Interlude – History Insight III

The baron was in middle of repairing the teleportation circle, when Kamina stormed into the main hall in his characteristic, jump-scary way.

“Brace yourself for the most epic moment of this millennium! I am fucking back!”

The piece of chalk fell from his hooves, and the baron kept glaring in disbelief. After a minute of silence, he spoke with astonishing coldness:
“I had your name written on my list since the day you entered the anomaly. Now tell me, what had really happened? Because leaving me in this ridiculous pastel-colored world was to be your fatal mistake.”

“I DID leave by choice. For five minutes. When I reentered again, the first thing I know, its thousand years later than it should be.”

“Thirteen-hundred seventy-four years, to be precise.”

“I’m sorry. Really. But as I came back, it reopened. We can both go back now. And we should do that quick, because it’s the most unstable one I’ve seen.”

“Well, in other news, while you were gone, an alicorn was born. I’ve been watching her to this day. She’s tied to a prophecy, concerning the Elements of Harmony. And the west is still full of Draconequos.”

“I see. You’ve been planning to free the eastern ponies. Out of boredom, as you always do, right?” Kamina was caught in a moment of thinking.

“I dunno. We can go or at least do something nice for this world before that, even if it means to be stuck here for centuries again. I’ll leave this one to you.” The baron said, waiting for an answer.

“Look. I don’t like being a pony, you don’t like being a pony. But what you said makes sense. Is it still Discord on the throne?

“Yes.”

“Let’s kick his ass!”

Two more nights spent in the ever-rattling train made Twilight feel uneasy about the current situation, although now she had two of her friends by her side. Still, sitting alone in her coupe and watching the landscape was her favorite activity, as both Rarity and Fluttershy didn’t have much to add when she talked. When they finally arrived, it was cloudy and threatening with rain. No pegasi kept the skies clean here, and Twilight understood not why the locals would be comfortable with such chaotic weather.

The train station was non-existent in Flankstad, and they had to step out of the train next to a road, at a prearranged location. Trains here had no timetables, leaving Twilight wondering about functionality of this rail transport.

Four dull-looking ponies dragged the carriage that was sent for them. ‘Horses.’ Twilight recalled. Sadly, many studies have been done on the foals who were born like that, being intelligent roughly as an animal, but not a single one could explain the mysterious disease. The carriage itself was classy and decorated, in a way which made Rarity almost faint, but the inside was a bit cramped for six ponies and Twilight had to put the dangerous murderers to sleep first. Pinkamena took more magic to put down than an Ursa Major, and Twilight was exhausted as a result.

The path winded out of the town and Twilight was about to continue in her new-found habit; she drew the curtains and stared blankly out of the window. A bleak pine forest moved around them as they went uphill, fog veiling it tight and preventing any distant view. She found this sight incredibly creepy, and quickly pulled the curtains back. She could swear she saw a shadow in the brief moment, hiding behind trees and watching her. The rest of the way she felt the murmuring of the forest on her skin, an unpleasant whispering that even her brain couldn’t explain.

It was some minutes later they reached the gate, embedded to a cobble-stone wall that stretched out to infinity at both sides. A silhouette of a tower perked over the entrance, higher than visible, and Twilight knew there were more hidden beyond the white mist. The driver showed them out in front of the massive door, knocked three times and disappeared on his wheels down the path again. The gate creaked loudly, opening slow before allowing them to enter. They trotted through the frigid corridor, passing several paintings and bookshelves, and stopped in the entrance hall in shock.

“I have been waiting. Welcome to Wingesburg, ladies.” The baron greeted them sensually and Twilight yielded to his voice once again. Somehow, he was able to arrive before they did, and now fully enjoyed the fact as he basked in the blue sunlight at the window. He smiled at her: “Teleportation, if you want to ask.”

“That’s impossible!” Was the first stupid thing she could squeeze out. Of course, she knew there was no other way, but the spell was quite unstable. For her and every unicorn she met, it was possible to teleport several feet, a mile at max, away. ‘So the crystals come from him too.’ She concluded.

“Impossible. That word doesn’t bear a meaning for me anymore.” He rang a bell by his side and a group of ponies came running from doors around, leading her friends to different directions and out of the room. Two pony guards dragged Loyalty and Laughter to a dark hallway after she dropped them to the ground. A light blue mare in an outfit Twilight encountered only in books nudged her side, trying to take her away as her colleagues did to others. “Go on. Accommodate, and then visit me in the evening. You’ll get all your answers.”

Twilight nodded, but held back at the sill, fighting the mare pulling her inside. She called out to him, half-whispering: “Is she a good slave?”
“WHAT?” He exclaimed and glared in disbelief. “It’s a maid dress, yes, but Twilight Sparkle, what are you implying? She’s no slave, she is paid very generously!” She let out a giggle and left the room before he realized how much he fell for her joke. “FUCK!”

The journey through the castle was longer than she’d expected. Without the navigation from the young servant, she would most certainly lose herself in the maze of corridors, rooms and halls. In the room arranged for her, she jumped right into the cozy bed and listened carefully as the mare explained the castle rules. “… and if you ever need anything, just ring this bell and I’ll rush to your service.”

“Actually, could you please tell me how the others are?” Twilight asked. The pony cocked her head to the side, confused. “My friends, I mean.”

“Oh, well, Lady Rarity should be enjoying the pleasure of our wonderful spa and Lady Fluttershy was led straight into the gardens. I was not informed of the rest, sorry.”

After a quiet while, the servant left as if dismissed, and Twilight gradually faded to sleep, tired from spells she conjured in the morning.
A shattering sound pulled her away from her dreams back into the gloomy room. The first thing she noticed when she opened her eyes was the door. It was halfway open and grated horribly in the nightly silence. She fumbled to her left, trying to reach the bell, but found the shelf to be distressingly empty.

From the moment she left her room, the whispers returned, disturbingly loud, as if coming from all directions. It sent shivers down her spine, yet she continued to follow the embering torches down to the source. They illuminated the paintings along the way, the eyes of past ponies watching her every step. Before long, she stood at another wooden door, its planks darkened by the ages. A sign at the top made it clear: ‘Küchen’. Twilight as a fan of French hadn’t studied German much, but the word itself was easy to determine.

She entered the kitchen, hoping to meet the mare assigned to her. Not much could she see inside and almost crashed into a large table, if only she hadn’t noticed the white shape on the floor, which turned out to be a broken plate upon closer examination. It fell most probably from the table, what was unnerving however, were the scratches around it. ‘Perhaps a stray cat?’ She backed off slowly, oblivious to the change outside.

That was when she turned around and gasped in a horrendous surprise from the sight. Faces of barons and their families twisted and moved inside the paintings in an otherworldly manner, their empty eye sockets dripping with red paint. The torches shone like fires in the underworld, a demonic green blazing downwards unlike the usual flame. She started to hyperventilate and her head got dizzy, like the day at the Sugarcube corner. ‘Am I dreaming?’ She stared blankly at her hooves, and looking to end the nightmare, punched herself to the chin. It would not work.

A protracted, cadaverous groan echoed through the cursed hallway and a shadow arose on its end. Twilight, with not much courage left, caught just a quick glimpse before heading the other way. It observed them in the forest and now it came for her. Fear gave her the strength and she galloped away, turning and closing the doors behind her with telekinesis. Her brain had memorized the route to the baron’s office and subconsciously projected it to her as she ran for her life.

Suddenly, a wooden barrel rolled into her way, and Twilight, instinctively putting forward her front legs, tripped over it, hitting her head to the ground and collapsing completely. The large chamber was pitch-black in the night; the only light came from the castle entrance. She couldn’t see properly, instead, blurry images flashed in her mind. It took more time than it should to recover, but slowly, the ringing in her ears gave up to the loud wheeze from behind, as the monster kept breaking the doors in its wake.

She panicked and jumped up, and tirelessly ran towards the office. A warm liquid flowed from the top of her head down her back, tickling Twilight’s coat. She stumbled up the stairs and pulled the handle, unluckily, unable to get the door open. With tears, she turned back to face her inevitable fate.

IT had four legs, bent to painful angles and broken at several points. No mane, eyes bulged out and a missing jaw made it seem like a corpse, but it was too bulky to be one. It glared at her with hunger and Twilight thought sure it would jump at her. The disfigured pony tossed one of its hooves forward, and a rounded object rolled from its claws her way. A pink-colored skin, a head stained by blood where it was ripped from the neck, revealed its enthusiastic smile when all the torches lit up on their own. Twilight screamed.

“There goes the price.” Pinkie talked. “You always drag your friends to wild adventures and battles against evil, ignoring the danger that comes with it. You thought you could keep your carefree attitude forever?” The thing laughed, and Twilight closed her eyes in horror.

“Of course not. You need to learn the weight of consequence.”

“No, she doesn’t!”

A loud blast deafened Twilight and a blue flash reached her eyes through her lids. She opened them and checked the room. Both the creature and the head disappeared, the fellow stallion standing in their place. He trotted over to where she was crouching and hoofed her two different phials. “To the bottom, now.” She grabbed the strange potion of green description and tried to make sense of the text: “Lauda-nauda-dauna-“

“Just drink it, alright!?”

Without hesitation, she complied. The pulsating feeling coming from the crack on her head faded and the stinging pain vanished. She took the second shot, emptying the blue vial and shaking in deep relief. Each consumed drop washed the stress she accumulated over the last few days, healing what the green substance could not. The sudden concession of her worries and fears forced a tenderly moan out of her, and once she attained full control of her mind again, she blushed, slightly embarrassed.

“What the hell was that?” She referred the situation, calmer and more settled.

“I have owned this castle for a long time, millenniums in fact, but it still carries a history pre-dating my own presence in this world. Ancient ghosts roam these halls, and they don’t take kindly to changes, or new visitors.” He passed around her, aiming for the locked door.

“I have a bad feeling that with every answer you give me, more and more questions will arise. Apparently, you’re saying you are thousands of years old. How exactly have you achieved that please?”

He smiled warmly, giggling with his eyes closed like she was a naive silly filly: “Oh, Twilight Sparkle, you greedy mare, I am terribly sorry, but my secret won’t work for you.” The baron concentrated energy in his horn, and unsealed the magic protection to his office.

“You regard me with my full name and I think that is unfair. Can I have your name for a change, oh mighty baron?” She asked, singing the last words.

“I see you love my voice then, that you’re trying to mimic it. However, don’t talk fancy, be who you are, be honest. As for my name, you can call me Light.” The room was different, shocking perhaps, containing a single metal ingress. The elevator and the round white walls inside were completely unfitting to the castle interior.

“How can you even talk to me like that? You lecture about honesty and lie a sentence later. I mean Light – TwiLIGHT? How much of stupid do I look to you?” An idea sprawled in her head, induced by his voice and charm, and she checked his flank for a cutie mark, one that would indicate a master of falsehood. She expected a spider, instead a black pen glistened on his side. As before, he caught her look, causing her face go red again.

“Hehe, I know you’re very smart. But I’m talking truth here, my name is indeed Light. Light Yagami, to be precise. I am a human and I’ve lived here for more than three thousand years. It is simple like that.”

The sole whirring of the elevator filled its cramped space as it moved down, for considerable amount of time. His eyes spoke of no lies and the truth overwhelmed her to the point she stopped breathing.

Her mind was chaos again. Too many questions whirling inside, and not much answers to appease them. Regardless, she kept her calm on the outside.

“So, is Kamina a human too, then?” Twilight sorted out her priorities, hoping to confirm her suspicions she had since he appeared in that mirror.

“Yes. And he had been here even before I arrived. He found me first; I recall it was way back to the Hayern Uprising. I don’t expect you to know what it is, since ponies are not really fond of history. Goddamn it, I’ve seen this world grow into unbelievable innocence since then and I really envy you. Back where I used to live, it would seem like hell to you.” He paused for a moment, gritting his teeth.

The elevator descended still, and Light continued: “I’m sorry, I should just carry on to more important matter; our enemy. Listen close, it’s complicated.” With a nod, she settled to hear him out.

“There is an anomaly that brought us two to Equestria. It is presumably a portal from yet another world and it spurts out a lot of data. I myself can’t explain it, but we believe it’s semi-sentient, because it brought us in here. You see, we both died in our worlds and then we got transported here. Anyway, the data from the anomaly is harmful. Harmful in a way that makes ponies go murdering their friends and do other insane things; in other words, it emits packets of negative emotions to its surroundings.” He stopped, waiting for her to take it all in.

“That means Celestia…” Twilight gasped, suddenly understanding the reason for the whole madness.

“… was hiding it all along. The data and the magic of this world are compatible. The anomaly reappears randomly near strong sources and Princess of the Sun is one of them. That’s also the reason you were targeted. Elements of Harmony are even more powerful, so it corrupted the ones that are not necessarily good, which are Laughter, Loyalty and… Magic.”

“What?” She shouted, demanding explanation.

“Well, the bruise on Rarity’s cheek didn’t grow from falling down the stairs, did it? I have an eye spell to detect the data and I can see several strands still going about you. Take a look for yourself.”

He leaned forward, touching her horn with his, and with a red glow, both the vision and the knowledge to cast it flowed into her head. Several crimson shapes and numbers appeared orbiting different parts of her body and from a halo over her head, a dark red triangle departed, flying straightly into her brain. It was confusing, and she blinked a few times in an effort to orientate.

“I presume you want to have this explained.”

She looked at him and gasped, seeing the same particles running down over his body, but in a bright blue color.

“A thing me and Kamina got. It doesn’t come directly from the anomaly and we’ve been covered like this since our first day here.” He interpreted. “I’ve marked the ‘bad’ data red and ours blue, because it obviously isn’t the same. The blue essentially protects us from the effects of red and, unfortunately, confines us in pony form. Also, it seems less affected by magic. While I can easily clear you of red, I can’t do the same to myself, as the blue stays permanently.”

She knew there was something behind the emptiness she felt, something that caused her to lose sympathy for her friends, and now, it lay before her. A bunch of stupid data from another dimension. ‘That’s all what it takes?’

“You know, I ought to do it right now. It would eventually deplete or shift off, but we’re in an elevator and there’s really nothing else to do, because the damn music speakers broke again, so why not give it a go.”

When the lift’s door opened at last, with much instruction from Light’s side, they had caught and dispelled all the evil chips of data. The room they’d arrived in first introduced itself with a few seconds of darkness, then the systems powered up, giving a prolonged flash of red glow, before blinding the unsuspecting mare with pure white light.

A barely audible click dimmed the light down and set it to an optimal level.

“I am sure you demand more information, and there indeed is much to be told, but we’re in a rush, I’m afraid. Come on in, please.”

The presented chamber was huge, and more substantially, shaped into perfect cube. Its walls wasn’t like anything Twilight’s ever seen before, being constructed from hundreds of white tile-like panels. Their touch felt unnatural on her hooves, and what struck her most was the material, which seemed polished and weak, but at the first impact, she could tell it boasted more strength and hardness than any metal.

“These anomalies grow more unstable as the time goes, and I believe this one was around for more than forty years. I don’t know what effect it’s going to have, now that Celestia fell to it. Could you believe she sustained such a thing for almost half a century? Why didn’t she tell us? I guess it got her the day it emerged.” Light maundered on, ingrained in his lecture.

She gave a look to both sides as they dragged forward. There were several openings similar to the elevator door, round and, as she assumed, fully automatic as well. After inspecting the advanced technology sufficiently, she straightened her head forward and inhaled in wonder, for a black glossy surface covered the width of the wall up front.

They arrived in front of the screen, and Twilight noticed a small console underneath it. There was a mix-up of buttons placed all over the glassy table, particularly, a one set of them that spelled the alphabet in different rows caught her attention.

“What is this?” She squeaked. The machines she’s been working with had nothing against this single room and boring to work with too, given the low-importance of technology in Equestria. Twilight once had a dream to change that, her studies of magic however pushed that dream far away.

“Ehehe,” he laughed stupidly, “that’s a keyboard. We don’t use that very often. You see, it’s not designed for hooves.”

“Then why exactly do you keep it here?” She raised an eyebrow, as not a single sensible reason came to her mind.

“If you want to know so bad, I’ve been practicing my magic typing. It’s faster than with fingers I must say, and if I retain my horn once I’m human again, it would be a good thing to know.” He registered her slightly concerned look and shrugged: “What? Boredom makes people do stranger things!”

After several more childlike curious questions from Twilight, and many bids for not to touch anything from Light, the intelligent stallion got to work, pushing the buttons, starting up the screen systems and operating the keyboard for effect, to show how good he’d become. Twilight, an amazed little filly, held no attention to it and watched the display in silence.

Finally, a spherical shape appeared on the screen, with a large title over it. ‘EQUESTRIA?’ Twilight exclaimed inside her mind, but kept quiet on the outside. Light looked well-occupied with the systems, and she already disrupted him enough. The apparently three-dimensional orb rotated and soon she realized it was actually a map, when it closed up upon her homeland. It felt so small compared to the far-stretched continents and seas she didn’t recognize, or even came across in the geographical books. Others on the second hoof were a matter of myths, lands she only heard in legends of old. Altogether, countless cities sprawled their names across the surface, Canterlot blinking a single dot amongst many.

A monotone, electronic voice emerged speaking from all directions and filling the room:
-.-
“Equestrian Computer Operating System welcomes you back, sir.
Preparing projection crystals as requested.
Magic-Technology synchronization completed.
Requested crystal uplink: Kamina
Initiating crystal localization.
Localization status: Failed
Link not established.”

The voice fell into silence again, waiting for a response, an input. Twilight turned to Light, visibly expecting an explanation. He, at the same time, gave away a long, frustrated sigh and facehoofed. Seeing as he stayed in that position, leaning against the control panel, Twilight did not hesitate to ask: “What’s going on? Is there a problem with the… -how do you call it again?-... the computer?”

He reciprocated more aggressively than she anticipated, outflanking her: “There’s nothing wrong with my goddamn system, it’s that idiot again! He probably got himself killed, or I don’t know, broke the crystal, he’s capable of that. Just let me think for a minute, okay?
“Oh, I’m sorry, of course.” She responded, frightened.

“No, I’m the one that should be apologizing. Sorry.” He broke off and held his chin up for a moment, but then he shook his head. “Let’s recapitulate: the data flow must be accelerating. We don’t know how much time we have before Celestia goes completely insane and decides to throw the sun down on the planet. Up to this point, both the revolution and hexed army have been a local problem, so the country can still be saved. It’s obvious that if Kamina can’t, we have to intervene. That’s all I got. You?”

“E-yes, yes, I fully agree, we should do that.” She replied a little taken aback. “So, how are we going to do it?”

“That is the exact problem here. Borders have been sealed off; those poor bastards on the front line don’t even know they are serving an insane, dangerous psychopath. Guess we shouldn’t have taken you here at all, but that was before the original plan went to hell.” He sighed again.

“How did you arrive before we did again?” She pushed the question, hinting the solution with her tone.

“I see where you’re headed, but I don’t think that’s going to work. However, it’s still as good start as any.” He pressed a few buttons, turning the system off. His eyes expanded out of sudden spark of realization inside his mind. “You know what? That is actually a very good idea! Let’s head back up, now!”

The ride up was short, and Twilight was sure the elevator accelerated in comparison to their way down before, but was so stunned by the recent events she did not gather up the energy to point it out. Once the door opened, Light blasted off into the hall, rocketing towards the spiral staircase on the left. She followed him as they ascended to yet another door marked with a bronze sign, ‘Magische Forschung’ this time.

When they busted through that door, it overwhelmed her all in one second. Light continued, because as the owner he knew what to expect, conversely, she stayed pinned down, not knowing where to look first. It was the tower they’ve seen from the outside, the one that seemed endless in the mist and now proved to be the same on the inside. That couldn’t be breathtaking on its own though. The one thing that made eyes of Twilight’s sparkle, was that the tower, larger in diameter than she remembered, from down to up abounded with books.

There were torches, candles, all lit up with magic that changed their colors over time. Some of them even floated in place, providing light for every inch of the grand library and its shelves. The stairs were covered with a dark red carpet and the railing hoof-carved with a masterful precision and patience. Altogether with the furniture and decorations, Twilight might have thought the environment was leastwise pleasing, if not downright romantic.

Baron closed his eyes in a moment of meditation. His horn wrapped itself in a crimson gleam, which linked to the candle at hoof. Slowly, atmosphere darkened as the pen of his cutie mark suddenly covered in blood and the first candle linked to another one. Twilight sensed rivers of magic hindering her breath, pulsating throughout the room, and they all came flowing from one point: him. His mane tinted to a shade of red as well, the walls quaked a malevolent vibration, whilst red mist poured down protractedly from the bookshelves.

“Step aside.” He whispered, as if to the wind. That she did, trying to hold back the on-growing migraine from the strengthening magic. Steady beams connected the magical sources of light, charging upwards to the infinity. It was sluggish at the beginning, but now it jumped at speeds her eyes ceased to perceive. The tremors had intensified too, building steadily up to a point of culmination she imagined. What she expected happened. Light opened his eyes, which exploded with colored radiation, driving the mist back to the walls.

Multiple shuffling sounds came from above as the books started to displace from the shelves. Many of them fell down, only to be stopped in midair by a red field of telekinesis. Soon all of it, the mist and the red over Light’s body, faded away, lights returning back to their tranquil magical flickering and books dropping harmlessly on the ground, lined up in demarcated rows and columns.

“All that just to bring down some books? It wasn’t for the effect, to impress me, wasn’t it?” Twilight recuperated swiftly.

“Not at all, why would I do that?... No. Of course not. Actually yes.” He laughed warmly, still somehow falsely. “Was kind of expecting you to see that.”

She tilted her forehead and scolded him, the deep wrinkles signifying her annoyance, but quickly shook it off and carried on. “So what is all this, exactly?” She asked.

“Books. Lots of books.” She was ready to punch him, but he continued to speak before she could.

“They are going to help us figure out the way to teleport from HERE to Canterlot.”

“Teleportation? How? I can hardly put together enough magic to go a mile far. How are we ever gonna make it to Canterlot?”

“I said before it’s not impossible. You see the symbols on the ground?” He stepped off and pointed on the white-chalk circle on the floor, supplemented by different geometrical shapes, drawings and crystals set on crucial places. “That is my personal solution for long-distance traveling. It locates and focuses the energy into one place. Our problem is, of course, we haven’t got one of these in Canterlot. And the books came up as a solution. So, you ready to do some magic research with me?”

She gazed at him a little surprised, going over his words again as she did not quite catch it all the first time. Then, without any more irresolution, she answered: “Hell yes!”

Author's Note

For those who do not know, Light Yagami is from the series Death Note.