Into the Abyss

"But why do you have to go alone?" Spike argued, pacing back and forth in Twilight's bedroom. Ever since the encounter with the Grey Man, Twilight had been busy packing for her trip across worlds. However, when she told her friends that she had to go alone, they were less than pleased. The lavender princess sighed as she shut her luggage, turning about to her number one assistant with a sorrowful glance.

"Because the messenger said so." Twilight said. "I know it doesn't sound like a good excuse, but we don't know how this universal group works, and they might be offended if I don't follow their rules."

"That don't mean this whole thing stinks like a barrel of rotten apples!" Applejack exclaimed, stomping her hoof on the ground. "They want y'all to come alone to Celestia knows where, and the messenger was a gosh darn grey creep without a face! If that ain't suspicious, Ah don't know what is."

"I'll say!" Rainbow Dash butted in, lightly fluttering above the others. "What if they're a bunch of monsters that want to take over the world, or something? What if they're like those big metal dudes from the Hotel?" Twilight turned to her friends with an irritated expression just as she placed her luggage at her side.

"Just because you happened to wander into a restricted area and the manager warned you," Twilight reasoned. "Doesn't mean that everything from beyond Equus is evil and out to take over the world." Rainbow Dash simply scoffed, tossing her multi-colored mane back.

"Well, darling, she does have a point," Rarity said, moving towards her friend. "You said it yourself, we don't know anything about whoever this group is. We just want you to be safe."

"I will be safe, Rarity," Twilight said, placing a reassuring hoof on her friend's shoulder. "This AoA hopefully won't harm a foreign ambassador to a universe (despite Grey Man's behavior saying otherwise). And if anything goes wrong, I'm sure I can defend myself or contact Celestia." Seeing the solemn looks on her friend's faces, Twilight knew there was something else she had to do. "I promise I'll be safe."

"Pinkie Promise?" Pinkie Pie called out, the normally bubbly mare oddly calmer with the current situation.

"Cross my heart, hope to fly," Twilight said as she mimed out the motions. "Stick a cupcake in my eye." She finished the deal by placing a hoof over her eye. She quickly found herself surrounded by all her friends, clustered in a tight group hug that she couldn't help but join. Just as Twilight began to wish the hug would never end, a simple glance at the clock showed she had only a few minutes until the chariot arrived. Reluctantly, she broke away from the hug, small specks of tears in her eyes. "I'll see you later." Igniting her horn, Twilight cast a teleportation spell, and vanished in a flash of light.

Waiting at the empty chariot landing zone outside Canterlot Castle was tedious, simply standing around and waiting for this ride from the AoA was beginning to drive Twilight mad. Luggage placed at her side, the Princess of Friendship steadily rocked back and forth, whistling a tune as she stood in wait. Her thoughts drifted to curiosity regarding the mysterious Universal Power, wondering exactly what they are like. Despite the cruel and dark nature of their messenger, she knew better than most not to judge a book by its cover. Maybe it was just their customs to be dark, and they were in all actuality a kindhearted group. Although, apparently being on time was not something they were strong suited at.

"Ugh!" Twilight groaned, stamping her hoof. "Where the hay is this chariot?"

No sooner had the words left Twilight's muzzle than a massive gust of wind blew across the landing zone, threatening to bowl the young alicorn over. A faint crackle of electricity surged through Twilight's ears, sending her to search for the source of the sound. A loud, booming crack echoed in a cacophonous roar, much like the sound the Hotel Nebula made when it left Equestria. Twilight looked to the skies, and saw a deep gash was tearing itself open amidst the sky, opening a deep, swirling vortex into who knows what. From within the vortex, or Rift, a small black dot seemed to shoot out of it, drifting downwards and expanding in size. As it drew closer, Twilight realized that it was gaining speed... And heading right for her. Quickly grabbing her luggage, Twilight immediately dove out of the way, bracing herself for the impending crash. But nothing came. Lifting a hoof off her eyes, Twilight saw the mysterious object had come to a rest right before her, but it was floating midair. And was it a sight to behold!

Much like the letter had promised, a Chariot had indeed arrived, but it was nothing like she had expected. It's entire color was darker than a moonless night, highlighted with grey scraps and accents. Twisted bits of iron wrought metal jutted out of the sides like a wicked bramble, sharply protruding outward from within the box. Rusted black wheels sat on the sides, not really serving any purpose due to the vehicle hovering midair. Tied at the end of the Chariot by thick wires akin to thorn covered black vines were hideous creatures larger than an average pony. They resembled vicious dark purple bats, ivory fangs jutted from their small mouths, oozing a type of thick green drool. Five red eyes flitted about, looking forward on their long faces at the end of their pointed snouts. Four wicked wings clung limply to their sides as they scratched at themselves with sharp claws. Holding them by the reins was an odd looking pale human, adorned in a blue and purple uniform and hat, a happy look on his face. At least, his face would presume to be happy, since it appeared to have been completely stitched together. And it wasn't even a chariot, and more like a carriage. Like the letter said, it was a Chariot... intended for deliveries to a morgue.

The stitched-up driver glanced at the lavender alicorn, and with a smile, waved and called out in a cheerful voice. "Hello there! You wouldn't happen to be Princess Twilight Sparkle, wouldn't you?"

"Y-yes..." Twilight meekly nodded, gaping at the nightmarish vehicle before her. The man let out a jovial laugh, clapping his gloved hands together.

"Splendid! My name is Mortis, driver of the Black Chariot," The driver greeted. "And I'll be taking you to the Abyss this fine day." Twilight eyed the Chariot with suspicion, confused why such an oddly cheerful person was piloting something one would see in a Nightmare Night Haunted House. Mortis apparently noted her thoughts, and chuckled. "If it's the design, wasn't my idea. The boss likes things to be super spooky for intimidation factor. It's perfectly safe and comfy." Slightly comforted by the driver's words, Twilight wordlessly began moving towards the Chariot. However, just as she reached the vehicle proper, one of the beasts tied up front turned and hissed at the lavender alicorn, spitting a thick sludge all over and causing Twilight to yelp in surprise. The cracking of the reins silenced the beast, as Twilight looked at Mortis bearing a stern face. "No! Bad Voidwing! No hissing at passengers! I'm sorry about that, these little pests are incredibly unfriendly."

"What are they?" Twilight asked, gawking at the beast.

"Voidwings, remnants from the Void Invasion millions of years ago." Mortis explained. "Void Walkers are nasty monsters that live between worlds, and ages ago, before the Universal Orders were formed, tried to invade. They were stopped, but some still leak through. I keep these Voidwings because they're fast and can travel through universes unscathed." Mortis hopped down from his seat, walking towards Twilight. "Alright, let me load up your bags and you can get seated. Just a heads up," Mortis hefted the luggage on his shoulder. "There's another passenger along for the ride, and he isn't exactly the friendliest of people." As Mortis tossed the luggage into the Chariot's trunk, he lowered a small set of stairs for Twilight to walk on and took his place at the driver's seat. Steadily climbing up on the steps, Twilight peered inside the compartment, and found it to be, oddly, visually pleasing. The entire interior was a maroon shade on everything, complete with fuzzy carpeting and polyester cushioned seats. Small windows sat on the windows, opening to a view of the outside, including a little slot located behind Mortis for conversations with the driver. The other passenger, however, was not as visually pleasing. Like the driver, the passenger was a human, dressed in a yellow and black warrior's garb, wearing a black hood over his head and a yellow mouthpiece of a scorpion shielding a majority of his head, revealing two milky white eyes, lacking irises. Two swords sat on his back, and what appeared to be a spearhead was resting on his wrist.

"Um... Mister Mortis..." Twilight called out, slightly frightened by the other passenger. "Who's the... man I'm riding with?"

"Oh, that's Scorpion," Mortis simply said. "He's a Revenant from the Netherrealm, a foul-tempered undead. Just don't bother him and he won't bother you." The yellow armored man, Scorpion, took a simple look at Twilight, grunted, and turned to face the window, arms crossed. Mortis gave a whistle, signaling Twilight to climb aboard. The lavender pony steadily took her seat next to the Revenant, who paid her no mind. With a loud crack of the reins, the Black Chariot began to hoist itself into the air.

"Next stop, Universal Array 666, the Abyss!" Mortis exclaimed with a cackle, cracking the reins again. With a rumble and the loud shrieks of the Voidwings, the Chariot took off into the sky at speeds that would make Rainbow Dash jealous. Twilight tried to keep herself still on the seat, but a lack of protective belts and Mortis' slightly reckless driving was making it very difficult, meanwhile Scorpion hardly moved at all. She felt the Chariot rise higher and higher into the air, a slight glance at the window brought up a full view of Canterlot mountain and the Everfree Forest below. Clouds zoomed fast like they were a blur, and Twilight could feel the air getting thinner. Before her worry about oxygen deprivation, a sudden rushing feeling made her feel tingly all over. The shaking slowed to a gradual pace, and the Voidwings appeared to have calmed down.

Allowing herself one glance out the window, Twilight saw the whole scenery had shifted. No longer were there blue skies and white fluffy clouds, but a swirling vortex of purple, red, and black. Surges of blue lightening shot across this strange zone, skimming off the Chariot like stones on a wall, and the air felt both a mixture of hot and cold no matter where you stood. Leaning towards the window behind the driver's seat, Twilight could see that they were in a tunnel, spiraling towards a black hole that always appeared out of reach.

"What is this?" Twilight asked, eyes full of awe.

"Welcome to the Rift, Princess." Mortis answered with a chuckle. "A stable means of transportation between worlds that runs straight through the Void in an almost complete line. It'll take us a while to reach the exit Rift, so take a nap and wait." Turning around, Twilight saw that the other passenger had already taken Mortis' offer and had fallen asleep. Feeling slightly fatigued herself from the sudden adrenaline rush, Twilight trotted over to her seat, curled up in a comfy position on the cushions, and fell into a blissful rest until her trip came to an end.