Chapter #4:
Although it had taken a while to cross through the woods and arrive at the site, the group had finally reached the old ruins Twilight had mentioned earlier. Standing on the solid stone walk of the castle's entryway, Jaden couldn’t help but be impressed. Laying all around them, the remains of a once majestic castle stood amid the moss-covered ground; a sight made even creepier considering the place was actually a fake based on another set of ruins located elsewhere.
As they strolled into an ante-chamber, or what was left of one, Twilight explained a little of the locations’ history, along with what she’d recently experienced on her last visit to the area, with the others occasionally chiming in. Letting his gaze drift, Jaden noted two tall, black-stoned walls stood like stoic guards, ignoring their presence as they passed by. In the middle of the ante-chamber was what resembled a large statuesque piece; like an inverted chandelier. Seven spokes drew out of the center of the ornament, ending in empty, curved bowls. Tess meanwhile, was questioning everything as they continued while Pinkie Pie appeared to be humming what sounded suspiciously like Equestrian Girls to herself.
“Up ahead is where I was just before I ended up in… wherever we are.” Twilight said.
Jaden nodded as the group entered what appeared to be the throne room proper. What looked like dim sunlight seeped in from a large hole in the far wall. Moth-eaten remnants of royal carpet led up to a small rise where two thrones had once sat; as it was mostly bare. Curiously, standing in the center of the rise was a small elevator; similar to those from his world. From what he could see, Jaden knew the device could accommodate half a dozen humans comfortably. There would be no way they could all fit into it.
The moment Twilight saw it she let out a startled squawk.
“It’s an elevator.” Jaden explained.
“What does it do?” Twilight asked.
“In my world such devices are used to transport objects in a building from one floor to another.
In this case that would be us which means we’re splitting up for the time being.” Jaden answered.
The ponies looked to one another, exchanging their opinions between themselves without
uttering a single word. After pondering the idea briefly, Twilight gulped and spoke up.
“So, who goes first?”
“Ponies first.” Jaden replied, smirking slightly as he waved a hand toward the device.
Twilight blinked at him a few times and shook her head before making her way toward the elevator.
“Ooo, this is so exciting! I wonder what we’ll find down there.” Pinkie Pie spoke up before following Twilight onto the elevator.
“Trixie will probably regret this bit Trixie will not stay here!” Trixie grumbled before grudgingly following the pair onto the elevator.
“Will you guys be ok while we’re gone?” Jaden asked, turning to Tess.
“We’ll be fine… just be careful ok?” Tess replied.
Nodding, Jaden hefted his rifle and followed Twilight and the others onto the lift. Moments later, the lift began to descend on its own. Five minutes later, it came to a halt in front of a large hatch which opened to reveal another nondescript and dimly lit utility passageway that appeared to branch off in separate directions.
“Oh, moving doors! So fancy!” Pinkie commented.
“Uh, yeah.” Jaden murmured over Twilight and Trixie’s confused grunts.
“Well… here goes something.” he said before hefting his rifle and stepping into the passageway.
Switching on the flashlight attached to his rifle, Jaden slowly began to make his way down the left corridor. After taking only a dozen steps he stopped. The passage ended abruptly at a large pile of rubble where the ceiling had collapsed some thirty feet away from where he stood. Many of the wall panels also appeared to have long ago fallen victim to mold, mildew, or plant life, revealing dark, hollow recesses behind steel grates. The passageway was also dark, filled with vines and large fallen plants. Excluding the beam from his own light, haunting red lights emanated from these broken walls, illuminating the passage with a hellish glow.
Turning, Jaden smirked as he saw the heads of his companions peering out from the doorway he’d passed through; taking in their surroundings in awe. Jaden made a point of aiming his weapon at the base of the nearby wall as he walked back to them so as to not blind the ponies with the flashlight.
“Well… looks like there’s only one way to go.” he commented, raising his rifle after passing the ponies.
Jaden heard the others murmur in agreement before the sounds of footsteps as they followed him. After only a few minutes of walking, the group rounded a corner and entered another bland hallway. Unlike the first, this one appeared to be in somewhat better condition. Although faint, brighter light seemed to filter into the area, making the stark grey and dilapidated walls and various piles of assorted rubbish stand out.
After narrowly dodging the collapse of a fragile, fallen wall panel the group made their way into an adjacent room. The room they’d entered was wide and empty and unlike the previous rooms the lighting in this one actually worked. It also had multiple levels. Much like before however, wall panels smashed and cracked almost beyond repair, the bare skeletons of steel scaffolding, and various trashes littered the area.
Switching his light off, Jaden kept his weapon at the ready as they continued; prepared to blow holes into anything that might leap out and attack them. Jaden heard the ponies murmur to themselves as the group made their way over to a metal staircase at the far right side of the room and began to climb it. Minutes later, they were all standing on a catwalk several hundred feet in the air. The catwalk extended into the room some thirty feet before terminating abruptly near a small platform that jutted out from the wall.
Letting his gaze drift, Jaden closely studied his surroundings. A narrow ledge wound its way along the wall from the platform to a large niche, with a round metal door, on the other side of the room. Curiously the niche itself was located above the door they’d previously entered. Remembering the game he’d been playing prior to arriving in this world, Jaden was certain that most of the room’s walls could hold a portal. Shouldering his weapon, Jaden couldn’t help grinning as the impractically absurd plan for reaching the far off door formed in his mind. Considering they didn’t have any practical way to fling to it, Jaden knew there was only one real option for crossing the room. Turning, he really did have to fight back laughter as Twilight stared at him in confusion.
“This is where the fun begins.” he said before backing up along the platform.
Moments later, he dashed forward and leaped to the nearby platform. Jaden steadied
himself upon landing as the platform was smaller than it initially appeared.
“Watch your step, it’s smaller than it looks.” he called out.
Twilight nodded before following him moments later.
“Trixie knew Trixie would regret this.” Trixie grumbled before following Twilight across the gap.
Pinkie Pie quickly followed her.
The group than began to slowly make its way along the ledge. Twenty minutes later, they reached the alcove. As they approached, the round metal door opened… well, half of it did. The other half started banging itself open and shut, shooting out sparks with an atrocious grating scrape. The door suddenly tipped sideways, sliding into the track on the opposite side. It shuddered, emitting sparks for a moment before quieting.
The doorway was now partially blocked. Exchanging glances, Jaden crouched down and peered through the open space that remained. From what he could see, the passage beyond was similar to the previous ones they’d pasted through. The lighting was also functioning reasonably well. The space between the doorway and the ground was big enough for him to easily crawl through but appeared to be a tight squeeze for his companions.
Exchanging glances once more, Jaden sighed and crawled through the space in the doorway and into the next room. Stepping aside, he waited as the ponies clambered one by one through the opening. As Trixie entered the hallway, she made a big production of groaning, rolling her eyes, and fussing over her cape; eliciting a sigh from Twilight and a snort from Pinkie. Once everyone was settled, Jaden hefted his rifle and began leading the way once more.
Rounding a corner, the group entered another brightly lit bland room. The chamber itself was small and narrow compared to the previous ones and Jaden spotted a dark panel in the center of the wall to the left. Another round metal door sat on the other side of the room. As they drew near, the wall monitor suddenly burst into life; causing his companions to squeal in surprise. Crouching to one knee, Jaden instinctively aimed his weapon at the monitor; and the pony displayed on it.
Standing before them was a regal looking, alicorn mare with a lush dark coat and wings, folded ever so neatly. Her mane was like stardust and it flickered like angry blue fire around her smirking face. Her eyes, large and aquamarine, regarded them with annoyance, amusement, and a strange lust that made the hair on the back of Jaden’s neck stand up. Both Twilight and Pinkie Pie gasped aloud when they saw the creature.
“Took you long enough; I was almost worried you’d gotten lost.” the dark pony snorted over a loudspeaker in a gruff, haughty tone that sounded strangely familiar yet didn’t match the creature’s physical appearance.
“I take it you’re the one that brought us here.” Jaden retorted, reluctant to lower his weapon as he slowly stood up.
The black alicorn meanwhile, continued to smirk as her eyes briefly followed the laser aimed at her chest before focusing on them once again. Her only reply was a slight tilt of the head as the other ponies crowded around the monitor.
“Where are we anyway?” Twilight asked.
“This is the Equestrian Science Magic-aided Enrichment Center… and you’re going to do some tests for me.” the black pony replied.
“Who are you?” Trixie probed.
“I am the Galactic Lunar and Deferent Orbital System.” the black pony responded.
Jaden smirked as he watched his companions blink innocently at the long
winded title while the dark pony let out the computerized version of a sigh.
“Or, you can call me 'GLaDOS,' like every other uninspired test subject has.” the black pony grumbled.
“Oh, good-goody! Mind if we call you Gladdy, instead?” Pinkie Pie piped up, clapping her hoofs together in joy; eliciting confused grunts from the other ponies.
“Yes, I do mind." GLaDOS flatly answered.
“Good.” Jaden retorted struggling to reign in laugher as Twilight and Trixie slowly turned
and gaped at him while GLaDOS glared. Pinkie meanwhile, was in her own little world.
“And what if we refuse?” he asked, slowly lowering his weapon.
“Oh, I don’t think you’re in a position to refuse.” GLaDOS retorted.
“What do we get if we pass all the tests?” Pinkie interrupted.
GLaDOS seemed to briefly regard Pinkie with a curious expression before speaking.
“Well… if you can survi… I mean, ‘beat the tests’ you will be rewarded with a slice of cake at the end of the trial.”
“Oh, oh, ooooh! What flavor is it?” Pinkie asked.
The black alicorn blinked a moment before responding.
“Chocolate.”
“And the toppings?” Pinkie continued.
“Strawberry.” GLaDOS answered again.
“Could you add some hot sauce to it, too?” Pinkie asked.
The dark pony was once again taken by surprise. Jaden snorted in amusement
as he and the other ponies slowly turned and stared at Pinkie incredulously.
“Hot sauce?” GLaDOS repeated.
“Hot sauce is a mixture containing a variety of concentrated doses of spices and liquids, usually added to meat by-products in order to give taste-buds an unpleasant experience. Adding such an ingredient to a dairy product would be an unappealing idea to most.”
“Ooooh, but it’s so-o-o-o GOOD!” Pinkie responded.
Over the sound of Trixie’s sickened gasp, Jaden cast a glance at Twilight.
Twilight merely sighed, rolled her eyes, and shook her head in reply.
“Fine; but only AFTER you live through my tests. In the next room you’ll find all the necessary items you’ll need. Don’t disappoint me.” GLaDOS replied before the screen went dark.
As Pinkie bounced happily in place, Jaden noticed that Twilight appeared to be staring at
the monitor in bewilderment. Her lips were moving as if speaking yet nothing came out.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Nightmare Moon? Why did she choose to appear as Nightmare Moon?” Twilight murmured.
Jaden shrugged as the group entered the nearby doorway. Unlike the previous rooms they’d passed through, this one showed no signs of damage. Strong lighting illuminated a large round room with pristine walls and floors. On the room’s far side were two additional doors. In the center Jaden could see a collection of objects lying on the floor. Moving closer, he could see several pairs of strange looking high boots and several other objects.
The boots looked somewhat like high-heeled shoes and had a long curved metal piece at the end that ran along the bottom of each boot. There were four pairs of the boots, enough for each of them. In addition to the boots there was what looked like a pair of white and black circular devices, which had three long prongs on the end. On closer inspection, the devices resembled the ASHPD from Portal 2, only smaller and had straps on the side, obviously meant to attach to a pony’s foreleg.
A larger version of the strange device appeared to be attached to a glove of some kind. The glove itself resembled an old school power glove. Jaden cocked an eyebrow at the setup as he noticed two fin-like triggers that curved around the ASHPD device but didn’t hinder the user from manipulating other objects while wearing the glove. Letting his gaze drift, Jaden smirked as he saw Twilight carefully scrutinizing a nearby box. Trixie and Pinkie meanwhile, were looking around the room in awe.
“I never thought I’d see an actual ASHPD.” Jaden remarked.
“What in Equestria does that stand for? It's an acronym… right?” Twilight asked.
“Yes. It stands for Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device. Basically it’s a device
that can generate a pair of portals that can be used to travel to different places.” Jaden explained.
The ponies turned and stared blankly at him.
“That doesn’t seem possible.” Twilight said shaking her head.
“Well, much of this technology is based on that game I was telling you about. Besides, it’s not often you find yourself in a mock-up
of where you live. Considering this isn’t the Aperture Science facility, I wonder what that does to the acronym.” Jaden replied.
Jaden really had to fight back laugher as Twilight stared incredulously at him while Pinkie suddenly became interested in studying the boots. Trixie meanwhile, groaned and rolled her eyes.
“What do these do?” Pinkie asked.
“Those are called Long Fall Boots; they’re like armor for your feet. Basically, they protect the wearer
from impact related damage from high falls. Not sure how it all works though.” Jaden answered.
Excluding Pinkie, who had a strange smile on her face, the ponies stared dubiously at him.
“There is no way that can be possible!” Twilight chastised shaking her head.
Jaden smirked as he set his rifle down and put on the glove. He then changed out of his sneakers and into a pair of the boots; putting the sneakers in his bag before helping the ponies into the remaining pairs of the boots. His smirk grew as he watched Twilight and Trixie stumble around as they adjusted to walking in the boots. Curiously, Pinkie Pie didn’t seem to have much difficulty with them at all.
“Well, we can go back to the last room and test their durability if you want.” he said.
“Trixie will pass on that idea.” Trixie snapped.
“Fine; be that way fun hater.” Jaden retorted, eliciting a snicker from Pinkie.
Trixie squealed angrily at the reply while Twilight planted her face in a hoof and uttered a long suffering sigh. Moments later, the mauve colored unicorn slid her right foreleg into one of the smaller portal guns. Jaden quietly stuffed the remaining portal gun into his bag before strapping it back on and collecting his weapon, making sure the safety was set.
“Ok, two doors… I guess that means we’re splitting up.” he said.
The ponies murmured in agreement.
“Oh, the ASHPD works on most flat surfaces but other objects such as the beveled
metal panels on the ceiling above us won’t hold them.” Jaden explained quickly.
He then turned to his right and activated the left trigger. In response a beam of light shot out of the device with a sharp recoil. Moments later, a white-centered oval with red, orange, and yellow around the edges – the ‘warm’ colored one – appeared on the right wall. Over a chorus of startled squeals, Jaden repeated the process on the opposite wall; generating another white-centered oval with blue, green, and purple around the edges – the ‘cool’ colored one – this time.
“The device also has quite a kick… so watch out.” he warned.
Twilight murmured an affirmation as the ponies stared through the portals in awe.
“So, who wants to go where?” Jaden asked.
“I think I’ll try the door on the left.” Twilight replied, tearing her gaze away from the portals.
“I’ll go with Twilight.” Pinkie piped up.
“That just leaves me and Trixie with the other route.” Jaden remarked, earning murmurs
of agreement from Twilight and Pinkie; and an aggravated groan from the showmare.
As they approached, both sets of doors opened on their own. The group exchanged glances.
“Let’s just hope that puzzle piece we need is actually down here.” Jaden said.
“Take care.” Twilight replied.
With a nod, Jaden stepped through the doorway on the right.