The Company We Keep

by Ice Star

Chapter 4: Sandwich

Well, cleaning up the castle took all day, I mused as I plopped into my reading chair. I wanted to see if I could learn anything new about ghosts before I followed that sandwich trail tonight. Queen Sapphira told me to stay away from it but I think that I could get it to help me, indirectly or directly.

Plus, I'm not having this thing prancing around my home.

Now, let's see I had cast a couple of the wards in place of the salt so maybe today I should try something a little more daring...

"Poltergeists and some other varieties of paranormal beings can steal power from items like cameras and flashlights..."

I paused for a moment and grabbed a salad and iced coffee from the food I stashed in a nearby cooler for a late dinner.

"...this can enable them to physically manifest which can be dangerous and is not recommended for those hunting ghosts. Instead, covered lanterns and basic werelights are advised for ghost hunting."

A rather bold idea popped into my head, renewing my enthusiasm. Nothing in here can be more dangerous then getting impaled with a giant rock. I grabbed an empty duffel bag and ran to find as many batteries as possible before the sun would set and it would be time to follow the trail of breadcrumbs left for me.

...

The duffel weighed down on my shoulder and ruffled my feathers a bit as I walked through the absolutely silent halls, taking deep breath after deep breath trying to avoid fear.

Just follow the path. My new goal is to talk to the poltergeist and see if I can find any of the eyes.

While I wasn't finding any hidden passages, I knew I was in a wing of the castle I had rarely explored: the armories. There had never been too big a need for them before Sombra's rule. Well, there had thousands and thousands of years ago, but that was an age long past - one even I hadn't done too much reading about. When Sombra took over, there had only been a small militia-guard protecting the Empire instead of anything formidable, like Equestria had.

As the hall darkened I summoned a little werelight so I could see where I went as I dodged jam splats that littered hallways. They lead to a room at the end of the hall with a gaping door revealing only darkness.

Oh, great I've read enough horror novels to know what-

"Mi Amore..." a familiar voice sang.

Of course it just had to be the poltergeist! My spine prickled with alarm as the voice continued its haunting melody.

"Mi Amore Cadenza... such a pretty name..."

I began to step as quickly and silently down the halls. This thing wanted to trap me in this room, but if I know anything about ghosts from that book it's that they often guard things. There might be something in there... a puzzle piece that'll be worth the risk, and if this ghost thinks it can kill me I've got a trick or two.

I was at the door now, like a frightened cat I darted in and slammed it, casting a makeshift charm to protect myself. I would need to save bigger magic for later.

"Mi Amore Cadenza is the perfect name..."

There was a thundering bang on the door that shook the whole room and caused me to jump back followed by the insane yet detached cackle I had begun to know.

"...FOR A HEADSTONE! Get it? I am going to kill you, sweetie. Oh, but do not worry your pretty little head about. I will be extra merciful, I swear on my crown. Not like him. You will not look as holey as cheese when I am through with you... very red cheese, that is." She tittered madly.

My heart was racing in my throat. I could always teleport out but this ghost knew about the eyes, I swear she did. If I could get information from her this would save me from endlessly wandering these halls searching for something that could be right under my muzzle!

Backing away from the door I felt myself stumble.

What was-?

I turned around and looked at the faintly glimmering floor.

Jelly. I had almost forgotten the trail.

It was important to survey my surroundings, since I had no idea where I even was. I cast an even brighter werelight that lit up every corner of the chamber. I was in a disused armory, shelves of helmets and racks of lances that were bound together by cobwebs were covering every wall. There was another round of battering at the door and the glass-and-screaming sound from the dream.

The dream! What was it the pony in the dream said? Didn't they want to be an armorsmith? This had to be a clue!

Whirling back around I found my trail of sandwich parts led only to the center of the room but in one corner was an item that was not a helmet or a lance. It was the main piece of a suit of armor. Extinguishing my werelight I hurtled over to the puzzle piece in one light flying leap, suddenly seeing nothing but black for a moment. Behind me I heard the final crash of a splintering door.

I withdrew deeper into the annex concealed by this spinning door, sealing it near completely, with the exception of a small crack that stealthily enabled the door to be flung open if needed and shed some light on whatever was behind me.

Ghosts could sense most magics everypony knew that, so the less magic I used the less visible I was.

Behind me was a small antechamber made of dull gray uncut crystal. A closet really. It was bare except for a small rag like object on the floor. When I crept closer I noticed it was not a rag but a sort of faded and torn lavender scarf, with and embroidered edge and little white and square cut gems sewn to look like... a heart.

In the fall-induced dream the pony had a bandanna just like this...

'They often have an object or objects that can influence them and be used to pacify...'

With my hoof I scooped up the bandanna with my boot-clad hoof as best as I could and clutched it wishing I could tie it on with magic so at least my hooves would be free.

"Oh my, it seems somepony left me a little surprise," cooed that disturbing, soft voice.

I stiffened and did my best to remain still, one part of my plan had already failed in terms of strategic timing: in my jump for the sliding door I had lost my duffel bag.

"I do not really like surprises, considering the last one I got was the one that killed me."

It was hard to focus my gaze out of such a small space and what I saw... I wanted to throw up, I wanted to scream, I wanted to run, I wanted to gouge out own eyes, and I wanted to cry all at once.

She would have been a normal mare at one point. Maybe even pretty. My brain was racked and disgusted at this sight as if describing her might make such a creature less frightening. The ghosts of foalhood tales were typically pale and glass-like, mysterious and pitiful, and their only real desire was either to move on or pull a few pranks on the living. This ghost followed no such conventions.

The Poltergeist was translucent and wasn't especially tall or short. Her appearance was macabre: teeth in a wicked and gut-wrenching smile so that I almost felt sharp with the awkward crookedness of her mad grimace. Her mane was hideously disheveled in a loose, pulled back look and matted with blood, falling down in thick ratty tangles. Some of the tarnished metal hairpieces rested there seemed to accentuate the gruesome excuse for eyes: unforgiving black voids with flaming pinpricks of heartless blue fire for pupils.

Much like her mane her tail was also a blood-matted mess bound in one knot before resuming the appearance of a tangled plait. A ripped and tattered cloak of sheer ghastly grayish fragments seemed to encircle her like wispy spirits frozen in time and did little to hide her mangled form.

Her body was riddled with blood edged holes and wicked gashes were spread everywhere, so you couldn't even make out what she might have been like. I was puzzled at how she even stayed together with some areas giving away to swatches of a luminescent skeleton. the swirling and lackluster collar for her cloak that was slashed to bits seemed like a taunting burden to her weak form. Her forehooves still had the remains of once gleaming slippers clinging to them, and looked as depressing as a lone toy forsaken in the rain. I felt like 'disfigured' might almost be a compliment, given her unmendable state.

With a look of almost childlike fear she nudged the duffel and jumped back shrieking as the hundreds of batteries poured out, most likely unsure of what they were. The clatter was enormous, which startled her so much she lept into the corner and began to make strangled noises that resembled sobs for a few seconds before breaking into spontaneous shrieking cackles and rocking back and forth.

I remained as silent as possible trying to go unnoticed and focus on anything slightly distracting like how her coat did show remainders of the crystalline appearance of the Empire's inhabitants.

In fact her the crystal shine seems more physical than she is...

The poltergeist stopped her maniacal breakdown and went on to shudder as if she were cold. Slowly all the batteries began to roll toward her in unison, while she stared with a dull confusion before they all began to crush with a painful and dragged out s-c-r-e-e-e-c-h and hovered for a moment until they dropped to the floor, only a withered husk of what they had been. Poltergeist began to glow with a fiery red energy that sucked all the warmth in the room.

She shivered for a moment as if she had a brain freeze. A moment later my knees wobbled and quivered as my mind grew cloudy and thick.

A sky blue streak flew out the small crack, a joyous sparkling contrast to the menacing effect of the poltergeist.

It almost looked like my magic.

Oh no...

The door to my hiding place was ripped away and thrown into the rusty armor.

"Oh Cadenza, do you know how much easier this could have been if you just killed Sombra in that cold waste up north? We could have been the best of friends had you betrayed that monster."

Poltergiest smiled that lopsided Nightmare Night pumpkin grin with about as much kindness as a shark has for a fish. I fell to the ground feeling ever so sleepy...

What was I here for again?

"You see little Princess, I cannot harm you while you clutch that old bandanna of mine. I led you to it in one of my better moods." Her image seemed to flicker slightly, like a stained glass window when a bird passes by.

I wonder what is under it...

Stars drifted past my eyes as my cheek lay pressed against the cold floor. My hooves gripped the scarf tighter. Red sparkles hung around me. Was that bad?

"You cannot activate the Heart without magic and I am here every night. Your kingdom will still think you are playing hide and seek, you know."

Yes, I think Fredrick is a lovely name for the sandwich.

"My, my it seems like such a lovely young mare is missing out on her beauty sleep. Maybe you should rest a little while I look after the castle."

A burp-like yawn escaped my mouth. Sleep sounds nice.

"How about a visit to the friend of yours too? I am sure he would be delighted to see you."

My lashes fluttered slightly and the light began to hurt my eyes the longer I stared, a dull throb echoing in the back of my mind.

"Though it seems my vision has gone a bit bad, being over a thousand years and all. Looks like I will have some searching to do."

I remember darkness and the sound of a stone fitting into a nook before my mind went blank and sleep took hold of me, pouncing like a cat to a mouse.

Author's Note:

More editing by me.

Comments

[Kaleido]

A rather bold idea popped into my head, renewing my enthusiasm. Nothing in here can be more dangerous then getting impaled with a giant rock. I grabbed an empty duffel bag and ran to find as many batteries as possible before the sun would set and it would be time to follow the trail of breadcrumbs left for me.

oh goodness cadance why
i know you already died but not really, but does that really give you license to try this harebrained scheme?

I stiffened and did my best to remain still, one part of my plan had already failed in terms of strategic timing: in my jump for the sliding door I had lost my duffel bag.

well this is going to go well

With a look of almost childlike fear she nudged the duffel and jumped back shrieking as the hundreds of batteries poured out, most likely unsure of what they were. The clatter was enormous, which startled her so much she lept into the corner and began to make strangled noises that resembled sobs for a few seconds before breaking into spontaneous shrieking cackles and rocking back and forth.

oh, oh dear
poor ghosty

Yes, I think Fredrick is a lovely name for the sandwich.

hmm
well
she may be a bit disoriented

[RoyalBardofCanterlot]

Delightfully creepy.