//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Through the Looking Glass // Story: Equestria Nova: Brave New World // by Al-1701 //------------------------------// ‘Morning’ came early, literally. It was a good three hours before sunrise when the colonists were gathered. Wind Whistler immediately looked to the mirror they were going to traveling through. She could see the surface ripple slightly. Ponies in armor were also coming in and out carrying supplies. As Wind Whistler had guessed, it was winter on the other side. The supplies included insulated tents, heating stoves, cold weather gear, and a lot of fuel. There were also a lot of barrels of dried food and fresh water. There were 46 adult ponies to feed in cold weather. Even with that many, the amount of food they were sending through could last them well into the next spring even with generous rations. Other supplies included what they would need to set up a more permanent presence. There were seeds for all the important grain crops as well as temperate fruits and vegetables. They were also going to have plenty of tools for wood and stonework. There were even a couple of crates of colorful gems to sell and barter with. There were also weapons. Spears and machetes had been loaded into crates. She also saw some unicorns looking over breach-loaded rifles. Hopefully they would not need these weapons. Since ponies only ate meat in the most desperate circumstances, their only purpose would be defense. However, they had to cover all the bases as who knew what was waiting for them in this new world. The unicorns lifted their rifles up in their magic. They opened the back of their weapons and would have slipped cartages into the breaches of barrels to load them. They left them unloaded and snapped the gun closed. They held the rifles in their magic and took aim. One pulled the trigger, and the gun clicked as the hammer struck. A unicorn mare with yellow coat a blue mane with a white streak watched them. “Okay. They seem to work all right. Put them in storage and prepare to head out.” “Yes, Rosetta,” one of the stallions replied and set his rifle in a box. The other unicorns did the same. “Easy now!” a pegasus mare with a white coat and a curly, vibrant yellow mane muttered to herself as she carried several film cans in her fount legs. She was a young pony, about the same age as Fizzy by the looks of it. She flew to an earth pony mare with a lavender coat and a mane a similar shade of pale pink as Wind Whistler’s only with more of a curl to it. “I brought the films you wanted, Lickety-Split.” The pegasus set the film cans down in front of the earth pony apparently named Lickety-Split. “Let’s see,” Lickety-Split murmured to herself as she looked at the film cans. Her frown sharpened with each can she looked at. She practically threw the fifth can down. “Surprise—” She glared at the pegasus, apparently named Surprise “—these are all family films.” “So?” The pegasus, apparently named Surprise, shrugged while hovered. Lickety-Split sighed a shook her head. “We’re not going to have families for the first five moons. It’s only going to be adults, so we should have films for adults.” Surprise slouched. “Oh.” “Don’t worry about it. I got my own collection,” Lickety-Split said. Wind Whistler wondered what Lickety-Split meant by ‘films for adults.’ Somepony stumbled into Wind Whistler. Remembering last evening, Wind Whistler pushed in the direction of the collision to help the pony get back upright. The earth pony mare with an orange coat and curly, golden yellow mane got all four hooves under her. “Thanks,” she replied. Wind Whistler immediately recognized her as Applejack. However, it made no sense for one of Princess Twilight Sparkle’s closest confidantes to travel to another world without the princess herself. She also did not remember Applejack having such a curly mane in any pictures of her. “Applejack?” Wind Whistler asked. The mare sighed. “Yes, but not the pony you’re thinking of.” She also lacked the rural accent Wind Whistler had heard Applejack speak in. Wind Whistler furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?” “My name is Applejack,” the mare said irritably, “but I’m not the matriarch of Sweet Apple Acres. That’s what I mean.” “I apologize,” Wind Whistler said hastily. “I did not realize the subject was so offensive.” “It’s just irritating,” Applejack said. “We we’re cousins born in the same year and looked so much alike our dams thought it would be cute to give us the same name. We even ended up with similar cutie marks. Then my cousin not only became the matriarch of the Apple Family’s flagship farm, but also a bearer of an Element of Harmony and confidante of the new princess. I’m always compared to her.” “Is that why you agreed to be a part of this endeavor?” Wind Whistler asked. Applejack nodded. “I’ll have a chance to start fresh and make a name for myself.” She walked past Wind Whistler. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to make sure I have everything in order.” She stumbled but managed to keep her balance. Hopefully she’ll make a name for herself for all the right reasons, Wind Whistler thought. “So Wind Whistler,” Gusty said coyly from behind Wind Whistler, “what do you think of Hurricane?” Wind Whistler turned back to Gusty, Shady, and Fizzy standing beside her. Gusty had a smirk on her face. Wind Whistler resisted the blush forming in her cheeks, but her heart begin pounding. “I don’t know what you’re insinuating?” she lied. Gusty rolled her eyes. “Oh please. You were making goo-goo eyes at him before the toast”—she batted her eyes as an illustration which made Fizzy giggle—“and then you went out of your way to act like he didn’t exist.” Wind Whistler had hoped she had not given up any visual clues to her possible attraction to Hurricane. Unfortunately, her body betrayed her more than she knew. “He’s a good looking and well spoken stallion,” Wind Whistler said. “He just got my interest.” “Don’t be so embarrassed about your feelings, darling,” an accented voice said behind her. Wind Whistler turned around. A pegasus mare with a pink coat and a noticeably darker pink mane with loose curls stood there with a huge grin. “I’m sorry. My name is Heart Throb. I’m a matchmaker.” Heart Throb heaved a melancholy sigh. “I’ve seen that look in so many ponies’ eyes. You were absolutely enraptured for a moment.” She heaved another shy. “It’s just so romantic.” Wind Whistler could not stop the blush this time. Was it that obvious? “I—I—” she stammered. She searched for any reason to get off this subject. “I have to question the logic of establishing a new settlement in the middle of winter.” The four other ponies rolled their eyes and groaned. “Hmph,” Heart Throb exhaled. “You can deny it all you want, but you’ve been bit by the love bug, darling. You can at least get to know him.” “I am open to that,” Wind Whistler said, “but we will have more pressing matters on the other side.” The reason they were starting in winter was because that was their window of opportunity. Fortunately, they would have shelter and plenty of food. Ponies were able to tolerate some cold weather, so as long as it was not too bitterly cold, they should be fine. Also, if worse came to worse when it came to food, they could eat the local grass if it was edible. Eating grass was not the most appetizing or satisfying diet, especially with the grass dormant for the winter, but it beat the alternative. They had the ability to cope, but there would still be a lot of work to be done before Winter Wrap-up. “Make a hole!” a mare’s voice shouted. Wind Whistler lost her train of thought and looked around. A pegasus mare had her pasterns hooked over the handle of a long pallet packed with books as she pushed it along. The mare had a white coat which made her curly, reddish-orange mane seem all the more vibrant in comparison. She wore eyeglasses with green, turtle shell frames and attached to a pearl chain going around the back of her head. “That’s a lot of books,” Gusty said. The mare stopped took her legs off the pallet. “Somepony has to make sure we have some culture on the other side.” She held out her front leg. “I’m Paradise.” “Wind Whistler,” Wind Whistler replied as they shook pasterns. “The colonists should prepare to enter the mirror,” Celestia announced. “Well, see you on the other side,” Wind Whistler said. Wind Whistler picked up her suitcase and walked up to the mirror. She took a second to gather herself. This was really happening. “Good luck, my little ponies,” Celestia said. The first ponies slowly walked towards the mirror. The last of the guards came out of the mirror. A pegasus mare with a pink coat and a straight, lavender mane landed in front of the mirror. “Me first,” she said in a Trottingham accent. She turned to the portal. “To boldly go where no pony has gone before.” “Except the scouting parties,” a stallion joked from behind Wind Whistler. The mare turned back and glared at somepony in the crowd. She turned back to the mirror and practically leapt through it. Hurricane and a pegasus stallion with a mint green coat and straight, aqua mane walked through. The ponies began to file through. Wind Whistler took a cleansing breath and walked to the mirror. She stopped in front of it. Her reflection rippled on the surface. She touched the surface with her hoof and pushed it through farther. The ripples from it spread across the mirror. It felt like she had put her hoof in the water only it was not wet when she took it out. She closed her eyes and stepped through the surface. She opened her eyes as her tail cleared the surface. Before she could understand anything before her she felt herself being pulled forward. She accelerated at a rate she could hardly comprehend. She feared she would be torn asunder by the change of velocity, but she remained intact. She passed through a tube that seemed to only go faster and faster. She could not breathe because of the speed, but did not feel the compulsion to breathe. The tube gave way to stars passing by her in a blink of an eye. She began to decelerate as she approached another tube. A light appeared at the end and enveloped her. Wind Whistler opened her eyes and dropped her suitcase to inhale a deep breath. She looked around her. Everything was fuzzy in her vision and there was a slight ringing in her ears. She felt like she was floating despite clearly being on the ground. “You’re okay, Wind Whistler,” Hurricane’s voice said but sounded distant. She felt a pastern take hers. She looked to her side and saw it belonged to Hurricane who looked like a white mass with a red mass on top of it. “The disorientation will clear up in a minute.” Hurricane helped Wind Whistler onto her hooves. Wind Whistler wobbled a little. However, she felt her wherewithal coming back to her. She became more aware of her body. All four legs and both wings were where they should be. She even flicked her long, wavy tail to make sure it was still there. Wind Whistler looked back at where she had come out. It was a mirror much like the one in the Crystal Empire. However, the frame was a gold trim crafted to look like leaves and vines. It also hung from the wall instead of being free-standing. Gusty flew out of the portal. Wind Whistler jumped out of way before Gusty could land on her. Gusty landed on cushions placed right where ponies would land. “What a rush?” Gusty got up and staggered off the cushion in time for Shady and Fizzy to come through. They landed on the cushion. “Let’s do that again!” Fizzy cheered. “Let’s not and say we did,” Shady grumbled. “I don’t know how the guards could withstand going back and forth like that,” Wind Whistler said. Her head finally cleared. The guards seemed to be just fine coming out. “It’s easier after your first time,” the mint green stallion said as he walked up to them. His voice was gravelly and had the air of both age and experience. “You’ve done it before?” Gusty asked. Hurricane held his hoof up to the stallion. “This is Monsoon. He was with one of the scouting parties, so he knows what he’s talking about.” Wind Whistler looked around now that she was able to take it in. There were several lanterns providing some light. She could make out a dry fountain in the middle of the floor and a grand staircase behind it. They were in a large room with ceiling high above them. “Where are we?” Wind Whistler asked. “We’re in the grand ballroom of an abandoned castle,” Monsoon said. “It’s the only structure in this valley.” “Then let’s get going already,” the mare with the Trottignham accent insisted. “There’s an entire world out there to explore.” “Fold your wings, North Star,” Monsoon said to her. “We have more ponies and equipment coming in.” Wind Whistler took in her surroundings. The room was cool but bearable. However, the air was also stale and a thick layer of dust covered everything. She could also see some cracks in the plaster and the probably once grand chandelier was uneven from the crystals missing. “How big is this castle?” Wind Whistler asked. “Big enough to house the advanced team,” Monsoon replied. “However, the valley is barren, so we will only linger here long enough to get our bearings and look for more fertile terrain.” “What about the mirror?” Hurricane motioned to the mirror as another pony flew out of it. “It’s our only contact with Equestria.” “We’ll take it with us,” Monsoon said. “Transporting the mirror in Equestria from Canterlot to the Crystal Empire didn’t seem to affect it, so we should be able to move this one with no trouble.” “It’s too bad,” Wind Whistler said. “With some minor repairs this would make a fine home.” North Star groaned. “You can stay here and wait for the others. I need to see something other than this room.” North Star ran up the stairs. The hollow echoes of her hooffalls reverberated off the walls, ceiling, and floor. If not for the pastel color of her coat, she would have disappeared into the darkness. Wind Whistler flew after her. “Wait! You shouldn’t go alone!” The stairs led to a balcony that just ended to the left as best as Wind Whistler could tell in the dark. North Star pushed open a door to the right. Wind Whistler landed and ran after her into a grand hall. The hall was dark, but faint light was coming from Wind Whistler’s right. North Star was headed towards it. Wind Whistler followed her into a grand, two-story foyer. The foyer had double doors that led to the outside. Wind Whistler noted all this as she drew up a floorplan in her mind. A blast of cold air hit Wind Whistler as North Star opened the door. She flew out and Wind Whistler flew after her. She gained altitude into the clear, night sky. There was a glow on the horizon that she figured was the coming morning if the time was the same as in the Crystal Empire. It was also winter given then chill, so they must be in the northern hemisphere like Equestria if it was the same time of year. “You need to see this,” North Star gasped. Wind Whistler turned to what she figured was the south. She gasped as she saw the arc across the sky. It was a system of rings, two wide bands separated by a gap and third narrow ring on the outside. The bands looked like they had grooves similar to a record going from almost white to dark gray. She had seen planets with rings, but now she saw what it looked like from the surface. Above the rings were two moons in their last quarter. The larger looked about the same size as Equestria’s moon and the other appeared a little less than half the size. Both were light grey in color, but the larger had more dark patches while the smaller had more craters. “We’re definitely not in Equestria anymore,” Wind Whistler said. “Isn’t it thrilling?” North Star asked. Wind Whistler grinned. “It is.” She could hardly wait to see what was out there. Gusty was stunned as the ballroom filled with equipment. It was looking more like a warehouse with crates and barrels stacked on each other. Some things like the tents and heating stoves were taking outside immediately. However, most of it was being stacked up here. It made sense since they could keep it close by and easily conceal and protect it until they moved out. “Please tell me it made it through okay,” a voice said. Gusty turned to the side. A unicorn mare with a pink coat and a blue mane streaked with dark pink was using her magic to pull off the top of a crate. It was pretty powerful magic as she pulled it off nails and all. Gusty could not do that with her levitation magic. The pony levitated a box out of the crate and opened it. She sighed in relief. “It looks like it made through in one piece,” she murmured to herself. “What did?” Gusty walked up to the box and looked at it. It was a sewing machine. Gusty furrowed her brow. “A sewing machine? We barely wear any clothes.” “That doesn’t mean we won’t have a use for it,” the unicorn said. The earth pony with a white coat and aqua mane walked up beside Gusty. She turned to Buttons. “Hi, Buttons.” “Hi, Cupcake,” the unicorn, apparently named Buttons, replied. “My sewing equipment made it through okay. What about your cookware?” “Every pot and spoon is accounted for,” Cupcake replied proudly. “Be careful with that,” a mare snapped. Gusty, Buttons, and Cupcake turned to the commotion. An earth pony mare with a white coat and her dark pink mane done up in a tight bun pointed at a crate while glaring at a guard. A nurse’s cap sat on top of her head. “This is vital medical equipment.” She spoke with a Mustangian accent that would probably be more refined if she was not shouting angrily. “I’m sorry, Truly,” the guard replied timidly. “That’s Miss Truly, to you,” Truly said. The guard trotted around her and back towards the mirror. “That’s everything!” a guard shouted. “Let’s move out.” The guards passed through the mirror. The last guard stopped and looked back. “Good luck.” He disappeared into the mirror. “Well,” Cupcake said with the slightest unease in her voice, “that’s it. We’re on our own.” Shady trembled as she swung her directional lantern from side to side. The grand hall had a high, peaked ceiling with chandeliers running down the center. The end opposite the foyer was a set of stairs leading up and down. Fizzy walked towards the stairs. She put down her lantern and turned back to Shady. “Should we check out the upstairs or the downstairs first?” If this castle was like most other castles, really bad things were downstairs like dungeons and torture chambers. Shady put down her lantern. “I say upstairs,” she said timidly. “You don’t have to be so scared, Shady,” Fizzy said. “There’s nothing here but us.” “You can never be too careful,” Shady replied, and then picked up her lantern. Fizzy picked up her lantern and turned it to a door. She walked to the door and pulled it open. Shady put down the lantern. “What’s in there?” Fizzy put down her lantern. “I think it’s a kitchen. Check the opposite door.” Shady picked up her lantern and walked up to the door opposite to Fizzy’s. The door was stone, but had been crafted to look like wood like many doors in the castle. She pushed down on the handle and pulled the door open. The large room had long tables and benches arranged in rows. Shady put down her lantern. “It looks like a dining hall.” “So, the ballroom, library, kitchen, and dining hall are on the first floor,” Fizzy mused aloud. A thought crossed Shady’s mind. “Does the castle seem deeper and wider than it should be? Wind Whistler said this part of the building is ten meters deep and thirty meters wide from the outside. It seems twice as wide and four or five times as deep from the inside.” “Maybe it’s a spell to make it bigger on the inside than on the outside,” Fizzy said. “Let’s check out the second floor.” Fizzy picked up her lantern and so did Shady. The stairs went up halfway to a landing and then up again the opposite way. The second floor had a hall going to either side. Shady followed Fizzy where the hall to the left hall met another hall going to the front of the castle. Fizzy pushed open a door. She put down her lantern. “These are bedrooms.” Shady opened another door. A spacious room devoid of furniture was on the other side. They walked down the hall to the doors at the end. Fizzy pushed it open. They stepped out onto the balcony overlooking the foyer. They walked back to the stairs and went up to the third floor. They came to a pair of doors. The doors were stone like all the others despite looking like it should be wood. Shady set down her lantern. “I wonder why all the doors and beams were made to look like wood but are made of stone.” Fizzy set down her lantern. “Maybe they didn’t have wood, but liked the look.” Shady shrugged. It was as good an answer as any. Fizzy pushed the door open and light came in from the other side. They stepped out into a large, open room under what had been a glass dome. However, much of the glass was gone and the room was frigid. An earth pony was standing next a large, circular area of soil in a raised part of the floor. She had a yellow coat and flowing, light pink mane with a white flower worked into it behind her ear. Other raised areas held dry, gray soil in a circle around the room. The earth pony looked worriedly to a unicorn stallion with a medium gray coat and straight, white mane streaked with black. He swept his horn across the soil with a gray aura around it. “Are you absolutely sure?” the mare asked. “I double checked,” the stallion replied. “There’s not a trace of organic compounds in the soil. I don’t know how to explain it. This planet has a nitrogen dominant atmosphere with abundant oxygen. Background radiation is also comparable to Equestria. This castle also means something lived here at some point. Yet, the soil is completely dead.” “If the soil is dead, we can’t plant crops,” the mare said. “I hope the whole planet isn’t like this.” Fizzy pushed her way through the door and trotted in. Shady sulked behind her. “Hi,” Fizzy said cheerfully. “What are you talking about?” The two ponies looked her as she came to stand in front of them. “Who are you?” the mare asked. “I’m Fizzy,” Fizzy said. She then motioned back to Shady as she came to stand behind her. “This is Shady.” “Should we tell them?” the mare asked. The stallion shrugged. “They deserve to know.” He turned to them and pointed to the mare. “This Posey, our botanist; and I’m Geiger Counter, our chemical analyst.” “We were talking about the soil,” Posey said. “There are typically organic compounds in it, but there’s none in this valley.” “Why’s that?” Fizzy asked. “That’s what we’re trying to find out,” Geiger Counter replied and then shrugged. “Right now we can’t explain it.” Shady swallowed down a lump forming in her throat. Her feelings about this planet were growing worse by the minute. She almost wished the monsters had greeted them upon arrival. At least she would know. She felt like something was there with them, but always just out of sight. Monsoon watched the clear sky. They might have rings and two moons, but there was one sun like Equestria. Though, it and the moons moved without any assistance he knew of. Although it looked to be the same size and brightness of Equestria’s sun, something told him this sun was a much larger and more distant celestial body. Although many ponies believed Luna brought the stars out at night, they were actually ‘out’ all the time but drowned out by the light of their sun scattering through the sky. They were also suns only unimaginably far away. Yet, they seemed to not wobble like they would if being pushed around something. This could be one of those ‘fixed’ stars and this planet was circling around it. It was probably also spinning like a top to make it look like the sun was going around it. Monsoon glanced down at the area in front of them. Astronomy was not important at the moment. Finding life on this planet was. The valley was dry as a bone, but the surrounding area had a blanket of snow over it. However, he could still tell it was just as rocky and apparently desolate. Three objects caught his eye. They were Hurricane, North Star, and Lofty. Hopefully they would have some good news when it came to life here. Lofty was the closest. She had a yellow coat and curly, yellow mane. She came towards Monsoon and held up just above the ground before landing gently. “Please tell me you have good news,” Monsoon said warily. “There’s not much out there, but I did find life.” Lofty opened her saddlebag and pulled out some stalks of dried grass. Hurricane and North Star landed. “Let me guess,” Monsoon said, “just some dry grass.” “I saw some thorn bushes,” Hurricane said. “I also thought I saw a creature with the head of a lion and five goat legs arranged like the spokes of a wheel around it for a split second,” North Star said. “However, when I looked again, it was gone.” “You got that much detail from a glance?” Lofty asked. North Star shrugged. “I have a photographic memory.” “The thing is, the soil is all gravel and sand out there,” Hurricane said. “We might be a hundred kilometers or more from anything farmable.” “What gets me is how barren the valley is,” North Star said. “Looking at the topography, it should have plenty of water and life.” “Well, it’s doesn’t,” Monsoon said. “At least we know this planet supports some life. We just happened to come out in badlands.” Monsoon motioned back to the valley. “Head back to the castle. Geiger Counter will want to analyze your samples to see if we can eat the local vegetation.” “What little there is,” Lofty added. “Just get down there,” Monsoon snapped. “They probably need help with something.” The three nodded. They spread their wings and flew away back towards the valley. Tomorrow they would be heading out farther. Hopefully they would have better news. Rosetta stepped out into the cold courtyard. Narrow, three story buildings sat against the side walls. They had many doors and windows opening out onto balconies with stairs connecting the floors. The opened front gate led to the lowered drawbridge. Above it, Spearhead stood on the front battlement. Rosetta concentrated. The world disappeared in a flash of green and then reappeared with her on the battlement beside Spearhead. A flash of blue and the clack of hooves behind her told her Echo and Typhoon had joined them. Landslide was probably somewhere doing his own thing as usual. She turned back. The crystal unicorn mare with a pale blue coat and a mane streaked white, yellow, dark purple, and red stood in front of the pegasus stallion with a dark blue coat and blue mane. Echo always gave Rosetta the creeps at first glance. Those ice blue eyes staring forward blankly and expressionless face was only compounded by the fact she was a mute. There was no telling what was happening behind that blank stare or if you wanted to know what was happening in there. Typhoon bowed his head. “What are your orders, Lord Spearhead?” A small laugh drew Rosetta’s attention back to Spearhead. Spearhead smirked. “Lord? A rather lofty title, wouldn’t you say?” “You are the highest ranking pony on this planet,” Rosetta said. “The title of Lord suggests I’m a member of the old nobility,” Spearhead said coldly. “A noble I am not, nor would I ever wish to be. Call me colonel or governor. Those are my proper titles.” Rosetta looked out at the valley. It was completely barren. Nothing but gray, rocky soil extended to the mountains in the distance. There was not even snow on the ground. “Colonel Spearhead.” The familiar voice of Galaxy made Rosetta’s ear flick. She turned back. Sure enough, the crystal unicorn mare with a pink coat was standing in the courtyard below. Galaxy disappeared in a flash of pink and reappeared on the battlement next to Spearhead. “Colonel Spearhead, I believe there is something wrong with this valley.” In the short time Rosetta had spent around Galaxy, she discovered her personal magic was a kind of sixth sense. She could sense things about a situation that escaped the senses of others. When she said something was wrong, they more likely than not were. “Wrong in what way?” Spearhead asked. Spearhead was a born skeptic as Rosetta had learned. Even if Galaxy was almost always right, he was the first to want more proof. “I can’t say for sure,” Galaxy replied. Rosetta could swear she saw Spearhead catch himself from rolling his eyes. “I just have the feeling the valley shouldn’t be like this,” Galaxy explained. “It’s like something is making it barren.” Spearhead smirked. “Fortunately it’s no concern of ours. We have plenty of stores, and once the scouts find greener pastures, we will leave this valley and any ill feelings you get from it behind.” Galaxy frowned. “I hope so.” Hydia stretched and scratched her hunched back. She hated winter. She should love it because it was when everything was barren, but the cold made her bones ache and the dryness made her skin itch. Making others miserable was just fine, but she should at least be able to enjoy it without suffering as well. She walked up to her viewing pool. The viewing fluid bubbled as stream rose from it. She took in the noxious smell which made her feel better. She waved her hand over the viewing pool and concentrated to cast her spell. It was time to take in her barren domain. It was almost lifeless year round, so she could enjoy seeing nothing but rock even when the weather was not giving her fits. If anyone should happen to venture into the wastes known as the Land of Nightmares, well, then she could have some fun. She had an arsenal of spells to make their trek a nightmare, assuming the delightfully undesirable beasts and demons that lurked among the rocks and crevasses did not get them first. Images of the rocky landscape covered in snow passed through the pool. She smiled as she watched the desolation pass before her. She then came to the crown jewel of the desolation. The cursed valley her parents had hexed all those decades ago. They would have been proud to see it just as barren as when they cast their magic on it. The image showed the barren landscape, but also more of those small equine creatures. She stopped the parade of images and had the pool stay on them. She thought she had scared them off two lunar conjunctions ago. “What are they doing back?” Hydia grumbled under breath. There were far more of them this time. Hydia grimaced at the thought of new neighbors, especially ones so cute and colorful. Even the small party she scared off the last time had some magical prowess. This many could even pose a threat. “Reeka, Draggle, get your useless carcasses up here this instant!” Hydia shouted. Her voice echoed through the dilapidated walls of their castle. Hydia waited a couple seconds before she heard the clambering and grunting of her two daughters making their way up the stairs in usual fashion. A few seconds later, they practically fell upstairs. Draggle, the stick of girl topped by a ratty head of red hair, and Reeka, a tub of lard with her black hair in pigtails, picked themselves off the floor. “Can’t you even walk up a flight of stairs without screwing it up?” Hydia grumbled and then realized she asked this just about every day. “Reeka wasn’t walking fast enough,” Draggle complained. “You were behind me,” Reeka shot back. “Then you should have been moving faster,” Draggle shouted in Reeka’s face. Reeka pounced on Draggle and the two started to wrestle, kicking up the dust around them. Hydia slapped her forehead and pulled her hand down her face. Her head suddenly throbbed like it did so often. If these two were any indication of the state of the next generation of the Gloom Witch Clan, she feared for the future. “Girls,” Hydia said, keeping the irritation from her voice as best she could. Reeka and Draggle continued to wrestle, rolling around. They bumped into the wall and almost caused some of the containers on a shelf above them to fall off. However, they wobbled back into place while Reeka and Draggle rolled away in the opposite direction. “GIRLS!” Hydia shouted, letting her irritation flow freely into her voice. They did not have time for this. The two immediately stopped and rolled away from each other. “Yes, Mama?” Draggle asked. Hydia’s blood suddenly began to boil. If there was no thing she could not stand, it was these two dingbats reminding her she made the stupid mistake of shacking up with their sperm donor and carrying them to term. Her face burned like the volcano below their fortress. “What did you call me?” Hydia fumed. “I’m sorry, Hydia.” Draggle backed up to the wall. “I didn’t mean to call you ‘Mama.’” “You can suggest we’re even related when you stop being worthless screw-ups,” Hydia growled. “Now, we have visitors of the four-hoofed variety.” Hydia turned back to her viewing pool. Reeka and Draggle gathered behind her. “So, the ponies are back?” Draggle asked. “Of course they’re back,” Reeka chastised Draggle. “What are you, blind?” Fortunately no, but Hydia knew they were both dumb. Frankly, blind, intelligent witches would have been better than the seeing idiots she had. After all, there were seeing-eye spells, but she had yet to find a cure for the acute case of stupid these two had. “I wonder where they come from,” Reeka said. “Who knows?” Hydia replied. The world was full of portals leading to other worlds. The old castle apparently served as one of them leading to wherever these ponies came from, but Hydia had never discovered how. That was not important right now anyway. “I wonder if they’re going to stay,” Draggle said. Hydia gave a low cackle. “Not if I have anything to say about it.” She rubbed her hands together as she thought of the terrible things they could do them. “We should roll out the welcome wagon for—” Hydia stopped as an idea crossed her mind. It was so twisted and sick she had to do it. “Wait minute,” she mused aloud. “We don’t have to do anything.” “But, what if they take over that valley,” Reeka asked. “Exactly,” Hydia said. “Why don’t we let the little curse your grandparents put on it have its way with them.” Hydia looked down into the viewing pool with a grin. Those multicolored equines had no idea what was happening to them at that very minute.