//------------------------------// // Dodici // Story: Dark Side of the Moon // by Rust //------------------------------// "...Hard to port, Mister Darkwater! HARD. TO. PORT!" "Hurr, Oi'm given it all she's got, boi stars!" I clung to the mainmast, trembling as I fought to keep down a meager breakfast. The dark walls of the tunnel raced past as the black sloop plummeted down into the Core. She was a sleek craft, varnish still wet from the yard, and I feared we were doing a fantastic job of ruining the coat. Luna's black flag flew proudly from the stern, flapping in the rush of wind that accompanied our hectic descent into madness. The sloop screamed around another impossible bend in the tunnel, jarring slightly as it grazed an outcropping of rock. I screamed and tightened my grip. "WATCH THE PAINT, MISTER DARKWATER!" "Oi, sorry, zurr, do'een th' best oi cun!" Vega Lyrae danced behind the helmsman -- a burly lunitaur currently straining to keep us from impacting upon the jagged tunnel -- his hooded cloak twisting in the wind, using both his wingtips and forehooves to operate the rows of bone-handled levers that controlled every aspect of the sloop's pitch and yaw. He was but a blur as he roared orders to the overtaxed crew. Our route was so dangerous that it took two veteran sailors to do the job of one... And standing perched upon the bowsprit like some graceful bird of prey, Luna faced into the shrieking wind with wings outstretched, a fierce grin upon her face as she surfed the ship that bore her name, the Lady Luna. Chives tumbled past me, his safety line having slipped a knot. "I may have to --oof!-- agree with you, Cassius!" He rolled bonelessly towards the edge of the deck until a wide-eyed nocturni officer pinned him down. Shaddo clung tenaciously on, taking his rope in helmeted mouth and hauling my butler away from the terrifying drop. Suddenly aware of whom had saved him, the knight gingerly pushed away with a grimace. "This isn't flying, this is hell!" Chives spat. "HELL? THIS IS THE STRAIGHT CHUTE TO THE NETHERWORLD, MATEY! ABANDON ALL HOPE, YE WHO ENTER HERE! AAAH-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!" a gleeful roar from our High Elder, who looked to be having the time of his life. Shaddo braced his armored shoulder against the door to the captain's quarters, fighting to keep his footing. "Why is it that yew entire lot are off yer rockers in one way or anotha?" "Madness is the spice of life," Chives droned, staggering away. There is a fine line between right and wrong. I have come to the conclusion that it is not a very straight line. Experience as a son to a nobleman, as a (partial) ruler of a town, and as a Highlord of a new nation has taught me that there are actions that must be taken to ensure the safety of your people. Even if they are occasionally morally askew, sometimes one must do what must be done. Often, it is better that said actions never see the dark of night. But there is a difference between doing a wicked act that is truly necessary and a wicked act simply because it its there to be done. True evil lies in actions taken for the wrong reasons. That way lies only the seductions of power... and madness. For even if the goal remains the same... one will end up with something far different than intended... Where do I even begin? It has been a while since the alliance atop the silver mesas surrounding Starfall. Shaddo's surrender had effectively tripled our standing army overnight, with competent, professional soldiers. Our navy now had a majority of ships in it that weren't modified pleasure yachts or tugs. While the City Council had been understandably worried about the influx of new forces, all suspicions were firmly squashed whenever Luna was present. For whatever reason, she trusted the turncoat commander, and that meant even we the Titans Three must swallow our misgivings. Along with the boost to our forces, Shaddo also brought with him offerings of an even more valuable sort -- information. We had no eyes in the Kingdom, as the borders were guarded heavily in most areas. I had once wondered what we had been trying to keep out from the White Wastes, but now I could see the tight security was meant to keep subjects in. Shaddo gave us the location of various garrisons, enemy movements, even estimates upon their strength. Even if it was a week old by the time he arrived at Starfall, we had a better picture of what the Elders were up to. The news was not good. A few cities had been placed under a sort of military doctrine, enforced by the people's own representatives, no doubt at daggerpoint. They knew who held the real power in that broken system. Word among the Kingdom's officer ranks was that even more cities would soon join them. Someone at the top was growing nervous, cracking down harshly at any hint of dissent. But the news that goaded us to action was the most horrifying yet. They had been taking lunitaurs as slaves. The lunitaurs -- the proud, horned biped race so sought after for their warriors and smiths -- were inhabitants of the deep, maze-like Core. Here, far below the surface of the moon, the darkness was near absolute, were it not for the glowing crystals cultivated by the shapeshifters who shared the place. Huge caverns and tunnels were carved through the bones of the earth, and at the deepest level a watery ocean filled the passageways, where dwelt the strangest of creatures. The Core was a strange place, haunted by whispers and shades, constantly changing as the moon's interior flexed and shifted with the passing of seasons. The rock had eyes and ears, down here. It was said that one could navigate from one side of the moon to the other, using nothing but the mysterious subterranean highways of the Core. But none knew it's ever changing secrets better than the lunitaurs, who somehow knew the ways the deep would twist and turn upon itself before it actually happened. And yet, maddeningly, they kept the underworld to themselves. Those who left the lunitaurs' hidden sanctuary were seldom allowed to return to the herd. The Kingdom had once tried to seize this realm for themselves, convinced the natural resources and vast underground network were worth the trouble of conquest. They were wrong. So started the Lost War, so called because of the fact that every single nocturni --save one-- to venture into the dark abyss without the blessings of its bovine caretakers were never seen again. The lone survivor of the army sent by the Nightcrown returned with such horrifying stories that the notion of ever seizing the Core vanished from the minds of our Kings a millennium ago. Until now, it seemed. Luna, open hearing news of this, promptly sprang into action. And I do mean that in the most literal sense of the word. She abruptly leapt from her seat around the Moon Table and smashed a path of destruction straight to the sky harbor, then commandeering the fastest ship she could seize (fittingly named after herself), proceeded to kidnap each of her Titans Three from our various posts about the city, recruited a lunitaur to pilot, and promptly plunged her virgin vessel into the dark, mysterious abyss, where better sailors had met their end. I feel like there's a joke in there somewhere. "Heyar, zurr, we'um be crossin' the border heyar." "Hmm. Thank you, Mister Darkwater. We trust the rest of the journey to your hands. " Vega Lyrae nimbly glided down from the helm. "I'll see the damages to the Lady Luna repaired with haste. There's a promotion in it for you if we make it through... Captain." Our lunitaur guide gave a sharp salute -- too sharp though, he bopped himself in the face -- and manned the ship alone. The High Elder approached the two other members of the Titans Three at the railing, where Chives kept me company as I heaved up the sad remains of my stomach. "Well, friends, the worst is behind us yet. We've gotten through the eels' breeding ground with only minor damage." "I agree, Admiral! 'Twas an... electrifying experience." Luna joined us as well. Her face was covered in black soot, and her usually ethereal mane was standing on end, which looked quite ridiculous. Chives frowned at her. "That was terrible." "Thine taste in comedy is most unforgiving," she smirked, undeterred. "We were merely conveying how shocking it was." I groaned over the side. Make it stop, make it stop! "Those eels were a sight! We can see now why some would volt at the sight of them!" Luna was on a roll now, stars forbid. "Quite a shock, 'twas truly lightning, if we might say so." Chives stared at her. "You really had to reach for that last one, didn't you." Luna simply grinned at him. The Lady Luna slid smoothly through the tunnels, now. We had entered the heart of the Core, where the lunitaurs dwelt and cared for the moon's beating, rocky heart. The black sloop fit easily into the caves, which had been carved for passage of much larger vessels. Without the tumultous rocking, I finally manged to get my sea legs back. I found myself with nothing to do, and looked around the deck. Chives was busy below deck, looking after the small supply of equipment we had stowed aboard before an over-eager alicorn whisked us away. By the mainmast, High Elder Vega Lyrae sat upon a barrel, telling a tale to said alicorn and some wide-eyed crewmembers. By the way they had huddled together, I could tell he had probably launched into one of his exotic, long-winded sailing stories. I wasn't in the mood to join them, though, still somewhat nauseous and unwilling to stray far from the railings. I saw movement at the bow. Shaddo was there, making himself busy with ropework. But as I watched, he was simply knotting the same length, over and over again. I rubbed at my temples. Shaddo struck me as the sort of chap who did not bother for the opinions of others. But he was only nocturni, and we are a social people by habit. He looked... lonely. It wasn't the first time I'd seen this sort of behavior from him, either. Shaddo had been stuck at the outside of many of the cities' circles, despite still commanding a sizable portion of his former ranks. Quite simply, Starshade didn't trust him yet. I didn't, either. Our newest addition to Luna's ever-growing inner circle, he had yet to prove himself to her on the field. Perhaps this journey would present an opportunity? She treated him fairly, as a companion and a commander, though when her presence was not felt, he was but a nuisance, or a rather unpleasant stain on the carpet. So he kept himself at a distance, intruding only if called upon. I chewed thoughtfully at my lip, before turning away and gingerly stepping towards the stern. I nodded to the helmsman and took a seat at the railing, watching the guts of the moon pass by. It really was quite beautiful down here in the deeps. Here and there, luminescent crystals studded the rock, and in the deeper chasms, water could be seen, sparkling in the faint light. Was this the maria at the center of the moon, like the explorers of old had seen? My thoughts were abruptly sidetracked when a terrific crash split the air. The Lady Luna came to a catastrophic halt, as if something had struck it just off to bow. I was tossed backwards, catapulted over the helm and cracking noisily into the mainmast. The ship groaned in protest as she settled at a crazy angle, the bow pointing dangerously low and the deck tilted to starboard.. "Is anypony injured?" Luna could be heard, already taking charge. I slid slowly down to the deck, right next to a pair of silver-shod hooves. "Ah, Cassie! There you are. Please check down in the hold for our good Sir Chives. I fear he may have been buried by anything not strapped down." I looked crookedly up at her and nodded as best as I could. A commotion from farther down the deck. "What in blue blazes was that?" yelled the High Elder. "MISTER DARKWATER!" From the helm, the burly lunitaur was busy pulling himself upright. "Oi, zurr!" "Care to explain what's just happened?" "Hurrrr, oi don't rightly know, zee this lil' outcropper ain't 'zactly 'spposed t' be roight hurr!" "Argh! Get down here and help with the damage assessment, then, you useless hood ornament!" Groaning, I peeled myself off of the deck. Since the entire vessel was tilted at such a steep slope, I decided flying under my own wingpower would be the safer course of action. I hesitantly unfurled my wings and fluttered into the air. I was never the most graceful of fliers, but I managed to ascend to the stern, and enter the hatch to the belowdecks. As I descended the stairs, I slipped off the last of the steps, and awkwardly tumbled down the length of the ship. With a great crash, I found my impromptu descent brought to a halt by a certain armored figure emerging from a cabin. Chives and I collided, and the pair of us rolled to a halt in the galley, which was located in the bow. Here we could see the rocky blade that had speared into the ship, jutting several meters into the cabin. The candles had all gone out, but we could see that dark splinters and metal scraps littered the floor, and the rock itself glittered unpleasantly in the gloom. Chives gently shoved me off him. "Hasn't m'lord anything better to do than to be a nuisance?" "Luna sent me to check up on you." I brushed his comment away. Chive's barbed tongue was something one got used to after so long. "Did you fare well in the crash?" "Aye, nought but a bruise. My trunk slipped off the shelf and would have crushed me had I not already donned the armor inside." Chives stood, helping me up a moment later. "Little else has fallen, I was just checking the food stores when you barreled into me." I thanked him, gazing at the jutting edge that had run us through. "What do you think this means?" Chives cast me a sidelong glance. "That we've run aground." "No..." I thoughtfully tapped my chin. "Lunitaurs are supposed to know the layouts of the Core, yes?" "So the legends say. The ones I've met are rather tight lipped about it." My old friend crossed the cabin, closely inspecting the rock's face. "What are you trying to say, Cassie?" I began to pace. "Just a few moments ago, I heard Mister Blackwater, our helmsman, state that he didn't know this particular jut of rock was here!" "And?" "He didn't know, Chives. Their entire culture is based upon the knowing this place like the backs of their hands." My butler's eyes widened. "Do you think someone could have tampered with the Core?" "It is a possibility, but I think the real answer to this riddle might be more disturbing. We need to speak to Mister Blackwater, at once." "Then let's hurry!" Chives abandoned his examinations and clambered up the narrow hallway. I quickly followed wheezing from the uphill climb. We emerged back on deck to a strange presence. Or, rather, a certain lack of any presence. "Chives..." "Hush." He had already settled into a battle stance, sword drawn and wings spread. I nervously pressed behind him, covering his rear. My ears swiveled about as I strained to pick up the faintest of noises. What was going on? Where was everyone? In the darkness of the vast cave, suddenly became aware of the stillness, save for the distant drops of water upon rock and the steady, even breathing of my friend. "I have a suspicion that we've been tricked," said Chives, warily glaring about the empty deck. I drew my own weapon, a small dagger I concealed within my cloak. "That much is obvious. The question is, by whom were we betrayed?" "I suspect Shaddo," Chives bluntly growled, creeping towards the bow. "He must have been in cahoots with the lunitaur." I hesitantly followed, keeping myself positioned towards the stern in case a foe appeared that way. "...Perhaps. All I know for certain is that the lunitaur was lying, and must have purposely marooned us here. The Lady Luna is too damaged to fly, and we can't match half her speed." "He must have been planning this for weeks," grumbled the knight. "Gaining her trust, then springing this false alarm, knowing she'd come running. And then, when the trap is sprung, whisking her away to the King's Lands, to the enemy!" I had no response to that. While I had tried my best to not doubt our newest companion, I perhaps held the most reason to distrust him. The suspicion had always been present, though I strained to quash it. A clatter from the bow soon caught our attention. Here, one of the crates had broken free, sliding further down the deck to all but explode against the forward-most point of the railing. Amidst the wreckage, I could see something moving, shifting the debris aside. "Chives...!" "I see it." He tensed himself. "You, there! Identify yourself, or be struck down!" A coughing. A dark, battered shape emerged from the wreckage. "Don't strike, I'm a friendly!" His officer's armor was dented and scratched, and a long, bleeding cut lay along his jaw, but aside from that, he seemed only a little shaken. "What in star's name is goin' on here?" Shaddo asked us, brushing off splinters. He caught our gazes. "What?" Chives was on him in an instant. The two equinocti collided with frightening force, Chives taking the officer right off his footing and straight into the shattered remains of the crate. The splintering of wood filled the air. The two grappled, exchanging helmeted headbutts, until Shaddo's greater strength prevailed and he heaved the older, smaller knight back towards the stern. Chives crashed to the deck a pace in front of me, groaning. "Nnnggh..." Shaddo withdrew his sword. I paled at the sight of the blade, it was the same one he had worn when I had first met him. "Why are you doing this?" "I might ask you the same question!" wheezed Chives. He staggered upright, flourishing his own blade. "Explain yourself!" "Explain what!?" "How and why you've sold us out! Raaagh!" Chives hurled himself at the officer a second time, and the air between them filled with the crashing of metal and silver wind of swords. "I. Did. No. Such. Thing!" Shaddo parried a storm of ferocious strikes, before ducking low under the last and smoothly spinning upon his forelimbs, lashing out with a wing and sweeping Chives' footing from under him. The knight yelled and crashed to the deck for the second time. "What madness are you spewin'? I've done nothin' but help since I arrived!" Chives answered with an angry growl, slicing at Shaddo's legs from where he had fallen. He rolled over in a flash, and took to the air, coming in from high like a bolt of righteous lightning. I winced as Shaddo neatly hopped away at the last second, Chives splintering the deck where he stood an instant before, the knight's sword sinking deep into the wood. "If ya wan't t' settle it this way, then so be it!" Shaddo dropped a shoulder and snapped his wings back, propelling his armored bulk forwards at a uprising speed. Chives was frozen, stuck trying to free his sword. The officer rammed into him with all the force of a runaway train, blasting him backwards into the mast, which sickeningly cracked upon impact. Shaddo reared, quickly twisted his sword and gave a savage lunge. "No!" I screamed. The officer's blade missed Chives' throat by an inch, careening past to strike the knight's blade out of his grasp. The sword clattered to the deck some yards away. Shaddo loomed over his disarmed opponent. I sprang into action, taking flight and swooping in over my fallen friend, brandishing my dagger. Shaddo took a few surprised steps backwards at my appearance. "If you w-want his blood, you'll have to wade through mine to g-get it!" I stammered as menacingly as I could. "We're dooooooomed," Chives weakly groaned. Shaddo regarded us with a raised eyebrow, then casually flicked his sword out. My dagger spun away, planting itself in the mast half a length from where Chives' had leaned his head. The nocturni then sheathed his blade. "I don't want anyone's blood." The officer looked down at the deck. "I've spilled too much 'a that already," he quietly said. "Then why did you betray your Princess?" rasped Chives. "The Elders will destroy her, and without her or the High Elder, all of Starfall will be put to the sword." Shaddo glared at him. "I did no such thing! I've been helpin' out your cause more than you have these past weeks." I stood between the two, looking at one, and then the other. "Shaddo, tell us what happened up on deck." He shuffled in place. "I... I don't rightly know, Highlord." Chives snorted in disgust from where he lay. I silenced him with gentle kick to the stomach. "Not a word from you until I say, understand." It was not a question. It was an order. 'Cassie' was gone, Highlord Cassius of Andromeda had taken his place for the time being. "Explain as best as you can, Major." Shaddo frowned. "I... I was at the bow, lookin' over the ropes. Didn't 'ave anythin' better t' do. All of a sudden, the ship, she starts driftin' a little close to the port walls. I was about t' say somethin', but then there was this crash... and I was thrown hard against the railin'. Last thing I saw was this crate, snappin' through the restraints and comin' right towards me." He glanced behind him at the ruined timbers and winced. "I must've woken up later, because when I did, everyone was gone. 'Cept you two." "They're missing. We think they've been taken." I nodded. "And you were suspect in their disappearance, until now." Chives grumbled something under his breath. I shot him another steely look, and he quieted. "After all, if you really were behind this, you'd have done a better job." Shaddo seemed surprised. "M'lord?" "You were..." I corrected myself, "are a commander. You know a thing or two about completing a task. This was hastily done, judging by the fact that whomever took our friends did not bother to search the wreckage or check down below. I do not think you would leave two of the Titans Three alive." "I... I suppose you're right," said Shaddo. "Our chief suspect at the time is the lunitaur, Blackwater. But to find him, and hopefully the others..." I turned to the side. The dark, twisting passages loomed, a monolithic subterranean maze. "We've got to go into the Core." "Perhaps Luna just took off without us?" Shaddo asked. "No... She would never abandon her friends, nor leave us without first having words. Something is amiss. And we must discern what." I trotted forward a few paces, retrieved and sheathed my dagger, and unfurled my wings. "Help him up," I instructed Shaddo. Grimacing, the officer reached down and grasped Chives by his forelimb, yanking him back up. "...It is just not my night tonight," said the elderly nocturni. I vaulted over the side of the wrecked sloop, calling over my shoulder, "Let's get a move on, then!" The two exchanged wary looks, and soon flew after me. "Where are we going?" asked Shaddo. "To get lost," Chives grumbled. I snorted with wry amusement. We needed to find someone who could guide us through the Core. The ever-shifting maze would swallow us up forever should we not obtain the services of one who understood its organic nature. I looked back at the crippled sloop, the Lady Luna, destroyed upon her maiden voyage. I hoped that was not an omen. "We need to reach the lunitaurs' city. If our companions are to be taken anywhere, they must pass through Bovinocta first. We have two options to get there," I said. "One; we stumbled upon a lunitaur wandering the caves. We may barter for their services and be led to their city. The chances of that happening are slim to none. "I don't think I want to hear the second one," Chives said. I grimly nodded. "Two, we eschew the lunitaurs and proceed to ask for aid from the only other denizens of the Core." "The marians?" Shaddo asked. "They are bound to their waterways and ocean. They could not guide us through." "He means the other dwellers." Chives frowned. "Oh... Oh. Them." I sighed. "Yes. We musk seek out the shapeshifters' hive. Follow the yellow slick mold..."