Author's Note

Hello there and welcome back to yet another chapter of my fanfic that goes beyond the typical oneshots made from before which I've given you since inception; suffice to say, the past chapters from before were by far tame for you all, only to serve as a taste of what's to come later on.

As usual, My Little Pony, or rather Friendship Is Magic, including its settings and characters belong to Lauren Faust and Hasbro; however, this concept of my fanfic still belongs to me so I will say this one time only: please do not steal this story or I will sue.

Lastly, let me also say that I hope you can stomach this chapter now more than the others before it and still have the strength to continue onward in staying tuned though the passing times; henceforth, I will leave you with but one saying only: thank you very much.

Softshell

If there was one thing that had proved to be noticeable, then it would be the sheer cold already beginning to envelope anything and anyone around itself; as such, there was basically nothing at all whatsoever to keep things warm and toasty. For starters, the sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel with its white noise hissing amongst a never stagnant but grayscale background; in addition, the clashes of silver chariot and star platinum had gleamed. While there was plenty of light to go around, there was not enough visibility in the very slightest because of the gathering storm, flakes of flurries more innumerable than the last as they found themselves in an attack order without reprieve. In spite of the light and bright shadings, there had been absolutely no signs of any other color out and about capable of standing up to the ongoing blizzard, at least not without being overwhelmed completely by unbridled mischief and mayhem. Although shapeless to a fault, it wasn’t fair or right at all whatsoever to even suggest no structure therein had never been present here or there so to speak; nevertheless, every one of its textures were uniform all the same, bereft of anomalies. To say the loneliness was currently filling the deadened atmosphere had just simply served as an understatement, even if a singular grain of truth had taken root previously ever since their very conception prior, not that it’d matter anyways.

Such details, no matter how minimalistic, were unable to hold a candle to what was found out in the cold distance: a large rodent with fur matching the ice and snow. Despite being out in the cold, the lonely inhabitant was dressed to the height of proper fashion: a red hat with black peak, orange hoodie, green pants and black boots. All that the white rat could feel was the bitter cold crawling in both the frail paws and tail on the account of already being exposed to the ongoing heavy weather now. The lonely inhabitant was currently lying supine, devoid of consciousness yet statically clinging to dear life despite being caught in the opened environs with clothes.

“Kaye, are you cold…?” the white rat had muttered in confusion before coming to, both eyelids flying right open slowly to uncover some jet–black pupils in a small sea of the brilliant green as they’d been assaulted by crystalline snowflakes.

It wasn’t long until the lonely inhabitant slowly came to, snapping upwardly at a right angle to find nothing more than countless shades of both white and gray everywhere possible no less. Although confusing to a fault, it was nothing compared to what the white rat had then discovered in regards to the present position at hand, or rather paw in the observer’s case so to speak of. Now, the lonely inhabitant let out a driving scream capable of piercing the heavens like a drill; however, the shine in the snowstorm was far too strong to let it be heard in any tone whatsoever.

After the white rat’s shock had subsided, the cold fabric shielding its wearer’s legs started to give off a humming buzz; as a result, it’d prompted a left hand to reach into the pocket deeply, quickly finding something almost instantaneously: a white rectangular device with many silver buttons and a black antenna sticking out as well as a green plastic strap latched from.

It didn’t take long for its owner to find a bright screen where some words appeared in white up against a teal background: ‘do you want to start or not?’

Below the question were two more words, both of which were in all capital letters as they were already surrounded by monochromatic rectangles: the first thereof was ‘YES’ in off–white within a jet–black territory; the other beneath, ‘NO’, was inverted by comparison so to speak of.

“What the… what the fuck is this: ‘YES’ or ‘NO’; what does it even mean?!” the white rat had hoarsely exclaimed quietly as a frown appeared upon the very visage while clutching the small electronic firmly, “I don’t like this one bit: I’m a rat trapped out in a blizzard at the middle of nowhere with no one around to hear or see me at all…! Not only that, I found this weird toy in my pocket telling me that a message was received but there’s no name whatsoever; who in the world could’ve possibly sent it, much less know me enough to do so at all: could be one of my old schoolmates doing this but if that’s the case then which one…?”

This was of no consequence whatsoever to the lonely observer as one of the fingers had ended up pressing down onto the centralized part of the interface, inverting the equilateral shapes in turn as its user moved further intermediately before the highlighted option had been selected altogether. As soon as it was done, nothing happened at all in the slightest as far as the white rat can see it clearly: no matter how many times the button had been pressed, the screen above itself remained stagnant to a fault, much to the dismay of its owner frantically trying and failing to see it change. Nevertheless, it was only a matter of time before the lonely observer had surrendered any and all notions of expecting something rather different; it was now time to make do with the utter lack of output and switch back over to the initial option to select it, ready to embrace what came next.

“Eugene Benn, it’s time…” a feminine voice had spoken out, causing the white rat to recoil in shock as both eyes were darting about in search of a corporeal source only to find nobody else but the latter alone.

It didn’t take much for the lonely listener to outcry, “hey, wait a minute: who is this; what do you mean?!”

“Your time has come: head on out to Nasidia in five hours; don’t be late…” the same voice from before had said to Eugene in an instant, unfazed by the loudness from the latter prior, “a shuttle bus has been provided for you in advance and is currently on standby at San Cruise Trail; head further westward until it’s in sight…”

“This is rather unhelpful, I wish I had a map with me: at least it would give me a clue as to where I am; still, I need to know what in the world happened to me of all people…” the white rat cerebrated before taking another look at the minimal surroundings once more with clarity; still, there were no significant changes between now and then so to speak.

Taking one more look at the item in question, its owner was quick to find a compass onscreen with an arrow pointing at the direction in a flash so to speak of; in any case, considering the overall information provided, as well as the lack thereof, there wasn’t much of a choice left for the occasion. Either way, it was time to keep moving forward as far as Eugene was concerned, especially since the blizzard had showed no signs of stopping anytime soon so to speak of; after all, there seemed to be not a display of civilization within walking distance, let alone a tiny house built by a person named Jack. Speaking of such names, the white rat was already left alone with nothing but the clothes on their wearer’s back and a device in paw to provide company; they were but of cold comfort compared to the land of ice and snow being explored at this present moment in time, even more so with the lack of lives. Despite the solitary freedoms, the lonely traveler couldn’t resist feeling at least one additional pair of eyes already being laid out onto to former, being that the mind had formulated a series of scenarios in which were capable of happening in between the present and future alike, for better or for worse. Even with the black boots on the ground still crushing up and down any lingering snowflakes which were accumulating prior, Eugene’s palms became sweaty with all his limbs weakening in dexterity and levity over time in search of what was told earlier, eyes narrowing about almost without end.

Just when it would’ve seemed that the white rat’s body was about to implode, salvation seemed to be at hand when eyes were found to be gazing upon a long metal contraption in the distance. Despite possessing curvatures, there were plenty of angles straightening things out to a fault; most of the materials were colored in crimson, matching the hat right upon the eyewitness’ head. Even out amongst the shine in the snowstorm, Eugene could see that a lot of care had went into the machine cosmetically, its external engine already breathing out black smoke against it all. There were a set of small lights on full display front and back at their symmetrical cornerings: the former was tinted in a shade more colorful; the latter was of a brighter color than its coating. All the looking glasses had been freed from the cold air latching onto the surface areas, even as the snowflakes had landed thereupon only to melt in an instant within mere seconds per particle. Smoke and steam were also found to be rising out of its tailpipes in an amalgamated fashion, dissipating about as the cold weather started to lose its frigidity from first contact all the while.

It didn’t take much for the white rat to realize that no one was inside the vehicle to begin with; this brought an air of suspicion into the fray as movement began to slow down surely enough.

Just when it’d seemed that the lonely eyewitness was about to stop dead cold in the last place, some harsh honking was soon being heard instantaneously invading both of the ears at once, snapping the listener back up toward reality as it was followed by a garbling masculine voice, “Eugene Benn…!”

“Huh, who is it; who’s there?!” the titular traveler tersely yelled as both eyes quickly darted to and fro once more in utter desperation for an answer; nevertheless, nothing happened because not a creature was bold enough to be stirring about, other than the viewer alone so to speak of, “come out there and show yourself already…!”

“Eugene Benn…!” the previous voice had spoken again, this time more clearly than ever before as the white rat soon panted about to little end.

The lonely listener couldn’t resist giving in to the notion of ruminating the current situation at large in regards to the time and place therein, taking the time to look at the electronic again, “okay, Eugene… it seems that the lady’s voice had said a shuttle is nearby but nobody’s even inside the darn thing at all. Could the driver be out on his lunch break already but if that’s the case, then what’s going on here; there’s so many questions about the whole thing that are very suspicious to a fault, even Javelin would’ve noticed this before: where are the others, who knows my name, how did this happen, what day is it, when did I get here, and why me?”

“Eugene Benn, your time has come…” the item in hand had spoken out to its eponymous owner almost immediately, more clearer compared to the other announcer, “please take the shuttle bus to Nasidia; afterwards, walk on by down to the corner of Prophecies’ Circle & Quarton Avenue: a subway station will be found resting between two restaurants – JoJo’s and Cousin Anakin…”

“Now, it tells me…” the white rat huffed about.

It didn’t take much for the lonely observer to approach the automobile in an instant, using what little strength which had remained within both legs to traverse the otherwise whiter environment. Ostensibly, Eugene didn’t have much to say about where the next destination would be since it’d been told earlier and even then there were still plenty of thing brewing about within the neurons. The white rat took yet another additional glance abaft of the metal contraption overall, this time directed at the pathway forged earlier now on the verge of being filled in with the same material. Anyways, the lonely eyewitness had no time whatsoever at all to reconsider any of the multiple possible choices past and future, or lack thereof in the present case, especially without options.

The doors in front of Eugene had quickly opened up, instantaneously presented by the warm and cozy interiors compared to the external surfaces. A steering wheel rested between the angled seat and stagnant gauges, vacant to a fault as with the rest of the large machine the white rat gotten in. Of course, its sole observer was fast to go find a seat out of many in the distance, the upholstery more thicker in composition to retain all the heat.

Just when it would seem that Eugene was ready to bask in the small world within the ice and snow, a loud hiss had entered both of the ears as the vehicle itself growled about with life and liberty alike; while this was happening, another feminine made a way in this time more stoic, “good afternoon and welcome to the Spatial Empire Transit Hubble, or SETH for short. This automated vehicle is provided for the security and convenience of all travelers, native and otherwise; please sit down and enjoy the ride. The time is 2:35 PM; current topside temperature is twenty–seven degrees Fahrenheit with an estimated high of thirty–two; this shuttle is maintained at a pleasant fifty degrees at all times. This shuttle is inbound from North Limb to Nasidia: if your intended destination is beyond the Hoovier Province, then it’s recommended to have a passport and photo ID ready; otherwise, report to your local department of automotive vehicles for processing before you’ll be permitted to do so. Although temperance is tolerated, the consumption of controlled substances such as tobacco, alcohol, and other compounds not prescribed by a trained medical profession or regulated by the government is not permitted within the Spatial Empire Transit Hubble; in addition, because of our utmost standards in cleanliness, any and all littering whatsoever is forbidden irregardless. Please keep your limbs inside the shuttle at all times; do not attempt to open the doors until the shuttle has come to a complete halt at the next station. In the event of an emergency, passengers are to remain seated and await further instructions: if it’s necessary to exit the shuttle, then disabled parties should be evacuated first; please avoid oncoming traffic and signal for help until assistance arrives. A reminder that the Summer Sun Celebration will commence next week in Ponyville at the crack of dawn: anyone wishing to attend is recommended to dress comfortably within the current climate whether arriving or departing the area; remember, your safety depends on it.”

“You gotta be shitting me: the Summer Sun Celebration here in Ponyville of all places with weather like this now?!” the white rat said silently under breath while watching the surroundings move on horizontally within the viewpoint, “either Princess Celestia has lost her mind or we’re dealing with windigoes still in Equestria, but if that’s the case, then where are they…?”

“A reminder to all operators – regular biochemical health screenings are a requirement of continued employment in SETH: missing a scheduled urinalysis and/or radiological check–up as well as detection of any and all illegal substances are grounds for immediate termination…” the announcer continued onward without notice whatsoever so to speak of.

The lonely listener couldn’t care in the slightest despite everything continuing on around, eyes becoming weary as the snowstorm still beat against the glass; before long, a yawn escaped into the warm open air as darkness and the like were entering the point of view, “wake me up when it’s all over…”

Eugene was fast asleep, nestled deeply into the clothes upon their owner’s back as the metal contraption kept moving against the driving blizzard all the same.

Time had passed on through space alongside with the inhabitants whom were drifting aimlessly as the stars amongst the never–ending blackness that had floated on, each of them to prompt any wayward traveler to harken back to the memories of life when the richest beverage kept their spirits up until their next destination and from the mouth of madness. Of course, time itself was the only thing that remained constant in the ever–changing plane of existence where many variables had come in all shapes and sizes, coexisting alongside either in unions or divisions thereof as they transcended boundaries without incident to say the very least; then again, almost all of them succumbed to the fold sooner or later. This interval, however, would prove to be a special case since that there were those who have found themselves still standing rather than stumbling and falling to the depths of their failures nevertheless; of course, not all of them were doing so as the whole wide world turned on its own axis: out of many of those in question, there was indeed only one.

“Now arriving Nasidia…” the same voice from before spoke up as the large machine started to slow down and wheeze in due time, “enjoy your stay, maybe forever, if you can…”

“Eh, what the…?” the white rat yawned as both eyes were reopened to find a darker landscape with buildings great and small coexisting whether on the same block or from across a street but the snow had still remained, more numerous than before much to the observer’s annoyance so to speak of.

Despite this, the solitary passenger had no other chose but to leave now that the journey had came to an end; for what it was worth, nothing much had changed on the inside when it’d came to the automobile in question overall.

Eugene discovered the utter lack of denizens whatsoever, something that which proved to be so unnerving to a fault even with the cold air returning to assault the integuments again, this time in full force as the juxtaposition between inside and outside became painfully obvious to a fault no less.

Although the white rat could see bright lights illuminating the way throughout the conurbation, their lack of diversity had made the ice and snow extremely unappealing as a result upon exiting; if the sudden awakening back in the middle of nowhere had left a chill crawling throughout the spine, then having to deal with a sudden change in time and place was bound to reinforce it all.

The orange hoodie buzzed about as its wearer reached back inside again to find the rectangular device’s screen reading, “walk out north until you can see the two restaurants in front of you; please hurry, you have twenty–five minutes…”

“Damn, that was a pain: first I wake up in the middle of nowhere and now I’m here in Nasidia still with no one to greet me…” Eugene grumbled as the electronic in hand now pointed upward for the viewer to see, sending both feet away from the bus, “not only that, I’m still out there in a blizzard with nothing but the clothes on my back and not even a clue as to what’s going on.”

“You’ll know soon enough…” a low hiss had entered the white rat’s ears, prompted the lonely listener to look around once more, only to find nothing at all whatsoever like before so to speak of.

The alert pedestrian exhaled warmly all the same, “just relax, I’m pretty sure that you’ll be able to find something to eat before you go riding the rails; besides, they said that the station is in between two restaurants, all on the corner of Prophecies’ Circle and Quarton Avenue, like the phone had said: I have my bits with me all saved up…”

“Don’t count on it, traitor…!” another whisper cut into the storm Eugene was still in, catching the observer off–guard once more with clarity, “everyone in this nation knows of what you’ve done…”

“Who said that; who’s there’s: are you from around here?!” the white rat had stammered as the face became warped with trepidation in due time.

A low voice showed no mercy or comfort as their hearer listened about, “you, Nausicaa, Iago, Hennessy – they played right into your hands; did you really think that you were all going to get away with what you’d done to them…? No… this was vengeance for them, the boys back in town: you gathered them all together in one place, just like they’d asked you to; all of those little souls in one place, just for them, the sisters. A gift; now, you can do what you were meant to do and be destroyed… You will make them proud, Eugene… watch, wait, and be strong… if you can…”

“What gift; what does this have to do with anything?!” the aforementioned traveler barked, fear now mixed in with fury as the visage became red hot like a chili pepper, “show yourself then and say it to my face already…!”

“That won’t be necessary: I’m sorry to interrupt you, Eugene, if you even deserve that name but I’m afraid that won’t be enough to save you from what you’d done; you weren’t sent here to receive a gift nor have you been called here by the individuals you’d assumed much earlier…” yet another feminine voice growled, more corporeal as the white rat still standing up straight.

In front of both eyes was an entity colored in cyan, beating still against the shine in the storm as life was full of warmth and fluidity within them. Although the short hair was bearing all the colors of the rainbow, a trio of horns were discovered to be poking through them in the upright curves. Generally speaking, the cyan bystander was in the altogether not a fabric upon the frostbitten skin to cover the small yet curvaceous formation. Of course, the ice and snow had no effect whatsoever, though Eugene was at a loss of words for the femininity presented on full display no less.

The white rat’s heart skipped a beat when it’d came to the cyan bystander starting slowly walking down the very same street at the opposite end, prompting the former to speak, “hey, miss, are you alright…?”

“Of course, I am; why wouldn’t I be…?” the other pedestrian laughed grimly, much to the tense traveler’s apprehension as the former continued without a care, “I’m not some nudist who picked a bad time to walk out into the cold, let alone a normal person; then again, you’re not a person either, at least not anymore…”

“What are you saying…?” Eugene had asked.

The cyan speaker paid no mind whatsoever as eyes of heliotrope took aim at the white rat, “it should be obvious: you’re here tonight because your crime of hostility towards both your neighbors and guests; I’m here because I couldn’t resist keeping my legs open to anyone willing to have a good time with me…”

“No way… where are the others?!” the trembling traveler barked even as the other pedestrian kept on going to the former all the while, “I have to know why us…!”

“It should be obvious because we’re not in Dodge anymore, much less our world; we’re in Tartarus with all the freaks, demons, and devils locked in here with people like us for all of eternity: me, a dirty whore, and you, a backstabbing prick…!” the cyan speaker sneered about defiantly all the way.

Eugene was now ready to back away in turn while choking out, “me, a backstabber?! But I’ve been loyal to my friends…!”

“Not all of them, though I believe what really pisses me off is what you’d done to those wishing to be your friends all the same…!” the other pedestrian hissed as lesions started to appear upon the integuments, matching the hair fluttering against the very winds, “it was one thing to wreak vengeance upon three thieves looking for candy but playing a trick on them had went too far. At home, we were people with lives and loved ones but here we’re nothing more than transgressors; what we see before each other was made every time our actions have hurt people: in your case, the white rat proved to be more fitting for a hostile and a bully such as yourself, you dirty motherfucker…!”

“Leave my mother out of this…!” the white rat screeched instantaneously, burning brighter than ever before again the blizzard.

Nevertheless, the cyan speaker chuckled, “she’d already left, both of them to be precise: one a drug addicted bitch who couldn’t put down the needle even when she was about to bring you into the world; the other a gold digging skank too heartbroken to live with the fact her husband’s son had destroyed a company by making a deal with three trailer park skanks…!”

“I’m warning you here: they have nothing to do with this…!” the tepid traveler barked with fury in the mouth as both feet were now moving on up into the target’s direction, “you better apologize…!”

“Or what, you’re gonna pound the shit of me like you did with those boys for the past fourteen years of your life…?” the cyan pedestrian scoffed.

This made Eugene freeze up inside before thinking silently, “how does she know all that; did everyone in Equestria learn this…?”

“I’ve read the stories and they ain’t pretty whatsoever: some high school jock gets mixed in with a bad crowd to deal with three troublemakers…” the other speaker laughed without a care in the whole wide world altogether as the white rat had gotten stuck in the former’s path all the while, “of course, this is news to me all the same. Even Cloudsdale had a slow newsday and Fluttershy got off pretty easily because of her good nature and high morals; of course, I couldn’t say the same for you or your friends, especially that brat Nausicaa of all people! I understood the fact that they wasted their friendships trying to scam you and your friends and neighbors out of their hard earned money so they can buy some jawbreakers but did any of you really think you were going to get away with the bullshit you four had concocted with those stupid sisters, inviting them to eat, drink, and be merry only to betray them?! You’re even worse than me and I had sex with every single Wonderbolt up and down the academy, even the women themselves; even Rarity would think your crazy after all the shit she would’ve read about your community and she’s here for attempted sororicide…!”

“Who the fuck are you?!” the taunted traveler talked.

It was at this point in time the cyan pedestrian was now up close and personal as far as Eugene could even see, the former laughing uproariously at the latter directly, “I’m just the decoy, scum…!”

Without warning, black bile was being shot out into the white rat’s face, covering both eyes in an instant as their owner had felt a sharp twinge in the heart; afterwards, a large needle was found to be dug into the chest cavity, filled with a clear liquid as it’d pierced the clothing in spite of everything.

It was at this point the tainted traveler felt all strength and stamina escaped from the body as the attacker in question was looking at the former with an odious smile upon the visage, forcing the organ to work overtime before it’d exploded in an instant as their owner collapsed onto the sleet and ice with little warning whatsoever.

Needless to say, it was all over for Eugene so to speak.