//------------------------------// // And you are? // Story: The Epic of Nyx: Book 1: One's own Tome // by Quantuminferno959 //------------------------------// Nyx awoke to the sounds of frantic ponies and a tedious headache. Her initiative was low and she decided to lay there for a while, and simply listened to everything around her. She could just make out the gist of the conversations through the cacophony in the area, that being "Where are we?" and "What are we doing here?" Her curiosity sparked to life, giving her the motivation to open her eyes and stand up. What she saw was a dark damp room, with dark grey stone walls and piles or rubble scattered throughout the floor. The only source of light was from the holes in a metal door on one wall, and a few torches placed high up on the walls. When she tried to get up and walk closer to her friends, all of which were cluttered on the wall opposite the door, she felt tension. Looking back she realized that her legs had been shackled, keeping her in place. "What's going on, why am I chained up in here?" "I'll tell you what's going on. Somepony decided to end my party! And I worked really hard on that one. I mean what kind of a pony does something like that? When I see them I'll..." Pinkie started only to be interrupted. "Pinkie!" The cluttered group said in unison. "Let's try to focus." Twilight reverted back to Nyx's question. "None of us really know, we were all trying to figure that out, nopony knows." "All I know is that the living conditions here are atrocious. How can anypony choose to live like this, or even come here? It's just awful." Rarity went off on her own tangent. "That's not focusing Rarity." Twilight blatantly stated. "I know, but we already know all that we can, that we blacked out at the party and now we are here. We can't answer anymore questions currently, not until something happens." Rarity defended. "Actually, I saw a small glimpse of why might have done this. I didn't catch any details, but right before I passed out, I saw the silhouette of a tall figure. I would say about the size of Luna wearing a cloak. I saw a horn, I think, so it might have been a unicorn." Nyx corrected. "Maybe it was Luna, she owns a cloak. And she does know how to blow ponies back, with her voice." A hyper voice blurted out of nowhere. A vast inhale of air followed the outburst. "What if she turned back into Nightmare Moon? What if we have to use the elements on her again?" "Pinkie. Nightmare moon has not returned." Twilight assured "How do you know that? Maybe she knocked us out so we can't stop her from bringing nighttime eternal." Pinkie insisted. "I hate to say it but what Pinkie says does sound fairly reasonable, if for nothing except for what Nyx said about the pony in question's size. She did say the size resembled Luna's, and technically she does own a cloak. Now i'm not saying Pinkie's right, just that we should consider her theory." Rarity defended the pink party pony. "Fine, but why would Luna knock us unconscious? She has control over the night once more and alot more ponies respect the night now more than before. If you ask me she has no reason to try that again." Twilight buckled after giving one last denial. "I... don't think it was Luna. Not just for how well I know her, but the whole thing just doesn't make sense if it is her. As well as the pony I saw, while mimicking her figure, didn't seem to walk the same. From what I saw, the little I did, this pony carried theirself like they were the most important pony to ever walk Equestria. Luna may carry herself high, but she isn't egotistical like that." Nyx added. "Well who else could it be, I mean really? There aren't that many ponies the size of Luna, and even less that we know, and none of them would cause us harm. So, what other option is there?" Rainbowdash piped up, getting annoyed with the repetitiveness this conversation. "If not Luna turning into Nightmare Moon then who else would do this?" "Well we can just wait and see" Fluttershy said backing up to the wall, staring intently at the door. A shadow came across the window in the door. Soon afterward the door creaked open and a tall muscular equine with a dark red cloak with black trim walked to the center of the room. His coat was a dark shade of red and his mane was a tan buzz cut. He had dark blue eyes and a black goatee. A horn was visible, but it was impossible to know if he had wings or not because of his cloak, After looking around the room at everypony, he gave a hardy laugh. "So this is who is responsible for Rusko's release. Honestly Rusko must thank you, but Rusko thinks Rusko would rather watch you all squirm for a moment, yes." The tall figure spoke in a thick Russian accent. "You'll pay for crashing my party, no pony gets away with destroying a party. Although you voice does sound like fun." Pinkie threatened their capture. "Pinkie demands you release Pinkie right this instant as well as her friends." "So I presume you are Rusko?" Twilight questioned the stallion. "Yes, Rosko. You see you all released Rusko when you unlocked and activated the book. You all owe your capture to this little pony, right over here." Rosko said, Walking up to Nyx. "If it weren't for her, Rusko and his comrades would still be locked away in there. But really, Rusko must thank you both for his release, and finding his tome." He finished, pulling the tome from his cloak. Nyx, looking down, guilty for what she had done managed a few sentences. "Well... at least the tome won't respond to you. It only unlocks for me anymore." "Silly ignorant filly. This is Rusko's tome and it responds to Rusko's will." He said snapping the lock open and flipping to a page. "Ah just how Rusko remembers it being. Rusko gives little filly props for actually being able to have the lock spell take effect on her. Usually it would not work for anyone but Rusko." "What? That only would have taken to me?" "Well it shouldn't have, no. That is why Rusko gives you props, for doing something thought impossible, or at least highly unlikely by Rusko." "Well it is a space tome, and I am crazy about physics. That still doesn't explain anything. And you still havn't told us why we are here." Nyx said, her guilt having less of an effect on her speech. "Rusko has trapped you here because Rusko is not stupid. Rusko knows that you will try to stop him, and that is why you are here. With you here taking control of everything will come easy to Rusko. That is why he is letting you go, in time. What fun is there in this if there is no challenge." "We will stop you" Twilight said, readying a teleportation spell. "Rusko dared you to try, both that threat and that spell. Go on, humor Rusko. You are in a magic proof room. Well magic proof to everypony except Rosko. Surely enough when Twilight attempted to cast the spell she had ready, it failed. "Well why are you telling us all this?" Rarity questioned. "Because, Rusko knows you cannot stop him. It matters not that all you ponies know of the plan Rusko has, yes." "We will stop you before you even let us go, we are the elements of harmony and we always find a way to be victorious." Rainbowdash said in her usual demeanor when she deals with villains. "Rusko thinks you are forgetting one crucial thing. You do not have your precious elements of harmony." "That didn't stop us before with discord!" Rainbowdash blurted back. "Ah, yes. However, you were not locked up in a dungeon when that happened now were you?" "How... how could you possibly know that?" Fluttershy mumbled still hiding behind her mane and her friends. "Because, while being trapped in that book may have stopped you all from knowing of it's presence, it allowed Rusko and his comrades to be aware of everything happening." "You keep referencing 'comrades,' who are these friends of yous?" Nyx intruded. "Others, you will meet them in time. Rusko will make sure they are properly able to thank each and every one of you when we all rule Equestria." "Sounds like alot of empty threats to me." Rainbowdash edged. "Rusko can assure all of you there is nothing empty about these threats. Maybe from other enmies you have faced, but not us." "Pinkie agrees with dash, all of Rusko's threats are empty and bring shame to himself as well as his friends." Pinkie continued the edging Rainbowdash started. "Rusko has something special for you two troublemakers, Rusko will be back." Rusko promised turning and walking out of the room. "Pinkie feels that was entertaining enough for Pinkie in the current moment. Pinkie also thinks that Pinkie and her friends are in a little bit of trouble." Pinkie said in her new Russian accent, after a few moments of silence. "Why couldn't you two have kept quiet? We could have been let go, off to get the elements and stop this pony, but you two had to go and edge him on. Now we have to wait and hope he doesn't do something too horrific." Twilight scolded the two instigators. "Sorry, he just got under my feathers." Ranbowdash apologized. "It's just fun to edge ponies on, so long as they don't go off the edge that is. When that happens nopony is satisfied and all you end up with is a pony that has fallen down. That's why Pinkie thinks it is best to use railings." Pinkie apologized in her usual scattershot of logic. Throughout all of this Nyx just laid down and decided it best to think and come up with a plan. After a few fruitless minutes, her train of thought started to drift to the tome that caused all of this. She thought of everything she had just heard and she thought of her friends, and what might happen whenever their captor came back. Nyx quickly dismissed the last thought and tried to come up with a plan. She tried until she couldn't keep her eyes open anymore, and fell asleep.