A Veiled Pilgrimage

by SecretService

Rating: everyone
Tags: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Alternate Universe, Original Character, Adventure, Twilight Sparkle
Length: 28598

Dark AU of Equestria. Twilight Sparkle is the last remaining alicorn, a tyrant. A young earth pony stallion leaves for great adventure and treasures.

Dark AU of Equestria. Twilight Sparkle is the last remaining alicorn, a tyrant. A young earth pony stallion leaves for great adventure and the hunt of great treasures, chasing the old world.

Published 2025-01-06 19:30:00 UTC
Last updated 2025-02-04 02:55:23 UTC

Prologue; OPEN

Thousands of years ago, Equestria lived in Harmony.

No one knows what it was that changed the balance, for too much has been lost to time.

All that is known is that Twilight Sparkle alone emerged victorious. A sole ruler.

What kind of plan or scheme was it that she had enacted to separate and hunt down the other alicorns, one-by-one? Did they simply trust her? Did they even fight back? Was there a battle? Battles?

Historical accounts claim Celestia was the first to fall, being the one Twilight most wanted to make sure was dead for peace of mind and the biggest risk to her ambitions.

Second to fall was Luna, who must've become enraged upon learning of her sister's fate if she ever did.

Third to fall was Cadence, who had once considered herself a sister to Twilight.

Some accounts say that Twilight killed them out of greed for power, that she had somehow concocted a method for stealing their power in death. Others claim she simply wanted to rule alone, and dictate to the world without anyone being able to challenge her.

It was so stark of a contrast, that the very Princess of Friendship could become the most evil of them all, that many ponies had refused to believe it until the dark influences grew far and wide and the disappearance of all other alicorns were confirmed.

Twilight had announced to the world her victory, and ascendance to the high throne.

Then, thousands of years passed.

What this account will not tell you, is that there was also sacred treasures brought to be hidden by the very mare who saw to their final resting places. These treasures could not be destroyed, and they defied Twilight even after her great victory. Nor could they be used by her.

But that is all that could be said, really. No one knew of them anymore, except those who managed to avoid the imperious eye of the tyrant. Most were caught eventually, but even now, it had not been entirely snuffed out by cold touch of foul play.

That what was once called Equestria lay stagnant for millenniums now, yet hope still shined through like a seed sprouting through the fallen leaves on the forest floor, pushing them aside to make it towards the light. Yet for how large the forest was, how few of these seeds could exist?

Glimpse

A brown coat earth pony stallion stood panting. Numerous scars marked his body, a sign of a well travelled and arduous life, or more simply, perilous. A black eye-patch looped around his head and covered his right eye. His black mane was nothing special, but it drifted in the light breeze of the current reverie. His ruby eyes held a firmness to them, backed by experience and conviction.

All over his body, various items and equipment glimmered with power you'd never suspect.

A figure stood opposite to him, who held the advantage despite all of his preparation and collection of advantages. What use was amplification, no matter how strong, against the magic of a supreme one? Especially when he was but just a lowly earth pony.

This didn't matter.

Like he had done it a hundred times before, he softly turned his head to look around in all directions, as though he thought someone conspiratorially could be watching this death match.

"I will put you out of your misery. That I can promise you."

The stallion, whose intensity had once been so great, allowed himself to consider the shift calmly.

Then, with the tiniest drop only on the right side of his lip, he frowned briefly.

His next words were only heard by the figure opposite to him.

"E—"

True beginning

Penketh. The sign said Penketh. This was his new 'home'.

Burra had no idea why this was the town he had to relocate to, this far east. A tragic and desolate sad little thing.

Burra's ears drooped, remembering the rough treatment he'd gotten from the guards. He'd been the last of the litter dumped somewhere. They hadn't even given him a chance to speak or play with the others on the way.

His small hooves brought him across the dirt road and into what you'd call town, if you'd even call it that. There was a significant amount of houses sure, but nothing so impressive...

"Make new friends they said, jerks..."

He spotted something flashing through the air, and realized it must be the pony sent to meet him!

Majestic wings brought a cyan-colored pegasus in front of him. It didn't take long for him to have an awkward look to his face, staring at the colt he was supposed to be bringing in for reception.

"Err... nice to meet you. My names Karl, yours?"

"It's Burra... sir."

Karl looked pleased that Burra was relatively normal so far.

"Well then, allow me to walk you into town and also show you where you'll be staying. As you can probably tell, we don't have a huge population out here. I can probably name off most of the families on our way in."

They began a relaxed pace into town. Not much happened out here, and Burra was rapidly despairing at the thought. Just where was he going to find any excitement? Surely there was other colts and fillies...

"You see, as for pegasi—you're looking at him. Yep. Only one out here. Makes me pretty special, eh?" At Burra's slow nod, he continued albeit a bit disappointed at the lack of enthusiasm: "which means that I'm often needed and often used, so you can call me the ultimate jack of all trades around here. But enough about me."

Burra was trying to take all of this in while staring at the loose forestry around them. Karl took notice, and added in stride: "And as if ponies weren't exciting enough, you seem fascinated with the Yahi forest that partially surrounds us here. Don't worry, it's not too dangerous. I've flown through it enough times to say that." Karl saw that little gleam in Burra's eye, "and yes, you will get to go out explore out there sometime, with supervision. As long as you find somepony who will." And he gave out a little bellow of a laugh.

Now that they were getting closer to town, some wooden fencing came in segments.

"Either way, get ready to meet tons of other earth ponies, they're all a strong bunch out here. Tartarus we all need to be..." before that settled for too long, Burra interrupted: "are there any unicorns out here? I've never seen one."

"Why yes, there are a few out here, actually." Burra lit up in excitement like a little fireball, the first real show of expression Karl had seen so far, and to be frank he was glad. "You'll get to meet them eventually, you will meet everypony at some point in fact."

Finally, town was coming into view proper, and Burra guessed that there must be around fifty buildings here. Several chimneys plumed smoke, and it reminded Burra that this was further north than he had realized. None of the buildings looked particularly impressive, but that was to be expected. You could tell that the wood used came from Yahi, as the unique color matched up.

He stopped. "There... there are others like me... right?" Karl stopped as well, and made to raise an eye. "Of course there are, we have families here you know?"

"How many!"

Karl looked up to the sky while humming to himself, "three, and don't worry, they're not so small you can't play with them. You'll need to get their parents on your good side though."

"Well then, I believe I've shown you enough. Make sure to thank miss Goldenleaf for taking you in later."

"I will, I will! Am I good to look around myself now?"

Karl gave a hearty chuckle, "zero energy with me, and all in the world now? Can't say I expected something different, go on kid."

"Thank you, thank you!"

Finally Burra could do some real looking. The ponies around here looked like a hard bunch, and most of them did not share Karl's warmer attitude, so perhaps it was a bit early to be so happy about seeing others. Well, Burra didn't have to interact with them he supposed, just looking was fine. He knew where Goldenleaf's place was for later.

The blacksmith, check. Bakery, check. Clothes shop, check. Where was the cool stuff? All Burra saw were ponies moving around town slowly, like they were already half way to the grave. He dreaded to think he'd ever be like that.

The more important houses had foundations using stone, mostly in the centre of town, but most of them were just wooden.

Well, at least it was spring now. No need to be concerned whether any of these places were insulated enough. Probably were anyway, considering where they were built.

Still, Burra had no idea where to go, but before he could come up with something, his eye spotted something.

"What the... that's what I heard at all..."

Burra rushed towards the unicorn he'd finally seen.

"Oof! Watch where you're going little colt."

"Uah, sorry mister. Hey... what happened to your horn? It looks nothing like I saw in a book."

The older unicorn looked around quickly and awkwardly. Why was he so flush?

"Don't you know about it little one?" he offered quietly.

"No, what are you talking about?"

The older stallion gathered himself and then lowered down to be on the colts level.

"This is because of the glimmer ritual, but please don't bring it up with other unicorns in the future, okay? I know that you're new here."

"But your horn... it's so broken..."

The horn itself had cracks wherever you looked, and there were chips missing leaving little gaps here and there.

"I know." The older stallion sighed, "but this is life for all of us. We move forward with our lives regardless, but it is not something we enjoy dwelling on."

"Can... can you use magic?"

He just stared at him for a moment. "I can... but only the simplest of things really, son... and it is so hard and uncomfortable, so we don't really do it."

"Wow..."

The silence that loomed was beyond awkward, and the older stallion found his patience for explaining sore spots to be growing increasingly lacking.

"Well then, I must be going. Do remember not to bring it up with any other unicorns you see."

He swiftly left, in the same direction he had already been going before.

"But why..."

Burra had forgotten to ask why such a horrible thing had happened to his horn. Burra had grown up hearing about amazing magical feats in books! This was supposedly a normal thing? Then how could there be magic? It didn't make sense and Burra felt slight anger because of it.

It didn't last long though, because the local baker gifted him a warm piece of bread not five minutes later. That mare was going on his 'best ponies' list.

And he continued to explore town for a while. Eventually, there only seemed to be one spot to go - the one place he'd forgotten since seeing it at the start. Yahi forest. How could he forget that?

It only took around five minutes for a small colt like him to go from being close to the middle of town and out towards the woods.

He took a deep breath. The air was certainly crisp and fresh here.

It looked like there was some kind of trail that had been established, so he decided following it would be for the best his first time round.

As he began to work his way in, light faded overall, but the sun still shined through the gaps in the trees. Vaulting pines and spruces formed a ceiling of emerald spire, and their branches the webs that connected underneath. There was clusters of pale lichen clinging stubbornly to the bark of elderly trees. There was also a wildflower sprinkled in here or there.

Every step into the sylvan expanse brought a little more coolness to Burra that allowed him to just forget everything and relax a little bit.

It was at this moment, another pony decided to ruin his perfect little moment. Burra, who had almost began closing his eyes, had them fly open as a brown stallion rushed right by Burra, whose black mane had practically almost whipped him in the fast.

"Woah, jeez, watch it!"

The pony paid him no heed, and quickly escaped view moments later.

"Just why is he in such a rush?"

Feeling kind of bummed out, Burra turned back towards town. For some reason, the return trip felt faster.

As town came into view, Burra decided that he wanted to meet this pony and ask them what was going on. Needing kind of a break anyway, he sat down with his back against a tree.

It was only fifteen minutes later the pony returned, still running. It was quickly obvious though that it is a great effort at this point for the stallion, and his form looked awful. By the time he'd made it to Burra, he half collapsed, panting for his life.

After giving about thirty seconds, Burra asked: "Just why the heck are you out here running to exhaustion?"

The stallion, who finally had begun to get his breath, looked up at the colt. Brown fur, a raven black mane, and ruby red eyes. But that wasn't what caught Burra's eye at all.

"Hey, what the heck is that lame cutie mark?"

"And who are you, might I ask?"

"Me? I'm Burra." The stallion raised his eye. "Oh, new to town you see."

"Ahh... that explains a lot. Listen, kid, I know it doesn't look like much but I'm out here training, I need to be ready."

"Ready? Ready for what?"

"That's none of your business," he stuck out his tongue in a defiant show, "but I can tell you seem like nice and innocent little lad. Shouldn't you be going home soon, it'll be dark in no time."

"Well, I just wanted to see who it was that almost knocked me over! And besides! You haven't told me you name yet!"

"Oh right, my apologies, the name is Closed."

"Closed? What kind of name is that?"

"Right?" he gave a genuine laugh, "but it does make a little more sense once you hear my last name."

"What is it Mr. Closed, would you please tell me?" he said while batting his eyelashes.

"Well, you were asking about my cutie mark earlier, why don't you get a closer look at it?"

Closed came closer, and presented it. To put it simple, all that was there was a closed black book. How boring.

"I can see the disappointment in you eyes. Well, guess I'll spoil it for ya. The names truly Closed Tome. Bit better, don't you think?"

Burra was too busy trying not to laugh at how unlucky of a cutie mark that was. But an idea caught his mind.

"Hey, isn't that like some kinda unicorn type thing? I could'a sworn only they had cutie marks like that. Sure as heck never seen another earth pony have one."

"How many ponies have you met before, Burra?"

The red face on Burra said everything. "Shut up!"

And again Closed got to laugh at the little colt.

"Hey, I like you, I wouldn't mind hanging with you a little bit more until tomorrow when I leave. What's your full name?"

"Burra Jark... why are you leaving?"

"Oh right, I guess I haven't told you anything have I? Well, to put it simply, I'm leaving to go on something of an adventure."

"Adventure, for what?"

Burra loved the idea of adventure, but he quickly realized he had no idea what there even was to go out there for. He'd never heard of anything that cool in the first place.

"Well you see..." and on the contrary it looked like Closed had something he wasn't sure if he should bring up.

"Eh, probably fine for you to hear. But not now, it'll take too long. I'll tell you about it tomorrow before I leave. You should go home to your guardian now."

"Whatever, but you better keep your promise tomorrow."

Looking at eachother one last time, they went their own ways at the first intersection in town.

Around a few corners, and a few minutes canter Burra eventually made it to his new home. A terra cotta mare with a look of concer melted as she saw Burra.

"There you are Burra! You weren't about to miss our first dinner, were you?"

"No ma'am..."

Entering the well lit house, Burra immediately saw the plethora of candles being used to establish the effect, most of them were on an old and seemingly worn out old pine dinner table. The plates and other utensils screamed sophistication harder than his stomach growled in time for anyone to hear.

"Worked up a hunger while you were about did you? Just give me a little bit to serve it up. Soup for tonight."

Moving to close the door, she then made for a pot in the kitchen.

"Mrs. Ophelia, I'm sorry for not sticking around more earlier. Moving here has been quite the adjustment."

"Give it no thought dear, I understand your circumstances. Still, it isn't often we get ponies sent out here, and I'm just going to view you as my own little blessing. I always wanted a foal. Still do. But having you around, we shall become the closest of family, of that you can believe Burra. Also, there's no need to call me Mrs., just Ophelia will do."

"Okay... say, how well do you know the ponies in town?" Ophelia brought two bowls to the table, one at a time, and placed them on the opposite ends, they then both sat on wooden chairs.

"Before I answer that, we're going to have to get you a pillow."

Burra flushed, realizing that he wasn't big enough to properly level with the table in this chair. A moment and two pillows later, and they were finally ready to start on the soup she'd prepared. It was a potato base soup, with a few herbs mixed in. Burra knew where the potatoes came from, as he'd seen stands with them here, but he wondered where the herbs had came from. He didn't voice this however.

"I want to say something."

Ophelia, who'd only barely started eating herself, stopped and waited for what he had to say. Burra was looking away, shy as could be, and Ophelia made to say something when he abruptly turned to face her.

"Why did you take me in? I know how hard it is to live around here."

"Oh, is that all?"

"What do you mean is that all! Ponies here have nothing, even a dumb colt like me could see that..."

"And I could have nothing at all and still have brought you in, Durra. And yes, the ponies around here understand that we have it rough, but we make do. There's food in front of you, isn't there?"

"Will there always be?"

Ophelia had nothing to say to that.

"Look, we're all just trying to make it work around here, okay? No one knows what the whims of Twilight Sparkles missionaries will do."

Durra drooped, "and yet, why can't we find something out of this together for the better, Durra?" said Ophelia, whose voice felt a firm yet soft hope.

"Thank you."

"No problem."

Things quieted down for a while. Durra was practically stuffed, but decided not to leave yet, since Ophelia was still eating her second helping.

"Hey, have you heard of Closed Tome? Earth pony?"

Taking a moment to stop, she gave a vague look to the sky as to gesture trying to remember and clicked her neck into place as though to say 'gotcha'. "Yes! The Kinton's kid! Did you meet them?"

"Uhh, no. But I did see him today."

"The Kinton's are some of the only unicorns in town, do remember to treat them well. Elsy is such a gem, I adore her. But excuse me, have you already found a play mate?"

"Well, not exactly... but we did talk today and he is willing to meet with me tomorrow, that has to be something! But, is it really true?"

"What is it, Durra?"

"Are both of his parents really both unicorns?"

Ophelia scoffed, and then gave a little 'okay' nod, "yes Durra, they are both unicorns. I know what you're thinking, but yes, sometimes rare things like that really do happen. Besides, it's a blessing is it not? To be born as an earth pony? If he would of had to..." Ophelia's eyes bulged for a moment, "but hey, let's not talk about such things, shall we? Besides, it's time for bed soon. In fact, let me show you right now."

They moved away from the table, and to the small entrance in the back. Peering in together, there was several layered blankets on the ground, as well as two pillows.

"Not exactly spacious, I know, but trust me it is more comfortable than it looks."

They continued to talk for about another hour or so, and Durra got to learn a lot more about town past what you could just see. As it turned out, there was no real leader here, and they hadn't had many crises in the past. Life was tough here, so ponies couldn't afford to be particularly choosy about their neighbours, and most ponies did what they could to keep things amiable. The crops of late hadn't been too successful, but the town had an aged population and not too many mouths to feed at this point. All in all, ponies just lived life here. As boring as that was, they made do with what they had.

When it was time for bed, Durra was surprised that they'd be laying together practically back to back in the bedroom. Guess he hadn't realized that for some reason. As the drowsiness took over, he vaguely felt her flip over and lightly hold him as he drifted to sleep. He smiled the slightest smile.

Early next morning, Durra was brimming with energy post-breakfast and had rushed out the door of their small home before Ophelia could give him a proper goodbye. Durra was too excited to meet up with Closed again.

Finding him would be another thing altogether.

Durra roamed town aimlessly, and quickly realized that was probably going to be a waste of time. Being a young colt, he had no problem asking everypony he met if they had seen Closed, and eventually, one mentioned that he lived on the edge of town, northwest. Durra then had to ask which direction was Northwest.

Having nothing else he could do, he headed straight for the Kinton family residence. After about five minutes, he found it melding into the forest, near the tree line. This house had a stone chimney, he was impressed.

Knocking timidly on the front door, Durra patiently waited for a response. He heard stirring inside, and a few seconds later the door opened to reveal an older stallion unicorn who looked off put by the sudden arrival. His coat was pure soot black and mane a dusty grey. Perhaps it was because of the the fact it was such a young colt he'd never seen before.

"Um... Excuse me, is this the home of Closed Tome? And are you the Kinton's?"

"Why, do we have such a polite colt here? And yes, I am Kinton," he opened the door further to reveal a mare sitting on a sofa, "and this is my wife, Kaela. They call us the two "K's"." Her coat was cyan, and mane purple. Durra admired the colors.

The mare gave a little wave, and then went back to doing what she had been doing... reading.

What?!

Durra was a pony who knew very little, but what he did know was that books were rare in Etrethia. Not only this, but any books containing any information related to magic were banned and any found were destroyed. Queen Twilight Sparkle had decreed so, after all.

"Is that a book?! What is it about?!"

Forgetting why he had come here entirely, he rushed inside and towards the mare. The stallion behind him laughed, "don't you know it's bad manners to rush into a home uninvited?" Durra stopped in his tracks, and immediately apologized to both of them, bowing his head over and over.

"It's fine, please come over." said Kaela, who tapped a spot on the sofa next to herself for Durra to join her.

Durra immediately did, and stared in awe at the presented book. He quickly blushed in embarrassment, as he had no idea how to read. The text was incomprehensible. Noticing this, Kaela gave a knowing look and pat him on the back of the head.

"Do not fret, few know how to read anymore. It has been passed down in my family for generations. This book has been, too."

Kinton, who had been watching them, instead moved to add some wood to the fireplace.

"But... but how? Can you please tell me what it's about?" he looked pleadingly to her.

"Of course. Have you ever heard of the Foundation Saga?"

"No ma'am."

"Well, let us start at the beginning, shall we?"

Kaela began explaining that the Foundation Saga described the beginnings of Equus, and the original alicorns.

"There was more than one alicorn?!"

Kaela laughed, "yes, everypony who is told this has the same reaction, but there really was more than one alicorn long ago."

Kaela continued from the start, and it read like this:

On the first day, Celestia, alicorn of the sun descended from the heavens. She brought with her the Solar Sword, a blade that shined so bright and blinding, it was said to have been born from a drop of the sun.

At the end of the first day, as the second day began, Luna, alicorn of the moon and night descended from the heavens to join her sister. She brought with her the Amulet of Persistence, dangling around her neck. It was said to have been born from pure starlight concentrated into a crystal.

A week later came Cadence, alicorn of love, descending from the heavens to bring love and happiness to all. She brought with her the Horseshoes of Vitality, proudly worn. It was said to have been born from molten love, trapped in the heavens no longer.

A month later came Twilight Sparkle, alicorn of friendship, descending from the heavens to bring friendship to all. She brought with her no gift.

"But... but how could this be true? Everypony knows there's only one alicorn?"

Kaela, who'd been so lighthearted since the start, had a sudden shift in demeanour. Her gaze hardened.

"There is only one left now, you mean."

"Honey, you're going to have to explain to this colt that this isn't information he can just go and tell everypony. You know the consequences. What's your name, son?"

Embarrassment again took over for Durra, realizing he hadn't even introduced himself.

"Durra, my apologies!"

Bowing his head on the sofa looked a bit funny, and Kinton stood over him seriously regardless.

"Listen then, Durra. This isn't something you can ever tell any other pony. We need you to understand that."

"I understand completely! Thank you for sharing with me! Does Closed Tome know about all this too?"

"Yes, Closed has read all of our books, why do you ask?" said Kaela.

"I just can't believe how lucky he is! How many books do you all have?"

"Well, we used to have more, but I believe it's about sixteen now." Imperceptible to Durra, but Kinton had stiffened up like a rock while listening. By the time time Durra switched his gaze back towards Kinton, he'd already relaxed again.

"Wow... that's just amazing, just how did you get all of these? Where are they all?"

"Our family has kept them secret and together going as far back as we can remember, there's little doubt that these are some of the last books surviving from Equestrian times. As for where they are, the basement is your answer."

Now that Durra had looked around a little more, he saw that there was a small trap door in the back, nearly hidden from view.

"This is amazing! How do you keep this information to yourself?! Everypony dreams of stuff like this!"

Kaela and Kinton shared a grim stare, while Burra was none the wiser.

"Say, do you have any information on magic? I've always been fascinated with it."

"I think it's about time for this little soiree to come to an end. Burra, we are sorry, but there is much we still we need to do. You came here looking for our son Closed, didn't you? He mentioned meeting a little colt like you last night. You'll find him back out at the woods again." said Kinton, who was lightly nudging Burra do the door.

"Again? Why is he out there again? More training? What's it for?"

Burra could hear a sigh by the stallion behind him, "You're telling me. Now go please. It was nice meeting you."

The door closed behind Burra, and he couldn't help but shrug. They'd been nice enough to him he supposed. That little snippet of history would have him daydreaming for months. He then began the walk to the Yahi forest again.

Inside however, the two who still remained glared at each other.

"Why did you tell him all that?"

"He'd already seen me reading."

"And you chose to make it worse by telling him something that could get him killed if he blabbers like all young colts do? I'm going to have to visit his parent to make sure he doesn't talk now."

"Please, when was the last time the enforcement even came this far out? We haven't had a scare in decades. It's the reason we chose this side of the wilderness after all, no pony wants to come out here in the first place, least of all them."

"But they could come. You can never be sure. Don't you remember how close we came to failure all that time ago?"

"That was different. That incident had drawn their numbers out in this country. It was a fluke."

"And a fluke could happen at any time." he sighed, "whatever, it's fine. I will handle it and make sure he says nothing later."

"Do you ever regret showing Closed our collection so early?"

"Keala, do not bring that up. You know how I feel about that."

Kaela moved to stare out the window at the at the view of the colt disappearing into the distance.

"How wonderful a dream would it be if we could live in a world where ponies could know about these things once again, don't you think?"

By the time Burra reached the Yahi forest, the sun was finally starting to reach the apex in the sky. Deciding that he didn't want to wait for Closed to eventually come back here, he went along the path at a brisk pace.

Luckily, this path was quite clear and well maintained, as it seemed that ponies often used it. After about twenty minutes, Burra found Closed in the exact opposite way he'd expected.

Passed out in the middle of the road, facing the direction that had him on the way back.

Burra ran over and started nudging him to wake him up. "Closed! Closed! Are you okay?"

"Wah? Where am I?"

Closed eyes rolled open, and immediately recognition flashed.

"Ugh, I passed out again."

"Closed, why did you pass out? How long are you out here training?"

"Not long enough." he sighed, "it's pathetic that even after all this time I can barely do what most other earth ponies can do not even trying."

"But... but why is it like that?"

Closed face scrunched up in a sad way.

"I've been asking myself that question my whole life. I can only think of two things, possibly and probably both at the same time. One, being born to two unicorns I inherited their weaker stature regardless of my split as an earth pony, and two my pathetic cutie mark. Pretty self explanatory if you ask me."

"But you're out here training, surely you've gotten stronger?"

"Hah. Perhaps a little bit. Well, I'm feeling better now, so we may as well start heading back."

"Say Closed, do you know any magic?"

Closed stopped in his tracks, and Burra had to stop as well to turn and look at him.

"Ohh, oh. I see now, you met my parents, didn't you?"

Burra nodded, and was surprised to have Closed come in close and press his face directly in his, nose to nose.

"Don't ever mention anything you ever learned from them to anyone. Got it?"

"Yes Closed... sorry, I just wanted to..." Burra turned his head away. He was starting to understand this family.

"and yeah, I do know of some magic. I wouldn't mind telling you about it, in fact, but that'll keep us out here a lil bit longer, you okay with that?"

"For real! Whatever you say! Let's go deeper if you want!"

So they turned back, instead heading deeper into the forest once again.

"So your parents really have books with actual spells in them?!"

"Don't shout that, please, I know it is unlikely anypony other than us is out here but I'd rather keep this a hush conversation, if you don't mind."

"Ahh right! Sorry, ahem. Could you tell me about one of them?"

"Well... there's only so many I can tell you about, and I don't exactly understand any of the technical side myself like my parents do, being an earth pony and all you see."

Burra kept walking straight with Closed, but his ears and mind only went one direction.

"Hmm, well, perhaps I could tell you teleportation. In fact, when I was a kid like you, I once saw my dad use it."

"What! But... but isn't his... you know?"

"Oh, you're talking about his horn? Yeah, it's been that way as long as I can remember as well. It really is a shame, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is... just why the heck do unicorns have to get their horns all busted up like that. I know it's not natural, right?"

"Because Twilight Sparkle made it law."

Through his side eye, Durra could tell that Closed was definitely not happy with that fact.

"Don't give me that look, Durra."

"What? I can't help it?"

"Have you ever thought to yourself, that as earth ponies and pegasi, they get to use their magic freely? Why is it only unicorns must be crippled and unable to use the most special part of themselves like the others?"

"I have no idea..."

"Well, the reason is quite ridiculous if you ask me, however, we should get back to the original topic; teleportation. You wanted to know about it."

"Yes please! Is it some kind of magic beam or something?"

"What? No, not at all. Magic is more than just bursts of harmful energy, you know that right? Not only that, but small amounts of magic exist everywhere, even if it is more concentrated in ponies."

"Where did you learn all of this?"

Closed gave him a look saying "really?".

"Oh, right. Go on please."

"Anyway, what teleportation does is cause the pony that casts it to reappear in another location. Apparently, the further the harder is. When I did see my dad do it once, it pushed him to the limit of focus under the intense pain he was in, and he made a flash when it finally cast, only to flash again and appear approximately five meters forwards of where he'd been. I had been stunned at how amazing it was, and then immediately disappointed to realize that I'd probably not be seeing it again. Considering the pain my dad was in, I never had the heart to ask to see it again."

"I can't believe that's possible... could you imagine appearing on top of a roof! That'd be such a shock to everypony."

"Yes it would be. To be honest, I can't even imagine the despair my parents endure knowing that all of these amazing things exist, and even how to do them, but being entirely unable to do so, or having to endure such distress for it not to be worth it in the first place."

Durra looked depressed as well.

"But hey, how about I tell you about one more? It's called telekinesis. It's the one spell my parents actually still use once in a while, because of how easy it is to use. I think that it is so natural a spell for unicorns that they don't even need to read about it in order to cast it. Like some kind of natural sense. They coat an object in their magical aura, and it can be moved by it. That way, they can move things very easily."

"But they only do it with small things because they want it to be easy?"

"Look at you! Learning faster than I can teach. Well, that's about it then."

"What! Surely you know of more?!"

"Hmm, I guess I do know about maybe four or five more spells, but I'll have to tell you them when I get back from my adventure."

"Just what kind of adventure are you going on anyway?"

"Well, first and foremost, I just love the idea of adventure. I love the idea of discovering new things, I've been trapped here my entire life, and while I like the people of Penketh, I do not desire to wither away here for the rest of my life." He motioned for them to sit by a tree. "The world is huge out there, and while most ponies have stopped seeing any real light at the end of the tunnel, what I see is a basket of secrets and old legends ripe for the picking. Tell me, did my parents tell you about the Foundation Saga?"

"A little bit... why?"

"There story mentions three objects, the Solar sword, the Amulet of Persistence, and the Horseshoes of Vitality. Surely if they came from the same place the alicorns did, they're just as immortal. It just makes logical sense doesn't it? So they must be out there, just waiting to be found. Ever since I was little, I've dreamed of finding at least one of them before dying."

"You really are serious about this, aren't you? Do you even know where to look? Where are you going first?"

"Nope. Nothing. And isn't that great?"

"I... don't totally get you. But I do share your awe for some of these things. I know I only just met you... but good luck Closed."

Closed went to speak, but stopped himself, he then smiled slowly.

"Thank you. Some day when I come back, I'll tell you all about my adventures, and just perhaps show off a few cool treasures while I'm at it."

Closed looked for the sun, and saw that it was further in the sky than he would've liked.

"Jeez, just look at the time! I need to head back to my place and grab my things. Let's go."

Burra had followed Closed Tome home, because there wasn't much else to do.

Closed Tome went inside to get his stuff, and Burra found himself sitting on a stump outside all alone.

Burra didn't completely understand Closed. Burra had lived almost the entirety of his life alone. How could somepony with a loving family and a town full of ponies want to leave such warmth?

Just as he was about to hop up and leave, the door flew open and out came the whole family. They either paid Burra no heed, or didn't notice him at all. Perhaps Closed hadn't mentioned he was here.

Burra saw them exchange words, clearly saying goodbye to each other for the time being. Closed Tome hugged his mother, and he saw Closed saying something in her ear. He then did the same with his father, only this time saying nothing.

Finally, they split and Closed turned to set off. He practically jumped when Burra joined him in his walk once again.

"Why are you so angry?"

The serious look on Closed face as he stared down towards the ground wouldn't break.

"Stick to the plan, he says..."

"What? What do you mean?"

"Huh? Forget about it squirt. Just go home, I was happy to tell you some things I never really get to talk about, but it's time for me to enter the next chapter of my life, just as you coming here is yours."

"So this is goodbye then?"

Closed stopped, and Burra ran into him.

"Oof!"

"Oh, sorry about that. But really," he looked him dead in the eye, "good Burra, it was nice speaking with you. Grow up to be a strong stallion by the time I'm back, okay? Promise me."

"Of course! I promise. Are you really going to be gone that long though?"

"Yes... yes I will. Now goodbye."

Closed Tome turned away from him, and kept walking towards the edge of town on the west side.

Burra had stopped moving, and simply watched him leave. He'd have to tell Ophelia all about this tonight.

Closed tome reached the end of town, he set his saddle bag down and double checked that he had everything. That he did.

Taking a deep breath, he put it back on and began his walk to leave his town of birth. This day had taken far too long. He was happy to leave. He didn't know what was out there, and it didn't matter what it was. He wanted to see it. His life had been so boring until now, restricted you could say. He had felt like he was trapped in some gray world.

Now, though, trees which had looked strikingly similar to those of the Yahi quickly began to gain a new color as he got further and further from town.

He'd gotten information in town a few months ago that there was an outpost around thirty kilometres out west from here, so he supposed he was in for quite the walk already.

Closed Tome had often talked big about discovering things, but in reality he had no idea where to look. He had no map to work with, and no idea what was out there in the grand designs of the world. It was realistic that even if he roamed his entire life, he wouldn't see even a fifth of Equus. He'd need to figure something out if he was to make real progress discovering any ancient relics.

The alicorn trinity was what he called it. The Solar Sword. The Amulet of Persistence. The Horseshoes of Vitality. That was his main goal right now, besides simply taking a step forward in his adventure, which was always his true goal. As long as he had that, he'd be fine.

Twilight Sparkle had taken their lives. So just where would she have put the items? He dreaded to think they were simply locked away somewhere near her. No one knew these things existed anymore, so it was not like he could just ask anypony he met either.

So he walked. Walked and walked. The sounds of birds chirping were music to his ears among the relative silence.

Closed had lived far too comfortable a life so far. He knew that deep down. This was going to be challenging, and downright dangerous at times if he was being honest with himself. That was all the more a reason he hated how weak his body was. He'd been training here and there for two years now. Barely any progress had been made. He could run for about forty five minutes now if he really pushed himself. Most earth ponies would ask him if that was his warm up if they heard and he hated it.

He was going to need to challenge himself at some point. The only way to grow was to gain experience, after all.

He was so lost in thought, that it took him a while to realize the path had begun to swerve a little bit, as well as narrow. He hoped that pattern didn't continue. There wasn't much reason for ponies to maintain the path these days and this far out.

Closed wondered how different ponies would be outside his town. He knew that any larger population would be significantly different, that was sure. The small numbers of Penketh meant everypony knew everypony, and all were accountable. He wasn't so sure other places would be so hospitable.

The real question was would he be able to find somepony useful for guiding him in the right direction that wouldn't be hostile to him?

But in order to do that, for now he just had to keep walking.

And walking.

Moving along

Closed ears flicked as he got used to the silence of the journey. The wind had been tickling them before. He wasn't hungry yet, but he'd been walking for most of the day at this point and knew he would be soon.

Once in a while, he heard the distant yell of a forest animal. Each time, he'd listen for how close it was. It wouldn't even be funny if he got attacked by a wild animal this quickly into his journey.

Still, the sky was a beautiful azure blue that was being hugged by the sides of green leaves which had just come back after winter. He found himself slowly going up a gradient, but it wasn't enough to make the journey any more tiresome. He did wonder how long it'd continue for though.

He had originally wanted to make it to that tavern by tonight, but considering his complete lack of knowledge for how far he'd actually travelled he wondered if he'd have to camp on the side of the road instead tonight.

Throughout the day today, he'd already seen around probably twenty different wildflower varieties, and each time it gave him a smile. He usually stopped to look at them up close and give a little sniff.

While he knew wolves and other predators did lurk out in the forest, which surrounded him on all sides, he also knew they were quite rare and spaced out, as they were territorial creatures. It also meant he had to keep his travels on the down low to prevent any unnecessary problems for himself.

There was a certain fear of the incoming awakening call that awaited Closed Tome. He knew it, and he also knew that knowing it was coming still wasn't enough. Experience was the only true answer, and he didn't have any yet. Etrethia was a miserable place to be, and ponies lived lives suffering and waiting for changes that they knew would never come. Some were okay with the state of things, but those were the leeches and opportunistic individuals of society better left off discarded.

Closed felt like the stories he'd been told as a child about happier times were nothing more than nonsense. When someone came to your door, it wasn't your saviour, it was the tax man.

Because that was reality. Even he had heard about Penketh's pains in divvying out funds each time Twilight Sparkles enforcers swung on by to collect their obscenely high rates. Closed assumed, then, that all of Etrethia must suffer under similar circumstances, and nowhere really flourished much because of it. Where all that money was going and why? Closed had no idea. Was Twilight Sparkle building a giant statue of herself for a thousand years? Or was it the more bitter and grounded reality - she just spent that much on her forces keeping everypony in check. He wouldn't be surprised.

But this was simply something Closed Tome had to work around. It wasn't his problem. If everypony else just wanted to give up and live boring lives and then die, that was their own problem. He wasn't going to go out like that.

Briefly, he thought back to that colt he'd spent a little bit of time with both yesterday and earlier today. That kid still had life to him, of that he was sure. Would he keep it? For how long? Perhaps being in that isolated pocket would help delay the inevitable.

Night was approaching, and he began to slow down and drop his things on the side of the dirt road. It was nice to finally rest after all that. He'd gone quite far, of that he was sure, so surely the remaining trip to the tavern in the morning wouldn't be too long. Perhaps that would be better than getting there all exhausted.

It probably wasn't going to be that cold tonight, but Closed got out his blanket he'd brought anyway. He'd wrap it around himself as well as under.

Even though he knew it was coming all along, it still got to him a little bit. The loneliness that came with his trip of solitude. It'd only been the majority of a day, and already he was missing others. It was a little pathetic, he admitted to himself. Still, having somepony else to talk to was always nice. That was why he needed to make it to that tavern as soon as possible in the morning.

Closed Tome was always a bit of a daydreamer, but having nothing to break it up and get you focused back on reality was something else. He'd been lost in his mind all day, and while at first it was okay, he was sure after a while it would get a little annoying.

But that was what adventure entailed. Sure, Closed dreamed big, but the reality was that it took a lot of work and most of the magic was in enjoying the long haul.

That kid had asked him about magic quite a bit, hadn't he?

It hit a swore spot for Closed Tome.

Ever since he was a small colt, he had wanted to cast magic just like his parents. Well, they may not have always done it, but there had been several times they had humoured him and felt pain purely to see his happiness. He didn't realize deserve that, and now looking back on it, he regretted asking them. Still, there was probably no other unicorns in a five hundred kilometre radius that could cast any of the magic he'd seen. It was a privilege that he'd seen what he had.

Closed also knew that they had willing hurt themselves to keep up the disguise. They chose to lose their magic.

Closed wondered how it went for the average unicorn out there. There was zero information or ponies to help guide them on magic at all, and they never made it to an age where they'd have the actual ability to manifest anything anyway. By then, they'd already have had the glimmer ritual forced upon them.

It was no wonder that the number of unicorns in the current day and age was so low. Apparently, it had once been similar to the other two tribes, but there was no way that could be said now.

So perhaps, when his parents saw that he was not actually one of them, but an earth pony, he wondered how conflicted they must have felt. Did they feel elation that their child was not condemned to the same fate as them, or did they see their line of unicorns fading into history like the rest of their tribe seemed be going.

Closed Tome had never really thought about kids too much, and he doubted he'd live to make it to an age where he'd even be considering them. But even then, what were the odds that he'd be able to continue his parents legacy they had probably been hoping for? Closed knew for sure that his family went back centuries at least, as they had been passing down information and protecting the lineage for a long time. Unicorns to unicorns. And now that was done for, because of him.

He frowned. It wasn't his fault, and it wasn't even a real problem for all he knew, but still it upset him.

It was funny, knowing that he was probably never going to become a father because of the life he wanted to live, but still upset at what that future would hold if he made it there anyway.

Finally, darkness was beginning to creep to a level where sleeping would be easier. The last vestiges of light begone.

It was weird. His whole life his parents had been telling him all these things about "The horrible Twilight Sparkle", but he couldn't help but wonder how many ponies alive even got to interact with this mare. What was she actually like? As far as he knew, she'd been cooped up in Vuidel, the capital city of Etrethia, locked away in some sort of fortress castle or something. They lived so far away, yet everypony had still heard of the name of the capital, details be bygones.

Perhaps there was a ring of fire around the city, and lightning struck every thirty minutes to scare the peasants into action. What a sight that'd be! He gave a laugh for the first time of his journey. Yet there was no one to share it. It didn't last long.

Well, whatever. Tomorrow would come, and he would continue his journey. Twilight wasn't his problem. That ancient mare probably had a thick layer of dust all over her from the amount of sitting on her pretty little throne.

Adjusting his spot, he laid against the side of the tree with the blanket set up just right to be under him as well as covering the part of the tree his side was laying against.

It took close to an hour of adjusting and moving around, but eventually he found the right spot.

Sleep took hold, and the moon watched over him for the night.

When Closed Tome woke up in the morning, it was not the most pleasant of ways to do so.

A bug was in his face, and he swatted it—and his face. He grabbed himself and just held for a minute.

Still, he had made it through the night. He knew that sleeping in the out and open was not exactly great, and didn't want to make too much of a habit out of it.

Groaning, he made to get up and pack away his blanket.

It was kind of dumb, but last night he had marked in the dirt the direction he had to go today to make sure he didn't accidentally go the wrong back back towards Penketh when he woke up.

He stretched as he stood up, and boy did it feel good.

Well, off he went.

It was still early morning, and while the sky was lit up, the sun had not risen above the tree line and where he could see. The air was crisp at this time, and he took in every bit of it. He also made sure to drink the last of the water he packed.

Not thirty minutes later - the approximate time it took Closed to really wake up fully, before the sign to the tavern came into view. He gave a hearty guffaw at the fact he knew deep down it was just right there last night, even if it he played it safe.

As the road came closer to the tavern, the road became partially cobbled. They had put some effort into it here. He also noticed that the path diverged into four other roads here.

For the Tavern itself, it was a little bit larger than Closed had been expecting. The large, timber-framed structure had weathered oak beams and a stone foundation. The roof was thatched and moss was creeping along the edges, spilling down the sides until being replaced by ivy on the walls.

He could hear a little bit of chatter inside. Good. He needed to see other ponies again, and perhaps they could help him.

The sign above the tavern door hung askew, its painted letters worn and long faded.

Hesitating for a moment at the door, after collecting himself for a moment Closed gave it a good push. The hinges groaned in protest, their sound bringing a low hum. He made his way in after opening it far enough.

Inside, there was around fifteen ponies if Closed had to guess. Most were too busy chatting it up and having a good time, many drinks on the bar table and about, to even notice him coming in. A few glanced his way, who were sitting in booths.

One of the ponies who did in fact notice him come in, was the bartender behind the counter.

"Morning. Anything I can get you for the new face?" he yelled over, and Closed waved his hoof no in response. The bartender immediately went back to work serving the other customers.

While Closed would definitely talk to him later, he wanted to check the place out for now.

The floorboards felt like they were sinking slightly under him, and it put him off. He looked down to see that they were quite warped.

The lighting inside was quite dim in certain places, but beams of light shone in through several windows, giving enough ambient light to the rest of the place. It gave a soft vibe that contrasted the relatively rambunctious atmosphere the patrons had provided so early here.

If he had arrived here last night, he would've been asking for a room right away. Now, instead, food was the only real use he had here, and the slight rest of figuring out where to go next.

Closed began wandering around, looking to see if there was any isolated pony he could talk to, or even a map. He quickly realized the pony part was not happened, so he began scanning the walls.

Not much luck.

"What'cha looking for?"

The bartender had left his station, it seemed; for now.

Closed Tome hesitated. It was a simple question, but Closed couldn't help but clamp up because of the lifelong paranoia he'd slowly gained by living with his parents. He knew that there was absolutely nothing incriminating on his person, unlike home, but this was something he'd have to learn to relax on. Until he was further in his journey, anyway. It also didn't help that Closed had always known all of the ponies of his small little village since birth. It had always been so easy to communicate with them because of the shared connection.

But that was also why he'd been simulating conversations of this exact moment during his walk.

He had to say something before things became awkward. Despite his suspicious mindset, he knew the probability of this pony being anything other than what he appeared to be incredibly low.

"To be honest, something or somepony to help give me some sense of direction. It's my first time leaving town to head out this way. You've heard of Penketh?"

"Penketh is an old name, almost never hear of anypony mentioning it these days despite the proximity. I do know of a map just further down the road to the south. There's a village there, and I happen to know the inn keeper there as well. Old buddy of mine. Proudly presents it at his place. Bugger brags about it every time I see him. You could also ask around here," he waved a hoof at all the ponies present in a circular motion, "but besides that, would you be interested in some food or ale?"

Closed had to resist raising an eyebrow or making any unpleasant face at the mention of ale.

"I suppose... some breakfast would do me some good before heading out. Anything cheap?"

It'd taken a second, but his nerves were coming down.

"Cheapest we have is probably the hash browns, but we also ha—"

"I'll take them. How much?"

"Fair enough... three bits. Please, take a seat."

Noding and following the keepers guidance, he sat down at the main counter. The chair was surprisingly soft, with sheep wool being used on the top layer. It also spun. He wondered how that worked.

"It will just be a few minutes."

There was only a single empty chair between Closed and the nearest pony also sitting at the counter, and the line had around ten ponies, most of them sitting side to side and chatting casually.

Even though Closed wanted to just ignore them, he couldn't help but listen to one conversation.

"—and the ponies seriously thought they could avoid paying their dues to Alryne. I'm glad I wasn't anywhere near that place when Twilight Sparkle's wrath descended on that place. I heard the mayors entrails were used to tie up several several victims, poor bastards."

"Did they let anypony go this time around?"

"What do you think? They burned the whole damn place down. It's the same as always, Rex, only the colts and fillies made it out, why would this time be any different?"

Closed stared straight ahead with darkened eyes, trying to use his nose to smell the cooking rather than use his ears. It was painfully ineffective.

"Yeah... I guess. You'd think if they couldn't pay tribute they'd just run out of dodge long before the Obsidian Legion got there."

There was a pause for a moment.

"I know what I said, but... there's another theory I heard. I think it makes a lot more sense."

The other pony leaned in.

"I heard the mayor was caught reading in private. They never knew the wrath was coming till the last second. Whatever he was reading, I doubt it exists anymore. Surprised the poor bastard even knew how to read. Only those few in Alryne really know how to these days, and even then it's rare."

"And you believe this...?"

The plate with hash browns arrived, and Closed began eating while continuing to pretend to not be listening.

"I don't know what to believe anymore, but it certainly seems a bit more believable for why they were caught off guard."

"I agree, but I just... it's just hard to believe there's that many books left out there. They've been practically extinct for five hundred years. They didn't mess around after Sparkle changed the law."

"But it's still possible... right? Either way, the town most likely got what it deserved, the idiots."

"You can say that again."

They changed conversation, and Closed had finally stopped paying attention once it turned toward mare-talk.

Finally, Closed finished his meal and brought the three bits out of his saddlebag to leave on the counter. He'd already used three of eighty that he'd brought with him for the trip. It wasn't going to last long at this rate, but that was to be expected.

"Hey Keep, can you give me more details on this place down South? I need to make sure I don't miss it."

Scanning the counter for the bits and then onto Closed, he spoke just loud enough for Closed to hear over the other customers.

"It's called the Jagged Inn, why I don't know. It's about twenty kilometres south of here to be exact. You'll be able to tell by the slanted roofing."

Closed moved to head towards the door.

"Leaving so soon? Why not stay and let the food settle first. We offer more than just that, you know."

Head facing away, Tome made his response: "I appreciate the offer, but I really must get going."

He heard, "Alright then, safe travels." as he came back outside. He'd only been in there for thirty-ish minutes, and already he'd been dying to get out. Besides, the earlier he got going, the farther he'd be able to go before sun down he thought.

Since he had come from the east, all he needed to do was take the path that went left coming from the road he had just been on to head south. Because the tavern had been on the right side of the road, that meant he simply went straight forward now. The two roads to his right split off into two different angles towards the north, one being more towards the west. He wondered how far they went and to where. Until he saw a map, every direction was a mystery.

He'd wasted a chance to ask around for more information, but somehow he didn't feel too bad about that.

It was a good thing it was the start of Spring. He'd picked the easiest time to start his travels, and he had a lot of time until the next winter to have easier movement. He wanted to cover a lot of ground as quickly as possible. There was too much to see, too much to find.

Well, nothing to do but move forward.

The sun rays beamed down as it crest near the zenith of the sky on the arc it followed endlessly, and there was no clouds to dimmer the beauty it brought.

Closed Tome was appreciative of the mountain he'd seen on the left side of the dirt path, through the gaps in the trees. The top part of it stood out, above the view of the peak of the tree line, but occasionally he got to see the majority of it in it's glory. He swore he saw a river near the bottom, of which the source he could not find with his eyes.

It was small differences in the local topography that made all the difference for him.

It helped ease his mind of the vivid images it refused to stop producing of himself being replaced with that poor mayor.

How many times had he read in his life, so casually? It was probably in the thousands. Of course, it was the same books over and over, especially as he had grown older and more capable. His parents had taught him from a young age how to read, but it had all started with his mother reading to him until he fell asleep as a little colt.

It brought a smile to his lips amidst the turbulent negative spiral he'd been in.

Even within their small village, where everypony knew everypony, even among their closest family friends, only a hoof full of others knew they had books at all. That is to say, ponies his parents had known their entire lives. And of those, he'd only seen one inside their home while a book was actually exposed and not locked away in their hidden basement. Mr. Urek, their next door neighbour and best friend of decades. He'd always been around for as long as Closed could remember, and was the kindest pony. Always offering help and he had spent a lot of time at their place. His parents had explained to him that he'd lost his partner long ago to sickness, and that coming over to spend time with them was something he desperately needed, and they were all the more happy to provide.

Even at a young age, he had wondered if being so secretive and careful had been warranted in such a small town.

Surely Twilight Sparkle didn't have a plant in every single town in all of Etrethia? Well, perhaps that was naive. Any pony could be a rat in the end. It was more than clear that the reward for exposing those that broke those laws that harboured things Twilight Sparkle deemed "dangerous" was life changing enough that ponies would sell out those they had lived and worked with their entire lives. As much as Closed hated to admit, it was realistic. That account he had heard was a reality check if he'd ever heard one. Even if it was possibly a fabrication or outright false information.

The fact was, it exposed how ponies were. If they could bring it up like that, then those thoughts existed as a possibility in the majority of ponies.

He'd only been on the road for a few hours now, and the fatigue of yesterday was wearing him down. Yet again he cursed the fact that he seemingly had zero benefit that came of being an earth pony.

It was also to his surprise than he'd past a group of merchants, donkeys, passing him by and heading where he had come from. He didn't dare interact with them.

There'd been a lone donkey family in Penketh for around a decade now. They'd stuck out at first, but had worked hard to fit in. He'd always liked them. Kept to themselves while helping out when they could.

It was like seeing a little piece of home, while knowing deep down that the next thing he past would be something he'd never even heard of.

It was reassuring to see any living creature coming from the direction he was heading. That meant there was definitely something out there. While he didn't think it was likely at all that the inn keeper had lied to him, as there was very little reason to do so, he had no idea if it was another isolated establishment, or a part of a larger community.

He wasn't sure which he preferred.

Switching up his thought process, he began to ruminate on the reality of his situation.

While his ultimate goal was adventure in-itself, and to see the world at large, it was also a long held desire to find and collect things which were certainly illegal, and that would eventually put himself in danger. He was not ignorant of this.

On one hoof, the alicorn artifacts were non-negotiable points of his list. While he doubted Twilight Sparkle would ever allow a pony to carry such things, he also doubted it'd be enforced much considering the dubious nature of their existence. This was because deep down, he knew that as star-struck and hopeful that they existed, some ancient book his parents had wasn't exactly a foolhardy proof of existence.

For all he knew, they were simply fantasy and he was chasing smoke, and if that was true how much of his life would be wasted? Well, it would never be a true waste he reminded himself, as the process was exactly what he desired, but it would be quite sad if he never turned up anything.

He wanted to believe with all his heart that they really did exist.

But... following the story he'd learned as a child, it was clear that these items had been worn by alicorns that had been defeated by Twilight Sparkle. Logically following that, a depressing line of logic followed. Twilight Sparkle had collected all of them, and either locked them away somewhere near herself that was secure, or was wearing them as of this moment.

While he never wanted to travel anywhere near the capital, this was information he would need to confirm at some point. He just hoped Twilight Sparkle was actually exposing herself to anypony at all. If she kept to the shadows while giving orders in the same manner Closed desired to keep himself hidden, that would make his life a lot more difficult to ever confirm anything. What a headache that'd be.

And yet, that little story he'd heard had sparked some level of hope.

Because while those artifacts were one part of the list, finding books to read was another.

Especially books that contained anything related to magic.

He couldn't help it. Books represented forgotten knowledge. The unknown. It was the exact same thing as adventure in that sense! Who knew what ponies of a bygone era had recorded or said? Closed Tome wasn't sure how far back pony civilization truly went, but he knew it was more than a millennium. That was a long time for different eras to have left their mark on the world, left to be uncovered in any recorded accounts. He hoped.

To him, it was simple. If his parents had managed to preserve books, surely there was somepony else out there who had done the same? There was zero chance that his parents had been the only successful ones, and that mayor was possible evidence of this.

It was for that reason alone he was more hopeful that he'd have actual success there. He was going to put the reading skills his parents had taught him to good use on this journey of his, he had to believe that.

His parents had often warned him of keeping out of trouble, as that aligned with their vision for how his trip and life would go. Little did they know, he had entirely different plans. Sure, there were a few points that aligned, but he sure as tartarus wasn't living such a boring life as they had intended. He was not a tool for their ambitions, and pretending to be one in order for them to let him leave easily had been a burden he had not expected to be so tiresome. But that was over now, thank goodness.

All of this came crashing down in the current predicament of his own making. He felt that conflict was an inevitability in his life, and so he wanted to be ready for it.

Closed Tome had never fought another pony in his life, let alone any other living being. He didn't want his first to be the death of him. His life being at the whim of another terrified him, and that would not do.

This led him to the same process he had before he'd left his town. Training.

He had to figure out a way to do it as safely as possible. It was his hope that he could alleviate his fear of physical engagement and prepare him for the worst.

He was going to leave it on the back burner for now, but it was going to continue to be something that ate away in the back of his mind.

There was also the long term struggles he'd be facing soon enough. Already, he only had seventy seven bits to his name. If he bought more food and a room for the night, he'd be out a significant portion of his money in no time at all. He had little desire to work, but that was the only real way to make bits. Finding a quick job to do wherever he travelled was not exactly a likely scenario either. And this wasn't even accounting for the fact he fully intended to spend long periods of time in the wilderness searching. What would he do then? His survivalist skills were highly limited. Starving to death because he wasn't prepared and too eager wasn't even funny.

Oh how he hated how much he stressed and tortured himself mentally sometimes. Over and over he had to remind himself that it was one hoof at a time, but his brain refused to listen and continued its tumultuous storm of worries.

He stopped and took a deep breath. After repeating that about ten times, he simply scanned his surroundings.

Having lost track of time yet again, he was forced to search the skies for the sun. It appeared that he had about four or five hours to go before it got dark still. That was good.

But beyond that, he was surprised to see a bush with fruit off the beaten path. It was unlikely he would have spotted it while on the move, so he felt it almost fortuitous that he'd stopped here and spotted it.

Making his way closer and into the forest, he began to get a closer look. As far as he could tell, it was blueberries. There were a few spots in Penketh where he'd found blueberries, and these looked remarkably similar.

Despite his visual analysis trying to find any peculiar difference in the memory he had of those plants in the past to what he was seeing now, because being poisoned due to accidentally eating something that looked safe but wasn't was a worst case scenario, he could find nothing that differentiated it from the safe pickings he'd had in the past.

And, after trying a berry, the delicious memory lined up as well to the dance of flavour on his tongue.

Rejoicing, he began to eat all he could find. There was no way something this delicious and sweet could be toxic.

The emergency food he'd brought with him was not something he wanted to waste so soon. Not that he would've ever consumed it if all went to plan and he made it to the next location by tonight, but if anything went wrong he would not be starving now.

It was a decent meal, as the bush was quite large, and when he made it back to the dirt road he was feeling rejuvenated. He also had a small canteen of water in his saddlebag, approximately half full from the occasional sip. He was hoping to hear a stream to fill it up at some point if he didn't make it to the Jagged Inn by tonight.

Maybe he was being too calculated. What-ifs for such unlikely possibilities felt like a waste of mental energy, and he vowed to try and reduce them despite knowing deep down just how unlikely that really was.

Something to work on was something to work on he supposed.

He began whistling a light tune to try and stop thinking so much as he continued onward.

Opposite to last night, Closed Tome reached civilization before complete nightfall this time around. It had been less distance this time around, but his legs had felt like the opposite.

There was zero chance he wasn't sleeping somewhere there tonight. He needed it.

That was because, sitting here before him hung the sign for the town of Leba. There was a wooden fence that turned into an archway and back into a fence, where the road ran through straight into town and it transitioned into cobble. You could tell that the beams were roughly hewn and aged, as time had clearly taken its toll. Rows of buildings lined the street. You could tell that the road was well travelled, as it was marked by the deep grooves of countless wagon wheels and the imprints of many different creatures. While the journey in had been marked by a foliage that had encroached partially on the road, it had become well maintained as you neared the entrance.

The crisp and fresh air he'd grown accustomed to warped into a more foul stench, as though a loss of innocence had taken place upon the land.

He just hoped the town wasn't so big as for it to be difficult to find the inn.

Feelingly slightly off-kilter, he brought out his canteen and chugged. He'd forgotten to keep drinking. Now, he had an empty canteen and a belly swooshing with liquid.

He began to make his way into town, and the population did not disappoint. Dozens of ponies walked to and fro, as well as a few more donkeys, as well as a plethora of creatures he did not recognize. He was quite surprised to see a large beast accompanied by a serpentine creature. It made him question whether he was started to hallucinate things. Were they not dangerous? They certainly looked the part. Why did no one else seem to notice them?

But no... this was what he should've been expecting, having joined the real world outside the cradle that is Penketh.

What caught his eye was the two large horns of the brown furred creature, and how it stood on two legs rather than four. It had piercing amber eyes and a large snout that you could hear from a mile away. It was holding a large axe, the weight of which must've been massive. There was no way Closed could carry something of that size or weight. It looked heavy even from far away. His neck would've broken from the strain.

Whatever it was, it was conversing with the lizard like creature, who surprisingly seemed to be on good terms with the aforementioned monster. Closed couldn't hear what they were saying, as he had a good distance between himself and them, and the ponies which passed him were all mostly in conversation, blocking out any chances he would've had anyway.

Looking around, he found a pony that looked like some kind of guard. He had a helmet on and had a blade holstered to his side, ready to be grabbed with his mouth in a second if needed. He could see the blade was curved through the design of the holster.

"Excuse me, do you have a moment?" he asked with as much confidence as he could muster. It wasn't that he was shy, rather it still felt strange to interact with others so far from home. He had no idea if it was even normal or something the guard would tolerate while seemingly on duty. His stern expression said as much.

Not giving so much as a look, the guard stayed focused on scanning the streets for trouble. He did respond, however, in a surprisingly lazy manner: "What is it?"

Closed Tome was exhausted, but his curiosity had gotten the better of him. It almost always did.

"Would you mind telling me what kind of creature those two are over there?" he lifted a hoof and pointed, which clearly caught the side eye of the guard, "I've never seen as much before."

"S'nothing much, although I suppose you don't see a minotaur and dragonkin at the same time too often. The big horny one is the minotaur, if you haven't figured that out yet."

"I see... so they're pretty rare?"

"Well, both of them are quite far from their homelands, so yeah, I'd say so. One must wonder what they've teamed up to accomplish."

"And how do you know they've teamed up?"

"Comes with the job, son. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to get back to what I was doing."

"Sure... thank you."

Giving the supposed duo one last glance, he moved on.

Oh. He'd forgotten to ask about the inn with the map. He'd missed his opportunity because he got off track too easily. He sighed.

He started asking ponies who seemed to be on their own, but none of them seemed to know the place he was talking about. The ire it brought when the realization that he'd probably been lied to brought a scowl to his face, but it wasn't to last as he was too tired for that. He had to find some place for the night, and this town was far too big not to have some place to fit the bill.

Eventually, he changed his questioning for any tavern or lodge at all, and was quickly told to head for the Midnight Inn.

Slumping through a few corners of town, and almost getting knocked over by a pony not paying attention, he finally saw the sign that hung from the overcast part of the roof that matched what he was looking for.

The population of Leba were neutral in his opinion. Neither too friendly or harsh. He was hoping that pattern would continue and he could have a relatively relaxing stay here. Well, for now, anyway.

Inside was far more chaotic than he would've liked. There were far too many ponies here, and most of them were drunk. It took him a solid minute just to find a pony that worked there.

"Excuse me!" he yelled over the cacophony surrounding him, "would it be possible to get a room for the night?!"

The mare, who had been serving drinks, twisted her head and yelled "what?" back.

Wanting to facehoof, he started forcing his way through the crowd towards her. She had finished dropping off the drinks she had, so when he got there he had her full attention.

"I was just asking for a room to stay the night. Please."

She must've seen the state he was in, because she gave a sympathetic expression. He was too tired to care, and just hoped she had actually heard him this time.

"Sure, I can go grab you a key for room seven A, it'll be fifteen bits, sir."

Closed Tome rushed to open his bag, and quickly dispensed the bits onto the plate she'd be using to serve the drinks. It was slightly unorthodox, but they were making it work for such a busy time. After counting the bits, she ran off and he watched her go so he wouldn't lose her.

Following her, she had surprisingly moved through the crowd with an ease of which he hadn't imagined possible. This must've been the normal around here, that was for sure.

Coming back with a pair of keys, he appreciably took them with his mouth and was pointed in the direction of the stairs without even needing to ask.

Heading up, he was glad that the door numbering system was simple. It didn't quite make sense in his opinion, but at least it was followed easily. It went from one A to C, two A to C, and so forth. It wasn't long until he had reached his room, carefully placed the key in and twisted his neck to open the door.

He then retrieved the key and moved inside. It wasn't much of a surprise that it contained the bare minimum, especially for the price. It may have cost him a lot in relation to how much money he had, but the reality was just that he didn't have that much in the first place.

Closing the door and locking it behind him, he found the locking mechanism from the inside was simple, as you just turned it until it clicked and vice versa to unlock it.

There was a small window besides the bed, a small table, and that was it. Can't ask for much more, right? That bed, which was plain as could be, was infinitely better than what he had last night. Besides, he'd throw on his blanket again in addition to the one they had.

Dropping his saddlebag on the table, he sat down on the bed.

Taking a gander through the window and to the small view it provided, he was welcomed with the pleasant sight of a rising moon highlighting the plumes of smoke pouring forth from the chimney of several buildings, which almost disguised the few lanterns that were lit in the streets that provided narrow beacons of detail to the night life here in Leba. Further away, rolling hills faded into the darkness which competed with the forests before them that had swallowed all light whole long before it had reached the hills.

After admiring the view for long enough period of time, he allowed himself to lay down.

Tomorrow was going to be a big day. Bigger than everything so far.

Sure, he'd been on the move and had actually made quite the distance so far, but it was time for him to start collating information from the local area so that he had any kind of direction to his journey. For as much as he enjoyed aimless wander as long as it brought him something new to discover, he still had goals he wanted to achieve.

Finding the map was of utmost importance, but even more so was trying to find some sort of point of interest within that. He'd have to ask around for rumour or something of the like. There was something else he had to do, and the idea for how to get it done was starting to materialize in his mind, but he really dreaded thinking about it. He was definitely going to have to leave it for last.

Closed Tome personally felt that being far out and away from dense population centres was best for discovering anything at all. It was likely in his opinion that this was already achieved out here, but he still lacked the information to make sure. If no one had found an ancient artifact by now, it wasn't close to any large populations, that was for sure. Although he wasn't exactly convinced many beings were searching either. Not like he was.

Taking the time to get his blanket out, he stopped to stare at it for a moment. His mother had wrapped him in it a million times in his youth, and he swore he could still faintly smell her scent from it even now. It reminded him of home, and it was home, a piece of it, anyway.

Closed Tome had always been a loner. He'd long since accepted that. Never all that close to the few other ponies his age growing up, he'd been isolated in personality and lifestyle.

It wasn't that he was lonely, but for as much as he had problems with his parents at times, he still missed the familiarity and company they had provided. It wasn't his fault he surmised, he'd simply lived his entire life thus far a single way - with others, and now that had changed. It was impossible that wouldn't affect him for a while.

Penketh had been a boring place, and to be honest he'd found most excitement in his own home, reading about stories and places other than his own birthplace had been more interesting. But still, it was his.

He knew, deep down, that there was a very realistic chance he'd never meet any of the inhabitants of Penketh ever again, never walk it streets, and never see his family ever again.

And that was okay, he told himself.

As he closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep, a lone tear that had sneakily made its way down his cheek was a phantom thing, for he never even felt it as he drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, Closed Tome woke up and immediately stretched his limbs out. For a moment, he cramped, and it caused him to jump out of bed. Heart going a lot faster than it should be, he felt it relax and sat back down on the bed.

While a little stiff still, he felt a lot better. He'd be able to get a lot done today.

He was also glad to see that through the window, while he couldn't quite see the sun, he could see the shadows across the buildings it created and noted that it was still early morning. The shadows were sideways.

Placing his blanket back into his saddlebag, he placed it back onto his back. It wasn't too heavy, as he had always planned to travel light. The emergency grain bar he'd gone out of his way to purchase before he left was still wrapped up nicely at the bottom. While he didn't want to eat it until the time was right, he also couldn't wait forever as it'd spoil. Sometime after he left Leba would probably be best he thought.

Unlocking the door, leaving the room and then re-locking it took less than a minute, and soon enough he was back on his way downstairs to the main part of the inn.

To his satisfaction, it was far less rowdy now. The morning crowd was a different bunch than the party crazed of the night. Who knew how many ponies were the same as last night? Probably not that many.

Just as he was making his way to see the older stallion at the bar, something caught his eye that made his jaw drop.

Right there on the wall was a map. It was a beautiful map. It was beautiful because it was a map! Pivoting, he dashed towards it. It wasn't some country wide map, but it certainly showed the surrounding area quite well! He could work with this. He counted twenty two named villages slash towns total, and they were mostly spaced out. What he did notice was that Leba was mostly to the right side of the map.

He was a bit frustrated by the lack of detail otherwise. A small text label and a little picture represented most geographically significant areas. A few arrow like symbols pointing upwards did not exactly tell him how large the "Barrath mountains" were. The worst part was the fact there was zero reference of distance. He had no idea if it was ten kilometres to the next town or one hundred.

Well, it was more than he thought he'd be getting so quickly. Perhaps fortune was on his side.

Wait, why hadn't he noticed this last night? Had he really been so tired? Perhaps ponies had simply flooded his view to this side of the interior, and tired as he was he simply didn't notice through the gaps.

After studying it for several minutes, he came up with a few questions he'd ask the bartender or other patrons if he felt them approachable enough.

Asking the questions was simple enough. It one was thing to discuss casual topics, it was another to have a controlled and directed conversation about something you were passionate about. The keeper was more than willing to chip in details, and a fellow pony—who'd taken an interest—chipped in, too. Closed would've been out of his comfort zone normally in a situation like this, but for today it was okay. Perhaps the excitement had taken hold a bit more than expected.

What he'd learned was everything. Far to the south lay the Forest of Ichor, which eventually cleared and descended down into the Screaming Valley. They said that those that made it as far as the valley eventually tried to retreat back into the forest, only to be paralyzed by some unknown fear. This was by far the most fantastical location that'd been pointed out to him, and he knew that it was most likely his first real adventure into the wilderness.

He'd be lying if the story didn't find the story a little bit worrying, the pit in his stomach having made its presence clear on the thought of it. But, like many things in life, it was something you had to overcome. He didn't leave his village to get spooked and then head home, that was for sure.

That didn't mean being careless, either, though. He was going to be as cautious as possible. Maybe chasing any bizarre tale was a dangerous game, but what other choice did he have? You weren't going to find the mythical in the comfort of bed.

Breakfast was quick and cheap, something he figured he was going to get used to until his purse ran dry. That wasn't far off already, and he dreaded the day. What made breakfast special was an offhoof comment he'd made about not finding the place he'd originally been looking for, and learning from the Keep who corrected him that the place had been renamed around a year ago, changed from 'Jagged Inn'. Go figure.

He owed somepony a mental apology now.

It was a silver lining that he'd spent a bit of time back in Penketh asking old Willowbell about plants safe for consumption in the Yahi forest. Willowbell had gone out with him and personally guided him, one by one.

Sure, there would probably not be a lot of crossover the further he got from home, but it was something.

Closed Tome was so consumed in his thoughts that he almost forgot to pay for the food, but after a quick toss he was on his way to see more of the town.

Excitement was high and there was still more to be learned while he was here. The cobble clapped under his energetic bounce of a step.

But it wasn't to last, for not a minute after leaving the Midnight Inn a ponies yell broke his lively trance. He stopped to see what was going on, and it wasn't long until he was peering up one of the few towers here in Leba. How did that pony get up there at the top?

"Do you hear me?!" The unicorn's voice cracked, sharp and desperate. "Do any of you even care anymore? Or have you all just... just accept this?! Looks at us! Look at me! We're a third of ponykind, are we not?!" His horn, jagged and dull, something that had become normalized in Closed mind, as he assumed did in others, caught the weak morning light. The unicorn threw his head back, tears streaking his hollow cheeks.

The air in town was thick, stale, and suddenly felt suffocating. A cart rumbled past, its wooden wheels clacking over the cobblestones chipped and uneven, echoing faintly into the stillness that'd gathered. The buildings were tired, slouching together in a way that felt as though the world had sunken in, closing it off.

More quietly, this time, but still loud enough to be heard by most on the thoroughfare he added: "We're not slaves. We're not broken tools. We're—" A look of realization, or perhaps something more entered his eyes as the words caught in his throat. He swallowed on trembling legs.

Just what was this unicorn saying? He started to make out more and more details of the agitated equine. He was pure white of coat, with a blonde mane and tale that melted into a reddish-orange near the ends. It was hard to make out, but the pony was clearly in rough shape. He was clearly underweight, and his face was sunken, as though he hadn't slept in weeks. Closed was able to make out that much after inching closer.

What surprised Closed Tome the most was the fact that few ponies or other quadrupeds really reacted or even acknowledged the pony in crisis. Most just went on with their day, like it was any other. A few stopped to watch, and after scanning the crowd he saw that there was an older unicorn mare sitting on a shabby bench. She seemed... stretched. Like one of her children was making the same grave mistake she'd warned against a thousand times, and the emotional toll had drained her. He couldn't help but notice she shared the same defining trait all unicorns had - a cracked horn.

Closed didn't remember when the unicorn stopped orating. The next thing he knew, there was just the sound of splatter, a faint gasp, and then... silence. All sound disappeared from the world as realization hit. The sound of silence that presses down on you like a weight, heavier than any scream. In fact, his vision had narrowed so much it could only see one thing, and one thing alone.

The unicorn lay crumped like a discarded doll, limbs splayed at unnatural angles. His once bright coat soaked with crimson blood. Half of his face had been crushed, and the eye there had become something unrecognizable.

He wanted to shout, to run, to do anything, anything at all rather than stare. His legs refused to move, but his stomach had no such qualms. Around him, the crowd, if you'd even call it that, shuffled on as if nothing had happened. A mare sighed, and it allowed him to finally break his focus. The older mare he'd seen earlier had closed her eyes and tilted her head back.

A creature which had been described to him as a sheep not ten minutes ago during his exchanges mentioned something about being late.

His heart was pounding, and fight as he could the content of his stomach—which had not digested much yet, found its way onto the curb as he turned away. He panted, and fought the urge to puke again. He barely won.

Time passed, and Closed Tome stomach remained twisted in knots. Eventually, several ponies came to clean up the mess, as well as the blockage on the road.

Was this... really just normal here? The revelation slammed his conscious. The implications were far worse.

Tentative plans vanished from the back of his mind.

Closed Tome had lived a sheltered life so far. He'd always been faintly aware of it. The worst injury he'd seen was a wolfs bites in his home town, from a pony who'd had the unfortunate luck to be caught out in its territory at the wrong time. This was all so different. All so wrong.

Closed also thought of his parents. Were they too under this kind of pressure? He refused to believe that. Life was different in Penketh. He had to believe that.

That was right, ponies lived differently there. He mustn't let himself get carried away. Deep breaths.

He almost wanted to scream at the crowd himself. Didn't any of them care? But Closed Tome was not that kind of pony, and that would never happen.

What he did know, under rapid realization, was that an escapade out of this hellhole was quickly becoming his favourite option.

His stunned nature was broken by something walking into him, practically knocking him over from his sitting position. He barely caught himself with his two front hooves.

"Watch where you're sitting! You're in everyone's way there."

And the pony was off, as quickly as they'd come. They spat to the side, landing just off of Closed.

Dark thoughts consumed Closed Tome, and he got up. The town had returned to normal, so why shouldn't he?

It had been a strange day.

Closed Tome had got the necessities done. Filled his canteen with water from the town well.

He'd been walking mindlessly for hours. He'd 'seen' much but comprehended little. Perhaps he'd seen the majority of what this place had to offer. It was all too much if you asked him, even though he found himself continuing on anyway. His mind was too static to register anything fully. Shapes blurred into one another—shops, houses, ponies, the lot. Until the town itself felt like an endless loop he was doomed to repeat.

Not really sure why, he kept walking, he was searching for something or perhaps fleeing from nothing. He arrived right back at where he'd started. The Midnight Inn. It was a beehive of activity, and against better judgment he moved in. It reeked of stale sweat, old wood, and spilled dreams. Against his better judgment, Closed Tome pushed through the warped doors. Inside, the air was thick with the sour tang of sweat and cider. The noise hit him like a storm—raucous laughter and murmurs too low to ever catch.

Ponies in the crowd pushed him back and forth as he made his way to the bar counter, they were rowdy and energetic.

Closed Tome sat down. The stallion besides him leaned heavily against the scarred oak counter. His coat was patchy, muddy brown, and his mane lay limp over his eyes, clinging to his forehead. His half-empty glass of cider sat neglected in front of him, its amber contents gleaming a tempting whisper.

"Y'know," he slurred, his voice cutting through the cacophonous mixture around them, "me and my brother... we aint saints, but we get things done. Things other ponies don't got the guts to do."

It was unfair and unrelated, but it dialed up a simmer of anger within Closed to hear those words after what had happened today.

The pony besides him was clearly further gone, and meagrely gave a nod. Closed assumed that he wasn't paying attention, the act of simply facing that way giving false pretenses.

"Ponies think they know right an' wrong," he continued, his head lolling as he stared into his warped reflection held in his drink. "But when push comes to shove, they don't got the stones to do what's necessary. Me an' Slate? We do."

Closed Tome, who'd already ordered and had been waiting for service while listening, finally got his drink brought to him. It tasted awful, and he was glad to find something that matched his spirits. This would do. Forget about the measly bits he needed to budget.

Time went by, and enough drinks were had that Closed began to feel a bit, what was it, 'tipsy', they called it? Closed had zero desire to lose all control like those around him, but perhaps this was a pleasant compromise.

"You know what the worst part is?" The same pony who'd caught his attention before circled its way back in. "The worst part is, he deserved it," he said, his intoned voice suddenly serious. "The bastard deserved it. And I can live with that."

Something snapped in Closed as connections that didn't exist and he didn't want to be making came together. It bothered him. It bothered him greatly. But his mind was lulled by drink, and the curtain of shadows that followed him all day prevented him from fixating.

He remembered something from his vague planning, and uninhibited he now felt like now was the time. Calculated thoughts began to sprout.

"Ponies like me..."

"Ponies like you..." The words fell from his lips before he even registered the decision to speak. They hung in the air, heavy and bitter. "Ponies like you who think they're the axis of morality..." why was he saying this? "...you make me sick."

He'd been skirting around the idea of something happening, but now that it was he locked up.

"Axis...?" The stallion turned towards him, his bloodshot eyes narrowing in confusion. "Axis? Morality?" he repeated, dragging the words out. His lips curled into a sloppy imitation of a smirk. "Big words for a pony sittin' alone in a place like this."

Closed Tome's jaw tightened. The words had been a crack in the dam. Now, with the stallion staring him down, the air felt thick and heavy. The stallion was quickly realizing what he'd actually said. Closed needed to do something.

"You sit here, actin' like you're better than us." His voice had taken an threatening connotation, as it lowered in volume. "You don't know a damn thing Ponies like you—" Closed Tome threw his glass.

The shattering of glass could be turned, but Closed was turned away. He faced forward, eyes dark.

The stallion slowly turned towards where it'd been thrown, sucked in by the shock of the action, and Closed knew what he saw. A pony outraged at whoever had the audacity to throw a glass at him, for seemingly no reason. Under these circumstances, there was no way sober logic would prevail.

Closed heard the pony approaching, and just as tensions rose and the stallion turned back towards Closed - most likely to explain it wasn't him, Closed acted first. Without warning, Closed lashed out, his hoof slamming into the stallions jaw with a crack. The force sent the stallion off his chair and falling to crash hard on the ground with his back.

For a moment, there was silence. a breathless pause as the stallion staggered, his eyes wide with shock.

Then chaos erupted.

The stallion quickly stood despite the hit, surprisingly resilient for the state he should of been in. The stallion roared, his sluggish movements fueled by drunken rage as he began to attempt his physical reply.

He'd utterly forgotten about the pony who'd thought him the instigator. He was charged into the counter, and Closed Tome, who'd been preparing to prevent his teeth from being knocked out, had to flinch.

There was no turning back now.

The two rolled over, and to Closed surprise the tackled had become the aggressor on top.

For whatever reason, fighting had already broken out across the board. How had that happened so quickly?

Deciding that waiting for somepony to pick him out as a victim himself, he attacked that same stallion again. He slammed his shoulder to his side, and once again sent him down. The pony beneath him pushed his way up, and just as Closed was going to continue his assault he was blindsided himself by that same pony.

He'd been hit right in the gut, and Closed Tome was sent down. He was truly a weaker pony physically in all manners it seemed. He was reeling, and just glad his head hadn't been knocked around.

The pain was immense, and for a pony who'd lived such a sheltered life it shook him to his core. In the back of his mind, he'd been telling himself that he had to prepare for this. But it just wasn't possible to prepare for the feeling of pain. It striped you bare and kept you down if you were caught lacking.

It was tough, but this was not enough to crumble his spirit. If one hit was enough to keep him down, then he'd be some creatures lunch out in the wilderness. He had to keep going. If you're going to dish it out, you better be ready to receive in turn after all.

Fearing for the worst, he half expected to be pounded into submission without relent right then and there.

For whatever reason, the pony he'd tackled had rejoined the fray and now fought his new opposition. Perhaps he was so drunk he'd forgotten who was who, or even worse, lost himself to blind rage.

While they began exchanging blows, Closed forced himself back up. He would finish what he started, and get the hell out of here. That was all he could think of right now.

While hard to enter the melee, they also weren't going anywhere. They were both clearly drunk, and this was not a particularly focused fight to begin with. They were obviously sluggish, and it didn't take long for Closed to swing and miss, backing off when the response was a wild swing of the hoof. Unlike them, he wasn't drunk enough to forget the pony he'd started this with.

Maybe he was just taking out today on this pony, or perhaps this pony deserved it with how he'd presented himself to be.

Closed didn't care right now.

The brawl continued, and Closed Tome got hit several times, albeit not nearly as bad the first time. He also managed to land a few more blows. It was a tough dynamic, because it was essentially a three-way fight.

There came a point where his target got knocked backwards and became stunned. He was clearly reaching exhaustion and recovering slowly. Deciding to take a risk, Closed jumped up on two hooves and bucked him as hard as he could. Even if he saw it coming, there was no way he would've been able to respond properly enough at this point.

He subsequently flew into a chair and shattered through it. He groaned and stayed down, passing out.

Breathing hard, Closed began to turn away after steadying himself when the forgotten member of their little trio came flying towards him.

Closed was unable to react when his head smashed into his own.

He fell to the floor, clutching his head and barely conscious. He told himself he just needed to stay down, and hopefully the pony would move on. In the meanwhile, he would do his best to gather himself to walk out of this place before things got too ugly for himself.

And, serendipity be blessed, that was exactly what happened.

Getting stepped on a few times as ponies shifted while they fought wasn't too bad, and eventually he was able to get up.

Vision blurry, it was all he could do to start trying to weave his way towards the door and out.

The next few minutes was indeed a blur as Closed got pushed around in his effort to leave, but he did eventually make it.

Spending the night here again, while probably the smart thing to do, was not an option. Closed wanted out. He had to get out of this place full of nightmares that'd dragged him down in spirit and body. Closed Tome was not a rash pony, but he was and never would've been ready for today. Escalation had just felt inevitable.

Even in this raddled, tired state of mind, Closed could briefly remember the path out of town. Stick to the main roads to prevent confusion. He'd memorized that map well enough. It was time to go. He'd figure things out there, he had to believe that.

He had to leave.

Under normal circumstances, leaving Leba probably would've taken no more than fifteen minutes from the tavern. In actuality, with the immensity of the day draining on him, it took Closed Tome roughly thirty minutes to forty five, if he had to guess. And boy was he glad to be leaving.

This was the southern entrance, and it was near identical to the one he'd seen on the way in. He wasn't exactly looking for differences right now.

He was on the verge of being out of breath, but he had to keep moving.

Stone became dirt, and he welcomed the breeze of the burgeoning night. It was cool, just enough to bring his temperature down if even a little. It felt nice with the wind, which came in gusts here and there. He hadn't had to focus on each individual step to keep moving forward like this in a long time.

The forest loomed around him, its shadows thick and restless. The snap of a twig cut through the ambient rustling of leaves carried by the wind. His pulse quickened. Closed began scanning the treeline, but the tangled mass of bushes refused him any clarity that he so desperately sought.

The pony emerged from the trees with an unnerving casualness, as if out for an evening stroll. But his eyes locked onto Closed Tome like that of a predator, and every nerve in Closed Tome's body screamed at him danger. There was no aggression in any way from the stranger's posture, and yet all of his senses screamed it. There was an unshakable confidence about this earth pony, and it made the hairs on Closed neck stand on end.

Regret filled his soul, but he also couldn't help but wonder just who this pony was. Why had they followed him out here? Weren't bar fights common? He'd once heard his father say as much, who'd done some minor travelling in his life.

"You sure got my brother more sorry than the last time he tried to lay hooves on me."

Closed Tome was sweating. So that was it. But just where had he been hiding to have seen what happened? Had he been watching on the sidelines? Closed hadn't been particularly observant. It was too late now, but again Closed Tome cursed his foolishness.

"Come with me."

"I... I didn't mean to—"

"I said come with me."

From the forest came five more figures, their movements eerily synchronized. They fanned out around him, enclosing him in a tightening circle. Each step they took drove the air from his lungs, their presence was too overbearing. They all had the same look.

He was terrified.

Nodding, because speaking was not a realistic thing right now, he began to follow this self-proclaimed brother of the pony he'd had brutalized.

A terrible sense of doom overtook Closed. Surely they weren't going to kill him over that, right? Right?

It was really dark in the forest, and at some point Closed realized one of the ponies had lit a torch. They formed a tight circle around him as they escorted him. Just where were they going?

"You're probably wondering where we're taking you. It's no place special you see. What it is, however, is away from prying eyes that may find their way onto a commonly used road."

This was bad. Really Bad. His mind churned through options, but every path led to the same grim conclusion. The main problem was their proximity, and how exhausted he was. There was no getting out of this. His heart pounded at the realization.

He knew, deep down, if he was willing to risk everything there was a small chance he could get out of this situation if he played his cards right. The odds of that happening in reality were too bleak.

Eventually, they emerged into a grassy clearing. The moon hung low in the sky, its pale light washing over the scene like a shroud. All of this made Closed feel incredibly small, and he'd never felt so alone as now.

They pushed him toward the centre of the clearing, and the intensity ratcheted up. Each step driving his dread higher. Even though he was terrified of what was to come, there was a tiny part of him that just wanted this to be over with. That part was a betrayal, because being at the mercy of another could mean an end to his pathetic tale. What a pathetic life story that'd be?

He was surprised he'd even had the thought under these circumstances.

"We're going to beat you. Beat you until you understand what it means to mess with Slate and Birch. My brother will recover before you do."

There was an almost sadistic quality to how Slate, or at least who he assumed to be Slate, carried himself.

To say such a thing, and then simply watch as he shivered under the combined optical pressure of those staring him down was clearly sadistic. It had to be.

But it was under these conditions he began to scan around him. He had to gather information, he had to see if—no.

He'd hurt that pony, regardless of knowing the truth. That alone was enough for him to accept this. He would not try.

It was a massive risk, leaving his life in the hooves of another, but somehow he came to accept it.

This conclusion must've found its way onto leaving a trace on his visage, for the expression of Slate shifted to that of... was it curiosity?

"Begin."

Everypony, including Slate, began to move inwards, slowly, with all the intent and malice he'd come to expect. Closed Tome span around, nervous energy taking hold once again.

They stopped as close as possible without touching him. Slate's eyes burned directly in front of him. He could not look away. He could not breathe.

I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want—

When the first strike hit, it'd been faster than he was able to register. He didn't even know where it'd landed, things just moved too quickly. Then, the pain of a dozen such hits pounded into Closed Tome's brain as he was tossed around like a rag doll. It was overwhelming. Just as the agony hit a peak, something hard hit him on the head, and his consciousness quickly faded.

Right yourself

It was pitch black. He'd been here so long... Why was that, again?

He tried moving around, only to quickly run into something. There was no pain—just curiosity.

It quickly became apparently that this was some kind of small room, and he'd run into a piece of furniture. He felt the outline, it rose quite high.

A sliver of light broke through from above, revealing the faint outline of stairs leading up towards the glow.

He made he way towards the stairs, and several steps up he suddenly found himself restricted. Why couldn't he move forward? The way out was right there! It felt like chains had suddenly appeared, restraining him without the weight.

Now that he'd come this far, he noticed the muffled sounds of a heated argument just past the door. For some reason the words felt just out of reach.

What he could tell, however, was that it was between a mare and a stallion.

He tried to call out, but his voice was nowhere to be found. As much as he tried, nothing seemed to come out.

Just as he considered going back down, the argument above seemed to die down. He hadn't realized that'd happened, until it just seemed to hit him.

Turning back towards the door, which had suddenly become apparent as the source of light, he became blinded as it opened. The strain from the unfamiliar radiance became too much, and then—

He awoke to a strange sensation—everything felt like it was buzzing. That was the first form of recognition he made.

It took a while, but eventually he opened his eyes to find a lot of what he'd been seeing lately, old and worn wood planks.

That dream. Closed Tome didn't remember his dreams very often, and he was glad for it. This time around it left a bitter scar on his conscious. Just like every time he had the misfortune of remembrance.

Forget that, he needed to figure out what was—

Memories flooded his mind—his last memories. That day. The terror retook him, but quickly faded as he realized he was still alive. His breathing, which he hadn't even realized had accelerated, came right back down as he fought to regain zen.

Thankfulness filled him. He'd been so sure he'd thrown away everything in a pathetically foolish and ill-timed emotional stunt born from despair. Perhaps he'd woken up in more ways than one. He was so truly happy to still be alive right now.

Right here and now, it became clear that his reckless actions had led him here, and nothing else. Closed Tome vowed to himself not to lose control again like that. It'd nearly cost him his life, and then throbbing pain he'd been trying to ignore since waking was evidence of that. It refused to let him forget.

It was hard to reconcile, because Closed had never viewed himself as a particularly emotional pony who'd succumb that badly.

However, call it luck, fortune, fate, it didn't matter—he was alive, and he was grateful for it.

A lifetime of dreaming of the world at large down the drain after two days? How pathetic that would've been.

But still, he was here now, and picking up the pieces was something he'd need to do after figuring out just why he was inside somewhere in the first place. Just what had taken place after he'd been beaten into a pulp? Wouldn't they have left him somewhere in the ditch to rot? It wasn't exactly realistic they had a change of heart and decided to bed him back to health.

He'd realized that he was on a bed, forcing his head up by craning his neck, despite the pain it caused him. It sparked panic when he realized that getting up and moving was not going to be happening any time soon. He cursed his heritage and his cutie mark, just like he'd done a million times before. Who knew how long he'd already been resting for only to still be this incapacitated.

The room was fairly spartan. The space was small, and a bedside table accompanied the bed itself. There was a bowl with water there, and a lamp which hung from the and wall shimmered in the depths of the liquid. On the other side of the room, hanging from the wall, there was a small painting which depicted a small family of unicorns. It appeared to be some sort of family remembrance, as they all posed tightly together. The two parents hugged two foals, and one older sibling if assumptions were to be made. They appeared to be in some sort of garden. The skill of whoever made the piece wasn't amateur, but it certainly wasn't masterful either.

He'd been told once that his family had had something similar once, but it'd been lost to time. Lost like so many other things. His parents had often spoken about half about how lucky they'd been to preserve what they had, and conversely on the other half about how unfortunate it was that the claims of fortune from their ancestors, which felt like a birthright to those who heard it, had been lost to time under a myriad of means and circumstances.

He'd never given it much consideration really. What he did know was that he appreciated what they did have left during his time.

Breaking his focus away from the painting, he did what he should've all along - crane his neck to drink from the bowl. It felt like his muscles were tearing to even manage to shuffle and sit more upright, but eventually he got his face over it in a manner that would've been embarrassing in any other situation that had another pony around to witness it.

Not that he cared right now. His throat was parched beyond belief, and the water, which he gulped down thankfully, tasted like ambrosia right now.

It was no less painful laying back down.

Knowing himself, he had probably been out for days. And still, he felt exhausted. Bitterness bubbled up because he couldn't help but feel like he recovered far slower than any other earth pony he'd ever known. He hated it. He hated how often he thought along those lines, too.

But then he remembered something. His possessions, what had happened to the saddlebag he'd been carrying? As much as it drove him mad, he could not search the location he was in for them, nor see anything from his skewed and limited perspective as he lay recumbent. The bed was cheap, and his back felt sore from more than the beating, but there was also a familiar comfort to it, like his back had imprinted where it was and now perfectly fit into it, lock and key.

Briefly, his thoughts returned to his parents as he began to feel drowsy. If they had seen what had happened to him... he almost shivered at the thought. As much as he didn't want to admit it, if he had followed the course they'd laid out this never would've happened. He frowned.

It sucked, because he knew he should be stressing and assessing the situation, figuring out the potential danger he could be in, and yet he could do nothing but feel like dozing off was the only option.

It was. As much as he wanted to believe he could surpass limits.

Sleep took him once again.

When he opened his eyes for the second time in that same room, it was because of a disturbance.

He didn't see it at first, as his reactions in general had become lulled, but the peripheral image of a pony was something that was easily identified.

He made to speak, but was preempted. "Just fetching fresh water. Must say I'm glad you're awake. Was beginning to think you'd never open your eyes."

The voice was older, mellow, and lacking in any distinct emotion. It was feminine which had been hardened by the ages towards neutrality.

"Where... am I? Who are you? Why am I not..."

"Because you cared."

"What...?"

"That unicorn you watched fall to his death. I knew him his whole life from the outside. Don't think I don't see the lack of reaction to our kind." He'd seen it himself—ponies and animals alike passing each other on the street, eyes hollow, words cold. Like they'd long since stopped believing in kindness.

"So what are you just trying to say?" his voice was weak, and he was tempted to do what he could to hurry along the conversation so that he could have another taste of aqua.

"That you're a remnant of something ponies have so dearly lost, and so dearly need in times such as these."

A bitter look crossed his visage, "I'm not the pony you think I am."

"Perhaps, perhaps not. But your reaction, I've lived a long enough life to know that it was genuine. You cared that pony, that unicorn suffered such a fate. That is enough for me."

He paused for a good few seconds, before speaking: "So this is your place then? You have my thanks, I hope you've also lived a long enough life to know I'm serious about that." He almost broke into laughter, the why of which he did not know, and it caught in his throat to the point of sending him into a coughing fit. It hurt, and his body contorted during the process in a way that hurt. The mare, who he eventually recognized as the elderly mare who he'd focused on at that time sitting and watching just like he had, did what she could to hold him steady with her hooves. She had a peach coat, and a soft-yellow mane and tail. It was pleasing colors to look at. Her cutie mark was that of a window.

She mentioned leaving to do what she had intended from the start after he calmed down, and was back within a few minutes. It seemed she lived near a water source.

Once again laying hooves, she held him up this time and he was grateful that it was a far easier affair than the first time. He was confident, in fact, that he'd be able to get up and moving today as his heart got going.

"Thanks."

"No problem dear. Is there anything else you need?"

"You remind me of my mother—almost."

"Then I can only hope she's half as charming as me."

"Seriously... I can't thank you enough. I would be in your debt if I could have any food at all."

She turned to leave, "and I accept that thanks. But you will need to forgive me for the measly portions."

Closed Tome forced himself into a sitting position, his back to the wall with the bed still under him.

"Hey... wait."

She was already at the door, but she had heard. "What is it?"

"How... how did you find me after..." a combination between stress and embarrassment had crossed his features.

"You're lucky I had been keeping an eye on you since you showed a heart. I know a thing or two about being discrete. Have to be as a unicorn."

And with that she was gone, once again leaving him with his thoughts.

It was a times like these he felt badly about wanting to leave right away. His adventure called to him, and he suspected that his debt paid in blood had been paid in full. Nopony—no creature at all, had it out for him. Yet. Why would they? He'd given those brothers hell of enough of one to his fault. No such motive existed beyond that.

He had to stop thinking like that, it was far too paranoid and stressing. But he had to be right about that. His journey was his own, and nopony cared about it. That he was certain of. He wanted it to stay that way this time around.

It was around five minutes later that she returned with some hay. He devoured it quickly, offering thanks once again, and it was gone all too soon as her promise held true. It was enough, and he was not feeling greedy. He briefly wondered if she had some left for herself, or maybe she had already eaten. He'd be ashamed if she had fed him while starving herself. She looked like she needed every bits worth she could get.

"You know, I just realized I havent even introduced myself." He brought a hoof to the back of his neck and rubbed. "I'm Closed Tome, you can just call me Tome if you want. I know saying closed can sound weird sometimes."

"No offense taken, I had forgotten manners myself. Names Sleek Curtain, and the pleasure is all mine."

For a brief moment, romanticized stories of unicorns past being gentleponies drifted through his mind.

"Sleek, I must apologize once again, but before that I just remembered something important. Did you happen to get my saddlebag, or did they..."

"It's downstairs, rest easy. Those folks aren't that heartless, however they may seem."

Closed Tome thought otherwise, the fear they'd evoked still fresh, but now was not the time to be voicing those thoughts. Still, it was a miracle that his stuff was still with him. He'd have been truly depressed if he'd lost the last remnants of home he still had.

"So you know them."

The look in her eye sharpened in a way he hadn't seen before, and suddenly he realized that her old age was not a reflection of a gentle life, but of one arduously survived. With how soft she had been, even briefly, had made him forget that possibility.

"I know a lot of folks around here. Can you stand?"

"I think so..."

And indeed he could, and she led the way downstairs. It seemed that this was her apartment somewhere. Stairs led straight down to a door, but there was also a small area under the stairs that had been used a closet. He found his things there, and after a few minutes of checking, confirmed that he still had everything.

Well he'd be... his inner cynic had been silenced. He also confirmed how poor he now was. Two bits to his name.

There was no hesitation for him to promptly lay them at her hooves.

"What are you doing?"

"It's not much, but I hope this somewhat pays for my time here."

She made to try and give them back, but he held out a hoof to stop.

"Where I'm going, I won't be needing them anyway."

Somehow, she didn't seem at all surprised.

As he began walking past her, she said: "So it is as I had guessed. But where are you going?"

To any pony other than her, he would've lied. He did not want to lie to her, not after what she'd done for him.

"To the Forest of Ichor, and the potentially the screaming valley."

Concern dawned on her face, but there was something more. "Then I have a favour to ask of you."

He should've expected something like this, but what could it really be?

"Go on."

He'd been expecting a straightforward request, but for the first time an awkwardness had overtaken her person. Was it really that strange a request? Just what would make a mare like this, who he'd only known for so long yet felt like forever, become uncomfortable?

"You see... my young nephew has been something lost in life as of late. We've tried to... get him on the right path, but he always seems to be going down alleys which we never saw coming."

"As much as I respect and appreciate your help, I hope this is not going where it seems miss Sleek." He hoped being polite back would help... in some way here...

"He won't be a burden! I promise! He's been out that way, one of the few ponies around here who has been in fact."

"And why would he be coming with me? You don't even know what I'm doing or why."

"And yet he can be of benefit to you; I can promise you that. What I was hoping for is... well, I know it sounds strange, but your demeanour, attitude, all of it. You may be young and inexperienced, that much is obvious—"

"Jeez, thanks."

"—but it is still something I want to rub off on him. It could save his life. Tell you what, if the going out there gets bad, just send him right back home. But he needs this, needs something."

He had every reason to say no. He should have said no. But something in Sleek's eyes—the hope, the desperation—made him hesitate.

Closed Tome considered the offer carefully. On one hoof, he was a loner and desired solitude. How could he explain his situation to anypony without them probing for more? Just an adventure, that's it? They'd laugh until they saw he was serious, and then the problems would arise he'd rather avoid. That was just the beginning of it. On the other hoof, he could prevent a lot of wasted and tireless searching with a guide of sorts. That alone was very tempting.

Against his better judgment, he agreed. He felt strongly that he would regret that decision soon enough.

It looked like a hope that had died within her had been relit, and that didn't help his growing discomfort. He almost wanted to go back on his word, but he swallowed it.

He properly packed up, gave a little stretch, and they were on their way.

It was a rainy, gray tinted day that most would describe as dull. The clouds covered the sky and the rain was light, but Closed suspected that was not long to last. Life had its way of doing that.

The cold seeped into his coat, each raindrop a needle before he could get used to it.

They made their way across town, and he only recognized a few landmarks. He hadn't been here long enough to remember certain places too well when things were already so different. Fewer living things were on the streets on a day like today.

He couldn't tear his vision away from just how deep the prints in the ground were in some spots, he almost made it a game to see which spots went deepest as they went. It was during this scanning something caught his eye, which made him stop to give it a proper gander.

What came into view as he came closer to the wall of a tenement was a crude wanted poster. It was obvious that the language they used was as limited as it was numerous as the words used.

It read simply: "Wanted, Dead or Alive — Murkerth, Unicorn." A crudely drawn outline of the ponies face had been attempted. Closed stared, trying to memorize the poster even if there wasn't much to work with.

The depth of illiteracy in this place was really starting to sink in. He had little hope it'd be different elsewhere at this rate. Earlier, when he had first seen that map in the tavern, he had come to read between the lines that the majority of places were being named through memory by the ponies he asked, not by actual ability to read. And the map itself certainly had few words. He suspected that it must've been practically ancient by now, and even then things had been bad.

He was about to move on, especially since Sleek had stopped and noticed his delay, but something caught his eye even further. The way they had drawn Murketh, it certainly seemed like they had messed up drawing his horn. It looked too clean, with swirls that were uninterrupted, it was almost as if—

The reason for him being wanted started to coalesce in his mind. That kind of possibility had been something he'd dreamed of, even at a young age. It was the disappointment later that had eventually settled into normalcy.

Murketh eh... While Closed wanted to stay away from any and all trouble, this was was certainly interesting.

But not so interesting that when urged to move on he wouldn't, so they kept on their march.

Eventually, they made it to the outskirts of town, a lumberyard to be particular. The air was heavy with the scent of damp wood and sawdust, the usual bustle that you'd expect from a high traffic area was missing, subdued. The rain had picked up a touch. The wind too, while not strong, seemed to drag the scents of the place as much as the rain turned sideways.

Sleek lingered near the edge, her expression unreadable as she cast her gaze towards a small ramshackle shelter near the yards fence on the inside.

"Wait here," she said, her voice low and firm. Without waiting on a response, she moved in. Her watched her go around and eventually make her way into that same shelter.

Tome shifted uneasily, casting glances around. Buildings seemed to loom like sentinels. Why was he doing this? Why was he here? He just wanted to leave this place, yet he couldn't ditch this mare who'd outright saved him. The pressure of his saddlebag against him was his only comfort.

Tome resisted the urge to call out for her. He could only wonder what was going on in there. Since she hadn't come right out, clearly a discussion was going on. He tried simulating possible conversations they'd be having based on the limited information he had, but it was impossible with not having any inkling on the personality of this nephew of hers.

When she emerged, she wasn't alone.

Trailing behind her was a younger stallion, lean with a shaggy mane that hung limply over his eyes, and not because of the rain. His coat was a dull gray, his cutie mark obscured by the fence and distance making it hard to see. Closed felt that his brown mane and tail felt almost out of place, especially with the lone streak of silver hair that divided it. He walked with a gait that held many emotions in conflict. Indifference, defiance, curiosity, a touch of anxiety. Whatever this stallion thought, it definitely seemed like he had little left to lose in those eyes of his, which had eventually locked onto Closed.

Not sure what to make of all of this, Closed simply waited for them to close the gap.

"This is him," Sleek said, her voice carrying a note of finality as she gestured towards the stallion. "My nephew, Dust Clutter."

Against expectations, he was not another unicorn. A fellow earth pony indeed, and Closed couldn't help but wonder what tribe his parents each were.

"Nice to meet you, Dust Clutter," his eye practically twitched as this was not a conversation he was wanting right now. "Look, I'm uh... not sure how much you know, or if you even want to come, or anything at all for that matter. But what I do know is that you apparently know the area I'm heading for."

"Nice to meet you as well I guess... while I don't particularly—" Sleek bumped into him, and he had to regain his balance before continuing. "While I don't necessarily know why we're going out there, I do know I can be of some help to you. More than I am around here anyway..." He looked down, like this was some great shame. Closed didn't care. He had no idea, and didn't really care.

"I once joined a band on a caravan that went through the area, due to some unexpected damages with the wagon we stayed there far longer than initially planned. Long story short, we had to make use of the surrounding area. While I wouldn't call it dangerous, something definitely felt off about the surrounding area. We had talked about it at night, around the fire. Making sure we weren't all crazy. There's a reason most are loathe to head through that area, even at the cost of a detour."

Closed nodded.

"And you're saying you want to go there?"

"That bizarre feeling you had out there is exactly why. There could be some strange magic at play. I want to know why, I want to find the source. If not there, then in the Screaming Valley."

"What are you, some kind of private investigator from some rich noble? I thought they had enough trouble, like the rest of us, but in their own ways."

"Not exactly," his grin was as genuine as they come, "but if that feels like the best explanation, we'll go with it."

"Sleek... I'm not exactly—"

"Dust, you're going. Besides, how could we send him alone to such a place? You'll be safer together."

"Safer? More like we're just putting more ponies at risk of getting hurt, or worse."

"You're already at risk of worse, you call this living? You're treading down the path of a pony I'd rather not think about right now."

That shut him up. There was a certain resignation to him. Why Sleek could order around her nephew like this was beyond Closed. Were his parents absent?

The rain continued to pour down, and the conversation fizzled out.

Closed explained that they would be leaving next morning, and that Dust should get everything he needed packed up and ready to go, and to close off any loose ends. Dust had only said that it wouldn't be a problem. Guess he really didn't have family around.

Surprisingly, he headed back inside the lumberyard. Apparently, he had doubled a work space as a living space. What kind of arrangement was that with the yard? Closed briefly wondered if they'd vacate if he was gone for too long. Closed felt bad, sure that Dust would have to figure out something to tell the landowner to allow him to keep his residence. Would he have to pay future rent? Did he even have that kind of bits? Considering the attitude Sleek had taken, Closed strongly felt that they were brothers in bit shortage, if nothing else.

Funny that, Closed had once heard that the bit, aside from Twilight Sparkle, was the only thing that hadn't changed in the past millennium. That was right... Closed definitely needed to learn more about Twilight and Etrethia. For his own good. He knew far too little still, yet here he was already leaving town, one which was unlikely to have any ponies who knew more than to figure out a way to pay the next bill or roll in the mud.

It was muddy. Closed found himself with free time and free time with no money was significantly less attractive. Especially in the rain, in places where they couldn't afford to have nice roads. His hooves were a mess.

That led to mindless wandering, which quickly turned into an awkward self-invitation into Dust's home He backtracked for about twenty minutes, and the rain picked up yet again in the final hour, as if trying to hurry him up. Closed felt bad that Dust had to get stuff done out and about on such a poor day.

As it turned out, Dust's place was strange. It clearly was a barn that'd been abandoned, and then one day renovated partially to just barely work as a tool shed, yet there was a ladder to go to an upper level where an open bedroom was. There was another straw bed, a carpet which was a nice touch he hadn't been expecting, a table which held several unlit candles that had seen recent use, and a carved out hole in wall that acted as a window. The carpet it would be tonight. Better than a tree that was for sure. Because surely Dust wouldn't kick out his new partner in crime?

Besides, Closed could always just threaten to go complain to Sleek after all he'd seen.

He spent most of the day ruminating on the possibilities that lay awaiting him and Dust out there. He wanted to see new things. Closed very much hoped that not every town was as barren and plain as this one that he'd eventually visit. His journey had started off terrible, but turnabout was at play. His comfort level was going to be pushed with Dust around, but he could send him back home any time.

Dust came back later, surprised that Closed was treated the place like his own. It didn't last long, and he was kind enough to offer to share dinner. Dust had decided to splurge before leaving it seemed, as a fresh loaf of bread was presented.

They didn't speak much that night, but Closed did what he could to be genuine about his appreciation that Dust was coming along. Dust may have had reservations, but he was in better spirits than Closed had expected. Maybe his life here really was that bad.

Expectations were everything in life it seemed. Nopony who knew any better ever complained much, but those who'd had a taste for greater quality of life fought like their life depended on it to hold onto it, and quickly hated everything when removed from it. Looking at that bed while they settled down to sleep, it wasn't hard to see why while thinking about the cold and forgiving wilderness.

Eventually, Closed turned to face away from Dust, and he swore he could feel a hole burning into his back by the time he fell asleep.

Closed was surprised at the excitement Dust brought in the morning. He woke Closed up and had his own saddlebag already thrown on. Closed was still a little sore from his most recent affair, but he managed to get a move on quick enough to avoid concern from Dust.

With Dust leading the way through town, on a path he would've never known he could've taken, it already seemed like he was embracing the guide roll. Closed just hoped that he had come prepared. He'd never had the chance to ask what he was taking. His bag looked full enough, at least.

When they finally made it out of town, on the same main road Closed had taken not too long ago, a pang of panic and fear struck Closed. It was irrational, but knowing that was not enough. It took hours before the anxiety started to fade.

"So," Dust finally broke the silence, his tone casual, "when are you going to tell me the real reason we're out here?"

He had to laugh at that. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you."

"Even so, I'd like to know."

Closed hesitated. Then, the words spilled out. "Have you ever dreamed of something so far beyond your reach and so vague that its majesty seems unattainable? That is what I search for, but in truth I simply want to see the world. I was denied that so far in life. This world is huge you know, my father has told me a few stories of his travels, and those he spoke to came from far away lands where their stories transcended time from him to me, and I believe that is only the beginning. Tell me, have you heard of the..."

He stopped when he saw Dust staring at him, expression unreadable.

"Sleek was right," Dust said after a moment, "you really are genuine. I can hear it in your voice."

There was a slight weight to his tone that gave Closed pause. "And?"

Dust shrugged, "And I just don't see it myself. All that hope and wonder I hear, this world isn't that special."

Closed smiled faintly. "That's fine. I'm not here to convince you."

They carried on. The rain from the other day had left everything damp.

"Do you really think it's dangerous out there?" Closed spoke first this time.

"I know it's dangerous."

"Why?"

"Ask my parents." the words cold enough to chill the air between them. Where had this bitterness come from?

Closed lowered his gaze. "I'm sorry." Touchy subject. Closed didn't want to risk things becoming tense between them so soon.

Dust simply said nothing.

"I'll still move forward," Closed said quietly. "Even if it's dangerous, I will still move forward. But I will never ask anything like that from you, Dust. When we get there, head back home. I'll manage."

"What are you saying?" Dust asked sharply, stopping.

"What?"

"As if I'd let you meet the same fate as they did." The conviction in his words momentarily stunned Closed. Closed had been debating his conviction earlier, but now, no longer. Dust neither appeared to be a coward nor a heartless individual, yet Closed feared that his apathy had been saved for no one except himself. That was dangerous in-itself.

"I was wrong about you, Dust." he said finally. Dust didn't react to the comment, mearly adjusting his saddlebags position to be more comfortable. "How many days out are we, anyway?"

They started again.

"And I was wrong about you too. Even if I don't fully understand yet." He was being surprisingly introspective. Closed had been expecting a brash and naive pony, not this. "Depending on the pace, about four to five days. Six if we move really slowly." He eyed Closed. "Are you really that tired already?"

"I'm giving you my best," Closed retorted. "You don't know what I've been through. Besides, I've always been like this. You're getting my best, you can believe that."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't think I have as much magic flowing through me as most earth ponies, or something. My parents were both unicorns you know. Maybe I wasn't supposed to be an earth pony. That's not even mentioning my cutie mark."

"Magic? What are you talking about?"

"You're joking?"

"No, really. Don't tell me you believe in that nonsense."

Closed gave him his best 'yes, really' look.

"Right back at you. Don't tell me you don't actually think magic doesn't exist."

"I have my doubts."

"Like what!" This was unbelievable.

"Well, I've certainly never seen anything magical. Magic flowing through us? Sounds like bull crap that some grandmare made to trick foals into believing they can do more than they think. Difference in physical ability are just differences in muscle structure, ever heard of that? Why's performance have to be related to magic. Pegasus fly because they have wings and are light. It's common sense."

Closed's eye twitched.

"Okay, I kind of understand where you're coming from. It cannot be seen a lot of the time. Let's start there."

"A lot of the time? Nopony I know has ever seen anything even close enough to have been called magical."

"Because unicorns are—"

"Are what?"

For some reason, they were both frowning. Closed didn't know how to respond, but he had to say something.

"You know about the Glimmer ritual, right?"

"Yeah, vaguely. Why?"

"Why do they do it? Why do they enforce it? How do they do?"

"Where are you going with this? I have no bloody idea."

"Exactly! I don't know what it's called, but apparently it's a magical device, which originated in the centre of the empire where ponies are trusted in crafting them. Anyway, it's enchanted to be extremely precise in how much it damages the horn - just enough to prevent unicorns from ever wanting to use magic, and not enough to injure them critically. It's a range really."

"Oh god, you still call it an empire? And while I haven't exactly asked about how it's done, because, you know, I doubt it's as you say. They probably have a device, yeah, except only it bashes the horn with just enough force. I'd believe that."

"You've got to be... okay, well, listen to this: I've seen magic before."

Dust gave him a hard stare. "Really?"

"Don't look at me like that. I'm not lying. When I was younger, my parents, who like I said are unicorns, performed magic for me despite the extreme toll it took on them. My father, in fact, teleported right before my eyes one very evening. I'd been so excited at the time, I never forgot the memory. How could I?"

"How did your parents know how to do all that then? This is too fantastical. You were probably young and easily tricked. That'd make sense. It's okay to admit the idea of magic is so wishful that you'd want to believe it was real."

Closed was fuming, or he would have been, if he hadn't sputtered out at the realization he'd spoken too much. He didn't want Dust probing him for more information about his parents. Making the connection to his recent blunder that got him pulverized, he decided not to push the subject, not matter how much it bothered him.

He wasn't about to prove him wrong, nor was he about to drag Dust somewhere with a magical phenomenon that could put him in danger. So, why bother?

"You know what, you win. But know that I believe in it."

"Yeah yeah, whatever you say." He kept looking at Closed for some time, which perplexed him as the conversation had petered out.

"What is it?"

"I didn't realize it at first, but you have to be the first pony I'm asking this question. I have zero clue what your cutie mark is supposed to represent. Not even a smidge."

It was an innocent enough question.

Oh, crap. What was he supposed to say? Books were practically extinct because every time they were discovered they were destroyed, per the law established by Twilight Sparkle. I guess it wasn't totally a stretch to know about them, since he'd heard those folks at the first tavern he visited mentioning the possibility, but it would still come across as sketchy. Well, perhaps the best way to move forward here was just to make it seem like a coincidence. How awkward was it that his cutie mark represented something that was banned.

He almost wanted to throw a comment back at Dust, whose own cutie mark was quite literally dust being put in a pan with a brush. If his was weird, that was borderline embarrassing.

Enough of that thinking. Control yourself. How could he say or think that, when he'd been the useless one so far.

Closed needed to rethink a lot of things, most of all how much of himself to tell others at the forefront. It was problematic. Perhaps a fake name was in order...

"I hate talking about it, to be honest." That got Dust to raise an eyebrow. "It's an object called a book, and they're banned in Etrethia. Can you tell how unfortunate that is? Either way, they're not something you'll encounter. I had to be told what they were as I've never seen one by a pony who just happened to know the history. Roughly speaking, it's useless and a relic of the past, and it certainly doesn't represent anything physically speaking that will help me out."

Dust looked perturbed, but not in an overwhelmingly negative way. "I have no idea what to make of that if I'm being honest." He paused. "What town did you say you came from again?"

"Penketh."

"Right. Right. You really do have some weird details going on. I'll have to ask you more about books, I think I've only ever heard that word mentioned maybe once or twice in my life, on the peripherals. And your name, too. I just realized I don't get that. Don't tell me..."

"It's exactly what you think. I know." Dust gave him askance anyway. "Do I have to spell it out? Yes, 'Tome' basically means book. Yeah, I was thinking it earlier, but definitely happening. Not sticking with that name from now on."

They carried on.

Dust was far easier to communicate with than Closed had been expecting. He began to wonder if he was not nearly as socially incompetent as he'd led himself to believe. Either that, or Dust was just that good at making him feel comfortable. Some ponies were like that, they had accommodating personalities that allowed you to thrive without realizing it. He supposed his own mother was kind of like that, actually.

Earlier, Closed had grown distasteful of how illiterate Leba had seemed, yet Dust seemed to match Closed blow for blow in conversation. Closed wondered if Sleek and her family were abnormal in Leba. He approved.

They broke off the beaten path after a few days, and the thicket welcomed them with a cruel smile. Things had dried up and spring relented.

Dust really did know what he was doing out here, and constantly pointed things out to Closed about the local landscape, Closed wondered if he was saying that as much for himself as for Closed to consolidate and reaffirm his own memories.

If Closed was being honest, he had expected some kind of bratty pony who Sleek had just wanted to toss the problem of. It was a complete surprise how competent Dust turned out to be. It began to occur that perhaps Ponykind had stagnated not because ponies had become dumber, but because they had nothing going for them and no momentum was ever able to be built.

Closed Tome had always gotten the impression from his parents that the average pony of this age was quite incompetent, uninformed, unambitious, encompassing many negative traits. One of the first things Closed had noticed from his parents that deviated them from a pedestal was how they described other ponies as lesser, yet treated and graced the ponies they knew in Penketh - who were outside ponies just like the rest, as nothing of the sort. Their respect and admiration was genuine for their neighbours, so the contrast was startling. Were they ever aware of their own inconsistent world view, he didn't know. He never asked, not worth the potential hassle.

They'd passed rolling emerald hills, brilliant verdance opened to a touch of meadows. There was birds that provided a sirenic background, but they too were left in the past. Closed couldn't help but notice how it felt like trees were either ancient or extremely young. There seemed to be no in between. One day, there was even a rainbow that limned the air through a foggy opaqueness that'd settled at the time. Closed finally felt like he was experiencing a sacred first hoof into his dreams. The world was beautiful left untouched, that was for sure.

When they left the hills behind, Closed missed them quite quickly.

But it was also not meant to be a perfect venture. Closed was constantly exhausted past the first few days, and in time Dust had begun to get frustrated over it. Closed was sure it would become a problem as it continued, but for some reason Dust had seemingly abandoned it after a few weeks. What kind of conclusion he'd come to mentally Closed did not know, but appreciated nonetheless.

Dust was pretty good at finding shelter for night, but not perfect. The nights were a mercy due to the arrival of spring. Didn't mean it was particularly comfortable, and keeping an eye around your shoulder. The reassurances were not enough. Closed had had enough of letting his guard down, old soreness keeping to remind him as it mixed into his general fatigue.

Foliage became denser as they got further and further into the journey. They were not without troubles either. Two times they'd hidden and wasted good travel time because of dangers Closed could not sense personally, but totally believed to be real considering Dust's fear. Oh, and the wolves howling helped with that, too.

One night, approximately a month into the trip, they'd found a small cave to make camp in. They started a small fire inside as it was a rather cool night. It's smoke slowly pouring out of the cave mouth through roots of different plants that hung through the earth.

At this point, any and all rest was a blessing for Closed. He felt drained like no other time in his life, and was glad that Dust was beginning to accept it as reality. They moved slower than he wanted, that much was obvious to Closed analysis of his day-to-day expressions, but Closed personally felt that they were safer moving slower anyway.

Closed didn't know why, but he felt like asking something dear to his heart and conscious as he stared at the fire for an indeterminate time. He had to know for sure, even if it was obvious.

"Say... have you or anypony, no, any creature you've met ever mention the Foundation Saga?"

After a little while, Dust calmly replied. "No. Never heard of it."

Closed shouldn't have said anymore, but it was hard to keep certain things to yourself for so long. He wanted to discuss it with anypony at all. To get it out.

"Yeah, I figured you'd say as much. It's just... I don't think anyone I meet will have ever heard of it. Family make-believe story you could call it, I guess."

That got his attention.

"Go on." Dust said, leaning in slightly.

"Mmm, it was something my mother would narrate to me in order to get me to sleep when I was young. I've never forgotten it." What Closed didn't mention, was that it came from a book. "It's a story that has been passed down in my family for generations, we have no idea how far back it goes. We do know who wr—who told the story originally, because the retelling ends with odd words: "signed, Star.", I've often wondered just who this Star is." It was a shame too, because the book was so old that it'd been damaged over time. The signature was faded to the point that it was barely legible by Closed Tome's time.

"I get it, Closed, get on with it."

Well, figures he'd only care about the meat of it.

"The Foundation Saga details the beginning of life on Equus, if you can believe that. It mentions Twilight, too. She was one of the four alicorns—don't interrupt just yet. Yeah, it describes how four different alicorns descended into this plane and brought with them great treasures from another land. As you can tell from this much alone, I was entranced immediately. Anyway, it talks about a great era on Equus where Etrethia was called something different, Equestria, a land of unprecedented prosperity and happiness. It doesn't mention much past that.

"Anyway, the story takes a dark turn. The four alicorns ruled ponykind at the time, but something changed. Twilight Sparkle, one by one, took out the other alicorns until she was the only one left. Since we still know her today, we know that she's been in sole command for a long time. There's more bits and pieces I left out, but that's the gist of it. So many questions are left unanswered, isn't there Dust? Where did the alicorns come from? Where did their treasures end up? Why did Twilight Sparkle not have a treasure when she came? Oops, I forgot to mention that. Why did Twilight break the peace? Why did Twilight allow her country to become a bunch of ponies rolling in the mud, like the peasants they were forced to be?"

"I've been listening and listening, but you're starting to do your famous ramble routine again Closed. Also, you and your family are an arrogant bunch, you know that? What have you all done to earn such an attitude is beyond me, and I've only heard a little so far. If your parents are worse than you I can only disprove so hard, man."

"You know I can't help it." Closed said quietly.

"I do, I do. Anyway, I can't help but see an obvious connection here. You seriously believe this junk, and I'm guessing it's why we're out here. I can't really complain because... well, you know. But if that's true, I'm not exactly enthusiastic about it. I mean, other alicorns, Equestria, all this feels like the same credibility as your weird belief in magic. It's just a old foals tale, just why did you become so obsessed with it? I was told some too you know, maybe not so fantastical, but they were there all the same. I didn't go crazy over them like you did."

Closed wanted to get angry at the doubt but couldn't entirely blame him. Unlike magic, this definitely seemed more out there. There had been times Closed had felt similar, in fact. It was one of the goals of his journey to prove that the Foundation Saga was in fact true. If Closed managed to find any of the treasures, that'd be proof it was true, if only the part about the alicorns.

"You know what, that's fair Dust. I just felt like sharing it, even you have to admit it's an interesting theory, at least?"

"I'll give you that one, Closed, I'll give you that one. Say, since we're in the mood, I'll tell you a story of my own. Came from an old travelling buddy I used to work with." He added, "through this area we're approaching now. The Forest of Ichor and the Screaming Valley."

"So you do know something!"

"Yeah, and I'm a cynic, we certainly made it through without problems."

"Well?"

"Mmm... It was something of a myth by the time it reached me. There's this thing called the Screecher he explained. And, as you'd expect, it lives in the valley. Basically, the story goes, anypony foolish enough to wander all the way through the forest and into the valley becomes its unsuspecting victim. It screams and extremely high pitch once when you're in the valley, and they they say that you get hit by a spell where you continue to hear that same keening only it feels closer and closer. Unbeknownst to the victim, only a few are the real thing as it hunts its prey. It's a sadistic being, and it waits for each victim to be close to reaching the exit of the forest before jumping and finishing them. Finally, they say its screech is a jumble of every scream its ever heard before it killed each of its victims."

"And how many lives do you think it has taken?"

"Stop messing with me. I was just humouring you."

"Still... something like that... it is terrifying. To be honest."

"Yeah well... can't say I disagree. Ain't nothing magical about a terrifying predator, that I can assure you. And there are predators out here."

"I think you'd agree with me that there's certainly creatures out there we can't even imagine, even if we haven't seem them with our own eyes yet. Forget magic." He let his statement settle for a bit. "Besides, sometimes reality is so crazy it may as well be fantasy..."

"Yet you want to head straight for it."

Closed just cut off and stared into the fire for a while. "There's... there's things that I fear more than death. Even now." It was as low as he'd raised his voice so far, barely audible.

Dust didn't reply right away. The fire crackled between them, embers spiralled towards the cave mouth and disappeared as they cooled, just out of vision. His expression shifted, ears flicking as if listening for something only he knew of beyond their camp site.

"That's a dangerous way to think, Closed," he said eventually.

"Yeah," Closed murmured, "I know."

A sharp sound cut through the cave—the snap of a twig outside.

Both of them went still. Eyes meeting carried the message of mutual recognition of the sound.

The silence stretched, taut as a wire.

Then, another shift in the underbrush outside—softer this time, followed by the rustle of leaves and a bushy tail that was unmistakably red.

They both let out breaths they hadn't realized they'd been holding.

"You know, I would've lost it if it had been accompanied by a scream." said Closed.

"Don't ever say anything like that ever again. Forget everything, I'm sleeping. Don't forget to put out the fire. Remember, tomorrow we'll be close."

"Can't wait." It was hollow.

For the next five minutes or so, the body language of both of them betrayed their expectation of such a scream before they eventually melted too into the night. Dust kept his ears peeled even while laying down. Closed embraced his limits for fatigue as he always was forced to.