Fighting Freedom

Know what you should do? Comment. That would be a good idea.

AN: Warning severe use of plot may be contained. It may be bluntly shoved down your throat.

I woke up to the sound of movement. Twilight had abandoned her position and I was left sleeping in a sitting position. I raised my head to see Martin walking around the main room.

"Don't you like have a job?"

He shook his head, "No post on Sundays."

So that made yesterday Saturday, which meant that I got here on Tuesday. I think that's how it worked. I pulled myself off the couch. I went inside the bathroom and showered. I looked at my clothes and shrugged. I would just wash them at some point in time.

I stepped out to see Martin waiting for me. I pulled him aside and said,

"I need to ask you something serious."

"Uh.. What?"

I looked around making sure no one was listening and then said, "I haven't had to use the bathroom in days. There isn't even a toilet in the bathroom. Just a shower."

Martin looked at me for a few seconds, and then he laughed. He put his hand on my shoulder to keep himself up. Which was kind of weird as he had to reach up to do so.

When he finished he said, "I may have forgot to mention that. That probably freaked you out a bit. Ya there's something in that grass stuff that makes your digestive system go out of whack. Maybe just a bunch of fiber or something."

I shook my head and said, "I don't think massive amounts of fiber could do that. Well not having to piss anymore is kind of cool, but it makes me wonder where it's all gone."

Martin put his hand up, "Don't even think about it. Just be happy with it. I don't want to know where it goes."

I raised a finger, but Martin just shushed me.

"Seriously. No questions."

I shrugged and let the thought go. "So what are you going to do then?"

"I don't know. Usually I work the route and then go bake things with Pinkie. I've also been helping Twilight research a certain spell."

"Well if you have nothing to do later, I want to show you something. It'll be awesome, trust me."

Martin nodded and went back to looking through the books. I walked out the door and headed towards the farm. It was pretty uneventful, and I met noone on the way. Big Mac was setting up his plow when I reached the barn. He waved at me and pointed at the place where the baskets had been yesterday. They laid in a pile, and I picked up two.

I worked quite a bit longer today. Applebloom wasn't with me today, so I worked in silence. It would have been nice to have some music though. Instead I just entertained myself with my own thoughts. For the first few days I had just been rolling with things. However, if I really thought about it, I had the ability to travel through the universe. I didn't need a simple job or simple living. Although there is a simple honor in simple living.

At the end of my work period I left the farm 150 bits richer, and with sore muscles. The whole money thing threw my mind for a spin if I thought on it too long. I decided that I would just try and keep a minimum of 100 bits in the bank. Besides that though, I figured I didn't really need anymore. Maybe at some point in time I would have some project that would require more money. Although I suppose by that time the farm would be out of work. I'd just deal with that when the time came.

I headed back to town with money in my pocket. I stopped by Rarity's place and bought several towels. I also bought some food from the market. Only enough for two people at most though. Just a few pieces of fruit. I was starting to be certain that this wasn't a normal human body. I had yet to eat any protein, unless it was in that grass. After I threw the rest of the money in the bank.

I walked into the library looking for Martin. I found him sitting on the couch with Twilight. They were both reading through several books.

I waved at them as I entered and sat down on the chair.

"What are you two researching?"

Twilight began to speak, but Martin interrupted her, "Oh nothing in particular. So what did you want to show me?"

I ignored his interruption and said, "Well I need to show it to you."

Twilight looked between us and said, "Don't you want to show me as well?"

"Sorry, it's an exclusive thing. Besides it involves physical effort, I'm sure you don't want that."

She snorted at me, but looked down at her book. Martin put his book down and whispered something into Twilight's ear. She smiled at him and waved her hoof. He got off the couch and walked up to me. He motioned for me to lead the way, and I walked outside.

"So where we going? And what's in those bags?"

I waved my hand in front of my body and said, "To a mysterious place, and don't worry about it."

I was planning on just heading to the natural heaven, but I spotted Rose by the fountain. I decided that she could also use some relaxing time. I walked up to her and said,

"Lo Rose!"

She looked up and waved at me. She went back to arranging her flower cart, taking caution to not tip anything over. I walked around the cart examining what she was doing.

"Can I help you?"

"Woah you sound so tense. I know exactly what you need."

Martin raised a hand and said, "She doesn't sound tense at all."

I waved him off and said, "I think you need to relax."

Rose just raised her eyebrow at me and said, "Can I help you?"

I poked her head and said, "You could come with us."

The poked me back saying, "I'm working here."

"Aww come on. You work all the time. Besides it's a Sunday, take a break. I'll help you carry the cart back to your house."

"But…"

"No buts! Today is a day of relaxation!"

I picked up the cart handles and began rolling it towards a street. I turned to look at Rose and said,

"Uh.. wouldn't mind telling me where you live?"

She rolled her eyes and said, "Fine, but you owe me. Follow me."

I followed her with the cart to one of the many living complexes. Instead of stairs, there was a ramp to the door. She opened the door and held it open for me. I walked inside and left the cart by the wall. I didn't really look around, but there was a couch in the center of the room. I walked back outside, and she followed me, closing the door behind her.

"Aren't you going to lock the door?"

"Uh.. no. Why would I?"

"Never mind. You ready?"

"For…?"

"Fun of course, now come on."

I led Martin and Rose to the archway. I stopped in front of it and said,

"Isn't that awesome?"

They looked at each other, and then back at me,

"Uhh… what?"

I looked at the archway just to make sure it was still there.

"You really can't see that?"

"The sun….?"

"Uhh… sure. Whatever, let's go."

"Where are we going exactly?"

I waved my hand again, "An amazing place! Trust me, you'll love it."

They both shrugged and followed me as I went down the road. They questioned me when I went off to the side, but I ignored them. They continue to follow me until I reached the shack. They both gasped at the waterfall, but I put a hand up and said,

"This isn't even the best part."

I led them around the shed and to the hot springs. Rose gasped and clopped her hooves. Martin just said, "I don't get it."

I lowered my eyes at him saying, "Hot springs, you relax in them."

Rose giggled and then said, "This place really is wonderful!"

"Yeah, it is. But don't tell anyone about it though. This place needs to stay secret to stay amazing."

I pulled out the towels and slung them on a nearby tree. Rose immediately got inside the hot spring, but Martin just shrugged.

"I guess this place is cool. I'm not one for water though."

I slapped him on the back and said, "Great, then you can climb the mountain with me."

I removed my shirt and shorts and slung them in the tree. Clothed only by my boxers I headed for the sheer cliff. It was easy to get up by the hot springs as they made a natural staircase. We both began to climb, Martin elected to keep all his clothes on though. Rose didn't even bother watching us, but instead just laid back and soaked.

I kept shouting to Martin as we climbed the cliff, but he seemed to be ignoring me. Relishing the feeling of danger from the height, I surged up the cliff. I reached the top, and turned around to help Martin up. I waited for a little bit, and when he neared me I grabbed his arm.

"Took you long enough."

He brushed himself off saying, "Well I'm sorry that I'm not a very athletic guy. I don't enjoy climbing mountains like you do."

I followed the edge of the cliff to the waterfall. Martin slowly followed behind me. When we reached the starting point, I took everything in. I just looked out over and down at the nature before me. I took a deep breath, soaking it all in.

"Isn't it great Martin?"

He just said, "Ya sure. Nature's beautiful and all that."

I shrugged when he said that, "Well it does get kinda boring. Anyway now for the best part."

I looked behind me to examine the pool before the waterfall. It was moving quickly enough, but there was a gate where the water went over the cliff. Just in case a stray pony fell in up river. I decided to explore up river just a tiny bit before going back down.

I walked back a little bit, when I ran into something. I literally mean I ran into something. I banged up against something that I hadn't seen, and hurt my nose pretty bad. I clutched at is saying,

"What's the big idea?"

Martin caught up to me and said,

"What's wrong?"

"I ran into something. Like an invisible wall. There's a force field guarding something!"

Martin shook his head and walked forward,

"There's no invisi-"

He too ran into something and stumbled back. He had managed to only hit the side of his face into the invisible wall.

"See, I told you so."

He looked at me with an eyebrow raised, "Told me what?"

"There's an invisible wall right there."

He chuckled and then said, "There's no invisible wall. Look!"

He then walked right back into the wall. He stumbled back again, and then turned to face me.

"Why are you just standing there?"

I walked forward with my hands outstretched in front of me. Eventually they made contact with the wall. I ran my hands over it, and it felt a lot like smooth stone. Martin looked at me weird and said,

"What are you doing?"

"Feeling this invisible wall."

"There isn't an invisi--"

Martin ran into it for a third time. As he stumbled back, I removed my hands from the wall. He looked at me and said,

"What are we doing back here?"

"Besides slightly enjoying your predicament? Nothing really."

"What does that mean?"

"Don't worry about it. Now come on, follow me."

"That's what I've been doing!"

I lead him back to the start of the waterfall and leaned over it. I looked down at the drop, and was satisfied to see no sharp rocks waiting for me.

"Ready to jump?"

"What?! No! Are you crazy? That could have rocks at the bottom or something."

I shrugged, "Suit yourself."

I took a moment to take in the anticipation and fear. I looked back down one last time, before backing up. I cleared a few rocks out of the way before making the leap. After a final third look, I prepared myself. I sprinted to the edge, and then gave a small leap. I didn't want to jump too far, but far enough. I didn't do a dive, but I did curl my body into a ball. As I fell I shouted wildly. I contacted the freezing water with a loud splash. I sunk underneath the water for a few seconds, and saw that it was quite deep.

I swam back up to the surface and breathed again. I looked up the cliff, but I couldn't spot Martin. I swam to be under the waterfall to enjoy the water hitting me. As I brought myself under it, I inspected the cliff face. As soon as I passed the waterfall, I gasped. There was an entrance to a large underground tunnel.

"Wicked…"

I almost forgot to keep swimming as I stared. When I regained my bearings, I pulled myself out of the water, and into the tunnel. It wasn't dark, but it was very dim. I couldn't see very far down, but I decided to explore just a bit. It would take Martin a bit of time to climb down the cliff again, and I doubted Rose was going anywhere anytime soon.

I kept going deeper into the tunnel, but the light never darkened. The tunnel went around a bend, and then led to something I didn't expect to see. Not quite sure what one should expect to find in that kind of place, but definitely not a vertical tunnel carved upwards with a staircase going round.

I looked up to see a door at the top, and my curiosity got the better of me. I began ascending the staircase at a decent pace. Eventually I reached the ceiling of this tunnel, and there was a section of the stone jutting out. There was a door in this section, a very colorful door. In fact it almost looked like colors were swirling through the door.

I didn't hesitate and turned the knob. Sadly it didn't open. Steadying myself against the wall, I kicked the door. It didn't fall down, but to my satisfaction it did open a little. I pushed the door open a bit more, and peaked through.

I couldn't see much, but what I could see was lots of books. Lots and lots of books. The building was covered in them. I opened the door the rest of the way and steeped through. I was surrounded by books on the floor as well. Large stacks of them littering the place. The staircase continued to go upward in a spiral, stopping every once in a while to meet a small platform. This staircase was made out of wood, and was also littered with books. Some of them were open on the ground, and others had been haphazardly thrown.

I tsked at the state of the place, but made no vocal comment. I approached the beginning of the staircase and took a good look up. I couldn't even see the roof of the place. It just seemed to keep going up and up. As I looked up I thought to myself,

'It would be so much nicer if I was just at the top.'

I looked back down in front of me, and nearly stepped back when I was face to face with another door. I looked behind me and say that the staircase now went down forever. I looked back to the door, which was a plain wooden one, and tested the handle. This one opened up right away. It swung open at the lightest touch. I walked inside a plain enough looking room. A large four poster bed lay to one side, and a large telescope looked out a window. There was also books all over this room as well.

There was a man hunched over a table who was muttering to himself. I only caught snippets of what he was saying.

"Can't…Bother….No….Fix…Damn….Core"

I didn't make a move, somewhat afraid to bother the man. He was talking to himself, and he lived in a giant tower which apparently no one could see. And judging my Martin's actions, find either.
Suddenly the man pointed behind himself directly at me,

"You are most curious. Just give me one second."

I stood patiently, but I probably wouldn't have moved in any case. I got the feeling that messing with this guy would be a bad idea. He righted his body and turned to face me. He was about as tall as me, and was wearing long purple robes. His hair was jet black and smoothed back. His beard was the same color, and was tied in a knot after his chin. His face was very sharp looking, especially his ears.

He looked me over and said, "Well done stranger. You managed to get past all my defenses!"

"Really?"

His face turned sour and he said, "No you dolt! You think I would leave the protection of my tower to some lame memory ward? If I had even thought you were a threat to me, you would've ceased to exist instantly!"

Well that was kind of rude. I suppose the robes really gave him away as a wizard. The beard just confirmed it for me. He continued speaking,

"You couldn't even be bothered to wear real clothes. You aren't the first to stumble in here, and you won't be the last. No most definitely not the last. Now explain yourself."

As he was speaking he reached out and grabbed a robe from nowhere. It was a deep green with a white lining. He threw the robe to me as he continued to speak. I put it on when he told me to explain myself. The robe was actually very comfortable. It fit almost perfectly, and didn't touch the ground. It seemed to stay on no matter what I did as well.

"How did you do that?"

"I said explain yourself, not ask dumb questions. Although I doubt you would know a smart question if it slapped you. I conjured the robe. I'm a wizard, we do these things a lot."

Well someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed.

"But you're a human, just like me."

"I assure you we are nothing alike. My appearance is just similar to yours by chance. And I fail to see how this is important."

Recalling what I knew from my book I said, "The ponies here do magic with their horns which is a medium that can control the energy in the world."

The man raised an eyebrow at me and said, "So it would seem. I see you are not a mindless ape, but a minded one. Even if it is a rather simple one. Still, a learning mind is always better than a dumb one. The magic these creatures use does indeed require a medium to be used properly. Either that or the species body must have adapted to use the energy in a special way. However, inside this tower I am not confined to such a basic method of magic."

A wizard that lived in a big tower full of books. Who would've guessed?

"There are different methods to magic?"

The man threw his hands in the air, "There are hundreds! Thousands! Millions! There is no limit to the number of magics in existence."

"Uh huh… So could you teach me how to…"

"No. I do not take on apprentices."

"Just show me how to shoot lightening out of my…"

"No. I tire of such babble. Now explain yourself."

I sighed, unlimited power had seemed so close.

"Well my name is Silver. I was swimming around outside when I found this cave. Then I came up…"

The man nearly smacked me when he threw his arms up again, "No you fool. Why are you here? I am quite aware of how you got here."

"Oh well, I didn't really mean to come here."

The man shook his head, "Nonsense! The universe didn't just drop you in on this planet. You must have gone through tremendous effort to get here to find me."

"Wha…?"

"Don't play the fool with me. I can sense the energy around you. So tell me, what is it you want from me?"

"Nothing. I didn't come here to find you. I didn't even mean to come to this world. Although I certainly don't regret it."

"How can you not mean to come to a world? Did someone throw you down here?"

"Does this mean you know about that whole plane of existence that apparently isn't a plane? Because I've been really confused on that and…"

"Of course I know! Although I haven't been there. Don't tell me that you have."

"Well kind of. I'm not really sure on what was going on though."

"You have got to be kidding me."

"Uhh… no?"

"A incompetent fool like you has unlocked the soul."

"Uhh… I guess?"

The man put his hands to his beard and looked me over again.

"I suppose anyone can get lucky. Tell me then, how did you get here on accident?"

I took a seat on the floor as the man did the same. We sat across from each other with our legs bent.

"Well some tree told me to go find someone named Morkar…"

This time the man did slap me.

"I am Morkar you idiot. Why do you think a mage like me is on such a world?"

"Oh… well I guess now I've found you."`

Morkar raised an eyebrow at me. He then drawled, "Why yes, you have. So what is it you want? I don't have all day."

"I guess it would be nice if you could explain the whole 'I died, but then didn't actually' thing."

Morkar held up his hand when I finished and said, "I am feeling nice today, so I will tell you what I know. You will not interrupt me to ask questions until I am finished yes?"

I nodded at him and he said,

"Good boy. Now listen closely. I don't want to repeat myself. Although I doubt no matter how many times I do you won't get it. First of all, you have most assuredly died. The only way to reach the spirit stream is to do so. Even then it isn't a guarantee. Not even I know what determines if someone can access the stream or not. First of all, do I need to describe the basics?"

"The basics?"

"I'll take that as a yes. Well then…"

He reached out his hand and grabbed a tea kettle that appeared out of nowhere. With his other hand he reached out and grabbed a cup. He poured some tea and handed me the cup. He then let go of the kettle and it disappeared.

"This might take some time. First of all, any intelligent creature has a soul. This soul is the very essence of that being. It is what gives a perspective. Essentially the soul is you in bare form. No memories, no sensed, not even any thoughts. The soul in its basic state is simply just you. Now when the soul inhibits a body it simply puts you in a body. This is when you begin to take on memories and experiences. These things temper you into the thing you will become. At this point it doesn't matter if you become a snob prince, or a kind chef."

He took a deep breath and continued,

"The important thing is that through all of a normal life, the soul goes unchanged. Take the statement 'I hate beavers.' The 'I' part is the soul. It is the perspective of you. It is you existing in that time. The 'hate' part is just an opinion. The mind, which is in control of this part, has taken your memories and experiences, and with them formed an opinion. Before you even think of interrupting me, the 'beavers' part is just the subject. They are just beavers."

I was going to interrupt him to say that.

"When a body dies, so does the mind. This means all those memories, experiences, and opinions are gone. The soul then moves on to find another body. Souls cannot exist in the physical world, so they take on physical forms to do so. In such a basic form souls have to find a body, they cannot just make one. Sometimes as you have experienced, the universe will provide one. This cycle continues on and on, potentially forever. However, in rare cases, the soul becomes more than basic. Some say it has been unlocked, others say it has been awakened. Whatever the case, it is more than it used to be. A normal soul will collect all your experiences, and then remove them when the current body dies. An unlocked soul collects experiences, but when the body dies, keeps them. It takes on the function of a mind to store memories when there is no mind. As you no doubt have experienced, this allows you to remember yourself from the first body you had since the awakening, or unlocking."

In simpler terms that meant we all reincarnated when we died. Somehow one could escape this process, most likely via enlightenment.

"Now no one knows why a soul becomes unlocked. Some believe it is when one has achieved peace with all life. Others think it is random. Some even think that a choice is given to the soul when it dies each time. Well either all this or we are actually all in comas. Now you may ask questions."

I had finished my tea by this time, and when I did the cup vanished from air. I was never a big fan of tea, but that stuff wasn't too bad. And the last thing I wanted to do was insult this guy.

My first question was to ask, "So can I actually die?"

Morkar rolled his eyes, "Quite easily I imagine. You don't look that strong in my opinion."

"What I meant was, can I revert back to not remembering everything?"

"I have yet to hear of such an occasion when it was not the soul's own choice. I do not think there is anything in all of existence that could do such a thing."

I had already known this really. Just wanted to make sure though.

"So how do I leave this planet without dying?"

"Essentially the body has to die. Every soul has the innate ability to return to the stream, unlocked souls even more so. However if the soul is inhibiting a body at the moment, the energy left from the soul returning will kill that body. Well in most cases anyway."

"Is there anything that could let a body go into the stream without dying?"

"A long time ago unlocked souls could rip a hole in this plane of existence to the stream. However this too results in the death of the body. The body once in contact with the stream would be torn to nothing. Some disciplined souls could travel by barely even touching the stream. Almost like teleporting, but from world to world."

"What if like two planets worked together to create a bridge to each other?"

"They are both then termed a single world. Any planets or stars that are connected to each other are termed a world. Entire galaxies can be one world. It makes things easier that way, trust me."

"Well I think I have this thing that could cut a hole to the stream, but I'm not sure how to work it."

I pointed at the bracelet on my arm and Morkar inspected it. After about a second he said,

"I fail to see your humor. That is a hunk of wood. Nothing special about it."

I looked at the bracelet suspiciously. It was up to something, I could just taste it.

Morkar waved it off and said, "Now I am quite busy at the moment with issues you would not understand. Is there anything else you need help with? Quickly, before my good mood fails."

"You could teach me how to do magic."

"No. I do not teach anyone. Even if I myself came to learn, I would not teach me."

I guess that makes sense. I'm sure it did in his head at least. I gave him my best puppy dog eyes, but those weren't exactly good.

"I can however give you a medium. The magic here may be primal at best, but I'm sure you'll manage to do something."

Morkar reached out again and he handed me a small stick. I looked down at it before saying,

"A wand? Couldn't I get something more… manly? Maybe a staff or something bigger?"

Morkar looked offended and said, "I would never trust a physical ruffian with a staff. You would probably smack someone on top of the head with it. And let me assure you, one should never hit something with their staff. If you really dislike the wand though, I can just take it back.

"Oh no this is great. I don't even know why I complained."

I reluctantly reached out and took the want. It didn't feel like anything special. I wouldn't be surprised if he had just given me a stick. If I heard one Harry Potter joke though, someone was going to get hurt. I stood up as Morkar did. He tilted his head to me and I did the same. He waved me off, and I headed for the door.

"Oh and one more thing. I need to remove that trap enchantment you fell into."

I looked at him and said, "The whaa…?"

"Oh its nothing. Just a little something to distract anyone who might want to bother me. I can see that it failed to do so though. It doesn't do much really. Only amplifies any potential affections by any of the locals by a sizable amount."

"Oh sure whatever."

It took me a moment to realize how what he was talking about had affected me.

"Wait what?"

"It simply takes any potential affections any of the locals could have for you and amplifies it. Makes them like you a lot more, a lot quicker. I know it seems rather ineffective, but it works wonders. Especially when you need to get away. The person chasing you is mobbed by almost anyone he talks to for more than a second. Often times they get distracted for a long time. Until the spell wears off anyways."

"What happens then?"

"Well I suppose it depends on how the affected person treats those that are snared. Those that were snared will continue to love the person as long as the spell lasts. If the person treated the snared badly, then as soon as the spell wears off they will most likely hate said person. If the person treated the snared with respect, then I don't think they would have a problem. The snared remember everything that happened, but they won't notice that they felt more for said person than they most likely should have."

"So you placed fake emotions in the ponies heads?"

My voice had become very calm. I was a little bit mad, but I was more worried. I was mad at the guy for messing with the ponies, but in his perspective he was just defending himself in case someone came looking. I had just stumbled into his trap.

"Not at all. It amplified anything that was already there, or could be there. In the simplest terms it just sped up their feelings for the affected one… which I just realized in this case is you. Well at least now you know right?"

"Well I guess that makes it better? I don't really know. Question though, did your trap involve flinging me in the air?"

"Hmm? Oh no that would be to obvious. That would be the world trying to kill you. My trap is probably what saved your life."

This time I did a triple take. This guy seemed to announce the unimportant things, but glaze over the important things.

"Wait… are you serious?"

"Quite. Why do you think your body is currently turning itself to mince meat? Well outside the tower anyways. The world sees you as a dangerous object and is trying to remove you. When a direct approach didn't work, via falling, it took a more biological approach. Basically your body will eventually tear itself to pieces."

That was some very unpleasant, not welcome news. That would explain the blood that I coughed up though. Possibly the pains in my stomach as well. At least I think it did.

"But why is it doing this?"

"I told you already. It sees you as a dangerous threat."

"Why am I a dangerous threat?"

Morkar went back over to the desk he had been hunched over.

"That's actually what I am working on right now. Something very odd is going on with this world. The inhabitants haven't even noticed it has been time locked for more than 1000 years now."

He looked at my questioning face when he said, "That means that while they days go on and seasons change, time stands still. No one ages, and no one is born. Everything is stuck this way until the time lock ends."

"What's causing this… time lock thing?"

"Even more to the point of what I have been investigating. This world has what I call a peace core somewhere on it. In simpleton terms a peace core is something that generates peace. Keeps everyone alive and happy. The locals don't even notice that they have been living for centuries, they've been having too much fun. In normal cases this would be fine. The core has been here when this world first started, and it has always been influencing the world. This is just your average peace filled happy world. There used to be more of these, mostly for travelers of the universe to rest at. They have fallen out of use though. Most of the cores just shut down as more and more travelers disappeared. Some are still active and working fine to this day."

I interrupted him saying "And this one?"

"This one seems to be malfunctioning. Now these cores are incredibly ancient. Even older than I am. I don't even know what could be wrong with it. I would need to be able to study it first in order to fix it. I'm not even sure if fixing it would be the best course, but something has to be done."

This all strangely made sense to me. I had always envisioned Equestria as this peaceful place, where not even death could mar the happiness. When I got here though it seemed just a tad down. Then I got mugged by some ponies. That didn't seem very peaceful at all. I mean sure they had minor problems, but nothing like that.

"What are the options?"

"Well number one is to just let it be. The core would most likely continue to malfunction and slowly cease to work. This is a problem because the core generates an energy that the world feeds off of. If the energy disappears slowly then the world will slowly consume itself and turn to star dust."

Probably not the best course of action there.

"The second option would be to find the core and destroy it. If the energy was destroyed quickly, the time lock would be lifted. The world would no longer require the energy of the core. However, this would also remove the peacefulness of such a world. This world would become much like any other world. The locals would start to age and die, and the world would advance."

That didn't sound much better honestly. That was killing the world in a whole different way. I don’t think I could handle seeing all these ponies losing their peaceful lives, and begin to die.

"The third option requires the most effort. First the core would need to be found, but I would have to study it, and figure out how to fix it. Once I have done so I would fix it and replace it. This would keep the world in a peaceful state, and would stop it from trying to end potential threats such as you. The core is nearly alive in the way it acts. When it is injured it fights those it thinks would cause a problem."

"Well then the choice is obvious. We should take the third option."

Morkar looked at me and said, "We?"

I shrugged, "Unless you want to do this alone. I'm not sure how much help I could be, but I would be willing to help."

Morkar scratched his chin, "Very well. I was simply going to observe, but if you bring me the core, I will do my best to fix it. Sadly if I cannot figure out how to do so, then there are no replacements. It will need to be destroyed."

I nodded and said, "As long as you try right? What does this thing look like?"

"I can't be 100% sure. Most of the drawings and diagrams I have seen though have been of a large diamond like stone surrounded by a circle. It would most likely be where ever the magic is most plentiful. I warn you though. The core will defend itself to it's very best. It will even turn the locals against you if it must. Another word of note. You cannot tell anyone about the core. If you do the core may mark them dangerous as well, and try to remove them."

"So basically you're sending me on a dangerous mission, which I have to do alone, and all the details of which are unknown?"

"Well more or less. I did give you some good loot though. You got a magic wand after all."

"Okay just one more question. How much longer will this body last, and can you stop it?"

"I have no idea, and no I can't. Well I could, but if I did the core would try even more ways to end you. This one is relatively slow and painless. Well until the end anyway."

"So what if I die?"

"What if you die? Just come back like you did the first time. Might I suggest dying where no one can see you though? Don't want them to have a dead you and a live you at the same time. However if you feel the need, my tower is free from the core's influence. Now that is enough, I must get back to my research."

"Another thing, is this your land?"

"My tower is on it, so yes it is."

"Could I possibly get the area below this?"

"Silver is it? I live in my tower. I hardly care what goes on outside it."

I opened my mouth to ask another question, when I was suddenly on the ground floor. Books shifted around me of their own design. I looked around myself to be sure I wasn't dreaming or anything. I did the pinch thing too just in case. When I was positive I was not asleep I headed for the door that lead down. Before I could make it out, a book came flying into my back. I turned around and picked the book up.

"The Elements and You. A Wizards Guide."

Another magic book. Well maybe I could actually do something with this stuff. Shooting fire would be fun. I guess I had to watch the amount of time I spent though. Didn't want to drop dead in front of somepony. I didn't ask Morkar how long the peace core had either.

I reached the tunnel and was about to walk out when the bracelet glowed. I looked down at it and said,

"That guy doesn't know what he's talking about. You are much more than a hunk of wood, even if you don't act like it."
The bracelet unwound and dropped on my bare foot again. I grabbed my toe and glared at it. I stopped glaring when the bracelet turned into a very ornate sword again. I supposed that meant I was free to leave whenever I wanted too. I was a bit hesitant to do so though. What if I got stuck outside of here. I'd rather not risk it until I have to.

I picked up the sword, but didn't use it. After a few seconds of not activating it, the sword returned back to its wooden staff form. The wand in my pocket (HA!) levitated out of its own accord. It then began to merge with the staff. I wasn't really sure what was going on, but it was quite the light show. When it was done, I was left with a wooden bracelet.

"I suppose this means you count as a magical medium now. Or a magical magical medium."

The bracelet just glowed in response.

I pointed at it and said, "You're lucky I already had a habit of talking to inanimate things. Otherwise I'd be questioning my sanity right now."

The bracelet did nothing this time. I just shook my head at my own actions. I realized that I was still wearing the robes that Morkar had given me. I wasn't sure if they would stay after a while. I took them off and set them on the floor of the tunnel. I folded them all nice and neat too. I set the book down on top of it. Wouldn't want the book to get soaked as well.

I stepped out of the tunnel and jumped back into the water. I quickly swam to shore. The sun was still high in the sky, and I assumed that no time had passed since I visited the tower. I decided to be safe and just not mention it.

I walked around the shed and approached the hot springs. Rose was still soaking there. Although I guess she must have only been in there for several minutes her time. I grabbed a towel and stripped. I wrapped the towel around myself and stepped inside. The hot water burned where cold water had originally frozen. Rose opened one eye to watch me. I took my usual spot against the cliff and laid my head back.

"That was a quick swim."

"I just need a quick break to rest my mind."

That much was seriously true. I had some mind food that needed some chewing and digesting.

___________________________________________

AN: Attack of the plot! Once again this is actually only half of the next chapter. If your mind is still capable of following this, then congrats. I hope this doesn't put you off from reading if you've come this far. There will most likely still be plenty of normal moments to come.