Chapter 1: Unstoppable Force, Unmovable Object
I peeked my head over a rock to see her. My eyes blinked in confusion. She was just there, a gray earth pony with a purple mane, staring at the ground with not a single ounce of interest on her face, or body for that matter. I mean, I wasn't intimidated or anything. As a leader for Equality, I had no time to be cowardly. It was just, well, she was here! My village, ahem, Our Town, was not any twenty meters away and here was a pony I had never seen before, staring at rocks.
I forced myself to slide around the boulder that concealed my presence. The mare still was looking at the ground, whispering to the stones beneath her hooves. Well, it wasn't an insane kind of whispering, more like she was having a pleasant conversation with them. Yeah, I considered it creepy. Pretty creepy. But who am I to judge? It's just part of Equality's broad spectrum. Anypony can be welcomed into Equality's bully-free utopia.
I opened my mouth to speak. Sudden dread filled my heart. Now, this of course, was unusual for me. I had been quite used to gaining the attention of strangers in order to tell them the good news. However, this mare was beyond any stranger, no doubt. Some of me wanted to qualify her as anything but a pony! Those dead-inside eyes, that ever-present frown, and that rigid stoic face that chisel a lesser pony to dust. Oh, did I just put myself higher than another pony? How shameful of me. I would need to lash myself tonight.
"Ahem, um, what are you doing?" I asked hesitantly.
The response was far from immediate. In fact, her response took an agonizingly long time. I had approached her with my usual smile. My fantastic smile that could melt the hearts of stone-cold ponies. This smile faded when she never even looked up at me.
"I'm studying rocks," was the reply, said in the most robotic manner possible.
The response reminded me terribly of the ponies that worked at the government offices. Flashbacks of waiting in line to get my Magic Study License horrified my mind for a moment. I cocked my head to one side, trying to make sure that I had not put the cutie-mark stealing spell on her. When I caught a glimpse of her mark, it was settled that she had no magical manipulation done to her.
"Well, that's um, fascinating," I lied, as studying rocks was in fact, lame. "Do you have time to um, hear about Equality?" I finished my question with a cute squee that usually worked. My eyes twinkled with false excitement.
"No."
"Oh, don't be so certain, Miss...umm.."
"Maud."
"Miss Maud!" I said, trying to remain polite. "My message is very important and can cure you of all depression, stress, and hate. It's all about the love in Equality!"
"You mean the village down the hill?" Maud finally looked my way, blinking with the speed of a sloth.
"Er, yeah," I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly. "We are making a utopia. We call it Our Town!"
"You are building with sandstone and limestone. Those aren't good for structures," Maud told me in the same monotonous manner.
"Well, I mean, we're no experts on architectural engineering," I gulped, "but as you can see, we kinda lack wood. This place well, wasn't the best for settlement, I'll admit.
"Use the rocks in the caves. They are much stronger."
I nodded. "Of course, um, thanks for the help. Now are you certain that you don't need to hear about the wondrous, fantastic, awesome, and soul-freeing experience that is Eq-"
"Yes."
"Yes to what?" I leaned in excitedly, perhaps I finally had broken the ice.
"Yes to you not speaking."
Nope, the ice between us was beyond the size of a glacier. She then returned to her "studying." Now, I had been rejected by ponies before, I mean, one cannot simply get them all, right? However, she was already at my village. It was practically handing me a new follower on a silver platter! I couldn't just let such an opportunity go to waste.
I opened my mouth to speak again. However, I spotted the stare she was giving me. Her eyes possessed a fire that could burn Tartarus alive. My jaw clamped shut for my own protection.
"Eh heh he?" I laughed, trying to sound innocent while I took some steps away. "Alrighty then. Um, stay safe?"
"Sure," she answered.
And I fled.
=
"Starlight, you just can't let her go!"
I stomped around my bedroom. From the window, I could still spot her there, moving around from place to place with the urgency of a dying snail. To be honest, her refusal irked me severely. I felt ashamed that I could not lead such a pony to the pasture of Equality! No! I could not let her simply study her disgusting boring rocks! What kind of prophet would I be if ponies rather stare at the Celestia-forsaken ground than listen to my glorious message? I must take a stand.
In my newly found determination, I raised a hoof towards the ceiling. As I did so, I forgot that I was standing next to a jar of cutie marks. My raised leg knocked one over and it fell to the floor, shattering. In panic, I watched the freed cutie mark fly upward, trying to once again, possess and torture its owner. My eyes looked about the room and I found an empty grape jelly jar.
"Oh no, you don't!" I hissed.
With lightning speed, I took the jar and snatched the cutie mark out of the air. A sigh of relief let my lips and I placed the jar next to the others. If that cutie mark had reached its owner, my plans for this utopia may have ended right then and there.
"I really need a proper place to store these things..."
So after that mishap, I went back out and returned to the peculiar gray mare. She had moved a bit farther from the village, but was still relatively close. This time instead of approaching her with caution, my hooves stomped around and I came to an abrupt halt before her. Just like before, she only took notice of me with simplest of movements.
"Hi," she said.
"Ugh, this is beyond 'hi' time. I will not be rejected by a pony who talks with rocks!"
"What is wrong with that?" she asked slowly. "Rocks have great conversations."
I rolled my eyes. "It sounds like you're mocking me."
"I don't need to," she told me. "You do that yourself."
"By Celestia, I can't handle this," I threw my hooves up in the air in frustration.
"That's what she s-"
"I'm tired of you!" I pointed a hoof at your face. "You will hear my message. Down that hill is a place void of bullying, hatred, and stress. We're all equal, everypony! We don't judge and we don't discriminate. It's where heartbroken ponies can go for shelter and encouragement. Most important of all, there are no cutie marks. No pony is better than the other! We're the same! We're equal. It's great! Everypony is happy and cheerful!" I roared in her face.
"OK."
My eyes twitched. She was unmovable. Much like the rocks she spoke to, she was set in a foundation that could last over a millennium. It would be more likely to move mountains than her. It would more likely for me to take the cutie mark of an alicorn princess than taking hers. I was a stubborn mare too, but I knew Defeat's bitter song all too well. I had to accept that recruiting her was in the realm of impossibility.
"Alright," I nodded in understanding. In the following awkward silence, I tried to start up a little more cheerful talk. "Um, you know, I need a place to store cutie marks. Do you know of any magical stones or something for that?"
"Yes, there's one in the cave over there," she told me.
"Thanks," I tried to smile and turned to leave.
Well, at least I got something out of her.
=
Author's Note
Always the fun little hour-quickie writing.
Starlight needs to learn some cult-recruiting techniques. I wonder if there is a textbook for that?
-Cheers for That!
