Lest There Be Light

by MonoGlyph

Kafkaesque.

Fluttershy awoke. This was a little strange, considering that she couldn’t remember lying down to sleep. In point of fact, she couldn’t recall much of anything after she arrived home yesterday. Yesterday? She couldn’t even be sure that a day had passed. Shaking her head blearily, she inspected her surroundings.

This was a fairly small room with waxy tiled walls. The wax was scratched off in places, and some of the tiles had freed themselves from the wall, instead littering the floor around her. The floor itself was covered in several layers of dust to the point where she left visible prints as she walked. There was a single window, ingeniously built just large enough that she couldn’t quite squeeze through. Outside was… well, she was unable to really comment on the state of affairs outside, as she couldn’t actually see anything. Whatever lay beyond was as blinding as the sun, and in all visible directions. Something was out there; something tall and stationary, perhaps a landmark. However, it was too far away and trying to make out what it was made Fluttershy’s eyes water. The air outside was crisp but not nearly as cold as winter would dictate.

Fluttershy looked around the room once more. It was here that she was forced to conclude that this was almost definitely not her cottage. Understandably, she was a little concerned. How did she get here? Had she been kidnapped? She tried to get her breathing under control. Everything was alright. She was alive, uninjured and out of the cold, for now at least. Having calmed down slightly, she gathered the courage to try the door. It was locked, and what’s more, built from a sturdy, if not sterling, steel. Her heart rate started to climb again. She was trapped. Someone had brought her here and locked her in. What could they want? She glanced around the room a third time, searching for anything, anything that could help or shed some light on her situation. Her eyes were drawn to a pale rectangle suspended on the wall near the window.

There was a note. There was a note hanging from a nail, just slightly out of reach. Or rather, it would be out of reach, were it not for the fact that she was a pegasus. With two beats of her wings, Fluttershy grabbed the slip and ripped it from its place. It read as follows:

WELCOME TO THE CHARON BUREAU. PLEASE REFRAIN FROM SMOKING WHILE ON THE PREMISES. BATHROOMS ARE FOUND IN THE LAST PLACE YOU LOOK. THE CAFFETERIA IS LOCATED ON THE GROUND FLOOR; LASAGNA IS SERVED EVERY 72 HOURS. IMMIGRATION OFFICES ARE ON THE TOP FLOOR OF THE BUILDING. WHILE YOU’RE HERE, IF YOU ARE STRUCK WITH FEELINGS OF EXISTENTIAL ANGST OR DEPRESSION, PLEASE VISIT OUR COUNSELOR ON THE SECOND FLOOR. IS SOMEONE YOU KNOW LOOKING FOR WORK? WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR POTENTIAL EMPLOYEES. PICK UP AN APPLICATION AT OUR RECRUITMENT CENTER ON THE BASEMENT FLOOR. FOR YOUR PERSONAL SAFETY, PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE THE BUILDING. THANK YOU.

She didn’t know what to think of this note. So this was a facility of some sort, perhaps a business. She couldn’t say she was familiar with any place called “Charon Bureau”, though. What sort of work did they do here? Immigration offices? Was this a government-sponsored agency in some far-off land? And why did it look so run-down and neglected? Why had the author insisted that she stay indoors?

The note was a bit heavier than she expected. She flipped it over and found a small envelope attached to the back. Inside the envelope was a tarnished silver key. She tried it at the door and sure enough, it fit snugly into the lock. She took a deep breath and tried to prepare herself for whatever lay on the other side. Then, she took her first tentative step into the hall beyond.

***

What kind of a ruffian would spirit a lady away from her home? This was the question that plagued Rarity’s mind as she rifled through the files inside the stuffy office. And why was this place so barren, so lifeless? Was this the work of some twisted psychopath? Had he dragged her here to play some sick game, to hunt her through the abandoned halls? Oh dear. She must’ve borrowed one too many mystery novels from Twilight. She returned to the task at hand: figuring out what this place was and how to go about getting back home to Opal and her friends. She glanced at the file she was presently holding.

CHARON BUREAU
ANNUAL REVIEW

YEAR 13,772,887,212
ITEMS PROCESSED THIS YEAR: 53,356,381
ITEMS IN QUEUE: APPROX. 5.76E10

THE FACILITY IS OPERATING AT WELL BELOW THE OPTIMUM. IMMEDIATE ACTION TO REMEDY THE ISSUE IS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED.

Someone had stamped the paper with red ink.

[ACKNOWLEDGED]

Well, of course the place was barely working, she thought to herself. There was nopony here. Then again, it was more likely that the whole facility had already gone under and these pages were just leftovers, memoirs of a distant time. If this facility was still doing… whatever it was supposed to, surely she would have run into a worker or two while she was wandering around. How long could such a poorly-maintained workplace possibly function? Only… thirteen billion years? No. She must’ve misunderstood. She put the review back into the desk drawer so she wouldn’t have to look at it anymore.

In any case, surely all she had to do was head down to the first floor. There’d be an exit, and she’d be able to leave. She wasn’t certain where she’d go after that, but it was best to take things one step at a time. She set off, determined to find a stairwell or an elevator. Above her, the Bureau’s steel framework creaked and groaned ominously. Every few minutes the unbearable creaking would be interrupted by a piercing metallic screech. As she listened more intently, she fancied she could hear a voice beneath the harsh noises.

Anyone? Hel-lo! What kinda place is this?

It sounded familiar. Even if it didn’t, Rarity would have sought it out anyway. But as it so happened, this voice belonged to one of her friends.

***

“Somepony answer me!”

Rainbow Dash was getting winded from yelling. She’d been doing so nonstop for the past hour, as she explored the building. Or it felt like an hour anyway. She’d grown quite parched, her throat was dry as the winter air and if she was going to keep this up, she would likely lose her voice. It was hard to say exactly how long she’d been exploring. There were clocks mounted at irregular intervals around the place, but for some bizarre reason, none of them had any hands. It was fortunate that she’d held out for so long however, for just as she was about to give up, she finally heard a muffled reply.

Rainbow Dash? Is that you?

It had come from below.

“Rarity? You’re here too?” She lay with her ear to the floor, so as to better hear Rarity’s response.

That would appear to be the case, yes. I wager you’re as confused as I, regarding this matter?

“I guess so!” Rainbow sighed quietly. “Okay, hang on! Stay right there! I’ll find a way down to meetcha!”

She was at an intersection of two hallways, each stretching to infinity in either direction.

“This might take a little while! Just stay put!”

She took off southward. Countless doors flashed past her as she flew, some of ebony, some of grimy, unwashed glass. She dashed through the claustrophobic passage as quickly as she dared while indoors, but it went on and on to no end. Just how large was this building? What purpose could all these doors serve? At last she decided she was getting too far from where she’d heard Rarity’s voice and resolved to try another direction. And lo, as Rainbow turned around she saw something impossible; not the hallway stretching back, as she’d expected, but a room. Here she found two sets of doors. There was a simple double-door, presumably leading to the stairs, and what appeared to be an old elevator behind an iron portcullis. A sign hung on the adjacent wall:

IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY, DO NOT USE THE STAIRS.

Rainbow rubbed her eyes in disbelief. As a last ditch effort to make sense of what she was seeing, she spun back to the hallway, and glanced behind her. The scene refused to change. Someone was toying with her, tugging at her strings. It was probably magic; perhaps a teleportation spell or something equally mundane. She tested the walls. Solid.

Well, this was certainly a way down. Perhaps she might find Rarity if she utilized it, regardless of the unconventional means she’d taken to get here. She tried the double-door. Not only would it not open, it plainly refused to budge even a millimeter. It was as though the doors were merely painted on, or were otherwise part of the wall itself. Even Rainbow Dash dared not ram the doors or try to force them open for fear of injuring herself. The metallic creaking of the building reached a fever pitch, as if the source was in the room with her. She looked aside just quick enough to catch the portcullis lift next to her. The elevator door slid open with a whisper.

“H-hey?”

The elevator was empty.

She couldn’t bring herself to trust any facet of this mysterious place, with its long dusky hallways and its seemingly shifting architecture. Stepping onto the elevator seemed ill-advised. With due reluctance, she did so.

Inside, a single light shone over an ancient lever. The mechanism was poorly maintained and pulling the lever was a struggle. Once she finally wrestled the stick to one side, the door closed and the elevator began to descend with a shudder.

For the umpteenth time Rainbow wondered why she was there. She heard Rarity somewhere below. Did that mean the others were here too? The other Elements; her friends. If they were, she had to find them. Then they’d all leave this place together.

Besides Pinkie, she didn’t see any of them very often during the winter. Everyone was simply too busy, or too self-absorbed. In a way, she was glad to have found herself here, away from the freezing heights of Equestria. She felt guilty admitting this to herself. What was the Element of Loyalty, if not unconditionally loyal to her nation? It didn’t matter, she told herself. She wouldn’t trade fair Equestria for this place, so gray and lifeless. She’d gather Rarity and any others, and they’d find their way back. They’d been in worse situations than this. They had always overcome all obstacles together, and come out stronger than before. That would never change. Right?

The elevator was taking much longer than she’d expected. She had only wanted to go down one floor. She tried to push the lever back into its original position. It stubbornly refused to give and the elevator continued its trek ever downwards. Rainbow groaned.

“That’s great. Thanks a lot.”

***

With a start, Applejack found herself prone on a surface of brick and mortar. A breeze brushed over her sprawled form. Although it was gentle, it stole the warmth from her body. She shivered. She could not say where she was or how she’d got there, and the environment seemed to deter all attempts to survey it. Everywhere she turned, all she could see was harsh, blinding light. She stumbled forward until she hit a railing of some sort, crafted from ancient silver. Countless snakes were depicted on the balusters, their mouths clasped tightly around the comparably frugal rail. Looking over it, she could see she was fairly high up. Possibly miles below her was the ground, covered in vibrant greenery. Although she could not say what this place was, she felt profoundly thankful for the presence of the railing. Looking back, she saw that this was a balcony, attached to a building of gargantuan proportions.

She wandered back to the elaborately patterned glass door, which was thankfully unlocked. Lines of steel ran through the inside of the glass like dark veins in some synthetic creature. Beyond the door lay a reception area. A counter of ancient ebony stretched from one end of the room to the other, separating any would-be clerks from their clients. Presently, this place was devoid of anyone she could see. A great clock hung over the counter, but it lacked hands and was useless. A dust-covered, leather-bound logbook was spread where she imagined the head clerk would sit. The cursive script that covered the pages proved to be almost completely illegible to Applejack. She sat on one of the old chairs that were strewn haphazardly around the area. How did she get here? Her memories of the previous night were dull and fading quick, as those of a fevered dream.

She saw a slender, alabaster shape standing outside her bedroom window. But that didn’t make sense. She slept on the second floor. The entity reached through and entered the room, unimpeded by the glass. It stood there, in the middle of her bedroom, looking as though it was waiting for something. It was tall and alien, though she could not make out much detail in the dark. Somehow, screaming or seeking help failed to occur to her. She slid out of bed and asked what it wanted of her. It regarded her with something like enlightened disinterest. It would not speak, but to the Element of Honesty, it would be honest in kind. A single disembodied phrase echoed in her mind as she probed at her memory, a whisper from the depths of her psyche.

None of you will be harmed unless you choose to be.

“But what does that mean?” she muttered absently.

Unbeknownst to her, a quill without any visible bearer added a note in the margins of the ancient logbook.

Comments

[Remember the porter]

Ladies and gentlemen we have entered the anti-chamber.
Prepare to get freaked

[kingtiger666]

Cthulhu shall arise and reign supre-- wait, what?

[Sunken EldritchSpires]

welp, looks like they are stuck, and someone has signed the names of them into the book of Azathoth. :P

Nice read, little uneventful, but I figure its building up to something next chapter.

[a pony in a man suit]

Welcome to Sheol: You can check out any time you’d like, but you can never leave.