Luna's

Luna’s
Chapter 7

I bolted from the bar, leaving a vaguely apathetic call from Luna telling me to wait a moment. It was a blur as I ran past the horrid wallpaper, decaying wood, and sickening orange light. I faintly remember hearing the squeal from the rusted hinges as the door slammed shut behind me.

I didn’t know where I was going, but that didn’t matter. All that mattered was that my legs had to carry me as far from Luna as they could. As soon as my hooves hit the dirt path in front of the bar I took a sharp turn to my left. The right path had brought me here to this cursed place, so the left had to be my way out.

So, I ran through the mist, down that lonesome road. I prayed that it would lead to safety, or anyplace but that damnable tavern and away from that crazed mare. I missed my home, my bed, my—

I slowed my sprint to a stop. I glanced behind me, feeling an odd sensation calling me back. What did I miss again? I found myself asking as I stared back in the direction of Luna’s. The bar was long out of sight, though I didn’t know how long I had been running.

With a confused look, I turned to look ahead of me once more. As I watched the shifting mist around me, I felt surrounded. It was as though it was closing in around me, almost stifling in a way. With a cautious glance back and forth to the sides, I started walking once more.

Home. I paused on that word, feeling it echo through my entire being. Why did I want to go home in the first place? What was waiting for me there? Since I had gotten into these woods, I never really thought about why I wanted to escape.

“What’s in a home?” I asked aloud. “Bed, food, my things—but what’s so important about those things? What else is there—”

“Around, around, around, around you go, yet the answers won’t come, will they?” A voice pulled me from my thought. I looked up to see a creature floating in mid air. Its body was long—serpent like—but it had fur. Its arms and legs were from a hodgepodge of creatures, mismatched and misshapen. This thing stared down at me with a wicked grin, showing a single long, pointed fang hanging from its elongated jaw.

“Lost in the fog, are we?” it asked with a deep, entrancing voice before it snapped up from a sprawled position to one as though it were reclining in a chair. It placed its arms behind its head and continued to stare like a cat with a mouse caught in a trap.

“W-what are you?”

“Who would be a more polite term, but I’m not picky.” It descended down, almost until it was touching the ground. “Discord is my name.”

“Discord?”

He—I decided upon—nodded. “So, what brings a pony like you out here, hm?”

I took a small step back. Whoever this Discord was, I didn’t like the look of him. Something about the way he spoke made me feel even more uncomfortable than even Luna made me feel. Like he was toying with me from the very instant he laid his eyes on me. “Just out for an evening stroll,” I said, mustering the most matter-of-fact voice I could.

“A stroll? Here?” He laughed. “That’s rich.” He rolled onto his stomach once more and propped his head up on his hands.

“And what’s so strange about walking?”

“No one would go walking in these woods. At least not unless they were already lost.”

“I am not lost,” I protested, stomping my hoof, defiantly. “A little confused, perhaps, but I most certainly am not lost.” The thought of conceding to this creature was utterly infuriating. Perhaps it was his demeanor or his voice, but I wouldn't let someone who thought they were better than me toy with me like he was.

He smirked and raised an eyebrow. “I see. So, where, pray tell, is this place?”

I puffed out my chest, feeling a challenge. “Obviously in a forest.”

“And the forest?”

I glared at him. “That’s…”

He waited patiently for my reply, nodding to encourage me as I contemplated my answer.

Finally, I huffed. I walked into that one. “So, I may not know exactly where I am, but are you in any better shape?”

He shrugged, nonchalantly.

“All that matters is I am moving forward…” I glanced over my shoulder for a brief second. “As long as I’m away from that crazed mare, it’s fine,” I muttered to myself.

A devilish smirk came across his face. “Avoiding somepony?”

“Perhaps.” I sighed. As much as it pained me, this creature did seem to know something about these woods. He was the first living soul I had seen outside of that tavern and he seemed more lucid than Luna or that other mare. “You wouldn’t happen to know how to get out of here, would you?”

Discord placed his claw to his chin and stroked his beard. “A way out of here? Why, there is no way out. Only a way in. If you want out, you’ll have to be ready to leave.”

“I am ready.” I narrowed my gaze at him.

“You don’t look ready.” His eyes ran over me from head to hoof for a second.

I rolled my own. “If you won’t help me then I’ll find my own way—”

“As I said, you don't look ready to leave these woods.” His smirk grew wider. “And if you're not ready, you had best be careful, little pony. These woods have a nasty habit of driving those inside completely insane.” His head twisted like a cap to a bottle, though his eyes stayed firmly in place and fixed on me.

The sight made me step back, my own eyes widening in disgust. Just as I started to question it though, I suddenly felt a claw cover my mouth. I turned to see where the claw was coming from to find Discord’s face staring right at me. I stumbled back with a gasp.

“So, be on your guard.”

“W-what—”

“I wouldn’t stay here long if I were you. Insanity can do nasty things to a pony.” He chuckled, kicking his legs in the air as he held his gut. “Though I can’t say it’s all bad. After all, I lost my sanity quite sometime ago."

Whatever had happened, it couldn’t have been real. I was watching him the whole time, he couldn’t have done that. I stared for a moment, making sure my mind wasn’t going to play any more tricks on me. I finally shook my head.

“I didn’t plan on it,” I said, forcing a brave tone. Without so much as another word, I turned my back to him and started walking forward along the path once more. I could hear him laughing to himself as I walked the endless road.

“These woods can’t drive me any more insane than Luna was.” I said to myself, his words of ‘wisdom’ still echoing in my mind. “Though perhaps she’s more tolerable than that bloke.” The thought of Luna’s eerie giggle contrasted against that serpent’s gaze made my skin nearly crawl off my body.

As much as I hated to admit it, Luna had worked her way back into my thoughts. My whole body shuddered just remembering how the writing in that book changed. How could it have changed? Writing doesn’t change in a book, not unless it was erased. She didn’t have time to do that. “It just doesn’t seem possible.”

I felt my heart skip a beat. Maybe I was imagining things. I came to a stop as that stray thought crossed my mind. I shook my head to loosen that odd notion.

“No, clearly it was different!” I reaffirmed aloud. “Luna isn’t to be trusted, even that pony next door said—”

The one that’s obviously crazy? I took a deep breath, feeling my heart sink.

“She’s locked up, that doesn’t mean she’s crazy."

She’s locked in that room for a reason and I doubt Luna is doing it just to silence her.

“I know what I saw. Even if that pony is crazy, that book changed.” My heart sank even further as a thought I didn’t want to vocalize came to mind. I took a deep breath and looked up into the fog. The swirling mass seemed to close around me even tighter, until I could almost reach out and touch it. “I may have been wanting to have a reason to distrust her…”

I groaned at myself. The details seemed to blur together. Had I really seen writing there or was I imagining it? “Even if there wasn’t writing, she’s still a hard pony to trust!”

I looked around me. The fog was growing thicker. “Not that I have many ponies to rely on here…” I scrunched my muzzle. Even if I couldn’t trust her, she was offering a roof over my head and shelter from this creepy fog. “Maybe I should go back…”

I looked to the path in front of me. Ahead, I saw a light cutting through the thick of the mist. My heart nearly jumped for joy in my chest. A light means someone, which meant a possible way out. I couldn’t stop the grin from coming across my lips. Before I knew it, I burst into an all-out sprint towards this light.

As I drew near, the silhouette of a building came into view. Then, the light started to separate into letters. as soon as I could make out what those letters were, I felt my heart nearly fall out of my chest. My sprint slowed to a crawl as I read “Luna’s” from the bright neon sign.

Despite my efforts to run away, I was here once more. I had somehow found myself back at this damnable bar. Perhaps what Luna said was true. Those in these woods do find their way to this tavern, even if it’s the last place they want to be.