It’s a crisp fall day in Pennsylvania. The leaves are changing colors, and the birds are flying south. It’s the kind of day that usually gets depicted on postcards.
You’re settled into your seat aboard Amtrak’s Keystone, bound for New York City. You look out at Lancaster Station as you wait for the train to depart. A pony galloping across the platform catches your attention. She looks like every young girl’s dream come true: a white unicorn with pastel blue, pink, and purple hair.
The unicorn boards the train just as it’s ready to leave the station. She glances around, looking for an empty seat, and finally spots one next to you. She sits down as the train pulls forward. She’s out of breath, so you open your bag and offer her a bottled water, which she accepts gratefully.
She drinks, nearly draining the bottle in one fell swoop. She’s quiet as she twists the cap back on what’s left of her water, and you think it’ll be a peaceful ride to New York.
She finally breaks the silence. “I’m Potion Nova.” She offers her hoof.
You shake her hoof, introducing yourself in the process. Now that the ice has been broken, Potion Nova turns out to be quite the chatterbox. She starts talking, and the two of you jump from topic to topic. Eventually you ask her why she’d heading to New York and she doesn’t respond.
“I don’t know,” she finally admits. “I just got on the first train leaving the state.”
You chuckle. “Pennsylvania has that effect on folks.”
“Oh, good. Glad to know it’s not just me who’s been chased by an irate mob of religious traditionalists in horse and buggies.”
You pause, what you were about to say next forgotten as curiosity demands further explanation. “No, that sounds pretty unique. What happened?”
“It’s a long story.”
“It’s a long train ride. We’ve got about two more hours before we arrive at our destination.”
“If I’m going to tell my tale, I guess I should start back at the beginning. I was born magically deficient.” Her horn lights up with a pale aura. “I have ridiculously weak field strength, but that’s not to say that I’m completely without magic. I studied with the zebra shamans, and I learned how to make potions with the best of them. When I heard about Earth, I figured moving here was a no brainer. A world without magic? Surely my potions would be in high demand.” Her expression dims. “But they’re not. Almost everything I can make potions for has an equivalent on Earth. You have medications, so there’s no need for medical potions. You have fertilizers that are nearly as good as my growing potions and cost half as much. I figured if I can’t beat them, I’d join them. But I shopped my résumé around to a bunch of pharmaceutical companies and they all rejected me. I apparently don’t have a proper education.”
She pauses her story just long enough to finish the last of her water. “I was a failure in Equestria and I was rapidly becoming a failure on Earth, too. So I did some research and figured that if there was any place my potions would be a hot commodity, it would be a community where they eschew modern conveniences…”
“I take it that didn’t work out so well for you.”
“Apparently I’m a ‘witch’ and deserve to be burned at the stake.”
“I’m sure they weren’t serious.”
She shows you her tail, the end of which is singed. “There were torches and pitchforks.”
“…Okay, maybe they were a little serious. I’m sorry you had to go through all that. What are you going to do now?”
“I don’t know. I’ve got no plan, no money, and no useful skills. I guess I’ll just go to the Equestrian consulate in New York and see if they can get me back home.” She sighs. “If I’m going to be a failure, I may as well be a failure at home.”
[CHOICE]What do you do?
You have room. Offer to let her stay with you. (hero)
She should go back to Equestria. (chaos)
Lead her to a back alley and harvest her organs. (villain)
“If you need a place to stay until you get back on your feet…uh, I mean hooves… you can stay with me. I’ve got room.”
“That’s sweet of you, but I couldn’t impose on you. You barely even know me.”
“So you’d rather impose on your family, or your friends?”
“I… uh…” She pauses, looking for words. “You make a good point.”
“Don’t go back to Equestria with your tail tucked between your legs.”
She shifts positions, looking at her rump. “Where else am I supposed to put my tail?”
“It’s an expression. What I’m trying to say is don’t go home in shame. When you go home, if you go home, it should be with your head held high because you made your own way here on Earth.”
Author's Note
Story notes: https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/1048582/story-notes-escape
Author's Note
Why would you pick this? You have no one to blame but yourself for choosing this. You can’t pin this on me for writing it, nope.
You can still hit the back button and choose a happier ending. Please?
No?
Fine, be that way. Darkness and death await. I hope you’re happy.
Villain
You continue chatting with her until the train arrives in New York. You step off the train and notice she’s lost, looking around like a fish out of water.
“I know the way to the pony consulate,” you lie.
She follows you, looking relieved until you lead her into a dark alley. She’s a useless pony who won’t be missed. Nobody’s going to come looking for her and unicorn organs fetch a pretty penny on the black market. There are plenty of people who think unicorns are the cure to all of life’s ills. You pull out a switchblade. It’ll be over quick.
Potion Nova might not have traditional unicorn magic, but her horn isn’t completely useless. Before you can get a grip on her she’s stabbed it into your leg.
You collapse to the ground in pain as Potion Nova continues goring you with her horn. “I’ll teach you to attack innocent little ponies!”
“I surrender…” you moan weakly.
“Not yet, you don’t!”
Story notes: https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/1048582/story-notes-escape
