//------------------------------// // The Last Thestral // Story: Good Boy // by Tums Festival //------------------------------// The ride to Canterlot was pretty uneventful. Save for a few rude whispers about why Vinyl was wearing a thick, wool hoodie in the middle of summer. Naturally, sunlight and her didn't get along much these days. Not that it bothered her much - she rarely went out during the day even before she was turned. By the time they got to the capital city, the sun had dropped near the horizon. The two hurried through the hustle and bustle of its streets, heading, naturally, towards the largest graveyard in the city. "Perfect time to meet Crypty," Vinyl explained. "Always gets there round' two hours before opening. Should be enough time to ask questions before the chuds get there." "And she won't mind us bothering her right now?" Octavia asked nervously. "Na," Vinyl said. "She likes talking with 'kiddies'. Doesn't usually get the chance with Goomers always bugging her for Grave Juice." "What about me, though?" Octavia said, raising her eyebrows. “Even if I’m not fuzzy at the moment, she’ll know what I am, you know.”  Vinyl laughed. "She’s too old to care about that stupid feud. Trust me, she'll like you. Definitely try to bring up that you play the cello. She really likes ancient music." Vinyl coughed in embarrassment. "Er, I mean… retro music." "Very thoughtful," Octavia said blankly. She had never met 'Crypty' in person before. In fact, she had never even been into the Canterlot underworld. She dreaded even going near the place, let alone going in alongside a vampire, a werewolf's 'blood enemy'. It was just asking for trouble.  Fortunately, Vinyl had a plan. "Canterlot underworld's neutral ground, so werewolves and vamps are supposed to 'get along' down there. Still don’t want anyghoul spotting us together, though, so just uh… trail behind me a little bit. We'll wanna keep our distance before we get to Crypt Keeper's.” “Are you sure you don’t want me to just stay up here?” Octavia asked. “The palace rose garden is lovely this time of year…” “Na, I need you to come with,” Vinyl said. “Crypty might just think I’m making stuff up if ya’ don’t back me.” “I wonder why she would do that?” Octavia said cheekily.  “Haw haw haw,” Vinyl grunted. “I never make stuff up. I just… exaggerate the truth sometimes.”  “Mhm,” Octavia smirked. “Yeah, yeah, come on,” Vinyl groaned.  The entrance to the underground was hidden in plain sight. Inside a tomb engraved with the words: ‘PBB’s Hopes and Dreams’, no less, whoever that was. Blending in with the stone floor was a hatch. One that could only be opened by doing a very particular dance move called ‘The Thriller’, which Vinyl performed flawlessly. This even included a moonwalking bit which required her to balance on her hind hooves. The hatch was certainly impressed, as it quickly swung open. And underneath it was… A bit of an underwhelming sight. What Octavia had expected to be some sort of underground city was little more than a series of tunnels, torches lining their walls. They weren’t devoid of ponies, however, and as Octavia trailed Vinyl she had to occasionally squeeze by a few of them (a vampony she didn’t know giving her a particularly nasty glare). Occasionally, they’d even open up to wider passages, where various ghoul ponies had set up small stalls. “Changeling Eyes! Get your fresh Changeling Eyes here! Pre-reformation!” “Real Fake Alicorn Amulets! Premiere Real Fake Alicorn Amulets!”  “Death Sticks, anyone? Now vanilla scented!”  However, the real stars of the show were the various underground buildings the passages connected together. This actually seemed to be the entire point of them. There was pretty much everything needed for an literal underground society to function, from homes to stores to even the occasional municipal building such as a ‘volunteer guard house’.  ‘Somepony has to keep everypony from killing each other, I suppose,’ Octavia shrugged.  Finally, after navigating through a few tunnels that seemed to be part of an old crystal mine, they arrived at their destination. Along with a few red-tinted windows and a rather beautiful, ornate door lining the side of their current tunnel was a sign that simply read: Crypt Keeper’s. Octavia had to admit, everything seemed pretty classy for what she assumed was a ghoul dive bar. Another, smaller sign hung on the front door titled, Closed Until Sundown, so Vinyl knocked instead, ushering Octavia to keep her distance as she did. “Yo, Crypty!” Vinyl called. “You there?” After a moment, there were a few clicks and clacks - the sound of a few locks being undone. Then, slowly, the door creaked open, revealing a surprisingly youthful, if not still bony mare.  Her red eyes explained why that was. Though what her vampirism didn’t explain were her peculiar, bat-like wings and fuzzy-tipped ears. Sure, vampires had the bat theme going on for them, and though Vinyl had never done it, she was pretty sure she could transform into one. However, she had never seen one that looked like a bat while in their normal form. “Ah! Vinyl,” she said, giving a fang-toothed grin. “An unexpected pleasure. Let me guess: you’re just dying for a drink? HeheheHAHAHA!” Octavia raised an eyebrow. Her cackle was way too gleeful for… that level of a joke.  Vinyl didn’t go along with it, either. She just gave Crypty a sarcastic smirk. “Really, Crypty? That one was a new low.” Octavia half-expected the vampire to be offended at it, but instead, she merely laughed again. “Hahaha! That’s what I like about you, Vinyl. You’re no hoof-licker. Though still, one of these days I’ll come up with one that knocks you dead! Hehehehahaha!” “Crypty…” Vinyl sighed.  She finished giggling, before giving Vinyl a smile. “Alright, alright I’ll stop… for now. What can I do for you?” “Well, it’s kind of weird,” Vinyl said, scratching the back of her head. “I was wondering if you could tell us anything about a monster we ran into?” “Well I can tell you all about this monster you’ve run into!” she laughed, pointing at herself. Vinyl actually chuckled at that one. “Hah! Gotcha! But seriously, who is we?” “Heh. Remember my werewolf friend I was talking about the other day?” Vinyl asked. “Well…” -- A moment or so later, Vinyl and a somewhat apprehensive Octavia sat at the Crypty's bar counter.  Her tavern, like Crypty’s sense of humor, was fit for Nightmare Night. Ghostly wisps drifted about the room, and Jack O'Lanterns were scattered about on various surfaces. Both were the only sources of light. Most of the furniture, while not too over the top, still seemed fit for a centuries-old haunted house.  None of it was helping Octavia’s nerves, that was for sure. “So… Crypty…” Octavia said, trying to break the ice a bit. “All set for Nightmare Night?”  “Nightmare Night?” she said, raising an eyebrow. “What are you talking about? I haven’t decorated yet!” Octavia’s flushed in embarrassment. “S-Sorry, I didn’t mean to ins--” Before she could finish, both Crypty and Vinyl broke out into laughter.  “Relax, kiddy, I’m just messing with you,” Crypty smiled. “I know you didn’t mean anything by it.” “Had you going though, didn’t she?” Vinyl giggled. "Y-Yeah," Octavia said, chuckling along. Despite the embarrassment, she had the feeling the joke was for her benefit, to help her relax a little. And to its credit, she was feeling a lot more at ease. Crypty raised a hoof. “Not that she was wrong, however: I do have a particular love for spooky degore.” Vinyl and Octavia stared at her blankly.  “I also really like creepy puns,” she said, smiling innocently.  Octavia couldn’t help but be amused. The more she had seen of the ancient vampire, the more she was getting a very distinct feeling she actually liked the creepy aspect of what she was. It was a bit annoying at first, but it had its own charm to it. Better than the seriousness most ghouls treated themselves with. “I must say, it’s nice seeing different ghouls sticking together again,” Crypty continued. “Never did like the feuds. A vampire and a werewolf side by side… well, it just makes my heart all fuzzy.” “Crypty… you’re killing me here,” Vinyl sighed. “I hope not!” Crypty beamed. “I wouldn’t want a stake in such a thing! HeheheHAHAHA!” She took a deep breath, before giving a grin. “Alright, that was the last one. Promise.” “Faust does exist,” Vinyl said dreamily.  “You should probably hope she doesn’t,” Crypty chuckled. “Now then, all ghoulish giggles aside, you said you wanted to talk about a monster that wasn’t me, yes?” “Well, yeah,” Vinyl said. “I know you're busy getting ready to open, but we were getting kind of desperate." “It didn’t turn up in any of the library books we checked out,” Octavia said. “And it was one you ran into, you said?” Crypty asked. “Where, in Ponyville?” Vinyl and Octavia nodded.  “Intriguing,” Crypty said. “There are quite a few creepy crawlies out there that both mortals and immortals don’t know about, but they tend to keep their heads down.” “Immortals?” Octavia said, surprised. “Like the princesses?” “Of course,” Crypty chuckled. “They’re quite powerful, but they’re not all seeing, and most definitely not all knowing. They’re not even technically ‘immortal’, just very long-lived. But even still, to encounter something not in the books - many of which they helped fill - is very rare. What can you tell me about it?” With that, Vinyl and Octavia began to tell the tale of their encounter. As they went on, Crypty served Vinyl and Octavia two separate drinks, one red and the other green respectively. Apparently, the two of them were her ‘ghoulie pigs’.  Yes, that was the name she gave for them. By the time they had finished telling the story, Octavia was about half-finished with her ‘Graveyard Blast’, as Crypty called it, which she had to admit was pretty tasty. Meanwhile, Vinyl was about done with her ‘Blood Moon’, and was getting slightly tipsy.  Annnnd likely thanks to that, she was starting to… exaggerate things near the end of the story. “... So I chased after it - almost caught it, too!” Vinyl said. “But I was tired after punching it so many times. Definitely gave it a few bruises to remember me by, though. Bones can bruise, right?” Crypty gazed at her in the same way a mother would after saying, ‘That’s very nice, dear.’ Nevertheless, she didn’t call out Vinyl’s blatant lies. She seemed far too intrigued to bother with that.  “And that’s the whole story?” she asked. “Indeed,” Octavia said. “Save for a few… minor self-promoting alterations." "Hey!" Vinyl complained. Octavia ignored her. "But what do you think, Crypty? Any idea what it was?” “Oh, I have more than an idea,” she said, smiling coyly. “The creature you encountered? It has a name: Long Horse.” Vinyl’s eyes widened, and she gave Octavia an impressed look. “Hey, you called it!” “I mean, there were only so many names it could have,” Octavia shrugged humbly.  “Hah!” Crypty grinned. “I suppose that’s true. Still, like I said, it’s very interesting you’ve met him. There’s a reason why he didn’t show up in any of the books you read, after all. That being he hasn’t been seen since the times before Luna’s banishment.” “Really?” Vinyl said, dumbfounded. “Indeed,” Crypty said. “In fact, and this may seem crazy, but as far as I know, I was actually the last ghoul to encounter him. Before you, of course.” Octavia’s eyes widened. At first, she wasn’t sure Crypty wasn’t just making this up. It would be a pretty big coincidence. But then again, considering she was over a thousand years old… She had probably seen it all. “Though to be fair, I wasn’t even a ghoul back then,” Crypty said. “This was right before I was turned. Back when I was still a flesh and blood thestral.” “Thestral?” Octavia blinked.  “A long forgotten type of pony,” Crypty explained. “And one long presumed extinct.” She then gave her a comically over the top grin once more. “Though that’s because not many ponies know about me, tehe! Notice my batty wings? Well, those aren’t from vampirism.” Octavia glanced at them, baffled to say the least. Another species of pony had lived in Equestria a thousand years ago? And nopony knew about them anymore? She supposed it wasn't that hard to believe, since nopony even knew about Princess Luna until a decade ago. But still... “So how’d you meet Long Horse?” Vinyl asked, either already knowing about these ‘thestrals’ or playing nonchalant. She even smiled slightly. “He must have been pretty scary.”  “At first,” she agreed. “But it's a little more complicated than that." "How so?" Octavia asked curiously. "Hm…" Crypty said, smiling coyly. "I don't know, it's a pretty long tale." "Come on, Crypty," Vinyl smirked. "I know you like telling em'. You have a whole night dedicated to story time! 'Tales From the Crypt' ring a bell?" Crypty laughed. "Ah, what the hell? I’m in the mood for it." She raised a hoof in warning. "Though you better get comfortable, because I never did like cliffhangers. Easier to just use a support beam. HeheheHAHAHA!.!.!"