Isn't this a fine little reunion?
The corridors of stable 23 were crowded with ponies of all colors and sizes, each one pushing and shoving their way to the front of the common room, as a white mare with long flowing pink locks climbed to the top of the monotone gray stage. The fillies and colts looked up with wonder, eyes wide, as they listened to the same old introduction, same old songs as the week before, and before that, and before that, for months upon end.
But one mare looked down with disgust, didn't stampede to hear the monotone melodies in the monotone room, in the monotone stable. Her dark hood fell back, revealing, not one, but two horns, oddly shaped for a pony. But she was a pony, so the others told her. She had originated from the great species of the zarafa, or giraffe. But as the species ran out, dying either from radiation, sickness, or "accidental" malfunctions of the mainframe, desperate measures were called for. A giraffe bred with a pony, who bred with another, over and over to keep the family alive.
Her golden flanks were flecked with chocolate flecks and patches, and her spiky mane was a dusty brown. Her wide eyes showed the origins of her ancestors in their amber depths, but on her right foreleg, her hoof was strangely twisted and mangled, a result of inbreeding.
"Aielle!" A voice called, from the front of the room, as the music began to play. A small grey mare with a blue mane waved to her, beckoning her over.
With slight hesitance, she shed her cloak, and hobbled to the front row, where Navy Skies had saved her a seat. The first few words were soft and quiet, melodic and silver. But the drums began to clash as the song was transformed, and though everypony else cheered, Aielle felt herself shying away from the singer.
"Alone, in the city,
I watch the rain pour down,
It drapes all around me,
Destroying my hometown...
One day, I'll return!
One day I'LL be the first to the finishline!
One day I'LL be the savior,
Everything will be mine!
Caught up, in the fire,
Radiation, Balefire,
I will never tire,
But knock you CRASHING TO THE GROUND!
YOU won't defeat me,
Theses TEARS protest your cruelty,
Locked, in a garden of death,
Smoking cities, turned TO ASH!!!"
The song continued and the audience joined in for the chorus. Nopony realized the moment that Aielle galloped out of the theatre, that she was leaving for good.
*** *** ***
A few weeks before the concert of Diamond Rose, I had found an old terminal in the library, hidden on a dusty page in a thick book labeled, "Jackdaw of Death". Somepony must have put it there and hidden the book under the cabinet, which was where I had discovered it. I had downloaded the audio from the terminal onto my pipbuck, and played it back.
My curiosity had always gotten the best of me, even when I was a filly. I played back the message, my earbloom tucked into my left ear.
"I don't know if anypony can hear me," the pony speaking, a mare, obviously, broke off, coughing. When she had recovered, she went on. "Or if this even matters anymore. Equestria could be gone by the time someone finds this." Hooves sounded in the background. The mare lowered her voice as the ponies passed by the room she was in. "But in case Equestria has healed; this is the password. The password to Stable 23 is... BalefireRemedy3." Suddenly the mare stiffened. You could hear the movements, and the pounding on the metal door, as she was discovered. "Quick," She whispered, before shutting ff the terminal, "We're out of time!"
I had always wanted to get out. Explore. Of course, I had heard the stories, of the zebras, and the war. I had been bullied, asked, millions of times, "Where were the giraffes when Equestria was being attacked?!?!" But I wanted to get out, nonetheless. I wanted to feel the sensation of a cool Autumn breeze blowing across the plains, see the wonderous preserved gardens that had supposedly been kept safe in the Crystal Empire.
I think that was why, when everypony was distracted by Diamond's singing, that I slipped out into the corridor, and to the front of the stable, to escape this madness. I reached the entrance unscathed. I had not been discovered yet; our Stable didn't believe in guards, as no record of a password had ever been found. They believed we could stay down here forever; I, for one, refused to believe that we would never, not once, run out of food or water.
I trotted to the metal door, where a keypad had been installed; I was surprised that the Overmare hadn't just torn it down. I typed in the password, and pressed enter. I cringed as the sound of metal grinding against metal echoed down the hallway. The door slipped away like a giant gear, and I smelled the musty scent of what must have been... Dirt! I galloped outside, the door slamming shut behind me.
I gulped in mouthfuls of air, and looked around. Okay... I wasn't outside yet...
I saw what must have once been a basement, jars of canned peaches, and other dried fruits kept in sealed containers. I scanned each one with my pipbuck, twitching my ears, and packing the ones with the least radiation into my saddlebag. I also found a rusted kitchen knife, and what I recognized as a pistol, with a sash filled with ammo. Getting the sash on was hard, but I managed to squeeze a bit of magic out of my horns, twisting around my stomach and chest until it fitted snugly around my body.
I had never practiced shooting before; we had no guns in the Stable. I pushed open the door to the basement, all at once shocked and amazed by what I saw. The house that had once stood above the basement had long since disintegrated, and the moon illuminated the ruins around it. The stars were breathtaking- millions of them were scattered across the sky, where clouds were not already blocking them out. I knew it would only last for a moment; I had heard heard tales of the Pegasai who blocked up the sky, hiding like cowards in their holes of vapor.
I took a deep breath, and stepped outside.
