Shards in the Water

by Generic_Oblivious

Rating: teen
Tags: Dark, Romance, Slice of Life
Length: 3710

Fire, insanity, love, hate, romance, drifting apart. These fragments chronocle the lives of Wrench Works the engineer and Diamond Ore the miner.

Like shards falling into water, the fragments of their lives scatter. To discover what happened, we must piece them back together.

Being drunk, Wrench Works messed up her usual fireworks display. Now she's not only physically scarred for life, but she gains a voice in her head. She must resist it, or else fall into a spiral of insanity.

Meanwhile, Diamond Ore falls in love with Maud Pie. One seeks comfort, the other seeks companionship.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2014-10-17 02:47:08 UTC

Fragment 1 - Incident

A dark-orange unicorn's brow furled as golden-yellow eyes attempted to scan the setup before her. "Ugh... Damn. Should not have let the bartender talk me into having that extra cider."

Fuses, metal bars and fireworks together in a set designed to bring a flash of color to the night sky. If it worked right. Wrench laughed to herself quietly before blowing a black strand of hair from her messy mane out of her face. "Eeheheh, fuck it, It should work fine. I've done more complicated machinery while hammered before, fireworks while buzzed shouldn't be a problem." She mused to herself, the cider bringing out her curses. "Though that was back when Spanner worked with me. She may have done most of the work that time. Fuckin' genius, she is. Not as smart as I, obviously."

She blinked a few times, a blank expression crossing her face.

"I'm talking to myself again. I'm probably too drunk to do this." She told herself with a mixture of resignation and annoyance. "Dear Discord, why didn't I get someone to cover for me?"

It was coming close to time to set off the fireworks. The timing would probably be off, but not every show of hers can be perfect. She picked up a lighter (something she built last week) with her telekinesis, checking to see if it still worked. It lit, and she smiled. The lighter was shaking a bit, though she assumed that was just from the buzz from the cider. She looked over at the crowd that was sitting on the hill.

Hey, I think that's Diamond. Wrench thought as she saw an albino earth pony among the crowd. ...Hey, who's that mare she's with?

Losing her concentration, she dropped the lighter.

The fuses were lit.

The latches holding the fireworks in place were not set up properly.

Wrench's sight was filled with colorful explosions.

It seemed that parts of her was on fire.

Well. That's un-fucking-fortunate. Wrench thought with a large amount of annoyance as parts of her started to black out, unaware of the gasps and screams in the crowd. Shouldn't this hurt?

An intense feeling of pain ripped through her body.

Oh, there it is.

She passed out before she could scream.

The smell of sterilization. The sound of beeping.

I'm in a hospital. Wrench Works thought, Okay, that means I didn't die. So far so good.

She opened her eyes. Well, just her left eye.

Hm. Right eye won't open. I cannot feel the right side of my face. Therefore, that part of my head was badly damaged by flames, so it is likely that I lost one of my eyes.

She gave herself a small nod.

Sound logic. Okay, my mind is still working fine. No noticeable brain damage. Addendum, this fact should be taken with a grain of salt, as I am using my brain to deduce this.

She looked down, noticing that half of her right forehoof was wrapped in bandages. The other half was gone. Either lost in whatever caused this damage to me, or amputated due to flame damage. A pause. Addendum, injuries seem to be consistent with that caused by incendiary explosives. I usually work with explosives when I set up fireworks.

Wrench let off a soft sigh as she smiled slightly.

Conclusion, something went wrong when setting up the fireworks.

"Hello?"

Wrench then noticed the albino earth pony from before. Same white coat and white mane (draped down her face, though an angular cut rather than a gentle curve), same crimson eyes. Those eyes seemed concerned. Diamond Ore.

Grab her by the neck, attempt to smash her with the heart rate monitor. The broken glass should be enough to-

Wrench's face was unchanging, but dread and fear filled her mind.

What the fuck? Why would that thought even cross my mind? I'm not a killer! No matter what, though, it would be best to not reveal this to anypony. They'll think I'm insane.

"Oh, hey Diamond." Wrench said with a small chuckle. "Sorry about that."

"Sorry about what?"

"My screw-up."

"Don't blame yourself for what happened." Diamond said, the look of concern deepening.

"Same ol' Diamond, always feeling sorry for my mistakes. Don't worry about it." Wrench said. She looked slightly to the left of her friend, and saw a dull grey mare with a dull violet mane, a dull blue jacket/dress, and blue eyes that were anything but dull.

When Diamond is subdued, use remaining broken glass to slit her-

FUCK! Brain, stop doing that, please! Now, who is this mare? Why would she be here? Wait... I think she's the mare with Diamond back at the fireworks show, so I'm going to hazard a guess.

"Who's your marefriend?"

Diamond's eyes widened as she blushed. "Wha- How'd yo- She's no-"

"Maud." The dull pony answered with a dull, monotone voice.

"Huh. How long?"

"A week."

"Wow, you are quite exciting." Wrench said with a chuckle.

The dull pony simply blinked.

"Do treat her well." Wrench said with sincerity.

"I will."

Same monotone voice. But, she sounds like she meant it.

"Thank you. Diamond's a dear friend of mine, and she can get rather fragile sometimes. I'd rather not be forced to beat the shit out of you for hurting her."

"Wrench!" Diamond exclaimed.

"You know I'm joking." Wrench said.

Neither Diamond nor Wrench were convinced she was.

Maud simply blinked. Did this mare have ANY facial expression other than dull disinterest?

"Was anypony else hurt?" Wrench asked, concern washing over her again.

"No, fortunately. There was a small fire, but the fireponies were able to put it out." Diamond said.

"Eh-heh heh, sorry for ruining your date." Wrench said.

"Again, it's not your fault. It was an accident." Diamond replied.

"It... It was my fault. I..."

Wrench sighed.

"I was drunk again."

Diamond's eyes widened as she gasped. "You..."

"I thought I could handle it, but obviously I was wrong." Wrench said, wanting to look somewhere than at her friend. "I put myself and others in danger because I couldn't go without a drink."

Silence only interrupted by the beeping of the heart rate monitor.

"I need help."

For the alcoholism, at least. The disturbing thoughts... I don't think I want to share those with anypony yet. They’ll think I’m insane. Which… I might be.

One thing at a time.

Fragment 3 - The Rock and the Gem

(Two weeks before the incident)

The awkward silence was as thick as granite as the dull gray mare and the albino mare stared at one another on other sides of the picnic blanket while a certain pink party pony hid in a bush watching them with anticipation. The dull gray mare wore her usual frock.

“...So, I remember seeing you at a quarry a few days ago. I take it you're a geologist?” Diamond Ore asked, trying to break the silence.

“Yes.” Maud said, showing no emotion whatsoever.

“...Okay.” Diamond said. While she knew a bit about rocks, she was far more interested in the gems that might be inside them. Her crimson eyes looked around as she tried to think of a topic that might interest them both. “Erm... I like to sing while I work.”

“I know.”

“Oh, erm, you heard me sing then.” Diamond said, rubbing the back of her head.

“Yes.”

“...I'm not very good at it, am I?”

“You're okay.”

Diamond managed to crack a smile. “I am? Thanks!”

The stone pony blinked.

“I always thought I was a horrible singer, so... Hearing that I'm adequate is a nice boost.”

More awkward silence.

“So... The song I was singing. It's from one of the Suave Tux books. A View To A Kill, actually.”

“It's from a book?” Maud asked.

“Yeah. Each book gets a soundtrack released with it! It's a pretty neat cross-media project, actually.” Diamond said, smiling wide. “Have you read any of the Tux Suave books? The World Is Not Enough and The Mare With The Golden Bow are among my favorites!”

“No.”

“Oh. Erm, I could lend you a few sometime!” Diamond suggested.

“No thank you.”

“Why not?” Diamond asked, disappointed.

“I usually stick to books about rocks.” Maud said.

“You should try new things.” Diamond said. “Every time we talked at work before, it was about rocks.”

“Our jobs are about rocks. I am a geologist, you are a miner.” Maud said.

“Well yeah, but... Uh... That's beside the point.” Diamond said with a groan.

“This is pointless.” Maud said. “I should be going.

Maud got up onto her hooves and began to trot away.

“Wait!” Diamond said.

Maud paused, and turned back towards her.

Diamond tapped her hoof a bit, getting a song into her head and getting into the beat.

Once ready, she sang.

Meeting you with a view to a kill

Face to face in secret places, feel the chill

Nightfall covers me, but you know the plans I'm making

Still over sea, could it be the whole earth opening wide?

A sacred why, a mystery caping inside

The weekends why

Until we dance into the fire

That fatal kiss is all we need

Dance into the fire

To fatal sounds of broken dreams

Dance into the fire

That fatal kiss is all we need

Dance into the fire

Choice for you is the view to a kill

Between the shade, assassination standing still

First crystal tears, fall of snowflakes on your body

First time in years, to drench your with lovers rosy stain

A chance to find a phoenix for the flames

A chance to die

But can we dance into the fire

That fatal kiss is all we need

Dance into the fire

To fatal sounds of broken dreams

Dance into the fire

That fatal kiss is all we need

Dance into the fire

When all we see, is the view to a kill

The song was over. Diamond could hear a soft wind blow past her ears, the sound of crickets playing their songs, and her own hastening heartbeat.

Maud was smiling. It was a small smile, one that most ponies would not even detect, but a smile nevertheless. The gray stone was shining radiantly.

“That was nice.” Maud said.

“Yeah, it... It was. I never sang for anypony before.” Diamond said, blushing anew. “I've never seen you smile before.”

“Oh.” Maud said, the smile going away.

“You should do it more often. Your smile brings out the sapphire of your eyes.” Diamond said, smiling warmly.

Maud managed to smile again.

Diamond got a bit closer to Maud, and lied next to her. “The moon looks quite nice tonight.”

“Yes.”

Diamond had to resist the urge to nuzzle her. Perhaps it was just sudden infatuation. Perhaps this evening was meaningless in the long run. But, she was going to enjoy the moment regardless.

“Well, this date was kind of a disaster.” Diamond said with a smile.

“It wasn't, really.” Maud replied.

“It wasn't? We had almost nothing to talk about. Heck, you were ready to give up for a minute there.” Diamond said, looking at the suddenly fascinating design of the blanket she was lying on.

“I haven't been on a date before.” Maud explained. “I... Don't have many friends.”

Diamond frowned, and gave her a soft hug. “I'll be your friend. Perhaps even your marefriend someday.”

“I... I'd like that.” Maud said, finally smiling a little again.

(One hour before the date)

“So you say her name is Maud?” Diamond asked the energetic pink pony.

“Yep yep!” Pinkie replied. “She loves rocks, and you do rock stuff too!”

“Well, my passion lies more with gems than rocks, but I'm sure we'll find something to talk about.” Diamond said with a small shrug.

“Oh, and Diamond?”

“Yes, Pinkie?”

Suddenly, Pinkie's smile went away, replaced with a serious and stern grimace. “Treat her well. She's been having a really hard time recently. If you hurt her, so help me Celestia-”

“Don't worry, I'd never do that to anypony.” Diamond assured her.

Pinkie's fur popped back to a lighter shade as she smiled. “Good! I'll leave you to get ready! Remember, the park at 7!”

“Yeah, I'll remember.” Diamond said as she walked out of the bakery.

(Two weeks before the date)

Maud remained in the guest bed. How long since she woke up? Five minutes or five hours? She wouldn't turn her head to look at the clock. The depression had started to set in, and now her whole body might as well be sedimentary.

A voice. Probably Pinkie's wake-up call.

Her sister entered the room. Maud continued to stare at the wall.

Pinkie started talking. Maud continued to stare at the wall.

Pinkie started to shake her gently. Maud continued to stare at the wall.

Pinkie literally pulled Maud out of the bed.

Maud simply blinked, her facial expression not changing.

She was now staring at the floor. Pinkie was probably still talking, not that it mattered.

A pink hoof forced her to look into the concerned face of her sister.

“Maud, please! Speak to me!”

Maud let off a very quiet sigh.

“Our parents disowned me.”

Maud stared at the ceiling for the rest of the day.

Fragment 4 - Pride

(3 Weeks after the incident)

“So, I gathered us here.” Wrench said as she placed a metal hoof onto the table at Sugarcube Corner. Three other mares were at the table: An excited Pinkie Pie, a seemingly disinterested Maud Pie (though she always looked like that), and a curious Diamond Ore.

“Yes. You did. Mind if I ask why?” Diamond asked.

“You may.” Wrench replied.

A short silence. Wrench found it oddly soothing.

“Why are we here?” Diamond asked.

“Why are any of us here? Does fate have something for store in all of us, or do we exist in a void where our actions have no consequence in the long run? We were born into this world without purpose, and live our lives with the pretense that the one thing we can do well is what we are meant to do with our lives. But what if that's not true? What if we're getting ourselves worked up about nothing?”

Another short silence. Why did the silence seem so strange?

“I meant why are we here at the Corner, sitting around a table?” Diamond asked.

“Because I called you here.” Wrench answered.

“Why did you call us here?” Diamond asked, now getting frustrated.

“I want to do something to alleviate some of the awkwardness and social stigma most homosexual ponies face even today.” Wrench replied as she sipped on her milkshake. “Why is this a strawberry shake? I ordered a chocolate one. I hate strawberry.”

“Actually, you ordered a vanilla shake.” Pinkie corrected.

“Oh.” Wrench said as she took another sip. “Nevermind then.”

“You're both insane.” Diamond said with a roll of her eyes.

Wrench slammed her metal hoof on the table, leaving a dent. “I'm not insane!” She yelled angrily.

Yet another short silence, with the other ponies staring at her.

“Ugh, sorry.” Wrench said, looking away for the moment.

“What was that about a social stigma?” Pinkie asked.

“Well, I figure that if ponies saw that gay ponies are really no different than anypony else, it should at least help those ponies be more open and to fit in better.” Wrench explained. “The question is how to do this.”

“A party?” Pinkie asked.

“It's a start.” Wrench said. “Though I'm not convinced that it'll have the exposure I want. After all, most straight and asexual ponies probably wouldn't show up.”

“Asexual? What's that?” Pinkie asked.

“It's when a pony doesn't fancy mares nor stallions.” Wrench replied.

“Then what do they fancy?”

“Nopony, usually.” Wrench replied. “At least, I don't.”

“Ah, that explains why I've never seen you on a date with anypony.” Diamond said.

“That, and I don't have the time. Too many experiments, too little time.” Wrench said with a smile.

“Oh, like Twilight!” Pinkie said. “Though I haven't seen her in a while...”

“Aren't you one of her friends? On that council of something-or-rather?” Wrench asked.

“Yeah, but she hasn't come out of her palace-crystal-tree thing in over a week!” Pinkie said with a frown.

“Hm. Well, back on topic...” Wrench said as she started to think.

“A parade!” Pinkie nearly shouted.

“A what?” Wrench asked.

“You know, a parade! They're like parties, but outside and constantly moving!” Pinkie said, bouncing up and down.

“Hm... Actually, that's a good idea.” Wrench said. “Yeah, a parade! Provides the exposure I'm looking for, and the fun atmosphere will put ponies at ease.”

“What if it comes off as a little aggressive?” Diamond asked.

“I don't think it'll really be that aggressive, though we will probably have some haters.” Wrench said as she shrugged. “Nothing we can do about that, except threaten to love and tolerate them.”

“Sounds like a good idea.” Pinkie said with a nod.

“Pinkie... You have been a lot more calm than you used to be.” Maud said.

“So she does speak.” Wrench said under her breath.

“Well...” Pinkie said with a frown, “I like trying to be friends with everypony, but some ponies are put off by how friendly I am!"

“Or how annoying you get." Wrench muttered.

“Oh no, you silly goose! I'm not annoying!" Pinkie said with a giggle. "I'm happy!"

"Right." Wrench replied. She rolled her eye.

There was another silence. Wrench finally realized what it was that was missing: The psychotic voice in her head hadn't said anything.

Oh thank Discord, the voice went away on it's own.

The second she finished that thought, a loud, horrible noise filled her mind. It blocked out all other sounds, and caused Wrench to grimace. The other mares looked at her confused and concerned, and asked her something. Wrench couldn't hear them over the screaming.

A large migraine started to pound away at her brain as she fell from her chair and writhed in agony. Her body went cold, her eyes went wide, sweat poured from every pore, and she couldn't breathe.

The screaming intensified.

Wrench screamed in agony.

The screaming intensified even more.

Wrench broke. Everything went dark.

Fragment 2 - Dear Voice in my Head, Shut Up! Signed, Wrench

(Three weeks after the incident)

Some have a plan to kill everypony they meet.

Wrench has those plans forced upon her.

Use your metal hoof to break the table, then...

"RGH!" Wrench Works exclaimed as she thrust her face onto the table surface, drawing attention from others at the bakery. "I just want to eat my muffin in peace..." She muttered. The voice continued in the back of her mind.

"Oh? Oki-doki!" Said the cotton-candy scented pink pony.

...And while she’s distracted by the glass breaking...

"No, that wasn't meant at you, just... Ugh, fuck it." Wrench said, her face not moving from the table.

A gasp. "Language! Don't be a no-fun pa-"

"Please, ma'am, do me a favor?" Wrench asked, finally looking up with tired eyes.

"Yeeeees?" The pink pony asked, drawing her face closer than was comfortable.

"Shut up and leave me the fuck alone."

Wrench ignored the alarmed look she got. She telekinetically grabbed her muffin, and limped out of the bakery grumbling.

She pretty much shut out everypony else from her life ever since that fireworks incident, not that she had any friends to shut out other than Diamond Ore, and they had started drifting apart a while ago. Ever since she got that incredibly annoying voice in her head. She simply couldn't get used to such a strange event. Since the doctors didn't see any brain damage, she came to the conclusion that either somepony with a sick sense of humor put the voice in her head with some sort of spell, or she's just finally gone insane and the rest of her mind is playing catch-up.

"Why does this have to happen to me?" She asked herself before she took a bite of her breakfast.

Because of your destiny.

She nearly spat that muffin out. ...Fuck the what? Did the voice actually say something OTHER than kill kill kill?

Silence.

I wonder what that was about. Wrench wondered as she finished her breakfast, and set off to return back home. Doesn't matter at the moment, I suppose. I should get back to my proj-

Her thought was interrupted by a blur of grey and yellow crashing into her.

*THUD*

"Ow! Fuck! Watch where you're going!" Wrench nearly yelled at the blur.

"O-oh, I'm so sorry..." The blur said quietly.

Wrench shook her head a bit, and her eye focused on the blur. Pegasus, grey, yellow mane. Wearing a saddlebag, with the emblem of the post office. The pegasus's eyes seemed to be looking anywhere but at her, though without agreeing on the specific direction.

"It's... It's alright." Wrench sighed. "I shouldn't have swore like that."

"No, it's my fault. I crashed into somepony again..."

"Hey, don't be like that." Wrench said, forcing a smile. She'd rather not ruin two ponies' days. "You're probably just having an off d-"

Rip off the wings...

"Gh. Having an off day." Wrench finished with a flash of irritation.

"Huh? Are you okay?" The pegasus asked, worried. Her eyes seemed to cross a little bit more.

...and once the eyes have been gouged out...

"I'm having an off day, too." Wrench said. "Say... What's your name, mailmare?"

"My name is Derpy! Derpy Hooves." Derpy said. Oh geez, a name like that...

...and hide the body.

"Wrench Works." Wrench said. "Engineer."

"Engineer?" Derpy asked, looking confused. Not that it appeared that different from her usual face.

"I build things. I should probably get you a drink, least I could do for not getting in your way." Wrench said, now holding a genuine smile.

"No no, I should get you a drink! I crashed into you, after all." Derpy said.

"...Fine, how about we buy each other a drink. Sounds like a good compromise." Wrench said with a small chuckle.

"Deal!" Derpy said with conviction. "I think there's a nearby Starbucks."

"There's ALWAYS a nearby Starbucks." Wrench said as the two mares went off to get a friendly drink.