//------------------------------// // Chapter 8 // Story: Reflected Reflections // by kudzuhaiku //------------------------------// The companions moved through the dark passages, always seeking a way to move upwards. Garlic moved slowly, clearly fatigued even though he had rested, Fogwalker was tired but still surprisingly alert, and Sunrise, even though her body ached in places she wasn’t even aware that she had until just recently, was feeling as though she might drop over dead at any moment. The air was fetid, dank, and hard to breathe. As they traveled, they found dead spiders, a few dead goblins, and a frustrating number of dead ends. The companions moved in silence, too tired to talk, only doing what was absolutely necessary to keep going. They had refilled their drinking gourds with the stinky egg water as there really wasn’t much else in the way of options. Supplies had to be conserved because there was still the return trip down through the mountain. And worst of all, there was no guarantee that they would even reach Canterlot this way. “Door,” Garlic groaned, looking at the door ahead of them in the passage. The tunnels had changed now. They were rectangular. Well shaped. It was a hopeful sign. They had been wandering around for hours now in a dazed state of confusion. “Yes… door,” Fogwalker agreed. “Will it open?” Sunrise asked. “No way to open it from this side,” Garlic replied, looking at the door, which had no latches visible. “Is Canterlot on the other side?” Sunrise inquired. “Maybe,” Fogwalker said in reply, looking at Sunrise. “The long passage that Garlic hauled us up… that had to take us well past the halfway point,” the pegasus explained. “And we’ve been walking up some pretty steep grades, Canterlot might be on the other side of this door,” Garlic mumbled, his half open eyes visible through his raised visor. Sunrise Surprise stepped forward and began to examine the door. Her magic was clumsy, but still functioned, and she probed the door with telekinesis, looking for a lock or a mechanism. There was none. On the other side of the door though, there was a heavy wooden beam, barring the door and preventing it from being opened. Straining, struggling to lift it, Sunrise Surprise squirmed as she summoned the magic to wiggle the wooden support beam free. There was a clunk from the other side of the door and the unicorn pushed the door open with a proud but exhausted smile. “Nice work Sunny,” Fogwalker praised, pushing through the door and peering around. Garlic and Sunrise followed, stepping over the wooden beam. Garlic shut the door and Fogwalker struggled with the beam to secure it back in place, lifting it with her forelegs. Sunrise steadied it with her magic and between the two of them, they locked the door, securing the passage behind them. The companions continued down the tunnel for a ways and then saw light ahead. Garlic moved forward to investigate, leaving Fogwalker and Sunrise behind, and after advancing forward, he saw that it was a glowing glass orb. It flickered a bit and Garlic realised he was looking at a magic lamp. With a gesture, he urged his companions forward and they continued down the stone passage. It leveled out, becoming flat, and it wasn’t long until they came to an intersection. There was a sign on the passage wall ahead with two arrows, and Garlic studied it for a moment. “Left is maintenance and waterworks, right is sewage and drainage,” he announced. “We want to head upwards,” Sunrise stated in a nasal whine. “So waterworks since that is where the water for the fountains was pumped. The sewers would be in the lowest part of the city.” “Seems sound,” Garlic agreed, heading left. The passage sloped upwards slightly and had glass globes placed along the way. The air was fresher and this invigorated the trio, urging them onwards in the hope of reaching their goal. Garlic somehow picked up his pace, the mare and the filly that was almost a mare following his lead. “When we reach the city, I say we hole up in a house if we can. Find a safe place. Rest. Sleep. Slumber,” Garlic suggested in a weary voice. “Maybe we’ll find some food,” Sunrise said in a hopeful voice. “Food would be good, but it will be old stale food that was left behind when Sombra drove the ponies out of his city,” Fogwalker said in a drowsy voice. Falling silent, the companions moved forward, moving only because they had to, all of them bone weary at this point. They stumbled ahead, Garlic leading the way, and Sunrise gently prodded Fogwalker to keep the pegasus moving. There had been a circular staircase in the waterworks, which had led upwards to a large room full of metal vats, the stairs continued to another level, another room, this one filled with pipes and gauges, and a door marked “exit.” When the door was opened, the scent of a thunderstorm greeted them. Above them was the terrifying black storm shield that protected the city, it boomed with thunder and flashed with lightning. The trio stepped out of a stone building and onto a street, trying to take in everything around them with wide but exhausted eyes. The city was abandoned looking, deserted, there was nothing around, no ponies, and a cold wind tore at their manes and tails. Looking around, Fogwalker saw a pile of bones and the glint of metal. She moved forward slowly, feeling sad, and looked at the pile of bones, some of which were broken. It was a pegasus, one of the many brave ones that had tried to fly through the storm shield. The bones were bleached, the flesh long gone, and the armor was still in pretty good shape. As tired as she was, she could not let an asset be ignored. She began to pick through the pile, picking up the greaves with her wings, they looked like they might fit Garlic well enough. They’d be a little short for his long legs, but some protection was better than no protection. She flipped open her saddlebag and jammed the metal plates and straps into the open bag, not bothering to close it. Meanwhile, Sunrise was looking around, there were houses a short distance away, stately rowhouses, tall and narrow, made of brick and stone, former homes of the wealthy. She craned her head to look upwards, looking at the abandoned wealth all around her. The street lamps were made of iron covered in fine gold and silver filagree. There were brass knockers on the doors. Silver doorknobs. A wagon was left in the street and a tall wind up clock was still sitting in the wagon bed beside a trunk. “I say we go inside of one of these houses and go to bed. Lock the doors, secure the room, and we should be okay. I’m willing to risk death and dismemberment for a good snooze,” Garlic said, yawning as he said “snooze.” Sunrise climbed the steps of the nearest townhouse and using her hoof, pressed down on the door latch. The door swung open and she peered inside. In a moment, Garlic climbed up the stairs behind her, and Fogwalker followed after them both. The house was dark and deserted. The companions noted the kitchen but were far too tired to investigate it, instead they climbed the stairs and made their way to the first landing. There were several doors, the first door revealed a bathroom, and Garlic got to see indoor plumbing for the very first time, but he was too tired to care. The second door revealed a bedroom with a large bed, and Sunrise immediately entered the room. “Foggy, it is your lucky day. You finally get to go to bed with me,” Garlic grumbled as he shoved Fogwalker through the door. “Oh my fondest wish… this so romantic!” Fogwalker replied in a squeaky falsetto as she was shoved through the door. She watched as Garlic shut the door behind them. “Really think this is safe?” “Safe enough,” Garlic answered, offering a fatigued grin to Fogwalker. The earth pony and the pegasus looked at one another for a moment, unable to look away. They were sweaty, tired, exhausted to the point of mental fugue, and for one brief moment, Garlic’s reserved nature slipped. His eyes flashed with warmth and feeling as he looked at Fogwalker, and even in her sleep deprived state, the pegasus clearly saw what she had long hoped to see when Garlic looked at her. On the bed, Sunrise Surprise was already sleeping, sprawled out in one corner. Hating her armor, Fogwalker climbed into bed and tried to get comfortable, and she smiled when she felt Garlic settle in beside her. She kicked out her hind legs, hitched her tail, and then lowered her head to the bed. Unable to stop themselves, the companions slipped into slumber. It was impossible to tell what time it might be with the storm raging endlessly outside. It was dark, the sun not visible, and Sunrise Surprise had been the first to wake. She slipped from the bed, trying to not disturb her companions, crept over the creaky wooden floor, and then left the room. The bathroom was still functional, much to her relief. She made her way down the stairs and looked around the kitchen. The pantry was filled with dessicated old root vegetables, boxes of food that had to be cooked or baked, and there was a box of old stale crackers. Feeling nosy, she made her way down into the cellar, her horn offering feeble light, and it was in the cellar that she found almost a dozen jars of preserved fruit. She didn’t know what sort of fruit, it was not labeled, some of it was light in colour, other jars were dark, but she didn’t care. It was food, soft sweet food. She levitated everything carefully and made her way up the stairs. She set out the jars in the kitchen, arranging them on the counter, feeling good about contributing something to this adventure. Upstairs, she heard a loud clunk followed by a thud, and she realised her companions were waking. Not wanting to worry them, she called out to let them know where she was. “I’m in the kitchen! I’ve found food!” Sunrise Surprise exclaimed. Setting down the jam jar that was held pinched in his fetlock, Garlic smacked his lips and then licked them. He felt energised, invigorated, from the much needed sleep and the sugary sweet meal. He watched as Fogwalker licked the inside of a jar with her tongue, trying to get the last bits of sweetness, and as he saw her tongue darting in and out, he felt a powerful spike of arousal for the pegasus. He belched and shifted his weight upon his haunches. “We need to head to the palace I suppose and try to look for answers. I don’t think Sombra is here. This city is empty,” he said, looking first at Fogwalker and then at Sunrise as he spoke. “I agree,” Sunrise said in her nasal voice. “Sombra is gone. But we should look around and see what we can discover.” Licking the jam from her snoot, Fogwalker nodded. “Princess Celestia wants me to look for the storm generator if I can find it. I doubt that I will be able to shut it off. She isn’t sure it even exists. It might, or Sombra might have just cast a very powerful spell to shield the city,” Sunrise said, explaining her task. “Before we go, we need to get those greaves I found and put them on Stinky,” Fogwalker said, her eyes crossing as she suddenly saw a spot of jam on the edge of her nostril. She stuck out her tongue and with a flick, she cleared away the sticky chunk of fruit. “Even though we are probably safe, we need to stick together. We don’t know what else might be lurking in the city. If we are here, other things might also be here,” Garlic said, looking at his female companions. “Sure thing, Stinky,” Fogwalker agreed.