A Whisper on the Wind

After a brief search, Stopper had located a jail of sorts in the town hall's basement; nothing fancy, but kitted out enough at least for us to hold our new prisoner

I would see to it that he would receive a fair trial, but that would have to wait; I had a new bunch of ponies to induct into our ranks after they'd turned on their former commander.

After checking over the cell and its locking system, I nodded to Crush and Stopper to bring forth our captive, throwing him in rather harshly as I closed the door and locked it.

The cell itself had a bunk and what I was reasonably sure was a non-functioning toilet, the entire thing exposed to us all and separated by a long series of bars, door included. The situation was far from ideal, but I wanted to set an example for the ponies in the room of what justice should look like. Scar had been telling me about Equestrian jurisprudence during the week after Estrus, and while I didn't know as much as I would’ve liked, I was eager to put what I did know into practice.

“Golden Sunshine,” I began, “As per the Articles of Jurisprudence enacted by the former sovereigns, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, and later confirmed by their successor, Princess Twilight Sparkle, you are hereby formally placed under arrest for gross negligence in the execution of your duty of care to your squad.”

The earth pony remained silent, and I chose to press forward, adding a little bit of flair from my world.

“You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defense if you do not mention, when questioned, something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence. Do you understand?” I asked him, getting only a muted nod in response. He looked utterly defeated, his entire world having come crashing down around him.

Making my way out of the custody area, I led the rest upstairs into the hall from earlier. Once everypony else was present and accounted for, I motioned for them all to stand closer to me.

“Now that Golden has been taken care of, I think it's time we discussed what happens next,” I opened with, everypony now focusing their gaze upon me. “To our newcomers: you've all agreed to follow me and my squad. For now, I'm placing you all as a detachment under the command of my Executive Officer, Private First Class Aerial Ace,” I said, gesturing to the pegasus who, after a little hesitation, saluted me in acceptance.

“Now, for some ground rules. I expect orders to be followed, but as I've told my squad a few times now, I don’t want mindless drones for soldiers. Each of you has valuable knowledge and experience, and I expect information to be freely volunteered if it can help. Like this guy did earlier,” gesturing to Ice Wisp as I concluded my little induction. “Everypony in agreement?”

Nods and MmmHmms rang out as somepony else got curious.

“Hey, Ice,” began Moon Shield, “How did you know he had that crystal?”

“Because he got sloppy and left it on the desk once. I didn’t even think it was valuable until Stuart here told me of its significance,” he said, briefly looking at me.

I held a hand up briefly. “Plenty of time to go digging on that point, but I need you all to focus for a bit,” I said, putting my hand down. “We're from a settlement due east of here, focused on helping each other survive; pegasi, unicorns, and earth ponies alike. I'm willing to extend an offer to you all; join us, and we can work together.”

Our newest recruits looked among each other, silent considerations no doubt being exchanged.

“Well, things do seem to be getting worse,” said Moon Shield, bringing a hoof up to his chin. “Crop yields have been decreasing year-on-year. It's not life-threatening yet, but…”

“You've noticed it too!” Exclaimed Flame, moving closer. “That can't be a coincidence!”

I nodded. “It would seem fitting that we visit this place. Am I right in thinking that's the place Golden mentioned earlier? Erm… Las Pegasus I think it was?”

More murmurs of agreement. “I could introduce my dad to you!” said Apogee excitedly, “He's an inventor, he could show you what he's been working on!”

“I would love that!” I returned with equal enthusiasm, “But, after we've returned from that tomb. Now, the rest of you… tell me everything you can about this tomb, no matter how small…”

—

The tomb we were now approaching was quite inconspicuous, the passway to it hidden very well within the rock face unless one knew exactly where to look. Which, thanks to our meeting back in the ruins of the city, I did.

After a good night's sleep and the inevitable trading of food rations, we left at first light. Leaving nothing to chance, I charged Flame and Crush with looking after Golden while the rest of us headed to the tomb.

The journey north was spent traveling fairly close together so that everypony could become familiar and acquainted with each other's movements, although I did notice the unicorns and pegasi each grouping up by themselves as we walked.

On our way, we passed by another abandoned town, Stratusburg, which the group had used as a layover. However, given lives were at stake, we had to press on; we were already approaching three days since they'd been left there, and as every hour elapsed, so too did their chances of survival.

Approaching the rock face, I ran my fingers over it, looking for the tell-tale indentation I'd been told about. However, before I could complete my search, I felt a hoof tap me from the side.

Ice Wisp stood there, nervously. “Do you remember what we told you about what's in there?”

Oh, I remembered, and it creeped me the fuck out.

“About something being alive in there? Yeah, I do, although I'm not sure I quite believe it. You said that something laughed at you as you retreated?” I queried, in equal parts horror and curiosity.

The kirin just stared at the rock face. “We know it's the tomb of somepony. It just feels like that pony is still around, y'know?”

I snorted. Ghost stories were frequently told on Earth, and this even felt like an old cliché of a tomb's occupant tormenting would-be thieves.

This would be nothing but nonsense back home. A vengeful spirit targeting graverobbers? Utter piffle…

My thoughts trailed off as I remembered that Equestria had this strange ability to make the impossible quite possible, and I was suddenly less sure of my factual certitude.

Finding the indentation, I pushed the button the group had indicated would be present, and the facade of the rock face recessed before rolling away to the right, revealing a stairwell that led down.

I turned back to the group. “Let's keep this party light; Ace, Stopper, and Ice, you're with me. The rest of you, stay here on standby, we might need your assistance later.”

Nods echoed through the group as the four of us slowly and methodically made our way down the flight of stairs, the golden hue of the brickwork being illuminated by a series of magical crystal torches that seemed to increase in illumination as we approached. Behind us, the facade rolled back, sealing us for now in the tomb, but I was at least secure in the knowledge that it was far more easily openable from the inside.

“Well, Dorothy, let's follow this yellow brick road and see where it leads, huh?” I said, marveling at the construction as we reached a plateau, a trapezoidal corridor now before us leading to the first chamber.

Looking at Ice for approval, he nodded, and we all pressed forward, eventually entering the expansive chamber. As I looked around, I was immediately struck by the ostentatious imagery before me, numerous statues around the domed ceiling, all seemingly depicting a unicorn in various poses; some gracious, some majestic, and some very, very lewd.

All of those paled in comparison to the statue in the center of the room, a startlingly accurate and larger-than-life representation of that unicorn, the marbled construct towering several feet over me as I approached it to read a plaque, itself mounted on an equally ornate pedestal.

Here lie the remains of The Stallion, The Myth, The Legend, Prince Donald Blueblood III Esq., BSc.

A towering intellect and a shining beacon of cultural enrichment in life, the world undoubtedly now all the poorer for him no longer inhabiting it.

In each chamber from here, you’ll find stories celebrating his life, as well as numerous treasures on display that he collected over the years. But, these treasures are not for the taking! Beware, thieves and pillagers, for only death and despair await you beyond this room!

“Charming fellow…” I mused as I ran a finger around the edge of the plaque. “Where are the two that got stranded?” I said, turning to Ice, who merely pointed to the chamber up ahead.

“There are two smaller rooms that branch off in there, and each of them has an artifact inside,” he explained. “One fell through a trapdoor that swung open, the other was trapped behind a rotating wall.”

“What were their names again?” I asked him as I walked towards the exitway that led to the next room.

“Uh, Kiwi Nectar and Rhea Aurelius, earth pony and pegasus respectively. Rhea fell into the trapdoor, and Kiwi is the one that got trapped behind the revolving wall.”

“Uh-huh,” I answered, noticing that the other two were still looking around. “A bit much, isn't it?” I said, turning to address them.

“Look at all this,” replied Stopper. “Just another swaggering, self-important stallion with too much vanity and not enough ability.”

Ace, meanwhile, was pacing around in front of the statue. “Um… I think this thing's eyes moved,” He observed, continuing to move and focus his gaze on the statue’s head.

I joined him, and against my expectations, I saw one of the statue's eyes move just a fraction, a large blue jewel in each eye serving as the pupil. I then turned to once again look at Ice.

“I'm starting to believe you on that laugh you mentioned. I think something is watching us,” I said, moving to the corridor that would lead to the next chamber. Ace, however, was a little more cautious.

“If something's watching us, shouldn't we… you know… do something about it?” He asked.

“Not really much we can do at this stage,” I responded, shrugging my shoulders. “For the moment, I’m assuming it's dangerous and that we shouldn't let our guard down,” I further advised as I headed for the tunnel up ahead, all three following behind me.

Upon entering the next room, I noted that it was decorated similarly to the first, but with statues in different expressions and poses. In the center of the room was another statue, but much more true-to-life, the marble statue holding a sword, a very real-looking sword, as it stood on its hind legs, wielding it as if challenging any who would approach. I immediately moved to the plaque on the accompanying pedestal.

“There's an inscription here. ‘Whomsoever takes up this blade shall wield power eternal. Just as the blade rends flesh, so must power scar the spirit.’.”

Stopper immediately trotted over to me. “Does it really say that?” She asked in a mixture of curiosity and disbelief. I shook my head.

“Sadly, no,” I conceded. “If it did, that would be awesome and terrifying all at once. Nah, this thing just mentions that this was his favorite sword. ‘Widow’s Wail’ was its name, apparently.”

“He's starting to sound like a bit of a cunt,” offered Ice, and I confessed to myself that I was finding it hard to disagree with him.

“Show me the chamber that had the revolving wall,” I asked, and Ice led us to a room on our right, much smaller in size than the main chambers; in the middle of it was a pedestal with a magical field surrounding it; inside that field was a book, suspended in mid-air as it rested within the field's grasp. On the wall opposite the entrance was a display of sorts, a large semicircle etched into the floor in front of it.

“That's actually quite clever,” I conceded, walking to the side. “Your colleague obviously assumed that the display on the wall here controlled the field… but what if this display is just a ruse? A tool to just be sure that someone was here when they fiddled with it, which then flings them outside the room using that rotating wall when any attempt is made to interfere with it?”

“Oh, this one is smart! How delightful!”

The masculine voice boomed out all around us, and I ran back into the previous chamber with everypony else in tow, the statue here making it much more obvious that it was watching us very closely, two shining blue eyes fixing their gaze directly on me.

“Who are you?!” I demanded sternly, unsheathing Oathkeeper while Stopper readied her blade too, the two of us squaring up to the marble monument.

“Oh, my, my, my! Just questions, questions, questions with you isn't it?! Just look around and reflect upon my accomplishments!”

It was quite obvious now as to whom I was dealing with.

“So, I'm talking to the prince whose body is interred within this place?” I queried, although in truth it felt quite obvious.

“Quite right! My death was undoubtedly a staggering loss to the arts, culture, and civilization of Equestria, a loss now firmly confined to this place. But, even in death, one must still have purpose!”

“Purpose?” I asked incredulously, “What purpose do you have? All I've seen and heard so far are the remains of a preening, egotistical fool, desperately screaming against the darkness.”

“That darkness you speak of is more real than you could ever imagine, and it's coming for us all! It's why I chose to be here, why I paid the top archmages in the land to sequester my spirit inside a dimensional pocket. This place is far, far more than just a monument to my existence; it's a proving ground to see if there's somepony out here worthy of standing against that darkness…”

“What darkness do you speak of? It's already pretty bleak out there.”

“More questions! I have a better idea… why don't you play my games so I can see what you're all made of?”

“What makes you think we're interested?”

“What makes you think I'm giving you a choice in the matter?”

A loud rumble filled the room, followed by the sound of numerous thuds in the distance as well as one very near us as our way back was cut off. A cold bead of sweat dripped right into my arsecrack as I took a step back.

“Over the years I've found that, given the proper incentive, anypony can be made to play my games! You're locked in here with me now, little ones!”

“You don't seem to understand the situation,” I fired back, “We’re not locked in here with you, you're locked in here with us!”

The room fell silent.

“What's that? No clever reply? No witty retort?” I taunted the silent statue, “You'd best be bringing your A-game, pal; there's already been a human in this world, and I'm sure you saw firsthoof what he was capable of. I might not be him, but I can make you wish he was here instead of me and this amazing squad behind me,” I said, pointing to the ponies behind me with a thumb.

I looked around the room once more, gesturing to the only open passageway as I looked back at the others. “Well, we might as well get a move on. We've got two ponies to save and a demented spirit to humble.”

Nods abounded as we pressed on, the entranceway sealing itself as we got halfway to the next area; more statues around the dome above us, but in the center of the room this time was a spiral staircase leading down.

Seeing no obvious locations of interest here, we all approached and descended the staircase for a good few minutes before the elaborate stairwell ended in a square room with a single exit. Walking through it led us into a rather more modest room than the chambers above, roughly square with an exit on each of the other three walls. The room itself was completely spartan aside from some illumination; as we approached the room’s center, the door behind us sealing firmly shut as a barrier came out of the side, completely eclipsing our way out.

“Come one, come all! Welcome to the real test! Buuuuuut!... It's not going to be a very fair one for you!”

“Color me shocked,” I said with a heap of sarcasm, “The discount Jigsaw is about to level something unfair at us? Didn’t see that coming at all,” I further taunted the voice.

“Ooh, this one is feisty! But don't worry, I'll explain the rules; Under the correct exit, there is a magical conduit that guides you to the end of the maze; a unicorn with magic would be able to detect such a conduit. Every other exit leads to an endless maze deep within the catacombs below us. But, as you don't have magic, you'll just have to guess which one is correct!”

“I have magic! Replied Ice, as we all turned to look at him, “But, all I can cast are ice spells. I've never been able to feel magic in the world, though.”

“Is the use of magic one of your tests that whoever steps in here is worthy?” I asked.

“Why, of course! If only that other human could see what is unfolding before me! Now, his magic was nothing short of impressive; had we been better acquainted I might’ve even asked for a private show! It's too bad that you can't use magic, however; you've now stepped into a place where that's likely going to be very deadly for you!”

I stepped forward and turned left, stopping at one of the exits. Kneeling, I put my hands on the floor and began the process of casting Levitate at the floor, the magic swirling between my hands and the golden bricks of the ground as I moved my limbs in concentric circles.

I felt nothing. In truth, I wasn't sure what I was searching for, but after a few minutes, I got up, and moved to the entrance opposite the sealed exit, kneeling once again.

Casting the same spell and moving my hands in the same motions, I began to feel a force pushing back against some of my fingers, the same fingers where I'd had those small neodymium magnets implanted. As I moved my hands more, I started to feel shapes and boundaries, as if the conduit beneath me was putting out a magical equivalent to a magnetic field. I was so engrossed in the sensations that I hadn't noticed Stopper approaching me, catching me a little off-guard as her horned head came into view.

“What can you feel?” she asked softly, striding over to my side and looking down at my hands as my magical casting continued.

“It’s… like when you first grasp an onion. You can feel the outer layer but you know there’s something harder beneath it,” I said, getting up to look around the room. “You were saying something about me not having magic?” I pressed the discombobulated voice.

“B-But… That's impossible! You’re not wearing one of those gauntlets!”

I repeatedly clenched my fists. “And yet, here I stand. Come on, let's go,” I directed at the others, who dutifully followed as I headed into the corridor leading to the next area, another large chamber with seven passageways dotted around the perimeter, all but one barred by a series of metal bars. In the room's center was a series of plinths, ten in total, with one of them holding a number of very small figurines.

Four of the plinths had figurines already on them, a notable amount of cobwebs denoting that it'd been a long time indeed since they'd been disturbed. As I held one of the figurines in my hand, the voice boomed once more.

“Are those not the most perfect representations of a unicorn that you've ever seen?! Each of them was hoof-crafted by the finest artisans in Canterlot, each of them an absolutely stunning example of me!”

As I held the figurine closer, I noticed that it indeed looked very much like the large statues in the room above, and very detailed given its size… even the underside seemed to be anatomically correct.

“Hey! You over there!” A voice called out to me from my left, a pony now at the bars and gesturing wildly for my attention. I put the figurine back and immediately ran over to them.

She was a pegasus, with white fur and something that I'd not yet seen here: her eyes were heterochromic, her left eye a striking shade of red, while her right was a cool shade of blue. As I approached, I could see that she was shaking, her wings at her sides drooping onto the floor. I put a hand through the bars, a gesture that she immediately sank into, her eyes closing briefly at my touch.

“How do we get these doors open?” I asked her, willing the answer out of her.

“The v-voice said that we'd have to wait for somepony else to get here, to wait for them to s-solve the puzzle…” she stammered, weakly pointing a hoof to the center of the room, her limb shaking.

“What's your name, my dear?” I asked as I withdrew my hand, and reached for my water pouch.

“M-My name's Rhea. Rhea Aurelius,” she confirmed as I passed my pouch between the bars, encouraging her to take a swig of the liquid inside, an offer which she hungrily accepted.

“Hey! Don't forget about lil’ ol’ me over here!” Chimed another voice directly behind me. Carrying over the pouch, I approached the owner of the new voice.

“Y'all have no idea how happy I am to see ya! I've been lickin’ the walls back there since I got trapped,” she said, gesturing behind her with a hoof. “Name’s Kiwi Nectar by the way, sugar, but y'all can just call me Kiwi,” she said, fluttering her eyes at me in what felt like a very seductive gaze.

She was an earth pony with a body of dark orange fur and a green mane, her eyes an alluring and disarming hue of lilac. I passed my water pouch through the bars, and she too took a healthy swig from it.

After taking back the pouch, I reattached it to my belt and walked to the center of the room. “So, in order to release you two, we have to solve this puzzle, huh?” I mused as I studied the plinths. One of them had a large number of figurines, positioned in front of the remaining nine. Four of those nine had figurines already on them; the first had two, the second had three, the third had five and the fourth had seven. I gestured for the other three to join me. “What does this look like to you all?” I asked.

Ace studied the layout intently. “Well, the second lot is just one greater than the first, while the next two are each two greater than the one before it. Maybe the next three should go up in increments of three: ten, thirteen, and sixteen?”

Stopper shook her head. “That leaves two left, and those being in increments of four just doesn’t sit right,” she pondered. “There's not a lot of information to go on here…”

I looked over at Ice. “What's your take on this?” I asked him.

“Primes,” he said, looking straight at me. I nodded my head after re-examining the plinths, while Ace and Stopper both looked at him.

“What's a ‘Prime’?” Stopper queried while Ace's expression revealed that he held an identical question.

“They're a concept in mathematics,” I began, gesturing a hand to the plinths, “Ice here is old enough for him to have been taught these all the way back in the School of Friendship. Am I right, Ice?”

The kirin nodded and Stopper stomped a hoof onto the floor. “I knew it, I buckin’ knew that you were older than you looked,” she said, looking darned pleased with herself at her correct intuition.

“Anyway,” I said, changing the subject, “A prime number is a number that is only cleanly divisible by itself and one. The number of figurines here definitely lines up with that pattern; one is excluded because it's the factor in deciding the other prime numbers. The next number is two, and then three, neither of them able to be divided without a remainder. Four is missing because it can be divided by two. That means the next number is five. Six is ineligible because it can be divided by three, so the next prime number is seven. There are five remaining plinths, so the puzzle wants the next five prime numbers.”

“Eleven!” Rang out a voice from the side as I turned to look at the pegasus.

“Very good, Rhea! Eight is ineligible because it can be divided by four and two, nine can be divided by three, and ten can be divided by five and two. That leaves the next one as indeed eleven,” I confirmed, taking some figurines and putting eleven of them on the fifth plinth. “Now, what comes next?”

Ace was circling the puzzle, deep in thought. “Well, twelve can be divided by six and by two… But I don't think I can divide thirteen!”

“If thirteen is the next one, then the one after must be seventeen!” Exclaimed Stopper.

“Which leaves the final number as nineteen,” I added, making all the necessary changes to ensure the plinths all matched our collective train of thought. As soon as the last figurine was placed, a low rumble rippled across the floor as each of the iron bar doors lowered slowly, the two captives slowly making their way into the main chamber, both of them eventually joining us in the center of the room.

“Can’t thank ya enough, sugar,” Kiwi said, flicking her tail, ”I was beginnin’ ta think that place back there was gonna be ma swan-song, I owe ya for gettin’ me outta there.”

“Yeah, uh, me too,” added Rhea, “Where are the rest of us?”

“Topside, all except for Golden Sunshine,” I began, “He's back at the city being kept under lock-and-key as our prisoner.”

Rhea spat onto the floor. “You'd best keep him there. If you don't, I'll kill him myself.”

Nodding, I motioned for all gathered to come closer. “I think some introductions are in order; Rhea and Kiwi, my name is Stuart, and I’m sure you're already familiar with Ice Wisp. The other two are Aerial Ace and Show Stopper,” I said, moving my hand to point each of them out. “We came here to get you out.”

“Aaand to find some treasure,” remarked Stopper as she looked to the room's exit.

I sighed and briefly looked over at her. “Fine, treasure too. But that's a secondary concern. How are you both doing?”

“I’m as hungry as a whorse,” said Rhea, with Kiwi narrowing her eyes at the unicorn.

“I'm standin’ right here, sugar,” Kiwi teased, giving all present a twirl. “But, yeah, I'm feelin’ a might peckish, too.”

“Understandable. We'll see to it that's remedied once we get out of here. Speaking of which, let’s all get a move on, shall we?” I suggested, making my way to the exit. However, something I felt caused me to stop in my tracks as I approached the arch of the way out; it was just a tremor in my hands, and maybe it was some of the adrenaline wearing off, but as I got closer, more tremors flooded my hands, and by now I suspected something magical and very powerful was directly up ahead.

By now, the others had caught up with me, gathering all around my rear as I kneeled and took my backpack off, eventually fishing out a throwing knife, still sheathed in an inside pocket of the bag.

Removing the knife, I stood up again and threw it with some force toward the center of the room. After barely a second, a spark bathed us all in a bright, blinding light. Suddenly, there was no more dagger, and the corridor's walkable interior was now entangled in a web of crisscrossing blue lines.

I sighed, turning my focus to the ceiling. “You have fucking lasers?!”

“Concentrated mana beams! No expense spared, my lovelies! Oh, what a tantalizingly devious conundrum you now face! To know that your goal is so near yet so very far away, and yet, tangling with these beams means your almost certain destruction!”

Pacing back and forth, I spied and visually inspected one of the emitters to the right from afar; a lens inset in a rim of gold, jutting out from the wall by a good couple of centimeters. I waved a hand out behind me. “Might be an idea to give me some space here… can you guys stand over there for me?” I asked, pointing to the cornet to the right of the exit, “That way, if things go wrong, you won't be in the way of it.”

The ponies all shuffled off to the side, joined of course by the kirin as I approached the exit once more, my hands again feeling tremors of force coming from the passageway up ahead; closing my eyes, I focused my attention on those tremors and before long, as I moved my hands around, I could feel the direction of the magical current.

“Right side it is, then,” I said to myself as I moved to cover myself on the left, letting only what I needed of my body be exposed. Channeling magic with my hands, I focused a magical grasp on one of the nearest emitters; all I needed was that barest protrusion from the wall, and I was soon straining to forcibly extract it.

“Levenesis!” I shouted, my magic ramping up in force as the spellword unlocked the power I needed. With an almighty mental effort, the emitter sparked, then went dark, and then came careering out of its housing, now held in place in the air by my magic; I floated the object over to me, my hands reaching out to grab the device as I took it from the air.

It was a long, metal cylinder, with a lens on one side and one side of a crystal on the other. The lens was light blue, easy to discern even with the flickering golden illustrations in the room, while in the device's rear was a completely transparent crystal, wedged in and immobile but its shape was not unlike the one used by the Mnemosyne Crystals I was already familiar with. Holding the device by the crystal it felt like, just for a moment, I was carrying the Olympic Torch.

Getting an idea, I channeled a small amount of magical energy into the hand holding the device, and even that small amount was enough to cause it to project a beam onto the ceiling. After a few seconds, I ceased casting and looked up, only to see a very fresh, very black, and very round scorch mark where the beam had been.

I cackled, a devious idea of my own forming.

“What are you up to?!”

The voice was demanding but a slight panic was detectable as its vocal tones wavered.

“What am I up to?” I teased, “Shall I tell you what I think that contraption in there is? I would bet my life savings that it's a closed-loop system; all it probably does is funnel energy around itself. If all you want is a show of force, that's good enough. But coming up against someone like me? Oh, this isn't going to end well for you. Ice, would you mind lending me a hoof here?” I said, looking over at the group. He ventured nervously to me, taking up a spot to my side. “Tell me; when you cast your ice magic, are you able to keep that magic in its raw form, without aspecting it?”

“I… I think I can, yeah. What's your idea?” He asked me.

I took the device into my magical grasp again, aiming the lens at a wall in the passage. “Fire a weak beam of unaspected magic at the crystal and hold it steady,” I asked. The kirin nodded, and after a few seconds, a white cascade of magic formed between Ice and the device, a cold blue beam of light coming out the other end. Using my magic, I aimed the beam at one of the receiving lenses on the left.

“You want to know something, my erstwhile prince? I think the ponies who put this place together for you cut a few corners. I can believe that this place can extract magical energy from the world outside...” I said, fine-tuning the cylinder’s position while Ice kept up the energy beam coming from his horn. “But I don't think anypony thought that bleeding off excess magical energy would be necessary in a place like this.”

The beam grew brighter as Ice directed more energy into the device, the light from his horn glowing brighter as I kept the beam squarely focused on the chosen lens. “That's the thing about closed-loop systems… all that energy has to go somewhere…”

“No! You can't do this!”

“You've imprisoned people and you’ve been prepared to commit murder,” I countered as the voice impotently protested. “Regardless of what your intentions are, you represent a threat. That threat ends here, today.”

The lights all around us flickered before going dark completely, the sound of a distant explosion echoing through the halls as all of the beams up ahead faded from view, Ice stopping his magic flow as the room around us went black; the door behind us then suddenly opened, but all our attention was now given to something of interest up ahead.

That something was a light source, quite far ahead in fact, a steady amber beacon in an ocean of pitch-black darkness.

“Right, let’s hurry!” I said as everypony gathered around me; soon, we were making our way to that beacon quickly, crossing through numerous other rooms and passageways to get there, caring not one whit for their contents.

Upon closer inspection, the beacon of light was shining from the ceiling onto a pillar, with a column of glass hiding something inside. The object slowly rotated, and as it came into view, I discerned a yellow gemstone housed in a round seal of gold, a solid necklace of that same gold attached to it. As I got closer, so did Ace, until both of us were on either side of the pillar. “It’s so… pretty…” uttered the pegasus, a sentiment I agreed with wholeheartedly. My attention turned to how to remove the glass.

“Ace, can you give me a hoof with this?” I asked as I placed my hands at the top of the glass, gesturing for Ace to put his hooves on the bottom portion, in the hope we’d be able to safely remove it and expose the artifact underneath.

As soon as Ace put his hooves on the glass, the light suddenly became blinding, and before I knew what was happening, I found myself on the floor, winded and on my back. After a few seconds of temporary amnesia, I realized that I’d been hurled from where I’d stood; looking up, I could see Ace similarly struggling with Ice checking him over as Stopper looked over me, having obviously rushed over to me. Before long, we’d both managed to get up and dust ourselves off as the other two looked on nervously. I felt a little woozy as I rose to my feet, but that feeling soon wore off as I approached the pillar once more.

The glass pillar was now vertically raised, suspended in the air as we both put our respective forelimbs on the pillar.

“What the fuck was that?” I asked rhetorically, Ace shrugging his shoulders. I exhaled sharply, catching sight of a side passageway, illuminated brightly in sharp contrast to the light of the beacon above the pillar, which had now dimmed considerably.

Wanting to explore that passageway first, I pointed to it, shuffling toward it; every step I made to it was harder than the last, the strain eventually causing me to crash to the floor on my knees, my body slumping forward.

Crawling to turn around, I could see Ace similarly struggling, his crumpled form looking at me with a mixture of fear and confusion.

Everypony in the room was silent as I crawled back to the pillar, my dizziness and nausea subsiding gradually as I got closer. By the time I reached the pillar again, I felt as right as rain.

So too did Ace, apparently, his expression a more relaxed one as he stood next to the pillar. Taking the opportunity, I removed the necklace from the invisible force rotating it in place, holding the gem-seated medallion in the palm of my hand. I didn’t even need my hand to tell me that this thing was projecting a magical field; the yellow gemstone pulsed slowly in its setting, and reams of possible explanations ran through my mind.

Deciding to test one of them out, I crouched down and gestured for Stopper to come forward. Hesitantly, she trotted over, and I put the trinket around her neck, the medallion resting against her fur.

“Just… walk back the way we came. I'll tell you to stop if I need to,” I said, my breathing still a bit labored. The unicorn nodded and steadily made her way to the exit. Even before she got halfway, the nausea kicked in again, and I soon found myself on my knees as my body became unable to sustain itself.

“Urgh… come back!” I shouted as I winced in profound discomfort while also looking to my side to see Ace in exactly the same predicament as me, although he was reduced to crawling on the floor. Predictably, my body's situation improved as Stopper came back to us; I took the amulet from her and adorned it around my neck, making sure to hide the gemstone beneath my shirt and hoodie before turning to look at Ace. “We've got a major problem, but for now, stay close to me at all times. Got it?” I asked him, getting a rapid series of nods in reply.

“Good. Let's head down that passageway there,” I said, pointing to the open recess in the wall. After making sure that Ace was keeping close to me, I turned into the hidden passage, finding a descending set of stairs.

Carefully descending it, everypony followed me and Ace, with us all eventually finding ourselves in a fairly spacious room, with technology seemingly reminiscent of Earth's, like flatscreen displays and keyboards. As I approached the equipment, I noticed that the keyboards used a different design from the ones I was used to, with extra keys for Ñ and Ç that weren’t present on the keyboard on my laptop.

Did these ponies just… copy the Spanish keyboard layout from somewhere? Ohhh… you’ve made quite the impression on their technology it seems, Alex.

The more I looked around the room, the more it resembled a control room of some kind, a thought more-or-less confirmed when I looked out of the glass panels above waist height; before us was another very expansive room, cool blue hues permeating every inch of the place, a large circular chamber coming into view as I moved closer.

To the left and right of the apparent control room were stairs that descended into it; making my way down, the rest followed me, all apart from Ace fanning out behind me, the stallion keeping very close to me.

In the center of the room was a tall, large mass of electronics, seemingly inert at first glance, but as we approached, I could see parts of it reacting to our arrival as peripherals passively moved with our presence.

With a hiss of gasses being released, the upper and lower segments each retracted in their respective directions, revealing an amber-lit chamber with numerous crystal shards within it; a large cluster of them was at the base, their numbers thinning as the crystal structure grew taller, eventually culminating in just a single crystal that seemed to be the source of the amber ambiance.

My ears picked up the sound of mains hum as speakers crackled into life, the screens attached to the device flickering into life as a burst of activity consumed the mass of electronics. Slender metallic arms with black orbs at their tips were now actively moving around us as the bottoms of the walls danced with a small light show, as bars of white light rose, fell, and momentarily left a line of white before that, too, faded from view.

I exhaled and put my hands in my hoodie's pockets. “I take back what I said earlier; this is ostentatious.”

The images on the screens now focused into a three-dimensional visage of the discombobulated head of a stallion with a horn, and I didn’t need any guesses to know who it was.

“Prince Blueblood, I presume?” I offered, in the barest minimum tone of politeness I could muster.

“I suppose you've come to gloat?”

The head on the displays moved its lips and face exactly how I'd expect a real pony to, as those white lights around the bottoms of the walls rose and dropped off in time with the tones of his voice.

I shook my head. “I didn't even know you were here. I thought I destroyed you back there, in all honesty.”

“You overloaded the power grid! I was disconnected when that surge of power burned out the fuses leading into here. I'm preserved… but this machine is running on battery power. When that expires, I will no longer be able to interact with the world. You've condemned me to an eternity of silence in this crystal.”

That last part well and truly caught my attention. “Oh. Ohhhhh! This… computer, whatever you want to call it, that's not you, is it? Are you… imprisoned or something in one of those crystals up there?” I asked, pointing up at the inverted chandelier.

“The crystal is my conduit into the world. My essence, everything that I am, is now bound to another dimensional plane, my soul now functionally immortal. This place allowed me to project my will, but now you've gone and ruined that.”

“Okay, in fairness, you started it. When you escalate a situation, don't be surprised when the other person escalates as well.”

“...Good point, well made.”

I looked around the room before focusing on one of the displays. “Until recently, have you been on your own since you were installed?”

The head on the screen nodded. “Apart from the odd bird… or griffon that got too close to my sensors in the mountain.”

I put my hands on the metal finish of the contraption's controls. “Can you observe things via the crystal, or do you need this… thing to allow you to see things?”

“I observe everything within range of the crystal's magic. I don't know exactly what that range is, but it isn't small. Talking back is really what this machine allows.”

I took a step back, contemplating the choice before me. “It seems to me that there are two possible outcomes here. Either I leave you here to go insane from lack of social interaction, and bear in mind that the next time could be centuries away; or, I take your crystal with me. You get to explore the world with us, in exchange for company and the occasional bit of information… if I can work out how to talk to you.”

Silence fell as the pixelated avatar worked through an impressive number of facial impressions, no doubt weighing up his options.

“It seems I have little choice but to accept your terms. Fine. You may remove my crystal when ready.”

I didn’t need to be invited twice, my magical grasp floating the crystal up and out of its crystalline receptacle, eventually depositing it in Stopper's other saddlebag. As soon as the crystal was freed, the contraption powered down, leaving only the cool blue hues of the illumination from the floor.

I put my hands once again upon the device, feeling its controls with my hands as a blissful silence fell upon the room; there was no longer a hum, and the only sound was the breathing of everyone present.

“Whatcha thinkin’ bout, sugar?” came a voice from the back, my curiosity no doubt on full display to the group, whom I now turned to address.

“When I first entered this place and saw the little teases of technology, I wondered how ponies had developed it. When I saw those terminals back there, the layouts of those keyboards matched Alex's laptop. That's beyond a coincidence,” I said, gesturing to the control room. “I think he's had some influence here; heck, this technology might even be based on the stuff he had on him! That's just… I have no words. This technology might very well, one day, fundamentally alter the trajectory of your society… assuming it hasn't already.”

I looked around the room, marveling at the teases and whispers it no doubt held. I could spend the next month here and still have more questions than answers.

But, I instead chose to follow my self-appointed mission, and for now, that meant getting out of here.

Pulling out my phone, I switched on its flashlight; the illumination it provided would be more than enough to assist our passage out of there.

“Let's all get going. I've had enough of this place for one day,” I said, with a sharp exhale following. Ace naturally kept close to me, and soon we were all making our way out, passing every room and chamber on the way, wasting as little time as possible.

As we walked, I could've sworn that I heard voices in the distance; muffled, indistinct whispers even against the near-total silence of the group, save for our collective steps against the floor.

I chose to ignore it for now, focusing entirely on retracing our steps. Luckily, the earlier havoc I'd wrought seemed to have the side effect of opening every door between us and the exit, and after a little while, we found ourselves at the set of stairs leading up to the last exit.

“I can't wait to taste fresh air again.”

“Yeah, neither can I,” I said, and the entire room looked at me. It took a few seconds for me to realize there was a problem.

“Why's everypony looking at me like that?” I questioned, the wide-eyed expressions on their faces making me take a moment.

“Did nopony hear that?” I said, looking all around to nothing but silence and some of them shaking their heads.

I put my head down and two fingers to my nose, closing my eyes as I contemplated whether or not I was fucking losing it.

“Fine… maybe I'm just more tired than I thought. Let's get out of here, rest up in that local town, and then head back to the city; how does that sound to everypony?” I asked, getting a chorus of nods and approving murmurs in return.

As we ascended the steps, more discombobulated whispers teased themselves on the periphery of my thoughts, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that the incident earlier was responsible.

Either way, I'd deal with it after a good night’s rest and with a clear head.

We passed the final barrier without fanfare; the remainder of the group was getting antsy about our return and were relieved to see us make it out.

Well, some of them were.

“Sooo… where's all the flashy treasure?” Asked a curious Genesis, her wings shuffling in what I was sure was irritation at seeing us mostly empty-hooved.

The door closed behind us as I put my hands on my hips. “An explosion of unknown magical force occurred back there. For everypony's safety, this tomb is off-limits for the foreseeable future. Is everypony clear on that?”

Groans echoed across much of the group.

“I know, and I'm sorry. That being said, we managed to retrieve your two colleagues, and we also retrieved an artifact from back there; however, it seems to be causing some… unforeseeable side effects. So, for now, the artifact is in my custody.”

Kiwi spoke up. “It's true, y'all. Saw it wit’ me own eyes. That amulet he's wearin’ is cursed somethin’ fierce.”

Grateful for the assist, I crossed my arms. “We should rest in the town nearby before we head back into the city. If we leave now, we should make it there by nightfall.”

With agreement all around, we started our journey towards the town, my mind still plagued with whispers and, in a worrying new development, flashes of images in my mind. They were too brief to pinpoint what they were, but each image carried with it a feeling, the most numerous of which was trepidation.

As we got closer and closer to the town, the whispers became louder and more distinct.

“I hope he's feeling okay.”

“You know they only tolerate you, right?”

“You are more powerful than you know!”

“You don't need those other ponies!”

I didn't dare respond to any of those voices, even if I couldn't help but entertain them.

What If they do all just tolerate me…

This was all while trying my best to keep walking while also keeping up the illusion that everything was just fine, despite the reverse very much being true. Ace was walking beside me, and while I could see him glancing up at me occasionally, he didn't raise any concerns if he had them.

Stopper and Tricks were out in front, while Apogee and Genesis flanked us to the sides, with Kiwi, Rhea, and the two Moon brothers directly behind us, the sounds of hooves and feet alike trudging across mulchy grassland being the only companions for us all.

The town itself was modest, although it, like Vanhoover, was showing obvious signs of urban decay, with numerous broken windows on display and nature doing her utmost to reclaim what was once hers as flora of every description smothered the buildings that yet remained.

“Welcome to Stratusburg… what's left of it, anyway,” announced Moon Shield as Genesis led us to a fairly large building, most likely the town hall for this place if the mini statues of Celestia and Luna adorning the entrance were any indication.

I turned to Ice before we went inside. “Did you ever meet them?” I asked, eager for a distraction.

“I was near them several times, but I don't think I was ever formally introduced to them. Why do you ask?” He replied, undoubtedly curious.

As we entered the building with Ace alongside me, I mulled over my reasoning as best I could but decided to ask further questions for now. “Do you know what happened to them?”

“Last I heard, they disappeared. As to where though, I'm not sure. They might even still be out there…” he said as we made our way further inside, the debris strewn around making it clear that this is where the group was previously camped.

I focused on the last part of what the kirin said. “As in… still alive?” I sought to confirm, the kirin merely nodding as I removed the large backpack and took a seat in one of the many chairs in the room with a loud exhale. “How long do alicorns live for, anyway?” I asked as Stopper came into view, who seemed to have overheard.

“Nobody really knows how long they can live,” she said, taking a seat next to me, her armor clinking against the wooden furnishing. “Princess Celestia was at least a thousand years old, or so the stories say. Faust, what I wouldn’t give to sit at her feet and ask her questions about what the old times were like…”

I put a hand to my head, the familiar sensation of a headache spreading across my head. “Sorry, I… I think I need to go lie down. Is there, um, a quiet place I can rest up in?”

Ice turned towards a flight of stairs and gestured with a hoof for me to follow him. I climbed the steps with Ace in tow, and on the upper floor were a number of rooms with beds, all adorned with upholstery bearing the Sun and the Moon.

“When we first came across these rooms, we grabbed the sheets and everything, took it all outside, and washed them all in a stream not far from here,’ said the kirin as all three of us entered the room. The furnishings were rather spartan, but even this modest upgrade was like heaven compared to what was back home.

Home. Home. I really am starting to think of this world as home, aren't I?

I rolled onto the bed as Ace watched over me, Ice making the sensible choice to leave us both alone, closing the door behind him as Ace hopped onto the bed next to me, laying his forelimbs on my legs as yet more whispers intruded my mind.

You know that they'll never accept you, outsider.

Do you honestly think what you do here matters?

I hope he's okay…

I closed my eyes and put my hands up to my face, a long exhale leaving my lungs. I didn't see it, but I could feel the pegasus scooting closer to me. I laid my head back onto the pillows and withdrew my hands, opening my eyes to look at Ace. “It's fine, I'm alright…”

He shook his head. “I know you well enough to know when you’re not being truthful. You've been acting strange since we got out of that tomb. I'm worried about you…” he said.

I looked into his eyes and I saw a look of concern etched into his face; that was all it took for my facade to crumble away. I couldn’t hold back the tears any longer, and I devolved into a sobbing fit interspersed with repeated attempts to stifle the flow, all of them in vain.

“I've b-been hearing voices. Mean ones and friendly ones… all of it’s happened since we found this accursed amulet…” I said, a hand cradling the socketed gemstone.

“I've… been hearing voices too…” Ace confirmed, as he briefly looked away before refocusing his gaze on me. “Or, rather… just one voice…”

I tilted my head slightly. “What has this voice been saying?” I enquired, trying my best to keep my concentration as I nosily cleared my nose. It was then that I felt a wave of… something wash over me, like an ocean wave that was just a hair away from being uncomfortably cold.

It took a few moments for me to process what I felt, but I eventually zeroed in on what it was.

Disgust.

It definitely wasn't me feeling that... at least, not right now. Meanwhile, Ace's expression momentarily contorted, his nose scrunching for an instant before normal service resumed.

I refused to believe that those two events were a coincidence. I could see that Ace was hesitating to answer, but I needed to press on with my questioning. “Ace… what has that voice been saying?”

He briefly continued to hesitate but eventually offered what he knew. “I heard something earlier. It sounded like somepony was asking if others just tolerated them.”

I nodded. “One of the voices… they whispered that to me, making me doubt everything, making me question everything…” I said, wiping my nose on my sleeve. “But… There was one voice among them all wondering if I was okay.”

Ace looked down and I felt something new wash over me. It was hard to pin down; for an instant, I felt like a fox cub curled up in the warm embrace of its mother. It was a fleeting, yet extremely comfortable feeling, but once it departed, I realized that something profound had happened back in the tomb.

“... I felt that, Ace. Has it… been you that I've been hearing all this time?” I asked him, although that thought deeply troubled me given what I'd heard lately.

“I did wonder if you were okay… but that other thing you said? That wasn't me…” he conceded.

I nodded, extremely grateful that he wasn't the source of those hateful messages… leaving a very big unanswered question as to their origins. Before I could focus on that, however, I felt something else stir in me. This one made me recall a memory; the time I treated my last boyfriend to dinner at a Korean restaurant, a feeling of closeness, comfort, and… love. But, as soon as it came, that feeling disappeared, like that thought was being scrubbed away.

I sat up and took one of Ace's hooves into my hand, gently squeezing it as I ran a thumb over his fetlock. “Hey, Ace… don't push that thought away…”

Of course, he fell into the trap of not thinking of something automatically making him think of something. That sensation returned to me, only now it felt like I was in the warm embrace of someone, an innate and intimate feeling of safety that I hadn't felt since… Well, the night we spent together. I let his hoof go, more out of shock than genuine intent as I looked into his eyes, despite their best efforts to avoid my gaze.

“Ace… how long have you felt this way?” I asked as I fully sat up and crossed my legs.

“Since… uh, not long after we left the settlement. I didn’t say anything 'cause I wanted to wait until we got back. So, uh, yeah…” he said, blushing profusely at this point.

I crossed my arms and exhaled, looking down for a moment, “I’ve been such a fool,” I said to myself. That got Ace’s attention as he moved his head lower to look up at me.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

I tried to avoid looking at him, but I eventually caved and met his gaze once more. “I was the one that escalated things… and I was the one that started getting physical with you. How could… I just… I wasn’t counting on anypony here being capable of, well… having feelings for me. I guess I really shouldn’t be that surprised about it, but… damn.”

Ace was looking at me, almost expectantly. Lying to him wasn’t an option, nor him to me; that infernal amulet around my neck was making sure of that, for better or for worse.

“Ace, I… need some time to think about this. I’m only just now starting to feel like this world is my home, and I need to think about how I feel about all of this, because, honestly, I’m a bit of a mess right now. Let’s just… get some sleep, and we’ll talk this over some more tomorrow, okay?”

The pegasus nodded at me, which I took as my cue to flop back onto the pillow. Turning over on my side, I patted the empty part of the bed next to me, gesturing for Ace to join me, a request no doubt strengthened by him presumably feeling that I was thinking it. He lay down on the bed, back toward me, and I reciprocated by putting an arm around him, pulling him in closer for a warm embrace. Maybe he’d have a stabilizing influence on my sleep tonight, just like he did last time, a thought I continued to entertain even as I drifted off to dreamland.

Unfortunately for me, I was about to endure something far worse than a fitful sleep.