//------------------------------// // The Unnatural Vista // Story: Seeing Monsters // by Hopefullygoodgrammar //------------------------------// Daring, Ahuizotl and Dr. Hoof ran until their muscles screamed and their lungs burned painfully, but they dared not stop or even pause until they knew that they had left the terrifying, unnaturally intelligent shadow behind. They ran until the walls around them lost their gaudy hieroglyphs and became pocked with large, arched doorways occupied by ornate iron doors. Daring and the others would have kept running, but a sudden and painful cramp in her left forelimb caused her to fall heavily to the cold floor. Daring started to scramble to her hooves, but Ahuizotl placed a hand on her back and said, “I think that we can rest for a moment, Daring.” “How do you know?” asked Daring as she caught her breath. “We were chased by that same darkness when me and my men came here and it only pursued us so far.”  explained the cryptid. “Why didn’t you tell us this before?” asked Dr. Hoof accusingly. Ahuizotl shrugged, “I forgot” he blushed lightly, “I’m sorry.” Daring waved him off, noticing the dark look that came over Dr. Hoof’s face as she did. He’s suspicious of Ahuizotl. she realized, But then again, why wouldn't he be? Ahuizotl’s been pretty tight-lipped about this whole thing… maybe he’s been luring us into a trap! Her heart began to beat faster as she turned her gaze on her former arch nemesis, He could still be working for them, he could have suckered me and the doctor with his little ‘broken bird’ gambit. I haven’t been in the best mindset as of late. Daring stretched out and then cantered up to Dr. Hoof just as Ahuizotl was leaning in to examine one of the doors. “Keep an eye on him.” she whispered. Dr. Hoof nodded and Daring turned back to Ahuizotl, who was gazing at the tiny, intricate runes that were carved into the door’s surface. “Watcha’ lookin’ at?” she asked with a false smile, the suddenness of her appearance causing Ahuizotl to jump. “I don’t remember this place.” he said, looking at her with a terrified expression. Daring’s false smile fell and was replaced by a look of horror. “You-you can’t be serious!” she stammered. Ahuizotl clasped his hands to his forehead and dug his jagged nails into his skin, “Stupid, stupid, stupid, Stupid!!!” he punctuated each ‘stupid’ by slicing through a small portion of his skin, Daring reached out and pulled his hands away, but only after he had managed to create 7 short tears in his skin that dripped blood. “Get ahold of yourself!” bellowed the adventurer, trying not to wince when the force at which she shook him dislodged several drops of blood, several of which spattered across her face, “I shouldn’t have underestimated this place.” he whimpered, “This place is as alive as you and I and-of course- it would shift around; there’s no point in letting your prey learn the layout of your hunting ground.” Daring heard Dr. Hoof let out a choked, shuddering laugh behind her and she turned to see tears streaming from his magenta eyes. “We-we’re gonna die in here…. aren’t we?” he asked in a choked voice. Daring felt pity well up within her and she released Ahuizotl to go and comfort the poor doctor. She wrapped her hooves around him, pulled him close, and let him cry softly into her fur. “I swear it’s like I have two kids here.” she teased gently, eliciting a watering chuckle from the doctor. Dr. Hoof withdrew from the embrace a moment later and wiped his eyes. “Feeling better?” asked Daring. Dr., Hoof sighed, “Kind of, it felt good to let some of my anxiety go, but I still don’t really… favor our chances, I mean, we’re trapped in an alien temple that apparently shifts and we’re being chased by a living shadow that wants to eat us!” Then the good doctor looked off to the side and promptly facehoofed, “Oh, sweet Celestia! Why don’t we just try these doors? Maybe one’ll lead to an exit!” He raced towards one of the doors, but Daring grabbed him and roughly pulled him back. “We can’t afford to be reckless right now.” she chided, “I’ll look at the runes and then we’ll see about using one.” Dr. Hoof sighed, but nodded his agreement, and Daring walked over to the door and leaned in to examine the runes better. Alright…. looks like Saddle Arabian, just like the other hieroglyphs… wait, wait a second, the characters changed, now they look like Neighponese-wait, now they’re Prussian, what the hay?! Daring shook her head, utterly bewildered at the sudden change in language. She blinked and took a deep breath, trying to calm her frayed nerves and assess the situation properly. Then she looked back to the door and found it completely blank. Y’know what? Screw it!  she thought angrily, This place is fucking with me and it’s pissing me off! She felt her vision go red and she decided, then and there, to open the door to spite the cruel, unearthly temple. I bet this door DOES lead to an exit and this place is just trying to deter me… yeah, that’s it… she thought with a giggle. She placed a hoof to the door, wincing as its smooth surface burned her. She didn’t hear Ahuizotl shout for her not to open the door, nor did she see him and Dr. Hoof rush towards her, she was numb to the burning pain that shot through her hoof; all she could see was the opening door and the dull light that lay beyond. Then the door was open fully and she was looking out over an unnatural vista. The earth that lay far below her might have been green and teeming with kind and gentle life once, but now the grass was as long as most trees and a shade of yellow normally found in pus. The trees were like tall, chitinous skyscrapers, and they twitched and writhed even though the air was still and heavy and stinking. A large, tumor-covered bird dropped down from a nest of bones in one of the “branches”, obviously going to get food, but it was swatted out of the sky by an oily, dirty tentacle that Daring realized served as the tree’s roots. She heard a rustling in the tall grass and she looked down to see several pairs of glowing green eyes watching her with the sort of intelligence that animals did not have. Are they… ponies?  She thought. Then she saw one of them move into a shaft of pale sunlight and she clearly made out the coarse, red fur and the great, raw gashes that covered an inequine skeletal structure that included six legs and a row of membranous dorsal fins that sliced through the fur. As she watched the creatures came out of the grass and stalked into a clearing where a crude bonfire had been lit. The Not-Ponies were dragging something furry and multi-limbed behind them wrapped in a net that Daring could swore had been made with barbed wire. The Not-Ponies hauled the thing up to the bonfire, then they pulled it loose and bucked it into the flames. The instant it’s fuzz body hit the embers it let out a cacophonous wail that reminded Daring of a crying newborn. The Not-Ponies exchanged hungry looks with one another, then they began to draw in, each licking black lips with long, purple tongues. Daring shuddered and then looked up at the sky, feeling her heart stop when she laid eyes on it. The sky was vast and multi-hued like a rainbow, only the colors were all wrong, they weren’t bright or vibrant, they were the darkest, dingiest versions of the rainbow. Like a dark rainbow, an anti-rainbow. Daring mused as she saw a large, white sun slowly fall under a shroud of smoggy clouds. “What kind of place is this?” she asked herself, wincing when as her voice echoed through the sprawling, pus-colored plains. At least nothing’s tried to attack me. she thought. Then something shot out of the smog and flew towards her on massive, leathery wings. Daring balked at its draconic visage which, although familiar to her, was distorted and unpleasant, and it’s bulbous, yellow eyes and slavering, fang-filled maw held no intelligence, only predatory hunger. The adventurer tried to scream, but her throat felt like it was filled with hardened molasses, so all that came out was a burbling whine. The Not-Dragon let out a roar that shook her to the core, it opened its mouth and let out a burst of speed that sent it hurtling at her like a ravenous comet. I’m dead. she thought, feeling intense sadness fill her heart, I’m dead because of my stupidity and this damned place. But I won’t close my eyes, I’ll look death in the eye just like I had always known I would… I just hope the others get out safely. Daring steeled herself as the teeth of the Not-Dragon loomed before her. Then she was falling backwards as two strong hands pulled her away from the door’s threshold. “-aring!” Uhhggh… my head… “Daring!” Whaaa-? Whassat? “Daring Do! Can you hear me?” Who is that? Is that- “Ahuizotl?” asked Daring, wincing as the syllables grated against her throat like sandpaper. She heard the cryptid heave a relieved sigh, “Yes, I’m here, Daring. What were you thinking, opening that door?” Daring felt heat blossom in her cheeks, “I-I don’t know, I… I just felt so angry and I wanted to spite you and the doctor, it was like I had tunnel vision.” The tan pegasus slowly got to her hooves,wincing in pain when she put pressure on her burn. She straightened her shirt and cracked her wing joints, letting out a groan of relief when she did. Ahuizotl growled, “I was wondering when this place would start pulling out all the stops.” Daring gave her wings a few test flaps, then the opened her bag and retrieved some burn cream. She hissed as she slowly applied the stinging stuff to her hoof-sole. She briefly considered putting some gauze on the burn, but she thought better of it, knowing that it would probably come off if she had to run. When she was finished she turned to Ahuizotl, who was looking at the door intently, and said, “Thanks.” Ahuizotl turned to her with a confused look on his face. “For saving me.” clarified Daring. The cryptid waved a hand, “It was nothing, really.” “What’s wrong, Ahuizotl? Being heroic leave a bat taste in your mouth?” she teased. Ahuizotl snorted, but didn't retort, much to Daring’s amusement. Daring turned back to Dr. Hoof and found him gazing at the door that she went through. “Hey, doc, what are you doing?” she asked, noting the unblinking intensity that darkened the good doctor’s eyes. He didn't give a verbal reply, instead he reached out and, before she or Ahuizotl could do anything to stop him, opened the door. They rushed to him with the intent of pulling him away, thinking that they’d be confronted by the same unnatural other world. But, to their surprise, the only thing that lay beyond the doorway was a long, darkened corridor made from the same materials as the rest of the temple. “Well… that’s… freaky.” said Daring, blinking slowly and wondering if they weren’t all hallucinating. She turned to the doctor to ask him why he had opened the door, but stopped when she saw the look of pure anger on his face. It was unnerving, seeing the good doctor take on such an expression; it was almost like he was someone else. Then she saw the red tint in his eyes and her blood went cold. “How did you do it?” asked the Facsimile of Dr. Hoof in a low and dangerous voice. “How did I do what?” asked Daring, tensing as her fight or flight response kicked in. “Don’t play dumb with me.” warned the Facsimile, “How did you open the doorway to Tambelon?” “I don’t know.” said Daring evenly, using her wings to slowly reach for the whip in her bag. Ahuizotl, who was next to her, bared his fangs and hissed like an angry viper. The Facsimile turned his attention to the cryptid, “Aw, what’s the matter, Ahuizotl?” it asked with false worry, “Did you, the most intelligent and cunning villain of our time, not see this coming?”, Ahuizotl’s fur bristled and his hiss became a guttural snarl that only brought a sneer to the false face of the Child of Darkness. “What did you do to the doctor?” growled Daring, turning the creature’s attention back to her and letting him see the whip clutched in her wing.” The Facsimile smiled, “We caught your little friend when you were teleporting away, you never thought to check the shadows. You were so busy worrying about Ahuizotl that you didn't even entertain the possibility that I was one of them.” “What did you do to him, you bastard?!” spat Daring. The Facsimile smiled, “You’ll see soon enough, my dear Daring Do.” “No, I think you’ll tell us right now” said Daring coolly, “unless you want to taste my whip.” The Facsimile let out a bark of guttural laughter “You think a piece of leather and rope will hurt me? I’m not a weakling mortal mule like yourself, Daring, I am a Child Of Darkness… and I am not alone.” Daring heard the sound of something move behind her a fraction of a second before she saw Ahuizotl slump to the floor as a dark shadow stood over him. Then she felt a powerful blow connect with the back of her skull and all went dark.