Chapter 22: Tick Tock
Differentiating between reality and fantasy got harder after that day. The way Val made me feel, the way she sent a prickling sensation down my spine, could only be explained by my disorder. Unbidden thoughts began to surface in my consciousness when my mind wandered. All those ‘what if’s’ and ‘how is it’s’ tried to break through, to make themselves known, but I pushed them down the same way I always have.
Hard work, books, nursing Steel Fang back to health, and despite my aversion to it, social contact.
Some days were quite easy: I’d get up and do some manual labor or some odd job for some extra bits. Other days, I’d have to practically start over on projects because a certain three-headed dog decided that silly obstructions like ‘trees’ and ‘outhouses’ were beneath its notice. Well, not really my outhouse. Cerberus actually stopped running and started rolling in what was left of it. After I shooed him away, I had to go back to my hut to make sure Steel wasn’t bothered by the noise. When I was changing his bandages, I decided to try something new. To make sure he was sapient when he woke up, I pushed my magic out of a wing in front of his snout. As far as I could tell, he was breathing in some of my magic, so he should have gotten better faster.
I guess my experiment really helped out, because he stayed awake for more than a couple minutes a few days later, and he managed to turn over to give me a few grateful licks to the face. He stayed awake as I told him what happened, how sorry I was, and other things to pass the time. He whined a bit when I told him what he’d done, but a belly rub quickly changed his tone. Fluttershy still checked up on him from time to time, and I always had tea prepared for when she came over. She was also kind enough not to note that we were drinking tea out of jars, and she even was confident enough to ask if there was any other type of tea. The small talk was nice, and Angel was polite when he came over, though I think it was because he noticed Steel staring at him hungrily.
It was on Steel’s second day of walking that a visitor other than Fluttershy dropped by.
“Hey Windell!” A cyan pegasus dropped down from the canopy and landed next to Steel Fang.
“Hello again, Skittles.” I smirked without turning around. “Nice to see you get here without running into something.”
“You’re not going to let me live that down, huh?” Rainbow huffed.
“Nope!” I stifled a chuckle.
“Well, I don’t crash because I’m not practicing my moves for the Young Flyer’s competition anymore. Sooooo, whatcha doing?”
“A big dog knocked my outhouse down, and then rolled all over the remains. So I’m building a new one near all of these mint plants,” I said, hammering another nail into my outhouse.
“Ummmm…”
“In hindsight, maybe there was no right way to respond to that statement. So what’s up?” I turned around to face Rainbow.
“Um…okaaay. Well, Cloudsdale needs water, and we need every pegasus in Ponyville to help beat the record set by Manehatten. So I was wondering if ̶ ”
“Sorry Skittles, no can do,” I interrupted. “Even if I didn’t have to nurse Steel back to health--” Rainbow’s eyes hung on his bandaged midsection for a moment before refocusing on me “--I still wouldn’t be able to help you.”
“What? Why?!” Rainbow flung a hoof, accidentally striking my unfinished outhouse, making it wobble precariously. I glared, and she pursed her lips. “Sorry.”
“It’s not that I don’t want to,” I said. “It’s just I can’t. It’s difficult enough for me to be in open spaces on the ground, but in the air would be exponentially worse. One of the reasons I chose a place to live that might be considered claustrophobic.”
“What?”
“I have an illogical fear of open spaces. Agoraphobia.”
“Bu-but you’re a pegasus!”
“Therein lies the irony. I’m not afraid of death, of monsters, of terrors in the night, but of ridiculous things like open spaces. I’m sorry, Skittles.”
“It’s okay, Windell.” Dash sighed and hung her head. “I guess I’ll ask Fluttershy next.”
“Don’t be too harsh on her. Once she puts her mind to something, Effie could surprise you.”
“I guess.” She kicked the ground. “I’ll be seeing you.” Rainbow crouched and lifted off, leaving Steel and I to stare after her rainbow contrail.
Of course, that couldn’t be the end of that, so when she came back a couple days later, I had to pretend I was bedridden with the flu. Okay, it was less ‘pretend’ and more ‘move away all energy from my liver and try not to die’. Suffice to say, my spectacular acting managed to get Rainbow to give up trying to get me on tornado duty.
A few days later, I was busy fortifying my cottage door to make sure it didn’t suffer any more incidents. Steel was being helpful by holding the toolbox for me in his maw, making it easily accessible even when I was working on the top-most hinges.
“A-hem.”
Why? Okay, next project is to build a sign that says ‘No sales, no politics. And NO guru advice.’ Or something like that.
I looked over my withers to find Bon-Bon standing there, looking at me curiously.
“Please tell me Mint hasn’t done anything too bad,” I grumbled.
“Well…yes and no.” Bon-Bon averted her eyes and rubbed her foreleg. “See, she got invited to this wedding, and a friend of mine recently had concerns that there might be some trouble at said wedding. My other friends and I decided we should keep an ear to the ground to see if anything strange is going on. Honestly, you’re the last pony on my list to ask, but knowing how…secluded you are from everypony, I doubt you know anything.”
I raised an eyebrow. That almost sounds like she’s talking about the Canterlot wedding. I can’t tell her anything. Telling her would cause a butterfly effect that could change events that have events to come, as well as put me under scrutiny if word gets out where she got this information. “Sorry,” I said insincerely. “I’ve got nothing.”
“Thanks anyways, Windell.” She nodded and began trotting away. Agh! I can’t give her nothing. What could I say that would seem like nothing but could provide vital insight about changelings? Wait. They can fly.
“Hold up.” Bon-Bon stopped and I flew over to her. “On a second thought, there has been something strange going on in the forest. It’s subtle, but I’ve heard a lot of buzzing recently. I don’t know if it helps but ̶ ”
“That does help!” Bon-Bon perked up and smiled. “Thanks!”
“If you say so.” I smiled in return, waving as she trotted away. I hope that her friend in Canterlot is well-connected. A dome is a good way to shield from an airborne threat, and they might not have been sure to use one.
I wrinkled my muzzle. If such an event were to occur.
<><><>
It does not understand. It expected many things when it felt the presence of ‘The Snake’ opening up another tear, but this is not one of them. A beast that could spit acid? No problem. A titan capable of sending shockwaves with every step? Nothing cloaking and energy absorption couldn’t fix. But a mere nymph, abandoned by the one who summoned it?
Traveler flows around the white-shelled creature, his compound eyes picking up the minute changes caused by the entity. A test. It has to be a test of character. Wait. No, The Snake tried to bring one of the larva’s species over, but ended up with this one. A mere youngling. It can’t bring what it wants exactly. Which means it can make mistakes.
“<Mama?>” The larva chirps.
But the being can’t leave the creature there. It has to do something. He may be the youngling of one of the more violent species in the multiverse, but the Nzugin child is still a child. A blank slate. Leaving him would doom him to starvation. But it can’t feed him either, because the larva only feeds on nectar created by the adults. A nectar that Traveler has no idea how to make. The entity has to choose between leaving the child to his fate, or…
Traveler never really had a choice.
Shifting into what might be perceived as ‘a huge fucking beetle’, it steadily advances towards the nymph. The young Nzugin relaxes as he sees the comforting figure of an adult member of its species. Two sets of arms, horns, and a glossy black exoskeleton.
“<Mama! Food?>” The nymph chirped once more.
“<Sorry, little one. No food. Just comfort.>” Traveler picks up the nymph and envelops him in its embrace.
Traveler rocks back and forth, the air around them getting steadily colder. Traveler’s temperature is warmer, but only just.
“<C-cold,>” The nymph mutters.
“<Sleep, little one. I will be here.>”
But the temperature continues to drop. Slowly, the larva falls asleep. Slowly, it dies. Peacefully. Serenely. The entity stops absorbing the air’s thermal energy once the Nzugin’s biological functions ceases completely. Traveler gently lies the body on the ground.
“I’m sorry this had to happen to you, little one. The most I could ever do for you was give you mercy.” And with that, the larva’s body is destroyed. “I cannot afford to feel sorrow now. Plans are brewing. Events are being put into place. And now…now I need my champion.”
As Traveler zooms northeast of Las Pegasus, it thinks on what would have happened if a warrior caste Nzugin had appeared in the Applewood Mountains. A ten foot tall Nzugin with a jagged chitin and rhinoceros beetle’s horn, tearing through ponies as if they were rice paper. That would not have ended well, especially now, when Traveler needs to be planning for the entrance of its champion. It arrives at a cliff face not far from a particular pegasus’ hut. Carefully, it examines the environment. Nothing of note except a sleeping cockatrice that has strayed too far from its hunting grounds. That has to change. Carefully, Traveler sent a tendril to make a few precise incisions. On the cliff. The cockatrice is exactly where it needs to be. If all goes according to plan; events would result in minimal casualties.
Traveler mimics a sigh. If only it would be zero.
<><><>
Adam always knew he wasn’t smart. Oddly enough, that never stopped him from doing what he had to do. When his bastard of a father left his mother when she was pregnant with his sister, Agnes, he knew that he had to stay with Mom, even if she was stranded in Florida without a job. When his mother insisted he go to school, he snuck out to help her make ends meet. When his sister proved to be far smarter than him, he quit school completely to work as a bouncer at a shady club to help his mother save up for college.
Adam wasn’t a smart man. But when he moved up in the company just by trusting his gut, being charismatic when he needed to be, and looking intimidating, he started noticing things. Funny how doing what he believed was right ended up putting everything he ever loved in danger.
“Adam, Adam, Adam.” His former employer tutted. “Stop pulling at your handcuffs. We don’t want any bruising to ruin any data for the experiment.”
Adam glared and intentionally jostled the manacles to spite him, ignoring the pain from the lack of circulation. Mr. Blank, as he was known in the company, simply sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Really, Mr. Charlebois? Must you resort to such juvenile behavior?” He stepped back from the prisoner as the guards by Adam’s sides moved closer. “You should feel pride, knowing you will advance humanity through your, albeit unwilling, sacrifice.”
Mr. Blank was quite bland. A man of below-average stature, he was a man you could bump into the same street twice without ever realizing he was the same person. Unfortunately, his forgettable face was paired with an unforgettable sense of mercilessness. It was debated by his underlings whether his own security force would recognize him without his burgundy bowler hat that he seemed to keep on his neat blond hair at all times. Even when he stepped back from the kneeling prisoner, Adam could not, for the life of him, remember the color of his eyes.
“I don’t care.” Adam smirked. “What’s done is done. I didn’t know letting the world know about your secret club would get me in an empty room. It was nice of you to have a doctor check on me, though.”
Mr. Blank shook his head and sighed before making an exaggerated shrug.
“I always forget why we don’t talk. I suppose the only reason you ever made it this far was because you were too stupid to realize what was going on. And for your information, the doctor only examined you so we could establish a control.”
“A what now?” Adam cocked his head. The sight of Blank’s nostrils flaring in irritation brought a smile to Adam’s face.
“Forget it.” Mr. Blank waved a hand. “A troglodyte like you would end up delaying the test by a month if I were to elucidate it for you.”
“Maybe, but this trologodyke ended up ruining a lot of your plans.” Adam’s smile grew when he saw Mr. Blank scowl. He knew he mispronounced the word, but he just could help antagonizing him.
“TEST BEGINS IN T-MINUS 60 MINUTES.” A robotic voice spoke over the intercom. Mr. Blank composed himself after taking a few deep breaths.
“I thought the news of your mother’s death would break you.”
“Ma would be proud,” Adam interrupted, adopting a mangled Texan accent.
“I suppose you would think that. And pinning her death on you didn’t seem to faze you.”
“The truth is still out there. And Agnes is too smart to fall for that bait.”
“Hmm. Yes, gloating about that didn’t seem to affect you. I could tell you we already have her ̶ ”
“That’d be lying.”
“Did your ‘gut’ give you this impression?” Blank frowned.
“Yup.” Adam’s smile was beginning to ache, but seeing Mr. Blank in such a tizzy brought him so much joy, he couldn’t help it.
“You truly believe that we can’t break you, don’t you?”
“If you wanted to rough me up, these guys--” Adam pointed his head to the helmeted guards surrounding the two “--would have done it by now. I’m ready.”
Mr. Blank growled and pulled out a walkie-talkie.
“Delay the count-down. And bring subject 35-64-00 to the outermost ring. We’ll be bringing subject 85-18-15 to location zero.”
“TEST DELAYED,” The intercoms blared.
“I’m going to be completely honest with you, Adam.” A sadistic smile spread across Mr. Blank’s face. “We’ve recently discovered a new resource. Of course, the first thing our client wanted us to do was find a way to weaponize it. And goodness gracious, did we deliver. You see, we have absolutely no idea what this is. Our researchers are calling it ‘aura,’ and it is absolutely everywhere. I’ve seen aura at work, Adam. It can do amazing things. Its destructive capabilities are terrifying, absolutely astounding, and sometimes a bit arousing. It may be tied to souls, or the fabric of the universe itself! And as with every age, it begins with a boom. The Agricultural Age began with a population boom. The Renaissance, a boom in art. Industrial Age? Technological boom. The Information Age had a similar boom. And the Atomic Age…Let me just say that history will repeat itself once more.”
Adam stared blankly at Blank.
“Another bomb, you dolt!” Mr. Blank huffed. “We’re going to chain you to a bomb with two other subjects. Normally, you would have been on the outermost ring to witness the inevitable dome of destruction head towards you, but because of your incorrigible behavior, you’ll be at ground zero. Because I want to be absolutely sure you’ll perish. I suppose knowing it will happen, but not when will be enough. But don’t worry.” Mr. Blank stepped towards Adam and flicked him on the nose.
“It won’t be the anticipation that kills you.” Mr. Blank’s face lit up with a smile equally composed of sadistic glee and smug confidence.
“Ants in what?” Adam rose an eyebrow, trying his hardest not to smirk.
“Just…” Mr. Blank groaned and pointed to one of his henchmen. “Get him in the jeep and secure him at location zero.”
The henchmen pulled Adam to his feet and led him out of the sterile room. He was pushed through a hall and out a pair of doors into the bright sunlight of the Philippines. Instinctively, Adam squinted and tried to block the sunlight, but the guards pulled him by the chain and led him into the back of a truck.
“You guys aren’t much for talking, huh?” Adam had to look down to stare into the soulless eyes of the helmed grunt.
The man just pointed into the open truck.
“I thought so.” Adam sighed before hopping into the truck and sitting down cross-legged. “Well, come on. I’m sure it’s a holiday somewhere, and I’m about to miss the fireworks.”
The grunts looked at one another and shrugged. They slammed the doors, and Adam was submerged in darkness. The ride was smooth. Smooth enough for Adam to wonder if they were moving at all. A sudden jerking stop was enough to dispel that notion. The back doors opened once more, revealing a pristine beach, with sand as white as the clouds floating in the cyan skies above.
“Wow, I thought I was being punished! I should do this ‘thistleblowing’ thing more often!”
One of the grunts groaned and stared at Adam.
“Weren’t you Mr. Blank’s bodyguard? I thought you guys were supposed to be serious.”
“Does it look like I’m on duty now?”
Adam held up his handcuffs and gave a sad smile.
The grunt shook his head, pulling Adam by the handcuffs to a twenty-foot-tall cylinder. Two other prisoners were already there, leaning against the rod as they stared at the new arrival. The grunt brought out another set of handcuffs and chained Adam to a specially-prepared chain circling the five-foot-wide cylinder. With a ‘click’ all too similar to that of a gun, Adam was left to his fate. The young man sat down, leaned against the looming obelisk, and watched the truck speed away on the sand. His eyes wandered to the other two men chained to the obelisk. The man to Adam’s right was small, which could be said about most people next to Adam, but he was skinnier than average. Like a twig. He was in the same orange jumpsuit as Adam and the other man, and his fingers were constantly twitching, moving about like a pair of recluse spiders. His skin tone was a pale brown; evidence of a life spent in shadows. Coupled with his unruly black hair and his hazelnut eye color, Adam guessed he was of Hispanic origin. The man had a manic gleam in his brown eyes and a yellowed smile that would send mothers running away with their children. Creep alert. Adam took the opportunity to size up the other man. He was of above average height and decently built, but his salt-and-pepper beard marked him as one who had seen a lot from life. Good for him. Adam could usually read people quite easily. It was some sort of gut feeling to him. But this man...he might as well have been dead. Underneath his leathery skin, muscles rippled like steel coils, though if it was from the man’s nervousness or force of habit, Adam didn’t know.
“What do we have here?” The skinny one approached Adam, pulling at his chain, dragging the other man with him. “Yo, fresh meat. Whatcha do to get here?” he asked in an accented English.
“Pissed off my boss,” Adam replied, not bothering to open his eyes.
The man whistled.
“Harsh. Luckily you got set up with ‘testing’, whatever that is, right?” Adam opened one eye to look at the man. “I mean, I got lucky,” the creep continued. “They gave me a choice, this or execution. I don’t know what the big deal is.” He shrugged. “It was just some girl. Who cares if I continued having fun with her after she hit her head too hard. Bitch shouldn’t have struggled.”
The statement sent shivers down Adam’s spine, but Adam chose to ignore it. It doesn’t matter anymore. This is the end.
“Come on, hombre. You can at least speak English. Ruskie over here--” the creep tilted his head in the direction of the other man “--doesn’t speak English or Spanish.”
“You don’t know, do you?”
“Know what?”
“They’re testing a bomb.”
“Th-that’s a funny joke, ese.” The man laughed nervously.
“It’s not a joke. This is ground zero.” Adam leaned his head back and closed his eyes again.
“No! N-no! We’ve got to get out of here! We’ve got to escape! Why aren’t you panicking?!” The man pulled at his chain, trying to run away from the pole. The chain held him back, but that did not stop him from trying to lean away, forcing Adam and the silent Russian closer together by the chain.
“Would it help?”
“You stupid fucking idiot!” The hysteric man screeched. “We’re going to die!”
“I know.” Adam shrugged. “I’ve known since I started this. I’m ready.”
“This cabrón is insane! You, ruskie!” The Russian man turned to look at him. “Big bomb! Boom!” The Russian continued to stare at him blankly. “Uhhh…beeeeg bomba? Tsar bomba?”
“Царь-бомба?” His eyes widened.
“Yes! Now help me escape!”
The Russian man sighed and sat down next to Adam.
“Cee-gahrettez?”
“Sorry, buddy.” Adam mimed reaching into his pockets and shook his head.
The Hispanic man stopped struggling against his chain and stared in befuddlement at the two men.
“What is wrong with you two?!”
“Царь-бомба,” The Russian simply said before closing his eyes.
Almost instantly, there was the loud blaring of a siren. The Hispanic man froze and looked up to the center of the giant cylinder. A red sphere began steadily expanding, encompassing Adam and the Russian before stopping halfway through the struggling man.
“No! NO! NOOO!” he screamed.
And with that, the sphere receded in an instant, disappearing back into the pole.
“Well.” Adam smiled. “I feel a bit weak, but that wasn’t so ba ̶ ”
Adam was interrupted by a blinding golden light and a huge roar. He found himself falling in all directions, in what seemed to be a tunnel of gold and blue-green light. The last thing he heard before passing out from a combination of vertigo, confusion, and pain was a simple word.
“Champion.”
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Guess who has two thumbs and has their schedule down?
*Points fingers anywhere but towards myself*
Hi guys, I’ve gotten this chapter out, on schedule this time! Is it the apocalypse? No, it’s just boredom. And my attempt at a writing schedule coming through. A lot of interesting developments this chapter. Unfortunately I’ll have to keep my comment short, because the spoilers are just bubbling within me, trying to fight their way out.
Remember, criticism is appreciated, and a big thanks to all of you who keep reading.
After all, a game is afoot. Ahoof. Atendril. You know what I mean.
Cheers,
Charon
So many threads, so little time. Lots and lots of loose ends here, can't wait to see how they all come together.
I'm a little surprised Windell isn't the champion. Is he just going to be more of an "outside observer?" Or is something going to happen to Adam and force the Entity to settle with Windell? Then again, maybe they'll team up, eventually meet with Val again, and become some sort of interdimensional heroes recruited by the Entity.
Of course, answering any of these may be spoilers, so asking is kind of pointless (except, of course to stir debate). Carry on, good sir!
6655595
Uh, I believe you mean atarsus.
biology.clc.uc.edu/graphics/bio1082l/grasshopper/400x300%20DSC_3260%20Lubber%20male%20tarsi%20labeled.jpg
Someone saw Bridge of Spies~
Things are moving forward quite quickly in the timeline, I think, to arrive at the end of Season 2 so soon.
I know one way to make the nonpareil fiction approved badge smaller.
Just download the image to your computer or just copy paste to an image altering program like paint or Photoshop, make the image smaller and then just use one of the many methods to upload an image to the internet to get the new definition image online and just use the new URL you created with the lower definition image in place of the old one.
Got that?
Huh. Didn't see the completely different champion thing coming. Intriguing backstory for this new player. Kinda wonder what, where and when he'll end up.
6655950 Curse those Freaky Alien Genotypes for having such weird feetsies!
6656001 I did. It was fantastic. I highly recommend it, it was a powerful film that portrayed an amazing story.
6656583 PRAISE THE MESSIAH!
A new challenger appears!
6687201 Thanks! Don't hesitate to correct stuff me or the editor could have missed.
6714844 I was hinting more of using the smoke. Apparently, 'smoking' leeches off works in a jiffy. Much better than ripping them off. Especially considering they don't have fingers, or even fingernails.
6714913 That's no good either. Smoke is an irritating agent that'll prompt the leech to flee, and they have an instinct to regurgitate their stomach's contents to facilitate flight (weight issues and all).