Child of the Grave

Chapter 3: I guess I'm not Alone...

It wasn't long after I woke up that I was finally able to get out of bed. It was a bit difficult, since my legs felt a bit shaky. I managed to get to the doorway and used the walls to balance myself. Looking down the hallway, I don't see anyone coming through it nor do I hear anyone. Alright, let's try to get out of the hallway at least... okay, so far so good, a bit shaky but good. I then come across my now most hated enemy in existance.

A flight of stairs. I narrow my eyes as I stare at them, challenging me to climb down them. How dare those stairs... I sighed to myself as I prepared to climb down them. Okay, one step... good. Two steps... even better. three ste- OH SHIT! "OH SHIT!" I both thought and screamed as I tripped and fell down the stairs. I heard galloping in another room and Diamond Trail popped through the door and stared at me in concern.

"Grenth! You're up!" She crouched down in front of me as I sighed in annoyance.

"Oh yeah, just thought I'd check out the floor, it looked so interesting that I just couldn't help myself and FUCKING FACEPLANTED!" I snap as I try to get up, "Seriously, get me up!" I sigh as she crouches low enough for me to wrap an arm around her neck and use her to balance myself. "Thank you." I say as she guides me into the room she was in, which turns out to be the kitchen/dining room.

"I was hoping you'd wake up soon, so I made you something to eat..." She said as she made her horn glow and brought in a chair from the living room and placed it behind me, "Here." I nodded in thanks and sat down. Hold up... why hasn't anyone bothered her about me yet? I mean, I figure the town would be deep in discussion about some random creature saving them from the asshole snake.

Diamond Trail caught my stare, and asked, "Is something wrong?" she sounds concerned. Even weirder...

I nodded, "Yeah. Why haven't any of the other townsfolk tried knocking down the door for the inquisition?" I asked sarcastically, yet honestly. She must have caught on, because she nodded in understanding.

"Well, I told the Mayor Dust about you taking care of the basilisk and saving me, and he was more than happy to help you out..." She trailed off, "I.. may have also volunteered to look after you."  I stared at her with a raised eyebrow, and chuckled.

"What, falling for me already?" I honestly couldn't care less, and I'm only joking here.

Damn, I could see a blush even through that light grey fur of hers! "That's not why!" She snapped. I laughed and raised my hands in defense.

"I'm kidding! Thank you DT." I smile. Seriously, she could have just left me in the forest. I gotta respect someone who's willing to help me when I'm vulnerable.

She returned my smile with her own, somehow looking rather adorable doing so, "You're welcome Grenth." Ah... I'm so going to milk that nickname for what it's worth...

We sat in silence for the most part, just me enjoying... well, it looks and tastes like oatmeal, and as much as I hate oatmeal, I'm grateful for getting something. I look back at Diamond Trail and ask, "Like I said before, how'd you convince the townsfolk to let me stay?"

"Well, they were much more willing when I told them you killed the basalisk." She deadpanned. I nodded in understanding and motioned for her to continue, "That, and I said that I would watch over you while you stayed here. I owe you that much at least since you saved me." She explained as she got up and got a banana. Heh, banana.

Whoever said it is right, you can't watch a girl eat a banana and not think about a... I'll just cut that off there... I finish my meal with a sigh, as I actually feel some of my strength return to me. Whatever was in that oatmeal, seriously, I feel much better. I look at DT with a grin, "Thanks for the food, you've successfully made oatmeal taste good to me."

She giggled, "That would be because I put a bit of potion in it. It's kind of like an energy drink for unicorns, and you looked tired from magic exhaustion so I put some of that in there." Huh. So I can has energy drink for extra magic.

Oh fuck yes... I look at her with a grin, "Since you put it like that, could I have a couple of those? I want to practice my magic in the room you gave me."

She nodded and pointed a hoof to a drawer, "There's some in there. Try to leave some for me." She says jokingly as I take at least five of them. I am going to be so~ hyper after this...

"No promises cuz' this stuff tastes amazing." I smirk as I can actually walk up the stairs normally like nothing. I guess my magic is more a part of me then I originally thought if just rejuvenating it can make me feel better. "I'll be in my room if you need me." I call to her and heard her affirmation that she heard me. I made it to my room and sat down on the bed. Now that I got a good look at the room, it's actually quite nice. I got a nice view of the moon, the stars, everything! Grinning to myself, I get ready to start practicing.

Now, what should I start with? How 'bout some levitation? I close my eyes, and try to concentrate. I felt my power manifest on my form, creating a sickly green aura around me. Alright, my power's ready to be used. Lets see what I can even lift. I try the pillow, and am met with some most excellent results. I could feel it begin to hover in the air, my aura covering it completely. Okay, lets see what happens when... AWWW YEAH! I can lift myself now! I felt myself hover in the air, slightly above the bed. Lets try moving, cuz' I want an excuse to be a freaking jedi at this point.

I was able to move a couple of feet forward, but I ended up falling on my ass due to getting too tired to keep myself in the air. Panting heavily with a grin, I reach for a potion and down some of its contents, feeling my exhaustion creep away.

Now that I think about it, maybe that arm summoning was a blessing besides the obvious saving my life. Maybe because I went with something so... "Heavy" I guess is what I'm saying, that the "lighter" stuff is a bit easier.

Can you see the gears full of cobwebs finally turning in my head?

I finish the first potion and feel amazing. Alright, lets try so- Whaaaat daaaa fuuuuuuck...? The... the sky just went all fucky! The stars disappeared for a moment, and I think I saw the goddamn moon move! Is that a meteor!? Oh shit it's heading pretty clo-

BOOOM!

The house shook from the impact of the meteor, since it appeared to have landed pretty damn close. What the hell was that?

"Grenth!" DT's voice called from downstairs. Downing a potion, I brace myself and head downstairs to see another pony in there with her. It was a mare, from what I could tell, and she had a deep red coat with a black mane. She's also a bloody unicorn.

How many of these am I going to run into?

"This is Ruby Dust, the Mayor of Sapphire Grotto." DT introduced the mare. I nod and hold out a hand. She sticks her hoof in it and we shake. I turn back to DT.

"What's going on?" I ask, feeling slightly uncomfortable standing here.

"Well, I was talking with the mayor about you... and... well..."

"I would like for you to check out the crash site." The mayor finished for her. I don't know why... but I don't really trust her. Still, I owe her for letting me stay in town, so I can't really complain.

"Okay..." I sighed, "Give me a moment to get my bearings and I'll head out." I then walk back up the stairs.

"Darn it mayor! Can't you at least let him rest? He's been through a lot in just the past few hours, he deserves a break!" Diamond Trail exclaimed as I walk into my room.

"We are letting him stay for free, if he wishes to continue to do so, he has to start pulling his own weight." The mayor replies as I tie my first shoe.

"By sending him on a dangerous mission to check out a meteor crash site!?"

"I have to place the safety of the town over some random person just walking into town! Besides, he agreed to it anyway, so he understands!" No I don't, I want to go to bed ya' damn cunt. I can't even charge her since I owe the damn sleep depriver for letting me stay! I finish tying my other shoe, I get up and walk back down the stairs, my bell in my pocket. I look at the two of them and nod.

(OST)

"Alright. I guess I'm heading out." I say as put on my jacket and walk out the door.

"Be careful!" Diamond Trail called out, I waved in reply as I head in the direction of the meteor. I just now realized that I still have a potion in my pocket on the inside of my jacket. Oh well, at least I have some pots. I begin my long trek to the crash site, whistling to myself as I walk through the forest.

It's honestly rather peaceful here. Whatever those ponies did at Sapphire Grotto to make the area hospitable for them worked really well, cuz' I haven't seen a single predator yet.

Now that I get onto that subject, I seemed to have been doing rather well with my magic now that I know that there are mana pots to help me out. I should probably go lightly on them, this isn't Diablo 2, so I probably can't down it like it's water. I duck under a branch as I continue uninterrupted. It wasn't long until I come across a very large ruin that was basically turned into fuck. Seriously, rubble errwhere. I sigh to myself, preparing myself for whatever was at the epicenter. I walk further and further, until I spot a single woman standing amongst the rubble in all black clothing.

Huh, I guess I'm not the only human in this world after all! Awesome!

Seriously, black hoodie, black pants, black shoes, at first I thought she was a goth. I decide to speak up, "Who the hell are you?" I are eloquent, shut up. I seemed to have caught her attention as she turned in my direction, and i have to admit, she's rather pretty. Not my type though, so eh. She put a hand on her chin in thought for a while as she looked at the sky. Er... okay, any day now lady.

She sighed and shrugged her shoulders, then waved at me. Seriously? Alright, I'll just go to you then, "Yeah, cuz' a wave tells me who you are..." I pinch the bridge of my nose as I sigh, "I'll just call you Jane." It's better then freaking nothing anyway.

I saw her eye twitch slightly, and she began to search frantically for something. She finally found what she was looking for in the form of a bag as she walked towards it. I followed her, and offered my assistance, "You need any help?" She shook her head, and produced an ID that she handed to me. On the ID was the usual shit, and I saw her name. Joshua McDowell.

"Joshua McDowell, huh?" I ask as I hand it back to her. I sounded like cop... ugh... Huh, she seemed to be writing something. She handed me the notebook and on the page was a sentence.

'Sorry for the inconvenience, but I am mute, I cannot speak. And yes, my name is Joshua McDowell' Well now I feel a little bad!

"Shit... sorry to hear that. And don't worry about it... it's just really early for me..."I grimace and scratch the back of my head. I should say late, but still, the meaning is there.

She quickly wrote something down and turned the notebook for me to see, 'The one who brought me here, her name was Nightmare Moon. Apparently an entity with magical powers, which she used through a hat/helmet of hers to bring me here in her place.I imagine something similar must have happened to you too, no?’

I chuckled, “You could say that. Demonic Ram that also happens to be a Necromancer.” I pulled out the bell, “Gave me this since this was his medium to use his power.”

‘Interesting. I don’t believe I got your name?’ She quickly wrote and showed to me.

“C.J.” I replied with a smirk. I think I can trust her with my name.

She looked around after a bit, then showed me what she wrote ‘Nice to meet you, C.J.Any idea what this place is like? This world, I mean.’

I shrugged, “Decent people from the ones I’ve met. Just have to get past the fact that they’re ponies.” Tis true.

‘I guess that would be linked to the image I saw on Nightmare Moon’s moon, which was a depiction of what seemed to be a unicorn. Possibly a counterpart to the Man in the Moon, just with a pony.’

I waved a hand, I really am not in the mood to discuss coincidences... “Who knows. There isn’t really a way to be sure right now anyway.” Looking around the area, I turned back to her and said, “You want to get out of here? Because I don’t want to be around here when whoever is in charge of this area sees the mess your arrival made.” Because lets face it, there's bound to be someone or something who called this place home.

I scratched my head in thought, then wrote, ‘No, I will stay here for now. I am curious as to what may remain of this place and wish to find out. Besides, if the explosion did not scare them off, they are too wary to come here, as I can tell I had been here, unconscious, for at least an hour, and I still remain.’

I shrugged, “Suit yourself. I won’t force you to change your mind.” I paused in thought then said, “If you’re ever heading north, and find a small village called Sapphire Grotto, look me up. I’ll try to help you out.” Let it not be said that I wasn't nice.

She nodded, ‘I will, though I may be here for a while. Something tells me that, if I look hard enough, I may find something interesting. I will have to wait and see though.’

“Don’t overwork yourself, and make sure you at least eat. I made the mistake of training my magic without figuring that process out first, and almost came to regret it.” I advised. I don't want anyone repeating my mistakes.

‘Thank you for the advice.’ She then picked up her stuff and moved to the center of the crater, giving me a wave as she does so. Alright, guess I should head out then.

“Adios ya Lunatic.” I shouted back as I walked away and moved back to town. Well, I guess my job is done. Time to head back!

(OST)

Damn it all, not even an hour in bed, and I already feel guilty for leaving her there! I tossed and turned in bed as I tried to not feel my conscience beat me up about leaving a girl alone in the woods in the middle of a giant crater.

Son of a bitch that isn't helping! I sigh to myself and get up from bed.

I hate myself for depriving myself of sleep, but you know what!? If it helps me feel good about myself, screw it!

I quickly get dressed, and sneak out into the forest, taking the trail I took to the crater.

Ugh... why can't I be an all around asshole and just forget about it...?