Worlds Apart: At Eternity's End

Chapter 1

Two hours after entering the portal

With her back against a rock and her knees pulled up to her chin, little Apple Bloom shut her eyes against another harsh blast of wind that threatened to blow her hair ribbon away. She reached up and held onto her hair to keep it from whipping about her face, and reluctantly resigned herself to having to just sit and wait it out. There was nowhere to take shelter; stretching out all around her were endless fields of grass that grew in hues ranging from the standard green, to blue, and even red. In the distance were great mountains that pierced the sky like jagged fangs, but trying to travel to them was out of the question until the forces of nature decided to stop pummelling her.

The wind finally settled down and Apple Bloom was able to release her hair. Her eyes settled upon her hand as it moved away from her head to rest on her lap. She wasn't sure why she had allowed herself to hope that she might finally return to her former pony self upon travelling through the dimensional portal that Discord and Princess Luna had created. Not much had gone right for her lately, but she couldn't help it. There had been a small buildup of anticipation as she had stepped into the shimmering light of the portal, and an unspoken wish that wherever she ended up, she might at least arrive there in her proper body.

She frowned slightly at her hands, then looked down to the unconscious man beside her. Her eyes settled briefly on his bearded face before moving away, but she hadn't been quick enough. She didn't like seeing what had been done to him: dried blood caked his face, and one of his eyes was swollen almost completely shut. She thought that maybe his jaw had been broken as well. He had taken a vicious beating just before the two of them entered the portal, collapsed soon after, and had been unconscious ever since. Apple Bloom had stopped the bleeding, but any further medical attention was far beyond her capabilities. All she could do was watch over him and wait until he woke up.

The man, whose name was Doug, was one of several humans who had assisted Apple Bloom and her friends, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, after they had found themselves trapped in human bodies and transported to Earth: the result of an enormous explosion of chaos magic that had engulfed nearly all of Ponyville. Doug had not been the first human to find and help her, however. That honor went to a young man named John, but he was no longer with her. None of them were, not even Sweetie and Scootaloo. They'd each travelled through separate portals. Perhaps the others were also on this strange new planet she found herself on. Perhaps not; she had no way of knowing. All she knew was that she was not in Equestria, and that she was scared and alone.

Apple Bloom lied down and curled up next to the rock, pulling her knees up to her chest. She looked up into the pale pink and violet sky, so unlike that of either Equestria or Earth, and stared at the large, cratered planet that loomed large overhead like the dead eye of some great dragon.

It's all a dream, she thought. None of it was real. She'd never been caught in that blast of chaos magic because it had never happened. She'd never become a human – they didn't exist and were just imaginary things she'd dreamt up.

She looked over at Doug's unconscious form. Was everything they had been through together just that: a dream? If she could close her eyes and just wake up from it all, would it be worth it?

She stared at him for a long time, and she was uncertain whether her tears were from the wind stinging her eyes or from something else. Eventually though, she made her decision. She closed her eyes, and wished to return home to Sweet Apple Acres.

..o0o..

Apple Bloom slowly opened her eyes, and felt her heart sink as they focused on a small patch of blue grass growing nearby. It seemed that Sweet Apple Acres would have to wait.

It was difficult to tell if it was day or night when she woke up. Though the sun – or rather, a sun – still cast its pinkish-purple hue upon the land, other stars could still be seen far above in the places where the sun's light wasn't quite bright enough to block them out. She turned her head and looked over to where Doug was still lying, and was relieved to see his chest rising gently with his breathing. She wasn't sure what she would do if she were stranded alone. A cold gust of wind hit her then, and she wrapped her arms around herself to keep warm.

She looked over at Doug again. "I'm sorry I wished you were just a dream," she mumbled. Though she knew he couldn't hear her, saying it out loud somehow made her feel more secure. The near-silence of this world was unsettling. In this strange land she found herself in, the only other sound to be heard was the wind. There was no buzzing of insects, no chirping of birds.

Are we all alone here? she wondered. Isn't there anything else out there?

Her answer came in the form of a rumbling stomach. She and her friends had been on Earth the last time she'd eaten, and it had been at least a full day since then. It seemed more like an eternity. She checked her pockets, then checked Doug's. There was no food; the only things they had brought with them were Doug's phone and wallet.

She shivered and looked out at the land around them. There were plenty of grasses around, but no flowers that she could see. There were some of what looked like small trees with red or purple leaves on the other side of the valley. If there were trees, perhaps there were bushes and shrubs... and berries.

Apple Bloom placed her hands on Doug's shoulders and gently shook him. "Would ya wake up, already?" she asked. She didn't want to be alone. Anything could be out there, and everything about this place made her nervous. She looked back over to where the little trees were, then back to Doug. She gave him another shake. "Please?"

But he would not wake. Apple Bloom knew then that she would need to be brave. There was no food, no water, and she had no idea how long Doug would be unconscious. If they were to have any chance of surviving in this place, she would need to go out and explore. She trembled at the thought of going out there alone, but what choice did she have?

"I-I'm going to leave ya now," she said quietly. There was no response from Doug. She looked up at the sky, but quickly looked away at the sight of the planet looming large overhead. She closed her eyes. "I'm gonna be alright. I'll just head on over there and get us some food, okay?" She opened her eyes, but Doug still was not awake. She kneeled down and tapped him one last time. "Please answer me?"

After a moment, Apple Bloom sighed and stood up. She took one last look around, as if she might find some food she had somehow overlooked. Finding nothing, she turned around, wrapped her arms around herself, and headed out into the wilderness alone.