//------------------------------// // 8: Stuff of Stuff // Story: Scotch Muffin // by TheFoxern //------------------------------// It wasn't exactly what one would call a purse, that's for sure. It was large, more like a bag and such gaudy colors that it made one dizzy to look at it. It was so large, in fact, that Tacky had to drag it, rather than carry it. Surprisingly it didn't slow her down and the flamingo could keep pace with the group no problem. Scotch could hardly believe she could lift the thing, with the sheer amount of...stuff, that she put into it. Yet she called it a purse. After she had gathered her things, she said goodbye to her flowers. It was a very long goodbye. Scotch was certain she was about to cry, and then began to wonder if flamingo's could cry. She did this through the entire valley. It was just good that she did it in chunks, rather than to individual flowers. But that, apparently, was Tacky. Tacky cared for everything. Except the Red Guards. They apparently had attempted to burn her place down a few weeks ago. To her, they were just: “Brutes. Brutes who think just cus they're bigger than me, they can do whatever they want.” “Well, they're bigger bigger than me,” Arthur said, folding his arms. Apparently Cookie had become some sort of transportation, as everyone was seated on him. Except for Tacky's bag, which dragged behind. “Fairly certain everything is bigger than you,” Scotch said, looking down at him. “Unless there are smaller things we've not seen?” Arthur paused, and shrugged. “Probably? I have not seen seen every creature that lives.” “I'm sure there are,” Cookie said. He didn't seem slowed, or bothered at all at the group atop him. A lot stronger than he looked, Scotch reckoned. “Yes, well...at least we're almost there. Right, Arthur?” “Oh who who knows. You can never tell around here. Just have to keep moving moving and hope you get there eventually.” Scotch frowned and went to say something, but Tacky got there first, “Are you at all tired Cookie?” He shook his head, which almost tossed Scotch off, as she was sitting up at the front. “Nope.” “Well my my, you are such the strong...thing, aren't you? I can see why little Scotch rides atop you.” Tacky smiled at Scotch. She forced herself to smile back. She was fairly certain that Tacky wasn't trying to be insulting, but Scotch still felt a bit like she had been insulted. “Yes, well, I'm afraid I'm not as fast as anypony around here.” She waved her hooves at Tacky. “Short legs and all.” “Never stopped me,” Arthur said, watching as Hooves were waved above his head. “Yes well, you flutter while you walk.” Scotch had noticed how he half flied, half ran. “It's no question that Cookie, or Tacky would have no problems keeping up.” “Wow...” Scotch looked forward when Cookie made a noise, and saw it. It was immense. They had just come to the top of a hill and there it stood. The Obsidian City. Her jaw dropped. It was an entire city of shining black. It was bigger than...bigger than any place she had seen. Towers that stretched up into the clouds. “Wow,” Scotch mimicked Cookie's reaction. “Well? We wont get there if you just stare at it,” Arthur said, patting Cookie, who started walking. “I've never seen anything like this...except in...” “Kid stories, as you called them?” Arthur said, smiling at her. But Scotch just stared at it. “It is...immense...so grand...” And it didn't seem to be getting any closer, even though Cookie was moving a lot faster now. She noticed that there were a lot of side roads, going this way and that. After a while, he finally slowed back down. “It's not getting any closer.” “It's an illusion of distance, Cookie. It's because it's large and there's no frame of reference that it'll seem like we're going for quite a while,” Scotch said as she shifted slightly to get comfortable again. “Especially because you're staring at it and the change is so small that you can't tell the difference. Try looking at the ground instead.” Scotch fell off this time, as Cookie abruptly looked at the ground. Furthermore, Cookie did not notice. Nor did Arthur or Tacky, as they looked at Cookie's back. And he started running again. She got up slowly. “Well...drat.” She dusted herself off. “Cookie!” But there was no response. She sighed again and looked around. At least she was on the path and knew where they were going. So she started walking. It was all she could do. Would they notice that she had fallen off and come back for her? Or wait for her to catch up? That was the big question. She hoped they would notice. “I said, I saw something running down the path.” She froze as several ponies came out from a side path, staring down the road. They were...painted red? Or perhaps covered in red mud it looked like. “The Empress will not like that things are moving outside the city without her permission. “Hickmor, go and report.” A pegasus somewhere on the path took to the air. “Jeez, this is not going to be good. Do we go after them?” More ponies were coming down the path. “No, whatever it was is long gone by now. Did you see how fast it was going? I doubt Hickmor could've caught it.” They were all covered in red clay. Scotch assumed they had to be the Red Guard everypony was worried about. “I wonder what it was...obviously it's heading to the city...that blasted city. If not for the Wizard, the Empress would have destroyed it already.” It was hard to keep track of who was speaking and who had spoken, as they were all sort of milling about in the road. Blocking Scotch. “Where was it headed from?” They all turned and stared off into the distance. Then they all looked down. Scotch was fairly certain she was terrified at this point. Cookie had become a sort of safety for her and without him, nothing felt right. “Eh? A little filly?” “How'd she get all the way out here?” Somepony was waving to the one who took off. “Dang it Hickmor, get back here. This must be reported.” “Where'd you come from little filly? What's your name?” The clay covered pony took a few steps towards her and she backed away. This obviously confused him and made him look back, as if what was scaring her was behind him. Another pony came up beside him, after looking back as well. “What's wrong little filly? Everything's going to be alright now, we'll take you home.” He turned back, took another step forward and then froze, suddenly back peddling. “Horn!” The entire group scattered immediately into the grass. “Horn! Horn! She's got a horn!” The cry was echoed quite a bit, “Horn! Horn! Run!” Scotch stood for a moment and then ran as fast as she could. She just stared at the path, running. Running hard. By the time she stopped, she was out of breath and her legs hurt. She looked back, but nopony had followed her. They had been scared of her? Of her horn? After thinking about it, she hadn't seen any of them with horns. But it wasn't like she could do much other than burn things. Well, that had worked out for her. She got away. And she had come onto more of a road. Where was Cookie? She looked around, trying to see if she could spot them, but all she could see was grass and the City. Oh, she was right outside. The doors were huge. But, now that she actually looked at it from this close she realized something. “This isn't obsidian...it's...” It was hard to describe, but she moved slowly towards it to confirm her suspicions, and it was what she was thinking: “It's stuff, turned to black stone...” Which was probably the best possible description. A huge pile of stuff, packed together and then turned to stone. She did not even recognize half of the things that made up the wall. It was just a big wall of stuff, made of stuff. Slowly, she moved to the doors, which were two large doors, made out of other doors. Hundreds of them. Whole doors and pieces of doors. Yet not a single doorknob, or knocker. She knocked her hoof against the door. And knocked again when after several minutes there was no answer. But even after the fifth time she knocked, a tad more panicked, there was still no answer. She pressed her ear to the door and could hear...something. Things were happening on the other side. Loud things. She tried the door, but it was shut fast. “Where are you, Cookie?” She looked around a moment and then noticed something odd on the wall. After she moved closer, she confirmed that it was, indeed, a hole. It wasn't a very large hole, but it was a hole in the wall, small enough for her? It looked like it was actually some sort of wheel, that had not been filled with stuff when it was turned to stone. Or perhaps something had removed what was in it? She looked back, off into the distance and the movement of something, that she could have sworn was red, made her feel like they were coming this way. In a panic, she scrambled into the hole.