A soft grumble left my lips as I rolled to the left, the sun's beams hitting the cracks of my eyelids a little. The rugged texture of my bed cover rocked me slightly as I encased myself into its soft glory like a caterpillar cocoon, daring to once again fall asleep in this slightly harder bed.

Good morning, my host. It's currently about seven o’clock in the morning. Health, stamina, and mana have been replenished.

'' Morning' I replied with a groggy moan, slowly slithering upwards to face the harsh world outside of this cottony realm. The guest room awaited me; it reminded me awfully like my bedroom when I first was carried into it, just lacking the foal decorations and a tad of the lavishness. "I didn't think it would hit me that hard." I thought with a few fond memories of the night before creeping back to my mind yet again. Cake, so much cake and enough sweet potatoes to make a stallion sick.

My hooves slowly swished across my face with the elegance of a steamroller as a mighty yawn roared from my throat. I threw the cover carelessly to the side before jumping to the floor, it creaked slightly in response. I shivered slightly as the cool morning breeze embraced me. The castle may have been made of marble, but it was well heated. I shook my head; it was too early to fill my head with nonsense, at least, as long as the damn owl was nowhere around.

"Hauhuthos." I mumbled as I trotted towards the door with slow steps, the gate opening while the bed was being made without a spare glace. "You may be strict, but you're a pretty good teacher." The old owl was annoying at best, but he was efficient and very upfront, or at least, his ulterior motives did not actively involve me as he taught me the arcane arts to the point that the Game was less of a cheat, and more as a failsafe. I stopped my thoughts as I arrived at the top of the stairs; my eyes darted down to the lower floor. However, something drew me in the opposite.

"Was that a cough?" I wondered as I heard the wet noise once again.

I believe this is the aforementioned grandmother Gentle Grace spoke about the past day. The Game reminded me, the mare's voice played in my head once again.

‘That is Strong Will, my colt.’ Grace said with a dry tone, quivering slightly. ‘He couldn't be present today. He's on a-vacation, with his grandfather. My mother really needed time to rest upstairs.’

I nodded meekly, my head swayed towards the stairs once again, but a buried sense of childish curiosity flared within me, daring to take at least a scrap of a glance so that it may not nibble at me for the rest of time. I shook my head at my own damn sense of adventure and followed the infrequently occurring noises as the tone varied between rasp and low. I stood in front of an orange door, the sound not far off behind the wooden blockade that kept me waiting only a moment longer as I slowly pressed it open.

On a bed made for two rested a single pony. Her breathing was hard while her old, wrinkled face jerked and occasionally twitched, body seemingly in pain. I swayed my eyes to the nightstand, a table with a half-eaten bowl of oatmeal, and a hoof-full of pills rests next to a glass of water.

"Gentle Grace, are you back already?" The old mare asked with a low and weak tone, her pace interrupted by heavy breaths pained the equine. Upon further inspection, she bore a great resemblance to Strong Touch: A red coat with a white diamond on her forehead, while what was left of a short, blonde mane adorned her head.

I winced slightly at the sight, call it a sixth sense, but that was not someone who looked like they still had the best years of their life in front of them. I quietly walked up to the bedframe and hopped onto it. The old mare took a moment to pause before slowly turning her head, her bleak expression morphed into one of joy.

"Oh, sweet foal, you've come to visit old me." She spoke in a kind tone, the pain in her voice drowned by a new wave of life as I tried to put on the happiest look I could. "I'm Ambrosia Touch, I'm your granny." She spoke with a soft voice that any loving grandmother would use to speak with their grandchildren.

I suppressed a frown and continued giving the old mare a joyous, false smile and slowly sat down with my hooves folded under my barrel. Not a moment passed before she began stroking my back, her thin fur rubbing against mine.

Observe. The Game activated the skill with a skeptical tone.

Name: Ambrosia Touch
Level: 10 (32)
Class: Farmer
Race: Earth Pony
HP: 180
MP: 200
SP: 175
STR: 28 (85)
END: 21 (80)
DEX: 17 (43)
INT: 38
WIS: 59
CHA: 62
LCK: 54

Thoughts about you: She's overjoyed to see her grandfoal.

* Münchmeyer Disease
Physical attributes decay over time until the infected entity is healed or killed.

'What is that?' I read over the abnormal status effect a third time, still not finding the answer despite the familiarity.

A disease similar to sarcoma, a type of cancer.

My breath stuck in my throat as a slimy, cold sensation glided down my spine in parallel to the soft stroking of Ambrosia. I gulped slightly, forcing down air. 'You're serious?'

Affirmative. This entity's tissues are being quickly degraded by this infectious disease; however, it has remained inactive for a large majority of this pony's life. Estimated time remaining: 7 months.

"I've been anxiously awaiting waiting for some company for a while now." Ambrosia sighed while leaning to the side. "'can't work on the fields anymore, the younglings left the den and I've been treated like a fragile vase ever since Sprout bit the dust." I bit my own tongue at her naive words; however, it left me wondering why this random person's situation affected me so much. She was just a stranger.

"Who's Sprout?" I asked, attempting to push this one-sided conversation in a different direction.

"Sprout? He was my husband, quite a strapping stallion if you ask me, sadly couldn't be ripped from the field like a beet, more like a whole tree and that was the best case." The old mare mumbled away, not bothering to fill in the details.

'I-eh, ehm.' I tried to ask a question, yet it all devolved into a quagmire of thoughts while scrambling for more questions to ask. A sense of confusion washed over me. Why didn't I just make up some excuse to leave. The elderly were never my problem, hell, the nicest thing I had done to them was acknowledge their existence, but to comfort and listen... What is happening to me, why did I suddenly care? Why did I suddenly want to interact and make others happy?

This is a perfect opportunity to test out the item skill [Restoration]. The Game noted after half an eternity, leaving me momentarily wondering if he was waiting for me to say it or if it just now came to mind. However, his wording left a bitter taste in my mouth.

'Test as in 'look how to effectively use it' or, 'let's see if you can cast it without murdering the patient.'' I snapped with great skepticism while refraining myself from revealing a great, sour stare.

...The former one. I believe it would be best for me to cast it on other entities for the time being. The Game said with a reluctant tone. I pursed my lips, trapping the vulgarities like rats in a sack.

"Granny?" I asked, interrupting her tirade on how stubborn the old stallion used to be, but at the same time so lovable. Her ears perked up with surprising reflex time. "Can I play you something on the bell?"

"The bell?" Ambrosia asked with confusion before a sudden realization hit her. "Oh, the bell! Well, if you want to, I won't stop you, sonny."

I hopped off the bed and rushed towards the guest room, not questioning whether she remembered the instrument or was just pleasantly surprised by me calling her granny. I pushed the door open with a quick shove and pulled the bell back to me in a magic grasp before charging back, nearly ramming into a vase and a table on the way.

"Slow down, slow down you're gonna send yourself flying over the hill." Ambrosia warned as I jumped onto the bed before her look soured for just a moment. "Please don't use all the hocus pocus on it, its tradition ya know?" Her tone cut off like the road of a construction worker who had enough of his job.

I opened my mouth in protest before letting out a pout and grasping it with my hooves. 'Great, my own great grandmother doesn't believe in magic. If I still was a human, I'd be so fucking proud of her.' I thought with a bitter hint of nostalgia. Holding up the bell, I stared deep into it, and the magic and memories resting inside came alive again for just a moment or two. I let out a quiverful sigh at the 'taste' of sweet memories that clouded my mind like a hot shower after an icy cold day, embracing me with unfamiliar reminiscences of births, parties, weddings, and special events that once were fed into this bell unconsciously.

Using the item skill [Restoration] now.

My body moved on its own, no, that didn’t fit. I was guided like a dog by the leash as my hoof holding the bell rose upwards, and energy began to flow towards the instrument from my core. The bell let out a small hum and glowed pleasantly while hopes and dreams of ponies long gone and still alive coursed ever so shortly through my mind before leaving me with but a faint aftertaste. The bell, now gleaming and shining like a star atop of a Christmas tree, needed just a single motion to release the power, one twitch to play a song. The bell made one sound, and a soothing light like a small, gentle sun illuminated the room ever so slightly more, and warmth coursing through my body invigorated me.

"Ahh-"

My ears perked at the sudden noise, and my pupils shrunk with short-lasting dread as I witnessed Ambrosia let out a gasp, leaning back into the pillow and breathing heavily.

"A-are you okay, granny?" I ask with a sudden, sting-like flame of panic piercing my innards. "Do you nee-eep!" A panicked cry left my lips as Ambrosia's strong hoof suddenly pulled me upwards like a dog by the collar, before just a moment later letting me drop onto her chest. I stared shaking at the suddenly swoll mare who breathed deeply with her eyes closed. "Hello there." I answered fearfully as she opened her eyes.

"I have no idea what you just did." She started slowly, almost devoid of all emotions while a quiverful undertone tarnished her intimidating approach. She rolled her shoulder, carefully at first, expecting some kind of painful reaction, before leaning forward slowly, letting me carefully slip into her lap. Ambrosia exhaled deeply once again, leaning forward and stretching like a frozen piece of cardboard.

"Ehm, a-are you feeling well?" I asked with a newfound sense of terror as I felt her emotions burn with such a passion and intensity that it mentally burned, nearly bringing tears to my eyes with its stinging glory. I blinked strongly as I noticed the two tree trunks ensnaring me, pressing me against the soft, warm, and luscious furred belly of Ambrosia. We silently sat there while occasionally, the limbs traced across my back. I was silenced, stunned in a sense while an overwhelming sense of... of hope and belief spread.

I was momentarily plagued by an inner confusion created by my sudden urge to help, but now a feeling of joy was invoked as I taste this emotion I've unknowingly yearned for so long. It was not addicting like a drug, but much more than a massage; it was a craving for a very specific meal. As my bindings slowly loosened themselves and the stream of passion dried up, it left me hungering for more, not today, not tomorrow, next week, or month, but absolutely once more very soon.

"But I feel a heaping hay of a lot better." Ambrosia whispered as she leaned back, her eyes watered slightly, once again breathing deeply again. She opened her mouth, to say something, yet her words stuck in her throat. "I eh." She mumbled. "Ah darn it, I'm not good with the sappy stuff. Thank you, I really didn't know the sparkling could be this fancy." The old mare let out a quivering breath, stuttering with excitement as she gently motioned to me to hop off. I complied.

"Here I go." She announced, before hopping off the bed with a little, meek hop. I held back a gasp in fear but was relieved when I found Ambrosia sink into her hooves gently before trotting around the bed with a look of disbelief. "I will be darned, I'm not dreaming." She said with a breathless voice before hopping upwards but staggered when landing.

"Are you okay?" I asked with an alien sense of worry before stopping in front of the hyperventilating mare.

"Yes-yes, just a tad too much right now." Ambrosia weakly spat in between breaths; however, it appeared to me not like actual damage, more like an overworked muscle. Still nasty, of course, especially if you worked outside.

The item ability [Restoration] can only heal debuff and damages. However, it cannot return muscles back to a state before the negative status effect was inflicted or reverse age. I cursed silently at the answer given as my little dream of granting semi-immortality was broken.

"I'm fine, just got a bit overzealous. Celestia's sake I can soon return onto the fields." She spoke with amazement while eyeing her hooves and chest and limbs with the curiosity and enjoyment of a foal. "Gentle dear really did not squander lies when she said that you're one special colt. What's wrong?" Her joy suddenly died when she eyed my dip in mood.

"It's just, I kind of don't want to, ya know." I mumbled out like a cranky recorder, a sense of boredom and tiredness laying thick in my voice.

"Ah, don't ya worry sonny, your secret's safe with old me." She said with a caring voice, giving me one hoofed hug that, given my standing point, somehow made me relieved no adult stallion has hugged me before. "And thank you for making this old mare's body work once more without creaking like a rusty door," Ambrosia added with a snarky smile before quickly turning around and hopping onto her bed.

I eyed the old mare with a sense of joy before quietly leaving the room with a sense of pride, accomplishment, and fulfillment. The question was now no longer if I would help ponies out of need or want, but when I could, even if it was just to taste this sweet meal of emotions again in the future, but that was still far off, now my craving was sated and sweet tooth happy.

You have used up all of your [Faith].

"Wow-wee, you really can munch up quite a lot." Strong Touch finally spoke after what felt like half of an eternity walking through the orchard of fruits of great variety; however, the great dominance of apple did not escape my eyes.

"It's not often I can eat as much as I want." I commented as I eyed the little battalion of baskets surrounding a little perch of apple trees that bore plentiful fruits, all of them ripe and ready for picking.

His ears perked slightly as he asked. "Now that you mention it, you don't have much on the ribs. You're getting fed enough, right?" Strong Touch spoke with slight concern as he rocked his shoulders, the carriage shook slightly as he pulled the wooden construct.

"Hmm? Oh, no no, I just don't gain weight, like-well, ever." I replied casually, before letting out a pop sound from my mouth while eyeing the chipmunks and birds have... a trade of nuts for fruits? "Mommy and Mother tried everything, but nothing helps, I once even swallowed a whole five-course meal. 'Didn't gain a single pound though." Disappointment left my lips and a tad of bitterness as my state left me shivering nearly all the time, due to my thin fur and little fat.

"Huh." Strong responded, nodding silently before stopping his motion. The cart creaked ever so slightly, indicating that it was already quite old. "Well, good to know." Strong added, before unbuckling the reins and pulled out a couple of baskets, all their grips, all of them clearly not designed to be handled by an equine, in his mouth.

"Now, not sure if you'll need it for some time, but apple-bucking will someday come in handy, so watch and learn." He spoke after putting the baskets down in a strange, circular pattern, before jumping with his hind legs and kicking the tree bark. The tree shook like it was hit by a car, yet its flexibility implied that it was made out of rubber, but what caught my attention most was not the wood, nor the leafs that remained in place, but the apples that all instantaneously were plucked and collected in the baskets.

'This is some Middle Earth level of tomfoolery.' I thought with a surprising amount of odd satisfaction. "Wow, but, how did they all land in the baskets, and not, you know, on the ground. And, aren't they all bruised up now?"

"We don't ask these questions, it works, so why look the gifted stove in the furnace?" Strong replied with a short nod. "To answer your second question. Nope."

'No wonder like seventy percent of earth ponies live on the land and have no education whatsoever. They are just content with farming... or guard-ing.' I thought with a slight tinge in my facial muscles. Of course, earth ponies working in construction or financing were not unheard of, but the statistics did not lie. As disappointing as they were.

"Come on, give it a shot." Strong noted from the side as he put on the fruits in the cart and placed a set of new baskets around a second tree. "And don't be disappointed if it doesn't work out on the first try, no one is born an apple-bucker."

"Sure." I answered with an unsure tone as I closed in on the suddenly looming tree. I inspected the plant, attempting to imagine Strong Touch kicking it once again to make out if it had to do with placement, before realizing that it was fruitless- heh -as I'd never even reach the aforementioned spot. With a deep breath, I spun around with my legs pulled in, and bucked the tree.

Detecting ankle damage: Fractured.

I kept my yelp within me with a continuous, low pitched inhale while eyeing the single, red apple that fell off the tree and onto the ground. Before I could even retract my hindlegs from the bark, I was pulled into a strong, and I mean, strong hug.

"My grandcolt's first apple-buck." He answered with a joyfully sad note that made me just question how close he was to sobbing.

'Ponies are fucking weird...' I thought with a low exhale as I did the only thing I could right now: watch my health regenerate.

"Oh gosh darn." Gentle Touch sighed with frustration as she let down the needles and the mess of strings that were supposed to be a hat, one that could hardly be differentiated from a sweater, down. "How can you knit so fast?" She asked with visible confusion.

"Keep spitting out those dirty slangs and I'll wash them out, young lady." Gentle Grace threatened from the side, momentarily pausing her knitting to point one of the needles at her daughter.

"I'm 22..." Gentle Touch mumbled under her breath.

"And I'm 38, yet you don't see me spouting curses." Her mother enforced.

"Knitting is something that comes with experience, even though I don't have much free time to pursue such hobbies, I do occasionally make something." Celestia calmly said while keeping her eyes glued onto her piece of fabric that actually was supposed to be the sweater. "Stars favorite hat was actually done by me after the, I believe, fourteenth 'no, thank you' to Cloth Weaver." The alicorn thought loudly while reliving the moment with the utmost... encouraging designer.

"Really? When?" Gentle Touch asked as she put down her work and poured herself a glass of water. "I thought your schedule is full all the time."

"Oh, it sadly is." Celestia replied with a shake of her head. "However I do have the night, when everypony is asleep, to me. Of course, for these, often just this hour, I have to take several short naps between appointments, but otherwise, I probably have burned out a long time ago."

"That does not sound like a peaceful life, you have, your highness." Gentle Grace said weakly from the side.

"Oh, it does sound jarring, however, it is bearable." Celestia answered shortly with a kind, little, petite smile as she increased her knitting pace.

"But all of this on your own?" Gentle asked with a tilted head. "Does nopony help you?"

Celestia hummed for a bit as she knitted for just a few more seconds before answering. "Yes and no. Hauhutho is a great help, however, he is rarely available, and Cadance I do not wish to pester, despite her many offers."

"Wait, what about the nobles? Don't they, like, do anything?" Gentle asked with a tilted head. "I know miss Gloom Bloom overviews the agriculture and Stable Fort dictates the construction."

"That is true, but they do not make decisions, they are just following orders with a limited area of freedom, however all of their plans have to be approved by, usually, me." Celestia spoke, with a slowly bitter becoming tone.

"So no... ehm, how do I put it?"

"Mortal ponies?"

"Yes, mortal ponies." Gentle Touch exclaimed with shy triumph.

The great white pony let out a bitter sigh, putting down the tools and unfinished work, before looking Gentle in the eyes, not with anger or disappointment, but joy and happiness weren't present either. "Time and time again was I proven that mortals cannot rule themselves, they corrupt too easily." She exclaimed with an emotionless look. "I have given the chance of there being some sort of lesser noble council before, only a few years ago. The damages done to Equestria will still last for a long time, among other, utmost disappointing actions and acts of deception by those in charge."

"Like that tarnished Silver Soul law?" Gentle Grace asked with an acidic spit.

"Yes, it, in combination with a few others, were supposed to save Equestria from an economic crisis, and it did so until it was abused in such gruesome ways." Celestia said somberly before pulling her project close to herself again.

Suddenly the door burst open, and a large, muscular stallion with a foal in his grip, held like a goofball, proudly beamed. "My grandson just bucked his first apple!" His smile could not grow larger, just as much as the look of confusion and shock could not exceed this level.

The mood of the trio of old mares, granted, one ancient, another old, and the last one still being middle age, was lifted when the news broke out. And so I was bombarded with praises that could cover mountains, while my stare of bewilderment was just barely met with that of my mommy.

"I thank you for the pleasant while."

"It was nice to see you again, mom, dad, hopefully, we can do this again."

"Bye-bye, grandma. Bye-bye, grandpa. Thanks for the celebration."

"Ah, it was nothing to write a book about." Gentle Grace reassured with a wave of her hoof.

"The pleasure was ours." Strong Touch reinforced. "Grow big and strong so that maybe we can do some serious apple-bucking in the future, will ya?"

"I'll try!" I responded with a beaming smile, with a reply to a request I, myself, was unsure if I could survive and still be able to walk after completing it.

As we waved, the carriage slowly started to move, the eye contact didn’t breakas this awkward moment stretched itself out further and further until the metal bird finally soared through the air. I continued to stare at the ever-shrinking house, then the village, before even the land appeared tiny. I wondered if the old mare would be alright, or instead, if she would do something stupid.

"Don't be sad, I'm sure that they can visit once or twice a year with a little help." Celestia said as she patted my back, putting an emphasis on them visiting us.

"That sounds nice." I replied while looking over the landscape soaring past us. I could not understand this alien emotion brewing inside me; not even the air and sight and smell could cleanse it. It was not missing the old pair, no matter how kind and somewhat obnoxious they were, but something different, like a prying sense of discomfort, one I could not locate as it danced on the edge of my tongue.

I knew not what I was looking for, but whatever I searched for, it escaped me again and again as time passed. The carriage rumbled loudly, waking me from my daydream with a shock. "Huh-what?" I quietly exclaimed while frantically looking around, only to see Canterlot’s hangar.

"Come, I'm sure Hauhuthos’ anxious to see you again." Celestia said with a smile as she offered me the open way through the door.

I nodded in a haze while the ominous sensation grew grimmer by the second, yet only was I left in this eerie silence that seemingly stole away all my emotions. Thinking about it, the game remained silent for hours already, but I somehow knew that now was not the time to interrupt his dealings.

"Your highness, we are to inform you that -ehm- miss Fluffy Coat urgently wishes to speak with you regarding an emergency that occurred to her daughter, Sugar Drop." A guard spoke hastily, seemingly either lacking courage or merely new on the job, given his job as a courier.

"An emergency? Should she not be hospitalized then, or at the very least be inspected by a doctor?" Celestia asked with a sudden shift in tone.

The guard shifted slightly under his armor, assumingly searching for the best way to phrase his answer. "It appears as if nopony is able to find out the origin or the solution of the dilemma. The Canterlot Academia of Medicine was asked for contribution on the search, however, no results have been reported so far." The guard replied after a strict protocol.

"I see..." Celestia noted. "Sargent, please escort Gentle Touch and Prince-" She started her order, but was cut off.

"No." I interrupted hastily. "I want to know what is happening and be there for my friend." I crossed my eyes when what I said finally reached my ears. Where did this sudden sense of worry come from, specially gifted to someone I considered at best a break time pal. Friend seemed a tad... strong.

"Star." Prince Celestia said with a low, lightly threatening voice. The alicorn rarely used this kind of tone, usually taking more persuading and elegant ways to convince other ponies and me, yet, the sudden imperial choice of words left me speechless as she stared at me with a cold, and lightly worrisome tone. "I understand your concerns, however, there is nothing you can do. I am sure it is nothing serious, and whatever it may be, I will tell you at a later date." The way she spoke, it almost appeared to me if she had once said this phrase before, but to someone else.

"Well, the doctors describe her condition as 'rotting,' as if she's having her life sucked out at a frightful speed." The Guard said with a shivering tone as the princess's great head swayed towards him.

Celestia looked at his uniform with a spare glance before answering. "Recruit, are there any more symptoms?" Her tone shifted, so did her voice to a more, dreadful aghast, as if she was somehow in denial, in possession of the knowledge already, something... horrible.

The recruit gaspingly searched for words while strongly staring at the stone-cold face of his ruler, a monarch whose physical prowess and paper-thin temper in this very moment was more than just apparent. "W-well, she's n-not waking up after f-falling into a deep coma and-and her blood is starting to take on deeper shades. 'D-doctors are saying she is also having terrible nightmares." He chained his short answers in quick succession to, at the very least, give an weak illusion of owning a spine.

Celestia remained unmoved before menacingly closing her eyes while sucking in copious amounts of air through her nostrils. "Fine, you may come along, however, I urge you to remain calm, and I repeat, calm, during the whole visit." She spoke with the intensity of a razor blade. "If you wish to follow, you may do so as well, Gentle." Her allowance was vague, almost discouraging me in ways so manipulative, it made me wonder if I should not take my words back, and yet, something pushed me further.

"I, ehm, don't think a quick visit will hurt." Gentle Touch replied with a final sigh, less so out of determination, and more so an act of courtesy. Mayhaps just accepting that she was unable to help from the get go, given the medical professionals that already failed, or merely dreading the sight of Sugar's state remained unknown.

Celestia did not wait for me as she moved at an average pace, at least for her standards as if she wished just for this eldritch conformation, while I scurried along through the halls as the hordes of ponies evaded the great white horse, fearing to bring her to a tipping point which might end explosively. Surprisingly, we did not leave the castle to go to a hospital but rather went to the castle's medical ward. The present clinic was used for injuries ranging from cuts and bruises to wounds that slowly dragged the victim over the blade-thin edge of their remaining life.

When the door opened, I was overwhelmed by a devastating force that did not just penetrate but seemingly broke through my very bones, leaving me staggered and paralyzed. It was so incredibly sickening, yet so exciting, stimulating was not a fitting description. Still, it woke something carnal, a hunger for blood and all else that could fit into my mouth, but it all was overshadowed by a great, urgent desire to cry, weep and regret.

A nightmare is attempting to manifest itself. The Game suddenly announced with a grave undertone to his usually formal voice. My world stopped for just a moment as if time and space just became this grey picture. Emotions ranging from panic to anger mashed themselves into a toxic concoction that invoked the urge to vomit out my very heart.

Yes, this sensation reminded me of that from the falls; however, this time, it was so much weaker. Still, I yearned to spit blood, yet no longer leave me a husk as before. I hastily gulped down what saliva I had left in my mouth and slowly trotted towards the single bed in the room. A pair of middle-aged ponies waited, one of them crying hysterically, Fluffy Coat, with another comforting her, the husband, Candy Dream. His light blue coat and the dark brown mane helped greatly hide his distraught, yet not overshadow it entirely.

"P-Princess, you're here." Fluffy Coat said with one half of a shriek, staring at the alicorn with red eyes and a tear-stained face. This panic, this sense of sheer helplessness, it seemed so incredibly familiar.

"Please tell us what is happening to our sweet little filly." Candy Dream begged with wishful eyes. It was despair; such emotions felt like a drain, so bitter, yet almost addicting like drugs' unending desire.

Princess Celestia stared coldly at the pair before simply walking through the gap between the two, leaning forward and staring at Sugar Drop, who laid on her back, twisting and turning, as if she was a piece of modern art. String thin, veins of dark blue, twisting more and more into a darker hue by the moment, shone through her fur as it seemingly wove a net across her body. Her eyes moved rapidly in all directions while whimpers left her not frequently, but evermore. The Princess leaned further in, her lips moved, yet no words escaped them, as if she spoke to herself for comfort. What she tried to say, if my abilities failed me not, was 'so little time left,' yet I knew this did not entirely just refer to Sugar Drop.

Princess Celestia leaned back, rising to her full height, and she smiled, that she did. "Sugar Drop is... affected by what was referred to in ancient times as nightmare fever." The first part of the diagnosis was seemingly drenched by a bitter undertone. "Sugar is a strong filly, I believe she'll get better very soon." Her voice was soothing, encouraging, and almost hypnotizing, but the last part was unnecessary to convince those desperate and hopeless. Her speech could only be compared to that of an officer, telling his soldiers that the poisonous gas would merely itch in the throat.

"If you say so." The stallion replied, holding his wife tightly, while the pair looked back to their daughter, at least a scrap of hope as meager as it was, gave hope. I should know; I felt it too. Such a sweet, delightful sensation that almost convinced me into this delusional belief.

"You may remain Star, but please, don't try anything, it will make things only worse. Leave it to the doctors." Celestia said sternly, however, failed as her voice broke by the most minuscule drop, before adding one quick sentence, in case the pair heard her. Her tone, she needed not to tell me more to get the hint, it was a warning for me, not to endanger myself, and that fate was already written, and yet, I accepted it not, surely, a mistake.

Gente Touch looked at me before taking me into a quick hug. "Don't tax yourself out too much, you can't support your friend half-awake, right?" It was almost heartbreaking, their attempts to make me believe this to be nothing more than a cough. It was the pain of a mother, already familiar with such agony, to just wait for life to fizzle away.

I nodded shortly in response and watched as Gentle left the room, leaving me with just the pair, silently mourning for their daughter. I shook my head lightly before jumping onto a nearby seat and lowered my head as a dry, bitter, and sour taste spread through my mouth, attempting to suffocate me in a combination of a crushing force in my chest. The occasional breath through the nose felt like a cold scratch. Every motion like it would cause the building to rumble in the night. Each thought like it could be heard by all.

'Game, be frank with me, how dire is this?' I asked with a sorrowful tone, as the emotions even drowned out the thought of me wondering why I felt so... affected in the first place. I could relate to such feelings, yet why did it seem like I could sympathize, no, place my pain equal to theirs when it just was not this way.

If events are to continue the way they are, the quest [Changeling beside or behind.] will be completed by the end of the next day at the latest, regardless of actions taken.

I opened my mouth in shock as if I wanted to say something, but I didn't; I just did it to express something, yet, it was ultimately just pointless. Just watching. That was all I could do now. Just watching Sugar sink down into the tar, to never dip above the ebony liquid again. So this is the other side of the picture. Was this how Amber felt, or was this a mere ghost of the mind? It left me, with a sinister touch tracing my back, a kind of shallow emptiness in my body, not content, but neither in panic, slowly inching myself into depths of despair I tasted twice in nearly forty years.

'So... she'll... die?' I asked weakly while slowly sinking back into the chair. I knew this, I accepted this, I understood it, but somehow the cold, hard truth faced me not as I still clung to this question, but why? I had the answer, yet I pained myself only more and more. What did I achieve with this?

This is a special nightmare, one that lurks within the dream realm and cannot transcend into the waking realm until enough creatures have been killed. It appears as if it was lured in by the abundance of Aether entity Sugar Drop has consumed and attacked once she was outside of our protection. This race specifically targets younger minds, as the fear of the unknown is usually at its greatest. The estimated casualty count lies in the lower thousands.

I pressed out just a bit more air out of my deflated lungs while staring at my hooves as if it was supposed to achieve anything. It... was my fault... I was at fault. I could've just stopped these silly mind games, I knew it lured them, yet ignorantly I just continued. I did to the pair what happened to me. I felt nothing, yet, at the same time, close to breaking down.

There is a possibility to eliminate the nightmare. However, this would use up the chance to travel to the second dungeon today, delaying our arrival in the nightmare realm by approximately another six years.

The lives of a thousand, against a possibly higher chance to reunite with Amber... I could not even begin to think, just sat there silently.

I answered not as I switched to the [Spiritualist] class and began to meditate, clear my mind, recharge my faith, for whatever decision I would make. Time flew past as I just stared at the bed; an occasional guard would pass by, asking if I wished to leave or to look if I had fallen asleep, needed something alike, yet their words just bounced off me. They affected me not; it was almost like the world was mute, and blind and deaf. The sun fell like a stone in my eyes; soon, the room was bathed in the moonlight, yet still, not one thought mustered, just staring helplessly.

I let out a shivering sigh; cold air painted my lungs as I moved my head towards the giant, lonely rock in space. Muscles protested, and my joints cracked from the sudden motion, but no thought was given to them. I still cannot recall what I thought at this moment, just basic ideas, memories, some good, others bad. It was an emotional turmoil, a tug of war, in a sense.

'Six years.' I thought somberly. 'Six more years, could you really wait so much longer? Would it really be that bad, I did not curse her, she ate it herself, and those other foals, cubs, or to hell with pronunciation. I forced not this fate onto them. Why am I feeling this way, why?' I debated with confusion and irritation. I sighed and stared deep into the stone as if something was looking back. 'But I could do something, but that is a charity, not a duty, yet I feel so rushed and pushed to this. Why? Just why?' They weren't my problem; this was my path, my life, not theirs, and yet, a sickening sense of unease coated me with that thought formed.

'Could Amber even still look me into the eyes, were I to let a thousand children die?' It came to my mind, yet it shocked me not, just pressured me more. 'Could I still look myself into the eyes after this?' This question, it was eating me to hollowness. I was no monster, but no hero either, but was this a choice of heroism or villainy, or just another selfish demand to find answers I could answer myself but was too weak to make? 'What is your opinion on this matter.' I asked with defeat.

It is not my duty to discuss actions based on morals. However, it seems as if you had already made up your mind some time ago. The logical decision would be not to face this nightmare, as, despite it still being 'weak,' is still a major threat, especially given that it is free and may act unpredictably. However, all of our actions lead down to a certain path; those come with reward and loss, no matter how uncertain things may be. The question is not whether or not you owe it to anyone, but if you want to do it, even if it’s just for personal satisfaction, it is a valid path, your decision is all that matters on your journey.

My mouth hung open ever so slightly as I absorbed each sentence, word, or even syllable, but I remained silent in the physical world. The game made one important point. Did I want to do it? But what to achieve? Save the life of a thousand unknown souls? No, but mayhaps the one... the one person wanted to be friends... with me. My shoulders sank as low as they could while staring at the couple, sleeping uneasily next to Sugar Drop.

I sucked in a deep stream of air as I felt my faith reach it's maximum, hopped off the chair, and trotted towards the bed. The floor was covered by a thin blanket of cold air that slowed me down, not; I barely even felt anything but the beat of my heart. Hopping onto the bed was hard but not undoable, yet once atop, I could not help but stare at her unmoving face, appearing lifeless. I slowly inched forward, one hoof every minute while just looking at her face. A short muzzle, great eyes, and towering ears. Her cheekbones were greatly, and elegantly, highlighted through her fur, giving off a tranquil appearance, one that seemingly could not do anything but exclaim joy.

I jerked greatly as I felt a light tug, a little clench around my hoof. I looked down, only to see Sugar grasping on it for dear life or mayhaps just comfort. I froze for just a moment, staring as I felt a painful clench in my chest. I bit my lip painfully as I removed her hoof from mine gently, her form upon losing touch, started to shift once again. As I stared at her writhe, I felt a hot, searing sting in my face; it was familiar, but somehow did not wake the word from any memories before a single drop fell, followed by one another. I could feel the emotions just rain down; even if they blocked themselves, they now were free. Even if those emotions were suppressed, they were still real.

"I am so sorry," I whispered while looking back at the night sky, daring not to look at anyone, before lowering my head and staring at her slumbering face once again. "Instant Dungeon Creation..." The words just cut off, it did, and there was nothing more to add. "Enter her mind," I commanded with a slithering sense of... happiness in me, as I collapsed next to her and left my body behind for what appeared to me, just a moment.

'It really worked.' I thought with a shivering breath as I was met with a sight, one so truly surreal and fear-inducing, one might've believed it to be the inside of an alien nest. Tar-like walls and ceilings and floor made up this architectural monstrosity, while patches of green slime and bulbs lighted it up for me to see it all. I let out a loud barrage of coughs, one that forced me momentarily into my knees as the stench of mold, cave, and worst of all, sex, filled my nose in ways I believed no normal being could even dream to survive.

The mindscape is, in a sense, just the gamer's dream, just without the ability to control it. Usually, it resembles a mix between the race and or culture, as well as their personality. Given the dietary of the changelings, and based on the fact that love is the strongest positive emotion, it would make sense that sexual interaction and reproduction are partially integrated into their instincts, thus the present circumstances.

"Great." I mumbled out as I looked around this next of some sort, before choosing one path, the only one available. From the first step, and to all those following, I could feel and hear that this construct spanned much larger than the goblin hideout, merely based on the echo of my hooves. "Woah." I exclaimed as I left this little room, only to be met with a large, empty space with seemingly hundreds of bridges, like the one I was standing upon, connecting holes upon holes that would shift and shrink and grow as if they were alive. "Just what is this place?" I questioned.

With a shake, I walked on this thin bridge, illuminated with patches of moss, unlike those other means of crossing, making me believe that it hid nothing down there. Continuing this path, I eyed every nook, searching for tips and indicators, while this eerie silence, only interrupted by my breath and step, was my companion, as even the game chose to remain silent as if the two of us merely waited for something lurking to show its face. I slowly lifted my head upwards as I felt a drip, but there was nothing, just more bridges, few patches of moss, and a crystal or two every now and then, so steep was the jump, no ceiling in sight. I halted when my ears picked up munching, and cracking and squealing from just a bit further forward. I kept my pace even, hoping to keep my temper and emotions in check, not crack or break or be released.

There, on a wall on the right side, denying me the sight of the abyss below, was a large hole, but unlike those before, a frantically, flickering light shone through it, as great ovals of grey and blue fed off the ever-expanding corners, as if they ate the foreground. Maybe it was not a hole with a hidden light source, but a hole in Sugar's mind. With a huff, I enveloped one of these forms with my magic and pulled it off. My catch let out a painful screeching, six legs scrambled with futile results, while a long, almost sandpaper-like tongue, with a sharp tip, flayed around.

'Observe.'

Name: Mind Mite
Level: 6
Class: Parasite
Race: Mind Mite
HP: 20
MP: 0
SP: 35
STR:5
END:10
DEX: 42
INT: 1
WIS: 1
CHA: 1
LCK: 1

Thoughts about you: You cannot understand this language.

Mind Mite is one of the lowest kind of nightmare; they are so weak that they prey on the weakened victims of the second-lowest kind of nightmares, the Mind Drainer.

'Disgusting.' I thought with low burning anger while staring at the creature, turning it around, until I met, with what I presumed at least, was its face. A single droplet of black rested on the top of the barely recognizably small face, with mandibles on full display while the tongue still attempted to hit me.

If I may make a suggestion. The game interrupted my short lived attempt to find out how much juice was inside of this atrocity. It would be most efficient to equip the [Spiritualist] class and use a skill specific to this class, to maximize the gain.

I jerked before freezing for a moment and turning in a random direction. "You want me to kill it with kindness?" I asked audibly while turning my head back to the bug that seemingly never grew tired. I scrunched up my nose before grabbing the tongue with my magic and placing me hoof against it, soft and warm and... sticky underbelly. I shivered horribly from the almost egg white like texture before using [Gentle Touch]. I expected it to die like it was poisoned or explode from the sudden impact of the opposite emotion, but I did not expect it to burn. The mite burned away like a dry piece of leaf, inch by inch did the carapace and that below simply turn to ashes while horrific screams, inhuman as they could possibly be, formed a dying cry. Not even the wisps of smoke and ash remained.

Positive, emotional energy is poisonous to the nightmares, as they are the polar opposite. it would roughly be like adding fire to water to simplify the inner workings without delving into quantum physics.

"Uh-huh," I mumbled while watching the last few particles of mite crumble to dust, but what caught my eyes was what remained: A clear shard bearing some kind of energy. "Ehm, why do bugs drop gems now?" I questioned while tilting my head and turning the gemstone with curiosity, while the mere look upon its strange beauty left me lightly mesmerized.

Spiritualist 1-->2

Gentle Touch 10-->13

A new feature was unlocked with the skill: [Gentle Touch]

* Nightmares killed with this skill will drop shards containing parts of their strength. The potency of the shards is decided by the rarity, power, and level of the nightmare. The nightmare's corpse will be destroyed upon using this skill.

Dexterity shard
Level 1 item
common
A shard containing part of a creature's power.
Gain one permanent dexterity point.
You cannot gain more points using this item once the one-hundred point level has been reached.
Harvested from: Mind Mite

"How... peculiar." I mumbled before snorting once; a cloud of white, hot air shrouded my vision. I bit down onto the crystal with a quick motion, yet felt it dissipate upon the touch of my teeth and my dexterity growing just one tiny bit. "I don't care if you bunch suffer or not, I'll kill you all the same if you stand in my way," I said grimly, after remembering why I was in this hellhole to begin with. With a strong tug, I pulled every last mite from the wall, all squirmed and scoured like worms, squealed like pigs as their bodies were burned, and all that remained were fifteen more crystals, all devoured like the first one.

Spiritualist 2-->5

Infusion - Level 1
Infusing an object requires the caster to channel their hopes and belief into their target. It is not an act of enchanting; it is the thought that counts, to believe in the strength of yourself and the thing you wish to empower.
Zorya - Monk of the temple in the sky.
*Cost: 15 Faith per infusion.
*Infusion duration: 6 minutes (5 minutes + 1 minute *level)
*Infusion reduces the object effectiveness to 75% and turns it into the selected element
*Adds one additional point of effectiveness per level.

Available element(s):
Chaos

Looking up, I gazed for more bugs, yet found no more; it left me with a sense of accomplishment, however, also both disappointment and disgust with the creeping suspicion that there was at least one more, greater beast. Shaking my slimy form and letting the juices repel off my fur, I continued my path with a greatly enhanced pace. Occasionally did my vision sway to the left and right, but saw nothing, heard even less but a light string pull, like that of an old, broken guitar, a tune both rustic and charming as it was disturbing.

Eventually, the bridge hanging in height only god and those who wished to meet him knew, ended in a smaller section of the cave, with strings aplenty covering the entrance and seemingly pluses were attempted to be woven in as symbol; however it appeared to have been poorly made by an amateur of this craft.

"This is not good, this is horrifying," I mumbled quietly; each string was not only long but even thicker than rope. A spider, a huge one at that, how fun... I shook my head at my own pessimism, and slowly tiptoed my path into this room, each step slower than the one before, as my eyes caught just this horrifying sight that even left someone as charred as me with a dreadful shiver plaguing my form.

"Sugar, oh god, what happened to you." I questioned breathlessly while sinking slightly at the sight that beheld before me, one that pained me with a cynical sensation of fear. There she rested; a cocoon of webs kept her hanging high as her body slowly crumbled away, leaving behind but a silhouette of ever fading light, but that was the lesser fright compared to the creature that rested below her.

A spider, tar-black was its only color, with eight bone-thin and metal-like legs, however atop of it was connected a strangely human-like atrocity. At first glance, a pale man with tattered, ripped, shredded clothes in addition to a top hat and dirty, messy grey hair. His body appeared malnourished, arms so frail they could be broken with a slap, but they ended with hands so large and great they made up the majority of mass in the human part, but those features were the least horrifying aesthetic. His lower jaw seemed dislocated, hanging so low that it touched his stomach, but no teeth, and skin seeming to be cursed with blisters. His eyes, there were none, just large holes with gleams of purple every now and then, but it’s very stare wanted to make me cry.

"Dear God." I slowly muttered while staring at the beast that slowly rose to its full height, towering me so greatly it could possibly eat me with a single motion whole. My fear, it melted once I looked past it, Sugar, dreamlessly suffering and draining every last scratch of her lifeforce, just to quench the hunger of this beast. I grit my teeth as I felt my breathing increase.

I Jumped on my hind legs and equipped my armor, my weapon, switched back to the warrior class, and pulled out a badly wounded goblin corpse from my inventory. With a sickening crunch did I ram the head of the halberd into the chest of the goblin, twisting and turning until it was covered with its syrup-like blood, before holding it up to my horn. With a short-lived use of [Fireball], my weapon ignited, illuminating the room and revealing its ceiling and walls to be covered with webs, but most disturbingly, allowed me to stare into the empty eye sockets. The beast staggered a bit upon seeing my face, hidden as it may be behind the helmet, and shakingly reached out to me while a wet and slimy swallowing left his maw.

I took a deep breath, shakingly so, and slowly walked forwards with my hind legs trembling; it was my only hope not to be crushed or grasped by his large hand. I eyed his other hand, quiveringly reached towards where his heart should be supposed to be, and grasped something behind his vest. Standing just two meters apart, I stopped and stared at it, waiting for it to attack first, yet only pulled back his hand, enveloping the object under his vest and slowly presented it to me.

I breathed infrequently, shivering every now and then while simply looking at the beast, it attempted to smile, at least, I thought that it tried as such. I gulped silently, gripping my weapon ever tighter while emotions of fear, anger, disgust and panic mixed themselves, all gripping and tugging my insides in all directions. I sniffed at it, smells of incense, wax, and book glue infested his form. I tried to form a thought, but none came out, his clothing, appearance and symbols, it laid on my tongue, but I just could not connect the dots. I jerked suddenly, clenching my weapons to my chest as he suddenly moved. He smiled at me shakingly, while showing me a broken pendant, only an upside-down 'L' remained, and then he whispered in a tearful tone. "..."

Critical hit + Elemental weakness: 350HP

I stared in bewilderment at the spider, shock and surprise filled me, while a looming sense of dread coated me. My halberd embedded itself into his heart, breaking rips and tissue, yet the spider still stopped from my forced attack. He slowly looked down, then up and began to shake. Shake and ripple, his clothes’ strings falling off, as if the very last shred of sanity and conscience left it. His chest grew thrice in size as he took a deep breath, before releasing a scream, a howl that put any mortal creature, any fictional beast to shame with such fury, ferocity and malice, that blew me back, saving me from a swipe that may have halved me.

I scrambled as I landed on my hooves, watching as it rammed his hands into the ground, the stone cracked while he let out a growl, barely overshadowing a while that soon morphed into a panting. His head snapped upwards, his look, it was as if it became something entirely else. The previous, light atmosphere of somberiousness and fear twisted and turned into pure, burning malice.

'O-observe!'

Name: 'Mind Drainer'
Level: 22
Class: Parasite/Cleric
Race: ???
HP: 3150/3500
Mp: 0
FP: 430
SP: 1200
STR: 80
END: 60
DEX: 120
INT: 5
WIS: 100
CHA: 1
LCK: 1

All information on this creature is strictly prohibited from being shared or reviewed by the Host and Game. The target must be destroyed at all costs.

Observe 10-->12

I caught a well educated look on the blue information panel, before I jumped backwards, the impact’s wind nearly cutting me as the amalgamation jumped and slammed on my previous spot. With a grunt, I pulled back the polearm and slammed the weapon with a wide arc into the side of the Drainer, sending it toppling a few feet to the left and ultimately causing 180 damage.

I huffed heavily at the beast from shock. The beast was lesser than the Hobgoblin, however bore just as much prowess and much greater speed than that of the green battle ram. I jerked strongly as I looked on the dent in the ground with a shiver, that may have been me without etra speed boost.

Looking through my items and options, I asked for a quick tip. “Game, what does chaos do?” My question was not answered before the Drainer took a jagged rock and threw it at me. I hissed lighty during my evasion attempts, when the stone sliced through my armor and cut into my hip.

Chaos has a chance to reduce the regeneration of resources and increase the chance to fail certain tasks, like casting and channeling.

'Good enough for me, everything is better than finding out what miracles this thing can cast.' I thought grimly while giving an educated guess, given that his pendant gave off a simulary divine shin, despite it feeling cold and distant. I pulled out a goblin club, and as if I’ve done it a million times before, held it up to my horn, slowly pulling it to the right while infusing it with a quagmire of emotions, granting chaos to the driftwood..

-120HP

I let out a high pitched, heavily femeine shriek while clutching my chest, attempting to subdue the burning sensation that attempted to chew away at my flesh. Even if my pain was dulled, I was still aware of the damage, and it was unlike any I’ve previously sensed. Trembingly did I looked upwards, staring at the Drainer who held his beloved pendant up to his shaking face, said relique glowed heavenly as if it was extremely hot, presumably just like my chest’s flesh. I winced at the sight of seeing nearly a whole quarter of my remaining health diminished.

'G-got my answer.' I cursed with a frown, before putting my halberd back into my inventory and gripping the piece of chaotic wood with my hooves while taking on a very low stance. I let out a muffled scream during my charge forward like a bull, while at the same time wondering how minotaurs were able to walk this well. My eyes snapped wide open, before I ducked in the last possible moment, feeling his swipe tearing off my precious red feather and the top of my helmet was ripped off by the sheer weight of his meaty grabbers. Had I remained to fight on four hooves, I may have lost a limb or two. I ducked under yet another slash, the very air taken from me by his momentum, before slamming the club into one of his forelegs with a sickening crunch, spraying juices like a crushed orange. Rolling to the side, I evaded being skewed by the Drainer who tried to impale my with his legs, in retaliation, I hit his injured leg once again, the carapace cracked, and the limb went loose with the disgusting, and the same time, somehow sweet juices oozing profusely.

I attempted to escape, but before I knew it, I was caught in his large hand squeezing and crushing me, all the while forcing me to stare into his ‘eyes,’ a blank voice from which so, so much pain exuded. I let out a shriek when I caught a glimpse of a picture, it was unrecognizable however the writhing agony I felt within my connection with the game was real. In a rush of panic I squeezed out the club from his grip and screamed, before slamming the weapon down onto his lower jaw with [Power Strike]. I froze in shock when I saw his image twist, bend and crack like a mirror, before reality suddenly snapped back in place. His lower jaw snapped off like a petrified piece of resin. The Drainer let out a gurgling wailing of fury and agony, in his rage he threw me away like a baseball against a wall.

-175

I let out a shrill, breathless gasp, blobs of blood leaving my muzzle to taint my helmet’s insides with crimson. Tremblingly I lowered my visage when I felt a thick, warm liquid run down my body. A great stone spike impaling my abdomen with my leather armor sparing me the sight of my own innards. I grit my teeth with the wish to live dragging me forward. With a mental command I pulled out my halberd and rammed the bottom against the wall behind me, and fell onto the ground like a wet, metallic sponge.

I grunted while pushing my face upwards, glowering at the spider with the nastiest look I could come up with. He lifted his shining pendant proudly, a circle of light forced below him from which a divine glow shone, equal to that of my bell, however so much greater, as if he used his own power, instead of that of his artifact. The glow intensified, the miracle coming close to fruition, before the spell matrix suddenly shattered and the stored faith erupted, burning his skin. The Drainer lifted his arms into the air, crying to the skies with rage and despair.

I punched the ground below me with spite, before pulling out my bell, holding it to my face with a grim smile. I closed my eyes for just a moment, pushing my faith into it, before ringing it once. Opening my eyes I saw a faint, golden glow engulfing my form, healing flesh and mending bone, restoring 200 health points. I grunted while pulling myself to my feet, spitting out blood and saliva in the process, hoping to rid the metallic flavor from my mouth. Although now able to fight once again, I lacked the faith to cast [Restoration] a second time. A quick glance at my polearm filled me with even more disappointment, the flame was extinguished and the fuel rest behind the spider.

I shook my head, before gripping my weapon tightly, pointing at the spider who could not keep his crying down. Time to return the favor. I thought maliciously while admiring the gleaming, point tip of my weapon. With a quiet battlecry did I charge forward, all care for the world and sense for self preservation thrown out of the window as my Halbert connected with the spider part of the Drainer, his carapace cracked like celery at first, before devolving into a squishing when nearly half of my weapons was stuck inside of him. The Drainer let out a cry of agony while keeping himself upright with one of his hands. I twisted the weapons and ultimately ripped it out with guts and gore following, the juices painted my lower half alongside the floor. He cried out even louder, clutching his leaking wound, before snapping his face in my direction and reaching out to grab me, but this time I barely evaded, spinning to the side and letting pieces of my armor's backside and patches of fur be ripped out.I held up my halbert as far as I could, bits of meat and ichor droplets falling, before ramming it through the hand joint, severing it. The Drainer clutched his bleeding stump in pain, the orange-ish liquid pouring out like a fountain, yet I couldn’t feel any remorse. I suddenly started screaming, the pent up emotion released while I stabbed and slashed and hacked his body, thirteen times in total.

I am sick and tired of everyone taking away my life, tired of losing something, tired of fucking everything. If it isn’t the world fucking me up, its other humans, but no, that wasn’t enough, just throw in some nightmare fuel to round this pot of shit right up. Well you know what world and whoever is listening to this crap right now, come and get me you overpompous arse-holes, supernatural events and monsters from the closet, I’ll be waiting for you so I can fuck up each and every last one of you trying to take a piece of me, my island, my life and anyone else I like around me, and everyone else can go to hell for all I care.

I grunted as the juices coated nearly all of me, even my visor could save my face to be painted, but that wouldn’t stop me from massacring this beast. However, what eventually did stop me was limbs that suddenly grew weak, my stamina ran out after a thousand measly damage being done. I tried to create distance, but my realization came too late, the spider took the chance and used his remaining fist to punch me in the stomach with such force, that I left the ground.

I groaned while shaking my head, my vision was hazy while I coughed and gasped and spat blood, before finally coming to my senses and I was met with a horrifying sight. The spider jumped up with supernatural strength towards me, every sharp apandaged directed at my spot ready to tear me apart. In my shock, I charged up a [Mana Bolt] bearing the force of 500 points of mana points and fired it at the eyes of the beast. The cleric let out a howl, but it was overshadowed by his screeching declaration of bloodlust. I let go of my halberd and ignited a [Mana Knife] cutting away at the restraints, before jumping past the beast, striking his body, but instead of falling and breaking my bones, I erected a small platform for me to land upon.

The construct carried my weight but did not stop me from nearly falling over as the cave shook from the cleric's impact. The nightmare turned around, again and again, sensing for me with his burned shut eyes, but couldn’t find me. I held my breath before lowering my gaze and seeing the hollowed goblin corpse. I connected the dots, nodding to myself while breathing heavily. I quickly grabbed it with [Telekinesis] and chucked it at the net. The spider jerked violently the moment he felt the disturbance, before rushing towards my doppelganger, and ripping it apart like a swarm of starving seagulls would do to a fat tuna. Bits and chunks of blood and flesh sprayed in all directions, covering the spider in the juices while it gorged itself on his last supper.

I slowly lifted my visage, for a short moment I was at peace, before a sadistic sense of anticipation scratched at my every limb. I gave him one last look, I would, after all, remember this event until I’d die, just like anything else, so why not make it memorable? I cast [Fireball]. The pyromantic beauty hovered above my horn, nearly blinding me as I glowered at the Drainer with a hint of satisfaction. “Burn in Hell, you abomination.” I hissed, before releasing the projectile, letting it chase after the goblin-blood covered arachnid. I could only bask myself in the infernal light for a moment, before the force pushed me off my plattform, the construct that stayed but a moment later than me, as my halberd broke through it and embedded itself just inches away from my neck to the right.

I looked at the cleric's body, resting in flames on the ground as the webs all around me started to erase themselves from this realm, yet I was not able to enjoy this sight for long. I felt new power surge through my body, flesh and bones regenerating, my armor desperately growing and groaning as my muscles expanded.

Warrior 10-->16
Spiritualist 5-->7
Infusion 1-->2
Power Strike 10-->15
Mana Bolt 10-->11
Fireball 10-->12
Physical Damage Resistance 10-->13

I gasped heavily as I felt this new power become my own, yet before even the megalomania could settle in, I remembered someone very important. Turning around, I saw Sugar; her body slowly became whole again, but I could only see this as the string holding her up disappeared rapidly. My eyes shrank to pinpoints before I charged forward, barely catching her falling body before it hit the ground.

"Sugar, do you hear me?" I asked emphatically, shaking her slumbering body, but to no avail. I pulled out my bell and attempted to cast Restoration but was reminded by a painful noise of denial in my head that I didn’t have enough Faith remaining.

Entity Sugar Drop has been freed and is currently rapidly recovering due to our presence; however, there's no need to panic. She will awaken very soon. I would usually not interrupt such a moment. Nevertheless, we have to destroy the body like the protocol demands.

I opened my mouth in protest before sighing in defeat, letting the sleeping pony to the ground, turning around, and trotting towards the still burning corpse. Standing before it, I saw the embers carry away crisp and ashes from the fallen beast, yet I was taken in by his strangely peaceful look while clutching his broken pendant still in his death. I grasped the golden piece and pulled it to me, inspecting it and finding some strange resemblance that I just could not figure out, not out of lacking memory, but something... else.

"Do you reckon I can keep this?" I asked audibly while eyeing the golden tool with various, colorful gemstones embedded, yet I craved its power more than anything.

The protocol does not mention anything regarding the possession of... let us call them... errors since we cannot access their data. I nodded slowly in response before holding out my hoof, sticking my limb into the flames, and using [Gentle Touch] upon it. The Game did not stop me, so I continued. The body fell apart into pieces, crumbling away as the very few bits of negativity were purged, and all that remained was yet another shard; this one was larger than its predecessors.

You've gained the skill: Fire Resistance

Greater Wisdom shard
Level 25 item
common
A shard containing part of a creature's power.
Gain five permanent dexterity points.
You cannot gain more points using this item once the two-hundred-and-fifty point level has been reached.
Harvested from: 'Mind Drainer'

Broken Pendant
Level 30 item
Rank: Unique
* [Smite]

Fire a Bolt of energy dealing 120 points of holy damage at the cost of 20 points of faith. Penetrates armor.

*[Penance]

Sacrifice 100 points of health for 20 points of faith. Cooldown: 1 minute

Through penance, our sins shall be absolved. - Through our pain, our crimes are forgiven. - Our punishment, never-ending, or forgotten.

I stared at the text of the pendant with a sense of dread, yet I remained calm as I put my halbert, the pendant, and what remained of the charred and desecrated goblin back into my inventory. "I can see why someone would be so keen to create something like you, Game. These beasts need to die, every last one of them." I growled while gritting my teeth, still feeling the burns of my flesh, and the pain, but worst of all, this fear. Even someone who had his emotions regulated and controlled was not immune, but this torture to go on for days until you die? Never before, not once, had I believed that killing was a solution, but now, standing before it? Things changed. I stood there with the urge to cry, and scream and vomit, attempting to overwhelm me with the adrenaline rush dying out, it was overshadowed by my anger. The mere thought that, in the end, we were born just to fuel these atrocities through our pain and hardship, and to eventually be killed by them, left me seething. I shook my head slowly, letting go of the fury and mumbling to myself. "I still don't enjoy this, but someone has to do it." I admitted.

"S-star?" A whimpering cry escaped a young, feeble voice behind me, and I knew the owner.

I spun around, my armor leaving me as I sprinted towards my weakened friend, yet I didn’t stop there. I pulled her in, much to her surprise, and took her in a deep hug. I felt her gasp of surprise, and the air from her lungs rush past me as I squeezed her form. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?" I questioned as I loosened my grip and stared at her tired face that was filled with bewilderment.

"What happened?" Sugar asked while looking around, the fire in the background, the blood on the floor, and fragments of web floating through the air. "What is this place?"

"Something terrible, but it is over, you're safe." I mumbled out with fatigue in my voice; although the flesh could remain unstopped forever, mentally, I was exhausted.

Sugar opened her mouth, perhaps to ask again about the happenings, or just the blood coating my form like caramel did so with a candy apple. She let out a shivering sigh, quivering in the cold, and only leaned back into my hug. "So much screaming, so many cries and a voice I didn't understand. And then the screeches." Sugar nuzzled my neck.

The two of us just remained this way, her sentence broken off, but no more needed to be said as the world around us started to fade and crumble. The battle was long, the night soon over, and the nightmare now had come to an end.

Waking up was not how I expected it to be. I assumed I would greet the morning grouchily, with the sun licking my eyes, but I did not anticipate the mortal sun to be shaking me like a bar cocktail. "i-i-i'm-m- u-u-u-p-p!" I exclaimed while still being shaken by princess Celestia, who had a look of terror in her eyes, panicking down to her bones before relief washed over her like the sun.

"Oh goodness, you're okay.. you're okay." She spoke with heavy breathing while attempting to crush my frame. Celestia slowly pulled me back; her form was draped over the bed like a blanket before sitting me down in her lap and cradled me like a foal. "I was so scared when you wouldn't wake up." She whispered while she was on the verge of crying. I usually don't sense much of her emotions, the very surface, but in this very moment, the raw feelings were almost intoxicating.

I opened my mouth in protest, about to say something when Gentle Touch sat down next to me and started rubbing my back in consolation. "Everything is going to be fine, you probably just taxed yourself out too much. You really shouldn't have stayed up that long and eaten something, instead of keeping going until passing out." She spoke nervously in a very unsure maner, almost indicating that she was downplaying something vital not to induce fear into me.

Your adoptive parents have been trying to wake you for the better part of the last hour, much to my annoyance. The processing of growth is hard as it is, but adding the fact we've conquered a nightmare outside of the dungeons before having completed all the necessary challenges? Very complicated.

"I'm fine." I protested, only to be shushed by a white hoof, one luckily not equipped with a golden shoe acting like a morning star. Can’t have cavities without teeth, no?

"No need to play bravery right now." Gentle added from the side, as she inched closer, rubbing her cheek against mine.

"Mommy?" Asked a high pitched voice, breaking the harmony of joy and sorrow. I turned my head to the back again, I could see Sugar slowly rising again and waking her parents in the process.

"Sugar!" The couple cried out in shock and pulled their daughter into a hug that turned into a tug of war, as both parental figures showed more affection. The current amount was already suffocating as it was. The tears and whimpering and sobbing made me even feel slightly uncomfortable, even if the emotions they radiated were so, so incredibly heartwarming.

Princess Celestia, monarch of Equestria and alicorn of the sun, stared dumbfoundingly at the reunion, before her gaze gradually, almost painstakingly so, turned back to me. She lifted her foot and glided it across my chest, feeling the fur, muscle, and bone, but also the newfound strength. "You purified it." She whispered so breathlessly and quiet, I could almost claim that Gentle Touch didn't even notice her speaking. I expected disappointment for my recklessness, anger for my misbehaving, or disappointment for delving into such dark dealings, yet, that didn’t happen. She lifted me to her chest and hugged me sincerely while a vast wave of relief washed over her, even larger than the one before, as joy seemingly brought her to the edge of bursting. "I am so proud of you, my special colt."

She slowly loosened the hug while staring at me with a mellow face and eyes that were not afraid to show weakness. A look I could not resist, and replied with a goofy one, not to push away her affection, but simply because I was not used to smiling this much. This moment, it was so sweet, so joyous that it almost made me cry, this sensation when it all was directed at you, because of you, it was so incredibly fulfilling. Sadly, it didn’t last long before a cream-colored missile rammed itself into my side, knocking me across the cold stone while clinging onto me like the world's most resilient burdock.

"Thank you so much, it was getting really scary in that dark, and mean, and evil place." Sugar spoke out while attempting to cover as much of my surface as possible. I was about to push her off when I felt something in my chest, my heart, but it was most certainly not love. I felt my organic pump change, growing slightly larger, but something more was a place that left silent, forcing me to feel the happenings.

Quest complete: Changeling Beside or behind.

For risking your life for that of another and threatening your life goal for the sake of others, you gained:
*25 points in Charisma
*Perk: Valiant Heart.
*Title: Nightmare Slayer 1

Valiant Heart
You put your life, future, and goals on the line for others, the act of a hero in the making.
*Gain one point of Charisma every time you earn charisma points.
*You always feel warmth in your heart and have a little smile on your face.
*Doing good acts will be rewarded with charisma points and a random attribute.
The amount is determined by the difficulty and urgency of the deed

Nightmare Slayer 1
You’ve made your first step in your career of nightmare extermination, and successfully killed one too.
*Killing nightmares will grant you attribute points.
*You are able to enter dreams without any repercussions

'No, this is a curse, kill me now, it's not worth it anymore. This isn't a reward or second chance at life, this purgatory! Hey, pony Jesus, please take me, I'm way overdue!' I screamed in my mind, but I could not stop smiling, only do it less, but even that was denied when the overwhelming joy and happiness turned the warmth in my heart into a fire.

"My little filly's first crush." Fluffy Coat said, still drenched in tears as she took her daughter, thus also me, in a hug, to which Candy Dream, Gentle Touch, and in the end also Celestia joined.

Well, this may be weird, uncomfortable, and personal space invading, but after all the terror with the nightmares... this may be just what I needed. I closed my eyes and just enjoyed it, the emotion, but also the physical contact, at least, this once I would allow it.

Author's Note

From this point forward I'd ask the audience to keep an eye for the following three, regularly occuring topics: Personal happiness, belief in their worldview, and willingness to achieve their goals.