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Moxypony | 586 | 27 | Original Character,Princess Luna,Adventure,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic,Gore | For the New Lunar Republic | The story of Moxi's fight as a Spec Ops agent in the New Lunar Republic | complete | 91 | 3 | <p>Moxi is a pegasus pony forced to leave her small town home in order to spend her life with her beloved Chillwind in Manehattan, but things turn ugly when Cloudsdale decides to secede from the Holy Solar Empire, Moxi joins the fight for the New Lunar Republic in an attempt to learn the truth behind the fate of her missing love...</p><p>(Contains references to Sweet Dreams, Luna by Dreamcatcher174. Dreamcatcher and Melody are property of Dreamcatcher174. Radiant Sol is property of SirRadiantSol. Cheshire Grin is property of X-tatik)</p> | teen | 2012-06-19T12:08:10+00:00 | 2013-03-05T01:05:55+00:00 | 2,170 | Luna surveyed the landscape around her from the royal balcony; the city of Canterlot stood in terrible shape, though not quite so terrible as it had several months before when the war had ended. The reconstruction was well underway, and through the efforts of the former Imperials and the victorious Republicans alike, the city was finally beginning to look and function as it once had.
“Princess,” Luna smiled at the warm voice behind her and turned to see Dreamcatcher kneeling, a soft smile on his mouth that barely touched his eyes, eyes far too old to belong to the young pony before her.
“Actually, I’m not a princess anymore,” she said, smiling sadly at him, “I officially renounced my title when we established Equestria as the New Lunar Republic. Honestly, I may not even be a ruler in a few weeks.”
“It’s a foredrawn conclusion, you know.” Dreamcatcher chuckled as he got back to his hooves. “and you may not officially be a princess anymore,” he scoffed, “but I don’t think anypony’s ever going to stop thinking of you as Princess Luna, the hero mare who saved them from the grip of the evil Solar Empire.”
“Maybe not within your lifetime,” she said wistfully, turning her eyes to the night sky, “but an eternity is a long time. I never really thought about it so much before, but with my sister gone… I don’t know, this world just seems so much lonelier. She’s done so much better a job at leading this nation than I ever did, maybe it should have been me who had fallen to Wrath’s influence, maybe then Celestia would…”
“You can’t let yourself think that way, Luna,” Dreamcatcher laid a hoof on the mare’s shoulder consoling her as tears began to stream from her eyes, “you can’t blame yourself or even Celestia for what happened, this is the fault of that… that thing…”
Luna smiled through her tears at Dreamcatcher, “I suppose you’re right, but I assume you didn’t come all the way up here just to say that. Did you need something?”
“Actually,” he sighed, “I’ve come to say goodbye. With everything that’s happened, I believe it’s time I return to my ponies. The Navapony are scattered, and they will need somepony to rally behind. I am the last remaining shaman of our tribe and I can’t stand by as our way of life dies. So this is goodbye, my old friend.”
Luna wrapped the colt in a hug, nodding her acceptance of his decision. Only after the hug had been broken did she notice the rainbow maned pegasus trotting into the room behind them. “I’m afraid I’ve come to deliver a similar message, your highness,” Rainbow Dash said, snapping to a crisp salute, “as of immediately, I am resigning my position as Command Chief of the New Lunar Republican Airborne and the Airborne unit itself is dissolving.”
“As there is no longer truly a New Lunar Republican army,” Luna chuckled, “I suppose it would be foolish of me to object. I suppose you have plans then?”
“Thank you ma’am,” she said, smiling, “Dreamcatcher is right, this war has been tough on all of us, but there are some who have felt its sting worse than others. For this reason, I do not believe it is in the best interest of the pegusi to remain as citizens of Equestria. Those who are willing and able will be joining me and what remains of the Airborne unit will be leaving Equestria to found a new nation.” She smiled as she added, “In deference to our ancestors, we have chosen the name Pegasopolis. I anticipate healthy and beneficial trade agreements for both Pegasopolis and Equestria, once we’ve got everything up and running again. Now, with your leave Princess, I must rejoin the herd. We shall be leaving soon.”
With a salute and a sly smile, Rainbow Dash took to the air, flying out over Canterlot and disappearing into the distance.
Dreamcatcher opened his mouth as if to say something, but when he could think of nothing else to say, he simply nodded and left.
“Were you just going to leave without even trying to find me?” Dreamcatcher stopped dead in his tracks as he neared the castle courtyard, turning to regard the mare emerging from the shadows.
“I would have,” he said turning a concerned look on Moxi, the mare’s throat was now a mass of vicious red scar tissue and her face was similarly lined with the after-marks of deep lacerations, and while many of the wounds across her body and limbs had healed properly, there was still enough scarring left to tell the tale of battle across her body, “but you’ve been a hard mare to find these past couple months. Luna told me you’ve been locking yourself up in the royal library, barely even letting the medical ponies treat you.”
“So what if I have?” Moxi said, turning her eyes from Dreamcatcher’s.
“Moxi, you need to take better care of yourself,” he smirked, “I’m not going to be around to take care you anymore.”
“I don’t need you to take care of me!” the sudden flare of anger made Dreamcatcher flinch, and when she saw him recoil, Moxi’s face flushed and she turned her eyes away again, ashamed, “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay Mox.” he said, laying a comforting hoof on her shoulder while cautiously avoiding touching the fresh scars, “I’m sorry about Gatesborogh… I never got a chance to say so before…”
It was Moxi’s turn to flinch, the news that the survivors of her hometown, had been set ablaze in the strange madness that had gripped the entire nation during the battle for Canterlot had numbered in the single digits had come as a severe shock. It came as an even deeper blow when she had confirmed that her parents had not escaped the fire.
“It’s ancient history,” she growled, “it hadn’t been home to me for a long time.”
“Well,” Dreamcatcher said, hopefully, “listen, I don’t know if you’ve got any plans, but honestly, I’d love it if you could come back to the Great Equestrian Plains with me, I think you could live a very comfortable life out there, it’s very peaceful.”
Moxi smiled, but shook her head. “There’s nothing left for me out there, Catch,” she said, “after all that’s happened, all I really have left is to see things through.”
“Moxi,” Dreamcatcher said, worried, “the war is over, you’ve already seen it through.”
“Luna offered me a position in her secret service,” she said, shrugging, “I can’t adjust to a civilian life again, I’m better off serving.”
Dreamcatcher opened his mouth to protest, but immediately knew it would be a moot point. He wrapped a hoof around Moxi and pulled the mare into a hug. “Take care of yourself,” he breathed into her hear as she returned the hug.
“Yeah,” she smiled back, “you too.”
Luna watched Dreamcatcher cross the courtyard until he passed beyond the palace gates and finally disappeared from her view. With a heavy sigh she turned to face the room behind her, finding Moxi standing, patiently waiting for her to complete her vigil.
“You’ve gotten rather good at that,” Luna smiled, Moxi bowed low and she waved a dismissive hoof, “oh come now, Moxi, you and I both know you don’t need to bow to me.”
“If you say so, Highness,” she said, rising to her full height again before turning hard eyes on Luna, “Princess, I feel the time has come for some answers.”
Luna smiled sadly and trotted into the room, finding a seat and sitting down with a groan, “I expected as much, you wouldn’t have locked yourself up in the library if you weren’t looking for knowledge.”
“Celestia said something while she was torturing us,” Moxi remarked, her voice steady, “she said she’d seen the rise and fall of nations, but our historical texts say that the nation of Equestria was founded long before either you or your sister were born. That coupled with what that… that Wrath thing was saying about the ’ethereal plane’ has left me wondering… Just what exactly are you, Luna?”
Luna sighed and regarded her own image in a nearby mirror. “I suppose,” she said after a long moment, “that depends on which part of me you’re referring to…”
Standing to cross over to the balcony, Luna gestured up toward the moon in the sky. “I had honestly forgotten, it has been so long that this body had allowed me to forget, but in truth, this is not my body.” She turned to face Moxi, “millennia ago, when the world was young and Equestria even younger, the sun and moon moved on their own through the sky, but even so, it was always my sister and I who guided them, for in ancient times we did not exist on the mortal plane, but rather we existed in the ethereal, the spirit world.” She turned a dark, serious look on Moxi, “Celestia and I truly are the sun and the moon.”
Moxi’s mind reeled, she tried putting pieces together, but it was like trying to work out a puzzle whose pieces were cut wrong, none of the pieces seemed to fit together.
“In ancient times,” Luna continued, “many ponies took to worshipping beings of the ethereal, beings of varying power and scope and form, but who each represented something existing within the mortal plane. Ideas and thoughts and objects which held great power existed within their own dominions within the ethereal plane. It was in two such dominions that my sister and I, spirits of the sun and the moon, existed. There were likewise spirits of the great ideas which could drive ponies to great acts of decency and great acts of malice. Mercy, Greed, Wrath, Death, and while many of these spirits were of malice intent, their power on the mortal plane was limited by how many creatures believed in them and followed their ideals, but one being did not play by the rules, and his name was Discord.
Discord broke the seal between the ethereal and mortal plane when he successfully cobbled together a body of flesh and began exerting his terrible will upon the ponies of Equestria. All would have been lost had it not been for a pair of alicorn priestesses, one a follower of the sun and one of the moon. Their faith was so strong and their altruism so pure that they allowed us to enter their forms, that we might be able to strike Discord down.
Their gambit was successful, but it came at the cost of the lives of both mares. Celestia and I took up their bodies and rose up to lead the ponies of Equestria, teaching them to cast aside hate and anger and to become more peaceful. Equestria fell into a great peace, and all was well. But the mortal bodies Celestia and I had taken up were more limited than our spiritual selves, and over time our memories faded, we could not remember a time before we had our mortal form, and in our hubris, we paved the way for beings like Wrath to regain their foothold in this world.”
“The war,” Moxi breathed, “all that anger and hatred, it’s been fuel to the fire for him hasn’t it?”
“I’m afraid so,” Luna said, her voice heavy with sorrow, “it seems likely that he will already have supporters, and bringing their existence to the attention of Equestria as a whole would do nothing but suit his games.” She sighed, “Even the knowledge of my sister’s brainwashing must remain a secret, we cannot allow the seeds of distrust to aid in his return. If we are to fight him, it must be done in secret.”
Moxi nodded and trotted out to the balcony, looking out to the night sky with narrowed eyes. “Secret, eh?” she muttered after several moments, she turned back and gave Luna a humorless smile, “I think I know just the mare for the job.”
-The End-
Thank you for reading! I hope you will follow Moxi into the next chapter of her life in "Hooves of Wrath." |
Cole K. | 587 | 1 | Derpy Hooves,Main 6,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Spike,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Farewell to Socks | Celestia sends Luna to Ponyville on royal duties, hoping she will make some friends. | complete | 26 | 4 | <p>During the one thousand years of solitude Luna has spent on the moon, she has become extremely attached to both the moon and her pair of pink fuzzy socks. Celestia sends a lonely and pessimistic Luna to Ponyville in the hopes that she will make some friends, and with a bit of luck, get rid of her socks as well.</p><p>This was my submission to Equestria Daily's "Happy Luna's Super Magically Fun Storytime Adventure Challenge," and was labeled as "Goodbye to Socks." I finished it right before the deadline, giving me no time to get it edited, or give it a good title and description. Therefore, it got 38th place. I knew it could have been better; consequently, I edited it, slightly modified the title, and posted it here.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-26T22:08:34+00:00 | 2011-08-26T22:08:34+00:00 | 2,891 | Farewell to Socks
A Fancfiction by:
Cole K.
Luna lay calmly on the surface of the moon, her deep indigo hooves crossed under her chest, embracing the deafening silence. The pink cotton edges of her socks were the only things that stood out from her dark, arcane coat; she would have blended in perfectly with the endless night if it wasn’t for the socks. They stood out rather inaptly in such a dark environment, but Luna would never give them up. She had worn them regularly over the one thousand years she had spent on the moon, and, just as she had become very fond of the moon, she had become very fond of the socks.
It seems logical that a pony being forced to spend one thousand years on the moon would grow to hate it; however, that is not the case. Luna’s time spent on the moon was not a mere incarceration–it was a millennium of time to think and contemplate. While on the moon Luna did not only spend her time plotting her revenge on Celestia–she reflected over everything. She contemplated nature, magic, life, death, being, socks, and everything else imaginable. Through this time of solitude and serenity, Luna developed an extreme mental and spiritual connection to both the moon and her socks.
The socks were especially important because they were the only connection Luna had to Equestria. Every time the moon passed over Equestria, Luna longed to be on its lush green surface–to smell the flowers, feel the grass on her hooves, and most tenaciously, to communicate with somepony. On the moon, the socks were the only thing that Luna had to talk to. Yes, there were rocks, but rocks weren’t pink and fluffy, nor did they have pictures of princess Celestia on them. In fact, Luna had named both of her socks. The one on her right hoof was named Celestia, for obvious reasons, and the sock on her left hoof was named Sockholme for even more painfully obvious reasons.
Sometimes, if she was feeling vengeful, she would pretend the sock on her left foot was her, nightmare moon, and imagine she was defeating Celestia, the sock on her right foot. But, usually, the sock on her left foot was just Sockholme, and Luna would try to get Sockholme to convince Celestia to un-banish her from the moon. It never worked. Despite Luna’s hate of her sister’s stubborn and unforgiving punishment, every time she looked at that pink, poorly-stitched picture of her sister, she was not filled with thoughts of revenge, but of love, and a longing for it.
However, now that Luna had returned to Equestria and re-gained her place as princess of the moon, she could not break this connection between her, the moon, and the socks. She did not need to be on the moon to control it--she could have been on Equestria at that moment talking to ponies or marveling at the beauty of the forests and rivers. But, Luna decided to stay here on the moon instead, with no company other than Celestia and Sockholme, admiring the bright white flickering stars that filled the beautiful night sky.
The vibrant colors of Equestria just escaped the corner of her eye as the moon continued to rotate. She was happy to be on the dark side of the moon, with Equestria out of her sight. Although Equestria was vibrant and full of life, Luna could not admire it like she could the moon–it was too busy and social. The deafening silence of the moon made the noise of Equestria seem almost unbearable. One of the things Luna had learned from her time spent on the moon was appreciation: she had learned how to appreciate the little things, such as the pleasure of falling to sleep or the company of her socks.
She was satisfied with the simple pleasures she had, but something was missing: social contact with living things. The social side of her had slowly decomposed over time on the moon and was now like an empty bowl that needed filling. The thousand years of solitude she had spent on the moon developed a nostalgia inside of her that kept her there as if it were a barbed hook embedded in her flesh. All of the time she had spent on the moon had given her a longing to return to Equestria, but now that she had been back to Equestria, she realized that it was only the moon where she felt comfortable.
A light wind swept across the rocky pale plains that made up the surface of the moon, a low cloud of dust kicking up from the ground. Luna shivered as the breeze passed through her mane, chilling her to the bone. She curled up tighter, nestling more firmly into the ground, pressing her warm fluffy socks a bit closer to her body. She shook off the cold, as she had for the past 1001 years. Equestria’s moon had a very thin atmosphere–not enough oxygen to survive for long without magic, but enough for the sound frequencies of speech to travel. Luckily for Luna, there were no complex weather systems, so the temperature always remained relatively the same. If it was too cold to sleep, Luna could heat up the air around her with her magic, but she usually just endured the temperature.
Despite these rather uncomfortable conditions that Luna tolerated, she was perfectly content; she did not notice the social part of her that was missing. Yes, she could have been happier, but she was in no way disheartened. She enjoyed laying there and watching the stars while talking with Celestia and Sockholme.
“You cold, Sockholme?” Luna inquired sympathetically, slipping her left hoof out from under her chest. She rotated her hoof until she could see the picture of Celestia that was stitched into it. Impersonating Sockholme, she lowered her voice into a sophisticated male accent as well as she could and began to reply:
“No madame, I’m doing quite fine, thank you very much.”
“That’s nice,” said Luna, smiling happily at Sockholme.
“How are you undertaking this cold temperature, my lady?”
“Fine!” Luna beamed. “What about you, sister?” she asked, addressing her right hoof, pulling it out from under her deep purple body and beginning to impersonate Celestia in a cold tyrannical voice:
“I am fine, little sister. There was really no need to ask.”
“Well, you don't have to be so rude about it,” Luna replied in a matter-of-fact way.
“Luna?” a calm and serene voice addressed her. Luna spun around to see the real Princess Celestia standing behind her, her many-colored mane flowing in the light breeze that swept across the moon. Luna was irritated that Celestia had sneaked up on her, and embarrassed that she had been caught talking to her socks.
“Oh . . . um . . . hi big sis!” she replied as happily as she could, trying to hold back nervous blushing.
“What are you doing, little sister?” Celestia responded in a concerned tone.
“I was just . . . well . . . controlling the moon . . . you know.”
“You were talking to your socks,” Celestia pointed out bluntly. There was a short pause and then Luna looked down at the ground and pawed at it with her sock-laden hoof.
“I’m sorry . . . ,” she replied in a disheartened mumble.
“There is no need to be sorry, Luna!” Celestia stated reassuringly. “I'm not surprised you've developed relationships with inanimate objects after having spent so many years alone on the moon. But sister, why do you choose to remain on this desolate wasteland? You could be in Equestria at this very moment if you wished!” Luna blushed uncomfortably as Celestia mentioned her relationship with her socks. There was a pause of silence and Princess Celestia walked up beside Luna, sitting down beside her.
“I don’t know, sis. I just like it here. Equestria is too loud and busy for me after having spent over a thousand years here. I’m not too good with ponyfolk anymore--I just don’t feel comfortable around them, like I’m out of place,” Luna lamented.
“But sister, you do not even attempt to communicate with other ponies. If you gave them just one chance, I can assure you that you would feel very welcomed.”
“No, the other ponies will never forgive me for the anger I unleashed upon them when I first escaped from the moon. And even if they did, they would just treat me like untouchable royalty, a statue that will be broken with the slightest nudge.”
“False assumptions. All of them,” Celestia replied coldly. Luna sighed and lay down on the ground again, crossing her hooves under her chest, seeing that her bigger sister would never be able to relate to her situation. After a short pause, Celestia lay down beside Luna, nudging her face closer to Luna’s, attempting to cheer her up.
“I have some matters I need attended to in Ponyville,” she said convincingly. Luna did not respond and continued to stare up to the glimmering stars in the black sky. “I was hoping that you could carry them out for me. A chance for you to communicate with somepony, and maybe even make some friends.” Luna looked at Celestia agitatedly, non-verbally saying no. “Don’t give me that look,” Celestia uttered with both agitation and concern. Luna looked down at the ground desolately.
“No,” she replied, this time with words.
“Please Luna. Just this once?” Celestia begged.
“No.”
“If you accept my offer just this once I'll never bother you about it again. I'll let you stay on the moon drowning in your own solitude for eternity.” Luna let out a breath of frustration and stood up once again.
“Fine!” she said crossly, pushing herself off of the ground onto her hooves. “If it really means that much to you, I’LL DO IT!”
Celestia smiled and responded happily, “I'm happy that we could come to terms, little sister. I give you much thanks for accepting my offer.”
“Accepting your offer? More like being forced into accepting your offer by threats!” Luna protested. “I won’t make any friends, nor will anypony be able to talk to me comfortably,” she said doubtfully.
“Do not fear sister. The Ponies of Ponyville are some of the most accepting and friendly in all of Equestria. All I need you to do is go to the library of my most prized pupil, Twilight Sparkle, and get a report on what she has learned in her studies. That doesn’t sound too hard does it?”
“No . . . but it’s just not comfortable for me. I wish you could be there with me, big sis.”
“I always am,” Celestia pointed out as she flew away, gesturing at Luna’s pink socks. Luna blushed and smiled as she looked down anxiously at her pair of fuzzy socks. Princess Celestia was now far away--a small colorful speck in space. Luna jumped upwards, launching gracefully off of the surface of the moon, flying towards Equestria. As she exited the moon’s atmosphere, her horn began to glimmer and she surrounded herself with a dark shimmering bubble of magic, preparing to enter Equestria's atmosphere.
…...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Meanwhile, on the surface of Equestria, Twilight Sparkle was looking through a brass telescope at the starry sky of the early morning. She sat in front of a low, wooden desk. Spike’s soft snoring could be heard from the adjacent room, breaking the deep silence of the morn. A brand new copy of Astronomical Astronomer’s Almanac to All Things Astronomy was laid open on the desk to page 437, which was labelled “Chapter Seven: Identifying Stars vs. Planets.” An assortment of crinkled papers were laid out across the desk with rough scribblings of solar systems and star belts.
“Pegasus’ belt, star three, where are you?” Twilight muttered to herself as she adjusted the knobs on the side of the brass telescope, scribbling down notes on a page in front of her with the charcoal pencil she suspended in the air with her unicorn magic. The faint purple glow that emanated from her horn shone onto the paper in front of her, adding an extra source of light other than the flickering orange candle that lay beside the desk.
Suddenly, two glimmering lights shot across the sky, one bright white and the other dark purple. The dark star headed just to the right of Ponyville, and the bright star headed to the mountains of Canterlot.
“Shooting stars!” Twilight gasped, quickly alerting her attention to the telescope, fumbling with the rough brass knobs, dropping her pencil mid-sentence. “Two at once? This must be my lucky day!” she exclaimed happily, her horn lighting up and beginning to flip through the pages of her almanac to the shooting stars section.
“Hmmm . . . this doesn’t say anything about color variations in shooting stars. I wonder if either of them landed?” she inquired curiously, letting out a loud yawn. Twilight looked to the window, seeing that the sun was just about to rise. “I’d better get some sleep,” she advised herself, blowing out her desk-side candle. “I’ll be able to think about all of this better in the morning.”
…...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Just outside of Ponyville, on the rural, meandering dirt path that led between Fluttershy’s cottage and the town square, Fluttershy was herding a family of young ducks. She had found them in a pond just outside of the Everfree Forest, and was helping them get to a lake just south of Ponyville, a lake with plenty of fish where they could stay for the summer. A mother duck, a father duck, and five chicks all followed behind Fluttershy in a perfect line, ordered from tallest to shortest.
The sun had risen just thirty minutes ago, and a faint matting of fog still spread across the ground, being cut like butter as Fluttershy walked through it, followed by the line of ducks. She figured that if she left this early she could escape the busyness of Ponyville as she passed through it, giving her a better chance to get the ducks home safely.
“There there, little duckies, watch your step,” she addressed the line of ducks behind her as she continued to walk down the foggy path. The father duck at the front of the line gave her a reassuring quack, and she smiled back, lightly giggling.
Suddenly, a dark figure swooped down from the sky, flying right for Fluttershy, an indigo shimmering trail of effervescent light following behind it. Fluttershy, too startled to scream, let out a feeble, rather quiet squeal, and dashed towards a nearby bush. The herd of ducks scrambled away in all directions, losing themselves in the fog, quacking loudly as they did. A deep purple alicorn with a steel-blue mane, not much larger than a normal pony, landed just in front of where Fluttershy had been just seconds ago. It was Luna. Normally, a figure like this would have been terrifying to anypony, but Luna’s pink socks helped break that fear. Unfortunately, Fluttershy was one that could be scared by anything, pink fluffy socks or not.
“Hello?” Luna inquired cynically. She then noticed a lone bush to the right of the path, which was trembling vigorously, many leaves fluttering off of it as it shook rapidly. A large pair of timid eyes could be seen inside the brambles. This is exactly what Luna had expected--ponies having an extreme fear of her. She sighed and then spoke to the bush as kindly as she could manage: “Don’t be scared. I’m Luna, princess of the moon.” Fluttershy then sped out of the bush and knelt in front of Luna, a torrent of leaves shooting into the air, some landing in her purple, lightly curled hair.
“Oh, I’m so sorry. . . um . . . princess . . . I mean . . . your highness . . . I-I didn’t mean to be rude.” Luna frowned at Fluttershy's extreme politeness. This is another trait Luna had been expecting--overcompensation for her nobility.
“There’s no need to be sorry,” she said with a hint of agitation, looking away angrily. There was a brief moment of silence and Fluttershy began to tremble again, unsure what to do. “I am sorry for frightening you.” Luna broke the silence, attempting to amend her previous acts of anger.
“Oh . . . um . . . well . . . that’s okay,” Fluttershy replied timidly, still daunted by the presence of a royal. Awkwardness continued to brew in the air as the silence returned. Fluttershy was not confident enough to say anything directly to Luna without being asked first, which drove Luna to irritation.
“I am looking for Twilight Sparkle. Do you know where I could find her?” Luna asked as calmly as possible, striving to hide her frustration.
“Oh, Twilight? She lives in the library. Just follow this path to Ponyville and you can’t miss it,” Fluttershy responded hastily, happy to end the conversation.
“Much thanks!” Luna said happily as she flew away down the path to Ponyville. Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief, thankful that the conversing was over, and went back down the path to find the family of ducks once again.
…...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
It was now almost an hour after sunrise, and Luna had made it to Ponyville. Thankfully, the streets were empty due to the time; however, Luna needed directions to the library and there was nopony in sight. So far, Luna’s doubts towards the Ponies of Equestria had been fully proven by Fluttershy. She was now fully convinced that every pony in Ponyville was scared of her.
Out of the corner of her eye, Luna saw a bright pink pony. The pony was down an alleyway behind a building which had a brightly-colored sign labeled "Sugarcube Corner." Luna trotted towards the pink pony quickly, hoping to get the directions, get to the library, and out of Equestria as quickly as possible.
“Hi there!” she said hastily once she reached the pink pony. The pony turned around happily as anypony would to address another pony, but when she saw it was Luna, she jumped in the air, letting out an extremely loud terrifying gasp. She dashed off into the distance, out of sight. Luna sighed and looked down at her pink socks, a single tear rolling down the side of her cheek. It seemed that nopony could be comfortable with Luna around--she seemed to scare the living daylights out of them at every turn.
Unsure of where Twilight’s library was, and with nopony in sight to give her directions, Luna decided to fly over Ponyville to look for the library. She flew so high that each building only appeared as a small speck on a colorful canvas full of many homes, but she still had no idea which building would be the library. Luna scanned over the top of each structure meticulously, unsure of which building would be the library. She flew closer and closer to the town, eventually reaching ground level once more. She then checked the sign on each building, but none of them read “library.”
Disillusioned, she flew up to a cloud that was hovering just above the town, and lay on it. She lay there depressed and full of frustration, her hoof resting on her cheek, trying to concentrate her thoughts. “If I was a library where would I be?” she thought hopelessly.
All of a sudden, the cloud under Luna dematerialized, and she let out a surprised yelp and began to fall. She quickly opened her wings and regained her balance, looking up and seeing a light blue pony with a rainbow-colored mane in front of her.
“Oh my gosh! I’m SO sorry!” said Rainbow Dash, guilt-ridden to realize that she had just kicked a cloud out from under a royal. She flew up to Luna and attempted to kneel into a bow in front of her, entering an awkward mid-air stance. “Please forgive me your highness, I’ll do anything you want. I was just clearing out some clouds and didn’t notice you were there, I swear!”
“I’m fine, there’s no need to be sorry,” Luna said reassuringly, attempting to hold back a giggle at Rainbow Dash’s strange position. Dash sighed, and maintained her normal flight position, relieved that she would receive no sort of punishment. “But, there is something you could do for me.”
“Really? What is it? I can do anything!” Dash claimed pridefully, rearing up, ready to do whatever Luna wanted.
“I need to get to Twilight’s library, and I don’t know where it is. Could you give me directions?”
“Twilight’s library? That’s easy! Hey, I can just take you there. C’mon, it’ll be a jiffy!” Dash said happily, beginning to fly towards the library at a mediocre pace, striving to be conscious of Luna’s flight speed. Luna followed after Dash happily. Although she was annoyed at Rainbow Dash’s extreme need to be over-friendly and loyal to royalty, Luna was grateful that Dash was neither timid around her, nor terrified of her.
Once they reached the library, Luna realized that it was not a building, but a tree. “Oh. I thought it would be more of a . . . well . . . house.”
“Yeah, it’s more of a tree than a building. Anything else I can help you with your majesty?” asked Dash confidently, ready to help with something else.
“No, that’s all thank you,” Luna said gratefully. Dash saluted pridefully and flew away to attend to more weather jobs. Luna smiled and walked up to the door, beginning to knock.
…...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Twilight woke to the sound of knocking. She sleepily opened one eye and blew a strand of hair from her face. She looked at the clock and realized it was already past eleven o’clock. She let out a yelp and threw off her blankets, heading over to the mirror at the other end of her room, picking up a brush with magic and beginning to straighten out her hair.
“I’ve already lost half of the day!” she exclaimed worriedly, used to waking up in the early hours of the morning. “I have lots of studying to do during the day and lots of star gazing to do during the night--I can’t let anything get in my way today.” She put down the brush, opened the door leading out of her bedroom, and hurried down the stairs to the main portion of the library. “Spike, wake up!” she said firmly to the heap of scales snoring loudly in the small bed. Spike let out an irritated mumble and shifted around in his bed, turning over to his other side and continuing to snore. “SPIIIKE WAKE UP!” Twilight yelled, knocking Spike out of his bed with a terrified shout, landing in a heap of books in the corner of the room, his blanket flying into the air and slowly floating down.
“Uh, yes, what is it Twilight? I’m sorry I slept in!” he stuttered quickly, brushing the pile of books off of himself as he stood up sleepily.
“There’s someone at the door. Please go answer it. I’ll start breakfast,” Twilight said trying to be nice, walking into the kitchen.
“Will do,” said Spike, hurrying to the door. As he opened it, his jaw dropped in surprise. It was Princess Luna of the moon.
“Your Majesty!” he let out, astonished, kneeling down in front of her.
“Hi Spike!” she said as happily as possible. Spike was astounded by both Luna’s casualness and her pink socks. He tried to look away from the socks, but couldn’t keep his eyes from them, as they stood out from her dark indigo coat. Luna looked down at her socks and blushed.
“Don’t mind the socks,” she said quietly with a hint of irritation.
“Oh . . . uh . . . sorry, your Majesty,” Spike uttered hastily, standing up into a straight position, forcing himself to look Luna in the eyes rather than at her socks.
“I’m here here to see Ms. Twilight Sparkle.”
“TWILIGHT!” Spike yelled into the library, looking back to the kitchen.
“What is it Spike?” Twilight replied happily.
“Twilight, you need to come here, now!”
“Can it wait? I’m busy making grass pancakes.”
“No, it’s really important!”
“Fine!” she said with irritation, putting down her pan, turning off the stove, and angrily trotting towards the door. “But it'd better be pretty darn important!” As soon as she saw Princess Luna standing in the door, her jaw dropped in both astonishment and anxiety. She sped to the door quickly and bowed deeply in front of Luna. “I am so sorry you had to see me being so rude, your highness. It was a disgrace,” she said shamefully.
“That’s okay!” Luna beamed, trotting into the library. “But you really should be more polite to your servant. He is only a baby dragon.” Spike crossed his arms pridefully and gave Twilight a glance. She gave him a quick scowl and then put on a fake smile and looked back at Luna.
“I’m sorry, your majesty. I guess I’m just easily stressed. Sometimes when things get out of hoof I’m too firm with him.”
“It’s okay, just keep it in mind,” Luna said happily.
“So, what brings you here, your majesty?” Twilight said, maintaining a forced smile.
“Celestia sent me here to get your next report on the magic of friendship.”
“Oh no . . . ” Twilight worried, looking around the room for a report that she knew was not there. “I’m so sorry, your highness, but I haven’t completed my current report yet. I have a few . . . um . . . er . . . touch ups! Touch ups that I have to add to it before I can give it to you,” Twilight lied, forcing a large unconvincing smile.
“You're sure you can’t just give me what you've done so far?" Luna inquired hopefully. "Celestia has so much faith in you that I’m pretty sure you could send her almost anything and she'd still be happy.”
“Nope. This one’s . . . uh . . . extra important and it needs to be perfect before I submit it.” Luna sighed with agitation. “I’m really sorry, Princess, but I need to finish it. Here, I should be able to finish it by six tonight--you’ll be able to find something to do in Ponyville for the next six hours! There’s a bunch of things to do in Ponyville: you could go to the spa, or Sugarcube Corner, or Rarity’s Fashion Boutique, or Sweet Apple Acres,” Twilight said hastily, beginning to walk towards the door, gesturing for Luna to leave.
“I was really hoping to leave now,” Luna said irritatedly as she started to walk towards the door.
“I wish I had the report done too, but I don’t. I’m so sorry, your highness. Like I said, it’ll be done by six,” Twilight said quickly, slamming the door shut as soon as Luna was outside of the library. She slid down the door and sighed, relieved that Luna was finally gone. “What have I gotten myself into, Spike?” she asked guiltily. Spike shrugged and began to pick up books from the floor. Twilight frowned at Spike’s ignorance, got up, and began to run around looking for a quill and paper. “We’re going to have to work extra hard to make this report, Spike. We’ve got six hours and I haven’t even started!” Twilight claimed anxiously.
“We?” Spike let out hopefully as he began to stumble up the ladder, a pile of books in hand. Twilight scowled at him.
“Yes, we!” she said angrily. Spike cringed when he realized that he would have to do most of the work. He sighed as he began to put the books back in their place.
“Hmm . . . what could we do this report on?” Twilight contemplated with concentration, looking up to the multitude of books on the wall. “We could just steal another lesson from that famous ancient theologian pony. What was his name?”
“You mean Neighsop?”
“Yeah, him!” Twilight let out happily.
“I don’t know, Twilight. We already stole like twenty six from him. Don’t you think Celestia’s gonna notice after a while?” Spike asked with concern.
“I guess you're right," Twilight sighed, looking back down from the bookshelves to the paper she had gathered. “We’ll just have to improvise with this one.” Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. “Go get it, Spike. It had better not be Luna again.” Spike frowned and walked to the door. As soon as he opened the door, Pinkie Pie burst in, knocking Spike over into the bookshelf once again, a fresh pile of books falling on top of him.
“Hi Twilight!” she exclaimed joyfully, trotting happily into the room.
“Hi Pinkie, what do you need?” Twilight said as politely as possible, somewhat irritated that she was losing precious time.
“I was wondering if I could hold a party here today?! There’s a new pony in town and it’s extra super important that I give them a nice warm welcoming! Mr. and Mrs. Cake are extra busy today, so I can’t use Sugarcube Corner, and this is the only place big enough that I can use!”
“I don’t know Pinkie. I’ve got a report I have to make by six o’clock, and I can’t have anything in my way.”
“Pretty pretty super pretty please?” Pinkie begged, kneeling in front of Twilight’s knees, making the saddest facial expression she could pull off, attempting to make Twilight as guilt-ridden as possible. “If I can’t have the party here I would have to have it outside, which would be okay, but it’s gonna be a surprise party, and there isn’t really anywhere to hide outside, except for bushes, but I know that Rarity wouldn’t even touch a bush, and then we would have to somehow get the new pony to walk by the bushes and-”
“OKAY! You can have the stupid party here,” Twilight yelled, cutting off Pinkie mid-sentence. “You just can’t get in my way AT ALL!”
“Thank you so much, Twilight! I promise I won’t get in your way at all--cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. I’ll be as super quiet as possible and won’t disturb your studies one bit,” Pinkie promised.
“Okay, good, but listen to me carefully.” Pinkie moved her ears a little closer and sobered up a bit as Twilight’s tone got more serious. “You can NOT have this party before six o’clock - do you hear me? NO PARTY BEFORE SIX O’CLOCK! Princess Luna herself is coming here to get my report at six and I cannot have ANY distractions. You got it?”
“Wait, princess Luna is coming here at six? That’s PERFECT! Don’t worry, I promise, the party will not be before Six O’Clock,” Pinkie promised yet again, doing her usual hand signals for her signature vow. Twilight sighed and began to walk up the stairs to her study. “Don’t worry Twilight - Put that frown upside down! I’m not even going to be here most of the time. I still have to make the food, make the cake, make the punch, get the supplies, hand out the invitations . . . oh yeah! That reminds me, wanna come? There’ll be cake, and ice cream, and dancing, and music, and all of our bestest friends will be there!” Pinkie exclaimed happily.
“Sure, why not? It's not like I'll be leaving.”
“Hooray! I’m happy you can make it!” Pinkie beamed. With that, she ran out of the door to Ponyville, a big job ahead of her.
“C’mon Spike,” Twilight requested tiredly as she continued to walk up the stairs to her study. “We've got lots of work to do.”
…...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Rarity had just woken up, and was proceeding to open up her boutique for yet another day of fashion marketing. It was almost noon and she had to open up fast if she was going to get any business. Her horn glowed a faint purple as she swished a broom back and forth across the already sparkling tile floor. She was compulsively straightening everything, even if it was already as straightened out as physically possible. Not a smudge could be on a window, not a crumb could be on the floor, not a ponykin could be at a wrong angle.
“Maybe somepony who actually knows a bit about fashion will take the time to visit my boutique today,” Rarity bemoaned as she continued to clean. Suddenly there was a rapid vigorous knocking at the door.
“Rarity! Lemme in! Rarity! You there? Rarity! RAARRRRITTTY!” a voice said excitedly from behind the door. Undoubtedly, it was Pinkie Pie.
“Or, maybe not,” Rarity sighed pessimistically, beginning to trot towards the door, still suspending the broom. As soon as she unlocked the door, Pinkie came crashing in, knocking rarity over, the broom flying into the air, knocking over a few ponykins and a rack of saddles.
“Streamers. Streamers! STREAMERS!!!!! You got any? I need ‘em, and fast! I looked all around Ponyville and no party stores are open!” Pinkie screamed. Rarity groaned as she stood up, looking over at the pile of knocked over ponykins and saddles strewn about the floor.
“Yes, I do have streamers, but honestly, darling, get a hold of yourself. It is rude to crash into somepony’s house so barbarically like that,” Rarity complained.
“I’m sorry, but it’s extra super important that I get these streamers right now! A new pony is in town and I need to set up a welcome party for her before dinner time! I’m running out of time and I still need to make the cake, make the punch, set up the music, invite everypony . . . wait . . . that reminds me, wanna come? There’ll be cake, and ice cream, and dancing, and music, and all of our bestest friends will be there!” Pinkie exclaimed exuberantly. Rarity sighed, starting to pick up the saddles from the floor with her magic.
“Fine,” she said with a hint of irritation, knowing that it would be improper to refuse the invitation.
“Hooray! I’m so glad you can come! It'll be at Twilight's library. Twilight says we can't party before six o'clock, so it'll start at six o’clock, but make sure to be there at least fifteen minutes early, because it’ll be a surprise party!” Pinkie let out joyfully, clapping her hooves in excitement. “Now, where are those streamers?”
“In the closet on the shelf to the left three columns up,” Rarity said crossly, paying more attention to fixing up her ruined display than she was to Pinkie Pie. As soon as Rarity revealed the location of the streamers, Pinkie scrambled into the closet, grabbed three spools of colored streamers, and was out in a flash.
“Thanks!” she said quickly as she dashed out of the door. Rarity shook her head and continued to mend the aesthetic integrity of her boutique.
Soon, there was another knocking on the door. After fixing up the display, Rarity waltzed back to the door, with no hopes that it would be anypony important. She opened the door to see Princess Luna.
“Hi!” Luna said somewhat shyly, still feeling down from her encounter with Twilight.
“Your highness, oh my!” Rarity stated excitedly, bowing down low to the ground, a large smile encompassing her face. “It is an honor to have you, one of the most famed ponies in Equestria, here in my Boutique! What brings you here on a day such as this?”
“Oh, well, I’m waiting for a report from Twilight, and I have to wait until six. One of the places in Ponyville she recommended I come while I wait was here.”
“Ah, I’m glad you came darling, but I doubt I would be able to match any of the magnificent designers you have in Canterlot. Ah, the royalty! The fashion! The society! Canterlot has an amazing reputation for innovative fashionistas. Only if I could live there, where ponies actually have a bit of sense when it comes to class,” Rarity bemoaned.
“You might as well try. I actually don’t spend that much time in Canterlot - I don’t like it there.” Luna replied innocently.
“You don’t like it in Canterlot? Oh my . . . Anyway, I would love to have a try at finding the perfect outfit for you!” Rarity responded, dumbfounded by Luna’s dislike of Canterlot. “Follow me!” Luna followed Rarity into the back of the shop where there was a mirror, change room, and makeup stand.
As Rarity turned the mirror towards Luna, she noticed the socks:
“Hmm . . . socks . . . interesting fashion choice darling . . . very . . . um . . . hip!” Rarity lied.
“Oh, these old things?” Luna said, blushing and looking down nervously at her socks. Noticing Luna’s uneasiness, Rarity dashed into the closet, and was out again in a second with an array of outfits.
“Let’s get started, shall we?” she suggested hastily.
“Okay,” Luna replied anxiously, unsure of what she was getting herself into. Rarity bent down to pull off Luna’s socks.
“We’ll have to take these off to get started, dear,” she said politely.
“No!” Luna said, upset with the idea, moving her hooves away from Rarity quickly.
“Oh . . . well . . . okay, darling,” Rarity managed, a twitch developing in her left eye. “We’ll see what we can do with them still on.” Rarity moved around Luna in a flash, applying makeup and getting Luna to try on different outfits. She tried a multitude of different setups, many of them ending up with Luna’s hair looking like bacon. After about twelve different outfits, Rarity found the perfect one. It was a dress, simple yet elegant, which matched her indigo coat and her silver and black cutie mark, yet was also embroidered with a shining pink gem, which matched perfectly with Luna’s bright pink socks.
“It’s perfect!” Rarity beamed. “I never thought I would find something that would match with those terrible . . . I mean . . . wonderful socks!”
“I actually quite like it.” Luna said happily, looking at herself in the mirror.
“Would you like it? I would give it to you for free, your majesty. It's the least I could possibly do,” Rarity asked greedily, hoping for the answer of yes.
“No, sorry, I don’t have any occasions where I’ll need to wear it,” Luna replied simply, the smile on Rarity’s face fading away. “But, I will make sure to recommend you if anybody I know ever needs an outfit.” Rarity’s face lit up once again.
“Oh, thank you, darling! It would be an honor to have you recommend my products, your majesty. Is there anything else I could possibly do for you, your highness?”
“No thanks, I’m fine!” Luna said happily as she trotted back into the shop area of the boutique.
“Goodbye! I hope to see you again soon!” Rarity exclaimed happily as Luna exited the shop. Luna was grateful that Rarity was not scared of her, but happy to get away from being glorified. In Luna’s opinion, Rarity took to royalty much too seriously--even more than the other ponies.
…...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
It was just past two o’clock, and Rainbow Dash was sleeping lazily on a lone cloud floating above the outskirts of Ponyville. She had finished all of the weather jobs for the day and was happily lying half asleep on the cloud, feeling the breeze in her mane as she lay there dreamily. However, this serenity was soon broken by a loud, rather happy voice.
“Hey dash!” said the voice enthusiastically. Dash, annoyed, cocked open her left eye and looked around. Nothing seemed to be there, so she closed her eye and attempted to fall back to sleep.
“Must just be hearing voices,” she muttered to herself.
“Wake up you silly filly!” the voice said again. This time Dash jumped up onto her feet and looked around rapidly, striving to figure out who was ruining her nap. She then looked over the edge of her cloud, a smile lighting up her face as she saw Pinkie Pie flying up towards the cloud, having just bounced off of a trampoline.
“Hey, what’s up Pinkie Pie?”
“I was just wondering . . . ” said Pinkie Pie at the maximum height of her bounce, cut off as she descended towards the trampoline once more. “ . . . If you could . . . ”
“Here, I’ll just fly down,” Rainbow Dash laughed as she jumped off of the cloud and sped towards the ground, reaching it in less than a second. By the time she reached the ground, Pinkie Pie was standing there happily waiting for her, the trampoline nowhere to be seen.
“Where did the trampoline go?” Dash asked, quizzically raising her right eyebrow.
“What trampoline?”
“The one you just used to bounce up to my cloud.”
“Oh, that one? I already put it away!” Pinkie exclaimed cheerfully. Rainbow Dash had no idea how Pinkie Pie had taken down the trampoline, put it away, and come back in less than a second, but she didn’t question. It was just Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie.
“So, what do you want?”
“I was wondering if you could come to a welcome party I’m hosting today! There’s a new pony in town that we need to give a warm welcome, and there’ll be cake, and ice cream, and dancing, and music, and all of our bestest friends will be there!”
“Sure, why not. I’d never miss one of your parties, Pinkie Pie. Who’s it for?”
“Who’s what for?”
“The party. Who’s it for?” Dash inquired, with a hint of irritation.
“Oh, that’s a surprise! The party’s at six o’clock at Twilight’s library. Make sure to be there at least fifteen minutes early, because it’s gonna be a surprise party!” said Pinkie, beginning to bounce away.
“A surprise party where the pony the party’s for is a surprise?” Dash asked confusedly.
“Of course, silly!” Pinkie yelled back.
“Well, I guess there's never too many surprises!” Dash replied, flying back to her cloud to sleep, still unsure as to how there could be a surprise party within a surprise party. As Pinkie happily bounced back the cobblestone road that lead into Ponyville, she noticed a light gray pegasus with a faded yellow mane flying around in loops in the sky. At first it seemed to be a similar pony Pinkie had seen in the past, but when she noticed that the pony had bubbles for a cutie mark, she realized that it was a new pony. Pinkie’s heart filled with joy when she realized that she had never met this pony before.
“Hey, you there! Who are you!” she screamed excitedly to the gray and yellow pegasus. She had never had the chance to throw a welcome party for more than one pony since the day she had moved to Ponyville. The gray and yellow pegasus turned around and flew sloppily towards Pinkie, crashing into the cobblestone road. When the pegasus got up off of the hard cobblestone ground, it turned around and looked at Pinkie strangely. One of the pegasus’ eyes looked up and one looked down. Pinkie couldn’t be sure whether the pegasus was looking at her, at the ground, or at the sky.
“Hi!” Pinkie said happily.
“O hai dere!” the gray and yellow pegasus replied in a loud and unstable voice. Her tongue was hanging slightly out of the right side of her snout, which was slightly wrinkled, as if something smelled bad.
“What’s your name?” Pinkie asked kindly.
“Derpy!” the pegasus responded, and clapped her front hooves together once.
“Derpy? Do you have a last name, or is that it?”
“Derpy!” the pegasus repeated, clapping her front hooves together once more.
"Oh, I get it, Derpy Hooves?” Pinkie inquired. Derpy Hooves nodded her head.
“Normally I throw surprise parties for ponies I haven’t met before, but, today there are TWO new ponies in Ponyville! It’s so super fantastically amazing that it’s like having two birthdays at once!” Pinkie let out exuberantly. “Anyways, since I can’t hold two parties at once, I was thinking we should just have one super wondiferous party for both of you at once! What do you think?” Derpy sat there staring at Pinkie for a moment and then queued in:
“A party?” she asked, dumbfounded.
“Yeah, wanna come? There'll be cake, and ice cream, and dancing, and music, and all of my bestest friends will be there!”
“Dere’s icecreem and cake and music and dancing and frans, but will dere be muffins?” Derpy inquired, pronouncing many words slightly wrong.
“Of COURSE there’ll be muffins!” Pinkie exclaimed.
“HOORAY! I’ll be dere!” Derpy replied.
“Okay, sounds good! It’s at the library at six O ‘Clock, but make sure to be there at least fifteen minutes early because its a surprise party!” Derpy Hooves flew off into the distance, flying backwards in a sloppy spiral, screaming “MUFFINS, MUFFINS,” as she went. Pinkie took it as a yes.
…...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Applejack had been tending to the apple trees since early that morning. It was now three o’clock and she was almost done bucking all of the apples from the northeast orchards. She sat down on the grass for a second, catching her breath.
“C’mon Applejack, you gotta keep goin’. Only a few dozen more trees to go,” she said determinedly, getting back onto her hooves, wiping the sweat from her brow. She began to walk towards the next apple tree, pulling a wooden, apple-loaded cart behind her. Suddenly, a voice came timidly from behind her:
“Um, hello?” it asked. Applejack turned around to see princess Luna standing behind her. She unhitched herself from the apple cart as quickly as she could and ran up to Luna, bowing deeply in front of her.
“It’s a pleasure, yur’ majesty,” she replied uneasily. Applejack did not know much about manners, so she was very nervous around royals. “What brings ya' here?”
“I’m waiting for Twilight to write me a report, and this is one of the places in Ponyville she recommended I visit while I wait,” Luna responded.
“Oh, okay. Ya’ hungry? We’ve got apple fritters, apple pie, apple strudel, apple juice, apple sauce . . . .”
“No thanks, I’m not hungry,” Luna replied politely
“Oh . . . well, there aint’ much else for a royal to do ‘round here other than eat. I’m mighty sorry, but ‘bout all we do ‘round here is buck apples and then either sell em’ or eat em’,” Applejack apologized.
“I could try bucking apples,” Luna suggested quietly.
“Nah, sorry, but I don’t really think you’re the type. I don’t mean no offense or nothin’, your highness, but apple buckin’ aint’ exactly a job for a royal. It’s dirty, sweaty, hard work--that’s what it is,” Applejack replied as politely as she could. “Ya’ wouldn’t want to dirty up those pretty pink socks ya’ got there, would ya’?
“I guess not,” Luna replied, looking down at her socks, which were already quite dirty. Applejack’s doubts irritated Luna, and the mention of her socks embarrassed her even more. It was as if the socks showed that she was weak.
“If you were hungry I’d recommend Sugarcube Corner, but since you’re not, I’d suggest the spa. It’s the kinda thing somepony like you'ld enjoy.”
“Okay,” Luna replied simply, hiding back her sadness, flying away into the distance. Applejack sighed with relief once Luna was out of sight.
“Darn, I hate bein’ ‘round royals like that,” she exclaimed as she began to re-hitch the apple cart to her harness. “It just makes me nervous to no end.” Just before she was about to buck the next apple tree, another voice came from behind her.
“Hey Applejack!” it said happily. Applejack responded angrily:
“What is it now?” she said with irritation; however, when she turned around, a smile lit up on her face as she realized it was just Pinkie Pie. “Oh, hey Pinkie, what’s up?
“I was wondering if you could come to a welcome party I’m hosting today! There’s TWO new ponies in town that we need to give a warm welcome, and there'll be cake, and ice cream, and dancing, and music, and all of our bestest friends will be there!”
“Sure, I’d love to come to yur’ party, Pinkie Pie! Your parties are always sure to be great!”
“Hooray! I’m glad you can come,” Pinkie said happily.
“Who’s the party for?”
“Well, the party is actually for TWO ponies. One half of the party is for a pony named Derpy Hooves, and the other half of the party is a surprise!”
“A surprise?” Applejack asked, bewildered.
“Yeah! It’s at 6:00 at Twilight’s library. Make sure to be there at least fifteen minutes early, because half of it’s a surprise party!”
“Okay . . . ” Applejack replied, still confused about how there could be a party within a party.
“Have you seen Fluttershy?” Pinkie asked
“Yeah, she headed through here this mornin’. She was headed with a herd of ducks to the lake just above Ponyville.”
“Thanks!” Pinkie exclaimed happily, beginning to bounce off to the lake. Applejack went back to her bucking, kicking the tree in front of her, a shower of apples falling down into the cart that was harnessed behind her.
…...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
“There! All done!” Twilight said happily as Spike wrote down the last sentence of the report on friendship.
“Another job well done,” Spike said with a hint of sarcasm as he closed a book labeled Neighsop’s Most Notable Parables that had been open on the floor. Twilight looked at the clock on the wall, seeing that it was one minute to six o’clock.
“Perfect timing too!” she exclaimed joyfully. “C’mon Spike, we have a report to give!”
“Will do!” said Spike as he followed Twilight out of the door that led to the library. The entire library was pitch black and not a light could be seen--even the windows were blacked out. All that could be heard was a faint whispering of the voices of a group of ponies.
“What the hay is going on?” Twilight whispered to Spike.
“Don’t ask me!” Spike replied with trepidation. There was a knock on the door, which was not answered. After a slight pause, the door slowly creaked open. As soon as the door to the library opened, revealing Princess Luna, Twilight realized what was happening and her jaw dropped in horror. She had told Pinkie Pie that she couldn't have a party before six, but she hadn't restricted her from having a party at six or after six.
“H-hello?” Luna asked timidly to the seemingly empty library. After a second or two, the lights abruptly turned on and an explosion of confetti shot into the air, revealing a room full of colorful streamers and paper cutouts with text reading “Welcome to Ponyville!”
“SURPRISE!” everypony except for Twilight yelled happily. Luna jumped with a surprised yelp, but soon a smile lit up on her face like never before. She was delighted that the ponyfolk of Ponyville had been so thoughtful to throw her a welcome party.
Soon, however, as the lights were turned on, most of the ponies in the room stifled their happy cheers and stood awestruck with looks of fear on their faces. The only ponies that were still screaming were Pinkie and Derpy.
“WELCOME TO PONYVILLE!” Pinkie yelled cheerfully.
“MUFFINS! MUFFINS! MUFFINS!” Derpy screamed in the background as she flew in loops back and forth across the large space that made up the library’s ceiling. Soon, even Pinkie Pie was silent, noticing that all of the other ponies had ceased to make noise. Derpy continued to loop around the library screaming “MUFFINS MUFFINS,” for a few seconds, but soon clued into the silence and became silent herself, landing sloppily on the floor, crashing into one of the bookcases, a pile of books showering down on top of her.
The smile on Luna’s face was quickly wiped off. Everypony except for Pinkie seemed so dissatisfied to see that it was Luna and not some other pony.
“Oooh, is this a quiet game now? I give up, because I KNOW Fluttershy would win!” Pinkie screamed happily, attempting to break the tension, but every pony remained silent. Suddenly, Twilight intervened.
“I’m SO sorry Princess! All I was going to do is give you a report, and send you on your way. I promise I didn’t know what Pinkie Pie was plotting the whole time. This wasn’t intended to be a party at all. I’m sorry if I have shamed myself. Please forgive me!” Twilight begged. Soon, Rainbow Dash joined in as well, begging for forgiveness:
“Me too! I had NO idea that Pinkie would be crazy enough to try and throw a party for someone as important as you!” Soon everypony other than Pinkie was joining in.
“I’m mighty sorry, ma’am. I di’nt have the smallest idea that Pinkie here was gonna’ try an’ throw a party for a princess!” Applejack stated.
“Oh . . . um . . . I’m sorry.” Fluttershy managed to let out timidly.
“Oh, darling, I am so sorry! You see, your highness, I doubt that any of these ponies have the slightest idea what it means to have class. This is a travesty, simply devastating. I am so regretful, honestly,” Rarity confessed nervously, attempting to make use of the classiest language she could utilize. Derpy managed to pop her head out of the pile of books on the floor and join in the conversation.
“String theory is an active research framework in particle physics that attempts to reconcile quantum mechanics and-” she was cut off by a large explosion. All of the ponies in the room were knocked back against the wall and a shower of books came reigning down from the bookshelves, covering the floor in a knee-high pile of tomes and almanacs. A deep blue shimmering light filled the room, blinding everypony for a split second as Luna transformed into Nightmare Moon. The socks were gone--replaced with shining cobalt plate boots. Flickering shades of purple and indigo flashed across the room as Nightmare Moon’s shimmering starry mane flowed in the darkness. The air was darker than black; it was filled with pure night.
“HOW DARE YOU TREAT YOUR PRINCESS LIKE YOU HAVE!” she screamed in an evil voice powerful beyond description. No pony spoke a word; all of them were petrified in sheer fright--even Pinkie could not bring herself to laugh at this darkness. “I come here to Ponyville to get a simple report and everypony is either terrified of me or too nervous to act normally in my presence!!” she yelled, continuing to rant in rage against all of the ponies in the room. “One pony has the heart to throw me a party, and you all push it aside as if I don’t like parties--as if I despise them!! FOALS!!” she complained angrily. Nightmare Moon then proceeded to point out the flaws of each pony in the room:
“You, Fluttershy!” she screamed, pointing at Fluttershy, who was cowering under a heap of books in the corner, “you acted as if I was a horrible beast attempting to kill you, when all I wanted was directions! You sensitive, timid, bag of dirt!” Nightmare Moon’s words stabbed like knives through the night-filled air.
“You, Pinkie Pie!” she said, pointing to the Pink pony who was standing in the middle of the room, slowly inching away from Nightmare Moon, shaking as she did so. “Despite the fact that you attempted to throw me a party, it didn't work out did it? Early today when all I wanted from you was directions, you screamed in fright and ran away as if I was a terrible monster! That is NO WAY to treat a ROYAL!” Pinkie whimpered a bit, and continued to inch backwards.
Nightmare Moon then directed her attention to Twilight, who’s head was just barely poking out from under a pile of books. “Twilight! All I asked you for was a simple report, and you lied to me, saying that it was almost complete, when you obviously hadn’t even started it, pushing me out of your home as if I am not welcome here!! You insolent FOAL!” Twilight cringed at the mention of her lying.
“Rainbow Dash, you over-confident, blundering pigeon!” Nightmare Moon addressed Dash, who was standing at the left side of the room, trembling, but trying very hard to stay standing: to overcome her fears. She winced at being called a pigeon. “You treated me as if I was an untouchable royalty, being loyal to everything I say and do, as if I am a fragile ornament that will break with the slightest touch!”
Next, Nightmare Moon glanced towards Applejack, who was standing in the right side of the room, trembling, struggling to stay standing. "Applejack! I came to you simply to pass time, and you quickly got rid of me, uneasy in my presence." Applejack started slowly inching farther into the corner, terrified of Nightmare moon and guilty of her faults that had been rudely pointed out to her. "You treated me as a weak filly, unable to even kick a tree, when I raise the moon for you every night. How IGNORANT! How do you feel now that you witness my POWER!" Nightmare Moon's horn shimmered and Applejack was flung into the corner of the room, falling into the sea of books which now covered the floor.
“And you . . . ” Nightmare Moon addressed Derpy Hooves, who was not trembling, nor cowering, but staring towards Nightmare Moon, one of her eyes pointing up and one of her eyes pointing down. “ . . . You’re just so . . . stupid-looking . . . so . . . derpy!” Nightmare Moon let out, finally finding the perfect words to describe Derpy. Nightmare moon's voice was slowly becoming less powerful, slightly distorting as she yelled, as if Luna was trying to get out.
“And Rarity, the worst of ALL of these little ponies,” Nightmare Moon spat at Rarity, who was cowering under a pile of books, much like Fluttershy. “I came to your shop purely for entertainment and you treated me as if I was better than everyone else in the world. You treated me as a fashion idol and greedily requested me to recommend your products to “high-class,” ponies, you filthy MULE!!!” Rarity shuttered at the mention of being a Mule and began to weep.
Nightmare Moon then let out a deafening scream of rage. “AAAAAUUUUUGGGH!!” She screamed, her voice distorting, gradually getting higher and quieter, losing all of its power and evil. The night left the room almost instantly and the lights turned back on. Nightmare Moon transformed back into Luna, crumpling into a small deep blue heap on the ground, her face in her hooves, crying into her fluffy pink socks. The night had sucked all of the happiness out of the air.
Pinkie was the first to regain her happiness: “Oh no, don’t you see what you’ve done!” Pinkie said to the rest of the her friends in the library, all of them slowly losing their fear and regaining their consciousness. All of the ponies slowly began to get on their hooves and trot towards Luna. “All she needed was some friendship and all of you guys did the complete opposite! I tried to make a party for her, but then you guys ruined it! Did you see the smile on her face when she saw that we had set up a welcome party for her!”
“I’m so sorry Pinkie--I just didn’t understand how lonely she was inside. I just couldn’t be comfortable around her because she’s . . . well . . . royalty!” Twilight responded.
“It’s not ME you have to apologize to, it’s HER!” Pinkie said sharply. Twilight knelt down to Luna, who was still uncontrollably weeping on the ground. “I’m so sorry, Luna,” she apologized. Soon, all of the ponies apologized, even Derpy. Luna took her face out of her hooves, and wiped the tears out of her eyes with her fluffy socks.
“No, it’s me that should be sorry,” she said determinedly. “I came here resisting friendship from the very start. I wanted to get out of here as fast as possible, just to prove to my sister that I would never be able to make any friends, and in doing so I ignored all of the generosity and care all of you had for me. Then, just now, I got so angry with all of you that I turned into Nightmare Moon, where I can only see imperfection. I said all of those horrible things about you, exaggerating all of your flaws, bringing out all of your weaknesses, and ignoring all of your strengths and beauties.”
“It’s okay, we all forgive you!” Pinkie said happily, all of the other ponies nodding in agreement. Luna looked up at Pinkie sadly, a glimmer of hope in her eyes.
“Are you sure?” she asked doubtfully, unsure of how anypony could forgive her after the horrible things she had said about them.
“Absolutely, one-hundred percent, positively, definitely, super-certainly sure!” Pinkie replied happily. “And we’ll prove it to you by giving you the best party ever! Isn’t that right girls?” Pinkie asked, all of the other ponies nodding in agreement once more, Derpy continuing to fly in lopsided circles.
Only a minute ago the room had been covered in a dark void of anger and loneliness. Not everypony had completely recuperated; however, soon, as happiness began to warm up the room, all of them recovered. An uncommonly large smile lit up Luna’s face as all of the ponies in the room dispersed towards various activities. Luna saw that Rainbow Dash was at the apple dunking barrel in the corner of the room and decided to go join her.
“Hey Luna!”
“Hey!” Luna replied happily.
“I bet you can’t beat me at apple dunking!”
“It. Is. ON,” Luna responded daringly. Dash dunked her head into the water and pulled out a shiny red apple.
“Hah! A pigeon couldn't do that, now could it?” Luna then dunked her head in the water and, using magic, pulled out three apples at once, two of them red, one of them green.
“Hey . . . wha . . . that’s not fair!” Dash protested.
“A pigeon definitely can’t do that,” Luna giggled. Dash scowled at her and continued to dunk her head into the water, attempting to get three apples at once to prove she was not a pigeon.
Knowing it was all in good fun, Luna smiled and walked into the middle of the room where music was playing and Pinkie was dancing.
“Yeah, get it on girls!” Pinkie screamed as she violently kicked back and forth. It was the first time that Luna had danced in more than one thousand years, and it was one of the funnest things she had ever done. She didn’t remember dancing as being particularly enjoyable before she was banished to the moon, but now she was having her best night ever, and dancing seemed like the most exciting thing she had ever done. By now, the ground was littered with books, but no one payed attention to them, knocking the sea of books back and forth as they danced and played. Not even spike bothered to begin picking up the books; he was busy eating cake on the table in the far right corner of the room.
Soon, Luna grew tired of being kicked into the wall by Pinkie and decided to retire to sit beside the fireplace and sip on punch with Rarity. The purple-colored punch tasted strange, but good, and was refreshing after a long session of dancing.
"Luna?” Rarity asked.
“Yes!” Luna replied happily.
“Did you really mean it when you said I was a . . . well . . . um . . . mule?” She cringed as she said the word “mule.”
“No, of course not Rarity! In my Nightmare Moon form I point out everypony's weaknesses. I knew that you are very conscious of your image, so I called you a mule. Similarly, I called Rainbow Dash a pigeon because she is very conscious of her flight skills.” Luna giggled and looked over at Rainbow Dash, who was still trying to get three apples at once out of the apple dunking barrel. “To be honest, Rarity, I think you are probably the best looking pony I have ever set my eyes upon.”
“Really?” Rarity beamed, a large smile encompassing her face.
“Definitely!”
“Oh, thank you, I am honored, darling. You are very beautiful as well.”
“Thanks!” Luna responded happily. There was a short silence as both Ponies continued to sip their punch.
“May I ask you a personal question?” Rarity inquired.
“Sure, why not?”
“What’s with the socks, dear?” Rarity asked, attempting to be as polite as possible. Luna put down her punch and looked at her hooves, seeing the fluffy pink socks.
“You know what . . . ” Luna started. She thought about it for a second and realized that she had no need for them anymore. “I have no idea.”
“Then why do you wear them, darling?”
“I don’t know. I used to be quite fond of them,” she said, confused as to why she had worn them for the past thousand and one years. And with that, she slipped them off and threw them into the hungry flames of the fire, shedding both her solitude and her past.
Rarity gasped and responded, “Oh my, there was no need to do that, dear. The socks may have looked . . . well . . . terrible, but they were still perfectly good with boots, or merely for warmth in the winter.”
“No. I needed to get rid of them,” Luna said happily as she watched the fabric slowly ignite and denature, turning black and withering as it did so. “I hate socks.”
…...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
The rest of the night went by in a flash. By the end of the party, Luna had apple dunked, danced, drank punch, ate cake, played twister, and most importantly, made friends. Derpy was still flying around the ceiling in sloppy loop-de-loops, now messily munching on a muffin, crumbs sprinkling to the floor like rain.
“Well, I really should get going,” Luna said, looking at the clock, which read almost midnight. She looked happily out the window at the moon, which she had brought up into the sky during the party.
“Aww, I wish you could stay longer!” Pinkie said happily, bouncing over to Luna.
“Me too, but there are matters I have with my sister that I must deal with. Thank you so much for being such great friends to me, and forgiving me for how rude I have been in the past!”
“No problem!” Twilight said, all of the other ponies in the library replying in agreement.
“Now, where’s that report, Twilight?” Luna asked.
“Well, I did make a report for you before you came here tonight, but I think Celestia would be much more pleased if you went and talked to her about what you have learned about friendship tonight. My report is nothing special--just another lesson ripped off of some parable about a bunch of talking animals,” Twilight replied with confidence.
“I think that is a wonderful idea!” Luna responded happily, walking to the door. “I hope to see you all again in the near future!” she said to the crowd of ponies in the library as she flew out into her night.
"Goodbye!” all the ponies said, waving as Luna disappeared. Twilight smiled as she watched Luna fly away, a purple glimmer in the midst of a black, starry sky. The purple light did not go towards the moon, but flew towards the mountains of Canterlot until it was out of sight.
Twilight looked up at the shining, desolate surface of the moon, which lit the ground with a pale, iridescent light. She smiled and then walked back into the loud and colorful library, shutting the door behind her. From that night on the moon lonesomely orbited Equestria every night for eternity, with nopony on its surface to comfort it. |
Zoltrioundz | 588 | 1 | Main 6,Original Character,Zecora,Romance,Sad,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Distant Flutter of Angels | When a pony has everything taken from him, can he regain his true path with the help of the Mane 6? | hiatus | 20 | 1 | <p><b>[Normal][Sad][OC Pony][Slow Romance]</b><br/>Full Size Cover image: <a href="http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y" rel="nofollow">http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y</a></p><hr/><p>Indigo Flash hasn't had the best life. In fact, while he was just a young colt, his entire life started unraveling at the seams. He lost his parents, was driven away from the other ponies his age, and wound up forced into a job that had nothing to do with his special talent, just after he found out what it was. Over time, he learned to live with it, and his life seemed to stabilize, perhaps even become normal. Which made it all the worse when everything falls apart in a single day, and he is left without even the ability to control his own fate.</p><p>Once everything is ripped away from a pony, can he ever return his life to the way things were? And even if he can, is it still worth fighting for?</p><p>~Compiled and edited by Twilight Sparkle, Royal Librarian</p><p>(This is a work in progress, and will be until completed. Please see my blog entry for more details :3 )</p> | everyone | 2012-02-08T15:07:24+00:00 | 2012-02-08T15:07:24+00:00 | 2,337 | Well here's my day so far: lost my home, my job, my friends, and everything I've ever known.
Still, I suppose my life could be worse.
Oh wait, forgot that I'm currently falling to my death. Guess it really couldn't.
Wind whistled through my ears, and I could feel it thrashing my mane back and forth. The chill of the altitude froze me to the core. My stomach churned at the rapid changes in direction.
All this in the moments before I could even open my eyes.
Once they finally snapped open, the sight that greeted them was not a welcome one. My first view was of the sunset sky, empty and nearly free of clouds. Then, as I found myself spinning, there was a momentary view of the horizon. What I saw stunned me: I was at an incredible height, way above a deep forest, with nothing but wilderness as far as the eye could see. Even the distant mountains looked untouched by pony hooves. But before I could take anything else in, I found myself staring upwards at the sky again as my body kept on whirling out of control.
I tumbled headlong through the air, cartwheeling madly across the sky. My limbs flailed wildly in sheer panic as I tried to do something... anything to stabilize myself. All thoughts of where I was, and how I got here slipped from my mind as the world twirled crazily around me. Losing all sense of direction, my head began to spin and I closed my eyes again to try and not be sick.
Despite my loss at what to do, my random flailing somehow managed to slow my spin. As it did, the nausea passed and I began to feel better. It was only then that I realized that despite the fact that my heart was beating a million times a second, and the sheer terror facing me, my thoughts were actually eerily calm. In truth, it was rather disturbing how I could be looking death in the face, and that while I was panicking on the outside, I was cool and collected on the inside.
Still plummeting head over tail, I strangely found my mind drifting, obsessing about how different it was to fall in real life compared to how it had been in my dreams. Growing up in the clouds, in the way that I had, having nightmares about plummeting to my doom had happened all the time. Despite this, I had never really fallen in any major way before. I had been lucky.
This time, I knew it was different. This was no dream, as much as I may want it to be. Not only because I could see the ground coming up to meet me, as I spun to face it, but also since I was able to feel the air rushing past me, feel my mane whip and crack at the force. A dull roar filled my ears, the wind’s frigid blasts chilling my flesh to the bone. All in all, this was far more terrifying than anything my mind had ever been able to come up with before. Since I had never really fallen from any height before, my dreams had always been eerily silent and devoid of feeling.
Not so now.
A high pitched noise mixed with the roar of the wind, finally allowing me to focus again. At first, I couldn’t figure out what it was. I was all alone out here, miles-high above the Everfree forest. It had to be the Everfree, of course, for where else in Equestria would there be absolutely no sign of pony life but in one of the only places where ponies fear to tread? Also, with my luck, where else would I end up? No, there would be nopony around for miles and miles.
That’s when it hit me: I had to be the source of the sound. It wasn't screaming, even though logically, I knew I should be crying out for help or something by now. I knew that would be the sane thing to do.
But sanity had no place here: the stress of today's events had pushed me past the breaking point.
Though my thoughts seemed clear and focused; mentally, I had snapped. On the outside, I looked like a raving lunatic, with my eyes bugged out and a crazed look on my face. The noise I was hearing was myself cheering loudly at the top of my lungs, as I fell towards the trees below. Any statements my cracked mind may have been trying to make were garbled, just complete and utter nonsense. All that came out was random whoops and hollers, and even that was nearly silenced by the roar of the wind.
My train of thought paused at this point and I became concerned. Why couldn't I control my reactions? Internally, I felt so calm... collected. But I could hear myself yelling, feel my mouth stretching, contorted into a wild, crazy grin. My limbs still flailed, uncontrolled. My unblinking eyes, dry and sore from both being open so wide, and the beating of the wind pushing against them. Anypony looking at my face would think I had gone insane.
Perhaps I had. It's amazing what your mind will do when everything falls apart in front of you.
My thoughts resumed, moving on from the fact that I could not control myself in the face of certain doom. No sense dwelling, I suppose. I started searching for a way out, for anything that could save me at this point. I knew I was alone out here, as anypony who was out in the middle of this forsaken place would have to be as insane as I appeared to be.
No, help would not come.
Nonetheless, I took stock of my surroundings. There were no clouds nearby to land on, or to even slow my fall. Below me, peeking through the forest canopy, I was able to make out some water, a river, or stream perhaps, and what looked like a bog. However, even from this great height, I could tell that both were very shallow, as they were filled with boulders and trees. Not only that, I was falling between them, with no way to change my course. In the distance, miles away, there appeared to be some larger body of water, but without any way to get there, it made no difference.
There wasn't a single survivable landing location below me. All I could see coming up to meet me was thick forest, that I just knew was filled with sharp, pointy branches. The dry autumn leaves caused the foliage to look terrifying, almost as if I was falling towards a surface covered in jagged, rusty nails. I shuddered as I had an involuntary mental image of myself hitting those trees. It was not a pretty picture.
I shook off this dark thought. Surprisingly, my head actually responded! Seems as if the length of the fall had a small upside: I was back in control! Maybe now I could take advantage of my overly clear mindset.
My head moving freely now, I looked around again. I gazed further afield, but there was still nothing within sight. Why did I even bother? Anything useful would have to be nearby anyway. Sighing in the thin air, I kept thinking: Since there was nopony to save me, was there anything that I could do to save myself? I strained myself and tried to move my body, but it all just seemed so difficult. I found that not only was I alone, but also that I was completely drained of energy. I could move, but only just, every limb feeling as if they were made of lead.
My eyes sank and became unfocused. My train of thought derailed, crashed, burned. Not only was I out of energy, but at this point I realized that I just didn't care anymore. I had no will to fight. Nothing to live for. No reason to exist.
As they cinched shut, my battered eyes finally began to tear up and I started hallucinating. Perhaps hallucinating was the wrong term, but with the state of my mind at this point, who can really say? Perhaps a better description is that I started seeing my life unravel behind me, and at the same time, feel the future fade before me.
Out of the darkness that enveloped my mind came pictures: jumbled images that at first were hard to place. Then, like a dam breaking, the memories came flooding back.
The first one that I recognized involved my mother and father. As happens surprisingly often, their names related to what they were good at. My father, Lightning Flash, was a genius at making the most spectacular storm clouds, and my mother would take the fluffy white puffballs and make amazingly beautiful sunsets. Her name was Violet Sunset, of course. Both were older pegasi, and their talents lent themselves to their positions in the cloud room at the nearby weather factory.
In the scene, we were outside our little cloud house, sitting on a cloud bench, near the outskirts of Cloudsdale. When you live in the sky, it’s not surprising that everything is made of clouds. They were holding me close, their forelegs wrapped around me. Back then, I was still a young colt. I had just gotten my cutie mark, a white puffy cloud with an ornate sun peeking through below. The light beams coming off it were shaped like lightning bolts, each formed with perfectly straight lines. My parents were so proud of me: they knew that since my special talent was related to clouds, that it meant I would probably come work with them at the weather factory someday.
I was overjoyed: My parents had always worked there. It was almost all they talked about. And, for as long as I could remember, I had wanted to work there too. I loved the place; the grown up ponies there had always made it feel like a second home when I came to visit. Every day I would sit in our window that faced the factory, waving goodbye to my parents as they left for work.
Little did I know that this would be the last day I would ever see them.
I wallowed in my memories, thoughts going beyond the now fading image. They had left our home in Cloudsdale shortly after that scene, bound for the factory. They were never late for work: this would be the first and only time. Getting my cutie mark had been a big event in our lives, and they had delayed their departure to spend some time with me. Together we had planned a big party for the very next day. My mom kept calling it a cuteceanera, even though I begged her to just call it a party. I remember telling her that cuteceaneras were for fillies, at which she just laughed. Once they had nailed down everything I wanted at the party, they headed out... they loved their work almost as much as they loved each other, and loved me.
They really did love me, I think. They told me that every single day. I just never believed that this would be the last time I'd ever hear it.
The scene changed to another still frame in my mind, from later that same day. In it was the foreman, a big grey pegasus who had taken me on countless tours of the factory over the years. He was knocking at my front door. When I answered, he looked down at me sadly. With a voice filled with sorrow, he reported to me that there had been an accident at the factory. Some kind of explosion that created a giant, uncontrollable storm. His voice caught in his throat as he broke the news: My parents had been lost to the storm. They had not been able to find any trace of them after the disaster had been cleared. They were just gone. Completely. Never to be seen again.
My mind darkened further and I choked back a sob. That had been the first time in my life I had ever cried. And instead of the comforting embrace of my parents, all I had was the foreman, who awkwardly put his foreleg around me and held me as I bawled like a foal.
Thankfully, the image swirled and changed, moving on. I saw myself on a stage, standing next to the president of the weather factory. I had been so small back then; he just towered over me, as did everypony. He had given a speech to the public, offering his condolences to everypony affected by the tragedy, though none were as affected as I. Sure, there was several other injured ponies, but only my parents had had the misfortune to have been right at ground zero. To have been wiped off the face of the planet.
Flatly, he announced to a cheering crowd that as a company, they would give me a place to live, and provide a caretaker for me until I was old enough to live on my own. Behind the scenes, they also offered me a well paid job as an accountant. Since I was good with numbers, they had an excuse to employ me, and still take the credit for their generous act.
Back then, I was alone for the first time in my life. But I was a smart kid, It hadn’t taken me long to realize that I had no relatives, not a single pony who cared for me. It came down to this, or an orphanage. The offer was a real public relations win for the company, which they sorely needed after the unexplained disaster. Also, I was going to be old enough to take care of myself pretty soon, I thought, and even though I knew that he was doing this for publicity, and not for my sake, I decided that this was much more than any orphanage could ever provide.
So I took his offer, determined to make a life for myself at the factory my parents had dedicated their lives to.
Many more snapshots flashed through my vision, years of my life spent toiling in that office, and nights spent sleeping in the back bedroom. There were meals cooked in the kitchenette, showers in the washroom, the late nights studying yet another book on advanced mathematics and accounting. I could never explain why, but I had always loved math. I read everything I could on the topic, and unlike other things, like History class, everything I read just stuck with me. It wasn’t long before I was reading math texts for ponies far older than me.
Then there were the times I set aside for myself, reading a new novel, or making some art: The scenes all seemed to blur together. All they had in common was that the place was always kinda messy, with dishes in the sink and work files on every open surface. I lived alone, so I never felt the need to clean. I had nopony to impress. Despite this, I still tried my hardest for the company that had taken me in.
My mind continued to trace my past, even without an image to go with it. My childhood had basically ended once my parents were taken from me. The other children had grown more awkward around me since the loss, and of course my boring job, which was all I did in my spare time, didn't gain me any friends either. It actually worsened to the point where it felt as if they were shunning me outright. To top it off, this one group of jocks who were about my age, Dumb-bell, Hoops, and Quarterback, would laugh and jeer as they flew around me. They made fun of anything they thought was a fault, pestering me and isolating me from the others until each time I finally fled from them.
I would always run back to my home, my safe place. I retreated more and more to my sanctuary, leaving behind my old life, my old memories. Eventually, I just stopped trying. It wasn't as if anypony was making the efforts I was. I didn't have one pony at that school I could even call an acquaintance, much less a friend. Anypony that even tried was driven off by the bullies; nopony wanted to be near their target.
So I just stopped going. I had a job. I had money. I didn't need anypony. All I had now was my work, and I poured myself into it. I always tried my hardest and did the best I could. I learnt everything there was to know about mathematics, and the finances and inner workings of the company. It was a lonely life, but I made the best of things, and learned to love my work.
Another familiar scene warped into view. It was a few years later, with me sitting at the same desk, in the same office, in the same part of the factory. Nothing much had changed, but I had grown, and my skills had as well. I had drastically improved the filing systems and the efficiency of the company. They had never had a full time accountant before, at least, not one like me anyway. Profits had improved as a result, resulting in a major increase in the amount of bits the company was earning. My performance had not gone unnoticed: I saw myself smiling as the same foreman from all those years earlier knocked on my door, this time giving me good news: a letter showing how my monthly wage had increased again.
As the slide-show continued in my mind, more years continued to pass. Despite my inclination towards solitude, a few of the more recent scenes showed a gradual change, occasionally I was with other ponies. Eventually, through trial and error, I had managed to make a few friends. They were all older than me, other stallions who worked at the factory in departments near mine, but they were friends. We went out to expensive shows and restaurants, drinking, eating and having fun. It was all on my tab, of course.
Now, this may seem silly, as I was an accountant after all, but I had my reasons. Since I had no expenses, to me, my income was disposable. If it made me happy, I did it. I craved the feeling, I hungered for attention, I did anything to get it. And so with my wage I paid for the drinks and entertainment, laughing along and enjoying my time with them. Things had changed; I no longer felt quite so alone. I was finally happy again.
For a moment, I half-broke free from my hallucinations, suddenly able to feel the wind rushing over me again. Wincing involuntarily, I gave my head a violent shake; I really didn't want to remember the rest! Struggling, I tried to open my eyes, but I was just so tired.
So very tired.
With my eyelids as heavy as lead, I sagged, defeated. Perhaps sensing my surrender, something changed in my mind. No longer was it content with just still-frames of my life; I found myself slipping deeper into my memories. My mind transitioned to the more recent events that had destroyed my life as I felt myself sucked back into the darkness.
At this point, things became sort of surreal. Instead of images from my past bringing back memories of years gone by, it was like I was watching the events unfold through my own eyes. But instead of just remembering it, I found myself feeling detached, separated. My view was clouded, greyed out, almost flickering, like a old black and white movie. And like the shows I had seen as a foal, it was soundless, almost deafening in its silence. It was as if these events had happened to somepony else, and I was just viewing them.
Nonetheless, the sights I saw were familiar. The pony I inhabited was looking over my well-worn desk, strewn with papers. Idly chewing on the pencil he held in his mouth, he was studying a spreadsheet which lay open in a yellowed folder. It was an eerie feeling, like I was a ghost looking out the eyes of a stranger, as I watched him fill in the missing numbers and sign MY name at the bottom. Curious, despite myself, I began studying the scene. My eyes happened upon the date on the paper and a chill ran down my spine. It was from this very morning!
Knowing what was to come, I began to panic, trying to take some control over my host. I wanted to flee, to escape what I knew was coming; but soon realized it was useless as he just kept scribbling away, my desperate attempts unable to change the past. I was a prisoner in my own mind, reliving the memories, just along for the ride.
Helpless to do anything, I watched myself idly open another folder and slide out a new document. My mouth went dry, for I knew I would never get the chance to read this one. I was about to be interrupted by the first in a series of events which would lead to where I was now: falling helplessly from the skies, forced to relive the torture of my final day.
My host suddenly looked up, towards the door, as if interrupted by something. Though I could not hear it, I knew what it was.
The knock on the door that signified the beginning of the end of my life.
The pencil dropped from his lips, and though I heard nothing as it clattered across the table, it was as if every bounce was a strike on a giant drum, booming in my head. With each impact, I shrank back, trying to distance myself from the scene. Nevertheless, I found I was unable to close my eyes, or even look away as my host walked over to the door and opened it.
The rest of the scene played out as I remembered it. My supervisor entered the room, and we sat at my desk. I found myself mouthing the words, the conversation still fresh in my mind. I almost choked on my tongue as I spoke the phrase I knew he was saying.
“I’m sorry Indigo, but you’re being let go.”
The rest of the memories washed over me. Surprised and in shock, I had began to stutter, but still managed to ask him why. Looking up at me sadly, he had told me that my job was being given to somepony new, a pegasus prodigy, who had demonstrated more ways to improve the company's accounting. Simply put, he was better than me. Also, he was somepony the company would not have to pay room and board for. I guess after all these years the public awareness of the incident had faded, and the company no longer felt it needed to be so generous. Almost before I knew it, I found myself on the street, without a home, and thanks to my spending habits, almost bitless.
My memories raced ahead, and the scenes sped up along with them. What happened next was pitiful, especially in hindsight. With my head almost dragging on my hooves, I went from door to door, asking each of my friends in turn if I could stay with them. I don’t think I will ever understand why, but as soon as they heard my story and that I was unemployed, and more importantly broke, each and every last one of them had some excuse for why they couldn't let me stay with them. Not one of the ponies whom I had called my friends offered me a single night to rest my head.
As the last door was quietly, almost reluctantly closed in my face, an overwhelming feeling of abandonment came over me and I was unable to hold back the tears welling up in my eyes anymore. I was torn between wanting to buck their doors down and demand they be the friends I had always believed them to be, or just curling up in a ball and fading away.
Unable to stand these feelings, I ran from them. Recklessly, I galloped blindly through the streets, between buildings, not caring, not seeing: a dangerous thing to do in a city in the clouds. I didn’t care. I just couldn’t face my friends or these emotions anymore.
Looking back, I’m tempted to say that running clear off the clouds might have actually been better for me. Instead, I ended up accidentally running headlong into somepony, knocking myself silly. I landed roughly onto my side, knocking the wind out of me for a moment. Gasping for breath, winded, I tried to blink my eyes clear. I opened my mouth to apologize, but before I could say anything, my voice left me as the pony I had hit began to speak, a familiar sound I had been glad to have avoided for many years.
I involuntarily cringed, both in the memory and in my prison behind the eyes of my host, as the tears cleared and we both looked up into the faces of the ponies who had persecuted me mercilessly throughout school, all those years ago.
That’s when everything changed again. Sound returned like a slap to the face, and with it’s return came the colors, the muted greys and blacks replaced by the full spectrum of light. The whisper of the wind, the bustle of the nearby marketplace filled my ears, but all I saw was the browns, oranges, and greys of the bullies who stood over me.
"Well if it isn't little Indigo SPLASH, running around town making puddles. Though I gotta say that making them with tears is new." This was followed by a short, brash chorus of laughter.
My host wiped his eyes and looked up at the unmistakable grinning faces of the group of pegasi jocks, far older now than the last time I had seen them. And then I heard my voice speak. "Dangit, Hoops. I don't need your horseapples right now. You know very well that my name is Indigo Flash and you also know that I haven't made puddles around town since I was a little foal. Grow up and go bother somepony else."
Nearby, Dumb-bell snorted. "Little touchy today, are we? All sad because you lost your cushy job? Or is it that you finally realized that nopony cares about you?"
Gossip spreads fast in a city full of ponies with wings, I guess. I felt myself glaring at him, defiant, despite all the evidence to the contrary. "You don't know what you're talking about. My friends will come around. They all have perfectly good reasons to not be able to board another pony right now."
Whatever bravado I’d had was crushed as he broke out laughing, with his companions following suit. "Friends? What friends? You mean those ponies you spent all that time around, paying for their fun? You actually thought they liked you?"
He sneered and leaned down towards me, still laying on the clouds where I had fallen. "Think about it. Did any of them ever ask to spend time with you of their own free will, or did they just let you pay for their fun? Did any of them ever ask if you wanted to hang out? Did any of them ever even ask how your day was?" He snorted and raised his head, wings flaring, looking down at me with contempt. "I bet they didn't. Everypony knows that you were loose with your money, and now that you don't have that any more, nopony will want you around."
Hoops chose this time to chime in. "Yeah, heh, you've always been an outcast. You've never fit in here, and you never will. Maybe it's time you got the hint and go make your splash elsewhere, eh Puddles?"
I was sucked into the scene as I relived this terrible moment. My jaw dropped as my entire world fell away beneath me. I wanted to deny it, to try and stand up for myself, but I couldn't think of anything, find any example that would prove them wrong. Like being doused with a bucket of ice water, I suddenly came to the realization that everything that I thought I knew about my friends and my life was false, and not only that, but everypony already knew. Everypony except me.
My mind went completely black with overwhelming despair and anguish.
All I could hear was everypony laughing at me, their sneer and taunts echoing in my skull.
All I could feel was cold hooves running down my spine, causing me to shiver uncontrollably.
And all I could see was endless doors slamming shut in front of me, with the ponies who I thought were my friends looking away as they shut me out of their lives.
…
That’s when something exploded.
The smooth motion of the scenes playing in my head abruptly halted. Despite their weight, my eyes snapped open, so fast that it hurt. Tears fell from my eyes as my memories disintegrated, swept away in the wind. All I could remember after that seemed to be shrouded in a purplish haze.
What I did see seemed broken, detached. Random pictures that I could barely make heads or tails of. In one, I saw the heads of the jocks... but only their heads, lying on the clouds with me standing over them. I couldn't see them clearly through the fog: everything was blurred. All I could see was their mouths and eyes, the former screaming silently, the latter wide in terror, both unmoving in the image in my mind.
Then it changed, and I saw my home, in the process of being ripped to shreds by invisible claws of flame, the furnishings and files burning as they swirled around the room. The acrid smell of smoke assaulting my nostrils as the heat of the fire pushed me backwards, out of the room.
Next I was confronted by a crowd of pegasi, some I had once known, grown up with, and even those I had called my friends, though there were others whom I had never met. They were lined up in ranks against me, staring me down with deadpan eyes. They marched towards me in lockstep, and I was fleeing from them. I found myself pressed against a solid cloud wall, screaming, trying to press myself through it as they closed in.
More disjointed scenes: a reflection of myself as I flew over a lake. I was flying at incredible speeds, faster than I had ever flown before, faster than I had thought I was capable of. I could feel the tears streaming from my eyes and trailing behind me, creating a trail of ripples in the lake below. My face hurt, and in my reflection below, I could see that it was contorted into a look of absolute suffering and despair.
I saw endless mountains and plains, lakes and rivers, forests and valleys, saw myself going farther and higher than ever before. The earth shrank below me until I could no longer see it, and I kept going until I could no longer feel it, or anything else, anymore. I rose until every breath was a labor, until the very air tried to freeze my bones. It was then, and only then, that the haze finally faded from my eyes and I came to a stop. All my muscles locked up painfully and I cried out, but there was nopony to hear me, nopony to care.
So high that I could barely fill my lungs with air, with my very life essence drained, I dropped from the sky above the vast Everfree forest.
Numbly, I wiped the tears from my eyes as I returned from my reverie, finally free again from the tortures of the past day. I looked down towards the trees, which had grown several sizes since the last time I had been able to look and found myself wishing that all this would just hurry up and be over. I was so tired, tired of everything, and I knew that I could not even slow my fall even if I wanted to at this point.
Sighing again, I twisted my head around to gaze mournfully at my smooth, bare back and found myself wishing, not for the first time, that I had been born with wings. |
Zoltrioundz | 588 | 2 | Main 6,Original Character,Zecora,Romance,Sad,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Distant Flutter of Angels | When a pony has everything taken from him, can he regain his true path with the help of the Mane 6? | hiatus | 20 | 1 | <p><b>[Normal][Sad][OC Pony][Slow Romance]</b><br/>Full Size Cover image: <a href="http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y" rel="nofollow">http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y</a></p><hr/><p>Indigo Flash hasn't had the best life. In fact, while he was just a young colt, his entire life started unraveling at the seams. He lost his parents, was driven away from the other ponies his age, and wound up forced into a job that had nothing to do with his special talent, just after he found out what it was. Over time, he learned to live with it, and his life seemed to stabilize, perhaps even become normal. Which made it all the worse when everything falls apart in a single day, and he is left without even the ability to control his own fate.</p><p>Once everything is ripped away from a pony, can he ever return his life to the way things were? And even if he can, is it still worth fighting for?</p><p>~Compiled and edited by Twilight Sparkle, Royal Librarian</p><p>(This is a work in progress, and will be until completed. Please see my blog entry for more details :3 )</p> | everyone | 2012-02-08T12:13:04+00:00 | 2012-02-08T12:13:04+00:00 | 2,040 | With my head now turned away from the ground, the wind caught my mane and whipped it fiercely against my neck. The speed at which I was falling was so great by now that each and every time a strand hit my neck, it stung as if someone had hit me. A sudden gust of wind from the west twisted several stray hairs around my cheek and sent them right into my eye. I cried out in pain: my eye was already wind-stripped and sore, screaming in raw agony.
It was just too much: tears started to stream again from both eyes, formed by both agony and emotion. Gritting my teeth and stifling them, I twisted back around, my mane then free to flow behind me once again.
I had only been falling for moments, but I could see the mountains growing on the horizon. Returning my gaze to the rapidly-approaching forest below, I took note that it no longer looked like a field of sharp, rusty implements, but more like an orange and auburn carpet punctuated with highlights of black and brown interspersed throughout. As big of an improvement as that was, I still knew that it would be no softer of a landing. I was still going to hit somewhere in the forest between the bog and the river, right between the only places where at the very least, I wouldn't end up punctured by the branches of some tree. Of course, I thought wryly to myself.
Sighing again, I let my mind wander. I realized I would look quite a sight, if anypony could see me now. My poorly tended mane and tail had grown quite long over the last few years, afterall. What I would look like to an observer, perhaps a bird flying by? A mental picture formed: I must look like a bluish comet with a black tail, meteoring directly towards the ground. What a crater I would leave! The image in my mind was unexpectedly absurd, and it brought a small chuckle to my wind-chapped lips.
As I idly scanned the forest below, my thoughts turned dark. I began to wonder how many trees I would take with me. Would there be anything left to mark my presence? Any trace of my final resting place? I shook my head again, trying to clear my thoughts, but still found myself wondering what would happen if anypony I knew could see me right now. Would they even be able to tell it was me? And even if they could, why would they care?
My eye twinged again: irritation flaring from where the earlier hairs had struck. A few strands had managed to get stuck in what little moisture remained on the surface. Pain brought clarity, and I was able to banish the dark thoughts from my mind, at least for now.
I reached up gingerly to wipe the offenders from my eye, and in the process, one of my hooves brushed up against my horn. I'd almost forgotten it was there, and realized once I touched it that this was because it had gone completely and utterly numb. Despite it being made of keratin, I had always been able to feel its presence, the magic flowing within making it feel almost like an extra limb. A limb which now felt as if it had been amputated.
I wanted to laugh, to cry, to scream at the sunset sky. On the one hoof, I was happy that at least one part of me wasn't sore, freezing, or in pain for one reason or another. On the other hoof, the only thing that could possibly help me to survive this fall, my horn, was useless.
I closed my eyes and tried to channel magic through my horn, hoping against hope that I had something left in me, some bit of energy that I could try and focus towards doing something, anything to stop or even slow my fall. I took a deep breath, feeling for the root of my magic. Finding it, it felt empty and hollow, a foreign sensation. Nonetheless, I took hold and pushed. Nothing. In frustration I strained so intensely that I nearly screamed... But nothing, not even a single spark or fizzle appeared. In frustration, I whacked it several times with my hoof. This had no effect of course, but thanks to the numbness I didn't even feel a thing.
The despair overwhelmed me, and I gave up almost immediately. I had known from the start that I had nothing left in me. I could feel it. Both literally and figuratively, apparently, because as if on cue my stomach took the opportunity to rumble and groan, so loudly I swore I could hear it over the wind. It was then that I realized that I had no idea how long it had been since I had last eaten, drank, or slept. For all I knew, I could have been flying overnight, or even for days.
For a brief instant I grew concerned and started trying to calculate in my head how long it must have been, when suddenly my eyelid began to twitch as the silliness of the question hit home. Dying of starvation, dehydration, or exhaustion was seriously the least of my worries right now! I snorted; it was ridiculous that the thought had even crossed my mind to begin with.
But I couldn’t put it aside. The thought of me starving, or falling asleep before I hit the ground was so striking, so absolutely hilarious, that I just couldn't escape it. First starting as a smile, I began to chuckle helplessly as I pictured myself sleeping in midair, pillow, blanket and all. Eventually it escalated until I was laughing so hard I was holding my aching sides and gasping for air. This, however, suddenly made me realize just how far I had fallen. I was no longer struggling to take each breath, as the air was much thicker now. I knew this should be cause for concern, but for some reason that just made me laugh all the harder. I doubled over as my entire body was wracked with spasms of laughter.
Abruptly, I straightened up. The humor promptly vanished as my eyes narrowed into a icy glare. I stared up at the sky and with a raw voice, screamed to the heavens. "Come on! Is this all you've got? Bring it on! I don't care anymore! I hate this! I HATE THIS!!!” Taking a deep breath, eyes bugging out once again, I continued to rant and rave. “I have nothing left, nothing at all! You took my parents, my job, my house, my friends and now, now you taunt me by prolonging taking the last thing I have left: my life! Just get it over with! I have nopony who cares for me, so what does it matter anyway! Do you hear me?! Just bring it! End it! Do it now!"
Spent, I went limp, the last of my anger ebbing out of me as all traces of muscle control faded. The wind pushed my limbs outward, splaying them widely, but I no longer forced them back. Deep down, I knew that I didn't want to die, but I just didn't, couldn't seem to care anymore. There was nothing left for me here. I just wanted it to be over.
My tears started flowing freely once more as I closed my eyes and whispered, begging, to nopony in particular.
"Please..."
It was then that consciousness slipped away, the lack of adrenaline allowing exhaustion to finally take me. The irony, of course, being that I was now asleep after all, and as I continued to fall, I dreamed. I found myself on a lonesome cloud in a darkened sky, surrounded by endless numbers of dead, staring eyes. They floated, bodiless, in the air, circling around my little puffball. Glaring at me as if I was a bug to be squished underhoof, they seemed to blame me for some unknown grievances. As I gazed upon them, they turned and left, abandoning me. Retreating from my cloud, they shrank as the distance increased. Even though I feared them, hated them, DESPISED them with every fiber of my being, I found myself helplessly begging and pleading with them to come back. I didn’t want them to leave me alone.
As the last pair of eyes faded from view, I lay there, on a solitary cloud in a boundless sky, curled into a tight little ball. My eyes were wide open but unseeing, pupils shrunk down to tiny dots; I was losing myself in my own mind.
As my vision started to blur, I suddenly saw a point of light off in the distance. My eyes refocused as I stared intently towards the light. Climbing back to my hooves, I hoped against hope that someone had come back for me. As it got closer, the light grew, and filled the blackened sky with colors. It raced towards me, a wall of storms filled with prismatic flame, gaining speed as it approached my tiny cloud.
I shrank back in terror as my legs locked up, eyes widening with recognition: it was the explosion that had taken my parents from me, all those years ago! I hadn't seen it since I was a foal, gazing out the window on that bright, sunny day, looking wistfully at the weather factory, waiting for my parents to come home so we could celebrate the arrival of my cutie mark properly. When it appeared back then, bursting from the factory, I had found it beautiful, an omen of good things to come. Now though, I wasn't so foalish, so naive. I knew what it could do to ponies, and what it had done to my parents.
Shaking with fear, I realized that it had come to take me too! I wanted to flee, screaming at the top my my lungs! Straining, I tried to run, to turn away, but it was as if my hooves were rooted to the very cloud I stood upon. All my struggling accomplished was to make me lose my balance, falling heavily onto my rump. The colored lights became overwhelming as they bore down on me. I started to raise a hoof to shade my eyes, but as I sat there, my terror faded. A sudden calmness, acceptance flowed over me, filled me.
Everything faded away into the light until it was all I could see. A single, final thought rose to the surface of my mind: "Mom, Dad. I'm coming. I'll be home soon." I lowered my hoof and stared off into the glow, waiting for it to take me away.
Thud.
A sudden impact knocked the breath from my lungs, my chest compressing tightly with the force of it. My frigid back felt a sudden blast of heat and friction and my sight blurred further, far worse than what the blistering wind had done before. I started hearing a ringing in my ears, and I swore I heard something else as well, but I couldn't make out what it was. My vision filled with a bright pinkness, swirling and undulating hypnotically wherever I looked.
My first thought was that I had hit the ground and had somehow survived, however impossible that was. What really threw me off though was the lack of any new pain. I still felt as sore and tired as I had before the impact. Figuring that I must just be in shock and that it just hadn’t registered yet, I froze, not wanting to feel the agony of a broken back or leg. Moving as little as possible, I took several shallow, halting breaths. My chest still felt squished flat, so I took the time to try and clear my senses.
Doing so, I started noticing things that seemed out of place. Firstly, I found I could still feel the frigid wind blowing past me, which didn’t make sense. It was autumn, not winter, and there wouldn’t be much wind in the deep woods. My confusion continued to mount as I started to feel a rubbing, undulating sensation along my spine. Had I landed on some creature? I blinked my eyes furiously, my vision returning with each breath, and as it did the pink haze in front of my eyes shifted aside.
Still lost, my mind in total disarray, I looked up crosswise as the pinkness flew up and twisted around my horn, which I was very happy to see was still protruding from my forehead. I stared upwards, stunned, as I realized that the pink wasn’t in my eyes, but was actually something real. Gingerly, I reached up with one hoof to touch it, as whatever it was looked like it had entangled itself around my horn. After some fumbling, it came free, and flew up out of sight. I looked up to follow it, and the twisting of my head brought the background sound that had been hovering on the edges of my hearing into focus.
"Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness!"
Sanity returned like a splash of ice cold water as everything came together in my mind. The wind, the tightness, the warmth, the friction; it all made sense only when you put it all together. The tightness in my chest was somepony's forelegs wrapped around me, the warmth was the feeling of their body pressed against mine, the movement and friction I could feel was the pounding of their wings as they tried to slow my fall, and of course the wind was still there because we were still descending at an incredible rate.
Stark realization hit me like an anvil landing on my head as I realized what this meant: Somepony was trying to save me!
How, why, where they came from, none of it mattered to me right now. All I knew was that there was somepony here, somepony who cared enough to try and save me. My briefly deadened emotions roared back to life as a goofy grin appeared on my face. In one quick motion, I twisted myself around and blindly buried my face into the neck of my rescuer, embracing the stranger more tightly than I had hugged anypony since my parents were taken from me.
At first, I felt this strange pony’s neck muscles tighten in shock at my sudden movement, but soon I felt a head come to rest softly against mine, comforting me. I found myself wishing this moment would never end. I didn’t know the pony who I felt such sudden love for, and frankly, I didn’t care. Soon however, the rush of emotion faded, and reality set back in: we were still falling, and I didn’t have time to get all sappy. Slowly opening my eyes, I was startled to find the strange flowing pinkness swirling in front of my nose again. I pulled back in surprise and saw the face of my benefactor for the first time.
From the start I knew it would be a pegasus, but imagine my surprise when I saw that the pony who would be my savior was a young, light yellow filly. She seemed nearly my age, her deep azure eyes which looked upon me with such kindness that I could not help but feel safe and reassured, even in our predicament. The pinkness that had haunted my vision was now revealed to be her flowing mane and tail, fluttering upwards in the wind as we continued to descend. Her delicate looking wings flapped rhythmically, but I began to worry as I noticed that they seemed to falter every once in a while. Looking back to her face with concern, I realized that while there were beads of sweat forming on her brow and she seemed to be straining, giving it her all, our descent was not halting. In fact, it barely seemed to slow.
Leaning in, I placed my mouth close to her ear, calling out loudly over the roar of the wind. "We aren't slowing down!" Hearing me, she stiffened in surprise, and her wings skipped a beat. I pulled back and looked into her eyes, but what I saw did not reassure me.Her pupils contracted at the same time as her eyes widened in shock, looking downwards over my shoulder. She must have come to the same conclusion I had, for she leaned in, positioning her mouth near my ear. Even being so close, I found I could barely heard her faint response over the wind.
I expected panic, but her words came out soft and smooth. "Oh my... I've never really carried anything heavier than a few cute little critters before. I don't know if I have enough in me to stop us!" I was flabbergasted at how calm she sounded, admitting that we were falling helplessly. Though the emphasis in her words implied more concern than her tone, those words themselves made it seem like she had already given up, despite her wings still flapping madly. When I looked back into her eyes and saw the fear in them, I decided then and there that I had to be strong for the both of us: There had to be a way out of this mess!
With my new-found sense of purpose I once again scanned the terrain, but this time my mind was whole and clear. I started doing some calculations in my head, studying the forces and vectors applying to us. My lips parted into a small smile as I realized that all those late nights studying advanced mathematics for my job... my old job... actually did have some practical use after all. Trying to plan the best route, I realized there were many destinations that may be in reach, but her strength was a variable I just didn’t have. I couldn’t make a plan for us: I didn't know enough.
What I did know was that what she was doing wasn’t going to work. I looked back up and yelled into her ear. "Don't try to counter the force directly, it will just wear you out and we already know it isn't working! See if you can take us down at an angle, get us somewhere better to land, like a lake, or even a meadow. Anything is better than these horrible trees!"
She nodded, though I could have sworn I saw a small frown as I finished the last sentence. Looking around, she must have saw something she recognized, because she tilted her wings and turned us towards the setting sun. My empty stomach churned and groaned lightly as I felt our descent start to shift away from vertical. Turning my head, I nodded at her, my smile growing wider. I started to relax again as our trajectory changed in relation to the mountains in the distance: It was working!
I grinned happily, hugging her tightly again. As I did, I found I could not help but relax in her forelegs. All too quickly, my adrenaline faded again and exhaustion fell upon me like a heavy wool blanket. My eyes grew heavy, my sight grew dim, and before I realized it I had already laid my head against her shoulder as consciousness slipped from me once again.
This time, though the location was the same, the dream had a very serene ambiance. I awoke on the cloud in the same endless sky where I had, only moments ago, been petrified by the approach of my deepest fear. But now, when I opened my eyes again to the dreamscape, a single pair of the floating eyes which I had begged to stay had returned. Its sparkling sea blue gaze hovered in the sunset sky, no longer filled with hatred, but with compassion. They looked down upon me with the love and kindness that I had so sorely missed, and I basked in the affection that had long since been denied me. Surrounded by such peace and tranquility, I curled up on the cloud and slept. Perhaps I had a dream within the dream, I do not recall.
An undetermined amount of time later, I was roused slowly from the dream by an insistent nuzzling against my face. Blinking sleepily, my eyes began to regain focus. As they did, I nearly had a heart attack as I realized where I still was. I quickly lifted my head from her shoulder, glad that I had not drooled on her clean, well-groomed coat. She bumped my head again, and I looked up at her. Smiling hesitantly, she tilted her head towards the sunset. I realized I must have been asleep for at least a minute or two, as the sun, which had already been low on the horizon, had sunk further behind the mountains. While some of that could be accounted for by our drop in elevation, I nonetheless quickly took stock of our surroundings.
At first, I couldn't tell what she was motioning at, but then a flash of light caught my attention. There, far in the distance, I saw a shimmering sparkle of reflected sunlight. Squinting at it, I cursed my sore eyes. I even slapped myself in the face with my hoof, but it still took several precious seconds for my vision to focus enough for me to realize that what I seeing was water. Raising my hooves with a cheer, I almost wet myself as I began to slip from her forelegs. Freaking out, I wrapped my hooves back around her, clinging to her instantly, as I turned my attention back to her.
She looked exhausted, probably more than I did. The raging wind had tangled her pink mane, and she was biting her bottom lip in frustration as rivulets of sweat just poured down her face. Her wings no longer kept a steady rhythm, but instead were fluttering intermittently, and at different paces. It was obvious every muscle in her body was strained beyond reason, yet somehow she was still managing to keep going.
I began panicking internally as I leaned in again and called out to her. "Are you okay?" She must have seen the concern in my eyes as she managed to force a smile and nod, and her wings somehow returned to their normal rhythm, at least for now. I was not convinced by this however: it was painfully obvious that she couldn't keep this up much longer. Turning my head again, I replotted our trajectory, cursing the fact that I had fallen sleep. So much wasted time! Much to my horror, I found that we were still descending too quickly. Despairingly, I double-checked, and confirmed that we were not going to make the water; in fact, we only had a minute, maybe two before we would be in the trees. And that was only if her wings didn't give out!
I looked around as I triple-checked the numbers, looking for something, anything I could use to change the equation, make this survivable. It was useless. Other than the water in the distance, all I could see for miles around were those enormous accursed trees. At this height, the autumn leaves did not even hide their deadly ugliness; I could see their solid, blackened trunks, and their sharp, spindly branches, stretched towards the sky.
The sky that we were falling from.
I knew that once we hit those trees, it would be over for both of us. We were out of time.
My eyes steeled as I made my decision.
I looked back into her eyes, the deep blue pools which had brought me some small happiness after the worst times in my life. She looked back and, somehow surmising my intent, tightened her grip around me. She started shaking her head: No. I looked her dead in the eyes and yelled out the flat, ugly truth. "I'm not going to make it, and if you stay with me, you won't make it either! I will not let my last act in this world be to take the life of another pony!” Taking a deep breath, I spoke the words she didn’t want to hear. “I need you to let me go, and I need you to do it now! There’s no time to argue!"
Her gaze abruptly darkened as she stopped shaking her head, locking her gaze with mine. The warm blue in her eyes turned to ice as she frowned, her eyebrows knitting together. Sudden anger made her pupils grow wide and seemed to vibrate as she gave me what could only be described as a death glare. I shrank back from her then, but even so, I had no trouble hearing her this time.
Unblinking, staring me dead in the eyes, she yelled at me. "NO!!!" I cringed, but could not look away. "We will find another way! I will not let you die!"
Trying to muster my failing will, I began to protest. "But I..."
The glare somehow managed to intensify, her pupils shrinking. "Don't you 'But I' me, mister! We are in this together and that is final!"
As her deadly stare drilled into my soul, I felt my resolve start to crumble. So I did the only thing I could do. I leaned in and gave her a hug. This must have thrown her off, because I felt her relax as my hooves wrapped gently around her neck. This made it all the harder as I pressed my lips close and whispered into her ear.
"Thank you, but goodbye."
Mustering the last of my remaining physical strength, I planted my forehooves on her shoulders, and my hindhooves against her hips, and with all my might, I pushed off of her in one sudden burst of movement. For a second, her grip almost held, but then I broke free, tumbling away from her. Falling, my back to the trees below, all I could see then was her horrified face, surrounded by the darkening sky, and in it, the first stars of the night.
For a moment, I wished that I hadn't looked back, as the look of betrayal in her eyes ripped me to my core. I felt tears rising again, but I shook them away; I had to be strong for her. She had to be okay. She might hate me, she might not forgive herself, or me, but she would live. I looked back again, wanting her to see me smiling, to know that it was okay, but that smile faded instantly as I saw her one last time.
Her wings had stopped beating!
I could see her hooves flailing wildly as her wings snapped shut. Her eyes scrunched shut in concentration as she strained her back, arching it as she tried to force them open again. But it was no use. I was too late. Like me, she had nothing left. She opened her eyes again and looked at me. That gaze haunted me. Those eyes, once filled with kindness, now held nothing but fear and hopelessness. Our eyes locked, and now all I could think of was how I had abandoned her for nothing; that because of me, she was as doomed as I was.
"No."
Time slowed to a standstill. My heart stopped mid-beat. Our manes, blowing wildly in the wind, froze as if turned to stone. Her eyes bored into my very being. Here was a pony who had just risked her life, who had pushed herself past her limits, and given everything she had to save me. Me! A nopony! She didn't know who I was. She didn't even know my name, yet she was willing to give everything up to save me. She had held me as I slept, she had comforted me, she had chased away my nightmares. She had been there in my time of need. All this for a worthless pony like me!
I could not let this happen.
My eyes twitched and opened wide, as they lit up with a bright, white glow. My forehead felt like it was ablaze. My body spasmed uncontrollably, and I could feel my limbs forced to bend at strange angles. All I could feel was agony, but it was worth it because, suddenly, I could feel something. Deep down inside, entrenched within me so deeply, so small and tiny that it was almost infinitesimal, I found one last bastion of strength. I grabbed at it, wrenched it free. It felt as if I was dragging it from my very life essence. Maybe I was at that point, but it didn't matter because it was there, and I needed it now.
A spark of magic.
I would NOT let this happen!
I exploded with power, releasing a primal scream. "NO!!!"
Time started again, but it seemed to crawl. The purplish haze returned with a vengeance, tinting the world. Magic erupted from me in all directions, pink lightning bolts striking the trees below that were now very close. Ironically, I was glad they were nearby, as they made perfect lightning rods, keeping the filly safe from me. I was now a hazard to everypony once again, including myself this time.
I had never felt pain like this before; it was like every nerve in my body was shredding itself, but I had somehow partitioned my mind, separated it so that I never lost clarity. As my head slowly turned, I gazed at the bolts of magic which had begun to flow from me. They arced through the air in slow motion, and my eyes travelled along their length, marveling in their elegance. I watched in awe as the trees that were struck around me changed. Some melted, cascading slowly into rainbow pools, while others morphed into solid ice, some of which exploded from the sudden transformation. As they combined in midair, colors shone and sparkled as the last beams of the sun caught them tumbling below me, creating the most amazing panorama of color and light. A tear began to form in one eye; it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.
Then I saw it, between the trees. That tantalizing sparkle. Water. Instantly I focused and fired a concentrated, spiralling beam of magic directly at it. From this distance, I couldn't see it hit, but I could FEEL it. I reveled in being able to feel my magic once again. I was filled with it! I churned and frothed the water, spinning it faster and faster, pulling it upwards and outwards. Soon I had created a waterspout. As the water rocketed out of the top, I directed the spray towards us.
Feeling a strange vibration in my horn as the water flew through the air, I took a moment to look up at my forehead. As my eyes crossed, I could see beams of light erupting from within the horn’s surface. It seemed to be slowly pulsating, emphasizing the slowness of time. With each throb I swore I could see tiny cracks appearing and growing, spreading with every pulse. In any normal situation this would scare me to my wits end, but at this point, it was of no consequence. She was more important. Nothing else mattered. I turned my attention back to the torrent of water flying towards me.
Darkness started to creep into the corners of my vision: I knew I had little time remaining. I released the remaining water at the lake from the spell I had cast, and made sure that the water already in the air was directed towards and below her. Shadows crowded my sight; I could no longer make anything out. I knew I had to do it now, but I could no longer see where the water was! I began to panic; had I miscalculated? When I finally felt that first droplet of water land on my flank and start to run down my leg, I knew that she was going to be alright. Tensing up one last time, I released all my remaining magic in one final, wide area burst below where that one-of-a-kind filly was falling.
My body went numb. I could no longer see anything at all, but as the darkness took me, I felt my magic strike its target. As the wave of magic collided with the water droplets, they evaporated, and the remaining magic fused it all together into a thick fog bank. I could feel the mass of clouds swirling all the way to the ground, and I knew that it would be big enough and soft enough to save her.
The last thing I heard as the magic faded from me and time resumed its normal speed was a satisfying whoomph as filly met cloud.
Well, I guess that technically isn’t true. The last thing I really heard was the sound of my body breaking through the uppermost branches and hitting the trees.
Crickety-crackle-crack Thump Whumph crinkle-crash SPLUT |
Zoltrioundz | 588 | 3 | Main 6,Original Character,Zecora,Romance,Sad,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Distant Flutter of Angels | When a pony has everything taken from him, can he regain his true path with the help of the Mane 6? | hiatus | 20 | 1 | <p><b>[Normal][Sad][OC Pony][Slow Romance]</b><br/>Full Size Cover image: <a href="http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y" rel="nofollow">http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y</a></p><hr/><p>Indigo Flash hasn't had the best life. In fact, while he was just a young colt, his entire life started unraveling at the seams. He lost his parents, was driven away from the other ponies his age, and wound up forced into a job that had nothing to do with his special talent, just after he found out what it was. Over time, he learned to live with it, and his life seemed to stabilize, perhaps even become normal. Which made it all the worse when everything falls apart in a single day, and he is left without even the ability to control his own fate.</p><p>Once everything is ripped away from a pony, can he ever return his life to the way things were? And even if he can, is it still worth fighting for?</p><p>~Compiled and edited by Twilight Sparkle, Royal Librarian</p><p>(This is a work in progress, and will be until completed. Please see my blog entry for more details :3 )</p> | everyone | 2012-02-08T12:47:17+00:00 | 2012-02-08T12:47:17+00:00 | 2,165 | Eternity was formless: dark, empty, and silent. Inky blackness filled the universe, and at first, I didn't exist. Nothing did. I was the very stuff of nothingness; no eyes, no body, no substance. I existed there, unmoving, unfeeling, unthinking for what could have been centuries.
Consciousness returned first, niggling feelings and broken thoughts swirling through the deepest recesses of my ethereal mind. As they began to take shape, so did my self image, and my form coalesced from the very stuff of the void. My body formed, unfeeling. My eyes opened, unseeing. My mind inhabited the empty shell, but there was no sense of self. I sat there dumbly for another few millennia, as my brain slowly percolated and frothed.
Eventually, self-awareness pieced itself together, scattered thoughts and memories colliding randomly until they created something of substance. As my mind began to slowly clear, faltering occasionally, I began to breathe again. My eyelids fluttered as pupils appeared and grew from tiny dots back to their normal size. Muscles twitched, and my body moved. Haltingly, I lifted a hoof and rubbed my cheek: I still had no sense of touch and my entire body was completely numb. As that realization sank in, I found more of my memories returning. Surprisingly, all my recent ones appeared intact, despite the trauma of my fall. Everything seemed so crystal clear now, after the fact. I found myself going over all that had just happened and analyzing every detail. I had the time now, I thought wryly to myself.
Despite my best efforts to keep my mind on other things, my thoughts kept returning to that mysterious yellow filly that had appeared out of nowhere. Images of her seemed to be locked into my head, but each and every time that I thought of her, I found that they were shrouded by that last look she had given me. That final look of fear and betrayal overshadowed all else, and I knew it would haunt me for the rest of this eternity, more so than any other painful memory that I had ever had.
I sighed inwardly. And of course that look would be the last thing I ever saw of her, wouldn't it? I knew she had at least hit the fog bank I had managed to create at the last possible moment. What bothered me was that I had no idea whether it was enough to save her, or if I was just fooling myself. I once again found my thoughts turning dark, as my mind immediately started hypothesizing all the terrible things that could have happened to her.
After my imagination finished torturing me, that train of thought led me to thinking about what terrible things must have happened to me. My final memory was of pain and sickening noises, which I knew must have come from collisions in my final seconds before impacting the ground. At least, I hoped they came from me. I shuddered to think of what they would mean if they came from her. Frowning, I shook my head. No, I was sure she was fine. That cloud bank had reached the all the way to the ground from above the trees... hadn’t it? My brow furrowed as I obsessed over our possible fates. It took some time before I was able to free myself from my thoughts. Once again I shook my head clear, and turned my attention outward.
I shifted position and looked down at myself, the only thing somehow visible in a vast sea of black. As I took stock, I realized that all my colors seemed muted and dim. My fur, once a vibrant shade in-between blue and purple, was now murky and nearly grey. My mane, normally black, was invisible in this place; I had to put my hoof behind it to see that it was even there, as I still had no sense of touch to feel it. This was concerning, being completely deadened like this, but after the pain I had just gone through, I found it was a welcome respite.
Deadened. Numb. The words suddenly dominated my existence, such as it was. I leaned back and took in the infinity of emptiness above me. Well, here I was. My wish had been granted; the pain was over. I didn't need to worry about anything anymore. My eyes closed slowly. I thought I would feel happy, or fulfilled, or something... but all I felt now was hollow, as empty as the void surrounding me. I couldn't really say I felt anything. I guess I truly was numb, inside and out. My mind slowly cleared of thoughts as I began to accept my fate.
Sometime later, my reverie was interrupted as I became aware of a quiet sound disturbing the silence. My eyelids, now feeling heavy, lifted slowly, as I looked around dispassionately for the source of the noise. Unsurprisingly, there was still nothing in sight. Eyelids drooping, I lowered my head... and heard the sound again. It was a quiet “plip”, so soft that normally it would be inaudible. I listened carefully and heard it again. Lowering my head further, I finally saw the source of the noise: I was now sitting in a pool of clear water, of which I was sure hadn't been there before I closed my eyes. Slowly, every thought feeling like an effort, I wondered where it came from... And that's when I saw the droplet fall from my face into the pool.
Surprise returning some small amount of focus, my eyes opened wider, and I put a numb hoof to my face. Pulling it away, I examined it: It was covered in the same clear liquid. Still uncomprehending, I leaned forward and looked into the pool.
The face that looked back was streaked with tears.
Shock finished the job: clarity returned, coincidentally, like a splash of cold water. I stared into my own face, wiping the tears from my face with the back of a hoof. Why was I crying? This was what I wanted... wasn't it? Thoughts racing, I looked deep into the pool, searching my face, looking for answers.
That’s when something changed in the reflection. Shimmering, warping, the image moved without ripples. I suddenly found myself deeply disturbed as I saw the face in the pool begin to smile.
A sudden jab of pain shot through my head, disturbing the lack of physical sensations. As I felt my head throb, a whispering voice began to speak, startling me. 'Aw... Why so sad? It's all over, just like you wanted. Come come, now, I thought you'd be happy!'
I closed my eyes and placed my forehooves on my temples, trying to control the pounding. The voice continued. 'Oh, stop being such a wimp...' My eyes shot open wide, suddenly recognizing the sound. It was my voice! Coming from inside my head! I opened my mouth to speak, but it cut me off. 'Don't bother: as you've already figured out, I'm in your head. I know everything you think, so, really, words are just a waste of time.'
Still confused, I tried to formulate a reply without speaking. 'Who...'
The voice let out a loud sigh. 'Do I really sound this dumb? I'm you, foal. The inner you, or something. I don't know. Honestly, I don’t really care. Pretty sure I didn't exist until just now. Maybe you've lost your mind. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised, truthfully.'
I tried to protest that I felt sane, but once again, I was interrupted. 'Sane or not, you are talking to yourself. Are we really going to debate this?’ The voice paused, sighing again. ‘Look. I figure I'm here for a reason, so lets just get to the point, shall we? Why are you crying? See, I know everything you do, and I'm at a loss. This was what we wanted. We wanted it over. Done with. No more problems. And now, here we are. Not satisfied? Something missing? Please, do tell. I’m dying to know.' The voice finished its speech with a sarcastic flare.
Inner Me sounded strange, irritated, somehow unlike me, but I shrugged it off, as he’d raised a valid point. I had wanted this... hadn't I? Searching my brain for the answer that I needed, it didn’t take me long to realize that I didn't... hadn't wanted to die. Not deep down. Not really. All I had really wanted was the pain to be over. I hadn't wanted my life to end. Not now. Not like this. Despite all that had happened to me, I still had so much that I wanted to do. So many dreams left unfinished.
Tears welled up from my eyes again and began to drip into the pool, causing the grinning reflection of my face to ripple. My mind filled with all the things I would now never do. I would never have a family, or real friends, I would never have a house, or a pet. I would never read another book, or touch another cloud. I would never find love. There was nothing left. Everything was gone now. All that was left was me. Alone. Again.
Solid streams of tears now poured into my reflection, distorting it wildly. The smile on my face seemed to stretch wider and wider until the grin seemed larger than the face itself. The voice in my head began to chuckle. 'Really? That's all? This makes you cry like a baby?’ It snorted derisively ‘Get over it. It’s over. The sooner you get that through your thick little skull, the better.'
Suddenly angry, and tired of the verbal abuse, I finally threw a completed thought back at the voice. 'Shut up! I know it’s over! I don't need you to tell me that, and I definitely don't need you laughing at me!'
My rebuttal only served to make him laugh harder. 'Yeah. Right. Like you can silence a part of yourself! You're stuck with me. Besides, the faster you come to terms with it, the quicker I can move onto more interesting things.’ The reflection yawned, looking at a watch that suddenly appeared. ‘Face it, buddy, you got what you wished for. And in the end, it ended up being the one thing you never wanted. Irony, hah! Can't you see the humor in that?'
Shuddering with repressed rage, I tried to reply calmly. 'No... it is NOT funny to me, and shouldn't be for you either. Just... leave me alone. I've lost everything... absolutely everything... and you laughing is just making it worse. So just. Shut. Up.’ I glared into the puddle. ‘Go away, and leave me be!'
The voice roared with laughter, causing me to hold my head again as it began to throb faster. 'Really? Like I care what you say! To me, this is hilarious, and all your protesting just makes it all the sweeter.’ The image in the puddle began to smile again, the eerie grin stretching its face wider and wider. ‘Oh, this feels amazing! Poor little pony, feels so bad... Hah! And to think, all of this happened because poor little old you couldn't control his own stupid horn.'
That was the last straw. Exploding with fury, I screamed and wept openly as I lashed out blindly at my reflection. “SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!! I DON'T WANT TO DIE!!!” I shrieked as I thrashed and stamped at the pool, splashing and frothing the water until I couldn't see that awful grin anymore. “I DON'T WANT TO DIE!!!”
As the image faded, so did the laughter, and my head emptied of sound. My ears were not so fortunate. The scream had shattered the silence, startling me with its sudden intensity. It seemed to echo and bounce back at me, louder with each and every pass. Soon, it became so loud I had to cover my ears, and still the volume increased. It began to vibrate my bones, and soon my entire being. I screamed out in pain as it became too loud to bear, but my cries only seemed to harmonize with the echo of my voice, increasing the decibels further. Once again I found shadows filling my sight as the sound drilled into my mind, nearly causing me to black out.
Just as my vision almost blurred to incomprehensibility, the noise somehow finally managed to leave my range of hearing. The shadows began retreating from my vision, but this was now the least of my worries: Just because I couldn't hear it anymore didn't mean it wasn't still going on. The entire universe began to vibrate. The pool of water I was standing in started rippling of its own accord, waves forming in the miniature lake. And that's when it happened.
THUNK
The vibration suddenly stopped. I looked up, surprised to see that a crack had appeared in the darkness above me. Crumbling noises replaced the silence of before, as more cracks quietly began to appear in the void. Bright white light pulsated through each and every line, causing me to shade my eyes as they tried to adjust from the pitch blackness I had been enveloped in for so long. As the fissures continued to grow and merge, pieces of the void began to rain down around me, colliding with the ground, sections both small and large of the once solid surface beginning to fracture and fall away. I realized very quickly that this was no longer a safe place; I needed to leave. Right now.
I looked around quickly for any signs of an escape, but besides the light, nothing new had appeared. What sections of the void were still intact were unchanged, at least for the moment. I tried to relax and clear my mind, and as I did, strangely, I found an old saying coming to mind: When you have hit rock bottom, the only place to go is up. I had certainly reached my lowest point... or at least as deep as I wanted to go. Turning my gaze towards one of the newly opened holes in the ground near me, into which the pool was now draining, an involuntary shiver ran down my spine. The holes were foreboding, somehow managing to exude an even deeper darkness than the rest of this place. I definitely did not want to find out what was down there!
Tilting my head back, I looked over the surface of the vaulted ceiling of this place, and immediately saw that the light was shining brightest through the fissures directly above me. As they grew, the light spread throughout and my shattering world came into view. This place I had been trapped in was revealed to be a cavernous chamber made of some sort of obsidian crystal, shards of which were now crashing onto the floor, which was made of the same substance. Each falling piece was causing more cracking and collapses as well when they impacted the ground.
My goal was above me, and the only way up was out. Purpose restored, and with a destination in mind, I gathered myself up and set off, splashing through the remnants of that horrid pool. With the world crumbling around me, I noted that the shattered wall was now broken in several places revealing large, gaping gaps of blinding light. I veered to the right and galloped towards the nearest one. As I neared the opening, a large chunk of the ceiling fell directly in front of me, causing me to have to skid to a halt. The ground shook violently, the collision sending crystal dust into the air as small hunks of crystal skittered around me. Accidentally sucking in a lungful of the dust, I broke out coughing, and my eyes immediately began to water. Thankfully, the floor held, at least for now.
As the dust finally cleared from both my sight and my wheezing lungs, I saw the opening I had been headed for was now mostly blocked, no longer even large enough to squeeze a pony through. Despairingly, I looked upwards at the mountain of rubble now only meters away and saw that while it was true that it blocked the opening, that it was not the case entirely: there was still light shining from near the peak, so it couldn't be completely sealed. I shook my head and grinned; I would not be deterred so easily. Brushing myself off, I began the slow climb up the giant shard.
I had only seen crystals in the Cloudsdale museum on childhood field trips, but compared to the tiny samples I had stared at through the glass display cases, this mountainous gem was amazing. Despite the surface being flat, the facets of the gem shone in the bright white light from above, flickering and flashing. I had never imagined that I would ever see, much less climb, anything like this. Truthfully, I had never stood on something that wasn't made of cloud before. The feeling of walking on something like this was indescribable, unlike anything I had ever experienced.
The climb was arduous: It was slow going; the surface smooth and slippery, especially since I still had no feeling in my hooves. Ascending was made all the more difficult by the rumbling shocks of other crystals crashing to the ground. I was careful where I placed my hooves, however, and made steady progress, despite slipping and sliding backwards several times.
While I trudged onwards, I was glad the voice had gone silent. I didn't need it laughing at every little slip I made. As thoughts of the voice crossed my mind, I found myself shivering again. I had never sounded like that in my life... but if it wasn't me, then what was it? Distracted, I misstepped, and the slide backwards refocused me on the task at hand. I didn't have time to try and figure it out right now, I had to keep going.
I could have given up at any time, but I was determined to at least see what was outside of this forbidding place. As I gained altitude, the light shining off of the obsidian also became a hazard, reflecting into my eyes and blinding me repeatedly, but I just winced and tolerated it, pressing onwards and upwards. Finally, as I gingerly slid myself around a rather large, protruding outcropping, the opening presented itself: a small jagged hole in the wall of my prison.
Poking my head through, I immediately regretted it: The brightness of the light was piercing, and it immediately resumed the earlier pounding in my skull. It was different this time though, as the throbbing was now behind my eyes, whereas before, it had been in my temples. As much as I wanted to pull my head back into the soothing shadows, I resisted. There was no place for me there. I was not about to give up now! I opened my eyes again slowly, trying to let them adjust. As they did, what I saw shocked me: There was nothing there!
Instead of an infinite darkness, what presented itself to me now was an endless sea of white. No horizon was visible: I could not even tell if any part of it was solid. No colors, no other obsidian structures, just... nothing. There was nowhere else to go.
I slumped, feeling defeated once again. Dejectedly, I began to pull my head back into the comforting darkness when a sudden flash of light seared my eyes. I yelped, but whatever it was had certainly gotten my attention! Turning my head, I looked upwards, suddenly remembering that that had been my original destination. Even from here, I could see what appeared to be some kind of a brightly shining orb, way up at the top of the structure. I girded myself: I was not done yet! Sliding my hooves into the opening, I squeezed myself through to the other side.
The outside surface, at least the parts of it that were still intact, was smooth and slightly rounded. I had no doubt that if I had seen it from a distance when it was whole that it would have been a perfect obsidian sphere. Or perhaps a dome. (I had no way to tell if it extended that far down.) As I positioned myself properly for the climb, tremors continued to shake the structure as parts of the interior collapsed. I began to tremble as much as the obsidion, but I squashed my fear and made sure of my footing before quickly continuing upwards.
For the moment, the ascent was uneventful; the higher I got, the easier the slope became, until finally I was no longer climbing, but walking. Moments later, I was very grateful for this, as out of nowhere, the section I had just trod across broke into several pieces and disappeared from sight. I froze in fear, my legs locking up, questioning my decision. Could I not just have found shelter somewhere below? Was whatever that was up here worth it? Leaning over, I peered into the newly formed chasm. My mouth went dry as I saw how high up I was, eyes staring fixated at all the sharp edges glittering far below. My knees began to buckle, and I almost fell in, but as I did, the face of the yellow pony came to mind once more. My legs locked and braced; I had to keep trying. I needed to know she was alright, and I felt the answers were ahead. She knew me as little as I knew her, but I was not a heartless pony. I cared about her well-being. A spark flashed in my mind as I came to the second realization since my arrival. If I cared about her, and she cared about me, then, dangit, I could care about myself too! For her sake at the very least!
I straightened back up, new-found resolve and self confidence building once more. Breaking into a gallop, I headed directly for the source of that beautiful light. More shards and structure fell away around me, but as long as they weren't in my path, I ignored them. Sweat poured down my face and I blew steam from my nostrils; I had never exerted myself like this before. Even though I could barely breathe, it felt glorious.
The dome began to level out, the rounded peak coming into view. The light was becoming intolerable. My eyes began tearing up in agony, but I did not dare close them. Small pieces of the dome were breaking away constantly now, and every step had a risk of sending me through. I could just make out the orb through the glare. Wheezing, I let out a breathless cheer: I was so close I could smell it. Taking a deep breath to try and fill my aching lungs, I realized that I WAS actually smelling something. I took another whiff; It was like nothing I had ever smelled before. Clean and fresh, but also filled with warmth and life. Rich and heady, with a strong scent of spices. I even smelled smoke, something I had only ever smelled years ago, when it had drifted up to town from a forest fire far below. So many strange things in this place! The aromas were enticing, and as I took it in, I missed the cracking noise directly in front of me.
KRA-THUNK
Mid-gallop, my forehoof broke through the dome, creating a hoof-sized imprint in the surface. I fell face-first onto the ground and skidded to a stop, my hoof popping out of the hole. Splintering noises filled my ears as I tried to make my head stop spinning. When my vision cleared, I saw that the entire top of the dome was spider-webbed with cracks, originating from where I had originally punctured it. Looking up, I could see the spinning, pulsating light was only a few hoof-lengths away, just out of reach. I tried to slowly shift myself towards it, but every movement caused the cracks to grow. Hoping things would settle, I stopped moving, but even then I could feel the surface beneath me shifting, beginning to give way.
Emotions ran high; I wanted to cry, to shout, to scream in frustration. I even swore I could hear that terrible laughter again, echoing in the back of my mind. I had come so close, only to have it denied me. I knew that no matter what I did, I was going to fall. Laying there, wallowing in my failure, anger began to blossom in my heart. Tears formed in the corners of my eyes, muscles clenched in fury at myself; I wouldn't be in this mess if I had been born a pegasus, like my parents. Once again my differences were ruining my life. If I had just been born with wings instead of my stupid horn, none of these terrible things would have happened to me in the first place. I'd just be able to fly to the dang ball of light and be done with it. No more worries of falling either.
As I lay there pitying and hating myself, scents continued wafting towards me from the light. I found the aromas nearly overpowering now, chokingly so. As it garnered my attention, and my focus shifted to it, I swore I could hear a bubbling noise coming from the glowing orb. Despite my pounding skull, I wiped my eyes and looked directly into the pulsating sphere, trying to make out what was contained within. If I couldn't get to it, I at least wanted to know what it was. The intensity of the light felt as if it was burning my eyes from the inside out, but I forced them open with my hooves.
I still do not know if I was seeing things or not, as the light may have been playing tricks on my mind, but I was sure there was something in there. I squinted and tried to make it out.
Colors swirled and churned; it was impossible to tell exactly what I was seeing. Just before I gave up, for just an instant, an infinitesimal moment in time, I saw something familiar; a pair of azure eyes, framed in yellow and pink. It disappeared almost instantly, but for that split second, I recognized that look of concern. As the image faded, I sat there blinking for a moment, my resolve growing by leaps and bounds as I did. She had cared, to the point of nearly killing herself for a pony she did not know. Even if I still wasn't completely sure that I deserved it, I was not going to give up now!
Steeling myself, I got to my hooves. The ground immediately resumed trembling, as pieces flaked away. I started moving quickly, shifting myself from shard to shard, making sure to get off of each before it fell. My progress didn't last long; the movement had caused the entire shelf to begin to crumble. As I felt every shard I stood on fail under my weight, I gathered myself onto the biggest one I could see, bunched my muscles, and leapt towards the light. The force of my jump was the last straw, as everything below me disappeared with a roar as rubble bounced against each other in midair, crashing to the floor below. As I soared through the air, I already could tell that I hadn't gotten close enough to enter the sphere. Desperately, I stretched myself outwards, reaching for the outer margins of the orb. As I fell past it, the tip of my outstretched hoof brushed the surface, and seemed to stick to it, forming a solid bond. Dangling by my hoof, I hung there in midair for only an instant before I found myself pulled in by some unseen force.
Light filled every fiber of my being, and I quickly lost myself in it, but even as it took me away, I smiled. And the sneering laughter finally faded completely from my mind. |
Zoltrioundz | 588 | 4 | Main 6,Original Character,Zecora,Romance,Sad,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Distant Flutter of Angels | When a pony has everything taken from him, can he regain his true path with the help of the Mane 6? | hiatus | 20 | 1 | <p><b>[Normal][Sad][OC Pony][Slow Romance]</b><br/>Full Size Cover image: <a href="http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y" rel="nofollow">http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y</a></p><hr/><p>Indigo Flash hasn't had the best life. In fact, while he was just a young colt, his entire life started unraveling at the seams. He lost his parents, was driven away from the other ponies his age, and wound up forced into a job that had nothing to do with his special talent, just after he found out what it was. Over time, he learned to live with it, and his life seemed to stabilize, perhaps even become normal. Which made it all the worse when everything falls apart in a single day, and he is left without even the ability to control his own fate.</p><p>Once everything is ripped away from a pony, can he ever return his life to the way things were? And even if he can, is it still worth fighting for?</p><p>~Compiled and edited by Twilight Sparkle, Royal Librarian</p><p>(This is a work in progress, and will be until completed. Please see my blog entry for more details :3 )</p> | everyone | 2012-02-08T12:54:04+00:00 | 2012-02-08T12:54:04+00:00 | 2,202 | Consciousness returned in fire and flame. My entire body spasmed uncontrollably as it was wracked with unimaginable pain. I tried to cry out, but all that escaped my lips was a faint groan and some squeaks. Attempting to move, to find a way to free myself from the agony, I found that I couldn't even shift an inch. Nothing budged, not even my head. I was completely paralyzed, helpless, trapped. My eyes began tearing up as they darted around wildly, lost in pure panic. That only made things worse, as what I could see of my surroundings made my blood run cold.
I had never seen anything like it; walls of wood, but warped, twisted, completely unlike the wooden planks my furniture had been made of. They appeared to be alive, with dangling vines growing along the edges of the room. Ghoulish masks and strangely colored bottles adorned the walls, dimly lit by an assortment of candles. The faces seemed to stare, leering at me, and I swore I could see them moving. Once more, I tried to call out, but as before, all that came out was a slightly louder squeal.
I heard movement out of my sight range, as something shuffled, shifting position. A females voice suddenly spoke, easily rising above the quiet bubbling I could hear in the background. “Good morning, pony. I've heard your squeak. I must recommend that you do not speak. You have injuries that are quite severe. In fact, I know not if you can even hear.” A clopping noise approached me, and a face appeared in my vision. Black and white stripes filled my sight, and I flinched in surprise, having expected to see the yellow pony. Instead, a creature of light and dark filled my view, and I found myself trying to shrink back in fear. After a brief moment, however, my eyes focused onto the smiling face. It did not appear to mean me any harm. I took deeper breaths, trying to relax and not wet myself. This place was crazy!
Seeing my eyes focus on hers, the smile widened. “Ah, I see you have returned to the land of the living. That you would, I must admit, I had some misgiving.” Gently she reached over and brushed some hair from my face. “Beaten, battered, and sorely bruised; the fight for life you did nearly lose. Fate it seems had you in hand, with choosing where you came to land. But that is a story for another day; For now, let me take your pain away.” She looked down and I heard the rattling of hoof on glass. Since she was now all I could see, I looked over her face. She looked like a pony, but more exotic, foreign. While her hair seemed stiff and straight, like the bristles on a brush, her eyes belied a much softer personality. In fact, I realized, they reminded me of the yellow pegasus who had tried to save me, and not just because they both had deep blue eyes. While her eyes were similar in shade, I could see right away that there was some hardness buried there as well. Accentuating the difference was that her eyes were also quite a different shape from any other pony I had ever met. No, the similarity was that, unlike most ponies I had known, she looked upon me with concern, and, dare I hope, caring.
My tears finally overflowed and blurred my vision; the pain was not going away, and every inch of me was feeling it. Once again I strained to move, but it was if I was bound in place. My attempts did not go unnoticed, and she turned back to me, the look on her face further emphasizing her concern as she quickly spoke up. “Please, mysterious pony, move no more; I have a remedy I could not give you before. This potion will quickly reduce your pain: but if you sleep, you may not wake again.” Leaning in, she stared me right in the face. “If you think you can stay awake, here is the medicine; please partake.” Pulling back, she leaned out of sight for a moment, returning with a large black bottle. Gripping it between her hooves, she popped out the cork with her teeth and spit it aside. Carrying the bottle tightly in her teeth, she positioned the opening at my lips and waited.
She didn't have long to wait. I wasted no time; the agony was unbearable, and honestly, I had no desire to lose consciousness again. Not after all I had just gone through. Reaching out with my mouth, I took hold of the bottle and guzzled the contents, drinking it so quickly that I felt it try to bubble back past my lips. I felt the pain start to subside immediately as glorious numbness returned. My limbs stopped involuntarily pulling against whatever seemed to restrain them, but even as they did, I quickly found I was able to feel other problems arising. My stomach roiled and heaved; I felt bile rise in my throat, and, gagging, I let the bottle fall from my lips, hitting the floor with a clatter. Barely keeping the contents of my stomach down, I looked up at her in a panic. To my surprise, she was already ready with another bottle open, filled to the brim with small brown seeds.
“Sick to your stomach? I am ready for that too. I knew it would be needed, for you swallowed some goo. A pink friend of mine has spoken of it you see; she told me that rainbows can be very spicy. A large amount seems to have gone down your throat, as you lay in the pool where I found you afloat. The amount you have swallowed will need to be passed, these seeds will assist, and clear it out fast. A powerful herb, it cannot be beaten, they absorb only the things that should not be eaten. This is important for you, you see, for you need sustenance most drastically.” Taking the bottle from her hooves gently with her teeth, she leaned in again.
I nodded quickly, not really paying attention to the speech she was giving (in rhyme, no less!), as I tried to keep from heaving. I took the new bottle in my mouth like the last and tilted it back, gulping down as many as I could. These seeds were nearly as fast acting as the first potion, as I began feeling my stomach calm almost immediately. Unfortunately for me, once again, resolving one problem lead to another. The nausea faded, only to be replaced by an aching feeling of hunger, gnawing painfully at my sides.
I kept swallowing the seeds insatiably, only stopping when I saw the smirk on her face. Pausing, I let go of the container. This time, she was ready, and deftly caught it in her hooves, placing it on some nearby surface out of my view. I tried to speak, but I could still only croak, so instead I gave her a quizzical look.
Her grin did not falter as she spoke with a chuckle: “Hungry pony, those seeds should not really have been eaten. As herbal medicine though, they cannot be beaten. They will pass through quickly, you will see, but when they do, you will want some privacy.”
I still didn't follow and raised an eyebrow. Laughing musically, she took a moment to collect herself before replying. “It is a future that I can easily foretell, in which you will soon feel the need to expel.”
My eyes widened and I coughed up a few seeds, finally catching on to what she meant. As I motioned with my eyes towards my lower half, she began laughing so hard that she had to wipe away tears. Once she recovered, she cleared her throat and spoke bluntly: “Oh yes, indeed, quite forcefully. But trust when I say it would be worse naturally.” Blushing, I nodded, accepting her reasoning; I was already feeling better, but was now slightly concerned, and very aware that I had eaten far more seeds than I probably needed.
Still smiling, she walked out of sight, and I heard strange sounds, as if items were being dropped into a liquid. Not being able to see what was going on, I relied on my other senses, able to focus on them now that my immediate issues seemed to have subsided... aside from the now-constant growling in my stomach. Idly, I wondered if the noise was more from the potion and seeds mixing, or just ordinary hunger. Pungent aromas assaulted my nostrils as I took the time to sniff the air, and as the scents registered in my brain, they rekindled memories that had faded upon waking.
I suddenly recalled the fragrant odor which had filled my senses as the obsidian dome crumbled around me. Had that really been just a dream? Alarmed, I listened to my surroundings, and found that the bubbling noise I had heard was here as well. That gave me pause, and a new need to process all this, to figure it out. Being unable to move gave me time to think on where, or what, I had just awoken from.
Details of my escape from the obsidian prison had started to fade, but as I took the time to remember, the details re-affixed themselves in my mind. Now able to focus, I began to see my experiences there in a new light. Thinking back on it, I very quickly realized that that it could not have been a dream, at least not in any normal sense. Going over what this strange pony had told me in her own weird way, and merging that with my experiences there, I began to scare myself. All that running, and climbing... and that insane version of myself which had laughed at me from inside my own head... I shuddered briefly. If that’s what the inside of my mind was like, I must have some serious issues!
My mouth went dry as I drew another conclusion: If that was all inside my head, then escaping via the orb must mean that I’d brought myself back from the brink of death, or perhaps a vegetative state. I began to tremble lightly: If I had given up at any point, from not bothering to reform myself from the void, to giving in to numbness and fading out, or even just because I didn’t make that final jump, I would be dead! Or at least close enough that it wouldn’t matter! Straining against my bindings again, I tried unsuccessfully to examine myself. Again, I was still unable to move, though I was sure my limbs were trying to. I frowned: How badly injured was I that I had to be restrained like this?
Just then, my thoughts were interrupted by the return of the exotically colored pony, holding a wooden bowl in her mouth. She placed it on a nearby surface that I still could not see, and then began speaking as she turned to face me. “When I found you, you were in such a state, not only injured but you had lost much weight. Dehydrated and starving, and falling from the sky, so many questions to ask, but primarily: Why?” Pausing for a moment, her smile faded. “Answer me now, I know you cannot, so gather your strength, and eat, while it's hot.” With this, she picked up a ladle. Dipping it into the bowl, she then held it to my lips. It smelled delicious, and I found myself salivating. Sighing, I tried to relax again, forcing a smile. There was no use worrying, I was here now, and I would have to take whatever fate had doled out, as usual. I opened wide, and the concoction spilled into my mouth.
As it slid over my tongue, I savored the rich broth and its strange flavors. It had a hint of spices, though there was nothing I could identify. I had only ever cooked basic meals, not being much of a chef, and the restaurants in Cloudsdale did not have that much variety, at least, nothing I would dare try. My taste-buds came alive as I swirled it in my mouth. I almost didn't want to swallow, but my aching stomach and the fact that she was already holding another spoonful at the ready convinced me otherwise. Gulping it down, I licked my lips and immediately opened my mouth for more. I saw her eyes light up at my obvious enjoyment, and she smiled before tipping in another mouthful.
I lost track of time as I ate my fill, but the end came far too soon. Long before I felt full, she got up and took the bowl away. Since I still could not speak, when she returned I gave her my most pitiful look, begging for more with my eyes. Apparently she found this funny as well, as she let out a chuckle. “Yes, pony, there is more broth to be had, but too much too soon would be very bad. For now I think the obvious choice is for me to help you mend your voice.”
As soon as I heard that, I wanted to jump for joy, but of course, I was still unable to move. Instead, I tried to nod repeatedly, excited. As I did, I pulled up against a restraint. Now I was sure I could move, but was being held down. This again brought my earlier fears back to the forefront of my mind. I could understood the need for the restraints at first, before she gave me the potion which numbed my entire body, but what reason could she have to keep me like this now?
Suddenly, I grew cautious; this much generosity for nothing? There had to be a catch. I had no bits to my name, but she must know this as she had brought me here. Was she planning something? My eyes hardened with suspicion, but I tried to stay calm; maybe I was worrying for nothing. Once I could speak, though, I knew I would find out for sure.
She didn't appear to notice my inner conflict, as she brought another bowl over, this one bubbling and letting off a cloud of steam. She placed it near my head; I could feel the heat coming off it, causing the side of my face to begin sweating. She leaned over me, and I felt her teeth grip whatever was holding my head down. As it came away, I watched her remove a tightly wound towel and shake it loose. She placed the towel over the bowl. “Gently, please do go ahead, and to the bowl now tilt your head. Of this steam, now slowly inhale: This housemare's remedy never fails.”
Gingerly, unwilling to risk further injury, I let my head slip to the side. She picked the towel back up, and as my mouth came into contact with the steam, she draped it over both my muzzle and the bowl. I began breathing in deeply, trying to fill my lungs with the stuff. As I did, I became aware of a tightness in my chest. Still grateful for the numbing effect of the earlier brew, I let the steam bathe my throat in moisture. It tasted of mint and medicine, but it was very soothing. And also effective, as I soon found, the tightness in my throat rapidly loosening.
Suddenly I coughed roughly, as something came loose in my esophagus. Hacking, I managed to clear the blockage, feeling several chunks of whatever it was coming to rest on my tongue... and light it on fire! I felt my face contort wildly as my taste-buds burned in agony, as if they were covered in liquid flame. The sensations were indescribable, as one moment it was the most sour thing I had ever tasted, and the next instant it was the sweetest, before then shifting to spicy. I managed to spit it out before it overcame me. It bounced out from under the towel and came to rest on the floor.
It was instantly recognizable – solidified rainbow. As the sensations faded, I breathed a sigh of relief: It ended on the hottest sensation I had ever felt; so hot that the only description could be that it was unbelievably SPICY! Without about ten exclamation marks! The sweat faded from my brow as I looked up at this unusual pony, thinking over what she had said again. Hadn’t she said that she had found me afloat, and that I had swallowed rainbow goo? That was strange. How would I have come across that in the middle of the Everfree? Most rainbows are made in the Cloudsdale weather factory. I concentrated, thinking back. It was hard to remember the last moments of my fall, as it seemed shrouded in darkness and insufferable agony, but I did recall trees around me transforming into strange things.
Then it came to me, picturing the beautiful image of ice crystals merging with liquid rainbow in the last rays of the setting sun. Had I somehow done that? I chuckled internally. Nah, it couldn't have been me. I knew of no such spell. I had long since stopped pursuing any form of magic back when I started working in accounting. The only thing my stupid magic was good for was getting around town. In the back of my mind though, I began to have doubt. Sure, all the math and studying had helped me in my job... but I couldn't help but wonder what might have been. What if did have some kind of crazy magical ability? I snorted. No, my cutie mark was to do with weather, that I have magic is just a mistake. I was meant to be a pegasus after all, just like my parents. My being born a unicorn was just an unfortunate accident.
Now that the obstruction in my throat was clear, the steam really seemed to be doing its job: my voice no longer felt quite so raw. I decided to give it another try, since all the questions piling up in my head were beginning to drive me nuts. Clearing my throat, I took a deep breath and asked the first question that popped into my head
“How... *squeak* ...survive...”
Most of the query did not make it past my lips as more than a squeal, but she seemed to understand. She shifted position, and as she did, now that my head was sideways, I got a glimpse of the room past her on the far side of the main area. For just a split second, I saw an alcove in the wall outlined by vines. In this other room, I saw a bed with a leopard print blanket. There seemed to be a form in the bed, and just as she shifted back, I swore I saw something pink. I suddenly had another question I urgently needed to ask, but it was just then that she answered me.
“I saw you land; this much is true. And I have no qualms in telling you. But I would request that we delay, other ponies are coming today. They will also want to hear, as the other pony is one they hold dear.”
My eyes widened, and I hurriedly cleared my throat again. “*croak* ...yellow pony OK?” More of my sentence made it through this time, and I awaited her response with baited breath. My heart skipped a beat as her smile faded with a sigh.
Her eyes closed as she spoke. “She insisted on helping carry you here; though exhausted herself, she did persevere. She then helped me tend to your injuries. Truthfully, I did not know she had such abilities. Once we had done all we could do, she collapsed; it was up to you. I carried her then into my bed, then I sat down and rested my head. Of severe injuries, she had none; bruised and sore, her strength outdone. She needed rest, I let her sleep: The sun was rising, I had herbs to steep. For early this morning a comrade came for tea, she saw her friend there and to town she did flee. I have no doubt she is gathering her friends...” She suddenly looked up, behind me, as if noticing sudden movement. “Apologies, for now, this is where my tale ends.”
SLAM
The front door swung open with such force that it nearly flew off its hinges. Bottles rattled all over the room from the impact with the wall. The towel fell from my face as I turned my head to see five multicolored mares glaring at me.
I swallowed heavily, another lump in my throat; this did not bode well at all. |
Zoltrioundz | 588 | 5 | Main 6,Original Character,Zecora,Romance,Sad,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Distant Flutter of Angels | When a pony has everything taken from him, can he regain his true path with the help of the Mane 6? | hiatus | 20 | 1 | <p><b>[Normal][Sad][OC Pony][Slow Romance]</b><br/>Full Size Cover image: <a href="http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y" rel="nofollow">http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y</a></p><hr/><p>Indigo Flash hasn't had the best life. In fact, while he was just a young colt, his entire life started unraveling at the seams. He lost his parents, was driven away from the other ponies his age, and wound up forced into a job that had nothing to do with his special talent, just after he found out what it was. Over time, he learned to live with it, and his life seemed to stabilize, perhaps even become normal. Which made it all the worse when everything falls apart in a single day, and he is left without even the ability to control his own fate.</p><p>Once everything is ripped away from a pony, can he ever return his life to the way things were? And even if he can, is it still worth fighting for?</p><p>~Compiled and edited by Twilight Sparkle, Royal Librarian</p><p>(This is a work in progress, and will be until completed. Please see my blog entry for more details :3 )</p> | everyone | 2012-02-08T13:39:25+00:00 | 2012-02-08T13:39:25+00:00 | 2,144 | The deadly stares did not falter as the group attempted to enter the room. A chill ran down my spine as flashbacks of deadened eyes began to surface, unbidden. I shook off the memory; I had more current problems. Fortunately for me, the door was not wide enough for them all to enter at once, and provided a brief respite from their fury, as they turned their attention to getting inside, bumping and shuffling against each other. I breathed a sigh of relief, which was cut short as a cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane took off and flew over the others. She darted into the room and immediately shoved her face into mine, fury personified.
“What did you do to Fluttershy, you jerk?” she yelled. “Nopony hurts my friend and gets away with it!” Her face pressed my head back as I tried unsuccessfully to shrink away. It was futile of course: I was still tied down, utterly immobile except for my head.
Before she could do anything however, she was pulled back by an orange earth pony in a cowboy hat who had yanked her tail. It was no reprieve though, as her freckled face immediately replaced the rainbow-maned one's. “Stand aside Rainbow, Ah'm goin' first.” She glared at me ferociously. “Ah'm gonna buck this bronco into next week!”
The rainbow one turned her attention to the blond cowpony, returning the dirty trick and also pulling her back via a quick tug on her tail. “No way, I got here first!” she complained angrily, keeping a hoof firmly planted, trapping her. Their argument continued as they began to butt heads against each other. I cringed, still unable to defend myself: These restraints were going to get me killed! As I weakly struggled against my bonds, I almost didn't hear a faint voice in the background. Even though I did, it was soon overshadowed by a white unicorn with a styled purple mane stepping in front of the two arguing ponies.
“... um... girls?"
The new pony gave me a disapproving glance before turning to the purple unicorn that was still by the door. “Twilight, you and I both know that if we let Applejack and Rainbow Dash go first, those ruffians will leave nothing for us ladies. Don't you agree that we should... how do you say it... get the first crack at him?” Even though she was turned away from me, I could see her give this Twilight a demure smile, fluttering her eyelashes beseechingly at her. Immediately afterwards however, she turned back to face me, a deadly glint in her eyes. Even scared out of my mind, I could still just make out a voice in the background trying to make itself heard, but again, it was overtaken.
“Girls, if you could just... ”
The purple mare near the door lifted her hooves over her head and yelled out over the volume of the other ponies in the room. “Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow! Calm down and listen!” Plopping back down, she continued. “Now, if we attack this pony, we’ll be no better than he is. What we need to do is take him before the Princess and let her decide what to do with him." She smiled, but it was an unsettling look: too wide, and with a hint of crazy. "I'm sure any punishment she gives out will be far worse than... ” Trailing off, she became distracted by the antics of the pink pony; the only one who had not tried to barge into the room. She was singing quietly to herself as she strung streamers along the back wall. The purple pony... Twilight from what I had gathered, looked as confused as I was. “Pinkie, what are you doing?”
The pink one... Pinkie?, stopped what she was doing and dangled upside-down from the ceiling. Confetti and streamers seemed to fall slowly from her mane, and several balloons seemed to have tangled in her tail. For the life of me, I couldn't tell what was holding her to the roof. Smiling happily, she twisted her head around to look towards the door. “Yes, Twilight?” she asked, innocently.
Twilight's look of confusion changed to frustration. “Ugh, Pinkie, just get down from there. We’re trying to deal with a serious matter here!”
Pinkie giggled at this and fell to the ground, immediately bouncing up and over to land in the middle of the others. “Oh Twilight, I can't hang my decorations for the “Get Well Soon” party if I stay on the ground. Besides, I think Fluttershy’s been trying to get your attention.”
Just then, the quiet voice, obviously fed up with being ignored, burst through the sudden awkward silence which had followed Pinkie's comment.
GIRLS!
All eyes in the room turned to the back alcove, where a very annoyed yellow pegasus stood, wings flared. As she found herself the center of attention, her wings quickly folded and she shrank back a bit before shaking her head and recovering her poise. “Oh um... right. Please stop threatening the nice pony, he didn't do anything wrong... well, not really anyways... it was kinda my fault... sorta... ” Her confidence seemed to fade as she trailed off into a squeak, tucking her face behind her long pink mane. I started to relax. She was okay! What did they call her? Fluttershy? It really suited her. I felt a sense of satisfaction: I had finally managed to learn her name!
The white unicorn... Rarity?, trotted quickly over to Fluttershy and put her forelegs around her, hugging her tightly. “Fluttershy! You're alright! I was so worried!” Pulling back, she looked into her eyes. “But whatever do you mean, darling? Twilight told us that some rogue stallion had attacked you out here in this nasty forest. She said that the brute had hurt you so badly you were bed-ridden! We all rushed over as soon as we heard!”
Fluttershy peeked out from behind her hair. “Oh... I uh, see. But girls, wherever did you get that idea? That isn't what happened at all!”
All eyes in the room turned to Twilight, who backed away, looking nervous. “What? But when I came over for tea early this morning, Zecora told me that this strange unicorn had hurt Fluttershy.” She pointed a hoof at me and I flinched back in shame.
The focus of all the ponies in the room then shifted to Zecora, who had been ignored by the brash entrance of the group. She was sitting at her table on the other side of the room, sipping quietly from a cup. As the volume finally lowered, and silence came over the group, she placed the cup back on its saucer, now able to speak up.
“Twilight, I said no such thing, your conclusions were your own to bring. What I said was quite exact, if you take time to think back." Shaking her head and letting out a sigh, she leaned forward and locked eyes with Twilight. "If you would, please listen carefully this time. I know it can be hard to do with rhyme.” She cleared her throat and closed her eyes. “Fluttershy has taken quite a fall, this stallion, it appears, was the cause of it all.” Her eyes opened as she affixed a stern look upon the purple mare. “My statement was brief and lacked much detail, no more was given before you turned tail. A lesson forgotten from when we met, a reminder perhaps that you should get. 'Maybe next time you will take a second look, and not judge the cover of the book. ' “
Twilight's cheeks blushed pink and she sat down, hard. “Oh my gosh... I'm so sorry. I jumped to conclusions when I saw that Fluttershy was hurt, and I raced back to town to get everypony without taking the time to be sure of what happened.” Tears formed in her eyes and she raised a hoof to wipe them away. “I'm sorry I wasted your time.” She turned to me. “And I'm truly very sorry we all threatened you.”
All of the mares expressions, filled with anger only moments ago, shifted to embarrassment, as they each found themselves coming to terms with the things they had said. Applejack trotted over to Twilight and put a hoof on her shoulder. “Nuts, Twilight; Ah'dve done the same thing, Ah reckon. Emotions run high when friends are involved. Don't think nothin’ of it. We forgive you.” Applejack then turned to Zecora. “So if this here stallion didn't muss her up, then what did? Ah reckon something still needs a good bucking.”
Zecora leaned forward and stood up, walking softly back over to me, and lifted the fallen towel back onto my face. I wanted to say that I didn't need it, but my throat decided to betray me and squeak again. My eyes were drawn back to the chunk of rainbow on the ground as I began to breathe in the steam once again. What really kept bothering me though was that I still didn't understand how liquid rainbow had gotten out into the middle of the Everfree forest. As the thought crossed my mind again, my eyes shifted to the rainbow-haired pegasus now hovering in the middle of the room. She looked disappointed, forehooves crossed, as if she still wanted to beat something. I studied her and noticed that not only did she have a rainbow mane, but her cutie mark involved rainbows as well. I found myself wondering if she was somehow linked to the rainbow pools out here in the middle of nowhere. Frowning, I put a stop to this train of thought: this was no time to start trying to pin blame. There had been no other ponies around; this was the Everfree after all. There had to be some other explanation.
But wait, then why was Fluttershy there?
I coughed roughly again, feeling more of the gunk in my throat come free. This time I was smart, and swallowed the hard chunks. Let the seeds take care of it: I never wanted to taste the rainbow ever again.
My hacking did not go unnoticed. Zecora looked back at Applejack “The full story is his, but his throat needs more time. I will tell you what I saw, if you can tolerate the rhyme.”
Applejack sighed deeply. “If'n Ah have to, Ah guess Ah can, but you know sometimes Ah have a heap a’ trouble keeping up. But okay, Zecora, go ahead, Ah’ll try an’ follow along.”
Zecora smiled, and took a seat next to me. This time I paid close attention, for I had no idea what had happened after my vision blacked out mid-fall. All eyes turned to her as she began her tale. “I was out for a walk at dusk you see, gathering plants for a new herbal remedy. When up above I heard a loud cry, and a bright purple glow then lit up the sky. Lightning flashed and trees were struck, that I was not hit, I can only thank luck. Surrounding me then was a loud violent storm, on the ground I saw ice and rainbow pools form. Some trees turned to ice, of which a few did explode, others became of rainbow, as liquid they flowed. As colors and crystals merged high in the air... never before have I seen such a sight, I do swear.”
She paused here for a moment, taking a drink from her teacup, allowing time for the shocked mouths of the ponies in the room to close, including mine. My mind raced: everything she said matched up with what I could remember, but that meant that it was true: I was the source of the rainbow juice! I was dumbstruck: I had such magic? All I had used in my job was telekinesis, and since I had no need for anything else, that was all I had ever bothered to learn. Well, that and the childish tricks I had learned in my youth. I had never seen anything like this before, never even heard of this kind of magic. All the pegasus ponies I had worked with had always had to make rainbows by hoof!
Before I could think on this further, she started up again. “Almost as soon as it started it ended; I found myself shocked, as pea soup thick fog surrounded me: my vision nearly blocked. Right away though above, I heard Fluttershy cry: she tumbled, wings closed, as she fell from the sky. The fog bank did save her, it cushioned her fall, she did not come close to the ground then at all. This pony, however was not so lucky, his fall to the earth was cut short by a tree. He broke through the branches, and hit the tree trunk: a sickening sound, a deep fleshy thunk. He bounced off that tree, and into the cloud, I lost sight of him there, but the impact was loud. I raced to the site, only seconds away, in a pool of rainbow, face down did he lay. I did not believe he could survive such a fall, but when freed he was breathing, a very close call! Fluttershy soon did appear, shaking like a leaf, when she saw that he lived, she was in disbelief. She insisted on helping him here to my dwelling, we tended his wounds, and we lowered the swelling. I still do not know how he pulled himself through, that part of the story he will have to tell you.”
She let this sink in: I saw shame grow on the faces of the ponies in the room as they realized that they almost attacked a helpless, injured pony. The first to speak was the white unicorn with the manicured look... Rarity, I believe they called her. She came over to me and looked directly at me. “I think I speak for all of us, dear, when I say we are truly sorry for what we said earlier. When it comes to Fluttershy, I think we all just might be a teensy weensy bit overprotective. I sincerely hope you can accept our most heartfelt apologies.” Her apology was echoed by the other ponies in the room, though the two she had called ruffians did not seem all that enthusiastic about it. I nodded slowly, still unsure of how badly injured I was: I did not want to make myself worse. If I had in fact hit a tree and then the ground as she said, then I could be paralyzed from the neck down for all I knew.
I desperately wanted then to try and ask about my injuries, but Applejack spoke up again before I could make the attempt. “Thank ya kindly, Zecora, that's all well and good, an’ a very interestin’ end a’ the story... But it sure as hay don't tell us how Fluttershy got hurt in the first place. You said she landed in the fog safely, but jus’ you look at her! She looks like Ah do after a week-long rodeo with no sleep. What in tarnation happened?”
Zecora finished her tea and put down the cup. “I do not know, Applejack, I am very sorry. I have not been told that part of the story. This stallion has not been able to speak, and Fluttershy here has been deep asleep. But she is awake now, and for that I give thanks: Perhaps now she can help us fill in some of the blanks?”
As soon as I heard Applejack's concern, I took a closer look at Fluttershy. Wincing, I saw that all was not in fact well, as I had first hoped. Her feathers were in disarray, wings hanging low at her sides. Her hair was still disheveled, and she looked and moved as if she was in pain. Small bags under her eyes emphasized how much this ordeal had drained her physically: Even after sleeping, she still looked exhausted. Tears began to form in my eyes again. I had never wanted to hurt her; I hadn’t wanted to hurt anypony! Why did they care? I wasn’t worth helping. I wasn't worth any of this! Turning my head away, I stifled the tears, unable to look at what I had done. I could not shut out their voices, however, as Fluttershy once again spoke.
“Um... I guess I could... if you really want to know... ” I heard her walk over slowly and take a seat next to Zecora. I then heard the sound of liquid being poured into a cup. “Oh, thank you Zecora. Your tea is always delicious.” The room went quiet enough for me to hear her take a sip. The silence lasted just long enough for it to begin to feel awkward before she piped up again. “Oh, right. Um, well, it all started when I was in that field that borders on the Everfree forest. I was visiting some of the cute little animals that live out there. There are the bunnies, and the ferrets, mice and the birds... Oh! And this sweet little squirrel who likes to pick me flowers. He's just soooo cute... ”
Applejack interjected by clearing her throat. “Eh-hem, you were saying?” Having forced back my tears, and curious about her story, I turned my head back around to face her just in time to see her her cheeks flush at this. I smiled: forget the squirrel, she was the cutest thing I had ever seen when she blushed! My heart began to swell, but I quashed it. I had hurt this pony! I needed to get out of her life as soon as possible.
She started up again. “Oops, sorry... but, um, yes, I was in the field tending to the bunnies when a flash of purple flew overhead. It was moving so fast I couldn't tell what it was. I flew up and followed it to the very edge of the Everfree, but it had flown so high that I couldn't see it anymore. I turned back to go home when I heard the strangest noise from the direction where it had disappeared. It sounded like the wounded cry of some poor creature. I knew right away that I couldn't abandon the poor thing, whatever it was, so I carefully entered the forest." She got strange looks from several of the ponies at this statement, and she smiled awkwardly back at them. "Okay... well... I actually flew well over the Everfree. Really, really, REALLY high above the Everfree. I really didn't want to have to go into it if I didn't have to, and the higher I was, the safer I felt..." Her face flushed red, but she continued. " Well, um, the sound faded, but I kept flying towards where I had last heard it. Off in the distance, I finally saw something, way up above me. It was something purplish falling from the sky. At first I thought it was a purple pelican... Oh, I've always wanted to see one of those! They have the most adorable little pink chicks... ”
This time it was the one called Twilight that coughed. Fluttershy got back on track right away “Right! I flew to it as fast as I could, intending to catch the poor thing, but as I got closer, I could tell that it wasn't a pelican at all! It was a pony! And um... that’s when I... kinda... well... panicked.” She meeped and hid her face behind her hair again, peeking out at the other ponies in the room.
Rainbow Dash, the cyan mare, sighed and gave Fluttershy a stern look. “Ugh, that's your answer to everything! I would've zoomed right in there and saved him, sonic rainboom style.” I had no idea what she meant by that, but I smirked as she posed in midair, attempting to look cool, but instead accidentally knocked a hanging bottle into her face, causing her to lose wing co-ordination. She fell with a thump, landing face-first next to the pink pony, who was stuffing her face with popcorn that she had somehow procured out of thin air.
Fluttershy smiled at this and came out from behind her mane. “Oh yes, that was what I TRIED to do, once I stopped panicking. There wasn't much time, so I thought, ‘What would Rainbow Dash do?’ That's when I knew I had to be brave and I charged right in. He wasn't moving for some reason, so I wrapped my forehooves around his chest and pulled up as hard as I could.” My face began to blush bright red: Oh please tell me she's not going to tell them everything! I wanted to bury myself in a hole.
Thankfully, she didn't, but what she said next made me feel even worse. She lay down at this point, placing her head on her hooves and sighing deeply before continuing. “But... it didn't make any difference. I'm not strong like you, Rainbow Dash. I don't think I even slowed him down. He tried to help me, got me to change our direction to try and land in a lake instead of pulling straight up, b-but I couldn't even do that right!” She started sniffling, and I felt tears come into my own eyes as well. Oh Celestia, I did not want to relive this part. I wanted to cover my ears, I wanted to run away, but of course, I still couldn't do anything. I was as useless now as I had been then. My cheeks felt wet as tears began to roll down my cheeks. I had no choice but to keep listening.
“A-and then, when we were almost in the trees, he tried to get me to let go. To let him die! I wouldn't do it, I couldn't do it, so he tricked me and broke himself free!”
Tears were openly dripping down my face at this point. I couldn't see anymore, but I had the feeling that she was crying too. Suddenly, her voice changed, turning cold and angry. I couldn't see her face through the tears, but even so, I found myself wincing involuntarily, recalling the last time she had sounded like that, and the look she had given me.
“And then my stupid wings locked up! I was so weak that I couldn't even get them back open to just glide down!
Everyone startled at this outburst, but her anger seemed to fade as quickly as it had appeared, her voice returning to normal. “I... I looked at him then, and that's when everything erupted into a bright purple light. It blinded me, I couldn't see anything at all. The next thing I knew, I was crashing into a cloud that wasn't there a moment ago that went all the way from above the trees down to the forest floor. I hit so hard I had to dig myself out, and by the time I did, he had already...” She faltered, but managed to continue, her voice nearly inaudible with emotion. “Already h-hit the ground!”
I managed to blink my eyes free of tears at this point, but now I felt sick to my stomach. As my vision cleared, I saw her wipe away her own before sighing and continuing. “I... I'm sorry. I’ll try and finish now... but um... the rest you kinda already know. Somehow, I managed to help Zecora get him here and then I used every healing trick I know to try and help. But healing a pony is different from helping my little animal friends. I just... I had to try. He somehow didn't appear to have any broken bones, just some major swelling around his head where Zecora said he hit the tree, and bruises and cuts all over his body from what I think are from the branches and hitting the ground. But... um... now he's okay... I guess. We bandaged up all the cuts, anyway. He survived, but I still I don't know how.”
“I know why.”
Everypony turned to face me. My voice had returned, however weakly. It all made a crazy sort of sense now. The things I had seen, the noises I’d heard, combined with the stories I had just listened to, all helped me to piece together my final moments before impact. I knew that it was time to speak up. Now or never.
I cleared my throat, hoping it wouldn't give out. “Before I explain, I have two small requests. You've said I have no injured bones, so could you please let me loose? I'd really like to be upright for this, and not tied down anymore.” The assorted ponies looked at each other, and Fluttershy nodded hesitantly. Zecora got up and untied the other towels with her mouth, pulling each away and laying them on the floor. Once she nodded at me, I rolled over slowly onto my stomach. It groaned and complained, but oh, did it felt good to be upright again!
After giving myself a once-over, and noting all the bandages, I found that I had been tied down onto a wooden bench with some large, colorful towels. Go figure. I turned my attention back to the sea of eyes in front of me. This time, however, the eyes were not filled with anger, or hate, but with curiosity. I knew they must have many questions for me, but that would have to wait until after. I coughed and swallowed a much smaller chunk of rainbow before making my second request. “Secondly, I need you to agree to let me keep this brief for now. I have something very pressing I must attend to, and I promise I will answer all your questions afterwards. Deal?”
All eyes turned to the one called Twilight. I suppose she was the decision-maker of the group. After only a moment, she nodded. “Well... okay, I guess that's fine, but I'm going hold you to that. And I have a lot of questions.” She grinned, and her tone somehow left me feeling dread. What had I just gotten myself into?
Closing my eyes for just a moment, I gathered my thoughts before speaking. “According to you, I hit a tree, then ricocheted into the fog bank before coming to rest in a pool of rainbow juice that had turned to goo because it had mixed with ice. Did I get all that right?” Once again, Zecora and Fluttershy looked at each other and nodded. I smiled. “That’s how I survived. My collision with the tree knocked me into the fog, and the fog slowed me down enough so that I didn't die when I hit the ground, or in this case, that horrible pool of goo.”
Everypony in the room gave me a funny look, and almost immediately, Twilight spoke out. “I'm sorry, but I don't follow. You say the cloud slowed you down? How can that be? Everypony knows that clouds aren't solid to us earthbound ponies. Only pegasus ponies are able to interact with them." Pausing, she looked thoughtful. "Well, I mean, there is that cloud-walking spell, but I only know about that due to extensive research!" Still looking at me with disbelief, she continued. "Besides, even if that was the case, that still that doesn't explain how you got so high above the Everfree Forest.” She had a smug look on her face, secure in her knowledge, and seemingly proud that she had caught me in a falsity. I smiled again; this was not the first time somepony had thought I was lying.
I opened my mouth again to explain, but to my surprise, Fluttershy beat me to it. “Um, Twilight? Sorry to interrupt, but I just wanted to let you know that that isn't quite completely true. Not if he was a pony who was born with a rare... um... ability, which allows them to interact with clouds like a pegasus.”
Shocked, all eyes turned to Fluttershy, including mine. I was the first to speak. “How in Equestria did you know that?”
Startled by the sudden attention, she covered her head with her hooves and let out a squeak. Before I could apologize and try to ask again more nicely, Twilight interjected. “Sorry again... you'll have to forgive me, but I've never heard of this strange condition before in any of my studies. Could you please elaborate for me?” Inching closer, she had a look in her eyes, as if thirsty for knowledge. I glanced towards Fluttershy, who was still hiding away. I sighed: So many questions were building up in my head again, like what the heck cloud-walking was all about, and how Fluttershy knew about my "condition"... but they would have to wait. I shook my head slowly and cleared my throat again before responding.
Before I continued, however, I raised a hoof in the air. “I can, but you promised I could keep this brief. I swear I will answer all your questions as soon as my urgent matters are attended to.” Seeing her nod, I took a deep breath and began to explain something I had gone over so very many times before.
“Right, well, simply put, I was born a unicorn, but both my mother and father were pegasi. From what I understand, my great-great-great-grandmare was a unicorn, or something like that. When I was born, I was quite a surprise. I was the first unicorn child born in my family.” I looked down at Twilight, who apparently had found quill, ink, and parchment, and was writing this down. I rolled my eyes and continued. "Guess they forgot about whatever ancestor it had been that was a unicorn. Anyway, while I was lucky enough to have strong enough pegasus ancestry to retain the full ability to walk on clouds and touch them as if they were solid, I was not lucky enough to get the lighter bones that pegasi have as well. I'm as heavy as the next unicorn, or so they tell me, since to be honest, I had never met another unicorn before you two today.” I tilted my head towards the white and purple unicorns in turn. “But yes, there you go, that's it in a nutshell. There isn't any real name for it, at least, not that I know of. Most ponies just say that I have 'Pegasus ancestry'.”
She nodded and turned back to the parchment, writing that down. I started to turn back to Fluttershy, only to have Twilight interrupt again. “Not to be a bother, as I know we did promise to keep this short, but since this is the first time I've heard of this, would you mind proving it? I still find it hard to believe. I mean, I know about being able to be born different than your parents, but I didn't see any non-pegasi in Cloudsdale when we all went to the Best Young Fliers competition.”
It crossed my mind again to ask more about how these earth-bound ponies had visited Cloudsdale, but before I could, Applejack interjected. “Um, Twi, not to be a bother, but Ah just wanna mention that Ah kinda saw a unicorn when we were sitting in the stands that day. She was a ways away, but she caught my eye 'cause she was bouncing up and down and looked just like Lyra from back here in Ponyville. Ah didn't say nothin' since Ah just figured she had the cloud-walking spell too, but now Ah cant help but wonder. How would she have gotten up there anyhow? Ah sure as hay didn't see any other balloons around.”
With mouth half full, Rainbow Dash took this time to chime in, having long since sat down and nabbed some of Pinkie's popcorn. “Oh yeah! Can’t believe I forgot! I remember meeting a pony like that when I was just a little filly." She swallowed before continuing. "She was a cool little pink earth pony. Her parents had brought her to Cloudsdale to see family, but she snuck off to watch me race. I bet she was glad she did; that was when I pulled off my first ever sonic rainboom! Aw yeah!” A look of concern suddenly crossed her face. "Huh. Actually, I remember seeing her as I flew by during the race. She was on an awfully small cloud. Hope nothing happened to her."
Twilight gave Rainbow a glare. "Rainbow! I can't believe you! You were the one who almost had a heart attack when Pinkie jumped out of the balloon! And you knew all along!?"
Rainbow shrugged. "I forgot, alright? Its not like you see anything other than pegasi in Cloudsdale, you know." She turned to me. "No offense."
I nodded. "None taken. Honestly, I didn't get out much."
Twilight rolled her eyes and looked back to me. “Okay, apparently it really is true. Any chance I could still get that demonstration though?” She looked up at me pleadingly. I really didn't want to, I was starting to feel worse. But that look... those eyes...
I sighed and caved “Okay, fine, but just a little tiny one. I'm still really not feeling strong, and that's even with this crazy numbing potion. Please remember that I've just been through a lot.” She squealed and clapped her hooves together, and, even annoyed, I couldn't help but smile a little.
Of course, now I had to come up with an example. I still felt drained, so I needed something easy. I looked down at the bowl of water next to me, no longer steaming after being out for so long. Ah! Perfect!
I concentrated, and felt the magic in my horn start to glow. I had already started the spell before Zecora noticed, crying out in dismay.
“No, pony, no! Do not use your magic! The results could very easily be tragic! Right now your horn is weak and brittle; You should not use it, even a little!”
Startled, my spell was interrupted, and only about half the water in the bowl evaporated. Instead of a pony-sized cloud, all that appeared was a little puffball, about the size of a head. Frightened, I looked up cross-eyed at my horn, trying to see what was wrong. I was horrified by what I saw. My horn was nearly white, and criss-crossed with tiny cracks. My mouth dropped open in horror; it looked like it was going to fall off! Why had nopony said anything! Distracted, I didn't notice Zecora come up to me until she plopped a giant glob of green goo onto my horn. Freezing in terror as it started to ooze down my face, I started trying to shake it off, until I felt a warm hoof on my shoulder.
Softly, she reassured me. “Calm now, pony, this potion will help; the substance is made primarily of kelp. It can mend cracks, and will increase its strength, supposedly it will also increase its length." She paused and winked at me, and I found myself blushing, though I wasn’t quite sure why.
"It has properties that can make any bone heal. Now please partake of another light meal.” Taking a deep breath and relaxing, I sighed in relief, and smiled at her. She nodded and walked back over the the cauldron and startled ladling more broth into a bowl. I found myself drooling; I was still starving, even though my stomach felt oddly full now.
That smile faded quickly as my stomach let out another groan. My eyes widened and darted around wildly as I heaved myself to my hooves, getting up off the bench. I stumbled, but caught myself; I was still pretty numb and it was harder than I thought it would be to keep my balance. Oh how I was glad to be numb, I couldn't imagine how painful moving would be if I was still burning alive like I was when I woke up!
Fluttershy gasped and jumped up to block me. “What are you doing! You shouldn't be up! Lay back down right now, mister!”
I grimaced “Normally I'd agree, but I have pressing matters. Also, remember, you all promised.”
She used her head to push me back towards the bench. “What could be more important than getting better?!”
I smiled at her and put my hoof on her shoulder, stepping aside, and almost tripping over my own hooves in the process. “I swear that is the next thing on my to-do list, but right now, I really need to go.”
She gaped at me, shocked. “You can't go, you aren't well enough!”
I groaned loudly in frustration. “I promise that, contrary to your belief, if you let me go, I will probably get better faster once this urgent matter is taken care of. Isn't that right, Zecora?” Putting the emphasis on her name and giving her a pleading look, I began shifting impatiently from side to side.
She laughed and nodded, then pointed to another small alcove, way in the back that I hadn't noticed before. I gathered myself up, wobbling quickly over to the room and slammed the door behind me. As I did, I heard her speak to the others. “Apologies ladies, I gave him too many seeds, and it appears he has finally given in to his needs. Many warnings were given, all seem inadequate, I gave him plenty of notice for his coming need to evacuate.”
I groaned, my face turning bright red, and for more than one reason. Those rhymes were going to kill me! |
Zoltrioundz | 588 | 6 | Main 6,Original Character,Zecora,Romance,Sad,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Distant Flutter of Angels | When a pony has everything taken from him, can he regain his true path with the help of the Mane 6? | hiatus | 20 | 1 | <p><b>[Normal][Sad][OC Pony][Slow Romance]</b><br/>Full Size Cover image: <a href="http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y" rel="nofollow">http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y</a></p><hr/><p>Indigo Flash hasn't had the best life. In fact, while he was just a young colt, his entire life started unraveling at the seams. He lost his parents, was driven away from the other ponies his age, and wound up forced into a job that had nothing to do with his special talent, just after he found out what it was. Over time, he learned to live with it, and his life seemed to stabilize, perhaps even become normal. Which made it all the worse when everything falls apart in a single day, and he is left without even the ability to control his own fate.</p><p>Once everything is ripped away from a pony, can he ever return his life to the way things were? And even if he can, is it still worth fighting for?</p><p>~Compiled and edited by Twilight Sparkle, Royal Librarian</p><p>(This is a work in progress, and will be until completed. Please see my blog entry for more details :3 )</p> | everyone | 2012-02-08T13:50:56+00:00 | 2012-02-08T13:50:56+00:00 | 1,866 | Zecora hadn't been kidding: Those seeds really did have some kick to them! After it was all over, I sat there blushing, madly hoping that none of the ponies in the next room had heard anything. The washroom was a good ways back from the main area... One could hope, right? Right?!?
I was feeling a lot better as I got up, trotting over to the sink. Then I did a double-take. Sink? How did she have a sink in the middle of the forest? Or for that matter, a running-water toilet? Curious, I looked out the small carved bathroom window to see where the water was coming from. What I saw amazed me: She had somehow managed to rig up what appeared to be wooden pipes and had run them from a nearby stream, right to this room. Ingenious. Amazed, I shrugged and turned the wooden spigot, running the water to wash my hooves. As I did, the absurdity of my previous thoughts caught up with me. Of all the things to worry about after a day like today, I was nervous about embarrassing myself in front of a group of pretty mares? Almost all of whom had wanted to beat me senseless just minutes ago? I chuckled softly to myself and shook my head; I was definitely a stallion, alright.
Looking for the soap, I thought about those fillies... wait, no. Those mares... gah! I was still at that age where girls were... well, both I guess. They were just so confusing! It also didn't help that I had trouble figuring out which term each pony preferred. Unless their age was obvious, I had decided ages ago to just base it on how they acted, unless corrected. Who would ask a pony their age or which term they preferred in normal circumstances anyway?
I began thinking about the group I had just met, starting with Zecora. Such a strange and exotic-looking pony... though to be honest, I was still not completely sure she even was a pony. While she was shaped like one, and has a cutie mark, that hair, and that coloring... Hrm. Well, either way, she was definitely a mare, no doubt about that. She not only seemed older and more mature than the rest, but her medicinal skills and motherly manner made it easy to tell. The fact that she spoke in rhyme stumped me though. I had never heard of such a thing, but I shrugged it off as a quirk, or some unknown medical condition.
Reflecting on the other ponies I’d met today, I found it harder to classify them, perhaps because they all seemed to be about my age, where they were still transitioning from their teenage years to adulthood. I knew I would probably continue to have trouble with that unless I got to know them better, and as I realized that, I tried to clear my head. I knew that I wasn't planning on that!
Returning to my search, I realized that no soap was obviously available at the sink for some reason. Not wanting to leave with dirty hooves, I started looking around the bathroom, my idle mind slipping back to my previous thoughts. The first unicorn I had ever met came to mind. The purple one, Twilight. Bookish, seemed full of knowledge... perhaps too full? She had seemed kinda smug when she thought she was right, but at least she apologized and admitted when she was wrong. All in all, she seemed nice. She also seemed to be sort of the leader of the group, though I had the feeling that if asked, she would say they were all equals. Despite this, the others seemed to look to her for guidance. Mare.
Rarity. Another unicorn. I’d gone my whole life without meeting one, and then... BAM. Two at once. Of course, then, they had wanted to beat the stuffing out of me. I sighed, still looking around the room. Oh well. She was too easy. Based on the way she spoke and moved, and her highly styled mane, perfectly groomed coat, and shining, unblemished hooves, she obviously tried to act the most ladylike, most proper. Her speech patterns almost took it too far, like she was trying to pretend to be upper class, or royalty. If that was the case, that could easily drive away other, more normal ponies, especially if she lost her head and came to believe that she really was somehow better than them.
Shaking my head, I chuckled. But that couldn’t be right. All these ponies seemed to be her friends, and some of them were right down to earth. She must walk some crazy line between high class and average pony. Either way, there was no doubt about it. Definitely mare.
Now, Applejack and Rainbow Dash. What a pair. What had Rarity called them? Ruffians? That might be a bit much, but they sure were fiery. Applejack seemed quite down to earth, and her accent had me leaning towards some kind of country living, so probably a farmer of some kind. Based on her cutie mark and name, I could probably bet bits on apple farmer and win big. Though that was a little weird... I frowned, pausing. None of the other ponies seemed from the country, and she was the only pony who spoke that way. Wonder why...
I rolled my eyes, now trying to read the labels I’d spotted on some bottles that were around the bathtub. Another mystery. Good job, Indigo. Even more questions. But back to the topic at hand. She was lean and muscular, but not overly so. Charming when she wants to be, or deadly when the situation calls for it. Mature, I'd say. So probably another mare.
Rainbow Dash, on the other hoof, seemed lively and flamboyant. There was absolutely no way that her mane was natural. I mean, I’d seen manes with two, maybe three colors, but she was just off the scale with six. I also tried not to be offended that she was missing my color, indigo... now that would be silly... and petty. Harumph.
Anyways, even though she had not spoken too much, what little she had and the way she acted made her seem very rough and tumble, especially when she had failed that pose and knocked herself silly. I still didn't know what a sonic rainboom was supposed to be, but she sounded overly proud about it, and herself. First impressions? She still has some growing up to do, and I think she would probably take kinder to the term filly, if anyone ever dared to addressed that way.
Growing frustrated by my fruitless search, having still not found anything that resembled soap, I started rummaging through the bottles under the sink. Where was that accursed thing? It wouldn’t make sense for someone like Zecora to not have some! Not in the middle of a filthy forest, anyway. Picking up a pink bottle reminded me of the last pony to arrive, the one called Pinkie. Pink mane, pink coat, makes sense, I guess. Not the most original name, but who was I to talk! Her name was about the only thing about her that did, though. Bouncing instead of walking, hanging from the ceiling, seemingly able to produce snacks and party supplies from thin air... it was almost as if she had magic. But that would be silly, she was an earth pony. I’m sure that if stuck around and took the time, I'd find logical explanations for everything... right? I put the bottle back down, bemused. Hyperactive and crazy, this one was definitely still a silly filly.
Sighing, I gave up my search and lay my head down on the edge of the sink. Turning my attention to the water I had accidentally left running while I searched, dejectedly I dipped my mouth into the half-full basin and took a long slow drink. Having avoided it as much as I possibly could have, my thoughts finally turned to Fluttershy.
Fluttershy. Now here was a girl I couldn't pin down. One moment she seemed to be brave and courageous, the next timid and... well... shy. Not to mention more cute than any filly had a right to be. It didn't even seem intentional! And if she gets angry, wow, watch out. A shiver ran down my spine again as I remembered the look she had given me... that icy stare of doom.
The feeling passed and I found a smile growing on my face as I remembered the first time I had seen her though, wings spread, forehooves wrapped around me, a look of purpose and determination on her face. And those eyes, those deep, caring eyes... I sighed, happily this time. I never thought I'd ever be cared about again. I’d honestly given up on everything as I fell, but caring? I had lost hope of ever feeling that again a very long time ago.
A splash of water from the faucet went up my nose and I snorted, reality setting back in. My smile was instantly replaced by a scowl as I placed my hooves on the edge of the sink, picking myself back up. What the hay was I thinking? Dangit Indigo, you almost killed that filly, and all you can think about is how she “cares”? Zecora seems to “care” too, but who knows, they could all have some kind of ulterior motive, or just feel like they are obligated to for some reason. You thought your friends cared too, and look what happened.
Betrayal.
Abandonment.
I would not let it happen again.
I slammed my hoof down in anger, both at myself, and my so-called friends. Said hoof happened to land neatly on a pink leaf prominently placed next to the sink, which promptly slipped aside with a squeak. Suddenly unsupported, my head came crashing down to hit the edge of the sink, promptly knocking me silly. Once my ears stopped ringing, I groaned, picking the leaf up off the floor. Rubbing it between my hooves, a liquid began seeping from the pores, lathering up quite nicely.
Ah. Of course. This was Zecora's house after all, why wouldn’t she use something natural? Despite it all, a small smile returned to my lips.
As I stood there, finally scrubbing my hooves under the cool running water, I found the quiet and solitude lent itself to helping my mind continue to wander, now over the circumstances I now found myself in. Losing my job, being abandoned by my friends... and then some crazy explosion which left me high above the Everfree forest. My smile faded again; I still had only rough memories of what had happened then, and none of them were good.
The last thing I remembered with any clarity at all was those horrible jocks making fun of me, and revealing how my entire life up to that point had just been a big joke to everypony. Everypony but me. After that? Everything went sideways. All I had to go on was some disjointed images and smells. Faces lying on the clouds before my hooves. The sight and smell of burning furniture and paper in the place that had been my home for so many years. Rows of dead, staring eyes, pushing me away from them, away from the only place I had ever known.
I shuddered, closing my eyes and trying to skip those, to focus on the later scenes. More broken images, but I concentrated on the one that was the most clear: An image of myself as I flew over a lake. I tried to repress my emotions as I studied my reflection. My mouth, open wide, silently screaming to a world that didn't care, my black mane and tail streaming back, pushed by the invisible wind, my eyes, open impossibly wide, glowing as tears streamed from them, causing ripples in the lake as they hit, far behind me...
My eyes shot open in surprise. Wait, glowing? Realization set in as I re-closed my eyes and focused on that image again. Glowing eyes, body surrounded by a faint haze of shimmering purple. No visible bright bolts of lightning, but it would have been going on for quite some time at this point. There was no mistaking it, it had to be the same surge of power I had managed to tap into as I fell into the trees.
Confusion set in. What was it? Where had it come from? Why had I never seen it before? What had it done to me? Questions raced through my mind, and I had answers for none of them. I tried to piece it together. Something had... happened there, in Cloudsdale. Something that Hoops, or maybe Dumbbell had said, had triggered... something... deep inside. Something... primal. Something I can't define.
I hit the wall with my hoof in frustration; I didn't understand any of this! Was this something normal for unicorns? Had I hit some kind of puberty growth spurt? I thought I was passed all that. I gritted my teeth, anger bubbling to the surface again. If I had been raised by unicorns, would this have never happened? Would I at least know what was going on, or how to stop it? Was my accursed ancestry somehow to blame?
Almost unwillingly, I found my head turning around to look over at my smooth, wingless back, my anger dissipating, leaving a feeling of overwhelming sadness. Of course it was. It always was. If I had been born a pegasus, like I should have, like my parents probably wanted, then none of this would have happened. I would have grown up, gone to flight camp, joined the Junior Speedsters, gotten my cutie mark (probably something to do with flying or weather), and eventually gone to join my parents working at the weather factory. Not as a stupid accountant, but as somepony who could actually work with the elements!
Tears filled my eyes as I thought of my parents again. The last time I had seen them, as they put on their work smocks and hard hats before cantering out our front door. Dad turning to wave goodbye; Mom promising she'd bake me a cake when she got home to celebrate my cutie mark... And then they both flew away, and I never saw them again.
Weeping silently, I cursed my life. If I had just been born a pegasus, I would have probably gotten my cutie mark on a different day, and they wouldn't have been late to work. They wouldn't have been in the wrong place at the wrong time when the rainbow juice somehow got poured into the cloud machines; they were scheduled to be working in the snowflake room that day. They would have been safe, in the only area of the factory that was unaffected by the explosion.
My head slumped to the floor, tears pooling around it. I had made them late. I was the reason they had been walking through the cloud-making room when the shock wave hit. It was my fault they were there, that the resulting storm... explosion... rainbow thing took them from me. I was to blame for it all. And it was all because I had been born... different.
I punched the wall again with my hoof. Why me? Why did I have to be different? Was I destined to be outcast forever? And if this is my destiny, then why does everything in my life have to go wrong? What possible purpose could that serve?! Tears continued to silently roll down my face as I hit the wall again and again, unable to feel anything, the numbness betraying me as I punched it harder and harder until...
A sudden voice brought me back, as somepony knocked on the door. “Um... Hi... uh... sorry to intrude... but are you okay in there? I, uh, thought I heard some banging noises... unless I was imagining things...” I heard shuffling, as if she was nervously shifting back and forth. “Oh my, I'm sorry: am I interrupting? I’m so sorry.. um... Ill just... I'll just let you finish... sorry... squeak!”
My eyes snapped open. No! I couldn't let her, of all ponies see me like this. I scrambled back to my hooves, wiping my eyes clear with a forehoof as I turned to face the door. For a moment I was glad my throat was still sore; coughing for a moment, I was able to give myself time to get back in control.
After taking a few deep breaths, I managed to reply calmly. “No... Sorry, I’ll be out in a moment. Everything is fine.” Internally I winced. I didn't like lying, especially not to her. Everything was NOT fine, but she didn’t need to worry about me. As soon as I could, I was going to get out of her life, out of everypony's life. Even if she really did care, and didn't have some ulterior motive like everypony does, I couldn't stay around her, or any of them. I'd just ruin their lives as well.
Everypony I had ever cared about had either been the victim of something or had abandoned me, and I just knew it all was somehow all my fault. I would not let that happen to her too. Even ponies who I didn't like, those bullies, and maybe others I couldn't remember, had been hurt by me somehow. I wouldn't risk that happening again. Not to her. Not to anypony.
I heard another squeak from the other side of the door. Despite myself, I felt my lips stretch slowly into a smile as I pictured her standing there, hiding beneath her mane, probably blushing due to standing outside a bathroom, talking to the pony inside. A few more incomprehensible squeaks secured that image in my mind, as I heard her hoofsteps quietly fade as she walked back towards the main room.
Taking a deep sigh of relief, my smile quickly turned into a frown. No! What was I doing? I can't let myself care for her, she’s already gone through enough thanks to me. I slapped myself with my hoof, hard. Look what you’ve already done to her! She almost died because of you! In fact, she would have if you hadn't managed to do something crazy that you didn't even know you could do!
I dunked my head under the water, hoping to clear my mind. The sudden shock of the cold water did the trick, as thoughts of the cute yellow filly were replaced by the dull roar of running water. For a moment, I relaxed, my mind clearing. Then, of course, the sound brought back thoughts of the earlier purple haze. All my memories were tainted, obscured by a similar noise.
Now that I had regained control of my emotions, I found myself thinking deeper about that haze, comparing the one I had managed to trigger somehow myself with the bits and pieces I remembered of the first one. There hadn’t any pain when the purple haze first took hold, in Cloudsdale. Had something been different that time? Listening to the white noise of the water, I compared the situations. The first time had been triggered by... something... I had seen things in my mind after all they had said to me, as I broke down... but what was it? What had I seen? Heard? Felt?
Concentrating, I scrunched my eyes shut, wondering why it seemed hard to remember...
FLASH
I jumped and banged my head on the waterspout as the blocked scene flashed momentarily in my mind. I had to shove a hoof in my mouth to stop from crying out, as the flash of images and sound made me want to scream incoherently. My head rang as the sound of horrible, demonic laughter faded. I took the hoof out of my mouth and cradled my head, now aching as I came quickly to the obvious conclusion: some things are best left forgotten, especially if they can cause... that. After all that had already happened, I really didn't want to lose my mind. My sanity was really all I had left.
I rubbed my head where I had felt the impact of the faucet. Despite still not feeling any pain, I turned my attention to the mirror to make sure I hadn't broken the skin. More bruises would go unnoticed, but bleeding, on the other hoof, would not. As my eyes focused on the face in the mirror, I froze instantly. My jaw dropped open in shock, and I fell onto my rear, hard, as I scooted backwards away from the mirror. I found my mouth moving, but no words came forth.
My pupils shrank in fear and I began to tremble as a monster stared back at me from the other side. |
Zoltrioundz | 588 | 7 | Main 6,Original Character,Zecora,Romance,Sad,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Distant Flutter of Angels | When a pony has everything taken from him, can he regain his true path with the help of the Mane 6? | hiatus | 20 | 1 | <p><b>[Normal][Sad][OC Pony][Slow Romance]</b><br/>Full Size Cover image: <a href="http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y" rel="nofollow">http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y</a></p><hr/><p>Indigo Flash hasn't had the best life. In fact, while he was just a young colt, his entire life started unraveling at the seams. He lost his parents, was driven away from the other ponies his age, and wound up forced into a job that had nothing to do with his special talent, just after he found out what it was. Over time, he learned to live with it, and his life seemed to stabilize, perhaps even become normal. Which made it all the worse when everything falls apart in a single day, and he is left without even the ability to control his own fate.</p><p>Once everything is ripped away from a pony, can he ever return his life to the way things were? And even if he can, is it still worth fighting for?</p><p>~Compiled and edited by Twilight Sparkle, Royal Librarian</p><p>(This is a work in progress, and will be until completed. Please see my blog entry for more details :3 )</p> | everyone | 2012-02-08T14:28:03+00:00 | 2012-02-08T14:28:03+00:00 | 3,550 | Once my heart stopped trying to explode, I slowly inched back over to the sink, where the water was still running. From my seat on the floor, I reached up and turned off the faucet with a trembling push. Still shaking slightly, I placed my hooves on the edge of the sink and raised myself up, back into the range of the mirror. The creature stared back, and I found that I was looking at myself. Other than its bright yellow eyes though, the thing in the mirror looked nothing like me.
The pony that stared back at me was disheveled, coat filthy and ungroomed. In fact his purplish-blue coat was still discolored by swirls of rainbow goo, giving the majority of his body a muddy brownish-grey tinge, with areas of bright random colors. As I looked myself over, I saw that I must have been completely submerged in it at some point. The colors were smudged and faded however, as if somepony had tried to sponge me off a bit, but years of working at the weather factory told me that it would take a much more thorough cleaning than that to get my coat to look even close to normal. In fact, it would probably take days of scrubbing for my coat to return to its vibrant hue again after taking a dunk in rainbow juice... along with whatever else had mixed in from the forest floor.
My mane, for the most part, was as bad as I expected. Matted and tangled, filthy, but still black, at least for the most part. Seems that the rainbow juice had a harder time soaking into that, or it had been easier to wash out. What made my jaw drop again was that narrow swaths of it had somehow gone grey. Not just regular grey, but a bright shining grey, more of a silver, really, than anything. And not just a little at the roots or tips, but each strand had changed completely from top to bottom. As I reached down and pulled my tail into view, I found it was the same; messy, and streaked with silver. As I looked closer at it, the silver hairs seemed to shine in the light, almost as if it was made of some metal. Still in shock, I poked and prodded at them. They were definitely still hair, though I had never seen anything like it before. Another mystery that I wanted answers for.
What concerned me the most, though, as I examined myself, was that I found myself suddenly thin, to the point of looking malnourished, even emaciated! I had always been a bit pudgy, so this change was completely out of the blue. How long had I been up there! I studied my reflection, swallowing a sudden lump in my throat. My eyes were sunken yet swollen, my skin pulled tight all over my body, outlining every muscle I could see. Around my chest, it had gotten to the point where my ribs were obviously visible. Large sections of my torso had blossomed into deep, discolored bruises. No wonder Zecora had been so insistent on getting food into me right away; I looked like some kind of horrible zombie pony, about to keel over at any second, or maybe even about to eat somepony. My stomach rumbled again, reminding me that she had more food ready for me once I was finally ready to leave the washroom and face them again. And sweet Celestia, did I need it apparently!
While all these thoughts passed through my mind, it was the startling change to my body that caused me the most panic. I found myself almost hyperventilating at the sight, and before I knew it, I was trembling again. Before I could get a hold of myself, I was already running for the exit. I pulled the bathroom door open and bolted out... finding myself face to face with a bright pink pony who had pressed herself right up against it. With absolutely no space to stop, I barged right into her. We tumbled into the main room, a jumble of hooves and mane. I wound up flat on my back as the pink one, seemingly unfazed by the impact, stood over me with a big goofy grin on her face.
Before I could even catch my breath, her mouth popped open and words started pouring out everywhere. “Hi there! I'm Pinkie Pie! I heard you moving around back there and so I figured you were about to come out, so I stood by the door because I wanted to finally meet you because I haven't met you before and if I haven't met you before you must be new here and if you're new then you must not have any friends yet and so I thought that must be lonely so I decided since I was already throwing Fluttershy a ‘Get Well Soon’ party that this could also be your ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party and we could have snacks and games and there would be balloons and streamers and then maybe you wouldn't be lonely anymore and you would get better faster since I want you to get better faster, even though I've never met you before and the ‘Get Well Soon’ party was for Fluttershy but she doesn't seem that hurt but wow you look like Twilight did after all those things fell out of the delivery wagon on her! But I think that maybe the party already helped and you are feeling better already because you charged out of the washroom like Whoosh! and I was there and it was all Zoom! Bang! Crash! And then we landed on the floor and I was on top of you and then I said Hi!!!”
After what seemed like an impossibly long time, she finally paused and started to take a deep gasping breath. As she did, my eyes finally stopped rolling around my skull long enough to shake my head clear and look up at her. When I did, my jaw dropped so far that I think it hit my chest. Her face was only millimeters away, her wide open mouth almost touching mine as her poofy mane brushed against my forehead. She was bouncing up and down on all four hooves which, since they were all around me, had pinned me to the floor. Each time she landed her chest softly squished against mine: though thankfully she was not putting any real weight on me. Her eyes were closed, so I don't think she even realized what she was doing. Blushing involuntarily, I weakly tried to pull myself out from under her. I had no idea what to do, how to react. This was completely out of my comfort zone.
Before she could start up again, I was miraculously saved. I heard a loud gasp and then from out of nowhere Fluttershy tackled Pinkie Pie, pulling her off of me and landing in another pony pile back in the alcove with the leopard print blanket.
Everypony in the room stared at the spectacle: This was obviously not something that this shy pony does often. As suddenly as she had appeared, she pulled herself up and backed away from Pinkie, her cheeks glowing as she forced herself to speak out. “Oh my, I'm so sorry Pinkie. I um... don't know what came over me, but this really isn't the time to jump on the poor dear. He was in a lot of pain before Zecora gave him that medicine, and where there's pain, there’s injury, even if we can't see it. At least, I think so... maybe?”
She started to shrink back, but her eyes filled with determination and she stood tall again for a moment and finished. "But um, neither Zecora or I have enough medical training to tell just how badly he might be hurt inside. So if I could just ask, you know, um, for everypony to try not to touch him, that would just be perfect. Um... pretty please?”
Her courage finally faltering, she once again withdrew behind her mane with a squeak. It was obvious to anypony that she did not feel comfortable speaking out in public and drawing attention to herself, but for some reason she was making the attempt. Despite not really knowing her, I was glad to see she was trying to overcome her shortfalls, but it made me wonder how she had gotten this way in the first place, or if this was just somehow normal for her.
Pinkie Pie rolled out of the blanket and hopped up nonchalantly. Cantering over to Fluttershy, she put a reassuring forehoof over her cowering form. “Aw, it’s OK Fluttershy, I guess I just got a little overexcited. I promise I'll keep my hooves to myself... at least for today. You know how I get when I meet new ponies.”
Fluttershy peeked out from behind her bangs. “Will you Pinkie promise?” She asked timidly.
Pinkie looked a little surprised, but shrugged and took a seat on the ground. “Well, sure, if it means that much to you." She coughed into her hoof. "Ahem. I, Pinkie Pie, promise to be careful and keep my hooves off of... um... ” She trailed off, her eyes widening as her gaze passed over the others before coming to rest on me. “Oh my gosh! We never asked you what your name was!”
An awkward silence filled the room. I had managed to roll over at this point and had just put my hooves back on the ground. Rarity swept gracefully over to me and extended me a courtesy hoof to help me up. As I took it gratefully, she spoke. “So sorry, my dear! How very rude of us to interfere with your healing and not at least inquire into such an important thing as the name of the pony we nearly accosted! May we please ask for your forgiveness and your name?”
Still partially dazed from the recent impacts to my head, I responded without thinking. “Uh, it’s Indigo. Indigo Flash. Of Cloudsdale.” As my thoughts began to focus again, however, I cursed myself inwardly. They didn't need to know that. The less they knew, the better, and the sooner you can get out of their manes. Besides, you already told them you were from Cloudsdale, you idiot! Hurriedly, I added “Don't worry about all that other stuff though, I'm fine.” Taking a step gingerly, I found myself tipping and began to fall over.
Instantly I found a white flank propping me up. “You most certainly are not! No offense dear, but you look absolutely horrid. You need rest, food, and time to heal. I'm sure a closer look from Nurse Redheart back in town is also called for. No offense intended Fluttershy, dearie, but while your veterinary skills are unmatched, I think a proper checkup is in order.” Fluttershy nodded at this, not seeming to mind at all.
Rarity paused, then turned to Pinkie. “Um, Pinkie my dear, did you say something about a party?” she asked, giving her a curious look that seemed to have a tinge of apprehension.
Pinkie clopped her hooves together. “Oh right! Just lemme finish this first.” Clearing her throat loudly, she restarted her promise. “I promise to help Indigo get better and not hurt him anymore.” Waving her hooves in a choreographed movement that she had obviously used many times, she swore: “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Finishing her routine, she shoved her hoof into her eye. I winced. Didn't that hurt at all?
Smiling sheepishly, she looked to Fluttershy. “That good?”
Fluttershy nodded and smiled, coming out from behind her mane as she stood up. “Yes.”
Pinkie jumped for joy. “Okie dokie lokie! Its time for a party!”
Twilight put a hoof to her forehead and groaned. “Please don't tell me you're going to run back to Ponyville to set up a big party, like you did when I was the new pony in town. Even after all this time, I still sometimes have trouble tasting things properly, thanks to that hot sauce debacle.” Sticking her tongue out and shuddering, she then smiled cheerfully. She was obviously in a much better mood now than she had been earlier, as she turned to face the pink pony.
Laughing, Pinkie Pie skipped towards her. “Nah, I'm all good. We're gonna have a party right now!” Raising a hoof, she pointed behind the other ponies, to where she had been sitting earlier. After having finally regained my balance and getting all four hooves under me again, I looked over to where she was gesturing. As all eyes focused on the area, everypony in the room seemed to simultaneously realize that she had somehow produced and laid out several plates of treats, mostly what appeared to be cupcakes with different colored frostings. Next to the platters I could make out the distinctive shape of soda bottles. Also, at some point, she had finished hanging the all those decorations she’d begun upon arrival, as streamers and balloons now littered the ceiling. A big banner was strung across the back wall, reading “Get Well Soon!”. Underneath the printed text, it appeared somepony had hastily scrawled “and Welcome to Ponyville!” in what appeared to be purple frosting.
Twilight spun back around towards Pinkie, a look of incredulity on her face. “What? But... but... when did you manage to finish setting all this up? I saw you stop and sit down!”
Pinkie Pie stopped, and covered her mouth, giggling. Waving her hoof as if dismissing the question, she replied. “Oh, I finished all that while he talking about that whole pegasus ancestry stuff. I already knew all about that from when I used to visit my great aunt Surprise, way back when I was just a little Twinkie Pinkie!”
Twilight's look of confusion only deepened. “Huh? What? Then why didn't you say anything earlier?”
Pinkie grinned mischeviously and sang out in a sing song voice: “You didn't aaaa-aaask!”
Twilight groaned as Pinkie continued, shrugging. “Besides, it's not like its a secret or anything. Great auntie Surprise was a pegasus too, so I got the talk when I was still just a little filly, no bigger than Applebloom.” Her normal bounciness seemed to fade a bit as she walked slowly over to the window where the puny little cloud I had created had ended up after being neglected and left to drift. Looking straight at Twilight, she lifted a hoof and shoved it right into the cloud. It went right through, a few small puffs coming out the other side. "Too bad I wasn't as lucky as him though." She said, pointing at me with her other hoof. "I'd love to jump on clouds like Rainbow! It was super fun when we went to Cloudsdale!"
Everypony's mouth hit the floor at this revelation: She had a bit of pegasus ancestry? Obviously, she couldn't really touch the cloud, but still: she had some? Pinkie continued, nonplussed, as if this was normal. “I remember lots of things from way back then. Let's see... like um... oh! I could tell you what he meant earlier, when he said 'Full ability to walk on clouds.' "
Pinkie shook her hoof, easily escaping the cloud as it slowly drifted up towards Rainbow Dash, who swooped down and caught it. Once free, Pinkie put the same hoof to her mouth and tapped her chin, adopting a thoughtful expression. "How did it go again?" She paused, rubbing her temples forcefully with both hooves. Suddenly, she popped up, eyes open wide, glinting in the candlelight. "Oh yeah! Basically, it goes something like this. You can get different special stuff if you have a pegasus in your family. Like if your mother, or your uncle, or your great grandmare twice removed was a pegasus, and you weren't you might still get some cool abilities. Auntie Surprise told me that the most common one is light bones. She said that they can be anywhere from as heavy as an earth pony’s, to as light as Rainbow Dash's!"
Rainbow, who was still hovering near the ceiling, appeared to take offense at this. Swooping down a bit, she gave Pinkie a glare from close range. "Hey! Who are you calling a lightweight?!"
Pinkie just giggled and jumped, wrapping her forehooves around Rainbow's outstretched neck and pulling her to the ground with a crash. Rainbow groaned at the impact, her eyes spinning as Pinkie ruffled her hair playfully. "You are, silly! Well, your bones are, anyway. Light bones make it so you fly faster, and higher, and crazier! If you aren't born a pegasus though, you usually have stupid, normal, heavy bones."
She released the cyan pony and jumped back to her hooves. Standing up on her hindlegs, she began clopping her hooves together in glee. Rainbow Dash, having recovered at this point, leapt into the air and tackled Pinkie. I couldn't tell whether the expression on her face was playful or annoyed, but they collided with the back wall with a thud, knocking loose several masks. Zecora frowned, but Pinkie didn't seem to mind though, as she started laughing. "Ha! Gotcha!" Rainbow exclaimed, grinning mischievously as she got to her hooves, standing over her.
As she backed away, her victorious look faded into confusion as Rainbow Dash glanced sideways at Pinkie. "But uh, Pinkie? How do you know all that stuff about Indigo anyways?"
Pinkie stopped laughing abruptly and gave Rainbow a strange look. "Huh? What do you mean, silly? Weren't you listening earlier? He told us all about that before he had to run off to take care of his 'urgent business'." She smirked, and I felt my face grow red, but I refrained from saying anything. She rolled over from her back to her stomach and continued. "Besides, I can tell! He ran into me, remember? He's a heavy boy!"
Rainbow Dash looked taken aback for an instant, but quickly regained her composure. "Uh, yeah! I didn't forget, I was just... uh... testing you. Right! Yeah! Good job!" Bracing herself, she flapped her wings and took back to the air, returning to the rafters, where she took a seat on my tiny cloud, which barely held her. The shadows in the roof darkened her face, but not enough to hide the look of embarrassment as her face reddened.
Pinkie got back to her hooves and shook her head, before smiling and looking back towards me. "Aaaanyways... where was I?" She paused, thinking. "Oh yeah! Auntie Surprise also mentioned something about a pegasus who couldn't touch clouds, and an earth filly who could. She said they were probably just old mares’ tales, but if Rainbow met one..." Pinkie’s eyes twinkled and she nearly vibrated in glee. "EEEEE! I can’t wait to tell her at the next family reunion!"
Twilight's mouth hung wide open, stunned by all this information. Suddenly she shook her head, the look of confusion replaced by one of frustration. “Pinkie, we've known each other for a long time now. Why didn’t you tell us about this before?”
Surprisingly, Pinkie's expression shifted into a frown at this comment, something I had begun to think I would never see on her face. Her mane seemed to lose a little more of its puffiness as she looked down, scuffing her hoof on the floor. "Well, like I said, you didn’t ask. And... I... I don't really talk much about weird things like that. At least, not anymore, ever since that whole Parasprite thingy. I know you all think that I'm hyper and crazy and... how did you put it, Applejack? A few apples short of a bushel?"
Across the room, I saw Applejack, who had been nonchalantly leaning against a wall, startle at this. Losing her composure, her hat fell from her head, landing upside-down on the floor. Cheeks rosy and chuckling awkwardly, she stuttered. "Oh... um... wow... hoo boy, Ah'm mighty sorry Pinkie... Ah didn't mean to, uh... oh, horseapples." Trailing off as her face grew more and more red, she picked up her cowpony hat and replaced it, tilting it steeply to hide her rosy face.
Pinkie didn't seem to notice, and continued softly. "So since then, I try and keep the craziest stuff to myself if it isn't super important. Besides, you don't need to know all the random things I know, just like how I don't need to know all that magic stuff you know, right Twilight?” Suddenly perking up, the frown disappeared, replaced by another big smile. “Anyways, because of my great aunt, I've got the light bones too! It's awesome, cause I can fly around with balloons whenever I want and I can run really really fast!”
While all this had been going on, Twilight had levitated her quill and parchment again and had been scribbling furiously. At Pinkie's admission, however, her magic cut off abruptly, causing the writing materials to fall to the floor with a clatter. She rushed over to Pinkie and hugged her tightly. “Pinkie, I know we said some hurtful things during the Parasprite swarm; we were all stressed out of our minds and... well... we all went a little crazy. But I know I speak for all of us when I say that we meant it when we said we were sorry, and that we should have listened to you.” She pulled away, holding her hooves. “We all love you for who you are, and you don't need to try and hide anything about yourself to make us happy.”
The other girls took this moment to all gather around and give their own apologies. All traces of sadness were gone from her eyes as Pinkie stretched her arms around the group and squeezed them tightly. My eyes widened at this feat, as did all of theirs; she looked to be hugging them so tightly that I could've sworn I heard spines cracking. Gleefully, she laughed, “Oh girls, I love you too, and I know you didn't mean all those Meany McMeanyPants things you said. I forgave you forever ago!” Releasing them from her death grip, she started hopping around the room again happily.
Rainbow took to flying again after taking a few deep breaths, obviously desperate for air after that bear hug. Swirling around Pinkie, she ruffled her bouncy pink mane and laughed. “Yeah, I remember the last time you thought we didn't like you anymore. I really hope you got all that crazy out of your system.” A look of curiosity came over her face. “Hey Pinkie, what did you do with all of that weird stuff you had in your room that day anyway?”
Pinkie paused looking thoughtful. “Hmm, let’s see... Rocky's at the bottom of a lake, I buried Mr. Turnip in the back of Carrot Top's garden... hehe, she was so surprised when she dug him up!” Her eyes crossed, concentrating. “Um, I dunno what happened to Sir Lintsalot; I think Gummy probably ate him when I wasn't looking... Oh! And I cut open Madame LeFlour and turned her into cupcakes! Lots and lots of delicious cupcakes!” Pinkie salivated, licking her lips as she remembered. “I made her into so many that after I ate a ton I had a tummy ache for hours! Even then I still had some left over, so I had a cupcake sale at Sugarcube Corner. Remember that day, Zecora? It was a super extra special day because you came to town, so I gave everypony one for free! Hehe, I guess I could say you all ate a bit of her!”
Rainbow Dash landed with a thump, laughing. “Nice one, Pinkie! That must've been an awesome prank on Carrot Top. Wish I had seen it!”
Pinkie giggled. “It was! But you were busy with weather patrol when she finally got to that part of her garden, so I watched her myself. It was hilarious!”
The rest of the ponies, myself included, were flabbergasted by this confession. Zecora was the first to recover, and voiced what I'm sure we were all thinking. “Buried, drowned, cooked and consumed. Creatures with names, or so I have assumed. But this cannot be true; it does not make any sense. The Pinkie we know would not even kill in defense. So without judging, I will sit here and wait, and pray you do not tell us it is a pony we ate.” By this point, Zecora was positively green, and Rarity looked absolutely horrified, visibly gagging.
Before I had a chance to look at the others, Pinkie gasped loudly and reared up, pawing at the air in a panic. “Oh, no no no no no!!! I would NEVER do anything like that! They were just... things! Things that were lying around Sugarcube Corner. When I thought my friends hated me, I went a little loco in the coco, and decided I needed to make new friends: and so I did. Literally!" She shrugged. "Seemed to make sense at the time. A pile of rocks, a bucket of turnips, a ball of lint and dust... and a big bag of flour.” Regaining her composure, if you can call it that, she gave the ponies a look of disbelief. “You actually thought I killed and cooked up a pony? And then fed it to everypony in town? That's just disgusting! Where would you even get such an idea?”
Though she was turned towards the others, for some reason I saw her right eye, the one that faced me, shift, as if she was looking sideways, out the window. Her eye had a look to it, as if she was watching, or recognizing something out there, and the look she was giving was of disapproval. I turned to look, and saw a flash of light, but it was just a torch flickering outside and the forest beyond. By the time I looked back, her eye had returned to normal, aimed back towards Zecora. I shrugged it off; must have just been a trick of the candlelight in here.
Rainbow Dash walked over and put a foreleg over Pinkie. “Well, that'd probably be my fault. I decided not to tell them about the um... party... you were throwing when I found you, remember? I figured, you know, my gal pal Pinkie Pie here had a bit of a breakdown and probably wouldn't want it spread around.” She shivered a little, and smiled awkwardly. “I mean that place was seriously creepy-town, Pinkie. I don't even like thinking about it.” Rainbow looked a little embarrassed and rubbed the back of her head with a hoof. “But yeah, didn't think that decision would come back to bite me in the rear. I know I should've spoken up, but I guess I just forgot that I hadn't told you guys. So yeah, sorry!”
Pinkie gave Rainbow a hug. “Aw, thanks Dashie. That’s sweet of you, but it's okay. I'm not gonna hide anything from you girls ever again. I'm an open book... like half of Twilight’s library on a daily basis.” She giggled loudly as Twilight blushed at this. “But enough of this sappy stuff, it’s time to PARTY!”
Disappearing in a flash of confetti and streamers, Pinkie reappeared from outside the house with a small phonograph clutched in her teeth. Placing it on a table near the sweets, she spun, giving it a bump with her hip. The needle bounced smoothly onto the record and lively party music began to play.
While all this had been going on, I had just been standing there, in various stages of befuddlement both from all the references to things I didn't understand, and the interactions between these ponies. My mind boggled, unable to make sense of what was going on. A party? For me? Here? Now? After what had just happened? Why? How? Where was she getting all this stuff? As the logic center in my brain started to break down, I found myself swaying, losing my balance again while Pinkie skipped past me to nudge Zecora, who was the only one who looked surprised at this turn of events, over to the others. They had now begun to circle the snacks, bouncing to the beat, as if this was somehow normal.
Spontaneously, mid skip, she froze, somehow balancing on one hoof. Turning her head to me, she grinned. “Ooooh, by the way, I really like your mane! Those streaks are WILD!” Resuming mid stride, she continued over to the others, humming happily to herself.
Dumbfounded, wobbling erratically, my brain still processing at the speed of molasses, I attempted to reply. “My mane? What do you...” Suddenly, sense kicked back in, and I involuntarily cried out. “Oh my gosh, my mane!”
Mentally, I snapped back into clarity as my earlier train of thought crashed back onto the tracks, and I remembered my current state. Regaining stability, I slammed my right forehoof into the ground to draw attention to myself. Unfortunately, this worked far too well, for as soon as I put my full weight onto the hoof, it collapsed under me. Pain flared through the numbness, as it sent me face first into the ground with a loud thump.
I didn't lose consciousness, thankfully, but everything went fuzzy, and appeared in wavering triplicate. Laying dumbly on the ground for a moment, I found myself wondering where the music went as a loud ringing filled my ears. Several big yellowish blobs appeared in front of me, making some kind of noise that I couldn't make out. I tried to shake my head clear, but it didn't seem to help; In fact, it seemed to make things even more blurry, so I closed my eyes instead, waiting for my head to clear.
As I lay there, I felt something brushing up against my newest injury, causing me to wince. I wanted to see what it was, but my head hurt so much I decided not to open my eyes. That was when it hit me: I was able to feel things again! The numbness had started to fade! I quickly realized that earlier I had felt Pinkie squishing my chest, and wow, could I feel the pain in my hoof, and oh... oh my head. I cursed myself as I came to the obvious conclusion: that I had just injured myself further, right as the medicine was wearing off. Stupid, stupid, stupid!
The ringing slowly started to subside, as did the sharp throbbing that pounded my skull. Gingerly, I cracked open my eyes. Clear sight returned slowly, as the three images merged into one, and what I saw was Fluttershy holding my hoof between hers, carefully using her mouth to wrap gauze around what appeared to be a splint. She was using what looked to be kindling from the nearby wood pile. Embarrassed, I tried to pull my hoof away, but she held on tightly, and gave me a disapproving look. Despite it not being malicious, I still quailed at the thought, and stopped resisting.
Finishing the splint, she dropped the remaining gauze, turning her head demurely to the side and coughing and rubbing her tongue with her hoof. Involuntarily, I cracked a smile: obviously gauze was not very tasty. She turned back and spoke... or at least I think she did. I found myself watching her mouth move, but still unable to hear anything. Using my left hoof I wiggled my ear, tilting it forward. She moved in closer and repeated herself. This time I thought I heard something, but it still wasn't understandable. Before I realized what I was doing, I found myself calling out, but far too loudly.
“What?!?”
Fluttershy must've jumped several feet in the air, and when she landed, she scrambled backwards, blushing furiously. I realized that I had just embarrassed her in front of all of her friends, and immediately felt horrible. Quickly, I tried to apologize, but unfortunately, only ended up making a fool of myself as well in the process.
“Sorry! I didn't mean to be so loud! I can't hear anything!”
I flopped my left ear back and forth with my good hoof, trying to stop the ringing. As the others gathered around me, I shook my head furiously, wanting to hear what was being said, but all I could hear over the noise was a dull mumble, completely unintelligible.
I opened my mouth to speak again, but before I could say anything, I found a light purple hoof blocking my mouth. I looked up at Twilight, who shook her head: No. I nodded, comprehending, and she took her hoof away from my face. Under the watchful gaze of the seven mares, I closed my eyes, and waited.
Laying there patiently, I had time to really gather my thoughts. Inwardly, I sighed: What a mess. As my thoughts calmed and slowed, I found myself coming to an abrupt decision. Given this opportunity, after putting all the craziness aside, I realized that none of this mattered. Not my mane, not my body's current condition, not my hunger, or the questions I had begun to stockpile... nothing at all. The ponies here, while they all seemed so nice, obviously had their own lives to get back to, and I wasn't a part of it. I couldn’t, wouldn’t be a part of it. Whether or not their kindness and interest in me was sincere, I had to get out of here. Right now. Before anything else happened to me... or to them.
My eyes opened quickly, hardened with determination as I struggled to my hooves. Even though I still couldn't hear them clearly, their expressions made their feelings clear: Sit back down! It was just as obvious to me, as I felt my bones creaking in protest. I really should’nt be moving. Shaking, I regained my balance on three hooves and stood firm, putting on a brave face to hide my discomfort. Solemnly, I nodded towards Fluttershy and Zecora, and spoke, making sure to force out a normal volume level. “Thank you for your hospitality, but I really must be going now. You all have things to get back to, I'm sure, and I need to get out of here as soon as possible. Since I can still walk, that means now, before anything else happens.” I limped towards the door, pushing past the stunned ponies. Turning my head back to towards them, I continued. “I promise I will find some way to pay you back for the services you provided in healing me, some day. So thank you again, and goodbye.”
I had almost made it to the door when the orange pony jumped in front of me, blocking the way. I stopped suddenly, not wanting to bump into her. Noticing I was still swaying slightly, I focused and stopped it before I spoke. “Please don't try and stop me. Trust me when I say this is for the best.” She stood firm, shaking her head negatively. Growing annoyed, I was curt. “Look, you really don't want me around! Bad things happen to me and those around me lately, so please just let me go! I'm sure I can make it on my own from here out.” I really wasn't sure, but what I was sure of was that the longer I spent here, the more likely it was that something would happen to them, just like what happened to the jocks... or to Fluttershy. I quashed my feelings harshly. Dangit, I just wanted to be alone right now!
Applejack looked angry and stood her ground. Her mouth opened wide and I strained to comprehend the sounds that come forth.
“~~~ need kelp!”
I blinked at this. Kelp? Why in Equestria would I need... wait. Where had I heard that today... Oh right! That green goop Zecora had put on my horn was made with kelp. I looked up crosseyed at my horn, and realized that I had accidentally washed off the potion when I stuck my head under the sink. Ah. One mystery solved. Oh well.
I forced a smile at Applejack. “Oh sorry, you mean the goo for my horn. Seems I accidentally washed it off when I was in the washroom. I'm sure it'll heal on its own in time. Now if you could just move out of the way...” Applejack didn't budge, if anything, the expression on her face grew more frustrated. I sighed. “Please, I can't impose on any of you any further!”
Applejack reared up, taking a deep breath. As she landed, she yelled out at the top of her lungs, and this time, I heard her clear as a bell.
“YEW NEED HELP!!!”
The loudness of her outburst cleared the last of the fuzz from my ears and caused me to take a step back. Unfortunately for me, the hoof with which I did that with happened to yet again be the one I had apparently sprained. This time though, I gritted my teeth and pulled the hoof up close to my chest, not allowing myself to fall again. I opened my mouth to refute Applejack's claim, but she marched right up to me and stared me right in the eyes before I could let out more than a squeak.
“Lookie here pardner. Trust me when Ah say Ah know a thing or two about being stubborn, but Ah'm not about to listen to any more of yer fancy-shmancy talk about protectin’ us at yer expense, ya’ hear?” She took a step towards me. “Now you listen and you listen good. Yer a badly injured pony, smack-dab in the middle of the Everfree forest, the most dangerous of the dangerous parts aroun’ here!” Another step. “Yer’ as weak as a newborn kitten: the forest'd eat you alive! Even puttin' that aside, the nearest place ya’ can get to from here is Ponyville, where we all live anyhow. Like you are now, you'd never even make it close ta’ there before you collapsed. So ya’ can just sit yer pretty little behind right back down an’ let Fluttershy an’ Zecora take care a’ you.” Having reached me, she butted her head against mine. “Now do ya’ understan’ me?”
With that light headbutt, my balance was lost and I toppled, managing to brace with my good hoof so my face didn't hit the floor this time. As much as I didn't want to admit it, she was right; I had nowhere to go, and no idea of where I was, other than deep in the Everfree forest. Even so, I knew I wasn't planning on going to this Ponyville place; there would just be more ponies there. No, better off that I just disappear into the forest, and learn to survive in the solitude of the wilderness. I was a smart pony, I knew I could do it if I put my mind to it.
Bolstered by this new life choice (as illogical as it may be in hindsight, having never been on the ground before today), I strove to rise again to my hooves, only to now find the purple mare in my way. Twilight's voice rang out clearly and defiantly as she spoke. “You can't go. You promised me that you'd answer all my questions, and you haven't yet. I told you that I would hold you to that, and now I am. So stay put!”
I winced: I knew that was going to come back to haunt me. Still, a broken promise, as much as I hated to do it, was something I knew I could live with. Ruining their lives, on the other hoof...
I still had no idea what had happened to me back in Cloudsdale. That purple haze, the screaming faces of those jocks, fires roaring, smoke swirling, ponies glaring... I shuddered, shoving the broken memories aside. All I knew was that when it happened I had hurt other ponies as if it was nothing, and that for all I knew, I could do it again. Guilt bore down on my mind, along with fear. Fear of myself... what I was capable of. Even though I’d hated those ponies, they hadn't deserved that! Nopony did! Especially not these girls. They hadn't done anything to deserve... what I could do to them. Tears threatened to form as those screaming faces reappeared in my mind: I had never wanted to hurt anypony! I had to go, now! I strained against gravity, finding it much harder to get up this time, as muscles screamed at the abuse.
Out of the blue, I found my face buried in a pink mane. Fluttershy had quietly snuck up behind me, wrapping her hooves around me and holding me tightly. “Oh please don't go. You're in no condition to be moving around... and um... well... um... you know... I'd really like it if you stayed... so... please?” Her grip tightened, it was almost as if I could feel her concern for me coming off her in waves, making this all the more difficult. I wanted to protect her the most: She had saved me!
Trying to center myself, I took a deep breath, the memories fading again. This may have been a mistake however, as her mane smelled of wild flowers and spring. She seemed to just emit peacefulness, and, against my better judgment, my resolve soon crumbled. Before long, I gave in completely. My muscles relaxed and I slumped into her embrace, letting out a deep sigh.
“Fine.”
The tension in the room seemed to lift. Twilight grinned and clopped her hooves together, delighting in her victory, letting out a happy: "Yay!". Fluttershy loosened her grip as she moved away, smiling joyfully, her eyes twinkling in the faint candlelight. Once I was free, Zecora trotted over and placed another bowl of broth in front of me. Leaning down, I took a deep sip: It was even more delicious than I remembered. Draining the rest of the bowl, I swallowed, took a deep breath, and asked the question I had wanted to know since awakening in this strange place.
“Why?” I asked, in a sullen, monotone voice.
Twilight seemed to think the question was directed directly at her, and responded quickly. “Why what?” she asked, looking at me curiously.
“Why do you all care so much about a pony you don't even know?” I asked coolly, fighting back the anger that was growing at being forced to stay here with these... phonies. “I have nothing left, what could I possibly do for you that makes you want me around enough to force me to stay here?”
The ponies looked back and forth at each other, a puzzled look crossing each of their faces in turn. An awkward silence filled the air, as nopony seemed to know what to say. The quiet crackling of the fire and the sound of the record skipping was all that was heard. Apparently, my face had met the ground with enough force to knock the needle clean off the record: no wonder my head had been ringing.
After many long, quiet moments, the white pony named Rarity spoke, breaking the silence. “Indigo Flash, was it? Sorry for the silence, but then none of us have said anything about wanting anything from you, so you must understand our confusion. All we want is for you to get better. Do we need another reason?”
I snorted in disbelief, my anger surpassing my ability to suppress. “Yeah, right. You’re trying to tell me that nopony in this room wants something from me in return for all this? I mean all you had to do was just let me walk out that door, and then you could all go back to your happy little lives.”
Rarity responded immediately in a huff, obviously offended by my tone. “Of course not! To ask for something for basic care would just be crude and unseemly. I would never!”
Applejack was still adjusting her hat, trying to get it just so. She straightened up her neck, fitting it back in tightly into her headpiece. Crossing her hooves, her face bearing a serious expression, she coolly let out a short and blunt: “Nope.”
Pinkie turned her head sideways and gave me a strange look. “Well duh, I mean you're hurt, we can help, why wouldn't we, silly?”
Rainbow gave me a cold look. "Well, I still don't trust you, and I still think you are at least partly to blame for what happened to Fluttershy, but you did save her, at least. Besides, you got nothing I want, or need, bud."
I sputtered, inanely trying to defend Fluttershy. "It was the other way around, she saved me!"
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and flew slowly towards me. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Either way, I'm watching you." She darted towards me, face to face, then smirking, she pitched sideways into a barrel roll and landed over near the snacks, looking over the selection.
Speechless, I looked towards Zecora and Fluttershy, hoping for some sort of support. The former just smiled at me, while the latter squeaked, blushing, and hid behind her mane again. Seems I was all alone here, since even Fluttershy didn't want to stand up for herself.
I knew I didn't deserve this praise: She did! I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for her. Before I could open my mouth to try and defend her more sensibly this time, though, the final pony in the room spoke up.
Twilight's cheeks were nearly as rosy as Fluttershy’s at this point, her being the last pony to reply to my earlier query. “Well, I mean, I’m dying to ask you more questions, but I also want you to get better. And since I'd want you to recover whether or not you answer my questions, then I guess I don't need another reason either.” She paused, before meeting my gaze. “Why would you ask that though?”
I looked back and forth, into the faces of all the ponies in the room, still in disbelief. Their eyes shone in the candlelight as I looked deeply into each of them, looking for the deceit that I knew had to be there. Not one of them flinched or looked away, especially not Rainbow, who glared at me... but I just couldn't tell. I’d never believed my old friends were lying to me either. Anger dissipated as tears formed in my eyes. I broke down; how could I ever believe again that anypony could really care, not because they had to, or because I would do something for them if they did; but because they wanted to, because it was the right thing to do... or even because anypony actually truly liked me.
I sniffled as I wiped the tears from my eye with my good hoof. Responding quietly, my voice cracking slightly as I forced it through, still attempting to hold my feelings at bay: “B... because I can't remember a time when anypony else ever really has. C... cared, I mean.”
I choked up at this, as all my memories of happy times for many years had all been destroyed by a single pony who had finally been truthful with me. A truth which was so obvious now, in hindsight, but I had blinded myself to it, choosing instead to believe they liked me, and not just my money. So many years, living a lie. Try as I might, I could no longer remember a time when I was truly happy.
Having managed to squash the tears again. I steeled myself. I would never allow myself to be fooled like that again. Looking up, I saw the others moving towards me, concern plastered all over their faces.
Twilight placed a hoof on my shoulder. “Do you want to talk about it?” She asked softly. “We're willing to listen, and we've got time.” Applejack cleared her throat. Twilight rolled her eyes “Well, most of us have time.”
Steel shattered and I slumped again. Fake or not, their concern felt good... it felt right. And... ponyfeathers! I did want to talk about it. I had just had the worst day ever, and here was a group of ponies who wanted to hear all about it. It was more than any of my so-called friends had ever offered.
Sniffling again, I wiped my nose with a hoof and nodded silently.
Applejack, who had been leaning against a wall, tilted her hat back. “Welp, Ah better get goin’. Big Macintosh'll be needing help with the harvest. Ah went and ran off in a tizzy when ya’ told me about Fluttershy and Ah feel a might bad about leavin’ him with all the work.” Heaving herself off the wall, she started making for the door.
Rainbow Dash flew overhead, slowing down next to Applejack. “What, after all that commotion at the door you’re not even going to stay to find out why? Are you nuts?” Spinning around in midair, she landed in the doorway, blocking the exit, wings flared wide.
Applejack sighed, trying to shuffle past. “Ah ain't crazy, Rainbow. Ah jus’ happen to have responsibilities to mah farm. Just 'cause Ah wouldn't let an injured pony waltz on out into the Everfree forest on his lonesome, don't mean Ah trust him any more’n you do! Besides, Ah feel just awful leavin’ the farm hangin’ like this.” Stopping and turning to me, she smiled awkwardly. “How ‘bout you give me a quick run-down, sugar, before Ah head out, jus’ enough that Ah can get the gist a’ things?”
I gave her a look of utter confusion. A run-down? What in the world was that? Twilight, seeing my expression, leaned in and whispered in my ear. “She means a summary.”
Applejack rolled her eyes, obviously having very good hearing. “Yes sugarcube, a summary. Real quick like.”
I gulped, at a loss for words. A summary? Right now? With no preparation!? I’d spent most of my life in the middle of bureaucracy. Summarizing was not part of my job description: they expected long-winded documents that nopony would ever read!
Staring at the floor, I dug at it nervously with my good hoof. Swallowing hard, I opened my mouth, brain whirling in a mad panic. In this frenzy, I latched onto the two biggest events in my mind, and the words just fell out haphazardly into the silent room.
“I... uh... exploded... and um then I... exploded again? And then I hit the ground? With a splut?”
I began to curse myself. You foal, that was the worst summary in the history of the world! There’s such a thing as being too brief!
Before I could apologize and try again, I looked up with embarrassment. And then I saw Applejack’s face. She was staring at me, eyes wide, mouth hanging open, moving but not finding words. Finally, she found some, speaking in a flat, shocked tone of voice. “What in tarnation did you jus’ say?”
Pinkie, who had somehow managed to stay quiet up to this point, burst out laughing, pounding the floor with her hooves. “Hehehehehe! You heard him Applejack! He exploded, and then he EXPLODED again!” She leaned forward. "Do you remember? Do ya? Huh? Huh? Huh!? You told Spike that could never ever happen in a million jillion years! Now you have to stay!" Raising her hooves over her head, she fell over backwards, rolling back and forth on the floor in mirth.
Twilight also began giggling, covering her mouth. “Pinkie, I don't think she went quite that far. But you do have a point. You did say that a pony couldn't explode twice, Applejack; She’s got you there.”
Confused, I looked around the room. With no idea what or who they were referring to, I looked to the others for guidance. Their expressions mirrored my own, however; apparently I was not the only one not in on this particular joke.
Applejack's entire face turned bright apple-red. She spun around smartly, marching right back over to me. Looking me dead in the eye, she dropped down onto the ground, smack-dab in front of me before saying a single word. “Hoo boy, Ah don't know how you did it, but you came up with probably the only thing in all of ponydom that would'a made me change mah mind. Ah'm roped into this like a steer at a rodeo, 'less Ah want to eat mah words without knowin' why.” She shrugged. “Ah well. Ah reckon that Ah deserve a day off anyhow after all that buckin'. Mah brother is a big boy, he can handle himself for one day.”
The others moved in close, positioning themselves around me in a rough semi-circle. Twilight and Rarity set themselves down on one side of Applejack, while Pinkie and Rainbow grabbed some snacks from the display she had laid out earlier. Pinkie snagged a big pile of random sugary treats and drinks from the snack table and plopped down on the other side of Applejack. Rainbow grabbed a few things for herself too, but also flew by and dropped a few treats in front of the others. In case they got hungry, I assume. She then hovered over Applejack and Pinkie, nudging her way in between the pair.
Suddenly, something splatted against my forehead. I looked up in surprise as another batch of green goop was slathered gently onto my horn. Moments later, another large bowl of broth was placed in front of me. I took a deep breath, calming myself before I raised my head, smiling gratefully towards Zecora. “Thank you again, for everything.”
She nodded happily. “No need for thanks: potions are my trade; all of these things, for you they were made. However, I hunger and so I will join you. There is plenty of broth: if not, more I will brew.” Dipping another bowl in the cauldron of broth, she lay next to me, and placed it in front of her, before leaning in and taking a sip.
Still recovering from the shock to my face, I nearly jumped when I heard another clunk and felt a warmth against my other side. I quickly turned my head to see Fluttershy pulling away, a bowl in front of her as well. Shyly, she spoke with concern “Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bump into you. Did it hurt? Are you okay?”
I smiled reassuringly at her. “No, it didn't hurt at all. In fact, it felt nice.”
Fluttershy blushed a little at this, and realizing what I’d just said, so did I. Softly, she asked: “Nice?”
I coughed and looked away, into my bowl of soup. “Um, yeah. Yep, nice.”
Moments later, I felt her side brush up gently against mine again. Surprised, I looked over at her. A small smile graced her lips as she looked up at me; apparently I was a little taller than her, at least while resting on the floor. Awkwardly, I smiled back, and took a drink from my bowl.
Looking up, I saw the faces of the others, waiting patiently. Twilight... perhaps not so patient... had her quill and parchment ready. I shivered a little, not used to being in the spotlight, but I felt Fluttershy lean against me a bit and I felt safe. There was a better feeling here than I had ever felt in my office, even if I couldn't really trust it.
Even so, I sighed, disliking having to relive these memories again. The fact that they actually wanted to know, actually seemed to care made it better, though, so I began.
“To get the full story, we have to go way back. I guess you could say my problems started on the day I got my cutie mark...” |
Zoltrioundz | 588 | 8 | Main 6,Original Character,Zecora,Romance,Sad,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Distant Flutter of Angels | When a pony has everything taken from him, can he regain his true path with the help of the Mane 6? | hiatus | 20 | 1 | <p><b>[Normal][Sad][OC Pony][Slow Romance]</b><br/>Full Size Cover image: <a href="http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y" rel="nofollow">http://zoltrioundz.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d4c5o8y</a></p><hr/><p>Indigo Flash hasn't had the best life. In fact, while he was just a young colt, his entire life started unraveling at the seams. He lost his parents, was driven away from the other ponies his age, and wound up forced into a job that had nothing to do with his special talent, just after he found out what it was. Over time, he learned to live with it, and his life seemed to stabilize, perhaps even become normal. Which made it all the worse when everything falls apart in a single day, and he is left without even the ability to control his own fate.</p><p>Once everything is ripped away from a pony, can he ever return his life to the way things were? And even if he can, is it still worth fighting for?</p><p>~Compiled and edited by Twilight Sparkle, Royal Librarian</p><p>(This is a work in progress, and will be until completed. Please see my blog entry for more details :3 )</p> | everyone | 2012-02-08T14:37:12+00:00 | 2012-02-08T14:37:12+00:00 | 3,338 | At first, talking about my past had seemed easy... almost too easy. I had started strongly, and had managed to keep it going for a few minutes, but it didn’t take long before I found myself stumbling over the words, finding them harder and harder to come by. Deep down, I knew I really wanted to open up, but I found myself hesitant, holding back. It didn’t help that I really didn’t know these ponies all that well. We had only just met after all, and not in the best of circumstances. It also didn't help that this was the first time I had ever spoken of my past to anypony. My so-called friends had never bothered to ask, in all the year’s they’d known me.
To top it all off, being the center of attention and talking in front of groups had never been my strong point. Truthfully, I would much rather sit quietly and listen to the others as they chatted with each other, only piping up when I had something useful to say. All that this attention was doing was making me feel exposed and even more unsure of myself. I had butterflies in my stomach and my forelegs felt a little twitchy, as nervousness filled my mind.
Taking a deep breath to try and calm my nerves, I paused to take a sip of soup. It helped to calm me down, while also soothing my throat and helping to fill my still grumbling stomach. Swallowing past the lump in my throat, I took a moment to look around. Instantly I realized the mood in the room had subtly changed. While the atmosphere had always been serious, at least the others had still been smiling.
Once I had started talking, that hadn’t lasted long.
Where whispers, giggling and munching on snacks had been only moments before, there was now only sombre silence. Even Pinkie had stopped eating and had a sorrowful look on her face, though after a second glance that looked like it was due to the fact that she had already completely demolished her pile of treats.
Sighing to myself, I decided I may as well push onward and get this over with. Taking another deep breath, I picked up where I'd left off. I had decided to leave the past as it was: in the past, and just gloss over the details. As therapeutic as it might be to talk about it in depth, I had already relived enough of my life during my fall, and these new ponies did not need to know every little thing about my history.
Already having touched on much of my early past and given the highlights (or rather lowlights), of my life up to the point where the company had taken me in, I was just beginning to speak on the events that had happened at school a few months later. Much to my surprise, as soon as the jocks came up, I felt a shudder against my side.
I nearly startled and spilled my soup: Fluttershy had been so quiet and motionless so far that I had actually forgotten she was leaning up against me. Noticing that my attention had turned to her, she quickly tried to hide a frown behind an obviously fake smile. “Oh! Um. It’s nothing really...” The smile faded and her eyes took on a haunted look. “I just know who you mean...”
My attention was suddenly drawn to Rainbow Dash as she groaned loudly, rolling her eyes. “We ALL know who you mean. We met them again a while back in Cloudsdale, remember? Those jerks haven't changed a bit! They still like harassing and making fun of other ponies. Just... just like they did to us when we were little, Fluttershy.” She paused, her eyes momentarily mirroring Fluttershy’s, but the look disappeared behind a mask. “I’d hoped showing them up time and time again would shut them up, but nothing’s ever worked for those guys.”
Rainbow's face blanched as she looked over at me, realizing she had let down her guard. Quickly, she tried to fix her previous statements. “ I mean, uh, not that they bothered me... Well, they tried, but I never let it get to me!” Striking a pose from her place on the floor, she tried to look confident, but then drooped, placing a hoof across her eyes. Sighing, she continued. “It’s like they try to ruin everything they see. I just don't get colts sometimes.”
Anticipating an apology, I waited for her to amend her comment, seeing as I happened to be a colt. It never came. Returning my expectant look, she just gave me a cold stare, waiting for me to back down. With no need to be confrontational, I did, turning my attention back to the yellow pony next to me. Fluttershy had gone silent again, her eyes lost in thought. She still looked haunted, lost in her memories of the past.
I was actually somewhat taken aback by all this: I’d always thought they had only picked on me. At least, that was how it had always appeared to me. I felt a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach as I suddenly realized that when they weren't tormenting me, they must have been doing it to others. From the sound of it, to my savior at the very least. What were the chances?
Wanting to let Fluttershy know that we were kindred spirits of a sort, and that I felt her pain, I momentarily placed my hoof on hers.
Her eyes, which had gone distant, instantly refocused at my touch, pulling her hoof away with a jerk and a terrified squeak. As she looked at me with with a frightened look in her eyes, I awkwardly replaced my hoof on the ground, trying my best to smile reassuringly. Her eyes softened and she smiled a bit, before leaning down to take a drink from her own bowl of soup.
Before resuming my story, I had decided that Rainbow's comment deserved a response after all, despite her coolness towards me. Coercing a plastic smile from my lips, I forced a chuckle. “If it's any consolation, Rainbow, I don't get them either, and I happen to be a colt myself.” I shrugged sheepishly. “But then again, I don’t really get fillies either. I guess I don't get out much.”
It worked, as she smirked at my self depreciating joke. “Heh, I guess not. Still, one of these days those guys are going to get what's coming to them, and I really hope they get what they deserve!”
Involuntarily, I flinched. After all, I had a vague impression of what had happened to them. Deserving or not, I had never wanted to hurt anypony, and by the looks I had seen on their faces...
FLASH
I winced as the unwelcome memory of that scene tried to bubble back up into the forefront of my mind again. But this time, things were different. Before I could picture it again, my forehead throbbed; a sudden headache pounded against the inside of my skull. My concentration broken, the image never clarified in my mind, fading away into welcome blackness.
FLASH
Then, as suddenly as it had started, it was gone. The throbbing just up and quit, and the pain began to recede. I looked around in a state of confusion, not sure what to make of that. Thinking about the past had never done that before! I shook my head violently: That had hurt! I took care to avoid thinking about it again.
I was still shaking my head to try and throw off the last of the pain when Applejack decided to comment. “Uh, you okay there partner? You’re shakin’ around like you've got a bee in your bonnet or somethin’.”
I stopped suddenly and gave her a sheepish grin. “Oh! Sorry! It's nothing. I'm fine, just had a bit of a sudden headache, that's all.”
She nodded, knowingly. Returning the nod with a smile, I continued. “Now, uh, where was I?”
“You were just telling us all about how those nasty colts kept harassing you, though I’m still not sure why you need to go this far back,” said Rarity with a shudder. “Ugh, I can't believe I ever associated myself with such brutes!”
“Oh, don’t worry, it will make sense soon...’ All thoughts of continuing left my mind as I suddenly found myself at a loss. “Wait, hold up, you knew them too? When were you ever in Cloudsdale?”
She laughed musically. “My dear, as Rainbow said, we've all been to Cloudsdale. Just a few years back we all visited it to watch Rainbow in the Best Young Flier's competition. She won, of course.” Raising an eyebrow curiously, she looked towards me. “Surely you must have seen it! It was a huge event. By how full the stands were, I thought everypony in Cloudsdale attended. I mean, even the Princess was there! Plus, even if you weren’t in the stands, the Sonic Rainboom is hard to miss. You can see it for miles!”
My head drooped, and I stared at the ground for a moment before I said anything, trying to figure out the best way to phrase this. Quietly, I responded. “Um, no, I’ve never actually attended any of the big events. Never had a reason to, or anypony to go with, so I just stayed home. As for seeing it, my room’s near the center of the weather factory. No windows.” I looked up with a sad smile. “Despite the joke, I wasn't kidding when I said I didn't get out much.”
Her smile faded, but she continued. “Oh... I see. Well, I also participated in the contest, foolishly so, since the entire reason I had insisted on coming was to support Rainbow. I got completely swept up in the excitement and ended up attempting to upstage the very friend I had come to help! Even so, in the end, when I fell and nearly died, she was there for me. She saved me by performing her infamous Sonic Rainboom. It was simply fabulous!” She began smiling again as she tilted her head towards Rainbow. “And for that I am forever indebted to her.”
I was instantly confused as to how she had participated, being a unicorn like me, with no discernible ability to fly. Momentarily, I recalled my earlier questions about this so-called cloud-walking. Opening my mouth to ask, I found myself cut off by an embarrassed Rainbow Dash.
“Aw, come on Rarity. It wasn’t a big deal. We've known each other for like, forever, and you've done plenty of cool stuff too. Like uh... Oh! Remember when Discord messed me up and you helped slow me down so Twilight could fix me?”
The expression on Rarity's face changed instantly from a look of gratitude to one of irritation as her cheeks flushed red. Obviously upset, she replied in a huff. “Of all the... why would you bring that one up? I mean, yes, I guess I helped, but it was completely accidental! Couldn't you have found a better example than that?”
Pinkie's head popped up out of a pile of cupcake wrappers. “Oooh! Oooh! I remember that! I helped too!”
Rarity turned and gave Pinkie an icy glare, replying in a flat tone. “Yes, I was referring to you dear, when I mentioned that it was due to an accident. If memory serves, it was your fault we ended up being dragged through the air behind her, yes?”
Pinkie shrugged, seemingly unperturbed by the daggers coming from Rarity’s eyes. “Well it worked, didn't it?” she asked, nonchalantly.
Rarity sputtered. “Well... yes... but...”
Pinkie giggled. “Then we helped, silly!” Spotting an uneaten cupcake in Rainbow's pile, she reached over and snatched it, eliciting a loud protest from the cyan pegasus. It was too little too late though, as the cupcake had already been swallowed whole, wrapper and all.
Rarity groaned, but did not continue protesting. Having realized that her cupcake was a lost cause, Rainbow turned back to the conversation. “Well, what example should I have used? When we faced the dragon up on that mountain?”
Rarity shook her head. “No, that was Fluttershy, Rainbow. I’m sorry to say, my attempt at getting the dragon to leave was most unsuccessful.”
Our of nowhere, Applejack let out a snort. “Well now, if’n mah memory serves, what yer really referrin’ to is your attempt to get him to part with some of his treasure, right?”
Rarity’s cheeks flushed brighter. “Oh... um... right...” She grinned with embarrassment before replying in an overly loud, dramatic tone. “Moving on!”
Rainbow, still trying to find a good example to please Rarity, was deep in thought, tapping on her chin with a hoof. “Um, did you do anything when that giant space bear attacked the town?
Rarity head drooped and she let out a drawn out sigh. “No dear, that was all Twilight. I spent most of the day trying to wash that horrid green color out of my hair, after being utterly humiliated in front of everypony in town.” She slumped to the floor with a look of despair. “Did you know that it took the entire rest of the day and an absolute fortune in hair care products just to get it looking normal again? By the time the Ursa Minor attacked, my hair had just dried. I’m rather embarrassed to admit this, but I think I hesitated joining Twilight for fear of having all my hard work ruined.” She looked over at Twilight and smiled warmly. "I think we all knew you could do it, though. And you did, quite spectacularly, I must say."
By this point, my head was whirling with questions: So many things that I had never heard of before were being mentioned so casually, as if they were nothing! By this point I was completely lost. Giant monsters? Non-pegasi in Cloudsdale? Another unicorn able to fly? Someone named Discord? And of course, whatever this Sonic Rainboom was again. So many topics, flying by without a care.
Not only was I completely lost in the conversation, but the attention of everypony in the room had shifted from me to them. Nopony seemed interested in my story anymore. I raised a hoof to interject, but my voice was drowned out by Rainbow continuing.
“What about when the Diamond Dogs foalnapped you? You definitely took the reins there!”
This time, Rarity’s head perked up a bit. “I did, didn't I? However, that was more of a self-rescue than anything else...”
“How about when...”
They continued bantering back and forth, completely ignoring me as I repeatedly raised my hoof, trying to get a word in edgewise. I quickly found myself growing irritated; They were being so rude! Whatever happened to wanting to hear about my past? I frowned, fuming. Instead they were reliving their own!
Frustration turned surprisingly quickly into anger, so fast I did not even have a chance to restrain it. Out of the blue, I flat out gave up trying to be polite and just shouted out over them. “Whoa, Whoa, WHOA! Girls, please! Not trying to be a jerk or anything, but as interesting as all this is, please remember that I have absolutely no idea whatsoever what any of these things you are talking about are! I don’t know if you noticed, but I haven’t been able to get a word in for a good five minutes!”
My head felt tight as the pain stopped receding and started to grow again. This only fueled the fire, my temper raging unchecked as I continued. “Also, last I checked, I was supposed to be the one trotting down memory lane, not you!” I groaned as the headache, which had never fully gone away, throbbed at my temples. Holding my head in my hooves, I tried to will away the pain, with little success.
Stunned silence filled the room. My sudden outburst had definitely gathered the flagging attention of everypony, though probably in the worst possible way. Despite the look of annoyance that several of them gave me, I felt a strange sense of satisfaction at my success. As the pain began to fade back to manageable levels however, I started to feel a little strange. That outburst was so unlike me! I'd never had a temper before, and definitely hadn’t gotten angry at somepony to their face...
I shrugged it off and pressed on, figuring it was just stress, and that I’d be back to normal soon. “Right, so now that we are back on track, I think I was about to tell you about what happened after those jerks drove me away from the school.” I took a few deep breaths, trying to center myself and calm down. Most of the rest of the story revolved around my office and my work, and I wanted to convey the proper feelings; the peace and solitude of my longtime home. The thought of it comforted me, as I pictured my sanctuary of so many years. The pain continued to recede as I started to relax, finding my happy place. I could see my desk, covered with all my work, where I spent long nights working and studying. I saw my bedroom, with my bookshelf, overflowing with novels and textbooks. I saw my...
FLASH
The image in my mind flickered and warped, fading in and out as I tried to hold on to the memory. Unlike the last one, I did not want to lose it! It soon proved to be futile, however: all my efforts were in vain. After what felt like an eternity of inner struggle, I felt a ripping sensation, and the picture shredded as if by invisible claws, the tatters fading away. What was revealed behind it was a very different image. Instead of peacefulness and quiet, the roar of flames filled the room. Everything was burning! Smouldering books tumbled through the air, and work files disintegrated into swirling tornadoes of black ash. The ash mixed with the smoke that was rising through the ceiling, warping the clouds there and weakening the structure. I could already see into the rooms above, and heard creaking as their furniture threatened to fall through. Many of the clouds that made up the building were evaporating from the heat, and there were holes in the floor where the larger items had already burnt clean through. The desk, bookshelf, and bed were long gone, the voids where they once stood hollow reminders of what had already been lost.
I screamed.
FLASH
Returning to reality, I found myself laying on the floor, writhing in pain. It was so intense this time that it felt as if my head was trying to explode under the pressure. With each throb, the heat of the fire pushed against the backs of my eyes, making them water. I couldn’t feel anything else. Unbidden, my hooves pounded at my temples, trying to stamp out the blaze in my mind.
And then once again, just as quickly as before, the image faded away. This time though, some of the pain remained. The headache stayed stronger, a dull throbbing, rhythmically beating against the inside of my skull.
My cry had not gone unnoticed. As all attention had been on me this time, they all saw the progression of events on my face, from deep concentration to fear, then finally to a look of pure suffering. Everypony moved quickly towards me to help, but it was Fluttershy who arrived first. Since she had been laying up against me, she had noticed that something was wrong before anypony else, long before my outburst. As my hooves continued to pound against my head, she instantly twisted, knocking over her soup bowl in the process. Grabbing my hooves, she managed to hold them back with some effort, stopping me from injuring myself worse.
She stared down at my face, contorted in pain, and gasped. “Oh my goodness! What’s going on? Stop, Indigo! Please stop!”
I barely heard her. Even though the images were gone, indistinct scenes of fire and flame filled my mind. Uncontrollably, broken thoughts began tumbling from my mouth. “Burning... everything gone... destroyed... consumed...” They just kept coming, without pause. “An inferno... nothing left... gone, all gone...”
Twilight was the next to approach and she placed her hooves on my shoulders, forcefully shaking me back and forth. “Indigo, snap out of it!”
Whatever she did worked, and the fires disappeared, snuffed out. As reality finally set all the way back in, I flinched from the shock and nearly fainted. Moaning in pain, I covered my eyes with a foreleg for a moment. It took a minute or two for me to gather myself enough to speak. “What... What just happened?”
“You tell us! You went from talking to screaming in 10 seconds flat!” said Rainbow Dash with an annoyed tone in her voice, hovering in the air nearby.
I shook my head, trying to clear my mind, before replying. “I... I don't know. I was remembering... something, and then suddenly, intense pain. Then it was like everything was on fire.” I grunted, rubbing my sore eyes with my hoof. “Seems to have faded a bit though...” I paused, as an acrid scent suddenly filled my nostrils, causing me to gag. “Yeesh, but what is that horrible smell?”
Zecora, still laying next to me, leaned in and took a deep whiff near my face. She gave me a confused look. “What is this new scent of which you speak? I smell not a thing, neither strong nor weak.”
I coughed, trying to breath through my mouth, but nothing stopped it. It was like it permeated the room. “Ugh, its horrible! You can’t smell that? It’s like something’s burning, right under my nose!”
Everypony started sniffing around, with no success. It would have been a silly sight, if not for the seriousness of the situation. Zecora raised an eyebrow. “I cannot smell it; not even a bit. But we are laying next to my fire pit.” She tilted her head towards the large cauldron that she had been ladling soup out of. “Is this the source of that horrible smell? Nothing has changed, so far as I can tell.”
I leaned over her and inhaled deeply, but could still smell nothing else, nothing different. “I... I just don't know! It seems to be everywhere! But it doesn't smell like burning wood...” As much as it was making me nauseous, I took a moment to try and figure out what it was. “It smells more like... burnt toast?”
The earlier silence returned, this time more awkwardly, as everypony gave me strange looks. Before long though, it was broken by laughter, as Pinkie Pie started to giggle. “Don’t be silly, it’s not time for breakfast!” The expression shifted to a more serious one. “Though I suppose it’s still early enough for a late brunch!” She clopped her hooves together excitedly. “Ooh! Can I have waffles? I love waffles! I think I even have some syrup in my bag!” At this she dashed to the front door and started rummaging through something just out of sight.
Suddenly angry, I snapped at her. “It isn't funny! It smells horrible!” I tried to glare at her, but suddenly found it hard to focus on her. She appeared to be bouncing all over the place. “And stop moving! You're making me dizzy!”
Abruptly, she stopped what she was doing, pulling her head out of what appeared to be a white saddlebag. She looked back at me, a bemused look on her face. “Uh, Indigo? I'm not moving.”
I pressed my hooves against my temples, trying to clear the constant throbbing. “What?”
Before Pinkie could repeat herself, Twilight gasped and grabbed my head in her hooves. I began to complain but she shushed me. “No time to explain. I need you to be quiet and look me right in the eyes. This is important.” Taken aback by her sudden assertiveness, I complied, looking deeply into her violet eyes, which seemed to glimmer in the candlelight. I was surprised to see they were full of concern as they studied mine closely, darting back and forth. I felt a flush growing in my cheeks as I tried to keep my cool. The feeling of her breath against my muzzle brought forth strange feelings. What was with these girls and getting close to me?
After only a few moments, she released my head and backed away nervously. “Oh... this is bad. This is VERY bad!”
Applejack looked over with apprehension. “What are you goin’ on about, sugarcube?”
Twilight had not stopped moving, she kept fidgeting back and forth in a panic, speaking to nopony in particular. “Oh...! We shouldn't have stayed here. As soon as we realized what had happened to him we should have headed for town...”
Applejack went over and put a hoof on Twilight's shoulder. “Calm down, Twi, and tell us what’s wrong.”
At Applejack’s reassurance, Twilight slowly began to relax. Taking a deep breath, she abruptly waved her hoof wildly in the air towards me. “He's hurt! A lot worse than we thought. We need to get him to a doctor. Now!”
Zecora quirked an eyebrow and glanced sidelong at me before turning towards the others. “A doctor's care is always well and good, but you have yet to tell us why we should.”
Rarity walked over to me and placed a hoof on my shoulder. “That's right, Twilight. What's wrong with the poor dear? He seems perfectly fine to me.” She paused, and gave me a critical look. “Well, besides the obvious. Like how dreadfully skinny he is. And the horrible colors that have seeped into his coat. And would you look at that mane?” She shuddered. “He's a total disaster.”
Turning back to me, it suddenly dawned on her what she had just said, and she smiled sheepishly at me. “Um, no offense intended, of course...”
I gritted my teeth in irritation and forced the words through them. “None taken...”
She laughed nervously, patting me on the shoulder as she glanced side to side awkwardly. Luckily for her, Twilight took the opportunity to speak her mind.
Twilight's hoof stopped gesticulating wildly and she went cross-eyed for a moment as she had to rein her mind in. “Wh-What?” A short-lived look of confusion crossed her face. “Oh... Um. Right.” Closing her eyes, she concentrated and a pinkish glow of magic lit her horn.
In the hushed silence of the room, I could hear a rustle outside the still-open front door. Another saddlebag, this one a pale blue, which had been previously hidden by the door-frame like the first, fell over and spilt the quills and parchment it contained onto the cold forest floor. A book wriggled its way free of the bag before being levitated into the room. As it flew towards Twilight, it opened, pages flipping so quickly you could hear them whir. Reaching it’s destination, she placed a hoof on the newly opened page and traced a paragraph, her eyes scanning over the text.
“Aha!” she exclaimed, flipping the book around so everypony could see. “Look! Right here! According to my book, Indigo must have cerebral compression due to his concussion. I'm fairly certain this is due to a brain contusion with contrecoup and coup damage!”
An awkward silence filled the room again as everypony just stared at Twilight. I turned to look at Rarity, to see if she understood anything of what had just been said, but she just shrugged, as lost as I was.
Suddenly I heard a snorting noise off to my left. Pinkie Pie held a hoof to her face, eyes twinkling as she began to giggle. “Jeez Louise! That's a lot of C's!”
Twilight's cheeks flushed red as she moved the book off to the side. “Um, yeah... That's because that's as far as I've gotten... But its all true! I swear! The symptoms all fit!” She stomped her hoof in frustration, putting a visible dent in the wooden floor.
Fluttershy stepped timidly forward, looking over the hovering book. "Um, Twilight? What symptoms?"
Rainbow's wings swished through the air slowly as she hovered next to her. “Yeah, what symptoms? He seems fine! He's been kinda snippy and rude, but other than that...” She trailed off, shrugging, flying in slow circles around the others.
Twilight's voice grew more urgent. “That’s just it Rainbow, he's irritable! I know that doesn't seem important, and normally you'd be right. Alone, that could mean anything, but when you add in a headache, blurred vision, ringing in his ears, balance issues, and all the other problems he's been having since we arrived, it’s obvious!” She stamped her hoof on the floor in frustration. “Too obvious! Oh why didn't I see it sooner?!”
Fluttershy came over and softly placed a hoof on my shoulder. I turned to look at her only to find her looking deeply into my eyes, trying to see what Twilight had seen. I felt my face going red again, and quickly looked away, embarassed by all the attention. Balked, Fluttershy trotted back and began reading the book again. “Um, Twilight? I'm sure whatever it is, we've taken care of it. Zecora and I were very thorough when we were going over him, and I don't think we missed anything.”
I felt my face flush even redder. Just what had she mean by that? Had something been done to me while I was out? I felt my anger growing again, but then what Twilight had just said resonated with me. Why was I so angry? Logically, I knew that there had been no innuendo there: Fluttershy meant it exactly as she said it, that she had tended to my injuries. I had no reason to be upset. Yet here I was, about to explode again.
Suddenly concerned, I shoved my irrational anger aside and spoke up. “Fluttershy, I think she's on to something. There's something very wrong here. My temper keeps flaring up out of control. I know you don't know me, so you'll have to take my word on this, but I am not an angry pony.”
Twilight nodded, a serious look on her face. “Exactly! And if I'm right, which I'm sure I am, then we need to get him to a doctor. Quickly.”
Applejack stepped forward, looking around at the others. “Can anypony tell the simple cowpony what in the hay all that fancy-speak is supposed ta mean? Please?”
Before Twilight could try and explain herself, Fluttershy stepped softly in front of her. “Um, she means he hit his head and is hurt really bad inside, where we can't see. And... well... she's right to worry. I mean... Zecora and I can't see whats beneath the surface.” She gave me a worried look. "We did our best..."
Twilight stepped forward, next to Fluttershy, who flinched back a little at the sudden movement. “That's what I said! He has a severe cranial injury!” She paused, and her eyes appeared to flash with inspiration. “Wait! Zecora! You have a potion for everything! You must have something to help with this kind of injury!”
Zecora looked thoughtful for a moment, then frowned. When she finally spoke, it was in a melancholy tone. “I know what is needed and there is a cure that I know, but its vital components were lost long ago. The herbs it would need are very rare, I cannot find them just anywhere. I had brought them with me from far away, knowing I would likely need them some day.” She pointed over the the wall, where several colored bottles were strung on vines. “They hung over there, safe above the ground, from curious critters who might nose around.” She turned back to the others and shook her head sadly. “Then a band of ponies broke down my door, and shattered my bottles all over the floor.”
Twilight gulped. “Wait, you mean... Oh my... Are you saying... we destroyed them, all those years ago, when we first met?”
Zecora nodded silently.
Twilight slumped, falling to a seat on the floor. The facial expressions of the other ponies changed to one of chagrin. Twilight sat quiet for a moment, then spoke quietly. “My gosh, I had forgotten about all that. So much damage, and over a simple misunderstanding...” She looked up at Zecora. “I’m so sorry...”
Zecora walked over and put a hoof on her shoulder, smiling softly. “Fear not Twilight, it is quite alright. The past is the past, and the anger did not last. I will admit, I threw quite a fit, but I do not regret it, not one little bit. For I made some new friends, and am no longer feared. Soon I would have moved on, had you not interfered.”
Twilight smiled hesitantly. “You... you really mean that?
Again Zecora nodded, then turned around and continued her earlier speech. “Many potions were lost on that fateful day, and my rarest ingredients were destroyed in the fray. Most of them I was able to replace, but of the ones we need, there has been no trace. If I had the materials I could mix up a brew, but I do not know where to look...” She paused and turned back to look at the assembled ponies. “Do you?”
The assembled ponies looked around between themselves, and each in turn shook their heads: No. Twilight sighed again, deeply. “We don’t have time for a scavenger hunt...”
Zecora smiled, and tilted her head. “Then what he needs has already been stressed: To see a doctor and get plenty of rest."
Twilight looked up in surprise: That had been her original plan, after all. She jumped up, and looked over at the others with a determined stare. “Well, you heard her! Why are we still standing around! We have to do something!”
And with that, chaos broke loose. Everypony started talking at once, each with their own crazy idea of how to get me to town quickly. I sighed: Not one of them had bothered to ask me if I felt up to making the trip. Instead of getting angry, this time I just felt sad, and slumped tiredly.
As they continued bantering amongst themselves, I began to worry. My hooves were still pressed tightly against my skull as I continued to massage my temples to relieve the pressure. I still had no idea what all those big words that Twilight had said meant, but it sounded serious. The pain in my head had just barely subsided to a tolerable level, and the stench of burnt bread had only just begun to fade. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes, trying to center myself and figure out what was going on.
Despite the risk, I tried to think back to what had started this most recent mess. What had I been thinking about when it started? Concentrating, I remembered that Rainbow had brought up the bullies from Cloudsdale. Right! She had said that she hoped they would get what was coming to them. And then I started remembering what had happened to them...
I waited for the memory to surface. Nothing happened.
Frowning, I focused harder. That couldn’t be right. I remembered... something. They had been making fun of me, just like they used to back in school. Then they said... something... I grimaced in frustration: I could see their mouths moving, but no sound came out. And then nothing, as even that scene faded. Why couldn’t I remember? Try as I might, no image appeared. At best, all that came to mind was a purplish glow.
This was strange. I turned my thoughts to the second occurrence. That one I was more sure about. I had been thinking about my office. Sanctuary. Home sweet home for so many years. I started to relax and smile as the image began to form...
An image of my childhood cloud cottage, high in the clouds.
My eyes popped open for a moment before I clenched them shut again. Why had that come to mind when I thought of home? I hadn’t seen that house since I was a foal. In fact, as I recall, they tore it down. Last time I had gone by, there was a store there that was selling high fashion. For the life of me though, I couldn't tell the purpose of the footwear they were selling. Whatever they were, they were definitely not made for hooves. They were shaped completely wrong.
I shook my head, which made me dizzy for a moment. Wrong train of thought. I wanted to think of my current home. As I focused, beads of sweat ran down my forehead. Again, nothing. I could remember all the things I had done there, but I could not for the life of me picture my room.
Growling as my frustration mounted, I tried another tack. I pictured myself standing in the cloud-making room. In my mind I could hear the giant machines rumbling and groaning, a constant white noise that I had grown to enjoy. Walking to the side of the room, I pushed open the door to the employee’s only area, revealing a long white corridor, lined with openings.
Turning to the right, I saw a sealed door. Mine was the first one, easily identifiable by the fact that it actually HAD a door. With a lock! My mind saw the humor in this, an old memory surfacing. The other employees had not been happy at first. The company had converted their old break room into a small apartment for me. The replacement break room was way down at the end of the hallway, and was missing many of the amenities the old one had included. That fact had gotten me many cold looks in the first few years. Yet another grievance against me and my life, I suppose.
Stepping back to reality for a moment, I opened my eyes. Wait, had I lost everything? Reaching into my mane, I searched around for a moment, before touching something cold and hard. Grabbing hold, I pulled out the large gold key I kept stashed there, braided into the hair. Somehow, after all I had been through, it was still there. Instead of happiness at this discovery, I felt another wave of sadness fall over me, and I began to tear up. I’d never get to go home again, would I? Was home even there anymore?
I wiped my eyes clear with my other hoof, replacing the key in my mane. No time for emotions. It was time to find out what was hiding behind that door. Placing my hooves together on the floor, I re-closed my eyes, bringing my mind back to the smooth cloud-formed door in front of me. Mentally, I levitated the key from my mane and pushed it into the lock with a twist. The tumblers spun and it unlocked with a heavy clunk. Taking a deep breath, both mentally and in reality as well, I placed a hoof on the cold, solid door, and gave it a push.
The door creaked open slowly, revealing a black interior. A deep darkness filled the room, which was strange, as it was made of white clouds. Pushing my head in, I felt a resistance in the air, almost as if I was shoving my head into a thick cloud. The further I went in, the harder it got to move forward, but with each step the room seemed to glow brighter, with a faint purplish sheen.
I gritted my teeth and kept pushing, putting one hoof in front of the other. The room got brighter and brighter, and the glow seemed to flicker. It was at this point that I could go no further. It felt as if I was to lift a leg one more time, the pressure against me would send me flying backwards. I could feel my headache growing, pounding, but I ignored it. Straining, I leaned forward, extending my neck. I needed to see what was there. I saw a glimmer of pure white light...
“Hey Fluttershy! What’s that humongous book called anyways?”
I winced, losing my focus as Pinkie's loud voice pierced my ears. A hoof involuntarily lifted, and I felt myself sliding backwards, just as I had feared. Mentally straining with all my might, I forced my head forward, leading with my horn. It nearly reached the light! It felt warm, and as I continued to push, it seemed to get hotter and hotter, until...
“The Competent Caretaker’s Complete Compendium of Cranial Crashes and Cracks?” Pinkie burst out laughing and fell over, rolling back and forth on the floor. “C’s! C’s! A Sea of C’s!”
The light exploded with a flash and I found myself thrown backwards with tremendous force. I tumbled out of the room in my mind, the door slamming shut, the lock disappearing. I got back up and banged on the door, despite the pain in my head. My efforts were once again in vain however: the scene soon blurred as everything faded to black.
My eyes snapped open, and I glared at the indistinct shape on the floor. Unable to restrain myself, I growled and snapped at the laughing pink blob.
“PINKIE PIE!!!”
The shape turned towards me, her eyes coming into view. Despite not being able to make out anything else, I could still see the eyes, plain as day, as they fluttered innocently.
“Yes, Indigo?”
I shook with anger, unable to restrain myself any longer. “You...”
It was then that the rest of the group turned to look at me, my shout having interrupted their discussion. I suddenly realized that it wasn't just her: everything had gone blurry. All I could see was large blobs of color moving towards me. Only one thing seemed to still be clear, and as a wall of eyes turned to face me, it began to involuntarily trigger another memory.
I flinched and shrunk back, shaking for an entirely different reason now. As the eyes drew closer, the pupils seemed to disappear, leaving nothing but cold, blank stares. I scooted backwards, trying to escape, but found my back pressed against something solid. I cried out, and covered my head with my hooves. “No! Go away! I don’t want to remember!” The dead eyes moved in and surrounded me, pressing me into the wall. “No! No!! Leave me alone!!” I began to cry out of sheer terror, unable to see, unable to escape.
Unable to resist any longer, I remembered.
And then promptly forgot, as everything faded to black.
When I opened my eyes again, my eyes instantly focused to crystal clarity, and I was able to see normally once again. What I saw, however, sent a chill down my spine.
I was back above the obsidian dome... or what was left of it anyway.
I slammed my eyes shut. No no no no no. I couldn’t be back, this place wasn’t real. It was just a hallucination of a fevered mind in some kind of coma... right? I tried to convince myself that when I opened my eyes again, I’d be back with the others, safe and sound, in reality.
Nothing changed when I opened them again. I was really back.
I closed my eyes again and took a few deep breaths, trying to calm myself. ‘Okay,’ I thought internally. “I’ve been here before, I got out before. I’ll be fine as long as I don’t panic.’
Slowly, I opened my eyes again. As they travelled over the broken surface before me, small pieces of the crystal shell continued to crumble and break away. It was quieter than before... no large pieces were breaking free, at least for the moment, so the rumbling and crashing had subsided. Looking down, I found I was seated on the glowing orb I had struggled so hard to reach. No longer giving off a blinding brilliance, its shine had faded to a dull bluish glow. I could see my reflection stretched over its surface, warping and distorting as the lights within swirled.
Suddenly, my reflection rippled and stabilized, it’s eyes shifting to lock with my own. A grin began to stretch across its face, as its pupils shrank to small dots.
‘Welcome back.’
The voice echoed in my skull, and I cringed, knowing what was coming next.
‘That’s right... You didn’t think you had gotten rid of me, did you? After all, our conversation was so rudely interrupted last time. Hopefully now that you’ve put so much effort into returning, we can continue where we left off.’
His smug tone grated on my nerves, but as he started chuckling, I knew I did not want to get into that situation again.
‘I don’t know what you are talking about. I didn't want to return here. I don’t even know where here is. And I definitely did not want to hear your ugly voice again, whatever you are. Jerk,’ I thought angrily at him.
‘Namecalling? Now, really...’ The chuckling faded, replaced by a mocking tone. ‘Oh come come now. You honestly still believe you got here accidentally? Pish posh. You knew that something was wrong, but you decided to probe deeper into the pain, rather than avoiding it. I mean really, what did you expect to happen? Sunshine and lollipops? Flowers and rainbows?’
I heard a mental snort. ‘As for where you are, I’m surprised you haven’t figured it out yet. I mean, come on, I know what you know, remember? And I’ve been able to figure out what this is for a while now.’ He laughed again, savoring his superiority. ‘This is your mental landscape, or something like that. Is it really that hard to tell?’ The image’s grin twisted and grew impossibly wide. ‘Not a pretty picture, is it? Just because you escaped, doesn’t mean it stopped collapsing. Based on what’s been happening out there, in the real world, you really don’t have much time left. Glad you stopped by for the big finale, though.’
My mouth went dry as I processed this new information. I didn’t know if I should believe him, but it felt right. I watched in stunned silence as another distant chunk fell free into the darkness below and swallowed heavily, a lump in my throat.
The image turned to look out over the scene below and began to chuckle again. ‘Won’t be too much longer now, the support structure’s almost gone. Wonder what’ll happen when it finally gives way?’ A hoof appeared and he tapped his chin thoughtfully. ‘You know, I should thank you. I’ve got a killer view from up here. Gonna be quite the show.’
The face twisted and looked back at me, its features stretching and warping into the face of a monster. ‘So. You just going to stay here and watch? Or are you going to try and do something about it?’
Shrinking back from the frightening image, my thoughts stuttered internally ‘Wh-What can I do? Tell me and I’ll do it!’
His gaping mouth fell open as he roared with laughter. ‘Hahahahaha! I love it when you’re scared! I find it especially amusing when you act so stupid! You really think I know the answer?’ The image seemed to move closer to me, staring me in the face. ‘I’m you, you dolt. If you don’t know, then I don’t know.’ He shrugged nonchalantly. ‘Guess we’re doomed.’
Twisting back to normal, he turned back to face the dome. A bag of popcorn appeared in his hoof and he started eating. ‘Oh well. Not like there’s anything you could do here anyway. It was nice knowin’ ya.’
As my reflection munched nonchalantly on his salty treat, I looked out over the scene below in horror. If what he said was right, then the final collapse of this place would mean the end of me! And of course, once again, I was helpless to prevent it.
I caught myself beginning to sigh and stopped, furrowing my brow. No, I thought to myself. Not this time! I would find an answer! I didn’t give up last time, and I won’t give up now! There has to be something I can do! Slamming a hoof down with determination, I nearly lost my balance as it sank slightly into the sphere.
"Whoa!" I said verbally, regaining my stabilizing myself. I looked down and pulled my hoof out with a sticky sucking noise. It finally popped free, the dent I had made slowly refilling itself, the orb returning it to it’s spherical shape.
It was like a light flashed above my head. I looked toward the twisted image of myself and focused my thoughts. ‘Hey, this glowing ball-thingy was the way out last time. Any ideas on why it’s solid this time?’
He groaned and glanced sideways at me. ‘How many times do I have to tell you, I know what...’ He trailed off, looking thoughtful. ‘Actually, now that you mention it, didn’t that Zecora chick mention something about not being able to wake up again if she gave you that medicine?' He let out a snort of laughter. 'Hah! And then you went and passed out like a wuss. Nice one!’
I waved a hoof at him distractedly. ‘Yeah, yeah, whatever. Thanks.’ Tapping a hoof on my chin, I looked closer at the sphere. I had thought it had dimmed, but upon closer inspection it now looked more as if it had been covered in something. Reaching back down with my hoof, I poked and prodded at it. It felt like some sort of plastic or rubber. As I rubbed the surface with some pressure, it produced a loud squealing noise, which really got the attention of my reflection.
‘Argh! What are you doing? Stop that! It hurts my ears!’ he complained, giving me a nasty look.
I chuckled and stopped. ‘You don’t have any ears, you’re just a hallucination.’
‘What, and that means I can’t have ears?’ A second hoof appeared and he rubbed his temples. Suddenly his eyes snapped open and he turned to look directly at me. ‘And what are you laughing about anyway? Laughing’s my job!’
I smiled, the first time I had ever done so in this place. ‘I’m laughing at you. And I’m smiling because I know what to do.’
He shrank back, suddenly unsure of himself. ‘That doesn’t make sense! I don’t have any idea, so how could you?’
I shrugged. ‘Not important, but either way: I’m getting out of here.’
I stood up and started hammering the surface of the orb with my hooves. Dent after dent appeared, some deeper than others. As I pressed deeper, I could feel the surface stretching, becoming weaker. Now it was my face that was grinning.
After a few minutes, my smile started to fade. I was sweating now and I couldn’t seem to press any further. It had distorted and stretched, but had not broken. I began to worry: What if Zecora was right? What if I really was trapped here?
Sensing my imminent failure, my reflection, now bent and contorted around all the impressions I had made in the sphere’s surface, began to snicker. ‘You know what to do. huh? Hah! I’ll give you this, it was a bold attempt, but you never were the sharpest tool in the shed. You would try to break through something stretchy with your hooves. I mean come on!’ Rolling his eyes, he turned away again, losing interest. ‘Eh, whatever. I’m bored. Just tell me when you’re done.’
Sighing, I slowed down, weariness taking over. Just as I was about to stop though, I had another brainstorm. Once again, it was as if a light flashed, but this time, my eyes were open. The flash had come from the orb itself, almost as if it was trying to help me.
Rearing up, I put my forehooves together and slammed them down into the deepest hole. They sunk deep, but beyond that nothing.
I had expected that.
Leaning forward, I put all my weight onto those hooves, keeping the surface from reforming. Then, with a grunt and a heave, I pulled my hooves apart with all my strength. Groaning and squealing, my hooves slid outwards, pulling the material tighter, creating a pocket in-between where the surface was so thin I could see it vibrating.
Eyes focused, I lowered my horn and, with a sudden movement, stabbed it into the opening. Thankfully, as with my mane, I hadn’t been keeping up with my normal routine, and it had grown a bit of a point. With that final thrust, my forehead slammed into the sphere: my horn had punctured the seal!
The relief was momentary: a violent shockwave blasted forth from the hole, knocking me loose. I stumbled backwards, forelegs flailing wildly, stumbling on my rear hooves. My balance lost, I twisted around, and tumbled face-first off the orb. As the swirling darkness below filled my vision, I screamed in terror.
Yank.
Suddenly, I stopped falling. Helplessly, I stared down into the abyss, afraid to move. Glancing down, I could see my back hooves were still on the surface, but somehow I was horizontal, my forelegs dangling like limp noodles. Gravity doesn’t work that way! Slowly, jerkingly, I looked back over my shoulder to see what had caught me.
The orb had erupted with magical fury. A vortex had appeared from the spot I had pierced, glittering energy swirling and sucking in everything in reach... and my overly long tail had been its first victim. Another reason to praise poor hygiene! I sighed in relief, wiping the sweat of my exertion away from my eyes as my muscles relaxed. As they did so, my head slumped forward again. All I could see was blackness below me: a foreboding, inky darkness that looked like it could swallow your soul. Once again, I had been saved... somehow.
And then I felt a tug on my tail.
And then another.
Before I could react, and with no other warning, I was suddenly pulled backwards with tremendous force. Letting out a cry of surprise, I landed rear-first onto the now hoof-sized hole.
I let out another yelp as the suction pulled against my backside, gluing me firmly in place. In shock, I waved my splayed limbs wildly for a moment, but then froze as I heard a squealing noise growing in volume. With a sudden thunk, I sank deeper into the surface.
My eyes briefly widened in fear of something else going wrong, but then I remembered that this was what I wanted. A tingling ran up my spine as I felt the edge of the opening slowly begin to creep outwards. A smile grew on my face and I let out a whoop of joy as a second wave of force drew me in deeper.
It didn’t take long for all this action to garner the attention of my so-called reflection. Unable to hear anything above the roaring white noise the vortex’s energies were putting out, I flinched as his voice once again echoed in my skull.
‘Hey! What are you doing? What’s going on?!’ he cried, his image sliding back into view over the edge of the crater I was now laying in.
I grinned, seeing an opportunity to give back a little of what he had been giving me. ‘Oh nothing much...’ I replied smugly. ‘Just taking your advice. I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but I am the sharpest thing in this crazy place, in more ways than one!’ Laughing, I pointed up at my horn. Reaching over, I patted the image on his head. ‘It was... nice... seeing you again.’
Growling, his lackadaisical demeanor disappeared in a flash. His eyes darkened as his expression turned into one of unbridled rage. Before I could fully take this in however, I felt myself slipping into the hole.
As my back legs disappeared into the light, and I began to slide downwards, I waved goodbye to my reflection. ‘Whoops, looks like it’s time to go. Bye!’
At this, the face of my reflection contorted in anger, his pupils shrinking into tiny specks. Letting out a piercing shriek, he raised his forelegs above his head and slammed them into his side of the reflection.
And the barrier shattered.
Time seemed to slow down as shards of what looked like broken glass flew around me. My mouth slowly fell open in shock as what appeared to be a horrible caricature of myself came forth from the opening it had created. Leaning out of the broken hole, it wrapped its forelegs around my neck. With one smooth motion, it twisted me around, dragging me back, choking me with unbelievable force.
My forehooves scrambled for purchase on its forelegs, trying to free myself from this death grip, but it was no good. It was like a vice had clamped itself around my neck and was choking the life out of me. In utter shock, I managed to squeak out “How... What ARE you!”
The voice that responded did not enter through my head, but rather through my ears, causing a shiver to run down my spine. This time, it was not my own voice that answered me. Perhaps it still was, but each word dripped with so much malice and hate that it sounded like nothing I had ever heard before. It sounded... evil.
“You know what? I honestly don’t know! I always just assumed I was your reflection, or a hallucination, since that’s what you thought I was. But you know what? Seeing what I just did, I think I’m a lot more than that. A lot more.” He pressed his face up against the side of me head, rubbing his face against mine, making my skin crawl. I could feel his twisted grin continue to grow as he whispered into my ear. “And you know what? I’m NOT going back. And now neither are you.”
My chest shuddered as my lungs spasmed for air. Bloodshot, my eyes began to roll back in my head, forelegs dropping to my sides as I lost the strength to lift them. As everything started going grey, I could still feel the pull increasing, stretching my spine, making the choke-hold even tighter. In desperation, I banged my head weakly against his, trying to get him to let go.
It was useless, he had all the cards. He began to laugh, an evil laugh that chilled me to my core. It wasn't until then that I suddenly realized that he was deadly serious. I was out of options. Either by choking or mental collapse, I was running out of time. As consciousness began slipping away again, I reached out mentally, begging whatever powers that be to save me. I wasn’t ready to die yet, I was never more sure of that then I was now. I wanted to live!
And with that, the orb responded, bursting into an intense bluish-white light that filled the void, much as it had before. My reflection screamed in pain, releasing my neck to clutch at his blinded eyes. That was all that was needed, for as soon as he let go, I fell free and disappeared, pulled into the light.
The last thing that I heard was him cursing loudly as everything faded away. “NO!!! I don’t want to go back! I won’t go back! Argh! Stupid orb! Let me go! Of all the stupid, idiotic...”
As I faded away, those words seemed to bounce around in my head, echoing much as his voice once had.
... stupid, idiotic...
...upid, idio...
...id, id...
...Id... Id...
Id. |
JavaChips | 592 | 1 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-09-01T13:18:04+00:00 | 2011-09-01T13:18:04+00:00 | 1,648 | The streets of Ponyville were as bustling as usual, as it seemed like everypony had somewhere to be. Twilight Sparkle made her way through the streets when she ran into Fluttershy, carrying a pair of bunnies on her back.
“Hello Twilight,” she said smiling, “where are you off to today?”
Twilight smiled and stopped to greet her friend. “Good morning Fluttershy, I'm on my way to the train station to greet some new ponies coming from Fillydelphia. The mayor asked me to give them a tour around town, what about you?”
Fluttershy smiled and nuzzled one of the bunnies on her back. “I'm taking these cute little bunnies back to the meadow, these adorable little scamps were wandering in Carrot Top's garden.”
Twilight nodded and walked past her animal loving friend. “have fun.” she said, continuing on to her destination.
------------------------------------------------
The train roared down the track toward it's final destination, Ponyville. It was carrying it's two last passengers, a pair of colts moving to a new town. One was tall, turquoise with a green mane and tail, and the symbol of a popular programming language on his flank, a coffee cup with steam coming off it. He stared out the window at the scenery speeding past. The other was a younger colt, tan with an indigo mane, and a pink streak through his similarly colored tail. His flank bore a power button cutie mark. He looked nervous, staring at the floor. His green framed glasses slid down his timid muzzle. The older colt smiled and adjusted the younger one's glasses, looking down at him.
“Don't worry, This is a brand new start for us.” he told him. “Fillydelphia doesn't need another electronics repair shop, we'll be making a lot more bits in Ponyville. Besides, I'm sure we'll meet a lot of nice ponies there. So buck up alright?”
The younger colt looked up and smiled softly, giving a shy nod as the train pulled into their stop. Slinging on their saddle bags, they left the train and were greeted by a purple unicorn with an heir of intelligence.
“welcome to ponyville,” she began, “I'm Twilight Sparkle, you must be the new colts.”
The older one smiled and approached the pony, while the younger one hid behind the older. “Thank you, it's nice to meet you Twilight Sparkle. I'm Java Chips, and this is my younger brother Micro Chips.”
Twilight nodded and smiled, leaning to the side to see Micro. “It's nice to meet you.”
Micro turned his head to avoid eye contact and hid behind his older brother. Java frowned, looking back at him. “Micro that's rude.”
Twilight shook her head, smiling. “Don't worry about it, I have a friend like him. I'm sure he'll warm up eventually. Now then, I've been asked by the mayor to take you for a tour around town, is there anywhere in particular you want to see?”
Micro got up on his tip-hooves and whispered in his brother's ear. Java smiled and nodded to him. “If it's alright, could we see our house first? We'd like to get these heavy saddle bags off our backs.”
Twilight nodded and turned to begin walking. “Of course, I'm sure you've had a long journey. Follow me please.”
the two brothers followed behind her, looking around at the houses surrounding them. “We didn't have an empty house for you, so we had our local carpenter, Mr. Woodstock, repair the old appliance store, so you'll have plenty of room for your....what do you guys do?”
Java smiled and turned to their gracious tour guide. “We program and repair electronics and things like that.”
Twilight smiled. “Oh, well I hope you drum up a lot of....watch out!” she yelled, ducking out of the way.
Java turned and, seeing the danger, quickly pulled him and Micro to the side as a grey pegasus with a blonde mane skidded across the ground and crashed, spilling letters everywhere. Twilight sighed and walked up to the pony, using her magic to collect the mail. “Are you okay Derpy? That was quite a crash.”
Derpy picked herself up and packed up the letters Twilight collected, looking upset. “I'm sorry Twilight, I saw a cloud that looked like a muffin and I got distracted.”
Twilight sighed and smiled, patting the pony on the back. “Derpy, you need to keep your head out of the clouds.”
Derpy raised a confused eyebrow and opened her wings. “But I'm a pegasus, my head is always in the clouds.”
Twilight giggled and shook her head. “No Derpy, it's a figure of speech, it means you need to learn to stay focused.”
Derpy nodded and smiled. “Oh okay, thanks. Bye Twilight!”
with that, the pegasus took off to deliver the rest of the mail. The Chips brothers got up and brushed themselves off, going to rejoin their guide. “Who was that?” Java asked.
Twilight led them while she talked. “Derpy Hooves, she's the mail carrier for Ponyville, though she can be a bit clumsy at times, she's really a nice pony.”
Java shook his head. “Seems like a big hassle, but I guess that's not my choice is it?”
Twilight shook her head, looking a bit stern at the rude comment. she led the brothers into their new home, a very large building near the eastern side of town. It had already been furnished for them, and painted by the local carpenter. Java smiled as he walked in, Micro following behind. “It's perfect, thank you Twilight Sparkle.” Java said.
Twilight smiled and shook her head. “don't thank me, It was Mr. Woodstock that fixed it up, and my friend Rarity did the interior design.”
Java set his saddle bag down and walked up to Twilight. “Alright, could you take me to Rarity so I can thank her?”
Twilight nodded and looked over Java's shoulder at Micro. “Sure, but what about your brother?”
Micro looked over timidly and looked down. “I....I'll wait here and unpack.”
Java looked over at his brother. “Are you sure?”
Micro nodded and set his saddle bag down. Twilight looked a bit concerned and nodded. “Alright then, follow me.”
Java followed after her, shutting the door behind him. “He's very timid isn't he?” she asked him.
Java sighed and nodded. “He was never good around new people, but he's a really nice person when he lightens up.”
Twilight nodded. “Well, I hope he gets used to Ponyville soon, I'm a bit worried about him.”
------------------------------------------------
Micro finished unpacking everything from the two saddle bags, putting all of their tools in what looked like the best workshop area, and putting up the bedroom signs and personal belongings. After everything was finished, Micro took out his portable console and sat down at the table in the living area to play it. He was so wrapped up in his game, he didn't notice the pink pony walk in behind him. She hopped up behind him and watched him play for a while. Finally she spoke up, “Hi there, whatcha doin?”
Micro gasped and fell off his chair, his glasses fell off his face. Pinkie hung over the timid pony, a big smile across her face. “Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie, and I'm super duper excited to meet you! What's your name?”
Micro looked away, blushing a bit. “I-I'm.....Mic....Micro Chips...”
Pinkie smiled and helped him up. “Nice to meet you, weren't there supposed to be two of you?”
Micro looked away again, picking up his glasses. “M-my brother, J-Java is out right now...”
Pinkie looked at him concerned. “are you alright? You're studdering.”
Micro took a step back and adjusted his glasses. “Sh....shy....” he said quietly.
Pinkie smiled and opened her saddle bag. “Is that all? Silly Billy, I know what'll help.”
she set a cupcake in front of him and he looked at it and picked it up. “When I heard there were new ponies in town, I had to bring them some of my world famous cupcakes!”
she took out another one and set it on the table. “I made one for your brother too, I'll just leave it here.”
Micro examined the pastry carefully and took a bite. With a soft gulp, a smile smile went across his face. “It's...delicious.”
Pinkie smiled and started hopping around chanting, “Made you smile! Made you smile!”
Micro couldn't help but laugh as the hyperactive pink pony hopped in circles around him. “You're funny Pinkie.”
Pinkie Pie nodded and smiled. “Well, I have to get going.”
Micro frowned. “right now? You just got here.”
Pinkie Pie shook her head. “I have to go get ready for the party tonight.”
Micro walked up to her confused. “A party? What for?”
Pinkie smiled and started hopping toward the door. “For the new ponies of course. Do you want to help me?”
Micro nodded and smiled, happy to join his new friend. “Sure, I'd love to help!”
Pinkie nodded and hopped out the door. “Then follow meeee!”
Micro happily followed her out the door.
------------------------------------------------
Twilight stepped out of Rarity's boutique, feeling a bit embarrassed. “I'm sorry about that, I didn't think Rarity would do anything like that.” she said.
Java came out of the boutique behind her, his hair had been straightened and styled, and he didn't look very amused over it. “Well, how were you supposed to know my mane looked like 'an absolute train wreck.' Is she always like that?” he asked, shaking his mane back out into it's original shaggy state.
Twilight shook her head and started walking with him. “She can usually control herself, just make sure she knows how you like your mane and she'll leave you be.”
Java nodded and the two started walking back toward the house. Java looked around at everything that had been unpacked. “Looks like Micro did a pretty good job. Micro! Where are you?”
he walked upstairs to look for his younger brother, while Twilight looked around their workshop at all the strange and unfamiliar tools around her. Suddenly, Java came galloping down from upstairs and ran into the workshop. “Twilight! Micro isn't upstairs! He's missing.”
Twilight turned around, looking concerned. “he wouldn't have left the house?”
Java shook his head. “You saw how timid he is, he wouldn't leave the house alone.”
Twilight and Java both galloped toward the door. “Don't worry we'll find him, he has to be somewhere in Ponyville.”
Rainbow Dash flew overhead and Twilight called to her. Without second thought she landed in front of the two. “Oh hey Twilight, is this one of the new ponies? Hi, I'm Rainbow Dash, the greatest flyer in-”
Twilight cut her off quickly. “We don't have time for that Rainbow Dash, his younger brother is missing, can you search for him from the sky? He's tan with a purple mane!”
Rainbow saluted quickly and flew up into the sky. “You can count on me!”
The two quickly galloped through the streets, looking for the lost Micro Chips.
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Micro followed the hopping pink pony into a quiet meadow full of animals, examining the scenery around them. “Where are we going Pinkie Pie?” he asked.
Pinkie kept hopping along as she explained. “We're meeting a friend of mine for some flowers.”
Micro adjusted the glasses on his face as he continued to follow. “Oh, alright I guess.”
as they continued down the meadow's trail, they began to hear a lovely voice singing in the distance. As they approached the sound, they found Fluttershy, singing and collecting flowers. Micro smiled, he had never heard such a lovely voice. “You're good at singing.” he said.
With a squeak, Fluttershy dropped the flowers and hid in a nearby bush. “O-oh, I'm sorry!”
Pinkie Pie hopped up to the tree and smiled up into it. “Fluttershy, did you collect those flowers for me?”
Fluttershy peeked her head out of the leaves, blushing. “yes...” she said quietly, pointing to the flowers she dropped.
Pinkie Pie walked over to the basket and picked it up, while Micro approached the tree. “hey, I'm sorry I scared you.” he said, getting silence from the tree. “I really do think you have a nice singing voice, in Fillydelphia if you want to hear a voice like that it costs a lot of money.”
still Fluttershy didn't answer him, and just hid in the tree. “Well, I hope I'll see you at the party, bye. I'm Micro Chips by the way.”
As soon as Micro and Pinkie left, Fluttershy shyly floated down to the ground, a bit of a smile on her face. “Thank you.” she said quietly, and returned to picking flowers, singing louder than before.
------------------------------------------------
Java and Twilight galloped quickly toward Sweet Apple Acres, having searched through the streets of Ponyville thoroughly. Applejack was outside sorting apples when they ran up to her. “Howdy Twilight, what are you in such a hurry about? And who's your friend?” she asked.
Twilight caught her breath quickly. “Applejack, have you seen a tan colt around here? He has a purple mane.”
Applejack shook her head. “I don't think anypony around here looks like that, what's this about Twilight? You're looking wirier than a squirrel with coffee.”
Java stepped forward, looking concerned. “This is Java Chips, he's one of the new ponies that moved in today. His little brother, Micro Chips, has gone missing, we're trying to find him.”
Applejack shook her head, looking concerned. “I haven't seen him, but if y'all need help looking you can count me in. I'd feel the same way if Apple Bloom went missing. Let's get a move on.”
Java nodded and the three began galloping away from the farm. “Thanks, I appreciate the help.” he said.
As they ran back toward town square, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy stopped them, landing in front of them. “Guys,” Rainbow said, “I just saw Fluttershy, she said Micro is with Pinkie Pie.”
Twilight nodded, looking relieved. “of course, I should have thought of that.”
Java looked concerned. “What? Who is this Pinkie Pie?” he asked worriedly.
“Pinkie Pie is another one of our friends,” Applejack explained, “She's a bit kooky, but your brother is safe with her.”
Java nodded, finally relaxing. “That's good, where can we find her?”
Twilight nodded back and started galloping. “this way!”
------------------------------------------------
Micro, Pinkie, and Rarity were just finishing up the decorations in Surgarcube Corner when Twilight and gang came bursting through the door. Pinkie smiled and stepped forward toward the group. “Oh good, you guys are just in time for the party!” she said, excited.
Java made his way to the front of the group. “Party?”
Micro's face lit up and he galloped forward to hug his brother. “Java! Pinkie Pie is awesome! She took me all around Ponyville, and she makes the best cupcakes.”
Java was surprised to see how much his brother had opened up, and a soft smile went across his face. “Well, I'll have to try one then.” he said.
Before he could react, Pinkie Pie shoved one into Java's open mouth. “here you go!” she said happily.
Java gave her a sort of glare, but changed to a look of awe as he tasted it. “Wow, that's good.”
Pinkie made her way over to the jukebox and kicked it with her back legs. “come one everypony! Let's party!” she said.
------------------------------------------------
After the day became late, and the party guests tired, everyone helped clean up the mess that had been made. As Java and Micro Chips made their way out back toward their house, Micro turned around and saw them all waving goodbye. Java turned to look at his brother and saw the smile on his face. “So what do you think?” he asked.
Micro took a brief pause and then turned to look up at his older brother. “I think we're going to like Ponyville.” |
JavaChips | 592 | 2 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-09-01T05:29:16+00:00 | 2011-09-01T05:29:16+00:00 | 1,579 | Micro Chips sat on the couch, looming over his GameColt as he watched the screen flicker and sounds filled the room. He gasped as he heard the door slam open with a loud thud against the wall. Java walked in, looking unenthusiastic. His mane was brushed back, smelling deeply of different fruits and flowers. He walked up to the mirror on the nearby wall and shook his mane, returning it to it's usual shaggy, bedhead look. “I'm starting to think Rarity is breaking her hair dryer on purpose,” he said a bit angrily, turning back toward Micro, who was back into his game. “This is the third time in a week she's brought me out there to fix it, and every time she insists she test it by 'fixing' my mane.”
Micro had been stifling back his laughs until his brother's mane was fixed, and looked up, letting out a chuckle as he spoke. “Well you're the one that keeps going back there Java, who's the real crazy one?” he retorted.
Java set the saddle bag full of tools back in the workshop and went back out to the living room, laying back to relax in a nearby chair. “You know the Chips' family motto. 'A customer in need is a customer indeed.' It's my duty as an entrepreneur to help out anyone who needs their electronics repaired.”
Micro smiled and shook his head, turning off his game. “You know dad only said that when he needed an excuse for working late right?”
Java shrugged and got up, going to the kitchen for a drink. “That's aside from the point. Did anypony come by while I was out?” he asked, sipping some water from his glass.
Micro nodded and walked over to the table where he left the request list. “Pinkie Pie broke her record player, Fluttershy is having some issues with her oven, Lotus and Aloe are having trouble with their radio system, some of the rooms aren't getting the signal from the speakers. I put that one as high priority. Cheerilee asked about getting the school's overhead projector fixed, but since it's summer that can wait a little while, and Derpy Hooves came by and wanted to let you know that your shipment of fuses arrived from Manehattan.”
Java sighed and finished his water, making his way toward the staircase. “Alright, I'll go take a quick bath and then go to the Lotus Spa, I smell like a fruit salad.”
Micro nodded and layed back down on the couch, sighing deeply as he returned to his game. For the past week Java had been working himself ragged with customer requests. “Good luck.”
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Pinkie Pie hung over Java's shoulder while he worked on her jukebox, watching him as he unscrewed the maintenance plate. “Whatcha doin' now?” she asked.
Java put down the screwdriver back with his tools, surveying the inner workings. “I'm trying to find what the problem is.” he told her. “Can you turn it on for a second?”
Pinkie nodded and put the record on top, pushing the button. Java watched carefully as the record bounced around on the spinning plate. “Alright, I think I see what's wrong with it.” he told her, going back to his tools.
Pinkie nodded and looked around inside curiously. “You do? What's wrong? Will you have to operate? Can I be the nurse? Maybe I should go get some band aids.”
Java shook his head, mind deep in the work at hand. “That won't be necessary, all I should need to do is adjust a couple of screws. The motor's gear is loose against the gear leading it's way up to the record table. Turn it off and I'll fix it up.”
Pinkie nodded and turned it off, stepping back. “Okie dokie lokie. I can't wait to play my records again, maybe I should throw an 'I got my record player fixed so now I can listen to my records again' party. But what do you do at an 'I got my record player fixed so now I can listen to my records again' party? And what do you serve? Is it supposed to be an eloquent dinner party? Or maybe it's a disco party? I guess I'll have to look it up. But then again I've never heard of an 'I got my record player fixed so now I can liste-”
“Done” Java said, interrupting Pinkie's undoubtedly unending rant. “It'll work just fine now.”
Pinkie gave a usual smile and turned it on, hopping around it as it played it's harmonious melodies through the air. Java chuckled and walked back to his tools, setting them back in his saddle bag. As he was packing up, he saw a rustling in the other pocket. Looking over to inspect it, he sent a suspicious gaze toward it. As he watched it rustle, a small alligator popped it's head out. Java let out a surprised and slightly fearful yell and backed up against the wall, surprised. Pinkie smiled and hopped over toward Java's saddle bags, leaning her head in close. “Pinkie Pie!” he said worriedly, “Be careful near that thing.”
Pinkie smiled and nuzzled the small gator. “There you are Gummy, I was wondering where you got to.”
The tiny alligator brought his toothless jaws around the pink pony's curly hair. It didn't even flop as she raised her head and smiled at her guest. “Don't worry, Gummy's my pet alligator. He couldn't hurt a fly even if he wanted to.”
Java sighed and made his way over to his saddlebags, putting them on his back. “I should have figured as much, only you would be crazy enough to live with an alligator Pinkie.”
He smiled and made his goodbyes, leaving through the front door downstairs. It was already reaching dusk as the sun set in the skies above Ponyville.
------------------------------------------------
Java came through the door of the house just as the moon began to rise in the sky. Micro was sitting on the couch where he was before, finishing up his game. Java smiled and set his saddlebags down near the door. “Have you been on that thing all day? I thought you were going to try going outside more.” he said, pulling his toolbox out of the left satchel.
Micro turned off his GameColt, setting it on the table. “I was going to but...I got caught up in the game.” he replied.
Java smiled and shook his head, walking toward the workshop. “We don't live in the big city of Fillydelphia anymore Micro, there's a bunch of open space around here. You should be outside, having fun in the park, walking around town.”
Micro looked surprised, hopping off the couch and galloping over toward Java in the workshop. “Java wait!” he yelled, but it was too late.
Java stood wide eyed in the mess that was the workshop, electronic parts and tools strewn about everywhere. His personal computer's monitor was upside down on the floor, the main unit on it's side. “What happened to the workshop?!” Java asked, flabbergasted. “It looks like a tornado ran through here!”
Micro looked down, feeling guilty about the mess in the room. “I-I'm sorry. While you were out Applebloom and her friends came by. I tried to stop them but they went into the workshop. They looked around and then said something about being 'Cutie Mark Crusaders Computer Makers.' by the time I got them to stop it was too late. I'm so sorry Java. I promise I'll help clean up.”
Java shook his head and sighed, putting a hoof to his head. “No, you go to bed. You'll want to be well rested for tomorrow. I'll clean it up.” he told him, turning around to smile at him.
Micro still looked upset, looking guiltily at his brother. “Are you sure?”
Java nodded, smiling. With a nod back, the young colt adjusted his glasses on his nose and made his way toward the staircase. Once he was sure his brother was upstairs, he turned back to the mess and sighed. “This is going to take a while.”
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Micro was suddenly awakened as a wrapped box fell on top of him. With a gasp, he sat up and saw his brother standing there in his room, smiling. “Happy birthday little bro!” he said enthusiastically.
Micro smiled and sat up, ripping the wrapping paper with his teeth as he opened the box. His eyes opened wide with disbelief as he pulled out it's contents, holding it in his hooves. “Wow!” he said happily. “Megamare 4! Thank you so much!”
He gave his brother a tight hug with his forehooves before flipping the box over to read the back of the case. “I've seen you playing Megamare 3, I knew you were itching to get the next one. I don't need to tell you it wasn't easy finding it.” Java told him, chuckling softly.
Micro nodded, tearing open the plastic covering it. “How did you get this anyway? There aren't any game stores in Ponyville.”
Java smiled and picked up his GameColt for him off the nearby dresser. “Twilight was nice enough to order it for me, she has friends in Canterlot who were willing to help her locate a copy nearby.”
Micro smiled and swapped out games, turning it on. His smile only grew bigger, watching the screen light up with his new game. Before he was able to start, Java took it up and smirked, leading him out of the room. “Hey!” Micro said, following after him. “Give it back!”
Java led him downstairs, and Micro was amazed at what he saw. Sitting on the table in the living room was a big birthday cake. Java smiled and set down the GameColt on the table, smiling. “It's vanilla, your favorite.” he told him, cutting off a slice and setting it on a plate.
Micro galloped up to the table and sat in front of it, smiling happily as he ate the cake. Java chuckled, knowing his little brother's weakness for vanilla. He took a slice for himself and ate it carefully. The two were enjoying their special breakfast when a knock came to the door. Micro watched as Java walked up to the door, fearing the worst. At the door was a worried looking Carrot Top. “Java,” she said, “You have to help me! My industrial juicer broke, and all the carrots in my pantry are about to go rotten. Please you have to come at once and fix it!”
Java looked at her, then back at Micro who was watching from the table. Micro sighed and looked down at the table. “It's fine, it's an emergency.”
Java walked up to the table, looking concerned. “Are you sure?”
Micro nodded slowly, adjusting his glasses as he pulled his GameColt over and turned it on. Java sighed and walked to the workshop, putting on his saddlebags as he walked back toward the front door. “I promise I won't be gone any longer than an hour.”
Micro nodded, enveloping himself in his game. Java sighed and walked away with Carrot Top, shutting the door behind him. Micro Chips sighed, breaking away from reality as he played his new game. Java's promised hour passed by, and then another passed as well. After the third hour passed without the young colt realizing, he reached a standstill in his game, trapped trying to find the next possible route. He sighed and saved it, putting it away in his saddlebag as he put it across his back. He stepped out and walked the streets of Ponyville, making his way through town square, trying not to draw attention to himself. Whether it was his skill of not standing out or that everypony was busy with their own daily routine, he succeeded, stepping up toward the library near the north side of town. As he stepped into the library, the violet librarian and her young dragon assistant took notice of his prescence. Twilight Sparkle smiled, a rare treat to see him anywhere but in his house. “Well hello there, Happy birthday Micro Chips.” she told him.
Micro blushed a bit and turned his head, smiling. “Thanks Twilight.” he replied, stepping forward.
The two met in the middle of the room as Twilight smiled at the sheepish pony. “Let me guess,” she started, “You're here to look for the Megamare 4 player's guide, right?”
Micro looked up, a bit surprised. “How did you know?” he asked.
She giggled, floating the lone book from a nearby table. “When Java came to me asking if I could help him find the game, I figured a major gamer like you would want the player's guide as well. Consider it my birthday gift to you.”
The book set itself down in front of him as he smiled, staring at the cover. “Thanks Twilight, it's a great gift.” the shy colt told her, putting it in his saddlebag.
Twilight nodded happily, brushing her tail lightly through the air. “Not a problem. Where is Java anyway? I would think he would be with you after working so hard to plan it. I can't tell you how hard it was to keep a certain pink pony out of the loop.”
Micro sighed and looked away, feeling upset. “He...had to do a service call for Carrot Top. Her industrial juicer broke, he needed to help her get it running again.”
Twilight shook her head, looking disappointed and angry. “That Java, the nerve of him putting you aside for Carrot Top. I know for a fact she breaks that juicer every year jamming too many carrots in it at one time! I'm sorry Micro you must be heartbroken!” she said in a rage.
Micro shook his head, doing his best not to look too sad. “It's fine, I told him to go. It's just...this isn't how he always was. Back in Fillydelphia there were so many electronic shops we were hardly ever busy, Java always had time to play with me, especially on my birthday, he never even considered taking service calls. Now he's always busy, every hour of the day...he's starting to turn out like-” he said breaking off, his breath rate rising.
Twilight looked over to Spike, who nodded instinctively and went into the kitchen to get some green tea. Twilight pulled over a table and some cushions to sit on, sliding a box of tissues over to Micro, who took one and blew his nose. Once the tea was on the table, she took a sip and tried to help him calm down. “If there's something on your mind Micro, you can tell me. I promise not to tell another living soul.”
Micro sipped his tea, taking deep breaths to calm himself, he looked up at Twilight, who was giving him a reassuring smile. “You promise?” he asked her, trying to be completely sure.
Twilight nodded and raised a hoof. “Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” she told him, doing all of Pinkie's ridiculous motions.
If he were in a better mood, he would have laughed and the strange hoof signs. After a brief pause, he took a deep breath and let out what had been on his mind. “Back in Fillydelphia, when me and Java were really really young, our dad would work really late all the time. Our mom would always be upset when he would come home really late at night. We weren't supposed to be awake that late, but sometimes we couldn't sleep. Our dad worked as a radio salesman, and kept the store open to late hours. Whenever Mom asked him to close the store earlier on, he would always tell her the same thing. 'A customer in need is a customer indeed.' it was his scapegoat excuse when he needed it. Eventually Mom got tired of it, and they got divorced. I didn't really mind that much, because he worked so much I didn't really know Dad all that well, in fact I still don't. Our mom worked really hard, but eventually she let Java take over the family funds, he had discovered his special talent was electronics and programming. As time passed, I guess Java realized that there were too many big electronics shops in Fillydelphia, and so with Mom's permission he and I moved here to Ponyville.” he took a breath, taking a moment of silence to continue collecting his thoughts.
“But now he's always working, I hardly ever seen him on time for dinner. And yesterday he said what Dad used to say, 'A customer in need is a customer indeed.' I thought he only said it as a joke, but now...he's never, not ever taken a service call on my birthday, he always treated it like the holiest day of the year. I'm scared Twilight, scared Java is going to be too busy for me like Dad was, and I'll be on my own...”
Twilight was shocked beyond words. She was taking a while to process everything that had just come out of her young guest's mouth. It was almost too much for her to bear. But finally, she swallowed some tea, let out a deep breath, and walked around the table, giving the colt a hug. “Micro, Java has spent the last two weeks planning your birthday. He came to me for help, doing everything in his power to get around without Pinkie Pie's knowledge. Trust me, he's not going to be going anywhere without you, and he's certainly not going to forget you. Still, if there's something on your mind you should tell him.”
Micro blushed a bit as the mare's forelegs wrapped around him, and nodded slowly. “I guess you're right, he's probably home by now. Thanks Twilight.”
Twilight smiled and slid the table back into the corner where it was before, smiling. “Come on, I'll walk you home.”
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The sun was setting as Java galloped for home. After finally convincing Carrot Top that her juicer was totalled, and would have to be replaced, he was able to get away and make his way home. Java angry at himself for letting it last so long. As he reached his house, he practically broke down the door opening it. Inside, Micro looked up from his game, sitting across from Twilight, who just glared over as she shut her book. Java looked a bit surprised. “Oh,” he said, “Hi Twilight, what are you doing here?”
Twilight got up and walked over, her hooves slamming against the floor as she made a bee line for the computer colt. “Java Chips,” she said as he backed away from her, “You mindless, arrogant, foalish pony, I oughta give you a piece of my mind!”
A bead of sweat fell down Java's brow. For a moment, she just glared at him, until finally she scoffed and walked past him, leaving with her book levitating behind her. “Unfortunately there's someone else in line in front of me.”
Java watched her leave, and then walked up to Micro, who was once again hiding in his video game. Awkwardly, Java sat next to his brother, feeling a bit ashamed. “Hey, I'm sorry it took so long...Carrot Top wouldn't give up with that juicer.”
Micro sighed and shook his head. “It's fine, you were just doing your job. It's just...” he said, pausing.
Java looked over at his brother, concerned. “It's just what? Come on Micro, whatever's on your mind just tell me. You know I'm no good at these sort of things.”
Micro sighed, pulling himself against the safe haven of his game to face the real world. “Java, you've never taken a service call on my birthday...and you've been working so hard, it's nothing like when we were in Fillydelphia. Back then you had so much free time, it was nice. I don't....I don't want you to turn out like Dad.” he finally said.
Java looked down at his brother, surprised. “Oh...that's what's been on your mind. Look Micro, being the only electronics shop in town, I'm going to be busier, it's bound to happen. Look, our dad was a busy colt, he buried himself in his work and that caused him to neglect his family. I will never, in a million years, become like him. I would have Celestia send me to the moon before I would do that. But that doesn't mean I can neglect a pony in need.”
Micro sighed and made his way toward the stairs, going up to his room. “I just wish it could be like it was in Fillydelphia.” he said quietly.
Java sighed. He felt guilty, even a little depressed. He had to figure out how he was going to make this up, possibly the biggest, stupidest mistake he had ever made. After thinking it over for a while he finally thought of it, and made his way toward the door. If he hurried, it would still be open.
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Twilight Sparkle made her way toward the Chips' electronic store. She was still steaming, thinking about what Java had done, but she had to put her emotional differences aside, her focus instead on the broken air conditioner in her library. It was surprising how warm the hollowed inside of a tree could get in the summer. As she approached the door to the electronics shop, she was stopped as she read a sign on the door. After taking a careful read over it, she smiled, turned around, and went home. The sign would be seen by many ponies that day, and it would tell them all the same thing.
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CHIPS ELECTRONICS
CLOSED SUNDAYS
NO EXCEPTIONS
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meanwhile, the Chips brothers were enjoying their day off, tossing a frisbee back and forth in the park. |
JavaChips | 592 | 3 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-09-01T06:14:38+00:00 | 2011-09-01T06:14:38+00:00 | 1,529 | As the leafy trees began to bronze, and a cold breeze blew through the air, it was clear to the residents of Ponyville summer was coming to it's end. For many of the young colts and fillies of the small town, this meant that their summer fun was coming to an end, and Autumn was bringing with it the beginning of school once again.
With it's renovations behind it, Ponyville's official high school, Silvertongue High, would be reopening it's doors and clearing out of the overcrowded elementary school. The school had been named after famous philosopher and writer Sebastion Silvertongue, whose lineage traced back to Ponyville.
The marketplace was in a major bustle as the parents of Ponyville were doing their last minute school shopping, grabbing pencil and parchment. The entire town was in commotion, it seemed as though everypony in town had left their shopping to the last day. The major commotion, however, was near the edge of town, as the voices of two brothers could be heard through the thick oak door.
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Micro had his hooves wrapped around one of Java's back hooves as he begged. “Come on Java, you can't make me do this!” he protested.
Java shook his head, holding true to his decision. “It's in your best interest Micro, don't argue.”
Micro got back up on his hooves, looking upset as he looked at his brother. “I-I-I'm not ready, I'm still all worked up over the move, it's taken quite a toll on me.”
Java shook his head and smirked, turning around to face his younger brother. “Yeah it really bugged me a month ago too, funny how time flies huh?”
Micro looked around for something, and found himself staring into the workshop. “What about the repair shop? Who will help you while I'm gone?”
Java shook his head and walked up to his brother, tussling his mane. “I can handle the shop myself. Micro when mom let you come with me to Ponyville you agreed to make me your legal guardian, and as your guardian I'm putting my hoof down.”
Micro looked down at the floor, fixing his mane as he drew circles with his hoof. “It's just not fair...”
Java smiled and put his hoof over Micro's, trying to be considerate. “It's completely fair Micro. Come on, you're only one year short of graduating, so just suck it up and go.”
Micro sighed and took in a deep breath. “Alright...” he finally said as he walked upstairs to his room.
Java smiled and shook his head as a knock came on the door. “Honestly I don't know how Mom did it...Hello?”
Waiting at the door was Rarity, carrying a calculator in her saddlebag. “Good afternoon Java, I was wondering if you could do a quick favor for me?” she asked in a very sweet voice.
Java looked at her suspiciously as he stepped aside to let her in. “This doesn't have to do with your hairdryer does it?”
Rarity shook her head, stepping in and looking around. “Honestly darling, how many times to I have to say I'm sorry before you'll accept it? I'm just here to see if I can get Sweetie Belle's calculator from last year. Try and save a few bits, you know?”
Java walked by her and led her into the workshop. “I'll see what I can do, hopefully it'll be a quick fix.”
Rarity smiled and set the calculator down on the table, where Java carefully opened it, checking the internal wiring. With a firm nod of his head, he spoke up, “Yeah, no problem. It's the typical problem, the battery ran out. You'd be surprised how many ponies throw out their old calculators when the display mysteriously 'peters out.' I should have one over here.”
Walking over to a large cabinet he looked around and found just what he was looking for, a very small round battery. Rarity smiled, happy to hear about the quick fix solution. With a quick snap, the batteries were switched out, and the calculator came to life once again as Java set the case back in it's place. With a quick exchange of bits, Rarity had the calculator back in her possession. “Thank you so much darling, this will save me plenty of money. If you ever feel like a change of style-” at this moment she stopped, seeing the disinterested look on his face.
“Which of course you won't....right. Well, I hope you have a nice day.” she finished, trotting toward the door.
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The next day seemed like a nightmare come to life as Micro got up. Java was already waiting downstairs, a rare occurrence where Java, typically one to sleep in, was wide awake and preparing pancakes for breakfast. He couldn't help but curse himself on the inside, his last chance at skipping what was to come gone as he walked into the kitchen and saw the plate on the table. Java smirked, seeing the defeated look on his brother's face. “Good morning sleepy head.” he said, setting the last of the pancakes on the two plates.
Micro sat himself down and began eating, sighing. Java smiled and walked over, patting his brother on the back before sitting down himself. “Look, it's not going to be that bad, and you definitely can't avoid it forever. I say just power through, do your best, and try to make some friends.”
Micro sighed and finished his pancakes. “You know sometimes it's scary how well you can read my mind.”
To that statement the two brothers couldn't help but laugh. Once the dishes were done, Java made sure Micro's saddlebags were packed. With everything prepared, Micro was looking a bit more confident as the two walked out the door. By the time they had made their way down the dirt path to the school, Java could see in his younger brother's eyes a small twinkle of excitement. Micro looked up at his brother for that last little nudge in the right direction. Java nodded and beckoned him to go, and with that Micro was on his way.
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Once he was in the halls of Silvertongue, Micro's confidence seemed to disappear among the sea of ponies. The first bell rang and everyone began moving toward their classrooms. Without much difficulty, he was able to find his classroom, and stepped in. As he looked around the room, he was reminded of the prison-like schools of Fillydelphia, where the grey walls seemed to forbid free thought. The walls around him, however, were colorful and inviting, a warm breeze of relief in the young colt's mind as he took his seat, preparing a piece of paper and pencil from his saddlebags.
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Java made his way back down the road toward home when he ran into Applejack walking from the elementary school. “Good Morning Applejack, what's new?” he asked.
Applejack turned and saw Java approaching from the other road. “Oh, howdy there Java.” she said with a smile. “Not much I reckon, just seeing Applebloom off on her first day. Though if she had her way she wouldn't be.”
He nodded back, walking back toward town with her. “Tell me about it, Micro wasn't exactly looking forward to today either.”
Applejack shook her head, sighing. “Can't blame the fella, sometimes he makes Fluttershy seem as brave as Dash. I hope he'll be alright.”
Java smiled, stopping at his front door. “I wouldn't worry too much about him, once he gets settled in he's as normal as anypony else.”
She nodded back, waving as she walked away. “Well best of luck to him.”
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As the sun moved to the center of the sky, the students of Silvertongue High moved out into the school yard for lunch. Some of the students were leaving campus, off to enjoy lunch at the restraunts of Ponyville. Micro, however, remained at school, sitting alone at a table. In front of him was his GameColt, delving his mind deep into the game while he enjoyed a lunch of hay fries. He was pulled from his game as he felt a hoof tap his shoulder. Turning, he saw it was a metallic blue unicorn, a pocketwatch displayed on his flank. “Hi there,” he said, smiling, “Is this seat taken?”
With a shake of his head, Micro shyly returned to his game. The blue unicorn took a seat next to the timid earth pony and looked over his shoulder at the game. “Hey, is that legend of blueblood? It is! Wow, you're already that far?”
A small smile went across Micro's face as he nodded. “Yeah, it's my second play through.”
The blue unicorn nodded and watched as he played. “I guess that explains your cutie mark. You're a natural gamer.”
Micro couldn't help but blush at the comment, smiling a bit wider. “Th-thanks...I guess you make watches?”
The unicorn nodded, smiling back. “Yeah, it's a very intricate process. Oh right, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Clickspring.”
Micro nodded and held out a friendly hoof. “Micro Chips.”
Clickspring bumped his hoof against Micro's, a friendly smile across his face. “Oh right, you're one of the ponies that moved in last month. It's nice to meet you Micro.”
He nodded back and returned to his game, his new friend hanging over his shoulder as he watched him play.
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Twilight made her way down the streets of Ponyville, carrying her saddlebags delicately on her back, careful not to break the fragile clock she was carrying. With a quick knock of the door, Java opened the door to the workshop, looking out at the violet unicorn. “Oh, hi Twilight, come on in.”
With a quick bow of her head, she stepped in and looked around the shop, surprisingly messy. “Oh my, had another meet with the crusaders did we?” she teased.
Java shook his head and started brushing things off a counter, trying his best to keep the clatter moderately sorted. “Nah, this was my doing. Micro was always the neater of us two. So what can I do for you?”
Reaching back into her saddlebag, she set the clock down carefully on the cleared countertop. “Spike and Owlowiscious were playing around in the library and this clock fell off the wall. I was wondering if you could take a look inside and survey the damage. I already know the glass will have to be replaced.”
He nodded and looked around the clutter for a screwdriver. After ten minutes of searching, he found one buried underneath a pile of screws and bolts. Twilight could only watch with a sort of “oh my” sort of look while he walked back with the screwdriver in his mouth. “Wow, it's hard to believe Micro was the one keeping all this stuff sorted and organized. Where is he anyway?”
Popping off the back of the clock, Java surveyed the inner workings and began making a mental list of what was wrong. “I enrolled him into the high school.”
The unicorn nodded and smiled. “Oh that's right, school started today. Well I hope he's doing alright.”
Java nodded, picking up a pen and pad of paper, writing down a series of notes as he looked around the clock. “I'm not worried as much about how well he'll do. Micro has always been a bright colt, he gets better grades than I got when I was his age. I'm more worried about where his social life is headed.”
Twilight nodded as she watched him work, looking over his shoulder at the list he was making, trying to make heads or tails of the terminology. “I can see where that would be an issue, I was kind of the same way when I was his age. Though I'm sure his natural awkwardness is more of a bother than his study habits. Nonetheless I'm sure he'll be able to make at least one friend at the school.”
Java nodded, handing her the list and resealing the back of the clock. “Yeah, I hope so. Anyway, here's the list of parts that will need to be replaced. I'd do it myself but clocks aren't exactly my specialty. You'd be better off if I just let it be, trust me.”
Twilight nodded and smiled, taking the clock back. “Thank you very much, I know just who to take it to.” she said, setting her saddlebags in the corner. “But first, I think you need a couple lessons in organization.”
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Micro waited out front after the final bell had rung, looking amongst the ponies around him as they all left the schoolyard. “Micro!” came a voice from behind him.
Turning around, he saw Clickspring walking toward him, his saddlebags bouncing up and down with each hoofstep. Once he had caught up with his friend he proceeded to catch his breath. Micro chuckled and watched him as his head hung tiredly. “I told you I would wait, there's no need to run.” he told him.
After a couple more breaths Clickspring raised his head and smiled, starting to walk with him off of school grounds. “I just wanted to make sure is all. So do you want to hang out? I have some games at home we could play.”
Micro shook his head, smiling. “Sorry, maybe some other time. It's been a long day, and my brother's gonna need help running the shop.”
With a sad sigh Clickspring nodded. “Alright, some other time then.” he said with a bit of disappointment.
Micro smiled and patted his friend on the back. “Sorry Click, I'll see you tomorrow alright?” he told him as they approached the Chips' house.
The blue unicorn nodded and smiled, giving each other a high hoof before departing. “Alright Micro, I'll see you tomorrow!”
As Micro approached home, he was filled with a sense of pride and accomplishment. He stopped at the door for a moment and stared at it, collecting his thoughts. On the top of his mind, he was wondering just how badly his brother had trashed the shop, remembering his lack of neatness. With a quick opening of the door, Micro was surprised to see the shop was spic and span, not a single battery out of place. Walking through the door to see who was there, Java smiled as he saw the awe struck look on his brother's face. “Hey Micro, welcome home. How was school?”
Micro walked down toward his brother, practically speechless. “It was...alright. Did you clean the entire shop by yourself?”
Java chuckled and gave a soft nod. “For the most part, why? Did you think I'd let my own shop turn into a trash heap?”
Micro shook his head and smiled, letting his saddlebags off in the corner. “I guess not, though you don't have a great history with these kinds of things.”
Java shook his head, rubbing his mane with a bit of embarrassment. “Well anyway, why don't you go ahead and rest for a little bit, I'm sure you had a pretty rough first day huh?”
Looking back on the day, Micro couldn't help but smile as he adjusted his glasses on his snout. “Actually, it was pretty good.”
Java smiled and walked with his brother back into the living room, smiling. “Really, well how about you tell me all about it?”
With a quick nod, Micro smiled and sat down on the couch. “Alright, well...in first period all we did was introduce ourselves and say a bit about ourselves, and after that we....”
Java listened intently through the whole story, a smile on his face as he saw the excitement in his timid brother's eyes. |
JavaChips | 592 | 4 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-09-01T06:55:32+00:00 | 2011-09-01T06:55:32+00:00 | 1,370 | As the autumn wind grew cool across the streets of Ponyville, the residents of the small town began preparing for the imminent winter that would soon arrive. Nowhere, however, was more busy than the orchards of Sweet Apple Acres. Being a major food supplier for Ponyville, they were always busy at work so late in the season, collecting the last apples of the season. Applejack looked over the hills of the Acres, watching as her friends worked together to collect every last apple off the trees. With her, pulling the apples off the branches, was hard worker Rainbow Dash, though it was clear from her bored eyes she'd rather be napping, her bonds of loyalty pushing her along. As the apples were dropped from the trees, Pinkie Pie and Java Chips took to loading the carts with the fruit, where Big Macintosh would pull them along toward Twilight and Rarity further up the orchard. There, they were busy at work sorting them by type and keeping count. Once the apples had been sorted, Caramel would take them back up to the farm and load them into the apple cellar. The gears of their work flowed smoothly as they continued to unload apples.
As Pinkie Pie was loading another bucket of apples, she suddenly stopped and looked behind her. Java looked over at her, a bit confused. “What's wrong Pinkie?” he asked.
Pinkie looked back at him, a bit concerned. “You might want to move a bit to the left Java, my tail is a-twitcha twitching.”
He looked back at her, a bit quizzical. “Your tail is...wait what?”
He didn't have time to dwell on it before three young fillies fell out of the tree onto his back, knocking the poor colt to the ground. The crusaders picked themselves up with a groan and looked at each other, still sitting on his back. “Well we aren't Cutie Mark Crusader Tree Climbers.” Scootaloo said, rubbing her head.
Before the other two could answer, another groan came from underneath them. When they looked down, they finally noticed the turquoise pony they were on top of. “You aren't Cutie Mark Crusader Feathers either, get off my back!” he said painfully.
“Oops,” they said in chorus as they climbed off, “Sorry Java.”
With a sigh, a stretch, and a crack of his back, Java shook his head. “It's fine, just be a little more careful alright?”
The three nodded and trotted along toward their clubhouse. Hearing all the commotion, Applejack came over to survey the situation. “What in the name of Albany Beauty is going on here?”
Pinkie Pie smiled over at her and waved her tail in the air. “First my tail got all twitcha twitchy, and then the crusaders fell on top of Java, and then they were all like, 'Oooh owwie!' And Scotaloo said-”
The hyperactive pony was silenced with an apple in the mouth, which she happily began to eat, while AJ went over toward Java. “You okay sugarcube?”
With another rub of his head, Java nodded. “I'll be fine, what's up with that tail twitching stuff?”
Pinkie Pie sprung out from the tree above Java and landed behind him, smiling. By now they had attracted the attention of the other ponies that were around. “It's my Pinkie Sense. I get these little bitty reactions when things are about to happen. Like when my tail twitches, that means something's gonna fall from the sky, just like it did to you.”
Java couldn't help but give her a sceptical look as she explained her strange foresight abilities. Twilight walked over and patted him carefully on the back. “You don't want to delve too deeply into it, trust me. Just shrug it off, and if her tail twitches, hide.”
With a sigh Java shook his head and got back to loading apples. “Makes about as much sense as anything else Pinkie does.”
With the incident out of the way, everyone quickly got back to their jobs.
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Once all the apples had been bucked, sorted, and stored, the group returned to the farmhouse, where Granny Smith had been preparing a large meal for the hard working ponies. As they gathered around the table, everyone pulled into their own conversations. Java and Big Mac had begun talking about being older brothers, while Pinkie and Rarity were discussing fashion, thought Pinkie knew very little. The crusaders were off in their own world dreaming up their next scheme to get their cutie marks, while Dash and AJ had started an eating contest between themselves. Twilight sat at the end of the table with Caramel, discussing the apple count for the year. Everything was interrupted as Pinkie Pie spoke up to the group. “Everyone, my right knee is sore.” she told them, showing them her front right knee.
Without even a second thought, everyone dropped what they were doing, ducking under the table. Everyone except for Java, who looked at them like they were crazy. “What are you all doing? There's a roof above our heads, nothing's going to-”
His thoughts were interrupted for the second time today, as a crash landing Derpy Hooves flew through the door on the right and knocked him into the adjacent wall. With a groan, he untangled himself from the mailmare, trying to regain his senses. “I thought you said things fell from the sky....?”
Pinkie came out from under the table and skipped over to him. “No silly, twitchy tail means something falls from the sky, when my right knee is sore that means-”
“That something is coming on the right side?” he finished.
With a nod, Pinkie returned to the table. Derpy got up and shot an embarrassed look at the tech pony she ran into. “Oops, sorry Java.” she said, pulling a letter from her satchel. “Fpefial delifery for Twilight Fparkle!”
With the letter removed from her mouth with magic, Derpy went back on her merry way toward town to finish delivering the mail. Looking at the envelope, Twilight gave a look of surprise at the wax seal, a five pointed star. Opening it quickly, she began reading and her face lit up. “Oh my gosh!”
She started hopping around excitedly, dropping the letter. With confused looks, the group picked up the letter and set it on the table. Rarity read it aloud for everyone.
Dear Twilight Sparkle,
How have you been? It's been a while hasn't it? I just thought I'd let you know that my latest expedition will be bringing me to Ponyville, which from what I've heard is your new home, right? Anyway, I figured we could get together and have a talk, get back in touch. I'll be there this upcoming Tuesday.
Sincerely,
Morning Star
The group looked over at Twilight, who had calmed down and packed away the letter in her saddlebag. “Who's Morning Star?” Dash asked.
Twilight smiled and sat back down at the table. Everyone else joined her, listening intently. “Morning Star is an old friend from Celestia's Academy for Gifted Unicorns. We were always studying together, and helping each other out with our homework. I guess in a way he was my first friend, and the one who got me interested in Astronomy in the first place. Unfortunately, once we graduated, he left to join a group of fellow Astronomers to document the constellations and to track down astral beasts like the Ursa. I would have gone with him too, but I couldn't abandon the princess. It'll be so nice to see him again.”
Dash smirked and did her best to suppress a giggle. “Sounds like you have a nice little coltfriend Twi.”
With a blush, Twilight shook her head vigorously. “Wh-what? Don't be ridiculous...I-I mean even if I did....no I mean, we're only friends....but....never mind, we're just friends and that's the end of it.”
The group gave a surprised look at Twilight's protesting, shocked at her overreaction to Dash's little joke. “Twilight, darling,” Rarity began, “Do you....have feelings for him?”
With a sigh, Twilight continued to blush. “W-well maybe...I mean, even if I did, I know he doesn't feel the same way....” Twilight hung her head and Applejack went over to comfort her. “There there sugarcube, don't get yourself in a fuss over nothing. I bet he likes you plenty, there have been stranger crushes then this.”
Pinkie Pie nodded, pointing toward Java. “Yeah, Like how Java has a crush on Vinyl Scratch.”
Java blushed and glared at Pinkie Pie. “H-hey! There's plenty of chance of that!”
The rest of the group shared their disagreeing opinion, to which Java sighed. Twilight smiled at her friends and nodded. “Thanks guys, but really I'd rather just play it safe. I should get home and clean up, it's only two days until Tuesday.”
Looking at the time, they all nodded, having their own places to be. “Hey Java, wanna walk with me to Sugarcube Corner? Mrs. Cake is putting out a warm batch of cupcakes.”
Java shook his head, taking a step away from the pink pony. “As much fun as that sounds, I need to get home. Micro should be getting home from his friend's house anytime now.”
In truth, Java needed some Pinkie free time after his last two foreshadowed injuries. “Okie Dokie Lokie!”
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The following Monday, Java found himself headed toward Twilight's library for a service call, carrying his tools on his back. Stepping inside, he set his tools down. “Alright Twilight what do you need me to do? I have to make it quick, Vinyl Scratch needs me to tune her...woah.”
Looking around, the entire Library shined bright enough to blind somepony. Twilight rushed downstairs, sorting books and dusting as quickly as she could, her hair all frazzled up. “Oh Java, thank goodness you made it. I need you to take a look at the fuse box downstairs, I think I might have blown a couple cleaning up.”
Java nodded, still a bit awe struck at how hard the unicorn was working. “Wow, um, are you sure you shouldn't take a break, I mean he isn't showing up until tomorrow. I don't even see you work this hard when you study.”
Twilight shook her head, her mind in a fluster as she began dusting him. “No, I'm almost done, I just have to dust the floors, mop the ceiling, mow the garbage, take out the lawn-”
Java took the duster from her, setting it aside. “Twilight will you calm down? You're going to make yourself sick overworking like that. Have you even slept since you left the Acres yesterday?”
Twilight shook her head, sighing. “I guess you're right Java, I should just go up to bed and-”
She was more tired than she thought as she collapsed on the ground, snoring lightly. Java smiled and picked up his tools, going downstairs to check the fuse box. When he opened it up, it sparked a bit at him, and he sighed, surveying the damage. Not only had she knocked out most of the fuses, but she had even managed to blow a few wires. Java reached into his tool bag with a sigh. This was going to take up the rest of his day.
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It wasn't until a little after noon that Java finished tuning Vinyl Scratch's mix board. With all the dials working, he packed up and walked to the door. “Alright, you're all set.” he said, taking his leave.
Vinyl waved at him from the door, smiling. “Thanks a lot Java dude, you're welcome at my night club anytime!” she told him.
With a wave and a blush, Java nodded. “No problem Vinyl.” he said as he turned and kept walking, a smirk on his face. “Yeah right, I totally have a chance.”
His self delusion was interrupted as he spotted a white unicorn with an orange and brown mane, looking lost in the street. As he got closer, he saw the lone unicorn's cutie mark, a star on a deep blue backdrop. “Excuse me, do you need some help?” he asked.
The unicorn looked over and smiled, nodding. “Yes, thank you. I'm looking for the Ponyville Library, do you know where it is?”
Java nodded and started leading him along. “Yeah it's this way. You're Morning Star aren't you? Twilight's friend?”
He nodded and smiled, following the kind guide. “That's right. Twilight's always sending me letters. Let me guess, you're....Big Macintosh?”
Java couldn't help but laugh as he shook his head. “No, Java Chips.”
Morning Star thought for a moment and shook his head. “I'm sorry, I don't think I've heard anything about you.”
The smile on Java's face turned to a frown. “Oh....are you sure? I think she would have mentioned me.”
He shook his head again. “Sorry.”
Java sighed as they approached the library, stopping at the door. “That's alright, here we are.”
Morning Star tapped the door softly, expectantly waiting for an answer. Java waited with him, feeling a little betrayed. Spike answered the door and smiled, seeing who was there. “hey, long time no see. Come on in, Twilight is in the kitchen preparing lunch.”
Java, without thinking, walked in with his unicorn friend and toward the kitchen, where Twilight was looming over a cook book while she tried to keep track of the pots and pans on the burners. “Hey Twilight, look-” Spike began, but was interrupted by the busy violet unicorn.
“Spike, I told you before not to bother me, Morning Star could be here any time now and I need to focus on finishing lunch.”
Morning star smiled and stepped up, levitating a spoon out of the librarian's grip, tasting some soup in a pot. “well, it could use a little salt, and some carrots.”
Twilight smiled and trotted up to the white unicorn, wrapping her forelegs tightly around his neck. “Star! It's so good to see you again!”
Morning Star hugged her back, smiling. “A very long time, seems like you've kept busy.”
Twilight nodded and smiled back at him, breaking the hug. “Did you find the library alright? There wasn't any trouble getting here was there?”
Star shook his head. “I got lost for a little while, but luckily I ran into Mr. Java Chips here. He showed me the way.”
Twilight looked over and noticed for the first time since they arrived that Java was there. With a blush and an awkward giggle, she took a couple steps toward him. “Thank you Java, do you need anything else?”
Though she sounded sincere, her eyes were pleading Java for some privacy. “Oh, um...no sorry, I'll see you later Twi. It was nice meeting you Morning Star.”
Star nodded and they watched as the programmer pony left. With that done, Twilight returned to cooking lunch, having a bit of difficulty as she tried to center the knife over the carrot she was trying to cut. With a chuckle, Star took over and expertly cut up the carrot, sliding the slices into the soup. “Here, let me help. Cooking was never your speciality as I remember.”
Twilight blushed and nodded, smiling. “Yeah, thanks. So what's new with you?”
Taking some more vegetables, he carefully cut them up and added them to the soup as he talked. “Not much really, after this latest venture I'll be put under the apprenticeship of Princess Luna hopefully. I'm a very likely contender for the position. And you? What has Celestia got you doing that has you out here in the boondocks?”
Twilight smiled and began stirring the soup in the pot. “Well at the moment I'm studying up and reporting in on friendship. It might take up some years of my time to learn everything about it. What about you? What brings you to Ponyville?”
It was at this point that Morning Star's look changed from happy to serious, taking the soup off the burner. “Actually Twilight, I need to talk to you about that. You see, I'm going to need your help.”
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The day was late as Java prepared to get some rest. Micro was already in bed, tired from a long day of playing with Clickspring. As he got ready to ascend the stairs, a knock came to his door. Walking up to it, he saw Fluttershy standing there, a bit timid and fearful of being out in the dark. “Pardon me Java, I hope I didn't wake you but...um, Twilight wants us at the library. She says it's important.”
Never one to doubt Fluttershy, and knowing that Twilight wouldn't summon them unless it was important, he slid on his saddlebags and nodded to the butter yellow pony, following her to the library. By the time they got there, everyone else was already gathered. Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack were sitting down around a table. Twilight had put out some energy drinks to reinvigorate the tired ponies. Java helped himself to one and sat down with Fluttershy as Twilight and Morning Star pulled a blackboard into the room. “Sorry to call you all at such a late hour everpony, but this is an emergency, Ponyville is in danger.”
She turned to Morning Star, who continued as he wrote on the board. “I'm afraid she's right. My group have been tracking a group of Canis Minor who have been making their way toward Canterlot. We almost had them once, but they beat us by mere hours, destroying a town we predicted they would run through. They're viscious predators, and according to my calculations, they'll be making their way from the west through Ponyville to get to Canterlot.”
“Sweet apple cider! They'll run right through Sweet Apple Acres!” Applejack shouted worriedly.
Twilight nodded, taking a piece of chalk. “Fear not, for Morning Star and I have developed a plan.”
Star nodded aswell, the two drawing out the plan on the board. “This will require the hard work of everypony here.” he began, a serious tone in his voice. “Canis are very susceptible to sounds of an extremely high pitch. If they hear a high tone, they'll become paralysed with pain long enough that we can capture them. Twilight has informed me of all your particular talents, and we've developed this plan.”
The drawings on the black board didn't make much sense to the onlooking ponies. Twilight sighed and began explaining, drawing their attention to different points with a pointer. “Java Chips will assist Morning Star in setting up a speaker ring in one of the small valleys within Sweet Apple Acres, set to the high pitch that will stop the Canis Minor. Star has predicted that they'll be arriving just past midnight tomorrow night. Fluttershy will keep watch from above and give a signal to Rainbow Dash, who will swoop down and, with the help of Pinkie Pie, will lead them into our trap. Once they're inside the circle we'll activate the sound field and then it will be up to Applejack and Rarity to bind them up so that they don't get away.”
The group looked around at each other, having mixed feelings about the plan. Though most of them were on board, Applejack wasn't so sure about it. “I don't know about this Twilight, What if we fail? What'll happen to my farm?”
Twilight shook her head, determination in her eyes. “Don't worry Applejack, nothing's going to go wrong. We've worked out everything and done the math thrice to make sure we know what we're doing. Nothing is going to happen to your farm.”
A soft but unsure smile went across Applejack's face. “Alright, if you're sure sugarcube.”
Star nodded, happy to see everyone on board. “Perfect, now we all have to get to work immediately tomorrow. This plan has to work before the sun comes up, otherwise it'll be too late. Like the stars, astral beasts can't be seen during the day, they go invisible.”
The group nodded and dispersed for the night to get some sleep, unwary of the day ahead of them.
-------------------------------
Everyone was waiting intently for Java in the valley they had picked to ensnare the oncoming Canis. It wasn't long before he was coming up the trail with a cartload of equipment. Inside, he had speakers and wires, along with a mix board. “Sorry, it took a while to get everything together. We'll need to get all the speakers up into the trees in a circle. Star, I'm going to need your help calibrating the sound board to the right frequency.”
The group nodded and unloaded the speakers, everypony taking one to go and set them up. Morning Star joined Java off to the side. “So have you dealt with Canis before Star?” Java asked as he carefully moved the dials while Morning Star listened, waiting for the right sound. “Yeah, I've dealt with Canis, Scorpio, even an Ursa once.”
Java smiled, still adjusting the dials. “An Ursa huh? How did you do it?”
The white unicorn smiled and signalled Java to keep rising in pitch. “It wasn't too hard actually, though we had some trouble. My team and I were in Hoofington getting ready for when it came by. Our plan was simple enough, all we had to do was lead it away. We used a pegasus team to distract it and send it into the forest, where we sealed it in a large cavern. The plan would have gone off smoothly if not for a Unicorn we hired to help us with protecting the outer buildings of Hoofington. She claimed to be the most powerful pony in all of Hoofington, but when she got a sight of the Ursa Minor she ran for the hills. I think she called herself Trixie.”
Java kept adjusting the dials when the name clicked in his head. “No kidding, the supposed 'Great and Powerful Trixie?' I've met her too. She came to Fillydelphia a couple years back and visited my repair shop. I fixed her fire hazard of pyrotechnics and pretty lights, made it safe, and then she criticizes my work. She says she could have done a better job had she had the time, refused to pay, and darted off.”
Star nodded, listening intently to both the pitch in his ear and Java's story. “Sounds like her alright. There it is, that's the perfect pitch.”
The two nodded at each other and Java locked the sound board, hooking in a wireless transceiver, which he handed to Star. “When they're within the circle, just hit the button and it'll start up the sound through the speakers.”
Star nodded and set it in his saddlebag as the two helped finish hooking up the speaker system.
-------------------------------
Fluttershy watched from atop a cloud, keeping her eyes open across the landscape. Finally, in the distance, she made out the group. Five Canis Minor were rampaging through from the west, just as Star predicted. She pointed with one hoof and waved the other at Dash, who saluted and flew down between the trees, picking up Pinkie Pie. They stopped in front of the Canis Minors, who stared the duo down. “Hey Uglies, looking for a treat?” Dash asked, shaking her flank in their faces. “Come get it!”
With that, she and Pinkie Pie had the hungry hounds on their tails, being led toward the circle. As they approached it, they flew out of sight and joined their comrades in the bushes. In the center of the circle was Morning Star, the button under his hoof, ready to be pressed. "Now, push it now!" Dash screamed as she planted her feet on the ground.
She was left unanswered however, as Morning Star desperately tried to make the button work. As the Canis began to pounce, Dash flew in and scooped him up and the two flew out of the circle. Thinking quickly, Rarity, Twilight, and Star set up a barrier around the area. Java went around to all the speakers, with Dash following. “What the hay is going on Java?” she asked.
Java made his way around to the first speaker hooked into the sound board, and there he saw the problem. “Was this speaker dropped? It's going to need to be repaired.”
Dash gulped, a bit embarrassed as she rubbed her mane. “Well um...Pinkie Pie said her tail was twitching...so I hid in the tree, and then the speaker fell. I mean, what's the big deal if one doesn't work?”
Java shook his head and started working on the speaker. “These speakers are set up to work in a line, if the first one fails they all fail, and so on down the line. Go get my tools.”
Dash nodded and brought him his tools, and he started working on the speaker. It took him nearly an hour and a half, the unicorns straining their energy as they tried their best to hold up the barrier. It wouldn't be much longer before the hounds escaped. “There,” Java finally said, “Now we just need to hit the button on the remote, where is it?”
Looking around, Java's heart sank as he saw it in the center of the circle. Star must have left it when Dash scooped him up. Java sighed, the sun was coming up and the Canis were disappearing. He needed a plan and fast. Looking around, an idea came to him as he stared at the pink party pony teasing one of the nearly invisible Canis. “Pinkie!” he called out, running toward her. “Get on my back!”
Without a second thought Pinkie hopped up and landed gracefully on the colt's back. “Okie Dokie Lokie!”
She was surprisingly light, and Java stopped as he approached Twilight. “Twi, I need you to let me in.”
Sceptical at first, she saw Pinkie waving at her from on his back and nodded, understanding the plan immediately. With the barrier down, Java ran in, Pinkie screaming “Wheeee!” on his back. Suddenly, she stopped. “Uh oh.” she said.
This was what Java was waiting for. “What is it Pinkie?”
Pinkie bent her left elbow a couple of times. “My left elbow is sore.”
Without a second thought, Java bucked to the left, and sure enough he hit an invisible enemy, sending them flying into the barrier. Pinkie smiled and showed him her right. “Now the right one is sore.”
Once again he bucked, kicking away another Canis. As he made his way to the middle he kicked away his enemies on Pinkie's command. Finally, he reached the center where the remote was. “Twitchy Tail!” Pinkie screamed.
Java twisted his body, knocking Pinkie off his back as bucked straight up and sent another Canis flying, his front hoof hitting the button at the same time. The high pitched sound filled the air, creating a lot of whimpering from the astral beasts. Following the whimpering, Applejack and Rarity were able to hog tie them all. Star walked up and smiled, shaking Java's hoof. “That was brilliant Java Chips. If you ever get tired of being a small time electronics man, you're free to work for the Astral beast division anytime.”
Java smiled and shook his head. “Nah, I don't like a lot of moving around. Besides, I couldn't have done it without Pinkie Pie.”
“Hey,” Twilight pointed out, “Where is Pinkie Pie?”
As they looked around, they saw her messing with the sound board, a pair of headphones in her ears while she pretended she was making beats. The group couldn't help but laugh at their fun loving friend.
-------------------------------
Twilight walked with Morning Star to the train station, smiling along the way. “It's a shame you have to leave so soon Star, I wish we could have had at least one day to ourselves.”
He nodded, stepping onto the train and standing by the doorway. “So do I, but I need to get to Canterlot for my evaluation. If all goes well I'll be studying under Princess Luna. I'm sure once I've gotten settled in I'll have a lot more free time to come and visit you.”
Twilight nodded, smiling. “That's right! Maybe sometime I can go and visit you in Canterlot when I find some free time.”
He smiled and nodded to his violet friend. “It's a date.”
Twilight blushed as the doors to the train closed, and she once again waved goodbye to her old friend. With a sigh, she walked back toward the library.
-------------------------------
“I'm just saying, why couldn't I come?” Micro protested to his brother. “You got to set up a sound ring, fight a bunch of Canis Minor, and you even got to buck one into a wall! All I got to do was sleep.”
Java smiled, putting away all of his sound equipment, making sure it was properly organized. “That's right, do you know how dangerous it is to do stuff like that? I could have been killed. Besides, haven't you slain a bunch of Canis Minors?” he teased.
Micro shook his head clearly not amused. “Video games don't count and you know it! Oh well, at least I'll have a cool story to tell everyone at school.”
Java nodded and walked out of the workshop. “That's right, you can tell everyone about how your brother took on a pack of Canis Minor single hoofedly!” he boasted.
Micro smiled and nodded, galloping toward the door. “I'm gonna go tell Clickspring right now!”
Java watched his younger brother leave and smiled. With a yawn, he made his way to the staircase and then up to bed, happy to get some sleep.
Author's note: the character Morning Star does not belong to me, but instead to Tried and True of fanfiction.net (http://www.fanfiction.net/u/3127435/ ) |
JavaChips | 592 | 5 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-09-01T07:16:20+00:00 | 2011-09-01T07:16:20+00:00 | 1,104 | Winter had set on Ponyville, leaving a blanket of snow across the small town. Looking around, it was very peaceful. Colts and fillies were out of school for winter break, wrapped up in their scarves and earmuffs, playing happily in the snow. Over by the public library, Twilight Sparkle was deep in one of her usual study sessions. Her mind was buried deep in a philosophy book, she almost didn't notice the knock on the door. Memorizing her place, she opened the door to see a chilly Java Chips, wearing nothing but a scarf, boots, and his saddlebags. “Oh hello Java,” she began, looking over his shivering form, “Don't you think you should be wearing an insulated saddle, or at least some earmuffs?”
Java shook his head, stepping inside. “I was never one to wear saddles of any kind, and when I wear earmuffs I can barely understand what people are saying.”
Twilight nodded, walking over to turn the heat up a bit. “Understandable I guess, so what can I do for you?”
Java took a moment to warm up before he began. “I need you to perform that cloud walking spell on me, Rainbow Dash needs me to repair her heater, but I can't get up there to do it.”
Twilight nodded and levitated the book over, flipping to the proper page. “No problem, it should only take a second. But if you're going into a freezing cold cloud house you should definitely wear something a bit warmer.”
The stubborn colt shook his head again, waiting for the spell. “Jeez you sound just like my mom. Trust me I'm plenty warm....just not in winter...”
The violet magician sighed as her horn lit up and a magical bubble surrounded him. With a quick flash, nothing appeared to have changed. Java looked himself over, a bit confused. “That's it? I don't feel any different.”
Twilight shook her head, smiling. “Yeah it doesn't really effect you, but now you can walk on clouds. Are you sure you don't at least want a warmth spell? I mean, have you ever been in a cloud in the middle of winter?”
With a sigh, Java shook his head and sat back down. “Alright Twi, go ahead.”
Twilight smiled and brought over another book, preparing the spell.
-------------------------------
As much as Java hated to admit he was wrong, it was a lot more comfortable a walk to Rainbow Dash's cloud home with the warmth surrounding him. Approaching the field where Dash's home was supposed to be floating, Java was a bit confused to see empty skies. Taking a quick look around, he couldn't see the cloud home anywhere nearby. Java's hunt was interrupted by a tap on his shoulder. “Excuse me, could I get some directions?” came a masculine voice.
Java turned around to face the colt who had asked, only to stand surprised for a second. At first glance he thought he had seen Rainbow Dash, but upon closer inspection he noticed the differences. Aside from being a colt, his straightened mane was a full light spectrum, unlike Dash's organized rainbow mane, and his eyes were more of a ruby red instead of her amethyst. The final difference was the cutie mark. This colt's cutie mark appeared to be a rainbow colored supernova. “Um, are you still with me dude?” the colt asked.
Java shook his head, leaving his trance. “Yeah, sorry, you just look like a friend of mine, like scarily similar. Where are you looking to go?”
The unfamiliar colt looked up at the sky, almost scanning it. “I'm trying to find a cloud home that's supposed to be floating around here, but I can't seem to find it.”
Java nodded, smiling. “You and me both. I was supposed to be fixing the heater, but it's nowhere to be found. Tell you what, how about we go back over to my house and wait, I'm sure she'll be coming by when I don't show up.”
He nodded to the electronics pony, following behind him. “So how do you know Rainbow Dash?”
Java smiled and led his new friend up the road to his house. “We're just friends, and in this case a customer. What about you?”
The colt smiled and flapped his wings a couple of times. “I'm her older brother.”
Java had to stop for a moment, a bit awe struck at the statement. With a chuckle, the supposed brother held out his hoof. “Cosmic Dash, though most people call me Cosmo.”
Java smiled and bumped his hoof against the other's, walking with him into the shop. “Java Chips, you can just call me Java. You know, Dash never mentioned she had a brother.”
Cosmo took off his winter attire alongside Java. “Yeah, suffice it to say we aren't the closest of siblings.”
Java offered him a seat on the couch, then sat down himself, looking a bit confused. “If you don't mind me asking, why are you two so distant?”
Cosmo rubbed his mane, looking away a bit. “Well she's a bit jealous I think. You see, I don't tell a lot of ponies this, but most know me better as RGB.”
Java was once again surprised by the new colt's statement. “You don't mean RGB of the Wonderbolts do you?”
Cosmo chuckled and nodded, accustomed to the surprise he got. “The very same. Unfortunately, it's kind of put me at a distance with my sister.”
Java nodded, and looked back at his past. “Yeah sibling rivalry can damage a relationship pretty badly.”
-------------------------------
Rainbow Dash made her way quietly through the streets of the town, flapping her wings very irritably every so often. She wanted to fly, to breeze through the clouds, but she knew she couldn't, she'd risk getting sighted by him. She wasn't just itching to fly, she was also upset, a scowl on her face. It was bad enough her cloud home was an ice berg in the sky, but when Java didn't show up she was severely annoyed. Approaching the electronic pony's house, she knocked twice on the door before letting herself in. “Java, you said you'd be at my house by noon, it's already-”
Her thought was interrupted as she saw his guest sitting next to him on the couch. Cosmo smiled and waved to her. “Hey there, Hummingbird.”
With a scoff, she turned around and began to leave. “Nevermind, I'll come back later.”
The smile left Cosmo's face as he got up and walked past her through the door. “No, you stay. I'll go, I need to check into the hotel anyway.”
Dash shook her head and turned back around. “Whatever.”
Cosmo left and shut the door behind him, while Dash tried to get her mind straightened again. “Why weren't you at my house? It's freezing cold in there, it's inhospitable.”
Java got up off the couch and walked over to her. “You moved your house, what was I supposed to do? And why did you never tell anyone you had a brother?”
Dash shook her head, glaring at him. “What business is it of yours? Look, I'm on the east side of Ponyville now, so just come and fix my heater okay?”
Java sighed and nodded. “I'll be over tomorrow around noon. But really Dash, why do you hate your brother? He seems like a nice enough guy.”
She gritted her teeth, turning around to stare at the door. “Imagine Micro took your job, took control of your shop, and then every couple of years during the holidays he'd come around and offer you a job working for him. Cosmo stole my dream and joined the Wonderbolts, and now he's trying to fix our relationship by offering me a place in his flying team, like I need his help or something.”
Java shook his head. “Dash, what's wrong with offering a little help? That's what family does for each other, they help each other out.”
She shook her head again, opening the door with a loud slam against the wall. “You're not exactly the person I want lecturing me about family bonding Java. When's the last time you talked to your dad?”
Without waiting for a response, Dash flew off in the new direction of her cloud home, hopeful to get at least a little sleep under the frigid conditions. Java sighed and layed down on the couch, deep in thought.
-------------------------------
Dash was awoken the next day by a knock on her door. The cold night had left her tired and she slept in. Answering the door, she saw Java standing there, Cosmo next to him. “Hi Dash, I'm here like I told you I would be.”
Dash glared at him, then over to Cosmo. “And why is he here?”
Java made his way in and toward the heater, Cosmo following behind him. “I don't know a lot about cloud technology, so I asked him to help me out.”
She shook her head, a bit annoyed at the sly pony's trick. “Whatever, just hurry it up, it's freezing in here.”
Java nodded and found his way to the heater. Careful to take off the delicate cloud covering, he looked inside and saw that it wasn't much different from a regular heater. Cosmo saw that Java had it covered and walked over toward the living room where his sister had fled to. “Just call me if you need my help.”
Java nodded, already at work. Cosmo sat down next to his sister, and the two sat silently for some time. The awkward feeling in the air was obvious to the both of them. Finally Cosmo spoke up, trying to break the tense air. “Well...it looks like you've been doing well for yourself....nice poster by the way.”
Dash looked over at the Wonderbolts poster she had on her wall. With a roll of her eyes she looked the other way. “Yeah well, I still like most of them.”
He shook his head and sighed. “What do you want me to say? That I'm sorry? I wanted to get into the Wonderbolts just as much as you. You could get in too, there's an opening in my team, if you would just-”
“Save it!” she yelled at him, her anger rising. “You're always coming here around the holidays and offering me this same deal! I don't want to be part of your team and I don't need your help to get into my own team. I'm good enough to get in on my own.”
Cosmo shook his head and raised his voice to match hers. “I know you're good enough, that's why I'm offering this to you. You've always been like this, whenever someone does better than you and offers help, you take it as a personal attack! I'm just trying to help you out!”
Dash glared at him. “You are not! I know you too Cosmo, whenever you upset someone you wouldn't stop trying to make it up to them until your guilt was gone. Well forget about it alright? You don't need to feel guilty just because you did what I haven't yet. Quit being so arrogant and selfish!”
Tears began to form in Dash's eyes, and Cosmo snapped out of his own anger looking at her. He sighed and shook his head. “Look, Hummingbird, I-”
“Stop calling me that!” she yelled, hopping off the couch and making her way toward the staircase. “Cosmo calls me Hummingbird, RGB can just call me Rainbow Dash.”
Java stepped in from his eavesdropping behind the wall. He saw Cosmo sitting on the couch, hanging his head. “So you heard all that?” he asked.
Java nodded, walking over and patting Cosmo on the back. “Yeah, sorry about that dude, I shouldn't have brought you.”
Cosmo shook his head and smiled. “You had good intentions at heart, and thanks for bringing me. That's actually the most we've talked in years.”
Java smiled and nodded. “Come on, let's go to Sugarcube Corner. I'll buy you a round of cocoa.”
Cosmo nodded and smiled back. “Alright, Just give me a second.”
-------------------------------
Dash layed in her bed, glaring at the ceiling, deep in thought. A knock came on her bedroom door. For a while she paused and stared at the door. Finally, she got up and walked to the door. Opening it, she saw a small wrapped present sitting there on the floor. Picking it up and bringing it in, she opened it. Her eyes lit up as she saw what was inside. It was a collection of Wonderbolts drinking glasses. She had been eyeing these for a long time, but never made up the bits to buy them. She checked the tag and couldn't help but feel a bit bad. The “To” label had the word “Hummingbird” crossed out, and the words “Rainbow Dash” had replaced it. Below that, she read the from label aloud. “From Cosmo...”
She sighed and put the glasses away before leaving through the back door.
-------------------------------
Java and Cosmo were sitting at a table in Sugarcube Corner, enjoying a round of cocoa. Pinkie Pie was singing a birthday song to a nearby table, while the Cakes were busy doling out orders. “Thanks Java,” Cosmo said, “This is just what I needed.”
Java nodded, sipping his own soda. “Yeah, it's good for clearing your mind.”
As they sat and talked, the bell rung on the front door. Mrs. Cake looked over and smiled. “Well hello there Rainbow Dash, how are you doing?”
Dash smiled at her. “I'm fine Mrs. Cake. Have you seen Java around?”
Mrs. Cake nodded and pointed over to Java and Cosmo, both of them staring over at the cyan pegasus. She walked up to them and looked back and forth at the two of them. “Java, can you give us a little privacy?”
Java nodded and got up. “Sure, I'll be at the table near the door.”
Once the programmer pony was out of sight, Dash took his place at the table. The two sat there for a little bit before she finally spoke up. “Thanks for the glasses.”
Cosmo smiled and sipped his cocoa. “No problem Hummin....uh, Rainbow Dash. After Dad said you wanted them I went out and bought them.”
Dash smirked, looking over at the wall. “Y'know, it's kind of wierd hearing you call me that. Maybe you should just stick to Hummingbird.”
Cosmo's face lit up as he heard, a smile far across his face. “Thanks, and....I'm sorry. You're right, I've just been trying to alleviate my own guilt about doing better.”
Dash shook her head. “My stubbornness didn't help. But I still stand by it, I'll get into the Wonderbolts on my own terms.”
Cosmo nodded and smiled, happier now than he had been for a while. “I guess we were both being pretty thick headed.”
The two siblings couldn't help but laugh. “It's getting late, I'm gonna get to my hotel room.” Cosmo finally said. Dash nodded and got out of her chair first, walking over to Java, who had moved to his own table. “Hey Java, thanks for doing that. But don't ever bring someone over to my house without letting me know."
Java nodded and smiled. “No problem Dash, have a nice night.”
-------------------------------
It wasn't until much later that night that Java got home. Micro was already in bed when he walked through the door. He would have been on his way aswell, but first he had something he needed to do. Taking out a pen and piece of letter paper, he began writing. For nearly an hour he wrote until he filled the page. When he was done, he sealed it in an envelope. Writing down the name on the back, he left it to be mailed tomorrow, getting up to bed. The name across the back of the envelope read “Sound Chips.” |
JavaChips | 592 | 6 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-09-04T08:51:49+00:00 | 2011-09-04T08:51:49+00:00 | 1,176 | Winter was in it's deepest cold of the season, a harsh chill descended on the entirety of Ponyville. Nonetheless, the residents of the small town continued their daily routines. The ponies dressed warmly as they walked the streets, getting their chores done as quickly as possible. None, however, were warmer than Java Chips. His body temperature was on level with the birth of a star as he laid back in bed, his covers pulled up. Micro shook his head, putting an ice pack on his sick brother's head. “You'd think you would learn your lesson by now, this happens every year Java.”
Java shook his head, sitting up a bit. “What can I say? The cold doesn't bother me? I really don't like heavy clothing? You're starting to sound just like Mom.”
The tan gamer pony shook his head, smirking at his brother as he handed Java some water mixed with cold medicine. “Well one of us has to be the mature one here. And I do not sound like Mom. If I wanted to sound like Mom I would have said, 'Javani Beta Chips, If I've told you once I've told you a thousand times not to go out without your insulated saddle on!'”
Java shook his head, glaring at his brother. “Hey, I thought we talked about the full name thing.”
Micro couldn't help but chuckle, adjusting his glasses. “Sorry bro, you asked for it with that parents comment. Anyway you get your rest, I'll take care of the repair orders today.”
“Are you sure you can handle it? I know you've come on jobs with me in the past but it's the coldest day of winter so far, and you've never been out on your own.”
“Of course I can handle it. It's mostly heater problems, and I've seen you fix tons of them. Trust me, I'll be fine on my own.”
Java was a little worried, but sighed as he sipped his water. “Alright, you know where the tools are, just be careful alright.”
Micro nodded and trotted out of the room, making his way to the workshop. He looked at house call clipboard and sighed at the twice filled reservation sheet. It was going to be a long day.
-------------------------------
Twilight made her way through the Ponyville's streets, helping the town's citizen safety service make sure everypony was careful in the cold weather. As she was making her rounds, she noticed a spot of brown walking amongst the unending white of the snow. “Micro!” she called out, approaching the young colt. “Is this really the best day to be visiting Clickspring? You should probably go home.”
Micro shook his head, showing her the tools in his saddlebags. “Actually Twilight, Java's got a cold, so I'm running the shop today. I've got a lot of requests so I need to get going.”
Twilight nodded, happy to see the young colt taking strong initiative. “That's very mature of you Micro, be careful out there.”
Micro nodded and waved as he made his way down the road, leaving the purple unicorn to her thoughts and her minor worries of the sick programmer pony.
-------------------------------
With a knock on her cottage's door, Fluttershy made her way over to see who it was. Any other season of the month, the house would have been filled with sick and hurt animals she cared for. In the winter months, however, most animals were hibernating or in other parts of Equestria. The only critter that could be seen as she passed his bed by was her close bunny friend, Angel. Opening the door, she saw a timid gamer pony standing on the porch. “Oh, good morning Micro Chips, what can I do for you?” she asked in her usual kindhearted tone.
Micro smiled and showed her the tools in his saddlebags just as he had done with Twilight. “Morning Fluttershy, I'm here to fix your heater for you. May I come in?”
With a bit of confusion, the butter yellow pony moved aside and let him in. “Oh, I see. Forgive me for saying so, I mean you no offence, but doesn't Java usually handle the house calls? I mean, I'm sure you're capable but it's kind of a surprise.”
Micro smiled as Fluttershy addressed her concern, dancing her words around in a considerate waltz as she tried to avoid hurting the tan pony's feelings. “I know, but Java's sick today, so I've taken over. Don't worry, I'm just as capable as Java.”
Fluttershy nodded, leading him over to the heater. “Well, I hope Java is going to be alright.” she told him as he removed the front panel.
He was already deep into his work as he looked around the internal wiring. “I'm sure he'll be fine, it's just a cold.”
Fluttershy nodded as she watched Micro at work, the caring gears in her mind beginning to turn.
-------------------------------
As the morning wore on, Java began to feel better and got out of bed. As he made his way downstairs, head still spinning a bit, he got himself something to eat and relaxed in the living room. Just before he could start enjoying his daffodil sandwich, a knock came at the door. He sighed, trying to decide between the door and his snack. As the second set of knocks came to the door, he set his hunger aside and got up to answer the door. Twilight Sparkle was standing in the doorway, carrying fully packed bags across her back. “Good morning Java,” she began, “I heard you were feeling a bit under the weather, so I thought I'd come by and help. Look, I brought by a book on the subject of colds.”
She levitated a book from her left saddlebag, holding it in front of him. The title on the front read, “Colds, Congestion, and Contagions: A Complete Guide to Common Winter Sickness.” Java shook his head, a bit irritated that Micro had let word slip to the know-it-all unicorn. “It has more than a hundred common sicknesses and cures for all of them. I brought everything we'll need, so all we'll have to do is try them until you start feeling better.”
Twilight stepped in while she read the book, looking it over and beginning to analyze her “patient.” The turquoise pony sighed and shut the door to keep the cold out, following the purple magician. “I appreciate the help Twilight, but really I'm feeling-”
His words fell on deaf ears, his guest was way too into her work for anypony to get to her at the moment. She read parts of her book aloud as she unloaded a group of seemingly random items onto the table. “Now, let's get started.”
-------------------------------
Micro's spirit had lowered since he began that morning. He wasn't aware of just how much work the house calls were. Aside from the work itself, the endless walking was enough to make anypony tired. Now Micro found himself working on Rarity's spinning platform. The boutique's spinning platform had been there since it's start, and from the looks of the inside, that was the last time it saw maintenance. Amongst the frayed wires, electrical panels, and even the internal battery, it was a wonder the entire thing hadn't burst to flames. Rarity and Sweetie Belle were watching as Micro worked, keeping a close eye on his work. “So Java is out sick?” Rarity asked him. “The poor dear, I bet he's feeling just awful. Well it's a good thing he has such a responsible and mature brother like you to take his place Micro, I'm sure you'll do a wonderful job.”
Sweetie Belle looked up at her sister, feeling a bit useless. “I bet I could've fixed it.”
“Don't be silly Sweetie Belle,” she told the young filly, “You're far too young to deal with such intricate electronics.”
Sweetie Belle couldn't help but feel bad as she stared down at the floor, drawing circles with her hoof. Micro looked over and smiled softly. Walking over, he led her back toward the maintenance panel. “Actually, I could use your help.” he told her, watching her face light up. “Do you see that copper wire at the back there? I can't reach it, I need your small hooves to pull it out for me. Can you do that Sweetie Belle?”
With an excited nod she got to work reaching in and feeling around for the wire. Rarity shook her head and let out a sigh. “I really wish you wouldn't encourage her, it'll only put bad ideas in her head.”
Micro smiled, looking around for a replacement wire. “Why not? If Java hadn't encouraged me, I don't think I'd have ever found my cutie mark. But I found it because he pushed me forward, that's what you're supposed to do.”
Rarity was surprised for a minute at the young colt's statement, and a bright and admiring smile couldn't keep itself from appearing on her face. With the final wire in place, Micro flipped the switch and the platform came to life once again. “My my Micro, you are quite wise beyond your years.”
Micro blushed and smiled, packing up his tools and heading for the door. “Thanks a lot Rarity, I'll tell Java you told him get well soon.”
With that, he left toward the next job, leaving behind a smiling Rarity, and an excited Sweetie Belle.
-------------------------------
Java took in a deep breath before blowing out the last of the aromatherapy candles Twilight had brought with her. It had taken a while, but the colt was able to bring the violet unicorn out of her trance and convince her he was fine. With all the candles out, Java returned to his sandwich. As he prepared to take a bite, another knock came to the door. With a sigh, the programmer pony got up once again and went over to the door. Waiting there was Fluttershy, carrying a thermos in her mouth. Java invited her in and she put down the thermos, sounding a bit timid and cold. “Um...hello Java. I heard you were under the weather and I figured you could use some nice, warm soup. I made it myself.”
Java smiled, enjoying the sound of soup over his cold sandwich. “Alright, thanks Fluttershy. Hold on, I'll get a bowl.”
Fluttershy nodded and took a quick look around as she waited for Java. When he returned, she opened the thermos and emptied the contents into the bowl. The soup looked absolutely delicious as it rippled in the bowl, Java's mouth nearly watering as he stared down at the warm soup, breathing in the sweet scent carried on the steam coming off it. As he began sipping it, his look of delight turned to disgust as he swallowed. “Um Fluttershy, what kind of soup is it?”
Fluttershy looked a bit nervous as she looked away timidly. “Oh well...um...It's my special blend that I give to the sick critters I take care of. When Twilight was over and saw it she said it looked delicious, I'm sorry if you don't like it.”
Java sighed as he saw the upset looks on the pegasus' face. “No, not at all. It's delicious.” he told her, sipping more of the soup.
Fluttershy smiled and watched him drink it. “Really? Well enjoy it, there's enough for three more bowls. Maybe I should have made more.”
Java couldn't help but let out a quiet groan as he kept drinking the soup, not wanting to upset his timid yellow friend.
-------------------------------
As the day wore on into mid afternoon, Micro found himself at Sugarcube Corner. The famous sweets store had been closed after the cocoa machines broke down. In the winter, Sugarcube Cocoa was one of the most popular and asked for beverages. Without it on the menu, winter sales had dropped exponentially in just a single day. Mrs. Cake watched as Micro worked on repairing the machines, working carefully. “I can't thank you enough Micro, you're such a sweet young colt coming out here on such a cold day to fix our machines.”
Micro smiled, a peppy Pinkie Pie watching him closely while she bantered on about what she thought the inside of cocoa machines looked like. “It's no problem Mrs. Cake. If Java weren't sick today he would be out here doing it.”
The baker mare nodded, smiling as she watched him. “And then after the little pixies squeezed all the chocolate out of those tiny chocolate powder crystals, it'd go up this winding tube like a reverse slide and....” Pinkie pulled herself out of her own rant as she processed the conversation going on around her. “Wait, Java's sick? Oh no, he could use some Pinkie hospitality, that'll clear his sinuses right up!”
Without waiting for a response from anypony, she hopped her way out of Sugarcube Corner, making his way toward the Chips' house. “Oh dear, should we stop her?” Mrs. Cake asked.
Micro chuckled a bit, closing the back of the screen. “Nah, just let Pinkie be Pinkie. Java's probably over his cold by now anyway.”
-------------------------------
After four bowls of Fluttershy's soup for sick critters, Java was ready for some pony food. He once again sat down at the couch, ready to eat, when the door was knocked on once again. With an angry groan, he got up once again to see who was at the door. When he opened the door, Rarity was waiting there, and she didn't look happy. “Java Chips what, pray tell, are you doing answering the door in your condition?”
Java looked at her confused. “What? But I....you...what?”
Rarity pushed him toward the stairs. “Come on, get going. Your brother is working very hard for you today, the least you can do is get your rest and try and improve your condition.”
Java shook his head. “Rarity I'm fine, will you relax. I don't have a fever, I'm breathing fine, I'm over my cold, alright?”
Rarity sighed and shook her head. “I suppose. My apologies Java but poor Micro is working so hard I just had to make sure you were doing your part.”
Java nodded and walked toward the door. “Your ability to see beyond people's faces never ceases to surprise me Rarity. Thanks for worrying, but I'm just-”
Suddenly, the front door slammed into Java, knocking him into the wall. Pinkie Pie hopped a couple steps in, smiling. “Hiya Rarity,” Pinkie said, waving a hoof, “You might wanna be careful, I just had a floppy ears, eye flutter, knee twitch combo. Watch the door on your way out.”
“Oh, I don't think that'll be an issue dear.” she told her, pointing to the door as it swung back, a flattened Java against the wall.
“Oh hi there Java, I heard you were feeling under the weather, so I decided I'd come by and give you some of Pinkie's patented cold curing playfulness!”
Java groaned as he fell from the wall and tried to get to his senses. As he was getting up, another knock came to the door. Pinkie answered and saw Fluttershy standing there. “O-oh, hello Pinkie Pie. Is Java still here? I brought him more soup.”
Before Java could answer, another pony came to the door, a book in front of her as she was walking. “Alright Java, I think I've figured out which of the common household sicknesses you have. Now, I'll require some-”
“Enough!” Java screamed, standing up. “Everypony stop, I'm fine! I've been fine! The only thing not gone is my headache, and that's only because everypony keeps coming by to see if I'm okay! Well I am! So please, just leave!”
The four girls hung their heads, feeling a bit guilty as they shuffled out one by one. As he stared at their backs walking away, he began to regret his own words. Shutting the door, he returned to the couch. The sandwich he had made that morning still sat on the plate. Leaning his head down, he finally took the first bite of the sandwich. It was stale.
-------------------------------
Micro got home as the sun was going down, tired from a long day of work. Java smiled as he saw his brother step in the door. “Hi, how're you feeling?”
Micro looked up and smiled. “Shouldn't I be asking you that?”
Java shrugged and patted the couch next to him, offering his brother a seat. Micro happily accepted, laying down on the soft cushion. Before he could get comfortable though, a knock came from the door. Micro got up and answered it, while Java sat back on the couch. As Micro returned, he brought four guilty ponies with him. The four looked over at Java, and he looked back, staying silent for some time. Finally, they all spoke at once, “I'm sorry.”
breaking the silence with an even chorus, the six sitting there couldn't help but laugh. “Really, I'm sorry. I overreacted, you guys were just trying to help.”
Twilight shook her head, smiling. “No, it's our fault, we overdid it.”
“We forced our own methods upon you.” Fluttershy added.
“We were blinded by our own belief that we were helping.” Rarity continued.
“And we took it way way WAY too far.” Pinkie finished.
Java nodded, laying back against the back of the couch. “I guess we all made mistakes. Well, I guess this'll make a good letter to the princess, won't it Twilight?”
Twilight smiled and nodded, shutting her eyes as she recited the would-be letter, “Dear Princess Celestia, today I learned that you need to be careful about helping a friend, even if you have good intentions at heart. Just because you think you're doing what's right, doesn't mean you aren't overdoing it, and that can lead to arguments you'll both regret. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.”
Java nodded, smiling. “Well said. As long as you're here, how about a round of cocoa?”
The entire group gave enthusiastic agreements, and soon they were once again enjoying each other's company. The tense air had lifted, and made way for kind spirits, a group of friends, a round of cocoa, and a friendship repaired. |
JavaChips | 592 | 7 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-09-11T03:11:23+00:00 | 2011-09-11T03:11:23+00:00 | 1,264 | Java sighed as he stood atop the platform of Carousel Boutique, his legs tense and tired from having stood for so long. Rarity circled him left and right, inspecting the work she had already done on the programmer pony. He was wearing a layer of deep green silk as the fashionista started sewing up the seams carefully, though her work was impeded by the impatient colt's slight movements. “Java you simply must hold still or I might miss a stitch. Honestly I've had little fillies in here that didn't fidget as much as you do.”
“Yeah well, I was never one to sit still for more than an hour.” he told her. “Tell me again why you can't just use one of the mannequins?”
His impatience won him a quick glare from the mare's aqua eyes, which she quickly shrugged off as she continued to work. “As I told you before I don't get many colts in my store, and of the mannequins I have, your body type I do not. Perhaps if you were a bit more burly like Big Macintosh I would have one for you.”
The teal colt sighed once again. Already he had been standing there for two hours as Rarity had taken her time choosing the proper fabric, proper color, and formed a design in her head. He was beginning to regret coming to her at all, but did his best to endure, recalling the morning's surprise that had brought him there in the first place.
&&&&&&&&&
Java got up as he usually did, two hours after his alarm. It was a bright spring morning as he made his way downstairs. Micro had already left for school, no doubt with Clickspring at his side. Preparing a brew of coffee, he went out and got the mail. Aside from some letters from the usual places – friends from Fillydelphia, Mom, a couple of bills – one letter stuck out amongst the group. The envelope was lined at the rims with gold colored material, and on the point, the royal family's wax seal. Setting the rest of the mail aside for a second, he opened the envelope carefully. Taking out the letter, he set it down and began reading.
Dear Java Chips,
For your efforts in the removal of the Canis Minor and assistance in protecting Equestria, you are cordially invited to an awards ceremony in your honor at the royal castle in Canterlot, followed by a four course dinner and formal dance. We look forward to playing host to you and the other heroes of Ponyville and that you enjoy your stay in Canterlot.
Sincerely,
Chief Advisor of Astral Beasts and Royal Lunar Apprentice,
Morning Star
Java smiled as he read the final line, remembering the old friend and the exciting adventure they had. “Well, I guess I'm going to need a suit for this awards ceremony.” he said with a sigh. “And that means...”
&&&&&&&&&
Looking himself over in the mirror, Java had to admit that Rarity had a knack for bringing out a pony's personality in their attire. His suit was a deep green with lines built of gold thread branching out from each other across the suit, meeting with the circles of gold thread on the rims of the suit's fabric. The buttons and cufflinks were small black rectangles with the same gold lining across the edges.. In truth, he looked like a large, walking motherboard. “Wow Rarity, you really know your way around a sewing kit, thanks. I'll bring Micro over after school and you can take care of his.”
Rarity nodded, looking over the suit for herself to make sure she didn't miss anything. “Think nothing of it Java, I just knew you would love it. I'll see to it that Micro's is just as good.”
Java nodded, taking off the suit. He handed over some bits and left the suit with Rarity for safe keeping. Making his way home, he heard a loud crash from the library, and could only guess what was going on. With a knock, the door opened, revealing a frazzled Twilight Sparkle, rubbing a bruise on her head. “Afternoon Twi, are you alright?”
Twilight smiled and nodded. “Yeah, just packing for the trip.”
“You know the train won't be here until tomorrow right?”
The unicorn nodded, blushing. “Right...I guess I'm jumping the gun a little bit.”
Java nodded back. “Just try not to get yourself killed packing alright?”
She nodded and waved goodbye as he went on his way. Looking back inside, she began cleaning up the mess she had made. The last thing she did before she went back to work in the library was take a moment to read the letter again.
&&&&&&&&&
Micro smiled, looking at his new suit in the mirror. “Wow Rarity, you're amazing.” he told the designer pony.
Rarity smiled and patted the colt on the head, looking over the final details. “Thank you Micro, it's always a pleasure to help out such a sweet guy like you.”
The entire ensemble was a dark purple that matched his mane. Three white streaks made their way upward from the bottom of the back. The center line went straight up to the collar, while the outer ones curved down the sleeves to the ends. His cufflinks were a pair of golden triangles, glistening in the light of the room. The four buttons on the front were all the same round black buttons, but each had their own design on them. Going from the top down, there was a triangle, a circle, a square, and at the bottom was an x. The final point of interest was the tie. Rarity had opted for a bolo tie, as opposed to a traditional tie, claiming it “Would bring the whole outfit together and look adorable.” The clip on the tie was a red M. Micro smiled as he looked it over as a whole. “It's just perfect for me, how much is it going to cost?” he asked, looking at Java's reflection behind him.
Rarity smiled and shook her head at the worried young colt. “Oh, you were such a well behaved pony, I don't think I could possibly charge you. It's on the house this time.”
Micro blushed a bit with a sheepish smile and nodded. “Thanks, that's really nice of you.”
She nodded and helped him out of the suit, putting it away with the others for travel. Rarity waved goodbye to the two brothers as they walked home to finish packing.
&&&&&&&&&
The Canterlot train station was much busier than that of the small town of Ponyville, but a white unicorn colt had somehow found his way through the crowd to the boarding platform, where he waited with a pair of guards for the Ponyville train to arrive. It was running late, no doubt a scheduling error, but in the distance Morning Star could see and hear the galloping stallions that pulled the train along. As it came to a stop in front of the boarding platform and the doors opened, a group of ponies made their way out. Morning Star waved a hoof in the air to get their attention. “Twilight!” he called out.
Twilight looked over and saw him, her face lighting up. She ran over quickly and wrapped him into a hug, which he happily returned. “Star! It's so good to see you again.” she told him as the rest of the group joined the two.
Breaking from the hug, he looked across at the group and went up to shake hooves with each of them. As he reached the end, he shook the hoof of the first of the two colts. “Java Chips,” he said with a grin, “How have you been? Gallop through a snake pit recently?”
Java chuckled and shook his head. “No, just same old boring life.”
Star gave a bit of a laugh back, looking over and taking notice of the tan colt that was up against his brother, trying to hide. “Ah, you must be young Micro Chips.” he said, leaning his head over to see. “I'm Morning Star. Sorry that we didn't get to meet last time I was in town.”
Micro adjusted the glasses on his face, reaching out to shake the kind unicorn's hoof. “Nice to meet you....” he said quietly.
With the greetings out of the way and the guards carrying the luggage, Morning Star began leading the group toward their residency during their stay. “You are all going to love the observatory.” he told them. “It's a giant building, you'll each have your own room. And the view at night is just wonderful, Princess Celestia has built it to see past the cloud cover and have a perfect view of the night sky every night. It's a very helpful spell.”
Twilight nodded, following closely behind the astronomer. “I remember stopping by when I used to live here, it was always a lovely sight to see which constellations would show themselves.”
The two shared a nostalgic smile while the rest followed behind. It didn't take long to get to the observatory. It was a magnificently tall building, a rounded roof with an observation deck at the top. Stepping inside, it was almost unbelievable how large it was inside. Everyone was in awe at the sheer size of the building, all except for Pinkie, who was already hopping around happily chanting “Big big! It's so big!” at the top of her lungs.
The two guards were already on their way to unpack the group's belongings, their rooms had been prepared in advance. Morning Star made his way to the center of the main room, taking in a deep breath. “Astra!” he called out loudly.
From the many halls of the building a loud but delicate bird call could be heard. Flying in from the left, a winged astral beast flew through, doing circles as it descended to perch itself on the flank of it's owner. It was a large bird, though noticeably smaller than a pheonix. “Everyone,” Star began, “This is my assistant Astra. She's an Apus, the bird of paradise constellation. A gift from Princess Luna upon becoming her apprentice.”
Everyone looked in awe at the bird, circling the astronomer unicorn to gaze at the sheer beauty of the bird. “What's that necklace for?” Micro asked, pointing out the deep blue jewel wrapped around it's neck.
Star smiled and turned to face Micro. “Excellent question Micro. The necklace was also specially made by the princess. It's called a lunar ruby, a gem that makes astral beasts appear during the daylight hours. This way Astra can help me during the day.”
Micro nodded, still staring at the bird. Star smiled and turned to speak to his assistant. “Astra, please inform the princess that our guests have arrived unharmed and in one piece.”
With another call from the bird, it took to the sky and flew out a nearby open window. Everyone watched in awe as the bird left, a single starry feather floating gracefully to the ground. Morning Star smiled and began trotting toward the nearby staircase. “I'm sure you're all tired, come with me and I'll show you to your rooms. The ceremony is still two days away, but I'm sure you'll want to be well rested before you explore Canterlot.”
The group was in agreement on that statement as they followed the Canterlot native up the stairs and to their individual rooms, getting some well deserved rest.
&&&&&&&&&
Twilight rolled back and forth in her bed, having trouble sleeping. After tossing and turning for what felt like hours, she picked herself up and stepped out of her room. Working on memory alone, she made her way toward the observation deck at the top of the building. As she walked through the door, she spotted a familiar white unicorn, staring up at the midnight sky. “Your insomnia acting up again?” she asked with a smile, sitting down next to him.
He couldn't help but gasp as he heard the magician's voice, but calmed and smiled when he saw her. “You know me all too well Twilight. It can be hard sometimes, but at least it means I can stare up at the night sky.”
She nodded back, staring up at the sky as she reminisced. “Yeah, I remember the first night I found out. You were so embarrassed about it for some reason.”
“Yeah, I just didn't think anypony would understand, but you were really understanding about it. Thank you.”
Twilight blushed, looking down at the ground for a moment, rubbing the back of her head. “Yeah...hey I have an idea.” she said, raising her head. “How about we play that game we used to play when you stayed up late.”
Star looked over and shook his head. “I don't want you to lose sleep over me.”
The violet unicorn poked his nose teasingly, a smile on her face. “I'm not sleeping too well either tonight, so it's no big deal. Now come on you big chicken, you go first.”
With a chuckle, he smirked and stared up at the night sky, scanning it carefully as he spotted what he was looking for. “Leo.” he said aloud.
Twilight smiled and looked up, searching around the skies. “Ursa Major.”
“Coma Berenices.”
“Canes Venatici.”
“Virgo.”
The two went back and forth for a long time, naming every constellation and star they could spot. Finally, as they were running out of names, Twilight began to blank and kept looking to the sky for some answer. “Umm....Cancer?” she said with uncertainty.
Morning Star smiled, shaking his head. “Sorry, I said Cancer right after you said Antilla. I win.”
Twilight smiled, yawning softly as she rested her head on Star's shoulder. “Yeah, I guess you do.”
For a while, the two just stared up at the sky, watching the moon arc it's way across the sky. Twilight looked over nonchalantly at the astronomer sitting next to her and couldn't help but blush. “Hey Star, I umm....I think....”
“I know.” he told her, smiling. “You know your constellations, but when it comes to poker faces, I'm afraid you're out of luck.”
Twilight blushed, staring up at the moon, it's crescent shining down on the two. “Well...I guess I should go get some sleep.”
Star nodded and got up, walking with her back inside.
&&&&&&&&&
As the sun rose the next day, everypony went their separate ways to explore the large city of Canterlot, a city with something for everypony. Java made his way through a large business district, looking around at the shops. Overall there was a general disinterest in the market. There was the occassional electronics shop or video game arcade that caught his eye, but not much. Until, however, he caught sight of a computer shop. The sign above read “Alpha Computers.” Java decided to try his luck and stepped in, taking a look around at the electronics around him. Overall he was disappointed with the collection of products. It seemed that all that filled the shelves were factory direct models, no special customization included. His eyes caught sight of one computer that sat behind the front desk. As he approached it, he could see from the chrome casing that it wasn't from any common computer company. “Hey there,” came a disembodied voice, “Interested in a computer?”
Java looked away from the computer toward the voice and saw a unicorn wearing stylish glasses step out from behind a bead door. Her coat was a deep forest green, her mane a greyish silver. Her flank bore a cutie mark of a keyboard, which bounced back and forth as she made her way toward the programmer pony. Java shook himself out of his trance and smiled, shaking his head. “Well I wouldn't say I'd want one of those pedestrian models, but this one certainly caught my eye.”
The computer pony smirked and turned to her computer, tapping the tower lightly. “I'm afraid you'll have to look and not touch. I made this computer from scratch, the best of the best.”
Java gave her a challenging look, smiling. “Oh really? Does it have an Intel Core i5 processor?”
The owner shook her head back, smirking at the challenge. “As if, try i7.”
“A twenty inch screen?”
“Perfect for both business and pleasure.”
“How many gigs of RAM?”
“I managed to fit ten in there, would have fit more but didn't want to overload the poor girl.”
“And what kind of video card?”
“Can't say. A lady has to keep some secrets.” she retorted once again, this time with a wink.
Java smiled and settled his hooves up on the counter, interested by the intelligent mare across the desk from him. “Well then how about your name?”
“Alpha, Alpha Tester.” she told him. “And you?”
“Java Chips.”
Alpha smiled, adjusting her glasses. “Oh yeah, you're that colt from Ponyville who helped stop those Canis Minor. Nice job dude.”
Java smirked, rubbing the back of his head. “Well it was nothing really, all I did was set up the sound field, calibrate the deafening tone, and rush into a cage of the beasts to turn it on. No big deal.”
“Oh really? Well you're right, that doesn't sound so bad.” she said, playing along. “Can't wait to see you at the ceremony.”
Java nodded, smiling. “Yeah, can't wait to see you there either.”
&&&&&&&&&
Micro made his way through what was quite easily his favorite area of Canterlot, the Gaming District. There were shops for everything from console modding to classic gaming. Finally, he came upon the building he had been waiting all his life to see. Standing tall in front of him was Thunderhoof Arena, the largest video game tournament building in all of Equestria. Every day it held more than thirty different kinds of tournaments, open every hour of every day to meet the popular demand. Looking up at it, Micro was feeling very timid about entering. Finally, he worked up the courage and stepped inside.
The entire building was packed with colts and fillies, either watching or participating in hundreds of games. His attention was caught toward a group crowded around a pair of flashing monitors. Two ponies were playing Trot Trot Revolution. Micro made his way to the front of the crowd and looked up at the two ponies who were playing. He came in just as the game winded down, the final scores being displayed. Of the two, it was the goldenrod filly with a controller cutie mark who won. With a smirk and a brush of her sweaty white mane, she turned to the colt, who was working to catch his breath. “Was that supposed to be challenging?” she taunted, a cruel smirk on her face. “What kind of pony dances like that? Maybe you should stick to your little puzzle games and leave the trotting to the real gamers.”
As the colt shamefully left the stage, Micro came to glare on the filly. If there was one thing he hated more than a sore loser, it was a boastful winner. The filly turned to the crowd and looked amongst them. “Come on, isn't there anypony out there who can put up a fight against Feather Step?”
Micro stepped forward, a determined look on his face as he stepped up to the other platform. “I'll take you on. I'm Micro Chips.”
Feather smirked and turned to face the screen, sliding her hoof down as she chose the song. “Fine Micro Chump, I'll give you a flank kicking if you want it so badly.”
Micro said nothing as they set up their own difficulty levels, both of them going with the highest setting. As the song began, both ponies kept their hooves in synch with the arrows on the screen. One would think that a timid pony like Micro would be no good in a crowd scene, but his incredible ability to immerse himself into a game allowed him to block out the cheering and jaunting of the crowd and keep his focus, watching the arrows carefully. The song continued on, sinking into it's final chorus. Feather Step was getting tired, but refused to give in to this new pony on the block. Her steps got sloppy as she started to miss steps. By the end, though close, Micro turned out to be the winner. Feather glared over at Micro, her breathing heavy. As Micro turned to face her, she prepared for whatever snide comment her opponent would make. But it never came. “Good Game.” was all Micro said, a smile on his face.
Feather looked surprised, a slight blush across her face as she watched her opponent disappear into the crowd, on his way to investigate the rest of the building. “Good....game?”
&&&&&&&&&
Today had been a very tiring day for everypony from Ponyville. Applejack had spent her day at the Canterlot Apple Cider plant, Fluttershy got the chance to once again peruse the royal garden, Rarity had shopped herself silly across the various Canterlot boutiques, Rainbow Dash visited the Wonderbolts exhibit at the museum, and Twilight took it upon herself to visit the library she once called home. As for Pinkie Pie, nopony was really sure. She was the last to return to the observatory, wearing clown pants, rabbit ears, a fake moustache, and a kazoo in her mouth. As usual, everypony knew it was better not to question it and just shrug it off. Everypony had a lot to think about that night as they tiredly made their way to their rooms, thoughts of the day gone by and the day ahead of them.
&&&&&&&&&
As everypony in Canterlot came together in the royal courtyard for the awards ceremony, the honored guests made their way onto the stage, each wearing their own personal style. Micro watched from his special seat in front, looking over the group. Java wore his motherboard suit, and the six mares had on their gala dresses. Morning Star's suit was not unlike Twilight's dress, a tribute to the shining night sky. It was a deep blue fabric with a series of stars stitched in. As the trumpets roared, the two alicorn princesses of Equestria flew down to land in front of the brave heroes. Celestia stepped forward and smiled. “Well, it looks like a bunch of familiar faces.” she said as she looked down the line.
As her eyes caught Java on the end, she could see that the unfamiliar pony was a bit nervous and awe struck before the regal alicorn. “Well you're a new face, what might your name be my little pony?”
Java swallowed his nerves and spoke up, coughing to clear his throat. “J-Java Chips, your majesty.”
Celestia giggled, used to the royal treatment from ponies, but still entertained by their formal speech. “Well it's nice to meet you Java Chips, any friend of Twilight's is a friend of mine.”
Celestia nodded over to Luna, who was standing next to a guard carrying the medals. Luna nodded back, and Celestia turned to the crowd. “Fillies and Gentlecolts,” she began, “It is my great pleasure to present the brave ponies who faced the pack of Canis Minor without a second thought, showing determination in their goal to protect the Equestrian capital. It is our great honor to award these brave ponies with Equestria's highest honor for courage, the golden feather.”
At that cue, Luna picked up the first medal and made her way toward Morning Star, the first one in line. The guard pony followed behind her with the rest of the medals, each shaped like a feather. “We now award you, brave ponies of Equestria, with this prestigious award.” she continued. “So we thank you, Morning Star, Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Java Chips.”
As she named the ponies one by one, Luna awarded them with their medals. Each pony bowed to accept, admiring the golden medal that hung around their necks.
&&&&&&&&&
Following the awards ceremony, everypony made their way inside to the dining hall. Across the room were tables filled with a variety of conversations. At the head table sat the two alicorn princesses and the awarded heroes. The group watched as Pinkie Pie regaled the princesses with the story of how they had come to beat the Canis Minors. “And then Java was all, 'Pinkie Pie hop on my back!' And I was like, 'Okay!' And then-”
Celestia set a gentle hoof upon the party pony's mouth, a bit overwhelmed by her talkative nature. “That's....that's quite alright Miss Pie, I already received the report detailing the capture. Thank you though. So, Java and Micro Chips correct? Twilight hasn't shared much in her letters about you.”
Java smiled over at the curious alicorn, a smile on his face. “Well, your highness, we're fairly new to Ponyville. We only arrived in the town this past summer.”
The second course, soup, came as they talked, Celestia's interest unwavered. “I see, where were you living prior to Ponyville?”
“In Fillydelphia your highness.”
“Oh, is that so? I've heard good things about Fillydelphia, why move?”
“Well, as you probably know, Fillydelphia is a major electronics town in Equestria, so there are quite a lot of repair shops there. We moved to Ponyville for the increase in business.”
Celestia smiled and took soft sips of her soup as she conversed, leaning her head over to catch a sight at the timid brown colt next to the programmer pony. “And how about you Micro, how are you liking Ponyville?”
With a bit of a blush and a short silence, he tried his best to face the princess, though finding eye contract difficult, and began to speak. “It's....it's very nice your highness. Everypony there is very nice.”
The alicorn smiled at the timid pony, feeling a bit of concern for his closed off attitude. “You know, you may call me Princess Celestia if you wish, 'your highness' is far too formal for my tastes.”
Micro looked up and saw the reassuring smile on her face, allowing him to bring out a small smile of his own in front of the kind royalty. “Alright, Princess Celestia.”
Much beyond that was simply small talk, passing the time between courses until the final course, dessert, had been finished. The servants of the castle were quick to move the tables away from the center of the room, the dance floor prepared. Many of the colts and mares had come with dates, ready to dance as the floor was cleared. Most that didn't stood near the walls, watching awkwardly as others enjoyed the night. Micro was one, shying away from the dance floor as he felt a tap on his shoulder. Turning, he saw a slightly familiar face giving him a blushing glare as she stood in her dress. “F...Feather Step?” he asked.
Her hair had been styled for the night, but Micro could tell from the face it was the same TTR pony he had met before. She nodded, her dress swaying a bit. “Look, my parents told me to dance,” she began, scoffing, “And you're the only colt here who won't make me look like a foal, so dance with me okay?”
She held out an embarrassed hoof. Micro stared at it for a moment, a bit surprised and a bit embarrassed himself. He smiled and took her hoof gently, giving a blushing smile. “Alright.”
As they made their way onto the floor, Feather tried her best to avoid eye contact, not used to being the follower and not the leader. “You better not make me look bad.”
&&&&&&&&&
Java stood across the room, smiling as he saw Micro out on the dance floor, leading a girl. “He's come a long way.” he said to himself, looking back on the brother who had hidden behind him so many times.
“Hey there handsome.” came a voice from behind him.
Turning around, he saw Alpha Tester, wearing a very lovely dress. A hairband held her hair back, the glasses sitting comfortably on her face. Her dress was a lovely angelic white, sparkling in the light of the room. Java was at a loss for words as he beheld the lovely unicorn. Alpha couldn't help but giggle at the colt's wide eyed expression. “I told you that I'd see you at the ceremony, didn't I?”
Java swallowed in some air, getting back to his senses once again as a blush went across his face. “Y-yeah, you did. You look lovely.”
Alpha took a moment to turn and blush, a giggle underneath her breath. “Thanks,” she said, brushing some loose hair back as she turned to face him again. “Now, isn't there something you want to ask me?”
Java thought for a moment. “Oh um....uh right.” he realized, holding out a hoof. “Miss Alpha Tester, may I have this dance?”
The hardware unicorn couldn't help but giggle again at the awkward turqoise colt, resting her hoof on top of his. “Mr. Java Chips, it would be an honor.” she told him teasingly as they walked onto the dance floor.
&&&&&&&&&
Morning Star had found himself dancing with Princess Luna, following step by step with her movements. Though his hooves were in tune with Luna, his mind was somewhere else as he took every opportunity to gaze off into the distance. As they danced, Luna noticed his mind was not all with him. “Something troubling you, my apprentice?” she asked.
He regained his awareness as she asked, turning back to the princess. “Not at all princess, I'm fine.”
Luna followed his former gaze and saw the lonely Twilight Sparkle off to the side, and put the pieces together. “I see.”
&&&&&&&&&
Twilight leaned against the wall, watching the dance floor enviously. All of her friends had found themselves a colt or mare to dance with, all except for her. There was only one pony she wanted to dance with. “Excuse me young lady, might I have this dance?”
Turning, she saw Morning Star standing there, a smile on his face and his hoof held out. Her face lit up as she stepped forward. “What about Princess Luna?” she asked.
He shook his head in response, keeping his hoof held out. “She said she was feeling tired and left the party early. So I ask again, may I have this dance?”
Twilight smiled, making a mental note to thank the 'tired' Luna later as she put her hoof on his. “It would be a pleasure.”
The two stepped out onto the floor, joining their friends as they danced with them. The dancing wore on late into the night, as ponies began leaving. Finally, only two ponies were left dancing underneath the skylight of the room, the music in their heads guiding their beats, their unicorn horns crossed.
Morning Star is the original creation of Tried and True of Fanfiction.net (http://www.fanfiction.net/u/3127435/Tried_and_True)
can you name all four video game references in Micro Chips' suit? |
JavaChips | 592 | 8 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-09T11:54:17+00:00 | 2011-10-09T11:54:17+00:00 | 1,349 | Warning: this chapter may contain spoilers from episodes 1 and 2 of MLP: FIM season 2. I urge you to watch the episodes before taking a look at this chapter, for your own good.
vvvvvvvvvvvv
The streets of Ponyville were in disarray following the assault from Discord. Everypony was busy with different jobs about town. Rainbow Dash had her weather team clearing out the remnants of cotton candy clouds, replacing them with bright, fluffy white ones. Fluttershy, feeling deeply guilty, had been going around town all day, apologizing to everypony she could remember doing wrong to. Applejack had recruited a few ponies to get Sweet Apple Acres back up and running. Rarity had her work cut out for her, put in charge of repairing all of the destroyed furniture and décor from the houses of Ponyville. Pinkie Pie, being her usual Pinkie self, had pulled a group of ponies away from work to help plan what she called a “We saved the world for the second time” party. Java was hard at work with Mr. Woodstock repairing the houses of Ponyville. Currently, they were working on repairing the giant holes in Twilight’s library. “Right, now just move that board for a moment and I’ll reconnect the wire.” Java told Woodstock. “Perfect, now you can set it back in place.”
While they worked, Twilight came upstairs, levitating a tray with glasses of water. Happy to take a break, the two stepped down from the scaffolding where they worked and took a sip, wiping some sweat off their brows. “Man, you really broke up some wires back there. Or, rather, Tom did.”
Twilight blushed a bit with embarrassment, slightly ashamed for letting her frustration get the better of her. “Yeah, I can’t say I’m proud of that one. Thanks for helping me out Java.”
The electronics pony took another sip and shook his head. “Think nothing of it; I’m just doing my job after all.”
She nodded, a soft smile on her face. Looking over the wall, it was nearing completion. Her mind was on the events of the day in question, thoughts swirling about in her head, how she had almost lost everything that had been important to her for the last year. Her thoughts were interrupted as Java spoke up. “So, this is the Element of Magic here on your bed?” he asked.
Twilight turned and saw the curious turquoise pony looking at the golden tiara laying on her bed, a six pointed amethyst star set in it. “That’s right, it’s the Element of Magic, Princess Celestia decided to entrust it with me while she gets things back in order at Canterlot.”
Java looked at it with a bit of awe, interested in the shimmering gem in front of him. “Wow, that’s pretty cool. I wish I had one, it would be cool to help you save the world next time it’s in danger.”
“Well, actually,” she told him, “It just so happens that I’ve been doing some studying into the Elements of Harmony. Were you aware that as well as the hidden Element of Magic, there’s also another, mysterious element that is unaccounted for?”
Java’s face lit up with excitement as he looked over at the magician. “Really?”
“No, that would be unnaturally convenient though wouldn’t it?” she said with a giggle and a teasing tone.
Java seemed unamused with her joke as he got up and back to work, though he couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle as he did.
vvvvvvvvvvvv
Finishing the job at the library, Java made his way toward Sweet Apple Acres, where Applejack needed him to fix some wires that were frayed by a certain red colt while he was going through a “phase.” On his way, he was stopped by a butter yellow mare with a guilty conscience. “There you are Java, I’ve been looking for you. I wanted to apologize for making fun of you for the way Discord made you talk.”
Java looked back on the event, he remembered it well. Discord had cursed him, making his speech raspy, digital, 8bit. While he was trying to find somepony who could understand him, he had run into Fluttershy. Thinking she would be her usual understanding self, he thought she could help, but she just giggled and mocked him before knocking him over as she flew off. “No problem, Fluttershy. You weren’t yourself.” He told her, drawing his attention to her necklace. “Is that the Element of Kindness? Is it safe to be wearing it out in the open like that?”
Fluttershy looked down at her neck and remembered that she was wearing her element. “Oh, um, yes. I’ve been so busy apologizing, I haven’t taken the time to take it off yet.”
He looked over the intricate design of the butterfly gem, smiling. “Well, it looks nice. I was just talking to Twi about hers actually.”
“Oh really? Hers is so nice, I don’t think I could pull off a tiara, it would force my hair down.”
“Yeah, I guess it would. Well, I have to get going, bye Fluttershy.”
With a wave, Java continued down the road, while Fluttershy went on to continue her apologies. It didn’t take very long to make it down the road to Sweet Apple Acres. Waiting at the gate was Applejack, smiling expectantly as he made his way up the road. “Howdy Java,” she said, welcoming him in, “Thanks for making time to fix up the wiring. That brother o’ mine did some major damage to the fields.”
Java nodded, following her to the source of the problem. An important electrical wire had been torn right through, it’s copper was exposed. “Well this doesn’t look like too much of a problem, I just need to patch up the wire.” He told her as he reached his head down to pull the wires out a little further. “You turned off the breaker switch right?”
Applejack’s face contorted a bit with worry. “Breaker switch?” she asked.
Unfortunately, it was too late as Java’s mouth contacted with the wire and electrocuted him, causing him to black out.
vvvvvvvvvvvv
As he began to stir, Java stood up, sitting in an unknown room. Such a feminine shade of pink on the walls, a colt band poster on the adjacent wall, and pictures of family all around, he wasn’t quite sure where he was. Applejack walked in just as he got out of bed. “Java!” she yelled happily, trotting up to the unfortunate colt. “Thank Celestia you’re alright. You are alright, aren’t you?”
Java nodded, brushing his mane out of his eyes. “Well, my mouth is a little dry, but that’s to be expected after a jolt like that.”
“Well, you sure gave this pony a scare, sorry about that sugarcube.”
Java shook his head, smiling. “It’s partly my fault for not checking the breaker first. By the way whose room is this?”
“It’s mine, why?”
He couldn’t help but look a little surprised as he took another look around the room. As he did, Applejack couldn’t help but look a little insulted. “What’s with the look there? A girl can’t have a nice room?”
Java shook his head, a bit embarrassed. “No, it’s not that. I just wasn’t expecting you to have a room like this, sorry.”
“It’s fine I guess, sorry to go off on ya. Anyway, the power’s off now if you still want to fix the wires.”
“Sure, let’s go.” He told her, stretching his legs and walking out.
vvvvvvvvvvvv
Finishing his work at Sweet Apple Acres, and making sure he didn’t sustain any severe damage to his mouth, Java made his way back toward the main part of town, and up to Carousel Boutique. He would be working with Mr. Woodstock again fixing some holes that “Tom” had made inside. As he entered, he found Twilight inside, talking with Rarity. “Oh, hey Twilight.” He said with surprise. “What are you doing here?”
Twilight smiled and trotted past him toward the door. “I was just checking in with Rarity, nothing special. Have a nice day.”
Java was a bit suspicious, but brushed it off and joined Mr. Woodstock to get to work on the walls. “Man, Tom really did a number on this place.” He said, looking around at all the broken doorways.
Rarity looked away with a bit of embarrassment. “Yes, well, it’s not something I’m proud of. Now if we could just forget it ever happened and get these terrible blemishes out of my walls, I’d greatly appreciate it.”
Java nodded and got to work replacing wires and surveying the damage. “Right, your element is generosity, so I guess you’d be pretty embarrassed over the experience huh?”
“Yes, yes I am. Speaking of which Java, Twilight told me she was talking to you about elements earlier, or so she told. You were interested in an element of your own?”
Java looked over, a bit confused about the conversation change. “Yeah, it would be nice to help you guys save the world every now and again.”
Rarity nodded, sewing while she worked, and secretly taking notes, hoping Java didn’t notice her glowing horn secretly writing notes under the table. “I see. Could you tell me, what first brought on these feelings dear? I personally find it to be a bit of a hassle to face such dangers.”
Java thought for a long time, remembering back to the original assault of Nightmare Moon. “When Nightmare Moon appeared in Ponyville, her voice echoed across all of Equestria. We heard everything, including her declaration of eternal night. Through her whole speech, Micro came up close to me, wrapping a hoof around mine. I’ve always seen him timid, but I’ve never seen him that scared in my life. Through the entire endeavor, whenever I looked over and saw his worried face, and my mother’s too, all I could think about was how I couldn’t do anything to help. Those same feelings sprung up again when Discord attacked, and it’s been nipping at me for a while now.”
Rarity’s pencil had fallen halfway through his small speech, completely awe struck by his serious and emotional answer. Breaking out of her trance, she continued writing, making sure to get every detail in. “Well, that’s certainly an amazing story Java, you have a large heart for your brother.”
Java nodded, getting back to work.
vvvvvvvvvvvv
As the sun set in the skies over Ponyville, a tired Java made his way toward home. He had been working hard throughout the entire day, but had managed to finish most of Ponyville’s electrical problems. He was happy to finally be done with the busy day and lay down on his couch. As he entered through the door, he found Twilight and company waiting for him, all of them wearing their elements. “Oh, hi guys,” he said with moderate confusion, “What are you all doing here? And why are you wearing your elements?”
Twilight smiled and walked toward him. “Well we wanted to give you a proper inauguration, it wouldn’t be right if we weren’t.”
Java’s confusion only grew as she led him over to stand in the center of the six. “Inauguration? For what?”
Dash shook her head, letting out a snicker. “Quit ruining it, just shut up and listen alright?”
Java looked around the group, all of them giving him reassuring looks as he turned forward to face Twilight, whose horn was glowing as she held up a necklace with Java’s cutie mark bore in gems. He couldn’t help but look surprised as she set it upon his neck. “Java Chips,” she began, “As the representations of the Elements of Harmony….”
“Honesty,” Applejack said proudly.
“Kindness,” Fluttershy said timidly.
“Laughter,” Pinkie Pie said with a giggle.
“Generosity,” Rarity said dramatically.
“Loyalty,” Rainbow Dash said enthusiastically.
“And magic,” Twilight finished. “We bestow upon you your very own unofficial element, the Element of Family, an element that comes with only one responsibility. Do you promise to abide by your element and honor that which it symbolizes, to take it with pride and responsibility?”
Java looked down at the jewel around his neck, the intricate details embedding themselves in his mind. His heart was filled with hundreds of different emotions trying to sort themselves out. He thought long and hard about the gift his friends had given him, and wiped a tear from his eyes as he nodded. “I accept the Element of Family, and all the responsibilities it holds.”
Twilight nodded, smiling back. “We knew you would.”
As everyone went up to congratulate him for the gift and poke a little good natured fun, the door opened again as Micro entered after his own busy day dealing with some of the easier electronic problems around town. He was surprised to see everyone standing there. “What’s going on?”
Twilight smiled and beckoned the group of mares out, making their way past the confused colt. “Nothing to worry about Micro, nothing at all.”
Java smiled and stepped up to his brother, patting him on the back. “Welcome home bro, busy day?” Micro shook himself out of his confusion and nodded up to his older brother. “Yeah, Discord really tore the place up.”
Java chuckled and nodded, remembering his own difficult experiences. “Yeah, but it’s mostly behind us now. So what do you feel like for dinner? It’s your choice tonight.”
Micro smiled, knowing exactly what he wanted. “Potato leek soup?” he asked hopefully.
Java chuckled and nodded, making his way to the kitchen. His new necklace glinted in the light as Micro took notice. “Hey, what’s that?”
Java stopped for a second and looked down at the necklace, then smiled over at Micro. “It’s nothing, come on let’s eat.”
vvvvvvvvvvvv
As the moon reached the center of the sky, a tired Java made his way into his bedroom. He layed down in bed and set his alarm clock. From the corner of his eye, on a shelf nailed to the wall, his necklace stood, the Element of Family. He gave it a serious look and a soft nod as he shut his eyes. “I promise.” He said in a hushed tone.
My apologies for not updating in a while, my computer faced an unexpected problem and had to go in for repairs. Even now I’m stuck just using my family computer, which severely cuts my computer access time. Even so I’ll do my best to keep up all of my fanfiction writing. |
JavaChips | 592 | 9 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-23T02:34:47+00:00 | 2011-10-23T02:34:47+00:00 | 1,144 | It was a bright, sunny day in Ponyville, spring was slowly turning into summer. Everypony was enjoying the warmth around them, playing under the sun. Over at Silvertongue High, the students were out in the yard, enjoying their lunch. Micro sat at his usual table, his gamecolt in front of him. He was distracted from his game, staring across the yard at a golden yellow unicorn filly, talking with her friends. He didn’t seem to notice as Clickspring sat next to him. “Hi Micro, what are you looking at?” he asked, following his friend’s line of sight. “Opal Tiara? Come on brony, she’d never go out with you.”
Micro sighed, looking down to his gamecolt. “You’re right, it can’t hurt to imagine it though, can it?”
“I guess not, but maybe you should aim a little closer to the ground.”
Micro nodded, delving into his game. He didn’t get very far, though, before he was interrupted by the flapping of wings and a shadow casting itself over him. Looking up, he saw Fluttershy, looking worried. “Micro, you have to come with me immediately.” She told him.
Micro couldn’t help but be a bit confused. “Why? What’s wrong Fluttershy?”
“It’s Java.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java layed in the hospital bed, his back left leg in a makeshift brace. Standing around the bed were Micro, Fluttershy, Rarity, and a very guilt ridden Twilight. “Java I’m so sorry, I should have warned you about the loose nails on that bookshelf.” She told him.
Java shook his head, laying back in the bed. “Hey, it’s no trouble. It was my own fault for trying to climb it. I should’ve just let Spike grab the book for me.”
As they were talking, Nurse Redheart made her way into the room with an x-ray in her mouth. She set it down on a light table and turned to Java. “So Mr. Chips, how are we feeling?”
Java took a look down at his casted hoof. “Well my nose itches.” He told her sarcastically.
Redheart rolled her eyes before turning her attention to the lit x-ray. “Well, it looks like your leg has a fracture, and I’m afraid that your sense of humor died on the operating table. It looks like you’ll be here for a week or so while it heals.”
Java couldn’t help but sit up at the upsetting news. “A week?! I can’t afford to miss a week of work!” he told her.
“Well I’m afraid you don’t have much of a choice, I can’t let you leave on that leg.”
Java sighed, shaking his head. His mind was a pool of frustrations. “Well what about Micro?”
Micro stepped forward. “I can stay by myself.”
Java shook his head. “No you can’t. This isn’t like me being sick in bed, if you’re in trouble I won’t be there to help.”
“He can stay with me.” Twilight told him. “It’s my fault after all.”
Rarity shook her head. “Don’t be silly Twilight. You already have your hooves full with Spike, you simply aren’t prepared to house a young colt like Micro. I’d offer to do it myself, but I’m afraid that Sweetie Belle is a full time responsibility in itself.”
Java sighed, laying back down. “Then who’s going to take care of Micro?”
“Um...I’ll do it.” Came a timid voice.
Everypony in the room was surprised to hear the fourth voice in the room, turning to look at a shy yellow pegasus who had walked in with them. “You Fluttershy? Are you sure?” Java asked.
Fluttershy nodded, taking a careful step forward. “I....I don’t have any siblings, and Angel is easy to take care of. I also have a spare bed so he’ll have somewhere to sleep...S-so maybe I could.” She told them.
Java looked a little concerned. Fluttershy always had that responsible instinct, but was she up to taking care of anything other than animals? “Are you sure Fluttershy? This isn’t the same as nursing a hummingbird back to health.”
Rarity smiled and stepped forward on her friend’s behalf. “Oh she’s quite up to the task I assure you Java. I have never seen Sweetie Belle and her friends more well behaved than when they’re under Fluttershy’s watch.”
“You were able to make the crusaders behave?” he asked, a little shocked.
Fluttershy gave a shy nod, hiding her face behind her hair. Java smiled and nodded. “Alright Fluttershy, if you’re up to it, Micro can stay with you for the week.”
Fluttershy smiled and nodded back to him. “Thank you Java, I promise I'll take care of him like he was my own brother.”
Nurse Redheart made her way up to Java and forced him to lay down. “Yes, well now that that's taken care of, you all need to leave so Mr. Chips can get his rest.”
After saying their goodbyes, the group left and left Java alone with the nurse.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Micro made his way up to Fluttershy's cottage, his saddlebags filled to the brim with belongings. The sun was far across the western skyline, shimmering a brilliant orange as he knocked on the cottage door. There to answer was the yellow pegasus, a welcoming smile on her face. “Welcome, come on in Micro.” she told him, leading him in and toward the stairs. “The bedroom is upstairs, you can go ahead and make yourself at home while I get dinner ready.”
He nodded to her as she left and began unpacking, setting all of his games on an empty shelf, a family photo on the bedside table. All that remained in the bag was his gamecolt, which he set down with his games before going downstairs. As he made his way into the living room, he was met with the wafting aroma of vegetables. The scent came from the kitchen, along with the familiar sounds of a singing pony. It was a song Micro had heard before, one that always put a smile on his face when he heard it. Looking into the kitchen, Fluttershy and Angel were making vegetable soup. “Wow, it tasted delicious.” he told her.
With a surprised gasp, the timid pony turned to her guest and smiled. “Thank you, it's one of my favorites.” she told him, pouring it into bowls before setting it on the table.
Micro hopped up, starting to eat. Making her way over to Angel's plate, she set a couple of carrots down for him before rejoining her guest. The young colt ate the soup hungrily, clearly enjoying the taste. It wasn't long before the night drew to a close, and Micro made his way upstairs to the guest bedroom. He was surprised to see Fluttershy follow him up to tuck him in. “I'm not a kid Fluttershy.” he told her. “I can tuck myself in.”
Fluttershy couldn't help but blush as she remembered she wasn't dealing with somepony as young as the crusaders. “Oh...sorry, I'm used to having younger ponies stay with me.” she told him with an undertone embarrassment.
He smiled at his shy pegasus friend and got comfortable under the covers. “It's alright, it kind of reminds me of how my mom used to tuck me in. Good night Fluttershy.”
“Good night Micro, I'll wake you up in the morning.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java rolled back and forth in his hospital bed. The week was only half over and already he was feeling irritable. All week all he had to do was lay there. For most ponies that would be paradise, but Java was one of those ponies that just couldn't sit still to save his life. Nurse Redheart came in as he was having his fidgeting fit and shook her head. If there was one pony more annoyed with Java's situation than himself, it was Nurse Redheart, who had to continually remind him not to move. “Mr. Chips,” she told him, “I've already told you that you need to sit still or you'll only end up making your injury worse. Do I need to strap you to the bed?”
Java sighed and layed back, staring at the ceiling. “I can't help it. I haven't done anything in four whole days, it's driving me mad! Have you ever layed down for hours on end and done nothing?”
She shot him a glare in response. Being the head nurse had both it's advantages and disadvantages. “Mr. Chips, please just try to behave. You have a visitor.”
Nurse Redheart left as Fluttershy stepped in, carrying a basket in her mouth. “Good morning Java. I brought you some lunch.”
Java sat up and smiled. Everypony had been so nice since he broke his leg, this wasn't the first free lunch he'd gotten this week. Taking a daffodil sandwich out of the basket, she set it in front of him. It didn't take him long to start eating. “Thanks a lot Fluttershy, this is delicious.”
She smiled and sat down nearby, taking out her own sandwich. “No problem, I had some left over from when Micro and Clickspring were over, so I thought I'd bring a couple over.”
He nodded, taking another bite. “How is Micro doing anyway?”
“He's been just wonderful. So well behaved and polite, it's a shame he's so shy or he'd be a very popular colt.”
“Yeah, he's always had a problem with that. He opens up eventually, but most people would rather buy a flower than wait for one to bloom, you know?”
“True, very true. By the way, did you know Micro has a crush?”
“A crush? A crush on who?”
“Opal Tiara, her father runs the jewelry shop in town.”
“Is that so? I started noticing fillies at about the same time.”
“Well, I just hope he doesn't get his heart broken.”
The two talked for a while before Nurse Redheart made her way back in, shooing the yellow pegasus out and getting Java to lay back down for some rest.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Micro sighed as he made his way toward Fluttershy's cottage after school. It was the last day he would be there, and though he was happy to be going back home with his brother, a sadness was weighing on his mind. Against the protests of his friend, he had tried to ask Opal Tiara out. Her words still echoed in his head. You're asking me out? Hah, like, get real, why would I go out with a video game nerd like you? He dragged his hooves inside, where Fluttershy was waiting. Seeing the frown on his face, she immediately got concerned. “What's wrong Micro?”
Micro sighed and sat on the couch, filling her in on the day's events. Fluttershy listened intently and nodded along, her fears recognized. “That's just awful. Don't let her words get to you, you're a sweet young colt. Come on, Java's waiting for you at the hospital. I already packed your saddlebags for you.”
He nodded, slowly making his way toward the stairs. “Thanks Fluttershy.”
As he checked to make sure everything he brought was packed back up, his mind wandered, until it reached back to what Clickspring had said to him earlier in the week. You should aim a little closer to the ground. Fluttershy was waiting at the door for him when he came back down, his packed saddlebags on his back. Walking by her side, they made their way to the Ponyville Hospital. “Hey, Fluttershy.” he said.
Fluttershy looked over, her usual friendly smile on her face. “Yes?”
Micro took an uneasy gulp, a blush on his face. “Would you...like to grab dinner sometime?”
Fluttershy stopped for a moment, concerned about the young colt's question. She took a long pause to thing, not wanting to hurt his feelings. “Well Micro, I'm flattered, and you're a very nice pony, but I'm simply too old for you. You should shoot for someone your own age, alright? Trust me, any filly your age would be lucky to have a sweet guy like you for a coltfriend.”
Micro paused before slowly nodding, continuing to walk. He was feeling a bit upset, but as Fluttershy's words sunk in, he knew she was right.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java smiled as he strolled around his hospital bed, happy to be back on four hooves again. His back leg was still in a cast, but Nurse Redheart deemed it safe to walk on. As he was enjoying his free movement abilities, Micro walked in with Fluttershy. Java smiled and trotted over to the two. “Hey there little bro, how was Fluttershy's?”
Micro smiled. “It was great, I had a lot of fun.”
“That's great to hear. Thanks again Fluttershy, it was nice of you to take Micro in like that.”
Fluttershy smiled, shaking her head. “It was no trouble really, he was an angel.”
Nurse Redheart handed Java a slip of paper, a paper stating he was healthy enough for release. “Just show that to the nurse at the desk on the way out.” she told him.
“Aunt Redheart,” came another voice as a clumsy silvery grey filly made her way in, carrying an IV bag across her back, “I brought the IV you asked for, which room did you need it in again?”
Nurse Redheart sighed as she took the IV bag from her. “I told you I needed this in room seven. If you really want to be a nurse you need to learn to listen Shimmer.”
Shimmer looked down with a bit of disappointment as Nurse Redheart made her way out of the room. Micro blushed as he looked at the filly in front of him. Swallowing some fear, he approached her, holding out a hoof. “H-hello, I'm Micro Chips.”
The young nurse filly was a bit surprised as he approached her, but quickly shrugged it off, smiling at him as she shook his hoof. “Nice to meet you, I'm Shimmering Cure.”
Micro smiled back as he shook her hoof. “I haven't seen you in Ponyville before, are you new?”
She nodded, smiling. “I came here to work on my special talent, medicine. My mom sent me here to learn nursing from Aunt Redheart.”
Micro's face lit up. “Well, I guess that means I'll see you around.”
She nodded in response. For what seemed like forever the two just sat there, smiling at each other. |
JavaChips | 592 | 10 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-11-15T11:53:41+00:00 | 2011-11-15T11:53:41+00:00 | 932 | The sun rose high in the sky over Ponyville, the cool spring air slowly being replaced with a warm summer breeze. Ponies walked the streets, enjoying the warm sun above their heads. High above the town, doing spins and loops in the air, was Rainbow Dash, making her way through town. Speeding across the sky, she landed gracefully on the ground in front of the Chips’ house, knocking loudly on the door. “Yo Java!” she yelled. “Hurry up in there or we’ll miss the train!”
Her knocking was acknowledged as Java answered the door, stepping aside to let her in. “Relax Dash, there's still half an hour before the train comes.” he told her, eyeing her stuffed saddlebags. “You're bringing all that? We'll only be in Fillydelphia for a week you know.”
Sitting down on the nearby couch, she nodded in reply. “I'm bringing all my Wonderbolts fan gear with me, plus my poster to get autographed. I'm only five signatures short.”
Java smirked, making his way to the stairs. “I hope you remembered your dress, you still have a wedding to attend remember?”
She nodded back to him as he disappeared up the stairs, laying back on the couch. Making his way across the hall, Java tapped his hoof against Micro's door. “Micro, are you almost done packing in there?” he asked, opening the door.
Inside was Micro, sitting on his bed with his gamecolt in front of him. Java shook his head and stepped up to the bed. “Micro what are you doing? We have to leave for the train soon and you haven't done any of the packing I told you to do an hour ago. Mom's expecting us at the train station on time.”
“Uh, Java? Over there.” he said, pointing to his saddlebags in the corner, fully packed.
“Oh.” he replied, a touch of embarrassment in his tone. “Alright, well Dash is waiting for us downstairs, so let's get going.”
With a nod, Micro got up and picked up his saddlebags, following Java downstairs. Once they met up with Rainbow Dash, the three made their way to the train station. “So what's Fillydelphia like?” Dash asked.
The two brothers looked at each other and shrugged. “Like any other city I guess.” Java explained. “the town has it's good sides and it's bad. It's not as tightly knit as Ponyville, and it's certainly a lot bigger, but I imagine it's the same as any other city in Equestria.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The Fillydelphia train station was as busy as it always was. The platform was filled with ponies waiting for the next train. Waiting at the front of the platform was a turquoise mare, a treble clef on her flank. Her eyes kept moving from down the tracks to the clock on the wall, then back again. Finally, she saw the train pulling into the station. As the train pulled in, she was knocked aside. Getting up and adjusting her deep green mane, she began looking around the now larger crowd around her. “Mom!” came the sound of a young colt.
She found herself on the ground once again as she was tackled into a hug by a happy tan colt. Getting back to her feet, she returned the excited pony's hug. “Well hello there Micro.” she said with a giggle. “It's good to see you're in good spirits. Where's your brother?”
She got her answer as both Java and Rainbow Dash approached the two. His mother's face lit up when she saw him, and the two shared a hug. “It's been a long time Mom.” he told her.
She nodded, brushing part of his mane out of his face. “Java, you're turning out to be quite the stallion.” she told him, turning her attention to Dash. “Oh, hello there. Is this your girlfriend Java?”
The two blue ponies looked at each other with a bit of a blush. They quickly turned away, shaking their heads. “N-no we're not.” he explained. “This is Rainbow Dash, a friend from Ponyville. I have a girlfriend in Canterlot.”
Dash stepped forward, holding out her hoof. “It's nice to meet you ma'am. The name's Rainbow Dash.”
“It's nice to meet you, I'm Cadence Chips.” she told her, shaking her hoof. “Well, soon it'll be Cadence Da Capo.”Dash smiled and nodded as the four began walking out to the street. “Right, congratulations on your remarriage. I hope it goes better than....oh, sorry.”
Cadence called over a taxi, helping the group into it. “Don't worry about it, it took me a while but I'm past that. As long as we're on the subject, I'd like you boys to spend tomorrow with Andante. He's really been looking forward to meeting you.”
The two nodded. “Sure, I can't wait to meet him.” Java told her.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The taxi pulled to a halt in front of a two story building. Java smiled up at the building, it brought back a lot of memories. The old sign that once read “CHIPS” was off it's hinges, no doubt the spot was awaiting a new sign. As he stepped inside, he saw that the interior had done a complete change as well. Where Java remembered piles of metal and electronic parts, now there were different knick knacks and decorations. The living room had new furniture, save for the piano in the corner. Looking it over, the piano that held dust for the years of his childhood was now cleaned, the keys appeared worn. Looking at the home around him, Java couldn't help but smile. “You've done a wonderful job redecorating Mom.”
Cadence couldn't help but smile back. “Thank you Java, I was hoping you'd approve. Don't worry though, I left your rooms just the way you left them.”
Micro smiled and trotted down the hall. “I'm gonna go unpack.” he told them.
Cadence couldn't help but give a surprised smile. “My, I don't think I've ever seen Micro with his head held so high before. He must really be loving Ponyville.”
“Yeah,” Java told her, “It's really made him come out of his shell.”
“I guess that means I made the right choice letting him go with you.”
Java nodded, smiling. After their moment of pause ended, Java made his way down the hall, leading Dash to the guest room. Once she was settled, he made his way to his own old room. He found it exactly as he had left it before. Sitting on the shelf above his bed was an old AC/DC tabletop radio, the first piece of electronic equipment he had repaired. Sitting on a bookshelf were multiple programs he had wrote in his youth, things that did multiple things from preheat the oven at certain times of the day to overriding security codes. Of course, not all of them came to fruition. Multiple video game posters covered the walls, from Megamare to Call of Cutie. He let out a sigh of nostalgia and set down his saddlebags, laying back on his bed. He felt happy to be laying there again.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Dash and the two brothers were sitting amongst the table as Cadence made her way into the room with a hay pizza on a platter. “Bad news guys,” she told them, setting the pizza down in the center of the table, “Andante is in the middle of a concert, he won't be joining us for dinner.”
“That's too bad, I was looking forward to meeting him.” Java told her, eyeing the pizza.
If there was one meal his mom cooked that he loved the most it was her hay pizza. He reached his hoof out to grab a piece, but it was slapped away by a glaring Cadence. “Javani Beta Chips!” she told him. “Watch your manners, we let the guest take the first slice.”
Java sighed and rubbed his hoof. “I've been gone for a year, I don't count as a guest yet?” he mumbled under his breath.
Meanwhile, Dash was on the other side of the table, trying to hold back her giggles as she reached for a slice. “Javani? Oh man I won't be forgetting that.”
Once again Java sighed as he finally got to take his own slice. The four sat around the table, swapping stories between them as they ate. “And then,” Java continued, “I ran toward the barrier at top speed, moving right through it. They were all around me, but Pinkie Pie was able to help me stave them off. I had just reached the button when Pinkie yelled, “Twitchy tail!” and I did a full circle on my front hooves and bucked the sucker straight into the air!”
Cadence smiled, clapping her hooves together at the end. “My, that's quite a story. My little Java, the big hero.”
Micro smiled. “And you should have seen the awards ceremony Mom! We got to meet the princesses!” he told her excitedly.
“Oh really? And what was that like Micro?”
“They were really nice and normal, like they were regular ponies, not stuck up and regal like someponies say they are.”
The group couldn't help but laugh at the comment and Cadence nodded in response. “I've told you not to judge a book by it's cover.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Following dinner, Micro and Rainbow Dash retired to bed, while Java stayed up to help with the dishes. “It's nice to see you boys again.” Cadence told him. “It's been so long, I've started to miss you.”
He smiled, nodding. “It's good to see you, too. Even more, I'm happy to see you smiling.”
“Thank you, I haven't been this happy for a while. Tell me, does Micro know the truth yet?”
He shook his head. “He still believes that he worked late a lot.”
“That's a bit surprising. You figured it out at his age, I made sure that you boys would when you were old enough.”
Java sighed and stared at his reflection in the water. “It's not as simple as that. I think even I knew before I asked you about it. When he wants to stop believing, he'll ask, and I'll tell him.”
She nodded, setting the last dish in the rack to dry. “It's getting late, we both have busy days ahead of us, let's get to bed.”
Java nodded and left behind her, turning out the light.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The sun shone high in the sky the following day, sending sunbeams through the window of Java's room straight across his face. With a groan, he began getting up. “Come on sun, can't I have another hour?” he asked, rubbing his tired eyes.
Making his way out to the living room, his eyes still half closed, he made his way to the kitchen to pour a cup of coffee. He stopped at the door as he saw another pony, a silvery grey unicorn with a black mane, sipping his own cup of coffee. Turning and facing Java, he smiled and approached the slightly confused colt. “Good morning,” he said, a touch of Italy in his accent, “I take it you're one of Cadence's ?”
Java gave a confused nod, starting to put the pieces together. “I guess that makes you Andante.”
The unicorn nodded in reply, taking another sip. “That's right, Andante Da Capo. It's nice to finally meet you, your mother has told me quite a lot about the both of you. If I'm not mistaken, you're Javani, correct?”
“Yeah, that's me.” he told him, pouring his own cup.
The two made their way to the living room. “I'm a bit surprised actually, your mother told me your special talent was electronic programming and repair, why is your cutie mark a coffee cup?”
“It's actually the symbol of a computer language, it just happens to be a coffee cup.” he told him, sitting down and taking a sip of his own coffee. “And from what I've gathered from Mom's letters, you're a pianist right?”
Andante nodded in response, displaying his grand piano cutie mark proudly. “That's correct, I come from a long line of musicians.”
“Well, it's nice to see you boys hitting it off.” came a voice from the hallway.
The two turned to see Cadence, making her way across the room to sit next to Andante. The two shared a soft nuzzle as she got comfortable. “Did you tell him yet?” she asked.
“Tell me what?” Java asked them.
“The Hoofsonian is opening a new exhibit in autumn, a history of electronics.” Andante explained. “Since you won't be here to see it, I pulled some strings and got me and two friends into the unfinished exhibit.”
Java couldn't help but smile as he explained. He had heard about the electronics exhibit, and word was it was going to be good. Cadence began to giggle as she saw the excited look on his face. “Java, can you go wake up Micro? You both need to get ready if you don't want to miss your chance.”
Java was gone in a flash toward the end of the hall, leaving the two sitting on the couch. “That was a really sweet thing to do, I could tell Java would be excited about it.” Cadence told him.
“Well, I'd like to start on good graces with my son in laws.” he said with a smile.
“Well, you're off to a good start.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
As the sun reached the center of the sky, Cadence looked around the house with a sigh. With the brothers back in the house, her cleaning schedule had increased, but she had still managed to finish by noon. With the house chores done, she made her way to the door and slid her saddlebags on. “Are you going out?” a voice behind her asked.
She nearly jumped out of her horseshoes as she turned around and saw Dash standing in the hallway. “Oh, hello Rainbow Dash. Sorry, you were asleep for so long I forgot you were even here.”
With a yawn, she made her way up to the door. “It's no problem, you aren't the first one I've surprised that way. If you're going out I could tag along, it would get the chores done twice as fast.”
“Well that sounds nice, thank you.” she told her. “I wish Java and Micro were as helpful as you are.”
“No problem, it'll give you more time to worry about bride stuff.” she joked.
The two laughed as they left through the front door.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The Hoofsonian's closed exhibit was a sight to behold. It held everything from the first radio to the latest communication technology, even a partial exhibit on the history of electronic gaming. Micro was galloping off from here to there, looking over all the electronics. “He's quite the energetic young colt when he wants to be isn't he?” Andante said with a chuckle.
“Yeah,” Java replied, watching him, “If you had known him a year ago, you would have thought the exact opposite of him. I'm really glad he came with me to Ponyville.”
“Java, come look at this!” Micro yelled over, pointing at a Neightendo entertainment system. “I've never seen one of these in person before!”
“Yeah, I see it,” Java said with a chuckle, “It's a real classic.”
“Well, I'm glad that this is the Micro I get to see.” Andante told him. “Even more so, I'm happy there's no ill will between us.”
Java gave him a confused look. “Ill will? For what?”
“Well, I've heard situations like this tend to turn for the worse when it comes to family relationships. I suppose I was worried you wouldn't like me.”
Java patted the nervous unicorn on the back, giving a reassuring smile. “Andante, the piano keys are worn down, the house is clean and there's a smile on my mother's face every moment of the day. As long as you're making her smile like that, there is no ill will, I'd be happy if you married her.”
Andante smiled back at the colt, happy to get such an answer. He nodded, and the two joined Micro as they toured the exhibit. “Just so you know, I don't expect you to call me 'dad.'”
Java nodded. “I wouldn't expect that either, I don't have a great history with father figures.”
“Right, I heard you weren't close to your father. If it's not too much trouble, could you tell me the whole story. I'd ask your mother of course, but she's stressed enough this close to the wedding, I don't want to upset her.”
Java couldn't help but smile, and gave Andante a nod in reply. “Sure, Just don't let Mom know I told you.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Cadence walked the marketplace like she lived there, taking every turn with confidence of what she'd find around the corner. Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, had given up on ever mastering the giant market, and was simply flying next to Cadence. “Goodness Rainbow Dash, don't your wings ever get tired?” She asked, watching them flap. “I don't think I've ever seen a pegasus flapping her wings for such an extended time.”
The two had been travelling about town working on chores for the past three hours, and Dash had been flying since the two walked out the door. At first she tried to do some aerial stunts to keep herself entertained, but the populated air space of Fillydelphia proved too restricting. “I guess, In Ponyville the skies are clear, I can fly for as long as I want, and that really strengthened my wings. I need strong wings if I want to join the Wonderbolts.”
Cadence was looking over apples while she listened to Dash's explanation, setting some in her saddlebags and handing back some bits. “Is that so? Well with wings like that I'm sure you'll make it. Actually, you look kind of like a current Wonderbolt if I'm not mistaken.”
Dash nodded, her mood taking a slight turn. “RGB.”
“That's right, your mane and body color are the same as his.”
“Yeah, well he is my older brother. His real name is Cosmic Dash.”
“Is that so? You know when I was a filly I was in love with the Wonderbolts, too. Of course they were a completely different set of ponies, they were the original Wonderbolts. Now only one of them is left, the group's training coach and sponsor, Bolt Lightning. I remember meeting him when I was in high school, he was such a sweet pegasus.”
“Whoa, really?!” Dash asked, completely surprised. “I've never met the Wonderbolts outside of some social gathering, how did you manage it.”
Cadence blushed, looking back into her past with a giggle. “Soundarus, the boy's father, pulled some strings. His father was an advertiser who worked with the Wonderbolts every time they were in town. He surprised me with it at their performance that year. It was the sweetest thing he had ever done.”
“It sounds like he was a really nice guy.”
Cadence sighed and looked to the ground, moving further along the line in her mind. “Yeah, he was a very sweet colt. I still try to figure out what went wrong.”
“Yeah, Java hasn't told us much about it. What exactly happened between you two?”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
“It had been happening since I was two years short of high school.” Java began explaining, staring off the balcony at the streets below the museum. “Dad wouldn't let Mom visit him at work anymore, and he was coming home late almost every night. He would use the same excuse every time. 'A customer in need is a customer indeed.' I barely know what that means, it was just an excuse.”
Andante nodded, listening intently as Java talked. “I can see how it could have put a strain on their relationship.”
“Yeah, well, I wish I could say that was all it was. It went on for a while, until Mom was tired of it. The summer before I entered high school they divorced. Life was difficult for a while, but after I got my cutie mark and started electronic repairing it got better. It was in my last year of high school that I finally asked Mom what really happened with Dad. In truth, I already knew, but I didn't want to believe. He was cheating, some mare on the east side of town. Last I heard he settled down with her in Hoofington, and that's the last I ever heard.”
Java did his best to hold back his tears. Talking about this particular topic always filled him with anger and depression. Andante offered him a handkerchief, which he took and wiped his eyes. “Well, thank you for telling me, I'm sure it wasn't easy.”
“It's no problem,” Java told him, “You deserve to know, right? Just don't let Mom know I told you.”
He nodded back and the two shook hooves. “It's a deal.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The three colts made their way through the door late into the day, and were met with Cadence and Rainbow Dash, who were setting the table. “Well look who's home.” Cadence said with a smile. “Did you boys have fun?”
Micro nodded vigorously, taking a seat at the table. “You should have seen it Mom, the exhibit is amazing! There are so many old electronics I never even heard of!”
Java couldn't help but laugh as he sat next to his brother. Looking out at the table, it was quite a spread. There was almost one of every vegetable dish on the table. After the tiring day the group had, they were happy to all sit down together and eat, sharing stories of their day. Once the meal had drawn to a close, everypony, excluding Rainbow Dash, who had left for the Wonderbolts performance, gathered in the living room. Andante sat at the piano while Cadence stood. The two began what was originally a piano duet, with Cadence showing off her special talent of singing on the second part. Her elegant voice filled the room with a calm atmosphere, and put a smile on everypony's face. They sung well into the night, until Cadence declared the end of the tune with a soft final note. After some clapping, the ponies in the Chips house all made their way to bed.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
It was late into the night when Rainbow Dash made her way home. The door was locked by that point, and she had to knock to get in. It was Cadence who made her way out to the front door and let the pegasus pony inside. “Well, those performances last a pretty long time these days don't they?” she asked.
Dash nodded, Yawning and stretching herself out. “Yeah, it can be a real tiring ordeal just watching them. Oh, before I forget, I got you something while I was there.”
From between the feathers of her wings, she produced a folded piece of paper, which she set down on the table for Cadence. Unfolding it, Cadence looked over it and her eyes lit up at the writing on the paper.
To a die-hard fan, keep shooting for the best in life,
Bolt Lightning
Cadence smiled over to her new pegasus friend, folding up the paper and setting it somewhere she wouldn't forget it. “Thank you Rainbow Dash, this was a very nice gift.”
Dash nodded back and stretched again, making her way to bed. Cadence smiled and sat for a while in thought, before she also made her way back to bed.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
It had been a very long week, but finally the big day had come. Cadence stood in the bridal room, staring at herself in her white dress. She began thinking about the future ahead, hoping for the best. While she was contemplating past and future, a knock came to the door. Java stepped in, wearing his special suit. “Oh, Java. You surprised me there for a second. What are you doing in here?”
Java smiled and walked up to her. “I'm here to escort you up to the altar.” he told her. “I know you didn't formally ask me, but-”
“No, don't apologize. I'd love it if you were the one who escorted me.” she said, giving him a soft kiss on the cheek. “You have become a strong colt, I made the right choice letting you go to Ponyville.”
Java smiled and offered Cadence his hoof. She took it, a smile on her face as he walked her out and down the aisle. Once she was up on the altar, next to Andante in his own suit, he made his way to sit between Micro, who was in his own personalized suit, and Rainbow Dash who, unbeknownst to everypony, had worn a tuxedo instead of her dress. The three sat through the entire ceremony, and Java watched with extra emotion in his eyes, as finally it drew to a close. “By the power vested in me, by Equestria,” the minister finished, “I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may kiss the bride.”
As the two shared their first married kiss, everyone began clapping. Java clapped especially loud, he could see the happiness emanating off of Cadence. A small tear when down his face as he watched.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The next day, at the train station, Mr.- and Mrs. Da Capo walked with the three to the platform. Java smiled at the two. “Dash,” he asked, “Can you take my bags on board and keep an eye on Micro?”
Dash didn't even not before taking Java's saddlebags and getting on board. He turned to the two and smiled, sharing a hug with his mother. “Take care of yourself.” he told her.
She couldn't help but laugh. “I was about to say the same to you.”
“Don't worry Java, I'll be sure to take good care of your mother, and I'll never do anything to hurt that smile.” Andante told him.
“Yeah, I know you will.” he said as the final call for passengers came.
With a wave goodbye from the window. The train left, the three ponies of Ponyville headed back home.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
It was well into the night before they got back home. Java sent Micro straight up to bed while he checked the mail that had piled up in the past week. He was dwelling on the happy memories from the past week while he cycled through it, when a knock came to the door. As he opened the door, the smile left Java's face. Standing in the doorway was an orange-red colt, a deep grey mane. On his flank was a classic radio. “Hello Java.” he said.
Java did his best to contain himself. Looking at this colt filled him with a level of anger. His legs tensed up as he did his best not to raise a hoof. His teeth were grit as he spoke. “It's been a long time,” he told the colt, “Dad.”
To Be Continued |
JavaChips | 592 | 11 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2011-12-04T15:33:37+00:00 | 2011-12-04T15:33:37+00:00 | 939 | It was well into the night before they got back home. Java sent Micro straight up to bed while he checked the mail that had piled up in the past week. He was dwelling on the happy memories from the past week while he cycled through it, when a knock came to the door. As he opened the door, the smile left Java's face. Standing in the doorway was an orange-red colt, a deep grey mane. On his flank was a classic radio. “Hello Java.” he said.
Java did his best to contain himself. Looking at this colt filled him with a level of anger. His legs tensed up as he did his best not to raise a hoof. His teeth were grit as he spoke. “It's been a long time,” he told the colt, “Dad.”
The old colt, Sound Chips, could sense the frustration in his son's voice, a look of guilt upon his own face. “I can understand you're upset, but I'm just here-”
“Upset?! That's a nice word for it!” Java yelled. “You show up on my doorstep unannounced, after having been gone for so long, I think I have a right to be!”
Java couldn't stop himself from talking, unleashing these feelings he had been holding onto for a long time. Sound sighed and took a step back, looking toward the ground. “Please, Javani, I'm just here to talk to you. I want to talk, and make amends.”
“And why do you think I want to do the same?”
“Because,” he explained, handing over a letter he had been carrying in a pocket of the suit he was wearing, “You sent me this.”
Java looked over the letter, and he recognized it immediately. It felt like so long ago, that winter that last rolled by, when he had helped Dash and Cosmo start working out their differences. He had sent this letter that evening when Cosmo left. He sighed as he looked it over again.
Dear Dad,
How are you doing? I know I haven't seen you in a very long time, and to be honest I'm not sure if I'm writing this letter in the moment or if I truly want this, but I'd really like it if you'd reply. A lot happened since you left those long years ago. I got my cutie mark, it's a programming symbol, I have an electronics and programming talent it seems, you can guess where I got it from. After that I spent some time running a shop in Fillydelphia. Unfortunately it seems Fillydelphia had a lot of tech savvy ponies, so I had to move. With Mom's permission, Micro and I moved to Ponyville, it's a really great town. Micro especially has taken to it, I've never seen him this open and friendly before. I don't know if word travels all the way to Hoofington, but I helped to stop a pack of Canis that were threatening Equestria. It was a riot trying to stop those beasts, and we had a speaker malfunction at the worst possible time. I hated to admit it at the time, but when I was looking at the wires inside the speaker, in the heat of the moment my mind froze up, and I didn't think I could do it. But then I remembered that lesson you gave me, the one about connecting the wires properly. I guess you helped me out there, thanks. I won't tell you I'm not still angry, I am, but at the same time, you are my dad right? I'm not sure what to think. Maybe when you reply I'll know.
Your son,
Javani Chips
Java sighed, his emotions were in a whirlwind. He really didn't know what to say at that moment. “I told you to reply, like in a letter.” was all he could manage.
Sound sighed as he took a step forward, putting a hoof on Java's shoulder. “A letter truly can't express how I'm feeling Java. I had been doubting myself for a while recently. Did I make the right choices, was I being romantic or just selfish? I wasn't sure. Your letter brought me back onto solid ground. I want to make it up to you in any way I can.”
Java sighed, his emotions pulsed from one to another with each beat of his heart. “It's going to take more than a kind word or a friendly gesture you know.”
Sound sighed and nodded, stepping back again. “I know. It's pretty late, you must be tired. I'm staying at the Inn on the east side of town, come see me tomorrow and I'll see what I can do to start. Good night Javani.”
With that, he walked off, leaving Java standing there with an open door. He sighed, rubbing his head. He knew he wasn't going to sleep tonight, not with what just happened.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The next day Java was up early, just as the sun was rising. After making himself some breakfast, he had plenty of time to continue dwelling on the night before. What was he going to do? Was he going to go and see his father? Was Sound serious about patching up the relationship, or was there something else he had in mind? And what would he tell Micro? The last question bothered him the most, and he didn't have much more time to think about it as Micro came down the stairs, yawning as he took the last step. “Morning Java,” he said, “How did you sleep?”
“Fine, how about you?” he replied, watching his younger brother make his way into the kitchen.
“I slept fine, except that I heard some yelling, was something wrong downstairs?”
This was it, without a second thought Java shook his head, stepping into the kitchen to bring Micro his saddlebags. “It was nothing, just an upset customer who wasn't aware we were going out of town. Hurry up and finish your cereal, you're going to be late for school.”
Micro gave Java a suspicious look, he could tell something was wrong. He shrugged it off, however, and made his way out the door with his saddlebags on, making his way toward the school. Java sighed, still in a fumble over what to do. He gave it a moment of thought and then made his way out toward the western side of Ponyville, there was somepony he knew he could talk to about this.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
“So what do you think I should do?” Java asked Rainbow Dash. “I figured you'd know how to help, since you had that whole problem with Cosmo.”
Dash sighed and shook her head, she had just taken in a lot of information. “I don't know Java,” she told him, “This is a very different situation from what I was in. All Cosmo did was beat me to the Wonderbolts and come around every year, I feel kind of silly thinking about it now. This is a serious situation. I guess if I had to say, you should probably go and at least give it a try. I mean, he's your dad right? If he's willing to make amends, why not?”
Java's hooves tensed up again, that was the exact answer he was hoping not to get. Deep down, however, he knew Dash was right. “Thanks Dash, I owe you one.” he told her, trotting away.
Vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The two electronics colts sat across from each other in Sugarcube Corner in an awkward silence. Sound leaned his head down and took a sip of the milkshake in front of him, a freebie courtesy of Pinkie Pie. “My, they certainly make their milkshakes flavorful here in Ponyville.” he said, attempting to break the awkward silence. “So many different fruits on your palette at once, it's certainly an interesting-”
“So where's your wife?” Java interrupted, staring into his glass. “What was her name again? Silvia?”
Sound sighed and nodded, looking down at the table. “We divorced a couple of months ago, it was a mutual decision.”
“Well, sorry to hear that. I guess you haven't had the best luck in that department huh?”
“I guess not.” he replied, taking a deep pause. “You know, in the last month of my second marriage, I did see an article in the paper about your heroics. It got me thinking, really thinking this time. Did I make the right choice?”
The two sat in silence once again, taking in their heart to heart. Java took a sip of his milkshake and sighed. “Did you?”
Sound shook his head. “No.”
Java smiled, starting to see his father in a different light. “Come on.” he said, a new tone in his voice. “I'll show you around Ponyville. It's a great place.”
Vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Micro sat as he usually did during lunch, his GameColt in front of him as he waited for his friends to come by. “Micro!” came Clickspring's voice from across the yard. Looking up, he saw both him and Shimmer making their way up to the tan colt. “Did you hear about the pony that came into town the night before? He was hanging out around your house all day yesterday.”
“What? Are you sure it wasn't a pony you just didn't know?” he asked, doubtful of anypony who would just stop by out of the blue.
Shimmer shook her head, adjusting her glasses. “We were walking with Miss Pinkie Pie at the time and she said she didn't know who it was, and I was given to understand that Miss Pinkie Pie knew everypony in Ponyville.”
It was true, Pinkie could recognize anypony from Ponyville from thirty yards away. The conversation had certainly gotten Micro's attention, his GameColt flashing away on the table. “Did you guys get a good look at him? What did he look like?”
Clickspring nodded and remembered back to the colt. “He was orange-red.”
Micro raised an eyebrow. “His mane was grey with age, but I could see subtle hints of a once purplish color.”
'It couldn't be...' Micro thought to himself.
“Oh!” Clickspring remembered. “And he had one of those old timey sorta radios on his flank as a cutie mark!”
Micro's eyes went wide, it was unbelievable. 'Could it really be...?'
Vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java hung his head low as he walked out of Rarity's boutique, though his mane was untouched. “No way.” he said under his breath as Sound and Rarity walked out behind him.
“And I have a friend of mine, a wonderful shampoo and conditioner maker, he adds a little bit of lime juice to the mix, it leaves a pleasing scent on the air.” Sound was telling her.
“Oh it shows, it really does.” Rarity said, staring at his mane. “I always thought perhaps Java got his idea of mane styling from his father, but now I don't think I'll ever understand why he believes such a bush of a mane is attractive.”
“Well,” Java interrupted, pulling Sound away from the dress maker, “We really should get going, it was nice talking to you Rarity, see you around.”
The two walked away from Carousel Boutique as Rarity waved goodbye. “Farewell, Mister Sound you simply must send me a bottle of that wonderful shampoo you told me about.”
Sound waved back and nodded as they went out of sight. “Well, that's all my friends.” Java told him, making his way toward home. “I guess all that's left is to show you where Micro and I live.”
It wasn't long as the two made their way to Chips' Electronics and the adjacent house. Stepping in, Java began giving his father the grand tour, making his way from the first floor and workshop up to the second floor. “Micro's bedroom is over there.” Java told him, opening the door to his room. “And mine is here.”
Sound looked around the room, and he could see it was a world of different from the room Java had as a child. The posters on the walls, the pictures of family, he did his best to ignore he wasn't in any. As he looked around the room, his eye was caught on the necklace sitting on the shelf. “What's that?” he asked, looking it over.
Java followed the gaze to the necklace his friends had given him as a gift. “That, it's a gift from my friends, they called it the Element of Family. They just did it to be nice, it's not a real element.”
Very carefully, Sound ran his hoof across the jewels embedded to resemble his son's cutie mark, and his heart sank. “Java, I'm afraid I may not have been entirely honest with you in my reasons for coming here to Ponyville.”
Java's high spirits suddenly fell. He knew it, he knew there was some deeper reason for him coming here, some selfish reason. “Oh really?” he asked, his hooves tensing up.
Sound nodded, sighing as he began to come clean. “When I heard that you were taking care of Micro, I was very worried about the both of you living alone. My real intention in coming here was to take Micro to come live with me in Hoofington, I was sure you had grown into a mature colt, but not mature enough to take care of him.”
Java gritted his teeth, trying to hold back his anger. He had truly began to believe his father was an honest man, who was there to make amends, and then he dropped this on him. “However,” Sound continued, walking up and placing a hoof on his son's shoulder. “After seeing your friends, hearing your stories and Micro's as well, I don't think there could be anyone better than you to take care of Micro, not even me.”
Java looked up, the hot tears he was building out of anger fell cold, they streamed down his cheeks as Sound smiled at him. “I have no doubt in my mind there is no one more qualified than the bearer of the Element of Family, than my own eldest son. I'm proud of you Java.”
There it was, the cards on the table. Java didn't know how to feel toward his father, who had come on dark intentions, and ended with kindhearted words. Java took a deep gulp of air and wrapped his hooves around the old colt's neck. “Dad!” he said, tears still streaming down his cheeks.
His actions surprised not only him, but Sound as well. With a smile, he wrapped his hooves around his son, and the two stood there as Java calmed down. As he wiped his eyes, he heard the door open downstairs. Making his way down, Java saw Micro taking off his saddlebags at the door. Micro turned and saw his brother, a smile on his face as he ran up to him. “Java!” Micro said excitedly, “Is it true? Is Dad here?”
His question was answered with hoofsteps coming down the stairs. Looking over, he saw Sound standing there, smiling at him. Micro's glasses slid down his nose, a smile going across his face. He didn't bother adjusting them as he ran up and hugged the old colt. “Dad! You really are here!”
Sound couldn't help but chuckle as he adjusted the young colt's glasses for him, smiling down at his excited son. “It's been a long time Micro, I've missed you.”
“Why didn't you tell me you were here? How long are you staying?”
Sound shook his head, making his way toward the door. “I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I have to catch a train tonight, I have a lot of clients in Hoofington I need to get back to.”
Micro frowned, following him to the door. He had been anticipating spending time with his dad. “But you just got here yesterday didn't you? I wanted to spend more time with you.”
“Sorry Micro, but you know what I always say, 'A customer in need is a customer indeed.'” he told him.
“Well, can I go with you?”
Sound stopped at the question, surprised. He saw the pleading look in Micro's eyes, then turned his gaze to Java, watching from across the room. “No,” he said, “You should stay here, with your brother. But I promise I'll come to visit very, very soon.”
Micro smiled and nodded, hugging his father tightly as he left. “Alright, I can't wait!”
With that, Sound took his leave, and the two brothers sat on the couch. “Why didn't you tell me Dad was in town?” Micro asked Java.
Java smiled. “I didn't find out until today either, sorry.” he told him, sparing the colt's feelings.
For a while the two sat in silence, Micro took the time to go deep into thought. “Hey Java, Dad wasn't really working late was he?”
Java froze for a second, but then shook his head. “No, he wasn't.”
“So what was he doing?”
Java thought for a moment. He had always thought he'd know what to say at this moment, whenever it had come. Now, however, with his father's visit behind him and his relationship changed, he wondered if the truth was what Micro needed to hear. Finally, he decided, he knew what to tell him. “It doesn't matter, the past is the past.”
Micro was a bit confused, but nodded. “Alright.”
Vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
As the night set in, the two brothers went to bed. Java made his way up to the night stand by his bed, a key in his mouth. Bending his neck down, he set the key in the lock of the lowest drawer. He turned the key carefully with his hoof, and took out the packaged parcel inside. Unwrapping it, he set the object down on the nightstand, sitting it up. As he layed in bed, he stared over at the picture he had set down. It was him and his father, standing on either side of the first radio Java had repaired. The young Java had a look of excitement, pride, and love in his eyes, a look he once again shared with his future self. |
JavaChips | 592 | 12 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2012-01-21T23:00:58+00:00 | 2012-01-21T23:00:58+00:00 | 838 | The summer sun was well rising past the eastern sky, a new day before the town of Ponyville. Java made his way down the stairs, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He made his way toward the kitchen, ready to make breakfast, but was surprised at what he found. “Good Morning Java.” Micro said, setting the table. “Have a seat, I made hay pancakes.”
Java, a little stunned, sat down at the table as his brother served the pancakes. “Thanks....what are you doing up so early?”
Micro smiled, sitting down to eat. “Today's the last day of school, my very last day. I can't wait to get it over with.”
Java smiled, beginning to eat. “That's right, I forgot about that.”
Micro, even the way he had used to be, was always excited for the last day of school. In the past, part of the reason was toward the school's confining walls and low spirit, but Silvertongue High was different in that aspect. This year Micro was looking forward to the freedom, this year more so, being his graduating year. “So what's the plan for today little bro?” Java asked.
Micro was still smiling as he set the plates in the sink, sliding on his saddlebags. “Oh you know, the usual.” he explained, making his way toward the door. “Go to class, play some games at lunch, hang out with Click and Shimmer.”
Micro waved goodbye to his older brother and shut the door behind him. Once outside, he took in a deep breath, preparing himself for the day ahead. “Today's the day.” he told himself. “I'm gonna do it.”
He made his way down the street toward the high school. As he reached the path that led up to it, he met up with Clickspring and Shimmering Cure. “Micro!” Clickspring said, trotting up to his friend. “Last day of school!”
Click raised his hoof in front of his gamer friend, a smile on his face. Micro smiled and bumped hooves with his pal. “Last day of school.” he echoed.
“Well then we should get going then.” Shimmer interrupted. “We wouldn't want to be late for the last day of school.”
The two looked at each other and nodded, following behind the nurse in training. Micro stared forward, his eyes on the filly's mane. He didn't understand why, but that mane of hers was always a distraction for him, the way it glistened in the sun. “Pssst, hey Micro.” His thoughts were interrupted by his watchmaking friend. “Today's the day right? You're gonna do it today?”
Micro fell silent for a moment. He had been planning it for a long time, working up the nerve day by day, but he still wasn't entirely sure. He swallowed his doubts and replied, “Yeah, today's the day.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java sat in his workshop, lurking over his workbench as he worked on the propeller of Tank's helipack. Twilight stood next to him, helping him to repair the magical parts of the machinery. Rainbow Dash was doing her best to kill time while they worked, exploring the shop. “You know Dash,” Java told her, “This thing wasn't meant to go mach two straight up, dive bomb, then double loop around a cloud. It's a good thing I installed that emergency system.”
“Sorry guys, but I told you when I had it built I wanted it to be as fast as me.” Dash explained, hunting through the drawers, examining anything unfamiliar.
“Well this time it should be able to handle a little more,” Twilight explained, “But you still need to take care with it, alright.”
Dash nodded, across the room. “Yeah, no problem....Hey Java, what's in this bag from Fillydelphia?”
Java immediately jolted up from where he was working, looking over to what she was referring to. “It's nothing, just something my mom sent me. Leave it be alright?”
Unfortunately, Rainbow Dash's curious hooves were already rummaging through the bag until she pulled out it's contents. Her eyes lit up as she read the text on the box. “Sweet Celestia! You ordered the new Unicorn Scrolls game? Oh man, and it's the collector's edition too! This must have cost a fortune!”
Java put down the screwdriver in his mouth, walking over to take the game from her hooves, putting it back in the bag. “Yeah, it cost a lot of bits, so leave it be alright?”
Twilight stood back, confused by the argument going on in front of her. “What are the Unicorn Scrolls? I never saw those at the Canterlot Royal Library.”
Dash's wings spread out, bringing her up into the air as she explained. “The Unicorn Scrolls are the ultimate power in all of the known universe, said to turn ponies insane simply by opening them!”
Java rolled his eyes as he walked back over to the still confused unicorn. “They aren't real, they're from a video game.”
“Not just any video game, the best video game ever! Even the trailers for it were amazing! 'In his language he is Dovahneigh! Dragonpony!' Come on Java you have to let me play it!”
Java shook his head, glaring over at her. “No, this is Micro's graduation gift, me and Mom put some serious money into this gift.”
Dash and her spirits went from soaring to grounded as she heard, starting to feel a bit bad for making a big deal about it. “Oh, sorry I guess I overreacted.”
Java shook his head, giving her the helipack. “It's fine, I'm sure Micro won't mind sharing it with you later. Now, I need to get ready for when he gets home.”
The two fillies nodded, taking their leave. With them gone, Java began getting ready for when Micro would get home.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
As the final bell rung, all the fillies and colts began funneling out of the school, eager to get home. Micro and Click made their way out near the end, and caught sight of Shimmer waiting by the path for them. “Alright, This is it Click, here I go.” Micro said, gearing himself up.
Click nodded, taking a few steps back. “Go for it brony.”
Micro made his way toward the filly, who turned and noticed him as he trotted forward. “There you are, where's Click?”
“He's gonna catch up, but first....there's something I wanted to ask you Shimmer.”
“What is it?” she asked, a bit concerned. “Is something wrong Micro?”
Micro shook his head, taking a deep breath. “Shimmer, Would you...wanna go on a date?”
Shimmer froze up, surprised. “I...I...” she stuttered.
Micro frowned. This was not the reply he was hoping for. “I....I have to go, sorry.”
Without another word, she began galloping away. “Shimmer wait!” Micro yelled.
It was unclear whether or not she had heard, but she continued running. Click made his way up to the heartbroken colt. “Tough luck, sorry man.” he said, patting his friend on the back.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Micro made his way inside, hanging his head. He was welcomed with the sound of music playing and Java smiling at him. “Welcome home little bro, how was school?”
It was then that Java saw the upset look on his brother's face, and the smile left his face, too. “It's nothing.” Micro told him, walking toward the stairs.
“Wait!” Java said, stopping him from going up. Micro turned around and waited for Java to get a bag from across the room. Java gave him a reassuring smile as he handed him the game. “Here, Mom and I got you this for graduation.”
Micro looked it over and smiled, putting it in his saddlebag. “Thanks, come get me when we're leaving for the graduation ceremony okay?”
Java nodded, looking worriedly at his brother. “Sure, whenever you're ready to talk about it I'll be down here.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Shimmering Cure was hard at work in the hospital, sorting the medical supplies in the back, but her mind was distracted with the question Micro had posed. Nurse Redheart had been watching in the back, and finally decided to make her move, stepping forward. “Alright, what's wrong?” she asked.
Shimmer gasped, coming back into reality. “Oh, Aunt Redheart. What do you mean?”
Redheart smirked and opened the cupboard Shimmer just closed, taking out a tray and setting it aside. “You just put a tray of scalpels in with the stethoscopes. Now what's the matter?”
Shimmer sighed and looked down, sliding her hoof across the ground. “It's just something that Micro said today. He asked me out on a date and it made me feel all....weird.”
Nurse Redheart became less concerned as Shimmer explained, starting to understand. “So you don't know if you want to go out on a date with him or not huh?”
Shimmer nodded, hanging her head. “Well,” she continued, “Let's look at this from a medical point of view then. What were the symptoms you felt after he asked you?”
Shimmer raised her head back up, thinking back, starting to remember the feelings. “Well, my heart pace increased, my face got really warm, and I got this strange feeling in my abdominal region, a sort of discomfort.”
Nurse Redheart did her best to hold back any laughs, consoling the confused filly. “Well those symptoms are very common for a lot of illnesses, but I think I know what it is, do you?”
Shimmer thought about it and then she shook her head. “Well miss nurse in training, how do you think we should solve this medical mystery?”
“We should listen to the heart.” Shimmer suddenly said. Her eyes went a bit wide as she realized what she said, and then a smile went across her face. “Thanks Aunt Redheart.”
Nurse Redheart smiled, putting the tray of scalpels away properly. “No problem, now go get ready for graduation.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java and the group made their way toward the high school, all there ready to cheer for Micro when he walked across the stage, Rainbow Dash in the rear with a very annoyed Spike. “Aw come on Spike,” Rainbow Dash pleaded. “Teach me some dragon language!”
Spike's frustration had reached it's limit. Dash had been pestering him since midday to teach her how to speak his supposed dragon tongue. “I told you Rainbow Dash, there's no such thing as Dovah! It's all made up! Now leave me be about it!”
Dash took a step back as the dragon unleashed his anger, realizing she had gone too far. “Alright, jeez. No need to have a hissy fit.”
Rainbow Dash made her way ahead while he stood there and waited for his anger to subside. “Mey key.” he mumbled under his breath, catching up to the group.
Micro split from the group, his graduation robe dragging a bit on the ground as he made his way backstage. He was still in low spirits from the afternoon's letdown. “Micro!” came a familiar voice.
Turning around, he saw Shimmer standing there, looking a bit concerned for him. “Oh, hi Shimmer.” he said. “Look, don't worry too much about this afternoon, I shouldn't have-”
“Yes.” she said, a smile filling her face.
Micro froze up for a second, confused. “What?”
“Yes, I'd like to go on a date with you.”
Micro was astonished, he almost didn't know how to feel. A smile filled his face as well, and he impulsively wrapped his hooves around the filly. Shimmer was surprised for a moment, but she didn't protest, hugging him back. The two broke the hug and stared at each other, smiling. Micro almost missed the calling of his name, but caught it and trotted out onto the stage. Taking the diploma from Cheerilee, he stood out on the stage and looked out on the cheering crowd. Micro smiled, holding his head high. He thought back, and he couldn't think of any better moment than this one.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Following the graduation ceremony, everypony was out in the schoolyard, where a party had been put together for the graduating fillies and colts. Nurse Redheart made her way up to Java, who was enjoying a glass of punch. “Mr. Chips,” she began, smiling, “How is your leg feeling?”
Java smiled, setting down the glass. “It's feeling just great, thanks. What's new with you Nurse Redheart?”
“Well actually, I've got a bit of interesting news for you.” she told him. “It appears your brother and my niece have a bit of a crush on each other.”
Java chuckled, motioning over to the table across the schoolyard. “Yeah, I noticed.”
There, away from the rest of the rabble, Micro and Shimmer were sitting at their usual lunch table, just talking and enjoying their drinks. “Well, should we go tell them the party's over?” Redheart asked, everyone beginning to exit toward town.
Java shook his head, unable to break the proud smile on his face. “No, let's let them finish.”
Had it been any other situation, Java probably would have gotten impatient and frustrated halfway through. The two young ponies talked well into the night. |
JavaChips | 592 | 13 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2012-01-30T11:19:43+00:00 | 2012-01-30T11:19:43+00:00 | 815 | It was a cold, mid winter day in Fillydelphia, the sun looming over the frozen roads and sidewalks. An icy wind was blowing it's way through town. A sign reading “CHIPS” was struggling to fight against the wind as it rocked back and forth on it's hinges. Inside, Sound Chips was in his personal workshop, hard at work on one of his personal projects. He had a large, cathedral style floor radio he was restoring from scratch. As he pulled his head out of the radio's internal systems, he heard a knock come from the door. Setting down his screwdriver, he walked over to the door. Opening it, he saw a young Java sitting there, he had dragged his radio from his room downstairs to his father's workshop. “Dad, my radio broke.” he told him.
Sound smiled as he picked up the radio, carrying it over to the work bench. Java followed behind, hopping up on the table to watch his father as he examined the inside. “Alright, well it looks like the sound board is past it's lifetime.” he told his son. “The left speaker's blown out and the battery is gonna need to be replaced. It'd be cheaper to buy a new one at this point.”
Java sat, contemplating the information. “So, when are you gonna get it?” he asked.
Sound thought for a moment about what to tell him, when a smile went across his face. “I have a better idea.” he said, making his way across the room to a storeroom.
Java sat on the table, staring at the door until his father came back out, carrying an old radio. “This,” he told him, setting it down on the table, “Is called a universal radio, or an AC/DC radio. Someone brought it to me to donate for parts. It's all still there, it just needs to be put together. If you can fix it Java, you can have it.”
Java walked around it, examining it. It had certainly been through quite a bit. The paint had peeled off in multiple places, and it looked like it had taken a fall at one point. Sound took off the back panel to show him the inside. It was hard to tell without a discerning eye, but all the pieces were certainly there, and in pieces. Java looked a little warily at the radio, unsure that it could even be repaired. “How do I fix it?” he asked.
Sound was a bit surprised as Java asked, expecting him to give up immediately. He walked over to a book shelf and looked through the books, bringing over a book on radios. He searched through the book and found the model, bookmarking it. As Java looked over the pages on the radio, Sound brought over a stool for him to sit on, and some basic tools. “I'll be over there if you need me.” he told Java, returning to his own project.
Java loomed over the book, doing his best to understand the instructions. While his head was back inside the Cathedral model, he heard a clang of metal hitting the floor. Taking his head out, he saw that Java was okay, hopping off the stool to pick up the screwdriver he dropped. He watched for a second to see what had happened. Java hopped up on the stool, balancing out the wobbling as he picked up the screwdriver in his mouth again. He held it awkwardly, trying to keep it steady as he screwed in the first panel. Once again, he dropped it, going down to pick it up. Sound smirked and walked over, picking it up first. “Like this.” he told him, demonstrating. “bite down softly at the dip in the handle, and twist it carefully with your tongue.”
He wiped it off with a nearby rag, setting it down for Java to try. Sound watched for a while as his son got the hang of it, making sure he was doing it properly. It took until dinner, but Java managed to get the first piece into place. He smiled as he looked it over, happy to have it in place. “I did it!” he said excitedly.
Sound nodded, smiling proudly. The two turned as they heard the door open. Cadence stepped in, a sleeping Micro curled up on her back. “Dinner's ready.” she told them.
“Mom!” Java said, pointing at the radio. “Look, I fixed it!”
Cadence stepped over, looking inside. “Well, you haven't fixed it yet.” Sound corrected, patting Java on the back. “But it's a good start.”
Cadence nodded, smiling. “That's right, it's a very good start, now go get ready for dinner.”
Java hopped carefully off the stool, trotting out of the room. Cadence watched until he was out of sight, then turned to Sound. “So what got him so interested in radios?” she asked.
Sound smiled as he led her out of the room. “His broke.” he told her simply. “So I got him another one.”
Cadence smiled, kissing his cheek softly. “That was sweet of you.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Sound woke up the following day as he usually did, and made his way downstairs for a cup of coffee. As he passed by the door to his workshop, he heard some banging inside. Opening the door slowly, he was surprised to see it was Java, wide awake, working on the radio. He smiled, watching for a moment as Java swapped his attention from the book's diagrams to the corresponding pieces in the radio. “Hey, you're up pretty early.” he said, stepping in. “How long have you been up?”
“Not long.” Java lied, breaking his bluff with a deep yawn.
Sound smirked and took a look inside. All in all, it was good progress, most of the pieces were mounted in place. “It's good work.” Sound told him, smiling. “Now get to bed, you can keep working when the sun comes up.”
Java sighed, hopping off the stool and dragging his hooves to the bedroom. Sound took another look at it, an impressed smile on his face.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
“Really? Up that early?” Cadence asked, surprised. “Our Java?”
Sound nodded, smiling. “I couldn't believe it either, but he was just sitting there working on the radio. He's got all the pieces in place now.”
“All the pieces in place?” she asked a bit worriedly. “so he's going to be moving onto the wires soon?”
He nodded again, sipping his coffee. “I'll be there the whole time, he'll be fine.”
As they talked, Java made his way back downstairs, rubbing his tired eyes. Sound got up and walked over to the young colt, smiling. “Morning Java, ready to get back to work?”
Java smiled and shook off the sleep, raising his head up. “Yeah, let's go.”
Sound chuckled as he watched Java dash toward the workshop. He stepped in behind the energetic colt, watching as Java looked confused at the wires inside. “These pictures are in black and white.” Java told him. “How do I know which wire goes where?”
“It's simple,” Sound explained, walking up to the table and pointing out the wires. “Every radio and speaker is built with the same wiring system for easy repair. The wires go, in order from top to bottom, red, blue, green, then yellow. Just take the wires one at a time and coil it around the conductor.”
Java took a minute to look over the wires inside and organize them before taking the red wire and beginning to hook it up. As he was working, he jolted his head back, covering his mouth. Sound looked at him with a bit of concern. “Shocked your tongue?”
Java nodded, keeping his mouth covered. Sound carefully moved his hooves away, looking at his tongue. “Well it looks alright.” he told him. “This time let's turn off the battery pack before we connect the wires.”
Sound reached his hoof in and flipped a small switch, stepping back to let Java get back to work. Once the wires were all in place, he switched the battery pack back on, smiling at the hard work in front of him. “Okay, it's all done inside, now what?”
Sound stepped away from the table and into the supply closet, bringing out sand paper, a can of beige paint, and a brush. “Now we fix up the outside.” he told his young son.
Java nodded, picking up the sand paper as he got started. Sound smiled and left him to it, getting back to his own project. The two worked through the day, keeping to their own projects, until it came to be late in the day. Java wiped the sweat from his brow as he looked at the finished product in front of him. The paint wasn't exactly even, but it looked good. Plugging it in nearby, he tuned it to his favorite radio station and got ready to turn it on. Sound looked over, watching intently as Java turned the power dial. When he did, he heard the clear sounds of the Beach Colts blasting out of the radio's speakers. Sound smiled as his son's face lit up with pride over the finished product. He walked over to inspect it as Java bobbed his head to the rhythm. “Nice job Java, I'm proud of you.”
Cadence walked in, smiling as she heard the radio blaring. “Well, looks like you're finished.”
Java nodded, smiling. “I did it all myself.”
“I can see that.” Cadence said, smiling at the two. “How about we take a picture of it?”
Java nodded, pointing over to the camera. Sound set up the tripod while Cadence got the camera and set it in place. Cadence looked over to Sound and shrugged him to get in the frame with Java and the radio. With a nod, he did just that, standing on one side of the radio. Java stood up on his stool, wobbling a bit as he smiled, the radio still playing between them. With a flash, Cadence took the picture. The flash surprised the young colt, causing him to wobble and tip over the stool, falling toward the floor.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java awoke as his did too often, with a loud thud on the floor as he rolled out of bed. With a groan, he stood up, rubbing his head as his radio alarm went off, the Beach Colts blaring on his favorite station. With a deep yawn, he stood up and shuffled his legs across the floor toward the stairs. Micro was waiting for him in the kitchen, enjoying a bowl of cereal. “Morning.” he said, taking another mouthful. “There's a pot of coffee on the counter for you.”
Java nodded, making his way over. “Thanks.”
Picking up the mug, he took a careful sip, but ended up spitting out the hot drink into the sink, hanging his tongue out of his mouth. Micro couldn't help but chuckle at the sight. “Burnt your tongue?” he asked.
Java nodded, sliding his tongue back into his mouth. “Yeah, it's not the worst thing that's happened to my tongue though. So what's the plan for today?”
Micro took his empty bowl and set it into the sink, smiling. “I was gonna grab a milkshake with Shimmer over at Sugarcube Corner. You?”
Java took another sip, ready for the hot drink this time. “I've got some work I need to do, I'll probably be in the shop most of the day.”
“Sounds like a boring day.” Micro said. “Do you want some help?”
“No,” Java said, shaking his head, “Go ahead and have some fun, I'm sure I'll get out for a little bit today.”
Micro nodded, waving goodbye as he left out the door. Once Java got breakfast out of the way, he made his way into the workshop. At the back of the workshop were projects that ponies brought in to be fixed. He looked over the lines of projects, and his eye was caught by an AC/DC radio Vinyl Scratch had brought him. Picking it up, he set it down on the work bench, opening the back to examine it. It was a simple fix, the wires had come undone. Reaching in, he switched off the battery pack, organizing the wires. “Red, blue, green, then yellow.” he recited with a smile, getting started on his work. |
JavaChips | 592 | 14 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2012-02-03T14:05:32+00:00 | 2012-02-03T14:05:32+00:00 | 698 | With the sun reaching the peak of the Equestrian sky, it was turning out to be a particularly warm summer day. The Canterlot Train Station was in it's usual hustle and bustle as yet another train pulled into the station. As the doors opened, Rarity made her way out, wearing a very flowery sun hat, her horn sticking out of a small hole surrounded by lillies. As she looked out on Canterlot, she smiled. Her trips to Canterlot were always her favorite treats. She didn't have much time to enjoy the scenery before she found herself turning around and frowning at the colt behind her. “Hurry along Java, I can't be late to the studio. Fancy Pants said we need to be set up by tonight for the photo shoot tomorrow.”
Coming out of the train behind her, barely making it out the door with thirty or so different outfits and luggage laying across his back, was Java, taking slow steps under the weight across his back. “I'm coming already, can't you carry a couple of outfits?”
Rarity sighed, stepping up to her bushy maned friend. “And risk a sore slouch during my photo shoot? Oh don't be silly. Besides, you're a big, strong colt, I think you can handle it.”
“Aren't you supposed to be the Element of Generosity?” Java asked.
“Well I'd say it was fairly generous of me to offer my spare ticket to Canterlot.” Rarity said, raising her head in a dramatic fashion as she began walking.
Java followed weakly behind, doing his best not to tip over the stack. “Yeah, but I think you balanced that out when you had me pay for your three course gourmet-”
“Oh my, is it noon already?” Rarity asked, breaking the conversation as she stared at the clock. “We simply must hurry.”
Seeing he wasn't going to get through, Java sighed and began following behind the fashionable unicorn.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
It was around twilight when the studio was finally set up for the photo shoot. Java was setting up one of the last outfits on a mannequin, happy to have the weight off his back. “Well, it looks like everything is set up for tomorrow.” Fancy Pants said as he stepped into the studio.
Accompanying him was his usual tag along, Fleur De Lis. Rarity smiled and approached the regal unicorn, putting on her best manners. “Yes, it's all ready Fancy Pants, I made sure there wasn't a single fabric out of place.”
Java made his way up to the group, standing next to Rarity. “Yeah, it looks like you'll be all set for tomorrow, the fashions are organized by season around the room so you can move from spring to winter.”
“Oh, sorry chap I didn't see you there.” Fancy Pants said, offering his hoof. “You must be a friend of Rarity's from Ponyville, I'm Fancy Pants. Tell me dear boy, is there anything we can do to thank you for your help?”
“Well could you get me my own room?” Java asked, shaking the upperclassman's hand. “Right now we're in a two bed room, could you switch that to two one bed rooms?”
“Consider it done.” he told him, turning to leave. “Come, I'll walk you to the hotel and help you set it up.”
Java smiled, following behind the kind unicorn. “Thanks a lot, you're a real brony.”
“Oh I hardly think it's all that generous.” Fancy Pants chuckled. “I expected one of Rarity's filly friends to come along, I hardly expect a colt to share a room with a filly he isn't involved with. You two aren't involved are you?”
Java and Rarity looked over at each other and turned away, giving a combined “No” in response.
“I could never be with someone with such a ratty mane.” Rarity protested.
“There's no way I could deal with her stuck up personality.” Java complained.
“Excuse me? I am not stuck up. I am cultured, something you could use a lesson in.”
“Well at least I don't recoil at the sight of a little mud.”
The two continued back and forth all the way to the hotel. They finally managed to calm down and quit arguing as Fancy Pants gave them their room keys. The two made their way together up the stairway until they split ways at their rooms. Java was happy to lay down, exhausted after a long day of work. He stared out the window next to his bed at the city outside, strewn in lights and entertainment. He didn't take long to stare before he shut his eyes and drifted off to sleep, resting up for the day ahead.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Alpha Tester sighed as she took a look around her empty shop, before turning back to her computer, refreshing the page with her unicorn magic. Running a computer store had it's ups and downs, and there would always be times when she would succumb to boredom and start browsing. As she refreshed again, she heard the bell on the door tingle. “Welcome to Alpha Computers,” she said, turning away from the screen, “How can I...well look who it is.”
Java stepped up to the counter, a box on his back as he smile at the filly. “Surprised to see me?”
“Well you didn't mention anything about a visit in your last letter.” she told him.
Java rubbed the back of his head, a goofy grin on his face. “It was kind of an impulsive trip, I got lucky and hitched a ride with a friend. Besides, your letters always said something about wanting to hang out more right?”
Alpha made her way around the counter and gave the colt a soft peck on the cheek. “Well, it's good to know you read my letters. So what's in the box?”
Java spaced out for a minute, a blush forming on his cheek from the kiss. “What? Oh right the box.” he remembered, setting it on the counter. “I brought you one of Granny Smith's famous cinnamon apple pies.”
Alpha smiled and sighed, setting it back on his back. “Thanks, but I'm allergic to cinnamon.”
“Oh, sorry I didn't know. I guess I'll hold onto it then. Anyway, I'm only in town for the one day so I figured we could hang out.”
Alpha looked around her shop and smiled. “Yeah, I think I can close down for the day, but you'll have to explain it to all these customers.”
“I think I can do that.” Java told her, giving a sly wink.
The two laughed as they stepped out of the computer store, locking up behind them. “So what did you have planned? Something sappy and romantic?” Alpha asked.
Java shook his head, rubbing the back of his head. “Actually I didn't get very far on plans.” he told her. “I guess we could start by sitting and talking. Know any good cafes in the area?”
Alpha made a spitting sound with her tongue, taking the colt's hoof. “That's boring, I've got a much better idea. Follow me.”
Before he knew it, Alpha was galloping down the street. Java tried to keep up as the green unicorn led him down back streets and alleyways toward the gaming district, doing his best not to trip as he did. Finally, the two stopped in front of Thunderhoof Arena. “Here we are.” Alpha told him, smiling at the out of breath colt. “Come on, you're gonna like this.”
Alpha led him in toward one of the arena areas. After Java attempted to make himself look good by paying for the two of them, followed by some playful teasing from Alpha, the two took their seats. The arena was dark, save for an elevated field of concrete covered by a dome that had lights surrounding in. “So, what exactly is this?” Java asked.
“You'll see.” Alpha told him, watching intently.
Java leaned back, watching as two groups of ponies each set their own electronic contraption inside the dome. The realization clicked in his head as a pony from each team stepped up to a dock, placing their remotes in them and getting their hooves ready. He leaned forward intently as the two robots' buzz saws began revving up. The two went at each other as the crowd cheered, watching the two enter one-on-one combat. Java raised his hooves high in the air, cheering as the two machines began fighting. As he began lowering his hooves, he looked over at Alpha, who was smiling at him. “What is it?” he asked, smiling.
Alpha blushed and turned her attention toward the arena, adjusting her glasses. “Oh, nothing.” she replied timidly.
Java smirked and leaned in, kissing her cheek softly. “Yeah, you look cute, too.” he told her.
Alpha's cheeks turned a deep red, her glasses sliding back down her nose. “I...I don't know what you're talking about.” she said shyly.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
It had reached mid afternoon before the couple came out from Thunderhoof Arena. “You were right, that was amazing. I haven't seen machines like that since my high school metal shop class.” Java told her.
Alpha raised an eyebrow at her turquoise friend. “You used to make stuff like that?” she asked.
“Well, on occasion.” Java shrugged. “Me and a group of buddies used to talk about joining one of those sort of tournaments, but we were always too busy to really put some work into a robot.”
Alpha nodded, remembering his letters. “Yeah, it must have been hard supporting your mom and brother like that.”
“Yeah.” Java said, remembering back. “Anyway, what should we do next? We've still got a few hours until nightfall.”
Alpha took his hoof, leading him toward one of the city gates. “Come on, there's a place I like to go to unwind at the end of the day.”
Java followed behind her, watching as they passed through the gate. “Hey, we're leaving the city.” he told her.
“Yeah, trust me it's worth it.” she told him.
Though Canterlot took most of the space on the cliff where it sat, there were beautiful pastures surrounding the city. In one of these pastures sat a lovely lake, partly shaded by a cave. Alpha led Java up the slope of a hill nearby that broke off at the edge of the lake. The sun began to paint the sky orange, leaving a glistening beauty over the still water of the lake. Java smiled as he looked out on it. “So you just sit here and watch the lake?” he asked.
“Of course not.” Alpha told him, shaking her head. “We're gonna go swimming. There's still a good hour until the sun goes down.”
Java looked over the edge of the cliff a bit worriedly. Though it was probably no more than five feet or so above the water level, staring over the edge of the cliff it seemed like an eternity to the bottom. As he was debating whether or not to jump, Alpha had already set her glasses on the hill and jumped over the edge. She made a mighty splash in the water, taking in a deep breath as she resurfaced. “Come on scaredy cat,” she teased, “Just jump.”
Java looked down again, took a deep breath, and stepped back. After a minute of preparing himself mentally, he made a mighty leap over the cliff and landed in the water with a large splash. It didn't take him long to resurface, his mane matted down against his neck. “Well, that wasn't so bad.” he said, catching his breath as he looked around. “Alpha?”
As he looked around, the sneaky unicorn dove on him from behind, pulling him under the water. Java struggled for a moment, coming back up to the surface with a deep breath. As his head emerged, he was met with the giggling filly who had pulled him under. “What did you do that for?” Java asked, catching his breath.
“That was for calling me cute.” Alpha said with a playful splash.
Java smirked and splashed her back. It wasn't long before the two were splashing each other back and forth, chasing each other around the lake. As the sun disappeared behind the horizon, and the moon reared it's head, the two swam out of the lake and went back up the top of the cliff. Alpha located her glasses, and the two sat down to stare at the stars and dry off. “This was a great day.” Java told her, leaning his head against hers. “It's too bad I have to go back to Ponyville tomorrow, I had fun.”
Alpha nodded, adjusting her glasses. “Yeah, too bad.” she said, her mind deep in thought. “Hey, what if....no, nevermind.”
Java turned to look at the blushing filly. “What if what?” he asked.
“It's nothing.”
“Come on, you can tell me.”
Alpha looked up at him and sighed, taking a deep breath. “What if...I moved to Ponyville with you?”
Java was a bit shocked. Of all the things that she could have said, he certainly wasn't expecting that. “Move to Ponyville? What about your computer store?”
Alpha shook her head, sighing. “Come on Java, you know the story. Too many shops, not enough business. There are four other computer shops on that street alone. The way you saw the shop today, the lack of customers, that's how it usually is.” Alpha rested her head on his chin. “I might go belly up at this point, so I'd really prefer to just sell it off, hold the money, and move on.”
Java watched her as she rested her head. “Wow, That's a lot to take in.” Java said, relating himself to her situation. “Could you really just leave Canterlot like that though?”
“I don't know, I mean yeah I have friends here, but if I don't have a business, I don't really have a living do I?”
“Yeah, I know what you mean.” Java told her. He had gone through the same thing during his own debate to leave Fillydelphia.
Alpha raised her head, looking at him. “I'm not going to force you of course. It's your house, your life. I'll let you decide.”
Java stared up at the sky while his mind raced, going back and forth on the subject in his head. While it was true that he could relate to the situation, it was also true that the implications were different. He sat there for a while, but looking over at Alpha, he kept coming to the same conclusion.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
As the train pulled into the station at Ponyville, Rarity made her way out, smiling at the familiar scenery in front of her. “Oh I do so love Canterlot, but it's nice to be back on familiar ground. Come along now, I want to get back to the boutique before they start today's scheduled storm.”
She got out of the way of the door as Java shuffled out of the train, his head hanging as he carried the luggage out, along with some added baggage Rarity had picked up at the stores. “Oh quit sulking, it isn't that heavy.” Rarity said as Alpha Tester followed behind him, carrying the other half of the load. “That goes for the both of you. Now come along.”
“You know, I'm starting to think you only said yes so you didn't have to carry all of this yourself.” Alpha told Java, doing her best not to drop the baggage.
“You got me.” Java said jokingly. “That and going half and half on the train meal.”
Alpha smiled as she shuffled up next to the colt, kissing his cheek. “Well, I think I'll forgive you this time.”
Java blushed and smiled, shuffling a bit closer as the two walked. |
JavaChips | 592 | 15 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2012-02-12T23:21:11+00:00 | 2012-02-12T23:21:11+00:00 | 686 | It was a rather early and busy morning in Ponyville as the weather team began preparing a light storm. Micro stared out the window at the hard working pegasi, yawning as he pushed off the covers and rolled out of bed. Brushing his hoof across the off switch on his alarm, he made his way down the stairs to the kitchen. As he turned to enter, he froze up and darted back around the corner. Peering inside, he saw Alpha tester making eggs at the stove across the room. It had only been a week since Alpha had moved in with the two, and he still wasn't used to seeing her around the house in the morning. Alpha hummed softly as she cooked, sliding the eggs onto three separate plates. As she turned toward the table, she noticed the edge of somepony's glasses sticking out from behind the wall. With a smile she walked up and knocked gently on the kitchen doorway. “Good morning sleepy head.” Alpha said with a smirk. “Are you hungry? Or do you want to sit out in the hall a while longer?”
Micro blushed and adjusted his glasses, following behind Alpha into the kitchen. The two sat in silence for a while, eating their breakfast. “So,” Alpha said, trying to break the tension, “You're a pretty soft sleeper huh? I walked right by your room this morning and didn't hear a peep.”
“Yeah,” Micro nodded, “I'm quiet most of the time.”
“Hey, that's not such a bad thing.” she reassured. “Your brother's the exact opposite, he snores like an Ursa Major. It's like I'm sleeping next to a bear.”
Micro chuckled softly, carrying his empty plate to the sink. “You don't have to tell me, I've lived with him longer than you have.”
The two heard a yawn from the hallway just outside, no doubt the source was their third housemate. Java made his way around the corner, sitting down in front of the remaining plate. “Morning all, what's so funny?”
“Oh nothing sweetie.” Alpha told him, kissing his cheek on her way toward the mail at the front door. “Did you sleep well?”
“Like a baby.” Java said with a smile.
“Or a bear.” Alpha said quietly, flipping through the mail.
Java was quick to finish the eggs, setting his plate in the sink. “Alright, I'm gonna get some chores done in town before the rain starts, then I can get started on some repairs.”
Java gave a cheek kiss back to Alpha on his way out the door, eliciting a blush from the unicorn as she started sorting the mail. She separated it into separate piles for her and Java, and hovered a single letter over to Micro in the other room. “Looks like you get a letter today too.” she said, smiling.
Micro took it out of the air, curious about who was sending him a letter. His eyes went wide when he saw the return address on the back of the envelope and tore it open, pulling the letter out from inside. Alpha walked over to read it with him, curious about what would make the young colt get so excited. The two read the letter to themselves, and a giant smile went across Micro's face. “Well well,” Alpha said, tussling his mane. “Congratulations little guy, that's a pretty big honor.”
Micro nodded, reading through the letter a second time to make sure he read it right. “This is great, I have to tell Shimmer, she's going to be so happy for me.”
“Yeah, she's gonna be excited alright. I bet Java will be, too.”
Micro's heart sunk as he thought about Java. “Oh right, Java. I wonder what he'll think about this.”
Alpha saw the expression on his face and patted his head. “Hey, he's gonna be happy for you, there's no need to worry.”
Micro nodded, setting the letter back in the envelope. “Yeah, I'm gonna go tell Click and Shimmer, can you please not tell Java about it? I want to tell him myself.”
“No problem, I won't tell him a thing.” Alpha told him, patting her back.
Micro smiled and galloped out the door, while Alpha made her way back to her own stack of mail.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Shimmer and Clickspring both looked over the letter again, making sure they had read it correctly. Click smiled and held out his hoof, which Micro immediately bumped. “Nice going brony!” he said. “This is major, only colts of the highest caliber get invited to this, this is a major start right here!”
Shimmer nodded, stepping forward for a congratulatory hug. “Yeah, this is a great start for you, have you told-”
“Please don't say Java.” Micro told her, looking worried. “I don't know how he's going to take it yet.”
“Micro, your brother loves you, you've always been right there by his side.”
“Yeah, that's what I'm worried about.” Micro told her, looking away. “We've always been together, through thick and thin. I don't want to upset him.”
“Well you have to tell him sometime, don't you?”
“Yeah, but....I need to find the right words for it, and the right time.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java and Alpha were hard at work in the workshop, working to repair the Cakes' spinning sweets tray. Alpha was looking over the motor while Java greased the tube. “We'll have to let the Cakes know they'll have a longer wait than they thought.” Alpha told him, examining the inner workings. “This motor is fried, and it'll be at least a week to get a new one in.”
Java leaned over and took a look at the motor for himself. It was true that the inside was severely rusted, and probably wouldn't run again. Still, Java shook his head as he walked over to a group of electronics. “That won't be necessary.” he told her, unhinging an old fan. “We'll just use the motor from here.”
After removing the motor from the fan, he checked and made sure the two motors were of approximately the same size. Then, adjusting the speed of the rotation in the fan motor, he set it into place and hooked it up. Sure enough, the motor was an adequate proxy, and the trays were spinning like new. Alpha smirked and patted Java on the back. “Well, I stand corrected. Java Chips, is there anything you can't fix?”
“Oh, that's nothing.” Java boasted. “I once had little more than a week to repair a carriage that had been turned into a time machine in order to return to the present.”
Alpha giggled and kisses his cheek. “Yeah right, your mouth is the only thing going eighty eight miles per hour.” she teased.
Java smiled and turned to the mare, looking into her eyes. “Oh really? Maybe we should put it to the test.”
The two shut their eyes as they began to lean in close, but immediately darted back up as they heard the front door close. “I'm home.” came Micro's voice.
Java walked awkwardly into the living room to greet his brother, smiling. “Hey, glad to see you got home before the rain started, what have you been up to?”
“Oh you know, just hanging out with Click and Shimmer.” he replied, looking toward the colorful cards on the table. “What are these?”
Java followed his gaze to the cards on the table and walked up to them. “Oh, they're just some invitations Pinkie gave me while I was out, for a party next week. You know what's happening next week right?”
The first thought that came to Micro's head was the letter, but he was able to stop himself before he said anything out loud. “Uh....oh right, next week is a year since we moved.”
“Yeah,” Java nodded, picking up and reading over his invitation again, “She's calling it a 'year-aversery party.' Apparently the whole town is going to be there. Same old Pinkie.”
“Right, that should be fun.” Micro said.
“Yeah, I just hope she doesn't overdo it. Anyway, I've gotta get back to work.”
Micro nodded, making his way toward the stairs. “Alright, I'm gonna go upstairs and play some games.”
Java waved as his brother disappeared up the stairs, and made his way back to the workshop.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
It wasn't until near sunset that the rain had stopped. Alpha was in the kitchen preparing dinner while Java finished up the last of the day's orders. He wiped some sweat from his brow, walking into the kitchen. “How's dinner coming?” he asked.
“It's just about done.” she told him, stirring some sauce for the spaghetti. “Can you go upstairs and get Micro?”
Java nodded, making his way up the stairs. He was about to knock on the slightly ajar door, when he heard Micro talking from the other side. Slowly opening the door a bit more to stare in, he saw Micro pacing, going over lines out loud. “Java, We're brothers and....no. Java, We've been together for a long.....no, not like that. Java, I-”
“Something wrong bro?” Java asked, stepping in.
Micro jumped with surprise, turning around to face his older brother. “Java! How long have you been standing there?”
“Not very long, but I know you were talking about me.” Java told him. “Is there something you need to talk to me about?”
Micro sighed, he had been caught. He opened his night stand drawer and handed the letter to his brother. Looking a bit concerned, Java took the letter from him and began reading. It was from the Equestria Gaming Commission. “I was accepted into the Equestrian Gaming Circuit, Junior Division. I registered back near the end of school and I got a reply this morning. I wasn't trying to hide it from you, but I didn't want you finding out until I knew how to tell you. I'm leaving for the rest of the summer, and a part of the fall, starting next week. I'll be following the circuit across Equestria.”
Java was speechless, his mind battling with itself. He put a hoof to his head, the extreme thinking was taking a toll immediately. Micro looked at him with concern. “Java? Are you mad?”
Java shook his head, trying to subside the thoughts running through his head. “No I...I'm...I have to go out for a second.”
Java made his way quickly out of Micro's room and down the stairs to the front door. “Where are you going?” Alpha asked, a bit concerned.
“I just have to go out for a walk.” Java said, shutting the door behind him.
Micro came galloping down the stairs, but he was too late to stop Java as the door shut. Micro hung his head, his glasses sliding down his nose. “I think I upset him.” he said.
Alpha shook her head, staring at the door. “No, it's just a lot to take in, give him some time.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java stared up at the stars, sitting in the middle of a field in Sweet Apple Acres. It was a field he knew well enough, he had once set up a sound system in it. The moon was very large tonight, you could almost count every individual crater. Java's mind was lost in thought as he tried to get his thoughts organized. While he had made his way out to the field, he was unaware that he had been followed by another colt. A spot of crimson appeared on the left edge of his peripheral vision. He turned his head to see Big Macintosh sitting down next to him. “Oh, hey Big Mac,” he said, turning back up to the stars, “It's a nice night out, isn't it?”
“Eeyup.” Big Mac said. “Something on your mind?”
Java looked back over at him, looking him up and down. Finally, he let out a sigh. “You're an older brother, right?”
“Eeyup.”
“Well....how would you feel if Applejack decided to follow the rodeo for a long time?”
Big Mac looked over to the electronics pony for a second, thinking it over. “Sad, abandoned, a little lonely.” he replied, looking back toward the sky.
All this only made Java's ears droop. “I mean, that's how I'd feel at first.” he told him, causing his ears to shoot back up. “After a while I'd get over my personal feelings about it. Then, I reckon I'd feel pretty proud and happy. She's doing what she loves after all, isn't she?”
Java thought about it for a moment and smiled, standing up. “Thanks Big Mac, I needed to hear that.”
Java galloped away, making his way back toward home. Big Mac sat there for a little while longer, staring at the sky. “Eeyup.” he said, smiling at the moon.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Micro was sitting on the couch, staring at the front door. Alpha was nearby in the chair, watching Micro with the same concern. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Java stepped inside the door, his face looking expressionless. Micro hopped off the couch, making his way up in front of his brother. “Java, I'm sorry. If you don't want me to go I won't, I don't need to join the EGC, not if you don't want-”
He was silenced by a hoof placed to his mouth. He raised his hanging head to see a smile on his brother's face. “Go get 'em bro.” Java said, tussling Micro's mane. “Show all of Equestria what you're made of.”
Micro's face lit up as he wrapped his hooves around his brother, a bright smile on his face. “Thanks!”
Java nodded, returning the hug. “No problem, now get up to bed. Gaming prodigies need their sleep.”
Micro smiled and made his way toward the stairs, heading up to his room. Alpha walked up to Java with a smile on her face. She gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. “I knew you'd come to the right decision.” she told him.
Java shook his head. “It was never mine to make. I knew from day one this was going to happen, and I'm happy to see it finally did.”
“Well, whether it was your decision or not,” she told him, “You just lit up his world.”
Java nodded, smiling. “I know.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
**don't miss the Chips Brothers' Year-aversery next chapter, I pinkie promise it'll be amazing** |
JavaChips | 592 | 16 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2012-03-05T22:14:42+00:00 | 2012-03-05T22:14:42+00:00 | 647 | It was an early summer morning across Equestria, the sun had just begun to peek out from the horizon. Java yawned as he made his way downstairs, staring out the stairway window at the dawn. On his way toward the kitchen, he stopped at the calendar, crossing off the previous day. He looked at the current date and smiled. “A year to the day.” he said.
He took a moment to reminisce before continuing toward the kitchen. He didn't make it onto the tiles before a knock at the door stopped him in his tracks. He sighed, staring across the room at the boxes of cereal, nearly within hooves' reach. With a groan, he turned around and made his way toward the door, putting manners over meals. “Who in Equestria is even up at this hour?” he asked himself, opening the door.
His answer came as a blast of confetti to the face, followed by a pink pony up against his nose. “Happy year-aversery to you today.” Pinkie sang.
“What the? Pinkie Pie?” Java's heart skipped a beat in surprise.
“It seems like you knocked on our door just yesterday.” she continued, tapping her feet against the ground in a short dance.
“Hey! You're gonna wake everypony up!”
“But now a complete year has passed since you entered our lives, I can't think of any-”
Her bouncing and singing were interrupted by a hoof in her mouth as the turquoise colt caught his breath, wiping confetti off his face. He looked over at the staircase, seeing nopony stepping down them. “Well, it doesn't look like you woke anypony up.” he told her, turning back to the hyperactive mare. “Did you come all the way out here at the crack of dawn just to sing some song?”
He removed his hoof so she could speak. “Of course not, that would be crazy. I was here at midnight but nopony was awake, so I sat and waited. And it wasn't just the song, I wanted to make sure you didn't forget about your party today.”
“You mean the party that doesn't start for eight hours?”
“Yeah, I wanted to make sure you weren't late.”
“so you thought it was....never mind, we'll be there, see you in eight hours.”
“Okie Dokie Lokie.” she said with a smile.
She bounded off toward home, and Java sighed, shutting the door hard behind him. Alpha groaned as she made her way down the stairs. “Do you have to shut that door so hard? It's the crack of dawn Java.”
Java looked at her with a bit of despair. “B-but I...but Pinkie...never mind.” he said with a sigh, rubbing his head. Java made his way to the kitchen for some coffee, the day already had him tired out.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java, Alpha, and Micro made their way toward Ponyville's square, which Pinkie had reserved for the party. “Well, it looks like Pinkie went all out.” Alpha said, looking at the party just up ahead.
The party was in full swing as ponies were trotting back and forth on the dance floor to DJ Pon-3's deep bass beats. As the group made their way up to the party, Pinkie made her usual unusual appearance by hopping out from under a table. “So what do you think?” she asked.
Java took a breath, surprised from the party pony's sudden appearance and sighed. “It's great, thanks Pinkie. But why would you celebrate our year-aversery and not Twilight's?”
“Don't you remember that party during the Summer Sun Celebration?” she asked.
Java thought back to the Summer Sun Celebration, and Pinkie's big party. “Yeah, what does that have to do with Twilight?”
“Twilight came to Ponyville on the same day, so it was a double party!” she explained, pulling a calendar out from under the table she had jumped out of. “Plus your arrival in Ponyville fills a crucial party void between the Summer Sun Celebration and the Nightmare Night party.”
Alpha took Java's hoof and dragged him toward the dance floor. “Aren't you the one that warned me not to try and decipher Pinkie logic?” she teased, stepping onto the tile floor.
Java nodded, smiling. “I just can't help myself sometimes.”
“Well, let's try and enjoy the party for a bit, okay?”
Java nodded, and the two began dancing, shifting side to side to the beat. Micro watched from across the square, getting a glass of punch. “Are you alright?” asked a concerned voice.
He turned around and saw Shimmer standing there, giving him a worried look. “Oh, yeah.” he told her. “I'm still not used to big crowds like this, and I'm also a little nervous about tomorrow.”
She stepped up to the nervous colt and wrapped her hoof around his neck. “It'll be alright, you're going to do great.”
He smiled over to her, blushing a little. “I hope so, I wouldn't be so nervous if I had somepony coming with me.”
“I wish I could, but I still have nursing training.”
“Yeah...” Micro hung his head.
Shimmer looked at the worried colt with a little bit of pity, and took his hoof. “Come on,” she told him with a smile, “Let's dance.”
She dragged him down to the dance floor, moving to the beat of the music. Java smiled as he watched his brother begin to emerge from his shell. His view was pulled away by the mare across from him, smiling at him. “You aren't staring at another mare are you?” she asked teasingly.
“Of course not.” Java said with a smirk. “I don't think I even see other mares anymore.”
Alpha giggled, and the two leaned in for a kiss. “Well, looks like you two are having fun.” came a familiar feminine voice.
Java turned, catching a view of a treble clef cutie mark on a turquoise background. “Mom!” he said in shock, pushing Alpha a couple of inches away.
Cadence couldn't help but giggle as she stepped up to the colt. “Are you still doing that? Java you're not a young colt anymore, why are you always so embarrassed about being with a filly around me?”
Alpha took a step forward and smiled, adjusting her mane. “It's a mystery.” she said, holding out her hoof. “Alpha Tester.”
“Cadence Da Capo.” she said, shaking hooves with the computer filly. “So how's my Java doing?”
“Oh, he's more or less alright, It's me I'm worried about.” she joked. “I'm going in for the brain scan next week.”
The two mares laughed as they continued to talk. Java gave his own nervous laugh, shuffling away. “I'm gonna go get some punch.” he told them, heading toward the buffet.
Java turned his head away from the two, hoping his mother wouldn't embarrass him as he took a swig of the punch. “Uh oh, you know what they say happens when two mares gossip.” came a colt's voice from next to him.
Java gasped, choking a bit on the punch before coughing to clear his throat. He turned his head and saw the orange-red colt next to him, enjoying a cupcake from the buffet. “Dad?” he said, surprised once again. “What is up with everypony and surprising me today?”
“You never were one to pay attention to your surroundings.” Sound chuckled. “Your friends invited us to come by.”
Java sighed and took another sip of punch. “Well it was nice of them to tell me.” he said sarcastically.
“Well, “ came another voice from behind, “As Sebastian Silvertongue said, 'A surprise is a gift wrapped in a heart attack.'”
Java turned around to see a smiling white unicorn standing behind him, chuckling at his own joke. Morning Star held out his hoof, and the two shook. “Hey Star, what's new?”
“Same old, I decided to take a break from updating star maps to wish you a happy 'year-aversery' as your friend Pinkie put it.”
“Well, I bet Twi's really happy about that.”
“I-I bet she is.” Star said with a blush. “A-anyway congratulations.”
Java smiled as Star made his way toward the dance floor, blushing furiously. Java chuckled, making his way back toward Alpha and his mother, but was knocked over on the way by a pair of pegasi, squealing as they joined in a circle of mares. “Oh my gosh it's really him! It's RGB!” was one of a slew of comments coming from the excited crowd.
Cosmo made a leap up from the crowd, wearing his Wonderbolts suit and buzzing around the square trying to get away from the crowd. Java couldn't help but laugh as the group followed him, until they trampled him trying to catch up. Getting up with a painful groan, he sighed. “Hey look!” he said, pointing down the street. “There's Soarin and Spitfire!”
The fangirls didn't bother to even check before they began running down the street. Cosmo sighed and made his way up to the sore colt, holding out a hoof. “Thanks Java, I knew I should have taken a minute to get out of my flight suit before I rushed down here.”
“No problem.” Java said, shaking his hoof. “That's just another one you owe me.”
“Right,” Cosmo replied, taking off his suit, “I'll have to pay those back eventually.”
Cadence approached the two, giggling. “Oh my, that girl of yours has quite the sense of humor Java.” she told him, sustaining her laughs. “Oh, who's your friend?”
Cosmo held out his hoof again, smiling. “Cosmic Dash, Rainbow's brother.”
“Oh, so you're her famous brother.” She replied, shaking his hoof. “Cadence Chips, Java's mother.”
“Nice to meet you, did you like the gift?”
“The gift? Oh the autograph! I loved it.”
“Glad to hear it.” Cosmo said with a chuckle. “It wasn't easy to get, coach doesn't usually do personal favors for his team members.”
“Well I appreciate the effort, it was an amazing wedding gift.”
Java smiled and stepped away, leaving the two to talk. He met back up with Alpha, who was waiting for him by the large stage Pinkie had set up. “Hey, feeling alright?”
“Yeah,” Java nodded, “I just feel like I've been knocked off my hooves.”
Alpha smiled and put a hoof on his shoulder, nuzzling his cheek. “Well I think it was nice of them, even if it did almost give you a stroke. Now come on, you still owe me a dance.”
Java smiled and nodded, walking with her to the dance floor.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The sun began to set, the party still in full swing. As the light began to disappear, Pinkie had hooked up a series of neon lights, which brightened up the square in beautiful colors. Cadence stood near the buffet, taking a sip of punch. “It's been a while Cadence.” came Sound's voice as he approached her.
She froze up for a second, setting down her punch glass. “Sound, it's been a while.”
Sound rubbed the back of his mane, nervously avoiding eye contact. “I...I heard you got remarried.”
Cadence was doing the same, digging her hoof into the ground. “Yes, Andante couldn't make it, unfortunately. I heard you got another divorce, I'm sorry to hear that.”
“Well, it was bound to happen....look, I made a lot of stupid decisions, and I definitely made some mistakes, I certainly should have thought about you and the kids, and...well....”
Sound continued dancing in circles, until Cadence put a hoof to his mouth gently, smiling at him. “If Java can forgive you, you're forgiven.”
Sound smiled and blushed, looking away. “R-right. I'm glad that's over.”
“You never were good with words.” she giggled. “Now quit that blush, let's not cause a scene, this is Java's and Micro's party.”
Sound nodded and steadily dropped his blush, adjusting his tie. Cadence smiled as he walked away, taking another sip of her punch.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
While the rest of the ponies were down on the ground, Dash and Cosmo had lifted away from the party onto a nearby cloud. The two were laughing hard, Dash fell backward, holding her head. “And then,” Cosmo continued, “Soarin put on this dumb grin and said 'How was that coach?'”
The two were laughing their flanks off, trying to contain themselves. Finally, Cosmo caught control of himself and wiped a happy tear from his eye. “So anyway, summer tryouts are starting soon.”
Dash's laughter began to quell as he told her. She got up on her hooves, looking serious. “Cosmo, we talked about this.”
“I know, I'm not offering you a spot.” he told her. “I talk to Mom and Dad too y'know, you always ask them to mail you a registration form, but I never see your form in the pile.”
Dash looked away, letting her mane fall on her face. “Yeah, well...I'm not good enough yet, I need another year to train.”
“Come on Hummingbird,” he said, trying to encourage her, “I know you're good enough, even I couldn't pull of the Sonic Rainboom, just trying that stunt nearly put me in the hospital and cost me my spot on the team.”
“Yeah well, you're the one who started that whole legacy, I don't want to make the team because of your move.”
“That hasn't been my move since you pulled it off in flight camp, that's your move.”
“This isn't up for debate.”
Dash turned her back to the colt, glaring down at the cloud. Cosmo sighed, her stubborn attitude had always annoyed him. It didn't take him long to figure out how to turn it around. “Nah, you're right, you're not ready yet.” he told her, smirking.
“What did you say?” she said, turning back around.
“I said you aren't ready yet, your moves are still second rate.”
“Oh yeah?!” her eyes filled with determination, her wings flapping angrily. “I could fly circles around you and the rest of the Wonderbolts!”
Cosmo looked her over and shook his head. “Nah, I don't see it.”
“Then I'll show you at tryouts.” she told him, her wings still flapping.
“Go ahead.” he told her, turning his back to her.
She let out a frustrated growl and turned her back as well, wings still flapping. “Thanks.” she said quietly, a small smile on her face.
“What was that?” Cosmo asked, turning his head.
“I-I said I'm gonna go grab some punch.” she told him, diving off the cloud to the party below.
Cosmo smirked as he watched her carefully land on all four hooves, walking up to the punch bowl. “You're welcome.” he said, resting his head on his hooves.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Morning Star stared up at the sky, a bead of sweat slowly falling down his brow. “uhh....” he stuttered, looking back and forth across the night. “uhh....Draco?”
Twilight, sitting next to him, let out a cry of victory. “Nope,” she said happily, “Right after I said Ursa Minor. I can't believe you forgot, that was right near the start of the game.”
“Yeah, I can't believe it either.” he said, brushing back his mane. “I guess you win.”
Twilight paused for a moment, looking over to the colt suspiciously. “Wait, did you let me win?”
Star blushed, looking away. “What? Of course not.” he told her, donning a joking tone. “I would never let you win, you did it all on your own.”
“Oh, I get it. You're trying to trick me, I really did do it, didn't I?”
“Isn't that what I just said?” he asked.
The two laughed, smiling at each other. “Seriously, did you or didn't you?” she asked.
“Jeez, I told you I didn't let you win.” he said, still jokingly, as he turned his head away.
A blush went over his face as he felt her kiss the back of his head. “Thanks.”
He turned around, still blushing and smiling. “Y-you're welcome.”
The two stared at each other for a while, before Pinkie Pie stepped in and interrupted. “Twilight, it's time.” she told her unicorn friend.
Twilight nodded and stood up, smiling at Star. “Come on.”
The blush left his face as he nodded, standing up and walking with the two mares back toward the party.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The music blasted loud into the night air, ponies still filling the dance floor. Suddenly, the music stopped, and the sound of a bell ringing was heard from the stage area. The bell was being levitated in a purple magic, courtesy of Twilight Sparkle. Standing on stage with her were her five friends, along with Cosmo, Cadence, Sound, Cosmo, Alpha, Shimmer, and Clickspring. “Your attention please,” Twilight announced, “Would Java and Micro Chips, please come to the stage.”
Confused, the Chips brothers made their way onto the stage, standing opposite the group. “Java and Micro,” Twilight began, “We would all like to wish you a happy year-aversery, congratulations on surviving a year in Ponyville.”
The crowd couldn't help but laugh at the final comment as she continued her speech. “In honor of your integration into our friendly community, and as a good luck to both of your futures, we have prepared for each of you two gifts. First, the individual gifts.”
Twilight levitated forward a radio, setting it in front of Java. It was his old AC/DC from his room, except that it had had the complete once over, looking brand new. The color had been changed from tan to turquoise, and his cutie mark had been added onto the back. Java smiled as he looked at it. “Thanks, this means a lot.” he said, a tear running down his face.
Rarity stood next, placing a tan windbreaker around Micro's shoulders. A patch of his cutie mark had been sewn into the back, the words “Micro Chips” above it, and “Ponyville” below. Across the sleeves were patches of different businesses in Ponyville, including Rarity's Boutique, Sugarcube Corner, and Chips Electronics. “We figured you could use a sponsorship jacket for your big trip.” Click explained.
“But even more than that, we wanted to find a way to cheer you on even though we couldn't be there.” Shimmer finished.
Micro looked over the jacket, sliding his hooves into the sleeves. He ran his hoof across the fabric, smiling. “Thank you, It's good to know you've all got my back.”
“Now then, we have one more gift, this one for the both of you.” Twilight told them, her and Star levitating over the final gift. The brothers looked down as a pair of books were set at their feet. On the front was a picture of Java and Micro, a photo that had been taken when they first came to Ponyville. The title above read, in golden letters, “Chips Brothers' Archive.” below, they had written “Vol. 1” in matching color.
“It's a collection of all the friendship reports we've mentioned the two of you in.” Twilight explained. “But that left it pretty thin, so we also added personal letters from all of us, to show just how well you've integrated into the community.”
The two brothers smiled, flipping quickly through the pages. Setting the books on their backs, they smiled at the group. “Thanks, all of you.” Java told them. “I never thought a year of my life could change so much.”
“Yeah,” Micro agreed, “I probably wouldn't recognize myself from a year ago.”
For a while, the two stared at the group, and the group stared back, both smiling. “Alright everypony,” Pinkie said, breaking the silence, “Let's wrap up this party with a bang! Hit it DJ!”
DJ-Pon3 dropped a record on the table, and the air was filled with rave beats. Everypony filled the dance floor, moving their hooves to the beat, well into the night.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java groaned as he rolled out of bed, not ready for the early awakening after last nights late party. As he made his way downstairs, he saw he wasn't the first one awake. Micro was waiting for him, his new jacket on and a pair of packed saddlebags. “You ready?” Micro asked.
Java smiled and nodded, walking to the door with him. The two had agreed that they would make the early train, they didn't want to pass too many ponies on the way. They stepped out of the house, looking back at it for a moment. They took a moment to reminisce before starting off toward the train station. The walk was silent, for the most part, the two would occasionally look toward each other, letting out a small smile. It was quiet, but the two were having a silent conversation. The silence was broken, however, as Java looked back. “Duck!” he yelled, diving out of the way.
On instinct, Micro did the same, jumping to the side. A grey mailmare came barrelling out of the sky, crashing into the ground nearby. “Are you okay Derpy?” Java asked, the two brothers galloping up.
Derpy picked herself up, rubbing her head. “Yeah, I'm fine. I smelled the Cakes making their muffins and got a little distracted.”
Java smiled and patted her on the back. “Hey, no problem. You should try to focus more, though, alright?”
“Sure thing.” Derpy said with a smile. “Good luck Micro, did you read my letter in the book?”
“Not yet Derpy.” Micro said, smiling. “I'm going to read it on the train. I'll send you a thank you letter after I read it, alright?”
Derpy nodded, smiling as she took off to deliver the mail. The two smiled and watched her fly off before continuing to the train station. The rest of the trip was silent as they made it to the station, the conductor doing his final engine tests. “Well, this is it.” Java said, staring at the train.
“I'll be back in a couple of months, it's not like it's goodbye forever.” Micro told him.
“Yeah.” he replied, staring down at his little brother. “Take good care of yourself.”
Micro nodded, and the two shared a hug as the conductor called for all aboard. “When you get home there'll be a big shelf in your room for your trophy.”
Micro smiled and nodded, making his way toward the train. “I look forward to it.”
Java followed the tan colt with his gaze as he boarded the train, following him all the way to his seat by the window. Micro caught sight of him staring and smiled, waving goodbye. Java smiled back, doing the same as the train gained speed out of the station. Once the train was out of sight, he let his hoof hit the ground. He stood there for a few moments, took a deep sigh, and started walking home.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Alpha stepped into the workshop, carrying a daffodil sandwich on a plate. She saw Java at the workbench, working with a couple pieces of wood, his AC/DC radio blasting 80s rock into the room. With a frustrated groan, he tossed the pieces of wood aside. “Micro only left this morning you know.” she reminded him. “You have plenty of time to make a shelf.”
“Yeah, but wood was never my strong suit.” he explained. “It'll probably take me the whole time he's gone just to do it.”
“Then why not get Mr. Woodstock to do it for you?”
Java shook his head, taking a bite of the sandwich. “I want to make it myself.”
Alpha smiled and slid her glasses up her nose, kissing his cheek softly. “You really miss him don't you?”
Java looked away for a second, reminiscing. “This is the longest we'll have ever been apart. I knew he had to move on some day, but....”
He sighed, taking another bite of lunch. Alpha looked at him with mild concern. After a moment of thought, she smiled and turned off the radio. “Come on, you need to take a break. Listening to old music is the last thing you need to look away from the past.”
Java turned and smiled at the mare, who wrapped her forelegs around his neck, smiling. “It's my favorite music genre.” he told her.
“I think I have something even better for you.” she told him. “How does the pitter patter of little hooves sound?”
Java blushed, turning to the mare, who gave him another kiss on the cheek. “That...” he said, pausing. “That sounds great.”
She smiled and took his hoof, leading him out of the workshop.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Canterlot was filled to the brim with young colts fresh out of high school, all competing in the junior division. Micro sat in the corner, looking through his book. He had taken a look at the crowd and thought it would help him calm his nerves. To his dismay, he realized he had finished the last page, and was no more relaxed. He sighed, turning the page to see the blank back. On the inside of the black cover, however, something else caught his eye. A note was hastily taped in.
I'm proud of you.
Java
Micro smiled as he read it over a second time. As his name was called with another contestant's, he shut the book and put it with his belongings. Standing at the edge of the curtain, he took a deep breath and walked out on stage. |
JavaChips | 592 | 17 | Big Macintosh,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Main 6,Original Character,Spike,Adventure,Comedy,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Chips Brothers' Archive | open ended archive of stories centered around two brothers in a new enviroment | incomplete | 20 | 6 | <p>A story archive revolving around the Chips brothers, Java and Micro, and their adventures in Ponyville along with the residents. With there being no real storyline to these stories, it's open ended, adding stories to it as they come to me and I type them out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the gripping tales of these two brothers.</p> | everyone | 2012-03-12T14:07:49+00:00 | 2012-03-12T14:07:49+00:00 | 707 | The summer sun was high above the growing town of Ponyville, it's streets busy with the comings and goings of the local ponies. Chips Electronics stood where it always had, it's dusty closed sign sitting on it's nail, as it had traditionally sat every Sunday. Inside the workshop, a young earth pony colt was looking over all the different tools on the table. His coat was an aquamarine, his mane deep blue. “Romeo?” came a feminine voice from the other room.
The young colt gasped, pulling his curious hooves away from the screwdriver he was reaching for. “Uhh...I'm in here Mom.” he said, putting his hooves behind his back.
Following the sound of the voice, Alpha stepped into the workshop, looking suspiciously at the the young colt. A foal girl was curled up on her back, resting. “You weren't playing with your father's tools again were you Rom?”
“Uh.” he stuttered, looking at the tools on the table. “No.”
“Whatever,” she said, shaking her head, “Where's your sister?”
“Ram? She's in the same place she always is, in her room doing her mane.”
With a nod, she turned around and made her way to the living room, stepping toward the stairs. As she reached the top floor, she made a right turn to the hallway where the children's rooms were. She stopped in front of a very flowery door, a large poster of Harmonic Pipes, a popular singer, covered half the door. “Ram,” she said as she knocked, “Come out of there, your father is going to be home soon with your uncle.”
“Hang on Mom.” came a young female voice from the other side. “My mane isn't ready yet!”
Alpha sighed as she opened the door, looking over to the young filly in front of the vanity mirror, looking over her mane, similar in color to Rom's. “Your mane looks fine.” she told her. “Honestly, if you spent less time worrying about what your mane looks like and prioritized better you'd have gotten a better grade last year. Now come downstairs.”
“Uncle Micro and Aunt Shimmer visit every year.” Ram said, following Alpha downstairs. “Why do we have to make such a big deal out of it?”
“Ramona Chips, watch your mouth.” Alpha warned. “Even if you're indifferent to your uncle's visits, it means a lot to your father.”
Ram sighed, stepping down the stairs. “Alright, sorry.” she said, brushing her mane away from her face.
Alpha sighed and started back down the hallway, stopping at another door, this one blank aside from a picture of a gear. “Gizmo!” she said, knocking. “Your father is going to be back soon with your uncle, come downstairs.”
It wasn't long before the door opened. A cyan unicorn with a green mane stepped out, a gear on his flank. “Sure thing Mom.” he said, sliding his goggles above his horn.
Alpha took a step back, trying to look over his shoulder. “What are you working on this time?” she asked, concern in her voice.
“I was just upgrading the memory on my computer.” he explained.
“Alright.” she said, still suspicious. “Come on.”
The teenage colt nodded, following her downstairs.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Java stood alone at the Ponyville Train Station, looking over at the clock. He let out a groan, the train was running late again. After a few moments, the sound of a train whistle came to his ears. Looking down the tracks, he saw the train roaring down the tracks. As it got close, it began to slow to a stop in the station. Java braced himself, trying to hold his ground as a group of ponies pushed past him, making their way into Ponyville, but ended up getting knocked aside by the group. Getting up, he rubbed his sore head. “These pickups get more and more painful every year.” he said.
“Well, that's what happens when you get celebrities in the neighborhood.” came a familiar voice.
Java stood up and smiled, looking over at his brother across from him. Micro stood tall, as tall as his brother now. The two stared at each other for a while before they wrapped hooves around each others necks. “Good to see you again, bro.” Java told him.
“Yeah, you too.”
“You two haven't forgotten about me, have you?” asked a feminine voice.
The two colts looked over as Shimmer stepped carefully off the train. Micro rushed to her side, helping her down the big step. She took his hoof, placing the other on her enlarged belly as she winced. “What's wrong?” Micro asked.
“Nothing, just a kick.”
The two smiled at each other and stepped over to join with Java. “It's nice to see you both again.” Java said with a smile.
“Thanks, let's get going.” Shimmer said. “It was a long train ride.”
Java nodded and the three got ready to leave the station. “Micro wait!” came a voice from behind them.
Micro stopped, an annoyed look on his face. “Hold on a second.” he told them, recognizing the voice.
He turned around and stepped up to a unicorn colt with a dollar sign on his flank. “I already told you no Cash.” Micro said.
The colt, Cash Money, took a moment to catch his breath. “Micro listen to me.” he told the gamer colt. “You signed me on as your manager right? You know I'm looking out for you. I'm telling you this tour is going to be big, you'll be touring with Flash Step, One Up, and Quicktime. This could bring your career up to a whole new level!”
“I've been through this with you enough times,” Micro said, standing firm, “I'm changing my tour schedule to mid-spring to mid-summer, I don't care who's on this tour, I'm not joining. I'm taking a year off for the foal starting now.”
Cash gritted his teeth at the stubborn colt and walked away, making his way back onto the train. Shimmer smiled, kissing him softly on the cheek. “You've become such a strong colt.” she told him.
Micro blushed, rubbing the back of his mane. “W-well he...he has to understand...y'know...I mean you can't travel now....a-and we are having a baby after all.....L-let's go.”
He galloped up to join Java, and the three began walking toward home. “There's my shy young colt.” Shimmer said quietly to herself, giggling.
“So it's true then?” Java asked, looking over at Micro.
“Yeah, it's true,” he replied with a nod. “I'll only be touring for a couple of months each year. I figured since Ponyville is growing, and so is my family, I might open up an arcade or something.”
It wasn't long before the three made it to Java's home. As they stepped in the door, they were met with the whole family welcoming them in. Alpha stepped up first, smiling. “It's good to see you again, how have you been?”
Micro smiled and shook her hoof. “It's been alright, I could use a new manager though.” he joked, turning his attention to the foal on her back. “And I take it this is the new foal?”
“Yep, meet Sonata Chips.” she told him, nuzzling the small bundle.
Micro smiled, looking at the tiny foal. “I bet Mom was happy about that.”
“She should be, she picked out the name.” Alpha told him, stepping away toward Shimmer. “Speaking of foals, how are you feeling? Would you like to sit down?”
Shimmer nodded, smiling as Alpha led her to the couch. “I could use a glass of water, too.” she said.
Alpha nodded and made her way to the kitchen. The two brothers made their way over to the couch, sitting on either side of the kids. “So how are my favorite niece and nephews?” Micro asked.
The group answered with a chorus of “Fine.”
“Gizmo, you're looking a lot like your dad.” Micro told the teenage unicorn. “Following in your father's footsteps?”
“Sort of.” he said with a shrug. “I'm more interested in the creating than the repairing, but if I can make a few bits helping out, why not?”
“Well, hopefully you don't blow up the house with one of those inventions of yours.” he joked, turning his attention to the two younger ponies. “And how are the twins? Ram, you're mane is looking lovely as always.”
Ram smiled, running a hoof through her mane. “Thank you Uncle Micro. Miss Rarity gave me some new styling products.”
“Yeah, scent of gross.” Rom said, turning his nose away.
“It is not! It's from Sapphire Shores' choice selection.”
Micro chuckled, getting up from his seat. “Still can't stop arguing huh? Well, I'd better get us unpacked, I have some chores to do around town.”
Shimmer nodded, sipping the water Alpha had brought as she passed her bags to Micro. Java got up and followed, helping to unpack.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Sweet Apple Acres stood where it always had, and it continued to stand tall. Micro looked at the barn in the distance, smiling as he reminisced about the times he had helped with the harvests. As he reached the gates, he took a moment to look around. “Well I'll be! There's a sight for sore eyes.” Came a mature feminine voice.
Micro followed the sound to see Applejack approaching, baskets of apples at her sides. “Micro Chips, what brings you 'round these parts?”
“Nice to see you again Applejack, it's been a while.” he said. “Is Applebloom around?”
With a nod, she pointed him toward a structure in the making. “She's over there, working on the new barn with Big Macintosh.”
“Thanks. Oh, and my condolences for your loss.” Micro told her, giving a reassuring look.
“Well, it had to happen some time.” Applejack said, staring back at the rocking chair on the porch. “I'm just glad she went peacefully. Now get going, I'm sure you've got a lot more places to visit.”
He nodded, adjusting his glasses as he made his way toward the barn. As he approached, he saw Big Macintosh, holding a rope tightly in his teeth. Following the rope up, he saw a grown Applebloom suspended, nailing a support beam in place. She bore an apple with a saw cutting through it proudly on her flank. “Alright Big Mac,” she said, looking down to her brother. “Lower me down.”
“Eeyup.” he replied through the rope, taking care to bring his little sister down.
“It's looking good.” Micro said, walking up.
Applebloom turned around and smiled at the sight. “Micro!” she said happily, walking up to him. “Nice to see ya again, how have ya been?”
“I've been fine, what about you? Still running around with the other crusaders?”
“Well every once in a while.” she replied. “But we haven't found much time lately, what with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo both on tours.”
“Yeah, touring can make it hard to spend time with friends.” Micro nodded. “Anyway, I just wanted to know if you and Mr. Woodstock had finished or not.”
“Almost, I want to add a bit more support” she told him. “I want to make sure a hurricane couldn't destroy that thing if it tried. It'll be ready at the end of the week.”
“Good to hear.” Micro said with a smile. “Alright, I'll let you get back to work.”
“Bye,” Applebloom waved as he made his way out. “Don't be a stranger.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Rarity sighed as she cycled through the available fabrics with her magic, shaking her head at each one that passed by, trying to decide what would be best for the half finished outfit behind her. “Oh dear, none of these are quite right.”
“Really? I think that last one looked pretty good.”
Rarity jumped, turning around to see Micro standing there next to her mannequin. “Oh Micro, darling, it's you. It's been too long.” she said, trotting up to hug the colt. “My, you're looking lovely. How is Shimmer?”
“She's fine.” Micro said with a smile. “The foal started kicking recently, so she's been a bit hindered at times.”
“Oh that's right, you're having a foal. Oh well I'm so happy for the both of you. I remember when Alpha was having her first foal Java was in such a panic, how are you doing?”
“Well, I'm not freaking out.” Micro joked, chuckling. “But I can't say it doesn't have me a little worried.”
Rarity smiled and gave him a friendly pat on the back. “Oh Micro, you're shy, timid, friendly, fun, and you care greatly for the people around you. I have no doubt in my mind that you'll be a wonderful father. Now, what can I do for you?”
Micro smiled, a blush on his face. “W-well I came by to make sure that the delivery made it in.”
“Oh right, your delivery.” Rarity said with a smile, cycling through the fabrics again. “It arrived just a couple days ago, I made sure it got forwarded and organized.”
“Thanks, I'll see you around.”
“Oh, before you go,” Rarity halted him, floating over a box of chocolates, “Give these to Shimmer, they're top quality chocolates from Manehattan.”
Micro nodded, setting them in his saddlebags. “I'll be sure to pass it along, see ya.”
“Take care.” she said, waving him out.
Once he was gone, she returned to the fabrics and stopped for a moment at one in particular. “He's right, it's the best one in the bunch.”
She brought it over to the outfit and began sewing it into place.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The old tree that held the Ponyville Library had grown tall, flourishing in the summer sun. Inside, a tall, purple dragon was stacking books, reaching his arms to the top shelf. “Jeez, why do they have to have so many books in libraries?” Spike griped, making his way to the next shelf.
His attention was drawn to the door as the bell rang. “Well well, long time no see.” Spike said, walking over to the tan colt that had walked in.
Micro smiled as he bro hoofed the dragon. “Hey Spike, you're looking tall. You haven't been...you know...”
“Stealing?” Spike asked with a smirk. “Nah, natural growth. I learned my lesson before.”
“Good to hear, is Twilight in?”
“Yeah, hold on a second.” Spike said, walking over to the stairs. “Twilight, you have a guest.”
It wasn't long before the violet unicorn made her way down the stairs. Twilight smiled, adjusting the thin framed glasses on her nose as she looked at the colt in her company. “Micro Chips, it's good to see you again.” She said, approaching him. “Can I get you some tea?”
“No thanks,” Micro said, shaking his head, “I'm not going to be here long. I just came to pick up that book I asked for.”
Twilight nodded, walking over to her book shelf. “'The Last Knight' by Silver Pen.” she read aloud. “You're lucky you came when you did, I was going to mail it tomorrow.”
Micro nodded, setting it in his saddlebags. “Thanks, glad I got to you then. It's Shimmer's favorite book, I wanted to get it for her.”
“Oh right, I heard about you two, how are you doing?” Twilight asked.
“We're doing alright, Shimmer's healthy, and the foal should be coming in the next couple of months.”
“That's wonderful, I'm happy for you two. Do you know the gender?”
“Yeah,” Micro nodded, “But we're not telling anypony.”
Twilight nodded, walking him to the door. “Well, I can't wait. Take care.”
Micro nodded, making his way out. Twilight smiled as she shut the door, and took a sigh of nostalgia. “Alright Spike, back to work.” she told her assistant.
Spike sighed as he picked the books back up, returning to stacking the shelves.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
As Micro approached Fluttershy's cottage, he picked up the soft scents of nature in his nostrils. As he got closer, angelic tones filled the air. Fluttershy was in the yard, flapping around to feed all of her avian friends. As she usually did when she was alone, she was singing a tune. Micro took a second to lean against the tree and listen before he approached. “You've still got an amazing singing voice.” he complimented.
Fluttershy gasped and dove into a nearby tree. After taking a moment to see who it was, she smiled and fluttered down to the ground. “Oh, it's just you Micro.” she said with a smile. “You startled me.”
“Sorry about that,” he apologized, “I just came by to get the flowers.”
“Oh right, from the letter. Follow me.”
The two made their way up to the cottage, stepping inside. “Make yourself at home.” she said, going upstairs.
Micro took a seat on the couch, looking around. The cottage hadn't changed in the slightest. It wasn't long before Fluttershy came back down, carrying a bouquet of lilies in her mouth. Micro took them, setting them in his saddlebags. “Thanks Fluttershy, I can't imagine these were easy to find.”
“Oh, it wasn't too much trouble.” she reassured. “I'm sure Shimmer is going to love them.”
“Thanks, she's been having a hard time lately, I figured these would be a nice gift.”
“Well, I'm glad I could be of help, take care.”
Fluttershy waved goodbye as Micro made his way out. Taking a list out of his bags, he checked off the flowers. “Alright,” he told himself. “Just one more stop.”
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
It was getting late in the day as Micro made his way toward Sugarcube Corner, standing where it always had. The small bell above the door rung as he stepped inside. He approached the empty counter, ringing the bell. It wasn't long before a brown maned pegasus poked his head out of the kitchen. “Oh, hi Micro, long time no see.”
“Yeah, it's good to see you, too, Pound.” he replied, smiling. “Is Pinkie Pie around?”
“Right here.” Came a reply from behind him.
Turning around, he wasn't surprised to see Pinkie standing there, a big smile on her face. Micro smiled, holding out his hoof to shake. “Nice to see you again Pinkie Pie, how have you been?”
“Oh, not too bad. Just being my usual Pinkie self.”
“Yeah, I figured. Anyway, I was wondering if you could do something for me.”
Pinkie Pie smiled and held up a cupcake. “Make one of my super special blueberry batter raspberry icing cupcakes?”
Micro was silent for a moment before he broke out into a laugh, taking the cupcake carefully. “Yeah, thanks. You always seem to know what's on my mind Pinkie.”
“It's a talent I have. Oh, and I almost forgot, Rainbow Dash sent me a letter. I told her about Shimmer and she wanted me to tell you congratulations on her behalf.”
“Thanks.” he replied with a nod. “I'll be sure to send her a reply letter. Where is she performing next?”
“She's got her last performance for the season coming up, Baltimare.”
Micro nodded, waving goodbye as he stepped out of the bakery. He took out the checklist one last time and checked off the final note as he made his way toward home.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
The day had become late, the sky painted a delicate orange as the sun began to tuck itself beneath the horizon. Micro was leading a blindfolded Shimmer through the streets of Ponyville, a smile on his face. “Micro, are we almost there?” Shimmer asked. “I wish you would just tell me where we're going.”
“We're getting there, it won't be much longer now.” he told her. “I promise you're going to love it.”
She smiled, holding his hoof tightly as she followed behind him, wondering what it could be. He had gone to all the trouble of delivering her favorite sweet to her, along with her favorite book, it must be something amazing. Feeling every twist and turn, she couldn't be sure in what part of Ponyville they were. They finally stopped for a moment, and she heard the sound of a door opening. After a few more steps, she was on a wooden surface. “Alright, you can look now.”
As she took off the blindfold, she was awe struck at what she saw in front of her. Opening out from the doorway was a large, fully furnished living room. Against the back wall was a book shelf, a bouquet of lilies sitting in a vase on the table. “O-oh my Micro....this....it's beautiful.”
“I thought you'd like it.” Micro smiled. “Come on, let me give you the grand tour.”
He led her through each room of the house, from the kitchen to the bathroom. Only two rooms remained. As Shimmer went to open one of the doors, he stopped her. “Hold on.” he told her. “I want to show you this one first.”
Opening the other door, the space unfolded into a beautiful nursery, fully stocked and supplied. “Oh my...Micro...you did all this?”
“Well, not me personally.” he admitted. “I was on the road with you, but I did get some help from a few old friends.”
She smiled, kissing his cheek softly. “You're going to make a wonderful father.”
Micro blushed, a big smile on his face. “Yeah...Come on, there's one more thing I want to show you.”
He took her hoof carefully, leading her to the final room. As the two stepped in, a master bedroom surrounded them. Shimmer didn't have much time to look around before Micro led her to a pair of doors, helping her out onto the balcony. Shimmer was speechless as she looked out at the scenery of Ponyville in the setting sun, a picture perfect image. Micro took her hoof carefully, smiling down at her. She smiled back up, and the two shared a soft kiss. As the kiss broke, they leaned their heads against one another and sat there, staring at the sunset as it began to disappear. “What are you thinking?” Shimmer eventually asked, breaking the silence.
Micro took a brief pause, and then looked down at his lover. “I'm thinking she's going to like Ponyville.”
Chips Brothers' Archive
The End
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
Author's note: If there's one thing I like in a series, be it of books, movies, or television shows, it's that it knows when to end. When something pushes past it's limits, be it for any reason, it starts to move downhill. I've enjoyed writing about the adventures of Java and Micro Chips, and I've really enjoyed hearing the feedback about it. I feel like they've reached their peak, and I'm happy with the way it's gone. Thanks to all of you who have followed these two ponies in their adventures, their twists and turns. I'll continue writing fanfiction, both pony and nonpony, so I hope you'll continue to enjoy. So, in closing, as cliche as it may be, I hope you guys enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. |
Emeral Frost | 597 | 1 | Comedy,Crossover,Random,Romance | Pinkie Meets Slendermane | After seeking Zecoras help and picking some odd looking berries, Pinkie soon realizes shes not alone | incomplete | 46 | 6 | <p>As she does with everypony, she becomes friends with them. When an unexpected guest arrives after getting the help of the local zebra, Pinkie sets out to try and give him a warm welcome. But, all is not what it seems–she soon finds that it is quite the unusual pony indeed!</p> | everyone | null | 2012-06-06T18:51:06+00:00 | 837 | Rewriting this, almost done with the first chapter. |
Emeral Frost | 597 | 2 | Comedy,Crossover,Random,Romance | Pinkie Meets Slendermane | After seeking Zecoras help and picking some odd looking berries, Pinkie soon realizes shes not alone | incomplete | 46 | 6 | <p>As she does with everypony, she becomes friends with them. When an unexpected guest arrives after getting the help of the local zebra, Pinkie sets out to try and give him a warm welcome. But, all is not what it seems–she soon finds that it is quite the unusual pony indeed!</p> | everyone | null | 2012-10-01T18:46:24+00:00 | 723 | Pinkie Pie set out into the morning, smiling as Celestia’s sun brought the warmth of sunlight. She smiled a bit bigger, taking in the rays for a moment before continuing with a satisfied sigh.
“It’s such a great morning~!” she sang happily to herself, trotting from Sugar Cube Corner and into the street of bustling ponies.
She wore a simple, but nice brown saddle bag on her back, a bag of bits hanging from it. The saddle bag itself was empty.
Pinkie hummed to herself, waving and giving a happy ‘good morning!” to anypony that passed by her. She looked at the buildings around her, looking at every small detail there was to make absolutely sure she hadn't missed anypony or anything to say good morning to.
“Hm~.” she said out loud. “Seems I forgot breakfast again--shoot!” she snapped at herself. “Why do I always forget the little things...?”
Frowning slightly, she continued on and rounded a corner, the Ponyville Capitol building coming into view, recently repaired from the damage Ponyville’s local ditzy mare did on it.
Pinkie Pie curiously looked around, stopping for a moment. She located a steaming cart and smiled, the wind changing as if knowing Pinkie’s thoughts and brought the steam to her, the smell of freshly baked apple pie and cinnamon apples hung in the air. She licked her lips and began in the direction of steam, not able to see the cart from the many ponies on their own way.
Not too long after wading through the ponies did she see the cart, Applejack standing behind it.
“Well hi there, Pinkie,” the apple mare announced as she got closer. “Forget breakfast again?” she asked with a small chuckle.
Pinkie nodded happily.
“Good thing, too! This looks delicious!” Pinkie replied, licking her lips as she looked over the food.
“Apple fritters, apple pie, cinnamon apples, apples! It all looks so good!”
Applejack waited patiently, smiling as she looked at Pinkie.
“Since I’m in a hurry, I’ll just take a cinnamon apple,” she told her, looking up and smiling.
The work-horse gave her what she wanted and Pinkie paid her two bits.
“So where are y’all off to in such a hurry?” she asked, pointing to the pink party pony.
“I’m going to Zecora’s,” she began. “I go to her once a month and get all sorts of berries and herbs to use in sweets. It’s also really fun to talk to Zecora!”
“She is a very interesting mare.” Applejack told Pinkie, smiling at her.
“I also gotta visit Twi. I haven’t seen much of her lately.”
AJ shook her head. “Me neither. I wonder if she’s sick. Give’er mah regards!”
Pinkie nodded and said, “Good luck on the stand, seems to be going great so far!”
Applejack chuckled and pointed behind Pinkie. “Seems like it by the looks of the line you’re a’ holdin’ up.”
Pinkie turned and looked into the faces of some annoyed ponies, smiling and waving to them all.
“Sorry everypony, I won’t be much longer!” she smiled brightly at them all and whirled back around to Applejack. “Anyway, I gotta go!”
She smiled at the orange mare once before picking up her apple in her teeth and trotting off in the direction of Fluttershy’s cottage, happy to be moving again.
Though, she didn’t get far up the road before a very familiar blue pony flew up to her landing close next to her.
“Hey Pinkie,” Rainbow Dash said, smiling wide at her.
“Hey Dashie!” she returned, lightly bumping up against Dash, giggling softly.
Dash blushed lightly and said, “I’d like to stay and chat--especially to you, but--there’s a big storm coming, so wherever you’re heading you better get there fast.”
Pinkie Pie nodded. “I’m going to Zecora’s right now, then Twilight’s after. Ya think I have time to get to both before the storm hits?”
Rainbow Dash looked down and to the side, thinking silently to herself. “Well...” she said slowly. “You’ll get to Zecora’s in time at your current pace and have a few minutes to spend with her. And after that you’ll have to rush over to Twilight’s if you don’t want to get caught up in the storm.”
Pinkie smiled brightly at her and nodded. “Alright, I won’t spend that much time at Zecora’s. I can always come back tomorrow or whenever I get the chance to talk to her.”
The mare picked up her pace, as did the pegasus, and Dash asked, “What are ya going to Zecora’s for?”
“For herbs and berries and such to put into new recipes,” the baker mare said happily. “Hm, a random question Dashie.”
Rainbow nodded and waited for her question.
“If your mane and tail are rainbow colored, does that mean it too is spicy?” she asked, giggling.
Dash looked at her quizzically and shrugged. “I--don’t know. Why?”
“I dunno, just curious.” she giggled. “Let me taste!”
Dash stumbled backwards a bit as Pinkie placed a hoof on her back and rose to her mane, nibbling on it. The pegasus blushed and chuckled.
“Ew~, Pinkie!” she said happily. “That’s gross!” after a moment, she continued. “Well, is it spicy?”
The pink mare hopped down and giggled. “Nope, but it tastes good!”
“How can hair taste good?”
“I dunno, just does.”
The rumbling of thunder in the distance told them both it was time to go. Pinkie looked up at the clouds and frowned a bit, the sky slowly growing dark.
“It was such a beautiful day, too.”
“Sorry Pinks, the Weather Team had to do it. Every two weeks, ya know?”
Pinkie nodded and broke into a soft run. “We better hurry if we want to get there in time.”
Rainbow Dash frowned. “Sorry Pinks, but I have to go back to the Weather Team and help them keep the storm on track. I just paid you a special visit because I love talking to you.”
“Oh,” Pinkie said, trying to hide her disappointment as best she could. “Well--alright. Have a good time up in the clouds!” she ended on a happy note.
Dash nodded and hugged her. “Will do.”
Without another word, she took off and flew up into the gathering storm clouds, leaving only a slight impression in the cloud she flew through. Pinkie watched her and looked at the clouds a few moments with a confused and almost said frown on her face before breaking into a run.
Not long after, she exited the town, the Everfree Forest on the horizon. She allowed herself to smile wide, not stopping. Thunder boomed in the distance, louder and closer than the previous time.
---
Ten minutes later and she reached the eery and mucky edge of the Everfree. She trotted in without a doubt in mind, following the trail she always followed, looking around her with a smile on her face.
The farther she got in, the darker it got. A dark force hung in the air, but Pinkie didn’t seem to notice, just bouncing with a happy smile upon her face, looking into the dark and creepy forest.
“Why do so many ponies dislike the Everfree?” she said to herself. “It’s not that bad of a place!” she giggled and continued, a flash of lightning and the crack of distant thunder told her to do so.
She looked up at the swirling overhead clouds with a happy smile, her face lit up by lightning. “Oh~. I better hurry!”
She broke into a run, the wind picking up soon after. She continued to look into the forest with a smile, almost oblivious to the storm rumbling above her.
“Aha, there it is!” she whispered to herself, Zecora’s home coming into view. Zecora herself sat on her porch, drinking tea with a soft smile as she looked ahead at Pinkie.
She ran up to the zebra with a big “Hello, Zecora!”
“Hello, Pinkie,” she responded. “There is quite the storm coming.”
Pinkie nodded. “Yep!” she looked up at the clouds. “I don’t have much time to talk it seems, think I can come back tomorrow?”
“The storm is getting close, though I think we have time,” Zecora began. “But we must return before the clocks chime.”
“And by ‘clocks chime’, you mean before the storm hits?” Pinkie asked slowly with a confused look on her face.
Zecora nodded and finished her tea, placing the cup down and rose to her hooves. She looked at the pink mare sternly and asked, “Are you ready to enter the Everfree? Though I beg of you, be wary and heed my plea: There is a tree, dark and eerie. Sick it makes, a being it awakes. A balance at stake,” she looked into her eyes. “So avoid it, for everypony’s sake.”
Pinkie looked at her oddly. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Pinkie, listen to me,” Zecora said seriously. “I have had not the time to get rid of it. Stay away from the tree.”
Lightning flashed in the distance behind Zecora, lighting her back. She looked up at the clouds and back to the pink pony.
“Okay,” Pinkie said slowly. “How will I stay away from it if I don’t know what it looks like?”
“The strangeness of the tree will show, through this you will know.”
“Uh huh,” she said slowly. “Alright, if you say so!” she giggled. “Lets get going!”
Pinkie smiled wide and began to trot into the woods.
Zecora allowed herself to relax slightly and picked up her saddlbags in her teeth, placing it on her back. She caught up with Pinkie Pie on the trail into the woods and attempted to strike a conversation.
“How is everyone in Ponyville?”
“They’re doing great!” Pinkie responded. “Er, well, we don’t know about Twilight. We haven’t seen her in a few days and I’m going to pay a visit to her a visit after we get done here.”
“If she is sick, I may have the trick,” the zebra began. “Though it is hard to surround until the sickness is found.”
Pinkie nodded. “I’ll come back to you if she is.”
Zecora nodded to the mare and looked back ahead, the forest growing darker as they left the trail. A light drizzle began to patter against the leaves of the trees, dripping slowly down to the ground. A flash of lightning close by cracked with a flash that blinded. Quickly after, another the sound of a cracking tree echoed through the forest, ending with a low boom.
---
“Here.” Zecora said and motioned to a small blackberry bush. Pinkie nodded and smiled, trotting over the now damn ground and picking the ripe and juicy berries, placing them in her saddlebag carefully, making sure they rested on the cloth she had them wrapped in.
“Hm~, I think we have enough,” Pinkie said after minutes of picking. “I know what I need.”
“Berries of all kind are scattered around here. Anything you need will be near. I will be looking for a few things myself, I will not be far.”
Pinkie nodded and walked away from the bush, scanning others in search for interesting things to add to her saddlebags. She searched each bush that came in sight, most having a common berry such as blueberries, strawberries, and others. She picked them, but had not much need to do so, considering she had enough of the common berry at Sugarcube Corner.
“I thought Zecora meant ‘different’ berries, not this boring stuff!” Pinkie said quietly to herself and pouted, frowning a bit. “I’ve looked all around the area Zecora said, and nothing interesting has been seen.”
Pinks kicked at a small rock, her head down and began walking, glancing at bushes as she went. Nothing showed itself to her, no colorful and vivid berries. Every bush she looked at only made her more dissatisfied and troubled.
Though, something did catch her eye, a lightning strike it was. But the forest hung over her like a dark and thick blanket, the view of the sky not able to be seen. She curiously looked in the direction to her left and began walking towards, the closer she got, more she saw.
A crack in the cover shone through, the dark and quickening cloud cover peaking through.
“Hm~,” Pinkie hummed to herself and pushed a branch out of the way, curiously blinking as it revealed a large clearing.
Her eyes were drawn to the center, curiosity soaring to a whole new level. She scanned the small and black tree in the middle, looking over its sickly looking leaves to its dark red berries with full curiosity. Even the ground looked as if it was screaming for help. The sight made her shudder.
“I wonder if this is the tree Zecora told me about...” the party pony began. “It’s very ominous and--different. I like it!”
She took a few steps forward, unable to control herself.
“It doesn’t look too bad. It almost looks like somepony tried to burn it.”
Pinkie glanced around the clearing, making sure Zecora was out of sight and made her way slowly to the tree, keeping a distance of at least half the clearing in between.
“Zecora didn’t say what was wrong with the tree, only to stay away from it. Are the berries harmful?” she thought to herself. “If that’s it, then I can go to it--just not touch the berries!” she smiled happily and trotted the rest of the distance, the forest growing darker as she neared.
Lightning flashed close by, lighting the darkened forest. A breeze ran through the clearing, the tree swaying to the wind as it did, groaning as almost if in pain.
“Hm. Maybe I can collect some of the berries and have Twi study them.” she said to herself, looking at the tree oddly. “There is something creepy about you, tree!” she said to it. “Something that shouldn’t be here!” she giggled and trotted up, pushing her hooves on to the trunk and reaching up, grabbing a few berries and dropping them to the ground.
---
Zecora hummed herself a happy tune as she picked her herbs and fruits. She placed them in her own saddlebags went on her way, continuing to another usual spot she came to, to collect her needed things.
A wind swept through that carried the unpleasant echo of a groan. She rose her head and frowned, slowly turning in the direction of the unusual sound. The mare placed the rest of her herbs into her bag and began trotting, the wind growing stronger.
After minutes of walking, she pushed back a bush and looked into the familiar clearing. A deep unsettling frown creased her muzzle, her eyes narrowing as she gazed at the unpleasant tree.
The light drizzle of rain slowly began to turn into a hard downpour, quickly drenching everything.
Zecora turned as something pink emerged from the side of the tree, bobbing up and down. She curiously looked back to see a pink and puffy tail wiggling by the side of the tree. Zecora opened her mouth, stunned and rubbed her eyes. As she opened them, the pinkness of her tail was gone.
She sighed in relief and let herself smile, chuckling to herself softly.
Moments later, a giggle was heard as the pony at the tree emerged, unknowingly showing herself to the zebra.
Zecora, stunned, looked at Pinkie in shock.
“W-Wha-,” she stuttered. “P-Pinkie! What have you done?!”
---
Pinkie’s ears perked up and she looked around the tree, smiling nervously.
“Oh, hi Zecora.” she said with a nervous chuckle. “I know you said to stay away from the tree--good advice--but I think I can help!”
Zecora’s eyes widened and she took a shuddering step into the clearing, hesitant to approach the mare.
Lightning flashed close in the distance, lighting them both. Pinkie jumped and gasped, her head brushing a limb of the tree, a few berries falling and landing safely in her mane.
Her eyes went wide as on began to roll off her head. She shakingly opened her mouth and yelled, “SPIDER!”
Pinkie darted to the left as she screamed “GET IT OFF, GET IT OFF, GET IT OFF, GET IT OFF!”
She threw herself around the tree and went for the forest.
“Pinkie!” Zecora yelled after her, but the mare was long gone.
---
Pinkie Pie ran in between two trees and the berry finally rolled off. She stopped instantly to look down.
“Oh,” she giggled. “Silly me--it was just a-” she froze as she felt the other berry began to roll out of her mane.
“TO MANY SPIDERS, GET IT OFF!” she yelled and ran around a corner.
Pinkie smashed into something and fell backward with a thump.
“Oof!” she looked up. “What the buck was that?”
She cleared her eyes and blinked, seeing nothing but the trail in front of her. She looked side to side with a curious look and got up.
“Huh...” she rubbed the back of her head and mumbled under her breath, “Stupid walking trees...”
---
By the time Pinkie Pie had made it out of the forest, the storm had hit. Wind battered her as she pushed down the road. The wind carried stinging rain that quickly soaked her. Pinkie grunted and knocked on Twilight’s door, a crack of lightning striking a building in the distance. The door slid open slightly and two eyes peered out.
“Oh, Pinkie--it’s you.” Twilight said to the pink mare.
“Hey, Twilight!” Pinkie responded happily. “Mind if I come in?”
“Not at all,” she said and opened the door fully, quickly letting her in. Twilight looked out her door with a frown, glancing from left to right before slowly closing it.
“So what’cha been up to, Twi? No pony’s seen you in awhile!” Pinks said and ended with a small, sad frown.
Twilight gave her a dark smile and mischievous chuckle. “I’ll show you.”
The party pony’s eyes widened slightly at the smile, one she had never seen from Twilight. Something must be very wrong with her! Of course, considering she had locked herself in her library, Pinkie thought she may have gone insane--and insane ponies are never fun. So she kept her thoughts to herself for the moment and followed Twilight into the next room.
“Behold!” Twilight boomed with a thrusted hoof into the air. “The largest, most powerful telescope in pony history!”
Twilight smiled widely. It was large, had many buttons (all of which Pinkie wanted to press), and maybe best of all--books! Books indeed, many stacked neatly around it, notes and findings Pinkie presumed.
“I’ve already found numerous comets and planets! Apparently instead of seven planets, we have nine in our solar system!” she tackle-hugged the satellite, nuzzling one of the buttons. “I love it so much~.” she even blushed--and that made Pinkie a bit creeped out. Knowing Twilight, she would do anything with knowledge--anything.
“It took me forever to build and get the right parts. I even had Celestia help me with a lot of it, as well as Luna and Cadence. I would have had Shining help, but he wouldn’t stop staring at Cadence’s butt..” she frowned slightly and shook her head. “Anyway,-”
“Who’s that?” Pinkie asked with a normal, almost uninterested tone, pointing at a stallion off to the right of the room, close to the back-right corner.
“Oh, him? Don’t know. He wouldn’t leave, and honestly I didn’t want him to. Anypony who’s as tall as Celestia and has no face should be studied.”
Pinkie didn’t realize it at first, but sure enough, the pure-white stallion had no face! As well as a rather nice business suit, which both confused her and made her want to compliment it. But, she had other things on her mind at that time.
“Well, you don’t see that every day.”
Twilight went back to rambling about her new toy, and Pinkie went back to ignoring her and only pretending to hear her, as all ponies did when she rambled on about books or other things with big words.
Slendermane stood in the far corner and shifted his weight to his right side with a lean, continuing to stare down at the pink mare. Once in awhile, he would look over to see what the purple one was doing, but would quickly look back to the other. After all, the purple one was not his target.
Pinkie saw that he was looking at her, and looked back with a smile. When she found that he wouldn’t look away, she wouldn’t either. The persistent Pinkie Pie against the paranormal Slendermane in a staring contest.
She soon found that they would stare at each other forever if somepony didn’t stop them. So, she trotted up to him and stopped when their chests were but an inch apart.
“I think me may be taller than even Celestia. Which is something, because she’s tall as buck!”
Twilight stopped her ramblings and looked over. Pinkie was practically looking straight up, and he looking almost straight down. Lightning struck and the light flashed in the windows, rain still slamming the windows.
“Why do you say that? He’s tall, but I don’t think that tall.”
“Well, I’ve been this uncomfortably close to Celestia before, and our noses would touch if she didn’t quickly back away like she always does.”
“Why would you get that close to h-”
“Because I like making her feel uncomfortable!” Pinkie giggled.
After a quick moment of thinking, she shook her head slightly. It was Pinkie, anyway.
The pink mare continued to look up at him with her usual smile across her face. Twilight shifted slightly.
“He creeps me out,” Twi said, forgetting what Pinkie said.
“Twilight!” she looked back at the purple mare. “I can’t believe you would say that right in front of him!”
Pinkie placed a hoof on his chest and, with an “eep!”, hopped a foot off the ground. When she landed, she looked at her hoof as if in pain for a moment and shook her head She looked up at him and said, “You’re weird.”
“Oh, so you can call him weird, but I can’t say he’s creepy? I see how it is.” Twilight smiled at her.
She giggled. “Touche.”
She backed away from him and sat down next to Twilight, looking at the telescope. Twilight smiled widely, ready to begin again, but frowned when Pinkie quickly stopped her.
“I wonder how long the storm is gonna last.”
“Well, you’re happy to stay until it stops.”
Pinks smiled. “Thanks, Twilight.”
---
The storm continued well into the night. The two friends passed the time with scary stories and fun games. Slendermane continued to sit in his corner, watching them. A single candle beside them was lit. It cast eerie shadows and dim light around the room. It combined with the patter of rain on the library, roar of wind, and crashing thunder made it a pleasant atmosphere.
The two mares sat playing a game of cards.
“They really went all out on the storm, huh?” Twilight pointed out.
“Yeah. I’m glad Dashie warned me about it before hoof.” Pinkie replied, setting down a card on the floor.
There was a pause in the conversing as cards continued to be set down.
“So... You and Rainbow seem to spend quite a lot of time together,” Twilight said.
“Of course!” Pinkie said back happily. “We’re friends, why not spend time together?”
“You seem more than just friends...”
To even Pinkie’s surprise, she blushed.
“W-Well...” she began, not quite sure how to respond. She shook her head and continued. “We’re just friends, Twilight.” Pinkie gave a not-so-real smile. “Besides, why does it matter?”
“So, you’re saying there is something there, huh?” Twilight teased with a smile, making Pinkie’s blush grow.
“No!” she blurted back.
“Okay, okay, I’ll stop.”
Pinkie set down her last card and rose her hooves into the air in victory.
“Aha! I won again!” she giggled.
Twilight looked down at the cards in awe, then back up at the party mare.
“You’ve won every game!” she frowned.
“Well, I cheated on the first three.”
---
After about an hour, the storm finally died down and Pinkie said her goodbyes. She trotted out the door and into the cool night air, stifling a yawn. She didn’t know the time, but know it must have been late, for the party mare was all partied out (even though there were no parties--a shame, she thought), and that takes a lot. She assumed it had to be around three in the morning or so, maybe later than that.
Pinkie made her way down the street, blinking the sleep from her eyes. Yet another yawn forced its way from her, unable to be stopped. Luckily Sugarcube corner wasn’t very far away.
Some of the buildings of Ponyville were still lit with some sort of light, and some were as black as the sky itself. The clouds began to fade away, revealing shining stars and a brightly lit moon that cast down and eerie light.
Pinkie looked up at the light and yawned. If it was any other night, she would have enjoyed the lovely sight that played out before her.
A shadow in an alley next to her caught her attention. She blinked and looked over into the alley--all she saw was the sides of the buildings--nothing more, even the shadow was gone. She shrugged and continued on.
---
After another few minutes of walking, and another few shadows along the way, she made it to Sugarcube Corner. Happy to be there, she smiled and rubbed her eyes and trotted the rest of the way. Though when she opened her eyes, a sight she didn’t expect. The nicely dressed stallion from back at Twilight’s blocked her way.
“Hi,” Pinkie began, smile growing wider. “I thought Twilight was going to give you her guest room?”
No reply.
“Um... You don’t talk much, do you?” Pinkie asked, completely disregarding the fact that he had no mouth.
Slendermane turned and slowly walked to her right and down an alley beside Sugarcube Corner. She watched him go and shrugged when he was out of sight.
“Oh, um, okay--bye, then!” she yelled after him, waving a hoof.
Tired and relieved she opened the door and walked in, pushing the door closed behind her. She trotted up the stairs and into her room, smiling wide at the sight of her warm and soft bed. Without another thought, she dove under the covers and quickly fell into a deep, relaxed sleep.
---
Thank you all for being so patient with this, it means a lot. This chapter was originally going to be much, much longer, but I decided to break it into two separate chapters, so you don’t have to read so much. Also, this chapter’s end was kind of rushed, and I apologise for that--but it needed to be done. Future chapters won’t take as long--I hope. I’ve lost my will to continue this, and I’m sorry for that. But, I’ll try my best to continue it--they will be much better than this chapter, I assure you. Thanks again for being patient. |
Toola-Roola | 598 | 1 | Fluttershy,Rainbow Dash,Random,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Summer Flight Camp | Fluttershy didn't want to go to camp, but when she makes a new friend, she may not want to go home. | incomplete | 13 | 1 | <p>Fluttershy had reservations about flight camp. But a strange filly with rainbow hair who runs into her - literally - may just have the power to change her mind about camp, the other ponies, and herself.</p><p>This story will have lots of very short chapters.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-09T15:55:03+00:00 | 2011-10-09T15:55:03+00:00 | 2,208 | It all started at summer flight camp....
-----
"Go on, honey, you'll be fine. It's only for a few months."
"But Mommy, I don't have any friends here...."
"I'm sure you'll have no problem making some, Fluttershy. Now go on, dear, you'll be late for orientation!"
I wanna go home....
-----
Fluttershy had never been great at flying. In fact, she had never even been okay at flying. Her parents worried about her, so the summer before she started school, Fluttershy's parents sent her to summer flight camp. Of course, Fluttershy would much rather have stayed home to spend summer finishing the sweater she was going to wear on the first day of school, but she didn't want to make Mommy and Daddy sad, so she went.
Walking into the main hall at camp, Fluttershy kept her head down, not drawing attention to herself. It wasn't hard for her; she hated attention and was used to avoiding it. Okay, she thought. I.... I can do this. Three months. Just three months, and then I can go ho--
CRASSSHH.
Fluttershy barely had time to comprehend what had happened before she hit the wall. The sound of the impact had made her eyes snap shut, and when she opened them, she saw two bright fuschia ones smiling back at her.
"Hey, you all right? Sorry about that!" The filly giggled and shook her mane out of her face before extending a hoof. "I haven't seen you before. Are you new here? I'm Rainbow Dash! What's your name?"
Fluttershy didn't respond. She just blinked and wondered what her mother had gotten her into. |
Toola-Roola | 598 | 2 | Fluttershy,Rainbow Dash,Random,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Summer Flight Camp | Fluttershy didn't want to go to camp, but when she makes a new friend, she may not want to go home. | incomplete | 13 | 1 | <p>Fluttershy had reservations about flight camp. But a strange filly with rainbow hair who runs into her - literally - may just have the power to change her mind about camp, the other ponies, and herself.</p><p>This story will have lots of very short chapters.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-09T02:11:05+00:00 | 2011-10-09T02:11:05+00:00 | 1,403 | School and writer's block are probably two of the worst things to have at the same time.
-----------
"Hellooooo? Are you all right? Here, lemme help you up."
Fluttershy felt two hooves wrap around her back and pull her to her feet. She blinked a few more times before noticing the magenta eyes still staring into hers.
"Oh, um, thank you.... I'm fine, really...."
"That's good! Are you new here? Follow me!" The blue filly, Was it Rainbow Dash? Fluttershy asked herself, grinned excitedly and gestured for Fluttershy to follow her.
-----
"You never did tell me your name, y'know," Rainbow Dash said as the two walked towards the mess hall.
"Um, I'm.... Fluttershy...."
"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Fluttershy!" Rainbow smiled brightly at her new companion, and Fluttershy smiled back, slightly embarrassed.
"So, um... how long have you..."
THUDD.
And with that, Fluttershy found herself flat on the floor once again. This time, however, she heard laughing, followed by Rainbow's yelling.
"Hey! What was that for, Hoops?"
"Don't need a reason, dweeb!"
Fluttershy rubbed her eyes and looked up to see her new friend glaring knives at three laughing colts as they flew away.
"Dumb jocks...." Rainbow growled under her breath as she helped Fluttershy to her hooves. "Don't mind them, they're just stupid."
"Th-thank you...." Fluttershy whispered and hid under her mane. Being knocked to the ground by Rainbow hadn't hurt much, since she was similar in size and only one pony, but three bigger ponies crashing into her had been incredibly painful, and she didn't want Rainbow to see her cry. She might think she was weak, overly sensitive, not worth hanging around....
"Hey, it's okay. Like I said, they're just stupid. C'mon, it's almost dinner time!" Rainbow smiled at her and trotted into the mess hall.
Fluttershy sniffled and followed, her pain temporarily subdued by the fact that Rainbow hadn't rejected her. She was starting to feel that maybe, just maybe, spending three months at camp wouldn't be quite as bad as she thought. |
StreakTheFox | 599 | 1 | Angel,Big Macintosh,Main 6,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Spike,Zecora,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,Random,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Transformers - The Energy of Magic | Transformers G1 meet My Little Pony G4! Havoc insues! | cancelled | 24 | 9 | <p>As the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons wage their war on cybertron, an expedition for a new source of energy brings them to an unknown world. Can the Autobots harvest this new energy of "magic" in time? Or will the Decepticons learn of its secrets and use it to conquer the galaxy!?</p> | everyone | 2011-08-23T01:31:00+00:00 | 2011-08-23T01:31:00+00:00 | 3,544 | Transformers: The Energy of Magic
Author Notes: The transformers in this story are going to represent the ones around the G-1 era, not the bayformer, beast war or any other generation series. They will have the same look, fighting ability, and (as best as I can make) same personality as to their G-1 characteristics. So please, enjoy!
Prologe:
The war between the Autobots and the Decepticons has ravaged the planet of Cybertron for centuries. Now, with the planet’s vast amounts of energy resources almost completely used up, the Autobots planned to venture out through the vastness of space in search of a new source of energy. Little do they know, the Decepticons are aware of their plans, and are ready to follow them to this “new source” they heard of. |
StreakTheFox | 599 | 2 | Angel,Big Macintosh,Main 6,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Spike,Zecora,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,Random,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Transformers - The Energy of Magic | Transformers G1 meet My Little Pony G4! Havoc insues! | cancelled | 24 | 9 | <p>As the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons wage their war on cybertron, an expedition for a new source of energy brings them to an unknown world. Can the Autobots harvest this new energy of "magic" in time? Or will the Decepticons learn of its secrets and use it to conquer the galaxy!?</p> | everyone | 2011-08-23T01:33:02+00:00 | 2011-08-23T01:33:02+00:00 | 3,658 | Chapter 1 – Deep Space
-[-.-]-
The large glass dome atop an immense launch bay separated into 4 parts, opening up like a blooming flower as the metal ring around it also split apart. The metal and glass folded against one another on the side of the large metal dome’s base, revealing the large craft inside. The craft – named the Arc – was a large explorer vessel meant for deep space exhibitions. Its hull was a metallic orange and was in the shape of a half circle with five boosters lined up in a line at the rear of the ship. In the control center, Optimus Prime, leader of the autobots, and a collection of his best soldiers prepared the ship for launch.
“All systems go,” announced jazz, sitting at the ship’s maintenance panel.
“Ignition!” Optimus Prime pressed his metal finger down on the main start button, triggering the engines to start as the button lit up. One by one, the Arc’s 5 main engines flared up and streamed superheated exhaust from their ends. After only a few seconds, the ship was off the ground and propelling quickly out of Cybertron’s atmosphere.
-[\_/]-
“Contact,” reported Soundwave at their own ship’s maintenance panel.
Megatron, leader of the evil decepticons, pointed his arm forward toward the main observation window of the craft with his finger extended forward. “Blast off” He ordered, his metallic and scratchy voice toned with an angered sensation. Megatron and some of his own powerful warriors were in a large freighter meant for front line combat. The ship's hull was stained a greyish purple and it at four primary boosters in the rear spread out in the formation of a plus sign. The ship itself was long and slender with four wing-like spikes protruding outwards and then pointing forwards in the direction the ship is face. Immediately after Megatron's orders, the main engines ignited and shot the ship forward out of the hangar bay, racing up out of the atmosphere while trailing the Autobot’s craft at a distance. Both ships sped forward through space, the Autobots still unaware of their hostile followers.
--
A red dot appeared on the display in front of Prowl as a warning alarm began to sound. Leaning forward, he could make out the dot to be an asteroid appearing on the display.
“Look, an asteroid!” Pointing forward, he singled out the asteroid passing through the ship’s view.
“There’s another one,” Ratchet said, pointing out another large mass of space rock heading into view from the opposite direction.
“They’re going to collide,” Optimus prime announced with a small strike of fear as he braced himself on his chair. The other Autobots did the same, but were only given a few spare moments before the two large bodies of rock impacted directly into one another, sending a flurry of smaller, yet fast moving rocks in all directions. The rock pieces battered and smashed themselves into the ship’s hull, causing the entire craft to shake violently. Several of the Autobots held firm onto their seats and were able to steady themselves through the turbulence, but others were thrown around and sent crashing into walls and other Autobots.
Jazz and Optimus Prime looked back at the maintenance panel, seeing the ship’s main power rapidly draining. The ship’s hull was fortified by using energy to immediately reinforce any part of the ship that was struck by a projectile, laser blast, or anything else harmful to it. But with the meteor shower now sending rocks everywhere and impacting every part of the ship, the ship would be without power within a matter of seconds.
“Ironhide,” Optimus Prime called out as Ironhide stumbled to his feet. “Man the lazer gun!” Following the order, Ironhide quickly leaned against the main control for the ship’s laser and fired, rapidly clearing out the rocks in front of them. Though the main laser took a large amount of power to fire, it was more efficient than having the ship’s hull constantly battered and draining energy almost four times as fast.
--
“Follow them, follow them!” Megatron demanded, pointing towards the Autobot’s craft as they blasted through the shower of rocks. The Decepticon’s ship steered through the floating boulders, which were smashing against their hull as well. But as they now trailed behind the Autobot’s craft, there were little to no rocks now that were impacting the ship. Though they were now trailer closer than they intended in order to avoid the rocks, it seemed the Autobots were still unaware of their presence.
--
With the laser now blasting through the rocks, the Arc quickly pushed through the remaining asteroids and out of the deathly cloud of space rocks. To the Autobots’ misfortune, however, an ever greater threat lay before them. The two large asteroids from before had been orbiting a powerful gravitational field caused by the enormous worm hole that lay ahead of them.
“Jazz, Pull up! Get us away from that worm hole!”
“I’m tryin Optimus, but I can’t break free!” Jazz yelled, struggling with the controls. “That thing’s gravitational pull has us hooked!”
“By the all spark… Everybot hold on! Prepare for an unstable warp!” With that, Optimus and the crew grabbed a hold of whatever they could and held on tight as their ship drew closer to the entrance of the worm hole, the gravity boosting the ship’s speed.
--
“Megatron, this is suicide!” Yelled out Starscream as they were following the Autobot ship straight into the worm hole. “The Autobots are heading straight to oblivion, don’t send us in after them!”
“Silence you fool!” Megatron blared angrily. “The Autobots must know where they are going, so we must continue following!”
“If I were giving the orders around here, I would have just blasted their ship away a long time ago,” Starscream boasted, crossing his arms.
Megatron leaned down towards starscream with a scowl on his face. “You will never be in control Starscream, NEVER!” He leaned back up and pointed out his arm and finger once more towards the Autobots ship now being sucked into the gaping worm hole. “Follow them in, and brace for warp jump!”
~{0.0}~
“Iiiiiit’s PARTY TIME!” Announced Pinkie Pie as she threw confetti into the air. With that the room full of ponies erupted into cheer as streamers and balloons filled up the space around them.
Today was a special day for the ponies of Ponyville, as it marked the 1 year anniversary since Twilight Sparkle arrived, bringing with her the best friendship they all had ever experienced. Inside Twilight’s home in the library tree, the building was filled with banners and balloons tied to the wall, colorful confetti and part streamers than hung from the ceiling and fell around the room, food, drinks, cakes and other pastries lined up on the tables, and a series of party games that were laid out through the rooms. The Mane 6, as well as a large number of other ponies, were dancing, eating, and playing as if all their birthdays had been on this day.
“Hey Applejack, whatchya got there?” Asked Rainbow Dash as she approached Applejack with a bottle in her mouth. The bottle had a wrap around it with the word “Cider” in bold text above a picture of an apple.
“Oh this?” Applejack responded after setting the bottle on the table. “This here’s a little gift from ‘ol Granny Smith, a whole bottle of her special home-made Apple Cider.”
“You mean like that apple juice stuff I helped you make yesterday?” Rainbow Dash asked while coming up beside dash, eying the bottle.
“Not exactly sugarcube. This drink here’s got a bit of a “kick” to it, and not everypony can handle this kinda drinkin.”
“Oh, is that a challenge then?” A smirk stung across Rainbow Dash’s face as she looked over towards AppleJack.
Applejack simply shook her head with a small smile, giggling slightly at her competitive friend. “Oh Rainbow, ah don’t suppose we should be usin a drink like this as a means of competition. It’s a special thing, after all. Besides… you wouldn’t be able to handle half as many shots of this before ya’ll lost yer head.”
Rainbow Dash leaned her head up and grabbed the cork at the top of the bottle with her teeth, and then pulled it off. “Okay then, let’s see you back up those words! “She grabbed a small glass with her mouth and brought it over, following up by pouring the sizzling cider in, filling it up quickly.
“Alright, but don’t say I didn’t warn ya!” Applejack brought over her own glass, and filled it up, looking over to Rainbow Dash with a competitive fire in her eyes. Rainbow Dash gave the same gaze back for a moment, before they both got a hold of their glasses and took a large swig.
“Oh Twilight, you look absolutely marvelous with that bow on your mane!” Complimented Rarity as she trotted up beside Twilight Sparkle.
“Thanks Rarity,” Twilight said with a cheerful smile. “I really didn’t know if it was the right occasion for such a party, nothing in any of the books I read about parties really mentioned anything as a friendship anniversary.”
“Oh don’t trouble yourself with that, dear,” Rarity responded with a light upward wave of her hoof. “You look fine as you are, though I must say even you surprise me with a good fashion accessory from time to time.”
“Thanks, I just hope the party goes as well as I planned. So far everything seems to have gone according to the books.”
“Oh, uhm, Twilight?” Twilight turned to the soft voice coming from behind her to see Fluttershy walking up somewhat cautiously.
“What is it Fluttershy?” Asked Twilight with a small smile still on her face.
“I’m sorry, um,” Responded Fluttershy hesitantly. “Do you think it’s okay if I leave a little early? I mean, tonight is when the chickens’ eggs are supposed to hatch, and I wanna make sure everything goes well, if that’s okay with you I mean…”
“That’s no problem Fluttershy,” Twilight said in a supportive tone. “Don’t worry, you can leave whenever you want, alright?”
“Thanks Twilight,” Fluttershy said with a small smile on her face and a glint of happiness shining through her eyes. “I’ll actually be leaving now, so uhm, thanks for the great party. I really did have fun.”
“Thanks Fluttershy, I’ll stop by tomorrow to see how things went, alright?”
“Okay. Goodbye, and thanks again.” Fluttershy turned around and walked out the door, closing it behind her as she began to head home. Pinkie Pie suddenly popped up behind Twilight and Rarity, startling the two slightly as she spoke out.
“Awwww, did Fluttershy have to leave?” She said with a slightly saddened tone.
“Oh don’t worry deary,” Rarity said. “She’s just got some home chores to take care of, but don’t worry, the rest of us will still be here for the whole party.”
“Hurray!” Pinkie Pie yelled as she happily sprung into the air. “Ohmigosh I know this party is gonna be so great! I got all the best cakes and punch and brough half of my collection of party streamers and ooooh this song!” As Pinkie was talking, the song changed to a song that had a mix of hip-hop and techno to it that was one of Pinkie Pie’s favorites. “Come on Twilight, it’s your party, lets go dance!”
“Well I dunno, I haven’t really read much into the dancing styles of-Wuuaah!” Before she could finish, Pinkie Pie pulled Twilight into the middle of the floor and began a jumping sort of dance with her that mimicked the rhythm of the song with Twilight doing her best not to stumble and fall, let alone keep up.
“Again!” Applejack announced, as another pony poured her a glass of cider. A small circle had started forming around her and Rainbow Dash as they took turns taking shots of the very strong drink. After the glass was full, Applejack tipped it over with her mouth and guzzled down the whole thing, her body shivering from the intensity of the taste as she gulped it down.
“M-me too!” Rainbow dash banged her hoof onto the table as she ordered for her glass refilled as well. After it was full, she too took the whole glass into her mouth with a swift swig, and gulped it down quickly. Her wings jittered frantically as her own body shook from the drink’s intensity while Dash started to struggle to keep her balance.
“Eight hits in a row,” Applejack said, looking at Dash with her left eyelid drooping down half way. “You got guts, Ah’ll give ya that, but ya ain’t gonna best me now, ya hear!”
“I’m not out yet! C’mon, another round!” The pony with the bottle filled up their glasses again, and just as before, the two took their shots.
After walking for about ten minutes, Fluttershy was nearing her home. She could already begin hearing the birds in the trees starting to sing, and she recognized their sounds as the ones that usually visited her place. She began to hum to herself the same tune the birds were singing while she walked, swaying her head and her tail slightly with the rhythm. Looking up at the sky, the sun had almost fully set, and the stars were already visible and shining in the sky. As she watched the stars, one of them started to blink brighter than the others, catching her eye.
She soon stopped walking as the blinking star grew brighter, watching it closely with eyes wide open. A small smile started to appear on her face as she imagined it being a wishing star, calling out to her to take in a wish. But as Fluttershy began to shuffle through her thoughts for a proper thing to wish for, the star began to grow much brighter, and seemed to move slightly through the sky.
Fluttershy watched closely now, realizing that this may not be a regular star, but not sure of what it was. The star seemed to grow brighter now, and soon Fluttershy’s smile disappeared as she saw a shape forming in replace of the star. Something large was falling from the sky, a trail of smoke now visible behind it. Fluttershy now began to hear a strange Whhhrrrring sound that only intensified as the object drew closer, now seeming as if it was heading straight for ponyville.
A strike of horror rose to her face as she though the object might hit the town, but it instead passed right above her and the town, causing the ground to rumble below her. The object was orange and in the shape of a half circle while being somewhat flat on its top and bottom side. It shot over post the Everfree forest and into one of the distant mountains at the far edge, creating a loud boom that again caused the ground to tremble. Before she could react, another object caught her eye, this one being purple in color and spiky in shape while heading past the large mountains behind Sweet Apple Acres in the direction of the Great Saltlick Lake. Fluttershy backed up slowly and then sat down on her rear, trying to understand what just happened. Afraid of something bad happening that she could not explain, she flew as fast as she could towards her home, hoping to be able to hide there until morning. |
StreakTheFox | 599 | 3 | Angel,Big Macintosh,Main 6,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Spike,Zecora,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,Random,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Transformers - The Energy of Magic | Transformers G1 meet My Little Pony G4! Havoc insues! | cancelled | 24 | 9 | <p>As the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons wage their war on cybertron, an expedition for a new source of energy brings them to an unknown world. Can the Autobots harvest this new energy of "magic" in time? Or will the Decepticons learn of its secrets and use it to conquer the galaxy!?</p> | everyone | 2011-08-23T01:35:40+00:00 | 2011-08-23T01:35:40+00:00 | 3,163 | Chapter 2 – New World
-[-.-]-
“Is everyone alright?” asked Optimus Prime as he attempted to expel the smoke from his intake with what sounds like coughs.
Prowl leaned up from the floor, his head leaving a small but noticeable dent in the wall behind him. “Yeah… I think I mighta popped a head gasket, but I’m alright.”
“Gah, I’m leakin lubricant,” Complained Ironhide. The other Autobots also gave out ruffled and aching responses, but in all were relatively fine.
“What’s our situation?” Optimus said while slowly getting up to his feet.
Jazz got up to the maintenance panel which was beeping a mix of orange and red on one side, and yellow on another and read through the mechanical data. “Well, the ship ain’t in good shape sir.”
“Is it flyable?”
“That’s a big negative sir. Engines are busted, the outer thruster controls are fried, and almost half of the whole dang ship almost completely tore off in the crash. The only reason we haven’t blown up yet is the reactor’s shields held.”
“Alright, then. Men, let’s pull ourselves together and see if we can’t get out of here.” Optimus scanned the main view window and noticed a collection of dirt and rock covering the view. “We’re probably dug underground somewhere, so our first priority is to see if we can’t dig ourselves out.”
“You heard the man,” announced Cliffjumper as he got a hold of a latch on the ceiling. “Let’s tunnel outa this place and get to the surface!” As he opened up the hatch, he was immediately pushed down with a heavy flow of dirt that nearly engulfed him when he was brought back to the floor. He poked out his head and looked around before beginning to try to pull himself out. “Maybe this will be a bit harder than we though…”
~{0.0}~
The morning sun began to rise slowly over the horizon as all of Ponyville began the slow and aching process of waking up. The part last night was host to nearly every pony in the town, all of whom were up late and indulging themselves in all the sweet pastries and other foods that were readily available. Now that it was all over, the rising of Celestia’s sun would bring the beginning of a surely slow-start day for everypony.
The only pony however who seemed to not be held back by the festive lure of the party was Fluttershy, who was now flying up above her house to try to see over the Everfree forest. She was still in shock of what happened last night, and was now checking to see if it was a dream or not. Although it’s not unlike her to have a scary dream once in a while, this one seemed far more vivid than the others, so it was worth some investigating. Without being able to see anything from up high, however, she realized that she would need to pass through the Everfree forest in order to get to what she thinks might be a crash site.
Fluttershy is not a brave pony, however, and would almost never venture out into the Everfree forest alone. After a quick breakfast and a hasty checkup on all of her animal friends, she headed out to twilight sparkle’s place to see if she could recruit some aid. She softly landed in front of Twilight’s library home and began to softly knock on the door with her hoof. There wasn’t any noise from the inside, and Fluttershy again tapped onto the door softly with her hoof. She lowered her head, however, and thought she might be disturbing whoever was inside.
“Hi Fluttershy!” Said a voice that came directly behind her. Fluttershy cried out as she leapt forward and turned around to find Pinkie Pie looking at her with a vibrant smile on her face.
“Oh, uhm, Hi Pinkie” replied Fluttershy.
“Wasn’t the party last night just GREAT!? I mean, I know you had to go really early and all but it was just so amazing! There were so many ponies and so many games going on and I dancing and everypony was having fun and I was all Yay! Ooh and I think there was even this one part where the whole library was shaking cuz everypony was dancing so hard, it was so cool!”
“Oh, uhm, I’m glad you had such a nice time Pinkie,” Replied Fluttershy in a soft voice.” But, I’m kinda trying to talk to twilight. I mean, I just need to ask her about something, if that’s okay…”
“Oooh is she inside? I’ll get her for you!” Pinkie Pie happily jolted up to the door and began knocking the door repeatedly, making Fluttershy wince at the sudden loud sound. After Pinkie stopped for a moment, hoofsteps could be heard descending the stairs inside. The door opened to a reveal a ruffle-haired Twilight Sparkle who clearly had just gotten out of bed.
“Pinkie? Fluttershy?” She asked, whipping her eyes a little.
“Oh, I’m sorry to be bothering you…” replied Fluttershy as she backed up a little. “I think I should go, if that’s okay with you…”
“Oh come on silly, ask her what you wanted to ask” said pinkie as she smiled at her bashful friend.
“What did you wanna ask, Fluttershy?”
“Oh, it’s just that, well after I left the party, I thought I something big fly over us and land past the Everfree Forest.”
“Something big? Like a Dragon?”
“Oh, no, it was a big solid object. It just sort of, crashed into a mountain I think…”
“You mean, like a big rock? Or a meteor perhaps?”
“Well, Yes. I mean, I think so… I’m not sure.”
Twilight put a hoof to her chin and began to think of the possibilities of discovering and studying a space rock. She pondered the possible rare substances that may be used for powerful magic, or all the wealth of knowledge that might come from studying such an alien artifact.
“Alright,” she said, putting her hoof back on the ground. “Let’s take care of our morning chores first, I know Spike has a lot of cleaning up to do inside so I should help with that, and then we’ll gather up the other three and head out to where you saw the object land, alright Fluttershy?”
“Oh, thank you Twilight. I’ll be back here soon, I just have to go check up on things with the animals a little.” She turned around and began to trot down the road towards her house, feeling a bit more comforted now.
“Okey Dokey Lokey, I’ll go and make sure everything’s ready at the sweet shop! Se ya soon Twilight!”
“Later girls,” Twilight said as she closed the door to her house. She thought more deeply for a moment of finding a meteor near ponyville and all the wonderous information it would bring. After daydreaming slightly of such a find, she turned around to her library house, only to be reminded of the enormous mess that sprawled throughout the building. Twilight took a deep sigh as her horn began to glow, preparing to use some magic to help clean up this mess.
-[\_/]-
“Soundwave, report!” Megatron stood atop a rocky edge to a large lake that he was staring over with heavy frustration. Several other Decepticons were out around him searching the surrounding areas, checking their surroundings and setting a perimeter.
“The ship is non-operational, Megatron,” Soundwave replied from inside the craft using a transmitter. “Status, disabled. We require energon and parts to fix it.”
Megatron frowned and crossed his arms, still staring at the center of the large body of water. The unstable warp they had experienced hours earlier seemed to forcefully shut down most of their controls and fry a lot of the interior circuitry, sending them uncontrollable towards the planet when they emerged. Though their ship was largely intact, the mix of water damage and the energy pulsations from inside the wormhole appears to have the entire thing now stuck underwater.
Megatron looked up towards the sky, noticing that it would be morning from this world. Judging from the look of the planet from space, it seemed to be very vibrant with native life and host to a large array of colors. Surely a world such a large expanse of life would also be host to some extraordinary resources. As Megatron turned around, he saw Starscream and Thundercracker land before him.
“Lord Megatron, we have scouted the area, and there seems to be several sources of energy around here,” reported Thundercracker. “It seems we can just go out and take it.”
“I think we should focus on taking out the Autobots first,” interrupted Starscream. “They are on this planet too, and will try to stop us if we go out for energy. Let’s attack them now before they can attack us!”
“Hmmm,” Megatron thought to himself briefly, and then looked towards Thundercracker. “Continue scouting, but don’t go after anything yet until we know what we’re dealing with.” Thundercracker saluted Megatron and blasted off towards the distance. “Starscream, you go down with Soundwave and help him try to restore power to our ship.”
“But why do I have to help repair the ship?” Replied Starscream in a frustrated tone. “We should be using this opportunity to win the war, not tinker with a pile of scrap!”
“My word is final,” Growled Megatron as he turned back around to face the lake as well as continue surveying the surroundings.
“Don’t be so quick to turn your back on me,” Starscream said quietly to himself as he began to head towards the lake. “One day it’ll get you turned into a pile of charred metal.” |
StreakTheFox | 599 | 4 | Angel,Big Macintosh,Main 6,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Spike,Zecora,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,Random,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Transformers - The Energy of Magic | Transformers G1 meet My Little Pony G4! Havoc insues! | cancelled | 24 | 9 | <p>As the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons wage their war on cybertron, an expedition for a new source of energy brings them to an unknown world. Can the Autobots harvest this new energy of "magic" in time? Or will the Decepticons learn of its secrets and use it to conquer the galaxy!?</p> | everyone | 2011-08-23T01:36:55+00:00 | 2011-08-23T01:36:55+00:00 | 3,213 | Chapter 3 – Giant’s Cave
~{0.0}~
“Alright, we’re here Fluttershy.” Twilight Sparkle called out to her friend as her and the other 4 ponies trailed behind her. Fluttershy was waiting at Twilight’s library home for her and Pinkie to come back with the others.
“Oh good, and thank you all. I hope I’m not causing too much trouble.”
“Don’t mention it sugarcube,” replied Applejack. “We’re more than glad to help, even if ah still feel a bit ill from last night’s hoedown. But, ah’ll get over it.”
“Yeah, so where did you see this thing fall, hm?” Said Rainbow Dash, rather excited to see what may have fallen from the sky.
“Oh, uhm, it’s past the Everfree Forest. I would go myself, but I’m a bit too… uneasy going by myself. I’m sorry.”
“Oh don’t trouble yourself deary,” Rarity said comfortingly. “We’re here to help each other out every step of the way.”
“Okay then… thanks. So, I guess we should get going then.” The rest of the ponies nodded in agreement, and soon were out of Fluttershy’s property and heading through the thickness of the Everfree Forest. As they traveled, Rainbow Dash and Applejack were in a discussion about last night’s party while Rarity and Pinkie Pie were discussing party Decorations.
“So AJ, what’s really IN that stuff we had last night anyways?” Rainbow Dash Questioned.
“Well, ah can’t say ah know for sure. Apples is apparently the main ingredient, but ah don’t know how it gets that kick. Granny smith knows, but she ain’t ready to let out her secret itseems.”
“It was weird, but like, in a kinda cool way. I felt all relaxed and, kinda silly to be honest.”
Well ya sure was acting like a silly filly, that’s for sure.” Applejack smirked a bit towards Rainbow Dash.
“Hehe, yeah. I kinda can’t remember what happened much that night… I think I passed out.”
“Oh no, you were wide awake and active as ever Dash. In fact, you seemed to be a might bit more outgoing than ya usually are.”
“Whadya mean?”
“Oh, nuthin really…” Applejack giggled a little to herself but held in a wide grin. Rainbow dash leaned towards her, catching on a bit.
“Wait, what happened? What’d I do?”
“Well, ah reckon we all found out a little sumthin about you Dash, seein how ya got kinda uppity after our little showdown.”
“Uppity?” Rainbow Dash was confused, but pressured AppleJack to tell more.
“Well, a little bit after our drink-off, Pinkie Pie was snacking on some of her specialty cupcakes that she only makes on occasion. When you went over to get one, she had already taken the last bite of the last cupcake, so…”
Rainbow Dash’s ears perked, and though she now remembered seeing Pinkie eat the last cupcake, she didn’t quite remember what happened afterwards. Looking back, she saw Pinkie still focused with her and Rarity’s discussion, so she turned back towards Applejack.
“So… what? What happened?”
“Well Sugarcube, let’s just say ya got a bit more of somethin to taste than just a cupcake… hehe.” A slight blush appeared on Applejack as she recalled the incident, but Rainbow Dash still was rather lost. She couldn’t put a hoof on it, but Dash knew something was funny about what she recalled from last night’s events.
“Wait, what did…” before Rainbow Dash could finish her question, Twilight spoke out at the front of the group, catching everyone’s attention.
“We’re here everpony.”
The group of six stopped and looked forward as they passed the last line of trees, revealing a large metal object protruding from the bottom edge of a mountain, with most of it covered by dirt that seemed to have slid over it after the crash. The part they could see was very wide, and had five circular cylinders that seemed to be sticking out of it. A small trail of smoke seemed to be seeping out of the center of each cylinder that rose up into the air, but the trails were so small they could not be seen from a distance. Twilight approached a corner of the object, and placed a hoof on it while channeling magic through her horn.
“Hmmm, this thing’s definitely made of metal alright. But why is it orange?”
“More importantly, what could it be?” Interrupted Rarity as she slowly approached from behind Twilight.
“Oooooh, maybe it’s aliens!’ Pinkie Pie shouted out abruptly. “Oh wow, this would be so cool! If they were aliens, then we could welcome them to Equestria and throw them a party! Oh I just wonder what kinda parties they like, I hope they like my parties but I make some of the best parties in all of equestrian so I just know they will absolutely love it!”
“Calm down now,” Applejack said, placing a hoof on Pinkie’s mouth. “We don’t know what it is, so just keep your cool for the time bein.”
Though Applejack was right, the others were starting to think about the possibilities of aliens now. Fluttershy slightly cowered backwards a bit, and Twilight looked nervous herself, having never read anything on any aliens before. Still though, there hasn’t seemed to be anything that happened to this object since it crashed, so the question still remained of what to do.
“Well what are we waiting for?” Dash called out as she flew up above the pile of dirt covering the object. “Let’s get digging!”
“Ah dunno Dash, we aren’t sure exactly what it is yet.” Applejack approached with caution, lightly placing a hoof on it to get a feel for herself of what it might be.
“Yeah, c’mon! Let’s just dig it up and say hello to the mr. aliens inside!” Pinkie pie happily hopped on top of the pile, found a random spot, and began to dig. Seen, all 6 – including Rarity, who was using a shovel controlled by her magic – were busy digging around through the dirt to try to clear some of it out. Every time somepony dug a straight hole, however, they were constantly met with a part of the object that really wasn’t any different from any other part of it. It seemed at first to be like some sort of metal shell, without any way to get inside, until Applejack found what seemed to be some sort of door.
“Hey ya’ll, ah think ah found something,” she called out, beckoning the others to group around her and the hole she had dug.
“What did you find?” Twilight asked.
“Ah’m not sure, it kinda looks like one of the cellar doors in my apple farm, except… different.”
“Can you open it?”
“Ah’ll, try, but it don’t seem to-“
As Applejack laid a hoof on a square piece up against the square-looking door, the piece sunk down and lit up. Applejack backed up against the side of the hole, but in a second the entire thing opened up, sending her falling inside while she screamed.
“Applejack!” Everypony cried out as their friend plummeted into the darkness.
“Ah’m okay! …ouch” called out Applejack after a few seconds.
“What’s down there AJ?” Twilight called.
“Ah’m not sure… it’s dark, but ah think ah see a light down this here tunnel.”
“Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said while turning to her rainbow-mane friend. “Can you lower me down there? I’m going to use my horn to make a light for us to see.”
“Sure thing Twi.” Rainbow Dash grabbed a firm hold around her friend, and slowly lowered them both into the darkness, landing with a light clank with their hooves against the metal floor.
“There, now then…” As Rainbow Dash released Twilight from her grip, she raised up her head and started channeling a steady stream of magic into her horn, causing it to shine brightly and illuminate their surroundings. As they looked around, the walls, floor, and ceilings were all made of the same metal that coated the outside. Other than the little bit of dirt that came in with Applejack, the entire place was also very clean, having little to no loose specs or particles. Although the metal wasn’t shiny, it was quite obvious that it wasn’t dirty either. Peering down the now visible tunnel, there was another source of light just as Applejack had noticed.
“You three,” Twilight called, looking up at Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie at the top of the hole. “You wait there while we explore this a bit. If you need us, just call out, alright?”
“Okey dokey lokey Twilight!” Responded Pinkie with a big smile.
“Well then, shall we?” Twilight looked towards the other two ponies as they nodded their heads in agreement. The three then began walking forward, heading first towards the light while Twilight’s horn kept the immediate area around them lit. The tunnel they were walking through was extraordinarily large, and Applejack was lucky that she didn’t break her legs from the fall earlier. It seemed like the tunnel was perhaps even taller than some of the houses in Ponyville.
Suddenly Twilight stopped and put her hoof out, letting the other two know to stop as well. She went silent, and listened closely towards the light.
“Do you girls here that?” She asked, leaning her head a bit towards the light.
“Hear what?” Asked Applejack.
“I think I hear voices… maybe somepony’s in here.”
The three drew closer towards the light, with now Applejack and Rainbow Dash starting to hear the voices as well. The tunnel seemed to take an abrupt turn near the end, and that appeared to be covering the source of the light. The three now grew worried, the voices they heard weren’t any they recognized, and they also started to head the sound of metal clanging against metal, as if something was walking with metal hooves. What’s more, there was more than one voice, as Twilight was able to distinguish 3 or 4 separate voices. The image of aliens started to show up once again in their minds, and even that now started to seem like a logical explanation to Twilight.
“Well hold your tailpipe I’ll go see if I can hook it up” A voice suddenly called out from just around the corner. Without warning a large, metal figure walking on two legs rounded came into view, towering almost to the top of the tunnel and looking down at the three ponies. The ponies stopped dead in their tracks, looking up in surprise and fear at the incredibly tall ‘whateveritis’, staying frozen as its glass eyes peered down at them.
“What in the world…?” The voice coming from the large metal giant said as it looked down at the ponies. As it seemed to be about to lean down towards them, Applejack suddenly screamed out at the top of her lungs.
“M-M-MONSTER! RUUUN!” With that, the three ponies screamed and took off as fast as they could down the tunnel they came from, with Rainbow Dash even using her wings to take off as fast as possible. None of them bothered to look back, as they heard the metal steps behind them keeping pace with their frantic sprint. The light shining from the hole soon came into view as they galloped down the hall at full speed, passing a feeling of hope through the ponies.
“Dash, lift us up, quick!” Applejack called out to Rainbow Dash above her. Without a reply, Rainbow Dash swooped down and pick up Applejack, carrying her up towards the hole. Though she was a strong, athletic pony, she could only carry only one other pony at a time unless she had momentum behind her. Twilight looked up as she reached the underside of the hole, Applejack being pulled to safety leaving her alone in the depths of the cave.
She looked back, the monster now shooting lights out from the sides of its head, shining through the darkness right at Twilight. She backed up, hoping that Rainbow Dash would come down soon to rescue her, but without warning the hole suddenly closed up, cutting off her only escape route. She continued backing up, looking around frantically for some sort of direction to run, but the path behind her was quickly turning out to be a blank wall.
Her mind raced, the thoughts of offensive spells started to surface, but all seemed to miniscule for such a beast. Though she was able to defeat an Ursa Minor, she had a whole town of stuff to work with to only pacify the creature. But there was nothing in this dark, metallic cave, being closed in by a giant who would surely crush her to bits. Maybe it was alien, maybe it was there to take over their world and turn them all into slaves. She didn’t know, but it didn’t matter now as her flank pressed up against the wall behind her. She looked up as the metal giant closed in in front of her. There was no way out, no direction to run, no path or method of escape. She was caught. |
StreakTheFox | 599 | 5 | Angel,Big Macintosh,Main 6,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Spike,Zecora,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,Random,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Transformers - The Energy of Magic | Transformers G1 meet My Little Pony G4! Havoc insues! | cancelled | 24 | 9 | <p>As the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons wage their war on cybertron, an expedition for a new source of energy brings them to an unknown world. Can the Autobots harvest this new energy of "magic" in time? Or will the Decepticons learn of its secrets and use it to conquer the galaxy!?</p> | everyone | 2011-08-23T18:32:02+00:00 | 2011-08-23T18:32:02+00:00 | 3,731 | Chapter 4 – Autobots
-[-.-]-
“Any luck up there Cliffjumper?” Asked Optimus Prime, calling up through the hole being dug out over the ceiling hatch. After Cliffjumper’s failed attempt to quickly dig out of their subterranean imprisonment, he continued attempting to dig upwards and around overhead, only to be blocked off by large rocks impeding further digging in several directions. By now Cliffjumper was able to stand freely in most of the space overhead, but much of the cockpit and surrounding hallways were filled with dirt. Several other Autobots like Jazz, Ironhide, and bumblebee had opened up a sideways hatch a ways down from the main control room and began digging there. All the rest were busy working on the ship, trying hard to get it functional.
“Not yet prime… dang rocks just keep showin up all over the place!”
“Keep at it, we don’t know exactly how far our ship went under, so we may be working just to get outside for a while.”
“Sure thing! But don’t worry, I’m sure to break through to the surface in no time!” In truth, Cliffjumper didn’t know how long it would take him to reach the surface, but he kept himself optimistic and hyperactive at all times while him and the others were stuck in this mess.
“Hey Prime!” Called a voice coming from the hallways. Optimus Prime turned to see Prowl and Ratchet approaching him, with Prowl’s hands cupped around something.
“What is it Prowl? You seem to have something there.”
“I sure do! I think it’s a local life form. I found it scurrying around one of the back hallways that ain’t powered up.”
“Prowl, be careful with it,” Ratchet cautioned. “You don’t want to crush the little thing, it appears to be scared out of its wits.”
“Aww it don’t seem to be actin too bad, look!” With a somewhat excited smile on his face, Prowl lifted off his top hand slowly to reveal a purple creature with two segments of darker purple and pink hair extruding from its body, one on the head, and the other atop its rear. The creature was a quadruped, and was also shaking uncontrollably while its face seemed to have paled in fear. The creature also appeared to have a horn on top of its hide, sticking out above its large purple eyes.
“I told you it’s scared,” Ratchet said as he noted the obvious shaking from the creature. Optimus leaned in closer towards the creature as it looked up at him, its eyes staring straight back into his. Their views locked into place for a few moments, each one analyzing the other. Before long Optimus realized it would be best to try to communicate with the creature to see if they can discover some sort of sentience with the being.
“My name is Optimus Prime,” He said in a calm and moderate tone. “You have nothing to fear, neither me nor my men will hurt you. Can you understand what I am saying?”
Optimus looked closely, and though he heard next to nothing, a few distinct noises – sounding somewhat like squeaks – sounded out from the creature’s mouth as he saw the lips move a little.
“Well I’ll be, I think It can understand us after all,” Prowl said. He lifted up a finger from his free hand and gently – to him at least – patted the creature’s head, being careful not to tap the horn. “C’mon little fella, you can talk to us.”
The creature flinched a little, but again spoke out, now loud enough for the 3 Autobots to know it was truly saying something.
“We still can’t hear you, please, speak louder,” Optimus said in a reassuring voice. “Tell us your name.”
The furry purple organism took a deep sigh, its shaking almost stopping now. It looked up again and spoke out slowly, “My name I-is… Twilight Sparkle.”
~{0.0}~
“OOF! ERGH…! GAH! C’mon you, BUDGE!” Rainbow Dash had been flying up and ramming her shoulder down at the hatch for the past several minutes, so far with no sign of the hatch giving way. Dash reared up again, flying higher this time before stopping and flying straight down at full speed, crashing her shoulder into the hatch as she let out a painful grown. Her upper arm all the way to the bottom of her neck was already swollen from her attempts, and the constant force she was pressing on herself was causing her to quickly fatigue.
The others were crowded around the top of the hole, unsure of what to do next. Applejack had her hooves on either side of her head, trying desperately to remember how or why the hatch opened in the first place. She didn’t even know if it was something she did or not, but she wondered if she may have pressed a switch or hit a lever of some sort without realizing it. Even still, she didn’t know, and the thought of Twilight now being stuck down there with that monster – and probably more – was quickly eating her up on the inside.
“Goodness, Rainbow Dash you’re going to break your shoulder like that!” Rarity called out nervously, her voices unheard to the blue Pegasus.
“I hope twilight’s okay…” Said Fluttershy softly, a few tears starting to swell up around her eyes. “I didn’t mean to put you all in danger like this… I’m so sorry…”
“Now now dear…” Rarity put a hoof around Fluttershy’s neck in a soft hug. “It’s not your fault; there was no way you could have known something like this would have happened.”
Rainbow Dash came up out of the hole after one last attempt, panting hard and feeling utterly drained from using up most of her strength. Her right shoulder was now a vibrant red, the soreness pulsing hot waves of searing pain through her body. As she looked down at the hole, there were hardly even the beginnings of a dent on the hatch. Feeling defeated, Rainbow Dash slowly descended down the hole, her aching body resting on the top of the hatch.
“It’s no use… we’ll never get inside to save Twilight…” Rainbow dash let out a deep, depressed sigh as she laid her head over the edge of the entrance up against the dirt. As she laid it down though, the tip of her muzzle pressed down onto something, and a section of the metal under her it lit up. The light caught Rainbow Dash’s eyes just in time for the hatch to quickly spring open again, catching her off guard with her falling straight down into the hole with a surprised yell. She landed hard onto the metal floor with a loud “OOF,” just as Applejack did.
The other four – having heard the sudden sound from their distressed friend – quickly peeked over the edge to see the hatch opened up, and Rainbow Dash already inside.
“You did it!” Pinkie Pie said excitedly. “I knew you could open the hatch Dashie!”
“Quick, take us down there so’s we can save Twilight!” Applejack was now jolted with energy, her adrenalin pumping heavily. It was now time to infiltrate the monsters’ lair, and rescue their friend.
-[-.-]-
“Yes, that’s correct” Twilight said as she looked up at Optimus Prime.
“I see, well it’s a pleasure making your acquaintance Ms. Sparkle.”
“Likewise!” Twilight replied joyfully as she gave Optimus a vibrant smile. She was now standing straight up on a bench next to a set of controls instead of on Prowls hands – which Twilight earlier deemed rather filthy – while she was explaining her race and their roles on this planet. Optimus and the other two bots had given their own minor introduction as they were more eager to learn about this planet and its inhabitants.
“So how did you get in here?” Asked Prowl, interested in how the little creature found her way in.
“Oh, well one of my friends saw your ship crash last night, so earlier today we came out to investigate. Though, while we were trying find out more about your ship, one of my friends accidently fell into a hatch in one of the ceilings of your hallways back there. So; me, her, and other friend went in to check it out… and that’s when we ran into, Prowl was it?”
“That’d be me miss,” Prowl said proudly with a slight wave of his hand. “So wait, if you got in here from a ceiling hatch, how come I didn’t see it when I followed you down the hall?”
“Oh, well when my Pegasus friend by the name of Rainbow Dash was flying my other friend Applejack, an earth pony, out of the hole it closed up behind her. I don’t really know why, but that’s how I got trapped down here.”
“I think that might have been me,” Ratched said. “I was getting Prowl to help me with the circuitry in the halls to try to get that section’s power restored, and I guess when I sent through a jolt of energy to test the lights, it closed up the hatch.”
“Well, I guess it’s all fine now,” Twilight said with a bit of remorse. “I mean, we were just scared because of your size, I’m sorry we freaked out on you like that.”
“We understand,” assured Optimus. “Now, I think it would be best if we try to locate that hatch you came in so we can reunite you with your friends.”
“Yes, that would be most pleasant of you. I’m sure they’re probably-” Twilight was cut off by the sound of a familiar pony calling out to her.
“TWILIGHT!” Applejack cried as her and Rainbow Dash charged forward.
“Girls wait! Everything’s-“ She tried to calm her friends down, but her words flew over their heads as Rainbow Dash recognized Prowl as the monster that was chasing them before.
“There it is, get it!” The two rushed straight for unsuspecting Autobot who was now raising up its arms a bit to protect itself. Rainbow Dash rammed herself against his head, tipping him backwards and almost causing him to fall as Applejack charged into his leg, putting him off balance and crashing him to the floor.
“Cut it out you two!” Twilight yelled loudly, finally getting her words into the heads of her friends. The two looked up at her surprised as the others came into view from the hall.
“Oh goodness, Twilight are you alright?” Rarity asked with deep concern in her voice.
“I’m fine girls, really. These things aren’t monsters, and they’re not going to hurt us, so please calm down.”
“But that thing was chasing us!” Rainbow Dash complained, looking over at Prowl with an angry stare. Prowl Was now leaning up after taking the fall, and was gently rubbing his head.
“I was only trying to talk to ya!” He said in a disgruntled voice. Twilight shook her head a little and walked closer to the edge of the edge of the bench, now being able to see all of her friends in full view.
“I believe some proper introductions are in order,” Optimus said as he took a step forward and looked down at the group of ponies before him. Twilight nodded as she also looked down at her friends, the group looking at each other with a bit of confusion, but not unwilling to listen to what they had to say. Optimus rose up his hand slowly and placed it on the middle of his chest.
“My name is Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots.” |
StreakTheFox | 599 | 6 | Angel,Big Macintosh,Main 6,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Spike,Zecora,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,Random,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Transformers - The Energy of Magic | Transformers G1 meet My Little Pony G4! Havoc insues! | cancelled | 24 | 9 | <p>As the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons wage their war on cybertron, an expedition for a new source of energy brings them to an unknown world. Can the Autobots harvest this new energy of "magic" in time? Or will the Decepticons learn of its secrets and use it to conquer the galaxy!?</p> | everyone | 2011-08-24T18:40:43+00:00 | 2011-08-24T18:40:43+00:00 | 4,361 | Chapter 5 – The War
-[-.-]-
“So, what exactly is your mission here?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Our home planet of Cybertron has been plagued by a longstanding civil war between we, the Autobots, and the evil Decepticons,” Optimus explained, standing before the group of ponies in the control room.
“Decepticons…? I’ve never heard of that before either,” Twilight remarked, referring back to her books.
“The Decepticons in many ways are just like us, but they seek to rule the entire galaxy. We Autobots believe in freedom for all races, and so our war began, turning the once beautiful metropolis of Cybertron into a junk heap. With out war still raging and our planet’s vast amounts of resources almost completely drained, we set out to find a new world from which we could harvest energy from in order to save our own.”
Twilight and the others looked at each other for a moment, and then applejack spoke up beside Rainbow Dash. “So wait, what if these Decepticon folk followed ya here?”
“When we left, we inadvertently ran into a worm hole which took us into orbit over your world. We don’t know if they were following us before we went in, but the warp through the worm hole is so dangerous, that they probably did not survive if they even did manage to trail us.”
“Well then how did your ship survive?” Twilight said, curious as ever.
“We do not know for sure, we simply think that we were very lucky to have survived.”
Twilight looked up for a moment, pondering the situation her and her friends had now found themselves in. Not only is this discovery big, for now both pony and these Cybertronians, but it will certainly change many things from hear on out for both worlds. At the same time, there was now an open door to the immense amount of wealth now all around Twilight, and her eyes glimmered at the thought of how much more knowledge she could gain from these beings.
“So uh,” Applejack began, “What do all of you Cybatrus… cybatroonz, cyber…. Gah, how do ya say ya’lls names again?”
“You can just call us Transformers!” Prowl said, speaking out besides Optimus.
“Trans-for-mers… Alright, I think that works out well,” Applejack said with a smile.
“Wait a second,” Interrupted Rainbow Dash, “can you guys actually like, transform into stuff?”
“Well of course!” Prowl replied. “Just watch this,” he said while his body began to shift and the metal plates composing the outside of his body moved around. All 6 of the ponies’ eyes grew as they watched the transformation while their ears perked up at the sound of the “chee cha choo choo” now they made. Prowl was now a rectangular shaped vehicle with a front wind shield and two doors, one on either side. It used hover jets under its four corners as propulsion and made a metallic hum from the front as its engines revved up, sounding similar to Pinkie Pie when she would spittle her tongue.
“That was AWESOME!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, her wings hovering her body over the floor with excitement. She quickly flew towards the new form of Prowl in front of her, and traced her paws around the outside with the occasional “Ooooh” and “aaaahh” from her amazement. The other ponies followed, also touching their hooves against the living metal before them. They could even feel the vibrations from the engine inside with their hooves against the frame.
“Hey, what’s making that funny noise?” Asked Pinkie, staring at the front bumper of the vehicle. “It sounds kinda like me when I spit my tongue really really fast at ponies!”
“Well that’s something called an engine, it’s a machine under my hood that allows me to move around.”
“Oooooh, lemme see! Lemme see! Lemme see!”
As the ponies learned about Prowl and the workings of an “engine,” most of the other Autobots had came by and also introduced themselves to the native creatures. The ponies were awestruck and fascinated by each and every one of them, with some ponies even starting to cling to one transformer and dubbing it their “favorite.” But as several of the Transformers and the ponies continued talking, Cliffjumper finally climbed down from the hole in the hatch behind and above Optimus Prime.
“Good news sir, I finally dug myself out to the surface!” Cliffjumper said after dusting himself off slightly and approaching Optimus.
“That’s great news,” remarked Optimus. “What’s it like on the surface? Were you able to determine a time of day?”
“Well this planet’s sun seems to be at the top of the sky, so I’d say we’re at mid-day so far. As for the landscape, I took one peak and there was this vast forest, a big’ol river, and I think even something resembling a town in the distance!”
“I see. Good work, Cliffjumper. Now gather the crew and bring them back here, we have some native life forms that have just started introducing themselves.”
-[\_/]-
“Soundwave to Megatron, reporting,” Called Soundwave over the transmitter.
“What is it, Soundwave?” Megatron replied.
“We have restored power to the ship, but our engines and navigation systems are destroyed. We require the parts and Energon before more progress can be made.”
“I see, bring the other Decepticons to the surface, and prepare to move out.” Megatron looked up to the sky, noticing Thundercracker returning from his scouting mission. Thundercracker transformed from his Cybertronian jet mode and landed before him, giving off a salute.
“What have you found, Thundercracker?” Asked Megatron impatiently.
“There appears to be a lot of life on this planet,” replied Thundercracker. “From what I can see, there’s even a sentient form of life that’s reigning dominant on this planet.”
“Hmmm, I see….”
“Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that they’re advanced enough to create anything electronic such as generators or other electrical power sources, so we’ll need to get our energy from some other source.”
“Hmmm…” Megatron looked down with his hand on his chin, thinking intensively at the situation brought before him. Then, an idea poped into his mind, and he raised his head. “Thundercracker, what about the wildlife? Are there any large forests in the area?”
“Oh yeah there is, I saw several large forests and collections of other big plants all over.”
“Perfect…” Megatron said, an evil smirk appearing on his face. As he ran over his plan again in his head, the other Decepticons emerged from the water and landed behind him.
“Megatron, all Decepticons mobilized,” Soundwave announced as he gave off a salute. Megatron turned around and faced the group of Decepticons before him, looking at them each one by one.
“Decepticons,” Megatron began as he raised his arm up. “We have located an abundance of forests on this planet. Follow me to the first one, and we shall burn it for its energy!”
The other Decepticons gave out a short cheer as they readied themselves to move. Following Megatron’s lead, they all took off into the air, and headed straight for White Tail Wood. |
Wheller | 600 | 1 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-10-29T01:54:33+00:00 | 2011-10-29T01:54:33+00:00 | 2,728 | Chronology notes:
Stop! You are reading the Sixth story in the series started by The Kindness of Strangers!
Please read The Kindness of Strangers first!
http://www.fimfiction.net/story/389/
The second part of the story is Putting the Pieces Back Together found here:
http://www.fimfiction.net/story/407/
The third part of the story is Midnight in the Heart of Equestria found here:
http://www.fimfiction.net/story/419/
The fourth part of the story is Tomorrow is Always a New Day found here:
http://www.fimfiction.net/story/433/
This story is the direct sequel to To Each Their Own found here:
http://www.fimfiction.net/story/526/
Imperfect
Chapter 1
“Fillies and Gentlecolts! It is my humblest pleasure to report that spring is finally here!”
Twilight Sparkle stood in the crowd in front of Ponyville town hall. They had finished wrapping up winter in record time. Ponyville was the first town in Canterlot Province to report that they had cleaned up winter; they had even beaten out the royal capital that used magic in aiding to clean.
“You know… I don’t think you ponies have to do all this, I’m pretty sure it would happen on its own if you let it,” said the gruff voice of the individual standing next to her.
Twilight looked at the individual next to her. “I think you’re hardly in a position to compare Sergeant Tebbs. It doesn’t snow in South Island.”
Sergeant Percy Tebbs was a kangaroo; he had met Twilight Sparkle several months ago during the unicorn’s trip into the Hoofson Bay Area. Tebbs was a practical sort of person, perfectly content to allow things to run their own course. Of course, this often put the South Islander in conflict with his pony hosts.
Sergeant Tebbs was a tank commander in the Commonwealth of South Island Army King's Own South Island Dragoons “The Winter Rats.” Assigned to the gryphon occupied Hoofson Bay Area to harass the resource gathering operation for their war against each other. Twilight Sparkle, along with her friends Rainbow Dash, and Vinyl Scratch, had been caught in the crossfire between kangaroo and gryphon forces during a skirmish at a place called Mount Gwyndolyn. After the fight, Tebbs had offered to drive the wayward ponies to their home, only for his tank to break down and strand them in Ponyville until replacement parts could be procured.
Nearly two months ago to the day, Tebbs had allowed one of his crew, Trooper Benjamin Willoughby to travel to the distant city of Manehattan with Vinyl Scratch, and a group of other ponies that Tebbs did not know the names of, in order to get in contact with Regimental Command. If they stuck to the timetable that they had worked out, the group should be back at the end of the week.
If they didn’t, then Tebbs would know to start worrying. Either way, he had no way of knowing if Willoughby had even made it to Manehattan at all. The trip was supposed to be safe, but being in the army had taught the kangaroo to expect the worst.
“Well, this was fun… but I have work to do…” Tebbs said leaving Twilight Sparkle alone as the crowd began to dissipate. Twilight knew this to be false; Tebbs didn’t have anything that he could do to their tank until Trooper Willoughby returned, but said nothing; she knew what it was like to be the odd one out in a crowd.
Ponyville had welcomed the kangaroo crew, but few treated them with anything but suspicion. It was nature to be afraid of the unfamiliar, Twilight thought to herself, but that didn’t make it right.
“I hear we have you to thank for getting done early.”
Twilight turned to the source of a new voice, standing before her was a brown earth pony with a spiky chestnut mane, and a cutie mark of an hourglass.
“Oh it wasn’t anything, really! I’m just good at organising! Except when it comes to the books in my library...” Twilight said with a chuckle.
“Well the town’s glad to have you, especially after the disasters of year 1000, and 1001,” the earth pony said with a smile. “Come to think of it, I’ve seen myself in photographs for those years... but I haven’t done them yet,” the pony said quietly to himself.
“Huh?” Twilight asked in confusion.
“Oh, heard that did you? Don’t concern yourself! But if you’ll excuse me, I have winters to wrap up!” the earth pony turned and trotted off down the high street. “Winter Wrap up, Winter Wrap up! Let’s finish our holiday cheer! Oh how I love that tune!” He sang to himself as he walked.
Twilight watched in confusion as the earth pony turned a corner, and disappeared from her view. “Dear Princess Celestia: Today I learned that you sent me to live in a town full of crazy ponies. Your most faithful student, Twilight Sparkle,” Twilight chuckled at her own joke and trotted off towards home.
...
Rainbow Dash stretched out her wings and looked up at the sky, she basked in the warm glow of the sun. Oh how she had missed the warm feel on her body.
“Okay! Spring time! Time to practice some new tricks!” Rainbow called out to the world.
“If you say so Rainbow...” Sitting on the grass watching her was Fluttershy, her oldest friend. “Please be careful Rainbow, I don’t want you to get hurt!”
“Relax Fluttershy! I’ll be fine, what’s the worst that can possibly happen in the middle of an open field?” Rainbow Dash asked, ignoring the fact that the field wasn’t completely open, rather that there was a single tree near the edge of the road.
“Um...” Fluttershy began to say, but Rainbow didn’t hear her, she leapt into the air, pulling off a series of loops, flips, and barrel rolls with pure grace, Fluttershy watched as Rainbow Dash spectacularly danced though the air, but to her horror, Rainbow had stopped paying attention to her relative location, and collided head on with the lone tree.
Fluttershy rushed over to her friend, “Rainbow Dash?” she asked.
Rainbow opened her eyes. “I don’t get it,” she said.
“Oh good! You’re awake, I was afraid that... Oh, my! Rainbow, you’re bleeding!”
Rainbow was, she felt the warm sticky blood and found herself gulping. Fluttershy was deathly afraid of blood. She could tell that the meek Pegasus was nervous, but was surprised to see Fluttershy fight through it.
“Come on. We’re going to get that nice and bandaged up!” Fluttershy said reassuringly.
The two pegasi crossed the field to Fluttershy’s cottage, quickly bandaging Rainbow’s head before Fluttershy fainted from looking at it.
“Woah. Déjà vu!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, she felt as if this had happened to her before. Then it hit her, when she was out cold from when Gilda hit her at the Hoofson Bay, she’d dreamed similar events. She felt the overwhelming need to find Twilight and Vinyl.
No. Relax Rainbow Dash, Vinyl Scratch is fine, she’s on her way back from Manehattan right about now. You’re being silly.
“Are you okay Rainbow?” Fluttershy asked her.
“Yeah... I’ll be fine, thanks Fluttershy,” Rainbow Dash said, she rose to her hooves and turned to leave. She felt a sharp pain in her head and collapsed on the floor.
...
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes; she was lying in the middle of Ponyville. Night had fallen, no wait, it couldn’t be night, everything was bright out!
No. Everything was illuminated, because the Everfree forest was on fire.
She heard a low rumble behind her; she turned to see the kangaroo M3 Light Tank rolling through the streets.
She rolled out of the way, and the tank continued to drive past her.
Behind it three ponies were running for their lives, Trixie, Derpy, and a brown earth pony that Rainbow Dash recognised as Doctor Blacksmith, the earth pony physical therapist who had been in charge of her case when she was in the Royal Hospital with paralysed wings.
“Run!” Doctor Blacksmith yelled out.
Run? From what?
Rainbow Dash heard a loud howling noise. Run from that.
Ticka-ticka-ticka-ticka-ticka!
Rainbow Dash got to her hooves and took off after the kangaroos and the trio of ponies she’d seen before her. What in Equestria was going on?
Rainbow Dash passed a building before she felt somepony grab her and pull her into an alleyway, she struggled, trying to break free of whoever had grabbed her, but she soon discovered it to be none other than Twilight Sparkle.
Twilight put a hoof to her mouth, shushing Rainbow Dash. Rainbow obeyed, staying quiet.
A cloud of black smoke darted past the alleyway.
Ticka-ticka-ticka-ticka-ticka!
Twilight sighed a sigh of relief, they were safe for now.
“Twilight? What is going on?” Rainbow Dash asked.
Twilight blinked at her. “Oh no, this must be where you went just after you had the accident! You told me that this was going to happen... I didn’t want to believe it, but its happening.”
“What are you talking about?!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, more in annoyance than confusion.
“I don’t have time to explain,” Twilight said. “You told me that this flash didn’t last long. Soon you’ll wake back up in Fluttershy’s cottage. Rainbow, listen to me, this is very, very important! The next time you flash-forward, seek me out right away, and don’t try talking to anypony else first. Not Applejack, Not Pinkie Pie, Not any of the kangaroos, and especially not the Doctor!”
Rainbow was extremely confused, did she mean Doctor Blacksmith? She had to.
“Do you understand Rainbow? This is very important! Do not talk to the Doctor!” Twilight said again.
“I understand,” Rainbow said. “Well, I don’t understand, but I’ll do as you say.”
“Good,” Twilight said, she leaned forward and kissed Rainbow Dash gently on her lips. “I love you Rainbow Dash.”
As if on cue, Rainbow Dash blacked out. |
Wheller | 600 | 2 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-24T02:22:32+00:00 | 2011-08-24T02:22:32+00:00 | 1,851 | Chapter 2
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes; she was lying just outside Fluttershy’s doorstep, the yellow Pegasus standing over her looking sadly at her.
“Are you all right Rainbow? You didn’t even make it a metre from my door before collapsing,” she asked.
Rainbow Dash rose to her hooves. “Yeah, I think I’m okay now Fluttershy... I need to find Twilight.”
Fluttershy nodded, “Do you want me to walk with you?”
“No, that’s okay,” Rainbow said, she waved goodbye to Fluttershy and trotted off towards the Ponyville Library, trying to make sense of what had happened to her.
Twilight had called it a “flash-forward,” best Rainbow Dash could figure, it was most likely a dream. Heck, the kangaroo’s tank couldn’t even move right now, much less be able to nearly run her over... but what she was really curious about was what Twilight had said to her last. “Do not talk to the Doctor.” Who exactly was she referring to? The only doctor she knew was Doctor Blacksmith, the pony who had been in charge of her physical therapy for a short time when she was still in the Royal Hospital... She had seen him in her “flash-forward.”
Rainbow Dash was so lost in thought; she barely noticed when she bumped into somepony. Rainbow looked up in shock; standing in front of her was a brown earth pony with a spiky chestnut mane, an hourglass cutie mark on his flank. It was Doctor Blacksmith!
“Well! Rainbow Dash! Good to see you again,” the earth pony doctor said.
“Doctor Blacksmith?” Rainbow Dash asked in surprise, this couldn’t be coincidence.
“Just the Doctor. No need to get fancy,” the Doctor said with a smile.
Now Rainbow Dash was positive that this was who the Flash-Forward Twilight had meant.
“I... I’m not sure I should be talking to you...”
The Doctor smiled at her. “Well that’s part of the reason why I came back. Like it or not, I’m necessary even if Twilight Sparkle doesn’t agree with the things I’m about to do... well have done from my perspective, will do from yours... but anyway, I’m rambling, I say do as you like, what’s the worst that can possibly happen?”
Rainbow blinked at the colt before her, more confused than anything else.
“Well, if you’ll excuse me, I have things to do! Goodbye Rainbow!” the Doctor walked past her, leaving Rainbow standing in the middle of the street looking extremely confused.
“What are you talking about?” Rainbow yelled after him.
“You’ll find out!” the Doctor said. “Oh by the way, the password is “banana” remember that, it’ll be useful.”
Rainbow was completely lost.
...
Rainbow Dash knocked on the door to Twilight Sparkle’s Library; Twilight opened the door and gasped at her friend. “Ohmygosh! Rainbow! Are you okay?”
Rainbow Dash looked at her in confusion, but then remembered the bandage on her head. “Oh yeah! I’m okay, I hit my head earlier, but Fluttershy took care of me. May I come in?”
Twilight nodded, standing back allowing the Pegasus inside.
Rainbow Dash quickly discovered that she had a guest. Sitting in the room was a pitch black unicorn with amber eyes. Rainbow Dash looked at him, he looked familiar, but she couldn’t place him.
“Oh, Rainbow Dash, have you met Nightshadow?” Twilight asked.
Rainbow looked at the unicorn more closely. “I thought I did when I first saw him... but maybe I’m thinking of somepony else... no offence.”
“None taken,” the unicorn said. “I do not recognise you either.”
Nightshadow rose to his hooves, trotting towards them. “I should be getting back to work; I will see you tomorrow, Twilight?” He leaned in and gave Twilight a gentle kiss on her muzzle and departed. Twilight looked as if she had just entered into her own little dream world.
This had thrown Rainbow Dash off, Twilight in the flash-forward has kissed her and said that she had loved her just before Rainbow passed out... if the flash-forward was legitimate, she could only imagine what had lead to those events.
“Equestria to Twilight Sparkle? Come in Twilight Sparkle?” Rainbow Dash said, shaking Twilight from her daze.
“Oh... sorry Rainbow,” Twilight said awkwardly.
“How long has that been going on?” Rainbow Dash asked her.
“Oh... about five months or so,” Twilight said, smiling awkwardly.
Déjà Vu again. Rainbow’s heart began to race, the last time she got Déjà Vu she had flashed-forward soon afterwards. “You’ve been dating someone for five months and nopony has heard about it until right now!?”
Twilight looked extremely embarrassed.
Rainbow Dash suddenly became dizzy; it was starting to happen again.
She did her best to fight it off, but to no avail, she collapsed in front of Twilight, blacking out.
...
Rainbow Dash awoke lying in the High Street. It was night time, and the town wasn’t on fire this time. Rainbow Dash supposed this was an improvement. As it so happened, she was in front of Twilight’s Library.
The last time she’d flashed-forward, Twilight had told her to go to nopony else before her. Well at least it had dropped her in a convenient place.
Rainbow Dash knocked on the door, it opened slightly, and Rainbow Dash began to relive the familiar experience of having a gun shoved in her face.
Rainbow Dash had had a gun pointed at her twice in her life before now, the first two times had been by gryphons... this time however nothing seemed to be holding the weapon.
Twilight poked her head around the door, her horn was glowing, and Rainbow Dash realised that she was the one operating it.
“Oh for crying... Rainbow I’m so sorry. Quickly! Get inside!”
Rainbow accepted the invitation, though she wasn’t exactly sure why. She figured that having a gun pointed at her was not the friendliest way of being greeted.
Once inside, Twilight closed the door, setting the gun back down on the table.
“What’s that all about?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Kangaroo made KH-11 Eight Bore Combat Shotgun... can’t be too careful these days,” Twilight said, she turned around and threw her hooves around the Pegasus, planting a kiss directly on her lips, once again, catching the Pegasus off guard. “Don’t you dare do that to me again! You know it’s not safe to be outside at night anymore.”
“Umm... Twilight, I didn’t know, I have no idea what’s going on right now,” Rainbow Dash said with a frown.
Twilight frowned at the Pegasus. “I dread this every day. Every time I see you I worry, ‘is Rainbow Dash going to know what’s going on today? Is today the day that Rainbow doesn’t love me?’ I’m afraid that one of these days, you’re going to be in a flash-forward where you don’t recognise me at all. Silly, I know, because as you’ve told me before, you didn’t start having them until two years after we met... but what if it happens anyway?”
“Twilight, I have...” Rainbow began; Twilight raised a hoof to silence her.
“We likely don’t have a lot of time, I’ll explain as much as I can. Do you remember when your wings were paralysed? And you tried that experimental treatment to fix them over night?”
Rainbow Dash nodded in affirmation.
“When you first explained it to me, you figured that it was a side effect of the treatment, that you did something that caused something left over to enter circulation in your body,” Twilight said.
“Something like... crashing into a tree?” Rainbow Dash asked.
Twilight nodded. “Clearly, you’re in the early stages of the flash-forwards, they won’t last long to begin with, but the more you have, the longer that you’re going to experience them for.”
“What causes them?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“A number of things, getting Déjà Vu seems to do it most of the time, but really, there are a good number of things that can set them off... It happened once when we were... together,” Twilight said.
Rainbow understood immediately what she was getting at, her wings popped out with the thought entering into her head, causing Twilight to giggle.
“I had almost forgotten about how cute you where about it when we first got together... Oh things were so much simpler then... now, you can’t go out your own door without hiding a weapon on you.”
“What made it like this?” Rainbow Dash asked, Twilight did not get to answer, Rainbow Dash felt a sharp pain in her head, she collapsed on the ground, grunting in pain.
“What’s happening?” She asked.
“You’re leaving!” Twilight exclaimed. “Don’t try and fight it! You just have to let the flashes happen, otherwise you’ll hurt yourself.”
Rainbow Dash looked up at Twilight, not understanding. Twilight got down to the floor, kissing Rainbow’s forehead. “I’m just glad that you’re flashing to somewhere safe.”
Rainbow’s eyes closed, and she blacked out again. |
Wheller | 600 | 3 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-24T05:10:17+00:00 | 2011-08-24T05:10:17+00:00 | 2,153 | Chapter 3
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes again. Twilight was standing over her gasping in horror.
“Rainbow Dash?” she asked of her friend.
“I’m okay, I think...” Rainbow Dash said, not sure if she was telling the truth, or just trying to keep Twilight from worrying. “This is kind of why I came to see you.”
Rainbow Dash explained to Twilight the things that she had seen during her flash forwards, including the details of Twilight’s gestures of affection, causing the lavender unicorn to be horrifically embarrassed.
“I... didn’t think you liked mares like that Rainbow Dash,” Twilight eventually managed after a few moments of uncomfortable silence.
“I... don’t?” Rainbow said she had always felt that she wasn’t, but clearly, something happened, or would to make her more open to the idea. “Do... you?”
“I... I’ve never been with anypony at all Rainbow, I guess I don’t know what I like,” Twilight said.
Both mares realised that they needed to get the subject away from this topic, it was making them both extremely uncomfortable because neither knew how to answer. They both half-wished that Vinyl Scratch would pop her head into the door and make an off the wall comment about the situation they were in to lighten the mood.
Both of them looked at the door, and were disappointed that nothing happened after thirty seconds of waiting.
“So basically, we need to figure out what these flash-forwards of yours mean.” Twilight said, finally diverting the conversation away from its previous topic that felt as if it had gone on for years.
Rainbow Dash nodded, “Something really wrong is going in the world whenever I flash-forward, but I haven’t been around long enough to figure out what happened.”
Twilight nodded. “I want you to stay here for a while until your next flash happens... You also probably shouldn’t fly for a while... if you had a flash while you were in the air, the fall could kill you!”
Rainbow Dash’s eyes widened, she didn’t like the idea of being stuck on the ground, but she liked the idea of falling to her death even less so she didn’t argue.
The two ponies sat around, talking about various subjects from weather processing in Cloudsdale, to stargazing, to various stories from their respective fillyhoods. They sat around for hours, and they had started running out of things to talk about.
Rainbow Dash was getting frustrated, her first two flash-forwards had happened something in the order of twenty minutes apart.
“What gives! One should have happened by now!” Rainbow cried out in frustration.
Twilight looked at her friend uneasily. “I have an idea...”
“Let’s try it, whatever it is! I’m getting tired of all this sitting around and waiting! If I have to wait any longer, I’m going to start pulling feathers out!” Rainbow said in frustration.
Twilight looked at her, leaned in close, and gave her a kiss on her lips.
Rainbow Dash was caught off guard by the sudden action, she hadn’t been expect thing that.
Twilight backed off after a few seconds, blushing intensely. “Sorry Rainbow... It just seemed like it might work...”
Rainbow opened her mouth to speak, but she felt a sharp, splitting pain in head. “I... I think it worked...”
Rainbow collapsed to the floor, blacking out.
...
Rainbow threw open her eyes. Somepony was holding her down. No. That wasn’t entirely accurate.
Rainbow Dash was lying in a bed; it was night time, and next to her, slept Twilight Sparkle. Twilight was cuddling with her. Rainbow Dash looked at the sleeping unicorn next to her, she was smiling in her sleep. Rainbow Dash smiled back at the unicorn, knowing that she couldn’t see it, this was the perfect opportunity to get answers, but Rainbow Dash didn’t have the heart to wake somepony who looked that happy. Judging by how the world was going, this was probably as happy as the Twilight Sparkle of the future could be.
The illusion of happiness was broken when Rainbow Dash looked at Twilight’s pillow; there was a gun under it. A kind that Rainbow Dash hadn’t seen before, this one too was clearly kangaroo in origin; it looked as if it had been designed to be held in just one of a kangaroo’s hand, unlike the others she’d seen which seemed to be made for two. This gun had a barrel about fifteen centimetres in length; behind it was small cylinder that seemed to be designed to revolve around an axis. Rainbow Dash dubbed it a “revolver,” thinking that she was being clever.
How messed up was the world when Twilight Sparkle was forced to sleep with a revolver under her pillow? Rainbow Dash felt a tear form in her eye. This wasn’t right. The world wasn’t supposed to be like this!
Twilight opened her eyes, looking at the Pegasus lying across from her.
“Rainbow Dash? Are you okay?” Twilight asked.
“How did this happen Twilight? How did the world get so dark and dangerous?” She asked.
“The world has always been like this Rainbow, we were just being hidden from it,” Twilight said sadly. “Someday, someday things will be safe again. Someday we won’t have to sleep with guns under our pillows. Someday, we’ll take our home back.”
The two ponies embraced each other, and Rainbow Dash blacked out again.
...
“I got so close!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed in frustration over dinner. Night was falling, and Twilight had prepared a simple salad using some of the last bits of food she’d stored for over the winter. “So close!”
Twilight shrugged. “We’ll just have to try again... Though I’d prefer not to try today... we don’t know what kind of effects that this has on you when you flash... I need to get my hooves on some monitoring equipment... I just don’t know where to find any...”
Rainbow Dash looked at the clock, it was getting awful late. “Is Pinkie Pie still living here? Shouldn’t she be home by now?”
Twilight shrugged. “Pinkie apparently does come back to sleep here... but it’s almost always really late at night, I see her for a few minutes in the morning during breakfast, and then she skips off to do... something. I have no idea what that pony does during the day.”
Rainbow shrugged as well. “I’ve only seen her around town a few times since we got back from the Hoofson Bay. When I tried to talk to her, she said hi, but that she was really busy and couldn’t stop to chat... Knowing her, she’s planning the reopening party of Sugarcube Corner.”
“I certainly hope it’s that,” Twilight said. Rainbow nodded in agreement. They ate the rest of their dinner in silence.
A few more hours passed, the two mares sat in the main room of the Library, talking about things that only Pinkie Pie bursting into the room shouting “forever!” could make more random. Twilight didn’t want to leave Rainbow alone in case she had another flash forward, and when both of them became tried and needed sleep, Twilight remained adamant on not leaving the pegasi alone.
“I think you should spend the night here... just in case,” she said reassuringly. “Just in case!”
Rainbow didn’t want to impose, considering that technically speaking, Pinkie Pie was living here too.
“It’s no trouble really, you can sleep in my bed, and I’ll use the sofa,” Twilight said.
Rainbow eventually gave in, Twilight had a point, and if she flashed forward again having somepony nearby was probably a good idea. She did however manage to convince Twilight to sleep in her own bed; Rainbow would sleep on the sofa. Twilight turned out the lights and went upstairs; Rainbow laid down on the sofa, closed her eyes, and went to sleep.
...
She must have flashed-forward when she went to sleep. It made sense, when she thought about it, after all. It her experiences were a lot like dreaming, she was participating in events around her, but not quite understanding them.
Rainbow Dash had awoken during the day. She was outside in Ponyville. Things weren’t on fire (a distinct plus,) and the world didn’t look crazy... maybe it wasn’t yet, maybe Rainbow Dash had gotten lucky and had flashed forward to a time that didn’t have Twilight Sparkle shoving a gun into her face as a precaution. Was that too much to ask?
She had clearly flashed to a time not very far into the future; the kangaroo Light Tank had still not been fixed, Vinyl Scratch and her company had yet to return from Manehattan, but were apparently due back in the next few hours.
Being here now worried Rainbow slightly, if Déjà Vu moments set off the flashes, then this entire sequence was going to be a hotspot for trouble when she actually caught up to it.
Something caught her eye; Pinkie Pie was skipping merrily down the high street. Now was the perfect time to figure out what the pink party pony was doing.
Rainbow Dash followed her, doing her best to say back far enough to not be noticed, but it appeared that Pinkie Pie was disinterested in everything going on around her.
They had just gotten out of town when Pinkie Pie called out to her. “I know you’re following me Dashie! You can’t hide from Pinkie Pie!”
Rainbow Dash froze in her tracks, Pinkie Pie stopped skipping and turned back to look at her. “What’s up Rainbow Dash?”
“Just wanted to know why nopony has seen you around town in forever,” Rainbow said.
“Oh! Do you want to know? It’s a secret! But your my bestest best friend! So telling you is okay!” Pinkie Pie said.
Rainbow Dash approached the pink party pony, and just as Pinkie Pie was about to tell her, Rainbow Dash felt a splitting pain in her head, she fell to the ground and blacked out.
Rainbow Dash discovered that the world had a very cruel sense of humour. |
Wheller | 600 | 4 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2012-03-06T05:57:40+00:00 | 2012-03-06T05:57:40+00:00 | 2,141 | Interlude: Pinkie Pie
Pinkie Pie watched through the open window as Twilight Sparkle leaned in and kissed Rainbow Dash. Her eyes widened Twilight... and Rainbow Dash? This wasn’t something that the pink party pony could handle right now; she turned, galloping off towards the western edge of town, tears streaming from her eyes.
Twilight... and Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie had never felt so hurt. She kept running, and running, and running, until she finally stopped and opened her eyes, only to find that she was about a hundred metres deep into the Everfree Forest. Pinkie didn’t care, she wanted to be alone right now, and this place was sure to keep anypony from stumbling across her.
Twilight and Rainbow Dash...
Pinkie wandered a bit until she found an open space, not really open, however as it was a lake. A lake in Everfree? Pinkie Pie had never heard of one... but then it wasn’t as if ponies regularly went into the wood.
She noticed a small sign near the lake’s embankment. It designated this body of water as the ‘Lake of Origin,’ clever.
Pinkie Pie trotted up to the lake and looked in at her reflection in the water. She gasped to find that there was a straight maned, muted pink, earth pony looking back at her.
Why should she be surprised? She was hurt by what she’d seen. Twilight and Rainbow Dash...
Tears began to flow from Pinkie Pie’s eyes; she buried her face in her hooves and let them run.
“What’s this? Hiding are we?” said a voice that seemed to come from nowhere.
Pinkie Pie looked down at her reflection; it was starring annoyed back at her.
“Well?” her reflection asked her.
“I’m... I’m not hiding,” Pinkie Pie said weakly.
“Liar,” the reflection barked back at her, the word stung as if a bee had nipped her back. “What’s the matter Pinkie Pie? Seen something you didn’t like?” the reflection asked, its voice filled with sarcasm.
Pinkie Pie covered her ears, she didn’t want to listen.
“You will NOT ignore me!” The reflection shouted at her.
Pinkie Pie looked up at the pony in the water, offering a small whimper.
“You’re pathetic Pinkamina Diane Pie, you always have been,” the reflection said. “You run around all day acting zany and happy go lucky, but inside you’re nothing but a washed up, miserable, pathetic excuse for yourself. Why? Why bother at all?”
“My friends like me the way I am…” Pinkie Pie said weakly.
“You’re friends don’t know you! You live a lie! Every word that’s ever come out of your mouth is a lie!” the reflection spat at her.
“I’m not listening to you!” Pinkie said, she put her hooves over her ears, and shut her eyes tight. She buried her head underneath her forelegs, hoping that it would leave her alone. It didn’t.
“You remember your last birthday?” the reflection asked, “You remember Rocky? Sir Lints-a-lot?”
“Madame La Fleur?” The reflection mimicked the voice of the bag of flour that had been an attendee of Gummy’s after birthday party, and gave a small snicker. “So pathetic.”
“Leave me alone!” Pinkie Pie called out, she was crying now, tears flowed freely. The reflection merely looked at her with a sadistic glee; it loved every second of it.
“No.” It said plainly. “Want to know what the best part about all this is? The pure, delicious irony of it all! The one pony in Ponyville that is better at making other smile can’t manage on herself, not a real one, because she’s buried under a tonne of misery.”
“I’m... I’m perfectly happy,” Pinkie Pie reported causing the reflection to snicker at her.
“Don’t lie to me. You can’t lie to me! I know you Pinkamina Diane Pie, I know you so very well. I know why you’ve come, you love Twilight Sparkle, and the thought of her with somepony else is ripping you up on the inside.”
Pinkie Pie did not reply, but her crying intensified, it was true, it hurt particularly badly because it was Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie was close with Rainbow Dash, closer than she was to any of her other friends. Rainbow Dash had seen her at her worst. She’d seen her break down during Gummy’s after birthday party, and had sworn what she’d seen to secrecy. What was the worst bit of it was that the reflection was right.
“Poor little Pinkie Pie, caught in the trap of unrequited love! Twilight Sparkle, is caught kissing Rainbow Dash, supposedly not into mares... Want to know what I think? I think that she’s just doing it to spite you.”
“That’s... that’s not true! Rainbow Dash is my friend! She cares about me,” Pinkie Pie said weakly, as if she wasn’t sure about it herself.
“Maybe... clearly not as much as Twilight Sparkle.”
Pinkie Pie had completely lost it, she curled herself up into a little ball. “Giggle at the ghostie...” she began mumbling to herself “Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha ha.”
The reflection snickered. “Sorry, but you just can’t laugh and make me disappear.”
Pinkie Pie was gone; she had taken the hurtful things the reflection had said to heart. She was broken, and she knew it. |
Wheller | 600 | 5 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-25T04:10:23+00:00 | 2011-08-25T04:10:23+00:00 | 1,911 | Chapter 4
Now she had to admit, Rainbow Dash was no longer sure if that was just a regular dream, or if it was actually a flash-forward. There was really no way to tell, she’d only experienced flash-forwards a few times in her life, so it was really up in the air.
It was early in the morning, the sun had not risen and Twilight was still asleep. Rainbow figured that it would be a good time to go out and stretch her legs a bit, maybe even do a quick aerial lap around town.
She remembered what Twilight had said, flying was dangerous, if she flashed while in the air, she could fall to her death, and it would be a gruesome sight to all who would behold it. Rainbow Dash couldn’t believe she was saying this, but she figured it might be best to keep her hooves on the ground.
She opened the door to the Library and stepped out; standing in front of the Library was a brown earth pony with a spiky mane and an hourglass cutie mark.
“Hello! Fancy an early morning stroll?” the Doctor said with a smile. Rainbow Dash was hesitant to answer; Twilight in the future had warned her about associating with him.
“Not with you,” Rainbow Dash said. She was choosing to trust Twilight.
“Ah, so you’ve made your choice, fair enough, fair enough. You’ll know where to find me if you change your mind,” the earth pony turned and walked away, rounding the corner without another word.
Rainbow Dash followed him, peering around the corner to discover he had vanished into thin air. Rainbow shook the Doctor from her mind, he wasn’t important. She turned around to discover a straight maned, muted pink, Pinkie Pie wandering haphazardly through the streets, mumbling to herself.
“Pinkie Pie?” Rainbow Dash called out to her. Pinkie Pie did not respond, neither did she look up from where she was walking. Pinkie Pie walked past Rainbow Dash without having even noticed that she was there. Somewhat annoying the Pegasus that her best friend wouldn’t even say hello to her.
Rainbow Dash prodded Pinkie Pie with her hoof, causing the earth pony to scream at the top of her lungs in surprise. Every building on the high street was darkened, however one after another began to light up, front doors swung open as the residents, forced awake by Pinkie’s screaming, and came outside to see what the commotion was.
Pinkie Pie looked around in confusion, she looked at Rainbow, then at the ground, then back at Rainbow. She turned to run, but Rainbow was quick, grabbing her tail with her teeth to keep the earth pony from running away.
“Pinkie Pie? What has gotten into you?” Rainbow Dash asked.
Pinkie Pie shook her head at her, as if she was either unable, or unwilling to answer.
Twilight opened the door to the Library, looking out onto the commotion, Pinkie Pie’s eyes fell upon her, rage filled the earth pony, she raised her hind legs and gave Rainbow Dash a strong kick, catching the Pegasus off guard, she let go of her tail.
Pinkie Pie rushed at Twilight, leaping into the air, and tackling the lavender unicorn to the ground, she lifted up her hooves and brought them down on her as hard as she possibly could, kicking and biting the defenceless unicorn at with a unstoppable rage.
Twilight had been surprised by Pinkie’s attack, before she knew what was happening, she’d already been kicked five times. Twilight focused her magic and caused a concussive blast of air to throw Pinkie off her, sending the earth pony flying and smacking hard into the side of the building, splattering it with a light coat of the party pony’s blood.
Twilight was bleeding as well, but was more concerned about Pinkie, while the pink pony had attacked her; Twilight hadn’t meant to hurt her!
“Pinkie Pie? Are you okay?!” Twilight exclaimed, rushing to the fallen pony’s side. Pinkie repaid this kindness with a roundhouse kick that connected with Twilight’s jaw, sending the unicorn to the ground, knocking her unconscious. Pinkie Pie ran off towards the west, Rainbow Dash considered following her, but realised how useless it would be. Twilight needed her more now.
Rainbow Dash picked her up and carried her to the Ponyville Clinic, hoping that the lavender unicorn wasn’t hurt too bad.
...
Twilight awoke a few hours later, lying back in the hospital bed, covered in bandages, Rainbow Dash waiting patiently by her side.
“Rainbow? What happened?” Twilight asked.
“Pinkie Pie kicked the snot out of you! That’s what happened!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
“I remember that... I want to know why she did it!” Twilight said.
Rainbow Dash shrugged.
...
Nurse Redheart let Twilight go home soon afterwards; Rainbow Dash walked with her to make sure that everything was all right. Being attacked by Pinkie Pie of all ponies was frankly a traumatic experience, Rainbow Dash hadn’t thought that Pinkie had it in her, clearly she had been wrong.
What had happened to her? What made her best friend snap like that? Rainbow wanted to go looking for her, but Twilight advised against it, Pinkie Pie needed time to cool down. Rainbow Dash didn’t like it, but she knew Twilight was right. Trying to talk to Pinkie Pie when she was agitated wasn’t going to get her anywhere.
Rainbow Dash brought Twilight back up to her bedroom, tucking the injured unicorn in so that she could get some rest, and went back downstairs.
Pinkie Pie was standing inside the door, shutting it behind her ever so quietly.
“What do you think you’re doing!?” Rainbow Dash called out at her.
Pinkie Pie panicked, she skittered into the next room, throwing open the supply closet and grabbing a six metre long coil of rope. Rainbow Dash snuck up behind her and attempted to land a kick.
Pinkie Pie ducked, sending Rainbow off her balance and falling onto the floor. Rainbow Dash hit the ground hard, her eyes grew heavy and her head split with pain as she watched Pinkie run out the door. Rainbow Dash blacked out.
...
What was wrong with this picture? Pinkie Pie had a gun in her mouth. Rainbow Dash recognised it as an identical model to the one she’d seen under Twilight’s pillow during her last flash-forward. Worse still, Pinkie Pie was pointing it at her.
“Eh-du-ub-ant?” Pinkie Pie said. Rainbow didn’t understand how could she? Pinkie Pie’s mouth was full of deadly weapon.
“I didn’t understand what you said...” Rainbow said.
Pinkie Pie grunted in annoyance, and slammed the door to Sugarcube corner in her face. She reopened it a few seconds later, mouth free and clear of the revolver she’d been carrying. “What do you want?” she asked again.
Rainbow blinked. “What? Am I not allowed to visit a friend?”
Pinkie Pie gave Rainbow Dash a look of extreme annoyance. “I don’t know what kind of messed up world you’re living in Rainbow Dash, but you and I are not friends. Don’t ever come back here, or I will blow your stupid fucking head off!”
Pinkie Pie slammed the door in Rainbow Dash’s face again, turning multiple locks on the door until they clicked shut.
Okay. First off, what just happened? And second off when did Pinkie Pie start talking like that?! Rainbow Dash backed away from the door, figuring it best not to loiter, considering how well armed Twilight Sparkle was, Pinkie Pie was likely just as well armed... and more willing to use them.
It was the middle of the day, according to Twilight; it was relatively safe to be outside during the daytime... but why? What made it safer? What was going on in this crazy world?
Rainbow Dash remembered what Twilight had said about you could barely afford to go out your door without being armed. She discovered that she was wearing a saddlebag, and opened it up, hidden inside was a gun, another clearly of kangaroo origin. The general shape was similar to the gun used by Lieutenant Razorwing, the gryphon artillery commander that they had met in the Hoofson bay; guns of this kind were called “pistols,” and accompanying the pistol was a small box labelled “10x26mm Automatic” of which Rainbow Dash figured that this was what the weapon used.
Rainbow Dash shut her saddlebag in disgust, why was she carrying this? She found the use of such a device to be a travesty for Celestia’s sake! Thought the more she thought about it, she was likely carrying it in case she needed to protect Twilight. That was a different story, when it came down to it, a life or death situation, she’d use a deadly weapon like this if she had to, if her life or the lives of one of her friends were on the line. She was loyalty incarnate after all, how could she not?
She made her way to Twilight’s Library, knowing how long her flashes lasted; she figured that the last place she wanted to be when it happened was out in the open. |
Wheller | 600 | 6 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-26T02:27:49+00:00 | 2011-08-26T02:27:49+00:00 | 1,864 | Chapter 5
“I think that Twin 8mm Light Machine Guns might be a little overkill Left-tennant,” Twilight said.
Rainbow Dash blinked, she was standing in the middle of the Ponyville Library, and it felt as if she was carrying another pony on her back. She looked back and discovered that she might as well have been, at her flanks were two long kangaroo made guns, a curved magazine sticking out of the top of each, both guns were nearly as long as Rainbow Dash was and mounted to her sides by a saddle harness.
In front of her was a small control yoke, in order to engage the weapons, Rainbow would have to bring the yoke up into her mouth, and would fire it by biting down. Rather ingenious design.
Not that she’d come up with it herself, there was a chalkboard in the room explaining it, that Rainbow was reading off of. The weapons that Rainbow Dash was wearing had apparently been dubbed as the “Ponyville Pattern” Sen Light Machine Gun.
Well, wasn’t that just lovely?
“Considering who our enemy is? Overkill is necessary Twilight Spackle.”
Rainbow Dash recognised the kangaroo who was standing in the room with them was Sergeant Tebbs. She did her best to stifle her grin at the South Islander’s mispronunciation of her friend’s name. The accent made it impossible to get it right.
Rainbow Dash couldn’t believe she’d been roped into this. Twilight and the kangaroo had convinced her to don the “Ponyville Pattern” the moment she’d stepped through the door to Twilight’s Library. Apparently, Twilight Sparkle was helping the now-Lieutenant Tebbs in the creation of weapons that ponies could use.
“Ammunition management is going to be a problem. Ponies aren’t exactly able to swap magazines on their own,” Twilight stated plainly.
“Regular Sen Guns are operated by teams. One actually wields the weapon, the others carry the ammo. Give all the ammo to a unicorn, problem solved.”
Twilight nodded her head side to side, thinking about the possibility.
“Uh? Is anypony going to ask what I think about it?” Rainbow Dash asked.
Twilight was shaken out of her thought induced trance. “Of course Rainbow, what do you think of it?”
“It’s heavy!” Rainbow Dash complained. “There’s no way I could ever fly in this thing!”
“Fly?” Tebbs exclaimed. “I should hope not! Even if you could fly in that thing, recoil from firing it in the air would send you tumbling to the ground! The 8x60 mm SI is not something to be trifled with!”
“This isn’t meant for you Rainbow, this is just a prototype for the militia,” Twilight explained.
Rainbow Dash was getting annoyed. “Somepony really needs to explain what’s going on right now, or Celestia help me my brain is going to explode!”
Twilight blinked, she turned to her kangaroo companion. “Lef-tenant? Could you give us a moment?”
Tebbs nodded leaving the two mares alone.
Twilight helped Rainbow Dash out of the Ponyville Pattern. “What exactly is it that you wanted to know about?”
“Why is everypony armed to the teeth, and why does everypony hate me?” Rainbow Dash asked simply.
Twilight frowned. “We’re at war with the Twin Gryphon Kingdoms. Almost a year now since they took Manehattan Province from us. Gryphon Airborne Infantry raid us here every week or so because we have the highest concentration of kangaroo forces here. Everypony carries a gun in case they have to use it.”
Rainbow Dash’s eyes grew narrow. Could things really be that bad?
“… I’m assuming you mean how Pinkie Pie and the others react to you when they see you? Truth is. It’s because you’re a hero.”
Rainbow Dash looked at Twilight in confusion. “I don’t get it.”
Twilight sighed. “Apart from the capital itself, there is nothing in Canterlot Province that the gryphons want badly enough to launch a full out assault on, they’re not going to do it as long as the South Island XX Corps is garrisoned within the city walls. But this wasn’t always the case; there was one town that would have been very useful in gryphon claws, Cloudsdale.”
Rainbow Dash began to see where she was going with this. Cloudsdale was in charge of weather control for Canterlot, Marenassas, and Fillydelphia Provinces. In Gryphon control, they could manipulate the weather any way they wanted.
“You, Derpy Hooves, and the Doctor sabotaged the Cloudsdale weather engine so that it would be useless, gryphons never mastered weather control, they wouldn’t know how to fix it… the night that you did it was the coldest one that Equestria had ever had.”
“How was that bad?” Rainbow Dash asked in confusion.
“It was the middle of July, Rainbow,” Twilight said sadly. “All the crops died, food shortages were a big problem, and there simply wasn’t enough from the southern provinces to spare… But as for the reason that you asked… Apple Bloom, Sweetie Bell, Scootaloo? They were outside camping, trying to get their cutie marks for being survivalists… They froze to death.”
Rainbow’s heart sank.
“Naturally, Applejack and Rarity were devastated, you were sorry that they died, of course, but you weren’t sorry that you did it… Let’s just say that they didn’t have much reason to like you after that… Fluttershy was appalled that you killed hundreds of animals that live in the area, throwing the ecosystem into chaos, she was never directly hostile to you, but she’s refused to say a single word to you since you did it,” Twilight reported.
Rainbow’s heart continued to sink. “What about Pinkie Pie?”
Twilight frowned at this question, she chose her words carefully, not out of any concern that Pinkie Pie would retaliate, but that she didn’t want to blemish their memories of her.
“Pinkie Pie... is insane, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight finally managed. “That mare has more guns than she knows what to do with, and believe me, she’s come up with some very... creative ways to put them to use. Remember that Rock Farm she grew up on? It’s not so much a farm anymore. It’s more like a strip mine. She’s rich from all the gems she’s had dug up, and she uses them to buy more guns, and with all that concrete she’s mixing? Pinkie Pie has turned this town into a fortress.”
“Why should I not be interacting with the Doctor?” Rainbow Dash asked. “If he helped me save Ponyville, why is he bad?”
“He’s not... bad. His goals don’t coincide with ours. Equestria and South Island want to win the war... he just wanted Cloudsdale taken out of commission. He got what he wanted, Cloudsdale is just a city now, and Equestria’s weather forms on its own now,” Twilight explained. “He’s not trustworthy. He does things for his own agenda.”
Rainbow almost wished she hadn’t heard any of it. This information was far heavier than the Ponyville Pattern had been. She sat down on the sofa, tears forming in her eyes. Twilight sat down with her.
“I don’t like this Twilight, not one bit,” Rainbow Dash said.
“I hear you,” Twilight said, she put her forelegs around Rainbow Dash, embracing her and setting her head on her shoulder. “I want nothing more to go back to the time when we were all young and innocent, and I didn’t know things like what an eight-bore shot does when it hits something, or how to calculate just how high to aim a gun to hit a far away target... I envy you sometimes in that.”
Rainbow Dash closed her eyes and hugged the mare back, they sat silently holding each other for what seemed like hours.
...
Rainbow Dash awoke to find herself lying on the floor in Twilight’s Library. She’d flashed back to the present, but she couldn’t remember what she was doing on the floor.
Pinkie Pie!
Rainbow Dash jumped to her hooves and looked at the clock, three hours had passed, and Pinkie Pie the rope thief was long gone. Rainbow Dash rushed up the stairs, Twilight was asleep, and likely had been for the entire time that Rainbow had flashed-forward. Though how Twilight had been able to sleep through Pinkie Pie’s attack, Rainbow was not sure. Twilight had to have been a heavy sleeper, or more likely, was an effect of medication.
Rainbow did not wake her; there was nothing to be done about it right now. Pinkie Pie had made off with her prize. Though Rainbow couldn’t think for the life of her what the earth pony could possibly want with a coil of rope.
...
“What are you doing?”
Pinkie Pie did not respond. She merely tossed the rope she had stolen from Twilight Sparkle over a tree branch at the edge of Everfree.
“What are you doing?”
Pinkie Pie looked at the source of the voice, standing there was another copy of herself, glaring angrily at her. She was hallucinating. Pinkie Pie gave herself an insane grin, and climbed into the tree. Expertly, she tied one end of the rope into a loop, and the other end to the tree branch and let the loop fall, it extended about a metre above the ground. Pinkie Pie grinned, it was perfect.
She pulled her home made noose back up and placed it around her neck.
“Pinkamina Diane Pie! What are you doing!?” the reflection screamed at her. Pinkie looked at it and grinned.
“Keeping you away from my friends,” she said softly, and without another word. She leapt from the tree. |
Wheller | 600 | 7 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-26T20:01:09+00:00 | 2011-08-26T20:01:09+00:00 | 2,035 | Chapter 6
Rainbow Dash looked outside; sitting across from the Library on a bench was the Doctor. The brown earth pony wasn’t doing anything as far as Rainbow could tell, but his presence was enough to irritate the cyan pegasi into confronting him.
Rainbow Dash got his attention; the Doctor looked up and smiled at her.
“Why do you want the Cloudsdale Weather Engines destroyed?” Rainbow Dash asked him.
A concerned look formed on the Doctor’s face. “Now, why would I want the weather engines destroyed?” he asked.
“Don’t play dumb with me!” Rainbow Dash said as her levels of irritation skyrocketed. “Talk.”
The Doctor made a slight shrugging movement with his shoulders, but stopped. “There are some forces in nature that we’re not meant to have dominion over, and no matter what, no matter how hard you try, no matter how close you come to the illusion of total control, it’ll course correct at the worst possible time. You ponies are playing with fire, and you’re going to get burned.”
Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow at him. “What do you mean by ‘you ponies?’”
“I’ll have you know, I’m not big on answering questions,” The Doctor said plainly.
Rainbow Dash hit the roof. “Oh, is that so? Maybe I can acquaint my hooves with your face! Maybe then you’ll feel like answering some questions?”
“Yes, why don’t you do that? Lose the only friend you keep while you’re at it? Sounds like a well thought out plan to me,” the Doctor said sarcastically.
Rainbow Dash stopped, he was right. Rainbow couldn’t beat him senselessly. Twilight wouldn’t approve, and considering she already knew how the future went, she couldn’t afford to lose her friendship, but then another thought dawned on her, if she knew what happened, then beating some sense into the Doctor wouldn’t change that, at least by her own logic.
“I know that look,” the Doctor said. “Time can be rewritten. Your choices still affect things to come, you make a choice, and you’ll have to deal with the consequences.”
Rainbow scowled at him. “Get out of here. Stop watching me.”
“Fair enough!” the Doctor said cheerfully, rising from the bench, he trotted off around the corner, gone from view when Rainbow peeked around after him.
How did he do that?
“Rainbow? What are you doing?” Twilight’s voice called out to her.
Rainbow turned around to see Twilight standing at the balcony of the Library looking down at her. “Oh... nothing, just getting some air,” Rainbow Dash said back to her, she leapt into the air and flew up to the balcony, landing gently on it. “We need to talk.”
...
“What in Equestria could Pinkie Pie want with that old rope?” Twilight asked.
Rainbow Dash shrugged. “Why do you even have that? I mean, I understand Applejack having some, but you?”
“There are plenty of... everyday uses for a six metre coil of rope.” Twilight said, Rainbow could tell that she was blushing.
“Oh please don’t tell me that you like being tied up!” Rainbow exclaimed at her.
Twilight turned bright red. “I... never have, so I don’t know...”
Rainbow Dash facehoofed. “Tell me something, how does the sheltered-social-avoidant- bookworm-type end up being interested in every kink known to pony-kind?”
“I... read, a lot,” Twilight said simply, her face glowing red at this point.
Rainbow Dash facehoofed again.
...
Snap!
The branch that Pinkie Pie had attached the rope to had not been strong enough to support the pony’s weight, Pinkie Pie fell to the ground, branch tumbling after her and striking her in the head.
The reflection of Pinkie Pie burst out laughing. “You... just can’t... do anything right can you?” She asked between gasps for air.
Pinkie Pie buried her head under her hooves, trying to ignore the reflection, which was getting louder and louder the more she tried ignore it. She burst into tears. The reflection’s cruelty had worn her down to the point of breaking.
“What do you want?” Pinkie Pie asked.
The reflection stopped laughing. “Oh my dear, sweet, Pinkie Pie,” the reflection said, feigning sweetness. “All I’ve ever wanted was what was best for us!”
“What’s best for us?” Pinkie asked.
“Come, I’ll show you.”
Pinkie Pie rose to her hooves, and followed the hallucination before her, unsure of where she was being led to. The rope still tugged at her neck, dragging along the tree branch pathetically behind her. She only hoped that wherever they were going, it would be close to easy means of escape.
...
Rainbow Dash made dinner this night. Unfortunately for them both, Rainbow was a far worse chef than even Twilight. Rainbow recalled a time that seemed long ago, after she started living on her own, cooking was a problem for her. Even the simplest dish would be ruined by her touching it. She even messed up salads!
How someone could mess up something as simple as that was beyond her, but despite her shortcomings in the kitchen, Rainbow Dash had thrown something together that was at least (somewhat) edible.
“Are... these mashed potatoes?” Twilight asked. Rainbow’s heart sank.
“That’s a salad Twilight,” the Pegasus reported.
“How about I just cook from now on?” Twilight asked.
Rainbow grinned at her. “I think both our stomachs will appreciate it.”
After a few hours of talking Rainbow Dash helped Twilight into bed, she tucked the injured pony in and bidding her goodnight.
Rainbow Dash went back downstairs, upon reaching the bottom, her head began to split. She collapsed at the bottom of the stairs, blacking out.
...
“Hi Rainbow Dash!” a cheerful, enthusiastic voice from behind her called out. Rainbow Dash jumped in surprise, causing her to drop the 10mm pistol from her mouth. Rainbow Dash turned around to ream the pony that frightened her while she had an incredibly deadly weapon on her.
Rainbow Dash stopped herself from yelling when she discovered that it was Scootaloo. She must have flashed to some point before sabotaging the weather engines.
“Scootaloo... don’t do that,” Rainbow Dash said calmly, she pointed to the fallen pistol with her hoof. “These are very dangerous. Do not go near anypony who has one out. Understand?”
“Sorry Rainbow Dash,” Scootaloo said with a frown. “I promise!”
Rainbow Dash smiled at the Pegasus filly. “It’s okay squirt. What are you doing out here?”
“Oh! Me, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Bell are going camping!” Scootaloo said excitedly. “We’re going to try and be Cutie Mark Crusader Wilderness Survivalists! We’re leaving right now, but I saw you and wanted to say Hi!”
Rainbow Dash’s heart sank. She’d flashed to the day that she sabotaged the Cloudsdale Weather Engine. She knew exactly what was going to happen to Scootaloo and her friends tonight. Rainbow Dash had half a mind to try and warn them off from doing it, but she chose not to, it wouldn’t have made any difference. Scootaloo was young; the very young rarely do as they’re told. Somepony telling them not to do something was going to make them want to do it even more.
“All right, have fun squirt. I heard it’s supposed to be cold tonight, so be sure to bundle up!” Rainbow Dash said, knowing that it wouldn’t help in the slightest.
“I will! Bye Rainbow Dash! See you when we’ve got our cutie marks!” Scootaloo said, dashing off.
Rainbow struggled to hold back the tears. It wasn’t fair. Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Bell were so terribly young. So full of life, and they were going to die. Rainbow Dash stiffened her resolve. Because she knew that if she didn’t destroy the weather engines that they would die anyway. The gryphons would use the weather engines to kill every pony in Equestria if they could.
So not fair. I destroy the engine, Scootaloo dies. I don’t destroy the engine, Scootaloo dies, some choice that is.
Rainbow Dash stiffened her resolve; she picked up the 10mm pistol and placed it back in her saddlebag. She had a country to save.
...
Standing outside the Library was the Doctor and Derpy Hooves. Derpy smiled at her, Rainbow Dash returned it to her.
“Doctor,” Rainbow Dash said, looking at the earth pony.
The Doctor smiled warmly at her. “Hello Rainbow Dash!”
“Can we go over the plan? Just one more time?” Derpy asked.
The Doctor nodded. “We know that the gryphons are moving on Cloudsdale tonight, kangaroo armoured cavalry has reported a large contingent of airborne infantry on its way here. The Cloudsdale militia will do their best to hold them off... but with no training and no possible support from the kangaroos, they’re not going to last long. Rainbow Dash, you have one job, ensure Derpy’s survival, she can’t handle a weapon with her vision and is going in unarmed.”
The Doctor opened his saddlebag and pulled out a slender metal rod with a blue tip. “Derpy will use this to sabotage the weather engine... but in case something should go wrong, Rainbow, pressing down on the button on the end will activate it. Point it at the weather engines and it’ll take care of itself from there.”
The Doctor frowned. “I’d go and do it myself... but unfortunately I can’t fly. So I’m trusting you. The faster you can get this done, the more likely the gryphons will see that they’re wasting their time and pull back. Good luck.”
Rainbow Dash nodded, the sun was setting rapidly, and they had 10 minutes to get to Cloudsdale before it hit the fan at the most.
Rainbow thought of Scootaloo again. I destroy the engine, Scootaloo dies. I don’t destroy the engine, Scootaloo dies. It’s not fair. Not fair at all.
The two pegasi leapt into the air. They had work to do. |
Wheller | 600 | 8 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-28T03:38:12+00:00 | 2011-08-28T03:38:12+00:00 | 1,742 | Chapter 7
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes to find she was laying at the bottom of the stairs of the Ponyville Library, a surge of panic filled the pegasi mare; her flash had ended with her in the air. Rainbow Dash was fine here and now... but if her future consciousness didn’t take back control of the situation quickly...
Rainbow didn’t want to think about what might have happened. Her other flashes had clearly taken place after the one she’d just finished, so she had to have ended up fine. She also knew that there was still a fine line between ending up okay, and being unharmed.
Rainbow Dash rose to her hooves. These flashed needed to stop, she wanted to live in one period of time all the time from now on. No more of this going back and forth between the two, nonsense.
She opened the front door and stepped outside, it was mid-morning, and she looked down to the end of the High Street and discovered a sight that she was very happy to see.
Vinyl Scratch and company had returned.
Rainbow Dash galloped at full speed towards the unicorn and dove at her, giving her the most sincere combination of hug and tackle that either had ever seen.
“Heh, I missed you too Rainbow Dash,” Vinyl said with a grin. Both mares got up and Rainbow greeted the rest of the group in turn. Rainbow Dash wouldn’t really call herself friends with any of them, but she was happy to have them back all the same.
The group quickly scattered, Big Macintosh and Braeburn needed to get back to the farm. Derpy had to report in at the post office. Lyra and Bon Bon declared that they were going to get wonderful sleep in a nice comfortable bed. Trixie too needed to rest after the long journey. The kangaroo tank co-driver, Trooper Benjamin Willoughby needed to report to his commanding officer, Sergeant Tebbs. With that only Rainbow Dash, Vinyl Scratch, and were left standing in the High Street.
Rainbow hugged the unicorn once again. She hadn’t heard a single bit of information about Vinyl Scratch during any of her flash forwards, she couldn’t be sure that the unicorn wasn’t destined to meet a terrible fate.
“My my! Somepony clearly missed me, maybe we should get a room before anypony else starts looking,” Vinyl said with a grin.
“Ha ha,” Rainbow Dash said sarcastically. “You’re so funny Vinyl Scratch.”
“I know right? Ain’t I grand?” Vinyl said. Rainbow smiled at her. After Pinkie Pie had lost her mind and attacked them, she needed somepony to help lighten the mood.
“Come on, walk with me, I got a lot to talk to you about,” Rainbow Dash said.
...
“Woah, that’s heavy stuff man,” Vinyl said frowning. The two of them were sitting in the Ponyville Library, Rainbow Dash having just given her a rundown of what she had been experiencing.
Rainbow Dash nodded. “I’m not going to lie, if it wasn’t for Twilight, I would have probably gone insane trying to make sense of it.”
Vinyl looked at her, a grin forming on her face. “You’re hitting that aren’t you?”
Rainbow Dash turned bright red. “Well, not now... but in the future... yeah.”
“Cool!” Vinyl said, grinning madly. “I would too.”
Rainbow Dash gave her friend a sidelong look. “You would ‘hit’ anypony that’s currently breathing.”
“This is the truth.”
...
Twilight came down the stairs to find Vinyl and Rainbow Dash sitting on the sofa, she trotted over and gave Vinyl Scratch a hug. Vinyl responded by planting a kiss on Twilight’s lips.
Twilight turned beat red. Vinyl grinned like a madpony. “Well dayum! Now I know why Rainbow likes you! I’m reminded of a song that goes something like ‘You gotta share, you gotta care...’ Rainbow I think you should listen to that song and learn from it.”
Both Twilight and Rainbow Dash glowed red in embarrassment. Vinyl Scratch was Vinyl Scratch all right.
“Stop that! There will be no late night cuddling from either of us!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
“Heh, your loss!” Vinyl said.
They all broke out into laughter.
...
Vinyl would be joining them in living at the Library. Rainbow Dash insisted that the unicorn take Pinkie Pie’s now unoccupied bed, she had grown accustomed to the sofa, or at least had reported that this was so. In reality, she rarely slept on it, due to the fact that she kept blacking out in every square centimetre of the Library but the sofa. Night had fallen; Rainbow Dash figured it was only a matter of time before she flashed forward again. She hadn’t admitted it to either of her unicorn house-mates, but she was terrified of where she was going to go next.
Keep it together Rainbow Dash... Keep it together!
Clearly, her worrying had had an effect; she felt her head begin to split. Her eyes became heavy, and she laid herself down on the sofa. If she was going, she was going to be comfortable while she was doing it!
...
“Ah hmph da dur, hura...”
Rainbow Dash found herself standing in the weather engine control room in Cloudsdale, she’d never been here before, but judging by everything she saw around her, mainly Derpy pointing the thing the Doctor had given her at a control console, told her this is where they were.
Standing before her was a crème coloured Pegasus who Rainbow did not know, he was holding a cut down Kangaroo submachine gun in his teeth, and was there for difficult to understand, He picked up on this fact quickly, and spit the submachine gun out of his mouth and started over.
“I locked the doors, that’ll hold them for a little while, hurry up and do what you need to do,” the Pegasus said, picking the submachine gun back up with his teeth and pointing it at the door.
Rainbow Dash nodded at him, she turned to Derpy to speak, but discovered that she had her 10mm pistol in her teeth and looked away. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt some pony with it on accident. It was at this point that Rainbow realised she had never actually operated the 10mm pistol before. She figured that the Rainbow Dash who actually belonged here had used it several times, maybe she was even good with it, but she wasn’t her, not yet anyway.
She put the pistol back in her bag, realising that she was just as likely to accidentally shoot Derpy or the crème Pegasus whose name she didn’t know.
They heard gunfire from the hallway; it wasn’t enough to drown out the screams of the pegasi militia, standing by to defend them. Rainbow Dash understood the need for the Ponyville Pattern Sen Guns now. Ponies just weren’t built for this kind of thing, and using a pistol or a submachine gun was incredibly awkward.
The outside fell silent. Rainbow Dash knew that the militia ponies were dead.
The creases of the metal door began to spark; the gryphons were cutting their way through.
“Derpy! I really need to hurry up!” Rainbow Dash called out.
Derpy nodded at her and continued working.
The crème coloured Pegasus eyed her, nodding respectfully. “Ifsh ben ah ‘onour,” he said, mouth full of submachine gun.
“Likewise,” Rainbow Dash said, understanding what he said.
“Got it!” Derpy said, and with that she dropped the tool the Doctor had given her in the bag.
“Warning! Please evacuate the facility. Weather Engine no.2 in critical overload!” Cried an automated voice from over the loudspeakers.
The gryphons cut through the door. It fell into the room, and the gryphon airborne infantry opened fire.
Rainbow Dash jumped on Derpy, trying to get as low to the ground as she could.
The crème coloured Pegasus hadn’t stood a chance, his body exploded in the hail of gunfire, sending blood splattering all over the room, and the two Pegasus mares. Rainbow Dash struggled to stay still, pretending to be dead, Derpy did the same.
Warning! Please evacuate the facility. Weather Engine no.2 in critical overload!” cried the automated voice again.
“Let’s get the hell out of here! Fucking ponies...” the gryphon leader called out, and with that, Rainbow Dash and Derpy were left alone.
Rainbow opened an eye, the gryphons had indeed left. The blood covering her caused her to panic, but fortunately, she discovered that it wasn’t hers.
“Are you all right?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Yeah, I think so,” Derpy reported. The two ponies rose to their hooves. They needed to get out of here and the faster the better.
Rainbow Dash picked up the nameless pegasi’s fallen submachine gun and put in her bag. They ran out into the next room and were forced to stop by the horrific sight before them.
The bloodied remains of a dozen or so militia ponies lay scattered about the room, more blood than either of the mares had ever seen coated the metal floor and walls. The victims of gryphon hollow-point ammunition had died horribly.
The sight was too much for the mares to take in, both of them vomited.
Warning! Please evacuate the facility. Weather Engine no.2 in critical overload!” cried the automated voice again.
It was this warning that forced them to stiffen their resolve. They needed to get out, and out now.
The pegasi mares dashed for the exit, running as fast as their legs would carry them.
They were 5 metres from the door when Rainbow Dash blacked out. |
Wheller | 600 | 9 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-28T19:31:51+00:00 | 2011-08-28T19:31:51+00:00 | 1,796 | Chapter 8
Somepony was poking her.
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes; Vinyl Scratch was standing over her, prodding her repeatedly with her hoof.
“Do you have any idea, how long I have been standing here poking you?” Vinyl said without a hint of emotion in her voice.
“No, but considering how long my flashes usually last... an hour?” Rainbow Dash said with a guess.
“Two,” Vinyl reported. She sat down next to Rainbow Dash on the sofa, embracing the Pegasus; she lifted the goggles of her eyes and sat them down on the table next to it.
“Hey... what’s gotten into you?” Rainbow Dash asked, she noticed Vinyl beginning to cry.
“I have seen bad things before Rainbow Dash. Really heavy stuff, but ain’t nothing as bad as the things you’ve seen. It’s got me thinking. I’ve been up all night going over stuff in my head. I just don’t want to be alone right now.”
Rainbow Dash tightened her embrace; she didn’t want to be alone either.
...
“For the record, this is a horrible idea.”
Rainbow Dash blinked, Horseapples! She’d flashed again, and this time she hadn’t even felt it.
“Oh don’t I know it, but we really don’t have a choice in the matter,” Twilight said.
Rainbow Dash looked to her left, Twilight Sparkle was walking, levitating her 11mm magnum Revolver by her head, and to her right was none other than...
“Vinyl Scratch?!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed in excitement.
“I’m sorry. Were you expecting Burnt Sienna?” Vinyl said with a grin.
Rainbow Dash looked at the unicorn oddly. “Who?” she asked. Rainbow was certainly glad to see Vinyl, during her flash forwards; she’d never seen or heard a single trace of her.
“Don’t worry about it,” Vinyl said with a chuckle. Twilight however was not amused, a dire look formed on her face.
“I was afraid this was going to happen now,” Twilight said with a frown. “Listen carefully Rainbow, we don’t have a lot of time to explain, but when we get to where we’re going, your first instinct is going to be to use the Ponyville Pattern SLER that you’re wearing. Don’t, it won’t do any good.”
Rainbow Dash looked to her flank, indeed she was wearing a Ponyville Pattern, however, unlike the Sen Gun. This one was much lighter; Rainbow remembered seeing designs for a Self Loading Emerald Rifle on the chalkboard when she had been wearing the Sen Guns for the first time.
Recalling as much as she could off the top of her head, she remembered the rifle was a self loading, 8x60mm, 10 round charger fed. While Rainbow didn’t exactly know what that meant, examining the SLENs on her sides revealed a simple feed system that would slide more ammunition into the top of the rifles, operated by two small levers next to the control yoke in front of her.
This would have helped at Cloudsdale, this was a weapon that could be operated efficiently by a pony and unlike the Sen Gun it didn’t require a unicorn to load more ammunition. In fact, Rainbow would have guessed that she could fly and fire at the same time.
The trio of ponies entered a clearing. It was at this point when Rainbow Dash realised that they were in the Everfree forest. No wonder they were armed.
The trio heard a slight warbling noise, and out of the trees, a cloud of thick black smoke poured in.
Ticka-ticka-ticka-ticka-ticka-ticka!
Rainbow Dash’s first instinct was to grab the control yoke and bite down on it as hard as she could. She remembered this creature from the dream she’d had during the healing procedure from when her wings had been paralysed. The memories of the black smoke flooded back to her. She listened to Twilight, however and did not grab the yoke.
The smoke began to change its shape, and three pitch black ponies seemed to glide out from it, their amber eyes looking intensely at them.
Rainbow panicked, she knew them! She did not recognise the earth pony, but she did recognise the Pegasus as Doctor Nightsinger, he’d been her doctor when recovering from the paralysis... and the Unicorn was Nightshadow, the apothecary of whom Twilight in the present was smitten with.
Rainbow couldn’t stand it any longer; she grabbed the control yoke and bit down hard on it.
Blam Blam Blam Blam!
Rainbow kept shooting until, twenty rounds later, both her SLENs were clicking empty, but to her own horror, the three pitch black ponies were not only still standing, but had been completely unharmed.
“Well, that wasn’t very nice,” the earth pony said.
“Nice to see you too Rainbow Dash,” Nightsinger said without emotion.
Rainbow Dash dropped the control yoke in surprise, her mouth hanging wide open. “What... what are they?”
Twilight frowned. “You remember Nightmare Moon?”
Rainbow nodded.
“That’s who they are.”
The earth pony snorted loudly. “We are not Nightmare Moon! Nightmare Moon was a pathetic synthesis between Nightmare Essence, the Herald of Chaos Undivided, and Princess Luna, created as a last ditch effort to keep Princess Celestia from destroying him with the Elements of Harmony.”
“Nightmare Essence did manipulate the younger princess into doing his bidding, sure, but she did not become Nightmare Moon until just before banishment,” Nightsinger said. “He and her spent a thousand years on the moon, together.”
“What happened to him then?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“You happened,” Nightshadow said. “The true wielders of the Elements of Harmony came along, and split Nightmare Moon into four.”
“Nightcaller. Wrath,” the earth pony said. Rainbow figured that Nightcaller had to be his name.
“Nightsinger. Hate,” Nightsinger reported.
“And Nightshadow. Deception,” Nightshadow finished. “The fourth, being Princess Luna of course.”
“This isn’t important,” Twilight said, “practically ancient history at this point.”
Nightcaller tilted his head to the side, “Very well then, why have you come, my little ponies?”
“We’ve come to make a deal,” Twilight said.
The three Siblings Nightmare gave each other a quick glance, and turned back to the group before them.
“You have our undivided attention.”
...
“NO!” Rainbow Dash screamed as she threw her eyes open.
Vinyl Scratch leapt to her hooves in surprise, tripping over a coffee table and sending the unicorn skittering over the floor with a loud crash.
Twilight Sparkle galloped down the stairs. “Rainbow Dash? What’s wrong?”
“We were making a deal with the devil!”
...
Pinkie Pie trotted along through the Everfree forest, rope still dangling from her neck. She was following her reflection, the condescending other Pinkie Pie she had first seen in the Lake of Origin, deep in the Everfree.
“Where are you taking me?” Pinkie Pie asked.
“You’ll see!” the reflection said enthusiastically, mocking her.
Pinkie Pie wanted to defend herself against the reflections verbal abuse, but found herself too defeated to try. She was a failure, she was alone and unloved. Rainbow Dash had picked Twilight, she’d seen it herself, and now her own reflection tortured her, continuing to make her own misery worse. She’d made up her mind, if they were going to the Lake of Origin; she was going to drown herself in it!
Unfortunately, they did not end up at the Lake of Origin. Rather, a small cave the likes of which Pinkie Pie had never seen before. The cave was not a natural formation, something had dug it out.
The reflection lead the way inside, and called out. “I brought her, just like you asked!”
Inside the cave as a very spartan campsite consisting of only a fire and a bedroll, sitting on the bed roll was a semi-translucent grey earth pony with an orange mane and blood red eyes.
“Thank you. You can go now.” The earth pony said.
The reflection simply disappeared.
The earth pony turned and looked at Pinkie Pie, giving her a smile. “Hello Pinkie Pie.”
Pinkie Pie recognised him immediately. “Monty?!” she cried out in surprise.
He nodded at her. Montana “Monty” Ulhan had once been an imprint inside Pinkie Pie’s mind, a last bit of consciousness that stuck to her just before death, with a single goal, to destroy the Alicorn, Overdrive, by any means necessary.
The imprint hadn’t been a full personality, it was had been so focused on its goal that it had ignored Pinkie Pie’s physical needs, working her to the point of exhaustion, and then pushing her past it. It hadn’t been its fault, it didn’t know, it couldn’t.
“You... you died,” Pinkie Pie said, stating the obvious.
“Twice,” Monty said plainly. “Double the amount that most ponies get.”
“How... are you here?” Pinkie Pie said.
“I’m trapped, neither of my deaths were peaceful. I’m stuck part way between two planes of existence,” Monty said.
Pinkie Pie felt bad, she didn’t know what to say, thoughts were spinning in her head, but she didn’t think that any of them were good.
“Do you want me to help you?” Pinkie Pie asked.
Monty shook his head. “No, you can’t help me, but you can help yourself!”
Pinkie Pie looked up at him. “I don’t understand.”
“You, my dear Pinkie Pie, need to find yourself some limestone.” |
Wheller | 600 | 10 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-29T00:32:29+00:00 | 2011-08-29T00:32:29+00:00 | 1,706 | Chapter 9
Fire burned in Twilight Sparkles eyes. She let out a scream in anger and marched out the front door.
Vinyl Scratch and Rainbow Dash looked in awe of what was happening neither of them had seen Twilight like this before. Rainbow had told them what she had seen, but Rainbow had never expected Twilight to react this badly.
“We have to stop her!” Rainbow cried out. “If we don’t, they’ll kill her! We can’t hurt them!”
...
Twilight stormed into the kangaroo’s makeshift workshop.
“Sergeant Tebbs!” She cried out.
Sure enough, Percy Tebbs stepped out from the back, smiling at her. “Hello Twilight! Something I can do for you?”
“I need a gun,” Twilight said calmly. Her inner rage carefully concealed, if she was visibly agitated, she knew for sure that Tebbs wouldn’t give her one.
“A gun? Sheila, what do you need a gun for?” Tebbs asked.
“Protection,” Twilight said simply. “Precaution, I assure you. Princess Celestia has asked me to carry out a personal favour that will take me close to the border with the Twin Gryphon Kingdoms; I’d rather not be caught unprepared.”
Tebbs thought it over a moment, unsure if it was a good idea or not, but eventually decided it was Twilight, he’d never known her to be anything but truthful.
“You’ll be travelling then? If you want, I could always have one of my troopers go with you. Willoughby should be free,” Tebbs said.
“No, that’s quite all right, besides, travelling to the border with a kangaroo is just asking for trouble. I’ll be fine, thank you,” Twilight said.
Tebbs gave in; he brought out an 11mm magnum Revolver and set it down on the counter in the workshop. Twilight levitated it up, opened the breech and checked the ammunition; six 11mm Magnum rounds were in the cylinder.
“You know how to work one of those?” Tebbs asked.
“Yes,” Twilight stated plainly. “A kangaroo by the name of Roy Melbourne showed me how when I met him in the mohoofie desert.”
Tebbs raised an eyebrow. “Roy Melbourne? You don’t mean the Roy Melbourne? The bounty hunter?”
“Yes. You know him?” Twilight asked.
“Know him? Shelia, I wish. Roy Melbourne was the most decorated soldier of the World War! He’s an inspiration to every kangaroo in the service, and you met him? In Equestria of all places?”
“He said he was on holiday,” Twilight said, sliding the revolver into her saddlebag. “Thank you Sergeant.”
“Twilight Spackle? You’re not planning on doing something rash with that, are you?” Tebbs asked.
“Of course not,” Twilight said, feigning a smile and departed from the workshop.
She had an apothecary to visit.
...
Rainbow Dash and Vinyl had split up trying to cover as much ground as possible in their search for Twilight. Rainbow had kept herself on the ground in case she flashed-forward, knowing how it usually went, it would happen at the most inconvenient time, which would have to be several minutes after being in the air.
She was frustrated, searching this way was inefficient. She decided that she could wait no longer and leapt into the air, rising to a height of ten metres when she spotted the lavender unicorn heading for the edge of town.
As if on cue, her head began to split, and she blacked out.
...
Rainbow Dash had no idea what would happen if her body died during a flash-forward, she certainly did not want to find out. She had to have fallen, she knew that, but could she survive a ten metre drop? She wasn’t sure.
Now here she was somewhere in the future, afraid to open her eyes because she knew she wasn’t going to like what she was waking up to. Maybe she could just stay here, keep her eyes shut until she went back to where she belonged.
“Ya’ll got a lot o’ nerve comin’ ‘round these parts after wha’ ya’ll did Rainbow Dash.”
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes; she was lying on the ground at Applejack’s feet.
“An’ sleepin’ on mah property, no less. Ya’ll are lucky I don’t beat the tar outta you!” Applejack exclaimed.
Now Rainbow was mad, it wasn’t even her fault she was here! She couldn’t do anything about it. It wasn’t her fault that Rainbow Dash had done what had needed to be done. She was sorry Apple Bloom and the others were dead, but she couldn’t fix it! It technically hadn’t even happened yet.
“Wll why don’t you?” Rainbow Dash said, spitting back at the earth pony as she rose to her hooves. Applejack responded with a roundhouse kick that landed squarely on Rainbow’s muzzle, she could have sworn that she’d heard her jaw break, as she scattered back on to the ground.
Her nose was bleeding, but as far as Rainbow could tell, her jaw didn’t break, Applejack must have been holding back, because she knew that the earth pony was strong enough to shatter every bone in her body.
“Cuz, Ah don’ kick ponies when they’re down! Not even you!” Applejack exclaimed.
Rainbow Dash got up again, and Applejack responded with another fierce kick to her flank, sending the Pegasus spinning to the ground, her 10mm pistol flew out of her saddlebag and clattered to the ground.
“What’s this? Ya’ll kill one member o’ the Apple Family and decide that ain’t enough, you come back to finish the job!?” Applejack called out.
Now that wasn’t fair. Applejack was angry, sure, but that was simply ridiculous! Wasn’t it? It had to have been!
Wasn’t it?
“Applejack! Stop.”
Rainbow Dash looked up, Big Macintosh was standing not five metres from where they were, wearing a Ponyville Pattern Sen Gun on his back, clearly, he was part of the Ponyville Militia.
“Go back in the house Applejack,” Big Macintosh said.
Applejack didn’t respond, she just simply turned her back to Rainbow Dash and walked away.
“You all right?” Big Macintosh asked her.
“I’ll live,” Rainbow Dash said plainly. Oh Celestia, please make that a true statement!
“Ah’m sorry ‘bout Applejack, she’s hurt and needs somepony ta blame. Don’t make it right, but Ah understand it. Ah’m hurt too,” Big Macintosh said, helping Rainbow Dash up. “Applejack may not like it, but ya’ll did what ya had to. If you hadn’t, there wouldn’t ‘ave been anypony left to burry us, let alone Apple Bloom,” Big Macintosh said. “Go on home, don’t come back, Applejack’ll kill ya if ya do.”
...
“Oh my gosh! Rainbow Dash what happened to you!?” Twilight exclaimed.
Rainbow had stepped through the door to the library, leaving a trail of blood drops behind her.
“Applejack,” Rainbow said simply.
Twilight frowned. “Rainbow, you knew that was a bad idea. Why would you go there?”
“It’s not like I’m choosing where I wake up Twilight. You’ll have to ask me again after I flash back to where I belong,” Rainbow said, her voice teeming with frustration.
Twilight frowned; she sat down and tended to her friend’s wounds. “It’s not so bad, considering what Applejack is capable of.”
“I figured she was holding back... I don’t know why though. I looked in her eyes Twilight, she wanted blood. I’d only seen that look once before from anypony... it was from you,” Rainbow Dash said.
“Right... that, knowing you, that was where you were just before coming here,” Twilight said sadly. Rainbow Dash nodded in affirmation.
Twilight began to cry. Rainbow Dash gave her a hug. “Shush now, It’s all right, I mean, clearly I turned out fine!”
“It’s not that... It’s about him,” Twilight said. Rainbow Dash froze.
“You... loved him, didn’t you?” Rainbow Dash asked after a minute.
“Yes,” Twilight said with tears flowing, “I loved pure evil. What does that say about me?”
“It doesn’t say anything about you Twilight, he tricked you, he hid who he was from you, he manipulated you. It’s not your fault! It’s his.” Rainbow Dash said giving Twilight a smile. “The Nightshadow you spent time with wasn’t real. It wasn’t your fault.”
Twilight smiled at Rainbow, wiping the tears from her eyes. The two ponies continued to embrace.
...
“NIGHTSHADOW!” Twilight shouted at the top of her lungs outside the apothecary’s home.
The black unicorn opened his front door and stepped outside. “Twilight? Is everything all right?”
Twilight levitated the revolver out of her saddlebag, pressing it against the black unicorn’s head, and pulling back on the hammer. “Does that answer your question?” Twilight asked. Her voice filled with rage.
“Clearly... you’ve discovered something about me that you are angry about,” Nightshadow said calmly. “Perhaps, you should put the weapon away and we can talk about it?”
“Drop the act. I know who you really are now,” Twilight said.
“That is... most unfortunate,” Nightshadow said. “Despite what you’re thinking, I really did enjoy the time we spent together. I’m saddened that you’ve chosen this course of action.”
“Stop. Talking,” Twilight said.
“No.”
Twilight’s eyes widened, she was clearly missing something here. How could he not be afraid? He had no emotion at all.
“If you’re going to do it just...”
Twilight pulled the trigger. |
Wheller | 600 | 11 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-29T05:01:59+00:00 | 2011-08-29T05:01:59+00:00 | 1,687 | Chapter 10
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes. Her body ached, what was important was that she did feel pain. This meant that she was not dead. Not dead was good.
Actually she discovered that it wasn’t really that bad. She’d gotten incredibly lucky and landed in a hay cart. Oh thank Celesitia!
Rainbow Dash fully realised how dangerous flying was right now. She wouldn’t dare try it again, next time there wouldn’t necessarily be something soft for her to fall onto.
Blam!
Gunshot. Rainbow Dash recognised it instantly. It rang though out the entire town. Twilight was in trouble. Rainbow climbed out of the cart and rushed towards the source.
...
Twilight’s eyes were wide with fear. Nightshadow was still standing despite the fact that she had just shot him in the head! She hadn’t missed. She couldn’t have, it was completely impossible to miss when the barrel is pressed up against the victim’s head.
“Put it down,” Nightshadow said calmly. Twilight wasn’t exactly in a position to say no, and did as she was told. She set the revolver down several metres away from where they were standing. “I truly am sad at this course. At first, I found you obnoxious, the typical of student of the Sun. You were everything Sun looks for in a minion. Meek, eager to please, clever-yet-unable-to-see-something-so-obvious-despite-the-fact-it-is-right-under-your-nose... but the more time I spent with you, the more I began to appreciate your company. A seemingly endless exile with only the moon to speak... well you can certainly begin to appreciate having others to talk to, and for this reason. I am not going to kill you.”
Twilight was confused.
“Goodbye Twilight Sparkle. I shall miss you,” Nightshadow said, he turned and walked away from town towards the Everfree forest, leaving Twilight standing, watching with her mouth hanging open.
“What are you!?” Twilight called out to him as he walked away.
“A fragment,” he said, disappearing into the tree line.
Rainbow Dash and Vinyl Scratch rounded the corner to find Twilght standing there, facing west.
Rainbow Dash practically tackled the unicorn with her hug. “Don’t you ever do that to me again!”
...
The trio had returned to the Library, they’d had a good long discussion over what Nightshadow had said.
“You can’t trust anything he said! The Siblings Nightmare said that they were fragments of a personality, individual traits that were split apart, Nightshadow introduced himself as deception. He couldn’t tell the truth if he wanted to!” Rainbow Dash cried out.
“I know... I know!” Twilight said. “I don’t trust him... I just can’t forget the time we spent together. We... did things.”
Twilight turned bright red in embarrassment, which then quickly turned to disgust with herself.
“I... I feel so... unclean!” Twilight ran into the kitchen and vomited into the sink.
“My first love ended a lot like this,” Vinyl said. “Well, except for the part where he turned out to be the source of all evil in Equestria a thousand years ago.”
Rainbow Dash couldn’t tell if Vinyl was serious, or trying to lighten the mood, either way, she wasn’t helping. Twilight announced that she was going to be taking a bath for the next several hours, and asked not to be disturbed unless the entire world came crashing down on their shoulders... again. Knowing their luck, it would.
The hours passed however, and nothing horrible happened. In fact, looking out at the evening sky was quite calm.
“I’m going to go check on Twilight, make sure she hasn’t accidentally drowned,” Rainbow said.
“Probably a good idea,” Vinyl said. “Be gentle with her?”
Rainbow Dash smirked, and climbed the stairs to where Twilight’s washroom was.
“Twilight?” Rainbow Dash asked as she slowly pushed open the door.
“Is the world exploding?” Twilght asked sarcastically.
“No... but I would imagine Vinyl’s brain is about to with all the dirty thoughts she has,” Rainbow Dash said.
Twilight smirked and allowed the Pegasus to enter.
Twilight had been taking a bubble bath, but by this time, all the bubbles were gone, Rainbow put a hoof into the water, but pulled it back quickly.
“This is ice cold!” Rainbow exclaimed.
“Oh... really?” Twilight asked, “I hadn’t noticed.” She pulled the plug on the drain and allowed the water to drain out of the tub. “Could you hand me a towel?”
Rainbow obliged, grabbing one and handing it to the lavender unicorn, who grasped it with her magic and began to dry herself off. “Oh! It is cold!”
Rainbow chuckled and the two mares went back into the main bedroom.
“Are you going to be okay Twilight?” Rainbow Dash asked her.
“I don’t know Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said plainly. The two ponies sat down on the bed, Twilight grabbed Rainbow and held her close. “Just, don’t go anywhere, okay? I don’t want to be alone.”
Rainbow hugged her back. “I won’t. I promise!”
The two mares fell asleep in each other’s grasp.
...
Rainbow Dash was in front of Rarity’s shop. Perfect, now she had no idea what she was doing here. The flashes took her to the most wonderful places where she couldn’t be any less useful!
Clearly Rainbow Dash in the future had thought ahead, and had written a message on her inside foreleg.
Get Rarity to design combat armour.
Okay, now that she had direction, she could get that done... she hoped. Rainbow Dash knocked on Rarity’s door.
“We’re open!” cried Rarity from inside, Rainbow Dash stepped inside. “Welcome to Carousel Boutique! How can I... oh, it’s you.”
“What do you want Rainbow Dash?” Rarity asked in utter annoyance.
“I wanted to see if you would be interested in designing a suit of body armour for the Militia,” Rainbow Dash said.
“No. Now if you have nothing else you need, go away,” Rarity said plainly. “I have no interest in helping you or that bibliophilic bitch!”
Rainbow Dash’s blood boiled, how dare Rarity say that! She wanted to beat the ever living daylights out of her for saying that.
“Well at least that bitch is actually doing something productive, instead of hiding in here all day moping because her stupid sister died!” Rainbow shouted at her, instantly regretting saying that.
Rarity was festering with anger; she levitated a 10mm pistol out of her saddlebag and pointed it at Rainbow Dash. “Get. Out.”
...
Rainbow Dash returned to the Library, distraught and defeated.
“That bad huh?” Twilight asked. “Don’t feel too bad, I pretty much figured that we wouldn’t get Rarity to go for it... As much as I wish we didn’t have to, we’ll probably just have to bring in someone from South Island... Rainbow? Are you all right?”
Rainbow sighed. “I don’t even know what we’re doing anymore Twilight, I don’t understand what these flashes are trying showing me! I want them to stop!”
Twilight trotted over to where Rainbow had taken her seat. “Hey! Don’t worry, it’ll be okay!”
“Funny. I was just telling you the same thing!” Rainbow Dash said with a smile, she leaned in and kissed Twilight gently. Felt appropriate, but she caught herself in surprise upon realise that she had never actually done it before. Twilight had kissed her several times before... but this was the other way around. Rainbow Dash had proclaimed several times over her life to her friends that she was not into mares, but now, after spending all this time with Twilight. She was starting to accept that the statement wasn’t true. She liked stallions too, she could like both. Right? Vinyl clearly did, why not her?
Clearly, she’d gotten Twilight excited; she pulled Rainbow Dash close to her. Both mares fell onto the floor, but that was quite all right. They didn’t have a much of a reason to get back up.
...
“Note to self. Floors are hard. Next time, restrain yourself long enough to get to a softer space.” Twilight said, giggling to herself. She and Rainbow had repositioned themselves to the sofa, and were lying down cuddling with each other.
“It’s nice, you know? Being able to forget about what’s wrong in the world... for just a little while,” Twilight said.
Rainbow Dash nodded in agreement.
So awesome!
Rainbow Dash hadn’t felt happier in the longest time. She wanted this moment to last forever, just her and Twilight, lying here cuddling with each other until the sun burnt out and the world ended.
The world, however, unfortunately had other ideas. |
Wheller | 600 | 12 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-30T05:21:15+00:00 | 2011-08-30T05:21:15+00:00 | 2,010 | Chapter 11
Well, this wasn’t so bad. It wasn’t the same time, but here Rainbow Dash was, lying with Twilight. The lavender unicorn had fallen asleep, pinning Rainbow’s inside leg to the bed. Not that she had been planning on going anywhere. Rainbow couldn’t help but notice that Twilight was incredibly adorable when she was asleep.
“Rainbow?” Twilight asked sleepily, opening her eyes slowly.
“I didn’t wake you did I?” Rainbow Dash asked softly.
“No... No I woke myself up,” Twilight said, sitting up on the bed. “I think we need to talk, about us.”
“I’m all ears,” Rainbow Dash said, thinking that she knew where this was going.
“We’ve spent a lot of time together recently and... the more I’ve thought about it... I know that you’re not into mares but...”
Rainbow had heard enough, she smiled and pressed her hoof against Twilight’s mouth. “Say no more,” she leaned in and kissed the lavender unicorn.
Needless to say, there would be no sleeping the rest of this night either.
...
Several hours later, Rainbow Dash and Twilight were lying on their backs hoof-somehow-in-hoof. Looking at each other and smiling.
“I really hope Vinyl didn’t hear any of that,” Twilight said with a giggle.
“You’re going to be disappointed!” called the muted voice of Vinyl Scratch from several rooms away. “Really. Good. Ears.”
Rainbow and Twilight smirked at each other, happy to be truly together at last.
The sun came up and the three ponies joined each other for breakfast, of which Vinyl prepared. Vinyl did not say anything about the ponies’ behaviour last night, but she also refused to stop grinning at them.
“The two of you are adorable together, you know that right?” Vinyl eventually said. “I’ll have you know. I totally called this when we first met at the edge of Whitetail Wood.”
“I remember,” Rainbow Dash said with a smirk. “I think we need to talk about what we’re going to do.”
Twilight nodded. “So far, we’ve done a lot of reacting, but not really any planning.”
Vinyl nodded. “I’m going to travel back to Manehattan and see if I can’t use Octavia’s broadcasting equipment to spy on the gryphons in the Hoofson Bay... I know a few tricks,” she said with a grin. “Now that winter’s over, I can get there lickety-split on my own.”
Both Twilight and Rainbow Dash frowned, Vinyl had just gotten back, and now here she was leaving again.
“I’ll be fine! I know how to take care of myself! Despite what you might think!” Vinyl said with a grin. “I never liked staying in once place too long anyway.”
“You can only run for so long Vinyl,” Twilight said simply.
“I know,” Vinyl said. “Trust me love, I know.”
...
Vinyl packed a few days previsions in a saddlebag and departed several hours later, giving her friends a wave goodbye. She took off at a good pace, intending to make it through the heavily out of the way Whitetail Wood (lest she walk through Everfree) in several hours before cutting across open countryside.
Rainbow Dash and Twilight gave their friend a wave goodbye back. Both of them a little saddened, a light that was ordinarily held by Pinkie Pie, but had been taken up by Vinyl Scratch had gone out. Now both ponies that were able to keep the mood light were gone.
Rainbow Dash was worried about Pinkie Pie, who knows what that pony was doing? She’d wandered into the Everfree forest several days ago, and nopony (or any of the four kangaroo residents of Ponyville) had seen her since.
Around the corner, came Derpy Hooves lugging a rather large and heavy looking package, the grey Pegasus struggled to fly with it, but eventually made it to the front of the Library, setting it down gently.
“Special... delivery for... Twilight Sparkle!” Derpy said between breaths.
Twilight looked at the package. She wasn’t expecting anything, and she took a look at the shipping address.
The box was stamped with thirty different customs stamps, apparently, whatever this package was had had a very long trip to get here. Twilight recognised a few of them, obviously, there was an Equestria stamp, but alongside it was one belonging to the Republic of Zhosa, which Twilight recognised as the Zebra homeland, another belonging to the Kingdom of United Welara. Which Twilight recognised from the book that Sergeant Tebbs had given her on their way back from the Hoofson Bay, of which she’d yet to have an opportunity to read. Another stamp with an alphabet that she didn’t recognise:
Казаки́ конфедерация
(Kazaki Konfederatsiya)
Another one label “Bundesrepublik Schäferhund," and finally, a stamp for the Commonwealth of South Island.
It was upon seeing the South Island stamp that Twilight got excited, she knew instantly what this was. She levitated it into the air and thanked Derpy for bringing it to her. There were some kangaroos who would be very interested in its contents.
...
“All right mates! Let’s fire her up!” Sergeant Tebbs called out. The kangaroo tank commander had spent the last hour installing the replacement parts the South Island Military had sent him.
Corporal McNair started the tank’s engine, it roared to life for the first time in months. “All right! Now we’re in business!” Tebbs called out.
The tank rolled a few metres down the road, moving out into the open countryside around town.
“Power to turret! Let’s put this thing through its paces!” Tebbs called out.
Twilight and Rainbow Dash had followed them out, watching as the tank rolled through the open field. They weren’t far from Fluttershy’s cottage, and the noise had cause the yellow Pegasus to exit her home to see what the commotion was. Fluttershy squeaked in fear of the metal monstrosity rolling past her house, but was calmed by Rainbow Dash and Twilight’s presence. The lavender unicorn waved Fluttershy over and the yellow Pegasus, reluctantly, went over to speak to them.
“Twilight? Rainbow? What’s going on?” Fluttershy asked.
“Kangaroos fixed their tank,” Rainbow Dash said.
“Oh! My!” Fluttershy said. She’d never seen it up close before, on the count of it looking very scary.
The three ponies watched as the M3 Light Tank’s turret began moving, sighting in the field’s lone tree, which happened to be the one that Rainbow Dash had crashed into nearly a week before.
A flash of light from the tank’s gun barrel was seen, and the single tree exploded with a loud bang.
Fluttershy recoiled in fear. “How awful! Why would someone ever make something like that! That poor tree!”
The tank turned and began to drive towards the three ponies, the turret re-centring to a forward position. It stopped a few dozen metres from the three ponies and shut off.
The turret’s hatch popped open and Sergeant Tebbs popped his head out. “God I missed this! I was beginning to feel like I was leading an infantry section!”
“Glad you feel better; I suppose you’ll be leaving soon then?” Fluttershy said sarcastically, clasping her hooves over her mouth, she couldn’t believe she’d actually said that.
Tebbs eyes widened, and he swore loudly, causing Fluttershy to jump in surprise. “Our little simulated combat manoeuvre pretty much guaranteed that we won’t have enough fuel to make it back to regimental command... Not to mention that they probably moved it a couple times. We try to drive back to the Hoofson bay, we’re going to get stuck in the middle of gryphon territory, and worse, we’ll be a sitting duck.”
So much for fixing the tank, the Kangaroos were still stuck here.
“Vinyl Scratch left for Manehattan a few hours ago to go use her friends Radio equipment, if one of you leaves now, you could catch up with her before nightfall,” Twilight reported.
Tebbs nodded, he called Trooper Willoughby out from his spot in the tank, instructing him to catch up, he responded in the affirmative, and climbed out of the tank, hopping off at an impressive speed, he was certain to catch up to Vinyl in a few hours at best.
Tebbs slammed his fist on the tank’s turret in frustration, causing Fluttershy to jump again. “Take us back to the garage McNair!” he retreated into the confines of his tank, the engine started, as the three ponies watched as the M3 Light tank rolled off back into town.
The three ponies sighed for each their own various reasons. Rainbow Dash looked up at the now smouldering tree that she’d hit just after wrapping up winter. Good riddance!
That tree had caused her more trouble than it was worth. Her head began to split, clearly caused by her vivid memories of the tree.
...
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes; she was hiding behind the ruined tree, the sole bit of cover in the entire field.
“I’m going to catch you!” a voice called out. Rainbow Dash peeked up from her cover, to her horror, Fluttershy was trotting through the field, wearing a Ponyville Pattern Sen Gun.
“You’re going to be mine! All mine! Forever!” Fluttershy called out.
Rainbow had ducked her head back down, she didn’t like where this was going.
“Gotcha!” Fluttershy leapt around the destroyed tree, training the Sen Gun right on her and biting down on the control yoke.
Click click!
Fluttershy let go of the yoke and gave a small pout. “Fluttershy! You silly filly! You forgot to reload!” She said to herself.
Rainbow got a good look at Fluttershy, and she did not like what she was looking at, Fluttershy’s eyes were very small and twitching sporadically.
“Could you do me a big favour and not run away while I go back inside and get more ammo? Pretty please?” Fluttershy said with an insane smile, followed by an adorably frightening squeaking noise.
“Uh... sure?” Rainbow Dash said, not knowing how else to respond.
“Oh thank you so much! I promise I won’t be gone long!” Fluttershy said, turning her back to Rainbow Dash and walking back to her cottage. Though cottage was no longer the word Rainbow Dash would use to describe it. Now it was more like a “hardened bunker.”
She waited for Fluttershy to enter her bunker and bolted at high speed.
Thanks me! You always seem to put me in the best positions to wake up in!
Rainbow Dash didn’t stop running until she reached the edge of Ponyville, which was now surrounded by a large wall.
Rainbow Dash leapt into the air, sailing over the wall and into the relative safety of Ponyville.
“RAINBOW DASH!” Fluttershy screamed at the top of her lungs. Clearly, Fluttershy’s voice could carry when she tried. Rainbow then remembered that Fluttershy was still a Pegasus, and that she was not safe just being on the inside of the wall.
She took off running, hoping with every fibre of her being that Fluttershy would not follow her over the wall.
Figures, no such luck. Rainbow Dash looked back to see Fluttershy was flying after her. The insane pegasi reached out and took the control yoke in her mouth. No! She had clearly lost it, but she wasn’t really going to try shooting the Sen Gun while flying was she? Was she?
Once again, no such luck. She bit town on the control yoke, causing the Ponyville pattern to erupt in fire. True to Percy Tebbs word, the recoil was immense, and it sent Fluttershy spiralling out of control, Fluttershy had never been the best flyer to begin with, and she tumbled to the ground, landing hard on her left flank.
Well, at least this way, Fluttershy had probably broken the Sen Gun. Fluttershy got to her hooves and bit down on the control yoke. Rainbow Dash had no luck this day.
Both of the twin Sen Guns fired as if nothing happened to them. Fluttershy trotted forward, firing the Light Machine Guns at full automatic.
Fortunately, the yellow Pegasus was an incredibly poor shot, and the high rate of fire that the Sen afforded, used up the 30 round magazines very quickly. Fortunately for Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy had missed her completely.
“This isn’t over! You’ll be mine some day! Some day real soon!” Fluttershy called out, she leapt back into the air and flew back to her bunker.
Rainbow Dash sighed, and made her way back to Twilght’s Library. Oh what a story today was going to make for. |
Wheller | 600 | 13 | DJ P0N-3,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Rainbow Dash,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Romance,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Imperfect | After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor." | complete | 35 | 9 | <p>After hitting her head in a training accident, Rainbow Dash catches a glimpse of a dark future, and a warning. "Do not talk to the Doctor."</p><p>The sixth in a series started by The Kindness of Strangers</p> | teen | 2011-08-31T05:18:47+00:00 | 2011-08-31T05:18:47+00:00 | 2,489 | Chapter 12
“Rainbow? Rainbow Dash! Wake up!” Twilight said, nudging and prodding the Pegasus. Rainbow Dash opened her eyes; Twilight had obviously carried her back to the Library, as she discovered this was where she was.
“Oh hey Twilight! I have the weirdest story to tell you,” Rainbow Dash began, but was interrupted by Twilight.
“I’m sorry Rainbow, I don’t mean to sound rude, but we really don’t have time for this right now. You need to see this,” Twilight said, opening the window curtains for Rainbow to look out. Night had fallen, but for some reason it didn’t look that dark, Rainbow realised quickly why. The Everfree forest was on fire.
“Twilight! My first flash forward showed me the Everfree forest being on fire!” Rainbow Dash said.
“I know, Rainbow. I know, we don’t know what’s going to happen when it comes time for you to have the flash forward...” Twilight began,
“Yes we do! I saw it, come on we need to be outside!” Rainbow Dash said rushing out the door.
Twilight called after her, but it wasn’t helping. Rainbow had misunderstood her.
...
Rainbow Dash had run into the centre of town. She recognised being here from the flash forward, any second now, the Kangaroo tank was going to be rolling through, followed by Trixie, Derpy, the Doctor, and the cloud of Black Smoke.
Rainbow Dash tripped, skidding to a halt right where she was supposed to be.
She heard a low rumble behind her; she turned to see the kangaroo M3 Light Tank rolling through the streets. Quickly thinking, she rolled out of the way as it kept moving past her. Right on schedule.
Trixie, Derpy, and the Doctor followed soon afterwards.
“Run!” the Doctor shouted.
Run? From what? Rainbow Dash asked rhetorically, knowing full well.
Rainbow Dash heard a loud howling noise. Run from that.
Docka-docka-docka-docka-docka!
Wait a minute, that didn’t sound right.
Rainbow Dash passed a building before she felt somepony grab her and pull her into an alleyway, she struggled, trying to break free of whoever had grabbed her, but she soon discovered it to be none other than Twilight Sparkle.
Twilight put a hoof to her mouth, shushing Rainbow Dash. Rainbow obeyed, staying quiet. Well, at least that part was right.
A cloud of grey smoke darted past the alleyway.
Wait a minute, grey smoke? That was completely wrong!
Docka-docka-docka-docka-docka!
“Twilight? What is going on?” Rainbow Dash asked. “This isn’t happening how I remembered it!”
“It’s... not?” Twilight asked. “Oh no. That’s bad, Rainbow that is really bad! We’re not safe here we need to move!”
They heard another howl, and looked up.
Ticka-ticka-ticka-ticka-ticka!
The Black Smoke dove from the rooftops, striking Rainbow Dash hard and sending her flying into the back of another building. Rainbow hit her head hard, and slid down onto the ground; she struggled to stay conscious as the Black Smoke came towards her.
Out of the smoke, the three siblings Nightmare materialised and stepped towards Rainbow, she tried to keep her eyes open, but it was becoming much harder.
“She’s in the Paragon’s hold,” Nightcaller said. “She shows the signs. Cleanse her.”
“Leave her alone!” Twilight called out, rushing over to where Rainbow had fallen. The siblings became smoke again, wrapping themselves around Rainbow and encasing her in the cloud of smoke. Rainbow lost consciousness.
...
Rainbow opened her eyes. There was blackness, endless black space. This was no night. It was an endless void.
“Who’s there!?” Rainbow Dash called out.
“Just us three.”
Rainbow turned to find the Siblings Nightmare standing, looking at her with their glowing amber eyes.
“What are you doing to me?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Saving your life,” Nightcaller said simply.
“I... wait what?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“The Paragon of Order has you in his grasp, he’s been sending you false visions of the future,” Nightsinger said.
“The Paragon of Order... isn’t that...?”
“The Alicorn, Overdrive? Yes. Yes it is.” Nightshadow said calmly.
“But, he’s dead!” Rainbow Dash called out.
Nightcaller chuckled softly. “Rainbow Dash, Order is a concept, an idea, a school of thought. Its paragon is the physical embodiment of it; he is no more killable than a thought, as long as some vestige of order in the universe, he remains alive... His body on the other hand was destroyed. He can no longer directly interact with the world; instead, he must manipulate others into doing his bidding.”
“Actually, considering the Paragon, nothing has really changed, has it?” Nightsinger mused.
“The grey smoke? Is that... him?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Yes. That’s a form he can take. He uses it to cheat the rules,” Nightshadow said. “Don’t ask about the rules. It’s against the rules.”
“Okay, fine. Answer me this then, why should I trust you? You certainly don’t have our best interests at heart anymore than the Paragon does,” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Oh Rainbow Dash, you’re misunderstanding, you cannot trust us anymore than you can the Paragon. We don’t want you to trust us,” Nightcaller said. “We want you to obey us!”
“And why should we ever obey somepony like you?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Oh you poor, disillusioned creature. You don’t even realise that you already do.”
...
The black smoke retreated from the shell it had formed around Rainbow Dash. It howled and ticked away from the scene.
Rainbow Dash was lost, confused and disoriented, she vomited.
Twilight rushed to her side. “Rainbow Dash? Are you okay? What did it do?”
Rainbow Dash couldn’t answer, she lost consciousness.
...
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes, she looked outside, it was raining, and she was in Twilight’s bedroom, looking out the window. It was morning, and it was raining.
The rain had put the fires out. Smoke was billowing from the Everfree, but the fires were out. Rainbow Dash struggled to remember what had happened the night before, but it would not come to her.
Rainbow Dash noted that her head felt much better than it had since her original accident, it was as if a huge weight had been lifted off her brain, and then she remembered that it pretty much had gone exactly that way. The Siblings Nightmare helped her.
No, not helped. They did what they had to so that they could use her another day. The ponies of Equestria were pawns to the Paragon of Order and the Herald of Chaos. Playthings that they could use for whatever agenda that they had, but Rainbow remembered what they had said last, that they already obeyed someone like them. What did they mean?
Rainbow dismissed it, the Siblings were liars, and it was their nature. Everything they said was suspect.
“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight called out as she entered the room.
“Hey Twi.”
“Rainbow, are you all right?” Twilight asked.
“Yeah egghead. I’ve never felt better!” Rainbow Dash said smiling.
Twilight smiled back. She had a feeling that things were going to be okay now.
...
Vinyl Scratch trotted along at a brisk pace, she hadn’t been sleeping nights, choosing to continue to walk even in the dark. It was making her great time, as she was nearly out of Whitetail Wood.
She heard someone approaching her from behind. She turned to look and smiled at the approacher.
“Well hey Ben! Howya doing?” Vinyl said grinning.
“Vinyl Scratch,” Trooper Willoughby said as he slowed down and began walking beside her. “Let’s make something perfectly clear. You do not call me Ben, Benny, Benji, or any other pet name you can think of for Benjamin. You will not call me Benjamin either, you will call me Willoughby.”
Vinyl sighed, “Oh come on! We’re friends aren’t we! Doesn’t that give me the right to call you by your name?”
Willoughby scowled. “My friends aren’t allowed to call me Benjamin, or Ben, or Benny, or anything but Willoughby.”
Vinyl frowned, giving Willoughby a pout, “tightwad.”
Willoughby merely rolled his eyes at her.
“So, what are you doing out here?” Vinyl asked him.
“Same thing as the last time, going to Manehattan to use the radio,” Willoughby said.
“Cool,” Vinyl said. “Well glad to have you on the walk, Benny.”
“Don’t make me hurt you.”
The two of them heard a twig snap, followed by a rustle of leaves.
“You hear that?” Willoughby asked.
“Yep,” Vinyl said plainly.
They heard it again. Willoughby drew out his submachine gun, and an 11mm Magnum Revolver. “You know how to use one of these things by chance?”
Vinyl nodded. “I know how to do a lot of things.” She opened the breech, checking the ammo and snapped it shut, levitating it beside her head.
“Tell me something Vinyl Scratch... are there any Equestrian gift giving holidays any time soon?”
“Nope,” Vinyl said plainly.
“Your birthday?” Willoughby asked.
“Not for another ten months.”
“How about I just give you that because I like you?” Willoughby asked.
“I like me too,” Vinyl said with a grin. They heard the rustle again.
“I figured as much,” Willoughby said under his breath. “You ready for this?”
“Let’s rock and roll!” Vinyl said grinning like a madpony.
The party responsible for the rustling noise leapt out from the bushes, roaring loudly, the air filled with gunfire, and then in an instant, all became silent. |
spidersean | 601 | 1 | Apple Bloom,Main 6,Other,Scootaloo,Adventure,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic,Gore | My Little Zombie: Brains are Magic | The Zombie Apocalypse swept over Equestria and one filly tries to uncover the events that caused it. | incomplete | 22 | 3 | <p>Years have past since the Infection swept throughout Equestria. Ponyville lays in ruin. The sun only hangs in the air for a few hours, the landscape is barren, and the skies are in utter chaos. So much has been lost to this plague. A single filly searches for answers amidst Ponyville's ruins. She seeks to unravel the chain of events behind this terrible blight, but finds much more in the shifting wastes.</p> | teen | 2011-10-03T19:30:42+00:00 | 2014-04-29T02:32:58+00:00 | 4,076 | My Little Zombie: Brains are Magic
By spidersean
Chapter One
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The meadow outside of the Everfree Forest, in contrast to the dark woods itself, was quite peaceful and calm on most days. A yellow pegasus pony casually trotted alongside the edge of the forest. There was a light breeze that graced the meadow, its tendrils gently pushing against the pony’s bright pink mane. The gentle aroma of flowers wafted through the air and was met by the sound of a few buzzing cicadas.
Fluttershy heard birds singing nearby and she smiled softly to herself. She briefly wondered if the birds would be interested in joining her choir. She looked up, searching for the source of the beautiful music.
Fluttershy needed to squint and shield her eyes from the sun’s shining brilliance. It shone brighter than it had all week and there wasn’t a cloud in the vivid blue sky. She made a quick mental note to thank the other pegasus ponies for such a beautiful day.
She shook her head a bit, focusing at her task at hoof. 'I’m not here to admire the weather! I have a mission,’ she reminded herself. ‘Well, it’s sort of a mission. Kind of...' Fluttershy had come here looking for any animals she could find outside the Everfree Forest. Most animals that came from the forest were usually injured or sick, due to the nature of the forest itself.
She did this every now and then, not wanting it to get too crowded at her cottage. She had quite a few animals to tend already. Still, the mere notion of leaving a poor animal in need of help behind... Fluttershy felt a shiver go down her spine.
She had already been out here for quite some time. She was about to go home when she heard a whimper not too far from her. The sunny-colored pegasus gasped, quickly galloping towards the weak cry.
On the very edge of the forest was a little ball of fur. Upon getting closer, Fluttershy discovered it was a small, brown, female rabbit. Fluttershy rushed to the rabbit’s side. Her fur was matted and messy, with the occasional bald patch. She was shivering, coughing; she even felt a little clammy.
“Oh, dear. There there, Miss Rabbit. It’ll be okay,” Fluttershy said in her hushed, caring voice. She gingerly lifted the rabbit up with her front hoof and laid it on her back. “I’ll take you to my home. We’ll get you a nice warm bed and I’ll do my best to make you feel all better. Does that sound like a good plan, Miss Rabbit?” Fluttershy gave the rabbit a soft smile.
The rabbit formed a weak smile in response and started to whimper its gratitude to its yellow pegasus savior, but only managed to let out a hacking cough that shook her little body. Fluttershy gasped slightly, “Oh, my!” With that, she began trotting quickly back to her cottage, careful not to let the weak bunny fall over.
Fluttershy hadn’t strayed too terribly far from her home, so it only took a few minutes to bring the sick rabbit there. As the little winged pony found herself on the paved street that led to her house, she let out a soft sigh of relief. Her cottage began to come into view.
Fluttershy’s cottage was cozy, small and, above all else, natural. Its roof was thatched from long dry grass and leaves, giving the cottage a squat, treelike facade. There was a dirt path that led over a gently flowing stream and raised up to the cottage’s simple wooden door. Amid the various small trees and other foliage were nests, birdhouses and flowers of all kinds. Normally, everypony could see all of the different critters Fluttershy had adopted frolicking around in the sunlight.
However, this was strangely not the case, Fluttershy observed as she crossed the natural bridge. For some reason, all of the animals had gone inside when she drew close.
She didn’t have the time to reflect on it for long, though. The rabbit’s wheezing grew louder still, almost violent. Fluttershy’s eyes widened, “Oh my! Hold on, Miss Rabbit! We’re almost there!”
The rabbit attempted to give Fluttershy a pathetically weak smile, but just ended up coughing even more. Fluttershy realized that she didn’t have a lot of time, and her heart began to race. She finally pushed through the front door of her home.
Her living room was simple and small; there was all of the basic furniture inside of it. The only thing that stood out about it was the occasional birdcage or small pet bed. There were a couple rugs with flower motifs laid upon its hardwood floor and there was also a flight of stairs near the center of the room that led to Fluttershy’s bedroom.
Fluttershy carefully laid the sickly rabbit upon one of her green couches. The rabbit’s wheezing had subsided somewhat, but her breathing was still shallow and raspy. The pegasus pony’s crystal blue eyes met with the rabbit’s pleading, bloodshot, brown eyes. Fluttershy pressed her hoof against the rabbit’s forehead, but pulled it away in shock.
“O-Oh my! You’re running quite the fever, Miss Rabbit. Hold on for just a moment, okay?” Fluttershy turned and sprinted up the stairs. Moments later she returned with a lavender blanket clutched in her teeth. She laid it on top of the rabbit gingerly, who whimpered her thanks.
Fluttershy took a moment to pause and glanced around the room. She had finally spotted where all of the other animals had run off to. Most, if not all of them, were huddled together in different corners of the room. Their eyes were all fixed upon the shivering bunny beneath the purple blanket.
Fluttershy frowned a bit. Usually the animals were more friendly towards newcomers. But she had also known about all animals’ innate sense of self-preservation. Obviously, whatever the sickly bunny had was gravely serious and the other animals were not keen about catching it.
The only animal that wasn’t hiding away in a corner was a small fluffy white bunny named Angel. He cautiously approached Fluttershy with a worried expression. She gave Angel a reassuring smile. The little white bunny raised an eyebrow in uneasiness while hopping onto the couch. He had been her closest companion for many years, longer than any of her other animal friends.
Angel gave Fluttershy a look that said, ‘I don’t like this, but I’ll help you if need be.’ Fluttershy nodded and gave Angel her thanks.
“Is there anything, anything at all, that I can get you, Miss Rabbit?” Fluttershy turned to ask the brown bunny, exuding an air of motherly care and concern. The rabbit stuck its tongue out and licked its dry lips. Fluttershy got the hint and instantly sprinted to her kitchen and returned almost a second later with a small bowl of water. She set it carefully down next to the rabbit’s head.
The rabbit leaned over and began to slowly and weakly drink. Fluttershy frowned and felt despair well up inside of her. She had dealt with several sick and injured animals before, but none so close to death. The only time it had come even close to this was when she abducted and tried to heal Princess Celestia’s phoenix. Even then, Fluttershy had more time to nurse Philomena, and bunnies don’t come back after they pass.
The brown bunny’s eyes began to grow heavy. Her shallow breathing began to slow considerably. Fluttershy’s eyes widened in panic.
“Oh no. Oh no no no...” Fluttershy said, “Oh dear, what do I do? Oh! I know, maybe I have some medicine that will help!” The pink-maned pegasus dashed off to the kitchen, frantically looking for something.
Angel leaned in to inspect the sick bunny. She had stopped wheezing and coughing as much, but she was still shivering and sweating. The white bunny folded his arms and sighed. He didn’t want to imagine how devastated Fluttershy would be if this newcomer died, which looked like a strong possibility by that point.
“Argh!” shouted a voice from the kitchen that brought Angel’s train of thought to a halt. Fluttershy sped back into the room.
“I’ve run all out of rabbit medicine,” Fluttershy said quickly, “I have to run to the market to get some more. I’ll be right back, Miss Rabbit. Angel, please look after her while I’m gone.”
With that, Fluttershy flung open the front door and flew off. Angel swore that she was moving quicker than Rainbow Dash usually did. He turned his attention back to the little brown rabbit that was causing so much trouble.
Angel stopped cold. The other rabbit wasn’t coughing, wheezing, shivering, or sweating anymore. In fact, she wasn’t even breathing. Angel’s eyes widened and his little stomach did a somersault.
Angel began to frantically fan the other rabbit with his paws, hoping that it would spontaneously revive her. When it yielded no results, he grabbed the bowl of water next to the rabbit and dumped it on her head, hoping the shock would wake her up.
Still no response. Tossing aside the bowl, Angel grabbed the rabbit by the shoulders and shook her. He slapped her across the face a couple times. Nothing. He let go of her and took a step back. His mind raced and he began to hyperventilate. The rabbit next to him had suddenly bolted up right with her eyes still closed, nearly making Angel jump at least two feet out of his skin. His surprise was instantaneously replaced with a deep sense of relief.
The brown rabbit’s eyelids tore open to reveal glossy milky white orbs. Angel paled and his stomach did more somersaults.
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The crowded streets of Ponyville boomed with vivacity. Shops lined the streets and merchants hollered from their stalls. The lively hustle and bustle of the town made Lyra and Bon-Bon, two fillies who were the closest of friends, smile. They both preferred the busier parts of Ponyville.
They were on their way to the market to pick up groceries for the evening, as the cream-colored Bon-Bon’s growling belly reminded them. Her teal unicorn friend, however, stopped and tilted her head at a most peculiar sight. Bon-Bon’s cyan eyes followed Lyra’s orange-colored gaze and found Fluttershy rushing out of the market place with a bag of assorted medicine. The pair had known Fluttershy was a nervous pony, but she was acting more so than usual.
“Hey Fluttershy, what’s with the ba-” Lyra had started, approaching the pony.
“Oh! Er, hey girls. I’m, uh, I’m really sorry. But I’m kind of in the middle of something very, um, important. Excuse me, please. I’m sorry,” Fluttershy said quickly then flew off in the direction of her house.
“Hm, I wonder what that was all about,” Bon-Bon turned to talk to Lyra. “Fluttershy sure seemed to be in a rush. Oh my, she appears to have dropped her bit purse as well.” Bon-Bon lifted up a small green bag with a rosy bunny on it.
“Well, let’s go give it back to her!” Lyra said with a grin, snatching it from Bon-Bon’s hoof.
“I dunno... She did seem a bit preoccupied,” Bon-Bon said, looking unsure. Her stomach rumbled. She wanted to eat more than to go on an errand for a pony they barely know. “Maybe we should wait before we bring it back,” she suggested with a hopeful grin and she nodded her head ecstatically, her mane of raspberry and blueberry swirls bouncing up and down.
“Mmm, nah! It just gives me more reason to go check it out!” Lyra responded, a mischievous twinkle in her eye. She then ran off in the direction Fluttershy was heading, her fluorescent buzzsaw of sea-green silver of a mane flying behind her.
Bon-Bon realized Lyra’s adventurous spirit was getting in the way of her appetite. She sighed, shook her head, and ran after Lyra.
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Fluttershy had arrived at her home several minutes later. She was sweating heavily and her wings ached. It had been a long, long time since she ever had to fly that fast. She let out a sigh and pushed open the door and her eyebrow raised in suspicion the moment she stepped inside.
There were some scratch marks on the other side of the door that hadn’t been there when she left. The lights were somehow turned off, the darkened room only illuminated by a few windows. The soft sunlight came through in muted shafts, somehow giving the room a sinister air.
The animals that had been cowering in the corner were no longer there. She observed that, in fact, she wasn’t able to find any of the animals. Well, except for one. The little brown bunny that was now standing on the green couch on her hind legs. She was staring at the pegasus with milky white eyes.
Fluttershy felt a little unnerved by it as she set down the medicine-filled bag and opened her mouth to speak, “O-Oh, hello again, Miss Rabbit. I, um, s-see you’re already up. Um, I brought you some medicine t-to help you f-feel better,” She displayed the bag of medicine that the rabbit seemingly ignored. Fluttershy felt a cold bead of sweat roll down her brow, “Uh, y-you should probably lay back down. I-It’s probably better for you. Th-That is, i-if it’s okay with y-you.”
Fluttershy had no idea why, but just the sight of the rabbit was putting her on edge. Her breath was sticking in her throat and she was getting a creeping sensation up her spine that told her something was very, very wrong. At that point, another bunny hopped out from the shadows, stood in front of the couch, and stared at her with his own glossed-over irides. This other rabbit’s fur was a snowy white.
“A-A-Angel, wh-what are y-you...” Fluttershy attempted to stammer out more, but then even more creatures emerged from the shadows of the cottage. Chipmunks, squirrels, ferrets, raccoons, even a few birds came into view. They all were staring at her with milky white eyes.
Every fiber of Fluttershy’s being screamed at her, ‘RUN! LEAVE! GET OUT OF HERE!’ But her body would not obey and she felt herself lock up in pure terror. Her heart thundered in her chest. She felt her stomach constrict and churn. She paled and her eyes grew, her pupils shrinking. She let out a frantic series of terrified whimpers.
Fluttershy watched hopelessly as her closest animal companion took a few steps closer. The brown rabbit hopped off the couch and followed Angel closely. The other animals slowly approached as well. Fluttershy felt her hooves knock over the bag of medicine as she backed against a wall and pressed against it closely. Her breathing becoming frantic and shallow.
Without warning, Angel lunged at Fluttershy, the other animals following suit. Fluttershy’s eyes clenched shut and she opened her mouth to scream, but only strained air escaped her lips. She felt little jaws clamp down on her and sharp teeth tearing at her flesh. Fluttershy collapsed in a heap and began to feel the world grow dark and cold.
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Bon-Bon’s stomached roared in agony. It had been far too long since she and Lyra set out to return Fluttershy’s bit purse. She smiled slightly when they saw Fluttershy’s house not too far away, a welcome sight after such a long walk, but her tomach bellowed once more in anguish. She would argue with Lyra some more about stopping, getting a bite to eat, and then talking about this beforehand, but she quickly learned how futile an endeavor that was. Lyra had simply set her mind on it, and nothing was going to change it.
They approached the front door, which was ajar for some odd reason. They also could not find any of Fluttershy’s animal friends playing outside, or Fluttershy for that matter. Bon-Bon turned to frantically shake her head and make ‘We-Really-Should-Just-Leave’ motions with her hooves, but found that Lyra had already gone inside.
The earth pony took a deep breath and took her first tentative steps into the cottage. The only source of light in the entirety of the cottage was a faint shaft of muted light that dimly shone through a curtained window. Bon-Bon jumped a bit when she stepped on and cracked a plastic bottle of pills. She looked down to see the bag of assorted medicine Fluttershy had earlier spilled onto the floor, along with other nick-knacks.
She heard Lyra shriek in horror nearby. Bon-Bon turned to see what the problem was and her jaw hit the floor. Her gnawing, unavoidable hunger had suddenly vanished when she saw Fluttershy slumped against a wall. Her eyes were shut and her mouth was slightly agape. Fluttershy was not breathing, nor did she give any other sign of life. Several small bite marks covered her body and she was lying in a small puddle of blood. Lyra and Bon-Bon looked at each other, their eyes wide.
Bon-Bon opened her mouth to speak when Fluttershy stirred a little. Both ponies snapped their attention to her, gripped with an instinctual terror. They watched Fluttershy get back on all four hooves, struggling as she did so. She rose her head to look at the two intruding ponies. Her eyes were milky white.
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It had been years since the first infection. Nopony really knew exactly how long it had been and nopony seemed to bother keeping check anymore. The thriving village that had once been Ponyville was now ruins. Nothing there but charred husks and broken glass remained. Even the very earth and grass had taken on a deathly grayish shade, mirroring the sky.
The town was eerily quiet and still, with the exception of the clopping of hooves against a cobblestone road that echoed throughout the ruins. A single living earth pony was making her way through Ponyville. She was trotting down the village’s streets that she had frequented as a young filly. Back when the world was filled with vibrant colors and life. Back when the sun shone brightly during the day for more than a few hours. Back when the skies were clear and laughter filled the air.
The pony stopped at the small, pathetic gazebo in the middle of the town square. When she observed the buildings around it, she quickly discovered it was the only structure that hadn’t been burnt to its frames or viciously torn down. Even the small wooden market stands surrounding the gazebo had been broken. A stinging cold wind brushed against her rosy mess of a mane.
The filly trotted over to one of the broken stands and sighed. It was the stand her sister used to run. She used to help her on occasion, but for the most part her sister ran everything. Her sister had always been a very reliable pony. The filly rummaged slightly through the wreckage of the stall.
After a bit a shifting, she found a hat. It was made of worn tanned leather and was slightly charred. The pony gasped and gingerly lifted it by its brim. She set it down away from the wreckage and laid down next to it. She carefully nuzzled her forehead against the hat and slowly let out a few shaky, shuddering sobs. Tears began to roll out of her eyes and the sounds of her faint sobs now echoing through the sprawling ruins of Ponyville.
“...A-Applejack,” Apple Bloom said between her sobs and sniffles. |
spidersean | 601 | 2 | Apple Bloom,Main 6,Other,Scootaloo,Adventure,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic,Gore | My Little Zombie: Brains are Magic | The Zombie Apocalypse swept over Equestria and one filly tries to uncover the events that caused it. | incomplete | 22 | 3 | <p>Years have past since the Infection swept throughout Equestria. Ponyville lays in ruin. The sun only hangs in the air for a few hours, the landscape is barren, and the skies are in utter chaos. So much has been lost to this plague. A single filly searches for answers amidst Ponyville's ruins. She seeks to unravel the chain of events behind this terrible blight, but finds much more in the shifting wastes.</p> | teen | 2011-10-03T19:32:42+00:00 | 2011-10-03T19:32:42+00:00 | 3,421 | My Little Zombie: Brains are Magic
By spidersean
Chapter Two
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Apple Bloom was always told that one day, her cutie mark would appear on her flank. One day she’d find out what her hidden talent was and a symbol would appear on her hind-quarters to represent it. Back before the Infection hit, she was one of the few fillies in her class who didn’t have a cutie mark. The other two fillies who didn’t have a cutie mark yet, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, were easily her closest friends.
The trio, who dubbed themselves the Cutie Mark Crusaders, would do various activities in an attempt to find out what their hidden talent was. This ranged from hang gliding to carpentry, creature catching to stage performers. Every time it would end in failure, yet they would still be undaunted. Deep down, they knew that they’d get their cutie mark.
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As Apple Bloom lay on the blighted ground of the desolate marketplace and wept into her sister’s lightly charred and forgotten leather hat, her flank remained completely bare. When the last of her tears were shed, she lifted the leather hat with her hoof and placed it on top of her head.
Deciding it was time to do what she was instructed, Apple Bloom nudged open one of her plain brown saddlebags. She dug through it and finally found a small vial filled with a murky purple liquid. Apple Bloom popped off the cork and sighed slightly.
“Well, Twi, Ah hope you were right. Here goes nothin’,” Apple Bloom muttered to herself before chugging down the entirety of the bottle. She shot up on all four hooves and started coughing. Her eyes stung and her vision swam, blurry dark spots obscuring the edges of her sight. Her stomach desperately wanted to expel the vile liquid, but this was impossible. Apple Bloom knew for a fact that, due to their anatomy, ponies are not able to vomit. At least, they’re not supposed to.
Apple Bloom instead settled for collapsing onto the ground and shuddering uncontrollably. Fortunately, it only took a few moments for the agony to subside as quickly as it had arrived. There was still a pulsing pressure on the back of her skull, but she managed to shakily recollect herself.
As she turned to walk away, Apple Bloom gave the broken-down apple cart one last long look. She shook her head and began to walk away from the town square and went down a wide city street that stretched for miles. She wasn’t exactly sure what was compelling her to go down that street. It was exceedingly large to accommodate for massive amounts of traveling ponies. Hundreds of happy ponies blissfully doing their day’s activities. However, when it was only being used by one filly, it was incredibly lonely. Aside from the occasional pile of debris, it was completely barren.
The road itself was composed of shattered dusty cobblestone. The building wreckage that lined the street, while broken and burned, stood tall. The blackened house frames seemed to loom over the maturing filly. They towered over her and seemed to bear down upon her, making Apple Bloom shrink a little.
Apple Bloom gulped as she felt beads of sweat roll down the back of her neck. Environments like this always tended to put her on edge. A cold wind picked up, stinging against Apple Bloom’s face. She grimaced slightly and looked into the direction the wind was blowing.
To her dismay, Apple Bloom found an enormous sea of pale white fog rushing to meet her. Within moments, the fog surrounded Apple Bloom and blanketed the landscape. The fog itself was incredibly thick and Apple Bloom had trouble seeing more than a meter ahead of her nose. Regardless, she pushed on. She wasn’t sure she was still heading in the right direction or even where she was going, but she was determined to get there.
Suddenly, Apple Bloom’s ears shot to attention and she froze in her tracks. She could swear she heard something in the distance. It sounded like faint hoofsteps. Seconds seemed to stretch into hours as she stood there, rooted to the spot and fully attentive. Just as Apple Bloom was about to dismiss it and continue walking, she heard the hoofsteps once more. They were more distinct, faster in pace, and much closer to her than last time.
Apple Bloom felt the beads of sweat form once more and the pressure on the back of her head intensified. Her heart began to race and she began to look around for something, anything to defend herself with. Her eyes frantically quickly around the road, finding only fog and broken chunks of brick and stone.
Out of the corner of her eye Apple Bloom saw something move. She gave herself whiplash trying to turn her head and get a full view of it. Through the dense white fog she could only fleetingly see a small, dark figure dash out of view. The back of of Apple Bloom’s head screamed in pain and her ears began to ring. Her heart thundered in her chest and she frantically looked around her. The hoofsteps kept getting louder, but she still couldn’t see anypony.
The ringing in Apple Bloom’s ears and the agony persisting in the back of her head was quickly becoming too much to bear. Apple Bloom, despite her best efforts, clenched her eyes shut and grit her teeth.
Is this mah punishment, the thought rang out in her mind like a bell in a raging hurricane, For comin’ back? For wantin’ to know tha truth?
A voice that cut through her thoughts asked, “Are you okay?”
Apple Bloom’s head shot up and her eyes flew open in surprise. There, in the fog, stood a little filly, no more than fifteen meters away. She was positively beaming at Apple Bloom.
The filly looked to be the same age Apple Bloom was when the Infection hit; she didn’t even have a cutie mark yet. She was a unicorn, her horn illuminated and cutting through the fog, and her coat was a slate gray. The filly’s mane was messy, jet black, and had a cobalt bow about the same size of the filly’s head. Her tail, like her mane, was messy and long. She had eyes that were large, happy ovals with pure blue irides.
“Wh-What did ya say,” asked Apple Bloom, tentatively.
“Are you okay,” the filly repeated, spelling it out for Apple Bloom. “It looked like you were in a lot of pain.”
Apple Bloom’s mouth was agape. She had spent the last few hours wandering through Ponyville and hadn’t found anypony, living or dead. And now here she stood, talking to a happy little filly that came from nowhere. On top of that, the agony she was just experiencing had vanished without a trace. She silently prayed that her mind wasn’t finally snapping.
“N-Nah, Ah’m fine,” she told the filly, “Wh-What do you call yerself? An’ what in tarnation are ya doin’ out here?”
The unicorn grinned at Apple Bloom, “I could ask you the same thing!”
“Oh, er, right. Mah manners. Name’s Apple Bloom,” said the earth pony, taking a few cautious steps towards the unicorn to shake her hoof.
However, the unicorn giggled and started to run off when Apple Bloom approached. “Nice to meet you, Apple Bloom,” the filly said, “But you’re gonna have to catch me!”
Apple Bloom blinked, but grinned a little. A wave of childishness washed over any of her previous dread or hesitation. She found herself being overpowered by the mere idea and her grin widened. She should have hesitated and questioned the position she was in, but all thoughts of that nature simply and inexplicably refused to sink in. Under normal circumstances, this would have been cause for alarm, but Apple Bloom instinctively felt like she could trust this mysterious little filly.
“Hey, no fair!” Apple Bloom hollered at the filly as she gave chase, “Ya got a head-start!”
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Apple Bloom ran after the gray filly for at least half an hour. Possibly even more. She was only able to get a few feet close to catching her. Occasionally, Apple Bloom would almost loose the filly in the fog or get a little lost, but every time the little unicorn would shine her horn brightly and led Apple Bloom in the right direction. It quickly became apparent to Apple Bloom that the filly wasn’t just playing tag, but actually guiding her in a way.
Finally, the fog had moved on and the filly ran inside one of the few standing buildings. Apple Bloom was following her, but slowed when she noticed the building itself. It was a large bakery, styled in the manner of an enormous gingerbread house. It was charred in places, had a large hole in the roof, and covered with a thick layer of ashes. Other than that, the building was completely fine.
The building itself was Sugarcube Corner and it was once home to the most energetic of party ponies, Pinkie Pie. Apple Bloom remembered the name and winced a bit. Pinkie Pie was well-known for holding some of the best parties in all of Equestria.
Apple Bloom smiled as she remembered the night of Diamond Tiara’s cute-ceañera. It was held at Sugarcube Corner and it was that night she met Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Apple Bloom sighed nostalgically as she pushed open the front door and went inside.
The interior of Sugarcube Corner was quite large, mostly to meet the needs of several parties. There was a counter with a service bell on it opposite the front door. The door to the kitchen and a flight of stairs leading up to Pinkie Pie’s former room lay behind the counter. The building was illuminated only by the setting sun’s light pouring through the window. Apple Bloom dug through her saddlebags once more, this time pulling out a small watch and laying it on the floor.
“Three thirty,” Apple Bloom read with a frown, “Well, it’s later than usual...”
The state of the Sugarcube Corner led much to be desired. A large amount of the paint had worn away; once saccharine and bright colors were now eroded and dull. Apple Bloom scrunched her nose up. A foul smell drifted through the air and she realized all of the sweets were now almost entirely made of mold and completely inedible.
Tables, chairs, and lamps were knocked down the floor, covered by a blanket of deflated balloons. A worn banner that read “Spring Has Sprung” hung lazily from the ceiling. Apple Bloom presumed Pinkie Pie was planning one of her parties before the Infection started. She gave the rest of room a quick glance and wasn’t able to find the little filly she had been following anywhere.
A small flash of pink fluttered out of the corner of Apple Bloom’s vision. She quickly turned around and found the room inexplicably starting to light up. Apple Bloom looked up, noticing the lights above her were shattered. When she looked back down, she nearly jumped out of her skin.
A spectral pink earth pony was bouncing around the room happily, a feather duster was in her mouth. She was humming a bright and cheery tune and an enormous smile was on her face. Apple Bloom scrambled towards a corner of the room, her eyes wide as saucers.
“P-P-Pinkie...? I-Is that... Really you?” Apple Bloom stammered out. The ghostly image of Pinkie Pie paid no attention to her and continued tidying up the room. She would bounce to one part of the room, dust it off, then hop off to another.
Apple Bloom watched in shock and confusion as the room start to light up even more. The paint began to fade back into existence, the wood repaired itself and polished itself to a mirror shine, and the sweets began to drain away their mold. The furniture pulled themselves back up and righted themselves.
All of this made Apple Bloom’s head spin and she slumped down to the ground. Apple Bloom felt cold sweat beginning to cover her. The pulsing pressure in the back of her head grew more and more agonizing. She felt herself beginning to loose consciousness. The last thing Apple Bloom saw before she slipped into the darkness was a now completely solid Pinkie Pie bouncing towards her. |
spidersean | 601 | 3 | Apple Bloom,Main 6,Other,Scootaloo,Adventure,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic,Gore | My Little Zombie: Brains are Magic | The Zombie Apocalypse swept over Equestria and one filly tries to uncover the events that caused it. | incomplete | 22 | 3 | <p>Years have past since the Infection swept throughout Equestria. Ponyville lays in ruin. The sun only hangs in the air for a few hours, the landscape is barren, and the skies are in utter chaos. So much has been lost to this plague. A single filly searches for answers amidst Ponyville's ruins. She seeks to unravel the chain of events behind this terrible blight, but finds much more in the shifting wastes.</p> | teen | 2011-10-03T19:39:24+00:00 | 2014-04-29T02:46:35+00:00 | 3,760 | My Little Zombie: Brains are Magic
By spidersean
Chapter Three
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Everypony in Ponyville knew Pinkie Pie throws the best parties in all of Equestria. Since she knew everypony in town, she was able to bring ponies together for the simplest of reasons. Often, these parties were held on an absolute whim for mundane reasons. However, the parties themselves would be far from mundane. They often stretched long into the night and half of Ponyville would show up at her front door.
That night, however, she would throw a party like none other. The Cakes, the couple who owned Sugarcube Corner, had left town for a week on urgent business. Pinkie Pie had invited all of Ponyville to her “Spring Has Sprung” party, and Pinkie Pie was going to make sure it was one of the best parties of her life.
Pinkie Pie did get a little worried about some ponies who had to cancel due to a terrible flu that’s been going around, but she shrugged it off. She felt bad for the poor sick ponies, but the party would still be a success if all the other ponies showed up. As it was, Pinkie had a lot of preparing to do.
The energetic pink party pony bounced around the room with her trusty feather duster in her mouth. She was tidying up the nooks and crannies of Sugarcube Corner. She had already arranged the furniture, vacuumed the building in its entirety, hung a new banner that read “Spring Has Sprung,” baked a mountain of various sweets in advanced, had another batch of cupcakes in the oven, bought a brand new radio just for the party, covered the ceiling with brightly-colored balloons, and even set up the punch bowl. And she still had so much to do!
Dusting off one of the windowsills, she took a glance outside. The sky was a perfect blue and there were only a few fluffy white clouds in the sky. Pinkie couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day for her party. She hopped away and put the feather duster on a counter.
Pinkie Pie heard a ding nearby and she gasped. “They’re finally done!” she exclaimed, dashing off toward the kitchen. She hurriedly nosed the oven door open. The sweet scent of fresh baked goods flooded the room and made Pinkie salivate. She hurriedly pulled out the tray of golden brown cupcakes using a hot-pad, turned off the oven, and laid them on top of the oven. It wouldn’t be long before they cooled off and she could frost them. She eagerly licked her lips just thinking about it.
Just then, Pinkie heard bells ring as the front door swung open. She poked her head out of the kitchen and looked towards the front door. Standing in the doorway was a single filly with a distinctive curly orange mane and a pale yellow coat.
“Carrot Top!” Pinkie exclaimed as she stepped out of the kitchen and began hopping her way over to the front counter. She gave her guest a great big smile, “I’m glad you’re here, but the party doesn’t start for a couple of hours, silly filly! You’re way too early! Nopony else is here but me and, really, what kinda boring ol’ party would that be?”
The filly in the doorway didn’t seem to hear Pinkie Pie and took a few steps inside. Her attention seemed to be fully focused on Pinkie. As she got closer, Pinkie Pie gasped a little bit. She giggled, “Heehee, those sure are some spooky contacts you have in, Carrot Top! They make your eyes look all white like an egg or something. It’s kinda weird. Why do you have those silly things in? I mean, it’s not a costume party.”
As the orange-maned filly took another step closer, Pinkie Pie noticed some other things peculiar about the pony. She was ignoring everything Pinkie was saying, her mane and tail seemed a bit disheveled, and she had a large bandage wrapped around her front right leg. She didn’t know Carrot Top too well, but she was acting very strangely. Pinkie Pie’s knee began to pinch, a sign that something scary was about to happen.
“Are you okay, Carrot Top? What happened? You have that bandage around your leg and I’m all li-”
Pinkie Pie was cut short by a low moaning noise that drifted out of Carrot Top’s lips and hung in the air. It sounded empty, tired, weak, and, most of all, hungry. Pinkie’s knee pinched harder, but she still tried to ignore it.
“Oh! You must be hungry! You could smell the cupcakes from outside, huh? Well, don’t worry! I’ve got plenty of sugar-coated goodness to fill that belly of yo-”
Pinkie Pie was cut short once again. Carrot Top’s lips curled into a snarl and she let loose an ungodly, voracious bellow. Its pure guttural tone and rabid nature made Pinkie Pie’s hair stand on end and her knee scream in pain. Pinkie cringed as the monstrosity in Carrot Top’s skin glared at her with her bloodshot milky white eyes.
Carrot Top sprinted at Pinkie Pie at full speed without warning, attempting to scramble over the front counter. Her teeth snapped mere inches away from Pinkie Pie’s face and she uttered more guttural, violent snarls. Pinkie Pie yelped in surprise and dashed back into the kitchen. Carrot Top, finally managing to get over the counter, was in close pursuit.
Pinkie Pie tried to slam the door shut, but her hellish pursuer managed to stick both a front hoof and her snout into the door. Pinkie gasped and quickly pushed against the door, trying to close it on the terror. It pushed back with brutish force and managed to work in the rest of its face. It swiveled its ghastly eyes around to meet Pinkie’s terrified countenance in a murderous glare.
Pinkie Pie felt her heart thunder in her chest and her knee felt as if a vice had been tightened around it. She quickly stammered out, “N-No! Leave me alone! Th-This isn’t happening, this can’t be happening, i-it’s all just a really really bad dream! Yeah, that’s right! Y-you’re not real and all I gotta do is g-giggle at the ghostly!” She let out a quick series of frantic giggles.
The monster tried to reach its hoof towards Pinkie Pie, but Pinkie pushed harder against the door with a short scream. She let out another burst of laughter, before watching as the monster continued struggling, twisting and wrenching its leg back and forth. There was a sickening crack and a tearing sound. Pinkie Pie gasped in horror and leaped away from the door. The monster completely ignored its fresh wound and pressed open the door. It advanced towards Pinkie with a limp.
The realization swept over Pinkie like a tidal wave. She started to break out in a cold sweat and her knee wailed in agony. She started to yell, “L-Laughter isn’t working! I-It’s not working! It’s not working!” She sped to the corner of the room.
The world began to spin. Pinkie heard something pop above her and her mane fell in front of her face, straight as could be. Her mind raced, Laughter didn’t work. But it always works! Did Granny Pie lie? She’d never lie to me! It’s getting closer! Laughter didn’t work! What do I do? I have to do something. Is this really happening? Is this the end? Who will throw the parties when I’m gone? Laughter didn’t work! It’s getting even closer! I have to do something! What do I do?! It’s right there in front of me! DO SOMETHING! LAUGHTER DIDN’T WORK.
Pinkie’s mind finally registered the glimmer of a metallic object on the surface of the counter next to her. She felt her teeth grip its handle tightly. She heard the vicious growling of the beast nearby. She felt herself lunge forward and pull back. Something warm splashed over her chest. She felt herself repeat the motion again and again and again. She heard someone scream in her voice. Finally, something heavy hit the ground, followed by a clanging metal object, and then everything became quiet.
Pinkie’s eyes grew wide, observing the act she had just committed. For a while, there was nothing but silence. Then, she felt something begin to bubble up inside of her. It started as a mere humming noise. Then, it became a hollow chuckle. Slowly, it became a giggle. Then another as it rose in pitch and length. It rose in frequency until it became shrill laughter that echoed through Sugarcube Corner. It rang out through the building and it rose higher and higher.
Without warning, it stopped. Pinkie looked out the window and saw more of those monsters. Her mouth curled into an enormous grin, probably the biggest Pinkie ever gave. Her back began to itch, another Pinkie Sense.
Everypony in Ponyville knew Pinkie Pie threw the best parties in Ponyville. That night, however, she would throw a party like none other. One that everypony in Ponyville, and possibly all of Equestria, was invited to. She had a lot of preparing to do, though.
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Apple Bloom’s eyes snapped open. She gasped for air and nearly collapsed to the floor. Her head was wracked with pain. Each moment of the vision came flooding back to her, every single one of Pinkie Pie’s merry hops and terrified screams. Pinkie’s crazed laughter rung through her ears. It made Apple Bloom grit her teeth. Breathing heavily and slowly attempting to regain her balance, Apple Bloom shakily observed her surroundings.
Apple Bloom was still in the decrepit Sugarcube Corner, albeit now it was illuminated by the pale moonlight drifting through the broken windows. All of the furniture was knocked over, the paint was worn, and the sweets had expired long ago. She was standing in the doorway between the kitchen and the storefront. The pain in her head was beginning to subside, but she could still faintly hear Pinkie’s laughter.
Something whimpered near Apple Bloom. Hiding underneath an overturned chair was the little unicorn filly Apple Bloom had been following earlier. She was shivering in fright and her eyes were wide, staring at Apple Bloom.
“Hey, is everythan’ all right?” Apple Bloom took a few steps toward the filly, softly addressing her.
“N-No!” the filly squealed at her, making Apple Bloom jump slightly in shock. “D-Don’t come near me!”
“Whu-What’s the matter?” Apple Bloom asked, concern growing in her voice.
“Y-You’re crazy, that’s the matter!” the filly shrieked. Apple Bloom’s eyes widened.
“Wh-What?!”
“Th-That’s right, I saw you! First you passed out over in that corner and I was starting to get worried. I w-was about to see if you were okay, but then you just bounced up and started jumping around the whole room! Then you started acting like somepony else was here and you started sc-screaming. Then you ran into the kitchen a-and you started laughing! It looked like you were stabbing somepony too!”
With each word the filly spoke, Apple Bloom’s eyes grew wider and her pupils shrunk smaller. She felt a lump of ice sink to the pit of her stomach as revelation sat in. She hadn’t just experienced Pinkie Pie’s memory, she reenacted it.
“S-Sugarcube, jes wait a minute. Ah can expla-”
The filly suddenly let out a horrified scream. She pointed a hoof towards the front door. Apple Bloom quickly turned to face the source of the filly’s terror, a skinny, dark, four-legged figure standing in the doorway. Its skin barely clung to its bones and it was backed by two similar figures. All three of them had milky white eyes.
Without hesitation, Apple Bloom shot in front of the cowering filly, assuming a defensive pose. She gave a quick glance around her and quickly spotted a long-forgotten rolling pin. She quickly picked it up and held it in her mouth by one of the handles. ‘T’ain’t the best weapon,’ Apple Bloom thought, ‘But it’ll have to do.’
The three figures slowly approached Apple Bloom and the filly, letting out a low guttural moan. Apple Bloom tensed up a bit and braced herself. She heard the filly behind her whimper. The figure closest to Apple Bloom stepped into the moonlight that shone through the broken window.
Apple Bloom saw that the figure was terrifyingly skinny and was missing entire patches of hair. She presumed that it hadn’t eaten in ages. It had once been a stallion with a dull yellow coat. It was bearing its blood-stained teeth and glared at Apple Bloom. She refused to waver, and instead shot back a crippling glare of her own. The second stepped forward, a mare that had a similar physique and a pale green coat. The third zombie, a colt by the looks of it, hung back. Apple Bloom noted that it was slightly shorter than the other two, yet had a much darker coat.
The first zombie’s moan rose into a bellow and it charged at Apple Bloom. The filly unicorn behind her let out a terrified shriek. Apple Bloom raised the rolling pin and brought it down upon the charging monster’s head in one fluid motion. With a resounding crack, the rolling pin smashed over the ghoul’s head. Both the weapon and the monster’s skull split in half.
As the first zombie hit the ground, the second began its charge towards Apple Bloom. The third zombie let out a cringing high-pitched shriek and also began to rush towards her. Apple Bloom noticed that the end of the rolling pin was now shattered and splintered. Without another moment’s pause, Apple Bloom thrust the end of the broken rolling pin upwards. It pierced through the pale mare’s chin. Apple Bloom grunted and pushed harder, only stopping when she saw the other end of the pin poke through the top of the mare’s skull.
Letting go of the pin and letting the pale monster drop to the floor, Apple Bloom barely had time to react to the short dark colt that was barreling towards her. As if it was instinctual, Apple Bloom turned on her front hooves, reared back, and bucked as hard as she could. She felt her back hooves connect with the dark colt’s face and it was sent flying into the wall.
Apple Bloom wheeled back around, expecting the zombie to spring back up and dash at her again. She panted heavily and sweat dripped down her brow. However, as the seconds stretched into minutes, it became clear that the threat had passed. Apple Bloom blinked and grinned.
‘Now that there was a mighty fine buck. Reck’n the entire Apple family woulda been proud,’ Apple Bloom thought as she readjusted the charred hat on her head and wiped away some sweat.
“W-Woooow,” the filly behind her said in awe. “Y-you did it. You won! Y-You... saved me.”
“‘Course Ah did,” Apple Bloom grinned as she turned to face the filly. “Ah wouldn’ want anypony to get hurt. ‘Specially not such a young lil’ filly like yerself, sugarcube.”
“B-But... Then why were you pretending to stab somepony back there and acting all crazy?” the filly asked. She slowly began to crawl out from underneath the chair.
“Well... It’s a long story. Ah reck’n we both got a lot to explain to each other,” Apple Bloom said. The filly nodded her head in agreement. Apple Bloom smiled softly, ‘Well, she’s beginnin’ ta trust me again.’
Apple Bloom slowly approached the filly, her hooves stepping on the cold, balloon-covered floors of Sugarcube Corner. “Ah’d be happy to tell ya everythan’. But it’s gettin’ late and after that whole mess, Ah’m not so sure Ah wanna stay down here. Maybe it’d be best if we both hit the hay. Is it okay if’n we wait until mornin’?”
The filly paused. Apple Bloom’s heart froze for a moment. She began to doubt herself and question whether or not the filly would even think to trust Apple Bloom that much. However, a long, drawn-out yawn from the filly absolved her fears.
“O-Okay, I guess,” the filly said, looking up at Apple Bloom with tired blue eyes. Apple Bloom gave her a warm smile and they both began to head up the stairs for the night.
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spidersean | 601 | 4 | Apple Bloom,Main 6,Other,Scootaloo,Adventure,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic,Gore | My Little Zombie: Brains are Magic | The Zombie Apocalypse swept over Equestria and one filly tries to uncover the events that caused it. | incomplete | 22 | 3 | <p>Years have past since the Infection swept throughout Equestria. Ponyville lays in ruin. The sun only hangs in the air for a few hours, the landscape is barren, and the skies are in utter chaos. So much has been lost to this plague. A single filly searches for answers amidst Ponyville's ruins. She seeks to unravel the chain of events behind this terrible blight, but finds much more in the shifting wastes.</p> | teen | 2011-11-07T18:20:41+00:00 | 2011-11-07T18:20:41+00:00 | 3,905 | My Little Zombie: Brains are Magic
By spidersean
Chapter Four
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For a moment, all that surrounded Apple Bloom was still and shrouded in darkness. Something began to shift and rumble beneath her hooves. A keening siren wailed, piercing the stale air. The mere sound of it clawed against her mind and made her squeal in agony. As the siren swelled, she felt it tear away at her mind.
The darkness gave way to a blinding explosion of white light. It’s harshness burned at her eyes. Every fiber of her being urged her eyes to shut, but an ungodly force held them open. Her eyes rolled around lazily as the white sky turned red with a tidal wave of blood.
Something began to scratch at the corner of her eyes. White writing began to form in front of her. It slowly built up, scraping its way into view.
i have been watching
It vanished and darkness settled once more. She was stalking a yellow filly down the ruined city street. Her wheezy breath kept getting caught in her throat. When the filly finally noticed her stalker, she let out a scream that contested with the siren and ran away. Apple Bloom recognized who the filly was. She felt a twisted grin spread across her mouth and her lungs tightened, forcing out a series of ragged laughter. With a grim sense of thrill, she gave chase.
Once again, something clawed its way into her eyesight.
it won’t work
She found herself in a rotting, worm-ridden room. Her lungs clenched harder, more laughter escaping from her grinning lips. Her eyes watered from the pain and she desperately tried to stop. Instead, she just laughed even louder. The glimmer of a nearby metallic object registered with her. Something pink was in the reflection, but she ignored it. She picked it up and plunged it into herself repeatedly, again and again, never stopping or slowing down. Her inescapable laughter continued and the incessant siren grew even louder.
liar
She suddenly felt herself gasp for air and release the metal weapon. The floor felt cold and damp with her blood when she collapsed upon it. The worms in the room began slithering towards her. A small, dark figure wearing a blue bow approached her. It was accompanied by an orange swirled into view, wearing a leather hat. They were both swiftly whisked away, leaving only dust in their wake. She felt tears stream down her cheeks and the siren ring in her ears.
When something began clawing it's way into her view once more, it tore and burned her eyes. She could feel blood pour out of her eyes, mixing with the tears.
IT’S YOUR FAULT
The worms surrounded her and burrowed underneath her skin. She could feel them crawling and writhing around inside of her. When she opened her mouth to scream, more bugs rushed in to devour her tongue. Her vision grew dark as the siren deafened her.
wake up
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Apple Bloom shot up. She had awoken from her still-vivid nightmare in a cold sweat. Her heart still pounded in her chest. Normally, her dreams are nothing but dark empty spaces that she could never recall. However, every moment of the nightmare still clung to her memory with a vice grip. She could recall even the most minute of details.
Apple Bloom quickly took in her surroundings. She was standing in the middle of Pinkie Pie’s abandoned, barren room. All of the furniture had been removed long before she had decided to sleep there, so she had been sleeping on the floor. A slate-gray unicorn filly dozed peacefully near her, blissfully unaware of Apple Bloom’s state. The blue bow in the filly’s messy pitch black mane reminded her of the nightmare and made her shudder. However, the normalcy of things made her breathe a sigh of relief.
She cast a glance out of the single window in the room. The sun was just beginning to dawn on the horizon, covering the city in a pale white glow. There were no birds to merrily ring in the morning, however. She could only hear the distant cawing of crows. Apple Bloom reached into her brown saddlebags and withdrew her watch once more.
“Nine forty-two,” she read softly. “Ah guess it’s a good enough time to wake up as any.” She put it away and began to gently nudge awake the sleeping filly. “C’mon, sugarcube. Rise ‘n shine.”
A groan escaped the filly. “Aw, come on... It was just getting to the good part,” she said between an enormous yawn. She looked up at the older filly with heavy blue eyes. Apple Bloom chuckled. Reluctantly, the younger filly got to all four hooves.
“We got ourselves a big day ahead of us an’ Ah don’t think Ah wanna stay here for too much longer. So let’s hop to it,” Apple Bloom said with a smile. The filly responded with another yawn and a dreary nod. “If we hurry, we might rustle up some breakfast.” That perked the unicorn up. Apple Bloom let out another chuckle and both fillies began to leave Sugarcube Corner.
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“You never told me why you were acting crazy yesterday,” the little unicorn said after she swallowed her last bite of grass.
Apple Bloom finished the mouthful of grass she had been working on for the past couple of minutes. It was long dead and probably provided no intrinsic nutrition, but it was something to keep her stomach busy for a while. The entire time she had been eating her meaningless breakfast, she’d been mulling over how to explain things to the younger filly who now looked up to her with curious blue eyes.
“Well, to be honest, Ah’m not really sure,” she began. “Ah reckon Ah was seeing things that weren’t really there.”
The gray filly tilted her head slightly in confusion. “Seeing things? Like what?”
“Well, shucks. Ah thought the room had fixed itself and everythin’ went back to the way it was long ago. Ah thought Ah saw a zombie too. Ah even thought...” she hesitated slightly. A breeze pushed gently past them. “Ah even thought Ah was somepony else.”
“Somepony else? Who?”
Apple Bloom gritted her teeth. “Not somepony Ah particularly care for... It don’t matter none. The point is, mah mind was playin’ tricks on me. Thinkin’ things that ain’t true.”
“But... Why would your mind do that?” the filly asked, raising a black eyebrow.
Apple Bloom sighed, “Because Ah made mah mind do it.” She took note of the confusion growing upon the filly’s face. “Ya see, Ah have this friend named Twilight Sparkle. She’s an amazin’ unicorn, super smart, an’ probably the most talented mare in all Equestria. Ah’ve known her even before the Infection came. She was Princess Celestia’s favorite student. She wasn’t too social, so Celestia sent her here to Ponyville. Soon enough, she was friends with everypony in town.
“When the zombies came, she tried to find a cure. She studied an’ studied an’ studied. Ah don’ even think she slept, she was so fixed on findin’ somethin’ to fix it. It eventually got to be too much for her on her own. Ah told her Ah was willin’ to do anythin’ to help her, anythin’ at all.
“She told me that she needed to know what caused the Infection to happen.” Apple Bloom pulled an empty vial out of her bag. “So, she gave me this here purple potion an’ told me to drink it here, in Ponyville. She told me a bunch of sciency, magicky mumbo-jumbo explainin’ how it works. Basically, it messes with yer head an’ lets ya relive certain memories, even if they ain’t yer’s.”
The little slate-gray unicorn stared at the ground, absorbing all of the information. The wind began picking up, pushing against them hard now. “...So, basically,” she began, “you’re here because you want to find out what happened that cause all of this. And you drank a potion that lets you see into the past?”
“Yeah, uh, Ah reckon that’s right.”
“Well... I guess that makes sense,” the filly said. She didn’t sound too convinced. “That explains why you’re here. Can it happen anytime? Does it make you go crazy every time?”
Apple Bloom shook her head slowly. She raised a hoof to lift up her hat and scratch the mess of red hair underneath. “Nah. Ah think Ah went crazy because the person Ah had a vision of was crazy. If Ah remember correctly, Twilight said it only happens in specific places. An’ that ah’ll know where an’ when to go. But honestly, if ya hadn’t showed up an’ led me there, Ah reckon Ah’d never find it.”
Apple Bloom suddenly blinked, remembering the question she had meant to ask for the longest time. She lowered the hat back onto her head. “Which reminds me...” she began, “how did y’all know where to go? What are y’all even doing here? These parts ain’t right for somepony as little as you are. Who are you?”
The smaller filly sighed a little before speaking, “Okay, I guess it’s only right if I tell you my story too. The truth is, I’ve always been here. This town is all that I can remember. I know which places are safe and which places aren’t. I’ve always known the right places to go, even if I have no explanation why. I’m just always able to tell where I need to be.” The filly smiled a little bit,”I guess you could call it my special talent.”
Apple Bloom took a step back, “But this place is so dangerous! How in tarnation did y’all manage to survive on yer own?”
“I wasn’t on my own,” the filly explained, “There were quite a few more fillies and colts about the same age as me that helped me out.”
“Ya mean there are more survivors?” A smile began to form on Apple Bloom’s face. She turned to trot off in a random direction. “Well, what are we waitin’ here for? Let’s go see the-”
“They're all dead now,” the filly interrupted Apple Bloom. The smile on her face instantly vanished. The one glimmer of hope she had was smothered in those four words. She slowly turned to face the filly again. The unicorn bore a countenance of sorrow.
After a moment of silence, the unicorn spoke once more. “We were a great team, though. Three fillies, two colts. Since none of us knew what our parents looked like, much less what they called us, we never really had names for each other. We all found different colored ribbons to help identify each other.” She briefly gestured towards her large, slightly-tattered bow. “I was called Blue. My job was to lead everypony and show them where to go. I’d be able to find food, shelter, you name it. All because of my special talent.”
“Green was a very smart filly. She taught us all kinds of things. How to read, write, count, and even how to survive. Red was a very strong pegasus and the oldest out of all of us. He helped us fight off all of the zombies and taught us how to defend ourselves. I never liked fighting, so I never learned from what he taught me. He got mad at me for that a lot.
“Pink was a very kind unicorn. She’d never get mad at any of us and healed us when we got hurt. She was best friends with everypony and could always calm ponies down if they got too upset. Yellow was a colt who made us all laugh. Even though we were in the worst situations, the things he would say would make everyone happy. He was the youngest of the group and was good at sneaking around and fitting into places the rest of us were too big for.”
Apple Bloom approached the filly as she spoke, a frown growing upon her face. She asked the unavoidable question that had been gnawing on the back of her mind, despite the dread she feared the answer would bring. “What happened?”
The filly with the blue bow hung her head low. “I failed them,” she said simply, her voice cracking. She continued, “One night we were looking for a new shelter and I lead them to a cave. Something was telling me that it was a horrible decision, but it was safer than anywhere else. When the rest of us were asleep I heard something deep in the cave. I tried to wake the others up, but it was too late.”
The filly clenched her watering eyes shut and turned away, “I lead them into an infected manticore’s den. I managed to run away, but everypony else was ripped apart.” She looked back up at Apple Bloom. “I lead them to their deaths, Apple Bloom. I killed them.”
“Aw, sugarcube... C’mere.” Apple Bloom nuzzled the young filly with the blue bow closely and she reciprocated with greater strength. That’s all they did for a long, long while. Eventually, the younger filly’s sobs subsided. She pulled away from Apple Bloom and looked up at her with a faint smile.
“Thank you, Apple Bloom.” She rose a hoof to dry her tears, “It’s been a while since I had somepony to talk to.”
“Aw shucks, anytime for a friend. Where should we head off to next, Blue?”
The filly shook her head, “No. Not Blue. Not since that night.”
Apple Bloom gave the filly a frown, “Then what the hay am Ah supposed to call ya?”
The only response garnered from the younger filly was a shrug and a small smile. “I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”
Something cold and wet plopped onto Apple Bloom’s nose before she could respond. A moment passed before the she felt the same sensation, this time on her blank flank. Her gaze turned upwards toward the sky and was met by a large gray cloud dominating the sky. As if on cue, a sudden downpour descended upon them. A bright flash and a loud clap of thunder cut through the air. The wind let loose a shrieking howl in response.
“Rainstorm! An’ it’s a biggun, too!” Apple Bloom yelped, trying to hold on to her hat. “We should find a place t-”
She stopped herself short. The filly she was addressing was nowhere to be found. Her eyes widened and whirled around, trying to find the filly. A dark mist had engulfed her, severely reducing her range of vision. The rain had gotten in her eyes, making lashes stick together.
She called out for the filly again and again, frantically searching around her. In the distance, she heard a siren wailing and echoing in the midst of the monstrous storm. Without any of the pegasus ponies to clear the sky, weather like this often ran rampant, appearing without warning and vanishing without trace. A chill went up her spine and she stopped dead in her tracks.
Slowly, she turned around. A flash of lightening illuminated her surroundings. She was only able to make out one thing: a mare with a bone-white coat. She was tall, taller than anypony should be, as well as skinnier than anypony should be. Her rows of razor-sharp teeth stretched into a grin that defied pony limitations. Most disturbing of all, however, were her two empty eye sockets that somehow seemed to be fixated on Apple Bloom.
Darkness instantly encompassed Apple Bloom once more. She desperately scanned her surroundings for a weapon, the filly, and, most importantly, where that thing was. But the darkness had returned so quickly that she wasn’t able to see a foot in front of her nose. Breath caught in her throat. Her heart pounded in her chest. A dull, aching pain in the back of her head made itself known. The siren in the distance rose again.
Another flash of lightening. She wasn’t able to find the pale mare anywhere, but she did manage to see something. Next to her shadow stood another, towering over the familiar shape. It was scrawny and tall, but it dwarfed Apple Bloom’s shadow. She’s right behind me.
Apple Bloom screamed as loud as she could. She felt something wrap around her legs and pulled tight, rooting her to the spot. Something began to crawl all the way up her spine.
“Apple Bloom!” Another flash of light, though this time not from the skies above. The radiant, continuous light was coming from the horn a little unicorn with a blue bow. It shone so brightly that Apple Bloom felt the need to shield her eyes. Whatever was constricting her released its grasp, enabling her to sprint toward the filly.
“Hold on, Ah’m-a comin’!” Apple Bloom hollered through the howling wind as she got closer to the drenched filly.
“Quickly, follow me!” The filly yelled back. She turned and began to run off in the other direction. With renewed haste and an extreme desire to get away from whatever was stalking her, Apple Bloom quickened her pace. Against her better judgement, she cast a glance over her shoulder as she was running away. There was no sign of the mare whatsoever.
“Where are we goin’?” Apple Bloom called out to the filly.
“Someplace safe!” the filly’s voice called back.
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“C’mon, get inside! You’re just gonna keep getting wet out there,” the unicorn with the jet-black hair repeated to Apple Bloom. While she had gotten inside the moment she could, Apple Bloom simply stood staring slack-jawed at the building.
“What’s the hold-up? This place is safe! I’ve been here loads of times.”
Apple Bloom continued staring at the building in front of her. Its cherry-red paint had faded and peeled from its wooden structure. One of the walls had been torn right out. A thick layer of ash and soot covered the exterior.
“My old schoolhouse,” Apple Bloom finally managed to say. “Ah cain’t believe it’s still here.” She took a few tentative steps inside. The filly smiled, nod doubt happy that Apple Bloom finally decided to come inside. The hallway that she entered seemed more narrow than when she was a filly. Lockers still lined the hallway, but they were accompanied by broken pieces of wood and creeping vegetation.
There were only three doors in the hallway. Apple Bloom recalled from memory that the one closest to her lead to a bathroom, the door at the end of the hallway lead to the playground, and the last one led to a large classroom.
Apple Bloom turned to speak to the younger filly, but found that she had already wandered off to investigate one of the rooms. With a sigh, Apple Bloom began to head down the long, narrow hallway. Without the unicorn brightening the path, the hall seemed a lot darker than it was. Shadows danced against the walls and encircled her.
With each step she took, the aged floorboards groaned loudly in protest. The shadows continued to to grow darker and thicker. This, combined with the narrowness of the hallway, seemed to smother Apple Bloom. Her breath drew short and shallow. Nevertheless, she continued down the tight hallway.
The cheery voice of the filly called from the classroom. “Hey, Apple Bloom. Come here, I wanna show you something.”
“Alright, what’s up?” Apple Bloom said as she took a few cautious steps inside her former classroom. “Whoa! What in tarnation?” The unicorn, who illuminated the room with her horn, stood with a hoof pointing at the ginormous rusted school bell that laid in a small crater in the center of the room. A hole in the ceiling, most likely caused from the bell’s collapse, cause water to cascade down in a waterfall circling the bell.
The room itself was flooded; the water rose ankle-high to Apple Bloom. The desks had all been either crushed by the bell or near one of the doors. Old pencils and chalk floated alongside dead rats. The broken windows on the walls of the classroom didn’t help matters at all.
“Wait a minnit, what’s that outside?” Apple Bloom said, gazing out one of the windows at the playground she used to play on. Near one of the swings stood a wooden plank, planted in the ground and unwavering in the storm.
“Oh,” said the filly, growing somewhat somber. “I think that’s a grave. Somepony’s buried there.”
Apple Bloom turned to face the filly. Her countenance quickly turned grim, “Do y’all know who it is?”
“N-No. I never really read it, so I don’t know.”
“Please take me out there. Ah need to see who it is. Please.” Apple Bloom’s expression remained grim, but her orange eyes implored with the filly. With some hesitation, the filly agreed.
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The rain had slowed to a light drizzle, but the wind continued howling in Apple Bloom’s face. It stung for her to keep them open, but she kept staring at the plank of wood in front of her. She dared not take her eyes off it.
Slowly, she raised her hat off of her head and pressed it close against her heart. In the light of the young unicorn’s glow, the grave read one word that had been messily etched into it: “Scootaloo.” A crudely drawn heart lay beneath it. The wind howled in anguish and the rain soaked the two fillies to the bone.
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PVRyohei | 603 | 1 | Applejack,Rainbow Dash,Crossover,Random,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Rainbow Spoon | complete | 7 | 3 | <p>Rainbow Dash is woken up in the middle of the night by a mysterious pony wielding... a SPOON!</p><p>Based on this video:</p><p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VDvgL58h_Y" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VDvgL58h_Y</a></p> | everyone | 2011-08-24T00:22:54+00:00 | 2011-08-24T00:22:54+00:00 | 3,523 | Rainbow Spoon
The sun had just disappeared in the horizon giving its place to the moon when Rainbow Dash and the rest of the weather patrol had finished setting up that night scheduled rain. With the exhaustion of a whole day of training and working finally catching up to her, Dash decided to call it a day and return to her cloud castle to rest.
The applebuck season had just ended and she and Applejack were planning on hanging out together the whole day, and she would have to be well rested if she wanted to beat her friend in a game of horseshoes. Dash said goodbye to the rest of the team and went back to her home, going straight to bed.
-----
Dash awoke in the middle of the night. It was still dark, but the sound of the rain was a lot weaker, indicating that quite a few hours must have passed. She stayed in the bed for a few moments, hoping to fall asleep again, until she realized that something was wrong.
For some reason she had the impression that somepony else was in her room, but she quickly discarded the idea, there was no way that could be true, she tough. She was almost falling asleep again, but suddenly her eyes went wide open upon the realization that she could hear a breath right behind her. Tense with the realization that somepony had broken into her house, she slowly turned away to look at whoever was there, and became paralyzed upon seeing her mysterious, uninvited guest.
He seemed to be an earth pony, but somehow was able to walk on clouds. He wore black pants that covered his cutie mark, black shoes on his hind hoofs and a black hoodie. His coat was a pale white and he had dark circles around his black eyes. In his face, he had an expression of pure rage, his eyes overflowing with bloodlust.
As soon as Rainbow Dash regained control of her body, she jumped out of her bed to the opposite side of the mysterious pony, assuming defensive stance.
"WHO ARE YOU? HOW DID YOU GET IN HERE?"
The black-clothed pony ignored her questions and started advancing in slow, distorted steps. Dash stepped back in the same speed, her heart exploding in her chest, sweat dripping from her forehead, her eyes carefully scanning him, trying to detect any sudden movement that the mysterious pony made. With all her focus centered on him, Rainbow Dash didn't realize the wall behind her until she touched it and found herself cornered.
With Dash cornered, the pony continued advancing until he was only a few centimeters of distance from her, and then he slowly raised his right hoof to inside his jacket. Dash tension raised even more, knowing that the invader was probably going to grab some kind of weapon, and got ready to attack him. Finally, the stallion took his hoof of from the jacket revealing…a spoon!
With the 'weapon' finally revealed, Dash tension dropped to negative levels, while she stared blankly to the silver spoon on the pony's hoof, until he hit her in the forehead.
"OUCH!" Rainbow Dash yelled, despite it being a simple spoon, it hurted a lot! "WHAT IS YOUR PROB…OUCH!" Dash tried to talk, but was interrupted by a second strike of the spoon.
After noticing the incoming third strike, Dash tried to block with her hoof, but somehow he still managed to hit her. And then he hit her again. And after that he hit her again once again and again and again and again and again and again. After the 10th strike, her patience reached its limit and Dash quickly turned around, putting all of her strength in a powerful buck. The pale stallion was hit right in the middle of his chest, being hurled a few feet away. The floor of the cloud castle didn't bore the impact and the spoon-wielding pony fell right through it.
Rainbow Dash fell to her flanks, panting hard. Her legs, shoulders and head were sore from the repetitive spanking, but she couldn't rest just yet. She stood up and walked to recently formed hole on the floor of her bedroom. Upon looking down through the hole she saw…nothing. There was no way an earth pony could have survived a fall from this height, and even if did survived, it wouldn't be able to just stand up and go away this quickly. The stallion was supposed to be down there, stirred on the ground, but it wasn't, it had simply disappeared. Dash continued there, immobile, looking down, wondering what could have happened with the pony, until…
"OUCH!" Dash yelled as a sharp pain suddenly flared on her flank and her whole body stiffened. Quickly turning her head she saw the black-clothed pony holding the spoon on his right hoof, now with a hint of a sadistic smile added to his hateful expression.
"You've got to be kidding m-OUCH!" Dash bucked him on the chest once again. This time, however, the stallion barely flinched, like if he hadn't been hit at all, and once again, proceeded to hit Dash flank with an unstoppable sequence of spoon strikes. Knowing that she couldn't fight anymore, Dash knew that her only option for now was running away, and so, she started running towards the door of her home. The stallion, despite holding a spoon on a hoof, still managed to keep up with her speed, never stopping the beating.
Immediately after crossing the front door, Rainbow Dash took flight and flew straight up, leaving the few remaining rain clouds behind, until she was way above Ponyville. Dash landed in small cloud near her and sat down, trying to catch her breath. There was no time to rest however, as a few seconds later she was hit once again on the back of her head. Looking back, she saw that the stallion had somehow appeared right behind her.
Taking flight once again, Dash flew away with all of her speed, but a few seconds later, she once again felt the now familiar strikes on her flank. Turning her head, she saw that the spoon-wielding pony had bit her tail and was being dragged along, still attacking tirelessly. Dash started to buck once again. The stallion stayed firm and refused to let go, until her tail could no longer hold the impact and was tore in half and her assaulter fell, quickly disappearing among the clouds below.
Dash finally stopped, trying to catch her breath. It was finally over now, there was absolutely no way that he could have survived a fall this high. Celestia's sun had just started to appear on the horizon, it's firsts rays of warmth bathing Rainbow Dash, shining upon her rainbow mane and her rose colored eyes. For what felt like ages, Dash just stayed there, hovering, enjoying the beauty of the dawn and her recovered freedom, until…
"OUCH!" Dash yelled for probably the 100th time. She quickly turned around and saw the spoon-wielding pony, completely unharmed, with a bunch of multi-colored balloons tied to his back, allowing him to float and hit Rainbow Dash with his terrifying spoon.
"This can't be happening!" Dash said as she started to fly down to Ponyville, the pursuer now holding to her hind leg and still attacking. "I need help, but from who? Fluttershy? No, I can't involve her into this mess!" As Rainbow Dash thought about who could help her, she found herself passing right in front of Sugarcube Corner. "That's it! Pinkie Pie! She aways wake up early to open the bakery!" And so, Dash flew into the Sugarcube Corner, without noticing that the weight on her leg had disappeared.
"PINKIE PIE I NEED YOUR HELP…" Dash shouted as she entered the bakery, but was interrupted by a rain of streamers falling on her head. Despite the early time, Sugarcube Corner was completely decorated for a party, complete with an excited Pinkie Pie standing right next to her.
"Rainbow Dash! Why did you take so long! I was waiting for you so that we could get the party started!"
"What party are you talking about? You wasn't planning any party for today!"
"What Party? The welcome party for your friend, you silly filly!" Pinkie Pie pointed to the center of the room, where now stood the black-clothed pony, holding his spoon in a threatening way.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!" Rainbow Dash shouted, jumping in the air with her tail and mane going erect from the shock, before dashing out of the building. The pursuer instantly reached her, continuing the merciless attack even as Dash galloped at full speed through the streets of Ponyville, until an idea suddenly came to her mind.
"That's it, Twilight! She always knows what to do!" And so, Rainbow Dash galloped to the gargantuan tree that functioned as the town's library and Twilight's home. After reaching the library, Rainbow Dash immediately flung the door open and found that Twilight had just finished walking down the stairs from her bedroom.
"Twilight, I need your help! It's urgent!" Upon seeing the distressed state of Rainbow Dash and the wounds that covered various parts of her body, Twilight immediately knew that something was wrong with her friend.
"Rainbow Dash, please, calm down and tell me what happened." And so, Dash told Twilight all about the spoon pony, while Twilight just stared in disbelief.
"Rainbow Dash, this makes absolutely no sense!"
"But it's true! How else would you explain those wounds?"
"Look Dash, you have been working too much and training too hard recently. All this stress can't be good for your mental health." Now it was Rainbow Dash turn to stare in disbelief.
"Are you saying that I did this to myself?"
"I'm sorry Dash, but there is just no way to determine that these wounds aren't self-inflicted. You need professional help Dash." Dash was shocked, but I wasn't really a surprise. None of it made sense, anypony would think she was crazy, but still, she needed to find somepony that could help.
"Dammit! I should have known that you wouldn't believe me!" Dash said as she headed for the door.
"Dash, wait!" Twilight tried to stop her, but Rainbow Dash just ignored her and left the library. As soon as Dash was outside, once again she felt the spoon strikes on her back and flank. This time however she didn't bothered looking back or running away, she knew it was useless, and so, she just fell to her flanks, completely exhausted, and endured the spanking. After a few moments she decided to try a different tactic. If Running and fighting back was useless, perhaps diplomacy would work.
"So, why are you doing this? Have I ever done something to you? Or perhaps you want me to do something?" No response. Dash looked back and saw the stallion circulating her, stopping to hit her every two or three seconds. Rainbow Dash looked into his eyes. They were nearly completely white, his pupils almost disappearing inside his head.
"C'mon, stop this, I'm begging you!" The black-clothed pony continued to strike, ignoring her pleads for mercy. Dash sighed.
"I'll go crazy for real at this rate!" For what felt like ages, Dash just sat there, looking down, Most of her hope abandoned, until she remembered somepony that would believe her.
"Of course! Zecora! She is going to believe in me!" And so, dash took flight and head on to the Everfree Forest, looking for her last hope.
-----
Except for the stalker, the trip to Everfree Forest was quite tranquil, as no kind of monster or dangerous creature was found, and before too long, she found herself in front of the hut of the zebra shaman. As soon as Dash opened the door, she found Zecora brewing something on her cauldron.
"Zecora, I need your help! Some weird pony with a spoon is following me!"
"If what you say is true, then the Ginosaji is after you." For the first time in the day, Rainbow Dash was relieved. Happiness and hope were stamped on her face, she had finally found somepony who believed her and could help her. The joy, however, wouldn't last much longer.
"Once the Ginosaji has set his eyes in you, he won't stop until you've became glue. To the ends of Equestria you will followed, until by the wraith of his spoon you are swallowed." And with those cruel but honest words, a look of complete terror took control of Dash face.
"Are you trying to say that…"
"You're doomed!" As soon as those words left Zecora's mouth, something hit Rainbow Dash wide open mouth, breaking one tooth on the process. As soon as Dash recovered, she looked to her side and saw that Ginosaji had once again appeared. Dash took flight at top speed out of the zebra's house, with her pursuer holding fiercely into her hind leg.
"It can't be true, it can't be true, it can't be true, it can't be true, it can't be true!" Dash repeated to herself, with both her hope and sanity being quickly depleted.
Looking up to the sky from between the trees, Rainbow Dash realized that the rain had stopped completely by then, and the position of the sun indicated that it was already late morning.
"Applejack must be waiting for me… Maybe she can think about something!" With her last hopes placed on her friend, Dash changed her course to Sweet Apple Acres.
-----
As soon as she reached the farmhouse, Rainbow Dash found Applejack waiting for her.
"Ah already know everythin' sugarcube, ya gotta run!
"You Know? But how?"
"No time for explainin', ya gotta take the truck!"
"Truck? What are you talking about? You have no truck! Uh? What – the – hay?"
Rainbow Dash mouth went wide open as she noticed a pink pickup truck with a cardboard cutout of Twilight Sparkle on the truck bed right beside her.
"A-a-a-applejack, where the hay did you took this from?"
"It's a present from a pony called Spider Man!" Applejack said as she grabbed Dash by her tail and threw her inside the truck.
"Now, go!" Still not sure of what was going on, Rainbow Dash stepped on the accelerator and started to drive down the road that lead back to Ponyville. Less than one minute later, Ginosaji appeared on the road in front of the truck. Dash stepped on the accelerator even harder. The truck hit the pursuer, throwing him over the vehicle. Dash looked through the rear-view mirror, expecting to view Ginosaji lying in the road behind her, but saw nothing.
While Dash wondered where he went, she almost lost control of the truck as something hit her left eye. Looking to her left, she saw that Ginosaji was apparently on top of the truck, with his head and hoof hanging down. He continued to attack, while Dash tried to detain the strikes with her left hoof, but didn't last long until she lost control of the truck and went out of the road, hitting an apple tree immediately after. The truck exploded.
-----
Dash finally recovered conscience. She was still inside the truck and her whole body hurt, but she was still alive somehow. Using all her strength, Rainbow Dash dragged herself out of the truck, falling down on the outside, panting. Looking up, she saw Ginosaji staring into her eyes, his spoon was blacked due to the explosion. The bowl of the spoon fell off. If Dash still had energy, she would cheer like she never had before. It was finally over.
Ginosaji allowed the spoon to fall and proceeded to open the zipper on his hoodie, revealing dozens of spoons attached to a black shirt. A expression of total terror invaded Dash face as she could only observe as Ginosaji took one of his spoons and proceed to hit her.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Dash shouted as she raised from her bed in her cloud castle. She panted for a few moments, before realizing that it was all a nightmare. Finally calming herself, Rainbow Dash let out a sigh of relief, before looking through the window of her bedroom and saw that it had already dawned. She was late.
-----
Dash flew to Sweet Apple Acres as quick as her wings could carry her, and found Applejack in front of the farmhouse.
"Gosh darn it Rainbow Dash! Y're supposed to be here two hours ago!"
"Sorry Applejack, I overslept." Dash said, panting. Applejack sighed.
"Well, ah s'pose the important is that y're here now. So, did ya had breakfast yet?"
With the mention of breakfast, Dash stomach growled. She didn't realized that she was so hungry until now.
"Well, ah s'pose this answers my question! Come in!" Applejack said as she headed inside, Rainbow Dash followed her without questioning.
In the kitchen of the apple house there was still food, probably leftovers from the breakfast, Dash taught. Dash started eating without ceremony and started to fill a cup with tea.
"Need ah spoon to add sugar?" Applejack asked holding a spoon on her right hoof.
Upon seeing the silvery instrument on her friend's hoof, Rainbow Dash went into panic.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!" Dash shouted as she jumped out of the chair she was sitting on and dashed out of the building, leaving a confused Applejack behind.
"What in tarnation was that!?"
THE END |
|
Pyromanecer | 604 | 1 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2011-08-24T04:17:02+00:00 | 2011-08-24T04:17:02+00:00 | 3,936 | Mailpony Rules
Chapter 1
by Pyromanecer
As Ditzy Doo skipped down the rainy streets of Ponyville, she couldn’t help humming happily to herself. She loved this part of town; it was as close to the Everfree Forest as Ponyville got, and it smelled rich and earthy. Tonight, it smelled especially wonderful, as the rain brought forth a wonderful array of loamy scents.
I love the rain, thought Ditzy, smiling through her drenched hair, which had flopped over her eyes, one of which was still rebelliously pointing in an odd direction. She, of course, knew that there would be a storm this evening. None of the weather in Ponyville was a surprise; it was all carefully scheduled and maintained by the pegasi. Ditzy, however, didn’t take part in the weatherworks. She was a mailmare, and quite proud of the fact.
It had been quite a nice day. Ditzy’s boss, a sour old pony who had somehow managed to grow 5-o’clock shadow (a secret he refused to share), must have finally discovered which side of the bed was the right one, and had also been miraculously un-grumpy the entire day. Ditzy’s mailbag had been record-breakingly light, so she had had almost an entire afternoon to do what she pleased. She had been smiling so much she was surprised her face didn’t hurt.
As she passed by a gap in the houses, though, she abruptly halted. It was as if a strange scent had wafted in her direction; she suddenly felt an overwhelming desire to run towards the Everfree Forest and search for something. Ditzy knew what this was.
My mail sense is tingling! she thought as she dashed towards the treeline, entire being focused on the strange task her letter-based psychic powers had provided her. She didn’t know what she was doing, but, whatever it was, it had to be important. Mailpony senses didn’t go off for silly things.
As she neared the threshold where Ponyville ended and the forest began, she started looking around for whatever she had to be searching for. Like any pony, she was reluctant to go into the forest, being taught since she was a foal that it was a dangerous place. However, her sudden impulse seemed to toss her normal fear out the window and brought her to the very edge of the trees.
Looking frantically around, eyes searching two locations at once, she spotted something that stood out among the greens and browns of the muddy forest background. A gray pegasus stallion, coat slightly darker than her own, lay sprawled near one of the trees, a nasty looking gash on his head. Galloping over, she contemplated what to do.
#C8C8C8, Ditzy thought, and then shook her head. Bah, numbers and letters. What should I do? This pony needs a doctor! But the doctor’s office is across town, and I don’t think I can carry him that far. Ditzy shook her head again, this time in frustration.
Think, think, what’s close by? Bakery, fruit stand, hat shop, houses… Ditzy perked up. Houses! My house! I could carry him to my house, and then go get the doctor!
Course of action decided, she flopped the pegasus over her back like a saddlebag and ran as quickly, but also as smoothly, as possible in the general direction of her house.
~~~
Panting, Ditzy finally arrived at her dwelling. It wasn’t a large house, but it wasn’t a small one either. It was fairly pretty and neat looking, maybe something you would see in the background of a postcard. Two story and white walls, it was functional, livable, and quite pleasing to see after a long day at work. Ditzy, however, was not concerned with how nice her house looked at the moment.
The dripping-wet pegasus burst through the door, much to the surprise of her daughter, who had been snoozing on the couch in front of the fireplace.
“Mama!” Dinky cried, delighted to see her mother. The small, blue-gray unicorn jumped off the sofa and trotted over to the doorway. “You’re back! And you’re all we-“ Dinky cut herself off, seeing the stranger draped over her mother’s back. “Who is-“
“Just a minute, Muffin.” Ditzy soothed, laying the unconscious colt on the couch where Dinky had been lying a moment ago. She turned back towards her daughter to find her tilting her head, blonde mane flopped over, and looking at her with a clear question in her big yellow eyes. One eye looking at her, the other still looking in the vague direction of the couch, Ditzy spoke.
“Now Dinky, mommy has to go away for a few more minutes to get someone.” Seeing the sadness in her daughter’s eyes, Ditzy amended “But I have a job for you.” Dinky perked back up. “I need you to watch over this pony, make sure that he doesn’t fall or hurt himself, OK?”
“’Kay!” Dinky answered, the most adorably serious expression on her face. She walked over to the couch and sat down in front of it, watching the comatose pony with much the same intensity that a hawk looks for prey.
“Good girl.” said Ditzy, allowing herself a small smile, and turned back to the door. Taking a deep breath, she galloped back out into the rain. Hey, it’s not like she could get any wetter.
~~~
Ten minutes later, the storm having gotten much worse, Ditzy ran back inside, accompanied by a surprisingly-dry Nurse Redcross. Dinky had dutifully not moved from her position near the couch, but she immediately jumped up when she heard her mother’s hooves on the wooden floor.
“You’re back!” Dinky exclaimed, running over to Ditzy, while Redcross immediately brought her medical supplies over to the unconscious pegasus. Ditzy wrapped her forelimbs around her daughter.
“Good job, Muffin.” Ditzy praised, hugging Dinky. Ditzy held the unicorn at arm’s length and looked at her. Dinky’s mouth opened wide and she yawned hard enough to make a manticore jealous. Ditzy grinned slightly and raised one eyebrow.
“Dinky, are you sleepy?” Ditzy asked. Dinky shook her head tiredly.
“No, mum, I’m fine.” she said. But her body betrayed her and she let loose another loud yawn.
“It’s past your bedtime, Muffin. Go on, off to bed.” Dinky tried to roll her eyes, but only got halfway through before her eyelids drooped and ruined the gesture.
“Fine...” Dinky said with as much world-weariness as she could muster (which wasn’t much). As she dragged her hooves to her room, Ditzy turned back to the nurse, one eye still watching her daughter.
Now that she wasn’t running through the rain, she could get a closer look at the stranger. As she noticed before, his coat was a darker shade of gray than hers. His ragged mane was dark blue, and his tail looked like it would be fairly strait if it wasn’t currently full of twigs and mud. The word "streamlined" came to mind as she took in his general appearance. His cutie mark was a storm cloud on top of two stylized wind gusts, and his wings looked very powerful, used to flying long distances. He would look quite nice after a little grooming, Ditzy thought. Pity he was covered in forest.
While Redcross worked, Ditzy sat down with her back to the fireplace, steam rising off her in columns as she dried off from her mad dashes across rain-soaked Ponyville.
About twenty minutes later, the nurse looked like she had finished. The colt now had a bandage adorning his head and his left forelimb. She walked over to a now-dry Ditzy Doo, and prepared to give a diagnosis.
“Well, Miss Doo, it looks like your friend was caught out in the storm over the Everfree Forest.” Ditzy did her best impersonation of someone rolling their eyes. “He appears to have sustained a head injury, possibly a small concussion, and his forelimb appears to have a slight sprain. All in all, nothing too serious. He is a very lucky pony.” Ditzy breathed a sigh of relief.
“That’s good,” she said. She didn’t know this colt, but it was the general nature of Ponyvilleians to care for those in need.
“One more thing,” Nurse Redcross began, suddenly looking apprehensive. “In this storm, it would be risky to try and move him to the hospital…” Ditzy waved her hoof in the air in a gesture of dismissal.
“Don’t worry about it. He can stay here; it’s no problem.” Redcross visibly relaxed.
“Thanks for that. Anyways, he might be slightly, um…” Redcross looked awkwardly at Ditzy for the second time in as many minutes. “…cross-eyed when he wakes up, but that is normal for head trauma patients. It is also best that he stays off that leg of his for a while. Someone will come over tomorrow morning to check up on him, alright?”
“OK,” Ditzy answered. Nurse Redcross wished her luck and walked out the door, an umbrella popping out of her nurse hat. One of Ditzy’s eyes watched her close the door, and she turned back to the stranger on her couch.
Ditzy decided that it would be best if somepony was there to greet him if he woke up in the night, so she curled up on the rug in the center of the room. The rug was quite soft, and with the fire at her back, her position was quite comfortable. Ditzy’s off-kilter eyes soon closed, and she drifted off into a peaceful slumber
~~~
The next morning, Ditzy was preparing breakfast. Dinky, in the manner of small children, was wide awake at such an early hour. The unicorn was sitting at the kitchen table, rocking back and forth in her special chair, watching her mother stir a pot on the stove.
“What’re we having, mum?” Dinky asked cheerily, if a little impatiently.
Ditzy smiled. “Oatmeal, Muffin.” she replied, apron rustling as she half-turned to her daughter. “It will be done soon.”
“Yay!” Dinky loved oatmeal.
At that moment, a groan arose from the parlour. Both ponies immediately froze, heads turned toward the direction of the noise. When the sound repeated itself a few seconds later, the two immediately dashed off into the other room, breakfast forgotten.
The colt was still lying on the sofa, but his eyes were scrunched up and it looked like he was trying to sit up. Ditzy moved close to the stranger, Dinky close behind and hopping up and down to try and get a better view. The colt eventually managed to roll himself over so that all four legs were beneath him. Hearing the rhythmic thuds of Dinky's bouncing, he blearily turned his head in that direction and opened his eyes. They were the same dark blue as his mane and, as the nurse predicted, pointing in two separate directions.
“He looks like you, mama!” Dinky whispered. Ditzy quickly shushed her.
Blinded by the sudden influx of morning light coming from the window, he immediately squinted. Seeing Ditzy’s vague shape, he tried his best to look at her with his glazed eyes.
“…hello?” he croaked. My, he did sound like he went a round with a boulder and lost.
“Hello. “ Ditzy replied.
“W-where am I?” His stutter attested to his groggy and disoriented state.
“You are in my house, in Ponyville. My name is Ditzy Doo, and this is my daughter Dinky.” Dinky punctuated this with an enthusiastic wave. “Who are you?”
“Ponyville…?” he muttered, then shook his head. The action seemed to clear his mind a bit. “M-my name is Tempest Rider.” He paused. “You have pretty eyes.”
Ditzy flinched slightly. She wasn’t used to people talking about her eyes, much less complimenting them. Redcross’s nervousness mentioning the fact that the then-unconscious Tempest Rider would wake up cross-eyed was testament to the fact that ponies felt uncomfortable talking about her unusual wall-eyed visage. Something which, incidentally, Ditzy didn't understand at all.
“Erm, thank you?” Ditzy ventured.
“...What?”
The mare shook her head. His mind was obviously still muddled. “If you don’t mind, could you tell us why you were unconscious at the edge of the Everfree Forest?”
“F-Forest?” Tempest Rider squinted. “I was... delivering a package...” At this, he reached down to his haunches, as if trying to find something. When his search failed, his head whipped around, eyes wide. “M-my mailbag!”
“Mailbag?”
“Mailbag?” Dinky repeated, “Mama has a mailbag because she’s a mailpony! Are you a mailpony too?”
Tempest didn’t answer, as he was too busy hyperventilating and searching his immediate area for the missing bag. Ditzy understood his panic completely.
One of the first lessons they drilled into you during mailpony training was to never lose your mailbag. It was Rule #1. To lose your bag meant that all the irreplaceable letters inside would be lost, or worse, read by someone other than their intended recipient. As far as other mailponies were concerned, coworkers who lost their mail were the lowest of the low. Some even thought that Princess Luna had been banished to the moon for misplacing Celestia’s personal mail.
So it was completely understandable why Tempest Rider looked like he was contemplating tearing open her couch to try and find the bag.
“Hey, calm down, calm down..” Ditzy soothed. Tempest turned and looked at her.
“No no no nononono.” he babbled, very un-soothed. “I-I have to find my bag, or else, or else...” Tempest Rider’s pupils dilated as his mind struggled to come up with a gruesome enough scenario. Ditzy took this opportunity to put a comforting hoof on his shoulder.
“Don’t worry, I do understand. I’m a mailpony too.” she said, thumping her chest with her free hoof for emphasis. Tempest Rider looked surprised, then hopeful.
“You- you are?”
“I just said that!” Dinky pouted.
“Then, you can help me find my bag!” Tempest tried to get to his hooves, but Ditzy gently, albeit firmly, pushed him back down with the leg she had yet to take off his shoulder.
“Oh, no. You are not going anywhere with that leg, mister.” said Ditzy, adopting the tone she used when Dinky was being stubborn. “Nurse Redheart said you need to stay off that until it heals. I can go find your bag for you; I have a pretty good idea of where it is.”
Tempest Rider looked reluctant to hand over responsibility of his bag over to someone else, even another mailpony, but, sensing this mare wasn’t going to budge, relented. He sat back down on the couch, his crooked eyes still showing worry.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be right back.” Ditzy told him, trying to cheer him up. At that, she turned around and headed towards the door, off to the place where she originally found the comatose Tempest Rider. Before she could begin her journey, though, she was stopped by a certain unicorn filly.
“Mama mama can I come with? I want to help too!” Dinky shouted, bouncing high enough to be eye-level with her mother. She looked so adorably eager that Ditzy almost caved immediately.
“No, Muf-” Ditzy began, but hesitated. She couldn’t take Dinky with her to the Everfree Forest, but she couldn’t just leave her daughter her with a stranger!
An injured stranger, she reminded herself. An injured, concussed, cross-eyed, mailpony stranger. Dinky should be safe.
“No Muffin.” Ditzy finished. Anticipating her disappointment this time, she tactfully added, “I have a more important job for you. Remember what I told you yesterday?"
Dinky paused for thought. “Stop chewing on the chair legs?”
“After that.”
“Um... Oh! Watch over the pony on our couch!”
Ditzy smiled. “Exactly. I need you to that that again, OK?” Enthusiastic nods. “Good.”
The mailmare trotted outside and, as an afterthought, called back over her shoulder, “Remember, he has to stay off that leg!” The last thing she saw before closing the door was one confused looking pegasus and one determined looking unicorn filly looking at each other.
~~~
Tempest Rider had never been more confused in his life. He had woken up in a strange home, with strange ponies, and a strange throbbing headache. And now one of the ponies had left to find his mailbag, leaving her daughter to watch over him. A daughter who was now staring at him in the most unsettling manner he had ever seen.
Tempest decided to try his hoof at conversation. Anything to end the impromptu staring contest he was now in.
“Hello?”
No points for originality there.
“Hi!” Dinky immediately answered, exchanging her surprisingly-menacing stare for a bright smile.
“So... you live here?” Tempest asked, marginally more at ease.
“Uh-huh! With my mama! She’s a mailpony! You’re a mailpony too, right?”
"Yes, I am.”
“Cool!”
With that the conversation seemed to lull. It was considerably better than before, seeing as Dinky was now smiling at him instead of staring, but Tempest still felt uncomfortable. Here he was, sitting in a room with a filly he had never met. Forced proximity to strange young children was always awkward, and now Tempest was aware of the fact that being bandaged and concussed did nothing to make the situation any better. Quite the opposite, in fact. Trying to think of something to talk about, he sniffed.
“Erm, what’s that smell?”
~~~
“C’mon, I know you’re here somewhere.” Ditzy spoke to thin air. She had returned to the site where she originally found Tempest Rider, hoping to find the pegasus’s bag amongst the general forest debris. The mare was currently searching intently, eyes examining two places at once.
Several minutes later, however, she had begun to lose hope. The mailbag refused to reveal itself to her, and it was becoming increasingly aggravating. Ditzy knew that if the mailbag wasn’t here then it was in the Everfree Forest, and she was extremely nervous even being this close to the local terror.
Suddenly, one of Ditzy’s eyes spotted something; a spot of brown amongst a marginally-less brown background. Rushing over to the spot, she found a sturdy pair of saddlebags emblazoned with the symbol of the Equestria Pony Postal Service. Looking closer, she found, in messy mouth-writing, “Property of Tempest Rider” written on the bottom of one of the bags.
If these aren’t his bags, then I’m a tree. she thought. And I am most certainly am not a tree.
~~~
Not five minutes later (hooray for wings!), Ditzy arrived at her house, saddlebags in tow. As soon as she entered the parlour, however, she immediately noticed two problems. One, Tempest Rider was no longer on the couch, and two, she could not see Dinky.
Before Ditzy could contemplate what that meant, though, one of the problems resolved itself. She could see Dinky; the filly was visible through the doorway into the kitchen, sitting on her special chair and smiling at something her mother couldn’t see. Cautiously, Ditzy walked over and set the bags on the table, then proceeded to the kitchen. She was greeted with a rather unexpected sight.
Dinky was still sitting at the kitchen table, but at the oven, standing on his hind legs, was Tempest Rider. The stallion was wearing her apron, looking almost comical. He was stirring a pot of what Ditzy recognized as the oatmeal she had been cooking earlier. With a start, she realized she had never actually turned the stove off.
Hearing her hoofsteps, he turned his head to look at her, revealing his eyes were no longer crossed. The two stared at each other, neither saying a word. Deciding he should break the ice, Tempest opened his mouth first.
“What? The oatmeal was burning.”
At this point, Ditzy was wondering if she had ever had a stranger day.
No, she thought, I haven't. |
Pyromanecer | 604 | 2 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2011-09-19T04:12:39+00:00 | 2011-09-19T04:12:39+00:00 | 2,268 | Mailpony Rules
Chapter 2:
By Pyromanecer
“Well, he seems to be in pretty good condition.” Nurse Redheart told Ditzy Doo. She had come over to the mailmare’s house, as promised, to check up on Tempest Rider. She was delighted to find that the pegasus had been not only conscious, but coherent. The nurse had just finished questioning and examining the gray pony, and was now telling the curious Ditzy what she found. “He’s not going to be walking on that hoof for a few days, though. The best thing for him right now is rest.”
Ditzy turned away from where Dinky was playing a board game with Tempest, though she kept glancing back with one eye to make sure her daughter wasn’t hurting him. “So he’s going to be all right?”
“Well, a jaunt through a thunderstorm is going to be a bit beyond him for a while, but yes. He will make a full recovery.” Ditzy smiled at that.
“Good. So, how long is he going to have to stay?”
“Oh, he doesn’t have to stay with you, Ditzy. The hospital finds lodging for all-”
“Sorry,” Ditzy interrupted, “But he’s staying here. Mailpony rules.”
Redheart looked confused. “What rule requires you to detain injured strangers?”
“Rule #3.” Ditzy recited. “‘Your co-workers are your family. Treat other mailponies as you would a sibling.’ And I’m not about to let an injured sibling out of my sight.”
As the nurse considered this, Ditzy held her breath. She really hoped Redheart wouldn’t protest, as she really didn’t want to argue with her. Eventually, Redheart spoke.
“Well, this is legally lodging. I suppose he can stay with you until he recovers.” Redheart leaned in close and whispered to her conspiratorially. “Thank you, Ditzy; you just saved me a lot of work.”
Ditzy tried not to look too relieved as Nurse Redheart explain how to care for the injured pony. That had went better than she thought it would. If Redheart had taken Tempest away, then...
Well, nothing would have really happened, but she would have still felt like she failed. Mailponies don’t disobey mailpony Rules. Disobeying the rules shows a lack of trustworthiness and dependability, and a lack of trustworthiness and dependability means a bad mailpony. Ditzy was not a bad mailpony.
“...and make sure he doesn’t over-exert himself. Small flights only. Alright?”
“Alright.” Ditzy answered. With that, Nurse Redheart left the house, and Ditzy turned back to the game-playing ponies.
Tempest Rider was panting heavily, his mane ruffled and several of the playing cards stuck to his face with what looked like peanut butter. Directly across from him, Dinky was wearing a bright red hat and a wide smile, looking as happy as a young filly can be. Ditzy just stared.
Dinky, perhaps sensing that somepony was looking at her, turned to look at her mother. The two stared at each other for a moment, before Ditzy spoke.
“Muffin, what did I tell you about Dinky-rules Monopony?” she asked.
“But mama, nothing caught on fire this time!”
~~~
One bath later, Tempest Rider was now boardgame-butter free. As Ditzy walked downstairs with the stallion, she explained to him how he was going to be staying with her until he recovered.
“That’s... that’’s very kind of you, miss.” Tempest said, trying to express his gratitude. “I’ll be sure to pay you back for this.”
“Call me Ditzy, hon, and don’t you worry about it.“ Ditzy replied. “We’re both mailponies, and the rules, along with basic kindness, say that I should help you. It would go against that kindness to have you pay for it, don’t you think?”
Tempest seemed to mull it over for a moment, and then nodded. “I suppose,” he said, “But I’m still going to compensate you.” seeing that Ditzy was about to argue, Tempest interrupted, “Don’t forget, I’m bound by mailpony rules too. In this case, Rule number four.”
“‘Repay kindness in turn. Mailponies are always polite.’” the mare recited automatically. She then proceeded to frown. “Well, OK. I suppose I would do the same thing.”
“You probably would.” Tempest leaned down to adjust his mailbag, which he had not taken off since Ditzy had returned it. It wasn’t wet, though, so Ditzy assumed he had taken it off to bathe. “In any case, can you tell me where I would find a “Wigg Haarson?” I need to finish this delivery.”
At this point, the two pegasi had walked down into the parlour. Ditzy looked at the stallion like he was crazy. He had been found, unconscious, on the edge of the Everfree Forest not last night. He should be resting, not traipsing across town!
“What? No, you need to lay down and recover. Nurse Redheart prescribed bed rest, and flying across town is not restful.” Ditzy told him.
“But I need to finish the delivery!” Tempest Rider’s sense of duty was clashing with Ditzy’s insistence on healing, and so far the two forces seemed evenly matched.
“Just give the package to me; I’ll deliver it.” the mare tried. Tempest fixed her with an ‘are-you-serious’ stare.
“You know I can’t let you do that.” he replied.
Ditzy bit her lip. He was right. No self-respecting mailpony would give up their mail, even to another mailpony. She had to try something else.
“Redheart said you need to stay off your leg for a few while. You should listen to her; she’s a nurse.”
“Then I won’t walk.” he countered, flaring his wings impressively. “These babies aren't just for show.”
Ditzy felt herself losing ground.
“You’re still hurt. You need to recover your energy, not fly across Ponyville.”
The stallion felt himself winning, and looked a little smug. “I am a distance deliverypony. I specialize in long-distance package delivery. A little jaunt across town isn’t going to tire me out. I’ll be fine.”
Ditzy decided to concede defeat. “Fine,” she grudgingly admitted, “You win. But I’m coming with you.”
Tempest Rider smiled brightly and turned towards the door. “Fair enough. Let’s get going; I’d rather not have this package be late than it already is.”
Halfway through walking out the door, he turned back. “Erm, where does he live again?”
~~~
The walk to Wigg Haarson’s house was uneventful, but relaxing. Tempest kept to the air, and off his hoof, while Ditzy led him on. She tried to keep a relatively slow pace, for she was still worried that the stallion would overexert himself.
The pony in question, unsurprisingly, was a wig-maker. Why a small town such as Ponyville needed a wig-maker was as-of-yet not known, but as he had been operating for years, it was assumed he made enough money to get by. To Ditzy’s knowledge, no one in town had ever actually bought a wig, so she thought that he shipped out his wigs to rich and stuffy aristocratic types who could afford to pay hundreds of bits for fake manes. Local fashionista Rarity did the same thing, after all, and she was well off.
The pegasi arrived at the shop in question in short order. The large, classical style store had vines growing down from it’s balconies like long tresses of green hair, and it’s shop window displayed wigs of such ridiculous proportions that they looked ready to fall over like so many powdery dominoes. The sign that hung above the door showed a picture of a pony’s head with long, flowing hair beneath flowery text that read “Wigg’s Wonderful Wig Workshop.” Tempest Rider, however, didn’t seem to be taking in the architecture; instead he was looking through the window to see if anyone was home.
“I suppose it would be redundant to ask if this was the place.” he said, face pressed up against the glass.
Instead of answering, Ditzy walked up to the door and knocked three times. Hearing this, Tempest flew over to the doorstep and touched down, gingerly keeping his injured hoof off of the ground. They didn’t have to wait long before the door was opened by a curious looking unicorn.
His coat was dusty tan and his eyes were jade green, and, despite his fairly young age, his mane was bone white. Or, at least, that’s what it appeared at first glance. Upon further inspection, he was wearing one of his own wigs, powdered so liberally that every turn of his head elicited a small sprinkling of white dust. He looked at the strangers on his doorstep with mild curiosity.
“Hello,” he began, voice loud and slightly nasally. “may I help you?”
Tempest Rider quickly slipped into a professional tone. “Yes, I am here to deliver a package to a Mr. Wigg Haarson.”
“Why, that would happen to be me.” he said, and then grinned so wide his face looked like it was about to split. “Oh! I bet it’s my new scissor set! I’ve been waiting for these for weeks!”
Tempest reached into his mailbag and took out a small brown box in pristine condition. He then held it out towards the now-excited unicorn, who eagerly grasped it with his magic.
“Sorry about the delay, Mr. Haarson. There was a bit of an accident in transport.”
Wigg looked back up and seemed to notice for the first time the bandages that adorned Tempest’s head and hoof. His eyes went wide as he realized the true meaning of the professionally-detached explanation that the pegasus gave.
“My word,” he nearly shouted, “Were you hurt delivering my package!? What woeful happenstance! What wretched luck! I am terribly sorry about that! Please, allow me to compensate you! How guilty I feel!” The long-winded pony then turned around and started rummaging around in his shop.
“Sir, it’s quite alright. You don’t need to pay me.” Tempest Rider said, looking slightly nervous.
“Nonsense!” he yelled, head behind the counter. “‘Always pay the courier’ is what my wonderful uncle wanted me to learn, and since you were injured in the delivery of my wondrous new tool set, it is doubly true! Besides, you wouldn’t have been wounded if it wasn’t for my wanton desires! Now, where did I put those spare bits?”
Tempest and Ditzy, who had been watching the situation unfold with some amusement, sat there for an awkward minute before Wigg walked up carrying a small cloth bag with his magic. The unicorn dropped the bundle onto Tempest’s back, the stallion looking surprised at the weight.
“There!” the wig-maker almost yelled. “That should cover any damages and bills related to your little accident. Now, go on, and remember, wander over to Wigg’s Wig Workshop when you want wonderful hairpieces!”
As the shop owner shut the door, Tempest just stood there looking shocked and slightly confused. Slowly, he turned towards Dizty, who was struggling not to laugh while one eye looked at him and the other still stared at the door.
“Did he really just pay me for being injured?”
Ditzy was never very good at restraining laughter.
~~~
On the way back, the two ponies chatted. This was the first time they had actually done so since Tempest “arrived,” so it was mostly Ditzy asking the stallion questions about himself.
Tempest hailed from Hayton, a large city some hours of flight away. He specialized in long-distance package delivery, as he had mentioned before. He had taken the Ponyville job because, funnily enough, he thought it would be a quick, easy few bits (distance jobs were paid per delivery). It seemed fate had decided to buck him in the gut with that freak storm.
“By the way, I never got to properly thank you for saving me.” he told Ditzy, having finished his story. “Not to mention finding my mailbag.”
The mare chuckled. “You’re welcome. You are very lucky I managed to find you when I did.”
“Speaking of which, how did you find me?” Tempest asked, head tilting slightly as he flew along side her.
“Mailpony sense.”
“Ah.” One does not question the wayward instincts of postal service workers.
There was another lull in the conversation. Ditzy was still going slow for Tempest’s sake. The stallion either didn’t notice or didn’t mind. Most likely the former.
“How did you manage to get caught in that storm, anyways?” Ditzy questioned, “I know the weather over the Everfree can be unpredictable, but shouldn’t you have seen the clouds before you hit them?”
“Oh, I was aiming for the storm.”
Ditzy screeched to a halt as well as she could in midair, and whipped around to look at Tempest. The stallion managed to pull a quick stop to avoid crashing into the mare’s hindquarters. She looked at him with shock and eyes intent on staring at each other.
“You what?” she nearly yelled.
“I aimed for the storm.” he unflinchingly repeated. “Flying through storms is my special talent. See?” he turned toward the side to show her his flank. More specifically, the storm cloud and wind gusts emblazoned on his flank. Ditzy was still skeptical
“If rough weather flying is your special talent, then why were you hurt?” she asked, sounding suspicious.
Tempest frowned. “Bad luck, I guess. I’m pretty sure I got beaned by the one hailstone in the whole storm system. Normally that sort of thing doesn’t happen.” Ditzy silently contemplated the argument, eyebrows furrowing and eyes swiveling.
“I suppose that’s as good of a reason somepony could give.” Ditzy admitted with a slight sigh. She resumed flying, a mildly disgruntled Tempest Rider following.
“Well, what’s your talent, then?” the stallion asked, sounding as if his pride had been hurt.
“Delivering things.”
Tempest raised an eyebrow. “How do-” he glanced at her flanks. “Bubbles relate to delivering things?”
“Well,” the mare began, smiling slightly. “What do bubbles do?” She had obviously explained this before.
“...Pop?”
“Only the bad ones.” she clarified, “The good ones don’t let anything that’s inside out, or anything outside in. I never lose a letter, or a message, or a package. I’m the most reliable mailpony in town.”
Tempest once again raised an eyebrow at the now grinning mare. “That’s some heavy symbolism there. You sure you aren’t extremely talented at popping bubble wrap?”
Ditzy responded by trying to roll at least one of her eyes. As she did so, one of her off-center ocular orbs found itself pointing skywards. She looked at the position of the sun, and gasped.
“Oh! It’s almost time to pick Dinky up from school!” she exclaimed, and looked over her shoulder at Tempest. “Do you mind if we make a stop? The school is on our way anyways.”
The gray stallion shrugged. “Sure. It’s been nice being able to fly again. Let’s go!” he punctuated the last sentence with a cry, and took off ahead of Ditzy. She watched him rocket forward for a few seconds before stopping and flying awkwardly back.
“That’s the second time I’ve done that today.” he grumbled, “I need a map.”
“Or some patience.”
“I’d prefer a map”
~~~ |
Pyromanecer | 604 | 3 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2011-10-28T07:33:08+00:00 | 2011-10-28T07:33:08+00:00 | 2,289 | Mailpony Rules
Chapter 3:
By Pyromanecer
Dinky, as usual, was vibrating with energy. Nothing particularly exciting had happened at school today, but Dinky was brimming with an eagerness she couldn’t and didn’t even try to explain. She was bouncing down the cobblestone path that lead to and from the school, heading towards the spot where her mom picks her up. Lost in the flood of students as they all rushed home, no one noticed that Dinky looked particularly chipper today.
Dimly hearing Cherilee call out to the horde to remember their homework, she continued on to the lamp post where she would meet her mother, doing a fairly good impression of Ponyville’s Party Pony. As she neared her destination, though, she was greeted by the sight of another pegasus standing next to her mother. Dinky was momentarily confused before she saw the bandages on his head and leg, and recognized him as the pony that her mother had found yesterday. At that, Dinky’s grin grew even wider. She liked the strange stallion; he was really good at Monopony. Most ponies fainted after a few minutes with her rules!
“Hi, Mama! Hi Mr. Other Mailpony!” she called as she bounded over. She skidded to a halt in front of the pair. Ditzy smiled at her warmly, while Tempest wore an amused grin at the name she had given him.
“Hello, Muffin.” Ditzy said, greeting her daughter with a nuzzle and causing Dinky to giggle. “How was school?”
“Well, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were making fun of Applebloom again. But when Diamond tried to walk away, she tripped and fell in a bush! Miss Cherilee had to send her home because she was crying about the burrs in her hair!” Somehow the filly’s smile got even wider. “And we learned about rocks!”
Ditzy laughed at that. “Very nice, Dinky. Are you ready to go home?” she asked.
“Uh-huh!”
“Well, hop on then.” the mare told her, before turning around.
As Dinky clambered onto her back, Tempest Rider looked at Ditzy with an expression somewhere between astonishment and confusion. While it was completely normal for pegasus foals to cling to their mother’s backs before they could fly, Tempest didn’t think Ditzy would be doing it with her unicorn daughter. Ditzy noticed his expression, and walked towards him
“Don’t worry, we’ve done this before.” the mare whispered as she passed. With a flap of her wings, she was in the air, daughter squealing in delight on her back. Worries not entirely assuaged, Tempest flew after them, staying close behind to catch Dinky if she fell.
~~~
A short while later, Tempest’s precautions proved unnecessary. Dinky was riding on her mother’s back like a champion. Her forehooves were in the air, and her mane and lips flapped in the wind. She was obviously having a blast.
Giggling, Dinky looked around at the skyline. She always relished a chance to fly with her mom. Even though she was a unicorn, she still had pegasus blood in her, and with that came a love of flight. Given that she had no wings of her own, this was the only way for her to scratch that particular itch.
Shaking her head and closing her mouth, Dinky turned her gaze groundward. As she watched the ponies below milling about like ants, she spotted a particularly large group resting in a large grassy field. It looked like the gathering consisted mainly of families and their young, who were frolicking about and playing in various brightly-colored pieces of playground equipment. Dinky recognized this place.
“Mom!” she shouted over the wind, “Can we go to the park?”
Ditzy thought about it as she flew. Since flying around and being distracted are generally not good combinations, she reached a conclusion quickly. “Maybe tomorrow, Muffin.” she replied, “We’re busy today.”
“Promise?”
The mare smiled. “Promise.”
“Busy doing what?” Tempest Rider asked, flying up alongside the pair. Apparently he was convinced that Dinky was safe on her mother’s back and not about to plummet onto some poor pony’s head.
“Well, we are going to go the the market later.” Ditzy told him, raising an eyebrow, “You, on the other hand, are going to be resting. Like you should have been doing.”
“Aw, come on.”
No; you’re lucky I let you deliver that package in the first place.”
Wearing an expression Ditzy would expect to see on Dinky, Tempest looked like he was about to argue. Ditzy responded by increasing her speed. The stallion huffed, and attempted to catch up.
~~~
By the time the three were beside each other again, Ditzy and Dinky were standing at their front door. Slightly out of breath, Tempest touched down next to them.
Alright, maybe I do need rest. he thought.
Almost as if Ditzy could read his mind, she turned around and looked at his tired form with an ‘I told you so’ look. Sticking his tongue out, Tempest gave her a ‘Shut up’ look.
As they walking inside, Dinky hopped off of her mother’s back. He mane was wind-ruffled and dirty from the flight home. Ditzy noticed this and told her to go clean herself up.
“A’kay,” the filly replied, “But then we get to go shopping, right?”
“Right, Muffin.”
As Dinky skipped off to the bathroom, Ditzy turned back to Tempest, one eye on him and the other taking a strong interest in the empty fireplace.
“So,” she asked, looking for a conversation topic, “How much did that strange wig-maker give you anyways?”
“Oh yeah!” the stallion said, “I forgot about that. Hold on.” Taking off his bags and setting them on the ground, Tempest began to rifle through them. Since the small cloth purse was the only thing in them, however, rifling didn’t take too long. “Found it!”
Ditzy watched as he dropped the little bag on the table, and raised her eyebrows at the solid thwack it made. As Tempest undid the neat little bow at the top, the mare decided that her suspicions were correct, and that Wigg Haarson did in fact sell outside of Ponyville. There was no way he could afford to give away that much if his only business was from Nightmare Night costumes and the deep pockets of colts who had too much to drink and a high opinion of their own humor.
Bag open, Tempest Rider looked down into his strangely-gotten earnings. His eyes widened, and Ditzy craned her neck to try and see. Slowly looking back up, he turned to Ditzy, who quickly tried to look casual.
“Back on the topic of rent,” the stallion slowly said, “Does twenty bits a day sound fair?”
It was very fair. “Fifteen.” Ditzy haggled.
“Twenty it is.” Tempest said, as he fished the correct change out of the bag. Coins in mouth, he flipped them both onto his head, and extended his neck towards the hesitant mare.
“That’s a little much.” she muttered, looking unwilling to take the injured stallion’s money.
“Hey,” he said, straightening up, “You rescued me, a stranger who you found on the edge of a notoriously dangerous forest. Not only that, but you’re letting me stay in your house while I recover. That’s probably the biggest act of kindness and generosity I’ve ever seen. I owe you a lot; you saved my life. At least let me pay the rent.” His serious tone was only slightly marred by the coins still sitting on his muzzle like two patches of bronze mud.
Ditzy allowed herself a small smile. “Alright, you win.” she conceded, sticking her hoof out, “Twenty bits it is.” Smiling at his victory, Tempest took her hoof and gave it a good shake. “You better hide that bag, though. Knowing my daughter, if Dinky finds it, she may very well eat it.”
At that moment, Dinky skipped back out into the parlour. Her mane was now clean and her face was free of the grime of school and flight. Seeing her mother, the unicorn filly hopped up beside her.
“All ready, Mama!” she said eagerly, “Can we go now?”
Grinning at her daughter’s impeccable timing, Ditzy looked down at her. “In a minute, Dinky.” she told her, before looking back up at the stallion. “Now Tempest, there’s food in the fridge if you get hungry. Don’t drink the milk; it’s past it’s expiration date. And remember, you are supposed to be resting, so try and rest.”
Tempest rolled his eyes at her. “Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry; I’ll be sure not to fight any manticores while you go to the grocer’s. Have fun.”
“Oh, wait!” Dinky cried, before dashing back down the hall. One worrying assortment of noises later, she emerged with a brightly colored cube held in her magic. “Got it!” she said, and promptly handed it to Tempest.
“Erm, thank you.” he said as he took the strange object. It was covered in stickers, apparently arranged randomly in a three-by-three grid across its six sides. Prodding at it with his hoof, Tempest was surprised to see one row rotate. “What is it?”
“It’s a Konik’s cube!” Dinky told him, beaming, “You try to get all the same colors on one side. I thought you would get bored sitting here, so I brought it out.”
“Dinky! That was very kind of you!” Ditzy said to her daughter, proudly nuzzling her on the head.
Smiling, Dinky looked back at Tempest, who was already giving the cube a few experimental twists. Slowly, her wide grin was replaced by a perplexed head tilt. Noticing the little unicorn staring at him, Tempest stopped fiddling with the toy and looked back. Deciding that she must be staring at something on his face, he crossed his eyes. Seeing the circular specks on his muzzle, he realized he had never taken the bits off his face.
“Mr. Tempest,” Dinky asked, “Why do you have money on your face?” Suddenly, her eyes widened. “Is it the kind that has chocolate in it?” Tempest Rider could almost see her salivating at the thought.
“No, Dinky, it isn’t.” Ditzy hastily interrupted. “Now come on, we need to get going.”
“‘Kay.”
Mother and daughter headed out the door. As Ditzy closed the door, her last glimpse inside was of Tempest Rider contemplating the cube, twisting it slowly and deliberately.
~~~
Sun setting behind them, Ditzy and Dinky Doo returned home. Ditzy was carrying some saddlebags on her back, overfilled with the various foodstuffs that she had bought at the market, the bags that wouldn’t fit in being carried on her wings. Dinky, on the other hoof, was levitating a chocolate bar in front of her, some of it in her mouth and more of it smeared across her face. Her mother had bought her the candy as a reward for being so thoughtful towards Tempest Rider, and Dinky was having a delightful time with it.
Approaching the door, Ditzy contemplated how to open it. Her wings were full, and she felt that if she tried to open it with her hooves, she would tip over from the weight of the stuff in her saddlebags. She didn’t want to open it with her mouth either; licking doorknobs is gross. Oh well, this is why she had a daughter.
“Dinky, can you open the door for me, please?” she asked her chocolate-covered child.
Dinky swallowed, nodded, and set her chocolate bar on her head, making her mane even more candy-coated. A faint glow surrounded the doorknob, which then twisted and swung inwards. Waltzing inside, Dinky took her candy bar from her head and continued munching, face now looking more candy than filly.
As Ditzy walked in behind her daughter, she was greeted by the sight of Tempest Rider still sitting on the couch. No longer was he slowly and contemplatively turning the cube; the colors blurred as he twisted and rotated in a frenzy, face wearing an expression that suggested the toy had just insulted his mother.
“Hello?” Ditzy asked, concerned.
Pausing in his hurricane-like attempts to solve the puzzle, Tempest jumped and looked up. “Oh, hi.” he replied, “That was a short trip. How’d it go?”
Ignoring his question, Ditzy said, “We’ve been gone for a few hours.”
Tempest looked surprised at this. “What? No way. It’s only been...” He glanced at the clock, and jumped when he noticed the position of the hands. Suddenly, his frustration returned twofold.
“Aaaargh!” he shouted, “By the stars, this thing is impossible to solve!”
Dinky chose that moment to walk back into the room, candy bar gone but candy face still present.
“I can solve it.” she cheerfully quipped.
Tempest was dubious, and slightly insulted. “Really?” he asked doubtfully, “Well, prove it.” Holding out his hoof, he waited for the filly to take the toy.
Accepting the challenge, Dinky took the puzzle in her magic and levitated it over to her face. The unicorn carefully scrutinized the cube, tongue poking out the side of her mouth as she rotated it, studying all the sides. After twenty seconds of close examination, she suddenly started twisting the cube in a whirlwind, colors fading into a uniform gray blob with the speed. Another twenty seconds of furious clacking later, she stopped. The sides of the box were now all the same color, and Dinky was grinning so widely that any normal pony would have strained a facial muscle.
“Done!” she exclaimed, setting the cube down on the table and walking back out of the room, off to do whatever little Dinkys do.
Tempest Rider was stunned. It had been hours since he had started trying to solve that thing, and now that little filly had solved it completely in under a minute. Wide-eyed, he stopped staring at the freshly-solved puzzle and looked up at Ditzy, who was trying, and failing, to stifle a laugh and a smile.
“H-How did she do that?” he asked. Recalling the incident in slightly better detail, he added, “And why was she covered in chocolate?”
“Dinky’s a special one.” she replied, chuckling, simultaneously answering both questions. “I’m not sure even I understand her, and I’m her mother.”
Ditzy gave Tempest Rider another minute to brood. Tempest opted to spend that minute looking shamefacedly at the cube he had failed to solve. Glancing at the clock herself, she noticed the late hour. Trotting over to where he sat, Ditzy put a hoof around his shoulder.
“Come on, mopey.” she said, thumping him on the back, “It’s almost time to turn in. I’ll show you to the guest room.” Silently, Tempest followed, feeling his wounded pride hurt more than his bandaged legs.
The space in the guest room was primarily taken up by the bed in the center of the room. There was also a chest of simple, but functional drawers and a mirror for the resident’s viewing pleasure. The light curtains on the single window were pulled back, letting the moonlight shine in. Two candles flanked the inside of the doorway, of which only one was lit, and a lamp rested on a small table next to the bed, currently turned off. Sparsely decorated, the room had few personal touches. The scent of clean non-use permeated the room, testament to the fact that this room was rarely occupied.
Feeling exhausted from his strange day, Tempest yawned and flopped down on the bed, burying his face in the pillows.
“G’night.” Tempest mumbled into to spread, content to lie on top of the covers for the time being.
“Good night.” Ditzy replied, blowing out the candle near the doorway.
“Thanks again for letting me stay; you’re really nice.”
Ditzy smiled at the compliment. “No problem. It’s been fun having you here.”
Just before she closed the door, Ditzy remembered something. “By the way, I have the day off tomorrow, so me and Dinky are going to the park.”
“I’ll come,” Tempest replied, twisting his head so he could look at her with one eye, “As long as there aren’t any squares.”
~~~ |
Pyromanecer | 604 | 4 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2011-10-28T07:32:13+00:00 | 2011-10-28T07:32:13+00:00 | 2,217 | Mailpony Rules
Chapter 4:
By Pyromanecer
As Celestia’s sun rose, houses all across Ponyville found themselves slowly filling with light. Patches of warm sun crept across the inside of various dwellings, sequentially lighting different bits of interior flooring as the sun continued its path across the morning sky. One of these splotches happened to be crawling across the bedroom of a certain mailmare, who was enjoying the fact that today was a day where she could sleep in. Disdainful of this fact, the spot of light coming through her window continued moving, eventually alighting on her face.
Grumbling, Ditzy Doo closed her eyes tighter, attempting to block out the soft orange glow that filtered through her eyelids. When that failed to block out the spots, she tried covering her face with her hooves. To no avail, it turned out, as she realized she was already awake. Ditzy sighed, and resigned herself to the fact that it was time to get up.
Grudging determination gained, she opened her eyes, only to immediately squint them when the sun metaphorically slapped her in the face with light. After rubbing her eyes to clear the colorful specks, Ditzy tried to open them again. When she managed this, she nearly had a heart attack as she saw what was sitting in front of her.
Dinky, blond mane turned shining golden in the sun, was right in front of her face. Since Ditzy was lying down, her daughter’s eyes were level with her own, which did nothing to alleviate the sheer creepiness of the situation. Below the happy, staring eyes was a smile so large that it dwarfed the rest of her face. The unicorn filly was not doing anything. No sound, no movement, just sitting there. Staring.
After Ditzy recovered from her silent heart attack, she softly spoke.
“Dinky, what are you doing?”
The filly’s smile didn’t falter. “Waiting for you to get up.”
Ditzy blinked. “H-how long have you been there?” she asked.
Dinky looked at her wrist. While her mother was trying to figure out what she was trying to do, Dinky replied, “A while.”
The pegasus contemplated this for a moment, and then sat up and kicked off the covers. “Don’t do that, Muffin,” she said, “It’s creepy.”
“‘Kay,” the small unicorn replied, using her magic to make the bed. Ditzy grunted her thanks as stretched at the foot of the bed, wings flaring and back arched. “Mistah Tempest is making breakfast downstairs. He told me to tell you to come down whenever you’re ready.”
Ditzy lowered her wings and turned to face her daughter, smiling. “That’s kind of him.” she said, one eye looking at Dinky and the other admiring herself in the mirror. “You want to go eat?”
“Uh-huh!”
“Well then, hop on,” Ditzy told her, turning around again. Dinky giggled and jumped onto her mother’s back. The pegasus smiled again and began to walk downstairs, a delicious smell wafting up from the kitchen.
The pair came into the kitchen just as Tempest Rider was setting the third plate down on the table. Looking up at them, he grinned.
“Morning,” he greeted as Dinky jumped from her mother’s back to her special chair. Raising an eyebrow at this display of agility, he looked at Ditzy. “Sleep well?”
“Very,” she replied, sitting down. “Work is nice, but so are days off.”
Tempest nodded in agreement, and pulled up a chair for himself. He began eating, and Ditzy looked down at her plate. Her head tilted to the side as she realized she didn’t know what this was. It looked like an omelette, but different somehow. There appeared to be chunks of something in it, along with bits of something green.
Trying not to be impolite, Ditzy asked, “What is it?”
“Good!” Dinky replied, already eating with gusto, a bit of egg handing off her horn.
Smirking at the complement to his cooking, Tempest looked at Ditzy. “It’s something I learned to make when I realized that I lived alone and couldn’t cook. I call it an Amalagamlette. You pretty much look in the fridge and put whatever you think would taste good together in an omelette.” Nodding towards his plate, he added, “This one has potatoes, cheese, and spinach. I have to say, I like the combination.”
As Tempest went back to eating, Ditzy looked at her plate, shrugged, and took a big bite. It was delicious. She would have to remember the recipe.
After everyone had finished eating and was sitting contentedly at the table, Dinky looked at her mother.
“So we’re going to the park today, right Mama?” she asked, obviously excited.
“Right, Muffin.”
Dinky was bouncing in her seat with excitement. “When do we get to go?”
Glancing at the clock on the wall, the mare replied, “Well, we could probably go...” she stopped as one of her eyes looked back at Dinky. “...After you go wipe breakfast off your face.”
Dinky was most certainly a mess. There was a piece of spinach above her eye and the bit of egg on her horn was still dangling there like a misplaced yellow earring. Her face was covered in melted cheese and chunks of potato were stuck to her cheeks.
Before Ditzy could discern any more details about the pseudo-omelette that was her daughter, Dinky dashed off, probably intending to clean up as quickly as possible so she could get to the park sooner. Chuckling, the mare turned back towards Tempest, where she was greeted with a similar sight.
It seemed that Dinky and Tempest Rider subscribed to the same school of table manners. Coagulating cheese was smeared across his face like mud at a spa, and spinach studded his face, making it look like he had some horrible flesh-eating disease. Feeling someone looking at him, the stallion turned towards Ditzy and looked back.
“What?” he asked.
Ditzy bit her lip, trying not to laugh. “...You go clean up too.”
~~~
After the two were satisfactorily mess-free, Ditzy led them to the park. Located near the center of town, the park was a quaint green field nestled in the otherwise urban area. Currently, it was filled with a multitude of ponies simply out enjoying the sunshine. Foals were playing on the brightly-colored playsets, while parents and other adults were lounging on the park benches, chatting airily with each other or simply enjoying the nice weather.
As soon as Ditzy touched down, Dinky leaped off her back and dashed over to play with the other young ones. Watching her daughter run off, Ditzy turned to Tempest Rider, one eye still watching to make sure the filly didn’t break the sound barrier.
“So, what do you want to do?” she asked.
Looking around, Tempest searched for something that caught his eye. Honestly, he kind of wanted to play on the slides. Figuring that would be more than a little creepy and not exactly good for his injured wing, he opted for a bench instead. Finding an unoccupied one sitting nicely in the shade of a large tree, he pointed his hoof towards it.
“How about sit?” he said.
Ditzy nodded. “Sounds nice,” she replied, heading off in the direction of the appointed bench. “It’s perfect lounging weather today.”
It really is, thought Tempest, gliding after the mare. It was warm, but not hot. A pleasant breeze blew through the town just enough to take the edge off of the heat. It wasn’t quite summer yet, so Ponyville was spared the oppressive humidity of the mid-year months in favor of the light springtime air.
Touching down on the bench, Tempest settled next to Ditzy. The latter sighed contentedly and leaned back farther, half-closing her eyes. Watching the hazy pattern of dappled light filtering through the leaves, she relaxed and simply enjoyed her day off, dozing.
Not two minutes later, she felt Tempest prodding her side. She half-heartedly opened one eye, focusing on him with mild annoyance.
“Erm, Ditzy,” he began, sounding slightly nervous and pointing with a hoof, “Is Dinky supposed to be doing that?”
Directing her singular optical orb toward the playground, she saw her daughter on the roof of one of the tall plastic huts, blowing raspberries at one of the colts. She smiled at this, finding the sight amusing.
“Don’t worry about her,” she assuaged as Dinky leapt from the roof to one of the small catwalks, “Dinky’s the most sure-footed thing I’ve ever seen. I’d think her father was part mountain goat if I didn’t know any better.”
“Speaking of which, who is her father?” Tempest asked, before hastily adding, “I-I mean if it’s not a bad subject or anything.”
“Not at all,” Ditzy replied, adjusting her position, “I don’t mind.” She gave him a moment to sigh in relief, and then resumed speaking.
“Not long after finishing Mailpony College, a new pony came to town. He was a traveling magician, and he came to Ponyville for a show and to spread his reputation.” Ditzy smiled at the memory. “He was so delightfully charming. And talented, too! He made fireworks and breathed fire and told the most fascinating stories! Everypony loved his performance, and Pinkie Pie, our resident Party Pony, threw a special post-show party for him. At the party, we started talking and, *cough* , drinking a little. I ended up inviting him to my house and...” At this point, Ditzy shifted and looked embarrassed.
“Well, anyways, when we woke up the next morning, we were both felt very awkward. That afternoon, he packed up his caravan and we said our strange little goodbyes. I haven’t seen him since.” The mare looked happy as she went through her old memories. “Several months later, Dinky was born. Personally, I think she looks more like me.”
“Wow,” Tempest said, “Sounds like life threw you a curve-ball.”
“Maybe,” Ditzy replied thoughtfully, “But I don’t see it like that. I feel more like Celestia gave me a little gift. I’d always wanted a foal, and now I had one. If I had the chance to change the outcome, I don’t think I would. Dinky is a wonderful daughter.”
Almost as if she could tell the two adults were discussing her, Dinky looked up from the tower she had been building out of woodchips. Glancing over her shoulder, she ran towards the park bench where the pair was sitting. Approaching her mother, she launched herself at the pegasus and wrapped her arms around her middle. Ditzy looked surprised for a moment, but then smiled and returned the hug.
After Dinky untangled herself from her mother, she turned towards Tempest. She looked at him for a moment, and then gave him the same treatment. Unsure of how to respond, Tempest tussled her mane a bit and awkwardly hugged back.
Surprise affection attack over, Dinky turned and sprinted back to her woodchip tower, off to defend it from any would-be besiegers.
Ditzy’s smile hadn’t left her face. “...Even if she is disturbingly clairvoyant.”
Tempest felt a grin of his own forming. “That was sweet,” he said. “And unexpected.”
The two lapsed into comfortable silence. Ditzy was watching her daughter play with the other foals, and Tempest watched the clouds roll lazily past.
Sitting up, Tempest decided to renew the conversation.
“As long as we’re discussing things I’m feeling awkward asking you about, what’s with your eyes? Were you born like that, or..” he asked, trailing off towards the end.
Smiling mischievously, Ditzy skillfully swiveled her eyes in opposite directions. “Actually, there’s a pretty good story behind how I got these babies. You see, it all started many years ago when I was a member of the Equestrian Secret Royal Air-force...”
~~~
“Hey!” the small orange colt shouted, “That’s cheating, Dinky! Get down!”
Dinky grinned down at the ground-bound earth pony. “Is not!” she yelled back, “You never said I couldn’t go on the roof!”
The colt stomped his hoof and glared up at the filly on top of the playset. She had climbed up to where he couldn’t get to, and it was frustrating him to no end. He’d be “it” for forever at this rate.
“How am I supposed to tag you if I can’t reach you?” he hollered.
“I dunno,” she giggled, hanging her head over the edge. “Figure something out, Almond!”
Almond slammed his nut-studded rump down on the ground, furiously trying to think of a way to get to Dinky. Finding his hooves devoid of answers, he instead started staring about at the other ponies he saw playing. His eyes scanned the various children, before alighting on something that gave him an idea. Smirking evilly, he jumped up and started running off toward what he saw.
From her vantage point, Dinky could only watch as Almond dashed out of sight. Unable to follow his progress, the filly instead started trying to guess what he was going to try. Before her psychic powers could activate, however, Almond came back into view, this time dragging another colt. A pegasus.
“Oh no,” she breathed as Almond whispered in the new-arrival's, Cirrus, ear, pointing in her direction. The pair nodded, and Almond slapped the white pegasus’s hoof. The colt rose into the air and aimed himself in her direction. Then he took off like a rocket.
“Eep!” Dinky shrieked delightedly as the white streak barreled towards her. Leaping off the roof, she landed on an adjacent railing just as the Cirrus whizzed by like a furry lightning bolt. Tracking his progress with her eyes, she watched as he pulled a wide turn and started heading her way again. She wisely decided to jump off the railing and onto a nearby slide, before hopping down onto the ground. As soon as her hooves hit the earth, the pegasus shot past her head and landed, hooves gouging trenches in the woodchips as he slid. Dinky didn’t see the impressive 180 he managed to pull by the end of his skid, as she was already sprinting in the other direction.
The unicorn panted as she hauled tail away from her adversary. The only thought in her mind was to put as much distance between her and “it” as possible. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw that Cirrus was gaining on her, now on foot since they were under the playsets. Turning back to the direction she was running, she was just in time to see Almond leap in front of her path.
“Gotcha!” he cried triumphantly, rearing onto his back hooves to grab her. His satisfied smirk turned into a shocked expression as Dinky charged into him headlong. Similarly unable to stop, Cirrus barreled into the two, sending them tumbling in a ball of bodies and limbs.
When the three finally came to a rest, Almond was belly-down in the dirt with Dinky on top of him, while Cirrus was sprawled against them, tail trapped on the bottom. After shaking his head to clear the stars, the pegasus was the first to speak.
“So, um, who’s it now?” he asked. Dinky responded by giggling, which Almond soon joined in on. Soon, the jumbled heap of ponies was turned into a laughing jumbled heap of ponies.
Almond was the first to recover. “He he, hoo...” he finished, wiping his eye. “That was fun. Anyways, can you get off me, Dinky? You’re kinda heavy.”
Dinky rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Hmm...” she pondered, “Nah. You can stay there.”
“Hey!” he protested, as Dinky and Cirrus dissolved back into giggles. Pouting, he crossed his arms as he waited for them to let him up.
~~~
“...and after I channeled the entire lightning storm into the serpent’s exposed brain, he finally died. Unfortunately, all that electricity messed up my mind. Specifically, the part that controls my eyes. I’ve been like this ever since.” Ditzy finished, rubbing an eye for emphasis.
Tempest Rider raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Uh-huh,” he said, doubtfully. “So that’s how it happened?”
“Yep.”
“Really?”
“No, of course not,” she said, jokingly looking at him like he was stupid. “That’s ridiculous. I was born like this.” Ditzy shrugged. “Honestly, I can’t imagine not being able to see two things at once.”
“Well,” Tempest began, putting on a false air of wisdom, “It’s a lot like what you see, only half as much.”
Ditzy chuckled at the witty response. “Good one,” she said. “Now it’s my turn.”
“Your turn to what?”
“Ask questions,” she answered, scooting closer. “For example, why did you pick long-distance delivery as a specialty?”
“Because I don’t like flying over large crowds of ponies.” Tempest replied.
Ditzy stared (sort of) a little. “That’s... specific.” she said.
“The fact that I can fly strait through storms kinda works in my favor too,” he continued. “And you should see some of the crowds in Hayton. Some of the city blocks probably have more ponies than your entire town. And when they’re all talking and shuffling around on the street they make all these crazy updrafts and air currents that are really hard to fly in and aren’t helped at all by the twenty pounds of letters in my bag.”
“So you’d rather fly halfway across Equestria than deal with crowds?”
Tempest nodded. “Much rather.”
“...Alright,” Ditzy said, “Moving on. Um, what’s your house like?”
Rubbing his chin, Tempest thought about how to answer. “OK,” he began, having decided, “Imagine your house.”
Ditzy waited for him to continue, before she realized that that was a command. “Oh! Um, OK, I’m imagining it.” she replied, closing her eyes.
“Good,” Tempest told her, nodding despite the fact that she couldn’t see him. “Now, it’s nothing like that.”
Opening her eyes, Ditzy glared as Tempest chuckled slightly. “Ha ha,” she sarcastically laughed. “Now, how about some real information?”
“There’s nothing to say about it, really,” Tempest said, ending his laugh with a little snort. “It’s a city apartment. Four walls and a bed. The neighbors are alright, though, and there aren’t roaches everywhere, so it could definitely be worse.”
Suddenly, Tempest shuddered. “And it has been. I’ve had some really bad flat mates before. Want to hear about them?”
Ditzy shrugged. “Sure, go ahead.”
Eyes gleaming, Tempest started his story. “Alright, so once, there was this snake charmer guy that moved in above me...”
~~~
“...and then animal control walked back out of the building with twenty cages and lots of scratches. We still don’t know how he smuggled three dozen squirrels into the building, or how he got them so aggressive, but the scientist guy was evicted that day. He might be in jail now.”
Gasping, Ditzy tried to stop laughing long enough to respond. She was unable to decide whether she should feel sorry for all the unpleasantness Tempest had to go through for these stories or continue to laugh at the tales of his horrible neighbors.
Around the point where Tempest was wondering if she was choking instead of laughing and was contemplating the Heimlich maneuver, the mare finally managed to calm down enough to speak. “Wow,” she said, pausing for another chuckle, “I haven’t laughed that hard in ages. You have a way with stories.”
Tempest shrugged. “Years of long flights by myself have give me a rather entertaining internal voice,” he explained. "It also helps having funny experiences with crazy ponies in the same building to talk about."
“I can’t imagine living near ponies like that,” Ditzy continued after an amused snort. “Most citizens of Ponyville are really nice. It must be really frustrating sharing a building with such bothersome ponies.”
“Why do you think I deliver things to far away places?” Tempest joked, raising an eyebrow. “Honestly, though, it’s not really that horrible. Most of the time my neighbors are just occasionally obnoxious. Day-in day-out annoyances generally get evicted pretty quickly.”
At the mention of the word “day,” Ditzy looked to the sky. She was shocked to see that several hours had already passed since they arrived, and that it was already lunch time. A little past, in fact.
Following her gaze, Tempest too noted the position of the sun. “Wow,” he said. “Time flies when you’re having fun, huh?”
“Yeah,” Ditzy replied, standing up. “It’s already time to eat. Dinky!”
Hearing her mother’s call, the filly looked up from what she was doing, which was, currently, holding Almond’s hoof. Behind his head. While he was face-down in the dirt.
“What?” she called back.
“It’s time for lunch! Let’s go!”
“Aw!” Dinky complained, releasing Almond from the hold she had him in. Almond grunted and got up, rubbing his shoulder. The colt winced again as Dinky surprise-hugged him.
“Bye, Almond!” she said.
Hesitantly returning the hug, Almond answered “Bye, Dinky.”
Before the earth pony could react, Dinky dashed off towards her mother, leaving him slightly confused and with a sore arm. On her way, she called back over her shoulder.
“By the way, I won!”
Oblivious to what they had been competing in, Almond just watched her run.
As her daughter approached, Ditzy turned to Tempest.
“So,” she began, “Where do you think we should eat?”
Tempest stared at her blankly. “I don’t know where anything is,” he replied, “I only got here a couple days ago.”
“Oh, right,” Ditzy said, blushing a little and feeling dumb. “Sorry.”
By this point, Dinky had walked up to the pair. She sat down on the ground in front of them, pouting slightly at having to leave, but happy that they were going to get food.
“Well, Dinky,” Ditzy asked, turning to the filly and trying to dismiss the folly she had just made, “Where do you think we should go to eat?”
“Um...” the small unicorn mumbled, thinking, “Sugar Cube Corner?”
“Food, Muffin. Not treats.”
“...Oh! How about the Sandwich Place?”
“Great idea, Dinky!” Ditzy said, bending down so the small unicorn could climb on her back. Once she felt the familiar weight settle between her wings, she stood back up. “Ready?”
“Ready!” the filly exclaimed, already excited about the prospect of flying again.
With that, the pair took to the skies, Tempest Rider following close behind. Flying next to the mare, Tempest turned to look at her.
“So where is this ‘Sandwich Place?’” he asked, whilst Dinky giggled and made her gums flap in the wind.
“It’s on the other side of town,” she answered, speaking loudly to be heard over the wind. “It’s a little cafè owned by a local family. It’s pretty nice.”
“Why is it called the Sandwich Place?”
“It’s not,” Ditzy replied, nodding to her oblivious daughter. “That’s just Dinky’s name for it. She likes the place a lot.”
Tempest shrugged. “I take it she likes the sandwiches?”
“They don’t serve sandwiches.”
Now Tempest was just confused. “Then why does she-”
“It’s better not to ask.”
~~~ |
Pyromanecer | 604 | 5 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2011-11-29T02:32:11+00:00 | 2011-11-29T02:32:11+00:00 | 2,279 | Mailpony Rules
Chapter 5
“Well, Mr. Rider, you seem to be healing up nicely.” Nurse Redheart said, reading her clipboard.
It was the day after the visit to the park, and Tempest Rider was getting a check up at the hospital. After Redheart had removed the bandages from Tempest’s head and leg, she had been pleased to see that the wounds were cleanly sealed and free of infection. As the nurse had poked and prodded at his tender flesh, Tempest had fidgeting uncomfortably on the tissue paper-covered table. Meanwhile, Ditzy had sat in the corner, quietly reading a magazine article about some celebrity’s new foal, one eye disinterestedly scanning the page while the other watched the examination.
Tempest looked at Redheart hopefully. "Really?" he asked.
"Yes," the nurse replied. "I'd say you're ready for regular flying."
"Does that mean I can fly back to Hayton now?"
Upon hearing this, Nurse Redheart nearly dropped her clipboard. "Hayton?" she exclaimed, "My goodness, no! That is much too far!"
Tempest looked irritated. "I can make it," he insisted, "I'm a long-distance courier. I do that sort of thing all the time."
"Absolutely not," Redheart asserted, stomping her hoof.
"But-"
"While I have no doubt in your athletic skill," the white mare interrupted, "Your body is not ready for such a journey. If you attempt it, you will quickly overexert yourself and probably end up getting hurt again. It is in your best interest to wait."
Tempest stared defiantly at Redheart for a while, before sighing and slumping his shoulders discouragedly. "Fine," he mumbled, "How long?"
"I'd say five days minimum," she said, tapping her chin. "A week to be safe."
"That long!?" Tempest groaned despairingly.
"Afraid so," the earth pony replied. "Until then, try to get some light exercise and do some stretches."
As Tempest snorted, Ditzy, who had been watching the exchange with some amusement, stood up. Tossing aside the magazine full of gossip about famous ponies she didn't care about, she looked at Redheart.
"Will that be all?" she asked.
"Yes," the nurse answered, "You are free to leave."
Tempest Rider immediately hopped up from the table and made for the exit, looking dejected. Before Ditzy could follow, however, Nurse Redheart put a hoof on her shoulder.
"A moment, please," she whispered. After making sure Tempest had left the room, she continued. "I'd like you to watch him, Ditzy. He seems like he kind of pony that would ignore my advice if he didn't like it."
Ditzy nodded and whispered back. "Don't worry; I'll keep one eye on him."
Redheart paused. The she chuckled. "You know," she said, "For most ponies, that would be a figure of speech."
Dizty grinned. "I'm not most ponies."
~~~
Ditzy and Tempest were walking down the street in the midday sun. Tempest had his head down, and looked as forlorn as a lost puppy. Seeing this, Ditzy decided to give him a playful nudge.
"Come on," she said, "Cheer up. You just got a clean bill of health."
"Yeah," he replied, "But I was kind of hoping I'd be able to fly back to Hayton today."
"Are you that eager to get home?"
"Honestly, no," he admitted, "But I still feel awkward staying in your house."
“Hey,” Ditzy asserted, one eye looking at him seriously while the other gave the clouds a particularly intense glare, “You shouldn’t. You have every right to be there. You’re paying rent fair and square, and against my insistence, I might add. As long as I’m here, you are perfectly welcome in my house.”
Tempest gave the mare an grateful smile. “Thanks,” he said, “I appreciate that.”
Looking up into the sky, he gave a frustrated sigh. “But still, what am I going to do for an entire week? Sitting around doing nothing gets boring after a couple hours, let alone seven days.”
Ditzy ‘hmm’d and rubbed her chin, trying to come up with an idea. Suddenly, her eyes flashed. “Weellll,” she drawled, grinning at her idea, “The nurse did say you should get some exercise, right?”
“Yeah,” Tempest grumpily replied, glaring at the the dirt in what might have been an attempt to intimidate it into inspiring him.
“Well then, maybe you should do something that requires flying around,” Ditzy said, trying to edge him on.
When the only reply Tempest gave was a grunt, the mailmare tried again. “Maybe something you’re familiar with...?”
“That would be a good idea,” he agreed, her words making a ‘whoosh’ sound as they flew over his head.
Losing patience, Ditzy stopped Tempest and turned his head towards her. “Think, Tempest,” she commanded, “What do you do for a living?”
“...Deliver things?” he replied, confused and a little frightened.
Nodding, Ditzy continued. “So, what do you think you should do...?”
Tempest only stared blankly back at her.
Sighing in exasperation, Ditzy took her hooves off his face. “Get a job at the post office, you dunce!” she told him, bopping him on the nose.
“Oh. Ohhhh!” Tempest said, realization dawning in his eyes. “Like a mail route!”
“Great Celestia, he understands! It’s a miracle!” Ditzy cried, sarcastically waving her hooves in the air.
“That’s a great idea!” the stallion exclaimed happily, choosing to ignore Ditzy’s exaggerated display. “This way, my boss won’t yell at me for slacking off when I get back!”
It was true; the EPPS was a national enterprise, with outposts in many places. If Tempest logged hours here, they would count the same as if he had logged them over in Hayton. It was something that he had taken advantage of many times when he had been sent to more vacation-y places and didn’t want to leave for a while. Indeed, many long-distance specialists practiced this, which was part of the reason jobs were always available. It was strange that he hadn’t thought of it sooner.
“There we go,” Ditzy said, good-naturedly headbutting his shoulder. “That fixes both your problems. Now that we have a plan of action, what should we do?”
“Let’s go get me signed up,” he enthusiastically replied. “I want to start tomorrow!”
“Well then, post office is this way!”
~~~
An hour later, and after a fair amount of credential-checking, Ditzy and Tempest exited the Ponyville Post Office, one smiling and one hovering excitedly.
“Well,” Ditzy asked. “How do you feel about your new route?”
“Great!” Tempest replied, beaming. Suddenly, he sobered up. “Your boss has facial hair.”
“Yeah,” Ditzy said, raising an eyebrow. “I’m not sure how he does it; I’ve never seen another stallion with anything like it.”
“I have,” the stallion told her. “My boss.”
“Huh, that’s odd.”
“Maybe it’s a boss thing,” Tempest contemplated. “Like, if you get a high enough position in something, they teach you how to grow a beard.”
Ditzy scoffed. “Right. Because everypony in a position of power aspires to have facial hair.”
Unbidden, an image of Princess Celestia with a handlebar moustache popped into both of their minds. Tempest snerked, while Ditzy stifled a giggle.
“Well,” the mare said, clearing her throat. “We should probably get home.”
“Already?” Tempest asked, looking at the sky. “It’s still early.”
“Oh, believe me, you’re going to need all the sleep you can get.”
“Why’s that?” Tempest asked, suspicious.
Ditzy allowed herself a mischievous grin. “Because you’ve got a mail route tomorrow.”
~~~
“Rise and shine!”
Startled, Tempest yelped and fell out of bed. Crashing onto the floor, he waved his limbs around in a panic, succeeding only in entangling himself in the covers. After a few moments of blindly rolling around on the floor and making noises somewhere between a choking goat and a particularly ill-tempered turkey, the pegasus eventually righted himself, sitting up with a blanket hooding his head and an irritated scowl.
“What the hay was that for!?” he yelled at Ditzy, who was standing in the doorway and laughing.
Once she calmed down, Ditzy spoke. “It’s time to get up,” she said with a chuckle.
“What?” Tempest barked. Looking out the window, he saw the sun was barely peeking above the horizon. “No way; it’s too early.”
“Mailponies get up early,” Ditzy told him, smiling with a mixture of smugness and amusement. “Now come on, Mr. Long-Distance, it’s time for breakfast.”
With that, the mare turned and left. Grumbling, Tempest followed, stopping once to stumble over the blanket again. A whispered curse and a trip down the stairs later, he arrived at the kitchen table, rubbing his eyes. Seated before him in her special chair was Dinky, looking at him happily and tauntingly awake.
“Morning, mistah Tempest!” she greeted.
“Morning, runt,” he replied, taking the opportunity to stretch. He sighed in relief as he heard his spine pop, and flapped his wings a little to get the blood flowing. The breeze created by this movement caused a small piece of paper on the floor to flutter across the room and mussed up Dinky’s mane.
“Oops, sorry,” he apologized, patting the filly’s little blond mop back into place. She giggled as he did so, making him crack a small smile.
Hearing a clunk from behind him, Tempest turned around and saw Ditzy setting a plate on the table, with two more on her back. All plates had a neat stack of pancakes on them, still steaming from being hot off the oven.
“Pancakes!” Dinky cried, throwing her hooves in the air in excitement.
“S’right,” Ditzy mumbled around the plate in her mouth. Setting the last one down on the table, she sat down. “I hope you both like them.”
Setting himself down in front of a plate, Tempest eagerly took a bite of the one on top.
“It’s delicious!” he complimented. Dinky, however, didn’t respond. She was too busy burying her face in the entire stack and munching noisily.
And they were! They were so soft, and fluffy, and golden, and tasty, and fluffy, and warm, and soft, and aromatic, and buttery, and soft...
“Mama?”
“Yes, Dinky?”
“Mistah Tempest fell asleep on the pancakes.”
Indeed he had. His head was resting on his breakfast, using the cakes as an impromptu pillow. His mouth hung open and drool and bits of partially-masticated foodstuffs dribbled out.
Ditzy laughed. “Yes, I can see that,” she said.
“...Can I pour syrup on his head?”
“No, Muffin. That would be mean.”
“Aw...”
~~~
Stumbling, Tempest Rider trotted through the door of the Ponyville Post Office, right behind a much more alert Ditzy. Squinting at the bright light, he managed to see the blurry shapes of a few ponies conversing among themselves. The rest of the mail crew, his sleep-addled brain surmised. Following the vague grey shape of Ditzy’s back, he walked up to the front desk.
“Hey, boss,” Ditzy said.
Hearing this, Tempest jolted upright and shook his head, trying to appear more awake. Looking in front of him, he saw the same large brown pegasus stallion that had been there yesterday. His chin was preposterously large and covered in 5-o’clock shadow, and atop his head sat a black baseball cap. Feeling eyes upon him, the stallion looked right at Tempest.
“Ah!” he greeted, voice loud and gravelly. “The fresh blood! Tempest, right? From the Hayton branch?”
“Yes, sir,” Tempest replied, visibly trying to stifle a yawn.
The stallion noticed this. “Something wrong, recruit?”
“No, sir. Just a little tired, sir.”
“Tired?” the pegasus repeated, then chuckled. “He he, isn’t that cute?” Suddenly, he slammed his hooves on the table and shouted in Tempest’s face. “BUT IT’S WRONG!”
“AAH!” Tempest screamed, jumping in the air and flying backwards. Heart pounding, he stopped about twenty feet off the ground and twenty-five away. Looking down, he managed to stop his hyperventilating for long enough to notice that everypony was laughing, including Ditzy and the boss pony. Suspiciously, he flew back down to the counter.
The brown stallion was still holding his sides by time Tempest touched down. “Hehehehe,” he wheezed, “I love doing that.”
Tempest glared at him. “Right,” he said angrily, stalwartly ignoring the fact that the entire crew was laughing, “Mind telling me what that was about?”
“Boss likes to do that to all new recruits,” Ditzy interjected for her boss, who was still trying to catch his breath. “He thinks it’s hilarious.”
“It is!” Boss gasped. Judging by the guffawing of all the other mailponies, they thought so too. “He actually flew away! Backwards! AHAHAHAHA!”
Seeing Tempest’s scowl, Ditzy decided to try and redirect attention from him. “Don’t worry,” she soothed, patting him on the back. “He did it to all of us. Personally, I ducked beneath the counter.”
“I screamed and jumped!” one pegasus called from the crowd.
“I almost fainted!” cried a unicorn.
“Raindrop punched him in the face!” yelled somepony from the back.
“It was a reflex!” a dark yellow pegasus with a teal mane protested. “I didn’t mean it!”
“My flank you didn’t mean it...” Boss grumbled, rubbing his stubbly cheek at the memory. Thus sobered, he looked towards Tempest. “Anyways, your cargo and route are on the table in the back room. Start time is in ten minutes. I suggest you get ready.”
“Yes sir,” Tempest replied, and marched off to get his things.
“Oh, and one more thing.”
“Sir?”
“Get some coffee, boy. You need to be awake.”
A minute later, Tempest walked into the break room properly burdened with mail and a list of homes on his route. He set the paper down on the table and grabbed a steaming mug from a nearby table, absentmindedly sipping it as he read over the parchment. Peering over his shoulder, Ditzy examined the addresses on the paper.
“Ooh, good,” she said. “Your last house is right near mine. We can meet up for lunch!”
“Ok, sure,” Tempest answered, not taking his eyes off the table. “How long should this take?”
“Depends on the day,” the mare explained. “Usually, we finish around noon, maybe a little before. Then we head back here and help with packages. After our break, of course.
Tempest nodded. “Of course.” Looking up, he asked, “Where should we meet?”
“I’ll be waiting near your last house.”
“Oh?” Tempest asked, raising an eyebrow in challenge. “What makes you think you’ll get done before me?”
“Simple,” Ditzy said, smiling confidently, “I know where I’m going. You’re going to be spending half the time looking at your list.”
“You’re on,” the stallion agreed, holding out his hoof.
An amused smirk on her face, Ditzy shook his foreleg. “On?” she questioned. “Is this a contest now?”
“It’s a bet,” Tempest answered, looking smug. “Whoever finishes last has to...” Suddenly, his eyes lit up. “Has to buy lunch! Deal?”
Ditzy rolled her eyes (in opposite directions). “Deal.”
“Good,” he said, before dashing out the door at top speed.
Ditzy watched him go, and chuckled, before following him at a more leisurely pace. She wondered when he was going to come back for his list
~~~
Lying leisurely in the dappled shade of a tree, Ditzy watched other ponies go about their business. Lunch hour was just beginning, and the traffic on the streets was starting to increase. Groups of workponies intermingled as they walked towards whatever destination they had in mind. Families with foals too young to go to school were out enjoying the sunshine or going for a little jaunt down the street to keep them awake on such a lazy-feeling day.
Just as she considered the possibility of taking a short nap, Ditzy spotted Tempest, mailbag in tow, flying in her direction. With one eye on him and the other watching a potted plant, she saw the incredulous look on his face as he saw her. Gliding down to his last delivery of the morning, he snappily popped the letters in the mailbox and made his way over to her tree.
“How did you get done so fast?” he asked with a disbelieving tone.
“Years of experience,” Ditzy cheerfully replied. “Actually, I’m impressed you got done so quickly; I’ve only been here for a few minutes. Lots of the new recruits don’t get done until past noon.”
Tempest snorted. “Well, it’s not like I’ve never delivered things before.”
Ditzy chuckled. “Now, about that bet...”
“Yes, you won,” Tempest sighed in acceptance. “I’m buying. Where should we go?”
“I know a place,” Ditzy replied as she sat up and stretched. “Follow me.”
~~~
“‘The Porcelain Horseshoe?’” Tempest asked, staring up at the large wooden sign. Above the diner’s name was a picture of an immense horseshoe painted a shining alabaster white. A slightly ajar cerulean door leaked an aroma that smelled slightly like cinnamon.
“Sounds froofy, I know,” Ditzy said as she trotted inside, “But this place has the best sweetbread I’ve ever tasted.”
Doubtful, Tempest followed. Upon entering, he was greeted with a sight he most certainly didn’t expect. While the name made it sound like a high-class club where rich ponies would gather to discuss their favorite types of imported cheeses and flick cashews at plebeians, the inside gave off an atmosphere of friendliness and joviality. Ponies sitting at tables talked and laughed with each other in between bouts of stuffing their faces with food. The decor seemed to have a theme of “blue,” with the walls being painted sky-tones, the floor being cobalt tiles, and the tables being a rich indigo. What Tempest assumed to be the restaurant's namesake was sitting on the mantelpiece: a gleaming white shoe apparently made out of solid porcelain, encased nicely in a regal wooden frame with a glass pane in front. Spotting Ditzy already sitting down on one of the cushions surrounding the tables, Tempest walked over and sat down across from her.
“Well?” Ditzy asked once Tempest had seated himself. “First impressions?”
Cocking his head to the side, Tempest thought for a moment. “It’s nice,” he admitted. Sniffing, he added, “It smells really good too.”
“That’d be the Sweet Potato Special,” said a copper-colored mare as she walked up to the table. “Fresh outta the oven. Get it while it’s hot!”
“Hi there, Two-Tone!” Ditzy greeted, waving a hoof in her general direction.
As the unicorn turned her head, Tempest noticed that while one side of her mane was pearly white and vaulted high, the other was ruby red and laid flat against her head. “Oh, Ditzy!” she gasped, her waitress’s smile turning into a genuine one. “I didn’t see you there, hun! How’s it going?”
“Great! Just stopping by for lunch!”
Two-Tone chuckled. “Good ta hear! I’m still waiting to hear back from that hairdresser. ‘Til then, I’m stuck here.” She stuck our her hoof. “Here’s hopin’.”
Ditzy bumped her hoof against the unicorn’s. “I know you’ll get the job, Tone. You’re the best hair stylist I’ve ever seen.”
Putting her leg bag down, Two-Tone levitated a pen and pad up. “I take it you want the usual?” Ditzy nodded.
Looking over at Tempest, she continued, “What about you, hun? You know what you want, or do you need more time?”
Suddenly, Tempest realized he hadn’t even looked at the menu. Thinking fast, he said, “Uh, I’ll have what she’s having.”
Nodding, Two-Tone tucked the pencil behind her ear. As she trotted off to the kitchen, Ditzy shot Tempest a curious glance.
“You don’t even know what I ordered,” she accused.
Tempest shrugged. “Guess I’m going to find out.”
Quickly, the two lapsed into silence. After a distant shout of what sounded like ’Oi, Cooky, we got orders!’ Tempest decided to try and start a conversation.
“So,” he began, “Is there a story behind the name of this place?”
Eager to end the silence, Ditzy nodded. “Mm-hmm,” she affirmed. “You saw the shoe on the mantle, right?” After a positive nod from the stallion, Ditzy went on. “Well, they say it belonged to Pegalisus the Mad.”
“Who?”
“Ooh, you haven’t head the story!” The mare clapped her hooves together excitedly. “That means I get to tell you it! Yay!”
Settling down into a more comfortable position, Ditzy began the tale. “Once, way up north in Solitrot, there was a son of a pegasus noble named Pegalisus. Throughout his foalhood, he seemed completely normal, if a bit ‘creative.’ Eventually, through family ties, he managed to become head of the weather development team. That’s when the chaos started. At first, it was just little things; a missed shower here, an oddly windy day there. But then it started to get stranger. Frogs started falling from the sky, bitter cold winds started blowing in summer, liquid rainbows started coming down like... well, rain. The cause of the unstable weather was eventually traced back to Pegalisus, and the citizens of Solitrot formed an angry mob. They stormed to his estate, which he had turned into a virtual fortress over the years. The mob and the city guard laid siege to the place for three days, all the while Pegalisus stood on the battlements and shouted gibberish at them. It only ended when they captured Pegalisus after he came out and tried to shoo them all away with a broom, of all things. From that day forth, he was known as Pegalisus the Mad, and psychological exams are required to hold positions of power in weather control.”
“Ok...” Tempest said, “That’s a really cool story and all, but what does that have to do with the shoe?”
“I was getting to that. They say that, while he was still in charge, he ordered new shoes for everypony in the force. Shoes made out of weird things. Granite, obsidian, rubber, wood, all sorts of strange materials. He himself got a set of porcelain ones, which he never took off.”
“Why would he do that?”
“‘Cause ‘e was a nutter.” Two-Tone interrupted as she walked over, two platters held aloft by an amber aura. “Nutters do all sorts ‘a weird things.”
“Eloquently put, Tone,” Ditzy mockingly admonished.
The unicorn grinned as she put the plates on the table. “I try. Here’s your food.”
“Thank you, miss,” Tempest said, trying to be courteous. Two-Tone just looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
Quietly, she chuckled. “Polite one, innit he?” she laughed. “Found yourself a nice catch, eh Ditz? Anyways, nice talking to you, but I gotta get back to work. Bye!”
As the waitress trotted away, Ditzy blushed furiously at what she had implied. Luckily for her, however, Tempest had been busy inspecting the dish before him and had not heard her comment. While she was trying to pale her rosy cheeks, Tempest spoke up.
“So,” he began, still staring at the plate, “What are they?”
On the plates before them were two piles of lightly frosted pastries. They had a slight orange tint to them, and smelled vaguely of warm cinnamon.
Quietly coughing, Ditzy answered. “Sweetrolls. They’re a bit like a cross between muffins and cupcakes.” She licked her lips. “They taste amazing.”
With that, the mare began eating with impressive gusto. After watching her for a moment, Tempest shrugged and flipped one of the rolls into the air with his hoof. Catching it in his mouth, his eyes widened. It was delicious! He immediately started decimating the pile of confectioneries with great enthusiasm. Face-first.
~~~
After the sweetrolls had been vehemently devoured (much to the amusement of Two-Tone) and the meal paid for by Tempest (also much to the amusement of Two-Tone), the pair of pegasi started on their way back to the post office. Tempest, still trying to brush icing out of his mane, attempted to start some mid-flight conversation.
“So,” he started, “Now that the mail is delivered, what are we supposed to for the rest of the day?”
“Well,” Ditzy responded, picking up a little speed, “Like I said earlier, now we usually deliver the packages that came in during the day. Some of them were dropped off by locals, some came from other cities and are on the final leg, some are heavy loads, you know, that sort of thing.” Hearing Tempest chuckle, Ditzy looked at him questioningly.
“Hehe,” he quietly chortled, “It’s kind of funny actually.”
“What?”
The stallion twirled a hoof in the air in a vague gesture. “It’s just that, you know, I’ve always been the one to take packages to their last leg. Now I’m taking them on their last leg. It’s ironic or something.”
“Not quite ironic,” Ditzy corrected, “But I see what you mean.”
“Whatever,” Tempest said, rolling his eyes. “I didn’t become a mailpony to get grammar lessons.”
Ditzy opened her mouth to correct him again, but decided against it. After a few more minutes of silent flying, Tempest piped up again.
“What’s the strangest thing that ever happened to you on a delivery?” he asked.
“Erm,” Ditzy hesitated, caught off guard by the unprovoked question, “I don’t know.”
“Come on,” Tempest egged, “You have to have a funny story somewhere in that head.”
“Just give me a-”
“Funny story, funny story, Tempest want a funny story!” the stallion chanted, grinning stupidly and bouncing up and down.
“Alright, alright!” Ditzy cried, laughing. “I have a story! I didn’t realize I was flying with Dinky.”
“Hey,” he said, smiling victoriously, “My strategy works.”
“Anyways,” Ditzy began, ignoring the smug look on Tempest’s face, “The weirdest thing was probably when me and Raindrop dropped a bunch of stuff on the most powerful unicorn in town.”
“What kind of stuff?” Tempest asked curiously.
Ditzy bit her lip. “A plant pot.”
“That’s not so bad.”
“And an anvil, and a cart full of hay, and a piano...”
Tempest winced. “Ouch. Did she sue?”
“Thankfully no. She was too busy stalking Pinkie Pie, the party pony.”
“Um, Ok...”
With one eye looking at Tempest and the other staring at a flock of geese, she jabbed the stallion in the side. “Your turn,” she told him. “What’s the weirdest delivery you ever made?”
Tempest rubbed his chin in thought. “Hmm,” he pondered, “I guess it would have to be that time that I flew through that one storm that passed through Fillydelphia. You see, there had been a veterinary convention...”
~~~
Tempest was just finishing his story as they landed outside the office.
“...And when I gave the lady the package, one of the Guinea pigs that I missed fell out of my mane and started running around on the floor. Apparently she had some phobia about rodents, because she jumped up on a chair and screamed.” He snorted. “Didn’t even give me a tip, mean old nag. If only she knew what I went through to get that box to her...”
“She probably would have had a heart attack,” Ditzy added. Suddenly, she visibly shuddered. “I can’t imagine having all those hamsters crawling all over you. It must have been terrible.”
“Don’t remind me,” Tempest said, clenching his eyes shut. “I can’t even look at anything small and furry anymore without getting chills.”
“I don’t blame you.”
Walking through the door, the two headed for the back room. It was immediately apparent that they were two of the last ponies to arrive back from lunch. All around the board where delivery jobs were posted, ponies were jostling each other trying to get closer. Standing at the back of the pack, Ditzy looked at them with a frown.
“Darn,” she pouted. “Looks like we get the leftovers.” Tempest only stared at the pile of mailponies, wondering if he was looking at a fight for jobs or a pack of starving wolves.
After the majority of the crowd had cleared off to start their deliveries, Ditzy waltzed up to the board, Tempest close behind. Leaning in close, the mare perused the list in the same way that a wine enthusiast might examine a bottle. Suddenly, she jabbed her hoof into one specific job.
“Perfect!” she exclaimed, removing the sheet containing the delivery information from the adjacent pocket.
After watching her look at the other jobs more casually for a moment, Tempest decided to inquire. “Why is that one perfect?” he ventured.
“It takes me right by the schoolhouse,” Ditzy answered, taking another envelope from the board. “I pick Dinky up soon. This is how I usually get her home. Sometimes, if I get good jobs, I can just stay home with her.” She placed another two envelopes in her bag and turned to face the stallion. “Of course, since we were late, that’s not likely to happen.”
“Sorry.”
“Don’t be,” the mare said, smiling. “You’re the last guy, so you have to take the rest. Pick up room is in the back. Hop to it.”
As she trotted off, Tempest looked at the remaining jobs on the board. There were only four left. Picking one up, Tempest looked it over.
This can’t be too hard, he thought.
~~~
By the time the jobs had been finished, Tempest had revised his opinion. The leftover deliveries he had received had taken him to all the four corners of Ponyville and back. His still-recovering wings ached and he felt buzzing in his mane from several trapped flies. Touching down in front of the office on what he hoped was his final stop of the day, he shook the offending insects from his windblown indigo mop and trotted into the doorway. A short bit of spacial comprehension later, he trotted through the doorway and into the office proper. Seeing Ditzy sitting at the front desk conversing with the boss stallion, he headed her way, hoping that they hadn’t noticed his little collision with the woodwork.
“Hello, Tempest,” Ditzy greeted.
“Hey, rookie,” the grizzled pegasus grunted.
“‘Ey,” Tempest mumbled, spitting his signed order completion forms out on the desk.
Sweeping the papers into a box to be gone through by interns later, the brown stallion asked, “So, how’d your first day go?”
“I learned to never be the last one to the job board,” Tempest growled, an irritated frown on his face.
Ditzy and the boss chuckled. “True enough,” Boss said. “Now, go on, you two. Day’s over.”
Needing no further invitation, Tempest grumbled his farewells and left, Ditzy close behind. Soon, both of them were airborne and headed towards Ditzy’s house. About halfway there, Ditzy abruptly stopped in midair.
“Oh, horseapples,” she exclaimed, smacking her forehead. “I need to pick some flour up at the store real quick.”
“Go ahead, then; I can find my way there,” Tempest replied. After a moment, he gave her a creepy smile. “I know where you live.”
Ditzy jabbed him in the side. “Don’t do that; it’s scary,” she chastised. “I’ll probably only be a few minutes late.”
“Gotcha,” Tempest confirmed, flying off.
I bet I wouldn’t have used so much flour this morning if Dinky hadn’t tried to help with the pancakes, Ditzy thought, fluttering off in the other direction.
~~~
With a large bag of flour balanced precariously on her back, Ditzy landed on her doorstep. Silently appreciating the skills that carrying Dinky around had given her, she reached for the doorknob. Just before she opened it, she hesitated. Inside, she could hear strange noises; it sounded like a small filly giggling and squealing, and somepony attempting to make monster noises. Easing the door open slowly, the mailmare peeked inside.
Within the house, something rather strange was taking place. Dinky, making all manner of happy noises, was sitting on Tempest Rider’s head. Tempest, for his part, was galloping madly around in circles, bucking and playfully trying to shake Dinky off. They both looked to be having gratuitous amounts of fun.
In the middle of his pseudo-rodeo, Tempest noticed Ditzy standing in the doorway. He screeched to a halt, Dinky squealing and holding tightly to his mane. As the filly giggled, Tempest tried to quickly come up with something to say.
“Your daughter appears to be on my head.”
It was several minutes before Ditzy recovered. |
Pyromanecer | 604 | 6 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2011-12-13T05:13:28+00:00 | 2011-12-13T05:13:28+00:00 | 2,772 | Mailpony Rules
Chapter 6
"Iiiiiiii'm gonna getcha!" Tempest Rider playfully rumbled, dropping into a crouch.
"Nuh-uh!" giggled Dinky, hopping to the other side of the coffee table.
"Gonna catch ya!"
"Nope!"
Tempest, feeling much more awake than he had for the past three days, slunk around the edge of the table, trying to get at Dinky. Squealing, the filly bounded away in the opposite direction. Tempest, smiling mischievously, slowly pulled himself forward, belly on the ground and rump in the air, looking for all the world like a cat about to pounce.
Chasing Dinky around was quickly proving to be a source of great entertainment (and bruises) for Tempest. The little unicorn was fast, agile, and Tempest swore she teleported when he wasn't looking. Always up for a challenge, the pegasus had taken to playing with Dinky like a cat with a ball of yarn, much to her delight.
Leaping forward to cut off a potential escape route, Tempest managed to back Dinky into a corner. Smirking confidently in his victory, he sat down on his haunches and looked at her.
"Well, my slippery little friend," he said, twirling an imaginary mustache, "It seems that you are..." He laughed manically for effect. "Cornered!"
"Booooooo!" Dinky catcalled, sticking out her tongue.
Ignoring her, Tempest crouched low. Dinky saw his haunches tense, preparing to leap, and backed up slightly. Quickly, he sprang forward, using his wings for extra propulsion. As he landed, however, a look of surprise crossed his face as he was met with nothing more than a face-full of rug.
Dinky, with her gift of foresight, had jumped upwards the moment before Tempest had launched himself. Landing on his head, she had used it as a springboard to catapult herself over the airborne stallion. Currently, she was standing a few feet back, giggling as Tempest picked himself up off the floor.
"Clever girl," he growled, spitting out a bit of carpet fuzz, "But how long will your luck last?"
"Until you give up!" the filly squeaked.
With that, Dinky dashed off in the other direction before Tempest could turn around. Sliding around the corner, she immediately skidded to a stop, eyes wide at what she saw. Tempest, not far behind, powered around the corner after her. Unfortunately for him, he could not stop as suddenly as Dinky, and ended up slamming his chin on the ground in his attempt to cancel his momentum.
Before them was Ditzy, with a raised eyebrow of suspicion adorning her face. "What are you two up to?" she asked.
"Nothing," the pair answered in unison, not meeting the eye that was looking at them.
"Awful lot of noise for 'nothing,' don't you think?" she calmly accused, trying to hide a small grin.
Instead of answering, the two ponies just glanced around nervously. Suddenly, Dinky bolted upright and pointed a hoof at Tempest.
"It was his idea!" she cried, before galloping away.
Looking back over his shoulder, Tempest yelled, "You little liar! You started it!" Looking back at Ditzy, he added, "She did, you know."
Ditzy, greatly amused, was chuckling into her hoof. She could get used to mornings like this.
~~~
"Package duty?"
The brown stallion grunted an affirmative, not looking up from his clipboard. "Both of ya. Two of the usuals are apparently 'sick'." He spoke the last word with a tremendous amount of doubt. "And you two are fillin' in for them."
Tempest, accepting of his new fate, nodded in understanding. Ditzy, by contrast, was looking nervous, no doubt remembering how disastrous her last attempt at package duty had been.
Either by virtue of empathy or mind-reading, Boss was aware of how Ditzy was feeling. Setting down his clipboard, he looked into her askew eyes. "Just be careful this time, Ditzy," he assuaged, "And everything will go fine."
Hesitantly, Ditzy nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Good," he said, looking back at his clipboard. "Truck's in the back. Get flappin'."
A few minutes later, both gray pegasi were flying alongside a pony-driven flying truck. While the navigator directed the two pullers to their destination, Ditzy and Tempest followed closely behind. Since they were there to do heavy lifting, they didn't have anything to do until they reached their goal.
Trying to pass the time, Ditzy struck up a conversation. "Thanks for playing with Dinky, by the way," she told him. "She really enjoys it."
"So do I," Tempest replied, smiling fondly. "It's really fun. I swear though, it's like trying to catch a dragonfly using your back hooves."
Ditzy chuckled at the analogy. "Imagine trying to get her dressed for a school play."
Tempest's pupils immediately dilated. "I'd rather not."
"Really, though," the mare continued, "I do appreciate it. The last time she had somepony so willing to play with her was when my cousin Moddy stayed with us for a week."
"Moddy?" the stallion questioned, looking at her funny. "Moddy Doo?"
"Yes, that's right," she replied, raising an eyebrow. "He lives way over on the Isle of Pony. Why?"
"I think I delivered a package to him once."
Ditzy looked surprised. "Really?"
"Yeah. Big black fella, right? Looks like he hasn't seen a pair of shears in his life?"
"That sounds like Moddy, alright," she confirmed, amused at his description. "I don't think he's gotten trimmed since he moved out."
"Hey, guys!" a voice called from the front. "We're here! Time to get unloading!"
"Got it!" Tempest yelled back, opening the door in the back.
Before Ditzy could follow, he emerged carrying a large cardboard box. Taller than it was long, it likely contained something akin to a cabinet. Something likely to be heavy. Ditzy blinked. That should take both of them to carry..
"Erm," she hesitated, "Tempest?"
"Yeah?" he nonchalantly replied, slowly lowering himself to the ground.
"Isn't that heavy?"
"Not really, no. Why?"
Ditzy scratched the back of her head. "Because we are both supposed to be carrying it."
"...Oh."
Flapping over, Ditzy took the other end of the box and began helping Tempest bring it down. With both of them, the decent was much smoother and more controlled. Ditzy, however, was still astounded at how well Tempest had been doing before. He must be very strong.
Over at the doorway, the navigator, a pegasus named Sine Heer, was watching as the package recipient signed the delivery confirmation form. Peering back over his shoulder, he noticed that Ditzy and that new guy, Tempest, were getting close.
"Hey," Sine asked, turning back towards the pony signing the form, "Where do you want the box?"
"Oh, just put it down anywhere," he distractedly replied, waving his hoof. "I'll take care of it."
"Got it." Turning around, he shouted at the heavy lifters. "Set her down anywhere, you two!"
With an audible thud, the pegasi dropped the box on the ground slightly to the side of the walkway. Ditzy, freshly unburdened, immediately started rubbing her back. Flying and lifting things simultaneously always did a number on her muscles, particularly the ones between her wings. Sighing as she felt her spine pop, she flew back up to the level of the truck, Tempest close behind. Silently, they waited for Sine to return so they could repeat the process at the next house.
~~~
"Aaaaaand, done!" the mare said, handing Sine back the piece of paper. Tucking it away in his satchel, the stallion stepped to the side and allowed Ditzy to hand the mare her package.
"Thank you, ma'am," he said, dipping his head slightly. "Have a good day."
"You too! Bye!" With that, the mare, now one parcel richer, closed the door, eager to free her new possession from its paper prison.
Flapping back up to the delivery truck, Sine took out another paper (he was very fond of documents) and crossed off the name on the very bottom. Nodding in satisfaction, he called out to the crew.
"Alright, fellas, we're done for the day! Take her home!"
"Wait!" a voice cried from inside the van. Tempest. "There's one more!"
"No way," Sine whispered doubtfully, flying towards the back door. "That was the last package on my list."
Once inside, Sine immediately spotted Tempest sitting at the end of the container. Squatting right next to him, apathetic to Sine's insistence on its nonexistence, was another cardboard box, sealed and in pristine condition. Huffing in annoyance, Sine stomped over to it, staring the cube down as if he could intimidate it into ceasing to be.
"See?" Tempest pointed out, unaware of the battle of wills taking place between pony and dried tree pulp.
"Yes, I do," Sine curtly replied. Resigned to the box's corporeality, he peered at the shipping address to see whom the box was to be delivered. At first, the label looked blank. After a second, he realized that it was blank.
No shipping address? he thought, scratching his head. On a whim, Sine picked up the box. It felt light. Too light. Shaking the box from side to side, the stallion was met with neither sound nor sensation of shifting weight.
"Dumb thing's empty," he grumbled, tossing the box back on the floor. "Stupid interns; ruined a perfectly good box! Boss is going to hear about this."
Tempest, by virtue of having ears, had heard Sine's irritated mumbles. Wondering how somepony could accidentally label, seal and load an empty box like that, he looked over at the cardboard interloper. It wasn't exactly a small box, after all. It was at least the size of a small child, and that's not exactly something you would misplace.
Hmmm, small child... Tempest thought, an idea already half-forming in his head. Darting out the back, Tempest caught up to Sine and tapped his shoulder.
"Hey, Sine," he began as the stallion looked at him impatiently, "Can I keep that box?"
Sine looked at him questioningly. After a moment of thought, he replied. "I suppose so. We can't reuse it now that it has the stickers and seals on it, so we'd probably just throw it away anyways. Go ahead and take it."
"Thanks, guy." thanked Tempest, turning back to grab his loot.
"If you don't mind me asking," Sine added, mild curiosity getting the better of him, "Why do you want it? What are you going to use it for?"
Tempest grinned. "I have an idea."
~~~
Sitting in the center of the parlour, Dinky was practicing her magic. Currently, she was trying to levitate a ball and a hoop at the same time, and make the ball pass through the hoop. It was a standard test of skill for young unicorns, teaching both multitasking and precision, two vital skills for manipulating the magical energies of the universe. Dinky, however, was having absolutely no trouble getting the ball through it's little metal goal; she had long since mastered levitating two things at the same time. For her, the main problem in this exercise was keeping the tools from bursting into flames.
Hearing a sudden knock at the door, Dinky jumped and dropped the spell, causing the little metal sphere and its partner ring to drop to the ground with a muffled clink. She quickly stomped out the small fire she had accidentally created, scorch mark blending in with the many similar patches on the rug, and cantered over to the door. Hopping up to the level of the window, she managed to see her mom and Tempest standing on the doorstep.
Enthusiastically, she unlocked the door. As soon as the two adults entered, the filly immediately tackle-hugged her mother, sending her staggering back half a pace at the surprise impact.
"Hi, mom!" she greeted happily. Before Ditzy could react, Dinky dropped to the floor and gave Tempest the same treatment. "Hi, Mistah Tempest!"
"Hello, Dinky," returned Tempest, looking down at the filly attached to his neck.
Ditzy chuckled quietly into her hoof. "Hello to you too, Muffin," she said, nosing her daughter's side. "Now let go; you don't want to choke him."
"'Kay," Dinky complied, releasing Tempest from her death grip.
"I'm going to go make some sandwiches," the mare added, heading towards the kitchen. "You two behave."
As her mother trotted off to make snacks, Dinky turned back to Tempest. For the first time since he came in the door, she noticed an object on his back. Cocking her head to the side, she tried to get a better glimpse of his mystery burden. Failing that, she looked up at him with a question in her big golden eyes.
"What's that?"
Grinning mischievously, Tempest flipped the box over his head and onto the floor in front of him. "Oh, just a box."
"What's in it?" Dinky asked, stepping forward.
"Why don't you look inside and find out?" he countered, popping the top of the box open with the ease of long practice.
With unusual caution, Dinky placed her front legs on the rim of the box. Peering in, her expression turned to confusion. "It's empty!"
"Oh, really?" Tempest questioned, voice like silk. "I'm pretty sure there's something in there. You just have to look closer."
In an attempt to get a better view, Dinky pulled herself up farther, back hooves leaving the ground. Despite her new height advantage, she still failed to see anything of interest in the cardboard vessel. "I still don't see anything," she pouted. "What's supposed to be in here?"
Unannounced to Dinky, Tempest had been slowly creeping closer. Smiling evilly, he whispered.
"Oh, just... a little filly!"
With that, Tempest knocked the box backwards, sending it and Dinky tumbling, the latter emitting a high-pitched 'eep!' of surprise. Thanks to Tempest's supreme mastery of the subtle art of box-tipping, Dinky landed on her rump just moments before the open ended side of the box came falling down on her, trapping her inside a brown corrugated prison.
Tempest was now laughing raucously to himself, finding his simple-yet-effective prank intensely humorous. Suddenly, he heard a strange noise, causing him to look up from his reverie. Glancing around for the source of the disturbance, his eyes caught movement in the form of the recently-filled box being nudged across the floor. This time, eyes on it, he managed to catch the experimental scoot of the cube as its occupant hesitantly pushed it from the inside. A few seconds later, a similar motion occurred, but in the opposite direction. After this second push, the box abruptly began sliding around the floor rapidly in wide, excited circles. Tempest, watching this with some sense of curiosity, was just starting to get dizzy when the box scraped to a halt.
"THIS IS THE BEST THING EVER!" a loud, but muffled voice called from beneath the brown container, before resuming it's frantic laps around the room.
Not long afterwards, Ditzy came back into the parlour, carrying a tray of several freshly-made sandwiches. What she saw, however, made her pause mid-stride. On the couch sat Tempest, grinning hugely and watching what appeared to be a living cardboard box scurry around on the floor. Said box was scampering in large circles, going dangerously fast and occasionally emitting a fillyish giggle of happiness.
Deciding to continue on with her original path of travel, Ditzy heading towards the sofa. Setting down the tray on the coffee table, she looked at Tempest with an eyebrow raised and a question in one eye, the other watching the rampaging package circle around on her floor.
Noticing her for the first time since she entered the room, Tempest saw her unasked inquiry. "This is hilarious," he chuckled, motioning towards the upside-down box. "She's been going at it for a solid two minutes."
"I assume my daughter is under there?"
Tempest nodded, and scooted over to give the mare some room to sit down. Accepting his invitation, Ditzy set herself down on the sofa, and turned to watch the Dinky-in-a-box scurry around the room. Taking one of the three sandwiches on the plate, she handed another to Tempest, who took it with a quiet 'thanks.'
Eventually, however, even Dinky's seemingly inexhaustible reserves of energy apparently ran dry, and the box slid to a quiet stop. Taking this as her cue, Ditzy took the plate with the remaining sandwich on it and set it on the floor in front of the now-still cardboard cube.
Hearing the clink of plate on floor, a small purplish snout peeked out from under the rim of the box, just enough to let the occupant see outside her corrugated domain. Upon seeing the snack placed not a foot away, the muzzle immediately withdrew. All was still for a moment, but suddenly the container leaped into the air in a predator-like fashion, coming down neatly over the food with a quiet thump. Immediately, animalistic sounds of feeding began emitting from beneath the cardboard cloak.
"Erm, Dinky," Ditzy started, concern etched on her brown, "Don't you want to, you know, come out of there to eat?"
"THERE IS NO DINKY!" came a booming yet squeaky voice. "I AM PYXIS, GODDESS OF THE BOX! ALL THAT IS SQUARE AND CARDBOARD IS MY DOMAIN! TREMBLE, MORTALS! TREMBLE!"
~~~
Abruptly, Celestia jolted up from her studies. Looking around, her brow furrowed in concern as she tried to identify what just startled her.
"Something wrong, 'Tia?" asked Luna, sitting on the other side of the library table. She had noticed her sister jump, and knew her well enough to see when she was agitated.
The Sun Goddess just shook her head, her ever-flowing mane quivering just slightly at the disturbance in its imaginary breeze. "I swear I just felt someone challenging our rule."
Luna just rolled her eyes. "Honestly, 'Tia," she admonished, "That's the third time this month you've said that. It's probably just all that spicy food you ate."
Celestia licked her lips fondly at the memory of tonight's dinner. "Hey, say what you want about Guongxian food, but they have the best flaming rice I've tasted in millennia."
~~~
"Come on, Dinky, it's time for bed," Ditzy pleaded, tapping the box with a hoof.
"NEVER!" the box shouted back, backing up a pace from the contact. "PYXIS REFUSES TO PARLEY WITH DISSENTERS!"
Ditzy pinched the bridge of her nose. "Dinky, it's been four hours. It's time to come out from under the box."
"PYXIS IS ETERNAL!"
Tempest, who had been watching (and laughing) on the sidelines as Ditzy argued with her 'imaginative' daughter, decided it was time to intervene. Trotting up to the box, he tapped it's top, causing it to flinch away again.
"Pyxis," he humored, "I think it's best that you go to bed now.
"...Why should we trust you?" the pseudo-goddess asked warily.
"Because you're out-ponied and out-gunned," he replied, thinking fast. "General Doo has you surrounded. I suggest a tactical compromise. Perhaps, in the future, you can gather your forces and lead an uprising and overthrow her. Continued resistance now, however, will only result in complete destruction."
The box was silent for a moment. Quicker than he could blink, the box lifted and Tempest found himself with a filly on his back, clinging tightly to his mane.
"Fine," she grumbled, going from megalomaniac to sweet little filly in an instant. "But you have to carry me."
Surprised by the turn of events, the stallion was nonetheless quick to react. "Fair enough," he agreed. "Come on."
As the two walked away, Ditzy just stared, cross-eyed and shocked. After a full few seconds, she managed to recover enough to remember the basic motor functions that allowed her to follow.
By the time the mare caught up, Dinky was already climbing off Tempest's back into her bed. Quickly trotting over to her side, Ditzy nuzzled her daughter, earning a huge yawn from the suddenly-exhausted filly.
"Good night, Muffin," cooed Ditzy, pulling the covers up to the unicorn's chest.
"G'night, mom," the filly answered tiredly. Turning over, she looked at Tempest expectantly.
Tempest, slightly surprised, realized what she was asking. Bending down, Tempest also nuzzled her head. "Good night, pipsqueak."
"'Night," Dinky yawned again, before rolling over and promptly falling asleep, leaving the two adults to tiptoe their way out of the room.
Before they left, both ponies turned around and looked at the sleeping filly. Snoring gently, there was no evidence of the shouting, vengeful goddess that had been present a few minutes prior.
"That was a very clever way to get her to go to bed," Ditzy whispered.
"I know," Tempest replied smugly.
"...If she grows up to be a war-leader, I'm blaming you."
"Fair enough."
~~~ |
Pyromanecer | 604 | 7 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2012-02-27T04:51:06+00:00 | 2012-02-27T04:51:06+00:00 | 2,381 | Mailpony Rules
Chapter 7
"Aaaaand last one!" Tempest announced, dropping the paper onto the counter. Having just come back from his late-day deliveries, depositing his signed delivery confirmation forms left him smiling with a feeling of accomplishment. Ditzy, who had dropped off her forms just moments before, sat behind him, waiting patiently.
Boss swept the papers into a box using the same dismissive movements that Tempest had become familiar with over the past week. Forms 'properly' stored, the brown stallion looked up and almost gave the tiniest of smiles. "I guess it really is your last one, huh?" he stated, sitting straighter.
Tempest, who had been buckling his mailbag shut, glanced up. "Huh?"
"Well, you said you were staying for a week, right?"
"Yeah... Why?"
Boss looked at him strangely. "It's been a week, hasn't it?"
Upon hearing this, Tempest's eyes widened. He was right; it had been seven days. Tempest had barely even noticed the time passing. He was now considered recuperated enough to fly back to Hayton.
Ditzy, sitting in earshot, also started. Quickly, she felt her surprise being replaced by sadness. She had gotten used to Tempest staying with her. Waking up to the stallion running around and playing with Dinky had become a welcome and enjoyable part of her morning. The idea of him leaving made her ears droop.
Tempest, realizing the silence had stretched on for too long, decided to say something.
"Huh..."
Higher brain functions cease to function properly under shock.
The brown stallion snorted, starting to clear the day's detritus from his desk. "So, when're you leaving?" he asked with his characteristic bluntness.
"Erm," Tempest hesitated, glancing nervously over his shoulder at Ditzy. "I don't know. I haven't thought about it."
It was true. While, during the beginning of the week, Tempest had thought frequently of going home, those ideas had quickly been pushed to the back of his mind. Most of the stallion's time had been spent enjoying himself with Ditzy and Dinky. Now, all of the sudden, the deadline was sitting on his doorstep. The knowledge that he was to be off soon felt as sudden and jarring as crashing into a glass wall at Mach 2
Boss quickly finished his tidying and made to leave. "Well," he said, "If you ever stop by again, be sure to visit. You're not bad, rookie."
Absently, Tempest nodded. Turning to the exit, he was followed closely by a despondent-looking Ditzy. Nosing the door open, the stallion lead the way into the cool late-afternoon air.
Electing to walk home this time, the pegasi traveled in awkward silence, avoiding the other pony's eyes. Both felt a potent sense of sadness at Tempest's imminent departure. Similarly, both were hesitant to vocalize their feelings and break the quiet that had grown between them like a thick, amorphous weed.
Eventually, Ditzy decided play hedge-clipper. "So, I guess you're all better now, huh?" she hesitantly began, trying to keep the melancholy out of her voice.
Eager to dispel the uncomfortable air, Tempest nodded. "Yeah," he agreed, faking cheerfulness. "Time sure flew by quickly, huh?"
"It really did," the mare muttered, looking down. Suddenly, her eyes lit up. "We should celebrate!"
"Good idea!" he concurred, getting genuinely excited. "What should we do?"
Ditzy 'hmm'd in thought, placing a hoof under her chin, quickly returning the appendage to its original purpose of walking. While one eye traced the path of a nearby squirrel, the other took note of the sun's position in the sky. "I think there's enough daylight left for a picnic," she suggested, nodding towards the celestial body.
Tempest stopped to clap his hooves together in excitement. "Perfect!" he exclaimed, thankful for something to take his mind off of his cloudy thoughts. "Where should we go?"
"How about the park?" the mare suggested. After Tempest agreed, she added. "Since it's for you, you should decide what to bring."
Tempest only had to think for a moment. "How about something from that big gingerbread building that smells really good?" He had noticed it while on his route one day, and had became entranced by it's strangely alluring aroma of cotton candy and explosions. "I assume they sell food?"
"That's Sugarcube Corner and, yes, they do," Ditzy replied, a small grin on her face. "They sell candy, pastries, and anything else you feel guilty about after eating."
"Sounds like my kind of place," the stallion quipped, licking his lips.
Ditzy quietly chuckled. "Probably. How about you go get Dinky and I'll get the food?"
"Deal!" agreed Tempest, giving a humorous salute. "See you there!" With that, he flew off, not realizing that he would have to carry the little unicorn-shaped explosive on his back.
Ditzy, for her part, watched the eager stallion flap off with a smile. As soon as he disappeared over a rooftop, however, she felt her gloomy feelings hit her like a wet, soggy mattress. Despite the fact that they were about to have a celebration, she couldn't shake the knowledge that the stallion would be leaving soon. Even though he had only been there for a little over a week, it felt like she had known him for years, and him leaving made her throat constrict.
The pegasus shook her head and pushed the dreary thoughts to the back of her mind. She couldn't dwell on such things now; she had treats to buy! Turning, she headed off to Sugarcube Corner, mentally bracing herself for the imminent encounter with the only pony she knew that was more of a handful than her daughter: Pinkie Pie.
~~~
A couple hours and several delicious pastries later, the sun had set and the picnic basket was empty. Tempest and Ditzy were lying on the blanket the stallion had thought to grab while at the house, watching as Dinky burned off her sugar high by chasing fireflies and unintentionally leaving scorched hoofprints on the ground. The stallion was stretched out on the ground, his head resting on his front legs as he made sure that the little filly didn't accidentally set the entire world on fire. Next to him, Ditzy was simultaneously keeping one eye on her daughter and stargazing.
Satisfied that the planet was not in danger of immediate and cataclysmic conflagration, Tempest turned to look at the mare. "Thanks for doing all this," he said. "I really appreciate it."
"Oh, it's no problem," Ditzy replied, waving a hoof. "It's a nice night to have a picnic, and Dinky always loves-"
"No, I mean for everything," Tempest interrupted, sitting up. "Letting me stay at your house, helping me find a job, everything. I don't think I can ever repay you."
Ditzy felt herself blush at the praise. "It's nothing, really," she insisted. "Anypony would have done the same thing."
Tempest shook his head. "Not in Hayton they wouldn't. If somepony had found my lying on the streets in that city, I'd be lucky if they had gotten a doctor."
Ditzy was taken aback. "That's terrible."
The stallion chuckled. "Yeah, that's why I take so many traveling jobs. Ponies there aren't exactly the nice sort."
Suddenly, Ditzy's eyes lit up. "There's something we can do!" she exclaimed, beaming. "We could take a delivery job!"
Tempest looked confused. "What, together?"
"Yeah!" she continued, looking excited. "It's perfect! It'll be like a finale, and I can make sure you're ready to fly!" Lowering her voice, she added. "I trust Nurse Redheart with my life, but I'd still rather see for myself. It would be kind of dumb for you to leave and immediately get yourself injured again." To herself, she also admitted that she wanted to delay his departure as long as possible.
Tempest could feel himself warming to the idea. "Alright," he conceded, "Sounds like a good idea." Suddenly, he gave a devilish grin. "And it means that I get to watch you try to keep up."
Before Ditzy could give a witty retort, Dinky charged over and tackled the stallion to the ground. Hitting the ground with an 'oof,' Tempest watched as the filly hopped up and down on his chest, leaving small sooty hoofprints with every impact.
"OhmygoshyouguyshavetocomeoverandseeallthebugsIfound!" she rattled, vibrating from all the energy she had absorbed from the sweets. "TherewasabunchnearthisbushandwhenIwalkedbytheyalltookoffandnowtheresthisbigcloudanditssoamazing!" She punctuated this outburst with a high-pitched giggle, and then dashed off, leaving two stunned pegasi in her wake.
Slowly picking himself up off the ground, Tempest brushed off the ash imprints left on his chest. "How long until she crashes and it's safe to be near her again?"
Ditzy thought for a moment. "I'd say we probably have ten minutes before she collapses," she calculated, "Then we'll have to carry her home."
"I'll do it," Tempest offered. "I'm already covered in soot; a little more won't hurt."
~~~
"A bounty board job?"
Hesitantly, the brown stallion scratched his head. The 'bounty board,' an affectionate nickname for the table containing non-express delivery jobs, was filled with forms detailing long-distance commissions. While normally the board was left to be picked over by the distance specialists, there was no rule stating that the jobs were forbidden to anypony. In fact, many of the common route-workers occasionally took up one of the well-paying deliveries, whether for a change of pace or a sudden need for a boost in income. Of course, many of them came back from their little 'vacation' with sore wings and a great need for a nap, proclaiming their determination to never do anything like that again. Something that never failed to amuse the specialists.
Tempest nodded vigorously, while Ditzy more calmly answered. "Yes. For both of us."
The pegasus internally winced. Reorganizing schedules to account for for one missing pony on a delivery splurge was a hassle on its own; doing so for two would most certainly be a paperwork-flavored migraine. Still, he couldn't in all good conscience refuse; the pair seemed to really want the trip.
Boss sighed in resignation. "All right," he grumbled. "But you owe me one, Ditzy."
The mare smiled in appreciation. "Thanks, Boss!" she said cheerfully, trotting past him.
"Yeah, thanks!" Tempest added, close behind.
The stallion watched the two canter away for a moment, before turning back to his desk. Taking out a pen, he groaned inwardly. Might as well get started, he thought, preparing to drown himself in tapes of all shades of red.
"Now," began Tempest, peering closely at the list of available jobs, "Since we're both taking a job, we're going to need two packages to the same location."
Ditzy, sitting closely behind him, nodded. Since Tempest was the expert in this area, she was content to let him do the picking. Of course, she thought, If everything is that obvious, I could probably figure this out myself.
"We want something close by," the stallion continued, heedless of the mare's internal voice, "And nothing too heavy. After all, you're new to cross-nation flight, and we don't want you getting exhausted."
Ditzy grunted an affirmative. Still all very simple.
"Also, since it's early in the year, winds will tend to come more consistently from the east. Most urban or domestic pegasi won't notice, but since we're going to be flying for hours at a time over open country, it's a significant factor. I noticed you tend to favour your right wing pretty heavily, so we shouldn't go north, or you'll tire out much more quickly. If we can, we should find something to the west or south-west. That way, we can get a good tailwind and cut a few hours off our trip."
OK, much more complicated now. Subconsciously, Ditzy tucked her right wing tighter to her body. She had never noticed herself favouring it, but apparently it had been evident enough for Tempest to notice. Silently, she wondered if all long-haulers thought like this.
"I took the liberty of looking at a weather report earlier." Tempest added. "There's a cold front heading west from below us, so strait south is out. Judging by it's speed, though, it shouldn't get more than a few miles past where we are now, longitude wise." Tempest harrumphed and glared at the board. "All of that really limits our options."
Ditzy remained quietly seated. It was strange seeing Tempest being so professional. She never would have guessed that so much planning and calculating could go into delivering a package. They had covered the basics of long-distance in training, of course, but that had mostly been about pacing and maintaining manners in foreign places. This detail surpassed all of the knowledge that Ditzy had obtained and forgotten from all those years ago.
Briefly, she wondered if she should add something. No, she thought, he knows what he's doing.
As if he could hear her, Tempest looked over his shoulder. "Well, come on then," he insisted, Nodding towards the board. "You look too."
Hesitantly, Ditzy walked up. Keeping Tempest's suggestions in mind, she began examining the offerings. On each sheet of paper was the package's destination, weight, size, and the reward for delivery. Bigger, heavier packages to far-away places cost more to ship than small and light ones. Keeping this in mind, Ditzy immediately skipped over some of the ones that had high pay, quietly astonished at just how many bits some of them returned. No wonder most of the specialists she knew could afford to have so many vacations.
While scanning the listings, one of Ditzy's eyes alighted on a familiar name. Appleoosa.
"Hey," she said, tapping Tempest's shoulder, "How about this one?"
The stallion looked closely at the note. "Appleoosa," he muttered, mentally picturing it's location relative to Ponyville. He smiled. "South southwest. Perfect!" Turning back to the other jobs, he began scanning them quickly. "Now we just need to find another one headed there, and- Ah ha!"
Victoriously, he tore the paper from the board. Motioning for Ditzy to take the other one, he headed towards the doorway to the back room. Ripping off the sheet, Ditzy followed close behind.
Sitting at a desk piled high with forms, Sine Heer watched the pair approach with an expression of minor curiosity. As the two set their respective papers in front of him, however, his face lit up with a wide grin. Eagerly, he reached for his favorite quill, one that suspiciously resembled his cutie mark. He quickly skimmed the words on the pages, before looking back up.
Quill expertly held in the side of his mouth, he asked. "Going for a commission, eh? Both of you?" Two nods. "Alright then. First things first, we need to take care of some paperwork."
With a grin one might find on a foal in a sweets shop, Sine started filling out forms containing all manner of legal mumbo-jumbo. He crossed 't's, dotted 'i's, and wrote in dates with the efficiency and speed of a clockwork printing press. Pausing only occasionally to ask for clarification of a name or year, two identical piles of paper were quickly sorted out.
Setting his recently-finished work to the side, Sine Heer turned towards the ponies in front of him, looking at them much less fondly than his ink-and-tree-pulp friends. "Now, before I let you go, we have protocol to go over."
Tempest rolled his eyes. "I know," he grumbled. Ditzy, less familiar with this process, simply watched.
Sine cleared his throat, and then began speaking in a tone that showed tedious and meticulous memorization. "As mailponies, you have the important job of transporting goods across the land and beyond. That being, you are responsible for communications between ponies, and other creatures, of all kind. Your duties are paramount to maintaining relationships with others, from the mightiest of nations to the most common peasant. As such, the epitome of manners, politeness, and civility is expected of you. To make sure you are aware of what is required of you, you are now required to recite Mailpony Rules One, Two, Five, and Six."
Tempest, having gone through this every time he delivered something, was aptly prepared to answer by the time Sine finished his monotone monologue. Ditzy, however, was caught off guard by the sudden request for rule recitation. Fortunately for her, ingrained responses took over and she found herself speaking after only an almost impercievable hesitation.
"Rule One," the two began in unison, "Never lose your bags. They contain items that are the sole property of the recipient, and are to be guarded at all costs." Sine quickly checked off a box on a new form. "Rule Two, let nothing stop you. Your duty as couriers is sacred, and neither inclement weather, physical barriers, nor personal failings shall prevent you from completing your duty." Another scratch on paper, another irritated look from Tempest. "Rule Five, never divulge the contents of your bags. The objects in question are for, and only for, the recipient." Ditzy coughed, wishing for some water. "Rule Six, you are the links between places. On your heads rests the responsibility of maintaining connections, so act appropriately and be kind."
With several mouthfuls of memorized tenets out of the way, Sine checked off the last box with satisfaction. Placing the paper neatly on top of the pile of other, equally-mundane documents, he waved a hoof at Tempest and Ditzy.
"Taken care of," he said, already pulling out even more forms. "You can go now. Packages are in the back."
Tempest, needing no further invitation, eagerly left the dry stallion to drown himself in his beloved ink. Ditzy, grabbing both job forms, followed behind.
Catching up to him, Ditzy handed the now sheepish-looking stallion his paper. "Do you have to go through that every time you get a job?" she asked, watching as he put the sheet in his bag.
Tempest shrugged. "Depends on how much the forms guy likes you." Snorting disdainfully, he added. "Of course, judging by how dry that guy is, he'd probably make his wife submit everything in triplicate."
"Hey," Ditzy protested, "Sine isn't mean, he just... um..."
"Has a library stamp instead of a heart?" Tempest finished.
"...Fine. I'll give you that one."
~~~
"So, where are we taking Dinky?" Tempest asked, flapping alongside the cross-eyed mare.
Ditzy, the filly on her back waving her legs in the air like tree branches in a storm, raised her voice to be heard over the wind. "My niece Sparkler's house. Dinky is going to be staying there until we get back." She paused to chuckle slightly. "Even though they're cousins, you'd think they were sisters for how close they are."
The small unicorn clapped her hooves together in glee. "Yay! Sleepover at Sissy's house!"
Tempest laughed and reached over to ruffle Dinky's mane. "Just promise to not burn down her house, alright?"
"Oh, don't worry about that," Ditzy assuaged. "Sparkler always puts away anything flammable when Dinky comes over."
Several minutes later, the group touched down outside of a small, well-kept hut. A cobbled path lead up to a quaint white door surrounded by a small, colorful garden. Trotting up to the porch, Ditzy rang the doorbell with her nose. As the door swung open, Dinky hopped off of her mother's back and onto the ground.
"Oh, you're right on time!" came a voice from inside. Quickly, the source of the sound stepped out into the sunlight, where it was revealed that the owner was a pink unicorn mare with a scruffy purple mane. As she stepped fully out into the light of day, the diamonds on her flank sparkled and shined just like real gems.
Smiling broadly in welcome, the mare wrapped Ditzy in a strong hug. "Hey there, Aunt D," she greeted, tight embrace causing the pegasus to cough.
Returning the hug, Ditzy managed to wheeze. "It's good to see you too, Sparkler."
Releasing Ditzy from her death grip (and returning to the mare her ability to breathe), Sparkler looked at the other pegasus present. Eyebrows furrowed, she cocked her head to the side as she tried to answer an unspoken question.
Huh, thought Tempest, Must run in the family.
"Rider, right?" asked Sparkler, looking him up and down. "Tempest Rider?" She held out her hoof, staring at him as if daring him to take it.
A bit confused by her attitude, Tempest nonetheless complied. Giving her hoof a firm shake, he nodded. "Right. Nice to meet you, Sparkler."
The mare raised an eyebrow at him, and set her leg back on the ground. Just as Tempest was wondering if there was something on his nose, she smiled. Turning to a now-recovered Ditzy, she spoke. "Confident. I like him."
Ditzy rolled one of her eyes at her niece. Before she could give a sarcastic reply about how relieved she was that Tempest had passed her inspection, however, Dinky bounded up to to the front of the group.
"Sissy, Sissy!" she squeaked, jumping up and down. "We're gonna have a sleepover!"
"Well, hello there, Runt," joked Sparkler, grabbing Dinky in a headlock and giving her a noogie, causing the filly to squeal in delight. "How's my favorite little pyromaniac doing? Explode anything good lately?"
"Uh-huh!" Dinky chirped. After Sparkler let her go, she sat down on her rump and cheerfully started counting off objects on her hooves. "There was a pencil, some marbles, my history textbook, a little tree, and one of Mama's drinking glasses!"
Sparkler whistled. "Wow. You're getting better at controlling that, huh? That's not half the amount of stuff as last time."
At this moment, Ditzy stepped forward. Taking Dinky's overnight bag off of her back, the mare passed it over to the small unicorn. "Sorry, Muffin," she said, "But we have to hurry. Why don't you go put your bag inside?"
Nodding, Dinky grabbed her pack. As she trotted inside, Ditzy turned to Sparkler. Making sure the filly was out of earshot, she whispered to the unicorn.
"I trust you've prepared?" she hissed.
Sparkler nodded. "Yep. I have three fire extinguishers at the ready and I put flame retardant spells on everything I could. Not even Dinky could burn this place down."
"Don't tempt fate," Ditzy warned. Raising her voice back to normal level, she continued. "And remember, no parties..."
Sparkler sighed in exasperation. "I know..."
"No playing 'Biggest Boom Wins,'"
"Spoilsport..." the unicorn grumbled, pawing at the wooden porch.
"And no stallions over."
"One time!" Sparkler protested. Turning to look at Tempest, she continued. "One time a stallion came over, and she never lets me forget it!"
"I remember him!" Dinky chimed, fate choosing that particular moment to let her waltz back into the conversation. "He had tight socks and a funny belt!"
The result on the conversation was immediate. Sparkler glared at her younger cousin, blushing furiously. Ditzy, face scrunched up, was struggling to contain her dredged-up anger. Tempest, meanwhile, was trying to prevent himself from chocking to death on his own laughter.
"I've told you before," Sparkler insisted, "I didn't invite him! It wasn't my fault!"
"Uh-huh..." growled Ditzy. This was obviously an argument they have had many times before.
"I'm serious!" the unicorn continued. "One of my friends must have ordered him and sent him over as a prank!"
"Then why do I keep seeing you with him?" asked Ditzy, seething.
At this, Sparkler immediately lost her aggressive posture. Rubbing the back of her head, she mumbled. "Because he's nice..."
Before Ditzy could respond, she felt Dinky nosing at her shins. Looking down, she saw her daughter staring back up at her with big, soulful eyes.
"Mama," the filly asked, "What's wrong?"
Ditzy bit her tongue and swallowed her anger. Sighing, she smiled at Dinky. "Nothing, Muffin. It's just grown-up talk."
Dinky, silently accepting this as an answer, moved on to a different question. "Mama, when are you coming back?"
Smiling, Ditzy bent down to nuzzle her daughter on the head. "We'll be back tomorrow. We're just going to Appleoosa."
Suddenly, Dinky wrapped her arms around Ditzy's neck. "Promise," she mumbled, burying her head in her mother's mane.
Ditzy was caught off guard by this sudden request, but nonetheless returned the filly's hug. "I promise, Dinky," she soothed.
Dropping down, Dinky gave a similar treatment to Tempest. Hanging from his neck like a living necklace, she said. "You too," she insisted.
Tempest, surprised, stumbled back a pace. Recovering quickly, he awkwardly patted the filly on the back. "Don't worry," he assuaged, "I'll make sure she gets back."
"Thanks!" chirped Dinky happily, displaying the jarring shift of tone that only the young or unstable are capable of. Skipping over to Sparkler, she headbutted her cousin in the chest. "C'mon, Sissy! It's almost time for lunch!"
As the filly trotted through the open door, three confused adults watched her. Sparkler, the first to recover, turned to look at the two baffled pegasi before her. Hesitantly, she spoke.
"Erm," she began, "Well then. See you tomorrow I guess. Safe trip." With that, she spun around and, with no small amount of trepidation, followed her smaller relative into the house.
Ditzy and Tempest stood on the porch for a good ten seconds more before the latter shrugged. Nudging Ditzy to wake her up, the stallion took to the air. Soon after, he heard the wing-beats of the mare come up beside him, and adjusted his pace accordingly.
The pair flew in silence for several minutes, sun burning bright above them as they made their way home. Ditzy seemed contemplative, one eye still trying to look back towards her niece's house. Seeing this, Tempest tapped her on the shoulder, bringing her mind back to the here-and-now.
"Hey," he asked, "You OK?"
Slowly, the mare nodded. "Yeah," she said. "It's just that Dinky doesn't usually act like that. I'm a little worried."
"Don't be," the stallion insisted. "You're her mother; she's just anxious about you being away. She loves you, after all."
Ditzy cracked a small smile. "You're probably right. Thanks."
"No problem," Tempest replied, grinning. Deciding to move to a different topic, he began. "So, your niece is dating a-"
Quickly, Ditzy threw a hoof in front of his mouth. Looking at him dangerously, she growled. "Not. Another. Word."
~~~ |
Pyromanecer | 604 | 8 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2012-02-27T04:51:44+00:00 | 2012-02-27T04:51:44+00:00 | 1,401 | Mailpony Rules
Chapter 8
"Package?"
"Check!"
"Food?"
"Check!"
"Emergency supplies?"
"Check!"
Satisfied, Tempest filled in the last box on his imaginary pre-flight check-list. All necessities were accounted for; they had food to last them until they got to Appleoosa, bits to purchase a room once they got there, and, of course, their respective cargoes, without which would result in a delivery most shameful and unsuccessful.
"Tempest?" Ditzy asked. "Not that I'm questioning your experience or anything, but shouldn't we have gone over this before we left?"
The stallion felt himself flushing. "I know what I'm doing," he insisted, flying further ahead in an attempt to avoid more questions.
A futile effort, as it turned out. Flapping harder, Ditzy quickly caught up to him. "Tempest," she chided, "Did you forget to check our stuff before leaving?"
Tempest looked away shamefully. He grumbled something which Ditzy felt could be interpreted as 'Maybe.'
"Come on," she gently ribbed, "Everyone makes mistakes. It's nothing to be ashamed about."
The stallion frowned. "It's different for this," he mumbled. "Forgetting something on a big trip can be catastrophic."
"What," Ditzy asked, laughing, "Are Celestia and Luna going to make meteors come down on our heads because we didn't bring enough dried apricots?"
"Ha ha," laughed Tempest sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "Okay, so maybe not 'catastrophic.' How about just 'very bad?'"
"Elaborate."
He rubbed his chin in thought. "Well, the first time I made a long-distance delivery I forgot to bring extra food. I had to use my lodging bits to keep myself from starving. Ended up sleeping beneath a bridge." He shuddered. "Never forgot food again."
Ditzy winced. "Ouch. Sounds nasty."
"It was. There was garbage everywhere and some homeless pony kept touching my leg."
Now the mare looked confused. "O... kay. That's strange." She shook her head to clear the odd thoughts. "If that's true, why did you forget to check our bags this time?"
Sheepishly, the stallion looked anywhere but Ditzy. "Well, this is the first time I've ever flown with somepony else. I only checked my bags."
"Is that all?" Ditzy asked. "That's not bad. That's actually pretty reasonable."
"Yes, I know," Tempest sighed, "But it's such a rookie mistake. If anypony else found out, I'd be the laughing stock of the bounty board."
"Oh, quit moping," she teased, jabbing him in the side. "Everypony messes up every now and then. I would know."
"Yeah, but most mistakes don't end up with us sharing a garbage-bed with some very touchy hobos," he grumbled.
Ditzy swiveled her eyes, opting not to respond. Taking this as an invite for a change in topic, Tempest asked, "So, has Sparkler foalsat Dinky before?"
The mare nodded. "Yep, all the time. Like I said, those two are like sisters."
"What do you think they're up to now?"
~~~
"Dinky! Get down off of that cupboard!"
"Nuh-uh! Not until you get off the fridge!"
Gritting her teeth, Sparkler dug her heels harder into the cold steel of her refrigerator and pushed with all her might. In response, the glow around her horn intensified, causing the corresponding blob of magical energy around the metallic sphere in the room's center to turn slightly more purple.
Dinky, sitting on a flame-retardant cupboard on the other side of the room, felt sweat drip down her face. Grimacing, she put even more power behind her spell, trying to force the ball past the flag on Sparkler's side of the kitchen. Slowly, tantalizingly, the orb began to inch its way away from her, trailing sparks and smoke where her magic lost focus.
"Heh, you're getting pretty good at this, Dinks," Sparkler admitted. Suddenly, she flashed a wide grin. "But not good enough!"
Dinky felt the massive surge of energy from her cousin before she saw its effects, filling her with a sense of dread even before the contested object began jerkily moving towards her. She huffed, and she puffed, and she put all of her magical power behind stopping the ball, but it still continued it's sporadic advance.
Sparkler, assured of her victory, allowed herself a devious smile. The smug grin was quickly wiped from her face as she felt an all-too-familiar sensation begin to build in her chest. Panicking, the mare tried to stifle the urge. In, vain, it seemed, as the feeling only continued growing in proportion with her ball's progress across the room.
"AAACHOO!
Several things happened at once. One, the force of Sparkler's sneeze disrupted her concentration, and thus her flow of magic. Two, Dinky, unaffected by her cousin's diaphragmal spasm, failed to cut off the flow of energy through her horn. Three, the ball, free from one half of its active forces, sped along the path of least resistance.
Right towards Sparkler.
The mare, recovering from her sneak-attack sneeze, looked up just in time to see the small sphere barreling towards her, trailing magic and flames. Everything slowed down. She couldn't move, she couldn't think, all she could do was watch with a growing sense of primal terror as the magically-charged projectile sped towards her at Mach 1.
*THUNK*
"Sparkler!" cried Dinky, leaning towards her cousin. "Are you okay?"
Sparkler, who had miraculously not fallen off the fridge, was currently sprawled on her back, gripping the place where the ball had impacted her with her hooves. Right between the eyes. Ouch.
"I'm fine..." she managed to groan, rolling over onto her stomach. "The only thing hurt is my pride." Pushing herself up, she winced. "Okay, that's a lie. My face hurts pretty bad too."
Dinky looked down and scuffed her hooves. "Sorry..."
Sparkler shook her head, cringing as the movement made her head throb. That was definitely going to leave a bruise. "Don't worry, Dinky, it's not your fault."
Worries assuaged, Dinky asked the next thing on her mind. "...So does that mean I won?"
Sparkler grinned ruefully. "Fine. But we're playing two out of three. And if you melt or vaporize the ball, you automatically lose, alright?"
"Aw..."
~~~
"...Hopefully nothing too dangerous."
Tempest, satisfied with the answer, looked into the sky to check the time. He was surprised to see that it was almost noon. Mentally charting their position, the stallion figured that they could stop for lunch.
"Hey, Ditzy," he called. "It's about time we stop for food."
"Got it!" she returned. Secretly, she was relieved. While she was loathe to admit it, her wings were very sore and she would greatly appreciate a rest.
Gliding downwards, the pair spotted a lone-standing tree. Settling themselves in its shade, they began taking out their food. It is probably fortunate that they saw this tree when they did, for it was one of the last ones before the real wasteland began. The next time they would see foliage-based shade would be when they hit the extensive apple orchards of Appleoosa.
While the train to said frontier town usually took at least an overnight trip, pegasus flight was much faster. With the lack of other stops and the ability to fly over obstacles, a trained distance flier could make the journey in a little under half a day. Doing some quick estimations in his head, Tempest figured that they they would arrive at town just before sunset, barring any surprises.
"Erm, Tempest?" Ditzy asked, waving a hoof in front of his face. "Are you going to eat or just stare at your food?"
Startled out of his reverie, the stallion jumped. "Huh? Oh, sorry," he apologized. "Just doing some math."
Ditzy quirked an eyebrow at him. "Math?"
Tempest rolled his eyes. "Alright, not math math, just guessing-math," he snorted, pulling out the rest of his lunch. "We should get there in a few hours."
The mare nodded and went back to her delicious sandwich. Before her nutritional package could reach her mouth, however, she spotted something unusual lying next to her companion's assorted foodstuffs.
"Um, Tempest?" she questioned, for the second time that minute. "Is that... instant coffee?"
"Hmm?" the stallion replied, looking up from rummaging in his bag. Following one of her eyes, he saw the shiny plastic package she was currently examining. "Oh, yeah. That it is."
"...Did you bring a coffee maker with you?"
Tempest scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. Why would I do that? Those things are heavy."
"Then why do you have it?"
"Um, for lunch? Duh?"
Ditzy, confused, cocked her head. "How can you drink coffee without a coffee maker?"
Rolling his eyes, the stallion gave a small smirk. Quickly, he snatched up the package and tore off the top. With one swift motion, he dumped the entire contents of the bag into his open mouth. Ditzy, wide eyed, could only cringe as he began grinding the fine powder between his teeth.
Taking a swig from his water bottle, Tempest grinned. "Like that."
Ditzy stared, her face showing a combination of shock, disgust, and admiration. "That... was very strange."
Tempest chortled. "You should see some of the other guys; they practically breathe this stuff." Nodding towards his bag, he added. "I've got another pack, if you want some."
The mare visibly recoiled. "No, no, I'm good," she laughed nervously. "You can have your strange eating habits, I'll stick to my sandwich."
Tempest shrugged. "Suit yourself. But believe me; if you do long hauls, you learn to love caffeine. It's a fact of nature."
~~~
One meal later, the pair were back in the air, Tempest much more perky from his caffeine buzz. With the wind at their tails, the pegasi made great time. In fact, they arrived at Appleoosa a full half hour before Tempest predicted. Looking below, they could see the town was constructed in classic frontier-town fashion. There was a long main street that lead all the way through town, strait as an arrow, with all the important shops, services, gathering places, and, of course, the obligatory saloon lining its edges like looming guards. Everything was faithfully depicted in the old-timey settler pony style, with all the wood, large signs, and rump-smacking doors one could ask for. Off in the distance, past some tall rock formations, a picturesque apple orchard stretched as far as the eye could see. It almost looked like it was pulled strait out of a postcard.
Touching down outside the rustic-looking post office, the stallion turned to his companion. "Alright," he began. "My package goes here. You want to come in?"
Ditzy shook her head. "Nah. You go ahead; I'll wait here."
As soon as the stallion had disappeared behind the old-style saloon doors, however, Ditzy let out an explosive breath. Panting heavily, she frantically looked around the wide street for anything she could use to quench her thirst. Spotting a metal trough outside of a farrier's shop, she dashed over as fast as her sore legs would allow. Once there, she promptly dunked her entire head below the surface, taking great gulps as she felt the water cool her sweaty face. Cringing at the water's taste, a mix of old metal and feet, she nonetheless swallowed the water as fast as she could without choking. Once her lungs began to burn, she resurfaced, resuming her panting and looking like a half-drowned dog. Shaking her head in a vain attempt to dry her mane, she hurriedly cantered back over to the post office.
While she would never admit it to her friend's face, she was dead tired. Her wings were beyond sore, and she swore she could feel every one of her feathers pulse with pain. At this point, she was basically holding herself up with nothing but strong will and a brave face. After all the stick she gave him for having trouble waking up early, she didn't think she could bear to see the smug grin he would give her when he saw how utterly exhausted she was.
Speaking of smiles of the Tempest variety, one was currently walking back out of the post office, attached to the face of a familiar stallion. Of course, this grin was less smug and more one of satisfaction of a job well done. As he trotted over, he immediately noticed Ditzy's sopping wet head. Much to her dismay.
"Ditzy?" he asked, concerned. "Why are you dripping?"
"Oh, I got thirsty," she lied, nodding her head in a random direction in hopes that there was a water source that way. "But when I got there, I tripped and fell in. Silly me."
He bought it. She mentally sighed in relief as he shrugged dismissively. "Careful next time," he cautioned. "We don't want you getting hurt."
"I'll try not to drown in any buckets."
Rolling his eyes, Tempest sarcastically laughed. "Ha ha. Anyways, we still have to deliver your package."
Taking that as her cue, Ditzy opened up her saddlebags and removed the box in question. Moving the label in close and closing one eye, she managed to make out the name and address.
"Braeburn Apple," she announced. "And he lives..."
"...Right next to the saloon."
Standing outside their destination, the two ponies prepared to knock on the door. The house itself was fairly typical of Appleoosa: wood, old-fashioned windows, an abundance of apple-themed decorations, etc. One major difference was the color. While most of the other buildings in town opted for more muted shades of brown or tan, whether from stylistic choice or dust, Braeburn's abode was painted a garish yellow color. Potted plants bloomed on the porch, despite the oppressive heat and sand, providing more bright splotches of color to the house that already stood out in the desert like a mime in a rainbow factory. On the door rested a brass door knocker shaped like an apple, being of questionable use, considering the door was the kind that swung open. The smell of fresh apples wafted out of the open windows, providing a rather stark contrast with the odor of salt and sweat coming from the adjacent saloon.
"I guess this is the place," spoke Ditzy, one eye reading the package and the other admiring the home's tasteful choice in paneling. Walking up to the front door, she pondered on whether to use the knocker or just call. Her decision was made for her, however, as a yellow stallion in a cowpony hat and stylish vest burst through the entryway like he had been shot out of a cannon.
"Visitors!" he shouted, jumping for joy. Coming uncomfortably close, he grinned in a way that was both enthusiastic and creepy. "Howdy! And welcome to AAAAAAA-"
"Braeburn..." interrupted a threatening voice. Turning around, all three ponies saw a gray stallion with an impressive mustache and a silver star on his chest. Said stallion was currently glaring at Braeburn, who was looking very intimidated indeed. "What did ah say before?"
"N-no scaring the tourists," Braeburn laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry, boss." Satisfied, the gray stallion nodded and walked away, probably off to do manly things.
Once he was gone, Braeburn coughed. "Eh he, sorry 'bout that," he said at a much more reasonable volume. Extending a hoof, he gave both Ditzy and Tempest a firm shake. "Anyways, mah name's Braeburn. How can ah help ya?"
"Well, Mr. Apple," Ditzy began, "We're here to deliver a package to you."
At this, the stallion cocked his head. "Really? Huh, that's odd. Ah ain't expectin' anything." Shrugging, his face returned to a manic grin. "Oh well; ah always enjoy getting parcels!"
Tempest removed a sheet of paper from his bag and passed it to Ditzy. "Sign here, please."
Taking a hitherto unnoticed pen, Braeburn quickly scrawled his signature, even managing to make the 'B' look like a small apple. While the pegasus went to store the paper in the confines of her bag, the cowpony immediately set about eviscerating the package's top. Once the container's lid was reduced to pile of shredded tape and cardboard, he gave a foalish squeal of delight, startling both of the other ponies present.
"COOKIES!" he yelled, plunging his head deep into the box. From within the confines of his rectangular heaven, Braeburn gave off an alarming series of eating noises. Amid the crunches, smacks, and slurps, the mailponies caught each others' eyes, and saw that they both were thinking the same thing: should they stay and watch the strange spectacle, or back away slowly?
Just as they were about to quietly retreat, the noises halted and Braeburn resurfaced, face covered in chocolate and hat still miraculously perched on his head. "Woo," he exclaimed, "Them's some good treats!"
"We are glad to see you are satisfied, sir," replied Ditzy in a business-like tone. "We hope you enjoy your... cookies."
Seeing the two making to leave, Braeburn dashed in front of them. "Now wait just an apple-pickin' minute," he protested, barring their way. "Y'all can't leave yet! Ah haven't properly thanked ya!"
"Sir, I assure you, that is not necessary." This time, it was Tempest who spoke.
"Nonsense!" insisted Braeburn, stomping a hoof. "It's the least ah can do for bringin' me cookies!" Rubbing his chin in thought, a light-bulb flashed above the stallion's head. "I know! How about ah treat you to a few rounds over at the Salt Lick? On me!"
"Um, sir-"
"Braeburn."
"Braeburn. I don't know if that's a good idea. We have a long flight tomorrow , and getting ourselves dehydrated the night before probably isn't the best idea."
"Oh, don't worry," the vested stallion replied, waving away their concerns. "It's just a few cubes! Just make sure ya don't overdo it!"
Sensing that he wasn't going to give up, the two pegasi looked at each other. Reluctantly, they both nodded. Immediately, Braeburn popped up behind them, and started nudging them along.
"Well, come on then!" he said, trotting past them now that he was satisfied that they were moving. "Time's a wastin'!"
Following more slowly, Tempest leaned over to Ditzy. "Be careful," he whispered. "Don't go overboard on the salt; flying with a hangover is the worst thing you can experience."
Silently, Ditzy nodded. She wouldn't let herself go; she knew her limits when it came to salt.
~~~
Well, at least she thought she did. Apparently, Appleoosan salt was much more potent than the Ponyville variety. Despite the fact that she had only had four cubes, the mare was already swaying in her seat, eyes slightly more crossed than normal.
"An-and then ah said 'Filly, you can't do that! It'll splatter everywhere!'" Braeburn announced quite loudly, giggling.
Absently chewing on a salt cube, Tempest nodded. He was currently watching Ditzy closely, concerned for her current levels of intoxication.
"An' ya know what? She did it anyways! And it did make a huge mess!" He hiccuped. "It took forever to get out of her mane."
"Uh-huh," mumbled Tempest. Ditzy was trying to wave the bartender over again, smiling deliriously.
Braeburn bit down on his cube with a loud crunch. "Still the most fun ah ever had bakin' a cake, though. Right barrel o' laughs, that was."
Tempest reached over and lowered Ditzy's frantically waving arm. The mare turned to look at him, irritation evident in her eyes.
"H-hey," she slurred. "Was th' big idea?"
"Ditzy, remember what I said about not eating too much?"
The mare snorted. "Pssh; I'm f-fine. I know my limitssh."
Tempest removed his arm. "Alright," he warned. "But remember, you have to fly home to Dinky tomorrow."
At that, the mailmare remembered her promise to her daughter. The thought seemed to sober her up. A little.
"Alright," she admitted. "Maybe I've had enough."
"Aw, yer done already?" Braeburn complained. "Phooey. It's only been..." As he glanced out the window, the stallion saw that it was quickly getting dark. "Sheeee-oot. Where does the time go?" Standing up, he grunted as the feeling returned to his legs. "Well, ah reckon we better get goin'."
~~~
Standing outside the local inn, Tempest looked up into the building's windows. It was easily the most modern building he had seen in town, though that wasn't saying much. It still had the rustic-looking wooden eves sticking out of the front, but the door was of the more familiar variety, with a knob and mail slot.
Feeling Ditzy shift against him, Tempest looked down. The mare was currently leaning against his side, too off balance to walk unsupported. Tempest knew she would regret eating so much salt much more in the morning, and felt a little sorry for her.
"Well, here we are!" announced Braeburn. While still looking slightly tipsy, the stallion had managed to walk competently enough to not fall down. Yet.
"Thanks for showing us the way here, Braeburn," thanked Tempest.
"Aw, shucks," he said, shrugging. "T'weren't no problem. Now, y'all have a good night's sleep. And welcome to AAAAA-" Suddenly, Braeburn clapped his hooves over his mouth. Looking frantically from side to side, he dropped to a whisper. "Appleoosa!" With a conspiratorial grin and a wink, the cowpony turned around and started walking away.
Right into a post.
With a thunk that made even the intoxicated Ditzy wince, Braeburn went down like a sack of bricks. Quickly, he sprung back up.
"Ah'm, OK."
Unsteadily, the stallion toddered away, looking like he would fall over at any moment. Tempest watched him go, sending a silent prayer to Celestia that he would get home and not fall in a well.
After the tipsy stallion had rounded a corner, the pair slowly walked into the inn, Ditzy still leaning heavily on Tempest's shoulder. As they approached the front desk, Ditzy rubbed her head under his chin.
"Thanksh for being so nice," she slurred, grinning stupidly.
"Erm, you're welcome?" Tempest replied, reaching to ring the call-bell and missing. Even though he wasn't tripping over his own hooves, he was still having trouble with the more dextrous of tasks.
"I mean it!" the mare insisted as the clerk approached. "You helped me on the flight here, you shtopped me from eating too much *hic* salt, an-and now you're being a right gentlecolt and helping me shtay on my hooves!" She hiccuped again, and gave the blushing stallion a quick nuzzle. "I like you."
As the stallion blustered embarrassingly, the inn's attendant finally came up to the front desk. Judging by the bags under her eyes and the irritated scowl on her face, she been woken up by the unexpected ringing of the call-bell. Picking up a random set of keys from the rack, she practically threw them at the pair. As the mare walked away, she mumbled something along the lines of 'Pay on the way out,' mixed with a few words that don't bear repeating.
Tempest eagerly snatched up the keys and led Ditzy away, the intoxicated mare being a little too affectionate for his blurry mind to properly respond to. As they walked in what he assumed was the right direction, however, they encountered their first obstacle.
Stairs.
In a vain attempt to bypass what was currently an extremely threatening bit of architecture, Tempest glanced down at the chunk of wood attached to their room key. 207.
"Horseapples," he cursed.
Hearing the swear, Ditzy looked up from the floor. As she blearily focused an eye forwards, she snorted. "Wha? Ish just stairs."
With that, the mare confidently strode ahead, stepping onto the first stair with only a slight wobble in her step. Grinning confidently, she continued her ascent, rising to the challenge both metaphorically and literally. Unconvinced, Tempest followed close behind, bracing himself to catch her should she fall.
Glancing behind her, Ditzy saw the stallion following close on her tail. Smirking smugly, she decided to tease him. "Hey, quit admiring my rump."
"Focus on the stairs," Tempest commanded, trying very hard to prevent his cheeks from going red.
Ditzy partially rolled her eyes. "Spoilsport," she muttered, putting an extra sway in her step just to annoy him.
Thankfully, the stairs, though imposing, were few in number. Ditzy soon set her front hooves on the landing where their room would be, causing Tempest to let out a sigh of relief. The stallion, feeling the ordeal was at an end, allowed his muscles to relax and his guard to drop. A fatal mistake, as it turned out.
Among the general pony population, there is a phenomenon know as 'phantom step.' Though currently a mystery to modern science, its existence is well known and has been proven time and time again. It occurs when one has reached the top of a staircase, but the brain does not register it. As such, it instructs the pony to reach for the next step. Since there is no next step, however, the pony's hooves fail to find purchase and instead plummet the last few inches back onto solid ground. During these few inches of freefall, the brain, the most malevolent of all trickster gods, sends a rush of complete and utter terror through the body, telling it that it is currently falling and about to be turned into a myriad of meaty splatters on the ground. This experience is grouped together with dreaming about rolling off the edge of the bed under the headings "Neurological Mystery" and "Really Annoying."
While the symptoms for a healthy, alert victim of phantom step are typically limited to a slight stumble and a small heart attack, Ditzy was currently neither healthy nor alert. As such, the second her surprised brain registered her hoof hitting the ground several inches below where it thought it would, her leg immediately crumpled. The resulting loss of a critical point of balance caused the mare to lean precariously to one side. Once her center of mass was sufficiently askew, her entire body fell backwards, right into the surprised and unprepared Tempest.
Oh Celestia, is this what death feels like?
Tempest groaned and rubbed his head where he had banged it on the way down. Shaking his head to rid it of the stars, his brain reminded him that there was another entity involved in the tumble.
"Ditzy?" he called, a little more loudly than intended. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm *urf* fine!" he heard.
Opening his eyes, he saw the mare in question in a most comical position. Her back was propped up against the wall, with her front half resting on the floor and her rear legs dangling above her head like a gray and fleshy mobile. Opting not to laugh, Tempest instead crawled over and began helping her to her hooves.
"You hurt?" he asked as she began stretching.
Stomping her hooves, Ditzy shook her head. "Nothing seems broken." As she extended her wing, however, she winced and quickly retracted her left. "Ouch; that's going to bruise, though."
"Let me see," the stallion asked. When, he reached for it, though, the mare shied away.
"It's fine," she insisted. "It'll be back to normal in the morning. Now, come on; we really do need to get up these stairs."
With some of her pride salvaged, Ditzy headed back to the staircase, albeit with much more care than last time. Thankfully, they made it up without incident, and Tempest was soon fumbling with the keys as he tried to unlock their room for the night.
Wherein they discovered their second problem.
"Um, there's only one bed."
Dumbly, Tempest nodded. Within the room, there was one small couch, one end table, one door which presumably led to the bathroom, one window, sans curtains, one lamp, one dresser, and one bed, with accompanying nightstand. It seemed the room was meant for one.
Immediately, the chivalrous part of Tempest's brain took over. "You take the bed, I'll sleep on the couch." When he attempted to head towards his self-designated resting place, however, Ditzy extended a leg and pulled him back.
"Oh no you don't," she said. "I just knocked us down a flight of stairs; you take the bed and consider it an apology.'
"You hurt your wing," countered Tempest. "You don't need to mess it up more by sleeping funny."
"My wing is fine, and we wouldn't have fallen if I had kept my hooves. Take the bed."
The stallion was rapidly growing tired of this back-and-forth. "Alright, look," he began. Reaching into his bag, he removed a shiny bit. "We'll flip a coin. Heads, you get the bed; tails, I get it. No do-overs, no reflips. Deal?"
"Deal," Ditzy agreed, shaking hooves.
With the bargain struck, Tempest tossed the coin upwards. As the bit twirled in the air, moonlight from the window glinted off its shiny metal surface. It quickly reached the apex of its flight, and gravity once again took hold, bringing it downwards with the same force that kept the moon from flying off into space and seriously bothering Mars.
Once the coin reached ground level, however, something strange happened. While normally one would expect to hear the pitter-patter of the metal circle bouncing and rolling on the wooden floor, the room was instead met with silence. In puzzlement, both ponies looked down to see why their problem-solving device was not making the correct noises. What greeted them was a sight most unexpected.
Sitting there, in defiance of all probability, was the coin, wedged between two slats of wood and defiantly sticking its edge strait up in the air. With the end result neither heads nor tails, the two pegasi looked up at each other.
"No do-overs..." mumbled Ditzy.
"This is awkward."
"It could be worse."
Tempest snorted. Adjusting himself, he tried to find a comfortable position that wouldn't jostle his wings against Ditzy's own. "How?"
"Well," began Ditzy, smiling mischievously. "The bed could be half its size. Or filled with snakes."
The stallion rolled his eyes. "Alright, barring strange reptile intrusions, this is still pretty uncomfortable." He shifted. "I don't suppose this could be one of those things we never tell anyone about ever?"
"I dunno," Ditzy mused. "I think I'd like to tell all my friends about how I shared a bed with the handsome stallion from out of town."
Tempest's only response was to furiously blush.
~~~ |
Pyromanecer | 604 | 9 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2012-04-10T00:33:55+00:00 | 2012-04-10T00:33:55+00:00 | 1,486 | Mailpony Rules
Chapter 9
Ditzy was no stranger to being woken up by the sun. Many a morning had began with her waking up to the feeling of dappled sunlight on her eyelids. However, instead of gentle dots of light on her face, this time she felt like her eyes were being attacked with spears of horrible blinding pain.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaa! she thought, reaching up to cover her face with her hooves. When she tried, though, she felt her movements restricted by an unknown obstacle. Something warm and fuzzy. Worried, Ditzy tried to open her eyes, only to get a metaphorical slap in the face from Celestia as she realized her face was pointing directly towards the uncovered window. Groaning, she resigned herself to being blind until her head stopped throbbing.
Once her frontal lobe stopped trying to tunnel its way out of her skull, the mare finally managed to pry her eyelids open. With the sunlight still in her face, she had to squint in order to see anything beyond the blinding white light. Through her half-lidded eyes, she managed to glimpse a blurry gray form laying in front of her. Her front legs were currently wrapped around it, and she could feel warmth emanating from its surface.
Before her hazy brain could puzzle its way through what this mysterious object is, it suddenly moved. From the end nearest her head, a long appendage rose, bringing with it a blur of something blue. With slow and deliberate movements, it slowly rotated, until the top end was right in front of her face. It blinked.
Oh. It was Tempest. And they were... Oh.
Tempest seemed to realize this at the same point as her. "This is... the second most awkward position we could have woken up in."
Ditzy, laying on her side, currently had her front legs wrapped around Tempest's torso. Currently, her face was scant few inches from his own, and she could feel his wings digging into her abdomen. Their hips were uncomfortably close to each others', causing the already warm feeling of sleeping close to rise to very unpleasant levels.
After untangling themselves from their awkward spooning, both ponies stoop across from the other, looking anywhere but themselves. Eventually, Ditzy spoke.
"Never leaves this room?"
"Agreed."
With that, Ditzy sat herself down on the bed, grimacing and rubbing her temples. Embarrassed or no, she still had a killer of a migraine, not to mention her mouth was as dry as the desert outside. Seeing this, Tempest walked off into the bathroom. He returned a moment later, toting a large glass of water.
"Here," he suggested. "Drink this."
Eying the cup suspiciously, as if it would attack her, the mare gingerly took it in her hooves. Bringing it to her mouth, she tilted it back, and almost fainted with relief when the cool liquid washed over her swollen, dry tongue. Quickly, she began gulping it down, since she had literally eaten a large amount of salt and not drunk anything for several hours. There is no possible analogy that is more fitting than that truth.
"Hey, slow down," Tempest warned. "You'll make yourself sick."
Reluctantly, Ditzy slowed her frenzied gulping to a pace less reminiscent of a fire-hose in reverse. After four more glasses, the mare's thirst finally abated. Her pounding migraine had been reduced to a dull throb, and she no longer felt like she was about to cough up sand.
"Thanks," she told Tempest, getting up off the bed.
"I told you not to go overboard," said the stallion in a mocking tone. "You're lucky I stopped you when I did; any more and you'd be vomiting."
"Yes, yes," admitted the mare, looking annoyed. "I'm sorry. You can quit rubbing it in."
Tempest chuckled, much to the Ditzy's chagrin. "Maybe later. How about we go get breakfast? We'll want to start off early."
At the mention of food, Ditzy perked up. Nodding, she began stretching her stiff muscles. When she extended her wings, however, she winced and immediately pulled back her left. Tempest noticed.
"That's the second time you've done that," he accused.
"It's fine," she insisted. "It's just a little bruise."
"Little things lead to big problems," countered Tempest. "We should get it looked at before we leave."
Ditzy sensed he wasn't going to give. "Fine," she conceded. "But can we do it after breakfast? I'm starving." As if in agreement, her stomach gave off a loud growl.
Tempest nodded. "Deal. Now, come on; breakfast is complementary."
~~~
Nervously, Ditzy sat on the examination table, trying to pass the time by twiddling her hooves. The doctor had come and gone, taking with him a few magic images of the inside of her wing. Close by, Tempest sat reading a magazine as old as he was, completely uninterested in whatever out-of-date gossip it was dribbling. The table next to him was covered with similar magazines, all old and most stained with some unidentifiable liquid. Bored with fidgeting, Ditzy instead began scanning the clean, white interior of the room for something interesting. Eventually, here mismatched eyes settled on a chart, helpfully labeled 'How Much Does It Hurt?'. On it, there were five pictures of a pony's face, with multiples of two up to ten beneath them. The faces ranged from happily smiling to an exaggerated frown with teary eyes.
That's a stupid pain scale, thought Ditzy. It doesn't even have all the numbers. And who smiles when they're in any amount of pain?
She was distracting herself, and she knew it. Despite her calm, bored expression, she was actually very worried. Since the confrontation in the hotel room, she had tried opening her wings several times. The results had been consistent: each attempt resulted in a lance of pain, followed by a quick withdrawal to her side. While she was loathe to admit it, she was starting to think that she might be more injured than she originally thought.
That didn't stop her from trying to ignore it, though. "Why do doctors always put posters and stuff in the rooms?" she asked.
Tempest looked up from his colorful rag. "Probably to make it feel less like a cell, I suppose," he surmised. Nodding towards one such picture, this one featuring a multitude of colorful kittens, he continued. "They might help calm ponies down, too. I mean, foals like animals, right?"
"Yeah, but what if they form weird mental connections?" Ditzy added. "Like, what would they do if foals started associating cute animals with needles?"
"In all my years, I have never seen somepony learn to associate puppies and stabbing pain," went a new voice. Unbeknownst to Ditzy and Tempest, the doctor had walked back into the room while the two were arguing. The doctor, whose name-tag helpfully identified as 'Doctor Makewell,' looked surprisingly unprofessional for one of the medical vocation. His white coat was, of course, clean, but it looked like little other grooming had been done. What mane peeked out from under his hat (an odd combination of ten-gallon and head-lamp) looked brown and unkempt. Despite his grungy appearance, however, the seriousness of his appearance was increased immensely by his lab coat and the clipboard floating in front of his face.
Looking closely at said clipboard, Makewell spoke. "Well, Miss Doo, it appears I have some good news and some bad news."
That didn't sound good. "What's the bad news?" the mare asked tentatively.
"It appears you have sprained your wing. You are, effectively, grounded until it heals."
This was very bad. "And the good news?" Ditzy was silently hoping that he would reveal some magic device that would make 'until it heals' mean 'for the next ten minutes.'
"The good news is that it is a relatively minor sprain. You should be airborne again in about three days."
"Three days!?" shouted Ditzy. "No nonono, I need to get home tonight!"
Doctor Makewell seemed taken aback by this sudden outburst. "Well, if it's that urgent, you can probably take the train..."
"The train takes too long! I won't get there until tomorrow!" By this point, Ditzy was hyperventilating. She had promised Dinky she would be home today. Not the next day, not in four days, this day. And now she was being told she couldn't, that she was going to have to break her promise to her daughter and come home later than she had swore.
Turning her frantic emotions on the doctor, Ditzy glared at him. "There has to be a way to get to Ponyville by nightfall! You're a doctor; you know things! How do I do it?"
Faced with a manic mare, Doctor Makewell was feeling more than a little uncomfortable. In fact, he was feeling downright scared. "Erm, I-I'm sorry, miss. The t-train is the fastest way out of town by land. The only other way is by air, and you, um, c-can't fly."
Ditzy violently shook her head. "Nonononono," she gibbered. "There has to be another way! There's no way I'm going to disappoint Dinky!"
Tempest, who had been sitting quietly, sat up. Tapping the frightened doctor on the shoulder, the stallion looked at him with a determined face.
"What are those cloth things called?" he asked seriously. "The ones you carry injured ponies around on?"
Makewell looked confused. First we was being verbally accosted by a frantic mare, and now he was being asked for the names of hospital implements? It wasn't even noon! "...Stretchers?"
Tempest nodded. "Yes. Those. How much do they weigh?"
~~~
"That's your plan!?"
Pulling on a rope, Tempest nodded. Satisfied that the knot was secure, the stallion began tying the other end of the rope to one of the poles of his recently-purchased stretcher.
Ditzy shook her head in disbelief. "This is insane."
Before them lie a small pile of ropes and a cloth stretcher. Snaking out from the tangled clump, four pieces of rope were tied around each of the corners of the rectangular device in a series of complicated knots. On the other side of the fibrous thorn-bush sat Tempest, expertly tying a third piece of rope to his own body. Currently, two others were wrapped around his torso in a harness-like fashion. Anyone watching would think that the stallion was tying himself to a stretcher. Of course, they would be exactly right.
Tempest either didn't hear her or purposely refused to acknowledge her protest. "Hey, can you help me with this? The last one is always the hardest."
The mare looked at him incredulously. "No!" she said. "No, I will not help you! This is crazy! You cannot possibly think you can carry me all the way back to Ponyville!"
"I can, and I will." Seeing the mare wasn't going to help, Tempest instead began re-checking the knots on the stretcher. "Don't worry, I won't drop you. I know what I'm doing."
"It's not about that!" the mare protested, though she wasn't too keen about plummeting to her death either. "I didn't spend all that time recuperating you just for you to go and injure yourself again on some heroic stunt!"
"That's exactly why I'm doing this," Tempest countered, looking up from his knots. "You helped me when I was hurt, and now it's my turn. It's like a cruel twist of fate or something." Turning around, the stallion again presented his untied harness. "Now, are you going to help or not?"
Ditzy hesitated. Even though she was disinclined to allow Tempest to airlift her all the way home, her will to resist was waning; she wanted to disappoint Dinky even less.
"Fine," she conceded, walking over. "But I'm not going to enjoy it."
Tempest grunted as Ditzy finished the knot. "I don't expect you to."
~~~
For the third time in as many minutes, Ditzy felt her stomach heave as the airborne gurney gave another sickening lurch. Fighting hard to keep still, the mare pulled her legs in closer to her body. This ride was far from pleasant. With every jostle, Ditzy fear that she was about to tumble over the side and end up as a meaty splatter. She trusted Tempest completely, of course, but it was impossible to repress the sudden, intense terror that comes with the threat of possible death.
"How you holding up down there?"
Looking upwards, Ditzy squinted as the midday sun shone right in her eyes. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?"
"If I wasn't holding up, we'd have crashed."
Ditzy contemplated this. "Point taken."
As they lapsed into silence, Ditzy distracted herself by looking at the scenery. It truly was a beautiful sight; the sun almost directly overhead painted everything in rich contrast. Rocks worn smooth by desert wind gleamed brightly, shining like broken glass embedded in the sand. Red cliffs cast deep, dark shadows beneath the slightest overhang, making the surrounding stone look like it had been carved in the style of a patchwork quilt. Desert scrub dotted the barren landscape, breaking up the plain of dry, cracked mud. Looking ahead, she could see the ridge of tall hills that was the land-bound train's main obstacle. They were fast approaching, and, looking below, Ditzy could see the first small foothills that would lead up to the peaks.
Realizing how far they had gone, Ditzy looked up. "You should rest!" she called. "It's been a while since you stopped!"
Tempest grunted, wiping the sweat out of his eyes. "I can keep going! It's fine!"
Ditzy frowned. "No. If you keep going, you're going to exhaust yourself. We need to stop for lunch, at least."
"But-"
"No buts! I'm not going to let you hurt yourself on my behalf!"
"...Can we at least wait until we get to the mountains?" the stallion asked. Feeling pressured for time, he was reluctant to stop for any reason, and was seeking to extend his flight by any length.
Fortunately, Ditzy accepted the compromise. "Deal," she agreed. "But then you're going to rest if I have to hold you down."
Several minutes later, the pair were set up on a relatively-flat ledge, looking out over the scenery. The shade provided was a great boon, blocking the oppressive heat of the sun and making their resting place infinitely more comfortable. Currently, they were set up on a small blanket, eating a small, bland lunch.
After being scolded by Ditzy and nearly choking, Tempest had stopped wolfing down his food and was now eating at a slightly more reasonable pace. Even as he swallowed his tasteless sandwich, though, he couldn't help but notice that Ditzy was acting peculiar. The mare kept tapping her hoof on the ground and fidgeting, seemingly unable to sit still. She also regularly glanced up at the horizon in the general direction that Ponyville lied. Well, one eye did; the other remained rebelliously fixed on the ground. Those well-versed in the art of body reading would immediately recognize these signs as a manifestation of a feeling of impatience or a desire to get moving, possibly due to time constraints or a limited window of opportunity.
Tempest wasn't well-versed in the art of body reading.
"Something wrong?" he said, mumbling around the food in his mouth.
Looking over at him, Ditzy sighed. "Sorry," she apologized, "I'm just worried that we won't get there in time."
Tempest contemplated his sandwich, wondering if he could fit the rest into his mouth at once. "We can get going now, if you'd like."
"No, no" protested Ditzy, shaking her head. "You need more time. If you collapse from exhaustion, neither of us will be able to get out of here."
The stallion snorted. "I'm hardly about to faint," he argued. "Anyways, why do you want me to sit here if you're worried about making it home?"
Ditzy rubbed the bridge of her nose. "I'm torn, okay?" she answered, sounding frustrated. "I want to get to Dinky as soon as possible. I mean, you saw what she did before she left, right?" Tempest nodded, though Ditzy wasn't looking. "How could I disappoint her after that? I just... can't." She stomped her hoof. "But I also can't stand to see you hurt yourself trying to rush me home."
Brief angry spark subsiding, Ditzy sat back down, tracing circles in the dirt. "It feels like I'm freezing to death, but the only thing I have to make a campfire is a flamethrower." Chuckling, she added. "Or Dinky."
Tempest blinked. "That's... a colorful metaphor."
"It wasn't a metaphor."
The stallion rolled his eyes. "Analogue, then. Whatever." Leaving no time for Ditzy to correct him again, he shoved the remains of his sandwich in his mouth and stood up. "If it makes you feel better, we're making great time. We'll make it just before sundown at this rate, assuming nothing pops up."
"After this is over, I'm never getting hurt again," Ditzy grumbled. "I hate feeling so helpless."
As soon as she finished speaking, both ponies felt the wind pick up. Out of instinct, Tempest put his nose in the air and felt the tug on his mane. He smiled.
"Look," he said, smiling. "Now the wind's blowing our way! I guess even the weather wants you to get home on time."
Ditzy shivered. "As great as that is, does it feel cold to you?."
~~~
"Hey! I think I can see Ponyville!"
"Really!?" Excited, Ditzy rose up as far as she dared. Craning her neck, she managed to see a colorful smudge on the horizon. "I see it!"
"We'll be there in no time!" Tempest announced enthusiastically.
As they drew closer, however, the two ponies noticed something strange. Above the motley blob of Ponyville, a dark shape was gathering. At first, it was just a few wisps of gray cloud, like something a lazy weatherpony might leave around. Over time, though, the wisps grew larger, darker, and more numerous. Eventually, the myriad spots coalesced into one large, imposing wall. Something that both pegasi immediately recognized.
"Storm," growled Tempest.
"What?" gasped Ditzy. "No! We're so close!"
The stallion sniffed the air, trying to gauge how far off the storm was. How he used his nose for this is anypony's guess. "It looks like we still have some time before we hit it. We can keep flying until then."
"Ooh, I hope we can get close," Ditzy mumbled.
~~~
Suddenly, Dinky looked up from the table. Sparkler, noticing her cousin's movement, glanced up from her plate. Swallowing, she spoke.
"Something wrong, Dinky?"
The filly glanced suspiciously at the ceiling. "Mama just tempted fate."
~~~
They were ten minutes from Ponyville when the first winds struck.
Like a bull with a face made of hammers, the first gust took them by surprise with incredible force. Tempest was blindsided by the sudden wave of air, and was flung a full meter to the side before he managed to recover. Ditzy, with even less control over her momentum, merely held on for dear life as her stretcher pitched to the side, pulling Tempest off-balance again.
"I-I think it's time to land!" the mare cried, legs latched onto the sides of the gurney hard enough to bend the wood.
"You think!?" was Tempest's only answer. Struggling against the torrential sea of winds, the stallion fought his was downwards, inch by agonizing inch. Up ahead, the rain curtain drew ever-closer, tailwind pushing them towards it faster than either pony appreciated.
"This thing isn't going to snap, right?" Ditzy yelled, confidence shaken.
Tempest shook his head. When his brain kicked back in, he yelled back. "Don't worry! Those knots are as strong as steel!"
Well, he was right.
With a lurch, Ditzy felt one corner of the stretcher drop. Heart beating a tattoo on her ribcage, she threw a panicked glance upwards. What she saw made her entire body freeze in dread.
"Tempest!" Hearing his name, the stallion looked down. "The rope!"
The rope, specifically the rope on the front left, was fraying. While the knots on either end of it remained perfectly secure, the center of the rope was unraveling, threatening to break at any moment.
Tempest felt his heart leap into his throat. Without giving himself time to think, he dove downwards. As he descended, racing the rope, he yelled.
"JUMP!"
With strength born of desperation, Ditzy bunched her legs beneath her and leapt. Time seemed to slow down as everything came into sharp focus. The first sparse raindrops glimmered on their way down. The last few strand of rope, unable to bear the mare's thrust, broke with an audible snap. Tempest's terrified face neatly mirroring Ditzy's own, albeit with less crossed eyes. Closer and closer they drew, hooves nearly touching, until...
THUD
With a wince-worthy impact, the ponies collided. Thinking quickly, Ditzy threw her front legs around Tempest's neck, holding on with all her might. Using the rest of her momentum, she swung her lower body upwards and gripped the stallion's waist. Tempest, in a similar motion, grabbed onto Ditzy.
No sooner than the mare secured herself than Tempest was nearly pulled out of the air by the stretcher. No longer held by all four ropes, it hung sideways, catching the wind like a sail and yanking the stallion around like an anchor. Tempest immediately set about trying to unattach it.
One of the unfortunate side-effects of tying really good knots is that they are really hard to undo in an emergency. Tempest quickly found this out as he attempted to remove the ropes from his rear legs. With the luxury of being able to stop and look denied to him, the stallion's only option was to blindly scratch where he thought the one bit of rope that would release the knot was located. Fortune must have smiled upon him, though, for his vague flailings quickly caught the loose end. Pulling on it, he was rewarded with the wonderful feeling of rough hemp sliding off his leg.
Unfortunately, the leg he had managed to free turned out to be his left leg. Once the stretcher dropped, Tempest immediately noticed that having the entire contraption's weight on one side made balancing very difficult. He lurched to the side, eliciting a terrified squeak from Ditzy, and winced as he had to wrench himself back into position.
It seemed that fate had decided that inconveniencing Tempest was much more fun helping him, as the moment he righted himself the rain hit in earnest. With the rain came the winds, and the stretcher began being tossed about like a beachball at a sports game. Tempest's right legs were yanked outwards with a powerful gust of wind. Grimacing, he yanked back and, to his surprise, felt the we rope around his back leg snap. At this point, the stallion wasn't sure if he should be angry at that Appleoosan vendor for selling him a shoddy rope, or thanking his lucky stars for the existence of poor merchandise.
With three of the tethers gone, all of the stretcher's weight was focused on Tempest's front right leg. The unbalanced force was proving very hard to fly with, and Tempest felt himself losing control of his flight. With his lack of precognition, the stallion had tied his upper body in a more complex fashion than his lower, which, in any other circumstance, would have been a beneficial choice. Here, however, it just meant that he couldn't rely on the wind snapping the rope, or being able to slip the thing off like a coat that was pulling his and Ditzy to their deaths. Thinking on his hooves (sort of), Tempest formulated a plan.
"Ditzy!" he said, shouting to be heard over the wind. "I need you to do something!"
"What!?" she yelled back, well-deserved panic seeping into her voice. With their current position, Ditzy's forelegs were wrapped around Tempest's neck, and her head was curled tight behind his.
"On my back, there are two ropes! I need you to bite through the nearest one!" Tempest felt his leg be nearly pulled out of its socket by a strong gust of wind. "And hurry!"
With something other than directionless terror to focus on, Ditzy quickly set about her task. Through the rain and mist, her uncooperative eyes sought out the rope scant inches from her face. With a voracity more common to predators, the mare ferociously began chewing at the fibers with her blunt equine teeth.
It was slow going, but the rope eventually gave way. With a final snap, the entire rigging fell away, plummeting to the ground far below. Hopefully no one was there.
"Got it!" Ditzy needlessly cried. "Can you go down now, please?"
No longer being whipped about like a child's plaything, Tempest finally tilted his wings downwards. Relief flowed through his veins as images of being safe on the ground appeared in his head. These images were quickly shattered as he felt the air around him grow noticeably warmer, and he began rising.
"Son of a Nightmare!" he swore. "Updraft!"
This was the worst thing that could have happened. Buoyed by the rising air, Tempest had no choice but to float upwards. While he could ordinarily shear through the warm column like a bear through a playpen, with a passenger clinging to his chest his maneuverability was somewhat limited.
"Why are we going up!?" yelled Ditzy, panicking. "We need to be going down! Down is safe! Why aren't you going down?"
"I can't," grunted Tempest, bracing himself.
"What do you mean you can't? Isn't your special talent flying through storms?"
"It is," confirmed Tempest. Suddenly, he felt it. His cue: the tell-tale brush of cold air across his scalp. "Now hold on."
With that, the pegasi streaked forward like a cannon shot. The updraft had lead right into a slipstream, and now Tempest was shooting through the air, mane blown back and Ditzy clinging to his chest, wondering why everything seemed to hate her today.
Holding onto the wild air currents in slipstream is not easy feat in the best of circumstances. With a passenger and a raging storm around him, Tempest knew he wouldn't be able to ride the ferocious gale for much longer; already he could feel the air around his wings fraying as the river of wind began to try and spit him out like a watermelon seed. The threat of violent eviction in the forefront of his mind, Tempest closed his eyes and concentrated.
"Anytime you want to do the whole 'special talent' thing is good!" Ditzy shouted, eyes closed for a completely different reason.
For a few horribly long seconds, Tempest was flying blind. The wind whistled past his ears, howling a threatening cadence. Invisible bits of debris scraped past his face. Rain lashed both ponies, weighing them down like a thick carpet flung over their shoulders. Far below, trees bashed and swayed in the blowing gale. Tempest opened his eyes.
More importantly, he opened his mind.
With new vision, the stallion examined his surroundings. Invisible eddies suddenly shown as bright as starlight. Great waves of wind crested and collapsed like a transparent ocean. Huge storm clouds were painted in various colors, forming a complex pattern that was both invisible and meaningless to anyone but Tempest. Everything was suddenly clear.
Finally, thought Tempest. I was beginning to think I'd never do this again.
"Hold on!" he shouted to Ditzy.
"Gee, thanks! What do you think I'm doooiiiiiiiiiiiiiii-!" The mare's sarcasm was cut off by mortal terror.
Diving and weaving, Tempest flew through the air like a well-oiled machine. No movement was wasted; every dip, dash, and duck helped move him and his passenger forward in some way. Briefly dipping into a fast-moving current, he used the added momentum to burst through a particularly turbulent patch of air. A sudden aileron roll helped the stallion to avoid a collision with a rising air column by a hair's breadth. To an outsider, it looked as if Tempest knew exactly where everything in this system was; like he had been born to fly through this storm system alone.
In reality, Tempest was having a panic attack.
Oh no, oh no, big gust coming on the left. Where can I go? Down? No, too rough. Up, then. Is there a- there's an updraft! Gogogo!
Tempest shot into the updraft and catapulted himself over the threatening mass of air.
Oh Celestia I feel so off-balance! I am never flying with somepony else on my chest again! Alright, focus, focus. What's next? Big jetstream at two o' clock. Can't go left or right. Mother of-! Baggywrinkles! BAGGYWRINKLES!
"Is this a bad time to admit I'm terrified?" yelled Ditzy, legs sore from resisting gravity.
"Not at all," replied Tempest, diving. "I am too."
"That doesn't make me feel better!"
Slowly but surely, Tempest was losing his edge. The strain of carrying another pony was making him sloppy. His wingbeats were becoming irregular, and more than once he was coshed on the side of the head by a gust he had failed to dodge. As his falters grew more and more frequent, Tempest began to search for somewhere he could land, struggling to look past the rain. With the wind whipping at his face more fiercely with every passing moment, he resigned himself for an "emergency" landing.
I have to be near the edge of Ponyville, he thought. There has to be something soft to aim for, like a pond or a compost heap or-
There. Blurred by the rain, a vague red shape appeared. Large, imposing, and edged with what was probably white, it was unmistakeable. A barn. And where there were barns, there was...
"Hang on!" yelled Tempest. Putting on a last, desperate burst of speed, the stallion tucked in his wings and curled up in a ball, Ditzy at the terrified center. Like a meteor, the two pegasi rocketed towards the ground, wind howling around them, Tempest turning in midair so his back was facing forwards. Down, down they fell, closer to the ground with impossible slowness, headed right towards...
*FWUMP*
...A large pile of hay.
Shaking off the impact, Ditzy quickly pulled her way to the open air. Once free of the straw's wet grip, the mare began batting the yellow stalks out of her mane, looking around for Tempest. She didn't have to wait long, as the stallion clawed his way to the surface mere feet from her, spitting out mouthfuls of the sodden crop on his way out. After Tempest had finished evacuating his esophagus of their makeshift landing pad, he frantically spun his head around, looking for the pony he had just ferried through a thunderstorm. Ditzy smirked opted not to say anything as the stallion spun a full 360 degrees, not noticing his target was directly in front of him. Once Tempest was done making a fool of himself, the two pegasis' eyes met. For a long moment, they held each other's gaze. Ditzy was the first to laugh, with Tempest close behind.
They both looked utterly ridiculous.
Once the hearty guffaws, tinged with large amounts of relief, had subsided, Ditzy lunged forward through the damp hay and wrapped Tempest in a tight hug. While perhaps a little uncomfortably reminiscent of the life-or-death grip that had been present a minute before, Tempest was no less eager to return it. Between the two of them, the hug conveyed two messages: "Thank you for saving my life," and "Let's never do that again."
Pulling back from the hug, Ditzy began shaking her mane free of straw and rain-water. Tempest closed his eyes and raised his foreleg to protect his face from the myriad water drops and twigs. After Ditzy was finished with her impromptu grooming, Tempest lowered his leg, only to hear the mare gasp. She had a panicked expression on her face, and looked ready to bolt.
"Dinky!" she exclaimed, before dashing off in the general direction of town.
Grasping her meaning, Tempest too leapt out of the pile. After shaking a few stray straws from some unsavory places, the stallion dashed off in hot pursuit.
~~~
Forlornly, Dinky stared out the window. Of course, with the torrential rain outside, her view was restricted to a few meters past the glass pane. With her chance of finding something outside minimal, the filly resorted to the age old game of racing raindrops down the outside of the window.
Just as Little Drip was about to make a comeback against Señor Surface-Tension, Sparkler crept up behind her little cousin.
"Dinky," she said, looking down at the smaller unicorn. "Are you alright?"
Abandoning her game, Dinky turned around. While she didn't say anything, the pensive look on her face was all the answer Sparkler needed.
Sighing, the mare knelt down to Dinky's level. "You're worried about Tempest and Ditzy, aren't you?"
Dinky nodded. " 'S raining," she mumbled. "They'll get all wet."
An idea flashed into Sparkler's head. Smiling, she nudged the filly's chest. "Yes, they will." Nodding toward her living room, she added, "Why don't you go start a fire so they can get all warm when they get here?"
Dinky gave a small smile. " 'Kay," she agreed, hopping off the windowsill.
As the filly trotted out of sight, something occurred to Sparkler. "In the fireplace!" she called. "The fire goes in the fireplace!"
Once Dinky was out of sight and hopefully not about to burn down her house, Sparkler's smile vanished. Taking her turn to look out the window, the mare spoke under her breath.
"Hurry up, you two. Dinky's worried about you guys."
As soon as she finished whispering, there was a loud thunk at her door. Sparkler stared at it in confusion, and after a few seconds the noise was accompanied by a series of rapid, softer knocks. Recognizing this as the universal cue to answer the door, the mare walked over and pulled the wooden portal open. Outside, she was greeted by a welcome sight.
Ditzy, hoof raised to knock again, was glaring at Tempest, who sat on the stoop rubbing his forehead. Both were soaked to the bone and covered in straw, and Ditzy had a sopping wet bandage covering one wing. All around them, rain poured down, Sparkler's canopy providing a small island of relative dryness in the downpour. Upon hearing the door open, Ditzy adjusted her gaze and saw Sparkler, looking both relieved and confused.
"We're here!" she announced. "Sorry we're late." Tempest, for his part, took this opportunity to shake himself dry, earning another glare from Ditzy.
"Come on in," ushered Sparkler, motioning with a hoof. "Dinky's in the living room."
As Ditzy took her turn to shake herself, Tempest walked in. After Ditzy followed moments later, Sparkler shut the door behind them.
"There's probably a fire in or near the fireplace," the unicorn said. "Why don't you two go warm up? I'll get some blankets." Without waiting for an answer, the mare walked away. Looking at each other, the ponies shared a simultaneous shrug and trotted into the parlour.
Miraculously, the fire was contained completely within the stone fireplace. Tasteful wooden decorations from a variety of cultures dotted the walls, giving an air of eclecticy to the room. White fabric couches filled one corner, and a well-used and over-stuffed chair occupied the other. A china cabinet filled with various colorful trinkets rested against the far wall, all manner of shiny baubles covering its various shelves. A quaint teak table sat in the middle of the room, covered in old newspapers, magazines, and adventure novels, along with quite a few empty beverage containers. In front of the fireplace rested a small brown rug, sticking out by virtue of its mundanity. On the soft, fireproof rug was Dinky.
Ditzy crept into the room. "Dinky?" she called softly.
"Mama?" responded a tired voice. Turning around, Dinky's eyes shot open at the sight of her mother, all trace of sleepiness gone. "Mama!"
With meteoric speeds, the filly hurled herself at her mother. For the first time that day, Ditzy found herself on the receiving end of a neck-based death-grip. And she couldn't be happier.
"I'm here, Muffin," she assuaged, tears adding a bit more moisture to her damp fur.
Noticing Tempest close behind, Dinky detached herself from her mother and gave Tempest a similar embrace. "Thanks," she whispered close to his ear.
Once she felt she had hugged both ponies sufficiently, Dinky stood in front of both of them. Upon noticing the bandage on Ditzy's wing, she gasped. "Mama! Your wing!"
Walking forwards, Ditzy nuzzled her daughter's head. "Don't worry, Muffin; it's just a scratch. I'll be better in a couple days."
Mid-nuzzle, Ditzy felt Dinky let out a small yawn. "Buuuuuut," the mare teased, "I think it's past somepony's bedtime."
Blearily, Dinky nodded. Trotting over to the fireplace, the filly set herself down on the cushy rug, quickly settling into a pattern of gentle snoring.
Smiling, Ditzy followed, curling herself around her daughter snugly. Upon noticing a distinct lack of sound, the mare opened one eye and saw Tempest standing in the doorway, unsure of what to do. Ditzy shuffled a little and raised a wing, beckoning him over. While initially hesitant, the stallion nonetheless took the invitation and came over, sitting down and curling up with the two.
Placing her head on top of Tempest's neck, Ditzy sighed contentedly. With her daughter safely snoring against her chest, she felt that all the troubles of the day had been worth it. With the combined effects of the warmth of the fire, their own body-heat, and their shared exhaustion, both Tempest and Ditzy soon fell asleep.
"I found the blan-" said Sparkler rather loudly, before cutting herself off. Near her head floated several thick wool blankets, wrapped in a purple aura. Looking into her living room, she spotted the pile of ponies in front of her fireplace. She covered he mouth with a hoof.
"That is the most adorable thing I've ever seen," she whispered. Silently, she floated one of the blankets over and threw it over all three ponies.
"Good night," the mare breathed, tiptoeing back to her room, a smile on her face.
~~~
"Do you really have to go?"
Glumly, Tempest nodded. Three days ago, he had woken up wrapped in a blanket next to Ditzy and Dinky. In a bizarre twist of fate, he had spent that time with them, making sure Ditzy didn't hurt her injured wing. Now that she was fully healed, however, whatever flimsy excuses for him to remain were gone. For the second time that week, two ponies found themselves in a farewell where neither wanted to leave.
"Hayton is where all my everything is," mumbled Tempest forlornly. "Whether I like it or not, I can't abandon my job." It sounded hollow, even to him.
"You'll come to visit, right?" Dinky piped up, looking at Tempest with big eyes.
Tempest bent down to her level. "Definitely. Next chance I get, I'm coming back. I don't care if I have to carry two fridges all the way here."
"Promise?"
"Promise."
Standing back up, the stallion was met by the golden eyes of Ditzy. The two stared at each other, trying to find words to express what they were thinking. Ditzy made up her mind first.
Lunging forward, the mare wrapped Tempest in a tight hug, which was quickly reciprocated. Holding tight, the ponies squeezed like they never wanted to let go. Which they didn't.
"I'm going to hold you to that too." Ditzy said.
"Go ahead," replied Tempest. "It would be harder to keep me away."
The two separated. Standing back at a more normal distance, Tempest smirked. "I think I might apply for a transfer."
Ditzy smiled. "Well, if you do, you know where to find us."
He nodded. "That I do. Goodbye."
"Goodbye."
With that, the stallion took off. Knowing that the longer he dawdled the harder it would be to leave, he wasted little time in turning around and flying off. With two sets of eyes on his back, Tempest flew away from Ponyville, against his best wishes.
"Mama?" quipped Dinky, once the stallion was little more than a speck above the trees. "He is coming back, right?"
For once, both of Ditzy's eyes were looking where she wanted them too. She took a deep breath. "He promised, didn't he? He doesn't strike me as the type to break a promise."
~~~ |
Pyromanecer | 604 | 10 | Derpy Hooves,Dinky Hooves,Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Mailpony Rules | Mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stranger near the Everfree Forest. Probably a nice chap, right? | complete | 71 | 1 | <p>Mailponies, the couriers of Equestria, carry important documents and packages back and forth throughout the land. Known for being kind, steadfast, and reliable, they are bound by a code of conduct detailing how to behave. In this code, an emphasis is placed on camaraderie between fellow mailponies. They are to trust, assist, and cooperate with each other whenever they can.</p><p>When mailmare Ditzy Doo finds an injured stallion by the edge of the Everfree Forest, she takes him under her wing. Upon waking, she discovers that he is, in fact, another mailpony, bound by the same creed as her. Through an adherence to the rules and the kindness of her heart, she allows the stallion to stay with her until he recovers. What will life be like for him under the Doo roof? More importantly, will he survive Dinky?</p><p>Art by <a href="http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">http://artistic-derp.deviantart.com/</a></p> | everyone | 2012-07-01T04:45:30+00:00 | 2012-07-01T04:45:30+00:00 | 1,099 | "Well, I guess this is goodbye."
Smiling sadly, Dinky nodded. The mare, eyes moist with held-back tears, gave her mother a quick hug. No longer a small filly, she did not need to jump up to reach her mother's neck. In fact, Ditzy actually had to look up to meet her daughter's eyes, which never failed to unnerve her. Such is the curse of offspring.
Where once had been a small unicorn with a penchant for combustion, there was now a fully-grown mare. Her purple-gray coat had been groomed to a lustrous shine in preparation for her departure. Eyes once shining with youthful innocence now glowed with more mature mischief. She had grown her mane out, feeling the short and poofy style she had worn for many years made her look too childish, and tied the excess bits back in a practical and less in-the-way ponytail. The once bare spot on her flank now sported a shining orange swirl, showcasing her talents with everything flammable.
"I'm going to miss you, mom," sighed Dinky, breaking the embrace.
"I'll miss you too, Muffin," replied Ditzy, ruffling her daughter's mane. "But I know you'll do great at the Institute. You're not my little filly that accidentally set fire to everything anymore."
"Yeah," laughed a new voice. "Now she's all grown up, and doing it on purpose."
Turning towards the sound, Ditzy smiled. "Oh, Tempest," she jokingly scolded. "Are you ever going to forgive her for lighting your scarf on fire?"
"Never," replied Tempest, grinning sarcastically. "That little stunt nearly cost me my mane."
"Yeah, but it got me my cutie mark," said Dinky, rubbing her fire-swirl appreciatively. "I was so happy I didn't care that you grounded me for the entire week."
The stallion walked in for a hug. "It's going to be pretty boring without you around, squirt," he sighed. "I'm going to miss you."
"I'm going to miss you too, dad," repeated Dinky, sounding like her mother. She heard Tempest chuckle; it warmed his heart when she called him that.
“Have fun at the Institute of Whatever, scamp,” he replied, pulling her tighter.
“It’s the Canterlot Institute of Destruction and Demolitions, you dumb brute,” scolded Dinky jokingly. “Call it by its full name.”
Pulling back, Dinky took a good look at her family. They were noticeably older; Ditzy's eyes crinkled when she smiled, which was often, and Tempest's indigo mane now sported a pale steak whose existence the stallion stalwartly refused to acknowledge. These were all cosmetic differences, of course, and very minor ones at that. Both pegasi were still fit and healthy, the effects of regular flying well-evidenced. They weren't quite to the level of 'kindly old couple from down the road.'
"My little filly is off to Canterlot," said Ditzy, wiping a tear from her eye. "I can hardly believe it."
"I have to say, I'm a bit jealous of you, scamp," laughed Tempest. "Not many ponies get to make a career out of breaking things."
"Demolitions isn't just 'breaking things,' dad," Dinky protested. "There's a lot of little nuances and calculations to be done before you can even-"
"Yeah, yeah," interrupted the stallion, waving a hoof dismissively. "Math and blah blah blah. At the end of the day, you're still making big things into a bunch of smaller things."
Dinky glared at him. After a moment, Tempest broke into a grin. Wrapping the unicorn in a headlock, he rubbed her head playfully.
"Ah, I'm just messing with you. I'm glad you're going into something you love."
"Let go of me before I light you on fire," grumbled Dinky, muffled by Tempest's leg.
Suddenly, a voice sounded from behind them. "Oh no! Are we late? Did she leave?"
Dinky recognized the voice immediately. "Sparkler!" she shouted, breaking free of Tempest's grip. Whirling around, she saw two figures fast approaching, trying to go as fast as they could with package on the mare's back.
Panting, Sparkler and her partner stopped near the others. “Sorry we’re late,” she wheezed, “We slept in a little.”
“Yeah,” the pegasus beside her gasped. “It was the first time we’ve actually slept in weeks.”
Bounding over, Dinky wrapped her legs around Sparkler in a giant hug. “I’m so glad to see you!” she squeaked.
Returning the hug, Sparkler gave a low chuckle. “I am too, Dinky,” she replied. Using her magic, she lifted the bundle off of her back. “And look who I brought!”
Dinky squeaked in glee as Sparkler relinquished her hold. "Oh my gosh! You brought the baby!"
"Oh!" interjected Tempest. "Little, um... What's-His-Name."
"Whiplash," answered the other pegasus, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "Though I'm starting to think we should have named him 'Trouble.'"
Putting a hoof to her mouth, Ditzy barely suppressed her laughter. "I told two you a foal would be a lot of work, didn't I?" she smugly taunted.
"Yes," admitted Sparkler, scuffing her hoof. "But we didn't realize it would be this much work!"
"Yesterday, he broke the bathroom door," added the pegasus. "How does a two-month-old foal even do that?"
"Breaking things runs in the family."
"How can you call anything this cute trouble?" asked Dinky, playing with the baby by holding her hoof just out of reach. Whiplash gurgled in response.
"Keep in mind, Dinky, you were a pretty cute baby too," warned Sparkler. "And look how you ended up."
For the second time, Tempest wrapped his legs around Dinky's neck. "Yeah, burning down houses for a living and still cute as a button!"
"For the last time, let go," demanded Dinky, struggling in the stallion's grip.
"Actually, hold her there, dear," suggested Ditzy, smiling deviously. "I think it's time for a hug."
"Agreed," added Sparkler, moving in for the kill.
As one, all the mobile ponies embraced Dinky, wrapping their legs around her in farewell. Dinky continued to struggle for a moment, before relenting and giving in to their affections. In the background, the foal burbled.
"Oh, I'm going to miss you guys," lamented Dinky, feeling herself tear up.
"We're going to miss you too, squirt," replied Tempest. "Try to visit, alright?"
"They couldn't stop me if they tried."
Slowly, Sparkler and her partner untangled themselves from the emotional bramble-bush. "Sorry," apologized the unicorn, "But we really have to get back home."
"No worries," assured Ditzy, "We're just glad you could come."
Using her magic, Sparkler lifted Whiplash onto her husband's back, and set about securing him. Once her offspring was properly strapped down, she began babytalking.
"Say 'goodbye,' Whiplash," she spoke, voice oozing with sweetness and face contorted in a terrifying facsimile of something cute. "Come on! Say goodbye for mommy!"
"Hun, you know he can't talk yet," said the foal's current bearer.
"Hush. Come on, Whippy; say 'goodbye' for mama!"
"Ppppthhhppt!" went Whiplash.
Sparkler shrugged. "Eh. Close enough." With that, the family walked off.
Dinky and co. watched them go for a few moments. Suddenly, Dinky spoke. "I'm going to miss them," she mumbled.
Nuzzling the unicorn's head, Ditzy replied. "And we're going to miss you, my little pyromancer."
"Yeah, what are we going to spend all our money on, now that we don't have to pay for your repairs anymore?" Tempest joked.
Ditzy responded with a sharp thwack to the head. "You are just full of terrible jokes today, aren't you?"
"Ow," Tempest whined, rubbing his new bump. "Thanks. Now I'm full of bad jokes and a headache."
Seeing her parents' antics, Dinky chuckled. "I'm going to miss you guys, too."
Ditzy sighed. "Do good out there, Muffin. We love you." She chuckled. "And bring us back plenty of grandfoals, you hear!"
While Tempest burst out laughing at the classic parent joke, Dinky blushed a bright shade of crimson. "Mooooo-ooom!" she yelled, mortified.
Ditzy had a chuckle at her daughter's expense. "Oh, you know I'm just teasing you, Muffin," she laughed. Suddenly, her expression dropped all levity. "Seriously, though. Grandfoals. And lots of th-"
Before Ditzy could finish her request for her daughter's procreation, a loud bong echoed through town. Shortly after, another ring followed. And another. Altogether, twelve bongs sounded, each identical to the last. The three ponies looked at each other apprehensively.
"Noon," muttered Dinky. "I guess the chariot will be here soon."
"Yeah," mumbled Tempest, scuffing his hoof on the ground.
Deadlines are a funny thing. Until they are actually in your face, it's almost as if they don't exist. Once they're there, though, you can scarcely believe that you had ever blown them off. You will vow to do better next time, and not wait until the last minute. Then, the next time a deadline arrives, you do the same thing again.
The family was now feeling that.
Dinky gulped. "I-I guess I should get going, then."
Her parents nodded. "Yeah," replied Ditzy, biting her lip. "You don't want to miss your ride."
Dinky didn't respond. Instead, she just stood there, looking both eager and sad. On one hand, here she was, about to go to the place that would teach her everything she could ever want to know about her future career. On the other, she was about to leave her family. Never had such conflicting emotions been present in her mind. Not even when learned a new fireball spell by burning down a market stand, and had to work for a month to pay it off.
Suddenly, Dinky couldn't take the tension anymore. Lunging forward, she wrapped her parents in a tight hug. "ByemomanddadIloveyouI'llvisitsoon!" she babbled, before galloping off in the direction of the town square.
As the sound of Dinky’s hooves on the cobble faded away, Ditzy rested her head on Tempest’s shoulder. “Well, there she goes,” she sighed. “Off to become a fully grown mare. Without us.”
“Yep,” replied Tempest, trying to look stony and not doing very well. Absently, he brushed at a wet patch on his shoulder. “What are we going to do now?”
“I don’t know,” answered Ditzy, scrunching up her brow in thought. “What do couples do after their kids leave?”
Suddenly, Tempest put on a mischievous grin. “I can think of one thing,” he said. Quickly, he bent down and used his head to scoop Ditzy onto his back. Feeling herself being torn from the ground, the mare gave a yelp of surprise before landing on Tempest’s back. While she was disoriented, the stallion had turned and was now headed back towards the house, Ditzy thrown across his back like a pair of saddlebags.
Once she had regained her bearings, Ditzy found one of her eyes looking at their current destination. Understanding his intent, the mare started laughing. Typical.
“Woah, there, lover boy,” she chuckled. “You’re going to have to do a little bit more for that.”
“What if I promise to make dinner?” the stallion quipped, giving a wry smile over his shoulder.
Ditzy ruffled his mane. “Getting closer. Keep trying.”
~~~ |
SPark | 607 | 1 | Original Character,Slice of Life,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | The birth of Achlys | Once upon a time, there was a slime mold. This is a very weird OC pony origin story. It has no real plot. | complete | 35 | 4 | <p>Once upon a time, there was a slime mold. This is an OC pony origin story, that starts weird, gets weirder, and ends up fairly Mary Sue. It hasn't really got a plot, I just wrote it for fun. There may be more later, but there also may not, for now it's complete.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-24T22:42:34+00:00 | 2017-04-18T19:11:32+00:00 | 1,721 | Once upon a time there was a slime mold.
Slime molds are strange things. They are made of a millions of amoeba-like creatures, countless tiny blobs of life all bound together into a single, larger blob. And that larger blob, despite being made of nothing but identical little blobs, behaves like an animal with a nervous system. Not a very smart animal, there are flatworms smarter than a slime mold, but said flatworms have nerves and even a primitive brain, while a slime mold has nothing but amoebas. Nobody quite understands how a slime mold can seek out food, flee discomfort, or rejoin itself when cut in half, but it does all those things, though it does them very, very slowly.
Slime molds are not particularly pretty. They look like nothing so much as blobs of mucous, though this mold was purplish black, rather than being snot yellow or bile green. It was of fairly average size for a slime mold, being a pancake-like blob of gelatinous goo perhaps six inches across. It was crawling very, very slowly through a forest. It was, in a way, hunting. It ate whatever it encountered, and it moved in whatever direction seemed most likely to contain more food. Mostly it ate little bits of crumbled, dead leaves, but when it encountered a partially rotted piece of wood, it thought it was in heaven, or would have if it had been capable of abstract thought. As it was, it simply set about eating the bit of wood and growing, which is what slime molds do.
The slime mold didn't know it, but this particular bit of wood was special. It was rotting away now, but once it had been polished smooth by long use, and it was still possible to see the runes carved into it. It had been a magic wand many decades ago. Dropped when the owner died in battle, discarded for something showier, stolen by some thief who then threw it away as useless, or simply lost, there was no way to know how the wand had ended up on the forest floor. But there it was, providing food for a very happy slime mold.
But magic is a tenacious sort of thing. It clings. Traces of old spells are always hanging around, even after they've been dispelled. The weaker ones evaporate in days or weeks, but the stronger ones can leave traces that last for years. And this wand had been used to cast very strong magics, for a very long time. Magic was woven deeply into every particle of it. And it wasn't long before quite a lot of those particles resided inside the slime mold.
This had no immediate effect. The particles of magic were not a spell, as such. They were just magic. But as the slime mold ate more and more of the wand, something began to happen. Any observer would have needed to be very patient indeed to notice it. Simply put, the slime mold began to move faster. Now a slime mold moves so slowly that most people never realize they move at all. The process of eating its way down a mere eight inches or so of rotting wood had already taken several weeks. But the last few inches took only a few days. And when the slime mold crawled on it was moving almost fast enough to see. It would have lost to a snail in any sort of race, but its motion was no longer measured in inches per day, but in inches per hour. The magic that it had incorporated into itself was fueling it, enabling it to move at what was, for a slime mold, a super-hero-like speed.
Which is how the slime mold caught the beetle. It had eaten lots of dead beetles. Dead beetles were like the cupcakes of the slime mold world, much better and full of more energy than the usual fare of dead leaf bits. But this was a live beetle. It had been severely injured by a bird, and had only escaped because the bird didn't really care if it caught the beetle or not. Now it was dying. But before it could die, the slime mold crawled over it and ate it.
This is a rather disturbing scene, it is true. Anything, even a beetle, being eaten alive is not exactly a happy thought. But that is the way of nature. And the beetle didn't feel any pain. For the slime mold was eating it with magic, as much as it was eating it with digestive juices, and the beetle's mind was absorbed painlessly into the slime mold long before its body died.
The beetle provided the slime mold with a lot of energy. So it began moving a little bit faster. It might have kept up with a snail now, if it really tried. It was larger now, nearly a foot across, still a glossy slime black with hints of purple. But something else had changed as well. For the slime mold suddenly had something that was almost a thought. It wasn't a thought the way a pony or another sentient being thinks. But it was much closer to being a thought than anything else the slime mold had ever had. The thought went something like "Eat beetle good want more eat beetle." Only not even that coherent. The slime mold didn't really know what "good" meant, or even "want" but it had a vague recognition that it had experienced something pleasant, and repeating the experience might be pleasant as well.
Slime molds do not have eyes or ears, they experience the world through something more like taste than anything else. Or perhaps like scent, as they can taste the air on their upper surfaces as well. So the slime mold had no way of seeking out other beetles. Even if it crossed the scent trail of a beetle, it moved too slowly to hope to catch up to one. But it still had a sort of primitive desire to find more beetles, and that motivated it to keep moving, even when it found another bit of dead wood that otherwise would have stopped it for hours while it ate. Dead wood was better than leaf bits, and it consumed and absorbed as much of the wood as it could while it passed over it, but beetles were better, and so it kept on crawling, hoping, if such a mindless thing could be said to hope, that it might encounter another beetle.
It did eventually find one, though this one was already long since dead. The slime mold ate the beetle, and enjoyed the extra nutrients, but nothing else changed. There was no tiny beetle mind for its magic to absorb. The slime mold, however, was not capable of feeling something as complicated as disappointment. So it simply finished its meal of dead beetle and continued on, still hoping for something enjoyable to cross its path.
Then the world flew apart with a messy splat.
"Ew! Ew! What have I stepped in? Is there any on me? Is my coat dirty! Tell me!" The white unicorn went in a frenzy of spinning, trying to see every inch of her formerly pristine coat.
Her orange companion rolled her eyes. "Ya look just fine to me, sugarcube. Now quit frettin' and let's get goin'."
The two ponies galloped off, leaving the slime mold splattered across the forest path, which it hadn't even known it was crossing.
Here and there neighboring bits of purplish-black goo oozed together, forming into larger pieces. These larger pieces sought each other out, until once again the slime mold was a single blob. How exactly the slime mold did this was a mystery. It had nothing to do with magic, all slime molds, however ordinary, can rejoin themselves when divided. Since they experience the world mostly as taste or scent, it is probably the scent and flavor of the pieces that draws them together. Nobody knows for certain.
United once again, the slime mold was also once again changed. It had not eaten the white pony, but it had touched it, and its magic had absorbed a tiny fraction of the white pony's essence. This fraction, having to do with personality, creativity, and art, sat like an invisible pearl within the slime mold. The slime mold had no mind with which to have a personality, no thoughts with which to think about art, and it certainly had no capacity for creativity. So these concepts remained dormant while the mold crawled onward.
Quite some time passed as the slime mold slowly oozed through the forest. It encountered several more small insects, all deceased, and even a small dead bird, which it stayed on until it had absorbed all of it. It grew considerably, and became faster as well, the magic that aided it growing as it grew. Then a centipede blundered into it. The many-legged hunter walked right over the slime mold with no concern for the possible danger. But then it had never encountered a slime mold that could move faster than inches per day. And with the centipede standing on it, the slime mold was just fast enough to ooze a fold of itself over the insect and trap it. Once again its magic absorbed the tiny mind. The centipede was a little bit smarter than the beetle had been, though both were still utterly mindless by the standards set by sentient beings. Still, the addition of the centipede's hunting abilities let the slime mold have another primitive thought. It wanted more small, bright lives and minds, but more than that it wanted more magic. And it could smell, or taste, or feel, something magical nearby. If it wanted magic, and there was magic nearby, it should seek that magic out in order to eat it.
So it followed the scent of magic eagerly, moving so fast it might have perhaps caught up with a turtle, if there had been any nearby. But there were no turtles here. Indeed the land surrounding the slime mold was no longer the damp, dankness of the forest floor. This was open land that had, a thousand years ago, been a paved courtyard. It had been buried in dirt and dust, and weeds grew there abundantly, as well as a few small trees, but there were no forest giants. And up ahead there were even fewer plants, though the slime mold couldn't see that. It had no eyes, after all. All it knew was what it tasted and smelled, and the feel of magic on the night air.
It followed that elusive trace across the courtyard and into a wilderness of tumbled stone. And here it found a fleck of dust, a speck of magic blown on the wind. Eagerly the slime mold devoured it. The creature felt something very like euphoria as it added this tiny speck of power to itself. The dust mote was small, but the magic that contaminated it was part of something vast and powerful, a thousand times stronger than the magic of the wand. And it sensed more ahead. It crawled over stones, seeking out and absorbing dozens of tiny flecks of power. Magic infused it, and with the magic came something else. It was subtle, and totally alien to the mindless creature, so the slime mold ignored the strangeness that came with these bits of power, and simply sought out more. Dust motes were scattered all over the ruins, but one place held more than any other. And soon the slime mold, moving faster now than any turtle, reached the chamber that held them.
It still had no eyes, so it could not appreciate the desolate beauty of the waxing moon shining into the ruined throne room. But it could sense the magic all around it. It crawled across the floor, methodically absorbing hundreds of specks of magical dust and occasionally finding larger fragments of power.
When it was done it crawled to the center of the room. Something strange was happening, and the slime mold was afraid. Which in and of itself was strange. It had not previously had enough of a mind to know what fear was. But it did now. For the specks had not held pure magic. Rather they were magical because they were the fragments of a magical being. A being that had been shattered on this very spot. Knowing there was power in the shards, others had come and born them away, but they had not picked up the flecks and specks, the hundreds of miniscule bits that had broken off from the larger pieces. They could not have gotten them all even if they'd tried, but they had made no effort. The microscopic pieces hadn't even crossed their minds.
They crossed the slime mold's mind now, for it had a mind. A mind newborn, full of confusion and fear. A mind that had some faint hint of slime mold, beetle, and centipede, but that was mostly composed of the thoughts and feelings that came with those specks, blended with the pearl of being absorbed from the white unicorn.
As the mind began to think, the magic that filled its body stirred. The blob of purplish-black jelly at the center of the room quivered. It extended pseudopods that then retracted. It writhed and twisted, and finally it shot outwards and upwards to assume a different shape.
Standing in the center of the room was a pony. Its coat was purplish black. Its mane was a nimbus of indigo mist, plain and unadorned by stars or other ornaments. Its tail was likewise a haze of purplish blue. It bore a horn on its forehead and wings on its back. On its flank were etched three black diamonds, outlined in white. When it opened its eyes they were ink black, almost invisible against the deep color of its coat.
It immediately closed its eyes again. Sight was confusing, alien, overwhelming. But gradually it remembered seeing. It could remember seeing ponies, other ponies. They bowed, or cringed away, or fought with it... but no, they were friends. They admired its art, they supported and helped it. In confusion it opened its eyes again, and looked out on the barren room. That was easier than remembering those contradictory memories. The room demanded no thought. In fact the room was peaceful, beautiful. The pony that had been a slime mold looked at the moonlight beaming in. My moon, it thought. My night.
But no. Not my moon. The moon and the night belong to... to... Princess Luna? But that is me, or was. But... I am not a princess, I am only a unicorn. The pony shook its head. It remembered something else now. It remembered crawling through the forest, eating a wand and a beetle and a centipede. It was not a princess. It was not a white unicorn. It was something else entirely.
It collapsed back into a blob.
But now it had no eyes, and it could not see the moon. So it reformed itself into a pony and walked over to stand next to a window.
"What am I?" asked the pony of the night outside the window. "Who am I?" But the night didn't answer. |
Prince Colgate | 609 | 1 | Applejack,Big Macintosh,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rainbow Dash,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Alternate Universe,Adventure,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Through Another's Eyes | Private Eye Riley Compton investigates crimes using ponies | incomplete | 10 | 1 | <p>(Hiatus is over and I have begun working on this again)<br/>(Picture is mostly unrelated until I can get a better one)<br/>(I will also point out that, to me, the second chapter seems a little... I don't really know, just off. Constructive criticism would be nice.)<br/>Riley Compton is a private investigator who is chosen by a scientist to test his SPES (Subconscious Projectal Examination System) which allows a user to examine a subject's subconscious directly through the form of projections. </p><p>There's a huge robbery at a local advertisement agency that Riley heads off to investigate. However, he soon realizes that robbery is the least of his concerns...</p> | everyone | 2011-08-24T19:25:26+00:00 | 2011-08-24T19:25:26+00:00 | 1,906 | “C’mon Riley, isn’t it obvious?” The blue pegasus drillled me. She seemed to be catching something I’d overlooked. That tends to happen a lot. Though she could never just come out and tell me what I was missing.
“No, it really isn’t.” I admitted. I took a drink from my glass of water. This case was really starting to wear me down. This was made clear by the pair of sunglasses lying on the table in front of me. I looked up and, of course, the pegasus was still there.
“Really? Wow, ‘cause I figured it out a long time ago. I guess I’m just better than you.” This didn’t make sense. She shouldn’t be here. How did she exist?
“Shut up. You’re not real.” I a took another drink. I was getting dizzy, my vision was fading, and I wasn’t sure why.
“Real or not, I’m all you’ve got. Now c’mon! Put those glasses back on and piece it all together.” I couldn’t. I couldn’t use it anymore.
It was an addiction. The more you used it, the more difficult it was to separate real life from subconscious projections. Though I couldn’t stop using it.... It was so... Exhilarating. It was better than reality, that was for sure.
The middle of a story is never the best place to start. Rewind a few years. 2014, top scientists perfect shared dreaming. It’s an incredibly expensive system, and is only distributed to police forces, to use for more efficient interrogations.
2015, the technology is released to richer civilians. A freelancer scientist, by the name of Alfred Bloomsburg, developed a prototype of the Subconscious Projectal Examination System, or SPES. An incredibly complex, expensive device. He sook a test subject.
The SPES connects to its user’s brain waves, almost telepathically. Because of this, the first person to use a SPES unit becomes its sole user. It simply won’t work for anyone else. The scientist who developped the system found his test subject, a local Private Investigator, by the name of Riley Compton. That’s me.
I recieved the system June 16th, 2015. He said that it would be a very useful investigation tool, and that he had chosen a PI to test it, rather than the police, because he knew the police would have to go through weeks of protocols to be able to use it. I agreed, it was true. The police’s protocols are one of the main reasons I quit the force.
He gave me a quick, basic run down of how the SPES works. Using a modified version of the dreaming sharing technology, it accesses the target’s subconscious, creating projections of their mind. The projections show the target’s true colors, and usually know a lot more than the target, making them much more useful for interrogation.
I didn’t fully understand at first. It sounded crazy and pointless. Not fully understanding, I decided the best option was to see for myself. I removed the system from the packaging. I was incredibly surprised by how sleek it was. All it was was a pair of sunglasses, that wireless connected to this box, similar to the boxes worn at the waste for wireless microphones. There was also a right handed, fingerless glove in the box. I clipped the box to my belt and put on the glasses. Then I slid on the glove and pressed the convenient “on” button on the box.
Immediately, two floating screens appeared in front of me. One said “Connect” and the other said “Cancel”. I took a deep breath and tapped the “Connect” screen with my gloved hand. The screens disappeared and the glasses went completely black, blocking my vision. Eventually, small, green letters appeared that said “Scanning...” I remembered Alfred explaining this part to me. It was scanning my brain for something I could identify with easily to create suitable projections.
“Theme set to “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.” Appeared across the screen. “Creating Projection”. This caught me off guard. Alfred mentioned nothing about the SPES making a projection of MY subconscious.
The glasses cleared up, and my vision was restored. Surprisingly, nothing seemed different. Just my usual office. It was a pretty standard PI’s office. A window behind a desk, the door across the room, straight in front of the window. It was a pretty nice setup. My walls were painted a light tan, and were bare except for a painting. “Starry Night”, Vincent Van Gogh. Not the original, of course.
The room was empty, aside from myself. No projections. I figured the device just wasn’t working properly. That’s when something unusual caught my eye. I looked out the window, and saw a small, bluish speck in the distance, growing bigger and bigger. Finally, I realized that it was a rainbow maned pegasus, just like the SPES had promised. CRASH. She crashed through my window, completely shattering it. She flew across the room and face-planted against the wall. I was both amused and appalled.
“Are you insane! Do you know how much it costs to repair a window?”
“No idea!” She replied as she got to her feet and shook off the crash. “Why not fix it yourself?”
“What do you mean? I’m a private investigator, what makes you think I can fix a window?”
She laughed. I was still slightly in shock that one of my favorite characters from my childhood was here in my office, even though I knew she wasn’t real. She gave me a weird look, as though she thought there was something funny about my inability to fix a window. It was as though there was a joke, and I was getting it at all...
“Oh. Right.” I finally got it. I slid the glasses down my nose and peeked out the top of them. Of course, the window was fine. “Alright, I’m sold.” I smiled, as I slid the glasses back up. I turned back to the blue pegasus. “Hello there, my name is Riley. I’m a private investigator.”
“Hey there! Name’s Rainbow Dash! Fastest pegasus on Earth. Actually, the only pegasus on Earth! For now anyway.”
“Oh. So you actually know what you are?”
“Of course I do. Do I look stupid to you? Why WOULDN’T I know what I am?”
“Well... In movies, a lot of the time...”
“Does this look like a movie to you?”
“... Good point.” Shown up by my own subconscious. There’s something that doesn’t happen everyday. “Okay, there’s one thing I don’t understand.”
“What’s that?”
“How can this technology possibly help me as an investigator? I mean, it’s amusing, but how is it practical?”
She sighed. “Here, I’ll just show you.” She headed over to the door. “Oh, and try not to respond to me around other people. They’ll start to think you’re... As a friend of mine would say, ‘loco in the coco.’”
“Noted. Alright, where are we going?” I asked, opening the door.
“The Daily Bean.” She said, following me out into the hallway. My office was in a building called Express Offices. You know, one of those buildings that rent out offices to people who have nothing better. People such as poor, struggling PIs.
The Daily Bean was a coffee shop. I wasn’t sure why she was leading me there, but I trusted my own subconscious.
“You’ve been going about this all wrong! See, you can’t just put out an ad in the paper and expect people in need of an investigator to come to you. You’ve gotta do a little PR! You gotta go find he action yourself! Take initiative! Get dirty!” Dash lectured me in the elevator on the way to the bottom floor.
“Here’s what you gotta do. Go in to the coffee shop, and find work! If someone needs assistance, trust me, I’ll be able to help you find them.” I nodded. We arrived at the door to the Daily Bean, which was just a block down from Express Offices. I stepped inside and walked up to the counter.
There was no wait, since they weren’t very busy. “Hello.” I said to the barista.
“Hi there! Welcome to the Daily Bean, what can I do for you?” He responded.
“Um... Can I just get a cup of coffee?” I had quite clearly never been in a coffee shop before. He nodded and turned to a large, complicated looking coffee machine, and started filling up a cup of coffee. “So uh... Anything unusual happen around here lately?”
Rainbow Dash sat down beside me and did a head desk. “That’s right, nice and subtle.” She mocked. I sighed. I never was good at being subtle. There were probably good reasons that I never had clients.
“Hm... No. Nothing comes to mind. Isn’t that the kinda stuff newspapers are for?” He motioned to a newspaper stack to my immediate left as he placed the cup of coffee in front of me.
“Yes. Yes it is.” I averted my eyes, probably blushing, sort of embarrassed. I reached over and grabbed a newspaper. The front page headline read “Large Sum of Cash Stolen from Duran Co. Advertising Company.” As I read the article, I noticed something interesting. “The money was found missing from the CEO’s safe at around 2:00 PM today.” I checked the date. June 16th. That was today. I checked my watch. 3:14. Impossible. These newspapers ship out at 6 AM, there’s no way they could know about something that happened an hour ago.
I looked up and jumped slightly when I saw a mint green unicorn staring at me on the other side of the counter. I pointed at the newspaper and asked, “Was this you?”
She nodded. I looked around to make sure no one else was watching. Then I leaned close to the projection. “Let me see if I understand...” I said very softly. “You’re another projection, correct?” She nodded again. “You’re altering my perception of reality in order to tell me something?” Another nod.
I slid the glasses down and took a peak at the newspaper. “Local Man Saves Baby from Burning Building.” The headline now read. I smiled. This SPES really was something else. I looked back up at the mint green unicorn. I wasn’t entirely sure who she was from the show. I remembered that she was a background pony, famous for a scene where she sits like a human. I couldn’t remember her name though.
“How do you know about this?” I asked quietly.
“Another one of the baristas that works here is related to someone who works at the company. He was talking on the phone about it in the break room.”
“Why didn’t that barista tell me about that?”
“Well he didn’t know you were an investigator.”
“... And you do?”
“Well of course. Your basic information is programmed into the SPES. Mainly your name and occupation.”
“Well, that will certainly make things easier.” I turned to Rainbow Dash. “Okay, I’m sold, this will definitely be useful for investigation. Let’s go take a look at Duran Advertising.”
“You bet it is!” She jumped out of her seat. “Come on, let’s go!”
I left a five dollar tip for the helpful unicorn, which I realized would probably go to the barista, but that was okay. He was more helpful to me than he’ll ever know. I took the newspaper with me. I got the feeling that it would come in handy in the future.
It seemed uncanny. I hadn’t had a case in so long, then I stumble upon one almost immediately at the Daily Bean. I guess that’s the advantage of being able to talk to someone’s subconscious directly.
I arrived at the Duran company building, which was only a couple blocks down from the Daily Bean. The entrance led to a rather small lobby, with a reception desk and a hall leading to an elevator. This building only had three floors, which was unusual for an advertising company.
The bottom floor was empty. I started down the hall, examining the walls as I went. They were relatively plain, white walls. The only thing that added any sort of interest to them at all was a portrait of the CEO of the company, Thomas Duran. He was a heavy built man, with wide shoulders and an almost squared off face. He wore a standard black business suit and a red tie, and the portrait showed him from the waste up. His hair was a dark brown, short, straight and well maintained. In all, he seemed like very dignified, respectable man.
“Look at this egghead.” Rainbow Dash said from behind me. I sighed, I’d forgotten she was there. “Guess he’s the victim then right?”
I nodded. “His company more specifically, but if you had to label someone specifically, it would be him. We moved past the picture and down the hall to the elevator I pressed the bottom with the arrow pointing upwards on it and waited for the elevator.
“Any ideas yet?” Dash asked.
“About the case?” I responded.
“No, tonight’s football game.” She said sarcastically.
“Oh... Well, no, I’m not a fan of football.”
“... Right. Okay. Let’s go.” The elevator reached the bottom floor and the door opened. I stepped in, Rainbow hovering close behind. I pressed the button labelled “2” and the door closed.
While in the elevator, I took a few moments to examine the glove. It was a rather long, black glove, the base of which went a few inches past my wrist. At the base of the glove were three flat, touch activated buttons. One showed what seemed to be a person, another showed what looked like a computer monitor, and the other was a traditional power button, the circle with a little line on top.
It was safe to assume what the power button did, so I gave the monitor button a try. Suddenly, three floating monitors popped up in front of me. They were labelled “Information”, “Memories”, and “Observations”.
“... So what exactly is this?” I asked.
“Oh, that.” Dash seemed slightly more condescending than usual. “The SPES takes in information as you learn it. It’s like a super awesome notepad. The Information section gives you the facts you’ve picked up. The Memory section lets you literally relive memories you’ve had. Be careful with that one, it can be dangerous. Oh, and Observations is like information, but instead of facts it gives you subconscious assumptions and opinions you’ve made and stuff.”
I nodded along as Dash spoke. It was kind of amusing really, Dash had to say a lot of things that didn’t really match her character because she had to be my guide through the SPES at the same time. She didn’t seem to like it much... If projections CAN like or dislike something that is.
I didn’t get a chance to use the SPES interface much because the elevator arrived on floor 2. In retrospect, it was a rather slow elevator, since it took all that time to go up one floor. I looked at Dash. She nodded at me, a determined look on her face. I returned the nod, bearing a much more unsure expression.
The elevator door opened and I grew nervous, completely unsure of what was to happen in the near future. |
Prince Colgate | 609 | 2 | Applejack,Big Macintosh,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rainbow Dash,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Alternate Universe,Adventure,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Through Another's Eyes | Private Eye Riley Compton investigates crimes using ponies | incomplete | 10 | 1 | <p>(Hiatus is over and I have begun working on this again)<br/>(Picture is mostly unrelated until I can get a better one)<br/>(I will also point out that, to me, the second chapter seems a little... I don't really know, just off. Constructive criticism would be nice.)<br/>Riley Compton is a private investigator who is chosen by a scientist to test his SPES (Subconscious Projectal Examination System) which allows a user to examine a subject's subconscious directly through the form of projections. </p><p>There's a huge robbery at a local advertisement agency that Riley heads off to investigate. However, he soon realizes that robbery is the least of his concerns...</p> | everyone | 2011-10-05T18:03:06+00:00 | 2011-10-05T18:03:06+00:00 | 996 | Rainbow Dash flew out of the elevator eagerly. I followed her out, significantly more timid. We turned the corner and found ourselves in another hallway, this one much shorter. It lead into a room with another reception desk, and several desks with computers and papers and the works. Police were running all around investigating everything.
There was a woman at the reception desk. She was gorgeous. Her hair was long and brown, and her eyes were a dark bluish green. I stopped when I saw her. There was a policeman standing behind her, watching her. Unsure of what to do, I stepped up to the reception desk.
“Um, hello, I’m looking for...” He started.
“Sorry, no press allowed right now.” She said, without looking up from her computer.
I was caught slightly off guard by her presumption. What about the way I looked implied that I was press? Rainbow Dash landed behind me, giggling. “Um, I’m not press, I’m...”
“Oh. Then if you’re not press, and you’re clearly not police, you have no business here anyway.”
“I.. Er...” Such a rude receptionist! “I’m... Er, my name. Riley Compton, yes. I’m a, er... Private Detective.”
“Ah. I see.” She looked up at me for the first time. “Who hired you then?”
I winced slightly. I really hadn’t thought this through very well. “I... Er, well, see, I’m a very private detective.”
“So no one knows you exist?”
“Yes, that.” I avoided eye contact.
“So you’re just here for the hell of it?”
If she was my receptionist, I would fire her. For the hell of it. “Um... Well, yes, that’s about it.”
“Well, there’s no need. The police already have a culprit.”
I gave a noticeably disappointed look. I guess this whole thing was a waste of time. “Oh. Well, that’s good, right?” I was pathetic.
“I guess so.” She seemed unamused. After a short awkward stare, she returned her gaze to her computer, and I turned to leave.
“Hold it!” Rainbow Dash shouted from behind me. She jumped in front of me, blocking my way to the exit. For a few moments, I forgot that she wasn’t actually there, and that I could have walked right through her. I stopped dead in my tracks. “So, you’re just gonna give up, eh?”
“That was the idea. They already have it figured out.” The receptionist and the police guard guarding her both gave me strange looks. I realized that to them I was talking to myself, and became embarrassed. Dash laughed for a moment, then got serious.
“You could at LEAST do some detective-ing while you’re here! Think about it. Use your logics!” I had no idea what she was talking about. I looked back at the receptionist and the guard who was guarding her. I couldn’t really see anything else past the reception desk, except some empty office desks. All I saw was the receptionist and the guard guarding her.
Wait a minute...
I stepped back over to the reception desk. “So um... If there’s a big investigation going on in there...” I pointed to the policeman standing behind her, who seemed to be staring off in the distance. “What’s he doing over here?”
“He’s guarding the culprit, of course.” She responded, not looking at me.
“Oh, so YOU did it?”
“According to the police, yes. I guess I underestimated you, you clearly have some real top-notch deduction skills.” She said, noticeably sarcastically.
“... But DID you do it?”
“What does that matter? You don’t look like a defense attorney to me.”
“Er... Well... I guess not...” That was a lie.
I went to college at North Carolina State University. I was a psychology major. I then proceeded to Campbell Law School for four years, and am now, in fact, a bar registered lawyer. Amazing that I did all that without ever leaving Raleigh, North Carolina. Unfortunately, I proved to be completely inadequate as a lawyer, and remained completely unemployed.
And that is how I became a useless PI. It all started when I was a useless lawyer. Anyway, the flashback cuts away and I find myself in the middle of an awkward silence. She is still focused on whatever is on her computer. “Right then...” I say, and turn to leave, giving up.
“Hold it!” I hear a male voice from behind me. I wonder for a moment why all these ponies found it necessary to yell so loudly. I turn around to see a brown pony standing in front of the receptionist’s desk. His mane is a darker brown than his fur, and his flank was labelled with a peculiar yellow hourglass. If this pony had ever existed in the actual TV show, I had never noticed him.
“Um...” I almost asked him what he wanted, but stopped because I didn’t want to look foolish. I just stood there and waited for him to explain himself. The guard and receptionist paid me no mind this time.
“Don’t leave... Please. I need you.” I stood dumbfounded as the pony pleaded. “Well... She needs you.” He motioned towards the receptionist. I stared blankly for a few moments before I finally understood. All the males I’ve seen have female pony personas, so it only makes sense that a female would have a male persona.
“I... Er...” I mumbled. The cop guarding the receptionist turned and looked at me, but the receptionist herself couldn’t care less. I motioned towards the elevator, and the brown pony nodded, and followed me to seclusion.
“What are you talking about?” I asked when we were finally alone. “She said she doesn’t want help, so clearly she doesn’t want help.”
Rainbow did a facehoof. “You still don’t get it, do you?”
“I guess not.” I mumbled.
“She needs help, she’s just too stubborn to ask for it.” The brown pony explained. “Though we subconscious projections aren’t tied back by things like stubborness.”
“I see...” I didn’t actually see at all.
Rainbow shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. Come on man, get back in there and solve that crime!”
“But...” I was confused. “The police already have a suspect, what’s the point in...”
“The suspect is innocent.” The brown pony interrupted.
“How can I know that for sure?”
“Look at my face, do I look like I’m lying?” I honestly didn’t know. I had never taking courses on the body language of equines, unfortunately. I glanced at Dash, who was floating beside me with a stern look on her face.
“Does it look like he’s lying?” I asked Rainbow.
“How should I know? YOU’RE the private eye.”
“Right... Well then... I guess there’s only one way to find out.” I reached out and pressed the third floor button. It was at that point I realized that the elevator had never left the third floor. The door opened, and I saw the cop who was guarding the receptionist standing outside.
“That was a weird conversation.” He must have been listening in. “I wish I’d heard the other half.” He had a disappointed look on his face. Of all expressions, I was expecting him to look confused, or think I was a freak. Instead, he just seemed disappointed.
“Well.” I said with a sarcastic tone. “This brown horse wanted me to investigate this crime, so I was arguing with him over whether or not I should.” It would have sounded crazy if it didn’t seem so blatantly sarcastic.
“Oh!” He perked up. “Well, you’d better get to investigating.” He leaned closer to me. “You don’t want to disappoint those horses.” And he slid into the elevator as I stepped out.
“What a loon.” Rainbow Dash commented.
“Yeah really.” I answered, foolishly. Luckily, no one else was around. The receptionist was no where to be seen. I let out a sigh of relief, then took a look around. There were three little work spaces inside the room. To the far left was a door, and there was another door to the far right. They both lead to larger offices. Directly across the room from the entrance were two more doors right beside each other. The door on the far left opened and a man came out.
“Who are you?” He asked. He was a man of average height and average build, with average short brown hair, and he wore an average business suit. When it came down to it, he seemed like a pretty average guy.
“My name’s Riley Compton.” I introduced myself. “I’m a private investigator, I’m here to investigate the robbery.”
“A P.I.? Who hired you?”
“Well... Er... No one actually. It just seemed like it was worth investigating...”
“Ah, I get it, you have no clients so you’re trying to solve a random case in order to gain some publicity?” Was it really that obvious?”
“Something like that... So uh... Do you know anything about the crime?”
“All I know is that my girlfriend Brittanie was blamed for it.” He seemed unhappy about this... Obviously.
“And you don’t think she did it?”
“No, she couldn’t have.”
“Oh really?” I looked off to the side a little bit, and saw Rainbow Dash sprawled out on a desk, clearly uninterested with the current investigation.
“Yes, she was with me at the time! We were at my place, alone, and what not.
“Oh.. Well, that’s a fairly sturdy alibi. Couldn’t imagine why they didn’t believe you.” I turned to Rainbow, who was no longer on the desk. Now, she was talking to a white unicorn, who had appeared at some point by the desk.
“What are you looking at?” He looked over at the desk.
“Oh, I... Er... Was looking at...” I stepped over to the desk, looking for something to claim that I was looking at. THat’s when I found a framed picture of the receptionist, wearing a yellow tank top. I grabbed the picture and held it out to him. “This! I was looking at this! This is your girlfriend, right?”
“Why, yes, she is. What’s your point?”
“Well it seems weird that a picture of your girlfriend is on someone else’s desk, doesn’t it?”
“... That’s my desk.”
“... Really?”
“Yep.”
“... But you were just...”
“Meeting with our HR rep?”
“... So that’s not your office?”
“Do I look like I have my own office?” Honestly, he did.
“Um, well, no... But...”
“You’re really not very good at this investigating thing, are you?”
In the corner of my eye, I saw Rainbow Dash bawling in laughter, while the white pony chuckled in a sophisticated manner. I believe she was Rarity, the prim and proper, fashion pony from the series. “No, I guess I’m not.”
Without another word, the man headed to the elevator. Once he was gone, I leaned down beside the white pony. “Who are you?” I asked.
“My name is Rarity, I-”
“I know that, I mean who are you with?”
She gave me a scolding look. “It’s rude to interrupt, you know. I’m with Calvin McQueen, the under-appreciated advertisement agent, and the only man here who knows how to treat a lady.”
“... You mean tht guy who just in here?”
“Of course! He’s going to run this place one day, I just know it!”
“Odd.... You seem nothing like him.”
“Hey buddy, I’m nothing like you either, yet here I am!” Rainbow jumped in. She had a point. I examined the glove on my hand. This SPES thing was certainly hard to keep up with, especially since everything it did seemed completely random.
“Was the receptionist actually with... Er... Calvin at the time of the robbery?”
“Of course he was! Did he LOOK like he was lying?”
I sighed. Apparently all these ponies were on the same wavelength or something... Oh wait, they were, literally. “No, but you can never be too sure.”
“The police just don’t believe because they know he would cover for her, for ANYTHING.” She stared off for a few moments. “He truly loves her. It’s so lovely.”
The problem with this is that she had a point. It’s the word of the defendant and the defendant’s boyfriend against the evidence.... “Wait, do they even have any evidence on her?”
“How should I know?”
“Er... Well, I just thought...”
“Is the brown horse back?” A familiar voice came from behind me. I turned around to see the cop who was guarding the receptionist early. He was staring down at me, and had quite possibly been there for several minutes.
“Er... No, this time it’s a white unicorn.” I told the truth, equally sarcastically.
“Wow, you’re actually honest about speaking with us.” Rarity commented. “I respect that, not at all like that hooligan who was here earlier.”
“Wait, what?” I asked, caught off guard.
“What?” The cop asked, confused.
“WHAT!?” Rainbow asked, just for fun, then started laughing again.
“Nothing, sorry.” I said.
“That other guy with those glasses. He was so rude.” Rarity answered.
“What other guy with glasses.” I questioned further.
“What about glasses?” The cop was even more confused.
“OH!” I heard an unfamiliar, female voice butt in. “That prosecutor, right! Yes! I guessed it! I win!” I saw a pink pony bounce from out behind the cop. Pinkie Pie, no doubt. I remember Pinkie Pie distinctly. How could you forget her?
“Someone else can see you guys?” I gulped hard. Well, there goes my ONE advantage in this case... |
theamberfox | 612 | 1 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-08T20:57:43+00:00 | 2011-10-08T20:57:43+00:00 | 3,826 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 1
“I just don’t think it’s a good idea.” a gruff, elderly unicorn said.
His loud, commanding voice resonated throughout the room, but there was a hint of regret in his words. Maybe he didn’t believe he was right or maybe he just didn’t want to tell them they were wrong. Regardless, it wasn’t an easy thing to do. What lay ahead of them was a difficult task and everyone was trying their best to come up with solutions. Everything they tried had failed and the hope that burned so brightly in the beginning had been reduced to a faltering candle.
“We can’t afford to have the best of our researchers and military running around chasing rumours. In spite of our open communications with their government, we still have no idea what they’re doing up there.” his voice growing louder and more assertive as he continued. “The only thing we know is that they’re doing better than we are.”
A white pegasus standing nearby casually stepped forward. She turned her head quickly, throwing her elegant light blue hair out of the way.
“I agree with Lord Thunderhorn.” she said softly, gesturing towards the old unicorn. “Some of the commoners are starting to become openly aggressive towards us and we need every guard in Canterlot as protection.”
“Are you trying to suggest that we can’t spare even a single guard for this?” a pale green earth pony intervened, glaring at the white pegasus. “This isn’t a walk in the park. It’s dangerous and she shouldn’t be leaving alone.”
A brutal drought had appeared almost overnight and spread across all of Equestria. A drought in a land where factories created artificial weather conditions and a princess controlled the sun itself seemed impossible, so no one could have expected a drought with such an unimaginable magnitude. With the only rain coming from the scarce weather factories and the nobility using their wealth to hoard almost every scrap of food produced, many had begun to starve.
“Lady Wind Dancer has every reason to be concerned. The commoners blame us for the food shortages.” Thunderhorn sighed. “To be honest, I don’t disagree with them.”
“Then why can’t we just ask the nobility to share.” a dark blue pegasus smirked, her tail swishing back and forth as she spoke. “Tell them to play nice.”
“Do you honestly believe we can do that, Lady Vortex?” a light brown earth pony interrupted. “They will find a way around any law we make. They have too much power and influence. If we limited the amount of food they can buy, they will just pay other ponies to buy it for them.”
“Even if we could do something about the nobility, it still wouldn’t be enough. They’re hoarding food, but not as much as everyone seems to believe.” the pale green pony said. “We would just be wasting our time and effort. We need to find a way to increase food production and prevent this from happening again in the future.”
“Then back to the point, Goldenroot, I agree that we need to send someone with her.” Vortex replied, nodding at the pale green pony. “If Princess Celestia is really serious about this, then Twilight is going to leave anyway. I’m sure we can spare one guard as an escort.”
“It’s not that simple.” a dark brown unicorn interrupted. “If we send even one escort with her, then we will be held responsible for her actions. It will be announced that we supported her and if she goes up north and finds nothing, then we will be at the public’s mercy.”
“And we’re not now, Lord Crescendo?” Goldenroot asked inquisitively. “Nothing we’ve done has worked. If they have some answers, then we need to try.”
“We simply cannot act on rumour alone.” Crescendo continued.
“Then Lord Crescendo, Lord Thunderhorn, and Lady Wind Dancer, you all object to the decision?” a light brown earth pony asked.
Thunderhorn exchanged concerned glances with the two other ponies in question. “Yes, Director Prairie Star, we do.”
“Then I’m afraid that if Princess Celestia wants to send Twilight to Prance, it will have to be without the council’s support and thus, without any aid from our government.” Prairie Star continued.
Goldenroot was stunned. “Celestia, please don’t ask her to go alone. It’s too dangerous.”
Princess Celestia had been listening to the entire conversation from her throne, quietly watching as the six members of the council argued over her suggestion. Normally, the council would meet and formally discuss political matters in an assembly, but the severity of the situation had forced them to shed their usual conventions.
“I don’t want to have to ask her to do this, Sir Goldenroot,” Celestia replied, calmly looking at the earth pony. “But we don’t have much of a choice. The drought is only getting worse and we need a solution. If there is even a possibility that Prance can help us, then we need to investigate that possibility.
Ruled by “Le Roi Pierre”, Prance was a small and heavily populated country with a history of being frequented by droughts and food shortages identical to the one Equestria was experiencing. Over time, the country learned how to deal with these problems and ceased its constant pleas for foreign aid. For obvious reasons, Celestia wanted to know what had changed. How had they solved their problems and what could Equestria do to improve their current situation and prevent future disasters? Twilight Sparkle, the only one the princess thought was both qualified and available for the job, was asked to travel north and find some answers.
“Then let me go with her.” Goldenroot said, stepping forward. “I refuse to have her travel alone.”
“Don’t be foolish, Sir Goldenroot!” Prairie Star said as she stepped forward. “The council cannot operate without all of its members. If you leave, it’s only going to make matters worse.”
Goldenroot knew she was right. Council operations would come grinding to a halt if he left and with the council serving as a check on Celestia’s power, no political decisions could be made in his absence.
Like many rulers in her time, Celestia did not have absolute power over her country. Every decision she made had to be passed through the council before it became law, allowing the assembly to either rewrite the law and send it back to Celestia for approval, or veto it entirely. Likewise, any decision the council made had to pass through Celestia in the same fashion. It was a way of keeping each other’s power in check, with neither political body given the power to make rash decisions.
Celestia had suggested the idea over a thousand years ago when she first made the decision to banish Nightmare Moon. Soon after her banishment, Celestia thought that her decision was made too hastily and regretted it ever since. She loved her sister and it was only from a sense of panic that she was able to exile her to the moon without thinking of the consequences.
In an attempt to correct her perceived mistake, the council was formed as a temporary political body consisting of mostly the educated nobility. Celestia had polled the council, asking them if they thought it was safe for Nightmare Moon to return. Despite Celestia’s fierce attempts at coercing the group, they rejected the idea, claiming that the safety of thousands of residents across the country was too important to sacrifice for a single pony, even one of royalty. Although saddened by the decision, Celestia agreed with the council and announced that they would become a permanent addition to the government to provide a second opinion on all of her verdicts.
“So that’s it then.” Goldenroot said, shaking his head slowly. “We’re just going to sit back and watch.”
“Do not underestimate my student, Sir Goldenroot.” Celestia said. “If any one pony is capable of this feat, it’s my faithful student Twilight Sparkle. She may be young, but she has incredible potential and I have complete confidence in her abilities.”
“I hope you’re right, Princess Celestia.”
~
Although she tried to look calm, it was painfully obvious that Princess Luna was nervous about what she was going to tell her older sister. Her movements were slow and purposeful as she tried to maintain the kind of serene grace that was expected from a member of royalty, but the expression on her face completely ruined the attempt. Her eyes darted from side to side as if she were looking for something that was obviously not there and she failed to make even brief eye contact with her sister.
As she approached the throne on which her older sister was leisurely seated, she began to question whether or not it was truly necessary for her to inform Celestia in person. She still had no idea how Celestia would react to the information she was about to present, which was part of the reason she felt the gesture was entirely necessary. It was a well known fact that the princess was able to conceal her inner feelings and keep a calm composure in the face of adversity, but she only ever tried to do so in public. It was another requirement of royalty that Luna never truly understood. For this very reason, Luna had asked the guards to step out when she entered and, as she took the last few steps towards the throne, she glanced back over her shoulder to confirm that the room was indeed empty. Satisfied, she slowly came to a stop in front of Celestia.
“Sister?” Luna asked.
The letter had arrived in the morning, but it was now late in the afternoon. Luna had opened it on her sister’s behalf, unknowing of the contents, and had spent most of the day trying to prepare for this inevitable conversation.
“You look troubled, Luna. Is there something you wish to tell me?” Celestia replied affectionately, but after seeing the distress on Luna’s face, she knew that it was something far more serious than the tone of her voice could have allowed for.
The last light of the sun washed in through the windows and onto the floor across the room, almost directly where the two were situated. As Luna raised her head, making direct eye contact with Celestia for the first time that day, a small amount of light crept across her face, illuminating it ever so slightly. It was as if the sun itself, was trying to lighten the mood, but the beam of light only made the small teardrops welling up in Luna’s eyes more obvious.
“It’s about Twilight…”
The tears in her eyes were now building up more quickly. Luna was desperately trying to hold them back.
“She’s not coming home.” Luna continued.
“Why do you say that?”
“I opened a letter this morning. It was from La Roi Pierre in Prance. He said…”
Luna’s words trailed off as she noticed that tears were finally beginning to trickle down her face. She couldn’t fight them anymore. The task she was presented with was too harsh, too miserable.
“He said that she never arrived to meet him or his advisors… She was supposed to be there more than a month ago, but the last time she was seen was crossing the border into Prance. He sent out a search party to look for her, but they only found some of her things…
“They weren’t the kind of things that Twilight would willingly leave behind.”
“They think she’s dead?” Celestia asked, her words empty and lacking all emotion.
Stunned by her reaction, Luna tried to collect herself and comfort her older sister. She noticed that Celestia wasn’t looking directly at her anymore, but past her, towards the door. It was as if she believed she was all alone.
“It was supposed to take three weeks.” Celestia continued.
Luna knew that Celestia had suspected something had happened to Twilight when she didn’t return when she was supposed to, but she had hid her concern well. Very few actually believed that something tragic had happened and even less had actually questioned Twilight’s whereabouts. The few that asked Celestia directly were lied to. It might have been because Celestia didn’t want to worry anyone, but it was more likely that she didn’t actually believe that Twilight might be injured, lost, or worse. It was only when Luna had noticed that the excuses weren’t adding up, that she suspected something was wrong.
At first, Celestia had passed it off as poor weather conditions, but it was an obvious fact that it had been hot and dry in all of Equestria and most of Prance for the entire month. Eventually it began to rain slightly in both countries, but it was scarce and nothing that could delay travel. Later on, she had to think of more creative excuses, like waiting while contraptions were being built or planned out, machines that would improve crop harvesting or yield. Luna did not question the idea that these machines might exist, but rather why would Twilight need to stay in Prance to supervise their completion. Surely, less important individuals could oversee the transportation of the machines and their plans.
“What of her things? What happened to them?” Celestia asked quickly.
“They found the map you gave her, some notes, supplies, her bag... I can get one of the guards to bring them to you.”
"Have them sent to my bedchamber."
“Please sister; it's not your fault. No one could have predicted what happened."
Celestia continued to stare past her sibling, even as she left the room. Was Twilight really gone?
~
The memories of the meeting with the council and her conversation with Luna faded as Celestia returned to the grim reality. The drought was still a problem and Twilight's demise was finally sinking in. Her friends were notified of the tragedy and a funeral was being held in Ponyville. Celestia had arrived early, leaving Luna behind to keep watch over the current instability across the country. Things were getting better, but they were still far from normal. Shipments of food and other supplies from Prance were arriving on a regular basis and helped ease the concerns of starvation. Although the food was enough to keep ponies from starving, it wasn’t enough to keep anyone really satisfied and many had began to wonder about Prance. How were they able to keep sending such massive quantities of food and still have enough to feed their own country?
Celestia had insisted that the weather was improving and that there was no need to send anyone else up north to Prance. She said that everyone would have all the food they needed soon. Although most didn't believe her, hence the prolonged instability, it was true. Today was a living example as the rain poured down across Celestia's face and onto the cold grass. She didn't mind, the rain had a convenient way of hiding a pony’s tears. Everyone always looks like they're crying in the rain.
"You're early."
Celestia slowly turned here head to face the pony behind her. It was Rarity, a pony that Celestia had heard a lot about in Twilight's letters. She was one of Twilight's best friends and a dressmaker. She was using her magic to create a small bubble around herself, keeping the rain from messing up her immaculate mane.
"You're also very wet." Rarity said with a kind of unusual monotony, making no effort to conceal her sorrow.
"I'm alright. After all that's happened, it's nice to feel the rain on my back." Celestia replied in an eerily similar tone.
As she turned back to face the tombstone on the ground, Rarity slowly moved up beside her. The two stood together quietly for long time, never taking their eyes off the rigid, flat stone that stood upright in the grass bearing Twilight Sparkle's name. As time passed, more ponies began to arrive at the grave. Some broke out into tears immediately upon arriving while others offered their condolences and tried to comfort those who were most clearly affected by their loss. There were also those that said nothing at all. Their silence alone was more than enough to display the sadness in their hearts.
Eventually, the ceremony began and ponies would move to a podium to make speeches about their friend, recalling notable events that happened in Twilight’s life or merely just praising her for her actions. Each one would trigger a different reaction from the crowd. Some stories would be happy memories, exciting tales that formed bold images in their heads and smiles on their faces. Others were sad, causing many ponies in the audience to weep as they remembered their lost friend. Celestia had noticed Spike, the small purple and green dragon, was reacting most radically to the speeches made. Always laughing the hardest and sobbing the loudest. It was unsettling to see a child so young, so innocent, as mentally and emotionally destroyed as he was now.
Rarity was just now stepping up to the podium where all the ponies were making their speeches. She had managed to keep her mane and the stylish cosmetics on her face perfect, even after all this time. The bubble around her was shining hazily as it reflected the rain that hit its surface, dispersing and gently sliding down around the sphere.
“I have no script to read, nor is any required to express the feelings I have at this moment.”
Her tone of voice had changed now. She was trying to preserve the quiet dignity that she was well known for, but it was a fruitless attempt. The thought of her friend, taken from the world so early on in her life, was too much. Memories of the time they had spent together reconstructed themselves one after another in her head and brought tears to her eyes. Slowly rolling down her cheeks, they took some of her mascara with them and left black streaks down the side of her face.
“I didn’t know Twilight for as long as some of the ponies here today…”
She smiled weakly at Celestia, who was standing quietly and listening attentively to the words she spoke.
“…But it was more than enough time to learn what kind of amazing pony she was. She displayed great feats of courage, hope, and kindness and inspired us all to achieve things we never thought possible.
“It is by no stretch of the imagination, that I am able to speak these words…”
She stopped. The small tears falling from her eyes had gradually become a steady stream down the side of her face. So much so, that the tears had actually began to wash away the remaining make up on her face. Above her, the bubble that she had created was slowly failing. Her concentration on the spell was loosening and small holes had opened up letting some of the droplets fall down on her.
“She was one of the best friends I had and nothing will ever change that. I just wish I hadn’t let her leave by herself. She asked me to come with her, but I told her I was too busy. Everyone was too busy, so she went alone. She went to help us, to save us and, petrified from what was happening, we didn’t even notice she was gone…”
She looked down towards the cold, solid earth beneath her. A single tear fell from her eye, forming a small droplet of water as it accelerated towards the grass below. As it fell, the bubble above her finally began to give up. She lost all her concentration on the spell and the small holes increased in size and frequency. As the tear hit the ground with an inaudible splash, the bubble tore open and the water that had pooled on top of the bubble flooded in, soaking the unicorn instantly and provoking numerous gasps from the audience.
Celestia’s right. After all that’s happened, it’s nice to feel the rain on my back, Rarity thought to herself as she worked her way off the podium and back into the crowd.
She looked very different now; her usually impressive appearance had been washed away. Her hair had been destroyed by the ever worsening rainstorm and her cosmetics removed by the wetness of her tears. It wasn’t normal, it wasn’t right, but nothing about today was.
~
The storm that had started early in the morning had grown. The wind had picked up speed, periodically blowing in large gusts and causing the rain to attack the glass windows in bursts. Lightning flashed nearby, illuminating the dark room and revealing Celestia’s depressed figure lying silently on the bed. A loud crack of thunder soon followed, just as the room was darkening.
Twilight's disappearance had left a burning hole in Celestia's heart. The one pony that, next to her sister, she cared the most for, was gone, but not forgotten. Twilight was lost in a shroud of mystery. No one seemed to know where she went or what happened to her, so why had they assumed she was gone from the world forever? Perhaps the others had already accepted her demise long before it was formally announced. Two months was a long time and the world was becoming a dark and unforgiving place. The drought had created more than just a food shortage; it had created intolerance, mistrust and hate. They had asked her about Twilight and she had lied to them. She lied to Twilight’s friends and family, she lied to Goldenroot, and she even lied to her sister. It was a tragic fate that she refused to believe. She didn't want to believe that anything bad could ever happen to the little unicorn she had spent so many years of her life with.
Celestia stared at the small purple bags resting by her dresser. They were visibly dirty and small specks of filth plastered the surface. Slowly, she raised herself out of bed and walked towards them. If Twilight was still alive, then the bags might contain pieces of a puzzle, knowledge of her whereabouts and her situation. Lifting the flaps of each bag, Celestia carefully removed the contents onto the floor and spread them out. The first thing she noticed was Twilight’s gala dress. Celestia moved the dress, arranging it into a position on the floor that revealed its true beauty. Apart from the thin layer of dirt and deterioration of the dress, everything was exactly as she had remembered it. The soft blue fabric flowed gently as it settled on the ground with the magnificent silver stars decorating its surface shining dully in the dim moonlight.
“That was the best Grand Galloping Gala ever!” I said, walking into the small coffee shop.
“Princess Celestia?!” the ponies around the table cried.
I moved over and stood next to the table, smiling brightly. It was certainly a night to remember. The chaos and confusion Twilight’s friends had created was amazing. It changed a usually dull, formal experience into an utterly fantastic one. Most of the nobility would be upset by the uproar, but I haven’t had that much fun for decades.
“Pardon me, Princess, but tonight was just awful.” Twilight remarked.
“Oh, Twilight, the Grand Galloping Gala is always awful.” I laughed.
“It is?” Twilight asked, flashing a surprised glance.
“That is why I was thrilled you were all attending. I was hoping you could liven things up a bit. And while the evening may not have gone as you planned, I'm sure you'll agree that in the end it didn't turn out so bad for this group of friends.”
“You're right, Princess. Friends have a way of making even the worst of times into something pretty great.” Twilight smiled.
Lighting and thunder shook the memories from Celestia’s mind. Taking a quick glance around, she searched for the matching shoes among the worn collection of objects, but stopped when she noticed a pile of envelopes. Twilight had obviously planned on contacting someone at one point or another, but the recipient was unknown. No one had received any letters from her student, at least, not that she knew of.
Setting the letters and the questions they evoked aside, Celestia picked up a large encyclopaedia. Several tattered pages fell out as she raised the abused book off the ground. Carrying such a heavy and frivolous item on a long journey seemed insane, but Twilight’s thirst for knowledge was insatiable. Even if the book itself was unnecessary, Celestia knew that the comfort she gained from just holding onto it was not. The book was marked to a single page titled, ‘The Mare in the Moon’. It was the event that had started everything and one that she could never forget. Jealousy, contempt and fear had driven her sister away and, one thousand years later, Twilight had brought her back. Twilight had done what Celestia could not and for that, she was forever in her debt.
Shifting the trivial items aside, Celestia discovered a small, battered notebook. Luna mentioned this. Has she read it? Has anyone read it?
Hoping to solve the increasingly complicated puzzle surrounding Twilight’s disappearance, Celestia closed her eyes and calmly flipped open the cover of the book. Twilight was a studious pony, she would have written everything leading up to her disappearance in her notebook. If Celestia had anything to go on, it would be elaborately detailed within these pages.
Breathing slowly, she opened her eyes and glanced down. The page was blank. She panicked and started flipping through the book. This was unlike her. Every single page of the notebook was blank, completely devoid of any writing whatsoever.
Letting the notebook slip from her grasp, it fell and hit the floor in a useless heap. What happened to you, Twilight? Where are you?
Tears welled up in her eyes as Celestia quietly packed Twilight’s things back into her bag, setting them in the dresser and falling onto the soft bed. Celestia had found it all quite horribly ironic. The council had been created to prevent rash political decisions, but it had actually become the cause of one. It wasn’t entirely their fault; they were just doing their job as she had intended them to. Their reasoning was sound and probably in the best interests of the wide majority of Equestria’s inhabitants. It was her fault alone for suggesting the idea in the first place. The confidence she had placed in her pupil’s abilities had blinded her better judgment. Celestia was well aware that the journey had been attempted in solitude by numerous ponies before Twilight, but they were mostly hardened adventurers or merchants, not young librarians.
And after all the pressure she had put on her student to proceed with the journey alone, it had almost become unneeded. It was as if the weather was trying to play some cruel, barbaric joke on the princess. The rain had returned and soon the crops would follow. Equestria would, once again, be able to live carelessly, free of the trials and tribulations of the harsh drought that had faded with the storm raging fiercely outside her room.
Once again, lightning rapidly lit up the dark room. Celestia remained motionless on her bed, the only movement coming from the tears that proceeded to dampen her pillow. The room blackened, loud thunder rattling the objects in the bedchamber and masking the creaking of a door as it slowly opened. With the room obscured by the night, footsteps unheard above the assaulting rain, a figure crept towards the grieving princess before coming to a rest at the foot of her bed.
________________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Hello readers. This is a new revised version of the first chapter. A very special thanks goes to my editor, Specter Von Baren, who helped me clean it up. I think the story flows a lot nicer now and hopefully I can entice more people into reading the entire story.
If you’re interested in doing any pre-reading, please contact me. I’d like to have one more person to just read through the story and tell me their thoughts.
If you have any questions or comments about the story, you can reach me at my email: [email protected] I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 2 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-29T16:40:48+00:00 | 2011-10-29T16:40:48+00:00 | 3,095 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 2
Standing at the end of Celestia’s bed, the figure wordlessly observed the princess. After only a moment, it began to turn around as if it was just going to walk away and leave her, and its purpose, with the darkness. But a single, bright flash of lightning illuminated the room and in the brief moment of clarity it offered, Celestia’s eyelids parted, allowing her to fix her gaze on the silhouette in front of her. It was a pony she hadn’t seen for a long time and, noticing her stare, it turned back slowly as a weak smile formed on its lips.
Opening its mouth, it spoke so softly that it was only barely audible over the fierce storm, “Princess Celestia?”
She recognized the voice. Gentle and compassionate, the silhouette’s voice had a youthful and unmistakeable harmony. It was her student, Twilight Sparkle. The pony everyone thought had vanished forever, to have died on the difficult journey to Prance, was standing in her room, smiling back it her.
Using a single flame that burst into several smaller parts, Celestia ignited the various torches around the room, revealing two very sad looking ponies. The princess looked terrible. Wet with tears, she leapt from her bed and stood awkwardly beside it. The dramatic events from earlier in the day had worn on her, both physically and psychologically. What little jewellery she had worn had been discarded hurriedly upon returning to the bedchamber. They were uncomfortable trinkets, serving only aesthetic purposes, and were completely unnecessary in the confinement of her room.
Twilight, drenched from the rain and splattered with mud, was barely recognizable to Celestia. Her normally well-kept mane and tail hung heavily on her body and made it difficult for her to stand. The long journey through the downpour and darkness had exhausted her and she was adorned with small cuts and bruises as reminders of the hardships she endured.
“They said you died!” Celestia cried, desperately trying to keep her composure and hold back her tears. “But… But I didn’t believe them! I couldn’t…”
The weak smile grew brighter on Twilight’s face and she leapt at the princess, embracing her tightly. The two were both crying now, but it was out of joy and not sadness.
“I'm sorry, Princess Celestia," Twilight said, holding her tightly. "I should have sent something. I should have found some way to tell you what happened."
Amid the violent storm just outside the room, the two held each other for what felt like an eternity. The tears in their eyes flowed freely, let loose by the heartfelt reunion.
“Why were you gone so long? What happened to you?” Celestia asked, indifferent to the mud and water that covered her body as she finally pulled away from her student.
“I... I got caught up in a really big mess.” Twilight replied, tears still streaming down from her eyes. “I know you want to hear everything, but I don’t really want to talk about it right now. I can tell you the full story later, but I think I need to go and find my friends. They’ll definitely want to know I’m still alive.”
“You don’t want to stay for the night?” Celestia asked, her voice panic stricken by the thought of her pupil leaving again. “The storm is only getting worse outside and you need to rest. You can’t possibly want to go out in that again?”
Twilight glanced at the window. The rain was still pelting the thin sheet of glass separating them from the harsh weather outside. Lightning flashed again, but with the room bathed in torchlight, it was barely noticeable until the trailing thunder rattled the furniture and shook the floor beneath her hooves.
“I… I guess you’re right, but I’ll need to leave as soon as I can in the morning, probably before you wake up.” Twilight replied, her voice faintly revealing her fear of battling the storm again.
“That’s alright. I understand that you want to get back as soon as possible. But for now, we should both get some rest. It’s going to be a long day tomorrow.”
”I’ll come back as soon as I can. There are some things that I need to tell you.” Twilight said with a concerned expression.
The unicorn started for the sofa in the corner of the room. It was a large and comfortable looking green couch, its colour clashing with the rest of the objects in the room. The large white and gold bed, dressers, wardrobes, tables, and chairs were perfectly organized around the spacious room, with the strange green sofa placed clumsily off to the side.
“I can’t possibly let you sleep there.” Celestia said, rushing in front of her. “Not after all you’ve been through. I’ll sleep on the couch, please, you can have my bed.”
“Oh, okay. Thank you, Celestia.” Twilight replied.
Normally, Twilight would argue with the princess, unwilling to accept such generosity so easily, but she was tired right now and just wanted to get some sleep. But as she moved over to the empty bed, its sheets tossed haphazardly to a corner, she noticed herself in the reflection of the nearby mirror and frowned.
“Oh. I can’t... I can't sleep like this.” Twilight said, looking at the mud and grime covered figure in front of her.
“That’s alright, Twilight.” Celestia smiled, glancing at her almost equally as dirty coat, “When you’ve lived for as long as I have, you learn how to take some mud out of a pony’s hair.”
Celestia's horn glowed dully and the mud and water on the two ponies slowly lifted off, forming into a ball that she lowered into the sink of the nearby bathroom. The alicorn, now clear of rain and dirt, appeared almost exactly as she usually did. Her regal beauty shined magnificently despite the absence of jewellery and cosmetics. Twilight, however, was not quite so fortunate. With the mud gone, the cuts and bruises were made more obvious. The princesses’ magic had even opened some of the wounds, letting the blood slowly trickle down her legs.
“Oh Twilight…” Celestia said quietly, her smile falling and revealing the pain inside her heart.
“I’m alright, Celestia. Really.” Twilight explained, noticing the princesses’ sadness and trying to keep a smile on her face despite the obvious pain she endured.
Celestia pulled some bandages out from the cupboard in the bathroom and began to wrap them around the open wounds. Healing magic, while not unknown, was dangerous. It was just as likely that a pony would make a wound worse, than better and, while Celestia was certainly capable of this feat, she decided it was best to avoid using such powerful magic in such a sleep deprived state.
“There. We can fix you up properly tomorrow.” Celestia said as she finished wrapping the worst of Twilight’s injuries. “Now, please get some rest. I want to know everything about your adventure when you come back from Ponyville.”
Twilight merely nodded before climbing into the bed. Utterly exhausted by the events of the day, she fell asleep instantly, not bothering to pull the sheets up over her body. Breathing quietly her chest moved slowly up and down as the oxygen entered her lungs. Celestia carefully pulled the sheets over her, a small smile forming on her lips and tears building in her eyes.
“I’m just happy you’re alright Twilight. I didn’t know what I was going to do without you.” Celestia whispered before finally lying down on the green sofa across the room.
~
It was light out when Celestia awoke. Despite her absence the sun had risen above the horizon and was glowing brightly in the sky outside the window. Both of the princesses had full control over the sun and the moon, so they were able to take each others place whenever they felt it was necessary. And after the difficult ordeal that Celestia had gone through, Luna had been more than happy to raise the sun and let her sister sleep in a few extra hours.
Celestia dazedly lifted her head off the arm of the green sofa and opened her eyes. Her neck was stiff from sleeping all night in such an awkward position. Stretching slowly and getting up from the bed, a blanket fell off her back and formed a soft lump on the floor.
"Twilight?" she asked softly as she turned to face her bed, remembering the previous night’s encounter.
The bed was empty and her student was gone. Celestia panicked for a moment, but soon relaxed when she remembered what Twilight had said.
"I’ll come back as soon as I can. There are some things that I need to tell you."
Reminded of the promise Twilight had made before they had both fallen asleep, Celestia walked over to her dresser to retrieve her crown and torc. Twilight would be back later today and more pressing matters required her attention at the moment.
Glancing at the brilliant gold hands on the delicate white clock on her dresser, she noticed how late it was. The clock’s small and large hands pointed to the ten and five respectively. It was ten twenty-five in the morning, almost noon and well past the time she was supposed to be awake.
"Good morning, sister." Luna said with a falsely cheerful disposition as she gently opened and closed the door behind her. "I was so glad you finally got some decent rest that I didn't want to wake you for the sunrise. I know you haven’t been sleeping well lately…"
Luna had tried to be supportive for her sister, but it was difficult. After everything she had gone through, she knew what it was like to lose someone. It was an unpleasant feeling and, no matter how hard you tried to push it away, it remained, tugging at your heartstrings and making every day a painful reminder of your loss.
"Luna!" Celestia replied sharply, smiling back at her sister. “I have wonderful news to share with you.”
"Ummm. Is it about why you were sleeping on that awful couch?" Luna asked, desperately trying to smile.
"Actually, it is.” Celestia replied excitedly. "Twilight was here last night Luna. She's alive!"
"Really!?” Luna asked in shock, “But what happened to her? I mean, where is she now?"
"Understandably, she wanted to go and tell her friends in Ponyville. I gave her my bed to sleep on last night, so I slept on the couch. She was in really bad shape, Luna. She had cuts and bruises all over her and the storm last night wasn't helping." Celestia replied, trying to answer all of her sister’s questions.
Celestia paused for a moment, turning her head to look out the window at the flooded streets below. The storm had passed some time in the night, but it had left a trail of destruction in its wake. Plants were uprooted and many of the houses below were nearly flooded by the shear volume of water that had accumulated. The city’s inhabitants were running between the buildings, talking amongst themselves and trying to repair the damages from the storm. The repairs would take time, but time was something that Celestia always had an abundance of.
"But, she's coming back later today to tell me about what happened to her." the elder sister continued, beaming brightly as she ignored the ugly sight outside her room.
"So you don’t know… what happened?” Luna asked with concerned look. “Everyone thought she was dead, Celestia, yet she shows up in your bedroom in the middle of the night?”
Celestia’s pleasant smile persisted, “I know it’s hard to believe, but this was very real, Luna. I can assure you, no part of me thought it was a dream.”
“Well, we’ll know when she comes back.” Luna replied with a fake smile, trying to hide her doubt.
“Well actually, Luna,” Celestia interrupted, her smile falling slightly. “I was hoping that you could watch over the political situation again.”
“Oh… sure… I can do that.” Luna replied hesitantly, disappointed that she wouldn’t get to see Twilight.
“I promise you’ll get to spend some time with her.” Celestia said as the smile returned to her face. “I just want to make sure that everything starts running smoothly again now that she’s back.”
“There are some muffins in the dining hall if you’re hungry. I guess Twilight’s friends don’t know she’s alright yet.”
Celestia turned back to the window and continued to watch the bustling crowd as Luna left the room and closed the door.
I’ll let Twilight surprise them, she thought.
~
"Scribe, you may now start recording the events of today's assembly." Prairie Star said, glaring at the young pony in the corner that vigorously began writing on the paper sitting at his desk. "It is now one o'clock in the afternoon. The council assembly has now convened.”
Prairie Star, a light brown earth pony with flat, golden hair running down the side of her neck, was the council's director. She kept the events of the assembly in order and provided a mostly unbiased opinion. It was her job to speak in a monotonous and otherwise boring tone at all times in an effort to maintain her impartial status. It was something she had become exceptionally skilled at, but it had the unpleasant side-effect of making her a very dull and unattractive pony.
"As of yesterday, there are three articles on the agenda up for discussion.” She continued, “The first order of business is regarding the recent political situation in Equestria. We left off with Lord Thunderhorn making the last comment. As it is written, ‘We cannot let what has happened over the last few months destroy our lives and question the decisions of our ancestors. We must stick to the traditions this country was founded upon, lest we be carried away by the tide of change and make choices that we will eventually come to regret.’”
She sat in the largest seat at the great oak table at which she and all her colleagues were seated. The table, although battered from many arguments and flaring tempers, was a thing of beauty. The elegant legs spiralling down from six equally distanced places were complemented by the intricate carvings that detailed the surface. They told stories of grand events that had taken place over the course of history, both glorious and terrible and, although the top was once bare, it was now covered with a thick sheet of glass to protect the carvings from further harm.
"Sir Goldenroot, you now have the floor."
Sir Goldenroot was a pale green earth pony and a respected scholar who had been knighted several years ago, though the reason why was unknown. Upon hearing his name, he leaned in towards the table, glancing around once before stopping and making direct eye contact with Prairie Star.
"My thanks, Director."
On his flank was a rather elegant looking golden tree that, strangely, bore no leaves whatsoever. It was something he obtained while working as an arboreal researcher in his youth. He was always interested in the forests and the animals that lived within them, paying especially close attention to the Everfree forest near Ponyville. But as he grew older, he abandoned his passion in favour of politics. It was something that he felt he was good at, being able to articulate his thoughts with ease and approach everything with a logical nature.
"My friends, it is a great tragedy that such a conservative thought would prevent us from changing this nation for the better. It is true, we have lived in such a way for many years, our lives going unaltered for as far back as we can remember, but does that mean we are the epitome of our organization? Is there nothing we can do to improve this system?
"We have suffered a devastating plague for nearly half a year and only when things start to return to normal, do we seek to confront the issue. Why have we waited so long? Is it because of our structure, our lack of ability to realize our true problems?"
Goldenroot raised his voice sharply as he asked the almost rhetorical questions. His words were clear, everything perfectly understandable, yet at the same time, filled with such extravagant passion that he could have convinced an entire crowd to eat the hair off their own heads. The group sitting at the table, however, was conditioned to this type of speaking. They had heard speeches like this their entire careers and, although they were not completely unmoved, they were also not immediately persuaded.
"What Lord Thunderhorn seems to suggest is that we did nothing, because we could only do nothing. I do not believe this is so."
Goldenroot stopped speaking briefly to glance hard at Thunderhorn. The grey unicorn was listening to him attentively from across the room, his black hair, which had started to turn silver with age, shining in the sunlight.
"I believe that we are afraid of change, of what it can do to us and of what it can do for us. But we should not be afraid, for that would surely be unwise. Like the great pillars of stone that hold the roof above our heads, I remain solid in my conviction. I wish to expand the council by another five members, giving the duty to commoners. I believe they can benefit our great nation with the very knowledge we seem to lack. Unlike us, the commoners do not live a life of luxury, they feel the pain of the drought and the hunger of the food shortage, the hardest.
“Let this event open our eyes as it has opened theirs. They are no longer blind to our role. We cannot leave keep them out forever and nor should we. It is through their greater wisdom that we can guide our nation to prosperity and pull ourselves out of the bowels of destruction, before it closes its gaping jaws upon us.
"With that, Director Prairie Star, I return the floor to you."
Goldenroot, satisfied with his argument, relaxed in his chair and let a small grin make its way across his face. Looking out across the table, he saw that Lord Thunderhorn was shaking his head slowly. He knew that Goldenroot had a point and he didn't like it.
Prairie Star acknowledged Goldenroot’s final words with a single nod in his direction. "I realize that Sir Goldenroot's argument was directed towards you, Lord Thunderhorn, but we have been without Lady Vortex's opinion for far too long. Lady Vortex, you may now have the floor."
Lady Vortex, or Vortex as she preferred, was one of the only members of the council that regretted holding the position. A former member of the Wonderbolts, she liked to be on the cutting edge of the world. She wanted to be where all the action was, not with a group of squabbling nobles for such long periods of time.
She was elected to the position as the youngest member to date, sparking a decision by the council to institute a minimum age requirement of thirty years to all council applicants. But Princess Celestia decreed it to be unlawful to remove Vortex from the council with a technicality and refused to acknowledge any bill that suggested it, so the law would only apply to future applicants. At only twenty-five, she was elected into the assembly by vowing to give voice to the country’s youth. The youngest members of the voting public, sick and tired of being excluded from important decisions, elected Vortex by a landslide. She trailed only Lord Thunderhorn in the polls, him being a conservative minded and retired general of the royal army that usually won over the entire elder population of Equestria.
"Alright. I see what you're getting at Goldenroot. You think that the commoners should be able to participate right?" Vortex said, looking directly at him.
When she actually started participating in the council; however, it became apparent to her what little power she actually held. Before anything got passed to Princess Celestia for review, it would have to receive three votes in its favour. Generally, this was an impossible task for her to pull off, so she had become mostly apathetic to the proceedings. Most other members of the council refused to acknowledge anything she said seriously, passing it off quickly and moving it aside. Only Goldenroot, who was always very logical and understanding, ever supported her.
“Well I can tell you this. I already know I'm not going to sway any opinions in my direction…”
She paused for a moment and glanced over at the brilliant white pegasus beside her, slowly working a brush through her long blue hair and completely ignoring Vortex’s words.
“…so I'm not going to tell any of you how I feel about the whole thing until we vote on it.” she continued, “You can have the floor back Star."
Her casual approach to the council was considered degrading to most and insulting to others. She refused to acknowledge the other members with their proper titles or sometimes even their full names.
"Lord Thunderhorn, you may now have the floor." Prairie Star responded, not taking her eyes away from the discourteous pony that was now stretching her legs and yawning loudly beside her.
"Thank you, Prarie Star." Thunderhorn said, nodding his head towards the distracted director.
His voice was rusty, but commanding. His stern glare would slowly turn and focus on each member of the council from time to time when he was making a point. On his flank, was a black cannon, a reminder of his former position as a general in the army.
"I don’t quite understand where you’re getting this Goldenroot. Why are you so certain that they will help us and not just create unnecessary conflicts within our society? Everyone is greedy in some sense and I don’t believe you could ever convince me otherwise. If we give them the right to participate in the council now, they won’t fix the problem of the drought. They won’t even think about the drought. They’re going to be much more worried about taxation issues and how they’re not being treated ‘fairly’. I realize we have more than they do, in an economical sense, but we pay for everything they don’t. If an earthquake shakes our house apart, we’re the ones who have to pay for it. However, if the same disaster strikes their house, they get money from the government to make everything new again. And where does that money come from? It comes from us.
“Our positions grant us certain advantages, yes, but they also have a lot of disadvantages. It’s our responsibility and we’re blamed whenever anything goes wrong. It’s out of our pockets that we fix the mistakes, so I don’t understand why they should take the responsibility when they don’t take the cost.”
“This isn’t about money, Lord Thunderhorn!” Goldenroot intervened, getting up from his seat and glaring at the grey unicorn, “This is about our well-being! Every single pony in this country is worth more than you could ever imagine. Whether they’re a commoner or a noble, we cannot put a cost on life.”
“We will have order Sir Goldenroot!” Prairie Star shouted. “I know that you may not approve of what Lord Thunderhorn has said, but you are not permitted to intervene while he is speaking.”
Goldenroot, still furious with anger, slowly backed down into his seat and rubbed the bridge of his nose with a single hoof.
“It seems that we’ve reached the same point as yesterday and not everyone is able to remain sensible in our discussion.” Prairie Star continued. “We will resume this topic tomorrow at one o’clock and bring a conclusion to this issue. We can’t afford to squander any more time on this.
“Now, let us move on to the second article on the agenda, which discusses the idea of tax corrections and reimbursements during times of economic hardship. We left off with Lord Crescendo making the last comment…”
~
With the council assembly finished for the day, the young pony in the corner packed his things and headed out the door in a rush. With the exception of Goldenroot, the other ponies began to follow suit, getting up from their seats and leaving. Thunderhorn, with a small smirk on his face, looked over his shoulder once before heading out the door with Director Prairie Star and the other two council members that had remained inactive for the entire assembly. Vortex stayed behind, eager to speak with Goldenroot about the day’s discussion.
“It’s fun seeing you get all riled up like that.” Vortex mocked.
The dark blue pegasus was leaning nonchalantly on the large table, one hoof propping her up. On her face, she shared a less menacing, but otherwise identical smirk to that on Thunderhorn’s before he had left out the door.
“I can’t believe how stubborn he is.” Goldenroot replied, staring down into the carvings on the table. “Our ancestors accomplished so much, but we haven’t done anything. In the five years I’ve spent in the council I’ve just sat here and argued with that old fool day after day. I want things to be different Vortex. I want things to be better. Not just for me or you, but for everyone in Equestria. We can’t do that if we don’t let the whole country help us.”
Vortex, pushed herself upright and leaned over to Goldenroot. The smirk on her face had faded and was replaced by a look of complete sincerity.
“You’ve got my support. As long as you can find one other pony to back you up, we’ll get this through.”
She slowly began walking out of the room, turning her head back and flashing a smile at Goldenroot who was still staring at the delicate carvings through the thick sheet of glass, before leaving out the door.
Goldenroot continued to ponder the idea. Vortex was right, he only had to convince one of the other council members and the new law would be sent to Celestia for review. Since Thunderhorn was obviously not an option, he would have to convince either Lady Wind Dancer or Lord Crescendo.
Before she joined the council, Wind Dancer was a celebrity. As her name suggested, she started her career as a dancer, but soon became involved in such things as modelling, acting, and singing. Her fame and fortune played a large part in the election and masked her misunderstanding of what it really meant to be part of the government. Only wanting to increase her fame, she was disappointed when she discovered that the council did quite the opposite. She was mostly apathetic of decisions within the council and favoured a conservative mindset. To her, change only meant that things would get worse, and she generally voted against every law suggested. If Goldenroot wanted to convince Wind Dancer to vote in favour of his law, then he would have to convince her that it was advantageous to her on a personal level.
Crescendo, a musical prodigy at the ripe age of fourteen, had conducted the largest orchestra in Equestria, the Equestrain Symphony Orchestra, in his late thirties. He retired nearly a decade later to apply for a position in the council. Unlike Wind Dancer, he was an extremely intelligent, but subdued individual. With every proposition, he would pick out the advantages and disadvantages, writing them down in his notes in case he ever needed to call upon them for reference. During the nine years he was a member of the council, he had never suggested a new law. Many mistook him for a conservative, like Wind Dancer and Thunderhorn, but the truth was that he was genuinely neutral. He was logical, like Goldenroot, but would only ever support a change where the gain drastically outweighed the loss.
Unsure of whether or not he would be able to convince either pony, Goldenroot decided to try and convince them both. It was now three o’clock in the afternoon, meaning they had only spent two hours in the assembly. That left Goldenroot with almost one full day to collect his thoughts, organize meetings with the two council members, and attempt to get them both on his side before one o’clock tomorrow.
“I guess I’m not getting any sleep tonight.” He whispered to himself as he gathered his things and left the room.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 3 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-09-15T00:12:37+00:00 | 2011-09-15T00:12:37+00:00 | 2,783 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 3
The sun had almost completely vanished beyond the horizon when I arrived at the inn about an hour north of Canterlot. It wouldn’t normally take so long to set, but Celestia was carefully extending the daylight, giving me a few extra minutes to make some progress. It wasn’t much, but I understood why she may have felt guilty for sending me alone and wanted to help out as much as she could. I didn't blame her for my solitude. It wasn't her fault that I was alone. As a member of the nobility, I was well aware of the council's decisions and how they removed the escorts and researchers from my journey, stating various unreasonable excuses for their removal. Their reaction was almost expected, they had not always been immune to corruption over the years, but Celestia's was not. I had expected her to fight harder against the decision. It just felt like she had given up so easily. In a way I was kind of flattered. Did she really have so much faith in my ability that she was willing to accept the idea of sending me alone without a second thought? I don't know why she felt that way, but the fact that she did only intensified the importance of my journey.
The drought was getting worse and it was becoming more obvious every day. Ponies were eating less and working more. In the days before the expedition had even been mentioned, I hardly ever saw any of my friends. They were all just too busy with their lives to spend any time with a librarian in a tree. So I spent my time reading, writing and otherwise trying to extend my intellectual ability as I had done before I met them. It gave me some time to learn about the council in depth. I knew that the council was elected and that it served as a check on Celestia's power, but I didn't really know much about their exploits. Celestia had always been blamed or praised for everything that was done. Why? It was a question I was still asking myself, even here. I wanted to spend more time on the subject, but the journey had thrown me completely off balance, leaving me to traverse a whirlpool of confusion.
The distance I had traveled in the day had finally worn on me and I turned towards an old wooden building. A single lantern illuminated the word “Inn” written on a battered sign hanging below. I neglected the last few minutes of sunlight and stepped through the doorway into the inn, pushing the heavy wooden door out of the way as I entered.
The room inside was warm, but not well lit. A wood burning stove sat in the corner of the room. The fire danced inside, making small cracking and popping noises as it moved. A rough wooden counter was positioned directly across the room where an elderly earth pony stared at me with a bright welcoming smile. Her mane was tied into a tight knot above her head. It reminded me of another old pony's similar hairstyle and brought memories flooding back to my head. They were memories of my first visit to Ponyville and how nervous I was about doing something so simple, making friends. It was all so very different to me. I lived most of my life in solitude, but what I experienced changed everything. I didn't want to be alone anymore, not when I didn't have to.
“Why hello there dear.” she said, breaking the silence of the room and separating me from my memories. “We haven't had many travelers since the drought started. Are you here for a room?”
“Yes please. I don't need anything special, just a bed to sleep on.” I replied, trying to smile back.
“Of course. It's forty bits a night, miss..?” her words trailing off as she tried to get my name.
“Twilight Sparkle.”
I lifted some coins out of my bag and set them on the counter in front of the innkeeper. The coins clinked gently as I released my magical grasp and let them fall on top of the solid wood counter top. The old mare gathered up the coins and quickly slid a large book from out under the table, setting it down where the coins had been only moments before. She flipped open the cover and slowly turned the pages. Each page had names, signatures, and general information about the ponies that had stayed at the inn. Reaching a blank page, she grabbed a quill from a nearby ink pot and began to jot down my name and description as well as some other information.
“If you'll just sign your name here, Miss Sparkle, then I can get your room key.” she said as she marked the paper with a small 'x'.
Wordlessly, I took the quill she offered me, copied my signature onto the book and replaced the quill to the ink pot. The old mare closed the book and grabbed a key from a small hook on the far wall, placing it gently on the counter in front of me. As I moved the key into my bag, the bright smile that had remained on her face suddenly disappeared and was replaced by a look of concern.
“You're not traveling alone, are you?” she asked.
“Not willingly.” I joked, trying to bring the smile back to her face. “I'm going to Prance on behalf of the princess.”
“But you're so young. Are you sure you're going to be alright by yourself?”
“Unfortunately, I don't really have a choice. Things aren't getting any better and I'm supposed to find out what we can do about it.”
“You’re very brave Miss Sparkle. I don’t think I would have the courage to go off and save the world like that.”
I laughed at the idea, but the innkeeper just smiled. I guess I never really thought about it like that. Saving the world seemed like the kind of thing that you read about in fairy tales, and legends. The heroes were explorers, saints and warriors, not librarians. I didn’t believe that anyone would actually ever consider me to be a hero, but theses were strange times indeed. I always believed that a single spark of hope could ignite a fiery passion that changes the world and sparks can be found in the most unlikely of places.
~
The next few days were uneventful. I left the inn and continued to travel north towards the border, stopping only occasionally to rest or eat. On the fourth day of my journey I reached the border. I never would have believed it would be so plain. A large wooden sign was engraved with the words “Bienvenue en Prance” and rested between two identical stone columns. This sign was the only thing that separated Equestria from Prance and my homeland from the complete mystery of the strange world beyond it. I recognized the characters on the sign, but I was oblivious of its meaning. I had tried to learn the language while I traveled, but it was impossible to learn more than a few words in such a short time. Celestia had assured me that Le Roi Pierre was fluent in English and the map she gave me was well detailed, so I wasn’t incredibly concerned. It was, however, an elegant and beautiful language in its own right. The strange words seemed to flow like water, unlike those in my native tongue that seemed to be more descriptive and harsh.
As I stared past the towering sign in front of me, I began to realize what little difference there was between our two nations. Both landscapes had rolling hills, patches of trees, and houses and farms spotted throughout the countryside. It was calming to think that one could be so far away from their home and still be reminded of it.
I continued on past the sign, enjoying the pleasant scenery and weather as the hot sun beamed down on my back. It was hot, but not unbearably hot. I followed the path until I was met with another sign on the edge of a great forest, this time with much more complicated words than those on the border. As their meaning escaped me, I ignored the words and continued on. The path quickly became a winding trail through the dim forest with only a few cracks of light seeping through the canopy and reaching the forest floor. It was strange, despite all its similarities to the Everfree forest, I was not frightened. Like much of the landscape before it, the forest brought back pleasant memories that reminded me of home. Memories that reminded me of the time I had spent with my friends and the adventures we had together. But my reminiscing was interrupted when I heard faint voices echoing through the wooded wilderness.
“These northern folk are the prefect victims. They just hand it over and run away.” A voice called out from deeper within the forest and was followed by a cheerful laugh.
I stopped. I could understand what was being said on the path ahead of me, but it was unpleasant. Their words, laced with evil intentions, informed me of their purpose. Thieves, bandits, the worst kind of ponies, they picked on the weak and the innocent for personal gain and thought nothing of it. Celestia had kept vigilant watch over Equestria and crime was mostly a thing of the past, but she couldn’t prevent what went on beyond the border. The bandits had obviously come north to avoid prosecution in Equestria, believing that Prance wouldn’t keep the same watchful eye over her inhabitants.
The voices continued, but they were quieter now. Had they heard me? I ducked behind a tree along the path and closed my eyes, trying to keep silent. My heart raced, trying to escape from my body and the danger it was in. I wanted to stop them, but I knew it was an impossible feat. I was alone and I could pick out at least four different voices on the trail ahead. Alone and afraid, I resorted to the only thing I could do. I glanced off into the darkness of the forest far beyond the edge of the path. I would have to move around them and hopefully meet up with the path further ahead. I could warn Le Roi Pierre of the bandits when I arrived at the capital, but I wouldn’t arrive for a few days. By then, it would be far too late for anyone that encountered them.
“Well, well, well. Look what we have here.”
“Eeeekk” Startled, I let out a high pitched scream and backed up slowly.
A black pony with a white mane had snuck up behind me while I was looking into the forest. A red handkerchief was tied around his neck and, upon inspection, his flank was bare. The pony had obviously dyed his hair and covered his flank in an attempt to disguise his identity.
“A pony travelling all alone in the splinter forest.” He continued with a smile. “The splinter forest isn’t safe you know.”
“I’m sorry if I interrupted anything. I’m just trying to get through.” I said nervously while trying to collect myself and continuing to back up. “Eeeekk”
I bumped into another pony while moving backwards. His hair was dyed black and white, identical to that on the pony with the red handkerchief. Instead of a handkerchief, the larger pony that I now turned to face had an unusually messy mane. It was dirty and tangled and went in every direction. The pony stood silently, glaring down at me with a menacing grin.
“Oh you’re not interrupting anything. We’re just so glad you’re here.” The pony with the red handkerchief continued, his smile growing larger and soliciting a chuckle from a pony that had appeared on my right side.
The new pony was obviously female. She was smaller than the others, including myself, and her mane and tail were tied in several points with green bows that matched her irises. She walked gracefully up beside me and crossed her right foreleg in front of her left before she stopped laughing.
“We love getting clients.” She said as she resumed laughing quietly and staring at me.
“One more.” I thought to myself, counting the ponies around me as I stood next to the large tree I had tried to hide behind. “There has to be one more.”
“You see, we offer a service.” The pony with the handkerchief said. “We clear the path through the splinter forest and make sure it’s safe. Then we charge the ponies crossing through a modest sum for our trouble.”
In the corner of my eye I noticed a pony resting leisurely against a tree behind the pony with the handkerchief. He wore a dark brown cowboy hat that covered most of his face, revealing only the fat cigar that stuck out from under the brim. Puffs of smoke would gradually rise up from the red tip of the cigar and dissipate in the air above his head. He obviously thought that his participation was unnecessary and wasn’t even looking in my direction.
“I think it's a fair agreement.” he continued.
“But you look like the kind of pony that could afford to contribute a larger sum to our cause.” The female pony with the bows said, starting to laugh again.
I couldn't afford to give them my money or my possessions. I needed them. I depended on them. They were essential materials for my journey and, without them, I would be stuck all alone in a foreign country with no hope of returning. The realization of my cruel fate was horrendous and a flood of panic washed over me. What could I do? How could I get away? I needed a plan. I needed to find a way to get away from here with my possessions, even if it meant fighting these brutes.
With this knowledge, I began to search the surrounding area. Above the pony with the messy mane was a large branch. Old and decaying, it could be easily knocked loose and appeared to be heavy enough that it could knock the pony out if it fell on him.
“Of course, if you made a large enough donation than we could give everyone else a free pass for the rest of the day.” The pony with the handkerchief lied. “I’m sure they’d be very grateful.”
The female earth pony laughed again, still crossing her front legs she wobbled from side to side, slightly unstable in the relaxed position.
“Actually, why don’t you just hand over everything? That would certainly save us all a lot of work.” He said as the smile on his face turned into a menacing glare.
He was standing near a large round moss-covered stone. It seemed light enough that it could be lifted, but heavy enough that it could still seriously injure someone if it was thrown fast enough.
“So how about it. You want to help a good cause?” The pony with the bows asked, laughing again.
“I’m not much of a philanthropist.” I replied, recollecting my thoughts.
The other ponies were obviously surprised by my reaction and they didn’t really have time to react to what I did. I reached out with my magic and snapped the large branch over the messy-haired pony. The old branch cracked and fell directly on top of the pony’s head. Simultaneously, I turned around and kicked hard at the pony with the bows. Aiming for her front legs, I knocked her off balance and she fell to the forest floor. The pony with the handkerchief started to leap towards me, but I hurled the moss-covered stone quickly at the side of his head and he fell over. Turning back, I checked to make sure that the messy-haired pony was out before I kicked the female pony as she tried to get up. My hoof landed firmly in her face and sent her hurtling backwards before she hit the ground unconscious.
“That was pretty impressive.”
The pony with the hat and the cigar was looking at me from the tree he was still leaning against. He pushed himself up and started walking towards me, his hat glowing as he picked the cigar out of his mouth and threw it carelessly onto the path.
“Where did you learn how to do that?” he continued.
“I read a lot of books.” I shrugged.
His brow furrowed. “Fine. I never assumed you would tell me the truth.”
He lifted the hat off his head and tossed it to the ground, revealing the horn on his head. As he neared closer, I noticed the moss-covered stone on the ground beside the pony with the handkerchief.
“I hope you know that I’m going to have to kill you now.” The unicorn said, forcing me to back away from him.
My heart beat faster. He was serious. I picked up the stone and threw it at the unicorn, just as I had done to the pony with the handkerchief. He caught the stone midair and threw it directly back at my face. I didn’t have time to react and it hit me in the mouth. He hadn’t thrown it very hard and didn’t cause any permanent damage, but my mouth had started to fill with blood and I staggered backward. My vision blurred for a moment before coming to focus on the unicorn again.
“I don’t want to be here.” I thought. “I want to go home. I want to be with my friends. I want to be with Celestia. I want to be anywhere but here.”
He laughed. “That was too predictable. Next time I won’t be so forgiving.”
“I don’t want you here. Go away.” I said, looking directly at the unicorn as my eyes began to water.
“I’m not going anywhere.” He said as he flashed a smile and his horn lit up.
I picked him up and threw him against the tree he had been resting on. He had tried to struggle, moving his legs frantically and using his magic to try and keep himself on the ground, but it was all futile. I had spent nearly my whole life building up my magical ability and there were very few ponies left on the planet that could surpass me.
As soon as he hit the tree and fell to the ground, I ran. I ran down the path and through the winding trail of the forest. Tears were filling my eyes and droplets escaped and fell to the ground below. My mouth hurt, but the reason for my tears was different. I didn’t want to do this anymore. I didn’t want to save the world or be a hero in a legend. I wanted to go home, but I knew I couldn’t. I had to keep going. I had to keep running.
“You're not travelling alone, are you?” she asked.
“Not willingly.” I joked, trying to bring the smile back to her face.
~
“I’m so sorry Twilight.” Celestia interrupted as she stared at the ground ahead of her. “If I had tried harder… If I hadn’t let you go alone, then none of this would have happened.”
Celestia and Twilight were sitting in the throne room. Celestia had asked the guards to step out and give them some privacy when Twilight had arrived, so the two were alone now. They sat in the middle of the room, the sun bathing them in a warm orange light as it began to disappear over the horizon.
“I don’t blame you for what happened, Celestia.” Twilight said, trying to reassure the princess. “It wasn’t your fault. There was nothing you could do.”
Celestia turned her head up and met Twilight’s gaze, her eyes glistening in the remaining sunlight. “There were some others that I wanted to send with you, but the council believed more important matters required their attention.”
“I know.” Twilight said as she turned to look out the window and pull herself away from Celestia’s eyes. “Sometimes I think the council is doing more harm than good.”
“Sadly, I have to agree with you Twilight.” Celestia said, looking down again. “They’re different now. Everything they stand for has changed. When I made the council, I never expected anything like this to happen. Luna didn’t deserve to spend a thousand years trapped in the moon and you didn’t deserve to endure what you had to over the last few months.”
Twilight looked away from the window and back at Celestia. The bandages covering her body were worn and covered with dirt from her recent travels to Ponyville. She had left well before the sun had risen in the morning and returned just before the sunset at the end of the day. It had given her barely enough time to tell her friends that she was alright, but not nearly enough to fully explain what had happened. She was going to return tomorrow so she could spend a more significant amount of time with them.
“But in the end, was it the right thing to do? Do you think the world is a better place now? Were the decisions made in everyone’s best interests?” Twilight asked, pausing briefly before each question was raised.
“I don’t know.” Celestia replied as she turned to face Twilight. “That’s something that I still have to think about.
“I don’t know everything that happened on your journey Twilight. I want to hear more, but it can wait until you return from Ponyville. For now, let me help you with those bandages.”
“But what about the drought?”
"I don't want to put any pressure on you right now, Twilight. I know this may sound naive and I do not wish to discredit your journey, but the complications of the drought are being washed away with the rain. Everything is finally returning to normal and the ponies need some time to settle before we make any drastic changes.
“The knowledge you have will be an important tool in the future, but it's nothing that can't wait until you're feeling better.”
“I guess so.” Twilight said, disappointed that she was unable to help Equestria when it really mattered.
The two sat in silence as Celestia removed the bandages and focused her magic on healing Twilight's wounds. It was a long, straining process that required her full attention, something that she didn't want to jeopardize by holding a conversation. Twilight didn't mind the silence. She was busy thinking about her recent actions. Although Princess Celestia had tried to convince her that the journey had not been made in vain, the psychological pain she felt from failing Equestria overwhelmed the physical pain she experienced from her wounds. And even Celestia, with her nearly infinite power, could not heal those wounds. It was something that only time or retribution could repair and it would be a retribution that would almost certainly be directed at the council.
~
Goldenroot read through his notes. It was seven forty-five, fifteen minutes before he had to meet with Crescendo in his manor. Convincing him wasn’t going to be easy, but Goldenroot had always lived with the opinion that nothing worth doing ever was.
As he started to make his way outside, there was a knock on the door. Three consecutive taps, unevenly spaced as if the pony outside the door was trying to recreate some kind of tune. Goldenroot swung open the door. He didn’t have time to deal with anyone right now and certainly not the kind of person that would knock so strangely. He hoped to deal with them quickly so that he could carry on with the more important business ahead of him.
“Why hello there, Sir Goldenroot.” Vortex said, bowing her head slightly as she attempted to parody the most common greeting amongst the nobility.
She was standing casually on the step, her light blue mane and tail unusually tidy as it shimmered in the moonlight. Goldenroot blinked. He was surprised by her presence at this hour. She almost never came to visit him, so why would she show up now? Goldenroot was genuinely curious and the effort she had made to make herself presentable only added to that fact.
“Please, not now Vortex. I’m meeting with Crescendo in fifteen minutes.” Goldenroot replied, trying to sound annoyed and cover up his curiosity.
“But that’s exactly why I came.” She said, restoring her voice to a tone that Goldenroot recognized.
“How did you know I was going to meet him today?” Goldenroot asked, taken aback by the pegasus’ strange comment.
“At eight o’clock?” She said, smiling. “You’re kind of predictable, but that doesn’t matter. I came because I thought you could use some help. You seemed pretty serious about this whole thing when I talked to you about it in the morning.”
“Yes, I am serious about it and that’s precisely why I can’t let you come with me.” Goldenroot replied, still shocked that Vortex was able to correctly guess exactly what time he would meet with Crescendo.
“I’m not giving you a choice, Goldenroot. Trust me, you’ll need all the help you can get.”
Goldenroot sighed. “Alright let’s just go already.”
The two stepped out of the doorway and started on their way to Crescendo’s manor. It wasn’t far away, but Goldenroot couldn’t afford to be late, not with something so important. The streetlights illuminated various parts of the path, along with the light that shone brightly out of the houses nearby.
Goldenroot noticed the spinning torrent of water on Vortex’s flank. The water rushing around in a circle was chaotic, unpredictable and perfectly suitable for the type of pony that Vortex was. Goldenroot had always been curious how a pony could have a cutie mark that so accurately resembled who they were. He was aware that some ponies changed their name upon receiving their cutie mark, in fact it was commonplace, but the idea that a pony could have a name that accurately depicted the cutie mark they had yet to receive was marvellous.
Realizing that he had been staring at Vortex’s flank for an unreasonably long time, Goldenroot quickly turned his head back and looked forward down the dimly lit streets. Out of the very corner of his eye, he noticed that Vortex was looking directly at him and smiling happily. Embarrassed, his cheeks turned red and he looked in the opposite direction.
“I thought you weren't interested in this kind of stuff.” Goldenroot said, still looking away.
“I'm interested in the important stuff.” she replied.
“Everything in the council is important, Vortex. It affects our lives. Big or small, every decision we make is important.” Goldenroot said, turning back to look at Vortex as the redness in his cheeks disappeared.
“That's just your opinion Goldenroot.” Vortex said, maintaining the pleasant smile on her face. “Taxes, construction, land subdivision, whether you can or can't spit on the sidewalk in the nobility quarter of Canterlot... None of that is important to me.”
“It's not my opinion, it’s a fact. The world changes when we make these decisions.”
“I like you Goldenroot, but you seriously need to loosen up sometimes. You put too much value in being correct. It's not the end of the world to accept that you're wrong and move on.”
“And do you think I'm wrong about all of this, about what were doing right now?”
The smile on Vortex's face faded. She was rarely ever serious about something, but when she was it was obvious.
“No. I believe in what you're fighting for. I may come across as apathetic sometimes, but I want to believe in a better tomorrow. Every once in a while I tend to forget, but you always seem to find a way to remind me of the reason I got caught up in all of this in the first place.”
Goldenroot just smiled, Vortex returning the expression as they approached Crescendo’s manor.
“It's just up ahead here.” Goldenroot said, changing the subject. “I don't know what you plan on doing, but I would appreciate it if you let me do the talking.”
“I don't mind. Personally, I just want to stick around and watch.”
The two ponies moved quietly up the walkway towards the manor. A set of large dark brown doors were accented by two lanterns on each side, the flames inside burning brightly in anticipation of their arrival. On the base of each door was a large bronze plate that stretched the entire width. Traditionally, this plate was used for knocking. When a pony kicked the door with their hoof, it would prevent the door from being damaged by an overzealous knocker. Goldenroot kicked the plate twice in quick succession and moved back away from the door. They waited for about a minute before the door swung open and revealed a grey pony wearing a black suit and a tie. The pony had a tired look on his face, a result of his obvious ageing. He blinked twice and moved aside.
“Sir Goldenroot. Lord Crescendo is expecting you in his study.” The butler said. “Shall I take you there?”
“That's quite alright. I know the way.” Goldenroot replied as he and Vortex stepped through the doorway into the manor.
The manor was filled with extraordinary paintings, carvings, and statues. They were expensive works of art that dated well beyond the manor itself. Sitting on top of the brilliant marble floor was a single rug depicting a forest. The gnarled trees and winding path similar to that of the Everfree forest that Goldenroot had spent so many years occupying in his youth.
“I've never been in here before. Crescendo's got a pretty lavish lifestyle.” Vortex remarked, stepping around the rug as she made her way across the main entrance and towards the study nearby.
The study was a spacious room. On the wall directly across from them was a large fireplace. It was not in use; however, and contained three logs, neatly stacked on top of each other. Instead, the study was illuminated by a series of lamps that were placed sporadically around the room. Lord Crescendo was lying in a large cherry red sofa, sipping tea from a cup that floated in the air in front of him.
“Please, come in Sir Goldenroot. I was wondering when you were going to arrive.” Crescendo said, glancing in their direction and setting the cup on its corresponding saucer. “I wasn't expecting you; however, Lady Vortex. Although, I suppose you have as much of a part in all this as we do.”
Vortex simply winked as Crescendo looked in her direction.
“Have a seat.” Crescendo continued, pointing to the two empty sofas placed around the table. “Would you care for some tea?”
“I think we'll be fine, thank you. Tea's usually more trouble than it's worth when you're not a unicorn.” Goldenroot said, raising his hoof in objection before lying down on the sofa. “I'll be honest with you, I don't want to beat around the bush. Let's get straight to the point. I want the law to go through tomorrow and I want to know what your opinion is.”
“My opinion?” Crescendo asked. “You know me as well as everyone else. I have to be absolutely sure that this is going to benefit our nation. If we give the commoners a place in the council, do you really believe that they're going to help and not just work against us? Not everyone is as virtuous as you are.”
“I can only hope that they will. The future is never certain, but it is not entirely unpredictable. We all live in this country together and, although our goals may vary slightly, we all want the same thing.”
“And what, may I ask, is that?”
“A life of happiness, of dreams and experiences that we want to remember. Not every memory is a happy one, but the ones you spend doing what you enjoy with your friends and family are the ones that you want to keep. I think everyone can relate to that.”
“And what if you're wrong? What happens then?”
“If I'm wrong, then we won't really be able to make a difference anyway. The drought will come again and the commoners won't just stand around and starve while we continue to live a life of luxury. In our sheltered life, we don't wake up in the morning and wonder if we'll be able to eat today. Even if the price tag may fluctuate slightly, the food's always there and we can always afford it.
“They will rise up and overthrow both us and the princess. They will take our homes, our happiness, and perhaps even our lives. Why should I, or anyone else, sacrifice even a single happy memory when it is not required. I believe in this, perhaps more strongly than I have with anything else.”
The three ponies lay in silence for quite some time after Goldenroot finished speaking. Crescendo gazed into his teacup, staring at the leaves resting in the bottom of the cup while Goldenroot waited quietly for his response. Vortex, who had been sitting silently for the entire meeting, slowly unfolded her wings and stretched them out before returning them to their original position. As she repositioned them back on her sides, Crescendo looked up from his teacup and at Goldenroot.
“I'm glad you came to see me tonight, but I still require some time to think about all of this. I believe the gravity of the situation is something that I have underestimated.” Crescendo said, breaking the silence.
“I understand.” Goldenroot said, getting up from the sofa. “Have a good night.”
Vortex followed suit and the two walked out of the study and towards the main hall. As they did, Vortex looked back at Crescendo as he stared into his cup before taking a sip. The butler, appearing from nowhere, hastily moved towards the front door and opened it.
“Have a pleasant evening.” said the butler as the two stepped out through the doorway.
“Do you really think he's going to help us?” Vortex asked as the door closed behind them.
Goldenroot stopped. He looked up at the moon and the stars as they pierced through the darkness of night and shone brilliantly in the sky.
“I don't know. I want to think so, but I don't want to take any chances.”
As they walked out into the street, Goldenroot looked at Vortex and stopped.
“I'm going to see Wind Dancer tomorrow. Would you like to come with me?” he asked.
Vortex shook her head and tail violently, restoring her naturally wild look before turning to Goldenroot and smiling. The moonlight sparkled in her amber eyes and across her light blue hair.
“I never thought you'd ask. Of course, you know I'd come anyway.”
“Yeah, but lately I've been enjoying your company.”
________________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Hello readers. Thank you for your continuing interest in the story!
You probably noticed that I switched narration styles during Twilight’s flashbacks. I wanted to find a way to separate the flashbacks from the actual story and I thought that switching to first-person would be an interesting way to pull it off. Hopefully it’s not too weird.
Unfortunately, I’m still looking for an editor so please excuse any sloppy errors. If you’re interested in helping me out, please contact me at my email or with the comments. I’d really appreciate it.
As another note, I’ve realized that I only ever seem to reply to the comments that are critical of my story, so if you were expecting a response and you didn’t receive one that’s completely my fault. I’m going to try harder to respond to everyone now.
As always, if you have any questions or comments about the story, you can reach me at my email: [email protected] I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 4 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-29T16:41:16+00:00 | 2011-10-29T16:41:16+00:00 | 2,167 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 4
Goldenroot glared at the clock in his living room. It was almost nine forty-five in the morning. It had taken some persuasion, but he had organized a meeting with Wind Dancer at ten o'clock. Wind Dancer had very little interest in the law that Goldenroot was proposing and she made it very clear that she was going to be voting against it. It was only after Goldenroot convinced her that she might be overlooking an important side-effect of the law that she had agreed to meet with him. But Goldenroot had rather foolishly asked Vortex to tag along and now he was paying for the consequences.
“We were supposed to be leaving now.” Goldenrood said to himself quietly, making his annoyance with Vortex's tardiness obvious. “Why did I ask her to come?”
He paced back and forth in the room, impatiently looking at the clock on the wall beside him. Goldenroot placed a high value on the concept of time. Everything always had to go according to schedule and, as a result, he tended to be early for everything.
“Forget it. I need to go.” he said as the clock's large hand moved to indicate that a minute had passed.
He walked quickly to the door and swung it open. In front of him, sitting on the step, was Vortex. Her head was resting on her hoof and her face displayed a look of utter boredom.
“Hey! Good morning, sunshine!” Vortex said, lifting her head up as a bright smile formed on her lips.
“What are you doing here!?” Goldenroot yelled, more surprised than angry that she was on his doorstep.
“You said to be here by nine forty-five. I was here...” she paused, looking towards the sky as she tried to calculate the time. “...roughly ten minutes ago.”
Goldenroot was flabbergasted. She had arrived ten minutes ago and she hadn't bothered to knock or do anything to notify him of her arrival. He had spent probably an equal amount of time worrying about her for no reason and now he was just standing speechless, looking at her as she smiled radiantly. It wasn't the kind of smile that led him to believe that she was playing a trick on him, but a kind of genuinely happy smile. She was happy to see him and just plain happy to be there.
“Why didn't you knock?” Goldenroot said, bringing a hoof to his face and rubbing the bridge of his nose.
“Because I knew you would come out here at nine...” she paused and looked at the sky again. “...forty-seven is it now?”
Goldenroot placed his hoof back on the floor and turned his head to look at the clock down the hallway. It was almost exactly nine forty-seven.
“How do you do that?” he asked in surprise.
Vortex’s smile disappeared and was replaced by a look of complete sincerity.
“Oh come now, Goldenroot. I don't have time to explain that right now, we've got a meeting to attend. We have to leave right now if we’re going to be there at ten.” Vortex said, a smile quickly returning to her face.
Goldenroot simply started walking down the path and out onto the street with Vortex following close behind. As they entered the busy street, filled with ponies moving in every direction, Vortex moved up close beside him. Her mane and tail were perfectly groomed, just as they had been last night. Goldenroot wasn't exactly sure who she was trying to impress, him or Wind Dancer, but he was still flattered that she had made the effort.
“Are you nervous?” she asked.
“The decisions we make today could change everything. The butterflies in my stomach are practically a requirement.” Goldenroot joked, turning his head to glance at Vortex as she moved along the cobbled road.
“I am too.” Vortex said hesitantly.
“You're nervous?” Goldenroot asked, giving her a strange look. “I don't believe you.”
“It's true. It’s the first time since I was in the Wonderbolts.”
“What about the election. You weren't nervous about that?”
“I didn't have to be. At the time, I was a famous celebrity. The celebrities always get elected. Just look at Wind Dancer. She didn't know anything about politics and, to be totally honest with you, neither did I. The only real difference is that I actually tried to learn. I don't know how you plan on convincing her to vote for this thing, but you're going to have to come up with something good.”
“I have a plan.” Goldenroot grinned. “I always do.”
The two continued to follow the path to Wind Dancer's mansion. She lived in an outrageously large house that, despite resembling a castle, was really quite unspectacular. It was a simple stone box with a tower on one corner and only a few small windows. Instead, the focus was put on the surrounding garden. Several fountains, flowerbeds and hedge sculptures were meticulously arranged around the courtyard. The left and right sides of the pathway leading to the single wooden door at the entrance were almost perfect mirrors of each other. It was a reminder of how much importance Wind Dancer placed on such a fickle thing. She was an artist and appearance meant everything to her.
“These ponies are making me look bad.” Vortex said, admiring the garden. “Everything’s flawless. It’s like the rainstorm never even happened.”
“It's a result of having too much time and money.” Goldenroot said as they approached the door. “She probably had everything replaced after the storm. Something like that would cost thousands of bits and a hundred workers toiling for hours on end.”
Like Crescendo, Wind Dancer had a large bronze plate at the base of her door. It was much more extravagant; however, and several expensive jewels were attached to the corners in an attractive pattern.
“Kind of defeats the purpose, doesn't it?” Vortex mocked, pointing to the plate.
Goldenroot ignored her remark and kicked the plate twice. The door opened immediately and they were greeted by a tall, aggressive looking brown pony. His black mane was combed to the side and he wore a scarlet suit jacket and tie.
“Can I help you?” he exclaimed rather boorishly.
“We're here to see Lady Wind Dancer.” Goldenroot replied, taking a step back from the intimidating butler.
“Right.” the butler continued. “Wipe your hooves and follow me.”
Vortex and Goldenroot did as they were told and stepped through the doorway. With the butler leading the way, the three ponies traversed the narrow corridors of the mansion. Its stone walls were decorated with potted plants and paintings at regular intervals, more indicators of Wind Dancer's wealth and the value she placed on aesthetics.
At the end of the hallway were a set of doors, which the butler opened to reveal a large room with several deep violet sofas and an enormous window overlooking part of the garden. The sound of classical music filled the air as it played softly from a traditional record player in the corner. The room was very similar to the one in Crescendo's manor, but it lacked many of the intellectual components. Where Crescendo had shelves stacked with books of all subjects, Wind Dancer had instead large plants with wide leaves and delicate flowers. Where he had lanterns, she had expensive, magically infused jewels that glowed with a faint blue. Where he had a large desk filled with notes and documents, she had a wide table with an assortment of cutlery, dishes, and food. The room was used purely for relaxation and it all perfectly described the kind of interesting pony that Wind Dancer had become.
The pegasus was lying on the largest of the violet sofas. Like everything else in the house, her appearance cost a fortune. Her long, light blue mane and tail were crafted in exquisite detail, flowing down from the white coat on her body and resting peacefully against the violet fabric.
“Hello dears. Wonderful day we're having, isn't it?” Wind Dancer sang, shifting herself gradually from her relaxed position.
Her voice was soft and soothing. The words seemed to slide off her tongue and float through the air like a gentle breeze. It was no wonder that she became a singer following her career as a dancer.
“Indeed, but we have serious matters to discuss right now.” Goldenroot replied, staring at the beautiful mare on the sofa.
“Ah yes, you said you had something important to talk about, didn't you? For the life of me, I can't seem to remember what that was...”
“It's about the council.” Vortex snapped, slightly annoyed that she hadn't even remembered what they had come to talk about.
“But of course! No need to get snippy now, Lady Vortex.” Wind Dancer said as she glared at her. “A proper mare mustn’t act that way in good company.”
Vortex rolled her eyes, “Right.”
“We want you to vote in favour of the law today. I know you don't really like the idea, but I thought I might be able to interest you in a certain side-effect that will take place if it goes through.” Goldenroot said, trying to change the subject.
Wind Dancer’s deep blue eyes sparkled in the dim light offered by the jewels. She leaned back and relaxed in the sofa, her luscious hair falling to the side and dangling onto the floor. The music on the record player changed and started to play a lighter, supple melody.
“And what might that be, dear?” Wind Dancer asked, intrigued by Goldenroot's words. “You know I'm not going to vote for this unless it's really very good... for me, that is.”
“You selfish pig.” Vortex whispered.
“What was that dear? I didn't quite hear you.” Wind Dancer asked innocently.
“Uh, I was wondering if I could have some of the delicious looking appetizers that you have in the corner.” Vortex said, turning her attention to the table on the side of the room.
“Help yourself dear, but don't eat too much. It's nearly time for lunch.”
Vortex nodded politely and walked over to the table. She picked up an apple and took a large bite, staring curiously at Goldenroot as he gawked at Wind Dancer.
“Bringing us back to the point, I'm talking about a previous law that we have written in regard to council reform. It states that any time the number of council members changes, a general election must take place.” Goldenroot said, blinking as Wind Dancer batted at her hair.
“And..?” Wind Dancer questioned, unable to grasp Goldenroot's hint.
“And that means the four year term is going to end at one.”
Vortex swallowed hard. “What!?”
Goldenroot had spent most of the night searching for a way to convince Wind Dancer. After a few hours of flipping through dusty books and documents, he found an interesting law that stated the following: ‘If the number of council members is permanently increased or decreased for any reason, an election must be held.’ To Goldenroot, the justification was obvious. It prevented the council from making any potentially unethical decisions, like decreasing the number of council members in order to kick out anyone they didn’t agree with.
“So I won't have to be a part of this dreaded council business anymore?” Wind Dancer continued, ignoring Vortex’s comment.
“Exactly.” Goldenroot said in conclusion.
“Interesting.”
“Does that mean you'll vote for the law?” Vortex asked in surprise.
“I will consider it.” Wind Dancer replied while looking out the window. “I still don't like the idea of those filthy commoners being a part of our government.”
Vortex frowned, clearly displeased by her response.
“That's all I can ask for, Wind Dancer.” Goldenroot said, finally taking his eyes away from her position on the sofa. “Have a nice day.”
He turned and started to leave the room with Vortex close behind. As they approached the door, Wind Dancer got up from her sofa and flew gracefully over to the record player, turning a knob slightly to increase the volume.
“Ta ta.” Wind Dancer sang, turning to smile happily at them as they left the room.
They had expected the aggressive butler to be outside, but he was nowhere to be seen, so the two ponies navigated the hallways back to the main entrance alone and in silence. Vortex was eager to talk to Goldenroot about the meeting, but a combination of the apple that she held in her mouth and her unwillingness to speak about Wind Dancer while they were still in her home restrained her thoughts.
As they reached the front door, the butler rounded a corner and swung the door open, watching them carefully as they exited. The moment the door closed behind them Vortex twisted her neck and sent the apple flying into the pristine flowerbed nearby, crushing some of the flowers and leaving chunks of apple strewn about the dirt.
“I hate that pony.” Vortex said, spinning her head back to face Goldenroot.
“Wind Dancer?” Goldenroot asked as he looked at Vortex, his eyes wide with surprise.
“She's obnoxious, arrogant, uptight... I can't believe she's actually considering voting for this thing just so she can get out of the council.”
“She just got caught up in something that she regrets. She wasn't like that before she joined the council.”
Vortex stopped when they reached the cobbled road and turned to face Goldenroot.
“I've got some things that I need to take care of.” she said abruptly. “I'll see you at one, Goldenroot.”
Before he could respond, Vortex shot into the air and disappeared. She may have quit the Wonderbolts to become a politician, but she hadn't lost her skill as a flier.
She just wanted to get away from him. She was jealous of Wind Dancer, the pony that seemed to have everything that she didn’t, but more than anything, she was angry at Goldenroot for supporting her. She was furious that he was so impressed with her appearance and overlooked all of her negative features, waving them off with feeble excuses. Was he really that shallow?
~
After treating Twilight’s injuries, for what she hoped would be the last time, Celestia decided to spend the remainder of the day dealing with the politics that she had been burdening Luna with over the past few days. The first item on the agenda was to go out and survey the damage caused by the storm. She would walk around the city to determine where help was needed most. Canterlot was split into quarters, with each quarter serving a different, vital purpose.
“Princess Celestia, are you leaving the castle?” one of the guards asked as Celestia approached the gate.
“Yes, but I’m only going to wander around the different parts of the city. I don’t need an escort.” she said, smiling at the stone-faced guard standing to the right of the gate.
“With all due respect, your Highness, the sergeant has ordered us to accompany you.” the other, female guard, replied. “Some of the city’s inhabitants are unhappy with how you handled the drought situation and it could be dangerous.”
“I’ve realized that some of my actions were…” Celestia paused, turning to look past the guards and out into the streets. “…inappropriate, but I can’t believe that anyone would want to hurt me.”
The female pony nodded, “The very thought is resentful indeed, but it’s our duty to keep you safe and even the smallest threat must be taken seriously.”
“Very well. I’m inspecting the damages from the storm. I expect you to follow quickly and take notes for me.” Celestia said, sighing as she floated a quill and paper in front of the female guard.
She walked out through the gate and into the first quarter of the city, the two guards following close behind and occasionally glancing from side to side as they moved. The government quarter, which they now occupied, mostly consisted of the castle and the royal army’s headquarters. It was here that all the important political decisions were made and the royal army was trained. Apart from the castle, the structures in the government quarter were very ordinary. Solid brick, they were built to be functional and stand the test of time. Any embellishments to their design would be impractical and unnecessary. The results of their sturdy construction were impressive and the buildings had taken very minor damage from the storm. A few shingles were missing, windows were cracked or broken, and plants were uprooted and drying in the hot sun, but it was nothing a couple hours of work couldn’t fix.
“Please take a note.” Celestia said, glancing back at the guards. “The government quarter is mostly undamaged. It would be unwise to allocate our resources to its minor reconstruction at this time.”
The guard quickly jotted down the note and rushed forward to keep up with Celestia as she continued down the path towards the nobility quarter. The nobility quarter was where all the most prestigious citizens had built their homes. The houses were architectural marvels, huge, magnificent buildings that were worth incomprehensible amounts of money. Even the smaller structures, which stood like rocks among mountains, were impressive. Made of only the most expensive materials, they stood on large plots of land with extravagant gardens. It was usually a serene, peaceful place, but amongst the buildings was a flurry of activity. Ponies hammered on rooftops, dug in gardens, and pulled carts filled with wreckage. The residents of the nobility quarter had their own incentives for working. They lived in a society that placed a high value on appearance and anyone who failed to meet the expectations quickly became an outcast. Most of the nobility was more than willing to dig out of their own pockets to maintain their worth in the eyes of their neighbours.
“Please take another note.” Celestia said, calmly looking around at the extensive construction. “The nobility quarter is damaged, but most of the citizens have already started on the repairs. They should be offered compensation for the damages, but government organized reconstruction will not be necessary.”
The male guard intervened. “Princess Celestia, if I may.”
Celestia turned and nodded at the pony.
“The nobility would never accept handouts. I think we may even be insulting them by offering.” he continued.
“If even one pony accepts our offer, then it is worth offending thousands of others.” Celestia replied, smiling kindly at the guard.
Celestia turned back and walked towards the next quarter of the city. With her head turned, the two guards beamed at each other, both proud to serve under such a noble and dignified ruler. It was a cruel fate that such a caring pony had to endure such a difficult life, but perhaps that was the only reason she had the courage to do so.
The three ponies carried on into Canterlot’s center of trade and business. Ponies from all over Equestria would arrive in the market quarter to sell their goods and, as a result, the market quarter had the largest variety of commodities in the entire country. Everything from simple apples and bread to ancient artefacts and luxurious dresses could be found in the hundreds of shops and stalls. But the market was not quite as Celestia had remembered. It was now barren and empty with many of the shops closed and the stalls missing. What little that remained was poorly supplied and maintained, selling inferior produce or substandard clothing and wares. Shocked by the unsettling condition, Celestia approached one of the stands selling small, weathered vegetables.
“Princess Celestia, your highness! It’s a pleasure to see you in the market again.” The shopkeeper said, bowing his head slightly as she approached.
“What’s going on? Is this from the storm?” Celestia asked, looking around at the pathetic vegetables on the counter.
“The storm was a blessing, your highness. No, what caused this was the drought.” he replied, lifting his head back up to look at the princess. “At first, the drought only hampered our sales and production. But after time passed and the weather worsened, we just lost everything. Nothing would grow in the arid soil and what little we had left was drying up and dying.
“Many ponies have refused to sell their crops, relying on what they have left to survive, but my family won’t sit and watch our friends starve to death. We’ve continued to sell our produce, despite its less than satisfactory condition. Most ponies aren’t picky these days, they’re just happy to have something to eat.”
“And what of the other vendors?” Celestia asked, turning her head to glance around at the empty shops. “The ones that sell clothes and furniture, what happened to them?”
“At the moment, only the nobility is willing to spend their money on non-essential goods and most of what they buy is special order.” the shopkeeper shrugged. “Basically, if you aren’t selling something that can feed your family, no one is going to buy it.”
“I see. Thank you for your time.” Celestia said calmly as she turned and walked away from the stand.
“It is always a pleasure to assist your royal highness.” the shopkeeper said, bowing again as she left.
“Please take a note.” Celestia said, staring off into the distance as the female guard reached for the quill and paper. “The market quarter…”
She drifted off, unable to finish her sentence as she stared into the distance. Tears were welling up in her eyes as memories of the market quarter drifted back into view. Even when she was very young, the market had always been the same. It was a beautiful place that stole away your troubles and sadness, leaving you with only a senseless joy. Young fillies and colts played amongst the bustling crowds, their parents watching them carefully as they wandered around the stores. Colourful banners hung proudly over shops filled with all kinds of interesting knick-knacks and the delicious smells of cooking food. Laughter and excitement filling the air as entertainers from all over the country put on wondrous demonstrations of their talent and theatrics. Firework displays and dancers, clowns and magicians, they were always the focus of attention in a bizarre, almost surreal world and Celestia loved it all.
All of that had changed now. Everything was gone. The empty streets, boarded up shops and foul stench of rotting food sweeping away the memories and bringing her back to the harsh reality. The country wasn’t getting better as she had once believed. Even with the weather returning to normal, the footprint of the drought would never truly vanish until someone did something about it. It would linger in her thoughts like the foul stench of rotting food. It was the disaster that she had failed to prevent and it was the bleak future that lay waiting for them if she refused to change.
“Are you alright, Princess Celestia?” the female guard asked, still waiting behind her with the quill.
Celestia lifted a hoof to her face and wiped away the tears discretely. “I think I want to go back to the castle now. I’ll finish surveying the damage later.”
“Of course, your highness.” she responded empathetically, placing the quill and paper in her bag.
~
“Scribe, you may now start recording the events of today's assembly.” Prairie Star announced, glancing at the young pony in the corner. “It is now one o'clock in the afternoon. The council assembly has now established.”
Her words and actions were identical to what she had done and said yesterday. The whole process had become routine for Prairie Star and now she failed to show any emotion whatsoever.
“Today, we will decide on the law that Goldenroot proposed nearly a week ago.” she continued, looking around the table at the five other members of the council. “The standard voting procedure applies. Every member gets one ballot. When you're ready, make a mark on the ballot to select your choice, fold it in half and place it in the box.”
Prairie Star lifted a large wooden box out from underneath the table and placed it in front of her. The box closely resembled a chest with a golden frame and several elaborate patterns covering the surface. In the very centre of the lid was a small horizontal opening, just barely large enough for a slip of paper.
“As always, there will be no formal debate immediately before the poll.”
Leaning forward, she opened the chest and removed the contents, placing five identical slips of paper in the middle of the table. Each slip of paper had two words, ‘support’ and ‘oppose’, spaced equally apart from each other and next to a small box. The ponies around the table each took a ballot, sliding it across the table into their immediate vicinity.
Goldenroot, who had made his decision long before anyone else, was the first to vote. After marking a small 'x' next to the word 'support', he folded the ballot and placed it in the box. Leaning back in his seat, he quietly observed the other ponies as they followed a similar procedure. Thunderhorn was the next pony to insert his ballot, lifting the paper with his magic and navigating it through the opening. As the light shining from his horn disappeared, he turned his head and confidently smirked at Goldenroot.
Goldenroot frowned slightly and thought to himself as he predicted the outcome. One to support, one to oppose.
Vortex followed closely after. She slid the ballot through the opening and leaned back, winking at Goldenroot from her position across the table. Her light blue hair had resumed its untamed appearance. It was fascinating and beautiful at the same time. It flowed like the trees in a forest, each individual strand bending and twisting as she moved.
Noticing, Goldenroot smiled back. Two to support, one to oppose.
Wind Dancer was next. She carefully folded the ballot, leaned forward and pushed it through the opening. As the ballot fell to the bottom of the box, she relaxed in her chair and flashed a smile at Goldenroot. His mind raced as he tried to figure out what she was thinking. The smile was cryptic and it masked her true intentions. Is she smiling at me because she knows it’s going to fail, or because she knows it’s going to pass?
Lost in thought and unaware of his surroundings, Goldenroot completely missed Crescendo quickly mark his ballot, fold it and place it in the box. As the paper quietly hit the bottom of the chest, Goldenroot snapped back to reality. Everyone had voted and it was now merely an issue of counting the ballots.
“I will now open the box and reveal the contents.” Prairie Star said, describing her actions as she leaned forward and threw open the lid.
“One ballot, support.” She announced, placing the piece of paper on the table so the rest of the council members could see. “One ballot, oppose.”
Goldenroot’s face turned pale. If the count was so close, so early on, then it would still be close. It was entirely possible that he hadn’t convinced either Crescendo or Wind Dancer.
“Two ballots, support.”
Goldenroot’s expression changed immediately to a bright smile. Only one more vote.
“Three ballots, support.” Prairie Star continued.
Goldenroot’s smile spread across his entire face now. Raising a hoof to conceal his grin, he desperately tried to restrain himself from jumping out of his seat and shouting in triumph. Looking across at Vortex, he noticed that she also had a bright smile on her face. In fact, everyone in the room, including the director, was smiling to some degree except Thunderhorn, who was displaying a rather furious frown on his wrinkled face.
“And just for the record,” Prairie Star said, taking note of the expressions around the table. “Four ballots support.”
Thunderhorn had been the only pony in the room to vote against the law. Whether Goldenroot had managed to persuade them, or if they had made the decision on their own terms was a mystery, but one that he didn’t care to solve. It didn’t matter now. The law would be passed on to Celestia for review and was out of their control.
“The law has been approved and a formal declaration will be written tomorrow to be passed on to Celestia. I think some of you want to celebrate, so we’re done for today. Scribe, you may stop recording now. We will resume tomorrow at one o’clock.”
Goldenroot jumped from his seat and bolted out of the room. Vortex quickly gathered her things and flew out after him, barely making it through the door before it closed. When she got outside, Goldenroot was just staring up into the sky. A light wind was blowing through the air and the sun was shining. There were some dark clouds in the distance, but they wouldn't disturb the weather until tomorrow.
“Are you alright, hotshot?” she asked, tilting her head to the side slightly as she approached him from behind.
“This is monumental! Everything is going to change now. Everyone will have a voice in the government, not just the rich and famous." Goldenroot turned towards her with a huge grin on his face. "Come on, I’ll buy you a drink.”
“Okay, but only if you promise to not spend the whole time eyeballing Wind Dancer.” She joked.
Goldenroot blushed, “Well it worked, didn’t it?”
Vortex shook her head slowly, grinning at Goldenroot. “Yeah, nice try.”
~
“Sister, I have the council summary report. Would you like to see it now?” Luna asked as she walked towards Celestia.
Celestia was sitting in the throne room, her multi-coloured mane flowing around her like a river. It was early in the afternoon and the sun shone through the windows at a steep angle, illuminating small patches of the marble floor. The guards at the entrance were like statues, with only their eyes moving to follow Luna as she approached her sister’s throne.
“Yes, I would.” Celestia said. “Thank you Luna. I really appreciate your help with all of this.”
“That’s what I’m here for.” Luna smiled as she passed the documents to her sister.
The two quietly smiled at each other in silence. Celestia took the documents and set them down next to her throne, refusing to take her eyes of her sister. As the documents settled on the floor and the light from her horn vanished, Celestia’s smile disappeared.
“Do you remember when we used to go to the market with mom and dad?” she asked, her eyes sparkling as tears formed in the corner of her eyes.
Luna’s smile fell and she nodded slowly.
“We used to go together and eat at that one restaurant.” Celestia continued softly. “The Purple Turnip.”
Luna stared at the marble floor below, the small grey discolorations snaking through the brilliant, reflective white.
“And we would always have their famous turnip soup.” Celestia said, tears rolling down her cheeks as she remembered her parents.
Luna smiled weakly. Their parents had passed away only a few years before she turned into the vicious Nightmare Moon.
“I hated turnips.” Celestia chuckled, shaking the tears from her cheeks onto the red carpet resting on the marble floor beneath her. “But it wasn’t about the soup or the restaurant. It was about spending time with the ponies we loved.”
Luna sobbed quietly, “I miss them, Celestia. I miss them so much.”
“I went to the market quarter today.” Celestia said, looking away from her sister and outside the window. “There’s nothing there. The ponies, the shops, the food, they’re all gone. Everything’s gone.”
“I know. I was there too…” Luna said. “I just didn’t want to tell you… It’s hard, sister.”
“It’s my fault, Luna. I’m sorry.” Celestia replied. “I didn’t want any of this to happen.”
Luna leaped forward and held onto her big sister tightly, closing her eyes and nuzzling against her neck. Her warm tears soaked the side of Celestia’s neck and she wrapped her great wings around Luna, pulling her closer. After some time, Celestia slowly unfolded her wings and pushed away. She smiled and wiped the tears away from her face.
“I’m going to fix my mistakes, Luna.” Celestia said. “And when I do, I want you to come with me to the market again.”
Luna looked up and smiled hopefully. “I’d like that.”
Luna turned around slowly and walked out of the room. As the doors closed, Celestia lifted the documents by her throne into full view. Trying to pry her thoughts away from her sister, Celestia flipped through the documents. They detailed the events of the assembly, describing every word and action of each member for the past two days. Beside each line was a note by the Scribe. It was intended to be purely factual, but occasionally hinted at his personal opinion.
Director Prairie Star: “It is now one o'clock in the afternoon. The council assembly has now convened.” Current date and time is as follows: Third day of the ninth month, thirteenth hour and first minute. Assembly started one minute later than planned.
Director Prairie Star: “As of yesterday, there are three articles up for discussion.” The articles in question are as follows: food allocation among the noble classes, taxation and reimbursement during times of economic hardship, and council reconstruction to accommodate the non-noble inhabitants.
Celestia repeated the notes quietly to herself. “Council reconstruction to accommodate non-noble inhabitants?”
She turned her head to look outside the window. Dark clouds were just barely visible in the distance, swirling madly as they approached the castle.
They want to change the council so that it includes the commoners, she thought, raising a hoof to her face as she contemplated the idea. Why would they want to do that?
She continued to read through the notes, flipping quickly past the pages that described Goldenroot's speech in support of the law. The scribe had labelled many of the lines with evidence to support or deny the claims made and a certain line caught her attention.
Sir Goldenroot: "We have suffered a devastating plague for nearly half a year and only when things start to return to normal, do we seek to confront the issue. Why have we waited so long? Is it because of our structure, our lack of ability to realize our true problems?" Officially, no law was suggested by the council to Princess Celestia to make any effort to improve the critical situation caused by the drought.
It's all just nonsense, she thought, slightly taken aback by what she read. They did nothing. After all the time that's passed and everything that's happened, they did nothing. They only claim to be thinking about the drought, but they instead spend all their time on council reform.
Trying to calm herself, Celestia skipped to Vortex's very brief opinion on the issue.
Lady Vortex: “I already know I'm not going to sway any opinions in my direction, so I'm not going to tell any of you how I feel about the whole thing until we vote on it.” This stance is common for Lady Vortex. She has refused to share her opinion on many of the issues presented in the council.
They don't even seem to work together, Celestia thought. How can anything ever be accomplished if they won't open up and share their opinions about the issues? Is this why nothing was done about the drought?
Celestia was enraged by the council summary report, shaking with a seemingly overwhelming anger that dispelled her immense sorrow from only moments before. Everything they did seemed either inefficient or just plain pointless. Trying to contain her anger, she noticed Thunderhorn's openly aggressive rebuttal.
Lord Thunderhorn: “I don’t quite understand where you’re getting this Goldenroot. Why are you so certain that they will help us and not just create unnecessary conflicts within our society? Everyone is greedy in some sense and I don’t believe you could ever convince me otherwise. If we give them the right to participate in the council now, they won’t fix the problem of the drought. They won’t even think about the drought.” Lord Thunderhorn places a strong value on traditions. Anything that goes against tradition is usually met with harsh disapproval from him.
And when they try to change things, they're shut down immediately like this? It's not that they can't change, it's that they don't want to, Celestia thought. How could I let this go on for so long?
Celestia closed her eyes, trying to forget about the council. Breathing slowly and relaxing, her thought's wandered to the conversation she had with Twilight.
“But in the end, was it the right thing to do? Do you think the world is a better place now? Were the decisions made in everyone’s best interests?”
No Twilight. The answer to your questions, all of them, is no, Celestia thought as she lowered her head, tears pooling in the corners of her eyes. I was a fool to let you leave for Prance on your own. I was a fool to keep Luna, my own sister, imprisoned in the moon for a thousand years. It wasn't the right thing to do, the world isn't a better place and the decisions were only made in the best interests of the ignorant council I created.
It was like a waterfall of sorrow and regret, washing over her in a single moment she was reminded of all her failures over the years. The council had only ever been a crutch. She had tried to let them take the responsibility, her responsibility, for all the decisions made. It was a mistake to think that she could share the burden given to her at birth. She was an alicorn, a member of the royal family, and she alone was responsible for the well-being of everyone in Equestria.
Celestia's tears began to fall toward the ground. Her concentration on her magic failed and the pile of documents being held in front of her was released. Like leaves falling from a tree, they separated and scattered across the room, coating the floor beneath in a thin layer of paper.
“Princess Celestia! Are you alright!?” One of the guards asked as he rushed to her side.
“I’ve hurt the ones closest to me and betrayed my family’s trust. I’ve made some serious mistakes,” Celestia said, turning her head slowly to look up at the guard standing attentively by her side. “But it’s okay. I know how to fix them.”
________________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Hello everyone. I hope you’re still enjoying the story.
This chapter was a lot of fun to write. I finally have an editor, (Thank you, Specter Von Baren.) so I was able to catch and change certain aspects of the story that needed improvement. (I must have rewritten the section where the council votes on the law about ten times.) It also means that I’m working harder on the chapters than before, so the turnaround is a little longer, but I can assure you it’s well worth it.
As always, if you have any questions or comments about the story, you can reach me at my email: [email protected] I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 5 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-08T20:58:20+00:00 | 2011-10-08T20:58:20+00:00 | 2,410 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 5
“You know, Goldenroot, I think you live just a teensy bit too close to the council assembly.” Vortex said, glancing out the window near the door.
“It saves me a lot of walking.” Goldenroot said, looking up into the dark, clouded sky as he headed out the door. “Besides, I don’t like spending too much time outside on a day like today.”
“Almost makes me happy that we’ll be spending nearly the entire day arguing in a stuffy room.” Vortex joked, smiling as she slipped out behind him.
Rain was pouring down and soaking the path beneath them. The two ponies walked towards the council assembly, dodging the large puddles that accumulated in the cavities of the road. The water rippled in the pools as the droplets randomly broke the surface and sent tiny waves crashing against the shore like miniature lakes.
“It’s not that stuffy.” Goldenroot replied, grinning at the Pegasus. “I have to admit that this is a fairly dull part of the process. Mostly everything about the law is written in the records already. We’re only checking over the wording and making sure we don’t leave any loopholes.”
“A few of us are going to feel pretty apathetic about the whole thing. We’re all getting the boot if the law is accepted and then we have to decide whether or not we want to come back.” Vortex said, kicking a small rock along the path.
Realizing that she was referring to herself, Goldenroot stopped in his tracks and turned to face the blue pegasus with a concerned look. Her mane lay flat against her body and her tail hung uselessly between her legs, wet from the downpour.
“You’re not going to run for re-election?” he asked quietly.
“I’m still thinking about it.” she answered, sending the rock hurtling into the bushes nearby and gazing up at the huge structure in front of her.
The building that housed the council’s assemblies was almost completely characterless. Only recognizable by the illustrious stained glass windows at the entrance, it was essentially a large stone rectangle with a peaked roof. The building had sustained damage from the storm that had ravaged the city only a few days ago, but it was minor and only a few shingles were missing. The repairs had obviously been marked as a low-priority objective since it was difficult for the building to become any less attractive from a few scuffs and scrapes. It was just plain ugly and there wasn’t much that anyone could do to change that.
Vortex turned her head and smiled brightly at the stallion. “I want to continue working in the council, but it’s for all the wrong reasons. I just don’t think my heart really belongs in politics.”
Goldenroot pulled the heavy door leading into the building open, and stood to the side. “Well I’m certainly going to miss you if you leave.”
“You‘re not going to lose me that easily. I just wouldn’t be in those boring council meetings anymore.” Vortex said, walking through the opening Goldenroot had created.
Goldenroot smiled happily at her reaction and followed after her, letting the door close behind him. The interior of the building was decorated with several tapestries and potted plants, but they were worn and unevenly spaced. It almost reminded Goldenroot of the corridors in Wind Dancer’s mansion, but the tasteless arrangement rushed the memories away. To add even more distinction between the two areas, the government building had large, wide hallways that allowed many ponies to walk among them without disturbing each other, vastly different from the restricted passageways in his fellow council member’s house.
“You had your own ways of making things interesting.” he said.
“So did you.” Vortex laughed. “You must have blown up at Dancer and the general a dozen times each.”
“Lord Crescendo had his fair share too,” Goldenroot smirked, “although it was definitely a lot less often.”
“I can’t believe you actually made Dancer cry about the luxury tax increase.” Vortex said, laughing more loudly.
She then attempted to mock Wind Dancer by raising her voice and putting a hoof to her chest dramatically. “Oh boo hoo! You just don’t understand my needs, Sir Goldenroot! I have to wear expensive make up and spend three hours on my hair every morning!
“Hahaha!!”
Vortex’s overenthusiastic laugh echoed through the spacious hallways. It was odd, the hallways were wide for a reason, but that reason was hiding in the shadows, unwilling to reveal itself. A building that was usually clamouring with activity, was completely vacated and the pair hadn’t seen anyone since they entered, not even the guards that diligently patrolled the halls.
“I didn’t mean to offend her.” Goldenroot said, ignoring the oddity and grinning stupidly at her impression. “I just got really caught up in the moment.”
“She gets offended way too easily anyway. She’ll be offended the moment we walk through this door.” she said, trying to shake the water out of her mane and tail. “We’re late and totally drenched. That’s all the reason she needs.”
Goldenroot flinched as Vortex flicked water at him. When she stopped, he turned his head to look at the clock just outside the room. It was fifteen minutes past one and he was late for something for the first time in ten years, but he didn’t really mind. He was in a good mood today. Everything seemed to be working in his favour lately and he didn’t feel like getting upset at something so minor.
Ignoring the water in his own hair, Goldenroot opened the door to the council assembly and smiled at Vortex, waiting patiently for her to walk through the entrance. Speechless, the dark blue pegasus simply glared through the opening and into the room. Concerned, Goldenroot gradually turned his head and peered though the doorway. The room was almost completely empty. The great table, with all its intricate carvings that had been so delicately preserved over the years, was gone and replaced by three figures, which Goldenroot immediately recognized as Princess Celestia and her royal guards.
“Princess Celestia, is something wrong?” Goldenroot asked anxiously, water dripping from his soaked body and pooling on the floor beneath him. “What are you doing here and where is everyone?”
“I was waiting for you two.” she said, calmly smiling back at them. “You’re both late. The others have already been notified.”
Goldenroot displayed a very confused expression, “What do you mean? What’s going on?”
“Do not worry, Sir Goldenroot. They’re probably just sitting at home, enjoying all the nice rain we’re having.”
“Why aren’t they here, in the assembly?”
“The assembly doesn’t exist anymore.”
Goldenroot stood in silence for a moment. Celestia’s words just seemed to flow so effortlessly that it was difficult to grasp the severity of what she had just said. The assembly doesn’t exist anymore..?
“I don’t understand.” Goldenroot said, giving her a blank stare.
“Your services are no longer required, Sir Goldenroot. Please go home.” Celestia said, turning around to face the back wall.
As he became aware of the situation, Goldenroot’s momentary disbelief disappeared and was replaced by a strong hostility towards the princess. The council, which had existed for a thousand years, had vanished in an instant and taken with it all the progress he had worked so hard to achieve. He strongly believed that the council was the most important part about the government, even more important than the princess herself. The council served as the representatives of the country’s diverse inhabitants and gave voice to their plight. Even without the commoners, it was the essence of the equality Goldenroot believed in.
“You can’t do this! We’re an essential part of the government. You can’t just remove us from the equation!” Goldenroot shouted.
Sensing the aggression, the two guards moved in front of the princess and glared at Goldenroot. Undaunted by the pair of golden armoured ponies, Goldenroot walked closer, fire burning in his eyes.
“Calm down! We don‘t know the whole story.” Vortex intervened, trying to remain composed. “Princess Celestia, how can you just tell us all to go home? Goldenroot has a point. We’ve been a part of this government for a thousand years.”
“I can show you the official records if you like, but technically every action of the council was considered to be treasonous and punishable by law for acting against the current ruling monarch of Equestria.” Celstia replied. “You don‘t have any power… You never did.”
“What about everything we‘ve done? Everything we‘ve accomplished!?” Goldenroot exclaimed. “You created us to help you!”
“Please go home, Sir Goldenroot. I don’t want to have to use force.”
“This doesn’t make any sense, why are you doing this now!?”
Celestia lowered her head. “Because I was wrong. Twilight helped me realize that. The council forced me to deviate from the path I was destined to follow. I was born to lead this nation and I can’t place that burden on anyone else. The council was an artificial creation that I used as a scapegoat. It was all just a lie.”
Goldenroot stopped moving and stared at the princess. She was carrying all the blame for the drought on her shoulders and she made no effort to conceal her misery. Celestia’s pain stung like daggers in his heart and he was ashamed that he had lashed out at her. She didn’t deserve that and she didn’t deserve to carry the weight of an entire nation by herself.
“Princess Celestia, please don’t do this. I know we failed you during the drought. We failed Twilight Sparkle and we failed Equestria, but we can still help you fix this.” Goldenroot said, cautiously approaching the princess. “You don’t have to do this alone. I know that it might feel that way sometimes, but it’s not the truth.”
“It’s not just the drought, Goldenroot!” Celestia shouted. “Ever since that day a thousand years ago, everything that we’ve done was wrong… I’m hurting the ones I care about the most. The council was a mistake and I intend to fix it.”
“Princess Celestia…”
“Please Goldenroot…” Celestia interrupted, lowering her voice slightly.
She gently turned around to face the pale green stallion with an intimidating gaze. Suspicious, Goldenroot looked past her harsh stare. This wasn’t the princess he remembered. He knew that somewhere, deep inside, she was scared of what she was doing.
Celestia closed her eyes and looked away. “This isn’t easy for me to do. I know that you think you can help, but you have to trust me. I’m tired of pretending that everything is just going to all work out in the end. These are my mistakes and I alone will correct them.
“So please… Just go home, Sir Goldenroot.”
The pale green stallion stood motionless, watching the princess still hanging her head. She looked so weak, so helpless, but what could he do?
Vortex moved beside Goldenroot and placed a hoof on his shoulder, causing him to break his stare and face the pegasus. Her comforting gaze met his, the amber eyes glistening in the faint light and calming his nerves.
“Come on.” she whispered. “There‘s nothing we can do now.”
~
“So the council is just… gone?” Twilight asked, quietly staring out the window.
The two ponies were sitting on the strange green couch in Celestia’s bedroom. They were both trying to relax, but only Twilight really seemed at peace. She just sat there, watching the sun approach the horizon through the window.
“Yes.” Celestia replied. “I thought about what you said and, although they don’t believe me, I’m sure it was the right thing to do.”
“It just seems strange… What will you do now?” Twilight asked curiously as she turned to face Celestia. “I mean, now that they’re gone, can we really fix the drought?”
“I am going to make it my primary objective. I won’t let Equestria suffer any longer than it already has.”
Celestia paused and smiled at Twilight. When she had gone missing, Celestia was turned into an empty shell of what she once was. But now that she had returned, everything Celestia lost had returned at twice the strength it once was. She finally had the courage to make a difference in the world, a feature she lacked ever since the council was first created and Luna was exiled.
“But before I can act, I need your help.” Celestia said. “I need to know what happened in Prance. If we can do anything at all to prevent this from happening again, I’ll need to know every single detail of your journey.”
“Of course, but you have to promise me that you will listen right to the very end.” Twilight smiled weakly. “Not everything is pleasant.”
~
The centerpiece of the castle was an enormous obsidian tower that shot hundreds of feet into the sky. It was the focal point of my journey and the very reason I had endured everything up this point. In truth, I didn’t know what lay waiting for me inside that massive construct. I wanted answers to the questions I had and solutions to the problems at home, but even now, when I stood at the very doorstep of the capital, everything seemed so far away.
“You’re from Equestria, aren’t you?” a black stallion in silver armour asked pryingly as he walked away from the city gates and towards me.
Surprised, I uttered a quick reply, “Yes, but I thought…”
“We wouldn’t speak your native tongue?” he scoffed. “Don’t be so naive. You don’t seem to realize it, but we rely on trading with the citizens of Equestria and since your government is so unwilling to communicate with us, we have to interact with the merchants on your border directly.”
“I’m sorry…” I apologized, astounded by his reaction.
“Don’t bother with this idiot.” a yellow mare in identical silver armour said, walking up beside the black stallion. “He’s not going to help you.”
The black stallion frowned and glared at the mare, scolding her in his language. I was getting better, but I still lacked the basic comprehension that was necessary to understand what he said. From what I gathered, the stallion was very upset with the mare, but that could be recognized from his body language alone.
After a minute or two of what I assumed was cursing, the stallion turned and glared harshly at me before returning to his place at the side of the gate. The yellow mare just rolled her eyes at the display and walked closer to me.
“He’s just not very fond of outsiders.” she said, “It’s not your fault.
“Now, judging from your personal items, you’re not a merchant yourself, but from that ugly little battle wound you’ve got there, you could be an adventurer. Though I haven’t seen any adventurers since vigilantism was outlawed so that makes me wonder…”
She paused briefly before continuing, “What are you doing here, traveller?”
I fixed my posture and tried to smile at the mare. After my last encounter, I wanted to get straight to the point in a very professional manner.
“My name is Twilight Sparkle. I was sent by Princess Celestia of Equestria to see Le Roi Pierre of Prance.” I answered almost mechanically.
“Well you managed to pronounce his name completely wrong, but I know who you’re talking about. I don’t know what business you have with him, but Pierre is our king and if you really were sent by Celestia, then he’ll want to see you right away.”
“Why don’t you refer to him with his full name?” I asked, blinking.
“’Le roi’ means ‘king’ in our language, so it’s not really his name, but his title.” she replied. “It would be…”
She paused and looked off into the distance with a blank stare, searching for the right word to say.
“Redundant?” I said hesitantly.
“Yes!” she exclaimed excitedly, pointing her hoof in my direction, “It would be redundant to say that King Pierre is our king. See, we both have a lot to learn about each other. Now please, follow me, I’ll take you to see King Pierre.”
I followed the yellow mare into the castle and through the winding streets. Unlike Canterlot, nothing was very well organized and it was difficult to really get anywhere. Streets mysteriously ended or looped around to where they started. Various shops lined the streets, making it extremely difficult to follow the guard as she navigated through the crowds to the black pillar that cut its way out of the skyline like a knife.
“I forgot to tell you my name, Twilight.” she said, turning around and talking loudly through the crowd. “I’m Catherine.”
These ponies have really strange names, I thought as I bumped my way through the dense mob.
“It’s very nice to meet you, Catherine!” I yelled in response.
“Hahaha!” Catherine laughed. “Okay, I get it. This isn’t really the place to talk. We’ll be at the tower shortly.”
There was a large cast iron gate barring the way to the tower’s entrance, each individual metal pole ending on both sides with a sharp spear-like tip. Compared to the constantly flowing mass of ponies on the opposite side of the gate, the tower’s courtyard was nearly empty. Two tall, black iron statues were visible on either side of the pathway leading to the entrance. One resembled a pony holding a magnificent banner, flowing in the wind, while the other depicted a different pony standing on its hind legs with an elegant crown and cape.
I picked out the words I understood as Catherine spoke to one of the guards standing adjacent to the gate. “Please… Twilight Sparkle… Princess Celestia… Le Roi Pierre”
I’m really going to have to work at this.
The guard nodded and laughed at a joke that lay far beyond my understanding as they pushed open the gate. Smiling, Catherine motioned for me to follow her inside, giving me a better view of the courtyard. Around the statues were several flowerbeds, containing brilliant ruby and white blossoms arranged in several appealing patterns.
“Interesting statues.” I thought aloud, ignoring the perplexing arrangements of flowers.
“The one with the cape resembles our king. Every time a new king takes power, we change the statue.” Catherine replied, slowing her pace to walk beside me. ”The other represents our battle for freedom against barbarism, greed and anarchy. It is a reminder of everything we believe in and what our ancestors worked so hard to accomplish.
“Hundreds of years ago, Prance was a set of four nations, constantly on the brink of war with each other. They fought over the resources that were uniquely plentiful to each separate nation. One nation had rolling hills and huge tracks of fields that produced a bountiful crop every year. Another had steep mountains and caverns filled with precious minerals. The third had massive, crystal clear lakes and the last had immeasurable forests filled with all kinds of wildlife.
“They could each survive on their own resources, but their avarice took over and one year, when the hostility between the nations was especially high, our original king, Florence, rose out of the darkness and disparity. He dreamed of a single, prosperous nation that was free from the conflicts that constantly ravaged the nations. With a tongue as sharp as a dagger, he cut into the very souls of the nations and united their inhabitants under a single banner.”
Catherine stopped and pointed to the banner the statue held. It was a simple cross that divided the flag into four equal portions.
“You can’t tell from the statue, but our flag is a white cross through a deep blue background.” she continued, glancing in my direction. “It symbolizes how, despite our differences, our similarities prevailed and unified our nations.
“As a filly, the legend of Florence and the four nations touched my heart. It showed me that the light of the good in the world would always conquer the darkness of evil. That’s why I became a soldier. I wanted to protect everything that he believed in, even if it cost me my life.”
“Catherine… That’s beautiful.” I replied sincerely, smiling at her.
“If you fight for what you truly believe in, you can do no wrong.” she said, smiling back. “But I digress, let us continue.”
We walked towards the great black doors that led into the pillar, guarded by two ponies in recognizable silver armour that opened them as we neared. I followed Catherine closely as we stepped through the doorway and into the tower. The interior was very open. Several doors were placed in a pattern around the main hall, with a great staircase leading up into the building. Each floor had a separate, identical chandelier that illuminated the levels of the tower as we ascended.
After a long grueling walk up the monotonous staircase that seemed to narrow as we climbed, we reached the top floor. A small room with a set of cast iron doors, it was guarded by two very large ponies. Towering above her head, one of the ponies smiled as Catherine approached.
“Catherine, it’s not every day that I get to see you here.” he grinned.
“Always a pleasure, Daniel.” she replied, returning the smile.
“And who have we got here? It wouldn’t be the Equestrian that King Pierre has been expecting?” he said, looking in my direction.
Still panting from the staircase, I cracked a smile. “Actually, yes… I’m glad to hear… That he was expecting me… I’d hate to show up unannounced.”
“Twilight Sparkle. It is an absolute honour to meet you. As you may have noticed, I have been brushing up on my Equestrian for the occasion.”
“I’ve been trying to learn some…”
“But Miss Sparkle! You are injured” he interrupted, rushing in closer as he noticed the bruises around my mouth.
“Oh it’s not that bad. I’m fine really.” I said, smiling weakly. “I ran into some bandits on the way here.”
“I know of them.” He said sternly, inspecting the bruises. “They wait on the border, jumping across to the other side when either nation tries to prosecute them. They are evil, terrible ponies. I myself have had to show them the error of their ways a few times, but there will always be more.
“Did they steal anything from you? King Pierre will be furious if he finds out that anything has been taken from you.”
“No. I…” I paused for a moment before continuing, “…Dealt with them.”
He smiled brightly. “You are no doubt a splendid mare, Miss Sparkle! I would love to hear more about you, but we should really take you to see King Pierre.”
He turned around and motioned to the other guard. They pulled the two doors open and revealed the large room inside. A single pony sat at a desk on the far side of the room against a massive window that stretched across the wall and overlooked the city below. Decorated with elaborate paintings, packed bookshelves and a set of smaller statues, identical to the ones outside the tower, it was absolutely stunning.
As we walked towards the desk, the pony lifted his head and smiled as the doors closed behind us. “It is nice to finally meet you, Miss Sparkle. I am hoping that you aren’t too tired of greeting all these new ponies by now.”
“No, no. Of course not, your highness.” I replied, bowing my head.
“Bah! You needn’t take such formalities with me, Miss Sparkle, we really haven’t the time.”
I raised my head quickly as he got up and walked around the desk. He was a ruby red pony, with a white mane and tail, the exact same colours of the flowers outside.
“But we do have enough time to show you to your room.” he continued, walking past me and towards the door. “For your convenience, I have found a room for you on the bottom floor so that you needn’t climb those awful stairs every time you want to leave.”
My jaw nearly fell off at the thought. I have to walk down the stairs again!? I just got up here! I’m exhausted!
He stopped suddenly and turned around. “Haha! I jest, Miss Sparkle! Although your room is indeed at the base of the tower, I won’t make you walk that distance so promptly.”
I closed my jaw and smiled in relief. Oh, thank Celestia!
He walked back towards the desk and sat down. “Please, have a seat, Miss Sparkle. And so as not to bore you during your duties, you may return to your post, Catherine. I hope you don’t mind the exercise.”
“It is no trouble at all, my liege.” she replied, turning around and heading towards the door.
Pierre waited for her to leave. He smiled brightly at me while we sat in silence.
“I was informed that you have been having problems with a drought.” he said, breaking the silence. “I am truly sorry that you have had to endure such a devastating curse.”
“I’m worried about my country.” I said honestly, “I felt so useless at home. I came here, not because I was ordered to, but because I wanted to. I want to do whatever it takes to help my country and I am honoured that you are willing to help me.”
“I sincerely hope that you will be able to find a solution to your problem here in Prance. I do not yet know how we can help, but I will send someone to escort you around the country to the various production facilities and give you access to the royal library. It is unfortunate that you cannot yet read our language; it makes the entire process much more unpleasant.”
He stopped and smiled, turning his head to the side as he lost himself in his thoughts.
“You are well acquainted with Catherine, no?” he asked.
“Yes. She’s a very nice pony.”
“She is. I will have someone replace her at the gate and send her with you.”
Once again, he just stopped and smiled, turning his head again. It was a little unsettling. It felt like he just died for brief moments as he contemplated his actions.
“Now, as unfortunate as this is, I’m not sure how much more I can help you right now so perhaps it is finally time to show you to your room.” he announced, breaking the awkward silence again.
I have a feeling that I’m going to learn to hate these stairs, I thought as I flashed a fake smile.
~
“Your princess said that you lived in a library at home.” Pierre said, opening a door. “I thought you might feel less estranged to the tower if you settled here.”
The room was utterly gigantic. As I walked through the library, my jaw hung open and my eyes widened with admiration. It took up an entire floor of the tower and contained hundreds of shelves of books and records. The library at home was nothing like this, not even Celestia’s royal library.
“Do not worry about the others. I forbade access to the library while you are here. If anyone enters, it will only be for an absolute emergency and I will make sure to let you know beforehand.
“I have tried my best to secure a proper sleeping chamber in the corner of the room and the facilities are just around the corner.”
“Why are there so many books here? I’ve never seen a library so vast…” I asked, ignoring the plush bed and large desk that Pierre pointed to.
Pierre lowered his hoof and smiled at me. “We do our very best to document everything we can and encourage the literary arts within the country. Our library contains virtually every book produced in both of our nations as well as many others. It would take decades to read every book in the library and almost as many to learn the languages to read them.”
I salivated slightly as I looked around the room. So much knowledge…
“If you are ever hungry, please contact the guard outside your room. He will have the tower’s chefs prepare something for you.” Pierre said, smiling as he noticed my expression. “His name is Daniel; you may have already introduced yourself to him.”
“Thank you so much, Pierre.” I said, trying to wipe my mouth inconspicuously.
“If you need anything else, let me know immediately. These are dark times, but that needn’t prevent you from enjoying your stay.”
Pierre turned around and walked out of the room, leaving me to stew in my thoughts. They were all very nice ponies, but they weren’t really helping me right now. I had no idea where to start. I could begin by visiting the different areas of the country, but I would just be wasting my time if I didn’t have a plan. I could start by reading the books in the library, but I would need to know what to read first. It was all becoming increasingly complicated and the amazing library I stood in wasn’t really helping.
But under the veil of uncertainty, one thing was absolutely crystal clear. If I wanted to discover the truth about this nation and solve the drought at home, I would need to learn their language and I would need to learn it in less than a day.
________________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Hello again.
I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I hope you enjoyed reading it. I’d like to extend a very special thanks to my editor, Specter Von Baren, for taking the time to read it over as many times as he did. Without your help, this story would not be nearly as interesting.
I’m not really looking for pre-readers anymore, but if you really want to help out, I’ll see what I can do.
As always, if you have any questions or comments about the story, you can reach me at my email: [email protected] I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 6 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-11T02:08:51+00:00 | 2011-10-11T02:08:51+00:00 | 2,150 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 6
“Are you ready to go, Twilight?” Catherine asked, poking her head through the door and glancing around.
She wasn’t wearing the helmet she had the day before and her now visible, short orange mane accented her light blue eyes. It was combed back across her head, a common military style that I recognized from the soldiers at home.
“Almost, just give me a minute.” I replied, stuffing everything on the desk into my bag. “I want to make sure that I have everything I need.”
“You really don’t need anything.” she shrugged, her eyes following me as I dashed around the room. “The mills are just outside the city walls.”
‘The mills’, as they liked to call them, were a series of windmills and the largest grain processing facility in the country. Nearly every grain farmer in the area took his crop to the mills to have it processed. It was something the government of Prance had done to help the local farmers. By centralizing the refining process, efficiency was increased, cost was decreased and everyone was happier because of it. At least that’s what I learned from the books in the library.
“I still can’t believe you learned how to read our language in a single night.” she continued with a rather shocked look on her face. “I’ve never met anyone that could do something like that.”
“I spent my entire life reading books, Catherine.” I said, stopping to smile and wink at her, “Although sometimes I wish I had left the house more often, it’s a skill that really comes in handy.”
“Well I completely understand why they only needed to send you.”
“They?” I asked, giving her a strange look. “Celestia was the only one who had anything to do with this adventure.”
“Oh, right. I guess I just forgot… Ready to go?” she asked, quickly changing the subject.
“Yeah, let’s go.” I answered, starting for the door across the room. “How far is it?”
“Not far. It takes about twenty minutes.” she replied, propping the door open with her hoof while I walked through.
I had to squint to avoid blinding myself as I stepped out of the library and into the tower’s foyer. The brightly lit room was a sharp contrast to the dim lighting in the library. With all the amenities in such a close vicinity and Daniel coming in to check on me and ask what I wanted for meals, I had comfortably spent the last twenty hours in that room. In a way, Pierre was right, it was so similar to my home in Ponyville that, if it weren’t for the dire situation I was in, I would have nearly forgotten that I had ever left.
“Miss Sparkle! It is a pleasure to see you finally leave the library after all this time.” Daniel exclaimed, positively beaming at me. “I suspect you have much to accomplish today?”
“Uh… yes.” I smiled back. “I’m going to the mills.”
“But of course! It is a wonderful place to explore…” he said, pausing for a moment before continuing in a lower tone. “…and to learn.
“But I won’t keep you a moment longer, Miss Sparkle. I will leave you to our fair Catherine’s protection. Enjoy your visit and I shall see you when you return.”
“You really are too much, Daniel.” Catherine said, smiling and chuckling quietly to herself.
“I am a gentlecolt.” he replied sternly, “It is my duty to be respectful and courteous whenever possible.”
“Right. Well as much as I’d like to stick around and receive complements from you, we really need to get going. I’ll see you around.”
He nodded slowly, “Of course.”
“Bye Daniel.” I smiled as I followed Catherine to the massive doors leading out of the black tower.
Daniel was an interesting pony. He was right, he was a true gentlecolt, but that was exactly the problem I had with him. He acted like a member of the nobility, a scientist and a scholar and unlike any soldier I’d ever met. I would have placed his interesting nature on the conditioning of the strange society I now resided in, but the other guards we’re all so very like the ones at home. I wanted to know why he was different, but I just didn’t have the time.
Once again, I stepped out into an even brighter area, the tower’s garden, and again I had to squint to avoid blinding myself in the intense light. The sky above was a brilliant blue, with hardly a single cloud. A pleasant breeze rolled through the courtyard and moved the flowers like waves on water. It was a beautiful day to be outside and, if only for a moment, I let my concerns slide away from the unfortunate condition at home.
Prance really was a gorgeous country and whatever they were doing to keep the drought at bay was working extraordinarily well. The inhabitants were blissfully moving about the city, wandering in and out of the many shops that lined its streets. ‘The Pointed Needle’, ‘Marie’s Café’, ‘Jacque’s Fine Furniture’, all my work had made every sign perfectly legible. Although I still lacked the knowledge to understand their spoken language, my new awareness would help considerably.
Making our way out of the busy streets and towards the same gate I had entered through only a day before, I took note of the two guards standing to either side. The pony that replaced Catherine at the gate waited quietly, his eyes following us as we approached. The black stallion stood on the opposite side with a dirty glare plastered on his face.
How unfortunate. I thought, remembering his rudeness. Perhaps he will be nicer if he knows who I am.
“Catherine,” he growled, “I see you’re playing tour guide today.”
“I’d rather do this than sit at the gate like a bumbling moron.” she mocked.
The stallion just fumed as we both walked past. I only laughed a little at her comment, trying not to increase his annoyance with us.
Although I had seen it before, I never really had the time to enjoy the countryside outside the city. It was not unlike that at home, with sparse trees and houses decorating the rolling hills at irregular intervals. The cobble path painted along the ground led off into two separate directions. One way led back towards the south and Equestria, the other went farther north, towards our destination.
Looking out across the horizon as we continued, I could faintly see the outlines of the mills. From this distance, they appeared as several, equally spaced towers with six sails that moved slowly in the breeze. We had windmills at home, it wasn’t exactly new technology, but it was extremely rare for more than one windmill to exist in the same neighbourhood. At most, I had only ever seen three small windmills placed next to each other on a single farm. These windmills, however, were comprised of a dozen gigantic towers that lay only a short distance from each other.
“So is there anything in particular that you want to see when we get there?” Catherine asked, slowly trotting down the path beside me. “It’s not exactly the most exciting place to spend an afternoon, but I understand that you need to see it.”
“I want to see how many ponies are coming to the mills, how much grain they bring with them, how long it takes to process their grain…” I said, listing my objectives and drifting off, “You know… Stuff like that. Almost anything could be useful, that’s why I’m so eager to go.”
“I can have one of the workers guide you through the process.” she said, turning to face me. “It really doesn’t take all that long.”
“That’s alright.” I shrugged, “I learned enough about it from my books.”
It was a simple process. The wheat was cleaned to remove dirt, pieces of straw and other parts of the plant that shouldn’t end up in the flour. After it was cleaned, the wheat was put through a set of rollers powered by the windmills to grind up the kernels and then sifted into a fine powder and bagged. A large cart of wheat bushels only produces about two thirds of its weight in flour, which is kind of disappointing when you really think about it. It was part of the reason for the awful food shortages at home.
“Good. I’m relieved that you don’t want to hear about it.” Catherine chuckled, “It’s reeaaaally boring.”
We both laughed for a while as we walked down the cobbled road. The gentle breeze blew across my face and threw my hair back.
“I thought it was kind of interesting, actually.” I finally remarked. “But I don’t need to hear about it again. We just don’t have the time.”
“There isn’t enough time in the world to hear about wheat processing more than once, Twilight.” she laughed.
I couldn’t help but smile at her reaction. She was a soldier alright, the kind of pony that always wanted to be in the heat of the action. She wasn’t old, but she wasn’t young either, so why was she guarding the front gate of the city? She seemed competent enough that she would have been promoted to a more important and exciting role by now.
When I was younger, I had asked one of Celestia’s guards what it was like watching the doors to her throne room all day. The guard had smiled and reluctantly admitted that he had been scolded for falling asleep on one occasion. Except for the occasional disputes with angry nobles, it seemed like his job was fairly dull. He showed up for work in the morning, watched the doors, ate lunch, and again watched the doors until he went home at night and was replaced. If Celestia left the throne room, another set of guards would accompany her while he just stayed and watched the gate. He seemed rather annoyed that it was necessary to watch an empty room, but when he asked about it, his commanding officer said that it gave the citizens a clear picture of the authority they held. After telling me this, he just said, “You don’t argue with the commanding officer.”
Perhaps Catherine was just too nice or maybe she even enjoyed the job. As we approached the mills, I made a note to myself to ask her about it later.
Another set of guards stood at the entrance to the large warehouse-like building that connected the windmills. Beside them, a unicorn levitated a quill and a large tome in the air as he questioned a pair of farmers, each with a large cart of wheat. He looked at each individual farmer and asked a question, moving the quill to the tome and marking one of the pages as they answered.
“I’m beginning to wonder, Catherine, why are there so few pegasi and unicorns in Prance?” I asked, turning to the yellow pony beside me as we waited for the unicorn to finish his inquiry. “I think he must be the first unicorn I’ve seen here.”
“So few?” Catherine smirked. “Your country is spoiled by its extreme diversity. From what I know, it is a very rare occasion to see unicorns or pegasi in any country. Equestria is the only exception.
“Many believe that the diversity roots from the Equestrian royal family. They believe that the unicorns and pegasi were lured in by the power that the alicorns held or that the alicorns actually gave them their power to begin with. Depending on your interpretation, some regard the pegasi and unicorns as gifted and powerful ponies. Others believe them to be mutants and abominations warped by the royal family’s influence.”
Mutants and abominations..? I thought, looking down. Is that what other ponies think of us?
“I don’t believe that you’re some kind of abomination, Twilight. You have a gift and you should be proud of it and, as much as I wish I could, I can’t change what the ignorant public believes.” Catherine continued, flashing a quick smile. “Even if they aren’t mutants, they are still social outcasts in our society and, excluding you, I have only ever met four unicorns and three pegasi and all of them have important positions in the government. Pierre recognizes their talent and tries to protect them from unjust harm and, whether they are part of the government or not, they are kept under close watch.
“From what I understand, they don’t really have a choice anyway. They have to work for Pierre and the government…”
At that moment, the unicorn made some final notes and motioned for the farmers to move along. They returned to their wagons and pulled their crop through the gate and into the building.
“Nathan,” Catherine said, gesturing towards the unicorn and smiling, “oversees all of the grain production in the entire country.”
“That I do, Catherine.” he responded in a commanding tone. “And this, I presume, is the Equestrian I received word of?”
“I’m Twilight Sparkle.” I said, smiling and approaching the unicorn. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, but I’m surprised that you speak Equestrian. Nearly every pony I’ve met seems to speak my tongue, which I can’t help but find a little unusual.”
“All the important government officials are required to speak a multitude of languages.” he said, “Since Catherine is in charge of guarding the gate to the city, she must also meet that requirement.”
“As you may already know, we’re going to be looking around the mills.” Catherine interrupted.
“Of course.” he replied, quickly nodding his head. “Take as much time as you want.”
Looked towards the unicorn I asked, “Actually, Nathan, I was wondering if I could have a look at your logbook before I go in.”
“Go right ahead.” he said, levitating the logbook towards me. “If you have any questions, feel free to ask.”
I opened the book to the most recent page and began flipping through it backwards, going one by one through the entries.
Processing Registration ID: 10038495
Taxation Level: 10%
Wheat Processed: 212 lbs
Flour Produced: 13 bags (10 lb)
Processing Registration ID: 10016201
Taxation Level: 10%
Wheat Processed: 237 lbs
Flour Produced: 15 bags (10 lb)
Processing Registration ID: 10001473, 10020345
Taxation Level: 8%
Wheat Processed: 501 lbs
Flour Produced: 34 bags (10 lb)
“You tax the wheat?” I asked, noticing the ‘taxation level’ in the book.
“Yes.” he replied, smiling. “It helps pay for the cost of running and maintaining the mills.”
I pointed to the last entry on the page, “How come this last entry isn’t taxed the same as the others?”
“Each mill can handle a thousand pounds of wheat, but only one farmer’s crop can be handled at a time. We tax them less for the larger amounts to encourage them to combine their crops. Larger loads increase the efficiency. It’s actually a little more complicated than that, but the rest of the details are relatively unimportant…”
I nodded my head in understanding and flipped through some more of the pages. Passing through several nearly identical pages and satisfied that I wouldn’t learn anything particularly useful from them, I levitated the book closer to Nathan. He reached out and grabbed it with his own magic before setting it down beside him.
“How do you measure the weight of the grain?” I asked.
“I have been magically trained to weigh the wheat while it’s still on the wagons.” he said proudly as he fixed his posture. “We don’t tax the pounds of wheat, only the bags, so they never complain that I’m not giving them an accurate measurement and trying to rip them off. It’s strictly for record keeping purposes.”
I nodded again, “Thanks Nathan. I’m going to look around a bit.”
Nathan just smiled as we walked further into the refining facility.
Catherine followed closely as I walked around the building. It was a fairly dull, empty room that served as a shelter from the ferocity of the wind outside. Up close, the windmills were almost deafening as they moved in the air, but under the protection of the large stone warehouse, it wasn’t so bad.
Several ponies worked outside the entrances to each windmill, helping the farmers gather up their crop, clean it and bring it inside. The whole process seemed to be very quick and efficient, but it wasn’t really helping me find any answers to the drought. Most of the information that I needed was in the logbook Nathan had, and it hadn’t been as helpful as I thought it would be.
I wandered around for a few more minutes, watching them move the wheat into the rooms and eventually take the resulting bags of flour out and load them into the carts to be taken away. A few of the bags from each load were gathered into a pile beside each windmill as payment for the service.
Eventually turning to Catherine, I glanced at her nervously, “Um… Is this it?”
“It sure is.” she shrugged nonchalantly, “I said it was boring, didn’t I?”
I sighed, “I don’t think I’m going to learn anything else by staying here any longer.”
She simply nodded her head and we walked back to the entrance. After passing by Nathan once more and expressing our thanks, we left on the trail back to the city.
I was disappointed by today’s exploits. I had hoped that the mills would have given me more to go on, but it was mostly just a dead end. Like I had read in the black tower, the mills were an efficient way of processing grain that seemed to benefit both the farmers and the government. What I did not expect was that they would contain so little information on the actual production of wheat across the country. Everything seemed to be coming from small, individual farms, just like at home and anything that was just like home was exactly the opposite of what I was looking for.
~
“Well here we are, back again at the library.” Catherine said, glancing around the huge room. “Are you sure you don’t want to go anywhere else? It’s still early in the afternoon.”
“I don’t see the point.” I sighed, levitating my bags off my back and falling on top of the bed. “I obviously need to spend more time figuring out where I need to go. Today was almost a complete waste of time.”
“Well I’m going to leave then. If you change your mind, get Daniel to find me.” she said, smiling at me once more before leaving the room.
I should send a letter to Celestia. She’ll want to know what I’m doing, even if I’m not making any progress. I thought, rolling off the bed and back onto my sore hooves. I’m really getting sick of walking so much.
I moved over to the desk and sat down, taking a quill and some paper from my bag.
Dear Princess Celestia,
I have safely arrived in the capital of Prance and have made contact with King Pierre. He is a strange pony. Despite his position, he seems very relaxed, but I guess you are too.
I have learned to read their native script so that I can study the books in their library. It is far larger than I would have ever imagined, much larger than the library at home. I will spend the next few days exploring the library and searching for answers among their writing.
Most recently, I set off to investigate a grain processing facility comprised of a dozen large windmills with a very pleasant pony named Catherine who is serving as my guide. It is an efficient way to process the grain, but it did little to help me with the problem of the drought. I plan on utilizing my time more wisely in the future.
I will send you a letter every day, but I am unsure of how long it will take for them to arrive. I will not expect an answer from you anytime soon.
Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle
I leaned back, folded the paper and retrieved an envelope from my bag. Slipping the letter inside, I stood up and walked towards the door. Now I just need to find out how to send it.
Opening the door leading out of the library, I looked around the tower’s entranceway.
“Miss Sparkle!” Daniel shouted from across the room as he ran over. “How was your little expedition?”
“Disappointing, Daniel.” I answered, frowning slightly. “I guess I had just hoped to find more there.”
“I am sorry to hear that, Miss Sparkle.” he said, mirroring my frown. “Is there anything I can help you with?”
Bringing my attention back to the letter floating beside my head, I smiled.
“Actually, yes there is, Daniel. I was wondering if you knew where I could send this letter.”
“Worry not, Miss Sparkle, for I shall send the letter for you.” he said, once again mirroring my expression.
“Thank you very much, Daniel. I’m going to get back to work then.”
“Not a problem, Miss Sparkle. I shall check in on you in an hour and see what you want for dinner.”
~
“Wait.” Celestia said sharply, looking at Twilight strangely from her place on the floor. “I never received any letters from you.”
“I thought you promised not to interrupt me.” Twilight replied, smiling back at her.
“I did, but this doesn’t make any sense.” Celestia continued, shaking her head. “You sent a letter to me every day and I never got any of them? Weren’t you worried that I never responded?”
Twilight’s smile quickly disappeared. “I knew that it would take at least two weeks for a reply. Without any pegasi to carry the mail, it would take a week to arrive in Equestria and then another week for your response to reach Prance. So for the first two weeks, no, I wasn’t worried.”
She turned her head to look outside the window. It was dark now and the room was lit up by the torches on the walls. The flames flickered and strange shadows danced on the floor.
“After the two weeks had passed though, I became suspicious. You had always replied to my messages in the past, so why weren’t you now? The days went by, quickly turning into weeks, and despite everything I was learning, nothing helped my plight. I had already spent the time allowed for my trip, but I was determined to find something before returning home. I was sure that you wouldn’t mind…”
~
Everyday was spent reading four or five books and then going to some production facility, not entirely unlike the mills near the city. I would arrive and learn absolutely nothing to help the situation at home and then go back to the library to read more books. It was beginning to grate on my nerves, but more recently, I had other concerns.
The ponies I now lived with were very strange. There was something odd about them all that I just couldn’t put my hoof on. Catherine, the fierce, ambitious and sociable gatekeeper, Daniel, the intelligent, courteous, and regal soldier, and Pierre, the relaxed and elusive king, if only one of them had acted like a normal pony, I would not have been so worried. However, their professions did not match their personalities in the slightest and they would frequently change the subject whenever I tried to ask about them. To say that they were just strange was an understatement.
In truth, they were like a thick fog, clouding my vision and keeping me from reaching my ultimate goal. Who were they really? What were they hiding from me and why? I was determined to find the answers before I continued my search for the solution to the drought, if only to ease my possibly irrational suspicions.
So in the dead of night, moonlight creeping through the small windows in the library and casting long shadows across the room, I decided to investigate. The candle I had lit had been reduced to a pool of wax that had hardened when the flame disappeared. I moved silently towards the door and opened it slowly. Looking out the crack of the door I searched for the large pony that usually watched it.
Satisfied that Daniel had gone to bed, I crept out of the library and closed the door behind me. If I remember correctly, the only guards in the building are at the top of the tower and outside the main entrance. Pierre should be asleep, so his guards shouldn’t be watching his room.
Moving swiftly, I ascended the staircase towards the top floor. The identical chandeliers shone just a little too brightly for my taste, but it was the only way up the tower unless I grew a pair of wings.
As I neared the top floor, my conscience kicked in and tried to persuade me to return to the library. This is ridiculous, Twilight. You’re just a little irritated from the bad luck you’ve been having. There’s nothing wrong with these ponies. They’re just very unique.
Unconvinced, I continued on and approached the black iron doors at the top floor. Moving slowly, I tried the handle only to feel it immediately resist my effort.
Heh, locks are only a problem for pegasi and earth ponies. I thought to myself, gathering my magic and teleporting to the other side of the door.
The interesting statues and elaborate paintings that once inspired wonder and awe now conjured different emotions inside of me. They awakened the fear that lay dormant in my mind and I panicked at the thought of discovery. My heart beat faster and I could feel it thump against the side of my body as it tried to escape.
I took a deep breath and, pushing my fear aside, approached the desk and walked around behind it. Along the side of it were three simple drawers. Reaching out, I slid the top drawer open and revealed its contents.
Just some blank paper, I thought, sifting through the drawer.
Closing the top drawer and working my way down, I opened the second drawer. Inside were several, identical envelopes all addressed to the same pony.
Princess Celestia.
I gasped. Though my heart had beat fiercely before, now it had almost ceased. My body trembled as I lifted the envelopes out of the drawer and onto the desktop. Turning an envelope over, I discovered that it had already been opened and sliding the paper out, I noticed that the letter was bent in the corners, something that the earth ponies and pegasi usually did with letters as they had difficulty forcing the paper into the envelopes without the use of magic.
Gradually unfolding the paper I began to read the contents,
Dear Princess Celestia,
Today is the first day of my second week in the capital of Prance. I’m disappointed by my lack of progress, but I haven’t given up hope. I’ll find something soon, I just know it.
Catherine has been helpful with my research and I really enjoy spending time with her. She has taken me to some of the most interesting places all over the country and her knowledge of them seems almost limitless. Despite the immense cultural barriers that separate us, I feel like we’ve become very good friends…
I immediately dropped the letter onto the desk as if it had been set on fire. Not only had they read all my letters, they were keeping them! Princess Celestia had no idea what was going on. She didn’t even know I was alive!
“You found the letters…” a voice resonated from the far end of the room. “I feared this would happen eventually.”
Quickly turning my head, I looked across the desk and towards the iron doors. Standing at the entrance were the shadows of four ponies in the dim moonlight.
A bright light flashed suddenly and illuminated the room. Blinded, I turned away from the source.
“I am prepared to tell you the truth, Miss Sparkle.” the voice continued. “Including the solution to your drought problem. It won’t matter now anyway.”
As my eyes adjusted to the light, I turned back to face the figures. Standing at the door were three faces that I immediately recognized. Second from the left, was the one who had spoken, King Pierre, waiting silently and glaring in my direction. To the right of him, was Daniel and then Catherine, each in their brilliant silver armour.
“You remember Daniel and Catherine.” Pierre said calmly. “You’ve probably discovered that they’re not normal guards by now. They, like all the other gifted ponies, play vital roles in the operation of my government.”
The bright light flashed again, forcing me to turn away a second time. When the light subsided, the two ponies I had recognized as Daniel and Catherine were gone. Different ponies took their place, standing beside a pile of silver armour.
“Catherine is a pegasus. She merely hid her wings under the armour.” Pierre continued, glancing over towards the yellow pony.
Catherine, now devoid of her armour, spread out her wings slowly before returning them to her side. She looked solemnly down at the floor, almost ashamed of whom she really was.
“Daniel is a unicorn especially skilled at illusionary magic. He merely copied the form of my personal bodyguard.” Pierre continued, gesturing towards the tall grey pony in silver armour on his right.
Daniel had taken on a completely different form. A short unicorn with a fading orange coat, he nodded at me to show off his horn. He was quite old, much older than Pierre, which wasn’t surprising considering that he had been able to maintain such an exhausting and convincing spell for so long. Something like that took substantial training and experience.
“I couldn’t let you know they’re true forms or you might grow suspicious. After all, why would I send all my most capable servants to feed you and watch you wander aimlessly around the countryside? However, it appears you became suspicious anyway.”
“Why are you doing this!?” I yelled, glaring hard at the king. “What’s the point!? If you knew how to solve the drought, why didn’t you help me?”
“It’s all part of a bigger picture, Miss Sparkle. I don’t expect you to understand, but believe me when I say that I didn’t want to have to hurt you.”
“We’re not really bad ponies.” Daniel added in a low, raspy voice, very unlike what I remembered.
“We want to help the world become a better place and if that means we have to do some terrible things, then so be it.” Pierre said.
“That doesn’t explain anything!” I screamed.
“Catherine told you about the story of our creation, did she not?” Pierre asked.
The yellow pegasus flinched and closed her eyes tightly upon hearing her name.
I just stood motionlessly watching the king as he waited for some kind of reply.
“That story is part of our vision.” Pierre eventually continued, realizing that I wasn’t about to respond. “Just as the four nations were united to create Prance, we want to unite the whole world under a single banner.
“No more wars and no more food shortages. The entire world will work towards a common goal and become a better place for it!”
He smiled and walked closer to the table flanked by Daniel and the bodyguard while Catherine just stood speechlessly gazing at the floor.
“Oh Catherine,” he said, noticing her reaction. “You shouldn’t be so glum in front of our guest.”
He walked right up to the desk and gradually leaned over, staring directly into my eyes.
“She didn’t really want to help, but she knows she doesn’t have a choice.” he whispered.
He turned his head and glanced over his shoulder.
“Progress will be made with or without you, Catherine!” he shouted.
She flinched again and turned her head away, quivering and unable to look directly towards us.
“Now, how about a story, Twilight?” he continued, raising an eyebrow. “You might want to have a seat for this one.”
He paced back and forth along the desk, but I refused to sit down and give him the satisfaction. How could I possibly relax at a time like this?
“No?” he asked calmly, as he stopped pacing. “Very well then, let me start at the beginning.
“As a young colt I was born into my position as king of Prance. I was given the right to lead from birth, but I never really understood how to properly utilize it until about five years ago. I read about the legend of Florence and the four nations and I studied it heavily. I went over every aspect of the legend and Florence’s dream and I realized, why should we stop at the four nations? Why not unite the entire world!?”
Pierre raised a hoof dramatically and looked up at the ceiling, pausing for a brief moment. I looked behind me, out the window and towards the city below. From this distance, the city was not so different from the stars above. It was a few bright lights shining on the dark blanket of the night.
“But I had to come up with a plan.” he continued, glancing back in my direction. “Obviously no nation would willingly give up their independence to us. We’re just too small.
“I need help from Equestria, from your homeland. I need your power and to do that, I need to remove Princess Celestia from her position.”
“You’re insane!” I scoffed. “How could you think that you could ever replace Celestia? You can’t even touch her!”
“No.” Pierre replied. “You’re absolutely right. I can’t do anything...
He stopped and stared at me with a wicked smile.
“But you can.” he continued. “You see, I had to find someone that Princess Celestia cared so much for that she would be so overtaken with the grief of their sudden disappearance that she would be unable to respond to what happened next.
“I couldn’t use Luna, no she’s too powerful and Celestia has protected her like a baby since the Nightmare Moon incident, so I needed you, Celestia’s star pupil.”
“Are you trying to tell me that you created the drought?” I asked doubtfully.
Smiling he just shook his head.
“No, Twilight. I did not create it, but with the help of the council, I was able to greatly extend its length and weaken your poor nation.”
“The council!?” I asked. “What do they have to do with this?”
“They are working with me, Twilight. I promised them the power to rule over Equestria beside me, without their corrupt princess and her paper thin wall of propaganda and lies.”
“Propaganda and lies!? How could you possibly think that?”
He walked around behind the desk and looked out the window into the night. The moon shone brightly, a single white orb in the blackness of the night.
“On the contrary, I don’t understand how you could think otherwise.” Pierre said. “She’s lying to you, or rather; she’s not telling you the whole truth. Princess Celestia tries to isolate Equestria from the rest of the world by restricting trade and travel amongst the surrounding countries. Any information about them is immediately passed off as mere rumours. She walls you off from the world and the moment you have a problem you can’t solve by yourself, the entire country is thrown into disarray.
“After all, did you really think that it was reasonable for no one in your entire country to know anything about Prance? Someone had to know something and this ridiculous journey for knowledge shouldn’t have been necessary. We know more about your country than you do about yourself.
“Celestia is so lost amongst her own falsities that she doesn’t know what to believe anymore. She doesn’t know who to trust…”
Is he telling the truth? It seems reasonable enough, but why would Celestia do that?
He paused and turned around to flash his wicked smile at me once again. The moonlight cast a horrible glow on the grin, piercing its way through the night.
“Except you, Miss Sparkle.” he continued. “So I led you here and kept you captive as my prisoner. In a few days time, I will send a letter to Celestia stating your unfortunate passing. She will be overcome with grief and, with the help of the council, we will take control.”
“How do you know that she won’t blame you? How do you know that she won’t break down your door and destroy you for what you’re trying to do?”
“Because she doubts herself. Why do you think she created the council in the first place? And even if she did blame us, the council would stop her from invading.
“It’s all part of the plan.”
No I won’t believe him or his lies. He’s completely insane, this can’t be true.
I wouldn’t believe him because one pony in the room was showing me the truth. Catherine, who cowered in the corner by the door, was telling me something. She was telling me that he was lying, that everything he said was some elaborate plan to convince me of this falsity. She knew the truth and she was afraid of it.
“And what do you expect me to do?” I asked, smirking at him and shaking my head. “Do you just expect me to sit back and watch it all unfold?”
“I had hoped, but not expected, to convince you, Miss Sparkle, but I see now that’s not possible.” Pierre said with a deathly serious expression. “If I had expected to convince you, I wouldn’t have needed the others to come with me.”
Like the splinter forest, I was confronted with a difficult situation. Although I was sure neither Catherine nor Pierre would try to stop me, Daniel and Pierre’s bodyguard weren’t petty bandits and I couldn’t catch them by surprise. They were trained soldiers and I couldn’t hope to stop them alone.
Why does this keep happening to me?
My only hope was to try and escape. I could use my magic to teleport out of the room and away from the ponies.
Daniel and the tall grey pony neared ever closer as my horn lit up. I thought of the library below, perhaps if I could just escape this room then I would be safe.
“Twilight, I’m sorry, but we can’t let you leave…” Daniel said as he noticed the glow of my horn.
He changed my thoughts to that of the night sky just outside the window. The soft gleaming of the stars and the polished white moon filled my head and before I knew it, I was outside the tower, looking in through the window at the ponies inside. Time seemed to stand still, a cool breeze brushing against my face as all four ponies looked silently towards me.
The gentle breeze quickly turned into a freezing hurricane and I drowned in the sound of my own screams as I plummeted towards the ground. Staring at the small, bright lights below and then the identical lights above, the window shattered into a thousand pieces. The glass fell like tiny raindrops, surrounding the yellow pegasus that came soaring towards me.
Catherine!?
Grabbing onto me, she sharply changed directions, now flying parallel to the ground. Crashing through the glass window had produced deep cuts all over her body and she was losing a lot of blood.
Unable to maintain her flight, she staggered in the air and we tumbled towards the ground. Rapidly approaching the city below, the small lights growing bigger and brighter, she aimed towards a window in an old building. She knew she was going to crash and she was determined to find somewhere safe to do so.
She turned herself at the last moment and absorbed the blow as we smashed through the window and tumbled onto the floor, slamming against the far wall.
My head throbbed from hitting the wall and I was covered in little pieces of broken glass, blood trickling out of the small gashes covering my body.
“Catherine!” I screamed, getting up and rushing to her side.
She lay in a crippled mass on the wood floor. Clutching her side tightly, she was covered in broken glass and coughing up blood. The entire event had destroyed her body and now I could hardly recognized her.
“You’re… you’re going to be okay, Catherine…. We’re going to find you some help.” I stuttered, bending down beside her.
“No, Twilight…” she said, staring back at me. “It’s time for you to go home.”
Her voice was weak, but calm. Tears rolled down her cheeks and onto the floor beside her as she moved her bloodied hooves away, revealing a large piece of glass embedded deeply into her chest.
“No! I’m not going to let you die here, Catherine!” I screamed, tears falling down the sides of my face.
“Do you remember what I said to you when we first met, Twilight?” she asked.
She paused and coughed twice while I just stared into the wetness of her eyes, the weak smile on her face growing slightly when she stopped.
“I said that if you fight for what you truly believe in, you can do no wrong.” she continued. “I was fighting for the wrong thing, Twilight… I wasn’t fighting for what I believed in… Instead, I was fighting for the dreams of some insane king and his lust for power.”
I just kept staring into her soft, light blue eyes as she spoke, my tears dampening the floor below.
“But I’m fighting for what I believe in now, Twilight. I’m fighting for what good is left in this world and I’m fighting for you. You can still make a difference, Twilight. I know you can.”
She turned her head and coughed again, wincing at the pain and clutching her chest harder.
“So I want you to leave. I want you to go home and tell Princess Celestia what happened and I want you to stop Pierre and help these ponies. I know that’s asking a lot from you, but I don’t know who else to turn to. I feel like you’re the only real friend I ever had.
“Please…Just don’t let him hurt anyone else…”
“I can’t just let you die here, Catherine.” I sobbed quietly.
“I’m already dead, Twilight. My bones are broken and my body is bleeding.” she said, smiling weakly. “I lived for the wrong reasons, so I’ll die for the right ones…
“I’m sorry I lied to you, Twilight… I’m sorry it had to end this way.”
I leaned in close and hugged her, being careful not to disturb her too much and cause her anymore pain.
“You don’t have to apologize to me, Catherine. I feel like I barely even know you, but you sacrificed yourself for me.”
As I pulled away, I noticed she wasn’t breathing anymore. Her eyes were closed softly and the weak smile on her face remained.
I’ll find a way, I thought to myself, wiping the tears from my eyes and rushing out into the cold, dark streets outside.
_______________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Hello again. The story is really starting to pick up pace now and a lot is going to happen over the next few chapters. I originally planned on writing ten chapters, but it will probably end up being eleven.
As always, thank you so much to my editor, Specter Von Baren, who spends an extraordinary amount of time on this. He always helps me find something to improve about the story and make it more exciting to read.
If you have any questions or comments about the story, I'm always happy to hear them. You can reach me at my email: [email protected] and I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
_______________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 7 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-14T02:05:23+00:00 | 2011-10-14T02:05:23+00:00 | 1,878 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 7
“So they were planning all of this from the very beginning?” Celestia asked, getting up from her position on the floor.
“Not everything, but more than we could have possibly imagined.” Twilight replied nervously.
The alicorn stared at the floor and slowly paced back and forth across the room. Twilight’s story and the detailed summary of the current situation had been quite jarring and she was still recovering.
“And the council was helping them the whole time?”
“I don’t know if every member of the council was involved or not. Pierre was pretty vague.” Twilight replied, her eyes following the princess as she moved about the room.
“I’m having trouble wrapping my head around all of this... Why didn’t you tell me about this sooner, Twilight?” Celestia said, stopping and raising her voice substantially. “Do you have any idea how important this is!? These ponies are trying to kill me!”
Twilight looked away from the princess, wincing at the dramatic change of her mood and the shear volume of her voice. Celestia’s anger pulsated throughout the room as she glared at the little purple unicorn in front of her.
“I was afraid of how you would react... I’m sorry, Princess Celestia.” Twilight replied, still trying to dodge her mentor’s cruel gaze.
Upon hearing her student’s apology, Celestia’s harsh glare faded into a worrisome look and she practically fell backward as she sat down again and dropped her head.
“I’m sorry, Twilight...” she apologized, “I’m so sorry… It’s not your fault. None of this is. It was mine for being so trusting, so ignorant… We need to do something about all of this before it’s too late.”
Twilight turned back towards the princess, “But what can we do, Princess Celestia? They’ll just deny everything I’ve said and try to convince you that it’s all a lie…”
Celestia shifted her head slightly as she contemplated the thought.
“I know and I don’t care.” Celestia replied gently, “I believe you, Twilight… And it’s because I believe you that we will have to go to war with Prance.”
“How will that help!? Isn’t that what they want?”
“No, it’s not what they want. They wanted to catch me by surprise.”
Celestia raised her head to stare back at Twilight with an uncompromising demeanour. It was an exceptionally focused expression that the unicorn had never seen before. The decision was hers alone and she could finally make a difference. All of the bureaucratic drivel had been pushed out of the way and she could act quickly and without doubt.
“I don’t want to start a war, Celestia...” Twilight said, a concerned look crossing her face as she sensed the princess’s emotions.
“It has already begun, Twilight. They brought this upon themselves and they should be prepared to face the consequences of their actions. I won’t sit here and wait for them to plunge a dagger into my heart. They’ve done enough already and I won’t let this continue any longer.
“I’m tired of shedding tear after tear for all the things I cannot change. The past is not the present, nor will it ever be, but the future is quite different. We can mould and shape the future, Twilight. We can change it and create a thriving society that everyone can live in happily, not just the greedy and influential noble elite.
“That is what I believe in, Twilight. Something better… But before we do anything at all, I have to speak with the former council members.”
“Now?” Twilight interrupted with a troubled gaze. “It’s past midnight.”
“Yes. They cannot be trusted and I don’t want them doing anything to intervene.” Celestia said as she walked to the door. “They betrayed me once before. I won’t give them time to do it again.”
~
“Did you hear that?” Goldenroot asked, breaking the silence and looking up from his book.
“Mmmm… Hear what?” Vortex said, dozily rolling onto her back.
“The door.” he continued from his seat across the room. “Someone’s knocking at the door.”
Goldenroot was sitting at the large desk in his study, a small lamp dimly illuminating the desktop and surrounding area. The smooth, glossy wooden surface was almost completely covered with the books and papers he had been drowning himself in.
“No… You’re just crazy… crazy and paranoid.” she sighed, rolling over onto her side again. “If you’re going to be crazy and paranoid and make me sleep on the couch in your study instead of my comfy bed at home then you have to be quiet.”
“No, I’m being serious. I think someone’s at the door.” he said, getting up from his seat and walking over to the couch. “And I told you that you could sleep in my bed if you were uncomfortable, but you said no.”
Vortex rolled over onto her back again before her eyes popped open, the amber irises piercing through the darkness and fixing on the pale green stallion above her. Goldenroot looked silently back at the navy blue pegasus, her messy hair unevenly covering the soft, contrasting red fabric of the sofa.
“I said you’re pushing your luck, Goldenroot.” she said, smiling faintly and yawning. “Why don’t you have spare bedrooms like everyone else? It’s not like your house isn’t big enough for them.”
“I have spare bedrooms, but they’re filled with books and files instead of beds. I never have any guests.”
“Well you have one now and she’s very displeased with the sleeping arrangements.”
Vortex closed her eyes and frowned superficially, crossing her forelegs over each other with a huff. She wanted Goldenroot to feel bad for her, but he just rolled his eyes at the overdramatic display of discontent.
“I’m going to check the door. Even if it’s just my paranoia, I’d rather be certain.” he said.
“If it’s a monster, be sure to scream so I can swoop in and save you.”
Goldenroot just shook his head at her remark and walked out of the room into the gloomy hallway, closing the door quietly behind him. Despite what Vortex believed, his house wasn’t all that big and the entranceway was only a short distance from the study.
Several loud knocks caused Goldenroot to come to an abrupt halt.
“Hello!?” he shouted, his voice echoing down the hall.
“This is Princess Celestia’s royal guard!” a muffled voice responded through the thick wooden door. “Goldenroot, we need to speak with you at once!”
“At this hour!?” he continued, nearing closer to the door. “What is this about!?”
“Goldenroot, you will open this door or we will break it down.” another, feminine voice yelled back.
What is she doing here!? Goldenroot thought as he grabbed the handle and turned it.
Pulling the door open revealed several of the princess’s guards standing all around the brilliant white monarch herself. Her mane flowed almost violently around her body as she stood at the doorstep, a bitter look on her face.
“Is Vortex here as well?” Celestia asked firmly, glancing around the dark room.
“No, of course not.” Goldenroot lied, staring strangely at the princess. “What is this about? Is it about her? Is she alright?”
Best not to let her know that Vortex is here, at least not until I know what this is all about, he thought, maintaining his anxious expression.
“Do not lie to me, I know she’s here. She wasn’t at her home and, from what I hear, she’s been spending a suspicious amount of time with you lately.” Celestia said, fixing a callous glare at the stallion.
Goldenroot blushed slightly, but the weight of the situation forced the embarrassment away, “Even if she is here, why would I want to lie about it?”
“You’re just avoiding my questions, Goldenroot.” Celestia said before turning to face the guards behind her. “Search the house and find that pegasus. She’s in here somewhere.”
The guards reacted quickly and pushed the stallion out of the way, rushing into the home. They split into several different directions, heading towards the various rooms.
Goldenroot turned and yelled loudly, his lungs burning as he forced the air out of them. “Vortex, get out of here! It’s not safe! Get out!”
“So you were lying to me.” Celestia said, shaking her head slowly, “You really are all the same aren’t you? Wind Dancer, Crescendo, even Thunderhorn and Prairie Star, they all denied their involvement. They all lied to me, so why would I think you were any different?
“Did you really think that you could take over my government? I’ve held this right since my birth over a thousand years ago.”
“What is wrong with you!? What are you doing!?”
“I’m punishing those responsible for the corruption in our country. You played your role and you will be punished for it appropriately. Your rank as a noble and a knight has been stripped, Goldenroot. You are a lowly peasant now, but I wouldn’t let that concern you. You won’t have much use for a title where you’re going.”
Goldenroots stuttered, “What… What are you going to do?”
“I haven’t quite decided yet.” Celestia replied, considering her options. “In the past, the punishment for treason and conspiracy was death and this has been going on for long enough that I may need to set an example for my subjects.”
“What has happened to you, Princess Celestia? Why are you doing all of this?”
The princess paused and just shook her head again. As the two stood in silence, the guards continued to frantically search the rooms of the house for the blue pegasus. Goldenroot hoped that his warning had given her enough time to escape.
“I could ask you the very same question, Goldenroot. I trusted you as a friend, enough to knight you even, but now I find out that you were working with Prance to destroy me?” Celestia said, turning her head slightly as she asked the rhetorical question. “I just want to know why, Goldenroot. Why would you do this to me after everything we’ve gone through?”
Goldenroot tried to calm himself down before replying, “Princess Celestia, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was never trying to destroy you.”
“Then you wished to capture me, enslave me, or otherwise remove me from power? Are you really so arrogant that you believe you could do better?”
Before Goldenroot was able to respond, a voice shouted, “In here! She’s in here!”
Goldenroot’s head snapped back towards the source as he watched a guard fly against the wall, propelled by a powerful blow to the chest. Vortex emerged from the room, standing on top of the guard she had just knocked out as the rest swarmed down the hallway towards her. It was too narrow for her to fly over them, so she went straight through. After gathering her strength, she pummelled through the armoured ponies and emerged on the other side unscathed.
Vortex, landed valiantly amongst the pile of unconscious guards, “Nice scream, but why are we fighting…”
She paused and her smile fell as she looked towards the princess standing just inside the doorway.
“I told you to leave, Vortex…” Goldenroot muttered softly as he looked at the pegasus.
“It’s so nice of you to join us, Vortex.” Celestia smiled, “But now that I have all the pieces of the puzzle, I can stop wasting time.”
Celestia’s horn lit up and the room grew darker as the lights were extinguished and a thick fog rolled across the floor.
“What’s going on, Goldenroot? What is this all about!?” Vortex yelled through the shadows.
Celestia’s voice cut through the dense fog, “I’m tired of hearing your excuses. Your actions are enough to put what little disbelief I have to rest.”
Her words echoed in the room as the two ponies slowly slipped out of consciousness. The fog was lifted and Celestia stood silently among the bodies of the former council members as several more guards rushed in from the street and proceeded to carry them outside.
“Put them in the dungeon with the others.” she said sternly, turning to one of the guards. “Those two lovers can share a cell the day before their judgement. It might be the only time they have left.”
The guard promptly nodded and hurried out into the streets after the others.
~
A small, concrete room with two beds, a simple toilet and a sink, the dungeon was a grim place. Over its astonishingly long existence, very few ponies had actually dwelled here. Admittedly, Celestia never really had any use for the dungeon. Perhaps it was the result of the very mundane society that she ruled over. With hundreds of guards constantly patrolling the streets of the capital, actual criminals were extremely rare. It was almost impossible to commit a crime in the city when someone was constantly looking over your shoulder and nearly every offence was discovered and prosecuted within a single day. And ever since the Nightmare Moon incident, Celestia considered locking a pony away in the dungeon the worst form of torture. Instead, she forced the guilty to perform community service and improve the society that they had deteriorated with their crimes.
“So is this what you thought would happen?” Vortex asked, glancing over at Goldenroot. “We’d end up in a dungeon waiting for our execution?”
“We don’t know that for sure. She never actually said that we would be executed.” Goldenroot replied, “But to answer your question, no I didn’t. I thought she might change her mind about eliminating the council, but what I think and what I feel are two different things entirely. I was afraid. That’s why I tried to protect you.”
The two ponies lay almost motionless in the old beds across the room from each other. The mattresses were surprisingly clean, but they were stiff and lumpy, causing the ponies to constantly shift their weight around the surface.
“I’m sorry I didn’t leave when you asked me to.” Vortex said, breaking the silence. “If I had listened to you, I might not even be here right now.”
“That’s okay, Vortex. I never really believed you would leave.”
“Really?” Vortex asked, smiling faintly. “Why not?”
“Because I would have done the same thing and we’re not actually that different from each other.”
The two ponies smiled pleasantly at the cracked ceiling above as they each thought about the pony on the opposite side of the room.
“Do you know why I was knighted?” Goldenroot asked.
“Actually, I don’t.” she responded, rolling over, propping her head up against her hoof and gazing at the pale green stallion patiently.
“Very few ponies are ever knighted in Equestria. I never really thought I was worthy of the honour and, as it turns out, neither did she…
“About eight years ago, when I was still working as an arboreal researcher, a small forest in the far east of the country was dying. It was a terrible disease that caused the bark on the trees to peel off, exposing the wood to the harsh weather. With nothing protecting the trees from decay, they slowly perished and the disease only spread more quickly.”
Goldenroot turned to face Vortex with a solemn expression. She was still watching him attentively and, even in this bleak dungeon, he blushed faintly at the thought of her admiring him wordlessly. But it was depressing, forcing him to turn back towards the ceiling and regain his composure. How could a sweet mare like her get wrapped up in all of this chaos?
“The disease threatened to spread to other forests and eventually kill every tree throughout the land.” he continued, “Naturally, Princess Celestia enlisted the help of every researcher in the country, including me. Other than the researchers, however, the entire country was kept behind a veil of ignorance.
“As time passed and the disease worsened, most of the researchers gave up looking for a cure. They urged Celestia to burn down the entire forest and save the remaining trees from harm, but would that really solve the problem? I didn’t think so and neither did the princess.
“We saw what the others did not. The disease could easily reappear and we couldn’t afford to burn down entire forests every time we ran into the problem.”
Goldenroot paused and leaned forward as he waited for a patrolling guard to pass. His eyes slowly following the sentry as he walked down the narrow hallway and in front of the iron bars that separated them from the outside world.
“They argued with her and even convinced the council, but she refused to change her mind.” Goldenroot said, leaning back again, “So one by one, the stubborn fools abandoned her. They all just deserted their research and left her to deal with the problem by herself.
“But I refused to leave. I was an inexperienced fool and didn’t know any better, but I still felt like I had to try. I spent every day and every night working on what little knowledge I had and eventually I started making progress. I had isolated the disease and had started to work on the cure. I told Princess Celestia that I needed a month, but she told me that I only had a week.
“You see, the other researchers were becoming impatient and they were threatening to burn down the trees, regardless of the princess’s orders. They were gathering the materials they needed and the entire forest would soon be set ablaze. However, what they didn’t realize was that the disease had already spread. It was in nearly every forest in Equestria and my laboratory, with all the essential data inside it, was at the heart of the disease and the forest they threatened to torch. If I didn’t finish my research in that one week, I would be burned alive.
“I continued to work despite the impending doom. I didn’t really care if I died. I believed that if a solution wasn’t found here and now then it never would be. This same event would only happen time and time again and so, on the very last day, I was still working in my laboratory when Celestia arrived.”
~
“I’m sorry, Goldenroot, but you need to leave now.” Celestia said, walking gradually up to me.
“All my research is here, I’m not leaving.” I replied firmly.
The laboratory I worked in was a large, wooden structure built in a clearing deep inside the forest. It seemed unreasonable to have such a huge, complicated workspace for a single pony, but it had once been packed with dozens of researchers, all working towards the same goal. Every one of them had been far older and more experienced than I, so why did they leave? Didn’t they know what would happen?
“They’re going to burn the forest down in a matter of minutes, you must leave.” Celestia continued, trying to persuade me to abandon my work.
“And then what!? Then I can watch the country rot and fade away as all life perishes and we die a slow and painful death from starvation!?” I yelled, turning to glare at her. “I’m sorry Princess Celestia, but I’m not leaving. If my life was ever worth anything at all, then its entire worth is placed on this very moment. I will find a cure or I will die trying. I refuse to follow the path that so many of my colleagues, my superiors and my idols did!”
I turned around and started working again. I was following the notes I had so diligently taken on the virus, grabbing test tubes and mixing the differently coloured chemicals in glass beakers around the laboratory. The task was significantly more difficult for an earth pony. Where a unicorn could precisely control the glass containers using magic, I had to manually grab each one of them and be careful not to drop any of the potentially volatile chemicals.
“Then I will stay here with you.” she replied in the same, serene tone of voice. “I can hold back the flames and give you the extra time you need.”
“Are you mad!?” I asked, turning around to face her again, practically laughing. “You’re the ruler of this country. The princess! You can’t afford to die here!”
“Goldenroot, your passion burns more brightly than any flame ever could. I find it highly doubtful that we’re going to perish.” she said with a smile.
I smiled back and turned around quickly, continuing my work with the test tubes. “I always wondered what it would be like to have an insane monarch leading my country. I guess it’s not so bad after all.”
After an hour had passed, I could finally smell the smoke of the fire burning just outside the building, but I wasn’t frightened. In truth, I don’t really know why. Was it because of what Celestia said or because of what I actually believed?
The alicorn was sitting on the floor in silence. She was concentrating her magic and keeping the flames from entering the laboratory, but I wasn’t sure how long she could hold out. It was strange, I always thought that a task like this would be easy for Celestia, but it seemed like her magic was weakening. Perhaps it was the combination of the flames, the smoke and the heat, or maybe the strength of an alicorn just wasn’t as legendary as we had all believed.
As the room heated and filled with an intense orange glow from the burning forest outside, I mixed the last of the chemicals together and poured a small droplet on the specimen nearby.
“Does it work!?” Celestia asked.
She was exhausted and the sound of her panting was barely audible over the crackling and burning timbers.
“I… I don’t know. I need more time.” I panicked.
“We don’t have anymore time, Goldenroot!” she yelled as she got to her hooves, “Grab your notes and let’s get out of here!”
She lifted a huge desk and flung it across the room at a large window, smashing the glass to pieces. Reacting quickly, I gathered up everything that could fit in my bag.
“Ready!?” she asked, glaring at me as I put the bags on my back.
As I nodded, she picked me up and threw me onto her back. Dashing out the broken window, we flew out of the woods and high into the smoke-filled air. As we ascended, I could see that the entire forest was engulfed by the fire, the huge flames rising far above the canopy.
“I don’t think I want to do that again.” she laughed, still panting from her fatigue.
~
“A week later, the tiny tree that I tested my cure on had prospered and it’s bark was rebuilding. We mixed the cure into artificial rain clouds and spread it over the affected forests.
“When all the trees had finally returned to normal, Celestia invited me to her castle. She knighted me for my bravery, but she refused to tell anyone else what happened, forcing everyone involved with the disease into secrecy. She said it was better that way. No one really needed to hear that their country had teetered on the edge of apocalypse.”
“You speak of it so casually…” Vortex smiled. “I heard about that forest fire. Everyone said it was just a natural disaster. What happened to the researchers that actually caused it?”
“The council refused to punish them. They believed that their hearts were in the right place and that they were just trying to help…” Goldenroot shook his head. “Ridiculous… I would have thrown them all in the dungeon for what they had done. Princess Celestia, felt the same as I did, but she couldn’t get anything past the council. Even minor punishments were waived.
“On the day I was knighted, I swore that I would become a member of the council and stop such atrocious things from happening ever again.”
“And just as the council was finally getting better, Celestia got worse and the council was abolished.” Vortex smirked. “Funny how that works.”
“I’m not laughing.”
“While I understand how you feel about all of this, don’t you think we should make the best of our situation?”
Vortex slid out of the small bed on the opposite side of the room and moved leisurely over to the stallion, who continued to stare at the ceiling and ignore her.
“I don’t really understand what you mean. How could we possibly make the best of this?” he asked.
“Well, we may only have one night left on this planet, isn’t there something you want to do other than just mope around.” she smiled, winking at him.
“We’re stuck in a dungeon at the bottom of the castle. Forget about what I want to do, I can’t really think of anything I can do.” he replied, sounding rather annoyed that she was so focussed on their depressing future.
“Oh, you are such an idiot sometimes, Goldenroot!” a pompous, but familiar voice sounded from the other side of the concrete wall.
Startled, Goldenroot sat up in his bed and turned to face the wall.
“Wind Dancer!?” he asked in surprise.
“Yes, you ignoramus, we’re all locked up in this dungeon together, even if we can’t see each other.”
“You were listening to all of that?”
“Of course I was!” Wind Dancer exclaimed, “How else should I entertain myself in this concrete box?”
“Then how come you didn’t interrupt me before?”
“Because up until now, I was trying to respect your privacy like a proper mare, but you’ve got such a thick head, I just had to intervene.”
Slightly offended, Goldenroot replied back, “What?”
“You can figure this one out, Goldenroot.” she said coolly, “You may only have one night left to live and you’re stuck in a dungeon with a beautiful young mare that you’ve spent a large part of your career gawking at.”
Vortex blushed brightly and rapidly turned away at the statement.
“What are you going to do?” Wind Dancer asked softly.
“Uuhhhh…” Goldenroot responded stupidly, glancing over at Vortex who was turned the other way and glowing red.
“Oh just kiss her, you idiot!”
~
Celestia stood behind a podium on a large wooden platform, pushed to the far edge of the town square. A massive crowd completely filled the area, small fillies and colts pointing at the stage and tugging on their parent’s tails as they tried to figure out what was going on. Their parents, however, were just as lost, very little had been explained about the gathering except that it was important. So the ponies just stood and waited in silent anticipation.
“Citizens of Equestria!” Celestia exclaimed, amplifying her voice with her magic. “You are no doubt wondering why I have gathered you all here today. The truth is that traitors have been living among us!”
The crowd gasped and looked around in shock and awe.
“Foul ponies, they have been working in the shadows, performing vile deeds and conspiring against us. They sought to overthrow the government and take it for themselves.” she continued, “I’m sorry that I let this happen to our country. I never would have believed that the very thing I created would turn against us, especially when we needed them the most.”
One after another, six ponies were led onto the platform and out into the open, each with an iron shackle around one of their hooves that connected them to their companions.
“Goldenroot, Vortex, Wind Dancer, Thunderhorn, Crescendo and Prairie Star, once members of the elite council and the nobility, have now been stripped of their titles and positions.” Celestia continued, turning to glare at the ponies as they stopped and faced the crowd in front of them. “They are not worthy of an honour that we reserve for only the most respected ponies in our society.
“They were working with Prance, the nation of ponies we all thought to be our allies and our friends. The drought that has caused so much suffering and pain was nothing that we could not have solved on our own in the past, yet it caused such terrible food shortages now. We all asked why and how, but only now do I know the truth. These ponies were lying to us and secretly worsening the drought. They were helping Prance weaken us for a coming war! They wanted to conquer our peaceful nation to meet their own selfish ends!”
“You’re making a mistake, Princess Celestia!” Wind Dancer cried, tears slowly rolling down her cheeks as she desperately tried to convince the alicorn. “We haven’t done anything wrong.”
Princess Celestia left her spot by the podium and walked slowly over to the white pegasus. Wind Dancer’s once long, beautiful light blue hair had lost most of its lustre, drooping down around her in a tangled mess. Everything she cared so much for had been tossed aside, disappearing in what seemed like an instant. The threat of her execution was too great and her appearance just didn’t seem to matter anymore.
“I wish I could believe you, Wind Dancer, but I can’t afford to gamble on our future. This is too important.”
Meanwhile, the crowd was becoming increasingly agitated by this new realization. How could anything like this happen? Were they really so weak and vulnerable that they had let this go on for so long?
Celestia turned away, leaving Wind Dancer speechless. She walked back in front of the podium and gazed out over the troubled ponies around her.
“I won’t let our country fall victim to their lies any longer, but I will not degrade myself to their level. Despite their crimes as traitors, conspirators and manipulators of the truth, I will grant them my mercy.”
She turned back towards the former council members and paused, glaring at each individually.
Goldenroot looked at Vortex who was chained beside him. She returned a momentary glance and smiled slightly before pulling her eyes away and staring at the floor beneath them.
“You will all be exiled from Equestria and never allowed to return. If you refuse to live in harmony with us, then you will be forced to live in discord without us.”
The ponies all reacted at once, sighing heavily or smiling brightly at their neighbour. Relieved to be spared, their eternal banishment from the country they had all spent their entire lives inside paled in comparison to an otherwise unfortunate and bitter end.
Vortex leaped over and hugged Goldenroot tightly, wrapping her hooves around the stallion’s neck. Goldenroot almost immediately returned the gesture, too happy to be embarrassed.
“If you choose to defy this punishment and return to Equestria for any reason at all, I will have to resort to a penance reserved for only the most horrifying of creatures. I am only giving you one chance, don’t waste it.”
All six of them were unshackled and led off the platform and into a large black stagecoach waiting nearby. The crowd booed and heckled them while the unicorns in the audience threw stones. As the first rock guided itself towards Goldenroot, a magical barrier was lifted in front of him, causing the stone to gently bounce off and fall to the ground. Surprised, Goldenroot stopped and turned back towards the stage.
Celestia looked back at him with disgust, “You may not be now, Goldenroot, but you were my friend. I owe you this much, but nothing more.”
Goldenroot just turned back and got into the stagecoach behind Vortex, the barrier disappearing as the door closed shut.
“Do not concern yourself with these traitors any longer. To remember them would be to acknowledge their existence within our country and I refuse to give them that satisfaction.
“No, we have more important matters to deal with! Our enemies lay waiting on our doorstop. They wish to see us misstep, but we cannot give them that opportunity. We must bring the war to Prance before they bring it to us. It is our privilege, no, our duty to stop them. They, not the drought, are the one true plague in this world and they must be brought to justice. We must free Prance from the tyranny of their leader and rescue its inhabitants from the corruption and brutality he has created.
“But I need to ask you for your aid, citizens of Equestria. Please, will you help me? Will you help your country? I am powerless without your support.”
Her speech had worked the crowd into a frenzy of emotion and they let out a deafening roar of approval, stamping the ground with their hooves and cheering loudly. Even the young fillies and colts cheered, though they didn’t understand why.
“Thank you.” Celestia said, bowing her head in gratitude, “I could not ask for a greater country, or ponies, to serve. Your courage and strength truly has no equal and it is an honour to live among you all.”
The crowd continued to cheer noisily as Celestia walked off the stage and towards the palace. They would support their princess. They would even follow her to the end of the earth and walk off the edge if she asked it.
~
Luna rushed down the hallway towards the throne room. Her new knowledge was nearly arresting, causing her to seethe with anger.
How could she do this!? she thought, the guards eyeballing her movements with curiosity. She banished the entire council from Equestria and now she’s starting a war!?
“I’m sorry, Princess Luna, but Princess Celestia is very busy with war preparations and she has asked not to be disturbed.”
Luna completely ignored the guards standing on either side as she flung the door wide open and walked through the threshold, leaving the two stunned ponies in her wake.
“Sister!” she yelled, slamming the door behind her.
Celestia was standing at a large table placed in the center of the room. A map was spread across the surface of a massive table, almost completely concealing the intricate carvings underneath. Small, differently coloured wooden blocks were strewn all over the map, each block representing a different army or group of soldiers.
As Luna drew ever closer to her sister’s position, Celestia turned around and smiled pleasantly, “Oh, hello Luna.”
“Why are you doing all of this? A war!? What are you thinking!?”
“Why?” Celestia repeated, turning back towards the table, “I was hardly given a choice in the matter. Prance held Twilight hostage, tried to convince us that she died and used the council, the second most influential members of our country, as puppets to further their own selfish goals. They wanted to take over our country, Luna. They wanted me gone forever.
“So wouldn’t sitting here and just smiling like I’ve been doing for the past millennia give you more grounds for asking ‘why?’ than a war? A war is what they wanted and it’s what I intended to deliver to them on a silver platter.”
Luna looked extremely confused, “I don’t understand where you’re getting this. Traitors..? Conspirators..? Who told you this?”
Celestia spun around, “Luna, Twilight told me everything that happened in Prance. I may not have wanted to hear any of it, but it’s the truth. Why would she lie about something like this? Do you think she wants a war? She’s a librarian not a bored soldier or a maniac. She wants this no more than you do and after the nightmare she went through I’m not about to even consider that she’s lying.”
Celestia shook her head and turned around again, glancing over the map and moving the small blocks around the surface delicately.
Luna’s anger diminished as she thought about everything Twilight had been through. Her sister hadn’t told her everything, but she had heard about the bandits and everything that happened afterwards was almost certainly worse.
“I’m sorry, sister…” she apologized quietly, “I just don’t think that a war is the answer to our problems.”
Celestia, recognizing her sister’s regret, turned back to face her. With a compassionate look in her eyes, she lowered her head down to her sister’s level.
“Luna, it will be alright. Prance is too small to oppose us. They will probably surrender within the first few days.” Celestia said reassuringly, “I’m not going to give them time to react and I will keep the casualties to a minimum. The only chance they had was through their dirty, indirect tactics.
“And who knows? Maybe if we knock on their door they will just open it, invite us in and no one will even be injured, but I can’t let them get away with this. There has to be some justice in this world and if I need to look for it, then so be it.”
But Luna’s worried look persisted, even as her sister smiled warmly at her. “You’ve changed, Celestia. This isn’t like you.”
Celestia’s smiled faded away as she raised her head and answered her sister, “No… It isn’t, but the circumstances have forced me to change and I’m beginning to think that a lot of our problems could have been avoided if I hadn’t been so blind.”
“Sister, please… stop…” Luna said, small tears welling in the corners of her eyes, “You sound like… her.”
“Her!?” Celestia exclaimed, “Why would you even say that, Luna? I’m not some nightmare trying to plunge the world into eternal darkness. I’m trying to protect us from psychopaths and criminals.”
Celestia was more surprised than angry at Luna. She was surprised that her sister would compare her to that monster spawned from jealously and hatred.
Celestia lowered her voice slightly, smiling at her sister again, “You know that I would never let anything happen to you, Luna. Now please, don’t worry about all of this. I promised you that I would fix my mistakes and intended on doing just that. This will all be over soon.”
Luna turned and walked away from her sister and toward the door on the far end of the room. I know that, sister, and that’s exactly what I’m afraid of. I’m afraid that when this is all over, you’ll find out that you’ve just made another mistake.
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Author’s notes:
Hello everyone. Another long chapter this time, so I hope you enjoyed it. The tension is building and the story is getting very close to its climax and conclusion.
I’m going to work on a revised chapter two that will describe the important council members a little more and talk about Goldenroot’s knighthood so that it doesn’t seem like such a surprise in this chapter.
As always, thanks goes to my editor, Specter Von Baren, who actually asked for a rewrite of the chapter. The original version is stored on my hard drive and I might post it after the conclusion. I think it might be interesting for everyone to see the kind of work that goes into these things and what happens when the author and the editor completely disagree.
If you have any questions or comments about the story, I'm always happy to hear them. You can reach me at my email: [email protected] and I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
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Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 8 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-30T17:32:46+00:00 | 2011-10-30T17:32:46+00:00 | 2,640 | Just as a note to everyone, chapter 2 and chapter 4 were revised. The chapter 2 revision is quite major, while the chapter 4 revision was very minor. I encourage you to read chapter 2 again, but it doesn't contain any major changes to the actual plot.
Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 8
“Alright, I’ve given us enough time to get out of the city, now I want to know who’s responsible for all of this! Who was the filthy scoundrel that nearly cost me my life!?” Thunderhorn yelled, startling the ponies inside the stagecoach as he glared around the interior.
“Calm down, general. We can all hear you.” Vortex smirked, “Although I have to admit, I’m a little bit curious myself.”
“Don’t you dare think I’m going to take you out of the equation, you egotistical brat.”
“Don’t make accusations you can’t back up!” Goldenroot interrupted, glaring at the grey unicorn, “You don’t even know what you’re talking about! How do you know that anyone here is actually a traitor?”
Vortex smiled faintly, embarrassed that Goldenroot was defending her, admittedly, discourteous actions.
Thunderhorn snorted, “We wouldn’t have lost our jobs and been banished from our homeland if someone wasn’t a traitor.”
“No, “Goldenroot replied with a deathly serious expression, “but don’t you think there’s more to it than just a traitor? I don’t think that anyone would want to betray both Princess Celestia and their country for promises of power.”
“Why does this always have to be a game to you, Goldenroot?” Wind Dancer asked, gently sobbing as she leaned against the wall. “We lost our homes, our fortunes, our fame… What was wrong with the way things were?”
The small carriage went quiet as the five ponies just sat and listened to the pegasus sobbing in the corner.
“It was you, wasn’t it, Goldenroot?” she asked quietly, breaking the silence, “You were the one helping Prance, weren’t you?”
There was a momentary pause as they all turned to look towards the pale green stallion. He slowly lifted his hoof to his face and started to rub the bridge of his nose, letting a deep sigh escape his lungs.
“Yes, but it’s not…” he started.
“I knew it was you, you filthy mongrel! How dare you destroy everything I worked so hard to obtain!” Thunderhorn interrupted, jumping up from his seat and throttling the stallion with his magic.
“Stop it, Thunderhorn! I won’t watch you turn into a murderer!” Crescendo shouted while using his own magic to break the unicorn’s grasp.
Thunderhorn reluctantly complied, falling back onto the bench and putting a hoof up to his face. Goldenroot coughed and rubbed his neck, while Vortex just sat and stared at the stallion in disbelief.
“Besides, I would rather hear him explain himself.” Crescendo continued.
But before Goldenroot could say anything, Prairie Star started to laugh in her corner of the stagecoach. She just giggled away as everyone diverted their attention towards her.
“Are you alright, Prairie Star?” Crescendo asked.
“I thought I had everything under control.” she replied with a strange smile. “But in the end, I wasn’t really doing anything was I? The whole thing was completely out of my hooves and it all turned into a nightmare.
“I sacrificed so much for this, so much of my life, my happiness, even my own personality… I remember that stallion I met so long ago. He was so handsome… so sweet… but I was just too boring. I had spent my entire life learning how to react to both exciting and depressing news in complete monotony that I couldn’t even remember how to have fun so I just sat and watched him go. Watched him leave… I couldn’t even cry about it when I got home. I didn’t even know how to do that anymore…”
The mare continued to stare outside the window and started to laugh quietly.
“You’re all so sad that you lost your precious houses and your beloved money, but you still have what’s important, don’t you?”
Tears started to form in the corners of her eyes as she turned around and looked away from the window and into the carriage at each of the ponies inside.
“I don’t have that.”
She turned back towards the window and gazed outside again.
“But at least my life is depressing enough now that I can remember how to cry…”
Prairie Star closed her eyes gently and started to sob uncontrollably, her golden hair obscuring her face. Her startling reaction had even surprised the usually overdramatic Wind Dancer, who now sat upright and completely motionless in her seat.
Vortex leaned over from her seat and wrapped her arms around the mare. No one had ever seen her like this. No one could have ever imagined the kind of effect that something like this might have on a pony, but Prairie Star’s entire life revolved around the council.
As a young filly, she grew up believing that the council was one of the most important organizations in the entire country and she had spent most of her life trying to work her way in. Unfortunately, unlike the other members, she was not a celebrity in any way, shape, or form and she was completely ignored in the elections. So the only chance she had was to apply for the director position, which only required a nomination from the princess. While she would not actually participate in the voting procedure, she still felt like she would be making a difference and perhaps, someday, she could become a proper member.
But the position required every single aspect of the personality she did not have. She was an excitable and emotional mare who reacted to almost everything in a spectacular fashion. It was only through determination and intense training that she was able to contain these feelings and establish her legendary monotony. And once she had that, Princess Celestia was more than happy to give her the nomination and, when it became available, the actual position. But now that the council was gone and she was banished from her country, she had lost her dreams and with it, everything she believed in.
They remained in silence for a few hours while the coach just bumped along the road, nearing ever closer to their destination. Not until Prairie Star had finally stopped sobbing and drifted off into a deep sleep, did they once again start to question Goldenroot’s involvement.
Vortex, still holding onto the sleeping pony, glanced over at the stallion with a worried expression, “So what were you doing? Why did you want to help Prance overthrow Celestia?”
Once again, the focus of attention returned to Goldenroot as he replied, “I was only ever trying to get the commoners involved in the council. I was not trying to overthrow Princess Celestia, I don’t even know where that came from. I don’t know whether it’s a lie or just a misunderstanding, but it’s not the truth.”
“You mean you didn’t know what they were trying to accomplish?” Crescendo asked, slightly taken aback.
“No. I had no idea. To be honest, I still can’t believe that’s what they were trying to do.”
“So what do you believe?” Vortex asked, holding the sleeping mare more tightly between her forelegs.
“Well that’s kind of difficult to explain on its own, so I’ll go back to the beginning. You see, some time ago when the drought had first started, I was approached by Le Roi Pierre at my home. Naturally, I was a bit curious since we rarely ever have any foreigners in the country and having the monarch of any country on your doorstep is quite the honour. I was told that he was trying to keep his visit very low profile. He didn’t really want the general public to know that he was here.”
Thunderhorn scoffed, “And you didn’t find that at all suspicious?”
“Actually I did, but then he told me why he had actually arrived. You see, he came to see Princess Celestia.”
The other ponies exchanged several surprised glances.
“Why would he want to see Celestia?” Crescendo blurted, asking the obvious question.
“Le Roi Pierre told me about the situation in his country and how they were having problems acquiring all the resources they needed. They relied heavily on trade with their surrounding nations and when the largest country in the world refuses to trade with you, it’s hard to make a living.
“He only wanted to know why we wouldn’t trade with his country.”
“Why would he need to come all the way to Equestria to do that?” Vortex asked.
“Well it sounded like he wasn’t really asking… He was begging…” Goldenroot replied. “His country had spent the last two hundred years trying to establish proper trade routes with us, but every single proposal was turned down and they were finally getting desperate.”
“Why wouldn’t Princess Celestia just pass the law and get it over with.” Wind Dancer asked, jumping into the conversation and rolling her eyes a little. “It doesn’t seem like such a bad thing.”
“It wasn’t Princess Celestia’s fault.” Thunderhorn interjected. “It was ours. As far as I’m aware, Princess Celestia both proposed and approved every one of those laws. The council, however, refused to sign any of them. It wasn’t worth our time or effort to get wrapped up in the outside world.”
“Exactly.” Goldenroot said, nodding his head slowly. “Le Roi Pierre was trying to get Princess Celestia to convince the council, but she couldn’t do anything. The council was stubborn and refused to change their opinion. I was part of the council when one of those proposals went through, as well as Crescendo and Thunderhorn; however, I was the only one to vote in favour of it. That’s exactly why Le Roi Pierre came to me. Princess Celestia had actually pointed him in my direction.”
“Thunderhorn and I had been in the council long enough to see three of those dreaded proposals. No one ever wanted to deal with all the problems it would create…” Crescendo said, shaking his head. “I say, Goldenroot, this is getting more confusing the more I hear about it. It seems like Princess Celestia knows a lot more about all of this than she lets on, so why does she seem to have such a convoluted understanding?”
“I think Goldenroot is lying.” Thunderhorn exclaimed.
“Why would I lie now?” Goldenroot asked. “If I wanted to lie about this, why would I wait until the very end and explain to you that I’m responsible? I won’t gain anything from lying to you now.”
“Alright, I see your point.” Thunderhorn admitted, “So why would Princess Celestia believe we were the cause of the drought?”
Goldenroot frowned slightly, “I was partly responsible for the drought. Not for starting it, but for making it worse. You see, I explained to Le Roi Pierre that the council was stubborn and unwilling to change. I talked about how I had hoped to expand the council to include everyone in Equestria, not just the nobility. I wanted everyone to have a voice in the government, but the rest of the council did not. It’s much easier to just sit in your house and watch the world go by from your window than it is to actually step outside. You feel comfortable and safe, free from all the world’s problems.
“He just smiled at me and said, ‘No one will change if they don’t have to. Sometimes you have to create the catalyst for change. You have to set their houses on fire and force them to step outside.’”
“And the drought was your fire…” Vortex remarked, quietly interrupting the stallion.
“Yeah…” the pale green stallion responded, nodding his head. “A natural disaster inspires fear in your heart. That fear forces you to try and fix the problem before it gets worse. In Equestria, we have been mostly sheltered from these natural disasters. Princess Celestia’s power and wisdom lets her fix almost everything before it can get worse and even when problems do exist, she shields us from fear. She tries to hide the truth. I knew that for a fact from my experience with the arboreal virus. I was knighted for saving the world, but no one even knew it was ever in danger.”
“So you sabotaged the country and made the drought worse to help pass both your laws.” Crescendo said, trying to bring him back to the point.
“We paid teams of pegasi to prevent certain weather patterns from entering the country. Some rain still got through, but we were keeping enough back to stop the crops from growing.”
“Do you have any idea how much damage you caused with all of this!?” Thunderhorn asked, shaking his head.
Prairie Star stirred in her sleep, adjusting her head slightly as she reacted to the unicorn’s noisy response.
“Ponies lost their homes, some almost died.” he continued, trying to keep his volume to a minimum.
“No one was supposed to get hurt.” Goldenroot answered, “We had organized for Prance to send provisions to help everyone, but I never expected the nobility to end up buying all of the supplies they sent. They took everything, far more than they needed.
“I was worried, so we stopped worsening the drought and let everything return to normal. However, not before Princess Celestia sent Twilight Sparkle to Prance. I don’t think she knew what I was actually doing, but I think that she was trying to get us, the council, to realize that we needed to trade with them. She already knew the answer to our problem and she was trying to convince us indirectly.”
“But we didn’t listen.” Crescendo replied.
“Yeah. Only I knew the truth, but I couldn’t tell anyone. If I did, I risked being discovered and I would probably be thrown in jail for treason.”
“Or exiled…” Wind Dancer scoffed, rolling her eyes and glancing out the window.
Goldenroot frowned and rubbed the bridge of his nose again.
“So I just stuck to the plan and tried to get everyone to vote for the law to involve the commoners in the council. After that was passed, we would all have to run for re-election. When the new council was formed, Equestria would recover on its own now that we weren’t sabotaging it and the public would believe that the drought was improving due to the changes in the council. I, being the one to first suggest the idea, would be regarded as a national hero and an important political figure. I would have an incredible influence and I could convince everyone to establish the trade routes with Prance.”
“And what if you didn’t get re-elected?” Thunderhorn asked.
“I was giving every single pony in Equestria the right to vote, something that they’ve wanted for generations. It’s very hard to believe that I wouldn’t get re-elected after that.”
“So what? You just wanted to become some kind of national hero?” Vortex asked, turning to watch the countryside pass by outside the window. “This was all just some kind of ego trip for you?”
“I didn’t really want to be a hero, Vortex.” he replied, dropping his head slightly. “I just wanted to make a difference. Ever since I got involved with politics after the forest fire, I wanted to do something like this. I thought this was my only chance and, even though it seemed like a more elaborate way of making an impact than I wanted, we weren’t making any progress in the council.”
“Two hundred years… They had been trying to establish trade routes with us for two hundred years and our ignorance was the only thing standing in their way. The situation with the commoners and the council has roots that go much deeper than that. I thought this was the best thing to do… I never wanted to hurt anyone.”
“Fair enough, Goldenroot.” Crescendo said, shrugging. “So Le Roi Pierre is a die-hard patriot and you’re an arsonist and a lost visionary. That doesn’t explain why Princess Celestia would think that Prance is trying to take over the world.”
The stagecoach came to an abrupt stop and jolted the ponies inside. Prairie Star batted her eyelids and leaned away from the wall. Vortex smiled at her gently and slowly removed her forelegs from around her waist.
“No it doesn’t. That’s exactly what I’ve been trying to tell you. This doesn’t make any sense.” Goldenroot exclaimed, “Something else is going on here and now I’m afraid that we’ll never find out.”
The door to the stagecoach swung open and the two guards looked inside.
“This is your stop, traitors. A land with no name, owned by no country.” one of the guards announced with a brash tone.
Wind Dancer was the first to step out, glaring at the two as she left. Neither she, nor any of the other council members, appreciated being called a traitor. The others followed suit, stepping out into a dense forest. Having travelled all day, it was now dark outside. The thick pine trees of the woods rose high above their heads, partially masking the glowing moon and stars in the serene night sky. Dim lights shone out from the windows in the small village off in the distance and a bumpy dirt trail leading to the village was covered erratically in little stones and patches of moss and grass.
Is this where we have to spend the rest of our days? Goldenroot thought, watching the lights flicker in the distant windows of the town. Cast out, we’re intended to be lost and forgotten and live like savages in the middle of nowhere?
The guards slammed the stagecoach’s door shut and returned to their place behind the wagon, the two ponies in front making a wide arc as they turned the carriage around and started the long journey home.
“So what exactly are we supposed to do?” Wind Dancer asked looking around the group in confusion.
“We should probably find some food and lodging first. We can figure out what we’re going to do in the morning.” Goldenroot replied.
“Does anyone have any money?” Thunderhorn asked.
The other ponies all just shook their heads.
“Wonderful…” he sighed, “I’m so glad we were all prepared for this.”
“How could you possibly be prepared for something like this?” Vortex said under her breath.
“Regardless, we should still find an inn.” Crescendo said, “Perhaps we can work out some kind of arrangement.”
~
At the base of the cliff from which Canterlot was situated, a vast army was forming. The sea of golden armoured soldiers blanketed the ground. They had pitched thousands of tents, sticking out at regular intervals and disturbing the peaceful tranquility of the green fields they occupied. It had only been one week, but it was more than enough time to gather the bulk of the army and only a few remained to keep vigilant watch over the various cities and towns around the country. It wasn’t conscription, but it may as well have been. All of Equestria had been devastated by the drought and its entire population had been cowering in the corner, afraid of the distant enemy they could not see with their own eyes. So when it was revealed that Prance and the council were responsible for the drought, they were eager to fight back. Now they had a common enemy to direct their anger and sorrow towards, more than happy to eliminate the pointless squabbling amongst their own kind. They could do nothing against the drought, but they could something against Prance. They could punish them for the sorrow and pain they had endured. Everything that they had lost, Prance would be held responsible for taking.
Celestia, perched on the towering balcony above, monitored their progress and tried to keep an accurate measure of their numbers. It was well over twenty thousand now, not nearly as many as the armies of legends, but more than enough to accomplish the task that had been laid out for them. In truth, she had no intention of actually taking Prance for her own, ruling over it like she did with Equestria. She wanted to free the nation from the tyranny of their imprudent ruler, but there was something else that ate at her insides like a horrible disease. It was a feeling that she struggled to contain, a thirst that she refused to quench. It was a thirst for revenge and, like the soldiers below, she wanted to make Le Roi Pierre pay for his crimes.
She wanted to make him pay, but she knew she couldn’t. She couldn’t let her anger and hatred for a single pony take control. It was an unreasonable desire that could only lead a pony to madness, so she just watched. She watched and planned out her careful advance upon her northern neighbour. Everything had to go according to plan or she would only become the cause of more pain and misery for the ponies in the nation she protected. They had suffered enough already under her selfish neglect.
Behind her, a familiar purple pony slowly approached. Carefully moving one hoof after another and trying not to startle her teacher, Twilight stopped just beside her.
“Hello Twilight.” Celestia said pleasantly, still keeping an eye on the golden mass of soldiers below.
“You seem awfully calm about all of this, Princess Celestia.” Twilight remarked, turning a concerned glance towards the alicorn.
“I have to be. They depend on me for their strength. They may be soldiers, but they are far from fearless and it has been centuries since Equestria was part of any major conflicts. None of these soldiers have any real battle experience. At best, they might have some familiarity with petty bar fights.”
“But doesn’t that mean you’ve just been doing a good job of ruling over our country? You’ve lived for so long, yet you’ve avoided so many wars. I never would have imagined that I would be seeing this in my lifetime.”
“Unfortunately, that only makes the problem worse. It’s exactly as you say. No one could have imagined this and that only means we’re unprepared.”
The two silently watched the soldiers move far below the castle. From a distance, they looked like a powerful army, but Twilight could see the real ponies below. Some were scared, regretful of the positions they had signed up for. Others were too worried about the kind of amazing stories they would tell when they returned in a few weeks, completely ignorant of the danger that waited for them.
“I don’t suppose you’re here to try and convince me to change my mind.” Celestia asked, breaking the silence as she finally turned to face her student.
“I’m not really sure what to believe anymore, princess.” Twilight replied, letting her head slowly fall towards the floor. “I still want to believe that there’s another, better way, but I’m starting to understand that there isn’t. I came, not because I wanted to try and convince you of anything, but because I wanted to know that you’re absolutely certain that this is the right decision.”
“We are by nature, very near-sighted creatures, Twilight. We always want to do what we think is best at the moment, but we never really take the time to stop and think about how our decisions are going to affect the future. Sadly, the future is almost entirely unpredictable so how can we ever be sure we’re making the right decisions?”
“I’ve always believed quite strongly that we can’t. We can never be absolutely sure that we’re making the right decisions and that’s exactly why we have to take such a near-sighted approach to everything. We can only do what we believe is right at the moment and hope for the best.”
“So you only think this is the right thing to do at the moment? What if you change your mind?”
Celestia smiled faintly and turned back to stare across the horizon. The rolling hills and forests leading away from the castle and into the distance painted a beautiful picture on the landscape.
“You are and will always be more than just a student to me, Twilight. If I have to do this to protect you, my sister and everyone else in Equestria from harm, then I believe this is the right thing to do. I don’t think I could ever live long enough to regret protecting the ones I care about.”
Twilight moved closer and nuzzled her head up against the side of Celestia’s neck. The alicorn smiled more brightly and moved her wing around the unicorn, pulling her closer.
“When will you be back?” Twilight asked, not daring to look up at her teacher.
“As soon as I can be.” she answered, “I hope to be back in a few weeks, but I can’t be sure. Nothing ever really seems to go according to plan, does it?”
Celestia turned her head down towards Twilight and smiled, the unicorn reluctantly returning the gesture.
“I don’t really care how long it takes, princess.” Twilight said, closing her eyes and pulling herself closer to the alicorn. “I just want you to come back.”
“I will never leave you alone, Twilight. I won’t make that mistake again.”
~
It was a dark and overall depressing place, doing nothing to help lighten the mood. The floor, made of rickety wooden boards that unevenly covered the dirt beneath, squeaked curiously as it moved under the pressure of a pony’s hooves. And, located in the basement, it was nearly freezing to the touch, in spite of the unusually warm autumn weather waiting just outside the building’s walls. Shelves stacked chaotically with old books and documents detailed the otherwise boring walls on either side of the room. At the far end, however, was a single painting that glowed like a lantern in a dark cave. It was ugly, horrendous even, but that’s exactly what made it so interesting to look at. It was a picture of a burning village, smeared across with poorly illustrated flames and lifeless ponies. They just seemed to stand there and watch the flames consuming their houses, displaying no emotions or reacting at all to the terrible disaster taking place before their eyes. It was the only thing in the room that gave it any character and what character it gave was miserable and unwanted.
The innkeeper had graciously given them all a room to sleep in and enough food to keep their stomachs from complaining, but the old stallion wasn’t about to give away his best accommodations to a bizarre collection of ponies that just seemed to appear out of thin air in the middle of the night. So they had all slept in the basement with its completely chilling atmosphere and just as unpleasant beds. Thin sheets were laid out across a hard mattress, only just barely adequate in covering their bodies and protecting them from the night. It was entirely comparable to the dungeon in which they had spent their last night in Equestria, just less ominous and fear-provoking.
The event had changed them all, leaving them with invisible scars and constant reminders of their grim situation. None of them really knew what was going to happen next, which was exactly why they all seemed to have just given up. They couldn’t return to their past life, it was too far gone and their last experience left many of them with a sour taste in their mouths and no desire to revisit their home country. They could live here, but they had nothing. Politicians with few survival skills, they were as good as beggars. Finally, as a last alternative, they could leave and go somewhere else, the fate that Crescendo had resigned himself to.
“Where are the others?” The dark brown unicorn asked, as he fumbled with the supplies in his bag.
“Vortex is out in the forest with Prairie Star.” Goldenroot replied, getting up and walking over to his colleague. “Wind Dancer and Thunderhorn are still out trying to find ways to make some money.”
“They didn’t want to see me off, then?”
“Prairie Star has been having a difficult time ever since the incident in the stagecoach. I don’t want to force her to do anything right now and I’m grateful that Vortex is spending so much time with her.”
“And Wind Dancer and Thunderhorn just don’t really care?” the unicorn asked, grinning slightly and chuckling. “They both still want to go back to Equestria, don’t they?”
“Why wouldn’t they? It’s their home isn’t it?” Goldenroot asked with a hint of irritation in his voice as he watched Crescendo organize his things.
“I like to think of this as an excuse to go on a very long vacation. It’s almost like someone has given me permission to explore anywhere in the world, except Equestria. And I’m alright with that. I’ve already been there anyway.”
Crescendo stopped fiddling with his bags and glanced over towards the pale green stallion standing near him. He smiled brightly and chuckled to himself before turning serious again.
“I guess I’m just too old to deal with this anymore, Goldenroot. I just want to go out into the world and enjoy myself a bit. That’s something I never really had the time to do. So much of my life revolved around music and the council and now…”
The unicorn hoisted the bags up and over his head, letting them come to a slow rest on his back before releasing his grasp and letting them sag over the side of his body.
“Well it’s kind of like you said, isn’t it? No one ever really wants to leave the comfort of their own home, but if someone sets it on fire then you don’t really have a choice.”
“I’m sorry, Crescendo.” Goldenroot apologized, letting his gaze drop from the unicorn. “I guess I just thought that everything would go according to plan. I really believed that I was going to help everyone.”
“I’ve heard that one before.” Crescendo said, grinning slightly. “Don’t get me wrong, I do blame you for what happened, but I’m just not angry about it. I’m far too old for that and there are far more important things to worry about than revenge.”
The unicorn started walking towards the door leading out of the basement and into the rest of the building. Slowly pulling it open, he turned around and glanced at the stallion standing in the center of the room.
“You’re a good pony, Goldenroot, but you made a really poor decision. I may not really care, but you should find a way to make it up to everyone else. Or, at the very least, you should find a way to make it up to her.”
The unicorn let the door gently close behind him as he stepped outside, leaving Goldenroot alone in the silence of the small room.
Vortex wasn’t angry with him, like Thunderhorn and Wind Dancer were. No, what she felt was more of a sense of disappointment, like he had failed her in some way. Goldenroot had wanted to apologize, but he didn’t know how. They had lived here for over a week now and he could barely even work up the courage to look at her, let alone say anything, so how could he possibly apologize to her for destroying their lives and disturbing the peace of an entire country?
The stallion only just decided to sit down on his bed to give it some more thought when several short, precisely spaced knocks arrived at the door.
Did he forget something? he thought, rolling his eyes and continuing on to the bed.
The knocks at the door continued, identical to the last.
“Oh, just come in already!” he shouted angrily, tilting his head towards the door, but not bothering to look back.
“Is this a bad time, Sir Goldenroot?” a graceful, but anxious voice asked through the door. “I can come back later, if you like.”
Goldenroot paused for a moment, completely unable to recognize the voice on the other side of the door, Sir Goldenroot!?
The door sighed heavily as it opened and the stallion just stared at the pony in the doorway. She was not completely unlike Wind Dancer and he would not have given a second thought to calling her by that name if it weren’t for a few defining characteristics. Her coat was undeniably the same white, but her mane and tail were a darker shade of indigo instead of the light blue hair that gently cascaded down Wind Dancer’s body. Surprisingly, however, it was just as expertly groomed, if not even more so than the mare who claimed to spend hours on her hair every morning.
And yet, despite the difference in hair colour and appeal, what stood out most boldly was the absence of her wings and the presence of a horn on the top her head. Indeed, she was a unicorn and not a pegasus like the mare he had worked with in the council.
“Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Rarity. I’m one of Twilight Sparkle’s friends?” she said, leaving the last part as a kind of question and hoping that the stallion would recognize the name of Celestia’s star pupil.
“Yes, I know Twilight. She’s Princess Celestia’s student. What do you want?” Goldenroot replied, still staring at the brilliant unicorn standing at the entrance to the dark pit that he now called his home.
“You are Sir Goldenroot, are you not?” she asked, staring back at him curiously.
“Not anymore, I had that title revoked.”
“Well actually, that’s part of the reason I’m here.”
“I don’t want to be called that anymore, Miss Rarity. I’m not the hero everyone thought I was and I just want to be left alone.”
Goldenroot started to push the door closed, but Rarity held it open with her magic.
“Please, this is very important.” she insisted, releasing her grasp once he stopped pushing.
“Alright then.” he sighed, turning around. “I imagine this is going to take a while. Do you want to sit down, Miss Rarity?”
She cautiously walked into the room and stopped, carefully investigating the uncomfortable and filthy mattresses on the floor and then the strange objects around the room. She only stopped when she arrived at the peculiar picture hanging on the wall.
“Miss Rarity?” he asked again.
“Umm, I think I would rather stand.” she replied, pulling her eyes away from the painting and flashing a nervous smile at the stallion.
“Yeah, I don’t like it either, but I haven’t really had much of a choice.” Goldenroot said, frowned slightly as he lay down on one of the beds, “What did you want to talk about?”
“Well I was actually hoping that you might help me.”
Goldenroot laughed, “What could I possible do?”
“I understand why you might find this humorous, but I really do need your help. You see, Twilight Sparkle…”
She paused and slowly turned her head to the side as she tried to think about what to say next.
“She’s not really…” she continued, “Well, she was supposed to come and see us in Ponyville, but…”
“Listen, Miss Rarity, I may live in a dark hole in the middle of nowhere, but I don’t want you to waste my time. I know Twilight has been depressed since her journey and she spends a lot of time with Celestia now, but that’s not really my problem. So if that’s all you’re going…”
“I don’t think she ever actually came back from Prance.” Rarity blurted out, interrupting Goldenroot midsentence.
________________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Hello again readers. I’ll start off by saying thanks to my editor, Specter Von Baren, for helping me out with the story, as always.
I would also like to give a shout out to MaximillianVeers on Deviant Art who has been maintaining a stunning eReader ready PDF of my story. Thank you so much, MaximillianVeers, I really appreciate your hard work and I’m honoured to know that my story is worthy of your time and effort. (Now if only I had an actual eReader…)
As always, if you have any questions or comments about the story, you can reach me at my email: [email protected] I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 9 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-10-30T23:41:39+00:00 | 2011-10-30T23:41:39+00:00 | 3,083 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 9
“Oh, pardon me.” Rarity said, lifting a hoof to her chest apologetically, “I really shouldn’t have interrupted you like that. I just got carried away.”
Goldenroot was sitting in a stunned silence, unable to completely grasp what she had just said. He was just staring at the unicorn with a blank, unintelligible look on his face.
“What… What do you mean, you don’t think she ever actually came back from Prance?” he asked, tilting his head to the side.
“Not so long ago, just before I made the trip out here to find you, I was involved in a series of events that, while seemingly dull enough at first, led me to believe this was the case.
“The first was a visit from Princess Luna at my home in Ponyville. Strangely enough, she had arrived alone and unannounced with only a single question that she wanted to ask me, ‘Has Twilight Sparkle come to visit you recently?’
“Understandably, I was quite confused and even upset with her question. I thought she was suggesting that Twilight had turned into a ghost or something equally as awful. Of course, I don’t believe in such nonsense. Ghosts…”
“You mean she never actually came to Ponyville?” Goldenroot asked, pulling her back to the point before she got carried away.
“She died, Sir Goldenroot…” Rarity stated with a pained expression, “We held a funeral for her.”
The unicorn turned her head away from the stallion as the heartbreaking memories started to return. Her eyes began to water, but she simply closed them and breathed deeply, the air entering and exiting her lungs shakily as she neared the point of breaking down.
Intrigued and confused by her response, Goldenroot ignored her fragile emotional state and continued to press her for answers, “But Princess Celestia has been with her for the past few weeks.”
Rarity took another deep breath and attempted to gather her thoughts before answering the stallion. Convinced that she wouldn’t shed any tears in front of him, she turned back and tried to maintain a serious expression.
“Unfortunately, that’s what I came to realize as well. After Princess Luna had left with a rather concerned look on her face and a complete reluctance to explain why she was asking such strange questions, I decided to express my concerns to Princess Celestia.
“I wanted to know what was going on, but when I arrived in Canterlot I came to realize that a horrible event was just about to take place.”
“The war is my fault, Miss Rarity.” Goldenroot intervened.
“Listen Sir Goldenroot, whatever skeletons you have in your closet can wait until I’ve finished explaining what I need to. After I explain, you may have a different opinion about everything that’s happened.”
Goldenroot reluctantly restrained his thoughts while the mare waited silently for him to give her his full and undivided attention.
“I realized that Equestria was going to war with Prance, a fact that Ponyville was obviously being sheltered from, and I was curious why.” she continued, “It seems that they were being held responsible for the drought, but I didn’t really believe that. Why would they send us food and supplies if they were only trying to conquer us? And furthermore, why would such a small nation try to pick a fight with us when their defeat seems inevitable?”
Goldenroot almost opened his mouth, but he was met with a stern glare from the unicorn.
“So now I was only more curious about the question Princess Luna had asked me. Upon arriving at the castle and the entrance to Princess Celestia’s private chambers, the guards at the door were absent and the door was left ajar. I didn’t want to be so rude as to just barge in, so I waited for a moment while I contemplated knocking. You see, knocking isn’t the proper way to address a member of royalty, it is tradition to confront the guards outside the door and be given their permission and, if that is acquired, a formal announcement of your arrival, but of course you already know that don’t you. But while I deliberated the idea, I could faintly hear a voice from inside the room. It was Princess Celestia and she was talking to someone.
“Now believe me when I say that I’m never one to eavesdrop, but I shamefully let my curiosity get the better of me at this moment. These were the exact words I heard from inside the room.”
She lowered her head, trying to remember what was said and attempting to elegantly clear her voice before she looked directly at the stallion and continued on.
“’We are by nature, very near-sighted creatures, Twilight. We always want to do what we think is best at the moment, but we never really take the time to stop and think about how our decisions are going to affect the future. Sadly, the future is almost entirely unpredictable so how can we ever be sure we’re making the right decisions?’
“Unsurprisingly, I was swept away by my emotions when I realized that the princess was talking to Twilight Sparkle, whom I thought to have perished. I rushed into the room and peered out over the balcony with tears in my eyes, ready to be reunited with my long lost friend.
“But I did not see my friend on the balcony, Sir Goldenroot. No, what I saw was a much more disturbing image.
“There was only one pony standing there. Princess Celestia was alone, calmly standing on the balcony, peering out over the army gathering below and talking to no one at all. At times, she would even pause for long periods as if she were waiting for a response before she continued to speak. She would then answer these unspoken questions and at last, she moved to embrace some invisible pony beneath her wings.”
“So it was a ghost!?” Goldenroot asked, his heart nearly bursting out of his chest.
“Don’t be so juvenile!” she exclaimed as tears started to form in the corners of her eyes, “I think the tragedy of Twilight’s death was too much for Princess Celestia to handle. She won’t accept that her student, whom she treated so much like a daughter, just disappeared.
“I believe that Twilight Sparkle did die in Prance, Sir Goldenroot. The Twilight Sparkle that existed in Princess Celestia’s bedchamber was an illusion. It was an imaginary creation that she used, and is still using, to help deal with the pain of her loss. And while some of what this delusion says may very well be the truth, the rest is obviously all lies. I have no idea what’s going on inside her head, but reality is beyond her grasp.”
This new realization was too much for Goldenroot. His vision blurred and the room started to fade out of existence. The sound of Rarity’s voice grew quiet and became difficult to understand.
“Are you alright, Sir Goldenroot?” Rarity asked, regaining her composure and glancing at the pony with a genuinely concerned expression.
He was going to pass out. Everything that he had done had created a catastrophe far worse than anything he could have imagined. He was responsible for Twilight Sparkle’s death, that sweet, innocent filly who was sent all alone to help solve the problem he had created. He was responsible for the insanity of arguably the most powerful creature in the world and her inability to accept the tragic death he induced. He was responsible for the resulting war with a peaceful nation that had only wished to help its citizens acquire all the resources they needed to survive. He was personally responsible for everything that was tearing the world apart. If the drought had been a horrible plague on Equestria, then this was an inconceivable monster that he had no possibility of stopping. What could anyone do to stop this disaster from getting worse? Was there any hope left at all?
With those last questions clouding his mind and pulling him away from reality, the brilliant white of Rarity’s coat seemed to explode and fill his entire field of vision. A simple, dazzling white, it quickly distorted into a strange, sickly grey and finally into a black as dark as the night sky.
~
“I think he’s finally waking up.” a voice announced.
Goldenroot’s vision was still too hazy to recognize the dark blue blotch that hopped out of its place in the bed beside him as he regained consciousness. He groaned loudly as he rolled onto his back and blinked rapidly, the ceiling above slowly coming into focus.
“You’re very lucky that you were lying down, Sir Goldenroot.” another voice, which he recognized as Rarity, proclaimed, “I had no idea this would have such a powerful effect on you.”
“Miss Rarity?” he asked as he rolled over onto his side and gazed out into the room.
As he set his eyes upon the white unicorn, he noticed several familiar faces in the room. Vortex, standing to her right, appeared to be quite distressed, but was desperately trying to conceal this fact from the stallion. Prairie Star, who was standing very close beside the pegasus, had a similarly worried expression on her face, but, in contrast, she was making no effort to hide this detail from him. Thunderhorn and Wind Dancer were also in the room and stood to the left of Rarity. And now, in such a close vicinity to her doppelganger, Wind Dancer’s defining characteristics were much more pronounced. Their stylish, but delicate manes that rolled down from the top of their heads were similar shades of the same blue, but Rarity’s hair was visibly darker. Folded gently along her side, Wind Dancer’s feathered appendages seemed to pull the stallions eyes towards them and distinguish the pegasus from the unicorn standing beside her. However, despite their differences, they were still unquestionably alike.
“Are you two related?” he asked, moving his hoof rapidly between Wind Dancer and Rarity.
The two mares looked at each for a moment and started laughing hysterically. As they did, a smile forced its way onto each of the other three ponies faces and they joined in on the excitement. Thunderhorn shook his head and rolled his eyes, while Vortex smiled exuberantly. Prairie Star merely covered her mouth as she chuckled away quietly.
When the five ponies finally calmed down, Wind Dancer turned to the stallion and asked, “Would you like some more time to rest, Goldenroot?”
She wasn’t particularly rude about it. She even appeared to have some legitimate concern for the stallion, which was bizarre given the circumstances he had put her in. And, while it was appreciated, it only brought Goldenroot back to the grim reality. Princess Celestia was hallucinating that her student was still alive and well and this figment of her imagination had somehow convinced her to wage war on Prance.
“I’m so sorry, Miss Rarity.” he said, resting his head against the dirty mattress and closing his eyes. “This is all my fault. I… I…”
“Do not talk such rot, Sir Goldenroot.” Rarity exclaimed, interrupting his grovelling.
Surprised by the reaction, Goldenroot’s eyes snapped open.
“Your companions have been kind enough to explain to me the full extent of your situation.” she continued with a very strict tone. “And like our dear princess, you have made the foolish mistake of placing all the blame for these events on yourself.”
Goldenroot pulled himself upright and cast a humiliated glance at the unicorn, “But I was responsible for your friend’s…”
“You are not responsible for that, Sir Goldenroot, and nor should you be blamed for it.” Rarity interrupted.
She walked closer to the stallion and lowered her head to his level on the mattress below.
“My friend’s passing was a tragedy that I won’t soon forget,” Rarity explained in a miserable, but soothing tone of voice. “But I do not blame you for it. You are not a murderer, Sir Goldenroot. I truly believe that within every inch of my heart. It was a terrible accident and nothing more. You cannot be blamed for an accident.”
“But what about the princess and the war and..?” Goldenroot asked.
“The only thing you can be held responsible for is manipulating your country and lying to your friends and fellow council members.” she answered, “And while that may sound like a truly terrible deed, I am not so naive that I can completely overlook your intentions. From my understanding, you were trying to accomplish what no one else could. While you foolishly, and I really feel that I must emphasize my point here, foolishly sacrificed the happiness and well-being of others, you were willing to give up everything you possessed as well.”
She smiled gently at him and lifted her head, backing away from the mattress.
“Now, you can either continue to grovel in your regret and self-pity or, if you’re well enough, you can get up off that filthy mattress and help me.” Rarity said, returning to her strict tone.
Although he was still shocked by the unicorn’s reaction, he pulled himself up off of the floor and onto his hooves.
“Do you all know what’s going on as well?” Goldenroot asked, looking around at the other ponies.
“While you were passed out, we had more than enough time to exchange our depressing stories.” Thunderhorn said, smirking.
“Alright then, what do you suggest that we do, Miss Rarity?” Goldenroot asked, turning his attention to the unicorn.
“Unfortunately, I have no idea.” she admitted, “That’s exactly why I came to see you.”
Goldenroot sighed heavily, “How did you even find us?”
“The guards told me.”
“They just told you? I thought they were sworn to secrecy.”
Rarity smiled pleasantly, “I’m very persuasive.”
Goldenroot just smiled back and chuckled quietly.
“Well let’s consider what we need to accomplish.” he announced, turning serious again, “We need to confront Celestia and stop her from waging war with Prance.”
“I’m afraid it’s already too late for that.” Rarity frowned, “The army has been deployed and is on the border of Prance as we speak.”
“Then we need to lure them back. Can we get Princess Luna to help us?”
“Princess Celestia won’t listen to her sister. She’s already tried to stop her and failed.”
Thunderhorn laughed quietly to himself as he listened to them bicker.
“Did you forget that I was a general, Goldenroot?” the old unicorn asked, diverting the attention in the room. “I think I know what we have to do. The only thing that is going to bring Princess Celestia back now is another war. What we need to do is start a riot right in the middle of Canterlot.”
“Are you crazy!?” Vortex shouted, finally jumping into the conversation. “How is that going to help!?”
“We can use it as a diversion and lure the princess back to the castle. She won’t have the bulk of the army behind her and we’ll have the element of surprise. If we’re careful enough, no one even needs to get hurt. Most likely, we can convince some of the nobles who were angry with the decision to eliminate the council to help us. After we gain some support, we’ll ambush the guards around the castle and tie them up. With all the guards subdued, we can create some general chaos, nothing major or irreplaceable of course, and wait for Princess Celestia. When she arrives, we can confront her and put a stop to all of this.”
After hearing the full extent of his plan and having no better ideas of their own, the ponies in the room silently agreed.
“But we’re going to need a plan for when we confront Princess Celestia.” Goldenroot said, “We’re not just going to be able to tell her that she’s gone completely mad. She either won’t believe us or she just won’t accept it.”
“After what I saw, I think the only option may be to imprison her.” Rarity said. “This is something that she has to come to terms with on her own and we have to be prepared for the worst possible situation.”
“How can we possibly imprison an alicorn?” Vortex exclaimed.
“Actually, we have always been prepared for that situation.” Thunderhorn said, “During the time the council was in power we were able to construct a magical prison that can contain an alicorn.”
“Why would Celestia ever allow something like that to be built knowing that she and her sister were the only ones who would ever be contained?” Goldenroot asked.
“It was originally part of an elaborate plan to bring Nightmare Moon back from her banishment several hundred years ago.” Thunderhorn explained, “While the council approved of the idea at first, they cancelled the plans before they were able to come to fruition. It just wasn’t worth the risk.”
The plan was to have Nightmare moon return to the planet and subsequently imprisoned in a magically altered cell below the castle. Celestia truly believed that her sister was still somewhere inside the monster that tried to drown the world in an eternal night and she wanted to help her. If she returned to Equestria then, just maybe, she might be able to restore her true form.
The arrangement seemed simple enough and the princess was able to convince the council to start constructing the cell. But it took a surprisingly long time, nearly ten years, and when it was finally completed and then tested by the princess herself, the council decided to cancel the plans. They just didn’t consider it to be worth the risk. If Princess Celestia ever faltered, even for a moment, they chanced changing the world forever. The entire planet would be cast into an eternal night and it would be nearly impossible to save it.
The cell was almost entirely forgotten in the depths of time. Apart from Princess Celestia, for whom it remained a constant memorial of her beloved sister and her failed rescue attempts, only a select few members of the royal army knew about it and that had conveniently included General Thunderhorn. It was preserved for the rare case that it would ever be needed, either as a prison for Nightmare Moon or some other nameless horror. And as it was becoming evident to them all, that horror was none other than Princess Celestia, the creator herself.
“Then why wasn’t Nightmare Moon imprisoned there on the day of her return?” Rarity asked with a puzzled expression. “Twilight predicted that she would return and so did Princess Celestia, so why weren’t you prepared for it?”
“From my experience, the royal army never took the rumours that we found in dusty old books seriously.” Thunderhorn scoffed, “I don’t think anyone other than Twilight Sparkle and Princess Celestia expected anything to happen.
“But if Princess Celestia had expressed her concern to us, I think we would have considered it to be a serious threat; however, I believe that she secretly wanted to have the opportunity to see her sister again and she didn’t want to prevent her return. Letting the council know anything about this would only jeopardize that opportunity.”
“I don’t think anyone can really blame her for that.” Goldenroot said, “Having to banish your only living family member to the moon would be a difficult fate to accept.”
“Tsk, tsk.” Rarity slowly shook her head, “It seems that you have yet to truly understand my point, Sir Goldenroot. Both you and Princess Celestia have very similar personalities. You seem to think that the ends always justify the means.”
“Do you really think you are so wise that you can criticize both our decisions so harshly, Miss Rarity?” Goldenroot said, glaring at the unicorn, “If you do, I think you are sorely mistaken.”
“Perhaps, but are you really so arrogant that you believe you have nothing to learn from this?” Rarity responded with a curt smile. “I am only trying to help you, Sir Goldenroot. I’m trying to stop you from doing something you will regret.”
“Then why, may I ask, are you so comfortable with the idea of starting a riot in the capital?”
Rarity’s expression fell and she let out a deep sigh, turning her head away from the stallion and towards the rickety wooden floorboards.
“I’m not, Goldenroot.” she said disconcertedly, “But while I believe that the ends do not always justify the means, I’m afraid that we have very little choice in this matter. We have to act as quickly as we can or we will face a terrible end. Princess Celestia has become extremely dangerous and she’s nearly unstoppable.”
“Well then, keeping that in mind, I think we ought to leave.” Thunderhorn remarked.
“This is all very interesting, but I don’t want to run the unnecessary risk of being executed.” Wind Dancer said, breaking the pace of the conversation and lying down on one of the mattresses. “So as much as I would love to return home, I think I’m going to sit this one out.”
“You’re not going to help?” Goldenroot asked. “What about…”
“Oh please, Goldenroot.” she interrupted, “I’m only going to get in the way. I am, at heart, a dancer not a soldier.”
Rarity laughed pleasantly, “And I’m a tailor. How does that make me anymore suitable for this?”
“Because you’re not a coward, Rarity.” she explained, “I’m sorry, but I’m just not capable of doing this.”
“I don’t want to go either.” Prairie Star added quietly, stealing everyone’s attention. “My life was just depressing in Equestria and I’m actually starting to really like it here. I don’t really think I would be much help anyway.”
Vortex looked surprised, but she just smiled at the pony standing beside her. Prairie Star had taken it the hardest and she was just happy to see that she was recovering from the turmoil.
“Okay.” Goldenroot replied, nodding his head. “I can’t force anyone to come.”
Diverting her attention away from the pony beside her, Vortex spoke up, “So what, we’re just going to walk right in? Won’t someone recognize us?”
The others just paused as they thought about their predicament. If they were spotted in Equestria, they would be put to death for returning from their banishment against the princesses’ orders.
But before they could give it too much thought, Rarity whisked away the bed sheets and the horn on her head began to glow iridescently. Working with such haste that it was almost impossible to follow, she turned the simple bedding into stunning, and perhaps a bit too extravagant, cloaks with large hoods that could easily cover their faces whenever they deemed it necessary. Flawlessly cross-stitched at the seams to increase the weight on the edges and the durability of the fabric, the garments were connected around the neck with a broad silver chain that was held in place with two large sapphires on either side, though where the jewels had actually come from was a complete mystery.
Slipping the cloaks over each of the ponies’ heads, including herself and the ones who had decided not to join them, she beamed back at them in anticipation.
“Well, what do you think?” she asked, “I thought it was best to keep it simple since we’re trying to remain inconspicuous, but that shouldn’t stop us from looking good.”
“Miss Rarity, these are gorgeous.” Prairie Star said, staring at the garments with wide-eyed adoration. “But we don’t need them, we’re not coming.”
“I didn’t want anyone to feel left out.” she smiled.
“How did you wash them?” Vortex asked, “These things were so gross!”
“And where did you get these sapphires?” Goldenroot asked.
“Oh, I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you that.” Rarity responded, batting at her long hair, “I can’t give away all my secrets.”
The other ponies just smiled at her reaction. She was indeed a very interesting pony.
“Well, I guess this is it.” Goldenroot said with a kind of disappointment, “If you two aren’t coming with us, I find it highly unlikely that we’ll ever see each other again.”
Wind Dancer just smiled, “Oh, I fully expect to see you again, Goldenroot. Although Miss Rarity doesn’t hold you responsible for everything that happened, I believe that you are required to clean up this mess you created. And when you do, I expect you to come and tell me so that I can return to my home.”
Goldenroot smiled, “I’ll do that.”
Turning to face the light brown mare, still standing quietly beside Vortex and hiding behind her golden hair, Goldenroot slowly approached her.
“I’m sorry, Prairie Star.” he said with a solemn expression, “I know that doesn’t mean a lot right now, but I’m afraid I’ll never have a chance to do anything more. I’m sorry that I ruined your chances at realizing your dreams.”
“Don’t feel bad about it.” she answered, moving the hair away from her face with a hoof and trying to smile, “It wasn’t really such a bad thing. I think I was trying too hard to live up to my childhood fantasies and I never really realized that I just wasn’t enjoying it.
“Like you and Celestia, and perhaps everyone in the world, we all have some kind of dream stuck in our heads at some point in our lives, some kind of utopia. I really thought I could get there, to that perfect world in my imagination, but I was losing so much along the way. Now that I’ve finally lost everything, I feel like I can start over and I’m kind of looking forward to that. I want to experience all the things that I missed out on when I was younger and I want to find someone else that I can share all those experiences with.
“So, although my utopia came crumbling down around me, it wasn’t such a bad thing after all and I’m beginning to think that the utopia I dreamed up wasn’t actually what I wanted anyways.”
Goldenroot smiled gently. He still wasn’t sure if he had learned anything about himself, but he had learned a lot about the ponies all around him. He discovered the dreams and aspirations that they each held and how they were so radically independent from each other. They all had something different to gain and something different to lose.
Vortex hugged the golden-haired pony for a moment and Thunderhorn nodded suggestively towards the door. The four ponies left the room, leaving Prairie Star and Wind Dancer behind them. Making their way up the stairwell, out of the building and onto the dirt road outside, they left the small village behind. The flickering lights slowly faded out of existence as the ventured ever further on their way to Equestria, but what little time they had spent there had served an important purpose. They were a bizarre collection of perhaps unlikely companions, but their parallel ambitions persevered. They had to stop the sinister fate of their homeland and prevent the severe repercussions it would have on the world as a whole.
They walked in careful silence with their hoods pulled over their faces, afraid that someone would discover their presence, but they had much more to fear than mere discovery. They lingered on the blade of a knife, their path clear and in a straight line, but every step they took was more dangerous than the last. The country they had been banished from was fast approaching and they were all afraid of what lay waiting for them. It was to no wonder then that Vortex isolated herself from the group, dawdling behind the other cloaked ponies and watching the edge of the forest as it passed by. The trees had started to thin out, but it was still difficult to see more than a few feet into the wooded wilderness.
Taking note of her leisurely pace and curiosity of the forest, Goldenroot began to realize that she had more on her mind than just their journey. She was thinking about him and about how he had acted over the past few days. Unsure if anything he could say would put her at ease, but still willing to try, Goldenroot slowed his pace, allowing him to fall behind and match the steps of the dark blue pegasus behind him.
“I never really had the time to apologize to you, Vortex.” he said, turning his head in her direction.
She pulled her gaze from the quiet ambiguity of the forest and glanced hesitantly at him. Her amber eyes flickered in the dim light breaking through the canopy and washing over the ground unpredictably, the course shadows that the leaves created moving slowly along the dirt.
“I don’t believe that.” she said, changing the direction of her gaze, “You had more than enough time to apologize, you just chose not to.”
Goldenroot turned to watch the anomalous shadows dance along the dirt path, “I was worried that you wouldn’t forgive me.”
“And maybe you should be. I’m not going to forgive you as easily as the others have.” she said harshly, looking back at him with an unyielding glare, “Apologizing now won’t change that.”
“But, Vortex…” he replied, his eyes starting to tear up as he realized what she had said, “I…”
He lifted his heavy stare upward, prepared to pour his heart out for the mare he had grown so attached to and willing to do anything to convince her to forgive him.
But as his eyes fell upon hers, he noticed something unusual. Her expression didn’t seem to fit the gravity of the situation that she was implying at all. She was smiling. No, she wasn’t just smiling, she was laughing at him. She had convinced him that his actions were completely unforgivable in her eyes and she was just laughing!
“You’re soooo gullible, Goldenroot.” Vortex said, her smile illuminating her face.
“Why would you do that!?” he asked, angry that she had been toying with his emotions.
She stopped smiling and met his gaze directly, “Because now you know how I felt.”
In one sincere sentence, Goldenroot felt his anger completely evaporate, “I’m sorry, Vortex. I should have told you what was going on.”
“Yes, you should have.”
“Are you… are you angry about it?”
“Oh yeah, big time.” she said, “At first I was really sad too, but then I realized that I was just letting my emotions get the better of me. I thought you didn’t trust me and then I thought you were just lying about what you said when we were in the prison. I thought you didn’t really care about me at all and it was just some big act, but then I realized…”
She smiled again and laughed a little, “You’re a terrible actor.”
Goldenroot just smiled.
“But although I’m angry about it all, I’m too excited about this adventure we’re going on now to worry about it.” Vortex continued, “So you can find a decent way to apologize to me later. I expect a present, probably… something expensive.”
“Wait, you’re excited about this?” he said in shock.
“Of course! We’re going to start a riot!” she said, winking at him, “It’ll be all kinds of fun.”
“I can’t believe you.” he said, “We could die!”
“Oh, there’s a million different ways to die, Goldenroot, but there’s only one true way to live.” she said with an almost humorously serious expression, “You have to make the most of it and enjoy every single day. Even the worst day of your life has some good parts to it.”
“Okay, now I definitely don’t believe you.” he said, shaking his head, “What about when we were publicly humiliated in front of everyone in Canterlot and maybe even all of Equestria?”
“Yeah sure, we were publicly humiliated in front of everyone in Canterlot and maybe even everyone in Equestria, but…” she raised her hoof and pointed it at him as she tried to make her point, “We got to be publicly humiliated in front of everyone in Canterlot and maybe even everyone in Equestria. That’s pretty cool, not many ponies can say they did that.”
Goldenroot broke out laughing as he plodded along the road, “Oh yeah, that was soooo much fun!”
“And…” she continued, raising her hoof and pointing it again, “We got to ride in a stagecoach, watch you get strangled by Thunderhorn… and I got to leave the country for the first time in my entire life.”
Goldenroot was laughing so hard he hardly understood what she had even said. She certainly knew how to make a depressing situation entertaining.
~
Celestia ambitiously walked at the head of the group of armoured ponies whom were growing more anxious and fleeting by the day. She was worried too, but not for the same reasons. They worried for the battle ahead of them and the uncertainty of the dark forest that surrounded them, while she worried about what would happen when she finally confronted Le Roi Pierre. Would he try to fight her despite the impossible odds against him? Or would he try to weasel his way out of it and deny his involvement, claiming falsities and misunderstandings had led her here?
She pushed her uncertainties aside and tried to focus on the task in front of her. Part of her plan had been to split up the army into three separate subdivisions. Her army was large enough that she believed any one of the regiments was more than capable of meeting the entire army of Prance head on, so the split gave them significant tactical manoeuvrability. While Prance was tied up defending one area, the others armies could advance on the capital and assault it with little resistance and avoid unnecessary bloodshed.
The bulk of the army, which she now stood at the head of, was taking the most direct route that travelled through the Splinter Forest. It was the very same forest that her dearest student had been ambushed in and that fact left an uneasy feeling in her stomach. But her unease was keeping her alert and vigilant and, upon hearing a peculiar rustling in the trees nearby, she stopped in her tracks. The soldiers behind followed her example, but being as inexperienced as they were, they started to talk quietly amongst themselves in anxiety and fear instead of being silent like they should have been.
I should have known that we would be ambushed in the Splinter Forest, she thought, turning around to face the ponies waiting behind her. It would have been better to go around and avoid this. These ponies aren’t trained to deal with these sorts of situations. They’re barely trained at all.
“Soldiers of Equestria!” she announced with a booming voice, “Defend yourselves!”
At that very moment, hundreds of figures leapt out of the dense forest around them. Thin layers of mud were covering their bodies and concealing the bright, silver armour that protected them. It was truly a horrific sight to behold. They attacked the unprepared Equestrians in unison, using the spiked metal horseshoes on their hind legs to kick at them with an impressive force. The ponies caught in the sharp metal talons were hurled like cannonballs into their comrades, knocking them onto the ground and leaving them stunned. The ones that were hit directly were left with horrifying bloody wounds across their bodies, deep punctures that bled uncontrollably and exposed the bone under their skin.
These ponies knew how to fight and how to react. They knew exactly what they were doing, but the Equestrians had almost no clue. And though the golden armoured soldiers outnumbered them by thousands, too many were overflowing with fear and panic and were unable to properly respond to these monsters that emerged from the sinister forest walls. They rushed in blindly and tried to push the attackers back against the trees, while the ones that were able to maintain their composure recognized the advantages of drawing them out into the open where their large numbers would serve a better purpose.
While the earth ponies could only mimic their attackers’ forceful kicking as an offensive, the pegasi soared around the battlefield, constantly dropping towards the grounds and tackling the ambushers and otherwise causing general disarray among their numbers. What unicorns existed among them were made obvious, hurling crowds of enemy soldiers high into the air or thrusting them against trees with such force that their armour simply crumpled like paper under the weight.
And amongst all of this pain and suffering, it seemed like the princess was just standing, stricken with a paralyzing fear of what was happening all around her. While she was indeed frightened by this display, her long life had passed through many wars in its time and to assume that she was simply doing nothing at all was thoughtless. She was concentrating and gathering her strength, preparing to unleash a terrible magic power over all of the assaulting ponies and stop this madness before it got worse.
One of the attacking soldiers yelled out, telling his comrades to stop the princess and break her concentration. Rushing over to the alicorn, a silver armoured pony kicked at the joint in one of the princess’ hind legs, a deafening crack filling the air as the bone completely fractured. Her leg, now unable to support the weight of her body, buckled and sent the princess tumbling towards the ground. But in that moment, the entire scene was blinded in a bright flash of light. The trees of the forest around them came alive, groaning and wheezing as they moved. Their long, rigid arms reached out into the battle and took hold of every one of the silver armoured assailants, pulling them away and holding them prisoner against the thick bark on the trees. They tried to struggle, but the trees only grasped them more firmly.
When the light subsided, the trees had once again become motionless objects, but were still tightly holding onto the attacking soldiers and preventing them from moving even a single muscle. The Equestrians, noticing that the battle had ended, started to rush around almost as chaotically as when the battle had first begun. Some ran to their injured friends and family, shouting for help and trying to do whatever they could to ease their pain. Others moved to look in bewilderment at the enemy soldiers suspended high in the trees above, some still trying to free themselves from their prison.
From her position on the cold ground, Celestia let out a blood curdling scream and fell to her side, shaking uncontrollably as she turned her head to look at the blood soaked leg jutting out awkwardly from her body. The pain was unbearable and for the first time in over a hundred years, she felt like she was going to pass out.
Soldiers all over the battlefield immediately turned their attention away from whatever they had been doing and rushed to their princess’ side, crowding around her as they tried to help.
“Someone find a doctor, the princess is injured!” a stallion yelled loudly, looking around the crowd.
Several of the ponies frantically ran away from the group and starting yelling for help, but at that very moment, Celestia’s horn shone and the injured leg was wrapped in a bright iridescent light. Gritting her teeth and trying to focus on what she was doing, the princess carefully rearranged the shattered bone fragments in her leg and formed them into their original shape. Then, carefully gathering all of the blood around her leg and separating it from the dirt, she pulled it back into the veins and sealed her wounds.
She had done this exact operation before, but never on herself. It was a difficult and wonderful process that left all the panicked ponies around her completely speechless as they watched in awe as the light faded away and revealed the flawless appendage beneath. Breathing deeply, she rolled onto her stomach and got up off the ground, gritting her teeth as she flexed the stiff muscles in her healed leg.
“Princess Celestia… are you alright? Do… do you need any help?” a wide-eyed soldier asked, still stunned by the magnificent display of magic that had taken place.
“I am fine. Thank you.” Celestia responded quickly. “Now who needs help!? Where are the injured?”
“What about the enemy soldiers?” a blue stallion asked.
“Leave them. The injured ponies take priority.” she said firmly, “Anyone that will survive without my help should be attended to by a medic instead. I cannot help everyone.”
The large group of ponies surrounding her acknowledged this and ran off to look for those in need of immediate aid while the princess took flight and searched from the sky.
The scene from the ground was terrifying, but the scene above was unimaginably worse, so many were injured or dead. It was exactly as she feared, Prance had been preparing and educating their soldiers in the art of war, but Equestria was completely unqualified for this. She could only hope that the detachments which had ventured to the west and east would avoid any conflicts. If they had to face anything comparable to what had happened here, their fate would be much worse.
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Author’s notes:
Hello everyone. We are fast approaching the conclusion of this story with only a few chapters left. I believe I will be able to wrap this up at chapter 12, two chapters longer than I originally anticipated.
I would like to thank my editor, Specter Von Baren, for the amazing work he does with this. His help is always appreciated. If you’re interested in reading another, albeit less dark story about the main characters exploring the concept of immortality, you can take a look at his first written work of MLP fanfiction “If You Could Live Forever”. Here’s a link to that: http://www.fimfiction.net/story/2037/If-You-Could-Live-Forever
And as always, if you have any questions or comments about the story, you can reach me at my email: [email protected] I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 10 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-11-13T00:06:02+00:00 | 2011-11-13T00:06:02+00:00 | 2,402 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 10
As the sun receded over the landscape and signalled the end of the day, only a few hours separated the four cloaked ponies from Canterlot. They had passed through the border to Equestria and, once again, they were in their homeland. Yet despite their return, the country didn’t feel like home. The wave of nostalgia that they had expected to wash over them upon seeing the familiar landscape was absent, hidden in some dark shadow. If anything, the scene had triggered a troubling recollection of their plan and how poorly established it really was. It left so many questions unanswered. How would they actually stop Princess Celestia when she returned? How would Princess Luna react to their plan? Would it all be too much, even for their combined strength, to handle?
“We’re going to need Princess Luna’s help with this, aren’t we?” Goldenroot asked, giving voice to the apprehension they all shared, “Even if we get a hundred or a thousand other ponies to help us, we don’t have any chance of stopping Princess Celestia without her sister’s help. Only another alicorn is going to stand any chance of stopping her.”
“But how can we convince her to turn on her own family?” Rarity asked earnestly, “Even if she knows that her sister is hallucinating, that she’s gone mad, will Princess Luna admit it? Will she be willing to throw her in a cage like some animal?”
The question was one that they were all worried about. They were sisters and the bond they shared was nearly untouchable. They would do anything for each other, so why would one so readily lock up the other?
“I didn’t want to have to ask Princess Luna for her help, because I was afraid of how she would react.” the white unicorn continued, “For all we know, she may throw every one of us in the dungeon for merely suggesting the idea.”
“We don’t have any other options.” Goldenroot explained, “We need her help.”
“Don’t be so sure, Goldenroot.” Thunderhorn replied, staring at the stallion. “There is one other alternative, an artefact capable of storing massive quantities of magic. We could use it to stun the princess long enough to get her in the cell.”
“I assume this was another one of Princess Celestia’s creations?” Goldenroot asked. “Something she created to help her sister?”
“Yes.” Thunderhorn answered, “She thought it might convince the council to change their minds. If regular unicorns could harness a power capable of matching that of the alicorns, then they would have another way to stop Nightmare Moon and the plan to bring her back would not seem so dangerous.”
The old unicorn sighed deeply.
“But, like the prison, the council changed their mind to follow through with the plan shortly after its completion. Because of the danger that it posed, it was hidden away. It has the potential to level mountains and drain oceans so, if we’re not careful, we could destroy the entire city and everything in it.”
Rarity stopped in her tracks and glared at the old unicorn, “I refuse to take that chance, Lord Thunderhorn. Nothing is worth putting so many innocent lives in danger. We need to convince Princess Luna to help us or else find another way.”
Thunderhorn paused and turned to face the white unicorn, “What about the war? What about the lives lost from that? We only need to be careful and we can prevent any catastrophes.”
The other two ponies stopped as the unicorns started what they all knew would be a heated debate.
“I agree with Rarity. It’s not worth the risk.” Goldenroot exclaimed, “I’m hardly even willing to start a riot. Blowing up the capital and everyone in it is out of the question. I’ve already caused enough harm to this country…”
“What if we have no other choice?” Thunderhorn asked.
“Where is it?” Vortex asked abruptly, “With any luck, we won’t have to use it, but we should be prepared for anything. We don’t have to make our decision now, but if we find it and have it ready, we can leave our options open.”
“We can find it in the lowest catacombs of the castle, far below the dungeon we were held in.” Thunderhorn explained, “But it will be heavily guarded and it’s locked away behind a magical barrier.”
“Well obviously you must have some plan to remove the barrier or you wouldn’t have mentioned this thing, so how can we get past it?”
“I have a book in my house that explains both how to remove the barrier and how to actually use the artefact.”
The entire group was stunned by the sudden realization. Why was Thunderhorn in possession of something that he himself described as having the potential to level mountains and drain oceans?
“You mean you have instructions to a doomsday device in your basement?” Vortex asked, interrupting the awkward silence.
“It’s not what you think.” Thunderhorn hastily intervened, “Princess Celestia gave me the book when I was still a general of the royal army. Although I suppose her trust was misplaced as I completely forgot about it until just now…”
“I’m sorry, but I won’t condone this.” Goldenroot interrupted, “If the Equestrian army is already on the border than we can’t afford to waste any time.”
Realizing the irony of what he had just said, the stallion started on his way down the path again. The others followed quickly, attempting to match his pace and determined to continue their argument.
“Why should we have to put all our eggs in one basket?” Vortex remarked, “You and Rarity realize the importance of convincing Luna and you’re both much more persuasive then Thunderhorn and I are.”
The old unicorn gave her a quick, rude glance.
“You can go see Luna and try to convince her while the general and I find this artefact thing.” she continued.
“That’s not really such a bad idea.” Rarity admitted, “Although I refuse to let you use this dangerous artefact in anything less than the most extreme circumstances, I think it’s important for some of us to stay away from Princess Luna. If she tries to throw us in the dungeon, then at least the others can still find a way to stop Princess Celestia.”
Goldenroot shook his head, “I don’t think we should split up.”
“We’re only wasting time if stick together.” Thunderhorn scorned, “Vortex and I will go to my manor and retrieve the book and then we’ll go grab the artefact. I don’t know how much time you’ll need to speak with Princess Luna, but it should only take us a couple of hours. However, we should organize a rendezvous somewhere safe.”
“Can’t we just meet you at your home?” Rarity asked.
“I don’t know if it’s safe there. Considering the fact that we weren’t supposed to come back, ponies may have looted my property. If we run into anyone, even a common thief, it will be all too obvious to them who we are.”
Thunderhorn’s words distracted the former council members, pulling them away from the important details of their journey and letting them drift away to their former lives. The fond memories of peaceful evenings spent alone, reading or just enjoying the quiet and gratifying nature of their unadulterated solitude, the cherished time with close friends and family sitting around a table, appreciating a home-cooked meal and each other’s company. Everything that was brilliant and respectable about the simple independence of their lives was defiled by the disturbing notion of other ponies rooting through each of their personal belongings. They were pitiable scavengers, taking everything they held dear for the sole purpose of their inane material value and stepping on their precious memories like they were merely dust and ash. It was contemptible and heart-wrenching; almost bringing tears to their eyes as they slowly trudged along the dirt path.
“How do you know they won’t have taken the book you need?” Rarity asked, jerking them away from their diversion and back to the focal point of their discussion.
“I hid the book under the floorboards in the basement.” Thunderhorn replied, “I never told anyone of its existence, so they won’t find it until they start pulling my house apart, piece-by-piece.”
“What about the tavern in the noble quarter?” Goldenroot suggested, returning their thoughts to the rendezvous point. “They’re open fairly late.”
“You’re thinking in the right direction, but you need to lower your standards a little, Goldenroot.” Vortex said, smirking slightly, “A group of hooded ponies will stick out like an earth pony in Cloudsdale. We should go to The Ivory Bear instead. It’s right in the middle of the common quarter and there’s a huge white bear on the sign so it’s pretty hard to miss. They’re open all day long and the ponies keep to themselves, so we shouldn’t run into any problems.”
“I know the place.” Thunderhorn said, nodding his head, “I’ve been there on occasion. They make a good stew and their drinks are cheap and of a reasonable quality, though I doubt I will be drinking anything tonight. This is too important to be intoxicated for.”
“I’ve never actually been inside, but I’ve seen the sign a few times before.” Goldenroot said, “What time can we expect you to be there?”
“What time is it now?” Thunderhorn asked.
Goldenroot just shrugged.
“I think I might be able to help you with that, actually. Twilight taught me a spell for telling the time.” Rarity exclaimed with a kind of bittersweet happiness, her joy plagued by the memories of her dearly departed friend.
She stopped and began to focus the magic around her horn. Simultaneously, Vortex turned away and seemed to lose herself in the bright, white moon above their heads. As a bright violet clock started to form in the air in front of the unicorn, Vortex snapped back to attention.
“Seven twenty-three.” said the pegasus proudly to the other members of the group.
The other ponies just looked at each other with strange expressions while the clock started to take shape. The hands, starting at the twelve, began to spin around the face and come to slow stop. The little hand pointed towards the seven and the larger hand pointed towards the space in between the four and the five.
Goldenroot laughed hysterically and fell to the ground while Vortex just smiled boastfully at her near pinpoint accuracy. The other two ponies exchanged puzzled glances.
“How exactly did you do that, dear?” Rarity asked, maintaining her confused expression and turning to the pegasus.
“Hey, you have your secrets and I have mine.” the blue mare responded smugly.
The two unicorns smiled and rolled their eyes as they started down the path again. Goldenroot, still laughing, rolled over and hopped back to his feet, wiping the joyful tears from his eyes.
“With any haste, we’ll be done and at The Ivory Bear at eleven o’clock sharp!” Thunderhorn yelled, not caring to turn his head around to face the two ponies behind him.
~
Tactically, it was a foolish decision. Princess Celestia had left a large portion of the main regiment behind to both guard the enemy soldiers that were captured and assist their badly wounded allies in the fight within the Splinter Forest. Between the casualties of the war and the able bodied soldiers that were left behind, only half of the regiment remained. The alternative had been to execute the enemy soldiers and leave the wounded behind to fend for themselves. That was the tactically intelligent decision, but a horribly ruthless one nonetheless and Celestia would not succumb to the sickness that filled her veins. She would not let her hatred and lust for revenge take over and turn her into some kind of monster, but the sensation was undeniably growing stronger. Prance had killed so many of her soldiers and injured even more. They even had the audacity to directly attack the princess and cause her the immense pain that, although completely healed now, left an indistinct reminder whenever she flexed the muscle. To have the bones in your leg shattered like that was nearly a mortal wound and usually necessitated amputation of the damaged limb, so having it all heal so quickly was jarring to say the least.
Walking with a swift, but polished gait, the princess crested the large, rolling hilltop. The flowers that blanketed the ground at their hooves were brittle, wilted and dead, a sign of the changing weather and the fast approaching winter season. The princess recognized the little plants; they were daisies, simple white flowers with a cheery yellow center, but they did not appear that way at the moment. The once wide petals were stringy and drooping with a strange pale brown colour spotting the edges. The dazzling yellow center had lost all of its beauty, replaced with a parched and unsightly brown.
Stopping, the princess peered out over the hilltop and down into the valley below. It was covered in the same flowers and what she imagined to have been a beautiful sight at one time, was now putrid and revolting. The horrible brown continued along the ground all the way to the walled city and the black pillar jutting up into the sky. The rumbling clouds in the skyline were not black, but they were a menacing dark grey colour. And although it would not rain on the day they stormed the walled city, the scene decorated her thoughts with angst and despair.
A burgundy pony with a black mane and grave look about his face had been following the princess closely and had just now stopped beside her. He had a deep gash cut into the side of his golden armour that revealed the plain silver metal beneath, a memento of the battle in the forest. A general of the royal army, he had been watching the rear of the battalion when they were attacked, but after discovering that the princess had been injured, he had refused to leave her side.
The princess had found his concern mildly ironic. She was leading him and everyone else into the fires of war and exposing them to all the dangers that followed and yet they were worried about her health? Those who had friends or family members injured in the fight had hurriedly rushed to their side and had just ignored the princess when she cried out. So did they care about her well-being out of some misplaced sense of honour and duty or was it a real emotion that they felt? Was she like a mother to them, even after placing them in a scorching fire like this?
“Princess Celestia, we have reached the assigned meeting point a days travel from the capital city of Prance.” the general noted, saluting the princess as he spoke.
“Let the soldiers rest awhile, General Redhoof.” the alicorn replied with an eerily monotonous tone as she gazed out across the landscape, “We have enough time to rest for a moment while the other detachments catch up with us.”
The general nodded and signalled to the army behind them. The golden mass of armoured ponies, which had been so attentively following the princess, immediately dispersed along the hillside. They removed their bags and gathered food or water, talked quietly amongst themselves or simply collapsed out of exhaustion.
She was pushing them too hard. They had travelled so far in such a small time and the inexperienced troops were growing weary and agitated. They weren’t used to this kind of travel, but neither was she. And although she was able to prevent the pain of her burning muscles with magic, she was quickly reaching the point of mental exhaustion.
She turned to face the army behind her and sat down, content to just look out across them as the group bustled with activity. They weren’t the same ponies that she remembered from before the war. They weren’t just tired, they were depressed and scared. They knew what they had to do and so they pressed on, but she recognized that they all just wanted to go home. No longer did they talk about the war. They did not talk about their fear of the battles ahead of them or the excitement of coming home as heroes. Instead, they talked about what really mattered, their friends and family. They talked about their homes, wives, husbands, daughters, sisters, brothers, and parents. They talked about the little fillies and colts as they played in the yard just outside their house. They talked about the simple gratifications of a hard day’s work and relaxing afterward. They talked about what they once had and what they longed to experience again.
They don’t fight for me. They don’t really care about me, nor should they, the princess thought as she listened to them converse quietly. They fight for what they have. They fight to protect everything that’s sacred in their lives and they know that, even if they die, they died fighting for a better life for someone else.
Is that what the soldiers of Prance believe as well? Do they believe they are fighting for a better future for their country or do they know the truth? And if they knew the truth, would they be willing to fight for it?
“They’re not really so different from the flowers, are they General Redhoof?” she asked, expressing her thoughts verbally and turning to the general who was slowly wiping his brow.
“I’m sorry, your highness, but I’m not really sure what you mean.” he answered.
“The flowers; they are wilted and dead now, but they had a beautiful and peaceful life in the past, didn’t they?” she continued, staring out across the soldiers, “They’re not really so different from the flowers.”
“Please, your highness, do not talk about such things. You know that every soldier here is happy to fight for you. They know they’re doing the right thing.”
You trust in my judgement so willingly, general, but I’m no longer sure that I trust in it myself, she thought.
Noticing her concern, the general tried to ease her mind with a curt smile as another golden mass appeared on the horizon to the east.
Rising to her hooves, the princess pushed away her thoughts and turned to the crowd of ponies on the hillside, “Equestrians, your brothers and sisters of the eastern battalion have arrived! I expect you to show them a warm welcome as they are no doubt as weary as you are!”
Murmurs of excitement drifted around the group and they shifted their attention to the east. The ponies were a pleasant sight, a reminder of the others that were fighting just as hard as they were. But as they drew ever closer, both the soldiers and the princess noticed that there were far fewer soldiers than they remembered. Whereas the main battalion was at half strength, the eastern battalion looked to be at nearly a third of its original size.
Have I really underestimated our enemy so much? Celestia thought, frowning at the eastern battalion that was approaching. Or have I overestimated our own might?
The princess waited in silence as the troops eventually made their way up the hill and towards her. Friends and family members, separated by the subdivision and reunited at last, rushed towards each other, greeting them warmly. Others seemed to panic and rush around the crowd, looking for someone who, whether left behind in the forest or met with a much crueller fate, was obviously not there.
A dark green, female pegasus made her way up the hill and saluted the princess with a nervous expression, “Major Swift Wing, reporting, your highness.”
“Where is Lieutenant Colonel Silvermane?” Celestia asked bluntly.
The pegasus lowered her hoof, “Colonel Silvermane has fallen in battle against Prance. As second in command of the regiment, I assumed command of the eastern division.”
“And what of the rest of your battalion, major?” General Redhoof asked with a grim expression, expecting a similar fate to have befallen them.
“A large number of our soldiers were injured in the fight, sir.” Swift Wing replied weakly, “We left some of our medics behind to assist the wounded and some of our soldiers to protect them. The rest are unfortunately… more permanent casualties.”
“I can only hope that the western battalion has better luck.” The general commented, “With only five thousand left in the central division and about…”
“Nineteen hundred, sir.” the pegasus interrupted.
The general swore under his breath.
“What the hell happened out there!?” he demanded.
“I… I think they were expecting us, sir.” she answered, “They ambushed us in the mountain pass when we were most vulnerable. We hardly had time to figure out what was going on before we had taken nearly a thousand casualties.”
“There’s no way they could have predicted our movements exactly! I think we have a spy among us.”
“Don’t jump to conclusions. They know their land well and they take advantage of it. They are not foreigners to war and strategizing. Predicting our movements would not be impossible for them.” Celestia intervened, “This only goes to show how prepared they were for our arrival. They knew we’d have a large army and the Splinter Forest, the mountain pass and the canyon to the west are choke points on the three most direct routes to the capital. But there isn’t any cover in between here and the capital, so I don’t think we should expect anything more until we lay siege to the city. They know better than to face us out in the open.”
“Do you think the western battalion was ambushed as well, princess?” Swift Wing asked, here gaze nervously darting from the princess’ face to her hooves.
“I’m not sure, but if they don’t show up by the morning, we will have to leave without them. We can’t afford to give the enemy any more time to prepare.” the alicorn replied, “Until then, we need to rethink our strategy. Our large numbers are only working against us, causing unnecessary casualties and slowing us down.”
“We have enough troops to blockade the city. We could defeat them with simple attrition warfare and wait for their inevitable surrender as they run out of food and resources.” the general suggested.
“If their leader truly is as cruel as I imagine him to be, he would rather watch every last citizen starve to death than surrender to us.” Celestia responded glumly, “I don’t want that to happen.
“However, I can lead a small team of pegasi and assault the pillar through the windows. Le Roi Pierre will be somewhere in that tower and if we confront him directly then their army will have to surrender. They cannot function without their leader.”
“I don’t think you should put yourself in danger like that, your highness. You’re going to lure every soldier in the city to your position.”
“We will still need to siege the castle, but it will be more of a distraction from our true intent than a necessary point of entry.” the alicorn admitted, “I would much rather end this quickly if possible and I have no qualms about putting my own life in danger. This is as much my fault as it is theirs and these ponies have already suffered far more than I could have ever imagined.”
The general sighed lightly, trying to mask his concern for the princess’ safety.
“I would be honoured to assault the pillar with you, Princess Celestia.” Swift Wing said, jumping back into the discussion.
“Thank you, Swift Wing.” Celestia smiled softly, “I will also need you to find eleven other capable pegasi to assist us. You are hereby promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.”
“Th… thank you, Princess Celestia. I’ll start gathering the pegasi immediately.”
The pegasus turned, bolted into the crowd and start shouting orders to the group, rounding up all of the pegasi and bringing them to one side of the group.
“General Redhoof, I will need you to lead the assault on the castle walls.” The princess explained, “We lack the capable supervision necessary to split the army into smaller sections and attack separate gates, so focus your strength on the front gate.”
“And what if I push through the main gate?” he asked.
“If you get passed the main gate, they will retreat their forces to the tower. Unfortunately, we don’t want that so I don’t want you trying to penetrate their defences until after the first hour. Given one hour, I’m sure that will be enough time to determine my fate.”
“Your highness, you can’t…”
“Under no circumstances, will you turn away. Even if I should perish, I want you to stop this lunatic. Do you understand, general?”
“Your highness, I don’t…”
“Do you understand!?” she repeated, glaring at the burgundy stallion.
“Of course, your highness.” Redhoof confirmed, “And what if the western battalion arrives?”
Celestia took a moment to think about the question he had posed. If the western battalion arrived, would it change her plans? Probably not. She was more concerned about their well-being than the military asset they provided her with. She just wanted to know that they were alright and that they had only been delayed for some fantastically dull reason. The very thought that more ponies had perished from her tactical stupidity was horribly dismal.
“If Lieutenant Colonel Dark Cloud survived and has sufficient numbers to do so, tell him to attack the western gate.”
“Of course.” The general replied, “Now, if you’ll excuse me for a moment, I’m going to satiate my appetite. I haven’t eaten in days.”
Celestia just nodded and turned back to the black tower on the horizon, one way or another, Pierre, this will all come to an end, but how deep a scar do we leave behind us? Will the passage of time prove me to be a saviour of your country and its freedom and you a ruthless, insane dictator pursuing some goal that was merely an illusion of your mind? Or will it be the opposite? For theirs are the only beliefs that really matter, not ours.
~
The streets of Canterlot were cold, dark and empty. The lights that fervently lit up the city at this time of the evening were all but extinguished, their inhabitants gone or simply too worried about their families and friends to stay up late into the night, only pretending to be careless and joyful. The nobility quarter, however, was a strange contradiction to the activity in the grim capital. The bright lights washing out into the wide streets and meticulous gardens illuminated the two cloaked ponies as they made their way across the district. It was completely different and, in its own way, insulting to the ponies that fought beyond their borders. These nobles, with their posh lifestyles and gleeful negligence to their duty and honour, were avoiding the war altogether. Not that they didn’t care, they just didn’t want to be involved, the slightest hint of danger scaring them away from the prospect of serving the nation they lived inside. For some there were other reasons as well. Indeed, some of these ponies felt betrayed by Princess Celestia’s recent decisions and they were acting this way in a silent rebellion against their monarch. They believed that the council should not have been eliminated, that a few ponies should not pave the way to their own disaster and that the public voice remained a necessary ingredient of the political choices made in their country, regardless of how private that public really was. With their democracy taken, they felt no particular attachment to their country anymore. They felt no need to participate in defending a government that no longer seemed to represent their interests. And so, these deserters of their own country, these ponies that chose not to fight in the war to the north, were entirely apathetic of the pain the rest of the city felt.
“I’ve never been to your house before, general.” Vortex said, her small grin barely visible under the hood of her cloak, “Is it as fancy as most of the places around here?”
Thunderhorn sighed deeply, “It was when I left it.”
The old unicorn stopped and gazed out upon the spectacular mansion in front of him, Vortex coming to a sudden halt when she realized that this striking building was his home.
“This… this is your place?” she asked doubtfully.
The building was not how he had remembered or Vortex had imagined it to be. The massive, blocky house had the word ‘traitor’ written across it in bright red paint, which against the blue walls and white trim, was painfully noticeable. The many windows were all smashed and broken, shards of glass littering his yard. The door was removed from its hinges and rested unpleasantly on the flowerbed to the right of the doorway. The trees and plants in his garden were burnt and destroyed, the scraps of foliage decorating the cobblestone path to the entranceway in an assortment of greens and browns. The sight was almost stomach churning and it left a foul taste in the unicorn’s mouth.
“I had not expected them to desecrate my property, only take the valuables and leave the rest as it was.” he responded irritably, stepping over the scattered shrubbery and approaching the doorway, “It’s almost hard to believe that someone would do this to anyone.”
Vortex said nothing, following the general through the opening and into his home to further inspect the damage inside the building. It wasn’t any more pleasant than the view from the outside and the walls displayed several more intense crimson words. Most were merely crude phrases and insults to the general, but one seemed to stand out among all the others and draw her gaze.
‘Why?’ it read.
Even I’m not sure I know the answer to that question, she thought, pulling her eyes away from the red paint and hurrying to catch up with the unicorn.
The old stallion was making his way around the corridors, stopping only just before the stairs as his own gaze was stolen away, not necessarily by the vandals, but by a simple, nearly untouched picture lying on the hard wooden floor. The frame was damaged in one corner, the glass cracked, but none of that affected the memory inside. It was a quaint photo of two smiling ponies, one a much younger image of the old stallion, the other a violet unicorn with long black hair hanging to one side of her face and brilliant light blue eyes.
Catching a glimpse of what had caused the unicorn to stop, Vortex interrupted his focus, “Is that you?”
“Yes.” he replied quietly, “From about thirty years ago.”
“Who’s that you’re standing with?”
There was a long silence as the old pony lifted the picture into the air, levitating it gently in front of his face with his magic.
“She was my wife.” he finally answered with a strangely pleasant tone, “The reason I became a soldier… a general… a politician… No one ever becomes a soldier and puts their life at risk without a reason…
“She was my reason.”
He set the photo on a table nearby and continued down the hallway.
“Unfortunately, disease is something that no soldier can fight. If I had known what would happen, then maybe I would have become a doctor, but as we’ve both seen, life rarely ever gives you much foresight on the world.” he said, opening the door to the staircase that led deep into the dark basement below.
“I’m sorry, Thunderhorn. I didn’t mean to…” the pegasus apologized, not moving from her place in the hallway.
“You don’t need to apologize for anything, Vortex.” he interrupted, his horn flaring and lighting up the dark stairwell, “Even just a moment with her was enough to last a lifetime. I miss her now that she’s gone, but I’m not going to give up. She wouldn’t want that.”
Taking his first step down into the basement, he stopped and turned around to look back at the pegasus who seemed rather shocked to see the old unicorn react like that.
“But don’t you dare tell Goldenroot any of that.” he insisted with a grin, “I like him thinking that I’m just some stubborn old conservative jerk.”
He continued down the staircase with Vortex following close behind. The pegasus smirked when she thought about the pale green stallion and his never-ending feud with Thunderhorn.
The basement was nearly untouched in comparison with the rest of the house. There was no graffiti; the tiny windows near the ceiling were still intact and the work bench and tools sitting in one corner of the otherwise empty room were covered in a thin layer of dust.
“Doesn’t seem like they even bothered to come down here.” Thunderhorn said, “I guess they were bad carpenters too.”
Vortex smiled more brightly at the strange old unicorn, but she still couldn’t shake the feelings from their earlier conversation, is he just messing with me?
He walked towards the center of the room and started pulling the nails out of the floorboards one after another, setting them on the work bench in the corner. Lifting the heavy board out of the way and setting it to one side, he pulled a dusty old tome out of the cavity and placed it on the work bench.
“Now, let’s make sure this is actually the book we need.” he mumbled, opening the cover and searching the pages.
Vortex wandered closer and looked at the pages as he flipped through and eventually stopped at a single page.
Locked away in that orb of her own being, she held it, now it holds her. She fought against us in times past, but what did she seek? They believe her a power hungry tyrant. We believe her a neglected and forgotten filly and so we wrung our knowledge so that we might birth her anew, redeem her in their intolerant eyes.
Time had aged only a little, but we loathe her absence and so much longer we cannot wait. It burns at our tendons, screams in our ears, pulls at our limbs and cuts into our heart like the sharpest of knives. So created, was the prison of our own holding and demonstrated within ‘twas our own capture, so that she might be nearer to us, so that we might have but one chance to see her stealing eyes, those delicate circles of blue so much like the one in the night sky, in ours once again.
But when the time was met, ‘twas a terrible fate that they would reject the most opportune moment that we had dreamed. They tossed aside our ambition, denied our ‘gamble’, they told. Our own sister, too powerful and wicked for us to contain? Prithee, tell us what has befallen you, dearest council? Dost thou not care for our kin’s wellbeing? No, not so, they plead. Their duty is to protect this nation, not to endanger it. What protection lies in unleashing a monster to the world? What protection do we provide in sacrificing the peace so that one might live anew?
We would not accept this heavy fate for our immortal sister. To live in thy lunar prison forever more would surely pull us and our sister to pieces and drive a stake through our sanity. ‘Tis our own fault, this fate of yours. We led thee astray, therefore, ‘tis our duty to lead thee back. Our youngest creation, a jewel of most glorious capacity, the crystalline orb now holds the key to thy redemption. We sought a power to match our own and this orb follows it to the very tooth and claw.
“Now they will not find us so fearsome, their fate so uncertain, for they hold the power to keep us both.” thought we.
‘Twas foolish to think it, such nonsense in our mind. They do not wish to see us and our sister together again. They do not wish to put our conscience to rest.
“If ‘twill not provide us with a key, it mustn’t provide us with anything at all.” said we to these barbarians against our will.
“Our most glorious one, we mustn’t destroy what took such length to create. For now, ‘tis a key we can use and a key it must remain.” the portly one answered back, almost maliciously so.
So now this jester of our aspiration and his devilish cohorts keep us and that infernal orb in the castle cellar, leaving it to mock our efforts with its presence. To us, ‘tis a key no longer, for now ‘tis our own undoing and will unlock no doors. We should have known better of ourselves. They are the principal of disaster. Their greedy hooves stole away the commoners’ voice under our own negligence. We thought if we had walked with them, they would walk with us, but ‘twas not to be.
We took a precaution, locked it away, sealed it with magic they know not how to eradicate. We think it best to keep it out of their reach, at least for this present time.
But they know now how this orb operates, so then we must as well. So that time doth not erase our memory, we wrote the directions in this magic book, protected from the damage of time and hidden away for safe keeping. Look to what follows, for it holds our secret.
“Yes, this is the book I’m looking for.” Thunderhorn said, taking note of the magic spells written below, “It tells us how to disengage the magical barrier and how to use this ‘crystalline orb’. It seems like we only need to fill the orb with our magical power and it will store it so that it can be unleashed all it once. We’ll need to find at least a dozen other unicorns to help us fill the orb, but that shouldn’t be difficult.”
“This is Princess Celestia, right?” Vortex asked, almost completely ignoring his words, “Doesn’t she sound kind of… crazy to you?”
Thunderhorn laughed, “She wasn’t crazy when she wrote this, Vortex, she was just angry. She wrote this immediately after the council rejected her plans to free Luna from the moon hundreds of years ago, consequently that’s also why she’s using such an ancient and difficult tongue. But after spending the last decade working on this plan and then simply getting a ‘no’ from the council and a refusal to destroy all the dangerous artefacts that she had created for it, I think it was reasonable for her to be angry at this point.
“However, I was a little surprised she didn’t change it all when she gave me a copy of what is essentially her diary, but when I asked about it, she just laughed and said, ‘I like to keep things around that remind me and everyone else that I’m still just a pony on the inside. I have emotions, just like you and just like you, I’m vulnerable to overreacting every once in while. I think it’s important to remember that.’
“She really is a good pony, Vortex. She’s only trying to help us, but everything that’s happened over the past few months was just too much for her to handle. I’m sure we can find a way to bring her back to her senses, it’s just going to take some effort on our part.”
“I hope so, Thunderhorn.” the pegasus replied, shaking her head and starting up the stairs, “This is turning into a real mess.”
~
“We’re lucky there’s only one, but how are we going to get passed him?” Goldenroot asked, watching the armoured pony from around the corner of a building.
“Well, you may have forgotten, but I haven’t been branded a traitor just yet.” Rarity answered, “I’ll distract him and you can sneak around.”
Goldenroot chuckled quietly, “Do you ever think you’re exploiting your own persuasiveness, Miss Rarity?”
“Oh, most certainly not, Sir Goldenroot.” the unicorn replied with a curt smile, lifting off her hood and fixing her long, delicate hair, “A proper mare deserves those benefits.”
Goldenroot smiled at her reaction and watched in silence as she gracefully walked out into the open and then towards the guard. After a moment, and as if on cue, the unicorn seemed to pull the guard’s attention away from the entrance and towards the moon above. Noticing the opportunity, Goldenroot slipped around the corner and approached the doorway, hugging close against the stone wall as he neared the opening.
“I’m sorry miss, I agree it’s really quite romantic, but you’re distracting me from my work.” the guard said, starting to turn away from the moon and back towards the door.
“Oh, well… umm…” Rarity panicked, noticing Goldenroot stopped and standing wide-eyed near the doorway.
Her horn shone dully and she lifted the pony’s helmet off his head and tossed it into the courtyard in the opposite direction of the pale green stallion, the metal clanging loudly against the hard rock as it landed.
“Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to do that.” she exclaimed loudly as the pale green stallion ducked inside the castle and out of sight.
“Honestly, miss!” the guard yelled, “I don’t have time for your nonsense! Is there, or isn’t there something you want from me!?”
“Oh, actually yes, I need to see Princess Luna.” she said meekly.
“Just go!” he said, pointing through the doorway, “I’m sure she can handle one obnoxious unicorn.”
“Now see here!” she replied, annoyed that the guard had insulted her elegance, “I am not…”
She stopped when she noticed that Goldenroot was giving her a strange look, his eyes like saucers from around the doorway, and decided it might be best not to anger the guard with something so trivial.
“Alright, sorry.” she said quickly.
Embarrassed, the unicorn rushed past the irritated guard and inside the castle. When she had made significant progress down the hallway, Goldenroot ducked out of a corner and walked up beside her.
“I thought you were going to kiss him for a moment there.” he smiled. “And then, not a moment later, I thought you were going to kick him in the face.”
“Oh please, Sir Goldenroot, he was far too gruff and unkempt for my liking.” she said, scrunching up her face, “Even in times of absolute distress, a mare mustn’t lower her standards.
“And calling me obnoxious of all things! That is something entirely worthy of a swift kick to the face.”
Goldenroot smiled more brightly as they quickened their pace down the hallway. When they finally arrived at the door, they were surprised to see that there wasn’t a single guard standing outside the moon princess’ room. In fact, the entire hallway had been completely devoid of any other ponies whatsoever.
“Now what do we do?” she asked, staring at the closed door, “This is the exact same predicament I was in before and we all know how well that turned out…”
“I don’t think our situation necessitates a formal acknowledgement.” Goldenroot said, pushing open the door and walking into the room, “We just have to hope for the best.”
“Sir Goldenroot!” she exclaimed accusingly, “I thought you knew better than to barge in on a princess like that!”
Goldenroot rolled his eyes, Do you even realize how hypocritical that is? You did the exact same thing!
Hearing Rarity’s voice, the princess, who was standing on the balcony and peering off into the distance, turned around to face the two cloaked ponies standing in her bedroom.
“Oh! My dearest apologies, Princess Luna. That was so very rude of us.” Rarity apologized, bowing her head slightly.
“I already know why you’re here.” the alicorn said with an empty expression.
“You mean you already know that your sister is…” Goldenroot replied, trying to find the right words to finish his sentence with.
“Insane?” Luna replied coldly, turning back to look off the balcony.
The word seemed to linger in the air around her, the princess losing herself in a storm of her own emotions. The very thought of her sister pierced her heart and filled it with misery, yet it did not bring tears to her eyes. She hated how her sister had fallen to the whim of an illusion and how she had done nothing to stop it, but she was not angry. Instead, she could only be described as beautifully mundane. She showed no joy, no sadness, no anger, no regret, no emotions whatsoever, but in her heart, she felt everything at once.
Celestia was her sister, her family, her friend. She was the sister that forgave her for breaking the trust they shared for what seemed like an eternity, for terrorizing the world in her own selfish ambition. She was the family that she grew up with, who protected her and inspired the courage and hope necessary for her to overcome the grief of their parents’ passing. She was the friend that knew how to make her smile, make her laugh and showed her the beauty of the amazing world they lived in. Without her, she would be so very different, the entire world would be so very different.
But now that sister was gone, snatched away by the very same emotions that she had worked so hard to help Luna overcome. She was caught in a whirlpool of deceit and hallucinations. The world was convoluted in her eyes and she was convoluting herself to match it.
“Then you must also realize that we need your help.” Goldenroot said, removing his hood and attempting to provoke a reaction from the paralyzed princess.
“First, you must answer me this,” Luna asked, turning to the stallion and stepping towards him, “why was the drought so terrible, Goldenroot? I know that Celestia knew why, but she would not tell me. She only gave me the very same canned response that she gave everyone else, that Prance and the council were responsible for it and everything else that’s happened.
“So I want to know, is it the truth? Are you really responsible for this?”
Goldenroot stared back at her with an indecisive look in his eyes, Should I lie to her and pretend that I don’t know what happened? Should I fake my innocence so that she might help us?
After much contemplation, a grim look formed on the stallion’s face. He had reached a conclusion about what he would tell the princess, but he wasn’t sure if it would ultimately prove to be the correct one.
“I was responsible for that, Princess Luna.” he said, admitting the truth. “But I alone was cooperating with Prance and worsening the drought, the other council members are innocent.
“I wanted to expand the council and our political system to include the commoners. I wanted to restore the equality and efficiency that your sister had intended for the council to have. At the same time, Prance wanted to establish trade routes with Equestria. They were in desperate need of resources they did not have and they needed our help. We both had our goals and we both thought that worsening the drought was an obligatory action to get around the inefficiencies and stubbornness in the current council.
“It was a mistake, I know that now and I regret my decision. But even if no one ever forgives me for it, I still want to try and fix the problems I have created. I want to apologize for what I’ve done, but I need your help.”
Luna turned back towards the balcony and watched the dazzling night sky as she pondered his explanation, Then she wasn’t really lying to me after all.
The two ponies sat in silence as they waited for a reply, the princess ignoring their existence completely. She had all the answers now, but it only seemed to tangle her understanding of the truth even more.
“I cannot help you, Goldenroot.” Luna said, still watching the night sky, “You toyed with our lives and hurt innocent ponies so that you might further your own ends. Because of you, my sister is fighting a losing battle with her grasp on reality. She cannot discern truth from lies and I’m beginning to think that neither can you.”
She turned to the stallion and fixed a piercing glare into his eyes, “You say you want to apologize, that you want to help and make things right again, but if you really want to help, you’ll stay out of our affairs. You’ll leave us alone and you’ll go back from whence you came.
“It may take precious time, but she will come to her senses. I will make sure of it.”
“Please, Princess Luna, surely you must realize that this war has to end before any more ponies’ lives are put needlessly in harm’s way?” Rarity pleaded, “They’re fighting a senseless war! It has to come to an end.”
“And what exactly do you suggest I do about it?” Luna asked, “Call the army back? She will only march them time and time again and we will only be dragging on these already tragic circumstances.
“I do not think that she is that far from the capital now and, soon enough, it will be over and I can pull her back into our reality, no matter how harsh it is for her to face. But only when this ends, will she give me the attention I so desperately need to do so.”
“I’m sorry princess, but I won’t accept that fate for our country or for theirs.” Goldenroot replied, “We can still stop this before it gets any worse, but we may need to imprison your sister to do so.”
The alicorn focussed a truly smouldering look of disgust upon the pony in front of her.
“That seems to be your solution to everything, isn’t it?” she said harshly, “We make one mistake and you want to send us away forever and let the infinite passing of time be our judgement.
“Would you have her sent to the moon? Seal her in a prison of stone? What cruel fate have you planned for her to spend the rest of her days as a victim to?”
“Princess Luna, please listen to us!” Rarity begged, a deep concern in her eyes, “We would never want to imprison her endlessly like that. You must believe that our goals are the same. We only need somewhere safe to confront her and convince her of the truth, but as you stated, that will take time and I doubt she will accept it willingly.
“There is a magical prison below the castle that we can use. If we can only just talk to her, then perhaps we can stop this.”
“Then throw her in prison if you must, Rarity. I will not interfere with your plans nor will I play any part in them.” the princess exclaimed, turning back to the balcony. “She may be insane, but she is still my sister and my family and I refuse to help the traitor, who has sent her and everyone else into this nightmare, banish her even further. Do not forget that he is the reason your friend is now dead.”
Goldenroot’s determined expression fell immediately upon remembering the poor young filly that had disappeared on her journey to Prance.
“That was an accident.” the unicorn stuttered, her lips trembling. “He cannot be held responsible for that.”
“Not everyone can be as generous with their forgiveness as you are, Rarity.” the alicorn replied.
“I’m sorry, Princess Luna.” Goldenroot affirmed to the best of his ability, given the circumstances. “But even if it is against your will, I will not just give up. We will find some way to stop your sister without your help.”
Concluding that the princess would not aid them, the two ponies left her in the bedroom alone, gently closing the door behind them. The ruler of the night silently gazed out over her stars, bright holes in the dark blanket of the tranquil atmosphere, and surrendered to her anguish.
What has become of us, sister? she thought, warm tears trickling down her face, Are we to be feared by everyone and loved by no one? Must our lives always be filled with such despair?
________________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Hello everyone! I really hope you enjoyed the chapter and I’m sorry it took so long. I had to study for midterms, work on projects and I got sick with pneumonia. Fun!
Thank you so much to everyone that is so diligently watching this now. I was absolutely ecstatic to realize that I had been put in the feature box on FimFiction, even if it was only for a day.
I would like to thank my editor, Specter Von Baren, for the amazing work he does with this and his prompt replies. He’s been working on another story of his own lately, so watch out for that over the next little while.
And as always, if you have any questions or comments about the story, you can reach me at my email: [email protected] I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 11 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-11-27T00:27:17+00:00 | 2011-11-27T00:27:17+00:00 | 2,642 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 11
“So what’s the plan, general?” Vortex asked, looking excitedly at the gruff old unicorn walking beside her. “Can we just bust in there and cause a ruckus? I want some action.”
The two ponies were making their way towards the huge palace, their hooded cloaks concealing as much of their defining features as was possible. The building ahead of them was customarily a bastion of hope, representing every ounce of confidence the citizens had in their nation. But the usually bright palace was shrouded in the darkness of the night and consumed by the fears of war. The few lights decorating the walls were dimmed and an uneasy feeling hung over the building like a thick fog.
Trying to ignore the depressing sight, Thunderhorn was keeping his gaze focussed on the cobbled path ahead of them, which drifted away from the main entrance and the irritated looking pony guarding the doorway.
Thunderhorn had a brown saddlebag hanging loosely over his side. Inside were the collection of items that he had gathered from his home before they left, all of which he considered to be completely necessary for the next part of their plan.
“Don’t be so brash.” he scoffed. “You know that we can’t afford to attract any attention to ourselves until after we’ve started the riot.
“We’re just going to sneak in there and sneak out. If we run into any guards, I can use magic to knock them out quietly and we’ll tie them up with the rope I brought. As long as the patrol schedule hasn’t changed from what I remember, no one should come across the guards we’ve tied up until after we’ve started the riot and by then, we won’t care who comes across them.”
The pegasus rolled her eyes, “I have absolutely no confidence in my ability to tie knots, Thunderhorn.”
“Fine, let me worry about that part then.” he replied.
Continuing around a corner, they passed several small bureaucratic buildings and storehouses packed tightly against each other. Dimly illuminated by the streetlamps, the structures themselves were completely dark and abandoned. They were simple, identical boxes with few notable characteristics. Other than the slight differences in the colour of paint on the walls and doors, which was entirely dull and unoriginal, only the signs firmly attached over each doorway could be used to differentiate between them.
“When we get to the artefact room I’ll dispel the barrier, we’ll grab the orb and then meet the others back at the Ivory Bear.” Thunderhorn continued.
Vortex scrunched her face, giving the unicorn a strange look, “Then what am I doing?”
“What time is it?”
Pausing, she lifted her head and looked up at the sky. Its reflection perfectly visible in the mare’s amber eyes, the moon’s luminescent sheen was only partly obscured by the clouds above.
Turning back to the unicorn, she announced, “Ten thirteen.”
“Good.” he promptly replied. “Then we have exactly forty-seven minutes to do this.”
The unicorn smiled briefly, turning off the path into a dark alley that seemed to lead nowhere. Walking directly to the end of the alleyway and stopping at an indistinct section of the stone wall, he glanced around the obstruction with a hint of confusion.
“You still haven’t told me what I’m supposed to do.” Vortex asked, her voice showing her annoyance.
“Haven’t I?” he replied, leaning in towards a section of the wall. “You were supposed to help me tie up the guards and keep track of the time, but you already explained to me that you can’t help tie up the guards.”
“So I’m here… to help you tell the time?” she asked with a blank stare.
“You’re doing an excellent job.”
“You do know that I can’t tell the time indoors right?”
“You can’t?” he asked, turning around to face the pegasus. “Then I guess you really are useless.”
The old unicorn smirked and turned back to the wall.
“You know, you really are a stubborn old conservative jerk, Thunderhorn.” she replied angrily.
Thunderhorn laughed quietly, his horn glowing dimly as a thread of magic seeped through a tiny hole in the stone wall. The line of magic gradually spread, making the entire wall glow a brilliant blue colour. A moment later, the wall started to shake and shift in place. A thin cloud of dust crumbled off the wall and started to sprinkle onto the ground in a slow shower and, one by one, the stone bricks pulled themselves out of place and started forming a neat pile on the ground, just to the right of the old unicorn.
Vortex watched this entire event unfold in silent admiration, her mouth hanging open ever so slightly and her eyes maintaining an unblinking gaze on the wall. This new hole in the wall had created a perfect entrance into the palace. It led directly into a small, uninteresting room, but with the room’s door slightly ajar, giving her a limited view of the hallway outside, she could see the familiar staircase that led down into the lower catacombs of the castle.
“How come I didn’t know about this?” Vortex asked, turning to Thunderhorn and blinking several times in quick succession.
“Why would you need to know about a secret entrance that you wouldn’t use or even be able to open?” the unicorn asked.
“Well… what if I was curious?” she exclaimed with a stoic expression. “And as a former member of the council, I’m insulted to know that you’ve been withholding such valuable information from me. First the magical prison cell, then the crystalline orb and now a secret entrance?”
“Well, quite simply,” Thunderhorn said, “it wasn’t valuable information at the time.”
The unicorn walked towards the door leading out of the room and peered into the hallway, checking to make sure that they hadn’t alerted any of the guards. Satisfied, he instructed the pegasus to step inside the room. After the blue mare had entered, he reached out with his magic and the pile of bricks by the entrance started to shift and move to fill the opening they had created.
“Besides, I didn’t trust you with that information.” he continued.
“And you do now?” she asked almost enthusiastically.
Because we all know how very trusting you are, Thunderhorn, she thought to herself with a quaint smile. You’re the same pony that gladly accused me of being a traitor little more than a week ago.
As the stone wall stopped moving and the last few bricks fell into place, Thunderhorn hurried back to the door and glanced around the hallway once more.
“Now I don’t really have much of a choice.” he admitted. “I still think you’re too confident and brazen for your own good. One day you’re going to get hurt acting like that.”
Vortex’s enthusiasm deflated quickly and a small frown formed on her face.
How predictable, she thought. Even when the world hangs in the balance he’s just as obnoxious as the day I met him.
Thunderhorn motioned for her to follow as he rushed out of the room and started to descend the staircase leading down into the depths of the castle basement. The torches placed periodically along the walls cast strange shadows on the solid rock steps. The light they provided was bleak and inadequate, making it impossible to clearly see more than a few feet in front of them.
“But I wasn’t really all that different when I was your age.” Thunderhorn added, grinning back at the pegasus. “And I reckon there were more than a few grumpy old stallions complaining about my actions.”
He chuckled quietly to himself and Vortex found herself smiling reluctantly, still unsure of what to make of this strange old pony and his drastic change of personality.
Upon reaching the bottom of the stairwell, the two were met with a pair of large, steel doors, pockets of rust scattering the surface of the old metal. Small barred windows on each door gave them a limited picture of the narrow passage just on the other side. Unfortunately, the dismal view of the other side was all too familiar to the unicorn and pegasus that cautiously peered through them. The dark corridor was surrounded on either side with ancient prison cells, a depressing reminder of the short, but terrifying time they had spent within the castle’s dungeon.
“I don’t see anyone on the other side.” Thunderhorn noted, surveying the hallway through the barred window. “With any luck, the majority of the guards will be at war and not down here guarding the nonexistent prisoners and watching over these dusty old cells.”
The unicorn pushed on the door lightly, the old metal frame creaking loudly as it opened, causing both of the ponies to cringe.
“I find it hard to believe that they don’t have a single prisoner down here.” Vortex remarked.
“We were probably the first real criminals Princess Celestia has had to deal with in over a hundred years and our punishment was little more than a permanent vacation.” he explained. “Perhaps that says something about the society we live in, but it says even more about the princess. She’s done an impressive job at containing the criminal activity in Equestria. The fact that most of us weren’t even responsible for the crime we were accused of only serves to reinforce my appreciation of her accomplishments.”
Vortex thought about what he had said for a moment before glancing around at the empty cells. It was exactly as she remembered, cold, dreary, and unwelcoming, but it strangely brought a joyful smile to her face. While it was indeed a terrible part of the castle, it held a special place within her heart. For it was down here, when she thought her life was at its end, that she had finally worked up enough courage to express her feelings to that peculiar green pony.
Stupid Wind Dancer, she thought, her smile collapsing, she ruined my moment… mostly...
“Why are we even down here?” a voice asked, barely audible from around the corner.
Hearing the strange voice, Thunderhorn stopped and stuck out his hoof to hold the distracted pegasus beside him in place.
“I’m actually glad I don’t have to fight in the war.” another voice replied, slightly louder than the other. “It sounds too dangerous.”
“Don’t be so pathetic. You’re a soldier!” the first voice exclaimed loudly. “You’re not supposed to be afraid of danger. You’re supposed to be a fearless warrior, eager to jump into the heat of battle.”
Thunderhorn could hear their hoofsteps, the armour clanging methodically against the stone floor. They were only a short distance away now.
“That’s ridiculous.” the second mocked. “We’re only temporary replacements for the real soldiers that have gone off to fight in the war. We’re not fearless warriors and I’m certainly not eager to get into any fights.”
Thunderhorn started to focus his magic, the horn on his head darkening until it was as black as the night. A dark cloud of mist rapidly formed in the air above his head and wafted gently around the corner and down the hallway, towards the two guards that were fast approaching their position.
“Oh come on! You have to be at least…” the first voice continued before coming to an abrupt halt.
The dark cloud hanging in the air distracted him from his point and the hallway was engulfed by a strange silence as the two guards stared at it curiously.
“What is that thing?” the first voice asked hesitantly.
“I don’t know what it is!” the second voice replied in anger. “But are you really trying to convince me that you’re not afraid of going to war or getting into fights with dangerous criminals, yet you’re afraid of a dust cloud? That’s the most… ridiculous… thing…”
Several loud clanging noises filled the air as the two soldiers slipped out of consciousness and hit the floor, their helmets flying off and rolling noisily around the corridor.
Thunderhorn and Vortex quickly turned around the bend and approached what appeared to be two very young pegasi in ill-fitting golden armour.
“These are just colts…” Vortex said.
“Most likely, they wanted to join the army, but were turned away for being too young.” Thunderhorn guessed. “The recruiting officer probably gave them this post instead to keep them occupied. I was worried this might happen. It was part of the reason I didn’t want to just ‘bust in and cause a ruckus’.”
The old pony sighed gently and opened the flap on his bag, pulling out a long piece of rope and throwing it carelessly on the floor in front of him.
“These two aren’t going to hurt anyone. I’ll tie them up and then we’ll put them both in one of the nearby cells.” he continued.
Better they get tied up and humiliated in the basement of their own castle than end up dead fighting for a war they don’t even understand, he thought.
The unicorn quickly hogtied the two young pegasi and loosely tied their muzzles shut so they wouldn’t draw any attention when they awoke. After this was done, both Vortex and Thunderhorn each picked up one of the ponies and carefully set them on the beds in one of the prison cells.
Thunderhorn closed the door behind them, not bothering to lock them in, I don’t think they’re going to cause us any more problems. They’ll probably be too afraid to leave that cell when they wake up.
“Do you think they’re the only ones?” Vortex asked with a troubled look on her face. “I mean, do you think there are more little ponies like this? I don’t want any of them to get hurt in the riot…”
“I don’t know.” he replied with a frown. “I know that the ones guarding the artefact room will be trained guards, but I really can’t tell if the ones patrolling the city are going to be this young. We need to be careful and try to avoid any fighting.
“But it’s more important that we focus on getting that orb. We can’t afford to waste any time worrying about this right now.”
Thunderhorn pulled his eyes away from the two ponies and rushed down the hallway, towards the great steel door at the far end. Vortex followed closely behind as they opened the door and hurried down the staircase.
“As I remember, there should be four guards outside the room.” Thunderhorn whispered. “They’re guarding one of the most dangerous possessions in the country, so they’re extremely well trained.”
“But we can just use that fog thing of yours to knock them all out, right?” Vortex asked quietly, glancing at the old unicorn.
“No.” he replied promptly. “They’ll know exactly what that is and they’ll know how to dispel it before anyone falls unconscious. Instead, I’m going to have to ask for your help.”
Vortex smiled brightly, “Oh, so you do want my help after all, do you?”
“Don’t get cocky.” he replied sternly. “We need to exploit their disadvantages. I’m going to focus my own magic and use it to protect you from their spells. You need to rush in and take out the unicorns as quickly as you can; there should be two of them. Avoid the earth ponies. They’re too well trained for you to handle them both.”
“Well, I don’t know about that…” she smirked.
“Afterward,” Thunderhorn continued. “I’ll jump in and use my magic to knock out the two earth ponies like we did with those two colts. Without the unicorns, they won’t be able to protect themselves. Do you understand?”
Vortex nodded quickly, trying to hide her passionate enthusiasm.
“Ok then. We need to be absolutely quiet from now on so that we don’t alert them.”
The blue pegasus lowered her hood and discarded the cloak on the floor, shaking her head and stretching herself out as she limbered up for the encounter. While she appeared to be eager about the idea of fighting the soldiers, she was silently apprehensive and avoided looking directly in her companion’s direction. Putting your life in danger, for any reason, was not something that anyone ever looks forward to.
Approaching the end of yet another long hallway in the dimly lit catacombs of the castle, they were met with a set of large doors almost identical to those leading into the prison. These doors, however, were lacking two distinctive features that the ones they encountered before had. The metal on the doors was flawless and looked as if it were inspected and replace at regular intervals to maintain its structural integrity. The doors were also missing the small barred windows so the two had only their imagination to use as an indication of what waited for them in the adjacent room.
Both ponies stopped just before the door and, noticing that the entrance was locked, Thunderhorn weaved another thread of blue magic out of his horn. The thread of magic snaked its way into the lock and the unicorn closed his eyes as he tried to imagine the tumblers inside. And after a few moments of intense concentration, the magic melted away and the unicorn opened his eyes, turning and nodding slowly at the pegasus waiting quietly, but impatiently, beside him.
The reaction of the mare was puzzling to say the least. A warm smile crossed her face, but faded almost as quickly as it arrived. Her eyes darted from the door to Thunderhorn and then back again, the unicorn sporting a much more obviously apprehensive look.
And, as if gaining confidence from the visible trepidation of her companion’s posture, she burst into the room and immediately took note of her surroundings. Time seemed to slow as her gaze lashed around the room, focussing on each of the ponies within, one after another, and brushing past the brilliant, but opaque violet barrier directly across from her. As Thunderhorn had suspected, there were two unicorns, one noticeably older than the other, and two earth ponies with a significantly more intimidating stature.
Contradictory to what she expected, all four of them were in very relaxed positions around the room. The two unicorns were sitting at a table, playing cards. The younger pony had his head propped up with one hoof, while the older pony was focussing deeply on the five cards floating in front of him. The two earth ponies were exact opposites of each other in terms of their alertness. One was dozing in the corner and the other was intently watching the doorway that she had just come out of. He was the first to react, shouting loudly and causing the others to leap to their feet, the unicorns releasing their grasp on their cards, letting them sprinkle onto the ground. The most alert pony rushed towards her quickly, but she was faster than he was and jumped out of the way as he leaped at her.
A bizarre sensation of pure ecstasy coursed through her veins. It was a fantastic mixture of adrenaline, fear and Thunderhorn’s magic. With her heart pumping fervently in her chest, the soldiers around her moved liked they were weighed down with lead. Hovering in the air, her eyes skipped to the two unicorns, the old one was trying to hold her in place, but his magic just flowed off her body like water. The younger was lifting the table and preparing to hurl it in her direction while the drowsy earth pony in her peripheral vision was still trying to collect his senses.
Beating her wings and pushing the air away from herself, she moved against the wall and out of the way as the table brushed past her and shattered against the doorway. Pushing against the wall, she sent herself flying towards the older unicorn, the pony unable to react in time as she launched him into a wall.
The younger unicorn dropped to the ground, allowing the drowsy pony to jump over him and push off his back, hurling the full weight of his body towards Vortex. But once again, she was too fast for the bulky soldiers and she propelled herself up to the low ceiling above. Not a moment later, she pushed back off the ceiling and sent herself rocketing towards the ground and the unicorn beneath her. The young unicorn reacted quickly and shielded himself with a magical barrier; the pegasus’ hoof crashed into the malleable barrier and sent her flying towards the wall by the door and straight into the most alert pony of the bunch, who prepared to catch her as she flew in his direction. But the strange feeling inside the pegasus gave her indomitable reflexes and she twisted her body around, landing a hoof squarely in his face and knocking him against the wall. Moving quickly, she took advantage of her momentum once again and flew back towards the young unicorn who was preparing some kind of lasso out of his magic. The unicorn hurled his lasso around the pegasus and attempted to throw her against the wall using her own momentum, but the lasso disintegrated as soon as he tried to tighten it over her. Surprised and left with no way to defend himself, the pegasus landed a hoof into the side of his head and sent him flying against the drowsy earth pony, the two colliding and sending a loud metal clanging sound resonating around the room.
Exhausted from the ordeal, Vortex’s balance immediately faltered as she touched the ground and she tumbled onto the floor in a lump.
“Thunderhorn!” she shouted to the door.
The unicorn released his magic around the pegasus and rushed into the room, ready to subdue the remaining ponies. But as he entered the room and trampled over the remnants of the wooden table, like Vortex, the sight he encountered was not quite what he had expected. All four guards were lying unconscious around the walls with the pegasus collapsed in almost the exact center of the room.
While she had been a member of the Wonderbolts, the old pony knew that, despite being physically demanding, the job did not require any fighting. It was all just a show, a performance for those willing to buy a ticket, and the combat ability that some ponies had begun to expect from them was merely coincidental. Their occupation had given them the courage and finesse that was necessary in battle, but in fact, many of the Wonderbolts were still terrible fighters. They were just too predictable or slow to react when they were confronted with a combat situation. So how Vortex had become such an incredible combatant over her relatively short life was a complete mystery. Perhaps it had something to do with her personality, her quick thinking and unpredictable nature making her more than capable of busting a few heads whenever she deemed it necessary.
“I think you can come in here now.” she said, a curt smile forming on her face as she stared at the ceiling and panted heavily, desperately trying to catch her breath.
The old unicorn hurried over to her and crouched down, “Are you alright, Vortex!?”
The mare’s smile grew and she laughed heartily.
“That was too much fun!” she exclaimed between breaths. “We’ll have to do that again sometime.”
“Vortex, are you hurt!?” Thunderhorn persisted.
“No… just tired.” she explained, lifting her head up slightly to look back at him. “Where did you learn how to do that?”
The unicorn sighed heavily, “That magic barrier is a personal concoction of mine. It’s something I learned a long time ago and it requires an enormous amount of concentration and practice to perfect. It protects against nearly every type of magic known, cushions physical attacks and heightens one’s senses considerably.
“I must admit, I had never actually tried using it on anyone other than myself before and when I was using it on myself, I couldn’t move or I would break my concentration so I wasn’t sure if it would work properly.”
“Great…” Vortex replied nervously.
Thunderhorn smiled faintly and reached into his bag, pulling out the book they had collected from his manor and setting it on one the chairs.
“I had originally intended to use it on my wife in an act of desperation. I thought that it might give her a chance to escape, even if it meant sacrificing my own life to do so.”
“Yeah. Well…” the pegasus wheezed. “If it’s okay with you… I think I’m just going to lie here for a while.”
She closed her eyes and continued to breathe heavily, her chest moving up and down rapidly.
“Take your time.” he said, flipping through the book. “We’re not going to be able to tie these guards up; the unicorns would break free in no time, so I’m going to seal them all behind the magical barrier instead. They won’t know how to get past it.”
“Okay.” Vortex apathetically replied, rolling onto her side.
Thunderhorn stopped at the page in the book that described how to remove the barrier and started to focus his magic towards the violet, glasslike obstacle separating them from the adjoining room. His horn turned a dazzling green colour and a concentrated beam of light shot directly at the center of the barrier. The violet changed into a fiery red and thin cracks scattered across the barrier. When the fractures covered the entire surface of the magical obstruction, the wall shattered and the fragments fell to the ground in a small heap.
Vortex ignored her exhaustion and rose to her hooves. With the barrier gone, the contents of the room were revealed, leaving the two ponies completely awestruck at the sight in front of them. The tiny room itself, which was composed of simple stone bricks like the rest of the castle, was immaculate and not a single particle of dust touched its surface. In the center of the room was a small crystal ball, about the size of an apple, resting on a small pillow and placed on top of a pedestal. The orb itself glowed with a dull, but wonderful orange light and was covered in engravings of a similar, but visibly darker colour.
Approaching the glowing artefact slowly, Thunderhorn read the words covering its surface.
My beloved sister, my only family, I would toss aside my immortal life, my royal blood, and everything else I own for you, the one true constant in my world.
“She didn’t write this in the royal tongue.” Thunderhorn remarked, reading through the words once more. “At the time she wrote this, it meant a lot to just throw away your pride and humble yourself like that for someone else. It really shows how much she cares about her sister.”
Both ponies continued to stare at the orb as it shined in the confinement of the small room. Once again realizing where they were, Thunderhorn snatched the crystalline sphere away from the pedestal and placed it inside his bag.
“Help me drag them into the room.” he said quickly, gesturing towards the unconscious guards. “We need to get back.”
As they rushed around the room, pulling the ponies through the opening, Vortex laughed, “We can’t forget about these guys. They’ll be fine for a day or two, but after that we’ll need to get them out of here.”
“I have no intention of leaving some of the best of the country’s soldiers locked in here for longer than a few hours.” Thunderhorn said.
When all the ponies were inside the small room, the old unicorn turned his attention back towards the book resting on the chair. Soon enough, a violet beam of magic shot out from his horn and started to gather up all of the fragments on the ground, placing them each in their former positions and returning the barrier to its original, but cracked form. As the magical wall changed from red to violet, the cracks started to recede and eventually disappear entirely.
“Now, as long as we don’t run into any surprises, we should make it back on time.” Thunderhorn said, placing the book back in his bag and heading towards the door.
~
Goldenroot slowly rotated the cup around in circles between his hooves, the warm, cloudy liquid sloshing gently at the bottom. He was never very fond of tea. The amount of effort it took him to drink the hot beverage properly, carefully holding the cup in between his hooves and lifting it up to his mouth for a sip, was usually too much to justify any satisfaction he received from it. But tonight, he didn’t care about the aesthetics of ‘proper tea consumption’ and simply slurped the liquid through a long straw that protruded out of the cup awkwardly. His rudeness was, however, hideously inappropriate for their current situation.
Rarity was still upset; the moon princess’ words had damaged her faith in their plan and in herself. She was thinking of the pony sitting across the table from her that she was now closely affiliating herself with and of the pony that months ago, had disappeared without a trace. Twilight was gone and now she was sitting in a scummy bar with a conspirator, attempting to cause a riot and overthrow the princess. Had the world really changed so much in so little time or was it her? Was she really trying to save what little sanity was left on this planet or, like Celestia, had she changed and distorted herself to match the cruel destiny she was held captive in?
“They’re late.” Goldenroot noted, looking at the battered clock on the wall. “It’s unlike either of them to be late.”
Rarity gave no reaction, simply staring into her own tea with an uncertain and apathetic disposition.
Goldenroot hesitated for a moment before looking at the unicorn directly, “I’m sorry about what happened, Miss Rarity.”
The white unicorn looked up from her cup and across the table, right at the stallion. Now so late into the night, her usually sparkling blue eyes had a dull red tinge with an almost swollen appearance to them and her hair was ever so slightly out of proportion from its usually pristine glamour.
“I know you said that it wasn’t my fault, but I’m not really sure that I believe you.” he continued. “I was still a part of what happened to your friend and I need to apologize for that. I’m sorry about what happened to her and Princess Celestia and I’m sorry about what’s happened to our entire country.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen, but if we actually pull this off and restore the council, I don’t think I should be any part of it. I don’t think that would be the right thing to do after what I’ve done.”
The gentle ambience of the room took over and the sound of clinking glasses, hoofs tapping gently against the wooden floor and playful laughter of the tavern’s other patrons was the only thing that separated them from complete silence.
Rarity’s glum expression turned away from the green stallion, back down to the table and into her cup.
“I’m trying not to hold you accountable for this disaster, but I suppose you’re right.” she said in a hollow tone. “I’m not really as forgiving as I try to be and a part of me really hates you for what you did. But I know you didn’t intend for this to happen, so I do appreciate the gesture, Sir Goldenroot
She lifted her gaze back up from her tea and smiled faintly at the pony across from her, but the expression was fragile and short-lived, disappearing almost as soon as it arrived.
“I only wish I knew what happened to her.” she continued. “Why did she just disappear? Where did she go and why did Prance have her belongings? Why doesn’t anyone have any idea what happened to her? It’s all just so… strange…”
“There must be something in her belongings that can help us find some answers.” Goldenroot said, “After we’re done with all of this, I’d like to help you find those answers, Miss Rarity. It’s the very least I can do.”
The white unicorn lifted the teacup to her face. After taking a very brief sip of the hot beverage, she set the cup gently down on the table and smiled.
“I would certainly appreciate your help, Sir Goldenroot.” she replied.
As soon as the stallion was able to return the smile, the door to the Ivory Bear opened and two familiar figures entered the building. Under the shadow of her hood, Vortex smiled exuberantly as she rushed over to the table and sat down.
“We got it!” she exclaimed joyfully.
But her expression quickly changed from joy to a look of sheer disgust.
“Are you two drinking tea in a pub?” she asked doubtfully, turning to Goldenroot. “And you’re drinking yours with a straw? What’s wrong with you!?”
Realizing how ridiculous they must look, Goldenroot and Rarity revealed embarrassed expressions, first to each other and then to the blue pegasus.
Thunderhorn smirked from underneath his hood as he approached the table casually, “I assume that since you’re here that we’ll have the princess’ help?”
“Actually, no.” Goldenroot replied despondently. “She won’t help us, but she won’t interfere either.”
“It almost sounds like she hasn’t actually made up her mind yet.” Thunderhorn replied, his smile falling. “Then what are we going to do? We can’t afford to wait for her decision.”
“We need to use the artefact.” Rarity said.
The other ponies looked at her in surprise.
“You’re okay with that?” Goldenroot asked doubtfully. “Honestly, I thought you would be the last one to agree to use that thing.”
“If Princess Luna didn’t want us to stop her sister, she would have locked us up for trying.” the white unicorn replied with assurance. “I think that, even though we don’t have her help, some part of her wants us to go through with this. And if the orb was created for this very purpose, then Princess Celestia would have taken the utmost caution in creating it. I do not think she would spend so much time creating something that does not work”
“Well if you’re convinced, then so am I.” Goldenroot responded.
Vortex slammed her hooves on the table aggressively, startling even the loudest patrons of the tavern as the teacups rattled and spilled a large portion of their contents.
After noticing the attention she had drawn to herself, she lowered her voice to a whisper and leaned into the table, “Then it’s about time we started a riot.”
Goldenroot couldn’t help but smile at her, but the unicorns were apprehensive. They still weren’t sure that they would be able to even remotely contain a full-scale riot in the capital, let alone find a way to start one.
“Then this is what we need to do.” Thunderhorn intervened, leaning into the table.
~
“Nobles of Equestria!” Goldenroot shouted as the four ponies burst into the largest tavern in the nobility quarter of Canterlot only moments before it was about to close for the evening.
Each pony threw off their cloaks, discarding them onto the floor of the large, bustling room. The tavern was a huge building and, even so close to the last dying hours of the night, there were nearly a hundred ponies inside staring back at them in complete confusion. Distracted by the interruption, they mumbled to each other in a desperate attempt to make sense of the situation.
“She has taken away your rights and your responsibility!” Goldenroot continued. “She has declared war on our neighbours to the north and banished your voice to the furthest reaches of the world. She claims she is saving us from conspiracy and treason, but we all know that is not the truth.”
The whispers among the tables grew louder and more frequent. The crowd began to clearly express their wonderment of just who these ponies were and whether or not they were actually the council that they had believed to have been banished from their country little more than a week ago. If they were the council, what were they doing here now? What was going on?
“Tragedy has stricken our nation at its very heart! Our fair Princess Celestia has surrendered to the terrible hallucinations that now plague her mind and ravage her soul!” Thunderhorn cried, stepping forward. “Indeed, she is not the princess we remember. Surely you have seen her change and our country with her? Surely you have noticed that she believes the world is very different from our reality?”
“Now see here!” the barkeep exclaimed, stepping out from behind the bar and walking towards the small group of ponies at the doorway, trying to look as intimidating as possible.
He wasn’t very old, but he could hardly be described as a young pony. A fairly large unicorn, his thinning black mane ran carelessly down his neck and along his fading orange coat. His eyes were a passionate blue and desperately tried to pull the attention away from an obvious scar on his lip, a wound that had likely been the result of getting kicked in the mouth at one point or another.
“I won’t have you coming into my bar, spouting this rubbish and upsetting my customers! You speak as if our princess has gone crazy, but I seem to recall that you’re the very same ponies that we condemned for almost the same reason not too long ago.”
The crowd smiled and sneered at the group they had been taking so seriously. Some of them rolled their eyes and turned back to their table, diverting their attention away from the four ponies at the entrance as they resumed their conversations.
“You think we’re crazy!?” Vortex shouted at the barkeep in disbelief.
“Do you really think that turning on your friends, family and the ponies you were all supposed to serve is anything else?” he snorted. “It’s true, I was sad to see our part in the political decisions of Equestria get taken away from us, but not you traitorous lot. You’re a disgrace to the entire country.”
“Don’t be so quick to believe everything the princess has told you.” Thunderhorn scorned, raising his voice to resonate across the entire building. “You can’t really believe that every single one of us would turn against you. What would we possibly gain from that?”
“I’m not one to question the aims of madness.” the barkeep laughed. “I’m sure you all had your reasons.”
“Then you must be mad as well.” Goldenroot said piercingly, stepping up to the barkeep with a smile on his face.
A few of the ponies who had looked away previously had turned back now. They might not have been willing to take sides in the argument, but they were more than willing to enjoy a good fight.
“You elected us did you not?” the pale green stallion announced. “You chose us out of everyone else to be your voice in the government. We’re as much a part of you as you are a part of us. Would we sever our own limbs and cut into our own soul? Would we turn against the very reason we have to live and decapitate ourselves out of greed? Would we come back to you now, knowing that we face our own deaths as a consequence of failure? Cowardly or not, no one would take such risk without good reason.”
More of the crowd had started to turn back towards them, intrigued by the skilful shouting match that was taking place at the doorway. Their hushed murmurs had all but stopped, with only a few of the less sober patrons still muttering to themselves quietly. Their drinks all rested peacefully on the tables in front of them, completely forgotten and insignificant in comparison to what was happening before their eyes.
Thunderhorn promptly joined in, taking advantage of all the attention they were receiving, “Princess Celestia told you that Prance, the country that helped us during our time of need, was trying to conquer us and slit our throats in our sleep. But we are without a doubt the most wonderful, powerful, and influential nation on this planet. Who would dare to oppose us unless seeking their own destruction? Prance is not so different from our own nation, my friends. Its ponies do not wish to see their country plunged into the fires of war any more than we do. But now, both our countries are fighting and dying for a mere illusion, a façade of the mind.”
“I’m tired of your nonsensical ramblings!” the barkeep yelled angrily. “Get out now before I have the guards throw you out. I’m sure they’ll be more than happy to lock you up in the dungeon.”
The barkeep’s temper had elevated to a critical point and his patience wore thinner by the second. So after keeping silent the entire length of the quarrel, Rarity recognized that she had to do something before they lost all hope of convincing the nobility to their cause. They obviously wouldn’t believe the council as easily as she had originally hoped they would. They were too doubtful and, although most of the bar was now absorbed in the argument, no one was taking them seriously enough to support them in any way.
“Please, you have to believe we’re telling the truth!” she begged the barkeep. “The war is only getting worse and we don’t have much time left.”
The barkeep’s extreme irritation vanished, replaced with a mere annoyance as he and the entire building came to grinding halt and stared at the unicorn standing anxiously in front of the barkeep.
“For a moment, I thought you were someone else.” he replied with an unexpectedly calm demeanour. “But you’re not one of the council members, are you? So then how did you get wrapped up in their lies?”
“They did not convince me, nor did they need to.” she explained sincerely. “It was my discovery alone. I asked them for their help.”
Though she was speaking quietly, her voice was heard around the entire room. The orange unicorn seemed to be taken back by this sudden revelation. He found it almost unbelievable that she had somehow convinced the others to come back from their exile and fight so passionately for something that seemed so bizarre.
“Some of you may know that Princess Celestia’s student, Twilight Sparkle, was sent to Prance to help find a solution to the drought.” she continued, raising her voice a little. “She was gone for weeks, months even. But as time passed and the problems of the drought were eventually extinguished, many of us gave up hope that she would ever return. She just seemed to have disappeared.”
The barkeep listened patiently, curious to hear what she had to say and why she was convinced that the Princess was, of all things, insane.
“Eventually, some of her things were sent from Prance, yet she herself was still lost.” Rarity continued slowly. “A funeral was held for her, but the princess did not seem to grieve her student’s death. One might think that she was heartless, that she didn’t care about her, but perhaps she knew what would happen next. And in the dead of night, Twilight appeared as if out of nowhere and the princess was reunited with her student.”
“I’m already familiar with that story.” the barkeep interrupted. “Granted, it wasn’t made very public, but my occupation has certain informational benefits. However, what, may I ask, was the point of you telling me that, Rarity?”
Both Rarity and the former council members seemed surprised, yet also relieved by the amount of knowledge this orange unicorn had. It was reassuring to know that they wouldn’t have to explain every minute detail to him.
“That is who you are, isn’t it? The element of generosity I believe?” tilting his head as he stated the facts. “So then certainly you could be more generous with your explanation. What exactly does this have to do with Princess Celestia?”
“The point is that what you heard was a lie.” she replied rapidly. “Twilight never returned. No one knows where she is and the Twilight Sparkle that Princess Celestia believes to have returned is merely a hallucination caused by her grief.”
The barkeep frowned, “So then it’s true.”
Shocked by his extraordinary response, Vortex pushed Rarity out of the way and confronted the stallion directly.
“What’s the matter with you!?” she demanded. “You won’t believe a word of what we say, but you’ll eat up every single thing that comes out of her mouth without a moment’s hesitation?”
The barkeep returned a violent expression, “I do have reasons for my beliefs, miss. You just don’t know what they are yet.
“You see, before the war had started, this tavern was frequently visited by members of the royal guard. I didn’t mind them; they helped keep the rabble out. I even got to know one of the guards quite well. He was one of Princess Celestia’s personal escorts, so he’d spend a lot of time around her and he’d always have the most interesting stories to tell. On his one night off, he’d always visit my tavern and drink himself silly. As the night wore on, the things he’d say would become more and more convoluted to the point you could barely understand what he was talking about and I’d have to tell him to go home.
“However, one day he sat down and shared some particularly disturbing news. He tried to tell me that Princess Celestia had been talking to someone else, some mare, when he was sure that she was alone in her room.
“I just passed it off as simple paranoia and I tried to reassure him, ‘Whoever it is, she’s probably just sneaking by you. You know, using some kind of secret entrance that you don’t know about.’
“But he denied this quite quickly. He told me that he had been curious enough to actually look inside the room. He even said that he’d once poked his head in the room to investigate, but no one else was there.
“He said, ‘The princess was alone and she seemed to be talking to herself.’
“I didn’t know what to think about that. I thought he might just be going on another one of his intoxicated rants, but of course I wouldn’t actually tell him that. So I just listened while he quietly told me about all the things the princess had said to this ‘Twilight’.”
He paused briefly and glanced at Rarity with a troubled expression, the white unicorn recognizing the name immediately and sharing his concern.
“But after he told me that once, when he was in the throne room with her, the princess had abruptly rose from her seat, walked over, opened the door and asked him to step outside to give her and Twilight some privacy, I got a little freaked out. I had to ask him to leave.
“I said, ‘I think you’ve had enough to drink for one night, friend. Perhaps it’s time that you go on home.’
“He had a worried look on face, but he just got up and left without another word. I thought he was trying to skip out on his bill, but then I realized that he never had anything to drink at all. He was completely sober the entire time he was speaking to me. How could a sober pony speak such madness like it was the truth?”
He paused again and turned back to the white unicorn.
“You saw it too, didn’t you?” he said solemnly. “You saw the princess talking to this ‘phantom’, this imaginary pony?”
Rarity closed her eyes and slowly nodded.
“If you knew this, then why were you so doubtful of what we’ve been trying to say all along?” Goldenroot asked the barkeep.
“I was not willing to accept that my princess had gone mad unless I was absolutely certain. After everything she’s done for us, I think we owe her that.” he said plainly. “Unfortunately, it seems as though I have reached that point.”
The barkeep turned around and looked across the large gathering of ponies sitting around the room. For a group that had been drinking well into the late hours of the night, they were strangely alert and attentive and they waited in anticipation to hear what the barkeep had to say. Was he actually so convinced that he was willing to help them now? Could his opinion of them change so quickly?
“Alright! Everyone listen up!” the barkeep announced loudly across the room. “As much as I hate to admit it, I believe these ponies are telling the truth! Our princess and our country are in desperate need of our help and I’ll be damned if I’m going to sit around and do nothing about it.
“So I’m going to give you a choice. You can either help me and we can figure out exactly what’s going on here or you can get the hell out of my tavern!”
A few of the ponies quickly got up from their tables and rushed past him and out the door, but the large majority of the patrons stayed put. Some had apprehensive looks on their faces, but most of them seemed eager to finally do something. No matter what the truth was behind it, their situation was terrible. And after watching their country change so much in what felt like only an instant, they were ready to put an end to the illness that overwhelmed it.
“Now you better have a pretty good plan or I’m going to be disappointed with you lot.” the barkeep said. “I don’t like ponies that make me look like a fool.”
~
From her place on the balcony overlooking the city and the small, delicate lights beneath, Princess Luna remained a statue. The world was crumbling beneath her hooves and she just waited and watched it all from her room. But what choice did she have?
Long ago, when the world was young and she was just a filly, her sister had to make an important decision, not entirely unlike the one she herself was now confronted with. Celestia had to decide whether it was more important to protect her only family and the last member of her kind, or protect society as a whole and everyone who lived within it. Fate had decreed that she could not do both, one had to suffer while the other was allowed to persevere.
Her sister had eventually made her decision, but was it the right decision to make? If she could go back, knowing what she does now, would she change her mind, save her sister and sacrifice the world?
As she stared off into the darkness beyond the balcony, the question terrorized the moon princess’ mind like a terrible storm, Are these the very same questions you had to confront, sister? Is this the same torment that I so ignorantly put you through so many years ago?
Forgive me, Celestia…
~
Adjusting his position on the uncomfortable bedroll, General Redhoof’s eyes popped open for the fifth time that night. He, like everyone else in the camp, was worried about tomorrow and the thin mattress beneath him provided little more than a convenient place to toss and turn throughout the night. It didn’t matter that he was the most important general in the Equestrian royal army; his position had little impact on his confidence when he had less than an hour of real battle experience. Everything had always been a drill, a measly simulation of what he sincerely hoped he would never have to experience during his lifetime. So now that it was all so very real, so very lifelike, he was scared. The pony that was second in command only to the immortal princess herself was afraid.
“General Redhoof?” a familiar voice called to him.
Under the bright light of the moon, a dark silhouette bled through the thin canvas of his tent. It was none other than Princess Celestia and she was standing, waiting just outside the general’s tent. So late into the night, he knew that whatever she wanted to discuss with him was important. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he hurriedly threw off his covers and rolled onto the cold ground.
After pushing aside the cloth curtain and leaving his tent, he turned to face the princess, “Your highness, I was not expecting you for a few hours.”
“How quickly can we be ready?” she asked, the anxiety just barely noticeable in her voice.
The general took a minute to contemplate the question before responding, “I think I could have everyone, including your strike team, ready in an hour.”
There was a brief moment of silence as the princess gazed off towards the black tower, its lights only just visible in the distance.
“Are you considering launching the assault immediately, your highness?” he asked.
She turned back to face him, her expression unchanged, “Raise the troops. We can use the veil of the night to our advantage. Try to keep the noise and the light to a minimum.”
The general nodded, “Absolutely, your highness. I’ll let you know when we’re ready.”
________________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Hello everyone! I feel like I’m repeating myself a bit lately, but sorry it took so long for the new chapter to come out. I had to do some major revisions this time around to improve one the sections. However, the section in question is now my favourite part of the chapter, so I’m think it was worth it.
As a general note about the story’s progression, this was not the climax obviously. That is going to appear next chapter as long as I don’t decide to split it again. (It is entirely possible at this point. I still have a lot of ground to cover and I don’t want to rush through it.)
Once again, I’d like to take the time to thank you all for reading the story and putting the story in the feature box again.
I would also like to thank my editor, Specter Von Baren, who spent an extraordinary amount of time on this chapter in particular. His detailed responses and keen eye are quickly becoming a necessity in my work.
And as always, if you have any questions or comments about the story, you can reach me at my email: [email protected] I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 12 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-12-14T01:56:57+00:00 | 2011-12-14T01:56:57+00:00 | 1,545 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 12
“The orb will take several hours to charge completely, but we shouldn’t let that stop us from starting the riot right away.” Thunderhorn announced.
The old, grey pony had just finished explaining the bulk of their plan to the large crowd of ponies around him and they were now standing attentively beside a large table. Levitating a small piece of charcoal in the air beside him, Thunderhorn was crudely marking locations on the map and attempting to illustrate the finer details of their strategy.
“Their numbers have been significantly reduced by the war and the few that remain are ill-equipped and ill-trained, so we should face little in the way of resistance.” he continued. “Vortex and I have even discovered that some of the guards are in fact, young colts.”
This new understanding sparked a series of nervous expressions and loud murmurs around the table.
“Calm yourselves, everyone.” the old unicorn intervened. “Just be careful. That’s all I’m trying to say. If you can, don’t hurt any of the guards. Just tie them up and get them out of our way. We don’t want to hurt anyone if we don’t have to.
“Now, we need to decide who is going where. First and foremost, I need nine capable unicorns that can help prepare the crystalline orb.”
Rarity poked her head through the dense crowd and turned to Thunderhorn with a hopeful expression.
“If it’s at all possible, Lord Thunderhorn, I would like to help you charge the artefact.” she said. “I would much rather avoid having to harm anyone.”
“Of course, Miss Rarity.” the grey unicorn nodded. “I assume you know both the teleportation spell and the magic transfer spell?”
“Well actually…”
“Really?” he interrupted, staring doubtfully at the very tired looking unicorn. “Nearly every unicorn in the nobility knows-”
He stopped abruptly when he realized that Rarity wasn’t a member of the nobility. And while every single noble unicorn went to a dedicated magic school and were taught many complicated spells in their youth, the unicorn in front of him probably never even had the opportunity to learn. Because the mare was so well-mannered and graceful, the general tended to forget about this small and unfortunately important detail.
Ashamed, Rarity frowned, “I’m sorry, Lord Thunderhorn.”
“That’s quite alright, Miss Rarity.” the old stallion replied curtly. “Perhaps when we’re done with all of this, I will find the time to teach you.”
The white unicorn smiled back at him.
“Back to the point.” Thunderhorn announced. “I need nine capable unicorns that know both the teleportation spell and the magic transfer spell to help me fill the orb. If it means anything at all, the job won’t put you in any real danger.”
Soon enough, several unicorns made their way to the table and approached the general, each affirming that they were willing and competent enough to help him with the orb. The general, however, suspected that their reasons were more to avoid the fighting than because they were actually accomplished magic users. It was a fact he would just have to live with. He didn’t have time to be picky.
“Good. Now the rest of you will split into two separate contingents.” Thunderhorn explained, directing their attention towards the map. “The first will set the supply depots on the west wing of the government quarter ablaze.”
He quickly circled the area in question with the piece of charcoal, leaving a dark ring on the map.
“This will draw out a large portion of the royal army still garrisoned in the city barracks.”
He promptly circled the location of the barracks.
“When they arrive, you should be able to use snares and other traps to catch them by surprise and keep them from getting harmed.
“The second contingent will assault the barracks shortly after the diversion has begun. When their central base of operations is in jeopardy, they should realize that they’re fighting a losing battle and call for help from Princess Celestia.”
“What about Princess Luna?” Vortex asked bluntly, the dark blue pegasus standing across the table from the general. “Are we sure she’s not going to try and stop us?”
“At this point, we can only hope that she won’t interfere.” replied Goldenroot, who was standing beside the general. “I don’t know what we can possibly do if she tries to stop us.”
Thunderhorn grit his teeth, “If we have to, and only if we absolutely have to, we might be able to use the orb on her as well. We’ve come too far and there’s too much at stake to just give up now.”
The pale green stallion remained silent, giving the unicorn a worried glance before directing his attention back to the map.
“Vortex, I want you leading the group that will attack the supply depots. Goldenroot, you’ll lead the group that will hit the barracks.”
“Hold on, general!” Vortex interrupted. “This is a life or death situation. I want to go with Goldenroot. I need to… protect him from danger…”
Vortex smiled and turned her amber eyes to stare at Goldenroot, the stallion blushing slightly and smiling back.
“Fine.” Thunderhorn complied. “But we need someone that can lead the group that will create the diversion.”
“I think I’m more than capable of keeping a few restless ponies in line.” the barkeep offered, pushing his way to the front of the group. “Let me do it.”
“Good enough.” the general said, ignoring the barkeep’s confidence. “Meet the others at the royal barracks when you can.”
“Alright then. You lot!” the barkeep announced, motioning to the ponies on one side of the room. “You’re coming with me.”
The barkeep stepped to the door with nearly forty ponies in tow. Stopping once he reached the doorway, he turned around and glared at the old unicorn that was currently immersed in the map on the table.
“I expect you to take care of my tavern, Thunderhorn.” he said firmly. “We may be starting a riot, but I don’t want to see this thing falling to pieces when I come back.”
Not bothering to wait for a reply, he swung open the door and rushed into the early morning air. It was just about one in the morning now, with the moon sitting high in the starry heavens above and the sun still hidden far below the horizon.
“Miss Rarity!” Thunderhorn called loudly, trying to make his words clear over the rumbling of hooves as the last of the ponies headed out the door.
The white unicorn’s head promptly turned in his direction.
“Can you go with them?” he asked. “I won’t ask you to participate in any of the fighting, I know that’s asking too much from you, but we need to try to keep an eye on them. I’m not certain how they’ll react once the fires start.”
“I’ll do my best.” Rarity replied, nodding quickly.
She started towards the door, but stopped and turned around, fixating her gaze on the three former council members still standing around the table.
“Before I leave…” she said, trailing off as she waited for their full attention.
The three ponies shifted their eyes from the map lying on the table to the elegant white unicorn.
“If anything should go wrong…” she continued with clear hesitation. “Please just come back here in one piece. I don’t want anything to happen to any of us. We’ve made it this far, we may still be able to stop Princess Celestia even if this plan fails.”
“I’m not going to let anyone screw this up now, Rarity.” Vortex smirked. “I would’ve thought you’d have more confidence in me by now.”
Rarity smiled apprehensively before turning around and hurrying out the door, trying to catch up with the group that was following the bartender.
“You’re still too brash for your own good, Vortex.” Thunderhorn scoffed as the door closed behind the unicorn.
“Sometimes that’s all it takes to get the job done, Thunderhorn.”
“Just take me seriously for once, you arrogant fool!” Thunderhorn scorned, furrowing his brow. “I’m not joking around. Just be careful out there and we won’t have to attend your funeral.”
The dark blue pegasus’ normally abrasive nature melted away and she lowered her gaze to floor, simply nodding in acknowledgement.
“Just make sure the orb works, Thunderhorn.” Goldenroot said. “When the rest of us are done with the dirty work, we’re going to need that thing.”
As if sparking some memory, the old unicorn pulled the book out of his bag and slammed it down on the table, opening it to the page with the detailed instructions about the crystalline orb.
“I’ll figure it out.” he said, staring into the book. “Now get out there and stop wasting time.”
Goldenroot turned to the pegasus beside him, her eyes hidden under her light blue hair as she just gazed down at the floor. Leaning in close, he whispered something into her ear. She smiled brightly and turned to face him as he pulled away, her amber eyes sparkling as they met his. Softly biting down on her own lip, she desperately tried to stop herself from laughing, the amusing reaction leaving a grin on the stallion’s face as he cranked his head around to face the crowd of ponies behind him.
“Okay everyone, let’s move out!” he shouted, trying to hide his smile.
Her joyful nature restored, the blue mare flew out the door with the pale green stallion following close behind. The rest of the group followed after and soon enough, the only ones left in the room were Thunderhorn and nine other unicorns that moved slowly up to the table to look at the general in anticipation.
“So what do you want us to do exactly?” a purple pony asked, trying to attract the old stallion’s attention.
Thunderhorn pulled the small crystal sphere out of his bag and set it on the table in front of him. The artefact continued to glow with a weak orange light as it rolled across the surface and eventually came to a slow stop in the center of the table.
“It’s quite simple, really.” he explained. “The orb stores magical energy, so all we need to do is fill it with the magic of the spell that we intend to use on the princess. The magical prison below the castle is designed so that anyone can enter by any means they wish, but they can only exit if someone on the outside frees them using the release spell, so we only have to use the teleportation spell to imprison her inside the cell.
“Now, I’m sure you’re all wondering how exactly we’re supposed to store our magic inside the orb.”
Thunderhorn concentrated for a moment, his horn slowly becoming enveloped in a dim yellow light.
“First, prepare the teleportation spell like you normally would, but don’t envision a destination so that the magic lingers around your horn.”
Concentrating once again, a darker yellow light formed around his horn. It snaked and weaved its way around his horn until it reached the very tip and shone with a bright luminescence.
“Second, begin to prepare the magic transfer spell while keeping your teleportation spell steady. When both are prepared…”
The darker yellow light started to form into a little ball on the end of his horn with magic lingering around his horn slowly absorbing into it. After the light around his horn had been completely captured within the ball, it lifted into the air and rapidly shot into the crystal orb. The orange light around the orb dissipated into the air and the dim blue light from the teleportation spell took its place.
“…just launch it into the orb.” Thunderhorn continued. “It now holds one concentration of the spell. We can always use the dimension spell to measure the amount of concentrations inside the orb at any time, so we never have to guess.
“Now, if he were to properly prepare himself, a normal unicorn could block the force of about five concentrations. A powerful unicorn could block the force of about ten. The most powerful unicorn to have been recorded in history could probably block about twenty.”
“Then what do you need us for?” a yellow unicorn snapped at him.
“Because in this book, the princess recorded that she was able to withstand one hundred concentrations with ease.” Thunderhorn admitted.
The unicorns around the table gasped and glanced at one another with fearful expressions. How could they possibly stand a chance at defeating such a powerful creature?
“At five hundred concentrations, she seems to have suffered some difficulty, but she could still withstand the blow.” he continued. “She writes, ‘Only when the crystalline orb held over one thousand concentrations of magical potential, could we no longer withstand its full force.’
“With some occasional rest and food, I believe that I am capable of filling the orb with three hundred concentrations before I completely exhaust myself. I don’t expect any of you to do the same, nor do I expect you to completely exhaust yourself, but if we can all put in one hundred concentrations, then that should be enough. After all, we should be able to catch the princess by surprise and she won’t be able to properly block the impact.”
“What if we accidentally fill the orb with a different spell?” a light blue unicorn asked politely.
“Thankfully, we don’t have to worry about that.” he sighed, realizing how disastrous it would be to have all their work ruined by one wrong move. “Now that the orb is filled with one kind of spell, it can only accept that one spell. Unless the proper erasing spell is used, all other magic that we try to transfer into the orb will be rejected immediately. So although you may have wasted some energy, it won’t corrupt any of the magic previously stored inside the orb.
Thunderhorn paused for a moment and glared slowly around the room.
“Now, you can eat, drink and rest as much as you need to, but stay away from the alcohol.” he lectured. “It inhibits your magical ability and we can’t afford to do that now, especially when most of you have already had more than your fair share of booze.”
Some of the unicorns rolled their eyes, while others simply nodded. After this acknowledgement, they started to focus their magic, bright coloured lights forming around their own horns as they prepared to fill the orb.
~
“What do you think?” Goldenroot asked, turning to look at the pegasus lying on the ground beside him. “Has something gone wrong? Should we just attack the barracks by ourselves and forget about the diversion?”
Goldenroot was sitting against the wall of a dark alleyway with a clear view of both the entrance to the barracks and the general direction in which he had expected the fires to start. So late into the fall season, it was starting to get cold and the dark blue pegasus had snuggled up close beside him, simply dozing away. And while he didn’t think it was especially cold out, he was happy to have her so close by.
“They’ll figure it out.” she replied softly, keeping her eyes closed and repositioning herself closer against the stallion.
Goldenroot just smiled at her and turned back to watch the view from the alleyway.
Contrary to the muted reactions of these two ponies, the group they had dragged from their joyful revelry and into the middle of an all-out war were not quite so composed. They had been sitting outside the entrance to the royal barracks for more than an hour now, hiding in the shadows and simply waiting for the signal to begin their assault. They had pestered the pale green stallion infrequently at first, asking him how long it was going to take and what he expected to happen, but their questioning had grown from a simple anxiety to an irritating impatience. They had demanded to know what was going on and were even threatening to leave, but Goldenroot was carefully holding them back, promising them it would only be a moment longer when, in fact, he wasn’t at all sure when or even if something was going to happen.
“Listen, Goldenroot.” a crimson mare with a bright orange and pale red mane said, the irritation in her voice reaching its maximum. “Everyone has agreed that either we go in there now and forget about the others or we’re leaving. And don’t try to stop us by claiming that they’re only going to be a moment longer because we know that’s not the truth. We’ve been out here-”
“Fire!” a voice bellowed from near the barracks. “There’s fire in the stock holds!”
“I was actually beginning to wonder if we’d be able to stall you long enough.” Vortex said, leisurely rising to her hooves and gazing off in the direction of the fire.
The flames, which seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, were immense. Thick smoke billowed into the air above the roaring, bright red inferno that was spreading quickly across the horizon as guards poured out of the barracks and rushed in the direction of the fire.
“Looks like I don’t have to worry about that anymore.” she continued as she stretched her muscles.
“Alright everyone.” Goldenroot said, trying to keep his voice down as he rose to his hooves and walked around the group. “This is what we were waiting for, but we need to wait a little longer. Wait until all of the guards that were sent to fight the fire are out of view and then we’ll rush in there and take care of the stragglers.
“Remember, we don’t want to hurt anyone if we can avoid it. Try to get them to surrender and we’ll tie them up and get them out of the way.”
The ponies that still lingered around the alleyway rose to their hooves, gathering the bags they had left lying around the path and slowly moving closer to the barracks. One-by-one, they counted the soldiers that passed by, first in a steady stream and then in a dwindling trickle. Altogether, they counted only twenty-five soldiers rushing out to extinguish the massive flames spreading over the stockpiles. Subduing those few soldiers would be an easy task for the ponies in the other group that had most likely set up enough traps to catch the first ten or fifteen soldiers without any effort at all, but it was disconcerting to the ponies waiting in the alleyway. Did this mean they would have to deal with more soldiers than they were capable of handling?
“Wait for my mark.” Vortex said enthusiastically, pushing off the ground and bolting into the air above the alleyway.
The pegasus paused, her place in the sky giving her a perfect view of the compound below. The royal barracks was actually a collection of buildings, but most were small, nondescript storehouses or training grounds for the soldiers. The main structure, however, was easily the largest and most important of the bunch and one of the few buildings in the government quarter that had a significant amount of character to it. Pushed tightly against the towering stone wall that encompassed the entire compound, it faintly resembled the royal palace, with several attractive towers, windows, and balconies decorating the exterior. And at the base of the building, was a cluster of bushes and flowers placed in an appealing fashion around the large, wooden doors at the entrance. Having never suffered a full scale war on the capital, the original architects had obviously never realized the foolishness of placing structural weaknesses and arbitrary decorations on what was supposed to be seen and used as a fortress. On the contrary, the enormous wall and intimidating brass gate were constructed with a much more modern design and seemed to suggest that the building was never intended to be used as a barracks. But if that was true, and the building was essentially just a substitute, then why was such a critical part of the city ignored during its construction?
“Try and keep up, Goldenroot!” she yelled, turning her attention back to the ponies beneath her.
Beating her wings against the air, she propelled herself forward. Focusing her gaze on a single guard that stood distracted on a precarious balcony, she pushed harder against the air and sent herself soaring faster towards him. His gaze absorbed in the fiery inferno on the horizon, he didn’t even seem to notice the pegasus as she sped towards him with her hooves extended in front of her as she prepared for the point of impact.
Colliding into the soldier, she wrapped her forelegs around him tightly and sent the both of them tumbling over the railing. While the soldier screamed his lungs out and the two neared ever closer to the ground below, the pegasus smiled and swerved upwards at the last second, grazing the short bushes and changing her direction towards Goldenroot and the mob of ponies that were swarming out of the alleyway. Sailing over the stone wall and giving the wailing pony a light toss, she dropped him into the mob as they rushed to the huge, brass gate.
The guard’s expression went from absolute terror to one of bewilderment as he landed securely in the exact center of the group. His eyes darted around the crowd, which was almost as surprised as he was, before he cowered to the floor, holding his hooves over his head protectively.
“Please don’t hurt me!” he cried out. “I’m not even a real soldier!”
“I can’t tie knots!” Vortex declared, circling around the group once and speeding back towards the building.
One of the unicorns in the crowd quickly wound a length of rope around each of the guard’s legs while the others ran hastily past him and towards the open gate of the compound. The two armoured ponies, one a red pegasus and the other a yellow unicorn, standing at the entrance panicked and hurried inside, pushing against either side of the metal gate as they tried to close it before they were swept away by the assailants. But as soon as they had begun to close the gate, Vortex flew over the wall and dove straight towards one of the guards, landing forcefully on top of the yellow unicorn and sending the stallion crashing to the ground, with parts of his armour flying in every direction.
The red pegasus that had been pushing the other side of the gate closed stopped as soon as she heard the terrible racket and glanced from the dark blue pegasus standing triumphantly over her unconscious comrade to the fast approaching mob of angry ponies. Turning away from the assailants, she took off from the ground and started towards the open balcony.
A smile formed on Vortex’s face as she pushed off the body of the stallion below her and pursued the fleeing soldier. Catching the pegasus high in the air above, Vortex grappled onto her, trying to mimic her actions from earlier and swoop back down to toss the alarmed soldier into the mob so they could subdue her. Unfortunately, this mare was one of the few remaining trained soldiers in the city and she was far more alert and agile than the pony she had tackled before. The soldier shifted her weight and sent them both careening into the open balcony, the two pegasi immediately breaking free from each other as they landed on the solid, marble floor and slid to the opposite ends of the small, sparsely decorated room. Colliding with the wall, both pegasi leapt to their feet, crouching into an aggressive posture and glaring at each other with a passionate determination.
But as Vortex watched the pony on the other side of the room, trying to predict her movements, she began to realize that she recognized this strange, red pegasus. It was someone she had known very well, but hadn’t seen for a long time.
“How come you didn’t leave to fight in the war?” Vortex asked, smiling at the mare across from her. “All the good soldiers did.”
“Someone had to stick around to keep you punks in line.” the red pegasus retorted. “I can’t believe you’re actually behind all of this!”
The red pegasus darted towards Vortex, trying to catch her off guard, but she just jumped out of the way, leaping over her head, pushing off the wall and flying to the other side of the room.
“You just don’t understand the whole story.” the blue pegasus countered. “And even if I told you, I’m not sure you would be willing to believe me.”
“Try me.” the pony across the room retaliated.
The red pegasus, leapt forward and kicked forcefully at a chair in front of her, sending it flying in Vortex’s direction. The blue mare just barely managed to avoid the chair, landing on the balcony as it shattered against the wall.
“Prance and the council weren’t trying to overthrow Celestia.” Vortex hastily blurted. “One of our members, and only one, was working with Prance to worsen the drought, but they were only trying to get the commoners involved in the council again and establish trade routes with Prance.
“It’s really not as sinister as the princess makes it out to be and it’s definitely not something that’s worth going to war over.”
“What happened to you, Vortex?” the soldier asked sincerely, jumping back against the wall. “I voted for you because I believed in what you stood for. You said that you were going to help the youth of Equestria, the ponies that always got the short end of the stick. And when you actually got elected, I was so happy for you. I was so happy for our country. I thought things were finally going to change, but… but then all this happened and now... now you’re a liar and a fool just like everyone else in the council.”
“I know what Celestia told you and I understand why you believe her, but it’s not the truth.” the blue mare retorted. “I swear, I’m being honest with you, Shock Wave. There’s something going on behind the royal curtain that you don’t know about.”
“Then why won’t you tell me!?” Shock Wave shouted.
Vortex charged at the mare, desperate to get Shock Wave to listen to her. The red pegasus simply ducked to the right as she flew by, but Vortex planted her hooves on the far wall and pushed off, coming straight back towards her from the opposite direction. This time, however, she caught the red pegasus by surprise and the two of them slammed into the ground.
“I’m trying to tell you! Just listen to me!” Vortex shouted, pinning the red mare to the floor. “Celestia isn’t the same princess. She’s different now. Something has happened to her and now she’s completely lost her mind. We’re only trying to help.”
“We used to be friends, Vortex.” Shock Wave said, once again ignoring everything Vortex had said to her. “You taught me how to fly and I taught you how to fight. Then you let this council crap get to your head and you forgot all about me. You acted like I never even existed! You were the only friend I ever had, Vortex, how could you just leave me alone like that!?”
Shock Wave used her hind legs to throw Vortex off her and back onto the balcony. The two pegasi jumped to their hooves simultaneously, crouching back down and glaring at each other.
“I… I never forgot about you, Shock Wave.” Vortex replied, lowering the volume of her voice. “There was just so much that I had to deal with… You weren’t the only one that thought I was going to make a difference. But when I discovered that no one would even listen to me, I… just kind of gave up. I couldn’t bear to face you, let you know how much of a failure I’d been. I’m sorry, Shock Wave.”
“Of all the ponies I know, hell, of all the ponies in the world, you’re the last one I’d ever believe would just give up.” the red pegasus scoffed.
“But things are different now.” Vortex insisted. “I am making a difference. Things are going to finally change around here. And when this is all done with, I’m going to make sure that no one gets the short end of the stick ever again. But until that happens, you just have to trust me. Please, Shock Wave.”
Vortex lowered her guard and focused intently on the red pegasus still crouching in front of her. She didn’t want to fight her friend. She didn’t want to hurt her, but Shock Wave didn’t seem to want to listen to her and she was running out of options.
“You were always one to put on a great act, Vortex.” Shock Wave said calmly. “You could make anyone believe whatever you wanted them to. But I know you too well. I know you’re lying to me and I won’t just let you overthrow the government so that you can continue to fill this country with your hideous lies!”
The red pegasus soared towards the balcony, appearing as if she were going to tackle Vortex. The blue mare ducked to avoid the charge, but Shock Wave found her friend’s movements too easily predictable. She flared her wings out to stop her forward momentum and kicked at the blue mare with a hind leg, hitting one of Vortex's forelegs and sending her tumbling off the balcony.
Like all of the soldiers in the royal guard, Shock Wave's hooves were adorned with thick, steel cleats and the blow to Vortex's leg was devastating. But the determined mare fought through the pain, gritting her teeth and flapping her wings fervently to slow her descent.
Catching a passing glance of her injured leg as she levitated in the air just below the balcony, Vortex could see that it was hanging from her body like the limb of a rag doll. She merely pushed the grotesque image out her mind and turned her gaze back towards the balcony, trying to find the red pegasus that had just seemed to disappear out of sight.
As Vortex scanned the area by the balcony, Shock Wave approached her from the complete opposite direction. She had taught Vortex how to fight and she wasn’t about to be bested by her student. She moved quickly and without mercy, her eyes filled with an intense hatred. Vortex had betrayed her, lied to her and left her all alone. Now she had suddenly reappeared in the middle of an intense riot, trying to destroy everything she was sworn to protect, and she expected uncompromising trust and forgiveness and from her? That wasn’t something the red pegasus was willing to give, not now. And as her hooves connected with the back of the blue mare’s head with a deafening crack, Shock Wave sacrificed the only friend she ever had.
“Vortex!” Goldenroot shouted in horror, breaking free from the mob below.
But he could only watch as the beautiful blue pegasus fell through the air and into the bushes below, the brittle branches snapping violently under her weight and leaving her broken body lying amongst the crushed yellow daisies in the flowerbed.
Shock Wave just observed the scene from the air above, turning her gaze from the disfigured pegasus in the bushes below to the fast approaching mob of angry nobles, there’s too many, even for me. The barracks is lost.
With those final few thoughts replacing all remorse she had for her fallen friend, the red pegasus took off towards the royal palace. She may not be able to stop them, but she knew someone who could.
“Vortex!” Goldenroot called again, his eyes clouding as he ignored the ponies around him and ran to the pegasus.
The magnificent torrent of water on her flank, the fantastic vortex that the pale green stallion had watched so intently, so long ago, was barely visible through the ruined foliage, a thin stream of red liquid beginning at her flank and navigating its way down through the soil before finally dripping onto the stone floor at the stallion’s hooves.
~
Setting up the traps to ensnare the guards that would be lured into their ambush was the easy part. It had only taken an exceptionally large amount of rope, and an hour later they had enough snares and nets set up to capture at least twenty soldiers. And although they expected more than that, the remainder could be dealt with using more conventional means. No, the hard part of their assignment was actually getting the fires started. Igniting a fire seemed like a reasonably simple task, but starting a fire that was large enough to attract the attention of the majority of the soldiers in the royal barracks had taken quite a bit more of their effort. But after eventually discovering that one of the storehouses was filled to the brim with highly flammable oil, they lost all doubt that any fire they created wouldn’t be big enough for their purposes.
When they were finally ready, they spread the oil over a dozen of the buildings and mere seconds after the oil was ignited, the storehouses erupted into a massive inferno. Shortly after the fires had started, a heavy, black smoke filled the air around the ponies. And though the smoke masked the ponies hiding in the shadows and waiting to ambush the unsuspecting guards, it made the usually simple task of breathing an exhausting effort.
“I said keep your head down!” the pale orange unicorn barked, pushing on the top of Rarity’s head and forcing her to ground.
She knew that he was only trying to help, but the barkeep was far from gentle and he drove the white unicorn’s head into the stones below, causing her to bite down hard on her lip. Her teeth cut deep into the soft tissue and a trickle of blood started to fill her mouth.
“Breathing in too much of this stuff is going to kill you.” the barkeep insisted, not bothering to cast even a passing glance at the unicorn he had just injured.
Lying on her stomach, Rarity moaned, closing her eyes and moving her hooves to her injured lip, the crimson blood staining her brilliant white coat. Upon opening her eyes again, she noticed the dark red stains on her hooves and gasped in shock, only causing her to choke on the blood still pooling inside her mouth.
“I think they’re coming.” the barkeep said quietly, continuing to ignore the white unicorn even as she coughed violently on the floor beside him. “Get ready to spring the traps.”
Sure enough, several ponies came into view on the edge of the horizon, their golden armour shining like beacons as they ran through the dark smoke. A few of the ponies had fire hoses slung around their backs, but all of them were completely ignorant of what was about to happen to them as they just rushed blindly into the center of the ambush.
“Now!” the barkeep yelled at the top of his lungs. “Do it now!”
Rarity had stopped coughing only long enough to look up and catch a glimpse of the resulting mayhem. The ponies hiding amongst the burning buildings pulled on the long lengths of rope leading out of their hiding places and several nets jumped off the ground, trapping several of the confused guards and pulling them into the air above. Confused, the few guards that weren’t already trapped ran around wildly and stumbled into the snares, the rope tightening around their legs, lifting them up and dangling them helplessly beside their companions.
With most of the guards now trapped, the mob of nobles rushed out of their hiding places and charged out to meet the few remaining soldiers. The frightened guards, obviously unprepared to deal with the large gang of angry nobles, threw down whatever they were carrying and lowered themselves to the ground, pleading for mercy.
“Tie them up!” the barkeep roared, his powerful voice clear over the commotion. “Quickly now!”
The nobles did as instructed and hogtied the panicked soldiers. Once their legs were fastened together, the ponies rushed around the scene and started lowering the nets and snares, tying up the guards as soon as they touched the ground. Some of them offered resistance, especially the unicorns who managed to use their magic to throw some of the nobles to the ground or free some of the previously tied up soldiers, but after the barkeep knocked them unconscious with a strange mist, the rest seemed willing to comply with their captors and lay motionless on the ground.
“Well that was a lot easier than I thought it would be.” the barkeep admitted, wiping his brow while still trying to keep his head low, under the dark cloud of smoke.
Realizing that it was probably safe for her to approach, Rarity pushed herself off the ground and stumbled towards the group, still holding one hoof to her wounded mouth.
“I’m glad that no one was hurt.” Rarity smiled faintly before starting to cough again.
“Speak for yourself!” the pale orange stallion blurted, finally noticing how severely he had injured the mare. “My apologies, Rarity. I guess I got too caught up in the moment. Are you alright?”
“No, not really.” she admitted with a faintly humorous tone, trying to hide her incredible pain.
“Well, I may be a barkeep, but that’s also part of the reason I managed to learn so much about healing split lips.” he smirked, his horn lighting up with a dull orange light. “I only wish I had known this before I got this nasty scar on my own lip.”
The light from his horn spread to the mare’s injury, the magic weaving itself around the wound and slowly repairing the damaged tissue. Rarity lowered her hoof as the pain subsided and the bleeding suddenly stopped, honestly surprised that he had done such a good job.
“Oh my!” she said in shock, moving her tongue around her perfectly healed lip. “Thank you…”
She drifted off when she realized that she didn’t even know the stallion’s name.
“Firewater.” he smiled, noticing her hesitation. “You really do live up to your title, miss. I can’t honestly say that many ponies I’ve met would thank me for healing a wound that I was responsible for opening… Sorry I can’t do anything about the stains on your coat.”
“Well!?” a dark red pegasus yelled, startling the two as she walked over to the two unicorns and interrupted their conversation. “They’re all tied up. What are we supposed to do now?”
“Oh, well now we need to put the fires out.” Rarity answered with a smile. “And after the fires are out, we’ll take these guards and meet the others at the barracks and then… well I suppose then you could all go home.”
“Go home!?” another of the nobles, a yellow unicorn, scoffed. “So that’s it!? We served you’re purpose and we’re just done now?”
The yellow unicorn’s belligerence had attracted the interest of the entire group and now they were all standing around, listening to them bicker.
“Well no, not yet. We haven’t put the fires out.” Rarity replied, stating the obvious. “And I really do suggest we do that sometime soon before they spread.”
“That’s a terrible idea.” a blue pony muttered. “We’re trying to get the princesses’ attention, are we not? We should let the fires burn. The worse we make the situation, the faster she’ll come back.”
Several of the ponies in the group nodded their head and expressed their agreement with the blue pony.
“That’s absolutely correct!” the yellow unicorn added vehemently. “In fact, we should be out their getting more of the city involved in the riot.”
“Don’t be stupid!” Firewater scorned. “We’re not starting a war. We’ve done our part and we need to put these fires out. Do you really want to just let them burn? What if they burn your house down? What will you do then? Blame me?”
“The fires are not going to burn our houses down.” the dark red pegasus said, “The winds are blowing towards the common quarter. And who honestly cares if a few of the commoners’ houses burn down. The government always pays for it all anyway.”
“Please, everyone calm down…” Rarity tried to intervene.
“It’s the middle of the damned night! There are ponies sleeping in those houses!” the barkeep yelled, ignoring the white unicorn. “They’ll get caught in the fires and die if we don’t stop the flames!”
“Not if we move the riot to the common quarter.” the blue pony said. “No pony can sleep through a riot. We’ll just get a few more of the nobles from around the city involved and…”
“There are young fillies and colts in those houses!” the barkeep argued, his voice growing louder. “Don’t you realize everyone else left to fight in the war? The only ones still in the common quarter are the old, the young and the helpless. They can’t even fight back!”
“Perfect!” the yellow unicorn said. “Then no one will get hurt. They’ll all just abandon their homes and run away.”
Panicking, Rarity began to realize that she had become isolated from the dispute and that nobles were about to do exactly the opposite of what she wanted. They were going to let the fires continue burning and spread the riot further into the city. She was supposed to prevent this kind of thing from happening, but she felt so useless. They just kept bickering and arguing and the quarrel was becoming more one sided by the second.
“Are you insane!?” Firewater shouted, reaching out with his magic and grabbing hold of the yellow pony, attempting to use aggression to make his point.
But he was too forceful and his magic knocked the yellow pony to the ground, making the group explode into a flurry of activity. The dark red pegasus landed her hoof squarely into the side of the Firewater’s head and sent him flying to the ground, while the blue pony helped the yellow unicorn back to her feet, the rest of the group simply arguing amongst one another.
“Please, everyone stop!” Rarity cried out, trying to calm everyone down. “You can’t just burn down those ponies’ homes. It’s not right! It’s not fair!”
Rarity rushed into the middle of the crowd and tried to push the dark red pegasus out of the way as he approached the injured bartender. But as soon as she touched her, the pegasus shoved her out of the way and she fell to the ground.
“This is the only way.” the dark red pegasus said, glaring between the bartender clutching his head and the white unicorn hopelessly staring back at her. “We can’t afford to stop now, not while the princess is still waging a war in Prance and ponies are still dying. We need to get her attention and stop the fighting now. A life is always worth more than a few simple houses.
“Everyone who wants this plan to actually work, come with me! We’re going to the common quarter, but not before we round up a few more ponies to help us.”
“No! You can’t do this! Rarity shouted at the dark red pegasus as she tried to get back up.
The pegasus planted her foot softly on top of the unicorn’s stomach to stop her from getting up, “Don’t try to stop us. I don’t want to have to hurt you.”
With that final comment, most of the ponies left, leaving the two unicorns on the ground and a sparse few other ponies behind to watch as they went off to start a full-scale war in Canterlot. And as they finally disappeared out of her sight, the white unicorn began to realize how incredibly ironic it was. They had wanted this to happen since the very beginning. It was all part of the plan. They had wanted things to get a little out of control, but now that it was finally happening, she didn’t want to be part of it anymore. She just wanted them all to stop and the whole thing to end before anyone got hurt.
“I’m sorry, Rarity. I couldn’t stop them.” Firewater said.
The barkeep rose to his hooves and then reached out to help the white unicorn up. After pulling the mare up, he turned to face the small gathering of ponies that had chosen not to leave.
“To everyone else, thank you for staying.” he continued. “I’m glad that we still have a few level heads left in this world.”
The ponies just stared at him with concerned expressions, worried that they wouldn’t be able to do anything to stop the chaos that would soon consume the entire city.
“Rarity, I want you to go find Thunderhorn at my bar.” Firewater continued. “Tell him what happened and make sure he’s alright. Who knows what they might do now. They may even try to take the orb from him.
“The rest of us will take the soldiers and meet the group that attacked the barracks. We can’t just leave them behind or they’ll die from the smoke.”
“What about the fire?” Rarity asked, glancing towards the towering inferno and thick, black smoke that was quickly starting to spread to the small buildings beside the storehouses.
“We can’t stop it now. We don’t have enough ponies to extinguish a fire of that magnitude.”
“But…”
“Just go find Thunderhorn!” he said, raising his voice. “The rest of you, find some wagons. We need to get these soldiers to the barracks!”
Rarity flashed a nervous look at the barkeep before turning around and running off, leaving the ponies behind her as she ran to warn the old general before things took another turn for the worse.
~
Basking in the glow of the bright moonlight and carefully hiding amongst the small rocky outcropping that sat just a short distance away from the city’s walls, they waited for the precise moment to strike, the moment when they would all be too distracted to react and save their palace, and their king, from an ambush. Celestia stood in the exact center of the group with the twelve pegasi hugging close against the scattered boulders on either side of her. Being on nearly the opposite side of the city, they were some distance from the main gate and the worst of the fighting, but they had no difficulty hearing the conflict. What they heard most clearly was not the clashing of armour or the barbaric grunting as the two sides cascaded into each other, but the absolute terror that was overflowing over the stone walls of the city. Celestia knew that their assault on the front gate had to be convincing or Prance would immediately recognize it as a diversion, so the sounds of cannonballs soaring over the city and demolishing the buildings in their path, the blood-curdling screams of ponies as they tried to escape the catastrophe, the high-pitched wailing of infants as they cried out for their lost parents and the loud, commanding voices of the army officials as they tried to keep it all under control was very real and utterly horrifying.
The princess lifted the small canteen of water off her neck and slowly revolved the lid until it popped off, gently clinking as it landed on the rocks below her. Closing her eyes and lifting the canteen to her mouth, she let the cool water gently trickle past her trembling lips and down her throat. As the steady stream subsided and the last of the water dripped onto her tongue, she tossed the receptacle away and onto the grass, spreading out her wings and glancing at the soldiers on either side of her. The pegasi took quick note of her action and, eyes darting to one another, they followed suit, stretching their wings and dropping their bags to the ground. Beating her wings against the air, the princess took off from the ground and emerged out from behind the rocky outcropping with the twelve other pegasi emulating her actions as they lifted into the air. And with one strong push, the winged ponies soared as one towards the black spire in the absolute center of the city.
Soon enough, it will all be over, the alicorn thought as she turned her head to observe the chaos below.
If the sounds they heard from outside the castle walls were any indication of the horror beneath them, she would have been prepared for the sight beneath her, but nothing could truly prepare her for what she saw. In her impressively long life, she had never seen such carnage, such destruction, and such overwhelming fear in the hearts of the ponies that she could not honestly say were so very different from her own. The old and the young, the brave and the cowardly, every one of them seemed to cower amongst the wreckage. The only ones who had nothing to be afraid of were the ones who had already paid the ultimate price.
Why did it have to come to this? She asked herself, pulling her eyes away from the ground. What did I do wrong?
“Princess!” Swift Wing cried out. “Look, it’s the western battalion and they seem to be at full strength.”
She wanted to be happy, to feel relieved that the ponies in the western detachment were seemingly unharmed, but the horror on the ground below starved her from those feelings. As long as she knew that so many, even the ones she was supposed to hate, were suffering such an unbearable fate, she could feel no joy from seeing these soldiers appear on the horizon to the west. But as the obsidian tower filled her view, she was given little time to contemplate her thoughts. She had instructed the team to start from the bottom and work their way up. It was not the most efficient method, but it was thorough and they couldn’t afford to overlook the king if he happened to be hiding somewhere in the palace.
Her horn glowing with a bright yellow light, the windows near the base of the tower cracked and shattered, the fractures of glass shooting into the building and shredding the silver-armoured guards that were standing in the way.
Rearranging their formation behind the princess, the pegasi soared through the windows and dropped onto the floor with a thunderous boom. The four guards that had been inside the main room had been torn to pieces by the glass and their bodies littered the floor in a pool of blood. The two guards that had managed to survive the barrage of shrapnel dragged themselves along the floor. They whimpered in pain and pleaded for mercy in their native tongue before they had their helmets kicked off and their lives viciously ended by one of the pegasi.
“Colonel Swift Wing, I want you to take your five soldiers and sweep the lower floor!” Celestia ordered, indifferent to the grotesque condition of the room and the swift brutality of the ponies around her. “If you find Pierre, leave him alive if possible and wait until we return. After you’re finished, stop any of their reinforcements from pursuing us up the tower.”
“You heard the princess!” the dark green pegasus shouted. “You three take the west wing, we’ll take the east wing. Meet back here when you’re done.”
The princess pushed off the floor and then up the staircase with the six pegasi following in behind her in groups of two. The few guards that came rushing down the staircase were caught by surprise and Celestia hurled them over the railing and down the center of the tower or out one of the windows, their screams resonating in her eardrums as they helplessly tried to cling to the air around them and save themselves from their imminent demise.
As they reached the top of each set of stairs, Celestia would order a group of the pegasi to split off and secure the floor before climbing the rest of the staircase and meeting her at the top of the tower. It was strange, when she ordered them around the tower she referred to them all by name. She had taken the time to learn their names, Silver Cloud, Raindrops, Wind Whistler, Soarin, Lightning, and Purple Haze, but she didn’t really know anything about them as individuals. They had all been fairly significant ponies at one point or another, but she couldn’t seem to remember why. Was she really so jaded that she had forgotten everything about them but their ultimately arbitrary names?
When the last two had, although reluctantly so, left her to continue up to the last floor on her own, she reached the great iron doors on the top floor and came face-to-face with two strangely familiar figures. These two, however, she remembered for their defining characteristics and not their names.
The first was a yellow pegasus that lowered herself, crouching down and preparing to hurl her full weight at the princess while the second, an old unicorn with a fading orange coat, stepped back, his horn shining with a dazzling crimson light. They were ready for a fight, but the princess just stopped in front of them with an almost paralyzing stare focused on the ponies in front of her.
“Who… who are you?” she demanded, turning her gaze to stare directly at the yellow pegasus.
Her short orange hair was almost entirely hidden beneath her silver helmet and her light blue eyes reflected the light like sapphires in the cold room. She was exactly how her student had described her to be, every little description had been flawlessly accurate, so then why was she alive?
“You mean you don’t remember us?” she asked with an aggressive tone as she relaxed slightly.
Even her voice was exactly how the princess had imagined it to be.
“You’re supposed to be dead.” the alicorn said, her hooves trembling as she looked back and forth between the two ponies. “Why aren’t you dead!?”
“Dead!?” she asked in disbelief. “Why would you possibly think that?”
“I think she was trying to have us assassinated, Catherine.” Daniel said, maintaining his hostile attitude towards the princess. “That’s probably who that Twilight Sparkle character was. She must have been an assassin!”
The princess stepped back, her legs shaking violently beneath her, “What..?”
“No, no, Daniel.” Catherine intervened, relaxing completely as she watched the princess. “Something’s not right about this. I think she honestly doesn’t know what’s going on, do you princess?”
The princess just shook her head slowly.
“Do you remember who we are?” Catherine asked.
“You’re the mare that helped my student… Twilight.” Celestia replied.
“Princess Celestia.” the pegasus responded. “I’ve never met anyone named Twilight.”
“No, you’re lying to me!” the princess stuttered. “You’re trying to trick me!”
“I swear to you, princess!” Catherine replied quickly. “I’m not lying to you. I’ve never met your student. I was one of the ponies that accompanied King Pierre on his journey to your palace several months ago, the other was Daniel. Perhaps you’ve mistaken us with some other ponies?”
Celestia’s horned flared up with a powerful yellow light, far brighter than the one still encircling Daniel’s horn. Her eyes burned brightly with the same yellow light, glaring at the two ponies as she slowly drew closer to them.
“No, you’re lying!” Celestia shouted angrily. “You know that you’ve failed. You know that your plans to take over Equestria have been trampled on and now you’re trying to weasel your way out of your punishment!”
“Princess, please!” Catherine screamed back, the pegasus backing away, now completely overcome by the terrifying figure approaching her. “That’s not true! I’m not trying to trick you! I’m telling the truth!”
“I won’t let you hurt her!” Daniel cried out.
The old unicorn fired a bolt of magic at the princess, but she simply teleported out of its path, letting the powerful magic fly past her and demolish the wall behind, the stones crumbling and cracking as the building started to tumble to one side.
“You can suffer the same grim fate that you so maliciously intended for my poor, innocent student, you horrible old menace.” Celestia said, turning to glare at the unicorn that was just recovering from the spectacular magical blast he had unleashed.
The princess reached out and wrapped her magic around Daniel tightly, squeezing the pony and making it difficult for him to breathe. With one swift motion, she snapped the horn off his head and dropped it to the floor, the pony screaming in agony as he watched the horn slowly roll across the floor towards the staircase. As the horn tumbled off the ledge, the unicorn vanished and reappeared outside the tower, his faded orange figure barely visible from the large hole in the wall as he was released from the princess’ grasp.
The broken horn gently clinked against the stairs as it picked up speed.
“Daniel!” Catherine cried out, her eye’s turning to the hole in the wall as she watched the pony start to fall down to the ground.
Meanwhile, the wall had begun to completely collapse and the ceiling above shifted in its place, startling the yellow pegasi and causing her to stumble and fall to the floor, her helmet falling off and tumbling out of the opening in the wall. The princess, realizing that she had to do something before the ceiling came crashing down around them, started to rearrange the bricks on the wall of the tower, moving them from around the room to repair the hole and stabilize the tower.
The horn’s gentle clinking had grown softer and more distant as it disappeared down the stairwell.
Turning her attention away from the hastily repaired wall, the princess just stared at the yellow pegasus sobbing on the ground, her beautiful orange mane now perfectly visible with her helmet gone. Her horn’s glow disappeared, and with it, the passionate fury in her eyes.
“I’m… I’m sorry, Catherine.” Celestia said softly.
The pegasus didn’t bother to look up or say anything back to the princess as the tears continued to pour down her face. As she sobbed on the ground, she was carefully wrapped in the princess’ magic before vanishing from her place against the wall, the yellow glow that had taken over the alicorn’s horn dissolving in the air and eventually fading away completely.
I think that Swift Wing and the guards at the base of the tower will be able to deal with one grieving soldier, she thought, closing her eyes and breathing the air into her lungs deeply.
Opening her eyes, she turned to the set of black iron doors ahead of her. The entrance was locked, so the princess wrapped her magic around it and pulled on the massive set of doors, the stone cracking and complaining as it was finally ripped out of its frame. Gently leaning the door against the wall, she looked into the room. Inside was a single pony, sitting and watching her from a desk at the far end of the room.
“Princess Celestia.” Pierre said calmly. “I don’t suppose you’d mind knocking next time? It might save us both some trouble.”
“You’re awfully composed for a pony that’s on his last leg.” Celestia remarked, walking through the opening. “Don’t you fear your judgement?”
“I failed my country and I failed every single pony that lives within it.” the ruby red pony with the white mane replied. “I cannot fear the punishment I rightly deserve.”
~
“Lord Thunderhorn?” Rarity called out, throwing open the door to the tavern and looking around the room for the old stallion.
Stepping inside, her eyes moved around the seemingly empty room. In the center was the large wooden table that they had all gathered around before leaving to perform their specific roles, the familiar crystal orb now glowing with a bright blue intensity on top. Lying on the floor beside the table was the old general, completely motionless on the ground.
“Thunderhorn!” she screamed, running to his side and leaning in close beside him.
“Ugh…” he groaned, slowly opening his eyes to stare directly at the white unicorn. “Rarity?”
“Are you alright, Lord Thunderhorn?” she asked. “What happened to you?”
“Those sorry, good for nothing drunks just left!” he said, gradually getting up off the floor. “There’s some kind of commotion going on outside and they got all worried and left me alone. Do you know anything about that?”
The general turned his gaze down towards the white unicorn’s hooves, noticing the obscene amount of blood staining her coat.
“I’m sorry-” Rarity said reluctantly before getting cut off.
“Rarity, what happened to you!?” the general blurted out. “You’re covered in blood!”
“The riot got a little out of control.” she admitted, keeping her tone. “I couldn’t stop them. They wouldn’t help us put the fires out and now they’re heading to the common quarter, trying to start a larger riot.”
“Well it looks like you put up a good fight.” the general mocked, leaning in closer to look at the blood spattering her hooves and face.
Rarity sighed and lifted a hoof, turning it over in front of her and inspecting the damage to her perfect white coat, “It’s okay. I’m not hurt.”
“Don’t worry so much about the riot. It’s not your fault that they ran off. Adrenaline and booze do weird things to a pony’s sense of right and wrong.” the old unicorn said. “And I’m sorry that I put such a heavy burden on you, Rarity. I guess I had just really hoped that we would have been able to control them. You should not have to feel responsible for their failures.”
“I just don’t want anyone to get hurt…” Rarity said glumly.
“Look, as long as we’re making a fuss, we’re making progress. We can only hope that things will take care of themselves when the princess arrives.” the grey stallion said. “And although I had to put a little more effort into charging the orb after those drunks left, I still managed to completely fill it, before passing out. So let’s go meet the others at the barracks, but first we should clean that blood off you so you don’t scare anyone on the way over there.”
Rarity simply laughed at the idea, but when they got to the bathroom and she had a chance to get a good look at herself in the mirror, she almost cried. Thunderhorn, who had exhausted himself the most from charging the crystalline orb, looked bad. His old age seemed to finally be catching up with him and he could hardly stand on his own, but Rarity looked considerably worse. Her eyes were a horrible, piercing red colour with blue mascara bleeding down her face; her hair, a tangled rat’s nest, dangling along her blood and soot stained coat in a lifeless heap. Once the absolute epitome of beauty, she was now a truly grotesque and almost painful sight to behold.
As she tried to wash herself off and hold back her tears, she wondered how it was even possible for things to just completely fall apart like they had. It had been only a little longer than a day, but she looked more terrible than she could have ever imagined. Even when she had fought off Nightmare Moon and Discord, she hadn’t looked this bad. So what was so different about their situation now? What was happening to her and the country she lived in?
________________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Hello everyone! This time I know I’m repeating myself. Sorry it took so long for the new chapter to come out. I had to do some major revisions, my editor was busier than normal, and I had it to wait for it to go through two prereaders. In the end, it took about a week longer than I expected.
On a better note, the next chapter should be out fairly soon. Why? Well, it’s actually almost finished already. I essentially wrote both chapters at once because I had originally intended to accomplish a lot more in this chapter. However, it quickly went from about 30 pages to 45 (more than double the usual and quadruple the first few) and my editor and I decided that it would be best to cut it in half and give you one section first while I finish working on the other.
I would like to take the time to thank my editor, Specter Von Baren, as well as my two prereaders, StyxD and a friend of mine that will be left unnamed at the moment. (Because I don’t know what he wants to be referred to as…) Some of you may know him as the guy who worked on that impressive Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney crossover. (I believe it’s titled “Turnabout Storm”.) I know for sure that he did the voices for Phoenix and, I believe, a few of the other characters, but I think he also did a significant amount of work on the graphics.
Anyway… Thanks to all of you. You really helped me improve this chapter and turn it into something really quite spectacular. I’m sure I would be in some kind of metaphorical ditch somewhere without your help.
And as always, if you have any questions or comments about the story, you can reach me at my email: [email protected] I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.
________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 13 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2011-12-28T20:38:50+00:00 | 2011-12-28T20:38:50+00:00 | 1,945 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 13
“Are you sure you’re going to be alright, Lord Thunderhorn?” Rarity asked.
The general was leaning on the white unicorn, one of his forelegs wrapped over her back while the two stumbled out of a dark alley and towards the royal barracks. Its huge metal gate was closed and flanked by two ponies, one of them easily recognizable as Firewater, the barkeep from the nobility quarter.
“Don’t worry about me.” the old stallion replied. “I’m just a little exhausted from all that nonsense with the orb. I never thought I would end up doing so much of the work by myself. ”
The two unicorns had tried to avoid the main streets as they made their way through the city. The calamity of the rioting was spreading quickly and it was too dangerous to be out in the open. More of the nobles had joined the rebels that had split off from the original plan, fighting against the soldiers in what they believed was a war to restore their rights in the government. At the same time, the commoners had fought against them, fighting back against the greedy aristocrats in support of their princess’ recent actions or simply trying to defend their homes from the anarchy. Now the capital was a warzone and the flames that had started it all were still burning. Without anyone to quell the fires, they were constantly taking more of the city, filling the air with a dark smoke that masked the stars and the moon above.
The palace and the royal barracks were the only real safe places left in the city. They were well defended and pushed away from the majority of the fighting that was now taking place all over the noble and common quarters, so the few stray ponies that decided to approach had always turned back quickly.
“Damn those unicorns!” the Thunderhorn grunted. “I knew we couldn’t trust a bunch of sorry drunks.”
“I understand their concern.” Rarity said, her voice filled with regret as she began to remember how she failed to stop the fires and infighting from spreading over the entire city. “I don’t think they expected the riot to threaten their homes and families.”
“You have no idea how glad I’m going to be when we’re done with this, Miss Rarity.” the general sighed deeply.
“Thunderhorn, Rarity, are you two alright?” Firewater interrupted, walking forward to meet them. “You didn’t get caught up in the fighting did you?”
“No, we’re both just a little tired.” Rarity answered, stopping and smiling weakly. “Thankfully, the orb is prepared and we should be ready to use it when Princess Celestia arrives.”
“You mean if Princess Celestia arrives.” Thunderhorn intervened. “We still don’t know if she’s going to come back.”
“She simply must come back now, Lord Thunderhorn.” Rarity said with confidence. “If Princess Luna refuses to intervene then this entire city will burn to ashes.”
Thunderhorn frowned, refusing to comment on their grim circumstances.
“Where’s Goldenroot and Vortex.” Thunderhorn asked the barkeep, changing the subject.
The Firewater’s weak smile fell quickly, “I was hoping I wouldn’t have to answer that question.”
“What happened!? Are they both alright?” Rarity panicked, jerking forward and causing Thunderhorn to stumble as he leaned against her.
“Goldenroot is fine.” the barkeep explained. “Vortex is in the infirmary. She’s still alive, but…”
“Where is the infirmary!?”
“Go right through the main entrance of the largest building and it’s the first door on your right.” he responded promptly.
“I’m sorry, Lord Thunderhorn.” Rarity said hastily, pushing away from the old unicorn that was leaning on her.
The elderly stallion stumbled, but managed to keep himself on his feet as he watched Rarity sprint to the door, throw it open with her magic and disappear inside. He cursed loudly and chased after her, limping slightly as he walked with the barkeep just watching him from the gate.
As he approached the open door, he noticed the crumpled bushes on his left. An assortment of trampled twigs, leaves and bits of blue hair were scattered around the ground, all of which was soaked in a sickeningly large pool of blood that forced the unicorn to look the other way. He swore again, much more loudly this time, and bolted through the door, pulling himself through the opening and stumbling down the hallway and into the infirmary, a large room with a small administration desk near the entrance and several smaller rooms with doors lining the hallway beyond it.
“Is she… is she going to be alright?” Rarity’s voice stuttered from inside one of the rooms.
Following the sound of her voice, Thunderhorn walked a little further into the medical centre and turned into one of the open doorways, his eyes immediately focusing on the heavily bandaged pegasus lying on a bed in the center of the room. Lying on her side, her sky blue tail was carefully laid out across the length of the bed, the long strands of hair resting softly on top of the sheets, but her mane was almost entirely hidden underneath the white bandages that covered the top of her head. The rest of her body was erratically covered. Most of her chest and all of her right foreleg were hidden, but the rest of her body remained uncovered, having suffered what appeared to be only minor injuries.
Vortex’s breathing was weak and strenuous. Her eye’s closed tightly in her sleep, her chest expanding as far as it could as she took long breathes. Thunderhorn recognized it as a sign that she had damaged one of her lungs, puncturing or injuring the organ in a way that it was rendered almost completely inoperable and forced the single, undamaged lung to overexert itself in its absence. He wasn’t sure what had happened to her, but whatever it was, it was doubtful that she would ever completely recover from it.
Goldenroot was sitting on the floor next to the bed, the blue mare’s face meeting his as he watched her with a pained expression. His eyes glimmered in the thin, mocking torchlight of the room, the stallion constantly trying to blink his sadness away as the warm liquid formed in the corners of his eyes. But his effort was in vein, only pushing the tears down the side of his face and sending them rolling down his cheeks like tiny rivers.
“From what I can tell, she has a fractured leg, multiple broken ribs, a few damaged internal organs and severe head trauma.” a chocolate brown unicorn, mostly likely some kind of doctor, replied methodically. “The leg and ribs should heal over time with no permanent damage. The organs should be okay too, but she can’t overexert herself for several months until that lung heals.”
Rarity had her back to door, hiding her face from the general as she stood close to the pale green stallion. She seemed to be trying to comfort him, placing her hoof gently on his back, but it didn’t seem to be helping.
On the opposite side of the bed was the doctor. Thunderhorn could tell she wasn’t very experienced, carefully levitating a clipboard in front of her and quickly switching her attention from it, to Vortex, to Rarity, and then back again. It was more likely that she was only just a nurse and not a doctor, but during a desperate time like the present, they were fortunate to have someone with even that much experience.
“Now, the head trauma… I honestly don’t know.” the nurse replied hesitantly, running a hoof through her mane and down the back of her neck. “Any kind of injury to the brain is impossible for me to diagnose until she wakes up. If she’s lucky, she won’t have any permanent damage. If she’s not… well I won’t go into details, but please try to stay calm if she doesn’t recognize you when she wakes up. You’re only going to make it harder for her.”
“She… she can’t just have completely forgotten who we are!” Rarity shouted doubtfully, spinning to face the unicorn standing on the opposite side of the bed.
"I don’t… I don’t know…” the nurse stuttered, startled by the white unicorn’s outburst.
But as Rarity faced the nurse, Thunderhorn could see the tears in her eyes and he realized that she wasn’t really angry at the mare. She was angry at herself. Angry that her wonderful plan to save the world was falling apart and that she was responsible for all the suffering, destruction and death carried along with it.
"I’m sorry, but I have to check on the other patients. I’ll be back in an hour to change her bandages.” the nurse continued hastily.
The nervous, chocolate brown unicorn gathered up a few of the things lying beside the bed and rushed passed the old general and out the door. Her eyes darted around the hallway once as she slowly opened one of the doors and closed it behind her.
The nurse hadn’t explicitly said so, but Thunderhorn knew what she meant. There was a good chance that Vortex’s injury would be far worse than simple amnesia. And though he didn’t know exactly what had happened to her, a significant head injury could cause paralysis in most of her body or send the pegasus into a deep coma that she might never fully recover from.
Turning his attention back to the scene inside the room, Thunderhorn noticed that the tears had started to build up more quickly in the pale green pony’s eyes. He shut them tightly, sobbing quietly as he lifted a hoof to his head and rested it against his forehead. Thunderhorn knew what it was like to sit at the bedside of a sick loved one. It was a horrible feeling that ravaged your thoughts and burned through your veins like acid, knowing that you could do nothing to help them, knowing that, even though all your friends, your family, and the doctors and nurses tried to convince you that everything was going to be okay, the love of your life was fading away like a wisp of smoke on a windy day.
Rarity just fell backwards, sitting on the floor helplessly as she watched the young pegasus gasping for air on the bed in front of her, “I’m so sorry, Goldenroot.”
~
“Princess!” Shock Wave yelled, throwing open the door to her chambers and bolting into the room.
Sitting on the balcony and slowly turning her gaze from the burning fires and screaming in the city below, the moon princess stared at the soldier whom had just barged in. Her gaze was cold and depressing, her eyes sharing their sorrow and emptiness as they shone strangely in the light of the fires.
“Princess Luna.” the red pegasus continued, ignoring her unsettling gaze. “You have to do something! There’s a rebellion within the city’s walls. Canterlot is burning, rioters are taking over the streets and ponies are being killed.
"The royal barracks has already been lost to the rebellion. I’ve ordered the soldiers to retreat to the castle, but strangely, that hasn’t lured the fighting here. It’s like they’re not even targeting us.”
The princess turned back to the window, “Have you noticed soldier? Have you noticed that the sun has yet to rise above the horizon, yet it is well past ten o’clock in the morning now?”
“Princess, forgive me, but I don’t think that’s important right now. We need to do something about the city.”
“Princess Celestia is attacking the capital of Prance. It’s the only reason the sun has not yet risen.” Luna replied, ignoring the soldier’s alarm.
“Please, your highness. We need to do something! I beg of you!” Shock Wave pleaded, slowly approaching the princess and trying to bring her back to the more important issue.
“This isn’t about me or you or anyone else in the city. It’s about my sister. Only she is capable of repairing the damage to our city and our country.” Luna said calmly. “Only she can fix this. After all, she promised me she would.
"I’ve sent word to Celestia that she needs to return immediately, but it is to her discretion whether or not she decides to wait until after the war has concluded. However, I expect everything to be back under control as soon as she returns.
"Until then, I want you and the remainder of the guard to stand down. Do not attack the rebels and do not leave the castle.”
"Stand down!?” the pegasus asked in shock. “Princess, we can’t just wait for your sister to come back here and fix everything! The city is in peril and it is my sworn duty to protect the lives of the innocent and helpless.”
"You’re making the mistake of assuming that the war in Prance has only just started.” Luna replied vaguely.
"You may not be Nightmare Moon anymore, but you’re still a monster.” Shock Wave lashed out. “I don’t care if it’s against your direct orders, I’m not just going to give up like you, just step aside and watch my city burn to ashes. I’m going to defend my city, my country and everyone inside it to my very last breath.”
Shock Wave, fed up with the alicorn’s obvious apathy, stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind her. The sound of her hooves echoed down the hallway, tears slowly rolling down the princess’ cheeks as she heard them grow fainter and then finally disappear.
~
“Before I do anything, I want to know the truth. Why did you sabotage my country, Pierre?” Celestia asked sincerely. “What exactly did you hope to gain?”
“My country was suffering, princess.” Pierre replied, rising from his seat and walking to the huge window behind him, watching the horrifying scene below. “I only wanted a better life for all the ponies that live here in Prance. I never intended to harm your country or cause a war. I only wanted to show your stubborn council that they were making a mistake. The trade agreement would have helped both our nations.”
Celestia walked further into the elaborately decorated room. Its walls were lined with several expensive paintings, but the pair of extravagant statues and packed bookshelves that Twilight had described were absent, almost as if they had never existed at all. But the princess ignored the flaws in her student’s depiction of the room and, nearing closer to the large desk Pierre was standing behind, her eyes narrowed and she glared inquisitively at the crimson pony across from her.
“That’s a very different story from what I was told.” Celestia stated.
“And what were you told?” the king asked, still focused on the sight below.
“That you were trying to conquer my country. You were trying to overthrow me and my sister in some kind of elaborate plan to take over the world. You promised to give the council power, so they willingly helped sabotage their own country.”
The room was engulfed by an ominous silence and from the reflection in the window Celestia could see a faint smile form on Pierre’s face.
"Did Sir Goldenroot tell you that?” he asked.
“No, Twilight Sparkle told me.”
“Your student?” Pierre asked in disbelief, finally turning to face the alicorn. “I thought she had died.”
“No, she never died, Pierre. You may have tried to kill her, but she never died.”
“Kill her?” Pierre replied, again in disbelief. “I suppose I can understand why you would think that, but I never even saw your student, only her belongings, which I immediately sent back to you.”
“How appropriate.” Celestia said as she glared at him. “That’s the exact same lie that your faithful subordinates tried to tell me, that she never even came here. Why are you lying to me, Pierre? Are you trying to make me feel sorry for you? Is this how you think you can escape your punishment?”
The scarlet pony just turned back to the window. It was still dark outside, but it was well past the time the sun was normally supposed to rise. The moon hung high in the starry sky above, its light pouring through the massive window and washing over the king’s body, forming a dark shadow on the floor underneath him.
"Don’t you think there is some truth, however small, in what we said?” he asked. “Or do you wish to hang on every single word your student has told you?”
"She has no reason to lie to me.” Celestia promptly responded.
"Whether you choose to accept it or not, what she has told you is not entirely the truth” Pierre explained. “She’s lying to you, princess, but even I don’t understand why.”
"You’re wrong, Pierre.” Celestia stated. “She wouldn’t lie to me.”
"I admire your faith in those around you, princess.” the king admitted. “I only wish it wasn’t so misplaced.”
The princess started to walk around the large desk and approach the king as he stared out the window.
"I’m not going to kill you, Pierre.” she explained quietly. “I don’t believe you deserve such a terrible punishment, even if you did fill the world with lies and cause such irreparable damage to the world.”
The king continued to look outside the window, even as the princess neared closer to him.
"I’m going to lock you in the dungeon beneath my castle.” The alicorn continued. “Perhaps when you are ready to tell me the truth, then I will let you return to your own country.”
"There is no truth I haven’t already told you, Princess Celestia.” he said calmly.
The princess stopped in her tracks only a short distance away from the ruby red pony.
"But you are too kind.” he continued, the reflection in the window showing him frown. “I could not save the weak, the young, the innocent… I have shamed myself beyond all forgiveness and I do not deserve to live among the ponies I swore, but failed to protect.”
The king turned to the princess. Clouded in the darkness of his own shadow, his face held an unforgettable expression. His eyes were filled with sorrow, but they held no tears, and his mouth gently trembled as he tried to force a fake smile in the bright moonlight.
"I’m sorry, princess.” he said.
Turning back to the window, the king bolted forward and hurled himself into the thick glass. The princess could only watch as the window shattered and the crimson pony was sent into the blackness of the night, the glittering fragments of the window dotting the sky like tiny raindrops.
Rushing towards the broken window and gazing down to the ground below, Celestia watched the pony and the fragments of the window grow smaller and smaller until they became invisible to her naked eye and the pony eventually stopped, slamming into the ground on the courtyard far below, his body lying in-between the two great statues and delicately arranged red and white flowerbeds on either side of the path.
For what seemed like an eternity, the princess just looked down at the sight below. The soldiers of Prance, the soldiers of Equestria and the innocent ponies that had been caught in the middle rushed from all over the city to the fallen pony’s side. And while they all looked down upon the king as he lay in the center of the path, the moon fell across the sky and disappeared over the horizon, making way for the bright sun that appeared just beyond the landscape.
"Princess Celestia!” Swift Wing shouted, stopping at the doorway and looking around the room.
The sight left the recently appointed colonel speechless. The massive window was shattered and the alicorn was just standing beside it, staring down into the city below as the sun slowly rose into the air outside and began to cast long shadows across the room.
"Is it over?” Celestia asked, watching the sun climb over the horizon.
"It’s… it’s over.” the pegasus replied, removing her helmet and tossing it onto the ground. “Right after we all saw the window explode and Pierre’s body fall from the tower, they just gave up. They just sat down and started taking off their armour.”
The princess said nothing and the room was once again bathed in silence as the sun rose higher and higher into the sky.
"What are we going to do now?” Swift Wing asked.
"We’ll set up an interim government until things can return to normal.” Celestia replied calmly. “Some of the soldiers will need to stay behind to watch over the country.”
The pegasus continued to watch the princess as a great flash of light illuminated the room in front of her. When the light subsided, a letter unravelled itself in front of the alicorn, the princess quietly starting to read it.
"I have to go back to Canterlot.” Celestia said abruptly, setting the letter on the large desk. “Find General Redhoof, he’s in charge until I return. If you cannot find him, you’re in charge.”
"What’s going on?” the pegasus asked.
"It’s something that I alone have to deal with, colonel.” the alicorn replied. “Just keep everything under control until I return.”
"Of course, your highness.”
~
“Goldenroot, we’re going to take the orb and wait at the palace.” Rarity said quietly. “We think that when Princess Celestia arrives she will go there first.”
While the others were busy preparing for the princess’ arrival, the stallion remained by the bedside in the small room, his eyes, although an intense red from his tears and prolonged sleep deprivation, still attentively watched the pegasus lying motionless in front of him.
“Fine.” he replied monotonously, his voice echoing around the small room.
While the tone of his voice could easily be interpreted as apathy, the truth was entirely the opposite. He still cared about the city burning outside the door, the bloody war in Prance, and the two ponies that stood, watching him in the doorway that were trying to bring it all to a sudden and abrupt halt. But what mattered to him the most wasn’t any of those things. He cared about her, the wonderful blue pegasus lying in front of him, and he refused to leave her side until he knew that she was okay. But as time wore on, he had begun to suspect the worst.
"Neither of us is sure why, but the royal palace appears to be completely deserted.” Thunderhorn added, answering the obvious question that Goldenroot had ignored.
Silence engulfed the room as the two unicorns moved their gaze from the pale green stallion to the dark blue pegasus and then back again. The entire scene seemed to be frozen, encased in a block of cold, solid ice as the world continued to move, shift and turn all around it. Goldenroot wasn’t taking this well, but then again, what kind of living, breathing pony could just ignore the pain of someone they cared about?
“Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?” Thunderhorn asked. “We may need your help.”
“I don’t care about that anymore.” Goldenroot lied.
The unicorns exchanged worried glances, before turning back to the stallion waiting by the bedside.
“Goodbye then, Goldenroot.” Rarity said quietly. “We’ll see you when we get back.”
The white unicorn smiled with a kind of hopeful determination, but soon turned around and quietly left out the doorway. Thunderhorn followed soon after, glancing once more at the stallion and then at the pegasus, before he backed out of the room and gently shut the door behind him, the handle slowly turning back into place as he gradually released his grasp.
When the room was completely silent, Goldenroot turned to look at the door, silently hopeful that everything would be alright.
Why is it that when the world burns, I’m the one holding the match?
“Are they gone?” a weak voice asked from the bed, interrupting his thoughts.
Goldenroot’s head snapped towards the bed, Vortex's amber eyes glowing back at him softly.
“Vortex!” he yelled, wrapping his forelegs around her and starting to sob.
“Ow.” she muttered quietly.
Goldenroot jumped back, realizing that he was only aggravating her wounds and causing her more pain.
“I thought you died, Vortex.” he said, his voice shaking. “And… the doctor said that the blow to your head damaged your memory… She said that you might not even remember me.”
Standing near the bedside, Goldenroot watched the mare’s eyes intently. His tears streamed down his cheeks, the stallion unable to hold back the bizarre combination of anxiety and joy that flooded his emotions.
“I remember you, Goldenroot.” she smiled faintly, tears beginning to roll down her face and soaking her pillow. “You still owe me an expensive gift.”
“I know, Vortex.” he said, tears pouring down his face.
The stallion leaned in and passionately kissed the mare on the lips, everything that led up to this moment flashing back into his memory like a strange dream. He remembered first setting his eyes upon her and thinking about how attractive she was and how hopeless he had always been.
Focus on your job, he had told himself. She’s not important.
He remembered how she used to be and realized how much she’d changed and how wonderful and amazing she became to him when he finally discovered the real pony behind the stunning blue figure. And as the beautiful reveries finally drifted out of his thoughts, he realized how naïve he’d been that day. She was more important than anything and everything else in the world and he was never going to forget that.
“I’m sorry, Goldenroot.” she said, as the stallion slowly pulled away.
“For what?” he asked.
“I’m sorry I was so arrogant. I’m sorry I made you worry about me.”
“I didn’t think I would ever hear you say that.” Goldenroot smiled at her, “But I should be the one apologizing, Vortex. This… everything… it’s all my fault. I was a fool and I put your life in danger. I dragged you into this mess and-”
“Now don’t get too mushy on me, Goldenroot.” Vortex interrupted, grinning back at him. “You wouldn’t want me to gag, would you?”
For a moment, the two ponies simply smiled at each other in silence, but Vortex’s expression slowly changed, the mare becoming absolutely serious and turning her gaze away from the stallion.
“I heard what you said.” she commented. “I think you should go help Thunderhorn and Rarity.”
“I don’t want to leave you, Vortex.” he said resolutely. “Not now.”
“Don’t worry so much.” she said, turning back to him with a smile on her face. “It’s not like I’ll be going anywhere. And besides, you still have to slay the dragon and save the princess. We made it this far and if you forget to do that, we can’t have our happy fairytale ending, can we?”
Something about the mare had always made the stallion smile and, even though he knew that she was in an extraordinary amount of pain, he felt himself grinning stupidly back at her.
“I guess not.” he said.
~
The sun was gently rising into the sky as Goldenroot entered the palace, the bright orb only barely visible past the thick smoke in the air above the city. The interior of the palace was exactly the same as it had been before the riot, the great marble pillars extending to the high ceiling above his head and the identical marble floors polished to a perfect sheen.
“Sir Goldenroot!” Rarity shouted in surprise, rushing towards him. “I thought you weren’t coming.”
“A certain blue pegasus managed to convince me otherwise.” the stallion smiled happily.
“She woke up!?” Thunderhorn asked, smiling ever so slightly.
“And her memory doesn’t appear to be damaged at all.” Goldenroot replied. “Everything important is still there, at least.”
“Oh Sir Goldenroot, that’s wonderful news.” Rarity said, throwing her hooves around the stallion’s neck.
“It’s nice to have some good news for a change,” the general remarked, “but I think we’d better turn our attention back to our plan.”
Rarity released her hooves from around Goldenroot’s neck and smiled at him happily once more before turning back to face the general, the green stallion also trying to focus his attention on the important final details of what had been a long, complicated, and exhausting plan.
"We’re not going to use the orb immediately. We both think it’s worth the time to see if we can convince the princess to give herself up quietly. If she does that, we can avoid a potentially dangerous situation. However, if she refuses to submit herself, we need to use the artefact immediately, before she has a chance to react. Since I’m the only one who actually read the instructions for this thing, I think I should be the one to use it on her. It takes less than a second to actually unleash the magic, but we can’t afford to take any chances so you two need to make some kind of distraction.”
"Like what?” Goldenroot asked.
"Yell, shout, throw something at her… I don’t care what you do as long as it works.”
Goldenroot nodded once, expressing his understanding.
"Now, if anything goes wrong-”
The general was cut off as a bright light filled the area, blinding the ponies and forcing them to turn away from the source at the center of the room.
“Goldenroot, Thunderhorn, and… Rarity?” a voice asked in an aggressive tone. “I have to admit, while I almost expected some of the council members to return, I did not expect the element of generosity to betray me like this.”
The bright light faded away, revealing Princess Celestia who was gently flapping her wings against the air around her as she lowered herself to the ground. As she planted her hooves firmly on the floor, she folded her wings onto her side casually.
“Regardless, you ponies have set fire to my city, started a riot within its walls and caused the death of many of my subjects.” she said, glaring at each of the ponies individually. “Why are you doing this to me? Was it not enough to try and dethrone me once, you had to attempt to do it again? Will you not stop until one of us is dead, dismembered and buried?”
“Princess Celestia, I’m sorry, but we needed your full attention.” Goldenroot announced, stepping forward. “We were desperate to stop the war before it reached its climax.”
“The war is already over, Goldenroot.” the princess said, walking towards him.
“The war is over!?” the stallion shouted, stunned.
“Prance was defeated and their king is dead.” Celestia explained. “However, I will allow you to say what you want to say before I completely lose my patience with you.”
“There is no easy way to say this, your highness.” he said, trying to focus even as his mind wandered to the horrible fact that they had been too late to stop the war before it ended. “Your student, Twilight Sparkle, is dead. The Twilight that you’ve spoken to is merely a hallucination. She’s not real, Princess Celestia, and everything she’s told you has all been just a lie.”
Beginning at the drought, the three ponies wove an elaborate story about the past, trying to describe every single tiny detail of the seemingly inexplicable events that had taken place over only a few short months. But as they told this extravagant tale, Celestia’s mind wandered somewhere else entirely, leaving only her blank expression behind as she was consumed by the powerful memories of her past.
"It’s about Twilight… She’s not coming home.”
"They think she’s dead?”
Ever since the very beginning, they believed she had died. But when Twilight came back, she proved them all wrong. She proved that she was too strong to be overwhelmed by simple bandits, too clever to be fooled by the falsities that Prance had twisted under her nose, and too ambitious to just give up when she was confronted with the horrifying events she knew would soon follow.
"She was one of the best friends I had and nothing will ever change that. I just wish I hadn’t let her leave by herself…”
But why would Rarity lie about her own friend, whom she held so dear to her heart, being dead?
"I’ll come back as soon as I can tomorrow. I know we’ll have a lot to talk about.”
Even if they were telling the truth, then who, or what, had she been talking to? What was it that she had seen, held, embraced, and even given up her own bed to on that stormy night so long ago?
"So you don’t know… what happened? Everyone thought she was dead, Celestia, yet she shows up in your bedroom in the middle of the night?”
“I know it’s hard to believe, but this was very real, Luna. I can assure you, no part of me thought it was a dream.”
“Well, we’ll know when she comes back.”
Her sister had been so doubtful. She wasn’t willing to believe that Twilight would just come back in the middle of the night without anyone else noticing her return.
“Please, Princess Celestia.” Rarity pleaded, approaching the alicorn cautiously and dragging her back to the present. “It’s the truth. I… I walked into your bedroom when you were talking to her.”
Her legs trembling, her mouth dry, Celestia’s gaze fixed itself on the exhausted, white unicorn in front of her. With the raging fires and the devastating riot quickly mutating her beautiful city into a hideous monster, she frantically tried to forget the uncertainty that plagued her memories and focus back on the issues of the present.
“Twilight wasn’t actually there.” the Rarity continued slowly. “You were all alone in that room.”
Alone? Celestia wondered, drifting off once again.
"I swear to you, princess! I’m not lying to you. I’ve never met your student. I was one of the ponies that accompanied King Pierre on his journey to your palace several months ago, the other being Daniel…”
Catherine was right, the princess thought. I remember seeing them before, both her and Daniel. They had been the king’s escorts when he had arrived at the palace in Equestria several months ago. I remember talking to them. I remember being curious and asking them about their jobs, their families and their country. I even remember Catherine telling me why she had joined the army in the first place.
“Your student? I thought she had died.”
“No, she never died Pierre. You may have tried to kill her, but she never died.”
“Kill her? I suppose I can understand why you would think that, but I never even saw your student, only her belongings, which I immediately sent back to you.”
Was Pierre telling the truth as well? Celestia thought, her eyes beginning to water.
"Whether you choose to accept it or not, what she has told you is not entirely the truth. She’s lying to you, princess, but even I don’t understand why.”
Was Twilight lying to me? the alicorn wondered, closing her eyes to hide the forming tears.
"The Twilight that you’ve spoken to is merely a hallucination. She’s not real, Princess Celestia, and everything she’s told you has all been just a lie.”
Is she even alive? she thought. But then, what happened to her?
"We spoke with your sister.” Goldenroot said, pulling the princess back to reality. “We think she’s afraid of you, princess.”
Afraid? Celestia thought, fading away from reality again. My sister is afraid of me?
"You are and will always be more than just a student to me, Twilight. If I have to do this to protect you, my sister and everyone else in Equestria from harm, then I believe this is the right thing to do. I don’t think I could ever live long enough to regret protecting the ones I care about.”
"When will you be back?”
"As soon as I can be. I hope to be back in a few weeks, but I can’t be sure. Nothing ever really seems to go according to plan, does it?”
"I don’t really care how long it takes, princess. I just want you to come back.”
"I will never leave you alone, Twilight. I won’t make that mistake again.”
No. It’s not true. Celestia thought, glaring down at the ponies in front of her. It wasn’t all just a lie. Twilight can’t be dead. I spoke with her and held her between my hooves. No mere hallucination could ever be that real. No simple illusion could trick me, turn me into a horrible monster and force me to mercilessly slaughter innocent ponies.
"No!” Celestia screamed, finally giving voice to her thoughts. “You’re lying! She’s not dead and you’re all filthy liars! Every one of you! You burned and terrorized my city! You conspired against me and forced a war upon my country!”
Her eyes shone with a terrible rage as she spoke, her horrible glare moving quickly around to each of the ponies individually.
“I’m sick of your lies and I refuse to let you wreak havoc on my country.” the alicorn continued.
Realizing that the situation was about to turn violent, Thunderhorn cried out, “Goldenroot! Rarity!”
The two rushed away from the princess simultaneously, trying to redirect her attention towards them as the general pulled the shimmering blue sphere out of his bag.
But the distraction failed as the princess just stared at the strange orb the old unicorn was holding in the air beside him, I remember that…
In one swift motion, Thunderhorn shot a beam of light from his horn into the small orb, the light amplifying and changing colour as it shot out the other side. A magnificent blue light filled the entire room as the beam flew through the air towards the princess, but she knew exactly what they were trying to do. She recognized the crystalline orb from so long ago. She remembered why it was created, how it was used, where it was stored, even the exact words detailing the surface of the sphere.
Her horn shone with a bright light that wrapped itself around the princess tightly, the piercing blue beam smashing into the barrier just as it managed to close in front of her. The magic exploded along its surface and pushed the princess, reducing the marble tiles on the floor beneath her to rubble and sending her crashing against the far wall. The resulting impact shook the entire palace, the blue light finally subsiding as its power dissipated into the barrier. With the last of the orb’s magic gone, the light around Celestia disappeared and the exhausted princess stumbled and fell to the ground.
“You won’t kill me here, not now.” she wheezed, gasping for air as she climbed back to her hooves and inched slowly forwards.
Her horn shone again, her anger pulsating through the room as she moved towards the old unicorn.
“Goldenroot, Rarity, run!” Thunderhorn yelled. “Get out of here! I’ll stall her for as long as I can.”
The two ponies did as instructed and turned to the doorway, hoping to escape before the princess turned her fury on them.
“You will do no such thing!” Celestia roared, the magic around her horn swirling and darkening as she slowly neared closer to the grey unicorn. “I won’t let you continue to destroy my country with your selfish lies.”
As she lowered her head and prepared to unleash her magic on the general, the elegant tiara placed neatly on the top of her head slid off and fell to the ground, landing with a hard clunk as it crashed into the floor. Ignoring the trinket, the princess let loose her magic, the powerful golden light cutting through the air as it approached the old stallion. The general hastily threw up a magical barrier, but after thoroughly exhausting himself from filling the crystalline orb, the barrier was futile, shredding like paper against Celestia’s magic.
The general cried out in pain as the magic wracked his body and sent him flying across the room, smashing him into the stone wall and discarding him onto the floor. The crystalline orb, once again glowing with a faint orange light, rolled slowly away from his disfigured body and into the shadows of the room. The vivid orange letters projected themselves through the darkness and onto the wall, making the text written along the orb’s surface perfectly readable on the cold, stone nearby.
My beloved sister, my only family, I would toss aside my immortal life, my royal blood, and everything else I own for you, the one true constant in my world.
Goldenroot and Rarity continued to run towards the door as the alicorn started to refocus her magic power. She reached out with her magic and grabbed hold of the two fleeing ponies as soon as they neared the exit and gradually began pulling them closer to her.
“Princess Celestia!” Rarity desperately cried out. “Please, I know this isn’t who you really are! You’re the most kind and generous pony in the world; you would never want to hurt us!”
But the princess just continued to pull them closer, tightening her grasp on the two ponies and squeezing their bodies, forcing their eyes closed and making them scream in pain as they were crushed in her magical grip.
"You’re right, Rarity. I was kind. I was generous.” she explained with an intense hatred in her eyes. “But how can I be so kind and generous while you tread on my very existence? You destroyed the pony I once was and you created this monster that I am now!”
While the two cried out in pain, a strange cloud of magic was hiding in the shadows. It was reading the words on the wall and then watching the horrific display in the center of the room, watching as the one it knew as its sister turned into a terrible monster and killed the ponies she once cared for. She killed Thunderhorn, the pony that she had once trusted with her deepest, darkest secrets, and she was about to kill Rarity, the element of generosity that had helped save her sister, and Goldenroot, the pony that was willing to sacrifice himself just to save the forests of her land.
"Sister!” Luna screamed at the top of her lungs, tears streaming down her face as she slowly materialized out of the shadows.
Celestia loosened her grip on the two ponies, allowing them to breathe as she faced her younger sister.
"Luna! I… I didn’t want you…” Celestia stuttered, slowly coming to realize the horror of what she was doing.
"Why are you doing this?” the moon princess asked, lowering her voice as her teardrops sprinkled onto the marble floor below. “What’s happening to you?”
"They lied to me, Luna.” Celestia stated, regaining her composure slightly. “They tried to destroy our country. I cannot let their crimes go unpunished.”
Luna continued to sob, her tears soaking the ground as she just watched her sister. Her eyes forced shut by her sister’s prying gaze, Celestia couldn’t bear to look at her sibling and turned away.
"They’re not lying to you, Celestia.” Luna said, finally breaking the strange silence that had filled the room.
“What… what do you mean?” Celestia asked apprehensively, her body trembling as she turned back to face her sister.
The two alicorns just stared at one another. Luna merely looked upon her sister with tears in her eyes and sorrow in her heart, while Celestia gazed back towards her with a strange sense of misunderstanding, like she had no idea what was going on or why any of this was happening.
Slowly, Luna’s horn started to glow with a brilliant blue light and she lowered her head, staring down to the floor at her hooves.
“I’m sorry, Celestia.” Luna said regretfully, her voice shaking as she closed her eyes. “I didn’t want it to end this way.”
Celestia gently set the two ponies she was holding on the ground, the light encompassing them vanishing as they touched the ground. As soon as the light disappeared and the two ponies collapsed on the floor, a beam of light shot from Luna’s horn and Celestia just watched as it slowly encircled her, tugging at her body and eventually causing her to disappear from the room completely.
~
Luna stood behind a podium on a large wooden platform pushed to the far edge of the town square. A massive crowd completely filled the area, small fillies and colts pointing at the stage and tugging on their parent’s tails as they tried to figure out what was going on. Their parents, however, were not quite so lost. Very little had been explained about the gathering, but they seemed to believe that they knew what it was all about.
Everything that had led up to this point over the past few weeks had been some of the worst events in the history of their country. The drought, the war, the fires, the riots, they were terrible trials that all seemed to have ended at once. They thanked their princess for their salvation and now they were expecting a kind of celebration after all the hardships they had endured. However, they didn’t seem to know why Princess Luna was on stage in place of her sister, so the ponies just stood and waited in silent anticipation.
“Citizens of Equestria!” Luna announced from behind the podium. “The drought is finally gone, every last trace of it washed from existence!”
The ponies in the crowd started to cheer loudly, happy to hear of their victory over the terrible plague that had seemed to start everything.
“The war is over, Prance was defeated and they now reside under our watchful eye.”
Again, the ponies cheered, stomping the ground and looking at each other in excitement.
“The fires were extinguished and the riot was ended, but though our city is damaged, reconstruction is in progress and the ones involved in the riot are being punished appropriately.”
Still, the ponies cheered loudly and stomped at the ground with their hooves.
“Yet everything you’ve been told was all part of a terrible, destructive lie.” Luna continued, her voice changing from the pleasant tone it once was as she began to explain what had actually happened.
The crowd went from a roaring applause to complete silence at this remark, every one of the ponies staring back at the alicorn in confusion.
“My sister has been swept away by grief, taken by lies and falsities.” Luna announced, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. “I’m sorry to tell you that she spread these lies onto you. Prance was not trying to conquer us, the council was not responsible for the drought, though one individual in particular was indeed responsible for making it worse, and the fires and the riot that took place only a few days ago were not started out of hatred for my sister. Instead, they were started because it was the only way we could pull her back to reality and force her to realize the truth.”
The princess paused for a moment, turning her head and attempting to blink her tears away and stop herself from breaking down in front of her subjects.
“She has been locked away now, down in the deepest catacombs of the castle.” Luna continued. “And there she will remain for as long as it takes for her to regain her health. Perhaps someday, when you are able to trust her again, she will resume her duty as the ruling monarch over our land, but until then, I will take her place.”
The ponies in the crowd below were visibly apprehensive about this new insight. Princess Celestia has been locked away and her sister was just supposed to take her place? Was she not the same sister that devolved into the villainous Nightmare Moon not so very long ago?
“I know that you are hesitant to trust me when I tell you this. I admit that I am not so sure that I am completely up to the task of ruling over this nation, or even worthy of it, so I am going to restore the council. Alas, the previous council members are either not capable of performing their roles any longer or have no desire to return to that life. Goldenroot will be banished for conspiracy against our country, Lord Thunderhorn perished in the riot, Lord Crescendo has gone missing, and Lady Wind Dancer, Lady Prairie Star, and Lady Vortex are all unwilling to continue with their positions in the government. Therefore, a new council must be created, one that will not be limited to just the nobility, but instead one that will include the entire populace of Equestria.”
The ponies started to talk amongst themselves and soon the town square was filled to the brim with an amalgamation of verbal dissent and panic at their situation. They didn’t seem to believe Princess Luna nor did they even want to believe her. Everything they did, everything they fought for, it couldn’t possibly all just be part of an elaborate lie, could it?
And amid all the confusion and even terror of the ponies around her, Luna just calmly turned back and walked off the stage.
~
She’d been cooped up in that tiny room for about a week now. Every day was the same, relatively dull experience. She would lie in her lumpy hospital bed and read, eat, sleep, or groan while various doctors and nurses badgered her with their concerns. She wouldn’t mind them so much, except they always managed to find some new complication as a result of her injury. First, she was diagnosed with ‘monocular temporal hemianopia’. The doctor had described it as ‘a visual field defect aligned along the vertical meridian of the affected eye’, but what it meant to her was that she had permanently lost all of the peripheral vision out of her right eye. Then she discovered that she had lost her unique ability to accurately tell the time using the position of certain objects in the sky as a frame of reference. Strangely, she was more upset about that than the loss of her peripheral vision. Everyone always found that trick to be so impressive.
Fortunately, however, both Goldenroot and Rarity would stop by to visit her and break up the day, the former always arriving more frequently and staying for much longer periods of time. She always wanted them to stay longer than they did, but they would both utter the exact same phrase like some kind of mindless machine.
"You need your rest.” they would say.
And then they would leave her alone, off to do something much more important and interesting. It was all a practically unbearable experience and she didn’t want to spend a minute longer in that tiny room. She just wanted to get outside and move around. She wanted to do something, anything at all.
Ugh! What time is it? she asked herself, staring out the small window near her bed and gazing out over the landscape. Goldenroot said he would be here at noon.
It looked very cold outside the window. The first snow of the season had finally begun to fall and it now blanketed the ruined streets and burned buildings of Canterlot in a soft, fluffy white. Turning her eyes from the snow covered buildings, she focused her attention on the ponies that wandered around the city. Wrapped with thick, winter scarves, they simply tried to avoid the bite of the frigid, winter air.
And of course, it’s going to be absolutely freezing when I finally get out of here. Vortex sighed.
Suddenly, a light, but quick succession of taps against the door interrupted her train of thought and Vortex pulled herself upright, leaning her back against the headboard.
Looking at the entrance with a big grin on her face, she called out, “I already told you, you don’t need to knock. Just come in.”
The pony on the other side seemed to hesitate for a moment, but eventually the door slowly creaked open and revealed a familiar face. Indeed, she recognized the face of the pony standing in the doorway, but it wasn’t exactly who she had been expecting. The brilliant golden armour the pony usually wore was absent and the cherry red pegasus, spotted with flecks of snow, was awkwardly cradling a long, skinny glass vase in her hoof. It was filled with seven, bright pink tulips that shot out of the delicate, semitransparent blue container like fireworks.
“Oh…” Vortex replied, her smile falling. “Hi.”
“I… I got you these.” Shock Wave replied, stuttering and trying to smile at the bedridden mare while she balanced the vase precariously in her hoof. “I know you don’t really like flowers, but I… I still needed to apologize to you.”
Vortex said nothing in response, just watching as the mare invited herself in, closed the door and walked further into the small room before carefully setting the vase down on the small bedside table. She was curious how the mare had managed to get such bright flowers at this time of the year, but her trivial curiosity was pushed to the back of her mind.
“I’m sorry, Vortex.” Shock Wave said, unable to look at the other pegasus directly, her eyes staring at the flowers on the table. “I should have believed you. I should have known that you wouldn’t lie to me about something like that.”
Shock Wave slowly sat down on floor near the bed, glancing up at Vortex momentarily before diverting her eyes away again.
“I still find it hard to believe that the princess has really gone insane,” she continued, “but I know you were telling the truth now and I… I’m so sorry I hurt you, Vortex. I…”
The pegasus drifted off and the two ponies sat in a strange, awkward silence for a long time. Vortex just quietly stared at the mare sitting beside her bed while Shock Wave periodically changed her gaze from the vase of flowers, to the floor, to Vortex, never keeping her eye on anything for more than a few seconds at a time.
Just looking at Shock Wave pulled and tugged at Vortex’s emotions. She wasn’t sure what to think about her. She was a friend from her past, one she had been willing to trust with her life, yet this red pegasus had refused to do the same when it had really mattered. She tried to kill her and while Vortex had a strange feeling inside her, like she was supposed to accept her apology, it was a sin that she wasn’t sure she was ready or even willing to forgive.
“I got kicked out of the royal guard.” Shock Wave stated plainly. “Luna was doing nothing about the riot and after we… met at the barracks, I assumed command of the remaining soldiers stationed in the city.”
She paused for a moment, grinning slightly as she looked at the pink flowers sitting on the table. Shock Wave seemed to be proud of her actions, even if they got her fired.
"Against her direct orders, I tried to stop the rioting and extinguish the fires.” she continued. “But Luna is nothing like Princess Celestia. She didn’t understand. She considered my actions to be desertion and I was issued a dishonourable discharge for misconduct and treason.”
Shock Wave turned her head, finally facing the dark blue mare directly.
“You know, I’d feel a lot better about this whole thing if you were back in the council. Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider that position? I know that every single pony in this country would welcome you back.”
“I’m leaving Equestria.” Vortex replied firmly.
“What!? Why?” the red pegasus asked in disbelief.
“Goldenroot was banished from the country, so I’m going to leave with him.”
“You’re joking, right?” Shock Wave asked doubtfully. “Please tell me you’re joking… After all you’ve done, you’re just going to run away with some stallion and disappear forever? Do you even realize what’s happened? This country is in pieces.”
“I know that, but the last thing anyone in Equestria needs right now is some overzealous rebel in the council.” Vortex explained. “I’m only going to make things worse if I stay here.”
“Have you even seen the council candidates?” Shock Wave argued. “They’re all extremists, radical commoners or conservative nobles. Not only that, but now we have to deal with Nightmare Moon as our monarch instead of the princess. Things were better the way they were before.”
“You were living in a lie, Shock Wave!” Vortex argued back. “You can’t possibly want to live in some fantasy world, just pretending that everything’s perfect when it’s really the complete opposite.”
“At least I was happy!” Shock Wave yelled angrily, standing up. “I don’t care if it was a fantasy or not, it’s better than what we have now.”
For a moment, Vortex was angry at Shock Wave. She sacrificed so much to make this country a better place, now she was trying to tell her that it was all just a mistake? But the feeling quickly fled from her emotions and she was left with only a sense of disappointment. It was heartbreaking to see that the pegasus standing in front of her was so very different from the friend she so fondly remembered.
"I… I think you should leave.”
The cherry red pegasus just stared back at her, like she hadn’t even heard what she said.
"Fine!” she said abruptly, walking to the door.
Vortex watched as she stormed to the exit and flung open the door, turning around and glaring at her once more before she left.
"You’re a coward, Vortex,” Shock Wave said, “and you’re definitely not the same pegasus I remember.”
With that, she turned and left out the door, slamming it closed and leaving Vortex alone in the silence of the small room.
Turning to look at the bright, pink flowers by her bedside, she was beginning to wonder if her former friend was right. She truly believed that they had done the right thing, but, while the flames were gone, was she really just leaving her country behind while the embers still burned on the ground? Would matters only get worse now that Celestia was gone?
Why does everything have to be so hard? She thought, slowly pulling herself back under the covers of her bed.
She didn’t want to just leave them behind, but what could she even do? She was useless by herself, she didn’t really know anything about politics, and she refused to abandon Goldenroot and all of her happiness for what was almost certainly simple paranoia.
Curled up inside her bed and staring intently at the tulips, another light tap sounded at the door before it swung open and revealed another familiar face. Except this time, it was someone she actually wanted to see.
“Hey, Vortex.” Goldenroot smiled, slipping into the room and quietly closing the door after him. “I know how much you hate this hospital food so I brought you a sandwich.”
The cheerful stallion smiled as he walked over to the table and reached out to the saddlebags slung over his back. Lifting the flap, he pulled out a large paper bag and set it down on the table next to the flowers.
“You certainly don’t see many of those at this time of the year.” he remarked, gesturing to the flowers.
“You’re late.” Vortex said astutely, pulling herself upright and leaning against the headboard again.
Goldenroot’s smile fell, “Actually… I’m about ten minutes early.”
Vortex frowned and glanced out the window once more. She really missed that trick, but more than anything, she hated being wrong.
“Hey, don’t worry about it.” Goldenroot grinned. “I think I’ve got something that will cheer you up.”
He reached into his bag again and pulled out a small, square box and set it gently on the bed, next to the mare. It was wrapped in shiny, white paper and had a pretty blue bow tied around it, the exact same colour as her coat.
“I was going to wait until after we ate, but…” Goldenroot said, drifting off.
“You know I was just joking about that ‘expensive gift’ thing, right?” Vortex asked, smiling back at him.
“You better not have been.” Goldenroot laughed. “This thing cost a fortune.”
And though it had been nothing short of a nightmare, something about the stallion’s joyful grin and reassuring disposition told her that everything was going to be alright. She didn’t have to stay here, give up her dreams and happiness to watch over Equestria like a suckling baby. It was much too naïve to think that the country would simply fall apart after what they did and that she was the glue holding it all together. Things would get better over time. Equestria could take care of itself.
Goldenroot grinned, “Well don’t just stare at it.”
~
It was snowing. The five ponies stood in a small semicircle around the two nearly identical stones protruding out of the ground, the entire scene enclosed under a bubble of magic that kept the small, white flakes from entering and disturbing the ponies inside.
Rarity was standing on the far left of the group and was solely responsible for projecting the bubble. As usual, her mane and tail were perfectly stylized, her makeup flawlessly applied and her coat a brilliant, shining white.
To her right, was Wind Dancer, the pegasus’ appearance almost identical to that of the unicorn beside her, if only slightly less immaculate. Her wings were carefully folded against her side and her gaze was focused intently on the stones in front of her.
And to her right, was Prairie Star, who had made the long journey to Equestria just for this one special, but depressing occasion. Her straight, golden mane partially obscured the earth pony’s face, rolling down the light brown coat of hair on her neck.
Continuing on down the line was Goldenroot, the pale green stallion with the bizarre, leafless golden tree on his flank, and finally Vortex, the dark blue pegasus with the light blue hair and swirling torrent of water on her own flank. The two were standing close beside each other, the latter having just recently recovered from her injuries during the riot.
The rigid stone on right of their field of vision read, Here lies Lady Violet, the mare that gave me a reason to love and a reason to live. You showed me the beauty of the world and everything inside it. And though our time was short, it will never be forgotten as the single happiest time of my life.
The stone on the left read, Here lies Lord Thunderhorn, a soldier, a general, a friend and a loving husband. He fought for what he believed in and he never gave up hope. His selfless courage and wisdom will forever be an inspiration to us all.
“It doesn’t really seem fair.” Rarity said glumly. “He worked so hard for our future, but he was never given the chance to experience it.”
“I think he would be happy to know that his sacrifice saved the both of us.” Goldenroot replied. “And although Equestria does not seem to welcome Princess Luna or the new council with open arms, I think that over time things will improve and eventually return to normal.”
“Where will you go?” Rarity asked, turning to face the stallion. “You have to leave today, don’t you?”
“Yes. Luna withheld my banishment only just long enough so that Vortex and I could leave together.”
“Yep, besides my peripheral vision, everything’s healed up nicely now.” Vortex stated plainly, unfolding her wings and stretching them out in front of the group. “And after getting kicked in the head, I only seem to have managed to forget one thing.”
“Well I certainly hope it wasn’t anything important.” Rarity said with concern.
“Well it was important,” the blue mare replied factually, returning her wings to her side, “but then Goldenroot bought me this watch.”
The pegasus lifted her right foreleg into the air, flaunting the elegant, golden watch sitting only a few inches from the very end of her hoof. Secured by a thick, gold and silver strap, the face of the timepiece held twelve little diamonds that were placed evenly around the circumference, one for each hour, and three shining silver hands so the pegasus could tell the time down to the exact second of the day.
Each of the ponies around her, with the exclusion of Goldenroot, who only sighed heavily and started to rub the bridge of his nose with a hoof, slowly walked closer, trying to examine the watch’s more intricate details. It was probably the most expensive watch they’d ever seen and until now, none of them knew such a thing even existed.
“It’s twenty-four karat gold, twenty-four karat platinum, the diamonds are perfectly flawless and it’s both protected and powered by a magically imbued artefact, so it won’t break and I don’t have to rewind it every other hour.” Vortex bragged, still holding the watch in front of her. “You’re totally jealous, aren’t you Rarity?”
She was jealous.
“That is absolutely gorgeous, Vortex.” Rarity said, still a little baffled by the expensive watch.
"Vortex, you don’t need to brag about it…” Goldenroot said quietly, trying to pull everyone’s attention away from the watch.
“Goldenroot, forgive me for asking, but how exactly could you afford something like that?” Wind Dancer asked suspiciously. “You’re not exactly the wealthiest noble on the block.”
“Well it’s not like I need my house anymore.” he replied with a smirk.
Vortex lowered her hoof quickly, the stallion’s remark instantly reminding her of what she had wanted to say before she had gotten so carried away showing off her watch.
"That’s right!” the blue pegasus announced. “Since we can’t stay here, we both decided we’re going to go on some kind of elaborate adventure. Maybe we’ll even find Crescendo and tell him what happened.”
She paused for a moment, just smiling at each of the ponies around the group before stopping in Goldenroot’s direction, her smile growing brighter.
"Or maybe we’ll just go behind a bush somewhere and make out.” she continued.
Goldenroot just shook his head slowly, giving the pegasus a strange look while she just grinned back at him.
“Are you going to be okay, Miss Rarity?” Goldenroot asked, turning back to the unicorn. “I mean, have you found out anything about what happened to Twilight Sparkle?”
“You don’t need to concern yourself with that anymore, Goldenroot.” she said, finally tearing her gaze away from the expensive watch and smiling quaintly at the stallion. “You’ve already done more than I could have possibly asked from you. You don’t, and never will, owe me anything.”
The pale green stallion smiled back at her.
“And I did manage to find her belongings, so hopefully something in there will help me understand what happened to Twilight.” Rarity continued.
“Well, I’m going to stay here in Equestria.” Wind Dancer intervened, jumping into the conversation awkwardly. “Even if my house was burned to the ground, one doesn’t keep absurd amounts of gold hidden in their cellar for no reason. My house has already been rebuilt to look exactly as it did before.”
Each of the ponies grinned and chuckled at her statement. Wind Dancer hadn’t changed a bit.
“And you.” she continued, turning to Goldenroot.
She just stared at him for a moment, the group enveloped in complete silence as the tiny flakes of snow drifted around the magical bubble that encased them.
“Thank you.” the white pegasus finally said. “I believe we are on equal terms once again.”
“That’s good enough for me, Wind Dancer.” the stallion replied.
“That’s Lady Wind Dancer, Goldenroot.” she corrected with a smile. “Unlike you, I had my noble status restored.”
“Until you find out where you’re going to go, you’re more than welcome to stay with me for as long as you wish.” Prairie Star intervened. “I found a job as a baker and I have a very nice house in that village now.”
“I don’t know, Star, we might keep you up all night.” Vortex smirked.
Goldenroot turned and gave her another harsh glare at her vulgar comment, the pegasus just smiling more brightly at his reaction.
“We’ll keep it down.” Goldenroot said quietly, turning back to the brown earth pony.
The group faded back into silence for a minute longer, turning their attention back to the tombstones and just staring at them as the snow gently landed, melted and rolled down the surface of the bubble surrounding them.
“Miss Rarity?” Goldenroot asked, breaking the momentary silence and turning to the unicorn. “When you do find out what happened to Twilight, I think you need to tell Princess Celestia. I worry about the princess. I’ve gone to visit her in the prison below the castle a few times now, but every time I see her it’s the exact same thing. She’s completely traumatized from the incident. She doesn’t eat, she doesn’t speak, she hardly even moves. Even when you address her directly, she simply stares through the barrier, right past you like you’re not even there.
"I don’t think she’s actually come to terms with Twilight’s death and the fact that Princess Luna, her own sister, has been so busy with the political state of affairs that she hasn’t had the time to see her even once, only makes her situation more depressing.”
The stallion paused, returning his gaze back towards the tombstones.
"I just think she might feel better if she knew what happened to Twilight, even if it’s not exactly something she wants to hear.” he finally continued.
"As soon as I find out what happened, I will tell her.” Rarity replied, trying to force a reassuring smile.
Pausing, the unicorn’s fake smile vanished and she gently closed her eyes.
"But I can only hope that she will believe me when I tell her. If she doesn’t, then I fear she will remain this way forever…” Rarity continued, “…or at least until she is no longer willing to endure the horrible pain and tragedy of her life.”
_______________________________________________________________________
Author's Notes:
Hey everyone. I was trying to get this chapter out before I left for vacation. Unfortunately, it seemed like I wouldn't make, but now my flight's delayed, so I guess I will.
Anyway, although this chapter wraps up a lot of the conflict, this isn't the end. There's still one more chapter left. That last chapter will show up sometime when I get back from vacation.
As always, thanks to my editor, Specter Von Baren, and my two prereaders, StyxD and my nameless friend. I really appreciated your help with this chapter, even if it did create a lot of extra work for me.
_______________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
theamberfox | 612 | 14 | Original Character,Princess Celestia,Princess Luna,Rarity,Twilight Sparkle,Dark,Sad,Tragedy,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Shadows of the Sun | A sinister plot for power develops in the shadows of the sun that changes the world forever. | complete | 66 | 8 | <p>A long drought has created food shortages across all of Equestria. In an effort to restore the country to its former glory, Princess Celestia sends Twilight Sparkle to the northern country of Prance to seek aid. But when something goes wrong, it starts a tragic chain of events that seems to have no end. With a sinister plot for power developing in the shadows of the sun, the entire world will change forever.</p> | everyone | 2012-01-21T21:33:58+00:00 | 2012-01-21T21:33:58+00:00 | 2,273 | Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox
Chapter 14
Though the cell was located in the coldest, darkest, and most unwelcoming part of the catacombs, it wasn't necessarily an uncomfortable place. A large room, it was quite similar to the royal bedchambers of the palace above. Several bookcases were pushed against the far wall, packed with every topic from fairy tales and folklores to conversational philosophy and ethics. In one corner was a large, comfy bed with a delicate black canopy. The dark fabric, dotted with tiny stars, seemed to flow down around the bed, gently covering the sides and resting against the floor, a surface built from large, deep violet glass tiles. In the opposite corner, and beside a door leading into a small bathroom with all the usual necessities, was a black vanity with an impressively large, oval mirror. Finally, there was a large, oval rug that was black in colour and placed in the exact center of the room.
The entire space, with the exception of the small bathroom, was perfectly visible from the shining, glasslike barrier that served as the cells prison bars, the divider between the tiny, seemingly perfect, colour coordinated world inside, and the chaos of the real and unfortunately opposite world on the outside. Or at least it would have been perfect if not for the single blot of white on the otherwise faultless scene.
Princess Celestia was lying on the big rug in the center of the room, equal distance from both the canopied bed and the pitch black vanity that her jewellery now carelessly rested upon. Every day, she would perform the same set of tasks, the same strange ritual. She would get out of bed, carefully clean and arrange the sheets, move to the bathroom, carefully clean and arrange herself in the mirror, and lie in the center of the room where she would eat one meal each day, a large bowl of mixed greens. It wasn't enough to eat just this one small meal, however, and every day she was hungrier than the last. The guards were not heartless, they had always offered her more food than just the single bowl of vegetables once a day, but she refused to eat anything more than that. Anything else they left in the room would sit and wait and eventually give off a foul odour, finally signalling the guards to take it away.
Even now, so long after she had been first imprisoned, her thoughts raced around her head and pushed away her hunger and her fatigue. She was worried about her sister, about her country, and even about herself. But more than anything else, she was worried about Twilight. Luna, Rarity, Goldenroot, Thunderhorn, all the ponies she had trusted over the years were all so absolutely convinced that Twilight was dead, but that didn’t make any sense. She saw her! Heard her! Felt her! And every single time it was more real than the last. But she had trusted them all, so then they had to be telling the truth, or at least what they all believed to be the truth.
“Can I see her now?” a voice asked from outside her cell.
It was painful! It hurt so much for her to even think about it. Was Twilight alive or dead?
“Are you sure it’s alright?” the voice asked again. “I can always come back at another time.”
“Yeah, whatever.” another voice replied, one that Celestia recognized as the guard watching her cell. “If you want to go stare at her, go right ahead.”
“Oh, umm... Thank you.”
Twilight couldn’t be dead, no that seemed impossible. But then, why was everyone else so convinced that the impossible was true?
Rarity said she saw me talking to Twilight, the alicorn thought as she stared at the dark floor of her cell, but she said Twilight wasn’t there.
The sound of a pony's hoofsteps slowly grew in volume as they entered the hallway and neared the princess' cell. Coming to a rather graceful halt, the pony stopped right in front of the cell and gazed in.
Who was I talking to!?
“Hello, Princess Celestia.” the voice said.
From her limited view, the princess could only see the pony's hooves in front of her. They were white.
A dream? Celestia thought, ignoring the pony in front of her. A hallucination? But she told me the truth! She knew that Prance and Goldenroot were involved in the drought. Even if she did exaggerate their involvement, she knew what was going on when I did not.
“Pardon me for arriving so early in the morning, but I promised someone that I would tell you as soon as I could.” the voice continued. “It’s about Twilight Sparkle.”
Celestia's head snapped upwards, her gaze focused on the white pony in front of her. It wasn't the first time she had heard those words since her imprisonment, but it was the first time she ever thought that the pony uttering them was going to tell her something she didn’t already know.
Standing across from her, on the other side of the magic wall, was Rarity. Her delicate indigo hair was the same as it always was; a picture of perfection in the dark corridors of the castle catacombs. Her coat was the same brilliant white she had always remembered it to be and her eyes were the same sparkling sapphire. And on her face, was a small, but pleasant smile. She was trying so hard to keep a calm disposition and a positive attitude in this grim place.
“Though, I think it's a story that's better told by someone else.” Rarity said.
At that moment, the alicorn realized that the white pony was levitating a small book in the air beside her. Her gaze intently watching the book, it floated through the air and into the prison cell, passing through the strange magical barrier like a hot knife through butter. It moved further into the room and finally floated down and came to a rest on the floor beside Celestia.
It was still kind of a strange feeling, to be inside that small room. Celestia had designed the cell so that anyone outside the prison could interact with the world inside as if the barrier was virtually nonexistent; however, for the actual prisoner, it was the complete opposite. Celestia could not pass through the magical wall, nor could she fully interact with the world outside. Only her senses extended through the shimmering wall, giving her the illusion that she was still a part of the real world.
In every possible way, it was the perfect prison, performing exactly the way she had wanted it to. And though it pained her to know that the cell was never used for its originally intended purpose, she was somewhat relieved to know that it was so… flawless.
“I found this among her things, the ones that were recovered from Prance.” Rarity continued. “Have you read it yet?”
Celestia recognized the little book now, it was Twilight's journal.
“It's blank.” Celestia said quietly.
Indeed, the princess remembered reading through the journal. She remembered flipping through every single page and being so utterly devastated when she realized that it was completely empty, devoid of any words, drawings, markings, or anything at all.
“Blank?” Rarity asked, tilting her head to the side. “Pardon me, princess, but it's not blank.”
“Please, Rarity.” Celestia replied. “Though I am perhaps deserving of your ridicule, please don't tease me. I read that journal. That journal is blank.”
“Then you… you won’t even open it?”
“I would appreciate it if you just left me alone right now, Rarity.”
The white unicorn said nothing in return, hesitating for a moment before turning around and leaving back the way she came, her hoofsteps gradually fading away before finally disappearing completely.
Why would she bring this to me? Celestia thought. Why would she tell there are words inside this book when I know for a fact that the opposite is true?
The princess was simply aggravated by the unicorn's teasing at first, but as she watched the book on the floor beside her, she grew ever more curious about its contents.
Perhaps… I missed something? She thought.
She gently flipped open the cover of the book, hopeful that the unicorn had not been lying about what she said. To her dismay, the first page was blank.
In the end, Goldenroot was just a conspirator. He only claims to have noble intentions, but he betrayed his own country, made them bend to his will just because he wanted the world to match his fantasy. I don’t believe him. I don’t believe that what he said was true.
She turned another page. Again, it was completely blank.
And Thunderhorn, he was a soldier. He thought the solution to every problem was to fight back, beat it into submission with his bare hooves. Even if he wasn’t involved in this conspiracy at the very beginning, he would’ve jumped at any opportunity to fight back against me, make me pay for stealing away his home and his honour!
Yet again, she turned another page and, yet again, it was blank, the same depressing whiteness staring her in the face and mocking her very existence.
And Luna, my own sister. A long time ago she turned against me out of jealously and contempt because they loved me and ignored her. When she did, I simply banished her, removed her from the world for an eternity. And although she’s finally returned, nothing’s really changed. She’s still ignored while I’m praised! Why wouldn’t she want to strike back against me, make me pay for all those years she spent in isolation because of me?
She started flipping through the rest of the pages more rapidly, but all of them were blank, right to the very end.
“And Rarity is a liar!” Celestia yelled out loud in anger. “She is a fool, mocking me and laughing now that she knows I have nothing left!”
She threw the book against the barrier, the journal crashing into the peculiar light and falling against the floor in a disfigured heap.
I wasn’t dreaming. I wasn’t hallucinating or lying or doing anything wrong.
The princess’ eyes started to water. I just wanted to help.
“Princess?” a voice asked quietly.
“Leave me alone!” Celestia yelled back aggressively. “Get away from me!”
The alicorn turned her head to the barrier, ready to glare at the foolish pony that had decided to confront her, but she stopped when she noticed the colour of the pony’s hooves. They were a beautiful, wonderful violet, a distinct, stunning colour that she recognized immediately.
“I can come back later…” the pony said meekly.
Celestia’s eyes darted passed the pony’s hooves and towards her face, “Twilight?”
The unicorn smiled, her eyes shimmering in the light, “I’m sorry I couldn’t see you earlier.”
For a moment, the princess said nothing, just staring back at her with a faint smile on her face and tears forming in her eyes.
“What’s going on, Twilight?” Celestia asked. “It’s been so long since I last saw you and I… I don’t even know what’s going on anymore. And now that you’re here… standing in front of me… it only seems to raise more questions.”
“I’m sorry, princess. I was lying to you.”
The water gathering in Celestia’s eyes began to slip down the side of her face. She was stunned, merely gazing at her student, her emotions wrought with intense confusion and disbelief as she watched the innocent looking unicorn shifting awkwardly in front of her.
Twilight’s expression was cold and her eyes fell to the book lying on the floor in front of her, the tears in her own eyes slowly starting to fall toward the ground, the tiny droplets staining the floor outside the princess’ cell.
“About what?” Celestia asked.
“I never went to the capital of Prance” Twilight said quietly, “and Le Roi Pierre probably wasn’t trying to take over the world.”
“Then… what happened to you, Twilight? Why were you gone for so long? Why did you convince me to wage a war with Prance and eliminate the council?”
“Did you read it?” Twilight asked, motioning towards the journal on the floor. “It explains everything.”
Celestia paused for a moment, looking down at the journal on the ground.
“Twilight…” Celestia said softly, “that journal is blank. There is nothing written inside it.”
Smiling faintly, Twilight’s horn lit up and she flipped the small book open to the first page.
“It’s not blank.” the unicorn said gently.
At the very top of the page was written, ‘Entry Number 1 - August 6th’.
“But…” the princess continued, turning back to her student in confusion. “I… I looked through that entire book only a moment ago… It was blank then, so why isn’t it blank now?”
Twilight just continued to smile back at her.
“I know that you’re confused and I understand why, but that journal contains all the answers you’ve been searching for.” the unicorn said. “Please, princess, please read it.”
~
Entry Number 1 - August 6th
Tomorrow is the day I leave for Prance on the princess’ behalf.
I’m not really sure how I feel about it. Princess Celestia seems determined that they’ll have the answers we need and I’m honoured to know that she chose me to be the one to embark on such an important journey. By all means, I want to help. I just don’t want to leave on my own. I only wish that someone, anyone at all, would come with me, but everyone seems to have their excuses. Not that I can blame them…
Fluttershy has to take care of her animals. That’s completely understandable. We weren’t the only ones affected by the drought. Every single living creature has had their life turned upside down and I don’t think anyone else in the country is even capable of doing what she does. Somehow she manages to find enough food and water for them all while still taking care of the sick and the injured. I honestly don’t know how she pulls it off, but I certainly don’t see as much of her as I used to. In fact, I don’t think I’ve seen her all week…
Applejack needs to help out around Sweet Apple Acres. Her entire family is terribly overworked as it is. They’ve been trying everything to get something to grow in the dust we still call soil. The trees and plants do get watered, but the only water comes from the scarce rainclouds that Rainbow Dash manages to herd over from the less populated areas of the country. The townsfolk have agreed that all of the clean water, the water that is carted in from the rivers and lakes, is to be reserved for drinking water only and that watering the crops is unnecessary at this time.
Indeed, Rainbow Dash has spent her time searching the skies for what little rainclouds manage to drift around the countryside. The only sleep the pegasus seems to get is when she passes out. The others are trying to get her to slow down and pace herself more, but she’s too brazen, saying things like ‘I’m fine.’ and ‘Don’t worry about me.’ right before she falls unconscious on the ground. It hurts to know that she’s pushing herself so hard, but at the same time, it’s inspirational. I’ve never seen her act so selflessly, even if it is masked under a thick layer of her own belligerent overconfidence.
Rarity is too busy with her shop. She’s always busy with her shop, but now she’s taken it upon herself to make sure that everyone in Ponyville has enough food to eat. She stockpiles food and gives it away to whomever needs it. At first, I wondered where she was getting it all from, (Where in the country can you still buy canned goods?) so I asked her, but she refused to tell me. After some research, I found out that the supply caravans from Prance, the ones that are supposed to be distributing food to all of the towns and cities around the country, are being intercepted by some of the more corrupt nobles. The rich nobles are bribing or robbing the caravans and hording all the food. They then sell the excess at inflated rates (A single can of beans costs about as much as a couch.) for huge profits. I don’t know why both the princess and the council are ignoring this, but maybe they realize that it’s more important to focus on solving the real problem of the drought than to waste time on petty crime. All I know is that calling Rarity the ‘element of generosity’ is a serious understatement right now. She’s been working herself to death in that shop of hers, most likely selling her dresses to the very same nobles that are responsible for bribing and robbing the caravans, and it’s all so that she can buy enough overpriced food for the rest of us to eat. (I still wonder how she manages to keep her mane in such pristine condition in a time like this, but I never doubt that mare’s fashion sense.)
And finally, Pinkie Pie, the one pony that I wouldn’t have expected to be doing something productive, is working with the rest of the townsfolk, pulling carts of water from the nearby lakes and rivers. She seems surprisingly concentrated, but still just as random and cheerful as always, so I try not to bother her too much. Unfortunately, the distance that she and the rest of the townsfolk have to travel gets longer by the day as the lakes begin to recede and the rivers dry up. At the beginning, the trip was only an hour long, now it takes a full day. At some point, they will only be wasting time, using more water than they gather, and we’ll have to abandon Ponyville and move closer to a larger source of water, but until then, Pinkie and the other townsfolk are keeping us happy and hydrated. I swear, even if that mare has to exhaust herself pulling carts of water day after day to do it, she’ll find a way to make everyone smile.
And what have I been doing all this time? I’ve been trying to find a solution to the drought problem, just like every other researcher, scientist and scholar in Equestria. The problem is that the library in Ponyville doesn’t have any of the material I need for my research. I need history books, books that can tell me something about the past and any other droughts that have occurred, not cookbooks, fairy tales and dictionaries. What I have here is too common and simple, so I’m not making any real progress with my efforts. The library in Canterlot may have more of the material I need, but at the moment it’s reserved for the elite members of the scientific community. They don’t want an amateur like me getting in their way, so I’m restricted to what books I have here.
Fortunately, Princess Celestia seems to have realized that we need to do something else if we’re ever going to find a solution and now she’s asked me to go to Prance, a country that, as far as I know, has had more than its fair share of droughts in the past. Unfortunately, the council refused to send anyone else with me. The princess wanted to send guards and researchers at my side, but the council thinks that it’s just a waste of time. (Right, because actually doing something about the drought is a waste of time.) What can a pony do? I guess we (the nobility) can only try to make our votes count. I voted for Sir Goldenroot and Lady Vortex. To my delight, they both managed to get elected and Goldenroot’s as sharp and feisty as ever, but Lady Vortex seems to have quickly become rather apathetic during her first term. It’s a shame really, I voted for her because she seemed like the only one who would be willing to support that equality bill that Sir Goldenroot has been pushing for years, but now I don’t know. Celestia told me that she (and Goldenroot) voted in favour of sending the researchers and guards with me, so I guess it wasn’t a complete waste.
All my meaningless complaining, worrying and rambling aside, I think I really will find something useful in Prance. I just hope I can get there and back without any issues.
Entry Number 2 - August 7th
I left Ponyville without saying goodbye. I’m already starting to regret doing that. I just didn’t want to have to bother my friends when they’re all so busy and... I don’t know. I guess, at the time, I didn’t really want to say goodbye to them. I felt like if I said goodbye, I would only miss them more. I’m sure everything will be okay. I’ll see them all again when I come back.
The only one I talked to before I left was Spike. I simply asked him to tell my friends where I went if they happened to ask. Poor Spike… He’s still upset about me leaving on my own, showing a mixture of anxious and irritated emotions as he spoke to me. I know he’s worried, perhaps even more than I am. He didn’t want me to leave without him and to be totally honest, I kind of wanted him to come, but he’s just too young for something like this. He’ll only be a burden and I can’t let anyone or anything slow me down. Not to mention I couldn’t bear the thought of him getting hurt somehow. No, it’s much better if he stays behind. After all, someone needs to look after the library.
When I arrived at Canterlot, the princess seemed awfully calm considering that the whole country is practically falling apart. It’s kind of reassuring to know that she has no lack of confidence in my abilities (if that is indeed the reason for her equanimity), but that didn’t stop me from almost breaking down in front of her today. My eyes felt swollen and my legs trembled as if I was trying to shoulder the entire weight of Equestria. It was hard seeing her, thinking about everything I was leaving behind and everything I had yet to accomplish. Up until now, it had felt like just a dream, something that I could only have imagined doing, but now… I guess it’s more of a reality than I would like to believe. It will be weeks before I see anyone I even recognize again and the more I think about it all, the more I worry. Just making my way to Canterlot on my own was a little unnerving, I don’t know how I’m going to survive a couple weeks like this.
But like everyone else, Princess Celestia was busy and we didn’t have much time to talk. She explained the journey a little bit more and tried to be as encouraging as possible, sometimes repeating herself in the process. To be totally honest, I didn’t hear anything I hadn’t already learned from her letter. I think she really just wanted to say goodbye. I’m glad she did.
Right now, as the sun leisurely sets over the horizon just outside the window, I’m sitting in the bedroom of a small inn to the north of the capital. The ponies here aren’t any better off than the ones at home. I felt like I had to hide all the food I brought into town or else they would try to steal it away from me. It’s a terrible feeling. I want to help them, but I can’t. I can’t do anything until I figure out what’s going on up north, the one thought that continues to swim around inside my head on an everlasting basis.
I reluctantly told the innkeeper about my journey. She seemed to think I was very brave for going alone to ‘save the world’. I laughed at that idea, but she just smiled back at me. I guess I never really thought about it like that. Saving the world seemed like the kind of thing that you only read about in fairy tales and legends.
Entry Number 3 - August 10th
The last few days were very ordinary and certainly nothing worth writing about. I continued to travel north and eventually reached the border. It’s not exactly what I expected it to be, just a big wooden sign engraved with a bunch of foreign writing. I’ve been studying their language a bit, so I was able to recognize that it read ‘Welcome to Prance’, but the rest of the text was incomprehensible. Hopefully I’ll be more knowledgeable by the time I get to the capital. I don’t want to waste any time when I get there.
Unfortunately, today was far from what anyone could possibly call ordinary and I seem to have run into a bit of an unexpected bump in the road to the capital. Upon entering the ‘Splinter Forest’, a forest not entirely unlike the Everfree Forest at home, I encountered what I thought were bandits. Bandits! I could hardly believe it! They were talking and laughing obnoxiously, their words laced with what I could only imagine were evil intentions. I wasn’t prepared for something like that, at least not by myself.
The adrenaline rushing through my veins, I panicked and ran straight into the forest, trying to get away from them before I was noticed. Fleeing deeper into the shadows, their voices grew fainter and more distant and I only stopped when I could hear nothing but the gentle swaying of the trees in the light breeze that carried itself around me and throughout the leafy foliage of the dense woods.
That was probably a stupid mistake and I feel like a complete idiot for running away like that. I should have tried to sneak past or simply find another route around them. At the time, I was just so… scared. It’s been a long time since I’ve been on my own like this and the strain of my journey has been making me a little jumpy as of late. I don’t want to let the princess, my friends, or anyone else down, not when they’re all counting on me.
Now I have to try and make my way out of this stupid forest without running into those bandits again. But it’s getting dark and I don’t want to sleep on that path anyways, not as long as I know there are criminals wandering about. I can’t afford to lose my belongings. I can’t afford to have to turn around and go back home, not while I’m so close.
I’m going to set up my tent and sleep here for the night. Tomorrow, I’ll make my way back to the path and continue to the capital. Even if I can’t find my way back, I can always use my magic as a compass. It’s more reliable than mechanical devices that are more vulnerable to errors and breaking and I know that as long as I head north, I’ll get out of this forest and end up exactly where I want to be.
Entry Number 4 - August 11th
This is a disaster!
Somehow, I managed to stumble into a patch of poison joke while I was running away from those bandits yesterday. (If they even were bandits. The way things have been going, they might have well been simple salesponies.) My reaction to the plant has been nearly identical to my previous experience with it. While I’m still able to use my magic for mundane tasks like starting fires, writing in my journal and illuminating dark places, any kind of spell that requires my full, undiluted concentration seems to fail. That means I can’t tell what direction north is! Whenever I try to perform the spell, I just get disoriented. Every attempt produces a different result, sometimes north is one way, another time it’s a completely different way. How am I supposed to read the map or even find my way out of this dreaded forest without a compass!?
It’s all my fault… I should have been prepared for something like this, but for now, I can only hope that the poison will wear off on its own while I try to find my way back to the path without any magic to help me.
Entry Number 5 - August 12th
I wandered around in that forest for nearly eight hours yesterday before finally giving up. I didn’t think I had managed to stray so deep into the forest, but I have absolutely no idea where I am now. I think I’m even more lost than I was before.
I’m also beginning to think that the poison joke won’t wear off before I die of dehydration. Normally, finding water wouldn’t be a real problem, but every creek is barren, every plant is dried out, and even the soil itself is like sand. I suppose Prance must be experiencing the severity of the drought as badly as we are or at least the area by their border is. In a way, it gives me hope. Now I know they must have a solution to our problems. If only I wasn’t stuck here in the middle of this forest…
On a more positive note, I remembered to bring an updated encyclopaedia with the instructions on how to make a cure for the illnesses caused by the poison joke. I just need to find the right ingredients and follow the directions and I should be able to use my magic again in no time. And once I can use my magic, I can find my way out of this forest. (I’m never going anywhere without a mechanical compass again. I can’t believe I was so naïve to think that I wouldn’t need to bring such a useful instrument on such a long journey.)
What I’m essentially making is bubble bath with a little bit of the violet spotted mushroom in it. It seems like kind of a bizarre and ridiculous cure, and even in this dire situation it makes me chuckle to think that I need to make bubble bath to save my life, but it worked once already so it has to work again.
1. Water
This first one is easy. I have some water in my bag, I can use that. However, I’ll have to remember to ration my drinking water properly or I won’t have enough left to make the cure. That might be easier said than done, I’m already running low…
2. Lavender Oil
The second one shouldn’t be too hard. I saw some lavender growing just outside the forest, so there has to be some more around here somewhere. Lavender grows best in direct sunlight, so if I can find some kind of small forest clearing, I should find some lavender.
3. Patchouli Oil
This shouldn’t be too hard either. Unlike lavender, patchouli grows best in the shade so I should be able to find it all over the place. It thrives in warm weather, not the unfortunately colder climate of Prance, but I’m positive that it’s warm enough in the forest for it to grow here.
4. Magnesium Hydroxide
Normally this would be the hardest ingredient to find in the middle of a forest. Fortunately, when magnesium hydroxide is mixed with water, it forms a solution called ‘milk of magnesia’, which is a common antacid. I once read that when you’re travelling, you should always bring some in case you eat something that you shouldn’t have. It’s not going to cure poison of course, but it’ll help if you have an upset stomach.
Regardless, if I boil the milk of magnesia, I’ll have all the magnesium hydroxide I need.
5. Glycerine
I was a little worried about this one until I read that it’s a by-product of soap making. Since I’ll be making soap with the lavender oil and the magnesium hydroxide, I’ll be making glycerine at the same time.
6. Violet Spotted Mushroom
This is where it gets difficult. The most important ingredient, violet spotted mushrooms, are a rare type of mushroom found only in deep caves and while it was easy enough to find in the Everfree Forest, I don’t know if I’m even going to be able to find this one.
Ultimately, I don’t know how long it will take to find all the ingredients, but given my water supply, I think I’ll have about a week to find all the ingredients and still have enough water left to make it to the nearest town before I...
Well, that doesn’t matter. I’m absolutely sure that I’ll have enough time to gather the things I need. It’s poison joke, right. So it’s all just a joke, an especially cruel joke at a time like this, but still just a silly joke. I’ll get out of here and I’ll make it to Prance.
Entry Number 6 - August 13th
I made some significant progress today. I spent the day searching the forest and I managed to find both the lavender and the patchouli.
Unfortunately, I seem to have run into another bump. It’s nothing to worry about, I’m sure, but I had to use a large amount of my drinking water to steam the lavender and patchouli to remove the oil from the plants. I should have thought about that before, but with all the progress I’m making, it shouldn’t be a problem.
I also managed to take the time to boil the milk of magnesia and extract the magnesium hydroxide. That was a lot easier than I expected, but it was foolish of me not to realize that I could have used the steam from the milk of magnesia to steam the plants. That could have saved me a lot of water. If I keep making mistakes like that, I really am going to be in trouble.
I should keep track of what I have and what I don’t have by periodically making lists. For now, I have the following ingredients:
1. Water
2. Lavender Oil
3. Patchouli Oil
4. Magnesium Hydroxide
I still need these ingredients:
5. Glycerine
6. Violet Spotted Mushroom
To save water, I’ll wait until I have the mushrooms before making the soap and, in turn, the glycerine.
This would be a lot easier if I had more water, but then again, that’s probably what everyone at home is thinking too. It just depresses me to think that I’m letting them all down like this. I should have been more courageous when I heard those bandits on the road. There were only three or four voices. I probably could have fought them if I had to. That’s what Rainbow Dash or Applejack would have done. Why can’t I be more like them? Why can’t I be brave? I fought that Ursa Minor and Nightmare Moon and Discord... They were all definitely more frightening than a few bandits. So how was that situation so different? Is it because I’m alone or is it because I’m still too distracted by this whole ‘journey to Prance’ thing? Maybe I’m just delusional. I am a little dehydrated right now. Then again, maybe I should just go to bed.
Entry Number 7 - August 14th
What an unproductive day. I accomplished absolutely nothing except deteriorating my food and water supply. Without thinking, I used up the last of my canned food. Now I have to scrounge around to find edible plants. That shouldn’t be too much of a problem. Most of the things in this forest are edible. They’re just really dried out. Dry enough that you almost have to drink something to kind of ‘wash it down’. It means that I’m going to have to use more of my already dwindling water supply. And, for whatever reason, I keep forgetting that I have to save a large amount of the water for the actual cure. At this point, I think I only have a couple days worth of water left, but I could probably push one more day out of it.
I spent the day wandering around in the forest, looking for a cave or anywhere I could find some of those stupid mushrooms. I even looked in the encyclopaedia, searching it for some kind of substitute for the violet spotted mushrooms, but I couldn’t find anything that fits the bill. And with my water supply as low as it is now, I can’t afford to make another batch if the first fails.
One last thing to add to my grim story, I boiled the milk of magnesia yesterday, but now I realize that I wasn’t exactly supposed to do that. I had to mix the magnesium hydroxide with water anyway so it was better the way it was. How could I be so foolish?
Stupid poison joke. Stupid forest. Stupid me.
Entry Number 8 - August 15th
I tried to push my water supply a bit more today, but I started feeling really strange. At first, I just ignored it. My vision was blurry and I felt exhausted, but I could still move around alright. It wasn’t until I passed out that I finally accepted that I needed to drink something.
I read in the encyclopaedia that you can drink your own… well… it’s not important, but I managed to find a way to extend my water supply a bit more. I feel terrible, though, so after searching the forest a bit more, I just decided to fall asleep and try again tomorrow.
Entry Number 9 - August 16th
Today was my sixth day in the forest. It was also my worst.
Somehow I managed to catch a cold or something. I guess it’s my own fault. I’ve been trying so hard to conserve my water that I weakened my immune system in the process.
It developed over the course of the day, starting as a weak cough and a slight chill in the morning, but now I’m freezing. I’m so cold that I’m shaking, even with my blanket slung over my back as I continue to wander through this puzzling forest. I’m coughing a lot too, so much that it’s making my chest hurt. It’s all making my search for the last ingredient of the cure much more difficult than I would have believed.
I’m going to look around for as long as I can, but I get tired easily now and I have to rest often to keep up my strength.
This is… unbearable. It’s just not fair that something like this would happen to me now. Everything is going wrong. I’ve run into dangerous criminals, gotten lost in a strange forest, lost my magic, and fallen terribly ill. I don’t know what to do anymore.
I’m scared. I can’t… I don’t… I don’t want to be here anymore. I want to go home. I don’t care about Prance or the drought. I just want to go home. I want to see Ponyville, Celestia and all my friends.
I just don’t want to die in here. I don’t want to die all alone.
Entry Number 10 - August 19th
I have not written anything for a few days now. I just didn’t have the strength to write something so depressing or, for that matter, anything at all.
Judging by my symptoms alone, I suspect that I have a severe case of pneumonia. It has grown significantly worse and I have no way of treating it. I read that you’re supposed to get plenty of rest, drink lots of liquids and try to increase the humidity of your living environment, but I can’t really do any of those things. The pain in my chest is excruciating, like there’s something sharp lodged inside of it and every time I cough or simply breathe, it sends sharp, shooting pains up my body.
Despite the horror of my condition and my exhausted water supply, I continued to wander around the forest as much as I could. To my surprise, I even managed to find a cave. I felt like I should have been happy, finding the one thing I was looking for after all this time, but now something is holding back my joy. It’s the ominous feeling that has taken over my thoughts over the past few days, the feeling that I was hesitant to write about for fear of it being true.
I don’t think I will ever make it out of this forest. Even if I find what I need, even if I get back on the path, I will never find my way back. I have no water, no food, and I am deathly ill. Just like the drought plagues Equestria, this illness plagues me. I can feel it taking over my body, overcoming my strength.
It is from this fear that I have started drinking the water I had reserved for the trip out of the forest. Because even if I die in here, there is one last thing I am determined to do.
Entry Number 11 - August 20th
I found it. I finally found everything I needed to make the cure, but does it even matter now? If I use the water to make the cure, I won’t have any water left to drink and I’ll never make it out of the forest. Even now, my throat is dry and the severity of my pneumonia is taking over. If I save the water to drink, however, I won’t be able to find a way out of the forest anyway. No matter what decision I make, I know I won’t make it home. So I just lie here, watching my teardrops fall onto the page and blur the words below. My body aches, but not nearly as much as my heart.
I’m sorry. You were all counting on me and I failed. I’m so sorry.
I will never come home, so instead I am going to use all that is left of my strength to send this journal and my remaining possessions back to that pathway in the forest, the one place where it all began. I only hope that someone will find it and send my last words to the ones I care about the most, the ones that were more important to me than anything else in the world.
To Applejack, the most honest, resourceful and dependable individual I have ever met. Your unfaltering determination and independence were always an inspiration to me and I will never forget the kindness you showed me on the first day we met. You offered your friendship to me, a pony you had never met before, out of the goodness of your heart and I will never forget that. You helped me learn that honesty is a virtue that should always be treasured and never forgotten, because only when we can be truthful, can we ever actually appreciate one another as a true friend.
To Fluttershy, your kindness and empathy are something that I could only have dreamed of. No matter what situation you are confronted with, you are always gentle and compassionate, offering your kindness even before your own opinion. You showed me what it means to put aside your fears and apprehensions, to stand up for those unable to stand up for themselves. But most of all, you showed me that simple kindness is something that we can easily overlook, but something that is always welcomed with an open mind and an open heart.
To Pinkie Pie, the most exuberant, energetic and care-free pony I have ever known. You find joy and laughter even in the darkest of places, bringing a smile to the faces of everyone around you. You’re relaxed attitude in every situation, no matter how desperate or depressing, is almost jarring at times, but strangely comforting. From you, I learned that the world is never nearly as frightening as it sometimes appears to be, that a cheerful disposition can ward off even the most frightening obstacles in your way.
To Rainbow Dash, the most brave and loyal pony I have ever witnessed. Your courage is nothing short of astounding at times. You’re always willing to put your own life in danger to protect your friends. You trust and stand by the ones you hold close to your heart, even when it is not always in your best interest to do so. You taught me to believe in my friends no matter what happens, because as long as you believe in them, they’ll believe in you.
To Rarity, your courteous sophistication and generosity is at times, unbelievable. You continue to amaze me with your fine attention to detail and your careful diligence, never giving up on your dreams until they come true. But what stands out most of all, is you’re absolute selflessness. You helped me learn how important it is to be able to set aside your own goals and passions to help others in their time of need. You showed me that helping others is more important and rewarding than helping yourself.
I’m sorry I never said goodbye to any of you. I could never have imagined the events that would take place after I left Ponyville, but that is no excuse to ignore the ponies that changed my life so much over the past few years. Before I met you all, I was so very different from the way I am today. I’ve learned and experienced so much that, even here, while I lie in this dark cave waiting for my fate to envelop me in darkness, I am happy. I am happy simply to have met you, known you and experienced everything that I did with you. You changed my life and my outlook upon it and I can never thank you enough for what you did.
To Spike, I’m sorry that I have to leave you. From the day of your birth, I watched you grow up, change and aspire to be the courageous and spirited dragon that you are now. And though I will never get the chance to grow old and see you reach adulthood and the prime of your life, I know that you will accomplish wonderful things. Throughout both my life and yours, I never doubted that, not even for a fleeting moment.
But though I will be gone, you will not be alone. I am sure that one of my friends will help look after you in my absence. I only ask that you be kind and understanding, though I already know you will be.
To my family, I’m sorry I never spent more time with you. My life always seemed like one hurdle after another and I never had the time to really stop and appreciate the ponies in my life. I always felt like I left something behind when I went to study at the magic academy with Princess Celestia. The truth is that I left you behind and I’m sorry. Mom, Dad, you were always supportive of everything I did. And though I know it pained you, perhaps even as much as it pained me, you gave me the independence I wanted and perhaps even needed. I love you both so very much and I couldn’t possibly have had better parents in my life. I only wish I could have spent more time with you.
To my teacher, Princess Celestia, I’m sorry for disappointing you. You trusted me, believed that I would help save the world and banish this drought from our country, but I failed. However, I know the kind of pony you are and I know what you are capable of. You’ll find some way to rejuvenate this world and help each and every pony that lives within it.
To be honest, when I first met you, I was a little uncomfortable around you. You were an untouchable goddess to me; everything about you seemed surreal and, in a way, completely hollow. And although I still idolized you, I thought you were much too jaded by your seemingly perfect life to truly understand what a normal pony really feels. But when I got to know who you really were, I learned that you were so different and so much more than I had once foolishly assumed. You were and always will be the sincere, affectionate, understanding, trusting, and charitable pony that looked out for me over my life. Though it was hard for me at times, you pushed me to discover all the magnificent things I learned over the years. You introduced me to the five best friends I could ever have in my life, the young dragon that I love with all my heart, and the wonders and life lessons that I would have never learned on my own.
You were always more than just a teacher to me. You are my one, true best friend above everyone else, the most important pony in my life, from the very beginning to the very end. Even in death, I will always remember that.
~
Celestia finished reading and looked up from the small book in front of her. Tears streaming down the sides of her face, she merely stared at the unicorn standing across from her.
“Sometimes you can just ignore the things you don’t want to see.” Twilight said, staring back at her.
“I read this before,” the princess replied, her words uneven and drenched in sorrow, “but I never read the whole thing… I never read the ending...”
“You didn’t want to see what I wrote in that journal, but you knew what was going to happen. You were afraid of the truth, so you made yourself believe that the whole thing was blank.”
Celestia shuddered and her gaze fell back down to the floor.
“I didn’t want to believe that she would just die…” Celestia said. “Not like that.”
“You knew about Prance, Goldenroot and the drought didn’t you?” Twilight said plainly. “You knew long before I ever told you, but you also knew that confronting the council directly might provoke a riot between the noble and common classes and confronting Prance would only start a war between your two countries in an already desperate time.”
“After a thousand years, in a country that can control the weather and the climate, a drought just didn’t make sense.” Celestia replied. “I watched and I saw the pegasus teams clearing the skies and pushing the rainclouds out of the country. I listened to them from the shadows and I learned that both Prance and the council were responsible, but I never learned exactly who in the council was to blame.
“At first, I was going to stop them immediately and confront Prance about their treachery, but then I realized what would happen if I did. With the food shortages taking such a heavy toll on the commoners while the nobility simply brushed it off like a mosquito on their shoulder, the gap between the nobility and the commoners was widening. If the commoners realized that even one of the members of the council was responsible for the drought, they would blame the entire nobility for their suffering. I also knew that everyone hated Prance. They were jealous of all that Prance had and all that they didn’t. They were jealous that Prance had food and water and they wanted to know why. If anyone discovered that Prance was sabotaging Equestria, we would have no other choice than to go to war against them.
“I realized that I couldn’t let anyone know that Prance and the council were responsible for the drought. I didn’t want to start a riot or a war. I had to subtly convince them to stop what they were doing without revealing to the world that they were responsible for all the pain in everyone’s life and I thought if they believed I was going to find the truth, they would stop what they were doing. I knew I wasn’t the only one afraid of a war…”
“So you simply tried to send them both a message with the journey to Prance. You wanted them to believe that you didn’t know what had created such a terrible drought, but that you were going to find out very soon.” Twilight continued in monotone. “You knew Prance would have to lie to the research team you sent and give them some kind of ludicrous solution to the drought to cover up the fact that they were responsible for it. At the same time, the rain would return on its own now that they weren’t sabotaging Equestria and everyone would believe that Prance’s ridiculous solution had actually worked.
“But you never thought I would be the one to embark on the journey alone, did you? At the beginning, you hadn’t even planned on asking me to go, but you thought it would be a valuable learning experience and an opportunity I would never dream of passing up.”
“The council did something I never expected; they refused to send the research team to Prance.” Celestia said. “I panicked. I was afraid my plan would completely fall apart so I sent you alone. Although they had justifiable reasons for keeping the researchers and guards in Equestria, I knew they couldn’t stop you from leaving on your own. In their eyes… you weren’t important.”
“In the end, it worked didn’t it?” Twilight said. “The member of the council that was responsible for worsening the drought, Goldenroot, stopped the pegasus teams from clearing the skies and the rain returned to Equestria. At the same time, Prance didn’t offer any resistance and its leader slowly faded out of the spotlight.”
“Everything returned to normal in an instant,” Celestia said, “except one thing. Twilight was gone. She had left for Prance by herself and I was ashamed, horrified that I had put someone I cared so dearly for in such a perilous situation. However, I knew that the public wouldn’t believe the world would just return to normal on its own. They would suspect something and they might even try to find the real truth, so I would hold my student responsible for saving the world and proclaim her to be the hero of Equestria. I thought it was the least I could do to repay her, not only for the danger I put her in but…”
Celestia’s words drifted off, the alicorn finding it too difficult to finish her own sentence.
“For saving Luna.” Twilight completed.
The tears continued to stream down the princess’ face, her gentle sobbing the only noise that sounded in the room.
“And then it all fell apart.” Twilight continued, interrupting the brief silence. “I disappeared and was eventually proclaimed dead, but you wouldn’t accept that I had died. On the night after the funeral, some surreal part of you appeared out of the darkness and made you believe that I was still alive. You truly believed that I came back.”
“It all seemed so real…” Celestia muttered softly.
“But that strange part of you began to take over. Soon it wanted to explain why I hadn’t returned sooner and it wanted to make the ones responsible for the drought suffer as you had. It wove an elaborate tale about how the entire council had been scheming against you and how the country of Prance was trying to take over the world.”
“I didn’t even want to believe her.” the alicorn replied. “I didn’t want to believe that something like that was happening, but if I didn’t believe it was the truth, how could I believe that Twilight was real? Twilight would never lie to me and I wanted so much to believe she was okay.”
“And so the riot and the war, the two things you had tried so hard to prevent, happened anyway.” Twilight said.
There was a long pause as Celestia closed her eyes and softly sobbed, her head facing the violet tiles below.
“I’m sorry Twilight.” she said, finally lifting her head and facing the barrier. “I’m sorry for what I did. I’m sorry for everything. I just…”
But across from her was only the plain, empty hallway. The innocent looking purple unicorn she had been talking to had simply disappeared, leaving no trace of her existence behind but the simple journal that lay open on the cold floor by her hooves.
“I didn’t want to lose you…”
_______________________________________________________________________
Author’s notes:
Well, that’s it. That’s the very end. I’d like to take a moment to thank you all for reading this story, as well as everyone who commented on the story along the way. I really hope you all enjoyed the story despite the heartbreaking ending.
A very special thank you is extended to Specter Von Baren for tremendous amount of time and effort he put into this as well as StyxD for all his help with the prereading. Another special thank you goes out to TheGoldCrow, another amazing prereader and the artist of the magnificent cover for the story. I can't thank any of you enough for your support. This was the very first story I have ever written and I couldn't have done it without you your help.
Now, to answer a few questions that I imagine are floating around at this point:
Is there going to be a sequel?
At this point, I honestly don't know. If there's enough interest in a sequel then I'll probably write one. In the mean time, I'm working on some other pony-related things, including another story, so it's not like I'm going to just disappear completely if there's no sequel. I can tell you that if I do write a sequel, the ending won’t be nearly as depressing as this one. (It’s really hard to write something so sad.)
Why is the version on website A different from the one of website B?
I get this question a lot actually. I went through a pretty extensive revision process over the course of this story. As a result, it's entirely likely that some of the websites this story is posted on have different versions. (Especially the ones I have no direct control over like the eReader version on Deviant Art.) For all intents and purposes, the most accurate version of the story is on google docs which you can find links to on Equestria Daily. This version will always be the most up to date and have the proper formatting.
Can I write a sequel, spin-off, or alternate ending to this story?
I only ask that you contact me before you do so. Other than that, I would be thrilled to know about any sequels or spin-offs your working on. Just keep in mind that I haven't yet decided about whether or not I want to write a sequel myself.
If you have any other questions about the story or anything else, I would be happy to answer them. Just send me an email at [email protected] or post something in the comments.
_______________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer:
“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on. |
tubular | 613 | 1 | Applejack,DJ P0N-3,Derpy Hooves,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Rainbow Dash,Random,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Best of tubular's Flashfics | A valiant brony brought the gift of flashfics to an IRC channel. Here are some of one author's best. | complete | -1 | -1 | <p>Long long ago, a brave writer joined a pony IRC channel. He brought with him the gift of flashfics: stories to be written and edited in the span of thirty minutes, on predetermined, one-word prompts. They rarely reach a thousand words, if ever. The tales they tell, however, are just as great as any other.</p><p>Here are some of the more fruitful attempts of one particular author's work.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-25T17:58:34+00:00 | 2011-08-25T17:58:34+00:00 | 1,088 | “The night... was... humid.”
No, that wasn’t quite right.
“The night was... moist.”
Gah. This isn’t working.
“The night... was... was... It was... humid?”
Shit.
“You know, this is a pretty lame exercise. Like, it’s ungodly how unfair this is right now. I can’t think of anything to write about for these goddamn prompts of yours. They’re too vague, and every time I get an idea for them, it’s either horrible, not fitting, or something that I can’t word right.”
The teacher looks up from his desk, beady eyes poking into your soul as he slid his glasses down the bridge of his nose. To probe your brain for conformity, a thought springs up.
“Vague? Too vague for you? Would you prefer for me to come up to the board and tell you to write about ‘VERY LARGE PHALLIC OBJECTS THAT YOU LIKE TO HAVE IN AND AROUND YOUR MOUTH’?” he suddenly bursts out, as though possessed.
A student at the back of the class pipes up, “Why, that’s oddly specific. Any particular reason for that choice in subject matter?”
The teacher blushes—How in the hell does a wrinkly prune like him even blush, you think to yourself—rubs at a nonexistent stain on his green checkered sweater-vest, and looks back to the papers on his ever-cluttered desk.
The boy who spoken, a rather large African-Amercian teenager dressed in a basketball-themed hoodie, black gym shorts, and admittedly pretty damn stylish running shoes, snickers quietly, changes position a little in his slightly-too-small desk-chair hybrid, and begins to twirl his pencil absently as he looks up to the far corner of the room. Likely fantasizing about shooting some hoops and punching his black friends in the shoulder as they exchange random joking insults, you think.
Why do I always think of everything but writing at times like this, your brain quickly responds, and you grumble audibly. You choose to emulate the psuedo-gangster three rows down, and you let your eyes wander about the aging walls of the classroom.
“The night was... wet?”
“Fuck,” you think. Or, rather, inadvertently think aloud.
The scrawny green prune looks up at you again, this time with an air of condescension. “There’s no need for this sort of colourful language,” he says, sounding as though he should be wagging a finger at you while wearing a stern expression. You couldn’t care less, as it were, and just stared at your paper. “Maybe you should try and apply some of that language to your empty page,” he quickly adds.
Without looking up, or even missing a beat, you reply, “Maybe if there was some concept to apply it to, some shred of an idea that I could work with, instead of these stupid prompts.”
“The whole point of this writing thing is not to produce a story, but to work with your creative urges, and find a sense of calming peace as you write,” a soft voice proclaims from somewhere behind you. You turn around in your seat, to see that it’s the fourth person in the room, the quiet, shy girl who always hangs out with herself and wears dark clothing. “It’s not to produce a work of literature, really; it’s more to produce a sense of self.”
And what would you know, you’ve got too little self-esteem to even have any friends, anyway, you think, but say nothing.
“For example, look here: I’m writing about ponies. They make me feel good inside, so I write about them.”
[2011-06-15] |
tubular | 613 | 2 | Applejack,DJ P0N-3,Derpy Hooves,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Rainbow Dash,Random,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Best of tubular's Flashfics | A valiant brony brought the gift of flashfics to an IRC channel. Here are some of one author's best. | complete | -1 | -1 | <p>Long long ago, a brave writer joined a pony IRC channel. He brought with him the gift of flashfics: stories to be written and edited in the span of thirty minutes, on predetermined, one-word prompts. They rarely reach a thousand words, if ever. The tales they tell, however, are just as great as any other.</p><p>Here are some of the more fruitful attempts of one particular author's work.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-25T17:58:43+00:00 | 2011-08-25T17:58:43+00:00 | 1,012 | The bell rang; I stepped up to the counter. My time to shine, bitches.
“The name’s Sharkpuncher. No, scratch that. Sharkfister. Yeah.” Now that’s badassery in a can.
“Sh-Shark... fister?”
“Yes, you heard correctly.” I put on my coolest-looking face, and smiled a carefully calculated, accidentally-on-purpose smile. “Sharkfister. Need me to spell it out?”
“Oh. Oh my. That’s...” The secretary pony at the counter looked on the verge of tears.
“That’s...?”
“That’s godly! ‘Sharkfister’ sounds like you could punch through a plane with your hoof by accident it’s wonderful and amazing and sexy and ohmygoshineedadrinkofwaterthistoomuch- excitementohmy...” The tears were flowing freely now, and she was trying to wave some cool air to her face before suffering a heat stroke.
I knew it was a sweet-ass name, but I didn’t think it would be this effective.
“NEXT PONY, PLEASE. QUICKLY NOW, I HAVEN’T ALL DAY.” I took this as my cue, and quickly ripped the printed ticket from behind the counter, peering over at the now-unconscious pony.
As I trotted up over and up onto the stage, the lights seemed blinding for a fleeting moment, and I almost lost my nerve right then and there. But then I thought back at all the ponies that helped me get this far.
My friends, Car-Crash-Man and StrawberryEater—Picnic Bundle and Twiddleflower, respectively, because those first ones weren’t really their names, just personas. For all the countless times that we were chillin’ out, maxin’, and relaxin’ all cool. For inspiring me to do this. I couldn’t let them down.
And my trainer. Called himself Brewski. Never knew why. Heh. Regardless, he taught me all I know. Invested all that time in me; I couldn’t let him down, that’s for sure.
And Orange Dole. Him I couldn’t disappoint, oh no. That wouldn’t do. He was special to me.
And Sour Grapes, and ol’ Scribe, and Miss Cheerilee, and my parents, and him, and her, and her too...
I could do this. Just gotta believe. I am Sharkfister. I am THE pony. I can do this.
I stepped onto the stage, with newfound vigour. The pony at the front of the seats called out to me, in a somewhat bored and preoccupied tone..
“So, next pony is...” He stopped, and rubbed his eyes with his hooves. A second time. He blinked, and stared. “Shark... fister?”
“Yes,” I responded through my orange shades, “who else could I be?”
He started to say something, but I cut him off, now on a roll. Getting into a groove, if you will. “Who the hell do you think I am? I am no mere contestant. I am a champion, waiting to try my hand at the game I know I will win!”
I began to pace on the stage, calling out, like a true orator would. “I am none other than Sharkfister!” A large gasp from the direction of the fourth wall, but I was unable to see where it came from, or how many had participated.
“I am here to win! My resolve is matched only by my skill!”
A triumphant song began to fade into my mind, matching my footfalls on the wooden boards.
“I am unmatched! I am undefeated! And I am in no state of mind to let that change tonight!”
There were cheers coming from somewhere. Maybe the back of my mind. Maybe from a crowd.
“I am here to win!”
It didn’t matter.
“I am here for nothing else!”
I was on top of the world.
“This spelling bee is mine!”
[2011-06-22] |
tubular | 613 | 3 | Applejack,DJ P0N-3,Derpy Hooves,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Rainbow Dash,Random,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Best of tubular's Flashfics | A valiant brony brought the gift of flashfics to an IRC channel. Here are some of one author's best. | complete | -1 | -1 | <p>Long long ago, a brave writer joined a pony IRC channel. He brought with him the gift of flashfics: stories to be written and edited in the span of thirty minutes, on predetermined, one-word prompts. They rarely reach a thousand words, if ever. The tales they tell, however, are just as great as any other.</p><p>Here are some of the more fruitful attempts of one particular author's work.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-25T17:58:49+00:00 | 2011-08-25T17:58:49+00:00 | 1,024 | “Twang. FWISH. Fppbbt.”
A pause.
“TWANG.”
Lyra snapped. “SHUT UP!”
“D’aww.”
“No, seriously, Harpie, I’m trying to focus here.”
“Well... watcha doin’?”
“By Celestia! I told you, I’m trying to write some music here.”
“You don’t write music, silly! You, like, play it or something... Right?”
The image of Pinkie Pie floated into Lyra’s head, the similarities to Harpie’s facial features highlighting and stand out. She pushed the image out with as much force as her irritation bestowed. Not surprisingly, it wasn’t enough. It came back, like some sort of horrendous ghost.
See, Harpie and Pinkie did have some similarities, yes. They were both scatterbrained, and had blue and yellow in their cutie marks. But that’s really where it stopped. Whereas Pinkie possesses this almost lovable randomness that made you feel like you’re best friends, even if you only talk every now and then on your way to work, Harpie was just stupid.
Like, her harp was probably more intelligent. Heh, Lyra thinks, I wouldn’t even be surprised.
“Look, Harpie, here’s the deal.” Harpie turned her gaze from the ceiling over to Lyra, rolling back onto her belly to get a better view.
“Bonbon and I are having our anniversary soon, and I need to make her a present. Wi--”
“So why aren’t you gluing and pasting things together at the crafts center, then?” she interrupts, leaving Lyra’s mouth hanging in a sort of stupor and her hoof sort of hanging weakly in midair. “Like, I mean, that’s what I do, and everypony loves my presents. You should know, you love them too!”
Lyra sighs deeply, accepting that she wasn’t going to get any work done with her around.
“A gift doesn’t have to be something tangible, Harpie. It’s not restricted to something you can actually hand to the person, is what I mean. For example, a hug is a gift; you can’t actu--” You pause, realizing you can actually give a hug to someone, but not in the usual sense. “Okay, bad example.”
“...What does ‘tangible’ mean? Like, it sounds like ‘tentacle’, but you did it like an adjective, so I’m like, ‘huh, what is this, I don’t even,’ you know?”
“‘Tangible’ pretty much just means existing. An object is tangible if you can touch it with your hooves or see it and be able to physically measure things about it with tools.”
“So, like, the piece of paper you’re writing on is tangible, but the song you’re writing on it isn’t, right?”
Lyra blinked. That’s got to be the smartest thing she’s ever said, she thought. Slowly, not wanting to ruin the moment, Lyra responds with a careful ‘yes’.
She then decided to push her luck with Harpie. “Would... would you like to help me write it?”
“Sure!” she said as she got up and walked over to the table Lyra sat at. “Hey, what are all these lines, though? I thought you were writing music!”
[2011-07-06] |
tubular | 613 | 4 | Applejack,DJ P0N-3,Derpy Hooves,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Rainbow Dash,Random,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Best of tubular's Flashfics | A valiant brony brought the gift of flashfics to an IRC channel. Here are some of one author's best. | complete | -1 | -1 | <p>Long long ago, a brave writer joined a pony IRC channel. He brought with him the gift of flashfics: stories to be written and edited in the span of thirty minutes, on predetermined, one-word prompts. They rarely reach a thousand words, if ever. The tales they tell, however, are just as great as any other.</p><p>Here are some of the more fruitful attempts of one particular author's work.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-25T17:58:56+00:00 | 2011-08-25T17:58:56+00:00 | 948 | “No, you’re supposed to put it in like THIS, and once you have it in the box THEN you can have the sorter start it up, NOT like you tried to do just NOW and...”
Patience was wearing thin, on both ends.
Ditzy Doo was not a clever pony, but she knew how to do what she was told. The head manager of the carrier company was a very meticulous pony, but was very vague with explanations: a combination that always had Ditzy on the receiving end of a condescending and oft-parroted lecture on how to perform the task at hand. Ironically enough, it was only then that Ditzy was actually able to get the full story on the matter, to be able to do the task proper.
“...and so you’re telling me you can’t handle a task as simple as that?! It’s not even that hard! IT GOES IN THE BOX FIRST, AND THEN OVER TO THE...”
But really, there was a point when it gets to be too much to bear: one shout too many, one insult too far. A wellspring of emotion, like a bed of kindle, ready to be lit. Each harsh word a stroke against a flintstone, threatening to set the mass ablaze.
“... and THAT’S how you do it! Do you hear me? Are you capable of understanding what I’m saying, now, for once, or are your ears just as messed as your eyes?”
The fire ignited.
“So you’re telling me that all of your problems are because I’m disabled? You hire me to effectively take advantage of the fact that I’m cheap labour that gets you government benefits, but have the GALL to blame me for it?!”
The manager jumped back, startled enough to release the magical grip on his pencil and clipboard. An expression of pure horrific shock adorned his face, as though Ditzy had grown another set of wings and brandished a cleaver.
“You can’t even tell me my job right! The only reason I end up doing it wrong is because YOU CAN’T EVEN EXPLAIN ANYTHING! You couldn’t tell someone to open a jar without an hour and a sem-ney-ar!
“Day in and day out, I come back to work because I need some extra bits to feed my daughter, only to face ever-growing piles of steaming, abusive MANURE—” the gruff manager jumped again, ruffling his hair and nearly making him trip over a length of cable on the ground, “—at the hooves of what has to be Equestria’s least competent employer in the history of WHENEVER!”
Ditzy began to advance on the larger pony, wing flaring menacingly, making him shy backwards and contorting his look of horror to one more reminiscent of fear.
“So you know what? You can take your filthy boxes, and your moon-destined sorting machine, and your pretentious aww-dut-ing clip board and shove them right down your muffin hole!”
“B-But—”
“NO!” Ditzy swiped an angry hoof at a pile of debris on a nearby table. “I QUIT! Take this as my RESIGNATION, you can of managerial hoof-polish!”
This elicited a whimper from the now nearly-crouching pony.
“You hear me? RE-SIG-NA-TION! OH, NEED ME TO SPELL IT OUT?! R-E-S-I-N-A-S-I-O-N!”
Ditzy turned on a hoof and made her way towards the exit, each step a crash against the ground or a kick of yet another pointless gadget of the multitude scattered on the floor.
She smashed the exit door open, knocking another workpony to the ground, scattering cardboard boxes full of wooden trinkets all over the dusty path outside. With a mighty leap, she launched into the sky and out of sight of the managerial colt, who was now scrambling to pick his jaw up off the floor.
[2011-07-13] |
tubular | 613 | 5 | Applejack,DJ P0N-3,Derpy Hooves,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Rainbow Dash,Random,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Best of tubular's Flashfics | A valiant brony brought the gift of flashfics to an IRC channel. Here are some of one author's best. | complete | -1 | -1 | <p>Long long ago, a brave writer joined a pony IRC channel. He brought with him the gift of flashfics: stories to be written and edited in the span of thirty minutes, on predetermined, one-word prompts. They rarely reach a thousand words, if ever. The tales they tell, however, are just as great as any other.</p><p>Here are some of the more fruitful attempts of one particular author's work.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-25T17:59:03+00:00 | 2011-08-25T17:59:03+00:00 | 965 | Bells rang out in a cacophony of clanging inside her head. It was time for all-out panic attack, but it was the moment when a cool head would help the most.
And keeping a cool head was what Vinyl did best.
She had known that it was not going to be the most legal of rave parties, but Vinyl’s not one to turn down a chance to get a crowd pumping, regardless of age, species, or, in this case, legality.
She wasn’t even totally informed on why the guard was likely to bust the joint: the only thing she knew she had to do was split the moment they arrive. She was paid fully in advance for the gig, double the normal rate, so that was a pretty great incentive as well. And a weasel Vinyl was not. So she showed, and she played, and as expected, they arrived, with magically projected voices and stunners.
Vinyl ducked behind the stock decks that she was scratching on as soon as the windows in the auditorium smashed, instinctual training almost instantly taking the reins from irrational surprise and shocked bewilderment. Quickly, but with meticulous and practiced movements, she removed the current disc from the left turntable and slid it away to the hard case, closing the lid shut. The record on the right was her own, so she levitated it, packed it in her custom sport-saddlebag, and peeked out from behind the turntables.
The guards were advancing using a standard tactical maneuver, straight from the textbook. Exits that she could use lit up in her vision as she recalled the layout of the building. Sparing no more than a second to make a decision, she jumped behind a curtain on the stage and took off in a silent gallop that was no less second nature than jamming at her tables.
Turning corner after corner, making sure to stay out of site of the roaming recon teams, she made her way to a back door. Ducking into a side corridor to dodge a visual sweep by a guard at the end of the hall, she paused, and noticed her heart rate was unusually high. Her rate of breathing was tending to more of a pant than anything else. She sighed, and tried to calm down.
As the hooffalls started back up and then began to quiet, Vinyl peeked back out, the trained eyes behind her goggles making use of the now-active night-vision capabilities. No guards were in sight, so she tentatively slid out and continued towards her destination.
Turning the final corner, her intuition finally got through to her, and she slowed to glance out a window by the exit door. Chariots everywhere, magical sirens ablaze; a sweep of the door showed a hastily-applied Royal Standard alarm wire, likely designed to alert them of an attempted escape.
Looking around quickly for something—anything—to use to escape, Vinyl noticed something glowing brightly through the high windows in the room behind her. Her curiosity getting the better of her, she leapt up onto a high table to peek inside.
Even from what little information had registered in her head from her glance into the windows, she knew that this was not just an ordinary growth op or underground market site. This was BIG. She had to get out, now, and silently retreat into the night. Hell, screw silently, she could outrun the guards. She just had to not get caught. Not here.
Quickly levitating a metallic folding chair, she whipped it at the window beside the exit with ferocious speed, and leapt out as soon as was possible, not even caring for the large, bloody gash on her hindleg, that she just acquired from the jagged remnants of glass.
She sprinted off into the night.
[2011-07-13] |
tubular | 613 | 6 | Applejack,DJ P0N-3,Derpy Hooves,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Rainbow Dash,Random,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Best of tubular's Flashfics | A valiant brony brought the gift of flashfics to an IRC channel. Here are some of one author's best. | complete | -1 | -1 | <p>Long long ago, a brave writer joined a pony IRC channel. He brought with him the gift of flashfics: stories to be written and edited in the span of thirty minutes, on predetermined, one-word prompts. They rarely reach a thousand words, if ever. The tales they tell, however, are just as great as any other.</p><p>Here are some of the more fruitful attempts of one particular author's work.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-25T17:59:15+00:00 | 2011-08-25T17:59:15+00:00 | 965 | There once was a pony blood-red
Who stole too many loaves of bread
An apology meager
Executioner eager
A loud bellow, “OFF WITH HIS HEAD!”
A distraught and now widowed wife
Quietly hid away with a knife
She took to her wrists
Some thrashes, some twists
But left a young colt with his life
The error had then come to light
But it was too far gone to make right
A quick preposition
To make an addition
To Celestia’s Royal Guard’s might
The offer was quickly refused
The orphaned colt was not amused
A royal mare of white
A voice without spite
Offered bandages for the life bruised
A simple request she had asked
With an apology made for the past
It was an invite
To live by her right;
A life he could enjoy, at last?
Tentatively, he whispered to her, "Yes."
She replied, “Sorry for the mess.”
Without even a clack
He was lifted to her back
And he hugged her and heard, “Be thee blessed.”
Slowly, he began to unwind
In the castle, a new life he’d find
Challenges surpassed
As the years flew past
With memories the last thing on his mind
Past events, they had been divisive
But his problems, the colt had outlived
The executioner fretted
His actions regretted
But finally, the colt could forgive.
[2011-07-20] |
tubular | 613 | 7 | Applejack,DJ P0N-3,Derpy Hooves,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Rainbow Dash,Random,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Best of tubular's Flashfics | A valiant brony brought the gift of flashfics to an IRC channel. Here are some of one author's best. | complete | -1 | -1 | <p>Long long ago, a brave writer joined a pony IRC channel. He brought with him the gift of flashfics: stories to be written and edited in the span of thirty minutes, on predetermined, one-word prompts. They rarely reach a thousand words, if ever. The tales they tell, however, are just as great as any other.</p><p>Here are some of the more fruitful attempts of one particular author's work.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-25T17:59:22+00:00 | 2011-08-25T17:59:22+00:00 | 976 | The branch snapped, a mighty, resounding crack echoing with a volume beyond normal.
Time slowed down. Every moment felt about the length of a minute. Minuscule details, like the gathered morning dew on a blade of grass below jumped out at me, embedding themselves into my memory during this state of hyperawareness.
The binoculars, cheap ones that had been produced in New Colt City—New Colt City, of all places!—slipped from my magical grasp, spinning slowly in mid-air as my hooves flailed around like wet socks.
The sudden disappearance of footing set me off balance, and I tilted even further forward, to the point where my head was beneath my hindlegs. A witness to event later claimed that my eyes had bulged out at this moment in an almost comical expression, and given the way I felt at the time, I had every reason to believe them.
I tumbled forward, and the contents of my saddlebags achieve temporary weightlessness due to the sudden downward acceleration. I would later note finding items as far as ten meters away, if this gives you any sense of the heights I’m talking about.
The sense of falling in mid-air, looking back, was both terrifying and somehow beautiful at the same time. It was a wonderfully terrifying—a terrifyingly wonderful— experience. I suppose this is what pegasi feel like, gliding about in the air, only more prolonged. The wind in their faces, the bits of clouds dispersing as you popped through one of them.
The panic as you tense up, just before hitting the ground. That last one I was no stranger to.
Managing to do half of a front-flip, I landed on my flank, in a very awkward pose. My ears were ringing right about now, so I couldn’t hear a snap, and I don’t think I felt one, but I couldn’t be sure. Since I had fallen a little forward as well as down, and onto a slanted hill, my top half proceeded to whip forwards and down, my neck making contact with the ground again. This ever-present momentum lifted my hindlegs, followed by the rest of my body, upwards and over my head, pressing my neck into an admittedly very awkward pose.
This continued for another one or two (I’m no longer sure of the number) “flips” before i settled into an awkward roll down the rest of the hill. Directed straight at the picnicking couple below. The one I was spying on.
A piece of cold toast, spread with jam, stuck to my face. My left hindhoof landed in the dressing, and the pile of hay got into my mane. Two shocked ponies leapt up, one yelling, the other gasping. When my momentum finally faded and I settled down with all four of my legs spread out, I heard the voice of the stallion, faded, as though distant. “...inoculars? Wha... ...s that all ab...”
Just before I lost consciousness, I heard the cynical voice in my head, crystal-clear.
Real subtle job, there, pal. Real subtle.
I gave into my aching body’s cry for relief, and blacked out.
[2011-07-20] |
tubular | 613 | 8 | Applejack,DJ P0N-3,Derpy Hooves,Lyra,Original Character,Pinkie Pie,Princess Celestia,Rainbow Dash,Random,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Best of tubular's Flashfics | A valiant brony brought the gift of flashfics to an IRC channel. Here are some of one author's best. | complete | -1 | -1 | <p>Long long ago, a brave writer joined a pony IRC channel. He brought with him the gift of flashfics: stories to be written and edited in the span of thirty minutes, on predetermined, one-word prompts. They rarely reach a thousand words, if ever. The tales they tell, however, are just as great as any other.</p><p>Here are some of the more fruitful attempts of one particular author's work.</p> | everyone | 2011-08-25T17:59:33+00:00 | 2011-08-25T17:59:33+00:00 | 1,085 | “Wait, what did you say was in here?” Dash asked, noting something not right with the taste.
Pinkie Pie laughed her unmistakable giggle, and began listing things. “Oh, well, there’s tomato juice, and some celery, and some carrot juice, and some flower petals—for the taste—some alcohol, rohyphenol*, tea leaves...” She broke off, putting her hoof to her chin as her gaze turned upward. “And something else. The gruff pony called ‘el-ess-dee’, which was kind of funny, because I knew a pony whose named was Yooess Dee, so it was like that one time that we went waterboarding with that gol—”
She was abruptly cut off as Rainbow Dash fell onto her with a crooked smile and an inebriated giggle, before rolling over and landing on the ground with a thud.
* * *
When Rainbow Dash hazily came to, she found the sky to be a pale vomit-green, adorned with clouds with hints of pink. This was not entirely disconcerting, for some odd reason, but still something to note.
She got up and looked around and saw a bright yellow barn with purple siding just a stone’s buck away. A short fence ran around the area, and some small plant fields stood in front of a deep nay blue backdrop of bulbous, yet regular, growths. They were on bright red stalks, and had olive green specks on them, and the word ‘tree’ came to mind.
Pondering what this could mean, Dash tiptoed around, hoping for another clue. Finally, coming around the other side of the enormous yellow building, she saw a large, olive green sign that said something about sweets and acres.
Suddenly, a voice called out, simultaneously sweetly and tauntingly, “Oh, Daaash~!” Rainbow Dash turned to see a bright read pony, wearing a pastel blue hat not unlike Applejack’s. The mane and tail were turquoise, but braided into a style that also reminded her of her longtime rival.
“It’s me, Rainbow~!”
Familiar still was the voice, though it had taken on a tone Dash had not heard yet. She turned, slowly, the other direction, only to find that same pony’s rump pointed right up at her face.
She heard the words, “You know you want me, Dashie~,” and she suddenly found the name for that tone. Seductive.
“Oh my Celestia what are you doing!” Dash managed, kicking her forelegs out and stumbling back, falling into the arms of another pony. Another ‘Applejack’.
She let out a yell and took off into the sky, launching for the nearest cloud. Instead of popping through it with a poof, it seemed to be completely solid, and Rainbow Dash had crashed into it headfirst.
Rainbow plummeted downwards, the ground jumping up to meet her.
* * *
But it never came. She fell into the hooves of a normal coloured Pinkie Pie, in a normal coloured world.
Pinkie raised a hoof to her lips and said, in a deep voice, “IT’S A SECRET TO EVERYPONY.”
[2011-08-10]
* Also known as the date rape drug, or 'roofies'. |
Scriber | 615 | 1 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-10-02T22:05:25+00:00 | 2011-10-02T22:05:25+00:00 | 7,462 | My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is the intellectual property of Hasbro, Inc and Lauren Faust. I make no claims of ownership. This is a not-for-profit fan fiction.
================================================================================
“…you’re sure of this?” the Royal alicorn asked of her most trusted advisor. “The reports are one hundred percent accurate?”
“Without question, your majesty,” the General replied, muted sunlight glinting off of his polished golden armour. “There have been at least a dozen individual cases of infection in at least four metropolitan areas reported within the last half-hour. This is not going to be as simple as we thought.”
The royal alicorn, coat a brilliant white and adorned with a gilded rune of the sun as her cutie mark, looked absolutely weathered. Her mane, usually a glistening nebula of soft, pastel hues was nothing more than an occasionally flapping shell of its former self, colours deflated to match the hair-style. Celestia had not slept in at least six days - whereas the princess could usually go without sleep for at least two weeks at a time without any serious difficulty, the stress and anxiety of the few days that had just passed had worn at her very being; physically, intellectually and emotionally, she was quite simply exhausted.
While the leader of the royal guard might not have been inclined to comment on the princess’ condition - for fear of losing his rank (and perhaps head) - Celestia’s sister, Luna, had no such moral trepidations.
“Tia.” the blue alicorn addressed her sister in a tone that could only be afforded a blood relative. “You have to get some rest, sister. The last time I saw you this tired was…was…” the alicorn trailed off, not wishing to drag up old emotions or re-salt allegedly healed wounds.
“-Since you first became Nightmare Moon,” Celestia finished for her little sister. Luna could do little more than bow her head in remorse, images of those she slaughtered in her jealous rage so many, many years ago coming into the forefront of her mind more freely than apples from a wilting orchard. Just as tears began to well in Luna’s eyes, her sister offered the blue alicorn a gentle, yet reassuring wing, nuzzling her smaller sibling against herself.
“I know that you’re sorry, Luna. Sometimes, I just…I just have trouble adjusting to the fact that you’re really here. It’s been so long…and believe you me, Luna, you’re not the only one who has regrets.” Celestia’s eyes grew soft for a moment, as if remembering a sour memory in her greater than millennial lifetime. She stiffened, however, eyes hardening in resolve.
“But that, dearest Luna, is a conversation destined for another time. For the moment, we have much more urgent matters at hand. The situation throughout Equestria is…look, I won’t lie to you. Any of you.” She gestured to the half-dozen ponies gathered atop the rhinestone tower, the afterglow of sunset illuminating the rock and casting an almost mystical golden hue throughout the entire city of Canterlot.
“We have not experienced this caliber of crisis in the entire history of Equestria. Not even the great plauges of the pre-Mare ages can begin to amount to the catastrophe which threatens our fair kingdom.” She turned to General Rough Rider, commander of the Royal Guard.
“General. I want you to initiate a complete and total lockdown of all metropolitan areas of Equestria. Manehattan, Phillydelpha, Appleoosa, Ponyville, even the frontier lands beyond the Everfree - I want them all…” Celestia shut her eyes tight, holding in the tears.
- “I want them all quarantined.” |
Scriber | 615 | 2 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-09-13T21:49:17+00:00 | 2011-09-13T21:49:17+00:00 | 5,995 | Twilight Sparkle stirred in her sleep. Dark visions of burning buildings and boiling flesh fettered her mind, gnawing away at her peaceful slumber like an untreated cancer. She inhaled sharply, her horn suddenly sparking to life. It glowed an almost translucent, whiteish hue before erupting into a brilliant maroon cone of pure arcane energy. Her eyes sprang open, oval-shaped orbs in her skull expelling a blinding white light.
She cried out, stirring from her un-restful slumber. The light purple unicorn sat up in her bed, sensing a powerful tingling sensation at the top of her head. She blinked, her eyes adjusting to the light of the room - the only illumination offered was courtesy of the waxing moon and glittering stars. Twilight knew immediately that something was wrong. The air around Ponyville, usually devoid of a background magical charge, was literally teeming with raw magical energy. She clumsily rose to her hooves and trotted over to the picture window, offering a clear panoramic view of the night’s sky.
What she saw made her breath hitch in her chest.
As if encased in half of a gigantic bubble, Ponyville appeared to be enveloped by a translucent light blue orb. Twilight immediately recognized the spell, though she was in a state of disbelief as to how the spell could have actually been cast.
“The…the Barrier of Arcane Guard…” she managed to say, her tongue clicking dryly against her lips. “But…how…” Before Twilight was able to finish her sentence, another electrifying bolt shot through her horn, this time coursing throughout her entire body, as if raw magical essence was holding a pony race across every single individual nerve ending. Her pupils dilated, the will of the magic in the air encompassing her consciousness. She could hear a voice in her head - soothing, reassuring. Gentle yet firm.
“This is a message to all magic-using ponies throughout Equestria. This is Princess Luna, goddess of the Moon. A terrible virus has begun to break out all across our fair kingdom. As far as we can tell, tens of thousands have thus far been affected - and that number grows by the thousands with each passing hour.
“The blue bubble that you can now undoubtedly detect encompassing your settlement, town or city is an ancient spell of Arcane proportions. It restricts access of even the smallest facet of an atom to the other side. This spell will essentially…quarantine your community from the rest of Equestria.
“Celestia and I deeply apologize for this coarse, unannounced action. It was done with only the best interests of all of ponydom in mind, and rest assured that it is only temporary. Canterlot’s top scientists, mages and physicists are already working hard to discover a cure for this virus. May all of the cosmos guide them in their efforts.
“And, finally, I must warn those who are receiving this message of the nature of the virus itself. This virus, put simply, does two things - it causes uncontrollable, murderous rage in male colts over the age of 17, and it…somehow…re-animates dead tissue.”
Twilight Sparkle swooned for a moment, the gravity of the situation beginning to take effect on her mental well-being.
“To all who have received this message: wake your loved ones, alert the pegasi and gather the earth ponies. You will all congregate in the mane area of your respective establishments and await further instructions. You will not - I repeat - will not attempt to make any contact with anypony who shows signs of infection, nor will you attempt to come in contact with anypony who has been so unfortunate as to perish as a result of this infection.”
“Go forth, and may mine and Celestia’s blessings be upon you.” |
Scriber | 615 | 3 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-10-07T05:35:54+00:00 | 2011-10-07T05:35:54+00:00 | 5,801 | “Big Sis, what did Princess Luna mean by, ‘re-animates dead tissue’?” the small white unicorn filly asked apprehensively, still blinking the sleep from her eyes.
“I’m…I’m not entirely sure, dear,” Rarity replied, mane disheveled to match her mental state. In the five or so minutes that had passed since Luna’s message, Rarity had woken up Sweetie Belle, secured her shop in case of an attack, and freshened up a bit - albeit hastily. Magic bubbled forth from her white horn as she levitated a hairbrush, hoof mirror and several other cosmetic essentials and worked to make herself presentable. “However, the most important thing that you can do right now, darling, is to go pack your things.”
“But Rarity -”
“No. Buts. I simply cannot leave the shop knowing that the two of us are unprepared, should an evacuation order come down from Celestia. Now, run upstairs and finish up. We leave in five minutes.”
“Yes, Big Sis,” Sweetie Belle managed, trying not to let the panic she felt growing in her chest manifest itself in her voice.
All around Carousel Boutique, Ponyville was beginning to come to life. Unicorns were knocking on the doors of earth ponies, hastily waking them from their otherwise peaceful sleep to warn them of Luna’s message as well as the situation at hand. Light switches were flipped, bags were packed and little ones were awoken as gently as possible, the strained - perhaps reluctant - tones of their parents’ voices bringing them to half-consciousness.
All the while, a dark presence stood on the shadows, looking on at the scene coldly. The stallion - name now irrelevant - drooled a viscous mixture of blood and saliva as he stood in the alleyway, alone. His cutie mark, a picture of discarded spectacles, was marred by several bite wounds. It did not make a single bit of difference to the stallion, however; he no longer felt any pain. No, the only emotion - the only drive left in the empty husk of his former self - was an all-encompassing fury, a hatred and rage that boiled within like a toxic sludge. He shambled unnoticed in the nooks and crannies of Ponyville’s architecture, lumbering about from shadow to shadow, just out of view of anypony. He moved away from the center of town; that’s where everypony was gathering, but the raw, bestial urges and desires of his new, altered state seemed to have minds of their own, his body taking him wherever his instinct pleased with little to no argument.
The stallion, having distanced himself from the town center, walked slowly toward a lone cabin on a hill, just at the edge of the Everfree.
----------------------
Twilight Sparkle, her number one assistant on her back and Owloicious in tow, galloped with all of her might toward Fluttershy’s cabin. She knew that Rarity would more than likely alert the Apple family, and she knew that Pinkie Pie wouldn’t be that difficult to wake - given that she was so close to the center of town, Twilight didn’t doubt that Mr. and Mrs. Cake had already been awoken by good samareitans as well. That only left Rainbow Dash - who, more than likely, was not able to gain access to Ponyville from Cloudsdale - and Fluttershy, all alone at the very edge of the Everfree Forest.
Twilight gulped, trying in earnest to will her pace to quicken.
“Do you think Fluttershy’s gonna be ok, Twilight?” asked the baby dragon, his voice jolting Twilight out of her internal dialogue.
“If I have anything to say about it, yes. Owloicious, do you think you could fly ahead and see whether or not she’s awake already? Be on the lookout for anything unusual, too. I don’t want any surprises when we arrive.”
“Hoo,” Owloicious nodded, as if to say, I’m on it. The owl took to the sky, wings flapping furiously against the cool night air. Twilight and Spike remained silent for a few moments as they made their way toward the cabin, when Spike finally asked,
“I’m not dreaming, am I? This isn’t some sort of…like…really, really intense dream, is it?”
“I’m afraid not, Spike. No, this is as real as it gets - and the situation is most urgent. I’ve only read about the most obscure references regarding the spell that was used -” she motioned with her head to the translucent blue bubble that hung over their heads, “but I don’t even want to begin to think about how much magic it would take to actually cast a spell of this magnitude. This is far, far beyond Celestia’s and Luna’s capabilities combined - and they’re the two most powerful alicorns in all of Equestria! No, they had to have had help…”
A scream rang out in the night. Twilight almost stumbled, instantly recognizing the frightened voice’s owner.
It was none other than Fluttershy.
------------------------
Applejack, Rarity, all three Cutie Mark Crusaders, as well as Pinkie Pie were huddled together in a small group amongst the larger, still-growing crowd that had begun to gather in the town’s mane square, just outside of the Mayor’s office. The Mayor, usually composed and well-spoken, simply sat on the edge of the steps leading up to her office, mane all out of place and a look on her face that conveyed extreme worry and anxiety. A quiet, yet constant murmur spread through the crowd, sentences more often than not ending with an upward inflection. Some were staring into the sky in a mixture of fear, confusion and amazement at the new addition which hung overhead like an oppressive veil - others were talking amongst themselves in hushed, quick tones. Others still were eyeing their neighbours warily, eyes darting about in a nervous fashion, as if they expected to be accosted by one of these new “infected” ponies that had been the subject of Luna’s mass-message.
Pinkie Pie - usually a bright, cheerful avatar of laughter - was uncharacteristically silent; pensive, almost. Applejack too, normally a strong speaker and a bit of a leader merely stared down at the ground, the reality of the situation beginning to sink in and take effect. We’re cut off, she thought to herself. If what Princess Luna said was true, then we’re really cut off. Applejack wanted nothing more than for Rainbow Dash to be present amongst them, but that appeared to be an impossibility; at least, for the time being, anyhow. There was no doubt a similar (or identical) bubble encompassing Cloudsdale as well, leaving Rainbow with no way to join her friends. Damn it, Applejack… the orange earth pony thought to herself, brow furrowed in frustration and perhaps a bit of nervousness, there’s just gotta be something that you can do. The very beginnings of an idea began to take place in her brain, but her thoughts were soon interrupted by the combined sounds of surprised gasps and shouts of concern and fear.
The crowd parted to reveal a badly wounded colt stumbling toward the center of town, shoulder and flank bleeding heavily from what appeared to be a -
- “He’s been bitten!” Applebloom cried, eyes shrinking to little pinpricks. Her strained voice rang out clearly in the crisp, cold evening air as ponies began to panic, some running about aimlessly, others headed for nearby buildings and unoccupied stands in the marketplace for cover. The three ponies and three fillies took off in the general direction of Sugarcube corner, before hearing a gurgled, almost pathetic whine and a plea for help that stopped them dead in their tracks.
“Please…p-please help me…” the colt managed to say before collapsing to the ground, chest heaving and a considerable amount of blood beginning to pool beneath him, staining his light brown coat a muddy, earthier colour. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom turned their heads while Scootaloo looked on in horror, body frozen in place by the amount of blood. Save for the occasional nosebleed and one particular scooter incident that scuffed her knees a bit, the orange Pegasus filly had never seen that amount of blood before. Eyes watering, she could only stand and watch as the colt bled to death before her.
“Hold on, dear!” a refined, cultured voice said from behind her. Scootaloo was shaken from her daze by the sights and sounds of Rarity dashing over to the mortally wounded colt, magic already working at levitating several articles of clothing out of her white saddlebags.
Rarity - using two designer sweaters and a few scarves - applied as much pressure to the gushing bite wounds as she could, but blood still continued to seep through the fabric as they became engorged in the colt’s deep, maroon essence while he cried out in pain.
“Applejack! HELP ME!” Rarity shouted, spurring the farm pony to dash to her side and take over caring to the colt’s flank wounds. While Rarity was not nearly as prissy or girly as she may have acted, she simply did not have the strength and musculature that Applejack had, garnered from years and years of physical work on the apple farm. She managed to stop the bleeding, but the wound which Rarity was tending to proved to be too deep to remedy without urgent medical attention. Both ponies knew that Nurse Redheart could be anywhere, so there was little chance -
- “Guys! Guys! I found Nurse Redheart!” a shrill, bright voice belonging to a certain pink party pony said. Applejack and Rarity turned their heads in the direction of the sound, and sure enough, there was Pinkie Pie, bouncing up and down happily as Nurse Redheart, adorned in a nurse’s gown and carrying a black bag containing medical equipment galloped steadily beside her.
“Oh - oh my goodness, I…need to…catch my-” Nurse Redheart managed to pant, lungs taking in huge gulps of air in an attempt to soothe her screaming, overworked muscles. She had run clear to the other side of town on suspicion that she would need her medical supplies as soon as she had first seen the colt, and had run all the way back in mere minutes.
“Thank Celestia you’re here!” Rarity managed, straining to speak in the even tones everypony had been accustomed to hearing from her. “The bleeding, I can’t stop it-”
“You’ve done wonderfully, Rarity - but I need to you move aside now so I can see to him, ok?”
“Is he going to be-”
“Certainly not if we stand around here and keep talking,” she said, her voice becoming stern and eyes hardening in resolve. “Now, if you would please-”
“Of course, of course,” Rarity interjected, coming to her hooves and trotting quickly away from the fast-fading colt, still badly bleeding on the cold cobblestone.
Nurse Redheart opened up the medical bag and brought out various supplies - gauze, medical tape, sutures and the like - but she knew in the back of her mind that the colt was far beyond saving, especially on the street in this fashion instead of in a proper medical facility. She worked feverishly and managed to stop the bleeding, but it was already too late - the colt had just breathed his last, his eyes going dark and deader than the rest of him. Nurse Redheart hung her head while the Cutie Mark Crusaders looked on and silently wept in a queer combination of sadness, grief and terror-induced shock. Rarity looked away, partially blaming herself for not being strong enough to save the colt - Applejack, in a way emulating Scootaloo’s expression not five minutes earlier, could do little more than stare at the scene, eyes glazed over in a sort of stupor.
“I’m sorry, there was nothing I could do-OOOO-” Nurse Redheart shrieked as she heard a stirring and a shuffling of hooves behind her as the freshly dead corpse twitched and began to get to its feet, eyes glowing a diabolic red and teeth bared. Redheart began to back away, but she was too slow - the infected colt lunged and managed to grab her hoof, knocking her off balance and sending her crashing to the hard stone with a sickening thud! |
Scriber | 615 | 4 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-09-16T03:05:51+00:00 | 2011-09-16T03:05:51+00:00 | 5,507 | Twilight Sparkle galloped faster than she had ever galloped in her entire life at the sound of Fluttershy’s panicked shriek, her hooves crashing down on the moist earth. Wait…Twilight thought to herself as she chanced a glance downward. What she saw nearly made her stumble again. As she began nearing the home stretch on the path to Fluttershy’s cottage, the dark green grass was stained a darker hue - stained with blood, glistening and glittering black in the pale moonlight. She could feel a bit of bile rising in her throat as she saw the mutilated corpses of woodland critters strewn about, as if they were torn apart in a raw, animalistic rage. Several rabbits and squirrels were clearly the victims here, their entrails strewn about horridly. Spike whimpered on Twilight’s back, and he began to retch, the sight of the carnage proving to be a bit too much to handle.
“Just close your eyes, Spike. We’re almost there.” With that, Owloicious came swooping back into Twilight’s line of sight, hooting furiously and wings flapping about animatedly.
“Inside? Inside her cabin?!” Twilight almost screamed.
“What? What did he say?!” Spike asked hurriedly, still unable to fully understand the owl’s unique form of speech.
“We‘re out of time. Owlocious, Spike, hang on!” With a sharp report and a brilliant flash of bright purple light, the three were instantly taken to the lower floor of Fluttershy’s cabin, which was in quite a state itself.
Most of the furniture in the cabin was shattered and lay in pieces, undoubtedly the same hoofdiwork of whomever had killed the woodland creatures. Bits of fabric and jagged planks of wood were scattered haphazardly amongst bent bird cages and holes in the floor. From the upstairs, Twilight, Spike and Owloicious could hear a steady, constant crashing sound.
“T-twilight? What is that?” Spike asked nervously, eyes shrinking to little pinpricks.
“Something we need to…” Twilight’s breath caught in her throat, unable to finish the sentence. Am I really about to do this? she thought to herself. Wordlessly, Twilight searched quickly around the wreck of a room for a suitable weapon. Eyes landing upon a particularly hefty looking plank of wood, her horn glowed and it was levitated into the air. The plank was still smooth on one end, but jagged and splintered on the other.
“Come on!” she cried. “Fluttershy needs our help!” The three took off up, bounding up the stairs two at a time, dodging broken glass and destroyed picture frames that littered the wooden steps. When they crested at the top of the stairwell, they froze at the image that immediately (and perhaps unfortunately) greeted them.
A stallion, perhaps in his mid-20s, was beating on the door leading to Fluttershy’s bedroom with his head. Clearly, the stallion felt no pain - there was a profusely bleeding gash that had opened up on his forehead, blood trickling down his face and leaving forehead-shaped imprints on the decidedly sturdy wooden door. Even still, the door itself had begun to crack under the strain of the repeated blows, and the sounds of slowly splintering wood filled Twilight’s ears.
The infected stallion did not, at first, notice the three new additions (or morsels) to his rear: he continued to pound on the door with his head, guttural grunts emanating from the very pit of his chest.
“HEY!” Twilight shouted, causing the stallion to stop in mid-head butt and slowly turn toward the sound. “Leave her alone!”
“Twilight?! Twilight, is that you?” a muffled, frightened voice came from behind the door. “HELP!”
In a manner similar to his undead compatriots, the stallion drooled a syrupy mixture of blood and saliva, which fell to the floor in viscous tendrils. His eyes burned brightly in his rage as he began to lumber toward the three at the top of the stairs. Without warning, Owloicious flew on ahead of Spike and Twilight to accost the infected head-on, effectively distracting him as he darted back and forth across the infected’s line of sight, taunting him. Twilight’s knees began to knock together, horn still glowing as she brandished the jagged plank in front of her. The infected, clearly annoyed, swatted aimlessly at the air with his free hooves for a time before connecting a head butt that sent the owl careening into a wall, smacking into it and instantly knocking him unconscious.
“Owloicious!” Spike cried out in concern for his friend. The infected colt began to advance on the feathered creature, and for Twilight, time froze.
I’ve never killed before, she thought. We defeated Nightmare Moon, but we didn’t kill her. Even then, I hated using violence. What purpose does violence serve in this world? What benefit could it possibly have? There are moral and philosophical implications here that…perhaps aren’t best to be dealt with at the time. Oh Celestia…Celestia forgive me, am I really about to kill? Am I really about to do this? she repeated the question she had asked herself moment earlier. Fluttershy needs my help. Maybe there’s a spell that can…I don’t know…isn’t there another way? Think, Twilight! THINK! The events which transpired before her very eyes still seemed to move in slow motion as the adrenalin flooded her veins, pulse quickening, breathing becoming more abrupt and shallow. With frightened, excited eyes, she regarded the makeshift weapon which floated in the air in a bright purple aura not two hooves from her face. The splintered wood looked absolutely deadly, and she knew that with her knowledge of physics and with enough force, she could -
- “TWILIGHT! DO SOMETHING!” Spike screamed at her, jarring Twilight from her internal dialogue. Brows furrowing deeply, she steeled herself for what was to come next. The light surrounding her horn grew in brightness and intensity, and so too did the aura which enveloped the plank. The somewhat tenuous magical bond between the unicorn and the plank instantly stiffened, as if mere twine were suddenly replaced with hefty rope. As the stallion was just about to fall on the unconscious Owloicious, no doubt licking his lips in anticipation of his next meal, there was a flash of pure magical energy as Twilight hurled the jagged edge of the plank at the infected’s head with all of the strength she could muster.
The plank hit it’s mark dead-on (no pun intended), a particularly wicked looking splinter the size of a small novel embedding itself into the infected’s eye socket with a sickening pop! Blood and pus-like gelatin from the popped eyeball sprang forth and joined the blood already trickling down his face from the head wound, dripping onto the floor with renewed intensity. The stallion roared in fury, turning on his hooves and ramming his head into Fluttershy’s door one final time, driving the splinter into his brain and killing him instantly. Without skipping a beat, Twilight commanded,
“Spike, I need you to tend to Owloicious.” Before the baby dragon could fully formulate a response, Twilight teleported herself to the other side of the makeshift barricade, again with a sharp pop! and a flash of light that elicited a terrified squeal from Fluttershy. She quickly dove under the bed, tail sticking out and quivering in a fashion that, in any other given situation, would have been rather endearing.
“Hey.” Twilight said softly, not wanting to startle the frightened Pegasus any further. “Fluttershy, it’s just me.” The purple unicorn had to make a conscious effort not to let her voice become ragged, her head still a bit fuzzy and perhaps a bit more lightheaded due to the sudden exertion from the spells she had just cast in quick succession.
The butter-colored Pegasus pony was still sobbing profusely from under the bed, but she managed to get a few words out between them,
“T-twilight…oh, Twilight…”
“Shh. It’s okay, Fluttershy. That stallion can’t hurt you, or any of the animals any longer. I promise.”
“He…h-he…”
“I know, I know. Can you come out, now? Do you think you can do that for me?” Twilight kept her voice as sweet as possible, despite grim visions of the atrocity she had just committed flashing before her eyes like a gruesome play-by-play. The pink tail that had been sticking out from under the bed slowed in its quivering ever so slightly as Fluttershy gingerly emerged, tears still streaming down her face, light yellow coat stained a darker hue with the liquid representation of her anguish. Twilight regarded her friend with a look of great concern on her face, taking a few steps toward her. Without warning, Fluttershy closed the gap between them with a few wing-assisted bounds, wrapping her arms around Twilight’s neck, tears beginning anew as she bawled her eyes out; her face pressed tightly against Twilight’s shoulder, Twilight could do little more than to rub her hoof along the grief-stricken Pegasus’ back in an attempt to console her, speaking in hushed, gentle tones.
“I’m going to clear the barricade now, okay?” Twilight said, reluctantly releasing Fluttershy from their embrace. Unable to speak, Fluttershy nodded and kept her head facing downward, hot tears pouring out of her and landing on the brown, hardwood flooring in little droplets. Trying her best not to overexert herself (given that she knew she would need as much of her magic as possible in the coming hours), Twilight pushed the odd dresser and furniture that Fluttershy had hastily pushed up against the doorframe - no small feat for the petite Pegasus, given the heft and weight of some of the furniture. She must have be absolutely terrified, Twilight resolved. She reached forward and turned the door handle with her hoof, temporarily forgetting about the twice-dead stallion corpse which lay crumpled in front of her. Cursing silently to herself, Twilight said,
“Fluttershy, we need to go downstairs, but…it’s not pretty, what happened in the hall,” at this, Twilight strategically positioned herself so that her body was blocking most of the carnage, “as I’m sure you heard. I need you to go ahead and close your eyes for me, okay? You’ve been through enough tonight already.” The gentle, even tones of Twilight’s voice seemed to soothe the Pegasus to some effect, as her previously rapid sobs were now reduced to the occasional sniffle. “Here, take my hoof,” Twilight gestured with her arm, locking it with Fluttershy’s. Angel hopped down from the windowsill, his normally vibrant, expressive eyes dull as the events which had led to this point in the evening played over and over in his mind. He followed the two mares silently. As she guided the yellow pony in a fashion that circumvented the corpse as well as most of the blood, she noticed that Owloicious was just now beginning to come to, much to her and Spike’s combined relief. “I’ll be right back, Spike,” Twilight told him.
“You got it, Twi,” the baby dragon replied, turning and reaffixing his intent gaze on the stirring owl.
“You can open your eyes now, Fluttershy - just don’t look back, ok?” Fluttershy nodded as the two approached the top of the stairs. Her eyes slowly opened, scenes of utter destruction again flooding her vision. Tears welled up in her eyes yet again, but she managed to keep them in as the two made their way down the stairwell, being careful not to cut themselves on any broken glass or sharp pieces of wood.
“Twilight?” Fluttershy asked tentatively, her voice barely audible. “What’s going on?” Twilight bit her lower lip, knowing that she would be unable to sugar-coat the situation at hand in any way, shape or form.
“In a moment, Fluttershy. First - can you tell me what happened?” Fluttershy’s knees began to buckle as they reached the bottom of the stairwell.
“I - well, um…” she began, her voice wavering noticeably as she made her way to the stuffed couch on the far side of the room, one of the only pieces of furniture that was not completely destroyed.
“I put the critters to bed just before I went to bed myself. It was just a normal night…” she swallowed, and continued, “like any other, Twilight. I was fast asleep. I heard what sounded like a bunny in pain - it was awful! I’d never heard anything like that before; I didn’t know a bunny could scream like that! I flew downstairs and outside as fast as I could, and…and-”
“It’s ok, Fluttershy. Just tell me what happened next.” The pink-maned Pegasus sighed wearily, and continued.
“I saw a pair of big, red, glowing eyes. It was dark out - the eyes were under a tree, still in the shadows - but from the shape, I could tell that it was a stallion. I heard…noises,” the last word just barely managing to eek its way out of Fluttershy’s mouth.
“What kind of noises, Fluttershy?”
“…squishing.”
--------------------
Fluttershy went on to tell Twilight about how the stallion set about violently massacring any living creature in sight, blood-soaked muzzle working vigorously to greedily gulp down chunks of flesh. One half of a squirrel was trying desperately to crawl away, wet intestines dragging along the slick grass as the its lower half merely twitched. A sparrow was undulating about on the ground; both of its wings had been torn clean off. Angel was bravely assaulting the stallion with a stick, even going so far as to lob a few rocks at him; this was to no avail, however, as the infected was focused on his gruesome meal.
“Angel!” she had cried, the sight of the rabbit’s valiant - yet unsuccessful - efforts finally jolting her out of her paralysis. The stallion paused in mid-chew and turned at the sound, a half-chewed hunk of flesh packed into his gums, giving him a darkly comical chipmunk look. Bodies twitched at his hooves as the infected grunted a single, guttural syllable and began to lurch unsteadily toward Fluttershy.
Angel, negligible amounts of testosterone coursing through his little bunny veins, latched on to one of the stallion’s rear hooves, trying to slow his progress toward the cabin. Fluttershy’s heart was beating a mile a minute, hammering against her ribcage with feverish intensity.
“ANGEL!” she shrieked, motioning for the rabbit to discontinue his potentially fatal assault and rejoin her. The small, white rabbit immediately dashed to Fluttershy’s side as she turned on the spot, trotting quickly with shaking hooves into the cabin. Oh, hurry, Angel!- her internal voice matching her external dictions in levels of panic as well as intensity. As soon as Angel was through the door, she nosed the door shut as tightly as she could and turned her neck to do the latch on the right-hoof side; it was too late! The stallion, still grunting and retching horribly, had broken into a brisk trot and barreled toward the door, sending the delicate Pegasus flying backward from the force of the impact. For the second of what would be many times to come that evening, she shrieked. Without even thinking, she scooped up Angel with her mouth and plopped him on her back, taking off into a full gallop up the stairs as the rabbit held onto his owner’s soft, pink mane for dear life. Fluttershy could hear the stallion raging behind her as she made her way up the stairs, the sounds of an absolutely livid monster crashing into furniture and the titters of breaking glass filling the enclosed space with a nearly deafening cacophony.
She ran to the bedroom as fast as she possibly could, tears of fear and anguish streaming down her face, hoof-steps sounding sharply on the polished oaken floor. Fluttershy slammed the door behind her and immediately rushed to the nearest heavy piece of furniture - a solid dresser taller than she was - and set about pushing it in front of the door. The heavy Maplewood dresser nearly didn’t budge as she threw all of her weight against it again and again, wings flapping furiously in an attempt to aid her effort. She grunted and strained under the pressure, and still the sounds of the enraged stallion drew closer - she heard a tumbling sound as the infected surely tripped and fell down several of the stairs, eliciting an absolutely bestial cry of unparalleled loathing. Fluttershy cried out as the sound chilled her to the bone and sent icicle-like shivers coursing up her spine. She redoubled her efforts, and finally the dresser began to move - slowly at first as it groaned and scraped against the wooden floor, scoring it with lines littered with freshly-peeled wood shavings. With the help of Angel pushing alongside her (though it is understandably arguable how much strength the small rabbit actually lent to the effort), the dresser at last was nudged into place dead center (no pun intended) in front of the doorframe. And not a moment too soon! Just as Fluttershy was about to collapse to the floor in a heap of exhaustion from the sudden exertion, the stallion began his full-frontal assault on the door, drawing out yet another shriek from the yellow mare’s already taxed lungs. Angel leapt to the windowsill and looked out into the not-so-peaceful night, hoping to spy any remaining critters who could help them escape - or survive - but it was to no avail. Any woodland creatures that had been around before the infected stallion’s morbid snack had now surely fled, lending the darkened landscape an eerily calm quiet, save for the constant pounding on Fluttershy’s bedroom door. |
Scriber | 615 | 5 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-10-02T23:12:30+00:00 | 2011-10-02T23:12:30+00:00 | 5,722 | Author's note: as a fair warning to those with a somewhat squeamish disposition, I'll offer this - the gore factor in this story is only going to become more and more pronounced from here on in. It is about zombies, after all! Though the content will certainly not be on the level of "Cupcakes" or "Sweet Apple Massacre," I can assure you that this story is going to be rated R from this point forward.
Also, you might stumble upon a link in this chapter. Right click, open in new tab. Atmospheeereeee!~
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The last few sentences of Fluttershy’s story brought fresh tears to both mare’s eyes. Spike and a very groggy Owloicious had rejoined them and listened intently - Spike, clearly traumatized by the combination of his sudden awakening as well as the gruesome sights he had just witnessed, sat silently at Twilight’s hooves, absentmindedly sucking on his tail as he rocked back and forth in an unconscious effort to calm himself.
Owloicious, still in the process of shaking out the cobwebs from his knock to the head, uttered a single, solemn Hoo as soon as Fluttershy was finished - as if to say, “I’m sorry for what you’ve been though.” Sensing that her friend was on the precipice of another breakdown, Twilight quickly filled the void in the conversation with a quick, concise summary of all that she knew so far - Luna’s message, the purpose of the bubble over Ponyville as well as some vague recollections of something she may or may not have read in one of her dusty old tomes.
“I swear, Fluttershy, something about all of this seems too…familiar. Where did I read-…” She trailed off in mid-sentence, temporarily lost in her thoughts.
“Twilight?” Fluttershy asked, her voice still barely above a whisper. Her tone spoke of strain, heartbreak and grief. Twilight shook her head and focused her gaze on her still very frightened friend.
“Yes, Fluttershy? What is it?”
“Do…do you think we could - um…”
“Think that we could what, Fluttershy?”
“Um…the animals that-that the stallion…the stallion…”
“…killed?” the purple unicorn offered, the word leaving a bad taste in her mouth as it rolled too effortlessly off of her tongue.
“Right. Do you think that I could…um…see that they get a proper burial?”
Twilight’s heart broke at this. Fluttershy’s eyes betrayed no emotion. Unfortunately for her - and the critters that lay dead just outside - it would have to wait.
“I’m sorry, Fluttershy -” she began firmly, “but there just isn’t any time for that right now. This is an emergency situation, and I’m not sure if it’s even safe to be in the town square right now. This is bad. This is worse than the time Nightmare Moon returned to Equestria - hay, this is even worse than that, the bunny stampede and the Parasprite infestation combined.” Fluttershy’s eyes watered, but no tears broke free from the lower lids. “We need to get somewhere safe - all of us,” she said, motioning to the baby dragon, the white rabbit and the owl. “I read it in a book: Dangerous Disasters - a Laypony’s Complete Guide to Survival. We need to stockpile food, water and supplies, and wait for help to arrive.” Spike seemed to ease up a bit upon hearing his friend's quickly-returning tone of reassurance.
“More importantly, we need the Elements.”
“The-the Elements of Harmony? But what…” Fluttershy trailed off, her head suddenly dizzy as the full brevity of the situation swelled forth like an anxious scratching within her chest.
“I’m not sure what’s going on yet - I don’t even know if the Princesses know, either - but I intend to find out. And with the Elements at our disposal, there’s nothing we can’t overcome! …right?” She turned to all others present in the room, but was merely met with hastily down-turned faces and unsure looks.
Taking a deep breath, Fluttershy took Angel gingerly in her hooves and set about hastily packing her saddlebags, making sure to only bring along the bare essentials. Twilight was likewise taking deep, controlled breaths, making certain not to swoon at the amount of additional magic it was now necessary for her to perform. Within a few short minutes, they were ready.
“Um, Twilight?”
“Yes?”
“Where are we going?”
“We’re going to the library,” Twilight stiffened in her resolve, a sudden rush of newfound confidence surging through her as her chest swelled at the thought of returning back to her (easily defensible) tree home.
“Oh! Um, well, how are we going to get there? With, you know, those ‘infected’ ponies running around…won’t it be very dangerous?” Fluttershy turned and let out a small eep! as she noticed Twilight’s eyes glowing.
“Not…if…you’re a unicorn,” Twilight managed through gritted teeth. In a flash, they were gone; all that was left was destruction.
-----------------------
With a final gurgle, she died.
For nearly a full minute, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie and the Cutie Mark Crusaders had watched in horror as the recently reanimated realization of their fears had absolutely ravaged Nurse Redheart. The infect colt, eyes ablaze, had straddled the nurse mare in the blink of an eye as soon as he had wrestled her to the ground, grunting and spitting unintelligible gibberish as he set about brutally killing her. Muscle and ligaments were torn from bone with sickening ripping sounds abound as the colt tore her apart, taking hoof-sized chunks of flesh out of her hide at a feverish pace as the fresh, warm sanguine spilled forth from the jagged gouges. Redheart screamed in agony with every bite taken out of her, voice reaching shockingly high frequencies and finally cracking from the strain. She was quickly silenced, however, when the colt tore into her throat and tore out her voice box; the only sounds she was then able to produce were burdened gurgles as blood seeped out of the massive gash, dozens of air bubbles being infused into the red stream and popping sickeningly.
Had they had the presence of mind to do so, young mares would have shielded the younger fillies’ eyes from the depravity that had played out before them - unfortunately for the six of them, however, the suddenness of it all combined with the sheer terror that beset them plastered them firmly in place, unblinking eyes wide to the horror.
Three simultaneous, ear-splitting screams from the younger three of the six served three purposes; one, it jolted the mares out of their stupor; two, it focused the colt’s attention on his next potential meals; three, it caused a veritable stampede as roughly two dozen mortified onlookers that had remained, some joining in the fillies’ screams, took off in every feasible direction. Sweetie Belle, Applebloom and Scootaloo turned and ran faster than they had ever ran before, still shrieking as their little lungs strained to gulp in enough air to supply their muscles with the energy required for such taxing physical endeavour.
“Sweetie Belle! Wait!!” Rarity cried after the three, breaking out into full gallop as her two friends soon followed suit.
“Rarity! Applejack!! WHAT'S GOING ON?!” Pinkie Pie yelled as they pursued the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who were now headed in the general direction of Sugarcube Corner.
“Ah don’t rightly know, sug-” Applejack was briefly interrupted when she had to dodge a loose plank in her path, “but we need to catch up to them fillies ‘fore they get hurt!”
“Sweetie Belle! Scootaloo! Applebloom!” Rarity shouted ahead to the fleeing fillies as they were temporarily lost in the crowd.
The scene was absolute chaos: stands, carts and other marketplace items were knocked about haphazardly, some completely taken apart as jumbles of confused and frightened ponies ran into each other, sending tangled masses of arms, legs and heaving torsos barreling everywhere. A watermelon stand was ripped to shreds, sending bushels of the cumbersome green fruit spilling out into the cobbled market; some ponies were unfortunate enough to be felled by the new obstacles, a few being hurt significantly enough for Applejack to hear the sickening pop! of freshly broken bone. The orange cowpony turned to look behind her, and her heart sank - joining the infected colt was the freshly zombified Nurse Redheart, massive gouges in her flank and neck still oozing copiously as she staggered toward the fleeing crowd of ponies. Applejack could discern nothing remotely pony-like in her emblazoned eyes - all that remained was malice, peppered with murderous intent. She turned her head to look away as the infected nurse mare set upon a dark-green colored pony who had undoubtedly broken her leg, her screams and pleading falling upon deaf ears as Redheart fell to the cobble and greedily took several large hunks of flesh out of her neck. As the three mares continued to pursue their charges, they could have sworn that they heard…kung-fu noises?…amidst the screams of agony and gurgled breaths of the infected bearing down on them. However, their focus remained on catching up with the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who were now easily discernible from the galloping mass of terrified ponies. Miraculously, they were still shrieking their nearly uninterrupted shriek as they sprinted away from the chaos which was taking place behind them.
A single, awful sound - much, much louder than any which comprised the din which assaulted everypony’s ears - caused nearly all to turn and look directly behind them. Another three infected had appeared, joining the infected colt and Nurse Redheart in an animalistic wail that sent nearly everypony into conniptions. Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rarity watched as the three new infected ponies converged in the center of the marketplace and took off at random, jaws snapping at anything that moved. A bright red Pegasus, with glowing eyes to match, managed to corner a mother and her two young foals, in an alleyway which separated two buildings off to their right. The mother could barely move, let alone call for help - much like Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rarity just moments ago, she was quite literally paralyzed in fear. One of her foals, a cream-colored earth pony with a pine tree for a cutie mark merely whimpered as the infected Pegasus advanced, while the other - a light blue colt whose cutie mark was obscured by shadows, shouted angrily at the infected in a decidedly vain attempt to dissuade her from attacking.
Applejack knew that she had to act fast.
“Rarity!” she barked as she made a ninety degree turn to her right and galloped toward the cornered ponies. “You catch up with the fillies and take them to Sugarcube Corner! Pinkie Pie, with me!” Rarity nodded, brows low in newfound determination.
“But Appleja-” Pinkie Pie began.
“NOW!” Applejack cut her off, shouting perhaps a bit louder and more harshly than she had meant, caught up in the excitement (and terror) of the moment. The orange cowpony and pink earth pony made their way toward the alleyway while Rarity continued onward, quickly gaining on the fillies, closing the gap little by little. The normally well-mannered unicorn cursed loudly as she dodged various obstacles in her path - a toppled fruit stand here, a few scraps of wood there and the like. She was panting heavily at the sudden strenuous exercise; though Rarity could undoubtedly hold her own in a fight, as evidenced by a swift kick to the jaw of a certain Manticore a few months back, she was simply not used to any manner of extended physical activity. Her motivation, however, lay a few mere yards away - three fillies, somehow still screaming, galloping randomly now, threatening to be lost in the crowd once again. With a final burst of speed, she was finally within range: using the telekinesis magic which came so naturally to her from years of dressmaking, she picked up the three squirming fillies off of the cobble, reaching out with a lavender aura of magic as her horn glowed a matching color.
Though suspended in mid-air, the Cutie Mark Crusaders’ arms and legs were still in full-gallop, still fleeing for their lives despite the fact that they were no longer actually achieving any distance. Scootaloo’s wings flapped occasionally while Applebloom’s red bow bobbed up and down; Sweetie Belle was the first of them to stop screaming and struggling, opening her eyes for the first time in nearly a full minute. How the three of them had managed to traverse the marketplace unscathed - with their eyes closed, no less - was something of a mystery. A still-huffing Rarity dashed in front of the three, her eyes positively ablaze with determination.
“You three! Follow me, NOW!” she commanded as she released her magical hold on the fillies, setting them down on the cold cobblestone.
“Big sis! Nurse Redheart! She’s-”
“Sweetie Belle, I know. There’s nothing we can do,” Rarity replied as the four closed on Sugarcube Corner. “We need to get you girls inside as quickly as possible. Applebloom, Scootaloo, are you all ok?”
“Ah’m fine, Miss Rarity,” an out of breath Applebloom said.
“Yeah, me too, Rarity,” an equally winded Scootaloo chimed in.
“Good. Now, come on! We’re nearly there!”
----------------------
Applejack and Pinkie Pie arrived at the scene quickly, and not a moment too soon - the infected Pegasus was bearing down on the three trapped ponies, grunting and sputtering gibberish as she closed in for the kill.
“Hey, ugly! Leave them three alone!”
The Pegasus, clearly annoyed, turned to regard the two earth ponies which stood behind her. She was simply not interested in five morsels - the three she had cornered would do just fine. Just as the infected was about to turn her head back to take a bite out of the mother’s neck, there was a sharp bang! as her eyesight was temporarily obscured. Pinkie Pie, in her typical fashion, had somehow managed to produce roughly a dozen party poppers from seemingly nowhere, the acrid smell of gunpowder wafting into her nostrils, stinging them slightly. Though her eyes watered, the effect on the infected was exactly as she had planned - it confused the hell out of it. Applejack was nearly about to ask her friend how - and more importantly, why - she had streamers with her, but that train of thought was effectively derailed once the dull thud of a body dropping to hard cobble filled her ears. In an attempt to free herself from the visual hindrance, the infected had tripped over the mass of multicolored thin paper that was hanging off of her body, tangled up in her bloodied wings and interspersed between her legs. Her eyes still burned bright through the streamers, obscuring the devilish glow ever so slightly, illuminating the makeshift blindfold.
Turning her fierce green eyes to the cornered ponies, Applejack commanded,
“Run!” The three looked at the orange work pony for a moment, dumbfounded. “Ah said RUN! Go on, git out of here!” Applejack charged the infected Pegasus as she began to collect herself, knocking her to the ground once again. The mare and her two foals took off, offering hurried thanks to the two friends as they made their way to safety.
“Be careful, Applejack!” Pinkie Pie chided shrilly, the infected once again stirring. “Don’t let her bite you!”
“Ah know, sugarcube. Don’t you worry ‘bout me non-oof!” The air rushed out of Applejack’s lungs as her own hooves got tangled in the mess of streamers, sending her clattering to the cobble mere inches away from the Pegasus, who had now cleared the obstruction from her vision and rolled on top of the other, knocking the farm pony’s Stetson hat from her head.
“No!!” Pinkie Pie screamed, starting toward the entangled pair now struggling for dominance.
“You stay back, Pinkie Pie! Ah can handle myself!”
With that, Applejack managed to free her hind legs, planting them firmly under her assailant. She grunted and gave a mighty buck to the infected Pegasus’ midsection, sending her careening into the adjacent brick wall. Applejack quickly leapt back to her hooves, ready for a fight. The infected snorted and clamored to set herself upright once more, regarding the two mares with unbridled fury. Lacking any skill or coordination, the Pegasus charged the work horse, a snarl escaping her lips as she gnashed her teeth together in frustration hard enough to chip teeth. Applejack winced at the sound of crunching enamel coming from the pony’s mouth, but there was no time to get caught up in the unpleasantries of the situation: she had to act, and she had to act now. Timing her strike perfectly, Applejack - within the span of a half second - turned a full one hundred and eighty degrees and delivered a devastating buck straight to the jaw of the charging Pegasus, breaking it on contact. Applejack felt the bone being pulverized under her hoof as she delivered a second equally mighty buck in quick succession, instantly killing the infected as the sheer force of the blow snapped her neck as well as cracked her skull open. Applejack, hoof still planted firmly in the infected’s skull, withdrew her hind leg from the massive head wound before the Pegasus fell for the final time; the motion of her hoof being set quickly back on terra firma cast bits of grey matter, chips of skull fragments and a single line of blood against the weathered brick wall, creating a shockingly obscene rendition of what some cultured Manehattanites might have regarded as abstract art.
Applejack stared, dumbfounded, at the Pegasus she had just killed. Her mouth hung agape as her chest heaved and retched; she felt the hot, acidic bile begin to rise in the back of her throat as she looked to her blood-streaked rear hoof, pearl-white flecks of bone still clinging to it, glistening dully under the moonlight. Pinkie Pie, wearing a similar look of disbelief on her face, could only stare at her friend as she solemnly trotted to her side, eyes turned downward with tears already starting to flow freely.
“AJ, I-”
“Don’t. Just don’t, ok?” Applejack sniffled, her voice wavering. “Ah ain’t proud of what ah just done, and ah don’t wanna talk about it.” She picked up her hat and set it back on her head, adjusting it slightly with trembling hooves. “Now, c’mon. Let’s go find the others.” |
Scriber | 615 | 6 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-09-25T22:40:07+00:00 | 2011-09-25T22:40:07+00:00 | 6,687 | Five hours earlier
Rainbow Dash yawned, a particularly long evening of strutting her stuff finally beginning to take its toll on her. Though her wings ached from all of the exercise and her mane was perhaps a bit more disheveled than usual, the cyan Pegasus was content as she trotted back to her room, absentmindedly humming a tune to some song or another. It was just after sunset in the city of Cloudsdale - brilliant, vibrant golden hues intermeshed with soft purples and radiant pinks in the west, as if Celestia herself had painted the gorgeous landscape with the sky as her easel.
As current holder of the title “Best Young Flier in Equestria,” Rainbow Dash had been invited back to her hometown to showcase her talents for aerial acrobatics as well as host a two-hour workshop on the finer points of flying for the Cloudsdale Flight School. When she first received the letter from the googly-eyed mail-mare just three days ago, she had been ecstatic; while it is true that she always loved to show off her moves (as was her nature), she was particularly excited at the opportunity to help out her alma mater while doing what she did best. It had been an exciting (if not somewhat tiring) day of loop-de-loops, mid-air pirouettes, careening corkscrews and saltatorial somersaults whilst young pegasi watched on in awe, eyes wide as saucers. Now that the day was finally over, however, Rainbow Dash was looking forward to a nice, relaxing bubble bath and much needed rest. Pushing through the revolving glass doors of Cloudsdale’s finest hotel - the Cloudsdale Mareiott - the rainbow-maned Pegasus entered the ballroom-esque lobby, complete with pure crystal chandeliers and a beautiful array of many-colored clouds floating lazily in the rafters. Her entrance garnered a few hushed whispers from the half dozen or so pegasi lounging in the lobby, a few pointing in her direction as they recognized just who she was. Dash was positively beaming as she made her way to the gold gilded elevator doors, thinking to herself, Best. Day. Ever!
That notion, however, was soon to be trumped. Just as the doors were about to click shut, Rainbow Dash heard a familiar voice cry out,
“Hold the door, please!” Having no reason not to do so, Rainbow hastily stuck a light blue hoof in between the doors to hold them open, much to the chagrin of the dinging elevator. Though she wasn’t in uniform, Rainbow would recognize that distinctive orange and yellow mane anywhere - it was Spitfire, captain of the Wonderbolts! Rainbow could feel a fan-girl moment coming on, struggling not to break out into an over-excited litany of “Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!” Taking a deep breath, though, she was able to maintain her cool, and as casually as possible, greeted her elevator companion.
“Hey, Spitfire - what’s up?”
“Hey there, Rainbow Dash! Didn’t expect to see you here; don’t you live over Ponyville these days?”
“Yeah, but the Cloudsdale Flight School invited me back to do a workshop with their first years. They even put me up in this sweet room! It’s got a mini-fridge and everything!”
“Wow, that’s pretty cool, Dash!” Spitfire replied, turning her head to the side briefly and producing a white card key.
“Hey, what’s that?”
“Oh, this?” Spitfire said as she swiped the card through a card reader that had been installed on the elevator panel. “It lets me into the VIP penthouse suites on the top floor. You know that the Wonderbolts are performing for this year’s vernal equinox ceremony, right?”
“Oh, yeah! Totally! Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Dash added.
“Yeah, the Rainbow Factory is sponsoring our performance this year - they paid for both squads to stay in some of the penthouses. You should come hang out! …Dash? You ok?” Rainbow Dash was on the verge of hyperventilating, eyes glimmering wide as a big, goofy grin broke her too-cool façade.
“You…me…Wonderbolts…penthouse suite?!” she cried, her voice cracking as the last few words escaped her mouth. Spitfire laughed - the rainbow-maned mare’s enthusiasm had always been a source of amusement and mirth for her - and replied,
“Sure, why not? C’mon, it’ll be fun! You’ve gotta check out the Jacuzzi!”
“…JACUZZI?!”
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The night was young. The sun had set just over an hour ago, and twinkling stars glittered brightly over the cloud city. Cloudsdale had not known any real, tangible conflict since its inception centuries ago - save for the odd worker’s strike or last year’s parasprite infestation, it had always remained a peaceful settlement in the sky.
That long-held truth, however, was about to rapidly change.
One of the most popular nightclubs in Cloudsdale - the Icarus Club - was, as per usual, in full swing. The dull thuds of bassline-heavy rhythms could be easily heard even as the supposedly soundproof doors were drawn shut; indeed, the very windows of the club itself seemed to rattle and bounce in time with the electronic music that was so popular with the club’s hip and young clientele. The club itself had a bit of notoriety to it, given that there were a few incidents in years past with underage ponies being served (read: over-served) alcohol, but the club’s management had scurried to repair their establishment’s somewhat sullied image, completely re-vamping the club’s security and even hiring bouncers from outside agencies. One of these bouncers - a gruff, surly-looking Pegasus with a billiard cue and balls as his cutie mark - was on the clock tonight, forelegs crossed across his barrel-like chest with a bent cigarette drooping lazily out of the corner of his mouth. It had been a relatively routine evening for the Pegasus, already having to deal with roughly a half-dozen underage pegasi trying to gain access to the posh club. He almost relished in the wavering in their wide, shifty eyes and the obligatory gulps that he had come to associate with underage clientele when he asked for their ID. Indeed, he more often than not found himself chuckling inwardly as he turned them away, each fake ID more and more laughably fake than the last. As the night wore on, though, he found his mind wandering in-between new entries to the club. He was always a bit of a night pony: breathing in a great lungful of the crisp, cool air, he couldn’t help but let the tiniest of smirks creep across his stubbled face, taking in the scents and smells that had always put him at ease.
The bouncer Pegasus was jarred from his mild elation, however, when he spied a rather bony-looking colt staggering in the general direction of the club. Though the night was not entirely dark (the pale moonlight illuminated his silhouette, but nothing more), he could already tell that the colt had been dipping into the well this evening, so to speak. The Pegasus colt looked unsteady on his hooves, wobbling this way and that as he moaned softly, stumbling over himself more than once. The bouncer rolled his eyes and spat out his cigarette, the cherry having already reached the filter, sooty smoke drifting up into his face and stinging his eyes a bit. He sighed, already mentally preparing his pre-fabricated lines for denying a too young or too drunk patron access to the club. Still, the colt continued his zig-zagged gait toward the club’s entrance, still moaning softly. The bouncer had to stifle a chuckle; he had a brief flashback to the days of his own youth, not having learned the proper way to imbibe alcohol, overindulging and more often than not waking up in an unfamiliar place with a foul taste in his mouth. He thought he caught a glint of something shiny dangling from the colt’s muzzle as the colt swerved to regard the bouncer in full for the first time, moonlight dancing off of his face for an instant before returning to the shadows inherent to the night. The bouncer Pegasus raised his eyebrows, and called out to the colt, who was now roughly ten yards away -
“Hey, buddy. Why don’t you head on home, huh? Yer mother’s prob’ly worried aboutchya.” If the colt had heard him, he offered no sign. He continued staggering toward the entrance to the club, now rapidly closing the distance between himself and the bouncer. As the colt stepped into the light, the bouncer felt a twinge of excitement - and perhaps concern - as he regarded him properly for the first time. The colt looked as though he had been in quite a scuffle: cuts and nicks littered his face, and clumps of his jet-black mane were torn out in places. Dried and drying blood clung to his matted fur, giving the colt a disheveled, disgruntled look. What the bouncer took the most notice to, however, was the look in the colt’s eyes - or lack thereof. There was no expression in those orbs as they hung dully in their sockets, sunken in and lifeless as the colt looked at the bouncer with a deadened gaze.
“You been in a fight or somethin’ tonight, pal?” the bouncer asked. Still, the colt ignored him. Without warning, the colt collapsed, sending up wispy puffs of clouds into the air. The bouncer froze for a moment, not entirely sure what to do. His areas of expertise were limited to breaking up fights and checking IDs, not tending to a gravely injured colt who cantered into his relatively dull evening. Thankfully, there was nopony outside the club to see the bouncer’s lack of action - he knew that he would probably get bitched at by one of the managers, had they seen him just standing there, dumbfounded. He started toward the colt laying on the clouds; he looked to his chest, and noticed two things: one, there was a sizeable hunk of flesh missing from his side, exposing gleaming white bone as the colt’s ribcage shone through amidst the blood and musculature. Two, the colt wasn’t breathing. “Oh, shit,” he said to himself harshly, immediately turning around and starting back toward the club to summon help. Just as he was reaching out with a front hoof to open the door, however, he heard the colt stirring behind him, yet another moan escaping his lips that made the bouncer shiver visibly.
Slowly, the bouncer Pegasus turned back around to face the colt, who had now gotten back to his hooves. His eyes were burning red, so brightly that they cast a pair of muted sanguine-colored dots on the bouncer’s chest. The bouncer blinked, his brain trying in vain to process what had just occurred. The infected colt took a few shaky, tentative steps toward the bouncer, not entirely like a newborn foal learning how to walk for the very first time. The same viscous mixture of blood and saliva began to drip freely from his snout, little flecks of the soupy liquid dribbling off of his chin and soundlessly falling to the cloud beneath him. The colt let out a cry of fury and charged the unready bouncer, hitting him square in the center of his chest with surprising force. As they fell to the cloud, the bouncer’s fight-or-flight instinct finally kicked in, testosterone being released into his bloodstream and coursing through his veins, enlivening his extremities and willing his body to action. Before he could manage to buck the colt off of him, however, the colt sunk his teeth into the bouncer’s shoulder, blood spraying rapidly as it began to stain the cloud beneath them. The larger Pegasus let out a cry of shock and pain. He managed to shove the infected off of him and sprung back to his hooves, eyes ablaze, ready for a fight.
“Oh, you’re fucking dead, kid.”
His final statement was not entirely incorrect.
-------------------------
Sound asleep amidst a veritable labyrinth of pillows and blankets, Rainbow Dash snored lightly, jostling a tuft of multi-colored hair that had fallen over her face with every exhale.
She had hung out with the Wonderbolts into the wee hours of the morning, lounging in the Jacuzzi with Spitfire, Soarin and a few others from the second squad, swapping stories and tantalizing tales of their experiences as Equestria’s elite flyers. They had ordered room service: a few cases of Sarsaparilla and even a couple bottles of very expensive vintage Dom Ponygon, something which Rainbow Dash had never indulged in before. The bubbly drink tickled her nostrils with each sip and she savored the exquisite flavour that had washed over her taste buds. At half past one in the morning, though she was having the time of her life in the company of her childhood idols, Rainbow Dash had to excuse herself; the events of the previous day coupled with the generous amounts of spirits she had imbibed finally caught up to her. She stifled a deep yawn as she bade the Wonderbolts good night, trotting sleepily back to her room and settling in for the night. It was perhaps a sign of maturity that Rainbow had left the impromptu on her own accord, and she knew it; should the opportunity had occurred to hang out and drink with the Wonderbolts even a few months prior, she would have most certainly overstayed her welcome. As this was not the case, however, the drifted off to sleep with a sense of utterly all-encompassing complacency, a smile adorning her face even as she slumbered. She slumbered so soundly, however, that she did not notice the bubble that had manifested itself around the cloud city accompanied by a strange, ethereal grating sound and a series of muted flashes of arcane energies.
In her dreams, she was - as per usual - flying, the wind sailing through her mane effortlessly as she blinked her eyes against the torrent of currents that rushed up to meet her. She was accompanied by Spitfire and Soarin, and they were all dressed in properly pressed Wonderbolts uniforms, save for the customary goggles that the team only wore during performances. The three pegasi darted from cloud to cloud, tumbling and rolling in mid-air as they deftly dodged their floating obstacles, smiles on each one of their faces. In the dream, though, there was a sudden change - things began to get bright. Impossibly bright. It was almost as if they were all flying directly toward the sun, and Rainbow Dash shut her eyes against the brilliant light to no avail. It seeped through her eyelids, temporary images of clouds and companions burned into her retinas as those too were suddenly overcome by the intense luminescence. Just as she was about to comment on the development, she heard a voice -
“Rainbow Dash.”
Confused, she shook her head and shut her eyes even tighter in an effort to diffuse some of the radiant glow that was now beginning to sting a bit.
“Rainbow Dash, wake up.”
The light was beginning to burn now, hot tears of pain beginning to leak from her eyelids.
“Wake up.”
The real Rainbow Dash’s eyes shot open, and she squinted. There was indeed an unexpected source of light in her room, no doubt the cause of her dream’s disturbance. Grumbling slightly and cursing once under her breath, she grabbed the nearest pillow and pulled it over her head.
“Good, you’re awake.” That voice…she thought to herself. Her eyes peeled themselves open once again as she started in place and sent pillows and blankets flying off of the bedspread, wings stiffening to full alert in surprise and confusion.
Standing at the foot of her bed was none other than Princess Luna, her elongated horn lambent in the absence of light.
“P-princess!” Dash managed to eek out, her surprise getting the best of her as she stumbled out of bed and tripped over a series of pillows that had been cast to the floor. Luckily, though the soft sleep items broke her fall as she thudded almost soundlessly to the floor. The farthest thing the cyan Pegasus had expected this evening was to be personally woken by royalty, and a barely discernable blush crept into her cheeks, reddening them ever so slightly. In any other situation, Luna would have found the sight somewhat amusing - she had always somewhat enjoyed surprises and pranks in her youth, but her face remained grim. Dash noted that the princess’ expression made her look older. As the glow surrounding Princess Luna’s horn began to fade, Dash started, “What are you-”
“-I apologize for pulling you out of your dream, Rainbow Dash. It certainly looked like a good one,” she interrupted, her normally soft and serene voice now carrying a discernable jagged edge to it. “However, we don’t have a whole lot of time, and I need to get you up to speed as quickly as possible.”
“Wha-”
“-We have a situation,” the Princess interrupted again. “Since you are an Element of Harmony, you are among the first in Cloudsdale to learn the information that I am about to share with you.” Luna walked over to the rather large window at the far side of the room, looking out at the deceptively peaceful night’s scene as the rest of the cloud city slept. She sighed, and continued. “There has been an outbreak of monstrous proportions; a virus, capable of destroying the peace and order my older sister has toiled for so many centuries to craft and maintain.” Dash reeled a bit at this, eyes widening in surprise. “This virus…it changes ponies. It transforms them into mindless monsters, enraged killing machines whom are only former husks of themselves. We don’t know how - or why - this virus has appeared -” Luna stopped herself mid-sentence before she said again, “-in our fair kingdom, but the most important thing that we can do at this present juncture is to maintain order and civility. It is also of equal importance that we prevent the spread of this virus any further - any contact with blood or saliva is absolutely lethal, and a bite from an infected pony will turn the victim in a matter of minutes.
“In just a few minutes, the Mayor of Cloudsdale will activate the emergency beacons.”
“Emergency beacons?” Rainbow Dash managed to say, brows raised slightly.
“Yes. Since you have only known peace in your time in Equestria, I do not imagine that you would know of this safeguard, as it has not been used in hundreds and hundreds of years. Given that there are no magic users in Cloudsdale - specifically, no unicorns - there is a system in place that ensures all citizens will be alerted to the presence or incidence of any semblance of danger or disaster. It is an artifact, made by Celestia herself, which allows the current Mayor of Cloudsdale to magically amplify his (or in our case, her) voice many times in order to deliver a message.”
“What is she gonna tell us to do, Princess?”
“She will order the evacuation of all residences and businesses, and order that all Cloudsdale citizens quickly and calmly proceed to the Cloudsdale Coliseum to await further instructions. That is where you come in, Rainbow Dash.”
“M-me? What am I supposed to do?” Dash answered, sounding unsure of herself. This sudden rush of seemingly impossible information was swirling around in her noggin like an untamed maelstrom as doubt crept into the forefront of her mind. The most subtle of smiles briefly betrayed Princess Luna’s terse visage, as the young flyer had reacted to the situation exactly as she had predicted.
“Now, now - where’s that courageous and loyal attitude that has made you famous throughout the land? That certainly doesn’t sound like Equestria’s Best Young Flyer,” she began, her voice assuming a chiding tone.
“Hey!” Dash interjected, forgetting temporarily that she was speaking to royalty. “What’s the big idea, huh? I’m the most loyal, most brave Pegasus around!” As Luna’s brows furrowed in an unmistakable display of annoyance, Rainbow Dash shrunk a bit and said, “Uh, I mean…sorry, Princess.”
“Think nothing of it,” the Night Princess replied dismissively, accentuating her point by waving a hoof in the air. “There are more important matters at hand, as I am certain that you are quickly realizing. There is not a much time left before the Mayor issues the evacuation order, so I will be brief: I need you to remain in Cloudsdale and assist the Wonderbolts in ensuring that the evacuation goes smoothly and calmly.” A smile now began to grow on the cyan Pegasus’ face at the thought of actually working with the Wonderbolts, but it was quickly replaced by a look of trepidation and frustration.
“Wait - I have to stay here?”
“That is correct.”
“What about Ponyville? What about my friends?!” Dash cried, the mere thought of abandoning them in the midst of this crisis nearly too much to handle. It sickened her and made her stomach feel queasy as her mind began to run wild with possible scenarios. “I can’t just leave them hangin’! What if they get hurt?!”
“I am sorry, Rainbow Dash, but that is the way it has to be for the moment. Come, look outside,” she motioned with a hoof for Dash to join her at her place in front of the window. She trotted quickly toward the window and gasped at what she immediately saw. An absolutely gargantuan translucent blue bubble now hung over Cloudsdale, partially obscuring her view of the nearly full moon. It shimmered as the lunar rays penetrated the barrier, the pale yellow light being diffused and displaced as it shone through the powerful magic.
“Wha-what the hell is that?” Dash cursed, again forgetting that she was in the presence of royalty. The Princess chose to ignore this, and replied,
“A very powerful spell, one which has not been used for millennia. It is a barrier that effectively isolates Cloudsdale from the rest of Equestria. Even if you were to try and disobey my direct order -” at that, the Princess shot a hard sidelong glance at Rainbow Dash that made her gulp, “-you would find it quite impossible to do so. Nothing gets through that barrier.”
Dash sunk to the floor, the brevity of Luna’s words overwhelming her temporarily.
“But…my friends…” she spoke softly as hot tears began to well up in her eyes, threatening to burst forth as she realized that she was - for the moment - utterly incapable of helping them. Seeing this, Princess Luna softened a bit and knelt to come face-to-face with the cyan Pegasus.
“I know that you are worried about them, and I am truly sorry that you cannot join them. From what I hear from my sister, however, I am more than certain that Twilight Sparkle is more than capable of keeping your friends safe, wherever this night may take them. I have ordered all settlements within Equestria to come together in the main area of their respective establishments, and I have the utmost confidence that the rest of your friends are going to be together very shortly.” Rainbow offered a sniffle in response, and, breathing deeply, rose to her hooves.
“Yeah…yeah, you’re probably right, Princess. Twilight doesn’t take any crap - I mean nonsense! She doesn’t put up with any nonsense,” Dash said quickly, not wanting to annoy Luna any further with her somewhat brash vernacular.
“That’s the spirit!” Luna replied, smiling softly; quite the feat, considering her raging inner turmoil, spurred on by what she knew was rapidly approaching the castle back in Canterlot. “So now, Rainbow Dash, I ask of you - will you help me? Will you help your hometown in its’ time of need?” Dash paused for a moment, but in her heart of hearts, she knew that her mind was already made up. Being the walking representation of the Element of Loyalty meant dedication to a lot of things, and Cloudsdale was among the highest on that list.
“Heck yeah, I’ll help! What do I need do to?” |
Scriber | 615 | 7 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-10-05T04:26:09+00:00 | 2011-10-05T04:26:09+00:00 | 5,437 | "On your left!" the mint green unicorn cried sharply as she dodged a lumbering mass barreling towards her. Her friend, a white-coated earth pony with a flowing purple and pink mane, cursed loudly and pivoted on point, delivering a perfectly executed sweeping kick with her front legs which knocked the infected to the ground. Lyra and Bon-Bon had to shout to hear each other’s directions to be heard over the din: unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies scattered in every direction around them, many screaming in terror as they fled the onslaught. Joining the cacophony were the grunts and groans of the infected, some spouting clipped, guttural gibberish as they lumbered after the fleeing townsponies. Outside of the occasional friendly spar between the two, tonight was the first night in years that they had actually fought with the intention of harming another pony, infected or otherwise.
The unicorn and the earth pony had met one another roughly a decade ago while overseas in Yokeyo. They studied under the same sensei at Yokeyo’s prestigious - and exclusive - Filly’s Dojo for Maretial Arts. As the weeks and months wore on, the two quickly realized through the intense regimen that they were without question the most gifted students at the Dojo; their skills remained unmatched by any of their peers, and the more often they sparred one another, the faster they became accustomed to each pony’s style and technique. They learned from each other, Lyra mimicking and eventually mastering Bon-Bon’s unique style of fancy hoof-work while Bon-Bon learned from Lyra how to efficiently strike at pressure points and weak spots on a pony’s body. The two friends had both graduated at the top of their class, a rather unusual occurrence given the simple fact that the Dojo never had two valedictorians before. They went on to become masters of hoof-to-hoof combat, living legends in their own rites as they traveled exotic, foreign lands together to compete and showcase their talents.
The fluid motions of physical combat quickly returned to the two ponies as they fought; though it had been a good few months since their last spar together, the long and rigorous hours of their extensive training had ingrained a muscle memory deep within the cores of their very beings that was nearly impossible to lose. Lyra brought a tremendous chop down on the horn of a charging infected unicorn, snapping the enamel in half with ease. The infected unicorn’s horn clattered to the cobble, jagged and broken. With a high-pitched cry that came more from within the pit of her stomach than the top of her lungs, she followed up with a dizzying flurry of punches to the midsection and neck of the infected, dazing it temporarily. Without missing a beat, she tucked her extremities into herself and rolled to the side, scooping up the severed horn in one continuous motion. Before the infected had a chance to recover, she sprang back to her hooves and drove the tapered tip of the horn through the top of her assailant’s agape mouth, warm blood spurting from the oral would and washing over her front hoof as it punctured the brain sac with a barely audible snap! that was felt more than actually heard. Sealing the deal, Lyra withdrew her front hoof from the teetering infected unicorn’s mouth and did a backflip, striking the bottom half of the jaw once with each hoof, driving the horn through the top of the skull. Tiny clumps of grey matter stuck around the base of the devastating wound, the blood-covered enamel protrusion now a few inches back from where it had originally sat just seconds before.
“Lyra! Behind you!” Bon-Bon shouted as the infected Pegasus she had previously engaged tackled the off-kilter Lyra, sending the two toppling to the ground. The earth pony dashed over to the two now struggling on the cobble and slid on her side, not entirely unlike a baseball player sliding home; back legs first, her back left hoof connected with the side of the Pegasus’ face. The force of the blow sent the infected reeling, tumbling several times end over end as Lyra kicked her hind legs into the air and righted herself in an impressive display of athleticism.
Had they not been fleeing for their very lives, anypony who had come upon the scene would have surely stopped to gawk at the seemingly innocuous pony friends, masterfully taking on and taking down any infected that crossed their paths as they shrieked and cried wavering kung-fu howls. The sounds of hoof-strikes and snapping bones joined the swirling sounds which traveled freely through the cool night air as the infected continued their assault on the two maretial artists, drawn to and enraged by the sounds of their efforts to defeat all who had the audacity to oppose them. As the virus and violence spread throughout Ponyville, the infected amassed in the market square as they grew in numbers. Where there were initially only roughly a half dozen that had been the source of the terror in the normally sleepy town, as more and more ponies fell, so too did the infected grow in numbers. Lyra and Bon-Bon were entirely focused on the two or so combatants that they each engaged simultaneously; as such, they only barely noticed the increasing volume of the groans and grunts which surrounded them.
“Heee-YAHH!!!” A roundhouse kick snapped the neck of an infected earth pony, its head swiveling nearly three hundred and sixty degrees from the impact.
“Hoooahhh!!!” A well-placed uppercut unhinged a Pegasus’ jaw, the lower half flapping uselessly as its owner staggered backward.
“Take that, you fucking monster!” Lyra cursed as a downward blow absolutely shattered the skull of one of her combatants, squishy brain matter punctured by sharp shards of bone. The infected collapsed to the cobble, unmoving.
“Lyra!” Bon-Bon chided, “Watch your language!”
“For Celestia’s sake, Bon-Bon, now’s not the-” she paused briefly to dodge another charging infected, “-time to reprimand a pony on her foul mouth!” Bon-Bon shot her a coy sideways glance, grinning as she stiff-armed the same infected that had turned and tried to charge the earth pony. She didn’t even wait for the infected to crash to the ground before she drove her two front hooves into its neck, crushing the windpipe.
“There, that takes care of that,” Bon-Bon said with an air of finality. The two friends, no longer seeing any infected ponies in their immediate field of vision, turned to look at one another and smiled briefly. They were back in their element: it had been far, far too long since they had been in any real danger, and the adrenalin junkies relished in the waves of raw energy that cascaded through them. Their smiles, however, were short lived as each pony saw what lurked behind the other’s back. The two ponies spoke two words simultaneously:
“Oh, shit.” |
Scriber | 615 | 8 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-09-15T03:16:42+00:00 | 2011-09-15T03:16:42+00:00 | 5,192 | Hey, all! Scriber here.
I come to you, dear reader, with a request: I need proofreaders. Try as I might to iron out grammatical inconsistencies and potential plot holes, I find that the old adage "two heads are better than one" is quite appropriate in this scenario. Should you find yourself interested in being among the first to read a new chapter before it's published, send me an email at [email protected]! Even if you're just sending an email about what you've read so far, I would still be delighted to hear from you.
That brings me to the final point: what do you, the reader, want to see in this story? Should any of the mane 6 succumb to the deadly virus, or was Nurse Redheart's death quite enough? I am open to all suggestions, and will give credit to anyone whose idea is interesting enough to make it into the story. Additionally, once this story is completed, I will give credit to any proofreaders who decide to hop on board and lend me a helping hand (or hoof).
Thanks, all, for your interest in this story. To be absolutely honest, it wouldn't have come as far as it has without readers like you. Hope to hear from you soon! Try not to get bitten!
Horrifically yours,
-Scriber |
Scriber | 615 | 9 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-09-15T06:57:34+00:00 | 2011-09-15T06:57:34+00:00 | 5,020 | “Where are Mr. and Mrs. Cake, Rarity?” Scootaloo asked. The four had arrived without much fanfare, quietly opening the front door and promptly locking it after them. Rarity had insisted that they keep the lights off, for fear of drawing attention to the gingerbread house-shaped confectionery shop, but had relented and lit a few small candles when she calmed herself enough to notice the terrified look in the three fillies’ faces.
“I imagine they’re still out there, somewhere…” Rarity replied, gulping. She hoped that Applejack and Pinkie Pie would join them soon; the rush from the excitement and physical strain that had kept her energized moments prior was now beginning to wear off. The white unicorn found that her knees had begun to knock together. Not wanting to scare the already traumatized fillies any further, she joined them in the center of the room and sat down amongst the lit candles. The flickering flame cast dancing shadows across the main area of the shop, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders couldn’t help but let their eyes wander to the dark shapes that their silhouettes cast against in the darkened room. Wordlessly, they scrunched even closer together, the warmth of their quivering bodies pressed against one another offering little to no relief from the overwhelming fear that continued to assail them. Outside, the dull and muted noises of mayhem could be heard through the wooden door of the shop- screaming, crashes, galloping and thuds sailed through the crisp night air like a grotesque symphony of terror.
Somepony, in their hurry to escape from the cantering death that was no doubt chasing them, had knocked over a lantern, shattering it to pieces. As the oil leaked onto the cobble and caught fire, the blaze spread to a few nearby bales of hay, which subsequently spread to two nearby wooden vendor’s carts. With nopony to put out the fire, the orange flame continued on its path of destruction, greedily swallowing up any nearby stand in the inferno. Fortunately, it had yet to spread to any major buildings surrounding the market and looked as though it would stay that way: the stands which were consumed in the fire were all in relative proximity to one another, but far enough away from the thatched roofs of homes and businesses that the fire was contained within the market square itself. Though the buildings themselves were spared for the moment, one unlucky (or lucky, depending on one’s interpretation) infected was not so fortunate: in his mindless pursuit of his next potential victim, the brown earth pony had blindly galloped through the flames, catching fire almost instantaneously.
As the earth pony flailed and thrashed about wildly, he happened to pass one of Sugarcube Corner’s windows, the impromptu non-living light source illuminating the glass panes. Even as his flesh boiled, he managed noticed the four occupants gathered together in the shop. In a horrific display of rage, he began to beat on the window with his head in his final moments, trying desperately to reach the cowering fillies and startled unicorn inside. The effort was short lived, though, as the infected quickly succumbed to the flame that swirled around him. He collapsed to the ground, lungs charred and blackened to match his exterior condition. Rarity quickly and quietly trotted over to the window, intending to draw the blinds shut. She had not had the presence of mind to do so when the four had first arrived at the shop, and it had become frightfully apparent that their presence in the building was rather easily advertised via the dull candlelight within. When she looked out upon the chaos that was taking place just outside, however, she stopped in mid-motion and simply stared for a few moments, eyes wide and unbelieving. The lambent maelstrom of fire which was making short work of the marketplace sent flickering flames upward into the night’s sky, smoke and ash wafting upward on the currents of heat. Several dozen figures, eerily silhouetted by the inferno, ran in every direction; a disturbingly large amount of pursuers, lumbering monstrosities with erratic gaits chased their victims relentlessly. In the distance, Rarity could just make out two or three ponies putting up a valiant resistance - though the sound of the conflict was masked by the din of the roaring fire and the screams of infected and non-infected alike, the battle looked intense enough even without sounds to accompany it.
The white coated unicorn strained her dark blue eyes to see clearly through the madness. Unable to spot her distinctive Stetson hat, Rarity noted with some dismay that there was no sign of Applejack and Pinkie Pie among the fleeing silhouettes that ran about the market. Shutting her eyes to the sight of yet another mindless infected catching fire, she drew the blinds shut and walked as evenly as she could to rejoin the Cutie Mark Crusaders in the center of the room.
“Big sis…why? Why is t-this happening?” a tearful Sweetie Belle managed, her whimpering little voice barely audible.
“I…I just don’t know, Sweetie Belle,” the unicorn replied. “I thought the incident with the Ursa Minor was bad, but this…”
“Rarity?” an equally meek voice belonging to the dark orange Pegasus rang out. “W-where’s my mom? I-I want my mommy,” Scootaloo sniffled. Rarity’s heart swelled as panic began to rear its ugly head within her: she simply could not speculate as to where the Pegasus filly’s mother could possibly be, let alone whether or not she had survived the ongoing attack taking place just outdoors.
“I’m sure she’s fine, dear,” Rarity said, her voice sounding quite a bit more confident than she actually felt. “Pegasi have a keen advantage over us non-winged ponies, you know. Perhaps when the attack started, she took off into the air, looking for you? Why, I’ll bet that she’s in the skies, right at this very moment, searching! And from what I have noted thus far…infected,” she cringed a bit at using the word, “pegasi do not appear to be able to fly.”
“Hey…hey, yeah!” Scootaloo chimed in, her voice picking up just a bit. “My mom won’t let any of those nasty ponies get her!” A thought crossed her mind, though, and her ears began to droop. “But what about Rainbow Dash? Isn’t she in Cloudsdale?”
“Hmm…yes, I do seem to recall her mentioning something to that effect,” Rarity noted.
“What if there are more zombie ponies up there, too?”
“Knowing Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo, I’m sure that there is nothing to worry about. She certainly isn’t one to shy away from any danger…though I am sure that she won’t be too terribly happy about being confined to the city, knowing that her friends remain down here in Ponyville.”
“Whaddya mean, ‘confined’?” Apple Bloom asked, not yet having the situation fully explained to her.
“Well, Apple Bloom, do you recall that odd looking bubble in the sky?” She went on to briefly fill the little filly in, speculating that if what Princess Luna said about the spell was true, then there was no doubt a similar bubble encompassing the cloud city as well.
“And if this outbreak is really taking place across all of Equestria, then…” Rarity finished, not wanting to frighten the already traumatized fillies any further.
“…then what, Rarity?” Scootaloo inquired, suddenly uneasy. The white unicorn paid no attention, however - her eyes had suddenly gone wide and then taken on a glazed-over look to them, as if she had suddenly gone into a deep trance. The chalk-white horn seated atop her forehead began to glow ever so slightly, sparkling lavender hues radiating outward with magic. Her left eyebrow twitched slightly, but her eyes remained unblinking. The three fillies instinctively began to back away slowly, not entirely sure what to make of the new development; Sweetie Belle, easily the most skittish of the three, let out a small, wordless whimper.
“B-big sis? Are you ok…?” she spoke softly, trembling.
Rarity remained unmoving for the better part of a full minute, when suddenly, the slightest of smiles began to creep across her face. She blinked several times, her eyes finally coming back into focus, expression finally returning to her visage. The glow around her horn began to fade back into nothingness as she regarded the Cutie Mark Crusaders, still in the process of backing away, their flanks nearly making contact with the wall on the far side of the room. She spoke, trying her best to put the fillies at ease.
“Don’t worry, you three - I think that we’re going to be alright. We have a plan.”
---------------------------
Another flash of brilliant pink-white light announced the return of Twilight, Fluttershy, Angel, Spike and Owloiscious to Ponyville’s library. The butter-colored Pegasus felt a bit dizzy after the spell: she had felt the magic entering her body and swimming about her, the tingling sensation not entirely unlike a very mild electric shock. Is this what it feels like to use magic? she wondered to herself as she shook her head a few times, blinking her eyes back into focus. The interior of the library was darkened, but not for long - using her magic, Twilight lit a few of the candles that were situated here and there on walls and tables, the subtle illumination from the yellow flames joining the pale moonlight which poured in from the upper story windows.
“Spike, will you draw the blinds shut, please? It may not be safe to let anyone know that we’re here,” Twilight said, the small purple dragon nodding his head silently in compliance. He plodded over to the nearest window, gasped, stumbled backward and nearly fell on his behind at what he saw through the panes of glass.
“T-twilight? You’re gonna want to look at this…” he said anxiously, motioning for the purple unicorn to join him. Cautiously, Fluttershy joined Twilight as they walked over to join Spike at the window. Two equally timed gasped escaped the two mare’s mouths as they took in the scene which lay before them. There was blood - copious amounts of red-black liquid pooled in puddles on the streets and covered in splashes the surfaces of destroyed carts and vendor’s stands in the marketplace, which lay not one hundred yards away from the library.
“So…so much blood…” Fluttershy managed to say before another small eep! left her muzzle. She felt lightheaded again, swaying slightly on her hooves at the sight.
“But where are all the bodies?” Twilight asked, more thinking aloud to herself than inquiring an answer from her companions. “If there’s that much blood, surely there should be bodies…” Further off in the distance, just before the edge of their field of vision, the shocked observers could barely make out the figures of fleeing ponies, darkened figures seemingly dancing wildly against the backdrop of flames.
“How did the marketplace catch fire, Twilight?” Spike asked.
“I haven’t got a clue, Spike. This…this isn’t good. What if the fire spreads to the houses? The whole of Ponyville could be destroyed! And what about the barrier? If there’s too much smoke under the bubble, then…oh, Celestia. This is bad. This is very, very bad,” she swooned a bit, her mind racing a mile per minute as she weighed the possible structural and atmospheric implications that the raging fire carried. She eventually had to draw the blinds shut, no longer desiring to look at the destruction. Spike followed suit, making his rounds about the ground floor, being absolutely certain that every window’s blinds were drawn tightly shut. Fluttershy, eyes watering again, sat weakly down on the wooden floor, nervously wringing her hooves together. Angel, though normally a somewhat cantankerous and eccentric companion, hopped swiftly to the Pegasus’ side, trying his best to console her. He wore a grim expression on his face as he hopped up and patted Fluttershy on the head lightly, soothing the sniffling Pegasus slightly as she smiled weakly at him and returned the favour.
“I-I need a moment to think,” Twilight announced, beginning to pace about the library nervously. Her brows furrowed in concentration as she slipped into a deep internal monologue, her mind working overtime to consider their possible options. Owloiscious flitted over to Spike, who had sat down wearily on the stairs leading to the second floor, head in his hands.
“Hoo?” he hooted inquisitively, as if to ask, “You ok, buddy?” Though the baby dragon didn’t have the slightest idea as to what the owl was trying to say, the expression of concern in his feathered friend’s eyes conveyed the sentiment marvelously. He breathed deeply, and said,
“You know, that was pretty brave, what you did back there at Fluttershy’s cottage. How’s your head, anyway?”
“Hoo,” the owl replied, as if to say, “I’ve had worse. I’ll survive.”
Even with the door sealed tight and the blinds drawn, it was not a far stretch of the imagination for anypony (or owl, or dragon, or bunny) to surmise just what was taking place outside. The occasional scream or cry rang out clearly in the air, joining the crackling of burning wood and clopping of hooves against cobblestone. Owloiscious, possessing a more finely tuned sense of hearing than anyone else in the room, craned his head toward the sound of what was undoubtedly a conflict taking place somewhere outside, dull thuds of hooves against flesh just barely audible. He nearly commented on this new development to the baby dragon who sat at his side on the stairwell, but decided against it; Spike was the only one in the room who couldn’t fully understand the owl’s native tongue. Fluttershy, in an effort to take her mind off of the disturbing events which had just transpired, trotted quietly into the kitchen, holding a candle sideways in her mouth so as not trip on anything in the darkness of the room. She set the wax candle down on a countertop next to the pantry and began to root through its’ contents: there was a loaf of bread, several tins of fruits and preserves, and a few boxes of junk food - one of Twilight’s guilty pleasures, apparently. Frowning slightly, she made her way to the refrigerator adjacent to the countertop, opening the door with her mouth. The Pegasus squinted slightly against the sudden rush of bright electric light that poured out of the appliance. Once her eyes adjusted, she found several food items that were better suited to what she had been looking for initially: several stalks of celery, a head of lettuce, and about a half-dozen carrots. Knowing that Angel was probably hungry after his encounter with the infected stallion, she settled on the carrots, knowing that everyone but Owloiscious and Spike would more than likely eat the orange vegetable.
“I wonder what Owloiscious eats?” she wondered aloud to herself. “Oh! Oh, my…I hope he doesn’t eat…bunnies…” she gulped a bit at the thought. However, after a second glace at the contents of the pantry, she happened upon a bag of birdseed, which she then poured a generous portion into a bowl. A glint caught her eye, and she bent down to reveal a decent amount of semi-precious gems resting on the bottom shelf of the pantry - no doubt food for Spike. Fluttershy grabbed a few of them as well, setting the gems on the countertop.
“Spike?” she poked her head out of the kitchen, the light from the lone candle illuminating her from behind. “Would you mind helping me carry this food out of the kitchen, please? If…if that’s ok…”
“Sure, Fluttershy,” the dragon replied, hopping back to his feet. He, too, was eager to let his mind wander from the evening’s occurrences, and was thankful for the brief reprieve. Guided by the candlelight, the two gathered the provisions and made their way back into the library’s main floor, where a still-pacing Twilight was regarding a particular section of books warily. The yellow Pegasus set the bowl of birdseed down in front of Owloiscious, who hooted gratefully in reply and began to peck at his snack. Spike sat back down on the stairs and was taking thoughtful, paced bites out of the gemstones - he was trying his absolute hardest to keep the violence and death he had witnessed thus far that evening out of his mind, not wanting to spoil his considerable appetite. Angel, briefly resuming his typical demeanor, had initially resisted being coddled and fed by Fluttershy; after a rather sizeable grumble from his stomach, however, he quickly relented and graciously accepted the carrots that the Pegasus had brought for him, nibbling on the vegetables voraciously. Satisfied, Fluttershy then turned and started toward Twilight, who had now begun to levitate several books down from their respective shelves, discarding a few that she didn’t need with audible grunts of frustration.
“Twilight? Are you hungry?” Fluttershy asked softly, already feeling a bit guilty for disturbing the unicorn in the middle of her work.
“…What’s that? Am I what?” a distracted Twilight said, still glancing at the titles of the increasing amount of books she had levitated down from their shelves.
“Oh. Um, I said…are you hungry?” Fluttershy asked a bit louder this time. Her train of thought effectively derailed for the moment, Twilight turned around to face her friend with a small sigh, then looking at the small pile of carrots the Pegasus had brought with her.
“Thanks, Fluttershy, but after all that’s happened tonight…I’m just not sure if I’ll be able to eat anything,” Twilight spoke. With an uncharacteristically heavy sigh, Fluttershy walked closer to her clearly stressed friend, wearing a look of concern and genuine understanding.
“Twilight, I know that tonight has been tough for all of us. It’s…it’s just so awful! But - but I really think you should eat something. You’ve been using an awful lot of magic tonight, and you need to keep your energy up. I wouldn’t want you to overexert yourself.” Fluttershy’s tone was somewhere between encouraging and stern; it was altogether convincing enough for Twilight to soften her expression a bit and relent.
“Fine. You’re probably right, Fluttershy. I just…I have an idea of what might be happening here, but I’m not sure if I have the book anymore! It’s just so frustrating! I can almost put my hoof on it,” she explained, bending over to pick up a carrot with her mouth. She began to chew slowly, the squishy sounds of her teeth mashing the orange vegetable into pulp bringing back memories of earth soaked with blood and dismembered animals. Twilight gagged reflexively at her memories of the gore, but resolutely swallowed and managed to keep her bites of the carrot down.
“I don’t understand what’s happening, Twilight. How…how can the dead come back to life? It should be impossible!” Spike called from across the room. He had finished his semi-precious snack, and had begun to plod over to where Twilight and Fluttershy stood. “I mean, I thought zombie ponies were just an old mare’s tale!”
“When I was studying in Canterlot, I had read some vague, obscure references to an ancient, forbidden magic that could temporarily bring the dead back to life…but I only came across it in a few books, and they were written during a time when ponies liked to write using metaphors as opposed to clear, concise fact. But that wasn’t a virus! At least, I don’t think it was…sure, there are dark forms of parasitic magic than can be manipulated to seek out a host-”
“Para…para-what, now?” Spike asked, brows raised upward in confusion.
“Parasitic magic, another type of magic that’s use was forbidden by the Princesses long, long ago. From what I’ve read on the subject, it let the caster take control of another pony for a short period of time.”
“Y-you mean, like…mind control?” Fluttershy squeaked. “T-that’s terrible!”
“Indeed it is, Fluttershy. Magic like that is forbidden for a reason - it’s evil, and no sensible pony should even think about using something so terrible.”
“Do you think that’s what’s going on here, Twilight?” Spike queried nervously.
“I’m not sure, Spike…as far as I know, parasitic magic only works on living hosts, so it should be impossible. However, I can’t rule it out as a possibility just yet - not until I have enough information.” With that, Twilight turned back to the bookshelves, ready to begin her literary search anew.
“I just hope that Rarity and the others are ok…” Spike meekly said, consternation beginning to creep into his voice. Twilight started in place.
“The others!” she exclaimed. “Oh, Celestia, I hope they’re ok…but it’s too dangerous to go outside. We’d be outnumbered! Maybe they found someplace safe to hide…”
“I know I’d feel a lot better if we could talk to them, Twi’,” Spike added.
“Oh, yes…I’m just so worried about them! What if they got hurt in the fire? Or by one of those - things…” Fluttershy piped up. Thoughts swirled around in Twilight’s head, briefly resuming her internal monologue. Suddenly, a sparkle seemed to quickly glisten behind her eyes as inspiration struck her.
“Aha!” she cried, perhaps a bit too loudly as the others jumped a slightly at the sound. “Spike, can you grab me my copy of ‘Telepathic Communications Made Easy’? It should be under ‘T’,” she instructed. Spike’s ears perked up at the all-too-familiar command, temporarily forgetting his anxiety and dashing off to retrieve the tome. Noting that he would need its’ assistance, he ascended a nearby ladder quickly, perusing the alphabetically sorted assortment of books studiously, reading the titles aloud to himself softly.
“Teas for Tea Drinkers, Technical Teachings for Techies, Teenaged Teetotalism for Teetering Teens…what? Oh, here it is!” Spike announced triumphantly as he held the book out in the air, positively beaming down at Twilight and the others. His small victory was short lived, however, as Twilight hastily levitated the book - and Spike - down from the ladder, sending the baby dragon flying face-first into the floor with a smack!
“Oo-oops!” Twilight offered, sheepishly. “Sorry, Spike. Are you ok?”
“Ugh,” a muffled voice rose up in response as the purple dragon slowly pulled himself to his feet, eyes spinning independently from one another. The purple unicorn stifled a laugh, but her mirth quickly died upon seeing the somewhat mortified look on Fluttershy’s face. Not wanting to worsen the situation, Twilight turned her attention to the book, quickly skimming the table of contents for the section she needed. She flipped to the appropriate page, and absorbed the information in a manner of mere minutes.
“Right, then. Let’s give this a shot,” she said aloud to no one in particular. Setting the book down, Twilight closed her eyes shut tightly and began to concentrate, focusing her energy to the tip of her horn. She felt the electrifying sensation of psychic magic buzz through her skull, resonating inside of her with a not entirely unpleasant frequency. In her mind’s eye, she felt herself reaching out across all of Ponyville - searching, sifting through the inherent background magical frequencies and life signatures of all living beings within the town. She frowned slightly as the invisible magic happened to pass over several infected - their signatures were corrupt, blackened. They felt cold and dead, yet somehow malicious at the same time. Brushing off the brief encounter, she pushed onward, when finally -
“Aha!” she cried again, eyes still shut. The spell had found its mark.
Inside of Sugarcube Corner, a certain white unicorn went into a trance.
*Hello? Rarity, are you there? Can you hear me?*
Initially, there was no response. She knew that the spell was working - why hadn’t her unicorn friend replied?
*Rarity, it’s me, Twilight Sparkle. Can you hear my voice? Please say something!*
*…good heavens, first a viral outbreak, then the fire, and now…now I’m losing my mind! Could this night get any worse?*
The white unicorn’s ethereal voice sounded stressed.
*Rarity, trust me, you’re not going crazy. It’s really me!*
*…Twilight Sparkle? How…how are you talking to me? How is your voice in my head, dear?*
*I’m using a spell similar to the one Princess Luna used to warn us unicorns about the infection - it’s not nearly as powerful, but I think I managed to get it right.*
*Well, I should most certainly say so, my dear! Are you alright? We were with Pinkie Pie and Applejack earlier, but we got separated and I don’t know where Fluttershy-*
*-Fluttershy’s safe, she’s with me. Wait, ‘we’? Who’s ‘we’?*
*I’m inside of Sugarcube Corner, dear. Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo are with me, while Applejack and Pinkie Pie ran off to save a poor family that some horrid monster had cornered in an alleyway. They should be back soon, I hope…*
*Are you safe? Nopony got bitten, did they?*
*Thankfully, no. But I’m not sure how safe we are here…the fire in the marketplace hasn’t spread to any of the buildings yet, thank Celestia, but should the fire spread, Sugarcube Corner will likely succumb.*
*…that’s not good. Ok, listen carefully, Rarity. There are a couple of things we need to do right now, and with that fire still burning, we’re running out of time. One: we need to figure out a way to put out the fire. Two: we need to figure out where Pinkie Pie and Applejack are, and make sure that they’re safe. Three: we need to gather everypony together - you, me, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, the Cutie Mark Crusaders-*
*You do know that Rainbow Dash is in Cloudsdale, don’t you, dear?*
*…shit. I forgot about that.*
*T-twilight! Watch your language, dear! I know that things are bad, but-*
*-sorry, sorry. Well, we do need the Elements, so-*
*The Elements of Harmony, dear? Why, whatever for?*
*The Elements are among the strongest magic known to ponydom, Rarity. Even if we don’t quite know what we’re up against just yet, I’m sure that with the Elements, there’s nothing that we can’t overcome!*
*…yes, I do suppose you are correct. But with Rainbow Dash in Cloudsdale…*
*-I know, I know. That…that is a problem, I’ll admit. How can we bring Rainbow Dash to Ponyville with that barrier keeping us in? I would take the balloon, but…oh, Celestia…*
*…dear, couldn’t you just teleport to Cloudsdale? After you cast that cloud-walking spell, of course! We certainly wouldn’t want you plummeting to your death, you know.*
*Rarity, YOU’RE A GENIUS! I could kiss you!*
*…you could do what, now?*
*Uh, nothing. But that’s a fantastic idea! I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me sooner! Thank you, Rarity!*
*Think nothing of it, darling. I do have quite the attention to detail, if I do say so myself.*
The ethereal voice chuckled warmly.
*Indeed you do. All right! Once I go and get Rainbow Dash, she can hopefully pull a few rain clouds together and put out the fire. I would ask Fluttershy, but…well…*
*Yes, we do know our Fluttershy. I couldn’t think to ask anything like that of her - it’s simply too dangerous outdoors! Rainbow Dash, on the other hand-*
*-Right, danger is like a drug to her.*
*Interesting simile, dear. Well, what would you have me do from here? I’m afraid that there are still quite a few…infected…ponies running about at the moment, and there is still no sign of Applejack or Pinkie Pie.*
*Rarity, I need you to stay put for now and keep Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo safe. Wait for Applejack and Pinkie Pie while I go to Cloudsdale and find Rainbow Dash. I’m not sure what I’ll find up there, or how bad the situation is up there, but I’ll try to be as quick as possible. I promise.*
*I trust you, Twilight.*
*I need to cut off this conversation - this spell is taxing enough as it is already, and I don’t want to use up too much of my magic.*
*I understand, darling. Stay safe, do you hear me?*
*I will, Rarity. Thank you. I’ll see you all soon.*
With the slightest of grunts, Twilight ceased channeling her magic through her horn and the spell faded away. Knowing that she needed the same book she had consulted to visit Cloudsdale a few months ago for the Best Young Flier Competition, Twilight galloped hurriedly to the section where she knew the book lay. She didn’t want to risk injuring Spike any further, and she knew that she was in an excitable enough state to accidentally pull her number one assistant down from the ladder again. Instead, she located the book she needed a few shelves up from where she stood, flipped it open to the page with the information she needed, and read. Nodding with determination, she quickly cast the spell on herself: normally, she would begin to worry about the magical strain she was putting on herself, but she knew that the spell was elementary enough to not be a concern. Besides, her friends needed her to be strong! She couldn’t let them down!
“Twilight? What was that all about?” Spike asked, still a bit confused about the minute or so that she had spent with her eyes closed, standing absolutely still with horn aglow.
“Oh, right. Sorry. I just talked with Rarity - she’s fine. She’s with the Cutie Mark Crusaders at Sugarcube Corner for now.”
“How-”
“Because of that book you found for me, Spike. Thank you, by the way! Oh, and sorry. Again. I didn’t mean to pull you off of the ladder like that.”
“It’s fine, Twilight. Don’t worry about it,” the baby dragon replied, absentmindedly raising a hand to his head and wincing as he stroked a sore spot.
“What was that spell you just cast on yourself, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked, curious.
“A cloud-walking spell. I’m going to Cloudsdale to find Rainbow Dash.”
“C-cloudsdale? But…but there could be more of those ‘infected’ ponies up there! And besides, wouldn’t that be disobeying Princess Luna’s orders? You could get in a lot of trouble!”
“I’m afraid so, Fluttershy, but that’s the nature of the situation. It cannot be avoided, and we need to gather the Elements of Harmony together.” Her friends looked uncertain. “Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine!” She did her best to reassure her companions.
“Promise me you’ll be careful, Twilight?” Spike asked.
“Yes, please do stay safe…” Fluttershy added demurely.
“I promise. Fluttershy, please look after Spike, Owloiscious and Angel while I’m gone. I’ll try to be quick.”
“Of course, Twilight,” the yellow Pegasus replied, sounding a tad more certain of herself.
“Right,” Twilight said with determination, taking several deep breaths to prepare herself for yet another teleportation spell. She closed her eyes again, calming herself, willing a serene state of well-being to overcome her. Steadily, surely, she drew upon her decidedly expansive inner reserve of magic - she knew that his spell would be somewhat taxing to perform (especially after the psychic and cloud-walking spells), but her love for her friend Rainbow Dash and her concern for her well being seemed to unlock something within her. It was faint, at first; a feeling of raw, immense power began to blossom at the very core of her being, radiating outward in electrifying pulses and waves. Gasping slightly at the new sensation, her eyes shot open, again aglow with a blinding white light which illuminated the entire interior of the library as though it were high noon. Fluttershy, Spike, Angel and Owloicious could do little more than look on in awe, the former of the four having been the only amongst them to witness their purple unicorn friend unleash this caliber of magic before.
With a brilliant crescendo of energy and a surge of impossibly bright light, she disappeared, bound for the city in the sky. |
Scriber | 615 | 10 | Bon-Bon,Cutie Mark Crusaders,Lyra,Main 6,Crossover,Adventure,Dark,My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic | Cantering Death | A mysterious virus breaks out in Equestria. Chaos ensues. Also, zombies. | incomplete | 157 | 8 | <p>NOTE: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read them at your own risk! </p><p>A mysterious viral outbreak grips Equestria, threatening the very life of the country. In an effort to stop the infection, Princess Celestia orders all individual settlements within Equestria to be quarantined. Can Twilight Sparkle, along with the other Elements of Harmony, figure out the cause of this horrific virus and put a stop to it? More importantly - can they survive? </p><p>Rated M for Violence, Adult Content and Language.</p> | teen | 2011-10-08T09:03:19+00:00 | 2011-10-08T09:03:19+00:00 | 5,039 | Author's note: disregard the previous author's note. This chapter is now complete!
-Scriber
================================
Two hours ago
Canterlot. The absolute zenith of culture and class in all of Equestria; an architectural amalgam of the rustic and chic, of modern and old. An eerie silence blanketed the city like an invisible fog – as the city slumbered, basked in slivers of muted moonlight obfuscated by the odd lingering cloud, not a sound could be heard. The usual creaks and chirps of late summer crickets was strangely absent from nature's subtle nightly symphony.
And yet, within the veil of the still darkness, something moved; several somethings, to be precise. Twitching, shuffling silhouettes stalked silently through the city, making nary a sound as they maneuvered through alleyways obscured by shadow. A stray cat, fur pitted with filth and grime, was unfortunate enough to meet its end at the hooves of a monstrosity; a sound not entirely unlike wet cloth being torn asunder just barely escaped a darkened passage in the space between two business, closed for the night. The orange tabby let out a final pained yowl before being silenced permanently. The sound wafted through the still air, falling dead on the ears of those who slumbered with open windows...save for one.
Not a half block away, a magenta-coloured earth pony filly with streaks of orange and gold in her mane stirred in her plush bedspread. The yowl had been just loud enough to gently jar her into consciousness. Breathing deeply as one does when one first becomes awake after hours of slumber, she blinked several times, bringing her vision into focus. A soft, yellow artificial light plugged into an adjacent wall cast warm, glowing hues across the room. The young pony sighed daintily, rolling over onto her side for a moment.
I simply cannot believe that it's happened again, she thought to herself. Another night of interrupted sleep. By Celestia's grace, this is growing tiresome. The filly allowed a few more moments to pass before sighing again, her mind and body reluctantly coming to terms with her undesired consciousness. Shifting her weight to her left, she rolled off of the rather luxurious, plush mattress and swung her back legs over the side, allowing them to dangle in midair. With a small hop, her hooves made contact with the padded, navy blue carpeting that spread out across her bedroom, forelegs quickly following suit.
Perhaps a glass of water will help. Given that her eyes were still adjusting to the low levels of light in her room, she cautiously started to walk toward the door leading out into the hallway -
CRASH!
The filly, startled at the sudden sound coming from outdoors, jumped nearly three feet into the air, letting out a surprised yelp as she did so. Her shoulders hunched up instinctively as she swung around to face the window at her rear, now fully awake and alert.
“What in Equestria was that?” she asked nopony in particular, still firmly rooted in place. After several deep breaths, her heart rate slowed to the point wherein she felt able to move again; cautiously, she began to stealthily slink over toward the window, curious to learn the cause of the loud sound. The magenta filly was rather short-statured; just a half inch or so over three feet in height, the top of the young one's head just barely met in the center of most ponies' chests. As such, she planted her forelegs on the mahogany windowsill and balanced on her back two legs, managing pulling her chin over the ledge.
The sprawling abode in which the filly resided shared land with several other houses in close proximity; though her family had the luxury of their own front and back yards, the nearest house – belonging to a rather wealthy notary and his wife – lay a mere fifteen feet away from the window. The first thing she noticed amiss were the garbage cans on the side of her neighbour's house – the tin canisters had been forcefully knocked over, bags and their contents strewn about haphazardly. “Perhaps some animals got into them?” she mused aloud. As she took in more and more of the scene, however, more and more appeared to be out of place. For one, the gates of the white picket fence which encompassed the perimeter of her neighbour's yard was wide open; upon closer inspection thanks to a squinting of eyes, she noticed that the left half of the gate had been ripped clean off of its hinges while the right just barely remained attached, splintered wood and warped metal clear signs of formidable strength. Her eyes traced a path of isolated destruction leading inward from the gates – trampled flowerbeds and upturned patches of wet earth were cast here and there at random. She glanced over at the trash cans a second time, and noted with some alarm that the tins themselves were not, as she had previously thought, merely toppled: no, the aluminum receptacles were pocked with deep dents and great gouges, as if somepony had mistakenly stumbled into them in the darkness and thrashed them violently in a fit of reactionary rage.
The filly started to turn back around to wake her parents – clearly, there was a prowler on the loose in the neighbourhood! The royal guard had to be notified! Before she could complete the motion, however, her ears perked up as the sounds of rustling and...grunting?...rose up to meet her. Now thankful that her window lay a good ten feet off of the ground, her eyes darted back and forth, scanning the landscape, trying to pinpoint the location of the disturbance. They finally landed upon an expertly trimmed series of bushes adorning the rear of her neighbour's house – they appeared to be shaking. The bush's sole occupant emerged, bursting forth from the foliage violently as branches snapped and leaves were torn away. Though the night's lack of light inherently obscured her view of the supposed prowler, she noted with some surprise that the ruffian was little more than a foal itself; judging from the figure's stature and shape, the magenta filly surmised that the intruder had to have been only a year or so older than herself, and was more than likely a female. She gasped softly as the figure's hooves got tangled up in several branches that had fallen to the ground, falling forward with a dull thud that was only barely audible, given the distance between them. She did hear, however, the enraged snorts and grunts that soon followed the unexpected trip, instinctively tensing up upon sensing the raw anger and fury that was clearly present in the figure's wordless litany of frustration.
As it would happen, the young pony was not the only one to notice the strange occurrences taking place just outside her neighbour's home. Muffled at first but quickly growing in volume, she heard a series of incessant yips that could only belong to the notary's pet dog, Scruffy. Though the interior of the house remained for the moment darkened, she could tell from the way the sharp, accentuated barks traveled through the air that the dog was no doubt situated just behind the pair of sliding glass doors that led to her neighbour's backyard. The filly let a small wave of relief wash over her upon this revelation; surely, the small dog's constant yipping and whining would alert the notary and his wife to the presence of the intruder. Relief quickly turned to horror, however, when the intruder reacted to this new development. Now that the figure had regained its balance, it snapped its head toward the new auditory addition to its environment and snarled viciously. Amid unrelenting canine yapping, the figure let out a dull roar and charged, careening headlong into the glass-paned doors. They shattered instantaneously upon impact, the sound not entirely unlike several dozen glass vases being dropped at the same time. Though it may indeed have been the young filly's overactive imagination filling in the gaps, she could have sworn that she heard the sounds of shards of glass tearing into flesh.
The dog let out a small, startled yip, a sound that mixed in with the crunch of broken glass being ground to a pulp underhoof. There was nothing for a moment, save for a few muted crashes.
Then, the screaming.
The magenta filly did not know that dogs could scream; she quickly gleaned this shocking truth as the figure undoubtedly set upon its tiny, noisy adversary. Her own mind again filled in the blanks in the absence of light, but she was silently grateful for the lack of a visual counterpart. A cacophonous series of pained yips and strained howls rang out clear, causing the young one to wince a bit. Pops, breaks, squishes and tears amounted to the only logical conclusion that the filly could draw upon – her neighbour's dog was in the process of being brutally ravaged. For the better part of a minute, the filly could do little more than listen in horror as the assault went on, finally culminating in a resounding screech which sent shivers up and down her spine. There was silence yet again for just a few moments; then, the lights came on. Through the blinds, she saw the silhouettes of the notary and his wife quickly shuffling about in their upstairs bedroom. She followed their path across the room as the silhouettes briefly disappeared from sight, the hallway lights also being turned on in their absence. The two made their way to the stairwell, she assumed, and flicked on the downstairs lights, illuminating most of the lower floor and revealing the shocking extent of the carnage that had already taken place.
Several of the windows on the lower floor were spattered with blood, great red streaks and lines adorning the transparent panes. The filly, taking in the scene through the stark cloud of shock which beset her, absentmindedly noticed the presence of fur and streaks of gore intertwined in several of the streaks. Her wide, unblinking eyes moved toward the shattered sliding glass doors; blood pooled in between the thousands upon thousands of glass shards which littered the floor. Just beyond the majority of the broken glass lay what remained of the neighbour's pet dog – reduced to little more than several piles of bulbous flesh and gore, the poor canine had quite literally been ripped apart. Her breath caught in her chest as waves of panic radiated outward, sending an unpleasant tingling sensation coursing up and down her extremities. A flash of movement to her left mercifully wrenched her eyes from the mutilated corpse. The notary, a tall (if somewhat gangly) middle-aged stallion, stood at the bottom of the stairwell, motioning frantically at his wife. He beckoned her with his forelegs to back away, turning his back on her as he did so and beginning to menacingly advance toward the depravity at the back of his kitchen. His wife, a rather plump mare with a green coat and cyan mane, stumbled a bit on her way back up the stairs, quickly reaching the top of the stairwell and stared unbelieving at what little remained of her precious pooch.
The notary began to shout angrily at the intruder; now that the lights were on in her neighbour's house, the magenta filly finally got a good look at her. She, too, was a filly, her ruddy white coat fettered with a multitude of nicks, scratches and cuts. Her muzzle was absolutely coated in blood, dark red drops cast in every direction as she twitched spasmodically. Broken and crushed shards of glass stuck out of her legs at random angles, black-red blood oozing from the wounds. The white filly regarded the advancing notary with an unreadable look on her face. Although she was not able to make out the exact words being shouted at the intruder, the magenta observer surmised that they were unkind and probably laden with profanity. The white filly stumbled a bit, and advanced toward her new foe.
“Oh, no,” she said quietly to herself – the notary was headed straight for her! Why didn't he run? With another guttural cry, the intruder charged at the notary, hitting him directly in his center of gravity with the top of her skull. Caught off guard, he fell to the ground with a thud, eyes wide with surprise. In an off-white blur of unimaginable ferocity, she was on him. As the notary screamed in pain and agony, the white filly tore into his abdomen, head bobbing up and down as she took out several hoof-sized hunks and flung them carelessly to the side in rapid succession. Several small fountains of blood spurted forth from the abdominal cavity, coating both attacker and victim alike in the hot, sticky liquid. The white filly opened her mouth wide, baring blood-smeared teeth and plunged her snout deep into the notary's stomach, biting and tearing the organs inside, gnashing them to a bloody pulp in her mouth. She tore out his intestines, gleaming coils of sausage-like fleshy rope being torn from his abdomen with unspeakable force. His wife had begun to scream in horror, and was unrelenting in her wails as the white filly greedily forced her snout into the notary's midsection; again and again she repeated the gruesome process, expelling clots of blood that had been lodged in her nostrils with a snort. After the intestines came the liver, a quivering, bulbous mass of dark red gore that the filly voraciously tore into, tearing chunks out of the organ and swallowing them without chewing. She dipped her snout into the dying notary's abdomen a final time, nearly three quarters of her blood-soaked head disappearing into his gut. A sickening crack signaled the death blow; she had bitten the stallion's spine clean in half, paralyzing him instantly. His eyes went dark as he breathed his final breath.
His wife, still screaming in terror, took off at a gallop down the stairs, nearly tripping again as she did so. The catatonic magenta filly watched her as she burst forth from the front door, shrieking at unimaginably high frequencies. The sound of the panic-stricken mare's vocal expulsions finally shook the filly from her horrified observance; she, too, broke out into a gallop and quickly made her way to her parent's bedroom door, not even bothering to knock as she rammed the door open. Her unicorn father and earth pony mother stirred, the former sitting up with a bolt as he was the lighter sleeper of the two.
“Honey, what's wrong? Wha...what time is it?” a sleepy stallion asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes with a hoof.
“Dad! It's Mr. Quill Stroke! He-he's...he's-” The young filly began to hyperventilate, short sharp breaths filling the room.
“Calm down, dear,” her mother replied, her speech slightly slurred. She sat up in bed as well, then swung her hooves over the side, making her way to the filly. “Take a couple of deep breaths. It's ok.” She placed a comforting foreleg over the side of the shaking young pony, drawing her close. The filly did her best to calm herself, to little avail; she was, however, able to get her breathing under control to the point where she was able to continue.
“Mr. Quill Stroke – he's dead! Somepony killed him and his dog! I saw it!” the filly shouted as she begun to sob. At that, the unicorn stallion rose to his hooves as well, his daughter's statement hitting him like a speeding train.
“What?! He's dead? Hon, are you sure about this?” he asked in a firm voice.
“Y-yeah! I woke up and I heard a noise outside, and I saw somepony in his back yard and then Scruffy started barking and...and then she crashed through the glass doors! And-”
“She?” her mother interrupted. “Who is 'she'?”
“The pony that killed him! She tore Scruffy apart and then killed Mr. Quill Stroke too! It was awful...oh Celestia, there was blood everywhere!”
“I'm going to go have a look,” the unicorn stallion said.
“Are you insane?!” his wife replied, regarding her husband incredulously. “If what Dewdrop is saying is true, then there's a killer out there!”
“Lemon Drop, we don't have time to argue. I am more than capable of looking after myself – I'll take a quick look outside, then I'll come back. Lock the doors after me and look after Dewdrop, ok?”
“But-” Suddenly, there came several loud banging sounds from downstairs. Somepony...or something...was knocking on their front door.
“Stay here.” the unicorn commanded, fixing a deadly serious gaze on his wife and daughter.
The unicorn quickly but quietly made his way downstairs, muffled footsteps masked by the constant pounding on the front door. Though obscured by the thick wooden door, the stallion instantly recognized the voice that came interspersed between the bangs – Regal Flair, the notary's wife. He trotted to the door with haste and unlocked it, just barely dodging the teary and hysteric blue mare that came crashing through the vestibule.
“Oh praise Celestia, thank you, Seeker! You're the first one who actually opened their door!” she sobbed, collapsing against his chest. He quickly reached up with a long foreleg and shut the door behind her; however, as the weeping mare pressed up against him shifted her weight, he nearly lost his balance as he fumbled to correct himself.
“Regal! What happened to you? My daughter, she said something about-”
“He's DEAD! My husband is DEAD!” she wailed, the timbre of her voice stinging the stallion's ears ever so slightly. “Some...some monster broke into our home and killed poor Scruffy! Quill Stroke tried to chase her out...Celestia's sake, she was just a kid! She tore Scruffy apart and then she did the same to my Quill Stroke!”
“C-calm down, Regal. I'm sure-”
“Calm down?! CALM DOWN?! How in Equestria can you expect me to calm down?! I just saw my husband murdered, Seeker! Oh sweet Celestia, he's dead, he's dead, HE-” Against his better judgment, he slapped her. It was a light enough strike to not cause any actual damage, but the hoof across the face certainly snapped her out of her hysterics, albeit temporarily. She stared at him with widened eyes conveying a potent mixture of shock, anger, revulsion and grief.
“Look, Regal, I'm sorry I had to do that. If the murderer is still out there – and I assume that she is – then it might not be safe for us down here. Go upstairs, first door on the left. Lemon Drop and Dewdrop are inside. Lock the door-”
“Seeker? What's going on here?” Lemon Drop called from the top of the stairs. Having heard the panicked exchange between her husband and her neighbour, curiosity had gotten the best of her. Seeker twirled around and angrily said,
“Goddammit, Lemon Drop! I thought I told you to stay with Dewdrop! Take Regal Flair up with you, and for the love of Celestia, lock the goddamn door and don't open it for anypony. Do you hear me?!”
“O-of course, Seeker. Regal, if you would please follow me,” the earth pony mare meekly said, beckoning her sobbing neighbour to follow her. The two met at the top of the stairs and disappeared from sight, leaving the unicorn stallion alone downstairs.
Looking around the room, Seeker's eyes fell upon a small end table at the side of a couch. Flipping it over with his snout, he clutched a leg in his teeth and smashed it against the wall – once, twice, finally breaking it apart on the third swing. Using his magic, he levitated the broken table leg into the air, brandishing the makeshift club in front of him as he cautiously trotted over to a window on the adjacent wall. He pushed a curtain aside with a hoof and peered out into the darkness; the lights were on next door, and he noted grimly that there was indeed a decent amount of blood coating several of his neighbour's windows. Driven by the unstoppable urge to protect his family, he debated with himself internally for a moment. Given that he lived in a relatively upscale area of Canterlot, the royal guard did not necessarily make a habit of patrolling the streets that made up the neighbourhood. He knew that the closest royal guard station was roughly ten blocks away from his house, and he knew that if he hurried, he could make it there in a little over five minutes – that, however, meant leaving his wife, child and traumatized neighbour alone with a killer on the loose. Begrudgingly, he admitted that this option was probably the least feasible. Racking his brain, he decided that he would have to make his way across the street and wake up Star Gazer, a long-time friend of his. If Star Gazer could go to the station and report the crime in his stead, that meant that he would be able to stay there and protect his family and neighbour; this course of action appealed to him, and with a nod, it was settled.
Making certain not to create any unnecessary noises, the table-leg wielding unicorn stallion unlocked the front door and stepped into the cool night air. His eyes darted back and forth, looking for any signs of movement. Seeker allowed himself to quickly trot into his backyard, placing himself in front of Quill Stroke's kitchen window; it wasn't pretty. The mutilated corpses of his neighbour and what had formerly been known as a dog were strewn about the kitchen floor – it looked like the inside of a butcher's shop. From what he could see, the murderer was not present: he didn't like that, the obvious implication being that the murderer could be literally anywhere. Again moving as quickly and as silently as he could manage, he exited his yard and trotted up to Star Gazer's front door. The unicorn rang the bell urgently. He didn't want to knock just yet – knocking would make too much noise, possibly alerting the murderer to his presence outdoors. Ringing the bell several more times, he allowed himself to breathe a soft sigh of relief when a light came on upstairs. He glanced behind him, eyes still scanning for any movement. Just as he was about to turn his head back toward the door, he could have sworn that he saw something dart just beyond his field of vision: he positioned his body so he could get a better look in the direction where he thought it came from. He regarded the area for a few moments, but saw nothing. Seeker jumped a bit at the sound of a lock being turned behind him. The door slowly swung open – standing in the doorway was a very tired and somewhat annoyed Star Gazer, a robust dark-blue stallion unicorn with a jet-black mane.
“Ugh...Seeker? Do you know what time it is? ...why are you levitating a table leg?” he asked drearily, yawning slightly.
“Apologies, Star Gazer, but this is an emergency. Quill Stroke has been murdered,” he replied quickly. Star Gazer's eyes widened, then narrowed. He looked past Seeker across the street and saw the lights on in Quill Stroke's house.
“Murdered?! Are you sure?”
“Unfortunately, yes. I got a look at it, and trust me – it isn't good. Poor Quill Stroke was torn to pieces,” he answered, lips tightening into a pained grimace. “Star Gazer, I need your help.”
“M-me? What can I do, Seeker?”
“I need you to go and alert the royal guard. You and I both know that they don't get out this way without good reason, and I can't risk leaving Lemon Drop, Dewdrop and Regal Flair alone. It's too dangerous.”
“Regal Flair? What is she doing in your house?”
“She was pounding on the door – what was I supposed to do, leave her outside? Look, we're running out of time, here. The killer could be anywhere. You and I both know that you're a faster runner than I am-”
“-quite. I always did come out on top when we were in track and field together back at University.”
“Ha, ha. There's always time for gloating later, Star Gazer. Right now, I need you. This neighbourhood needs you. Can you do this for me?”
“Look, Seeker, I can understand where you're coming from – however, if what you're saying is true, then how can you expect me to leave my family alone at a time like this? You said it yourself, it's too dangerous. What if the killer breaks into my house, too? What of Moon Dancer and the foals?”
“You raise a very good point, Star Gazer, but I...um, what are you looking at?” Star Gazer's eyes had casually drifted beyond Seeker's head and were affixed on something behind him. His mouth hung open, his voice failing to work for him as he was only able to motion weakly with a hoof. Seeker twirled on spot, saw what his friend was looking at, and managed a rare, “Oh, fuck.”
Quill Stroke was lumbering slowly toward them, moaning as he did so. His eyes burned red, lambent pinpricks glowing devilishly in the darkness. The few pulverized shreds of internal organs that had remained inside his abdominal cavity after his brutal murder were flopping out and trailing behind him. One of his back legs got tangled in a three foot long length of intestine; as he continued his unsteady gait, the motion tore the remaining bits of fleshy rope from his insides with a sickening squelching sound, the wet tendrils of gore plopping onto the ground. The infected steadily closed the distance between himself and the two unicorn stallions looking on in horror. Without warning, their horns began to simultaneously glow; their pupils dilated as the raw magical energy shot through their bodies, rendering them immobile. Seeker's makeshift club fell to the ground as he lost his telekinetic hold on the table leg. Now mere yards away from the infected stallion's first victims, the Seeker and Star Gazer heard a voice in their heads:
“This is a message to all magic-using ponies throughout Equestria. This is Princess Luna, goddess of the Moon. A terrible virus has begun to break out all across our fair kingdom...”
----------------------------------------
Present
“Applejack, there's another one!” Pinkie Pie's shrill voice cried out, motioning to her right with her head as the two galloped.
“Consarnit, where do they all keep comin' from?!” Applejack asked rhetorically, adjusting her gallop to dodge yet another attacker. After saving the mother and her two foals from the infected pegasus, the two earth ponies had been slowly making their way to Sugarcube Corner. They had met little resistance at the beginning, but were now almost constantly accosted by an alarming amount of infected ponies that seemed to pop up out of nowhere. Amidst the overturned carts and spilled produce, the two ponies dodged and weaved their way through the destroyed marketplace, constantly vigilant. Though they were mere blocks away from Sugarcube Corner, a substantial group of infected stood between them, blocking the immediate path ahead.
“Pinkie, ah don't know if we can go in through the front – not with all them infected in the way!” Pinkie Pie had seen the growing group of adversaries as well, and was already formulating an alternative route in her head. Looking left and right, her eyes finally fell upon the alleyway that she had envisioned.
“This way, AJ! Follow me!” the pink pony shouted over the din, suddenly breaking off to her right. Applejack followed suit, deftly jumping over a series of watermelons that littered the path. The alley that the two earth ponies darted into was narrow, no more than two yards wide. Garbage bins and various refuse adorned the left side of the alleyway, making the going that much more narrow in places. Applejack cursed silently as one of her back hooves caught a trash can and tipped it over, sending the metal bin crashing to the ground. The sound reverberated off of the walls in the enclosed space, amplifying the sound by several orders of magnitude. Within seconds, Pinkie Pie and Applejack reached a split in the alley; one path curved off to the left while the other sharply turned to the right.
“Which way do we-” Applejack began.
“C'mon, over here!” Pinkie interrupted, taking the path that wound to the left. As the sounds of the carnage going on in the marketplace began to fade with distance, Applejack asked,
“Pinkie, where're we goin'?”
“This path'll lead us to the back door at Sugarcube Corner. That way, none of those mean nasty zombie ponies will know we're in there!”
“Ah sure hope you're right, Pinkie Pie.”
“Left!”
“...no, ah said ah hope you're right.”
“Turn left!” Pinkie shouted, following her own advice. Applejack, who had been looking sideways at her companion, just barely had time to adjust her gallop – she had nearly crashed headfirst into a brick wall that signaled the end of that particular path in the alleyway.
“Heh...gotta pay more attention, ah suppose,” she said aloud. As the two ponies traversed the twisting back alleys behind Ponyville's shops, Applejack's mind drifted to what had happened no less than ten minutes prior. The confrontation with the infected pegasus played forward in her mind, flashes of the atrocity she had committed burned into her memory. Ah can't believe ah really killed somepony...she thought to herself. Ah'm...ah'm a murderer. Ah'm nothin' more than a no-good, filthy-
“It's not your fault, AJ,” Pinkie Pie said. Applejack blinked.
“Huh? What?”
“I know what you're thinking, and you did the right thing.”
“Pinkie, how in tarnation do you-”
“Because you look sad! And when one of my friends is sad, I get sad, too! And besides, I got a burny eyebrow when I looked at you just now.”
“Burny what, now?”
“Pinkie sense!” she replied, though her voice was decidedly lacking in its usual cheer. “When I get a burny eyebrow, it means that one of my friends is guilty about something. You shouldn't feel guilty, Applejack. You did what you had to – and besides, you saved that family!”
“Yeah, but you helped...”
“I distracted, AJ. You did all the work, trust me. Don't feel bad about it, ok? They're not ponies anymore. They're zombies!”
“...yeah, ah suppose yer right, Pinkie Pie.” Though there was conviction in her voice, Applejack still felt uneasy. It would definitely take some quality introspective contemplation for her to fully come to terms with what had happened, and she knew it. Unfortunately, the situation which herself and her pink friend found themselves in did now allow for any manner of introspection.
Pinkie Pie slowed to a trot. “We're here,” she said quietly, motioning to the lime green door just ahead of them. Indeed, this was the rear of Sugarcube Corner – the alley behind the store was slightly wider than the twisting path that had led them there. A lone dumpster sat to the left of the back door, its contents overflowing onto the cobblestone below.
“Sheesh, Pinkie Pie. When's the last time the trash ponies have been through to collect this stuff?” Applejack asked as she scrunched her nose at the smell of rotting garbage.
“You know the garbage ponies, Applejack. They're a pretty lazy bunch,” she said. The two advanced toward the door, minding the various refuse scattered about. Pinkie Pie produced a key and inserted it into the lock, turning it to the left with her mouth. The deadbolt slid out of the divet in the door frame with a click, and Pinkie pushed the door open with her muzzle. Though it was quite dark in the alley behind Sugarcube Corner, the interior appeared to be even darker; squinting, Pinkie Pie could just barely make out the light switch on the wall. She reached up with a foreleg to flick the switch, before Applejack blocked the motion, shaking her head slightly.
“Ah don't think that's such a good idea, Pinkie. We don't want nopony outside to know that we're in here.” Pinkie Pie nodded in agreement.
“Grab my tail, AJ. I think I can get us through without bumping into anything, but we need to be quiet.”
“Right, just lemme shut this here door,” Applejack said. She turned and closed the door as quietly as she could, fumbling around in the darkness until she found the deadbolt. She turned the lock, and the reinforced steel slid back into the divet with another click.
The orange earth pony bent and gently clutched a length of the pink pony's tail in her mouth, trying her best to move in time with her friend. In the deafening silence of the back room, the sounds of their hooves against the wood flooring seemed to echo ever so slightly before falling flat, the sound dying just as quickly as it came. Pinkie Pie felt the right side of her flank brush up against a cardboard box; she quickly corrected her course to make certain Applejack didn't do the same – or worse, knock the thing over. After a full minute of a nearly blind trek through Sugarcube Corner's back room, Pinkie felt her nose make contact with the door that led into the main area of the shop.
“Ok, here's the door,” she whispered, prompting Applejack to release her tail. She turned the knob with her mouth and pushed the door open, wincing slightly as the creaky hinge pins groaned as the door swung outward. The soft flow of several candles filled the room; regaining their vision was a welcome relief for the two earth ponies. As they trotted silently into the room, however, they noted a distinct lack of...well, anypony.
“Where'd you think they got to?” Applejack whispered, still keeping her voice level to a minimum.
“I dunno...maybe they're in the-” A sudden whimper, followed by several shushes met their ears. Craning her neck to the right, Applejack said,
“Ah think that came from the kitchen.” She took a few steps in that direction, tensing up instinctively. “Hello?” She raised her voice a tad, just loud enough for it to travel into the kitchen. “Anypony in there?” Several sighs of relief came from the darkened kitchen.
“Applejack? Is that you?” a voice belonging to a certain white unicorn rang out.
“Yeah, it's jus' me'n Pinkie, Rarity. What're y'all doin' back there?” The white unicorn, three young fillies in tow, emerged from the kitchen with reserved looks of abatement on their faces.
“Well, Sweetie Belle thought she heard something in the back room, and I didn't want to take any chances, so-” She was interrupted by a flying pink mass of fur which ran into her, embracing her in a tight squeeze.
“Oh, I'm so glad you're ok, Rarity! And the Crusaders, too! You kept them safe!”
“P-pinkie Pie...t-too tight!” Rarity managed, speaking with obvious strain.
“Oops! Sorry,” a bashful Pinkie Pie said, releasing her friend who promptly hunched over and drew several deep breaths.
“Applejack! Ah knew you'd make it back!” Apple Bloom cried, running up to her big sister and wrapping her forelegs around the orange mare's neck.
“Ah wouldn't leave my little sis' alone at a time like this,” she affirmed, returning the hug in earnest.
“W-what's it like out there, Pinkie Pie?” a clearly nervous Scootaloo inquired. “Did you guys see my mom anywhere...?” Applejack let go of Apple Bloom, shaking her head.
“Sorry, Scoot, but Pinkie and ah didn't see anypony flying around out there. Ah'm sure she's ok – ah mean, she's a pegasus after all, right? Soon as things started to get back, she prob'ly took off into the air, ah reckon,” she assured the tearful pegasus filly, placing a comforting hoof on the little one's head.
“But what of her other question, Applejack?” Rarity asked. “Just what is going on out there?” Applejack thought for a moment, then shook her head.
“Not in front of the fillies, Rarity.” she said in a hushed tone. Resuming her normal speaking voice, she added, “Pinkie Pie, would'ya mind takin' them three into the kitchen an' makin' them somethin' ta eat? Ah'm sure that all this excitement has built up quite an appetite, am ah right, girls?”
“Yeah, I guess...” Scootaloo replied.
“Ah'm starved!” added Apple Bloom.
“I guess I should try to eat something,” Sweetie Belle answered.
“That the spirit!” Pinkie Pie said cheerfully. “C'mon, girls, follow me! I'll make you some of my super-duper special lemon bars!” The three fillies followed the bouncing pink pony (who had been temporarily been overcome with joy at the prospect of cheering up a few very frightened fillies) into the kitchen. Applejack waited for a moment, ensuring that the children were out of earshot. She then trotted wordlessly over to a table at the other side of the room, sitting down wearily. She took off her hat and ran a hoof through her mane, sighing slightly as she did so. Rarity followed, and sat down across from her.
“Applejack...you don't look so well. What happened?” Rarity asked. Her well-tuned attention to detail allowed her to read minute changes on her friend's face, and she didn't like what she saw. She sensed...grief. Regret. Perhaps a bit of shock.
“Ah...ah had to kill somepony out there,” Applejack spat, though the her flat tone of voice was devoid of anger. Rarity gasped, raising a white hoof to her mouth.
“Oh...oh goodness, Applejack. I'm so sorry.”
“Yeah, you'n me both, Rarity.” She briefly told her unicorn friend about the encounter with the infected pegasus, and how she and Pinkie had saved the cornered family.
Rarity sat in stunned silence for a moment, absorbing the new information.
“Ah'm a monster, Rarity,” Applejack lamented softly, tears beginning to form in her eyes. “Ah'm no better than them 'infected' ponies runnin' around.” She cast her head downward, looking but not really looking at the table beneath her. A white hoof lifted her chin; Rarity's brilliant, dark blue eyes stared at her incredulously, as if she didn't believe what she had just heard.
“Now look here, Applejack. I will not allow any friend of mine to say that she is a monster, especially when she did what she did to save three lives.”
“But-”
“-no, no. No. Let me finish.” Applejack closed her jaw, tears now flowing freely from her green eyes. “Everypony has demons, Applejack – proverbial 'skeletons in the closet', if you will. I have them, Pinkie has them – why, I imagine even Princess Celestia has regrets, living as long as she has lived. The most important thing to remember, however, is this – you cannot allow your demons to define who you are. If everypony with skeletons in their closet carried them around and allowed them to burden themselves, what would that make them? I'll tell you: that would make them weak.” Applejack blinked; she had never heard her friend talk like this before. “Weakness...put it this way, Applejack. You simply do not have a weak bone in your body. You are one of the most honest, trustworthy, strong-willed friends a pony could ask for, and I think that I am rather privileged to call you my friend. Do you remember when you and I were caught in that nasty storm, and we stayed at Twilight's house for the evening? Do you remember how we bickered and argued the entire evening? You see, there is a difference between strong-willed and stubborn: you were strong-willed. I was the one who was being stubborn. When you accidentally pulled that tree through the window, you were the first among the two of us to apologize. I respect that, Applejack.
“Now, as far as what you had to do to save that poor family is concerned, allow me to ask you this – did you kill that pegasus with malice in your heart? Did you end that monstrosity's second, depraved life out of spite or hatred, or was it out of necessity? In your heart, I am absolutely certain that you know honest truth – you did what you did because it was necessary to do so. Had you not put that poor infected pony out of her misery, she may have hurt other ponies; she may have hurt you, or Pinkie Pie! From what I have seen thus far this evening, these 'infected' ponies are merely shells of their former selves...they are monsters, put simply. What you killed – though she may have looked like a pony in every way, shape and form – was not really a pony anymore. Ponies are good – if somewhat misguided – creatures at heart. Ponies don't kill other ponies just for the sake of killing, which is, unfortunately, what is occurring just outside the door.
“Applejack, I know that you can get through this. I know you can. Though it is a regrettable and painful aspect of the situation in which we now find ourselves, you may need to kill again.”
“...ah didn't wanna kill anypony. Ah don't wanna kill any more.”
“I know...I know, Applejack. This is a dark time for all of us, but the reality of the situation is this; amongst the five of us, you are the most physically capable. Pinkie Pie is...Pinkie Pie, your sister, mine and Scootaloo are just children, and myself...well, suffice it to say that I would only kill if it were absolutely necessary, to protect those whom I love. Now, let me ask you another question, Applejack. Do you love your sister?”
“Wha-whaddya mean, 'do ah love mah sister'? 'Course ah do! I love'er with all mah heart!”
“Do you love your friends? Do you love the ponies of this town?”
“Damn tootin', ah do,” the orange pony replied, wiping tears from her face.
“Are you willing to fight for those you love?”
“Absolutely!” she cried, accentuating her point by slamming a hoof down on the wooden table. Rarity was positively beaming.
“Now, that's the Applejack that I know!” She allowed her smile to fade a bit, before adding, “Look, Applejack. I know it wasn't easy, what you did out there. But you must remember this, above all else: they. Are. Not. Ponies. Not anymore. Although it may go against every fibre of your being, although it may go against your very nature, I ask you to prepare yourself for the likely inevitability that you will have to kill again. A great pony once said that extraordinary situations call for extraordinary measures; this is, indeed, such a situation.”
“...ah know it is, Rarity. T-thank you fer talkin' to me like that. Really, thank you. That's exactly what ah needed to hear, and ah know it came from the heart.” Rarity smiled again, nodding firmly.
“Think nothing of it, Applejack. After all, what are friends for? Now, if you should need anypony to talk to in moments like these, you know that I will always be there to listen.” The orange earth pony, no longer tearful and looking much better than she did before, re-affixed the brown Stetson hat to the top of her head.
“Why don't we see what Pinkie Pie's up to in the kitchen? Ah just realized that ah'm positively starvin',” Applejack suggested, vacating her seat at the table.
“Capital idea.” |
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