New Faces

The next day is cloudy, ready to rain. Early in the morning I head to teacher, to talk to him about a few things I have thought of.

I find Eagle’s Eye leaving his tent, and I go inside.

Teacher is frowning and thinking. He doesn’t notice me coming in until I ask, “Teacher?”

“Chosen. Is something the matter?”

“Many things teacher.” I say.

“Then speak.”

“I’ve been thinking about our past home. And how the ancestors guided us. But here… there isn’t a place where I can get guidance teacher. What do I do?”

Teacher sighs. “Your father had much the same worry the very first day here Chosen. And the answer is simply to do your best. The ancestors live in their graves, and cannot follow us here. We cannot find guidance from them anymore.”

I am upset with that. Teacher is old and wise, but the ancestors are older and wiser. I was only just starting to be able to talk with them, and now they are gone. I had wanted to try and find… but it is of no use now.

I must accept it. Father says it is futile to fight against something that we cannot change. The sun rises, the wind blows, and we have no say in the rain. To fight them is foolishness and to suffer them hard but wise.

“Then teacher, another question.” I say, worried that this one too might give me an ugly answer.

“The elements here don’t speak, but there is… something else, like the stuff that pushes the sun and moon. I don’t know what it is.”

“That is called ‘the break’ Chosen. It is a long tale, but I have time. Sit, and I shall tell you.”

I sit on a rug, and teacher sighs and looks up, closing his eyes.

“Once, so long ago that the centaur didn’t run on the plains, and the grass didn’t grow, and the sun didn’t shine, there was a place. The world was just rock, no water, no life, and for a very long time that is all that was.”

“And then a power was born into that place. The power touched the rock, and life was made wherever it touched. For another time that’s all that was, but then it reached out again a told the life the forms it should take. It told the plants how they should look and taste like, and told the animals how they should look and act like. It told the world how to be a world.”

“And for a time, there was nothing but that power and the world. That power is the elemental power, the same stuff that we shaman use to help our people. The power that is present in all things. But it wasn’t always so. During the beginning, the power held itself apart, and nothing could touch it. But its isolation was ended soon. Another power came, a match for the elemental power, coming from the darkness beyond the world.”

“First it copied the world, spreading life through the skies, far past where we can touch or even see. Then it returned, and it told the world that it could be what it wanted to be. That birds could swim, and fish could fly, and rocks could live, if only they wanted to. And from that chaos was born man, and the centaur, and everything else that thinks.”

“So it was a good thing teacher?” I ask. “It made us, right?”

Teacher smiles. “It did Chosen, but not all good things remain good. Too much good can become bad.”

“You see Chosen, many things disobeyed, and for everything that disobeyed, something broke just a little more. By tiny bits, things changed and the changes grew worse and worse. The elemental power fought back, but it was helpless before the new power. Forced to watch as everything began destroying itself.”

“It couldn’t let that happen, so the power scattered itself into everything, and stopped the changes before nothing could. But the changes were only stopped. Not fixed.”

“The oldest ancestors call it ‘the break’, where the world is cracked and hurt from its changes. And that break powers what man calls magic, the stuff that defies nature and the world, and tries to change what shouldn’t be changed.”

Teacher finishes, and looks at me. “The break here is big. There is much magic in the air, and it touches everything here. The elements here are so busy holding themselves together that they cannot speak and only act.”

I nod, wondering. I hadn’t heard that story before, and wonder why.

“Why was Eagle’s Eye in here?” I ask as I get up, just curious now.

“He is feeling unwell.” Teacher says. I nod, and leave, exiting out into a faint rain that promises to be worse.

Most of the tribe is ignoring it, and I do as well. I go to the pen, and see it bigger than before, and that the horses inside are shivering in the rain.

I turn and go back, heading to where Rush and his mother live. I find them on the edge of the camp, and White Fur, Rush Wind’s mother, looks down at me.

“I need a hide.” I tell her. She is one of the best at curing leather, and I know that she has some with her.

She nods, and turns behind her. “Rush! Gather a large hide, and carry it for Chosen!”

Rush rushes over, with a large hide. “Will this do?” White Fur asks me. I nod, and Rush follows after me, carrying the hide. It is perfect for what I intend.

With him, I head back to the pen, and I gather a number of poles as well. As we go to the pen, Rush hesitates, and asks me, “Can we go in there Chosen? Brother says it isn’t safe.”

“It is safe Rush.” I say as I open the gate. “There is nothing in here that will hurt us.”

We enter, and I close the gate, and then head to the three horses, shivering. They see me and Rush and seem calm if slightly worried. Rush is more scared of them than they are of him. He is a bit smaller than them.

I go and pat one, and that calms Rush down. I take the hide from him, and place it atop the male horse, and get the poles and begin planting them into the ground.

Just a little bit more and…

The bird horse suddenly comes over, pawing at the ground and flapping angrily. I had forgotten that she was here as well. Rush yells and darts behind me, and I feel like running too, but she is between us and the gate.

She makes several noises, and then the horses behind me make their own. I try to calm myself, and toss the hide atop the first pole, letting it hang there. Then I grab the next pole, and plant that, shifting the hide to stretch between them.

Almost done, but the bird horse is being very loud and scary. I creep forward, holding the pole close. Maybe I can do it from a distance.

I shift my grip, and stretch the pole forward, toward the bird horse. I tap the ground in front of her, and try to push it in like that. It isn’t working.

And then the bird pony stomps on and snaps the pole, sending me off balance before Rush grabs me, and stomps forward, neighing and looking much bigger than it had before.

Rush is behind me, and I step back a bit as he whimpers. The bird horse follows, and I feel terrified. If that horse take a few more steps, I will be pinned and then I will not care about being a man.

I am going to scream and cry like a newborn, before it kills me and Rush.

But before she moves closer though, the other horses move in front of me. They neigh angrily, and glare at the bird horse. There is a lot of noise as they all neigh and snort at each other, stomping several times.

And then… then the female horse smacks the bird horse, as though they are two females fighting in the tribe. The sounds stop, and the bird horse stops flapping while the female neighs and stomps.

And then the bird pony leaves, slowly, and the other horses look back. They nuzzle into my belly before walking back under the hanging hide, trying to be out of the rain. I stare, and they… smile? Is that a smile?

“Chosen?” Rush says from behind me, still grabbing me.

Be strong. I have to be strong.

“I told you everything was fine Rush.” I say, trying to keep my voice steady. “Now we just have to finish.”

It is easy to plant the last pole now, even if it is smaller than the other two, and stretch the hide to create a simple shelter for the horses. It is only a simple rain shelter, but they appreciate it, and nuzzle me again.

I leave, and Rush runs to the gate and heaves it open. “Come on!” he says, holding it for me.

I smile and nearly follow him, but then I hesitate, and look back. The bird pony is against the far wall form the shelter, sitting with her head down.

“Rush, shut the gate and go ahead.” I say. He gives me a concerned look, but does so.

“If you get attacked by the bird horse, grab the wings!” he yells as he heads away. It might not be a bad idea to do that. Rush gets good ideas every now and then.

I go back, and head toward the bird horse. She doesn’t look over, she doesn’t flap, and she doesn’t even move. Her breathing is off, as though she is… crying.

I reach, and gentle touch her. She jolts, but doesn’t move, and I begin rubbing. I hope that she likes it like the others do.

Her breathing grows worse, and I try to think of what to do. I start humming, the tune coming to me as if I’ve heard it before, but I cannot recall.

A few moments pass, but her breathing returns to normal, and she glances up at me. I stop rubbing and hold out a carrot again. I have taken to carrying them around, to feed the horses.

She looks at it and snorts. She almost seems frustrated, but stands and faces me and then takes the carrot. I smile at her, and she seems calm. No more anger, no more flapping. I like her better like this.

I lead her toward the shelter, and when the other horses glare, I glare at them.

“No.” I state firmly. They look up at me and I shake my head. “No. She stays dry too. Be nice.”

I take my remaining carrots, and leave them in the food basket. I go to leave, turn back to make sure that they aren’t fighting, and then leave happy.

The rain lasted a few hours, and now the clouds are no longer dropping water. I am with father and Strong Arm, hunting again. We go into the forest to the west, both to hunt and to know what lives in this place.

I am not used to the closed in area. It feels a little like I am trapped, but father is with me, and with him I have no fear.

The trees crowd around us, and plant growth sometimes reaches up to my head. Strong Arm and father cut a path through, and I follow in their wake.

Then we pass into a clearing, and we see a blue horse. It has a horn on its head, and for a moment I fear that it’s a unicorn.

But it’s not. Or I think it isn’t. It’s too small. Unicorns are huge, almost as big as father is. The one before us is my size, the same size as the horses back at camp. Father frowns at it and Strong Arm grows tense. It seems to be watching us.

“Chieftain?” Strong Arm asks my father.

Father hesitates. “Leave it. Let us go another way, and leave it behind.”

Strong arm nods, and we back away before progressing another way. And then the unicorn is back, standing in our way, to our left.

And then to the right. And where we had come from. Always just waiting for us to try and walk away.

Father curses under his breath, and Strong Arm is gripping his spear so tight his knuckles turn white. This is bad. Unicorns are very strong, and have many abilities that are very bad, even for father. We are in great danger right now, and I draw closer to him.

“Strong Arm.” father says, “The next time we see it, toss your spear at it.”

“Chieftain.”

“Chosen. Be as safe as you can.”

“I will father.”

Then we return to the first clearing, and it is there, just like I expected it to be. Strong Arm throws his spear, and its horn lights, and the spear stops in the air.

Father curses, and roars before he and Strong Arm charge it. This is bad. The unicorn can use that break stuff teacher told me about. I didn’t know that they could do that. I am fearful of it now, and cower slightly.

Strong Arm is struck by a blob of color from its horn, and he is tossed aside, but father bats the one directed at him away, and slices at the unicorn. It screams, unlike any horse I ever heard. Father pierces its hind leg with his spear, and it collapses.

I hear something in the forest, and hurry over to them. Strong Arm gets up just in time to be rammed by another bird horse, this one blue with a rainbow mane. More horses follow it, more unicorns, and bird horses, and normal horses.

“Strong Arm!” father yells, seeing him struggling with the blue bird horse. I see the other unicorn’s horns light too, and father stomps, shaking the ground and upsetting the unicorns before they can do anything.

“Chosen! Run! Fast and hard, and do not turn back!”

“Father!”

“RUN!” he bellows, and he charges at the assembled horses. I do not see what happens, as I am already racing through the woods, trying to remember the way home.

I keep hearing sounds. Horses neighing, their strange screams, Strong Arm’s yells, and father, cursing and bellowing.

I hate the woods! I can’t see where I’m going, I don’t know where I am, and the horses have attacked us! I keep tripping, I can hear father yelling still, and I fear what might happen to him.

I keep running, and running, and running, trying to outrun the sounds, and the unicorns that I am sure are just behind me.

It’s been a while since I’ve heard anything. The sun has set and I pick my way across a very dark forest, upset, and hungry.

I want to be back at camp. I want to eat something, but I’m very lost in this place. The trees have thinned, but now they seem terrifying, leering monster faces on their trunks. I keep hearing things that I do not have the names for, and every sound sounds like something that want to hurt me. I can see nothing in the darkness.

I hold my spear tight to me, and jump with every rustle. I keep thinking that I see unicorns in the bushes.

Worse. Sometimes the bushes resemble father. And sometimes he has come to find me and I end up running into a thorn bush, and sometimes…

Sometimes he is lying dead.

I don’t want this! My eyes sting, and I stomp. Why did this have to happen!? Why!?

I move faster, feeling weak and helpless, my tears blurring my near useless vision.

I shove my way through a bush and then hesitate, and brush my eyes clear.

There is a giant stone thing. Like the buildings humans make, but it towers over me and the forest. Like a cliff, or a mountain.

I stare at it, and then feel a raindrop. It is shelter at least, so I run to it, feeling the rain increase.

I pass through a broken wall, wet. The inside is dark, but it is slightly warmer than outside, and it does have a carpet for me to lie on.

I look about myself, and remember the lessons that my father taught me. I gather some of the wood nearby; the furniture that humans make, breaking it apart before setting fire to it.

It is a small fire, and I lie on the rug, listening to the rain and flinching with every crack of lightning.

I hate this. I don’t want to be here. I don’t… I don’t want this to be happening.

I want father.

perspective, pony

The next morning was cloudy, and soon became rainy. It was cold and unhappy for all of the ponies in the pen and they shivered from it, Fine and Good trying to keep Gentle warm.

And then the gate opens again, and they watch the little one, followed by another little one, smaller than the first, enter with several poles and a large piece of skin.

Fine and Good have grown used to the sight, but Soft recoils from it, sickened. The little ones come over, and drops the skin over Good, who freezes from the contact. He was unsure what he should do.

“What do you think you’re doing!” screamed Soft, who walked over, her featherless wings flaring out. The little ones jumped, and the smaller hid behind the larger.

“Go away!” Soft shouted, her wings spread wide.

The little one tried to ignore her, and planted a pole in the earth and then tossed the skin atop it. Another pole and he stretched the skin between them and Good realized what he was trying to do for them.

He was making a rain shelter. Because they were uncomfortable. His heart warmed a little from the thought.

And then the little one looked at the pole it was holding, and Soft, who was growling at him and flapping. He reached the pole out, and tried to push it into the earth near her from a great angle. It wasn’t working well.

“Go away!” yelled Soft, and she stomped on the pole, snapping it and if not for the smaller one, the little guy would have fallen again.

“I said leave!” Soft screamed as she moved on him. He backed away, and the smaller one gave off a whimper.

Just like a scared foal would. The little guy seemed close to crying in terror too.

Good and Fine had had enough, and interposed themselves between the little ones and Soft.

“Stop it!” Good said. “He is trying to help!”

“He is being kind, can’t you see that?” Fine added.

“All I see is a monster trying to ‘help’ with skin!” Soft screamed. “Where do you think that came from!? He killed somepony and that is their skin!”

Gentle began sobbing behind them, and Fine became enraged. Soft was terrifying children, even if two of them weren’t ponies, and had just made her daughter cry.

A single step forward, and then a vicious slap, and everything went quiet.

“I want you gone.” Fine hissed to Soft’s shocked face. “I do not care what you think, because you are wrong! They are children! Not! Monsters! They do not know any better, and my daughter is sobbing because of you!”

Soft was stunned as Fine raged, and Good only stared, never having seen his wife like that.

“You are going to the other side of this pen, and if you so much as glance at the little ones, or even think about speaking where my daughter can hear you, I will pluck you featherless! Go! Now!”

Soft walked away quickly, and Fine huffed before returning to her husband.

“Wow.” He said. He watched his wife go and nuzzle the little one.

“Everything is fine now. The mean pony won’t hurt you.” She told him, and Good followed after her, giving the little one his own brief nuzzle of affection. As thanks for the shelter.

“Wow.” Good repeated. Fine looked at him, and the little one finished the shelter and they no longer had rain falling on them.

“What?” snapped Fine.

“That was… You never really…” Good murmured in a daze.

“Dear?”

“You never looked so gorgeous.” he said. “I really like that fire in you.” He grinned hugely, and Fine recalled that Good oftentimes had a hard time controlling himself when something set him off.

“Darling, Gentle is watching.” she reminded him. That usually did the trick, but he hesitated this time.

“I… she takes a nap soon. We’ll have time.”

“And what about the creatures nearby? Or the fact that Soft is still here, and there is no privacy in this pen? And Gentle wakes up at the slightest noise, remember?”

Good tried very hard to think of some way he could convince Fine to have another child right now. Very hard and for a fairly long time before he sighed.

“Pony feathers.”

“The moment we have some kind of private time, I’ll make it up to you dear.”

Soft was on the far side of the pen. She tried, but it soon became too much for her, and she broke down in tears, her shoulders hitching as she tried and failed to suppress sobs.

Her recent experiences were altogether too much for her. Knocked from the sky, captured by monsters, and now isolated from the only other ponies near her. She wanted to be home, wanted to see her family again, but she felt like she might never see them again.

So she cried, unable to stop herself though she tried. Then she felt a gentle touch on her shoulder and she flinched before stopping herself. Nothing that the little monster could do to her would make this worse after all.

But instead of harming her, he rubbed at her, gently moving his hand in circles. As if he was trying to comfort her. Soft sobbed, feeling worse: a monster was trying to help her feel better.

She kept crying, but then slowed. She was hearing something. A gentle humming, a soothing tune, like a mother would to calm her child. It was helping her to calm, and after a moment she turned to look up at him, and wondered at his concerned face.

But he smiled when she looked, and offered her a carrot. She looked at it before huffing. She didn’t understand him at all, but she took the carrot. The little one gently touched her again, and pulled at her. He guided her back toward the… the shelter he had made.

Soft followed him willingly, but hesitated upon seeing Fine’s glare. Both parents frowned as he led her under the cover, but then he frowned right back. Several sounds, sharp and reprimanding were issued.

Then he put a bunch of carrots into the food basket, and left, looking back several times before leaving altogether.

“Did he just… Yell at us?” Good asked.

Fine felt a little awkward. The little one had obviously been upset with them, and the reason was obvious. Soft looked like she had been crying too, and now that she looked back on it, Fine regretted parts of what she had said. Like the plucking.

“I’m sorry Soft.” she murmured. This was altogether too much like being a filly again for her comfort. “I shouldn’t have… said all that.”

“It’s fine.” Soft said quickly. “He… really is… kind. I was just… a little upset about my wings.”

“So… friends?” asked Fine, hoping.

Soft looked at her, and then gave a weak smile. “Better than enemies.”

It took a bit for Twilight to think of what she was going to tell Celestia about the centaur on the road. And then when she had, it had taken a while for a reply to come.

To my dearest student, Twilight Sparkle,

I am surprised that such beings are here, but we must be understanding. It is possible that they are afraid, and are making dark threats to defend themselves from us. Griffons also eat meat, and threatened much the same when my ponies first encountered them.

Some friendships take a long time. Care for them until they blossom, and they are often greater than those easily gained.

Your teacher, Celestia

Twilight sighed in some relief. Celestia always knew what was best, and she was right. The centaur might be reacting in fear and saying things to terrify them away. It made some sense.

So diplomatic visits would be needed until such a time as the centaur felt safe to let her and her friends truly meet them.

But that could wait. It was very late now, and Twilight wanted to get some rest before making plans.

At least, that had been the plan before a scream came from the town.

One brief teleport got her just a little in front of her castle, where a couple of ponies were staring at the fallen form of Derpy. One wing had a hole in it, and she had a piece of wood stuck in her side, with feathers on the end of it. She was bleeding and badly hurt, but managed to weakly look up at Twilight.

Twilight swallowed hard, and then used her own magic to stop the bleeding, and pull out the wood. It had a sharp tip made of bone, and she incinerated the horrible thing. Then she thought she might have learned something from it and regretted destroying it until Derpy groaned.

She needed to get her to somepony who could help her. In another brief teleport, arrived at Fluttershy’s house, scaring the yellow pegasi silly.

“Fluttershy!” Twilight called, Fluttershy already gone from the room. The mare could move very fast when she wanted to. “Fluttershy! Derpy is hurt and I need you!”

“Twilight, you scar… Oh dear. Hang on.”

A short while later, Derpy was bandaged and not too badly hurt. She would recover with aid. But if the weapon had been just a half inch deeper or further up, it would have hit her heart. As it was, it was blind luck that let Derpy live as long as she had.

Derpy groaned again, and half opened an eye.

“Get some rest.” Fluttershy said.

“Soft…” Derpy whispered.

“Soft?” Twilight asked.

“Lights… Soft… gone… bad…”

Twilight shuddered. She was not sure what Derpy was trying to say, but it sounded bad.

“Fluttershy, I’ll take Derpy to the hospital. Can you come to the castle bright and early? I think we need to have a plan, and soon.”

It was late in the morning that the six of them were leaving town, heading south again. A faint drizzle made the sky grey, but they were braving the weather.

“I'm not too sure about this Twi.” Applejack remarked. “They hurt Derpy pretty bad. Sounds bad ta me.”

“I am not sure what happened Applejack. Derpy is too out of it to tell me what did. All I know is that Soft Cloud and Derpy flew near where we saw the centaur, and Soft didn’t return and Derpy was hurt.”

“So we’re going to rescue Soft?” Rainbow asked.

“…Maybe. If she is being held by the centaur. She might have just received a wing injury, and had to land somewhere close.”

“Twilight…” Applejack muttered.

“I know, but we have to try.” She looked at her saddlebags, filled with flowers. A peace offering. “This is going to work, I just know it.”

The road south was clear this time, but as they went past the very edge of the Everfree, they heard a cry for help from within.

“Did you hear…” Rarity began before Rainbow dashed forward.

They all ran after her, and though they moved fast, well used to the forest, they never seemed to be any closer to the caller.

And then the cry for help was interrupted by a scream of pain, and they redoubled their efforts.

Rainbow burst into a clearing, and ran into a centaur, sending the both into a struggling heap. The others burst in and froze.

A blue unicorn, with her hind leg pierced by a spear and a big centaur, one that towered over them, holding it. A small one was near him, and looked over.

Rainbow was tangled with the other centaur, and Twilight and Rarity immediately tried to help the fallen unicorn. But the large centaur roared, a bloodthirsty sound, and stomped hard enough to send them off balance. He was somehow able to shake the very earth, and he bellowed like a dragon at them.

The small one took off, rushing into the wood, and the large one changed.

Applejack met him, and he matched her strength easily before tossing her away and using his spear to bat Rainbow from the other one.

Twilight tried to use magic, but his spear seemed able to slice the spells. He helped up the other centaur and practically threw him from the combat.

They swarmed him, and he kept yelling and roaring as they hit him, and they screamed as he cut at them with the spear. A dangerous combatant, only managed by all six of them, his spear and size and strength giving him a good edge.

After a time, he tossed Rainbow away again, and ran into the wood. They let him go.

“Is everypony alright?” asked Twilight as Fluttershy moved forward to try and begin first aid on the slices and cuts. Nopony got speared, but the thin cuts stung.

“I’ve been better.” Applejack said. “He was tough.”

“Ow…” groaned Rainbow from her position in a bush.

“I think that I’m…” Rarity trailed off, woundless if not for her mane being sliced of nearly by three fourths. Twilight and the others tuned her out as she screamed, loud and shrill.

“I’m good!” Pinkie stated.

Twilight nodded. “And the other one?” she looked about, but did not see the white unicorn. She frowned, and the others followed suit as they recalled her.

“She couldn’t a walked away with her leg like that.” Applejack said.

“She’s not here though.” Rainbow said. “And I don’t see any place she mighta gone. Maybe she teleported?”

“Highly unlikely. Teleportation is a very difficult spell that only a few unicorns can use, and definitely not when they have been badly hurt.”

“Darling, I think that this entire trip has been a disaster. Let’s go back, so we can recover.” Twilight eyed Rarity, who had taken the remains of her hair and formed a bun on her head, her face marked with tears.

Twilight nodded. “We really need to figure this out girls, and soon, before somepony gets really hurt.”