An Undertale of Equestria

by David Silver

5 - Beetle Enclave

It wasn't hard to find all of my new friends. When Trixie trotted into the castle, we could hear a cacaphony of clicks and clacks coming from the throne room and made our way there quickly. The door wasn't even closed. There were too many beetles to fit as it was, and they overflowed into the hallway.

There was Cadance, sitting with a patient little smile. It seemed their foreman had shoved his way to the front, as he was giving quite the flexing audition as the other beetles clicked with admiration and clapped with appreciation with every power-filled gesture he made.

"Ahem, yes." Cadance nodded to the great beetle. "You certainly are... well muscled. What did you do before now, if I may ask?"

He paused his flexing long enough to accept a towel from a loyal beetle and begin wiping himself down. "I oversee the others here."

She nodded. "It's clear they respect you, but tell me, what are you all good at doing... productively."

He looked confused at the question. "Well, we dig? We dig and we bite!"

She smiled, a different kind of smile as she glanced up at me, then back to him. "Tell me, good sir, how would you feel making digging your people's jobs? Minerals are one of our larger exports. If you can help our ponies find veins of valuable metals and crystals and extract them from the rock around them, your people would be welcomed with open hooves."

A lot of querying clicks began to rise among the crowd, but the largest beetle put out his beefy hands, demanding silence. "Relax. I'm as good at negotiating as flexing." He returned his full attention on Cadance. "We demand at least twelve hour breaks!"

Cadance started a little. I got the feeling quickly that ponies usually worked shorter than twelve hour shifts. "V-very well, but I must make a counter offer."

The beetle scowled at her. "Which would be?"

She smiled gently as she gestured to a clock. "Your people must have only eight hour breaks, but also an eight hour time for sleep and recovery. The remaining eight hours will be when they are expected to work."

The clicking resumed, at first querying as they started to work out math, and growing quickly in excitement. The big guy had the poise to not immediately look excited by it. He purposefully tried to keep his cool, looking off to the side. "You drive a hard bargain, pink pony. Are you sure you don't flex a little into the mirror in the mornings?"

Cadance's mouth twitched, resisting a laugh or a grin. "You caught me."

"Ha! I knew it!" He clapped two meaty hands together. "Come on! Let's get to it!"

"Wait! One little matter." She held up a hoof. "Your first assignment. Dig yourself out a barrack from the mountains closest to the city. Something comfortable for you live, sleep, and be happy. When you're done, the forepony will be by to discuss plans for mining. You two will work hoof in... claw together to see the mining done right. You will also be paid daily, in bits. Use them to buy food, clothes, or whatever else you like in the city." She spread her hooves wide. "Welcome to the Crystal Empire."

A loud chorus of clicks rippled through the crowd as Trixie turned away and trotted down the hallway. "That worked out well, familiar. We should demand a bonus later for securing Princess Cadance this opportunity. While you were enjoying your afternoon off, Trixie was not idle. She has located a darkness detecting spell, and she knows where we need to go. There are six sources of darkness that are letting them get close to the city, and we're going to get them all."

I nodded at her. That sounded... just video gamish enough to make perfect sense. Maybe defeating 'the game' would send me home? I mean, I would miss the horses a bit. Cadance and Trixie were both very nice, for aliens, but I wanted to be a guy again! Not... whatever I was. I held out a little hand and flexed my fingers. It was mostly human? Besides, my roomie had to be losing his marbles. He came up clearly enough in my memories.

---

He looked at me with a big cocky grin. "I did it, man. Scored the Shift Manager position!" He held up a hand and I met it in a loud high-five. "Dinner's on me, tonight. Let's go hit up that place by the theatre. I've been trying to get that spot forever, you know that."

He led the way, rambling about what he'd do with the extra money and where he'd try to go next. "This isn't the last step, just the first! Hey, you still playing that game?"

I had said something about some game I was playing on my computer and he laughed. "Don't ever change. What do you see in that one, though? The graphics are terrible."

He liked to rib me at times, but he was a good guy.

---

Who was going to cover my half of the rent while I was off playing with horses? I frowned, and Trixie noticed. "What's wrong? Are you not ready to tackle the first of the disturbances?"

"Just the opposite. I'm thinking about something." And it filled me with determination. I wouldn't let my friends, or family, down. My family was still lost in the fog, but I knew I had some. Everyone had some, right? "Oh, Trixie, do you have any relations?"

Trixie suddenly stopped walking and looked over her shoulder at me with a penetrating stare. "What brings this up, Familiar?"

I waved my hands at her. "I didn't mean anything bad. I was just trying to get to know you better."

She nodded slowly. "Trixie sees. Very well, she does have a mother and a father. Does that satisfy you?"

With a smile, I reached to stroke over her neck, but that made her more fidgety. "Enough, familiar. We should go." She turned back ahead and began trotting more firmly. "I've labeled them by how close they are. We'll start with the closest." She drew out a map that showed the crystal empire as a city right in the center. "See, the first is still in the city limits." She pointed to a little dot well within the city sprawl. "Where did you get that suit of armor? It's adorable on you, familiar."

I felt a blush sweeping over my face. I hadn't expected her, or anyone, to really notice it. "I, uh, got it in case the beetles didn't work out."

She tilted her head. "How... Nevermind, we should go."

She left the castle and strode through the city, leaving the main thoroughfare quickly as she picked her way through the crowd that thinned as we got further and further from the center of things. She suddenly lit me up with magic and set me down. "Time to walk."

Riding Trixie had been more fun, but I didn't make a fuss and was soon walking alongside her in a hurry. Horses were faster than I am!

The streets went from thinly populated to entirely abandoned as she folded up her map and tucked it away with her magic. "We're getting close, keep your eyes open, familiar."

I glanced around. "Of course, mom."

She smiled gently and paused before she reached and hugged me a moment. "Be careful." She trotted away before I could recover from her sudden affection.

I watched her go a moment, flexing my fingers. I would do well by her. I was determined. Turning away, I saw an alleyway that wasn't lit. It wasn't just not having light, it was like light fled from the place. It was way too dark to just be a shadow in the day. I wandered over towards it slowly, trying to peer into that darkness, until it was all around me. My steps got quieter, and I got more nervous. I turned back towards the light, but it wasn't there. It was dark everywhere. Shoot, I'd messed up...

Forming from the very darkness itself, a flickering cloud of purple and smoke came before me before a green line split into it, forming a disturbing smile. "Hello, little one. You look lost. Maybe I can help?"

I saw no labels beside him, not even the standard ones, but the tension of being in conflict was coming. "Maybe a little."

"Aw, don't be shy. I'll help you." The cloud's face changed to stick out a tongue of green smoke before it withdrew back into its purple mass. "I would be lost too, skipping through time like that."

W-what? How'd it know about that? It seemed amused at my shock. "You're not the only one with that power. In fact, you're disturbing a friend of mine. He can't use his because yours is stronger. You shouldn't get in the way of your elders, young man."

"What are you going to do about it?" I raised my little fists into fighting position, even if I wasn't sure what I could do about it.

The cloud laughed uproariously. "You are too adorable! I like you. I'll help. All you have to do is let the power gas in, and you'll become as strong as he is." The purple fog began to seep up all around me. "Breathe deeply and we'll have that nasty problem fixed in no time at all!"

I clamped my mouth shut and fanned at the clouds, slowing them down, but not really stopping them.

"Aw, don't be that way. Don't you want to be strong? Strong and powerful? You won't have to worry about taking orders from a pony ever again." The cloud drifted in closer, its green mouth split in a huge grin that was turning into a mask of a skull. "You won't have to worry about anything. Just obey the shadow!"

Despite my wild fanning, the fog was pressing in harder and harder. It was gaining inch after inch up over my short body. I could feel it tickling at my chin. It was going to get me!

"Stop fighting the inevitable. Just lay back and let it all come in!" He sounded more maniacal than friendly. The closer it got, the more excited he became. "You'll help plunge this miserable little world into darkness and enjoy every moment!"

Light suddenly cut through the darkness. "Familiar! Trixie is here to save you!" She came galloping in, her horn a blazing pillar of pink light that send the shadows fleeing away from her. Whatever little clouds of stuff remained were crushed under her galloping hooves as she came to me and grabbed me up onto her back.

The cloud that had taunted me faded along with the rest, leaving behind its face to wink at me before it vanished. It wasn't defeated, just sent away for the moment. I was sure of it.

"Don't leave Trixie's side again!" Trixie was looking over her shoulder at me with a big scowl. "You were in grave danger! Don't you even realize how bad it could have become if she hadn't arrived just when she had?"

She said it in fury at me, but I had a feeling she was more upset and worried. "I'm sorry, mother. I didn't mean to worry you like that."

Trixie brought down a hoof in a loud clop. "See that you don't..." She glanced away, then back at me. "Are you alright?" Her voice had become gentle and soft.

I reached for her neck and she didn't stop me that time. I gently pet her as I nodded. "Thanks to you, great and powerful mother. Thank you."

She smiled silently a moment before she nodded with a little cough. "Of course. Trixie will not allow her new familiar to be harmed so easily. Think of the scandal... Now then, you have found the source. Good job." She turned back towards the end of the alley, where an inky blot of darkness defied her light-bearing horn. "All we have to do is banish it, and we've made real progress."

Author's Note:

The Beetles find a new home, yay!

Oh, there's this world's Flowey. He had to be here somewhere.

Trixie to the rescue! She'll teach the shadow a lesson or two...

We've reached a tenuous peace treaty with the typos, but word hasn't spread yet, so their outlying forces may continue to battle despite it.

Comments

[Hard Cider]

Too bad Frisk doesn't have a flashlight to easily repel the evil gas people. All hail the unicorn face lights!

[David Silver]

6620916 Face lights are clearly best lights.

[Divine Path]

And there we go, officially having fallen down. The Undertale begins~

[Doctor REDACTED]

6619368 yay someone responded who wait... Chrysalis right?

Edit: I put this comment on the other CHAPTERS before I read this one

[David Silver]

6622252 Read chapter 5 (after chapters 1-4) and enjoy!

[Doctor REDACTED]

6622265 thanks

[Enderpony22]

YES I AM SO OK WITH THIS. I've wanted a proper undertale mlp crossover for a while. Thank you good sir for end my wait.

[David Silver]

6623382 I am trying to be true to both media while they get woven together. Do let me know how this turns out!

[Enderpony22]

6623863 I'd be happy to. So far your description of the combat works well. You gave Cadance and Shining appropriate attitudes to there characters and I'm noticing few if any grammatical errors. I'm enjoying the story so far and I'm looking forward to reading it further.

[josue]

6623863 trixie hero yes

[OmicroniX]

Trixiel here to save frisk

[David Silver]

7051333 Trixie may not be the hero you want, but she is the hero you deserve.

[Chimp]

We've reached a tenuous peace treaty with the typos, but word hasn't spread yet, so their outlying forces may continue to battle despite it.

I'm finding some of your author notes, very entertaining!