//------------------------------// // Odd Monsters // Story: Mother of Monsters // by StardustSprinkle //------------------------------// "It's burning!" Sunset shouts, "Twilight! It's burning!" "How?" Twilight replies, running down the hallway: "What happened?" "It's burning under the Sun!" Sunset says: "Quick! Cover it with something!" "What the..." Twilight can't believe her eyes: the wendigo they captured yesterday is burning alive. Within seconds, it turns into a pile of dust. "Holy..." Sunset kneels next to the ashes: "Twilight? What is that thing?" "A wendigo! With a wolf's head!" Twilight says, scratching her head: "But how?" "It was burning, like a vampire!" Sunset asks: "Twilight, tell me, where did you find it?" "In a wendigo's nest!" Twilight takes off her glasses: "It was the only one remaining. It didn't fight back, so I brought it back." "Twilight, do you think..." After a moment of pondering, Sunset asks: "They are breeding with each other?" "I am afraid so," Twilight says, messaging her temples: "Sunset, I don't whether you noticed this or not, but this is the third crossbred we ran into this month." "Yeah, I remember," Sunset says: "Something odd is going on, Twilight. We have to do something." "I know." Twilight puts her glasses back on: "Do we have a map here?" "Of course," Sunset says, taking out a map of the town they are in: "It's a small one. Hope it'll do." "Splendid," Twilight says: "Let's take a look." Twilight takes out two highlighters from her pocket, highlighting several places with the yellow one: "Those are the locations of nests, however," She proceeds to mark some places with the red one: "Take a look, those are the nests with abnormal activities." "So the closer we get to the town, the more anomalies we get?" Sunset asks. "Seems like it," Twilight says: "But there's only two of us here." "I'll call Applejack and Rainbow Dash," Sunset says. "And I'll request more equipment from Rarity," Twilight adds: "We have to do a thorough research of the town's map before anything else." "Say, Twilight, do you think the legend is real?" Sunset asks: "The one about the mother of all monsters." "I don't think so," Twilight says, taking the map from Sunset's hands: "Besides, even monsters can't live forever. If there's a mother of monsters, it should be dead centuries ago." "Right," Sunset says: "I wonder what are we for monsters: preys? Meat? Or enemies?" "Doesn't matter," Twilight answers, still looking at the map: "They are a threat for the human race, and we need to eliminate them before they annihilate us." "Of course," Sunset stretches: "So do you want to call them? Or do you want me to do it?" "Can you do it for me?" Twilight says: "Can you bring me a larger copy?" "Fine," Sunset takes out her phone: "Good luck." "Twilight?" Sunset knocks on Twilight's door: "You there? Rarity was under attack, and she's too sick to provide any aid!" "What?" Twilight shouts: "One minute!" A moment later, the door is open: "What happened?" "Attacked by Flying Rods," Sunset continues: "I didn't even know those things are capable of attacking people!" "Technically speaking," Twilight says: "If you got enough of them, yes." "Twilight, we have to stop," Sunset says, grabbing Twilight's shoulder: "I know you want to get to the bottom of this, but I've got a terrible feeling about this! Think about it! Have you ever heard of flying rods attacking people before? Rarity nonetheless?" "Calm down," Twilight says: "It's not like they are planning it out or something." "I don't know," Sunset shakes her head: "But flying rods never come down to earth and target someone like this! They can't even live more than an hour down on earth!" "You are right," Twilight says: "But remember, they don't have a brain." "Whatever," Sunset sighs, letting go of Twilight's shoulder: "Rainbow and Applejack are arriving soon, though." "Actually, do you have a moment?" Twilight says: "I want to show you something." "Sure, what is it?" "Come in," Twilight says: "Are you familiar with galdrastafir?" "With what?" Sunset shrugs, entering the room. "Icelandic magic staves," Twilight points to a larger map on the wall: "If I connect all the major roads, it forms a Lukkustafir." "A what?" "Lukkustafir," Twilight explains: "It protects you from evil." "Viking, ha?" Sunset replies: "Seems like this town is older than we thought." "Are are talking about potential Viking ancestry?" Twilight says: "It's interesting." "Anyway," Sunset adds: "Have you seen anyone else in the town? I mean, we haven't seen anyone so far. Even this motel is empty. They just put the keys under a rug! Can you believe it?" "I know," Twilight sighs: "But we have no choice. Just be careful and don't leave the house, ok?" "Right," Sunset replies: "About that Lukkustafir thing, do you think it means anything?" "Perhaps," Twilight adds: "It probably indicates something about monsters." "Like, a lot of monsters around?" Sunset says: "Think about it, an empty town constructed after a symbol against evil? Sounds right." "I know," Twilight adds: "But we are not backing up." "Look, Twilight," Sunset says: "It's way too dangerous to stay here. We need to find a place and..." "We have nowhere else to go!" Twilight cuts Sunset off: "Look, This is the only town around!" "Twilight, this is a trap!" Sunset says: "Think about it! No equipment? An empty town in the middle of nowhere? Use your head! Twilight!" "Sunset, Sunset, Sunset," Twilight shakes her head: "For all we know, monsters are incapable of higher cognitive functions." "I know!" Sunset continues: "But it's too much of an accident!" "Don't worry," Twilight says: "We'll be fine." "I hope so," Sunset replies: "I really hope so." "So, what's the plan now?" Rainbow asks: "Which monster are we going to destroy next?" "Actually," Twilight says: "We are not destroying anything tonight." "We are staying here until dawn," Sunset says: "And our only mission is to stay safe and observe." "Sugercube," Applejack says: "I don't mean to offend you, but..." "Yeah, I know," Twilight says: "It sounds boring, and I am sure that you guys are capable of fighting off herds of monsters, but things are a bit different. Monsters nearby don't attack." "Speaking of which," Rainbow adds: "I saw a Goatman on my way here. It just ran off like a normal goat." "What does it look like?" Sunset asks. "It gave me a creepy smile before running away," Rainbow continues: "And it has the teeth of a Chupacabra." "And I saw a werewolf with the eyes of a vampire, and it didn't attack either!" Applejack says. "That's why we are not doing anything tonight," Twilight says: "We plan to stay inside and observe." "What if monsters attack?" Sunset asks. "Thay can't," Twilight says: "Remember how the town was constructed? It was built this way, so monsters would not be able to attack humans." "I don't get it," Rainbow adds: "What do you mean?" "Just remember," Twilight says: "Magic does exist."