Author's Note
Part 1/2
Preparation
"Oooohh! This is so exciting!" Twilight Sparkle, Alicorn Princess of Friendship, flapped her wings with glee as a message levitated in her grasp. A smile that seemed to stretch beyond reasonable distance was etched on her face. A huff sounded from the kitchen, causing the exuberant Alicorn to turn towards her assistant, who was watching from the entryway.
"I guess you want me to pack your saddlebags?" Spike raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his apron covered chest. Twilight nodded, her focus now back on the letter.
"Yes please, Spike." She slowly walked towards the door, reading the rest of the message to herself in her head.
'...With this new find, we may be able to get a good lead on ancient civilizations. I have this gut feeling that whatever it is that is in this cave system, it holds an insane amount of significance. It might be the single greatest discovery in history! I have also invited Rainbow Dash as well. I'm sure she would like a good adventure. Head to the town of Stockholm, on the Western border. I will meet the both of you at the inn.
Your friend,
Daring Doo.'
Twilight figured she would go and find Rainbow. Her magical aura grabbed the handle to the front door... which proceeded to explode inwards, a rainbow coloured trail zooming in at impossible speeds. Twilight yelped as her friend hit the floor and screeched to a halt, leaving a burn groove in the wooden floor.
"Sorry for the entrance Twi! But I just got the letter and like, ohmygoshwegettogoonananotheradventurewithDaringDoo!" Rainbow zipped up to Twilight, nearly touching her muzzle. The purple Alicorn let out a chuckle and sat on her haunches.
"Calm down Rainbow! We still need to organize a ride there. Do you have everything you need to go?" Twilight chuckled as the Pegasus settled on the floor, the only indication of her excitement being her tail wagging back and forth rapidly. That and the ear-splitting smile adjourning her face.
"Hay yeah!" Rainbow pulled her previously concealed saddle bags off of her back with her teeth before dropping it to the ground. Twilight rolled her eyes and levitated the bag into the air and emptying the contents.
"Hey! Give that back!" Rainbow lunged forward but it was to late. A hat, a large book, a stuffed pony looking suspiciously similar to a certain Explorer, and a jungle hat all fell to the floor. Twilight proceeded to levitate the items of the ground as Rainbow snagged her saddle bags once more.
"You know, we are going on a very important archeological trip, not a fan service affair!" Twilight smirked as Rainbow blushed.
"Okay, yeah, I was going to get a few of those signed. But it will totally help on the trip." Rainbow crossed her hooves and pouted, causing Twilight to chuckle.
"How so?"
"....It'll improve my awesomeness by thirty percent." Rainbow looked Twilight dead in the eyes. After a second, the purple pony gave a huff.
"Fine, but I want you to bring a few more utilitarian and useful things if this is what you are taking." Twilight levitated all the items back into the bag before floating it back into Rainbows hooves, said mare giving a very obvious eyerole.
"I'm going to talk to Swifty about renting her balloon. We leave when I get back!" Twilight proceeded to trot out the door, a pip in her step. She heard rainbow grumble before flying off to grab some more gear.
If what Daring said was true, then Twilight and Rainbow were going to play a part in the biggest archeological find in Equestrian... no, world history! The very thought caused her to move faster.
With a smile brighter than the sun, Twilight went to rent a balloon. The possibilities of what they would find spurring her ever forward.
*****
A.K Yearling, better know as Daring Doo, sat at the bar table with a cup of cider. Her frame would seem relaxed to anyone passing by, but in reality, she was more tense than a bowstring. Her thoughts of what new excitement and danger she and her friends would find had riled her up beyond belief.
When the first reports of a tomb being discovered, Daring had ignored it. She had enough to deal with when it came to Caballeron and Ahuizotl. But after two Archeologists discovered a seal to the tomb more advanced than anything in Pony civilization, she knew she had to get on the case. Her imagination had gotten the better of her upon hearing the news. Was it an ancient and advanced pony civilization? Maybe the whole history of the three tribes was wrong? Her mind had gone so far as to believe that there might have been an ancient alien civilization that had landed there. She had cancelled that out immediately. There were myths and legends about alien like creatures that used to rule the planet. Machines so advanced that it seemed like magic to an average onlooker. Or that the beings were basically literal gods. Daring knew that all of this was false. If there was an ancient alien civilization that spanned the globe, then they likely would have found some remnants already.
Her thoughts were interrupted when the door was opened rather aggressively, resulting in a resounding crash.
"Hey! You break that door, you pay for it! You better not be in here to... to... Daring watched as the barkeep suddenly bowed his head. "Princess! I meant no disrespect!"
Daring heard a familiar chuckle behind her and swiveled her chair before hopping down. She too bowed before the purple Alicorn before her.
"Please rise, I don't need you all hurring your backs on my account." A few chuckles sounded throughout the room, the mood instantly relaxing. Daring stood up and ruffled her wings, only to find a prismatic mare suddenly in her face.
Daring's ears folded slightly as she stepped back, a nervous chuckle escaping her muzzle. Rainbow Dash was a great friend, especially after helping her stop Ahuizotl's ritual, but she still needed to know the meaning of personal space.
Twilight seemed to get that to and quickly used her magic to lift Rainbow away. The prismatic mare struggled before being plopped down beside Twilight.
"Hey guys! I wasn't expecting you for a few more hours." Daring immediately perked back up and smiled at the duo, both of which smiled back gleefully.
"Hey Mrs. Doo! We actually left shortly after getting your letter. It's not everyday somepony gets invited to make one of the biggest archeological finds ever! I wonder what will be in there? Maybe priceless artifacts? New technologies? Maybe aliens! Oh but what if- Hrf!" Twilight found a blue hoof clamping her mouth shut, causing her to stop trying to talk. After a moment, Rainbow removed her appendage and smirked. Twilight blushed and looked at the ground. "I was rambling again, wasn't I?"
"Yep." Rainbow confirmed with a chuckle. Her attention soon went back to Daring. "So when are we gonna go on this adventure? I hope there are booby traps we have to skirt around, or maybe even evil robots patrolling the halls, ready to capture us and-" Rainbow's voice suddenly went quiet, though her rambling continued. A lavender glow was enveloped around her muzzle: a silencing spell.
Just like Twilight, rainbow suddenly stopped. Her eyes betrayed her confusion when nopony responded, but upon looking down she saw the glow and smiled sheepishly. Twilight ended the spell, allowing the Pegasus to talk freely.
"Sorry 'bout that." Rainbow also blushed, causing Daring to laugh.
"I can see you are both very excited. Sadly I am going to have to tell you that we are going to the tomb tomorrow morning after breakfast." Rainbow let out a groan and flopped belly first onto the floor. Daring chuckled at her antics. "Oh stop being so dramatic, it's only one night!"
"Ugghhh... fine!" The three mares began making there way to the stairs. The sun was setting outside, it's rays casting an ambient but calming light through the inn.
"You guys can come in my room, I already have two extra cots set up." They trotted up the stairs and entered the third door on the right. The room itself wasn't very impressive, just a small bed and two cots lined against the wall. A dresser and lamp sat beside the bed, a window just above it.
"Thank you, Mrs. Doo. I-"
"Just Daring is fine Princess." Daring smirked as Twilight huffed.
"Okay Daring, but to you I am just Twilight."
"Alright, deal."
"As I was saying, thank you Daring for letting us share the room!" Twilight smiled brightly.
"It's no problem. I had the extra room so I thought I'd put it to use! Plus, this way we can all talk about what might be in the cave!" Daring said the last bit in a conspiratorial manner, causing both Twilight and Rainbow to squee' in delight.
As the three settled down, the last rays of sun fell past the horizon, bathing the land in darkness. However, one spot in particular, barely ten kilometers away, was bathed in a menacing shadow. Unlike the town of Stockholm, which was happy and secluded, this spot held malice and despair. If anyone were to wander past it at that moment, they would likely be paralyzed with fear.
Something was in that cave, that... tomb. And whatever it was, it did not hold the best intentions for ponykind, or the world...
The three mares stood facing the mouth of a cave. It's opening lined with jagged rocks, giving it the impression of some unnatural beast. Twilight, Rainbow, and Daring all shivered in both excitement and nervousness. In exactly five minutes, the three of them would enter the cave system and begin their little adventure.
"How did no one notice this place before? This isn't exactly a small cave!" Rainbow waved her hoof at the entrance.
"Apparently, there was an earthquake just recently. The shocks to the earth must have loosened the rock and caused it to collapse in order to form the entrance. But we always have earthquakes in Equestria every once in a while, why would--
CLANG!
The three jumped as a piece of metal collided with a chariot somewhere behind them, causing them to swivel around.
"Hey! Who put this here?" The stallion pulling the chariot kicked the large metal sheet to the side. The sun glinted off of the material, causing Twilight's eyes to narrow. She could swear she saw...
Twilight gasped and quickly flew over to the metal sheet, startling the stallion and causing him to fall backwards. Her focus remained on the metal however as she tried to pick it up in her magic. Her two companions soon joined her.
"We found this thing near the door to the tomb. Our speculation is that it fell off the tomb's door over the course of time, but w aren't certain. The other archeologists haven't been able to figure out what it's made of and we didn't have any unicorns to analyze it. I was actually going to show it to you, but it had disappeared a few hours before you showed up." Daring waved a hoof at the metal. "But here it is! I guess someone must have moved it and accidently dropped it in the sand."
Twilight nodded as she took a closer look at the metal. It seemed to be a large, silver square of sorts, but that wasn't what had caught her attention. No, what grabbed her focus was the strange, red coloured inscriptions glowing across the surface. The lights were dull, but visible even in the daylight. Daring leaned in as well and gasped in shock.
"It wasn't like that before! When we found it, it was just a large hunk of metal!" Daring grabbed the material off the ground, ignoring Twilights cry of protest when her magic dissipated.
"Why can't I pick it up? It can't be that heavy if it can be lifted by hoof! Ugh!" Twilight fumed at the piece as Rainbow patted her on the back.
"That's why we are going on this expedition! Maybe we can find out more about this device once we get the door to the tomb open?" Twilight looked at rainbow with determination.
"I think so. Whatever secrets this place may hide, we will discover them!" Twilight jumped to her hooves. Carefully opening her saddlebags, Daring Doo slipped the metal square into her saddlebags for later.
"Let's get ready to go! Common Daring, bring the metal with you. We will likely need rope, flashlights, extra batteries..." Twilight continued to ramble as Rainbow rolled her eyes. Daring chuckled as the three trotted off to gather their supplies; it was time to crack open a tomb!
*****
Initiating Alpha reboot Protocol...
Beginning Recalibration Process Zeta-Omega...
Detecting available Personnel... Scanning... //Error// Code #34534#
System Failure...Index Unaccounted...
Scanning...
Index Detected...
Initiating Retrieval Protocol... Protocol Disrupted...
Begin Defensive Scan... Defense Protocol Alpha-Bravo, Delta...//Error//
Defensive Status: Yellow // Current threat readiness: Defcon~:// Unknown, Presumed Error // Weapons Systems: 22% Capacity // Main Generator Error... Requesting Technician... Technician Unavailable... Requesting Immediate Remote Activation... Priority: Alpha...
Index required for remote activation...
//...//
//...//
New Lifeforms Detected... Scanning...
Scanning...
Scanning...
Scanning...
Scanning...
*****
Beams of light cut through the gloom like a knife through butter. The occasional shuffle echoed around the cave system as the trio made their way forward. Rainbow and Daring had a headlamp attached to her head, enabling them to always have a clear view ahead. Twilight had settled for a regular torch due to a lack of unicorn friendly headgear.
"It shouldn't be to far ahead. I was down here a few days ago and poked around. This cave system actually goes back pretty far, but there is only one entrance to the tomb." Daring trotted ahead, ears perked and senses sharp. She had to admit that there was something nagging at the back of her mind. What it was? She probably would never know. Maybe it was the darkness in her peripheral vision; seemingly squeezing around the group and barely being forced back by the light. Maybe it was the looming stalactites hanging from above, each seeming ready to fall and impale one of the intruding ponies.
A quick gasp from Twilight caused the two Pegasi to whirl around in alarm. Their fears were put to rest however when all they found was the Alicorn holding a small rock in her magical grip. The very idea of holding it seemed to cause her struggle, for her face was scrunched up. After a few seconds, she dropped the stone with a loud clatter before facing her friends.
"This rock was hard t-to lift, but I was able to cast a special spell that the lead geologist in Canterlot taught me." Twilight trotted up to the duo; Rainbow stayed hovering in the air while Daring sat down.
"What exactly did he teach you?" Daring cocked her head to the side. Twilight's eyes had dilated and she had an excited smile on her face.
"It was an age analyst spell! That rock... it predates over ten thousand years! I-I had to stop the spell when it just kept counting!!" Daring nearly stopped breathing at that, her eyes going wide. Her breathing began to quicken as her eyes scanned her surroundings in a new light. Never before had there been a discovery of something so ancient. The oldest locations ever found were around six to seven thousand years old, before the reign of Discord! How was such a place this close to the surface? How had nopony discovered it??
"I don't understand. Why is that important?" Rainbow raised an eyebrow at the two ponies beside her.
"Rainbow, there has never been a location this old in our worlds entire history. The oldest discoveries only go back roughly seven millenia! What Twilight is saying, is that this area here is older than ponykind!" Daring turned around and began trotting towards the tomb with renewed vigor, her friends not close behind. "We should almost be there! Oh, I wonder what might be inside?!"
The group continued on with a much faster pace, and after five more minutes of plodding along, they finally came to the door.
The thing itself was utterly massive! Some twelve hooves tall and twenty wide. It's surface was worn down and corroded in quite a few places. A massive circular cut out sat in the centre of the door with similar, albeit straight cutouts making their way across the length of the entrance. Massive, rusty pistons sat on either side of the tomb entrance, neglected for un unknown amount of time. Twilight couldn't believe her eyes. She could only stare at the door with childlike wonder, her headlamp slowly moving across it along with her eyes. The story was different for Rainbow Dash and Daring.
Unlike their intuitive companion, the two were feeling slightly uneasy. The doorway seemed to absorb the glow of their headlamps, the rusted metal loomed above like a mighty wave of despair, and the atmosphere seemed to grow thicker.
A flicker of light caught Daring Doo's attention, causing her to look up. A small red light was blinking on and off at regular intervals. With narrowed eyes, she slowly flapped upwards so that she was eye level with the dot. Upon closer examination, she found that it was some sort of bright light.
"This thing is electronic?" She mumbled to herself.
BEEP-BOOP!
All three ponies jumped in fright. Rainbow gave a high pitched squeal as she propelled herself backwards, causing her head lamp to fall off and go skirting into the darkness. Daring fell to the floor with a thud and her head gear also came loose. Instead of coming off, a mighty crash sounded as the bulb shattered from the impact. The only available light left was Twilight's torch. The mare in question started to scramble backwards, her light waving sporadically and causing shadows to dance across the cave. Then everything stopped, like a switch had been flipped. Rainbow crept towards Twilight's light, as did Daring.
"W-what was that??" Twilight stood up, her ears tucked against her head. Rainbows wings were aggressively unfurled while Daring remained staring at the doorway with wide eyes. All three stopped several meters from the metal door, seemingly frozen. The only sound was their breathing. Five seconds passed, then ten. Rainbow's wings slowly folded back to her body.
"We musty have scared it! I knew my awesomeness was, well, awesome, but this takes it to a whole-"
"PLEASE PRESENT ACTIVATION INDEX."
The gravelly male voice seemed to echo through the cave, and shake everypony to the core. All three screamed once again and jumped back. Twilight flopped to the floor and prepared to teleport away while Daring took a defensive stance. Rainbows wings were unfurled once more.
"Show yourself!" Daring called into the darkness.
It was silent once more... until Rainbow cried out in surprise.
"Rainbow! What's wrong?" Twilight ran over to her friend, who was lurching ever few seconds.
"What the hay! Twilight! Something's moving around in my saddle bag!"
Twilight quickly examined the prismatic mare and saw and sure enough, a glowing red light coming from within her saddlebags and seemed to be moving sporadically. Thinking quickly, she opened the top and tilted the carrying device onto the ground. Upon doing so, the square sheet of metal flew towards the door at speeds to fast to follow. Just as quickly, a large rectangular object erupted from the ground just beside the door. The Metal square changed course and smashed into the panel atop the pillar with a mighty crash.
Daring took a step away as the now now attached piece of metal turned from a dull red to a brilliant blue. A quick glance up showed the red light from before was now the same colour as well.
"INDEX RECEIVED, PLEASE STAND BY FOR INITIAL SCAN."
All three mares suddenly stopped when a wide, blue laser, not unlike the ones Vinyl Scratch used at her parties, flew from the dot at the top of the door. Instead of a strobe effect, the laser moved down the three ponies once then back up again before ultimately disappearing. After a few moments, a loud groan reverberated through the cave, causing all the ponies to pin their ears to their sides.
Even with the horrid noise of metal scratching on metal, Twilight could only stare in fascination as the previously sealed door began to swing open. The pistons and gears she had seen beside the door worked in tandem, letting the ponies finally see what was on the other side.
All three held their breath. The door kept swinging wider and wider, the obnoxious screeching never seeming to stop. After exactly three seconds, the door finally ground to a halt. Silence reigned throughout the cave once more. After a few seconds, Twilight took a step forward, the single clop of her hoof on the stone snapping the others out of their shock.
"Well, we didn't come all this way to sit around, let's go and explore the, er, definitely not creepy tomb." The others chuckled halfheartedly and began to follow the Alicorn princess into the tomb. Twilight lit her horn in order to provide more light and passed the torch to Daring Doo, who tucked the device under her wing. The inky blackness was cut through by the torches beam of artificial light, providing a measure of comfort to the three ponies as they plodded forward into the abyss. But there was still something nagging at the back of each and every ponies mind as they entered what was thought to be a tomb, something that caused their fur to stand on end:
The feeling of dread...
Author's Note
I feel like writing three chapters. Don't judge me. Also I did keep my promise! This chapter came out the next day!!
