//------------------------------// // Entry 28a: This one takes twice as long to read, but takes place in only an hour-ish. // Story: Bound Elemental // by Kendallonian //------------------------------// I expected Twilight and Starlight to come up with an ingenious magical solution to get me and Blaze through ponyville and the everfree safely. They might have tried putting us to sleep, or created some sort of force field to prevent us from touching anything. At one point I thought that they might’ve just tried to teleport us directly there; that would have been very simple. Instead, Twilight and Starlight came into my room with a totally mundane iron cage. “That’s… disappointing. What happened to teleportation?” I asked. “Too dangerous.” Starlight said. “Your armor won’t play nice with most magic spells we try to cast, and Teleportation in particular might be tricky, considering you’re two seperate non-physical entities inside an enchanted copper tube that’ll burn either of us if we touch it, not to mention if the teleport with you, Blaze, or the suit goes wrong, you both die.” I gave a deep sigh. “So much for this being easy.” “It’ll just be an hour’s walk into the forest.” Twilight said as she opened the door of the cage for me.”We’ll be there before you know it.” “Yeah… okay.” I said. Suddenly I had the thought that this may be the last chance I had to see… anypony. Once we found the tree, I might be sent back to the plane of fire, or dead, or… nothing, I guess. In any case, it just felt very… final. I closed my eyes, trying to work up the courage to step forward. Blaze tried to take a step back, I resisted. “Guys… Blaze is being a bit… difficult.” I said. “A little… little help?” Twilight and Starlight’s horns lit up almost simultaneously, sliding me slowly into the cage while I did my best to keep Blaze from working against them. Once we were inside and the cage started moving, Blaze started speaking to me. These bars look weak. If we both worked together, perhaps we could melt- Not happening. I thought back. I’m keeping you inside this cage until we get there, and then, hopefully, you’ll be back in your own world, never able to threaten this one ever again. And you? He asked pointedly. Don’t know, don’t care, and you don’t, either. You are a fool. He replied. You can help bring light and glory to this world, yet you do nothing. Yeah, well, maybe you’re a fool, too, for not seeing, or even wanting to see, what has made me begin to love this place. There is nothing worth understanding but our divine purpose, He retorted. Only because you refuse to understand it, I said. It became extremely clear to both of us that this conversation was going nowhere by the time Twilight and Starlight made it to the ground floor, levitating our cage between them. When they opened the front doors of the castle, a small group of ponies had gathered before the front steps. First in line was Pinkie, whose quivering eyes looked like dams ready to burst. Next was Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo, who looked more disappointed than anything else. On the other side was Fluttershy, who looked sad in a more subdued way, and Rarity, who was daintily dabbing her eyes with a tissue and holding something behind her back. My spark ached when I saw them. “I… I don’t want any long goodbyes.” I said. “WELL I DO!” The dam that was Pinkie’s eyes burst open as she leapt forward and hugged the cage. Blaze and I both inched backward as streams of tears fell from her eyes “I, um… haven’t even been that great of a friend.” I said. “But it was gonna be the best! I was gonna make you charcoal cupcakes and we were gonna play pin the tail on the pony and go bobbing for pinecones and… and- IT WAS GONNA BE THE BEST PARTY EVER!” I gave a bit of a bittersweet laugh at that. “Okay, Pinkie, I’ll miss you, too.” Soon afterward, Pinkie sniffled and cried her last, just before slipping a skinny pinecone through the bars of the cage with a small candle fixed to the top. I smiled and picked it up, remembering to blow the candle on before I swallowed it. “Thanks, Pinkie. You’re the best.” I said. She, ever the humble pony, nodded in agreement before wandering off, threatening to start bawling again. “I’m just disappointed we didn’t help you find something yer good at.” Apple Bloom said. “Well, maybe that’s just cuz I’m way too good at being myself.” I said. “I really appreciate you fillies trying, anyway.” “And we’ll keep trying!” Scootaloo said. “Maybe if we figure out your special talent, you can come back and use it to help everypony!” “Yeah!” Sweetie said helpfully. I smiled again.  “Maybe.” I said. I didn’t have the heart to say I might not be able to come back at all. “Well I, for one, am disappointed that you won’t be able to try this on before you leave.” Rarity interjected. She was holding out a simple, stylish dress in wine-red and gold trim, decorated on each side by flame-shaped accessories that spread out like wings. “You finished it!” I said. “Well, not quite.” Rarity said “There’s still a few decorations I wanted to add, but… well.” “Well, for what it’s worth, it looks great from here.” I said. “I’m sorry I probably won’t get to use it.” “Well, I had fun making it, anyway.” Rarity said. “I wish you all the happiness in either of our worlds.” “You, too.” I said back as she left. Finally, I looked toward Fluttershy. She didn’t say anything, predictably. She just nodded in acknowledgement. “Thank you, Fluttershy, for listening.” I said. “Thanks for stopping me in the road, too.” Fluttershy nodded again, and she reverently said something like “You’re welcome” before leaving. I felt Blaze encroaching on my motor functions. I’d felt him growing impatient for the entire, long goodbye, but now that everypony except Twilight and Starlight were gone, I felt comfortable letting him back in control again. “How… disgusting.” he said. “Yeah, yeah. Can it, Sparky.” Starlight said as she resumed carrying the cage with her telekinesis. The walk through Ponyville was uneventful, with just a few ponies looking distractedly at us as we passed. Twilight did her best to keep ponies away from the cage so Blaze wouldn’t lunge at them.  Once we passed into the everfree, the trip became very quiet. Apparently Twilight and Starlight weren’t in the mood for chit-chat. The only sounds I heard were the sparkling sounds of Starlight and Twilight carrying the cage and the occasional bird call from the woods. I’m not sure how long the two of them had been walking when I heard something hit the bottom of the cage. I looked down at where the sound had come from and saw a single droplet of water. “Uh… girls? What’s the weather schedule like today?” I asked warily. “What?” Starlight asked. Soon afterward a raindrop hit her in the nose. “Oh… dear…” Starlight said, her expression horrified as she stared at the droplet sliding down her muzzle. “What?” Twilight asked from the other side of my cage. I began hearing more and more raindrops hitting the ground, the leaves on the nearby trees, and the roof of the cage. A few more drops blew in through the bars of the cage and spattered on my hooves, shooting a cold, sharp pain through them. Blaze recoiled, retracting our hooves. “What cursed place is this?” He demanded. Twilight began to panic. “Oh, no… I completely forgot! In the Everfree, the clouds don’t wait for pegasi to move them, they just-” “-Ambush unsuspecting travelers?!” I asked incredulously. “We need to find shelter, fast.” Starlight said. “I’ll see what I can do about the clouds!” Twilight said, using her wings to rocket herself up through the canopy. Starlight ran frantically about through the trees, looking desperately for somewhere that was safe from the rain. The wind was beginning to blow harder, and sometimes it would switch directions spontaneously, bringing with it new angles deadly spittle could be flung into my face. Blaze and I, in agreement for once, did our best to anticipate where the rain would come from next and get to the opposite side of the cage, but inevitably a few sprays of rainwater hit our back and sides, causing a painful hiss and loss of heat every time. Eventually, Starlight found a tree that offered some moderate protection and dragged our cage next to it. It wasn’t perfect protection, but at the very least the wind had one less angle to come at us from. Starlight was beginning to use a few large branches to construct a wind barrier when we both heard a low, rumbling growl coming from all around us. Oh, come on.. What else could go wrong right now? Starlight lit her horn and took a defensive stance.  A pair of massive, green eyes, each the size of Starlight’s entire face, gazed back at us from the shadows. As the thing approached, what little sunlight that filtered through the clouds above revealed a long, toothy maw made entirely from sharpened sticks and logs. It had four legs, each with a paw on the end that could flatten a pony in a single strike, not to mention the three wickedly sharp claws the size of swords that were poking out from each. After a second, the stench of it’s breath hit us, and Starlight’s nose curled in disgust. Personally, the smell reminded me of the burnt chocolate cloud that had surrounded me after Pinkie convinced me to eat that s’more. “Timberwolves. Had to be timberwolves.” Starlight muttered. In any other situation, I might’ve laughed; A giant monster like this was nothing to sneeze at, of course, but the thing was made of wood. One touch from either myself or Blaze and the whole thing would go up in flames, but at the moment Blaze and myself were trapped in a tiny cage trying not to get hit by the freezing droplets falling from the sky. Those same droplets, might I add, had soaked this particular timberwolf to the core. Starlight wasted little time tossing some sort of kinetic blast from her horn; It struck the monster before her center-mass and blew it into pieces. My own private celebration was soon cut short, however, when another one dove in from our left, batting at Starlight with a massive paw. Luckily, she was able to teleport away before the blow hit. Unluckily, I could already see the pieces of the first timberwolf beginning to glow and reassemble themselves, and I might have seen a third set of massive green eyes approaching from the darkness. Starlight was good with magic, no doubt about that; She was teleporting around the area faster than my eyes could follow and firing spells with blistering speed, but it seems like she didn’t have the time to charge up a spell like the one that had blown apart the first timberwolf, and even that one was rapidly recovering. Starlight, on the other hand, must have been rapidly losing stamina. No, no no… I thought. Don’t die… Blaze, on the other hand, projected amusement. It seems your pony friend is in over her head. Once she’s gone, we will simply have to wait out the rain so we can make our escape. I set my jaw. You’re content just sitting back and watching her die? Of course. He said. In the vast cosmos, she means nothing. Only the mission matters. I held back a response, opting instead to scowl. Soon afterward, I gasped as Starlight took a swipe to her side that sent her flying into a nearby tree. Both timberwolves dove in for the kill shortly afterward, but Starlight was able to teleport herself out of danger before resuming the fight with a nasty gash on her left flank. She really wasn’t going to win this fight. Blaze, I can’t wait for the rain to end; I need to get out now. I said. Are you insane, little spark? Water cascades down around us! You’re eventually going to need both of us to get out, right? There’s no way you’d be able to muster enough heat to melt through these bars by yourself. Blaze hesitated before saying …yes. If you let Starlight die, I’ll never forgive you. I’ll refuse to help you no matter how long we sit in this cage, and we can both starve and die in here for all I care. You wouldn’t- Blaze began. Don’t test me! I thought back. With that message I also showed him a few of my emotions; just how determined I was to carry out my threat. After a few milliseconds of silence, I continued. The only way you’re getting out of this cage is if you help me to break it right now. It’s now or never, got it? Blaze deliberated for a moment before saying, Fine, I’ll help you break the bars; but I won’t help you save your pony friend. I didn’t ask you to. I said back. Break the lock; it’s less work than the bars. Blaze took one of my hooves and began channeling heat into the left side of the lock; I took the other forehoof and began squeezing the right side as well. Both hooves began to glow, and the lock itself changed from iron black to a cherry red. As we worked, I was dimly aware that Starlight’s movements were becoming slower; her constant spellcasting was beginning to take a toll on her body, not to mention she was beginning to lose blood. I redoubled my efforts, and the lock went from red to orange. Our hooves were glowing, too, and I felt them beginning to deteriorate; copper was, of course, much easier to melt than iron; I probably should have thought of that earlier, but we were committed, now. At first I tried to keep the heat evenly distributed throughout my hoof, but it soon became clear that the entire thing would melt down before the lock would. Instead, I began to concentrate the heat so that it would exit my hoof through a single point. That point instantly turned into slag and started leaking heat like a blowtorch, but as long as I kept all of my heat concentrated on that point, the rest of the hoof would hopefully be safe. The lock went from orange to white, and I decided it was time to change strategies; I spun our body around, pivoted onto our forehooves, and gave the lock a swift buck. The softened metal buckled under the pressure and the door swung open. Excellent. Blaze said. You’re a fool, little spark. Now all I have to do is keep us here until the rain stops. I don’t have to let this body go to help your pony friend at all. I have a counterargument. I said. What? That’s the instant I smashed into him with a warhammer fashioned from thoughts and memories. All at once he was hit by my first night in a rainstorm, when I was cowering and Twilight came to comfort me, and with Pinkie coming by to throw me a ‘welcome to ponyville’ party, and then again a few days later after I’d spared ten papers in a day. I hit him with the dream Starlight and I had shared, and the anger I’d felt while I was punishing her, and I hit him with the regret she’d felt as she realized that she’d clipped my wings. I hit him with my own horror at the fact that I’d destroyed Twilight’s kitchen, and the loneliness I’d felt when I thought that she’d never forgive me. All of those memories and emotions were tangled and woven together into a solid block of willpower that dazed him with a thousand different experiences he’d have trouble comprehending on their own, let alone in a group. I felt a tiny chip of that block break off and become absorbed into his psyche; a tiny piece of myself I’d never get back, but the effect of the psychic blow sent him convulsing uncontrollably in random directions. Confused as he was, I was able to pull complete control of my body back, and I ran out into the rain. Puddles had started forming in the mud below my hooves, and every step was painful, but I pushed through it. Heat was still rapidly draining from the hole I’d punched in my hoof in order to open the cage door, but I pressed through that, as well. As I turned to look at the timberwolves, I heard a cry from starlight; they’d caught her across her other flank, and she flew a good fifty feet before landing haphazardly in a muddy puddle. The timberwolves stalked closer, their wounds already mending themselves, and Starlight wasn’t getting up. I charged faster than I ever thought I could have, closing the distance between myself and Starlight in milliseconds. I jumped clear over Starlight’s prone body and into the middle of the timberwolves. One swiped at me, but I jumped over the blow and onto the side of the other. White steam started rising from his sodden hide where I touched him, and he roared as he began to shake, trying to throw me off.I jumped off of his side and onto the back of his friend, who began trying to shake me off as well. Instead of jumping again, I dug my hooves into the moss and debris that covered the timberwolf’s back. More white steam pulmed around me as the moisture evaporated on contact with my flames. I was losing heat even more quickly now, but I kept digging until I finally found what I was looking for; Dry wood. The protected kindling at the Timberwolf’s heart was set ablaze before I even knew I’d found it, thanks to the blowtorch still emanating from my right hoof. A fresh wave of heat exploded outward, warming my insides and giving me more time to work. As I continued to burrow into the timberwolf’s back, it’s friend slammed a paw into my own back, breaking the armor and letting several more jets of flame erupt. The timberwolf instantly regretted his move as the flames erupting from my back set his paw ablaze, but he was soon able to extinguish it in the mud on the ground. Before he could try anything else, I jumped onto his back and repeated the process of burrowing through his back to try and find the dry wood at his core. The thing scratched at me like a tick, but eventually I was able to dig deep enough that his insides caught fire, and a few seconds after that, he fell over, dead. I hid inside his corpse for a few minutes. I hoped to the Allspark that there weren’t any others nearby, because I could no longer afford to be out in the rain; I was still leaking heat from four separate spots and the burning wood around me was the only thing keeping me alive. I sat like that for a minute or two until I heard Twilight’s voice nearby. “Emerald! Emerald!” “I’m here!” I shouted. Twilight’s face popped into view, she coughed a bit on the smoke before she managed to speak. “Ohmygosh are you alright?” Twilight asked frantically. “I’m bleeding heat.” I said, “And Starlight’s wounded. I don’t know how bad.” “She’s already starting to wake up.” Twilight said. Then her expression went dark. “What about Blaze?” “Under control, for now.” I said. “But I think it’d be best if you tried to fix our cage before he recovers.” You tricked me. Blaze said groggily. Do you want another brain-bash? I said. I don’t want to, but I will. Being quiet. He conceded angrily. Long story short, Twilight was able to revive Starlight and heal her a bit with first-aid magic. Starlight was then, in turn, able to seal my wounds before I bled out. At some point in the middle, Twilight was finally able to fly up up and clear away the last of the rainclouds so I could walk freely again. The cage, sadly, was unsalvageable, but it also turned out to be mostly unnecessary, since Blaze was cowed by the threat of another journey into my memories enough to stay quiet for the few minutes it’d take us to walk the rest of the way. Honestly, it felt very good to just be able to go somewhere on my own four hooves without worrying whether someone else was going to try and jerk me around and burn everything in sight. Eventually, We came to a gorge spanned by a rickety wooden bridge. Beyond it was the ruins of a castle, and sprouting up from the middle of the ruins I could see the gleaming canopy of a huge crystalline tree. “Well, I’m not sure how we’re going to get you across this bridge.” Starlight said warily. Emerald… I heard the voice call, and with the call came directions. “Well, conveniently, I don’t think it wants me to go across the bridge. It wants us to go down.” I said, pointing a hoof down a set of stairs that had been carved into the side of the ravine. “Oh, thank goodness.” Starlight said. “I don’t think I’d have the energy to levitate you all the way across in this state.” I led the way down the stairs, Twilight and Starlight behind me. When I reached the bottom, I was called toward a large cave opening in the far side of the ravine; I could see crystalline roots pushing through the ceiling and instantly knew they had to be connected to the treehouse above. I approached the opening, then hesitated for a few seconds. “Emerald?” Twilight asked. “I… um… I feel like it wants me to come in alone.” I said. “Me and Blaze, I mean.” “Oh.” Twilight said, she looked down at the ground sadly. Starlight had a similar expression. I sat at the threshold for a few moments longer before turning back to the two ponies behind me. “Hey, so… this might be goodbye.” I said. “Either the tree’s gonna send me back, or get rid of me, or… something. So…” Before I could say anything else, Starlight hugged me. I felt tingly wherever I felt her fur touch me. “Uh… shouldn’t you be burning right now?” I asked. “Temporary fireproof enchantment.” She said simply. “Heh, leave it to you to find a magical solution to every social problem.” I said. And I hugged her back. I felt a twitch from Blaze, but ignored it, mostly. I did separate a little earlier than I might’ve liked for his sake. I looked to Twilight next. “Thank you, princess, for everything.” I said. “For your care, and your patience, and your generosity. I wouldn’t be standing here without each and every bit of it.” Twilight nodded with a small smile. With that, I turned and walked into the cave.