//------------------------------// // The Nameless City // Story: Pinkie's Dream Quest // by MadHauk //------------------------------// Part Six: The Nameless City Pinkie Pie hugged Carrot Top goodbye and thanked her once again both for saving her life and for showing her the way to the city she was seeking. Then she bounced happily into the sunrise with renewed energy, now that her quest once again seemed promising. As she approached the city she could start to make out a huge stone wall and towers and spires sticking up behind it. It was hard to tell the size of the city from this distance, but Pinkie judged it could not be much smaller than Canterlot, although not as tall. When she got closer she saw a big wooden gate, apparently reinforced by unicorn-magic. Strangely enough there didn’t seem to be a road, or even a path leading up to the gate, only the same bulgy hill-land all the way. This lack of trotted paths, combined with the complete stillness of the city, made Pinkie wonder if the city was abandoned after all, and that her journey had been a waste of time; but she had not come this fare to turn at the gate, so she kept walking. And suddenly a voice from the guard post above the gate stopped her. “Halt! Who goes there! Only scholars and agents are allowed in the sacred city. No entry for civilians!” “But I am after a message,” Pinkie Pie pleaded. “What does it take to be accepted into the city?” “I already told you. Only scholars and agents are allowed. I can tell you are not an agent, because if you were you would know the passphrase. And I can tell you are not a scholar, for you are far too young to have passed the Advanced Studies of the Worlds History and Lore.” The guard declared, and then added, almost as a joke. “So unless you happen to be a first-hand witness to a major event in Equestrian history, your chances of admittance are rather slim.” “Oh, shoot!” Pinkie exclaimed disappointed. “I have seen some reasonably important events though, should I just tell you about them and then you’ll decide if their important enough?” The guard seemed amused at Pinkies confidence, and it wasn’t like he had a whole lot to do, so he told her to go right ahead. “Okie, dokie. I’ve been at the Grand Galloping Gala! That’s something isn’t it?” “The gala has been held every year for centuries, with hundreds of attendees every time, it’s hardly a unique event.” “Oh, but I got more! I was at the royal wedding! I even arranged the festivities!” “Better, but still, that wedding had many guests, arranging the festivities is not really that big of a deal, considering what other events occurred that day.” “I’ve seen a Sonic Rainboom! Actually I’ve seen two! The first one got me my cutie mark by inspiring my very first party.” “Wait a minute -" the guard pony mumbled to himself as he started to recognize who he was dealing with, but Pinkie kept on talking without paying him any mind. “The second time was in Cloudsdale. It was my good friend Rainbow Dash who performed them both times.” “Excuse me one second,” he finally interrupted her with. “Are you saying that you are Pinkie Pie, the bearer of the element of laughter, one of the six elements of harmony?” “Yup, that’s me!” Pinkie said cheerfully. “What’s your name?” “That’s not important! Are you saying that you were there when Night Mare Moon returned and was transformed back into Princess Luna?” “Oh, yes, that was fun!” “And you stopped Discord when he plunged Equestria into chaos?” “Yes, I do miss that chocolate rain…” “And you were there to save the Chrystal Empire from King Sombra when both returned?” “Well, that was mostly Spike, but I won’t deny my awesome flugelhorn-playing-skills might have made a difference.” At this point the guard had no more questions, but simply turned around and shouted an order to somepony on the other side of the wall. Soon a field of unicorn-magic lifted the heavy bolt that locked the gate and the gate swung open. Pinkie marched proudly through the gate and the guard immediately greeted her on the other side. He bowed and shook her hoof and apologized for every delay and inconvenience she had been burdened with. He then suggested that she should meet the Grand Scholar in person. “Who is that?” Pinkie asked. “Not many know,” the guard answered. “The first Grand Scholar was the founder of this city, and of the secret order that protects it. Some say the Grand Scholar is immortal; perhaps even an Alicorn, and never changes, while other insists he chooses his own heir when his time comes. I’ve never met him; he lives in the tallest tower and never leaves. He only accepts very special guests.” Pinkie felt suddenly quite small and awestruck by all this grandeur and mystery, but she was certain that if anypony knew anything about what she was after it would definitely be the Grand Scholar. So she followed the guard to the door of the tower where he held the door for her and closed it after her when she had come inside. Inside the tower there was a staircase that felt incredibly short compared to how tall the tower had looked from the outside. When Pinkie emerged at the top of the stair she found herself in what looked like a small library with a big terrace filled with plants and springs. On a bench among the threes sat an old, long-haired cat about the size of a school-filly. “Come and sit, my dear filly,” the cat said as Pinkie entered. “I know you have a burning question on your mind, but have you considered that sometimes the mystery is more exciting than the answers?” “But I have to know! I need to know! Oh please wise grandpa cat, can’t you tell me?” The cat looked at her for a while and then laughed. “You haven’t even told me what answer you are asking for, and yet you are that confident that I can give it. Are you always this optimistic?” Pinkie nodded. “Yep, always; and it usually turns out just fine!” “Very well then,” the cat said. “You are looking for an old legend, am I correct? A certain magical cave, if I’m not mistaken. Well, first I want you to know that you are not the first to go looking for this, and none of the other have ever returned; at least not to my knowledge. But that will not stop you from going, will it?” Pinkie just shaked her head and waited for the cat to continue. “I thought so. Well, I can give you some directions on where to look, and some advice on how to get there in one piece; but I will make one thing perfectly clear: I do strongly advise you to let this whole thing go and just go home. But since you will not take that advice I guess the second best thing is to maximize your chances of success. “Come here,” he said, and led Pinkie towards the edge of the terrace where they could get a full view of the mountains surrounding the city. “Do you see that road, going in between the mountains over there? No pony knows who built that road or why, but that is where they have all gone. Now as I said: no pony who has ventured that road has ever returned, but a few managed to send back reports along the way by help of magic, so I have a certain idea of at least a few of the threats you’ll have to look out for. “First of all, stay on the road. These mountains are uncharted and treacherous; if you leave the road you are lost and will not be able to find your way back. “Second, keep your eyes on the road in front of you. Don’t look away and don’t look back. Those mountains play tricks with both light and sounds and ponies start imagining the weirdest things. Don’t let that distract you. Keep your eyes forward, no matter what. “Third, don’t stop, no matter what. The weather changes in a matter of minutes and snowstorms and avalanches are not uncommon. So, did you get all that?” “Yes sir, ma’am, sir!” Pinkie saluted. “One: Stay on the road! Two: Keep eyes forward! Three: Don’t stop!” “Good. I wish you good luck. And please, if you succeed, come back here and let me know.” “I will! Thanks for everything, and good bye!” And so Pinkie started on the last part of her journey. She left the city through the same gate through which she had entered, saying farewell to the guard on the way, and finding her way to the hidden road through the mountains. The road turned out to be a lot bigger than it had seemed from above. It was med from huge polished blocks of stone, apparently chopped out of the mountainside, but certainly not by any pony or even group of ponies. Pinkie, fighting off her curiosity, remembered the three rules; so without further delay she turned her gaze forward and set away in a fast trot. The road was flat and polished, apparently untouched by time and only making a slight incline into the mountain range, so the trip did at first look out to be an easy one. That impression did not last long, however. Soon the mountains closed in on both sides and bathed the road in shadow and a horribly cold wind gushed against Pinkie's face, slowing her down. Pinkie tried to start a song to calm herself and pass the time, but the hollow, uncanny echo of her voice thrown back at her from the naked, cold, rocky mountainsides was to unsettling to bear. She trotted on in silence, but soon the echoes of her hoof-beats became equally terrifying. Pinkie was tempted to stop for a moment, just to make sure it was all her and not somepony, or something, following her. But remembered the cat's orders and did not stop. Soon the wind started making weird noises as it gushed trough the pass. Every crack and ravine in the mountains made the wing imitate a different sound, here the howl of a wolf, here the scream of a frightened filly and here the deep rumbling of a snoring dragon. Every sound made by the wind required a new surge of willpower from Pinkie to resist turning her eyes to see if it was really just the wind and not something horrible or fascinating. The road itself looked exactly the same. It had no cracks, marks or any other features to tell Pinkie that she was progressing at all, but she kept her eyes forward and kept going. The cold wing and the deep shadow of the mountains gave her the feeling that night had fallen, but she could not be certain. Judging from how tired she was, she felt sure she had been at it for several hours. Suddenly Pinkie noticed something in the corner of her eye. It was an area of deeper shadow by the side of the road. It could be a cave or a crack in the mountainside; or it could be a patch of trees or maybe a building; or it could simply be a part of the mountainside consisting of darker stone. It took Pinkie all her will to keep her eyes on the road and not to slow down. The wing was still bearing down at her at full strength, creating all manner of sounds in her ears and making her eyes water. As she kept running the dark shadows kept haunting the corners of her eyes, and each time her curiosity kept growing, until the point that she could not take it anymore. As the area to her left turned dark, and the wind hurled a windigo-like whine, she turned her head to look; and she beheld a stunning view. The darkness was simply an open space between the mountains, and suddenly she could see for miles. All the way back was a moonless, starry night-sky; before it was several layers of mountains. Pinkie slowed her pace a little to admire the view. She had always been fascinated with how when you move things close to you and things far away seem to move relative to each other. Like now, when the edge of the path were rushing past at the speed she was trotting, while the mountains closest to her were rushing much slower and the stars were seemingly keeping up with her. And then there were that one mountain that moved among all the others as if it were alive. Wait a minute. Pinkie stopped cold in her tracks. As she stopped, so did the track and the mountains and the stars, but that hulking, shadowy figure raging in height over several, if not all, of even the tallest mountains, kept walking on. There were no evidence that the thing even knew Pinkie was there, or if it did that it was in any way malevolent, but the very fact that such a thing could exist and move around in her world was more than Pinkie could stand. She let out a shriek of fright, closed her eyes and galloped blindly, hoping the road kept going straight ahead. She ran at her full speed, no longer caring for wind or echoes or anything else, only running. After a good while she felt trough her eyelids that the light changed. She stopped running, opened her eyes and found herself in an enormous cave bathed in a faint, eerie, magic-like glow.