//------------------------------// // Chapter 2; relocation/ remastered // Story: Fixing the balance // by BRITICAL-HIT //------------------------------// Theo slowly regained consciousness, unclear as to what feeling pulsing through his body was. It felt like he was burning, but also felt numb at the same time. Whatever happened to him was irrelevant because he was alive, and likely better off than if he stayed in the exploding school. After jumping through the portal, Theo and his group ended up in the middle of a dense forest. It seemed severely large, without an end in sight. The trees were so dense and compact that little to no light came through them, with small clearings littered around the place for light. With a better idea as to where he ended up, Theo's next goal was to find his friends. That said, they couldn't be. "Aaagghh, my arse!" ... Too far. Ivan was a few feet away from Theo, also having the same 'fuzzy' feeling around his body Theo had. However, he could still feel his butt hurting really bad, laying on his back. Made however, was nowhere to be seen, as it appeared only the boys landed in the clearing, but Theo paid no attention to this, and focused on oven for the time being. Theo sniggered. "Well, we could be a lot worse man." He mentioned, reminding Ivan they just got out of being blown up. "I could do without this weird fuzzy feeling though, it's proper weird." Theo turned on his side to avoid the sunlight beaming into his eyes, but what he saw he could not comprehend. "What the?" "Holy shit!!!" Ivan yelled, causing Theo to look over at him, or what Theo thought was him. To his disbelief, Ivan had somehow transformed in what appeared to be a... A pony? Several of his features remained the same, such as his hair and slim body, but he was now covered in green fur and had a short tail shooting from his, ahem, 'rear end'. "I'm a horse, a fucking horse! Why? How?" "Are you trying to kill my ears? I'm only here man!" Theo shouted, before trying to get on all fours. Despite his sight still not being up to par, he could still vaguely recognize himself.. He still had the rough, blonde hair he was cursed to have, his new body seemed to sprout red fur, and he had a moderately sized horn on his head. After a while trying to stand up, Theo fell back onto his belly, an action that caused him to lose it. "This is fucking bullshit! That's the last time I let Made convince me to do ANYTHING!" "I'd say the first one up gets the first punch at her. You in?" Ivan suggested as a method to vent both their anger. After a quick nod from Theo, the pair of them raced to see who could get to grips with their respective bodies first, and after 5 minutes of constant grunts, groans and falling, Theo gained his bearings moments before Ivan. But before Theo had the chance to gloat about it, Made walked into the clearing to join the boys. She seemed the least changes out of the three of them, with her fur being the same colour as her hoodie back home and her hair only being a little longer. "You know how loud you guys were?" She asked, slowly moving towards them, somehow having mastered walking in her new body. "Do either of you know what's going on?" "Not a fucking clue, but I'm definitely blaming you for this." Ivan complained, squaring up to Made. "Why? What have I done?" She asked, unaware as to why Ivan turned on her. "Erm, for making us go into the lab, for throwing a fucking stapler through the portal! Need I go on?" “B-but Theo could've stopped it, couldn't he? And he turned the portal in in the first place." Made claimed, dragging Theo into the argument. "1. Can't stop software on a computer without a keyboard. And 2, I didn't throw a stapler at the computer, that was you. Now can you please leave me out of this argument so I can try to muster up whatever sanity I have left? Thanks!" Theo explained before walking away Ivan and Made. "I think we hit a nerve." Made said, changing the conversation to avoid further argument. Even Ivan was concerned, despite still being a little annoyed. After he struggled to walk over to Theo, he placed his 'hoof' over Theo's shoulder. "I thought you were the smart one, don't you know over-reacting will make things worse, right?" Ivan asked, being met with an annoyed glare. "Pretty ironic coming from you two." He mentioned, which was met with an embarrassed expression from both his friends. Theo looked down at his new body, cringing at the mere sight of it. "Besides, I think we all have a right to be a confused right now. Maybe a little mad, but not at each other's throats." "Yeah, I guess." Ivan moaned, sitting down against a nearby tree. "Where the fuck are we to look like this anyway?" "Purgatory? Gillian's island? Maybe the Bermuda Triangle? Does it even matter right now?" Made asked, before stumbling in her new body. This clearly pissed her off though, as she now walked up to a tree. "I fucking hate this!" She screamed, punching the tree. What happened next was... Unpredicted, to say the least. As she punched the tree, the resulting force she gave off caused the whole thing to break, the tree collapsing and shattering by the sheer power of the punch. Theo and Ivan looked in awe at Made's accomplishment, even Made herself was speechless. Ivan was the first to talk. "Note to self: never piss Made off while she's a horse." "Side-note: if these bodies have perks, they may not be as bad as it seems." Theo said, trying to hold back his laughter over what he just said. "Are you mad? There’s no power that exists that’s worth my humanity, period!” He boasted firmly, putting his ‘foot’ down. However, Made discovered something that made her choose to continue the discussion. "Ivan, do you have... Wings?" Made asked, causing Ivan to look to his sides and, to his disbelief, see the small, folded away wings he had. He tested out his new limbs by flexing them briefly, and stuttered trying to find something to say, his face in utter shock. "Made? I think you broke him." Theo muttered to Made, as they both awaited Ivan’s reaction. "What the hell? How? How are they..." He paused, still flexing his wings, finding the more he did so, the more he grew to like them. Sure, they were still incredibly weird, but he figured he'd roll with it. "These are pretty cool! Can I fly with these things? They seem a bit small." Theo and Made were in shock as to how easily Ivan could just accept his wings, but decided to just leave him be, as trying to understand Ivan was out of question as of right now. "I guess that just leaves me to find my skill I guess." Theo shrugged, looking to see if he had wings, only to find a weird mark on his flank, it's discovery met with a confused look. "What the fuck is this?" The mark in question seemed to resemble some form of sword, being made entirely of blue energy, had no grip and was split through the middle. It seemed to resemble a 'halo energy sword' to Theo, his gaming instincts seemingly understanding its design instantly. "That's a sword. Why do I have a sword on my arse? He asked his friends. "Have you guys got marks like this?" This question caused both Made and Ivan looked down to their respective backsides to answer Theo's question, and met with some vibrant answers, as each of them had a mark themselves. Ivan's mark seemed to be a speedometer, similar to the kind you see on the dashboard of a car, while Made's mark seemed to be a double-sided tool, being a hammer at one end and a wrench on the other. While the marks confused the group at first, Theo seemed to quickly thought of a meaning of them. "Do you think they represent skills?" He asked, earning a confused look from the group. "When I first met Ivan, he seemed a sporty type of person, and we all just saw Made's inhuman feat of strength." He looked over at the damaged tree, a very clear example of his theory. "Okay, now that I see it, it makes sense for us two." Made told Theo, walking over to him clumsily, trying not to fall again. "But what about yours? If they represent skills, yours makes no sense." Theo thought for a minute to figure out what his mark meant, quickly coming up with a few ideas. "Maybe my sharp mind?" His friends shook their heads. "Hey, I've got us this far!" "Okay man, try not to get hurt patting yourself on the back." Ivan said, which was met with a snort from Theo, slightly scaring Ivan. "Aah, horse noises!" "Ah, shut up you pussy!" Theo moaned, returning to his prior thoughts. "It may seem obvious, but what if I can just... Do that? The ability to just, poof a sword into existence would be awesome! Just the whole idea of it, you know?" Theo seemed overly-exited of this idea, and seemed to over-react to it, being met with some concerned looks from the others. "Sorry about that, gaming instincts got the better of me. Ivan and Made briefly looked at each-other. "Should we tell him?" Ivan asked. "Well, he'll figure it out eventually anyway, so why not?" Made responded, looking at Theo again. "Okay, what the fuck are you two on about?" Theo asked, slightly confused and annoyed his friends were keeping something from him. "Theo? You've got a horn." Made explained, pointing to his head with her hoof. Causing Theo to see the extra appendage he had on his head. "How did I not notice that sooner?" He asked, curious as to its purpose. "Meh, I'll figure out what it's for sooner or later. For now, we need a game plan." Made stepped forward with her opinion. "Well, I personally want to get the fuck out of this forest and figure out where we are, but I don't have a clue which way we should go. But it looks like it's gonna start getting dark pretty soon, so I don't know what we should do. Any votes?" Ivan thought for a moment. "I think we should stay in this clearing for the night. If we camp here, we will wake up tomorrow rested, and we'll have a safer passage through the forest on the extended sunlight." Ivan seemed to be quite proud of his plan, but Theo had a different idea. "I honestly think we should just start walking now. We pick a direction and stick to it until we get out of the forest, or we find a more suitable place to stay the night." Ivan gave Theo a deep glare. "What? I don't think staying in one place for too long is a good idea, just trust me on This one guys. Besides, I think we should take our new selves out for a test-drive. May as well get used to it." There was a brief silence from the group while they thought of what to do. Eventually, Made stood up. "Hate to say it, but I'm gonna have to back Theo on this one Ivan." She said, and while he was slightly annoyed for a moment, Ivan sighed. "You've got us this far man." He started, walking up to his friend. "Don't fuck up now!" "Just chill out man, I have no intention of messing up." Theo boasted. "Let's get going." And so, it was now that Theo, Ivan and Made set off from the clearing they appeared in in search of refuge for the night, and to figure out where the hell they were. -0-0-0-0-0- It had only been a couple of hours since the earth trio had started walking away from their initial clearing, and it seemed the lot of them regretted trying to use their bodies so soon after waking up. Even Theo started to think Ivan was onto something with his 'waiting until tomorrow' plan. But the group kept pushing forward despite the moans and falls. The group took time to get used to moving around in their new bodies, the whole process feeling unnatural to the lot of them. However, Made somehow managed to get to grips with things faster that the boys, and often complained about how they couldn't keep up with her. Ivan on the other hand was trying to balance practicing walking with trying to fly, which just turned out to be a waste of effort, as he fell almost every time. On the bright side, Ivan's stupidity did manage to keep up the group morale, and give him a few excuses for breaks to recover. However, Theo seemed to cut himself off from the group, keeping silent and was deep in thought. While his current situation seemed quite dire, Theo seemed more worried about his father than himself. Sure, most would consider a complete transformation of their body more important than anything else, but those people obviously never met Theo’s dad. His das was the kind of guy who’d put the toaster inside the microwave in order to make toast quicker, and has always had Theo around to help him with almost everything. As such, you could see why He was a little bit worried. Theo would’ve kept to himself if it wasn’t for Ivan falling after a failed flying attempt for the 24th time. He seemed quite dazed, so the group paused until they thought he recovered. “Okay, breaking the silence here.” Theo started. “Is anyone else gonna bring up how unnatural it is that we’ve been able to get walking down so quickly?” “Theo, the first thing you learn to do as a kid is walk, and that’s before were old enough to even speak. It’s simple instinct.” Made explained, sitting down against a nearby tree. “But yeah, I agree. This doesn’t feel right.” “you guys have it easy!” Ivan moaned, rubbing between his two wings. “you don’t have extra limbs to worry about.” Made sniggered a little. “then stop trying to use them, Captain Oblivious.” She joked, moving in to give Ivan a dig in the arm, then met by a swift dodge. “Be careful, she-hulk. You do that, and trying to fly will be the only way I can get around.” He explained to Made, causing a light blush. “Okay, my bad I guess. I guess I’m just having problems…” Made started. “… Adapting?” Theo asked, attracting the attention of both Ivan and Made. “Trust me, I think all of us feel the same way about being stuck as horses.” Ivan managed to get back on all fours. “If the conversation is going in this direction, can we at least get moving? All these breaks are wasting time.” Made rolled her eyes as she got back up and continued walking, Theo joining closely behind. “You know we’re taking all these breaks because you’re an idiot who constantly keeps trying to figure out how to fly!” “Could the two of you quit arguing like an old couple?” Theo asked, covering his face with his hooves. “You’re acting like complete idiots!” “Sorry mate, but me and Made are pretty much always complaining at something.” Ivan explained. “Sometimes we end up arguing with each other, even if we’re both trying to make the same point. We’ve always been like this as long as we can remember.” Theo’s ears perked up. “How long have you known each other?” He asked curiously. Both Ivan and Made briefly looked over at each other. “Well,” Made started. “Ivan and I went to the same nursery. I wouldn’t exactly call us friends back then though.” “How come? Did Ivan hang out with the popular ones who ended up becoming the school bullies or something?” Theo asked, “That’s… an oddly specific example.” Ivan said. “I don’t want to talk about it.” Theo mumbled, slowing down slightly in embarrassment. “The real reason we weren’t friends is because Made had a bit of a reputation for misbehaving.” Ivan explained. “And one day, when she tried to run away home, she accidentally framed me instead.” “Wait a minute.” Theo started. “If Made’s the smart one out of you guys, why would she want to run away from school?” he turned to Made for an answer. “What? Nursery was a nightmare!” Made claimed in defense. “Just because I’m clever now, doesn’t mean I was back then.” “Well, you weren’t wrong there, I guess.” Theo agreed, nodding briefly. The group continued walking (and falling, in Ivan’s case) until they eventually saw a large structure in their path. Made stopped to try and see what it was, but couldn’t see pat the trees in their way. “Hey Ivan?” she began. “Do you think you could get us a birds-eye view of what that structure is?” "You just want to watch me fall again, don't you?" He asked, giving made a look that roared with irritation. "If I say no, will you do it?" Made asked with a cheeky smile. All Ivan could do in response was fulfil her request. He leaped into the air, briefly hovered, and instantly landed in a nearby tree, much to Made’s disappointment. From what could be seen, it looked like a ruined castle of sorts. Areas around it looked overgrown and even reached into the building itself, with the cobbled bricks the castle was made from looking to give way any day coming. That said, there were several chambers and locations that seemed in better states than the rest of the castle, with a few laces seeming untouched or even restored. Ivan then saw both Made and Theo as they made their way past the plants and trees to see the castle themselves, and quickly jumped down to join them. As soon as he landed however, he heard somebody giggling. he turned to Made, expecting it to be her, but found her face filled with wonder over the castle they just found. He then turned to Theo, who looked like his face was unsure whether it was supposed to be shocked, happy or frightened. “Hey, Theo? Are you feeling alright?” he asked, waving his hoof between Theo’s face and the castle ahead of him. "Do you know what this means?!" Theo shouted, his voice sounding surprisingly high-pitched "That we have somewhere to stay for the night?” Made asked, her face brightening a little. “It means a lot more than that!” Theo answered, moving ahead of the group slightly and pointing to the castle. “The fact a castle exists here proves this planet has some form of intelligent life. Also, the fact it’s been renovated means that they’re still around!” Theo somehow clapped his hooves together in glee, until he saw the way both Made and Ivan stared at him. “And yeah, it means we’ve got somewhere to sleep for the night.” “I can’t believe there’s two of you now.” Ivan moaned as he walked towards the castle, with a slightly irritated Theo and Made trailed behind him. -0-0-0-0-0- While Theo, Ivan and Made were initially in awe over the ruined castle, their interest left them almost as soon as they had to find a room that wasn’t actually in ruins. Almost all the bedrooms were completely destroyed, most other chambers seemed to be ruined in at least one way, and any remaining chambers were inhabited by creatures that failed to be described. However, the group eventually found that the castle library was their best bet for somewhere to stay for the night, but Ivan straight-up refused to enter. "Theo, I’m not going in there, end of discussion!” Ivan moaned, sitting against the wall with his arms crossed. Theo rolled his eyes. “Made, care to explain what the fuck Ivan is on about?” "Ivan swore to never enter any Library outside of school.” Made explained as she sat down on a nearby chair. Theo decided to remain calm, gathering a deep breath. “You know what Ivan? Just sleep outside then. Just don’t come running to me if it rains or you get attacked by some random creature.” Within an instant, Ivan rushed into the room, tripped over a pile of books on the floor before landing face-first on the floor. Made couldn’t help but laugh at him, and even Theo sniggered a little. “I hate you guys some times. And I’m not reading anything!” "Nobody’s expecting you to mate.” Theo said, helping Ivan onto his hooves before walking over to Made. “Need anything?” "Yeah, I’m looking for a candle. Can you see one anywhere?” She asked as her eyes scanned the room. “Don’t want it to be too dark tonight, do we?” After a quick nod, Theo joined Made in looking for a candle, and managed to end it instantly. “Found one!” He declared. All of a sudden, a red aura coated both the candle and Theo’s horn. This otherworldly power caused the candle to levitate as Theo brought it to the table in front of him. Theo quickly caught onto what he did, and was in awe over it. “What the fuck just happened? Was that me? That was awesome!” “Wow, Theo’s a motherfucking Jedi! There goes the theory of it being a dagger or something.” Ivan added in order to become relevant to the conversation. “Well, at least we all know our powers now. “ “You’re saying it like it’s a big thing. I very much doubt any kind of magical power can get us home.” Made said, swinging back on her chair. This then triggered some kind of mechanism that pulled back a couple of bookshelves to reveal a secret room. The room in question had a more casual feeling to it, having a couch and several pillows, two stained glass windows that where themed from the night and the day, several smaller bookshelves and a pedestal with another single book on it. Theo and Ivan gawped at what Made had accomplished. “Why is there a secret chamber in a library? That’s the last place I’d put one.” “Made, there’s no room in existence that can’t be improved by a secret room.” Ivan explained. “Well, at least we know where we’re staying tonight.” “I call dibs on the sofa!” Made shouted, running over to her temporary bed. Being fully aware of the international dibs protocol, Ivan and Theo each settled for sleeping on a pillow each, and moved to opposite sides of the room. Almost within an instant, the trio were asleep. -0-0-0-0-0- The dream was vivid. It felt so real, yet felt more like a warning. Two orbs of light surrounded by darkness. The light of one orb felt comforting, like home. Yet, a beam of bright light shot from that orb, going to the other. However, it's venture left a tear in both orbs. From there, darkness invaded the orbs, near overtaking them. Theo awoke almost instantly from the nightmare he had, extremely shaken. However, he quickly shook it off and got onto his hooves. He walked outside of the chamber, with only a faint amount of light around to guide him. While it was dawn outside, the sun was rising from the other side of the castle, meaning the only source of light came from the candle Made was reading from. Wait… "Made? What are you doing up?" Theo asked, somewhat surprised to see he wasn’t the only one awake. "Research." She answered." It’s clear this world has different rules from earth, and I wanna figure out as much about it as I can." “Ivan has wings and I have a horn, so different rules are a given.” Theo told her. “Still, what you got so far?” "This land is called Equestria. It's populated by a race of intelligent ponies with very weird names." Made cringed through the entire statement. "How weird are the names?" Theo asked, slightly scared as to what names would come up. "So weird that our names are weird." Made named several examples. Steel shield, boomer, time turner, the list went on until Theo got the point. It was also at this time that Ivan had also awoke. "Are we listing Crappy video game names?” Ivan asked, being unaware as to the prior discussion. "Those were the names of the ponies that live in this world. Our names would be considered weird here, so we need new ones." Ivan groaned in response, and Theo gave a confused expression. “Made, we don’t even know if they still do names like that anymore. You sure you’re not just jumping to conclusions a little?” Theo asked. “Hey, better safe than sorry.” Made argued in return. "Well, I’m not changing mine, and that’s that!” Ivan complained, stretching a little. "Well, suit yourself." Made said, walking back to blow out the candle she was using. Theo walked outside toget some fresh air, and almost instantly saw a dirt pathway leading away from the castle. "Guys? Did anyone see that path yesterday?" He asked his friends, who quickly joined him "Well, it was getting late, so I doubt it.” Ivan answered, scratching his hair. “Well, paths do lead somewhere, so do we follow it?” Made asked, seeming eager to get going. "Well, we won’t get lost if we do, so why not?” Theo responded as he began to walk towards it, his friends closely behind him.