Chapter 3.3: Hunt
“Twilight, wake up!” Twilight felt something shaking her, something violent and strong. She jerked to one side, pulling away from it—and found her face completely covered with dirt.
She was lying in front of the altar in Fluttershy’s subterranean temple, a bit of her mane singed near the edges. The statue was exactly where she’d left it—the ground wasn’t cracked from it jumping around, and the map was still firmly in place. As though her conversation hadn’t even happened.
Fluttershy was still wearing her armor from before, and apparently Twilight was also. She felt sore at her joints, as though she’d been slumped in that unnatural position for some time. “Ughhh… what happened?”
“I think you may’ve… taken my instructions, umm… a bit too literally,” Fluttershy stammered. “There was some blood, and, umm… I thought the new princess of magic wouldn’t go near the obviously enchanted altar.”
Twilight winced, straightening and brushing off the dirt. It’s okay, it was just a dream. Or a vision, or… something. “You were telling me what we were doing,” she said. “Before all that.”
“Right. So that map is the place ponies call Sideways. Well, when they knew about it. You’ve seen parts of it in the Dreamlands, but it’s so much more than that. You’ve met some of the friendly creatures from there. The Ursa Minor you fought, remember that?”
“I…” She shivered. “I remember. But I didn’t think they came from another world.”
“Because it’s hard for mortals to think of. It shouldn’t exist, and it hurts. Going there would kill you. Uhh… if you could die. Are you sure about that?”
“Positive,” Twilight said. “I’ll be fine. I assume you will be too. I’ve never seen you go crazy on a pony who got a papercut in front of you. And you treat injured animals all the time.”
“Never smelled Alicorn blood before,” Fluttershy admitted, pawing shyly at the ground. “I’ll… I should be fine next time. Just caught me by surprise.” She gestured towards the map. “So, Sideways is its own world… most of it doesn’t care that we’re here. But some of it does, and those creatures are always trying to get into Equestria.”
“And only undead can protect it?” Twilight supplied. “That’s why Nightmare Moon created you?”
“Yeah,” Fluttershy whispered. “To… protect her conquest from her rivals.”
She’s actually answering my questions! Twilight circled around her friend, feeling better about this by the second. She hadn’t run away or deflected even once. “And you’re part of this… old group of hunters. Still doing the job Nightmare Moon gave you.”
“You too, apparently,” Fluttershy glanced back at the statue. “You gave her blood and she didn’t kill you. That would normally mean it was time for your initiation.” She grinned shyly, revealing pointed fangs. “I don’t think you’d be interested in that.”
“No.” She didn’t hesitate. “Why don’t we just… no.” She shook her head, retreating a few steps from Fluttershy. “I’m already working on the cure for Sweetie Belle… I bet we could make two.”
Fluttershy froze, her eyes widening. She tensed, and for a second Twilight couldn’t tell if her friend was going to cry, or attack her.
Then she laughed. “Oh, Twilight! That’s hilarious!” Despite how hilarious she thought the suggestion, her laughter was as subtle and elegant as ever. “You know how old I am, right? A cure would just kill me. Might as well just use the sword if I wanted to do that—no scavenger hunt for you. Sweetie Belle, though… I’m glad somepony’s doing it. No foal should be stuck like this forever.”
There was a long, awkward silence. Twilight glanced briefly down at the map at her hooves—but this time she didn’t feel like its magic was attacking her. Maybe it was just the first time? What good is being an Alicorn if I can’t do anything I couldn’t have done when I was a unicorn?
“I called on my favor from Regolith because there’s something… really big, something I’ve been hunting for a long time. It killed Bright Eyes, last time we fought. And it’s close. If it crosses into Equestria… thousands of ponies will die. It’ll be like Nightmare Moon all over again, but a thousand times worse.”
“Worse?” Twilight turned, glancing back at the statue. “How could it be worse?”
“Because Nightmare Moon was almost a pony,” Fluttershy answered. “She’s from so close to Equestria that she could think like us, dream like us. There aren’t many creatures like that when you go Sideways. And the further you go, the worse they get.”
“A vampire Vanguard would be strong enough for you to beat it?”
“Maybe,” Fluttershy said. “We put out one of its eyes last time. And if it wasn’t, at least the court would be down one of the Vanguard. Equestria would be a little safer before it ended.”
Twilight didn’t laugh. “I guess… we should get going then.” She levitated the sword out from her scabbard, swinging it once through the air in front of her at nothing. It was a strange weight to hold in her magic, one she’d never used before. Yet the swing seemed to come naturally. I should’ve used this technique at the Renfaire. “Hunt, you said? That’s… going to take some getting used to. You seem to love the animals so much. You, killing?”
“I do love the animals,” Fluttershy said. “And I do what’s best for all of them. Lots of the time, that means I can help them get better. Sometimes the kindest thing to do is take the pain away. Forever.”
Fluttershy gestured back at the altar. “You’ve got living blood, so this crossing will be easier than usual. Hold your breath when you put some in the altar, then back up. The smoke would… you don’t want to breathe the smoke again.”
“Right.” Instead of just holding her breath, Twilight formed a tight bubble around her head. “I guess we’ll see how you do with blood again.” She reached out with the sword, extending her leg and making a shallow cut. She held it out, and once again the flames went bright white, filling the air with a cloud of dense green vapor. Twilight retreated out of its reach, casting a healing spell on her leg even as she used the flames to sear away any remaining blood on the sword.
I don’t want to make this hard on you, Fluttershy. The last thing we need is for you to start hunting me.
Fluttershy began speaking, her voice more confident than Twilight had ever heard it. She wasn’t speaking Ponish, or not the Ponish that Twilight had ever learned. Fortunately, her interest in archeology extended to old languages. “Mother, your daughters require your help. Open the garden gate, and we will patrol your conquest one more night.”
The statue didn’t move—but the pillars on the far side of the room seemed to shift, rotating around to the grinding of ancient gears. The ceiling shook, and Twilight prepared a teleport just in case she needed it—but it didn’t collapse.
The space between the pillars suddenly led somewhere else. A portal spell, as Twilight had seen many times before. This one led on top of a stone platform, with a temple on the other side that seemed exactly like this one. There was even the backside of an Alicorn statue.
Fluttershy advanced past Twilight, gesturing for her to follow with one wing. “So, if you were being initiated, you’d have a century of training before you crossed.”
“Great,” Twilight muttered. “I don’t think I have a century. And… since this thing we’re hunting really is a threat to Equestria, you can’t just tell Regolith that I paid you back. We actually have to hunt it.”
“Right.” Fluttershy stopped right in front of the portal. “So, first thing. We only have until sunrise to get back here. Also, this portal stays open until we do. Lots of, uh…” She blushed, staring down at the floor. “Let’s just say I haven’t been collecting bigger and stronger animals because I like scaring ponies. Since I don’t have any sisters left to watch the door, my animal friends have been covering for me. They don’t… always catch everything.”
Twilight shook her head. “I assume what we’re hunting is worse, though. Than… anything that might take advantage.”
Standing right in front of the portal, Twilight had an excellent view of the temple on the other side. It looked like she imagined these ruins had looked in their prime. A row of perfect pillars, a dozen in all, with huge bonfires burning in front of each one. The statue wasn’t just old stone, it had been vibrantly painted. It was a perfect, lifelike recreation of the Alicorn of Nightmares. Rather than underground, this temple seemed to be built on a raised platform, rising above a muddy bog.
“Second thing. Don’t die. That’s, uh… important anywhere. But here… you probably can’t count on Nightmare Moon saving your soul from any of the predators out here, since you aren’t one of us.”
“Pretty sure I can’t anyway,” Twilight said. “But…” She hesitated, one hoof at the edge of the portal. It wasn’t like her body was invincible, she’d just cut herself without any more resistance than usual. And she knew that Celestia and Luna had both lost battles before. So what does that mean? How does being immortal actually work? Maybe she would just wake up in the Underworld, and have to make the trip back to the surface. If so, she might have a hard time finding her way there from outside the world. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Last thing.” Fluttershy turned her head with the force of one hoof, meeting her eyes through the helmet. There was no mistaking the predatory slits there, which she never would’ve noticed in simple daylight. “Don’t give your word lightly when you’re Sideways. It’s probably best to talk to nothing we meet, but… if you have to, at least don’t make promises.”
Twilight groaned. “That’s kinda the mistake I made to end up here in the first place. I won’t do it again.”
“That’s great. It’ll be really great if we come back.” She swallowed, then passed through the portal. It rippled, like the surface of a pond held sideways in the air. But she passed through it. A few seconds later, Twilight followed.
It hurt. Twilight went rigid, as though every muscle were being forced to constrict at once. She twitched and kicked and strained—and it passed.
She walked out of the portal on the other side, her whole body aching like she’d just been attacked. But she was still breathing. I really should’ve asked Celestia what the rules of this immortal thing are.
Twilight stumbled forward a few steps, collapsing and catching her breath. Fluttershy stood just beside her, sword drawn as she scanned the temple grounds. Twilight didn’t see anything else—not for nearly five full minutes.
Eventually she gritted her teeth and rose, biting back the pain. It hadn’t gone, exactly, but her mind was starting to ignore it. It took a little of her concentration, just like a spell might. But she was still moving.
The sky above was filled with stars, more vibrant and beautiful than anything she’d seen in Equestria. She looked up, slack-jawed. There were other objects up there—planets, moons, multicolored comets—all far too close to make sense around Equestria. Surely they would’ve crashed, except none of them did.
She now knew what inspired Luna to do such good work with Equestria’s sky.
The air was icy cold, and each breath fogged out in front of her.
“Done gawking?” Fluttershy asked. “We have a long way to go.”
“Not… that long, I hope,” Twilight said, though her voice was halfhearted. “I didn’t bring camping supplies.”
Fluttershy laughed. “If you knew what it cost to make armor that could cross into this world, you… probably wouldn’t say that.”
I don’t know anything about anything, Twilight thought, glaring at Fluttershy’s retreating back.
There were stairs descending down from one side of the temple, just as there had been stairs rising up from the one in Equestria. And beyond them…
The hunt is waiting.
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Wonderfully eerie and atmospheric, but with only one chapter left in this arc, I'm guessing the hunt will be more of a quick skirmish than a long, drawn-out battle. Which, given that they're hunting an outsider, is probably a good thing.
If she is a follower of Nightmare Moon, why did she help Twilight defeat Nightmare Moon?
9579038
Well, Fluttershy's job is to protect Equestria from the creatures of Sideways, and Nightmare Moon was endangering Equestria. That's the way I see it at least. She was still doing her job, even if it meant going against her mistress.
9579038
A glitch in the story plot? Author might explain it a bit in the future.
I'm interested in how the sonic rainboom and their cutie mark destiny stuff fits in, or doesn't, now that we know Flutters and Dash are ancient.
And would Rarity know about Fluttershy's vampirism? There was mention of a vampire registry, and presumably Fluttershy is on it and Rarity has access.
Actually, to summarize who knows what so far:
Twilight is now aware of Applejack's, Rarity's, and Flutter's secrets, and knows that Dash is hiding something.
Applejack knows Rarity's secret by the nature of her job, and might well know Fluttershy's, Dash's, and/or Pinkie's for similar reasons.
Rarity likely knows Fluttershy's secret, may also know Dash's secret (I mean, a classified file on Fluttershy would probably mention her immortal friend, right?), and at this point is likely suspicious that Applejack is hiding something (you don't wander into the lair of an ancient vampire by accident, let alone while your friends are also there); whether she's aware of Pinkie is up in the air.
Fluttershy knows Sweetie Belle is a vampire, so is probably aware of Rarity's secret; she knows Dash's secret, and all bets are off on whether she's aware of Applejack's and/or Pinkie's.
Rainbow Dash knows Fluttershy's secret, and whether she knows Rarity's, Applejack's, or Pinkie's secrets is likely coincident with which ones Fluttershy knows.
Pinkie probably knows everyone's secrets already, because Pinkie Pie, but that's just speculation.
In short, Twilight should just sit them all down and be like "Half of us already know the others' secrets; let's just clear the air."
My guess for Rainbow Dash? Actual sky god, or demigod at least.
Never take Twilight's ability to follow instructions to the letter for granted.
Hmn. I wonder if Luna knows about this. Or remembers about this.
9579380
Or Prometheus's punishment...
So... to the Upside Down, then? I guess that kinda makes Nightmare Moon the Demogorgon.
this deffentily helps with my story
inspirsed for my own story
I'm listening.
You know, if ever I get Tangled in a situation like this, I'm probably better off assuming that the Magicks involved are as intricate as in the Dresden Files. For those that don't know it, let's just say that I'd assume that behind just about everything magical is some sort of trickery and manipulation.
Don't worry, neither do I!
Oh wait, you might encounter a fate worse than death if you don't worry.
I've just realized that I haven't started following you yet, even though I've read and am reading many of your stories.
Have a follow!
9575545
A good idea!
Certificate of Basic Competence
The Alicorn Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria, domain Friendship, is deemed competent enough to be able to, should the need arise, accompany a creature or creatures on operations, outings, sorties, et cetera of a supernatural, paranormal, mythical, or otherwise other-wordly nature.
Note that the definition of 'basic competence' is as follows: 'the creature in question does have the ability to avoid mortal peril.' This certificate does not cover such dangers as capture, torture, imprisonment, or any consequences of a non-lethal nature.
Witnessed by the following creatures:
Hopefully there’s not much time left for things to go too badly wrong....
It’s just dawned on me that Princess Celestia sent Twilight to the Underworld to attain immortality less than a week(?) ago and hasn’t had any correspondence with Twilight since then. I can imagine the Princess would expect some sort of early reply back considering that Twi had to meet Death.
She’s in for a shock when Twi returns well over a week later going on about several absurd adventures she stumbled or was dragged into that promised fates worse than death ironically enough - all the while uncovering secrets about the world she was probably planning on easing Twi into gently, at least by comparison lol.