Penn and Stone: Dynamic Duo

by Pennington Inkwell

Kindred Spirits

"Um, Penn? Are you sure about this?" Moonstone asked, casting a nervous glance over the edge of the top of the eyrie. "Leaving Twilight, Lily, and Spike on their own?"

Pennington rolled his eyes once again as he fastened his saddlebags tight against his sides and climbed up Noir's wing and onto the larger dragon's back.

"I have every confidence that without Sails and his henchmen on their tails, they'll be just fine."

"And... you're not worried about how they're going to react to you leaving them without so much as a goodbye? Lily got PRETTY angry last-"

"Moonstone." Pennington cut her off with an angry glare and Moonstone quickly swallowed her words. With how quick he had been to forgive her, it was easy to forget how high tensions were running at the moment. She may have been on thin ice to stay in his good graces, but Twilight and the princesses were currently at the bottom of the proverbial lake.

"I'm just... worried about everyone. I don't want things to fall apart..." Moonstone muttered, her gaze lowering to the ground as she halfheartedly kicked at the sandstone beneath her feet.

Pennington took a deep breath and motioned for Moonstone to join him on Noir's back. Moonstone hesitated for a moment, then sighed and trudged up to join him.

"Do you remember why I left Equestria to begin with?" Pennington asked.

"It was because of the invasion. You felt guilty about playing a part in it."

Pennington cringed slightly and tilted his head.

"Well, that was a big part of it... but I also had a realization about myself. I realized that everything I had founded my life on might have been incorrect, that what I did might do more harm than good."

Moonstone nodded, recalling the many nights Pennington had spent waiting up until the early hours of the morning staring at a sketch of his own cutie mark and reading accounts of the aftermath of his more dangerous ventures. When he refused to listen to her advice to go to sleep and be 'true to himself,' Moonstone had assumed that it was simply a side-effect of the Scribe's incomplete identity, and it would be solved when he came into his inheritance.

"And it all fell apart, didn't it? You know I only started to feel like myself in the last couple days."

Moonstone nodded again. He was right, she had noticed a marked change in his confidence around the time that they had left Turvian's home. She'd declined to inquire too deeply about it out of fear that she might topple whatever source had restored his belief in himself.

"If something is founded on a false premise, it's most likely going to fall apart. You can't knock the foundation out without sending the whole thing coming down..." Pennington muttered, wrapping his hoof around her and pulling her close against his chest. A few seconds later, Moonstone felt a drop of water strike her shoulder, despite the clear skies above them. "They can be rebuilt, but... it takes time. A lot of it. And work, even more work than time, sometimes."

"So... you're going to try to work things out? With Luna? With Twilight?" Moonstone asked, a glimmer of hope in her heart.

There was a painful pause in the conversation, one just long enough for Moonstone to doubt she was going to get an answer

"Let's just... start by giving it time, okay? I'll decide later if it's worth putting any work into."

Moonstone sighed. At least it wasn't an absolute "no." That was a start.

"Noir? You know the way to Scorch's lair, don't you?"

Noir twisted his long neck around to nod at them.

"In that case, would you be so kind as to bring us there? Our other companions won't be accompanying us."

"Of course, Scribe of Legends. It would be my honor..."

Moonstone resisted the urge to call out her brother's formality, but resisted. This whole debacle had been embarrassing enough for her family. It was better to just let him have this last vestige of honor.

I COULD break the ice with that story about why he got his name... But then he'd probably fire back with a story about me... she tossed the idea back and forth, trying to weigh which one of them had more silly stories about the other. Probably best not to, we need to be focused if we're going to beat Scorch...

Moonstone watched Pennington reach into his saddlebag, retrieving his medication bottle and examining it for a moment. He pondered the pills for a second before shoving it back into its proper place with a frustrated scowl. After a long sigh, he curled up in the small of Noir's back and closed his eyes.

"No sleep paralysis pills?" Moonstone asked.

Pennington shook his head, not even bothering to open his eyes.

"Some conversations just... don't work via letter."

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"He WHAT?" Twilight cried.

"The Scribe has departed." Sunstone commented, as casually as one might discuss the weather. "At his request, we will take you as far as the border with Equestria, and then you will all be on your own."

"He's going after Scorch ALONE?"

"Of course not. He has his companion, the most competent dragon in the eyrie!"

"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!" Twilight screeched, shouting at her maximum volume.

The dragon didn't turn to look at her, only turning his eyes away from examining his claws for a moment to give her a sideways glance.

"You have a problem with my daughter, pony? Do you believe her unworthy?"

Twilight immediately began to backpedal. "N-no! But she's not exactly the most experienced in combat! The last time she and Penn entered a battle alone, Spike and I arrived seconds before he was buried alive by his opponent!"

Lily turned away, trying to process all of this as Twilight launched herself into a tirade.

How could everything have turned on its head so quickly, and then back again? One second, they were doomed and at Full Sails's mercy, the next they were triumphantly sailing on the back of a dragon to safety, and then what felt like only a few short moments later, Lily had discovered that Twilight had been planning on betraying Pennington all along, and SAILS sacrificed himself to try and bring Pennington to his senses? It just made no sense.

And then there was this business with the "Spirit of the Scribe." Something about it BUGGED her, gnawed at the back of her mind like a half-remembered song. It had destroyed Sails, reduced him to a seizing, convulsing mess, yet Penn had escaped seemingly unharmed. Seemingly.

If there was one thing that Calalily Curl knew, it was that when dealing with her best friend, he was rarely as well as he SEEMED.

You are wise to be suspect... Ravia's voice whispered in her mind.

Lily sighed. "If I know Penn, he's throwing himself into danger to distract himself from the other problems in his life. Every time he's ever done this, he's turned up on my doorstep a week later, battered and bruised almost beyond recognition, refusing to go to a hospital..." she whispered. She stepped away and out of earshot of Twilight and Spike, finding Ravia's mask hanging from a root-like growth in the sandstone hallway.

What will you do now, Calalily Curl?

Lily knew it was a loaded question. She could feel it, Ravia was going to judge her for her answer. In fact, she'd been getting that impression ever since Delta Raider had died, that Ravia was singling her out.

"Well, I think Penn's throwing himself into a deeper deep end than ever... I think he might just actually get himself killed."

That is not a course of action.

Lily flinched slightly at the reproval.

"What do you want from me? I tried standing up and being strong! I ran and swam and rolled and flew and crawled my way across Equestria, braved the dragon lands, stared death in the face, and I wound up helping deliver him right into Twilight's hooves so she could betray him!" Lily paced faster and faster back and forth, so caught up in her own thoughts she nearly forgot who she was even talking to. "Every time I try to take action, I either back down immediately or screw it up even worse!"

And you would be so easily discouraged by failure? The mask had changed, looking now as if it had raised an eyebrow in surprise. When a tree is torn from the ground and knocked aside, it will grow leaves from its roots and dig its branches into the ground. A simple seed may find itself crushed beneath a boulder, but through persistence will split the stone and force its way through.

Lily stopped pacing, turning back to face the mask again.

"What are you saying? I'm NOT a plant!"

However, from what I have seen in the short time I have known you, I know that you share their greatest strength. In the face of adversity, you rise and blossom ever stronger, like a blossom in winter. Should you strike without holding back, there will be no force on the planet that could stop you.

Lily felt her face flush at the praise. Still, the words brought a new wave of confidence. Now that she thought about it, it was true. She had gotten so far on her own, even after she was separated from Twilight and Spike! She had managed to make her way through the underbelly of Equestria, braved a gang of dragons, and even stood up to Full Sails! She took a deep, shuddering breath and felt her racing heart calm slightly.

"Penn needs your help, Ravia... Is there any way I could ask you to-"

No.

Lily felt her spirits fall slightly.

He needs OUR help.

"You mean... you'll help me?" Lily stepped forward, staring straight into the eyes of the mask. It had changed back to a neutral expression, inscrutable to the naked eye.

As I said before, we are kindred spirits. And I have wronged Inkwell in the past, as well. He is unbalanced, and Cha'Qued still whispers in his ear. Should we not act, we will both have been negligent.

Lily nodded, turning the mask around in her hoof so the empty side faced her. Her heart pounded in her ears, deafening her and drowning out all other noise except the voice in her head.

"So... we have to work together, right?"

Yes.

She took a deep breath and shut her eyes.

"Not just you taking over my body and using me?"

I am NOT Cha'Qued. We are kindred spirits. We will excel together or not at all.

Her mind traveled back to her first conversation with Ravia, the dream of the ancient forest. The safety and peace she had felt there. Ravia's true form, the warm bed of moss. Lily took a deep breath and held it, bracing herself. As she did, however, her nose was filled with a sweet smell. It was an almost-sugary scent, as if she had stuck her face into a bowl of fresh fruit or a bowl of fruit-flavored cereal. She knew she smell. It was the scent of freesia flowers, a bloom meaning trust.

Lily swallowed, screwed her eyes shut a little tighter, and placed the mask on her face.

She let out an involuntary whimper as she felt the mask morph and shape around her head, memories of her possession by Cha'Qued all those years ago resurfacing.

And then it all changed.

The inside of the mask grew soft, as if she had thrown herself face-first into a bed of soft moss. A wave of warmth washed down her body, starting at the tip of her muzzle and travelling all the way down to the tip of her tail. It was like when she had met Ravia in her dream, but now the aura of safety and peace wasn't simply washing over her, it was springing up from deep inside her! She felt her bones grow heavy and solid, rooting her in place. She was full of power, immovable unless she desired otherwise. She knew that she had no need to fear as she felt a gentle pressure moving down the back of her neck and across her chest as vines grew over her body. She finally exhaled loudly, feeling her teeth and lips tingle with the power radiating from her core. She couldn't see when the last vine slid into place, only feel it, but it was unmistakable. It was a pressure on her body as all the immense power that had flooded into her was sealed down inside. She wasn't afraid, not any more. She felt ready to explode with energy, power and control beyond anything she had ever known.

There was another sensation, too. For as full of power as she was, Lily could feel an... emptiness. As if she were floating free in the cosmos of the night sky. There was a presence deep, deep below her, like some sleeping behemoth. With her newfound confidence, she followed her curiosity and focused on the earth beneath her hooves. The presence responded, giving a pulse like a heartbeat, one that rocked through her whole body, inviting her down to feel the life force of the planet, the veins and roots that hummed with the very power of creation. It was the source of every green and growing thing, the embodiment of that which they drew from for life, inviting her to drink deep and grow strong. It took all of Calalily Curl's willpower not to dive in and lose herself then and there.

"This... is incredible..." she whispered, breathless from the shock of her transformation.

I am she who has been given charge of the Earth, our mother from whom all life has sprung. In our partnership, I offer you that same power and that same holy calling. Nature, life, balance... All have been nearly lost to avarice and bloodshed. All must be protected.

Without warning, Lily felt something new, an ache that echoed across her body, starting in her hooves and traveling upwards. It made her muscles tense until they locked and her whole body became frozen in place. She gritted her teeth, resisting the urge to cry out or scream out of fear of alerting Twilight to what she was doing.

The land is suffering. The power of unnatural forces tears through it like the claws of a dragon in its prey. Scorch and the Windego Gauntlet are only the preliminary threat, minor in the grand game of natural and unnatural disasters bearing down upon your home. The tides of chaos are bringing change and destruction that could kill the land itself. Cha'Qued, the Daughter of Chaos, the Queen of Nightmares... All shall come, and revile against the balance of the earth. Even I cannot stem the storms, and where once my divine brothers and sisters would have joined forces, I am alone.

Lily let out a sigh of relief as the discordant feeling receded from her body, allowing her to move again. She shuddered slightly, though, as she felt a deep, hollow feeling in her chest. A deep longing, a pain she knew all too well: the feeling of wishing for loved ones with whom she had parted ways.

Will you join me, Calalily Curl?

Lily took a deep breath, thinking carefully over her answer. It was true that Ravia had just told her some terrifying things, but... something about this moment, about feeling Ravia within her and all around her made her feel invincible, as though harm could never come to her so long as they stayed together.

Not to mention, a calm and loving voice sounding so pained and lonely... It was wrong.

Lily gave her hoof an experimental flex, watching Ravia's green armor move and flex with her. She pounded her hoof downwards, testing her strength. The sandstone snapped and cracked with ease, leaving the hallway floor bisected by an encroachment of lichen bubbling up from the earth.

"No more being alone, Ravia. I'm with you. Now, which way do we go?"

Comments

[Love able chaos]

Lily and Ravia by your powers combined you are mother nature!