Chapter 52: Hungry Dreams
Lilac would not have another chance to see Copper. They were arriving the next day—that was the entire point of the inspection. But if this was the last chance for her to ever talk to him, she had to work out a way to say goodbye.
Once she scribbled her farewell, she presented it to Saffron, lowering her head nervously. "Do you think there’s some way to make sure that Copper gets his hooves on this? I don't want to just vanish."
He landed atop the letter, staring down at it with disdain. "If you did not have commitments to the forest, I could help you disappear as well, if you wished it. But your banishment ends tomorrow, and so the grove waits for you." He flicked one hoof towards the air-grate. "I believe your friend will remember the way here, and attempt to visit again. Leave it out of sight for him to find.”
Of course—that was such an obvious solution, she should've thought of it herself. She'd spent so long trying to figure out new spells that she blinded herself to the more obvious, physical solutions to her problems.
She would have one last inglorious meeting with her tutor the following morning. She arrived with several angry bangs, rattling against the wood so loud it shook in its frame.
"Lady Lilac Vale. Open this door, we must have words."
She groaned, rolling out of bed. She still felt a little sore from the day before, but not in a bad way. Her first experience with love was a little like tasting magic for the first time—intoxicating, and addicting. How would she get it out of her mind now that she'd experienced it once?
She had done everything she could to clean up from her clandestine time in the engines, which basically meant shoving it all behind the vent for Copper to collect. Hopefully there was nothing left to give her away.
She opened the door, staring groggily up at Keen Focus. The mare looked exactly as she had the last time—sharply dressed, with an ever-sharper expression. The kind of glare that could cut steel.
"You look an absolute disaster, Lady. What happened to you?"
"I was barricaded in my room for over a week without food," she answered, glaring stubbornly back. "What do you think happened to me?"
She wasn't even pretending obedience anymore—why bother? This tutor had her threats, but they would be landing in Willowbrook soon. Could she even carry them out with Iris to protect her?
"If you think I'm going to mince words in my report to Lord Amaranth Vale, you're mistaken." She kicked the door shut behind her, circling around Lilac. "You've proven yourself to be—among the most intractable wretches I've ever had the misfortune of encountering. Frankly if you worked in his stables, I would still recommend he find alternate staff. You're unworthy to even set foot in his household."
Lilac stood up straight. She stopped slouching, and faced into the fury of this mare with as much confidence as her little body could summon.
The right thing to do was keep her head down, say nothing, and wait for her to leave. Let this mare rant and rave all she wanted—ultimately, she had no power over Lilac. As soon as she stepped off this ship, her domain ended.
The Lilac of two days ago would've done it. But the Lilac of today had spent a sleepless night tossing in her cot, hoping that Copper snuck back one last time, and not daring to risk reappearing below.
"You don't even know what I am," she said. She didn't scream or rave, not like this mare. That was reserved for ponies who needed to raise their voice to make themselves understood.
Keen Focus stopped right in front of her, sneering. "And what's that?"
She spoke in words that she had never heard; in a language no pony ear was meant to hear. "Songs that the Hyades shall sing, where flap the tatters of the king. Song of my soul, my voice is dead. Die thou unsung, as tears unshed."
Keen Focus's fury melted from her face. Her muscles slackened, and her mouth began to hang open. Her eyes seemed to focus on some distant point, far to the horizon. Lilac couldn't see it anymore, but she remembered.
The place where no living thing could ever grow, the place where time unraveled and space curved backwards. The place that had stolen a piece of her forever.
The unicorn's face twisted into a silent scream. Her pupils expanded until her eyes went almost black. Then she screamed, ear-splitting horror that echoed painfully in the room. She turned back the way she'd come, and blasted the door apart with a single flash from her horn.
It fell in smoking ruin onto the deck, leaving the empty hole Keen Focus had used to escape from her. Lilac dropped to one knee, feeling a sudden throbbing pain at the back of her skull. She reached up and felt blood trickling from her nose and mouth, dribbling faintly onto the deck beneath her.
Lilac straightened, then sponged it dry with one of the fine dresses she'd been given to wear.
"Careful," whispered a voice from over her shoulder. She recognized it without turning—there was no other so small, yet insistent. Saffron hovered behind her, putting her body between himself and the hallway.
"Power is a dangerous thing, Lilac Empathy. It comes from the bonds we tie, or tied to us against our will. We can pull against them, demanding strength flow as we require. But one force must always prevail. You float adrift, and cast your anchor upon an island. Tug upon the rope, and it seems as though you demand the land come at your decree. But it is not the island that moves."
She turned to look back at him—but found Saffron was gone. The single sapling she had cultured suddenly looked—shriveled. Its bright green stem withered to brown, and the leaves atop it fell away in autumn yellows and reds.
Lilac rose, stomping out the flames before they could grow beyond the remnants of Keen Focus's spell. Then she started packing. She couldn't feel the usual rocking of the ship in the currents of upper air. That could only mean one thing.
She rinsed away the slime of sleep in her mirror, and groomed her mane as she would have before her trip on the Magna Vale. She tied it back with a single retaining band—the kind that her tutor had told her were beneath the use of refined ponies like herself.
Aurum arrived himself a few minutes later, dressed in a crisp uniform. He stopped at the doorway, staring at the burning wreckage. "Oh. I see Miss Keen Focus... visited you as well?"
She rose from her desk, nodding towards him. "Do you know what's wrong with her? I've never seen a pony act so strangely before."
The captain stepped through the door, then levitated his cap off his head. "Afraid I have, Lady Lilac. Though I never imagined I might see it in friendly skies. I do not know how she could've been so afflicted while sailing in Equestria. What did she say to you?"
Before or after she tried to starve me? "Mostly just screaming," Lilac said. "She seemed really scared about something, but I don't know what. There was nothing in here."
He replaced his cap. "Then whatever madness had come upon her came before she reached your quarters. Troubling. I'll need to order my vessel stripped and searched. Best we get you to shore before that happens."
Lilac should be afraid, shouldn't she? Keen Focus might not understand the spell she used, but she would still know that Lilac had somehow been the cause. Somehow.
She felt no fear, or even guilt. Just satisfaction knowing that the one who had inflicted weeks of torture on her, then been willing to starve her had finally suffered what she deserved. How many other girls has she tortured like me? How much worse would she act if the trip kept going even longer?
Lilac stepped off the zeppelin, descending a landing ramp to the ground below. A familiar carriage was waiting, along with several carts of trade goods. As she watched, a hospital wagon arrived from the street, just in time to receive Keen Focus.
Several of the ship's burlier earth pony stallions had her between them, restrained with a tablecloth.
Both leaders of House Vale stood outside their carriage, watching. Lilac couldn't hear what was being said, but could see that her adoptive father was shouting, trying to get through to Keen Focus. He did not succeed.
Lilac tightened her saddlebags, walking with those deliberate, prim steps that Keen Focus had spent days drilling into her. She pretended not to see the hospital ponies emerge, with straitjacket waiting.
"Lord and Lady Vale," Captain Aurum said, saluting them both. "I'm afraid there is dire news to report. One of the passengers you sent with me appears to have gone completely star-mad."
Lord Vale loomed tall and imposing. He looked right through the stallion, and instead focused all his attention on Lilac. He knows it was my fault.
How could he? She'd barely stepped off the ship, and the captain was with her the entire time. She hadn't felt any sensing spells from him—what was happening?
"Star madness," Amaranth Vale repeated. "In Equestrian skies? Without affecting any of the other passengers?"
"Not to my knowledge," the captain said. "I recommend a thorough search of the entire vessel, starting with the mare's quarters. There may be some relic of forbidden magic aboard. The crew would be... much reassured by a few days in port to be sure of their safety."
"And our daughter?" Iris asked. She took a single step towards Lilac. Her eyes looked her over, searching for something? Was there some remnant of the spell lurking on her body, one she couldn't feel? I don't think that was even a spell.
She certainly didn't have the time to draw the runes and gather enough power to search herself. Or any idea what she would look for.
"That will be enough, Captain. Perform your search, and report back the instant you learn anything. I'll see the mare transferred to a more... discrete facility until she recovers."
The captain nodded politely to them both, returning up the ramp. A loading crew worked at the back of the ship, bringing down carts of goods. But nopony got close to their little group. They were practically in a bubble.
"That mare was meant to instruct you," Amaranth snapped, as soon as they were alone. "She should have spent her every waking moment in your company. There is no chance that some harm could've come to her and not you—unless you were the cause."
Lilac didn't meet his eyes, or keep up the same defiance she had used with Keen Focus. This stallion worked directly for Canterlot, somehow. His connections to the Lightless Star were unknown to her, just as any possible motivation for Iris to remain married to him.
"Forgive me, Father—" she began.
"Lord Vale," he corrected. "Forgive me Lord Vale."
"Lord Vale," she repeated. "Your tutor locked me in my quarters alone for the last week of our trip. She did not open the door a single time, not even to deliver food. I have not seen her until this morning, when she arrived at my door screaming like a madmare."
Iris's horn stopped glowing. "Every word of that is true, husband. Her belief is absolute."
Technically, everything she said was true. But would Iris have confirmed anything she said, even if it wasn't?
"That would be—uncharacteristic of her," Lord Vale said. Yet some of his confidence had deflated. Whatever surefire weapon he thought he held against Lilac, now it had a flaw. "I will inquire with the crew. If she did so... neglect her duties, and your welfare—it might suggest worsening madness on her own. If I can confirm your story."
He turned, striding up the ramp without so much as a farewell to his wife.
"Will he?" Iris asked, as soon as he was gone.
Lilac nodded. When she spoke, it was in a voice barely audible over the wind. "It's all true. But what happened to her—I did it. Somehow. I don't... know exactly how."
Iris didn't shout for the guards, or her husband. She just reached forward, embracing Lilac right there on the tarmac. She squeezed her hard against her chest, protective as any pony could. "I know."
Lilac's composure shattered, and she cried like an infant.
Stats
Page generated in 0.03 seconds
Total duration
1,032 users online
1,635,048 hits today, 2,244,100 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.®
Lilac has been careless, again. While I can hardly feel sympathy for Keen Focus, she is now both witness and proof Lilac Vale is far more than a mere Earth filly.
Also, how much does Lord Vale know about his "daughter"? He is openly antagonistic against her, despite the later being a "goddess".
Well I was not expecting that.
I didn't think they had those kind of ability's just resentence to it, just speaking did that to her crazy. Maybe there is more to the pony's belief that they are outsiders then I believed
Will Keen Focus recover? I mean… damn.
There's going to be consequences for this. Though that might pale in comparison to what's going on with Lilac. She might not have been in total control of herself. And that might have something to do with her name being stolen. We might actually have round two with "Derek".
Unsafe for human ears as well.
Lilac lost a name. Keen lost far more than that.
Definitely not tied with Fae magic. Though I wonder if she violated the rules of her contract. It's not a flower, but she did destroy a plant.
He's a liability to the cult if he isn't a member. Makes me wonder how much of the marriage is just a way to fill the Lightless Star's coffers. The business might be Amaranth's but I doubt Iris isn't wealthy on her own.
Could be a serious sign that Lilac is infected with "Derek" and becoming dangerous. To everyone. We'll have to hope Firefly can stop this from happening.
So the Lightless Star did bring back their "true gods". They just brought some "hitchhikers" along and are attempting to corrupt them through heightened emotional responses.
Lol, talk about getting what was coming to her.
What Lilac did to Keen Focus was a bad idea but give how Lilac was treated it's no surprise that she lashed out in anger. The difficulty with Lilac and Firefly now is that they've both changed during Lilac's absense and those changes may conflict with eachother.
Lilac couldn't be the only one who had attracted the void beings, could she? I believe Firefly might reveal a hit of otherworldliness eventually
11262065
I think this is more Lilac being corrupted by the thing she accidentally summoned and not her true self showing through.
Good to know that at least Iris cares. Misguided and trapped she may be, but she does care.
All magic comes with a price...
Yes, this is exactly the kind of response I'd expect from an emotionally charged youth who has had to deal with that kind of draconian etiquette teacher.
Poor Lilac is still learning her limits and being tugged in so many directions must build stress like nothing else.
It's called soul tattoos. You should embrace it.
derpicdn.net/img/view/2019/7/22/2098398.png
11262061
More like aged it, which outside of its speed, is natural ...
Well, if this reaches Equestria (surely it will), this will paint quite the target on Lilac's back... Something to remember.
So, as Lilac calls upon Derek, she brings him closer to emerging into reality... Concerning. This is a path she may not be able to escape...
Let's look at the rhyme! These extradimensional beings always have something interesting to say if you read into it.
"Songs that the Hyades shall sing, where flap the tatters of the king. Song of my soul, my voice is dead. Die thou unsung, as tears unshed."
So, "Songs that the Hyades shall sing, where flap the tatters of the king"?
Compare this to Wikipedia's statement on what the Hyades are: "popularly "rain-makers" or "the rainy ones"". Lilac doesn't know about this, but Firefly absolutely does - up in the clouds, above their heads right now, an ancient alicorn city dwells. Derek knows this somehow (maybe through simultaneous infection of firefly? But Firefly didn't have a fragment of herself stolen, I think... Maybe Derek is just sensing it through proximity) - and presumably thinks that the castle will react to her and Firefly.
"Song of my soul, my voice is dead."
It's her 'soul' speaking right now... AKA Derek.
"Die thou unsung, as tears unshed."
And this is just Derek taunting her or possibly giving the 'final blow' to wreck her psyche.
Gotta love how analysis-worthy everything the eldrich monster says is
11262556
Yeah good observations. I remember earlier on the initial comparisons to how the native equestrians reacted and thought compared to our former humans, it was made obvious early on that while humans and ponies are similar they are not the same, humans clearly have significantly more fortitude than ponies.
I feel like the taunt was one of envy almost... this pony was living in a literal utopia and was being vile and cruel... so the human unleashed a little human sadism on her, letting her understand what exactly a human has to go through in their lives.
11262286
Might not just be magic. Remember that Equestrian life is on average significantly nicer than human life. By comparison even if Equestria deals with catastrophic disasters on the regular, the average quality of living is much higher than Earth. A human could very easily traumatise a pony with the right knowledge and magical application.
11263294
Eh, Equestria is still extremely dangerous compared to earth, just look at the wildlife. As the Breezie said, the world is dark and dangerous - and Equestria has survived through it. Ponies have fortitude in spades.
To my perception, humans resist the 'horror' of the monster not because of greater mental fortitude, but because we have been living close to their plane for ages. In this universe, our ancestors probably arrived and were driven mad by the eldrich horror, but gradually (souls recycled?) got used to it, and became capable of blocking it out somewhat.
We are prey before Derek Ashton, he is not a human - he is something lovecraftian. A festering force beneath the surface of our reality, just waiting to break through (via a vacuum metastability event, see the real scientific concept 'false vacuum') and devour human civilization.
Edit: That said, Derek could still envy the pony for not being a horrifying monstrosity.
Don't shove ponies' heads in the Void like you're giving them swirlies, Lilac. It's a bad look, and also corrosive for the soul. And goodness knows you don't have much soul left to spare to corrosion. (Plus, the fact that a single, isolated bout of star-madness struck on the airship while the royal investigation didn't find anything about the incursion... Yeah, there are plenty of dots to connect there for anypony who has all the relevant information.)
Saffron's last lessons are very important here. Sometimes the hardest thing to learn is when and how not to use magic. I can only hope Lilac bears them in mind in the future, for her sake and others'.
Still, like it or not, Lord Vale is going to have to learn to live with his daughter. Of course, first he'll need to accept her as his daughter, which could be a big ask...
11264891
Oh keen deserved the void induced insanity big time, you don't just starve a filly under your care and get away with it when said filly has a pact with the fey and has extradimensonal void being powers by her nature of being from a "Void" world. Hell if it weren't for Lilac escaping she might have died from dehydration. You can only really survive 3 days without water after all.
Lilac is still sore? How much loving happened?
11262042
She will recover fully, as long as her exposure to earth pony fillies is minimized, I'm sure. And probably zeppelins. And closed doors. And maybe poetry.
11389823
Hah, pretty good for a unicorn eh?
Remember folks, words have power!