Boilerworks
"Aaaand... there. Thankfully, your injuries weren't bad. Earth pony resistance will always surprise me," said Twilight as she finished healing Apple Bloom. "An unicorn or a pegasus would have certainly gotten something broken out of this fight."
"Thanks," said the filly as she rubbed her muzzle. "Yeah, this guy knew how to fight."
"No wonder he was chief of his own tribe," said Sweetie Belle.
"That and the T-Rex. He really was one of Eternal Rest's best minions," commented Little Ghost.
"And since he's just 'one of the best', then who knows what's awaiting y'all in the remaining floors," said Applejack with worry.
"Nothing that we can't handle, sis," replied Apple Bloom confidently.
Pinkie laughed. "I'm sure they know this now after seeing you defeat Captain Cavepony!"
"Yeah!" shouted Little Ghost. "Wait. Captain Cavepony? Is this a reference I missed?"
"Don't ask," said Applejack.
"But now, if I remember correctly, the next floor, the second basement, is the boilerworks," said Twilight. "It's very dangerous. You will have to be careful. More than in the other floors."
"Ah will," assured Apple Bloom.
Ding!
The doors of the elevator opened and hot air invaded it. It was so hot that it became hard to breath for Apple Bloom. It was like being in an oven. Already, as they got out of the elevator, the fillies spoted a treasure chest on a beam, and Little Ghost emptied it with the bag while Sweetie Belle resisted screaming when seeing some mice moving around. Not minding the few boxes, they then entered the hallway exiting the elevator hall by the left only to end face to face with the ghost of a purple earth pony stallion with a blond mane. The stallion was wearing overalls and a cap currently covering his eyes as he was sleeping against a table beside the exit door.
For some reason, there were a couple of rubber ducks beside him.
The stallion clearly heard them walking on the metallic floor, because his hears moved at the sound of their hooves, and he stopped snoring. He then moved his cap up to uncover his eyes, and when he saw the fillies, he smiled at them.
"There ya're. Ya sure took yer darn time. Ah dozed off while waiting for ya. Name's Rusty Wrench, the mec of this place, but friends call me Ducky if ya prefer. Ah wonder why," he finished with a chuckle as he made a rubber duck squeak. "As ya probably guessed, Ah'm the next in the list. Ah'll try to stop ya, ya'll try to survive and capture me. Easy as pie." He flew to a crank on a pipe just above and turned it. "Now let the fun begin!"
The crank activated the pipe, causing water to come out of it and spray Apple Bloom right on the face. Rusty guffawed before flying through the exit door. Apple Bloom rapidly moved out of the way of the stream, not amused at all by his prank, mane and fur dripping. Her friends, however, couldn't suppress a small giggle.
"We'll see who'll have the last laugh... Ah've the feeling he'll be like Green Hoof."
"You mean he'll do anything to annoy us and have some fun?" asked Sweetie Belle.
"Yeah."
"I had the same feeling. But he doesn't seem as bad. He seems more lay back," said Little Ghost.
"Well, it doesn't matter," said Apple Bloom. "In the end, we still've to capture him, like all the others."
At this, Apple Bloom tried to open the door only to discover that it was locked, and no sign of the key.
"Drat. Time to search the room."
The search didn't last long. Little Ghost found the key on a platform made of wooden planks on metal bars in a hole in the wall beside the door. Using it, they opened the door and entered a room with a lot of pipe, a boiler, and three cranks. There was a part without floor at the left by which some of the pipes passed, showing that there was probably a lower level.
Also, there was a very bad smell that almost forced Apple Bloom to put a hoof on her muzzle to block it. Seeing her, Sweetie Belle and Little Ghost were glad that they didn't need to breath.
Three Tricksters were present. One of them had a bucket on the head, and the two others were hitting it with spanners, having a good laugh at the first ghost's depend.
«Ahahah! A classic!» said Pinkie.
Before the ghosts could acknowledge their presence, the fillies immediately went into action and captured them. However, this alerted two more Tricksters and nine Mini-Tricksters who suddenly came. Apple Bloom was able to trap the two Tricksters at the same time while her friends dealt with the small ones.
Room cleaned of ghosts, the fillies went to the door at the opposite side only to find out that it was barred by a mechanism. There was a small console beside it with a screen, but no button of whatever that could be used to activate it. However, it had a red power cable going through the floor. Understanding that the cable probably led to something that will help, Little Ghost followed it through the floor to the lower level of the room where some of the pipes ended, dumping unclean water.
Because this place also served as a sewer, of course! This explained the bad smell.
Following the cable, Little Ghost discovered the button activating the mechanism on the wall just under the door. She just had to push it and done! The bars retracted, freeing the door! Little Ghost joined her friends and, together, they passed the door.
The next room had two levels and was huge. The level the fillies were actually in consisted of a circular path surrounding a hole in which huge quantity of water were poured from two big pipes on the ceiling. However, a metallic wall supporting one of the pathways of the upperlevel blocked the circular path near the opposite left corner, and a big pipe with a grid on it blocked another part near the opposite right corner, so there was a section of the path the fillies couldn't access this way. On the path were also some boxes, tools, and other objects like a traffic cone. A treasure chest could even be seen on the inaccessible section of the path. A red L-shaped pathway was however present in the central hole, actually linking a ladder leading to the previously mentioned upperlevel pathway at the left and the inaccessible section of the circular path. This pathway was linked by a power cable to a trapdoor at the right, and said trapdoor was linked to what seemed to be two pressure plate interruptors beside it.
The upperlevel only had two pathways. The one already mentioned at the left was accessible only by the ladder on the red pathway, and the second one was at the opposite right corner of the room, above the blocking pipe. This one also could only be accessed by a ladder from the circular path, but this ladder was currently retracted so somepony had to go up there and get it down. Or they could try to throw something at it.
On the upperlevel left pathway, the fillies spotted Rusty Wrench lying on the guardrail, looking down at them.
"Mister Wrench! Don't try to stop us! Ya must know by now that ya've no chance!" shouted Apple Bloom.
Ducky chuckled. "Ya're right, young miss. Ya clearly showed it against that big idiot Ooga. But at least, Ah can still try, right? At least, Ah can have some fun before going down. Ya know, messing with ya before the end. So try to catch me!" he shouted before he flew through a glass window in the wall behind him.
"So he knows he's doomed, but he still continues?" wondered Little Ghost.
Apple Bloom huffed. "Yeah, to have some fun like he said. He probably intends to prank us like he did to me. Get on our nerves."
Sweetie Belle groaned. "And now, we have to find how to reach this ladder and climb up there."
"Easy," said Apple Bloom as she pointed at the red pathway in the central hole, then at the trapdoor linked to it. "That pathway probably can be turned with some machine in that there trapdoor."
"Alright, but how about we explore first?" proposed Little Ghost as she pointed at a door just at the right of the one they came from.
"Okay. that's if it's not locked."
It turned out that the door wasn't locked, but just led to a small room that was separated in two parts by a wall so only Little Ghost could reach the second part. The second part was larger than the first part and seemed to be Duckt's chamber. There was a bed with a turtle pillow, a banjo, some rubber ducks, some other stuff, and a treasure chest that Little Ghost didn't wait to empty.
They returned to the previous room and went to the trapdoor. At first, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle had to step on the pressure plates to open the trapdoor and make a machine come out. The machine had two levers that could be pulled down. Apple Bloom pulled the one at the left, and the red pathway turned at 90° counterclockwise before stopping, the lever moving back up. Now, the fillies could reach the pathway and go to the ladder.
As Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle went to it and climbed it, Little Ghost used the occasion to go empty the treasure chest in the room.
The fillies reached the upperlevel and quickly spotted Ducky through the glass window as he was waving at them in front of a big machine with a huge lever. Ducky them pushed up the lever with some difficulty, and a big metallic door suddenly closed in the room where he was in, and the level of the water began to rise in both rooms
Apple Bloom looked down in worry at the rising water and said "Uh, girl... We'd hurry opening this door."
She was referring a big, round metallic door with a crank at the left of the glass window. The fillies quickly went to turn the crank to open it and get out of there when they suddenly heard Ducky talk.
"don't worry young misses. The water stops just under the platform. Ya won't drown."
Hearing him, the fillies looked at the water and saw that he was right. The water stopped rising just as he said. They then turned to the glass window, seeing Ducky who had passed his head through it to talk to them, now laughing.
"Ahahahahah! Ya should've seen yerselves panicking like that! Trust me, if Ah'd drown ya, Ah wouldn't be so pessimist about mah chances against ya. Beside, two of ya can't be drowned."
Apple Bloom sighed in relief. "Okay... But how this'll help ya what ya did?" she asked.
"Easy," answered the stallion. "First of all, that big door isn't the one leading to the drainage control where Ah'm right now. This one leads to the main tank. The one leading to the drainage control's this one right over there." He pointed at a door on the second pathway in the corner of the now flooded room. "But first, ya'll have to pass by the sewers that're now full of messy and stinky water. And Ah don't think ya can swim with that heavy thing on yer back. Now let's see how ya'll manage to reach me without sinking like lead. Bwah ahahahah!" Ducky then fully returned in the drainage control room, waiting for them to reach him with the best trollface he could give.
...
"The sewers? Why the sewers?! Why did it have to be sewers?! I DON'T WANNA PASS BY THE SEWERS! IT'S SUPER GROSS!" yelled Sweetie Belle.
"We don't have a choice in the matter, but we first've to find a way to float. Dusty's right, with our Poltergusts, we'd sink."
"Not me! I already float! In the air!" shouted Little Ghost before laughing.
"Not fair!" whined Sweetie Belle.
"Another point for the ghost side."
Sweetie Belle crossed her forelegs and 'pouted'. But then, she thought of something. "Hey! This means you could lift us above the water!"
"If I was fully powered, yes, I could. But because of what Eternal Rest did to me, I could only lift one of you. Preferably you, Sweetie Belle, because you are much lighter than Apple Bloom."
"But you can lift us, like, one at a time, right?" asked Sweetie Belle.
"Yes, I can. But I will be a little slower with Apple Bloom."
"Better than nothing," said Apple Bloom before she suddenly spotted something white moving in the water. "Mmh? What's that? Waah!"
She jumped back in fright when the white thing suddenly jumped out of the water, only to reveal itself to be Polterpup joyously barking at her as he swam in circle in the water.
"Puppy! Gosh, ya gave me a scare there!"
"Bark bark!" the ghost dog barked before he stopped himself beside the platform, offering his back to Apple Bloom.
"Ya're letting me ride on yer back?"
"Bark bark!"
Apple Bloom gave Polterpup a big smile before jumping on his back and saying "Good doggy! Lead us to that other platform." She pointed at the platform in the corner of the room. Polterpup barked once in acknowledgement, then swam toward the platform followed by Little Ghost lifting Sweetie Belle.
They quickly reached the platform, and Little Ghost went in the water after dropping Sweetie Belle. There was a metallic sound (muffled by the water), and the ladder was deployed. Little Ghost then returned.
"Just in case."
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle nodded and the group passed the door, entering a small room that seemed to be a control room. There was a big machine with a lot of buttons and levers and even a screen under a window through which they could see the drainage control room, Ducky waving at them when he spotted them. On the machine, there was a coffee machine and plate with a coffee mug and some magazines and papers. Further back in the room, there was a small table with a box of doughnuts, some paper cups, and a container full of coffee for the machine, a pipe bringing the coffee to it when activated.
Nothing to do in this room excepted taking some bits from a piggy bank on a shelf, so they quickly continued their way, opening the door just in front of the entrance and entering the dreaded sewers.
It was as they imagined. The sewers were a big tunnel made of bricks and half full of water absolutely stinking. The water was also full of debris and garbages, like empty bottles or a watermelon. There was also an inner tube shapped like a duck for some reason, a ladder letting them reaching it. On the wall in front of the ladder was a workbench full of tools. And of course, there were pipes everywhere, some of which were dumping water. Finally, there was a huge metallic gate blocking the path, and they could see that they had to pull a chain to make it rise, but it could only be accessed by a path in the brick wall, and there was no way to reach this path without flying.
Apple Bloom blocked her muzzle with a hoof. "Eww... Wait here. Ah'll be back."
The filly then returned in the previous room and came back a minute later with paper blocking her nostrils.
"Better," she said, her voice weird because of this. Between this and the paper sticking out of her nostrils making her look silly, this made her friends laugh. Annoyed, Apple Bloom grumbled "Let's go. Little Ghost, go open the gate," before she used the ladder to approach the inner tube.
"Mmh... I fear it will be too heavy just for me. I will have to bring Sweetie Belle."
Apple Bloom nodded and looked at the inner tube ducky. Polterpup then jumped in the water and barked at her, letting her go on his back again. Thanking him, Apple Bloom jumped on him, and Little Ghost grabbed Sweetie Belle before she flew to the chain. Together, they pulled it, rising the metal gate and letting Apple Bloom and Polterpup pass.
The next part of the sewers was a little bigger but remained identical to the previous one. A passage beside the metal gate let Sweetie Belle pass as she and Little Ghost followed Apple Bloom from the brick wall. Another metal gate blocked the way, and Little Ghost and Sweetie Belle had to pull another chain to rise it.
The third part of the sewers was bigger, turning to the left and ending in another metal game, this one possessing spikes! Then, among the rubber duckies, watermelons, a paper boat, and other stuff floating in the water, Apple bloom spotted something that turned her pale: three shark fins approaching her and Polterpup.
"Sharks! There're sharks!" she yelled in panic.
«sharks?! In the sewers?!» shouted Twilight.
«Quick Bloom! Get out of the water! The ledges!»
"Puppy! Move!" shouted Apple Bloom.
As Polterpup approached a ledge, Sweetie Belle and Little Ghost let go of the chain, making the gate drop, but not it time to block the sharks.
"Let's go in the water, Sweetie! We will deal with them!" shouted Little ghost.
"Are you crazy? They're sharks!"
"You are just bones! They won't attack you! Now let's go before they eat Apple Bloom!"
At this, Little ghost charged into the water, ready to punch some sharks, only to have the surprise of discovering that the sharks were just Tricksters with fake shark fins on their back.
"You must be foaling me." She put her head out of the water. "Those aren't sharks! They're Tricksters with fake fins!" she shouted.
"Seriously?!" shouted both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle.
"Why! Those no good... That's a new one! They almost gave me a heart attack!" shouted Apple Bloom.
Little ghost waved Sweetie Belle to come. "Come, Sweetie Belle! Let's make them pay for this prank!" At this, Little Ghost returned underwater and activated her Poltergust. Despite being underwater, the Poltergust still worked very well, creating a vortex of water instead of a vortex of air to catch the ghosts.
Sweetie Belle hesitated a few seconds, not wanting to jump in the gross water, but she eventually decided to say "buck it", those ghosts needed a lesson, and Little Ghost needed her help. So with a "Geronimooo!" she jumped in the water, and the underwater battle doubled in intensity. Before long, all that remained of the Tricksters were the fake fins floating on the water. Little Ghost then floated out of the water lifting Sweetie Belle.
"Thanks, girls!" shouted Apple Bloom.
"You are welcome, but don't lower your guard yet. There may be more," said Little Ghost before she and Sweetie Belle pulled down the chain, rising the metal gate again and letting Apple Bloom enter the third part of the sewers with Polterpup.
As Little Ghost said, there were some more Tricksters disguised as sharks in the water, and more of them out of the water armed with various weapons including the anti-ghost mini-cannons. Sweetie Belle and Little Ghost jumped in the water again to deal with the fake sharks and any other ghosts deciding to go underwater, and Apple Bloom dealt with the ghosts remaining out of the water, trusting Polterpup to help her dodge any attacks. Mini Tricksters came out of the walls and joined in the action, and Little Ghost regularly got out of the water to help Apple Bloom. When only a Trickster with an anti-ghost cannon remained, a Buffy then came to try his chance, and Polterpup quickly turned tail to escape him with Apple Bloom. The Buffy, howeve,r slammed his fists in the water, creating a big wave that sweeped Apple Bloom from the dog's back. Polterpup quickly dived to help her while Little Ghost attacked the Buffy from behind. Sweetie Belle sadly could do nothing to help from underwater. Polterpup quickly managed to get Apple Bloom back on his back and approached the last Trickster to let her deal with him as he fired at Little Ghost.
Once the last ghost was captured, Little Ghost grabbed Sweetie Belle from underwater and went to the chain to rise the metallic spiked gate and let Apple Bloom continue.
The fourth part of the sewers turned to the left again, taking the direction of what they knew was the drainage control room, but the exit was blocked by yet another metal spiked gate. Curiously, on the way, against the brick wall with the path that Sweetie Belle and Little Ghost used, there was a small wooden platform with a lounging chair and some fishing gear. Also, a gride was blocking the way for Sweetie Belle, so she had to let Little Ghost lift her again only to see that more fake sharks were approahing Apple Bloom.
"Here we go again," she said before she jumped in the water followed by Little Ghost.
All the way to the gate, they were attacked by ghosts, mainly Tricksters and Mini-Tricksters, but two Buffys and some Throwers also came, the Throwers throwing darts. Poor Polterpup had to constantly move to avoid that Apple Bloom got harmed by them. Against them, Apple Bloom had the idea of firing the watermelons floating in the water at them, stunning them.
Once the ghosts were all captured, Little Ghost and Sweetie Belle were finally able to reach the last chain and make the last metal gate rise, only for three more fake sharks to come from behind it, and again, the two fillies had to abandon their post to help Apple Bloom and capture them. With the three gone, they opened the gate again, and Apple Bloom could finally enter the drainage control room. Sweetie Belle could also enter it thanks to a passage beside the gate.
Most of the room was, of course, flooded, so there wasn't much to see right now. However, there was an upper part out of the water where Apple Bloom could dock and jump from Polterpup's back. The water however reached half of the upper part, but it was low enough that the filly could still walk. For some reason, there was an armor sitting there with a broom. She was quickly joined by her friends, and together, they looked around in search of Ducky only to rapidly discover that he wasn't here.
He tricked them! He didn't wait for them!
But before Apple Bloom could let out a curse, she saw water moving alone and immediately understood that Creepers were here.
"Watch out, girls! Creepers!"
"We saw!" they both replied as the three went back to back. 'Seeing' a Creeper pass in front of her, Apple Bloom activated her Poltergust and caught him. As she tried to resist his pull to not be dragged too much, a second Creeper tried to attack her from behind only to be trapped by Sweetie Belle and being slammed on a third Creeper she 'saw' moving in the water. Little Ghost trapped this third Creeper before he could get away and slammed him around, hitting a fourth Creeper this way.
After easily dealing with the ghosts, Apple Bloom destroyed the armor just in case, and the fillies began to wonder what to do only to see Ducky waving at them from behind the window of the control room.
"This guy..." growled Apple Bloom.
"Does this mean we have to traverse the sewers again?" asked Sweetie Belle with a groan.
"I fear so. But first, let's lower the waterlevel," said Little Ghost as she pointed at a pathway just above with the machine controling the waterlevel. She then lifted Sweetie Belle to the pathway, having no other way to reach it, and they worked together to pull down the big lever. This opened the big metallic door that let the waterlevel return to normal.
"Great! Like this, we'll just need to walk to return to the control room!" said Apple Bloom.
Polterpup barked happily, then disappeared in the ceiling, seeing that he wasn't needed anymore.
Apple Bloom then went down a ladder to go to the lower part of the room absolutely full of garbages. As she was joined by her friends, she spotted a treasure chest and went to open it only to get a nasty surprise when the chest suddenly took life and tried to eat her.
"Eep!" shouted Apple Bloom as she jumped back before she bucked the chest, sending it flying against a wall. This damaged both the chest and the wall that crumbled on it, definitively destroying it and revealing by the same occasion another chest that also took life. It charged through the pile of bricks and the remains of the first chest, sending bits flying a little everywhere, and attacked Apple Bloom only for a chair to be slammed on it by Sweetie Belle. It was then hit by a soccer ball from Little Ghost, and Apple Bloom finished it with a buck.
"Treasure chests trying to eat me, I can't believe it."
«Twilight totally foreshadowed it,» said Pinkie Pie with a laugh. «In case anyone asks, she said it back in the Haunter Towers.»
«Yeah, I remember,» said Twilight.
"They were probably given life thanks to Eternal Rest's power, like back when we chased the cat," said Little Ghost. "She really didn't like that we try to capture her. We will have to be more careful."
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle agreed, then after taking all the bits from the two chests, they took a small ladder back to the sewers. None of the metal gates needed to be rised because they didn't get all the way down, so they just had to walk/float under them.
On the way, another chest was found behind bars, this one not trying to eat the fillies, another tried to eat them at the second turn (destroyed thanks to some soccer balls and by making an anchor fall on it), a third one was behind a partly destroyed part of the brick wall that Apple bloom was able to fully destroy with a buck, and more bits could be found here and there. All along the way, ghosts regularly assaulted them, eight Tricksters, a Buffy, a couple of Throwers, and three Creepers in total.
Back at the beginning of the sewers, they climbed two ladders back to the door leading to the control room.
Only to find out that something was now blocking the door from the other side.
"What?" said Apple Bloom as she tried to push it with her friends. Failing again, she then bucked it, but the door was too solid to be destroyed, and her buck wasn't powerful enough to make it push whatever was blocking it.
Little Ghost then passed her head through the door to see what it was. "Bad news girls.There's now a giant pile of bricks and other stuff blocking the door. I can try to get rid of it, but it will take a moment."
"Darn," said Apple Bloom.
"How about we search another way?" proposed Sweetie Belle. "There was that tunnel back in the drainage control room, the one that can be closed with that big metal door. Maybe it can lead us somewhere."
"Ah hope so," said Apple Bloom.
So they traversed the sewers again, and five Tricksters, two Buffys, two dozens Mini-Tricksters, a dozen Mini-Buffys, five Throwers, and Three Creepers later, they returned in the drainage control room and entered the tunnel.
For some reason, a red balloon floated out of it as they entered.
"I swear, if we encounter a monster clown devourer of foals, I'm out of here," said Sweetie Belle.
«How do you know about that? This book isn't for fillies!» shouted Twilight.
Sweetie Belle shrugged. "Who doesn't know about this book? It's pretty much cultural by now."
The tunnel was very dark, but it wasn't long before they reached the end of it, finding themselves blocked by a brick wall. However, the wall was very weakened, and a buck from Apple Bloom was all it took to destroy it. This revealed that the tunnel continued further and even had a small light. Behind bars demarcating the entrance of another tunnel, Little Ghost emptied another chest before they reached a big, round metallic door exactly like the one leading to the main tank. However, this door was missing its crank to open it, but beside it, there was a button. When they pressed it, it caused two trapdoors to open in the ceiling, dropping two piles of garbage. The crank wasn't in them but was in one of the spaces behind the first trapdoor, and Little Ghost was able to get it. After putting the crank back in place, they turned it and opened the door.
The room behind it seemed really old, the walls and elements in it being damaged and weakened. They arrived by a pathway in the upperlevel of the room, beside the right wall, and saw that there was a turning L-shaped pathway there too actually leading to a platform with a ladder. Opposite from where they were, there was a platform with a door that couldn't been reached, and not far of it beside the opposite wall, there was another platform with a chest that Little Ghost went to open while the others went down the ladder.
The lowerlevel had not much beside an alcove full of paint buckets. There was also a barrel in a corner, a carped, and a power cable linking the turning pathway to something behind a weakened wall. A buck from Apple bloom destroyed the wall, revealing a trapdoor with two pressure plates like the ones back in the big room, one of the plates being on a weird machine. Sweetie Belle climbed the machine to go step on it while Apple Bloom stepped on the other, opening the trapdoor and revealing an identical machine than the one in the big room, with the two levers to turn the L-shaped pathway.
Knowing what to do, Apple Bloom pulled down the left lever, making the pathway turn 90° so it was now linking the platform with the ladder to the platform with the exit door. So, after quick fight against three Creepers, they climbed the ladder and went to the door to open it and continue.
They returned to what Little Ghost recognized was the lower part of the room with all the pipes and the boiler. They were in a small section aside, at the top of a small staircase leading to the messy water. This place apparently served as a restroom because there was a toilet bowl in the corner.
They had no choice but to walk in the water to reach a ladder leading them to a pathway with the button to activate the mechanism of the barred door at the end. Opposite of the button was a door leading to a room just under the elevator room.
In this room, they discovered that Ducky was apparently a very lonely guy because he had prepared a candle light dinner with a fake mare made of sticks with a mop for the tail and a bucket for the head, with eyes and mouth drawn on it.
The poor stallion was also suffering under Eternal Rest, no wonder he wanted to have some 'fun' with them. It was probably the first time he had the occasion to have real fun with somepony since he died.
"Alright. ah won't be too harsh on him once we capture him," said Apple Bloom.
There was a retractable ladder not far, leading to a trapdoor. Little Ghost lowered the ladder before opening the trapdoor, and when the fillies climbed the ladder, they were back in the elevator room. From there, they traversed the room with all the pipes and returned in the big one.
"Ducky wasn't in the control room anymore when I checked," said Little Ghost.
"He could be anywhere," said Sweetie Belle before she pointed at the room at the right. "Maybe he went there."
Fail.
Apple Bloom thought for a moment. "Let's check if he returned in the drainage control room."
So they climbed the ladder to the pathway with the glass window, only to see that Ducky didn't seem to have returned to the drainage control room.
This left one possibility: the main tank. So they turned the crank of the big round metallic door and opened it, and they immediately knew they had hit the jackpot when they heard somepony playing a banjo.
They entered a huge cylindrical room as full of garbage as the others with a ladder leading to a circular pathway further up. On this pathway, they could see Ducky lying against a inner tube ducky playing a banjo, cap covering his eyes.
While playing, he began to talk.
"So ya were able to find me despite everything. Eh. Why am Ah not surprised? Ah hope ya loved the free tour of mah home sweet home."
Apple Bloom took out the paper blocking her nostrils, judging that it wasn't smelling as bad now. "Ah could've done without the smell."
Ducky chuckled. "It's part of the charm of this place. Ya get used after a while." He then stopped playing and pulled up his cap to look at the fillies. "Now that ya're here, Ah suppose it's time for our big fight, uh? Well then..."
Dropping his banjo, he flew to a machine similar to the one in the drainage control room, and he pulled up the big lever there, causing the waterlevel to start to rise. Rapidly, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle climbed on an inner tube ducky and watched as the waterlevel continued to rise until they reached a level of the room where they were surrounded by spikes. Ducky then took his own inner tube ducky as well as two fans and jumped in the water.
"Again, Ah've no doubt about the result of this fight, but we all know that Ah'm not doing it for victory. So hey, how about a game. The first that hit the spikes and pops their inner tube loses. What do ya think?"
"Ya're on."
"Of course, if yer little ghost friend could avoid ruining the game, it'd be nice."
"Alright," said Little ghost before she joined Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle on the inner tube ducky.
Ducky then began to use his fans as oars to approach the fillies, and Little Ghost and Sweetie Belle placed the end of their Poltergusts in the water and expulsed air to propel their inner tube toward the stallion. Ducky prepared his fans to attack, and Apple Bloom quickly parried his first attack with the handle of her Poltergust. However, Ducky hit their inner tube with his second fan, sending it a few meters away toward the spikes.
The fillies quickly recovered and did like before to approach Ducky. This time, when they approached him, Sweetie Belle stopped blowing air and joined Apple bloom to parry Ducky's attacks. Apple bloom eventually managed to hit his inner tube, sending him spinning. The fillies then blew air in his direction to try to push him toward the spikes before he could recover, but they took too long and Ducky began approaching again. As he and Apple bloom clashed again, he gave her a warm smile.
"Ya know, Ah always wanted to've a child. Aah, all the fun Ah'd have had with him or her. Ah love mah job, but it can be a bit lonely and boring, ya see. Of course, our fun would've been less dangerous than what we're doing right now."
Again, Apple Bloom managed to hit his inner tube, sending him closer toward the spikes.
"Don't ya worry. Once we're done with Eternal Rest, ya'll be able to've all the fun ya'll want, as long as it's not hurtful."
Ducky sighed, showing sadness. "Ah wish... But nopony can beat Eternal Rest. We're all doomed. You, me, the ghosts ya captured, and all the ones ya saved or that're still captured. But Ah admit ya're putting up a good fight. Managing to defeat Piano Virtuozo, then Gorros, and then Ooga. Good job, really. It's almost giving me hope. Almost. But at least, Ah can've one last fun before joined her collection."
Apple Bloom slammed a hoof on her inner tube. "Nopony'll join her collection! And Ah'll even free everyone already in it! This night's Eternal Rest's last! And Thanatos'll follow soon after!"
Ducky laughed and approached the fillies again before clashing with them. "That's some big talk from a filly! Defeating the Lord of Death? Ya may've defeated all the ghosts ya faced until now, but it's no reason to get a big head!"
Sweetie Belle managed to hit his inner tube, pushing him back. Little Ghost immediately worked to approach them to him.
"Ah don't have a big head! I know we can defeat him! But first, we'll defeat Eternal Rest! Ya'll see!"
Ducky managed to get a hit, pushing the fillies back, only for them to quickly come back and charge him. They rammed him, pushing him back as Ducky was clashing with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. He then used his ghost tail to move to the side and thus avoid hitting the spikes. But as he moved, Apple bloom was able to catch him inner tube with her Poltergust, and her friends quickly joined her in catching it to help her lift him out of the water, to his surprise.
"Woah there!"
Then, the fillies fired him right at the spikes, piercing his inner tube. This caused Ducky to fly in all directions as his inner tube lost air by the newly formed hole and was propelled because of this. Eventually, he slammed right on the circular pathway, and the fillies didn't lose time to join him here, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle climbing the ladder to it.
Recovering his senses, Ducky looked at them as they circled him, smiling.
"Eh. Ya won. But Ah still doubt that ya'll be able to defeat Eternal Rest."
"Yer doubt'll be lifted soon enough. Only six floors remaining," said Apple Bloom.
"Eheh..." Ducky took the elevator from the pocket of his overalls and let it roll toward Apple Bloom. "Friendly warning. Watch out the twelfth floor. Ah'm not even sure ya'll pass the ghost guarding it."
"Noted," said Apple Bloom in worry as she took the elevator button to the tenth floor. Director Cut warned them about Ooga and it as indeed a hard fight. Ducky's warning certainly meant an even harder fight, probably against Eternal Rest's most powerful minion. "Don't worry. Whoever's awaiting us in the twelfth floor doesn't scare us."
Ducky chuckled. "Eheheh. Ya'll be. It's somepony ya probably already know by name, and trust me, when ya'll discover who he's, ya'll froze. He's a real demon incarnated in a pony. The only one more cruel than him's Eternal Rest."
The fillies exchanged worried looks, then Apple Bloom said 'We'll still defeat him, no matter what."
Ducky just gave her another warm smile in return. At this, she activated her Poltergust and easily captured him.
"Who do you think we will face in the twelfth floor?" asked Sweetie Belle. "Somepony we may already know by name and who's very cruel?"
«I hope it's not Sombra,» said Rarity.
«There aren't many well known cruel ponies in history,» said Twilight.
"Whoever he's, we first have to pass floor ten and floor eleven before reaching him. Let's think about what awaits us in those floors first."
«And before that, ya'll get a bath,» said Applejack. «Ya'll need one after getting through those sewers.»
Apple Bloom gave herself a small sniff. "Eww. Eeyup."
"My turn, finally," said the bandaged mare. "Ahahahah! They will learn that the curse of the pharaoh is real! Apple Bloom will be a dried mummy before long!"
"Good luck, you'll need it," said the mare with the afro.
The bandaged mare huffed, then exited the room.
"At least, she won't curse us with her presence anymore," said the muscled stallion.
Stats
Page generated in 0.015 seconds
Total duration
955 users online
1,243,491 hits today, 2,205,040 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
10253909
After this story, No more Apple Bloom's manison?
10264868
There will be a fourth against Thanatos himself in his castle that we saw at the end of Apple Bloom's Mansion 2. It will be totally original work. Of course, this means I will have to imagine the castle room by room.
10264875
And the boss ghosts. I always thought those were cool.
Normally I would acknowledge such a reference with his catchphrase, but I'm going to wait and see if someone besides you or me says it.
I think they'd laugh even more if they saw Zecora during the events of Molt Down (the episode where Spike molts and sprouts wings).
It was bound to happen at some point.
For some reason, I can't help but think of King Dedede whenever Ducky laughs.
10264878
Yeah, the boss ghosts. Speaking of, the formula will be closer to the first Apple Bloom's Mansion, with the possibility to encounter a boss ghost in every rooms. This also means that Apple Bloom's Mansion 4 will be more horror oriented, like the first, rather than action oriented like the 2 and the 3. Of course, this will still be an action horror comedy story.
10264880
Nice to see someone who got the reference. I thought it was too old.
Yeah. good classic.
Probably the accent, and the fact that the guy is a troll.
10264900
And the backgrounds?
10264904
The backgrounds of the ghosts? Yeah, they will have them. Well, when they won't be "Monster-Ghost-created-by-Thanatos number X" like Bogmire or the Shadows in Apple Bloom's Mansion 2.
10264912
Cool.
10264900
Almost no 60's/70's cartoon reference is too old for me. I literally grew up watching cartoons like The Pink Panther, Scooby-Doo, The Flintstones, and Captain... CAAAAVEMAAAAAAAAN!!!
Also, good pun. Sans would be proud of you.
That's exactly why!
10264949
Same! God, now I want to watch them again.
10264962
Good thing YouTube allows us to do just that.
10264982
Yeah.
11024393
i watched that a bit growing.
i loved it.