//------------------------------// // 10: Styx and Stones May Break My Bones // Story: To Err is Equine // by RLYoshi //------------------------------// [Perspective: Arrell] Okay, two nights in a row of sleeping on park benches can not be good for your back. Oh well. I'm always hunched over now anyway since I have to walk on all fours, so take that, chiropractors! Anyway, I made my way back to Twilight's library, where Risk and False were actually well-rested and packed. They were each wearing a set of saddlebags with some supplies in them. Another set was waiting for me, and I checked inside it. There didn't seem to be more than a few days' worth of stuff inside. "I thought we were leaving for several weeks," I pointed out. "We're not just going to be wandering around aimlessly," False explained. "We'll be stopping by some towns and cities. We can pick up more supplies along the way." "I knew we were going to different towns and cities," I replied with a roll of my eyes, briefly forgetting that my lack of pupils made it impossible for them to see such an action. "I just thought it'd be easier – and cheaper – to pack everything we need from the start and only buy more stuff when we need it." "Do you want to haul around five times that stuff for several weeks?" Memories of failed weight lifting came back from Earth into my brain. "Touché." I slipped the saddlebags on. "Where are we going first?" "Stalliongrad," Risk answered. He motioned towards False. "According to her, it's only a couple days travel away, so we're good to go. Even though it's not even on any maps." "That tends to happen when cities have just been built in the past couple years," False said with a shrug. "I personally just consider it to be a combination of the snobs of Canterlot and the thugs of Manehatten, mixed with some bigotry and racism just for laughs." My eyes widened. "Racism?" "Yeah, racism. As far as I know, nopony in that city likes...well, anything other than ponies. Why? Not a big deal." ...are you so blind you can't see why I'm worrying, or are you just not giving a damn? I felt a little irritated, but whether it was at False or Stalliongrad's residents, I couldn't tell. "Leaving this early?" a voice came from upstairs. I looked up and saw Twilight looking at us from the second floor. "Yep," I answered with a nod. "Sorry, but I will be coming back to Ponyville eventually." Twilight giggled. "Oh, I don't mind. It was fun having you around." She started coming down the steps. "Before you go, though, I have something for you." I looked at False and Risk, as if expecting them to know what it was. They looked equally confused. While we were having our impromptu three-way staring contest, Twilight levitated a can out of a nearby drawer. Closer inspection revealed it to resemble a soda can, but whatever label might have been on it had been partially washed away. All that was left was some red and part of the serial code. "Zecora went back to the spot she found you at, and this was there," Twilight explained as she slipped the can into my left saddlebag. "She didn't know what it was, but she made sure not to open it. She believed you'd know what it was, or at least have some use for it." "Maybe," I replied with a shrug. "Don't really recognize it right now though. I'll check it out later." I gave her an awkward smile. "Thanks." She smiled back, not looking nearly as stupid as mine. "You're welcome, Arrell. Don't do anything dangerous, okay?" "Not on purpose," I promised with a chuckle. I turned back to False and Risk. "Let's hit the road! ...or the dirt path, given the circumstances. Either one." [Perspective: False Front] As the three of us trotted out of the library, I searched my mind for the directions to Stalliongrad. After a moment, I nodded at Arrell and Risk, heading in one direction. They followed without any argument, trusting my leadership. As they should. "If we keep going this way for a while, we'll see Stalliongrad, and then we can just correct our course if we need to," I told them. "Hope you both like walking." "As long as it isn't running," Arrell cheerfully replied. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. "Say, Arrell," I suddenly remembered. "Can I talk to you about something?" His smile vanished to become a look of confusion and...fear? Whatever it was, he nodded, and motioned for Risk to keep walking. Risk trotted up ahead of me and kept moving, giving me and Arrell time to chat as we walked. "If you're gonna yell at me, just get it over with," Arrell said. His reaction surprised me. I ask to talk to him, and he instantly gets scared and thinks I'm going to yell at him? I would've thought he'd jump at the chance to have a conversation. "That's not what this is about," I responded. "Does the word 'Styx' ring a bell?" "...like, the sticks on the ground, or the River Styx?" he asked. "What? Neither. I mean a person. Do you know anybody named Styx? Possibly a female, and almost definitely from your world?" He thought for a moment, getting lost in memory for a bit. He stopped walking after a few seconds, and I had to stop as well so he wouldn't be left behind. Eventually he snapped out of it, and as we trotted to catch up with Risk, he gave me his answer. "I think there was a mythical goddess called Styx," he explained. "I don't know the whole story, since Wikipedia isn't very informative, but from what I know she was the goddess of the River Styx I mentioned, which has a story of its own that I won't bother getting into right now. She was the first to side with Zeus, the king of the gods, during the Titan war, and so Zeus declared that every oath must be sworn upon her. She was also the goddess of hatred, if I recall." My eyes must have been as wide as dinner plates. Here was some idiot I barely knew, spouting complicated facts of his own world like it was common knowledge. All I can say is that I'd have trouble calling him stupid for a while. "Why?" he suddenly asked, snapping me back to reality. I explained my dream to him, expecting him to brush it off as being 'just a dream'. Instead, he took it all seriously, as though he believed me. Actually, he did believe me. "So the goddess Styx sent me to Equestria?" He put a hoof to his chin in thought. "Well, that explains why I became a Windigo...goddess of hatred and all that. But why me, why Equestria, and...well, why me?" "Arrell?" We looked up and saw Risk in front of us. He had a serious look on his face, and we could tell he had heard our conversation. "The River Styx...could you tell us about it?" he asked politely, somewhat contrasting his look. [Perspective: Arrell] He wants to know about the River Styx? Why? It wasn't the river that sent me here... I shrugged. "Alrighty then. I don't remember all of it, though." I kept walking, and Risk and False followed. "The River Styx was like a path from Earth to the underworld – sort of like the Tartarus for humans. There are a bunch of different legends about how one would cross the river. Some say you had to put a coin in the mouth of a dead body, to pay a toll of sorts for a boat ride." "Sounds weird," False broke in. "There's weirder legends and theories, trust me. Anyway, they say that Achilles, a great hero in myth, was dipped into the river by his mother. The river made him completely invincible, except for his heel, since his mother held him by the heel to dip him in. Long story short, he later got shot in the heel and died, but that's another story." "Why didn't his mother just dip his heel in afterwards?" Risk asked. "And if the river made people invincible, why didn't they just swim across rather than pay for a boat ride?" False added. "Hey, don't shoot the messenger. I don't know either of these things. And I don't know anything else either about the river. Those two legends are all I know of, plus the one about the goddess." Risk thought for a moment. "Well, I don't know why you came to Equestria of all places...but I think I might know why you were chosen." Author's Notes: Sorry for a short chapter; the next one is going to likely be a long one and take a while, so I wanted to get this out first. And ooh, cliffhanger! What do you guys think the reason is for Arrell being chosen, and what does it have to do with the River Styx? I enjoy watching speculation, so feel free to post guesses in the comments!