//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 - "Great, now there's two of them." - Celestia // Story: Golden Grace, Headless Headaches // by Thadius0 //------------------------------// (Penumbra Sanctum) It was… solid. If there was a way to describe it, he would say that the space around the world had been turned solid. Trying to force entry would be pretty much impossible for anything less than a bona-fide reality warper. There was a hole, though. Not entirely dissimilar to the bubble of distorted reality that followed him so long as he wore all Four. It felt… deliberate. The ‘line’ connecting him to the coin went through there, so it was a simple matter of entering through there. Anything to get away from the beings that lived Between. Bunch of whiny children and spoiled brats, the lot of them. There was no great flash of light, or awe-inspiring burst of power. He was like the air. Just there. “Ow, my eyes… and ears…” Typhon took off his glasses to rub at his eyes. “The air is weird - is someone actually in front of me, or is it just me hallucinating?” Well, a deep voice more intoned and rumbled rather than stated, technically, yes, there is someone in front of you. And I’m curious as to why there is another boy in front of me. Wait...that garb. Auric did give me a name...Typhoon, wasn’t it? “Typhon, the one that named them.” Typhon straightened. “Now, suit of armor without a head - Dullahan, right? I was asked for help, apparently.” Dullahan did his version of a nod towards the boy. Yes, I ‘heard’ the Call, seeing as how I sit near the hole betwixt this world and all others. The boy is in Canterlot, mediating the dispute all of Newvale have with her royal sunness. Something must have come up if he asked for your help, though. “As long as it doesn’t involve Greater Dragons - getting close to Tiamat just for her pictures was bad enough the first time.” Typhon shuddered slightly. Dullahan merely chuckled. I doubt it, we’ve defended ourselves from the Dragon Migration and Lady Skycleaver, so it’ll not be that. Likely, there was a complication with some of the matters. And he’s got not a smidge of experience in diplomacy, really. “The games of shadows and honeyed words… well, I can do that. If he has the coin - and isn’t vacuum-sealed, - appearing in front of him is just a matter of wanting it.” Typhon crossed his arms. “Should I wear something more formal?” It is doubtful, I’ve yet to see the boy wear anything beyond what you gave him. Would you like an escort to the entrance? The mountain can be tricky if you know not where you’re going. Partially because it also serves as a mine. “That won’t be necessary; I can follow the ventilation shafts out.” Typhon waved. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Dullahan.” And you as well, Typhon. Do come back for a more relaxed visit sometimes. Oh, and if you’re the friend he was talking about that could duplicate or replicate items? I would appreciate a copy of the sword he now wields. It feels wrong to not have one. “For sure. I’ll get on to that. Be seeing you.” Typhon then dissolved into blue lines, which faded from view as they followed the path with the freshest air. (Canterlot - One of many sitting rooms) Auric sighed and put his head in his hands. Typhon would hopefully be here soon, the headache of trying to organize this meeting was getting to him. Bad enough the ones from Newvale wanted to get on the ring right away, but now Chryssy was getting on Cel’s case, and nobody present knew how to properly or accurately track down a changeling yet. If just one of the issues were resolved quickly by someone, then that would free up the resources to do the other. And that was when they heard the unfamiliar voice. Well, unfamiliar to everyone but Auric. “Holy smokes, the air is loud here.” Everyone looked around for the voice, and only one got it right. Namely, Auric, because he’d pulled a similar trick this morning. “This is where the Sun shone, right?” Typhon was up on the ceiling, ‘sitting’, while rubbing his eyes and cleaning his ears. Everyone else took notice of where Auric was looking, and the reactions were...mixed. Chrysalis cocked her head to one side in confusion, Celestia sighed and muttered ‘there’s another one, goodness gracious.’ Auric grinned, and the ones from Newvale were...more high-strung. It was probably the training and living near the Everfree that got to them, but ShiverSpine and Silver Cross let off a small bolt of lightning and fireball due to the sheer shock. Aboyami reared up as though to do her infamous ‘attack of the spirits,’ and Snow Fluff merely raised an eyebrow. All in all, it could have been worse. But not by much. Typhon snapped his fingers. Air friction caused a small spark of electricity - natural lightning - which provided a different path for the bolt, while a vacuum snuffed out the fireball from lack of oxygen and magic. Before Aboyami could complete her attack, Auric held up a hand at the ones from Newvale. They found themselves encased in a golden glowing field, and Auric leveled his best gaze at them. “Guys. Chill. This is Typhon, a friend I called here to help me with mediating this thing, since I’m getting a headache thinking about it and only had one cup of joe today.” “You should be grateful you’ve got a head that could ache.” Typhon chuckled, floating down and righting himself. “True enough.” Seeing the confusion on some faces, notably Chryssy’s, Auric decided to explain. “When is two equal to one? When you add another one. The Dullahan you knew is the two, and the Dullahan of today is one. I’m the other one. Auric Fulcrum, once a spirit bound to the armor, now free to do my own desires, O Changeling Queen. We’ve technically met.” Comprehension flitted across her face before it was replaced by righteous anger again. “And this helps me how? My daughter is still missing!” “Hmm… do you have something of hers right now?” Typhon said, fishing in his pocket for his wallet. “I think there are spells for that.” The changeling queen shook her head. “We’re not all that big on material possessions in the Hive, what with living off love and all. Money doesn’t buy love or happiness. The only thing that she had to set her apart was one sky-blue ribbon, and she was wearing it when she vanished.” Auric interjected then. “You know, even with her being your daughter, her being gone this long and provoking this sort of reaction that you’d drop everything to come to what was once a foe’s fortress and beg her for help tells me something else is going on. What is it?” The queen took a few deep breaths, then sighed. “She is the only one who can match me in wielding Mercury’s might, Auric. We were to study the waters of Hermes and the Light today, and she never misses a chance to do that.” “If that relates you, it could be possible to track her through your blood.” Typhon held two small books in front of him, one of which had a bell etched with runes tied to the silky bookmark. Auric facepalmed as he realized the solution. “Law of Contagion, I should have known! I used it just the other day!” He then cast a, not quite, glare at Typhon. “Y’know, if you could make some sort of massive list of the rules and properties of magic as you know them, I’d at least have a starting point.” “Well, I could copy these two books; these are some of Starswirl’s notes from before his last spell killed him, and Clover before… whatever happened to Clover.” Typhon waved the books. “They are a mix of what my Artifacts told me with Equestrian magic.” Celestia appeared shocked that anyone had had that much contact with Starswirl, but sighed and motioned to the ponies, and dragon, and zebra, from Newvale. “While these two help the queen, I will talk with you about your grievances.” Auric merely nodded and looked at the books. “Good thinking, Cel. You four, with her, and try not to set anything on fire. We can’t afford to replace it.” The ponies, and dragon and zebra, filed out the room, leaving two humans and a changeling queen. “Can’t be worse than the time I sneezed indoors.” Typhon shrugged. “That doesn’t happen anymore, or rather, it doesn’t blow everything to Tartarus.” Auric gave Typhon his best deadpan. “That unicorn and dragon? They represent the ones that lit Mars and Jupiter in this land. Chryssy here was Mercury. I’m pretty sure if they applied themselves, they could set the mountain on fire. And to answer your earlier question, yes, this is where the Sun shone. We’re lucky to still have a mountain.” “No wonder Seiryu was telling me the land felt odd.” Typhon tapped his foot. “He’s the Wood Dragon, and has the mansion of the Root; he knows his soil.” Auric shrugged. “Well, when you come up with a way to stop a mountain and the city on it from sinking into the earth that doesn’t involve a rush job with an Alchemical Device, lemme know. Now,” and here he turned back to Chryssy, “We have a job to do. An heiress to find.” “I have something with range, but it’s meant to find islands, which are notoriously large. And sessile.” Auric put a hand to his chin. “Hmm. Chryssy, any information you can give us would help.” Chrysalis gave both the humans a careful look. Judging from the way the one in blue spoke, he was more powerful than anyone gave him credit for, and Auric...she didn’t want to think about it. “Well, the other hives did report that some of their drones, most notably scouts around the capitol here, had gone missing. Their connections to their Hives had also been severed, which, again, does not just happen. The fact that the same has happened to my daughter…” “She will be found.” Typhon said solemnly. “The more we narrow it down, the easier it should be to track her. The bond between a mother and her child is much more powerful than anyone gives it credit for; not even the gods of madness can break that alignment.” Auric looked a bit shocked then, and leaned in towards Typhon. “Remind me to tell you about the Triad when this is over.” He then stood straight again. “So. The only thing I can come up with is a Law of Contagion tracking spell. But that would only tell us so much. Could you cook up anything else?” “You could use a pendulum. Spelled right, and anointed with a few drops of Chrysalis’ blood, it would help once the resolution gets too bad on the larger-ranged spell.” Auric nodded. “So, first we use yours, narrow it down to a section of the city. Then we use mine, narrow it down further. Then we use a pendulum, and find what we’re looking for. Sound like a good plan?” Chrysalis nodded and extended a foreleg. “Sounds fine, just don’t take too much ichor. I need it to live, not unlike love.” “It shouldn’t be too much; a couple of spoonfuls, at the most.” Typhon said, taking her foreleg. A green card appeared in front of him, and he took a knife out of it. With great care, he pinched a hole and squeezed slightly. Placing the knife back from where it came from, his now-free hand took out a black pocket watch, suspending it over the pooling ichor. The changeling blood flowed upwards, making a tiny sphere the size of a lemon. “That should be enough.” Typhon, released her leg, then reaching for his pendant. “Seiryu? I need a Room.” The air around him was gently pulled towards him; a glass-like cube appeared in the middle of the sitting room. The four walls were aligned to the four cardinal directions, and the floor and ceiling were perfectly level. He took a bottle of maroon liquid from his wallet, and downed a gulp. The coppery scent made him grimace. Typhon flew up, taking out the small brush he had used to replicate the spell on the coins. He gently pressed the perpetually-wet ink to the center of the ‘floor’, and allowed it to flow out. “Let the blood seek the blood; the unity of the spirits a light that none can extinguish, piercing the thickest of shadows and revealing the path.” The ink started to adopt small geometrical designs, and climb to the sides of the ‘room’. Typhon allowed the clock to hang from its chain, and made an amber-colored bottle appear on his hand. Drinking from it, he stowed it away and continued taking more magic from the ambient. “Let the dedication to the blood be a source of strength, fortune bless the search, and their love flood their souls. Their unbreakable bond become a beacon for their reunion.” The eastern side had, among the writing and the circles, the image of a tree shaped like a dragon; the southern side, a flame in the shape of a bird; the northern side, a turtle; the western side, a tiger. Typhon was starting to sweat. He really should have waited a little more before trying magic. He nonetheless pulled the sphere of blood closer, splitting it in half, and taking half to the ink. “Now, for the ‘piece of land’ that will find our ‘island’.” Typhon touched the green ichor to the black ink, and the two mingled until the whole design was now colored green. On the ceiling of the room, a circle drew itself. Inside of it, there was the silhouette of the head of a pony, split down the middle. One side a pony, the other a changeling. The whole thing began to flow inwards, as if it were rushing back to the brush. In the end, Typhon was left ‘holding’ a small floating circle of green, like a clock’s face, only with letters and runes instead of numbers of the hour, with the face down the middle. A thin green needle pointed towards Chrysalis, while another… elsewhere. “OK, now someone with actual magic should hold this thing.” Typhon said, floating back down. “Did my best mixing the Filial Affiliation spell to track descendants with the island spell. It steers like a drunken cow, but so long as she doesn’t move much, it’ll help.” Auric took the circle and nodded. “Any ichor left for me? I think I can help when we need a more refined location. A few ideas come to mind…” Typhon held the pocket watch up, the other half of Chrysalis’ blood tailing behind it. “Genbu has a good hold. Blood is Water’s ‘shadow’, so it’s no problem.” “Excellent. This thing seems to be pointing us towards,” and here Auric turned and tried to remember the city as he and his had tromped through it on the wedding day, “The...market, I think. Or beyond that, to where they store their goods. Might be. It’s been a while since I paid a proper visit, after all, and she,” and here he jerked a hand back to point at Chryssy, “was the reason.” Chrysalis had the sense of mind to look a little sheepish at the accusation, but then the fury returned to her face. “If this is one of Celestia’s precious ponies holding her captive…” “It’ll be a pony holding her captive; nothing more, nothing less. They are not a hive mind; even the herd impulse cannot make somepony adopt the actions of another as their own.” Typhon made a gesture with his hand, trying to make her settle down. Auric, meanwhile, had placed his hand on the hilt of his blade. “I swear to you, Chrysalis, by the Golden Sun, if anyone, pony or not, has harmed her, they will be made to Understand what they have done.” At the word Understand, the blade glinted a bit, as though the sun was a little brighter on it. Or perhaps it had shone from within. “I have only used Eureka on two others willingly, and I think you’ll agree with the results.” Chrysalis looked at Auric with a bit of shock, surprised by the strength and ease which he had made the vow. “Why would you promise something like that?” Auric looked off at nothing in particular. “I was a brother once. I know how protective my parents were, but when they got her down, she came to me.” He shook his head, clearing his mind. “Let’s find your daughter.” “I know. When Wind Whistler died…” Typhon sighed, and even the air in the room felt heavier. “I was so… lost? I was hurt, and angry, and the Air? We made such a storm… But I couldn’t let others get injured, no matter how much it hurt, because I knew they would feel the pain I was experiencing. Still bored a groove in the ground, and frightened all of Everfree city, but, well, bloodloss killed me.” Typhon shrugged. The trio made their way out into the city at large after that, nothing more needing to be said amongst them until the situation changed. (An unassuming warehouse, approximately thirty minutes later) The two humans and changeling queen had made quite a stir in Canterlot. It was a bit of a contest with them to lighten the mood on their rather grim mission to see who could get the most ponies to faint. Although to be fair, Chryssy did have a bit of an advantage, as she had actually attacked the city at one point. All she would have to do is open her mouth and look at a pony, and they would run away screaming. Auric would not be outdone, though, and had repeatedly ‘set himself on fire’ with his power, just to garner a reaction. The first time was hilarious until a pegasus had dumped a cloud’s worth of water on him. The second time was still fun. By the third time, the ponies had caught on, and he began thinking of more devious tricks, such as inverting his own gravity field. Or those of others. Typhon did some more classical ghost tricks - things moving on their own, attracting the attention of the ponies away from them, then causing a small spark to shock them on the rump. Once, he made a mare jump into the hooves of another, only to shock her, too, making her jump, mare and all, on top of a stallion; who promptly fell down and was squished by the mares. Eventually, the trio ended up in front of a somewhat dilapidated warehouse. The words ‘Canterlot Research Academy - Overflow Storage’ were barely discernable and peeling off. It looked, quite honestly, like there had been no building inspectors to determine if it was safe to enter for a while. If ever. The pendulum was pointing straight at the doors in front of them. “Huh. CRA storage, eh? Well, there must be a reason she’s here. Either she’s just looking, or whoever took her here has some sort of connection with them.” Auric scratched the back of his head and looked at the warehouse, taking note of its deplorable condition. “Looks like they haven’t used it in years, though.” “Kinda cliché.” Typhon scratched his head. “It does seem to need someone to cast a Structural Analysis spell on it just to make sure opening the doors won’t cause it to fall.” Auric closed his eyes and extended a hand. “Let’s see how far I can push this…” A golden stream flew from him and wrapped around the building a few times, faintly visible in the light. After the whole building was surrounded in a golden aura, it flashed a few times, then vanished. Auric sagged as the information flooded into his mind. “Whoo. Okay, if I ever try to do that again, someone punch me. It is not pleasant.” “You could have waited five minutes, then let me drive a discreet Breeze through the cracks.” Typhon pointed out, and Auric shook his head. “I saw how much you went through back at the castle. Consider it my way of taking on a bit of the burden as well. Anyways. So long as we don’t knock out any walls, we should be fine. Whatever passed for load-bearing walls are weaker than they should be.” “I can call lightning to shock threats, so there’s no need to knock anything into anything else.” Typhon held out a hand, and static electricity jumped between his fingers. “And I don’t need magic to do this, only physics and good old fashioned contact.” Auric nodded. “We all have our little gifts. Now let’s find Chryssy’s little nymph.” And with that, he carefully pushed the doors open a crack so they could filter in. Inside, unsurprisingly, it was dark and filled with dozens of crates under tarps. Dust filled the air, and the scent of age was prevalent everywhere. “Fan out, keep your eyes peeled. We’re looking for anything that looks off. I have no idea what that is, but we’ll know it when we see it.” Typhon nodded, and made his way through the warehouse. The air was too altered from the Golden Sun, so his range expanded much more slowly than it ever had, but small claps still helped. All it would take was a hollow section, a draft, or a discontinuity close to him, and he’d know. About two minutes passed before Chrysalis screamed. Instantly, Auric was rushing towards the sound, and only when he got there did his mind process why would she be screaming in here. It wasn’t the worst thing imaginable, but it was pretty close. In front of her were five changelings, all laid out in a row, all with their eyes closed. All dead. Typhon coughed; it seemed a draft had taken the smell away from the part they were searching in. “Well, they couldn’t have put them in here just like that; there should be another entrance around here.” Auric nodded. “I’m pretty sure some pony, guard or not, or other would have seen someone with a changeling body walking through the streets, so either the one who did this is a master ninja, or they have their base of operations around here.” Then they noticed that Chrysalis was still staring at the bodies and hadn’t said a word. “She’s still alive.” Typhon placed a hand on her shoulder. “The bond between spirits, remember?” She gulped down some air, breathing deeply, and looked Typhon in the eye. “It’s not that. I just… I know. I know that whoever did this to these changelings, is doing it to her. I had hope the other five were still alive.” And then her eyes burned with a fury that few can say they have ever been witness to. “And when I find whoever did this, they will pray to whatever they hold dear they never heard of me.” Typhon inhaled, and he was wreathed in blue. “Then we better find them fast, it’s unbecoming of Royalty to keep their ‘guests’ waiting.” Auric looked at the nearby walls, inclining his head slightly. “Hey...these walls seem...fairly new. As compared to the rest of the place. Do you think…?” He walked up to one and started tapping on it, listening for that telltale sign that someone had hidden a passage behind one. “Wait, tap that again?” Auric obliged. “I think that’s hollow… can you use Alchemy to make an arch? Don’t want to bring down the whole place down on us.” Auric frowned and put a hand on the wall. “I can try...Problem is, I’m either shattering the bonds between the atoms in the wall, or I’m Displacing it somewhere else. So long as I try to keep the shock to a minimum, we should still have a building around us…” The wall flickered for a few moments before a portion of it just dissolved away, revealing a tunnel into the earth. Auric sagged again. “Again, ow. I felt that one. I think the drain from keeping the mountain up is stronger than I thought. That, or my antics earlier today depleted more of my power than I anticipated…” Typhon sighed. “I think I made a… no, that got sacrificed to the gods of discovery by Clover… did I remember to make more shockers? Dang, I don’t have… sorry, I don’t know how to help you. I could lend you a shield, but as for the mountain thing, I’ve got nothing. Trees won’t help, and earth is one of my weakest affinities; other than maybe getting the earth to help you, which it sounds like you are already doing, I’m blank.” Auric waved him off. “I would need some sort of Psynergy Stone, and I’ve yet to find a large enough one to count. All Newvale finds are shards. One that doesn’t crack and dissolve under use has yet to be located, which sucks. The only other thing that helps is rest, but we can’t afford that.” He straightened and made a motion to the tunnel. “Ladies first.” Chrysalis snarled. “With pleasure.” Auric and Typhon followed after, and what they saw...shocked them. The tunnel opened up to a circular room that had what looked like every mad doctor’s dream machine attached to the ceiling. The very sharp tips of every single appendage were coated in changeling blood. An operating table was resting beneath it, and strapped in was a very injured, barely breathing, highly emaciated nymph. Nearby was an earth pony stallion who was looking at her while being held within an iron cage built into the wall and floor, saying things like ‘my princess, I will save you’. Chrysalis rushed to the bench and undid the restraints, quickly cradling her daughter and pouring Ply into her to try and heal her wounds. Auric looked around and noticed the only other door out on the other side of the room. Pointing at it and inclining his head, he silently asked if Typhon would follow. Typhon drew Cooperation, splitting it into Rivalry, and nodded. He wreathed himself in blue, ready to feel any big disturbances in the air that could signify another being close to them. The tunnel twisted and turned, but ultimately led them out of the city near the train tracks. Nobody else had been sighted nearby, and Auric groaned at that. “Oh great. Just bloody great. Whoever it was either heard us coming in the city and packed up everything they needed except that apparatus and the ponies there, or abandoned it a short while ago. Let’s hope it was the latter. The former implies things.” “Breath has some slight healing properties, I should see if Chrysalis needs help.” Typhon said, scowling towards the tracks for a moment before doubling up; trying to track a train, even when flying, could cause a scene if they got it wrong. Auric merely shook his head. “She’s the one who lit Mercury, remember? Mercury has Ply and Wish. I’d be surprised if her daughter wasn’t already physically healed by the time we walked back to them. Mentally...would be a miracle.” “Breath calms down agitated spirits, or moves stagnant ones. It represents quests, the drive to undertake them, and the courage to overcome them. Plus…” Typhon tapped his head. “No more lies and illusions helps. I just hope she’s not a vengeful one, or I’m not going to make much progress.” Auric nodded a bit. “Well, your reasoning is sound, but I will be surprised if she doesn’t walk away from...whatever happened without some mental scarring. Still, shall we? As the only one who has survived whatever happened, I need to know what she knows. I only hope Chryssy understands that and doesn’t begrudge my questioning.” “Of course. She’ll come out changed, and it will take time, but if she’s anything like her mother, she’ll manage. Change is nice, the Air likes to change, as does Water.” Typhon patted his pocket. The two walked back through the tunnel they had just exited to find Chrysalis cradling her now-awake and slightly hysterical daughter. Typhon raised his hand, it would be best to start slow. “Breathe, little queen.” His hand was enveloped in blue, and he pulled fresh air from the exit. “You are free now, see? Don’t you want to taste the Breeze of freedom?” Slowly, the nymph drew in the fresh air and began to calm down. It took her a few minutes, but her tears dried up and the sobs became wimpers. Auric approached them and stopped when the queen glared in his general direction. “Chrysalis, I need to ask her questions. I need to know who did this. I need to know what happened here. I have to Understand, to prevent it from happening again.” “Breathe, young queen. Can you feel that? You mother is here; she ran herself ragged to get here. Let your fears flow… I know you are scared, but if you let it grip you, you won’t be able to hear your mother’s Breath even on your ears.” Typhon made slow gestures, trying to get the nymph to follow the rhythm with her breathing. “From the place I come from, there is a tradition; a pegasus would speak of all of their troubles, and all of their pains, to a feather; they would fly as high as they could manage… and let it drift away. Let it drift away…” The princess gulped and nodded and began her tale. “When I left the Hive, I came here to see what was so special about Canterlot. I had barely began to look around when there was a sound from an alleyway. I got a little closer, and then there was this...this cold voice. It said…” and here her face scrunched up with the effort in recalling what she’d heard, “‘Changeling identified, hive identified. Badlands, also known as those under Chrysalis.’ After that, it all faded to black.” She gestured with a foreleg to the room. “When I woke up, I was in here, and then...the pain began. She used that machine to stab me, over and over, and drain...something out of me. Study me. She kept going on and on about Psynergy. I think she’s either studying it...or looking for a way to steal it.” Typhon closed his hand, the fist held up for a few seconds. When he opened it, a murky ball was between his fingers. “See? You did good, small queen; I will take this high into the air - higher than any pegasus I’ve ever heard of before, and scatter your fear and your darkness away. There are some great fliers in Cloudsdale, last I heard, you could become friends with a few and get them to help with this.” Inside, Typhon was rather worried. He couldn’t help - there was no scent, or the sound of the voice of this mad scientist… it would have to depend on the little nymph’s memory alone… wait. “Can you imitate the voice of whoever did this to you?” He asked, as cordially as he could. “It would help to have more people recognize it.” The nymph nodded once, and a flash of green surrounded her throat. She then spoke with an older mare’s voice, but one that was noticeably devoid of any emotions or accent. “This is how she sounded, but she always said things like...’Specimen six is remarkably resilient’ and ‘I am coming close to understanding these powers thanks to the extraction process.’” Auric shuddered once. “Well. That doesn’t sound reminiscent of GLaDOS at all,” he said. “What worries me most, though, is that not that she killed five changelings looking for one with Mercury’s might. Or the pain she put the young princess through.” He paused for a moment. “It’s that any good scientist tests all variables. And there are three other elements she’s yet to try.” “Well, you’re going to have to implement the Buddy system.” Typhon ticked off with his fingers. “Everypony is to have a tracker at all times, but nothing so easily noticeable… if they can be actually enchant themselves, or donate a bit of their blood to make more Pendulums, it could be better.” Auric began to nod, then froze. “Wait. Those train tracks. I...oh sweet gods. I know. I know where this scientist is going next. I’ve been there. It was the first Light. It would be the next logical choice.” He began to facepalm and called up a portion of his power before nodding at Typhon. “You were a great help, friend. But I know where I’ll need to be next.” “Very well; just let me…” Typhon took out his tablet out of his wallet, and tapped it with a finger. “Let me draw your sword; I did promise Dullahan a replacement, and this way, it’ll be a simple sword instead of having any Association with Eureka that might cause trouble.” As Typhon drew the blade, Auric paused. “That’s right, I promised you something. Very well.” He dismissed the power for a moment and held a hand to his chin. “Like us, there are others out there in other Equestria’s, but there are three you need to be aware of. I call them the Triad of Madness. The Lady, Alice, with her Vorpal Blade. Then there’s Pyramid Head, with his Knife. And I’ve only heard of him, so I don’t know what weapon he uses, but Jack of Blades is out there as well. I’m...well, my blade holds the moment of realization I experienced...and any who touch it do as well. But I’m getting better about that.” “Hmm…” Typhon tapped his chin as he stored his tablet. “I don’t have something physical; it was my eyes and ears what got the realization I experienced… I don’t think I want to find out if Truth can mix with that. I’ll be on the lookout, however. I don’t want to test my Dersite portion.” Typhon shuddered. “Still, I’ve either found friends, or at least been made aware of parallel worlds; I’ll pass the message.” Auric nodded and was about to go again before he grinned. “Oh! On your way out, tell Dully this: This one has the approval of the Golden Sun. Should let you at the tablets, besides the big ones.” And with that, Auric vanished in a flash of golden flames, leaving Typhon, Chrysalis, and her daughter in the room that the mad scientist had abandoned. “Come, let me at least see you home, young princess… do you want to see how fast I can climb before getting rid of this?” Typhon said, holding the little sphere of tainted Breath. She shook her head. “I...I just want to go home with mom...I just want my ribbon again...I think she took it off when she took me…” “It can be found.” Typhon nodded. “It’s yours, after all.” And with that, they turned away and left that dreadful place behind to rot in their memories. (Penumbra Sanctum) “Dullahan.” Typhon nodded, handing him a card and placing two books on the ground. “Journals for Auric and the copy of the blade… with a little extra. I mixed an image of Luna’s crown, making it a dark blade; should hold shape better than plain metal.” The headless armor took the card, and was surprised to find a blade in his hand once the two connected. Well. I see he did not understate your powers. This should prove a fine blade to defend the village with, should it ever actually require it. What was that saying the boy had bouncing around in his mind? The best blade is one you only have to draw once? “Perhaps…” Typhon said, but turned serious. “Some mad scientist is experimenting on Psynergy users, and might even come here, should Auric foil her plans but not catch her… tell them to always stay in sight of each other, and to stay away from any strange machines.” The hand holding the blade twitched; it would seem the tic for indescribable anger had remained with both Dullahan and Auric. They that would treat their fellow sapients as nothing more than lab rats...they who cross the line from innocent experimentation to mad science...they who DARE walk in the darkness shall fear me, for I AM ALREADY HERE! “Spoken like a True Shadow.” Typhon chuckled darkly, not perturbed at all by the slight jets of blue fire coming from some of the seams. “I am forget- oh! Auric said to tell you that ‘This one has the approval of the Golden Sun’, and something about tablets.” The armor visibly calmed down and gestured to the wall behind the chair it sat in. Engraved upon those tablets are the summoning rites for all manner of creatures. If he believes you worthy, then you may access any of them. The two most powerful are already locked away. Do you have a favored element? “Wind, of course; I think that translates to Jupiter.” The armor pointed to one tablet. The first is Megaera, goddess of vengeance. He shifted his hand to the next. Flora, flowers and springtime. The one next to her is Moloch, spirit of winter. The armor pointed at one on the next row. Then we have Eclipse, the dragon that can blot out the sun with his wingspan. Following that is Coatlicue, guardian of the waters of life. And here the armor pointed at the last tablet on the wall. And then, well, it’s more of a concept than an actual spirit, but I will admit. Catastrophe gets results. Typhon nodded, staring at each tablet and tapping his glasses. “Thank you - I don’t need to take them, simply taking a few pictures can get me copies… don’t worry, they will be kept safe, in a place no-one will even find them if I do not allow it.” The armor shrugged. What you do with the knowledge afterwards matters not. Auric trusts you with it, and I agree. Fare you well, boy. May the darkness part for you. “May the Winds of Fortune be at your back.” Typhon nodded one last time, and downed a red and a black vial. With that, he vanished as quietly as he had appeared. Like air; there one moment, gone the next.