15 - Reflections
For Light, the morning after curing Sweetie Belle had been her best yet. Almost like a normal Sunday morning. Or Saturday. Or whatever day it was. Although, when she awoke, she did not imagine the morning would end with a reading of the very same Daring Do novel she'd previously given up on. That was a later thing though. Her morning really began rather pleasantly.
A gentle nudge from Rarity had brought Light to consciousness, her friend eager to let her know that Sweetie Belle was not only okay, but that she'd been up long before the two mares and had even gone to the effort of making breakfast for Light. Apparently, it was supposed to be a thankyou for her actions. Said breakfast may have come with a whispered warning from Rarity and may also have tasted like charcoal, rot, and bufogren excrement, but Light was fairly sure she'd survive it, and the last thing she wanted to do was discourage the little filly. It was the thought that counted, anyway. Besides, Light was just relieved to learn that Sweetie hadn't damaged their already shoddy still in making water, or worse, set the place on fire.
Her good mood was down to more than just Sweetie's recovery and her recent reconciliation with Twi though. She'd slept far better the previous night than she had any night since her arrival, and despite the slow and groggy waking, was pleased to find herself without the slightest recollection of nightmares.
The only dumbfounding thing was that she could hardly recall falling asleep the night before. Her and Rarity had just been reminiscing about old times over their meal—the last subject being Rarity's valiant rescue of Rainbows career—when she suddenly found herself waking up. There was even a few bites of her dinner left over, now long cold. Though odd, she mostly chalked the good sleep up to her exhaustion and the optimistic mood she'd been in since seeing her problems so swiftly resolved.
The sludge that passed for breakfast did little to distract her from the absence of two members of their group though, an observance which she made sure to mention to those that remained.
While Rarity, who had woken mere minutes before Light, had seen no sign of them, the same could not be said of Sweetie Belle. According to the younger pony, Fluttershy had stopped by while the adults slept to inform them that she would be helping Twi with a project until late in the day. She'd offered her sincerest apologies, turned down Sweetie's offers of help, and offered reassurances that she and Twi had resolved any remaining problems between them. Apparently, whatever it was they were working on, was better left for the two of them alone. Light was more than happy to accommodate their wish for privacy, and wait to speak to them until later, but only so long as they did not take too long. It was always better to remain in communication, after all.
There was something about the filly's story that didn't quite seem right to Light though. Namely, Fluttershy's strange behavior. Not only had she kept her distance and refused to come close enough to where Sweetie Belle could clearly see her, but she had also been wearing a tightly wound scarf around her neck—though it could have been little more than a raggedy, old, blood-soaked piece of torn up cloth given the materials available. Naturally, Rarity was most appalled by the downright nightmare inducing fashion statement, and only upon a moment's reflection did she also become concerned for Fluttershy's behavior.
It was this report of Fluttershy's behavior, along with the recent mutterings and failure to help Sweetie Belle with the snake, that led Light into deciding that enough was enough. Once she and Twi returned, Light would thoroughly question Fluttershy on her recent state and would not be turned aside until she knew exactly what was going on. While she was certain that their sweetest friend could never pose a threat to anypony else, a traumatized mind could still very much be dangerous to itself, and she refused to allow Fluttershy to face these problems on her own any longer. As a friend, it was just the right thing to do. And with luck, Twi might even have some insight into the problem by the time the two returned—though if that was not within a couple of hours, Light would have to simply march right on over there. She didn't want to leave those problems lying any longer than she had to.
But there was nothing to be done about Fluttershy's issues just yet, and so she returned her attention to Sweetie Belle. Upon noticing that her sister was trying to cover up a limp, and that she winced at every step, Rarity had gone from bemoaning the idea of attempting fashion with the "downright ghastly" materials they had on hoof to being at Sweetie's side, peppering her with questions over her physical wellbeing. Apparently, while cured of poison, the injured leg still hurt something fierce. Light couldn’t say she was surprised, given how swollen it had been.
Sweetie Belle was less than enthused at the idea of discussing her pain, however. She maintained that she was tough enough to deal with it, and that they didn't have to worry about her. Light figured the filly just wanted to not feel like a liability—which she wasn't, of course, as Rarity made very clear to her—but she supposed that if feeling tough offered Sweetie any peace of mind, she could let the matter lie and allow her to tough it out.
Unfortunately, Rarity was not inclined to agree with this viewpoint. Instead, perhaps out of an overabundance of worry, she demanded that Sweetie Belle remain still so that she would not aggravate the wound. Meanwhile, Rarity would remain by her side, attending to anything she needed. To Light's complete lack of surprise, this only had the effect of annoying the poor filly.
Seeing a minor sibling spat on the horizon, Light decided to divert their attention, and thus went for the first suitable topic of conversation she could think of.
"Hey, Sweetie Belle, why don't you tell me what else you did before we awoke? Besides take a message from Fluttershy, I mean. I understand you were up and about for over an hour."
"Huh?" The filly cut off the annoyed pout she'd directed at Rarity to give Light her attention. "Oh, I mostly just read. And then made breakfast. Why do you ask?"
"Just curious how you fill your time when we're not available. Wait. What exactly were you reading? Last I checked, Twi still has most of our written works."
"Daring Do." Sweetie shrugged. "It's not normally the kind of thing I would read, but it's sort of all we have. Besides, It's actually not that bad—even if I would prefer to read it with somepony else—and with how used I'm getting to this place, I don't even mind the dark themes that much." She stopped to think for a second, put on her best shocked expression, then pointed at her sister's mane. "Besides, nothing in it can compare to that thing on Rarity's head!"
Rarity froze, her eyes going wide in terror. "What's wrong with my mane? Is there something in it?" She stopped to gulp, then began again in a whimper. "Is it a spider? Another snake? Somepony's rotten, unfashionably placed spleen? Whatever it is, get it off, get it off, get it off!"
"Relax!" Light held a hoof out to calm the unicorn who had begun some sort of strange, panic-induced, stationary prancing. "Your mane is as tangled and blood encrusted as ours, but nothing unexpected is in it!"
"Really?" Rarity stopped. "Sweetie Belle..."
Both ponies turned in unison to scowl at the giggling filly.
"What?" Sweetie stifled her laughs to give an expression of feigned innocence. "All I meant was that your mane isn't quite as amazing as usual. A tragedy, really. And of course, nothing that tragic is in Daring Do." She held her expression for a moment, then broke out into a grin that Light supposed was meant to appear sweet and earnest.
But of course, Sweetie Belle did subtlety like a yak did humility, and Rarity was not amused.
"Sweetie Belle, you should not frighten ponies like that. I thought there might be something dangerous there. Or worse, something capable of siphoning off even more of my style than this putrescence does. What's more, little missy, you should know that it is more than simply uncouth to refer to a pony's mane as that thing. Are we clear?"
“Aw, come on!” Sweetie Belle whined. “It was just a joke. I have to make fun somehow. Things get so boring here.”
"Well, if that’s the case,” Light began, “why don’t we find something to do? Even here, I’m sure there have to be plenty of activities to keep us occupied.”
“Like what?”
“Well,” Light paused to think, “I suppose we could take turns reciting the periodic table. We could even make a game of it. Since I have it memorized, you two can go back and forth while I track the score. Whoever gets the most correct wins. That sounds like fun, right?"
At the pair of raised eyebrows she received from her companions, Light smiled nervously, shifted her weight, and then tried again. "Okay, maybe not that. I get it; not everypony's idea of fun. How about, instead, I give a lecture on early Equestrian history! You haven't heard the story of how Commander Silverbright became leader of the old Lunar Guard, have you? Or, I know, how about we discuss the legends of alicorns predating Celestia and Luna? Oh, I could tell all kinds of interesting stories! I promise. I'll even throw in some trivia questions! Fun fact, while attending Celestia's school for gifted unicorns, I wrote this historiographical essay on the study of..."
She trailed off, noticing the identical stares of the two sisters. "Um, what?"
"You want us to sit and listen to a history lecture." Sweetie said flatly. "No offence, but that sounds... um, Rarity, what's another way to say boring?"
"Oh, well, there's dull, humdrum, mind numbing, ennui, and perhaps even like watching paint dry and/or grass grow if you like similes. I wouldn't use any of these to describe Light's interests tho—"
"Let's go with mind numbing. Besides, I prefer fiction. Especially if it can be read together. Something like, I don't know, Daring Do?"
Light deflated slightly, not even bothering to point out the flaw in using Daring Do as an example. "Gee, I was just trying to help."
"Sweetie Belle!" Rarity pointed a stern look in her sister's direction. "I know you're hurting, but that is no excuse for rudeness. Light's idea of fun may be different from yours, but that does not make it any less valid."
To her credit, Sweetie immediately blushed at the accusation. "Oh, oops, sorry Light! I didn't mean for it to come off like that. I only meant that I'd rather not do that. Boring is just, like, a really overused word and I only wanted to... um..." She gulped, trailing off.
Rarity rolled her eyes. "You really should think your words through before you say them. I swear, like a wrecking ball. If I didn't know better, I'd say—"
"Rarity." Light put up a hoof to stop her. "It's okay. I forgive her."
"Oh, well, good." She gave a warm smile. "Still, as your friend, I would be happy to listen to one of your lectures later. So long as you never mention historiography again, that is. The Chicoltgo Manual of Style can burn in Tartarus for all I care."
"Um, okay," Light chuckled. "Bad memory?"
"Indeed. It is of my opinion that school requirements should be limited to the truly useful. Give me a math exam over a research paper any day. I say, if she had not already passed, I would have some rather choice words for Turmanebian."
"Well, that's not really fair, I think."
"Ah, excuse me one moment, darling." Rarity raised a hoof toward Light, then turned her head to her sister. "Sweetie Belle, no, I have not failed to notice the not-so-subtle hints you've been giving, along with the glances toward that book. I will gladly read your story with you in a moment, when I am finished speaking with Light."
"Oh, that's okay," Light reassured. "I think we were done anyway. The last thing you two probably want to hear is me extolling the virtues of the Chicoltgo style. Seriously though, who doesn't love annotated bibliographies and hoofnote citations?"
Rarity visibly shuddered at those final words, then nodded. "Well, in that case, you two should get comfortable. Sweetie, pass me that book. It may be no Shadow Spade, but it should at least provide some temporary amusement."
Light shrugged at the unexpected turn of events, then sat down beside Rarity with an easy smile. Though she hadn't anticipated continuing with that particular story, she could admit that reading anything at all with her friends was more fun than doing nothing.
"Okay, here we go," Rarity said, wrapping one foreleg around Sweetie Belle and using the other to prop up the book. "Sweetie, where did you leave off? There? Very good then. You can fill us in on anything important we missed as we go."
"Ahem," the elder unicorn cleared her throat as she squinted at the words. “Well, the stained pages make me wish for my glasses, but I suppose I shall have to carry on without. Let's see here... ah, there we are. Daring Do pressed her body up against a concrete wall within the White Flower dam..."
...where she could hear their voices emanating from around the corner without being spotted. More masons, no doubt.
Everything had been going well until Daring Do and King Kloseu's soldiers were ambushed by the Mason of Twelt and his strange, masonic cult of radical harmonists. Where the King had expected to find communists, they instead found a shadowy organization working to take over Brodfeld from their secret base hidden inside the White Flower dam—and where his soldiers had been boasting of how it would be an easy fight, they were utterly dismantled with hardly a shot fired.
Daring Do inched closer to those she was eavesdropping on, hoping that they might let slip where they were keeping the prisoners. She would need to free the soldiers if they were to turn this around. Perhaps she'd even get lucky and it would be like one of those cheap action hero comics, the villains found to be discussing the location of the prisoners whilst reminding each other of the new passcode for the dungeons.
Alas, what she heard was not that, but they did still have the grace to meet a few of the old tropes.
"...is this for anyway? Are those spheres of hers not sufficient?"
"Normally, they are. However, she is concerned that as new methods develop, a breach may become possible. A secondary power source is required, just in case."
"Well, nothing we provide will ever be as clean as her own methods. There will always be some evidence left behind. Eventually, the disappearances will be noticed."
"And your point is?"
"It's just that I'm not sure her help is worth the risk of being caught. Even her staff cannot affect everygriff at once, and I'm sure we can do our work without it, albeit more slowly. This partnership may not be healthy for us in the end. Already we have had to face an attack by the king’s troops, come looking for the staff. It’s only a matter of time until more arrive."
"You shouldn’t question decisions above your station. If you have a problem, bring it up with the Mason of Twelt. I’m sure he will be happy to ‘correct’ you. Until then, you're expected to fall in line. Understood?"
"Of course, but—"
"No buts. Now, go relieve the watch on those prisoners. Our people have already been in there for an hour now, and you know what the Mason of Twelt says about exposure to foreign ideas."
"Very well, brother. May you always walk the path of harmony."
"And may you find friends in every hall."
Daring Do heard the twin scrape of talons on concrete as the two griffons headed in opposite directions, one directly toward her hiding place. Swift yet quiet, she repositioned herself down the hall and around the next corner. Once in place, she eyed the light spilling across the hallway from the electric wall lamps, making sure to keep her shadow out of view while watching the approaching mason's progress through his own shadow.
She knew that if she followed him, and somehow wasn't detected by the others masons, he would lead her right to the prisoners. She could then knock him out, take the keys, and once again have a small army of the king's finest at her back. Not that the king's finest were really all that fine, but that was as an issue for later.
As for the rest of what had been said, talk of working with something else, she would have to learn about that later through questioning any they captured. If these "spheres" were another dangerous magical artifact, much like the Staff of Sanguine Souls, she intended to make sure they were taken and moved into safer hooves. Or talons. Whatever. Regardless, she did not intend to leave their organization standing after this. Her original mission may have focused solely on the staff, but she couldn't just let a secret society run around promoting their own twisted versions of "harmony" and "friendship."
The shadow she'd been watching turned a corner and out of sight, and so, with a quick glance around to make sure no other griffons were coming, Daring Do followed after.
Hall after hall did they pass—along with three flights of stairs—and all the while, Daring Do could feel her heartbeat escalating. With every near miss with a patrolling mason, she was reminded that the next might catch her; with every minute ticking by, she could see her allies being slowly broken within their cells; and with every time she lost sight of her target, she could practically feel herself getting lost within the deceptively labyrinthine structure. It was for that final reason that she made sure to memorize every inch of the place on the way down, knowing that she would likely have to make her way back up without a mason as her unwitting guide.
Said guide stopped before a massive iron door, reached out toward it with a talon, then froze in place.
Daring frowned from her spot just down the hall. What was he doing? Was he having trouble with the lock? Or perhaps he'd spotted—
Her train of thought came to a screeching halt as a whirlwind of knives flew toward her, coming directly from the outstretched talon of the griffon who'd spun to face her.
Daring Do could do little but throw herself to the floor and hope most were aimed high. Still, she felt a stinging pain lance through her shoulder just as her pith helm made a ker-chunk sound from where a second knife embedded itself, the tip sticking through just enough to graze her forehead.
Seeing that she survived the attack, the griffon drew a sidearm from the holster at his side—a silvery, tubed weapon of a like such as did not exist in Equestria. In fact, Daring Do's trip to Brodfeld had been the first time she'd ever seen such a thing, and upon first demonstration she'd known that she did not like them at all.
Desperate to stop her adversary from bringing his weapon to bear, Daring Do darted forward, temporarily ignoring the knife sticking out of her shoulder through a hardiness she'd earned from many prior injuries. Even one shot from that thing, regardless of whether or not it hit her, would be enough to end any thoughts of completing this mission. The noise alone would bring dozens of guards down on top of her.
The weapon clattered across the concrete floor as Daring Do slammed head-first into the mason, helmet tilted down so as to avoid giving herself a concussion—though this left a dent in her favorite piece of headgear, given that it had been made from cloth covered cork to protect against harsh sunlight, not blunt force.
With her enemy dazed, Daring placed one hoof on his chest to keep him pinned, then whacked him upside the head with the other, swiftly knocking him unconscious.
"Well, that was easy enough," she muttered to herself while pulling the knives from her shoulder and helmet, quickly bandaging the former with a bit of cloth taken from the griffon's cloak. "I suppose I can only hope it all goes that well."
She gave a rueful look to the pistol on the ground, wishing she could make use of it but knowing it was impossible without flexile digits or unicorn magic, then opened the door to the dungeons.
Inside, two masons sat opposite each other across a card table, both stopping and staring at her the moment she came in. Then they drew swords and pistols.
"Well, buck me."
Rarity stopped reading aloud, then raised a hoof to signal them that she needed a moment.
Light exchanged confused glances with Sweetie Belle, then sat back and watched in patient silence as Rarity skimmed through the next few pages.
"My, this is extremely violent," Rarity finally said. "Dare I say, even enough to get it placed in the 'grown ponies only' section of the library. Frankly, I'm not sure I'm comfortable with reading this, especially with Sweetie present."
"What? No!" Sweetie Belle whined. "Why? We're all covered in blood right now. Isn't that violent enough? It's not like the book can possibly make me imagine more than is already around us."
"There is a difference between gore, violence, and death, dear sister. They even have separate warning labels for them at the library, don't they, Tw— ahem, Light?
"Well, not all locations choose to warning label their books, but for those that do, yes, you are generally correct."
"See? Just because you are exposed to one does not mean you need be exposed to the other. Besides, I abhor such ghastly things. They are, in equal measure, a terrible bore and an affront to a lady's refined sensibilities. Much better we skip to something that will actually further the plot, yes?"
"Ugh, fine," Sweetie groaned. "Can we just get back to the book already?"
Rarity nodded. "Yes, let me just find a good place to pick up." She scanned the pages one more time, then cleared her throat and started up again.
Daring Do panted from exhaustion and pain as she worked at patching up her numerous injuries with pieces of cloth from the two griffon bodies on the floor. Though she'd been left with a severe limp, some broken ribs, and enough blood loss to make her feel a bit lightheaded, she still counted herself lucky. Just surviving, and with her wings almost entirely intact, was a miracle in itself. She probably wouldn't even bleed out, so long as she didn't agitate the wounds too much. The only thing she regretted was her utterly demolished hat. She'd just have to get a new one when she reached safety. For now though, she kept it on her. It would just be a shame to leave her old friend lying about.
With her wounds treated and guards dealt with, Daring Do finally took stock of the room's contents. Aside from the wooden card table and the great iron door that had been so helpful in keeping the battle's noise from reaching the other masons, there were also a series of three or four dozen iron cages placed in rows as if to mimic the placement of proper cells. Each cage contained two or three soldiers, all smiling contently at one thing or another.
Drat! The staff had already been used on them. They would be utterly useless now and... wait. There were almost twice as many soldiers present as she'd even come with. Where had the extras come from?
"Did you win? Are you alive?"
Daring Do's ears perked up as she quickly scanned the cages. That was a male voice, and nearby too. Perhaps one of the soldiers had escaped the staff after all.
"Whoever you are, could you please do me the courtesy of allowing me to speak to you face to face? I'm in one of the far cages on the left side."
She hobbled in the direction of the voice until she reached its imprisoned owner, a well-groomed but recently scuffed griffon with gray feathers and magenta eyes. At first glance she could tell that he carried himself in far too genteel a manner to be one of the soldiers.
"Uh, hello." Daring Do looked him up and down, feeling the faintest bit of recognition but unable to place it. "Who are you?"
"Ah, If it isn't Miss Daring Do." He eyed her for a moment, letting his gaze linger on her injuries. "Are you alright? That's quite a lot of blood you have on you."
"Then it's a good thing only some of it is mine," she said on impulse, then frowned. "Wait. How do you know who I am? I'm pretty sure we've never met."
"Ah, we haven't. My apologies. I have heard a great deal about you though from my father, your benefactor, King Kloseu de Kissau."
Daring Do was very proud to have responded to the realization that she was speaking to royalty with little more than an eyebrow raise. She wasn't about to give some high and mighty royal who spawned from a lunatic the satisfaction of seeing her flabbergasted. She just hoped he wasn't anything like his father, who he had an almost eerie resemblance to. "So, I guess that makes you Prince Tomado then, huh?"
"The one and only." He shot her a grin, then tried to give a courtly bow, though it ended up as an awkward folding over within the confines of the cage. "My soldiers and I were sent here by my father to reinforce you and secure the Staff of Sanguine Souls, though I shudder to think of what he might do with such a thing. I suppose this is also meant to be a way to prove myself to him, to show I'm not in league with those 'filthy reds.'" He glanced left and right along the lines of caged soldiers. "So far, it has been a decidedly poor showing."
"I can see that," Daring Do said dryly. "For now, let's just focus on getting you out of here. As long as these cultists have you, they have leverage over the king. It's probably the only reason they didn't use the staff on you."
The prince shook his head. "You'll have no luck there, I'm afraid. They don't keep the key down here in the dungeons, and the guards don't have a copy either. The only one with direct access to the prisoners is the Mason of Twelt—well, the one they call leader anyway; there are obviously multiple masons from Twelt. To be honest, that one seems kind of controlling."
"Yeah, I'm getting that. What can you tell me about the staff? Everything I know about it is from legend. I've never actually seen it in action."
"Well, in that case, you might want to start by taking a close look at the eyes of my fellow prisoners." He gestured to a soldier in a cage across from him.
The eyes? Daring Do had no idea what to expect, but she did as he asked, walking up to the cage and pressing her face against it to gaze into that blissfully happy face.
All she saw was an almost perverse joy, a joy at just being alive, yet twisted and so entirely wrong as to be sickening. But that wasn't unexpected. Whatever Prince Tomado was talking about, she wasn't seeing... what in Tartarus?
Hidden as a glossy reflection in the griffon's eye, as if he were looking at something that was just faintly illuminated, was a symbol: a crescent moon within a solar flare, painted all in red and white. It was as if somepony had taken Celestia and Luna's cutie marks, warped and recolored them, placed one inside the other, then stuck them in the poor griffon's eyes. Or rather, within his vision. Perhaps even his soul.
Daring Do rapidly backed away, injuries screaming at the abrupt motion. Suddenly, Daring Do wanted to be nowhere near the afflicted or the staff that caused their condition. That symbol radiated wrongness, yet felt terrifyingly familiar. Had she come across it before? Perhaps in a dream, or described in some dusty tome, or even painted on the wall of an ancient archaeological site? She couldn't recall, and that scared her too. She'd definitely remember something like that.
"Tomado," she turned to the prince, "Is there anything else you can tell me about the staff? Maybe something I can use?"
He shrugged. "I can only describe what I saw when the Mason of Twelt came in. He went to each cage one by one, pointed the staff at the soldiers, then fired a bright red beam of light at them. Wherever that beam touched, the image of the sun and moon, made all of scarlet light, appeared. And once that symbol touched a living creature, it's reflection manifested within their eyes. Those afflicted have been smiling like idiots since, and they happily do whatever the Mason of Twell tells them to, albeit a bit lazily."
"Yes, I already know most of that. Why do I feel like I'm missing something?" She frowned. "If these soldiers are under their leader's control, why are they still locked up?"
"At a guess? Because they're unreliable and have a tendency to wander off. It's probably just easier to keep them here for the time being."
"Right. That makes sense," Daring Do said absentmindedly, staring down at her bloodied hooves in thought.
"Is something wrong?"
"No. Just give me a moment." She took a deep breath. "The staff... beam of light... reflections... Aha!"
Prince Tomado turned his head to the side quizzically. "What?"
"I know how to beat the staff!"
The prince frowned, mouth twisting at what he clearly thought was an absurdity. "Can't you just hit its owner over the head and take it?"
"Not without getting close enough for him to use the staff on me. I could hardly avoid the rays at that meager distance. Besides, I like to finish my enemies off with a bit more flair than that."
"Right, well—" Tomado's eyes widened in horror, a talon shakily raising to point past Daring Do. "I hope your idea works, because you're about to need it!"
Daring Do spun to face a white griffon with green eyes and beak that was slightly too large for his face. In one talon, he carried a simple but elegant staff of pure silver, a crimson glow emanating faintly from a crystal affixed to one end. It was the Staff of Sanguine Souls, which meant he was none other than the Mason of Twelt. Looking at him tugged at some lost memory of hers, though the details remained just beyond recall. She almost felt like she'd met him before.
The Mason of Twelt smiled. "I do have a rather good sense of dramatic timing, don't I? For your sake, I would hope this idea of yours can be enacted while injured, cornered, and hopelessly outmatched." His smile grew as he twirled the staff around, seemingly toying with the idea of pacifying her on the spot. "Of course, we need not confront each other at all, Daring Do. Would you like to share tea with me? I have a most delicious variety imported from Maretonia. You could tell me all about life in Equestria, and more importantly, about those alicorns of yours."
Upon hearing his voice, Daring Do's memory snapped into focus, and she knew exactly where she'd met him. He had greeted her on her first day in Brodfeld, after she went to the Sydia train station and found it closed. His demeanor had been as creepy then as it was now. She wasn't going to play nice this time, and she certainly wasn't going to have tea with him. She had already indulged the fantasies of enough madgriffs during her stay in Brodfeld. Besides, getting drugged was seldom part of her agenda.
Normally this would be where she'd shoot off a snappy one liner before executing her escape plan, but with that staff pointed directly at her, she decided this was not the time to risk it. Instead, she promptly and without warning, chucked the remains of her destroyed pith helm at the mason.
With the Mason of Twelt briefly staggered, Daring Do slipped between two of the cages in the row opposite Prince Tomado, who she would be forced to leave behind for the time being. From there, she flew straight toward the dungeon's exit, hoping to make it by wing before her adversary could right himself and line up a shot with that staff. Once again, she thanked her lucky stars for the survival of her wings in that previous engagement, a fight in which her legs did not fare nearly well enough to carry her anywhere in a hurry.
A beam of red light shot past the flying pegasus, missing her just over her right shoulder. It was followed immediately by the sound of wing beats as the Mason of Twelt gave chase. Luckily, pegasi tended to be faster than griffons, whose main advantage was stamina, and she wasn't planning on fleeing very far.
Out past the iron door did Daring Do go, and she only picked up speed as she reached the hallway where space was less limited. It was as she turned the next corner and headed for the nearest staircase that she heard the staff activate again behind her, a sharp but brief whistling sound echoing along the concrete halls. Given that she didn't feel different and she had not seen a beam of light, she assumed it missed only to connect with something behind her. Regardless, she dared not look back. It wasn't worth it to risk a collision in the tight corridors of the dam, or worse, get lost.
It wasn't long before Daring Do attracted more attention than just the lead mason. Dozens of others joined the chase, either attracted by the noise or spotting what was going as those flying passed them by. Despite their numbers, they were of very little concern for the time being. None of the them risked shooting at her, as they did not know if the Mason of Twelt wanted her alive or not, and none got any closer to her than him for risk of being accidentally hit by one of the many rays that staff was emitting every time there was even the slightest line of sight between Daring Do and the Mason of Twelt.
Did she worry about those griffons or the beams, any one of which could put a stop to her for life? Sure, but there was nothing she could do about that. Nothing but continuing to move up the inside of the White Flower dam, following the path out that she memorized earlier, and hope for a stroke of her infamously fickle luck.
At the very first exit she found, she burst out of the dam and into open air, knowing full well that doing so would leave her exposed to any number of potential attacks. Still, it was the only way for her to idea to work. Even if it didn't, she could dive into the nearby woods for cover or cross the adjacent border into Lushi where the masons would have to avoid the border guards.
Behind and below her, the Mason of Twelt soared out of the White Flower dam, staff already levelled toward her. "Give it up, Daring Do," he cried out. "Your skills are invaluable, especially to a group such as ours. It would be a shame to waste them! We aren't the bad guys here. We only want world peace!"
"No, thanks!" She wheeled about then dove behind the first low hanging cloud she could find, desperate for even that most meager of cover. Several blasts from the staff came immediately after, though the beams being made wholly of light, it appeared that they could not fully pierce the cloud. Instead, the puffy white surface merely glowed red for a moment before the color faded away.
She took a deep breath, using the brief silence to concentrate. The Mason of Twelt was no doubt using that time to relocate to a better position, but she had eyes for only one thing: the reservoir. The relatively still water stretched out like a mirror, glossy and reflective in the radiant sunlight, the perfect surface for what she intended.
Her adversary popped up beside her cloud, staff lowered and already glowing bright crimson with the first ray.
Daring Do wasted no time in rolling straight over the side of the cloud, muzzle pointed down and wings folded against her sides for speed. It was straight for the water's shimmering surface that she dove, and the mason wasted no time in following her directly off the side of the cloud and firing straight down.
Then, she smiled. All it took was a twist, letting one wing unfurl to sharply pull her away from her previous course. Then the beam came, missing her by a hairsbreadth and briefly sending her vision into scarlet hues. Instead, it struck directly in the center of the Mason of Twelt's image reflected within the water.
Daring Do waited until she finished pulling up and averted a crash into the reservoir before she looked to see the results of her plan. There he was, her now former enemy, gliding lazily down into the water with a soft smile on his face. And it was there in that reservoir that he would have happily drowned if not for Daring Do's intervention.
And on that griffon's head, appearing just briefly, was a symbol all in red and white: the sun and moon, showing on him just as it had on his reflection. After all, the staff was of light, and light reflects.
“That’s it!” Light shot up, startling Rarity and causing her to drop the book. “I hit the wrong one. It’s a reflection, a mirror image of the true target!”
Rarity just stared at her, utterly baffled. "Light, what in the name of Celestia, Luna, and the stars above are you talking about?"
"Remember when I told you about all of the things that had been tried to escape this place? Well, one of those attempts involved throwing a dart with a message at the newly formed clone. It obviously didn't work, but what if the only reason it failed was because I hit the wrong target?"
Light was beginning to bounce with excitement, finally having a fresh idea for the first time since before Rarity and Sweetie Belle arrived. "Look, the clone is a perfect copy of the teleporting pony, but it takes a couple of seconds for the copy to be made. This opens up a new possibility; I could throw a dart with a message at the original, striking at a location that has yet to be copied—perhaps the wings, I think those are last—and if my idea works, the dart and message will be copied over onto the clone!"
Rarity blinked in shock, Sweetie Belle grinning like mad beside her. "You really think that will work? I mean, what if what is to be copied is decided the instant the teleportation is cast?"
"Well, that is a distinct possibility," Light conceded, "but it's worth a shot. An impeccably accurate and well-timed shot, mind you, but still."
"But," Rarity said, "how do you know it hasn't been tried before? Another incarnation of you may very well have had the same idea."
"I don't, but that's why I need to consult with Twi." Light turned her attention to the central corpse pile, knowing that Twi was likely somewhere on the other side of it. "I'm going to have to go over there and interrupt whatever it is she and Fluttershy are doing."
"Right," Rarity nodded, then added in a low murmur, "Let's just hope it isn't each other."
"Huh?" Sweetie Belle finally spoke up. "What does that mean?"
"Nothing, darling! Just that some ponies get lonely in a place like this, start feeling the urge to seek solace in each other's company. Hmm, they have been gone an awfully long time, haven't they?"
"Rarity!" Light huffed. "Mind out of the gutter! Besides, they wouldn't do that. If anything, they're still busy making amends to each other for past mistakes."
"Yes, 'amends.'"
"Oh, my..." Light resisted the urge to box her own ears, just so she wouldn't have to hear any more of that. "Look, I'm going now. I'll see you in a bit."
"You'll see me right now." Rarity took a step toward her. "I'm coming with. Nopony alone, after all."
"Ooh, does that mean I get to come?" Sweetie Belle chimed in.
"Yes, now climb up on my back. I wouldn't want you wearing out that injured leg of yours on the way there."
"Well," Light said, "I wouldn't mind the company. Come on then. We can get back to the book later; I want this possibility answered now."
And with that, the three of them set off to see Twi.
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What is fluttershy thinking right now? Given that she has killed Twi, will she try to cover it up? Or will she realise her madness and confess?
10660518
You’ll get the answer to that in the next chapter. In fact, the part of the chapter that details that is already written.
Get your mind out of the gutter! Neither Fluttershy nor Twilight have the sociopathic tendencies to ki-
you meant sex!?
How disgusting! This is hardly the place that can promote any kind of sexual deviantcy!
10662018
lol. Your response gave me a good laugh, for sure. Rarity may be projecting a bit here with her own desire for companionship—a desire she would never act on given that her sister is present and her main concern is caring for her.
10662035
To be fair; they could use the stress relief...
Here is a brain teaser; if they hit, and accidentally kill, the old version before the new version forms and the new version arrives dead what will happen to the demiplane?
Will it endure since there is still, technically, one Twilight left? Or will there be an implosion when there is no Twilight in 'reality'? Will the bubble pop instead, potentially throwing them into a maelstrom of entropic energy of pre-existance matter that will shatter their minds at the incomprehensible nature of it?
10662943
Well, I have my own thoughts on that, but it might be better for me to just let people speculate and reach their own conclusions for the time being. It certainly is an interesting question regardless, as it is basically asking what keeps the pocket dimensions open in the first place, rather than have them collapse the moment the cloning is finished. They could just remain open eternally once the first teleportation takes place, or they could be contingent on having their linked pony alive and/or present in the primary dimension, or they could even be acted on by an outside force.
I think you just want a fresh pair of words that might tackle it in a new direction that might cover ground you never thought of helping to refine your thoughts and make the possibly forever unspoken under pinnings of the story better...
Why the hell not?
i will tell you what i think in just a moment, first i wish to ramble;
Physics currently notes 10 dimensions (though my scource is 2014 and youtube has recent vids for an 11th) and we will only need to cover 3 of them; specifically the third, fourth and fifth. The 3rd is one you are familar with; you see it every day. The 4th is largely considered to be time which is another obserable existence; our clocks are ticking afterall. This dimension is kinda important and I'll get back to it later. The 5th is where things get kinda weird as we cannot see it and the best of humanity hasn't really scratched it at all (i hope). In this dimension we theorize that we would be able to perceive other worlds. Unlike the 6th the number of them is far more limited.
So then... what does this spell do?
It moves the target to a pocket dimension. Creates a new body. Then deposits that body at a targeted destination. It must do these things. If a new body is not made then caster is stuck in a no magic zone. If the new body is not transported then both are stuck in a no magic zone. Assistants and helpers would have no way of aiding as they would need to research to see where the caster is. Often a no magic zone defeats all divination so the ponies would be as clueless as humans would be.
(Note that i will not cover anything lore wise for this fic. Nor will i call it "Teleport" as we only know Twilight calls it teleport because some wizard way back when called it teleport when he completed the spell. Thus it came to be known as teleport without considering what it actually was and is. What the characters know is not the same as the metaknowledge of what it.)
To explain that last sentence lets take a trip over to Dungeons and Dragons (3.5e specifically) again. In the core books we can see and read the exact details of what a spell like teleport does. The characters (not players; big difference) would not. Without passing a knowledge arcane roll a wizard wouldn't truly know either. He might have found the spell writen down and seen the author's notes and transcribed the spell and uses it blindly. Kinda like Twilight and this spell...
So again... in the context of DnD... what does this spell do? In the show we have seen it as a full round action, a move action and a swift action. One can even make an argument for a free action. Regardless we need one spell to perform all three necessary effects in 6 seconds or less. We are looking at epic spells. Even then we can't; the spell makes a literal new creature. Life, memories and soul (supposedly). Our soul does not exist as we do here in the 3rd so all Twilights might be sharing... might not be harmful
But this is okay... this is not a DnD world...
Let us instead use "roleplay is magic" and it will be perfect. As the name implies it was made for this show. So let's design the spell; obviously target and range is a variable but we'll go with individual and contact for a "self only" version. Duration is (potentially) immediate. According to the teleport variant listed it has the modify effect with body and space effect. This comes up to a level 6 spell...
Doesn't quite work.
See the new Twilight is not instantaneous; some time is involved. This is why 4th is important. If both worlds operate on different time then it only appears instant in the original world. So now the spell is duration: temporary (+3 levels; now a average spell instead of simple). Spell also forges a new body; forge effect + mind subject. Time too if they operate differently. An extra 3 levels. All this (moving to a plane and back at different location) might get around needing range to be "known" or "unknown". Presently the spell would only really transport you to someplace you could touch at starting point.
Still; if we ignore that we have a respectable spell of level 12 that could be cast by most unicorns if they cared to learn it. If Unknown the spell level competes with moving the sun and moon in difficulty...
So what do i think?
The orb was always there. It seems to provide enough light for them to kinda see, it has an unlimited amount of oxygen and yet seems to have limited space while indestructible. I think it is inside the soul. It isn't meant to be seen by 3rd dimension eyes and thus our brains can only see the end of it and rationalize the space. It is the one thing i can think of that transcends the 3rd and 4th and yet, perhaps, not the 5th that everypony has. If the spell made it than the first teleport would be more complex than any other and someone would of found out why by now (hopefully they lived).
Like how the speed of light is the hard limit our physics has for movement and thus makes space travel a lives long job. Some pony got around that by luck by managing to teleport into the soul and teleport the new body to the target destination. Time also starts bending once we get closer to the speed of light. This leaves a lot of holes still and i am not sure how to fill them. Why is a body made? Why does it get to go where the caster wanted?
I think I'll just leave it here for now. Too long as is...
10665203
Wow. When I said people should speculate, I didn’t imagine that. Regardless of whether or not you are right in how it works for this story, I love the level of detail and thought you put into that. As someone who has only played a little D&D and avoids complex science like the plague, I didn’t fully understand some of the more technical stuff you said, but it made for an interesting read nonetheless. Thanks for your thoughts! :)
Wanted to read through some of the old "Blink" stories again and was pleasantly surprised that someone is writing a much longer one now.
Blink really stuck with me in particular cause of how grim and hopeless it all feels, more than any other concept I've ever read. A happy ending is unimaginable, but maybe a hopeful one isn't.
What I've read so far has been really good, will definitely be following this one.
this had me dying of laughter for some reason
Ah, I do love a good EaW story. Great work.
"Right," Rarity nodded, then added in a low murmur, "Let's just hope it isn't each other."
Wellllp, sorry rares,
This is is gonna age like milk.
Sadly one of them is gonna be dead, either twi or Fluttershy, hopefully it's Fluttershy because of Twi is dead than that means that Light and Rarity is gonna have to kill Fluttershy, either that or bring her back to her senses