Ch. 4: Cause and Effect
Chapter 4: Cause and Effect
Prophet's Chamber
Thunder Drum Mountain
70th of Spring, 975 C.R. (Celestia's Reign), 4:28 p.m.
“What did you do to her!?” the Doctor demanded, his tone far more confident than his current position should have allowed him to be as he glared at the masked zebra.
“Ohhh, concern… So concerned… No need to fret, Doctor of the Ponies,” Tagati replied, stepping back towards Twilight without taking her eyes away from the brown stallion, her raspy tone a sugary-sweetness that was surely intended to mock.
Bringing one hoof up, the zebra mare pushed against Twilight’s chin, raising the limp unicorn’s face as the Doctor made out a soft trail of chilled breath from her nose when she exhaled softly.
“The star-crested creature has not been harmed,” Tagati explained, her tone maintaining a patronizing, sickening sweetness. “We are many things… but we are not wasteful, no. There are many tests to perform. Things we must understand before its kind submits. However, we grow impatient as we wait for the drought of sleep to run its course. And we have questions, yes... Now we shall ask… and it shall answer.”
The masked zebra watched the Doctor carefully, her head swaying back and forth in an almost serpent-like fashion as she lowered her hoof, allowing Twilight’s head to nod back down towards her chest.
“To believe itself so mighty, only to discover how helpless it is in the face of true divinity,” she said, stepping towards him again, clearly gauging his reaction. “Tell us, Doctor of the Ponies… Does it feel... humbled? Scared? Angry?”
The Doctor huffed, leaning forward and relaxing as he allowed his weight to shift, pulling taut the twine holding his forelegs apart. “Not yet... but you are treading on very dangerous ground right now,” he stated plainly. “Lay another hoof on her, and believe me, you won’t have to ask... You’ll know when I’m angry.”
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Fluttershy and Zecora were edging their bodies along the narrow, rocky path now, the voices coming from the end of the corridor making them both very self-conscious of the clipping sounds of their hooves against the stone, the pair keeping perfectly quiet as they listened in. Straining her ears as she tried to ignore the fact that her heart was pounding in her chest, Fluttershy was beginning to pick up snippets of the conversation echoing through the tunnel.
“She can fly. What makes you think she would stick around?” It was faint, but that was certainly the Doctor’s voice, she realized.
“Answer without answering… Questions given questions in return, it fashions its words like a labyrinth... Does it stall for time? Does it believe rescue to be on the way? Anasi thinks not.” The second tone, while vaguely female, had a sinister delight to it that made the yellow pegasus shudder as the faint glow of the rocks around them gave way to a light at the end of the tunnel.
Emerging from the narrow passage, the pair of equines came to what appeared to be a dark chamber with shafts of sunlight jutting down from the ceiling in perfectly positioned beams that cut through the murk all the way down to the floor. They pulled themselves from the corridor and onto a small ledge that jutted out from the wall, likely obscuring the gap in the rocks from below, but barely large enough to hold the filly and mare as they peeked over the edge.
More than five stories below them, the pair could make out the forms of three equines: A brown one tied up in an awkward fashion, one wearing a black gown and a wooden mask, and a purple one apparently floating in one of the spotlights as the other two were speaking, bits and pieces of their conversations echoing up towards the small alcove they found themselves in.
“Twilight?” Fluttershy uttered softly, her eyes wide with recognition. “Doctor?”
“Tagati...” Zecora leaned a bit more over the edge, her own eyes wide as if she hardly believed what she was seeing. “She is actually here?”
“It’s alright, Zecora…” Fluttershy assured the zebra quietly, her empathetic nature picking up on the sudden rush of anxiety that the filly was feeling. “Everything will be alright…”
She looked back down as she took note of the zebra moving in on the helplessly bound Doctor, a hoof raised menacingly as he prattled a moment longer.
…somehow… Fluttershy thought.
————————
“It hardly matters.” Tagati shook her head, ending her inquiry into the escaped pony with a confident dismissal. “The flying one concerns us not. We are far more interested in this pony, yes… And the tools it carries.” Tagati’s tail, a mangled, frayed brush of grey and white striped hair, pulled up along her side and dipped into a small pouch that sat on her haunch, showing an amazing degree of prehensile range as it drew out a familiar-looking object and deposited it in the prophet’s outstretched hoof.
“We will give it a chance to ‘cooperate,’ for Anasi is a kind, merciful goddess… So, Doctor of the Ponies, would it be so kind as to tell us… what this is?” The zebra held up the small metal tube, keeping it well out of reach of the brown stallion as his eyes ran over the scuffs on the silver finish and the lack of light emanating from the rainbow-colored crystal at its tip, both signs that the zebra had attempted (unsuccessfully) to dismantle the device.
The Doctor tilted his head from one side to the other as he looked over the metal cylinder, his expression one of thoughtfulness. “Is it a hammer?”
Tagati’s dilated eyes narrowed, clearly incensed, but maintaining an imposed, tranquil calm. “This world is primitive, its dominant species little more than beasts of burden.”
“Oh, now that is just rude!” the Doctor objected, although the zebra did not seem to notice.
“The creation of this artifact requires knowledge beyond its ability,” she stated plainly before demanding, “Where did it acquire this device?”
The stallion turned away, refusing to speak.
“It wishes to try our patience?” The zebra snickered, returning the alien device to her pouch, taking no notice of its slight glow as a streak of malevolence seeped into her tone. “Very well…”
The stallion’s defiant expression faltered suddenly, his eyes widening as the masked zebra indulged in a bit of sport. It was only a few moments later until he was crying out in pain.
“…One way or another… its secrets will be ours.”
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“What is she doing to him!?” Fluttershy whispered, sounding terrified as the brown stallion squirmed and convulsed in his restraints,
“I do not know…” Zecora admitted. “She did the same thing to the Ash-Stripe Chief, inflicting pain without laying a hoof on him... All I know is that I do not envy your friend right now.”
Fluttershy bit her lip, her ears flattened back as she found herself torn between running away and diving into the situation in a rush to stop it. This situation was so far beyond her, witnessing such cruelty.
As she battled with herself, she didn’t fully register the small form of the filly leaning forward, but what she did notice was how the Doctor looked up, twisting in agony…
...and shook his head.
“Wait.” Fluttershy set a hoof against Zecora’s shoulder, holding the filly back.
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“How…?”
The brown stallion fell forward as the pain, like hot brands setting against his skull, suddenly faded, the pressure on either side of his head releasing, allowing him a moment to recover as his vision began to clear and the pain faded to nothing. Before him, Tagati looked to be a bit unsteady on her hooves, clearly having exerted herself in spite of not moving.
“Ooowwwww… Ow ow ow…” the Doctor managed to say, wishing his hooves were free so he could rub his temples. “Well, that was… unpleasant. Does that sort of thing happen often around here? Might want to leave it off the brochure; your tourism industry would never recover.”
“How is this possible? Its resistance is stronger than we anticipated… Far stronger… Like the horned one, it defies us. How?”
“Sorry, ears are still ringing. I’ll get back to you after the liberation is over.”
“Liberation?” Tagati perked up, now curious. “It believes that it will be rescued?”
“Do I have to spell it out for you?” The Doctor shook his head, his calm facade beginning to wear thin as he panted for breath. “My pegasus friend is long gone by now, likely heading back to the forward base. Shouldn’t be long now.”
“Forward... base? Oh, yes…” Tagati's tone was dismissive. “The ‘Pony Legion’ readying itself along the northern border of Zebrica which it informed Zulu of.” She waved a hoof absently. “We have dismissed this claim.”
“Dismiss it all you want, doesn’t mean that you’re going to win. I mean, think about it: You’ve got an elite guard of highly trained zebra soldiers with spears, that freaky head magic, a nifty little knockout drug (although between you and me, that stuff could use a little more kick) and a population of several hundred repressed, malnourished, and thirsty zebras that will be eager to welcome the liberating herd. I’m no tactician -- failed that class back at Academy, should have paid more attention -- but you’ve hardly got the makings of a war machine, here. What you have are a few snazzy tricks that won’t really make a large impact on the greater battle,” the Doctor continued speaking unabated as the masked mare moved closer to him, smirking as she took note of the way his voice was becoming more rushed. “If you pick a fight with the camels, never mind the ponies… you will lose,” he finished, although his confidence seemed to be cracking, a sign of weakness that Tagati was all too eager to jump on.
“That hardly matters,” the zebra snickered wickedly.
The Doctor was quiet for a moment. “I’m sorry, but you can’t possibly win a war with what you have here. What part of that does not matter?”
“Any of it.” The Prophet shook her head, clearly amused. “It believes itself to have the advantage, but it has no idea what is laying in wait here, Pony-Doctor. If this so-called 'army' is coming, all the better… It saves us the trouble of luring them to this place under the pretense of diplomacy. Though, its claim to have a legion is nothing but a fabrication. The ground is still. There is no army marching across our lands... And we very much doubt the winged freak abandoned it at all.” Tagati flourished a hoof, taking a step back as she took the center stage. “We have concluded that, like the zebras, the ponies are weak. Naive. A passive herd race, overly obsessed with their childish morals and loyalties and idealism. So certain in the belief that they are the greatest power of the cosmos.” Tagati spat out a cruel laugh.
“You know, it’s rather interesting you say it like that. It’s as if… you’re not actually one of those zebras,” the Doctor noted, squirming in his bonds as he seemed to feel a sense of panic seeping in. “But of course... that would be absurd.” There was a moment of silence. “Wouldn’t it?” The stallion looked to either side, tugging against his bindings as he started to show his anxiety.
Tagati said nothing, her eyes almost smirking at the Doctor’s revelation.
“Let the animals come, like the cattle they are!” she continued, taking an obvious delight in the pony’s apparent shock. “For its meager kind cannot even begin to comprehend what it is we possess. Whatever it thinks it knows about power, Pony-Doctor… whatever ‘miracles’ its unicorns perform, or blasphemous claims it heaps upon the false goddess, we assure it... all lies. Real power lies here, under its very hooves. Power more than sufficient to dominate the whole of this world.”
“But… Wait, if you’re not a zebra, then… then what are you?” The stallion appeared unnerved, drawing himself back and trying to pull against the vines holding him in place.
“We are so far beyond its imagination. We have already begun to study its species, extracting precious nuggets of information from its crested companion.” The masked zebra gestured behind her to the still unconscious Twilight, which drew another concerned gasp from the Doctor. “Oh, but fear not, Doctor of the Ponies… We had barely begun to skim the surface of its delicate, fragile psyche. We hoped that perhaps the male of the species could be more… cooperative… and spare us the effort. But rest assured, we are more than capable of digging deeper... should the need arise.” Tagati’s wicked grin was visible in her eyes as much as it could be heard on her voice, a clear, deliberate attempt to incite the brown stallion. “This is our true power, pony! The power... of the mind!”
There was a moment of silence between them as the over-the-top dramatic reveal echoed across the cavern, the zebra enjoying watching the stallion squirm under the revelation. Then he stopped, his frightened expression fading in an instant as he relaxed, dropping his act.
“Oh, is that all?” the Doctor stated suddenly, his tone now very unimpressed. “Psychic parlor tricks? You really are just a one-trick pony, aren’t-- Or, perhaps one-trick zebra... What’s your angle, I wonder? Maybe remote consciousness grafting, brain stem parasites, perhaps? Oh, oh! Blood control! I haven’t seen blood control in years! Classic. But no... you had to go for the old hat trick. Brute force mental domination. Pfft… not nearly as impressive as you think.” The brown stallion let out a breath, shaking his head.
Tagati, for the first time, was taken aback. “What!?”
“Well, it’s hardly subtle, now, is it? What with your remote control operation and shared senses of the warriors and whatnot. I’m guessing they volunteered, and since Zulu sounds less like a mindless drone and more like a disgruntled employee, I’ll assume his will was too strong to just dominate directly, so you patched him in to a psionic link to impress him. Easy enough to convince him considering who you decided to focus all of your effort on. It’s a nice act; the whole ‘Prophet’ and ‘Masters of the Plains’ bit… but that’s all it is. An act.”
“WE ARE TAGATI! PROPHET OF THE GODDESS! WE SPEAK FOR ANASI, QUEEN OF ALL!” the Prophet raised her tone for the first time, glaring out of the mask, insulted as the pony seemed to refuse to be in awe.
“As I said earlier, you'll need to step up your game to impress me. But you can drop the act now, the vines are starting to chafe. Oh, I know! Any chance I can talk to the actual Tagati?”
The zebra mare huffed, glaring at the Doctor angrily... before drawing back in shock as the stallion merely smiled.
“Trying to apply the mental schtick again? Yeah, that’s not going to work a second time; I think I’ve got the frequency down. That’s the problem with brute-force psionics, you see: zero versatility. Once somepony figures it out, you might as well be blowing smoke in their face.” The Doctor's mouth then gaped open in understanding. “Ohhh, I get it. That’s why you’re having to go the direct control route, isn’t it? She was starting to fight back. Is that why you keep the mask on her? You clearly have a rudimentary understanding of psycho-reactive crystalline structures, because I’m assuming that’s what’s set into that creepy mask of yours. A little something to keep her on a leash so you have a proper mouthpiece? What’s the matter? Afraid of showing yourself to the ‘primitive beasts of burden,’ so you simply snatch a respected shaman from her life -- from her family -- and try to twist her into a puppet? Just who is it you think you are?”
Tagati huffed, clearly sounding insulted. “YOU DARE TO QUESTION THE QUEEN OF--”
“That was a rhetorical question, dear. Now, do shut up, I’m talking.” The anger in Tagati’s eyes burned with a hellish fire as the brown pony kept going, his tone never changing. “So, here is the deal: You let Tagati go, release my friend over there, break the link you imposed on the zebra warriors and whatever hold you have on Zulu, and I'll let you leave this place in peace. It's a bargain, really. Generous, even, considering the horrors you’ve inflicted and the zebras who have died in your attempt to usurp their entire existence. But, what the hay, I’m feeling charitable today. So, do we have an arrangement?”
There was a moment of awkward silence between the two equines, the Doctor smiling obliviously while the zebra in the black gown seethed with rage. After a moment, she reached up, pulling the mask free from its place and revealing the rest of her face for the first time to the Doctor.
She might have been quite lovely once (although the Doctor considered himself a poor judge of equine beauty), but it was clear that malnourishment and whatever trials that her body and mind had suffered had taken a toll on the zebra mare. Her cheeks were hollow, her facial fur looking disheveled. Stray strands of her messy white and grey striped mane fell into her eyes, the small spiders that scurried and nested inside it adding to the disquieting effect as she revealed a demented grin that did not match the sheer anger that had set into her dilated, pinpoint eyes.
Behind him, the Doctor heard a sudden shifting of stone as the rolling door was pushed aside… and the clipping of hooves stomping in unison on the stone floor.
“It seems to have forgotten one very crucial detail,” the Prophet stated, her manic grin growing larger as she moved forward, leaning towards the stallion’s face. “It forgets that it… is the prisoner, here.”
“Oh, right… I hadn’t thought of that…” The Earth pony nodded, not contesting the point as a pair of zebra warriors moved to flank the Prophet, their own expressions blank.
“This one goes to the Pit. Its existence is an offense to the Queen of All. We shall get our answers from the crested one.”
“Oh, but before I go… There is one last, little, tiny thing that I should mention.”
“And what, pray tell, is that?” Tagati moved to replace her mask, clearly caring little for the words of the condemned stallion.
“It was a really… really bad idea to show me where my screwdriver was,” said the Doctor, as Tagati set her mask in place before looking to him curiously while the two zebra cut his bonds, allowing his forehooves to fall to the ground. “And a worse idea to keep it in psychic range after exposing me to your operating frequency.”
*WHIRRRRRRRRRRRRRR*
The sound emanating from the Prophet’s pouch wasn’t loud by any means. From his position, his hind legs still strapped into place, the Doctor could barely hear it. But its effect was immediate as the two zebra guards suddenly cried out, hooves going to their heads as they tumbled over while Tagati went rigid, letting out a pained gasp and falling to her knees.
“FLUTTERSHY! NOW WOULD BE GOOD!” The Doctor surged forward suddenly, straining against the lashings on his hind legs and bucking slightly as a mirrored echo of pain reverberated throughout the mountain and the small device continued to sound out.
“Doctor! Are you alright!? What did you do!?” Fluttershy spoke up, her soft voice still echoing as she looked down at the scene, amazed and disturbed.
“Forget that! We have got to get down there, now!” Zecora shouted, shoving her shoulder into the yellow pegasus, who was thrown from the ledge they had been watching from and flailed in the air a moment before her wings started to beat, allowing her to descend with the filly holding onto her neck.
“Hurry!” the Hourglass Stallion shouted as Fluttershy made it to the ground, the filly leaping from her back and to the pained figure of the Prophet while Fluttershy moved to the Doctor’s side, reaching down to bite into the vines. “I’ll give you the run-through later! We only have a few moments before they recover and alter their psionic frequency!” the Doctor explained, pulling the strap taut and allowing Fluttershy to get her teeth into his bindings with a snap. “I’ll get the last one, you get Twilight!”
“Yes, okay! Then can we please get out of here!?” Fluttershy pleaded, the entire situation making her feel more than a bit overwhelmed.
“That’s the idea, now go!”
Not questioning him any further, Fluttershy darted away, moving to where Twilight still floated apparently weightless as she dove through the air. Hooking her forelegs around her friend's limp shoulders, Fluttershy then used the cool, crisp updraft she was held in to boost herself up, flying towards the rocky outcrop she had used to sneak into the chamber.
Meanwhile, the Doctor turned a bit, pulling his hoof as he strained against the last vine around his hind leg, about to take action now that he could reach it himself. Then, he paused, only now taking notice of the filly that was standing a few feet in front of him.
“Come on… Come on!” Zecora pleaded desperately as she pulled her hooves up, taking and working the mask that was in place over Tagati’s face and pushing it off of her head with some difficulty. Exposing the pained grimace of the Prophet underneath, Zecora hefted the heavy wooden idol to the side, where it clattered heavily to the ground.
“Let her go!”
With a violent, angry burst of energy, the young zebra rushed forward, stomping on the wooden mask with both forehooves and ellicitng a dry crack. At first, it appeared undamaged, but as Zecora continued to lay into it, smashing the thing with all the power her tiny body could muster, it didn't hold up for long. In just a few seconds -- and about a dozen blows later -- the mask was reduced to nothing but a pile of broken wood, loose gemstones, and splinters. The effect was immediate, causing Tagati's body to go slack and slump to the ground.
With a sudden, heart-chilling recognition of who it was that was accompanying Fluttershy, the Doctor turned about, straining to get a grip on the vine that was holding his hoof back.
“Mother!” Zecora moved back under the Prophet, attempting to push her up as she shouted at her. “Mother, wake up!”
Tagati shuddered for a moment, seeming to struggle in lifting her head up. Her eyes fluttered open, showing wide, round blue irises as opposed to the tiny dots that were there before. “Z…Zecora...? W-what are you doing here?”
The Doctor redoubled his efforts, now regretting sending Fluttershy away to tend to Twilight before freeing him.
“I came to save you, Mother!” Zecora set her head against Tagati’s front affectionately, tears running down her face as she did so. “It is okay! It is all okay! I am here! We... we can go home now!”
“Zecora! Get away from her!” the Doctor shouted, having worked a fray into the vine and now pulling against it with all of his earth pony strength as he snorted in an undignified, equine fashion.
“No! I destroyed the mask! The nightmare is over!”
“Zecora…” Tagati’s voice trembled as she regretfully pushed away the distraught filly, her eyes shimmering with pained tears. "You must leave..."
“Mother…?”
“Leave me, child! Run!”
“No... No! Fight it, Mother!”
Tears ran freely down the filly’s eyes as she watched the elder mare shakily get to her hooves and stumble back, all while clutching her shaking head. Then, she froze, lowering her forelegs and bringing her head up, her face a portrait of turmoil while she kept her eyes shut...
...until they opened again, revealing two angry, remorseless black dots against oceans of red and white.
“Mother, no! Give her back, you-- AGGHHN!”
Zecora reeled, crying out in agony as a sudden, harsh pain she had never known pressed against her head, feeling as if hundreds of sharp needles had been hammered into her skull at once and sending the foal to her knees.
“Too far! This time it has gone too--”
*thwip*
The pressure released immediately, the pain fading into a slight throb as relief rushed in, allowing Zecora to open her eyes and blink away the tears as the older Ash-Stripe mare stumbled a bit on her hooves.
“...faaaar…”
Tagati’s eyes rolled up to the back of her head as she fell over in a deep slumber, a familiar-looking dart sticking out from her shoulder.
Turning her head, Zecora saw the brown stallion with the hourglass mark on his flank dropping an unconscious zebra warrior’s foreleg, having utilized the blow-dart mounted on it before moving towards her, his eyes narrowing.
“It… it is not her fault! Do not hurt her!” The filly attempted to throw a degree of authority into the order, though a sudden wave of nausea made her unsteady on her hooves. “Please… do not hurt her...”
“I know, and I won’t,” the Doctor assured her, reaching down with a hoof to open the satchel at Tagati's flank and reaching into it with his mouth to withdraw a small metal tube, balancing it on his hoof as he slipped it behind his ear and turned to her. “I’m sorry, but the hold Anasi has on her was stronger than the others'. Breaking up the mask disrupted it for a moment, but-- ZECORA!”
The Doctor’s eyes widened as he looked to the filly, his explanation broken into a dire warning as he saw the small black spider crawling down from the filly’s mane and onto her neck.
*crunch*
“Ah!” Zecora brought her hoof up reflexively, smashing it into the small arachnid and crushing it in mid-bite, then rubbing her neck as the initial sting faded.
“Doctor!” Fluttershy called down from the alcove, setting the still-unconscious Twilight down as she looked back down at the scene. “What happened!?”
The Time Pony sighed deeply as the young zebra brought her hoof back, revealing a bright green mark in the spot where the spider had gotten ahold of her. “Exactly what I was afraid of…” he uttered under his breath as the filly looked at her hoof, her eyes widening in terror at the green fluid that was dripping off of it.
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Intensive Care Ward, Room 7
Pranceton Plainsboro Memorial Hospital
29th of Summer, 1001 C.R., 8:12 p.m.
Zecora the zebra laid back into the pillow, the hospital bed having been brought up to a sitting position as laying down straight had become too painful to bear, watching as her young friend set another large glass on the tray next to her. But in spite of her pain, it was the troubles of her bedside companion that were truly worrying her now.
“…An' they say Ah told ‘em ta do it! Can ya believe the nerve!?” the farm filly continued, stomping a bit as she paced in front of the bed. “After all that happened ta ya, and everythin' Ah went through, they was just sittin’ in the bakery, enjoyin' free treats!”
“So now you believe, because you are right…” Zecora panted a bit as she spoke. “That it gives just cause for friends to fight?”
“Hey, it’s not mah fault Scootaloo got all up in mah face!” Apple Bloom defended herself. “Ah mean, Ah was jus' tryin’ ta get back here, Ah didn’t start nuthin'.”
“A fight, I never said you tried to pick… but did they not offer to help with the sick?” the zebra asked.
Apple Bloom winced a little, looking over the zebra.
In the last couple of hours since Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle had left, it was certain that Zecora’s condition was getting worse. Already, the green veins that lined her face were creeping across her snout and up over her head towards the left side. And if this were not bad enough, it was clear that the sickness was spreading down from her neck as well, her entire right foreleg already covered in the throbbing green veins and twitching at the zebra’s side.
If she felt half as bad as she looked, Apple Bloom was amazed the zebra was listening to her at all, and not just wallowing in pain.
“Ah’m sorry, Ah shouldn’t be buggin’ ya with mah own silly little troubles,” the filly offered apologetically. “Ah’m… sure Twilight an’ Fluttershy'll be back soon. Ah don’t know what’s takin’ 'em.”
“I know all too well, the concerns of a filly. And I know just as well that they are not at all silly. As for our friends, I am not worried.” Zecora shook her head. “What they are doing now should not be hurried.”
“Where did they go, anyway?” asked Apple Bloom.
“That… is a tale of which I know only half,” Zecora admitted, lying back into her pillow. “And what I do know, most would say, is daft.”
Apple Bloom licked her lips slightly, moving back to the side of Zecora’s bed as the zebra leaned over, taking a pull on the straw placed in the nearby pitcher of water. “...Does it have sumthin’ ta do wit' Doctor Clockwork?”
Zecora choked a little bit, pulling back and coughing, having swallowed awkwardly at the mention of the stallion before drawing back to look at Apple Bloom.
“We were followin' 'im earlier today… when we saw you at the Pony Express Office…” Apple Bloom confessed, causing Zecora to look away. “Are y'all scared a' him?”
Zecora lowered her eyes, unable to meet the filly's as she nodded slightly.
“Why?”
The zebra shifted uneasily in her bed, her mouth opening for a moment as if she was fighting to think of what to say, when the door opened suddenly, and Nurse Redheart stepped in.
“Apple Bloom, your brother is here to pick you up.”
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Prophet's Chamber
Thunder Drum Mountain
70th of Spring, 975 C.R., 5:12 p.m.
“Oh, no…” Zecora reeled in shock, staring at the bright green mark staining the hoof she had used to swat at the thing she'd felt bite her. Bringing her other hoof back to her neck, she rubbed the spot again and brought it in front of her face, seeing how the green stain was now painted across it, too. “No, no, no…”
The young zebra’s heart hammered loudly in her chest as she tried to comprehend what she was looking at... and the implications brought a fresh wave of tears to her eyes.
This wasn’t happening. This couldn’t be happening!
...She couldn’t be--
A sharp pain stung her shoulder, pulling her out of her panic for a moment as she turned about. Her tear-blurred vision caught sight of the larger brown stallion that had moved up beside her, just as he pulled back with a colored dart between his teeth.
She blinked once, her heart slowing as she staggered slightly. Then, her fear and pain faded into a sudden, quiet oblivion as the drug took hold, sending her into a deep sleep.
“Doctor! What did you do!?” Fluttershy, gliding to the ground, demanded in a tone that was torn between being frightened and angry as the filly zebra collapsed into the Doctor’s forelegs.
“I wasn't able to warn her in time... It's the Bite,” the Doctor explained quickly, doing what he could to pull Zecora away from Tagati and watching the ground for any more of the small arachnids. “The venom is blood-borne, and her panicking would have led to a higher heart-rate, causing it to spread that much faster. Zilaka’s sleep drought will keep her calm for the time-being until we can sort out a cure.”
Looking over the ground, Fluttershy pulled her hooves up and hovered in place with a squeak as she saw one of the spiders from Tagati’s mane crawling towards her.
“But… that means…” Fluttershy beat her wings a moment longer as the train of thought caught up with her, looking to the green mark on the filly’s neck and the sickly veins already spreading outward from it. “She… she's sick back in our time… b-because we…”
“Now is not the time to think about that! All it means is that we have to go, now!” The Doctor waved Fluttershy over, lifting the filly up so that the pegasus could get a grip on her and begin to carry her up towards the alcove where Twilight was laying.
While she did that, the Doctor scanned the room again, reaching up for his sonic screwdriver and setting it in his teeth as he took note of one of the black spiders moving toward him with a defined purpose.
*click*
*Whiirrrr*
The arachnid shuddered and promptly rolled over, its legs curling up, and the Doctor grimaced at it as he spat out the device in his hoof and replaced it behind his ear.
“I thought so…” he muttered, moving quickly, but carefully, to the Prophet’s side, while keeping care to avoid the nest of spiders that was still moving around in her mane. Pulling the pouch off her flank and shaking it upside down to ensure it was completely empty, the Doctor again cursed his lack of pockets as he leaned down and scooped the stunned spider into it.
Setting the harness across his own back as Fluttershy started back down, the Doctor wasted no time moving towards her, pausing only briefly to scoop up another souvenir on his way before he closed up the pouch tightly to ensure nothing would get out.
It was then that he heard the stomping of hooves echoing up the cavern.
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Zulu, Warlord of the Anasi, rushed into the Prophet’s chamber, looking around at the scene.
Two of his warriors were only now beginning to recover from the shock that seemed to affect every one of his zebras and felt like it had driven a spike into his own mind. The two prisoners were gone as well, and here was their Prophet laying unconscious on the floor, her mask, a gift from their goddess, sitting in pieces before her.
The zebra warrior snarled, his lips pulling back. He knew it was a mistake to leave them alone. Knew that the brown pony was too formidable to have just surrendered like that without a plan. The voice of the Goddess had disagreed, but he had never once doubted that something like this could happen.
And now that the voice had fallen silent, he felt he couldn’t help but acknowledge a growing amount of respect for the brown earth pony, who had somehow managed to escape despite all of their precautions. In fact, it was impossible to think that he could have gotten away with the purple female in tow by leaving the way that he had just come… There was only one corridor into this chamber that a zebra could…
Zulu’s eyes widened in realization as his gaze went up towards the ceiling. As the two zebra warriors began to pull themselves up, the Warlord made out a hint of a brown tail that slipped over the edge of the alcove that he had long ago tagged as a possible security risk. A secret passage only birds could reach… and that only one other zebra alive knew about.
“How… dare… It will be punished!” one of the zebra warriors stated, still somewhat shaky as he pushed himself to his hooves.
“To the pit! The Queen of All shall--” the other started.
“They are gone,” Zulu said, drawing the attention of both zebras. “We must tend to the Prophet and regroup. This pony, this... Doctor has struck a blow that must be avenged.”
“Gone!?”
“Escaped!?”
“How? How is this possible, Warlord?” Both zebra warriors bore down on Zulu for a moment, although the slightly smaller, grey-striped zebra did not flinch.
“Is it not obvious?” Zulu stated flatly. “The unicorn is capable of magic. It must have been awakened and transported the other one to safety the way you described from your first encounter.”
“That should not be possible!”
“We were promised…”
“And yet, they are not here, and I did not encounter them as I came to the Prophet’s aid. Have you another explanation?”
“Remember your place, Warlord!” One of the zebra warriors moved threateningly closer.
“I know my place…” Zulu replied calmly. “And you should know yours, which is to follow my commands."
The zebra warrior took a step back, immediately bowing his head in submission.
“The only way of escape open to the stripeless is out into the Plains. Even if their claim of a pony army is false, they are still a threat so long as they remain free.” Zulu nodded to himself, a plan of action already formulating in his mind. “You two, bring the Prophet somewhere safe. I will organize the others and try to head them off at the outskirts of the village.”
“You shall be without sight, Warlord! You brought this creature to us… you shall prove your worth in its capture.”
The Ash-Stripe stallion did not balk at the accusation, remaining as composed as he had before. “So be it… I do not require the gifts of the Goddess to track down two ponies on my own land.”
The two warriors, apparently satisfied, turned away from him and worked in unison to lift the limp Prophet from the ground, carrying her towards the door as the Anasi Warlord stood there a moment longer.
And as they left, Zulu looked up again towards the alcove above with a proud smirk. “Clever filly…”
————————
Medicine Hut
Stone-Water Village
70th of Spring, 975 C.R., 9:35 p.m.
The sun had set behind the distant western plains some time ago, a mark of how much time had passed that was beginning to weigh greatly on the potion maker as he paced around his hut, glancing out the window occasionally to take note of the dozen or so black shapes that were now circling over the village.
To say that Zilaka of the Ash-Stripes was on edge would have been a gross understatement. It was only the staunch realization that his mind would need to be clear should the pony stallion actually manage to keep his wild promise that kept him from reaching for one of his more… "potent" concoctions.
It was a foal's errand, he knew, walking right into the grasp of the Anasi. And even as he played his part as the Doctor asked, telling the zebra warriors sent to check on him that he had indeed been overpowered by the earth pony, he was replaying the conversation over and over again in his head and found it difficult to believe that he had agreed to this.
But there had been something about the pony himself; a confident intelligence… something that Zilaka couldn’t help but admire and trust. Something that had led him to cover the windows of his hut as he continued to wait in the soft candle light.
*knock-knock-knock*
Zilaka nearly jumped out of his coat with a startle as he twisted towards the light wooden door of his hut, standing still for a moment before another rapid series of knocks brought him back to his senses.
It couldn’t be… He couldn’t have possibly...
The zebra moved to the door and gripped the handle, pulling it in as he looked out into the dark alleyway.
“Zilaka…” the Doctor huffed, out of breath as an unfamiliar purple mare was laid out across his back. Behind him, another mare, this one a pastel yellow and looking about ready to fall over, stood with something smaller across her own. “Things didn’t quite go according to plan.”
The medicine maker shook his head after a moment, stunned that the brown pony was there at all. “Inside, quickly! Before someone sees you!” he whispered urgently, looking out and to either side of the path that led to the medicine hut fearfully as the two ponies and their burdens quickly ducked past him. “Where have you been all this time?”
As he closed the door, the potion maker was quick to bar it, slipping a thick looking reed staff across the doorway to block easy entry and turning to the ponies as they set down their burdens.
“We had to take it slow in coming back. I didn’t want to lead the Anasi right to your doorstep. As it seems, most of them have gone out of the city. They probably think we’re making a run for it,” the Doctor explained as he leaned down on his knees to help ease the mare he had carried in. She was clearly a unicorn, with a bright and lovely face that gave her an exotic enough appeal without the horn that emerged just above her eyes. She had been what the Doctor was aiming to rescue, and in all honesty, the potion maker had never expected him to succeed. But what took his immediate attention as he now saw her in the soft candle light was the smaller, striped foal that the strange yellow pony had carried over to his bed.
“ZECORA!” The tall zebra all but bowled Fluttershy over, shoving her to one side as he rushed to the bed alcove that had been set into the wall where the pegasus had laid her down. Looking her over with the urgent, critical eye of a frantic father, it was mere seconds before the potion maker saw and diagnosed his daughter’s affliction.
“I’m sorry…” the Doctor said softly, setting his own burden down as gently as he could, the purple unicorn still showing no signs of waking. “But we have to work fast now. Did you get them?”
“What? Yes… yes, over there…” Zilaka waved a hoof to one side of the hut as Fluttershy looked about, surprised at realizing that the inside of this hut was almost identical to what was inside Zecora’s Everfree home, right down to the bottles hanging from the ceiling. Drawing her attention to the side as the Doctor moved to where Zilaka pointed, she took note of the vest, goggles, and hoof-band that were laying on the floor.
“I appreciate it,” the Doctor thanked curtly, slipping the zebra side-pouch from his back before pulling the sonic screwdriver from behind his ear, placing it into the hoof-band and using his teeth to pull it onto his fetlock. “I’m rubbish without pockets, and this will make things easier now that I have my sonic back.”
“What happened? How did she even get involved…?” Zilaka swallowed hard, his hooves pressed against the edge of the alcove bed where his foal now lay as his voice grew more stern, turning to glare at the pony. “What is the meaning of this, Doctor!? This is not what we agreed!”
“We agreed that I would help you and the zebras if you could help me get to Twilight and find the cure for the Bite. That has not changed in the slightest. I told you things didn’t go as planned…” the Doctor defended himself as he stood up, struggling to pull his vest over his head while Fluttershy moved to his side. “And it didn’t help that you withheld vital information from me. I had assumed that Zulu was your son… but why didn’t you tell me Tagati was your wife?”
“Because it was not important.” Zilaka shook his head, his expression angered while the Doctor slipped his legs into their proper holes. “Whatever else she has become, Tagati is no longer the mare I married… The only thing that matters to me right now is my daughter, and so far, the only thing you have done is bring her home with a death sentence written on her neck!”
“It’s not his fault…” Fluttershy cringed as the zebra’s eyes turned to her, causing her to pull behind the Time Stallion. “I... found her… out in the village. She made me take her to Thunder Drum.” The mare withered under the zebra’s harsh glare, becoming more and more withdrawn.
“Who are you, pony?”
“I-I’m…” The shy pegasus lowered her head a bit, her voice dropping as she felt the zebra’s glare on her.
“This is Fluttershy, my other companion that I told you about,” the Doctor introduced her, feeling that now was not the time for a protracted meet-and-greet. “And she saved your foal’s life. If she hadn’t been there, none of us would have made it out of the mountain.”
“Oh, well, I didn’t… I mean, I really wasn’t all that…” Fluttershy blushed slightly, a pink tinging her cheeks.
“Don’t be so modest, Fluttershy. Without your wings, we wouldn’t have made it anywhere near the exit before the Anasi managed to get back on their hooves. You just saved all of us.” The Doctor looked to her with a warm smile as he fumbled to get his vest on straight, clearly grateful for her assistance. A bit of praise that, for some reason, made her aches, pains, and exhaustion all seem worth it.
“I… see... My apologies, Fluttershy. Under normal circumstances, I would be far more amicable, but…” Zilaka shook his head, his eyes falling back towards the foal in the bed. “Why in the name of the Plains would she want to go to Thunder Drum? She knows as well as any zebra that--”
“She was trying to save her mother,” the Doctor interrupted as he shifted his shoulders, straightening his side pouch and red bow-tie.
Zilaka glared at the Doctor again, Fluttershy in awe of how calm the Hourglass Stallion was about the whole situation as he reached down for his goggles and set them into place on his head. Although it seemed for a moment that the zebra was about to start shouting at the brown pony, he deflated instead.
“Yes… reckless, well-meaning, and without any forethought of what she would actually do once she got there. That sounds like something she would do,” he admitted, bowing his head. “And so she was struck down for opposing their goddess, by her own mother, I assume.”
“It’s not a curse or some supernatural affliction, Zilaka,” the Doctor told his new friend, moving towards the cauldron as Fluttershy sat down against the wall, clearly exhausted and grateful not to be the center of attention. “It’s a venom. ‘The Bite’ is a spider bite… and the Anasi are behind it. All of it.”
This caused Zilaka’s eyes to go wide as the implications crashed down around him. “Y-you are sure? I have treated several victims; none of them mentioned being bitten by a spider.”
“They probably didn’t see or feel it,” the Doctor surmised. “The one that bit your daughter was crawling down the side of her head and she didn’t even realize until it bit down. I tried to warn her, but it was too late.”
“Perhaps... The placement of the wound is odd. It is usually on the hind legs, rump, or along the spine...” Zilaka moved back to his daughter, looking her over as she turned fitfully in her sleep, his tone going from frantic to academic. “I have been treating it as an illness, only focusing on the symptoms... But if it is a venom, we might be able to come up with an antitoxin. That is, if we had a raw venom donor.”
“Way ahead of you.” The Doctor smirked, moving to the pouch he had set on the floor and taking a small bowl from one of the potion maker’s shelves. Bringing it up to a work table, the brown stallion brought over a small cutting board and opened the pouch, emptying its contents: a round, glittering red crystal the size of a walnut, and a small black spider frantically rushing away.
*click*
*Whiirrrr*
The spider promptly stopped and flipped over, twitching a bit before the Doctor swept it into the bowl.
“Sonic screwdriver,” he explained to the amazed-looking zebra. “Just one of the tools of my trade, among other things. It can imitate various sounds, including the frequencies of a cry used by a specific species of echo-locating nocturnal mammals that can paralyze most insects and arachnids. So, shall we get to work, my friend?”
The potion maker nodded, daring to hope for the first time in a long time.
“Wait...” Fluttershy spoke up suddenly, pulling herself somewhat reluctantly to her hooves as she managed to get the two stallion’s attention. “You’ll need this.” The pegasus reached up with one hoof, ruffling her mane and wincing as she untangled something from her silky pink locks, drawing forth a curved prong-like grey plant and setting it on the worktable.
Zilaka wrinkled his nose and withdrew a bit, identifying the foliage on sight. “Ashmed?” He tilted his head in surprise. “That is not a medical herb, it is a weed. This will make anything it is added to poisonous in any concentration. I do not use this for any of my brews.”
“I was told it was the key to a cure for the Bite...” Fluttershy drew back a bit, now wondering if she should have brought it up at all.
“Who told you that?” Zilaka looked to the yellow pegasus skeptically.
Unsure what to say, Fluttershy looked to the Doctor, who nodded, waving her back with a grateful nod.
“Somepony you should trust,” he said curtly.
Zilaka huffed a little, looking between the bowl that now contained one of the little monsters that had been making his kind suffer, and then back towards the weed.
“Alright... I can think of at least one good use for it, I suppose.” He shrugged, moving to the table as he started to pull down gourds and small vials with a practiced ease. The Doctor, meanwhile, kept a close eye on the tiny spider, alert for any signs of it recovering, before he felt a prod on his flank.
“Um, Doctor?” Fluttershy whispered lightly, drawing closer to him. “I think the proper term is ‘somezebra,’ not ‘somepony.’ Thought you might want to know.”
The brown stallion stood still, absorbing what the yellow pegasus said before he brought a hoof up to his face. “Oh, now don’t start that again!”
————————
Intensive Care Ward
Pranceton Plainsboro Memorial Hospital
29th of Summer, 1001 C.R., 8:19 p.m.
“Ah ain’t goin’ home.” Apple Bloom crossed her forelegs, sitting back on her haunches as she turned away from her elder brother. “Zecora needs me here.”
Big Macintosh shook his head, looking up at the large, round face clock that was indicating just how late it had gotten. With a light sigh, he looked back to his youngest sibling, rather wishing that Applejack wasn’t away at that convention with Rarity in Yokelahoma City. She was so much better at this than he was.
“Bloom...” the large red stallion started.
“Ah know what yer gonna say, Big Mac, and no, this ain’t jus' me bein' ornery and this ain’t like bein’ over at Sweetie Belle’s house an’ not wantin’ ta leave.”
Big Mac opened his mouth again, preparing to say something.
“This is different! Zecora needs me here! She’s sick an' scared an' far away from home an' she needs ta know that there’s somepony here that cares 'bout 'er. Somepony that can help take care a' her. What wit' Twilight and Fluttershy up an' leavin’, that jus' leaves me.” The filly got to her hooves, looking up at the large colt.
Big Mac was about to try speaking when she started up again.
“Yeah, Ah know it’s late an' Ah know Ah’m jus' a little ol' filly an' it ain’t supposed ta be me worryin' an' frettin' in a hospital! Ah know Ah can’t do anythin’ but watch 'er sleep an' try ta keep her spirits up an' goin’ till Twilight gets back! But Ah can’t jus' leave 'er here! Ah won’t! Even if Ah can’t do nuthin’ else, Ah can be here! When nopony else can! That's what Ah can do!”
Big Mac took a slight step back, this time keeping his mouth closed as he looked down to Apple Bloom with an expression of sad understanding.
“No different than what any a' us'll do when it’s Granny’s turn ta be here...” Apple Bloom bowed her head, tears welling up in her eyes as she looked away.
Big Mac let out a small sigh. “...Eeeyup.”
There was no cheer at getting her way; no victory in talking the large colt into allowing her to do this. Apple Bloom just swallowed slightly as Nurse Redheart exited the critical care room.
“I’ve given her a mild sedative. It will help her sleep, but she’s still refusing pain medication,” she informed Big Macintosh, the nurse herself looking quite tired and worried. “We can’t go against her wishes while she’s still awake, but there’s... been no word from her medical proxy for hours. She just... hasn’t come back yet. I know Miss Fluttershy said she could stay with the patient, but...” The white-coated nurse looked to Apple Bloom with a sad expression. “...without adult supervision, I really can’t let her stay overnight.”
Big Mac looked to Apple Bloom, whose eyes were wide and pleading. With a sigh, the red stallion looked to the nurse and nodded. No more words were needed as Nurse Redheart started away to continue her rounds.
Following the youngest Apple back into the hospital room, Big Mac moved to lean back against the wall and watched as the filly immediately placed herself next to the bed, watching as the zebra mare drew in painful, ragged breaths.
“Don’t worry, Zecora...” The Apple filly patted her hoof, keeping her tone low even as a tear ran down her cheek. “Ah’m sure... Twilight'll find a way... She always does, no matter what... Jus' you wait.”
She bowed her head as the zebra gasped, twisting fitfully in her sleep.
Hurry, Twilight... Apple Bloom clenched her eyes shut, unable to stop the tears.
Please...
————————
Medicine Hut
Stone-Water Village
70th of Spring, 975 C.R., 10:08 p.m.
“Unnnggh...” Twilight Sparkle had endured many kinds of headaches in her time, and had even categorized most of them.
There were Sugar Rush Hangovers that were often the result of a visit to Pony Joe’s, or the particularly addictive sweets at Sugar Cube Corner; Apple Cider Throbs that accompanied indulging in too much of Applejack’s prized family beverage; the Magic Migraines that were all too familiar to any unicorn that overexerted themselves or channeled their power for too long; and, of course, the Study Pounding, that "too tired for words" head trauma that often occurred after two or three successive all-nighters right before her body simply overruled her curiosity and forced her to sleep.
But as consciousness seeped back into her body, she had to admit, whatever was causing this particular headache surpassed them all.
She hesitantly tried to open her eyes, only to grind them shut as the soft candlelight caused the pain to increase exponentially. With pain and the cold dirt floor under her making it impossible just to drift back to sleep, Twilight wiggled her ears around, trying to get some bearing on where she was and what had happened.
“Alright, small portions of the sky blossom, Doctor. I have a very limited supply of those, but it may help,” came a deep, wizened voice she did not recognize.
“What about this?” followed the lilting accent she had come to associate with both adventure and trouble.
“Dried tangle berries? Doctor, these are for indigestion, which is something I have not had to treat around here for quite a long time. Would you kindly stop pulling things off the shelf at random?”
“Sorry, I thought they were... Well, I have to admit, this is one area of expertise where my previous studies are completely useless. How do you keep up with all of these things making six experimental potions at once?”
“Many long years of practice...” the deep voice came again. “Alright, here, crush this with the metal spoon there, would you? And try not to let any get in your mouth.”
“Why? What would happen?” the Doctor asked cautiously.
“I do not know... and that in and of itself should be enough to dissuade you.”
“I am liking this potion-making business of yours less and less every passing minute... Alright, so... what does this root cure?”
“Hunger. That is my dinner.”
“Excuse me... may I have some of that? I’ve been flying almost all day and I’m starving,” came Fluttershy’s voice from a short distance behind the unicorn, who was starting to roll over on her front.
“Unnggh...” Twilight was done listening, her head pounding as she forced her eyes to slowly open in spite of the light. “Doctor...? Fluttershy...?”
“Oh! Twilight!” said Fluttershy, surprisingly loud (for Fluttershy, at least) as she suddenly was in the unicorn’s field of vision, wrapping her forelegs around her sore body. “You’re awake! That's great! Are you okay? We were so worried...! Why are you grinding your teeth like that?”
“Because... you’re talking... in my ear... and it hurts.” Twilight grimaced, trying to contain herself.
“Oh, I'm sorry... So... um... I should let you go, now?” Fluttershy whimpered apologetically.
“That would be appreciated, yes.”
Twilight wobbled around a bit as Fluttershy released her, drawing herself up in a semi-seated position before trying to focus on making sense of her surroundings. “Oof... My head...” Twilight brought her hooves up to her temples as she shook her mane back and forth. “Doctor, what happened...? And why are we at Zecora’s house?”
“What? I thought you had been unconscious since you arrived,” came the deep voice again, Twilight managing to look up towards a large, bubbling cauldron to see the Doctor and a tall, thin-looking zebra stallion with a large mohawk and wearing a pendant with a somewhat familiar symbol on it. “How do you know my daughter?”
Twilight blinked a bit, her confusion only slightly clearing up as she came to a realization of who this was. “Okay... What exactly did I miss and how long was I out?” Twilight asked, reaching up and feeling her flanks and chest. “I didn’t get turned to stone again, did I?”
“...Do you want the truth or a lie?”
Twilight felt herself slump, having learned quite well that when the Doctor asked that question... things were looking pretty bad.
“Give it to me straight, Doctor. Who, or what, did we upset this time?”
“This time?” Zilaka asked, turning towards the Doctor with a suspicious glance.
“We travel quite a lot. Trouble finds us more than occasionally,” the brown stallion offered as explanation, moving towards Twilight, who was now blinking and looking about, taking in her surroundings.
Yeah... 'occasionally,' Twilight thought, rolling her eyes grumpily as she moved her head about, still feeling a mild throb, although it was lessening.
If it were not for the fact that her father was there and the slight difference between wood and molded terracotta backdrop, Twilight would have sworn they were inside Zecora’s hut in the Everfree Forest. While covers had been put over the windows, Twilight was able to deduce it was nighttime judging by the lack of any sort of glare through what was a relatively thin cloth.
Turning around to look behind her, she took note of a filly sleeping in the alcove carved into the hut’s wall, with a grey and white coat. Taking into consideration who the stallion standing at the cauldron was, it didn’t take much for Twilight to put the pieces together.
Then she stretched, attempting to work out the kinks as her forelegs came into view, and Twilight’s breath caught in her throat.
“...No... Oh, Celestia... No no no no...” The unicorn looked down her body, her heart suddenly hammering as she caught sight of similar black markings running down her chest and hind legs. “Mirror! I need a mirror!”
“Oh, right. Not quite sure what the deal is with those yet. Maybe they wanted to try giving you some stripes and somepony got creative?” the Doctor started with a smile. A smile that faded as he saw the look of horror that had gripped his friend’s face. “Twilight... Twilight what’s wrong?” The Doctor’s humor gave way to genuine concern as he leaned in, watching her carefully.
“Mirror!” Fluttershy rushed to her side, holding up a large polished silver bowl that seemed to be good enough for the unicorn as she took it in her hooves and looked into it.
Her eyes wide, her body went rigid as the polished bowl then slipped from her hooves with a deafening clatter.
“Twilight... what is it?” the Doctor asked, now very much worried about his companion’s reaction. “It’s alright… you’re safe now… Everything is going to be alright.”
“No... No, it isn’t, Doctor…” Twilight’s head bowed, her shoulders slumping forward as tears began to form at the edge of her eyes. “It’s… it’s gone…”
“What’s gone?” Fluttershy asked, looking to her friend with a mix of sympathy and worry.
“M…my magic…” Twilight tried to explain, barely able to form the words. “It’s just… gone.”
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WONDERFUL!
Was that an intentional Epic Wub Time reference with “And what, pray tell, is that?”
("Oh, nothing, it's just my BASS CANNON!")
We should organized parades and festivals every time this series updates
Yes! I was in need of a Doctor Whooves fix, and this was an epic-level dose of it.
This is a perfect title for this chapter, I'd say, for a few reasons. First, we have a cause and effect of the Doctor getting trapped and doing his usual thing, and second, we have the source of "The Bite". Ten bits says I'm probably missing another reason, but anyway.
Gonna be interesting to see what happens next with Twi's magic and all. Presumably it has to do with the markings, but it will still be interesting to see how it plays out. And then on top of that, the details of how things go from past-Zecora to present-day-Zecora will be interesting to see as well.
“Forward... base...? Oh, yes…” Tagati shook her head, her tone dismissive. “The ‘Pony Legion’ readying itself along the northern border of Zebrica which it informed Zulu of.”
She waved a hoof absently.
“We have dismissed this claim.”
images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090208013246/masseffect/images/thumb/1/1b/Citadel_Council-Turian_council_member.png/595px-Citadel_Council-Turian_council_member.png
This is awesome worth the wait ^^ now if we can just get back to the jeep...I mean TARDIS we'll be set...
*attempts to run but gets hit by 4 darts* That's too many...*falls over*
Georgeous chapter gain, as always. I can't wait for the next one. I wonder who is hiding behind Anasi's goddess, though I think I have an idea. This isn't the first time in this arc's stories that the Doctor and Twilight are dealing with a queen : p.
I really wonder why all of this arc's stories haven't been featured on equestriadaily.
908334 I have been asked this question several times, so I think it's best if I go ahead and set the record straight.
As I have said multiple times, my Dr. Whooves series is a branching continuity based on the original works by Squeak-Anon, a fact that was made clear on first admission to EQD. Because of this, EQD mods have stated that for sake of catagorization, the Pinkie Conundrum and other works would need to be 'grouped' with Number 12 and Travler. After discussing this with Squeak, it was agreed that neither of us were wanting this as my story line and his are intended to go into two very seperate directions and so that we don't cause confusion among our mutual readers.
Unfortunately, this means that the Doctor Whooves : The Series as written by me will not be featured on EQD.
I'm not too worried about it as art from the series has fowarded many towards FIMfiction, which is without a doubt the series primary home.
I love your incarnation of the doctor, he's a delight to read, can't wait for the new series as well
Annnnnnnnd now we get into the Spider Business.......Wonderful...
If anyone needs me I'll be in the corner,
I just had a thought. It would be absolutely hilarious if this were to cross-over with Griffin the Griffin right now (not that it's going to happen). Griffin would be absolutely worthless with his fear of spiders.
I am really loving this.
Also, who does your cover art? I really like it
well now. I beleieve this pic is correct with twilights magic gone encrypted-tbn1.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRZrexhXSAEv8osnLd28mttnm6Y0r8ObkuxAyvB3MiryT0jfHOV0g
The pure awsomeness of this story has broken my brain.
The Anasi had better watch her back, the Doctor's getting pissed
Read the last line, reaction:
................................................................................................................................................
WHAT?!?!?!!!!!!!?!!
909822 Almost all art featured thus far is the work of the amazing 'FoxinShadow'. I ran across one of his early pony pieces browsing devinatart just after starting the Pinkie Conundrum and contacted him for permission to use his outfit concept for my Dr. Whooves. One thing led to another and he has since become the 'official' artist of Doctor Whooves: the series. Following the tradition set by Game of Stones, I am trying to keep a steady stream of art, at least 3 per episode. A cover page, OC/New character sketches, and an epilogue/late chapter scene, all of which can be seen in my blog archive or scattered among Fox's Deviantart gallery.
dl.dropbox.com/u/12875849/reactions/oh%20boy.jpg
“M…my magic…” Twilight tried to explain, stifling a sniffle. “It’s just… gone.”
Well fuck.
913317 "SOON"
As to the chapter: Holy mother of all that is timey wimey, that was awesome. Keep it up l2l
908379
That is a real shame because you are amazing at this. Also, when might the next chapter be out? Please be soon!
925390
Aiming for Thursday, but should I miss it, no later than Sunday the 22nd.
So zecora was bitten by a spider....
Spider mare, spider mare. /shot
But really, you write the doctor wonderfully! Keep it coming!
You seriously need to write episodes for Doctor Who.
Fantastic job once again. Eager for more
927733
That is most helpful. I thank you. *bows*
908334
> I wonder who is hiding behind Anasi's goddess
Some sort of spider-themed alien, based loosely on Anansi folklore?
Well, I have only one word to say..... FANTASTIC! I loved every second of it and cannot wait for the next chapter to come out.
Until next time...dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/emoticons/misc_Rainbow_dealwithit.png
Where all is this featured? I would love to see this as a web series! Aaaaaand how does twi know that her magics gone just by looking at the markings? Has she seen them before or something?
954455
Update with some revelations within the next few hours, just hammering things out a bit behind schedule... But questions will be answered... yessss... they shall....
Soon...
954587 this my seem presumptuous, but considering that you've had more than one successful story and you've been featured. Could you take a look at my work and tell me where I need to improve when you have the time? If so it's called Dirty little secrets.
“YOU DARE TO QUESTION THE QUEEN OF--”
“That was a rhetorical question, dear… Now do shut up, I’m talking.”
Cant....stop...LAUGHING! My god, that was helarious
“That was a rhetorical question, dear… Now do shut up, I’m talking.”
Badass Doctor is Badass.
907794 Genius idea... Take you're blasters, and set them to pew, PEW PEW PEW PEW
ANDIAMO!!!
2,000 VIEW BITCHES!!!
ANDIAMO!!!
I'm loving this. I especially love how Twilight and the others are actually useful in this series. In the TV series I find that the writers leave the companions standing at a loose end for a noticeable amount of the time while the Doctor goes about being the Doctor. You on the other hand seem to make sure
nobodynopony is left standing idle for too long.Now I've had my suspicions earlier, but the mention of Yokelahoma City has confirmed it for me. Are the events of Connor Cogworth's Ah ain't got no Ack-cent taking place parallel to this this story?
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Oh... my... Celestia...
This takes place in that world? OMCOMCOMCOMC(Oh My Celestia)Yes!
She was unscrewing a screwdriver... with a hammer...
So the queen is genuinely smart, and looks like she has ne up on the Doctor, and THEN:
followed by 
and Zecorica:
Nobody who takes leadership lessons from Sparatus (or Tevos and Valern, for that matter) should stay in power. Seriously. They're probably indoctrinated!
*of
Aaaaah, I caught the MASH reference. Well done.
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just because one pun? that doesnt seem like substantial ground to base your theory off of... but then again i have not read that story
The one question which i always ask myself about this Kind of Story: How in helll are past and present running next to each other so that time that passes in the past also passes in the present?! It just dosen't make sense!!
Well i guess they always do it to make it more dramatic.
5829613 Time isn't linear. You see time as a river, steadily flowing in one direction, but it's not. It's much more like a lake. The currents may go one way, but it's all there at once, and with the right kind of boat, you can go upstream and alter the current. Maybe change how much water is in the lake, maybe poison it.
6231248
That, is a brilliant explanation of time travel.