//------------------------------//
// Chapter 1: Stranger in a Strange Land 
// Story: The Land of Song and Dance 
// by Aestroch 
//------------------------------//

My armour was drenched in blood, sweat and tears. The sweat and tears would wash out.

Even in my sorrow filled state, I cringed at wearing the blood of my herd, but it was all I was allowed to leave with. I promised myself a bath at the first stream I could find. After strapping my armour on, I hitched my twin shields to my upper arms and pauldrons to leave my hands free. I took one last look at the once majestic form of the alpha buck, now laid low and lifeless, before turning my back to the setting sun and walked to the edge of the camp and beyond.

The Raal Forest began taking on its characteristic darkness as night fell. The occasional tree would block my way, but that was easily circumnavigated, and I could continue in the same direction. Occasional shrubs would catch my feet, but the slick status of the antler and the dogged stubbornness with which I trod on made short work of them.

Once complete darkness had fallen, I heard the telltale snuffling of predators nearby, attracted to the scent of blood wafting from my armour. The underlying scent of the Steelbone Deer kept them at a cautious distance, however, and I continued on my way unhindered.

Through the night I trudged, shifting out of the way of increasingly frequent trees, barely taking note of what passed beneath my feet. I found myself passing glades and clearings full of flowers, but no rivers yet. I must have been nearing the edge of the forest; more light was finding its way from the moon onto my path.

Flowers, bushes, vines and all manner of small animal became nuisances as the night came to a close. Despite a rising sun, the forest retained its dark and gloomy atmosphere. Morning dew became fog, and early rising predators began to take more interest in me. From the cover stemming from the fog and darkness, I could see softly glowing eyes keeping track of my progress through their territory.

Soon, I had to stop. My feet dragged at the ground, my shoulders sagged and I could barely keep my eyes open. Finally, I could take no more of the forest’s increasingly difficult trail, and merely collapsed onto a tree. My stomach groaned quietly at me in protest to our forced march, but I quelled the desire to hunt. Many of the animals around me must still be under Raasinav’s domain, and I shuddered to think of what he would do if I tried to go back on my promise not to eat his kin.

After a short time of rest, I became aware of the eyes watching me once more. Mindful of my vulnerability, I dug my shields into the ground, angled towards the tree I lay against. A determined, or very strong, predator could knock them aside, but for now, I was content to sleep under the protective half-dome afforded by my shields and the tree. 

I had one last thought before I fell asleep.

“Interesting bark. Never seen anything like it.”


Ψ	 Ψ 	Ψ


I was rousted from my sleep by a sliver of sunlight falling across my eye. A quick mental catalogue told me that I still had all of my extremities, and had been left undisturbed. My stomach growled once again, louder and more insistent, reminding me of the two days I had gone without food or water. I silently promised it a drink before bathing, and stood up, hunger placated for the moment.

I could feel the eyes of many creatures on me as I arose. Strapping my shields to my forearms seemed to be a good idea at the time. Rested and alert, I took stock of my surroundings. The flora looked odd, more colourful than the last time I had strayed this close to the edge of the forest. I did not recognize much of anything, but that came as no surprise to me. I could get my bearings from the edge of the forest. I looked up to pinpoint the position of the sun.

Continuing east proved more problematic than I had anticipated. Dips and dew became crags and caverns, laced with vines and moss. Clambering up and down these crags proved easy, though tedious in such heavy armour. As night began to fall, I heard water streaming from below as I came to a canyon deeper than any I had passed on the way.

Peering over the edge, I saw only mist. Suddenly, I was confronted with the image of a long climb, followed by a slip and fall. I decided not to brave this particular hazard, and instead chose to take the second direction given to me by Raasinav: North.

I had become familiar with the feeling of being watched, and the tingling on the back of my neck told me that I was under severe scrutiny. Perhaps by the predators following me, or some unknown god, wondering who had stumbled upon its territory? I hefted my shields and eyed the forest around me warily.

The sense of being inspected increased as I trudged northward, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that whatever it was that was watching me, it was pleased by what it saw. This did not make me feel welcomed at all, however. Through the fog gathering as night fell, I could see a large shape coming closer with every step I took.

Whatever was watching me, its interest peaked as I stood in front of a set of rather large double doors. Behind them, lay a dilapidated castle, a husk of its former glory. Still, doors and a roof would be better than open forest for the night. Carefully, I opened the doors and peeked through. Gloom and dust greeted me, the only sound made by the doors squealing on old, rusty hinges. I took a moment to thank Raasinav for gifting his Steelbone Deer with bones strong enough to make armour that would not rust.

I stepped over the threshold of the castle and immediately all of the hair on my arms stood at attention. This place was old. Ancient, even, built with the fundamental magic of the world… And yet the magic felt wrong. As though whoever designed the song to coax the stones from the earth had no tune, no chorus. Choraturgy with no direction seldom results in something like this castle; sturdy and what was surely majestic once. Whatever had created this place; its forces lingered on the stone. And it did not approve of my presence.

Regardless, I needed shelter and this ruined castle was my best option.

“Erm… Hello?” Did I just start talking to a castle? Perhaps my lack of food and water had begun wearing on my sanity, or perhaps it was the constant observation that had me on edge. Eh, I’d already greeted it, might as well finish the conversation.

“Er, yeah, hi, um… Ancient… Castle… Presence thing.” My voice cracked from dehydration. Maybe finding a river first would have been a good idea. “Um, well, I just wanted you to know that I’ll be spending the night here. Y’know, shelter from predators. So, uh, I’ll just be at the end of this hall here. Yeah. Good night, I guess. If you sleep that is. Um, I’m, just… Going to rest now.”

Of course I got no response. What was I thinking, talking to an ancient stone wall? 

I hunkered down next to the door, once again forming a barricade with my shields. Sleep was slow to overtake me, as I couldn’t shake the twitch in my neck or the tingle on my arms telling me that I was being scrutinized.

I dreamt of leaves and teeth.


Ψ	 Ψ 	Ψ


A cold, damp breeze woke me the next morning. My throat was parched, my stomach empty, and my mood foul. I hoisted myself up with my shields before strapping them on and opening the doors of the castle, mumbling a thank you to the walls for allowing me their shelter. The early morning light showed a thin fog, a courtyard and to my immense relief, a bridge across the gorge that had stumped me earlier.

I walked over to the bridge and saw, to my dismay, that it was rickety and small. I doubted that it would hold my weight, especially with such heavy armour on. Nevertheless, nothing ventured, nothing gained, I thought. I held tightly to the thin ropes above the bridge in the slight hope that they’d support me if I fell. After a few tentative steps and some heart stopping cracks of protest from the wood beneath me, I got a feel for just how sturdy the bridge was.

I was not reassured in the slightest.

Eventually, I made it to the other side of the bridge with no life threatening situation arising. I began getting nervous. In the entirety of this journey, nothing had attacked me, and nothing had gone wrong. Either Raasinav was protecting me long enough to reach my destination of ‘elsewhere,’ which I highly doubted, or something was about to go horribly wrong.

My stomach grumbled sourly at me. Surely we were away from Raasinav’s influence by now. Far enough to hunt, perhaps?

I agreed with my stomach wholeheartedly. Food sounded like a good idea.

I began wandering east once more, keeping my eyes out for any type of prey animal. I’d even take a predator at this point. While keeping watch, I’d neglected to listen. I only noticed the raging river when I fell into it.

Water.

Glorious water.

How could I ever forget about you, water?

After the initial shock of being doused with cold water wore off, a small grin appeared on my face. After that, I began to quaff the clear, cold, fresh, life giving liquid. Cold headache? Doesn’t matter, drinking water. Teeth ache? Too busy drinking water to care. Serpentine form rising from the water’s surface? Out of the way, I’ve got water to drink.

Wait.

Do rivers have sea serpents?

I reluctantly paused from quenching my thirst and turned around. Downstream, a long, purple snake with arms and yellow markings on its head was pumping its way towards me, murder in its eyes.

Logic: Large aquatic predator. Hostile. Retreat from river, find new way across.

Instinct: Large snake. Hostile. Edible.

I dug my feet into the gravel and braced against the current. Preliminary inspection told me that the waist high water would heavily impede shield effectiveness, and the size of the incoming opponent would negate a turtle approach. Offensive options began going through my mind.

Choraturgy was out of the question, I couldn’t sing with the droplets flying off of the surface of the river, and I couldn’t weave magic worth a whit anyway. Hit and run would be complicated by the river’s pull and the circumference of the beast. No way was I going to throw my shields; that would be a death sentence.

I began striding towards the approaching maw, dimly aware that it was roaring something at me. My pace increased, spurred on by the tug of the river. The beast faltered eyes wide. It must not be used to prey that fought back. I’d be able to eat for at least a week if I felled this massive hunk of serpentine meat.

I’ve never had aquatic snake before. I wonder what it tastes like. I thought in passing, before leaping from the water, right shield cocked back, left shield forward.

I had expected a lot of things. I had expected the snake to dodge, perhaps hiss at me. I had expected it to duck beneath the water and come at me from below. I had even expected it to merely open its jaws and attempt to bite at me in midair.

What I had not expected, however, was for the serpent to rear up, flare the yellow scales on its head, and cower. It even gave a high pitched yelp as I ran into its chest, shield ready to strike impeded by the proximity of its girth. My face impacted with the back of my shield in a rather comical ‘thoink’ noise.

It felt like I hung in the air for a moment, suspended by the shield’s contact with the scales in front of me. All laws of logic demanded that I bounce off of the surface and fall back.

All I did was slowly slide down towards the ground, accompanied by a rather unnerving squealing noise.

I came back to my senses when I hit the water. After floundering for a moment, I leapt back from the pillar of scales towards the shallower water. At least my armour was clean now. I braced myself for the strike that was sure to follow my retreat.

And then I waited.

Wait.

Heartbeat. Inhale.

Rush, burble. Water against serpent and myself.

Choked sob. Hiccup.

Heartbeat. Exhal-

Wait.

Sob?

I slowly lowered my forward shield in order to peer at the creature in front of me. My eyes trailed up a thick purple body, past two spindly arms, up to a frock of yellow hair, which I had previously mistaken as some sort of marking or scale. Then I checked its snout, an admittedly glorious mustache, and trembling lips. Finally, I met its gaze and was surprised to find its eyes quivering with tears.

Snakes don’t cry, do they?

It seemed as though eye contact was the last straw, and the dam broke. The serpent in front of me began wailing and sobbing, writhing in the throes of dramatic agony.

I must be hallucinating. I thought to myself. What kind of predator begins crying when something pokes its hide?

I received my answer when it started shouting at me between sobs. No, not roaring, but shouting, complete with words and a light lisp. 

“You big meanie! Why would you do that! Oh, the pain! Rub salt on the wound! Tragedy after tragedy! Adding injury to insult! What kind of monster are you?”

Needless to say, I was stunned. Not only could this thing talk, but it was calling me the monster, after charging at me, unprovoked. In my stupor, I automatically replied to the last question.

“A… A warden of Raasinav.”

This statement was met with a long gasp. “You can talk?”

I shook myself and relaxed my stance somewhat, though still keeping myself ready to defend.

“Of course I can talk. Besides, you’re the one who attacked me, first. Of course I would defend myself!” Wait, why was I defending myself to this potential source of food? “Besides, I’m hungry and you just so happened to be a large source of fresh meat.” I mentally slapped myself. Sure, just give it more reason to attack.

“Well. Under different circumstances, I might have been inclined to offer you some food, but after all you’ve done to me, I might just turn you in to the proper authorities!”

“What authorities? This is the middle of the forest. There’s no city for at least another three days’ march.”

“You’re obviously not from around here. You’re near the edge of the Everfree Forest; Ponyville’s just a short jaunt that-a-way.” The serpent pointed directly east, where I had been heading earlier. “I’d just swim through a few tributaries and yell until the Mayor came out to listen to my grievances!”

“Wait, wait, that can’t be right. I’m in the Raal Forest, trekking east towards Khalim. Now I know I must be hallucinating.”

“You must be, if you think you’re anywhere but here. I’ve never heard of any Raal Forest on Hasbria, and trust me; I’ve been all over the world.”

“Where in Raasinav’s scraggly undercarriage is Hasbria?”

“Oh, you poor thing, you must have been simply delirious. First you ruin my hair, then you attack me, and now you don’t even remember where you are. Tsk. If I’d known you were this hungry, I would have readied something immediately.”

“I- uh?”

“Ah, where are my manners? Delirious or not, violent or not, I simply must extend the common courtesy.” The serpent in front of me reached up and slicked back its hair, then held out the hand, fingers curled into a fist, towards me. “My name is Steven Magnet, and this river is my home.”

I simply stared at the offered fist. Yes, I was definitely going crazy from the lack of food, no predator would be able to switch its mood so swiftly, nor would it attempt to greet its prey.

The fist in front of my face waved impatiently. I blinked, uncomprehending. The serpent- sorry, Steven- huffed and withdrew the fist, and shook his head.

“Well, now that the pleasantries are out of the way, you just stay right there.”

“Um-“

“Maybe I can whip up a quiche. 
Ooh
, or a nice salad, yes. And then you can help me fix my hair!”

“What’s wrong with your hair?” Is this going to end up like my conversation with the wall?

“Well, you see, I have a very expensive orange dye that turns my magnificent locks into the most beautiful shade of amber! One problem- It washes out with oil. Your bath washed so much grime and sweat and general ickiness down to me that it completely ruined the entire thing!”

“No.”

“Excuse me?”

“No. I’m done.”

“With what?”

“This hallucination. No predator would be fashion sensitive. I’m leaving.”

“But- What about my quiche?”

“Imaginary. Not real food. I’ll find something later. Right now, I’m just getting away from you.” I began wading across towards the eastern edge of the river.

“But- But- What about my hair?”

“Hallucination. Not real. Besides, orange is a shade of yellow.” I dripped water, slowly climbing onto the shore.

“I- Huh. I’ve never thought of it that way. Ooh, just wait until the others hear about this, I’ll be the head of revolutionizing the trends of the ocean! Thank you, violent creature!”

I did not deign to give my hallucinated sea serpent a response. I merely delved into the forest in front of me once more.

The forest was very noticeably different on this side of the river. The trees steadily became thinner, and the underbrush was a chore to get through, as opposed to merely an annoyance. Only one thing remained constant, and that was my tensed shoulders and prickling neck. I was still being observed. I had trouble placing the feeling, whether it was merely Raasinav overseeing my passage, or some other god waiting to interfere. Whatever it was, it had yet to cause me any harm, so I kept it on the peripheral of my senses, acknowledged, but ignored.

Finally, I could begin to see open air beyond the trees, though it was still somewhat far away. Perhaps my hallucination had been telling the truth, after all. I must have been trudging faster that I had thought to cover the distance from my herd to the edge of the Raal forest in merely three days. My vigor was renewed, knowing that the city nearby would have food that I wouldn’t have to hunt for.

My lack of money did not concern me, scavenging wasted scraps was completely legal and encouraged by the Corukhi. It kept their city-forts clean, and their less fortunate fed. After all, what good would a malnourished conscript be to the front line?

I perked my ears. Something was wrong. The feeling of being inspected, that much I was sure of, but now it felt malicious. Like a predator stalking prey. I stopped, and listened.

Quiet.

Quiet snap. Twig beneath weight.

Heartbeat. Inhale.

Soft huff. Breathing.

Predators. Three of them. Circling.

Hilfis Leaping Wolves.

Crouch, shields ready.

Quiet.

Low growl.

Snap. Crunch. Rustle. Leap. Charge from behind.

Twist, swing left shield.

Scrape, snap, crunch. Pain.

Thud. Target neutralized. Wince. Blood on cheek. Not good.

Whip around. Brace for impact.

Wait.

Quiet.

Low snuffling. Wolf on left.

Rustle, whistle. Leaping wolf in front.

Uppercut. Shriek. Silence.

Spatter. Blood on armour.

Weight on shield. Wolf impaled on shield prong. Unexpected.

Whine. Snuffle. Crunch. Rustle. Retreating wolf.

Quiet.

Bird call.

I relaxed my guard and kicked the wolf impaled upon my right shield. With a tear, my face was spattered by more of its blood as its neck ripped off to let it drop to the ground. I wouldn’t have to scrounge for food now. Wolf meat is meat nonetheless.

I bent down to examine my kills, and was faced with something that was definitely not a Hilfis Leaping Wolf. It appeared to be covered in twigs and leaves. 

I reviewed the ambush in my head. Direct charges, not aerial assaults. No pincer attacks. Fleeing from danger. Definitely not the tactics employed by Hilfis’s avatar creature.

All the same, I had been attacked, and thus I defended myself. Besides, meat is meat.

I used the sharpened tip of my shield to slit the belly of the wolf in front of me, and was surprised at what I saw. Instead of muscle and bone, the entire wolf seemed to be made of plant matter.

I had just killed two plants.

Was I hallucinating again? A quick taste of the meat of the wood confirmed that either these were sentient plants, or I was so far gone into insanity that it was affecting more than I had at first imagined.

To be safe, I cleared some space around me, and piled fallen branches and leaves into a pile. A few short bursts of music later, there was a crackling fire at my feet with the leg of one of the stick wolves roasting over it. If I was hallucinating, would I have thought to cook a plant just in case it had some sort of parasite?

All through the subsequent meal (that still tasted like plant matter) I was being observed. After the concerted effort of the wolves to stalk me, and my dinner, I could accurately say that whatever was watching me was not malicious. Cautious, perhaps, but it meant me no harm. I reasoned further that if it had meant to attack me, it’d had at least two days to do it.

After tamping out the fire, making sure no embers remained to burn the forest down, I continued towards the edge of the forest. Sunlight began filtering from above and, finally, the forest came to an abrupt stop. I squinted and raised my hand. After so much time spent in the forest, I’d almost forgotten what being exposed to the sun felt like.

My armour glistened in the light, and I could feel the warmth of Somae’s Eye permeate my body, rejuvenating me limbs.

Wait. Steelbone isn’t supposed to shine unless it’s been polished at waxed. In fact, after three days of being scratched by foliage, it should be as dull as it gets.

I inspected my shields and curiass. Ah, of course. Sap. I thought to myself. In hindsight it was obvious. I’d killed a few plants and they bled on me. Not real blood, but sap. Ugh. I’m going to need a wash again. My armour’s going to get sticky.

That reminded me that I had scabbed blood on my cheek. I rubbed it off with my palm. Not much came off, so I assumed that the cuts were shallow and nothing to worry about.

Finally, I turned my gaze towards the valley in front of me. The first thing I noticed was the town, but something was fundamentally wrong with it. It was sprawling over the land with not a wall or fortress among the small buildings. Even from a distance, I could see that these houses were thatch-roofed cottages, not the standard stone and mortar hovel that the Corukh favoured.

Had civilization changed so much in the time since my herd retreated into the forest? We don’t get messengers often, but surely we would have had word of war becoming a non-issue. I’d been fed and watered, so surely I wasn’t hallucinating.

Finally I spotted something I recognized: The home of a druid, sung directly from the ground. An earthen hut was nearby, roofed in grass and covered with homes for all manner of creature. Perhaps this druid played caretaker to any avatar of the Endless Pantheon. Surely I could ask for help here, druids are sworn to aide any directly touched by a god.

I took a step towards the hut, and immediately a shiver crawled down my spine. Whatever had been watching me had suddenly doubled its attention. Perhaps it was rather fond of this druid. I deemed the area safe enough, and unstrapped my shields from my forearms, and shifted them to attach to my upper arms and pauldrons. Hopefully the act of disarming myself would keep the presence from smiting me for approaching the druid.

As I approached the hut, I was made acutely aware that I had the full attention of some incorporeal being upon me. I was no longer being merely watched, but monitored. This druid must have been important.

Upon reaching the perimeter of the druid’s abode, I spied another animal that I had never seen before. It was small, only a few hands high and a few more long, and looked almost like a dainty horse. Light yellow fur covered its entire body, even its hooves, and its mane and tail were a pale pink. It turned to me as it heard my footsteps, and I got a glimpse of some sort of pattern on its flank. I saw its head, and was astonished to see something akin to a muzzle, but shorter and rounder, as though it was trying to emulate a humanoid face. Unlike anything I’d seen before, however, were its eyes. They took up the vast majority of its head, and looked more like plates than eyes. Admittedly, plates don’t stare at you with fear.

A timid animal, then. Skittish and flighty, like a newborn fawn. I knew how to approach it.

I hunkered down and approached it slowly. It stood its ground, though it seemed more paralyzed with fear than bravely waiting for me. I slowly extended a hand as I got close, and smiled benevolently at the skittish thing. Its massive eyes darted between my face and my hand, but otherwise kept still. Taking this as a sign that it was not going to bolt, I lay my hand on its head and began scratching behind its ears. It made a squeaking noise that belonged to a mouse, rather than a horse, and stiffened momentarily, before relaxing somewhat into the caress. 

“There now, see? I’m not so scary. Where is your caretaker, little one? I’d like to ask them a favour.”

The small horse jolted back, beyond my reach with a gasp. “What caretaker? Are you here to take me away from my friends?”

I crouched there, arm extended for a short moment. Then my thoughts caught up with my shock.

“You can talk?”

The little horse cowered in front of me, on the ground, hooves covering its eyes. The poor thing was shaking like a leaf in a wind storm, making whimpering noises. It took me a moment to realize that it was whispering to me, asking me a flurry of nearly inaudible questions.

“Okay, slow down, please. I can’t hear you. I promise I won’t hurt you.” I took a step forward, but the thing it front of me scurried away and turned. I noticed the pattern I had seen earlier and found myself staring at a wing on its side, and a trio of butterflies on its haunch. “It talks, and it’s got wings. What are you, little one?” I mumbled to myself.

The creature whimpered somewhat louder than before. It took me a moment to realize that it had answered me.

“Come again?”

Another short noise, it sounded somewhat like it said ‘Mflutshe.’ I’m not sure what language that was.

“Um, could you say that one more time? I’m afraid I didn’t catch that.”

Finally it spoke up, though it was little more than a loud whisper. “I’m, um, Fluttershy.”

“A Fluttershy? I’ve never heard of those.”

“No, um, I’m Fluttershy.”

“I’m not sure I- Ah, that’s your name?”

The creature squeaked again and nodded. Well, the name certainly fit the skittish creature.

“Okay then, Fluttershy. I- er- That’s not exactly what I asked.” I chose my words carefully. If this creature was already scared of me, I didn’t want to give it a reason to think that I wanted to hurt it. “I’ve never seen something like you before. What are you called- Eh, besides your name?”

Fluttershy peered at me from under one of its hooves. I smiled softly at it.

“Oh, um, I’m a Pegasus Pony.”

“I see. Your caretaker must be very proud to have found such a unique creature. Would you mind pointing me in the direction of this house’s druid? I’m afraid I need to ask her for help.”

“Um, that’s my house.”

“I know you live there, but isn’t there someone else who lives here, with you?”

“Oh, um, well, there’s Angel Bunny, and all of my animal friends.”

“I see. Definitely a druid, then.” I rubbed my chin in thought. By the sound of Fluttershy’s voice, I assumed that it was female, or else a very unfortunate man. I chose to think of her as female. “What about whoever takes care of you here? Gives you food and protects you from bigger animals?”

Fluttershy cocked her head to one side, one eye still covered. “Um, that’s what I do.”

I frowned at that, causing Fluttershy to squeak and hide behind her hooves once more. I decided to take a more physical approach to the description of the druid.

“Alright, but how about someone like me? Don’t you have someone like me around?”

Fluttershy shivered and peeked out at me, giving my body a looking over. “Um, I have a bear. But he doesn’t have a shell. Not that your shell isn’t very nice but…”

I interrupted her with a chuckle. “Oh, this isn’t a shell, little one, just some armour. Armour that really needs a wash before this sap dries up.”

The little Pegasus Pony perked up a bit. I wondered what kind of god Pegasus was, and what inspired him to create a tiny, winged horse.

“Sap? But, your entire shell- sorry- all of your armour is shiny, um, no offense.”

Fluttershy crawled forward to wipe a hoof across my curiass, leaving a trail of marginally thinner gel than the rest. I surveyed myself. Carving up the plant wolf had probably been messier than I had noticed at the time.

“Well, I had a tussle with some wolves earlier. I’m not sure that it’s actually sap, really. I may have been hallucinating because I was hungry, but it looked like the wolves were made out of wood.”

Fluttershy stopped inspecting her sticky hoof and looked up at me. She began shaking.

“You… You got in a fight with a pack of Timberwolves?”

“Wait, they were actually wolves made out of wood?” I gagged somewhat. “I ate a sentient tree?”

“You… You killed… and ate…”

Fluttershy looked at the sap on my armour, then at the sap on her hoof.

Then she fainted.

Whatever was watching me was not pleased.