//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Shadow Seeds // by Orsuros //------------------------------// Orsuros woke up with a splitting headache, but it quickly cleared as he stretched and shook himself. He dusted off his wings and scales. A nice breeze blew through the apples trees that covered the hills that surrounded him as the morning sun began to light up the sky. His impact must have been hard because a large gouge in the dirt marked where he had landed. His back and shoulder hurt sharply. He stared where he had landed and tried to remember what he had been doing. He had been doing a magical experiment of sorts. In coming to this place, he was supposed to be better, somehow. Or maybe he was supposed to find something that would make him better. The magic or the crash must have taken a heavy toll on his mind. His memories all seemed a mess, and some of them seemed to be missing. His instincts told him that his mind would sort itself out in time. There were some important things he was supposed to remember about this world. He looked around. A few birds quietly watched him before flying away. That reminded him of something important. He might scare the creatures of this world if he appeared as himself. Most creatures besides the griffons and beastfolk were afraid of dragons. He could remember that much, and he could also remember that this world had other creatures who would be worth talking to that were unlike the creatures in his own world. He’d just have to look around a bit and see if something could help him remember more, but first he’d have to find a way to not scare anyone he ran into. Some faint voices in the distance caught his attention. He’d need to hide quickly, but he didn’t know a good form to use for a disguise yet. Something simple would have to do. He could trying shrouding, but if they had anything to sense magic, he doubted that would work well. It wasn’t a type of magic he was very good at. A disguise might work, but he’d need to see what sort of creatures lived here first. He spotted some bushes to hide in for now. When the voices got closer, he could see a group of colorful ponies trotting along. These were some of the creatures he had hoped to meet, but the reason behind it still wasn’t coming to him. The leader of the group seemed to be both a unicorn and pegasus somehow. She was purple and had a horn and wings. Her horn seemed to be glowing faintly. It stopped once she got to the place where Orsuros had crashed. The other ponies in the group paused behind the purple one. These ponies seemed to come in all sorts of colors and types. The group included a white unicorn, an orange pony with a hat, a pink pony, a blue pegasus with rainbow hair, and in the back, a yellow pegasus. The purple one spoke up. “Okay, girls, it seems to have crashed here. Let’s spread out and look for any clues. Be very careful. Luna said that whatever it is might be very dangerous.” At least he could understand them. Or maybe that had been part of the spell that brought him here. If they looked the right way, it wouldn’t take them long to find him. He’d need to come up with something before they noticed him. And it would be best to do it soon. They might notice his tracks in the soil. The purple pony’s ears seemed to prick up as Orsuros began to sense their magic. All these ponies seemed surrounded by several sorts of magic. The yellow pegasus in the back was the closest to him, so he studied her more carefully. These ponies had such interesting souls. Once he was sure he had a good feel for what to copy, he began see what changing himself to one of them might cost him. They had magic and power, but he could feel that his potential wouldn’t be changing greatly. That would make the magic easier. It was impossible to change into something with more potential without sacrificing something. He cast the spell. In a few moments, his body shifted. He didn’t want to make the greater sacrifices to make this permanent, but his spell crafted his appearance and form into what he would look like if he had been a pegasus. He would revert to his normal form when unconscious or when he used up all his magic, but it would do for now. He had kept his colors, so he was green with a beige belly with red and blue in his mane and tail. He stepped out from behind a tree before the ponies could look too carefully around where he had crashed. He tried to walk away quietly. “Hey! You!” The blue pegasus with rainbow hair flew up to him. “What are you doing here?” He hadn’t really thought of what to say, so he just said what came to mind. “Something crashed, so I thought I’d come check it out.” The other ponies caught up. Several of them seemed to be staring at his flank. He wondered why for a moment, but a glance at the ponies showed him why. They all had marks. He backed up a little, making a little adjustment with his magic. The only symbol that came to mind quickly was some cloud-covered mountains. With that in place, he stepped closer to the group. The pink one stepped right up next to him, staring at him closely. “How come I haven’t seen you around here? Are you new? I know everypony in Ponyville, but you… are you in disguise? Is that why I don’t recognize you?” Orsuros almost froze but then laughed nervously. “I’m new. I was just… traveling nearby and noticed something fall down last night. It must have been a pretty big thing that crashed.” He watched the ponies carefully, but they didn’t seem to give any hint at taking the suggestion of the pink pony seriously. “I’m just glad it didn’t mess up any of my apple trees,” the orange pony said. “Did you see what it was?” The purple one asked. Orsuros shook his head. “I haven’t found anything.” “Oh, if you’re passing through, you should go visit Ponyville!” The pink one said. “We can have a party or at the very least, a cake. Come see me at Sugarcube Corner. The first cupcake is free!” “Cupcake? Those little dessert things?” He tried to remember what type of dessert that would be. It wasn’t the sort dragons usually had, but it sounded like something he had heard of people baking. The pink pony seemed confused and stared at him. He shuffled his legs and flicked his tail as he tried to look her in the eyes. He eventually gave up and turned to go. “Thank you. I’ll see you in town.” Orsuros flapped his wings a few times. It always took a little bit of practice to get used to a temporary form like this, but it seemed easy enough. He took off into the air, leaving the group of ponies behind. He looked back and kept an ear pointed behind him to listen in while he could. The rolling hills covered in apple trees slowly passed below him, and he could see a town in the distance. “Something is a little strange about that pegasus,” the purple one said. “I don’t think he’s from Cloudsdale. Just look at how he’s flying. Who flies like that?” The blue one laughed a bit. “He barely seemed to know what a cupcake is!” He’d have to observe more to see how the pegasi really flew. For now, he just tried to fly like he normally would. The feathery wings weren’t quite like his normal ones but seemed to be working alright. He passed over the apple orchards and made his way to the town. He circled above it to get an idea of the streets and what might be important. There were a lot of surprisingly typical houses and small shops. It reminded him of the beastfolk towns, but there was one place that immediately caught his attention. He remembered that he had come here to learn about these ponies and their magic, and the most obviously magical place was the crystal castle. It didn’t seem to have any guards on the walls when he flew closer, so he landed on a balcony and pushed at the door. It wasn’t even locked. But he suspected that there was some sort of magic or traps he couldn’t see. He decided to return later once he had figured out more about this castle and town. He flew back down to the street and started walking around. The adult ponies seemed to either be working or going about on errands. The younger ones seemed to playing in little groups outside a schoolhouse. At the shops, the customers paid in little gold coins, which he soon learned were called bits. After wandering the town for a while, he was feeling rather hungry, so maybe he’d have to figure out how to earn a few to buy himself some food. Still, that pink pony had told him he could at least have a cupcake for free. As he walked around, he found the store called Sugarcube Corner that she had mentioned. He stepped inside but tripped as someone shouted at him. “There you are! Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to make you fall. Here’s your free cupcake to make it better.” The pink pony hopped over to him and helped him up before handing him the treat.  “I’m Pinkie Pie. Nice to meet you!” He poked at the paper around the cupcake, trying to peel it. Eventually he got it. “I’m Orsuros.” “Ors Cirrus.” She repeated what almost sounded like his name. “That’s a funny name. Are you from somewhere foreign? I guess I did know some ponies with the name Cirrus before. We love getting visitors here in Ponyville. What brings you here?” Pinkie Pie was definitely energetic, but her questions felt more curious and friendly than suspicious. He took a bite of his cupcake. It was much sweeter than anything he had eaten recently. “Just Cirrus is fine. I’m from far away, but I’m traveling around to see new places and learn some new things. I hope to use what I learn to help the people back home.” “People? Oh, you mean ponies, right?” “Uh, yeah, of course.” He took another bite of the cupcake. “Thanks for for the treat. I know this is a lot to ask, but do you know any place I could earn a little bit of money? I could use more, especially if I’m going to be staying very long.” “You’ll be staying here in Ponyville?” Pinkie Pie’s eyes went wide. Orsuros nodded. Pinkie Pie gasped and disappeared for a few moments before appearing again. “Once you find somewhere to stay, let me know. And if you need anything to help make your stay in Ponyville more fun, I’d love to help.” The concept of needing to find somewhere to stay was rather strange to Orsuros. He usually just found a nice clearing or cave and stayed there. Maybe he’d look for something like that later. For now, there was the more important matter of getting money for food. “But what about some work? I do need a job to stay here.” “Oh yeah! Uh, I don’t really keep track of who has jobs. The weather crew or post office often have some jobs. Are you good at anything in particular? Maybe Applejack might have some extra jobs on the farm, or Fluttershy might need some help with the animals, but you’d have to go ask them. And if you don’t mind traveling, Rarity might need some things delivered to and from Canterlot.” “What does the weather crew do?” Orsuros had never heard of such a thing. “Oh, they do some basic things like move the clouds around or put some rain storms together when it’s time for one of those. Don’t they do the same things where you’re from?” “We don’t have a weather crew.” “We didn’t have one out on the rock farm, either. Some of the storms would get pretty bad, or it would be cloudy and dreary for days without someone to kick some holes in the clouds to let the sun shine through. If the weather crew sounds fun, you should totally go do it. Even if you don’t quite know what you’re doing, I’m sure they’ll take you. Rainbow Dash is usually the one in charge. She’s up there right now. Just tell her I sent you.” Pinkie Pie pointed out the window to where a cloud was moving unusually fast. “Um, thank you, Pinkie Pie. And thank you for the cupcake, too. It’s the first thing I’ve had to eat since getting here.” “What? Really? You must be starving. I’m sure I could give you some more samples. Take this, and this, and this!” Pinkie Pie started piling up slices of cake, pie, and cookies. “There. That should give you plenty of energy. You’ll need it if you’re going to work with Rainbow Dash.” She stuffed one last piece of cake into his mouth that had gaped open in surprise. “Mmmthankou,” He muttered around the piece of cake and carefully balanced the stack of food as Pinkie Pie gently pushed him out the door. He sat down on a bench and started to slowly eat the pile of sweets. While it wasn’t the best food, it would have to do for now. There was so much sugar, but the fruit in the pies was nice and filling. After eating it all, he felt a little sick from the sweetness. He waited until his stomach settled before he stretched his wings out and headed up toward the clouds. As he got closer, he could sometimes see something blue and rainbow-colored zipping between the clouds and moving them around. He glided toward it and could finally see that it was one of the ponies he met in the orchard earlier. “Hey!” He yelled out. The pegasus stopped and looked at him. “What do you need? I’m a little busy here! Gotta keep these clouds from bunching up too much.” “Pinkie Pie said you might have some work for me in the weather crew. I’ve never really done this sort of thing before, though. You’re Rainbow Dash, right?” “Yeah, that’s me. And usually I’m so awesome that I just do all the main weather work on my own unless there’s something special going on. But tell you what. We could always use some more pegasi to push a few clouds around on the edges of town. I’ll let you try out for the job. Let’s see if you can keep these clouds from bunching up. Show me what you got. Go!” Orsuros blinked. “Wait! How do I move the clouds? Won’t I just go through them?” “Ugh. I’m not quite sure how to explain it. I’m sure Twilight would have some book on it. Just push them around but not too hard. Like this.” Rainbow Dash kicked a cloud and sent it flying off another direction. Orsuros almost forgot to flap his wings after she landed and stood on another cloud. “Now get on with it. They’re bunching up already.” Orsuros flew over to the clouds. He tried to kick one like Rainbow Dash but his foot just went through it. He tried again and got the same result. He dove at the clouds as they started grouping up even more. He flapped until his wings were burning to keep them apart. Rainbow Dash dove in and kicked the clouds aparts, sending the groups of clouds in different directions. “You’re doing it the hard way! Or maybe the wrong way. Wait a sec! You’re that strange pegasus we met out at the farm earlier, right? I know you’re not from Cloudsdale, or you’d know all this stuff. Where you from?” “The mountains near Wolf’s Bay, but I’ve been traveling a lot.” Rainbow Dash shrugged. “Haven’t heard of it. It’s strange that you keep going through the clouds. Are you pushing too hard?” Orsuros gently placed a hoof into a cloud and kept pushing until it went through. “No. I’m trying to be very gentle. The clouds just aren’t solid. How are you even standing on them?” “They’re sturdy clouds today. Very solid.” Rainbow Dash hopped a few times on the cloud. It sunk a little lower. “Come land on this cloud and let me see up close.” Orsuros thought it over. Perhaps there was something he had missed in his spell. He tried to land on the cloud, but just went through it again. Rainbow Dash grabbed him before he fell down. “It’s going to be hard to be a weather pegasus if you can’t work with the clouds. This isn’t just some sort of bad joke, is it?” “No, but let me try one more thing. Just don’t drop me.” He closed his eyes and focused on what magic he could sense. Rainbow Dash had quite a bit of latent magic. He searched through it and found what he thought was making it possible for her to work with the clouds. His earlier transformation spell seemed incomplete now that he was fully sensing just what made a pegasus special. It was draining, but he added the missing pieces to the transformation spell. “Did you just glow?” Rainbow Dash asked. The cloud beneath Orsuros slowly became more solid. Soon he was able to pull his bottom half out of it and stay on top. “There. I think I fixed the problem. Sorry about that. I’ll give it one more go.” “Not that I’m getting tired, but you’re not exactly light.” Rainbow Dash let him go. He stood up on the cloud and tested it a little before he jumped out into the sky again. He kicked one cloud. It felt like kicking a soft bush. It floated away. He dove at another cloud and pushed it with his front feet. It slid along until he let it go and it came to a slow stop. “That’s better, but you’ll need to go faster! Keep those two groups apart.” Rainbow Dash pointed above them where the fluffy clouds were already colliding and combining. Orsuros flew up at them, weaving between them to kick and push them. After a few moments, the two groups of clouds were separating and he landed next to Rainbow Dash to catch his breath. “How was that?” “Not bad for a rookie. I guess you passed the first test. For your next job, you’ll need to round up those clouds near those mountains over there and keep them moving along. They tend to get stuck there and build up. I’ll be watching you from over here, uh, what was your name?” “Cirrus.” He repeated the name Pinkie had mentioned. It was probably closer to an actual pony name than his real name. “You haven’t earned a break yet, so you better get over there. Now hustle!” “Sure thing.” Orsuros zipped off toward the mountains near Ponyville. After Rainbow Dash’s first test, he was starting to get a little more used to flying with his current wings. The basics were the same as his dragon wings, but these wings seemed more about agility than endurance. He tested them out as he did a few spins and loops in the air for fun. His wings didn’t have quite as much power, but he could turn or stop a lot faster. Finally, he reached the mountains. A steady stream of clouds was blowing by them, but many of them seemed to be snagging or getting stuck on the peaks. There were a lot of them, but he slowly started to push them off and send them on their way. Sometimes he’d kick a lower one and send a whole group of clouds free. It was rather fun. He’d have to ask Rainbow Dash more about weather pegasi later. It seemed strange that the ponies should do so much work to control something like the weather, but maybe it made their lands nicer to live in. As the afternoon passed, Orsuros admired the scenery around the town. The apple orchards covered the hills in one direction. A distant group of mountains had what looked to be a large city perched on the slopes. Even at this distance, it looked very regal and elegant. Some forests and other plains led in some other directions from Ponyville, and there were even some metal tracks of some sort. A whistle in the distance caught his attention and he looked down to see some mechanical cart traveling along the tracks. It shot a column of steam from the front, but Orsuros couldn’t quite tell what was powering it. These ponies seemed to have types of magic and technology he didn’t quite understand, and he was excited to explore all of it. The stream of clouds slowly came to a halt as the winds shifted in the late afternoon. A sudden blue and rainbow blur almost hit Orsuros. He growled and and glanced down to see what might be attacking. He heard laughter from below and saw Rainbow Dash flapping back up toward him. “Oh man, your face was priceless! I haven’t seen anyone look that fierce when surprised. That was quite the growl. You sounded like a bear or something.” Orsuros relaxed. “Ah, sorry. Where I come from, most surprises are bad.” “You did some good work today. I don’t see any clouds left on those mountains. But how about a little wager? If you can beat me in a race back to my house over there, I’ll pay you double.” “And if I lose?” “I doubt you’ll beat me, so I didn’t want to be mean, especially since you’re still a rookie.” Rainbow Dash flipped onto her back and flew upside down for a few wing beats. “How about I get you dinner if I lose?” “Deal. We start on the count of three. One, two, three!” Orsuros started climbing. He’d dive later and get some more speed. Rainbow Dash had the same idea and slowly pushed herself a little ahead. He beat his wings hard to catch up. He finally evened out with her as they reached the thin, cold air of the upper sky. Rainbow Dash dove downward in a flash. Orsuros followed, but Rainbow Dash was quickly getting ahead now. The air seemed to stream off her then glowed with colors. She banked back up as she neared the ground and a shockwave of colors spread from her with a loud boom. Orsuros hesitated and slowed. The rainbow shockwave had powerful magic, but he soon learned it was harmless to him. He tried to regain his speed, but he had already lost too much of it. Rainbow Dash was so far ahead of him that she was already celebrating her victory by the time he landed at the edge of her cloud home. “You almost kept up at the start. But it looks like my awesome sonic rainboom slowed you down. I guess you’ve never seen anything like that before. Isn’t it the coolest?” “I wasn’t even sure what it was at first. But yes, it was very, uh, cool.” Some of the words these ponies used were rather strange, even if he could guess at what they meant. “Ok, well, let me go get your bits for helping today.” Rainbow Dash went inside and returned with a small bag of coins. “Here you go. Now let’s go eat! All that flying always makes me hungry.” Orsuros took the bag of money as his stomach growled loudly. “It was tougher work than I thought it would be. Where’s a good place to get lots of food?” “The cafe by the city hall usually tries to sell off what’s left around this time. Let’s go see what they have.” Orsuros followed Rainbow Dash and landed on the street. At the cafe, the white unicorn that Orsuros had seen at the orchard was sitting at a table and waved Rainbow Dash over. She had a salad and some sort of soup. She set her notepad down as they got near. “Hey, Rarity. What’s up?” Rainbow Dash said. “I’m just taking a dinner break before finishing up the last orders for today. Come have a seat.” Rarity scooted a chair away from the table with her magic. She noticed Orsuros and pulled out a second one. “Oh my, it seems you have some company this evening. I hope I’m not interrupting anything special.” “What? No! This is Cirrus. He’s new in town and wanted to try out for a weather job. And he said he’d get me dinner if he lost to me in a race.” “Well, it’s nice to formally meet you this time, Cirrus. It takes a real gentlecolt to accept defeat so humbly. I haven’t met a pony who could outspeed Rainbow Dash. How was working with her?” “My wings are quite tired, but once I figured out how to move the clouds around, it was pretty fun.” “She does push herself quite hard. I imagine she’d do the same with anyone working for her. Oh, I better let you order something before it gets too late.” Orsuros looked over the menu. He felt exhausted from using so much of his magic and from the hard work. In his normal form, he would have enjoyed a nice pile of meat about now, but he supposed he’d have to eat whatever the ponies ate. The menu had mostly sandwiches made with vegetables and grains. The soups were similar. There were also plenty of foods with fruits. Rainbow Dash had paid him five bits for the work so far. A soup, sandwich, and dessert cost one bit, so he’d have three left after paying for his and Rainbow Dash’s dinner. He ordered the butternut squash soup, a garden sandwich, and some apple pie for himself and let Rainbow Dash order what she wanted. As they waited for food, they sat down next to Rarity. She smiled and took a few dainty bites of her sandwich. “Oh, Rainbow Dash, you were smart to take off early. We didn’t find anything strange in the orchard besides a few footprints. Twilight thinks it is a dragon of some kind that is different from any seen in Equestria. I bet she’ll still be out there looking for clues until it gets dark, even though I told her it was hopeless. I had to get back to my shop, but Twilight was still out there when I left.” “I was actually hoping to find something exciting,” Rainbow dash replied. “I mean, it’s not everyday we get to fight some new monster that crashes in Ponyville.” “It certainly feels like we do.” “Are there many dangerous monsters around here?” Orsuros asked. Rainbow Dash shook her head. Rarity glared at her. “There is. Especially for travelers like yourself. Most of them come from the Everfree Forest on the other edge of town. We always end up helping Twilight drive them off.” “And you also said there are dragons?” Orsuros asked. Rarity nodded. “There are, but they mostly live far away. The only dragon around here is Spike, and he wouldn’t hurt a fly. He’s just a little dragon, but he is very helpful.” “So are ponies afraid of dragons?” “Most are. After dealing with a few myself, I mostly think they’re a nuisance. With a firm hoof, we can usually straighten them out and send them on their way if they’re causing trouble.” “That’s a very diplomatic way of dealing with them.” “Sometimes it takes a few kicks to get them going, though.” Rainbow Dash pounded the table and almost spilled a glass of water. “But you say a dragon lives here in Ponyville?” Orsuros asked. “I’d like to meet him.” “Maybe you can a bit later,” Rarity said. “I bet Twilight will have him busy with helping with research after what she found out at the orchard. Anyway, is there anything else about Ponyville we can help you with? Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?” “Not yet. But I was mostly curious about that big crystal castle over there.” The setting sun glinted off the large crystal building that stood much taller than the smaller houses and other buildings around town. Orsuros finished off his soup as he waited for a reply. Rarity looked over at the castle. “Yeah, I can see why you would be. That’s Twilight’s Castle. There’s quite a story behind it. But it’s getting a bit late to tell the whole thing. We should make sure you have time to find a place to sleep tonight. I know a good stallion who runs a place over by town hall.” Orsuros looked at his few remaining coins. He’d need some money for food, so it would be better to save what he had. “Thank you, but I think I can find somewhere myself.” “Ok, suit yourself, but I don’t want to see you sleeping in some alleyway. Your mane is too nice to sleep in the dust and dirt.” “Is it?” Orsuros really hadn’t thought much of his appearance. Rainbow Dash had already finished most her food and was halfway done with her slice of apple pie. “Maybe I should leave him with you. You two have hardly stopped talking. He’s not my date, but maybe he could be yours.” Rarity blushed and huffed. “Rainbow Dash! You know a proper mare needs time to prepare for such things. You can’t just spring that on me. I mean, not that you don’t look handsome, Orsuros. You have quite the lovely shade of red and blue in your mane and tail.” “Well, if you want to talk mane and coat colors, I’m out of here. Thanks for dinner!” Rainbow Dash sped off toward her house. Orsuros watched Rainbow Dash go before answering. “It’s just how my mane is.” He finished off the last of his dessert in the moments of silence that followed. “You seem like an interesting fellow. I wouldn’t mind joining you for another lunch or dinner, but really I must go finish those orders before I can relax for this evening. Good luck in finding a place. Don’t forget the one I told you about.” Rarity waved goodbye and cantered off until going into some sort of clothing store. Orsuros got up and walked over by it. Why did ponies need clothes? They didn’t seem to wear them all the time like the beastfolk, but some of them seemed to wear at least a few items. Rarity’s shop had full outfits that looked like they’d be tough to get into. Perhaps they were for some special occasion. As a dragon that liked to keep things simple, Orsuros didn’t really have anything that he wore besides when he needed to carry something in a bag. He hadn’t even brought anything with him. He had more important things to do than look at clothes, like finding a place to rest. He was very tired. His magic had already been very drained by the spell that brought him here and keeping up his transformation spell all day. His mind and body were both worn out. He wandered about town for a brief time. The ponies all seemed to stick in little groups of friends or families but also had an openness and friendliness. He was stopped a few times and welcomed to the town by several ponies. That was getting a little tiresome, so he took to the evening skies to look around for a better place to sleep. He’d need to find somewhere soon before his magic ran out completely. The apple orchards would be safe, but if they found him there, they might be suspicious. He spotted some promising rocky hills out by the woods, so he went toward them to see if he could find a cave of some sort. The trees made it hard to see anything from above, so he landed at the base of some cliffs. An animal trail clued him in to where to go next and soon he found a large den of some sort. With a sigh of relief, he released the magic he had been using all day. He was back in his dragon form. It was a few heads taller than his pony one. He sniffed around. He could tell this place often housed a bear. At the moment, he was too tired to care, though. If it bothered him, he’d just scare it off. He stepped inside and laid down on a smooth patch of sand inside. It felt oddly comforting to be in a cave again. While he had often slept in forests, he never really felt quite at ease in them. But a cave felt nice and solid and secure. He smiled and rolled around until his wings were comfortable and he was asleep the next moment.