//------------------------------// // Chapter Ten- Rising Tensions (Part 2) // Story: Beyond Infinity // by Pen Dragon //------------------------------// Chapter Ten- Rising Tensions (Part 2) The Everfree Forest wasn’t the friendliest place in Equestria. A single wrong look at a rabbit could yield a gouged-out eye, or glancing at a chicken could leave you trapped in stone, and god-forbid you have a run-in with a Manticore or Hydra. Marcus, however, saw something else in it: home, or as close as he could get. Clouds floated by on their own, and rain poured onto the ground at the command of nobody but the Heavens themselves. The rabid nature of the animals and the chill that would worm its way down his back reminded him of the unpredictability of home. Honestly, this place had nothing on the creepiness of what Earth had to offer. It had significantly more terrifying places that the ponies couldn’t even begin to imagine. It was in this duet of order and chaos that Marcus sat in a clearing, feeling a gentle breeze caressing his face. It wasn’t enough to break his concentration, but it did serve to remind him of his whereabouts. A symphony of leaves, dirt, wood, and distant animals all combined into a soft melody, as if the Everfree Forest was trying its best to tell him…something. Was it a warning, perhaps? A show of encouragement? Those were both questions that Marcus didn’t ponder, nor could he spare the brain power for them if he even wanted to. No, instead, Marcus’ eyes were shut tight, not allowing a single ray of light to pierce his eyelids. Slowly, he drew in a deep breath, only to feel the light swaying of the grass beside his legs as he exhaled. Focus. Focus. Another breath, another zephyr passes him by. That twig snapped behind me, distant yet audible. The grass feels rather comfortable to be sitting on, and the air feels nice. Yet, I don’t feel what I’m supposed to. At least, I think so. For a moment, he let his mind be taken entirely by the world around him. For a moment, everything else fell away. And for another moment, his thoughts slowly drifted back to his confrontation with Sombra. That no-good, arrogant, self-absorbed…! No. Another deep breath. Maybe I need to go deeper… I can’t let that guy get in my head. He tried to focus on positive thoughts as he extended his hoof, picturing a portal opening in front of him leading back to Sugarcube Corner. Slowly, the vibrant colors and child-like aesthetics came into view, and slowly, he began to feel the stone’s power flow into him, but it was different this time. It was calmer? No… more controlled this time. Where before it was like a rush of ice encroaching on every part of his body, now it was like a cool river you might dip into on a hot day. However, Faerie Tail’s words began to infect his mind like a poison. “You’ve had your stone for only a short time, it is worthless in your neophyte hooves. Whereas I… I have had all the time in the world.” Gritting his teeth, he couldn’t help but feel anger begin to well up inside of him. Calm down… Remain calm. “You’re making this harder than it has to be…” Unbeknownst to him, the stone began to glow brighter as a blue aura slowly surrounded his body. The ground began to shake, and the air grew restless as the rumbling increased in amplitude by the second. Both huge, looming trees right next to him and imposing boulders that appeared as specs on the distant mountains threatened to come reigning down, wielding their wrath like titans. Everything, from flora to fauna, shook violently in a desperate attempt to somehow yield to and also fight the ever-increasing force. Marcus struggled to get control of his emotions. “You don’t know me, you don’t know what I’ve sacrificed, the choices I’ve made! I didn’t ask for this wretched stone!” No! No! Don't even think of sympathizing with her, she's your enemy, and she’s stopping you from collecting the rest of the Infinity Stones. From living a normal life again! She's getting in the way! Marcus suddenly opened his eyes and immediately stopped what he was doing. The energy around him began to dissipate and the wind around him calmed. There had been times when Marcus had lost his temper in the past, but it was usually on behalf of others. This was different. For a moment, he imagined himself hurting Faerie Tail and taking the Time Stone from her. But it wasn't just the thought of it that surprised or even frightened him. It was the fact that it didn't bother him that was truly terrifying. W-What the hell was that? I’d never- No, it’s just the stress getting to me. I’d never think of hurting others. He immediately shook his head before closing his eyes again, figuring that perhaps he should try something simpler. “Midnight said that I needed to feel it… So that’s what I need to do before I even think of doing anything else.” Drawing in a fresh cloud of oxygen and exhaling, Marcus began to actually feel something blanket his body this time. It was a cool, but intense feeling that raced down his spine and wrapped itself around each vein in his body. He had a lot more control of the stone than he did before and it actually felt really good to get a grasp on its power for once. Alright, I think I got a good hold on it. All I need to do for now is focus on trying to maintain this hold on it until it becomes second nature. The last thing I want is to bring the moon crashing down. Marcus then released his hold on the stone’s power, letting the energy around him return to the stone. He took a moment to visualize the kitchen of Sugarcube Corner in his mind as he then began to concentrate the energy wrapping around his left hoof, and then his right hoof, before clapping them together and pulling them apart as he began to open a small portal. He took a moment to admire the swirling blue portal in front of him. It almost reminded him of the storm clouds that constantly circled overhead, threatening to pour down at any moment. It almost reminded him of…home. Stretching his hoof out, he reached inside of it. Sweat began to form on his forehead as he started biting his tongue, hoping his hoof was “where” he wanted it to be. Once his hoof felt what he wanted, he pulled it out immediately. The small portal closed a heartbeat later and once it did, he looked down at his hoof, and what he was holding was… a broken cookie. He stared at it for a few seconds before he let out a groan. “AURGH! This wasn’t what I was going for!” He shouted, before falling backward on the soft grass. “Well, at least I know it sort of worked. These are the same cookies Pinkie baked this morning.” One more time. Sitting back up, Marcus closed his eyes once more as he began to concentrate on building energy around his hooves once more. Seeing the kitchen once more and where he wanted the portal to open up, he clasped his hooves together and began to pull the energy and create another small vortex. “Alright, remember where it is… I just need to grab the ladle and pull it through-” *Ping* Marcus opened his eyes immediately when he heard the sound of a text coming through his phone. Releasing his hold on the stone’s power, the energy that surrounded his body began to dissipate. Letting out a groan, his horn was wrapped in a sudden purple hue as he pulled out his phone from his saddlebag he had set aside. LD Blink Is she serious? Marcus could only stare at the text, dumbfounded by the ambiguous text in front of his eyes. He blinked a few times as his mind tried to process the message, only to look up to find himself standing in complete and utter darkness. Panic started to take hold of him as he looked around frantically, a torrent of thoughts beginning to swirl in his mind. Did I pass out suddenly? Am I dead again!? What the hell happened?! “You certainly know how to entertain me, Marcus Phillip,” Marcus heard, turning around to find Death herself sitting on a black throne. A round glass table in front of her with an empty chair across from her. “I suppose I should call you by your new name now, Obsidian Coal.” “Where are we?” he asked. “We are in your mind right now, Coal. This is the safest way of communication for us to discuss important matters without worries of unwanted ears prying into our conversations,” she explained, gesturing at the chair. “A heads up would have been nice,” Marcus said, a little irked, but decided not to press it any further. “So, I’m guessing you want to talk to me about the Infinity Stone I found, right?” “You assume correctly,” she said with a smirk. In an instant, she flexed her hand, and images of the six Infinity Stones flared to life, floating just above the table. “You are in possession of the Space Stone, and as the name implies, it has control over all of Space itself, giving you the power to manipulate and travel instantly to any point in space. “And you’ve only just begun to scratch the surface of what you can do with it,” she continued, her hand waving in the air as the image of the stones changed to many images of him using the Space Stone. “I’ve been watching you, and I have to admit that I am rather impressed by how you managed to bumble your way with it. It was honestly funny when you thought you could take the Time Stone from one of, if not the most, powerful sorceresses in Equestria. She threw you around like a rag doll.” “I get it, I don’t know how to properly use it, but I’ve only had it for a few weeks and I can’t exactly use it when it could make a black hole that could suck the entire town into oblivion,” he argued, seeing the flashing images of him and how he’s been using it made his cheeks flush red. “Aww… How cute, making excuses when you are in possession of one of the most powerful artifacts in the universe,” she said, placing her chin on her hand. “However, I am glad you are finally making progress on mastering the stone. Even sought out advice from someone who at least understands its power.” “Ooookay, but I’m sure that criticizing me about how I’ve barely made progress using the Space Stone isn’t the only reason I’m here, is it?” Shaking her head, her arm extended outward as her hand began to wave once more, the floating images warping like squished rubber and revealing the entire planet of Equestria. “There is a reason why I sent you to Equestria, not for the sole reason of just…’Entertaining’ me. The world of Equus has been separated from the cycle of life.” Marcus only looked confused when she said that. “What do you mean?” “I’m sure you know how life works, correct?” “Y-Yeah?” “You are born, you live, and you one day, die. After that your soul comes to me and I guide you to where you go in the afterlife. However, the souls of Equus, those who have been killed, haven’t made their way here,” she explained. Marcus might’ve found that information more surprising if he wasn’t momentarily inundated with flashbacks that made a drop of sweat roll down his back. “Do you know what happened to them?” “I have a theory, but I don’t have enough evidence to support it at the moment. From what I’ve managed to gather, the culprit behind this is an entity who is not a part of this timeline. One who is in possession of the Soul Stone, the most unique and powerful of the six Infinity Stones,” she explained. In an instant, a long line of light spanning infinitely in both directions appeared with a flash. “W-Wait, you said two timelines? As in, a different world with different events taking place?” Marcus asked incredulously. “Yes,” she responded. “As you can see, the timeline used to be one, until right here.” She pointed at the middle where the line suddenly split in two, like a fork in the road. Marcus noticed that the lines splitting are different colors. The green line was veering off to the right while the orange line was going to the left. “Is the green one our timeline?” Marcus asked. Death nodded. “This is the timeline we are currently in… A timeline where I don’t have influence. I can feel millions of souls who should have crossed over in agony in this other timeline. Those souls are trapped and I can’t physically enter this world until the split is mended.” “So this is the real reason why I’m here? To fix this split in the timeline?” Marcus asked. Almost immediately, he began pondering theories of his own, trying to extract any and all information from his past three weeks here. Then suddenly, something clicked. “Faerie… She must know something about this…? She had the Time Stone and she kept talking like she had gone through… a lot. Maybe she knows what happened?” Marcus suggested, rubbing his chin before he looked up towards Death, who was smiling at him. “Then, for the time being, I suggest you focus on mastering the Space Stone and obtain the Time Stone,” she said, before pulling out a pocket watch and looking at the time. “I’m afraid I’m out of time here… I do have my duties and you have a date you need to get ready for with a certain… party pony, right?” “W-Woah, woah, I’m not going on a date. I don’t even like ponies, and in case you forgot, I’m human-” “You were human, but now you’re one of them. Your mind hasn’t fully adjusted to being a pony yet, but I think sometime in the near future you’ll start seeing things differently,” Death said, giving him a smirk that sent a cold chill riding up his spine. “N-Not gonna happen,” “Sure it won’t~ Ta, ta~” Death said. Marcus then blinked, and Death snapped her fingers. He blinked again, and suddenly he was waking up in the opening he had found. He paused for a moment when he glanced at the sky, its bright orange hues filling the heavens. He had spent much longer than intended here. It's not a date. It's just two friends going for a walk together…. Alone… at night… Just the two of us… who is also a girl… … Holy shit! Did I ask Pinkie out on a date!?! Marcus suddenly started feeling a little flushed as he got back up. However, as he began the journey back to Ponyville, he was unaware of two orange eyes hiding in the trees, watching him as the figure stepped out of the shadows. The long scars littered across their face didn’t prevent them from grinning as the alicorn was now out of sight. “Hmm… how interesting? I suppose my sources weren't exaggerating about an alicorn prince arriving here in this hillbilly hick town. I'll need to get a closer look at this fool when the opportunity arises. After all, it’s not every day I get to meet a Stone Keeper.”