Obsidian GLARED.
"Thunderclap Dash!" Mica exclaimed as he got up from his hiding place. "How could you do that!? We were learning something important, here!"
"Well, all that stuff she said was stupid!" Clap countered, "Equestria isn't some land full of thieves and scavengers! We had every right to exist as much as they did! For her to just put down our ancestors like that, I couldn't help it!"
Mica facehoofed. "Well, if you had helped it, Obsidian might have talked Ruby into joining our side, Clap. As it was, I think Obsidian was doing an excellent job of milking her for info - until YOU messed it all up because you PRIDE was hurt."
Clap glared at Mica... but after a few moments, she looked down. "I just... couldn't help it. I'm sorry, okay?"
Mica closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then opened them and looked at Clap. "... I... I get it, Clap. BAD timing, though." He turned to Obsidian. "Sorry. But at least we learned a few new things, plus we have the book, so it isn't a total loss."
"Very bad timing," Obsidian growled. "It was going to be so exquisitely easy: I would have put the book on a table near where Mica was staying so he could grab it quickly, while I walked closer and hugged her in sisterly fashion... granted, I have no idea how sisterly hugs work, but I'm sure it would have allowed me to distract her from teleportation! Then we would have continued our nice little talk - the first proper one I've yet had with any of my siblings!"
First things first. Always, first things first.
"Now, we need that spell, and to possibly speak with the princess, as well. If sister Ruby ends up getting hurt, I shall be most upset, so let's act quickly." And once again, she felt like a traitor.
Mica nodded, and with a sigh, Clap did too. Together, the three of them began making their way out of the library.
"Do you think she really would've joined us? I mean, she seemed like she was so freaking happy about him coming back - and even she admitted he'd hurt her! How could you take beatings from somepony and still care about them like that?"
Mica huffed. "Well, I suppose we'll never know now, will we?" Clap glared, then pouted... but after a moment, Mica spoke again. "That was uncalled for; sorry."
Clap looked up at him, and he was looking right back at her. "I suppose it's out of a sense of duty," he said, "brainwashed so hard into the very core of her that she can't even fathom that anything he would do could be wrong. She simply feels as though it's all she can do, and it's the only outcome that she would want... because it's what they told her to want."
"Still," Clap muttered, "she didn't have to say all that stuff about being garbage-pickers."
"Thunderclap, I would be pleased myself about the return of our father as well, and maybe even more keen to help my siblings if they hadn't tried to kill me twice already," Obsidian growled, still rather annoyed with Clap over the situation her rash actions had caused.
She felt she'd been so close to possibly forging a meaningful relationship with a sister... and maybe even convincing her to join their side, after all.
"And not a single word about 'Looking Glass' to anypony beyond our circle, got it? If she'll join us, I'm certain she would appreciate us not revealing her identity to the rest of Equestria. And, for the record Mica, our loyalty... well, it isn't just what others have told us. Do realize, the only thing I cared about previously was our father's approval - literally the ONLY thing."
"But that's not the case anymore, I hope," Mica said, looking at Obsidian, "you have friends now, others who are concerned about your welfare. I mean, you can certainly still care about his approval, but it shouldn't be the only thing you care about anymore. And I agree with her; not a word about Looking Glass and her reality, not to ANYPONY else, Clap."
The pegasus nodded, then pondered for a moment before she said, "But I don't get it, Siddy - WHY do you still care? You said so yourself, that he beat you, and it's already been shown that his plans are to just take you over, making the Siddy I know one dead pony. How do you still care, after all he's done to you!?"
"Because he is my father, Clap - the one that literally crafted me, put part of his soul into me and then trained and taught everything I know. I'm not really keen to die, but I don't want any of my siblings to die as well, and at the same time I would like to see him... hopefully with no explosions or slaughter..."
She pondered for a moment. "... maybe even, you know, in a more fatherly fashion; more of your modern Equestrian sensibilities? He was different before he found out about the Umbral Empire... but probably just as powerful, wise and wonderful as he was later."
The thought of her family being similar to other families in Equestria... that dream was worth a shot. Sister Ruby was kind of cute, anyway - she could be Obsidian's big sister! Best friends forever!
Mica looked over at Clap. "I think what she's saying is that Siddy's seen how families are in Equestria, and she wants the same with her own."
"Oh. Ohhhhhhh... okay, that, I get. Okay Sids," she smiled, "if that's what you want, well... your sister's a butt, but we can try, right? I mean the other sister, not... well, she did say-"
"Clap," Mica smirked, "she gets it; let it go." Clap nodded.
The three of them made their way back to the Applejack Suite, where Cupcake, Stalwart and Gypsy were still waiting. Upon seeing them, Cup smiled. "Hey guys! Did you fi-"
"STOP!" Stalwart stepped forward to the door, holding it only a crack open as she looked out at them... which meant it was a single green eye at knee-level. "How do we know it's you?"
Ah, Stalwart - perhaps a bit paranoid, but maybe a touch of paranoia was perfect for their current situation. "I literally called Cupcake a 'meanie' during our first meeting and he ran away crying afterwards; the first time you met me, you were immediately suspicious of me when you heard who my father was; Cupcake threatened to pluck a griffon bare after they beat upon you... and Thunderclap has won every race that she has proposed with me. Is that enough?"
"It's her!" Cup called out from inside, and Wart nodded, opening the door.
Again, Obsidian was treated to the sight of the lovely Dark Crysssssstal she'd created; she wondered idly - would Princess Twilight have an issue with the broken floor? Hopefully not too much... though, to be fair, the crystal was rather big.
"D-d-d-did you f-find the sp-sp-spell?" There was a small army of paper ponies around him of all different colors and some of different sizes... along with a paper diamond dog, surrounded by five paper ponies, in the center.
"I hope you were successful," Wart said, "because I am a bit bored, guarding a rock."
"Yes, yes, we found a book that's apparently far more interesting than I initially thought, and even came across yet another one of my siblings; Sister Ruby is actually really cute."
Obsidian then quickly rushed to the crystal, checking to see if it was damaged or, Darkness forbid, cracked!
"I hope everything's alright here? Nopony treated you badly, did they? You are the greatest cryssssstal I've ever made, and I'm so proud of you, my little nugget of Darkness..." Obsidian cooed, sliding a calming hoof against its' surface.
Wart blinked as Obsidian cooed over the crystal. "It... er, i-it made not a sound, nor was it damaged, though Gypsy did sniff it thoroughly and decorate it a bit." She pointed a hoof at a single spire that branched out; it was wearing a paper hat, and had a paper griffon perched on it. Otherwise, the crystal was unmolested.
Cupcake lifted an eyebrow. "Another sister? Uh-oh... she didn't hurt anyone, did she?"
"Ooooh, did you have fun with my friends? Oh, I'm so glad you like them..." Obsidian made a fuss over the cryssssstal a bit more before she turned to face Cupcake. "No, she didn't; in fact, she didn't even try to fight - as I said, she was cute and kind. She was also looking for this book," she levitated it to Stalwart, "but got scared when I startled her, so I managed to grab it. Too bad that I wasn't able to talk her into joining us, I think you'd have liked her."
Cupcake smiled. "Sounds like I would; I hope we get to see her soon!"
"Okay," Mica gathered their attention. "Now that we have the Locator Spell, we have to cast it. Obsidian, if you'll do the magics, Cup can assist you while the rest of us stand back and keep an eye on the doors; once it's active, we'll travel together and find where the source of it is. Hopefully, we'll find Miss Tome while we're at it."
"Yeah," Clap said, "I'm kinda worried about her - I hope she's okay."
Wart looked to Obsidian. "I have every confidence you can do this, Your Majesty - just please, be careful."
Cupcake stepped next to Obsidian, grinning. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's find Miss Tome!"
"It would be wise to send a message to either the princess or the headmare after casting this spell - I'd prefer to have potential reinforcements... or at least know where the proper authorities should look for our bodies, in the worst case scenario."
Obsidian said it very casually, but was not allowing herself to think about it - the mental vision of her dead friends could bring her back to that very dark place in her mind. She levitated the book back to herself to look for the Locator Spell - and maybe a quick peek at what else it had to offer.
The book itself didn't seem to have any actual Dark Magic spells in it - but there were some interesting defensive spells in the back, geared toward defending oneself against said Darkness. A shield spell (which her own was already more powerful than), a taint-cleaning spell (for small things, like food or clothing), an alignment spell (for distinguishing motive... interesting...), a spell to produce dark-rending light (about a candle's worth)... AH! There it was!
"I'll have to check this book more thoroughly later - my sister was certain that something here would possibly be able to bring our father back; I need to find it before they do," Obsidian informed her friends as she started to read the spell.
[LOCATOR SPELL]: This spell is often used to locate concentrations of Dark or Chaos Magic. It was created for the purpose of locating and properly identifying items or objects, as long as there exists a sample of what is being sought out. The sample is destroyed in the spell's casting, and the effects will last for roughly two hours. While the spell is active, it will direct the caster toward the nearest target; targets further than one mile will be exempt from the spell's effects.
The writing underneath it was easy enough to understand; casting this would be a breeze. Of course, there was the notation that the 'sample' would be destroyed...
"... th-the... sample is... destroyed?" She looked with teary eyes and a heavy heart at her beautiful, wonderful cryssssssstal.
"Oh, you poor lovely thing, I'm so sorry I have to do this... I really don't want to, but I have to..." She actually stopped reading, trotted closer and embraced the beautiful crysssssstal, as if she was calming a filly before their visit to the doctor... to be put to sleep.
Cupcake placed a hoof on her back. "If you want, I'll paint you a picture of it later, okay?"
Mica looked at her. "Okay. We're ready. Begin the spell, and we'll be right here."
The first part of the spell was the setup, and it was simple enough to speak... though the language was weird, it wasn't undecipherable. After a few false starts, she felt something click as she finally got it correct. Now, all she had to do was touch the 'sample', and the spell would be complete.
It was a tearjerking moment; Obsidian struggled to overcome herself, knowing that the spell would destroy the most wonderful personal creation in her entire life... but she had to do it. To save Miss Tome, and to stop her siblings. Hopefully, they hadn't broken Amethyst out of the dungeon already.
Finally, with a tear and a sniffle, Obsidian touched the crystal.
With a sound like a shattering wind chime, the crystal seemed to fold in on itself, then >FOOF<... it was nothing more than a pile of purplish ash, piled onto the break in the floor.
... and Obsidian felt the world slide away from her. It was when she felt the magics go off that the truth of the matter became clear; this was no Locator Spell at all... it was a teleportation spell! As the world shifted, she felt her body disintegrate, then reform; the process wasn't painful at all, but extremely disorienting, and not to mention a little surreal.
When everything around her finally swam into focus, she was standing inside a circle of purplish ash (the same color as her poor, poor crystal), with a seven-pointed star painted in the center. Around her were massive shelves, reaching farther than she could see above her, the walls curving around as if she were at the bottom of a massive well... and those shelves were filled, even crammed, with books of all sizes and colors.
To one side, there was a small alcove and a doorway; the door was open, and there was a greenish-blue, almost sickly light coming from the other room. The dark red candles that littered the huge well-chamber she was in were lit, and the wax looked almost like... blood...
The floor was ancient stone, worn and slightly damp. The air was chilly and musty, as if she were in a cavern that had not seen fresh air in a long, long time. The bookshelves went on for what looked like many stories above her head; with the lack of proper light, she couldn't see the ceiling at all.
How was such an upset possible? This book had supposedly been there for a long time, as sister Ruby had been looking for it - it just couldn't be a trap! She didn't even know they would be looking for the damnable spell until a few minutes ago! Her siblings would have had to prepare a fake book, then would have to manufacture a reason to ensure that she'd fetch it and so on, and so forth. Too many strange events that would have had only the very slightest of chances to succeed... and yet, here she was.
What was this place? So many books... did her siblings really have to look for any more? The entire place seemed to be underground - and considering the air quality, it was a terrible place to keep books - at least as long as their owner didn't want them to get molded and rot.
And it seemed that none of her friends had accompanied her... how wonderful. A feeling of frustration started to grow in Obsidian's heart, a light purple mist wisping slightly from her eyes. She walked to the shelves, to check out these books - were they titles that Miss Tome had been bringing her siblings?
Scorched Earth: The Legacy of Fennestri
Lazander's Law: Volume Six
Shadows of the Night
The Razor's Edge: Finding the Chasm
Nightmares and Dreamscapes
Darkness Falls On Crystalia
Darkheart's Curse
Blood Sacrifices and Rituals
The Craft of Flaying
... these books were rather serious, or at least their titles sounded so. And there were so many more she couldn't read without levitating them down. And those shelves seemed to go on forever...
Craft of Flaying? Blood Sacrifices? Somepony was taking this whole 'bringing father back' thing very seriously. It didn't sound good - Obsidian was sure as Tartarus (pardon her Prench) that she didn't want anypony passionate about flaying anywhere near her friends.
She levitated "Lazander's Law" over to her, to quickly check out its' contents - everything would have been far easier if her dear sister Onyx would have been the kind to hoard, say, romance novels...
From what she gathered from a quick skim of the book, it looked like a set of laws and decrees that seemed draconic and ancient, dealing with things she had no idea of; death for those who spoke ill of the Umbral, drawing and quartering for betrayals, removal of... hands?... for stealing, eye removal for looking directly at an Umbral, via a hot steel rod, and so on...
Lazander was supposedly some sort of ruler or king, but none of the things mentioned made her feel as if this entity had even existed in the past few thousand years. There was even a few hoofdrawn pictu-OH SWEET DARKNESS, THAT WAS DISGUSTING!
Even for how she had grown up, it was far too graphic, and made her hardened stomach lurch a bit.
Well, that most certainly might be what could explain why some creatures would really, really wanted to shatter this Darkheart, to be fair. It was pretty harsh; Obsidian herself would probably already be put to death - multiple times - for all the things she had done since she first woke up.
So her father... was looking to bringing back things like that? These umbrals weren't seeing ponies even as tools - they were something far, far lower. The title gaining her interest, she picked up the next book, 'Darkheart's Curse".
Hopefully this one wouldn't have pictures.
The words were written in what appeared to be blood, and the book had no table of contents, nor an introduction; it was as if it had been hoofwritten.
When the world still cooled the skies rained stone
and the Darkheart fell to us and spoke to us loudly
in a hundred voices of night
For seventy revolutions the Darkheart brought
shadows and when light returned nothing green survived
and the world was stone and mud
We were much afeared for there was no hope
no manner to save ourselves from the terror that was
and the terror that had now become real
Yet the Darkheart spoke and it demanded blood
and it was fed out of fear and it brought back the green
but it was not the same and never would be
Before she could read any further, a voice spoke from behind her. "YOOUUU... I see YOU have COME at LAST!"
She knew that voice...
She immediately set up a shield - better safe than sorry... or in this case, better safe than dead.
"It's a true joy to hear your voice, o vastly inferior brother of mine," she growled as she turned to face him. Of all of her siblings, this one had to be neutralized most quickly and thoroughly. And without her friends or any other help, she had no other choice but to use everything she had.
Tourmaline was standing at the doorway, his psychotic smile wide and bright as he looked at her like she was made of hay, and he was starving. "Oh, are we already at jibes? Well, then I would LOVE to reMIND you that YOU are the LEAST of my WOR-"
"Hush, Tourmaline; that's no way to welcome your sister home." The voice came from the blue-green room, and it sounded... familiar somehow.
The effect the words had on her erstwhile brother was immediate; his mouth closed so fast, she heard his lips pop. He glared daggers at her... yet, slowly and with great visible reluctance, he stepped back towards that doorway and, without taking his red eyes off her, he moved away far enough to allow her plenty of room to enter.
"Please, Obsidian... meet me," the voice from the other room requested, "we have much to discuss."