Soul Crossing: The Cursed Book

"Why it's not working?" I asked looking at my hand astonished.

Twilight and I were going for my cape, in the middle on the night in the same day, when no one… or no pony… was around. I was trying to cast a flame in my hand because she asked me to show her some of the magic from my world while walking.

“… I don’t think… maybe Mobhrun sealed my magic after he poisoned me?” That seemed to be the most reasonable answer.

“Y-yeah… that must be” Twilight answered, for some reason her voice shacked.

“Geeez… I hope I won’t need it” If I have to, I’m screwed.

We stopped when we found a black thing lying in the floor. It was close to a forest and I could see some lights coming from a building like a tower or something on the side of a mountain.

“This is your cape” Twilight said.

She tried to take it with her hoof and magic. Both failed completely and I smiled looking how good worked the enchantment, even with unknown magic. Then it was my turn and without problem, I managed to take it, wipe out all the dirt (at least he one that I imagined it was there because I couldn’t see it), and put it on my shoulders and close the button that’s in the neck my neck. The cape covered all my body.

“Who did that must be a genius” she claimed “You know, by making the cape to only let you take”

A freaking genius, and that’s what scares me.

“Well, I suppose we should go back” I say “I need to figure out what I’m going to do to find Mobhrun”

“Do you think he knows how to go back?” she asked looking at me.

“Maybe, maybe not” I answered looking the lights on the mountains “By the way, what’s there?”

“Oh? Those lights? That’s Canterlot, where the princesses live” she started looking at eh lights too “I used to live there, but I moved here, in Ponyville”

That must be the capital, something I must remember well I start looking in all the directions if no one is close to us to see us in that moment. For some reason, that place gave me memories of Sekmeth. You could see the palace from a great distance because of its height, a golden tower in the middle and lights that could be seen from the other side of the mountains so that no traveler would get lost on his way to Jaztenia. But I was dragged out of my memories when…

“It seems you are in some problems, meow” I heard a voice I could recognize on my back.

I turn around at the same time as Twilight, so we could see who was talking. I looked directly at it while Twilight just looked in front of her because she didn’t know, in that moment, who said that, was a cat.

“N-not you!” I complain while looking at a brown cat with yellow eyes and some kind of gem in his forehead “It’s enough without going back to my home!”

“Why are you so bad with your familiar, meow?” the cat said.

“It’s a talking cat?!” Twilight said surprised when he looked at it.

“Yeah, more like a talking pest, if you ask me” I cross both arms while looking at the cat, clearly annoyed.

“My name is Linag, young lady, Diaz’s Familiar, sadly” he bows and sits down.

S-sadly? Sadly?! If you weren’t immortal I’d kill you right now! I stare at him more annoyed. Every time that cat appears it’s a great headache accompanied with a great desire to cut him with my sword was present. Sadly it’s immortal, and I knew trying ended in a failure. The biggest problem is that he appears when I less need him to annoy me.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“I’m just here to give you support while you are trying to go back to your home” he says while scratching behind his left ear “You are so useless without me”

“In other words, you are here just to annoy me”

“Much like it, meow” he answers “You two better go back soon, I saw a couple of ponies, one purple and the other red, walking in the night close to where we are right now. They seemed to be quite a couple of two love birds if you ask me, meow”

“A purple and a red ponies? I wonder if those two are…” Twilight seemed to be concentrating.

“We’ve got no time for that, we better go back now!” I say while scratching my right cheek.

“Oh! Y-you are right! Let’s go!”

We took our way back. Even if hat cat was a pain in the ass, the information he gives me always is accurate and I know I can trust him in that fact. It’s just difficult to work with him… so difficult that I can see me committing suicide.

“So, you have a familiar?” Twilight asked

“Yes, but this one appears when he wants” I said while looking at Linag who was walking in front of us. Since when are you around here? he seemed to know the way to Twilight’s home “Twilight, you said you were princess Celestia’s apprentice, right? Are you sure she haven’t sent you anything about the other human or something odd?”

“N-no, I haven’t received a message from her about anything” Again, for some reason, she was getting nervous.

… maybe… I better not press nothing here I had the feeling that she wasn’t being sincere with me, but on the other hand, I didn’t find any reason for why she would not tell me the truth.

We continued walking in silence, so that no one could hear us. We didn’t came across with the couple, bad for Twilight, she seemed interested in know something about that, maybe they were friends of her? Who knows.

In the library, I said to Twilight that I only needed a pillow and a sheet, and I‘ll sleep over my cape which was pretty comfortable for a improvised bed in the floor. She borrowed her bed for so enough time to make me fill bad for taking it. I never liked having favors from others, because I always finish with the urge to compensate them in any way.

“At least you are a gentleman” Linag said while I was preparing my bed “But you still will be abusing of her help and eat her food”

Why he likes to make me feel bad? I’ll have to find a way to compensate her tomorrow.

Now, the next part it’s just something that I remember that happened while I was seeping. I was called to the room of dreams. When I found myself there, I saw white buildings in the horizon, which made me know it was that place. And who called me? I could recognize it when a man with an elegant walk and very expensive clothes. This man was a friend of mine: Donovan, the errant prince from the dessert kingdom of Quatzal, found in the world of Cimarc. Someone very confident and who you can trust. On the other hand, he is a woman lover.

“Donovan!” I said “It was faster than I thought”

“Fast for you” he said looking at me with his usual smile “For us, it was more than a week. You got everyone worried”

“I can guess that” I press my left arm under my cape (did I fail to say that you appear there with the clothes you know you use regularly?) “Sorry for that”

“Don’t worry, my friend, we discovered you were fin some days ago but we couldn’t talk, you are fine now”

“Oh, you were the voice I heard, I see now”

“But, please, tell me that you are on a world from the list” Donovan’s expression changed, this time his attitude turned to a serious one because he clearly knew the answer for that.

“No, it’s not and it wasn’t connected in the past, let me tell you why I know that…”

I said to Donovan about Equestria and the other race. He was surprised because of the discovery of a new intelligent race that didn’t was from an anthropomorphic genus. Then, I told him what happened before I was transported to that world. And about Twilight and how she helped me while I was sleeping.

“But, I still can’t get why she helped me” I crossed my arms while closing my eyes “I just can’t get it”

“Oh, ‘dat’s’ very common of you, my dear friend” he said, trying to talk like me.

“C-common of me?” And don’t dare to copy my way of talking.

“You can’t trust people, at least not that easy” Donovan placed one of his hands on my shoulder “That’s you problem”

“And how do you know that?” I try to fight back with his affirmations, even knowing he was right.

“Let me ask you this: Did you tell to your equine friends about your curse?” He takes his hand away while smiling.

“I-I… no… I haven’t told them yet…” I looked away.

“See? How can you tell someone you don’t know in a world where no one knows what are you doing there that you have the Power of Chaos? Oh, and don’t forget that they don’t know about them either, even if one of them helped you” Donovan asked.

Some people say that I’m smart and that I can make difficult deductions. But Donovan is a freaking genius, everyone can assure that. He can see through lies, evidence, and even people just by looking at them for a while. Trying to hide something from him could end in a big failure if you take down your defenses in any moment, even just for a second.

“I just…” I didn’t know what to say.

“Sorry for making that psychoanalysis, we haven’t talked for while” Donovan steps back “And there are more troubles, the Hugalai Influence it’s taking more victims, at least that’s what the last investigation reported, and Ganil haven’t made advances in his research for a cure”

“The Hugalai Influence…” I repeat the name of the disease. That’s a pandemic disease that still doesn’t have a cure, and what causes it is still unclear, and very mortal. The symptoms are like the cancer until certain point with a tumor appearing in some place of the body with a constant energy lost. Luckily, it wasn’t contagious.

“That’s something that you should know, good it is that none of us is sick” Donovan continues “Don’t’ worry about us, we are fine just concentrate in returning home soon, I know you are wondering about everyone”

I nodded with my head while looking at Donovan with a confident smile. Everyone was waiting for me, all my friends. Even that old librarian called Minju.

“I need to ask you a favor” I say “Can you please ask Minju what does he know about Mobhrun? I’m sure he has something to say”

“So, you think Minju and Mobhrun knows each other” Donovan starts playing with his hair “I see what I can get, maybe I’ll ask the cute and good princess Quini to help me, you know how green is that old man”

There’s no need to be green to end confessing everything with the princess, I can assure that. Princess Quini de Vornia is the future ruler of Sekmeth and, maybe, the most beautiful woman from the kingdom. Trying to avoid temptation is futile with her, and I was once a victim of her “weapons” because I was trying to hide something I didn’t wanted others to know... my arachnophobia.

“I’ll appreciate any information” I said and bow.

“We are friends, stop with the polite manners, maybe you got Twilight dizzy with your bows” Donovan said laughing “And try not to fall in desperation if it takes you so much time to return because you don’t have any woman from our race giving you company for a while, if you know what I mean”

“Donovan, if you are insinuating what I think, I’ll kill you when I get back to Jaztenia” I closed both eyes and made a fist with my left hand.

“Just think” he continued mocking “You in a world where the major part is an Equine, and you, who only can see his female friends in dreams. I know how problematic that can get”

“… shut up” I didn’t want that “Maybe because you had a situation like that doesn’t mean it can happen to me” Right, I don’t know how to answer back. How common of me!

“… Touché” he said looking at the floor.

“Wait, what?” I was surprised “You passed through something like that?”

“I have to go now, see ya soon” Donovan started to disappear. He clearly didn’t want to talk about that.

“Hey! You can’t go like that! It’s my turn to make fun of you!” I say pointing at him with my finger.

Donovan disappeared on a white mist, leaving me alone in the room. For some reason I stretched the muscles in my arms with a closed eye, relaxing me completely. Maybe the meeting was short, but knowing I could talk with my friends was enough to for me to give me calm in my mind.

Something bad about leaving that room is that you wake up in the real world and it doesn’t matter the time it is in that moment. If I’m not mistaken, I woke up at 3 A.M. I was little annoyed because when I wake up is very difficult for me to sleep again. I just looked at the ceiling without moving or doing nothing. When I noticed something abode me I looked at the black ting that was sleeping at my stomach. It was Linag.

“Stupid cat” I said.

I tried to sleep again, but, as I stated before, I couldn’t. And this time something was in my head making it more difficult. Maybe… I should tell her… Maybe… But I didn’t know how she could react, what she could do. She is the princess’s apprentice, and even if I didn’t try to do anything against her, she could tell princess Celestia and that could be the end for me. Well, normal, how you could react if you encountered someone with a curse that enables him to use the power f chaos? In my world at least that means one two things: This person is a demon or has one inside of him. I’m the second possibility. But, it’s supposed to be gone right now… but the power it’s still with me.

Maybe it was better to tell her, the sooner the better. But the sensation of doubt didn’t want to go. It took me almost three hours to fall asleep again, but the doubt didn’t go.

Don’t exactly know at which time I woke up. If it wasn’t for Twilight I might have continued until 3 P.M sleeping with no stop.

“Hey! Wake up.” I heard Twilight while waking up “Don’t tell me you are going to sleep for another week”

“N-no, I’m awake…” I said while trying to open my eyes “I couldn’t sleep well las night… just that”

“Well, after all the time you were sleeping, I think is normal” she said looking at me while I was trying to wake up.

“M-maybe…” Nah… If you knew how much I sleep some times...

I yawned while standing up from my bed. I pick up my cape and put it around my neck, back to where it belongs. I see at my clothes for some seconds before closing it I wish I had clothes to change, I don’t like using the same things to days in a row… or weeks. I try to leave the subject, maybe I’ll find a solution for the clothes soon. Luckily, the material from which they were made is easy to clean and doesn’t keep odors. Then, we went downstairs. Linag didn’t seem to be close, I didn’t see him.

“So, want to have breakfast?” he asked smiling when I finished with my cape “I know, no hay or flowers, right?” she smiled, like laughing.

“Y-yeah” I answer “But I just feel that I might be taking so much advantage from your help”

“But what are you going to do if I don’t help you?” she asked concerned.

“W-well… I don’t think the money from my world works here… so I don't know” I scratched the back on my head “Maybe I’ll never understand why you are helping me, heh” and laughed.

“I already said it, don’t worry. I just want to help you” she said laughing too “And you can’t just go outside waling like nothing was happening”

“Yeah, you are right… but I have to compensate you somehow, I can’t just…”

I was interrupted in that moment. “Twilight!” we heard in that moment and some… pony went inside through the door. It was an orange earth pony with a hat and blonde mane and tail. She went to us running and stopped in front of Twilight. She was very worried and sweating.

“Twilight, we have a prob…” then she looked at me. I was doing so, but I was worried that she saw me “It’s awake!“ She shakes her head and looks at Twilight again” It doesn’t matter! Twi! Is Trixie! She is back and wants to see yah!” her accent reminded of a cowgirl “She is in front the Carrousel Boutique!

“Trixie?! And why is she back?!” Twilight asked surprised “Applejack, stay with Daniel and make sure no pony sees him!” she pointed at me with her hoof “I’ll go to see what she wants with me!”

Twilight went running outside the library. Who I this Trixie, again? I didn’t get exactly what was going on, but surely nothing good. Even if I wanted to know something, I just had to wait there with the other pony, Applejack, and my only actual source of information about the situation. From her reaction when she saw me I supposed she already knew about me.

But I didn’t have any time to ask questions, something didn’t let me make them.

“It seems that the presences from another world are affecting the course of this one, mew” Linag said, he was sitting in the stairs who knows how much time. Applejack’s mouth went open “You should… HAVE to go there, Diaz, meow”

“T-that cat is talking?!” Applejack asked.

“What do you mean with that, Linag?” I said “I can’t just go outside! The ponies can’t see a human!”

“If they don’t see you, they’ll see Mobhrun sooner or later” he looked directly at me with his yellow eyes “And… I’ve been feeling Black Chrysalis, maybe two, around here since very early today”

Only by hearing “Black Chrysalis” I felt that my body got paralyzed. Why something like that would be in this world? Mobhrun, that was the only logical answer. He brought one or more Black Chrysalis there. What are you thinking?! I thought, while pressing the fist that was already made in my hand. A chill passed through my back and my eyes opened wide.

We call Chrysalis to some kind of stone with magical power imbued with certain elemental power. There are Red, Blue, Green and Purple Chrysalis. Each one represents certain element: Fire, Water, Earth and Wind respectively. They allow the user to cast a spell, even if he or she doesn’t know how to use magic just pressing it in the hand. But there’s certain Chrysalis with a Black color that makes something different. It doesn’t gives you power; it frees energy that the body conserves. When you run or exercise until you get tired, you only used certain percentage of you total energy. But the Black Chrysalis lets you use it until is depleted and when that happens, you can die in the act. They still give you some power over every element and let you cast spells like a professional magician… and sometime it takes you into a trance giving you dark powers. They are forbidden in every world of my universe.

“Applejack! That was you name right?” I said while looking at the pony, she just nodded with her head when I yelled “I need you to take me where Twilight is going without being seen. Is important, I’ll explain to you in the way, but she could be in danger!”

I explained in the short way to Applejack what was going on. I had a bad feeling, and maybe Twilight was in danger, a danger created by humans. And not just that, maybe there were more Black Chrysalis around there in Equestria, and Mobhrun made his presence clear in this world. “It seems that the presences from another world are changing the course of this one” Linag’s words were repeating in my head. Is our presence… affecting this world?

Applejack and I were running as quick as we could without being seen. “Who’s Trixie?” I asked in the way, trying to get information.

“Trixie appeared in Pony Ville certain day” she said, choosing the direction we had to take “She ridiculed us, but Twilight managed to put her on her site. She was a mage and traveled from town to town, and always addressed herself as the Great and Powerful Trixie”

“In third person?” why, is she nuts?

If Twilight gave her a lesson, then she must have a grudge… I hope I’m wrong and that this Trixie doesn’t have a Black Chrysalis.

“There they are!”Applejack said.

I hide behind a wall so that no one could see me, but I could watch perfectly what was going on. A lot of ponies, with different colors and kinds, were watching the two that were in front of a building. One was Twilight, the second a blue pony with a hat and a cape with stars, maybe Trixie. They seemed to be arguing something when someone talked behind me.

“Hi!” I could recognize the voice clearly, surprise was that I didn’t heard her coming “You aren’t supposed to be out here, don’t’ you?”

I turned to see: It was Pinkie Pie again appearing on my back with me not noticing her presence... again. Who knows when she saw us, luckily didn’t call attention.

“I’m here because I have a bad feeling” I said and then returned to my watching.

“How do we recognize that Chrysalis thing?” Appejack asked.

“Chrysalis? I remember her, she a chang…” Pinkie said but was interrupted.

“Not that Chrysalis, Pinkie. Daniel says this is some kind of a stone with magic from his world”

I watched for a moment at Twilight and Trixie’s actions, and luckily I could hear what both were talking almost perfectly. While they both were talking, Trixie used magic and some kind of images appeared, like a video. I couldn’t see it tough.

“Do you see how’s been life for the Great and Powerful Trixie since you, Twilight, dared to embarrass her?!” she said in third person. She really loves herself “I even worked in a rock farm” R-rock farm? What?!

“Trixie, I’m sorry” Twilight said “I didn’t though things could go so hard for you, but I had to do something with that Ursa Minor”

“Yeah, right! You only did it to embarrass the Trixie!” Trixie said, hitting one hoof in the ground “And now she is going to retrieve her dignity!”

With magic, Trixie makes her hat float in the air, and a black tiny ball fell from it to the ground. For me it was no doubt: That was the Black Chrysalis, I could even feel that black and cold magic coming from it. I was going to act in that moment, but Trixie quickly smashed it with one hoof and a glass sound was heard by everyone that was there. Her cape started moving because of the magic aura that was surrounding her. Both eyes turned blood red and a gem appeared in her forehead.

“W-what’s this magic you are using?!” Twilight asked.

“Your doom!” Trixie said “Why don’t we heat things a little?”

Around the two ponies appeared a circle of flames more tall than me. I couldn’t see anything behind me, but some sound made me know that magic from both sides was being used. I got outside from my hiding spot.

“We need to help Twilight!” Applejack said worried, she was going to start running towards the fire circle.

“No! Is dangerous!” I said, stopping her “We need a pan for this”

“Yah got any plan then, partner?”

“…I go inside and improvise, that’s what I’m thinking” Not the best plan I ever had.

“I don’t think you’ll get very far with that” she said “Trixie’s magic seems to be more powerful... It’s like her power went over 9000!”

I couldn’t believe what did I heard, for some reason, I reacted with surprise when Pinkie said that. W-why… why do I feel that I’ve heard that somewhere else?!

“What’s the problem?” Applejack asked, maybe my reaction was drew in my face.

“N-nothing” I try to calm myself “I can get inside, my cape supports fire” And I can control it “I’ll try to see how’s Twilight and turn off the fire. If I manage to do it, help me to get that thing that appeared in her forehead out, that’s the only way we can stop her and get some answers from her, and I need them”

Both nodded and I turned to the wall of flames. I began running almost instantly and, when I was close enough, jumped while rising my cape with my arm so that it covers my face while passing through the flames. I went inside without problems. If it wasn’t for my cape and my affinity with fire I’d get toasted while trying to pass through.

Inside of the circle of fire, the temperature was very high. It was no problem for me, but maybe Twilight wasn’t going to resist for long enough. I saw Trixie launching fire balls with her horn, a very basic, but effective, spell. Wait… from what I know you don’t need anything to canalize the magic, just using your mind is enough. Twlight on her side was blocking with problems the spells with a magic field that was getting weaker every time a fire ball struck against it. Stop thinking and act, imbécil! I though.

I ran towards Twilight. When her magic field disappeared I managed to take my cape out and cover me and Twilight with it getting on my knees. I still felt the hit from the fire ball, but the cape took away the damage that the magic could have caused. Twilight closed her eyes when the field disappeared. She opened them when noticed that nothing happened and saw me.

“Daniel! What are you doing here?!” she asked surprised.

“You took care of me, I’m only trying to return the favor” I said with one eye close because of the pain from the fire ball. Trixie stopped shooting them.

“Who are you?!” Trixie asked.

“Twilight, there are four ways to stop this. I don’t want to talk about two of them” I said making obvious that both ways implied Trixie’s death “The only way to take her alive from this is taking that gem out of her forehead, or make her do it. Those are the only ways she doesn’t get hurt”

“I understand… but I don’t know how much time I’ll hold with the heat” Twilight said.

“Don’t ignore Trixie and show yourself!”

“Then, let’s make it quick” I said. I rose from where I was and return my cape to it normal state, covering my entire body “You complain too much, they haven’t told?” I said to Trixie. I turned around took my saber out of the scabbard and make it rest on my right shoulder “Now, who gave you that Black Chrysalis?! I want answers, now!”

“Hey, I thought you didn’t want to hurt her” Twilight said, clearly speaking about my saber.

“… is… just to create an impression, Twilight…” And now, is ruined. “Whatever!” I point the sword towards Trixie “Answer me!”

“… Pfffft” Trixie smiled Hey! Don’t *pffffft* at me! “You really thought you were going to impress me, human? Ha!” she laughed and walked two steps towards me “You won’t get answers from the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

“... but, the Great and Powerful Diaz got answers from you, even if they were obvious” I put down the saber “He just wanted to make sure something”

“What are you talking about?” Trixie stared at me with anger.

“You called Daniel Human” Twilight walked to my side “You knew he is one because you’ve seen others. So, other human gave you that thing”

“Correct” I point my face, smiling, with my finger in the right hand “The most probable: A human called Mobhrun”

I looked at Trixie while I was smiling. Even if the answers I got from her were obvious, I needed to make sure it was a human who gave her the Black Chrysalis. There was something else: Even being under the effects of the Black Chrysalis, she still was in control of herself. I still needed to know where he is, but that needed to wait.

“Hmph… It doesn’t matter” Trixie’s horn started to shine and three fire balls appeared over her “The Great and Powerful Trixie wants to show a lesson only to that purple pony, so please, step aside and don’t interfere”

I didn’t move. I just was looking at her with a serious face. I knew how strong the magic can get with a Black Chrysalis, so I needed to make a plan for getting close to her. If only one fire ball gets me, even I being strong against that element, it could be dangerous. Twilight’s magic is strong… how many fire balls she managed to stop with her barrier? She was going to be a major factor in the definition of this battle. I needed to keep her standing.

“So, you won’t go” Trixie said “Then you better burn!”

Trixie’s fireballs went against me and Twilight. “Avoid them!” I yelled while jumping backwards, avoiding one fire ball that was going towards my feet. I almost stumbled with a stone in the ground, but I managed to maintain my balance. Twilight avoided the second fire ball that was going against her, jumping aside. …wait! There were…! I noticed something late. There were three fire balls! But it was late, because the third one hit me in the back. I didn’t saw it coming.

“Dagh!” That fire ball got me by surprise and hit me hard. I closed both eyes, but managed to stand strong thanks to my cape.

“Daniel!” Twilight screamed, looking at me.

“I told you to step aside” Trixie said “And, if you keep mocking at Trixie’s way to talk, you’ll suffer more”

She is very strong… I must keep calm I opened one eye and looked at Trixie. I didn’t need to lose my temple. That was the last thing I wanted. I looked then at Twilight. She seemed to be very tired thanks to the heat. I have to find a way to stop Trixie I looked again at Trixie and, for some reason, smiled.

“You can’t control your demons, Diaz. It’s an illusion for you, a fake control over yourself”

-Linag talking to me about my curse