//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 - Crimson // Story: Blazing Life In Equestria // by CroisSunnyPlay //------------------------------// The ponies of Sunny town welcomed me with open hooves. It was such a refreshing change of airs, or at least it would be, if it wasn't for that nagging detail that kept demanding my attention. The utter absence of cutie marks. No pony, not the foals, not the adults, not even the elders had a cutie mark to speak of. For some reason, that left me feeling mildly unsettled. I'm trying my best to not say anything about that, as I didn't want to somehow offend them in anyway. Perhaps it was just some sort of custom? Although quite a weird one if that's true... I let out a sigh, shaking my head a little. "Maybe I'm just thinking too hard about this..." To distract myself, I decided to take a stroll through town by myself, just take in the sights. I would pause every now and then as the faint feeling of being watched would wash over me, but looking around showed nothing. Maybe I'm just being paranoid and it's just a bird or something else, so I tried to ignore it and go about my day. It's not like there's a terrible secret in this town or something right? ...Right? "Hello!" "Gah!" The sudden voice to my left caused me to miss a step and faceplant on the ground. I laid there for a moment or two, just existing on the dirt and contemplating why, and how, ponies keep sneaking up on me like this. "Are you okay? Need some help?" I glanced up from my position on the ground to the owner of the voice. She seemed to be a young filly, her fur was a dark red color while her mane was pink, and her eyes were a shade of bright red, which sent shivers down my spine for some reason. She was also slightly bigger than me. "I'm fine..." I said while sitting back up and looking at her expectantly. She seemed to catch on quick to what I wanted to know. "My name's Ruby! Nice to meet you!" She held out a hoof for me to shake. It took me a moment to return the gesture because a few things struck me as odd. Firstly, her name seemed a little out of place for some reason. I can't put my finger- err, hoof on it, but it didn't seem to fit in with... Something, I don't know how to explain. Secondly, there was a strange black mark on her neck. I couldn't see it properly but I'm sure it was in the shape of something. And thirdly... She had a cutie mark. Right there, proudly emblazoned on her flank, were three little gems, one blue, one green and one yellow, framed by a pink heart. I introduced myself and we engaged in a mildly awkward conversation, as I tried to not let my eyes wander towards it too much. I mean c'mon, it's basically on her butt, and I sure as hell didn't want to be seen as a creep, especially not towards a filly. Yet it was so odd, so out of place, so unusual, so unique. Everypony I have seen in Sunny Town so far had no cutie mark to speak of, and yet here is a filly who just randomly has one. The nagging feeling I was having earlier return and started to grow on the back of my mind. The longer me and Ruby talked, the more that feeling grew, and it wasn't long before the question finally spilled from my lips. "Hey Ruby, how come nopony in the town has a cutie mark except for you?" The smile she gave me had a weird undertone to it. It's almost like she was... Waiting for that question? "Come to the cabin on the edge of the town at nightfall. Alone." She said. I tilted my head a little. When I asked 'Why?', all she said was: "You'll understand when you get there." And then she turned and started walking off, leaving me with even more questions in my head. Just who are you, Ruby...? Sighing, I tried to go about my day as normal, yet this encounter kept replaying itself in my head over and over. On the outside I kept a smile so as to not worry anypony though, it wouldn't do to cause them concern over what is probably nothing... Just have to wait and see what happens I guess. Princess Luna stood on the balcony of her room, waiting for her sister to lower the sun so she could raise the moon. Her mind however seemed to be elsewhere as she stared in the direction of the Everfree Forest, recalling the contents of the letter that her sister's student had sent. "A filly with bat wings and metal legs..." It had to be a coincidence. The description matched that of the one missing foal from an accident where a building exploded for apparently no reason. But that couldn't be possible. The accident happened years ago, before she was even back from what Celestia told her. Luna let out a sigh before refocusing her attention when she noticed the sun getting lower. She glanced at her sister's balcony, seeing her with her horn alight before turning to the horizon and doing the same. She slowly lifted her head, the moon peeking out of the mountains before rising along with her movement. When it was at a good enough height, she released her magic and let the moon start it's trajectory through the night sky by itself before turning and walking back into her room. She walked by her mirror before pausing for a moment to glance at it. Bright crimson eyes stared back at her for a brief second before she blinked, her normal blue iris returning after she did so. She nodded before turning and heading off to meet with her sister for dinner before she went to start Night Court. Something was wrong... I had been wandering around town and listening to the background noise that was the ponies going about their days, but the moment night fell, things just stopped... Not stopped as in, froze in time, but more like, all sound and activity just ceased to exist. It was utterly silent, and there was nopony around anymore, like they just vanished into thin air. Fog hung close to the ground, and a strange chill went down my spine. "Hello? Anyone around?" I called out, but got no response. Gulping, I decided to see if at least Ruby was around. She did tell me to go to the cabin I saw on the far edge of the town after all. Maybe she could tell me what is happening? Yeah, it's probably just a tradition of theirs to head inside the moment night falls... As if. The walk towards the cabin was nerve wracking. I kept glancing around for some sign of life, but it was almost like I was in a ghost town. Do ghosts exist in Equestria? I know that one episode talked about Wendigos, but are they considered ghosts? I stopped that line of thought when I noticed that I had arrived at the cabin. The air around it was so cold, making me shiver for a moment. There was a feeling of dread emanating from the cabin, and it took a monumental effort to keep from running away in fear and hiding inside a pile of hay. What's wrong with me? Why was I so afraid of a cabin? No one answered my questions this time, giving me a small sense of comfort that for once there wasn't anyone listening to my thoughts. Shaking my head and stepping closer, I looked up to the door and raised a hoof to knock, only to almost jump out of my skin when it opened out of its own accord. "Because that's not creepy at all..." Steeling my nerves, I stepped inside the cabin, only to jump as the door slammed closed behind me. Of course it did... Forcing down another shiver that was threatening to make itself known, I turned my attention to the room around me. There wasn't much to look at really, just things you would find in a living room of any home. A couch, a coffee table, some bookshelves, the works. Everything however was covered in a layer of dust, looking like it hadn't been cleaned for months. Everything that is, except for one single book on the nearest bookshelf. I don't know why, but that book stuck out to me like a sore thumb. It just so happened that the book was at perfect eye height with myself, and was probably the only book that didn't have faded writing on it's side. "'It's Our Secret'..." I read the title out loud. Tilting my head slightly, I tried to imagine what kind of book it was. Maybe a romance of some kind? I was never one for that type of books, but it's not like I have anything to do at the moment as it doesn't look like Ruby had arrived yet. Sticking my tongue out in concentration, I opened one wing and used it to try and pull the book out of the shelf, since I still had no idea how to pick things up with hooves. When being delicate didn't move the book even an inch, I frowned and tried to apply more force, finally making some progress before once again meeting resistance. Getting frustrated, I tried to yank the book towards me on to be surprised as a loud 'Click!' sounded. Letting go of the book, I scrambled back as the entire bookshelf rumbled before starting to slide to the side. I stood there for a minute or two just staring at the new opening before hearing the bookshelf rumbled again as the passage started to close. I don't know what compelled me to do so, but I jumped through the passage right before it closed behind me, skidding to a halt and barely managing to stop myself from rolling down the stairs that presented themselves before me on the other side. Glancing back at the seemingly smooth wall behind me, I let out a sigh before proceeding the only direction currently available: forward and down. Let me tell you something, walking downstairs as a pony makes you extremely self-conscious. I could feel myself blushing slightly as I felt my posterior higher than the rest of me. On the third step, I decided that no, screw walking down like this! I am not going to be that degraded! I opened my wings and just pushed off, gliding down the rest of the way. Sighing in relief, I decided that I would never, EVER walk down a set of stairs again. On the bottom of the stairs there was a fancy looking door. Is that dark wood? No matter, I guess I'll just check what's inside. Who knows, maybe the townsfolk are actually gathered in here to throw me a welcome party! Smiling faintly, I put a hoof on the door, blinking as a strange red rune glowed on it for a moment. Shrugging that strange happening aside, I pushed the door open only for my good mood to dash away completely, as behind the door there was no party waiting. What I found instead, was single unicorn stallion. Pure white coat, jet black mane, blood red eyes, cutie mark of a fancy looking sword covered in blood. He was also holding a sword similar to his cutie mark in his levitation, pointing it at a cage before him. And inside said cage was... "Diamond Tiara!?" My outburst had the unintended effect of drawing both their attention to me. One pair of eyes looked at me with hope, the other with barely contained annoyance. This is most definitely NOT what I was expecting out of my unintentional tour of the Everfree Forest.