The Equestrian Odyssey - A Tale of Two Worlds

by Kamahido

Chapter 3 - Reality

The next day Derpy and the others emerge from the forest as the sun sinks below the horizon. Rose points a finger.

“There’s Dodge Junction.”

Derpy turns to their escorts. “Thank you very much for guiding us.”

They nod and turn back as Rainbow Dash squints.

“There’s a train parked at the station.”

Applejack breathes a sigh of relief. “Looks like we got here just in time.”

Rarity grins. “Let’s not be late!”

Pinkie bounces happily. “Yeah! The train only runs once a week, after all!”

Fluttershy raises an eyebrow. “How do you…?”

“I saw the schedule last time I was here!”

Rose motions for the others to follow her. “This way, everyone.”

Hurrying toward the town they arrive at the station, purchase tickets, and head to their car. Sitting down on their respective benches they turn to one another as the train begins to move. Applejack is the first to speak.

“Not a moment too soon!”

Fluttershy sighs happily. “Yes, we were fortunate.”

Rainbow Dash turns to her friend. “I’ve been meaning to ask you something, Fluttershy.”

“What is it?”

“Do you know the chief of Safe Haven?”

“Wha-what makes you say that?!”

“She kept looking over at you during supper the other day.”

Applejack frowns. “Yeah. And you’d look the other way.”

“I… um… you see…”

Derpy waves a hoof dismissively. “Now, now, everypony. You’re making Fluttershy uncomfortable.”

Rarity nods. “Indeed. Don’t make a mountain out of a molehill.”

Rose looks out the window. “We have a clear ride to Vanhoover now. According to the schedule, we’ll arrive at the station late tomorrow evening. From there we’ll have to walk, of course. But my calculations say we should be at Stableton shortly after sunrise the following day.”

Fluttershy appears nervous. “How about after lunch?!”

“What for?”

“Um… so Tempest will be in a better mood? I know I’m on edge if somepony interrupts my meal.”

Applejack sighs. “We don’t really know what time she eats. Even then it’d just be a crapshoot.”

Pinkie giggles. “Yeah! That and I think she’s ALWAYS in a bad mood!”

Rarity shudders. “Well, let’s hope she’s home when we get there.”

Derpy nods. “Right. And that Dinky and her friends are there too.”

Rose purses her lips. “I’m sure Sereb will see to it they’re kept from harm. But everyone should endeavor to rest during this train ride. After all, once we arrive it will be non-stop walking from Vanhoover to Stableton.”

Meanwhile, Dinky and her friends awaken to Sereb nudging them.

“The sun is setting.”

Apple Bloom sits up. “Already?”

Sweetie Belle groans. “So… are we supposed to get up?”

Dinky nods as she stands. “Yup.”

Apple Bloom looks outside the tent. “This is a really strange feeling. Being on opposite schedules.”

Sereb chuckles as he picks up the helmet with his magic. “Think of it as getting an extra early start.”

Cherry sighs. “Well, this is beyond early for anything!”

Dinky motions for the others to follow. “Come on. Let’s eat and get going.”

Stepping out of the tent they spot Tempest and Moonlit Dusk sitting around the roaring campfire. Tempest frowns.

“Decided to rise, eh?”

Dinky raises an eyebrow. “Are we late?”

Moonlit Dusk shakes his head. “Not really. But I’d very much like to get moving the moment it gets dark.”

Sereb grins. “Frightened?”

“Hardly. I just have other things to do back at the citadel.”

Tempest scoffs at this. “Then head back. I’ll take the fillies the rest of the way.”

Moonlit Dusk frowns. “Not a chance! I’m responsible for the All-Seeing Eye, and I need to return with it personally!”

“Have it your way.”

They eat a quick meal and pack up the campsite. As they turn to leave Dinky looks to Moonlit Dusk.

“So how long will it take to get to our destination?”

“We should be there just before dawn. At least I hope we do.”

Apple Bloom appears surprised. “Why’s that?”

Moonlit Dusk gestures to his freshly summoned creatures. “Because when the sun rises, we lose our escorts here.”

Cherry gasps. “What?!”

Sweetie Belle looks around nervously. “But what about the return trip?!”

“I can transport us back to the Nightborn Citadel at the proper time.”

Tempest grins. “Or I can open a portal to my house.”

Dinky nods soberly. “That and we can just teleport as we see fit too.”

Sereb grins. “Many options. A good situation to be in.”

Moonlit Dusk motions with a hoof. “Let’s go.”

As they walk Apple Bloom looks around before turning to Sweetie Belle.

“This place really is creepy!”

“I’ll say!”

Sereb scoffs. “There is nothing to fear. We are stronger together than we could ever be apart.”

Dinky nods. “Sereb’s right. If we stick together we’ll be fine.”

Tempest shrugs. “More or less.”

Moonlit Dusk turns to her. “Tempest?”

“Special Forces are trained to work alone. It allows us to move quickly and remain undetected.”

Dinky frowns. “But if something goes wrong, you don’t have anypony to help you.”

“Which is why we’re so highly trained. For that very reason, a single mistake could be the end of us.”

Moonlit Dusk nods. “The Nightborn are similar in their beliefs. You won’t usually see us in large numbers, as we can more easily act in small groups against a larger force by calling for our shadow allies.”

Sweetie Belle grins. “What about Arc?”

Apple Bloom nods. “Yeah. He was always traveling with others.”

Tempest shakes her head. “That made him only as strong as his weakest link. Not an enviable position to be in if you ask me.”

Cherry scoffs. “But he made it work.”

“That may be true. But I do believe he would have been much more effective acting alone, as the other Heroes of Light did in the past.”

Tempest nods in response to Moonlit Dusk’s statement. “Indeed. They were always seen as the greatest of the Special Forces. Hiding in plain sight, but able to act in a moment’s notice.”

Many hours later they arrive at a massive structure. It’s crumbling walls and toppled towers are illuminated in the moonlight. Dinky and her friends gasp.

“Where… where are we?”

Moonlit Dusk looks up stoically. “The Castle of the Two Sisters.”

Tempest nods. “Quite a sight to behold.”

Sereb turns to her. “Have you never been here before?”

“No. There isn’t really anything out here that would warrant my attention normally.”

Dinky puts a hoof to her chin. “We read about this place in history class.”

Apple Bloom raises an eyebrow. “Did we?”

Sweetie Belle gasps. “I remember that! Supposedly Princess Celestia fought her sister here to stop her from taking over the kingdom!”

Dinky nods. “Right. And after that the capital was moved to Canterlot.”

She looks around.

“But I would have thought there’d be remains of the town that was here.”

Cherry calls out. “Maybe it was destroyed in the battle.”

Apple Bloom raises an eyebrow. “But why would the castle survive, but not the rest of the buildings?”

Moonlit Dusk chuckles. “Stone is much hardier then wood and straw. With nopony to care for them, they’ve long since rotted away.”

Tempest motions for them to follow. “Let’s head inside. Everypony stay on guard though. We don’t know what could have taken up residence within this structure.”

Heading for the entrance they step into a large Main Hall. Dinky turns to Moonlit Dusk and frowns.

“Which way?”

“Follow me.”

Sereb growls. “Where exactly are we headed?”

“The basement.”

Sweetie Belle gasps. “Why there?”

“Because this castle was built over it.”

Apple Bloom grimaces. “To hide it from others?”

Tempest shakes her head. “No. To protect it.”

Sweetie Belle appears confused. “Why?”

Dinky grits her teeth. “A dark creature could feed on it and grow stronger.”

Moonlit Dusk nods. “Very perceptive.”

Sereb bares his teeth. “Who’s to say nothing has done so already though?”

Cherry calls out. “I can’t imagine the princesses knowing this was here and not leaving behind some kind of defense.”

“They did. Time.”

Apple Bloom turns to Tempest. “Time?”

“The greatest shield of all. To allow something to be forgotten by all and allowed to fade into obscurity.”

Sweetie Belle looks around. “But how could everypony forget something so powerful?! And big!”

Moonlit Dusk chuckles. “How could everypony forget that Princess Luna existed?”

Cherry sighs. “Without seeing or hearing about her, as we do with Princess Celestia, it only makes sense that later generations would not be told of her.”

Moonlit Dusk grits his teeth. “An error that was perpetrated by Princess Celestia herself!”

Tempest frowns. “It had to be done and you know it.”

“Perhaps. But I’d prefer preparation and planning over blissful ignorance any day.”

Dinky turns to the stallion. “What do you mean?”

“The Night Mother swore to return when the seal broke. The Nightborn have been awaiting her arrival since then.”

Sweetie Belle looks over. “But she’s back now.”

Apple Bloom nods. “Why aren’t you with her?”

“She ordered us to carry on as usual.”

Tempest rolls her eyes. “Lapdogs.”

Cherry groans. “I would have imagined she would have ordered you disbanded.”

Moonlit Dusk grins. “Why? We’re part of Equestria’s Special Forces, after all.”

Sereb frowns. “A shadowy force does tend to make others worried.”

“The danger you don’t see is much worse than the one you do.”

Apple Bloom appears confused. “Huh?”

Dinky grimaces. “He means they keep the land safe, I think.”

“More or less. Like it or not, we’re needed.”

He looks to Dinky.

“Had we not intervened at your father’s base during his so-called peace summit Tempest and her forces would have overwhelmed the vanguard.”

Tempest frowns. “Yeah. Thanks for messing that up.”

Sweetie Belle turns to her. “What were you doing there anyways?”

“It’s complicated.”

They come to a large double door. Dinky puts a hoof on it and looks up.

“Princess Luna’s cutie mark?”

Moonlit Dusk nods. “Yes. This is her old room.”

Apple Bloom gasps. “The dark font is in here?”

“No. But this is the only entrance to it.”

Sweetie Belle frowns. “Why here?”

Tempest chuckles. “Because Princess Luna was guarding it.”

Cherry calls out. “She was?”

Moonlit Dusk nods. “Yes. Her and Princess Celestia agreed that she was the stronger of the two, and therefore capable of withstanding the temptations of the dark power.”

Sereb raises an eyebrow. “What about Nightmare Moon?”

Tempest sighs. “She gave in.”

Entering the room they see a myriad of broken furniture and faded pictures. Moonlit Dusk walks over to a strange design on the floor.

“Over here, everypony.”

Cherry gasps. “A sigil?”

Apple Bloom hurries over. “It kinda blends in to the design on the floor.”

Sweetie Belle brushes away the dirt with her tail. “I wouldn’t have even noticed it.”

Dinky grins. “Hiding it in plain sight.”

Tempest nods. “Sometimes that the best spot.”

His horn aglow, Moonlit Dusk activates the sigil. A moment later they vanish and reappear. Moonlit Dusk casts a Light Spell as Dinky and Sweetie Belle do the same along with Sereb. Cherry calls out to Moonlit Dusk.

“Where… are we?”

“Several miles under the castle.”

Sereb frowns. “Straight down?”

“Yes.”

Sweetie Belle shudders. “But if the font is down here, how did it corrupt Princess Luna?”

Moonlit Dusk points with a hoof. “Through the sigil. This entire cave is very heavily warded. Nopony can teleport here except via this single sigil. Think of it like a hole in a boat that lets water in.”

Tempest nods. “But holes can work both ways.”

“Right. The dark energies were able to emanate from here back to the Night Mother’s room and, over time, corrupt her mind.”

Sereb growls. “We should hurry on, lest we ourselves face the same fate.”

Moonlit Dusk shakes his head. “I wouldn’t worry about that. It took many long years to do such a thing to our princess.”

Dinky sighs. “In any case, let’s press on.”

Walking down a large tunnel, they eventually come to a massive door. Moonlit Dusk casts a Dark Spell at the overhead sigil. Slowly it opens into an equally large room with a strange looking seal in the center. Entering, the doors close behind the group. They look around cautiously as Sweetie Belle turns to Moonlit Dusk.

“Where are we now?”

“The Heart of Darkness.”

Apple Bloom gasps. “What?”

“A powerful source of dark energy. This is probably the only known place in Equestria we can use the All-Seeing Eye.”

Dinky steps forward. “What do I have to do?”

“Take the pendant and stand on the seal.”

He hands the amulet to Dinky and she walks toward the seal. Standing on it, she turns back to him.

“What now?”

“Put the amulet to your forehead and speak your request.”

“Then what?”

“The amulet will do the rest.”

Sweetie Belle gasps. “I don’t think this is such a good idea, Dinky.”

Cherry grimaces. “I’m with Sweetie Belle. This whole place seems wrong to me.”

Dinky grits her teeth. “Yeah, I feel it too. But I have to do this.”

Sereb growls. “Arc would not have wanted you to risk your life.”

Cherry calls out. “Sereb’s right, Dinky! Think about it!”

“I have thought about it. And I’ve come to the conclusion that I don’t want to live the rest of my life wondering what really happened to my dad. Not when I have this one chance to know for sure.”

Taking a deep breath, Dinky puts the amulet to her forehead.

“Show me the events leading up to my father’s… disappearance.”

The seal glows with an eerie light. It spiderwebs around the room to numerous other seals hidden under dirt and dust. Sereb grabs Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom.

“Get back!”

Cherry gasps. “What’s going on?!”

Moonlit Dusk grins. “It’s starting!”

Tempest glares at him “What exactly…?!”

Apple Bloom points a hoof. “Look!”

They turn to see Dinky levitating a few feet above the floor. The All-Seeing Eye affixes itself to her chest and begins drawing power from her horn. Sweetie Belle gasps as she turns to Sereb.

“It’s hurting her!”

“We have to get Dinky out of there!”

Moonlit Dusk shakes his head and blocks their advance. “You can’t! She has to leave on her own! Any interference now would be disastrous!”

Tempest furrows her brow. “To her or us?!”

“Both!”

Meanwhile, Dinky opens her eyes. Looking around she frowns.

“Canterlot Castle? How did I get here?”

She turns to see Captain Decimus and Admiral Gaston standing before Arc. Running over to him, she looks up.

“DAD!”

Arc ignores her and addresses the pair before him.

“You two just made the biggest mistake of your lives!”

Gaston scoffs. “How so? There are two of us, and only one of you.”

Decimus turns to his companion. “Do not take him lightly. This usurper is cunning beyond words.”

“Says you! I’ve taken you down before, Decimus! There’s no way I can’t do it again!”

“Perhaps. But before we fight yet again I just want to ask you one thing.”

“Oh?! And what’s that?!”

“Why did you take the Equestrian throne? The other two princesses were certainly capable of holding it while Celestia recovered.”

“Because someone had to do it! They were in no position to effectively govern in their mental state!”

“So you pulled off a bloodless coup.”

Arc rolls his eyes and turns to Gaston. “Where’s Princess Celestia?! Tell me, and I may yet be merciful!”

Decimus grins. “And what about me?”

Arc points his spear at Decimus. “Oh, believe me, I’m not planning on even TRYING to take YOU alive!”

“Is that your final answer?”

“Yes!”

“That’s all we needed to hear. Now then…”

Decimus clears his throat before continuing.

“Human, it was you who smashed my alabaster plate.”

Arc frowns. “What are you talking…”

He is cut off as an excruciating pain suddenly rips through his gut. Gasping, he looks down to see a long, white unicorn’s horn poking through his armor. Before he can act Arc finds himself picked up and thrown roughly down the corridor. As he lands, Arc’s helmet and spear clatter noisily past him as Cherry screams out.

“ARC!!!”

Dinky gasps. “DAD!”

She dives at Princess Celestia in an attempt to knock her away. However the filly passes through the visage. Arc puts a hand to his stomach as blood oozes through his fingers. Coughing, he reaches out for his helmet.

“Ch-Cherry…”

Gaston runs over and kicks the helmet down the corridor as Decimus walks to Arc, flanked by an expressionless Celestia. He looks Arc in the eye coolly.

“You were the best one to lead Equestria in its time of need, I’ll admit that. But with the return of Celestia, and her substantial power, I’m afraid you’ve outlived your usefulness.”

Grinning wickedly, Decimus chuckles and points a hoof at Arc.

“Goodbye… Lord Regent.”

Celestia charges up her magic as Arc weakly gets to his feet. She unleashes a powerful blast that shatters nearly every window in the corridor. It hits Arc squarely in the chest, completely destroying what’s left of his armor and launching him through a window to the east. Decimus and Gaston smile and look toward the ruined window. Dinky runs through them and peers out at the darkness below.

“DAD!!!”

The scene before her melts away. Sobbing, Dinky falls to the floor where she remains for some time. Eventually she gets to her hooves and grits her teeth.

“That isn’t everything! Show me what happened next!”

The scene refocuses and Dinky finds herself standing on a riverbank. She looks up to see Canterlot Castle in the distance.

“What? But my dad isn’t even…”

She looks upstream to see a log floating toward her. Arc holds on weakly to the dagger lodged into it. Paddling as best he is able, Arc brings the log toward the shore. As he nears, he pulls out the knife and flops onto the bank. Lying there on his back, Arc looks to the log for a moment before giving it a solid kick. As the last rays of sunlight fades, he watches his previous mode of transportation float away and out of sight. Coughing, Arc looks skyward as the sun sinks beneath the horizon. The moon rises and the stars come out as he smiles weakly. Hearing movement nearby, Arc turns his head. He spies numerous glowing yellow eyes looking at him from the foliage. Grimacing, Arc does his best to stand as he turns and holds up his knife. The beasts step out of the woods and slowly surround him. An overwhelming stench fills the air as they continue pacing. Drool flows down their fangs as they look over their injured prey. Arc frowns. Snarling, they lung at him as one. Arc throws himself out of the path of the first timberwolf that lunges at him. Landing, he cries out in pain as fresh blood pours forth. Quickly rolling over onto his back, Arc turns to face the next beast whom comes for him. Slashing at it with his dagger he knocks the creature away, scattering its body parts.

“You guys aren’t so tough!”

As he does so however, two more approach from either side. Arc is able to beat one away, but the other chomps down hard on his arm. Yelling out in pain he smacks the beast with the butt of the knife. It too collapses, but not before ripping several sizable holes in Arc’s arm and forcing him to drop his knife. Before he can react yet another timberwolf leaps onto him from behind, knocking Arc’s face into the riverbank mud. As it claws at his backside, Arc is able to roll partially out of the way, but into a waiting pair of jaws and claws. As they resume slashing at Arc, he looks over to see the previously defeated timberwolves reassembling themselves. Gritting his teeth, Arc makes a final attempt to flee. However, one of his assailants chomps down on his leg and violently picks him up to slam his body into the side of a tree. Falling to the ground Arc’s head strikes a gnarled root. As the world dims around him he speaks in nearly a whisper.

“Dinky… I’m… sorry…”

As his assailants prepare to finish him off, one of them bursts into flames. The others jump back and look all around as two more of their numbers explode. As the beasts retreat, a figure clad in a black robe emerges from the forest wielding a crossbow held up by magic. Arc looks up at them for a brief moment before passing out from the pain, blood loss, and blow to the head. They grab onto Arc’s collar and drag him away. Dinky gasps.

“What happened next?!”

The Knothole Hospital room comes into view. Dinky watches as the doctor and several nurses operate before the scene goes black again.

“There has to be more! Did he survive?!”

A scene revealing a cottage and a few other buildings come into view. Dinky’s eyes grow wide as she sees her father walking out of the barn with a robed filly.

“He’s walking normally! But where! Where is he?! TELL ME!!!”

Reality seems to crack around the filly. A few moments later there is an ear shattering explosion as Dinky is blown back. Opening her eyes, she raises her head to look around. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom look into her face, clearly frightened.

“Dinky!”

“Are you okay?!”

Dinky nods weakly. “I… think so. What happened?”

Moonlit Dusk walks over. “The crystal in the All-Seeing Eye reached the end of its life. When it did, your consciousness was returned to your body.”

Tempest frowns. “What did you see?”

“Princess Celestia… she…”

Dinky’s eyes roll into the back of her head as she loses consciousness. Sereb gasps.

“Dinky!”

Cherry screams. “What happened?!”

Moonlit Dusk sighs as she takes the amulet from Dinky’s hoof. “It would appear she just tired herself out.”

Tempest rolls her eyes. “Probably. Let’s get topside.”

Sweetie Belle grimaces. “What about Dinky?!”

Sereb steps forward. “I’ll carry her.”

Carefully picking the filly up, he lays her on his back as they retrace their steps. Returning to Princess Luna’s room, Moonlit Dusk looks to them.

“I need to get back to the citadel. You going to be okay?”

Tempest nods. “Yeah. I’ll take Dinky and her friends back to my house.”

Calling forth Light’s Bane, Tempest opens a portal and motions for the others to follow her.

Comments

[Munro]

the truth reveal'd and a long journey in the making. lets se how tempest will react to the detail about celestia and his medling

muhaha

[Booster Spice]

And the Magic Of Darkness grows?

[Kamahido]

11061564
Very, very, VERY long journey. Literally cross country. On foot mostly.

[Kamahido]

11061652
I wonder what's going on in the shadows. Evil's going to be emboldened without someone around to stop them.