The goldenrod stallion hummed to himself as he walked slowly along the road. It was well trodden by the pony, and the froggits on the side of it were eagerly waving to the familiar figure. He nodded back, a light blue scarf wrapped around his neck, made long ago by his mother. Back then it had been too big, but now, it felt just right.
He continued down the earthen path, dust gently coming up with each new step. The sound of his hooves were all that filled the empty caverns, only broken by the occasional crying fairy, a whimsum, flying by. At one point in his five years down here, the silence scared him. Not because he couldn’t run from his thoughts. No, that was easy. It was the fact that it reminded him of just how dark this place was, and how cold; how different it was from what he used to have in Equestria. Now though, the unicorn was happy for it. It had helped him learn to focus better than in his younger years, and meant he could be better at his mother’s magic lessons. He hoped one day he would make her proud through them.
The final thing that helped make all of this be better for him, were his spider friends. Little makers of treats that always had a bake sale going on, and had become his friends over the years. One now walked next to him and he calmly spoke, “One jug, and three donuts please.” The spider scurried ahead of him, and a small laugh escaped the stallion, jostling his short, fire trimmed, turquoise mane. It was similar to what he had as a colt, and was to stay that way after his mane got so thick that he couldn’t see for a day before letting Toriel burn it away.
Stepping into the dead end, he raised an eyebrow and bit into his cheek. After five years of being a loyal customer, he was used to being able to ‘talk’ to the spiders while they made his food before him. Today though, they were nowhere to be seen. Instead, the ingredients were there, but so were empty webs.
A cracking rippled through the silence, and the stallion looked to the ground. Slowly, the dirt separated, and let a small sunflower come up. It spread its leaves like arms, and looked to him, before smiling. A sweet voice escaped it only a moment later. “Hello there, Snails. I’m so happy you could make it today.”
Snails blinked a few times before raising an eyebrow. “Do I know you? Are you the spirit of one of the flowers I ate back in Equestria?” He raised a hoof, swallowing hard at the thought, and the flower’s high pitched laughter did not help.
The flower covered his mouth for a moment as the last of its giggles drifted away. “I am not, but I am indeed a flower. I’m even named, Flowey!”
Snails laughed a bit himself at the name, covering his own mouth so as to try not to be rude. Just as Toriel had taught him to be. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you!”
Flowey stopped him from being able to say anything more when his eyes narrowed, and a shadow seemed to be cast over his forehead. “Oh, yes, it should be. If not for me, you would never have had these five years of bliss, and Equestria would never have met with The Underground. So yes, the pleasure is all yours. However, once I’m done, it will be all mine.”
This stopped Snails’ jovial attitude, and he cocked his head to the side, looking down upon the flower as he tried to puzzle together what he said. “How could you be responsible for me coming here? I fell down a well. Not only that, but,” he shifted his head to the other side, “how would you be able to make the pleasure all yours when I’m happy by just having known you?”
The smile on Flowey’s face widened. “Oh, how innocent can one full grown stallion be? Not that it matters how I do it, only that I can. As for your ability to have fallen down that well…” Flowey’s face distorted, his smile becoming a jagged grin as his eyes becoming soulless, black pits. “I only had to come here because that pacifistic brat forced me to load a very… special save. A save to a world where I would not require human souls to get stronger. The best part is that they won’t exist, no one else will remember them, and I still can, so I won’t make the same mistakes.”
Snails stepped back, putting a hoof to his head as he shook it. “I… I don’t know what you’re talking about, and you’re beginning to scare me!”
Flowey blinked, staring at Snails before his face smoothed back over, his bright, cheery smile coming back as a white sphere formed in front of him. “Oh, I’m sorry. I was thinking of much worse realities than this one. Let me help you relax with an example of why I chose your land specifically.” His smile cracked, becoming the jagged form it had only moments ago as the bullet became black.
Before the stallion could respond, the seed shot forward, and Snails’s eyes widened as it went straight into his chest.
Flowey began to laugh once more as the stallion fell to the ground, whimpering from the intense, sharp pain that was spreading through his body. “See what I mean? One Plunder Seed, and you’re doomed! This world favors us plants, and will give me the strength I need so that I can enjoy you writhing in pain, futilely trying to save your life, but still be able to take what I desire after I watch you fail..” His eyes narrowed, still jagged as that wicked grin never left. “Of course, to make the game a little fair, I should let you know what it does. The seed within will kill you when your determination runs out, and cause you increasing agony until then. It’s marvelous, don’t you think?
Snails glanced at the flower, his hooves drawn up as he shivered and shook. “W-why are you doing this?”
Flowey only continued to smile, teeth now showing as his grin became larger and larger. “You will be my satisfaction for not being able to kill the brat like I had wanted to before. Now, I can sit back and watch you die, before going to retrieve my final gifts. Have fun!” A final, harsh laugh filled the chamber, before Flowey sank into the ground.
Slowly, the stallion got to his hooves, but his vision was blurry. The pain in his chest was agonizing, and he wanted to simply lay down. Rest. Escape the torment that had so suddenly been thrust upon him. His eyes were just about to shut, when a tapping against his leg caused him to look down.
A set of spiders lifted the donut they had just made towards him, crumbs of it against his leg where they had used the pastry to get his attention. Looking upon his friends, still trying to help him, filled Snails with determination, and the pain ebbed. He took the donut into his mouth, before turning on his hooves towards the way out. He didn’t know entirely what was going on, but that was normal. Besides, he knew someone who would at least be able to point him in the right direction to get this all fixed.
Author's Note
This will be posted in time with a Let's Play I'm doing with one of my friends, in part so as to make sure I don't forget anything as Snails makes his way through the Underground. By no means do you have to watch it, but, they will be left here when they fit to the part of the story we are in. Such as, the very beginning.
A large goat woman was busily cutting up some carrots, given to her from a local Vegetoid. They were still rather fresh, but she wanted to get them into her stew as quickly as possible so she could make the best dinner for her wonderful boy as she could. It wasn’t quite their five year anniversary as a family yet, but she was preparing for it. A week of spoiling wouldn’t cause him to be rotten. Than again, she doubted anything could.
It was while Toriel laughed, her purple robe bouncing gently as she did so, that the front door opened. She turned around, humming to herself as she walked out of the kitchen. “How were the spiders today? I hear that they may be nearing their goal, so-” She stopped dead in her tracks as Snails walked in, sweat pouring down his brow, and black vines with green thorns came out of his chest, wrapping around the front of his body.
Toriel was over in a moment, her arms around Snails for but a moment before she was inspecting the rest of the unicorn. The spot where the vines converged had blood slowly oozing from it, and when she reached for it, a small tendril shot out, grabbing ahold of her wrist. A small flame came to her palm, but instead of panicking and white washing all of the vines, she traced the vine back, burning it back to the core. She stopped just before it reached the seed, her eyes wide.
“Sn-Snails, what happened?”
The stallion swallowed hard, before trying to smile, just for his mom. “Well, I went to the bake sale, but the instead of the spiders, a sunflower came to see me, and it could talk. It said some really confusing things, before-” His eyes widened as the smile faltered, and one of the vines wrapped around his neck, cutting off his air.
Toriel wouldn’t wait this time to know more of the plant. The flame in her palm came back, and she pressed it against Snails’s chest.The smell of burned fur filled the air as the mighty flames wrapped around their prey, burning away the infestation, but never removing the core. While Snails panted, leaning heavily against the wall, Toriel cauterized the small hole in his chest, hoping it would keep the plant at bay. “What did that flower do to you?”
Snails took in a deep breath, his chest feeling much less constricted, at least for the moment. Now that the pain had ebbed, he found the smile much easier to put on, even if he knew it would soon have to fade, no matter what he did. “Mom… I love you, I promise.”
Toriel leaned back, staring at him. “Snails…”
“And if it were my choice, I would stay here forever, by your side.”
“Snails.”
“But,” his smile fading away as he spokes, “he put a Plunder Seed in me, and I can feel it causing my magic to whither. If you have a remedy, than… than we can do that, but even to my home, Plunder Vines are almost unheard of, and I only know of six ponies who succeeded in getting rid of them. But if I’m going to see them…” Snails looked down, unable to finish the sentence.
Toriel stared through Snails, seeing six children standing behind him. Six children, each wanting nothing but to go home. Each in turn faded as a monster behind them, a hulking beast in black armor took ahold of their souls. She knew this would be Snails’s fate too, just like she knew this day would come from the first time they had met. The thought that this was different though, that Snails could fix the things she so desperately wanted repaired, wouldn’t leave, not after he had spent five years proving that he was different.
“Do you think you will be fine for the night?”
Snails grew a large, vibrant smile. “Come on mom, you should know me better than that. Nothing can keep me down, and I’ve taken far worse than this.” He then wrapped his hooves around her, holding the goat-woman close. “Besides, the nasty plant also said that it would kill me only when my determination ran out, and knowing that I would make you cry if I gave up fills me with more determination than this stupid seed will ever be able to beat.”
A tear came to Toriel’s eye, and she wanted to believe him. Wanted to think that only determination could keep a creature going, but her years of experience told her to believe otherwise. Looking into Snails’s brown eyes, she couldn’t simply dismiss his want either. She turned away, unable to continue to look into the tears that were welling up in his eyes.
Snails lifted a hoof, trying to comfort his mother by putting it on her shoulder. “I promise that once I’m fixed, I’ll come right back. At most, say hi to a friend or two, but I would never just abandon you, mom.”
Toriel looked back to him one more time before standing up. “We will talk about this again tomorrow. For tonight, go to your room, and get some sleep.”
Snails stood up and wrapped his forehooves around her, snuggling against her neck. “I love you, Toriel, and hope you sleep well. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Toriel did not give a hug back, nor followed him to the bedrooms. Instead, she could only cry, her tears evaporating in the colossal ball of magic she could not muster the strength to use.
======+++++======
Snails yawned as he stretched on his bed. He had slept pretty roughly, the pain in his chest having ebbed before, but never quite disappearing, That wasn’t the only reason though, and he knew it. Finally, after five years of staying in this house, he would have to leave. Not only that, but leave to go back to his world, without Toriel. The pain in his chest flared up at the mental image of him sitting at the exit, unable to go on.
Snails put a hoof up to the spot, his breathing coming in much slower as it felt like vines were constricting around his lungs. A tear came down his face, and he tried to clear his mind. The thoughts wouldn’t leave though, so he thought back to the advice Cheerilee would always give him when he was smaller. To never focus on the negative and look on the bright side of things.
A smile crept over his lips as he imagined his teacher’s reaction to him coming back. He bet Snips would tackle him into the ground, and yell at him for being gone for so long. Cheerilee would make sure it went no farther, and the three would be able to share a good meal, and catch up. In fact, once this stupid vine was out of him, he could lead them back, and show everypony how amazing The Underground was. At the very least, he could always come back to Toriel.
A tear came down his face, this time of happiness, and Snails only then realized that his chest had recovered. With one more breath in, and a smile over his face, he headed out for the living room. It probably wasn’t going to be pleasant, but he had to say goodbye, one more time.
Walking into the living room, his mouth immediately filled with saliva. He swallowed hard, his eyes widening in disbelief. There was absolutely no way Toriel had actually baked him one just for the journey, but that hint of cinnamon in the air was far too familiar. Far too captivating. He soon was bursting into the kitchen, his tongue hanging out as he turned to the goat-woman.
Toriel smirked to herself as the door came open, and she turned around, holding a pie tin, still steaming because of how fresh it was. She pulled it up as Snails came forward, and shook her head. “No, this isn’t for now.” She had to raise it higher as Snails stood awkwardly on his hind hooves and tried to grab it.
“But mom, it smells so good!”
Toriel laughed a bit as she spun around the clumsy stallion, and smiled as Snails fell to the floor. He laughed for a bit on the cool tile, before shaking himself and standing up. “So, is it for me while I go to battle the tyrant that is that evil, yellow flower? To help fill me with determination as I travel these great lands by myself?”
The smile on Toriel’s face faded for only a moment, before only become a great, big grin. “Now now, who ever said you had to do this by yourself?”
Snails stopped, his eyes widening, before he began to prance in place. “Wait, so you’re hoping to come with me? But you never leave the ruins!”
Toriel shook her head, slipping the pie into a basket, before putting that basket into the handcrafted saddlebags she had made for Snails long ago. She brought them over, helping the young stallion get the cloth over his lean back, before kissing him on the cheek. “I would never leave my son to face so much by himself. What type of mother would I be than?”
Snails put a hoof to his muzzle. “One that doesn’t have badass, magical powers?”
One more laugh escaped the goat creature, before she walked out of the kitchen. Snails eagerly followed, smiling at Toriel as they walked into the front room. With a gentle prod from Snails, both were able to go around the banister, and for the first time in five years, they walked down the stairs. At the sight of Toriel’s smile continuing to disappear, Snails nuzzled into her side as they walked. “Do you remember the first time we were down here?”
Toriel took in a deep breath, before nodding, her body trembling as they turned past the first corner. “It seems almost like an eternity ago. A time when things weren’t so nice and peaceful.”
“And before I had this kick ass, pink scarf.”
Toriel wiped a tear away, chuckling a bit as she envisioned the two of them holding each other all the way back then. Having heard that Snails was an orphan should have been a tragedy, but for her, it had swelled her spirits, and stopped her from doing what she used to think she had to. Of course, if she had, Snails would be doomed to die right now.
“Hey, aren’t I the snail between the two of us?”
Toriel raised her head, seeing that familiar, confident, innocent smile turned back to her from around the last bend. Her trembling increased, wondering about what exactly she would find past the gate. It had been so long since she had been back there, and she didn’t know if The Underground was still a place of peace, or a place full of true monsters. If it were the latter, they may be dooming themselves to death anyways.
“Sn-Snails, don’t you think we should, I don’t know, maybe wait another day or two before we go?”
Snails turned back to her, his turquoise hair just barely touching the edge of one of his eyes. “Mom… I really do wish I could. I would want nothing more than to just stay here, but that isn’t a choice right now. I have to go pretty far, and I’m not exactly the fastest pony in the world. Minimize risks and all that, right?”
Toriel lowered her head, staring at the stone beneath their feet, before taking in a deep breath, and nodding. “Alright Snails, I’m right behind you than.”
Snails let out a loud whoop, before turning around, and pushing against the huge, stone door. As it moved, light streamed in, blinding Snails from what was beyond.
Author's Note
*muffled cursing* The delay is actually on my part, as life has been hell, and getting to editing this has been rather... difficult. Sorry.
