//------------------------------// // IX - Unfortunate - Mad Engineer Stark // Story: [Untitled.Uncertainty] // by GMBlackjack //------------------------------// Side 1 Silver Sigil ran. No, scratch that - Silver Sigil fled for dear life. The abomination that had taken his master from him was in pursuit, no doubt. After all, it was most likely after powerful artifacts, since it went after his master first, rather than him. Now that he had both, he had no doubts that the sludge being would be after him next. After that, who would be left to stop it? It was not like there was anyone else that knew about the power of the artifacts, or how to use them. And then Silver ran right into a griffon. “Hey, what’s the big rush?! You trying to get me killed? Celestia, first that creepy hooded pony runs off, and then … you were that pony, weren’t you? Hey, stop running! I’m not done yelling at you!” Gilda shouted, using her wings to jump onto Silver and pin him. “Now then, creep, just what were you doing with that meteor? Not often that someone runs straight at a meteor, only to come running out a few minutes later like the evils of Tartarus are out and after him,” Gilda pressed. “Y-you don’t understand, it’s after m-m-me, it wants to get me, I’m not safe to be around!” Silver exclaimed. Gilda smacked him on the snout, annoyed by his stuttering. “By Guto, how am I supposed to understand any of that gibberish? Stop stuttering and get it right!” “That direction, big ugly thing, wants to eat me, not safe here! Run now, talk later!” Silver hastily added They quickly left the area. Unfortunately for Silver, they left it by flying, not running, and Silver was again promptly pinned by Gilda. This time securely, on a mountain path. “Where are my answers? I don’t have time to waste talking to you, creep, so start talking fast, or you take a trip down the mountain where nobody will ever find you.” Of course, Gilda would never do that. She was still perfectly fine with rolling him towards the edge, of course. “Umm, how do I start… the meteorite you saw was actually an evil being, it’ll doom the world, and I’m trying desperately not to die so I can figure out how to stop it?” Silver looked desperate enough that she bought that blunt as Tartarus explanation. He was still too frightened and shocked to think of anything too coherent, and the minute he had of fight or flight had vanished the moment he ran into the griffon. “… I’m too sober for this. Come on, I’m sending a letter to the rest of you ponies. They can deal with this shit, and send me a bottle of decent booze. We’re leaving.” Why did it always come down to the Ponies? Seriously! Sometimes, a griffon just wanted to be involved in a minor emergency that didn’t involve the fate of the world. “Did you not listen to a word that I just said? That thing is going to kill ALL OF US! We need to - hey, what are you doing? Not the ear, not the ear!” What was up with his ear being grabbed in emergencies? Seriously! “I just hear you asking for more pain. Shut up and I’ll let you trot.” Silence was all that greeted her ears. “Good pony.” Oh, so glorious silence. It’s good to be the Queen, even if it was only over one pony. ~~~ What would seem to be an ordinary griffon watched with vague interest as the idiot pony and nitwit of a griffon left, the pony noticeably more pained than the griffon. “Hmmm. Looks like I’m on the road again. Well, time to get my gear together!” The Fool left, his journey beginning anew. Side 2 “Why hello there, are you the new neighbor?” Aura sighed. Why did there have to be ponies filling the neighborhood? Sure, a few neighbors made you seem sociable enough for most, but as more ponies gathered, that would mean correspondingly increased scrutiny on her house, which would increasingly restrict her activities until she could safely divert their attention. “Why yes, yes I am.” Still, if there was one thing the Evil was grateful for, it was that the vastly increased intelligence and experience it had over most beings gave it unparalleled observational skills, allowing it to scrutinize the majority of physical beings and categorize them with a high degree of accuracy. At the very least, it would have an advanced warning against any truly dangerous foes. “Ah, it’s always nice to have a new face around here! Tell me, have you visited Tempered yet? He’s the highlight of any newcomer’s visit to our little corner of Canterlot.” Aaaaaaaand there was the subtle deflection that marked an ordinary civilian. Soon to be future thrall. “No, but I plan to.” Don’t mind the fact that Aura was going to wait a while before going to meet him. Really, don’t. “As long as you do so soon. After all, he does make your days!” And Aura was going to make his day. For better or worse. All she needed to do was wait, and plan. She left quickly to evaluate the last of her neighbors. As the day continued, and more and more ponies were processed in a similar fashion, The Evil thought. From the pieces that it gathered, it was making an increasingly complicated sculpture of the pony known as Tempered Pearlite. From what it could tell, Tempered could not be made a thrall like so many pawns. He was simply too complex to do so. And so, it began to draw up plans to snare Tempered in a web of intrigue. For he would be a lieutenant. Or he would be gone. ~~~ The Tower looked upon his agents and the unknown variable silently. That one is not who she appears to be. She must be dealt with, for the safety of the Cycle depends on it. The Tower plotted, and sent for the Hermit, for the Cycle must always be guarded. Side 3 When Sunny Days awoke, it was to a mild headache that left her thinking that maybe she should have some aspirin if she was going to have to deal with a problem patient. After all, as the premier hospital in Equestria, they got the ‘privilege’ of hosting famous injured people, most of them nobles. As she put on her uniform, the headache only got worse, making it seem that the noble’s behavior had somehow infected her work, thus downgrading her day to ‘bad.’ When Sunny saw that one of her checkups was Rainbow Dash, her response was … mixed. On one hoof, she wasn’t a noble. That meant no hyper-inflated sense of self-importance. On the other… maybe it was better just not to think about that. Maybe it would disappear after a while. … Shouldn’t she be talking to Rainbow Dash? She should go do that, instead of thinking about things that didn’t matter. “Good morning, Rainbow Dash. I trust that you’ve had a good night sleep?” “You know, just another day in building Paradise. We’re not there yet, but we’re getting there.” And now they would get there much faster, thanks to the friendly conversation with Flutters. “Oh, and what made you so positive today? Maybe you learned something due to your ‘friend’.” As if! Nobody came to visit her except Pinkie Pie, and she hadn’t put in a visit for a good week! Actually, she was due for a visit before the week ended, if the pattern held up. “That’s easy! Today, I am leaving!” With Flutter’s help, of course. The only question now is who would stop her, and who would be the first to come around. “Hmmmmm…. And how can you be sure of that? You can barely get out of bed for the bathroom, much less leave this building and fly for all you’re worth.” And she knew it. Rainbow’s muscles were severely atrophied from lack of use, even with magical stimulation. She might have been healed, who knew, but it would still take weeks for her to get to trotting consistently, much less galloping or flying competently. “Simple: I. Have. Help.” And with that, Rainbow got out of her bed and calmly walked towards the nurse. With no aid, no less. Sunny Days was shocked. How could this have happened? It was a miraculous healing, no doubt. This was Impossible, with a capital I! Her perpetual headache made itself known once more and continued to grow, until it just… stopped. In that moment, Sunny saw Her. The reason she became a nurse, even though she could have made an excellent medical researcher. Fluttershy, the very Embodiment of Kindness, who was said to have died in a factory accident, standing right before her. And in Her presence, all illnesses ceased. Just standing there, trying to process what was going on while passively stopping Rainbow from leaving, Sunny… stopped. Why would she do something against the will of someone who could not be denied when it came to giving? If Rainbow was truly healed… no. The proper question was, how could she serve? For an Element could truly do no evil. Needless to say, she stepped in front of Her, and gave a big hug. “See Rainbow? Sooner or later, they shall all come around.” And they would, for Fluttershy willed it, and who would go against her? ~~~ Judgment stirred. Something was wrong, the scales were unbalanced. If left uncorrected, the Cycle would cease, the walls would fall once more. The contingencies had failed. It was time to rise once more, for Death would be coming, and it would be impolite to not to host him. ~~~ As the seeds of destruction are planted, their resolutions bloom. For the Fool has set out, the Tower plots, and Judgement musters its strength.