Mundane. Dull. Boring. A drag.
Overall, Ignis could describe his experience in Miracle Song as a lackluster slumber or daze that he could not snap himself out of. To call his own frustrations with this displeasing town a nightmare or a disappointing dream would not be sufficient enough for him. At least with a dream or a nightmare, the unicorn could be a witness to some type of excitement, but nothing about this place was truly worth his attention -- other than the assignment he was sent to accomplish.
An invisible list of the things wrong with this little backwater hole ran through the golden stallion's mind in a manner that he was familiar with. The cursed heat that just as bad when trapped indoors with manageable cooling, the occasional cloud of bugs that would spring up at inconvenient moments, the disinteresting ponies and establishments that had as much going for them as a backyard play held by foals -- nothing here was worth a second of his attention.
Not even the meal that Ignis was having could get his mood out of the mud. For all the time spent at the table outside of the cafe, he had barely made a dent in finishing his food, as his appetite was not in dire need of nourishment. In fact, from all his time over here for nearly a week, none of the restaurants around had any actual good food that was suitable to any self-respecting pony. Even the omelet and hashbrowns the cafe gave him for lunch were cardboard bland at best -- and he considered this place to be the least worst for serving food.
"Of all the places he could have sent me...," Ignis mumbled. A blue aura wrapped around his fork as the silverware twirled around the occupied plate, hesitant to touch the food. The unicorn's blue eyes were trained on parchment paper with tiny red "X" marks spread through the small space. "It wasn't even my fault for what happened. The damn old man."
"GOOD LUCK, EVERYPONY!!! STAY SAFE!!!"
The high-pitched female voice shot Ignis out of his stupor. He twisted his neck in both directions for several seconds until his sight caught the image of eight individuals in front of him. Yards away, Ignis could make out seven mares and a prepubescent dragon walking towards the forest that led to the territory of those trolls. The knowledge of how dangerous those swamp woods were kept the unicorn curious as for why this group wanted to travel inside.
His interest was in the matter was heightened when he spotted a horn and a pair of wings on one of the mares.
"What is she doing here?"
The woodlands of the Troll Confederation were not much different to Twilight than the domain of the familiar Everfree Forest back home. Despite being near a swamp, the forest's dirt ground below her, Spike, Pinkie, and Dash was relatively hard and stable, with neither of the four having any problem getting stuck in mud or water. The dark green foliage of the tall trees obscured a majority of the sky's view from above, allowing only speckles sunlight to fall through on the surrounding area.
The hour the foursome spent traveling north through foreign territory was a blend of both suspense and peace. Neither danger nor the threat of it came towards their way, yet within the far off distances of the forest the group could spot abrupt shadows moving past or away from them. At the one moment, Spike, situated between Twilight and a floating Dash, believed that he himself had caught sight of a creature with six or eight appendages hanging off the side of a tree in front of Pinkie -- perhaps a copperdust spider like the historian mentioned -- before it scurried away.
The unnerving sight made Spike gulp. "I'm really glad this spell of yours is working, Twilight."
Twilight looked behind as she maintained her pace, the map from the historian floating in front of her. "I appreciate that, but we still need to be wary of other dangers out here. I just hope the other girls haven't faced anything they can't handle."
"If Starlight's as good with magic as you are, I doubt the others are going to have any troubles on their hooves," Dash said with an assured smile.
"Well, I hope so."
Pinkie, who made the decision to bounce ahead of the others, was the only one undaunted by the strange new environment. If anything, to her this journey was no different than a simple trip through the Everfree Forest that she and the others had taken before.
"I wonder what these trolls are like," Pinkie said out loud. "With all the trading they do with ponies, they must have some bit of modern doohickey lying around. I wonder if they have buildings like us, or maybe they live in huts made of sticks and mud."
"With this whole supposed 'war' going on, there doesn't seem to be a lot of battle damage anywhere," Dash commented.
Twilight took her eyes off the map and surveyed the calm, eery forest. "They must not be fighting anywhere around here," the alicorn said. "Hopefully, wherever the conflict is none of us will be anywhere near it."
The rustle of a bush ahead stopped all four in their tracks and in time a few more bushes shimmied around and lost their leaves. Several small silhouettes popped out of the bushes and headed down the road.
"PONIES! STOP!"
The four travelers were met by nearly a dozen trolls of small statute -- being around the same size as Spike. They were all different shades of blue or green, with random splotches on their bodies in a darker color from their skin. Most of them had sharp teeth, pot bellies, long toe- and fingernails, long, whisky hair, and a loincloth. Each troll carried in their hands some form of a weapon -- from spears and shields to slingshots and clubs.
At this point, Twilight, Spike, Pinkie, and Dash were taken aback by the display of hostility, with the pink earth pony walking backward to seek protection near her two purple companions. The cyan pegasus, though not impulsive to be on the offense, gritted her teeth at the trolls as she waited for one of them to make a move.
"PONIES! ADDRESS YOURSELVES!" shouted one of the trolls with a squeaky, high-pitched, yet gravely, male voice. "BAD THINGS WILL HAPPEN IF YOU DON'T!"
The sight in front of her was definitely a shock to Twilight, as the forest showed no signs of imminent jeopardy until now. However, unlike the defensive Dash and the worrisome duo of Pinkie and Spike, the princess found herself to be in a steady state of calm despite her inner worries. While standing tall, Twilight looked at the trolls with a placid expression.
"Hello. I am sorry for the sudden intrusion into your home, but I am in dire need of your people's attention. My name is Twilight Sparkle. I am the Princess of Friendship for Equestria, and as a representative of my kingdom, I request that you allow us to speak with the head chieftain of the Swamp Nation. I fear that your conflict with the Fire Nation will bring misery to not only your kind, but also the innocent ponies who are your neighbors."
Tension rose in the air as the trolls kept their weapons pointed at the four newcomers. For a while, no words were spoken by either party, until one troll with a shield and club broke the silence.
"She tells the truth! I remember her from the newspapers the ponies bring us!"
The troll in front of the others, who was the one to first warn Twilight and company, turned around and raised an eyebrow -- lowering his spear. "Is troll certain of this? How do you know this is a princess?"
The troll in question nodded. "Yes. Princess ponies are the only ponies with wings and horns. And I remember her image from the newspapers -- as I said before."
A few other trolls agreed with that statement, stating their own knowledge of the alicorn, but they were all told to hush by the leader troll, who subsequently told them to huddle up into a circle.
"Ponies will let us speak," the leader announced to the four behind. "After we're done, then you'll know what will happen."
Whispers and incoherent mumbles masked the details of the conversation from Twilight and her friends. Pinkie and Spike had calmed down from their initial anxieties, though Rainbow Dash still had her guard up, glaring at the trolls ahead with her magenta eyes. Twilight herself held her calm self-assurance.
The leader broke out from the circle and approached the four companions. "Ponies... and dragon! We agree to take you to the head chief! But be warned! We trolls will stop any funny business you have in plan!"
Twilight nodded. "You have my word, no trouble will be brought to your home. And my friends can state the same."
"Absolutely," Spike said with a small smile. "No troubles here."
"Don't worry about us," Pinkie said with her bubbly optimism. "I like to think this'll be a great opportunity for trolls and ponies to get to know each other -- since we're the first ones to be in your home!"
Though not as cheery, Dash's original display of defense was brought down a bit.
"Yeah. We're not here to cause anything."
The hour-long trip through the swamplands with the trolls as their hosts lead Twilight and her companions to the head village of the Swamp Nation. Situated in a stable area of land, the village was filled with huts on the ground and treehouses connected by a web of small bridges above. Some of the dwellings held bits and pieces of Equestrian technology, like air conditioners, solar generators, and well pumps, items evident of the trolls' trading with the ponies over the past years.
Female trolls and younger ones walked and ran throughout the village, with the females having jewelry and more concealing loincloths. Some of the villagers crowded around the four outsiders, treating them with both amazed gawks and distrustful stares, as they were escorted towards a much larger hut --- which itself was actually the base of an enormous tree.
The ember glows of the fire illuminated a dim light throughout the shadowy interior of the head chieftain's hut. After a brief and polite introduction, and a discussion of the conflict so far between the swamp and fire trolls, the area remained silently for some time, aside from the springy sound of the slinky that the head chieftain was playing with in front of the fire.
The head chieftain of the Swamp Nation, named Scogg, was a light green troll with dark green splotches, a rather elegant loincloth, and a crown of lizard scales and bird feathers. Three shamans sat on each side of Scogg on their own mats, and across the indoor fireplace were Twilight, Spike, Pinkie, and Dash.
"It's upsetting that the fire trolls took your defeated soldiers as warriors," Twilight said suddenly. "I hope they're being treated well."
Scogg's eyes never left sight of his toy. "Swamp warriors are the best," he said plainly. "Can handle being in fire trolls' prisons. Not so tough."
The head chieftain lifted up the slinky with both hands on each end. He let the bottom hand off and watched the spring fall down to the ground before letting go of the top half. With no outside assistance, the slinky managed to move in a cyclic motion, with top half getting to the ground first before the bottom half did, until it stopped moving, much to Scogg's annoyance.
"This thing's not so fun," he mumbled. The troll turned around and searched within his box of item for something else. Everyone else in the room stared at him as his back was turned, unsure of whether to proceed in discussions without his acknowledgment.
Dash, who was on Twilight's left, leaned closer to the alicorn and positioned her lips as close to her friend's ear as she could. "I was kind of hoping that he be a bit more professional," the pegasus whispered. "Given -- you know -- he's in the middle of a war."
Not wanting to risk the trolls hearing any more whispers, Twilight shot Dash a quick scowl and a "Shush!".
"What? It's true," the cyan pegasus continued. "He was playing with xylophone and an audio learning book for foals at first, and now he's just got done messing with his slinky."
"Shush!" Twilight knew her friend had a point, with how distracted the head chieftain was with his possessions. But in the end of the day, any off-hoof comment that would upset Scogg or the others would just lengthen their time here or make a compromise impossible to achieve.
"Well," Twilight started, "while I'm glad you have confidence in your soldiers' resilence, I still want to discuss any possible reason for why the fire trolls started this war with your people in the first place."
Scogg paused his search to turn back to the alicorn. "Scogg has no idea. Fire trolls never sent demands to me."
"Of course. They may not have communicated with you clearly enough to fully express their intentions of raiding your villages. But, in your own opinion, are you aware of anything you might have done to unintentionally upset your neighboring nation?"
The head chieftain's beady black eyes shifted around. "No. I don't know what I did. If I even did it... Which I didn't. I did not do the thing... Whatever it is."
Twilight bit her lip. "The problem, head chieftain, is that this conflict is not only bringing misery upon the two troll nations, but it could cause hardships for others. If this war continues, and you can't convince the fire trolls to help re-establish the charms against your native insects, Miracle Song and other pony communites nearby will become unliveable for the residents living there. Despite how bad things are, you must meet with the head chieftain of the fire trolls and reach a peace."
"BAH!" retorted Scogg. The troll sat back down on his mat after retrieving an unfinished puzzle cube. "I won't break bread with one who draws first blood. Scogg will continue war."
The alicorn's heart faltered. "But the ponies who live near you. If the insects---"
"If insects are a problem, ponies can simply move. Equestria is bigger than trolls' land. No big deal."
Dash interjected herself into the conversation. "What about your tradings with the ponies? Don't you guys care about getting new stuff?"
That comment seemed to be the one that caught the troll's attention, --- something that was for the most part was more focused on the items in the nearby box.
"Pony does make a good point," Scogg admitted, rubbing his finger across the bottom of his chin. "If Miracle Song is lost, which is likely, will other pony towns be willing to trade with swamp trolls?"
Twilight sighed, the top of her teeth biting down on her lower lip to express her frustration. "I do not know if anypony else would want to trade with you, head chieftain. But I do believe that causing dangerous insects to run amok will hurt your chances of any trading you have stored for the future."
Without warning, the tent flap of the hut was breached. A male blue troll came into the premises wearing some sort of large oversized tribal mask, before he flipped it upwards to reveal his face.
"Head chief," the troll said. "The whisper leaves and yang root did nothing for the sick. I fear the illness will continue."
"GAH!" Scogg exclaimed. "Just great! More troubles! You're the healer. Do what you know best. And keep trying!"
The healer bowed and nodded, before placing his mask back on and exiting the hut.
"Sickness is spreading through the nation," Scogg said to the visitors. "Don't know where it came from, but I'm certain the fire trolls are the schemers. Happened as soon as war began."
"Is it that bad, your head chieftainess?" Pinkie asked with concern, though Scogg did not turn his eyes away from his efforts with the puzzle cube to see it.
"Sickness has spread to seven villages so far. A few of us got sick last day. As Scogg said before, the fire trolls did this. Another reason not to sit down with them."
"What if I were to talk to the fire trolls, myself?" Twilight asked, resuming the previous conversation. "My other friends are already en route to the head chieftain there, so maybe I can check in with them and find out the truth behind everything. From why they attacked you in the first place, to where this disease is coming from."
"Of course," Scogg said. "Do what you want. No reasons for me to be upset."
"If you cannot convince the Riva, the head chieftain of the Fire Nation, to agree to an end of arms," spoke one of the shamans to Twilight, "then perhaps you could persuade one of the shamans or healers there to share what they know about this illness. Each day brings more victims, sadly."
Twilight, thankful to see some actual consideration, was pleased to grant a grateful smile. "Of course. I would be pleased to do so."
Ignis' past journeys through the swamp forests of the Troll Confederation, were always unpleasant. Despite the spell to help ward off the deadly insects and predators that laid undercover, waiting for unsuspecting victims, the heat and soupy humidity was not something he could avoid. And sadly, this present journey was not much different.
For the past two hours, the unicorn had trailed through the land, tracking a certain group of ponies who had caught his attention, especially due to one pony. When that group split up, he decided to follow the one that the pony-of-interest had joined, leading him eventually to the boundaries of one of the swamp trolls' gated villages.
Taking cover underneath the foliage, Ignis waited for some time for the ponies to exit the village, and the first sign that he caught up on was the sound of bouncy spring. Getting up from a tree trunk that he rested against, Ignis kept himself hidden amongst the bushes as he stared at the familiar sight of a pink earth pony, a blue pegasus, a purple dragon, and a purple alicorn leaving the village.
"I don't understand how you're still energetic enough to bounce around in this heat," complained the blue pegasus.
The pink mare giggled. "Well, I think that little break we took was just enough for me to recharge my batteries."
The small dragon sighed, the exhaustion evident by the tone of his breath. "I agree with Rainbow," he said. "My legs are still aching, so the idea of another two-hour trip to the Fire Nation isn't something I'm looking forward to."
A dark purple glow surrounded the young reptile and floated him towards the backside of the purple alicorn, who giggled. "Well, I don't mind you taking another break. Just feel free to jump off when you want."
"You think the others are doing okay?" the pegasus asked. "Hopefully they didn't get surprised by spears and shields like we did."
"I have faith that the others are doing well," the alicorn assured. "For all we know, they're having better luck at convincing the fire trolls to put down their arms than we did."
The pegasus laughed in agreement. "Yeah. Let's hope their chieftain isn't as distracted as the one back there was."
When the four were out of his sight, Ignis stepped out of the bushes -- being careful not to attract the attention of any trolls nearby. He continued to stare off at the direction that they were heading, a nasty scowl forming on face.
"This is not what I needed today," the unicorn said with gritted teeth.