//------------------------------// // Chapter 16: Judgement // Story: The Harmony Initiative // by Madame Hellspawn //------------------------------// “Solemn!” Rime shouted down the street. “Come on, we’re gonna miss it!” “I’m coming!” Solemn called back, through panting breaths. She streaked wearily past “What the—that’s me.” Solemn watched as her younger form galloped after a younger Rime Runner. They galloped down the street, racing towards the nearby park. Music beats rumbled in Solemn’s ears and even from the few blocks away that she and Rime had to go until the arrived in the park, the young fillies' chests vibrated from the deep bass permeating throughout the downtown districts of Manehattan. The older Solemn watched, dumbstruck as she witnessed Rime and herself gallop like the free spirits they were. A small crack of a smile spread on her face once they disappeared, following her younger self down the opposite sidewalk, casting several glances around the street and crossing once the wagons and carriages were clear, the moment her hooves touched the dirty, grey concrete, the vehicles returning to the street at full strength. Keeping an eye on her younger self, Solemn trotted past various ponies, releasing a yelp when one kept on walking in her direction, not caring if he would bump into her. Instead, she phased through him, and several others as she looked around in sordid disbelief. Ponies walked through her without so much as a care. Solemn looked at each of them, confused and having an odd sense of violation. She shifted herself out of the way, leaning against a brick wall of an apartment complex and stared down at her hooves. Her form was transparent, yet still retaining enough of her color to remain familiar. A dream. That makes sense. Solemn brought her eyes to the sky, watching the clouds slowly glide past at a slug’s pace. She hoped to find a trace of Luna somewhere, in the sky, part of the crowd or an inanimate object with eyes glued onto Solemn. She had no such luck finding anything of the sort. All sense of her surroundings faded, walking freely through the shades of the past without a care. She knew this day well and while she may have lost sight of her younger self, she knew herself well enough to know where exactly where she and Rime would be headed on a day such as this. The further down the streets she trotted, the fresher the air became, a mix of sea water and pollution filling her nose and lungs. The buildings ceased as she reached the end of the concrete path, a journey that took less time than Solemn remembered. Behind parked wagons and carriages on the road running perpendicular from her, Solemn spotted a sign of wood just slightly raised on a row of wooden posts, reading Battery Park. Solemn crossed gingerly, passing the parked wagons and wandering through the fence into the grass. From the open park, Solemn looked around, soaking in all the sights and sounds she began to realize she so desperately missed. Watching the water roll and wave around, guiding boats to docks, ponies too preoccupied with themselves and the stark skyline of Bucklyn across the river. The visage of the city skyline was beautiful, the towers of concrete and glass adding their own shine as they reflected the sunlight. Colts and fillies darted past Solemn, giggling and screeching in excitement towards the center of the park where gold flags bearing the mark of Equestria elegantly flapped with the riverside breeze. She caught sight of herself and Rime once again, joined by a green pegasus flapping her wings rapidly and only hovering mere inches off the ground. Solemn’s breath caught in her throat. How long had it been since she last saw May? Although the May in front of her was just a child and much about her had changed, she was still a sight for sore eyes. “That’s the Summer Sun Celebration,” Solemn muttered. Despite the dreamscape mirroring the real world with startling accuracy, Solemn felt disconnected. She knew it was a dream, a faux visual conjured by the magical confines of her mind, yet in all others, she was the subject of the dream. Not anypony else, it was always her. Watching her younger self being the center of the dream felt unnatural. “That it is.” Startled, Solemn turned, coming face to face with the darker of the Regal Sisters, the silky blue of her coat glistening in the sunshine and her ever-flowing mane twinkling like the night sky itself. Ponies pushed past, walking through her, although she did not seem to mind it as much as Solemn did. “Princess L-Luna!” Solemn knelt down, muzzle touching the grass. Even for a dream, the grass which she had knelt upon felt real. She raised her head slightly, watching the hooves of the alicorn gently motion for her to rise. Overnight stood alongside the princess, more focused on the sights and sounds of her old home. “Solemn Vigil,” The alicorn spoke, raising her forehoof slightly as though to guide her. “We have much to discuss. Fear not, I wish only to help you and your mother.” The crowded streets vanished, a black space surrounding the ponies. Overnight yelped, scooting herself closer to Princess Luna and gripping tightly to her body. As the colors faded, Luna looked down at the two ponies, concern heavy on her tired face. “Fear not Mrs. Vigil. Here, there is no sense of direction unless I will it. We are neither falling nor rising. Moving forward and moving backward. ” Solemn braced herself despite Luna’s words. She felt like she were travelling for a thousand miles, moving nowhere, yet their destination lay just ahead. Light shined what seemed like miles away, as though the three ponies were in a tunnel, but rather than approaching the end, the end was coming to them. Solemn’s tail tucked itself between her hind legs and her ears fell atop her head. She tried not to imagine what lay ahead of her. An eternal nightmare? Punishment for the few things she had done wrong in life? Was this really the price to pay for having a certain cutie mark? A moment later, the light enveloped her, blinding at first, but her eyes adjusted in a mere two blinks. Everywhere she turned, there was nothing, save for her mother and Princess Luna, horn glowing and deep in concentration. “Forgive me if I come across anything...too personal.” Luna said. Before the three ponies, a wall of images manifested along with orbs, playing back memories like movies before their very eyes. Overnight released herself from Solemn, stepping closer to the series of memories, gazing up at them with such wonder and awe that Solemn would have thought she had never experienced them before. “Twilight’s instructions were a tad vague for my liking.” “You’re going to be searching through all of our memories?” Overnight asked, a slight blush in her cheeks. “I can sort through memories faster than most ponies would think. It takes time, but it is possible for me. Magic in the dream world is a wonderous thing.” In each memory, Solemn watched as recollections of all kind played around her, some her own and others from her mother. There were thousands, maybe millions swarming around them. Stressing over unpaid medical bills in the late hours of the night, dealing with bullies from school at a young age, making friends, losing them, everything that Solemn and Overnight Vigil had done in their lives floating around them while Luna worked. Her horn glowed, memories fading and others flocking toward her in speeds unimaginable. An orb floated close to Solemn, the images blurred and bright. She watched, holding a hoof out to the orb and letting it float into her hoof. She heard faint grunts and cries of pain mixed with shouting. Figures were shrouded by shadows, surrounding pony whose eyes she viewed from. Her heart dropped. Was this it? Could it be the key to understanding her cutie mark? “Filly! It’s a filly!” A voice called from within. Overnight’s ears perked up, trotting over to Solemn’s side and stopping with a gasp. A soft smile spread across her muzzle.” “That was the happiest day of my life,” Overnight said, watching the memory. Solemn, as a foal, squirmed and wiggled about, yawning as Overnight held her close. She looked up at a doctor, their voices joining the countless echoes and choir of muted conversations from the other memories. “I knew my little Solemn would grow up into somepony for the good of the world. Boy, was it tough, but I regret none of it. I wish her father was still around to see what she would become.” “The hardships of parenthood are often worth the struggles,” Luna commented, eyes scanning the wall of memories and dreams, mind racing like clockwork faster than Solemn and Overnight could process all the images. The combined wall of both ponies’ memories made for a collage of good and bad times, wonderful dreams and nightmares. “Hmmm.” “Is your work really more important than your family?” Solemn’s ears perked up, scanning the many bubbles for the source. Overnight did the same. “She’s barely even a year old, Watch. How can I just watch her on my own and work at the same time? At least your work could let you stay with her here at home on most days.” “They have foalsitters for a reason.” A deeper, rougher voice answered. Solemn continued to search for the memory, her hooves carrying her past hundreds of others in the colorful bubble-scape Luna had placed them in. “She’ll be fine without me.” “What about me?” Overnight asked. Solemn turned to her left, finding the source. She grasped the memory in her magic, stepping closer to it. A stallion stood in a doorway, body blocking the only exit in sight and head only turned slightly in Overnight’s general direction. “Please don’t go. I need you. Solemn needs you. We love you, Constant. I love you.” The stallion was quiet, turning away from the mare. “I’m sorry. Duty is the forefront of prosperity. Everypony has a role to play in the world in order to make it a better place. The work I need to do is too important for me to let it fester any longer. Maybe in the future, we’ll see each other again.” “That was your father.” Overnight walked beside Solemn, extending a forehoof to the bubbled memory. She stared down at it, longing in her eyes. Her pained expression shifted, as though the mask of happiness were finally giving out. “So focused on his work. I still don’t know why he left. To this day, I can’t believe The Union wasn’t enough for him. Constant Watch...” “Quite strange indeed,” Luna remarked, horn still glowing. Memories dissipated, vanishing with not a single sound, save for the echoes of memories cut off before being thrown into the void. “It pains me to say that it does not bode well for your current situation. It would seem somepony is hard at work keeping the Equestrian Bureau of Defense away from your father.” “Can’t you bring him here?” Solemn asked. She wanted desperately to be able to see him again. The memories she did have of her father were fuzzy and almost nonexistent. “Believe me,” Luna looked away from her work for a moment to gaze down at Solemn. “I have tried since Twilight came to me on the matter. Darkness shrouds my mind whenever I try to find him. I fear the worst for him. I pray that all ponies, no matter their character, find peace once they move on from this life and enter the next.” Overnight looked down at her hooves. Her voice wavered and shook. “How did he die?” “I’m afraid I do not know.” Luna answered simply. The bubbles of memories gathered, spreading out, forming a wall before the three ponies. Solemn looked forward at the wall of memories before her. In chronological order, each one played like a movie before her eyes. Even memories she could barely remember—being no older than a few months old or memories she had tried her hardest to block out—played and passed by her before they could complete their loops. “He was a traveller for a time, venturing westward. Farther than my magic could reach and farther than those whose hoofsteps he followed.” Luna explained, eyes glossing over the memories, mind running faster than what Solemn could have imagined.“For what it is worth, your husband, the times I had entered his dreams, had the two of you in his mind most nights. Though he could never have anticipated Solemn as a grown mare, he had high hopes that the two of you were happier without him.” Solemn shifted her lip to the side. She was unsure how different life would have been with Constant Watch in her life. Overnight, undoubtedly, would not have stressed herself working longer hours. Maybe her gait would be gone and Solemn would still be in Manehattan, even after The Incident. He would have been a strange variable to have been included in their lives. Luna furrowed her brow, the wall ceasing movements of recollections. Several gaps separated the blocks of memories. She flared her horn, but Solemn was unsure of the desired effect. Luna tried once more, frowning and staring at the blank spaces. “There is powerful magic at play.” She said finally. “Dreams and memories are missing from both of your minds. There have only been a few cases where I’ve needed to remove such foulness from the world, but none since my return. Somepony removed these somehow. But who, with magic equivalent to my own? This realm is my own. Nopony comes here unless I will it.” It was something that made both Vigils shudder. "How could that happen?" Overnight asked. “To my knowledge, from what I have observed, of all the things I have seen,” Luna turned to the two unicorns. “None are more mysterious than this. There are no written records of the spells I use to remove something so important to a pony’s being.” “Could it be Discord?” “Highly unlikely. The fool’s magic would not be allowed to spread through his stone imprisonment.” Luna continued to stare into the voids. “Nopony should have this kind of power.” “Multiple ponies, pooling their magic together could potentially allow them to do something like this right?” Overnight asked. “A group of ponies a few years back did that to amplify their telekinesis so they could carry more weight. They got bigger machine parts down for repairs that way, no matter how much I told them how dangerous it was.” Luna shifted her lips, unsure. “A pony would need to know a spell capable of such magnitude, a spell that, again, has no written records. The spell came to me when I had ascended countless centuries ago, an innate power which I had seldom used. “I wish no ill will on you ponies. I have seen some of these dreams before and I can see that you both harbor only the best of intentions.” “Then why would Twilight lock us up?” Solemn found herself asking. “Fear can drive a pony to do many things they’ll regret sooner or later,” Luna said. She drew her glance elsewhere as though lost in her own thoughts. “She may come to regret her decision or she may not. Whatever the case, you know your true intentions. You know where your loyalties lie. Ponies may come to fear your cutie mark. They will not understand and some will even come to dislike you for it. However, a cutie mark does not always define a pony. Will you let yours define who you are, or will you continue to be the pony you always were? Think on it my dear ponies.” “I-I will.” Solemn stammered. Luna’s wisdom was talked about in books and fables, but to actually have heard her speak the words to her? It was something else entirely. “Believe me when I say that we will get to the bottom of this,” Luna spoke softly. “It is troubling that you both have been victim of memory extraction on such a level of this. I do not believe you to have taken memories from your minds on your own volition. Very few ponies would ever even think of such a thing.” *** When Solemn awoke, her body felt restored, as though the sheets around her body was like the tender hold of a loved one. It was something Solemn had longed for more than she cared to admit. The hold of her mother was a tender and familial one, a grasp that she had grown quite used to growing up, as had many other ponies that she knew and had yet to know. Overnight slept on her own bed beside Solemn’s, separated only by a simple desk where books and a single lamp sat. She had no idea what time it was. The only way to even have a clue was based on the lighting in the room, probably accurately dimming and brightening with the daylight outside of the base. She’d asked a security officer outside the room for a clock or a watch or something to help both her and her mother keep track, but they had often refused, some nicer than others. It was a trend among the guards she had noticed. It was often the griffons who flat out rejected her requests for virtually anything. When the hour had grown quiet, she could hear at least one of the guards speak ill of her and her mother. She was far from a traitor in every sense, but her patience wore thin most days and it was Overnight who had to bring her down a notch or two and plead that she ignore the words. There was only one outburst made by Solemn in the eternity she had been trapped in the holding chamber. “I won’t have my damn loyalty questioned by a feather brained freak of nature!” She shouted at the door, blood boiling and seething. A moment later the door opened and a griffon clad in security leathers barreled in, an earth pony following suit, only the earth pony came between Solemn and the griffon. “I’ll beat your traitorous skull in, ya hear?” The griffon threatened. The earth pony slapped the baton out of his grip and started shoving him back towards the door. “Think I need that? I don’t need a weapon to beat your traitorous ass!” “Stop it!” The earth pony shoved him back and looked towards Solemn. “I don’t wanna have to put a muzzle over your mouth. Shut it and there won’t be any problems.” “Should put a muzzle on him.” Solemn replied, garnering a growl from the griffon standing by the door. The earth pony only glared at him, picking up the dropped baton and spitting it back towards the griffon. “Quiet.” He said. “It’s bad enough that you’re in here. Don’t need you starting trouble with us.” Ponies had been more forgiving of Solemn’s situation. Their softer and gentler words had been welcome and she would have much preferred two ponies guarding the door to the room at all times rather than an alternating cast of ponies and griffons. Having two griffons was the worst, but two ponies were generally quiet in comparison. Since the incident with security, Solemn was prone to reading or writing whenever the boredom struck or the guards taunted her and her mother from outside. She was thankful that she was still able to use her magic. Solemn rose from her bed, the sheets and blankets wrinkling as she stretched and rose to her hooves on the cool floor. Overnight groaned in her bed, lying awake for only a few minutes before Solemn had rose. As Twilight walked in, she was flanked by two security officers; a griffon to her left and an earth pony to her right. They held no weapons this time, but Solemn was still weary, standing between them and her mother, as tall and as proud as she could make herself appear. “I…” She sighed, looking back at the guards. “Leave us.” Reluctantly, the two security officers did, the door sliding to a close behind them. Twilight sat, letting out a longer sigh and shutting her eyes. Although it had only been days since the two parties last spoke to each other, the burdens and stress of those days were heavy upon Twilight’s face. Solemn was sure it was Rime’s doing that the commander bore bags under the eyes and a kind of laziness in the styling of her own mane. When she opened her eyes, her expression softened and her body relaxed. “I’m letting you two go free. It was wrong of me to uproot the two of you from your duties down here and throw you away the way I did.” She said sullenly. “I’ve let my own fears take over and...well, I shouldn’t have acted on impulse.” “We aren’t the enemy,” Overnight replied, a hint of anger in her voice. “My baby has done more than enough to prove that she isn’t some double agent for those ponies—whoever they are.” Twilight nodded. “I understand that. You’ll no longer be confined to this room, or any other. Your clearances have been returned to you—to an extent—and you will report to your typical duties starting tomorrow morning.” “Just like that?” Solemn asked. Twilight pursed her lips. “Well...there is a catch. For the sake of security, I’ll have Starlight Glimmer place a tracking spell on you both. As well as a security escort for you Solemn.” Solemn held her tongue. Instead Overnight spoke for her. “That’s a...step up I suppose. Will Solemn really need an escort though? Can’t we be trusted with the tracking spells on its own?” “It’s only temporary. For now, I...It’s been rough, not just on me, but for you two as well. I want to believe you both can be trusted. Only time will tell. You two are dismissed.” It took a moment for it to sink in, but Solemn ultimately stepped forward, Overnight following with her awkward gait. There was little in the sense of freedom to Solemn as she stepped past the doorway; the brightly lit white chamber contrasting to the dark, greys of the lower level halls. “Overnight!” Twilight called. The weak mare turned, worry returning to her eyes. “Before you report to Engineering tomorrow morning, I want you to report to Starlight Glimmer in Research. She may have something to relieve you of that physical pain. Think of it as an apology gift.” “Thank you ma’am.” Solemn stepped forward, standing as tall and as proud as she could, swallowing hard and granting Twilight a proper salute, catching the alicorn by surprise. “I swear, Commander,” she spoke. “I will prove myself to be a loyal soldier to The Initiative. I want to earn your trust again, as well as the trust of those who question my loyalties. I won’t let you down Commander.” Twilight remained quiet, even as Solemn relaxed herself and trotted away, aiding her mother down the corridor, watched intently by the two security guards which had followed Twilight. The alarm sounded, painfully ringing in the ears of all parties present. “Commander to Mission Control! Commander to Mission Control!” “Looks like this can be your chance.” Twilight whispered solemnly. *** His eyes opened and the first thing he was met with was complete darkness. Loki seldom woke up in the late hours of the night and hardly has The Hive ever been as quiet as it was. There was usually a patrol or two that passed by his small section of cavern or the occasional group of friends making their way back to their respective denizens of The Hive where they would continue their drunken conversations or lay on the floor in unnatural and uncomfortable positions until it was time for them to get back to work. Loki glanced around, the green glow of the hatchery surrounding him at his post. The rock he used as a bed had been naturally chiseled to accommodate his hard exoskeleton, years of erosion allowing for the changeling to sleep the night away alongside the younglings. It was not uncommon for hatchery caretakers to do such a thing in the late hours of the night. Should a hatchling be ready to leave its egg, the nearest worker or wet nurse would be alerted of such through innate senses. It was a strange ability, but one that gave much credence to the idea of the whole Changeling race functioning as a sort of hive mind, although since Chrysalis was gone from the picture, individuality was returning. Tonight, none of the eggs seemed to be disturbed. Of course, if he was awake there were at least three possibilities; an egg was ready for hatching, there were intruders in the midst or Loki’s body had decided he had enough sleep for the night. Intruders were rare in The Hive, but he never ruled it out as a possibility. He chose to work there for the silence and seclusion from most of the main network and others who had relished in their newfound individuality. Loki had discovered his, but despite their new freedoms, everyone had a role to play in The Hive. If he had things his way, he would stay in his own fissure and read and study. What little friends he did have he managed to keep things brief, being that The Hive worked in such an orderly schedule. He did not mind it much though. He was doing his duty for The Hive, even if it was not the duty he would have chosen for himself. There was still the matter of a possible threat to deal with. Several points of his crimson carapace cracked as Loki stood up and stretched. His membranous wings stretched as well, glowing a slight lemon-lime hue as he flexed and retracted them. His silvery chitin back plates folded and unfolded before settling back into a relaxed position. He took his first steps out of his rockbed with caution before standing in the center of the cavern. Torches lined the cavernous maze between indents in the walls where dozens of glowing emerald pods lined the walls, reaching as far up as the ceiling. A few stirred, the hatchlings inside bound to come crawling out at any moment. He was surprised to find none of the wet nurses tending to the little ones in their eggs, nor any of them sleeping in their designated crevasses in the walls. Their presence managed to soothe the unhatched in their deep slumber and development. Yet there was not a single nurse in sight that Loki could see. Perhaps they had sensed the invader too? Maybe it’s some kind of joke? In truth, Loki could not see any of the wet nurses playing any type of joke on him. It was more their style to lecture others about the cruelty of jokes and pranks. Unless the invader or invaders passed through most of the cavern already without Loki knowing and the wet nurses had just run away in terror, there should be no reason that all of their posts to be empty, save for a few of their belongings. Following twists and turns, Loki was met with the Central Hatchery chamber. A single pillar stood in the center, lined with hundreds of small pods, each glowing a translucent emerald. They clumped together in a claustrophobic bunch, prodding and pressing against one another as they trailed up the silky webbing on the pillar and ceiling. It was here, Loki expected to find the wet nurses, and yet there was nothing. Not a single sound or sign of another changeling having passed through the area. He could still feel the unease of the little ones and someone else. There was something or someone here that did not belong. He was sure of it. Loki circled the column, briskly trotting past the eggs and down the opposing tunnel from where he had come. Despite the lack of any signs, Loki knew it was toward the Southern Hatchery, surely where he would find someone who had even a slight notion of what was going on. Not a single soul in sight, besides the hundreds lining the walls, developing inside their eggs. He stopped upon an intersection, two tunnels imbedded in the walls, both leading the Western Hatchery. Steps sounded from behind him, quiet, but just loud enough for Loki to take note of the light hoof falls against the quarried stone. “Loki?” The blue glistening eyes of Broadshell stared at Loki with intrepid curiosity. Contrary to his name, he was a rather slender and abnormal changeling. Unlike most of the other changelings born before the rule of Chrysalis, he had kept a few of the scars from The Hive’s troubled past. His golden carapace was pocked full of holes and slashes, despite thriving in the same way as the rest of the changelings in The Hive. “You got the feeling too? I just checked this side of the hatchery.” “Nothing?” Loki asked. “Nothing. Do you think Needles found someone?” “Did you hear from her at all? She’s got the entire west section to deal with.” “Maybe we should split. I’ll start looking down there.” Broadshell pointed a cracked hoof down the leftward tunnel, darkened and illuminated with nothing other than the soft glow of the fragile eggs. “Hopefully by the time we find her, we’ll have some guards crawling around here.” Loki shifted his lips at the idea, but was left no time to argue. Broadshell had already begun his intrepid trot down the tunnel, leaving Loki by himself at the cavern’s intersection. With no option other than to begin his own search for Needles, he started down the right tunnel. Exchanges between him and the other patrol drones were often kept short, but slightly too short for his own liking. Especially in a time like this where everyone seemed to have vanished from their posts. The stirring of the unhatched was slightly unsettling. Most of those awaiting their official introduction into the world were many weeks behind to be this active, especially at this point and time in the night and their development cycles. “I hope Needles is okay.” Loki muttered to himself. A rumble shook the hatchery, disturbing the little ones. Each one squirmed and Loki felt his heart start to race faster and faster until they ceased. Despite their calming down, Loki felt his legs begin to tremble. He willed himself forward, lighting torches left unlit by the changelings in charge of the day shift. “Argh!” Loki jumped. That was Needles. With as silent as a trot could be, Loki skipped forward towards the source of the groans. From further down the corridor, two green orbs glowed, flashing—no, blinking— repeatedly. Loki slowed himself, approaching intrepidly. Another rumble shook the cavern, dust falling onto Loki’s head and rocks shifting. He feared an earthquake, but it must not have been anything of the sort. The region never experienced one if Thorax or The Elders were to be believed. Dust erupted before him, blowing out the torches on the walls. Still, Loki pushed forward as the dust diffused through the cavern until the green eyes were closer. They met his and the breaths became heavier. Loki took several steps, craning his head to see slightly better. Another changeling, a blue to orange gradient coloring her body. A wing was missing and her back carapace had all but fallen off. Needles looked up, expression softening only slightly before terror overtook her. Loki opened his mouth, only for her to hold a hoof up to her muzzle. “Shh.” She gulped, her sparkling eyes full of fear and panic appearing on her soft-shelled face. She beckoned Loki over with a forehoof. He approached, falling low to the ground and crawling at a sluggish pace until he reached the rock face beside her. Beyond the fallen pillar which she had taken cover behind, the hall curved, illuminated by the eggs which stretched on. “What happened to you?” He asked, examining her cracked hooves. “We’ve gotta get you to the apothecary.” “I’ll be fine.” She winced once Loki took a hoof, horn glowing slightly and repairing the cracks as best his magic could allow. “I fell from the shaft. Something chased me. I thought it was a special breed of us, something that was a secret. Instead, it came at me, charging and screaming. I ran. Damn thing carved through a few of the guards like it was nothing. I took a shortcut to get here, but...well, you see how well that turned out.” “Where is everyone?” “Scrambled. I don’t know what’s happening. I think...I think the aliens are here. Something’s wrong.” Another rumble shook the cavern. A hiss and groan stopped Loki’s heart. He raised himself from the fallen pillar, only to have Needles’s magic force him lower to the bumpy surface of the floor. Another thud sounded from around the corner of the hall. Loki shot Needles a scowl, opening his mouth in protest. “Shh!” She put a hoof against her lips and spoke in a hushed tone. “It’s here!” Loki felt his stomach twist and his heart drop. Heavy thuds and scuttling roamed behind the shattered rock. He could feel the intensity of his heart beats increasing rapidly as the thuds edged closer to the fallen pillar the two took shelter behind. Loki held his breath, as did Needles. His ears perked when the steps ceased and started to fade away. He looked over towards Needles who had all but frozen in fear. She turned her head slowly, breath still caught in her throat. “We need to leave.” She whispered. “Now.” “Agreed.”