Pony Quest: Dreamscape Session 1

The day dawns softly as the sun rises over Ponyville. A chill autumn breeze swept through the town, finding its way through your drafty windows and caressing the feathers of your wings. Shivering, you pull the blanket tighter around you and try to ignore the light peeking in through the glass panes. Suddenly, there is a tap at your window. Looking up, you see another small rock bounce off of the small window adorning your bedroom wall.
Wrapping the blanket tightly around you, you waddle awkwardly toward the window to peer outside. Passing through your sparse room, you try to ignore the dust and cobwebs in the corners. Your only possessions of any real value, your scooter and helmet, sit by the bedroom door. The wall paper was faded and peeling, you don't even know what it was supposed to be. Probably something girly like butterflies or flowers.
Glancing out the window, you look down to see the beaming faces of Applebloom and Sweetie Belle staring back up at you. You ignore their frantic gestures for you to come out, returning to your bed and burying your head beneath the pillows.
Of course it wasn't long at all before your friends came barging into the room, full of smiles and bubbling excitement.
"Come on, get up sleepy head!" Applebloom called out, jumping on the foot of your bed. "You're never going to believe this!"
"Yeah, we got a REAL adventure on our hooves this time!" Sweetie Belle chimed in. "With real ruins and everything!"
"What if one of us has an Archeology cutie mark!"
"Yeah!" Sweetie Belle joined Applebloom on the bed. "What if we do have a arche... archeopteryx cutie mark!"
"Ruins? What kind of ruins?" Despite the chilly air outside, the thought of an adventure was a nice thought indeed.
"Nopony knows!" Applebloom replied. She was so excited that the words were beginning to trip over themselves in her mouth. "And that's just the thing! I heard mah sister talking about it with Twilight, some new ruins they found in the Everfree!"
"Wait a second, ruins can't be new!" Sweetie Belle stomped her hoof to punctuate her objection. It would have been slightly more impressive had the mattress not absorbed the impact. "They're all old and stuff, you can't have new ruins!"
"Are you sure you shouldn't have a dictionary cutie mark," you ask Sweetie Belle, annoyed. "Besides what would an archeology cutie mark even look like?"
"I don't know," Applebloom said. "But I sure know how we can find out!"
Grabbing your things, you and your two companions embark on a short trip to the Everfree forest. You briefly think about stopping for something to eat but decide against it. You're used to going without breakfast and you’re pretty sure it can't take THAT long to explore this place.
Following Applebloom's directions, you arrive at the ruins of some kind of ancient dome. it's easy to understand how nopony had noticed it before, the local foliage had completely grown over it and turned it into a perfect, semi-spherical hill. A massive gate stood open at what could only be the front of the structure. Pulling up your scooter just outside the opening, you and your friends gaze at the massive structure in awe.
Huddling together with your pals, you pool your resources and take inventory. Applebloom had "borrowed" a lantern on her way out the door, you had a good length of rope left over from that zip line disaster and Sweetie Belle had brought
"A stick?" You give Sweetie Belle a strange look.
"It could come in handy!" Sweetie Belle replied defensively.
Shaking your head and deciding not to argue the point you turn with the rest of your trio to face the ruin's entrance.
Three ponies venture forth. One with a light, one with a rope, and one with a stick. Extending one hoof forward, you enter the ruins.
It is pitch black inside so Applebloom quickly turns on her lantern. The path ahead branches two different ways. Applebloom is quick to point out that there are four sets of hoof marks heading down one of the two passages.
They are indeed hoof tracks. Nothing odd immediately jumps out at you. Judging by the amount of dust on the ground around the prints, they are quite recent.
"Do you think it might be somepony we know?" you ask the others.
"Well Twilight was talking to mah sister about how the princess wanted her and all her friends to help investigate this place, but she couldn't go," Applebloom explained. "Weather's getting awfully cold awfully quick this year and she wants to buck all the apples before the first frost."
Oh Celestia, the earful you'd get if you ran into Twilight or some of the other adults way out here in the middle of the Everfree. Deciding to ere on the "safe" side and keep the adventure going, you turn down the right hand path.

The corridor slops gently upward while curving around the edge of the sphere. As you progressed, the symbols and geometries of the wall gradually gave away to more and more pleasant shapes and images. You couldn't help but feel great about this adventure. Surely this would be the one to get you your cutie mark.

Nearing what must be the top of the sphere, you notice a soft, blue glow up ahead.
You spare a curious glance at the markings on the wall were you find pictures of ponies smiling and prancing around field filled with all kinds of wonderful things from dresses to jewels and food, all under the watchful eye of a single, larger pony. You can't quite make out what kind of pony it is, though he feels friendly somehow.
"Hey Sweetie Belle, I dare you to go first."
Planting herself on the ground, the white marshmallow filly shook her head. "Nuh-uh, no way. This is going to be just like that one time with that cucumber and Fluttershy, isn't it?"
You should have known she wouldn't fall for a dare again, not after that little incident. Fluttering your wings in a nervous anticipation, you round the corner and come face to face with what seemed to be a large mirror.
It stretches clear from the floor to the ceiling and wall to wall, but its reflection was strange. the hallway the mirror reflected seemed to continue on slopping upwards, but instead of the bright and cheery scene they had just passed through, the corridor in the mirror appeared dark, twisted and frightening. The walls seemed to undulate in weird patterns with no rhyme or reason. Most surprising of all was that you, Sweetie Belle and Applebloom were not reflected in the mirror. Instead you found yourself staring at Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. And they were staring back at you. Horse apples.
Twilight opened her mouth and began to shout angrily from the other side of the mirror. You couldn't hear a word she's saying,  but you had a pretty good idea what it was.
They're behind a mirror, what's the worst they could do?

You stick your tongue out at them and poke around the room a bit. Seeing your example, Applebloom and Sweetie Belle walk up to the mirror and start pulling faces as well. Finding nothing of interest, you return to the mirror and press your face up against the glass, puffing your cheeks outward and running your tongue along the surface.
On the other side of the glass, Twilight is hoping up and down in anger and confusion. Pinkie Pie, on the other hoof, loves this game. Prancing up to the mirror across from you, she leans down and puts her face opposite yours and imitates you.
A crystalline note sounds and in an instant, the mirror vanishes. With the barrier removed, both you and pinkie fall forward and your lips briefly touch before you pull away in shock. Pinkie Pie blushes and giggles a little before bouncing around the corridor.
Twilight, after recovering from the shock of the mirror disappearing, levels a firm gaze at you and the two other fillies. "Oh you girls are in SO much trouble."
Quickly rubbing the pinkie slobber off your face, you yell at the other girls to make a break for it.

Unfortunately you hardly make it two steps before Twilight teleports in front of you and picks you and your cohorts up in a firm, telekinetic grip. "And just what they hay do you think you were doing all the way out here by yourselves?"

Rushing forward from the hellish area of the corridor, Rarity retrieved her little sister. "Young lady, what in Celestia's name are you doing in this dusty old place?"

Rainbow Dash just gave you a disappointed look and shook her head.
"We were just trying to get our cutie marks? How else are we supposed to figure out if we're good at archeology?"

Sweetie Belle chooses that moment to through her two bits in. "Hey, you were pretty good at solving that puzzle Scootaloo. Maybe you ARE an archaeopteryx!"

Sighing, you try to ignore that last bit and turn your attention back to the angry Twilight and Rainbow Dash. "We're really sorry for coming out here, but at least we kinda saved you guys, right? If we hadn't come along, you'd still be stuck in that mirror!"

Rainbow Dash snorted. "Don't you have that backwards? It was us that saved YOU from the mirror, not the other way around!"

Turning to face the upward slope, Twilight set you and Applebloom down. "Come on, girls. Let's get these fillies back to Ponyville." Leading the way, Twilight began to trot up the ascending corridor, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash falling behind you to make sure you stay together.
"We weren't stuck in the mirror; we just took the other path." You grumbled half under your breath. "It's you guys that were in the scary area." Now that you mention it, you and your friends came in from down below and yet Twilight was leading you all further up. The walls here were covered with pictures and markings as well, but they were not nearly as pleasant as the ones you had seen before. Various ponies were crying out in fear and terror, struggling to get away from one central figure. you can't quite make out what the figure is but looking straight at it churns your stomach.
"What were you guys doing here, anyway? We told you so it's only fair you tell us."
Twilight puts on her best lecturing voice and opened her mouth. "Celestia sent us on a royal scientific expedition to learn about this place. Apparently it's so old not even she knew about it."
"Did you find anything interesting? And what about that mirror?"
Twilight sighs. "That mirror WAS the something interesting. That and the hieroglyphs." She gives you an annoyed glare over he shoulder. "We were about to explore the upper corridor before you three showed up. After we get you girls home we're not going to have time to come back until tomorrow."
As you had progressed down the hall, the drawings on the wall had becoming less and less disturbing. To your surprise, the gate soon came into view up ahead. As you are lead outside, you can see the hoof marks left by you and your fellow crusaders heading up the other way. Outside it is midafternoon and the day had warmed up to comfortable levels.
You're pretty upset about not having more time to spend in the ruins, but a few things strike you as odd.
"Did you ever figure anything out Twilight, because there was some weird stuff going on in there. When we went in, we took the up path and we came out the same way by going up even more. How is that possible?"
Twilight stops and looks around at you. "Are you sure? You took the corridor that leads up?"
Applebloom trots up next to you and nods. "That’s right, we saw the hoof prints and figured you had gone the other way. We knew we'd get in trouble if we were caught so we went the other way."
Twilight frowns. "Now that IS interesting. When we come back tomorrow we'll have to look into that."
A thought popped into your head. "Or," you suggest, "we can go back now. If you take us along we promise we'll be super good." Lining up side by side, you and your best friends put on the most innocent faces you could muster. You could almost picture the halos.
"Absolutely not," Twilight stamps her hoof. "The Everfree is no place for three young fillies to be after dark. I'd think after your little adventure with the cockatrice you'd have remembered that."
What if we did something wrong when we made the mirror disappear. It was creepy how the corridor looped like that. What if there is some kind of curse?"
"Yeah, a curse!" Sweetie Belle yelled out. "That's it! What if our special talent is curse breaking?"
Twilight groans and lowers her head, her friends snickering a little at the purple unicorn's misfortune of being stuck talking with the curious fillies. "I've told you guys before, there is no such thing as curses."
"But what about that one time where Scootaloo turned into a vampire?" Sweetie Belle pips up.
"Yeah or when I was a werewolf?" Applebloom adds.
"Those weren't curses," Twilight corrects, her exasperation showing in her walk. "Those were just the regular magic that allows those creatures to exist. A lot of ponies don't even think of it as a curse."
"Sure felt like a curse to me," you mutter under your breath as you continue on the way to Ponyville. The sun is nearing the horizon as you leave the forest and your stomach grumbles with hunger.
"Hey Applebloom, is it alright if I can sleep over at your house tonight?" Something about that weird ruin had given you the creeps and you'd rather not spend the night alone. Plus the Apples always had good food.
"Sure thing, Scootaloo." Applebloom smiles and bumps lightly into you. "I just gotta ask my sister first, make sure it's alright."
Twilight gives the two of you a worried look and asks Rainbow Dash if she can make sure you and Applebloom get to Sweet Apple Acres in one piece. She reluctantly agrees and take soff, keeping a watchful eye from the sky.
Rarity leads Sweetie Belle home and the rest of the ponies disperse as the day draws to a close.
"What did you think about that place?" Applebloom asks. "It was nice at first but something about it was really spooky."
You nod. "I keep thinking that something weird is going on. With our luck we probably ended up in some alternate dimension or something." You share a laugh and continue down the road to Sweet Apple Acres, where warm food and a cozy bed await you. Sure beats your accommodations back home!
Joking about what each of you would do with your own clones, you pass the apple trees and reach Sweet Apple Acres and Applejack happily agrees to let you spend the night. You were going to leave her in the dark about what had happened that day but Rainbow Dash comes down and filled her in.

After a few angry words, super was served and the both of you were sent to bed. Bad fillies don't get to stay up late.
You and Applebloom quietly sneak to the window and peak out. BIg Mac is sitting on the porch and you can hear the sounds of AJ doing some of the chores downstairs. Chances are it's going to be a while before they sleep so sneaking out is a no go.

Climbing back into bed you turn to Applebloom. "What do you think happened today?"

"I don't know but it gave me the willies." the red head filly replied. "I'm not sure if I even want to go back tomorrow."

"I'm going back, if I can. There's something about that place..." You yawn softly. "Let's sleep in shifts tonight; I'll take the first watch. We can't be too careful."

Nodding, Applebloom settled down and quickly fell asleep.

The minutes feel like hours and before you knew it your eyelids begin to droop. One last thought of self-disappointment crosses your mind as slumber over takes you and your eyes slide shut... and open on a strange scene.

You find yourself standing in an empty white expanses that extends in all directions as far as the eye can see. There is nothing.

Suddenly Applebloom appears beside you, a wide grin splayed on her face. "Scootaloo, you're here! You finally fell asleep!" Puzzled, you take another look around as Sweetie Belle seems to fade in next to Applebloom, shortly followed by Twilight, Rainbow Dash and the rest of the Heroes of Harmony. Even Applejack was there.
"I TOLD YOU!" you shouted, running around in circles in the white expanse. "I TOLD YOU THAT MIRROR DID SOMETHING."
Calm down, you told yourself. It's probably some kind of weird dream, that's all. You fell asleep while on watch. Concentrating hard, you picture your scooter in your mind. It pops into existence right in front of you and breathe a sigh of relief. "Just a dream then, that's nice."
"But if this is a dream, what are all you doing here?" you ask, facing the other ponies. "I can understand my friends and Rainbow Dash but I REALLY don't think I'd be dreaming about dresses or cupcakes or anything like that."
"That's because this isn't any ordinary dream." came a voice from behind you. Spinning around, you find yourself looking at a bald, grey pegasus. "It is a dream world, and dream worlds can be shared. All your friends are actually here." The mysterious pegasus had no mouth, but then how could that be when you heard his voice so clearly? Despite this glaring oddity, you felt compelled to like this pony. His eyes were the friendliest eyes you had ever seen.
You bite your foreleg to see if you wake up. You feel no pain but do not wake all the same.

"Please do not leave yet," the mysterious pegasus asks. "Give me a chance to explain things to you all." You really can't figure out if this pegasus, if it really is a pegasus, actually has a specific gender.

Glancing back at the other ponies, they all seem lucid enough. Confused, but still themselves. A few of them are following your example and willing things into existence. Pinkie Pie had already gone through three cakes.

Careful not to make eye contact with the pegasus, you turn back to it. "Who are you and what is this place?"

"I am Oneigh Roi, and this place is my gift to you for freeing me from that temple."
Still avoiding eye contact, dozens of questions flood your mind.

"So... Roi." That was a lot easier to say than Onai or whatever. "Why were you even trapped in that temple?"

Roi smiles, or at least something close to it his skin stretched tighter against his muzzle. "I was a fool, and an arrogant one at that. I got a bit full of myself and paid the price."

"And that mirror thing we saw, that was you?"

"It is what held me, yes." Roi replies. "By touching each of it's aspects at the same time, I was freed."

That made sense, you suppose. It left a lot of questions about those ruins but you could let those slide in the face of the present circumstances.

"So what is this place, your gift to us?"

Roi waves a hoof out, gesturing to the empty white. A massive rainforest spings out of the empty void, filled with all manner of creatures both big and small. "It is pure possibility, absolute potential. Here in this world of dreams anything you wish can become reality. I have allotted all of you your own verse which branch off from this central area, this hub if you will. Your verse can be as small or as large as you desire and you are given complete control over it's contents. You are also free to visit each others' verses but cannot change anything in them unless given permission by the verse's owner." Turning back to you and the other ponies, it looks all of you over. "Do you understand? In this place your wildest dreams and deepest ambitions become a reality. You will never want for anything again."

Looking back at Twilight, you try and see if she comprehends all of what is happening.
"Thanks, I guess." The idea of it all is still sinking in, but you are starting to get an idea of just how cool this is. "But what about our friends and families and stuff back home? What about our bodies?"

Roi lets out a booming, mirthful laugh. "Dear child, you are not trapped here forever! You will leave this place upon waking as is natural. If you happen to 'die' while in this world you will simply wake in the real one. There is no danger to be found, only pleasure when you lay your head down to rest."

Your wings shiver with excitement as the true scale of the prospects begin to dawn on you. "And you, do you live here too?"

Roi shrugs. "More or less. I tend the dream world and keep it functioning. Maintenance, nothing more. I have no real need of a home, so I go wherever I will. If any of you ever have need of me though, feel free to call my name and I will come."

Hardly able to contain your excitement, you look around for some indication of where your verse awaits.

Performing his weird smile once more, Roi points and an orange light appears a few feet from you. "To reach your verse, you need only to will a gate into existence. Should you have need of me this night, I will come when you call." And then he was gone.