"Our human compassion binds us the one to the other - not in pity or patronizingly, but as human beings who have learnt how to turn our common suffering into hope for the future."
-Nelson Mandela
The undead priest stared up at the pony figure as it stepped out of the dark. When the light crystals illuminated, Russel immediately recognize it as a Pegasus. It was a mare with safari gear on from what he could tell, including the big hat. Her face however was still obscured because of the low light level. The Pegasus pulled a crystal out and tapped it before throwing it down in front of the priest. The priest kicked it and jumped in the opposite direction.
The crystal landed behind the stone that Russel was chained to right before it exploded. The explosion cracked the rock in several places and crumbled apart, pulling the bottom half of Russel under the rubble. Russel attempted to get out from under the heavy chains and rocks holding him down but met some resistance as his hands were still chained to two heavy pieces of stone. He turned to look seeing that the priest had got back up and was preparing some sort of spell. It was safe to bet, this dead priest was deadly with magic as it shot an energy ball at the cliff that the Pegasus pony stood on. She lassoed a rope she had to a lone stalactite, then proceeded to swing down onto a table before the spell blew apart the cliff face.
She turned around and flew towards the undead priest and kicked it into the wall five feet away. The bones surprisingly held together as it hit the wall and slumped down before getting back up. Another energy ball was sent at the Pegasus only for it to miss as the pony jumped to the side. Russel saw the energy ball miss and head straight for him. He braced himself as the spell flew within inches of his head and hit the wall in front of him. Russel crawled out from under the rubble and tried pulling the rocks only to be disappointed as they would not budge.
It also looked as if the Pegasus's luck wasn't going any better. The undead priest had her dodging constantly and not being able to take the offensive. Russel picked up a decent sized piece of stone and chucked it at the creature in an attempt to distract it. The stone collided with the priests head, sending it falling to the floor. It quickly got back up and telekinetically choke Russel, lifting him into the air. Russel felt like his lungs were on fire as he was running out of oxygen fast.
His vision was starting to fade when suddenly, he fell out of suspension. He was able to suck a huge gulp of air into his lungs, slowly recovering from his stunned state. He got back up and saw that the Pegasus had lassoed the unholy thing, launching it against the wall. The pony proceeded to assault the undead priest by smashing it against the walls. Russel was amazed by this pony, she seemed to be able to hold her own in a fight. He turned and walked over to the box to see if it had anything that might help kill the creature.
Turning the key the rest of the way, he lifted the lid and viewed the contents that was inside. He was confused upon seeing the item cause it didn't make sense as to why it was so closely guarded. The item was a fake horn, almost like a prosthetic limb for unicorns if their actual horn was chopped off. Upon closer inspection he realized it was made out of gold. Russel was almost entranced by the way the gold shined so brightly even in the crystals dim light. He suddenly had the extreme urge to want to put it on, almost as if it had him in a trance.
Russel then lost all control of his body as some unseen force now manipulated his actions. Like a prisoner inside his own body, Russel watched in shock as he was magically forced to put the contraption on. Once the false limb was attached firmly on his head he felt something spark within him. It was almost like an intense energy that connected with ever cell in his body. Images and words started clouding up his vision. Russel had never seen them but for reasons unknown, he could vividly understand like he experienced them first hand.
He felt a rush of light that filled him up and then the images disappear. Russel shook his head to regain awareness of his surroundings. When he came to, he spotted the undead priest standing up and knocking the Pegasus into the wall. Second after seeing this, a ghostly whisper passed into his ear and he raised his hand almost naturally. His hand begun to glow and a telekinetic field grabbed hold of the undead creature. This got its attention as it begun to rise up in the air, taking on a dark reddish hue.
It grew even more bazar to Russel when he began speaking a language that he never heard before but understood none the less. It basically translated into, let thy light raze thee asunder foul creature of the abominating darkness. A flash of light blinded the entire room and an explosion of light occurred. When the light settled, the undead creature had been reduced to ash by the explosion spell casted at it. The Pegasus pony got up and shook off the fatigue from the battle. She turned her vision towards the human she now noticed.
He was about to say something when he suddenly fell backwards and lost consciences. The pony caught him just as the room began to tremor from some unknown force.
"Wake up, hey, can you hear me. Ooooh horse feathers, okay then. Alright, whatever you are, don't die on me yet," the Pegasus said as she draped his body over her. She flapped her wings as fast as she could, propelling her up through the structure. She zoomed around trying to avoid falling rocks as she climbed back up to the entrance. When the light of the outside came into view, she burst through the door and up into the sky.
Turning around, she witnessed the tower crumble down like it was the weakest structure ever built. After it completely collapsed, the sand dropped into a sink hole created by the building, filling it up rather quickly. There wasn't much left after, just a couple pieces of stone strewn around the area. The pony wiped her brow and turned to fly east towards a small village off in the distance.
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After getting the human to the village, the shaman doctors did their best to wake him from his sleep. They tried everything they could with little success. They eventually told her that if she wanted to speak to him than she would have to wait. From what she could gather, the being she saved was in some sort of magical sleep. They continued to explain that the horn was affecting him physically and that it was the direct cause of his sleeping state. The horn was immovable however so they decided that the best thing to do was wait.
After they finished speaking, the Pegasus went into the room and over to the bed Russel laid on. She tested the legitimacy of their findings and sure enough, the horn wouldn't budge no matter how much force she applied. What she didn't understand was why he was even at the temple in the first place. Her research told her that centuries ago, it use to be a place of worship for servants of the old dragon order. This group would do the biddings and commands of the dragons that once ruled the world long ago. They were overthrown in a century long war by a free faction of ponies.
These ponies formed the three empires residing in what was now called Equestria. She came in search of adventure as usual and boy did she find it. Dodging traps, fighting undead creature, finding the treasure and claiming it for her ever growing collection of artifacts from around the world. This was her life, she loved every minute of it and wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. However, today was the most surprising. She never would have expected she'd meet an alien but that didn't make the whole situation any less intriguing to her.
Her thought were interrupted by a small flash of light coming from the sleeping form next to her. The horn in which he had securely fastened to his head just faded into him and disappeared as the light dimmed out. Minutes after, he began to stir and shot right up in a pained expression.
"Oooowww, my head, it feels like I got into a boxing match with Mike Tyson and lost. Can somebody please get me some water," Russel said as he held his head while squinting his eyes. The Pegasus ran out of the room and came back with a canteen that she handed to him. He quickly gulped the whole thing down and set it down next to him, still holding his head but relieved a little.
"What were you doing down in that cavern? An amateur such as yourself shouldn't be delving into mystical ruins without a proper team present. What were you thinking, you could have gotten yourself killed," the pony scolded, more curious than ever about the bipedal creature.
"I wasn't there on purpose, I was forced in there by something that I couldn't content with. A giant sand worm is not an easy thing to fight against. Wasn't many options so I picked the best one and ran straight into that tower. Didn't realize that it was still occupied, it looked abandoned for quite some time and then I found the hidden door. Who are you, and how did we get here," Russel asked as the light got less bright and he was finally able to open his eyes? He saw the pony that was with him and she was clearer now that they weren't in a dark cave.
It was definitely a Pegasus mare with safari gear on. she had yellowish tan fur with a black mane and tail. The mane had a stripe of grey in it and her eyes color was magenta.
"My name is Daring Doo but most ponies know me by my pen name, A.K Yearling. You were lucky I was there to save you when I did, you would probably be dead. On that note, do you feel fine, any odd sensations or strange feelings. Do you feel different than when you entered that temple," Daring Doo asked as she looking over him closely. Russel was feeling very uncomfortable with the pony invading his personnel space.
"No, I'm fine other than the splitting headache that is hitting us right now. So what are you, a thrill seeker, treasure hunter, or archeologist?" Russel didn't even need to ask that question, he knew who Daring Doo was. She was basically the pony version of Indiana Jones, one of his favorite movies. Inside he was excited to meet the awesome and famous Daring Doo but he needed to keep up appearances.
"I'm a bit of all those things. I travel all over the world uncovering ancient ruins and discovering old civilization long since gone. All the while I donate pieces to museums minus the stuff I keep for my own collection and they fund my expeditions. Enough of about me, who are you and how in Celestia's name did you come to Equis," she was confused by this out of place meeting?
"My name is Shojima, we come from a distant planet by means of a magical portal that linked these two planets together. the connection was only opened for a brief period. I was lucky enough figure it out and utilize it in time Russel said revealing part of his presence there to Daring.
"You are certainly interesting, but why are you talking all funny," daring questioned pointing out his error of speech?
"We-, I don't know, we think it may have something to do with that horn I put on. it is the strangest feeing, I know things about this world that I should not know yet it feels like we've known it all our life. It's quite awkward for me too, What was it exactly i put on," Russel asked the famous pony explorer?
"The horn you put on, is call The Horn of Ponicon. It is a mythical artifact said to contain all the knowledge dragon priest unicorns gathered during the days when ponies served dragon overlords. I was going take it to a safe location but it would seem that it wanted to merge with your body. Try doing a spell that only an experienced unicorn can do. That will prove its connection worked," Daring stated as she asked him to test his new found abilities? Russel focused on any spell that would come to mind and at first nothing, but he soon thought up something clever.
His eyes began to glow and a greenish red hue enveloped his whole being. When the light settled, Daring Doo looked back to see an exact copy of herself sitting on the bed. her jaw drop at how exact the image was and was impressed by the magical feat. She had only known a few that could use that spell and he performed it without much effort.
"So what do you think," Russel asked but with her voice.
"I think its safe to say the merge worked perfectly. Are you traveling, and if i may ask, where to," Daring asked with much curiosity?
"I'm heading north to find a place where I can begin my research. It would seem I also need to meditate and hone my skills with this new found power. Thank you for saving me by the way and for the help, Russel said transforming back into himself. He walked over and gave the explorer a hug. Daring was shocked at first but returned the sentiment. Letting go, she wanted to do anything she could to stop him from leaving. She had so much she wanted to learn about him and the horn still but it was a part of him now. There was nothing she could say to get him to go with her though so she settled on something else.
"Here, before you go, take this, Daring said tossing a gem at Russel. He caught it examining the piece. It was a sapphire stone with a dim light inside it.
"What exactly am I suppose to do with this? Its just a gem," Russel stated pointing out what he thought was obvious.
"Its no ordinary gem, that's an enchanted gem made for communication. Use it to call me if you happen to find any relics of interest or of similar nature to the horn. I know the horn is safe but many enchanted items still remain needing to be found and figured out. Just tap it three times and it will connect with the twin gem I have. Ill come save you again, I always save the damsel in distress," Daring said making fun of his earlier predicament.
"Ha ha, I almost forgot to laugh at how funny that was," Russel said with as much sarcasm as he could produce. He waved to the adventurer as she flew away from wherever he was. Come to think of it, he couldn't recognize this place and he didn't see on the map the shaman drew for him. It took a while to figure out where he was as he had to find a zebra who could tell him. After searching a while he was finally able to gather his bearing thanks to a helpful fur trader. He was not far from the path he was heading.
Russel was near the edge of the desert bordering the two nations he was heading towards. He had made great timing thanks to Daring Doo and so he resumed his trek out of the desert. Deciding on a location for a time, he picked the Dragon Nation as he guessed that the dragons had better relations with Equestria than the griffons. After much contemplation on how he was going to gain entry to their domains, he knew the best way was to become them. How, he did not know, but Russel loved a challenge and would do whatever it took to get his quest completed. So with as much speed as he could muster, he headed northeast on a road that didn't see much use.
It was probably due to the fact that dragons scared many due to the ones who had succumbed to their greed. He imagined the ones who could control their greed were far different and much less hostile. he traveled along the road for several hours thinking on what he would see. When he finally reached his destination, he noticed that the land was dry and barren in the surrounding area. What caught his eye the most however was the incredible mountain towering far above his head. He estimated it to be about the same size as Mt. Rainier back on his world.
The only differences were that this one seemed to be more alive and had no snow on it. It was truly a sight as he made his way towards the base of it. Walking the path up, he could see that it obviously had much use. He saw no sign of activity however, like who ever had used it vanished. He did manage to find an entrance at least. The entrance was more like a tunnel with some boulder shaped doors that seem as if they could be slid open.
When Russel went to open the door, it felt like it weighed a ton and would not budge. It was obvious that its construct was made for someone far bigger and he could proceed no further. He searched around but found no other point of entry.
"This cant be happening, I traveled all this way only to be stopped by a couple of damn rocks. This is just great, I can't get in there. I honestly don't like griffons, but I don't know who to ask for sanctuary," Russel said to no one in particular. He shuttered at the thought of asking the birdbrains for help considering all the lore he read said they were conniving thieves. They were without honor and that's not the type he'd like to Associate with. After a few minutes he sighed and picked up his stuff to proceed down.
Going back down the path was a little hard since it was steep and he had nothing to keep him steady. He eventually made it down though and was about to continue when a loud roar sounded out. It was projected so loudly that it caused the ground to shake. Russel didn't like the sound of it so he ran for any cover he could find. He opted to duck behind a rock that was just big enough to hide behind crouched. It was apparent that there was nothing else to take cover behind.
When the ground stopped shaking, he took a peek to see if anything was following but no visible creature was in sight. He hesitated to get up since he could now sense the presence of many souls. It was hard for him to even comprehend what he was feeling. There was so many heart beats that it blurred into one loud noise that came from beneath him. Russel put his hand on the ground and something just snapped in his mind. Russel eyes lit up green like the feeling activated something dormant within him.
He held out his hand and pointed it towards the mountain he was just on.
"CHRISTEOS OIAD NIISO OL masters ODO NOROMI OI OLANI NOALN seek help LOAGAETH BOOAPIS." Russel voice echoed into the very dirt and stone around him. Soon it died down and Russel mind returned to normal. He was a bit dazed by the sudden possession and couldn't quite figure out how it was doing that. A loud explosion came from half way up the slope where the entrance was. Fire shot out from the entrance and several dragons burst from it.
They came out in volleys of ten and in minutes the sky was being darkened by the shear mass of dragons in the air. A few of them descended towards the area he was taking cover behind.
"We know your here, we can smell you. Your scent is unfamiliar, show yourself or prepare to be burned in fire," one of the dragons yelled out. Russel was freaked out, he did not expect this scenario. The dragons didn't seem to take kindly to Strangers at all. He wondered how anyone had a peace treaty with them or any relationship with them for that matter. Russel thought that maybe this wasn't such a good idea as he looked for a way out.
Not much was there though and he doubted that he'd get very far since dragons had the aerial advantage. The dragon roared out again but this time Russel could feel the atmosphere around him become hotter and dense with smoke. The smoke almost smelled like sulfuric gas which was odd. his eyes went wide eyed as he realized why right before a small whoosh and an explosion sounded out. It consumed a thirty foot radius around him. He flinched back as he thought his death assured only to feel, nothing.
It had become a normal temperature and so he risked a peak. A shield had formed around his body and he could feel the want to live light up inside him. It was apparent that the horn of Ponicon had a stronger link with his mind than he thought. Probably due to all the knowledge held within its ancient enchantments. It became obvious that it did not want its host body to die. Russel did not think long on this though as the familiar energy channeled through him again.
He lost control of his body once again and succumbed to the power of the horn. Russel hovered out from behind cover and his hand pointed at the dragons who attacked him. The fiery drakes were more shocked than anything to see the unrecognizable creature. Three streams of light burst forth from his hand and hit the three drakes sending them to the ground instantly. More came down and he did the same thing to them. The rest of the dragons soon descended and surround the lone human.
Russel was scared that even the power of the horn would not protect him from such a hoard.
"Your doubt is misguided young one. we provides protection to those who we deem worthy of wielding our knowledge. The host must survive for the knowledge to be used," the unknown voice resonated whispers in his mind. All the dragons perked up and turned towards the mountain they came from. A gigantic red dragon flew out the top of the hollowed out peak. The dragon who was probably an alpha, landed, followed by every dragon bowing before it.
Russel took a defensive stance, ready to fight his way out although he was seriously doubting the capabilities of the horns power.
"Your fear is misplaced, we have no intention of harming you. We thought you were a spy sent by the griffons to find out our weaknesses. I am sorry if we showed any hostilities by mistake," the red dragon whispered. Its voice was somehow in his minds. Russel strangely felt somewhat at ease by the words it spoke, it made him lessen his guard a little.
"How do I know that to be true, one of your dragons nearly incinerated me and another tried to blow me up. That didn't exactly seem like a mistake," Russel said, still hesitant to trust them completely.
"My name is Elder Linwiloke, We extend our sincerest apology's and we will heal any injury you may have sustained in the fight. All I ask is that you follow me, I have many questions for you. The first being, why do you posses something that I know for certain was buried many ages ago?"