//------------------------------// // The Howling Cliffs // Story: Like a Moth to Flame // by sailing101 //------------------------------// Sunset Shimmer awoke half buried in sand. She hoped this would not become a recurring event. She had a vague recollection of her brief flight, from the sudden gust of wind that robed her of any control, up to crashing into the dunes that lay at the mountain’s base. Clearly, flight was much more complicated than the average pegasus made it look. After digging herself out, Sunset surveyed the landscape. It was a barren wasteland of shifting dunes moved by cold winds. Dotting the boundary between the desert proper and the cliffs behind her, Sunset could make out several sandblasted husks. “Well, that looks completely inhospitable,” Sunset sighed, “Back up the mountain it is.” ...---...---...---...---...---...---...---...---...---... Aside from the occasional scavenging vermin, Sunset’s journey was uneventful. Anything bold enough to try and take a bite out of her was easily scared off with a quick burst of flame. This left Sunset with little more to do than stew in her thoughts as she traveled. “What was even with that mirror,” Sunset grumbled, “Why did it lead to dead bug world? Why couldn’t I have been sent to a bird kingdom? Or gecko land? Tartarus, I’d take a world of naked apes over this.” Distracted as she was, Sunset didn’t notice the pale masked bug standing in her way until she practically tripped over it. Jerked back to reality, Sunset was irritated how the masked bug had not done anything to avoid her, even if the crash was her own fault. “What do you think you’re doing, just standing there?” Sunset snapped. The masked bug did not respond. It simply stared blankly back at Sunset. It was slightly creepy, actually. “Hello? Anypo- bug in there?” The masked bug did not respond. It simply stared blankly back at Sunset. Now it was simply annoying. “Oh Whatever,” Sunset sighed, “you can just stand there doing, whatever it is you were doing.” Sunset stormed past the masked bug, intent on just forgetting this encounter. The sound of light footsteps following her made that plan more difficult. Sunset tried to ignore it, there was only the one crumbling road after all, but her unwanted traveling companion’s continued silence was wearing her patience thin. Sunset wheeled around, wings flared. “Do you really not have anything better to do?!” she shouted in exasperation. The masked bug did not respond. It simply stared blankly back at Sunset. With the way her luck had been going as of late, this was naturally when the wind chose to gust, catching Sunset’s spread wings and slamming her into a nearby wall. Slowly, Sunset slid to the ground, dazed. “I trust you won’t tell any bug about this,” she groaned. The masked bug simply stared blankly back at Sunset. Or rather, at the wall behind her. Turning to follow it's gaze, Sunset saw that the wall was heavily cracked. Sunset backed away from the wall, wary of the possibility it could collapse, but then she noticed the cracks stayed within a roughly square region. “A false wall?” She guessed. A sudden flash of metal swept past Sunset, testing that theory. The wall shattered, revealing a hidden cave. The masked bug walked past Sunset, the weapon on it's back shedding a few stone fragments that had snagged on the dull blade. Sunset shuddered, that weapon had swung by too close for comfort. She decided it would be in her best interests to not antagonize the masked bug any further. Sunset followed behind the masked bug, lighting a flame to get a better look inside. The walls were composed of shells like the rest of the mountain, though the floor had been smoothed down. Sunset hesitated. The memory of the last tunnel she inspected still fresh in her mind. “This cave must have been walled up for a reason,” Sunset mused, “and if we just broke in, that must mean that nothing broke out.” Having reassured herself, Sunset followed the masked bug inside, her flame providing light. They didn’t travel far before reaching a dead end. “This can’t be all there is here,” Sunset mused. She began examining the walls. “And where there is one false wall, there should be-“ The clash of metal on stone followed by crumbling rock answered Sunset. She turned to see the masked bug disappear through the hole it had opened in the wall. The next chamber was larger, and showed definitive signs of having been previously inhabited. Tattered drapes hung from crumbling arches, and several unlit torches taller than Sunset stood around the perimeter of the chamber. “Well this is a pleasant place,” Sunset deadpanned. Her attention was drawn to the masked bug. It was staring at something in the back corner of the room. Slumped against the back wall were the remains of a large bug. What looked like the remains of a red harlequin’s outfit was visibly stitched into the carcass, completed by a white mask that covered it’s face. “Oh goody, another corpse,” Sunset groaned. This whole place was puzzling Sunset to no end. Unlike the beetle station she first woke up in, there was nothing to indicate what this room’s purpose was, other than perhaps... Sunset thought back to the beetle shell, and the ghostly voice she had heard when she touched it. The voice had hinted at the nature of the beetle station, so there was a possibility she could get some clue about this place. With no better idea, she raised a claw and poked the corpse. “Ew-Ew-Ew-Why?-Squishy-Why?” Distracted as she was reconsidering her immediate decisions as of late, Sunset did not notice the eyes of the corpse’s mask glow red, nor the glowing discs of red light that emanated from the corpse. As she was burning corpse slime off her claws, Sunset felt a light tug at her wing. She turned to see that the masked bug was staring at the center of the room. A large torch had appeared. At it’s base lay a cage filled with glowing coals. The torch had an oppressive air to it, almost as if it radiated both cold and heat. “That wasn’t there before, right?” Sunset asked. The masked bug did not respond. It simply stared blankly back at Sunset. Sunset found herself approaching the torch without realizing it. The caged coals almost seemed to beckon to her. Transfixed, Sunset reached for the coals with her own flame. Sunset froze, the compulsion that had gripped her so completely had suddenly vanished. She jerked her lit claw away from the coals. There clearly was some form of magic at work in this place. Something wanted the coals lit, but it either would not or could not force Sunset to do so. “We shouldn’t be here,” Sunset decided, “Princess Celestia taught me to never...” Princess Celestia... Sunset had been awestruck the day that the Solar Monarch had approached her, just an ordinary filly, to ask Sunset to be her personal student. Questions of what secrets of magic Sunset would learn under the Princess’ tutelage had filled her dreams every night since that day. However, as the years passed, Sunset slowly realized that everything Celestia taught her was readily available to any student at the School for Gifted Unicorns. Whenever Sunset asked her teacher why, Celestia’s response was always the same. She was not yet ready. But it was ‘Princess’ Cadence who had been the final straw. That some backwater pegasus could show up out of nowhere and just be given more than Sunset had even dared to dream... The rest, as they say, was history. “If Celestia would tell me not to light this then perhaps I should do exactly that!” Sunset decided. With no more hesitation, Sunset thrust her flaming claw into the cage. The coals within seemed to drink in her flames, catching fire far quicker than natural. Sunset backed away as the fire grew more intense, turning from Sunset’s golden flames to a bloody crimson fire. This fire then shot up to the torch, lighting it. The other torches in the room were lit by crimson flames as well, filling the room with a sinister red glow. Just when Sunset began to think it was over, the room began to shake. An oppressive aura filled the air, an invisible weight seeming to press down on Sunset, pulling her to the ground. Behind her, the masked bug staggered and fell to one knee. From somewhere above, Sunset could hear a sinister tune playing. It sounded like an accordion of all things. When the music ended, so did the room’s shaking. Sunset picked herself off the floor. She looked up to try and see where the music had come from, but the light of the torches clearly illuminated the vaulted ceiling to show no hidden alcoves above. ...---...---...---...---...---...---...---...---...---... After it became clear that nothing else of interest could be found in the hidden room, Sunset left it behind with more questions than answers. That place gave her a bad feeling, and there were other issues that were beginning to rear up. “Are you sure there is any food this way?” Primarily, sustenance. Since arriving in this world, Sunset had not found a scrap of anything she could identify as remotely edible. Her silent guide naturally did not respond. The masked bug barely even acknowledged her presence other than to wait when she fell behind. Given the state of the road, this was a frequent occurrence. While the masked bug could easily leap over the many ledges, gaps, and spikes that littered the decaying road, Sunset had to rely on her new wings. As long as she kept to flying between gusts of wind, she was fine. At the very least, Sunset was getting decent practice in, but the occasional impaled husk served as a grim reminder for her to stay vigilant. The hike up the cliffs continued this way, even though Sunset was growing skeptical of her guide's intentions. Still, the old road the were following had to lead somewhere, and Sunset had to hope it was inhabited. The peak was marked by a lonely lamppost, this one lit by tiny glowing bugs in the lamps. The sight gave Sunset hope. After all, something had to maintain the lamps if the bugs inside were still alive. Her attention was then drawn downward, where she could make out what looked like a small village. It was a simple looking place, the houses had a worn tired look. the largest structure by far was a large tent. Sunset was reminded of a circus that she had seen with... it was a Circus tent. "So, is this your home?" Sunset asked. She didn't really expect a response from the masked bug at this point, but attempting to make small talk made it seem less unnerving. Sunset turned to where she last saw the bug, but froze when she saw that they were nowhere to be seen. "I guess they know I can make it from here," Sunset decided. She was sure the masked bug would turn up later. The village below was sheltered from the winds in it's valley, so Sunset spread her wings with confidence, and with a flutter, began her descent from the peak.