That is not dead which can eternal lie,
and with strange aeons even death may die
-The Mad Arab
“Dear Blue Emblem,
I am sending you this grave message with utmost urgency. The director's filly has been checked into the asylum under false allegations. You used to babysit the dear girl for years. We believe you have the best chance of connecting with her. The reputation of the Institute hangs in the balance Blue Emblem, I hope you can succeed at straightening this situation out quietly.
Fire Storm”
The cold winds shook Blue Emblem to the bone as he walked up the steps into Coldspot Inn. Snow blew into the building as he opened the door, coating the doormat before melting from the warmth of the fireplace.
“Hey there stranger,” said the Innkeeper with a smile. “What can I get you today”.
“Just a room please,” replied Blue Emblem “I’m on extremely important business so make it quick”.
“Woah there stranger, no need to be rude,” said the innkeeper in a slightly annoyed tone.
“Sorry, I've just been very nervous about this assignment I got, It has to do with the asylum,”apologized Blue Emblem.
The Innkeepers eyes flickered dark green and then returned to their normal color.
“Did your eyes just change color for a second?” asked Blue Emblem.
“Stranger, your nervousness must be making you see things. Your room is down the hall to the left. Have a nice night”.
Blue Emblem wasn’t sure of it, but he felt as if the whole building was watching him.
Blue Emblem woke up to the hustle and bustle of the town. He looked at his watch and noticed that he was late for his appointment at the asylum.
Blue Emblem quickly put on his clothes and rushed down the stairs. In his haste to go out the door he knocked into one of the maids and she spilled orange juice all over his face.
“Oh stranger, you seem to be all wet. Borrow this cloth to dry yourself off,” said the innkeeper handing Blue Emblem a cloth.
As Blue Emblem dried off his face, something struck him; the cloth felt so familiar.
“Sir, where did you acquire this cloth?” asked Blue Emblem with a confused look on his face.
“Oh, I bought it off a traveling merchant who checked in a few minutes after you. Quite the strange fellow, but he insisted that it was made of the finest material so he convinced me to purchase it. Why don't you keep it as apology for this maid’s foolishness.” explained the Innkeeper
“Thank you”, said Blue Emblem “ I must go now. Goodbye”
“Stay safe stranger, Good luck with your endeavor” yelled the Innkeeper.
Blue Emblem went out the door, noticing an unnerving grin on the Innkeeper's face.
The trot through town to the asylum was an odd experience. Over and over he felt watched but when he looked around all he saw were people going about their normal business.
“Something is definitely wrong with this town,” thought Blue Emblem. “ I better get to Sun Skies fast before something terrible happens to her.”
As he was lost in his thoughts he bumped into somebody with a thud. “Hey there stranger. Are you ok? You look a bit pale”
“Wait, I thought you were back at the Inn, I left there 10 minutes ago” asked Blue Emblem with a confused look on his face.
“Well stranger, just after you left I remembered I had some food to pick up so I went along and got it before bumping into you, literally,” answered the Innkeeper with a chuckle. “Now let me help you up.”
Edmund grabbed the hoof of the Innkeeper and stood up. Something felt weird though, his hoof felt numb.
“What’s going on? What are you doing to me?” asked Blue Emblem frantically.
“Oh just finishing the last preparations. My master is pleased with you so far,” said the innkeeper in an increasingly demonic voice.
“Oh god, let go of me you damn beast!” yelled Blue Emblem.“Why is nobody helping me?” Blue Emblem was getting more and more panicked.
“Oh they can't hear you. This entire town is under my master’s control. Now scurry off to your petty asylum and see for yourself what this town is all about.”
The Innkeeper started fading away, his figure getting more and more translucent until he disappeared completely and all that was left was a pile of clothes.
“I have to get Sun Skies out of here. This place is cursed,” thought Edmund as he rushed to the asylum.
The double doors slammed open with surprising force as Blue emblem forced himself through the atrium.
Blue Emblem grabbed the nearest doctor and yelled “TAKE ME TO SUN SKIES!”. Edmund’s fierce entry scared the patients that were inside the room.
The patients were so startled that some of them started going into fits while nurses tried to calm them down, all the while leering at Blue Emblem.
Blue Emblem looked around the room and started to feel very guilty of his actions before noticing two figures coming from behind him.
“Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to come with us,” said two guards while grabbing Blue Emblem’s back.
Blue Emblem‘s hyperventilating slowed. “Alright, my outburst was very uncalled for. Take me where you wish.”
As Blue Emblem was escorted out of the atrium he felt very bad. He could hear the wailings of the patients from down the hall.
“Sir, why did you barge in here, yell hysterically and disturb the asylum!?” stated the guard with a slam on the table.
“I had a….strange encounter that made me a bit psychotic for a moment i guess. I have no idea what came over me,” explained Blue Emblem.
“A bit psychotic is an understatement. That doctor’s ears still hurt. Now who is this Sun Skies you were raving on about?” asked the guard.
“Good, I can finally explain my situation in full. I recently received a letter from a friend pertaining to a patient here. Her name is Sun Skies and she apparently was checked in here but….” said Blue Emblem trailing off.
“Go on,” said the guard
“But I was informed it was under false pretenses,” explained Blue Emblem further.
“Hogwash, there has never been a person here that was admitted under false pretenses. It is impossible. We would be able to to tell if that person was insane or not by looking at their behavior,” retorted the guard with a slight twinge of annoyance in his voice.
“I beg to differ. If what you say is true then there will not be a Sun Skies in this place. Prove to me that she is not here and I will leave,” said Blue Emblem adamantly.
“Alright,” said the guard “Go to the receptionist and ask her. Without making a scene this time” he finished with a chuckle.
“Very well,” said Blue Emblem “I will go do that”.
Blue Emblem felt something watching him again, stronger than ever this time. “Something will be coming soon,” thought Blue Emblem. “ I must be ready.”
“For Sun Skies.”
Blue Emblem walked up to the receptionist’s desk. She looked at him with her striking green eyes
“Sir may I help you?”
“INNKEEPER IT'S YOU AGAI-!” Blue Emblem stopped yelling as he saw everyone looking at him.
“Please don’t do this again sir, we just finished calming down our patients,” said the receptionist pleadingly.
“I’m sorry miss, your eyes reminded me of somebody. Do you know if a patient named Sun Skies is checked in here.She has ginger hair with freckles.”
The receptionist went into a back room for a few minutes and then returned empty handed. She sat back down in a polite manner.
“I’m sorry sir, but there is nobody named Sun Skies here. Now could you please leave before you cause another scene?” asked the receptionist aggressively.
“Yes, I suppose I should do that,” said Blue Emblem. “Please contact me if Sun Skies comes here”. Blue Emblem sighed as he checked the time with his watch.
The reception moved her head to look behind Edmund. “Sir, you don’t have to wait at all it seems”
Blue Skies looked behind him and there she was. Sun Skies stood there, fur shining, wearing her blue pajamas that she had always wore when she was younger.
“Sun Skies!” Blue Emblem exclaimed with relief “Oh god, you have no idea how happy I am to see you”
Sun Skies simply stood there looking at Blue Emblem. Out of nowhere she said “Jester” with a blank look on her face.
Blue Emblem put his hooves on her shoulders. “Yes sweetie, now let's get out of here. My car is parked near that cursed inn.”
Edmund flung Sun Skies onto his back and ran through the doors with her, trying desperately to escape this nightmare.
It was night when the two of them went frantically through the town. The citizens were lined up on the sidewalks staring at them, a creepy reminder they had their minds corrupted.
“Jester, Jester,” said Sun Skies as she was carried along. “Jester, Jester,” she said again. She did not say anything else.
“Hush sweetie, we can talk when we get to the car,” said Blue emblem with a comforting tone. The full moon was high in the night sky as they both tried to escape the town’s clutches..
Blue Emblem started hearing whispers as he neared the inn and his car. He saw the innkeeper staring at him through the window before cursing him at the top of his lungs.
Blue Emblem helped Sun Skies into the car and got into the driver's seat. The car started up fine to Blue Emblem’s surprise thinking how almost always in movies the car won’t start at the main characters great escape.
As the town faded from view, Blue Emblem gave the biggest sigh of his entire life. He smiled with the knowledge that he had rescued Sun Skies from that horrible place.
“Jester,Jester,” said Sun Skies again with a deadpan voice.
“Yes sweetie, whatever you say” replied Blue Emblem trying to focus on the road.
“Finally we’re free,” exclaimed Blue Emblem. “You must be starving. Let me get some canned carrots and bread from the trunk so we can have sandwiches together like the old days.”
Blue Emblem went to the trunk of the car to get the food, but before starting to go back. Sun Skies was standing in front of him.
“What are you doing out here? You will get cold,” Blue Emblem said with a concerned tone.
“I’m sorry Blue Emblem, but there was no Sun Skies here to begin with,” she said before grabbing her stomach.
Slick, black tentacles burst out of the fake filly’s stomach and mouth while her eyes started tearing black oil. Inhuman sounds from the darkest depths of blackness itself started echoing through the moonlit night. Eldritch knowledge from ages long past were forced into Blue Emblem’s head driving him mad.
Blue Emblem uttered words uncontrollably that were never meant to be said by mortal ponys. “Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn, ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn, ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn”.
After vomiting a few times Blue Emblem finally regained enough consciousness to make sense again.
“What have you done to me demon? Why are you doing this? Stop before I truly lose my mind!
Please.”
“Say that to my face puny pony” said an unnerving voice. “You should take that knowledge as a gift. I am only here to play with my toys, nothing less.”
“Toys!” Blue Emblem yelled, looking up at the monster's body, it’s haunting shadow piercing the night sky. “We are not toys. We are living beings that think and breath and feel”
“What are you to a being like me. I am an the shadow that haunts the night. I am the thing that your nightmares are made of. I am pure fear and the bringer of Insanity. I AM THE JESTER OF DEATH!”
Blue Emblem was scared beyond belief. “A being of pure death and darkness is going to kill me,” he thought. “Why me? What did I do to deserve this?”
“I bet you are wondering why I chose you to torment. It's nothing special really, I just chose you at random. All you ponies think you're so special, but in truth nothing you do matters,” the Jester stated bluntly.
Blue Emblem felt truly alone in the universe. The realization of how small he was made him want to curl up and die. Blue Emblem reluctantly knew that The Jester was right and it pained him to admit it.
“By the way, that cloth you’ve been wiping yourself with,” The Jester began. “It’s actually skin peeled off from the real Sun Skies’ face.”
That was the last straw. Blue Emblem screamed a scream that could only be made by those truly mad. “I can’t take it anymore, just kill me now!”
“Whatever you say,” said the Jester as he removed his mask to reveal a mass of green tentacles instead of a face. One of them grabbed Blue Emblem’s legs and began to pull him up.
Blue Emblem could only laugh maniacally as he was pulled toward the eldritch horror. He could hear voices becoming louder and louder the closer he came to The Jester. When he finally got close enough to touch him Blue Emblem began to be absorbed into the being feet first.
As Blue Emblem’s body was completely swallowed and only his head remained, he heard one last thing from the depths of the void. A single couplet which seemed to echo throughout time itself.
That is not dead which can eternal lie,
and with strange aeons even death may die
Author's Note
Made this story for creative writing class, constructive criticism please. Hopefully it's better than that really shitty comedy I wrote a long time ago.
