The Journeys of C

Chapter IV

The Yellow Field

                     It was midnight in the village of Sunset. The night was as beautiful as always, the air was a bit cold seeing it was the beginning of autumn, everything was calm, but at the outskirts of the village, there was a big manor and surrounding it, the biggest grain field of that village “The Yellow Field”. But, the manor wasn’t silent and calm as it should be. Instead, inside the owners were hiding inside a storage room. There were six ponies hiding inside that room, an old brother, a young brother and a sister, the mother, the father and the grandfather. The six were terribly scared of whatever was smashing their front door, knocks over knocks were heard coming from the front door, but in the end after about half an hour it ended, but the ponies didn’t move outside the storage, instead they slept inside it. The scene made it look like it was an ordinary thing for the six ponies to sleep inside the storage, but they didn’t knew what was smashing their door each night, they only knew it had to be somepony very scary, but the police never found a single thing when they came to investigate, not a single trace.

                    Next day near the village's outskirts C and Inky were enjoying a delicious boar. After a few bites of that delicious meat Inky drank a bit of water the two kept inside a flask they found in the abandoned pegasi military camp about four days ago. The two managed to do something impossible, they ended the Steam-War a war that raged for more than twenty years and to make it even more impossible, they helped the war end with the victory of the Steam-City and Stalliongrad. It was quite a victory, but C didn’t seem very impressed at all, Inky spoke with him the past few days about the war and what the white changeling did, but he only said that he was sorry for all those civilian pegasi that died in the aftermath, that’s all. The white-furred mare even tried to speak with C about where he comes and his past, but he never told her, he only said they should live in the present and think about the future, the past wasn’t important especially not his, after all he was a changeling, a species who lives on infesting other species and eating their love, but not C, love was the last thing he would eat, meat was everything he ever needed.

                   “Inky how far are we from the village by now?” C asked Inky after he finished his part of the delicious boar meat.

                 “According to the map, we’re near the village, I’d say a few more steps and we should see the outskirts of the village.” The white-furred mare said looking at the map then smiled at C closing her eyes.

                 C rose up stretched a bit then told Inky to come, he couldn’t wait to see what surprises could a village bring them. Inky rose up and went after C. The two kept moving on the dirt path, nothing interesting happening, but after half an hour of walking they arrived at the outskirts of the village and saw a beautiful wheat field, the wheat there was of such an intense yellow that the sun could be jealous. Inky was amazed of seeing the field, shape-shifters are not farmer, they grow a few plants, but not in such a scale, they usually hunt in the forest in which they make their villages in. C smiled seeing the wheat, he approached it and took the top part of the wheat and after a close look he walked back to Inky and ate some of the grain he took. Seeing C eat the strange plant she was shocked and asked C if he was mad, the white changeling rose his front hooves and said yes looking at the mare. He told Inky that grain was a cereal and flour is made from it, and from flour a bit of yeast and salt you make bread and bread was good for everypony. Inky said she wouldn’t try to taste such a thing, C looked away then opened Inky’s mouth and put the remaining grain inside and closed her mouth making her eat the grain. After she ate it she tried to spit it out and cleaned her tongue with her hooves saying it wasn’t good. C smiled and told Inky, that not the taste was important, what was important was that the wheat was ready to be harvested and great bread would be made from it, if he wasn’t mistaking, there had to be some bread already in the village that they could try.

                    Inky told C she wouldn’t taste such a thing after tasting the grain C forced her to eat. The white changeling stared at the white-furred mare then after he nodded his head then kept going on the path situated through the wheat field. Inky followed C making sure he wouldn’t leave her behind like he intended to do back in the ruins of the Steam-City. C and Inky moved through the path situated in the middle of the grain field and C stretched his front hooves while Inky saw a strange looking scarecrow. The mare kept looking at the scarecrow, for a moment she felt that the scarecrow moved its head, but she shook her head and moved on seeing that C was way in front of her. She wouldn’t let C leave her behind like that so she ran on the path planning on jumping on C’s back from behind. Inky couldn’t wait to see the white changeling’s face, she was already smiling, but when she arrived where C should’ve been by that time, he was nowhere to be found. Inky looked around and yelled for C to see where could he possibly be. She got a bit scared after a few yells, she started to think that C left her behind and she didn’t want to be alone anymore. She heard wheat cracking near her, she thought it was C, she moved her head closer to the wheat situated to her right side. She moved her head closer to the wheat wanting to move through it, but when her head was only a few inches away from the wheat she called for C on a low voice. There was nothing, but suddenly, out of the rain she was looking at jumped C and pushed her on the ground scaring her so bad that she could barely breath. The white changeling situated on top of her was laughing so hard he was crying and couldn’t even breath.

                    Inky caught her breath and closed her eyes preparing to yell at C never to do that again, but when she opened her eyes ready to scream at c she stopped with her mouth wide open when she saw C’s eye’s staring deeply into her eyes, the snout of the changeling touched hers, she blushed, but then C moved his head away and told her she was blushing and gave a big smile and closed his eyes. The white-furred mare shook her head and pushed C off of her then rose up and cleaned her fur from the dust. C rose up as well and told Inky that she looked nice how she blushed like that, after hearing that Inky blushed again, but this time she was turned around from the white changeling. C approached her saying that he should scare her more often, according to him, when ponies blush is a good sign. Inky said “C…”, the white changeling approached her saying “Yes?”, the white furred mare then slapped C making him turn around and move back a bit, he then turned to face Inky and asked her what did he do? But Inky gave C a dull face then turned around and kept going.

                   The two kept moving through the wheat field, C trying to apologize to Inky again and again and again, but she wouldn’t say a thing to C. The two kept moving through the wheat field for about ten minutes until they finally reached the end of the field. At the end of the field was the village. The two saw ponies everywhere living their life, some were carrying some harvested grain to the storage of the village. Some of the ponies were walking on the street with baskets filled with fruits and vegetables. The two even saw merchants making all sort of deals at with shop owners. But, all the ponies in this village stopped their routine when two other ponies came out of the wheat field and hit C making him fall down on the ground. All the ponies stared at C and Inky while the two fillies rose from the ground and shook their head. One of them was an earth pony and was very pink, even her mane was pink, the other was a purple pegasi with a purple with black mane and tail. C shook his head and said hi to the ponies that were staring at them. One of the merchants widened his eyes and yelled that C was a changeling, the ponies stared at C and were scared. C rose up and approached the ponies telling them he was harmless and he won’t do anything to them, he only had a pix, C then showed the ponies his ball-pen, but one of them screamed it was a weapon and the guards came out of nowhere and knocked C out.

                  The guards dragged C to the small prison they had in that village, while Inky was left behind unnoticed by the ponies, shape-shifter really are a mystery for the ponies seeing that nopony there gave any attention to her. She was in a way lucky, but in another way she was misfortunate, now she had to find a way to take C out of the prison. The pink filly behind Inky asked the pegasi if she was alright. Inky turned around to face them and asked the two what in the name of the stars where they thinking when they knocked C down. They apologized and said that he was a changeling so in conclusion a bad pony. Inky gave them a dull face then shook her head and said that she now has to take him out of the prison. Inky started walking towards the prison the guards were taking C, but the pink filly approached the white-furred mare and told she was called Crimson Tide and her friend was Nightfall and could help her. Inky kept moving telling her that she has done enough for one day and that she was a filly  and there was no way she could her free her friend. The pink filly insisted, but Inky wouldn’t listen to her and kept moving towards the prison.

                 “I’m sorry miss, but I can’t free the changeling. They are very dangerous and there’s no way he could travel with anypony, they are savage, ruthless and…” The guard was stopped by Inky that started telling him how the white changeling was different from the others.

                     The guard found it hard to believe, but how the white-furred mare spoke it was clear she wasn’t lying and was telling the truth. The guard closed his eyes and breathed and told the white-mare that if she could pay a fine of sixty bits for public disturbance then he’ll free the changeling, until then he’d stay inside that cell. Inky thanked the guard for the information then went outside and started thinking how could she get sixty bits and what even are bits? But she wouldn’t stay thinking for long as that Crimson Tide jumped in front of her, scaring the white-furred mare. Inky yelled at her asking what was she even doing, the filly told Inky that she knows how could she get sixty bits. Inky was annoyed that the two fillies listened to her conversation with the guard, but she told them to go on. The pink filly said he heard from the ponies in the village that a farmer is willing to pay twenty bits for whomever could manage to carry a bag filled with one hundred and ten kilos of grain to the mill on the other side of the village. Inky told the filly that twenty is smaller than sixty, but still found this information quite useful and decided to go and try her luck, after all shape-shifters are a lot stronger than ponies, although she’s quite weak for one of her kind. The white-furred mare thanked the two fillies of their help and walked a bit, bit realized she doesn’t know where she’s going so she asked the fillies if they could tell. The pink one was happy to tell her, but the purple filly seemed a bit scared, but the pink one convinced her to come.

                     Inside the prison C woke up in the small cell and put his hoof on his head and asked the guard where was he and demanded he was released immediately. The guard was reading a newspaper while his back hooves were on his desk, he put the newspaper on the desk and told C he won’t be released unless he pays a fine of sixty bits thanks to his convincing friend that already is in search of those bits. C smiled then sat down on the bed and started thinking of a plan to get out in case Inky didn’t succeed to find the bits required for the fine, but he knew he could trust her. The white changeling turned his head to look at the guard and saw a deck of cards on his desk. C approached the bars looking towards the guard and asked him if those were poker cards. The guards took the deck from the table and showed it to the changeling saying that it is and he’s the best at it in the entire village. C smiled with a clever face and told the guard that he can easily beat him for just four bits. The guard laughed hearing that, but C said that if he didn’t even try to give him a chance it means he’s scared to play because C could beat him. The guard stopped laughing, took out a small table and put it in front of C’s cell and dragged his chair, placed it in front of the table and prepared the cards.

                      Meanwhile, in front of the storage, a crowd of forty ponies gathered around to see who were brave enough to risk their backs trying to carry one hundred and ten kilos. They normally would pull a cart, but today the storage keeper decided to give them a challenge to see who was the strongest, of course, mares weren’t allowed to attend, considering that carrying or pulling grain was a job only for colts and this competition would see who was the strongest. Inky and the two fillies arrived and moved through the crowd to reach the other side and see the other competitors. The colts could barely move with that weight on their backs, most of them fell down while the others were capable of making four steps then collapsing. The storage keeper laughed at the colts and shouted ironically towards the crowd if there were any colts at all in this village, for him the colts in the village proved to him that only mares and fillies lived there, he started laughing, but then Inky came in front of him and told him she’d like to try. The brown colt looked at Inky with one eye closed then laughed saying that women can’t participate, because they are weaker than those so called clots. He touched his moustache then laughed as hard as he could the entire crowd starting to laugh as well. Inky shouted at the storage keeper to shut up then calmed down and told the colt smiling that if she could get one hundred and ten kilos to the mill he’d pay her the amount of kilos she carried to the mill and if she lost... She didn’t really knew what to say, but the colt with the moustache intervened telling Inky that if she failed she’d wear a dress and become his maid for a month, it seemed reasonable to him. Inky was a scared at the thought of wearing a dress and being a maid, although she didn’t really know what a maid was, but she thought it was just like the mare’s in her village that wore dresses and clean the homes. With the fear of that happening she accepted the challenge.

                    The white-furred mare went inside the storage with the two fillies following her. The storage keeper started laughing and told his assistant to go buy a certain type of dress from their tailor and bring it back as soon as possible. But, before the two could start laughing, Inky came out of the storage galloping with the bag on her back, she didn’t even seem to be forcing herself to do this and gently hit the storage keeper over the snout with her tail then kept going. The crowd was amazed, the colts that failed couldn’t believe their eyes, one of the colt’s wife came and told him he’ll do the cooking that night and wanted him to wear that blue dress she likes so much, he agreed then started crying. Inky was easily moving with the bag of grain on her back, but after a few meters and the crowd following her getting bigger, she asked the two fillies if they knew where the mill was? The pink filly turned to her friend that told her on a scared voice she saw a mill on the other side of the city when she was trying to fly. Inky thanked the scared filly and kept going, each time she passed in face of ponies the crowd got bigger. After ten minutes of walking she started to feel the weight of that bag and thought to herself that C needs her, and if she couldn’t manage to free him, he’ll suffer in that prison.

                  Meanwhile in the prison the guard was wearing a pink dress and looked at his card, while C wore the guard’s former helmet and stood on his armor. The guard said he’ll put down two cards and take two, C put his hoof over his mouth and forced a coughing. The guard moved his head down a bit and changed his voice to a more feminine one and said again the proposition and said “I’m sorry for being a bad girl.” C smiled and shook his head agreeing then the guard put the cards down smiling and telling C he got four of a kind, C put his hoof on his cheek, looked in another direction and showed the guard his hand with a dull voice, he got a royal flush, again. The guard was left with his mouth wide open and couldn’t believe his eyes, he said with that feminine voice he was forced to make, that it was impossible. C put his hooves behind his head and told the guard to do what he promised. The guard rose up and spoke with that feminine voice how superior C was and he’s his eternal subject and will do anything for his master. Right at that moment two other guards walked in and saw their captain and were shocked of what they saw. The captain told them with that feminine voice that it wasn’t what it looked like. C confirmed and with a smile told the guards how their captain lost thirty poker games in a row and now they were just playing in order for the colt to redeem his honor. The white changeling crossed his hooves then put his left hoof on his cheek looking away and told the guards they could also join and if he loses he’ll do what he put their captain do. The captain stared at the two guards and convinced them to join, but this time they weren’t going to play poker, they would play blackjack.

                   Half an hour later on the other side of the village, a crowd consisting in about, sixty ponies were following Inky while forty were waiting and cheering at the mill for the white-furred mare. Inky was literally exhausted, she could barely catch her breath, but she was sure to keep moving, it wasn’t long now and she’ll get the bits necessary for freeing C. The entire crowd was encouraging Inky to move on and don’t even think to give up. The two fillies were by her side making sure to not let her fall down. Inky was too determined to fail especially now, she wasn’t going to be the pony that drowned on the shore. There were only a few more steps and she’d finish the task, the storage keeper was unable to clean the sweat that was moving down his throat, he was now begging to Celestia for a miracle and the mare to fail. Inky had only six more steps to make and she’d finish, but she couldn’t anymore, she fell down. The store keeper was very happy and started dancing with the dress his helper bough him, but Inky started telling herself that C needs her and she won’t disappoint him. With her remaining strength, the mare started to crawl, the storage keeper was surprised and remained with his mouth wide open, the crowd started to encourage Inky again and with the will and strength the shape-shifter’s are born and taught to use and respect every day she reached the place and won the challenge. Two ponies threw confetti at her and the crowd acclaimed the white-furred mare and carried her on their hooves and threw her in the air then caught her. The storage keeper let out a tear then entered rage mode and tore the dress apart in tiny pieces.

                     After all the acclamations and applauds Inky moved towards the moustache wearing colt and told him to give her the money he promised. With all the anger the colt had inside him he couldn’t keep himself from not giving the mare the money he promised seeing the crowd surrounding her. The moustached colt reached to his bag and gave Inky a small bag containing one hundred bits, then left glaring at the mare. Inky was very happy that she got the money, and she could only thank the two fillies for that, the three ponies ran towards the prison to free C while the other ponies were still acclaiming her. The fillies were happy that they managed to help the mare, but nopony could simply describe how happy Inky was. When the three arrived in front of the prison, they stopped for Inky to catch her breath then entered the prison. Inside they saw C on the desk with his pix on his hoof and ten guards wearing dresses and wearing makeup. Inky was confused and a bit scared, the two fillies didn’t knew how to react, but after Nightfall saw C she ran outside, Crimson Tide following her.

          “C, I came to free you, but… I don’t even understand what happened here?” the white-furred mare said staring at the guards then looking at C.

         “Well Inky I’m happy you asked. One, I got out an hour ago, but now I won so many games that I have my own dancers! Isn’t this exciting?! Just look at our dance, now to where we left colts!” After C said this to the dressed colts he started moving his pointer and the colts started singing and dancing, if you can call that dancing.

                    The colts started dancing waltz with one another while they looked into each other’s eyes deeply. They were so ashamed they could shake, but this were the rules of losing a game, especially if the one to whom you lost is mentally insane like C. Inky stared at the guards pretty shocked and tried not to laugh thinking that C made them go through much more than this. After about four minutes of dancing C and Inky applauded the dancers and with a very serious yet ironic voice C told the ten colts they should start a dancing school now and become stars across Equestria. After saying this, C took the two hundred bits he won from the guards and went with Inky. The white-furred mare was happy to see C out of that prison. C looked at Inky and saw the bag with money. When he saw the money he put his right hoof behind his head and looked away then turned back to see Inky and thanked her for helping him and gave her the two hundred bits he won telling her she deserved them seeing that she was pretty exhausted after a hard work he presumed. Inky looked at C, deep into his eyes, but C moved his head closer to Inky and said that she was blushing again. Inky froze in place while C laughed and kept going, but he stopped and told Inky to come after him.

                       Inky started moving once more and followed C to an inn, it was already very dark outside and had to sleep somewhere after all, the inn was called called the Wind in the Grain. When the two  ponies entered, the ponies inside turned their heads and stared at C, but then they saw Inky their village’s heroine and they all forgot of the changeling and started acclaiming the white-furred mare.  C  was surprised and asked himself why wasn’t he the star of the village anymore? He looked around and saw the two fillies that accompanied Inky to the prison. The changeling went at their table and said hi to the two fillies. Nightfall was scared seeing C, but Crimson tide was there to make sure she was alright. C asked them if everything was alright? Crimson looked at C and told him it is okay, the filly was pretty sad, C wondered where were their parents, but decided not to ask, but instead he called Inky to come and sit down at the table. The crowd put Inky down and let her go at her friend. Inky sat down and saw the two fillies, she turned towards C and asked him with did he do or say, but C said he didn’t have a single idea what happened, but instead he rose up and went towards the innkeeper.

                      Everypony in the inn was cheerful and telling stories to each other while the warm fire inside the fireplace looked like it was dancing. Indeed it was an atmosphere worth of a story telling and C thought that he could tell Inky and the two fillies a story that would most likely make them curious. The white changeling finally reached the bar, the ponies sitting on the chairs at the bar were glaring at C, but the white changeling smiled and waved to them. The innkeeper came at C immediately after this, he was a big pony, with a small moustache, but except of the other ponies he didn’t care that C was a changeling, he was surprised to see a changeling though, but this made him also very curious, but there was a business to run so he didn’t have time to panic like the rest, for him C was an ordinary traveler coming at his inn from Luna knows where?

“Welcome to our village stranger, what would you like to buy from us?” the innkeeper asked  C.

“Hi there ol’ good innkeeper of this jolly looking inn, I’m C and me and my companion would like a room for the night.” C said to the innkeeper smiling.

“Oi, so you’re with the pretty mare. Ey, mate?” the innkeeper told C looking at Inky.

“We’re not together, we’re just traveling together, but that’ll make us be together in a very longly-roadly travely-walkidy way. I didn’t think of this before I tell you.” Said C looking at his hoovesas he moved them, then he looked at the innkeeper.

“I heard a lot of stories of ponies traveling together like this. At first you are just friends, but then, wooshh! You are together and marry in a year and settle down and have a big family.” The innkeeper told C while taking a bottle of apple juice and poured it in two big pins telling C they’re on the house.

“I don’t think so mate.” C drank a bit of the apple juice “Me and Inky? It isn’t possible, she is special, quite special I tell you, but I’m not planning in settling down anytime soon, or anytime at all, especially not having kids.” C drank another bit of the apple juice.

“Well, be as you say changeling, but from what I know...” the innkeeper drank a bit of the apple juice “You two will end up together, get bored of traveling settle down. Just like me and my wife, back in the days I was quite the traveler, I used to be a traveling merchant, transporting goods from Stalliongrad down to the city of Coltiff and Canterlot itself, but then I met her, traveled together and In half a year we got married and used the money we had to open this inn, and I don’t regret a single moment of the past thirty-six years with her.”

                          The colt drank a half of what remained in his pin while C stared at Inky that was talking with the two fillies making them laugh, who knows what story she was telling them? But he was too much of a stranger to end up with Inky, he had the burden of his past to carry and his insanity to keep at bay. He couldn’t end up with Inky, this was going to be fun while it lasted said C, he knew that eventually he would have to move on, alone in this world, once more. C drank what was left in his pin then looked at the innkeeper and asked for the key to the room and he doesn’t mind, some fresh bread. The innkeeper was more than happy to bring C four breads and cut two of them into small slices for the two fillies that were at the table. C took the key to the room and the breads and went at the table. C put the plate with the breads on the table and told the four ponies to start eating, they were just made and it’ll be a waste of good food not to eat them. Inky was skeptical of eating the bread, but C stared at Inky with a big smile and his eyes like telling her “Hey, hey, I’m C I’m going to kill you if you don’t eat.” And that’s exactly what he was saying inside his mind. Inky understood the message and took the bread in her hoof and took a bite out of it. To her surprise the bread was great and she immediately started eating more from it. She finished it quite fast then with a sudden move she jumped of her chair and put her left front-hoof on the table and the right-front hoof in the air ordering more bread.

                         C whispered to Inky to calm down, but how could she after she found such a great food for her belly to enjoy? As Inky was finishing her third bread and ordering another three and C and the two fillies were slowly eating their parts, the doors leading to the inn were opened and from outside a pony came, but the pony was full of scars and was bleeding heavily and fell to the floor and died. The innkeeper rushed at the pony to see how was he, it was clear that the big light-brown pony knew the deceased one. He closed his eyes then took him up in his room to put a blanket over him. At the table C was curious what could happened to that pony, right then a pony wearing a straw hat approached C and sat across the table telling him he knows what happened to that pony and that it’s related to the Yellow farm, the farm that owns the grain field at the outskirts of the town, he also said that that pony worked at that blasted farm.

“There’s something strange going on at the Yellow’s farm, some say there’s a ghost.” The farmer said looking at C from the other side of the table.

“Ghost? Please surely there’s some unicorn making pranks.” responded C after he took a bite from the bread.

“Maybe, but I’m sure that if it were a unicorn the guards could have catch him by now.” The farmer rose up from the table and bid farewell to the four ponies and a good night then left.

                     Inky stared at C and saw the look in the white changeling’s eyes. It was clear, C was going to investigate and Inky would join him. But, C told the four they should go to sleep and tomorrow he and Inky would see what happened to the pony that died. The two fillies looked like they had nowhere to sleep, so C told them to come and sleep with him and Inky, just for this time, until they find their parents. The two fillies accepted, although Nightfall was a bit scared of C. That night passed quickly, the room had four beds, that old innkeeper really knew what to give C, the white changeling thought to himself.

                   The next morning, C, Inky and the two fillies, although C and Inky told them not to come after them, went at the Yellow’s Farm. The farm seemed peaceful, but there were no workers and the grain was good to be harvested, something was clearly not right. C and the three ponies entered the farm and saw an old colt on a chair. C told the three ponies to stay right there while he spoke with the old colt. C approached the colt and saluted him. The colt stared at c and told him to go, this farm is dead and there’s no love for him to consume. C looked around and asked the old colt, why was the front door of the mansion so damaged?  The old colt told C to leave now and leave him to die, this night he’ll end this torment at last. C approached the colt and told him that he’s there to help and he could count on him for help. The old colt didn’t say anything, but the front door opened and a colt came out telling C to come inside. The old colt stared at C and told him to go and help those fools inside, there was nothing he could do for him.

                     C called the three ponies and went inside the huge mansion. The stylish dressed colt led the four to the dining room where his wife and his daughter were standing looking at a coffin where the families young boy lay dead filled with scratches and a big hole, that looked scythe made, in his chest. C approached and looked at the dead colt and said he was sorry for their loos, but he was there to help and he won’t leave until this whole thing would stop, but first they’d have to tell him what did they know? The colt presented himself as Mr. Yellow Bean and he was the owner of the farm, he then told the four ponies how this happened a month ago when they extended their fields. At that moment they didn’t expect what they found. As they were digging a hole for a fountain they found a chest, the ponies brought it back to the mansion and found inside a bloodied paper, but they couldn’t understand what was written on it, the letters were too erased for them to read it, so they kept the chest and the paper, but then the nightmare began, each night they’d hear sounds and somepony smashing their door, the first night, a maid opened the door and was killed by a scythe and pulled into the grain field. And that’s what happened to each one of their workers for the past month and last night their son was killed when one of their farmers took him outside to give him to the attacker hopping to leave him alive, but Mr. Yellow Bean heard he died at the inn.

                          C asked Mr. Yellow Bean if there was anything else he could tell him. The colt looked at the ceiling and saying he think that a ghost is responsible for all of this, he also told C that the day before his great grandfather bought this farm, the owner was brutally murdered and his body never found only a trace of blood and a scythe were found, that’s why they believe it’s a ghost, but Mr. Bean began doubting his own words, from a ghost he went to a unicorn wanting to take the farm from them. It was clear that Mr. Bean lost his touch with sanity and needed some sleep, his wrinkles gave away the fact he didn’t sleep for a long time. C told the earth-ponies he’d see what he can do and catch that unicorn and make sure he pays for all these crimes. C told the two fillies to go back to the village and find their parents, Inky offered to escort the two fillies to the village while C would explore the farm for some clues.

                    C started looking around the farm asking himself why would anypony try to do this, the family was rich seeing the mansion they owned, but why weren’t there any hoof marks on the ground. C even explored the grain field, but could only find a scarecrow that seemed to stare directly at the house. In the village, Inky found the two fillies’ parents, it seemed the two got lost in the grain and that they were sisters. Well, that being resolved Inky decided to go back to the farm and help C look for clues and solve that mistery.

                  After an hour of walking back to the farm, Inky didn’t see C anywhere and went in search of him. She couldn’t find him anywhere, but the old colt yelled at Inky to go inside the barn. The white-furred mare didn’t like the fact that old pony yelled at her, but she went inside the barn, but didn’t see anything and said that out loud. Hanging upside down C said the same thing. Inky got scared and asked C what was he doing hanging down like that? Apparently C tied his left-back hoof to a rope and decided to hang down for some time until he’ll find an idea. Inky told C there was no way he’d come with a plan like that. The changeling pointed with his head a wall and told Inky he tried hitting his head in that wall in order to come up with an idea, but nothing. The two stood in that barn thinking of all sorts of possibilities and talking about what happened in the prison and about the two fillies being sisters, but speaking like this, the night caught the two. C told Inky to no make any sound and listen, she didn’t hear anything. C untied the rope and fell down on the ground, but he quickly rose up and ran to see what happened outside. Right in front of the mansion, the old colt lay dead and seemed to be dragged by a scarecrow with a scythe on its back. Unfortunately for the two, the scarecrow saw them and dropped the old colt’s body and took the scythe on his back.

“C, do you have any idea what to do?” the white-furred mare asked the changeling

“Of course I do. You say hi to him while I… run!” C then dragged Inky and the two started running away from that scarecrow, but it seems the scarecrow wasn’t going to let them escape.

“Inky I distract this maniacs attention while you go inside and take the ponies out of the house, back to the village. Understood?” said C to the mare while the two were running towards the wheat field.

                  Inky understood C’s order and the two split making the scarecrow confused on whim to follow, but C threw a rock at the scarecrow and caught its attention. Seeing that the scarecrow was fixed on him, C ran into the wheat field making the scarecrow follow. After the scarecrow went into the wheat field Inky ran into the mansion, but not before she closed the old colt’s eyes. Inside the mansion she locked the door and put a small table in front on it making sure nothing could enter. Mr. Bean heard Inky enter the mansion, but thought it was whomever was attacking them, but found his courage and approached Inky with a sword, but to her luck, Mr. Bean recognized her. Inky didn’t have any time to waste with excuses and went with Mr. Bean on the hall with the storage where the family used to hide at this moment. The mare and filly were very scared, but rose up and stood with Mr. Bean while Inky told them to come after her into the village, but Mr. Bean didn’t want to hear that and wanted to know who’s the unicorn that attacked them. Inky gave Mr. Bean a stare and told him it wasn’t a unicorn from what she saw and explained to Mr. Bean what was it exactly.

“Not only was here a murder Mr. Bean, but I’m afraid…” The door inside leading to the house was smashed during the time Inky said that to Mr. Bean “…that ghost stories are real.” A scythe penetrated the wooden door of the house.

                    Mr. Bean heard the sound of his front door being smashed down and stared very scared at Inky. Inky was not scared, but worried about C and where could he be, he thought the scarecrow caught him and was now very sad and angry. But, before Inky could go face the scarecrow C touched her back making her jump. The white-furred mare was surprised and asked C what happened. C looked at Inky and told her how he ran up to the pole where the scarecrow should be and found a paper that not only confirms the murder, but also how did Mr. Beans great grandfather get this farm, his great grandfather murdered the owner because he didn’t want to sell the farm he promised to his children that apparently he loved very much and he also said he ran back to the mansion and entered through the backdoor he didn’t know exists and asked ironically if they knew they had a backdoor? Mr. Bean stared at C and asked him how did he came to this conclusion after seeing the paper and what does this have to do with the attacker?

“Well, Mr. Bean. It’s correlated to the attacker because the attacker is the rightful owner of this farm. The paper you found was the selling act that colt refused from your great grandfather. And I know all this because the paper is written in blood and is a part of a journal, the scarecrow’s journal and when you took out the chest he came back to life to get his revenge on the ponies who murdered him.”  C explained to the terrified pony.

“And what do you want me to do?” The pony asked C with a sad look on his face.

“Take the chest you found and take it to the village. Repair what your great grandfather did, tell the ponies who’s farm this really belongs to and give it to them or else that scarecrow won’t give up until you’re all dead!” C stared directly into the well-dressed colt’s eyes, but the colt smiled and put the top of his sword to C’s throat.

“I’ll never give this farm to anypony, especially not a dead one. If he came after we took that chest, then I’m going to throw that chest into the fountain and make sure that scarecrow will never get it and kills you instead of us.” Mr. Bean said then grinned after seeing the scarecrow at the entrance of the hall.

                            The well-dressed colt pushed C then told his family to run while he’d take the chest to the fountain and throw it into the water of the fountain. C rose up from the ground and saw the scarecrow approaching and pushed Inky out of the scythes attacking direction, making it hit C’s still intact wing. C looked at his wing and without thinking he suddenly moved making his wing rip out of his back, he yelled and started jumping on his right-back hoof and kept yelling how much that hurts while touching that part, C was fortunate though seeing that changeling wings grow back, not like other species wings. C stopped for a second and stared at the scarecrow that took its scythe out of the wall and fixed his empty eyes, that had a blue light coming out of them, on C and readied his scythe to kill the white changeling. C and Inky ran out of the house after C bravely pushed the scarecrow aside and went out through the front door. Inky told C how mad that move was, but C responded telling Inky that he was insane anyways so there’s no problem in that. Inside the mansion, the scarecrow rose up and took its scythe from the ground and saw how Mr. Bean came down form the top floor to the other end of that hall. The scarecrow saw the chest the colt was carrying and started running towards Mr. Bean. The colt was lucky and ran out of the mansion before the scarecrow could catch him and went into the grain field.

                     The scarecrow didn’t go directly after the colt, but instead he looked around and seemed to find what he was looking for. Outside C and Inky were ready to enter the wheat field when they saw the mansion burning. C grabbed Inky’s hoof and told her to run, they had to stop Mr. Bean from throwing that chest into the fountain or else that poor soul couldn’t rest in peace, C told to himself. The two ponies ran into the wheat field and thought for a second where could the fountain be and started running towards the direction the backdoor was pointing at. On their way to the fountain they were stopped by the storage-keeper from which Inky obtained one hundred bits, the moustache wearing colt was accompanied by four colts with forks in their hooves. The storage-keeper applauded the two and didn’t believe C when he told them to run from there. But instead, the colt laughed and asked C what was he going to do about it, right the scarecrow’s scythe penetrated the colt’s head then he pulled it out and started killing the other four colts, either with its scythe or with nails it had in its hooves. C said to the dead body of the storage-keeper that this wasn’t what he was going to do, but Inky grabbed C’s hoof and the two started running once more, now being more sure than ever that they were close to the fountain. Indeed, the two were very close to the fountain, but Mr. Bean was already there and was catching his breath seeing how much he ran and how he was not used to run for such a long distance.

                    The colt caught his breath right when C and Inky arrived at the fountain and saw Mr. Bean rising from the ground ready to throw the chest down into the fountain. Inky told the colt to stop or else he’ll condemn his entire family, C agreed with Inky seeing that she knows more about the spirit world than he does. The colt laughed at the two and told them that he would save his family this way and still own the farm. Inky glared at the earth-pony and yelled at him that the mansion was burning and that the scarecrow was already here. Out from the grain the scarecrow came, its old clothes that you can now call rugs were soaked in the blood of the colts he killed on its way here. Mr. Bean laughed at the scarecrow and hanged the chest above the fountain ready to drop it any second now. Inky tried to reason with the earth-pony, but he wouldn’t listen to her and started laughing hysterically, but his laugh was stopped when the fork of one of the killed colts penetrated his chest. The earth-pony looked down at his chest the with blood pouring out of the wound and his mouth he dropped the chest into the fountain and fell down alongside it. The scarecrow let out a shriek, but C told it to calm down and grabbed the rope on which a bucket was tied and wanted to jump into the cold water although he knew that he could die thanks to the fact his body couldn’t take a low temperature like that, but ponies could take it. C gasped a bit and was ready to jump, but instead, Inky pushed him of the rope and on the ground. The white-furred mare jumped in the fountain instead of C. She tied the rope to her right hoof and trusted C would pull her after she’d take the chest from the fountain.

                    The fountain wasn’t very deep and Inky saw that when she plunged into the water, she dived down and used her talent as a swimmer to dive deeper into the fountain until she saw the chest on the bottom of the fountain and took it. She then rose up with the chest out of the cold water and pulled the rope as a signal for C to pull her out. The white changeling saw the signal and started moving a lever to which the rope was tied to. The scarecrow watched as C forced his front hooves to pull his friend out of the cold fountain water. C wouldn’t let Inky down there even though he was quite weak and forced his body to the max, but eventually Inky was pulled out of the fountain and C took her from the rope and put her on the ground making sure she’s alright. The scarecrow approached the two and Inky gave it the chest, after the scarecrow opened the chest it fell down on the ground. C approached the chest and saw that writing appeared on it. The two understood the scarecrow was gone, but they still saw the hooves of a pony coming out of the old clothes. Inky approached the scarecrow and took of its mask, behind it was the rotten face of a colt. She then understood that after he was killed the great grandfather of Mr. Yellow Bean disguised the body into a scarecrow and hid it inside the wheat field so that nopony would ever find it.

                        C took the body on his back and together with Inky they went back at the farm. From inside the barn Inky tool a shovel and gave it to C. The white changeling dug a hole and put the body of rotten body of the colt inside it then put the earth over the dead body and C asked Inky to put a plank as a gravestone. The two looked at the grave they made and at the mansion that was destroyed, but parts of it still burned. After this C and Inky left the farm and went back to the village ready to make justice for the dead colt.

                      The two slept at the inn, but didn’t tell anypony what happened at the farm until next morning when the two ponies went at the town hall and gave the mayor the papers. The mayor looked over the paper then she told the two she knows the descendants of the dead colt and she’d be more than happy to contact them and tell them the great news, but C told the mayor a condition. If they were o come back, they were not to touch the grave of the dead colt, he was to finally rest in peace now that he claimed what was rightfully his. The mayor agreed to C and thanked the two ponies for their help. Inky and C went out of the town hall and were greeted by the innkeeper that thanked C for helping their village get rid of the Yellow family, he told the two that the Yellow family was cruel anyway and shouldn’t feel sorry for them, the innkeeper also said that, Mr. Bean planned on taking the remaining fields in the village and force the farmers to work for him. C asked how could such being still exist in this world, but the innkeeper told C that was life and asked the two where were they going next. C told the colt he had to consult his head, he touched his head with his front hooves listening to the voice and told the colt they were going North-East of the village. The innkeeper looked towards the direction C was pointing at and told the white changeling that the city of Maris was in that direction, but would take them about a month to reach it. C smiled and thanked the colt for this information then told him the two are more than happy to travel a month, after all there was nothing better to do.

                           The big colt smiled and gave C a bag filled with enough bread and apple juice to last them for a month and a half. C thanked the innkeeper and took some bits form Inky’s bag and gave it to the innkeeper, but the colt gave it back to C saying they need it more than he does. The innkeeper also said that the bread and apple juice were a gift from the villagers for saving their fields and getting rid of the Yellow family. C said it seemed fair then shook the innkeeper’s hoof and bid him farewell as the big colt wished them safe travels. The white changeling smiled and whispered to Inky that only safe travels the two won’t have. Inky smiled and told C she wouldn’t want it any other way. As the two left the village some villagers bid them farewell and safe travels just like the old innkeeper. A new journey was ahead of the two, the world was big and there were a lot of things to see and ponies to save. As they moved away from the village the farmer that told them about the ghost story at the inn two days ago was in the middle of his field and the wheat there was on the ground forming a shape, from the ground you couldn’t understand the shape, but from above it represented a circle and that circle was inside an equilateral triangle with other circles where the tops should be.

Next chapter

The evening autumn air was cold and the lamps of the beautiful city lit the empty streets as a mare was running away from something, she was very scared.

"Ahh... Maris, a city of culture. I really missed to see such cities!" exclaimed C as he saw the big history museum Colvre.

"My name is Rainbow Heart and I'm a painter, who are you?" the white unicorn asked Inky with a smile on her face.

"Something isn't right here, why are the streets so empty?" C asked himself after he and the two white mares went out of the museum.

"They are scared of something, but nopony knows of what. It's said it comes at night and kills you in fear." Hearts told the two what she knew about the streets being empty.

The scared mare stopped on a narrow street and turned around shaking in fear and then she screamed when she saw something in front of her and then there was only silence on that street.