Journey to the House of Dust

by boardgamebrony

III. The Dance of Reason and Revolt

III. The Dance of Reason and Revolt

(1) The canopy of the Everfree Forest loomed over the human and pony wanderers. Marcus reflected on the mirrored words of the Crystal Dam which had entranced him only an hour before.

(2) “Roseluck, I seek to understand this world, but there are things I have seen which turn my thoughts in ways which cause me to struggle with reason. I cannot explain the liquid-skin coat of the Crystal Dam or her reflection talking when her own mouth remained still as though statue. Reflections are simply light bouncing off of mirrored surfaces, so how can a living creature exist in the water’s face and above it simultaneously? It defies all sense of logic and reason!”

(3) The garden pony Roseluck hesitated and kept her eyes averted throughout the fullness of her response. “There are many wonders present in my world, dear traveler. Reason is for that which we know and wonder is for all we don’t. To know something undoubtedly takes great confidence, though I have seen some express this sometimes with a bit of arrogance.” Marcus did not catch the moment Rose stole a glance at him before she continued. “For lives change without warning, as you well know from your sudden disposal into this realm which I call home.”

(4) Marcus evoked the memory of his once-normal life and found he could see the past clearer than before. The horizon of thought contained to grow and he saw further back and contemplated farther forward while he moved higher in his understanding. “My vantage point has grown by leaps and bounds. I see more of my past, with discoveries of memory floating back to me as I floated to shore in that rickety vessel. I approach my thoughts with calm, hoping not to disturb the waters around them lest they break apart and drown once more. I can see what I once knew. My life was a mundane chore of daily habits repeated in endless cycles over the course of the years. I used to find solace in intellectual pursuits, but the grind of time stopped polishing my character and began to erode my compassion with forced decay. Too many times I was presented with challenges in life which seemed trivial at first, but accumulated in strength as they piled up with unresolved results. Small chisels of self would occur. A bit of integrity lost here. A pinch of honesty compromised there. Even the occasional argument where I walked away only to feel the most miniscule of weights added to my chest. Each day survival, but for what? I was given everything! I could say I earned little, though I did feel accomplishment often and encouragement sometimes. My achievements amounted to changes in status, but very little gain of self. What do you make of all this, Rose?”

(5) The pony was attentive enough, though her thoughts often appeared elsewhere. Marcus made note of this while she spoke. “Human, I have many years of experience in various aspects of life and its tribulations. I cannot say I have lived the same as you. I am a gardener and shop owner. I spend time in quiet contemplation with creations which speak softly and yet form strong roots. I nurture my garden and then sell those who’ve reached full maturity so others may form strong bonds with them. For at some point, the flower outgrows its vessel and must be planted elsewhere lest its safe walls crack from the stress of its own growth.”

(6) “That is an excellent summation of what you do, and though I find comfort in your lessons taught by green thumb, or hoof as this case my be, I wish to know more about your past, your experiences and who you are. I find myself lucky to have been found by you upon my arrival to this realm of Equestria.”

(7) “No doubt you do, traveler.” Roseluck waited long enough for Marcus to made note of the fact that this was the third time she did not use his name. “But allow me to propose a question: in your world, with your trivialities and daily chores, do you find it necessary to speak out of turn and challenge those in authority over you? What about your friends? Do you question them and set them ill-at-ease when speaking about your desires to pursue your own ambitions regardless of their counsel? I would have you think about this because I find myself increasingly in the company of one whose wisdom seems more like stark rebellion and less like the knowledge of a world I’d want to know.”

(8) “Must I apologize for all my actions? Roseluck, may I remind you that less than twenty-four hours ago, I was contemplating my own mortality and what remained of my future? As far as I know, I am still dying! Though my body moves enough to walk along this newfound path, I still feel the beating of my heart and its worry that perhaps I may not see another dawn, be it in this world or my own. When all I amounted to arose from following others and remaining silent only to be caught at the end with nothing to claim my own, how can you ask of me to continue that similar and dangerous path? I was once quiet, but now speak to learn in the last hours. I was once agreeable, but now seek to break the cage and free myself from the well-worn path of others who march blindingly off cliffs! I am at my cliff, dear Rose! I stare into the face of eternity and find its multitude of thinkers, discoverers and wayfarers all look past me in disinterest for my lack of worth! And though my struggles may be abrasive to others who climb with me, I am not here to push you away or discount your wisdom in my path through the shadow of the awaiting abyss. I have not cast off all that I am just so that I may see what the opposing paths hold. I too carry my past with me, and the compassion, though worn, is still present and stubborn. I am a better person than you know and I hope to reveal this to you soon so that your mind be at-ease with me, regardless of whether I be agreeable or dissident.”

(9) “You ask a lot of me, Marcus. Your intellect is strong, and I do believe you were once different than you are now, but do not allow the approach of death to change who you are. And what of this talk of death? You act as though your fate were already decided! Despite whether you truly walk the final path or are just suffering from a life of quiet desperation, you must not lose hope. Many times have I brought back the wilted into the light to see them blossom forth with second breath! I did not accomplish this by challenging all my time-tested methods. I simply found out what the flower was missing and supplied its lack. Why alter all when only one change will suffice?”

(10) Marcus had no answer for the knowledgeable mare and the two traveled forward into the heart of the Everfree. Roseluck’s lead passed by various curiosities, including a field of blue flowers she described as Poison Joke. Marcus was careful to touch nothing Rose did not already encounter and learned of the flora and fauna and its dangerous ever-shifting control. She spoke of beasts composed of timber with stout bodies and resilient constitutions who would pursue the lost with nightmarish precision. There were small insects of parasitic quality which would divide thrice and ravage entire towns. Still she mentioned a hidden pool of water where image of one’s self would arise from the depths and seek to overrun one’s life. The last detail caught Marcus’ attention and he contemplated if the Crystal Dam’s speaking reflection was somehow connected to the mysterious mirror pond.

(11) At last they beheld a great house carved into the body of a living tree. No illumination resided within and scatterings of debris littered the area. Small craters ran the edge of the home and scorched edges lined all sides of the house. Most puzzling was the presence of an otherworldly sphere hovering silently above the top of the house’s canopy line. It rotated slowly and would’ve easily been mistaken for the moon in the sky to one who glanced from a distance. However, the presence of the first and true moon still hung high in the night and this second smaller body gave no explanation of its miniscule mimicry.

(11) Roseluck was the first to speak. “By the powers that be…I have never seen such a dazzling display of fallen celestial body! Do you see the sparkles of color hidden in each crater upon the moon’s face? It is as though gems were caught under the surface of each impact site. And its sheer size! It must be no more than three hundred feet in diameter! Look closely, Marcus, and notice how the floating spectacle contains its own gravity. Small objects appear to be floating close its surface and move in a pattern around the deeper craters. Why, there are even trees locked in its heavenly embrace! Oh, the poor things cannot root themselves and shift sideways in perpetual momentum. I wonder if any animals are stuck in its gravitational embrace?”

(12) A booming voice fell a tree near Marcus and Roseluck. A cloud of nesting birds rose up in a display of a living shockwave from the nearby foliage. The two travelers startled and glanced around in confusion. “You would do well to wonder, small creatures. For you are in the company of a terrible and angry dweller of the Everfree Forest. Be gone and leave me in peace or I shall find more expedient ways of tossing you asunder!”

(13) Marcus looked to Roseluck whose expression was aghast in terror and disbelief. His heart steadied and he looked around for the source of the ominous warning. “Oh great and powerful one, you really do impress us with your presence and expertise at tree-falling. Never before have I been in the company of so magnetic a personality! But we fail to recognize you. Show us your face so that we may converse on a more personal level.” Marcus was unsure if the sincere inquiry was more prominent or if his sarcasm held greater effect. He silently chastised himself for letting his natural defense against fear get the better of him. Roseluck seemed too terrified to comment on any of it.

(14) “Oh strange upright walker, I cannot decide if I should laugh at your outburst or hurl you into the sky for your sheer audacity! You, whose power equates to no more than wit and sarcasm, dare to tempt one far superior to you in every respect? You are far luckier than you realize that I’ve grown bored of my isolation and would rather speak first and destroy later. But no mistake. One more sign of disrespect and your crushed remains will tell all of the mistake you made when you challenged Meteor Moon!”

(15) Roseluck was livid when her face spun to meet Marcus. The tree had shocked him, and Meteor Moon’s threat was intimidating, but Rose’s expression of pure rage at that exact moment was sure to give Marcus some unsettling nightmares. She worked hard to contain her voice at a volume the angry gem stallion hopefully would not hear. “Are you truly full of foolishness or do you just enjoy the feeling of complete inadequacy? Why do you persist in opening your mouth when all which comes out is simply meant to agonize and shock those around you? Is your life worth that little that you threaten the safety of your companions to no end? I cannot believe that anyone would spend any amount of time thanks to your constant persistence in endangering my life and my respect at every turn! I’m starting to hope that Meteor Moon throws you into the sun or whichever place will be effective enough in turning your arrogance to ash!”

(16) Marcus had no words to respond to the tongue-lashing he had just received. There was a great rushing of sound as a crater on the far top of the small moon erupted into a blinding fit of fire and dust. The floating debris contained around the edge of the celestial body blew outward, reached high into the sky and then fell back down onto its surface in a hypnotic display of warring gravity between the Earth and the Meteor’s moon. The clouds of dust cleared and there stood the shadow of a seething stallion of night. He walked forward through the sky and showed he needed not the ground to carry his majestic and terrifying form…