Interviews With Equestrians

by Jmaster49

Subject 154: Depths Of Despair

As soon as we stepped into those decrepit caves, we felt the anguish of the doomed souls that were stationed here wash over us like a wave of sorrow and hatred. Tartarus was just as bleak and empty compared to the last time that I was here. Rocky plains that consumed the underworld with jagged edges that appeared sharp enough to impale a ghost, howling souls in the distance that wailed for destruction and unbridled fury, and cages upon cages of demonic beasts and other deadly creatures as he trotted down a path. Needless to say, this was absolutely not your average underworld.

“Yikes,” Cork said under his breath, “This place gives me the creeps the further we go.”

“Yeah, this place’ll do that to you,” Quick explained and recounted her time here previously, “Not much we can do except press on. Just don’t let your fear overtake you. Some of the strongest beasts thrive off of fear down here.”

She was correct. Cerberus in particular didn’t allow just anypony to waltz up into the underworld lest they were capable of accomplishing it. It was a scare tactic to ward off accidental entry by those who couldn’t defend themselves. As for us? We were more than ready to handle whatever this place had to throw at us.

“Indeed,” I added, “Just make sure we don’t get separated.”

As we continued walking, I noticed Corkscrew's level of concern rise over the course of our voyage. His face turned a shade duller than usual, and his wings started to molt a few feathers unconsciously. I had to stop and check on him.

“Hey, is everything alright, son?” I asked as we all stopped atop a wide, rock bridge that carried us over a chasm.

“Brrr…” He let out a shuddering sigh, and flapped his wings a few times. “Yeah, yeah I just...there’s something I don’t quite understand.”

“And what’s that?” I asked.

Cork pointed to the depths of the underworld below us that contained a small amount of shackled prisoners for high-tier offenses. Yeesh. I even recognized some of them. Luckily they weren’t able to hear us thanks to the magic barrier beneath the bridge. “Down there--those are some of the individuals that have been put away for serious offenses. Don’t get me wrong--they probably deserved it, but…” he looked up at me, “How could an actual child like Cozy survive here? It must have been hell.”

Literally. But yes. I often wondered just how her mental state held up when it came to the fact that she had been imprisoned down here among deadly creatures and even deadlier beings like Chrysalis and Tirek. In doing so, I aimed to get a better understanding of the mental processes of Cozy Glow so that I could further help her help herself. To be quite frank, it was another reason I came down here. But it was a rather personal one.

For now, I simply offered the best answer that I could manage. “...I don’t know how she dealt with it, Corkscrew. And I won’t pretend to know, either. The best we can do is figure out just who or what is causing trouble down here. So stay focused, yeah?”

“Of course, boss.” “There’s more to it. I know there is. He’s hiding something away in his mind, but I won’t pry too heavily into it for now.”

Quick Draw had taken point, and led us to the other side of the bridge where we could see wayward souls flying around. “Hrm. The screams of the damned…”

I walked up next to her. “You can hear them?”

“Not exactly,” she shook her head, “It’s more like...I can feel their eternal suffering--as well as the suffering they’ve caused for others. The sensation seems to be getting stronger the deeper we go.”

There it was. If we followed that ever-growing sense of hatred, we could find the source of what aimed to start an uprising in the underworld.

“Okay then, Quick. Lead the way.”

All was quiet...mostly. Aside from the occasional strange noise off in the distance, the trek through the underworld was filled with enough white noise to send chills up your spine. The cold, rocky floor beneath our hooves clopped with each step we took which reminded us of just how empty and isolated this place was.

There was nothing we could audibly make out, no. All we could do was rely on Quick Draw’s sense of direction towards this...feeling she had described. But it concerned me. The more we traveled, the more staggered her gait became, and the more difficult it was for her to keep her eyes open.

“...Quick,” I spoke up to address her condition, “Is everything alright?”

It took her a moment to respond. She rubbed a hoof upon her forehead, and groaned. “Blegh...ah, my whole body aches.”

“Uh, maybe you need to ‘sever’ the connection between yourself and the sorrow,” Corkscrew pointed out, “Pale and I can take it from here.”

Quick Draw had a rather untimely grin on her face. It was almost disturbing even. “...Nah. You think I’m just gonna let you guys handle everything? Besides...we’re almost there.”

We traveled a bit further until we reached a pillar of stone stairs that led up to a monolith in the middle of darkness. This had to be where the ‘singularity’ of emotions stemmed from. At this point, Quick no longer needed to track the thing since we had already arrived.

“Yeesh…” she took a few deep breaths, and leaned her head downwards, “I’m okay. I’m alright. Just...wow. That was a lot of strain.”

I’d say so. The mare had broken a sweat from using her earth pony magic to track it down. Because of this, I suggested that we took a moment to relax to avoid excess pressure.

“Let’s take a few moments,” I suggested, “It’ll allow us to come up with a plan.”

Quick didn’t object, but Cork surprised me when he interjected. “Boss...are you sure about this? I mean, is it even possible to have a plan against something like this? Do you even know what we’ll be up against?”

“...Yes, and no,” I admitted. I appreciated his keen sense to call me out on my choices. “See, of course I have no clue what we’re up against. However, I know that everything has a weakness. And once we understand what that is, things will be much easier. Then we can put a stop to whatever is causing trouble down here. Are you with me?”

Quick cleared her throat. It seemed as if she recovered from her brief respite. “Normally, I’d call you crazy. But if there’s the possibility of something trying to escape to the surface with unknown power connected to Mane-iac, then we at least need some info.” She looked up at the rocky tower, “We don’t need to beat it on the first try. We just need to figure out this thing’s motive and drive. If it’s too strong, we’ll bail out of this situation as fast as possible. Sound good?”

Corkscrew took a deep breath, and hovered off the ground. “...If it’s with you guys, then I’ve got nothing to fear. I wouldn’t dare back down now that we’ve come this far. But we won’t waste our lives here either.”

“Alright then.” I turned around and looked up at the large, mountainous tower that loomed over the underworld. “We press on.”

Surprisingly (and a bit disappointingly), the walk to the top did not present much of a challenge...on its own. It wasn’t until we reached the top and found ourselves faced with nothing at the tower’s platform that we felt anything.

And let me just say...we felt something, alright.

How could I describe it? My coat started to consume me, and it felt as if all sense of my being had been swallowed by the inner sanctuary of what housed all of my tools and notes. My own, reliable piece of fashion had started to turn on me.

Or at least, that’s what I thought.

“Huhh? Whaaa?”

I waded around in horror through the darkness. I tried to call out for the names of my companions, but I got no answer. Everything felt like it was a swirling tempest of torment that tried to end my existence. Until...I found a light.

So I went to it.

Blinded by it, I exited the light to find that I felt...shorter, smaller. As if I had been shrunken.

“...What just happened?” I froze. My voice was at a higher pitch than before. I looked at my hooves--they were the size of a colt’s. “Wh--wh--wh--wh...WHAT?!” I could barely speak with how much horror had traveled through my body. “QU-QUICK! C-CORK! HELP!!”

This was not a time for child’s play.

Comments

[Neo4K]

...So Pale's a kid again? This can't possibly end well.

[GamePlayer64]

I guess this is Tartarus' torments, the area of fear