//------------------------------// // Intrigue and More Drinks // Story: Chaos Incorporated // by DontTreadOnMe777777 //------------------------------// Ricky's next sight was of… the family manor? Ricky barely ever dreamed, rarely this vividly, and never about the manor. Something felt off about all of this, and Ricky knew it. As he walked up to the stone wall that comprised one of the sides of the manor, he thought of something. ‘I wonder,’ he thought as he held his hand in front of his face. Deciding to throw caution to the wind, he tried to punch the wall, swinging his fist directly at the crudely cut granite. Throwing caution to the wind turned out to be quite a bad idea. “OH MOTHER OF- owowowow!” Ricky yelped as his hand folded up against the stone like one of those slow-motion car crashes against a wall. Holding his hand and trying not to put any pressure on it for fear of it being hurt more, Ricky made his way to the front, the gray stone exuding an aura of nostalgia and good memories. Fiddling with the handle and opening the giant door with just one hand proved to be a bit of a nuisance, but soon Ricky was back inside. Tramping up the stairs and using the balustrade to balance himself, he managed to make it to his floor, the third of 4, if the basement and attic were to be counted. Now on the way to his room, Ricky began to get curious. “You know, maybe I can get some time in on my computer, if this dream is really as hyperrealistic as it feels. He pushed the door ajar and walked into his room. Thankfully, the Ricky sitting at the computer didn’t notice him enter. “Wait, what?!” Ricky, panicked, suddenly froze up as he heard another voice behind him. “Well, it’s a small world after all.” Ricky pivoted in a flash, already in a stance to duke it out with one of the princesses that he was familiar with. “Luna! Why are you here?!” “Because, Richard,” the voice seemed to be coming from the shadows all around him, “I need to talk to you.” “Yeah, well, maybe I don’t feel like talking.” Ricky retorted. “Too bad for you, I suppose. You’re trapped in this dream until you talk to me.” Ricky’s eyes widened at that. “Wait a minute, you can do that?” “I am…” suddenly her form materialized right next to the door, closing it with her blue magic before taking a step forward, “the Princess of Dreams, after all.” “This is unethical!” Ricky argued, beginning to edge closer to the brink of hysteria. “No. What my sister did to you, banishing you without a proper trial was unethical. Now, however, I can hear your side of the story without bias.” she smiled, the whites of her teeth glowing in the lamplight. “So, this isn’t an interrogation by a secret governmental agency?” Ricky raised an eyebrow. “No, Richard.” “Well, I guess that’s a start. Why are there two of me, perchance?” Luna began to chuckle sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck with a hoof. “We were… going through your memories…” “And did you like what you found?” Ricky asked, seemingly not fazed. Luna blinked. “Your world is certainly… interesting, much different from ours.” “I’m sure it is, considering what little of yours I’ve seen so far.” Ricky snarked back. Ricky sat down on his bed, the familiar texture comforting. “Well… I was just walking, and then that Fluttershy girl showed up and we talked. After that, the rest of the crew showed up, and they asked me to put my weapon down and come with them.” He took a deep breath. “I said no because I didn’t know if they were a threat or not. Then, I guess they tried to take my rifle away with that magic thing of yours, and my finger got caught on the trigger. I’m sure you’ve already heard the rest, but I would like to tell you that Rainbow Dash attacked me first. It was self-defence.” Ricky explained, Luna’s expression changing throughout the whole exchange. It finally decided to settle on a neutral expression. “Well, Richard, it seems like we have gotten off on the wrong foot. But I have one question,” she took a step forward, getting closer to Ricky, who flinched. “How did you get here?” “Um…” Ricky’s mind was suddenly thrown into turmoil: Should he tell her or not? Telling her would basically guarantee her confidence in him, but might throw this already shaky relationship out the window. On the other hand, saying he didn’t know would make said relationship stabler, but there was a big risk of her finding out when he came back to lead the army in Equestria. It all hinged on how good Ricky’s poker face was and how much Luna would buy it. Thankfully, Ricky played poker a lot. It was one of his favorite sports, and he had worked on his faces quite a lot so that he was able to play well. “I honestly don’t know. I woke up on the side of the road, when I had just been here a second ago.” He gestured to the room around them. Luna looked at him intently, Ricky desperately trying to sell his bluff. ‘What if she already delved into my memories far enough to see my conversations with Discord and the others? Oh man, I could have just totally screwed up, and then…” “Well then, if definitely seems like apologies are in order.” Ricky let out a mental sigh of relief as he intently studied Luna. She had not relaxed at all, still stiff and staring at the human with distrust in her eyes. ‘Not buying my story at all, but not calling me out. Good play there,’ Ricky deduced. “Good. Can I please go now?” “I guess I got my questions answered - for now…” Luna shrugged and trailed off. “Okay then, wake me up.” “Okay, but prepare yourself,” Luna warned before my surroundings melted away, her included. Suddenly, I felt like I was flying at terminal velocity for just a split-second, and then I was back in the real world, upright in my bed. “Ugh. I hate mornings.” A few minutes later… “The gin’s gone. Great. As if today could get off to a better start.” Ricky picked out a bottle of vodka from the shelf, before noticing one of the drinks he had always wanted to try. Rum, the drink of pirates. Ricky put the vodka back on the shelf and grabbed the bottle of Captain Morgan’s, deciding it was satisfactory. He also grabbed a loaf of raisin bread from the bread pantry, not wanting another bagel without cream cheese. ‘Rum and raisin bread. Sounds fitting for the messed-up situation I’m in right now,’ Ricky scoffed in his head as he cut off a few slices of bread and poured a good amount of rum into a shot glass. Taking a seat at the table, he began to dig in, loving his first taste of rum. He was so engrossed in his meal that he didn’t notice Sombra float in behind him, nor did he notice him staring at the peculiar breakfast Ricky made. Shaking his head, he floated over next to Ricky, sitting his rump down next to him and poking Ricky with a hoof. “Hey, buddy? Mind if you grab me something? I don’t know where anything is,” he explained, snapping Ricky out of his trance. “Oh, uh, sure. What do you want?” Ricky stood up and stretched, meandering his way back over to everything. “How about some liquor? Not really hungry, especially since I don’t actually need to eat,” Sombra called back to him. Ricky reopened the liquor cabinet, his eyes scanning. “What kind, specifically?” “Tequila. I don’t know why, but I’ve always had this thing with Mexicolt.” “Mexicolt? We call it ‘Mexico’ back in my world,” Ricky grabbed another glass, spinning it around in his hands as he uncorked the tequila, pouring a generous amount before sauntering back over to the table, bottle in hand. Slamming it onto the table, he handed Sombra the shot glass before seating himself again. “That’s pretty odd, don’t you think?” Sombra slammed down his shot, putting the glass back as he reached for the bottle. “Honestly, I don’t care. We’ll own it all soon enough,” Ricky smiled, Sombra smirking back. “And what are you two doing here?” The familiar voice of Discord drew their attention to the doorway, where the draconequus leaned against the doorframe with an eyebrow raised in a questioning manner. “Eating breakfast like normal people. I don’t think that’s something you would know about, though,” Ricky snarked. Discord rolled his eyes and blew a raspberry at Ricky, who just smirked back. “Oh, by the way, did anything… peculiar happen last night? Any strange dreams or anything?” ‘Oh, fuck me,’ Ricky cursed internally as he struggled to make his expression into a confused one and level his voice. “No, why?” “Oh, dunno, just asking. Princess Luna can control dreams after all. You sure nothing happened?” “Nope. I didn’t even dream, come to think of it,” Ricky ground the lie through his teeth. “Okay. When you’re done, meet me outside! I have important news!” Discord skipped away, humming merrily as Ricky let out a breath he didn’t even realize he was holding. Ricky stood back up from the table, downing the last of his drink and walking over to the door. Pushing it open, he walked over to the main doors, where Discord was currently waiting. “So, what was this about important news?” Ricky stood there, eyebrow raised quizzically. “We’re about to get out of here! Come on, I’ll show you!” In a flash, Discord was gone. ‘Probably outside,’ Ricky thought. As he pushed the doors open, he finally found a line that summed up this morning perfectly. ‘The plot thickens.’