From Dusk to Night

by KuroiTsubasaTenshi

41 - Aliens

The storm lasted long into the day, such that when it did let up, the lighting hardly changed. With Star telling us in no uncertain terms that night travel with such a small group was suicide, we were forced to kill another half-day in that cave.

Dawn brought an eerie, disconcerting scene. The Badlands sat still and unmoved, as though the sandstorm had never happened. I’d expected to see a few new dunes or even some random debris, but there was none to be found. If it wasn’t for the small mounds that had accumulated in the mouth of our cave, I’d have wondered if we’d just hallucinated the sandstorm’s existence. Instead, I got this strange feeling that the land itself was sending me a message: danger like this is so common that everything shrugs it off and goes about their day.

The dirt ground noisily beneath my hooves as I stepped out into the alien landscape. Star took the lead again, with such undaunted ease that I quickly became convinced that I was the real alien here.

Night seemed about as hesitant as I, and I had to wonder if maybe the lack of aftermath bothered him even more. But we had little time to waste being spooked by weather that was already gone, so we pressed forward.

The sun was even more oppressive than the previous day and that made me fear for our water supply. We needed to take frequent breaks—that much was unavoidable—but if we were to suffer too many setbacks like the sandstorm, then my preparations could prove too conservative. As such, I began to keep an eye out for errant clouds to milk. Unsurprisingly, the Badlands was unwilling to oblige.

When the path broke out into a salt flat, I thought I might cry. The parched white expanse stretched out like a carpet of chalk with a smattering of glitter where the sun hit it just right. There wasn’t even a rock taller than my leg for miles, nor any sort of cloud cover. Granted, this meant that nothing could approach us without being seen, but if it was dangerous enough, all that would do is give us time to sit there looking dumb before it devoured us.

“Are you sure about this, Star? This place doesn’t seem very defensible.” As I stared out over the flats, I supposed we had one objectively good thing going for us: the trail had already been carved out and marked. Even if the poles were crooked and haphazard, with tattered orange flags feebly clinging to the ends, it was still something—enough that we probably wouldn’t fall into a hidden quagmire and suffocate, anyway. Probably.

“I know it may not look it,” Star replied, “but this is one of the safest routes I know, simply because it is more dangerous for the monsters than for us.”

“It is?” Night squinted at the landscape. “How?”

“This region is filled with deadly pitfalls. Pitfalls that have been marked out by our expert cartographers. However, the monsters are either unaware or unable to utilize our markers. As such, the majority of species have learned not to enter the Ghostly Fields. Those foolish enough to do so are very unlikely to reach us.”

“Oh.” Night swallowed hard. I had to admit that, while Star made sense, her words weren’t entirely encouraging.

“Okay, that’s… fair enough, I guess.” I shook my head, pushing away visions of creatures drowning in mud. “But what about creatures that don’t care about the quagmires?”

“That is somewhat more problematic.” Star looked down, a sigh escaping her lips. “While we currently lack the benefit of an archer, I am confident that, between my horn and your wings, the fliers of this region would regret attacking us.”

As much as I wanted to believe Star, I wondered if she wasn’t overestimating Night’s and my combat abilities. “I don’t know. Do you really think we could take on a garuda?”

Star shook her head and pointed a hoof at the distant, eastern mountains. “One would not dare come this close to the Wyvern Peaks. The wyverns might be smaller, but they are fiercely territorial of their airspace and would not hesitate to mob a garuda. Conversely, easier prey is found on and around the base of the mountains. At worst, we might attract the attention of one or two errant hunters. Of course, were we to try going through the Peaks themselves, it would be a different story. Incidentally, it is for this reason that, if we wanted to go around the Ghostly Fields, we would also have to go around the Peaks—a one-hundred-mile lateral journey.”

Part of me wished I’d made Star sit down and map out the entire route with me, that I might have been able to prepare for these specific dangers or even insisted that we plan out much safer detours. But at the same time, this was Star’s homeland.

I nodded slowly, taking time to gather my words. “Okay. Sorry for doubting you, Star. I just had to be sure haste wasn’t getting the better of us. Lead on.”

Mirroring my nod, Star gave me a bit of a smile before starting down toward the first flag. I glanced at Night, who still looked uncertain, but as he met my gaze, his legs found the will to move forward. We quickly rejoined Star and followed close behind as she navigated the poles.

Star was right and the flat was generally devoid of monsters. After an hour of little more than a few fleeting shadows, I was feeling much better about the trail. Still, I kept an eye out, in case of terrain deformation or suicidally bold creatures.

Another hour passed before I felt the first tremor. It was so subtle—just the barest vibration of salt—that I suspected I might be imagining things. But the next couple were unmistakable. The next few after that, alarming.

We all stood frozen, eyes flitting between each other. I darted toward Star, shouting, “Night! Help me get Star into the a—!”

Then the ground exploded.

Somehow, the salt beneath me stayed intact long enough to take me several feet into the air. I was barely able to spread my wings before the makeshift platform crumbled away. Time slowed down as I tumbled through the tornado of dust and debris. A splotch of green and then I was acting on instinct.

I gritted my teeth as I dove, weathering the barrage of needle-like dirt. Shortness of breath became none at all as Star crashed into my back. But I couldn’t afford to let up—especially with both of our lives on the line. I don’t know where I found the strength, but I flapped harder than I’d ever flapped, flipping us around to get a look at the force of nature that had nearly buried us.

The creature was a pure mass of terror. It looked something like an armadillo—if armadillos were ten feet long, had stolen draconic features for its lower body and had scales so large that they appeared more like plated barding.

It was already rearing up on its hind legs, parting the chunks of rock as though they were water. One of the forelegs was already swinging down, a claw as wide as my head coming straight for my face. I strained to get clear, but my body was sluggish and heavy, while the monster tracked me with just enough precision to keep pace. I was a sitting duck, just waiting to be cleft in two.

“Eyes closed!” Star yelled right into my ear.

Even if I’d had breath to protest, there would have been no time to argue. All I could do was trust that she knew what she was doing. What followed was so searingly bright that I swore I could see straight through my eyelids. Rivalling the intensity of the light was a guttural screech, accompanied by several loud crunches that seemed to be moving away from us. Grimacing, I struggled to hold us steady, lest I nosedive straight into the ground.

Once my eyes stopped being full of reddish grey, I cracked a lid. Spots crowded my vision, but I could still make out a blue blur dashing toward the creature. One of its legs came crashing down, but the blue seemed rather unconcerned as it slid out of the way, then used one of the claws as a footstool. Although I felt more than a little relieved, my heart sank as it became more and more obvious that Bellerophon was in control.

“Dusky! Steady!” Star’s voice broke me from my trance.

I was sagging heavily to my left and as I tried to level off, I realized that it was an impossible task. My wings were shaking, already well beyond their limit. Our descent was a half-glide, half-drop as I tried to steer us toward one of the markers.

My legs gave out as we landed, sending us into a skid. At some point, I could no longer feel Star. Then I was tumbling, choking dust infiltrating my lungs. Finally, there was the sky, though black edges were creeping up on it.

Blinking a couple times, I forced the darkness away, scrambling to my hooves at a speed that I was certain would look comical to anyone observing.

I was just in time to see Bellerophon send Night sailing through the air, plunging his hoofblade between the creature’s plates. Another screech filled the air as the creature spun. Bellerophon stepped back, easily avoiding getting hooked and trampled before ducking under the flailing hind leg.

My heart stopped as it continued to spin.

“The tail! Look out for the tail!” I called out, but I don’t think he heard me. The impact swept him aside with blinding force.

Suddenly, my blade was on my wing and I was charging forward with renewed strength. I didn’t know what I could do; even assuming a solid hit between the plates, I doubted it would be any more effective than the hoofblade. But I did know one thing: I couldn’t let it follow up on Night.

I stole a glance at him as I dashed by. He was on his side, but doing his damnedest to shake off that blow.

By the time I reached the creature, it had finished turning around. At that moment, staring down a muzzle that was larger than I was, I realized that this was an even worse idea than I’d initially imagined. But I was committed. Backing down now would probably get both Night and I crushed. So, with a deep, deep breath, I leapt into the air, flapping a few times to throw me to the side—a good thing too, because those jaws snapped forward, engulfing where I was.

Seeing an opportunity, I whirled, bringing my blade wing around to slash at its mouth. It wasn’t an especially clean hit, but I did catch the flesh somewhere, sending a bit of blood spraying across the ground. If the screech was anything to go off of, I’d basically succeeded in making it more pissed off. I stepped back, waiting for the onslaught.

Left claw. Right claw. Jaws. Left coming around again. Tail!

Keeping my distance made it easy to see things coming, but any semblance of offense was well out of my reach. The way I’d been taught to fight, this would normally be a losing prospect. However, my repertoire for encounters with ten-foot-long monsters consisted of ‘run like hell’ and ‘hide’, so I may have been improvising with the whole ‘buying time’ thing. Each time several-hundred pounds of raw death came inches from removing my head, I really hoped it had been long enough for everyone else to figure something out.

The next bite came so close that I was convinced its rancid breath was going to melt me. While I was busy trying to keep my balance without losing my lunch, Bellerophon came soaring down, slashing at the creature’s eyes. Unfortunately, the creature’s eyelids were much faster than the rest of it. Without missing a beat, he kicked off of its muzzle, returning to the sky. He kept just in front of it in a way that had to be deliberate. Sure enough, it reared up, claws poised.

Star galloped up beside me, now armed with a hoofblade, red tongues of fire licking off its edge. She gave me a meaningful look before motioning to a point near the middle of the creature’s chest. The plan was risky, but unless we hit something vital, there was no winning this fight.

When I nodded, she held up her hoofblade. As Star’s horn blazed with magic, she chanted. “Magic flames, heed my call! Burn as bright as dragon fire!”

I thought it odd, almost uncharacteristic of Star to say something like that, but with each word, the fire grew larger and fiercer. By the time she finished, the blade itself was almost washed out by the emerald green.

Spreading my wings, I stooped down so Star could get on my back again. My eyes flitted up, hoping to Celestia that we wouldn’t lose our opportunity. However, Bellerophon was keeping it busy, fighting as evasively as I had.

Once I felt Star’s extra weight, I flapped as hard as I could, aiming to get us in and out as soon as possible. I still had to be careful. While the creature was unaware of our movements, the wild thrashing would crush us if it connected. Finally, after the second pass, I was able to weave into a good approach. It almost seemed too good to be true.

But as we reached the point Star had indicated, she thrust out her blade. It met resistance at first and that nearly threw me off balance. However, after a second, the creature’s softer under-scales distorted and fell away, allowing the blade to enter its chest with a sickening sizzle. One last screech rang through the air, falling away to nothingness about halfway. The creature stepped back, turning toward us with a claw raised.

I dove, quickly darting away on its other side. Turned out my maneuver was unnecessary, as the creature stumbled backward one more time. With a creak and a groan, the ground exploded again. But this time, it was more of a collapse, the rising dust sucking the creature down. The entirety of the Ghostly Fields seemed to shake as one final thud echoed out.

Then there was nothing—just silence.

As I glided back to the ground, I kept my distance. I could not rest until I saw the corpse myself. Once Star climbed off my back and Bellerophon landed beside me, we all shared a look that told me we were of the same mind.

Ages passed while the salt-sand mix lingered in the air. But slowly, surely, the silhouette of the creature materialized. Most of its body was sunk into the ground, the places where the salt had given way forming a jagged perimeter. The head was resting sideways on the surface, jaw halfway open with its tongue lolled out.

“Wh-where did that come from?!” Night had returned to his body.

“Yeah, what the hell, Star?” I tilted my head. “I thought you said monsters don’t come out this way.”

Star started walking toward the creature’s corpse. “They usually do not. It is very curious to find a bulette out here. Normally, they linger closer to the border between the wastes and the farmlands, making themselves a nuisance against easier targets.”

“Nuisance?” I trotted up beside her. “Star, in case you didn’t notice, that ‘bulette’ thing just about pancaked all of us.”

Her pace did not slow. “I am aware. It caught us off guard and in a small group, which—I might add—is a bit of a feat. The bulette’s tunneling capabilities make it somewhat stealthy, but they are of limited help when it comes to the quagmires out here. I am surprised it did not fall into one sooner. In any event, it would stand no chance against a standard hunting party.”

“R-really?” Night stared at Star’s blade. “Does that mean that life in Ostfriesen is always like this?”

Star stepped between the bulette’s jaws, examining a few of the large, razor-sharp teeth. “For everypony? No. For knights and their apprentices? Yes.”

Night shrunk, eyes wide as they flitted over unseen images. “Th-this is what I signed up for?”

Glancing over her shoulder, Star shook her head. “If your strength were to advance that far, perhaps. We train protectors, not fodder.”

And with that, she began sawing into the bulette’s gums with sickening vigour. As bits of gore and blood splattered to the ground, I felt my stomach churn. After a few more seconds, I had to look away. Night wasn’t so lucky, and he loudly retched his rations onto the ground.
I slipped a wing across his back as I raised an eyebrow—even though Star couldn’t see it. “Ugh. Is that… is that really necessary?”

“Yes. We cannot bring the whole thing with us, so a tooth will have to do.”

“What, like a bounty?” The concept was not unknown to Equestria, especially for heavy travelers. However, those were typically on specific posters in specific areas for very specific animals. That Star would know that the tooth would be good after so long without checking in at a town did not bode well.

“Correct. As I said, bulettes are a consistent nuisance. As such, it is quite likely we can use it to fund a significant portion of our resupply.”

I sighed. “How far are we going to have to lug that thing?”

As the tooth hit the ground with a thud, Star stepped out of the bulette’s jaws and pointed past the markers. “Not far. If you look carefully, you should be able to see Fort Rhenish.”

Squinting, I eyed the mountains, which were still rather distant. A rectangular shadow sat in front of one of the shorter ones, likely affixed to the mountain itself. Guessing from the distance, it also wasn’t far from the edge of the Ghostly Fields, which only made sense. Between the quagmires and the mountains, that town had an absurd amount of natural protection.

“Huh. Well, that’s a sight for sore eyes.”

A nervous smile crept up Night’s lips. “Y-yeah. I can’t wait.”

Star stepped back onto the path, her horn glowing as the bulette’s tooth followed behind her. “Well, then let us proceed.”

---

Even though our first stop was in sight, we couldn’t afford to relax. The shadow was close, but we weren’t exactly at their gate. I’d estimated at least a couple more hours ahead of us—plenty of time for more danger. We moved slowly, keeping our eyes and ears open. Our supposedly safe death trap had already failed us once. Even if the bulette attack was a rare occurrence, the odds of another attack were still non-zero. It wouldn’t even have to be another bulette. In our weakened state, we could easily attract something a bit more opportunistic.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a thick shadow moving across the ground. Tensing, I dropped into a wider stance, preparing for the worst. As I looked up at the sky, I saw something vaguely pony-shaped, passing overhead. If I'd had to guess, I’d have said it was an armoured pegasus. The big question was: friend or foe?

Before I could even open my mouth, Star explained, “A scout has spotted us. Should anything else happen from here on out, we will have a lance of knights upon us in an instant.”

As relief washed over me, I gave her a quick nod.

Every dozen feet or so, Fort Rhenish became less and less of an indistinct blob. I hadn’t quite known what to expect, though what I got certainly shouted ‘border outpost of the mighty Ostfriesen’. Towering walls, made from some of the largest logs I’d ever seen, rose toward the sky. Sharpened points formed a row of vicious wooden teeth—the kind of warning that even a bulette should heed. An ample helping of guard towers reinforced the walls. Even at a distance, I could tell there was activity. Despite all the defenses, the heavy gate was wide open. I supposed that, between the scouts and towers, anything the gate could stop would be spotted from miles away.

As we approached the arch, I caught a glimpse of the town, which seemed comparatively small. Like the walls, the vast majority of structures were built from whole logs that still had their bark. They carried with them a sort of rough, unpolished air that reminded me of Pasture. However, the longer I looked, the more I realized that that’s where the similarities ended. Here, under that lack of polish, the buildings were sturdy and rugged. Instead of a smattering of eager militia cadets, the entire yard was filled with fighters. Many of them wore more than one weapon and their armours were brightly decorated in what I could only guess were house or clan colours. In addition to moving with the same air of confidence as Star and Merriweather, each of them openly wore teeth, feathers and more. Here, in this fortress, any monster would wish they were in the Ghostly Fields instead.

For the first time during this entire journey, I felt like we actually had a leg up.

But before we could enter, a pale orange mare, her armour polished to a mirror sheen, stopped us. “Hail, travelers. What brings you to Fort Rhenish?”

Star stood tall and answered, “I am Dame Solanum, Knight of Ostfriesen. We have come via Fort Westphalian. We had not intended to travel so far, but got sidetracked in the salt flats.”

She motioned to the tooth, still held in her magic.

“I am Dame Ignia,” the guard replied, bowing before she turned her attention to the tooth. “Odd for them to strike out in the salt flats, eh? Impressive that you were able to defeat it with your… apprentices?”

I could feel Ignia’s eyes on me, probing the finer details of my gear. Star shot Night and I a look of her own. It was probably safer to roll with it. Gathering information could become more difficult if they knew we were outsiders.

“Yes. Both quite skilled, but green. I doubt I could have killed the bulette without their assistance. For now, I am taking the beast’s appearance as a sign to get lodging for the night. We can head back on the morrow.”

Ignia nodded as she took the tooth. She spent a few moments gauging the measurements before carrying it into the nearest watchtower. When she returned, she brought a small satchel, and with it, the jingling of coins. “Current bounty is three-hundred sovereigns a head on bulettes, plus fifty bonus for killing a young adult before mating season. I trust this acceptable.”

“Very. I only need enough for housing for the three of us and to resupply our rations.” Star smiled. She seemed so at ease that, in spite of it all, I think she missed this. There was a part of me that found it hard to believe. The other part remembered the old pegasus warrior culture, as well as my own wanderlust.

With a glance at the horizon, Ignia added, “Bulettes have been encroaching intensely the past month or so. They're nothing compared to a rampant grim drake or if a bebilith comes down from the mountains, but if their population gets too big, word from the magistrate is they're going to raise it to five-hundred and let the adventurers cull them down.”

“I shall have to keep an ear to the ground if that happens. It would be excellent practice for my apprentices. Thank you, Dame Ignia.” Star got that look on her face again, as though she was really considering it. I had to wonder if, at the end of this journey, we might end up parting ways for a while.

“Fare thee well, Dame Solanum.”

Once we were clear of the gate, Star let out a sigh and half-whispered, “That went well. I had wondered how I would pass you off to them, but this shall play in our favor.”

Her words made me nervous. Was it a specific reason she had in mind? Or was it a more general precaution? I wanted so badly to ask her, but an extended conversation in the street would defeat the whole purpose of the disguise. Speaking of which, I had no idea how we were going to blend in. The Rhenish mannerisms were so different, even from Star and Merriweather, and I had no time to study them.

I tried to find something else to focus on until we could get someplace more private. “Three-hundred sovereigns sounds like quite a bit.”

Star eyed the satchel. “It is quite reasonable. Not enough to live on, but enough for what we need.”

The inn was about as rugged as any other structure in the place, but I wasn’t feeling too picky. I’d stayed in more than my fair share of bare-bones hotels before—not to mention that we’d just spent the previous night huddled in the back of a cave.

Once we were inside, it became clear that the place had all the standard stuff: a hearth, several sets of tables that ringed said hearth and a small bar to serve both. A spectacled, light green unicorn, who was wearing something very similar to a griffon-style, black-and-white maid uniform, moved table to table.

When she saw us, she smiled, pushing up her glasses. “Welcome to the Unfettered Ale. If you're here for a meal, take a seat and I'll be with you in a moment. If you're here for a room, go speak to Hollow at the bar.”

With that, she trotted past us, a small army of dirty dishes trailing behind her. She disappeared into the kitchen before returning to collect another batch.

Star wandered over to the bar, which was attended by a unicorn stallion whose coat had an odd silvery tint to it. “We require lodging for the night. Two rooms, if possible. One for myself, and one for my apprentices.”

Night looked like he wanted to say something, but when Star glanced back at us, he thought better of it.

“Two rooms, Dame, that's easy enough.” A couple keys hovered out from behind the counter, riding a soft yellow aura. “Standard quarters, would be a-hundred-and-sixty sovereigns for the night.”

“Acceptable,” Star replied. So much for a good chunk of that prize money. A knight would have to do an awful lot of fighting to have food and a place to stay. Once she had the payment taken care of, Star turned to Night and I. “We shall settle into the rooms first. Food can come afterwards.”

Just beyond the dining room was an arch that broke off into a small hallway. Within were the doors to about a dozen tightly packed rooms.

Star opened one of the closer doors. “I know what you must be thinking, but this works best for our purpose.”

I shook my head. “You know this place better than we do. The sooner we're rested and resupplied, the faster we can find Merriweather.”

Once we were inside, I took the keys and closed the door. The room was about as simple as it could get: one chair, one desk and two boxes full of straw. I supposed they must not have any use for decor that wasn’t right on their person.

Night wandered over to one of the straw beds. He sat on his haunches, though he looked like he could have just flopped over and passed out.

“You two should rest. I will find whatever supplies I can, and also inquire about any activity that may be a lead to the Descendants of the Justicar.” Star’s eyes drifted over to Night. “Bellerophon had no knowledge of his descendants, yet this group must have taken that name for a reason.”

“If it was only known to the royal bloodline…” I tried to keep my voice as low as possible.

“Then, it is entirely possible that this conspiracy goes deep.” She looked away as she bit her lip. “But I shall be content if we find Merri before becoming involved.”

“We’ll find her, Star.” I gave her a quick hug. “Just be careful out there.”

A small smile formed on Star’s lips as she hugged me back. “I shall. Now, rest.”

And with that, she was gone.

Night continued to sit next to the bed, staring off into space. But it wasn’t the distracted look he got when he was conversing with Bellerophon. No, this was more ordinary—the natural reaction of someone normal, to the worst conditions of combat.

It was his turn for a hug. As I wrapped a wing around him, I asked, “You doing alright?”

Night broke into tears as he half-collapsed against me. “N-no. I’m... I’m sorry, Dusky... I'm... I'm just so scared.”

Pulling him closer, I pressed my muzzle against his mane. “After what we saw today? The dangers in this land? You’d be a foal not to be.”

I knew I was. Not just scared, even. Terrified. Back in Equestria, the safe roads were actually safe. Sure, there was always danger somewhere, but most everyone knew where it was and to avoid it. No one had been crazy enough to build a main road through Everfree. But here, everything was Everfree. Death was only staved off by a higher order of death. And the fact that Ostfriesen considered bulettes mere pests? That put Night and I right at the bottom of the chain.

Night wrapped his hooves around me. “W-what do we do now? What can we do?”

“We wait. And hope that Merriweather hasn't gotten herself into anything too dangerous.” Shifting, I rested my muzzle against his.

He sniffed. The tears had stopped. “I never wanted this, Dusky. None of it. Th-this is never what I thought it would be. H-heroism. Knighthood. It's all falling apart... and it's all my fault.”

“No, this whole thing is bigger than we could have imagined. These are machinations that began before we were even born. I… I’ve worried more than once that we’re in over our heads.”

“I was so excited, t-to become stronger, to do my part…”

“Don't undersell yourself.”I gave him a quick nuzzle before looking him in the eye. “I need you just as much as you need me.”

“I just... I just d-don’t want to be alone.”

In spite of everything, I pushed forth a reassuring smile. “You’re not.”

Night paused for a few moments, letting the words sink in. He looked up again. “Neither are you.”

Comments

[Shachza]

Bulette? Bebelith? Just going through page by page? Taking bets on whether they'll meet some Destrachans or a Displacer Beast next!

I kid, I kid.

And I bet that room is crazy expensive in actuality, and the supplies won't be nearly do bad. Secure space within a border keep has got to be at a premium, so that innkeeper is likely making out like a bandit.

[Yami Vizzini]

Looking forward to seeing more of this new country.

[AppleTank]

Awww.
Also, Bellerphon is also a pretty sweet name.

[KuroiTsubasaTenshi]

7549557
Hehe, you might say that, though largely thanks to the story exerting a bit of its own control. The way I picture it, it's kind of like the Everfree and Badlands are those kinds of competitive siblings who have to constantly one up, so they're both sitting there, flipping through the book, each trying to prove they're the more dangerous one.

[AppleTank]

7555968
When writing OCs, I honestly feel guilty if I don't have an Earth pony. The near complete lack of Earth magic school (and to a lesser extent pegasi flight stuff) justify the effort though.

On a completely random note, I figured that pegasi dominate the A/C market. Also ice cream to go along with the Hagaan Dash joke.

(Also, woohoo, someone who comments in chapter to get around fimfic's wonky notification bug)