Chapters Let me tell you a story.
It started a few hundred years ago, in a land we used to call Equestria. Equestria was a bustling industrial country of fantastical proportions. Diverse cities and villages specializing in all sorts of goods. A place of commerce, Equestria was. Of growth, innovation, science. Inventions beyond one’s wildest dreams became the norm. Fashion and culinary geniuses sprouted up like weeds. It wasn't long before Equestria became the capital country of the world. A single news thread would influence the rest of the world. It got so far as Equestria reinventing what it meant to be happy.
Friends meant nothing. Wealth meant everything.
Canterlot, the greatest city in Equestria, became a hub for wealth and the wealthy. Skyscrapers that blotted out the dirt, dazzling neon lights that scared away the darkness, piercing surround sound that forever comforted the lonely. It was paradise for many, hell for everyone.
It was a simple day in the middle of June. People going about their day, children unknowingly clinging to their final days of ignorance, weeds scrambling for any purchase, a small cloud drifting by. A darkness that defied all explanations covered the land of Equestria. Questions are still uttered today in regards to that particular phenomenon.
That darkness, it lasted a mere second but in that second, unspeakable horrors were unleashed. Equestria fell within the week. Nearly half a billion refugees flooded into their neighboring nations before anybody could rationalize a thought. The results were disastrous, prompting the other countries of the world to raise their defenses and eventually, effectively quarantined Equestria. Those who were inside were locked in forever and those outside, could never enter.
The year is 2053, 15 years after the fall of Equestria. This is where I begin.
I cried for days.
Days was a simple exaggeration. It could’ve been true, or it might not have been. That’s a funny thing about us humans, we constantly distort our own truths until they become truth. My village had just been overturned by Darklings, leaving no survivors. Another exaggeration. No survivors. I survived, but did I really?
I wiped away my tears after who knows how long. My frail body couldn’t keep me steady for long so I opted to stay sitting. My refuge consisted of two large pieces of rubble pushed against each other to form a small concrete tent. I had managed to find a blanket amongst the ashes and I huddled in that pocket underneath the rubble.
I sniffled.
Enough time had passed for the unpleasant smells to waft up. I ignored it as best as I could. After all, someone was coming. They had to have been coming! Our village sent up a flare moments before the attack. Village Creed stated that if a flare were to go up, neighboring settlements would dispatch backup or investigators. I clung to that hope. It became my light in that moment of darkness.
However, that light dimmed ever so slightly with each passing day. More time passed. My hunger grew, as did my thirst. I only ever ventured a few meters away from my concrete tent with the vain hope of potentially scrounging up food. I always came back empty handed. Soon enough, I was painfully thin.
Then one day, many days after that day, I got up. I had no idea what compelled me to do so. It could’ve been from many reasons, each one grimmer than the last. In the end, I concluded that there was no reason. I started walking around. Each step took me further away from the safety of my tent.
I walked past the lumps of bones and flesh, of concrete and mortar, of metal and wire. I walked past it all, never giving any of them a second thought. I walked to the edge of the village, the place I’ve only ever known. My legs gave out and my body gratefully sank down. No tears could be shed, so instead I listlessly gazed over the horizon.
My mother once told me stories of Equestria before the fall. Heroes of yore, wonderful cities and towns, and of the kind monarchs who ruled the land. It sounded wonderful. Once, I asked if it was possible to go back to that time. She merely smiled sadly and tucked me goodnight. I smiled softly at the memory.
Darkness started to creep in from the corners of my vision. I didn’t have the energy nor motivation to fight it. I merely flopped into the dusty ground and closed my eyes. Perhaps a new light would find its way into my sights. A new thing to chase. My consciousness slipped and the darkness claimed me.
It was warm.
Why was it warm?
I was pretty sure death wasn’t supposed to feel warm.
Unless…
I opened my eyes.
An unfamiliar ceiling stared back at me. It wasn’t gray clouds and it most definitely wasn’t the weathered wooden ceilings of my house. My old house. I frowned and attempted to get up. My chest immediately screamed out in pain and with a gasp, I eased myself back into the bed I was lying upon.
A bed.
I looked down and then around. The interior was cramped and the walls, metallic. The bed was quite comfortable though, despite it being on top of what appeared to be a kitchen counter. Then, I noticed that the room was moving and the walls were humming at a steady pace. Wait a minute, the metal walls have curtains.
Without thinking, I swept away the curtains and was immediately blinded by the harsh gray light of the outside. I hissed and squinted as much as I could, determined to see where I was and whether or not I was dead, although it certainly didn’t feel like I was dead.
A few seconds passed and my vision returned to normal. I surveyed my surroundings only to immediately draw back in surprise. The world was moving. Then it hit me, this must be a car, from what my mother had described it as! Though…this particular car seemed bigger than what she had described. I leant back into my bed and pondered my fate.
“Oh, hey.” I looked up in surprise. At the front of the car, a head poked out and looked at me. I scrambled back, my heart pounding.
The ghosts have come for me. I knew it! It was only a matter of time. Those soulless eyes, peeling, burning skin, blood that dripped out of their mouths. They scream! Scream for my help, my soul, my justice. I whimpered and curled into a ball, and tried my very hardest to keep everything out. I need to get out, I have to. But I can’t, the ghosts will get me if I make a run for it. They always catch up!
The rumbling stopped.
A soft hand landed on my back and stroked it. I gasped with shock and scrambled back even more, which resulted in hitting my head against the metal wall. I cried, thinking this was the end. Moments before the end, one small thought calmed me down a little. Perhaps my death will bring peace to the ghosts. I screwed my eyes shut and waited for the inevitable coldness.
It never came.
Instead, a warmth wrapped itself around me. I choked back a sob and cautiously opened my eyes. An unfamiliar woman was hugging me.
“I’m here, calm down. Shhhh…there there.”
“No! The ghosts, the ghosts. Let go of me!” I struggled. I tried, I really did. But no matter what I did, she would not let go. In fact, she leaned even closer and hugged him tighter. She whispered comforting noises into my ears. I don’t know when it happened, but at some point, I gave up and melted into her embrace. The tears then began to flow. Exhaustion, both mental and physical, was overwhelming and I succumbed to the comforting darkness.
When I awoke, the car was rumbling and the sky outside was dark. I held still for a couple of moments, scared and prepared for anything. Memories flooded back and my body eased by itself. I took a shaky breath, then another. Once I had felt like I was strong enough, I slipped off of my table bed. My legs were weak, but the weird countertops on either side helped me stay upright.
Once I got my bearings, I looked around. The car was indeed much larger than what my mother had suggested it was. Then I noticed a figure sitting in a seat at the front. I noticed that there was another seat and it was empty. I made my way over and eased my way into the seat.
“Hi.” The mystery woman smiled at me, giving me a single glance before looking back out the giant window. She was beautiful. Fair brown hair that cascaded over her right shoulder. Green eyes that danced in the light of the lantern that hung above the wheel. She also exuded this warmth that made me feel comfortable around her.
“Hello…” I responded quietly. This seat was bigger than the chairs we had at my house. This one was also much more comfortable. I felt my body relax. “Where…where am I?”
“This here is my beloved, the Dawn Chaser.” She patted the wheel affectionately with a bright smile. “My name is Harmonica, what’s yours?”
“...Rose.”
“Nice to meet you Rose. I hope we can be good friends.” Harmonica hummed a pleasant tune while she tapped a small beat with her fingers on the wheel.
“Could you…could you tell me what happened?” I asked, dreading the possible answer. Before Harmonica could open her mouth, however, my stomach rumbled. I blushed and lowered my head.
Harmonica laughed. “Sounds like you need dinner first. Here, let me just…” She twisted a small looking thing underneath the wheel and the car stopped rumbling. The world outside also stopped moving. “Come on.”
I got up after her and she made her way into the back. The hallway was cramped, enough to fit a single person, so I climbed into the bed I had woken from to make space. She gave me an understanding smile and opened a cupboard. It looked to be a pantry and I was able to catch a glimpse of various food items. She plucked a few potatoes and closed the cupboard. She then grabbed a few bowls of varying sizes and a knife.
“Do you know about mash, Rose?”
“What’s that?”
“It’s a special dish that turns something like this…” Harmonica held up a potato with an expression that promised something grand. “...into something completely new. Observe!”
She began by peeling the potatoes' skin. She placed them into a bowl off to the side. The bare potatoes went into a bigger bowl.
“What about the skin?” I asked, curious and worried. “Mother always said to never waste food.”
“Don’t you worry, Rose. I’m saving them for later. You’ll see, it’ll be something special.” Harmonica gave a thumbs up and a reassuring smile.
“Oh, okay.”
She went back to her preparation. One by one, she picked up a potato and cut them into smaller pieces. Once all of them were cut, she brought out a fork. With it she began to crush the pieces into even smaller pieces. It soon turned into weird yellow fluff.
“Now, I want you to close your eyes.”
“Why?”
“I have to add a few magical ingredients and you know what they say; a magician must never reveal their secrets.” Harmonica winked slyly.
“Oh, okay.” I closed my eyes and strained my ears. Perhaps I could glean what she was making through the sounds.
There was creaking, a muffled thud, a weird sounding liquid, scraping, and a few other noises. It was a cacophony. I didn’t know what to make of it.
“Okay. You can open your eyes now, Rose.”
I opened my eyes. Harmonica smiled as she presented me with the bowl. Instead of the potatoes I knew, there was a shining yellow, almost soup-like substance.
“This is mash?”
“Yep!” Harmonica placed the bowl down and spooned out some. She placed them into a smaller bowl and handed me one. She then gave me the spoon to eat with. “Eat as much as you want.”
I didn’t hesitate. The first spoonful was already swallowed when my second reached my mouth. A big mistake. I coughed out some of it as that delicious goldenness clogged up my throat. Harmonica giggled and patted my back. I struggled somewhat, but I swallowed after a painful moment.
“Take it slow. It’s not going anywhere.” Harmonica was still chuckling as she cleaned up the little mess that I had made. There was a twinge of guilt but it was shoved to the side by my desire for food. Heeding her advice, my next bite was taken slowly. It allowed me to truly savor the taste. Calling it heaven seemed like an understatement, so instead, I called it my hope. My light at the end of the tunnel.
“Tha…thank you, Ms. Harmonica.” I sniffled. Tears ran down my cheeks as I tried to put on my best smile. I struggled, but my mother always said that it was the thought that counts.
“No miss, Rose. I’m just Harmonica.” She ruffled my rat nest of hair and strolled back to her seat at the front of the car. “Come join me when you’re done, okay?”
“Okay, Ms. Harmonica.”
I wanted a second helping after I finished, but I felt incredibly full already. I sighed sadly and placed my empty bowl next to the half full bowl of mash. I paused, wondering what I should do next. I knew that Harmonica told me to come up next to her, but my mother always said to clean up my messes.
“You don’t have to clean up, Rose.” I whipped up my head to see Harmonica’s kindly face peering out from behind her seat.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure. Come sit next to me, I haven’t had someone to talk to in a while.”
“Oh…okay.” I waddled up the shaky hallway and sat in the seat next to her.
“You wanted to know what happened, right?” Harmonica asked in a friendly manner, her face never having had a flicker of hostility or depressed acceptance that I knew and grew up with. I nodded. “Hmm, alright. I was visiting the town over, I’m a traveling merchant, you see, when your flare went up. I vaguely knew what it meant so I asked the townsfolk if they were going to do anything about it. They shook their heads, saying that some other town will go. I didn’t really believe them, not really. There was a fear hidden underneath, something the Darklings have driven into their hearts. Like staking a vampire.”
“Ms. Harmonica? What’s a vampire?”
“A terrible creature that was once human. They drink blood and the only way they can die is being staked through the heart.”
“That’s scary.”
“Yeah.” Harmonica fell silent for a moment. The road around us was dark and ominous, but I felt safe and warm. “Well, after that, I left. I went back on the road. To the next town, I thought. I tried to put it out of my head, you know? It didn’t really work out. I turned around before the day ended. It took a while, ice cream trucks like mine aren’t that fast. Especially ol’ Dawn Chaser. Anyway, I reached your town and it was…” She glanced at my quiet form. “Well, it was something else. I steeled my nerves as best as I could and looked for any survivors. That was when I saw you. You stumbled out into the open with this horrible haunted look in your eyes. Then you collapsed. Of course, I picked you up and set up a bed. I also treated a few of your wounds, then waited.”
“...” I didn’t know what to say, so I didn’t say anything.
The years passed like a blur.
The two of us became partners in crime in everything. Harmonica taught me everything I needed to know while we were on the road. I learned how to barter, to wheel and deal. I learned how to scavenge for valuable items, items that we could later trade or sell. I learned how to treat wounds, splint ligaments, and search for medicinal herbs. I learned how to cook, how to drive, how to satisfy in bed, how to fix and break things. Essentials for everyday life in the outskirts of Equestria.
It was nearly eight years into our partnership that Harmonica finally gave me a gun and taught me how to shoot.
“This, Rose, is a fifth generation RapidShot.”
“I know, it’s not my first time seeing it.” I replied, annoyed. I’ve been in high speed chases before with her on the roof shooting at Darklings chasing us. Then there was that one time where we nearly got ambushed at Junction-K. She looked so sick, gunning down those cultists while I was tied up next to other sacrifices.
Harmonica sighed and shook her head. While still relatively young, there were definite signs of age and stress showing on her beautiful features. “When a person carries a gun, and I mean truly carries a gun. They need to know what they are carrying and why. So, this is a fifth generation RapidShot. Unknown to the general public as this generation was still in the prototyping stage. I only happened to stumble across it by chance. What makes this generation different from the more common fourth generation is its ability to fire smoothly without much recoil or jamming. While that doesn’t seem like much, trust me, it is more than you’ll ever know.”
Harmonica then proceeded to take apart the RapidShot piece by piece and explained what they did and how to put them together. She then had me figure out how to put them back together again. It was fair to say I struggled. Over the following week, she drilled into my head the basics of gun handling and what the pieces did. After I had successfully put the gun together within a minute and a massive scowl on my face did she finally set up a shooting range.
“Deep and measured breaths. It helps you focus. Line up the muzzle relative to the target and then look down the red dot. Just because the HUD tells you directly whether or not it will hit, does not mean it will hit.” Harmonica explained with infinite patience.
“What the heck does that mean!?” I threw up my hands at the absurdity of that sentence. The RapidShot that I was holding flew out of my hands and up into the air and before I realized what had happened, Harmonica had already slapped me and had put away the gun.
“Two more weeks of gun basics, then we’ll go back to the firing range.”
“Ugh!”
Three weeks later, Harmonica continued with her explanation. “The HUD only tells you that the bullet will hit based on your current position. That position can change with any slight variable within the moments of you firing, and with it, your aim. So, word of advice? Don’t trust the gun’s HUD. Use it to guide you, not dictate your ability to use a gun. Now take up position.”
I stood, my feet planted wide, the stock to my shoulder and the muzzle pointed at the empty bottles on wooden posts. I took calming breaths.
“Good, now squeeze the trigger and be prepared for the jolt. Don’t let the surprise make you flounder.”
A few more calming breaths as I lowered my vision to the red dot. The HUD told me I was off by a few millimeters so I adjusted. Then I squeezed. The burst that came forth sprayed around the bottle, but a bullet struck it, shattering it. I felt elated.
“Nice job, Rose.” She smiled warmly and ruffled my hair. “We’ll pack up for now, we don’t want to spend so much of our limited bullets.”
I nodded and proceeded to pick up the gun bag and ammo box. When I sat up, however, I noticed something off in the distance. A humanoid figure.
“Harmonica?”
“Yeah?”
“I think somebody’s over there.” I pointed to the figure. Harmonica stood next to me and spotted the same thing.
“Hmmm. I say we should go check it out. Come.”
We piled into the ice cream truck and she drove down the road. The figure stopped and noticed our approach. They raised their hands in a stop gesture and Harmonica complied. From our vantage point I could make out that the figure was a woman. A woman with a sword and a sniper strapped to her back. I rolled down the window and called out.
“Stranger, what’s your business?”
“Hitchhiking. Can I get a ride? I can trade.” Her voice was rough but steady and it didn’t betray anything. She looked up and my breath was caught in my throat. She was beautiful. Middle-aged and definitely had seen some harrowing experiences judging from what looked like a fresh scar above her left eyebrow, but her teal eyes were striking and her red luscious hair flowed with silky grace. I felt heat enter my cheeks.
“Sure, let’s see wares.” Harmonica called out, saving me from what could’ve been an embarrassing moment. She stopped the engine and pulled out the keys. She climbed out and stood in front of the grill. Standard procedure when business was done out on the roads. Behind the grill lay a few surprises should the potential customer get violent or greedy. And should things get worse, it was my job to drive out of there.
“First of all, are you heading near or somewhere along the way to Canterlot?” The woman asked. While not unheard of, it was still jarring to hear that from someone. I couldn’t hide my shock. Harmonica was much better at concealing her surprise.
“And what do you want with Canterlot? I promise you nothing there is of value. Only death and suffering exists there.” Harmonica’s usual warm and almost motherly voice turned weary and battle-hardened. The voice that came from someone who had seen the worst and even more past that.
“I know.” This new woman took on the same tone. I leaned back into the seat, my tense body suddenly feeling very heavy.
“You were there then? Before the fall?”
“I was there.”
The two women shared a tired, but one of companionship, look. It made me jealous. Sure, I didn’t experience the fall like those two did, I was too young to remember, but Harmonica was mine! I found her first. Well…she found me, but still!
“Why do you want to go?” Harmonica visibly let her guard down and her expression turned soft.
“I want to go home.” The woman said with such conviction that even I felt moved by it.
Harmonica was nodding. “I understand. We can bring you as far as Baltimare, the rest is up to you. Also, it doesn’t come for free. You mentioned you had things to trade?”
The woman nodded and pulled out a bag. “Inside are half a dozen potatoes and three of those TerraCubes. You know, those things you throw and a hole is dug out. If that isn’t enough, I’ve got this sword.” She unslung the scabbard around her shoulder and held it out. I noticed a slight tremor in her arm though. From what Harmonica taught me and from personal experience, that usually meant that it was an item they weren’t all that willing to let go.
“We’ll take the potatoes and TerraCubes. Come on in.” Harmonica noticed too. I smiled slightly. She clambered back into the driver’s seat and clicked a button that unlocked the back door. “Rose, help her in and sit with her.”
She gave me a knowing look and I nodded. I climbed out of my seat and opened the back door. I stuck out my hand and the woman took it gratefully. I helped her in and closed the door behind her. I called out to Harmonica and we began moving.
“You can sit here.” I pointed to a small couch while I sat on the other one. In the middle sat a small coffee table. A few years ago, I had persuaded Harmonica to take out some of the cupboards and place a small equivalent of a living room instead.
“My name’s Sunset by the way.” She extended a hand and I shook it. Now that we were in close proximity, I could appreciate her beauty much more and the thought made me blush a little. I mentally shook those thoughts out of my head and tried to cover it up with a response.
“Mine is Rose. Back there is Harmonica. We’re traveling merchants.”
Sunset nodded absently. Her gaze drifted around our little ice cream truck, our home. A small smile tugged at her lips and it made me feel proud for some reason. She leaned back into the seat but immediately sat up again. She blinked and realized she was still wearing her weapons on her back. She chuckled and unslung them. The sniper looked like nothing I'd ever seen before and I wanted to ask about it, but something else weighed on my mind.
“That weapon, the sword I mean. Is it important to you?” I asked. Her gaze flicked back up to me and I immediately felt subconscious. “Oh, sorry. That was insensitive of me. It’s just, you were willing to give it up to barter passage, but you were hesitating.”
“...yeah, it’s important. It belonged to a comrade of mine.” She chuckled humorlessly. “Well, we barely knew each other for long, so I wonder if it’s okay to call him a comrade.” Sunset placed her hand over the scabbard and had a melancholic expression.
“I think you can.” I reason. “You carry his sword and memory, I think that’s enough.”
She blinked and looked at me with a peculiar expression. It lasted for a moment, but it felt longer. Enough to make me squirm in my seat.
“Rose, was it?” I nod. “Thank you.”
Days passed.
Sunset slept on the floor of the truck in a sleeping bag. I slept in a hammock that hangs from the ceiling. Harmonica slept in a pull down section above the dashboard and front seats. It was weird, having a third person after years of the two of them. It wasn’t unwelcome, I concluded. That first night moments before I drifted off, I heard a creaking noise that sounded suspiciously like happiness. Perhaps Dawn Chaser didn’t mind this arrangement either.
“Where did you come from?” I had asked one day over lunch that consisted of carrots and cabbages. It didn’t taste all that great, but it was something.
“Canterlot.” Sunset replied tersely.
“No, I mean after that. Before you ran into us.” I tried to explain. “The stories, right, talk about how the majority of Equestria’s population evacuated. I’m assuming you were part of that evacuation. So, where did you go?”
“Nachbarn. A small town called Rest.”
“Woah.” I knew that she must’ve come from a different country, but still, the actual answer left me in awe. I’ve never been anywhere but the outskirts of Equestria. Never too far to run into border patrols of other countries and never too far in where hundreds upon hundreds of Darkling nests lay. Harmonica was adamant on that. “How did you get past the border?”
That question darkened Sunset’s face and her gaze flicked to her sword. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. I could only gape in horror at what I had just said. The only moment I ever had to possibly learn about other places besides the outskirts and I blew it.
“I’m…ah, I’m sorry! I didn’t think.” I bowed my head, visibly upset. Sunset sighed softly and patted my shoulder.
“It’s okay, Rose. You meant well.” I raised my head slightly to see her wearing a small frown. “Judging from your expression, I suppose you want to know about the outside.” I nodded hesitantly. “Well, it’s nothing to write home about. I suppose it’s less chaotic than Equestria. Darklings still make it past the borders and occasionally make nests. There was this one in Forge, a city in Nachbarn, that freaked everybody out. It was quickly burned, but there were still quite a few casualties. Hmmm, what else…” Sunset fell silent. I let her. We never finished our conversation.
The inevitable day arrived when the silhouette of Baltimare appeared over the horizon. Tears inexplicably sprung to my eyes when I realized what that meant. I quickly wiped them away and turned away from the other two. I spent those next ten minutes steeling myself for our goodbye. Then I heard a curse from Harmonica.
“What’s wrong?”
“Darklings.”
“Awww…” My annoyance turned into a spike of worry. Darklings, now? I whipped back to where Sunset was dozing off. “What should we do?”
“Wake Sunset up, we’ll get her opinion first and then decide.” Harmonica changed gears and rolled to a stop next to the road. I got up and shook Sunset awake.
“What’s happening?” She asked, her voice slurred from sleep.
“Darklings at Baltimare. Harmonica is asking for your opinion.” I shifted to the side so Sunset could get up and stretch.
“It’s alright, I can walk from here.”
“Are you sure?” Harmonica called from the front, a note of worry in her voice.
“Yeah.” Sunset chuckled softly as she slung her weapons over her shoulder. She then reached for her bag. “Thanks guys, really. You’ve really done much more than I would’ve expected. Safe travels.”
Harmonica unlocked the back door and gave a serious nod. Sunset returned it with a small smile. My breath was short as I struggled to keep my tears in. She patted me on the shoulder before jumping out. I reached out to close the doors but I hesitated.
“Hey.” I look up. Sunset smiled brilliantly like the sun and held my forlorn look with a determined gaze. “You’ve got this, alright?”
I nod. She gave me a mock salute before turning on a dime and marched in the general direction of Canterlot. I took a moment to look at her retreating figure and then closed the doors. Harmonica glanced sadly in my direction before locking the door.
“Alright. Let’s get out of here, nightfall’s coming.” She turned on the engine and turned the truck around. I nodded sadly and plopped myself down in the shotgun seat. The truck felt much larger and lonelier. The humming that I've known for half of my life started up again and I felt my eyes closing. “Wait…wait, no no no…”
My eyes shot open and I glanced around frantically. “What’s happening! What’s wrong?”
“The Darklings!” Harmonica slammed her foot on the gas pedal. The ice cream truck burst forward, sending me sprawling.
“What do you mean!” I clambered back onto my seat and looked behind us through the side mirrors. Along with the sticker ‘objects may appear larger than they are’, I counted at least five Darklings coming closer by the minute. “What! How did they see us! We’re still so far from Baltimare!”
“I don’t know, I don’t know!” Harmonica’s breathing started to quicken. I gave a concerned glance which ultimately landed on the RapidShot. A second was all that it took for me to make a decision.
“Harmonica, unlock the backdoor.”
“What! Are you crazy!?” She shook her head violently. “No no, we can drive faster than they can run.”
“Harmonica. We both know that that isn’t true.”
“Then we switch!”
“We tried that once! We nearly crashed the truck. No, I need to do this. Unlock the backdoor. Please.”
Harmonica looked more panicked than I'd ever seen before. Sweat was falling at a concerning pace and the steering wheel looked far too slick to be normal. Her gaze swapped rapidly between me, the darklings in the side view mirror, and the road ahead. Then she uttered a curse and all but punched the unlock button.
“Thank you.” I slung the RapidShot over my shoulder and stumbled over to the backdoor. I was about to do something completely idiotic, but it was necessary. I took a few deep breaths and double checked that everything around me was strapped down. Once I made sure I was ready, I counted myself down to make sure I wouldn’t back down.
One.
I opened the door which immediately swung open and slammed into the side. I paid no attention to it and I grabbed the rope that hung by the side. Using that, I swung my body over the perilous road and had my other hand flounder around. I failed the first time, so I swung my body again. This time, my hand found a purchase. I gripped onto the ladder with all my might and before I could chicken out, my other hand let go of the rope. I shrieked as the realization of what I was doing hit me.
“Rose! What’s wrong! Answer me!” Harmonica’s panicked voice somehow made it to my ears despite the whistling of the wind.
“I’m fine.” I coughed. “I’M FINE!”
I swung my body again, this time to the other side and grabbed the open door. I heaved it shut with all of my might, leaving me a sweaty mess. The job wasn’t done though. I pulled myself up the ladder and promptly collapsed onto the roof of the truck. Many years ago, we installed a few straps along with a cage in case we ever needed to clip anything big to the truck. It also helps with keeping a person strapped to the truck should the need arise.
The wind buffeted against my ears, making it very hard to hear anything, much less myself. I wheezed as I pulled myself down and strapped myself in. The cold of the upcoming nighttime made the process much harder than it needed to be.
I was panting heavily and completely exhausted when I was finished. But I couldn’t rest now. With some finagling, I pulled the RapidShot over my head and braced it against the cage. The Darklings were much closer now. I took a deep breath and lowered my heart rate. Then I fired. Bullet after bullet rained down on our pursuers, many of them striking true.
What ultimately lasted an hour, it felt like a day had passed. Three of the five fell under my onslaught, the other two gave up the chase. Harmonica didn’t stop driving until the brilliance of dusk was nothing but a mere memory. When the truck stopped, she all but jumped out and demanded that I get my butt down. I wanted to laugh at her panic, but I didn’t have any strength left. Instead, we huddled and cried together.
Many more years passed. Our little ice cream truck became famous for a spell. Then it broke down. We bid adieu and held a small little funeral for our beloved Dawn Chaser. We then moved into a small town for a little while. While it was ours for a couple of years, it didn’t feel real. It didn’t feel right.
A few more years passed, our joints ached and white was seen in Harmonica’s hair. There was an announcement that the Darklings had been eradicated in the North, so we headed up in a borrowed pickup truck. We made it past the border into Nachbarn just fine. We drove around for a few weeks, we just couldn’t find that right place.
Then on a chilly afternoon, when the sun was going down, we rolled into a small town called Rest. I smiled softly and nudged Harmonica awake. We both agreed that it was perfect and made a little home together. It was not much, but it was enough for the two of us.
In those years, we spoke of Sunset often. Her quiet determination. On our travels, we tried several times to find news about her, but it was like she had disappeared off the face of the earth. After a while, we just accepted it. She was but a fleeting memory.
And just like every other story, ours had to end at some point. The war against the Darklings was wrapping up and we had grown old.
“What do you want for dinner, Harmonica?” I asked raspily. I was the only one who could do things now as Harmonica was confined to her bed, which had been moved to the living room, due to health issues.
“Surprise me, Rose.”
“I’ve got just the thing.” I hummed a merry tune without a specific beat.
I took out some potatoes and peeled them. The skin in a bowl for later use. Then I cut the potatoes into pieces. I pulled out a fork and started turning the potatoes into yellow fluff. I then presented the bowl to Harmonica who chuckled weakly.
“Close your eyes. I mustn’t spoil my magic tricks.”
“Yes yes…” Harmonica closed her eyes with a beautiful smile.
I put the last few ingredients in and divided the mash into two smaller bowls. I stuck a spoon into both and held them up before Harmonica.
“You may open your eyes now.”
I looked up, bright eyed. The school I’ve wanted to go to was finally in front of me. The greatest music university in all of Equestria, located right here in Baltimare. All I needed to do was take that first step. So I took that first step, and then another. I started running. I ran past other students, teachers, and random pedestrians, straight into the front hallway. I skidded to a halt and let my jaw drop as I circled, taking in all of the sights. It was a dream come true.
I could barely contain a giggle, when suddenly, somebody bumped into me. My voice slipped out in surprise which came out like a squeak. My face immediately flushed with embarrassment. Hesitantly, I looked up to see the perpetrator. I could not believe my eyes at how beautiful the woman was. Shimmering black hair that almost looked like indigo in the sunlight. Her brown eyes sparkled with a hidden mischief that tugged at my heartstrings. She had her hair loose and free which only caught the light even more perfectly.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I wasn’t looking where I was going. Are you okay?” She gave a warm apologetic smile and I awkwardly smiled back instinctively. Then my mind snapped back to reality and I opened my mouth to reply but before I could, she checked her watch. “Oooh, the opening ceremony is starting soon, we should hurry up.”
“Right, right.” I shouldered my bag and followed her through the crowd. Surprisingly, I managed to not lose track of her. We managed to make it to the gym without much trouble and was able to score some nice seats.
The opening ceremony was nothing to write home about, just some director talking about how special it was for that many students filling up the halls was a blessing. I tuned him out pretty quickly and I took a peek at the woman next to me. She was busily organizing her backpack and it was probably then, that I was gone. Nothing special about that particular scene, but it had a certain radiance that I was enamored with. I couldn’t let it go.
Imagine my surprise when I found out, in my first music class, that I was in the same class as her. Through the attendance, to make sure that we were in the right class, I found out that her name was Geranium.
The days following were a dream.
I learned that she played the violin. That she liked ranch dressing on salad. That she lived only a block away from me. We got paired up for a mock performance to present our skills in musical collaboration. The objective was to create an original piece or recreate an already existing song in such a way it is nothing like the original.
The months following were the greatest.
We presented our parody, spearheaded by Geranium’s passion for the classics. The reimagined song, taken from a famous science fiction movie from before the turn of the century, was named after a sunrise. It was tricky at first, taking what was a song made for a whole orchestra, but Geranium made it work. She had the inspired idea to have it slowed down, to have the intense majesty be more creeping and gentle. Our presentation was magnificent.
The years following were a nightmare.
“What was that!?” A student cried out next to me. He was huddled underneath an overturned bench. I was currently in psychology, a class I had decided to take if only to understand why people liked music.
It was a class like every other, learning about a thought experiment when the sky flickered, like a weakened string of a violin. It spluttered and then there was a sense of wrongness that pervaded our very beings. Then, without warning, the sky was back to normal. With that normalcy came the sounds. Cacophony that did not please the ears. It came like thunder, as quick as lightning, and as soft as piano. The resulting explosion was incomprehensible.
I groaned and picked myself up. I had skidded across the floor and slammed into a desk leg. The force had the chair flip over my body. There definitely were going to be some bruises, but nothing was broken.
I looked around in shock and awe. If I were of a scientific mind, I would say that it was a miracle. There were no direct visible after effects of the explosion except the scattered bodies. People groaning from underneath flipped over furniture and some were not moving at all. My hand had reached out instinctively when a sudden thought intruded.
I gave it no second thought and rushed out of there. My goal was the tech lab which was down a level. I slipped when I tried to skid to a halt by the stairs. I merely got up, ignored the blood that dripped down my leg, and practically threw myself down the stairs. I passed people of all kinds in all sorts of situations. I ignored it all.
I all but kicked the door down when I reached the lab. I tried to jump into the tangled mess that was the servers and computers but a few people held me back. I made no attempt to reason with myself, to see the electricity sparking dangerously, to see the dark liquid pooling on the ground, the cooked smell floating through the doorway. She had to be alive, she had to be!
“Geranium!” I heaved my body forwards, determined to make it to her side. That was when the wall behind us ripped open. The rush of cold wind shocked my senses, and with my captors, we went sprawling.
I scrambled, my feet slipping on the wet floor. I found a purchase somehow and sprung forward. My injured leg from earlier and collapsed yet again. My chest hurt, my clothes soaked, and a dull throbbing started. It was all wrong!
Exhaustion overtook my body and I fell unconscious.
I had no time frame for the following years after I woke up in an unknown house. I was told that out of the thousand people at the school that day, only thirty made it out. I was dragged out by a mother who sprinted into the burning wreck that was the school to save her child and found me instead.
I stayed with her for a while because of the guilt that clawed at my conscience. I helped out with labor, boarding up the house, digging a trench, scavenging the abandoned houses, and the like. She got pregnant one day and she wouldn’t tell me how. There was a moment where I wondered if the child was mine before scrapping the ridiculous idea entirely.
“Do you need anything else, Miss Acacia?” I asked after placing yet another homemade sandbag in front of the DIY bunker that I had dug out the moment I heard about the baby.
The woman smiled sweetly and patted her large belly. She didn’t inspire the same feelings that Geranium had, but she was special in her own way. She took care of me when no other would. If I dared, I sometimes thought of her as my mother or an aunt at the very least.
“I’m alright, sweetie, really.” Miss Acacia rocked in her chair a little, knitting quietly.
“Are you sure?” I stressed and scratched at the patchy beard that had started to grow. “Maybe have one of the mothers on standby?”
“Noo, no no. Don’t bother poor Rue. She’s had enough on her plate as it is.” Miss Acacia looked up at me with a motherly tenderness. “You’re so kind, sweetie, but I’ll be fine. We mothers have been doing this since the dawn of time, but if it makes you feel any better, you could make me some tea.”
“I’ll go do that then.” I gave a small smile before scuttling out of the little bunker. Past the dusty piano in the garage and up the carpeted stairs and crossed the cushioned hallway to the kitchen.
I quickly made some earl gray tea, only three packets remaining, and passed it over. She thanked me and claimed that she was sleepy. I nodded and wished her a good night. I slipped outside onto the porch and sat in the hammock. I found it in a camping store in one of my earlier scavenging sessions.
I rocked myself and watched the sun set. I admired the beautiful colors dancing along the horizon, silhouetting the broken buildings of Baltimare. Not many people were still living here, maybe a thirtieth of the original population. The rest have all fled or gone.
The community had combined efforts after some sort of status quo fell upon the town. Together they built defenses and dug bunkers in case of an emergency Darkling attack. What a weird name, I thought that night. The name was given to us by a scruffy looking wanderer who said he came from Seaddle down south. He said it was a nightmare, the entire city had fallen in under a day. The Equestrian army was also wiped out the moment they rolled in with tanks and artillery. It made us realize how lucky we were in our little Baltimare.
Seasons changed, and little Sweet Pea was born without much trouble. She became a beacon of light for the community, especially after what had happened with Rue. Sweet Pea, despite not having experienced what the rest of the town had seen, still somehow understood the underlying tension and terror that pervaded the residents of Baltimare. Her antics were kept to a minimum and she never shouted or wailed. A blessing, the community said. Miss Acacia merely smiled and nodded.
I tried to leave several times, but Miss Acacia stopped me every time. She claimed that she needed my experience, my youthfulness, and especially my kindness. I never believed in that, but I accepted it nonetheless.
So it was like that. The three of us. Miss Acacia, cute Sweet Pea, and little ol’ me. There were times I felt like family, others, I felt like an intruder. It was life, I suppose.
At some point, I started writing music. It might’ve started that night under the sky in the hammock, contemplating about Darklings, as I couldn’t seem to shake the magic of that moment. It was only after I had written practically all the notes that I began to question if there was any magic to write about. I threw out the song.
“Uncle?” I looked up from my musings. I found myself unconsciously tapping rhythmically at the closed lid of the piano. I shook myself out of my stupor and faced Sweet Pea. I frowned and I lifted my head even more. When did Sweet Pea get so big?
“Yes?”
“Are you okay?” Her chestnut hair came from her mother but her green eyes did not. Her soft smile certainly did but her freckles did not. Even after all these years, I still haven’t figured out who the father was.
“I’m alright, Sweet Pea. Thanks for asking though.” I gave her a weary smile and rubbed her head affectionately.
“Nooo, I told you not to do that!” She playfully batted away my arm and I chuckled. A comfortable silence fell between us. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah, I’m okay.”
“Okay…it’s just…mom’s worried. You haven’t had lunch and you’ve been staring off into space a lot too.” Her eyes betrayed a worry so deep it took me by surprise a little.
“Hmm, I’ll try to do better, alright?” I stood up and placed a hand on her shoulder, which was much higher than I thought it would be. “Let’s get food, shall we?”
“Okay.”
We walked upstairs and moseyed into the kitchen. We chatted about pleasantries, the latest crops were doing well, the Boomers down the block found a working grill, and the anniversary of the Darkling’s arrival was coming soon. I prepared two small cucumber sandwiches, the vegetables and wheat both grown from our garden built from Miss Acacia’s hands.
I was about to take a bite when a sudden boom echoed throughout the town. There were a few screams and a couple of more crunches. Then came the ringing. I abandoned my sandwich and picked up Sweet Pea without a second thought. I ran downstairs and all but threw her into the bunker before running back upstairs. I grabbed the shotgun hanging by the doorway and charged outside.
Miss Acacia was visiting a friend on the other side of town which was a twenty minute run at best. I gave it no second thought and ran. I ran like my life depended on it. In the corner of my right eye, I saw a couple of people yelling obscenities and running into an alleyway. A crumpled car then flew out into view before skidding on the pavement sending up sparks. I cursed and picked up the pace.
I only passed the town’s park when my chest started cramping badly. I gasped heavily and collapsed against a tree, trying to regain my breath. It hurt so bad like a badly tuned piano and hammering a single key at full volume, but in my chest. I gritted my teeth and put one foot after the other. I just had to reach Miss Acacia.
When the street came into view, I forgot about my pain and took off sprinting yet again. I didn’t stop, not even when I crashed into the door and burst into the hallway. There was a click and without thinking I dove further into the house and a sharp bang rang out behind me.
“Oi! You nearly shot him!”
“I’m sorry! Oh gosh, I’m so sorry.”
I groaned as the pain in my chest flared up again. I flopped onto my back and gasped for breath. Miss Acacia floated into my vision and patted my head with such tenderness, I nearly fell asleep.
“Gah! Miss Acacia! We need…to get back home…Darklings!”
“Yes, we know. Orchid and I have been waiting here. Where’s Sweet Pea, is she with you?”
“I put her...in the…bunker like we practiced. I came…to find you…as quickly as I could.” I managed to say it through heaves. She nodded and helped me to my feet. She said a few words to Orchid and then made her way out the door. I nodded my thanks to Orchid and followed her, albeit more slowly.
“Where are the Darklings coming from?”
“Eastside. I saw a few people fighting already.”
She picked up the pace and I struggled to keep up. There was this weird psychological analysis on the brain’s ability to perceive time and how returning the way you just came from helps perceive time go faster than before. Same goes for listening to music for the second time right after the first. We ended up back at the house at what I considered quite a fast pace.
Miss Acacia hustled downstairs while I collapsed in the front hallway, trying very hard to catch my breath. I felt sweat in most uncomfortable places, especially my neck. I stayed there, shotgun lazily pointed at the closed doorway, attempting without much success to keep my heaving to a minimum.
A sort of tense calm fell in the household. If I strained my ears, I heard the soft sobbing of Sweet Pea downstairs and Miss Acacia comforting her. If I quieted my breathing, I heard muffled shouting and explosions outside.
Time passed and exhaustion was creeping into my bones. I recited notes for certain classical pieces under my breath to keep myself awake. My eyes drooped anyways and I caught myself sliding to the side several times.
Miss Acacia poked her head a couple of times, worry clearly etched into her face. Each time I waved her back, whispering as loud as I could that this was my duty. I would be the distraction should a Darkling ever enter this house. If I could not kill it and if I didn’t die immediately, I would take off as fast as my legs could carry me. Far far away.
A loud crunch had my head whip up in terror and I clutched the shotgun. The breath in my throat was caught and I couldn’t seem to let it free. I strained my ears, trying to reach beyond the deafening silence that seemed to have been infused in Baltimare.
Nothing.
I slowly got to my feet and walked with care over to the doorway, the many carpets muffling my footsteps. I forced a deep breath, but it didn’t feel like any oxygen actually got in. I took another and another. My chest hurt and tears sprung to my eyes. I screwed my eyes shut and grabbed the door handle. I took another breath, this one felt more natural, and then whipped the door open.
Nothing. A deserted town. I held out my shotgun and creeped out as quickly as I dared. It had been too quiet for too long, I needed to know why. I made it to the cracked concrete and scurried over to a broken ECar and ducked behind it. The suspense really was getting to me and I had to place a hand over my heart as if that was going to calm it down.
My head tilted backwards and rested on the red chrome of the ECar. I closed my eyes and the cold air washed over me which calmed me down somewhat. My body twitched when I heard clattering off to the side. Fearing the worst, my eyes fluttered open.
A Darkling on top of our house.
Panic seized my heart and I scrambled up to my feet and instinctively screamed. It wasn’t manly, but it got its attention. The Darkling seemed to have seen me and bunched up its legs and prepared for a jump. I all but punched myself to get my legs moving and I took off. A heavy thump behind which made me run even faster. At some point I realized that I didn’t have my shotgun any more, but I didn’t dare stop.
I sprinted away from Baltimare. We planted some mines there after acquiring them from this grizzled old man a few years back. I just had to hope none of them had been triggered and that it was enough to take out a Darkling.
I weaved through the buildings, opting for the smaller alleyways than the larger roads. Heavy thumps behind me was the only indicator that it was still after me.
I vaulted over a large flower pot and tried to turn but slammed into the wall instead. My arm worryingly went numb, but I didn’t stop to think about it. I pushed off and went left. Just one more turn and I would make it to the minefield.
“GET DOWN.”
My body reacted on its own and I all but face planted. When my thoughts finally caught up, I screamed at myself but I didn’t dare get up. The heavy thumps accompanied by concrete cracking and metal creaking grew ever closer. I curled up and covered my head with my arms.
Then there was a loud bang. My ears rang out in agony and it was all that I could do to not cry in terror. Silence fell after the ringing stopped, leaving only me and my heavy breathing. Soft crunching came over to me and I didn’t dare look up.
“Hey, you alright?” A rough voice, feminine, friendly, and a hint of warmth. I looked up and saw her. I had no idea how I did it, but I quickly found myself hugging her tight. “Woah, you alright there? Did you hit your head?”
My disoriented brain finally decided to pick out that this voice was not the voice I knew. I stumbled back and leaned against a wall. Tears threatened to spill, but I kept it in. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. A hand fell onto my shoulder and I flinched violently, my chest heaving. I stared in shock at the strange woman who had suddenly appeared by my side. Wait, she was there the entire time. I groaned loudly and slid down the wall and collapsed in a heap.
“Do you live here?” I nodded numbly. “Do you need help getting home?” I nodded again. “Alright, up we go.”
She was surprisingly strong as she pulled up my pathetic self. She placed my arm around her shoulders and started walking. I stumbled after her lead. I didn’t want to look at her, it hurt too much.
“My name’s Sunset, what’s yours?”
I didn’t answer. I couldn’t answer. How could I? I focused on putting one bumbling foot after the other. A small quiet followed but it was quickly overwritten by her melodic voice yet again.
“I’ve traveled quite a bit, heading to Canterlot and all. I came from Nachbarn, and I’ve seen all kinds of things.” She propped up my lolling head. “I used to be a high school student before everything happened. Now I just want to get home, you get what I mean?”
There was a hidden passion in her voice that floated into my ear. It snapped me back to reality and I found that walking was easier. The woman felt this and eased some of the burden off of her. I smiled softly despite the guilt.
“Yeah, I get what you mean.” I said, quietly.
“Right? Other people I’ve met all told me that I was crazy for doing this, but you get me.”
I nodded, keeping my eyes forward. “Why are you being nice to me?”
There was silence but I didn’t dare look in her direction. Then she spoke, and the warmth was gone. “You had the eyes of a dead man. I wanted to breathe life into you even if it was only for a moment.”
I contemplated that then nodded. “Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it. Where do you live by the way?”
“This way.”
When we appeared on our street, Miss Acacia all but tackled me, sobbing and saying that she would’ve never forgiven me if I died. I chuckled weakly and rubbed her back. Sweet Pea also came out of the house in tears, but she had a smile playing on her lips. I smiled back.
It took a while, but once everyone regained their composure, I introduced Miss Acacia to the woman. She smiled and shook hands, explained how she saved my life, and her current situation.
Miss Acacia smiled weakly at the thought of my life needing saving but she told the woman to stay right there. She hustled back into the house, claiming that she had a few items to give to her. I stayed next to her as well, but I never once gave her a glance.
“You said you got me.” The woman started after a moment. I frowned, not entirely sure what she meant. “I meant when I was talking about going home and you said you understood.”
“Oh, right.” I fell silent, collecting my thoughts. “I…used to be a pianist. I was in university, final year, when it happened. I…had a partner. In music, I mean. Geranium… We played many pieces together and it was always a blast. I always thought we would travel the world playing music together.” I trailed off.
“Yeah…I know what you mean.” They sat in comfortable silence, companions in passions unfulfilled and broken dreams.
Miss Acacia came out of the house with Sweet Pea scurrying behind her. She was carrying a small satchel and handed it to the woman. “I’ve packed it with bread, cucumbers, and a few apples. I hope this is enough.”
“Oh yeah, thank you so much.” I heard the genuine but pained smile in her voice. It made my heart ache for her. “Could I bother you with one more thing?”
“Of course!”
“Do you know the quickest way to Canterlot?”
Miss Acacia snapped her head to look at me with concern. I nodded. She sighed heavily and her shoulders visibly drooped. “The quickest way would be to go straight south, but I really recommend going southwest. It’s safer and you’ll meet more towns that way.”
“Okay. Thank you, really. I mean it.”
“I know, sweetie. Just stay safe, you hear? I can’t thank you enough for saving him.” Miss Acacia smiled softly.
Sweet Pea then waddled up and gave the woman a piece of paper. I managed to catch a glimpse of the colors before the woman took it. “Thank you for saving my uncle.”
“Oh, you’re welcome.” The woman crouched down and ruffled Sweet Pea’s hair which elicited a giggle. “Well…” There was an awkward pause but the woman solved it just by leaving, raising a hand in a farewell.
I raised my hand too, gave it a moment, then walked back into the house. Miss Acacia and Sweet Pea followed soon after. I didn’t wait and marched downstairs. I stepped past the sandbags and rummaged through my trash can and found my old song. I looked it over, the woman’s words that still resonated in my head bounced around. I gave it a small smile and wandered over to my piano.
I lifted it with care and softly pressed a key. It sounded slightly out of tune. I popped the lid open and memories flooded back as the dust rained down. I found myself smiling as I grabbed the tools and handled them with ease. I spent an hour, maybe two, making sure every key sounded the way it was supposed to.
After it was all done, I eased myself into the pianist's chair and placed my hands on the right keys. How long has it been since I’ve last played? Twenty years? Maybe more? My fingers itched at that thought. I placed my piece on the stand and was poised to start playing.
One, two, three, four.
The first key was hit, then the second, and soon after, I was playing with the smoothness of a master out of practice. It wasn’t perfect, but it shone brilliantly, just like a sunset.
The world shifted and I found myself pressed against the wall of a cafe. Screams surrounded me as people were thrown every which way. Sickening thuds and broken glass echoed through my panicked headscape. And just like that, it was over.
I dropped to the ground and scuffed my knees a little. I gasped, now that the G’s weren’t impacting my lungs. I struggled there, for a second, for a minute, then I turned to the left and wretched out the lunch I just had. A groan rose out of me as I eased myself against the wall. Putting my arms around me, I stayed there attempting to calm my frayed nerves.
Time passed, how much, I wasn’t sure, but enough had passed for me to realize the world was silent. I anxiously looked over my arms and saw devastation. All around me, everything that wasn’t bolted down was thrown everywhere. Even the things that weren’t, they had some sort of aggressive bend. Bodies also littered the streets, the majority of them had been smacked against the walls of buildings though, creating a grisly spectacle. I felt the urge to retch again but I tampered it down.
I pulled myself up with shaky legs and took an experimental step. Ah, that’s not good. I grimaced and shuffled over to the nearest chair. I flipped it over, sat down, and with bated breath, heaved my leg upwards onto another chair. I bit back a scream and took several heavy breaths. Time as a boy scout had taught me basic first aid and I put that knowledge to good use. Ignoring the corpse of a waiter, I plucked a croissant off of the ground and put it in my mouth. Then, after a silent countdown, I pulled my pants down.
My vision returned after a while and I saw that the croissant was on the ground. I spat the remains out of my mouth and steeled my nerves yet again. I looked at my wound and almost flinched. A large spider web of bruises painted the entirety of my leg. And from the pain earlier, I was almost certain that whatever hit me, also hit bone. I forced myself to breathe in and out as I inspected every inch of my injury.
Good news, nothing punctured the skin. It was a blunt object. Bad news, everything was internal. I was going to need some sort of cast as well as crutches. I chuckled weakly, easier said than done.
I sat there for a considerable amount of time. Ignoring the carnage, recovering after the initial adrenaline had worn off, and tried to come up with a plan. It all came to a screeching halt when I heard a harsh purring noise next to me. My heart seized as I slowly tilted my head to look at the intruder.
A grotesque black head looked right back at me.
I immediately froze, breathing included. Some animalistic part of my brain was all but begging me to flee, but what could I do? My leg was busted and I also read somewhere once that if one were to flee in the face of a predator, it gave it all the more reason to chase after you.
Whatever the creature was, it didn’t attack. It’s…exoskeleton, I supposed, was onyx black. There were hints of metallic elements around the joints that made me a little curious, but I didn’t dare inspect it any more. The body was animalistic, a quadruped, with a long winding tail. It was very sleek and quite tall, easily double the size of a dachshund. The massive canines it sported did not help matters either.
I relaxed somewhat in my seat. If this was to be my end, better not have a heart attack before I get mauled. Then to my utmost surprise, the dark creature rested its head on my uninjured leg. It was surprisingly warm and lightweight, but that didn’t take priority as my body immediately went back into lockdown mode. Maybe a heart attack wouldn’t be so bad right now. It would definitely spare me this terrifying experience.
It snorted through nostrils I hadn’t noticed, and heavy smoke burst out. I instinctively jerked back which backfired tremendously. I groaned deeply as I gripped my injured leg and all but collapsed to the side. At that point, I was basically begging for the creature to kill me.
It snorted again and I let out a whimper. However, this time, the smoke seemed to wrap itself around my injury. I watched on in morbid fascination, already resigned to my death. Then, a miraculous thing happened. The pain dulled considerably, but it still thrummed, reminding me that it was still there. I glanced at the creature in awe. It looked at me as if it wasn’t impressed.
“Uhh…thank you?”
It snorted. I chuckled, weakly. Sweat formed on my forehead. What the heck was I supposed to do now? It lifted its head off of my leg and circled around me. Great, it wanted to do the honors itself.
The creature went behind me and out of sight. I didn’t bother looking for it, might as well have the end a surprise. Then, with a loud crack, my chair splintered. Before I could hit the floor however, I was launched into the air. A sudden shriek tore through my throat, making my voice hoarse. Before I could rationalize anything, I had already landed on the creature’s back and it started running off into the distance.
I blacked out.
***
I blearily opened my eyes and groaned. My back ached terribly. Despite that, I really didn’t want to get up. So I didn’t. I contemplated my situation first now that the terror and pain had faded. Scratch that, faded somewhat. It was still there, but it was more subdued.
I twisted my head slightly to make sure I could scout out my location without drawing too much attention. All the while, I ran simulations in my head. It appeared I was in a family house, evident by the photos depicting a smiling family of four. Something welled up in the back of my throat that I immediately stomped down. I must focus on my own situation before I could even blink about others.
The bed I was in was surprisingly soft, I even had a blanket around me. That made me frown. Either another person had saved me or that creature was way smarter than I had given it credit for. Either way, it didn’t taste good in my mouth. The former idea was definitely better than the second, but it would still mean I was in debt. I hate being in debt.
A second glance told me that no one or no creature was in the room with me. It also told me that there was a suspicious looking knife on a vanity table in the corner. It looked sharp and was curved in ways a normal knife wouldn’t look like. I didn’t like it one bit.
I stopped scanning with my eyes and decided to rely on my hearing. I closed my eyes and held my breath. I reached as far as I could with my ears and heard the only occasional creak and bird.
I decided to give it a chance. I slowly and carefully got out of the bed, ignored the knife, and grabbed the hockey stick that was in the open closet instead. A mental countdown later, I was crouched down out in the hallway. Pausing, I took stock yet again.
In high school, I always thought that that was one of my strengths, much to the detriment and frustration of my gaming buddies who always charged in willy nilly. They always got killed or a couple of kills if they were lucky. My strategies, most of the time, seemed to work out and even got me a couple play of the games. And they say video games teach people nothing.
The hallway was actually an indoor balcony that hung over the living room. Down to my right were a couple of more doors, the left sported a hanging staircase. I crept to the edge of the balcony and peered down. Panic seized my heart yet again. I shuffled backwards quickly but quietly. I really started to hate that feeling.
Alright, now that there were two of those creatures, stock still like a statue, that scratched off going down the normal way. It also told me that these creatures were not to be trifled with. Tears of frustration and horror pricked my eyes, but I kept moving, scared of what might happen should I shut down now.
I went back into the bedroom and didn’t bother closing the door, scared if the clicking noise would draw attention. I hurried over to the sole double window and looked down. While it was a two floor drop, it looked doable. Especially with a big hedge like that one. I took a few deep breaths and opened the window.
The brush of fresh cold air made me freeze. That split moment seemed to last for minutes. Too many thoughts ran through my head, dreams I had, friendships I made, plans I decided upon. Tears started forming and I couldn’t stop them, just like I couldn’t stop now. I shook my head and sat on the window ledge. Another deep breath. I ran a simulation in my head. It seemed simple enough. I would drop and then roll. I decided against the bush as that would be loud and painful and if I needed to run, it would be a hassle to get out.
Before I gave myself a chance to change my mind, I went for it. The ground came up way too fast for my taste, but as I landed, pain immediately flared up into my legs, especially my injured one, and the inevitable grunt of pain came. Momentum and mental drills forced me into a judo roll that I completed somewhat haphazardly, but it did the trick. The shock that went into my legs was then transferred into the ground, letting my legs feel less pain. I Iaid on my back, panting. Adrenaline coursed through my veins yet I couldn’t get myself to get up.
Then, a familiar black face peered down at me. I involuntarily cursed and attempted to scramble away, but a heavy and clawed paw pressed down on my chest. I wheezed out another curse and fell limp. How cruel this world was. A sliver of hope, just ripped away just like that. I chuckled mirthlessly, I supposed it was just like life in the city.
“Ah, you’re awake!” A voice called out. The fear that I felt in that moment was nothing like I’ve ever felt before. Some described sudden fear as their heart dropping? I felt like the entire world had disappeared. I was floundering in the dark and the only light was a lantern that fed on souls. Alright, that wasn’t my best analogy. I used to play a lot of games, alright? Sue me.
I stayed very still. Maybe they were like dinosaurs. Can only see movement. I almost snorted at that. Yep, dinosaurs with a freakishly smart brain, capable of tucking a man like myself in bed as well as human speech. A totally sane laugh started to bubble up.
“Oh, that doesn’t sound too good. Your Grace, if you could?” There was a pause then the creature atop of me breathed out that weird smoke. This time it settled around my head. That was the final straw, screw staying calm, screw death.
“HEEEEEEELP! DAMMIT, HELP! PLEASE, HELP ME!” I took a deep breath and was prepared to shout again when a very unnatural calm forced my terror down. In the back of my brain I was screaming at the sheer horror of the situation but my body wouldn’t react to anything besides the most basic of movements.
“There we go, that’s better isn’t it?” A figure shuffled up next to me, on the other side of the creature. My eyes widened slightly when I recognized the figure as a human. I mentally screamed obscenities at him, hoping that at least one would get through. None did. “Pleased to meet you, lost one. My name is Preacher Long John of the Chosen Ones. What is your name?”
“Fried Rice.” Oh, and what the hell was that! My mouth moved on its own! The traitor. This is like some next level bull.
“Welcome, Fried, to the ranks of the Chosen Ones.”
***
Time passed. How much? I had no idea. Enough I suppose to not have recognized myself when I stood in front of a mirror.
I had a beard, long, scruffy, but distinguished. Some of my hair looked a little gray that made me frown. My hands were calloused and I even saw soil under my fingernails. As for my wardrobe, it was definitely a far cry from what I would usually wear as it was a long gray cloak. There was an emblem stitched in the middle that looked like an eye that was scratched out by what looked like a tiger claw. Or…a scratch from that creature.
I blinked. My thoughts became slightly less muddled. How long has it really been? Did I have amnesia or something? The last thing I remembered was that weird talk with Preacher John… I sat down on a barrel and scratched my beard. It was at that moment that I realized I was entirely alone and in a completely different location.
I scrambled away and pressed my back against a corner. When in unknown and potentially hostile territory, always keep your back away from the enemy. In this case, everything was the enemy.
While it seemed that his health seemed to be degrading, he was still grateful that his mind seemed to work just fine. He took stock of his situation. It seemed to be a storeroom. One that would be stereotypically at a barn. Barrels and stacks of hay sat in one corner. A small nook complete with a coffee table sat in the other. And the tall mirror that I was looking at previously sat in a third. The fourth, the one I was huddled in, appeared to have a trapdoor.
I paused and strained my ears. Nothing. I then carefully lifted up the trapdoor, curious. There was a ladder that led down to a relatively lit room. I slowly poked my head down and rotated every which way. No movement. With care, I shuffled down the ladder.
When I got down, I grunted as I popped my back. I was definitely older. By my definition, I was maybe in my early 50’s judging by my aches and my looks in the mirror. That would place me twenty years after that whole incident. The sudden realization didn’t affect me as much as I thought it would. Perhaps I was terrified out of feeling horror anymore. I mean, it still felt terrifying, but I didn’t have a physical aversion to it. I stopped and leaned against a poll and pondered on it. It ultimately led to nothing, so I shrugged and proceeded to find a way out of whatever I was in.
It proved to be quite easy as the exit door was right next to me. I pushed it open with less care than I thought I was capable of and scanned my location. I appeared to be next to a barn, called it, in the middle of nowhere. Unfortunately, however, the fields seemed to be unusable as the ground sported no crops but an incredible amount of weeds and bushes. Made sense, I concluded, twenty years was certainly quite the amount of time.
I moseyed around the vicinity. As a famous general probably once said, ‘knowing the land means knowing oneself’. I frowned, that doesn’t really make much sense. I chuckled at that. Completely undisturbed by the fact that I was laughing at my terrible jokes.
The farm consisted of two large fields, a large house and a small outhouse/storage. I also found a garage that had a very fancy looking sports car. It made me wonder where in the world these farmers got the money. Unless…
I patted my pockets and was disappointed when I didn’t find any keys. I supposed it was quite unreasonable to assume the car was mine.
There was a surprisingly clean dirt path that led away from the farm. With nothing else to do, I followed. Perhaps it could lead me to a town. At the very least, it could tell me where in the world I was.
It didn’t.
I sighed and plopped myself down on the street that I found myself upon. It wasn’t anything to look at, not even a road sign. Just a country road in the middle of nowhere. Great.
I flopped onto my back and stared up at the sky. The sun was going down, casting pretty colors against an already stunning backdrop of towering mountains and swaths of forests. It was peaceful. A small smile tugged at my lips. Maybe, I could leave it all behind. I didn’t really have that many emotional attachments, and the ones I did have, chances are, things have happened these past twenty years.
I stood up, resolution deep in my soul. Today will be the day I will start anew. Call it a midlife crisis. I smirked and nodded. Yeah, this might not be so bad. I turned on a dime and went back the way I came from and promptly fell asleep on the couch.
The next day, I awoke feeling quite refreshed. It gave me plenty of time to create a plan. First things first, I needed to take stock of what the area and house had to offer. I scoured the nearby landscape for any landmarks besides the farm itself and came up relatively empty. The most notable were the road of course, and this peculiar looking rock.
Then, I checked the house itself. I rummaged through every drawer, every closet, every cupboard. I was pleasantly surprised to see enough non-perishables that could last for a couple months if I rationed, as well as relatively well preserved seeds for crops. Of course, there were plenty of unmentionables amongst these treasures that I promptly buried in the backyard.
I also got myself a new pair of clothes that I snagged from this very nice handmade wardrobe. The clothes fit me pretty well too, the pants are slightly too long though. Easy enough to remedy though.
After that, I set about figuring out my immediate necessities. I checked the structural integrity of the building, access to fresh water which was supplied by a nearby stream, and the previous owners had quite a significant amount of blankets. I spent the rest of the day rearranging the living room to suit my wants. It was quite cozy by day’s end. I also found a considerable stash of books that I had managed to transfer downstairs. That night, I read contently until I fell asleep.
The next day, yesterday’s activities caught up with me and everything ached painfully. I chuckled at that. Being old certainly is a difficulty. Despite that, I made haste to plant the seeds I found. The seasons were kind enough to be the right time period for potatoes to grow well enough.
I set about weeding and digging. I did that for a week. It was on the seventh day that I took a break. I placed my shovel to the side and set up a beach chair I found in the storage shed and relaxed. I had all the time in the world.
Out in the distance, a shadow moved across the horizon. I sat up and squinted in the general area, hoping to catch the movement. There! The figure looked human which eased my heart a little, but then a thought struck me. What if that person came from that weird cult Preacher John was leading? I stayed quiet and closed my eyes, hoping the person would move on.
No luck.
“Hello?” I cracked an eye open and saw that the person was in fact, a middle aged woman. A woman with stunningly beautiful red hair. What caught my interest the most though was the arsenal on the woman’s back as she sported a sword and quite a large gun. Judging from the scope and the curious length, I would assume a modified FarShot.
“Hello. May I help you?” I decided to remain passive and helpful. Perhaps she isn’t with the Chosen Ones.
“Yes, I thought that this place was empty. I was hoping to stay the night here and move on.” The woman chuckled slightly as she scratched the back of her head. “I see now that a person was here after all, so, it would be the polite thing to do to ask for permission.”
I pondered on that. While I thought, I took the opportunity to check out the woman more. The hardness of her eyes and smile seemed to let me know that she knew about the harsh world outside. The casual but alert stance she took told me that she was no stranger to fighting. The blood splatters on her leather jacket would also help me reach that conclusion. The way her hand twitched every so often had me on my guard, but nothing more than that.
“Sure, under one condition though.”
“What?” A simple word, yet a hardness to it that spoke volumes.
“Could you help me plant these potato seeds? It appears I’ve gotten old and I can’t do the things I used to.” I fretted, both curious of her answer and whether or not I still had my acting skills. From the way her eyes and posture softened, I would say I still had it.
“Of course. I couldn't imagine staying without helping with at least something.”
“Oh, don’t worry about it. I’m just a temporary resident, like yourself. Believe it or not, I actually woke up in that house not two weeks ago without a memory of the past twenty years.” I chuckled good heartedly. I expected a note of sympathy or maybe discomfort. What I didn’t expect was full blown sorrow and understanding.
“I believe you.”
An uncomfortable silence fell. I shuffled awkwardly before extending an arm to my new house, “want to…come in?”
“Sure.”
We headed inside. I gestured to a chair at the dining table while I scampered off into the kitchen to maybe find something to offer. I came out of the pantry with a can of corned beef and a questioning look in my eyes. The woman shrugged so I popped it open and dealt out two halves. I handed out a plate which she nodded in return.
“So, twenty years, huh?”
“Yeah. I’m not entirely sure how that happened. I’m not entirely fussed about it though. At least I woke up in this nice area, I definitely could spend a few years here if I’m given the chance to sustain myself.” I nodded and thought of the possibilities. All the while, taking small bites out of the corned beef. I discovered that while smaller bites were frustrating, it definitely kept me occupied for longer and made me appreciate food much more.
“I’ll be cheering for you.” The woman smiled faintly.
“Say, we don’t know each other, do we? My name is Fried Rice.” I stuck out a hand and hopefully a friendly enough smile.
“Sunset.”
“A pretty name, fitting too.” I gestured somewhat to her sunburnt hair.
“So I’ve been told.” She sighed and put her corned beef down. “Say, Fried. Have you ever wanted something so much, you were willing to do things you would normally never do?”
I reflected on it. I felt that I needed to give her a proper answer. In the end, all I could do was shake my head. “Why do you ask?”
“There’s this…” Sunset paused and her gaze casually drifted outside. “Nah, nevermind.”
“No, really. I want to know.” I chuckled slightly at my earnestness. “Maybe it’s because I lost twenty years of my life to who knows what, but you make me feel safe. I just want to talk to you and maybe even help you.” A small pause. “Not in a romantic way or anything, just as a friend.”
That got her to smile, albeit a pained one. “A friend. I used to have friends once, you know? Six of the best friends a gal like me could ask for. And to think, all it took was a simple snap to turn the whole world upside down.”
“...”
“One moment it was peaceful, then it was chaos. People running for their cars or homes. We were having a sleepover, it was a thing, when it happened. I can still hear the…the…” She stopped and I saw her lower lip tremble slightly. I maneuvered myself so I could lay a comfortable arm around her.
“I think I get it now. No need to push yourself. Is there anything I could do to help? Not that I think I would be helpful. You know, reflecting back, I used to be much more of an unpleasant dude. Well, more moody and indifferent, I suppose.” I scratched my head. “I genuinely have no idea what happened in those twenty years.”
Sunset giggled a little, even if it sounded forced. “Ah, Fried, I’m sure it’s nothing big. You’ve got a good heart, you know that?”
“Really? Huh. Thanks.” I chuckled a little. “And…well, I meant it when I offered help.”
“It’s all good. Letting me crash here for the night is help enough. Really.”
“If you say so.”
The following few hours might’ve been the most fun I’ve had in a while, excluding those missing twenty years. We laughed, talked, and even played a few rounds of hold 'em. I never seemed to get any good cards, but I wasn’t too worried about my balance in the red.
The sun had dipped underneath the horizon and awashed us in darkness. Sunset claimed she needed rest for the trip tomorrow and we parted our ways to our respective beds, not that they were far off. It was a peaceful night.
The next day, Sunset said she needed to leave early in order to make it to the next town before nightfall. I said I understood completely and wished her the best of luck. She accepted gratefully and walked off into the distance.
I was going to miss her company, but I had quite the future ahead of me. A life of peace and farming. I grinned, excited to get to work. However, before I could begin to roll up my sleeves, a presence touched my mind palace. I instinctively froze.
“Ah, that’s where you’ve been, High Preacher Fried. How many days has it been for you? How long have you been released of the divine enthralment? Fret not, brother, for you are a Chosen One. Come, let us welcome you again, back into our ranks.”.
“Neng! Wait for me!” My lab partner chased after me as I stood in front of the grandiose doors that represented my future. While I waited for him to catch up, I stood there and marveled at the details. Swirl Labs, the most prestigious science company to ever grace the world, and here I was on my first day of the job in Canterlot. The warm fresh air of the coming spring only enhanced the beauty of those marble doric columns and ancient Equestrian architecture. But before I could gush about the intricacies, my lab partner stopped beside me, gasping for air.
“Such a shame, Dr. Kaibigan, to be so out of breath. The lack of oxygen will cloud your vision of this grand visage!” I clucked good naturedly. “Also, you best remember that I’m Dr. Okos in that building.”
“Heh, whatever you say, neng.” Dr. Kaibigan stretched upwards before facing me with a big grin. “You ready?”
“I’ve been waiting all my life, of course I’m not ready.”
“Good enough for me, lesgoo!” He grabbed my arm and pulled me in.
***
I had been working for the Psychology Department for the better part of the last four years. I stood in front of the entirety of Swirl Labs, on a stage, as I presented my newest accomplishment. While it was still experimental, I had hoped for it to revolutionize medicine and maybe even law.
When I first pitched the idea, it held some amused chuckles, but there were a few who pondered on it. Ultimately it was scrapped. It hurt, but I understood why. It was only my second year there and I barely had any cred to my name. Just another cog in the machine, working for the higher ups. But those few, those people who dared to give my idea just a thought, it bolstered me, lifted me higher than I thought was possible.
In my spare time, which was not much, I got to work in a small office in the decently sized apartment Swirl Labs gave you when you first started out. It was rough going, but luckily, Dr. Kaibigan was housed next to me and his never ending antics always lifted my spirits.
“Whatcha working there, neng?” He had asked one day. He had somehow barged into my apartment and took a beer from the fridge without me realizing it. It was safe to say the entire building heard my screech.
I had to apologize profusely to the super attendant while the man who claimed to be my best friend was doubled over, laughing hysterically. I gave him a tongue lashing, but I was too jazzed about my idea that I gave in way too easily.
“I call it…the Memory Hub.” I waved my hands around, trying to sell the piece. Kaibigan didn’t look all that impressed. To be fair, it did look like a piece of junk back then.
“Uh huh. Right, just because I’m in the Fauna Department, doesn’t mean I’m stupid about things like this. We went to the same university, for crying out loud.” He waved at my metal lump. “Tampering with the brain? Memories especially? That’s a recipe for disaster.”
“I know, I knoooow. Hear me out though, okay?” I scurried over to my overcrowded desk, dodging several unmentionables, and got out my sketchbook. “Right, so you see the hippocampus, right?”
“Yea, the part that supports the memory. Basic biology.”
“Right, and scientists have been trying to tap into that part of the brain for a long time. Results have varied, however, there has been some recorded evidence of picturing memories, or at the very least, memory patterns.” I flipped to the next page which presented a diagram of the brain, but more specifically to where the amygdala was located. “They were looking in the wrong place. It should’ve been the amygdala!”
“Right right, it makes sense. The part of the brain that responds to higher emotional responses and everybody knows that the more emotional the memory, the more likely a person would remember it.” Kaibigan tapped his nose. “I’m following you so far, but there is one major problem. The amygdala is deep within the brain whereas the hippocampus is on the outside, easier to reach without surgery.”
“Yes, but look at this!” I flipped to the next page where I had sketched out a rough diagram of a microscopic sensor capable of digging through the brain without damaging it. “I’ve done the math several times over, I’ve even had other mathematicians and scientists look it over. They say it is sound.”
Kaibigan peered closer, rubbed his eyes a couple times, before sitting back. “Alright, looks solid to me. But what are you trying to do with this? This Memory Hub. Meaning you do all of these steps right and…and all that, what comes next?”
“Well, if everything goes right, then I would be able to record memories into a digital format. Of course the size would be tiny, it is a prototype afterall…” I scratched my head a little, there needed to be something else to make it work.
“Oi, neng. I asked you a question.”
“Oh, right. What would I do..? That’s a hard question. Well, maybe I was thinking of re…actually, I don’t really have an idea. I just thought it would be cool. Inspiration, you know? It hits you one day and you see the horizon, but you don’t really see the end of the journey or even the path you’re supposed to walk on. Something like that.” I chuckled and plopped myself down on my office chair.
“What are you, waxing philosophy?” Kaibigan laughed heartily. “Ah, neng, always a riot.”
That year and a half, on and off during the week, might’ve been the more exciting times. Developing technology that never existed before, all with my spare money and time in my homebrew lab. It was exhilarating, even. Kaibigan checked up on me several times and always made sure I had enough to eat. I could never be as thankful as I was in that moment, standing on that stage.
It was tricky, a month ago, trying to sell my idea yet again but with enough evidence and several prototypes. It was nail biting, the worst I probably have ever felt in my life. The suspense was awful. The director of the Psychology Department eventually signed on to it and gave me three years of full support. The director even gave me a promotion.
Then, just two days ago, he wanted me to make an announcement to the entirety of Swirl Tech. It was easy to say I was nervous, but nothing like Kaibigan and a couple of beers to lighten you up.
“Hello, my name is Dr. Rose Okos of the Psychology Department and I am here to present the Memory Hub.” I paused and swallowed. There were too many faces, many of which were actual famous scientists. The pressure was too intense and I almost felt the need to puke, but then I saw Kaibigan in the corner of the room.
The indoor theater was massive and the lights were blaringly bright, focused entirely on the stage. There was no way I should’ve been able to see him, but see him I did. He wore that goofy grin and had that same nonchalant pose that irradiated ‘wokeness’. It made my heart settle a little.
I began to speak faster and more confidently. I couldn’t tell you what I said that day, all I could remember was the end. The cheering and the clapping. Many of my heroes, old and wizened, were nodding with respect. I felt like I was on top of the world.
***
Two years into the project, the military got wind of the project. Several of our projects, in fact. General Hoch of the Equestria Armada had stormed into Swirl Labs along with many soldiers. He had stormed up to the chairperson’s office and demanded an audience.
It was a very tense hour, many whispers and hushed tones could be heard throughout the entire building. The meeting was wrapped up rather unceremoniously and the General left along with his soldiers. The sighs of relief turned into gasps of shock when the chairperson told us the news.
“Man, this sucks.” Kaibigan plopped down next to me with his lunch tray. The canteen today was surprisingly empty, rumors have it that the army was having the Quantum Physics Department working overtime.
“Tell me about it.” I stabbed a spoon into my mashed potatoes and frowned. “My poor baby is being abused! It doesn’t deserve this treatment. What a terrible mother I am to let some man handle my baby like this.” I sighed heavily and pushed my tray away.
“Your baby?”
“Quiet! I’ve spent the last four years on this project! I am entitled to call the Memory Hub my baby!” I huffed angrily.
“Alright alright, chill!” Kaibigan raised his hands in a placating gesture along with an awkward smile.
“...sorry.”
“No need to apologize. I get it.” He hummed thoughtfully, albeit more muted than usual.
“Say, I heard that the General took an interest in the Fauna Department too, what’s happening there?”
“Tcha…well, remember that domestication program we set up with a bunch of wild animals?”
“Yeah, I remember that freaky pet jellyfish. I still have no idea how you guys made it harmless.”
“Trade secret. Anyways, that domestication program evolved into…say, less ethical means? For the record, I wasn’t on board with this, but you know how it is with the higher ups.” I nodded. “Well, we were playing around with gene splicing and hormones, we got help from the Biology Department of course, and the domestication was going great. We had trained and mentally subdued a leopard. We named him Leroy.”
“A good name.”
“I thought so too. Anyhoo, I guess the General found out and now he wants us to do the opposite. Create animals of war.” He shivered as a dark look passed over his face. I reached out and gripped his shoulders as I tried to comfort him. I always knew of his love for animals, it was the whole reason he tried for a veterinarian school. He didn’t get accepted for some reason, so he ended up with the next best thing. Fauna studies in the same science school as me.
“I’m sorry.”
“Yeah. Me too.”
***
“Show me what you got.” General Hoch stood in front of me, his broad shoulders and muscular but lean figure made for an imposing figure. I tried to not be intimidated but it was only so much a skinny scientist woman could do.
“We…well, we created these microchips like you’ve asked for, sir.” I presented an enhanced picture of the newly modified Memory Transmitter. Essentially, it captures memories in real time and sends it back to the Memory Hub. Then it stores the memories and keeps it for an underdetermined amount of time.
“Good, good. Now, is there a way to distribute it worldwide and have it implanted in every single human without them knowing?” The General asked, well, more like he demanded.
The tension and unease was palpable. From the corner of my eyes, I saw many of my assistants and fellow researchers glance wearily amongst each other and even stole glances at the soldiers themselves as if gauging their reactions. They were cold and stone-faced, just like every other time they came here.
“Well…it wouldn’t be ethical, sir.”
“Screw ethics. I’m asking a simple question, can it be done? And you better answer wisely, you and the rest of you, your livelihoods are on the line here.”
“...yes, I think it can be done, given enough time.”
“How much is enough time?”
“Maybe three more years? It’s not as simple as one would think!” I protested, in vain.
“Two years then. Do it in two. If you can’t, well, I’m sure there’s another scientist out there.” He let the threat hang in the air as he and the other soldiers marched out, leaving the door open behind them.
***
“Urgh…” I flopped my head onto the bar and tapped the wood. A cold glass of beer slid into my hand.
“Rough day at work?” Sweet, sweet innocent bartender.
“You wouldn’t believe it.”
“Honey, I’m a bartender, the tales I’ve heard here are beyond wild. Like this one time, there was this ghostly ginormous horse in the sky. The guy swore up and down about how it fought these three giant fish? Then again, it was at a concert, it could’ve been some crazy lighting effects. You get my gist, right?”
“Myeah.” I mumbled into the counter. It felt nice, to have my head down on something. I raised my head only slightly to sip at the beer before plopping my head down again. “Well, you asked for it buddy. Seven years ago, I had this brilliant idea! It was going to revolutionize the world! Typical young, brash, naive look on life, you know? Fresh out of college, had a great job, I was living the dream. 2 years into the idea, it took off, you know? Yeah, you know. I was going places.”
“And then something happened.” The bartender said, knowingly. I nodded and sipped my beer.
“Something happened. Specifically, the military.” The bartender gave out a low whistle. I nodded again. “Yeah, they stormed in and ruined everything. Instead of helping people, it now serves to help the army. I personally foresaw everything and just today, I stamped it as finished. Seven years of my life, of my youth, turned into this…this…whatever this is.”
“A joke, I believe it’s called.”
“...yeah. A joke. Pour me another?”
“Sure.”
***
I sighed and waved at my assistant to take over. Once he hurried into position, I headed out of the Memory Hub room. Two years have passed since I’ve been tasked with watching over the machine. Two years of suffering and loneliness, despite it still based in Swirl Labs amongst hundreds of researchers. They wouldn’t understand the sorrow of having their dream used against them. Warped beyond imagination.
Only a few would, though. Overseer of the top secret Quantum Physics project. She would know. The administrators of the Fauna project would also know, but the majority of them have moved on, disgusted at what they’ve been forced to do. Kaibigan was one of them.
I slipped into the canteen and poured myself some coffee. It was quiet at this time of the day. Nary a soul. It only added to the loneliness. My eyes burned and I didn’t dare hold it back. It’s been a long time coming, I suppose. I had no idea what made this day special, but I suppose I should embrace it.
I pressed my back against the wall and slid down. Before long, my face was buried in my legs as I sobbed my heart out. All of the pain and sadness came pouring out like a tidal wave. It didn’t stop nor did I want it to stop. I simply let go.
It was a couple hours before I came to. My assistant was shaking me by the shoulder with a very concerned look on his face. I groaned and looked wearily at his general direction.
“The General wants to meet with you.”
“Tell him I’m busy.” My throat was hoarse and my eyes felt oh so tired. I probably looked horrible too.
“...alright. I’ll tell him that. You…you go fix yourself up, alright Doctor?” Bless him. Such a pure heart on him. I nodded and he scampered off.
It took a moment of coaxing before I picked myself off the ground. I dusted my pants and found the now cold coffee. I sniffed at it. Seemed decent enough so I gulped it all down. I sighed heavily and proceeded to make my way back to the Hub.
On the way, however, klaxons immediately started wailing. The speakers crackled to life, saying there was a containment breach in the Gravitational Quantum Orbitor. Moments after, the air seemed to have rushed out of the hallway and I was thrown against the wall.
My sight dimmed as I choked on whatever spit I had in my mouth as different G’s pulled me in a direction my body didn’t want to go. Before I could comprehend what was happening, even before I could start to register pain, the shift in gravity went back to normal, unceremoniously dropping to the floor.
I groaned in subdued pain and tried to roll back to the canteen, or even at least the bathroom, but my body didn’t seem to want to obey me.
Maybe it was from the shock or maybe from my depression, but I didn’t feel anything. Besides the pain, I didn’t feel any surprise or terror. Just a sense of inevitability. It was…enlightening one could say.
My subdued euphoria was broken by the sudden realization that the speakers had been screaming out a warning entirely different to the previous one. It spoke of a sector implosion and breakout in the Fauna Department. It didn’t sound too good, but my body still wouldn’t budge, so I stayed where I was and hoped that whatever had escaped would leave me alone.
***
I awoke with a choked gasp. My face was in a puddle of bile and a horrid stench permeated the hall I was in. I groaned out of disgust and attempted to flop away. It didn’t work out so well. I took a deep breath which I instantly regretted as it resulted in a coughing fit.
I sighed and slumped down. I should take things slow, my body can’t handle all of this stress. As I calmed down, my eyes wandered. The hallway looked relatively empty but some of the structural support and paneling had broken off and was scattered everywhere. The most concerning thing that I saw was a deep gouge in a bulkhead along with a dark stain splattered everywhere.
I looked away.
A few more quick deep breaths and then I heaved myself up. The world swam a little, but it wasn’t anything I wasn’t used to. I carefully placed one foot after the other and made my way to the exit.
On the way there, the more horrific it got. I wanted to throw up, maybe even cry a little, but everything felt numb. Bodies were strewn everywhere, my colleagues, even some of my friends. Debris looked like they were chewed and then spat out only to be shredded.
I kept moving.
It took longer than I wanted, especially with the lab in shambles, but I finally made it to the entrance. A door had been ripped off its hinges which calmed one of my many fears of being locked inside. I hobbled to the door before easing myself down onto one of the steps.
Canterlot looked like hell. Buildings were on fire, some of the buildings weren’t even there, collapsed or some other. Bodies littered the streets, many of which had been thrown against the wall like she had, only they were unlucky and had slammed against glass windows or barbed wire that lined the Swirl Labs compound.
As my initial nausea wore off somewhat, I could hear gunfire in the distance coupled with ear piercing screeches. A gunship flew overhead, the buffeting air made me wince. It flew some distance before a shadowy shape jumped from a rooftop of a highrise. The creature and the helicopter careened to the side and tore into the side of another skyscraper.
I gaped in horror. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go! Granted, nothing seemed to go her way after that fateful day with the General, but still! I wobbled to my feet again and shuffled my way back to the apartment.
Following the strict guidelines of the General, I and my other colleagues weren’t allowed to have phones on campus, and right now, I needed to know a single thing. When I was one block away, I started running. I sidestepped corpses and rubble like I’d been doing it my whole life.
I sprinted up the three flights of stairs and burst into my apartment room. I all but slammed the door behind me and started rummaging through my purse I had left on my kitchen countertop. I quickly found my phone and looked at the notifications. 83 messages and 17 miss calls. The majority of them were from Kaibigan. I almost sobbed in relief.
I hastily scrolled through my phone and somehow found the call button through my blurry eyes. I pressed it to my ear and prayed. It rang and it rang and when terror was about to seize my heart, the phone was picked up.
“Kaibigan! Kaibigan, are you there? Please answer me!” Frantic sobs started to wrack my body. “I can’t do this without you…”
“...hey neng.” His voice sounded weird, almost wet.
“Oh my gosh! You’re alive! Where are you, I’ll come over right now and…” I paused, almost confused.
“I’m at Chance Park, but neng, I don’t want you coming here, okay?” He stopped talking and I could hear a muffled cough. I didn’t major in medicine but I knew enough to know that that didn’t sound good.
“Kaibigan, what aren’t you telling me?” My voice quivered and I hated myself for that.
“Heh, always the perceptive one, aren’t you, neng.” Another cough, louder this time. “I’ve been stabbed. A small rebar got me good. I’ve been holding on for the past hour, but I don’t think I’m going to make it.” A weak chuckle.
“Dammit Kaibigan!” My sobs turned into full blown wailing. “You…hic…were supposed to be there! We made a…hic…a promise! Don’t you…AAAAAAAAAAAAH!” I grabbed the nearest thing which happened to be a wine glass and threw it against the wall. It made a satisfying shattering sound but it did little to make me feel better.
“Neng! Calm down, you need to calm down.”
“Don’t try to make me feel better! You’re dying and I’m halfway across the city and…” Another broken wail.
“Heh…alright, I won’t.” A more subdued cough, weaker too. “How about this, an ultimatum.”
“Sniff…yeah?”
“I’m pretty sure that these creatures were the ones we were making, from the Fauna Department.” His voice was definitely getting weaker but I hung onto every word he said.
“Mm hmm.” I couldn’t trust myself with words, so I hummed pitifully.
“I bet you could find a way to subdue them and the only way you can do that is to…” He trailed off which resulted in heaves. “Urgh…okay. Listen to me, neng. Go to my office in the lab. Repeat it after me.”
“G…go to your office.”
“Yes. Find my notes and find a way to subdue them, okay?”
“Find notes, subdue.”
“Ye…yes!” He chuckled weakly. “That’s my girl.”
I chuckled too, but it wasn’t a good one. It was one filled with despair in a broken world. “I’m your girl.”
***
I sat in an empty hall. It’s been empty for the past…actually, I had no idea how long it’s been. It’s been too long. Electricity stopped working long ago, but I had managed to rig up the old quantum reactor to the Memory Hub as well as Kaibigan’s office. It worked out, more or less.
The final touches were being worked on, all I needed to do was upload it to some external drive. Maybe even a floppy disk. I laughed weakly at the joke. It’s been like that for years now. Work and lame jokes.
But the elation I felt when I finally pressed the upload button. It was almost comparable to when I first started the Memory Hub project. I sighed with tired satisfaction and leaned back. The notification was updated and said it would take just over a day for it to be fully uploaded. I expected as much given how much energy was available.
I carefully got up, mindful of my aching joints, and hobbled to the canteen. Throughout the years, I spent my free time cleaning up hallways and offices. Make it look like a shell of its former self. It kept me occupied, you see. Something to keep away the night terrors, but of course, it always comes whether you’re ready or not.
I shuffled past the swept up debris and made my way to the processor. One of the seven wonders of Swirl Labs was the food processor. It ran on solar power and wind power and it could make any food available. Any scientist or engineer who studied couldn’t make heads or tails of the thing, it shouldn’t scientifically be possible, but it exists. And that was good enough for me.
I touched the pad and ordered some coffee to go along with good ol’ wiener schnitzel and mashed potatoes. A fine delicacy I’ve learned to appreciate these past few years. As I found myself a place to sit down, a loud boom echoed overhead, announcing an oncoming storm.
I smiled wistfully. I’ve always loved storms, they always seemed to make a big world ever so smaller, even cozy. Then the rain started hammering down. It was pleasant, to say the least.
I quickly finished up my dinner and shuffled back to the office. In one corner, I had dragged all of the couches, pillows, and emergency blankets and made it into a functional king-sized bed. One secret about me is that I love coziness and tonight was the perfect night to be cozy. Nothing but a brew of coffee, rain pattering, and the warm cozy feel of a bed.
I was maybe an hour into my relaxation when I heard a sudden slam. Now, after years of living in this lab, I know all the sounds this place makes. That slam meant it was the front door. I hastily placed my empty coffee cup to the side and hobbled as fast as I could to the entrance. Just because I’ve cleared out the bodies and debris does not make this trip any easier, in fact it has definitely gotten worse, what with my back pain and all.
A definite 15 minutes had passed when I finally reached the entrance hallway and I was tired. I put my hand on the wall and steadied myself. Old women were not meant to hustle, I could tell you that.
Once I had steadied myself, I looked around for the potential culprit. It was then I noticed a set of wet footprints walking towards the canteen. I frowned and slowly followed. I’ve experienced a few raider attacks over the years and I’ve learned just to go with it. Especially once they find out that a wrecked science lab doesn’t really offer anything in terms of survival, minus the food processor, but I don’t tell them about that.
When I finally reach the canteen, I find a woman hunched over the food processor and humming to herself. I wanted to call out, but the sword on her back and the sniper placed to the side made me think otherwise. I attempted to slink away but before I could the woman turned and raised an eyebrow at me. I froze.
“Uhh…”
“Oh, I didn’t think anyone was living here. I’m just passing through, keeping out of the rain.” The woman’s voice sounded pleasant enough and I didn’t detect any hostility.
“Sure…I’m the only one here, so it’s not like it matters.” I chuckled weakly. “You know how to work that?” I gestured to the processor.
“Yeah.” She smiled ruefully. “Believe it or not, my friend made this. It even has her signature on the side.” She tapped at the bottom.
“What!” I all but rushed over and looked at where she was pointing at. It was an engraving of a six sided star and a T in the middle. “I’ve lived and worked here more than half of my life. How have I never noticed that?”
“Priorities, I suppose.” The woman shrugged. She pressed on a veggie burger along with some fries. “Mind if I sit down?”
“Sure sure.” She takes a seat and I follow suit. “What’s…uhh, what’s your name if you don’t mind me asking.”
“I don’t mind. I’m Sunset.” She reached out a hand which I gratefully shook.
“Dr. Okos. Or…Rose, I suppose.” It was at that moment that I realized I was only wearing the tattered pajamas I had gotten from my apartment. I blushed somewhat, unbefitting of an old woman like myself.
“A scientist, eh? What field?”
“Well, I was in Psychology.”
“Ah, you wouldn’t know her then.”
“Know who?”
Sunset gestured to the processor behind her. “My friend. She was in Quantum Physics.”
“Ah…” Then, the realization hit me. “Ooooh.
“It’s okay. I’ve come to terms with it long ago. Now, I’m just trying to go home.”
“Home.” The word felt weird in my mouth, like it didn’t belong. “It’s been a while since I’ve thought of home.”
“This isn’t your home?” Sunset finished eating and she sat back, looking satisfied.
“...no. This place isn’t my home. This is more my grave than my home.”
Sunset merely nodded. I got the feeling she knew what I was talking about. A pleasant silence filled the space, interrupted only by the occasional sips of the drinks the two had gotten.
“It doesn’t look like the storm will let up. Mind if I crash here?”
“By all means. I’ve got a homemade king-sized bed if you don’t mind sharing with a grandma like me.”
Sunset chuckled at that. “You don’t look that old, doc. Plus, I’m pretty old myself. I believe I’m going to turn 47 this year.”
“Huh. How long has it been since…everything happened?” I gestured everywhere.
“Uhh, 15 years I think?”
“I’ll be around 58 myself, then.”
“See, not so old.” She grinned and playfully shoved me. I smiled softly at that. “Now, come on. I bet you want to talk science to me. Every scientist loves doing that.”
“Ehe, is that from your friend?” I started walking towards the office and she quickly followed.
“Yep, the craziest egghead I know.”
“Well, she seems like a good person.”
“That she was, that she was.”
We were quiet for a while as I showed her around. She hummed appreciatively at the quantum reactor, even looked around for a while. She cried a little when she saw another signature of her friend and I pretended not to notice. Then I showed her the office with the homemade bed. She chuckled appreciatively. Then she took notice of the still running download.
“That is a file that I’ve compiled over the years that explains the creatures, their anatomy, habits, and programming. Inside there is also an airborne virus that will render the creatures infertile.”
“Wait, you mean the Darklings were made here?”
“Is that what they are called?” I frowned. What a gruesome name. I suppose it was fitting. “Then yes, that is correct.”
Sunset inhaled deeply and ran a hand across her head, messing up the already tattered red hair of hers. “That’s quite the bombshell.”
“...” Suddenly, I didn’t feel all that safe.
“I am trying very hard not to hate you, I really am, but it’s not working all that great.”
“I understand.” I chuckled mirthlessly. I hadn’t really thought about the creatures after they wreaked havoc that fateful day. I was just focused on my work and honoring Kaibigan’s last wishes. “If you want to strike me down in righteous vengeance, I’m right here. But, if you do, I ask that you at least take the usb when it’s done downloading. Then, take it to someone who can make use of the information. It’s what I’ve been working on for the past 15 years.”
There was a tense silence. I felt scared, but not too scared that I feared for my life. I was more scared of my and Kaibigan’s life’s work disappearing. It continued to stretch on and Sunset’s face kept on distorting with every new emotion. Eventually, she took a deep breath.
“I won’t do that. Strike you down, I mean. You weren’t a part of it and it was an accident, I’m assuming.”
“Yeah.”
“Then…I won’t strike you down. I would much rather make a friend than another corpse.” She stuck out a hand with a strained but hopeful smile.
“I would like that too.” There were a couple of tears in my eyes as I grasped her hand.
***
“So, what’s this?” It was the next day and Sunset wanted to explore with some natural light pouring in. Currently, she was standing in front of the Memory Hub.
“My baby.”
“Baby? That doesn’t sound healthy.” Sunset grinned.
“Heh. This is the Memory Hub, the other project I’ve dedicated my life to. It’s been altered significantly, but essentially it’s the same thing. Basically, there is a microchip in almost everyone’s brain that records memories. It then sends it here.”
“Huh. In everyone’s brain you say. How did that happen?”
“Now, before you get mad about morals and ethics, this wasn’t my idea. We were gang pressed into doing this by the military.”
“Hmm.”
“Well, this guy, General Hoch, wanted to use the Memory Hub to spy on other nations. In order to do that, he needed us to make it so the microchips could be planted in everyone without them knowing. My assistant at the time came up with this idea of creating a microchip capable of traveling through liquids. So then, it naturally evolved into transfer through pesticides. We would sell the new pesticides to every country. They would spray their crops with it. The crops then go into processed food and voila, now everyone has a microchip in their body. It’s then engineered to travel up the body and plant itself into the brain, specifically the amygdala.”
“Heh, see what I mean with scientists talking about science.” That made me blush. Sunset chuckled and looked at the screen of recorded memories. “So, what do all of these numbers and letters mean? I see D3FNR - 4A53, jeez that’s a mouthful. There’s thousands more too.”
“Well, those are people. The first five characters represent their life, or more specifically the part of themselves that they feel more emotionally attached to. Like how the amygdala controls memories associated with intense emotion. The Memory Hub captures that. So, because it’s only five characters, it sometimes gets creative. I’ve gotten kind of good at guessing what they mean. For D3FNR, I would suppose that would mean Defender. This guy’s greatest moment or moments was in defence of something or someone. Very noble.”
“Indeed. And the last four…or five characters?”
“That’s the date the memory stream starts uploading to the Memory Hub. Memories are…unpredictable, let's say. Scientists have been studying for who knows how long and we aren’t any closer to figuring out even half of it. The Memory Hub reflects that unpredictability. Sometimes it captures a single moment in time, sometimes an entire lifetime. All of it does have one thing in common, though. The stream will end with either the person’s death or loss of self, but even then, it’s unpredictable.”
“Right. So, in this case, 4A53. That would mean the 4th of April, in the year 2053?”
“Exactly.”
“That’s recent. Couple of weeks, recent.”
“It’s April already?”
“Do you not have a calendar?”
“I do, I just never look at it.”
“Fair enough. Well, that’s fascinating, truly. Excluding the spying part, I wished this project could’ve gotten the treatment it deserved. Yourself included.”
“That’s nice of you to say, Sunset, but I’ve already resigned myself to failure and disappointment. I’m not even sure the…Darklings, you said, will work out.”
“Ah, don’t be like that. I’m sure it will.”
“You say that Sunset, but you haven’t lived the life I have.”
“And I guarantee you, you haven’t lived the life I’ve lived.”
“Ha! That’s good.” I chuckled and shook my head. “Sorry about that, I’ve gotten a bit pessimistic over the years.”
“Understandable.”
“Say, I just got an idea.”
“Yes?”
“What if you take the usb. You’re travelling, to the heart of Canterlot no less. I’m sure you could find someone who could make use of this information.”
“Oh…I don’t know…”
“Pleaaase, it would help me out so much!” I grabbed her arm and looked into her eyes. “I’m asking as a friend.”
“...alright. I’ll do it.”
“Yes! Thank you so much!” I hugged her tightly. “Kaibigan and I are ever so thankful.”
“Wait, hold on. What will you do after I leave?”
“...I’ll figure something out. I always do.”
“...alright. If you say so.”
***
Sunset stayed the next night and we spent most the day talking about whatever. It was nice to talk to someone again after so long. No fear, just pleasant company. The next day, she had to go. I gave her the usb and a few instructions. She smiled and waved before walking away. I stood in the doorway and waved as well.
It was a simple goodbye between two simple friends.
I walked inside after she disappeared over the horizon and made my way into the office. It’s been a good ride, I said to myself. I sat down and looked at all the work I had accomplished. I smiled.
I sat in the ruins of an office building that I had previously scouted out. I didn’t remember much of the world before but I was pretty sure this building used to belong to a major tech company or something of the sort. I chewed a slice of potato as I stared at the scenery around me.
I had my back to a crumbled corner wall and had my self-modified FarShot positioned in the window so I could see any possible movement from a Darkling nest I had encountered a couple of days before. I chose this building because it was relatively high but not too high that the foundation was weakened to the point of instability. I also made sure that I had several exits and by my estimation, one of those exits, if absolutely necessary, was out the window.
It was moments like these, these quiet breaks between the hunting and the hate, that I found myself pondering about life and equality. For example, I mused as I held up my potato slices. These are delicious and can be grown in any moderated environmental condition basically, whereas, something like bananas aren’t as good and diverse. It truly was a conundrum, one of many.
A cold breeze swept through the giant gaping hole in the south wall. I shivered and pulled my tattered black windbreaker closer. I picked it up southside Canterlot because it looked cool as it had a nice shade of purple as an accent. I thought it was so cool I also hunted for some spray decals and the same shade of purple spray paint so my FarShot and I could match. I stroked my gun almost lovingly, it was well worth it.
Suddenly, slight movement a block away from the nest. It was just barely a flicker. I frowned as I squinted into the scope. Thanks to my modifications, the HUD is equipped with heat sensors and even a name tag system that I coded into the gun. It picked out a woman in her late 40’s with the name tag, Unknown Woman. I turned off the heat sensor and zoomed into her more.
Despite all the grime, her beauty was evident, especially with the red hair that seemed to shimmer every so often. But what caught my eye was the absolute masterpiece that was strapped to her back. I couldn’t help but let an excited giggle slip as I tried to gauge what the gun was. It seemed to have the same build as a FarShot, but the mechanics seemed different, she didn’t even have a standard model scope.
I grinned widely at the potential this opportunity could have, but first, I must meet her. I zoomed out and saw that she was slowly making her way through the rubble but unfortunately in the direction of the nest. I frowned at that. I sniffed as I made calculations in my head. I wouldn’t be able to get down fast enough, so instead I readied my FarShot, took aim, and fired.
The shot landed a few meters in front of her and the silencer I attached made sure that it wasn’t loud enough for the Darklings to hear. The bullet however was definitely obvious, what with its heavy thunk and the dust it kicked up. Through my scope, I watched as the woman immediately threw herself behind some rubble while simultaneously drawing her gun. She was now out of my sight. I couldn’t contain myself as I laughed and tried to make myself as big of a target as possible, jumping and waving my arms everywhere.
With my sniper stashed away so the woman wouldn’t get the wrong idea, I had to make estimates with my measly 20/20 vision. I quickly noticed some movement and the telltale signs of sunlight reflecting on the woman’s scope. I immediately changed my gestures to one that I hoped said ‘come here!’ before giving a big ‘ol thumbs up. Can’t go wrong with a classic.
There was a pause as I continued my frantic waving and gesturing and as the woman just sat there, no doubt gauging her odds. A minute passed, maybe five, when the woman finally came out of her hiding spot and marched to where I was at. I also took notice that she had put away her sniper in favor of a sick looking sword.
I need this woman’s autograph.
My descent down eight floors was done in record time, including the time it took to clean up my makeshift stakeout/campsite. I nearly stumbled on the way down, but I caught myself relatively quickly. Once I hit the bottom, I didn’t even bother finding the doorway, I just vaulted out the nearest smashed window and out into the rugged cityscape.
I spun on a dime, looking for a flash of red and was pleasantly surprised to see the woman just standing there out in the open with her hands on her hips. She even had that questioning eyebrow lift. I grinned happily and waved to her before making my way through the rubble to her.
“What’s so important that…”
“Shhh. Can’t talk here, quick, follow me.” I gestured almost violently for silence before taking off east. I could tell the woman was cautious, but she followed anyway. We walked for a couple of blocks before I entered a relatively fine looking cafe. I had cleared out this section of the city a week ago, so it should be fine? I chuckled weakly and sat down on a chair and gestured for her to do the same.
“Alright, I’ll bite, why did we do that?” She placed her stuff to the side but I noticed that her sword was within reach. I grinned at that.
“There was a Darkling nest nearby. Talking would disturb them.” I stated, matter of factly.
“Hmm, so you shot the ground in hopes of getting my attention so I wouldn’t fall into their nest.”
“Exactly.” I nodded with pride. This woman gets it.
“I suppose that would lead to my next question, why were you in that building overlooking a Darkling nest?” Her eyes narrowed.
“I’m a hunter!” I thumped my fist against my chest with pride. “My goal is to clear Canterlot one Darkling at a time.”
“And how many have you killed?”
“13.” With each declaration, I could feel my chest puffing out more and more. “How many have you killed?”
“I lost count.”
“...” My eyes widened with awe. She looked unimpressed. Of course she was! With weapons like those, she must be a professional! She sighed heavily and that seemed to have snapped me out of my trance. I gasped and started rummaging through my backpack. I soon came up with a notepad and a pencil. “Can I have your autograph!?”
“Uh…what?” The woman was taken aback, but not entirely disgusted. I took that as I should continue my attack.
“It’s just, the moment I laid eyes on you, you seemed so cool! And the more I learn about you, the more I need this. So pleaaaase, sign your autograph?” I held it out and gave my best puppy eyes impression, not that I’ve seen a dog mind you, but I’ve read it in forgotten books scattered about.
She sighed. “Sure kid, pass me the notebook.” I passed it and she studied the notebook for a moment, then did a complicated scribble.
“Thank you! I will treasure this for the rest of my days.” I snapped off a fake salute before accepting the notebook back. I inspected the signature and marveled at how swirly and cool it looked.
“What’s your name, kid?”
“I’m not a kid, I’m 23.” I huffed out.
“Hmm, you would’ve been 5 then, when everything happened.” She nodded, seemingly lost in her own world. “Anyway, your name?”
I hesitated. My breath seemed to catch in my throat. The woman’s eyebrow was now raised. I cleared my throat and started again. “Uh, my name is Ke…Kanji. Kanji.”
The woman clearly didn’t believe me, but thankfully she didn’t press the issue. “Kanji. My name is Sunset.” She stuck out a hand which I grasped firmly. “Pleased to make your acquaintance.”
“Likewise.”
“Mind if I rummage in the back?” Sunset stood up and pointed to the door behind the cafe counter.
I shrugged. “Why do you ask, it’s not like I own this place.”
“It’s polite, you’ll understand when you’re older. Also, it seems that you’ve been in Canterlot a while, it’s practically your turf. I have to respect local authority.” She bowed graciously, with a hand on her chest and the other stretched out. I snorted.
“You have my permission to rummage through cafe supplies, knave.” My grin lasted five seconds until she smacked me over the head. “Urk…sorry, I thought it would be funny.”
She smirked at my displeasure before making her way to the counter. With nothing to do, I followed. She seemed to know what she was doing, checking out cupboards and sifting through drawers. Once she cleaned out the counter, she made a move towards the backdoor. I followed, yet again.
“So, uhhh, what are you doing here?” I asked as I tried to keep the awkwardness away. “Canterlot is really known for its safety or safe havens. By my last count, I’d say there’s five people in the whole city.”
“I’m trying to go home.” Sunset replied simply. She pulled down a box labeled beans and sighed when she realized it was coffee beans.
“Home. Canterlot?”
“Where else but the shining jewel of Equestria.”
“I was born here too.” I nodded sympathetically, completely missing her sarcasm.
“Oh, I didn’t say I was born here, it’s just where I’ve spent the best parts of my life.” She stopped for a moment and had a wistful smile that seemed to dance upon her lips. To say I was enthralled was an understatement but I reigned it in. “It doesn’t matter anymore. I just want to go home.”
“And do what?”
“...that’s the question, isn’t it.” Sunset rapped her fingers over a couple fridges before moving to the back where canned goods seemed to reside. “Visit my friends, I suppose.”
“Your friends?” I wanted to ask more but the wince Sunset made when I echoed her made me think otherwise. “Well, I’ve lived here my whole life, I could be your guide if you need someone.”
There was a pause. Sunset continued to look through the various cans, stuffing the occasional one into her bag, but any other manner of sound was lost to the broken city. Then she sighed and turned around. “You know what, sure. I haven’t been here since the outbreak, you probably know the safe routes.”
“Yes ma’am!”
“Don’t call me that, it makes me feel old.”
“Yes sir!” I got smacked over the head again.
***
“So where we headed first?” Was the first question I had asked when we exited. She had said Canterlot High School, or CHS for short. I had frowned, not knowing what it was. She then explained that it was in the center of the city. I grinned confidently and said to leave everything to me.
We emerged from the rubble of a skyscraper with a still working holo-ad, displaying chemical alternatives to grown produce. I looked around and gauged my surroundings before moving on yet again. A couple hundred meters away was our destination, but it was in the open. Darklings are hard to evade out in the open.
“Our six is clear, how’s it looking up ahead?” Sunset’s voice drifted up the rubble pile I was currently crouched upon.
“It looks alright for now. We should hurry.” I half slid half shuffled my way down the rubble pile and met up with Sunset. I held up my fingers and formed a three, then a two, then a one, and soon we were off. I sprinted across the tarmac with a body that had survived horrors and demonstrated resilience in the harshest of climates. Sunset passed me within seconds and it took another half a minute for me to reach the double doors when she had already slipped inside.
I wanted to crack a joke or complain about the unfairness of it all when I noticed Sunset was wistfully gazing at posters and trophy cabinets. I slowly followed her, like a ghost, as she drifted around, occasionally touching little things.
My gaze drifted over to a large notice board where large letters were hung. I squinted at it then turned to find Sunset again. “What does ski break mean?”
“It meant that nobody was at school.” She said simply before rounding a corner. I hustled after her.
For the next hour or two, we walked around, her with occasional comments and nostalgic remarks whilst I just stood there awkwardly. I was happy for her, I guess you could say, but I felt really out of place. Sunset must’ve noticed me fidgeting or something or other when she gave an apologetic smile.
“One last room, then we move on, okay?”
“Sure, whatever. Take your time.” She chuckled as I smiled awkwardly. “Out of interest, which room are we going to?”
“Principal office.” She climbed up the stairs and marched to a heavy looking wooden door. I quickly followed but kept a respectful distance. As such, I merely watched as she steeled herself and then opened the door.
Curiosity got the better of me and I followed her in. It seemed normal enough, a desk and a chair, a few doors that probably lead to more offices and maybe a bathroom. On the back wall, interestingly enough, was a row of portraits. Each picture was of a singular person who either wore a dress or a suit along with the exact same looking crown. Above the pictures said ‘Fall Formal Princess’.
Sunset whispered something I couldn’t quite catch and moved to one of those pictures. I looked over her shoulder and was surprised to see Sunset there, but not the kindly almost motherly Sunset I knew. No, this Sunset looked horrible and mean. She caught me looking at the picture and chuckled.
“My delinquent days. I was a real pain back then, but I met somebody who turned that all around.” She placed a hand on the next painting, a girl with black, almost purplish hair. She was laughing and exuded this aura that even I could feel through the photo. “My best friend in the whole world. Well, I guess the principal helped too.”
“What was her name?”
“Ah, sorry kid, this one I’m going to keep to myself. If you really want to know, I bet you’ll find yearbooks somewhere in this school. For now, let’s go to our next destination, okay?”
“Okay.” She made a move to walk away when she noticed something. I followed her gaze and saw a dark and old stain underneath one of the doorways that lead into an office. I looked back at Sunset and got startled at the sudden darkness that covered her face. “Sunset?”
“Get a shovel, kid, and then dig a hole.” Her voice was hollow and raspy.
“Wha…what?”
“A shovel, then dig. Don’t make me repeat myself.” She was trembling.
“And what…a shovel, then dig. Okay.” I turned around and fled. I didn’t know what else to do. A shovel was surprisingly easy enough to find, I found it in the gardening club, whatever that meant. I pondered on whether or not I should’ve gone back and done something, anything. In the end, I just walked the hallways that lead to the back of the school.
When I got outside, I was surprised to see quite a few mounds already. Each had a makeshift marker made from rubble. From the state of the soil and the surrounding areas, I would say they had been there for several years, if not a decade. I hefted my shovel and started looking for a relatively undisturbed plot of soil.
It was when I passed a large oak that I noticed a skeleton resting against said oak. The tree was on top of a small hill and the way the skeleton was positioned made it so it could overlook the entire campus but made it hard for it to be seen from below. Out of some bizarre instinct, I found myself nodding with respect to the skeleton and passed it. When I did, I noticed it too had a shovel of a similar make to the one I had found. I nodded again and continued looking for a plot of soil.
I was mid dig when I heard it. My mother called it the banshee scream of grief. My friend once said it reminded him of a seal getting attacked by a predator. I had laughed back then, wondering how he knew what that sounded like. Since then, I’ve heard it too many times, but that day felt…worse. A tear slipped past, but I tried to ignore it all and continued digging.
***
The whole process took longer than I would have liked and by the time we were done, night had fallen. We decided to take refuge in a homeroom. We didn’t say much that night, nor did we try to. It felt excruciatingly long but also unbearably short. The paradox of time I suppose.
In the morning, Sunset asked if I could lead her to several more locations. This time, she promised, it wouldn’t take as long as it did the previous day. I agreed and led her around. The first location was a bakery. She explained that one of her friends lived and worked there. Her and her group of friends supposedly spent countless hours there, just laughing and coming up with plans on how to tackle school or group problems. I turned around, respectively, when tears started to fall.
The second location was a boutique, interestingly enough. Another friend’s household/business. Her passion for dresses caused their group of friends, as well as others, a lot of grief, Sunset explained, half sobbing half laughing.
The third was just a simple house with a large garage. There was a really old sign in the garden that said ‘for sale’. The friend that lived here was supposedly a tech wizard. Went on to Swirl Labs, a famous technology institute or something like that. It got kind of hard to hear what she was saying once the tissues were out.
The fourth was an animal shelter. We took a peek inside and took note that all of the cages and doors were wide open. Sunset chuckled at that and said that the friend who worked here, had set them free when it happened. She smiled sadly as she stroked a terrarium. She said she got her pet lizard here.
The next one was the local sports field. Sunset snapped the lock to the shed with surprising ease and brought out a soccer ball. She grinned before snapping an absolute cannon of a leg, driving the ball into the goal from across the entire field. I stood there, open mouthed. She chuckled and said that her sporty friend could do that but 20 percent more cooler.
The last one was probably the hardest one, at least from what I could tell. It was the large farm entirely south of Canterlot. The trek was a bit much and we had to spend the night in a ruined skyscraper. We had to skirt a couple of nests I luckily spotted before we fell into them. It was midday when the farm finally came into view. My legs were starting to hurt, but I pressed on because Sunset kept on going.
She walked towards it as if in a trance. I groaned but followed as I had no better option. The closer we got, the more familiar it seemed. That’s when it hit me. This was the house I got my FarShot from. When I mentioned it to Sunset, she smiled sadly.
“Yeah, my friend whose family had worked this farm for generations, were also expert gunsmiths. Well, her grandmother used to be. My WeitShot was a gift from her.” She patted the sniper on her back almost affectionately. “I have them to thank that I'm still alive, so I would like to pay my due respects.”
I nodded, almost solemnly, and followed her as she maneuvered her way through the overgrown apple orchard. We passed a farmhouse where she said they used to hang out in a lot, then we passed by a rickety old tree house which Sunset explained her friend’s sister and her friends used to hang out in, before finally coming to a stop at a very large tree. I looked up at it and was surprised to see two different types of fruit growing from the branches. They looked so delicious that I wanted to grab out and take one, but the stern look from Sunset made me think otherwise.
“What’s so spe…” My voice trailed off once I noticed several distinct bumps in the earth. Each had what seemed to be handcrafted markers, each one intricately detailed and personalized. A balloon there, a cloud here. Each had its own picture. Then Sunset began to cry. Not the sad, reminiscent kind of crying, but the heartbroken wail of someone who has lost too much. I pitifully excused myself and walked out of the grove.
I wandered for what might have been hours, maybe even just a minute. However long it was, it was Sunset who found me cuddled up in the treehouse, trying to bury away my own tears. She smiled softly, but it didn’t hold any warmth nor any coldness. Just one of acceptance and understanding.
“He…hey Sunset.”
“Hey kid.”
“...nice weather we’re having.”
“It’s not too bad.”
“Good for long walks in the city.”
“Yeah.” The pause was long but not unwelcome. “Hey, if you want to talk about it, I’m a pretty good listener.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
I sniffed and wiped my face aggressively and several times for good measure. I took a calming breath and then stood up. Sunset looked at me questioningly. “You said you came here to go home right?”
“Right.”
“Maybe it’s about time I go home myself.”
“I think that’s a mighty fine idea.”
***
I walked alone along the broken roads and buildings, stopping every once in a while to scan for any Darklings. When nothing would pop up, I shuffled forward as quickly as I dared. Soon enough, I found myself at my destination. A small park, hidden in a little pocket of a nice community, the one I had grown up in.
I walked forward hesitantly. Fear was trying to keep me in place, fear of failure, of truth, of reality. But Sunset urged me forward, with her kind words, her quiet strength, and her courage to go home. All it took was one step at a time.
When I finally stepped inside the park, a shiver traveled up my spine, but it wasn’t unpleasant. I took a few more steps, then more and more, until I found myself in front of a mound of my own making. My legs gave out and I let myself slide down and sat where I fell.
“Heh. Hey Kanji, hey mom. It’s been a while.” I chuckled humorlessly. I scratched the back of my head. “I’ve been busy, hunting Darklings, finding more ways to survive, and exploring the city.” A pregnant pause. “I met a girl. Well, woman I suppose. Older woman. No! It’s not like that. It’s…heh, more complicated than that. We’re more acquaintances than anything. I helped her out a little and through that, I learned a bit more about myself and other people. It uhh, opened up my eyes as cliche as it sounds. You would’ve liked her, mom. No, Kanji, I won’t introduce you two. You’re bad enough as it is…as it was.” I sighed heavily and felt my cheeks grow wet and bothered. I sniffled. “I miss you guys so, so much.”
I stood up, somehow found my strength, and dusted my pants. I grinned weakly and snapped off a mock salute. “I’ll see you later, okay? Promise. Now, I just have to deliver something.”
I pulled out a little metal stick. Sunset had pressed it into my hand just before we went our separate ways. She explained that it was an external hard drive that contained information on the Darklings, their weaknesses and possible solutions to their outbreak. She also heavily suggested that I would deliver this to some army. She recommended the army outpost that bordered Equestria and Nachbarn.
I had asked her why but I only got a smile in response. She had ruffled my hair and simply waved goodbye before disappearing around a corner. I tried running after her but when I rounded the very same corner, she was gone.
Now here I stood, the farthest I’d ever been, and took a deep breath. If Sunset could do it, then I could do it too. After all, all it takes is a single step.
What follows has been debated upon for decades. Some claim that Sunset continued on her path and eventually found herself in a different country and made a life for herself there. Others claim she was never a person to begin with, that the whole story was made up to serve as a fairy tale to spread morals. A minority believe that she disappeared from the realm of humanity and all its vices.
All theories have their place amongst historians and story collectors. Many of which are plausible even if they are a bit dark. Like the controversial suicide ending or the running gag of her getting lost in the maze that is Canterlot. Whatever the case, Sunset’s story and the people whose lives she touched will forever remain in our hearts.
But do you know what I believe? I believe she simply went home and was content.
Author's Note
Thank you from the bottom of my heart if you are reading this. I truly put my heart and soul into this project and I hoped you enjoyed it. May your day/night be a good one.
I groaned as I stretched out my legs, then I slowly blinked open my weary eyes. The muddy trenches greeted me with a similar tired grimace. I chuckled for a spell, wondering where my mind was going. A curse brought my attention elsewhere. To my left, crouched over a broken box, sat my buddy.
“Yo, Rye, ya good?” He looked up, grime smeared over his normally handsome features, and frowned.
“Flakes.” Rye kicked the now useless box aside, revealing a handful of potatoes stuck in the mud. “I’m good. Dunno ‘bout these potas though.”
“Mmm, yeah, boss ain’t gonna like that. Here, let’s clean it up ‘fore he sees it.” I whipped out my canteen and scurried over to his side, keeping my head down all the while. There hasn’t been a reported attack in several weeks now, but you never know. I uncorked the flask and quickly washed off the potatoes that Rye was cradling. I stared mournfully as my precious golden firewater cleaned up the mud.
“Thanks man, ya sure ya wanted to do that though? Firewater is hard to come by these days. I could’ve taken the blows.” Rye wrinkled his brow as he gazed upon mine. I gave a small smile and patted him on the shoulder, opting to not give an answer.
“The potas our ration?”
“Yeah. It was dished out by that cute girl again. Ya know, the one with the red ribbon?”
“I remember.” I chuckled at the sight of Rye’s smitten smile. “I also remember that she has her eyes on someone else. Keep yourself in check.”
“Yeah, yeah…I know.” Rye’s smile didn’t exactly disappear, but his shoulder visibly slumped. “Les get these to our unit.”
We crouched and shuffled our way through the trenches and made our way to the small bunker that served as our unit’s outpost. Rim and Geom were already there, playing cards on a wooden plank and using dried out mud clods as chips. The boss was nowhere to be seen. I sat down with them, pulled out my own bag of mud chips and asked to be dealt in the next round. Meanwhile, Rye placed the rescued potatoes in our only bowl that sat in a corner of the bunker.
“Hey Flakes. Saw ya nappin’ earlier. Yer lucky the boss was out.” Rim chuckled heartily and scraped all the cards into a deck again. He then expertly shuffled and dealt the cards out. I checked after the cards were dealt and scoffed inwardly. A terrible hand. I placed a large mud chip and put on my cockiest grin.
“Ooooh, looks like Flakes is fishing again. Poor fella.” Geom met my grin with an even more confident smirk. He made sure that our eyes met and held it there while he slowly placed two mud chips in.
“Well, ya never know, ya never know.” Rim dealt out a red four which did not match my hand at all. He flipped up another card, revealing a witch. Inwardly, I sank even further into my misery. My day after this is going to suck. I added two more chips.
Inside the bunker, Rye finished polishing up the potatoes even more before grabbing a sack. He made himself comfortable against a wall and got in a position to play. “Anybody’s got a request?”
“The Garden.” Geom said immediately, moments before Rim could open his mouth. He stared indignantly at him.
“How do ya always know?”
“You always pick The Garden. It’s like the only song you know.” Geom snickered before flipping a mud chip at Rye. He deftly caught it and threw a thumbs up.
“Oi, are ya gonna deal or what?” I muttered, waiting, praying, for that final card flip that’ll change everything. Rim apologized and then immediately dealt out a crown. I threw my hand down in disgust. Geom, the punchable guy he was, chuckled and picked up the chips I had earned the previous night. I sighed and scooted myself to the side so I could have a trench wall at my back.
Rye cleared his throat, took a deep breath then pressed the sack to his face. He then began to sing, the sack muffled and added reverb to his voice.
I used to know a girl, who saw the world for what it was.
I used to know a garden, who housed a tiger without claws.
Her silken voice, entrancing. Its floral embrace, enchanting.
I used to kn…
“Ahem.” Rye immediately stopped and the unit looked up at the imposing figure whose shadow seemed to have blotted out the sun.
“Sir.” We chorused.
“Soldiers, back to your posts. The General is planning to use the Right Wing to gain ground. Our unit alongside the Middle Wing will provide support. Get ready.” The boss turned on a dime, impressive with how all of us are either crouching or sitting, taking up the majority of the space. He soon disappeared down the trench that led to the rest of Middle Wing.
There was a moment of hesitation. We had just gotten comfortable and I for one, really did not want to get back into that awkward crouched position. Rye was the first one to move, grumbling all the while. He patted my back on the way out before bumbling his way down to the left. I bid Rim and Geom adieu and followed. I stopped before he did and shuffled onto my belly, making sure my head was barely visible above the muddied parapet. A quick scan of my surroundings showed me exactly what I expected.
An outline of a nearby abandoned village, a mere 500 meters away. Besides that, a scorched plain as far as the eye could see. There had been much speculations amongst the units about why we hadn’t taken the village, the most popular theory right now was that a nest of Darklings had made its home there. If that truly were the case, then why were they, the Nachbarn Anti Darkling Division (NADD for short), still held up in the trenches. I hadn’t really gave it much thought, simply concerns bigger than myself.
I sighed and picked up the rifle I had stashed the night before. A fourth generation FarShot, equipped with laser targeting and a thermal scope. Standard issue for recon types like myself. My little inspection reminded me of that, the entire reason why I was in this unit in the first place. I sighed again and lined up my gun towards the village and peered through the thermal scope. As I was trained to spot the differences between all the things that could produce or store heat, I could easily locate any abnormalities, should any arise.
“Great.” I muttered and flopped onto my back and let the cold of the mud seep into my body. It was an unpleasant feeling but not unwelcoming. It helped passed the time, focusing on the cold. I peered at the lands we were defending. The country of Nachbarn. Only a month after the catastrophe, President Filo made an emergency decree and the NADD was made. The following months were brutal from what I’ve heard. You’d be hard pressed to find a veteran who lived through those days. Since then, the years have been mostly bloodless, a battle happening every once in a while. But the skirmishes were frequent enough to have a 24/7 watch in the trenches. I was one of the unlucky to be drafted a year ago, not that it mattered. I probably would’ve volunteered.
I sighed. Those moments always made me melancholic. I wondered when the Right Wing would make their move. Those moments were usually signaled through a small rumbling under the ground. I shook involuntarily and shivered. The cold was getting a bit too much and I prepared to roll back to my position when I noticed a hazy figure making its way across the barren lands of Nachbarn. My mouth fell open. I swung my FarShot a full one eighty and peered through my thermal scope.
“Oi, Flakes! Wrong way.” I ignored Rye and kept on looking, wondering if my boredom had finally created a hallucination. Nope. The thermal scope picked out a heat signature of a person. I let the gun drop in awe. “Flakes, what’s gotten into ya?”
I looked up and saw Rye hovering over me with a concerned expression. I chuckled with a tinge of hysteria. I pressed my gun into his hands and pointed at the figure in the distance. It was simply inconceivable that a person would just be casually strolling topside like that. Barbed wire, landmines, and turrets littered the entire field should Darklings ever break through the frontlines. There was also the fact that this person slipped past the final line of defenses too, a giant wall complete with military outposts. And to make matters worse, the person was coming straight towards them.
“Ah, I see now.” Rye lowered my gun and struck a pondering pose.
“What should we do?” I hissed as I frantically looked up and down the trench. Nobody in sight. Rim and Geom’s posts were on the far side and the nearest unit was an even further trek. “Civvies aren’t supposed to be here!”
“How do ya know that’s a civilian? Could be a General or someone even higher. I mean, it ain’t everyday ya see a person walk casually over topside.” Rye reasoned before looking through my gun again. “Huh, she’s not wearing any uniform.”
“There’s no ping! Only civvies get no pings. Also…she?”
“Yeah, it’s a woman.” Rye chuckled and passed me my gun. I took a peek and sure enough, a woman in civilian clothing walked towards us, easily sidestepping mines and barbed wire. Then I blinked.
“Hold on, how did ya turn off the thermal?” I looked at my gun with confusion.
“The button that side thermal, nugget.”
I sighed and leant back into the mud. “This situation is too bizarre. How ‘bout we don’t do anything ‘bout it. Let brass handle it, surely they’ve seen her.”
“Sounds…” Rye broke off what he was going to say as the ground started rumbling. He immediately scrambled over to his post while I fumbled around with my gun.
I took a deep breath and closed the world around me, focusing my entire body and soul to one purpose. I maneuvered into the optimal sniping position and looked through the scope. Soldiers who were registered in the database had nametags in the scope’s heads up display. Over 200 of them made a mad dash over no-man’s land. 54 units from Right Wing.
I watched as the unit leaders, marked by a star by the HUD, rushed ahead another good 100 meters or so before chucking a small cube. Those 54 cubes began whirring, a noise even I could hear from such a distance, and a trench started to form. TerraCubes, invented for anybody to make a quick hole should the need arise. The stupid idea was then taken by the military and advanced it to the point where multiple TerraCubes could dig out a trench within seconds.
The unit leaders slid across the ground and dropped into the new trenches then immediately planted turrets and aimed their RapidShots towards the abandoned village while the rest of their units scrambled to catch up.
A silence followed.
Five.
Ten.
Fifteen minutes.
I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding and eased my shoulders slightly.
As per regulation combined with pure nerves, I continued to keep a vigilant lookout for the next hour. I didn’t let up until Rye tapped me on the shoulder. I groaned as feeling flooded back into my body and had him heave me up to my feet.
“Thanks Rye.”
“Don’t mention it.” He patted me on the shoulder then did that awkward crouch shuffle back to the bunker. I chuckled as weariness settled into my bones and followed.
When we arrived, Rim and Geom were already there, yet again. Rim cracked a grin when he saw us and held up his deck of cards. Rye and I sat down and fished out our bag of mud chips and waited to be dealt.
“Can I join?”
The effect was immense. Unlike the boss or any other military grunt, we knew their presence and what kind of aura they emit. Whoever this person was, they were completely foreign. I dove to the left and simultaneously grabbed the pistol strapped to my leg. From the corner of my eye, I saw Rye go right, into the bunker where spare guns lay, Geom kicked up the wooden board, scattering the cards and whipped out the sword he always had strapped on his back, as for Rim, he dove forward underneath the kicked up board, and rolled up with his own pistol crouched behind Geom, and faced the intruder.
We panted, weapons drawn, as the sudden adrenaline spike dipped once we noticed that the intruder was no other than a woman. A woman who was leaning casually against the trench wall, her head well above the parapet. My aim dropped as I immediately recognized her as the woman who was topside two hours ago. I groaned and ragdolled, mentally exhausted.
“Oh, come off it!” Rim flung his pistol to the ground and slumped to the side as well.
“Woah.” From my flopped position, I barely made out the woman’s surprised expression. “Uh, I come in peace?”
“Yer that woman from earlier.” Rye said, his head barely in my field of view.
“Woman?” Geom hadn’t lowered his sword.
“Yeah, the one who was crossing topside like it was a stroll in the park.” I answered, not even bothering to get up. That flopped position felt like a comfy bed after all those tense situations. “Also, lady, could ya duck down like the rest of us? Yer exposed head could give us away.”
“Ah, sorry.” She ducked down and raised her hands in the air. “Could you tell your friend to lower his sword?”
“I’d rather not.” Rim muttered. “A woman who crossed topside like it was nothing strikes me as suspicious. I’m sure the rest of the lads think so too. Geom, whaddya think?”
The four of us glanced at him. Out of our unit, the boss included, Geom was the best when it came to people. Could read them like a book. His eyes narrowed as he peered down at the woman. She smiled nervously.
I took that moment to fully look at her. A decent figure, athletic, fit. Good curves too. Her facial structure was attractive, complete with sharp but kindly teal eyes, and her hair was as red as dusk over the barren lands of topside. Her clothes were what gave her away as a civilian. Black sweatpants, purple t-shirt, sturdy combat boots, and to top it all off, a black leather jacket with a sunset icon stitched into the right sleeve. What surprised me the most was the giant sniper slung over her back. Once I noticed that, I spotted a few other things. Despite being civilian clothing, they were scratched up, dirtied, and had patches everywhere. She also had a belt that looked suspiciously militaristic, no doubt packed with ammunition and other tools.
“She’s good.” Geom sheathed his sword and went about cleaning up the mess. There was an audible sigh of relief from the woman.
“Thank you.”
“I believe this goes without saying, but just in case, should you misbehave, we won’t hesitate to put you down.” Geom flicked the thrown pistol over to Rim who deftly caught it.
“Right.” The woman flopped to the ground as well. “Makes sense.”
I groaned heavily and heaved myself over to the upturned plank. This was a much better position to see everything. It was here that I saw that Rye had pulled out our unit’s only shotgun and was now storing it away.
“So, whatcha doing here?” I asked. It must’ve been a sorry sight, an exhausted soldier, belly down, and mud everywhere. “I mean, it ain’t everyday somebody walks topside.”
“I’m trying to get home.” She replied. Geom nodded indicating that she wasn’t lying. I took that into consideration.
“Home. Where’s that?” She simply gazed over no-man’s land. “Ya can’t be serious.”
“Deadly serious.”
“Power to ya, lady.” Rim said and gave a mock salute. “I admire those who know what they want and will do anything for it.”
“Ya sure?” Rye asked while he helped Geom pick up the cards and mud chips. “Darklings are all over Equestria, surely there ain’t anybody left.”
“I’m sure. I’ve had 15 years to be sure.” She spoke with such conviction I couldn’t help but be in awe.
“Oh, what yer name?” I realized, then mentally smacked myself for how desperate I sounded.
“Wouldn’t it be more polite for the hosts to introduce themselves?” She replied with a smirk.
“Ah…my name is Flakes. This here is Rye. Geom and Rim. Unit 42 of Middle Wing.”
“Nice to meet you. My name is Sunset.”
“That’s a beautiful name.”
“You think? Thank you.” She smiled down at me and suddenly I felt very conscious of what I was wearing. I hastily scrambled to a sitting position and did my best to brush off the mud sticking to my uniform. Her chuckle made my ears burn which then turned a fiery red when I saw the other three trying their hardest to keep it in. I sigh and slump against a wall in defeat.
“Deal me in.”
“Ya got it, Flakes.” Rim grabbed the finished deck from Geom and began shuffling. The rest of us gathered round and explained the rules to Sunset. We played a couple of test matches, and the results did not bode well for me. After that, we played about ten more games before I decided to strike up a conversation.
“So, Sunset. How’d you get a sniper like that? I’ve never seen the model.”
“Oh, this bad boy? Yep, custom made. She called it a WeitShot. Make what you will with that.” Sunset unslung the sniper and presented it to the group. After handling a few snipers during my time in recon training, I recognized the superb craftsmanship that went into it. Light but powerful. I opened my mouth to ask another question, but a red flare burst overhead.
Training kicked in as Rye and I dashed down the trench, making sure to keep our heads under. I reached my post first as I skidded into the dip that served as my sniper nest. I quickly snatched up my FarShot and scanned the horizon for any movement.
There!
Three large dark shapes hurtled toward the new Right Wing. The scope’s HUD marked them as Darklings and without hesitation, I fired. The pleasant and relatively quiet afternoon was now filled with gunfire from every direction. There was the occasional scream or curse, but other than that, it was a constant thrum of bullets.
Five minutes later, it was quiet. The HUD announced them dead with the appropriate skull and bones icon over their corpses. There were a few more hovering over the new trenches which caused a pang in my heart. I let myself slump down and took my first conscious breath, then another. It never gets any easier.
“FLAKES! TEN O’CLOCK!”
I bolted upwards and chambered another cartridge and swung my gun to the left. I barely registered two more Darklings bearing down towards our unit before I fired a round straight through the chest of one. Anybody could tell you that a single bullet, even if it came from a FarShot, would not be able to take down a Darkling. I fired again, and again, and again. The corpse flopped directly in front of my post. I gasped and jumped backward, which immediately proved to be a mistake. My footing found no purchase and the ground came rushing upwards. I was a mess when Rye hauled me up to my feet and all but demanded me to move.
I followed his lead as the two of us pushed through the trenches, up to where the second Darkling was causing havoc. Rye burst past the bunker and was promptly smacked to the side by a ginormous obsidian claw. I shrieked and slipped on some mud, sending me to the ground yet again.
My senses were immediately flooded with shouting, screaming, and guttural roars. I groaned as I pushed my useless arms to do my bidding. I chambered a round and fired. A putrid green liquid oozed out of its head but it didn’t pay any attention to me. Instead, it bounded towards Geom’s post. I cursed and scrambled to get my legs and pushed my aching muscles forwards.
When I slid into the next trench, all I could see was blood and that monster standing over my friend. I screamed myself hoarse as I chambered yet another round and fired point blank. The Darkling roared and whipped its spiked tail into my chest. Gravity disappeared as well as my breath. That split second turned into agony when I slammed into the trench wall. Breathing became hard and some part of my brain concluded that I was dying.
No!
I lifted my head, determined to fire another shot at the very least. Instead a beautiful sight filled my vision. The sun's rays spilled its golden rays over the barren lands, silhouetting the Darkling and a woman straddling said Darkling. The monster bucked upwards which sent Sunset high into the sky. Instead of screaming or losing control, she merely unslung her WeitShot and took aim. I gaped in shock as she hurtled closer to the Darkling’s open jaws. Time seemed to slow as Sunset fired. The recoil pushed her slightly to the side, away from the Darkling. As for the round, it went straight down through the Darkling’s gullet and split the beast in half. The monster choked out an attempt at a roar before coughing and then ultimately collapsed on its side.
I watched mournfully as its green blood mixed with the blood of Geom. A sob threatened to burst out of my cracked ribs. The pain reminded me of my own plight and I looked down. My chest was a mess. My uniform was shredded, parts of my ribcage had caved in and from a nasty looking hole, dark blood had seeped out at a concerning pace. I chuckled brokenly, there was no saving me.
I rolled my head to the right and saw Rye’s broken body further down the trench. There was no movement. Good. He didn’t suffer. I rolled my head back to the Darkling’s corpse. I choked out a greeting when I saw Rim struggling to climb the corpse. He eventually made it over and allowed himself to fall forwards. On instinct, I tried to move to his aide, but the excruciating pain held me in place. Rim placed his bloodied hands on the ground and pushed himself upwards. He scanned the carnage before his eyes locked on mine. I gave him a smile that felt more like a grimace.
He chuckled wetly and pushed himself over to me. It lasted an agonizing amount of time, but he ultimately made it to my side. He flipped himself so his back was against the wall and his shoulder was touching mine. From my peripheral I could see his injuries, or more accurately, a black spike buried into his side.
“He…hey Flakes.” His voice was raspy and wet.
“Hi Rim.” Those two words left me breathless. I wanted to cough, but it came out more like a wheeze. Also, it hurt like hell.
“Good…good run.”
“Ay…aye.”
I closed my eyes. It felt so nice, so refreshing, inviting even. A noise interrupted my peace. I opened my eyes and saw Sunset crouched over the remains of Geom. She had her hands clasped and I saw her mouth move with what I would imagine a prayer would be. After she was done she looked over to where we were. Her eyes softened when she noticed our wounds. I looked over to Rim and noticed that he wasn’t breathing. I turned back.
“Hi…unset.” Blood spilled through my teeth.
“Hi Flakes.” She said sadly. She walked over to where I was but her boot clanged into something. Geom’s sword.
“Take…” I coughed out more blood. My vision dimmed a little. It was too much effort to keep my head up. I let it drop. “Take it.”
“Okay.”
“G’bye…set.” I closed my eyes again and let the peace wash over me.
“Goodbye Flakes.”
