Chapter 3
Being led to the red barn after a few minutes, both vessels waited outside as the CMC and Twilight went inside to get a specific someone. It wasn't anything special to the normal eye but to the bugs, it was strange. It reminded them of a storehouse before the collapse came and the colors were strange to them. Paintmaster Sheo might had found something worthwhile out of it while Ghost was used to more bleak colors. While they waited for their previous company, Ghost took a moment to look at Grimm before speaking, "Grimm, I was contacted once more by the Godseekers."
The Nightmare King hummed with one of his hands resting under his chin in thought. Their presence never left Ghost despite everything that happened before hand. It could be that their attuned power allowed them to circumvent any form of demise. “So it is. Were they the ones who sent us here?
Ghost shook its head, “No, how we got here is still a mystery to me. The Godseekers only said I brought us here, but I don’t recall how. Ever since I felt empowered by their attuned strength and became the Shade Lord, I cannot recall the exact moment that led us here.
“Was it an item? Was there anything you can remember from Godhome or before that might have brought us here? I severely doubt the Godseekers alone would do this nor would I consider you to do this yourself, companion. After facing you in Godhome myself, I believe something happened afterward,” Grimm replied.
Ghost thought back to Godhome, all the beings from Hallownest he had fought, and even before that. It remembered one of the Five Great Knights giving it a quest to deliver a flower. After it had delivered that flower, the knight had vanished from existence. Flowers grew around a grave which Ghost had taken some to give to his closest compatriots. Although the flower was such a delicate thing that it had to avoid any hurdle or the flower would be destroyed.
Some were receptive of the gift while others denied it for various reasons. One of the ones who liked the gift was Godseeker, “Grimm, do you know anything about a Delicate Flower?”
The Troupe Master’s eyes lit up at the sound of that name, his scarlet fire rising either in rage or delight, “Ah yes, the Delicate Flower. That small thing yet holds so much power to wipe one’s existence at will. I believe you had given one to Godseeker, yes?”
Ghost nodded with Grimm only thinking more, “Perhaps the flower itself had caused Godseeker to lose her physical form. As a result, it might have sent us here in random instead of simple death. After all, you had entered the Dream Realm through the Godseeker herself which then led to Godhome. The flower must have prevented the Shade Lord to be unleashed upon the world.”
“How does that explain Godseeker being in my mind?” Ghost questioned in uncertainty to Grimm’s hypothesis
“Unsure, the flower was a strange one. I had only encountered it a few times in all my years and rebirths. Different kingdoms once spoke of it but I paid it no mind.” Grimm was saying before he found himself suddenly being tied up in a firm rope
Ghost was about to draw its nail before it too was tied in a strong restraint. Looking down at what was holding its arms down, it was quite puzzled that they were bound by simple rope. But for how simple it was, it was a very strong hold. Their captor appeared above the two tied vessels with a frown.
“Now y'all better listen up, changelings. Show yourselves befawe ah make y'all,” said the assailant with her thickly accented voice
Grimm gave a deadpan look to the pony that was threatening them, contemplating on simply dematerializing to show how ineffective the rope was, but he wasn’t that type of bug, “It seems that we are forever bound by the technical advancement of the dreaded rope, oh woe to us.”
Ghost looked at Grimm with a similar look, “If you were trying to be subtle, at least do a better job than aggravating the local populace.”
“Aggravating the local populace? Oh my friend, you amuse me with every word you can say. I remember when you couldn’t talk. It feels like yesterday when you arrived at my troupe,” Grimm sighed in fondness of such memories
The assailant was a bit confused on the vessels’ conversation, revealing herself to have been a light orange pony with blond hair. Her mane and tail were neatly tied into a ponytail coupled with a stetson, “What’re y’all talking about?”
Thankfully Twilight had come out of the barn. Her expression turned to shock and worry, “Applejack! Those are the new visitors.”
The assailant, named Applejack, gave the vessels a look over before sheepishly chuckling. Proceeding to untie the firm knot the vessels were in, “Ah’m sorry. Ah thought you were Changelings.”
Dusting themselves, Ghost was the first to speak, “I didn't think other bugs from Hallownest were around. They only ever took the form of a grub when I was on my quest. What are these Changelings?"”
“They are a breed of insects in pony form that can take the appearance of any pony. Although, they do have to watch out for issues such as size, weight, and they cannot take the form of a creature that isn’t quadruped. At least, not that I know of,” Twilight began to explain
Applejack finished the explanation quickly, “And their queen is the most evil one of them all. She tried to have her entire hive invade Canterlot durin' a wedding. Good thing we put a stop to em'. All six Elements of Harmony. Ah’m one of them, the Element of Honesty.”
“I do not ever lie to my guests or friends, you have my word. As a troupe master, I take blame for all the problems within my troupe. You may call me Grimm,” Grimm did his signature bow
“Just refer to me as Ghost, or Vessel. Although, Ghost is much simpler,” Ghost gave a short bow which Applejack returned by taking off her stetson before bowing herself
The Element of Honesty lightened up with a smile before turning towards the barn with the red house next to it, “Come along ya’ll. Ah got to show ya my family. As ya know, this here is Sweet Apple Acres. Best tasting apples for many generations thanks to the family technique of bucking the trees.”
“Bucking the trees? Why would you do that instead of simply grabbing them?” Grimm questioned before the group followed Applejack
“Family tradition and if ya do it jus’ right, ya can knock all them apples in one hit,” Applejack answered, opening the door for the rest to enter
For Grimm and Ghost, they had to bend down a bit just to enter the home. They were met with a cozy home for a small family, something Ghost never got to experience his entire life. An elderly green mare was sitting on a rocking chair while a much younger and tougher red stallion was looking at them. Unlike the others, the elderly mare and red stallion did not freak out at the sight of the two vessels entering their home.
Applejack was the last to enter before she began to make introductions, “Alright. This fine mare is my Granny Smith and that big softie is my brother, Big Mac.”
“What? Who said my name?” the elderly mare asked, looking around but not spotting the group at the front door
“Such is the state of old age. For not the power of the Nightmare Heart, I would be food for maggots,” Grimm muttered to himself, keeping it low to avoid anyone besides Ghost from overhearing him
“Wait a second, there were a group of fillies that got themselves into trouble. One of them was named Applebloom,” Ghost spoke, his mind beginning to put the gears together
Applejack gave a nod before saying, “That’s mah little sis. She and her friends can’t keep themselves from plowing into trouble. Finding their cutie marks and all.”
“Eeyup,” Big Mac added
Twilight was making a few notes on that letter of hers before teleporting it away, “So far so good with everything. Anything unusual happening around?”
Applejack put a hoof to her chin to think for a few moments, shaking her head, “Nah, nothing ah couldn’t handle. Ya thinking we got more critters like them?”
“I don’t know. But if these two are here, who knows what else arrived,” Twilight shrugged before turning to the vessels, “Let’s head back to my place. On the way back, you’ll get to meet another one of my best friends. All I can say is I hope you two like parties.”
Once again leading the Vessels, Twilight took them from Sweet Apple Acres all the way back into town. As usual, ponies were staring at the two vessels with suspicion and fear, even with their designated pony chaperone. The trip itself would be peaceful besides a pink blur bouncing around the area before stopping in front of them. To say this pony was hyper...was an understatement.
“Hi! I haven’t seen you two around here before, in fact, I have never seen anything like you! Are you from another kingdom full of death, infection, and dark endings?!” the pink pony said, making both vessel’s eyes widen with how accurate she questioned their former home
Twilight sheepishly pulled the mare away from the vessels, giggling in nervousness, “That’s Pinkie Pie for you. She says a lot of things that often don’t make sense. Many things that I can never explain.”
“Maybe it’s better it stays that way,” Ghost could only mutter, finding Pinkie’s question too close to how Hallownest was, too close for Ghost to not have suspicions about what Godseeker had mentioned
The pink mare then took out a couple of cupcakes out of the ethereal plane of, quite literally, nowhere. Both vessels looked at Twilight to have any form of explanation or excuse to describe what just happened but the purple unicorn stayed silent. While Grimm had the ability to eat such foods, Ghost was not as lucky. This, of course, got the attention of the Nightmare King, grabbing the second cupcake without hesitation.
Ghost had a straight face as this all occurred to him, “Why did you take my cupcake?”
“You have no mouth, therefore, I will gladly give these cupcakes to my children” Grimm answered, earning a sigh from Ghost
“You have children?” Twilight questioned, sceptical that a Nightmare such as Grimm would be able to have such offspring
“Are they small and cute looking versions of you?!” Pinkie Pie also questioned, more excited at the prospect of seeing miniature Grimms roaming about Ponyville
The Troupe Master only chuckled amusingly, “Of course my friends. They learn well from their father, and they don’t bite back. Would you care for a child, Miss Sparkle?”
Whether Grimm knew it or not, most likely he was purposely toying with the eggheaded purple pony, Twilight easily misinterpreted what he meant. Her face was lit up in a bright red, quite noticeable with sundown occuring around them. She looked like her brain was literally destroyed with Grimm’s monkey wrench thrown into it. No words came out of her mouth besides very small sounds. Her body visibly shook, trying to hold down the nerves that were shaking violently with such a question.
“Grimm, I think you caused our guide to have a panic attack,” Ghost pointed out, “I don’t think she understood what you meant by your offer.”
The Nightmare King blinked a couple of times before getting the hint Ghost was trying to convey, “Ah, yes. Apologies, Miss Sparkle. What I meant was no form of courtship since I am unable to do such acts. What I meant was a fun joke, no strings attached. It seems I have forgotten that different species interpret what I say much differently.”
“Aw. I wanted to see a little version of you so badly,” Pinkie Pie whined slightly, literally deflating into a puddle while Twilight was recomposing herself
After a few short breaths to reassure herself, the Element of Magic finally spoke, “You’re forgiven, Grimm. Just know not to ask that to anypony or they will get the wrong idea. At least give the context to what you mean so nopony interprets what you mean to actually mean courtship. As you know, pony courtships-”
The vessels just stood there, listening to Twilight Sparkle ramble on about how pony society viewed relationships. There were clear social taboos that was common sense to the vessels. Even if they didn’t know this, what they were prevented them from such taboos. Sadly, this wouldn’t stop the unicorn from explaining everything in fine detail.
Grimm’s eyes narrowed in annoyance after a few minutes of information thrown in his face, “I believe we get the idea, Miss Sparkle. You can stop explaining right now, please.”
Twilight stopped mid sentence, blushing in embarrassment that she had rambled for too long, “Excuse me. I tend to get ahead of myself when explaining the finer details of how Equestrian society works. Especially with creatures like you two not familiar with Equestria.”
“And I throw the best parties in the world. I wouldn’t be the Element of Laughter for no reason,” Pinkie Pie added once more
Ghost was looked at the sun setting, being reminded of his fight with the Radiance in Godhome. He knew he had slain the former goddess of the moths, but the sun would always remind him of that battle. As the sun fell and night rose to take its place, Ghost was reminded of Dirtmouth. Ponyville bared a vague resemblance to that town Ghost had encountered after leaving the Abyss. Oh how Elderbug would probably be less downcast in a place like this, full of life and no infection.
“Well, it was nice to meet you two. Tomorrow, I will invite the rest of our friends for your Welcome To Equestria Party! Don’t be late!” Pinkie Pie gave her farewells before bouncing away from the trio
“Goodbye Pinkie, see you tomorrow.” Twilight turned to the two vessels with a bit of a conundrum, “I don’t think I have enough space for the both of you, unless you two don’t mind sharing a bed with each other.”
Grimm only chuckled at such a thought, “No need for that. I prefer the outdoors where the night shows the beauty of the stars above. I’ll let my compatriot have the indoor rest,”
Ghost gave a nod, “Thank you, I never actually slept on a bed. The only places I have ever slept on were benches made of iron.”
Twilight grimaced at the thought of resting her body on cold iron benches. How could someone like Ghost deal with such an uncomfortable rest? Oh, wait, he mentioned he had no mind to think or a voice to voice his frustrations. But now he had one, he deserved to have a proper rest like everyone else.
The trio would end up in front of a large house that looked more like a tree than a proper home, at least, to Hallownest standards. Windows, doors, and even a balcony were built into the tree as opposed to using the tree to build a home from scratch. Not a bad way of using nature for a good shelter, and it stood out compared to the rest of the town.
“Quite impressive of a home you have, Miss Sparkle,” Grimm commented
Twilight smiled a little bit at the comment, “Oh, this wasn’t all me. Some of it was built before I moved in, I just added the extra parts.”
She opened the front door with her hoof, allowing Ghost to enter while Grimm stayed outside to observe the stars. As the two entered, Grimm thought he saw some mist flying by above them, his eyes narrowing with suspicion.
The savior of Hallownest had to bend down to enter the home properly, but once he past the door, he could stand straight. It was quite cozy in here, with so many books and necessities. Rows and rows of books dotted the living room portion of the tree home. On the far side were some stairs that must lead to the second floor.
Twilight led him up the stairs into a locked door far from the other rooms that either were study rooms, a room for her to sleep in, or a room to an unknown creature Ghost had yet to meet. He heard snoring from the room but he knew not to awaken anyone sleeping or feel their wrath. Either way, Twilight unlocked the door and revealed a small, but hospitable guest room. Ghost looked at the bed and found it…small for his size.
“I know I didn’t have a bed for someone of your size, but this is the best I can do for now,” Twilight apologized for the lack of having something sufficient for the vessel
Ghost shook his head, putting his Pure Nail down before slowly resting himself on the bed. He had to bring his knees up a bit to fit comfortably, but at least it was better than an iron bench. He turned towards Twilight, trying to give off a look of gratitude, but it only came off as a blank look, “Thank you, Twilight. Hopefully tomorrow isn’t as...problematic.”
Twilight only smiled back, “Ah, it’s no biggie. It’s what ponies should do for each other, even for other creatures. Goodnight.”
Ghost let his eyes close, before a bright light appeared in front of him. The same familiar light that had landed him in Godhome. Indeed, he was in Godhome where the Godseekers were murmuring with one another.
“God of gods, you have discovered quite a few of the gods of Equestria. A shame that you didn’t attune them yet, we were expecting combat,” Godseeker said with some dismay, but held her respect high
Ghost answered back, “Combat wasn’t necessary. They were being nice to me, just like some back in Hallownest.”
Godseeker gave a hum at Ghost’s reply before her eyes narrowed, looking behind Ghost, “Begone foul creature! You dare enter the land of gods? Thoust a cringer in the splendor brought forth by the God of gods.”
Ghost turned around, instinctively drawing his nail as a set of dark blue hooves began to materialize. A blue light shined from the intruder, Ghost’s nail readying to attack.
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...... Luna?? The hell you're doing?!
Luna fight. Luna fight. Luna fight.
Wait if their in godhome....
Uh oh.
(Radiance intensifies)
Jokes aside another great chap and lovely cliff hanger.
9843832
Technically, the Radiance cannot be fought anymore. It's dead and they aren't in Hallownest. As much as that would be a cool idea on paper, I have no plans in having the Radiance return without pulling a massive deus ex machina. Not something I want to do personally without finding an actual good reason.
I appreciate the comment though
9844128
Yeah I went with radiance because it’s in my opinion the most iconic from godhome. Absolute radiance and all. Still this could be done with the other gods. Mantis lords, nail masters, ghosts siblings. Plus when he attunes Equestrias gods, he can also fight them.
As for radiance. A little black magic, ancient artifacts, a ritual or two. Grogar could always have a trick if the stories lasts all the way up to his arrival.
9844277
I completely forgot that villain existed. Hm...Let's see how the story progresses
Don't be silly, Ghost! You've slept on something other than a bench before! Remember when the Dreamers forced you unconscious in front of their statue, later to be reawakened by the Seer? Or whenever you struck a fallen boss with the Dream Nail, joining it in sleep as the two of you did battle in the realm beyond?
Neat chapter! Kinda exposition-y, though, what with the bearers introducing themselves with their Element.
Also, could not the Godseeker allow Ghost to attune them in their shared dream, as was done in Hallownest?
9844298
Attunement, at least how the Gods and Glory DLC portrays it, is through combat. So, Godseeker would be literally having Ghost fighting anyone that has any form of strong power. As she has said in previous chapters, there are many gods in Equestria. So much fun for Ghost, not like he fought 42 bosses in a row
Thank you for the comment
9844316
Yes, combat, but in the dream. Sly is only fought in Godhome (the others are at least implied to be fought in the training cutscene, but Sly doesn't have one). Ghost could face off against the Mane Six, the other alicorns, and several villains "safely" in Godhome without necessarily seeking them out.
Though it would definitely be more interesting to see them fight the gods outside of dreams. And as fights like Mantis Lords show, they don't even have to die!
This story is so good UwU
9848087
Thank you, I try to make something decent out of the time I have
Grimm: Can I offer you a child in these trying times ?
10237018
I'd love a child, Danny.
10237018
I can imagine a meme photo of Grimm holding a Grimmchild level 1 charm like an egg with that for a caption.