1 The Sins of our Past Unleashed
Perfect Reflections stood in front of a carved doorway, cut from the very mountain itself. The fur along her neck stood on end as she stared at the various inscriptions marked along the border, the very same she had been following for years. This all began when she found a book. A book telling of an apocalypse that would take pony kind, and bring upon them a nightmare that would permanently scar the very deity of the dreamscape herself. She had spent the better part of a quarter her life trying to unlock the secrets of the tome, and here she was.
Every step she took on her journey, a part of her mind was telling her to run. The very instinct of self-preservation consistently nagging at her, caused by a force she could not push away. Though, every time she tried to put her research away, the clawing would grow worse. She assumed, at first, a curse, but even the best magicians and scholars she could find could seem to find it. The fear kept her up most nights, but she knew deep down, that if she found the answers of this book she would be freed.
She ran a purple hand along one side of the inscriptions, reading them carefully. A warning. One she wanted to adhere too. One she could not adhere too. She needed to be free, and behind this door was the key to unlocking the chains that had burdened her for so long. She didn't even know if she was ready to face what could possibly be behind this door, but none of that mattered.
"Ms Reflections? We set up camp. Is there anything we need to prepare for continuing our journey?" An Archaeologist asked, pulling the mare out of her trance.
"No... All we need to do now is wait," She responded, brushing a black bang from her eyes, letting the blue gems settle on the archaeologist. "We will wait until the moon has risen, and then we will unlock what mysteries hide within this ruin," she said, taking another look at the door before walking away.
Once again, Perfect Reflections stood at the door, the full moon her only light. Several of the Archaeologists stood with her, staring at the entry to what had haunted their employer for over ten years. All had torches, but none were lit. Not until they were within the ruin. The book had told her of the power that the moon held, and in part, despite how real this was too her, she couldn't help but feel such a thing was cliche. 'The light of the full moon is they key,' she could imagine some bearded, Starswirl knock off say, waving their arms to the sky. For a moment, a small smile crossed her features, a rarity in of itself, but it was quickly crushed down as it always was. Fear was the dominant emotion, and no longer could she feel anything but the slightest bouts of anything else.
Still, they waited, until the moon was high, illuminating the door completely. The inscriptions began to glow with the ominous aura of dark magic, before blending in with the moonlight and almost becoming purified. A strange happenstance, and one she was not expecting. Still, her horn lit, and she added her own magic to the mix, closing her eyes.
Fear is the key to damnation...
The voice did not startle her. After everything she had been through, there had better be a disembodied voice telling her things. Bonus that it was creepy. She closed her eyes, breathing out. Inhaling, she could smell the fear of those around her. How they sweat, at such a sight. "Hold fast... This is just a test of mettle. Do not run," She said calmly, as she finally felt the door start to shift. Slowly, it slid to the side, stale air rushing out, before being sucked back in by the rush of fresh. This had not been open in some time.
"Come, let's go," The tall mare ordered, taking the first step into the cave. Her chest thumped loudly, the feeling intensifying once she entered the blackness beyond the cavern opening. A rock tunnel. Part of her expected something more elaborate. Something that gratified her instantly. The first step turned into a second, and a third, so on and so on as her legs carried her down the tunnel, lost in her thoughts. She noticed she was without one of her companions, but that didn't surprise her. What did was that only one had succumbed to their instincts.
Nothing, other than the ponies moved inside the cave as it tunnelled ever deeper under the badlands, nothing ever breaking the monotony of the rock walls. Not at least, until the floor levelled out. A few more steps and the light of their torches illuminated something she could finally appreciate. What looked to be a tomb. A large tomb. A large mural was carved into all the walls, playing tricks on the eyes. Shadows, with what looked to be figure moving within them, but she could never really focus on. They only ever revealed themselves from the corner of her eyes and were otherwise just black streaks of paint. The painting grew more and more oppressive as it came to the centre of the tomb, where there lay a single sarcophagus under a painting of what she could only imagine being a total solar eclipse.
"A... Little underwhelming, don't you think?" the lead pony asked the mare, breaking the silence that had surrounded them since entering the cave.
"No. This is exactly what I was expecting," Perfect replied, voice flat as she walked towards the sarcophagus. The closer she got, she began to notice a whispering. Like thousands of voices telling her to do something. She lifted her hand, which trembled in a mix of absolute terror and excitement. Fear was the key, and inside this sarcophagus, was the key to her freedom. She placed her hand on the cold stone of the coffin, her fingers finding the crease.
"Wait! We don't know what's inside! What if it poisons us all, or worse? We should leave and come back with something to protect us from anything that could harm us," The lead pony said, placing a hand on Perfects shoulder, but the mare was locked in a trance, rolling out of the grip.
Do it...
Freedom...
Joy...
Happiness...
Freedom...
Freedom...
The whispers continued as Perfect Reflections pulled open the coffin, only to reveal the skeleton of a creature she had only seen crude drawings of in books. What stood out were the horns, an elongated muzzle, and the razor sharp teeth. It was curled up in what appeared to be agony, but without a face to get an expression from she had no idea.
Looking upon the skeleton of the creature, however, lifted a weight from her shoulders that she had born for too long. No longer was she afraid, and the swirl of her unleashed emotions bubbled inside her. for the first time in years, she could feel happiness, letting out a jovial laugh. "I'm free! I- I finally did it! I broke the curse!" She yelled, laughing aloud as all the archaeologists stared at her. " I have won my-"
FREEDOM!
The ear-splitting screech tore through Perfect Reflections skull, dropping her, and everyone else to their knees. How did she not realize this was a mistake? Other than years of unrelenting terror clutching at her heart, teaching her new meanings of the word every moment.
The purple mare looked up, to see the shadows from the walls start to actually stir and flow, tendrils reaching out for the Skeleton as it shifted in it's resting place. It started picking up speed, wrapping itself around the bones as the figure came to life. She watched as flesh grew over bone, and scale over that. The creature grabbed the edge of it's prison, claws scraping against the stone, as it pulled itself out to stand before her.
"You... Have won my freedom, foolish little pony..." A cool, feminine voice said, the creature taking another step forward as black cloth formed over her body. "You have won the freedom of me and my children... And your reward will be a death swifter than what anyone in Equestria could hope for," She cooed.
The sound of claws scraping against stone, chittering with rapid movement surrounded them, as Perfect stared wide-eyed. Forming out of the very walls, more and more of the creatures started appear, growling and snarling soon being added to what sound there was. Before Perfect, or anyone else could react, the torches went out, plunging them into darkness.
Once again, Perfect Reflections felt fear. Only this time... She knew exactly what she was afraid of...
Author's Note
Should I continue?
