//------------------------------//
// Chapter 24 / Part2 : A time for choices 
// Story: The BAD luck of my LIFE 
// by Spirit Lunar 
//------------------------------//

During our journey, Flower Cloud revealed to me that we had to open a door leading to a very dangerous place somewhere in the mountains. As I couldn't get any more information, I simply followed her.

"How much further is it?" I asked, struggling to keep up with the mare flying nonchalantly a little further on.

"I don't know. I don't understand this damn map!" she replied. She hadn't taken her eyes off the map since we'd set off.

"Can we take a break? I can't take it anymore."

"Two minutes, no more! We've still got a long way to go."

"Thank you!" I said, dropping onto a tree stump.

"Frankly, I don't understand Lord Hatred. Why didn't you teleport us directly to our destination?"

"Sadistic pleasure." 

"Anon, don't say things like that! He indeed looks a bit... special. But I'm sure he's not as awful as you make out." 

"That's because you haven't known him long enough. Besides, how come you know him?"

"He promised me I'd never be alone again. What about you?" She said, clearly not wishing to reveal any more.

"Uh..."

"You don't wish to tell me about it?" She asked intrigued.

"I... No, it's just that it's complicated."

"Always try."

"I'm not a filly."

"What? You mean you don't want to be a filly?"

"No, I'm not a filly."

"Okay... And is there anything else?"

"I'm not from this world. He's taken me hostage."

" ... "

"Does that sound so hard to believe?"

"Yes."

"Too bad, at least I tried."

I sighed. How could I still imagine that anyone would believe me?

"But I'm willing to try to believe you. If you say you're not from here, can you describe where you're from?" She said, smiling at me, wanting to put me at ease more than anything else.

"I come from a planet called Earth where I and my kind look like some kind of hairless apes and..."

"That's disgusting!" She said, imagining a species without hair. 

After a few seconds of silence, we burst out laughing. Maybe this mission isn't as bad as I thought.





Our destination was only a few meters away, at least that's what Flower Cloud kept repeating as she continued to scan the map while we chatted.

"Here we go!" She said, pulling the last bush out of the way.

Nothing, no entrance. We were at the foot of a large mountain, but there was no doorway of any kind in sight.

"Are you sure?"

"Well..."

"Can I see the map?"

"Fine," she said, wrinkled in her pride. "If you think you can do better than me."

Inspecting the map, I realized that it was upside down.

"Lord, this isn't a mountain, it's a crevasse we need to head into."

"What do you mean?" She says, snatching the map from my hooves. "Say right now that I can't read a map!"

I looked her straight in the eye.

"You can't read a map."

" ... " She merely grunted and turned her back to me.

As she looked at the map from her side, I thought tiredly that I should be tucked up in my warm bed, sleeping.

Suddenly, the first rays of sunlight appeared. And to think I was hoping this would be a quick mission.

"Well, after considering what you've told me, I've got good news. We're not far away, look."

A crevasse of some kind could be seen a little further along one of the mountain's flanks.

"Great."





After a few more kilometers of walking, and thanks to Flower Cloud's aerial talent, we finally reached the hollow in the mountain.

Here, a powerful sense of unease immediately swept through my body. Everything, right down to the stone itself, seemed wrong.

As for the door, we were looking for, it sat at the center of it all. Its gigantic form towered above us. Its massive appearance gave us a cold, austere impression. 

"This place gives me the creeps!" Says Flower Cloud as uncomfortable as I am. "Let's hurry up and open this door and get out of here!"

I nodded, agreeing with her far too much. The whole place made me want to run away and hide in a mousehole.

Flower Cloud took a box out of the military bag, containing a key with a mechanism that ended in a sharp edge. A note accompanied it. 

Flower Cloud undertook to read the message, but as she read, her face became puzzled before finally turning pale.

"Oh, the son of a mule," she commented.

"Is something wrong?"

"The key only works with a little foal blood."

"There's nothing else written?"

"No, but I find it twisted enough. How are we going to do it?"

"I'm going to give blood."

"Out of the question, I don't want you to use your blood!"

"We have no choice. Besides, I'm fed up with Lord Hatred trampling on other people's hopes. I want to help you stop being alone and I don't want Carrot Top and Blueblood to worry about me again because I'm not here."

"Anon..." She said, her ears suddenly drooping.

"No, I'm going to do it whether you like it or not."

I took a small, pointed rock and pricked the end of my hoof with enough force to produce a few drops of blood. I then placed them on the key that we inserted into the lock on the side of the door. The door opened wide, and then everything disappeared in a flash of light.





I was home again, or so I thought. It was so dark in the room that I could hardly see. Pulling back the curtains, I discovered myself in Littlenight's room.

"Damn it." I hissed through my teeth.

To my astonishment, Littlenight wasn't there. Perhaps he'd already left for school? A glance at his alarm clock dissuaded me - it was still early.

"Littlenight, it's time to wake you up, darling." called the voice behind the bedroom door.

Pressing down on my Pip-buck to give myself time to think, I checked that I was me. My apple-green coat proved it. The second inspection was to observe the room. Had I looked the wrong way?

Her bedroom window was wide open. What had happened?

Returning to normal, I threw myself under the bed covers as the bedroom door opened. Dark Light, Littlenight's mother, entered:

"Littlenight, I wanted to say I'm sorry you had to witness our fight with your father. But don't worry, I'm sure we'll find a solution together."

Not seeing me move, she sighed and left the room:

"Don't take too long to bed, my little angel."

Once I was sure no one was around, I approached the window discreetly.

However, there was no way through. Littlenight must have used those wings to get out that way, and I didn't have any. I did, however, notice a large pile of leaves just below the window. I'd played enough Assasin's Creed to want to give it a try. I closed my eyes and let myself fall.

The landing was much rougher than I'd expected. My hooves were now very sore, but at least nothing was broken. Or so I hoped.

I went along the houses as unobtrusively as possible until I found myself in Carrot Top and Blueblood's garden. I was already expecting to see their extremely worried faces at my disappearance, but it was not to be.

On the contrary, laughter erupted from the house. Looking out the window, I saw another me clowning around with a spoon balanced on her snout. My grandparents looked hilarious. What was going on now? 

Seeing my bedroom window ajar, I took the opportunity to enter my room and slumped onto my bed.

After a few dozen minutes, the other Anon, still balancing his spoon, entered, giving me a snide look before asking:

"Is the door open?"

"Yes, and it took much longer than expected."

"I saw that. I even had to pretend to be you. But know that I can't help it if you can't read a map."

Far too exhausted by my nocturnal journey, I didn't even pick up on the sarcasm.

"Poor thing, you must be really tired not to say anything back. You're right to rest... Hide under your bed!" she shouted suddenly.

"Why?"

"Hurry!"

Grunting in displeasure, I hid under my bed.

Lord Fear appeared a few seconds later:

"Hello Anon, excuse me for disturbing you so early, but I wanted to know if you had made your decision about becoming my champion?"

"I must refuse." Said Lord Hatred, still with my appearance.

"Why is that?" Lord Fear immediately inquired. "I thought finding even your body would be enough of an argument to convince you."

I wanted to get out of bed, furious that Lord Hatred had dared to speak on my behalf as well as betraying his word, but it was not to be. I was completely paralyzed.

"I don't feel like it anymore. I have parents who love me, friends, and a roof over my head. What more could I ask for?"

"No longer under Lord Hatred's influence perhaps. He won't leave you in peace, you know?"

"I'm aware of that." She said with a sigh. "But it's a risk I'm willing to take."

"I see." He said dejectedly. "In that case, I'll have to be going."

He disappeared as quickly as he had come.

"What a fool!" Said Lord Hatred, laughing as I felt myself becoming master of my body again.

"What was that all about? You told me I was free to choose." I said, climbing out from under my bed angrily.

"Poor Anon," he said, resuming his appearance. "By now you should know that I like to dash your hopes."

"You monster! How could I ever believe in you for a moment?"

"Hope Anon. Or your great stupidity, I don't know."

And he disappeared too.

"Shit, shit, shit..." I swore as I kicked everything in sight with my contained hooves.

That's when I noticed the huge stuffed toy I'd given Littlenight shaking like a little leaf. What was it doing here?

As I approached, I noticed that it wasn't the stuffed toy that was shaking, but the little foal hiding behind it:

"Littlenight?"





- Flower Cloud -


I had been staring for a long time at the two vials Lord Hatred had given me on my return. Their contents would make Meteor Breath fall in love with me.

Everything I'd ever dreamed of was at my fingertips, and yet something was wrong. I found myself staring like an idiot at precious liquids on a park bench. What was wrong with me? 

I'd helped a psychopath steal princesses, helped Anon get rid of specters, and even opened the door to Tartarus to get what I wanted, so why doubt now?

"Flower Cloud, I've been looking for you, I need you!" Meteor Breath shouted, running in my direction.

"Meteor Breath? What's up?"

"It's Grape Capsule, he's not well."

"I'm not well either." 

Damn, it was coming out of my mouth. What was happening to me?

"...Is this about what we went through together?" Meteor Breath said in a tiny voice.

"Yes." was all I could answer.

"I'm sorry. I've wanted to apologize for a long time, but I was afraid you'd be angry with me. I shouldn't have cut ties like I did, it was mean and stupid of me."

"You can't blame yourself. I'm also responsible. I shouldn't have been ashamed of our relationship."

"We made a fine couple." Meteor Breath said, sitting down next to me.

"Yes," I replied almost in a breath. "If only I'd had more confidence back then, we might still be together."

"Flower Cloud... You can't blame yourself."

"Maybe. Nevertheless, you're dating my brother now!"

"Flower Cloud, I promise you I had no idea it was your brother. I found out the same way you did at the restaurant."

"I know."

There was a brief silence, during which I avoided Meteor Breath's gaze. 

Wishing to break the silence, she asked me what those vials next to me were.

"These are two perfectly normal tonic drinks. But since you're here, we might as well share." I say, holding out one of the vials.

"I can't accept."

"I insist. In memory of what we've been through."

"Only because you insist then."

And we both toasted before drinking the potions. 

As soon as mine was finished, my head began to spin for a few seconds before suddenly stopping.

Massaging my head, I also noticed that Meteor Breath's behavior had changed completely. 

"I've never noticed that side of you that's so... sexy!" she said.

"Sexy?" I said in a deeper voice than I'd intended.

"You have no idea how much."

Meteor Breath was now staring straight at me like a predator staring at its prey. I found this seductive and was soon blushing like a tomato.

"I can't wait to see this body in action," she whispered in my ear, making me blush like a tomato.

"Meteor Breath..."

"Shh, not another word my beautiful stallion."

"I... Excuse me?" Something was wrong with my voice.

"I see mister loves compliments. So get ready, because I'm going to shout it out loud that I love your butt and your..." This time I put a hoof in his mouth.

Celestia, this is just too weird. I hurried to stand up on my hooves and as I took a step back, I felt something huge between my legs move. It didn't smell right.

"I have to go," I said hastily in that horrible deep stallion voice. 

"Oh no, you're not going anywhere." Meteor Breath purred, grabbing one of my hooves.

I freed myself from her grip and took off directly into the air, where she couldn't reach me. From the air, however, I could hear her crying out her love.

"What the hell is going on?" I whispered in my big, deep voice, which I already couldn't stand.

So I took out the little paper Lord Hatred had asked me to read after drinking the potion:




Flower Cloud, in gratitude for your involvement in my projects and the risks you've taken, here are two vials you must surely have drunk with your girlfriend. The first is a simple love potion and the second, is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to feel what it's like to be a well-endowed stud down under. Enjoy! ;)




I shuddered as I read the end of the letter. He'd dared to turn me into a big-dick stud for fun. The whole situation was a nightmare, I was bound to wake up any minute. I simply had to hurt myself and...

"Hi." Says a rather cute mare as she approaches me.

"Uh hi."

"You know you're kind of cute?"

" ... "

"How would you like to get into mischief together?" She said, eyeing the thing between my hooves naughtily.

"Excuse me?"

"Come on, don't be shy, with a contraption like that between your legs, I'm willing to bet I wouldn't be the first to get into your bed."

Feeling both mortified and wounded in my honor as a mare, I turned my back on him and spread my wings. Anon was right, Lord Hatred had been playing me all along.





Anon


"There you go, you know the whole story," I said, telling Littlenight the whole story.

"Wow."

"You don't believe me?"

"Yes, of course. It's just that it's a lot to digest. But what do we do now?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "As long as they don't know you know, I don't think anything will happen to you."

"Cool, I feel super reassured." He said, scratching his mane, clearly anxious.

Suddenly, Blueblood's voice rang through the house:

"Anon, can you come please?"

I turned to Littlenight.

"Hide here, I'll be back!"

"Don't leave me here alone! I'm scared!" He said, clinging to my hoof.

"Look, I don't want my parents to see you coming out of my room so stay there, I won't be long!"

"Okay, but please be quick!"

Emerging from my room, I soon found myself with Blueblood, who was chatting with Littlenight's two parents.

"... And that's why we'd like to know if he's here." Dark Light said before glaring at me.

"Anon, is Littlenight here?" Blueblood asked me.

"Uh..." Though hesitant to reveal that he was here, the worried faces of his parents swayed my choice. "Yes, he's in my room, he came in less than five minutes ago."

"Thanks, Anon." The bat pony stallion said, acknowledging that I hadn't lied.

However, as we entered my room, no one was there. The wide-open window seemed to indicate that Littlenight had left.

"Damn."





Flower Cloud


"I can't stand this thing dangling between my legs," I thought as I headed for Twilight Castle. 

I hoped that the Princess of Friendship would live up to her reputation and help me. However, I couldn't help imagining the worst possible scenario where she wouldn't be able to help me and I'd have to live with this appearance.

Arriving at the castle gates, I closed my eyes and tried to breathe normally again. Cheer up Flower Cloud, this is just a bad moment.

To my surprise, the doors were closed. A small note hung on them, and what I read terrified me. In the note, the princess indicated that she and all her friends were away, solving a friendship problem in Tartarus. Even the princess's pet dragon seemed to have left.

"Celestia, what am I going to do!" I said, feeling the tears welling up.

Then the idea of climbing through one of the building's windows occurred to me. There might be a potion or something inside that could help me. At least Meteor Breath wouldn't find me. So I entered the empty castle and began to visit each room.

Just as I was about to enter the castle's central hall, shouts rang out:

"Shut up, you little brat! I don't want to hear you!"

"Let go of me, I beg you. I promise I won't say anything about you."

"I don't doubt it. After all, dead men tell no tales."

"Are you going to kill me?"

"Of course. Just give me time to take care of the friendship table."

That voice was undoubtedly Lord Hatred. As for the other, it sounded like a child's, but maybe I was wrong.

"If you release me, I promise not to say anything to Princess Twilight Sparkle when she arrives."

"She's not likely to come and save you. By now, she's probably trapped in Tartarus with her friends."

"You've locked the princess and her friends in Tartarus!" cried what I no longer doubted was the voice of a foal.

"Yes. We open the door, wait until they're inside and close the door. Nothing could be simpler."

"But that's wrong!"

"No, it's perfect."

In my head, all the information was jostling for position. He was the reason for Twilight's departure, having imprisoned her and her friends in Tartarus. And now he was going to kill a foal! How could I have been so blind as to trust such a monster? Lord Hatred continued:

"But you know what would be the most fun of all? I'd make everyone think it was Anon who killed you."

"You're a monster!" shouted the little colt.

"You have no idea. Oh, and by the way, you can come in Flower Cloud, I know you're behind the door."

Surprised, I said nothing, pretending no one was home, before resigning myself and finally opening the door. What else could I do?

As I opened the door, I noticed on my left the little colt with whom Lord Hatred was talking. He was tied to a chair. The look of distress on his face made my blood run cold.

"Are you going to kill a foal?"

"Of course. I don't discriminate between children and adults. That would be mean of me."

" ... "

"I know what you're thinking. That it's meant to be ironic about the death of a poor little colt in distress, but I'm not."

"It isn't?"

"This isn't some poor little foal in distress. If you think about it, foals are no better than adults."

"I... What? That's no reason to kill that colt."

"I think so."

"No."

"I insist."

"Please?"

"...Pathetic."

Suddenly, my hooves became heavy, so heavy that I fell on my side. I saw Lord Hatred slowly approaching me, now towering over me. I felt him tie my hooves, but I was already losing consciousness.





Anon


"What exactly did he say to you?"

"Not much, he had just entered my room when you arrived."

"Why didn't you tell us right away? We should already be looking for him." Littlenight's father said angrily.

"Sorry."

"I'll help you look for your son!" Said Blueblood.

"Me too!" Carrot Top rejoined the conversation. "I'm sure your foal isn't far away and we'll all find him together. Mom, Dad, would you take care of Anon if you don't mind?"

"By no means."

Then the parents left home, leaving me alone with my grandparents.

"Don't worry Anon, I'm sure they'll find your friend."

"I hope so. It's not like her to leave like that. Can I go to my room?"

"Of course."

Once in my room, I called Lord Hatred to show himself. I wanted to be sure that everything that had happened had nothing to do with him. However, I had a bad feeling to the contrary.

"Anon, I've got some interesting information for you!" Said nonchalantly a shadow on my bedroom wall that looked vaguely pony-like.

"Lord Hatred?"

"No, it's Lord Fear. I know where your friend is."

"Where is he?"

"Somewhere with Lord Hatred."

"Lord Hatred... He's not going to hurt him?"

"I'm afraid so. Unless we do something about it."

"Are you going to help me? Quick, I need to..." But the shadow cut me off.

"I didn't say I was going to help you. Not for free anyway."

I sighed. I should have known better.

"What do you want?"

"Just drink this." said the shadow, pointing to a vial on my bed. It contained a phosphorescent red liquid.

"What's that?"

"The condition of my help."

Realizing that time might be against us and that I couldn't do it without his help, I reluctantly agreed.

"Excellent. Drink it up and we'll be on our way."

"Now?"

"Yes, unless you think you have the luxury of waiting."

Despite my misgivings, I opened the vial and drank its contents in a single gulp.

Soon, the most bizarre sensation invaded me. I felt my free will disappear most horribly as I writhed on the floor in pain.

The equine shadow sat on my bed, watching me convulse with a sneer.

"I remember you asking me what the mushrooms in the cave are for. Well, that's what they're for." He says, pointing at me with his ghostly hoof. "Prepared with the right ingredients, these mushrooms can enslave the mind of whoever consumes them. Just like the monster in the cave, we faced together with his henchmen."

The pain was reaching such heights that I was on the verge of losing consciousness when suddenly the pain stopped altogether.

"The potion seems to have taken effect. Now let's see if you're at my complete disposal. Knock yourself out!"

My hoof rose on its own without me being able to do anything and struck my face with force, leaving a red mark on my cheek.

"Excellent. We're going to have so much fun."