//------------------------------// // Inside // Story: Midnight Shadow (Outdated) // by Orzo Pasta //------------------------------// ----------- There wasn't a big party thrown to celebrate. If there was, only a few ponies would've shown up. My father, Twilight, Celestia, and maybe Cadence. I was never too keen on large social gatherings anyway, so we just decided to skip it. I was personally happier about finishing the engine rather than getting my cutie mark. I felt like the cutie mark was just a sign that I was growing up. I would've gotten one no matter what it was for, or how difficult it was to get. The real accomplishment was creating something new, something with the potential to change the world. That is something that isn't guaranteed to everypony, and I thought it was the real achievement to be proud of. My father was so proud, he cried when he found out. He told me that my mother would be proud of me as well, if she was still there to see me. That I already knew. But there was something that I didn't know. "What happened to her?" I asked. My father's grin went away in an instant, replaced by a blank expression. I briefly wondered if I made a mistake by asking. "One day, when you were at school, she told me she needed to take a walk," My father said sadly. "She never came back. I don't know why. She seemed fine before then, just a few minutes before she was sitting beside me, reading a book. I had the Guard help search for her, but we found no trace." He looked away, as if bothered by something. "I always wondered if it was something I did, or something I said, that made her leave. But, there was no way to find out." He sighed. "Well, that's life for you. Sometimes bad things happen, sometimes to those we love most. Nothing to do but move on, I guess." I couldn't imagine how bad he felt after she disappeared, since I never got the chance to know her. I wondered if I'd ever truly understand. "Thanks, dad," I replied. "I know it must've been hard to say that." He smiled at me. "Well, there isn't much point in standing around, is there? Does Celestia know you've got your cutie mark now?" "Well,no,I haven't told her yet." "Well, let's go visit her then. I'm sure she'll be excited." ----------- "State your name and purpose for requesting an audience with the Princess," The guard standing outside Celestia's throne room said. "Bremen-shade, and we have some news that we believe she'd like to hear." "What is your message?" My father seemed slightly annoyed. "We were hoping to be able to tell her ourselves." "The Princess requested increased security measures; as such, no civilians are allowed to see her." "Come on, Flash, you know me. I'm in the Guard, same as you. Let me in." "Sorry, Bremen, but the Princess gave strict orders to only allow high-level royal officers in, and only if the situation is urgent and requires her immediate action, now please-" "Flash, step aside." It was the Princess. She must have heard us from the other side of the door, and came out to see what was happening. "Yes, your majesty." He stepped aside, letting us through. "Forgive him, he's just following my orders. Come on in." We followed her into the throne room. There were several guards, even more than usual. I wondered why. "I see Midnight Shadow has made a big accomplishment," Celestia said, smiling. "Congratulations, Shadow." "Thank you, Princess," I replied. She was looking away, seemingly thinking about something. "Princess?" She snapped out of it. "Oh, sorry about that." She looked at the ground. "I've been busy lately, and I suppose I let my thoughts drift away for a moment." There was an awkward pause. "Was that all?" "Yes, I suppose..." My father turned to leave. "That's all, your majesty." I was confused about so many things. Why was Celestia acting so strange? What was going on to warrant so many more guards? I started to follow my father out. Something was wrong. That was the only explanation. It's a strange thing about adults; when something's wrong, they try to hide it from younger ponies as much as possible. If my father had been alone, Celestia may have told him what was wrong. I knew she just didn't want me to worry, but not knowing what the problem was made it even more worrying. ----------- "I just wish she'd told me what was wrong," I told Twilight. She looked up from her book. "I'm sure she has her reasons, and we shouldn't question them. If she thought you should know, she'd tell you." I laid back in my bed. "I know. I just can't shake the feeling that something horrible is going to happen." Am I just being paranoid? I have come close to death at least twice in the past year. Maybe I'm just used to bad things happening. I wasn't entirely convinced. ----------- I decided to work on a new machine. It was the one thing I could do to calm down. I had created an engine, but that was only part of it. It didn't do anything practical on its own, it just spun the rod around and around until it was turned off. It didn't take long for the ideas to flow. The first one I had was for a kind of automated chariot. Instead of being pulled by ponies, it would be powered by an engine. The next idea; a system of lifting ponies from floor to floor in large buildings. The ideas kept coming, and I wrote them all down. I decided to work on them in the order I came up with them. Chariots could only go as fast as the ponies pulling them could go, which provided a biological limitation to the otherwise efficient mode of transportation. I drew some basic designs. The chariot would be attached to a cart housing the engine. The cart would pull the chariot along, and it could be controlled from an attached mechanism in the chariot. There was a knock at the door. I briefly looked at the clock. A few hours had passed. Time flies when I'm working on machines. I stood up from my desk, walking over to the door. It was Parcel. "Got a letter for you, Shadow." "From the Princess, I presume?" Who else would send a letter. "Well, actually, no. I couldn't tell who it was. They were wearing a cloak, and it covered their face. They asked that I tell you not to show it to anypony else; they said it was for you and only you." This confused me. I didn't know anypony who would want to go to such lengths to keep this a secret. Still, I took the letter. What harm could there be in playing along, at least until I know what it says? "Alright. I'll take a look, and see what it's all about. Thanks, Parcel." "No problem, Shadow!" He flew off. I walked inside. "Who was it?" Twilight asked. "Oh, don't worry, Twilight. It's probably junk mail or something." I was surprised that excuse worked. Twilight must have been particularly absorbed in her book, or else she would've figured out that I was lying. I opened the letter. There was no indication as to its sender. Midnight Shadow, Don't show this to anypony, especially Celestia. This is the only way I can reach you. You are in great danger. If you don't do anything, you and everypony you know will die. In three days, you, your father, Celestia, Cadence, and Twilight will be in the same room. Once you all are in one spot, they will try to kill you. If this is to be avoided, you are to do the following. Find a book in the library called Advanced Runes and Enchantments. In this book is a special rune, one that is intended to protect those around it from all harm. The book says it is incomplete, because engraving it on normal materials has no effect. Engrave the rune on a piece of Arcanium, combined with an Activation rune. This will create a single-use relic that can protect you. When you are all in the room, wait until you hear the three knocks, then activate it. After that, get out. Run as far as you can. Don't stop for anything. Everything will end up as it is supposed to, as long as you escape. Whatever you do, don't let them catch you. I wish you luck. That was all it said. At first, I didn't believe it. It can't be true, can it? Then again, there wouldn't be any harm in playing along, would there? I would make the relic, and keep it with me. I figured it was better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. ----------- There was a book called Advanced Runes and Enchantments in the library, just like the letter said. In it, there was a Protection rune. I started to wonder if the letter was really all that far-fetched. I didn't have any Arcanium stored up, so I had to go get some. The Princess had allowed me to go to the Canterlot Caves whenever I needed some. ----------- "Stop! State your name and purpose!" There wasn't a guard tower there before, I was sure of it. "Midnight Shadow, retrieving some resource samples for a project." "You are not allowed to enter royal property without direct permission from the Princess. Don't try to come back and lie about it, we'll check." Well, there goes that idea. I'm not getting in unless the Princess lets me. And I can't tell her the real reason I need the Arcanium. I walked home empty-hooved. ----------- I needed a cover story to get the Arcanium. I couldn't believe I was planning on lying to the Princess about it. I decided to use the design for the motorized chariot as my purpose. I would need a larger engine to be able to carry an entire chariot full of ponies anyway, so I had a reason for wanting more Arcanium. Then, I could simply say that I wanted to have some extra, in case I needed it in the future. I took two days to develop the idea further until I could not continue without the Arcanium. That way, Celestia would be more likely to let me get the Arcanium crystals. I was somewhat nervous, but I stayed calm. The Princess would get suspicious if I seemed nervous. The guard let me in immediately upon recognizing me. Celestia was sitting on her throne, looking over some sort of document. "Oh, Midnight Shadow, hello. What do you need?" I made eye contact with her. "I'm working on a new project, and it needs Arcanium. I don't have any left over, and the guards won't let me pass without your permission." She nodded. "What is this project of yours?" I expected her to ask that. I gave her the blueprint. "It's essentially a motorized chariot. Right now, I just need to make a working prototype, so I can start testing it." She looked the blueprint over for a minute, then handed it back. "Very well, I suppose you can get some crystals from the cave." I nodded, putting the blueprint back in my bag. "Thank you, Princess." I turned to leave. "Midnight Shadow, wait," Celestia said. I stopped. 'Yes, your majesty?" "Tomorrow is the Summer Sun Celebration. I'd like you to come to the castle to celebrate. Bring all of your blueprints; there are some ponies who'd like to see them. Is that when we'll all be in the same room, like the letter said? "Yes, Princess." I turned, and walked out the door. ----------- The prototype was fairly simple to build. I was able to find an abandoned chariot to use, and the engine wasn't too difficult to make. The engine cart doubled the size of the chariot, but that couldn't be avoided at that point. I could have looked into smaller, more efficient designs for the engine, but I had to have a working prototype ready in a day, and I simply didn't have the time. I had a lot of Arcanium crystal left over. More than enough for the Protection relic. It was about the size of my hoof, a flat Arcanium disk with the runes engraved on the surface. I needed a place to hide it, though. I still had a few hours before dark, and I had been meaning to get around to redesigning it anyway. I could make a new leg with a small compartment for the relic, seeing as I didn't want anypony to know about it if it wasn't necessary. My leg needed redesigning anyway. I got to work. ----------- I woke up the next morning, and things just felt off somehow. It was like the entirety of Canterlot was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. I grabbed my saddlebag, filling it with every blueprint, note, and design I had ever written. I also included the prophecy book, wondering if the Princess would want to show it to those other ponies as well. The protection relic was safely stored in the secret compartment in my new hoof, just in case. I decided not to take any of my heavy machines, seeing as they'd be too much trouble to move. Twilight, it seemed, had already left for the palace. Seeing as I had everything I thought I'd need, I set out to join her. I realized I had missed Celestia officially raise the sun; I had been so tired from working on my new hoof. I didn't mind. I had already seen it a few times before, and from the library it would just be another sunrise. The walk was uneventful, but all the while I felt uneasy. A few times, I felt as if somepony was watching me, but when I turned around nopony was there. After a few minutes, I reached the castle. I took a deep breath, and opened the doors. ----------- Celestia was waiting inside, accompanied by my father, Cadence, and Twilight, just as the letter predicted. "There you are, Shadow. Everypony, follow me." The three adults in the group had serious expressions on their faces. I was sure they weren't telling us something. Walking next to Twilight, I whispered to her. "What's bothering them?" "I don't know," Twilight whispered back. "They wouldn't tell me, just kept saying that they'd explain it later." The rest of the walk was completed in silence. A few times, I thought I saw my father look around nervously, as if he expected to see something. Cadence nudged him with her elbow each time, and his vision snapped back forward. Something was definitely wrong. I was starting to believe the secret letter more and more. We entered the throne room, Celestia falling back behind Twilight and I. She closed the door behind us. Strangely, there were no guards in the room. Besides the five of us, nothing was moving. Even the gentle breeze outside had stopped abruptly. It felt like the calm before a storm. Celestia turned to face us. "Twilight, Shadow, I need you to listen. We don't have much time." Her voice was solemn, and her expression was locked in a frown. "We need to-" She was interrupted by three knocks at the door. We all got quiet. "Get to the exit, I'll meet you there," Celestia whispered to us. Cadence started slowly walking towards the back of the room, followed by my father. Twilight and I started following them as well. I subtly turned my horn on, hoping nopony would notice. They never got a chance to. So much happened in the next five seconds. Celestia opened the door. I cast the activation spell, and the five of us were covered in a blue aura. There was an explosion from the door, knocking Celestia off her feet and launching her across the room. The explosion set off more, seemingly from underneath the floor. Celestia yelled for everypony to follow her, then ran towards the back of the room. The large hall started to collapse around us. I remembered what the letter had said, and ran out the destroyed door, despite the objections of the other four ponies. I ran, the building collapsing around me. I knew nothing of what befell the others, and for a brief moment I looked back. The aura around me had faded. Then, something hit me in the back of the head, and I collapsed. Everything went black. ----------- I opened my eyes, not that it made a difference. The room I was in was pitch black. I was lying on a hard stone floor, and it was freezing cold. "Hello?" I called. No response. "Celestia? Cadence? Dad? Twilight?" Still nothing. "Somepony? Anypony?" The only sound I could hear was the echo of my voice. I tried to cast an illumination spell, but couldn't. Reaching up, I found that my horn was gone. So was my saddlebag. My metal hoof was still there, which was probably due to the fact it was embedded in my skin. I also had my mother's necklace, the one that was hidden in the photograph. I ran through the events that had just transpired in my mind. I was running, and something knocked me out. Where am I? I began to feel the walls, finding nothing except a single small hatch that opened up into a tiny space beyond. It was far too small for me to fit through, and I couldn't see anything in it either. I felt some more, and found what felt like a door frame. The door was locked, though. I tried pounding on it with my metal hoof, but it did not give way. Seconds turned into minutes. I began to cry, sitting alone in a cold, dark room. I hoped that somepony would rescue me somehow. But, I was almost certain that nopony would come, as I was alone when I was knocked out. I wondered what happened to the others. Had they made it out? Did I make the right choice, not following them? Would I still be with them if I had? Would they have died if I went with them? I had no way of knowing. Minutes turned into hours. The dead silence was unbearable, so I filled it with my voice. Screams, cries, whispers, any noise I could make, I made it. Eventually, I settled into a hum. I was humming an old tune; I didn't know where I'd heard it before, but it was a sweet melody, and it helped deter the hopelessness I felt. Powerlessness was a new feeling for me. I was used to being able to control the situation I was in, or at the very least be able to run from it. Now, I couldn't do anything. There were three knocks at the door, and what sounded like a hatch opening from the other side. I checked the hatch, and there was a plate of food, with a bottle of water with it. I hadn't realized how hungry I was. It was gone in seconds. I put the tray back, and closed the hatch. I didn't know how long I'd been there. I remembered a random fact; that sound travels better in solids than in air. Maybe, if I put my ear to the door, I could hear things from the other side. It was the only way I could get any answers at all. At first, nothing. I stayed with my ear to the door for a while, then started humming when I could bear the silence no longer. Once I was calmed back down, I put my ear back to the door. It went on like that for a while, but eventually I started to hear voices from the other side. They were barely audible, and I couldn't tell what they were saying, but it was progress. I kept trying, with nothing else to do. I started to make out words. "You," was one of them. "Anyway," was the next. I couldn't make anything of them yet, but with time, I hoped I would find something out that might help me escape. I kept trying, and words formed sentences. "I wish they would let us go." "Who do they think they are?" "I hope my family is okay." They must be other prisoners, who were brought here like me. But, why are they talking? Do they not have their own rooms? Besides listening through the door, I passed the time by having 'conversations' with myself. "Hi, how're you doing?" "I'm fine, thanks for asking." "It's dark out today." "Isn't it dark every day?" "What's a day?" If I wasn't able to speak, I'd go crazy from the silence. The outside ponies, as I started calling them, kept giving me meals. I tried counting the seconds between meals once or twice, but it seemed like they just fed me at random times. Sometimes, I wondered if I had died. Is this what death is like? No wonder we're so afraid of it. Of course, I still had no way of knowing. I kept listening to the conversations of the outside ponies, trying to figure out anything I could. But it was mostly the same; "How could they do this?" and "If only I knew where we are." were popular phrases. There was the occasional "Get back in line, traitor," which I assumed was spoken by the Ones Who Captured. The way I referred to things changed. The outside ponies separated into two groups: "The Ones Who Captured," and "The Ones Who Were Captured." I began to recognize certain voices among the Ones Who Were Captured. I gave them names. "Oh, that's Voice, and that one's Speech, and over there is Word." I wasn't very creative with it. I surprised myself with that, seeing as I was so creative before. At least, I thought I was. Everything before the Awakening was a blur by that point. I had forgotten what exactly it was I was creative with. I had trouble remembering what I looked like. I think my coat is black, or is that just because I can't see it? And, I think my eyes are... Black? No, no, that can't be right. Can it? I can't seem to remember it black eyes are normal or not. "So how are you doing in this moment in time?" I had lost count of how long I'd been there a long time ago, so I started using 'this moment in time' to refer to what was 'now,' 'before this moment in time' for things in the past, and 'after this moment in time' for things that hadn't happened yet. "I'm the same as ever. I haven't changed. You haven't changed. Nothing changes." "What is 'change,' again?" I had named more of the Ones Who Were Captured. There was Verb, and Tone, and Text. I named them after either sound or... I couldn't remember the correct term for it. It was like words, but you could see them. I began to wonder if sight was even a thing. After all, I had never seen anything, so how did I know it existed? Maybe it was just something I made up, wanting for the nonexistent concept of change to happen. By that point, I was completely sure that nothing came before the Awakening. In fact, I wondered if the Awakening actually happened, or if I had always been there. Is this all there is to existence? I started to think so, and I accepted that. This isn't bad, it's perfectly fine. Things have never been bad for me. I slowly started to lose interest in what was outside. After all, how did I even know that existed? I stopped listening to the outside, perfectly content to stay inside. Inside was all I'd ever known, and it was all that was real. Outside was a thought, a dream I came up with back when I thought sanity had a use. I began to build a world in my mind. It was another Inside, different from the one I was in. It was crazy, but was so much fun to imagine. In the second Inside, sight was real. You could see the boundary between the Inside and the non-Inside. And, there was a tree. I'm not sure why I included it, but it made me happy. It was a magnificent tree, that sparkled. It made me happy. Something deep inside me, something I wished would go away, kept telling me to not be happy. I couldn't imagine why I would want me to be unhappy. Things were great! I could hum, I could visit the second Inside in my mind, and I always got food. What wasn't there to love about it? With time, the voice faded. I was happy about that. The voice had kept me from being happy. Things that kept me from being happy were bad. I started visiting the second Inside more and more. I would close my eyes, and there I would be, looking at the beautiful tree. I started visiting it more often that I visited the First Inside. After all, what mattered except the tree? The beautiful, beautiful tree. The only thing I couldn't get from the Second Inside was food. I decided to leave the First Inside behind, only returning to it when there was food. I spent all of my free time staring at the tree. It was the only thing that mattered to me. Then, something changed. The door made a sound. It was loud, and it hurt. I wanted to forget it, but I couldn't. Then, I started staring at the tree again. Everything went away, except the tree. I didn't need food. I didn't need anything. I could just stay here forever. And ever. And ever... ----------- Something inside of me told me to stop. That made me non-happy. I wanted to stare at the tree. It made me happy. I tried to explain it, but the voice kept telling me to stop. Then, I felt something. The opposite of happy. It took a moment to remember its name. Pain. It was everywhere. I wanted it to stop, I wanted to look at the tree. But, the tree was gone. Instead, I saw nothing. And the pain didn't stop. I wanted it to stop. Make it stop. No. Why not? Because we can't give up. What does that even mean? I don't know, but it's important. We can't give up. We need the pain so we don't give up. Please, stop. No. Stop. No. Stop... No... ----------- It went back and forth, with me telling me to stop and me telling me no. I wanted to be happy. So what if I gave up? If it meant being happy, why wouldn't I? But still it didn't stop. Back and forth, and pain all the while. Is this how it always was? I can't tell. Nothing. Nothing, Nothing, Nothing. Such a beautiful word, nothing. It isn't pain, it isn't change. It is nothing. I like nothing. ----------- Then, something. Something bad. The door opened. A strange blob stepped through it, and made strange noises. Then, it grabbed me. It was pulling me out of the Inside. I fought it, with everything I had. I wanted nothing, not something. It was taking me to something. "No, no, no!" It was the first time I spoke. "No! No! No!" But I could do nothing. I could do nothing. No. I couldn't do nothing. It stopped me from doing nothing. It made me do something. I just wanted nothing. Was that too much to ask? Nothing. The most beautiful word. I like nothing, I want nothing, give me nothing. Not something. Something is the ugliest word. I hate something, I don't want something, don't give me something. Something is pain. Something is change. Nothing is neither. But, I still couldn't stop it. It had pulled me completely out of the nothing by that point, into the something. I closed my eyes. Darkness. Darkness was nothing. I could just stay like that. But still, the something remained. And, the tiny voice was glad. Something is good. It means we haven't given up. I want to give up. I want nothing. Let me go back to my nothing! No. Yes. No. Yes... No... ----------- I was in a place. There were several blobs around. They made strange noises. I was unhappy. I felt pain. The pain got worse. I couldn't keep going. I had to give up. But I couldn't. I felt something new, something I had never felt before. It came from deep inside of me. It told me I couldn't give up. I listened. For some reason, the feeling convinced me to not give up. I don't want to give up. I won't give up. I won't! The pain got worse, but the other feeling grew stronger too. It wasn't a good feeling, but it wasn't bad either. It was something, and nothing, at the same time. And I didn't give up. Things may have been bad. They may have changed. But whatever happened, I wouldn't give up. Strange noises came from all around me. Something started pulling me away. It was a different blob. This one I identified as being blue. I didn't know what 'blue' was, but I still knew this blob was blue for some reason. It pulled me somewhere else. I went along with it. No matter how much I wanted to give up, to go back to nothing, I couldn't. I didn't want to give up. But I did. But I didn't. Then, a single thought consumed me. Home. I want to be home. And, the strange feeling that was neither nothing nor something grew even stronger. And then... ----------- To be continued... -----------