Hello again, everypony! Jagun requested that I make a birthday chapter for him, because his birthday is the same day as Mobius'... Mobius' birthday is January 30, and don't ask why. I just picked a random date.
Also, this takes place about a year and a half into Mobius' future, because I can.
Sunlight streamed in through the windows. I slowly pushed myself up and grunted. Last night was crazy. Pinkie had thrown another party, and Lovely Luna it lasted two whole days. TWO WHOLE DAYS, I tell you! I had been slightly grateful when it was over. So many drunk ponies... it scared me.
I rolled out of the bed and landed on my paws... and wait, was that clouds!?
I turned quickly back to the bed, and saw that it was empty. Thank the Gods... oh, Luna, I thought... Damn.
I walked through the cloud house and found everypony except for AJ in the living room. Okay, then...
"Uh, what are we all doing here?" I asked, trying to seem casual.
Twilight looked up from her book. "Well, we came here after the party, and then... well, I don't remember. You disappeared almost immediately, and the rest of us talked for a while."
I breathed a silent sigh of relief. At "I don't remember," I almost fainted.
"Well, then." I said, "What do we all want for breakfast?"
It turns out that that was decided for us, because Applejack walked in at that moment with some apple pastries. I don't remember what they all are, but they were delicious.
Pinkie tried to say something with her mouth full, but instead got crumbs over everyone.
"Hey, say it, don't spray it!" I chuckled as I wiped the crumbs away. Then I realized something. I was human. "Hey, uh, anyone know how I suddenly turned human?"
Pinkie glanced at me, then swallowed. "You changed when we got here. Remember?"
I shook my head. "Uh, no."
Pinkie giggled and Applejack smirked. "Looks like someone had too much cider." she said, her accent now tinged with teasing humor.
I lightly shoved her. "Oh, come off it!"
Rainbow snickered, and said. "I saw you. You were staggering around by halfway through the second day." Her laughs erupted and she fell to the floor, tears streaming down her face.
I shrugged. "Okay, okay. So I got a little drunk. But Pinkie was the one who threw a two-day-long party!" I shot her a teasing glare. "Why did it have to last that long, again?"
Pinkie grinned, "Because, silly! Parties are supposed to be fun!"
I chuckled and ruffled her mane. Oh, Pinkie.
Twilight started to say something, when suddenly a bright flash lit up the sky, followed by a resounding "BOOM-CRASH!"
Fluttershy hid under the couch, and Rarity dropped a brush she had been using. Her hair poofed immediately out of place. Pinkie, Twilight, and Applejack all turned to look out the window, while Rainbow actually dashed out of the house.
"Dash! Wait!" I called as I leaped out of the window. My wings... oh, that's right. I'm human right now. Shit.
I plummeted, unable to summon my wings that I used in human form. Oh well.
Quickly I changed into A.L.S. form and spread my wings wide, stopping about three yards from the ground. Well, that's something out of the way. Now I just have to catch up to Rainbow. That could have been Hunter!
And of course, the ponies knew it. I saw a flash of purple light and my friends were off to find Rainbow. I pushed my wings harder until I remembered.
"Stupid..." I muttered. I used the spacial spell and immediately felt as if I were passing through an electrical field. My body buzzed and then I found myself flying...
Right into a tree. I cried out in surprise at the tree that had just appeared in front of me, as if waiting. Literal stars, or something like that, floated around my head. Okay, that's new.
I swayed to my feet and looked around. We were in a clearing at Sweet Apple Acres, and the clearing wasn't supposed to be there. Trees were flattened out and burned. The six mares that were my friends just sat there, gaping at a crater in the center.
I looked closely at the prone form in said crater. It was... a human!?
I backed away slowly, and looked back at the others. They looked back at me, fear in their eyes. I put a finger to my lips and changed back into human form, then crept up to the crater.
The human groaned. The dust was clearing. I saw brown, short, wavy hair and green eyes. I also saw a light purple uniform with blue jeans. He had black sneakers on, and then what really got me was what came out of his back. Two large, orange wings spread out over half the radius of the crater from where he sat. Oh, no... this is... My thoughts raced as I searched for words.
"I- uh- you- uh- dead- why?" I sputtered out. What was he doing here? Horror spread through my veins and I was frozen in place.
The human groaned again, then sat up slowly. He blinked, coughing from the dust. Then he looked up at me, and recognition dawned in his eyes.
"Mobius?"
And that was when my world changed... for about the fiftieth time.
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"I'm not understanding." Rarity stated simply. I had helped the human out of the hole, and now we were gathered in in my house. It had been a little awkward at first.
(Flashback!)
"Jagun... you're alive?" I just stood there, gaping openly.
"Of course!" Jagun snorted. "It's only been what, like, a week?"
I shook my head. "No, Jagun. Four thousand years."
Jagun's head whipped around. "What!? B-but that means..." his voice trailed off.
I smiled sadly. "She died of depression, she commit suicide. I'm sorry."
Jagun shoulders slumped. "Oh. J-Jenny?" he asked shakily.
I shook my head. "Didn't die. But..."
Tears formed slightly in Jagun's eyes. "She... she hated me... right?"
I nodded, "Yes... but though it took her a while, she realized it wasn't your fault."
He nodded, and smiled, relieved. "But... did we win?"
He was talking about a battle. The Darks had attacked a dimension I had recently been to, and the Lunars and Solls worked together and had beaten them... at a high cost. Jagun had died, as well as over three thousand others, from every Clan.
(I now skip the sad stuff)
Then he told us his story. Which is now being retold.
(flashback end)
"Well, like I said, during the battle, enemies fell left and right to my broadsword." He swung his hands as if it were happening right now. "Then Riokin came out of nowhere."
I drew in a sharp breath. Riokin was a general... and still is... for the Darks. His power almost matches that of a God, but he can't obtain that level of power without dying. Anyway, he was extremely powerful and almost no one could match him, except for the best of the best.
I nodded slowly, "Now I see how you were defeated without so few wounds." Had he even gotten close to dying, Jagun would have gone berserk. One of the perks of Tank Seers.
He nodded, "Yeah... so, did we win?" his eyes were glowing with worry.
I nodded, but sadly. "Yes, we won. But at a high price. You and at least 3,000 Seers from the other Clans died."
He frowned, "That's too heavy a loss." he stated simply.
I chuckled grimly, "That it is, my friend. That it is. No side could do anything except nurse their wounds for a few years."
He sighed and shook his head. "It all seemed so real to me."
I nodded, and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.
Rainbow flicked her eyes from me to Jagun for a moment, then lost patience.
"Okay, what are you guys talking about?" she demanded, "All I'm hearing is war this, battle that!"
"Brave one, isn't she?" Jagun muttered. I chuckled, and reached out to Rainbow.
"Something that happened a long time ago. Don't really like to think about it." Was all I said. Rainbow dropped her eyes, the fire in them gone.
"Oh... sorry." she mumbled.
I wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "It's fine. Jagun's just a little confused, so he needed a recap."
Jagun nodded, and chuckled. "Am I ever. It seemed like no time at all in that place."
I looked at him, "What exactly happened?"
He took a deep breath, pain in his eyes.
A thought occurred to me. "Why don't I just delve into your memories?"
He looked up sharply, "And just... experience it?"
I nodded. "Yes."
He looked down, "I don't want to relive it, but... I don't want to cause you any harm."
I leaned in and whispered, "It'll only be just me."
He smiled slightly, "Good." He turned to me, "Well?"
I smiled, and then all went black.
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(Second Person View)
You run through the seemingly endless piles of dead soldiers. You look for one specific one, though. Not seeing him, you dive back into the fray.
Soldiers and Turned fall to your blade, a huge broadsword called Mdonfir. You swing it in wide circles, taking out at least three enemies and wounded others each time. Nothing is stopping you from cutting a line into the ranks. You begin to feel a rage bubbling inside of you, but you quickly push it down. Going berserk would probably mean inevitable death. You turn back to the task at hand, and more enemies fall.
Not too long later, you stumble upon a break in the ranks. The clearing is filled with dead bodies. But these aren't the enemy. They are all your allies.
You stumble backward, horrified, only to feel a point jab into your back. Whirling, you see a man clad in black leather armor, his face hidden deep within a cowl. He stays silent and still a moment before he says one word, but that one word carries more weight than you could even imagine.
"Goodbye."
Your body falls, motionless, hacked to pieces before your mind can process what he said. The last things you see and hear are cries of pain, and that black-clad man walking slowly away...
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You open your eyes to a murky background. Blinking, you sit up and look around, unsure of where you are. You don't remember anything except for your life up to... what happened again? You remember a man clad in black, but past that you run into a wall.
You stand up, surveying the area around you. Nothing much, except for a few shadows flitting by in the... shadows? Shadows in shadows... weird. You warily look around once more, then set off into the darkness.
Not long after the haze spreads out, but still surrounds a small path you are walking on. It closes behind you and opens in front whenever you pass by. Finally you reach a circle of stones, all set up to look like doorways. There are seven in all.
Suddenly, a man looking like a jester, but dressed in black, leaps out of the shadows. You take a few steps back, terrified, but then he laughs. It is a low, menacing laugh. You try to turn tail and flee but the shadows suddenly seem to solidify. You whirl back to the man and he begins to speak in a scratchy, guttural voice:
"Choices, choices, so many choices." he laughs again, "Which one is your choice?"
You glance around at the stones, then turn back, "What?" You ask in a dry, croaking voice.
The man turns to you. His face is gone, and his eyes aren't there. You can see his muscles working as he speaks.
"A choice of paths. You choose right, you win. You choose wrong, you die. You have three chances. So, which is it?"
A light suddenly comes from each doorway. Each glows white briefly before showing you what's inside. The man gestures to a doorway and repeats, "Which is it?"
You look at each doorway in slight fear. One looks bright and colorful, the next dark and gloomy. None look like home. You finally set off for one doorway that looks as if it could be alright. You see a mountainous area and a deep valley. Nothing looks like it could go wrong there.
But that's usually where bad things are bound to happen. In a daze, you had forgotten that crucial piece of information. You try to turn, but then hands roughly shove the rest of the way through the door.
Your vision goes black yet again...
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I pulled out of Jagun's memories, my face pinched.
He looked at me, "What?"
I said grimly, "That was part of the Abyss."
Jagun jumped back, shocked. "W-what!?"
I gave him another grim look, "That was the Choicemaker. He was lost in the Abyss many million years ago. He built that clearing to trap those who get lost in the Abyss. He gives them three choices to choose a new life, and only one doorway leads to that new life. If you fail three times, he takes our lost soul. You are one of the few survivors I've ever heard of."
Jagun shivered slightly, but then Rainbow butted in, "Hey! What're you talking about?"
I glanced at the six mares sitting around Jagun and me. If I can't trust them, I can't trust anypony. I briefly filled them in on what happened. Their eyes widened as I described the tale, and when I was finished, I added, "That's only the first bit. There's still his three choices."
Rainbow, ever loyal, demanded, "You need to take us with you this time!"
I shook my head, "Too dangerous."
Then I felt a hoof on my shoulder. I looked next to me and saw Pinkie, a serious look on her face. "Mobi, you're our friend. We won't leave you to so this alone."
The other mares put in their own snippets, and I gazed in shock at Pinkie. Where had this serious mood come from?
I looked back to Jagun. He shrugged. I shook my head slightly, but then grinned. "If you're going to be like that... I guess."
The girls grinned reassuringly, and I looked back to Jagun, and entered his memories once again.
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Author's note: Sorry I haven't posted a real chapter in a while. I'm working on the second half of part three as we speak... well type. It should be out within the next five days, if I don't hit another writer's block. I'm getting help from RLYoshi, though.
Hope this tides you off for a while.
Sincerely,
Mobius of the Moon; Seer, Writer, Artist, Dreamer.