Hello to Hell (11)
Sound-Off followed Zecora as she explored the maze of corridors within the flesh palace. The dragoness made sure to always be within an arms length of her mentor, not at all looking to become separated and lost in these dark halls.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
The echo of the Colossus's heartbeat drummed from the depths of the darkness. The rhythm was steady, although slow. As the apprentice and master continued to trek deeper into the tunnel, the beating grew ever-so-slightly louder.
"Shouldn't we be heading back now?" Sound-Off asked, looking nervously at the walls surrounding them as if she expected a Vanished to pop-out. "I mean, mom and Vinyl must miss us terribly by now and we wouldn't want to get lo- lost."
With enthusiasm that could put Twilight Sparkle to shame, Zecora answered with, "Steady yourself little one, you are shaking. Our exploration has just begun, this is a discovery in the making! As a scholar in architecture and cartography, such elegant designs and beautiful constructions make this zebra very happy!"
"I don't think beautiful and elegant are the right words here. Maybe in that macabre sort of way, but I think the words you're looking for are eerie and revolting." Sound-Off countered.
The assassin and reptile had reconnoitered the twisting corridors for almost half an hour now; with the slow pace that the Colossus was going and since the Tree of Chaos was apparently a lot further than it appeared to be, Sound-Off estimated it would be approximately another hour. Zecora had suggested that she and Sound-Off patrol the halls built into the Colossus's flesh meanwhile. Sound-Off, of course, was less than ecstatic about the idea. But it was a chance for her to spend time with and get to know her soon-to-be mentor better; mind over matter after all.
Zecora, meanwhile, just continued to trot merrily along. "Such designs remind me of the catacombs of Prance! Bone piled upon bone in a debonair fashion that leaves one in a trance! The only difference would be the lack of skulls, making these halls a little more dull."
Sound-Off did not think of their surroundings as debonair; arching buttresses of bone loomed above their heads, almost like some sort of giant spider. The flesh walls were sculpted into multiple swirls and occasionally interrupted by growths of bone; Sound-Off had a developed fear of swirls after reading Juneberry Ito's manga, but now that fear was also tied in with the eyes of the Vanished. The pillars of cracked skin stretched upwards into the darkness, jiggling in the slightest with every step the Colossus took. But what unnerved her the most were the blackened and blistered roots growing from the monster's body. The roots, which not only hung or grew from random places, also formed furniture such as chandeliers, small tables, sofas, and even statues that looked suspiciously like a certain blue-maned unicorn DJ. But other than these occasional items the halls were empty, save for Zecora and Sound-Off themselves.
"So Zecora," Sound-Off began, anxiously trailing the zebra's hoofsteps as they passed another statue. "that stuff you put on Vinyl was pretty impressive. You must know a lot about apothecary?"
If Zecora was annoyed by the sudden change in topic, she gave no indication. "Oh? Of herbs and natural medicines do you not know? Among our ability to create clever disguises, talents in healing and curing are in what zebra kind characterizes. But our knowledge does not stretch out into the infinite vast, there was a time not so long ago that upon me a sickness I have never seen was cast! Have you ever heard of a disease called Swamp Fever? Before then I had heard of it neither!"
Sound-Off vaguely remembered Gallant muttering that there had been one such outbreak at Ponyville Hospital right after somepony or another had brought the highly-contagious and little-known disease into their town. "I don't know much about Swamp Fever really, but I do remember Gallant mumbling to himself about it. I guess disease and epidemics have always been low on my reading list."
"Ah, then allow me to share with you what I had learned. At least where Swamp Fever is concerned." Zecora stated, her voice becoming somewhat monotone and lecture-ry. "This sickness is caused by an orange-spotted flower, blue in coloration, with large leaves, and a sickly-sweet smell that is rather sour. Upon being covered in the dust that this plant does produce, horrid symptoms it does induce."
The young dragoness went over a mental list of all the flora she had cataloged during her travels with her patriarch, but no such result matching the zebra's description popped up. "The only blue flower that I can think of with such consequences is Poison Joke, but that's more so classified as a hybrid between a weed and ivy."
"These flowers are definitely not Poison Joke, and death is the only intent it evokes. For you see, those afflicted with the disease become a virus-spreading tree!" The shaman declared, and the reptile gulped. "First the ill shall be covered in orange spots, then they will sprout branches and leaves, all before being hit by a terrible cough! The cough is to be accompanied by bubbles, and when you start to sneeze bolts of lightning you are in trouble! These symptoms sound random and silly I know, but that has to do with how these evil plants first came to grow."
"How did it come to grow?" Sound-Off curiously inquired. As much as the revelation of turning into a death-flower carrying tree frightened her, she was just as equally fascinated with the idea.
Zecora, surprisingly, smiled. "Although at first the origin of the flower admittedly left me floored, after much research I learned that it was something created by the chaotic Discord!"
Sound-Off rolled her eyes; that didn't surprise her. "Okay, so the spirit of chaos made-up some evil flower that makes you do everything but fart rainbows. Couldn't he just fix it with a snap of his, claw, paw, or tail, or whatever?"
"It isn't as easy as you think, from Discord's imprisonment to now has been no blink. The flower is apart from his control, time has turned it feral and taken its toll." The zebra explained.
"Then how did it manage to spread so far?" Sound-Off asked. "I mean, I get that those afflicted become trees when they die, but trees don't bloom overnight. Even magic ones. And I doubt the dead all of the sudden turn into full grown trees either."
"Indeed this is where you are right, even these trees cannot grow into maturity overnight." Zecora parroted. "For you see before the ill perish, they are overwhelmed by a sudden desire to return to where the tree does flourish! Back to the bayou do they go, and into the water is where the new trees do sough."
The dragoness grimaced at the image of a pony, or dragon for that matter, befalling such a horrid fate as to lose recognition of themselves and their desires; they were basically real-life zombies! While alive they infected everypony or creature the sick came in contact with, and even in death they continued to spread the disease. She shuddered, thinking of a sweet yellow mare she knew only in passing- the reptile still wasn't allowed within three-hundred feet of her cottage after the 'Bunny Incident'- who had ironically once told her- the same day of said incident coincidentally- that she would have liked to be a tree.
"So anything that gets covered in this pollen just dies? Then what's the cure? There has to be one, since you're still alive." Sound-Off pointed out.
"Luckily the cure was found by my friend Fluttershy, without her kindness and resilience I surely would have died. And the cure is actually quite surprising, found in the-" Zecora was suddenly interrupted by a loud echoing scream.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"
The scream came from the direction of the throne room. Zecora's ears perked up; her and Sound-Off looked at each other with fear and surprise.
"That sounded like mom!" Sound-Off shouted, spinning around and running back down the direction they came. "Let's hurry!"
Zecora nodded her head, swooping up the dragoness onto her back once more- much to the reptile's deprecation- and took off at such a speed that it would have given Rainbow Dash, or any of the Wonderbolts for that matter, a run for their bits.
***
Scarlet Thorn screamed as the gryphon Vanished dug its massive claws into her sides; its talon was so huge that it could fit around the pegasus's entire middle.
Vinyl Scratch shook off her daze, and pushed herself off the floor. "Hey ugly!"
One-Eye swung its head around.
"That's my friend you've got there!" The unicorn mare screamed.
Vinyl's horn suddenly flared with a fantastic flash, letting loose a cannon-fire of light in the infinite surrounding darkness. One-Eye's singular eye widened, and the monster leapt off of the silver-maned pony just barely dodging the blast.
Scarlet rolled over onto her hooves, wincing as she did so. "Thanks Vinyl."
"No pony messes with my friends and gets off easy." The DJ stated, helping her up.
They turned to face One-Eye, who had skidded and landed across the corridor. The Vanished stood rigidly on the polished flesh floor, a snarl on its beak. Scarlet whipped her scythe out in front of her, and Vinyl recharged her spell. One-Eye suddenly charged forward like a bolt of lightning, sliding underneath the unicorn's magic blast; however, it didn't anticipate the pegasus's attack from above. As soon the spell passed over the gryphon's head, Scarlet crashed atop of the beast and dug her scythe into its spine.
One-Eye screeched in pain, beginning to buck and writhe in an attempt to shake the mare off. The white mare held onto the handle for dear life, the horrible rotting flesh smell emitting from the half-rotten living corpse invading her nostrils. Vinyl aimed her horn at One-Eye, and let loose another spell. This time the magic formed into the shape of a spear and rocketed towards the monster. One-Eye anticipated the bolt of magic, beginning to run towards the unicorn as she fired off bolt after bolt. Scarlet suddenly yanked her scythe and leaned hard to the right, the Vanished was forced into a pillar and its single wing was torn from the socket. The mare tugged the blade free with a pop, and then leapt off One-Eye's back just as Vinyl jumped over the monster and it crashed into the throne.
"Mooooooom!" Sound-Off yelled as Zecora thundered into the room.
Zecora saw the beast and gasped. "You again! I see for my friends you have developed a disdain!"
One-Eye clambered onto its feet, growling loudly as it did so. Then it caught site of the dragoness atop the zebra, and its eye held an inferno of rage. The Vanished brought a claw up to its empty eye socket, moving the claw along the base of the socket repeatedly.
"Oh yak dung." Sound-Off squeaked out, feeling the monster's eye scour her soul.
"Oh no you don't!" Scarlet snapped, springing towards the Vanished. "Not my daughter motherbucker!"
"Watch out!" Vinyl called out to the galloping mare.
The pegasus skidded around One-Eye's tail; it struck repeatedly like a snake, the sharp tip glinting in the crystals' dark light. She struck at the air, keeping the tail at bay. One-Eye suddenly spun around and swung its head towards her. Zecora pulled a glass bottle filled with swirling gas from her bag.
"Vinyl, save our mare! Get her out of there!" The zebra demanded.
"On it!" The unicorn confirmed with a nod of her head, her horn engaging in a spell.
Half a second later the pegasus mare was enveloped in a bubble of magenta light and then teleported to Vinyl's side. Unfortunately, having been unprepared for the spell, Scarlet's coat was colored grey with soot and the edges of her mane blackened and singed from the energy needed to create the spell. Scarlet blinked in surprise and coughed out a puff of smoke.
"A warning would have been nice." She grumbled out, shaking the ash from her coat.
Zecora then burst into action, putting herself- and consequently Sound-Off- into the fray.
"Get me off this crazy zebra!" The dragoness wailed as Zecora skid under the Vanished's razor sharp claws.
The zebra suddenly shoved the potion into Sound-Off's claws. "Quick, throw it!"
Sound-Off did as she was told and chucked the glass bottle at One-Eye. A forest green cloud erupted out of the bottle as it exploded against the monster. The gas snaked along its limbs, turning wherever it touched into black crystals. One-Eye began to screech in panic as its middle became stone. It then turned to the quartet- Zecora had just returned to the other two mares' sides- and made a running jump after them. Before the monster could reach them, its body became fully entrapped in the sparkling gem.
CLUNK!
One-Eye fell loudly to the floor, skidding over only to rest at their hooves.
Vinyl cautiously tapped the statue with her hoof. "What the buck was in that potion?!"
Zecora smiled proudly. "Weaponized Cockatrice essence, which can nullify any presence."
Sound-Off jumped off of Zecora's back. "I have to say that I'm impressed Zecora. You knew that the Vanished would move too quickly for the potion to hit, so by giving me the potion you'd be able to get close enough for me to toss it. Not to mention this crystal! I've never seen anything like it!"
"But are you sure it will hold?" Scarlet asked, analyzing the frozen One-Eye from a distance.
"No amount of magic can break this crystal shell, there is no way the monster can escape its cell." Zecora assured.
Vinyl, meanwhile, rubbed her chin thoughtfully as she scrutinized the statue. "Hmm, I feel like its missing something. I know!"
The unicorn focused her horn, and with a flash a handlebar mustache appeared on the gryphon's beak. Vinyl snickered to herself and ignited her horn again, this time a black top hat and a black cape with red lining appeared on the gryphon's head and back respectively.
***
During this, at a certain boutique back in Ponyville, a pure-white unicorn with a gorgeous and well-styled purple mane was pulling one of her all-nighters.
She was currently working on her newest fashion line, inspired by the designs of a fellow designer in spirit for the upcoming Nightmare Night, 'Vastly Villainous' as the unicorn had decided on calling it. True, black, red, white, and orange weren't her favorite colors to work with; at least not especially when using them together. The colors were gaudy, far too edgy for her tastes, and so stereotypical for the holiday season. Nonetheless, she had a quota to fill and trying something new was never a bad thing. Unless it was a green mane, green was a horrid color in her opinion unless paired correctly with another color and if the right fabric was green.
"Rules of Rarity, guaranteed quality." The beautiful mare sang softly to herself as she worked.
She finished the piece that she was working on, turning back to the ponyquin that was holding her work. Or at least, should have been wearing her work. The beautiful silk top hat with the red strap and two orange feathers, as well as the sable velvet cape with the crimson trimming, had disappeared!
The unicorn dropped the chest piece she had been working on with a gasp. "Of all the things that can happen, this is. The. Worst. Possible. Thing!"
The mare then proceeded to faint, but not before a love-seat seemingly appeared out of nowhere underneath her.
***
Vinyl continued to giggle as a pair of googly-eye glasses appeared on the face of the Vanished.
"You do know all these items are coming from somewhere, right?" Sound-Off asked, rather unamused at the unicorn's immaturity.
"Who cares?" Vinyl said with a shrug of her shoulders. "Nopony is going to miss them."
Her horn lit up again and this time a pair of pink frilly butterfly wings appeared strapped to One-Eye's back.
"I don't think this is what you should be using your magic for." Sound-Off grumbled.
"Hey, it's my magic. So I'll do whatever I want with it!" Vinyl stated.
Sound-Off raised an eyebrow. "Zecora? Mom? Are either of you going to say anything?"
Scarlet just smiled as a sock-puppet with a little white and blue baseball cap that featured a pine tree on it flashed onto One-Eye's tail. "She's having fun. Besides,what could possibly go wrong?"
The pegaus's hooves flew to her mouth as she realized what she had just done. Sound-Off's claw smacked against her head.
As if on cue the crystal keeping One-Eye on a non-threat level began to rapidly crack. And when it broke, for whatever reason- maybe Faust just needed a laugh- the Vanished was still wearing the attire Vinyl had dressed it in. On one hoof, yeah One-Eye had escaped. On the other hoof, it was very hard to be afraid of something wearing googly-eyes, butterfly wings, and a sock-puppet, all while dressed as a tie-the-mare-to-the-train-tracks villain.
Vinyl had to suppress a laugh. "I can't, I just can't!"
The unicorn reached into Zecora's bag with her magic, levitating out the mirror. One-Eye stared at its reflection for a moment with something akin to surprise, before a deep growl formed in its throat.
"Vinyl!" Sound-Off hissed as she, Scarlet, and Zecora began to slowly step away. "Get out of there!"
"Uh-Oh." Vinyl's pupils shrunk as One-Eye gave off a fierce roar and tore off the attire it had been put in.
One-Eye raised a claw at Vinyl, who had been too surprised to ignite her horn, and swung. But before the blow could hit, roots suddenly erupted from the wall. They wrapped around One-Eye just before the monster could tear Vinyl into chunks and shreds.
The roots writhed angrily as they wrapped firmly around the flailing and thrashing Vanished, although One-Eye's struggles were quickly put to a halt by the imprisoning vines. Then they suddenly flew backwards, before making a sharp veering turn, and then racing towards the balcony with the entrapped Vanished still tangled within. The roots flipped upwards upon reaching the edge of the balcony, and One-Eye was sent catapulting across the cavern and into another tunnel where multiple crashings and bangings could be heard as the mutated gryphon tumbled downwards and far-far away.
The quartet of warriors simply stood rigid and confused.
"Um, what just happened?" Sound-Off asked.
"I would tell you if I knew, but I don't actually know." Scarlet mumbled out.
Just then, the roots yanked themselves all the way back into the throne room, U-turning rapidly around with barbed ends pointing straight at Vinyl. The blue-maned pony yelped in surprise, quickly igniting her horn and preparing another fireball. Her companions jumped in, ready to defend their friend. To their great shock and disbelief, the roots jolted to a sudden stop before they could reach them.
"Uh, ooookay. Anypony else think this is weird?" Vinyl inquired.
"What part?" Sound-Off asked, ignoring her rising headache.
"You mean is it weird that these, things," Scarlet decided, cautiously poking a root with her hoof. "aren't trying to rip us apart? Because if so, then yes, I am a little freaked out."
Zecora put a good up to her chin as she studied a root that was thicker than the rest. "Odd indeed how these roots do not seem to pose a threat, and it has something to do with Vinyl I bet."
"Me?" Vinyl inquired. "What could this possibly have to do with me?"
"For this I will need proof to make my stand, so Vinyl, please try to give these roots a command."
Sound-off looked at Scarlet, and the mare only shrugged her shoulders in response.
"S- sure " Vinyl stuttered out, before stating, "Um, roots?"
To everypony's, zebra's, and dragoness's surprise, the nest of vines actually seemed to perk up like the ears of an attentive dog.
Vinyl gulped and let her eyes roll into her skull as she attempted to think of a good command. "I'm- I'm bored!"
Sound-Off slammed her claws into her face, hard enough to leave a red mark. "Ow."
"Yeah, bored. So very bored." Vinyl continued, rolling her eyes at the reptile. "I want something to do. Bring me a game, or something?"
The pegasus gave the other mare the 'really?' look. Her five-year-old colt could come up with a better question than that.
Nonetheless, the roots sprang into action. The jumbled knot loosened itself and shot off in a multitude of directions. Eventually, they reconverged after a few minutes. Wrapped inside of the roots were some bone and crystal, which were fashioned in front of their very eyes into the pieces of a chess set. The smallest of vines then began to weave themselves into the shape of a checkered bored, even lightening certain areas to create the pattern itself.
Sound-Off actually had to rub her eyes just to make sure her sanity hadn't been shattered. "Did- did it just make a chess set for you to play?"
Vinyl carried in her face and drooping jaw the same astonished gaze. "It made a- I think it- Wow, I can't believe- Whoa."
"Whoa is right, and so is Zecora's keen sight." The zebra versed out, giving herself a metaphorical little pat on the back. "It would appear to me that these roots have taken to you quite a liking, I do believe it is from this new magic you are inciting."
"Um, translation?" Vinyl asked.
"I think she means that when you sat on that throne something else happened other than your horn changing." Sound-Off clarified.
Zecora nodded her head in agreement. "That is indeed what I had meant, only with much fewer words spent."
"So what your saying," Scarlet began, trying to put two and two together. "is that when Vinyl sat on the throne.."
"The magic, her magic, was distributed throughout the Colossus and absorbed..." The dragoness continued
"And thus with this beast you have some kind of bond, and this is why of you it has become so fond." Zecora finished.
"So, what you're saying is, the Colossus is, like, my pet now?" Vinyl deduced.
"In simplest terms yes, the Colossus is your pet." Zecora versed out.
"Ah sweet!" Vinyl exclaimed. "I think I'm going name him, Rover!"
Sound-Off blanched. "You're going to name the Colossus, Rover?"
"Yeah! I mean, every pet needs a name." The unicorn stated, trotting over to the writhing nest of roots and stroking the largest one. "Who's a good gigantic monster? You are! Yes you are!"
The dragoness turned to Scarlet, twirling her claw next to her head. The pegasus couldn't help but to feel as if the reptile was right. "Um, Vinyl?"
"Yeah, what's- Whoa!" Vinyl was suddenly picked up by the roots, which fashioned themselves into a seat for her. "Friendly guy huh?"
Scarlet looked at her friend with concern. "You know that you can't keep it, right?"
Vinyl gasped and put her hooves over a root, as if covering its ears. "Says who?!"
The pegasus's eyebrow raised. "Let me check. Oh right, all of Equestria!"
"Come on, Rover is totally not like those other monsters! He saved our lives!" Vinyl pointed out.
"Fine." Scarlet face-hoofed and rolled her eyes. "How exactly do you plan on getting it out of here, and where are you going to keep it?"
"I'll shrink him! I mean, I can do that now. I think. Probably." Vinyl said.
The pegasus mare just gave in before walking away. "Fine then! I guess you can keep it!"
"Hear that boy?!" Vinyl excitedly asked. "You're coming home with me!"
Scarlet and Sound-Off simply tried to shrug it off. This was, in a sense, the more normal part of their adventure.
***
"I can't believe we've never talked before!" The purple alicorn in front of Cobra Strike exclaimed. "I would have never guessed we have so much in common!"
"Yeah." Cobra Strike halfheartedly responded. "Chess, antiques, and famous parents."
The purple mare giggled. "I know my mother's books have become quite popular in the field of magic studies, and my father, well, I can't remember a day somepony hasn't asked him about what it's like to be the Royal Canterlot librarian and personal over-seer of every spell book ever written in all of history!"
A purple and green dragon leaning sleepily on the arm of his throne sleepily muttered out, "You always say that Twilight, not that it's true."
Twilight Sparkle rolled her royal eyes. "Anyways, I guess it's still only half as interesting as what your parents are doing. How's progress going, you wouldn't happen to know by chance?"
"I wouldn't know." Cobra answered, munching on a stale-ish lemon scone. "It's been a while since the last letter. But from what that last one said, I'd say progress is going well. Slow, but well."
"Well I hope they find her." Twilight stated before levitating a pink teapot up in her magic. "More tea?"
"Haha, of course I'd like more tea!" The pegasus stated through grit teeth.
In reality, Cobra hated tea. It was almost always too strong, and on the rare occasions it wasn't, it was too weak and almost like drinking water left under the sun. But one does not decline tea as a guest, especially if the one hosting just so happens to be an all-powerful alicorn princess.
Luckily for the stallion, a certain pink-coated mare noticed a rather tired looking little pegasus colt at the stallion's side.
"Hey, Twilight?" The mare asked.
"Yes Starlight?" The princess squeaked out.
"Don't you think Black Dawn looks a little tired? It might be past his bedtime." The mare, Starlight, pointed out.
"Oh my goodness! You're right!" Twilight exclaimed upon seeing the barely awake colt.
"Nuh-uh." Black Dawn yawned. "I'm... fine."
"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash suddenly chimed in. "You only just got here!"
"Rainbow," Twilight began with a scowl. "Black Dawn here is young, younger than Scoot-a-loo, and while she might be able to stay up this late without any repercussions that are too harsh, Black Dawn needs more sleep and staying up like this could be detrimental to his health!"
"She's right Rainbow Dash." Starlight nodded her head in agreement. "Even Sunburst went to sleep. Although I'm surprised he could sleep at all, I had no idea he was such fan of yours Cobra Strike!"
"I'm just glad that I could make him happy." Cobra said as he excused himself from the table. "Thanks again for letting us borrow your game Starlight. And thank you Princess Twilight for having us over, and for fixing my glasses."
"Oh, haha, Twilight is fine." The alicorn stated to the bowing pegasus. "Please, I'm a pony just like you and everypony else. And its no trouble, It's my pleasure, really. I don't get a lot of visitors. Not since my old home, you know. But really, I'm the one who should feel honored. If I knew I was having such a famous pony over for tea I would have had Spike clean up the place, and my finest tea set imported from Japony washed and put out."
"Come on now. It's like you said, I'm just a regular old pony." Cobra parroted as he stood up.
"A pony with an army of fans who hang onto you're every word!" Twilight chirped out as she swooped up every last tea cup and the surrounding accessories before shoving the load of dishes onto the nearly asleep dragon's lap, who gave off a startled cry. "It must be exciting to have so many loyal fans! I bet they'd believe whatever you told them!"
"Yeah," Starlight huffed out, blowing a lock of stray mane from her face. "can't imagine what that's like."
Black Dawn suddenly yawned again. "Mmm not sleepy."
"Come on," Cobra grunted as he pulled the colt onto his back. "let's go home."
"Noooo!" Black Dawn whined out. "I want to- I wanna... with Princess Twilight. She's- she's... favorite...prince-"
And just like that the colt was out.
Cobra smiled at his sleeping son, leg twitching and wings fluttering as he slept. The older pegasus then took the game under his wing before turning to the three mares. "It's been a pleasure meeting you all. Starlight, Twilight, Spike. Rainbow, I hope the next time we meet it will be on better terms."
The purple dragon grumbled out something as he stumbled across the crystal floor with a mountain of teacups obscuring his vision; Twilight shot him a glare.
She then turned her attention back to the rock star in front of her. "Sorry about that, Spike can be a lit-tle bit grumpy when it gets this late. He still is a baby dragon after all."
Cobra found that hard to believe. From the three hours he had known Spike, the dragon gave him the feeling of maturity and heightened intelligence. It wasn't for the pegasus to say, especially as a guest and to a princess of all ponies, but he couldn't help but to feel as if Twilight was purposefully- knowingly or unknowingly- inhibiting Spike's growth. Cobra Strike shook that thought from his head.
"No, no. Don't worry about it." He said, and then gestured to the colt on his back. "I know all too well what that's like."
Rainbow fluttered next to the sleeping colt. "Aw, how cute is he?!"
Twilight and Starlight turned to the cyan mare in surprise.
"Since when did you start liking foals Rainbow Dash?" Starlight inquired.
Rainbow blushed. "Well I- I never- I mean- Of course- You see... um."
Twilight raised an eyebrow, giving a the mare a smug look that would have made a certain apple farmer proud. She cleared her throat. "Rainbow, have you- have you ever thought about having foals of your own?"
Rainbow's blush deepened as Twilight and Starlight exchanged knowing glances, Cobra, for his part, just snickered. Rainbow glanced quickly around. "I, uh, I have to go feed Tank!"
The mare suddenly shouted before dashing through a window. The window itself shattered into Faust knows how many pieces and Princess Twilight let out a very un-princess-like growl.
"Rainbow! How many times have I told you to use the door?!" Twilight exclaimed.
"Eighteen-hundred and five!" A bubbly voice screamed out from somewhere in town.
Twilight slumped her shoulders in frustration, while Starlight simply gathered the scattered shards in her magic and began to put the window back together. The purple alicorn then remembered she had a guest over and quickly recomposed herself. "It's fine, everything is fine."
Cobra swore he saw her mane begin to curl. "Um, Prince- I mean, Twilight?"
Twilight let out a surprised cry and stumbled into Starlight. The pink mare's turquoise aura dropped, and the pieces of glass fell to the ground only causing them to shatter more. Black Dawn, surprisingly, slept through it all.
"You know what? I'm just going to go. I think I remember where the door is." Cobra stated, beginning to back away. "Thanks again, and take care."
The pegasus then hurried out of the tea room, shutting the door behind him.
As he left, Twilight's left eye began to twitch. "Ugh!"
Starlight jumped a little at the alicorn's cry of frustration. "Come on Twilight, it's not that bad. I can still fix the window."
"It's not the window!" Twilight exclaimed, trotting over to the table and collapsing into her hooves. From her hooves came a muffled reply, "I must have looked like a foal in front of my idol."
"I didn't know you liked rock music. I always thought you'd be into jazz, or classical." Starlight said as she sat herself next to the alicorn. "And I thought Princess Celestia and Star Swirl were your idols?"
"Yeah, in magic!" Twilight shouted. "And I never said I hated rock. In fact, Shining and I use to listen to it together all the time throughout my filly-hood! I just said that I don't like metal."
"You didn't seem overly excited when Rainbow first brought Cobra Strike over." Starlight pointed out.
"Well, yeah!" The purple pony princess proclaimed. "I mean, I know first hoof how perturbing it can be having fans gush over you twenty-four-seven. I figured a normal tea session and being treated like a normal pony is just what he needed. Of course, it didn't help that Sunburst kept asking him personal questions and taking photographs."
"Well somepony gave Sunburst a couple autographs to have him sign." Starlight smirked.
"They're for the girls!" Twilight protested, her face reddening.
Starlight's eyebrow threatened to leap off her face. "Fluttershy doesn't even like rock, you know it scares her right? And remember the entire Countess Coloratura incident? I don't think AJ was too happy about that first performance."
"I'm just being a considerate friend." Twilight retorted, before hiding in her wings.
"Sure you are." Starlight said, not bothering to hide her unconvinced tone. "I mean, you're the Princess of Friendship after all. Oh, and Twilight?"
"What?" The purple mare demanded.
"You're chewing on your mane again." Starlight stated as she trot out of the room.
Twilight spit out her mane, giving out an embarrassed, "Oh."
....
Cobra Strike, in fact, did not remember where the door was. Who would have thought that finding a pair of giant doors would be so difficult? Luckily for him, he just so happened to run into a certain dragon.
"So yeah, that's pretty much how things are around her." Spike said, leading the stallion down the corridors. "Twilight and her friends get to go out on all these fun and crazy adventures, and ol' Spike just has to stay home and do the dishes and reorganize the library."
"Why don't you just ask if you can go with them?" Cobra inquired.
"Because Twilight won't let me." Spike grumbled, crossing his arms. "She thinks that I can't handle myself! This one time, she even followed me to the Dragonlands just because she thought I'd get into trouble with the other dragons!"
"But, you are a dragon. Shouldn't you be fine in the land of dragons?" The pegasus pointed out.
"Exactly!" Spike exclaimed. "I mean, I know that I'm smaller than most dragons! And can't fly. And am weaker. And have fears of dark and creepy places. And- you know what? Never mind. Twilight is right. I can't handle myself."
Cobra frowned. "You know what Spike? I think you're just underestimating yourself."
"Really?" Spike asked with a slight sniffle.
Cobra automatically entered father mode. "Well, what I'm trying to say is this. You are devaluing yourself because other ponies keep treating you like a baby. But they only treat you like that because you let them. And it looks like to me that you actually do more work than you or anypony realizes, work that you're not getting the credit for. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you should overestimate yourself either, I'm just saying that you're never going to be appreciated unless you demand it. Same goes for being treated like a baby."
Spike wiped his nose on his arm. "Y- yeah! You're right! From now on I'm a whole new dragon!"
"Spike? Spike!" Twilight's voice echoed off of the crystal walls. 'Where are you Spike?! I need you to get a broom and sweep up all this glass! Starlight and I can't find all the pieces! Oh, and place an order for a new window too! And while you're at it actually, I need more quills! And since I'm getting new quills you might as well place an order for more ink! And speaking of quills I need you check on Owlowlicous! Make sure he has food and water! And change his newspapers if he needs it!"
"Coming! Just let me get my apron!" Spike shouted, before turning back to Cobra Strike. "Take the next hall on your left, then the second hall to your right, make another left at the bust of Celestia, and then you'll reach the main hall where the doors are."
"Thanks. And don't forget to mention to Twilight that you feel as if you're not getting enough credit!" The pegasus called out as the dragon ran off.
"I wo-" He was interrupted by another yell.
"SPIKE!" Twilight demanded.
Spike gave off a panicked cry and began to move double-time. Cobra just gave the purple and green dragon a sympathetic look before shaking his head. Someponies, and dragons, just couldn't be helped. The pegasus thought as he continued to trot down the crystal corridor, repeating Spike's instructions in his head.
***
The Colossus staggered forward, following into procession behind the line of Vanished. The Tree of Chaos loomed above even the Colossus itself; jagged and withered branches reaching and stretching into the infernal darkness towards the top of the pit.
Scarlet's heartbeat followed every other step of the Colossus's front right hoof, and she felt sure that it would stop completely by the time they reached the tree. She instinctively began to stumble back, but a hoof caught her. She turned to see Vinyl smiling softly at her.
"Hey, don't worry." The unicorn stated. "We'll be fine."
The pegasus did her best to smile in return, but her efforts were minimal at best. She turned her attention back to the tree as Rover, as Vinyl insisted they call him, drew closer to the tree's hollow. The tree itself was unimaginably huge, the pegasus never would have guessed that something so colossal could have ever existed underground. It was big enough to fit Canterlot at least ten times over in it, that is, if each Canterlot was stacked atop another.
The tree seemed to leer down at them, radiating an ugly presence that infected all and everything that gazed upon it.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
A faint heartbeat interrupted the still air. As they passed through the threshold of the tree, the beats grew louder.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Zecora and Sound-Off joined them at the balcony.
The dragoness shivered, her body wracked by chills. "M- mom?"
"I'm here." Scarlet assured, pulling the reptile over to her.
Even Zecora looked nervous, she shuffled her hooves anxiously and rubbed the golden bracelets around her foreleg. No words came from her mouth, and she took a swig of whiskey from a flask hidden in her cloak.
The inside of the tree was surprisingly well-lit by crystal growths, illuminating the hundreds of Vanished in gory and gruesome detail. A total of fifteen Vanished, with Lily Lace included, were carrying in their jaws one to two ponies each downwards into a pit. At the bottom of the pit lie a vast lake.
The lake, as black and thick as tar, spread along the basin. Roots, the same as outside, drank from the foul substance before snaking along the ground and up the tree's insides. At the heart of the roots, suspended above the vile lake in a cradle of tangled roots, lie an actual heart. Encased in a sac of crystal, the heart dimmed and brightened as it beat. Shapes moved about the fluid separating the flesh heart from its crystal case, blurred by the structure they remained nothing but shadows moving like flickers of flame. That is, until one shape slammed against the crystal. The screaming face of a pony was revealed, withered away into a skeletal state and eyeless sockets wide with panic and untold terror. The pony weakly tapped at its prison before being whisked away by the endless wave of shapes. Souls. The demonic heart was bathing in souls.
It suddenly grew cold; cold was an understatement really, the temperature dropped so much so that the bubbling liquid in the basin actually began to frost over. Scarlet's, Vinyl's, and Zecora's fur stood completely upright from the radiating hatred suddenly permeating the air, while Sound-Off's spikes began to ache. The heart suddenly began to shine in a dark glow.
"Step forth, my brood!" A deep voice rumbled out, as gravelly and as ancient as the stone around them.
The voice stopped their hearts and snatched their breaths. Grim Noise was here.
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If the main OCs in this story were voiced, what would they sound like?
8786276
Scarlet would sound like the singer P!nk more than likely.
Sound-Off's voice is a little more difficult, but I think she would sound like Ember from "Danny Phantom".
Black Dawn would sound like a young Alphonse Elric from "Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood".
Cobra Strike has a voice that is reminiscent of Alucard from "Hellsing Ultimate", but when he sings it becomes something more akin to the singer of a song titled "We Own the Night" by a band named Dance Gavin Dance.
8786276
Oh, and Florina Tart I imagine would sound like Hinata Hyuga from "Naruto".
While Ink Token has a voice that is reminiscent of Jade Chan from "Jackie Chan Adventures".
8786321
Hope that helps!
And makes sense for their personalities too.
Awesome chapter!
The imagery at the beginning was dark and perverse but somehow you managed to lighten the mood with dress-up. The scene where Vinyl attempts to keep the colossus as her pet made me crack up. Lol
Vinyl Scratch reminded me of Mabel from Gravity falls throughout the chapter. I really enjoyed the part with Twilight and Cobra Strike. Great references! You still amaze me with how well you can write the main six into your story! Oh my Faust! Black Dawn was just the cutest! His attitude is so adorable! It reminded me of a kid that once claimed to be super man while tripping on himself only to get back up like nothing had happened. Lol
Poor Spike, I don't know why but spike's scenario reminds me of some pony.
P.S. - I love how you built suspense at the end. Bloody good cliffhanger! I'm eager to read the final confrontation. Keep up the great work!
This story just got an upgrade! The break in the darker tone was refreshing.
I personally can't wait to see what Grim Noise will do next!
I see what you did there