It's All A Little Strange To Me

by Essay Jay

Issue 1.4 ~ Something Funny Happened On The Way To Kamare-taj

Starlight sighed as she looked the canyon over.

It was too long for any attempts at building a bridge, and would take too much time. Looking for any way in the world she could cross it, she eyed a long staircase winding down to the bottom of the ravine on the side opposite. Smiling, she began to scan her own side, knowing it would only be logical for there to be a staircase on this side.

After all, who would build stairs to a side they can’t reach? How would they even reach the side in the first place to build or carve those stairs? Or maybe they just lived on the other side which also made sense. Starlight crossed her hooves in the hopes that this was not the case.

“Aha!” Starlight glimmered as she found a little outcropping. “Stairs! Oh thank Celestia,” Starlight whispered, before beginning her journey down them. Halfway down, she stepped on unstable rock and slipped a little, yelping in surprise and rolling towards the rock wall quickly. She stayed for a few seconds, cloak now dirtied and recovering from her near heart attack.

The climb up the other side left her disappointed, but glad as well. She had kind of expected to see a giant rock ball to begin rolling down the side and kill her, but she was glad there wasn’t. It was uneventful, really, until she got to the top. Legs dead and panting from the climb, she collapsed onto the ground a ways away from the edge.

“I don’t think I ever want to do stairs again,” Starlight groaned. Her head pounded from breathing too hard, and she was pretty sure the pressure just above her forehead was her own mana pulsing to the beat of her heart.

Shakily getting to all four hooves, she swayed a bit at the rush of blood to her head and then steadied. Shaking her head, she tiredly glanced around her to get her bearings. She could now see a small settlement in the distance. More than that, was the three young bucks that now neared her cautiously.

“Uh, hey there,” Starlight smiled nervously, and the colts -no older than 17- looked at each other before glancing at Starlight’s neck. Frowning, Starlight looked down as well and saw her necklace, before widening her eyes in realization. “I don’t have anything I can give you.” Starlight whispered as she backed up a bit.

“You can give us that fancy looking crystal you got there,” one of them uttered. Starlight then noticed that they all seemed ravenously hungry and desperate.

“L-look, I’ve got some food, if that’s what you want. I can give you that!” Starlight felt sweat once again begin to perspire on her forehead as she backed up more and the ponies advanced.

“There won’t be enough for all three of us, and I know that that little gem has got to be worth a lot,” another one stammered, and the three began to move faster.

Starlight instinctively, momentarily forgetting, lit her horn. Pain split her head and mana exploded blue from her horn, cracks lighting up like the day’s sky. It momentarily blinded the trio of desperados, but it didn’t compare to the Starlight’s own impaired state. “AH!” Starlight yelled, clutching her horn and stumbling back. The cliff was now only metres away.

The three ponies quickly went to Starlight’s side, stripping her of her cloak, saddlebags, and necklace. Just as they were about to make off with their acquired goods, a hooded figure blurred in front of them. Clad in green and face unseeable, the anonymous pony growled. “Drop her belongings and leave.” The figure’s voice was feminine, soft and dangerous.

The three boys widened their eyes at the pony, before they bolted with their stolen items. The figure took a quick glance at Starlight, seeing her breathing heavily on the ground, before she squinted and turned her attention back to the fleeing colts.

They had stayed at a steady pace with each other, and all three skidded to a stop as the green figure appeared in front of them again. “Play time’s over, boys,” she whispered before she moved with precision and agility. Swiping her hoof as she slid beside one of them, all four of his hooves were tripped and he fell face-first, leaving two still standing.

In an act of defiance and desperation, the blue buck swung a hoof at the green figure. Seeing it coming from a mile away, she ducked before striking him in the chest, sliding to the side with the momentum she gained. The colt blasted backwards and coughed as he fell.

As she turned her head to the last colt, he widened his eyes. They then promptly rolled into his head and he fainted. With a shake of her head, she gathered Starlight’s belongings and stuffed them into Starlight’s saddlebags before throwing said bags over her own haunches. With a face of apology at what she had to do, she left a bag of bits with who seemed to be the leader of the disarmed bucks before making her way back to Starlight.

Now having nearly recovered as the scuffle had only lasted several minutes, Starlight eyed her saviour. Getting to all four hooves, she gulped as the green hooded mare took Starlight’s saddlebags and slid them over to her. Taking her own equipment and making sure everything was still there, she sighed.

“Here’s all your stuff. Had to fight those edgy teens over it, but they’ll be okay,” the figure stated. Starlight nodded her head and thanks before slipping her necklace, coat, and saddlebags back on.

“Th-thank you,” Starlight stammered.

“Hey, no prob!” the mare said giddily, catching Starlight by surprised. With no warning whatsoever, the figure pulled back her hood and grinned, letting her sky blue and white mane fall out. “I’m Blue Jade, by the way. You can just call me Jade.” She extended her hoof, and Starlight noted her turquoise coat which seemed to have a greenish tint to it.

“Starlight,” said Starlight after a few seconds of hesitancy, and they shook hooves.

“Oh, and by the way, you’re this close to falling off the cliff,” Jade mentioned. Starlight widened her eyes before galloping towards Jade and then looking back off the cliff. With that little scare out of the way-

“BLARGALARGARHAAA!” Jade shouted and Starlight jumped six feet in the air. Landing back on the ground stiff as a stone, Jade poked Starlight. “Huh, I guess that worked a little too well,” Jade muttered with a smirk. She then proceeded to walk away.

“All things aside, I know you’re looking for Kamare-taj. You better come along if you want to know where it’s at,” Jade announced before pulling her hood over her head again, tucking her mane away.

Starlight unfroze, her eyes still wide, galloping after Jade. “WAIT! You know where Kamare-taj is?!”

“No, I don’t,” Jade said with an edge, “It’s not like I live there or anything.”

Starlight grinned as she knew she finally found what she needed. As she opened her mouth, Jade interrupted her.

“Don’t ask me anything yet, we’re out in the open and it wouldn’t do for some things to be said in public,” Jade chided, and Starlight frowned to herself. Jade didn’t even turn back to know she was going to say something.

“But-”

“No whining. I don’t like it when ponies whine.”

“You’re unbearable.”

“Thanks, I like to think I am.”

“Great. I travel across a whole lot of Equestria and the first pony I meet from the one place I hope will heal me has an attitude!”

“I think we’ll be great friends,” Jade grinned, and Starlight groaned.

“Yep, this is definitely the start of something, alright.”

Author's Note:

I like to think I'm funny. How do y'all like Jade?

Do any of you get what I'm referencing in the title of the chapter?

Ten muffin points to the first one!

Comments

[Essay Jay]

7873398 Not quite, though the two names are quite similar!

Think Marvel.

[Flufux]

Do any of you get what I'm referencing in the title of the chapter?

"A funny thing happened on the way to Thor's Hammer" perhaps?

I'm finding this story interesting, and I'm definitively following you from now on. As a fan of both Doctor Strange and Starlight, this would seem like a really good story already, but I'll reserve my opinion of it until something more happens.

[Essay Jay]

7885440 Pretty much got it spot on! Points to you! Sorry for the late reply, I've been working on the plotline for the universe I'm building. Heh.

Universes are difficult.

[VikingOtaku6]

Soon...

[Void Runner]

Halfway down, she stepped on unstable rock and slipped a little, yelping in surprise and rolling towards the rock wall quickly

Halfway down, she stepped on an unstable rock and slipped a little, yelping in surprise and rolling towards the rock wall quickly

She had kind of expected to see a giant rock ball to begin rolling down the side and kill her, but she was glad there wasn’t.

She had kind of expected to see a giant rock ball to begin rolling down the side to kill her, but she was glad there wasn’t.

Shaking her head, she tiredly glanced around her to get her bearings.

Shaking her head, she tiredly glanced around her to get her bearings.

It momentarily blinded the trio of desperados, but it didn’t compare to the Starlight’s own impaired state.

It momentarily blinded the trio of desperadoes, but it didn’t compare to the Starlight’s own impaired state.