Chapter 50: Blake
Blake led the way into the crystal caverns, heavy flashlight resting over one shoulder. It was a local model, with something magical in its guts instead of a battery. More importantly, he could use it hands-free, which was a critical quality for an animal without any hands.
"We should be past the last of the barricades now!" Ryan called from just behind him. Several other sets of hoofsteps kept pace, or the staggered mix of claws and hooves that were Janet’s and Galena's.
Only Vesper's were missing, and he needed no flashlight to see why. She flew through the cavern ahead of them, traveling through total darkness before their light had even reached. He couldn't hear her wings, but he could guess where she had gone at any point—occasionally his ears would twitch, and he'd catch a series of high-pitched clicks, echoing from strange directions. Sometimes above, sometimes behind—yet there never came a crash, or scream of pain. Apparently she knew what she was doing.
She could also appear without warning, as she did a few seconds later, emerging from the gloom with a grin plastered to her face and short fangs glinting in the flashlight. Blake managed to keep his cool, but behind him Galena nearly jumped off the narrow walkway they were following, beak bared in agitation.
"Announce yourself, bat! You could be a threat!"
Vesper tilted her head to one side, grin widening. "Hey, so there are some... big bugs flying around here. Like huge." She gestured with her wings, then held one hoof over her stomach. "You guys want me to try and catch you some for the road? They're way more filling than stupid pony salad."
Blake wasn't sure how to answer. It was true that most pony food hadn't been as satisfying to him as some members of their group. But what he really craved was more of the blue stuff the buffalo had served. Somehow, he doubted that they'd be interested in another visit after the fire.
"I don't want to lose my lunch in a Worldgate," Janet said. "Tracy tried to serve that crap to me once. I will never, ever eat a bug."
Blake shook his head too. Though he didn't really want to tell Vesper no. She looked like the consummate explorer, with goggles on her forehead, a set of leathery saddlebags on her back, and bracers running down her forelegs. He hadn't even bothered asking where she got it all.
"Maybe on the way back. But I'm crossing my fingers that we'll be eating lunch somewhere nice on the other side. I could kill for a real steak, some sautéed mushrooms, maybe some wine..."
"Sounds good to me." Vesper slid up next to him, leaning against his left side. "You shouldn't be so afraid of the dark. I bet your eyes work plenty well without the flashlight."
"His might," Galena said, annoyed. "The rest of us, not so much. Still your enthusiasm, bat. This may be your home, but it is not ours. We need to move carefully."
"I'm not the only bat," she muttered, but it wasn't like her anger lasted long. She glanced over her shoulder, at where Ryan trailed behind.
Indeed, he had his own set of dark-skinned wings, and tufty ears. But Ryan had found another local to copy, so there weren't two versions of Vesper flying around. God help Blake if that ever happened.
"The map doesn't show where we're going," Ryan said, before Galena or Vesper could start arguing again. "But it does have some strong warnings of where not to go. Odds are they were trying to keep any miners from stumbling into a functional Worldgate."
"Odds are," Janet repeated. "But caverns like this are dangerous naturally, right? Old mines can have... sinkholes, poisonous gas, landslides..."
"They can," Blake agreed. "Fortunately for you, exploring places like this is kind of our thing. We had a YouTube channel with... you know what, it doesn't matter right now. Point is we know what we're doing. That doesn't mean ignoring the dangers, just that we'll be careful and check for everything we can."
"Unfortunately, there's no canary to send down first," Vesper said. Though the way she glanced between their two part-bird companions, Blake could guess at what she almost said. But she swallowed it, and just turned back towards the darkness. "I think I could bring us an air-quality tester. I'm not... 100% on how accurate the readings will be. I guess that comes down to how well I can dream about it."
She turned towards Janet, raising one wing almost vertically behind her. "And don't you dare lecture me about how I shouldn't be using magic. We either get safety equipment or I don't use magic, but we don't get it both ways. Which would you rather have?"
Janet must have been sweltering in all those clothes. Even down here, where the heat of the planet kept the tunnel about eighty-five degrees. Blake had his own clothing of course, all folded neatly into his own saddlebags. But however embarrassing it could sometimes feel, not wearing that much just made this job easier.
Their fur might be soft, but it was tough enough to stand up to these conditions, just as their hooves could walk over rugged ground without shoes. A quick rinse when they were out of the mine would be far easier than keeping several changes of clothes.
Of course he wouldn't be able to do that once they got to the other side, assuming the Worldgate was even here.
"Jordan, if you could—" Ryan stopped, ears flattening. "Vesper, sorry. Vesper, you should check the map. If you're confident flying through here, you could scout it out for us."
"Sure!" She touched her head once to Blake's shoulder, then turned back, joining Ryan around the map. "Blake, flashlight? I can see walls in the dark, not read."
The tunnel wasn't terribly wide—but there was enough space for him to squeeze back, angling the flashlight at the map. "How's that?"
Vesper squeaked in response, though she might've been trying to say something. Either way, Blake remained where he was, watching the two of them go over the map.
Down in the dark, dodging over turnstiles and picking locks, he could almost imagine this little mission was no different from any of the others they'd gone on before. Kaelynn would be behind them with the Steadicam, getting B-roll for their video, while he kept his eyes open to turn today's location into some narrative. Vesper, naturally, would have to come up with the clickbait thumbnail to get the audience interested.
Okay, so maybe he didn't usually catch himself staring at practically naked members of his team. But she was doing that thing with her tail on purpose. Janet had a flashlight too, but she hadn't asked for her.
Vesper didn't wait much longer—maybe she could read the map without the light. She glanced over her shoulder, grinning at him. "Looks like I can take a shortcut! There's a central chamber that cuts through most of the mine. But some of you can't fly, so you'll have to walk."
"We should wait on the edge," Ryan said, mostly to him. Even back on Earth, his friends always wanted his approval when they made big moves. Someone had to be in charge, or they'd all wander off in different directions and the content wouldn't get made. "She can fly back once she knows whether it's the right way."
Vesper continued through the tunnel, which led into a vast space leading down into blackness. Glittering crystal in the walls caught the light of his flashlight, reflecting and distorting as they angled downward.
He followed, sliding past Janet to reach Vesper before she could jump. "Be careful down there," he said. "Don't take risks. If it's sketchy, we can always find another Worldgate."
She grinned up at him, settling the clear goggles over her eyes. There was no way that could actually be doing anything. But it did make her look good. A rugged adventurer, daring to go where none of the locals would visit. "You're worried about me?"
He nodded. "Of course I am. We've been through another world together, Vesper. One day there's going to be a National Geographic special about us. I don't want to tell them that one of my team died in a mine."
She stuck out her tongue. "You know that's not what I meant." She took a few steps back—right out into open air. But she spread her wings, catching herself as she went down. Blake walked to the edge, watching her bat outline vanish into the dark.
The others followed him into the tunnel beyond. They were mostly silent, particularly Galena. Despite what she insisted about being underground, she did seem uncomfortable to be down here.
Janet didn't, but she had her own map, and kept her eyes on it most of the time. Only Ryan was comfortable enough to follow Blake all the way to the edge, following his gaze. "You really think you're fooling anyone? If you think you're keeping anything secret..."
"There's nothing to keep secret," he said, settling down onto his haunches. He kept his voice as flat as he could—but from the tension he saw in Ryan, maybe he hadn't done such a good job. Did humans express so many feelings physically, but I never noticed? Humans didn't have such convenient ears and tails to watch.
"Shouldn't there be?" Ryan asked, a little quieter. "I know you're not a bloodsucking parasite like me, and I'm jealous. But there's no telling how much longer we'll be stuck here. I promise it's not that weird."
He chuckled. "Ryan is giving me advice on women. Except we're not even talking about a woman, we're talking about someone who used to be Jordan. Doesn't that seem... weird?"
He shrugged. "It was weird not being just one thing, at first. It was weird being a fish, weird sleeping with one. But isn't it up to us to think of something as weird or not? Just don't think of it like that. You met someone cute here, and you got along well. That's not strange."
Janet cleared her throat loudly, enough that both of them turned. And Blake of all people was the one to feel embarrassed. "There's something else for you to consider," she began. "Not that it's any of my business. But the changeling... you're sterile. Parasites have a queen, or had one. But you two—Blake, your girlfriend isn't sterile. I don't know what you are, exactly, but you don't seem like a bug. Whatever you do, don't bring a baby into this world."
She spoke so authoritatively, so commanding—a little like the signs all over the world telling Blake where he wasn't allowed to go. It did more than any encouragement from Ryan could've.
"We're not together," he said. "But maybe that's a mistake. I guess I'll feel things out after this Worldgate."
"Good," Ryan said. "I'm not just saying this because I want more food. Any love is good. But all the stress you've got leading us—you could do with less of it. Also, Vesper's getting so pent-up that sensing her is making me lose it. So maybe hurry up?"
"I'm not a prude, Ryan. If I met a woman like Vesper in Rome or Seoul or wherever, it wouldn’t even be a question. But just because she's a bat now doesn't mean she's going to be one forever. We're trying to stop from being stuck here, remember? You and Kaelynn can still work when we get back to Earth. But I'm not gay, and I didn't think Jordan was either. When we succeed, and I plan on succeeding, it's a guaranteed end to whatever we had."
He lowered his voice, hopefully far enough that the two birds wouldn't hear. It probably wouldn't work in either case—their eyes might not be the best in this darkness, but their hearing wasn't any weaker. "And a guarantee of awkwardness between us for the rest of forever. Even if our team never goes anywhere again, and we live on the royalties for the Equestria documentary, we're still going to be stuck together for the rest of our lives. We're the brave explorers who found it and revealed this place to the world. I don't want those press conferences to be all awkward and weird."
"Whatever. I know you won't take my word for it. But from where I'm standing, it seems like that's gonna happen either way. On the other hand, there's no guarantee we ever get out of this. If we don't, you've at least got something new to keep you going."
Blake couldn't say anything else, because something began ascending from the darkness beneath them. He backed away, grinning as Vesper returned. She was a little dustier from the journey, and her flight faltered a little as she ascended. But she managed to land on the edge without much difficulty.
"Good news!" she called, though she was clearly just watching him. "Looks just like the first one down there! Worldgate is waiting. I didn't stick my head through, but I didn't see anything funny. No poison gas, and I didn't see any monster either. We can go."
"Good." Blake rose, patting Vesper once on the shoulder. "Great job. Keep an eye on us during the way down, just in case."
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I wonder what problems are connected to this worldgate. Of course there's also the problem with Kaelynn being capyured that they need to solve before there's any chance of getting to Earth.
10924762
Yeah. Minor detail there, guys. Might want to check on your fishy friend— who now is not there...
Huh. So Blake had tried the turquoise. And, moreover, could digest it. Very interesting.
You could say it's her dream outfit.
Yeah, turns out the corporate manager's usual approach isn't going to work for someone whose hobby is thumbing his nose at authority.
The question, of course, is whether that's purely biological or was caused by species-wide malnutrition. And whether Thorax needs to churn out a few thousand eggs, but that's neither here nor there.
And yeah, seems like the difficulties with this Worldgate won't be with the gate itself. That or Vesper missed the locals who will be very displeased by non-bats intruding on sacred ground. Whatever happens, it probably won't be as easy as it looks.
10925041
If it is local bats, that scuffle is going to end up on the other side of the gate, calling it now. Then we've got the awkward situation of explaining to the locals that it wasn't one way. Only thing that would be worse is if a bunch of people saw them pop out of it while the scuffle was happening.
I'm pretty sure Vesper has secretly made up her mind to stay. She may be rationalizing it that she wants to make a decision on her own, but her repeated saying of that might just be her prepping herself and others for her announcement that she has decided to stay. Primary thing that might be keeping her from just admitting it is she is afraid of blowback from the others for making that choice.
In fact, I'm guessing that she is hoping that she gets stuck as a pony so she can claim she doesn't have a choice and can bypass any arguments and responsibility about it.
10924762
Oh, they'll pop up in Fort Knox.... Or the US Capitol basement... Or Star Gate Command... Or Premier Xi's residence...
I'm sure something interesting is to happen on the other side.
Vesper's having the time of her life. But Blake isn't. This gate might be the one but with the situation with Kaelynn... it might all be for nothing.
It wasn't too long ago that Tracy was in Janet's shoes.
More oxygen masks could be safer bet.
It's not your place to tell them what they should do, Janet. Not everyone who comes here are lost.
Other than that, there's some implications regarding the long-term viability of the changeling hive. If Janet's right about their biology, Thorax is going to have to morph a queen from the remaining larva soon.
And if that fails?
Let's see what's up this time.
10924762
Depending on the number of chapters left, this might actually be the one. Of course... the kidnapping issue might screw everyone over anyway.
10925041
At the very least, the kidnapping will be the thing keeping the gang on the Equestrian side of the gate. Their luck is truly something. If there's no other immediate issues with the gate, I can see Janet parting ways here.
10925144
Depending on the accuracy of Thestral myth, the gate might lead to their ruined homeland (or possibly homeworld if they're nonhuman in origin). No doubt such a place would be considered too sacred to allow anyone other than their kind through.
so the Worldgate is found and waiting, anypony else thing this was to easy?.
Janet is a broken record of reason here
Almost certainly.
This way we have time for multiple additional disasters before they work anything out. But at least this looks like the start of progress.
Seems a little too easy..