Penn and Stone: Dynamic Duo

by Pennington Inkwell

Return

Applejack let out a long sigh, staring out the window at the rain. She had to admit, just when it couldn't get any worse, she was beginning to get depressed. There was nothing that the Elements could do to help, and most of the city had moved to Celestia's castle. The rest of the ponies who thought they could survive in a harsher environment, like the Apples, had stayed in the outer parts of the city, where the Princesses' protection was at its weakest. The entire city felt like it was straining under the pressure of the weather's assault, leaving a tension in the air that was ready to snap at any moment. Frustrated, she pounded her hoof on the windowsill, rattling the glass.

"It just ain't FAIR! How can somebody be attackin' us from so far away, we can't do nothin' about it?" She stormed away from the window in a huff, turning her attention back into the claustrophobic apartment their family was staying in. She didn't tend to spend many nights away from the barn, and she was beginning to feel herself going stir-crazy without the farm.

Just as she was about to turn her anger on a nearby wall, a fierce knocking on the door interrupted her.

"AH GOT IT!" Apple Bloom raced to the door, almost as fast as Applejack had ever seen her move. Obviously, she was taking being cooped up even worse than she was.

Of course she is! A little filly's gotta have room to play and grow! There's no place to put all that energy she usually uses for crusadin'!

"Aunt Celia! Uncle Page! What're you doin' here?" Apple Bloom's voice rang through the apartment, seizing Applejack's attention. She quickly ran to the front door, seeing the familiar ponies standing in the doorway.

The first was a mare was an earth pony with a red vest and similar hat to her own, her curly green mane and burnt orange coat completely soaked and pressed against her body. Standing behind her was a dark blue unicorn, his mane dark enough to nearly be considered black with several streaks of lighter blue.

"Applejack!" Celia rushed forward past Apple Bloom, quickly grabbing Applejack by the shoulders. "Please, tell me you've heard from your cousin!"

"Wha- you mean Pennington?" Applejack's eyes widened.

"Yes! We've been searching all over Canterlot for him, but he doesn't seem to be anywhere!" Her grip on Applejack tightened. "Please, I know that the two of you don't get along, but he made it out of Ponyville, right?" Celia was searching Applejack's eyes for answers, and Applejack could tell that her aunt was becoming desperate.

"Y'mean cousin Penn's missin'?" Apple Bloom looked up at the unicorn, who nodded solemnly.

"Celia, honey, you look like you're about to strangle the poor girl!" Front Page stepped forward, gently prying one of Celia's hooves from Applejack's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Applejack, we wanted to make a friendly visit as soon as we found Pennington, but he doesn't seem to be anywhere in Canterlot. And, well, considering that the evacuation took place at the one place in Ponyville our son hates the most..." He shrugged, though Applejack could see in his eyes he was only barely faking the nonchalance. "Our minds sprang to the idea that he may have been left behind."

Applejack opened her mouth to speak, only for a thought to cross her mind. Pennington was secretive to a fault, especially from his family. If she were to tell his parents something they weren't supposed to know, it was possible that she could give them a massive shock when they were already nearly in a panic.

"Well, ah can't tell you where he is..." Applejack chose her words carefully. She had only recently managed to gain her cousin's trust, and she didn't want to lose it because of a slipped secret. "But ah think I might know somepony who can!"

"Applejack, please..." Celia pleaded. "We HAVE to find him!"

Applejack nodded, grabbing a raincoat from the coat rack near the door.

"Follow me."

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Pennington took a deep breath, holding the cold air in his chest until it became warm. He was trying his best to ignore the subfreezing temperatures sinking into his bones, but every time they had to stop moving, it got harder and harder to move again. There wasn't much he could do, though, when Crankshaft had been having dizzy spells more and more frequently. It was at least the third time that they had been forced to stop because she couldn't keep her balance.

He gave a gentle tug on the rope tied around his waste, double-checking his knots. They'd tethered themselves together for safety, but it had taken almost all they rope they had. Moonstone was staying with Crankshaft to keep her warm.

It's funny... Quill died after being frozen, right? he thought to himself, taking another deep breath to try and hold back the shivers rising up from his core. I just might die like that, too...

"Okay, we're good, Penn!" He heard Moonstone shout, indicating that Crankshaft's dizzy spell had finished.

Pennington nodded and looked up the mountain, trying to plot their path. He couldn't see much more than a few yards because of the driving snow, however, so he had been playing things by ear. He grunted with effort as he took his first steps forward again, forcing his aching joints to move. He had to look confident, give no signs of hesitation. He still was doubting himself, but Moonstone was right about one thing: if anypony needed to believe that what they were doing was possible, it was Crankshaft. If she were to give up hope, nothing he or Moonstone could do would be able to save her. His own doubts didn't matter, he had to stop her from having any.

It doesn't matter if I think it's possible, I still have to do it.

They were almost a third of the way up the mountain, but it had been at least two hours. They were running out of time. He forced himself to move faster, feeling the rope do taut. He couldn't pull Crankshaft along, but he could at least give her a sense of urgency by keeping the line tugging at her.

Looking up again for the next few yards of path, he spotted an outcropping of rock above, casting a shadow below on where they'd be walking. Something tugged at the back of his mind, like a half-remembered dream. He tilted his head, keeping his eyes on the formation as he moved forward.

Just as he was about to reach the border of its shadow, he felt a violent yank on the line pull him back. Fearing the worst, he rooted himself to the ground as best he could, widening his stance and using what little magic he could to grab hold of the rope. If someone was going to fall off a mountain, he wasn't going to be the weak link that let them plummet.

"PENN!" Moonstone's voice cried out, forcing him to turn back and look.

Crankshaft was collapsed on the ground, her breathing fast and labored. He almost couldn't see her, already nearly buried in the deep snow. Moonstone was stood next to her, shaking her violently by the shoulder.

"Come on, Crankshaft! You can't give up now, we're so close! You can make it, I know you can!"

Pennington ran to the two, his heart pounding in his chest. There was no way that all of this could be for naught, could it? He couldn't let it end here. Instinctively, he tried to lift her with his magic, but it was simply too much for him, his horn simply fizzling out again. Shaking his head, he braced himself, then buried his face in the snow, digging his head under her belly. With a massive strain upwards, he rolled her unconscious body onto his back, laying her across him and his saddlebags. Moonstone's eyes widened, not that Penn could really see with his face feeling as though the flesh were freezing from the snow caked across it. His knees were already shaking, threatening to buckle under the weight.

"Can you do it?" Moonstone cried, trying to make herself heard over the rushing wind.

Pennington didn't answer, forcing himself to take the first step forward. It didn't get any easier from there, taking even more energy to force himself to take the second step. The third step was the hardest, the adrenaline from plunging his face into the snow already beginning to wear off. Beneath his belly, he felt a warm presence press itself against him, Moonstone's spikes on her back digging into him. Thankfully, he was already so cold and numb, the pain didn't even register. She pressed upwards, supporting him and Crankshaft from below. After that, things didn't get much harder, staying at about the same level of excruciating exertion with every step. It felt like an eternity before they were even back at the point below the outcropping.

It's familiar, I KNOW it! And if I ever needed memory of a safe haven...

He blinked, an image appearing in his mind's eye. It was sudden and overwhelming, as though he had been pulled away from the mountain and brought into the past. He could see it, the thing that had been bothering him, the detail tugging at his brain.

Then, as quickly as the memory had come, it was gone, leaving him standing in the cold again.

Well, I'm either hallucinating, or...

"Moonstone! Melt the snow!" He pointed straight ahead of them, to the wall of white that was in front of them.

"WHAT?" Moonstone slid out from underneath him. "Are you insane? We need to keep moving!"

"Please! Just TRUST me!"

Moonstone stared up at him, then at the seemingly solid wall. She was thinking frantically. Every second was crucial to their survival, and stopping for that kind of exertion would be fatal if he was wrong.

Pennington groaned, running forward as best he could with Crankshaft on his back and plunged his hooves into the snow under the outcropping, beginning to dig into it. He ignored the pain of the cold eating at his hooves, even pulling what he could away with his magic. The more he dug, the more solid the snow became, compressed down into ice by the constant battering of the wind. He kept trying, pulling away as much as he could. He felt Moonstone's claw on his shoulder, making him pause.

"Penn! There's nothing here! You're manic!"

"That's right! There's NOTHING here!" Pennington returned, plunging his hoof in again. "It's a CAVE!" When his hoof collided with the ice, the surface finally gave way, letting his hoof plunge through and reach open air on the other side.

Moonstone's eyes widened and her jaw dropped in disbelief. She shook her head and jumped forward, taking a deep breath and unleashing the biggest fireball she could. The violet flames burned their way through the ice with ease, widening the hole to almost double its previous size. Pennington began simply punching at the edges, making the gap wider and wider as Moonstone continued on to the other side, where she began melting the snow from inside the cave. In only a couple minutes, they had made a hole wide enough for Pennington to crawl through, still carrying Crankshaft on his back. The inside of the cave was pitch black aside from what little light was coming in through the hole, but without the constant buffeting of the wind and snow, it felt like the warmest place Pennington had been in his entire life. He walked almost ten yards inside before finally letting himself collapse to the ground, rolling Crankshaft off of his back and onto the cold rock floor.

"This... This is incredible!" Moonstone muttered, walking up next to them and beginning to inspect Crankshaft for injury, letting just enough fire slip out with her words to warm her without burning her. "How did you know this was here?"

"Guess I've been here before..." Pennington muttered. "Must have forgotten about it..."

"Well, she's not going to die here and now," Moonstone muttered, gently patting Crankshaft before walking back up to the hole they had made, inspecting the mouth of the cave. "If you hadn't remembered this place when you did, we would have been done for!"

Pennington opened his mouth to respond, only to be cut off by an ear-splitting crack and a shaking in the ground. It sounded as though the entire mountain were bearing down on them. Outside the hole, a tidal wave of white came crashing down, obliterating the very spot they had been standing mere minutes before. Pennington felt his entire body tense and clench at the deafening roar as Moonstone stood in awe at the avalanche's raw power. Pennington knew that they had only narrowly escaped nature's wrath, and he said a silent prayer of thanks to whatever gods had given him the knowledge of the cave in time. As he watched the mass of snow and ice roar past the cave opening, he noticed the stalactites quivering on the ceiling above Moonstone and rocks beginning to drop near her. He scrambled to his hooves as quickly as he could, even as cracks began to form in the roof above her. There was no time to think, only to act.

Sprinting forward, he seized her with his magic, leaping forward to her to make his weak power as strong as possible. Before Moonstone could react, he was already pulling her backwards and past him, whipping his head backwards with the force of his effort to pull her back. As soon as she had sped backwards past him, Pennington tried to plant himself on the ground to jump back out of harm's way, as well... only for his hoof to strike a patch of ice on the floor. Before he had even realized that he was on the ground, he had slid his way forward and directly into the place Moonstone had been standing prior. The last thing that he saw was Moonstone reaching out, her panicked cry being drowned out by the roar of the cave collapsing on top of him.

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"Applejack, where are we going?" Celia asked, marveling at the grand castle around them.

"Well, Aunt Celia, if there's anypony who could tell you where Cousin Penn is, it would be his teacher, right?" Applejack smiled, trotting down the hall. "Ah'd be willin' to bet my bits that she'd be happy to help ya out!"

"Well, yes..." Front Page seemed just as bewildered as his wife. "But I can't imagine that Penny's teacher would be this deep in the castle! I mean, we already passed at least three sets of guards, already!"

"Well, bein' the Element of Honesty has its advantages! Makes it a lot easier to go see-" Applejack drew up short, turning around to face her aunt and uncle with a look of incredulous surprise.

"Wait... Do you two really not know who Penn's teacher is?"

"Applejack, please stop playing the pronoun game!" Front Page stamped his hoof. "Between A.K. Yearling, Quick Strike, Cheerilee, and all the rest, Pennington has had so many teachers over the years, I honestly couldn't even begin to guess who-" Without warning, Page's eyes nearly jumped out of his skull, and he and Celia both dropped to a single knee and bowed their heads.

"Applejack? What are you doing here?" a familiar voice asked. Turning around, she found herself face-to-face with the Princess of the Night, herself, looking pleasantly surprised at Applejack's presence. Luna looked over Applejack's shoulder, spotting Celia and Page. "And who are these ponies with you?"

"Princess Luna! Just the pony ah was lookin' for!" Applejack grinned, giving the Princess's hoof a vigorous shake before turning around again. "This is my aunt, Celia Deeproots, and uncle, Front Page!"

"It's an honor, your highness!" Front Page exclaimed, not moving from his prone position.

"We're so sorry for the intrusion, Princess!" Celia exclaimed, also not seeming to move. "My niece was looking for somepony and seems to have gotten off-track!"

"What're y'all talking about? She's right here!" Applejack pointed up at Luna with a grin. "Sorry for showin' up without writing ahead, Princess, but these are Penny's parents! They were hoping you could tell them where to find him!"

"WHAT?" Celia jerked upwards, staring at Applejack with the most shocked expression she'd given, yet. Even Front Page looked up, his respectful bow broken with the revelation.

"You mean that Pennington's teacher is-"

"It's a genuine pleasure to meet you two." Princess Luna smiled and offered her hoof to them, though only Celia took it, seemingly without even thinking about the action. "I just passed off the responsibility of protecting the city to my sister for the day, but I do believe I could make some time for my protege's parents before I go to my bedchambers for the morning. Please, follow me!"

With a warm smile, Luna lead the way around the corner. Both of the ponies looked at Applejack, seemingly still trying to comprehend the new information. Applejack grinned, patting each of them on the shoulder.

"C'mon! Penn really never told ya?" With a grin and a wink, she followed after Luna, disappearing into the next hall.

As Celia and Page rushed after them to catch up, Luna began speaking, seemingly nonchalant with the two without any of the pomp and circumstance of the royal court.

"Now, I believe Applejack mentioned that the two of you were desirous to know Pennington's present whereabouts?"

"Ye-yes your highness! But how-"

"According to his last letter, Pennington is currently in the center of the Macintosh Hills, making his way to dragon country in order to find the source of this attack on Equestria."

"WHAT?"

Applejack cringed at Celia's outburst, having only heard her speak like that only a few times before. That was her "Pennington is in so much trouble" voice, the one she usually reserved for breaking up fights between him and his cousins.

"How could you let him do something so dangerous?" Celia raced past Applejack and in front of Princess Luna, giving her a glare that carried with it the force of a thousand suns. "He'll be KILLED out there!"

"Miss Deeproots, I understand your concern, really..." Princess Luna gave Celia a sympathetic frown. "But given his repertoire as Scorching Quill, I believe that he is more than capable of-"

"I don't CARE if you sent Scorching Quill with him! I wouldn't care if you went with him, yourself! You sent my little foal out into THIS?" She pointed out the nearest window, indicating the massive storm raging outside. "Into DRAGON TERRITORY?"

Luna blinked, somewhat taken aback at Celia's outburst.

"I did not send Scorching Quill with him, Miss Deeproots... Pennington IS Scorching Quill." She glanced back at Front Page, who was still at the back of the group, then back at the earth pony in front of her.

"Did you not know that?"

Celia seemed to have completely shut down, staring into space blankly in disbelief while Front Page looked at the floor, seemingly lost in thought.

"Whelp, looks like the cat's outta the bag..." Applejack muttered.

Princess Luna sighed, opening the nearest door to reveal a small conference room, complete with a large table and almost a dozen comfy-looking chairs.

"It seems that we have much to discuss... Please, take a seat."

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"PENN!"

Moonstone rushed forward to the pile of rubble where Pennington had been only moments before, immediately beginning to tear away at the stones as best she could. She desperately grabbed every rock she could manage to pick up and threw them to the side, her heart pounding in her chest uncontrollably.

"No, no, NO! NO! Penn, PLEASE, be somewhere in there!" she cried, tears welling up in her eyes.

Well, of course he's somewhere in there... a gravelly voice muttered. As Moonstone pulled away the next stone, she found herself face-to-face with Cha'Qued's mask. She screamed and stumbled backwards, landing hard on the ground.

"Y-YOU! Why didn't you DO anything?" She shouted, pointing an accusatory claw at the twisted visage. "I thought you wanted him ALIVE?"

I wanted him to be MINE. Do not mistake the incident with the Carnival Cat for any kind of desire to protect him. I was protecting my territory. The mask didn't even need to roll its eyes for Moonstone to hear the patronizing tone in its voice. If he is stupid enough to throw his life away and spill his own blood, then he is certainly not intelligent enough to be my acolyte.

"GRRRRAAAAAAH!" Moonstone raced forward, grabbing the mask and throwing it aside with the rest of the rubble as she began digging again, her vigor renewed.

"Come on, Pennington! You're alive in there, I know it! Please be alive!"

She threw aside stone after stone, the small rocks eventually giving way to larger and larger ones until she was left tugging at a boulder as large as herself, fruitlessly trying to move it away with all of her might.

"Please... please be alive..." tears were running freely down her face, now, and her frantic words had become a muttered prayer. Finally, her strength was completely spent, leaving her pounding her head weakly against the stones. "Please... do one more impossible thing... be alive..."

It was almost a full minute before she could hear it.

A low humming, beginning to increase further and further in pitch. She opened her eyes, staring into the cracks between the stones.

A thin vapor was beginning to leak out, weak and easily mistaken for her own labored breathing, but as the hum grew higher and higher, the mist came out of more and more of the cracks in the rocks, thickening and coalescing together as the glimmer of magic became apparent. Moonstone stood back as the cloud completely enveloped the pile of rubble, blocking it from view. For a moment, it seemed to begin to move outwards, thinning out again. Moonstone felt her heart skip a beat.

"Please..." she whispered.

The cloud seemed to react, all at once drawing itself back inwards and disappearing completely. The hum, which had escalated to a deafening whine, disappeared, as well. Everything was silent again.

The boulder Moonstone had been leaning against cracked down the center, splitting apart to reveal something glowing inside...

A sword. A scimitar, seemingly crafted from blue light. A sword Moonstone had thought she'd never see again.

More swords appeared, smashing their way through the stones one by one, each splitting the rocks and forcing them apart. Moonstone watched as the first layer of rocks either split or were forced back, then the second, each speared upon yet another magic sword. There were more than Moonstone could count. Finally, the swords seemed to end, leaving a much smaller pile of stones. The swords disappeared, each dropping the stones they had smashed, and the magical humming began anew, escalating much more quickly, this time. After only a few short seconds, there was an explosion and a blinding flash of light, sending the rest of the rocks hurtling further into the cave or out the entrance, only missing herself and Crankshaft by sheer luck. When the light was gone, Pennington was revealed, hovering in the air and aglow with magic power. The light quickly faded and he fell to the ground, collapsing without any sign of even trying to stand under his own power.

"PENN!" Moonstone rushed forward, wrapping her arms around Pennington as tightly as she could with relief as her tears of mourning changed to streams of joy running down her face. "You're okay!"

"I... I did it..." Pennington whispered, his voice hoarse. "I... I..."

Moonstone pulled away from him just long enough to see his eyes slowly drift shut as he fell unconscious.

"Penn? PENN? Stay with me, buddy! Stay with me!" She pressed her hands to both sides of Pennington's face, gently slapping him to try to keep him awake. "We're in the middle of a blizzard, you can't fall asleep on me, now! Come on, Penn! COME ON!"

Pennington, however, was already unconscious. Moonstone was alone with two unconscious ponies in a cave on a mountain in the middle of a blizzard, about to miss Crankshaft's rescue.

She took a deep breath and wedged herself underneath Pennington, carrying him to Crankshaft and dropping him beside her. Sitting down beside them, she did the one thing that she knew she could: she exhaled a small fireball onto the ground, the warmth spreading outwards as it fizzled out with no fuel. Taking another breath, she repeated the action again. And again. And again. She would for as long as she could... No, for as long as she had to.

"Oh, dear. Hypothermia and total magical exhaustion, not pretty..." a voice came from further in the tunnel. Moonstone spun around, ready for anything. She found herself barely able to make out the figure of a unicorn coming down from further in the cave. He was lanky and tall, a small pair of glasses at the bridge of his nose. His thick coat was a light green while his unkempt mane was streaked with gray and blue.

"Please, allow me to help."

Moonstone looked from the stranger to the two unconscious ponies, then to the last remaining signs of the avalanche outside having nearly completely blocked their way out. Turning back to him, she bowed her head, clasping her claws together.

"P-please... please help us..."

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