//------------------------------// // Island // Story: In a Far Away Land // by TheReaderAndWriter //------------------------------// "What's up, you two?" asked Pinkie Pie. Twilight couldn't do much else but stare at her. "'What's up'? After all these years, looking, fearing for your life, not knowing, everything you have to say is 'what's up'? Like we saw each other just yesterday?" "Aha," she said, nodding with enthusiasm. "Right now not much is really up, more like everything is at the bottom, like a sunken ship," said Spike. "Although, I think a rib of mine is sort of turned upwards at a painful angle." "Ouch, don't worry, I have some tasty apples that should fix that right up! They are at home though," said Pinkie Pie. "Could you please go get one, or a few? I feel like I'm dying a bit here," said Spike. "Okay! Will do! Can you guys come with me? All of you?" "I can barely walk, and I doubt anyone else can," said Twilight. "Oh, really? Then I suppose a dance is out of the question. Hang on, I'll get some help," said Pinkie Pie, putting a hoof in her mouth, blowing to achieve a loud whistle. A moment of silence followed, just for a few seconds, before Twilight started to hear a slight rumbling. She looked up towards the edge of the beach, towards the outskirts of a large forest, and what followed was a bit unexpected. Rushing out from the forest in a march, at least two dozen strange creatures ran out of the forest. With every step they each and everyone took, a single "hup" followed in a deep voice. These were not ponies, not changelings, Twilight could hardly believe her eyes. They were natives, just like in the ruined village near Promise Peak. Every single one of them, bipedal and slightly tall, with large blocks for heads, with quite big noses, looked just like they had in her visit to that now ruined village. Before Twilight even managed to object once, they picked her up, along with every single other survivor, and held them above their heads. "Ribs, ow, ribs, watch it, hey!" shouted Spike, before coughing. "Relax, Spike, just enjoy the ride," said Pinkie Pie. "I wouldn't exactly call this a ride," said Twilight, as she bobbed up and down to the rhythm. The mob of natives turned around in unison and started to rush back into the forest. "Oh no, this isn't the ride," said Pinkie Pie as she bounced alongside them all, her cheerful smile, as always, on her face. "Then what is?" asked Twilight. Suddenly the natives took hold of her and just plopped her down onto a cold hard metallic surface. It had happened so suddenly Twilight was outright disoriented, although surviving the shipwreck might have had something to do with that. Getting her bearings, she realized exactly what she was sitting in: a minecart. Just ahead of her, she saw a long winding track stretch out throughout the forest, along its floor. "Oh no..." "Let's go!" yelled Pinkie Pie, pushing Twilight's cart from behind. Before long, Twilight had taken off at a considerable speed. The track turned more often than she liked. Off to the side she could see several other carts catch up to her. Some of them containing more villagers, a few containing her unconscious friends and Spike, and one carrying Pinkie Pie, who stood at the very edge, balancing without a hint of effort. "So how have things been? Done anything fun while I've been gone?" asked Pinkie Pie. "Pinkie, I-" "Did you have any parties? Do you know how to make fireworks?" she asked, just as a few bright explosions lit up the sky in the distance. "I, listen, Pinkie, I can't-" "Now now, relax a bit, Twilight, sit right down and enjoy the ride. We've got a bit of a way to go," said Pinkie Pie. "Until then, let me sing you a song." "I don't think I have quite the time for a song, I need to find out what that giant light pillar is," said Twilight, pointing towards the beacon, just to realize they were already heading straight for it. "In time, in time, silly, but for now, let's just have a bit of fun. How has it been? Any shocking developments recently?" "You could say that," said Twilight, her eyes lowering to look at the bottom of the cart. "Things here has gone great! I've met some new friends! They are just the tiniest bit weird though," Pinkie Pie whispered. "They are a bit odd, but why even care? I've got company and a home right here. Nopony has talked to me in years! These guys are great listeners though." "Could this ride end?! I'm being flung around like a rag doll here!" yelled Spike, through anguished grunts. "Just hang on a second, Spike, just one more turn for you. I will see you later, and then we will party like I always do!" said Pinkie Pie, "Wait, what?" he asked, but he, along with every other cart, suddenly swerved to the left, quickly creating some distance between them. "Where are they going?" asked Twilight. "To the village for treatment; they could use a golden apple or two, but we're going straight ahead, to the important stuff! No dillydallying, no time to waste! I've got two real pals that you have just got to met!" said Pinkie Pie, turning to Twilight with a certain glint in her eyes. "I've waited a long time for this, Twilight, and I'm not the only one!" "Who?" asked Twilight. "Oh, you'll see, you will definitely see!" asked Pinkie Pie, taking care to not be pushed off the cart by the large number of leaves speeding by over their heads. "So what have you been up to?" "I... Well, about half of Ponyville got together and made a town, the other half did so too. It was really rough at first, and then we..." Twilight just kept talking, venting, sharing, and Pinkie Pie just listened with great interest. *** "Wait, Pinkie Pie, can we stop?" asked Twilight. "Sure, there's a little house just up ahead," said Pinkie Pie, hitting a lever just as they zoomed by it. Within a few moments, they both turned to the side, then turning again to end up inside a protective wooden house out in the middle of nowhere. "Stopping is fun, but I really just prefer to keep going," said Pinkie Pie. Twilight got out of her cart and went over to Pinkie Pie, just looking at her for a few seconds in relative silence. "What's up?" asked Pinkie Pie, but Twilight just wrapped her front legs around her, hugging her as tightly as her exhausted body would allow. "Pinkie Pie... You're here, you're actually here... I thought I'd lost you too. When I found Applejack, I was so sure I'd only gotten lucky, and was so afraid you wouldn't make it on your own. But, you're here, and you're fine. I never stopped hoping," said Twilight. If not for all the tears shed throughout the years, in between the laughter, joy, fear and danger, she would have cried like a little baby, but no more tears. All she did was to hold onto Pinkie Pie's healthy, perky, joyful body, and just be happy that she was alive. That was just really Pinkie Pie, being able to make you smile, even when she didn't actually do anything. Her hug was quickly returned and what had once, all those years ago, been a very rare event followed: a somber voice. "I'll be honest, it's been really quiet without you guys. These strange fellas are really nice, and helpful, but they can't party at all. It's hard to make them smile, I've been trying, but, I've missed hearing you laugh." Twilight leaned back to get a better look at her friend's face, she was still smiling, but less so as she silently wept tears of joy. "It's good to see you again, Twilight." *** Unlike the lengthy, horrible journey over the sea, the the rest of the ride with Pinkie only lasted a few minutes. Eventually the forest opened up, leading them to a large empty desert. Twilight and Pinkie Pie just zipped over the landscape, while Pinkie performed a little dance number to keep them entertained. Despite having met her long lost friend, Twilight had very little to say to her. Partly because she was exhausted, and in part because her goal, what they had risked so very much over, was so incredibly close. In the distance Twilight could make out what had to be the base of the light. "Mind the drop, Twilight," said Pinkie Pie. "Mind the what?" asked Twilight, but quickly got the answer. Without warning the cart fell down two whole blocks, landing on another track. Turning to Pinkie Pie, Twilight whimpered after the tumble. "Ouch, Pinkie, you could have told me about that!" she said, still getting over the sudden sensation of falling. "Oh, that wasn't the drop, that is," said Pinkie Pie, pointing ahead. Twilight turned to the front. "Oh no," she whimpered. Just a few blocks away the ground opened up. It was like an enormous deep hole into the desert, stretching at least a hundred blocks from the center, where the pillar kept on shining, and the track led them over the edge. For a second Twilight felt a sense of weightlessness, only to immediately be cruelly reminded of gravity. She let out a scream as they both plummeted towards the depths below, Twilight screaming, Pinkie Pie with her mouth open, enjoying every second of it. Seconds of falling followed, to then suddenly stop as Twilight hit warm water. She abandoned her cart, swimming upwards as quickly as she could. She took a breath of air as she breached the surface. "I've had enough of water! No more water!" she yelled, swimming alongside Pinkie Pie towards a piece of nearby rock. "Oh, okay, then you are probably not going to want to see my water park later," said Pinkie Pie. "Where are we?" asked Twilight, looking around. It could almost be called a crater. "And what is that?" she asked, pointing towards the very middle of the rock. Atop a pyramid of blocks, quite high, purely from iron, was a single strange block. It shimmered like diamond, and had a bright shine to it. With a surface looking like glass, and a center like purest diamond, it was quite beautiful in a way, unique, and from the center, shooting upwards with the brightest light, rose the pillar of light. It had taken a long time, it had demanded too many sacrifices, but Twilight Sparkle had finally reached it. "Well, that's kind of a funny story. A couple of weeks ago, I was just mining for some red dust stuff and found something really cool really deep beneath us. It was, like, this strange fortress or something. There, I found that thing lying around," said Pinkie Pie, pointing towards the thing in the middle. "This really strange friend of mine, I think his name is Ender, whispered some really weird secrets when I was sleeping, or maybe that was just in my head, because it gets lonely out here, but anyway, Ender told me to build a pyramid out of precious ore, so I did. Wouldn't you know it, that thing just lit up like a firework and just went zoom right up into the sky. Crazy, huh?" Twilight wasn't sure what was crazy anymore. Having been reminded of Ender, she had remembered that the strange creature had been oddly absent during the trip over the ocean, perhaps due to a fear of the water? It didn't matter. While she had reached the beacon, there was really only one thing to ask. "Now what? What did Ender say?" Twilight asked. "Something about setting up that beacon so you could get here," said Pinkie Pie. "What? Me?" "Yeah, go figure! It's really nice you've come to visit, finally, you should have done that a bit more often, you know," said Pinkie Pie, rolling her eyes. "To busy being a princess, I assume? That's got to be some crazy hard work!" "I didn't- You- Argh! Nevermind! Why am I here?" asked Twilight. "To find you? To help us get back to Equestria? What? This whole thing better have been worth it! I... I lost too many good ponies and changelings. I don't even know how many survived, or if they even could have. It was stormy, so who knows how well they did?" "Storm? What storm?" "I don't even know anymore... Pinkie Pie, I'm tired, I just want some answers. No more questions, no more battles, no more running around. I just want to get us all home. I want to fix this. I want answers! Ender!? What is it that you want!? Tell me! Just tell me, please!" yelled Twilight. "Twilight, you shouldn't talk to yourself, it isn't healthy! I mean, I've talked to myself for years now, so I should know!" "Pinkie Pie, just what is Ender? Why am I here? What's going on?" asked Twilight, turning to her, focusing her entire attention to the pink pony. "I dunno!" she answered with glee. Twilight groaned in frustration. "Fine! Now, how am I supposed to find out if you don't know?" "Hm, I think Ender's friend might tell you a few things," said Pinkie Pie. "Ender's friend?" asked Twilight. "Haven't met the guy myself, but how bad can he be?" asked Pinkie Pie and shrugged. "I think you can find him down there," said Pinkie Pie, pointing off to the side of the large pyramid. That was when Twilight noticed a staircase leading straight down into the ground below. "So... I might get answers down there?" "Maybe? I don't know! Let's find out!" said Pinkie Pie, looking at Twilight with great expectations. Before she took the first steps towards the staircase, she took a deep breath. This could be it, the circumstances were so mysterious, and every mystery Twilight had ever encountered had an explanation. Answers, possibly, at last. She went down the well-made stairs, down into the tunnels below the ground, already feeling oddly intense cold air. Pinkie Pie followed, practically bouncing. "I've missed these little adventures. Oh, this is so much fun!" said Pinkie Pie as they both disappeared below ground. *** Meanwhile, quite some distance away, Spike was resting in a soft warm bed, looking up at a tall wooden ceiling. To describe his state as horrible would be an understatement. His head felt like it would burst, his lungs were burning hotter than his fiercest fire, every muscle was sluggish, and he could barely muster up the strength to talk. Still, despite his injuries there was one silver lining: he was recovering. It was impossible not to feel his wounds and pain slowly fade away with every passing minute. Ever since he had taken a bite out of that fruit that had been presented to him, that golden inviting apple, he just felt like things would turn out for the better. Not thinking and remembering the taste was impossible. It had tasted almost... like cider, sweet, sweet cider, filled with an odd warmth that danced on his palate. While the taste had been quite unique, it was impossible not to enjoy. Already Spike longed to taste it just one more time until he was full, but that had to wait. For the moment, he simply needed to rest, and be ready to get something very important done. Still, that was a few minutes off, perhaps even an hour at the most, but the beacon wouldn't go anywhere. He had time to just relax a little, enjoy the strange village he was staying in. If a monster, like... that thing, would show up, everyone would probably know before he even got close to the village. Twilight was capable on her own, and perhaps Pinkie Pie was too? She must have been quite able, to survive out here on this island with nothing to keep her company except these odd natives. He completely understood why Twilight had described them as fascinating. They were friendly, if completely impossible to talk to. There was something peculiar about them. Every single one Spike had seen moved with a purpose. It was almost like they were coordinated, like ants. They moved like they knew where everything was, from food, to bandages, to each other. Spike had seen fifteen of them scurry around at great speed in the small room they were in, yet not having collided with each other. Spike looked over to the side, seeing the beds next to his own. On a row, quite tightly packed, were six beds including his. Spike, Rarity, Shining Armor, Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and that small changeling. Most of them were asleep, as far as Spike knew. Turning his head over in the other direction, he managed to get a glimpse of the society outside the tiny window. The houses outside were more like simple huts, tightly packed together, with no real effort to impress like back in Haven. Still, they looked livable, mostly made out of wood and stone. Further away, between a few of the tall huts, Spike was sure he saw bright colors in strange shapes, and then he realized, of course, that it was Pinkie Pie's work beyond the strange town: an amusement park. If not for a wounded, burning chest, Spike would have laughed. Not only had Pinkie Pie survived, but she had been doing quite well. No amount of her touch seemed to have been lost. It almost made Spike feel a hint of regret, because it he realized how much he had started to doubt recently. He had doubted that Pinkie Pie was alive, he had doubted they could have reached the pillar of light, he had even begun to doubt Twilight. For the first time in a long time, he finally started to believe a little again. Maybe, just maybe, Twilight could find them a way back to Equestria? Truthfully, it didn't matter if she could or couldn't, or if he doubted or not. She would never quit, and he would never stop helping her. "Hey, are you awake?" asked a voice a few beds away, but it became clear to Spike that Shining Armor wasn't talking to him. "Y-yes," said a weak voice, the little changeling. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry... I just... I didn't want to be in the dark again," said Shining Armor. "It okay, I know it." "I've been thinking about what you told Twilight, that it was okay to save me instead of you. I... I feel so much shame. You're so young, and I... I was so scared that I was willing to just let you drown," said Shining Armor. Spike was sure he heard Shining Armor choke on his tears. "You more importa-" "No! I'm not more important than you, I'm not more important than anyone. And the fact that I, for just a second, thought I was, makes me sick to my stomach. I'm a soldier, no, more than that, I'm a warrior now, a warrior of Promise Peak. I'm supposed to always protect everyone... Cadence didn't marry a coward." "You are not a coward. Coward would not say he is sorry. Coward never go up against mistakes. You're a good warrior." Spike heard Shining Armor turn his head. "Thanks, I... I really needed to hear that. Hey, I heard you didn't have a name. Mind if I call you something?" "What?" "I'm trying to think something up, like... C- ca... Caring. Yeah, you're Caring. That's pretty good," said Shining Armor. "Thank you. I will ask Princess Queen Twilight to give me that name. I like it." It got quiet for a while, before Shining Armor spoke again: "I'm sorry about your siblings." "Maybe some lived. Protocol," said the young changeling, but Spike had stopped listening. He had realized the conversation had nothing to do with him, and was none of his business. Spike just focused on the important thing he had to get done. He just needed a little while more before the apple had done its thing, the fatigue had even begun to fade from his muscles. He remembered the white eyes, staring into his soul, all while beneath the waves in that cold, dark water. It had yelled at him, while strangling him. "Stay away from that beacon! Don't even touch it!" Even underwater its voice had been crystal clear, and filled with defensive fierce anger. Spike knew what he had to do, why the monster had tried to attack Twilight and her crew several times, what it wanted to keep them from doing. I'm going to destroy that pillar.