//------------------------------//
// CHOICE3 
// Story: Sweetie's Mansion 
// by Moon Shooter 
//------------------------------//

	I can't let her go...
Sweetie was right. By letting Twilight go out into that mansion in the state she was in was just short of telling her to go kill herself. But what could she do? She did want to save her friends, right? The answer was obvious of course, but it was the last thing the filly wanted to think about.
Twilight pulled out the GCD nozzle out of the machine and headed for the door. 
I have to stop her. Sweetie concluded. Without another thought, Sweetie got in front of Twilight, blocking her way to the exit.
"Sweetie?"
"Twilight, you’re not going back out there... are you?" Sweetie asked more out of stalling than legitimate curiosity.
"Well, my friends aren't going to capture themselves are they?" Twilight said light heartedly.
"N-no... but you can't go back out there!" Sweetie argued, hoping that it might open up some new option she didn't have the creativity to come up with. "Just being around those things almost... it almost killed you!"
"I know the danger Sweetie, and I'm prepared to deal with it." Twilight said. "Danger's what I do, anyway. I am an element after all."
"You're too weak! You're barely able to stand up on your own, let alone strong enough to stand up against one of those things!"
"Then what Sweetie?" Twilight said, her annoyance was showing. "What do you suppose we do? Just sit around here twiddling our hooves, while our friends, your sister, and maybe more ponies are just kept as that stallion's playthings?!"
Another surprise outburst that drove Sweetie quieter. "N-no..." Sweetie thought for a moment. She couldn't give into Twilight now. "M-maybe someone will come for us!"
"No...no one's coming for us Sweetie. Or... at least with Specter's power, no one's going to make it very far." She sighed. "I'd hate to admit it but... if Luna and Celestia are under Specter's control, there wouldn't even be any light for anyone to go by to make it all the way out here. Even if someone knew the general direction of the mansion. And even if they did somehow make it, Specter's army would only grow. Not only would they not be prepared for what's in this place, but this GCD is the only thing I know of effective against the ghosts. It's a marvel... and a marvel that's difficult to comprehend, let alone reproduce. Any number of ponies who tried to fight even one ghost would be over powered by the sheer fact they can't touch it. Not without this one device or the ability to manipulate abstract magic."
"Then...then..." Sweetie trailed off. She couldn't think of anything else she could do. It was painfully obvious that if Twilight Sparkle left that room to save her friends, she would die. No other options besides the one she decided in her head moments ago. It was unavoidable if she wanted to make it out of there alive. It was unavoidable if she wanted to save her friends. It was unavoidable if she wanted to see her sister again. Sweetie swallowed her fear to say three words. "...let me go."
"What?" Twilight asked.
Sweetie took a deep breath and sighed before saying it a little louder than before. "I said... let me go."
Hummmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
The words hung in the air for a moment. Silence filled the room, aside from the humming of the walls. Finally, Twilight spoke. "You’re joking with me, aren't you?" Her face had something that resembled a bewildered smile.
"Y-yeah, I'm..." Sweetie wasn't sure herself. She wasn't sure what she'd just offered to get herself into.
Twilight on the other hand started chuckling, as though she couldn't believe her ears. As if Sweetie had told a funny joke. Rather, a joke that wasn't supposed to be funny, but was so bad it deserved laughing at.
"What's so funny?" Sweetie asked, slightly annoyed.
"You. Talking about 'going' somewhere." her laughter became less and less as she tried to brush the joke off of her face.
"It's not that funny. I said, I'll take your place and go save-"
"No way in hay." Twilight said. She sounded serious at the realization Sweetie truly meant to head out in her place.
"What? Why not?" Sweetie asked.
"Are you serious?" Twilight sighed, as if this was just a bother to waste time. "A couple reasons. For starters, you're just a little filly, who barely escaped that ghost the first time. And there may be worse ghosts out there, and my friends are no exception. You can't take one on." Twilight closed her eyes again, looking away from the filly. Then, she opened them again. "And secondly... your Rarity's little sister. I'd...I might... I don't want you to end up like the rest of my friends alright?"
"Twilight..." Sweetie said.
"No." Twilight said firmly. The stress was beginning to show on the mare, in the way she talked. Her body was tiring the more energy she spent arguing with Sweetie. "I couldn't protect my friends, but I still can protect you! You’re not going back out there and that's final!"
Hummmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
The humming once again became the dominant sound of the room.
"...then...then I'm not moving either." Sweetie said. "If you’re so bent on protecting just one, because they still happen to be alive, then I don't see why I shouldn't feel the same way. I'm scared of what's going to happen if you go outside, so I'm not moving from this spot, unless you let me go."
"I don't have time for this." Twilight gritted her teeth, having enough of Sweetie. She tried pushing her to the side, however Sweetie was evidently stronger than the mare now, seeming like an impassable boulder when she tried pushing on her.
"Why don't you just use your magic to move me?" Sweetie commented sarcastically as to bring up Twilight's own inability to use magic.
"I need it to open that damn door when it locks again... and for the paintings. I can't waste it on you." Twilight spat back.
Twilight stared down the filly with her dark purple eyes. They were filled with pain, guilt and sorrow. Sweetie stared right back at Twilight, trying to look strong, with her own green eyes, trying to convince her to let her try. While Twilight saw intense fear in her eyes... yet she also saw determination and courage as well.
"...fine."
The words were so surprising after the long silence that they managed to make Sweetie flinch.
"Huh?" Sweetie said.
"You heard me. You can... you can do it." Twilight sighed, as though giving up. "I'll let you go."
"Thank Twi..." Sweetie said. "I won't let you down."
"Somehow... I... I don't think you can." Twilight smiled. "Here, take it."
Twilight undid the tie that connected the GCD to her saddlebags and allowed the device to fall to the floor with a clang. The mare huffed, as though the thing were getting heavy the longer she kept it on. 
"Get in front of that mirror." Twilight ordered. "So you can see how I tie this in case it falls off." 
Sweetie obeyed and went in front of the mirror. Twilight then lightly kicked the GCD like a soccer ball over to Sweetie. Maybe to show how sturdy it was? Or maybe because she was too tired to actually pick it up, or didn't see using her telekinesis to pick it up worth the magic usage. Sweetie watched through the mirror as she was outfitted with the pack and the excess straps on her saddlebags were used to tie it into place. Sweetie watched as surprisingly, it is a perfect fit for the little filly.
Guess this is what she meant by 'compact'.
"Alright, turn around." Twilight said.
Sweetie did so and looked up at her.
"Now walk from that end of the room and back. I just need to make sure it won't fall off."
Sweetie did so. Between the device and the things in her saddlebags, Sweetie would be lying if she said it wasn't heavy. Twilight however nodded in satisfaction. 
"Now... Sweetie." Twilight said. "Capturing ghosts isn't easy, and because we don't really have any to practice one, I need you to listen carefully, so when you see your next ghost, you'll be able to fight it... do you have your flashlight?"
"Huh? Oh yeah!" Sweetie said as she reached into her saddlebags, pulling it out.
"Alright. You know to hold it in your muzzle, so you can keep walking, moving, right?" Twilight asked. Sweetie demonstrated. "Good. Now, the last thing you'd want is to be still in one place for too long so moving and shining your flashlight at the same time is key.
"Now, when you see a ghost, shine your light on it. As I explained, that's their weakness. I'm not sure on the complete magical science behind it, but if their bodies work anything like concrete magic, I think that they're built in layers. A thin layer that the GCD can't suck up, and a thick layer the GCD can. You won't have much luck sucking any ghosts up until you get rid of the thin layer first, which seems to be broken by light. Do you understand so far?"
Sweetie nodded.
"Next, don't be around too many though, because if you do, the ghosts will steal power from the flashlight. Something I've also discovered is that much like the GCD can attract magical energy, these ghosts have the ability to attract and absorb small amounts certain types as well. The light your flashlight emits and the magical energy that makes it shine are two different things, so don't think that just by having a flashlight around that you'll be alright. You have to use it before you're overwhelmed."
Sweetie recalled when she was in the forest and her flashlight began to flicker. She must have been running away from a large number of ghosts. That might explain why she was so cold.
"When you do, you'll hear a sound, kind of like the sound of metal against metal." Twilight continued. "That's the sound of the initial layer of magic breaking. When that happens, the ghost will run away. It will fade away to somewhere else, in order to regenerate the magic shield using their spirit. That's good if you just need to get away from a couple... but if you need to capture one, you need to use the GCD before they disappear. When you hear the sound, let 'em have it. Suck them up and trap them in the GCD. The closer you are, the less time it will take for the magic to be sucked off. Thankfully, that magic doesn't regenerate quite as easy. If done right, the ghost to get sucked into the GCD. You got all that?"
Sweetie nodded. "Yeah. Just one two punch. Hit them with the flash light, and hit them with the vacuum thing. Don't be around too many at a time."
"Alright then, you're set... well, almost at least." Twilight said, going over to one of the mirrors which happened to be on a dresser. She reached inside of the dresser to take out a red yellow striped notebook, a rolled up piece of parchment paper, and a camera. "These things might be useful as you go through the mansion. I... left them here because the GCD was cumbersome enough as it was. First, is a type of journal I found when I returned. I... don't know if it was here when we first arrived or if it was brought here by someone but it was here. It contains pictures and descriptions of different types of ghost. It's known as a Mind's Eye journal... you might have seen one back in Ponyville."
Sweetie nodded, recalling how she came across an expensive book (about 50 bits, and on 'sale') of a similar texture.
[MIND'S EYE JOURNAL! Never have anyone read over your shoulder again!]
In short, it was a book where only the writer could see what was written in the book, among a select number of others the owner could assign. Sweetie remembered mentioning the consideration of buying one to Scootaloo who had a fit at the idea she wouldn't have someone to copy off of anymore in class.
"Problem is, like any other Mind's Eye Journal, it's locked from our eyes."
"Ok, then unlock it." Sweetie said. Surely somepony so knowledgeable knew some way to release whatever enchantment kept it's secrets hidden.
Twilight shook her head. "Even if I wanted to use my magic on it, this specific enchantment magic isn't quite that simple. It's a normal ME Journal, but it's been altered so it might take weeks to unravel that kind of spell."
"Then how do I use it?" 
Twilight pondered. "Well... I have a theory. When I first found this book, the instructions on how to operate the GCD were inside, along with the butler ghosts I've been mostly seeing. So I think each time the holder of the book sees a new ghost, or discovers something new, it's automatically revealed in the book. Here, look."
Twilight places the book in front of Sweetie, who flips it open. Sure enough, the ghost she first saw was sitting on the first page.

Butler Ghost
Common Gender: Male
Desc: This ghost is the most common and simplest to capture in Yield Manor. It specializes in stealing spirits and freezing anything it deems hostile by grabbing it. Flashlights and Ghost Capture Devices work best against this threat.
Main Weaknesses: Light

"That's so cool!" Sweetie said, dropping the flashlight out of her muzzle. 
"You see something?"
Sweetie nodded. "I'll keep it on me. This'll help." She places the book into her saddlebags.
"The next thing is this camera. Something I also found in the room. It's also enchanted. I've never seen it in this design, but it's a type of scanner. At least that's what I assume." Twilight said. 
"Scanner?"
"Yes" She gave it to Sweetie. Sweetie opened the back of the camera up.
"Huh? There's no film!" Sweetie said.
"That's why I figured 'scanning' was it's property, since I also felt magical energy off of it as well. According to the book, there are two functions that I found with this camera. First, if you try to take a picture of a ghost, you're able to start hearing what it's thinking. The other is with these mirrors. You see, there's something strange about the mirrors in the mansion. Supposedly, if you take a picture with one it will activate some kind of transportation spell, back here."
"Teleportation? You mean like you?" Sweetie said, placing the camera in her saddlebags.
"Finally, there's this. It's a map of the mansion... but I don't really trust it." Twilight said.
"Why not?" Sweetie said. 
"Well, maybe it's just me, but this mansion... it feels like it changes. I already know it can. No, it very well might be right. Did you see how the foyer changed?" Twilight asked. 
Sweetie nodded. 
"Well, I have the feeling that rooms change around, just like the scenery. That's likely why it exists. It's also enchanted with a special tracking spell. It'll not only pinpoint your location on the map, but it will also tell what places you have or haven't explored yet, and it will change if the mansion happens to change." Twilight said. "And.. that's really just about it."
"Gotcha. Notebook for ghosts, camera for transportation and mind reading, and a map for the mansion. Okay, I'm ready." Sweetie Belle said as she turned around to face the door. 
"Sweetie wait." Twilight said. 
Sweetie turned back around. "Yes?" 
"Sweetie it's... something that probably shouldn't worry me as much as it is, does however these things I found aren't mine. Even more, it looks like a majority of them's were made for being able to fight these things. Even room, was made for protection against ghosts... a safe room. Now isn't that strange?"
Sweetie nodded. It was strange. Why would the house of a master of ghosts have a tool to fight his own ghosts?
"There's two possibilities in my head right now." Twilight continued. "The first being the fact that these aren't his. Maybe the remnants of an enemy of his, which... might make sense since the room I found it in had it displaying like an old museum piece. The second... which is why I'm worried. He might just consider this entire thing some kind of game."
"A game?"
Twilight nodded. "That this could be apart of some 'plan' of his." she sighed. "Even with what happened with Spike and I, it was too easy for us to have obtained that device. I guess what I'm trying to say is... is I think something deeper a simple haunted mansion happening... I don't know what he'll try to do to you out there, but... I just wanted to let you know to be careful out there and to please, come back." Twilight said.
Sweetie nodded. "I'll be back when I find our friends, so we can bring them back." Sweetie said. "I promise, that nothing's going to happen to me."
"Stay safe Sweetie." Twilight said.
"Don't I always?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"No." Twilight said flatly. "... but, good luck."
Twilight tilted her head over to the door. "Should be open. I think there's a timer on it where it closes every hour or so on it's own." Sweetie Belle once again clicked on her flashlight, and headed through the door. The door shut behind Sweetie as she once again felt the cold mansion air. In the darkness, a part of her just wanted to turn around, and head back into the safety of the metal room. Second thoughts were flooding her head as the weight of what she was preparing to do was starting to bear on her. But Sweetie knew that she couldn't turn around now. She wasn't going to. She had to do this.
It was the only way she would see her friends again.
It was the only way she would see her crusaders again.
It was the only way she'd see her sister again.
Rarity... I'm coming for you... She said as she headed back up the narrow stairwell to the dining hall.








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