//------------------------------//
// CH10: Why? 
// Story: The journey 
// by Dashed_Brony 
//------------------------------//

	He could feel the heat of the Tartarellas behind him now. They were getting closer. Not because they were going faster. Because he going slower. He was growing exhausted. He had been flying around for at least half an hour, but they had relentlessly chased after him. His energy was slipping, and so was his consiousness. 

He had to land to stay awake, and catch his breath. He was no athlete, and it was his will that had kept him going, not his amazing stamina. But even that was running out. He landed and caught his breath.

Letting go of Toby, he shouted "RUN!"

The unicorn was hestitant, but Laxed refused to hear it. He refused to listen, because he knew that if he did, he wouldn't have the heart to send him off.

He saw the green dolt disappear into the everlasting darkness.

"Thank you..." He finished with a smile.

Hopefully they would be satisfied with him. Even if they weren't, Toby would be way out of range before they even caught up with him now. He was sure this was all that needed be done to save the little colt. After all, again, he blamed himself for whatever he pulled Toby into, even if the little colt had come willingly along.
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Straight ahead, he stood face to face with one of them. His hooves shook beneath him. Not in fear. He no longer had the energy to stand properly. He didn't want to run. Couldn't.

He simply gazed into three pairs of white, glowing eyes.

They stared straight back. A minute had passed, and the Tartarella had shown no intent of harm.

He wanted to freak out at this point, but again, he lacked the energy. He simply stood there, about to fall straight to the ground.

Nothing happened. More minutes passed. Minutes as long as hours.

More of the large, fiery beasts had appeared, and all looked at him, one as silent, and as frozen as the other. They didn't flinch, and it seemed like even the fire that formed the core had stopped.

He hadn't heard Toby either, and wasn't sure to think of that as good or bad, but being where he was, positive was the only attitude he could keep to not succumb to screaming himself.

What was wrong with them? Why hadn't they just crisped him right there? Why were they only looking? They knew he was there, they had all crowded around him after all.

*BAM! BAM! BAM!*

Something big approached. Way bigger than any of the fireballs before his eyes. Some moved to the side, opening a pathway. He could feel his heart drop. He felt a nudge push him towards the opening, and it was of pure fear that he simply obeyed without objection. Maybe this was his escape? Maybe they had some sympathy. After all, nopony had ever known much about them.

The large thuds that somewhat resembled footsteps became louder and louder. He was approaching it as much as it was approaching him. But he couldn't see anything, even as he practically felt its breath like a strong storm.

The darkness completely disappeared, as one the size of a minor mountain lit up. He felt so insignificant, weak, helpless and doomed at that point, that this time, he just fell to the ground, and looked up to the ball that may very well be the sun of this place. The fires reached far and wide, and he couldn't even see the point where it stopped lighting up the ground.

He was sweating. Just the warmth of being close felt worse than bathing in boiling water. Though, he couldn't feel any direct harm, just sweat. Like a pig at that.

The mountain of a Tartarella pointed one of the eight legs it had into the skies, and he could once again see the skies.

Skies. Oh how he had missed seeing those. With that sunny sky, he immediately sprung to life. 

But no. No matter how much he wanted to leave. Even with the newfound energy to do so, he couldn't. Toby was down here, and he refused to leave him behind.

He even shouted "No! I am not leaving without Toby!"

An ear-defening sound came from the mountain. All the other Tartarellas stood behind him, and they seemed to make a sound as well. He had no idea what exactly it meant, but it resembled chuckling big time.

They were... Laughing?

Another Tartarella from the back of the crowd, held an angered, and struggling pony with two of its long, thin black arms. Dropping the green fuzzball before Laxed, the chuckle halted, and the 'King' the mountain probably was, pointed to the skies once more.

It was probably the heaviest flight he had ever done. He was ready to pass out as it was, but he wanted to get out of there, before figuring that it was all a prank, and he was going to get toasted.

Without hestitating, even the slightest, he grabbed Toby, and flew out of the hole, looking at the walls they had come down, almost regretting the decision, but yet, feeling somewhat glad he did.

The Tartarellas were obviously capable of feeling something, since they had let both him, and Toby out of their otherwise black tomb, What it meant was beyond him, but none the less, he felt a silent joy build up inside him as he flew up, and finally crossed the point where the hole started. Just as he did, the ground shut below him, getting clogged, and unable to enter once more

As soon as he saw the ground become a whole again, he landed on top of him, practically crash-landing into the ground. He was panting, and heavily so. Exhaling and invaling quickly, he had stretched beyond his limits, and he could feel his heart beat through his chest.


"W-We... Are..." *Pant* "Never... Going... Down" *Pant* "Into holes... We don't... Know... Anything" *Pant* "About... Agreed?"

"Agreed" Toby replied, somewhat excited. 

Seeing Tartarellas and coming away from them alive must've been some sort of a childhood dream, because he was so eager about it, that the pegasi almost felt like knocking him over the head a few times.

They had escaped certain death, and he wanted to be excited about it? He got aggitated, but even he felt a somewhat light joy inside himself. Seeing Tartarellas was more rare than a blue moon, provided Celestia or Luna hadn't decided to randomly toy with it, as their own little joke. There was even a time when the sun resembled an extremely hot moon.

However, he was beat. His energy was gone, and day or not, all he wanted to do, was sleep. Not that he could fight it either ways. The last thing he saw was Toby jumping excitedly about, and he soon succumbed to sleep, as the sunlight disappeared with a shut eyelid, and a silent snore.

- End -