The Twilit Tower

by Fresh Coat

The High Priestess — Chapter VI

“We are certain this scenario will work,” Mulberry stated firmly, their tone unusually harsh. “The other exercises just weren’t right for you, but this one is exactly what you need.”

Flash followed listlessly after Mulberry into the new room, unresponsive to their ramblings.

“Now, I can understand why you were not responsive to the last… seven situations we went through together, but that was simply because we have not been giving you the right stimuli. It is time to switch things up.” They gestured towards a raised wooden platform in the center of the room. “Stand there, please.”

Following Mulberry’s instruction, Flash trotted up onto the indicated platform and sat his rump on the hard surface. His head and wings drooped in place as he continued his silence.

In contrast, Mulberry was a flurry of activity. Five windows dropped into place along the circular walls of the room. Each was made of standard glass panels separated by a wooden cross section framed between two pastel pink curtains. Mulberry raced about the room, pulling thick corded rope next to each to close the curtains and prepare for whatever new attempt to help Flash was in store.

“We will shortly turn off the lights, but do not worry, they shall turn back on soon after,” Mulberry explained as they continued to race about the room. “We are certain that this will help you.” They grabbed the last rope and waited for a response. Flash provided none. “We are certain that this will help you,” Mulberry repeated, a hint of desperation in their tone.

Pulling the last set of curtains closed, Mulberry trotted quickly out of the room through an unseen door. After a moment, the lights in the room turned off plunging the room into darkness.

Taking a deep breath, Flash felt a measure of comfort break through the numbness that overtook his entire being. The lack of stimulus and quiet brought him a sort of peace after the events prior.

Too soon for his liking, a light lit up to his right. He glanced towards the source to see the curtains had parted to reveal a strange sock puppet in a now open window. It had a tied-up bun of yellow yarn atop its head and large googly eyes.

“Flash Sentry is my hero!” The puppet exclaimed, wiggling excitedly in place with an open sock mouth. “He caught a thief that had stolen my saddlebags by chasing them halfway across the city and tackling them to the ground. My most important possessions were in there and I would have been devastated to lose them.”

Flash didn’t respond.

Another window lit up on Flash’s opposite side. He glanced towards it to find another sock puppet, this one dressed in guard armour with makeshift cardboard wings glued to its back.

“Flash Sentry is the bomb!” The puppet nodded in the affirmative, its mouth open as it released several loud cheers. “He’s the best gym bro to have and the raddest guy at parties. You can always rely on ole Flash for a good joke. You always tolerate our dumb Wonderbolt request on the guitar, right, bud?”

Flash didn’t respond.

Another window lit up. Flash didn’t bother to look and instead hung his head, staring down at his front hooves.

“Flash sentry is so hot!” The newcomer declared. “He, like, always checks in when in bed and has such a big—” the light flickered on and off, “—What? I was going to say heart!”

Flash didn’t respond.

A fourth window lit up.

“My brother is so amazing!” He heard presumably a puppet in the likeliness of his sister say. “He’s always taking time to check in on me and my wife in Dodge and is always so considerate. I love him so much!”

Flash didn’t respond.

Dead silence followed. The only sound was the steady breathing of Flash as he continued to ignore his surroundings.

The rustle of a curtain unaccompanied by a light broke the quiet. A crackling emanated from the depths with no discernible source.

One of the puppets coughed to clear their throat. “Well, what do you think is really great about Flash Sentry, Captain puppet?” The puppet dressed in guard armour asked.

“Flash Sentry is a failure,” a familiar voice called out.

Flash raised his head.

Light bathed the window in sharp relief to reveal the final puppet. Unlike the others, this one was a marionette. A cartoonish pony skeleton hung up by thread with a strange mop of blue yarn on its head swept over one side in a wave. Glowing blue sockets stared back as a fire burned behind it, licking at the edges of whatever material it was created from. Its limbs were held at unnatural angles appearing broken.

The skeleton twisted its head ninety degrees. “Everything is his fault,” The puppet intoned. “When the pony he cared most for needed him, he didn’t do anything.”

“I couldn’t,” Flash replied dully.

A loud bang echoed through the room as Mulberry burst into the room, the main lights bursting to life. “Okay, we think that is enough,” Mulberry called out as they began to close all the curtains on the other windows. “This is not how this scenario is supposed to go.”

“You cared so much about him, but were never able to tell him what he desperately wanted to hear,” the skeleton continued. “When you could have proved it, you failed him.”

“He needed me,” Flash weakly said, an errant tear falling down his cheek.

“We would recommend that you ignore the strange puppet’s words,” Mulberry interjected. “We are unsure of how they are here, but no matter.” They grabbed the rope next to the skeleton’s window. “This shall be dealt with shortly.” They yanked on the rope.

It fell down to the ground uselessly. Mulberry stared at the frayed end in confusion.

“That monster had charged into camp, a training exercise by that incompetent Sergeant who didn’t know how to do proper containment.” The flames consumed one of the marionette’s legs, charring it black. “It got to the sleeping tents.”

“The officers had said the chains were improperly bolted down,” Flash added. “He didn’t know what he was doing.”

“Flash this puppet is an anomaly,” Mulberry stated. “Please stop engaging with it.”

“It had torn through the tent.” The flames took another of the marionette’s legs. “You were both caught off guard, but he was ready. He had gotten out immediately before the monster could do anything.” The flames reached its torso, climbing towards its head. “You just stood there, staring at it.”

The tears fell faster, a stream down the side of his face.

“We see you are unable to stop yourself. We shall deal with this cursed doll at once.” Mulberry grabbed the nearest curtain with their hoof. It fell down burying Mulberry underneath itself. “Blasted sheets!”

“He came back for you. He took its flames for you.” The flames reached the puppet’s lower jaw. Its sockets turned red, burning intensely. “His entire body was bathed in fire. His last words about how much of a screw-up you are.” The flames consumed the rest of the puppet’s head, ash beginning to fall in a blanket of black snow from its charred parts. “He hated you.”

Flash stood stiff in place, failing to fight back the sobs that escaped his throat as his tears burned trails in his fur.

“It should have been you.” The marionette’s body fell away, but its skull stayed, a single skull with burning red eyes. “You are the worst thing to have happened to him. You will never overcome your failure. You—”

A wooden block slammed down from above, crushing the skull underneath itself. Wood splinters and glass from the window sprayed across the floor leaving scratches on the hardwood.

“We believe they have said their piece,” Mulberry stated, throwing their cloth prison onto the ground and stomping on it several times with their hooves. Once satisfied, they turned their attention to Flash. “Now, we should move onto a different scenario as we feel—”

“What's the point?” Flash hoarsely said.

Mulberry paused. Flash stared straight ahead, unflinching, tears still falling down, but his face set into a firm neutral line.

“To help you,” Mulberry reiterated. “We believe—”

“I know, Mulberry,” Flash interrupted. “I know that, but what’s the point?” he shouted the last word before returning to a flat tone. “Even if you fix what’s wrong with me, it doesn’t make up for what I’ve done.”

“We do not understand what you mean,” Mulberry replied.

“I killed Spearhead,” Flash announced with a confidence that brokered no argument.

“From what we can discern of the situation, we believe that the monster—”

“Physically killed him,” Flash stressed. “But who was the reason he ended up in harm’s way? What moron didn’t run when they should have?”

“We feel that you are misplacing the blame,” Mulberry said. “We feel that your guilt—”

“I’m not misplacing it, I’m putting it where it’s supposed to be,” Flash retorted bitterly. “I’m a failure, Mulberry. I disappoint my family just by living. I got someone I…” he choked on the word, “I got him killed. I have the audacity after that to have a wildly inappropriate crush on my Captain because he reminds me of Spearhead.”

Flash released a choked sob. “For sun’s sake, dad’s right. The only thing I could do to turn this around is to try with the next generation, and, even now, I’m so pathetic I can’t even get that right.”

“If you wanted a family—”

“I like stallions. Stallions don’t have foals.” Flash punctuated the point with a stomp of his hoof.

“There are plenty of options available to stallion pairs.”

“But not for a murderer,” Flash whispered helplessly.

“Flash, you’re spiraling,” Mulberry explained. “We shall help you step back from this so that you may take time to process—”

“No.” Flash shook his head, laughing helplessly. “No, no, no, we’re done. You’re wasting your time, Mulberry. Help someone who deserves it.”

“You are someone who deserves our—” a rumble shook the room, nearly toppling Mulberry to the floor. “What was that?”

A wall appeared behind Flash. Plastered with bird-patterned wallpaper. A curtained-off window in the center. Before Mulberry could react, a second wall appeared at a ninety-degree angle to the first followed quickly by a third opposite the second.

“What is—” Mulberry started before reaching out with a hoof “—Flash, get out of there!”

Shaking his head, Flash gave Mulberry a bittersweet smile. A fourth wall slotted into place, a fifth closing off the square room with a ceiling, trapping Flash within a doorless room.

Rising from the floor was a bed. It had a headboard of a cloud and blankets patterned with race stripes. The cloth reached towards Flash, entangling them within their soft embrace. Flash stepped forward, surrendering himself to the sheets.

He was pulled further in, smothered by fabric. They pinned him down, and held him trapped under the covers. Flash didn’t mind since it was what he wanted.

Finally succumbing to his exhaustion and numbness, he closed his eyes, allowing sleep to overtake him.