Break Away: The Alicorn Amulet Collaboration

by cleverpun

3: Love, by No Raisin (Moondancer)

Chapter by: No Raisin

I could tell that Twilight was uncomfortable with me handling the Alicorn Amulet for the whole week—even though the study will be done in an enclosed space and with guards at the ready in case something goes wrong. Which, you know, something might. You can call me crazy all you want, but I feel like anything could happen here, no matter how minuscule the chances may be. It is hard to tell what the Amulet is capable of, since we haven’t written much down as to how… well… I'm the first volunteer. The first to charge into battle as my dad would say.

I'm used to having more to go on than this. Ugh…

We were having lunch earlier today, Twilight and I, in the banquet hall with the guards who weren't busy with their shifts. There were six of them—and not to name any names, but at least four of them are pretty good-looking. But of course the mares and stallions kept a certain distance between each other.

Twilight seemed caught between wanting to talk to me about the Amulet business and having her eyes wander over to Flash Sentry, one of the younger guards. Not sure what she sees in that stallion.

I had proposed an idea about interrogating the Amulet over an extended period of time, and Twilight had her doubts.

"Uhh, Moondancer?" she said to me. "Don’t you think it’s a bit much to have the Amulet be in your care for this long? I mean, the most we’ve been able to get out of it, as far as sessions go, is between ten and fifteen minutes. And you’re talking about studying it for a whole week." She tried to keep her voice down and even, like the sea on a calm day. Trying to not get all melodramatic about things like you always do, huh?

She didn’t have too much faith in me, which you know… that’s how she is with me, I guess. I found it cute, though, this uncertainty in her voice. But still, I felt the need to correct her and assure her that I wouldn’t let anypony down. Not this time.

As I’m writing this, in fact, the first day is almost over already. So naturally this is the first entry, right? And to remind myself I’ll be noting it here that I will be handing in my notebook at the beginning of every day to show Twilight the latest entry. You know, to see what progress we’ve made with the Amulet. I must confess that I’m already impressed with the thing, even though at the same time I kind of despise its lack of any moral sense.

To think, Day One and it was already trying to seduce me. Or tempt me, whichever one you think is better suited for the situation. But I think it was more concerned with wanting to become familiar with me first. We have never met before, obviously, and come to think of it I’ve only read about the Amulet a few times passively before all this happened.

The meeting with the Amulet was straightforward enough. It still has this queer glow to it that I’m having a hard time explaining, like it’s perhaps brimming with a life of its own. Is it a living thing? We will have to find out for ourselves. It did not take long for us to start conversing, though the guards kept giving us odd looks. Do they hear what we’re saying to each other?

I propped the Amulet up on my desk and gazed at it for a moment. With notebook and quill at the ready, like a transcriber at a court hearing, I said, "I'm not sure if it's even possible for you to sleep, but are you awake in there?" I gave it a nudge with the very end of my hoof.

A moment later and the Amulet glowed dimly, eerily. It then said, "I am as awake as I can ever be." Its voice was ancient. Almost decrepit. A stallion who came out of retirement. "I have seen many faces, and now I've seen yours. Always pleasant to find one of those, coming from experience. Faces that will stick out in my memories."

"How does it feel to know that I know what you're gonna try on me? You can't fool me."

The Amulet seemed unimpressed. "I could ask the exact same thing of you, Ms. Moondancer. You may be well-learned, but there is only so much you can do—and far less that can surprise me."

"You want me to do tricks?"

The Amulet hummed and said, "You won't have to. It isn't necessary."

"I wasn’t talking about being a potential slave for you, by the way. And don’t get any funny ideas; that is what you think of us. Me, Twilight, our friends…"

"As slaves? Oh no, I wouldn’t think of it that way. Slaves are disposable; instead I wish to stay with my wearer for a very long time. That is, if we are lucky and our wavelengths align, so to speak."

"Do you think ours will?"

"Why do you ask?" Its tone was deepening into a sinister baritone. "Are you interested in the possibilities of our partnership? The things we can do as a pairing?"

I glared at it, and I knew my lips had turned to make a harsh frown. "No. I just want to know how you work. Not much different from an assignment I would have to write up over the weekend."

"Hmm." The Amulet paused at the same time as the quill. "As with you, Ms. Moondancer. But I want you to know that I am very talented when it comes to picking up quirks and secrets in others. And I must say, you have a good number of those. You are not boring in the slightest, I can tell that much."

"I'm pretty sure I’m boring…"

"Nonsense, Ms. Moondancer. On the contrary, you seem to have a lot of… potential. Tell me, did you have many acquaintances during your time as a student? Maybe even a few friends?"

"You expect me to answer in a certain way, don’t you?" My eyes zeroed in on it like arrows on a target.

"Come on now… don’t be such a grouch with me. You are stuck in this room with me; you may as well tell me a thing or two about yourself. It is only fair."

I had to really think about it for a second. "Well…"

Okay, so I went on for a while with the Amulet, probably telling it more than I should have—but it was all personal stuff, and I figure it’s going to tempt me multiple times even if I don’t reveal information. The most I can do is prepare myself mentally and psychologically for what is no doubt going to happen.

What do I have to say about it so far, then? Well, it likes to talk. A lot. I never knew something that lacked lips could take so much pleasure in conversation, although I’m under the impression that the Amulet likes to figure out what makes its potential victims tick. It likes… intimacy? Is that a good word for it? You be the judge.

As for me, I need a good night's rest.

So much for that, then. Looking at the end of my previous entry, I should have figured I was jinxing myself. To be honest with you, I feel like I didn't get a minute of sleep the whole night; this is pretty bad, even by my standards, being the lousy restless sleeper that I am.

It must have been a quarter past midnight, and everypony had long since gone back to either their bed chambers or the barracks in the case of the guards. I was trying to keep my eyes shut, lying on my cot and turned towards the wall that was mere inches from my face, in one of those painful states where your heart speeds up because you're anxious about not having gone to sleep yet, and said anxiety makes the problem worse.

As I'm writing this I'm trying to convince myself that I was in fact awake during this time, or at least felt awake; it was one of those nights where the line between reality and dreams blurred. The first thing I noticed was a light, hazy as if coming from a lantern in the darkness, projecting from the bottom slit of the door to my room, causing the whole place to be filled with this faded luminescence. It was enough to draw my attention, and I slowly turned to see the small slice of that light which must have been coming from the hallway.

I got out of bed and put on my glasses before turning the knob.

Yet by the time I peeked out, the light had gone. Wherever it had come from, it was no longer there. I was the only waking soul on the whole floor—or at least I’m assuming that.

I went back to bed and my heart kept trying to escape my chest. The whole time. For hours…

When the time came to talk with the Amulet, the same guards from yesterday’s session were standing by, watching over us. Something I want to note here: The guards operate on six-hour shifts, since there needs to be constant surveillance on the Amulet and you can’t just have the same guards staying around all day. It wouldn’t be practical. I still have to wonder what the guards could do if… something happened to me… Maybe they would call in Twilight and she would be able to take care of things? It occurs to me now that I've barely spoken a word to either of them since I got here, even though we've technically spent a lot of hours together.

The Amulet itself looked the same as yesterday, with its dim unnatural glow.

Something else occurs me: the testing room doesn’t have any windows. Now why is that? I’m not sure how long I was talking to the Amulet this time; yesterday it was around half an hour, though it didn’t feel like that. I’m asking myself here, and by extension, you, because I have to wonder if the Amulet can manipulate time. Is it a kind of time-warping device? Or does it merely affect the victim’s perception of time in such a way as to create a kind of bubble around predator and prey? I really wish I had brought my timer with me for this.

The Amulet, of course, was happy to see me. It probably wished it could don a cat-like grin. "You were never much one for athletics, were you?" it inquired. "A mare as bookish as yourself."

I took up my quill with my magic and I put my game face on. I said, "Never liked sports much. Books interested me much more."

"You would prefer to stay indoors and read a book all day? That is what I’ve gathered. You see, Ms. Moondancer, a mare such as yourself should really be concerned with wanting to get some exercise every now and again."

"Are you saying I’m packing on a few pounds more than I should?" The Amulet was trying to insult me at this point. "I'm not too concerned about that sort of thing."

"Of course you aren’t,” it quipped. “Even so, taking a good walk around town or visiting the gym every other day would introduce you to ways in which you can make your figure appear more shapely."

"Quiet now." I like to think I did a good job at keeping a controlled demeanor, but the Amulet really started to get on my nerves. I said to it, "How would you gain anything from me doing those things anyway? I thought, or at least I assumed, that you were after my mind more than my body."

"Ah-ha," it chuckled, "let us not mix messages here!" The Amulet seemed too jovial. "I don’t believe that I will be the one to benefit from your physical fitness. I am more concerned in this case about your well being, Ms. Moondancer."

"You’re lying."

"Straight from the heart," it said half-sarcastically. "I promise upon my mother’s grave."

"First of all, you don’t have a heart." My brow furrowed. "And second of all, you don’t have a mother."

"I am afraid you can’t confirm that last part, Ms. Moondancer. After all, who said I don’t have a mother?"

"The fact that you're an inanimate object should be enough support."

"So I have a creator, then," the Amulet snapped back. "One could say even a parental figure in the early days of my existence. A very handsome and loving stallion. Or perhaps a mare?"

The illusion of a mutual meeting of gazes passed between us for a second. My magic tightened around my quill and I asked, "Back to the stuff about me 'getting some exercise'—why would you want to benefit me, assuming you’re being truthful by some chance?"

A pause. The Amulet seemed like it wanted to say something, but was so eager to see my reaction to what it had to say that it waited for the so-called right moment. And… well…

It said, "So you can impress Twilight, naturally. That should be obvious to you."

I didn’t know what to say in that moment. I thought the Amulet was going to start laughing at me, like a villain from one of those cheesy spy thriller movies—but it didn’t; it just sat there, waiting. My cheeks flushed with red and I glared so hard at the stupid thing that I thought I might break it with the fire in my glare.

"What does me exercising have to do with impressing Twilight?" I asked hesitantly. "She's a very good friend of mine."

The Amulet sounded strangely disappointed as it said, "Isn't that what ponies do when they want to impress a potential mate? Buying a decent house? Using that expensive hair moisturizer all the models are using? Heading to the gym five times a week, an hour each day? All those things with a certain goal in mind?"

"But… Twilight and I are both mares. We can't be mates. Physically speaking, it's not possible." As if that settled it.

"True, true," it said in a faux-sympathetic tone. "And yet you didn't deny that you want her to be your mate. Regardless of whether it's possible or not."

"…"

"A mare as intelligent as you should be able to understand this." The smugness in its tone couldn't be more apparent. "You can't blame me for being correct."

"I believe today’s session is over." I got up and left the room without another word.

Heat Seeker, the slim guard with the buzz cut, gave me one of those odd looks again, and now I realize why he did that. He said to me, "You okay, Moondancer? Y’look like you’ve seen a ghost or something."

"Huh?" The sudden question from him through me off even more. "Didn't you hear the Amulet say anything?"

He tightened his lips before saying quietly, "Ma’am, we were ordered not to interfere if we heard you talking, because between you and me… it’s mighty strange hearing somepony talk to herself."

"I see…" I exited the room.

On a side note, I’m sorry for what I said about Flash Sentry. I’m sure he’s a great stallion.

Once again I must apologize here for what the Amulet said. I don’t know where he got the idea from, but I just want you to know that I value our friendship more than anything, and that I would never develop feelings that would get in the way of that. You were my first real friend, Twilight, and I don’t want to—I’m sorry, it is hard to write today, even with the break you gave me from having to deal with the darn thing in the room. I guess I figured I should write something for today, but now I’m finding it difficult. It takes some strength out of me.

Even though I didn’t see the Amulet today, I can’t help but still feel its presence. What is this, residue from when we came into contact with each other? Does the Amulet cling to its potential victims to a certain degree, even after contact has been broken? Or does it have to do with more than just proximity?

Maybe the problem is that I just can't stop thinking about it.

I don't know if I can be dishonest with myself anymore. And it's a real shame, because I thought I was pretty good at it. Keeping the truth locked behind a door and throwing away the key. The truth is that after last night, I doubt my next talk with the Amulet will end well. For either of us.

Once again the mysterious light made itself known to me, either around midnight or in the very early hours of the morning—I can't remember exactly. But this time it wasn't so mysterious anymore.

I saw the light intensify, my shadow against the wall becoming more solid, and I had to turn to see what it was.

It was you, Twilight.

It was your ghost—like you had died and come back as an apparition. You stood at my bedside, a holographic recreation of your image that got tossed through an antique television screen over and over again until you looked like you were about to disperse into nothingness.

Not a word came from you. Your eyes were hollow, like the windows of an empty house. You stared at me, some white noise radiating from your being.

I wanted to scream. Or yelp. Or have any noise of any significance come out of my mouth, but instead I stared back into the voice, and then before I could take in all of what I was seeing your ghost turned and walked out the room, through the wall like it wasn't even there.

Opening the door, startled, I saw you almost floating down the hall with how weightless you were. I heard my hooves clank against the floor, but I didn't care about being noticed; perhaps it's a good thing that my room isn't far from the barracks, thinking back on it. Your ghost came up to the window at the end and you flew out without opening it. I felt compelled to open the window myself, like I was sleepwalking. I don't remember saying anything the whole time. I can't even remember what I was thinking, if anything.

I stood at the ledge, and I heard Heat Seeker and Avalanche, an older guard, behind me. They must have been running at the speed of a lightning bolt to catch me, because the second after I jumped from the window I felt somepony's mouth clamped around my tail.

I guess I made a scene. The guards held me down and I made some noises—not sure if any words came out. Then, after a while, you came to see what the commotion was. The real you. The Twilight I know.

All of you looked frightened, and I can't blame you. I hope seeing this in written form can bring some sense to it.

I jumped—and I don't know why…

The Amulet never left. Of course not, it would never leave willingly. I will have to be the one to do it. So I went into the testing room earlier and had a little chat with it. I think we both knew it had failed. But then again… was it entirely a failure? I still ponder this possibility.

The guards had become very worried about me, I knew that by then. My mane was even more unkempt than usual, and my eyes were bloodshot. Still are, actually. I look terrible. I know I do. I don’t want to see a mirror anywhere for fear of seeing myself by accident.

I slumped in my chair and gazed tiredly at the Amulet, expecting something to happen. Some form for it take. Sure, turn into Twilight again; turn into you again. But would it really pull that trick a third time?

"No."

The Amulet said softly, "Have you come to say goodbye, Ms. Moondancer?"

"Yes," I said firmly.

"You are leaving, then?"

"Tomorrow."

"Mmm," it hummed. "It is a shame. You cracked under the pressure. And I thought you were a prime candidate."

"Was I?" I leaned in toward the artifact, probably looking like I had nothing left to lose. "What a shame."

"It is also a shame that you will always be the one nopony likes. The one nopony actually wants to invite to a party, or a sleepover, or a wedding, or even a funeral. You are a black hole that not even the purest of fun can escape."

"I know."

"You think she likes you? Don’t kid yourself, she never will. Not her own fault, of course—nopony has a choice in the matter. Not you. Not her. Not anypony. It is just the way things are meant to be."

"I know…"

I also knew instinctively who it was referring to. I left the room quietly, and the guards followed suit not long after. They were nice. Heat Seeker looked at me like I was a small wounded dog, and he escorted me back to my bedroom; he probably figured I was going to pass out. Which I did. If my timer is correct, I slept for… six hours. The whole day, pretty much.

There will not be a seventh report.

I need to tell you this now before I leave for good. The Amulet knows me; I can’t pretend that it doesn’t. It might make up memories… take on your image again… but it knows what makes me tick.

It is too late for me. I know I failed. I really messed up this time.

It was nice talking to you, though. I wish I had the strength to tell you all of this in person, but I couldn’t. I can’t. So this entry will have to do.

The good news is that you won’t have to be bothered by me anymore. My red eyes and my crying fits and my stupid attempts at jokes. You also won’t have to deal with my ugly mane and eyebrows. Not that it means you’re free of all this mess; you still have it to deal with.

So best of luck, Twilight. You’ll need it.

I'm sorry.