• Published 28th Feb 2014
  • 21,393 Views, 3,396 Comments

Tales of the Oppressed - Terran34



Follow the journey of a young cynical man as his world is turned upside down. Without anywhere to turn, can he learn to set aside his preconceptions and learn to accept friendship for what it truly is?

  • ...
156
 3,396
 21,393

PreviousChapters Next
76. The Promise

After several minutes of sitting there like that, crying like a fucking weakling, I pull myself together and get to my feet. I tuck the letter beneath my arm. There's no way I'm going to let this rot down here. It's old and may not last very long, but I'm taking it home with me nevertheless.

“What did it say, Seth?” Rainbow asks tentatively after she sees me composing myself. Heh, I guess even though she wants to be supportive, she can't help being curious.

“It's too soon. You'll have to ask me later,” I reply haltingly, my voice still wavering a bit. I'm telling her the truth. I'm not just being stubborn. The feelings are too fresh; I think I'll fall apart again if I try to explain it to her.

It's funny. I don't think I ever cried much over my whole life, but upon coming to Equestria, I keep falling apart for various reasons. It sneaked up on me, but...I don't think I'm the same as I was when I first got to this world. These fucking ponies have affected me, whether I like it or not. It remains to be seen if that's a good thing or not.

Rainbow looks disappointed that I won't tell her now, but she knows better than to push me. Vinyl adjusts her shades and moves for the door, guiding Rainbow out. “Let's go. I think Seth needs some time to look over his old stuff without us breathing down his neck,” she suggests. Huh. Thanks, Vinyl. I do think I need some time to sit in here and probably say farewell to my old life. “We'll be in the front room when you're ready to head back up.”

I don't respond as they leave the room. Yeah, at the risk of repeating myself. I really don't deserve those two, especially Rainbow.

I stand in front of my desk, running my hand across the splintering wood where I used to sit down and do my homework. An odd feeling comes across me. I feel like there's something on the tip of my tongue that I'm dying to say, but my mind represses it, because I've held it close to my chest for so long. Understanding dawns in me once I realize that this feeling seems familiar. I haven't felt like I needed to tell this to someone for a long time.

Staring back out my door, I see Rainbow resting on her haunches, scratching an evasive itch behind her ear with her face screwed up in frustration. I hold back a chuckle, shaking my head. I can't believe I actually want to tell this ridiculous, amazing mare about...her. About the worst thing to ever happen to me, and the one event that no doubt shaped my life even after it ended. I want to share it with her, so that she can understand me a little better. I haven't felt this way since just before I told Amaryllis about the very same subject.

I want to tell Rainbow about Janna.


“All right, I'm ready to leave.” Rainbow and Vinyl look up at my announcement, looking at me expectantly.

“You're packed surprisingly light. I expected you to take more back with you,” Vinyl observes, noting how I'm only carrying a few things from my room with me. In fact, I'm only carrying that letter under my arm, that picture of Amaryllis and I, and a few of the figurines that are in better shape.

“Yeah well, I don't care about most of the shit in there. It's either school supplies or useless electronics that I can't do a thing with anymore,” I retort, walking past them. Impatient, I turn back to them with a huff and angle my head towards the door. “Let's get going already. I'm eager to be elsewhere.”

“Where are we going?” Rainbow inquires as we walk out of my dorm and back into the main housing office. That's a good question actually.

“Not a clue. Visiting my dorm was my sole purpose for coming on this trip. I don't know what to do now,” I admit.

“Does that mean we can go home now?” Rainbow asks hopefully, causing me to give her a disbelieving glance. “What? This is cool and all, but we've been here a little over a month.”

“Yeah, and there's not much call for music around here. I'm like a fish out of water,” Vinyl agrees.

“Seriously? Coming along was your idea, and now you're complaining?” I snap back, not even trying to conceal the bitterness I'm feeling from their sentiments. For all their talk about supporting me, the moment an opportunity to go home shows itself, they jump on it.

“Hey! I'm not complaining. I'm just wondering, that's all. I'll stay here as long as you need me,” Rainbow asserts, affronted. “I just want to know what we're doing next.”

“I think I'll stick around a bit longer and make sure I've earned my pay,” I reply, the answer coming to me rather quickly. I'm not getting paid for my work here, per se, but I did get paid quite a bit just for the location of this place. I won't feel like I've really earned it until the expedition here is considered a success...or at least a profitable venture. Whether or not that means staying to the end remains to be seen.

“As long as I can explore more cool ruins, that's fine with me,” Rainbow decides. I sigh with relief. The last thing I want to worry about is whether or not Rainbow is enjoying herself. Not that I should worry about it. Coming with me was her idea...though I may have wanted her to come just a bit.

“I think I'll head back up to my mom,” Vinyl informs me once the three of us have passed through the tunnel and re-entered the science building. She fixes me with a serious stare. “Let me know if there's anything else I can tag along for.”

“I'm guessing you don't mean if I feel like taking you on a library trip,” I comment, even though I know full well what she's talking about. Still, it was worth saying it just to see the exasperated look on Vinyl's face. I cut her off as she's starting to protest. “Right, I know what you meant. I'll think about it.”

“I guess that's the closest thing I'm going to get to a yes out of you,” Vinyl says with a sigh, and then she nods her head and splits off from us down one of the hallways. No doubt Opal is hiding in one of these rooms here, so to speak. “I'll see you two tonight.”

That leaves Rainbow and I alone...or as alone as we can be with the myriad of scientists, archaeologists, and other ponies milling around down here. “We gonna go exploring some more?” Rainbow asks curiously. Just then, her stomach lets out the most obnoxious growling sound. Unashamed, Rainbow looks at me accusingly as if it's my fault. “If we do, let's eat first. I didn't get to finish my sandwich.”

I can't help but facepalm. Most girls I know would at least act embarrassed. Not Rainbow. This mare is like a guy in all but appearance. It's part of what makes her so great.


Later that day, Rainbow and I are exploring the old science classrooms near the back of the whole complex, on the first floor. Yes, I'm actually exploring, because I've never actually had to go back here, even during my time. After taking basic chemistry classes, I never had to take a science class again.

Here, it's almost a maze of different classrooms and labs. It's so confusing that I have the presence of mind to mark the walls so we can find our way back if we need to.

“It smells funny back here,” Rainbow comments, wrinkling her nose with distaste.

“Oh, don't complain. You wanted to see what was back here,” I point out to her, much to her chagrin. “And to answer the question you haven't asked yet, it smells like this because this is where all the labs were. Here, the students experimented with dangerous chemicals.”

“They did that back here?!” Rainbow exclaims, peering in one of the shattered windows into lab. “Isn't that dangerous?”

“Oh yeah. And accidents do happen. This is why I hate chemistry, biology, and other assorted science '-ologies,'” I say. I even remember when I spilled a bit of acid on myself during basic chemistry. That wasn't fun. “In short, I didn't become a science major because everything back here had the potential to kill you...or at least fuck you up.”

“Good thing I didn't become a scientist, then,” Rainbow states with a shudder. I suddenly have the mental image of Rainbow wearing a white coat and glasses with her mane tied back in a bun. That image is so funny I snort with laughter.

There's a silence after that, as we're making our way through the hallways. I doubt we're going to find much back here, mostly because I think that if there were any dangerous chemicals here, they would have been cleared out by the military.

“Gosh, I don't know what any of this stuff is,” Rainbow says with wonder as she peeks into one of the labs. I recognize most of what's in there because I've had to take a lab class before, but my mind really isn't on the exploration right now. I'm trying to figure out a way to breach the subject. Fuck it, I've never been one to beat around the bush. There just is no right way to go about talking about this.

“Hey, do you remember what we talked about before, back in Ponyville?” I ask her, disregarding her last statement. The sudden change in subject causes Rainbow to step back from the door and look at me in confusion. Right, that was a little vague.

“What?” is her understandably perplexed response.

“It was when you were hanging with me while I did my deliveries, about a week before we came here.” I hope she remembers. It was a long time ago, but I still remember it pretty clearly, because that was the first time I ever saw Rainbow looking so distressed. And she wouldn't even tell me what the problem was.

“Uh...gonna have to be a bit more specific,” Rainbow admits, rubbing her head sheepishly with her hoof. I huff with frustration. Is she really going to make me say it flat out?

“You had a problem, but you wouldn't discuss it with me,” I tell her bluntly. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all. I don't have to talk to Rainbow about this...even though I'm starting to really want to.

Rainbow's expression freezes on her face, understanding dawning in her eyes. She looks as if I'd caught her in the middle of doing something she wasn't supposed to. She looks down, not meeting my gaze. Yeah...if she's acting unsure of herself, something's wrong. I should have gone about this in a different way.

“Y...Yeah...I remember,” Rainbow stammers. Noticing that stammer just makes my curiosity even stronger. This was a month ago, so I don't see how she'd still be having whatever that problem was.

“I promised to tell you why I hate accepting favors...if you told me what your problem was,” I recall, hoping to refresh her memory. Rainbow's head jerks up at that.

“You were serious!? I thought you were just joking,” Rainbow demands incredulously, all thoughts of the interesting lab behind her forgotten in the wake of this conversation.

“I was at the time...but now I'm telling you that I mean that. And I...” I respond, but I halt in the middle of my sentence. For some reason, I can feel my heart beating faster and small jolts of adrenaline shooting through my body. I shouldn't be so nervous about this. Rainbow watches me with her magenta eyes...waiting patiently for me to continue.“I...actually want to tell you now.”

“Really?” Rainbow asks excitedly, but then she quickly forces herself to calm down. I guess she's happy I'm finally going to tell her.“I mean...are you sure? What brought this on?”

“I'm not explaining it,” I say flatly. I'm not saying how I truly feel about it because I don't think I'd be able to take myself seriously if I tell her the true reason why I want to tell her this. Rainbow nods, as if she'd expected a response like that. “I just want to. But before I do, I want you to tell me what your issue was back then.”

Rainbow's excitement visibly dims at the condition I just gave her. “...Oh,” is her quiet...almost timid acknowledgment. “I'm...I'm not sure I...”

“What? What's the problem? That was a month ago, so it shouldn't still be bothering you, right?” I demand impatiently. Seriously, what the fuck happened back then that has her making an about face in her personality every time I bring it up?

Anger flares in Rainbow's eyes, making me wonder if I'd said something I shouldn't. “Idiot! Of course it...!” she starts to yell, but she forces herself to stop and take a deep breath. When she next speaks, it's in a much more collected manner. “It...hasn't been resolved yet.”

I raise an eyebrow at her outburst. To my surprise, Rainbow seems unable to meet my gaze. A blush colors her cheeks. Seeing that...a horrible memory strikes me.

“I've seen how that mare looks at you.”

Rarity wasn't right...was she? Just by thinking that, a terrible fear clutches at my mind. I'm wrong. I have to be. Rainbow's not so weak that she'd need someone else in her life in that manner. She's a strong, independent mare. She wouldn't...would she? My breath starts to quicken at this train of thought.

“I...I see,” I force out, sounding a lot more pathetic that I would have liked. I won't accept this. I won't acknowledge this. Rarity's a fucking idiot that just wants to play matchmaker. Rainbow probably has another deep-seated problem. Maybe it's an issue with family, because she doesn't talk about them often.

I start to calm down as I continue to run through different possibilities in my head. Yeah, how stupid can I be, to think that Rainbow would...I mean, I'm a total asshole. Not a soul has liked me like that in my life, and that's always been fine with me. The idea of anyone liking someone as mean as me is just laughable.

“Okay,” Rainbow says with an air of finality, breaking the long, awkward silence that had formed between us after that. That one word gets me looking at her with anticipation. Is she actually going to tell me? “I'll tell you. I probably should have a long time ago. But...not now.”

“What? Then when?” I demand with exasperation, disappointed that I don't get to hear it now.

“Don't worry, I said I'm going to tell you, and I will. I just...need some time,” Rainbow explains. Huh...her expression tells me she's about as conflicted as I am about this, but I'm not sure why. Her eyes narrow and then she gives me an intense stare. “But you better tell me your problem too, got it?”

“It's a promise,” I tell her firmly. Out of impulse, I extend my hand to her. I realize a second later how fucking stupid it is to shake on a promise with a goddamn pony.

Just as I'm withdrawing my hand, Rainbow slaps the palm of my hand with a hoof. My fingers instinctively close around it, and despite my misgivings, we shake on it. I guess I'm committed now. I have to tell her about Janna. I may be an asshole, but I always keep my word.

“All right!” Rainbow exclaims, a small grin returning to her face. I can't help but mirror. She indicates the lab with a simple motion of her head. “Now tell me what these things are. Like, what's that hanging thing in the back of the room?”

I can't believe how close I've gotten to this ridiculously colored pony. In fact, I can't believe how much has changed since I got here. I can't believe how much I've changed. Since I got here, I've gone through stupid parties, magical experiences, and even life or death situations, and that's taken a toll on me.

I shake my head, dismissing these troubling thoughts. Following Rainbow into the lab, I transfix the back of her head with an annoyed glare. It's your damn fault, you strange technicolor creature.


The expedition continues, day by day. For most of the time, I have complete freedom to do as I please, but often my help is needed to identify an artifact or to get back on track to finding the next site.

While he does come down to the ruins every now and then, Flash spends most of his time up on the surface now, studying the many artifacts that we've uncovered. There's a lot of technology down here in varying states of degradation, so he has his work cut out for him if he wants to make any advances for ponykind.

Opal is practically in the ruins all the damn time, dragging Vinyl along with her more often than not. As an archaeologist, it seems she likes to work in the field rather than in the tents on the surface. It isn't long after my dorm was uncovered that she made her way to the housing office with a few other archaeologists, intent on cataloging how the human race handled mass living conditions.

The next building to get uncovered is the library...which practically made every intellectual pony on the expedition go out of their minds with excitement.

“Hah, I remember this place. I don't think I ever came here to actually check out a book, though,” I state wryly, gazing up at the uncovered sign that used to label the building before us as the Rainier College Library. The letters are either tarnished, broken, or downright missing now.

“Think they've got any decent adventure novels?” Rainbow asks excitedly from her place by my side. That question gets me to break out into derisive laughter. “What?”

“A college, offer entertainment to students for free? How about fucking no?” I remark in a derogatory tone. Rainbow still seems confused , so I elaborate. “No. This is a school library. It was intended for research purposes only.”

“Oh. How boring,” Rainbow replies, disappointed. I can agree with her there. Of course, not everypony here agrees with us.

“Boring? No, this is the greatest opportunity I've ever had in my life!” Twilight squeals happily, zooming from the tunnel behind us to stand in front of the library doors next to Opal and Vinyl. I can't help but facepalm. Of course Twilight is going to go out of her fucking mind. She lives in a library, for god's sake. She looks at Opal, practically dancing on the tips of her hooves.“I can't wait! Oh, I hope there are some books still intact!”

“I know, right? Think of how much we can learn!” Opal joins in, equally excited about the possibility of discovering knowledge in its purest form.

“You do realize that the odds of finding any of these books fully intact is pretty slim?” I point out to them, their over-excitement once against getting on my nerves. That seems to dampen their spirits a bit, judging how their smiles fade slightly. “It's been three thousand years. Don't get your hopes up.”

“Don't be so pessimistic. We're certain to find something, even if damaged,” Twilight scolds me. Opal gives a nod of agreement. Whatever. I give an uncaring shrug. They can be unrealistic if they want.

“Ugh, eggheads. Why are we here again?” Rainbow jokingly asks, earning a snicker from me. Joking or not, Rainbow seems to have utterly lost interest in the library now that I told her it's all research based. I can't say that I blame her either. I can't stand reference novels unless there's a practical aspect to them. Like any of the books of spells that Twilight has access to.

Twilight rolls her eyes at the two of us, and then the moment the miners pry the doors off of their hinges, she and Opal are the first to enter. Just because I'm curious to see how well the place has held together, I make my way inside behind the other scholarly ponies that went ahead of me.

“Wait for me!” Rainbow calls, filtering in behind me. Despite her utter disinterest, it seems like she plans on keeping me company regardless. She can knock herself out. She's going to be bored because there's literally nothing here that would interest her.

As for Rainbow herself, she still hasn't made any signs of wanting to continuing our earlier conversation that we had in the labs. It's been over a week. I wonder how much time she needs for whatever her problem is? Every time I bring it up, she just tells me she's not ready yet. Sheesh.

Anyway, the library itself is massive, because there's a lot of textbooks, encyclopedias, and other such reference books spread out on several floors. I even think there's a history museum on one of the floors. Though why the library added one of those is beyond me, unless they were just trying to fleece students some more. I wouldn't put it past the administration to do that.

The first floor is split into two parts: the lobby, and the work and reference area. The lobby cuts right through the entire first floor, with several weathered chairs lining the walls and doors on either side. There's also plenty of rusted electrical outlets, because I remember the lobby was a place to meet up or get work done

The work and reference area was the place that would always be crammed right before finals. It had soundproof study areas, tons of computers, scanners, printers, and of course shelf after shelf of reference materials. I have to admit, it was a convenient set up, even if I never really used it.

Of course, the place is a mess. The glass divider that had once separated the lobby from the work area shattered a long time ago, the shards still resting on the ground. And...hold on a minute, that looks like...

“What...what happened here?” Twilight stammers, her eyes riveted on the sight before her. While I too feel goosebumps running up my skin, I'm not terribly surprised to see it. After all, no matter how tough I may be, I can never get used to seeing human remains.

There are skeletons lying all over the place, some of them in better shape than others. I can count five of them in the lobby alone, their weapons torn to shreds of metal and their bones rent or completely torn apart.“Look at all these skeletons! What in Equestria...?” Even Opal is shocked.

I kneel down, noting all of the bullet casings on the floor. I pick one up, feeling the rusty metal bend and come apart in my fingers. I have a pretty good idea what happened here. In fact, I'm damn certain. This must have been an outpost for the military as well. By deduction, this must be the site of an ancient battle between my race and the Oppressed. I don't see any fallen Oppressed, though.

Come to think of it, I never saw the bodies of any Oppressed back in the science building either, and that had been the site of the final battle of humanity. I only ever saw a live one. Maybe their bodies disappear? Wait, no, that can't be right, because I recovered Maka's body. This is puzzling.

“Seth, do you have any insight?” Opal asks me next, turning away from the site of the battle. There's no telling how many more bodies are around here. I mean, this lobby certainly isn't the most defensible of locations, so there must be an outpost further inside.

“I don't know what you want me to say. There was a battle between my kind and the monsters I mentioned before. That's really all there is to tell,” I respond in annoyance. Seriously, you're the archaeologist. You figure it out.

“Hm...I suppose that's something to go on,” Opal muses. Then, after thinking for a moment, she seems to come to a decision. “All right everypony. Let's spread out and see what we can find. Make sure not to move the remains.”

“I don't think there's any chance of that,” Twilight responds, attempting to smile...except it comes out as more of a grimace than anything else. She gingerly steps over one of the skeletons and walks into the work area, shuddering and trying not to look at it.

I also take a walk through the bottom floor, about as uninterested as Rainbow is. I never had much of a stake in this place, unlike the science building. I barely ever came here. Oh look, it's that study room I once sat in during a group project where the other members were terrified of me. It's as crumbled and ruined as the rest of the place. What are the odds?

While I'm searching through some of the old shelves for anything useable, I hear a commotion from the front entrance. I set down the book I'm holding and listen, hearing frantic voices from Opal and a pony I don't recognize.

“Looks like something's going on,” I mention to Rainbow, who is lying on the ground, eyeing one of the broken computers curiously. Rainbow quickly gets up and follows me as I leave the room.

In the lobby, there's one of the construction ponies talking to Opal. Almost immediately I notice the bloodstained bandage on his head. It seems to be covering a nasty looking gash. I start to get alarmed. The only dangers down here would have to be cave-ins, or more of the Oppressed. Neither of those bodes well for us.

“...out cold, but he should be fine. But it might take some time for the upper floors to be accessible again by those of us that aren't pegasi,” the construction pony finishes explaining to a concerned Opal. Once they see me coming, they make room for me.

“What's going on?” I demand. Judging by what he just said, I don't think there's any Oppressed. That much is a relief.

“There was an accident involving the scaffolding. Boreal here can explain it better.” Opal explains, and then defers to the construction pony to explain again.

“There shouldn't have been an accident; that's just the thing,” Boreal expresses vehemently. “I helped build the scaffolding myself. There was no room for structural flaws.”

“Apparently there was. If it broke, then there's obviously something wrong,” I point out, much to Boreal's frustration.

“There wasn't something wrong. Steel Rivet came up with the plans himself, and he's the one who helped construct many of Canterlot's foundations!” Boreal snaps at me. He winces in pain a second later, clutching a hoof to his head. “I studied architecture myself, and since I helped build the scaffolding, I know it was structurally sound!”

“Whatever. Start over. What actually happened?” I cut across him calmly. In the end, if all that's happened is that the scaffolding is damaged, I should be able to get up just fine, because I can fly.

Boreal takes a deep breath, calming himself. “Recently, ponies heading to the bottom floor reported feeling some uneasiness on the lowest level of the scaffolding.”

“That's just above the basement levels,” I recall. I've never been down into the basement of the science building, so I haven't a clue what's down there. “But what's the big deal?”

“Right, my boss and the rest of us didn't take the complaints seriously. But when some of the miners started refusing to go down there, Steel Rivet sent me and my co-worker, Copper Nail, to go down there and show them that their fears were unfounded,” Boreal continues.

“Then what happened?” Rainbow asks.

“One of the miners led us to the bottom level and told us that he and some of the others had started hearing things, like whispers and other superstitious nonsense coming from the bottom of the shaft. When we went to check it out...” Boreal paused and closed his eyes for a moment. “Nothing. At least at first. But...Nail started to hear it...and then the scaffolding broke.”

“Just like that?” I ask in disbelief. I don't know about all this whispering nonsense, but a broken scaffolding I can definitely understand. The Oppressed don't whisper, so I think they are just being superstitious.

“Just like that. Nail fell and hit his head, and the both of us almost tumbled into the shaft. If it hadn't been for one of the unicorns nearby, we would have,” Boreal finishes. “Nail is still unconscious and being tended to down here, but the rest of us that's can't fly are trapped until the scaffolding is fixed.”

“I see. Well, that is troubling, but it shouldn't pose too much of a problem,” Opal states. She pats her saddlebag with her muzzle. “I've been an archaeologist for a long time, so I always carry plenty of supplies down with me in case of cave-ins.”

“How long will it take?” I ask, even though it doesn't much matter to me.

“First, we have to find somepony willing to fix it. The problem seems to be that a few of the screws are loose...even though I tightened those darn things myself...beneath the walkway. That makes it hard for anypony other than a pegasi to reach it,” Boreal explains. “But...with all of the talk going around, it might take a while to find a pegasus skilled in construction that won't be too frightened to fix it.”

“Really? Just because of a few rumors? That's pretty fucking pathetic,” I snort derisively. “It will literally just take a few seconds to tighten a few screws, and then problem solved.”

“And the walkway itself needs to be repaired, and new boards installed. It'll take some doing. But the main issue is that these rumors you mentioned were confirmed by this accident,” Boreal sighs, seeming as exasperated as I'm feeling.

“Oh for the love of...if your coworkers are going to be pussies, I'll handle it,” I decide on a whim. At the very least, it'll give me something to do apart from wander aimlessly around this stupid library.

“Really? Do you have any experience in construction?” Boreal asks hopefully, albeit a little incredulous.

“A little. Do you forget that I helped rebuild after the Royal Wedding?” I remind him. I don't remember seeing him during that time, but it should be common knowledge that I helped out. Sure enough, his eyes widen and he nods.

“Fair enough, but it might be difficult to reach, even for you. A pegasus needs to do it, because to repair the structural integrity, you would need to get under the walkway,” Boreal informs me. “I might be able to find some rope...”

“I can fly, idiot. Where the fuck have you been?” I state impatiently. Boreal pauses, and then he dips his head, realizing how foolish he's being. “Just lead me to the thing and I'll fix it up for you, since your co-workers are too busy wetting their legs because of some silly rumors.”

“Thanks you, Seth. I know this kind of thing isn't your responsibility,” Opal says to me gratefully.

“I'm not doing it to be nice. I just can't stand incompetence,” I reply with a shrug. Next to me, Rainbow is watching me curiously. “Rainbow, you stay here. It won't take me very long.”

“Are you kidding? Stay here in this library?” Rainbow protests, stretching her wings. “Nah, if you're going to do construction work, I'll just go up and chill with Pinkie.”

“Whatever. As long as you're not breathing over my shoulder when I try to work,” I tease her, earning a frankly adorable growl from her.

“All right, that settles things. I'll see you when you're finished, Seth,” Opal expresses. With a nod to Boreal, she returns to the work area of the library.

“Thanks for this. Come on, I'll take you to it and walk you through the construction process,” Boreal says with an appreciative nod, and then the two of us leave the library, with Rainbow tagging along with us for a while.

Come to think of it, I have noticed a change in the demeanor of the miners recently. It's been slight, but they all seem a bit jumpier than they should be. Seriously, I would be worried if there were Oppressed. Some whispering? Who the fuck cares? It sounds more like an excuse not to work to me. I guess I'll find out for myself what the real problem is.

“This is it,” Boreal announces once we reach the elevator shaft. The scaffolding should start right here and spiral upwards to the surface, but...well fuck, it is pretty broken.

The walkway has completely tilted downwards towards the blackness of the shaft below, and some of the boards are broken or hanging loose. Gosh, Boreal and Nail are lucky as hell that there was a unicorn there to save them, otherwise they'd be dead now.

Turning on my magic is almost second nature to me now. With a little bit of effort, I'm in my base form, my dark aura licking around me like flame. A short hop takes me right into the shaft, where I hover and look at the broken scaffolding. “All right, tell me what to do.”

“Here. Take this and find the loose screws beneath the walkway,” Boreal directs me, passing a wrench to me. “Once they're tightened, we can start repairing the walkway itself.”

“Easy enough,” I remark, flying beneath the scaffolding to search for the problem. I also take a look down towards the bottom of the shaft, just out of curiosity's sake. Sheesh, how far down does this thing go? I can't even see the elevator car that almost killed several months ago, much less the bottom. Stupid miners. It's really easy to make up superstition about a pit like this.

Turning my attention back to the scaffolding, I look around for the screws that caused this problem to begin with. How hard it is to tighten in screws all the way? If Boreal or Nail had died, it would have been their own damn fault. Hold on a minute...what? Upon finding one of the screws...immediately I start to feel that something's wrong after all.

There's nothing wrong with the screws. They're tight as hell and won't budge easily...meaning there was never a problem with the supports in the first place. And the boards themselves? They're brand new. I watched them get made up on the surface with my own eyes. There's no way they would break like this. So what the fuck is going on?

The atmosphere seems to change around me, growing colder. Goosebumps form on my skin and I can't help but shudder. I look back down at the darkness of the shaft again...and this time it feels like there's something down there, looking back up at me.

What the fuck? I'm no scared miner, and I'm certainly not one for superstition. So what's this feeling I'm getting?

And that's when the whispers start, filtering up as if through water...faint and indistinct. Okay, now I'm starting to get scared. Maybe the miners were right to be afraid of this place after all.

“Is something the matter? You're awfully quiet,” Boreal asks in concern, peering out into the shaft. What he sees is me, the blood absent from my face, staring down at the shaft in terror. This...whatever this is is scarier than Chrysalis ever was. At least she was tangible.

“I don't...” I stammer...but I'm interrupted. A terrible sound reverberates from the bottom of the shaft, sounding almost like someone beat upon a large bass drum...exactly once. And then I physically feel a wave of cold air coming from the bottom of the shaft...and it's charged with magic.

“What the...!” I yell out as the magically charged air seems to disrupt my magical aura. In fact, my aura completely disappears, and then there's nothing holding me up. I let out a cry, gravity taking its hold on me.

“Seth!” Boreal shouts in alarm, reaching a hoof down in a futile attempt to reach me. I try to flare my magic as I plummet into the total darkness of the elevator shaft, but it won't respond to me at all, hiding away in my core as if I didn't have any magic at all.

I can't help but scream, because I have no idea how far down this thing goes, and I have no way to break my fall. Darkness envelops me like a blanket, and the whispers steadily get louder to the point where they almost deafen me, but I still can't understand what they're saying.

Finally, I collide with something hard and metal. A grunt escapes me as pain erupts in my back, even as whatever it was I landed on gives out beneath me and sends me further down, until I finally land on a flat surface.

Thankfully, my magic responds to me once I reach that point, so the impact doesn't break any bones, but it certainly hurts like a bitch. “Fuuck...” I groan, completely unable to see anything. “What...where the hell am I now?”

I no longer hear the whispers. No, instead it's so quiet that I can hear the silence ringing in my ears. Sitting up, I start feeling around, trying to find out where the hell I am. I can feel a carpeted floor and metal walls...as well as what feels like a handrail halfway up the wall. If I had to make a guess, I'd say I'm in an elevator car at the bottom.

“Fuck this, I'm getting out of here,” I grunt, powering up my magic again. It was weird how I couldn't use my magic up there, but it seems like I can use it normally now, so I'll just fly back up.

Immediately after I think that, a light blue glow fills the elevator, coming from above. I look up in surprise, only to see that the hatch that I'd fallen through on my way down now seems to be covered by a glowing web of magical power.

“What?” I emit in surprise. I press my hand against the web...only to find that it won't let my hand through. This must be a barrier of some sort. But who erected it, and why? Is whoever it is trying to keep me down here? “Fuck you, I'm not being held back. You're about to find out how strong I really am.”

With a yell of exertion, I slam a darkness covered fist into the barrier with as much force as I can muster. Instead of breaking, the barrier bends beneath the force and then fucking sends it right back at me. I cry out in agony as that very same force sends me careening into the floor and right fucking through it. If I hadn't shot out my hand to hold on to the bottom of the car, I'd have fallen right onto the spikes right below...which likely would have killed me.

Once I climb back into the car, I look back up at the barrier. One quick look out from beneath the car lets me know that the barrier is covering the entire elevator shaft.

Am...am I trapped down here?

Author's Note:

I am so sorry that this one took so long to come out. Part of it was because I was playing the shit out of Dragon Age Inquisition, and then school started, and then my friend introduced me to one of the biggest time wasters ever. Fucking Terraria.

Anyway, I decided to buckle down and get this one done because I had a commenter yell at me over a private message essentially saying "What the hell are you doing? Fucking write!" So I proceeded to fucking write.

Things are happening now, and the real part of this arc begins! As always, leave your comments! I'm interested to see what you all think is going to happen next. :trollestia:

PreviousChapters Next