"Do you think he's still alive?"
"I hope so, but he shouldn't be, after a display of magic like that. That would easily have killed any normal pony." I regained consciousness for just long enough to hear two ponies conversing nearby, and feel magic wrap around me, before I passed out again.
I awoke on something mildly soft, but not comfortable. For a few moments I lay there, trying to figure out what had happened. After a few moments, everything flooded back. The fireball I had made, getting lost in the forest, and before that...
"Shit, where's Fluttershy? I said, opening my eyes and sitting up quickly. I looked around and saw I was lying on a pile of hay, in the corner of a barn. Nearby, I saw Rarity and Twilight conversing. When I spoke, they both looked over at me in shock, their faces warming when they saw me. Twilight shook her head and walked over, followed by Rarity.
"Your dedication is impressive, but seriously Blaze. You just pulled off a feat of magic that was so far beyond you, I would have struggled with it, and the first thing you think of is Fluttershy? Sounds like 'somepony' has a crush." She said with a laugh. I grinned and blushed, then shook my head vigorously.
"No, you don't understand... I, well, I said some terrible things to her before I got lost; I wanted to make sure she was ok. Their smiles faded, and they actually began to glare at me.
"We're well aware of what you said, and trust me, next time; we're leaving you in the forest for the timber wolves." She said, still scowling. I shrank down into the hay, wanting to disappear from the sight of the two angry mares in front of me. After a few seconds, a thought occurred to me.
"Does... Uh... Everypony know?" I asked cautiously.
"If you mean Rainbow Dash, then yes, 'Everypony' knows." Rarity said, nodding up behind her, where the outline of a pegasus could be seen, sitting on a rafter.
"Shit again." I said as the pegasus in question dropped down onto the ground, and the blue form of Rainbow Dash was revealed. She began walking slowly over, like a tiger stalking its prey. Thinking the better of my situation, I simply stood up, and waited for her to arrive. Right on cue, the two mares who had previously been glaring at me stepped aside, leaving a path for Rainbow Dash, who walked up looking ready to kill.
"H-h-hi, R-Rainbow Dash..." I stuttered, wondering if this was how I would die. She stood, glaring straight into my eyes, for what felt like forever. After that eternity, she spoke, her voice like a razor's edge, slicing through the remainder of my moral.
"You've got some pretty serious balls, for a bully." She said, still staring into my soul. I shrank back, trying to avoid her rage.
"H-how was I supposed to know I was possessed? It's not like there was a warning light..." I trailed off; hoping a bit of humor would keep her from removing any of my organs.
"No one blames you for the infestation; it's the flipping out on the single most sensitive pony in town that I have a serious problem with." She said, stepping closer to make sure I didn't feel any more comfortable.
"It literally chose the single worst situation that it could conceive of, and that's my fault?" I asked, gaining the tiniest bit of my nerve back.
"We weren't... You know what. That definitely would have been the worst." She retorted.
"I imagine it can only show things it had seen a similar situation to before, because you're right, that definitely would have been worse." I said, hoping she wasn't going to kill me anymore. She finally looked, away, just for a moment, before in one fluid motion, she spun back over, outstretched her hoof, and shot forward, catching me in the chest and slamming me into the wall. She put her face directly in front of mine, staring straight at me, and growled far more terrifyingly then I imagined a pony ever could.
"I'm. Watching. You." She said, before releasing me, letting me slide to the floor. She turned and walked away, streaking off into the night as soon as she reached the door. I sat on the ground, hardly daring to breathe.
"Wow. I have never even seen her that mad before, and I have known her for years..." Rarity said quietly, looking out the door that Rainbow Dash just disappeared through. I didn't respond, just sat on the ground, hoping this was all just a nightmare. Rarity looked back over at me, slight concern showing on her face.
"Perhaps Rainbow went a little too far..." She said, walking over.
"I think he learned his lesson, isn't that right, Blaze?" Twilight asked, looking seriously at me. I nodded slowly.
"See? Now, I think he can solve his own problems, he's not dead and that's all we needed to verify." She said, walking towards the door herself. She was about to take off, when I stopped her. She looked back at me questioningly.
"Wait... Why were you in ponyville in the first place?" I asked. She looked away.
"Because... Reasons." She said, flying off. Did she... Blush? Wait, no, I'm going to get in serious trouble if I keep looking so deeply into things like this... I thought, getting shakily to my hooves. I paused for a moment, looked outside at the resounding blackness, then looked at Rarity.
"First question, where am I?" I asked.
"An abandoned logging shed at the edge of the everfree forest. Ponyville is not too far off, just follow the path. She said, pointing out the door. I nodded.
"Second question, what time is it?" I asked.
"About half past one." She said, heading for the door. I nodded again.
"Well, thank you for your help." I said, sitting back down. She nodded solemnly, and walked out the door, leaving me alone in the now dark shed. Well, there's no way I can go back to Fluttershy's house tonight, probably ever. I'll just sleep here, head to the library for my shift tomorrow, and then once I've verified she's not home, grab my bag from her house. Assuming she hasn't burned it or something by then. I thought, curling up in the hay. It certainly wasn't as nice as a bed would be, but at this point, it was more then I deserved.
I awoke to sunlight streaming in through the still open door. Shaking off the hay that still clung to my coat; I stood, yawning in the process. Walking lazily over to the door, I remembered what happened last night. Rainbow Dash didn't end up removing any of my organs, or worse, so at least there's that... I thought as I looked out. It was still early, I guessed about 6:00 in the morning. Looking around, I saw the path that Rarity had referred to the previous night. I plodded out into the morning sun, and headed down the path to Ponyville. I walked for several minutes, wondering what would become of me after today.
"Ugh, why did I have to be so stupid?" I said out loud as I reached the edge of the Ponyville. Some of the early risers that were out looked at me questioningly, then continued with their business. I made my way through the town, until a few minutes later I was at the library, which appeared to already be occupied. I slowly pushed open the door, only to find Twilight sitting on the floor, amid a pile of books, deep in concentration.
"Um... Hello, Twilight." I said slowly.
"Uhuh." She replied, not looking up. I stood in silence for a minute, and then she appeared to realize my presence. She looked up at me with a smile.
"Oh, hello Blaze! Come to get some early morning reading in?" She asked happily. I smiled; thankful she didn't appear to still be mad.
"Actually, I work here now. I'm in charge of keeping it clean, books in order on the shelves, all that stuff." I said proudly. She smiled.
"I'm glad they found someone who's capable of keeping up with it. Perhaps you'll get your cutie mark from it too!" She said.
"Maybe." I replied looking around at the mess she had made. I sighed inwardly, then walked over to a stack far away from where she was, in hopes she was done with them.
"Actually, I'm still using those. You could get these though!" She said, pointing to the pile in front of her. Why do I even bother? I asked as I walked back over.
"So what are you reading about?" I asked as I grabbed the pile in my hooves and began stuffing them back on their shelves.
"I'm trying to find out more about the creature that attacked you yesterday." She said, resuming her rapid scan of the book. I nodded, noticing the title of the book in my hooves. 'Magical Creatures Through Time', probably should have figured that one out on my own. I thought as I stuffed it on the shelf.
"And what have you found?" I asked, grabbing the next book.
"Not as much as I'd like. All I really know now is that they've existed for as long as there have been books. Nopony knows what they look like. They usually only feed on sleeping ponies, and their effects are usually nightmares that are unusually realistic. It's rare that they attack ponies that are awake, as their effects are obvious. Long ago, they were named 'Metus' but the meaning of their name has long since been lost." She said, looking up at me.
"I'm sorry we got so mad at you. To us ponies, or at least my group of friends, we try to solve problems peacefully before resorting to anger and harsh words. I understand that may not be the case where you came from, and I at least should have been more considerate. I had no idea what kind of power we were up against. I'm going to ask my friends not to be too unreasonable with you, although I don't think Rainbow Dash will forgive you that easily." She said, sounding truly sorry. I stopped and looked at her.
"No, no, it's all good. You had every reason to be angry at me for hurting your friend, and all things considered, still do. However, I also had a right to be angry in that situation; I didn't act outside of what's reasonable." I responded quickly.
"I guess that's true, but please, in the future, ask questions first, get angry after." She said, looking up. I nodded silently and went back to my work, as did she with her reading. We remained silent for the better part of an hour, the only sounds coming from the occasional flipping of pages. Finally, I was down to only the books that she still wanted.
"So, um, I guess I'll come back later to clean up these?" I said, and Twilight nodded slowly without looking up, evidence she wasn't paying attention. I walked outside and looked around. The sun had risen steadily in the sky, and was now shining brightly and hotly down on the land.
"Oooh, it's gonna be a warm day." I said as I looked around. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a flash of pink and yellow. Looking over, I saw Fluttershy talking with a pink pony who had a group of flowers for a cutie mark. This is my chance! I thought, turning in the direction of Fluttershy's house. I glanced sadly back over my shoulder at her once, then galloped off, praying that she wouldn't notice me.
"Blaze, wai..." Her voice was quickly lost as I ran further. Shaking my head, I told myself that whatever is was she had to say, it couldn't be good. I kept running until I reached her house. I looked around; making sure nopony was watching me, before trying the door. To my surprise, it wasn't locked, and I entered quietly. There were no animals around, no doubt because the day was entering its best time, when it was warm, but not too warm, and sunny. I looked over at the counter where I had left my bag before. Nothing. Crap, maybe she did burn it. I thought, looking around. I looked around in the kitchen, then in the living room, searching everywhere.
"Where would it have gone?" I asked angrily, refusing to admit it might be beyond my reach at that point.
"Where would what have gone, Blaze?" I spun around in terror to see Fluttershy standing in the doorway, looking at me with curiosity. I froze, mouth agape, unable to respond.
"I, uh... I was... Uh..." I stuttered, raking my brain for what to do next.
"Your bag is up in your room, if that's what you were looking for. I moved it up there last night, after you left. Oh! And, why did you leave? If you don't mind me asking, of course. It's fine if you don't want to answer." She asked, walking over, her face showing a mix of concern and questioning. Is she seriously asking this question? I thought, staring at her in shock.
"Well, I just thought... After what I said to you for effectively no reason, that it wouldn't really be fair to stay there, and I couldn't believe what I had said, and I didn't think I could look into your face at that point... It was just a bad time." I rambled, looking away. She was silent for a long time, long enough that it forced me to look up again. To my surprise though, her face was still filled with kindness, and she didn't look unhappy.
"You're a really nice friend, Blaze. Everypony makes mistakes. I knew that something like this might happen; Princess Luna warned me that you were kind, but that your anger grew passionately when it got started. She told me that you showed as much in your Dreamscape meeting with her. I forgive any harm that you think you may have caused, and I hope you'll continue to be my friend." She said, looking solemnly at me. I stood silently in shock for several moments, trying to figure out if I actually woke up that morning, or if I was still dreaming. Tears began to form in the corners of my eyes, and I grabbed Fluttershy in a hug.
"You're too nice for your own good, you know that?" I said with a laugh.
"I don't think that's possible." She said with a giggle. A few second later I let go of her and stepped back, wiping the tears from my eyes with a smile.
"Seriously though, thank you. Last night, I had thought I had ruined everything good that had happened to me in this world." I said.
"You're welcome. Now, is there anything you needed, other than your bag?" She asked, looking at me. I paused for a moment, considering what else I might need. Right on cue, my stomach growled.
"Well, apparently I need some food, as I haven't really eaten in eighteen hours, but I've got an apple in my bag and some money left from yesterday, so I should be fine. So... No, I think I'm good." I said. She nodded and walked into the kitchen. I looked around, and then decided to go get my bag. Heading up the stairs, I realized I didn't actually know which room was mine. There were three rooms on the second level, one on the immediate left, one down a bit on the right, and one at the end of the hall. Remembering when we woke up in Fluttershy's room, the stairs had been on the right. Which means that my room couldn't be this first one. I walked up to the right door, opened it, and peeked my head in. It was a simple room, with a medium sized dresser, a desk and chair, a painting on one of the walls, one window, and a bed. I noticed my bag sitting on the bed, and decided that that must mean this was my room. I walked in, closing the door behind me. On the other side of the door, where I couldn't see before, there was a tall mirror. Looking at myself, I was shocked to see the condition I was in. My mane was frazzled and scattered, my body was covered in bits of hay, and I was covered in clumps of dirt from sleeping on the ground.
"Goodness, I'm surprised nopony has said anything." I said, doing my best to brush myself off. I shook my head vigorously, and to my amazement, my mane actually straightened itself back into its original spiky form. Once I was presentable, or at least cleaner, I grabbed the apple out of my bag and flopped backwards onto the bed. Compared to my previous night's sleeping predicament, it was amazingly comfortable, enough to make me realize just how tired I was. I started munching on the apple absentmindedly while staring at the ceiling, but soon found myself asleep from my exhaustion.
I awoke to a gentle knocking on the door several hours later. Slowly opening my eyes, I looked towards the door before calling out.
"Mhh, come in." I mumbled, slurring my words slightly. I heard the slight creak of the hinges, followed by the sound of light footsteps that could only be Fluttershy.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I must have woken you up. I didn't mean to." She said quietly.
"It's all good." I said, sitting up. Noticing the half an apple sitting uneaten in my hoof, I tossed it in my mouth, noting with satisfaction that I could now eat half an apple at a time without choking.
"Oh, well, uh, I was just going back into town, and I hadn't seen you head out yet so I was wondering if maybe... You'd like to come... With me?" She said, looking away with the slightest hint of a blush as she finished her sentence. Due to the fact that I had just stuffed half an apple in my mouth though, there were a few seconds of uninterrupted crunching that made the situation far more awkward than it should have been.
"Sure, that sounds like fun. Have you eaten yet?" I asked, looking cheerfully at her as I clambered of the bed. She shook her head, then paused and appeared to reconsider her answer.
"Well, no, but I just put on a pot of apple carrot stew for when we get back." She said. I was mildly disappointed, but I didn't let it show on my face, keeping up the cheerful smile.
"Sounds good! I'm ready to go when you are." I said, grabbing my bag and strapping it on. She nodded and walked back out of the room. I followed her down the hall, down the stairs, and out the door before speeding up to walk next to her. We were both quiet for several minutes before I spoke.
"So, uh, what are your plans for the weekend? I know it's a few days away, I was just wondering..." I said, trailing off.
"Well, Rarity and I are part of a singing group called the Ponytones, and this weekend is my very first time on stage for real, and so there's that." She replied, sounding deep in thought.
"For real? What do you mean? Were you faking it in the past?" I said with a giggle.
"Sort of. It's complicated, but several moons ago one of the other members lost his voice before a big show, so I drank a potion that made my voice deep so I could sing his part, but I had to do it while hidden so that it still looked like he was singing, and it all sorta fell apart at the end. But that's when I found out that just maybe being on stage wasn't so terrifying." She rambled, starting to sound like she was panicking.
"Well, it's pretty impressive that you've gotten over your fears so quickly." I said cheerfully. She sighed, and I looked over at her with concern.
"See, that's the thing. I'm not over them, I'm still really scared, and I'm not sure when the time comes that I'll be able to actually be on stage." She said sadly, looking at her hooves.
"I'm sure you'll do fine Fluttershy, nopony is out to hurt you." I said, before muttering angrily under my breath, Except me...
"Oh, I hope not." She replied, looking back up, either ignoring or simply not hearing my comment. Silence took over again until we began nearing the town, where the bustling sounds of a busy afternoon could be heard.
"So where did you need to go?" I asked as we walked into town.
"Well, first I was going to stop at a cooking supply store; I seem to have misplaced one of my pots. After that, a new lamp, since my old one got broken while I was in Canterlot. I'd like to get another bag of salt; I seem to be running low. I'd like to get another bunch of carrots, but only if I've got a lot of money left after. And... I think that's it. I hope I'm not forgetting something..." She said quietly, starting at the ground in contemplation. I nodded silently in agreement, looking around for the cooking store. Failing that, I followed her lead, walking down several streets before finally arriving. Fluttershy pushed open the door and stepped inside, followed quickly by me. I looked around in amazement at all of the pots, pans, dishes, and various other cooking implements that sat neatly on shelves and hung on hooks.
"My goodness, I wouldn't even be able to guess what most of these are for, let alone use them." I said in awe, looking back over at Fluttershy, who was inspecting a pot with a keen, practiced eye. With a brisk shake of her head, she rejected the one pot and moved on to the next.
"And that's why I wanted a copper-bottomed pot, as opposed to a cast-iron one." Fluttershy said, wrapping up her explanation of all things pots as we exited the store.
"Right. They're better for slow cooking, not as good for searing and sautéing. That, and they're obviously lighter." I said in summary of the wisdom she had imparted to me. She nodded in satisfaction, and I chuckled.
"You seem to know a ton about cooking; do you do it a lot?" I asked, wondering where she even got all her knowledge. She sighed quietly before responding.
"Not as much as I'd like to, although I do so enjoy it. Taking care of animals for a living doesn't leave a lot of spare time." She said, sounding wistful. I looked at her in surprise.
"Do you regret what destiny chose for you? Would you change your cutie mark, if you could?" I asked, cautious but curious. She was quiet for a fair amount of time, clearly deep in thought.
"Regret it? No, not one bit. I love cooking, but nothing in the world could compare to the joy animals bring me. I wouldn't trade them for anything." She said finally, looking over at me seriously. I nodded slowly, content with her answer, but still wondering what it felt like to have found your true calling so thoroughly.
"You'll figure yourself out soon enough Blaze, don't worry. It takes time, which you have had precious little of in this world." She said with a smile. Ok, that was creepy. Did she just read my mind? I wondered in shock.
"No, your body language is just very clear, and I could tell you were thinking about your own cutie mark." She said with a small laugh. I stopped dead, mouth hanging open.
"How... How did you... GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" I yelled playfully as she giggled again and kept walking. Friggen psychic mares... I thought as I ran to catch up with her. We were both quiet for the next few minutes, until we reached a store that had a sign with a lamp and an ink pot on it. I looked at the sign in confusion, until Fluttershy noticed and explained.
"Nopony knows why he sells those two things together, but the stallion who owns this shop is the brother of the quills and sofas store owner. They're an odd pair..." Fluttershy said as she pushed open the door and entered the quiet store. A small bell rang above the door to signify potential customers to the shop manager. A few seconds later a light brown unicorn wearing a red vest came trotting through the door in the back.
"Hello, and welcome to 'Lamps and Inkpots'. Ah yes, Fluttershy. And... Sir." He said, looking from her to me, giving me a quick one-over before turning his attention back to Fluttershy.
"The usual?" He asked, turning back towards to door he had just come from, looking over his shoulder at her. She smiled and nodded quickly.
"Just one this time." She said. The stallion disappeared through the door, leaving a few moments quiet before the sound of things banging around erupted from the back. I looked at Fluttershy in mild concern, but she didn't respond. After a few seconds the noise stopped, and he reappeared hovering a small glass box with a gold colored metal base. It had only one button on the side, and the glass box appeared to be empty.
"How..." I trailed off, looking at the lamp in confusion. The stallion grinned and used his magic to press the button on the side. The box immediately lit up with a bright white light that seemed to come from everywhere in the box at once. He pressed the button again, and the light quickly faded. He winked at me as he handed the lamp to Fluttershy, who, after digging a very similar device out of her bag, put it away. She gave the remains of the item, which was comprised of only the gold colored part and none of the glass, to the stallion. He carefully inspected it, before nodding.
"This one is still in fairly good condition, there doesn't appear to be any major damage to the base. How does ten bits for the new one sound?" He said, looking at Fluttershy expectantly. She nodded and handed him a sliver coin, which he gave a rough tap of the nearest table to verify its authenticity. He appeared satisfied, as he pocketed the coin and nodded.
"Have a nice day you two!" He said over his shoulder as he again walked back through the back door. Fluttershy shook her head, and, with a small jump at the crashing sound and light cursing that followed from behind her, smiled and walked out of the shop.
"Ten bits seems like a lot for one lamp." I said as we headed off into the town in search of a spice trader.
"Well... A brand new lamp that ran on normal fire and oil would be around fifteen bits new. Those lamps, however, run on a moderately complicated enchantment that he puts on them instead of actual fuel. This lets them run for many times longer than a normal lamp would, with no danger of them starting fires, since they don't produce heat. He charges around 50 bits for them brand new. When I first got one, I didn't think about how quickly it would get broken. He made me a deal though. If I give him back the old lamp, he gives me a discount on a new one. The better the condition of the old lamp, the cheaper the new one is." She said, looking happily at me. I nodded in understanding, now realizing how terrible my paycheck was. With a laugh, I looked back up in search of somewhere to buy salt. Soon I recognized the little market where I had gotten lunch the previous day, and where I had helped three fillies build a tower out of wooden crates. Smiling at the fact that I actually remembered, Fluttershy and I walked over to one trader in particular, one who was selling a variety of herbs and spices, as well as large bags of salt. As we walked up, the green earth pony with dark green mane and tail that was standing behind the display looked over at us happily.
"Hello folks! What can I get for you today? I've got a fresh stock of Fire Salts, straight from Saddle-Arabia! Only 300 bits per ounce!" He said cheerfully, holding up a wide bowl full of a smoking substance akin to red sand. I leaned forward and sniffed the salt, at which point my eyes began to water from the sheer spiciness emanating from them.
"Wow, ponies actually eat that stuff? My nose hurts from just one sniff!" I said with a pained laugh. He chuckled as he put the bowl back down.
"Most only put a pinch in whatever they're cooking, I wouldn't recommend eating it straight." He said with a smile. He ducked down behind the counter, re-emerging with a pair of frosted tongs and a few icy blue berries.
"How about these? Elder Frost Berries, only 60 bits each! Sure to put a frosty snap in whatever you're making! Although, I wouldn't touch them on their own if I were you..." He said, looking at the frost slowly creeping up the tongs.
"I'll pass, thanks. I think we're just here to get some normal salt." I said, emphasizing the word 'normal' so that we didn't end up with something whose price would make the princesses shudder. A slight frown appeared on his face, but it was instantly replaced by a cheerful smile. He nodded as he put the fruity ice-balls back and grabbed a bag of salt with one hoof.
"Here you go, only 27 bits!" He said with a wide smile. My jaw almost fell open at the price, but a better idea jumped into my head, and I only let it slide open a little, to show my shock.
"27 bits? Are you crazy?! Come on Fluttershy; let's go check the merchants on the other side of town." I said as I pulled her around and began to walk away. She gave to a quick look of confusion, but I winked at her and we kept walking.
"Wait! Uh, how about 23 bits?" The trader said, sounding desperate. I nudged Fluttershy to keep walking, and soon the trader spoke again.
"OK, fine. 20 bits, and that's as low as I'm going." He said, with a hint of annoyance in his voice. I smiled and turned around, walking calmly and carefully back to his stand.
"I knew you'd come to your senses." I said as Fluttershy handed him the two silver coins and I took the salt. He looked at me in disbelief.
"You weren't even the one buying? That's low." He said angrily. I looked at him with contempt before replying.
"Fluttershy doesn't talk a lot, and I wasn't going to let you get an unreasonable amount from her. It seemed like the right thing to do." I said as I balanced the salt on my back and turned to leave. He grumbled something unintelligible as we walked off.
"I... I guess I should be thankful that you saved me a few bits, but I almost wish you hadn't. Now he probably won't even sell to me next time." She said quietly.
"I don't see why not. I was the one who cheated him, not you. You should be fine, although I doubt he'll give you such a good price again." I said as we walked off. She nodded slowly in agreement, not seeming very convinced. Neither of us said anything for a little while, until I finally broke the silence.
"So, uh, what was the last thing you needed? Carrots?" I asked, looking at her.
"Mhm. And for those, a visit to Carrot Top is necessary." She said. I nodded, having no clue who she was talking about, but being sure I was about to find out. Our walk once again descended into silence, broken for a long time only by the occasional pony on some side street. Soon we had reached a street that ran parallel with the edge of town, and which presumably lead to carrots. As we were passing an opening between the buildings where the road traveled out of the town, screams erupted from further in Ponyville. Fluttershy and I looked at each other with worry, then turned and ran towards the source of the commotion. A few haunting moments later, we arrived in a medium sized clearing, only to skid to a stop. There were ponies running around in panic, while others simply cowered in corners, trying to hide from the terror that stood amid them all.
I had seen a number of strange things since arriving in this world, but nothing had prepared me for this encounter. Standing in front of me was a massive feline, at least four ponies in length and easily two ponies tall. It was a dull orange, and covered in dark stripes. Its teeth bared, it growled at the pandemonium around it while its tail swooped slowly back and forth. It had strapped to it various plates of armour covering select parts of its body, as well as a relatively small saddle. Atop the beast sat a pony of similar complexion. This stallion was white and black striped, and had similar looking armour to the beast he rode that covered the edge of a runic-looking cutie mark. On his back were two wide scabbards, a little longer then a fore-leg. The odd part was, however, that there was nothing in them, nor were the weapons in question in his hooves. I felt Fluttershy shrink down next to me, as if to become invisible.
"That's... Not... Possible..." She whimpered, hiding further. Suddenly, the tiger-riding zebra in front of us spoke, his voice surprisingly smooth, almost to the point of silken.
"You must bring to me the one called Blazing Star, so as not to waste that I have come this far." He said, the rhyme flowing easily and noticeably from his mouth. What?! How does he know my name?! And what in Celestia's name does he want me for?! I wondered, trying to decide if I could run and hide, or if I should stand my ground. Before I could decide though, a quiet voice spoke up.
"What do you want him for? What has he done?" The voice asked, its origin lost in the crowd. The zebra's head spun around, searching for the speaker. Failing that, he spoke again.
"I was not put in the know, but only once I have him can I go." He said seriously. That's it, I'm leaving. I thought, slowly backing up. I had hardly gotten a few steps, however, before another voice appeared, this one much more familiar.
"There he is! The orange one!" I heard the voice say, and I suddenly recognized the voice as the zebra turned and looked straight at me. Shit. Note to self: If I survive, never haggle again. I thought, freezing in place and locking gazes with the zebra. Fluttershy let out a tiny squeak and ran off, disappearing behind a building.
"What do you want with me? And who sent you?" I asked as firmly as I could manage, despite being completely terrified. He blinked slowly, and then continued to stare at me, as though he was analyzing me and my abilities. After a few seconds, he swung around and slid off the saddle, landing gracefully on the ground. To everypony's amazement, he then stood up on only his hind legs, making him at least a time and a half my height. He began to walk slowly towards me, with no hint of unsteadiness showing in his movement.
"I am under orders to bring you with me, and that to kill you would be a terribly pity. Secretive my master has been, his name I have not be able to gleam." He said, stopping his advance when he was about two meters from me. Annoyed he felt it necessary to force me to look up so far to him, I sent back my retort.
"Sorry, until you give me one Hay of a good reason, I'm not going anywhere unless I'm unconscious." Annnd I just sealed my fate... Blasted tongue... I thought, in retrospect of my last statement. He smiled and bent down, placing both fore-hooves flat on the ground. Strands of a white substance that looked like magic began to spiral around his front legs, soaking into the ground, where they formed flat on the surface two runic circles, which were filled with various unknown letters and symbols, as well as his cutie mark in the center. After little more than a second, he stood slowly back up, pulling first short handles, then a gleaming blade out of the ground with each hoof. The circles quickly disappeared, their patterns shining on the flats of the swords he now held. He grinned as he stood back up to his full height, a short, curving sword held in each hoof. I stared at him in utter shock, mouth once again hanging open.
"How... How did you... Do that? You're not a... That's not possible..." I stuttered, stumbling away from the sword-wielding stallion in front of me. His smile faded as he gave each blade an experimental swing before replying.
"I never was very good with words, always have preferred my swords." He said, sliding the back edges together, producing a grinding metal sound and a shower of sparks. OK, that didn't make any sense, since the metal shouldn't have been heating up, and- Brain, not helpful. I need ideas on how to survive and remain conscious, not trivia. Well, I've got some skills with magic, particularly with fire, so I should be able to fend for myself, maybe until help shows up. Who would even show up though? I thought, closing my mouth and putting on my best 'war' face. Since it seemed like he was waiting for my move, I started by picking up a small rock with my magic, intent on testing his reflexes. I was only maybe three meters away, so he would have little time to react, I hoped.
"Well, here goes..." I whispered to myself as I threw the rock as hard as I could at his head, hoping to stun him, or at the very least buy some more time. For the first few moments, he didn't react, even going as far as to blink. Then, when the rock was about half way across, and before he had even opened his eyes, he ducked backwards, letting the rock go sailing right over his head, where it promptly stuck in a wall. As he straightened back up, he dove forward, his right hoof stretched out slightly above my head, his left coming in with the blade of his sword facing my body. Seeing my chance, I rolled left, hoping to duck under his attack. He had predicted this course of action though, and tilted his right blade so that as I rolled, I sliced my fore-leg open. He skidded to a stop briefly, blades still outstretched as I rose shakily to my hooves. Blood was dripping down my right leg from the gash, and I winced at the wave of pain.
"Shit, that hurts." I said, making no effort to hide my words from him. He turned and looked solemnly at me, with a face that seemed to say, 'I'm sorry, but you asked for this.' I gathered my strength again, readying a stronger attack.
"Like Hay I did, you defanatly started this." I said, thinking how proud Fluttershy would be of me as a flicker of shock momentarily passed over his face. Noticing an un-attended broom lying helplessly in the dust, I gathered my magic for the task ahead. Right as he again leaped for me I used my magic to send the broom flying at him handle first, hoping he wouldn't notice it in time. Like before though, I underestimated him, as right before the broom should have hit him he ducked, slicing the broom in half at the same time. As he continued his charge and the two halves sailed off, I used my magic to take hold of the longer piece, which was thankfully now far beyond his range of view, and send it back his direction. It hit between two of his armour pieces with great force, and a sickening crunch could be heard as a few of his ribs broke. The impact sent him far off to my right, but not before he managed to put another slice in my leg, just below the previous one. With a gasp I fell to my knees, the pain making my vision flash red for a moment. This is just going to keep going until one, or both, of us passes out, isn't it?
"Sorry about the ribs..." I said as we both rose to our hooves again. He gave a pained half-salute that I assumed meant my apology was accepted. He readied himself for another attack, now seemingly un-affected by his injuries. I again gathered my strength, preparing to use my magic once more. OK, time to bring out the big guns... I thought as remembered my fireball from the previous night. Right on cue, he leaped at me again, gleaming blades ready to cut at my body once more. I knew I didn't have time for a huge fireball, instead I formed a ring of hovering fireballs a bit smaller then my hooves that floated vertically just in front of my chest. I then began to rapidly fire them at my attacker, who began to duck and weave around them, sometimes even knocking them out of the air with one of his swords. Soon he was upon me again, and I was out of shots. Seeing no easy escape, I closed my eyes, waiting for the bite of his blades, which would certainly cause me to pass out from pain and lack of blood. Already my blood as starting to pool at my hooves, paining the ground with my life-force. As though fate wished to rub my situation in even more, the loss of energy from my previous spell caused me to fall to my knees, forcing me to bow to my opponent. A stroke of luck was finally to be had, though, and the unforeseen consequence of my reduced height caused his swords to miss me entirely, causing instead his body to hit me. He tumbled over me, landing in a heap behind me, and knocking me over.
As soon as I could focus my eyes again, I stood, slowly and shakily to my feet. I limped as quickly as I could away, then spun to face my opponent, who seemed to be suffering worse from his broken ribs then before, and was also struggling to get up. Or he's faking it... I thought as I readied what I knew would be my final attack. I gathered all my strength, ready to create a fireball like the one in the forest. I pictured it in my mind, letting it consume me. Suddenly, a single word came to mind. I had never seen it before, but just picturing it in my mind I recognized the characters as similar to the ones from the zebra's spellcircles. I felt as though this word, this one word, held enormous, ancient power. Without a thought I spoke it, and every detail of it was erased from my mind. I was filled with a fiery energy, and I opened my eyes to see a wide ring of yellow and white fire spinning in front of me just as my previous attack had. At my hooves, glowing brightly against the flattened dirt was a bright orange spellcircle, with more of the un-readable runes and symbols, as well as a much larger symbol in the center that looked like the outline of a simple flame. I didn't have time to focus on it though, as my attacker had readied his weapons and was prepared to attack again. He paused for a moment after seeing my spell, then stuck both of his weapons in the ground and placed his fore-hooves again on the ground, where he again began to cast a spell. Not wanting to let with get the drop on me, I let out a scream and released the massive amount of magic that was channeling though me. The spellcircle disappeared, and the flaming ring surged forward, nearly as quickly as my very first attack with the rock had been. He uttered one more word and stood up as quickly as he could, raising his fore-hooves high above his head. There was a rumbling sound, and the ground just in front of him cracked, then a wall of rock shot out of the ground, a few hooves thick and twice as tall as me. I forced my attack even faster, intent on destroying his wall and still having enough power left to finish the job. Our spells struck moments later, followed by a blinding explosion of light and the sound of a volcano, where chaos, fire, and earth became one. When the dust cleared there was no evidence of either of out spells, save the fact that we were both exhausted and a few small pieces of rubble. All four of my legs shook, and I fell to the ground, where my vision faltered and went hazy. I was sure for the second time that afternoon, and the third time that week, that this was the end. Much of my body became unresponsive, and once again darkness took me.
"Stop!"