>You are Anonymous, trekking through Tartarus in search of escape.
>It has been roughly two days since you met your guide, Shadowbright. In that time, you found that, essentially, being on the fringes of inner Tartarus was about as easymodo as things got down here.
>Your upbeat comrade put it like this. “Well, ya see, because Inner Toodle-loops is stable, it has defined shape and stuff, that’s where most of the things that live down here like to stay. The fact that it also houses the most well-known and trustable gate is why the various bad guys down here have most of their bases located there.”
>Her choice of words didn’t go unnoticed.
“Most well-known? You mean there are more?”
>”Well, it’s both the strongest and most stable gate, being in the very center of tender steaks and all. Because everyp0ny and their brother wants to get out, and that one’s the largest and most reliable, it’s the gate they all gun for.”
>Understandable.
“But… if there are other gates, why not just use them?”
>”Well, as far as I know, most of the others are either dormant, out in Outer Tigersharks, or not very reliable. That’s why I’m taking you to the main gate; I want you to get back to your home. Sounds like you have a lot of people waiting on you, and we can’t have that!” she chirps, giving you a reassuring grin.
>You shrug, accepting her explanation, and the two of you walk side by side in companionable silence for a while.
>Of course, this being Tartarus, the “silence” was anything but. You soon speak again, in order to attempt to take your mind off of the vultures cawing overhead and the whispery cries of the souls trampled underfoot.
“So, what about you?”
 
>”What about me?” she replies, meeting your gaze with a quizzical look.
>ONCE AGAIN YOU HAVE PROVEN A SKILLED ORATOR, ANONYMOUS.
>Fuck off, brain.
“You haven’t really told me all that much about your life before getting stuck down here. You plan on getting back to the land of the living? Got anyone waiting for you up there too?”
>“I dunno…” she says, stopping and putting one hoof to her chin thoughtfully. “I don’t know if anyone I knew is still alive… and it’s not exactly like I have a family to go back to…”
>Wait, what?
>You give Shadowbright an odd look. “What?” she asks.
“You’re pretty upbeat for someone in your situation…”
>She sighs wearily. “Yeah, I know. Everyone says they’d expect me to be more depressed and stuff, but I’m not. I just… I just don’t like to focus on the bad stuff, I guess. I try and keep on the bright side of things. After all,” she says with a laugh. “It’s in my name.”
>You’re having a little trouble buying that, but decide to say nothing more on the subject, instead opting for a non-committal shrug and a change of topic.
“So…”
>You scour your mind for something to talk about. God, when was small talk this difficult?
>”So…” Shadowbright parrots, obviously waiting for your response.
“That guy with the wings of faggotry, what was his name… Strife. What do you know about him?”
>”Not much, honestly. He doesn’t really stick around when we meet. Says I’m too good at ‘defusing situations’ for him to get a proper energy boost, whatever that means.”
“Well, you said he feeds off of conflict and suffering and junk, right? I’d say you’re pretty good at taking care of those.”
>”Well, I guess that does kinda make sense.” The unicorn concedes.
 
>You continue on in silence for a few more minutes, before  Shadowbright makes the inevitable response.
>”What about you?”
“Hm?”
>”You asked me about myself, isn’t it fair I ask about you?” she reasons.
>You shrug.
“I suppose so. What do you want to know?”
>”Well… what’s it like up there?” she asks.
“It was different from what I’ve been used to, that’s for sure.”
>”What do you mean?” she asks, curious. “Are Equestria and wherever you come from different?”
“A fair bit, yeah. First off, everything’s tiny here.”
>Shadowbright laughs. “I’d bet. You humans are pretty tall compared to us ponies.”
“Won’t ever need to worry about losing me in a crowd, that’s for sure.” You quip.
>You share a few chuckles. When the laughter has died down, Bright continues her query. “So what’s it like, being one of the rarest races in Equestria?”
“It wasn’t exactly the best feeling in the world. Whenever the ponies first see me… they see an abomination. A weird, stretched –out ape, or some freakishly proportioned diamond dog, all practically hairless and tall and intimidating. When they first see me… I’m terrifying.”
>You inwardly cringe, recalling your first meeting with the Royal Guard. Your appearance alone was enough to cause panic in the two posted outside the throne room…
>”That sounds rough…” the mare mumbles sympathetically. “How’d you deal with it?”
>Good question. How DID you shrug off all those times when ponies would slowly back away during those first conversations?
> And when the colts and fillies would actively flee you unless they saw someone they trusted speaking with you?
>And how oftentimes it took Twi, Dash, or somepony else’s reassurance that you weren’t all bad before they would even consider talking with you?
“I dunno… guess I just dealt with it.”
 
>”Wow, was it really that easy?” She asks, confused. “I don’t know very many people who could just brush that off like that… it sounds like you’re almost used to it.”
“That’s another thing I’ve noticed about you ponies…”
>”What do ya mean?”
“Once you got past my appearance, you guys are largely far more open and friendly than a large portion of humanity. Ponies would stop and chat, foals would offer to play games with me and stuff, everyone generally treated me as a friend. It was a nice change.”
>”Humans aren’t like that?” she asks.
“No. There are many who are all “if I don’t know you, and there isn’t something you can do for me, I don’t really care about you.” and stuff.”
>”Well that’s not very nice…”
“Yeah, less nice and more indifferent than the average pony. I guess it may have something to do with there being so many of us.”
>”There are a lot of humans back on Earth? How many?” she asks.
>You smile. You always liked the reactions to this answer.
“By the time I left? Oh, somewhere around seven billion.”
>Her eyes go wide and her mouth forms a small ‘o’ of surprise. “Wow, that’s a lot of humans…”
“I’m fairly sure some of our cities are more populous than all of Equestria. There are only a couple million ponies or so, right?”
>”I think so… wow, that’s a whole bunch of humans. Are there any other races on your Earth? It must be huge.”
“No. Closest things were different kinds of human, and those we either bred out of existence, killed, or a combination thereof. We’re basically all we have.”
>”That’s sad… “ she mumbles, appearing to take a sudden interest in the ashy ground.
“I suppose.” you reply, shrugging.
 
>”I see… so do you like it in Equestria, then? It’s really different from your homeland and all…” she asks with a thoughtful expression.
“Yeah. Once I began settling in, I started really liking the place. Of course, I still miss home, but it’s nice there.”
>”Well, I’m glad you like it there! Nice to know things weren’t rough for ya. I know how some ponies can be about those who are different and stuff.”
>Oho? Was that a hint to her background, perhaps? Inquisitive Anon that you are, you try to see if you can get any more information.
“So you were bullied for being different, or something?”
>”Don’t you worry about that,” she responds nonchalantly. “We should focus on getting you out of here, silly!”
>You win this round, Shadowpony. But you can’t hide your secrets forever!
>You spend roughly the next hour jogging and trotting, respectively. In this time, you stumble upon a wide trench, possibly once a riverbed, the air of which is choked by a light grey haze.
“I assume that isn’t good?” you ask, gesturing to the valley.
>The unicorn’s expression tells you everything you need to know. She visibly shudders as she confirms that, yes, the fog would in fact be “very VERY not fun.”
>”So I suppose we should be going through the fields around there, then?” you ask, gazing at the ebony blades of grass rising some seven feet high.
>Thanks to Tartarus’s wicked sense of humor, the grass is composed of actual blades. Still, the choice being that or nerve gas, you’d pick something you could avoid if you were careful any day.
>Choice made, you step forward, only to be cut off by Shadowbright holding one dark grey hoof in your path. “Hold up, Anon. Might wanna look closer.”
 
>Confused, you squint at the fields with your good eye. The bad one just kind of sits there useless, as scarred eyes are wont to do.
>”See it yet?” she asks. You give a fairly neutral grunt in response, and she subtly motions towards the edge of the valley.
>Following her hoof, you scrutinize the area...
“Oh. That’s a problem.” You note, finally seeing the mist leaking out of the valley and into the field of blades.
>“Yeah, going in there would be pretty silly of us. We just have both things and more to worry about.”
>So wait a minute. Is she suggesting…
>That you go into the…
>Your eyebrows flatten in numb confusion as you comprehend what she’s saying.
“Bright? I’ve got a question.”
>”Ask away, Anon!” she chirps in reply.
“What, exactly, am I missing here that tells me going into the valley with the HIGHER concentration of the kooky nerve gas or whatever is the better idea?”
>”Oh, that’s easy!” she responds. “Basically, there’s stuff in the fields that can pretty much ignore both the gas and the blades. Nasty stuff that’ll probably try to eat us or something.”
>Okay, that was reasonable. But you still weren’t quite convinced as to how it was worse than walking through than what appeared to be enough of that vapor to kill an Elephant.
>”Oh, and it’s also a LOT easier to get lost in there than if we hug the wall of the valley.” She adds helpfully.
>Well, that basically leaves one question you want her to answer. It’s pretty simple and easy to ask.
“So how are we gonna, you know, avoid breathing that stuff in?” you ask.
>”Simple! We just gotta crawl under it!” she replies cheerfully.
>…
>You’re fairly sure she shouldn’t be this chipper.
 
>You course of action determined; you head off towards the trench, warily keeping an eye on the sword fields in case something may burst out unexpectedly.
>Oddly enough, about a hundred and fifty feet or so from the entrance, your two avian companions take to the skies without warning.
”Why’d they do that, I wonder?” you mumble, to which Shadowbright shrugs in response.
>”I dunno, maybe they recognized the stuff in the air… Hey, am I the only one feeling a little tingly?” she asks, fidgeting slightly.
>She isn’t. You’re beginning to feel a vague tingling sensation as well, starting in your chest and slowly working its way through your body.
“I’m feelin’ it too. You think it’s because of the…”
>”The mist? Probably. I think we may need to start crawling now. Better safe than sorry, right?” she reasons, dropping to the ground and continuing on.
>You suppose she’s right. Considering the gas you’ve already inhaled is beginning to affect you, it’d only get worse from there if you continued on as you were.
>Might as well nip that bitch in the bud before it became a real problem. Lowering yourself to the blood red soil, you follow your guide in an army crawl, suppressing your inner child’s urges to pretend to shoot a rifle and say “pew pew”.
>You suppose having a gun WOULD be pretty nice down here… but you’d have to make do without.
>Just like all the other things you had to keep on trucking through this place in spite of not having.
>Like a good night’s rest.
>Or binocular vision.
>Or food and water.
>Yep. Just like those things.
>”Well, looks like this’ll work out okay!” your guide predicts as you enter, ever optimistic.
>You sigh in frustration.
“Five bits you just jinxed us.”
 
>”Oh come on, Anon,” Shadowbright replies. “I thought you didn’t believe in jinxes and stuff.” She says, looking over her shoulder with a confident expression. Almost a smirk, you think.
“That’s in normal places,” you retort. “This is Tartarus. It’s different. It KNOWS, Bright. It KNOWS when you say things like that! It has JUST the right kind of an assholish sense of humor to torment you saying that sort of stuff!”
>”Oh, you’re such a worrywart, Anonymous.” Shadowbright counters with an easygoing laugh. “C’mon, we’ll be fine as long as we keep going and nothing too strange happens. Now let’s move!” she exclaims, continuing forward with what appeared to be nary a care in the world.
>You allow yourself a moment of incoherent sputtering, unable to properly articulate how amazed you are that this unicorn has apparently managed to survive for at least two years down in this hellhole.
>”Watcha waitin’ for, Anon?” Bright calls from ahead, head turned quizzically. “You wanna get out of here, right?”
>You shake your head, snapping your focus back to the task at hand.
“Yeah, I’m coming.” You respond, hastily crawling forward.
>The sooner you were out of here, the better. You have no idea how long you’ve already been down here, to be honest, but it’s felt like months.
>A period of time any rational person would call, “Too goddamn long.”
>And that’s nowhere near as close to as long as Shadowbright claims to have roamed Tartarus. Two plus years in Tartarus and she’s STILL that upbeat?
>No way. There’s no friggin’ way. Even though her cutie mark is a friggin’ smiley face made out of shadows, there’s no way that you can believe she’s that happy.
“Can’t be.” You mumble.
>”Something wrong?” the mare asks, stopping.
“What? Oh, nothin’.” you respond.
 
>”If you say so…” she says, unconvinced. “Just focus on my tail and we’ll be fine. Okay?”
>You nod, motioning for her to continue. She was right. You needed to stop distracting yourself and just make sure you don’t lose her. Mist was getting thicker as is…
>Funnily enough, even though it looked like the air was getting more and more saturated with happy happy fun gas, you weren’t feeling an increase in the effects.
>Maybe the stuff isn’t as bad as Shadowbright thought…
>Or maybe… Hold on.
>”Some fog rolled in, it looks like,” Bright mumbles apprehensively. “Could be problematic, but as long as we keep to the wall, we’re golden!”
>Keep to the wall. Yeah.  Keep to the wall and ignore the fact that visibility is hindered to the point where you can just barely see Bright as a roughly pony-shaped silhouette, even though she’s five feet in front of you at the most.
>Your advance is consequently slowed to a crawl, and even though you’re doing so in an effort to keep within seeing distance of each other, the fog has become so thick it’s difficult to make Bright out if you stop for even a moment.
>You really didn’t like how you could no longer tell what was harmless fog and what was most definitely not harmless fog.
>You also didn’t like how the sounds of your own breathing echoed through the trench. Shit was creepy, yo.
>And you DEFINITELY didn’t like how your pants leg kept getting caught on these damned twigs. Seriously, that shit was pissing you off.
>You tug, attempting to free yourself, but the root proves a worthier foe than you had anticipated. Soon enough, you manage to tear yourself free…
>Only to realize that Shadowbright is nowhere to be seen.
“Shit.”
 
>This was bad. Very VERY bad. You no longer have a guide through this place, and with the mist so thick, getting lost would be a feat of little difficulty.
>You could inadvertently stumble into a vent pumping out the vapor and never know until it was too late…
>Oh god what if she did that? Or what if she got lost looking for you? Or if she—
>Your panicking is cut off by a sudden sharp cry of, ”woooOOOOOAH!” from Shadowbright, somewhere ahead of you.
>No time to think—instead, you move. Surging forward with renewed vigor, you grab blindly into the mist--
>Just in time to snag the unicorn’s hoof as she falls over the edge of a vent and into the void below.
>Holy fuck, that was WAY too close. Your heart’s going at roughly the speed of Kenyans right now.
>As a consequence of nearly diving over the edge yourself, you feel as if you’re trying to breathe sand. You can’t imagine your companion is feeling too good right now.
“Well, I guess that means I win…” you say, hefting her limp frame back to solid ground.
>An uncharacteristic lack of a response answers you. Maybe she’s just scared out of her brains? You know you sure would be.
“Hey. You all right?” you ask, nudging her between the shoulders.
>Still nothing.
>Worried, you turn her to face you…
>And find yourself staring into closed lids. She’s out like a light.
>Fffffffuuuuuuck. This is quite the mess you’ve gotten yourself into.
>Well, if there’s one thing you can take solace in, it’s that there’s not any way for it to get any worse, at least that you can think of.
>As if in response to your foolish thoughts, the ground begins to rumble.
>God dommot, Tortoros!
 
>Wisely shuffling back, you grab Bright even as twin glowing blue slits appear in the depths of the hole, and an almost agonized-sounding moan breaks the eerie silence.
> Your ears ring from the volume, as a dull ache begins to swell in your head. This shit is LOUD.
>The moan is quickly joined by another.
>And another.
>And another.
>Quickly the crevasse is completely choked with a cacophonic chorus of calls you could expect to come from cadavers currently being un-killed.
>Is now really the goddamn time for alliterating, brain? In case you didn’t notice, shit’s going down.
> The rumble intensifies as a massive… thing erupts from the well, looming some fifteen feet above your head. You can’t really make out its shape in the fog, the only indication of it even being there being the two icy slits of light.
>Said lights are pointed directly at you, as the unseen beast just… stares.
>Being the complete moron that you are under stress, you meet its gaze, quite aware of the butterflies of fight or flight flittering about in your stomach.
>Still as statues, your gazes stay locked even as the moaning stops, replaced once again by ominous, deadly silence.
>Almost as if speed were a foreign concept to you, you slowly, carefully shift from sitting to squatting, tenser than the relations between a bottle of rubbing alcohol and someone’s liver.
>Thankfully, the creature doesn’t appear to react in any meaningful way to your shift in posture. It merely holds its gaze…
>And then the piercing blue  fades back into whitish grey, leaving you alone with the unconscious Shadowbright.
>So it appeared, anyways. This place definitely didn’t sound empty moments ago…
>Without warning, you see motion in the corner of your eye.
>Done with this shit, you bolt.
 
>Your first breath is akin to breathing a thousand knives.
>Even as you race through the pass, propelled by pure fear, you feel as if each and every nerve in your body has been set on fire.
>Each breath feels like you’re inhaling thousands of acid-coated shards of glass.
>Each stride sends a wave of raw pain through your body, complimenting what can only be the sensation of dull, rusty spikes of iron gouging into your legs and feet.
>The pain is monstrously great, even when tempered by fear and adrenaline. You don’t know how you manage to keep from curling up into a ball.
>You narrowly, almost too narrowly, dodge a mass of inky blackness as it lunges for you, as those once neutral-seeming blue eyes now glare unbridled anger at your very existence. You keep running, terror proving to be stronger than agony.
>You leap over another vent, barely managing to not unintentionally goomba stomp another of the unseen creatures. At the time, however, you don’t even notice, not once breaking stride as you rush for the end, of the valley, of the horrors, and of the thrice damned fog!
>Fifteen impossibly long minutes of excruciating pain follow. Slowly, your agony increases further, as your skin begins burning like it was dunked in stomach acid, your organs feel as though they are melting inside of you, and your lungs and throat turn to naught but leather.
>These feelings are accompanied by what you would normally call minor wounds: a bruise here, a scrape there, etc. Normally, you’d not even notice them.
>But thanks to the mist, the pains of each are multiplied a thousandfold.
>Scratches become gashes, bruises shattered bones.
>Finally, after what felt like eons of torture, you burst into the open, collapsing in an agonized heap.
 
>Overcome by the angry explosion you called a nervous system, you let go of your KO’ed guide and release a shaky sigh of relief, lying on your back as the pain slowly sinks into the ground beneath you, fading at a nigh-glacial, yet still noticeable pace.
>You hear a familiar cry, and turn your head to the skies as two eagles of flame descend from the skies to greet you.
>The elder phoenix, who Shadowbright nicknamed “Torch”, touches down next to you, quizzically tilting its head as if asking “What happened to you?”
>You chuckle, ignoring the stabbity feeling it elicits in your chest.
“Could’ve used your help back there,” you rasp, throat and lungs both still feeling like hell.
>The bird merely gestures with a wing to his son, “Scorch”, who is eyeing a stray wisp of the gas curiously. Opening his beak, he puffs a small ember of a fireball into the mist, which promptly erupts into a plume of violet flames.
>In what you can only assume to be a deadpan manner, Torch returns his golden gaze to you, his point made.
“I see…” you reply with a sage nod, voice already slightly stronger.
>Now that you’ve had a little rest, you can start looking for a safe place once more. Scooping up Bright, you rise to your feet and scan the horizon in search of shelter.
>It isn’t long before you find a small, empty clearing in the center of a rock formation near a river of lava. Destination set, you begin to walk once more.
>The pain is still there, but it’s… bearable. You wouldn’t be lying if you said you’ve struggled through worse.
>But neither would you be lying if you said that slumber was a welcome release from it all.
 
-------Shadowbright’s POV-------
>Hours later, you slowly come to.
>Sitting up, you briefly check your surroundings.
>It doesn’t take much to tell you that you didn’t pick up where you left off, adventure-wise.
>The scenery’s entirely different; No vents pumping gas, no steep walls, nothing like that.
>Ugh… your head. What in Celestia’s name happened to your poor head?
>You scrunch up your face in concentration as you try to remember…
>Oh yeah. You nearly fell down a bit and knocked it against the wall.
>Man, you really thought you were done for when that happened. Thank the Princesses Anon caught you when he did!
>Speaking of the big lug…
“Anonymous?” you call, searching the clearing for your human companion. “Anon? Where are you, buddy?”
>Your only answer is the steady rhythm of his breathing as he slumbers. You look down—
>To find his peaceful, sleeping form at your hooves.
“Well look who’s finally getting some hard-earned shut-eye,” you observe, chuckling.
>This is the first time he’s slept since you’ve met him. He really had a knack for pushing his luck sometimes…
>Speaking of that,
“Hehe, looks like I owe you five bits after all.” You say as you lie down and rest your head on his chest.
>You yawn, having been rather exhausted by the day yourself.
“Good night, Anon.” you mumble, as your eyelids grow heavy.
>And soon the steady rise and fall of his chest carries you off to sleep.