It was late at night, and i was getting ready for bed. I sat in my bed, looking around the room. I could only make out the general shape of the furniture in the darkness. The only light visible was from a street lamp, which at its angle shone into half of my apartment bedroom, much like those old 50’s detective movies. I unsure of how I should be feeling…should I have been excited, nervous, or terrified? I had received word last week that in two week’s time, my deployment into a foreign army base would send me into a land unknown, filled with hostiles that would like nothing more than to see me dead. I felt as though I had just received my death warrant, yet I did not feel afraid. My six months in army camp had prepared me well for the fight ahead, but they say that no matter how prepared you are, you just aren't prepared for what’s coming. I glanced over to my nightstand, and picked up my family photo.
There I was, with my father, mother and younger brother. They stayed in the countryside when I moved to the city, closer to the base, so I regularly video chat with them to stay in touch. With all the work I've had, I could never find the time to go down and visit them. My parents had mixed reactions when I told them I had signed up for the army. At first my mother fought me for not having told them about it, till it was too late. My father, a stern man, simply said to me “If you think it’s what you want in life, then be sure of it and do it.” I knew his tough way of being was his way of showing his affection to me. My younger brother couldn't accept it. “Why do you have be a soldier? Why do you want to kill people for a living? Why do you want to leave me?” I took me a while to calm him down and assure him that I wasn't doing this to leave anyone that I had wanted to serve my country and to make myself a better person. “But you are already a great person….you are the best brother I could ever have…” He told me between his tearful gasps. It broke my heart to see him like that, but I was determined to see this through to the end.
I couldn't sleep. With those memories flooding back, I was too emotive to sleep. I pulled my laptop out of its case by my bed, and started it up. If I was lucky, my younger brother would still be up and we’d be able to video chat for a while. It’s been due, since I haven’t spoken to him in a few days. Luckily, he was online. I sent him a video call, and waited for about 15 minutes before he accepted. “Hey bro, how are you?” He eagerly asked. I chuckled, “Hey, little bro, it’s been a while. I can see you’re excited.”
“Yeah, I had been waiting all night to see if you went online so we could talk.”
“Really? Because you didn't answer my request until 15 minutes after I sent it. Shows how much you wanted to talk…”
“Sorry about that. It’s just that I was watching an episode of a show I really like, and wanted to finish it before we talked.”
“Oh? Well it has to be a pretty good show if it was more important than talking to your brother who’s been away for several months. What show is it?”
He hesitated for a moment.
“Well… if I told you, you’d make fun of me for liking it…”
I snickered. “Why? Is it one of those saucy animes you like to watch? You know I like anime too, depending on what it’s about.”
“No it’s not an anime…it’s a cartoon show.”
I grinned, “Well if it’s a cartoon show, then why would I make fun of you for liking it? Everyone likes cartoons.”
He got flustered a bit and looked over his shoulder, no idea why; he does have his own room.
“I like this show called My Little pony: Friendship is magic.”
It took a moment to sink in, and then I had to bite my hand to stifle my roaring laughter before I cause a noise complaint.
“My little pony? You mean the really, really girly show about the colorful horses who learned about the magic of friendship and stuff?”
He was obviously disdainful to my reaction.
“It’s actually a really cool show! The animations are great, the dialogue is really well written, and the characters are dynamic and fully developed!”
Tears almost began forming from how badly I wanted to laugh out loud, but I didn't want to hurt my brother’s feelings, so I collected myself and managed to ask him through giggles and chortles, “So have you asked mom to buy you some pony toys so you can play with them in an enchanted castle?”
My brother began to lose his patience. “I knew you’d make fun of me if I told you I liked it!
“I’m sorry, but seriously? My little pony? Dude that show is ridiculously girly and frilly!”
“I bet you’d like it if you tried it…”
I couldn't help but let a laugh out. “You want me to watch that show? Seriously?
My brother grinned. “Tell you what: I’ll send you a link to an episode. Watch it. If you don’t like it, I’ll never speak to you about it again, OK?”
I thought about it. It couldn't be that bad to watch a single episode. Besides, if I don’t like it, and I wouldn't, he won’t talk about it again. It doesn't bother me that he does, but what the heck, I’m game for it.
“All right little bro, send me the link. I’ll watch it before I go to sleep. For now, let’s keep talking…”
We talked for another twenty five minutes before I heard mom call him, telling him to go to bed.
“Remember to watch the episode, and tell me what you think tomorrow.”
I replied, “You know what? As soon as I’m done with it, ill text you the reply. That way, you’ll know I won the bet even sooner.”
He laughed mockingly, then said, “We’ll see bro…We’ll see….”
I logged off after that; he knew I wasn't good at goodbyes, even casual ones like these. I closed the video chat window, but not before I opened the link he had sent me. I honestly didn't know what to expect…a show for little girls that appealed to older men? What could it possibly have to cause that? As I watched the opening theme, I thought to myself, “Wow that was the most unmasculine thing I've ever experienced. I think I need to punch a brick wall to feel manly again.” After the first ten minutes, I found myself mildly entertained by what I was watching. For a moment I forgot I was watching a kids show and it felt like any other cartoon show to me. I liked the characters and how they behaved. They really did seem well developed and voiced. By the end of the episode, I wasn't sure whether my initial skepticism kept me from actually liking it or if I actually didn't like it. Either way, I wasn't going to tell my brother I was now into girly ponies, so I whipped out my phone and texted him, “It was OK…but I still win the bet. :D” I put my cell on the nightstand, by the family picture. I stared up into the ceiling and smirked to myself. “My little pony…Hehe a really childish show that I think I liked. The characters weren't half bad.” I felt myself slowly diving into a deep sleep. “Especially that purple pony…what was her name….twilight…something…” I closed my eyes, finally asleep.
On the outskirts of Ponyville, Trixie is running with all her might, desperate and afraid. She runs across a war torn field full of abandoned bunkers and mortar holes, a small blight of brilliant azure against a bleak environment of grey smoke. Large numbers of unknown enemies follow behind, their marching sounding across the ground, making the ground tremble. She soon runs out of breath and takes a pause to try to catch her breath. She eyes a small hole in the ground under a small rising of dirt.
“Trixie should be able to hide there, before they find me…”
Scurrying into the bunker, she finds that it rather small, with no means of defending. This place was a deathtrap, and the only way out was going to soon be surrounded by a large number of infantry.
“Oh no! Trixie cannot stay, or they’ll find her!”
Her mind raced, thinking of ways she could escape. Fighting wasn’t an option; she’d be overwhelmed in seconds. She could try projecting a shield, but her magic wouldn't be strong enough to fend off all their attacks until she got to a safe place; Ponyville was still a long ways off. Hiding would be the same as suicide…They’d find her sooner or later. Trixie began crying, her feeling helpless and facing death frightening her.
“Trixie doesn’t want to die…I don’t want to die…somepony please help Trixie…please help me…”
Trixie cried in the far end of the bunker, huddled in a ball, as mortar fire rained over head, rocking the bunker, causing earth and dust to fall. Trixie’s horn began to glow a light blue, and Trixie raised her head, her face beaming.
“Of course! If the Great and Powerful Trixie needs some pony to rescue her from this peril, then the Great and Powerful Trixie will MAKE somepony come and rescue her!”
She focused all her might in her magic, her horn glowing brightly with some sparks shooting off. The magic aura began to increase at a steady rate, and a light blue light began to bathe the bunker.
“Almost got it…just a little more…”
Just as the spell reached its peak, an explosion overhead rocked the bunker, causing debris to fall on Trixie, completely covering her and knocking her out cold…
An explosion nearby shook me awake; I became focused, alert. I glanced around the small dirt bunker and saw the rubble in front of me. I saw what appeared to be small patches of light blue under a mound of rubble. He looked at it, puzzled by this sight.
“A light blue uniform….don’t know which army that belongs to. Maybe the UN?”
Another explosion took my attention away from the battered figure.
“That mortar was close by…Damn, I don’t see any defenses or weapons here, and my only squad mate is down…”
I took a closer look at my “squad mate”.
“Wait a minute…that isn’t a uniform.”
As I reached to remove some debris, I realized how quiet it’d been, how the mortars had stopped falling, and there were no signs of further explosions. I decided to use this momentary cease fire to investigate my surroundings outside of this small dirt enclosure. I slowly peeked my head out of the bunker. All around me, I could see an empty, barren wasteland. It was filled with smoking craters and blackened dirt. I recognized these images too well: This was a warzone. I walked awkwardly out of the bunker to get a better view of where I was.
“There doesn’t seem to be anyone nearby… no sign of dead soldiers either. Maybe this was a preliminary defense that got abandoned, yet I don’t see any enemies occupying the region…”
Being lost in thought distracted me from someone who approached me from behind. No, wait there were two behind me. I heard the loading of an assault rifle and shotgun and a raspy voice commanding me to turn around with my hands in the air. I turned around, and I was able to get a better look at my attackers. They had black bodies, with holes in the arms and legs. They had blue eyes and wings, the wings reminding me of that of an insect. The horns on their heads were twisted and gnarled. They looked like dark twisted versions of horses. But not just any horses…
“They remind me of those ponies from My little pony! Wait, of everything why did that come to mind?”
One of them had a shotgun, and the other had an assault rifle, with a holstered sidearm. One of them said, in that strange distorted voice. “Stand down! Hooves in the air, where I can see them!”
I knew how to handle myself in this kind of situation, having been trained in hand-to hand combat, although I wouldn’t call it that here. Wait, did it just say “Hooves in the air?”
It spoke again, “Are you armed?” I replied with nothing but a gaze. This seemed to infuriate it. He took a step forward and began to say something else, but I took this opportunity to strike. I grabbed the assault rifle out of his hooves-like hands and used it to disrupt a shot from the other’s shotgun. Him having missed, I jabbed the soldier I just disarmed and, using the same momentum, roundhouse kicked the other with the shotgun, effectively taking him out. The other remaining soldier tried to bring out their sidearm, but I punched them in the throat and while he was keeling back from the blow, I took his sidearm and pistol-whipped it on the back of the head, rendering him unconscious and out cold. As I took his gun belt and placed it on me, while keeping an eye out for additional enemies, I tried to piece together what was going on, who they were, and what I was doing there. I came to a single conclusion.
“This has to be some kind of lucid, vivid dream. It’s the only logical explanation as to how I’m fighting disturbing creatures armed with assault weapons.” It was a shaky conclusion; everything felt so real, just like how I had trained back at boot camp. But what else could there be to explain this? I just didn't know at the moment… I didn't have much time to think about it, before I felt the earth began to rumble again and mortars began to shell the area around me, causing explosions and detonations to occur all around me. I flinched and quickly hid behind a mound in the ground. Out across the barren view, I could see a large, dense formation seem to march to my current location.
“Uh oh…I doubt they’re here to make peace with me.” I was going to hightail it in the other direction, but then I remembered that there was someone under a mound of rubble in the bunker I got out of. I was heading back into the bunker when an mortar landed a few feet away, on top of the mound. Inside the very dirt was shaken, and fell from the ceiling, reducing my visibility. I wish I could've helped whoever it was down there, but I had to abandon this area or risk getting both me and this other person killed. It seemed like I had no choice, and I began to run in the opposite direction of the army which was approaching fast. Through the smoke, I thought I could make out the visage of a small town.
“Don’t have many options, so why not?”I said to myself as I sprinted towards it, which could possibly serve as a safe haven for me if I got there in time.
“I’ll be back for you as soon as I can…I promise.” It was the best I could do for the moment…and it burned me with anger inside.
Running towards the town, I was hoping that I would find someone, who could help me find out not just what’s going on, but where I am. Having arrived past the first few houses, I can see that most of these building have been boarded up and are vacant. This doesn’t come as a big surprise; with the invasion force closing in, people would have probably be driven off to a shelter where they can be safe and just wait out this whole thing. Something about the color of these buildings and their overall look was oddly familiar, but I can’t quite put my tongue on it. Some distant gunshots reminded me that I do not have time to be sightseeing, and that I should keep moving. I try to find signs of life in this rather ominous ghost town, but alas there was no one around. I thought if it was a good idea to try to hide out in one of these buildings, but came to the conclusion that if I wanted a surefire way to make it out alive, I’m going to have to put as much distance as I can between myself and those strange soldiers.
I sprinted along the empty streets and abandoned buildings, until I came upon a large, strange building. It resembled a giant gingerbread house, with a sign hanging off to the right, with a muffin on it. What’s stranger is that this building seems familiar too, but again I can’t quite point out what it is. From the muffin sign, I assume this must be a bakery, and what a ridiculous looking bakery too. I shake my head at how offbeat this thing is, and continue my way along the right of the gingerbread bakery. Soon, I found myself in front of a tall, tower like structure.
I thought to myself, “Judging from the space around this building, and how big it is compared to everything else, this must be an important landmark…maybe a town hall?”
Nearby, I heard the sounds of a creek or river passing through. I circle around the landmark and came across a river, with two wooden bridges passing over it, one to my left and one to my right. If I go to the bridge on the left, it’ll take me down a path with a more open space, with a few dispersed trees and what appears to be a farm further down the road. Now to my right, it’s the polar opposite of my first choice. Dense forest, with so many trees it would be hard to see more then 20 meters ahead without having trees in the way. Although the path to the left seems like an easier road, the dense forest should provide excellent cover if I ever come face to face with more enemy soldiers. I went down the path to the right, crossing over the bridge and into the forest, down a dirt path.
Walking through the forest, never straying from the dirt path, I was ever vigilant of any possible ambush or surprise attack. Being a soldier, I was trained to be prepared for anything.
“I don’t like how quiet it is…although that could also be a good thing. I hope I meet up with someone soon. All this loneliness is really starting to make me feel uncomfortable.” Being armed with only a single handgun made me feel worse, seeing as how woefully unprepared I would be if I was to be attacked. Luckily, no such attack occurred, and I arrived to a wooden cottage with a small bridge over a creek. Feeling it to be safe to approach, I passed over the small bridge and went to the door.
I tried to open the door, but it wouldn’t budge. “Huh it’s locked…maybe that’s a sign that someone is inside.” I walked over to the window and peered inside, only to find it empty. The cottage was vacant and locked, no use trying to get in then. Looking around, I saw a small path which leads to a dark section of forest, but this forest seemed different from the one I previously traversed. It was much creepier looking and had a bad vibe coming from it. It seemed like a bad idea to head in alone, but seeing as how I’m being actively pursued, I don’t seem to have much choice.
Starting down the path, a sign covered in foliage and shrubs caught my attention. Removing the obstructions, I read a sign with big white letters and a skull with crossbones sign that said “EVERFREE FOREST.” Again, there was a feeling in the back of my head, telling me that I had heard this somewhere before, but I still couldn’t remember exactly what.
“These things keep reminding me of something, but for the sake of it, I can’t tell what. I’d wish someone could help me understand just what is going on…”
Continuing on to the Everfree forest, I knew that I was getting into something i wasn't ready for; what exactly remained to be seen. After some aimless wondering through the forest, I heard some rustling in a group of nearby hedges. I stopped in my tracks, staring dead center into the hedges. I wasn’t afraid that I’d been found by enemy soldiers. No, this place caused a more deep-seated terror in me. Walking around made me nervous and almost nothing ever made me feel nervous. The noise stopped, but still I stared intently into it, awaiting any further movements. A few minutes passed, and nothing else happened. I felt a relief and sighed.“And to think I thought that-“
From out of the bushes jumped out a large creature, hissing and howling at me. I was thrown back by the sudden surprise and got to my feet quickly and faced my attacker. I was left speechless when I saw that my attacker was some kind of wooden wolf, with glowing green eyes and completely made out of wooden logs, twigs branches and the sort. I had never seen anything like it before, but even I could tell that this thing wasn’t too happy to see me. It roared menacingly at me, and I pulled out my handgun and fired off a few rounds into its head. It simply shrugged the bullets off, and started to close in on me. I aimed at its legged and fired away, breaking away the wooden leg, causing the leg to splinter and the wood wolf to fall down into a crashing heap of tree limbs. I let out a struggled exhale.
“Well that was certainly unexpected. Too bad it died so easily, i could have had some fun.”
I would have taken it as me jinxing myself when I saw that the wolf began to reconstruct itself, back into its original form. It growled, even more pissed off at me.
This truly astounded me. “Well careful what you wish for, because you just might get it...?” The bush behind it rustled again, and out pounced two more wooden wolves, also angry to see me.
“Well if it’s going be like that, time to run!” I quickly bolted out of there, the lead wolf howling and started to chase after me, followed by his two compatriots. Running through the thick jungle proved to be a challenge, as I almost tripped several times due to large, outstanding roots which blocked my way. Every step of the way, those hounds were close on my tail. I was one misstep away from becoming their lunch. Finally making it to an opening in the forest canopy, I found myself between a rock and a hard place…literally. I had just run into a cliff wall, which essentially boxed my in. My only way out was back, where the wolves were. I didn’t have time to worry about that, since when I turned around, the wolves were already there, surrounding me and giving me no chance to escape. They were still a bit far away, but they all marched slowly, closing in onto the helpless prey. I desperately thought to myself,
“There’s no way out, and I definitely don’t have the munitions to take them all out. Not that it’d matter, since they can just regenerate!” Then I got an idea to buy myself time. The lead wolf charged me, and I braced myself. When it got close enough for me, I sidestepped it, escaping its clutches and causing to smack headfirst into the wall, causing it to break apart in a puff of smoke. As I took a breather from my very risky move, the other two also charged me. I used my sidearm to shoot at one of their front legs, wasting the whole clip into it. I weakened it enough so that when it brought it down again to impulse itself forward, the leg snapped under the pressure and caused it to dive-bomb in front of the other, tripping it. They both smashed together and caused their wooden parts to go flying about, surrounding me with large heaps of firewood amidst some smoke and dust. I took advantage of this moment to put some distance in-between me and the wolves. Rushing away from the battle, I exclaimed.
“Ha! Try to beat that, you pieces of wooden…!” As soon as I saw them begin to regenerate, I thought. “I really need to learn when to shut up…”
They didn’t regenerate like before though. All the wood joined together into one large mound, and began to construct a single, even larger wood wolf. I was frozen as the new, larger wolf towered over me, and bellowed a large, deafening roar.
“If I wasn’t screwed before….i surely am now.” I knew I couldn’t outrun it, it was much too massive and I would have been tired out before I could escape. As it slowly approached, its jaws gleaming and itself growling, I said softly, “Well, at least I can’t really die in a dream…”
A shot sounded off, and a steel cable flew from out of the forest and across to the other side of the open area, dividing the space between me and the large wood wolf. Due to its size, it didn’t notice the cable and tripped over it. I had hoped that it would break apart when it crashed, but the giant wolf placed a wooden foot on the ground in front of it to stop it from falling. My would-be savior appeared out of the forest, jumping out of a tall tree and landing before me, facing the wolf. It snarled at the stranger, who was covered in a light brown coat with a knapsack, who for some reason looked like they were hunched over, as if on all fours; who simply took out a hand sized cross bow from the knapsack and aimed it at the beast. Each stood still for a moment, then the wolf tried to keep going forward, which prompted the cloaked figure to fire a grappling hook at the wolfs back, which latched on perfectly. It rappelled them up onto the monster’s back, leaving me back to being face to face with it. I cried out,
“If you’re going to do something, hurry it up!” They fired a second grappling hook at the wolf’s front most leg, the one past the line she had thrown earlier. The hook latched itself onto the bottom of the wooden foot, and the cloaked person did a backflip off the back of the wolf towards the rear. This whole time, they still had the hook attached and when they came down, they pulled hard on the line, causing the area where the hook latched to break off and splinter. This brought the wolf down, onto the cable placed beforehand, causing it to split the upper torso and the rest of it into two. It came down in a massive rumble of debris and smoke. After the commotion settled, I thought, “Wow that was amazing. I have to thank this mystery man.”
I circled around the heap of wood and found myself with my hunched hero. They were reloading their crossbow when I approached them.
“Hey, thanks for saving me back there. I was in a tight situation there, and you helped me out of it. Who are you?”
The figure removed their cloak, in a bit of a dramatic fashion, and not only was the mystery man a woman, but it was also a horse! no, not a horse....a pony. A pony like in My little pony!
In that very instant I thought, “Ok, this is definitely a dream…”
She didn’t seem too happy. “Well you must certainly have a death wish for standing up to a timberwolf pack like that. Either that or you are too stupidly brave to stand down from a challenge.” I said nothing, still looking at her with amazement.
“Why are you gawking at me?” She said with an annoyed expression."
“It’s just that…you’re a pony, with exceptional combat skills.” I had put emphasis on the pony part, which was what got me the most."
She smirked, “Surprised to see a mare who can fully handle herself in a fight? With what’s going on, it shouldn’t come as a surprise.”
“No, it’s not that. It’s that…you’re a pony. A PONY.”
“You act like you’ve never seen a pony in your life. You sure a piece of lumber didn’t hit you on the head, give you super amnesia? Or maybe you’re just the worst scatterbrain I’ve ever met...”
I still couldn’t believe what I was seeing. A real, actual my little pony. If this is a dream, it is by far the most lucid, vivid, and fantastical I’ve ever had. I wasn’t sure what to make of all this. I asked her, “So, are there more of you?”
She looked at me, puzzled. “More of me? You mean cloaked mares saving clueless stallions from timberwolves in the Everfree forest? Nope, I’d just be the one.”
I nodded. “oh ok so you are the…wait did you just call me a stallion?”
She gave me a cynical look. “Yeah, I did. Wow you must have really had hurt yourself in the head if you don’t even recall your own self…”
I was still stuck by her “stallion” comment. Why did she call me a horse? Unless…
My eyes grew wide, and I rushed over to a small pond I had noticed while I was running through here. The mare was confused by my strange behavior.
“Hey! Where are you going?”
I reached the pond and quickly peered into the water’s reflection. At first, water ripples made the image unclear, until it finally cleared and I saw it. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Coal black mane, a dark almond brown coat, and red eyes. I was too shocked to realize what I was looking at, and in my mind a let out an exasperated thought: “I’M A HORSE?!?!?!”
The mystery mare stood behind me, looking concerned. “Hey, you OK? You've been staring at your own reflection for a while.”
I finally broke my trance and let out only three words; “I’m a pony…” She must have thought I was crazy, because her reply was, “If you just realized that, either you really did get amnesia, and total amnesia by the looks of it, or you are delirious..."
It was then that I just remembered: I’m in a dream! Of course I’m something ridiculous like a pony! None of this is real!
I came back to my senses, and looked at her. “Sorry, but you’re probably right on the amnesia. I didn’t even know how I looked until I saw my reflection, so I must have bumped my head during the fight…”
She chuckled to herself, “Well I can’t just leave you here alone like this. You’ll definitely get yourself killed. How about you come with me, back to the shelter? By the way, my name is Star Night. What’s yours?”
“My name is…uh...” I tried to answer, but wasn't sure if I should tell her my actual name. Before I could say anything though, she stopped me. “Oh right, you don’t remember your name, account from the amnesia. Well I’m going to have to call you something…let’s see…well I could give you a name until you remember your actual name, based off of what I know of your person…How about Charming Drifter?”
Be it a dream and all, but I still blushed a bit when she said that. She smiled, “well I can tell you liked it, so that’s what it’s going to be. It’s strange that you’re all the way out here, when everyone was supposed to be evacuated to the fallout shelters when the attacks began. How did you get here? And where did you get that gun? It doesn’t seem to be part of the standard issue for Canterlot troops…
Before I could tell her about how I was in a bunker under mortar fire and everything up until the point she rescued me, a timberwolf howl echoed through the forest. She turned to see if the timberwolf was within sight, and told me, “We can’t stay here any longer, we need to move.”
“So we are going to the fallout shelter?”
She nodded quickly. “Yeah, that’s where my father is, waiting for me to get to him. He’s been there since the attack began.”
This was around the second time I had heard about that, and became curious. “The attack? What attack are you talking about, Star Night?”
“The attack-“ A second howl, closer this time, sounded through the forest. “I’ll tell you some other time, but right now we need to get going to the fallout shelters.”
“These fallout shelters, where are they?” I asked. I wasn’t about to follow her anywhere;I just met her.
“They’re up north, in Celestia’s Castle in Canterlot.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I’m going to Celestia’s castle, as a little, colorful pony….man this dream just gets stranger and stranger, doesn’t it?
