//------------------------------// // Chapter Ten: Inner Inferno // Story: Heart of Magic // by TheCrimsonDM //------------------------------// Heart of Magic Chapter Ten: Inner Inferno Written By TheCrimsonDM Trixie felt her blood pressure rising as the fire in her heart raged brighter. She stepped up the long stairs of Twilight’s tree castle knowing that the mare was somewhere inside, about ready to receive a scolding worse than anything Celestia could have offered. Sending her daughter out on a mission to kill an ursa minor, how could Twilight even dare to do that to Trixie’s precious baby. Trixie didn’t care if she had to destroy the entire Everfree and kill every last Ursa alive (assuming she hadn’t already) so long as her baby was safe. Though right then she needed Twilight to help with all that. Several servants gave Trixie a wide berth as she marched through the halls of the castle. The wooden floors echoing with each step. Trixie didn’t need to ask where Twilight was, she could feel the tingle of alicorn magic in the air and simply followed the scent. She wound through the halls until she ended up at Twilight’s Study, there were multiple study rooms in the castle, this one had Twilight’s name in gold over the door. Trixie pushed the door open and marched in. Twilight sat behind a wooden desk with books piled to either side of her. The room smelled faintly of something dark, cold, and a bit like moon petals, but only Twilight with her lavender scent was in sight. Trixie sneered at Twilight. “Trixie?” Twilight’s tone was shock at first, then her eyes narrowed a bit and her tone came out hard. “What is it now?” “Don’t take that tone with me missy!” Trixie stomped into the room and right up to the desk. For a moment she swore she felt something brush by her side but when she reached out nothing was there, just the wind she guessed. She shook it off and focused again on Twilight. “You sent my baby out to fight an ursa minor!” Twilight scoffed. “Sure I did, and you totally didn’t wipe the race out of existence back in the windigo war. Oh and I still have both of my wings there in my closet along with the skeletons.” Trixie was at the desk and reared high into the air, letting her forelegs slam down on the desk. The books began to sway but Twilight’s red aura kept them steady. “I don’t need your sass! I need you to get me to my daughter now!” Twilight rolled her eyes. “I have much more important things to do right now then waste my time here.” “I will light you on fire!” Trixie shouted. A smile crept over Twilight’s lips. “Oh? And how will you do that, you’re not all that great and powerful with magic anymore.” Twilight was right about that, but Trixie didn’t need her magic. She had another super power she’d put away, but it was only kept locked up safely, not lost or forgotten. “Listen, Fluttershy is going out there with my baby to kill an ursa minor, and I do not want my baby involved with any such starspawn.” Twilight’s smile faded a bit as she met Trixie’s eyes. “You’re serious? Fluttershy is going to kill an ursa minor?” “Yes and I want you to take me to my baby so I can keep her safe.” Twilight put a hoof to her chin and looked down at the desk. “Let’s just pretend for a moment that what your saying is true, that Fluttershy not only found a surviving member of that species of monster, but she is also about to kill it, how come you think I can find them so easily?” Trixie nearly spat venom as she said, “Because after the entire town was possessed by that shadow thing you branded by baby with a magical ward on the back of her neck. One that would let you track her wherever she went.” Twilight’s eyes widened. “How did you find out?” “Do you really think I wouldn’t figure it out? Amber gets into hoof fights all the time, all it took was me cleaning her wounds one day to see the mark. A little bit of research told me what it was, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out who put it there.” “Trixie, I can explain-“ “I don’t care! You already did it, now put that ward to use and use it to find my baby.” Twilight nodded. “Fine, but just so you know, I do have bigger problems then-“ “Then an ursa minor turning my baby into a limp horned unicorn like your friend, what was it Fizzzle Berry or whatever?” Twilight closed her eyes. “That is not her name, but… fine. I can spare a few minutes to kill an ursa, but you’re staying h-.” Trixie lashed out with her mind and an invisible force seized Twilight by the neck drawing her close until their noses were touching. “I, am, going, too!” Twilight blinked and her voice came out a bit rough. “What, what is this, it’s not a telekinesis spell, it hurts.” Trixie let go of the psychic force around Twilight’s neck and stared her down. “That is just a taste of what I am going to do to any monster that dares touch my Little Light. It’s also something that never leaves this room.” Twilight rubbed at her neck. “Light…” Trixie realized that using the nick name must have reminded Twilight of how Amber got her name. She was after all named after Twilight in a small way. Twilight wasn’t just a teacher or mentor to Amber, she was in a lot of ways a third mother to Amber. Twilight’s horn took on a deep red glow. “You’re right. Right now, more than ever before, I should be looking out for those close to me. I’m being selfish again. Let’s go save Amber, together.” Trixie nodded. As the world was devoured by the red light of Twilight’s aura Trixie saw the door to Twilight’s office close on its own, even though nopony was there. *** The forest canopy stretched hundreds of feet above them, blocking out all traces of light. The darkness surrounding them hid odd shifting shapes along with strange noises. A persistent chill in the air made the fur on the back of Amber’s neck stand up. Fluttershy was technically leading but was standing right by Amber’s side protectively. “Auntie,” Amber said quietly. “What’s with this place? It’s kinda creepy.” Fluttershy’s voice cut through the darkness like a warm beacon of light. “The Everfree Forest is… strange. The place is like a living creature in and of itself, some parts of it are kind, wonderful, magical. The place where we’re heading is… it’s like the dark thoughts that somepony holds in the back of their mind. It all collects into one place, and is never supposed to be seen by anypony.” “And so we’re just dumb enough to go marching into the forest’s dark thoughts?” Fluttershy nodded. “That’s the best description I can think of. Even after all these years this forest is a mystery to me.” Amber felt a shiver run through her body. “Lucky for us nopony lives here.” Fluttershy’s eyes grew distant for a moment as she whispered, “Not anymore.” For a moment Amber was going to ask about that, but some part of her realized that it was likely a sensitive subject for her. In truth Amber did know that a few ponies had tried to live in the Everfree in the past, each one either left after completing a goal, was chased out, or disappeared. This was not a place for ponies, and where Amber was at the moment she felt like it wasn’t even a place for Deer, and they made cities in the more tame parts of the Everfree. Amber’s hoof stepped into something freezing cold and gooey. With a look down she felt her breakfast rising in her gut. It was the pitch black goo and it was now covering her hoof. After wiping it off on the dirt as best she could she noted the smell was horrible. It was like fertilizer mixed with rotting food. Part of her was reminded of the time she found a dead cat on the road, when her and Hush Puppy poked it with a stick the thing started to smell awful. That was not a story Amber was willing to share with her aunt though. Soon after the first puddle of goop Amber began seeing more splotches, puddles, and streaks of goop all over the ground, against trees, and covering the canopy above them. This part of the forest had become dead silent save for the sounds of their hooves and their breathing. It wasn’t much longer before the forest opened up a bit to reveal a massive cave entrance. The sky was still blocked out by massive trees looming over them, but there was just enough light to see a little bit into the cave. The black tar like substance was oozing out from it and covering the ground. Amber swallowed hard and took a step. Fluttershy’s leg whipped out catching Amber in the chest like a wall holding her back from moving forward. Fluttershy’s eyes had taken on a slightly different appearance. They were sharper, and gleamed in the darkness. Her fangs were pronounced, and Amber watched as Fluttershy’s wings shifted from the soft downy wings of a pegasus to the thin, bony and fur covered wings of a batpony. Amber had seen Fluttershy transform only once during this trip and even then it wasn’t completely. This transformation was something she recognized as being meant for only a very dangerous threat. Something inside Amber wanted to curl up and die. There was something else about this environment as well. She couldn’t quite place it, but there was an old magic here. One that left a familiar scent and feeling in the air. She couldn’t quite place it, but she felt like she should know this place, like it held some significance to her but she wasn’t sure why. Fluttershy studied Amber carefully. “This is going to be dangerous.” Amber nodded. “I know, it’s a freaking ursa minor. I’m not stupid.” Fluttershy looked ahead toward the cave. “Just, don’t pull a Trixie on me and try to fight it. Okay?” Amber nodded. “I’ll be honest, we’ll both be lucky if I don’t turn around and run away crying.” She was only half joking. She wouldn’t cry. Fluttershy put her hoof down and stepped forward. “Alright, then let’s take care of this mess.” Every step toward the cave brought with it a drop in temperature. The air tasted like cold wires, do not ask why Amber knew what that tasted like. The silence was like a wall of force making her heart pound louder and louder until it was the only sound she could hear in her ears. The foul stench of rotten meat and magic flowed from the cave making Amber gag. Fluttershy seemed unphased by it. Amber wanted to leave, to turn around and stop doing this right then and there, but she stayed. Staring into the pitch black cave only brought with it a sense of unease and fear she’d rarely ever felt before. Words of warning danced on the tip of her tongue but she dared not open her mouth to let them loose. Fluttershy nodded toward the cave and in a voice so quiet Amber only scarcely caught it she whispered, “Light it up.” Amber reached for her magic, and fumbled with it for a brief moment. She could muster a simple light spell without hurting herself, that much she was certain of. With just a flick of her horn she summoned a few balls of light that went flying into the cave. They illuminated the dark cave revealing the black goop to be covering everything in sight. There was a massive mound of the black tar with patches of translucent blue fur sticking out of it here and there. The thing was larger than most any house in Ponyville proper. Was this the Ursa Minor? Her question seemed to answer itself as the mound of tar and flesh pulled itself away from the ground with the tar snapping wetly like torn tendons. A round part of it swiveled toward the entrance and two bloodshot yellow eyes stared back at them. The goop parted to reveal two rows of sharp teeth each as long as a pony. It lifted a paw and slammed it toward the earth with a splattering of goo. Fluttershy backed away. “Amber, what are you doing?” Amber stood there. Her mind wanted make her run, but her body seemed frozen in place. She couldn’t stop staring into those eyes. They were filled with equal amounts of pain and hate. Another paw slammed down into the earth as the thing lumbered closer still. Its body seemed to be bone thin underneath all that goo, but so much of it was covered up that she could hardly even tell what was supposed to be under it. There was so much of this black tar here, Amber could only wonder at what had actually happened to this monster. A pair of hooves grabbed Amber by the shoulders and yanked her back forcing her head to look away. Amber’s body began to move under her control again and she found herself running away from the cave by instinct alone. Fluttershy by her side. “Don’t stare into its eyes.” Amber nodded, she still didn’t feel brave enough to speak. Yet now that they had pissed it off, what were they going to do? Running away seemed to be all they could do. The earth shook as the giant beast marched after them. It wasn’t moving fast, but with such long legs its walking speed was keeping pace with them. They neared the tree line and Amber watched as Fluttershy flew forward head first toward one of the trees. Her legs hit braced against the tree and like a spring she catapulted backward towards the ursa minor. Fluttershy’s hoof landed in a right hook across the ursa minor’s jaw. The thing’s head snapped to the side and it stumbled sideways from the blow. Black goop went flying off of it and into the earth below. More goo oozed from its body quickly replacing what it lost. Fluttershy arched up flying skywards once more. A tendril of black ooze lashed out from the ursa’s body and slammed into Fluttershy knocking her out of the sky like a fly swatter. Fluttershy went sailing past Amber and into the forest streaking like a comet before hitting the earth and leaving a ten foot long trench behind her. Amber looked back at the ursa. It was already walking toward them once more. A long black tendril was sticking out of the side of its body whipping about like crazy. This thing wasn’t just sick, whatever this goo was, it was changing the creature it used to be into some sort of horror terror the likes of which Amber had never seen. She shook her head and ran toward Fluttershy. “Auntie, we need to run!” She arrived at Fluttershy’s side and her heart froze. Fluttershy wasn’t moving. A crimson trail ran down her face as she lay there, her chest barely moving up in down from shallow breaths. Her left wing looked like it was twisted backward and from the red soaking from where a sharp angled bone was sticking out Amber knew she couldn’t just move Fluttershy. For what felt like the longest moment in her life, Amber stood there staring at Fluttershy’s fallen form. Was this… was this what Twilight had to deal with? Did she have to see her friends get hurt, and be helpless to aide them? To know that death was right behind them coming to take away what little precious things remained in her life? Is this… is this what being an adventurer, a hero was really like? If so, Amber didn’t want any part of this life style. She didn’t want this at all. Fluttershy was hurt, her aunt was hurt. The monster approaching them was beyond anything Amber could deal with. It was going to walk on in and take away one of the ponies that had been so important to her and her life. What would Pinkie do if Fluttershy died? She’d be alone with two kids and she’d probably never smile again. What would Hush Puppy and Sophie do? Hush would probably retreat into himself and never come back out. Meanwhile Soph would probably try to be the joy in the family but her smile would forever be a lie, a mask hiding the pain that would devour her from the inside. A burning sensation filled Amber’s chest. “No, I can’t let them suffer like that. Nopony deserves to suffer like that.” The burning sensation spread out like a spider web across her entire body. It hurt, but with the pain came some kind of familiar feeling. Almost like putting on an old dress she hadn’t worn in years. There wasn’t much thought to it, it was a lot more like instinct. Her body turned to face the oncoming threat. The creature seemed to be moving slower now, much slower. It wasn’t just the monster, the leaves were moving as if in slow motion, sounds were drawn out and distorted. Amber took a step toward the monster and flames spread across her leg, but even though it hurt, it wasn’t a bad feeling. Twilight once told her of the legend of the Nightmare. A state of being where a unicorn’s magic, nay their entire soul lights up with a furious power. Often times their fur changed color and their mane and tails would light up as well. Although rare it was possible to find unicorns doing this, for only brief moments at a time, almost always from being overly stressed. The Nightmare however, was a different story. It was a pony who could channel this state of being, this raw magical power, into a force of destruction and hurt that would rival even what Princess Celestia could do. Amber felt her lips curl up at the thought of being the Nightmare herself. Amber focused the feeling running through her entire body into a single spell. Her mane erupted into flames around her as did much of her body as a vortex of fire and hate opened in front of her. Orange fire poured forth from the vortex and outward like a broken fire hydrant. The flames washed over the ursa enveloping it and burning the goop away from its flesh, then it’s flesh away from its bones. The fire left her body as it poured into the spell. Once all of it was gone the vortex vanished and the fire covering her body went with it leaving only black stains in her fur. The ursa minor had turned into a standing skeleton, it’s bones fused from the intense heat. It took only a few more seconds before gravity returned and forced the skeleton to fall into a loud clattering mess. With flames burning over the forest floor and on some of the trees around her, Amber knew she had to leave. She turned to face Fluttershy and found instead Twilight Sparkle and Trixie standing next to the wounded pony, both of whom stared at her with looks of shock and horror upon their faces. Amber took a step toward them and fell. Her entire body went numb and her mouth tasted of copper. While the blackness at the edges of her vision grew she found herself wondering more now than ever before, did she still want to follow in the hoofsteps of her parents and mentor? Did she really want to see her friends in pain like this? Even the comfort of complete blackness wouldn’t pull her away from those thoughts. *** The golden light of her holy empire shone through the windows into the dark stone building. Several alicorn guards wearing gold and crimson armor stood on either side of the building’s entrance. The doorway was absent of any door, and a black tar like substance was oozing across the floor leading out. The guards horns lit up and incinerated the ooze as it leaked out. With steps filled with the weight of an entire people on her back she walked toward the door. Inside it reeked like rotting flesh and mold. Crimson light poured from her horn and lit up the room revealing the place to be covered in the black tar. Several pony sized lumps of ooze lay in the corner, bones stuck out of the lumps telling her exactly what they used to be. In the corner of the room she saw a lone crib, the thing covered in black tar. Even with her years of experience dealing with the darkest parts of the world she struggled to see this. She turned her head and backed out of the room. “Do we know who’s responsible yet?” One of the guards shook his head. “I’m sorry my Queen. We’ve only heard reports of a lone pony sneaking away into the night from the house.” “Are there any family members left here?” He shook his head. “We have reason to believe they were all inside when… this happened.” Her eyes narrowed on the building’s door. An alicorn was supposed to be nearly impossible to kill. Shy of disintegration she’d struggled to find a way to ever put one down permanently. Not to mention they were supposed to be immune to disease. Whatever this tar was, it looked like a horrible disease, one that was able to have its way with ravaging both mortal kind as well as alicorn kind. Even the gods were not immune to this new threat. One of the guards spoke up. “Queen Red, what should we do next?” Red Velvet turned her head and let out a low grunt of annoyance. “Burn it down. Leave no trace of this building nor the black goo inside it.” What she didn’t tell them was that it was time for her to go on a hunt, she needed to find out who could kill an alicorn, how they did it, and most importantly how she was going to keep this a secret from the city itself. Things were about to get a whole tartarus of a lot more interesting around here.