Chapter 18 Homebound Horse
Wrong, wrong, wrong. Everything feels wrong, Ryan thought to herself, walking or trotting or something around some alleyway she found herself teleported into. She spent a minute flexing her new set of muscles and gaining some factor of amusement at seeing her new tail flick about. Simply odd, not shocking or disheartening, the new body was. Some part of her found it bizarre that she was taking it so well, but, as the saying goes, “desperate times call for desperate measures.” Looking at herself, she briefly wondered why her coat took on a golden sheen. Her constant hair color was understandable, but there didn't seem to be a reason for such a hue.
“It's because I thought it would look nice,” the snarky voice of Discord said to her.
“Discord?” she said aloud, turning around and stumbling over her own legs as if she had four left feet (or hooves. Whatever all the appropriate terms were now).
“Don't bother looking for me,” he answered, “I'm in your head.”
“Oh, okay,” she said in understanding, turning her neck to watch at her tail swishing in the wind once again.
“Hm!" Discord said, "You've made such good progress, Ryan. Normally, you would've insulted me and thrown out a stream of questions.”
“Well, consider me getting used to your antics, as impossible as that is.” She turned around, this time taking a slower pace as to not stumble, and pointed towards the exit of the alley. “I'm guessing we're in the Empire? The crystals everywhere certainly seem to say so." Despite not seeing him, she felt Discord’s nodding. “Well,” she said, “Show time, eh?”
“That’s the spirit, Ryan,” he encouraged.
“Mmhm.” She made a shuffle of hooves towards the street, leaving behind her entrance via alleyway. She looked right, down the street, and said, “So where's the cas—”
Horses. Everywhere.
Her eyes expanded to saucers as an ever-eerie sinking feeling pulled her weight down on top of her, threatening her own strength in a physical as well as a mental sense. She stared in horror as her eyes traced the bustling residents of the empire, some normal but most crystalized, going about their lives and working their various purposes. Her mouth hung open, only managing to make an "eep"-ing sound. She barely registered the tall tower a mere ways down the road.
"Stay with me, Ryan," Discord reassured, though not sounding very interested, “You've already been through this.”
“No I haven't!” she hissed, “Not like this! I've been taking things slow. This is not slow.” A shudder danced across her.
“If you can handle that Lyra thing, then you can handle this,” he commented. She didn’t share in the joke; he rolled his currently nonexistent eyes. “Ryan,” Discord commanded, “See that tower down the street?” She forced her shaky gaze upwards, the magnificent architecture distracting her for a moment, which he took full advantage of. “That is the goal. Focus on that and that alone. Ignore all these hindrances.”
Ryan gulped, nodding after a slow hiatus. “R-right,” she said as her voice defiantly faltered, “Just keep moving forward. Towards home.” Forcing her unwilling legs, she steadily attempted an average pace. Some part of her found itself raising a figurative eyebrow at how much faster a simple trot was as compared to a jog, but it was a much smaller part of her awareness at the moment. Resisting the urge to curl up in an alley was much more demanding.
Eyes down, body tensed, hooves fleeting, she made her time down the agonizingly long lane, her breath holding whenever a pair of hooves briefly flashed by in her peripheral vision. Although she didn’t expect any hold-ups from the residents, a sigh of relief came by with each end of a passing glance. She gave a prayer of thanks that the city seemed to have gone into a nightly slumber; she could only imagine what the bustle of the capital would be during daylight hours.
“You couldn’t have teleported me directly to the castle?” she questioned.
“I could have,” he admitted, “But for the sake of not repeating myself, I’ll tell you why I didn’t with the next part of the plan.”
Ugh. “Fair enough…” she agreed.
“By the way, you don’t have to talk out loud to speak to me. Just think to me. We don’t need an earth pony going down the street talking to herself.”
She just nodded, keeping her head down. Of course, when one does have their head down, they don’t tend to see far in front of them.
She fell back onto her rear with a cry of pain as she slammed head-first into a tree. “Ow...” she moaned, rubbing her aching head.
“You should still look where you're going,” Discord commented, “Even I saw that tree coming.”
Yep... she thought, Thanks a lot.
“I heard that sarcasm," he said in mock-offense.
“Great...” she muttered, knowing he’d hear it anyways.
“What was that?” a third voice asked.
She barely resisted the automatic reaction to look towards the newcomer; she knew exactly who, or rather what, it would belong to. “Uh... nothing,” she said weakly, “Thanks for your concern, but I have to go now.” Eyes glued to the street beneath her, she scrambled and failed to scramble back to all fours, ending up plopped back on her plot.
“Oh, wait,” he, as the masculine voice indicated, said, “You hit your head pretty hard there. You sure you okay?” He took a step forward, the sight of the oncoming brown-coated hoof drawing a sharp recoil out of Ryan. “Uh… need some help up?” he asked.
“Yes I'm fine,” she rushed out, “I just need to—” She shook her head. Showing instead of telling, she carefully placed a hoof under her, then coupled it with a hind leg to push herself up. It wasn’t unlike crawling on all fours; though, the spell certainly helped. “There. Thank you, but—”
“Hey,” he interrupted, “I'm Rocky Road, by the way. Who are you?” he asked, a friendly tone working its way in to replace the lessened concern.
Discord said, “Tell him your name is 'Buzz Off.' See if he gets that hint.” Ryan ignored him.
“Uh...” Name? Name? What's a name that would fit in? “...Silverbolt,” she said, latching onto the first one that came to her.
“Silverbolt? But you're gold,” Rocky and Discord observed simultaneously, though with differing tones of amusement and exasperation, respectively.
“Uh, yeah. You'd have to ask my mom about that one,” she said, forcing off an awkward laugh, “Now, I really need to go...”
“Yeah? Where're you going? Or were going before hitting the tree,” he lightheartedly teased.
She pointed a hoof off randomly. “Castle-tower thing.”
He glanced behind him at said ‘castle-tower thing’ before turning back to Ryan. “Hey, I could take you there!”
“Uh…”
“Let’s go!” he announced, blissfully ignorant to Ryan’s helplessness. He reached out and grabbed hold of one of ‘Silverbolt’s hooves in a friendly manner, content to pull her along if need be.
To Ryan, it was anything but friendly. She yanked her caught limb back, retreating it to the safety of her control. She winced.
“Oh, uh… sorry,” he apologized, sounding genuinely remorseful, “I shouldn’t have… They tell me I’m a bit eager at times…”
Ryan shook her head. “It’s fine,” she said, “I just… don’t like surprises.”
“Sorry,” he said again, “Um… I don’t mean to be rude, but would you look at me? You’ve kind of been looking down this whole time.”
To her credit, she did try, falling into the routine of looking in the other’s general direction but not directly at them. “No, can’t do that. Sorry.” There was a silence as Rocky waited for an explanation. None came, and as far as Ryan was concerned, it would stay that way.
“Well… Still want me to take you to the castle? If you don’t, I understand…” He trailed off, distantly waving his hoof.
“Uh—”
“For the love of chaos!” Discord exclaimed, “Can we just get moving again? Either say yes or tell Rocky to hit the road.”
Pun-induced cringing aside, Ryan responded to the waiting stallion, “Uh, sure. Lead the way.” Why not? she figured, As long as he minds personal space…
“Do you always talk to yourself like that?” Discord commented.
Shut up, she thought back.
“Great!” Rocky replied, perking up in his whole demeanor again, “Just follow me. Heh, I can tell you all about the place. That is, if you don’t already know. You from around here?” He waved his hoof, gesturing for her to follow as he set a quiet gait.
“No… Just passing through,” she replied as she trailed behind. Technically the truth.
“Oh?” he said, turning his head aside to look at her, “Where you from, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“…Raleigh,” she answered. Also technically the truth.
He put on a curious, head-tilted gaze as he asked, “Haven’t heard of that place before. Where’s that?”
“Tell him it’s on Earth,” Discord unhelpfully suggested, “Isn’t that ‘technically the truth?’”
She, once again, ignored him. It was the best she could do considering he was in her head in some literal sense. “It’s down south a ways.”
“Really?” he said, surprised, “What brings you all the way up here?”
Ryan lifted her gaze, focusing on the tower ahead of her. It was even more beautiful up close, she realized. If it was made on Earth, it would have to be the most valuable thing ever made. “Castle-tower thing,” she answered with a small smirk.
“You came all the way just to visit it? Can’t say I blame you. It’s quite the sight.” He took his own gander towards the crystal monument.
“Mmhm,” Ryan agreed.
Seeing she wasn’t planning to say more, he continued, “Well, I think you’ll find it’s worth the visit. Why, the caste itself is…”
Rocky kept talking, but Ryan didn’t pay him much mind. Useless trivia was, well, useless. Instead, she focused her attention on the task at han—hoof. From what she knew, the current objective was to simply get to the castle and hopefully ditch an overly-social stallion. Her small bit of mental organization was interrupted, however, by Discord.
“I have to say I’m honestly surprised,” he said, “I didn’t think you’d take up his offer. You really have made progress. I’m serious this time.”
She shrugged, producing a small hop since she had all her limbs on the ground. She neverminded it. Well, it’s just one horse, she thought back, I can handle one.
“That’s not the point,” he retorted, “I’m saying that you’re willingly let what you fear lead you down the road.”
I don’t know, she said back, Just being nice to the guy? He seemed eager to help. It’s not like he’s asking me out on a date. Ryan looked around to the businesses passing by along the side of the street. Being on the side of the street, she didn’t have to worry about any residents catching her eye. Though she knew she wouldn’t have a complete breakdown by seeing them, it was never pleasant. Most of the small shops and restaurants were closed for the night, except for a few establishments for the late-hour worker dotted here and there. So, she addressed to Discord, Would now be a good time to hear the plan?
“Eh… why not?” he rhetorically asked. Clearing his throat, he said, “Once you get to the castle, you’re going to be on your own.”
“What?” she blurted out, her tone a note too high.
“I said I run the ice cream shop over there,” Rocky answered, pointing out a darkened building, “It’s closed for the night right now.”
Ryan blinked. “Oh, uh… cool. Tell me about it.”
He beamed at her. “With pleasure! When I was just a colt, my father told me, ‘Son. One day you will own your own…’”
What do you mean I’ll be alone? she cried inwardly.
“Let me finish,” Discord scoffed, “Yes, you’ll be alone. But only because I need to deal with the Crystal Heart.”
But, but—
“But don’t worry about it,” he “finished,” “You’ll be fine. All you’re doing is making your way down to the gateway. With a little luck, Rocky, here, will lead you all the way there!” he joked.
She sighed. Nothing would ever be easy. Well, she lamented, if that’s the only way to do it, I guess I can manage for a bit… But what about what you said earlier? Why couldn’t you have simply teleported me in?
“Because old Celly has yet to disable the magical safeguards in the castle, almost all of which were designed against me, which is a fact I take pride in. I could get around them, but there’s no doubt some kind of signal will tell her what’s going on. The last thing we need is her running all the way down here. I’ll need all the time I can get for when I start tampering with the ‘Magic of Love.’”
Okay then. What happens when I get to the gate?
“Simple question, simple answer. I’ll open it,” he replied, “Then you’re home free!”
Oh. She didn’t think it would be so simple. Of course, it may have just been easier said than done, but it was simple in essence. For her entire time on this scheming boat going homeward, Ryan never had truly thought about going home. She’d pondered why she’d wanted to go and wondered how she would accomplish it, but she had never simply the action of leaving, small glances at the ultimate goal aside. Seeing the entire plan of her departure was exhilarating. She felt a bout of optimistic light shine down from the starry sky. “This is it,” the light prophesized to her and her alone, “You’re going home.” She found herself smiling a warm, genuine sign to the world to be left behind.
In her stupor of happiness, she barely noticed Rocky’s sudden stop and turn. She momentarily stumbled before carefully righting herself. “Any reason you stopped?” she asked.
He nodded, pointing his hoof upwards. “We’re here,” he announced. And so they were. Her eyes widened as her head turned nearly straight up to see the testament to the empire in its entirety. She would’ve praised its beauty once again if Rocky hadn’t spoken sooner. “I know. I had the same reaction when I first saw it…” She nodded dumbly. His smile faltered for a moment as he bit his lip, then began, “Silverbolt?”
“Uh-huh?” she replied, not paying him much attention.
“It was nice talking with you, however brief…” He ran a hoof through his mane. “Like, I don’t have too many friends so I don’t get to open up that often…”
“Mmhm.”
“So I was wondering if you’d like to… go out some time? Like, just to coffee or something, not as a date,” he hastily added, “Unless you want it to be, but I know you probably have to go home at some—”
“Discord, why are you laughing?” ‘Silverbolt’ suddenly said aloud.
Rocky’s eyes furrowed as he looked on confusedly. “What? Who’s laughing?”
Ryan turned to him, wide-eyed. “Oh, sorry. I was talking to the voice in my head. What were you saying?”
The brown-coated stallion opened his mouth then promptly shut it. He shook his head before saying, “Um… I was just asking… and it’s alright if you say no…” Ryan looked at him with expectancy. “If you maybe wanted to go out sometime?” He smiled weakly as a fitting bead of sweat rolled off.
The woman-turned-mare’s wide-eyed stare continued, regressing into blankness. Rocky could only return it awkwardly. Finally, she reacted, very much too late. “Oh!” she suddenly exclaimed, “Uh… I…” For once, she was grateful she couldn’t look at his face. “Sorry,” she said, putting on a sad tone, “I can’t.”
“Oh…” he responded, dropping his gaze as his ears folded back, “Sorry. I know I must have come off as a total creep…”
Ugh, I really don’t need to be guilt tripped right now, Ryan thought helplessly. “No, it’s not you,” she tried, “You’re just… not my type. You seem like a great guy, honest. Just…” He looked up at her in a spark of dampened interest. “I don’t… do that,” she weakly finished, cringing at the weakness of her own words.
He cocked his head before straightening up, his eyes widening. “Oh, I understand. Sorry, I know this must have been awkward,” he said giving a small laugh.
“You understand?” she inquired.
He nodded. “Yeah. Same-sex relationships are quite common after all.”
An unhelpful, rosy blush decided to play across her cheeks. “Oh, uh, I… I—”
“But maybe we can still spend some time together? As friends?” he asked, making light of the situation. She could only nod. “Great,” he said, smiling a small bit, “I’d love to get to know you more; I’ve never been too far south. My parlor’s open all day, every day, so stop by whenever you feel like it.” He glanced up to the sky. “Yeah, it’s getting kind of late… I think I’ll be going home now. You staying here?”
“Yeah…”
“Okay. Hope you enjoy your visit. Nice meeting you!” he called as he began to walk away, gesturing his farewell.
She waved back. “Nice to… meet you,” she said, soon in her lonesome once again. Well, almost. “Discord,” she muttered, “Stop laughing.”
He laughed harder.
Ryan approached the heart-shaped gem, a sense of distance spreading through her. That’s it, she thought, That’s the key. Just sitting here so unassumingly. “Unassuming” might not be the best way to describe it, though. Just by being next to it, she could feel the magical might it held. Powered by love, she remembered, as strange a concept as that was. However, she had no doubt in its truth now; warm emotions surfaced in her the more she looked at the crystal power source.
“Yup,” Discord said in monotone, having calmed down from one rather rambunctious fit of laughter, “That’s the Heart. Fancy.”
She nodded, receiving the hint but returning it to sender. She wanted to savor the flavor. She heard the sound of approaching hooves, but she paid them no mind until they spoke up. “Beautiful. Isn’t it?”
Ryan did turn her head this time, meeting the pinkish form of a pony adorned in a crown above a spiraling horn. At her side were graceful wings, not unlike Twilight’s, which simply rested folded up. Ryan’s brow furrowed slightly before taking a guess at who it was. “Cadence?” she guessed, hoping she was remembering her stories right.
The alicorn grinned. “You know…” she started, “It’s rather impolite to address royalty without their title, let alone not bow at all.”
Ryan’s mouthed opened into a silent “Oh!” before she awkwardly tried to bow. She froze mid-position at the sound of a giggle.
“It’s fine,” Cadence said, “To be honest, I never liked all the royal formalities. What’s your name?”
“Silverbolt,” she answered.
Cadence gave a small laugh. “Silver? But you’re gold.”
“So I’ve been told,” she replied.
“So, what do you say?”
“What do I say?” Ryan answered with a question.
“The Heart. It’s beautiful, no?”
“Oh, yeah. It is,” she replied, looking back up at it.
Cadence smiled again, taking a few steps to it. She gazed up at it, merely looking; she said, “…I’m guessing you’re not from around here. Am I right?”
Ryan raised an eyebrow. “How’d you know that?”
“None of the locals pay much attention to the Heart anymore. They’re used to it. If I may ask, what brings you here? Just touring?”
If I may ask…? Ryan repeated in her head, You’re a princess. You don’t have to ask. Before she could respond, Discord interjected.
“This is perfect, Ryan!” he piped in, “She could be your ticket into the castle and past the entry guards.”
Entry guards? You didn’t tell me—
“Not now. Can’t you see the princess is waiting for an answer?” he hissed, “Don’t mess this up.”
She resisted the urge to let out a snort of un-amusement. Taking a breath, she forced her mind to formulate a plan. She recalled random bits of information in hopes of finding one that would help; Cadence was one of four alicorns, she was married to Shining Shield or something, who was a brother to Twilight. “No, actually,” she said, words coming off as smooth as she could make them, “I was sent here to see you. And your husband, too.” She felt Discord’s watchful gaze raise an eyebrow at her.
“Oh?” Cadence said, raising an eyebrow at the news, “What would that be for? And who is it that you came on behalf of?”
Ryan paused for a moment and a moment only. “Twilight sent me,” she answered, “I’m friends with her. She wanted me to… carry on a message to you two.”
Cadence’s curious face turned into a frown, causing Ryan’s heart to skip a beat. She’s suspicious.
“What did she send you out here to say?” Cadence asked through a piercing gaze.
“Oh, um…” Ryan’s eyes briefly darted around the area. “It’s a… private matter. She wanted me to tell you two where no one could eavesdrop.”
Cadence pursed her lips. “Pardon me for saying,” she started, “But this seems just a bit… bizarre… Would you have, say, something from her confirming what you say? Not that I don’t trust you, but this is just a bit random. Sudden.”
Ryan gulped. No, she didn’t. And yes, she did hope Cadence would take her word for it. “I—”
“Repeat after me,” Discord suddenly whispered to her. She nodded inwardly, no questions asked. Anything to keep the show flowing upwards.
“She told me to give you a message, knowing this would seem rather odd, as you said. She said to tell you…” Her brow furrowed for a moment. “Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake… Clap your hooves and do a little shake…” Cadence’s eyes widened, much to Ryan’s anxiety. Discord! Ryan scolded in a near-panicky rush of thoughts, The hell was that?! Now I just look like an idiot.
The chaos spirit merely chuckled. “You don’t need me to do that,” he teased. Ryan didn’t partake in the lightheartedness. Rather, she was busy preparing herself for whatever the alicorn had in store for her. Perhaps simply bizarre look or perhaps a locking way in an asylum. She hoped for the former.
“Oh,” Cadence spoke bluntly, “I guess you are serious. Sorry for being all suspicious, but…” She waved a dismissive gesture. “Want to follow me to the castle? My husband should still be up at this time.”
Ryan blinked. “Uh, yeah,” she managed, still recoiling from the apparent success of the nonsense she uttered. She felt Discord’s snicker as she set off behind Cadence.
“Told you,” he commented smugly, “Though, I’m disappointed you didn’t do the movements. That would’ve really convinced her.”
Yeah, no. The words were ridiculous as is. What were they all about, anyways?
He explained, “That’s an old saying they recite from when she watched young Twilight.”
That makes more sense now, she replied, So, she babysat Twilight while also being a princess?
“No, she bucked Twilight’s brother while also being a princess. The babysitting was a side job.” Ryan decided not to comment, instead trying not to send a repulsed stare in Cadence’s direction. “Alright,” Discord started, “This is where we part ways. You have your castle to stumble through and I have my crystal of happy emotions to tamper with.”
Huh? Wait, I’m not ready yet. I don’t know how to get to the gate or what I’m going to say or…
“It’ll be fine,” he dismissed, “I’ll admit you’re a bit more resourceful than I give you credit to. As for the gate, it’s on the first floor from when the castle was built around it. Look for a huge, obvious door with a guard posted out front. Just remember how you go up and you’ll be halfway there. I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”
I-I guess… She trailed off uncertainly. So this is goodbye?
“Don’t go all sentimental on me,” he replied with a roll of his lack of eyes.
She frowned. Alright, but just let me say thanks. I know we didn’t get along too well—
He snorted.
—but I really do appreciate all this. Heck, I could even say I owe my life to you. So, thanks. I think you are actually a pretty good guy under all that… cynicism.
“Aw, Ryan… How very sweet of you. You’re very welcome, my dear.” She couldn’t tell if he was being sarcastic.
Bye, Discord. I hope everything goes good for you.
“Funny,” he smiled, “I could say the same thing to you. Ta ta!”
Ryan didn’t feel any indication of his leaving, but she knew he was gone. A sudden wave of solitude washed over her. As annoying as he was, any company was better than none, and the alicorn in front of her hardly counted as some. She meant her word when she told him how she felt, and though he may have dismissed it in his own brand of fashion, Ryan was sure that he did feel something. He was the one who had claimed his own not-heartlessness, after all. Thinking over his rather anticlimactic farewell, she got an ominous vibe. As if she should be hoping for herself. Though that was probably true, it didn’t come off that simple. Nonetheless, she didn’t think much of it. Just Discord being Discord.
For now, she followed the oblivious Cadence, her mind elsewhere.
If she had to describe the castle in one word, it would have been dark. Not in the atmospheric sense and even less the colorful aesthetic. Rather, the innards of the towering height was simply lit modestly for whatever reason. Going up the winding staircases didn’t fix the problem, not that there was any real reason that it would. If the lack of illumination did one thing, however, it would have been succeeding in giving the halls an ornate vibe. She couldn’t tell if the occasional passing guard helped or hindered said vibe.
Ryan had taken Discord’s advice to heart, doing her best to remember the path upward. Being in that direction, it wasn’t too difficult; all she would need to do is keep track of stairwells. Her mental record went unhindered as long as—
“That’s a lovely scarf, by the way.”
—one alicorn didn’t interrupt her careful thought process. “Thanks,” she replied simply. Cadence had been trying every so often to make small talk, which, however rude, had been shut down each time. Pleasantries weren’t high on Ryan’s list of priorities, if they were there at all. Nonetheless, the Princess talked anyways.
“The color’s cashmere, right?” she asked, throwing back a trying smile.
Ryan looked down at the scarf draped around her neck, courtesy of the draconequus. Apparently these are my clothes, she remembered. In her rush of transformation, she hardly gave the magical scarf a second glance. She was no fashion fanatic, but she did admit it looked nice. Not bad for a chaos god. “I think so,” she answered.
“Favorite of yours?”
She gave a dead-beat laugh. “Yeah… Sure do love Kashmir.”
“I’ve always liked it, but it never went well with my coat,” Cadence said. Well, a conversation about colors was more than nothing. “Where’d you get it?”
Ryan had a feeling saying “Discord” would be a bad idea. “It was a personal design I had made for me,” she answered.
“Really? Who’s the designer?”
“Sidcord.” Really?! she yelled at herself, That’s the best I can do?
Cadence put on a thinking face. “Hm… That sounds familiar…”
“Well…” Ryan started, “He’s pretty well known so you’ve probably heard of him.”
“Probably,” she dismissively agreed.
A lull of silence returned as another feeble conversation died down, only one of them partaking in any noticing. The other was busy counting stairwells. Looking around, Ryan saw the monotonous repetition of the stylized walls around her that were so much like the previous floors’. As elaborate as they were, the eye gets tired of seeing the same light constantly. She shook her head. “Cadence?” she asked, watching the alicorn’s ear perk her way, “Would you happen to have a restroom around here? It’s been a long trip and…”
“Of course,” the princess answered whilst nodding her head, “There should be one… just around the corner.” She pointed a hoof off down the hall.
“Thanks,” came the simple reply, followed by a modest shuffle in the direction she indicated.
“If you don’t mind,” Cadence spoke up, “I’m going to go on ahead. I need to talk to Shining for a moment. I’ll have a guard lead you up when you’re done, alright?”
That’s a lot better than alright, Ryan thought. It only made things easier, an instance she felt had been severely lacking as of late. Nodding her head, she remembered a simple bow before making a trot down the hall. She took a meager glance behind her before she rounded the angle, seeing Cadence already being approached by a guard she seemed to have called forth. Ryan didn’t bother to watch anymore, for she left to the restroom already.
Closing the door beside her, she gave a sigh born of anxiousness. She needed to get to the gate, she knew, and following the princess to Whereverland was just wasting time. Not to mention that she wasn’t so confident she’d be able to craft an entire story for the royal couple to buy. Reassuring herself on another line of thought, she knew her goal and how to get there. The current problem was now one pesky guard that would be waiting for her.
How to get past a guard… she pondered. Her eyes glanced around aimlessly as her vision never truly focused on anything, save for one mare in the mirror. She could swear there was some kind of joke in her being unable to look at herself, but she wasn’t in the mood for self-depreciation. I’m a horse, she thought, So how do I turn back? Discord wasn’t the type to simply forget to tell her. “Forget” to tell her maybe, but not forget.
As if hearing her question, a light flash shown off of her scarf, centered on a tag she hadn’t previously noticed. It wouldn’t have surprised her if it hadn’t actually been there a moment before. Pushing it up to her face, it read, “To transform back into the—over.” An arrow pointed from the word to the edge of the small segment of fabric. Shrugging, she flipped it over to the other side, revealing more text. “Hairless diamond dog you call a human—over.” She flipped it again. “Simply will yourself to. From Discord, with love.”
“…That works,” she said with an appreciative nod. One problem solved, one problem not, the latter belonging to the vigil that was no doubt outside her door. The tempting idea of trying to scare him off by transforming came to mind, but that ran the unfortunate risk of being stabbed through the chest with a spear—something she was simply too busy to deal with. Besides, she didn’t know if she would be able to transform back again.
She peeked her head through the doorway, drawing back a half-step at seeing the crystal-coated set of armor outside her door, back turned. She steeled her nerves before calling out, “Excuse me?”
His ear swiveled at the sound, his head soon following the motion. “Yes?” he answered astutely, staring behind with an expectant gaze.
Her breath came out in a shudder, but she forced herself to respond. “The restroom’s, well, all out.”
“All out?” he repeated, raising an eyebrow.
“Of tissue,” she elaborated.
His brow furrowed. “Every stall?”
“That’s what I’m saying!” she exclaimed in theatrics, “Would you be able to…”
He bit his lip as he shifted in place; he took a moment to think. “I’m not supposed to leave you unattended,” he finally stated.
I can work with this, Ryan thought. “Oh!” she retorted haughtily, putting him under a withering glare, “So you’re just going to leave a lady stuck here?”
“No!” he reacted too quickly and too loudly, “I mean no. I mean, I’m not supposed to…”
Her gaze narrowed. His gaze widened.
“I’ll go… find that janitor,” he relented, “Just stay here. It will only be a moment.”
She commented, “Not like I can go anywhere.” He gave a helpless glance before turning tail and striding down the hall. Ryan watched his departure, counting to twenty to the beat of his clanking armor. Silently closing the bathroom door, she followed his path, reversing her own earlier one. Watching the halls, she continued in a brisk pace, satisfied in her progress. Now to get to the gateway…
Following her mental chart of staircases, Ryan descended through the castle, making sure to check off the few standing details of the castles, keeping her on track. Her eyes maintained a constant scanning radar of the surroundings in case of an approaching guard or castle aid or any other unhelpful resident. “Huge, obvious door,” she remembered she was looking for, and it that was sealed away on the ground floor. Seemed simple enough; she figured Discord would’ve told her more if there actually more to it.
The few times she did see someone in the thankfully inactive castle, she drew back into whichever hall she’d come from. Ryan didn’t know what would happen if some random castle worker spotted her, but she didn’t intend to find out. On a few annoyances of an occasion, she had to completely reroute her path due to a guard that seemed quite content to stand in front of some door or whatnot all night long.
Moving along, it occurred to her that the guard from earlier had to have returned to the bathroom by now and discovered her disappearance, which would lead to him reporting it, which would lead to a search through the castle for the missing mare. All the more reason to hurry. She moved to quicken her pace but immediately retracted the increase. She cursed her hooved limbs for their noisy clopping sound.
Ugh… Just keep moving.
Ryan raised an eyebrow at the familiar sight of the castle entrance a ways away from her. She’d come full circle, she realized. Against her better judgment, she paused for a moment just to watch the inactive scene. The closed doors were there—not like they could go anywhere—ending the open space of the castle’s first room. Other than the lonely gates, there was nothing to the vicinity. No people, no sounds, and minimal décor.
She shrugged.
The former woman did get something out of the re-encounter, though—she was on the same floor as the gateway. Less vertical, more horizontal, she figured. The thought forced a smirk onto her face. She was almost there. Done with this all madness. No more horses or goddesses to harass her. Well, less of “harass” on the former. She’d made a few friends that would beg to differ.
Though, it was still too early for celebration. There was still the matter of getting to the gate itself. So, with a swish of her tail, she set off.
“Yup… huge, obvious door,” she muttered under her breath.
Peeking her head past the corner, the vast walls of the crystalline gates stretched from floor to sky, easily towering over the insignificant form of the singular guard beneath it, as if it needed him—it would’ve been more suited to protecting the miniscule patroller. The gate needed none; for, the monster was its own guardian.
Darning a frown, Ryan’s brow furrowed. However unneeded, the soldier was still a soldier in her path. Clearly on purpose, the path he blocked was a straight, unhindered shot that made sneaking in completely impossible. To make matters worse, it was a simple dead end with no other way to approach. At the moment, the armored horse was lazily standing with his gaze to the floor, not watching the one hallway he was put in charge of.
Even if his attention was away, a simple glance up at the sound of approaching hooves would completely blow the little cover Ryan had. She turned back around the corner and out of the gate’s view, and, biting her lip, she considered her options, however few there were. Option one, she could try her notoriously unreliable luck and hope the guard was blind and deaf enough not to notice her until she got close, but what then? Politely ask to go in? Okay, she thought, option two. She could sprint down the hallway like an idiot and then ask politely.
Ryan groaned. Out of everything to put a hindering dent in her progress, it was a simple hallway. She had been doing so well she surprised herself. Not a single incident other than a few close shaves with a passerby. This wasn’t a silly video game where she could lure the ignorant guard out long enough to sneak by. With a scowl, she took another gander around the corner, seeing the guard unchanged from moments ago. He hasn’t moved a single bit, she thought, Might as well be asleep.
Her eyes widened as a thought struck her. Don’t horses sleep standing up? Horses around here seem to prefer beds, but if they’re anything like ones on Earth… “No way,” she muttered, “No way he’s asleep.” But who’s to say it’s not possible, eh?
The mare cautiously and unhurriedly took a few hesitant steps around the corner. The guard had no reaction; though, it gave her no comfort; she was too far away to be noticeable yet. Her quadruped form crept forward, leaning towards the crystal walls as if to hide like a wallflower. Although unfamiliar with the concept of having hooves, she made do with them the best she could in trying to keep a hushed gait, having moderate success at rolling along the curved edge of the limb instead of coming down flatly, not unlike how she would sneak along on normal feet. Still confident in her apparent shroud of silence, she dared a glance behind her, raising a surprised eyebrow at what she saw. Half way there. “No way.”
She drew closer still to the goddess’s forbidden fruit, her anxiousness growing at each heavy step, which, to her frazzled state of mind, seemed to grow louder with each beat in the rhythm, threatening to lean over the cliff a degree too far and wake the guard. However, she refused to give up and not just because there was no turning back—she had long since passed that point. She forged herself a drive to keep going, heated by the knowing of what laid so close to her grasp. This is it, she told herself, Almost there.
And soon enough, “almost there” turned into “there.”
“No way,” Ryan stated again, this final time born of realization instead of disbelief. Her earlier suspicions confirmed by the gentle snoring sound of the guard, she held back a laugh of relief. She carefully stepped by the sleeping sentinel, her head bobbing up to the colossal gate to the gate. She stared for a moment only at the tempting entryway, before giving a firm shake of her head. Ryan reached out with a hoof, slightly drawing back at the unexpected coldness on contact, but returned just as readily. Readying her hoof back onto the door, she pushed and—
“HALT!”
Ryan jumped at the booming command that echoed down the hall greet her. Her head twisted back on its own accord and she shivered at the sight of the garrison of soldiers marching its way down in formation, blocking off the path she’d come from. Though, that wasn’t what intimidated her. What did that was the commander at the head of the pack, his head lowered into a glare as he set a stomping example of an approach. Unlike the rest of the followers, he had actual hair for a white coat and a striking mess off blue hair atop his head. She had no doubt that he was the one who had bellowed out to her.
“Miss Silverbolt.” he called through a rough voice. It wasn’t a question. “I’m going to ask you to—”
Ryan rushed the door, preparing to throw her whole weight against it if necessary, only for a forceful shove to throw her back onto the floor. She looked up wide-eyed at the previously sleeping guard. He returned a flat glare as he gave a shake of his head. She bit her lip as she shakily turned back towards the horse in charge. A feeling of fear dropped through her; for once, it was not familiar.
“Fine then,” he spoke again, “I won’t ask. I’ll tell you—you’re coming with us, Miss Silverbolt.” He stopped a horse lengths away in front of her.
No, no, no, she thought, It’s not ending here. Mustering up her courage, she retorted, “Firstly, my name is Ryan. And secondly—” She pushed herself back up. “—I’m going in there whether you like it or not, sheriff.” All eyes shifted from her to the leader as they awaited his response.
He stated, “That’s Prince Shining Armor. As such, I’m ordering you to come with us. Are you aware of where you are right now?”
She snorted. “Fully.”
“So you admit to trespassing on royal grounds?” he commented.
“Sure,” she shot back, “And while I’m at it, I also admit to manipulating your wife into letting me into the castle. She was very polite.” Her mouth formed a smirk at the flash of anger that appeared in his eyes, but they both know he couldn’t snap lest he lose his cool in front of his troops.
He narrowed his gaze as he ordered, “Guards, seize her. You know where to take her; we’ll interrogate her there.” The pair at his sides gave a unified “Yes sir!” before looking to Ryan. They took slow, cautious steps towards her.
Ryan’s smile dropped along with her cocky façade. No more time for games, however brief it was. She needed to act and do it now. The only problem was that she didn’t know what “it” was. Her mind quickly raced, accelerating in its race of thoughts with each beat of the guards’ steps. Analyzing her situation, she started with the goal—get past the door. Problem—a no longer sleepy guard blocking her escape. Solution—get past the guard to get past the door. Process—…distract him, she concluded. She almost gave a laugh at the thought. She knew exactly what could be done.
“As I said,” she announced, putting on bravado once again, “I’m going whether you like it or not, and no lame jackass is going to stop me.” Grinning confidently, she concentrated all her focus onto one goal, and, in turn, her body responded fully. The bizarre sensation of her very own bodily structure rearranging itself spread through her senses for the second time that day. Although jarring, she had already braced herself for the experience. As her center of balance shifted, the feeling of her returning digits sprouted forth. Even her scarf followed the act as the fabric grew and expanded around her as promised.
As the sensations subsided, she found herself on all fours, knees also in contact with the ground. With a quick experimental tense of the muscles on her transformed body, she sprang back to two feet with the skill only a biped would possess. Because, of course, that was what she was.
Human once again, she darted her eyes in rapid succession through the ranks of horses that opposed her. Just as expected, they all wore trepidation across their faces, some even giving a satisfying expression of stifled fear, but more importantly, the two escorts had stopped their approach to gape in shock. For a moment, everything was still.
And that was all Ryan needed.
For the second time, she turned and rushed for the door, shoving the now only half-her-size guard out of the way before he could register what had happened. Her outstretched hands reached for the massive gates to freedom and planted themselves against the cold surface. She burst out into a brief laugh mixed from victory and relief at the contact. She could picture it all so clearly in her head—pushing in the door just enough to get through and promptly closing it behind her. She would then make her mad dash to the awaiting gate as the failure of a garrison chased her moments too late. Discord would play his part, and she would be home free! Literally! Ryan threw her weight into the door and pushed with all she had, expecting the roaring opening creak of the door to answer her.
It didn’t.
The door resisted her efforts, not budging even a sliver. “Ah!” she cried in surprise as her own force pushed her headfirst into the barrier. Wincing only for a moment, she threw her gaze up to the towering gate. Her eyes expanded to saucers, but she tried again, crashing her shoulder against the crystal.
And again, nothing moved.
She grit her teeth as panic started to rear up inside her. Why isn’t it opening? she madly yelled to herself.
Maybe it’s locked, a voice in her head answered.
Locked?! Locked. “It’s locked!” she cried, “It can’t be locked! It-I-it can’t be!” Her hand futilely banged against the uncooperative passageway, and her head dropped against it. No… She barely noticed the light rose-colored tint that took appeared in her vision.
“Yes, it’s locked,” a voice answered to her, “Why wouldn’t one of the most protected rooms in the castle be left unlocked?”
She muttered an incoherent phrase that no one, not even herself could make out. The woman stood stock-still, not the smallest movement save the automatic rise and fall of her breathing. She said nothing further, giving no reaction to the weightless sensation as she was levitated away; nor when words were spoken, whether they be at her or not; nor when the guards that carried her away suddenly yelped out in surprise as the castle’s foundations groaned and creaked at the massive shaking of the earth below them.
All she could do was stare at what could’ve—no—what should’ve been.
Shining Armor “handed” off the… thing to another guard’s magical grip. To say he was confused would be an understatement, but he had a few other emotions distracting him from befuddlement. First and foremost was what could almost be called “unbridled frustration,” if not for the fact that he didn’t show any outward sign of it.
He watched the strange biped being carried away before calling out, “Lieutenant? I’d like a word with you.”
The stallion being called froze in his tracks and turned to face his superior. The rest of the garrison moved on without him. “Yes, sir?” he answered as strongly as he could. It wasn’t very much considering the withering glare he was being put under.
“Explain to me this,” Shining started, his voice rising with each word, “How did a mare, a shape shifter no less, manage to so easily get pass all the regular patrols while also avoiding every single detection spell that are regularly re-cast to avoid mistakes?”
The lieutenant gulped. “I… maybe she’s really good at spells?”
Shining narrowed his gaze. “Maybe,” he said, turning towards the closed doors, “We’ll find out. What I want to know is why she was so intent on opening these doors.”
“To get to the other side?” he suggested.
“Is that a joke?” Shining interrogated.
He hastily shook his head. “No sir! You just asked why she wanted to open the door, and doors are usually opened in order to go through the doorway.”
The prince held a hard stare, but he dropped it, turning back to the door. “What could—” His eyed widened. Immediately, he lit his horn, the glow dying down after a few moments.
“What is it, sir?” the guard asked.
“Inform my wife that we have a problem…” he said, “It smells like chaos magic in here.”
Ryan’s wearied eyes blinked as they suddenly shifted into focus. Widened, they scanned the enclosing walls around here, save for one barred opening. She registered that she was lying on the floor, but that was hardly important to her. Rather, the nasty instance of realization hit her like a train.
She’d failed. Simple as that. Even in simplicity, however, it meant so much more. No getting to the gate or going to Earth or returning home. Which all meant, of course, no seeing her family again.
“No,” she chanted, “No, no, no!” She bolted upright. “This isn’t happening! Not when I was so close! Discord said—”
Discord! He could help her.
“Discord!” she called, her voice cracking in desperation, “Where are you?!” She waited in vain silence for a moment, save for the all-too-present thumping of her heart. “Discord?! I know you can hear me. You always do.”
…
“Discord?” she tried morosely, her voice a whisper. She set down her hand to push herself up, only to fall back as the trembling limb slipped. She didn’t bother to try again.
Her lip quivered as the end finally took hold. This was it, she remembered saying to herself. That had been right, but it wasn’t in the way she had hoped. Now, she would be forever stuck here on a planet filled with nothing but the things she feared and ruled by a tactless, self-righteous, immortal goddess.
Tears streaming, body exhausted, and emotions dead, she did the only thing she could.
She screamed.
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You failed.
Like I said earlier; individual humans are more than capable of utter failure. Sometimes, you give a problem everything you have, and it's not enough, and you need to accept that and move on.
But, I don't see a tragedy tag here, so I'm guessing that won't be an issue here.
So close
Maybe this was why discord was so cooperative
Aw man. When can we expect the next update? I hate downers like this. I want to see Ryan go home.
Keep the door locked. Simple, straightforward, sensible.
A well written chapter.
Well that happened almost according to plan. We were hoping she'd attempt to stun Cadence and Shining, but not like that!
"
And it could totally have been legitimate too! "Twilight sent me to tell you I'm a human. Now you know why I had to keep this a secret. Can you let me through the gate pwetty pwease???
Sadly that didn't happen, so onward to the next plan!
Keep going! ;)
Haven't read it yet but, YAY NEW CHAPTER!
Hey, don't be like that Ryan! Discord'll pull through! You won't be stuck on a planet filled with nothing but the things you fear and ruled by a tactless, self-righteous, immortal goddess if he has anything to say about it! Of course, if he has anything to say about it there probably won't be a planet at all, but hey at least horses are the least of your worries!
5302916 Ok I know how much Acrophobia sucks man, I have that one in a big way.
I think Celestia has learned something from all this...
Think Discord did this on purpose for that extra chaos spice
You fucking did it, I love you!
I love this story
do continiu
I can't for the next chapter!
This can only end badly.
Whats gonna happen?!?!?!?
A good example of Heinlein's point from If This Goes On -- that the information-content of a communication may mean less than the emotional one. In fact, there was absolutely nothing vile about Cadance and Shining's relationship (though it was to some unknown extent sexual even when they were teenagers): Discord merely put it in terms that he knew would disgust Ryan, in order to prevent Cadance's considerable charisma from affecting Ryan.
If he had instead said "No, she fell in love with Twilight's brother while also being a princess. The babysitting was something she did in part because she loved him," the emotional effect would have been very, very different. Though it is probably true that at some point during this period they began having sexual intercourse.
Discord is playing Ryan like a musical instrument, and he very obviously has utter contempt for her.
i.pinimg.com/originals/b6/d7/86/b6d786163f8f43e2965551d5ef0b40f8.jpg