//------------------------------// // Chapter 14 - The Chill of Metal and Stone // Story: Scion of Chaos // by SilentBelle //------------------------------// Scion of Chaos - Chapter 14: The Chill of Metal and Stone By: SilentBelle With a sudden jump, and the sound of Ruben clearing his throat, the filly's attention was pulled back to reality. “Sweetie Belle, follow me. I will take Sweetie Belle to a safe place,” Ruben announced with a curt nod and began to walk without looking to see if she followed. “I am to look after Sweetie Belle and see that all Sweetie Belle's needs are met.” The unicorn smiled, as she trotted to catch up to him, though she cringed inwardly at the overuse of her name. “Thank you, Ruben, you have been nice to me. So, where are we going?” “West, not far.” “Isn't it amazing that he can tell the direction under all this stone?” But it doesn't help me at all, she thought while shaking her head. Well at least it's not far, I'm tired of walking. “I mean, what place are we going to?” “Out of the way, away from sounds of digging and talking. Quiet place, perfect for talking to your mind,” he replied in his slow, grating drawl. “'Talking to your mind?'” she mused aloud. “What do you mean by that?” “Hmm?” the diamond dog responded, while scratching his ear. “Talking to thoughts, like Sweetie Belle talks to me, and me to Sweetie Belle, only silent.” “So, you mean 'thinking', then?” “No. 'Thinking' is on feet, and moving. 'Thinking' is action. 'Talking to your mind' is quiet, sitting, closed eyes and awake. Very different.” “Huh,” the white unicorn huffed. But aren't those both 'thinking'? I don't get it. The rest of the walk passed in a relative silence as the pair made their way to the mouth of a dark tunnel. Sweetie Belle decided to light up her horn once again. She smiled smugly, at the ease with which the light sparked to life. Once within the tunnel, it couldn't have taken more than a few minutes until they reached a small cave. A single glowcrystal shone dimly from within, mounted snugly upon the far wall. Sweetie Belle couldn't quite make out any details further than a few feet away from herself. That was one of the downsides to the light spell, anything not in the immediate vicinity fell into sheer darkness. After all, the light was shedding from her horn, which was incredibly close to her eyes. With a pause, just as she entered the room, she focused on her spell and shaped it into a cone before her. In the next moment she was turning her head every which way as she plodded into the room in order to map out the new area. As she turned her head to the left, in a small indent in the wall, something on the ground suddenly caught in her beam of light, multiple somethings. They looked like three identical blocks of dark stone. Upon a second glance, the stones, almost seemed to eat the light rather than reflect it. “Wait, haven't I seen this stone before?” “Girl!” Scoddri's voice called forth in a surprisingly panicked manner. “Remember the ruins! Remember the stone that ate your magic, these are the same! Sweetie Belle, it's a trap!” But the voice's warnings came too late as Sweetie Belle suddenly felt two firm hands grasp her from behind. With a squeal of surprise, she lost hold of her magic and her light dissipated. The room fell into sudden darkness which only served to spur her into motion. She kicked and flailed about in her panic. Then, in the next moment, she felt the world spin around her as she was flipped over and firmly dropped upon the ground. It didn't hurt so much as it knocked the wind out of her. Before she could so much as get back onto her hooves, she could hear the sound of metal clicking against metal in a hurried and unmelodious manner. The sound was soon accompanied by something cold and heavy snapping snugly around her neck. “Ruben, what are you doing?!” she shouted as she maneuvered her forelegs in a futile attempt to pry the metallic collar off. “I am most sorry, Sweetie Belle,” his rough and apologetic voice sounded from a few feet away. “But I follow my orders faithfully.” The unicorn quickly sprung to her hooves and made to run away. She got as far as the third step when she felt the force of the collar around her neck. She fell, landing splayed upon the ground, coughing and sputtering. “Calm yourself girl,” the voice cried out faintly, she almost couldn't hear it, it sounded so distant, “panic will only serve to cause you more harm. You are chained to the wall, and worse still, you are trapped near a deposit of scavenged stones that will eat your magic.” Sweetie Belle blinked back some tears and slowly pushed herself off of the dusty stone floor. With a gentle tug, she confirmed that she was indeed chained to the wall. Looking around, her eyes eventually began to adjust to the light from the single glowcrystal in the room. She could just make out the silhouette of Ruben leaning gently against the wall by the mouth of the small cave. “So, then you lied to me, Ruben?” she asked in a hurt voice. “I thought you were my friend.” “I never lied to Sweetie Belle. No, and I never called Sweetie Belle friend. I have no friends,” the gravelly voice said mournfully. “All I have is a family and my duty to them. I need nothing more.” “But, you said you'd help me get out of the caves.” “No, Sweetie Belle misunderstands. I said you must go down to go up. Sweetie Belle has gone down and will go up. But not yet.” “Not yet?” Sweetie Belle asked as her predicament became suddenly clear. “But, then how long will I be down here for?” “I do not know Sweetie Belle. I have not been told.” “You can't do this to me, I'm just a filly," she protested, pulling the chain taught as she struggled. "I don't even have my cutie mark yet.” “Denying reality serves Sweetie Belle no purpose, just stay and wait. Talk to your mind, and soon enough I will take Sweetie Belle up, out of the underground.” With that comment, the diamond dog turned to leave. “Ruben,” Sweetie Belle's voice called out sternly into the darkness. “You can stop calling me Sweetie Belle, only my friends call me that.” “A pretty name. It is a shame, but if that is what you want, then so be it, pony.” The unicorn closed her eyes to stop the welling tears as she heard the large dog make his way back through the tunnel. Soon enough, silence bore down upon her with the weight of a mountain, broken only by the gentle sniffles of the lonely girl. Though, in time, even those sounds drifted away as the fatigue of the day drained the last of her strength. * * * In a mountain of darkness, I sit here alone. Tied up and chained to these cold stones. I wait for your voice but hear no sound, Just the echoes of caves and tunnels abound. My voice is fading Into darkness and cold. My adventure is ending With my story untold. I'm looking for you, my guiding light. Where are you now? So far from my sight. I hope and I pray As it all fades away. Where are you Scoddri? And why didn't you stay? * * * “That's not the cheerful tune I expect to hear from such a young girl,” a certain voice spoke quietly, in a saccharine tone, awakening the unicorn from her half-asleep state. “While the lyrics could definitely use some work, your voice remains as charming as ever.” “Scoddri!” she exclaimed and picked herself off the ground. “Where were you? Why did you leave me alone?” “I never left, my dear,” he said gently. “But my voice could not reach you no matter how loud I shouted. That's why, even now, my voice sounds fleeting to your ears. We don't have much time to talk before I am lost to you once again. But remember girl, I will not leave you alone, even if you can't hear me, I am here.” “But, then what's causing you to fade away?” “I'm surprised you haven't figure it out yet, girl. It's those stones, take a look at what they are doing to you.” Sweetie Belle squinted, and focused upon the three large blocks of stone. She could just barely see three shimmering emerald strands, as thin and pristine as a strand of spider's silk catching the light of the sun. They all converged upon the tip of her horn. “That's my magic?” she asked in incredulity. “But it's so faint.” “That is because you have so little magic left my dear, it grows hard for you to see magic if you don't have any magic yourself. The same holds true for hearing my voice.” “But, how do I stop it?” she asked again, nervousness entering her voice. She didn't like the idea of the stones stealing her magic. “How can I get out?” In an act of sudden desperation she reached inside to her inner magic and pulled at it, channeling the power to her horn. In the next moment, the three strands flashed brighter for a time, and a shiver traveled through her spine as she felt the power melt away from her grasp. “There is nothing I can do for you girl,” Scoddri called out in the barest of whispers, which carried a tone of sadness, the likes of which she had never before heard from the voice. “But you have the ability to go far girl, trust your instincts.” His final words faded away as quickly as they had been spoken and somehow Sweetie Belle knew that she would hear no more of his voice so long as she was chained up near these stones. Shivering, a wave of fatigue washed over her and slumped back down upon the floor, as far from the three stones as the short chain would allow. Closing her eyes, the unicorn welcomed the oblivion of sleep. * * * It seemed like only the blink of an eye, then she awoke. She didn't feel any less tired than when she had closed her eyes. In fact, now her entire body had begun to ache and her limbs felt stiff. Not to mention that her throat was feeling extremely dry. She was quick to note that the three strands of energy still glowed lightly from her horn. She felt even more lethargic than she had on those long summer weekends where she would sleep in until noon. And she knew the reason for it, it was simple enough to guess. These stones had been slowly taking her magic away from her. She knew that magic was a primary component of everything, a pony couldn't be alive if they had no magic. So, as I lose my magic, I lose my energy and slowly stop living, she concluded with a shiver. A sound echoed from the room's entrance causing the filly to pull herself from her reverie. It was the low, unhurried, yet rhythmic, plodding sound of footsteps. Before the footfalls made their way into the room, Sweetie Belle was already sure of who was approaching. Ruben. And sure enough the large diamond dog rounded the corner, his ruby sparkling subtly at his neck. He stepped inside the room, and to Sweetie Belle's surprise he was carrying something in each paw, though she couldn't make out what his burden was in the low light of the chamber. Without so much as a pause he walked right up to Sweetie Belle, and gently laid the two items upon the ground before her. She opened her mouth to voice her curiosity, but all that came forth was a dry cough; Her throat hurt. Once her small fit of coughing abated, it only took her a moment to register what the items were. Two crudely fashioned metallic bowls, one of which she noticed was filled with water, the other had numerous lumpy brown and white things in it. Slowly, and with a general feeling of soreness, the unicorn reached her head over to the bowl of water and quickly drained its contents. Clearing her throat, the filly found her voice once again. “Ruben, thank you for the water. Do you know when I'm going to be released from here?” “Pony is welcome. I do not know when pony is to be released. Boss has not told me. I did not ask; it is not my place to ask.” “I see,” Sweetie Belle said, too tired to feel upset. “So, then what's in the other bowl?” “Cave mushroom, food for pony.” “Is it safe?” she asked dubiously. “Rarity always told me not to eat strange mushrooms, she said they could be exceedingly dangerous.” “It's a plant, like grass or trees. Ponies eat plants.” “Well, if you say so,” she replied sullenly, as her stomach growled audibly at the thought of eating. “I've never had mushrooms before, I just hope it doesn't taste as bad as grass does.” She reached into the bowl and picked out a small mushroom, and chewed on it. A look of uncertainty soon dominated her visage. Hmm, the texture is weird, and there's not much taste. It's better than grass anyway. With her stomach guiding her, Sweetie Belle quickly devoured the contents of the second bowl as promptly as she had drained the first. “Thanks for the food as well, Ruben.” “Pony's thanks is unnecessary, I do as I am told. Nothing more.” “And just what have you been told.” The diamond dog stared at the filly directly for a moment before deciding to speak. “I have been told to take pony down to this safe place," he said motioning to the cave they were in. "Put chain on pony. Make sure pony is safe. Make sure pony's needs are met. Do not take chain off of pony until boss says. Once pony is out of chains, take pony out of underground,” he finished in his slow drawl. “Boss said nothing about not talking.” “So, once I get these chains off, then you will take me to the surface? Well, I need to get this chain off,” she claimed, hoping that it might work. “No, pony does not need to remove chain, pony wants to remove chain. I shall not remove the chain until boss says. Only once chain is removed will I take pony out of underground.” Sweetie Belle frowned, and began to think for a while. Perhaps the food was already giving her more energy, at least her mind seemed a little less foggy. She lay still for a while, trying to think of any way to trick Ruben into letting her out. While mulling over the possibilities, or lack of them, as the case may be, Sweetie Belle noticed a faint glimmer out of her periphery. Up towards the top of the cave wall, something glowed, a glow that hadn't been there before. It shimmered gently in a magenta hue. After blinking a few times to ensure its validity, she determined that it must be some form of magic, and her gut told her that she knew who the owner was. There was no mistaking that shade of magenta. Twilight. She was certain of it. Quickly, her mind began to work as she guessed at what the spell could be. It looked like a shallow dome, two feet across and protruding from the wall like an over-sized pimple, and it just sat there, motionless. Tilting her head, she pondered for a while until she recalled a certain voice's words. “You have the ability to go far girl, trust your instincts.” Closing her eyes, and focusing solely upon Twilight's magic, she came up with a plan. She just hoped it would work. She reached deep within herself for the magic that flowed from her heart. Grabbing as much as she dared, she felt a pang from within, but gritted her teeth against the pain, she had been expecting it. In the next moment, she forced the magic to the tip of her horn as fast as she could. She felt the energy quickly melting away, but she didn't back down, she would follow through with her plan. With all of her focus, she shot her magic forth, straight at the magenta blemish upon the cave wall. She felt it instantly. Twilight's aura, and with it her feelings. Confusion, she felt, and surprise as well. Quickly, she then pulled at the purple unicorn's magic with her own and smiled as she saw the large spell quickly changing colour, into the same emerald glow of her own energy. In the next moment, she felt panic, Twilight's panic. She knew it wasn't her emotion. I'm sorry Twilight, but I have to steal your magic again. With a gasp, the filly pulled all of the now-green magic back into her horn. It felt as though she held as much magic as the ruby had contained, or that time she used the flowing river to scare off the owlbear. Even with the three large tendrils of energy siphoning from it, the amount of magic was phenomenal to the filly. This should be enough, but I have to do it fast, before it drains away. The filly imagined, thought--no, neither of those were strong enough--she knew she wasn't in the alcove by those rocks any more. She knew she was three feet further forward, out of reach of the chain, and facing Ruben. With a pop she heard it, and felt as the world shifted around her. She heard the clang of the metal collar falling upon the stones of the cave. She opened her eyes to see the new reality she had bestowed upon herself. A new reality that carried the slight scent of singed hair. Before her, Ruben stood with his jaw dropped. “How? how did pony do that?” “Magic,” she said with a grin as her knees buckled beneath her. End of Chapter 14