//------------------------------// // Ch 20 - Nearing the Journey's Edge // Story: Chaotic Visage // by Orderly Disassembly //------------------------------// We crested a hill. To be honest, I’d rate it a five out of ten experience. The grass was lush, and the sun shone perfectly upon the road, tinting everything slightly orange, but the town on the other side somewhat ruined it for me. Don’t get me wrong, this “Hoovesdale” I believe Clover called it—was quite picturesque in most aspects. The road up to it and the streets within appeared clean, the buildings weren’t run down, and the surrounding land seemed almost untouched by civilization. It was as if a group of pixies decided to build a town on a field of grass in the middle of a giant forest. That is, if pixies were incredibly racist, quadrupedal, and equine in nature. For all the good things Hoovesdale had going for it, it was still a pony town, still a cesspit of racism. “I really don’t get why this is such a big deal, Typhon. We’re just going into town for some donuts.” I snorted. “The ‘big deal’ is that this will end poorly. I’ve told you before, and I’ll tell you again. Ponies generally—not always but generally—get nervous around me. It’s caused issues before and I don’t see how this time will be any different.” Clover shook her head. “Look, I’m sure you’ve just had a string of bad luck before. I’ll show them that you aren’t anything to worry about and it’ll all turn out alright.” I think Clover tried to reassure me with her smile, but it came off as more smug than anything else. I’ve done this same song and dance half a dozen times. Why can’t she just trust me on this? I sighed as I let the conversation die and let the warmth settle in my mind further. I had to push it back every once in a while. Otherwise, thinking could become difficult. Now though, I think comfort is worth the sacrifice. I can’t afford to educate these particular fools, not yet anyhow. I shook my head at the thought as we neared the town. I slithered through the air, staying above Clover as I examined the buildings. The first line of houses was mostly made of brick. Some were gray, some were brownish red, and there was even a blue one. Not the worst of color palettes in my opinion, but it could use some more flair. I got a whiff of bread on a passing gust. It smelled fresh. I wonder if the bakery here is as good as the one in… what was its name again? I shook the question off and continued looking ahead. The road we were on seemed to run straight through the entire town without making any turns. Ponies dotted the street as well. They didn’t congregate in crowds or stream about like a river in perpetual motion. Instead they simply… drifted from one place to the next, neither in a hurry nor overly slow. Like they all had a place to be, but that place wasn’t going anywhere so why worry? It was quiet. The wind didn’t seem to catch conversation quite as well as before. Or maybe people here simply keep to themselves more? No matter. This place was… quaint I suppose, homey even. The perfect picture of a medium-sized town. If I had to guess, they probably didn’t see an incredible amount of traffic but weren’t exactly isolationist either. Not a city, not a village, perfectly in between. Then I felt the eyes. Not just a pair, not just a few, no, I felt dozens of them turn their gazes on me. Ponies turned from whatever they were doing to stare at the oddity floating over one of their own.  Some whispered to each other through the sides of their mouths, some stared blankly at me, and a few even tried to gesture at Clover to look up. I rolled my eyes at the ridiculous display. With a voice pitched to carry to the majority of the peanut gallery, I asked Clover. “It might just be a thing from my culture, so correct me if I’m wrong. But isn’t staring considered rude?” I made a point to glare at the crowd as Clover responded. “Uhm, yes?” “I thought so.” Most of them went back to what they were doing. Though a few still shot me glares whenever glancing in our direction. Eh, at least they’re upfront with their stupidity. Clover trotted at a calm pace as she scanned the street signs—muttering all the while. “Was it eighth avenue or ninth?” As Clover tried to pick out our path, I scanned the wall of buildings to our right. Most were houses, but we passed a coffee shop, an inn, and a tailor's shop as well… I think. There was a lot of cloth and several carpets hung around the entrance, so it could be anything from a seer to a spice merchant for all I knew.  Not that it mattered. That strange establishment was mysteriously closed for the ten seconds we were in front of it, just like the others we passed. “Ugh, why can’t these places ever make sense? We passed eighth avenue, we passed eleventh avenue, where the buck is ninth?!” I rolled over to look down at Clover by craning my neck. “We could always just step into an alley while you pull out a map, no shame in it.” The quicker she figures out where we need to go, the quicker we find this damnable pastry shop, and the quicker we can move on to New Unicornia. She shot me a sheepish smile before ducking into a random alley.  There was an old pony rocking in a chair on a porch further down the alley but was otherwise empty. Clover was glaring at a map when I glanced at her.  Hopefully, we’ll move on soon.  … … I wonder what Discord’s up to? Probably nothing too important. There isn’t much to do in Nowhere besides making stuff up, and—not to be judgemental—but Discord isn’t the most creative of people. Maybe he’d appreciate a show? I tapped my ear and sent a string of magic into a crease in reality. It poked through and stopped with a twitch. ‘Bvvvvv’ Does- does he have me on vibrate? ‘Bvvvvv’ Why I oughtta… “Hello, this is Discord, with whom am I speaking?” I shook my head at the odd sensation tingling in my brain. “Really, Discord, just how many people could call you like this?” “Fair point, but I figured that you never really know, so I err on the side of caution.” I rolled my eyes at that. “Yes, I’m sure you do.” Clover’s head shot up. “Really? Ugh, apparently we missed the turn, I got it now though. Let’s go, Typhon.” I nodded and followed her out of the alley. “Might I ask why you called me?” I felt eyes on me again, but I still responded. “I figured you might’ve gotten bored. Not much to do in Nowhere.” He chuckled at that. “Is that what you call this place? Personally, I’ve been calling it ‘Possibility’.” Clover took a sudden right turn and I almost crashed into a sign when I tried to follow. “Well yes, I got there by telling my magic to take me away, it asked ‘where’ and I failed to answer. I didn’t want to be anywhere at all, so it took me Nowhere.” Discord went silent so I focused on my surroundings again. There weren’t as many ponies on this side street, just a few moving from one store to the next. Likely, they were on grocery runs—judging from the bags of food they carried. And for once, there wasn’t anyone staring at me. This place wasn’t anywhere near as bad as the towns I visited before the Tower. Those ponies tended to scream and run. Or get violent, the responses varied. Maybe it was the fact that they were little more than hamlets.  Maybe it was just the temperament of the locals.  Maybe this town is so docile, because of Clover accompanying me. Maybe this, maybe that. So many maybe’s. Whatever the case, I’d take a bit of staring over violence any day. “Finally, found it!” I shook my head before following Clover’s hoof. In the middle of this small town that sat on the edge between everywhere and nowhere in particular, was a building made of sandstone. How in the world did they afford— Don’t think about it, Typhon, just don’t think about it. “So we have.” Ignoring my comment, Clover trotted up to the glass door and knocked three times before entering. I thought nothing of it as I tried to follow her in. However, a scratchy voice shouted at me. “Knock before you come in, you mangy son of dog!” I froze. What? “You heard me, you walking rolled up rug!” I blinked a few times before knocking on the open glass door. “Now, come in! Come in!” I landed before walking in—don’t want my horns getting stuck—and looked around. The walls were made out of sandstone bricks, the floors and ceilings were wooden, and tables littered the sides of the room. The arrangement left a clear aisle leading up to the counter. There was a glass case thing with pastries on display—probably had a drop-down back for easy access. The oddest part was the upright cat person behind the counter. The cat person called out in the same scratchy voice as before and put her paws on her hips. “What, see something nice?” I shook my head at her smug grin. “Apologies, I’m afraid I haven’t met any of your kind before.” Clover walked up to the display while the cat lady and I had our exchange. “Yes, that is understandable. I am far from my Abyssinia, and few of my people leave our sandy home.” I nodded as I strolled up beside Clover. “Oh, I suppose I can understand the feeling.” We browsed the menu for a bit, there were bagels, donuts, danishes, cookies, dough balls, and dozens more that I didn’t remember the name of. And all of them looked absolutely delicious.  I spotted a donut glazed yellow and decorated with banana patterns made of frosting, an ocean blue bagel with sprinkles that glittered, and a cookie that was actually modeled after a galactic disk—stars and all. So many choices! Clover decided first.  “I think I’ll have a ‘Desert Dessert Delight,’ please.” I followed up with: “And I believe I’ll have a set of star cookies, thank you.” The cat woman beamed at us. “Excellent choices, both of you! So many idiot ponies walk in here and ask for ‘sugar cookies.’ I mean really, all cookies have sugar!” I chuckled as she dove beneath our line of sight and rummaged around. After a moment, she popped back up with a sparkly orange danish that was decorated to resemble an oasis and a trio of galaxy cookies. “That will be forty bits, thank you!” Her smile was almost as wide as Clover’s face was pale. “Oh, um, I don’t have enough—“ The cat lady’s smile immediately fell, but I wanted those cookies dammit! So with a snap of my fingers, a brick of gold the size of Clover’s head crashed into the counter. A tiny thread of my magic was needed to keep the counter from shattering. “I’ve come this far for these pastries, Clover, I’m not going to let some small issue like money get in the way.” With that, I swept up our purchases and strode over to one of the many empty chairs. The other two stared at the gold, failing to pick their jaws up off the floor. I play jump rope with physics and this is what breaks Clover? It’s just some basic transmutation.  “This too much, my food good but not this good. Please, pick few more, I feel bad if—“ “Bah, I can drop enough gold to drown an elephant if I need to. Just take it.” I waved a claw as I said that before biting into my cookie. And it was like I got a taste of Heaven.  The perfect level of sweetness, the crumbly yet soft texture, and the faintest hint of salt all made my mouth melt in pleasure. “Wow, that good?” I flinched at the sudden voice in my head but recovered quickly. “Yes, and we are definitely stopping by here again.” I made a mental note to save one of my cookies for Discord. Clover was right, this is worth whatever trouble is going to find us before we leave. I nodded at Clover as she sat down across from me. Clover had almost finished her pastry when my reverie was cut short by the cat lady’s shout. “Hey, knock before you come in you candy-sniffing sour grapes!” There was a sigh and a series of knocks before I heard the clopping of several sets of hooves. Here comes the real ‘price.’ A calm stallion called out. “Greetings, chimera, I apologize but you are under arrest, please stand up so we may properly detain you.” Well, at least they’re quite polite about their racism here. I stood up and turned to face them. Just a trio of guards in slate-gray armor: a pair of unicorns and a glaring scarred earthpony. “Might I ask why?” The white unicorn snorted and answered in a posh accent. “Because you are a beast without a leash that is waltzing around our respectable neighborhood. If you were at all intelligent, you would’ve never come here!” He was right, oh so right, but it’s too late now, it’s been too late for that wisdom for a long while. Flakes of red burned themselves into the edges of my vision. It is far too late. “Leave! They are paying customers! You overgrown bucket heads are not welcome here!” The earthpony glared at me as the calmer unicorn walked over to the counter. “Look ma’am, I understand the frustration, I really do, but…” I tuned out the rest of his worthless words and focused on the other guards. I can’t afford this, I can’t let go. Not yet. My teeth gritted as I stepped towards the guards, who immediately shifted–ready for a fight. As if they stood a chance.  How cute. I stood several feet taller than them and they saw every inch of that height when I leaned over them. “I am so, so tired of ponies like you.” I heard Clover finally get off her rear to come help but I pushed her back to where she was with a light tug of magic. She could probably solve this with that fancy little medallion of hers. She could probably end this peacefully. I stared at the two before me, with a mind full of ash, and thoughts made of smoke. She could do this, she could do that, but her solutions are temporary, I can fix this forever. I couldn’t afford to teach them, but we all have our vices, our guilty little pleasures. With a snap of my fingers, they were gone. “Wait, why was I yelling again? I… I thought idiot ponies were here but there aren’t… Oh, I am sorry, but could you two leave, please? I think I am seeing things. I need to go lay down.” Clover stared blankly at the cat lady for a moment. “Uh, yeah, sure.” She got up and walked towards the door. Her eyes seemed glazed, and her gait was slightly askew–not enough to make her stumble, but stiff beyond what is reasonable. Like a marionette just given life. I nodded toward the cat lady and got up to do the same. “No need to fret, we both enjoyed our stay.” I turned and followed Clover, but called out one more thing before I let the door swing closed behind me. “I’ll make sure to tell all my friends about this place!” Outside I paused for a moment, then began walking. No destination in particular, just wanted to move. Clover followed, though it did take her a moment to get going. We just walked and walked, until we were outside the town premises. It was quiet despite the crowd.  Or maybe that buzzing is just really loud. Who knows? “Typhon?” “Yes?” “Do you think that cat person is alright? I mean, she was just talking to thin air.” I smiled, smiled so wide that it hurt. “Oh, she’ll be fine, I’m sure of it.” I wasn’t looking at Clover, but I didn’t need to see her to know she was frowning, probably worried. But what I couldn’t find was a reason to care. The stars sparkled in the night sky, like a thousand diamonds twinkling in the dark. Clover had just gone to bed, but the fire I started earlier still crackled and popped with life.  I needed some external warmth, the kind in my head, it doesn’t solve every problem. I can’t rely on it too heavily. Otherwise, I’d go crazy! I chuckled at the thought. Yes, that warmth can help me stay calm, but it’s still just a simple tool—it can’t solve everything. I sighed as I leaned back, closing my eyes as I did so. Just like every other night on the road, I asked myself a very simple question. Did I want to continue? Would this be worth it? The answers were yes and no respectively. I wanted–no, needed to do this. Yet, I know that it will feel empty at the end of it all. It is necessary, it is justice. I glared into the fire, watching the embers swirl upwards. What if they guessed that I escaped, what if Clover gives me away? Maybe not on purpose this time, but it is still possible. What would they do? Memories of shattered glass, my withering body, and blurring perceptions flashed through my mind as if brought by a messenger from outside of myself. A cage, if it worked once, why not again?  After all, it did work in their eyes. They just had the wrong target. Or so they likely thought. They’d be watching for my last trick. I won’t be pulling a disappearing act. At least, I won’t be the one disappearing this time. With a grin and a snap, tiny flakes of molten metal ripped themselves from deep beneath the earth. I had to pull upon hundreds of mineral deposits, possibly thousands for what I needed. The slivers of metal swirled and fused, forging themselves into a large rod that towered over twice my height. And then, I squeezed, forcing it to shrink to half the size that it was. The rod of metal glowed with angry orange, highlighted by a glaring white. With a flick of the wrist, it shot up thousands of feet into the air, and I only pulled it to a stop when I felt the grip of gravity loosen. Would one be enough? No, but three should do. I smiled as a trio of false stars winked into being. They were my personal choir of guardian angels. I smiled, smiled so wide that it hurt. And my heart raced in anticipation for the moment that I’d let my angels sing.