To Err is Equine

by RLYoshi

25: Palace of the Rancid Windigoes

[Perspective: Arrell]

Back at the spot where the window appeared, I started looking around. If my assumptions were correct, the window had been magically enchanted to act as a means of communication. However, as far as I knew, Windigoes couldn't use unicorn magic like that, so they must have a unicorn on their side – or in slavery. Either way, unless the unicorn in question was Twilight Sparkle, they wouldn't be able to keep the magic going over long distances, so they had to be nearby.

Of course, trying to find a Windigo hideout in this sky-high blizzard was like trying to find a specific piece of hay in a haystack. The Fine Rock didn't activate unless I flew too far away, so it wasn't very good at bringing me to the exact location. To top it all off, I couldn't clear up my vision by just stopping the snow, since there was too much to hold onto and my powers were still weak.

Times like this I wish I had a dungeon map.

Suddenly, a scream pierced the air, coming from my left. I turned and began flying in that direction. As I flew, the snow picked up and the wind got stronger, nearly throwing me off my flight pattern. If not for my immunity to the cold, I'd probably be freezing to death.

Eventually, I saw a large building come into view. It was pure white and looked like some sort of castle. It didn't take a scientist to know that this was likely the Rancid Windigoes' hideout – or palace, as the case may be.

I found a window and flew in, fortunately into a hallway that nopony else was in. The blizzards no longer obscuring my view, I took a look around to see just what kind of place this was.

The walls, floor, and ceiling were pure white, as though made by snow (which they probably were). The floor had a "carpet" made of ice, though I managed to hold proper footing on it thanks to being a Windigo. In fact, this place seemed designed for Windigoes, just enforcing my guess that this was where I'd find the Rancid Windigoes.

I headed off one way, levitating the Fine Rock into my saddlebags for safekeeping. I continued to hold my axe in case I had to fight anything, though the idea of killing made me want to throw up.

I did enough killing in the Dusk of Ice and Fire...don't make me do more.

The room I walked into was, again, empty. It was another hallway, but this one had more doorways to other rooms. I began heading for one, but when I heard hoofsteps that weren't my own, I froze.

"...said he's coming soon. We need to prepare the clan for battle," one voice echoed through the halls.

"What about the prisoners? Somepony needs to watch them," a second voice replied.

"Lord Frostfiend said he'll put Breeze in charge of the prisoners."

"Breeze? That coward? He'd surrender if somepony made a scary face at him!" At this point, I could see the two Windigoes; they were both about my size, surprisingly, and wearing red armor. They each had two swords attached to the sides of their armor, presumably for close combat.

"The prisoners don't exactly know that, do they? As long as they see a Windigo with a weapon guarding them, they won't even speak."

"You better be right, Frostbite..."

The voices trailed off as the two Windigoes passed through the hallway and went in one of the side rooms. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding, pressed up in a corner so tightly I'm surprised I didn't fall through the snowy walls.

Coming out from my rather bad hiding spot, I headed for the doorway the two guards went through. Slowly and silently, I peeked around the corner. It appeared to be a training room of some sort, as it had several pony-shaped training dummies, pieces of armor, and various weapons lying around. It was also unoccupied, much to my relief.

I trotted into the room, put my stuff down, and set to work. I started donning a suit of red armor, which was a little big but would have to do. I looked around for swords, but all I could find were some sai, so I took two of those and slid them into the proper spots on my armor. Now, if any Windigoes saw me, they'd think I was just another Scout...hopefully.

My next order of business was to deal with my axe and saddlebags. Carrying them around with me would just make me suspicious, but leaving them lying around somewhere was out of the question.

Suddenly, I had an idea.

---

The saddlebags and axe in my mouth, I bravely walked towards a green-armored guard. He was guarding a door that I assumed was locked and quickly made a mental note of. As soon as I approached, he looked at me suspiciously.

"What do you have there, Scout?" he asked gruffly. I spat the items onto the ground.

"Found them lying around. Wasn't sure what to do with them," I replied in what I hoped was a similarly gruff tone.

The guard narrowed his eyes. "Didn't Lord Frostfiend tell you? 'Any strange objects are to be brought directly to the item holding chamber, no question.'"

"Well, these objects aren't strange. I know what they are. It's an axe and a pair of saddlebags."

"Snarky, are we?" You have no idea. "Fine, I'll take them there myself. Guard this room while I'm gone." He picked up the objects in his mouth. "And don't expect me to be back soon, Scout."

He walked out of the room, and I smirked. Part of me wanted to follow him and find out just where the item holding chamber was, but the rest of me wanted to get this door open. I turned to it and examined it.

It seemed to be made of ice, but it was rather thick and had a handle and keyhole. Looking around, I spotted a key on a ring hanging from a hook up near the ceiling. They make this too easy.

Making sure nopony was around, I flew up, snatched the key, and dropped back to the ground. I slid the key into the hole, turned, and opened the door. Peering inside quietly, what I saw both frightened and angered me.

There were three Scout Windigoes inside, but they weren't paying attention to me. They were all screaming and had swords or knives. But that wasn't all that I saw. I saw ponies. Ponies that were covered in various cuts and bruises, either begging for the Windigoes to stop or just outright unconscious. Maybe even dead. And the Windigoes were screaming at them and attacking them.

"What about the prisoners? Somepony needs to watch them."

They were holding ponies captive. For what reason, I didn't know, but I could guess. Either they were hostages or slaves. Whatever they were, they needed to be freed. I growled quietly, stepped through the door, and closed it behind myself.

"Attention!" I yelled. The Windigoes stopped and turned to me. I improvised. "Lord Frostfiend has ordered all Scouts and Warriors to proceed to the training room for last-minute combat practice! Our attack will commence shortly!"

They looked at each other, then back to me. One spoke up. "We're getting our last-minute combat practice..."

"Are you disobeying Lord Frostfiend's orders?" I snapped.

"No sir!"

"Then get to the training room!" I began stomping down the stairs as the three of them went past me. One stopped and looked at me.

"Aren't you going?" he asked.

I shook my head. "I've been ordered to watch the prisoners."

"I thought Breeze was gonna watch them?"

"Yeah, well, Breeze is a coward. He'd surrender if somepony made a scary face at him."

The Windigo laughed and left the room, leaving me alone with the prisoners. I turned to them and they all cringed. Some started crying. Then, in the corner, I saw a flash of light yellow.

Asylum. Looking at me. Scared of me.

...she can't tell who I am because of the armor... The realization dawned on me painfully. Not only did I have about fifty imprisoned ponies all looking at me in fear, one of them was a friend of mine. I can't drop my cover yet. I need to keep playing this part for a while, at least until I know a bit more.

"Alright all of you, listen up!" I yelled, still using my gruff voice. They all quieted down, though a few of them were still sniffling. "I want to learn a few things, and you're going to tell me. Got it?"

They nodded. I looked around, my eyes soon resting on a red pegasus stallion with orange hair. He had a black eye, gashes on his left side, and one of his hind legs was twisted in an unnatural war. I walked up to him and looked him in the eye.

"You. Tell me, what is Lord Frostfiend's plan?" I demanded.

"I...b-but...wh-why do you need to-" he stammered, shivering. I stomped a hoof.

"Answers, dammit!"

"Th-th-the town below...Smooth Grove, or s-something...he's g-going to invade it...and then the rest of Equestria..."

So this isn't just Smooth Grove at risk here...it's all of Equestria. And nopony knows about it except these prisoners. And me.

"Good." I turned to a nearby earth pony mare, who had a purple coat and green mane and tail. "You get question two. Does Lord Frostfiend have any sort of special weapon or technique he's going to use?"

She nodded, tears in her eyes. "I-I don't know wh-what it is, though..."

At least I know to expect a surprise. "Alright. Last question, this one for all of you."

I backed away from the crowd slightly, letting them all look at me. I paused for a moment, then grabbed my helmet and threw it away. My intimidating face turned to a smile.

"Who wants to get out of here?" I asked in my normal voice.

They were all silent, just staring at me in surprise, confusion, and a bit of distrust. Finally, a voice from the back spoke up.

"...Arrell?"

I turned to the yellow mare. "Yes, Asylum. I'm here. And I'm getting all of you out of here."

"No, you're not."

Startled, I turned to the doorway, where the green-armored guard from earlier was standing, glaring down at me.

"Arrell, huh? I should've known something was off about you. That armor sure seemed a few sizes too big."

I shrugged. "Well, worth a try."

"Come with me. I'm taking you to Lord Frostfiend. You can't escape, Arrell." He grinned smugly.

Smugly.

I. Hate. Smugness.

"Who says I want to escape?" I hissed, flying into the air and using my front legs to grab the sai from my side. He responded by drawing his sword with his mouth and charging at me.

He jumped and swung, but I avoided the blade and dove in to stab him. Unfortunately, his armor must have been pretty strong, as my weapon didn't even leave a scratch. I cursed mentally at my failure, and then again when he hit me with the flat of his sword, knocking me to the ground.

Before he could stab me or cut off my head or whatever he was planning to do, I unleashed a voice attack on him, knocking him backwards into the wall. The prisoners gasped at this, apparently not used to it. Can't say I blame them.

I jumped up, but as soon as I did, my sickness decided to kick in. My vision blurred, but I fought to keep myself awake. I started feeling warm...hot, even. I felt like I was melting.

...this isn't the sickness.

I grinned, and with a shout of power, I unleashed a wave of flames from my body. The fire flew out, striking the guard and causing him to scream in pain. Thankfully, the flames died down before they reached the prisoners. Surprisingly, none of the snow around melted.

Din's Fire. Thank you, Ocarina of Time!

As soon as the fire faded away, I looked over at the guard...who was no longer there. His armor lay on the ground, soaking in a puddle of water.

...I just killed him.

I just killed again.

...what is wrong with me?

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the prisoners. They were looking at me in awe, but also fear. Never a good combination.

I'll get sick later...for now, I have more important things to do. I put my sai away and trotted over to the armor. Rooting around in it, I found a key, likely for the item storage room. I went over to the prisoners.

"First thing's first. Here's what we're gonna do," I stated. "Any pegasi here who can fly will go down to Smooth Grove, preferably carrying an earth pony or unicorn with them. Once you get there, tell the mayor about this. If you can, there's a pony I need you to find: a brown unicorn stallion named Risk Reward. He has a broken horn, you can't miss him. Give him this." I reached into a pocket in my armor and pulled out the Fine Rock, which I had smartly decided not to keep in my saddlebags before giving them to the guard. "He'll know what to do with it. Then, I need you to also find a mare named False Front and a young colt named Nimble Night. Three of you pegasi need to carry Risk, False, and Nimble up here. Then, any of you that can, start carrying the rest of the earth ponies and unicorns down to the ground, where they'll be safe." I cracked my neck. "Then, you just stay down there and let me and my friends take care of Lord Frostfiend and the Rancid Windigoes. Anypony who wants to help is welcome to, as an army is better than a small group. Now, before we waste any more time..."

I started trotting away, when one stallion suddenly spoke up. "Hang on a minute," he haughtily called. "Who put you in charge? And who the hell are you anyway?!"

I slowly turned back to him and the other prisoners. "I'm Arrell. I'm a human. I'm from the planet Earth in the galaxy of the Milky Way. I'm sixteen years old, and I'm the pony who's gonna save your lives and all several billion creatures in the world below."

They all stared at me in surprise. The stallion who questioned me was slack-jawed.

"You got a problem with that?" I quietly asked.

"No," he quickly answered.

"In that case..." I turned to the door. "Allons-y!"

With that, I galloped off, the prisoners all following me. As soon as we got in the hall, I looked around for guards. None, thankfully. I chose a direction and we ran that way. Thankfully, I chose wisely, as we reached the main door to the palace.

Two guards in green armor were standing outside the door, but they were standing rather stupidly near the edge; two earth ponies in my little parade just ran up, bucked them in the head to knock them out, and shoved them over the edge. I nodded at them approvingly.

"Alright pegasi, take off!" I ordered. All pegasus ponies grabbed onto a unicorn or earth pony and flew off, heading down. Some ponies protested, saying they'd rather stay and help, much to my appreciation. There were about fifteen pegasi, so by the time they left, there were twenty prisoners left behind. Five of them were right beside me, silently making themselves part of my army.

Now, as long as they follow my instructions properly, we'll have reinforcements soon...but they might not be quick enough...

I felt somepony tap me on the shoulder. I turned, and saw Asylum.

"Why aren't you heading down?" I asked.

"Because I'm not letting you do this alone," she stated.

"I'm not alone. Risk, False, and Nimble are coming, and some of the freed prisoners are helping."

"You know what I mean." She glared at me. "I made my choice a long time ago, and I'm never gonna leave you."

My heart actually started running faster at that, but I ignored it. I smiled at her. "In that case, welcome to the...group." My smile vanished as I became slightly confused. "Huh. We need a name."

"We'll think of one later," she giggled.

"Arrell, sir! Guards incoming!" one of the ponies shouted. I turned quickly towards the open door, and sure enough, five Scouts were flying down the hall towards us.

Rolling my eyes, I walked up to the large door and slammed it shut. Five thumping sounds were heard on the other side, and then it went quiet.

"Problem solved," I stated. "Asylum, stay here with the ponies that want to go home, and send Risk, False, and Nimble in when they arrive. The five of you who are staying with me for now, come along. I have a few objects I need to get back."

We opened the doors once more and headed on in. With five ponies following me, I felt like I was leading an actual army. We quietly crept through the halls, peeking into rooms. They probably thought it was to check for guards, but really, I was doing it to find the item storage room.

"Sir?" one stallion asked, trotting up to me.

"Don't call me 'sir'," I replied.

"What should I call you?"

"Arrell. Or Master Chief. Whichever you prefer."

"Alright...we think we found something, Master Chief." Of course he chose that. Hopefully I don't get sued.

"Show me." He trotted away, and I followed. A few minutes of walking took us to a locked door right in the middle of a hall.

I inspected it briefly before pulling out my key and trying it. It worked. The door opened, and inside, I saw more stuff than Link could ever hope to hold.

"Jackpot," I whispered. I turned to my little army. "Get in there, grab a weapon or two, and get out. If any of your own possessions are in there, I'll hold onto them."

They filed in, me right behind them. My axe and saddlebags were right in the corner, and I picked them up quickly, ditching my suit of armor to make the saddlebags fit. What few items were handed to me were stuffed inside them, somehow never filling up completely. I chalked it up to an "infinite inventory" ability Styx gave me.

Soon, everypony had some kind of weapon. Two stallions had swords, while a third had a baseball bat. Better than nothing, I guess. One mare had a rope, and another was using unicorn magic to work a bow, a quiver of arrows strapped to her back.

We were ready.

Comments

[BronyDJ]

First? ... okay
And yet another Doctor Who reference. Dammit, Yoshi, you clever author, you.
Now if only Death Battles could update sometime soon.

[RLYoshi]

1905838 The tournament should be starting in a few days, depending on when I can get the actual battle itself written.

[Nethaufer]

So why didn't the key shear off into two pieces as soon as the door was unlocked?

[RLYoshi]

1906818 ...what?

[dawn_rising]

"Arrell. Or Master Chief. Whichever you prefer."

'
all4myboys.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/why-cat.jpg?w=646

[AppleTank]

1906843
It's a TF2 joke, whenever you open a crate with a key (that costs money) it breaks and goes poof. Many have believed that it has contributed to Gaben's wealth.

[Kontaro]

1922492 Also a Zelda joke, as silver keys only work once, for one of any locked doors, then ya needa find another key.

[Time Squid]

Oh, so much Doctor. I'm loving it!

[Serefin]

This arc seems to be the Doctor Who references arc.

[wlam]

He jumped and swung, but I avoided the blade and dove in to stab him. Unfortunately, his armor must have been pretty strong, as my weapon didn't even leave a scratch.

...sais are blunt weapons, like batons. If course they wouldn't leave a scratch if you stabbed someone with one.