Chapter 1: Memories And Nightmares
Raza fell out of his bed as he woke up from his nightmare. After he hit the floor, he layed there for a moment, rapidly breathing, covered in sweat, and with his heart beating so fast that he thought it might burst out of his chest. After he had managed to calm himself down, he stood up and sat back down on the edge of his bed. As he sat there, all he could think about was his nightmare, of that laughing. The maniacal laughter of what could only be described as an insane old mare laughing at the suffering of another. The question was, who was this old mare? Whose suffering was she laughing at? Why did he have this nightmare? He didn't have a clue as to who this old mare was, as the only old mare he knew was Granny Smith from the Sweet Apple Acres. However, he knew that this couldn't have been her. While he couldn't remember exactly what the mare looked like, the blurry image of the disfigured mare in his head was more than enough to convince him that it wasn't anypony he had ever seen before. Raza concentrated as hard as he could, trying his hardest to answer any of the questions that plagued his mind, but then grunted when he felt a jolt of pain go to his head from thinking too hard. As he fell back onto his bed, he angrily kicked his back hooves into the air as he tried to handle the pain.
"Ah buck, my head!" He shouted while struggling on the bed. "Please Celestia, make it stop!"
And just like that, the pain stopped. Once he had felt the pain exit, he sat up and thanked Celestia. However, he knew that the real reason the pain stopped was because he had stopped attempting to remember what the old mare had looked like. He only thanked Celestia because he didn't want to believe in the thought that he’d just came up with, which was the thought that his mind didn't want him to remember. The idea of his mind trying to keep secrets from him was both creepy and insane, yet he couldn't help but wonder if this could be a possibility.
"Ok, I'm gonna have to go see Twilight after work." He told himself as fell down onto his bed.
The thought of work made Raza realize that he was still very tired. As a result, he decided to get a little more sleep before his alarm would go off.
"It was just a nightmare. It doesn't mean anything." He repeatedly told himself as a way to ease his mind. "Just a dream." He said just before his eyes shut.
Just as his eyes had finally shut, his alarm went off, waking him back up as he had just fallen asleep. He looked at his alarm clock to see that it was indeed time to get ready. Raza facehoofed himself as he got up and went to his window to open his curtains. Once he had opened the curtains, he was immediately greeted by a blazing ray of sunshine striking down on him, which forced him to look away.
"Too bright, Celestia." Raza muttered to himself. "Too bright."
Raza got up and went to the bathroom. Once he was there, he walked over to the shower and turned on the water. Raza figured that a nice hot shower would not only wake him up, but also put his mind at ease, and for the most part, he was right. The hot water fully awakened him, but his mind was still focused on the nightmare he had, which was more irritating for him than anything else. If his mind was so determined to keep him from figuring out who the old mare was, then why couldn't he forget this one dumb nightmare? He’d had other nightmares long before this one came, some probably even worse than this recent one, but a comparison couldn't be made since he had forgotten all of those long ago. Why couldn't he forget this one? Every time he managed to make it a blank thought, the nightmare would return not even two seconds later! It was like this one particular nightmare refused to disappear! He only wished that his mind would focus on another thought.
Right at that very moment he thought that, he got his wish, as his body began to feel cold, even though he was still in the shower with the hot water pouring on him. He touched his coat, but it was still warm. Despite this, he could feel his body getting cold. Not the kind of cold you get when you step out of cold water like a pool, a lake, or a... He paused as the last thought sink into his head... A river.
"That river…" He said softly to himself as he sighed at the thought of the river.
Just then, Raza had a flashback of the previous day. The day Lyra had told him about The River. The River is what made his body feel cold, the one in the forest that Lyra had told him and Bon Bon about, saying that it somehow had the ability to transport anypony who went into it to another world, which was inhabited by some kind of strange fish walking creatures or something like that. The creatures Lyra was always talking about. Of course, Raza and Bon Bon had dismissed it as a weird dream Lyra must’ve had the previous night, but she was very persistent that what she was saying was true. In an attempt to humor Lyra rather than hurt her feelings, Raza and Bon Bon decided that one of them would go to the river with Lyra. Problem was, neither of them were particularly willing to go. After a few minutes of debate, they decided to settle it by asking Lyra to think of a number which they would try to guess. Whoever was wrong would be the one to go with Lyra.
"Ready?" Raza asked, as he was clearly ready to get this over with.
"Yeah. Let’s do this!" Lyra said excitedly as she prepared her number. "Bon Bon?"
"As ready as I'll ever be." Bon Bon said, hoping to Celestia that she wouldn't lose.
"Alright, guess!" Lyra proclaimed.
"Nineteen!" Raza shouted first.
"Twenty-three!" Bon Bon yelled.
Lyra just stood there, staring at both of them with a surprised look which made Raza and Bon Bon incredibly anxious.
"Well, who was right or close?" Bon Bon asked.
"Well… to be honest… you two were both way off." Lyra said, feeling embarrassed for her friends. “However, Raza was closer."
Raza mentally thanked his good luck. Bon Bon cursed herself as she now had to go to the river with Lyra, who was very excited to finally have somepony go back with her to the river. Though the decision was made, Raza wanted to know what number Lyra had thought of.
"Hey Lyra, what number did you think of?" Raza asked curiously.
"Five." Lyra replied.
Lyra's answer made both Raza and Bon Bon's jaws drop. Granted, the objective of game was to guess whatever number the other pony was thinking of, but the fact that Lyra had chosen such a low number left them both baffled. Regardless, it didn't matter to Raza, because he knew that would be Bon Bon's problem, who was staring at Raza with a glare that clearly said, ‘I hate you.’ Raza just gave her a smile that said, ‘Sorry Bon Bon, but better you than me.’ That smile only made Bon Bon even more irritated.
"Why five?" asked Bon Bon, who was feeling a bit cheated.
"Because that’s the number of claws that those walking wish granting fish creatures have." Lyra explained. "You know, the ones I talk about from time to time? The ones from the old pony’s tale we were told as fillies?"
"Yeah, we know." Bon Bon said, annoyed by the memories of all those countless times that Lyra had told her about those weird fish creatures and their ‘strange looking claws’.
"From time to time? That doesn't do her fascination with those fish creatures justice." Raza spoke quietly under his breath, as to not hurt Lyra’s feelings. He knew of this tale not as a filly, but from Lyra, who talked about that story's creatures way too many times.
"Alrighty, Bon Bon, let's go!" Lyra said enthusiastically as she began to walk towards the forest.
"Alright. Just hang on a moment; I need to tell Raza something." Bon Bon said, just before walking over to Raza.
"What's up?" Raza asked, even though he could already guess what she was going to say.
"Three things." Bon Bon stated as she raised her hoof to Raza. "First of all, I hate you."
"Ok, good to know." Raza said with a smile.
"Second of all, the next time Lyra asks one of us to go with her, you're gonna be the one who’s going. You got that?!" Bon Bon said in a very commanding manner.
"Fair enough." Raza said with a sarcastic grin on his face.
"And third, if anypony asks about me going with Lyra, tell them she convinced me and that's it." Bon Bon said in a voice that practically demanded that Raza say this to anypony who would ask. "Got it?!”
"Yes ma'am!" Raza sarcastically yelled out while giving a salute.
Bon Bon rolled her eyes at Raza, who had burst out laughing. She then looked back at Lyra, who was eagerly waiting for her. Bon Bon sighed. She loved her friends and didn't mean to act like a hard case, but she honestly felt like she was the mature one of the group. Considering that Lyra was practically obsessed with these mythical creatures, and she was now talking about a supernatural river, it was understandable why some ponies found it hard to take her seriously. Then there was Raza who, according to other ponies, was second only to Lyra when it came to strangeness. Bon Bon could still remember the day that she and Lyra had found him. They had been walking back from Sweet Apple Acres. Cider season had just finished up and they were now on their way home, when out of nowhere they heard the sound of a rustling bush. Naturally, Bon Bon's instincts told her to get Lyra and start running, but before she could do so, Lyra's curiosity kicked in and she went to the bush. Despite her better judgment, Bon Bon followed Lyra to the bush.
"Lyra, why are you going to that bush?" Bon Bon asked while still following behind Lyra.
"Because I'm curious as to what’s behind it." Lyra said while still walking to the bush.
"It could just be one of Fluttershy's animals that run away from her cottage." Bon Bon said as she moved slowly behind Lyra, hoping that she could convince Lyra to turn back.
"Well if that's the case, then we need to get it and return it to Fluttershy!" Lyra responded.
"Pony feathers." Bon Bon cursed in her head.
They continued walking to the bush together. Bon Bon stayed a few inches behind Lyra, since she was still convinced that this was a bad idea, but Lyra's curiosity always kept her determined on whatever her mind was set on, no matter what the situation happened to be. Bon Bon never knew what to make of Lyra's determination, but she always thought of two words that described it: it was either bravery or insanity. Heck, maybe both. Whatever it was, Bon Bon still felt like this determination would one day get them into a situation that they couldn't get out of. Thankfully, that wasn't the case this time, as Lyra's body language said that what she was seeing wasn't scary or horrifying, but surprising.
"Bon Bon, come here." Lyra said in a concerned tone as she stared at the object behind the bush.
Despite knowing that whatever it was that Lyra was looking at was only surprising her, Bon Bon didn’t feel any less worried, since she knew that surprises could be either good or bad, or sometimes even a combination of the two. Therefore, it only made sense that she would ask the most common question asked in situations like this.
"What is it?" She asked as she took a step closer, still cautious of whatever it was Lyra was looking at.
"It's a stallion." Lyra said, not bothering to look back at Bon Bon. "I think he's hallucinating."
"Hallucinating?" Bon Bon asked as she started pondering what a stallion would be doing out here. "What makes you think he's hallucinating?"
"He's kicking around and mumbling something in what seems like a fearful manner." Lyra said while she continued to observe the stallion.
"Let me see, Lyra." Bon Bon said as she got close enough to see if what Lyra was saying was true. As it turns out, it was.
"We need to get him to the hospital right away!" Bon Bon said.
"Right! Come on, I'll get his front hooves and you get his back hooves!" Lyra ordered as she grabbed the stallion's front hooves.
Bon Bon followed Lyra's instructions as she picked up the stallion's back hooves. However, the moment they pick the stallion up, he started to struggle as if he were trying to get away from something's grasp. Lyra and Bon Bon struggled to keep their grip on the stallion who continued to struggle and now began to start grunting. Bon Bon felt really bad for the stallion as she wondered what could have possibly happened to this stallion to cause him to be like this. Lyra, on the other hand, did feel sympathy for the stallion but was getting rather annoyed as well, as she struggled to keep her grip on the stallion. He certainly wasn't making this easy for them, that was for sure. But at the same time, she couldn't just leave him like this. Celestia knows she wouldn't want other ponies leaving her like this! She just hoped that if this ever should happen to her, Luna forbid, she wouldn't be this much of a handful.
"Lyra, I'm losing my grip!" Bon Bon yelled as the stallion began struggling even harder.
"Try to hold on a little longer, Bon Bon!" Lyra responded as she herself was beginning to lose her grip on the stallion as well.
Bon Bon tried her hardest to keep her grip on the stallion. Lyra took notice of this, as she also tried to keep her own grip on the stallion, although she believed that her grip was weakening a lot faster than Bon Bon’s, who was now even more concerned for the stallion since he was already a wreck, dropping him wouldn't do him any favors. Just then, she got an idea to put the stallion back on the ground until he settled down. Before she could tell Bon Bon, however, her hooves lost their grip on the stallion, causing him to fall with the back of his head landing hard on the ground. The sound of his head slamming the ground made Lyra and Bon Bon even more worried about the stallion's well-being.
"Oh Celestia, now we really need to get him to the hospital!" Lyra said with a slightly panicked tone.
"Lyra, you're a unicorn! Use your magic to teleport us!" Bon Bon suggested after remembering Lyra's magic power.
"Oh right!" Lyra said, realizing that Bon Bon was right; teleportation would be their best bet. Those lessons with Twilight would finally pay off. Even though Lyra hadn't perfected it yet, she had gotten the best of it down and hadn't messed up the last three times she tried it, so she figured that the odds where mostly in her favor. She focused all of her magic on herself, Bon Bon, and the stallion. She began thinking of the hospital, and in a split second, they were in the hospital's waiting room. When Lyra opened her eyes and saw where they were, she felt proud of herself for getting the spell right without messing up. Sadly, she was the only one who felt this way. Bon Bon, who wasn't used to teleportation, was dizzy and looked like she was about to be sick, the stallion was still unconscious, and everypony in the hospital was incredibly surprised by what had just transpired in front of them.
"Oh, I think my cider is coming back out." Bon Bon groaned, still feeling dizzy and nauseous.
"Sorry, should have warned you." Lyra apologized to her friend before remembering the stallion. "Hey! We need some help here!"
The stallion was taken to intensive care. From what the doctors had told them, the stallion was dehydrated, delusional, and in intense pain from his head, although Lyra and Bon Bon knew the reason for that last one. When asked by the doctors if they were friends with the stallion or knew any friends or family of his, they told the doctor of how they found the stallion. Once the doctor had heard their tale, he suggested that Lyra and Bon Bon stick around until the stallion woke up and escort him back home, to which they agreed to do, as Lyra felt a bit of responsible for the stallion since she was the one who found him, as well as the fact that it was also a way that she could make up for dropping him. Bon Bon agreed to help when Lyra explained her own reasons for offering to help. Bon Bon had to admit that despite Lyra's strangeness, she had a noble heart, and that was more than enough to convince Bon Bon to help the stallion. Besides she liked meeting new people, and who knows? This stallion could eventually become a friend.
"Bon Bon!" Lyra yelled, trying to get Bon Bon's attention.
"Huh umm what?" Bon Bon jabbered as she broke away from her flashback and back into reality. "Sorry, what did you say, Lyra?"
"Are you ready to go yet?" Lyra asked with in a tone of voice that clearly stated that she was getting tired of waiting.
"Oh right." Bon Bon said, remembering that she had to go with Lyra to this River. "Let's get this over with."
Lyra was excited to finally get going. As for Bon Bon, she had finally accepted the fact that she had to go with Lyra to this river, while Raza got to stay behind and enjoy his day. Before leaving, they said their goodbyes to Raza, who responded with a see you later before reminding them to be safe. Before entering the forest, Bon Bon gave one last glance at Raza. She laughed a little when she saw him waving back. That whole flashback she had happened two and a half years ago, and when she thought back on it, she was glad that her guess was right, that Raza would become a good friend to her and Lyra. Despite their different personalities, they made a great small group of friends and roommates who had fun being together and enjoyed each other’s company. Thinking about this made Bon Bon realize that they would do all those things together the next day. For today, she would make the best of this mini adventure Lyra had her going on. Besides, it was more than likely that nothing would happen to them. Even so, that wouldn't change her opinion of the Everfree forest. She was only a few feet into this forest and already she hated it. Why Lyra enjoyed spending her time in this place, Bon Bon would never know.
"And they're off." Raza said to himself, watching Lyra and Bon Bon disappear into the forest. "Well, I got some free before they come back. What should I do?"
After pondering that for a few minutes, Raza realized that he never thought about how he would spend the rest of his day. Granted, he didn't have much time to plan out his day since Lyra had basically had the morning planed out for him and Bon Bon, considering that she had dragged both of them out here for this little meeting that didn't last longer than what, twenty minutes? Now that he was alone, he didn't know what to do. He could go back home and sleep the rest of the day off. However, that would be pointless, since he was fully awake now. He could probably go hang out with Twilight Sparkle and her friends, but those mares always had something going on in their lives that mostly only involved them, which made him feel like he, Lyra, Bon Bon, and the other residents of Ponyville where just side characters to the Element. He was friends with each of the Elements, yet it still made him feel kind of depressed to feel like part of the background almost every time something out of the ordinary happened. Raza smacked his head with his hoof trying to get rid of that thought. He had started thinking to figure out what to do with the rest of his day, not to get all depressed. He was sure that Bon Bon and Lyra where keeping themselves busy while he was here twiddling with his hooves. That last thought gave him an idea.
"Lyra might want to go back to the river, and since I told Bon Bon that I would go with her, I will have to go." Raza knew there was no denying that fact. "I might as well follow them to see where this river is and then I'll think of something to do when I’m there."
Raza caught up with Lyra and Bon Bon, who were still walking. Raza stayed far enough behind so they couldn't see him for the majority of the walk. Bon Bon just complained, while Lyra continued to lead Bon Bon and unknowingly Raza to the river. Raza didn't like the feeling of this forest. Yes, it was the Everfree Forest, but something about the direction that Lyra was going just felt wrong. Like, something here was not meant to be found and they should just turn back now, forget about this, go home, hang out with Lyra and Bon Bon as usual, and never come back to this place.
You don't want to do that.
"What?" Raza looked around wondering who had just said that. "I'm just hearing things."
You think so...
"Ok, now I'm getting scared." Raza felt a shiver going up his spine.
Your losing sight of them.
"What?" Raza looked to see that the voice was right. He was indeed losing sight of Lyra and Bon Bon. "Oh buck, I need to catch up."
Get going...
"Just in my head. Just in my head." Raza repeatedly told himself, hoping the voice was just him being paranoid.
“It’s right about here, I think.” Lyra said as she looked into the water.
These words brought relief to Raza, happy to finally see this river and then go back home. Staying a couple of meters behind them, he could see where they were standing. Whatever she was looking at must have been the river, although he couldn't get a good look at it from where he was. Raza than realized that Bon Bon was not with–
“Let me see it first!” Bon Bon yelled.
Bon Bon finally burst forward and fell straight onto her face. If Raza could laugh without getting noticed, he would, but he decided to hold it in until after he had left. That reminded him that now that he had seen the river's location, he could leave now.
"Have fun, girls." Raza said in his head. He then turned around and began walking back towards Ponyville.
You should stay...
"The voice again? Oh Celestia." Raza said, feeling the chill returning. He started moving faster.
And watch what happens next.
"It's just my mind playing tricks on me." Raza stared moving faster, but slowed down when he heard a pony shout.
“No! I’m not going to take any more of this craziness you’re shoving down my throat!” Raza heard coming from where he had left.
"Was that Bon Bon?" Raza looked back. "No, it couldn't have been. She would never yell at Lyra like that."
Go back...
"They're fine. Darn forest is messing with my mind." Raza started walking away again.
I said go back.
"It's just the forest." Raza was trying his hardest to keep himself calm but that voice was really starting to get to him.
You're going to miss it...
Just then Raza heard screaming coming from behind him! The first thing his mind came up with was Lyra and Bon Bon where in trouble. Instead of going back to check it out, however, he just stared running faster than he thought he was capable of. Still, a part of him kept telling him to go back and check on his friends but once he saw the exit his hooves went into overdrive. Getting out and away from this haunting voice was all he wanted to do.
Go Back, You Stupid Puppet!
Raza looked and saw what looked like the tree’s branches coming to life and reaching down to grab him, trying to drag him back deeper into the forest! He struggled against the branches in an effort to break free, but every time he broke free from one branch, three more grabbed him and pulled harder.
Go back and see your end!
Tears began to fall from Raza’s eyes as he felt his sanity being ripped from his mind in the same way that he felt his body was going to end if these trees continued to pull on him, though this wouldn't last long as he felt his body getting weaker. Raza felt light hit his eyes. He looked up to see the exit only a few feet away. Seeing this brought the adrenaline back into his body and he began to struggle again. Once he’s able to get his hooves free, he started running, since he knew that his life depended on it. The branches grip started to weaken as Raza ran faster and harder. After what felt like an eternity of struggling, he finally broke free and ran for the exit. The branches reached for him, but Raza jumped to the outside of the Everfree forest before the branches could grab a hold of his back hooves. Raza ran to Ponyville without looking back but soon started to hear the screams and cries of Lyra and Bon Bon.
Return!
Raza screamed as he awoke from his flashback, returning back to reality. He was still in the shower, with the hot water still pouring on him. He looked straight up at the shower head, letting the hot water splash all over his face, then rubbed his face with it as he thought about his flashback.
"What was that?" He wondered. “That was more than a flashback; it felt like some kind of distorted dream."
Raza turned off the water and got out of the shower. Once he was out he looked at himself in the mirror and saw that his eyes were blood shot. Had he been crying? Raza deeply sighed; he hated how this day was starting, all this madness and craziness and it was only six a.m. SIX A.M.?! Pony feathers, he was going to be late for work! Raza ran through his house, getting himself ready as fast as he could. Within a few minutes, he was done. He headed for the door, but then looked back to see that the house still a mess. He knew Bon Bon was going to get on his case when she got back for not cleaning up, but he decided that this would have to be a necessary annoyance. Besides, he could always come back later and clean up. Tomorrow will always be there, after all. With that thought in his mind, he left for the Ponyville post office.
The next few hour where tough on Raza, because for the whole time that he was delivering the mail, he kept hearing voices all around him. He tried to ignore them, but it wasn’t long before the voices began screaming. These screams started to freak Raza out as the screams slowly went from quiet to loud echoes that where ringing through his ears. He felt like he was about to begin screaming himself from the sheer pain these screams where causing him, until suddenly, just like with the whispers, the screaming had stopped, just like that. However, before Raza was able to find a sense of relief, the maniacal laughter from his dream entered his head once more. He grunted as he started bashing his head against a mailbox, hoping that physical pain would take his mind off of the mental pain. Sadly, he was wrong, as all the physical pain did was give him a headache.
"Oh Sweet Celestia, I Beg You! Make It Stop!!" Raza yelled out before falling back onto the floor.
Right after he said that, the laughter stopped. Raza started breathing rapidly to try to catch his breath. Deep down, he felt that the worst was yet to come. As a result he immediatly tried to prepare himself for whatever mental torture would come next.
Go back...
The voices, screaming, and laughter all returned together. Raza fell to the ground, screaming and struggling. This was more than he could handle, his very sanity felt like it was being ripped from his mind, while his body felt like it was on fire. Why was this happening to him? What had he done to deserve this horrible torture?
Go Back!
"Alright! I'll go! Just stop it!" Raza yelled to the voice.
Good.
And just like that, it all just stopped. The voices, screaming, laughter were all gone. Raza got back up, wiped his tears from his eyes, and looked around to see if anypony had witnessed what had just happened to him. Surprisingly, no one had been around to see him. It didn't matter though. Raza decided to head straight to Twilight’s library, hoping that she might have a solution to this problem. He knew that he would take heat from his boss later, but it didn’t matter. He needed somepony to talk to right now, and Twilight was the best pony to talk with. He ran straight to Twilight's library, not stopping for anything until he had arrived. Once he reached the door, he knocked rapidly on it. Twilight ran to the door and quickly opened it to see that Raza was in front of her. The way he looked worried her, but before she could ask Raza what was wrong, he stormed in, pushing Twilight inside. Twilight was a little angry that Raza would just barge into her home without even explaining why, but when she looked at his eyes, her anger quickly dissipated. His eyes were full of fear and pain. Whatever drove Raza to act the way he did wasn't something small, that much was clear. She desperatly wanted to know what happened to him. Raza explained everything that had happened to him this past morning. Twilight was shocked at all the horrors that Raza had gone through in just one morning.
"All that... It just seems like a distorted dream." Twilight said, still shocked by Raza story.
"Yeah, that's what I said too." Raza said, just staring at the ground.
"…You think Lyra and Bon Bon being gone had anything to do with your nightmares?" Twilight asked, all while thinking of theories of what might be causing this strange phenomenon.
"I doubt it. They've only been gone for one day. I'm expecting them to be back today, if not already." Raza said, taking a seat on the floor. "You think maybe it's the Everfree Forest messing with my head?"
“That is a possibility, but it’s a very slim one. The Everfree has never been known to inflict psychological torment to anypony outside of it. And you only spent a few minutes, minus the trees coming to life sequence, right?" Twilight asked.
"Yeah. I think so. I don't know, I wasn't exactly keeping track of time." Raza said, starting to worry about his mental stability. "You think I should be worried?"
"I honestly wish I could give you an answer Raza, I really do." Twilight said, in apologetic manner, "But honestly, I'm not sure what to make of your predicament."
"That's just want anypony who thinks he's losing his mind wants to hear." Raza said sarcastically, all while facing down, feeling helpless.
"I’m sorry, Raza. I wish –” Twilight was cut off by Raza, who raised a hoof to her.
"Thanks for taking the time to listen, Twilight, I appreciate it. But I'm gonna go home now." Raza said as he headed towards the door.
"Wait, maybe there are some test we can perform some –” Twilight said before being interrupted again.
"Again, thanks Twilight, but I'm tired. I just want to go home and rest." Raza said, opening the door and heading out. "Bye Twilight, see you around."
Raza didn't bother to wait for Twilight to exchange her own farewell, even though he still heard her say goodbye, instead opting to just let door close as he walked towards home. He was disappointed that Twilight couldn’t figure out what was wrong with him. If she didn't know, no pony would know. He decided to put that thought in the back of his head, for now he wanted to focus on something else, specifically seeing Lyra and Bon Bon back home from the river. He hoped that their company could make him forget about the nightmares, the voice, and the laughter. One question did plague his mind, however: What if Lyra and Bon Bon hadn't returned from the river? Would he have to worry? Would he report their disappearance to somepony? This day just seemed to be full of questions with very few answers.
"Things have got to get better, right?" He asked himself, although he was unable to think of a response.
Chapter 2: The River Is Where It Begins
Raza didn't sleep well at all. Not only did the laughter, screaming, and voices return, along with the rest of the nightmare. But Lyra and Bon Bon didn't come back home. Raza didn't think to much on worrying about were they where at first, he figured that Lyra must have been showing Bon Bon more things about the river or something like that. But when the clock tower's bell rang, the morning being over and afternoon beginning, was when he started to get a little concerned. Raza was certain they would have been home by the time he came back from grocery shopping, another chore Bon Bon assigned him, sleeping on their beds, but when Raza check their rooms, they where still empty. Now he was starting to worry, what could they be doing that took a whole day? Where they ok? Did something happen to them? Could they be in some kind of trouble? Raza grunted, more questions seemed to be rising, rather than the answers and it was really aggravating Raza. He decided to call in sick for work, to spend the rest of the day looking for Lyra and Bon Bon, seeing if anypony had seen them. And he did, Raza searched all of Ponyville, for about seven hours, asking ponies if they had seen Lyra or Bon Bon, to his surprise ponies kept telling him they hadn't seen the two mares in two days. Now feeling his heart rate rising, Raza ran to all the spots Lyra and Bon Bon liked to hangout at, and again he was sad to see that they where nowhere to be found. After about two and a half more hours of searching, Raza returned now terrified at the thought that something horrible had happen to his friends.
"What the hay happened in that forest, after I left?" Raza wondered. "Bon Bon, Lyra I hope you guys are ok."
"Hey Raza." Colgate said sneaking up behind and startling the medium tan stallion.
"Ah Colgate! I mean, hey what's up?" Raza said trying to sound fine, not worried.
"Oh, nothing just thought I take the day off, to visit my sister and her roommates." Colgate answered. "And Celestia behold, here you are."
"Out of the all days she could be visiting, she had to pick today." Raza thought, worried of what he should tell Colgate and how she will react when she ask where Lyra is.
"So what you doing here? Don't you work?" Colgate asked, now Raza was worried, what should he say?
"Oh I'm... Ugh looking for a new job." Raza answered, wanting to facehoof himself for thinking of such a stupid answer.
"You got fired! Wow that's a surprise to me, you where always a good worker. At least from what I've been told." Colgate said, feeling bad for asking the question, that led to this sad answer.
"Oh no no no no no! I didn't get fired. I just thought about getting a second job." Raza explained, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "You know earn some extra money."
"Yeah that makes sense. But won't that mean you'll have less time to be at home?" Colgate said, pointing out the obvious flaw to his answer.
"Yeah, it's not my most thought out idea." Raza said, letting out a small chuckle, while also cursing himself in his mind. "Well I Colgate it was good talking to you, but I need to get going."
"Wait! I'll come with you." Colgate said, walking next to Raza, who immediately stopped in his tracks.
"Why!?" Raza asked, now beginning to freak out.
"Because I want to visit my sister and Bon Bon, of course." Colgate answered, giggling at the fact that Raza would ask a question, to an obvious question. "You forget Lyra's my younger sister?"
"No it's just, I mean... I'm not going home yet." Raza said, panicking on the inside now.
"Than where are you going?" Colgate asked.
"To umm... Sugarcube Corner! Yeah, that's where I'm going." Raza said, feeling pretty proud he actually thought of something normal.
"Oh ok, I'll head go there with you." Colgate said, smiling.
"But I thought you dislike sweets? You know, being a dentist and all." Raza said, hoping that reminder would convince Colgate to leave.
"Yes, Being a dentist makes me more observant to downside of sugar products, but that doesn't stop me from enjoying certain snacks." Colgate explained, again unknowing stomping on Raza's attempts to get rid of her. "Besides I brush and floss every morning, evening, afternoon, and night. I'll be fine."
"Isn't just morning, afternoon, and night?" Raza asked, that part of Colgate's sentence caught his attention.
"It's my life style." Colgate answered proudly.
"I... I..." Raza tried to hard to think of something.
"Let me stop you there mister stutterer." Colgate said, raising her hoof to Raza. "You and me have never had a chance to hangout together. What's the matter are you afraid of me?"
"What!? NO, I'm just... I don't know." Raza said, trying to figure out a good excuse.
"That's it isn't it? You're afraid of Lyra's older sister." Colgate said, in a playful manner.
Raza let out a sigh of defeat and decided to just hangout with Colgate for a while. He knew it was better to just go along with this lie, rather than continue to be humiliated.
"Alright forget it, lets go."
"Awesome! You're buying right?" Colgate asked, looking at Raza with a smirk.
"Excuse me?" Raza said, with a shocked face.
"I'm just playing around." Colgate said, giggling. "You should have seen your face. You looked like you where about to have a heart attack."
"You have interesting sense of humor." Raza said sarcastically.
Raza and Colgate headed to Sugarcube Corner, Colgate happy to be hanging out with a friend and Raza embarrassed by what had just transpired, also eager to hurry and head to the river to look for Bon Bon and Lyra, another subject he was hoping to avoid talking about with Colgate. How would she react if she knew her little sister was missing? Raza didn't want to find out. Raza did, to the best of his ability, avoid mentioning Lyra and sticking to trivial things. Such as news, weather, jobs, ect ect. They spent about an hour at Sugarcube Corner just continuing to talk. Colgate was pretty happy to have someone to hang with, since her day off was very boring and uneventful, the most she had done was clean up her home and dental tools. Even though she was enjoying Raza's company, she couldn't help but feel that something was... Off about him today. When they she talked to him in town, he seemed real keen on getting away from her. What could be bothering him so much? Could it be something serious? Colgate started to think maybe she was just over exaggerating, for all she knew he was just nervous about being around her. Than a thought came to her. What if it has something to do with Lyra? Over exaggeration or not, Lyra was still her sister and if Raza knew Lyra was in some kind of trouble, Colgate needed to know.
"Hey Raza, can I ask you a question?" Colgate asked, circling her straw around her drink.
"Ugh... Sure, what's in your mind?" Raza said, not sure if he was going to regret agreeing to answer Colgate's question."
"Is Lyra alright?" Colgate asked, in what Raza thought sound like a mixture of firmness and concern.
Raza was now really worried. What should he tell her? "Couldn't say, she went into the forest with Bon Bon to a river and has been missing for two days now." Yeah right, Raza knew he would die someday but he prefer if it was not today. Colgate was a nice, friendly, and reasonable pony but this was her younger sister they where talking about. Siblings well being for one another was important, if one knew the other was in trouble there was no telling what they would do. The idea of Colgate doing something unpredictable, didn't give Raza a good feeling in his soul. Telling the full truth was out of the question.
"Yeah. As far as I know she's fine." Raza said, actually being somewhat truthful.
"What do you mean by "As far as I know?" That doesn't give me a comforting feeling." Colgate said, now with a firm tone, in her voice.
"I mean she's hanging out with Bon Bon somewhere right now. You know how when I'm busy those to like to do things together, to pass the time." Colgate said, little drops of sweat fell down his coat, as he was afraid Colgate was catching on.
"Oh ok. Sorry I sounded kind of angry there for a minute, but Lyra's my little sister you know and I'm serious about her safety." Lyra explained, calming down.
"Yeah, I completely understand. If I had any family I would be the same way." Raza said, understanding how Colgate's bond with Lyra was, which made him feel even more bad that their was a possibility something bad had happen to her.
"You still haven't found any relatives yet?" Colgate asked, wondering if Raza had managed to finally fine at least on family member.
"Not yet but maybe someday. Just have to keep my hope alive, you know?" Raza said, seeing the pity growing in Colgate's eyes. "No need to feel bad for me Colgate, I'll fine my family eventually or maybe they'll fine me."
"I know you will, it's just I couldn't imagine not having my mom, dad, or Lyra in my life. I don't know what I do." Colgate said, as she thought about her sister.
"I hope you never have to fine out than." Raza said, he wanted to get out of this conversation before he said something he would later regret. "Well this has been an interesting and fun hangout Colgate, but I need to get back home."
"But what about your second job hunting?" Colgate asked, making Raza realize he had forgotten to think about an excuse for that.
"Oh I'll just pick up where I left off tomorrow. I got chores, that Bon Bon left for me to do after all." Raza said, pretty impressed with himself that he thought of a good excuse.
Raza and Colgate got up, pay their bill, and walked out. They walk a little while longer, at Colgate's persistence, despite Raza's objections. Once they where at the center of town, they stopped and decided that now was the right time to go their separate ways. Raza had to admit while nerves he did enjoy spending time with Colgate. Just to forget all the torment he had been going through for the past two days. Colgate herself enjoyed having some hangout time herself, even though she loved being a dentist it wasn't exactly the most exciting of jobs. While she had notice Raza acting strange it didn't bother her to much she was just happy to have someone to hang with. Before leaving Colgate wanted to tell Raza one more thing.
"Hey Raza, can you do a favor?" Colgate asked, since Raza was probably heading back home, she might as well have him deliver a short message.
"Sure, what do you need?" Raza asked, still a little worried but hopeful it would be something simple.
"Can you tell Lyra that I'll visit soon, when I get the time." Lyra asked, Raza was pretty calm with that question but he had to ask something, that caught his attention. "And tell Bon Bon I said hi to."
"Sure, no problem but when will you be visiting?" Raza asked, needing to know if would have to be worried sooner or later.
"Not sure. Being a dentist, comes with unknown knowledge of when I can actually have time to for myself." Colgate explained, this always bothered her about her job but she put up with, since she loved her work.
"Ok, I'll let her know." Raza said, giving a fake smile but he was now a beginning to worry again, if she comes by and sees Lyra is missing she'll lose it.
"Thanks Raza." Colgate said, giving Raza a par on the back, she started to walk away but turned back, to look at Raza. "You know Raza, other ponies are right you really are reliable."
Raza thank Colgate. Now he felt worse for not only lying to Colgate but not tell her that her sister might be in some kind of trouble, Raza tried to reassure himself by mentally telling himself it was best not to worry her. Raza waited until she was almost out of eyes view. Once she was Raza ran to any other stores, restaurants, or any other place he had not checked yet, he asked everypony who was there if they had seen Lyra and Bon Bon. He was met with the same answer, no. No pony had seen them in any of the places he checked, or seen them anywhere outside of them. Raza had returned home to rest a little, his hooves where killing him from all the running he had done. What little hope he had of Lyra and Bon Bon being ok was now gone, when he looked in their rooms and saw that they weren't here. Raza walked to the recliner, Lyra had found a couple months back and fell back on it, in defeat. Raza accepted the fact, that if they Lyra and Bon Bon weren't here by now they weren't coming back at all.
Not on their own at least...
Raza gasped, he remembered this voice, he couldn't forget it even if he wanted, his tormentor. Raza tried his best to ignore the voice.
Why have you not gone to the river?
Raza tried to pass of the voice as some kind of disturbing hallucination.
Answer me.
Raza closed his eyes, wanting to fall asleep and forget it.
Answer Me!
An intense amount of horrible pain, went through Raza's head as the voice got angrier. Raza fell out of the recliner and violently struggled across the floor as he tried to deal with the pain. Raza finally excepted the fact that this voice wasn't his imagination. It was something else, something that wanted Raza to listen or suffer.
"OK! Ok! Just Stop Already!" Raza screamed out to the voice, wanting the torment to end.
Good...
Within a second the pain was gone. Raza quickly get back on the recliner and lets out a scream, that is a mixture of frustration and fear. What was this voice in his head? Why did it want him to go back to the river so much? And out of everypony in all of Equestria why did it have to choose him to torment? But Raza knew he didn't have time to ponder on these question, since he didn't know when the voice would hurt him again. What if It could even hear his thoughts. Raza hoped that wasn't true, but he didn't want to wait to find out. Raza went to the window, the sun will be setting soon and Raza already didn't want to be out there in the forest, being out in the Everfree at night would basically be a death wish. Raza reluctantly head to the river. It didn't take long for him to get to the forest but once he came face to face with it, a big chill went down his spine, which made him started to have second thoughts about this. Raza wanted to find Lyra and Bon Bon, find them, and bring them home. At the same time he didn't want to do this when he knew his better judgment made him think otherwise.
What are you waiting for?
"I'm starting to think it be better if I asked somepony else for help, in how to handle this." Raza said, he figured that since this voice was as real as the air he breathed, it made since to talk to it, when it spoke rather than ignoring it.
Help? No such thing.
"What do you mean? Lots of ponies like Lyra and Bon Bon, they'll want to help." Raza said, trying to convince the voice, getting help was a good idea.
"They'll never understand."
"They are our friends, my friends. They won't turn me away." Raza said firmly, torment or not he wouldn't let his voice talk bad about the ponies of Ponyville.
Really? Your friend Bon Bon turned away from your friend Lyra.
"What? No, no. She wouldn't have done that, not to Lyra." Raza said, he refused to believe that Bon Bon would do that Lyra, her best friend. "She couldn't..."
I was there with Lyra. I saw Bon Bon doubt her and said that everything Lyra did was craziness, is that what friends are suppose to do?
"You're lying! She would never do that!" Raza yelled, furious that the voice would tell hi, Bon Bon would do that to Lyra.
Enough Of This! Head To The River Now!
The pain Raza had experience from earlier returned, this time worst than ever, to the point Raza thought he would die. After what felt like an hour of agony, it stopped. Raza opened his, after feeling the tears falling from his face, he whip his tears away and got back up. Raza knew that this voice had dim by the throat, for the time being he would have to listen.
"Ok, I'm going." Raza said, he was angry that this voice was treating him like a dog, but he wanted to find his friends and than fine a way to get rid of the voice. For the time being he'll have to put up with it.
Raza walked into the forest, trying to retrace his steps and remember where the river was, but the sun would soon be gone and night would be his only company, besides the voice. Raza felt a sense of fear taking over his thoughts, his mind kept think of horrible scenarios. One was of him finding Lyra and Bon Bon's ripped up bloody corpse or he, himself being attacked and eaten by a Timberwolf or Manticore. It felt that the closer he got to the river, the harder his mind fought with his body to turn back. Raza was starting to fear his mind more than his surroundings, that fear was forgotten when he heard the sounds of rustling coming from his right. Raza back away a few steps.
"Who's... Who's there?" Raza asked, his voice obviously trembling.
Nothing responded back. The rustling noise started coming from behind him, Raza's heart was starting to beat fast, as his mind began of thinking of the dangerous and frightening creatures that where lurking within the forest, waiting to pounce and attack him.
Your showing fear... Pitiful.
Raza didn't hear the voice. The fear of him about to meet his painful death, froze his legs. The rustling started to get closer. Raza's mind screamed at him, to run. Before he could move a figure jumped at him and tackled him to the ground, after a few seconds of waiting for whatever was on top of him to eat him, Raza opened his and looked up to see the monster that would be responsible for his end. What he saw kept his face frozen in shock. It was Colgate, with an expression that said she was furious.
"Colgate why are –" Raza's sentence was cut off when a hoof collided with his face.
Colgate hit Raza in the muzzle, not to hard but hard enough so that he would feel it, she stood there looking down at him, his expression was still shock but she knew this time it was from her hitting him. Her expression was also still the same, pure anger. She felt like punching him again, but she was able to keep herself under control. Colgate brought her attention back to the reason why she had followed Raza into the forest.
"Why did you lie?" Colgate said firmly.
"What are you –" Raza was cut of again by Colgate, this time with words instead of a hit, which he was happy about not getting hit.
"Unless you want another hit, you better answer my question!" Colgate yelled, She wanted Raza to know she was serious.
"I'm pretty sure I have a good idea at what you're talking about, but how did you find out?" Raza asked, expecting either an answer or another punch. He wasn't sure which one scared him more.
"I'm not an idiot Raza. That whole stupid looking for a new job was an obvious lie, that even a filly would have notice. But it was when I asked other ponies what you where doing, they told me you where asking where Lyra and Bon Bon are, who have been missing for two days already!" Colgate yelled out, in a mixture of anger and pain.
"Because I was hoping to avoid this, what's happening right now." Raza explained, being truthful, he should have know that good intentions will have mix results. "I didn't want you to worry."
"Well I'm not worried, I'm freaking out! Why didn't you ask for my help?" Colgate said, Raza's answer didn't calm her down much.
"I don't know, ok! I didn't think about it, which I'll admit that it was a mistake to leave you in the dark but I swear to Celestia, I'm sorry." Raza said, tears starting to form, as he realized the mistake he made lying to Colgate. "I'm sorry."
Colgate started to feel a sense of empathy in her soul, She was still a angry and sad that Raza lied to her but she felt that in some way she understood that he tried to spare her feeling. She could also see that he was serious when he said he thought he could fine Lyra and Bon Bon. She could also see his apology was sincere, but she still had questions that needed to be answer and she wanted to get them. She got off of Raza and helped Raza up.
"She's my little sister Raza, I'm going to help find her." Colgate said, she wasn't asking to help, she was going to help fined he sister.
"Ok, I'm not going to try and stop you, so come on." Raza said, surprising Colgate.
She will become a burden...
"Wait that's it? No angry cursing at me for hitting you? No I can handle this on my own?" Colgate asked, this wasn't the reaction she was expecting out of Raza.
"Because we need to move quick, it will be dark soon and that will make it more difficult to fine." Raza said, looking forward into the forest.
"Wait, what will be more difficult to fine?" Colgate asked, looking into the forest trying to see what Raza was looking at.
"The River." Raza said, he started walking again, with Colgate following behind still confused as to what he was talking about.
You are a fool.
After about ten minutes of Raza explained what the river was and how it involved Lyra and Bon Bon's disappearance and than explaining his nightmares, Colgate got a good idea of what was going on... Or so she thought. Raza decided to leave the voice out of the explanation. Colgate was already giving him weird looks, the last thing he needed was her thinking he was completely insane, when Raza himself was already thinking that. Despite that though Raza continued to look for the river, which seemed to be impossible to reach. Raza couldn't understand it he had, at least he believed he'd gone the way Lyra had, why couldn't he find it... Raza saw what seemed like some kind of glow, could that be it? Raza and Colgate ran towards the glow. Once they reach it, they saw it. The River.
"Here it is. The River." Raza said, amazed by the sight of it, he didn't get a good look at it, when he followed Lyra and Bon Bon, but now here it was in front of him.
"This? This is it? Are you kidding me?" Colgate said, irritated by the sight in front of her. Raza brought her deep into the forest, promising her they fine Lyra, for this!
"What do you mean? This is it. This is how will fine Lyra and Bon Bon." Raza said, seeing the frustration growing in Colgate's eyes.
And so the cycle repeats it's self...
"You said that this would lead us to Lyra and Bon Bon. How the hay is a stupid river goining to help us fine my sister?!" Colgate yelled, she was angrier than when she had followed Raza. He was wasting her time, meanwhile something horrible could be happening to Lyra and Bon Bon.
She doubts you... Like Bon Bon did to Lyra, oh the irony.
"Why are you doing this? Wasting time! While my sister and Bon Bon, your friends! Are in trouble they need our help and you chose to waste time with this useless puddle! What's wrong with you?!" Colgate was now in rage, Raza was risking her sister's life and Bon Bon's life. Why was he tormenting her like this?
"No I'm serious, this is it! This is what Lyra showed Bon Bon, this is where they disappeared. This is where we need to start!" Raza said, pleading with Colgate to believe him. If she would just give him a chance to explain.
Maybe Colgate and Bon Bon should have been sisters, they are both blind to what's clearly in front of them. They are both ignorant and that will be your downfall.
"Why won't she listen to me? All her yelling his hurting my head. I can't think clearly!" Raza thought, Colgate's yelling and the voice's talking was causing him pain.
"This is such a waste of time. My sister and her friend need help, if you can't take this situation serious than I'm going to fine them in my own." Colgate said, turning away from Raza and beginning to walk away.
Raza was beginning to panic. He tried to plead with Colgate to stay and listen to his explanation but she ignored his pleads and continued to walk away. Raza felt like he was between a rock and a hard place if Colgate went back and told any other pony about the river and how it tied into Lyra and Bon Bon's disappearance, what would happen to him? Or that this river would lead them to Lyra and Bon Bon, Colgate was basically walking away from their best chance of finding them. Colgate couldn't deal with Raza and his nonsense. Normally am she could handle his silly nature but this was serious Bon Bon, her friend was in trouble, along with her sister. She would fine them with or without Raza's help, she did fell a little bad for acting so cold with him but Lyra's life was at stake and she couldn't take that lightly.
Must I do everything do for you?
"What do you –” Raza's was interrupted by the sound of a screaming. Colgate's screaming. "What in Luna's name?!
Raza looked and saw the water, of the river now in the form of... A hand? Raza knew this from some of the drawings that Lyra had shown him, Bon Bon, and Colgate. But now it was the river that some how made it real. And it was using it to drag Colgate into the river. Colgate tried her hardest to fight back, but the water shape hand, had a tight grip on her, from the waste down. She tried to grab onto anything her hooves could grab onto, regardless of what she grabbed, Colgate was still being dragged. Raza ran to Colgate, once he had her in hooves reach. He grabbed onto her and pulled. It wasn't much of a struggle, despite Raza pulling Colgate with all his strength, it was still dragging both of them.
Stop fighting! Go into it with her. Into the River and you'll fine your friends. Even the answers that are lost.
Raza couldn't argue with the voice, he was still holding on to Colgate, still trying to pull her out of the water hand's grasp, to no avail. Raza looked at Colgate, who had tears falling down her eyes as she looked back at Raza, she held on tighter to Raza, who refused to let go of his friend. Raza had an idea. What if the voice was rights? What if going into the river would lead them to their friends? Raza wasn't going to beat the River's grasp. Whatever happened to Lyra and Bon Bon started with this river? Either that or it lead to their deaths. Raza didn't like their chances but he had no other options. Raza made his decision, he stopped struggling and let the water hand drag him and Colgate into the river. Raza and Colgate felt the water all over their bodies and while Colgate was freaking out, Raza only thought of what the voice ment by "answers that are lost?" Soon everything went black.
Wake up...
