to the loud thing on the stick.” Juliana swiftly leapt from her master’s shoulder and landed on Isyan’s head. “Hey! No way I’m trusting that clown with my life.” Rainbow protested. “He’s a mime. Now let’s move out!” Korsan roared. “Wait, what about you?” Rarity asked. “I got tough enough pegasus-lungs, I can keep myself alive.”