The Wayfarers

by TheFictionAddiction

Act 2, Chapter 32: Hello, Stranger

Mayor Mare sprinted for the castle doors, her hard hat entourage in tow. Tools rattled ceasely on the construction workers’s belt.

The Apple family clustered around Alabaster as he lifted the unconscious Whisper onto Big Macintosh’s back. Grimes tried to help, but Alabaster drove him back with a toothy snarl.

“Alright, alright! I’m just trying to help.” Shaken, Grimes retreated. Granny patted him reassuringly.

Apple Bloom was practically running circles around the group. She darted one way and then the other. Every alleyway, doorway, and walkway seemed like a hiding spot for one of those nasty timberwolves.

“Will y'all hurry the heck up! It sounds like they’re getting closer!”

“Don’t rush me,” Alabaster hissed. “I’m not having her falling and reopening her wounds.”

Applebloom whined like a teething puppy. “Ooooooh. Dang it, Big Mac! Ya couldn’t have parked closer? We’re could’ve walked here at this rate!”

Macintosh gave an offended ‘harumph’, but said nothing else.

Uncertainty breeds fear. Perhaps that was why Alabaster wasn’t afraid like the farm ponies. If one of those mossy mongrels showed their ugly mug, he was certain that he’d pummel it flat. Alabaster made sure to take his time with Whisper.

Is this really for her, or are you just reassuring yourself that she’s okay?

Alabaster briefly lowered his head, coming brow to brow Whisper, “Oh, Wisp… what the hell have we stumbled into?”

Whisper’s only response was a sharp inhale and a grimace. Caressing her, Whisper’s expression softened. Though the segmented chitin across her body was rigid, those cheeks were soft.

When’s the last time I saw you like this?

Alabaster removed his hoof and tucked Whisper’s long, pink mane underneath her. They didn’t need the hick tripping on it.

There. That’s all I can do for now.

When Alabaster faced them, Granny Smith and Grimes recoiled. His eyes... A pair of slitted pupils lay in ponds of glowing magma.

Alabaster nodded to them. “Let’s get our asses moving. The pups might have-”

He was cut off by an explosion of wood and mortar as a timberwolf burst forth from an alleyway. It staggered, then lifted its head and sniffed. One of the beast’s legs was a twisted and busted mess of moss and timber. Greedy eyes fell upon the ponies. It smelled flesh blood in the air.

"-scented us." Alabaster gritted his teeth. “Mother of fuck.”

Apple Bloom screamed. “I told y’all!”

Though Apple Bloom and Grimes moved to help Granny Smith -her arthritic joints seized like rusty machinery- Macintosh was off with a bound. Whisper’s head bobbed on against his back, but otherwise she remained as Alabaster had set her.

Macintosh would get those heavy front doors open for them. The only one who didn’t break for the castle was Alabaster.

He turned towards the timberwolf. He heard the rapid popping of wooden bones being reset. The beast raised its shaggy head and howled. Alabaster’s hackles stood on end.

“A mouthy mutt,” Alabaster growled. “Gonna have to show you how to use your indoor voice.”

From behind the timberwolf, the gleam of wolfish eyes lit the dark alleyway. A pack was on its way. Alabaster would have to trust the Apples to protect Whisper, as much as he was loathed to do so.

The small cuts riddling his body went numb as a spark of heat coalesced in his belly. Crouched low, wings cocked, and jaw clenched, Alabaster became a ballistic missile set for take off.

Hearing the snapping of jaws and the raking of claws, Grimes couldn’t help but look back. He saw the encroaching pack and despaired. They weren’t even halfway to the castle.

“We’re not gonna make it,” Grimes cried.

“Not with you oglin’, we ain’t!” Apple Bloom said through clenched teeth. She was practically wearing Granny’s flank as a hat.

“Get over here and help Granny, dang it!”

Grimes opened his mouth to respond, but was immediately gagged by a flying dirt clod. The spacecraft Alabaster took off in a billow of dust. The pack of timberwolves had reached the end of the alleyway before being stuffed back in by an ivory bullet.

Grimes sputtered and coughed. A second later he hawked out a thick, muddy glop. He glanced back to the alleyway. Scraps of moss and wood were drifting lazily to the ground.

Grimes hiccuped. “What the heck is that guy?”

****

Alabaster blew into the next street like tidal wave. Perhaps he shouldn’t have used so much ‘oomph’. As the Apple family made their way to the castle, Alabaster was exiting a furniture store. Unfortunately, he was leaving through the hole he had made in the front display. Glass tinkled to the cobblestone as Alabaster hoisted himself from the wreckage.

“Good job, Al,” his groaned, shaking off depri. “You destroyed one of the two furniture stores in town. No one's gonna help us renovate now.”

Stumbling into the street, Alabaster nearly tripped. He cursed and kicked at a thick, knotted branch. It went clattering across the street.

The string of curses ceased as Alabaster noticed the kindling littering all about him.

Twigs, logs, branches, and pelts of moss. All them were jittering and twitching with life.

Alabaster sniffed and picked out a sliver of glass caught in his pinions. “Right. Welp, hope those yokels are hustling, ‘cause I’m not sticking around for a rematch if I can help it.”

Alabaster’s wings twinged as they unfurled. He hoped that the feathers weren’t too damaged to carry him.

Just as Alabaster readied himself for take off, he heard the nearing drumroll of hooves.

Alabaster sighed. “You gotta be kidding me!”

The words had no more escaped his lips when pair of ponies rounded a nearby corner. Two mare’s raced towards Alabaster, timberwolf remains crunching under their hooves. They had no idea what they just ran into.

They skidding to a stop beside Alabaster. He was almost taken back by their presence. Mane’s slick with perspiration and eyes frantic with panic. Alabaster inhaled the sharp tang of sweat and urine.

“C-castle still open?” one gasped, nearly choking on her words.

Alabaster saw the other mare’s leg wobble, and he lended a hoof to steady her. She glanced up, still panting, and managed a grateful smile. Adrenaline had rubbed the mare’s nerves raw, and thus, she was too numb to feel the sting of heat at Alabaster’s touch.

“Should be,” Alabaster said. “If not, bang on the door. Tell ‘em the coast is clear for a minute longer and they should let you in.”

The first mare nodded. “T-thank you. There was someone else with us. He…” She glanced about.

“H-he helped us. I don’t see him thou-”

The mare froze, color draining from her face. Two yards away, a disembodied foreleg was pulling itself across the ground. The claws digging into the cobblestone were stained red.

“Sweet solar solstice!”

Alabaster grabbed the mare and pushed her towards the alleway he came through. “Go! Get to the castle!”

The mares didn’t argue. They scampered off in a hurry.

Alabaster walked over to the disembodied leg. He stomped down on it, grinding the wooden flesh to mulch. A howl of agony responded in kind.

Alabaster whipped around and saw the half-formed timberwolf. It was crawling towards him, teeth bared and eyes glistening with murder.

Alabaster smirked. “I hurt ya paw, big guy? Here, give me the other and I’ll-”

That’s when the second timberwolf leapt. It moved like a floater in the pegasus’s peripheral. Alabaster had only realized the danger he was in when-

*chhnk*

-he heard the sound of a blade passing through wood.

Alabaster whirled, heart thumping in his ears. “Come at me then, rat bastard!”

Alabaster stopped. The ambushing wolf was hoisted above him, ran clean through by a black pike. The beast gave a low, gurgling groan as it clawed at the protrusion in its midsection.

Alabaster gasped as the black pike came to life. It bent to one side before flicking the timberwolf off like a booger. Alabaster watched the beast fly up and over the rooftops. There came a resounding crash somewhere beyond.

Alabaster looked at the first timberwolf. One second it was staring at Alabaster, awestruck. The next, there was a loud *snap!* as the wolf’s head twisted backwards. Alabaster saw the dark collar looped around its broken neck. This is when confusion turned to fear.

Alabaster watched in horror as the collar tore the wolves’ head clean off. The body fell limp, its head being cast aside to the gutter.

Alabaster patted his cheeks, wondering if he was hallucinating. “Gotta be brain damage. Boy, I hit that glass harder than I thought.”

“That was a pretty nasty crash. You gonna be alright?”

Alabaster stiffened. That voice… The joints in Alabaster’s neck creaked as he turned his head. At his side stood an unassuming stallion. A black mane, greasy and unwashed, framed a soft and almost feminine face… a familiar face.

Midnight Dreary eyed the gash along his friend’s forehead. “Wow, that’s pretty bad. We should-”

A hard right hook knocked the words from Midnight’s mouth, along with most of his taste buds.

*****

The tapestry of Midnight’s eyelids were decorated like the night sky. With the array of stars he saw, he thought it actually was nighttime. That’s when Midnight opened his eyes and realized that he had been laid out flat.

Midnight struggled up to a sitting position, a hoof massaging his ringing temples. The earth churned beneath him. If that didn’t stop soon, than Midnight feared he might be sick.

“B-but why, though?” he muttered, eyes rolling in their sockets.

Midnight blinked his vision back into focus. When he saw the unholy visage of rage and violence advancing towards him, Midnight wished he had been knocked unconscious. An empty grin pulled Alabaster’s features taut, revealing the row of cutlery beneath. Eyes like headlamps burned circled into Midnight’s retinas.

“And just where the fuck have you been?” Alabaster asked in high, jovial voice. It sounded to Midnight like the brink of insanity.

“I… we… it’s...” Midnight swallowed. “K-kinda complicated.”

Alabaster glanced down at the boiling puddle of shadows Midnight sat in. Midnight blushed.

“Complicated, huh? Ya don’t say!”

As the distance between them diminished, the clattering of woodshop leavings grow louder. Half assembled timberwolves were growing by the second.

Midnight looked from Alabaster to the wolves. “Umm… maybe we should-”

“Oh, I see them.” Alabaster now loomed over Midnight. The scent of sulfur stung Midnight’s nostrils.

“Okay… should we-”

Alabaster fell upon Midnight before he could even finish. Midnight decided there and then that he wouldn’t pass into the abyss willingly. Screaming and kicking, Midnight tried in vain to escape his fate. He was consumed by a rolling swampfire, then buried beneath its intensity.

Alabaster took his burgeoning right leg and wrapped it around Midnight’s midsection. Midnight was still shrieking as they took off.

Alabaster grunted, trying to get a better grip on Midnight. “Stop squirming! It’s hard enough flying with a fucked up wing!”

The pair bumbled their way into the air and out of danger. The more assembled timberwolves watched as they cleared the rooftops, mouths salivating. They’d be in pursuit soon enough.

Alabaster struggled against both gravity and the tearing strain in his wing. He dipped occasionally, but managed to quickly climb back up.

“Oh yeah,” he grunted. “Definitely tore something.”

Though Midnight had stopped fighting, he was nowhere near calm. The shadows -those sudden, but powerful allies- were quiet for the first time all day. Their absence was somehow more frightening than the yards of open air beneath them.

Midnight keened. “Not good, not good, not good! I don’t like this!”

“Yeah, and I’m havin’ a fucking hayday!”

As they approached the castle, they heard an all too familiar sound. A chorus of timberwolves sang their displeasure for whole town to hear.

Midnight craned his head back and saw movement stalked in the shadows between buildings. A second later, the timberwolves were pouring from the alleyways in droves. There had to be nearly two dozen of them.

They raced after the ponies, heads raised and tongies lolling. Midnight gasped as some of them tripped and collided with each other. Small skirmishes broke out amongst the wolves. Given a reason, the timberwolves were just as happy to tear into each other as they were ponies.

“What are they,” Midnight asked.

Alabaster squinted against the afternoon sun. "Rabid. Not much we need to know beyond that... I mean, other than an easy way to kill 'em. That'd be cool."

*****

As ostentatious as the castle was, Alabaster found himself grateful for its outlandish design. There was no shortage of balconies for them to land.

“Tuck in your legs!”

Midnight quickly turtled up just before they spilled over the nearest railing and onto the floor.

Midnight was instantly overwhelmed by a cacophony of voices. Angry, desperate, and brimming on the edge of violence.

"You hear those things outside? There's no way we're opening those doors again, now just let us pass!"

"And I told ya to take a flying leap. You're not bringing that bug near the other ponies in here."

"Fine, we’ll take her someplace away from everypony. Just get out of-"

Midnight shook himself free from the argument. He and Alabaster were an aching tangle of limbs and wings. It took a moment to decipher where one began and the other ended, but eventually they were sitting opposite of each other, panting.

Midnight was soaked from mane to tail in sweat. The warm summer breeze felt more like winter. He shivered nonstop, but was thankful for it all the same. He reeked of sulfur and soot.

Alabaster rested against the railing, wings drooping to either side. He wiped some blood from his eye and studied Midnight.

"So… uh…” Alabaster tapped his chin. “How’s the jaw?”

“Hurts,” Midnight said timidly. “Like a lot.”

“Yeah, I… a… I’m sorry about that. Never was any good at dealing with stressful situations… at least, not in any logical way.”

Alabaster chuckled reluctantly. “Spent the morning looking for you, getting sloshed with a moonshiner, passing out in an alley, and then waking up to the whole town going to hell. As if that wasn’t enough, I proceeded to throwing myself through wood wolves and window displays… Yeah, I don’t think logical is in my vocabulary.

Midnight frowned. “I never meant to leave. It’s just-” He paused and motioned to the shadows still pooled beneath him.

“Say no more. We can-” Alabaster groaned as his started to his hooves. “-talk about it later. Gotta make sure Whisper’s okay first.”

Midnight rose too, excited to see Little Whisper again. He expression demored almost instantly.

“Okay? Is she hurt?”

“Yeah, but I’m not sure how badly. C’mon, let’s go find out.”

Midnight followed Alabaster from the balcony. Through a gem studded doorway, they found themselves in a bedroom. Alabaster surveyed the room. Everything here was almost unnaturally tidy. From the made bed, to the blank picture frames.

A musky, dusty odor tainted every intake of breath. As they passed a closet, he chanced a quick peek inside. Empty.

“Spare bedroom,” Alabaster commented. “One of many, I’m guessing.”

Midnight closed the bedroom door behind him. Turning around, he was struck by the regality of the place. Fine furniture and lush potted plants decorated a crystalline hallway for yards in either direction. Beneath their hooves was a lush, lavender carpet.

While Midnight gawked at such spendor, Alabaster sniffed indignantly.

“Crystal doorknobs, walls and floors made of gems, and enough purple to choke a monarch. Finding our way downstairs is gonna be fun.”

Midnight shuffled his hooves. “I… I think can help with that.”

Alabaster cocked an eyebrow. “Alright, and how’s that?”

Midnight dipped his chin, gesturing to the bubbling mass clinging to his hooves.

“Can’t really explain how. I just… I know I can.”

Alabaster had questions aplenty, but he’d stuff those down for later. Little Whisper first, Midnight later.

"Well, buddy, lead the way."

Author's Note:

Now accepting tips on my Ko-fi page.