“… to the magical Kingdom of Worpol!” Pinkie shouted excitedly, thrusting her foreleg out dramatically like a showmare on a game show.
“Don’t take this the wrong way, Pinkie Pie,” Applejack said slowly, “But this place doesn’t seem very magical to me.”
The six of them stood on a cobbled platform, from which started a clay path that split in two directions. While it was true that the path to the right traveled through a fairly pleasant looking meadow, the rest of the view before them was filled with a blasted wasteland of dirt and loose stone. A wave of heat-haze obscured everything more than a couple dozen feet in any direction. A strange “Woork!” came from a hole in the ground, but by the time they focused on it all they could make out was a red blur retreating into the dirt.
A loud clang caused all six of them to nearly ump out of their coats. Spinning around, they saw the giant gates had slammed closed of their own accord, sealing them inside. The keyhole, about head height and large enough to fit a hoof into, was the only feature on the ominous gate.
“Wait, you never said we’d be trapped in here!” Rarity objected, giving the rough road a cautious tap with her delicately-pedicured hoof.
“Of the many treasures we can find, the Key to the only exit is one of them!” Pinkie cheered happily, visibly bouncing with excitement, “Now which way do you wanna go first? Which way do you wanna go first?!”
Twilight scratched her chin and cantered off to the right. “Seems simple enough. I’ll start this way.”
“Are you suuuuure?” Pinkie asked, leaning over nearly forty-five degrees and raising her eyebrow as high as it could go. Which for Pinkie Pie was pretty high indeed.
Twilight paused at the top of a hill and looked back over her shoulder at her. “What do you mean? Why wouldn’t I rather go through this nice field instead of that hot desert?”
At that exact moment a cloud of black smoke surged out of the ground around the alicorn, billowing into the sky. Twilight had time to turn and look right into King Sombra’s evil eyes before his smog-like body coursed over her. She vanished from view with a yelp, leaving Sombra looming menacingly over the hill.
“Twilight!” Applejack shouted, galloping down the path. But she had barely taken four steps before Sombra sank back into the ground like his appearance in reverse. Too soon the smog was gone, leaving no trace of either of them other than Sombra’s disembodied laughter.
Pinkie shrugged. “Yeah, he’s gonna pop all over the place like that. That’s why I’m heading this way.”
Fluttershy looked between the two of them before guiltly following Pinkie into the desert. “I’m… I’m going with her…”
“Shouldn’t we save her or something?” Applejack asked, flabbergasted.
“She’ll be fine!” Pinkie’s voice echoed back to her. The pink pony was already lost from sight due to the haze.
Rainbow Dash shrugged. “In that case, I’m hitting the desert too. She’s got the inside info about this place.”
Rarity sniffed and stepped lightly onto the path. “Well if I must, I’m going to see where the pleasant road leads.”
“Are we really goin’ to just ignore how Twi got foalnapped?” Applejack asked to her departing friends’ backs.
“Oh, do calm down. I’m sure she’s perfectly fine,” Rarity huffed as she passed her.
The farmer watched her as she crested the hill and on with her adventure. Heaving a sigh, she set off after her, eyeing the spot where Sombra had disappeared warily.
Twilight Sparkle woke up to the sound of King Sombra’s laughter echoing all around her. She launched herself up and stared around wildly, but the spectral villain was nowhere to be seen. The room she found herself in appeared to be made entirely of ice, making the room so cold she could already feel her hooves going numb. The only feature in the room was a large metal door, obviously locked, set with a window crossed by bars.
Shivering and pressing her wings to her sides for warmth, her first thought was to check the saddlebacks still tied to her sides. “Looks like he didn’t take any of my equipment. Now I just got to find a way out of this cell. First thing’s first.”
She walked up to the door and gave it an experimental shove, but of course it was locked. “Well, had to try. Let’s see if you can handle this!”
She turned around and gave the door a hard kick with both of her hind legs. The door shuddered, sending a shock through her spine, but it didn’t budge an inch. She huddled over, rubbing the numbness from her legs, and then shot a glare at the door.
“Alright, you asked for it!” she said, focusing all her magic into the tip of her horn. She shot a beam of pure force at the door, which rebounded harmlessly off of it in a completely unexpected manner. The blast ricocheted around the frozen room wildly, forcing Twilight to huddle in a tiny ball as it slowly spent itself out.
“This… may be harder than I thought…” she said.
Rarity and Applejack stood side by side, staring at the sign at the fork in the road. Beware of the Swamp, it read, along with an arrow pointing to the left. The two ponies turned to each other at almost the same time, and Applejack raised her eyebrow questioningly.
“Oh, don’t give me that look,” Rarity huffed, turning away from the sign. “There’s no chance I’m going that way.”
“It looks like it’s in the direction we need to head,” Applejack pointed out, nodding at a tall peak they could see rising in the distance past the swamp. Even from here they could make out what looked like a whole palace carved into the mountain’s icy exterior.
“Oh no, no, no, no, no, darling,” Rarity said over her shoulder, walking determinedly down the other path. “I do not do swamps. This way may be longer, but at least I won’t be slogging through muck. But by all means, take the ‘shortcut’ if you feel it suits you sensibilities.”
“Perhaps ah will!” Applejack said, annoyed, but her friend was already out of earshot. “Hrmph… she just bein’ fussy about nothin’. The fastest way anywhere is straight through. Ah doubt it’s goin’ to be as bad as all that.”
She turned left at the sign and immediately the ground fell away to be replaced by a wide swath of still water. She teetered on the edge of the drop-off before catching her balance and taking a step back.
“What in the hay… how didn’t ah see that from the sign?” she asked incredulously. She squinted to take in the drastically changed scenery.
The water stretched the length of a large pond, mirror flat and interrupted by a string of round stones. The rocks formed a bridge… of sorts, leading all the way to the other side of the swamp. Oddly enough, every other stone was a bright red. She peered over the edge at the water, but it was so murky she couldn’t make out how deep it was. Something slithered through the depths, momentarily stirring the silt, and she pulled back in a hurry.
“Guess ah don’t want to swim for it.” Applejack muttered. She reached into her saddlebag and pulled out her grappling hook, just in case she needed it. Then she jumped onto the first stone. The stepping stone was a little slick but otherwise supported her weight just fine. Laughing, she hopped onto the next one.
Immediately the red stone rolled under her hooves like a ball, threatening to dump her into the fetid water. Ready for something just like this, AJ hurled the grappling hook over the other side of the rock and latched it into a crack. For a fraction of a second equilibrium caused the rock to stop rolling and in that instant Applejack leapt off onto the next stone in the line. A practiced flick of her wrist unhooked the line and she reeled it in with practiced motions.
“So the red ones are trapped, huh?” she said in a smug voice, “Pretty simple trick. This’ll be a breeze!”
She set off once again, making sure to land on only the normal grey stones.
“So tell me again why I can’t simply fly over this?” Rainbow Dash asked archly, tapping the old wooden planks. A long rickety bridge stretched across a watery chasm, swaying precariously in the wind. Across the abyss rose a dark and foreboding castle which Pinkie Pie had named the Banshee Towers. Apparently, it was their first destination.
“Because of him!” Pinkie said in a loud whisper, pointing over the side of the cliff. The two pegasi peeked curiously over the edge; Fluttershy immediately pulling back with a whimper while Rainbow Dash let out a low whistle.
An enormous pony was asleep directly under the far end of the bridge, so massive that he almost rose up to the top of the cliff. The wind blowing through the canyon appeared to have been the giant’s breathing all along. Each of his deep snores rattled the bridge built over his back, causing it to rise and fall in a nerve-wracking manner.
“So… how are we supposed to get across?” Fluttershy whispered, backing away, “Go another way? I think I saw another path over there…”
“Quickly and quietly, of course!” Pinkie said cheerily, giving Fluttershy a firm push. “Go on, you’re first up!”
Fluttershy squeaked as she landed on the first plank, causing the entire structure to groan dangerously. She hiccupped in fear and froze up like a statue, but the weakened boards beneath her hooves creaked under even her light weight. The slight shift in elevation as the plank started to give way broke her free of her paralysis and she leapt forward, clearing the entire length of the bridge in two bounds.
“Wooo!” Pinkie cheered, probably more loudly that she should have. “I’m up. Watch this!”
She bounced forward, seemingly oblivious to the way the bridge swayed like the surface of the sea. Three hops later she landed on the far side right next to her friend, eliciting a small “eep” out of her. She laid a hoof across the shy mare’s shoulders comfortingly and beamed across to her other friend.
“See, easy! No flying though, he has amazing hearing!” Pinkie shouted. Below her the giant pony grunted and rolled over, but then settled back to sleep.
“Psshh, no problem!” Rainbow said dismissively, “I can do this in ten seconds flat!”
Rainbow stretched her legs and wings one at a time, working out all the kinks, and then hunkered down in a ready stance. With a powerful flap of her wings she launched herself forward at full speed over the rolling planks. One step, two, but on the third one of her back hooves caught on a splintered bit of wood. Rainbow face-planted onto the bridge, breaking a plank with her face and sending it spinning through the air to collide with the giant’s face.
The giant pony snapped awake in an instant and roared as he rose to his full towering height. Rainbow Dash took to the air as the bridge splintered to pieces, shooting forward to make the far bank. But the giant snatched her from the air with deceptive ease, pulling her close to his sleep crinkled eyes and expelling a cloud of morning breath over her.
“If that’s the way you want to do it!” Rainbow crowed, eager to get to some action. She ripped open her saddlepack with her free wing and somehow managed to juggle her sword, axe, and a lit torch. Screaming a battle cry, she prepared to unleash some violence on the monster.
“Ah! Don’t hurt me!” the giant said in a surprisingly high-pitched voice, shrinking back from her weapons. “You just surprised me, is all. Here, let me give you a helping hoof.”
The giant set her gingerly down on the far cliff next to her friends, and then he turned around and started to carefully rebuild the bridge. Rainbow Dash stood shock still, still gripped her various weapons, seething in impotent rage. She suddenly threw her equipment to the ground and thrust her hooves to the sky.
“OH COME ON!!!” she shouted, “That’s it?! I thought something fun was going to happen, and it just… just…” Her tirade sputtered down to incoherent mutterings as she regathered her stuff.
“Maybe the others are having a harder time…” Fluttershy said consolingly, privately happy nothing terrible was happening but understanding of her friend’s preferences.
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Oh yeah, I’m sure they’re having a hard time!”
“WHY IS THIS EVEN HERE?!” Rarity screamed, clutching the board for dear life as it rocked half a foot further down. She was suspended halfway across a large pit dug into the muddy earth, traversable by only a single plank of wood that was clearly not as firmly propped on the other side as first appeared. Below, literally dozens of filthy rats scrambled over themselves to be right beneath the flailing unicorn, chittering and stirring up the muck.
Rarity floundered around with her rope, trying her best to imitate whatever it was that Applejack did to get the thing to work properly, but all she managed to do was cause the plank to slip even further from its moorings. She wailed as she was nearly thrown clear of her hold.
“WHY DID I THINK THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA?! WHY DID I EVEN COME THIS WAY?! WHY AM I DOING THIS AT ALL?! WHY?! WHHHHYYYYY?!?!?!”
Thunk, went Twilight’s forehead, as she beat it dully against the icy wall of her prison. Isolation had gotten to her faster than she thought possible. Around her lay the fruits of her repeated efforts to get through that impossibly indestructible door, the chipped axe next to the bashed shield next to a heavy icicle she’d broken off the ceiling to use as a club.
Her current plan was to bypass the indomitable door entirely and go through the walls. And clearly, as the walls were made of ice, they must be weak to the might of fire. Which was why she was pressing her torch to the wall in an attempt to melt a tunnel. And while she waited, she beat her head against the wall to alleviate boredom and maybe, just maybe, break the wall down.
Thunk… thunk… thunk…
“I bet they’re just coasting through this,” Rainbow grumbled.
“Oh no,” Fluttershy said, pointing back over the bridge, “He’s back!”
The thick cloud of King Sombra’s body clung to the side of the cliff they had just left. His mocking laughter echoed across the distance and rang in their ears as he faded away to nothing.
“Yeah, you’d better run!” Rainbow shouted to the dissipating villain, shaking her hoof, “You’re more of an annoyance than a real enemy! Hey, where are you going?”
“Wha-at?” Pinkie asked innocently, already halfway down a path leading into the gorge.
“Um, the castle?!” Rainbow said, pointing at the looming castle blocking out most of the horizon down the opposite path. “Isn’t this the place we need to go to?”
Pinkie laughed dismissively and bounced away in the other direction. “Nah, I’ve got an even better place to get to first. You can have that one if you like. You’re gonna neeeeed iiiitt!”
Rainbow Dash snorted and glanced over at her other companion. “Well, looks like it’s just us. You want to go in first?”
Fluttershy peeked out from behind her mane at the dark spires above. Right at that moment a dramatic bolt of lightning streaked behind the castle ominously and she let out a little squeak. “No I think I’ll just head this way!” she said, trotting quickly down yet another path.
“…Alright, I guess it’s up to me,” Rainbow said, settling to the ground and walking towards the castle’s open gates. As she passed into the shadows cast by the gloomy structure a shiver ran up her spine. This whole experience was starting to bring back memories of that time she explored the old Princess's castle in the Everfree with Applejack.
Stones, dislodged by something unseen, clattered down the wall behind her. Rainbow spun around, but nothing presented itself. Swallowing, she back the rest of the way into the cathedral like room that took up the entire central chamber of the citadel. A shadow obliterated the dim light filtering in through the broken skylight, but by the time she’d spun around to stare upwards whatever it had been was gone.
Rainbow swallowed nervously and continued making her way forward. Ahead, a dais made of the same grey stone rose up from the floor, illuminated by a shaft of light from a ragged hole in the roof. Atop it lay a glittering treasure chest of polished oak and gold inlay, the only thing in this entire place that seemed new and unblemished. Clearly that was what she’d come in here for. She was almost at the dais when a great crack filled the air from directly behind her.
A large creature was climbing in through a great rend in the roof. It scaled the wall like a diabolical spider, thick claws digging into the stonework with deceptive ease. Its midnight blue fur made it blend almost perfectly into the shadows, save for the golden bands wrapped around its wrists and two curving rams horns. Its single glowing eye shone with hate and madness as the slobbering monster reached the ground and rose up on its cloven goat’s legs.
“Now this is going to be epic!” Rainbow Dash shouted excitedly. She yanked all the weapons she could carry from her pack and readied herself for battle. She held her sword in one hoof, her axe in the other, her shield tied across the back of one wing, and the flaming torch wrapped in her other wing; she’d even managed to yank her net out and held it clamped between her teeth.
The skull-eating Arimaspi roared its battle challenge and the two of them surged forward as one.
The whole cell shook, waking Twilight from her reverie. She blinked, half convinced she’d imagined it, but when the second tremor came she leapt up and raced to the door. Placing an ear to the door, she listened to the sounds echoing through the icy walls.
“Somepony’s fighting out there!” she said, and the thought of not being alone brought wind to her sails. Then she noticed something else that made her heart leap; the last tremor had shifted the cell door slightly off its frame.
She quickly assessed her options. Magic doesn’t work on the door, so… She dove for her saddlebags and withdrew one of the few items in it she hadn’t used yet. Rushing back to the door, she pushed the head of the grappling hook through the door’s tiny window and attached it firmly on one of the bars. She gripped the length of rope in her teeth and pulled with all her alicorn might. For several long moments she strained, until the thought that this might end up just like all her other attempts flitted through her mind.
Then the wall around the lock broke with a loud crack. The sudden lack of resistance caused Twilight to flop forward onto her face, but she was up again in an instant. She capered about in victory before a tremor reminded her that she didn't have time to waste. She quickly used her magic to scoop her equipment back into her satchels, all save for her grappling hook.
She held the length up and examined it. The jolt that had finally dislodged the door had also snapped the hook clean from the base. In addition, the rope near the head was frayed to the point where a few more seconds would have snapped the rope in two. There didn’t seem to be a way to salvage it.
“Thank you,” she told the hook, before letting it slip to the floor.
She ran from the cell and found herself on a balcony overlooking a large icy cavern. The floor was purple tile, also made of ice, and appeared slippery. The walls and ceiling looked just like the walls of a natural cave, and enormous icicles dripped from above. It was from one of these icicles that a lasso had been attached.
“YEEHAW!” Applejack howled as she swung past, like the heroine in a Daring Do novel. Nipping at her tail was a giant golden dragon, his huge jaws just barely closing on air behind her. It was clearly an old, fully grown beast, comparable in size to the dragon that had slept on that mountain outside of Ponyville once.
The dragon reared back and unleashed a blast of fire, but Applejack was already on the other side of the cavern. She skidded to a halt and dug in her pack, pulling out… her small bag of food. Twilight sucked in a breath. How is that going to help?
She spread her wings and prepared to leap to her friend’s assistance, but the dragon was acting strange. Its eyes zeroed in on the bag in an almost hypnotized manner and its tail began lashing from side to side. Applejack threw the food out the large entrance and the dragon raced after it like a dog going after a treat.
“Thought you were just a hungry fella,” Applejack said. “Heh, the fire dragon of the Ice Palace, ironic... Twilight, there you are! Guess ah’m here to rescue you! But first…”
She trotted over to a large treasure chest set against the wall below Twilight and kicked it open, whistling at what lay within. Twilight flew down and caught a glimpse of something long and black, but the farmer quickly stuffed it into a sack that also came from the chest.
“I can’t believe you made it all the way here!” Twilight exclaimed, giving her friend a quick hug.
“Ah, it wasn’t all that hard,” Applejack said modestly, eyeing Twilight up and down. “You all right? We were worried when Sombra just snatched you like that.”
Twilight looked around, as if expecting the others to waltz out from around the corner. “Are you the only one here? Where’s everypony else?”
“Well…” Applejack hummed, unsure of where to start. She was saved from answering as everything around them began to rumble menacingly. The two of them looked at each other in fear as pieces of the ceiling started to tumble down.
“What in tarnation is happening now?!” Applejack shouted.
“That… was… horrible!” Rarity shuddered, remembering her fresh ordeal. The mud, the rotting board, the rats… but it was behind her now. She’d cast aside her rope once she’d reached the other side of that dastardly trap. It wasn’t really necessary for her to do so, but she couldn’t stand the thought of carrying it around after it had touched such disgusting things.
So when she trudged up the path and found this pool of water, she hadn’t given it a second though and simply dived right in. She sighed contently and sank into the cool water, letting the natural flow wash away the grime she’d accumulated.
She coughed as a sudden surge caused water to flow up her nose and opened her eyes. “Bleh… guess I shouldn’t lower my guard too much. This is a ‘magical kingdom’, after all. Anything could be lurking in these waters, and… was it always moving this fast? Now that I think about it, why is there a current in a pond anyway?”
She looked to the center of the pond and saw that it was spinning faster and faster in a circle, forming into a giant whirlpool. She stood up quickly, but found that the water was rising with her. It splashed up and over the banks, spreading out as far as she could see in all directions. The water appeared to be endless as well, just growing larger as the whirlpool spun faster yet.
“What now?” Rarity cried, battling against the current as her whole world filled with water.
And it wasn’t just her. The water surged outwards at great speed, drowning the swamp and flowing over the icy mountains. Nearly half the entire kingdom shuddered and dropped, as if a great sinkhole had finally let go and collapsed. But then everything seemed to bend upwards, and change! In a great wave of water and magic, the whole world opened up like a flower to the morning sunshine.
The water receded, revealing a very different kingdom.